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Xi delivers video speech to opening ceremony of UNCTAD 60th anniversary celebration

Xinhua) 08:04, June 13, 2024

Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a video speech to the opening ceremony of the celebration for the 60th anniversary of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

BEIJING, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Wednesday delivered a video speech to the opening ceremony of the celebration for the 60th anniversary of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

Xi pointed out that over the past 60 years since its founding, in light of its mission to achieve prosperity for all, UNCTAD has vigorously advanced South-South cooperation, advocated North-South dialogue, promoted a new international economic order, and made important contributions to global trade and development.

Noting that the world today is undergoing faster changes unseen in a century, and peace and development is confronted with new challenges, Xi said all sides must assume their responsibilities for history and the people, keep to the right direction, and work together to build a community with a shared future for humanity.

Xi called on all sides to foster an international environment for peaceful development. All countries, major ones in particular, should pursue true multilateralism, advocate an equal and orderly multipolar world, abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and support a more effective role of UNCTAD and other multilateral agencies.

All sides need to follow the trend toward open development, Xi said, calling for advocating universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization, promoting trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, properly resolving development imbalance and other issues, and making the global governance system more just and equitable.

Xi also said that all sides need to harness the historic opportunity for innovation-driven development. It is important to build an open, inclusive and non-discriminatory environment for the digital economy, follow the people-centered, AI-for-good principle and strengthen AI-related rules and governance within the framework of the United Nations, actively advance green transition, and help developing countries join the trend of digital, smart and green development.

Stressing that this year marks the 75th founding anniversary of the People's Republic of China, Xi said the country is advancing Chinese modernization on all fronts through high-quality development, which will provide new and greater opportunities for world development.

Xi said China will always be a member of the Global South and the developing world, adding that China will actively seek to import more from other developing countries, step up cooperation in trade, investment and development, and help implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Holding humanity's future and people's well-being close to its heart, China will work together with all parties to give the world a bright future of peace, security, prosperity and progress, Xi noted.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Senator Alan Peter Cayetano thanked Hong Kong for its enduring partnership with the Philippines despite global challenges.

There are many conflicts around the world, but somehow in this part of the world, we found a way to be one family, said Cayetano at the recent celebration of the 126th Philippine Independence Day hosted by the Consulate General of the Philippines in Hong Kong on Wednesday, June 12.

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The senator reflected on the unique bond that transcends typical international relations.

Drawing on a metaphor from foundational education, Cayetano described the Philippines relationship with Hong Kong through what he called the 3 Rs: Resilient, Relevant, and Reliable. These qualities, he suggested, are as fundamental to their bilateral ties as reading, writing, and arithmetic are to early education.

If you ask me to describe our relationship with Hong Kong in particular, and China in general, it is resilient. There are issues and problems [that we face], but we always find a way to become brothers and sisters again, Cayetano explained.

He underscored that despite occasional challenges, the resilience of their relationship always brings them back together, reinforcing their bond.

Cayetano elaborated on how both regions remain crucial to each others well-being, especially during crises.

Whatever the problems are, such as economics, transportation, and the pandemic, we find a way to be relevant to each other, he said.

This mutual relevance ensures that both countries support each other in meaningful ways, adapting to changing circumstances and needs.

When you need us, we will be there for you, and when we need you, youre always there for us, Cayetano added, emphasizing the reciprocal nature of their relationship.

Concluding his speech, Cayetano thanked Paul Chan Mo-po, the Financial Secretary of Hong Kong, for his presence and support. He called for the sustained strength of their partnership, encouraging both regions to continue being resilient, relevant, and reliable as they navigate an ever-evolving world.

There are more or less 200,000 overseas Filipino workers in Hong Kong, according to the latest estimates of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW). Hong Kong is also a popular destination among Filipino tourists.
A disturbed Vietnamese woman safely returned to her home country after Immigration officers ensured her safe departure from the country, the Bureau of Immigration (BI) announced on Thursday.

The Vietnamese woman, whose identity was not disclosed per immigration guidelines, appeared for immigration departure clearance at Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 3 before boarding a Cebu Pacific Airlines flight bound for Hanoi.

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During a routine immigration inspection, she unexpectedly began to undress and walked naked towards the Office of Transportation Security (OTS), raising immediate concerns on her mental health and necessitating assistance from the airline.

Considering the incident and to ensure the safety and comfort of the Vietnamese national, the BI officers decided to seek assistance from the concerned airline, said Immigration Commissioner Norman Tansingco.

Recognizing the need for additional assistance, the airline deferred her departure to ensure she received the appropriate support and protection.

After full compliance with immigration assessment and regulations, the woman was allowed to board the next available flight. She departed without further incident and is now back safely in Vietnam.
Sydney, Australia  A saltwater crocodile terrorized a remote Australian community by snapping up dogs and lunging at kids  only to meet its end in a feast cooked up by locals.

The 3.6-meter reptile had been stalking and lunging out of the water at children and adults, Northern Territory police said in a statement.

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The crocodile had also reportedly taken multiple community dogs.

After talking to elders and traditional landowners in the Bulla community, police shot and killed the scaly predator on Tuesday, police said.

The community prepared it for a feast in the traditional manner, they said.

The crocodile had migrated during floods earlier in the year into a river near homes in the area, about six hours drive south of Darwin, police said.

The animal ended up as the main ingredient in various meals, Sergeant Andrew McBride told Australian public broadcaster ABC.

I believe he was cooked up into crocodile tail soup, it was on the barbecue, a few pieces were wrapped up in banana leaves and cooked underground, McBride said.

There was a rather large traditional feast.
President Marcos welcomed Hungarys Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Peter Szijjarto, at Malacanan Palace on Thursday to discuss enhancing economic cooperation.

Im very happy to welcome you once again to the Philippines, President Marcos told Szijjarto during the meeting.

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The 50th commemoration of our formal ties, and I hope that with all that is happening around the world and all of the opportunitiesof course, there are challenges, and all the opportunities also that isthat well be able to hopefully forge new relationships, he added.

Szijjarto, on his third visit, highlighted ongoing collaboration to deepen bilateral relations and Hungarys supportive stance in international discussions involving Philippine interests.

He highlighted ongoing efforts with the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to enhance bilateral relations, underscoring Hungarys supportive stance in international forums regarding Philippine affairs.

Mr. President, thank you so much for receiving me. Thank you so much for the invitation. You have great secretaries with whom Ill be working together for a long time. This is the third occasion that I have the honor to visit your fantastic country, Szijjarto told President Marcos.

Hungary stands as the Philippines 46th trading partner, with significant Filipino contributions in automotive, hospitality, and logistics sectors.
The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) confirms the deaths of three overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in a fire at their building early Wednesday.

Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said the three, who died from smoke inhalation, were part of a group of 11 OFWs, all working for the same Kuwaiti construction company housed in the building that caught fire.

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Two other OFWs remain in the hospital and are in critical condition, while the remaining six are all safe and unharmed.

Cacdac instructed the Migrant Workers Office in Kuwait (MWO-Kuwait) and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Welfare Office to coordinate their efforts with the Philippine Embassy in Kuwait (PE-Kuwait) under Ambassador Jose Cabrera for the repatriation of the three workers remains.

Cacdac said he and OWWA Administrator Arnell Ignacio are personally reaching out to all the families and relatives of the 11 OFWs.

We are in touch with the families of all the affected OFWs, including the families of those two in critical condition and the families of the three fatalities. Six of them are now safe and provided with their immediate needs. We will provide all the necessary assistance and support to the OFWs and their families in this difficult time as directed by the President, said Cacdac.

Kuwait authorities reported that the fire started at about 4:30 a.m. on Wednesday, 12 June 2024 (9:30 a.m. in Manila) in the six-storey building that served as a housing and dormitory facility for nearly 200 foreign workers.

Flames engulfed the lower floors as black smoke poured out of the upper-storey windows, unverified images posted on social media showed.

The Kuwait interior ministry revised the death toll up to 49, from 35 issued earlier, after forensic teams scoured the charred building.

The official Kuwait News Agency quoted Health Minister Ahmed al-Awadhi as saying hospitals had received 56 people injured in the fire in the Mangaf area, which is heavily populated with migrant labourers.

Oil-rich Kuwait has large numbers of foreign workers, many of them from South and Southeast Asia, and mostly working in construction or service industries.

A source in the fire department said the victims suffocated from rising smoke after the fire started at the buildings base.

A foreign ministry statement said the fire claimed the lives of 49 people residing in the State of Kuwait, amending an earlier statement that said they were all Indian citizens.

Indias Prime Minister Narendra Modi had previously called the disaster saddening in a post on social media platform X.

My thoughts are with all those who have lost their near and dear ones, wrote Modi, as the Indian embassy in Kuwait set up an emergency helpline for updates. With AFP
The Philippines and India reaffirmed their commitment to strengthen defense and military cooperation during a meeting.

Major General Samarth Nagar, Head of Delegation of the National Defense College (NDC) of India recently went on a courtesy call to Assistant Secretary for Strategic Assessments and International Affairs, Marita I. Yoro, CESO III, at the Department of National Defense (DND) on June 4.

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Yoro conveyed the DNDs readiness to host the delegation for the 5th Philippines-India Joint Defense Cooperation Committee IDCC and 3rd Service-to-Service (STS) Meetings this year, which serve as the primary defense dialogue mechanisms between both countries.

Nagar said the intent of NDC India to sustain robust engagements with the National Defense College of the Philippines (NDCP) and invited the military and civilian personnel of the College, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and the DND to take courses in the NDC India.

Both sides expressed interest to boost cooperation on maritime security, counter-terrorism, cyber security, humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR), and peacekeeping operations.

They also exchanged views and perspective on various regional security issues, including the West Philippine Sea (WPS), Indias challenges on its territorial borders, and security of supply chains in the Indo-Pacific region, among others.

Yoro expressed appreciation for Indias continued support for a rules-based international order. Nagar invited the Philippine side to visit the NDC India as an opportunity to further discuss common defense and security challenges.

The delegation of NDC of India held a week-long official visit to the Philippines starting June 2, rendering courtesy calls and briefings on the DND, NDCP, AFP, and the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG).
Algeria, the main party to the regional dispute over the Moroccan Sahara, must face the reality of the fiasco of its separatist project in the Sahara.

The remarks were made by Permanent Representative of Morocco to the United Nations, Omar Hilale, Tuesday in New York, before the ordinary session of the UN Committee of 24 (C24) held from June 10 to 21.

Today, Algeria is faced with a choice: to follow a peaceful approach respectful of the principle of neighborliness and the peaceful settlement of disputes, or to get bogged down in the costly fiasco of its polisarian agenda, with billions of dollars and at the expense of the well-being of the Algerian people, who are lining up to obtain the most basic foodstuffs, underlined Hilale, who called on neighboring Algeria to learn lessons from the bitter failure of its separatist project in the Moroccan Sahara.

Instead of rehashing its speeches on its supposed defense of self-determination and proclaiming a pseudo neutrality in which it is the only one to still believe, Algeria would do better to take note of the three immutable evidences: The Sahara has always been Moroccan and will forever remain Moroccan; the Moroccan Autonomy Initiative is the one and only solution to this dispute, within the framework of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom; Morocco will carry on with determination the development strategy of its southern provinces, which are becoming a regional and continental hub, he stated.

Recalling the creation of the C24 in 1961, by the UN General Assembly to implement resolution 1514 which enshrines the principle of self-determination, and which was adopted by this Assembly on December 14, 1960, the ambassador noted that over the years, there has been an unfortunate deviation in the implementation of the resolution 1514 coupled with an unfortunate exploitation of the C24 mandate.

Indeed, in their great wisdom, the authors of resolution 1514 insisted on detailing the process of its implementation, supplementing it the following day with another resolution, 1541, he said. This resolution (1541) which no one pretends to ignore, clearly establishes the 3 options for applying the principle of self-determination, in this case independence, free association or integration. Moreover, Resolution 2625 of 1970 added the option of any other freely chosen political status, he said.

However, blinded by out-dated ideologies, and emphasizing the sole option of independence to the detriment of the two other alternatives, certain States have multiplied insidious maneuvers with a view to making the C24 a Committee of Balkanization, regretted the ambassador, pointing out that self-determination is not synonymous with a path towards independence. Moreover, self-determination cannot be achieved at the expense of the territorial integrity of States.

Indeed, Resolution 1514 clearly states, in its OP 6, that any attempt aimed at partially or totally destroying the national unity and territorial integrity of a country is incompatible with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, Hilale pursued.

Moreover, these same States excel in the exegesis of 1514 and 1541 by linking self-determination to the referendum process. However, these two resolutions make no reference to the referendum, which is a simple mechanism of expression. They do not condition, either, the implementation of their relevant provisions by any referendum consultation, the diplomat stated.

He stressed that it is regrettable to note the deviation from the initial mandate of the C24 and to see the disappearance from our discussions, or even from the reports of this Committee, any reference to the other constituent elements of self-determination. It is equally regrettable to witness a rewriting of the C24 mandate by giving it an ideological connotation.

Moroccos ambassador to the UN further noted that it was on the basis of the initial mandate of the C24 that Morocco introduced to this Committee in 1963 the question of its Saharan provinces then under Spanish domination.

In parallel with its efforts within the C24, Morocco requested the advisory opinion of the ICJ in 1975, he recalled, noting that the Court did justice to the Kingdom by establishing the existence of legal links of allegiance between the Sultans of Morocco and the tribes of the Moroccan Sahara, thus confirming the irrefutable sovereignty of Morocco over its Sahara.

Omar Hilale noted that on the basis of this recognition, the Kingdom of Morocco concluded the Madrid Agreement with Spain in 1975, thus consecrating the return of the Sahara to its motherland, Morocco, after 91 years of Spanish occupation.

This agreement was ratified by the United Nations General Assembly in its resolution 3458B of December 10, 1975, thus placing the process of recovering the territorial integrity of Morocco in line with the principles of the UN Charter, international law, and the spirit and letter of Resolution 1514, he recalled.

The ambassador regretted that this issue unfortunately transformed into a bilateral regional dispute, since Algeria was guilty of violating article 6 of the aforementioned resolution 1514, by attempting to thwart the legitimate rights of Morocco over its Sahara and to undermine its sovereignty and territorial integrity, by creating, sheltering on its territory, arming and financing the armed separatist polisario group.
The Arab League started, on Wednesday at the headquarters of its Secretariat-General in Cairo, a consultation meeting on means of strengthening the coordination of peace initiatives and efforts in Sudan.

The meeting will provide an opportunity to exchange views on the current situation in Sudan, and to draw the main lessons from mediation attempts and initiatives aimed at restoring peace and stability in the country.

Speaking on this occasion, the Secretary-General of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, said that resolving the conflict in Sudan is primarily the responsibility of the Sudanese elites. However, the international community also bears a significant responsibility, dictated by its decisions and charters which emphasize the necessity of making every effort to restore stability in Sudan, maintain regional peace and security, and prevent the collapse of the Sudanese state and its institutions.

He went on to point out that African, Arab and international decisions clearly underline the need to coordinate and harmonize the action of regional organizations in order to support efforts for a ceasefire between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) with a view to implementing the agreements signed in Jeddah and facilitating the launch of a comprehensive, Sudanese-led political process.

The meeting gathers the Arab League, the United Nations, the African Union, the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the European Union, as well as peace initiative bearers, namely Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
The Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) of South Africa has announced its intention to join a proposed government of national unity, potentially breaking the political deadlock that emerged after the African National Congress (ANC) lost its parliamentary majority in the recent election. Velenkosini Hlabisa, the leader of the IFP, stated that the party will participate in the unity government alongside the ANC and the Democratic Alliance, the main opposition party, for the sake of the countrys stability.

Following 30 years of uninterrupted rule since the end of apartheid in 1994, the ANC secured only 40% of the vote in the May 29 election. As the largest party in Parliament, the ANC requires support from other parties to form a government and reelect President Cyril Ramaphosa for a second term. The ANC had proposed a government of national unity, inviting all 17 parties represented in Parliament to participate, with some refusing the offer.

The Democratic Alliance has indicated its willingness to join the unity government, pending further discussions with the ANC. Together, the ANC, DA, and IFP would hold a clear majority in Parliament. However, the far-left Economic Freedom Fighters and the newly formed MK Party, led by former President Jacob Zuma, have refused to join the agreement. The MK Party has filed court papers to halt the first meeting of Parliament, citing alleged irregularities in the election, despite the electoral commission and independent observers declaring the election free and fair.
Stephen Kwikiriza, a campaigner against the controversial $5 billion East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), is recovering in hospital after allegedly being beaten by the Ugandan armed forces. Kwikiriza, who works for the Environment Governance Institute (EGI), was reportedly abducted in Kampala on June 4 and abandoned hundreds of miles away on Sunday evening.

The EGI stated that Kwikiriza was found in poor condition after enduring severe mistreatment and abuse. However, the Uganda Peoples Defence Force denied responsibility and accused Kwikiriza of faking his abduction.

According to the International Federation for Human Rights, Kwikiriza is one of 11 campaigners against oil projects targeted by Ugandan authorities in the past two weeks, with an additional 11 students arrested and awaiting trial for staging a peaceful march against the pipeline in November.

The EACOP plans, backed by Total, China National Offshore Oil Corporation, and the Ugandan and Tanzanian governments, have faced criticism from environmentalists who claim the route endangers national parks and will displace tens of thousands of people. At least 47 protesters have been detained or arrested by Ugandan security forces since September 2020.

Kwikiriza had been reporting on alleged human rights abuses around the Kingfisher oilfields, and the EGIs chief executive, Samuel Okulony, stated that there had been increasing violence due to the success of the campaign against oil activities in Uganda.

TotalEnergies E&P Uganda expressed relief at Kwikirizas release and reaffirmed its stance against threats or violence towards human rights defenders while monitoring the situation closely.
People visit the booth of Chinese carmaker BYD during the 2023 International Motor Show, in Munich, Germany, Sept. 5, 2023. [Photo/Xinhua]

Despite China's repeated and earnest calls for resolving trade friction through dialogue, the European Commission unveiled on Wednesday its plan to levy provisional additional tariffs of up to 38.1 percent on Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs), a move that is almost certain to undercut the momentum of bilateral economic cooperation.

Although the EU spent several months mulling over the tariff issue and delayed the announcement for several days, the decision is still far from being wise, given the crucial nature of China-EU relations and their extensive economic and trade collaborations.

The European Commission chose to announce the decision after the conclusion of the European Parliament elections, revealing the nature of the anti-subsidy probe as a politically motivated move. Leading European automakers have repeatedly voiced their opposition against the additional tariff plan.

Prominent European political figures, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, also opposed the tariff hikes, calling for free trade. The EU, which often falls victim to trade protectionist measures from countries like the United States, has claimed itself to be a strong advocate of open and fair trade. However, its decision today is nothing but self-contradictory.

As major open markets and proponents of globalization, China and the EU have industrial, supply and value chains that are intricately interwoven, rendering them mutually indispensable. This is vividly illustrated in the automotive sector. European car brands enjoy considerable favor among Chinese consumers. Meanwhile, Chinese automakers have, after years of investment and technology upgrading, garnered an advantage in electric vehicles, and have gained trust, popularity and admiration among European consumers.

The EU should have respected the prowess of the Chinese EV industry, whose integrity and expertise cannot be denied. Self-interested actions would ultimately defeat their own purpose. The burden of protectionism advocated by a few politicians would ultimately fall on ordinary citizens, increasing their financial strain and lowering their quality of life. It will also disrupt the EU's green transformation agenda and global collaboration efforts in tackling climate change. Such outcomes are undesirable for all parties involved.

China and the EU are the world's second- and third-largest economies. They are each other's second-largest trading partners, with trade volume translating to an exchange of about $1.5 million per minute.

Disputes and frictions may be inescapable between different economies. But in light of their economic structure and sheer size, China and the EU are best served by teaming up on major economic and trade issues. It would be more cost-effective for the EU to draw on China's advantages in order to develop its own EV industry.

The trade and economic relations between the EU and China are at an important crossroads, and it is crucial for the EU to demonstrate a strategic and long-term vision. The regional bloc seemed to have left some room for the two sides to continue their consultations to find a proper solution and avoid the worst scenario. It is hoped the EU will make some serious reconsideration and stop going further in the wrong direction.
According to five sources who spoke to Reuters, Ghana, the worlds second-largest cocoa producer, is planning to postpone the delivery of up to 350,000 tons of cocoa beans to the next season due to poor crop yields. This development further compounds the challenges faced by the global chocolate industry, which has already been grappling with the doubling of cocoa prices this year following three consecutive years of subpar harvests in Ghana and Ivory Coast.

Ghanas cocoa crop has been adversely affected by unfavorable weather conditions, bean disease, and illegal gold mining activities encroachment on cocoa farms. Furthermore, Ghanaian farmers are increasingly smuggling beans to neighboring countries to sell at higher prices than the state purchasing price, further reducing the already limited crop available for delivery within Ghana.

Sources revealed that Ghana pre-sold approximately 785,000 tons of beans for the current 2023/24 season but is likely to deliver only around 435,000 tons. The ongoing price rally is disrupting the established cocoa trade mechanism. Ghanaian authorities use the average of their forward sales to determine the minimum price at which traders can purchase cocoa from farmers in the following season. With 350,000 tons of forward-sold beans missing from this seasons crop, Ghana is facing difficulties with forward sales for the next season, with sources indicating that the country has only sold forward 100,000 tons so far. This situation may lead to an increase in bean smuggling, a shift to other crops, or the sale of more farmland to gold miners, further exacerbating the cocoa supply crisis in Ghana.
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Examples of stimuli (attractive female) used in Experiment 1. Credit: Cognition (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2024.105842

New research by Zachary Estes, Professor of Marketing at Bayes Business School (formerly Cass), as well as academics from the University of Amsterdam, Netherlands, and the University of California at Los Angeles, explored how people's eyes affect their perceived attractiveness.

The paper, "Beauty is in the iris: Constricted pupils (enlarged irises) enhance attractiveness," is published online in Cognition.

The researchers conducted six experiments testing the effects of pupil size on attractiveness. The pupil is the dark circle in the center of the eye, and the iris is the colored ring around it. The researchers showed nearly 3,000 participants headshots and images of blue or brown eyes from males and females. These images were edited so that one version showed the eyes with constricted pupils and in another version, dilated pupils.

The participants were then asked to evaluate how attractive the faces were. The study found that the faces were judged more attractive with smaller pupils, which show larger irises.

The experiments also tested whether participants found the faces with larger irises more attractive because they were more colorful, or because they made the eyes appear brighter. Results were the same when participants judged black and white images of people with dilated and constricted pupils, proving that the effect is not due to the color of the iris.

Examples of stimuli used in Experiment 2. Credit: Cognition (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2024.105842

Professor Zachary Estes, of Bayes Business School (formerly Cass) at City, University of London, said, "For more than 50 years, research has failed to identify whether people appear more attractive with dilated (enlarged) pupils or constricted (smaller) pupils. Our research reveals that constricted pupils enhance physical attractiveness by making the eyes appear brighter.

"Appearance isn't everything, of course, but sometimes we do want to look our best. Our research reveals that people appear more attractive when their irises are bigger, showing more brightness in their eyes."

Dr. Maria Trupia, a postdoctoral scholar from the UCLA Anderson School of Management, added, "Previous research has shown that physical attractiveness influences a wide range of life outcomes, and scholars have spent decades identifying the characteristics that affect perceived attractiveness. Our research uncovers a novel attribute: pupil size."

Dr. Martina Cossu from the University of Amsterdam concluded, "During the Renaissance period, women used to apply drops of "belladonna" herb to increase pupil dilation and appear more attractive. Almost 400 years later, our study shows that they overlooked the fact that bright eyes with constricted pupils appear more attractive than dilated pupils."

More information: Martina Cossu et al, Beauty is in the iris: Constricted pupils (enlarged irises) enhance attractiveness, Cognition (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2024.105842 Journal information: Cognition
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Credit: CC0 Public Domain

Colorado loosened regulations on medical aid in dying, made a mental health program for teens permanent and increased the penalties on EpiPen manufacturers who don't participate in an affordability program, among other changes to the health care landscape this legislative session.

Gov. Jared Polis has signed Senate Bill 68, which shortened the waiting period for terminally ill people who wish to end their lives with a drug cocktail to seven days. Under the previous law, people with less than six months to live had to request the medication twice, at least 15 days apart, before they could receive it.

The law also will open access to medical aid in dying in Colorado to non-residents, and allow advanced practice registered nurses to prescribe the medication cocktail. APRNs can prescribe most other drugs.

The group Compassion and Choices called the bill an important step to increase access to end-of-life options, while groups representing people with disabilities worried that a shorter waiting period might lead people to decide to die before they have time to adjust to a diagnosis. A previous version of the bill would have shortened the waiting period to two days.

I Matter program made permanent

A program that offers up to six free therapy sessions to Colorado youth will no longer have to go through reauthorization each year, after a new law made it permanent.

The legislature created I Matter in 2021, in response to widespread distress during the early phases of the pandemic. Young people under 18, or people receiving special education services under 21, can request mental health services at IMatterColorado.org.

The Behavioral Health Administration reported 3,658 children and teens used the program between July 2023 and April. I Matter received about $5 million in state funds in the current fiscal year.

EpiPen manufacturers face stiffer penalties

Drug manufacturers who don't cooperate with Colorado's out-of-pocket cost cap on EpiPens and their generic equivalents could face larger fines this year. Epinephrine auto-injectors can stop a severe allergic reaction from becoming fatal.

Colorado set a $60 limit on out-of-pocket costs for a two-pack of epinephrine auto-injectors starting this year, but some patients reported pharmacies wouldn't sell them for that price. Pharmacies, in turn, blamed manufacturers for refusing to reimburse them the full cost of the injection pens, as required by state law.

House Bill 1438, which Polis signed June 3, allows the Colorado Attorney General's office to charge manufacturers who refuse to reimburse pharmacies for auto-injectors under the affordability program with a deceptive trade practice, increasing fines they could pay to $20,000 per violation, or $50,000 if a victim is over 60. Previously, the maximum fine was $10,000 per month.

The same provision applies to insulin manufacturers who didn't comply with the state's $50 out-of-pocket cap, though it appears all have followed the insulin rules.

Among other health bills signed:

Senate Bill 34: Allows telehealth providers to qualify for school-based health center grants.

Senate Bill 55: Creates a rural behavioral health program.

Senate Bill 80: Requires insurers to post price transparency information and submit it to the state.

Senate Bill 110: Forbids the state Medicaid program from requiring recipients to switch antipsychotic drugs if they are stable on their current regimen.

Senate Bill 142: Creates a pilot dental screening program for children in kindergarten and third grade.

Senate Bill 175: Requires state-regulated large-group insurance plans to cover doula services; extends the requirement to other state-regulated plans if the federal government agrees; and orders all birthing hospitals to participate in a quality-improvement plan.

Senate Bill 221: Creates a rural hospital cash fund.

Senate Bill 231: Requires the state to study creating an online liquor licensing portal; allows liquor stores to hold tasting events; and allows alcohol sales on Christmas.

House Bill 1037: Allows syringe-exchange programs to distribute drug-smoking supplies as a harm reduction method; removes civil liability for people who give someone an overdose-reversal drug, or distribute one; and exempts items received from a syringe-exchange program from the penalties on possessing drug paraphernalia.

House Bill 1132: Prohibits employers from retaliating against living organ donors.

House Bill 1149: Requires insurers to simplify or eliminate prior authorization for medical care, and to post data about their care denials.

House Bill 1356: Prohibits selling e-cigarettes or similar devices to minors.

2024 MediaNews Group, Inc. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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Scanning electron microscope image of Vibrio cholerae. Credit: Wikipedia

The Comoros launched a cholera vaccination drive on Thursday, according to health officials, four months after an outbreak that has killed 134 people.

More than 1,300 children received an oral dose of vaccine on the first day of the campaign on Anjouan, the poorest of the three islands of the Indian Ocean nation.

Anjouan has been the worst hit of the islands and is the closest to the French overseas territory of Mayotte, which has itself seen two deaths since March.

The outbreak is thought to have arrived in the Comoros in February by boat from Tanzania on the African mainland, where the disease is endemic.

Cholera is an acute intestinal infection that spreads through contaminated food and water. It typically causes severe diarrhea, vomiting and muscle crampsand sometimes death.

 2024 AFP
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Eight clusters capture a variety of styles of work allocation by students in a real-world task (P. Zhang & Ma, 2023). Plots show the cumulative number of hours of work completed by each week of the semester. The threshold of 14 units (7 hours) is marked in red. Credit: Sahiti et al. (2024)

Procrastination, the deliberate but detrimental deferring of tasks, has many forms. Sahiti Chebolu of the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics has used a precise mathematical framework to understand its different patterns and their underlying reasons. Her study could help tailor individual strategies to tackle the issue. The research can be found in Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society.

"Why did I not do this when I still had the time?" Whether it is filing taxes, meeting a deadline at work, or cleaning the apartment before a family visit, most of us have already wondered why we tend to put off certain tasks, even in the face of unpleasant consequences. Why do we make decisions that are harmful to usagainst our better knowledge? This is precisely the conundrum of procrastination.

Procrastination, the deliberate but ultimately detrimental delaying of tasks, is not only hampering productivity, but has also been linked to a host of mental health issues. So it is certainly worth asking why this much talked-about phenomenon has such a grip on usand what it actually is.

"Procrastination is an umbrella term for different behaviors," says computational neuroscientist Sahiti Chebolu from the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics. "If we want to understand it, we need to differentiate between its various types."

One common pattern is that we defect on our own decisions: We might, for example, set aside an evening for the tax return, but when the time has come, we watch a movie instead. Something else is going on when we do not commit to a time in the first place: we might be waiting for the right conditions.

The possible patterns of procrastination are myriad: From starting late to abandoning a task halfway through, Chebolu classified them all and identified possible explanations for each: misjudging the time needed or protecting the ego from prospective failure are just two of them.

The short-sighted brain

Can such a classification really help you get stuff done? Chebolu is convinced that a mathematically precise understanding of the mechanism at play is the first step to tackling it. She frames procrastination as a series of temporal decisions. What exactly happens, for example, when we schedule our tax declaration for Friday night but then succumb to the temptations of a streaming service?

One way to think of decision-making is that our brain adds up all the rewards and penalties we expect to gain from the alternative behaviors: watching a movie or doing the annoying paperwork. Quite naturally, it then picks the course of action that promises to be most pleasant overall.

But does the fun of a movie night outweigh the dismay at a hefty failure-to-file penalty? There is one important detail: consequences in the distant future are weighted less by the brain in its summation of positive and negative outcomes.

To a certain degree, this is normal and even useful; after all, the more distant future is necessarily fraught with uncertainties. "Only when we place excessive value on experiences in the present and not enough on those lying further ahead," Chebolu explains, "such a decision-making policy becomes quickly maladaptive."

So much for the theory. To study real-life procrastination, Chebolu delved into large datasets provided by New York University. The data showed a log of students who were required to participate in a set number of hours of experiments over the course of a semester.

Some rid themselves of the task right away; others distributed it evenly over several weeksand, sure enough, still others shirked it until it was almost too late. Chebolu ran simulations to reproduce their behavior. Which explanations, she asked, would best be able to account for different patterns of procrastination?

It might be tempting to lay the blame on our brain's preference for immediately rewarding activities. But there is definitely more at play: for each pattern of how the New York students deferred their task, Chebolu found multiple possible explanations.

"Uncertainty is another major factor in procrastination," she stresses. This could be the failure to predict how much time we will need to unearth all receipts for deductible expenses. But uncertainty can also mean lacking confidence in our own abilities or doubting whether the task helps us achieve our goals.

Chebolu is confident that understanding procrastination as a series of temporal decisions and detecting where and why we usually take a wrong turn can inform interventions: If you discover, for instance, that your brain is a bit too biased towards instant gratification, giving yourself short-term rewards might help.

Those who tend to underestimate the time needed for their grunt work could try setting themselves time-bound goals. And if you find yourself abandoning your chores quickly, you might want to avoid distracting environments.

No matter in which category of procrastination you fall (and you almost certainly fall into some of them sometimes), you are not just lazy. Recognizing this and forgiving yourself for procrastinating in the past is a good first step towards more productivity.

More information: Sahiti et al. Optimal and sub-optimal temporal decisions can explain procrastination in a real-world task. Proceedings of the Annual Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society. (2024). escholarship.org/uc/item/2mg517js#main
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If participants are made to select between the "typical color" and the "opposite color" for an achromatic (gray) face, they tended to respond with the "typical color" for angry faces. Credit: Toyohashi University Of Technology.

The association between facial expressions and the memory color effect has been elucidated through a collaborative effort involving the Cognitive Neurotechnology Unit and the Visual Perception and Cognition Laboratory at the Department of Computer Science and Engineering at Toyohashi University of Technology. The memory color effect refers to the phenomenon in which knowledge of the typical color of a specific object (the memory color) influences the recognition of its actual color.

This study showed that angry and fearful faces were more strongly affected in terms of color recognition because of the memory color effect compared with neutral faces and that memory colors varied between expressions. The results of this study were published online in the Journal of Vision on May 31, 2024.

The face is an important characteristic for recognizing individuals, and as is shown by Japanese phrases such as "kaoiro wo ukagau" (Look at the complexion; i.e., be sensitive to someone's mood, read someone's countenance), facial color plays a key role in reading a person's emotions.

Recent research has shown that facial color changes an individual's judgment of expressions, with a reddish face tending to be regarded as angry, for example, even when faces with the same features are presented. However, it was not well understood whether everyday memories of facial colors or the memory colors formed by knowledge of the typical colors of specific objects also vary between expressions.

Hence, the research team focused on the phenomenon in which color recognition changes according to memory colors, known as the memory color effect, and used facial images with different expressions and colors to conduct a psychophysical experiment. Experimental participants were asked to select which color a face appeared to have from two options (the "typical color" and the "opposite color") for facial images presented to them.

The typical color means the color that the observer holds as knowledge about the object and refers to the skin color, among others, in the case of faces. The opposite color refers to the color located opposite the typical color in terms of hue.

The experiment used three expression images with an angry face, a neutral face, and a fearful face with different colors. The experiment was conducted in a dimly illuminated room maintained at a constant brightness, thus mitigating the influence of ambient brightness on the appearance of the colors.

The experiment results showed that angry and fearful faces that were actually achromatic (gray) tended to appear to be colored red-yellow, their typical color, more than achromatic neutral faces did. As red-yellow, the memory color for angry and fearful faces, has a higher saturation than for neutral faces, it is possible that the achromatic facial color may have tended to appear colored with the typical color.

This is similar to the reports of previous research that expressions introduce bias to the memorized facial color, and the recalled facial color was a red-yellow with a higher saturation than when it was actually observed.

First-year doctoral candidate in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering and the primary author for this study, Yuya Hasegawa, explains, "In general, the color that anger brings to mind is red, and red is also often used when expressing anger. In that case, do people then regularly and empirically remember angry faces as being redder than neutral faces? We supposed that if people change the color of faces depending on their expression when remembering them, the memory color should differ for each expression, which inspired this study."

These outcomes are the first to reveal that expressions exert an influence on faces at the level of the memory color. Memory and attention are closely associated. In the future, we will test whether attention tends to be directed toward "red angry faces" in preference to normal angry faces or red neutral faces and examine how to deepen our understanding of the mechanisms by which the remembered facial color differs according to the expression.

More information: Yuya Hasegawa et al, Facial expressions affect the memory of facial colors, Journal of Vision (2024). DOI: 10.1167/jov.24.5.14 Journal information: Journal of Vision
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Patients with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) have brittle and, in some cases, deformed bones (X-ray image). Credit: Shakata Ga Nai / Wikimedia, Creative Commons BY-SA 2.5, edited with AI

For someone suffering from brittle bone disease, life is fraught with complications. The slightest misstep, a seemingly harmless fall or even one false move can be all it takes to leave them with a broken arm or leg. And chances are this will happen repeatedly, because they were born with an inherited genetic defect that makes their bones extremely brittle and is often associated with physical deformity. Notable sufferers of brittle bone disease include German author and actor Peter Radtke and French jazz pianist Michel Petrucciani.

In most cases, what causes a person to have brittle bones is a mutation in the gene that carries the blueprint for the type I collagen protein. This is by far the most important protein for establishing a hard bone matrix.

People with this condition have a genetic defect that prevents this collagen protein from folding correctly, leaving them with an unstable bone matrix and brittle bones. The proper name for brittle bone disease is osteogenesis imperfecta, or OI for short.

A porous matrix structure

So far, scientists have had only a rudimentary understanding of how mutations in the collagen protein disrupt the formation of the bone matrix, as well as of how to go about treating these malformations. But now, a group of researchers at ETH Zurich's Institute for Biomechanics has taken a major step towards answering these questions.

Leading the team is Xiao-Hua Qin, Professor of Biomaterials Engineering, in collaboration with fellow ETH Professor Ralph Muller. Together, they have developed a 3D in vitro model that allows them to investigate bone formation in greater detailcurrently using healthy cells and in the future also using cells from people afflicted with OI.

The researchers report on their progress in the journal Nature Communications.

This new bone model is based on a porous matrix, or structure, made of a synthetic polymer. In this matrix, made of a soft hydrogel, the cells (osteoblasts) that form bone can settle, multiply and connect with each other and their offshoots to form a three-dimensional network.

During development, the researchers ascertained that the ideal pore size is between 5 and 20 micrometers: wide enough to allow the cells to settle and multiply, yet narrow enough to prevent them from escaping.

In creating their hydrogel, the researchers took their cue from in vitro models for nerve cells. "Porous hydrogels provide neurons with an extremely conducive environment in which to form artificial networks," Qin says.

It soon became clear, however, that bone precursor cells "react completely differently" in one respect: while they also require a porous matrix, this matrix must be biodegradable. So the researchers equipped their hydrogel with what's known as a peptide crosslinker, which can be broken down by a matrix metalloproteinase (MMP) enzyme. This in turn enables the cells to produce more mature collagen fibers. MMPs are essential for many bodily processes, one of them being bone formation.

To ensure that the bone cells could grow and network correctly, however, the researchers had to first solve yet another problem.

"Studying bone development, as well as bone remodeling, involves mechanically stimulating the cells," says Doris Zauchner, a doctoral student in Qin's group and lead author of the research paper. The researchers placed a hydrogel with embedded cells onto a chip and channeled a liquid through the pores.

"This liquid subjects the cells to shearing forces," Zauchner says, which is important for cell function. A liquid carrying nutrients and chemical messengers has also been shown to mechanically stimulate cells in the pores of healthy bones.

The hydrogel has an optimal pore size so that bone-forming cells can interconnect and form a 3D network. Credit: Zauchner D et al., Nature Communications 2024

Model closely resembles normal bone formation

As the researchers describe in their paper, their bone model featuring the biodegradable hydrogel matrix and mechanical stimulation can successfully emulate bone development. The osteoblasts reproduce and, in some cases, even develop into immature osteocytes (which account for 90% of the cells in healthy bones); they secrete collagen and can mineralize the matrix.

"It might be just a model," Zauchner says, "but it quite closely resembles normal bone development." Now that they have patented their model, the researchers plan to make it available to potential industry partners.

Compared to previous bone formation models, the new in vitro model on the chip offers numerous advantages. The pores in these predecessor models were either too narrow, so that the cells barely had room to maneuver, or too wide, so that no three-dimensional network could form.

Moreover, as these models used collagen for their matrix structure, it was impossible to study whether it was the cells themselves producing collagen, and if so, how much. Because the model is small enough to fit on a chip, researchers can use it even if they only have a few cells from a patient at their disposal.

Replacing animal experiments

Up to now, the main means of researching OI has been to rely on animal models. Zauchner notes that there are more than 20 different ones, some using mice, others using fish or even dogs. "Animal experiments come with a host of constraints," she says, the main one being that they are extremely expensive.

"That's why we're trying to create an in vitro model for OI. Our goal is to embed cells from people with OI into the hydrogel with a view to discovering which processes are malfunctioning." Zauchner is poised to start the first experiments using cells from a young OI patient at the Children's Hospital Zurich.

The OI project is part of the Swiss National Research Program "Advancing 3R". Its overarching aim is to explore how to bring the 3R approach of Replace, Reduce and Refine to animal experiments.

Qin's group is looking to gain a better overall understanding of the processes governing how bones form, develop and degrade. To this end, the group's activities are not limited to the new OI model. In another project, for which Qin was recently awarded a prestigious ERC Starting Grant, the team is developing a model for degenerative bone diseases such as osteoporosis. The focus here is on osteocytes, which are terminally differentiated bone cells.

"We want to use the three-dimensional networks of human cells to build an in vitro model for bone development," Qin says. No one has managed this yetexcept perhaps his own team. "In the model we've just unveiled, we found immature osteocytes as well as osteoblasts."

More information: Doris Zauchner et al, Synthetic biodegradable microporous hydrogels for in vitro 3D culture of functional human bone cell networks, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-49280-3
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While health data is essential for scientific research, that data also needs to be protected. In her doctoral thesis, Irith Kist found a balance between protecting the individual and exchanging health data.

When Dr. Kist answers our early-morning Teams call, we can clearly see a hospital in the background. It turns out not to be a standard filterit's actually her regular place of work. She's speaking to us from Antoni van Leeuwenhoekziekenhuis, the specialist cancer hospital in Amsterdam where she works as a privacy expert. Alongside her job at one of the Netherlands' top cancer treatment and research centers, Dr. Kist has written her doctoral thesis on the use of patient data.

Coronavirus: More cancer deaths than COVID-19 deaths

Dr. Kist began her Ph.D. research back in February 2020, just before the start of the coronavirus pandemic. It would be reasonable to assume that the timing gave her extra motivation, as scientific research using health data suddenly became extremely relevant. After all, we needed a suitable coronavirus vaccine as soon as possible.

But Dr. Kist puts the impact of the pandemic on her research into perspective, "My supervisor, Professor Marjanka Schmidt, rightly pointed out that more people died from cancer during the coronavirus pandemic than from COVID-19.

"In other words: before the pandemic happened, there were already countless life-threatening diseases, which were a good incentive for us to research the use of health data. But, as she said, the pandemic showed us that the process of exchanging health data for the purposes of scientific research and health care could be improved."

Why is the current process of exchanging health data less than ideal?

Scientific research into diseases and drug development involves collaboration between researchers various hospitals, laboratories and pharmaceutical companies. These parties are often located in different European countries, and the problem is that they independently decide how to collect and use patient data.

Dr. Kist continues, "Patients in the Netherlands usually have to consent to the use of their personal data and bodily material for scientific research. However, giving consent isn't as simple as saying 'yes' or 'no'patients have to be informed about what they're consenting to.

"It sounds logical, but at the start of research, the specific research question and any future areas for research are often still unclear. Within the first year of 'longitudinal studies' (longer-term research projects that can take up to 30 years) in particular, it's unclear what scientists will specifically need to research in 30 years' time."

Explicit consent: Skewed results and 'reverse discrimination'

Dr. Kist says that asking for the patient's consent every single time is no solution either, "Patients can be difficult to reach. They might have moved house, orif they're no longer undergoing treatmentthey might not want constant reminders of their cancer journey."

Asking patients to participate in "new" scientific research also requires a lot of time and effort. She says, "You run the risk that the research population is no longer complete. Say, for example, you begin with 1,000 patients. For each research question, scientists have to contact all of those patients and ask, 'Is that all right with you? And this? And also that?'

"Often, all of the information is provided in extensive patient information leaflets anywayit's not uncommon for the leaflets to be 25 pages long. Remember that these people have cancer and other illnesses, or they've already recovered. They have other things to think about. Suppose you end up with 500 patients in the final study: the patient population would be incomplete, which might skew the results."

In that situation, "reverse discrimination" can occur. Dr. Kist explains, "Scientists want everyone to participatethey don't want to exclude anyone. After all, an inclusive approach leads to the best reflection of society and therefore the most accurate results.

"However, we now know that some population groups are participating in these studies less often and for shorter periods of time. If, at some point, they do not feature in the research data at all, then less scientific research is conducted among those population groupsinadvertently, of course."

What's the solution, then?

Dr. Kist feels it would be helpful if, for the purposes of future scientific research, the term "consent" is interpreted more broadly. That way, scientists would no longer have to request consent from each patient for every single aspect of their research.

Dr. Kist suggests permitting the exchange of health data for reasons of general scientific interest, as is currently the case in other European countries. Ultimately, today's patients are also benefitting from their treatment, which may never have existed in its current form without the scientific research conducted 30 years ago.

Dr. Kist's recommendations may well be followed in the foreseeable future. The European Parliament recently adopted the European Health Data Space Regulation. Drawn up during the coronavirus pandemic, this legislation could simplify the process of sharing health data for the purposes of health care and scientific research.

More information: Kist. A fair balance: Health data protection and the promotion of health data use for clinical and research purposes (2024). Doctoral thesis
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New research from Monash University has found substantial variation in prenatal screening across Australia, with health care professionals reporting ongoing challenges in providing equitable access and pretest counseling.

The research is published in the journal BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth.

In Australia, pregnant people can choose to have a screening test to detect common genetic conditions, such as Down syndrome, in their unborn baby. Noninvasive prenatal testing, or NIPT, is recognized as the most accurate screening test for such conditions, but it currently has no Medicare rebate. While most health care practitioners recommend NIPT to their pregnant patients, this research study suggests that the $500 price tag is a major barrier to equitable care.

The study, "Disparities in integrating non-invasive prenatal testing into antenatal health care in Australia: A survey of health care professionals," surveyed several health care professional groups about their clinical experience of providing NIPT. While previous studies have focused on the views of obstetricians, this is the first study of its kind in Australia to survey a cross section of health care professionals, providing a more comprehensive overview.

The study's lead researcher, Dr. Molly Johnston from the Monash Bioethics Centre, said understanding disparities in care is crucial to improving the delivery of prenatal screening services in Australia.

"Lack of knowledge around the test, increasing time demands on health care professionals, and cost barriers are having an impact on the equitable provision of prenatal screening," Dr. Johnston said. "Improved education for health care professionals involved in NIPT is critical to ensuring patients are given the opportunity to access the information they want about their pregnancy and promoting informed decision-making."

Researchers conducted an anonymous survey with health care professionals involved in prenatal testing from September to October 2022. A total of 475 health care professionals responded to the survey, comprising obstetricians, GPs, midwives and genetic specialists. The survey covered topics including knowledge of NIPT, test delivery, pre- and post-test counseling, future applications of NIPT, and test data management.

The research found the greatest barriers to NIPT were cost (94.1%), patient awareness (31.6%) and health professionals not informing patients of the option of NIPT (26.7%).

The study also found differences in who the test is offered to, with providers in private practice or metropolitan areas more likely to offer the test to all pregnant patients, than providers in the public sector and those working in regional and remote areas.

Another key point of diversity in NIPT provision is whether patients are offered a range of options or tests from which to choose. Many test providers now offer expanded NIPT for a range of other conditions, including sex chromosome conditions and sub-chromosomal copy number variants. Just over one third (37.4%) of health care professionals stated they either do not offer or infrequently offer expanded NIPT due to limited time available to consult on options, or a lack of awareness or knowledge of what options are available.

Maternal fetal medicine specialist Professor Lisa Hui said ensuring patients are properly informed about their screening options promotes reproductive autonomy.

"When patients are not given the choice between expanded and basic NIPT, they are not given an opportunity to determine how much they want to know about their pregnancy," Dr. Hui said.

A key concern for health care professionals was around overall adequacy of pre- and post-test counseling, with many emphasizing the impact of time constraints on the quality of pre- and post-test counseling and the need for more funding.

"The provision of NIPT as well as genetic counseling often falls to a wide range of health care professionals, including those in general practice. Current Medicare structures encourage short appointments in general practice, which are not conducive to the comprehensive counseling needed, particularly following a high chance test result," Dr. Johnston said.

Researchers said increased education for health care professionals, more time and resources for counseling, reviewing and adapting current models for informed consent, standardizing offers of types of NIPT, and decreasing cost barriers for patients would ensure that Australians continue to receive a high standard of antenatal care.

More information: Molly Johnston et al, Disparities in integrating non-invasive prenatal testing into antenatal healthcare in Australia: a survey of healthcare professionals, BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth (2024). DOI: 10.1186/s12884-024-06565-1 Journal information: BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth
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New University of Pittsburgh research points to a potential approach to reducing the risk of diabetes associated with widely-prescribed antipsychotic medications.

The study presents early evidence in support of co-administering antipsychotic medications that block dopamine receptors in the brain alongside drugs that stop antipsychotics from blocking those same receptors in the pancreas. This approach, published in Diabetes, could limit metabolic side effects, including impaired control over blood sugar, or dysglycemia.

This research may also explain why weight control medications, including new neuropeptide drugs Wegovy and Ozempic, may not be as effective as hoped in controlling dysglycemia caused by antipsychotic drugs. Patients who are experiencing the weight gain associated with antipsychotic medications might be tempted to take these new drugs to control satietybut they may miss an important underlying cause of the drug-induced deglycation.

"Antipsychotic medications don't just stop working below the neck," said senior author Zachary Freyberg, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of psychiatry and cell biology at Pitt's School of Medicine.

"Maintaining glucose metabolism requires the brain to be in constant communication with the rest of the body, and vice versa. Next-generation antipsychotic drugs can be modified as a new strategy to control dysglycemia and diabetes."

Most prescription antipsychotic medications work by blocking the class of brain receptors that respond to a neurotransmitter called dopaminea cornerstone molecule of the brain's reward system and brain-directed movement control. However, the subtype of dopamine receptors that respond to antipsychotic medications, called dopamine D 2 receptors, are not exclusive to the brain.

As Freyberg's earlier research has shown, antipsychotic medications also block D 2 receptors in the pancreas.

Freyberg's dogma-breaking discovery highlighted that pancreatic dopamine plays a key role in controlling blood sugar by interacting with D 2 receptors on the surface of pancreatic cells that control production and secretion of hormones insulin and glucagon. When the fragile balance between glucose-raising and -lowering hormones is destabilized by antipsychotic medications, dysglycemia and diabetes may follow.

However, peripheral dopamine signaling can be harnessed for therapeutic good. In collaboration with researchers at the National Institutes of Health's National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIH NIDA), the team created a molecule that can limit antipsychotic drugs from blocking D 2 receptors in organs like the pancreas, but not in the brain.

This molecule, called bromocriptine methiodide, or BrMel, is structurally similar to bromocriptinean FDA-approved drug to treat type 2 diabetesbut has a modification that makes it less likely to pass through the brain-blood barrier if administered systemically, therefore limiting its activity to the periphery.

Early studies in mice suggest that dopamine's effects on glucose metabolism require communication between the brain and the peripheral organs including the pancreas.

Experiments have shown that, unlike systemically administered bromocriptine that improves the glucose profile of insulin-resistant mice, peripherally-limited BrMeI, or bromocriptine delivered directly to the brain, failed to show improvements. Drugs like BrMeI that can stop antipsychotic medications from acting on peripheral targets may therefore be useful in preventing, or even reversing, dysglycemia.

Freyberg and his collaborators at Pitt are in the early stages of a safety clinical trial to ensure that the therapeutic effects of antipsychotic drugs are preserved when these psychiatric medications are administered in tandem with bromocriptine since it is already FDA approved. They hope to launch a bigger trial to test the efficacy of BrMel and similar molecules for limiting dysglycemia in the next several years.

"The fact that both the brain and the body are required to maintain stable glycemic control provides a novel dimension in understanding neuropsychiatry and begins to integrate disparate pieces of knowledge about different organ systems into a coherent whole," said Freyberg.

"The majority of psychiatric medications are prescribed by general practitioners and not psychiatrists," he added.

"We hope that our research builds awareness about the importance of communication between the brain and the rest of the body in maintaining physiological functions and reminds clinicians that they should also consider that drugs designed to act on targets in the brain, like psychiatric medications, may also have significant actions outside of the brain when making prescription recommendations."

More information: Development of novel tools for dissection of central versus peripheral dopamine D2-like receptor signaling in dysglycemia, Diabetes (2024). DOI: 10.2337/db24-0175 Journal information: Diabetes
 Flash

Chinese Premier Li Qiang arrived Thursday for an official visit to New Zealand, the first leg of his three-nation tour from June 13 to 20.

Li said upon arrival that he looks forward to having in-depth exchanges of views with New Zealand leaders and people from all walks of life on China-New Zealand relations and issues of common concern, to further deepening exchanges and cooperation in various fields, and to updating the China-New Zealand comprehensive strategic partnership.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to New Zealand, as well as the establishment of the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and New Zealand, Li said, noting that his visit to New Zealand is intended to continue traditional friendship, promote mutually beneficial cooperation, and drive common development.

Although China and New Zealand are separated by vast oceans, their friendly exchanges have a long history, and they have a deep understanding and affection for each other, Li said.

Over the more than 50 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, under the strategic guidance of the leaders of both countries, the relationship between China and New Zealand has consistently been at the forefront of China's relations with developed countries, Li added.

Noting that the two countries have achieved fruitful results in cooperation in trade, investment, tourism, science and technology, and cultural exchanges, Li said that their cooperation has set a model of mutual benefit and win-win cooperation between countries with different social systems, historical cultures, and stages of development.

Li expressed his belief that with the joint efforts, China-New Zealand relations will surely usher in an even brighter future, bringing greater benefits to the people of both countries and contributing more to world peace, stability, development, and prosperity.

During his stay, Li will hold in-depth exchanges of views with Governor-General Cindy Kiro, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and other officials on China-New Zealand relations as well as international and regional issues of common concern.

Li will also pay official visits to Australia and Malaysia, and will co-chair the ninth China-Australia Annual Leaders' Meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.
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In just a few months, hospitals and health systems nationwide will start working to vaccinate as many staff as possible against the flu. And a new study published in the journal JAMA Network Open suggests that more of those hospitals than ever before will require employees to get vaccinated, or seek an exemption.

That means more patients could avoid catching the flu while receiving health carea key goal for improving patient safety.

In all, the new study shows that 96% of the hospitals that serve America's veterans, and 74% of hospitals serving the general public, now require staff to get vaccinated against influenza or seek an exemption.

Another 23% of non-Veterans Administration hospitals strongly encourage but don't require flu vaccination. Whether or not they have a mandate, 81% of non-VA hospitals require unvaccinated workers to wear a mask around patients during flu season.

The study was done by a team from the University of Michigan and VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System that has surveyed hospitals on this topic since 2013.

Their latest survey reveals the massive impact of a 2020 Veterans Health Administration directive to require flu vaccination or waivers for the first time.

In 2013, only 1% of VA hospitals had such a mandate; the percentage rose slightly to 4% by 2017. Meanwhile, flu vaccination or a waiver was required by 43% of non-VA hospitals in 2013, rising to nearly 70% in 2017.

"Our findings show the impact of one of the largest health care systems in the United States taking a stand and putting a policy in place that is based in a bedrock ethical principle of medicine: Do no harm," says Todd Greene, Ph.D., M.P.H., lead author of the new study and a patient safety researcher at VAAAHS and Michigan Medicine, U-M's academic medical center. "In addition to the VA national directive, it is interesting to see how the COVID-19 era influenced flu vaccine requirements at non-VA hospitals."

He and his colleagues, including senior author Sanjay Saint, M.D., M.P.H., sent surveys to a national sample of hospitals starting in April 2021, and received replies from 405 non-VA hospitals providing general medical and surgical care, and 66 VA hospitals.

In addition to asking about mandates and mask requirements, they asked hospitals that have a mandate to share what types of exemptions are permitted. Virtually all VA and non-VA hospitals allowed for medical exemptions, while there was a difference for religious exemptions, with 82% of non-VA and 95% of VA hospitals allowing these. A very small minority of hospitals (6% of non-VA hospitals and 2% of VA hospitals) allowed waivers to be granted without a specific reason.

At the time of the survey, which began at the end of the first flu season after the VHA directive, only 33% of VA hospitals with a mandate said they had penalties in place for staff who did not get vaccinated or pursue a waiver. By comparison, 74% of the non-VA hospitals with mandates had such penalties in place.

Greene notes that surveys of American health care workers show that flu vaccination percentages have dropped over time, from 91% during the 20192020 season, to 81% by the 20222023 season. These percentages include health care workers who work in any setting, not just hospitals and health systems such as those surveyed for the new study.

"There will always be vaccine hesitancy and concerns about bodily autonomy among health care workers, and seasonal flu vaccine effectiveness is variable," Greene says. "But for people working in the care environment, the benefits of getting vaccinated will generally outweigh any potential risks."

In addition to Greene and Saint, the study's authors are Kathleen Linder M.D. and Karen E. Fowler MPH. Greene, Saint and Fowler are members of the U-M/VA Patient Safety Enhancement Program, and Greene and Saint are members of the U-M Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation.

More information: Greene et al. Influenza vaccination requirements for health care personnel in US hospitals, JAMA Network Open (2024). DOI: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.16861 Journal information: JAMA Network Open
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During the COVID-19 pandemic, federal lawmakers launched the Affordable Connectivity Program with the goal of connecting more people to their jobs, schools, and doctors. More than 23 million low-income households eventually signed on. The program provided $30 monthly subsidies for internet bills, or $75 discounts in tribal or high-cost areas.

Now, the ACP is out of money.

In early May, Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., challenged an effort to continue funding the program, saying during a commerce committee hearing that the program needed to be revamped.

"As is currently designed, ACP does a poor job of directing support to those who truly need it," Thune said, adding that too many people who already had internet access used the subsidies.

There has been a flurry of activity on Capitol Hill, with lawmakers first attempting and failing to attach funding to the must-pass Federal Aviation Administration reauthorization. Afterward, Sen. Peter Welch, D-Vt., traveled to his home state to tell constituents in tiny White River Junction that Congress was still working toward a solution.

As the program funding dwindled, both Democrats and Republicans pushed for new legislative action with proposals trying to address concerns like the ones Thune raised.

On May 31, as the program ended, President Joe Biden's administration continued to call on Congress to take action. Meanwhile, the administration announced that more than a dozen companiesincluding AT&T, Verizon, and Comcastwould offer low-cost plans to ACP enrollees, and the administration said those plans could affect as many as 10 million households.

According to a survey of participants released by the Federal Communications Commission, more than two-thirds of households had inconsistent or no internet connection before enrolling in the program.

Nationwide, about 67% of nonurban residents reported having a broadband connection at home, compared with nearly 80% of urban residents, said John Horrigan, a national expert on technology adoption and senior fellow at the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society. Horrigan reviewed the data collected by a 2022 Census survey.

The FCC said on May 31 that ending the program will affect about 3.4 million rural and more than 300,000 households in tribal areas.

The end of federal subsidies for internet bills will mean "a lot of families who will have to make the tough choice not to have internet anymore," said Amber Hastings, an AmeriCorps member serving the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes on the reservation. Some of the families Hastings enrolled had to agree to a plan to pay off past-due bills before joining the program. "So they were already in a tough spot," Hastings said.

Matthew Rantanen, director of technology for the Southern California Tribal Chairmen's Association, said the ACP was "extremely valuable."

"Society has converted everything online. You cannot be in this society, as a societal member, and operate without a connection to broadband," Rantanen said. Not being connected, he said, keeps Indigenous communities at a disadvantage.

Rantanen, who advises tribes nationwide about building broadband infrastructure on their land, said benefits from the ACP's subsidies were twofold: They helped individuals get connected and encouraged providers to build infrastructure.

"You can guarantee a return on investment," he said, explaining that the subsidies ensured customers could pay for internet service.

As the ACP's funds ran low, the program distributed only partial subsidies.

2024 KFF Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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On many days, some small hospitals in rural Mississippi admit just one patientor none at all.

The hospitals are drowning in debt. The small, tight-knit communities they've anchored for decades can do little but watch as the hospitals shed services and staff just to stay afloat.

The federal government recently offered a lifeline: a new Medicare program designed to save dying rural hospitals that will pay them millions to stop offering inpatient services and instead focus on emergency care.

More than two dozen hospitals across the country, including five in Mississippi, have taken the offer.

Community reaction has been mixed, said Chad Netterville, director of the Mississippi Hospital Association's Rural Health Alliance.

"Some of the community feedback is, 'You're giving up. You're not a hospital any longer,'" said Netterville, himself a former administrator at a small rural hospital in south Mississippi. "In reality, the local hospital is giving up a service that's no longer viable anyway."

Under the new federal program, rural hospitals with fewer than 50 beds can become a "rural emergency hospital" to unlock additional government fundingabout $3.3 million extra per year plus a 5% increase in Medicare reimbursements.

But there's a catch: Participating hospitals must stop all inpatient services. No labor and delivery, no inpatient surgeries, no inpatient psychiatric units.

Instead, they must become 24-hour emergency departments that offer some outpatient services but, on average, keep patients for 24 hours or less. They can only stabilize patients who need more acute care and transfer them out of the community to larger hospitals.

"It's not a panacea for rural health," said George Pink, deputy director of the North Carolina Rural Health Research Program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. "It's targeted at a small subgroup of rural hospitals, those that have typically been losing money for a long period of time and are at risk of closing."

Nearly one-third of rural hospitals around the country are at risk of closing, according to a new report from the Center for Healthcare Quality & Payment Reform, a national health policy research group. Research suggests rural hospital closures increase community death rates, harm local economies and force patients to travel farther for care.

In 2020, Congress established the Rural Emergency Hospital program, which the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services put into effect in January 2023. The goal is to preserve emergency care and at least some health services in communities that can no longer support a full-fledged hospital. More than 150 rural hospitals have closed or converted to other types of facilities in the past 15 years, primarily due to financial distress.

That distress has many causes. Rural communities have shrinking populations, leading to fewer patients filling hospital beds. Rural residents tend to be older and sicker than people in cities, requiring more expensive care. They are also more likely to be uninsured or underinsured, forcing hospitals to pick up the tab. And reimbursement rates by public and private insurers haven't kept pace with the cost of care.

In the past two years, at least 17 states have amended or enacted laws to allow hospitals to scale back their services under the new program. Other states, such as Mississippi, have existing state regulations they can modify to allow their hospitals to qualify.

Since January 2023, 27 hospitals have joined the program, out of 1,700 that researchers estimate are eligible, according to the Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Pink and other experts say it's too soon to know how well the program will work. Some community hospitals are embracing the new model. Meanwhile, some for-profit health care companies are testing whether a rural emergency hospital could be profitable.

In the middle of it all, rural communities are waiting to see what this "better-than-nothing" approach to health care will mean for them.

Community pushback

Mississippi is currently home to the most rural emergency hospitals in the nation, with five.

It's also home to a hospital management company, Progressive Health Group, that is focused on converting struggling rural hospitals to the new model. Progressive Health's CEO, Mississippi attorney Quentin Whitwell, said conversion might make sense for many hospitalseven some that aren't at death's door.

His company has converted a handful of hospitals in Mississippi, Arkansas and Georgia, with more in the works.

"We analyze hospitals that are either brought to us or that we identify, to see if we believe we can recruit the necessary providers, provide the necessary services, and be a benefit to the community," Whitwell said.

Rather than trying to keep rural hospitals with empty beds and few patients open, he said, the new federal designation can provide the funding needed for a successful, leaner facility focused on select essential outpatient services, such as emergency care.

"We have contracts, letters of intent and expressions of interest in place, and are looking at hospitals from the West Coast to the East Coast," he said. "We don't necessarily have a target number of hospitals; we just want to be effective where we are."

But hospitals looking to make the switch can face pushback from their communitiesand from physicians. An obstetrician in rural Alabama recently warned the state's health department that conversions could undermine maternal care by removing even more labor and delivery services from rural communities.

When asked about that possibility, Netterville, of the Mississippi Hospital Association, said many of Mississippi's small rural hospitals gave up their labor and delivery services long ago.

In some rural communities, converting a hospital won't result in a meaningful loss of services, said Brock Slabach, chief operations officer with the National Rural Health Association. Most of the rural hospitals that might consider converting have few patients using those services in the first place, he said.

Of the rural emergency hospitals listed in federal hospital enrollment data, nine are owned by private health care systems, while a few more are owned by hospital management companies such as Progressive Health.

It could make financial sense for larger health systems to convert smaller, less-profitable rural hospitals to rural emergency hospitals, said Pink. They would in turn funnel sicker patients from their outlying communities to the systems' larger flagship hospitals.

But, he said, "It would be a source of concern if systems are converting to this new model for the sole purpose of saving the system money, because I'm not sure that would be serving the care and access concerns of the rural community."

Changes ahead

"What do I have to give up?" is usually one of the first questions that rural hospital leaders have about the conversion program, Netterville said.

One of their biggest concerns is that converting means a hospital can't participate in some federal programs already designed to offset their costs. The 340B Drug Pricing Program, for example, allows them to purchase outpatient drugs at discount prices, while the Medicare "swing bed" program gives small, rural hospitals more flexibility in providing and billing for different types of care. Neither is available to rural emergency hospitals.

The National Rural Health Association supports some changes to the federal program, including allowing participating hospitals to be part of the 340B and swing bed programs.

But operators such as Whitwell also have been working on changes at the state level. Whitwell said his organization advocated for a bill in Mississippi that would have allowed rural emergency hospitals to license inpatient geriatric psychiatry beds on their campuses, creating another source of revenue. The bill died in committee this year, but Whitwell hopes a similar one will be filed in the next legislative session.

If a rural emergency hospital can't have a geriatric psychiatry unit under federal law, but a state authorizes the hospital's owners to separately license a unit, "that would be essentially a workaround," he said.

Stops and starts

Last May, Alliance Health Care System in Holly Springs, Mississippi, became the first hospital in the state to convert to a rural emergency hospital. Whitwell is the hospital's chief operating officer and legal counsel.

Less than a year later, the federal Center for Medicare & Medicaid Services rescinded its new status, saying the hospital is too close to Memphis, Tennessee, to meet its definition of "rural."

Hospital leadership had just laid off staff and shuttered its inpatient services to complete its transition to a rural emergency hospital. Now the North Mississippi community of fewer than 7,000 is without an emergency department.

Leaders assumed the hospital would be allowed to quickly return to an acute care facility, Whitwell said. "But they have forced us to relicense completely. Therefore, the hospital is essentially open without the ability to bill and collect for services."

While changes are proposed at the state and federal levels, Pink said it's still too soon to know how rural emergency hospitals will affect local communities.

"It's not just a different kind of hospital," he said. "It's a whole new way of doing things."

2024 States Newsroom. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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Colorectal tumor organoid. Credit: Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC)

A study led by the Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC) has investigated how the mechanical properties of different types of colorectal cancer cells influence the process of metastasis. The study, which used patient-derived tumor organoids, focused on cancer stem cells expressing the LGR5 protein, a key marker in the signaling required for the renewal and differentiation of intestinal and cancer stem cells. The results showed significant differences in mechanical properties between cells that express LGR5 (LGR5+) and those that do not (LGR5-).

Specifically, the researchers observed that cells that do not express LGR5 are softer, less sticky and move faster, making them better able to move away from the main tumor. In contrast, cells that express LGR5 are more able to adhere to blood vessel walls and create gaps that allow them to invade other tissues, facilitating their growth to new sites in the body, potentially forming metastases.

"This transition between these two cell types that work together is an adaptive mechanism that helps them withstand the physical changes in the microenvironment and facilitates cancer progression," explains Xavier Trepat, ICREA research professor at IBEC.

The study, published in the journal Nature Communications, shows that these differences in the mechanical properties of the cells are due to the decrease in ERM proteins (ezrin, radixin and moesin) that occurs in LGR5+ cells.

These proteins link the cell membrane to the internal skeleton of the cell, affecting its stiffness and adhesion. By manipulating these proteins, the research team was able to induce LGR5+ and LGR5- cells to behave similarly, confirming the critical role of ERMs in the observed mechanical differences.

Colorectal cancer patient derived tumor organoid. LGR5+ cellas are labeled red. Credit: Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC)

Sefora Conti, IBEC researcher in Trepat's group and first author of the study, explains that they carried out several experiments to test the effect of ERM, "We added a synthetic protein that mimics the function of ERM to LGR5+ cells and observed that they became mechanically indistinguishable from LGR5- cells.

"On the other hand, we reduced the expression of ERM proteins in LGR5- cells and again observed that their mechanical differences from LGR5+ cells were reduced. These results demonstrate the potential of ERM proteins as a therapeutic target to interfere with the metastatic process in colorectal cancer."

In collaboration with Eduard Batlle's group at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB) in Barcelona, the researchers also analyzed the expression patterns of ERM proteins in individual cells from a cohort of patients and showed that this reduction in ERMs is a common feature of colorectal tumors.

Colorectal tumor single cells. LGR5+ cells are marked in red while LGR5- cells are unlabeled. All nuclei are labeled in blue. Credit: Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC)

These findings could contribute to the development of new strategies for the treatment and prevention of metastasis in colorectal cancer, which is the third most common cancer worldwide and the second leading cause of cancer-related deaths.

Trepat, who led the research, is also a professor at the University of Barcelona (UB) and a member of the Centre for Biomedical Research Network in Bioengineering, Biomaterials and Nanomedicine (CIBER-BBN). The work was carried out in collaboration with the Centre for Genomic Regulation (CRG) in Barcelona, the Institute for Research in Biomedicine (IRB) in Barcelona, the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen, Germany, the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany, the University of Palermo, Italy, and the Principe Felipe Research Centre (CIPF) in Valencia.

More information: Sefora Conti et al, Membrane to cortex attachment determines different mechanical phenotypes in LGR5+ and LGR5- colorectal cancer cells, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-47227-2 Journal information: Nature Communications

Provided by Institute for Bioengineering of Catalonia (IBEC)
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Loneliness may be harmful to our daily health, according to a new study led by researchers in the Penn State College of Health and Human Development and Center for Healthy Aging focused on understanding the subtleties of loneliness and how variations in daily feelings of loneliness effect short- and long-term well-being. The researchers said the work provides more evidence in support of the 2023 statement made by U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy on the devastating impact of loneliness and isolation on physical health in the country, calling it a public health crisis.

The work, published in the journal Health Psychology, also brings more attention to different experiences of loneliness, a focus during June 1016 for Loneliness Awareness Week.

The long-term health consequences of loneliness and insufficient social connection include a 29% increased risk of heart disease, a 32% increased risk of stroke and a 50% increased risk of developing dementia in older adults, according to the surgeon general. People who frequently feel lonely are also more likely to develop depression and other mental health challenges, compared to people who rarely or never feel lonely.

In the current study, the researchers found that loneliness can lead to negative health symptoms for people even if they do not generally identify as lonely or typically experience loneliness. People who experience more temporary feelings of loneliness or have a lot of variability in their feelings of loneliness are likely to have daily health issues related to loneliness, including general fatigue, headaches and nausea.

The data represents 1,538 participants in the National Study of Daily Experiences (NSDE), one of the studies in the MacArthur Foundation Survey of Midlife in the United States. NSDE is led by David Almeida, professor of human development and family studies at Penn State and senior author on the paper. The current study focuses on loneliness in midlife, using data from respondents between the ages of 35 and 65. Prior research on loneliness largely focuses on adolescents and older adults, the researchers said.

NSDE participants engaged in telephone interviews that assessed their daily stress and mood for eight consecutive days. Respondents were asked to describe any stressful and/or positive situations they encountered and their feelings for each day, including whether they felt lonely and how often. They were also asked if they had physical symptoms that day, including general fatigue or headaches. These assessments were performed twice, 10 years apart.

From this data, researchers found that when participants were less lonely on average, and on days when loneliness was lower than a person's average, they had fewer and less severe physical health symptoms. Additionally, participants who were more stable in loneliness across the eight days had less severe physical health symptoms.

"These findings suggest that day-to-day dynamics of loneliness may be crucial in understanding and addressing the health effects of loneliness," Almeida said. "Increasing feelings of social connection even for one day could result in fewer health symptoms on that day. Such a daily focus offers a manageable and hopeful micro-intervention for individuals living with loneliness."

Dakota Witzel, a postdoctoral research fellow in the Center for Healthy Aging and the lead author on the paper, said the results suggest that closer attention should be paid to daily, more temporary feelings of loneliness. While sustained loneliness can contribute to the long-term health effects identified in the surgeon general's advisory, these shorter, more variable instances of loneliness can produce shorter-term negative health symptoms.

"A lot of research is focused on loneliness being a binary trait  either you're lonely or you're not. But based on our own anecdotal lives, we know that's not the case. Some days are worse than others  even some hours," Witzel said. "If we can understand variations in daily loneliness, we can begin to understand how it affects our daily and long-term health."

Karina Van Bogart, doctoral candidate in the Department of Biobehavioral Health at Penn State; Erin Harrington, assistant professor of cognition and cognitive development at the University of Wyoming; and Shelbie Turner, postdoctoral fellow in the Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine, also contributed to this research.

More information: Dakota D. Witzel et al, Loneliness dynamics and physical health symptomology among midlife adults in daily life., Health Psychology (2024). DOI: 10.1037/hea0001377 Journal information: Health Psychology
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Changing the way antibiotics are given to adult patients with sepsis will save thousands of lives a year globally, according to research by The University of Queensland and The George Institute for Global Health.

A clinical trial and systematic review have shown that intravenously administering commonly used penicillin-like antibiotics via continuous infusioninstead of multiple short infusionscures infections and saves lives.

The research was published in two papers (here and here) in JAMA.

Professor Jason Roberts, Director of UQ's Centre for Clinical Research (UQCCR) and Metro North Health's Herston Infectious Diseases Institute, said the clinical trial of more than 7,000 patients tested findings from laboratory studies to deliver the best drug concentration for the bacteria causing the infection.

"We found by delivering these antibiotic doses as a continuous infusion we can maintain the concentration of the antibiotic in a patient's blood and tissue, and kill bacteria at a greater rate," Professor Roberts said.

"This simple intervention uses commonly available antibiotics, so even small hospitals in third-world countries can implement the dosing change almost as easily as well-resourced hospitals in developed countries."

Associate Professor Joel Dulhunty, UQ researcher and Director of Research and Implementation at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, said the international trial BLING (Beta-Lactam Infusion Group) III was one of the largest ever antibiotic randomized clinical trials.

"The trial [...] was a massive undertaking involving 104 hospitals in 7 countries, more than 130,000 doses of medication and the analysis of 4 million data points," Dr. Dulhunty said.

Associate Professor Naomi Hammond, Critical Care Program Head at The George Institute, said the clinical trial data was then used in a systematic review and meta-analysis, combining 18 studies and more than 9,000 patients.

"The combined data showed a very significant benefit with the use of a continuous infusion, saving one life for every 26 patients treated," Dr. Hammond said.

UQCCR Emeritus Professor Jeffrey Lipman said the next step for the research team would be to inform worldwide treatment protocols and guidelines.

"Physicians follow international guidelines when treating sepsis patients, and at the moment these guidelines have a very low certainty of evidence around how to best administer these drugs," Emeritus Professor Lipman said. "Thanks to our program of research, treatment protocols and guidelines will now have a very high certainty. Given the simple nature of the findings and the conversations we are having between hospitals, we expect most will adopt these changes immediately."

The research is the culmination of a program of work over 20 years led by Emeritus Professor Lipman that began with small studies focusing on dosing, to large clinical trials with multinational collaborators.

The BLING III trial involved collaborators from Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Sweden, Belgium, France and the UK.

More information: Mohd H. Abdul-Aziz et al, Prolonged vs Intermittent Infusions of -Lactam Antibiotics in Adults With Sepsis or Septic Shock, JAMA (2024). DOI: 10.1001/jama.2024.9803 Joel M. Dulhunty et al, Continuous vs Intermittent -Lactam Antibiotic Infusions in Critically Ill Patients With Sepsis, JAMA (2024). DOI: 10.1001/jama.2024.9779 Journal information: Journal of the American Medical Association
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Vials of single doses of the Jynneos vaccine for mpox are seen from a cooler at a vaccinations site on Aug. 29, 2022, in the Brooklyn borough of New York. South African health authorities have reported two deaths from mpox in the space of three days. Health Minister Joe Phaahla says Thursday the two fatalities this week were among six recent confirmed cases of mpox in South Africa, all of them men in their 30s.Credit: AP Photo/Jeenah Moon, File

South African health authorities say two people have died this week after contracting mpox, and it appears there is local transmission of the disease.

The health ministry said Thursday that a 38-year-old man died in the eastern KwaZulu-Natal province on Wednesday, the same day a laboratory test confirmed that he had contracted the virus. Another man died Monday in a hospital near Johannesburg, the ministry said.

Health Minister Joe Phaahla said the two deaths were among six recent confirmed cases of mpox in South Africa, all of them in men in their 30s. Some had multiple sexual partners, including men and women. Genetic tests for the first three cases showed the men had the less severe version of mpox, which spread globally in an outbreak that began in 2022.

In all cases, the men had no travel history to countries currently experiencing an outbreak, "which suggests there is local transmission of this infectious disease," Phaahla said.

He said the six men had underlying conditions. The latest man to die had HIV. Mpox is known to be more deadly in people with other health conditions, particularly those that weaken their immune systems.

Mpox, also known as monkeypox, is a rare disease caused by infection with a virus that's in the same family as the one that causes smallpox. It is common to other parts of Africa, where people are often infected through bites from rodents or other small animals.

Mpox was not known to spread easily among people until 2022, when authorities detected epidemics in Europe, North America and elsewhere and the World Health Organization declared it a global emergency. That epidemic also marked the first time that mpox was seen to spread via sex; the majority of people affected were gay or bisexual men. The U.N. health agency said last year mpox was no longer an international crisis.

WHO reported last month that there had been 186 mpox deaths worldwide since 2022, with a fatality rate of less than 1%.

South Africa last recorded an mpox case in 2022, Phaahla said. He said South Africa doesn't have any vaccines but was considering obtaining doses and rolling out an immunization campaign.

Phaahla said the outbreak in South Africa is distinct from the ongoing epidemic in Congo, where a more lethal form of the disease might be fueling the country's biggest-ever outbreak.

 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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A section of human brain tissue (with two insets showing zoomed in areas), with 12 colors of labeling simultaneously resolving various cells, vasculature and proteins. Credit: Chung Lab/MIT Picower Institute

Observing anything and everything within the human brain, no matter how large or small while it is fully intact, has been an out-of-reach dream of neuroscience for decades, but in a new study in Science, an MIT-based team describes a technology pipeline that enabled them to finely process, richly label and sharply image full hemispheres of the brains of two donorsone with Alzheimer's and one withoutat high resolution and speed.

"We performed holistic imaging of human brain tissues at multiple resolutions from single synapses to whole brain hemispheres and we have made that data available," said senior and corresponding author Kwanghun Chung, associate professor in The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, the Departments of Chemical Engineering and Brain and Cognitive Sciences, and the Institute for Medical Engineering and Science at MIT.

"This technology pipeline really enables us to analyze the human brain at multiple scales. Potentially this pipeline can be used for fully mapping human brains."

The new study does not already present a comprehensive map or atlas of the entire brain, in which every cell, circuit and protein is identified and analyzed, but with full hemispheric imaging, it demonstrates an integrated suite of three technologies to enable that and other long-sought neuroscience investigations.

The research provides a "proof of concept" by showing numerous examples of what the pipeline makes possible, including sweeping landscapes of thousands of neurons within whole brain regions, diverse forests of cells each in individual detail, and tufts of subcellular structures nestled among extracellular molecules.

The researchers also present a rich variety of quantitative analytical comparisons focused on a chosen region within the Alzheimer's and non-Alzheimer's hemispheres.

The importance of being able to image whole hemispheres of human brains intact and down to the resolution of individual synapses (the teeny connections that neurons forge to make circuits) is two-fold for understanding the human brain in health and disease, Chung said.

Views at various scales of two kinds of neurons (calretinin-expressing in cyan and somatostatin-expressing in magenta) in the prefrontal cortex of a human brain. Credit: Chung Lab/MIT Picower Institute

On one hand, it will enable scientists to conduct integrated explorations of questions using the same brain, rather than having to, for example, observe different phenomena in different brains, which can vary significantly, and then trying to construct a composite picture of the whole system. A key feature of the new technology pipeline is that analysis doesn't degrade the tissue.

On the contrary, it makes the tissues extremely durable and repeatedly re-labelable to highlight different cells or molecules as needed for new studies for potentially years on end. In the paper, Chung's team demonstrates using 20 different antibody labels to highlight different cells and proteins but they are already expanding that to a hundred or more.

"We need to be able to see all these different functional componentscells, their morphology and their connectivity, subcellular architectures, and their individual synaptic connectionsideally within the same brain, considering the high individual variabilities in the human brain and considering the precious nature of human brain samples," Chung said.

"This technology pipeline really enables us to extract all these important features from the same brain in a fully integrated manner."

On the other hand, the pipeline's relatively high scalability and throughput (imaging a whole brain hemisphere once it is prepared takes 100 hours rather than many months) means that it is possible to create many samples to represent different sexes, ages, disease states and other factors that can enable robust comparisons with increased statistical power.

Chung said he envisions creating a brain bank of fully imaged brains that researchers could analyze and re-label as needed for new studies to make more of the kinds of comparisons he and co-authors made with the Alzheimer's and non-Alzheimer's hemispheres in the new paper.

Numerous antibodies mark cellular and molecular constituents (in distinct colors) within the orbitofrontal cortex of a brain donor with Alzheimer's disease. Credit: Chung Lab/MIT Picower Institute

Three key innovations

Chung said the biggest challenge he faced in achieving the advances described in the paper was building a team at MIT that included three especially talented young scientists, each a co-lead author of the paper because of their key roles in producing the three major innovations.

Ji Wang, a mechanical engineer and former postdoc, developed the "Megatome," a device for slicing intact human brain hemispheres so finely that there is no damage to it.

Juhyuk Park, a materials engineer and former postdoc, developed the chemistry that makes each brain slice clear, flexible, durable, expandable, and quickly, evenly and repeatedly labelablea technology called "mELAST."

Webster Guan, a former MIT chemical engineering graduate student with a knack for software development, created a computational system called "UNSLICE" that can seamlessly reunify the slabs to reconstruct each hemisphere in full 3D down to the precise alignment of individual blood vessels and neural axons (the long strands they extend to forge connections with other neurons).

No technology allows for imaging whole human brain anatomy at subcellular resolution without first slicing it because it is very thick (it's 3,000 times the volume of a mouse brain) and opaque. But in the Megatome, tissue remains undamaged because Wang, who is now at a company Chung founded called LifeCanvas Technologies, engineered its blade to vibrate side to side faster and yet sweep wider than previous vibratome slicers.

Meanwhile, she also crafted the instrument to stay perfectly within its plane, Chung said. The result are slices that don't lose anatomical information at their separation or anywhere else. And because the vibratome cuts relatively quickly and can cut thicker (and therefore fewer) slabs of tissue, a whole hemisphere can be sliced in a day, rather than months.

The imaging and analysis flow of the technology pipeline with sample images of rich labeling to distinguish large-scale brain structure (left), to circuits, to individual cells to individual synapses (right). Credit: Chung Lab/MIT Picower Institute

A major reason why slabs in the pipeline can be thicker comes from mELAST. Park engineered the hydrogel that infuses the brain sample to make it optically clear, virtually indestructible and compressible and expandable. Combined with other chemical engineering technologies developed in recent years in Chung's lab, the samples can then be evenly and quickly infused with the antibody labels that highlight cells and proteins of interest.

Using a light sheet microscope the lab customized, a whole hemisphere can be imaged down to individual synapses in about 100 hours, the authors report in the study. Park is now an assistant professor at Seoul National University in South Korea.

"This advanced polymeric network, which fine-tunes the physicochemical properties of tissues, enabled multiplexed multiscale imaging of the intact human brains," Park said.

After each slab has been imaged, the task is then to restore an intact picture of the whole hemisphere computationally. Guan's UNSLICE does this at multiple scales. For instance, at the middle, or "meso" scale, it algorithmically traces blood vessels coming into one layer from adjacent layers and matches them. But it also takes an even finer approach.

To further register the slabs, the team purposely labeled neighboring neural axons in different colors (like the wires in an electrical fixture). That enabled UNSLICE to match layers up based on tracing the axons, Chung said. Guan is also now at LifeCanvas.

In the study, the researchers present a litany of examples of what the pipeline can do. The very first figure demonstrates that the imaging allows one to richly label a whole hemisphere and then zoom in from the wide scale of brainwide structures to the level of circuits, then individual cells and then subcellular components such as synapses.

Other images and videos demonstrate how diverse the labeling can be, revealing long axonal connections and the abundance and shape of different cell types, including not only neurons but also astrocytes and microglia.

A comparison of what can be seen in the orbitofrontal cortex of control and Alzheimer's brain samples: Note in round 2 of labeling that much more amyloid beta (AB) is visible in the Alzheimer's sample (bottom row). The same is true for phosphyrlated Tau (pTau) in round 5. Credit: Chung Lab/MIT

Exploring Alzheimer's

For years, Chung has collaborated with co-author Matthew Frosch, an Alzheimer's researcher and director of the brain bank at Massachusetts General Hospital, to image and understand Alzheimer's disease brains.

With the new pipeline established, they began an open-ended exploration, first noticing where within a slab of tissue they saw the greatest loss of neurons in the disease sample compared to the control. From there, they followed their curiosityas the technology allowed them to doultimately producing a series of detailed investigations described in the paper.

"We didn't lay out all these experiments in advance," Chung said. "We just started by saying, 'OK, let's image this slab and see what we see.' We identified brain regions with substantial neuronal loss so let's see what's happening there. 'Let's dive deeper.' So we used many different markers to characterize and see the relationships between pathogenic factors and different cell types."

"This pipeline allows us to have almost unlimited access to the tissue," Chung said. "We can always go back and look at something new."

They focused most of their analysis in the orbitofrontal cortex within each hemisphere. One of the many observations they made was that synapse loss was concentrated in areas where there was direct overlap with amyloid plaques. Outside of areas of plaques, the synapse density was as high in the brain with Alzheimer's as in the one without the disease.

With just two samples, Chung said, the team is not offering any conclusions about the nature of Alzheimer's disease, of course, but the point of the study is that the capability now exists to fully image and deeply analyze whole human brain hemispheres to enable exactly that kind of research.

Notably, the technology applies equally well to many other tissues in the body, not just brains.

"We envision that this scalable technology platform will advance our understanding of the human organ functions and disease mechanisms to spur development of new therapies," the authors conclude.

More information: Juhyuk Park et al, Integrated platform for multiscale molecular imaging and phenotyping of the human brain, Science (2024). DOI: 10.1126/science.adh9979. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adh9979 Journal information: Science

This story is republished courtesy of MIT News (web.mit.edu/newsoffice/), a popular site that covers news about MIT research, innovation and teaching.
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Credit: CC0 Public Domain

A company that makes tests for lead poisoning has agreed to resolve criminal charges that it concealed for years a malfunction that resulted in inaccurately low results.

It's the latest in a long-running saga involving Massachusetts-based Magellan Diagnostics, which will pay $42 million in penalties, according to the Department of Justice.

While many of the fault-prone devices were used from 2013 to 2017, some were being recalled as late as 2021. The Justice Department said the malfunction produced inaccurate results for "potentially tens of thousands" of children and other patients.

Doctors don't consider any level of lead in the blood to be safe, especially for children. Several U.S. cities, including Washington, D.C., and Flint, Michigan, have struggled with widespread lead contamination of their water supplies in the last two decades, making accurate tests critical for public health.

It's possible faulty Magellan kits were used to test children for lead exposure into the early 2020s, based on the recall in 2021. Here's what parents should know.

What tests were affected?

The inaccurate results came from three Magellan devices: LeadCare Ultra, LeadCare II, and LeadCare Plus. One, the LeadCare II, uses finger-stick samples primarily and accounted for more than half of all blood lead tests conducted in the U.S. from 2013 to 2017, according to the Justice Department. It was often used in physician offices to check children's lead levels.

The other two could also be used with blood drawn from a vein and may have been more common in labs than doctor's offices. The company "first learned that a malfunction in its LeadCare Ultra device could cause inaccurate lead test resultsspecifically, lead test results that were falsely low" in June 2013 while seeking regulatory clearance to sell the product, the DOJ said. But it did not disclose that information and went on to market the tests, according to the settlement.

The agency said 2013 testing indicated the same flaw affected the LeadCare II device. A 2021 recall included most of all three types of test kits distributed since October 27, 2020.

The company said in a press release announcing the resolution that "the underlying issues that affected the results of some of Magellan's products from 2013 to 2018 have been fully and effectively remediated," and that the tests it currently sells are safe.

What does a falsely low result mean?

Children are often tested during pediatrician visits at age 1 and again at age 2. Elevated lead levels can put kids at risk of developmental delay, lower IQ, and other problems. And symptoms, such as stomachache, poor appetite, or irritability, may not appear until high levels are reached.

Falsely low test results could mean parents and physicians were unaware of the problem.

That's a concern because treatment for lead poisoning is, initially, mainly preventive. Results showing elevated levels should prompt parents and health officials to determine the sources of lead and take steps to prevent continued lead intake, said Janine Kerr, health educator with the Virginia Department of Health's Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program.

Children can be exposed to lead in a variety of ways, including by drinking water contaminated with lead from old pipes, such as in Flint and Washington; ingesting lead-based paint flakes often found in older homes; or, as reported recently, eating some brands of cinnamon-flavored applesauce.

What should parents do now?

"Parents can contact their child's pediatrician to determine if their child had a blood lead test with a LeadCare device" and discuss whether a repeat blood lead test is needed, said Maida Galvez, a pediatrician and professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York.

During an earlier recall of some Magellan devices, in 2017, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that patients be retested if they were pregnant, nursing, or children younger than 6 years and had a blood lead level of less than 10 micrograms per deciliter as determined by a Magellan device from a venous blood draw.

The 2021 recall of Magellan devices recommended retesting children whose results were less than the current CDC reference level of 3.5 micrograms per deciliter. Many of those tests were of the finger-stick variety.

Kerr, at the Virginia health department, said her agency has not had many calls about that recall.

The finger-stick tests "are not that widely used in Virginia," said Kerr, adding that "we did get a lot of questions about the applesauce recall."

In any case, she said, the "best course of action for parents is to talk with a health care provider."

2024 KFF Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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a Schematic showing the LFP recordings in the mPFC and the Re. b Time-dependent coherence between the mPFC and the Re. Coherence was normalized using the pre-stimulus period data across the frequency. c Coherence changes from the pre-stimulus period for S, E, S' and N at different frequency bands. Paired t test, two-sided. n = 8 mice. S: gamma, t(7) = 6.038, P = 0.0005; S': gamma, t(7) = 3.263, P = 0.0138; N: beta, t(7) = 3.29, P = 0.0133; gamma: t(7) = 6.636, P = 0.0003. d Schematic showing multi-site LFP recordings and inhibition of Re using DREADD method. e Brain sections showing expression of hM4D in the Re and the placement of electrodes in the mPFC, Re and dHPC. Scale bar, 500 m. Credit: Zhan Yang

The ability to distinguish between different individuals is crucial for social interactions. Previous research has shown the pivotal role of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) in social processes, as evidenced by enhanced firing activity and distinct neural patterns in response to social-related stimuli. However, it remains unclear how mPFC neurons encode different social stimuli and which neural circuits are involved in processing this information.

Recently, Prof. Zhan Yang's team at the Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology (SIAT) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences conducted a study to investigate the role of a prefrontal-thalamic circuit in encoding social information for social recognition. The findings are published in Nature Communications.

In this study, researchers identified a specific neural circuit between the mPFC and the thalamic reuniens nucleus (Re) that encodes social information. By recording single neurons in freely moving mice, they found that neural populations in the mPFC and Re are capable of encoding information about familiar and novel identities.

During social activities, both the mPFC and Re exhibit stronger activity. Experimental results showed that pharmacological inhibition of the Re resulted in a significantly reduced ability of mPFC neurons to differentiate between social and non-social stimuli, as well as familiar and novel social objects. This indicates that the Re regulates the synchrony between the mPFC and Re, and that impaired synchrony is associated with deficits in social recognition.

By employing optogenetic techniques to selectively inhibit mPFC projections to Re neurons or Re projections to mPFC neurons, the researchers found that both manipulations led to a loss of ability in mice to distinguish between familiar and newly encountered mice. This suggests that the bidirectional projection circuit between the mPFC and Re is essential for processing social information.

Furthermore, calculating the information entropy in these two brain regions during social interactions, it was found that mPFC neurons exhibit a higher capacity for processing social information compared to Re neurons. However, pharmacological inhibition of the Re led to a decrease in the amount of information carried by mPFC neurons, indicating that effective social information processing by the mPFC relies on support from the Re.

This study demonstrates the role of the mPFC-Re circuit in social activities and offers insights for future research on the neural basis of social behavior.

More information: Zihao Chen et al, A prefrontal-thalamic circuit encodes social information for social recognition, Nature Communications (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41467-024-45376-y Journal information: Nature Communications
 Flash

The death toll from a fire early Wednesday morning in a residential building in the Mangaf area, south of Kuwait City, rose to 49, according to a statement released by the Interior Ministry.

Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah ordered an immediate investigation into the cause of the fire, and vowed to hold those responsible accountable, Kuwait News Agency (KUNA) reported.

The emir, Crown Prince Sheikh Sabah Al-Khaled Al-Sabah, and Prime Minister Sheikh Ahmad Al-Abdullah Al-Sabah have sent condolence messages to the families of the victims, the KUNA said.

Sheikh Fahad Yusuf Al-Sabah, Kuwait's first deputy prime minister, defense minister, and interior minister, ordered the detention of individuals involved, including the building owner, until the forensic evidence team completes its investigation.

He also instructed relevant government departments to inspect and address violations in the construction sector to avoid similar accidents.

Local newspaper, citing anonymous sources, reported that the fire started in the guard's room, spread to a lounge on the first floor, followed by a storage area containing gas cylinders, and eventually engulfed the rest of the building. A large number of residents near the building had been evacuated.

According to the sources, around 160 workers were inside the building, with many of the fatalities being of Indian nationality.
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Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Wastewater surveillance hit the big time during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, when officials started using this technique to monitor local virus levels. But my colleagues and I had been exploring wastewater's promise as a public health tool years before anyone had heard of SARS-CoV-2.

Myenvironmental virology lab

based at Michigan State University has been in a partnership with the city of Detroit and the Great Lakes Water Authority since 2017, when we started testing municipal wastewater from Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties to survey viral diseases in the Greater Detroit community.

Imagine you want to identify a potential emerging infectious disease in an urban area before it becomes an outbreak. Could you collect clinical samples from everyone in the community on a regular basis and test them all for every possible virus? No, that's an impossible task.

Instead, we collected municipal wastewater, as a representative composite sample from the community, and tested it with advanced molecular methods to reveal endemic and emerging virus-related diseases circulating in the area. We identified viral genomes related to multiple gastrointestinal, respiratory, blood-borne and vector-borne diseases excreted by the population. We identified herpesviruses, including rare species, and we identified hepatitis A outbreak peaks via wastewater analysis that appeared before peaks in clinical samples.

The ongoing project in Detroit shifted to monitor SARS-CoV-2 in 2020. Our team, which then expanded to include the local health departments, practicing engineers and the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, was able to identify COVID-19 peaks in the metro Detroit population five weeks before the delta variant surge was visible in positive COVID test data.

Our team is continuing to expand and improve our methodology to screen for the presence of endemic and emerging communicable diseases circulating in the metro Detroit population and to predict when and where surges will occur.

Testing identified peaks of SARS-CoV-2 in wastewater, indicated by the orange line, which showed up about a month before peaks in clinical diagnoses of COVID-19 in patients. Credit: Zhao et al 2022

Data hidden in what goes down the drain

Wastewater is a mixture that contains anything that goes down the drain from the toilet, the shower, the laundry, the dishwasher or the sink. In most cities, stormwater and water used in industrial processes also end up in the wastewater.

Municipal wastewater contains viruses and other pathogens excreted by anyone with an infection, even at the early stages before symptoms develop.

These microorganisms are diluted in a large amount of water and mixed up with soap, personal care products, road runoff and many other chemicals and impurities. The drop of blood or saliva that a clinic would test for infectious agents is much more concentrated and much less contaminated with other molecules.

Looking for emerging human viruses in wastewater is like trying to find a needle in a haystack. We concentrate and isolate viruses in the wastewater samples. We then extract any DNA or RNA that's in the samples and analyze it with molecular methods such as PCR and next-generation sequencing, looking for genes related to viruses. Those genetic codes indicate which viral infections are present in the population that produced the wastewater.

Beyond confirming a pathogen's presence

It's one thing to identify that a certain virus is present in a community. But it's a trickier task to figure out how a particular wastewater level translates to how many people are sick or to compare infection levels between communities. How quickly will a surge of people start turning up sick once a wastewater peak is spotted?

To predict the timing of outbreak peaks, scientists consider multiple variables, including how much virus a typical patient sheds, how long people shed the pathogen after infection, the onset and duration of clinical symptoms, and how long the pathogen has been in the wastewater collection pipes. Using all these factors, we relate wastewater readings to metrics of clinical disease.

In addition to complex models that predict variation over time and peaks of clinical cases, we developed simple methods for data analysis that can be used for decision-making by public health officials. We also tracked the time lag between SARS-CoV-2 concentrations in wastewater and clinical metrics.

An important step is connecting a particular viral reading in wastewater with the number of people who live in the area served by that sewer system. We use molecules produced by the human body to calculate how many people's wastewater feeds into our sample. For example, using metabolites such as creatine, 5-HIAA and xanthine, we calculated per capita COVID-19 trends by relating their levels with viral levels. This process allows for comparisons between communities.

Examples of viral-related genetic sequences detected in Detroit Tri-County wastewater between 2020 and 2022. Credit: Li et al, 2024

Screening for the next outbreak

Ultimately, public health officials want to get ahead of any looming outbreak. To this end, our team has developed a ranking system for prioritizing which reportable diseases future wastewater surveillance should focus on.

Clinicians are legally required to report dozens of diseasesranging from chickenpox and COVID-19 to meningitis and measlesto the health department when they're diagnosed. Keeping track of these reportable diseases lets officials count and record cases and trends.

Our ranking system is one of the first of its kind. We use 12 factors, including clinical trends in specific geographic locations and knowledge of how contagious particular germs are. Knowing which communicable diseases are heating up in a particular community allows officials to prioritize resources and efforts toward monitoring and preventing their spread.

In the Detroit area, for instance, we found that certain diseases, including some sexually transmitted infections, ranked higher than in the state of Michigan as a whole. It makes sense to allocate resources to addressing them in a targeted way.

We also developed a sequencing and bioinformatics protocol, a step-by-step process that screens for potential viral-related sequences that may be circulating in the community. It's a way to broaden surveillance beyond the usual diseases that medical providers must report to officials when diagnosed. This tool can provide an early warning to officials if something new or unexpected shows up in wastewater.

Solidifying the science of wastewater surveillance

Wastewater surveillance has proved itself as an epidemiological tool. But even though wastewater-based epidemiology has made significant advances in technology, methods and applications, more must be done to integrate the multiple efforts across the nation. For accurate outbreak forecasting, wastewater surveillance databases should be integrated with clinical data metrics, behavioral, social and demographic information, as well as data that indicates population mobility. Close partnerships with local health departments are crucial, since local epidemiologists are the ones who will use surveillance efforts to make decisions.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Missoula County Public Schools leadership addressed community concerns on Tuesday night over Lowell Elementary Schools music teacher position getting suspended.

Music classes at Lowell Elementary School wont be offered for the upcoming school year as district leadership continues to grapple with teacher shortages. Instead, the district is hiring an art specialist to bridge the gap for the 2024-2025 school year. A handful of local educators shared concerns during public comment over what the consequences of not having a music teacher will mean for students.

The district plans to resume a search for a music teacher for the 2025-2026 school year, MCPS Human Resources Director Trevor Laboski said at Tuesdays school board meeting.

An email sent by Lowell principal Rae Cooper last week to the school community said arts are a priority at Lowell, but the school has been trying to fill the music teacher position since April without success, and that to date no qualified candidates applied for the position.

Given this challenge, along with the need to build a comprehensive schedule that provides a robust 'specials' experience for our students, we are now in a position of needing to come up with alternative solutions, it states. That is why next year, Lowell will welcome an additional art specialist in place of a general music teacher.

Lowells music teacher resigned at the end of the 2024-2025 school year, leaving a vacant position.

Ellen McKenzie, Hellgate High Schools choir director, said the decision not to hire a music teacher isnt equitable. Its unfair students at Paxson Elementary will be getting music while Lowell students wont, she said.

Next year, rather than students having music taught by a highly qualified music educator, they will be taught by their classroom teachers, which is so much to ask of those teachers, McKenzie said.

Karl Schmitz, who ran for a trustee position this year, argued the decision wasnt made based on childrens needs.

I know that there are people who can fill this position, I feel ultimately sorry for all the kids at Lowell school, Schmitz said.

Superintendent Micah Hill pushed back against the notion that music at Lowell is getting cut.

The general feeling or narrative that were trying to do something to the music department, its absolutely not true, Superintendent Micah Hill said. These are dire situations, were trying to find the right people. We want to hire qualified people.

He said MCPS isnt immune from teacher shortages across Montana, and acknowledged the current conversation and community concerns around the Lowell music position.

We are also facing these challenges in other areas, he said.

According to Coopers letter, fifth-grade students will still have band and orchestra at Lowell.

The music position for the 2025-2026 school year will likely be posted next spring, Laboski said.

The board also voted unanimously on Tuesday to cut three tenured teacher positions (two elementary and one high school) along with an administrative position. The decision comes on the heels of the district cutting 47 non-tenure positions in May amid budget shortfalls.

If an MCPS position opens up that an affected staff person is qualified for, theyll be considered for the job first, Laboski said.

This school year saw an unusual amount of non-renewals and removal of positions, he said.
A small wildfire ignited in far northwest Montana on Tuesday after strong winds toppled a tree onto power lines.

Crews were dispatched to the Pine Creek fire around 6:44 p.m. The fire is 9 miles northwest of Troy, burning in a forested area about 1,900 feet east of U.S. Highway 2 and about a half-mile east of the adjacent Kootenai River. Satellite imagery shows a power line running through the forest in the area of the fire.

According to interagency dispatch logs and the Kootenai National Forest, the fire was about 10 acres by Wednesday morning. In a social media update, the forest stated that 20 personnel and a variety of fire engines and heavy equipment responded to the blaze and established containment lines around it. Crews would continue mop-up operations on Wednesday, the post stated.

The forest attributed the Pine Creek fire  and three smaller ones all contained to less than a quarter-acre and extinguished Tuesday night  to "yesterday's wind event." A federal government weather station near Troy recorded sustained winds of 17 mph with gusts up to nearly 40 mph in the hour before firefighters were dispatched on Tuesday.

Wildfires caused by wind knocking trees onto power lines, or by wind detaching or toppling the lines themselves, have come under increasing focus in recent years following multibillion-dollar settlements against utility companies whose lines caused massive, deadly blazes  particularly in California.

Pacific Gas and Electric Company, commonly called PG&E, was fined $13.5 billion and subsequently declared bankruptcy after its power lines fell during a wind event and ignited the 2018 Camp fire, which burned Paradise, California, and killed 85 people. With about $16.6 billion in damage, it's considered the costliest wildfire in the world.

In January, the California Public Utilities Commission approved a $45 million penalty against PG&E for the 2021 Dixie fire. The fire ignited when wind toppled a tree into power lines. The fire ultimately burned nearly 1 million acres, making it the state's largest single-source fire in recorded history.

Previously, the commission fined PG&E $150 million for the 2020 Zogg fire, $125 million for the 2019 Kincaid fire and $1 million for the 2019 Easy fire. Each fire was ignited by power lines in windy conditions.

As a result, some utilities have newly chosen to shut off power altogether during high wind events. PG&E routinely shuts off power during high wind events in elevated fire weather. And, in a first for Colorado, Xcel Energy turned off power to about 55,000 customers across the Front Range amid high winds in early April.

Blue Mountain fire start

Elsewhere in Montana, crews were dispatched around 3:15 p.m. Tuesday to a very small wildfire start near the Blue Mountain off-road motorcycle trailhead on Blue Mountain Road southwest of Missoula. That fire was extinguished at a tenth of an acre or smaller.

As of Wednesday, fire danger in Missoula County and in the surrounding Lolo and Bitterroot national forests was moderate, the second-lowest of five levels.

"When fire danger is moderate, fires readily start in open, dry grassland and will burn and spread quickly on windy days," according to Missoula County Fire Protection Association. "Most wood fires will spread slowly to moderately. Residents and visitors are asked to use caution when using fire. Keep campfires small and completely extinguish them before leaving camp."

Fire danger on the Flathead National Forest was low on Wednesday, and the Kootenai did not list a fire danger level online. The were no fire restrictions in western Montana as of Wednesday.
On June 4, during the primary election here in Montana, another event was taking place in Washington, D.C.

The Committee on National Resources invited me to testify before the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. They were holding an oversight hearing titled, "Biden's Border Crisis: Examining Efforts to Combat International Criminal Cartels & Stop Illegal Drug Trafficking Indian Country."

While this was not tax-funded travel, the opportunity to highlight Montana was too good to pass up so I agreed to go and pay for my 36-hour trip.

Mr. Darryl Lacounte, director of Bureau of Indian Affairs; Lt. John Nores, Jr, retired California Department of Fish and Wildlife; Mr. Joshua Roberge, chief of police of Fort Belknap; and myself spent approximately two hours giving testimony and fielding questions from the U.S House Representatives.

This was the first time we had met each other; therefore, there was no coordination among us prior to or during the hearing. The takeaway from this testimony from all of us? A lack of law enforcement, lack of funding and open borders.

The lack of law enforcement, both in and outside the Montana reservations, is harming the communities. The cartel presence on the reservations has generated a lot of interest at the national level and that is why these inquiries are taking place. However, it should be noted that this crime wave didn't just happen overnight and it is not just happening on the reservations.

Major cities in Montana have had some form of cartel presence and law enforcement needs additional support. I have witnessed local law enforcement and the Montana Attorney's Office ask for additional support. Prior to my DEA retirement, I tried twice to open a DEA office in Bozeman, an area where cartel presence is growing, but was denied by our D.C. headquarters.

Funding additional bodies to support our safety as a community is a hot topic. Where would funds come from? I could be cheeky here and maybe I will be ... "Pay the piper now or wait and pay double later."

Regardless, our elected officials need to make some adjustments in supporting more resources for Montana.

Last, but not least: The open borders. At some point, voters really need to feel the pain and demand that the borders be closed. There are laws on the books to do this  but it appears that politics is getting in the way.

Meanwhile, law enforcement will continue to do what they do. I will continue to fight for Montana's security and we will probably continue having this conversation unless those in D.C. heard the witnesses' testimony and took it to heart.

We can only hope this spurs action, but I am not holding my breath.
 Flash

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, meets with Igor Kobzev, governor of Russia's Irkutsk region, in Irkutsk,on June 12, 2024. [Photo/Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs]

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday met in Irkutsk with Igor Kobzev, governor of Russia's Irkutsk region.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, expressed congratulations on Russia Day and wished for the successful realization of the development and revitalization goals of both Russia and the Irkutsk region.

Wang noted that Irkutsk has a long history of exchanges with China. The regional capital, the city of Irkutsk, was once an important hub on the ancient tea road, and Lake Baikal is well-known among the Chinese people.

Recently, Russian President Vladimir Putin successfully conducted a state visit to China, during which President Xi Jinping and President Putin had in-depth strategic communication, setting the course for the development of China-Russia relations, Wang said.

China is actively advancing Chinese modernization, while Russia is accelerating the development of its Far East region, presenting a historic opportunity for cooperation between the two countries, he added.

Local cooperation is a vital part of China-Russia relations, Wang noted, adding that the Irkutsk region, with its abundant natural resources and strong industrial base, has unique advantages for developing cooperation with China.

China supports closer mutually-beneficial cooperation at sub-national level between the two countries, including that with Irkutsk, to benefit the people of both sides, he said.

Kobzev expressed his great honor to welcome Wang on Russia Day and noted that China is Irkutsk's largest trading partner, accounting for 70 percent of the foreign trade and maintaining a strong growth momentum.

The region highly values cooperation with China and hopes to expand further exchanges and cooperation in such fields as agriculture, energy resources, culture, education and tourism, and to attract more Chinese investment, Kobzev said, adding that the region is willing to provide a better business environment for Chinese enterprises.
North 2 Shore: Mosaic's picks Atlantic City North 2 Shore: Mosaic's picks Atlantic City (Photos courtesy North 2 Shore Festival/Photos courtesy North 2 Shore Festival)

New Jerseys second annual North to Shore Festival will move Monday to its next destination: Atlantic City.

This week, New Jerseys massive three-week festival produced by the New Jersey Performing Arts Center will include dozens of performances, including national acts like Prince Royce and Wisin, and comedians Chris DiStefano and Sam Morril.

North 2 Shore: Full coverage

The festival will also feature community art-based initiatives, such as the power of using art to help with maternal mental health to Atlantic Citys murals project.

With so many ways to have fun, picking one or two events might be difficult, so were highlighting a few events you might not have considered, especially those that are just a few bucks, or are free. Yes, FREE.

Well do this list during each leg of the festival; the second week is in Atlantic City.

1. Harmonizing Health

If youre interested in learning how the arts can help mothers with their mental health, sit in on this virtual panel at noon on Tuesday, June 18.

New Jersey First Lady Tammy Murphy will moderate the panel, called Harmonizing Health: The Transformative Power of Arts in Maternal Well-being, and five panelists will join her to discuss how different forms of art can empower individuals, help improve mental health challenges, and act as a tool to guide women through pregnancy, childbirth and new motherhood.

There will be a bit of music during the online forum, too. Kelline Bonny, a parent in the Lullaby Project at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center (NJPAC), will perform an original lullaby created in collaboration with a teaching artist.

Panelists for this virtual event: Yvelisse Gonzalez, a senior manager with the Public Health Programs and Partnership for Maternal and Child Health of Northern New Jersey; Andrea Harris, vice president and chief quality & health equity officer for Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of NJ; Tiffany Ortiz, director of Early Childhood Programs at Carnegie Hall; Lisa Tremayne, the program director at RWJBarnabas Health Center for Perinatal Mood an Anxiety Disorders and Tonya S. Wright, head of the Division of Academic Specialists in Obstetrics and Gynecology and assistant professor at Penn State Health.

To reserve a spot, visit the North To Shore website.

2. Songs of Freedom

Songs of Freedom: Poetry Celebrating Juneteenth will be hosted by Stockton University, as part of its special edition monthly open mic and reading series World Above, at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, June 19, at the Noyes Arts Garage.

The event features local poets who will recite their poems centered around cultural identity and inherited histories.

Featured poets are Turiya Abdur-Raheem, Deon Davis, Cole Eubanks, Joi Gales, Belinda Manning, Leslie McIntosh, Sparkle Prevard, Lennox Warner, Paige Washington, and Elle Vintage.

After the event, an open mic session will welcome those in attendance to recite their own poetry or a few minutes of their prose. To participate, participants must arrive by 6:45 p.m. and register. The poetry event will also be live-streamed via Zoom.

The arts garage is located at 2200 Fairmount Ave. For information about this event, visit the North to Shore website or the art garages website.

3. Abuelitas Secret Speakeasy

Abuelitas Secret Speakeasy will offer guests an evening of food, music, wine and cigars on Friday, June 21.

The event is to celebrate both Spanish and Italian cultures, where everyone was always welcomed at the dinner table. At this party, the food will be paella and tobacconist Coby Frier will curate a cigar selection.

Gypsy Joe, a professional flamenco guitarist, will provide the music.

The event is from 5-11 p.m. at Rhythm and Spirits, 129 S Tennessee Ave. The event is free but participants must register on the North to Shores website.

4. Skate AC 3rd annual Art Show

Skate ACs third annual Art Show is a free no-commission art event that will feature skate-inspired artwork created by the skaters.

DJ Lousy will perform a live set throughout event, on Friday, June 21, at the Union Hall Arts, located at 2806 Atlantic Ave., in Atlantic City, 6 p.m.

For more information, visit the North to Shores website.

5. Atlantic City Mural Project

Besides its well-known tourism scene, Atlantic City is also home to numerous murals. To highlight these massive works of art, Create 48 is spearheading the Atlantic City Mural Project, which will shine a spotlight on the citys Chinese and Vietnamese cultures.

The five-day event will also feature Johnny Dreamsawake, an artist and gallery owner, and artist Gary Lindley, starting on Tuesday, from June 18-22, at the Sunny Tien Dispensary, located at 3004 Atlantic Ave., in Atlantic City, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

For more information, visit North to Shores website.

6. Showcase Stage and Artist Village  Atlantic City

Looking to discover some local musicians, North to Shores Showcase Stage and Artist Village event will feature 14 music artists starting on Saturday, June 22-23, at the Orange Loop Festival Grounds, located at New York Avenue, in Atlantic City, 11 a.m.

For the free showcase event, attendees will hear music of various genres including soul, R&B, funk, punk, jazz, hip hop, pop, rock, comedy, spoken word, dance and country music. Comedian Michelle Tomko and radio DJ AC Mike Lopez will host the event.

DJs Aiden Scott, Patrice McBride, Rashaun and Vito G will perform their own sets between each live performance.

Attendees can also enjoy walking through the Artist Village where artworks from more than 30 local artisans will be on display. Several Atlantic City food trucks will be available and there will also be a lot of free giveaways.

Activities for children will include a painting wall, where kids can decorate with paint on brushes, or loaded into water guns, or on their hands. For those who like to eat what they decorate, there will be a decorate-your-own-cupcake station.

On Sunday, June 23 only, visitors can experience the New Jerseys WOW Experience mobile activation thanks to New Jersey Travel and Tourism.

For more information, visit North to Shores website.

Here are more Mosaic stories about the arts:

North2Shore: Mosaics picks for the best of the festival in Asbury Park

North2Shore: Soulful sounds in Asbury Park help launch N.J.s premier 3-week festival

North2Shore: A rich tapestry of artists will fuel N.J.s premiere 3-week festival

Mosaic staff writer Vashti Harris can be reached at vharris@njadvancemedia.com.

Welcome to Mosaic. Follow us on Instagram at @MosaicNJcom and on Facebook at MosaicNJcom.
A judge admonished a Butte man Thursday for taking no accountability and showing no remorse for kneeing his then-girlfriend in the stomach knowing she was pregnant.

The assault caused trauma and created a hole in the placenta, and though the baby was later born healthy, District Judge Kurt Krueger scoffed at Cody David Fryars request for a suspended sentence only.

Fryar, 27, previously pleaded guilty to aggravated assault but in a presentence investigation interview said he did not commit the offense and accused the victim of premeditating her accusations, Krueger said.

He caused serious bodily harm to the victim in this case and could have caused major (pregnancy) complications, said Krueger, his voice getting louder. How could I give a person who has no accountability of any kind a total suspended sentence?

Prosecutor Ann Shea said it was a serious assault that still affects the victim and she asked that Fryar get seven years in custody of the Montana Department of Corrections with three of those years suspended.

Public defender Water Hennessey said his client had no previous criminal record besides two DUIs, is getting counseling for chemical dependency and is working 40 hours a week. Hennessey asked for seven years with all suspended.

He just wants to put this behind him, get needed treatment and get on with his life, Hennessey told the judge.

Krueger went with Sheas recommendation, citing an impact statement from the victim and statements Fryar made in a presentence report, among other things.

Theres not any recognition of even a crime on his part, Krueger said as Fryar stood silently next to Hennessey. If he truly believed that, he should have taken this matter to trial.

According to prosecutors, the woman called police on April 16, 2023, and said Fryar  her boyfriend  had assaulted her. She said they lived together in Butte, she was 10 months pregnant with Fryars child and he knew that.

She said Fryar was intoxicated and calling her names and when she tried to leave out the back door, he yanked her back inside then pulled her to the ground, purposefully landing on her stomach with his knee.

She said Fryar stepped on her hand as she reached for her phone but she was able to get out and call a friend. The woman drove to Whitehall, called police but returned to Butte because of severe stomach pain.

Police soon received a report from St. James Healthcare saying the woman had suffered abdominal trauma, initial encounter and subchorionic hemorrhage of placenta in first trimester, single or unspecified fetus.

The woman told police there was a hole in the placenta because of the trauma and she had to take medication for two weeks in an attempt to heal the wound. Doctors believed the fetus was still healthy, she said.

Fryar was charged and later pleaded guilty to aggravated assault, which carries a maximum 20-year prison term and fine up to $50,000.

Hennessey said the case has been hanging over his clients head but he had served 281 days in jail before bonding out, was a low-risk to reoffend according to the presentence report and had made no attempts to contact the victim.

But Shea said the incident showed classic signs of domestic violence, Fryar had shown no remorse and the victim was still suffering.

This not only affected her physically, it affected her emotionally, Shea said. She has been in fear about where she lives, about being alone in a home.

Krueger said Fryar doesnt understand the seriousness of the crime and didnt even come here today to try to (express) remorse, and in part because of that, he would be transferred to DOC custody.
Officials have released the name of the man who died Saturday after an altercation with law enforcement in which he was shot after running over a Cut Bank police officer with his vehicle.

Harley Olson, 42, of Cut Bank was fatally injured early Saturday, officials with the Flathead County Coroners Office said. The Glacier County Sheriffs Office requested a civilian coroner from Flathead County respond to Logan Health in Kalispell to do the coroners inquest.

Olsons body has been taken to the Montana State Crime Lab in Missoula for a forensic autopsy, Flathead County officials said in a news release.

The Montana State Department of Criminal Investigation is investigating this incident in the interest of transparency, officials said.

Officials said earlier the Cut Bank police officer saw a disorderly person in the street outside a bar about 1:20 a.m. Saturday, but when approached, the man fled to a parked vehicle in the parking lot of another bar. When ordered out of the car, the suspect drove over the officer, who fired his duty weapon at the man, authorities said.

The suspect was struck by the gunfire, officials said. The officer was injured and received medical treatment. He is expected to make a full recovery, officials said Saturday.

The officer, who was not identified, was placed on administrative leave as the investigation proceeds.

No further information was immediately available Wednesday.
Montana will receive $5.4 million from the federal health department to expand a home visit program for new parents and young babies. It is one of only 11 states and the District of Columbia at the center of a new White House initiative to improve maternal health outcomes and disparities.

Any maternal mortality is too many, said Carole Johnson, the administrator of the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the office within the federal health agency focused on maternal and child health. But we looked at places where there are higher maternal mortality rates, and where there are unacceptable disparities in these outcomes.

Pregnancies resulted in death at a rate of 29 per 100,000 births in Montana, higher than the national average, according to data from the March of Dimes. These deaths are caused by complications during pregnancy and up to six weeks after childbirth.

Additionally, nearly 10% of babies are born preterm, and the rate of eclampsia is higher in the state than nationally. There are profound disparities in health outcomes between American Indian new moms and babies as compared to their white counterparts. Rural residents are also at higher risk for conditions such as gestational diabetes or hypertension.

Evidence widely shows that access to medical care and psychological support during pregnancy and in weeks following childbirth can prevent complications and improve outcomes. But half of the 56 counties in Montana are classified as maternity care deserts and even more are without a hospital that offers obstetrics. Making an appointment with a health care provider isnt a simple fix.

The HRSA home visit program strives to close this access gap by bringing a support system directly to the home of new parents likely to need it most.

Montana has been a recipient of federal funding for home visits in years past. Between Oct. 1, 2021 and Sept. 30, 2022, there were 931 households across 19 counties that participated in the program. Over half were at or below 100% of the federal poverty line, and almost 10% of pregnant participants were under the age of 21. Families received a total of 11,805 home visits with 97% of caregivers being screened for depression and 79% of children getting a timely screening for developmental delays, information provided by HRSA shows.

The allocation announced this week is the biggest yet for Montana. The state will receive more money each year for the next five now that Congress has reauthorized the program and agreed to double total federal investment over the same period.

Its not always a conducive environment to growing social services programs, Johnson said. But theres been strong bipartisan support for home visiting because theres research that documents its impact.

County health departments partner with hospitals to identify new parents likely to benefit from extra resources at the critical time after childbirth, and they reach out to families directly to give them an opportunity to voluntarily participate.

Home visitors offer all kinds of help based on family needs. They might teach parents how to change diapers or breastfeed, explain developmental milestones for infants or help new moms look out for their own health during a time thats often overwhelming. These skilled care providers also provide referrals to more specialized practitioners or organizations that can support family needs, when appropriate.

Johnson visited Bozeman on Tuesday for a roundtable of county health departments, home visitors and parents who have benefited from the program in recent years. She said she was touched by the stories she heard and left feeling motivated to do her part to support the work of community organizations.

Montana has the advantage of a terrific network of community-based organizations and leaders on the ground who are trying to make a difference, and thats worth its weight in gold, she said. But then what needs to happen is we need to match that capacity with resources to do it, and thats the fight we are taking up in Washington.

Though access to traditional maternal care is a critical part of improving health for new moms, its not a panacea, according to Johnson. Even if you have the best prenatal care, barriers to resources such as child care, transportation, healthy food and behavioral health providers will negatively impact families.

Its necessary but not sufficient to focus on what the health care system does, Johnson said. Until we think holistically about what it takes to deliver services and support healthy pregnancies and outcomes, we are going to see these numbers continue.

A huge piece of that effort is making sure new parents have access to all levels of mental health resources when they need it.

We need to be frank about it, Johnson said. Being a new parent is hard.

Home visits allow experts to screen for early signs of depression or other mental health challenges and refer parents to providers. HRSA also funds Montanas telehealth psychiatric service for people during and after pregnancy. Its called PRISM for Moms, and it allows any Montana provider who is caring for pregnant people to consult with a psychiatry expert. That includes primary care providers, OBGYNs, midwives, social workers and more.

The numbers in Montana may not be large, but the work to reach each of those individuals can be really significant, Johnson said. We dont look at huge numbers, we look at outcomes for families. We know when its a just numbers game, resources wouldnt come to a state like Montana.
Kenyas lawmakers have earmarked Sh3 billion to settle outstanding debts owed to the contractor responsible for the initial phase of the Nairobi Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) system. This decision by the National Assemblys Budget and Appropriations Committee also ensures the completion of the remaining work on the stalled project in the 2024/25 fiscal year.

The committee, led by Kiharu MP Ndindi Nyoro, noted that an additional Sh3 billion would be allocated for development, specifically to clear pending bills and finalize the remaining tasks on BRT Line 2.

Moreover, Kenya is set to receive Sh1 billion in external funding for the project in the upcoming financial year.

The Nairobi Metropolitan Area Transport Authority (Namata) launched the BRT system in August 2020, with initial designs for depots and stations anticipated to be completed by June 2022. However, the project has stalled as the contractor withdrew due to budget cuts, leaving bills amounting to billions of shillings unpaid.

The 27-kilometre BRT Line 2, named Simba, is one of five planned routes under the BRT initiative. This line is designed to connect Ruiru with the Kenyatta National Hospital, traversing the Nairobi Central Business District.

As part of the modifications, the contractor reconfigured Thika Road to support a dedicated BRT lane. This involved converting the two innermost lanes of the road and constructing ten middle island stations accessible via existing median strips and footbridges.

Despite these challenges, Namata emphasizes that the BRT lanes are projected to operate at an average speed of 30 km/h, one of the highest globally, promising significantly reduced travel times on the BRT corridor.
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Palestinians mourn for victims killed during Israeli airstrikes in central Gaza Strip city of Deir al-Balah, on June 5, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]

The Palestinian death toll as a result of the ongoing Israeli attacks on the Gaza Strip has risen to 37,202, Gaza health authorities said in a press statement on Wednesday.

During the past 24 hours, the Israeli army killed 38 Palestinians and wounded 100 others, bringing the total death toll to 37,202 and injuries to 84,932 since the Palestinian-Israeli conflict broke out in October 2023, it added.

The statement noted that some victims remained under the rubble amid heavy bombardment and a lack of rescue crews.

Israel launched 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.
The nations electricity monopoly Kenya Power has announced a crucial update for all customers using prepaid meter tokens, requiring them to update their devices before August 31.

Meters that are not updated by this deadline will no longer accept tokens, according to the companys directive.

Managing Director Joseph Siror detailed the update process on Wednesday, explaining that customers will receive two codes upon purchasing tokens.

Customers will be required to enter the codes into their meter by following the instructions provided in the SMS before loading the new token, Siror stated. He also noted, In some cases, the company will send the codes directly to customers who have not recently purchased tokens, prompting them to update their meters. This process is straightforward and free of charge.

Customers must ensure all previously purchased tokens are loaded into their meters before entering the reset and update codes. Kenya Power assured that the update would not affect any tokens already loaded into the meters.

This initiative, targeting 7.4 million prepaid meters across the country, has been dubbed Update Token Meter Yako.

The end of August 2024 has been set as the deadline for the update.

Heres the full statement from Kenya Power.
National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichungwah has disclosed that Deputy President Rigathi Gachaguas designated police helicopter is currently undergoing maintenance, explaining why the DP has recently been seen flying on private choppers, and even commercial.

The Deputy President set tongues wagging earlier in the week when he flew to Mombasa on a commercial flight, and was even pictured carrying his own luggage.
Police have arrested a suspect who has been impersonating Spice FM journalist Eric Latiff to defraud unsuspecting victims.

A complaint filed with the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) alleges that the man was soliciting money from unsuspecting guests invited to the Situation Room show under false pretenses.

Latiff hosts the four-hour morning show alongside Scholar Nduh Okoh and Political Strategist and scientist Charles Muga. They host dignitaries and politicians to discuss national issues.

Detailing how Gacheru impersonated Eric Latiff and defrauded guests, Corporal Lucas Juma disclosed that Latiff filed a formal complaint with the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) on May 28, 2024.

According to Latiffs statement to the police, the impersonator used his name to deceive unsuspecting guests invited to the show. Among the victims were prominent figures from leading political organizations, prominent businesspersons, and senior government officials.

The guests reported to Latiff that they were contacted via WhatsApp using an Airtel number between November 2023 and April 2024.

Latiff provided the suspects contact information to the DCI, leading to a manhunt that resulted in the suspects arrest arrest.

DCI identified him as Julius Gacheru Wangari, also known as Chris Gacheru.

He was arrested on June 8, 2024, at an apartment in the Zambezi area of Kikuyu, Kiambu County, and two mobile phones were seized from his residence.

Preliminary investigations established that the two mobile phones have subscriber numbers used in commission of the crimes, stated Corporal Juma.

Gacheru was arraigned before Milimani Principal Magistrate Gilbert Shikwe on Monday, June 10, where police were granted permission to detain him for seven days for further investigations.
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Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Thursday called on China and New Zealand to always stay as partners for common development.

In his meeting with New Zealand's Governor-General Cindy Kiro, Li said China and New Zealand share similar development concepts, cultural values and international propositions, adding that the two countries have benefited from each other's development over the years.

Conveying cordial greetings from President Xi Jinping to Kiro, Li noted that the friendship between the two countries has remained vibrant and bilateral ties have made significant progress since the establishment of diplomatic ties 52 years ago.

This visit, coinciding with the 10th anniversary of the China-New Zealand comprehensive strategic partnership, is a trip of friendship and cooperation, said Li.

China is ready to work with New Zealand to jointly update the comprehensive strategic partnership and bring more benefits to the people of the two countries and the world, he added.

China is willing to further strengthen the bonds of cooperation with New Zealand, enhance people-to-people exchanges in such areas as education and culture, expand personnel exchanges, and support the people of both countries in creating more stories of friendly interactions, said Li.

Requesting Li to convey her sincere regards to Xi, Kiro said New Zealand is willing to continuously deepen cooperation with China in various fields, enhance cultural exchanges, further promote the friendship between the two peoples, and jointly address global issues such as climate change.
Going to the Kabul airport was very hard and scary. But we were lucky.

Those are the words of Mohammad Fidakar 28PhD, who put everything on the line to bring his family out of Afghanistan once he became an object of harassment and violence by the Taliban.

His successful, though extremely stressful, departure from his native country comes through the intercession of Scholars at Risk and a number of staff and faculty at Emory, including what is now his academic home, the Department of Economics.

Scholars at Risk is an international network of institutions and individuals dedicated to protecting scholars and promoting academic freedom. It arranges academic positions at member universities and colleges for, as their website indicates, scholars facing grave threats, so their ideas are not lost and they can keep working until conditions improve and they are able to return to their home countries.

David Jacho-Chavez, professor of economics and director of graduate studies, notes that the department learned about the efforts of Scholars at Risk for the first time through Emorys Faculty Senate in May 2022. The university had joined Scholars at Risk with the idea of potentially identifying a faculty member to bring here but proved open to welcoming Fidakar as someone with faculty experience looking to complete his doctorate.

The Scholars at Risk report plainly states the danger that Fidakar  along with his wife, Basira Bahar, and their then-three-year-old-daughter Baran  was experiencing:

This scholar reports facing high and direct risk due to his criticism of the Taliban in his university lectures, which were recorded and given to the Taliban. He reports that several months ago, national security agents warned him of potential direct threats by the Taliban. In late July [2021], the Taliban reportedly fired guns at his home, leaving it riddled with a hail of bullets. Afterward, they reportedly entered his home and burned all his books and documents. In addition, the scholar fears that his advocacy for human rights, support of female students and teaching of economic development theory, which he notes is seen as Western ideology, may further exacerbate his risk of being targeted by the Taliban.

Understanding how the situation came to this point is important  and not just for Fidakar.

Fidakars family  who come from central Afghanistan  are Hazara, one of the countrys four ethnic groups, which also include Pashtuns, Tajik and Uzbek. The Taliban are Pashtun and have exacted violence against, and repression of, the other groups, especially the Hazara.

But the suffering of his people, says Fidakar, dates back more than a century to the reign of Abdur Rahman Khan, emir of Afghanistan from 1880-1901. In that period, more than 60% of the Hazara population was massacred.

This is not only my story, Fidakar maintains. This is about every individual still in Afghanistan. They are in a very difficult situation. It is also the story of the many people who have been displaced and left the country. We need the world, and especially the academy, to know what is going on. This is the narrative of all those who dont have a narrator.

Hailing from a family of educators

Fidakars father was able to complete the first year of a baccalaureate program before conditions made it impossible for him to continue; his mother did not receive a formal education.

For his part, Fidakar was admitted to Balkh University to study economics. However, given the economic stresses on his family, he requested a deferment, working as a math tutor for a year to help support a brother and sister who were pursuing their bachelors degrees. Fidakar graduated with a bachelor's of economics in 2013.

Equally concerned with the welfare of his wider community, Fidakar became a founding member in 2014 of the Participatory Democracy Institution for Afghanistan, which was trying to increase public awareness of the value of advocating for true representatives at the local level.

He also volunteered with the Afghan Red Crescent Society and became chief director of the BNM Library and Study Center, a public library he founded with two friends, collecting 2,000 books and enabling study groups, including for women.

From 2015-17, Fidakar taught at Muslim Private University, where he won the Excellence Award reserved for the institutions best lecturer. In 2017, he opted to pursue a masters of development practice at the KDI School of Public Policy and Management in South Korea. His thesis, titled The Impact of Maternal Education on Maternal Health Seeking Behavior in Afghanistan, argued for compulsory schooling and called on his government to provide that education without cost.

Fidakar became a lecturer at Ghazni University  located in southern Afghanistan, about two hours from Kabul  in 2014, was promoted to assistant professor of economics in 2018 and chosen to head the universitys research center in 2020.

Like Fidakar, his five siblings are highly educated. His three sisters have earned bachelors degrees in history, literature and philosophy, collectively. One brother has a masters degree in electrical engineering following study in India; the other is pursuing computer science in Sweden.

This level of education is not only true of our family; it is very common among the Hazara. They are eager to send their daughters to universities, says Fidakar, whose advocacy for womens educational rights is one aspect of the surveillance and intimidation he endured from the Taliban.

Running afoul of the Taliban

Among the courses he taught at Ghazni University were History of Economic Thought and Development Economics Theory. Though most of the material revolved around Western theories, Fidakar also talked about barriers to development and gave examples related to Afghanistan.

I was trying to say to my students that we need to support our government, not the Taliban, Fidakar notes. He made it clear that their freedoms, including their freedom to be educated at the university, depended upon it.

This fact did not sit well with his students, almost 70% of whom were pro-Taliban.

Some of my students who were very religious recorded me, he says. The students took this recording to the theology department. The faculty there, displeased with what they heard, intended to write a letter of protest to the economics department and to have him apologize to the class.

More worrying still, the Taliban had started to be in direct touch with Fidakar. The first time it happened, he recalls, I wondered if my friends were joking with me. A few seconds into that first call, I realized it was serious and was getting afraid.

Over the course of several conversations initiated by the Taliban, Fidakar was accused of anti-Islamic and anti-Taliban activities at the university. One caller made the threat explicit, saying: You are encouraging students against the Taliban. We will find you.

He switched off his phone, moved his family and changed his daily schedule.

Meanwhile, conditions in Ghazni were increasingly concerning. His house was in the crossfire at night when the government and Taliban would exchange gunfire. Then one evening, the shots were directed at his house.

The next morning, Fidakar moved his family to Kabul, where they lived with his parents. After leaving, they got a report that the windows in the house were riddled with bullets and all his books had been burned. Soon thereafter, the city fell to the Taliban.

His former students called him in Kabul, trying to get his new address. He and his family spent three months in hiding. At that point, the Taliban started doing house-to-house checks under the pretense of looking for guns. In truth, the search was for people who had crossed the Taliban.

Trying to keep hope alive

A friend in Turkey sent him what turned out to be a lifeline  a link to apply for the Scholars at Risk program. After a few months, the program found a doctoral opportunity for him in the U.K., but he could not get out of the country. All the borders were closed.

Fidakar relocated to Iran, which is where his interview with Emorys economics department took place in May 2022. Despite the immense pressures on him, he made a favorable impression, according to Jacho-Chavez.

We encountered a well-spoken economist who was trying to support his family while in hiding doing academic translations into English. As a former economics instructor in Afghanistan, his interest in development economics was obvious, says Jacho-Chavez. His life experiences, his current interests in refugee economics, as well as his commitment to the education of women in his country, are strengths that resonated with our departments doctoral program community.

With interest high on both sides, the question became: how to get him and his family safely to Emory?

Fidakar unsuccessfully sought visas to the U.S. from embassies in several neighboring countries. Though the process proved cumbersome and expensive, the U.S. embassy in Pakistan would issue him a visa. However, he could not go there directly from Iran. More circuitously  and more dangerously  he would have to go back to Afghanistan to get to Pakistan.

Despite the difficulty for his wife in traveling without a male companion, they reunited in Iran during the last month of his stay there. Together, they would need to reenter Afghanistan en route to Pakistan. As we approached the Afghanistan border, I feared that Iranian soldiers would turn us over to the Taliban, he says.

Coming to Emory

Bringing Fidakar and his family here took a village. The economics department worked directly with leadership in the Office of Global Strategy and Initiatives (GSI), Laney Graduate School, Emory College of Arts and Sciences, International Student and Scholar Services, as well as the Department of Mathematics.

Once the decision was made to admit Mohammad into our doctoral program, all different units worked together with a great sense of urgency and empathy toward welcoming him and his family to the safety of our Emory community, says Jacho-Chavez.

Faculty, staff and current graduate students enthusiastically pitched in  picking Fidakar and his family up at the airport, securing living space for them, donating furniture, arranging English lessons for his wife, helping enroll his daughter in school and providing her with toys.

With the memory of their harrowing journey so recent, Fidakar acknowledges the many ways that the economics department supported us, especially from a psychological standpoint. Renee Sevey-Hasterok, the Department of Economics graduate program coordinator, and her husband Rod were there at every turn to ease the burden.

Another person who pulled out all the stops to make the family feel at home is Obse Ababiya, associate director of GSI. When the family first arrived, they were at Emorys Clairmont campus; however, with Fidakar putting in long days and evenings of study, the strain on everyone was palpable. Obse helped us find a place even closer so that I can see my family during the day, he says.

Ababiya credits Philip Wainwright, then the vice provost for GSI, now retired, with being the global glue that helped make this complicated undertaking work. She is grateful that GSI encourages Emory to take an active role in addressing the global refugee crisis in Atlanta and abroad.

For her part, she says, Welcoming Mohammad to Atlanta and Emory was a dream come true and a process that took more than a year. Having him and his family strengthens the university, bringing perspectives that our community would not get otherwise.

The mathematics department enrolled Fidakar in classes to better prepare him for the doctoral work ahead. As Jacho-Chavez comments, Mohammad had to adapt to Emorys academic rigor and the high standards we ask of ourselves and our students. He is a quick learner with an impressive work ethic who you can find at his desk before anyone arrives in the office and until late at night after most have left.

The man who loves being a teacher and hopes to rejoin the professoriate in the future is planning, during his study at Emory, to pursue research on the economic consequences of gender discrimination in Afghanistan.

Letting in the light

And what of his home country?

According to the World Bank, people in Afghanistan are not able to meet their basic needs for food, water and shelter. Scores of men have been killed, making many women now the breadwinners. Yet, ironically, they are not allowed to work. Fidakars own sisters can neither work nor study. There are secret schools underground.

I am concerned not only about my relatives. Everyone in our ethnic group is in a very bad situation now, Fidakar says, citing what he knows firsthand and what sources such as Genocide Watch have chronicled.

Though it may be the least of his losses, he left 50 plants behind when he left his home in Ghazni.

Even now, when I remember, it makes me very sad. I have plants here. Whenever I am giving them water or putting them in front of the window, it takes me back, reminding me of all those hard situations and memories, Fidakar notes.

For two years, we were on a risky and complicated journey. The pressure on us mentally was immense. At every second, there was a high probability that the Taliban would arrest us, he says.

Like the new growth he tends for his plants, Fidakar wants to keep turned toward the light.

Emory not only saved our lives, it saved our future and created so many possibilities for my daughter. Emory has given a life to our deep hopes, he says.

All photos courtesy of Mohammad Fidakar.
If you stroll through McDonough Plaza on most Tuesday afternoons, youll no doubt be enticed by the Emory Farmers Market, with chatter among friends, the smells of food and a draw to be where the action is around campus. Seeing all the vendors and attendees, you might consider it just that: a popular event to bring food to the Emory community on campus.

But the farmers market is much more than that. It is a place for sustainability education and efforts that impact the local community, state and beyond.

The farmers market is a place of gathering and community, says Mark Seals II, associate director of campus dining at Emory. Were also really focused on Emorys mission and vision for sustainability, particularly when it comes to food and local sourcing.

A food-centered community

The Emory Farmers Market happens every Tuesday at 11 a.m. during academic semesters and biweekly during the summer. Each event features a variety of products that appeal to every taste of Emory community members.

Farms, restaurants and small-scale artisanal businesses are represented at the market, featuring everything from baked bread and honey to coffee, hot food options and fresh vegetables from the Oxford Organic Farm.

Some vendors, like Legacy Bakers  a husband-and-wife duo that sells a variety of pastries, pound cakes and biscotti  have been market staples for nearly 10 years.

Legacy Bakers has a strong connection with our Emory community, says Kendra Ding, sustainability and social justice fellow in the Office of Sustainability Initiatives (OSI). One of their children attended Emory School of Medicine and completed his residency here in radiology. And some of the older customers they had at the market who graduated from Emory came back to them to make cookies for their wedding. We love seeing those kinds of connections.

The variety appeals to everyone on campus, according to Ding. Staff and faculty tend to favor fresh produce while students prefer hot food, including Cuban, Syrian and Moroccan cuisines. Students are invited to use Eagle and Dooley Dollars to purchase items at the market.

At least two of the five hot food vendors will be sold out by the end of the market, Ding observes.

Though the Emory Farmers Market only happens once a week, planning is a year-round endeavor undertaken by Ding, Seals and Liz Carlino, assistant director of campus dining. The trio, along with other leaders in OSI and Emory Dining, processes vendor applications, coordinates logistics for each market and serves as the first point of contact for everything market related.

The market is also supported by a subcommittee of staff, faculty and students across campus that review the previous years markets and consider what new vendors could be included.

More than just selling food

Though the market boasts some of the best food, produce and artisanal goods options in the neighborhood  even recently being named one of the best farmers markets in Atlanta  the minds behind the market want it to be a place of education.

This goal is integrated in several ways, including on-site cooking demonstrations and an educational table. Every month, a different campus group purchases seasonal market produce and creates a dish using those ingredients. Free samples of the delicious results are shares with attendees.

The dish is always something easy, something practical and something that an average Emory student would be able to duplicate in their dorm room or shared kitchen, says Seals.

Its a better way of engaging our community with cooking with more seasonal ingredients instead of going to large grocery stores and buying, for example, blueberries year-round, even when theyre out of season, says Ding.

At the educational table, attendees can learn about food security resources on campus, seasonal produce and more. Student organizations are also invited to participate by showcasing on related topics. In the spring, for example, Emorys Asian Student Organization participated in a tabling event.

People talked about the Asian cultural background, for instance, about how to make matcha, or planting Thai basils, says Ding, who manages the educational table. There are exciting events and perspectives going on at the table.

And of course, theres always something to learn by interacting with the community.

We bring people together to showcase local and sustainable businesses. We teach them things like produce usage, where produce comes from and the processes of these small businesses and local farmers, says Seals.

How is food connected to sustainability, anyway?

Its an easy question with a multifaceted answer to explore: How are food and sustainability related?

In short, food is connected to sustainability in every way  there is an interconnected web of considerations when thinking about how food impacts sustainability efforts.

Transporting food, ingredients or finished products has a huge impact on the environment, says Carlino. The miles that food is transported is something we don't always think about, but has a massive environmental impact. The longer food travels, the higher the greenhouse gas emissions. Where your food is coming from is so crucial. You could be choosing all healthy foods, and yet, if that food has to travel hundreds of miles and be packed in coolers, what is the actual benefit?

This is why Carlino and others within the farmers market emphasize the importance of buying in-season food from local sources. The less distance a product travels, the better it is for the environment.

When the produce at the Emory Farmers Market comes from the Oxford Organic Farm, for example, it travels just 40 minutes. Some of the vendors at the market source nearly 50% of their products locally, according to Seals.

Another consideration for buying products: Are producers being paid fairly?

The Farmer's Market is a prime example of how we can support local small businesses and farms. When we buy local, we are not just supporting those small business owners, but also their employees and other local establishments that they utilize. Instead of spending money on large corporations who may not have the Emory community in mind, we are lifting up our own community and neighbors, says Carlino.

Waste and trash are also critical considerations when it comes to food distribution and consumer products. The markets low-waste commitment reflects Emorys larger sustainability framework.

In fall 2022, the market eliminated plastic bags and Styrofoam, requiring vendors to use alternative containers for food distribution and encouraging attendees to bring a reusable bag. Vendors must meet additional requirements to be involved in the market, such as sourcing sustainably and locally.

We want to be a champion at the heart of main campus for our waste policies, says Ding.

A reflection of campus attitudes

The Emory Farmers Market has been going strong since 2008  except for a brief hiatus due to COVID-19  which is a testament to the campus communitys values. According to Seals, it shows how much the Emory community cares about how people are affected by food purchases, the environment and sustainability.

As part of the Emory community, sustainability is part of our fabric. Its who we are in showing that we care, Seals explains. It says that Emory is a giving community that thinks not only of themselves but also of the impact they can have on others.

Carlino hopes that the knowledge and experiences gained from the farmers market will carry forward.

We hope to expand on all these commitments and serve as a small window of whats possible. Our goal is to give folks the tools to make healthier decisions for themselves and the environment that will transcend food purchases and spread to other aspects of their lives, says Carlino.

The Emory Farmers Market is open to everyone in the surrounding community. For more details and updates, follow @EmoryFarmersMkt on Instagram or check out their page on the Office of Sustainability Initiatives website.
Pitts Theology Library at Candler School of Theology has acquired the digital archives of the radio program Day1  formerly known as The Protestant Hour  which has been broadcasting sermons weekly since 1945. The Alliance for Christian Media (ACM), the nonprofit broadcasting organization that produces Day1, entrusted Pitts with the shows full digital archives of more than 3,800 sermons as part of a partnership agreement this spring.

The partnership is the result of years of collaboration between Pitts and ACM, and launches a three-year project that marks a big step in the effort to preserve and provide access to a sizeable portion of Americas Protestant broadcasted preaching history.

Bo Adams, Margaret A. Pitts Distinguished Director of the library, says the Day1 archives are among the most significant collections of audio preaching from the 20th and 21st centuries.

For nearly 80 years, Day1 has delivered some of Americas greatest preachers into peoples homes each Sunday through the radio, Adams says. Now we have an opportunity to provide access to this treasure trove of preaching to anyone, anywhere, through the power of digital technology.

Adams says the collection will be a rich resource for preachers, homilists, sociologists, ethicists, historians, students and even the general public.

A repository like this is so important for the study of the history of preaching and the teaching of different preaching styles in America, he says, adding that it also serves as an excellent resource for those who just want to hear a great sermon by a great preacher.

Thomas G. Long, Bandy Professor Emeritus of Preaching at Candler and chair of the Day1 Advisory Council, agrees.

These archives are a treasury of the finest American preaching over the last three quarters of a century, Long says. The Day1 archives can teach us much historically, even as the sermons in the collection continue to form and inspire faith today.

Long points to hundreds of outstanding preachers in the collection, including Samuel M. Shoemaker, an Episcopal priest whose ministry was influential in the creation of Alcoholics Anonymous; Thelma Adair, the first Black female moderator of the United Presbyterian Church; and best-selling memoirist and religion writer Barbara Brown Taylor.

The collection also contains a sermon by Clovis Chappell, one of the countrys most popular preachers in the 1930s and 1940s, which will add to Pitts already expansive collection of Chappells sermons and papers. Another gem is a 1976 sermon from public television star and Presbyterian minister Fred Rogers, better known as Mister Rogers.

As part of the agreement, Pitts will incorporate Day1 into its digital collections, ensuring open access to the shows full repertoire through a robust website. Each sermon will be discoverable through enhanced metadata, including Scripture references and biographical information of the preacher, and each will be accompanied by a fully searchable transcript.

Pitts will begin rolling out the digitized collection in 2025, and Adams expects the full archives to be available by the end of 2026.

Katie Givens Kime, a Candler alumna recently named president of ACM and host of Day1, says discerning the right institutional partner to expertly steward the new digital home for Day1 was an enormous decision.

In the end, Pitts Theology Librarys leadership in building dynamic digital archives, such as their exhibition of Howard Thurmans sermons, made them the clear choice for ACM Trustees, Kime says. We are grateful for the trust, expertise and nimble flexibility of Pitts and Candler School of Theology.

Over the past decade, Pitts has been enhancing its digital infrastructure to support large-scale projects such as this, an undertaking made easier by the introduction of large-scale cloud computing. The digitized Day1 archives will be stored in the cloud to allow for broad access  which Adams says is something new.

Since the majority of these sermons were recorded well before the digital age, much of the Day1 archives have never been accessible beyond the live radio show, Adams says. The integration of the archives into Pitts digital collections will not only preserve these invaluable recordings, but also make them accessible to a global audience.

And that is the true goal.

This initiative underscores Pitts commitment to supporting theological education and research through the preservation and dissemination of important historical and theological resources, Adams says. We want to make them available to the widest possible audience.
16:58





The liquid IED was recovered with the assistance of one of the Over Ground Workers (OGW), arrested after a gunfight earlier this month in Pulwama in which one of the oldest surviving Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorists Riyaz Dar alias "Sathar" and his associate Rayees Dar were killed.





Riyaz Dar had joined the banned LeT in 2014 and had closely worked with slain Pakistani terrorists Abu Dujana and Abu Ismail. He was involved in many terror-related activities.





While Riyaz, designated as an A++ terrorist, carried a cash reward of above Rs 10 lakh, Rayees Dar was categorised as 'A' carrying a cash reward of Rs 5 lakh. Immediately after the gunfight, police cracked down on OGWs working for the Lashkar terrorists and arrested four of them.





During interrogation, the officials said, one of the OGWs said the terrorists were given shelter and provided with logistics by Bilal Ahmed Lone, Sajjad Ganie and Shakir Bashir, all residents of Nihama in Pulwama. The OGW network was unearthed and these three persons were arrested later.





During investigation, the OGWs informed the police that the two Lashkar-e-Taiba terrorists had prepared liquid IEDs. Bashir had hid them in the orchards.





Explosive experts from the army decided to destroy the IEDs, weighing around 6 kg and stored in a plastic container, considering them to be dangerous. This, according to the officials, can be seen as a bigger threat as such explosives can be categorised d2d as they cannot be located with conventional detectors used by Road opening Party (RoP) or by sniffer dogs.





Liquid explosives were used by terror groups in south Kashmir during 2007, but after that, these were not seen during the decade of militancy that hit Jammu and Kashmir.





The officials said there had been intelligence inputs suggesting that Pakistan-based terror groups would now use liquid explosives.





In February 2022, Jammu and Kashmir Police had recovered arms and ammunition from the international border in Jammu which also contained three bottles of a white liquid being air-dropped by drones entering from Pakistan. Forensic examination indicated that it could be trinitrotoluene (TNT) or nitroglycerine, generally used in dynamites, but a final report was awaited, the officials said.





The liquid explosive material, white in colour, was packed in three one-litre bottles and was part of the consignment dropped by drones, which had taken flight from neighbouring Pakistan, on February 24, 2022. The officials did not rule out the possibility that such explosives may have found their way into the Kashmir valley as some drone droppings, according to intelligence reports, could have succeeded. Pakistan's external swooping agency, the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), which has been providing tactical support to banned terror groups like the LeT, Jaish-e-Mohammed and the Hizbul Mujahideen, operating from across the border, has chosen the way of air-dropping weapons with the help of drones. PTI

Liquid explosives seem to have made a comeback in Jammu and Kashmir militancy theatre after 17 years as a recent raid by police in the Union territory led to the recovery of such "difficult-to-detect (d2d)" Improvised Explosive Devices, officials said.
Premier Li kicks off three-nation tour in New Zealand

China and New Zealand on Thursday signed agreements on trade and climate change during Premier Li Qiang's visit to the country, the highest level Chinese visit in seven years.



Li also expressed the hope that New Zealand can support Hong Kong in joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership when he met Prime Minister Christopher Luxon on the first day of his trip.



Ahead of the talks, the Premier was greeted on the lawns of Government House in the capital Wellington by Luxon and participated in a traditional indigenous Maori welcome.



After the meeting, Li said that the two agreed that it is important to expand cooperation on trade and investment and that China is ready to be part of New Zealand's efforts to double its value of exports in the next decade.



The Premier said Beijing will also extend visa-free travel to New Zealanders, while New Zealand will support Chinese language teaching and cultural exchanges.



"We agreed that it is important to promote the sustained sound and steady development of China and New Zealand relations," he said.



"We will continue to view and handle bilateral relations from a strategic and long-term perspective to lay a solid political foundation of our cooperation in all fields.



Li also said he expressed the hope that New Zealand could support the SAR in joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, the world's largest free trade agreement. Hong Kong officially requested to join RCEP in 2022.



Luxon for his part said they discussed the two country's significant economic relationship, with two-way trade in goods worth nearly 22.4 billion US dollars.



"China and New Zealand have different political systems and as with all of our long standing relationships, it is natural that we will raise our differences with China consistently and predictably," Luxon said.



Li will later visit Australia this weekend and then travel to Malaysia.

_____________________________

Last updated: 2024-06-13 HKT 17:00
Three sets of SIU Carbondale School of Aviation certified flight instructors and students will take part in the 47th Air Race Classic. From left are Graci McDaniel, Grace Gray, Gabrielle Loeb, Heidi Hightower and Ranier FullerMoore. Not pictured is Maya Marenda. (Photo by Russell Bailey)

Starting from home: SIU boasts six female aviators for 2024 Air Race Classic

by Pete Rosenbery

CARBONDALE, Ill.  It might not be a complete home court advantage, but three teams of Southern Illinois University Carbondale School of Aviation female aviators will take off from familiar surroundings for the 47th Air Race Classic (ARC) on Tuesday, June 18.

Southern Illinois Airport  which also serves as the operations hub for the nationally recognized SIU Aviation program  is the starting point for the 2024 Air Race Classic. The four-day, 2,268-nautical-mile journey runs through June 21 and includes nine stops in nine states before ending in Loveland, Colorado. There are 48 teams in this years event, including 22 teams representing 14 universities. The ARC celebrates the history of women in aviation. Amelia Earhart was one of 20 women to compete in the first womens Air Derby in 1929.

Having the start be where I started my flight training has been super exciting because I first soloed here, said Grace Gray, a senior aviation management and flight student, who with Gabrielle Loeb, a certified flight instructor (CFI) and December 2022 aviation management and flight graduate, are the Air Dawgs team. Coming into my fourth year flying out of this airport in correlation with the ARC start is extremely special.

Gray, who is from Lakeville, Minnesota, noted the competitive drive is amped up for sure for herself and fellow Salukis  Loeb, Heidi Hightower, Rainer FullerMoore, Maya Marenda and Graci McDaniel.

Theres the whole country, and it starts at our home, said Hightower, who graduated in May in aviation management. We get to depart on this new adventure surrounded by familiar faces, terrain and controllers. Its definitely convenient to start at KMDH (SI Airport), but I would have gone wherever needed to start the race without question.

Hightower and FullerMoore are the Tall Tails team, and Marenda and McDaniel are The Salukis Aces. Each team will be in Cessna 172S planes, and their progress during the competition can be followed at airraceclassic2024.maprogress.com.

The goal for each team is to beat their own predetermined times in accounting for changes in factors that include terrain, weather, winds and air space. Often times, pilots fly with no air conditioning or open windows because the drag will slow the plane down.

SIU Carbondale has a long and proud history of aviation students participating in the Air Race Classic, Chancellor Austin A. Lane said. We are delighted this years competition will start at the Southern Illinois Airport, where the Glenn Poshard Transportation Education Center houses premier facilities for our first-rate aviation and automotive programs. We hope the participants will enjoy their stay in this region and wish them the best of luck.

Media advisory

To arrange for interviews with the competitors, contact Alyssa Connell, manager of communications at Southern Illinois Airport, at 319-243-9899. The Air Race Classic contact for media is publicity@airraceclassic.org. Aviators will begin arriving Friday, June 14, with the competition starting at 8 a.m. Tuesday at the airport.

SIUs long history in ARC

This is the ninth year that SIU has been in the event. A team from SIU won both the overall and collegiate title in 2015, and a year ago, McDaniel and Meadow Boden placed second both overall and in the collegiate division.

SIU provides the aircraft and fuel. Each team has designed merchandise to sell as a fundraiser along with other means.

In fall 2023, the School of Aviation had 678 students across all of its programs  aviation flight, aviation management and aviation technologies  with 100 to 110 women in those programs. According to a 2022 report by Women in Aviation International, women make up less than 20% of the workforce in most aviation occupations, with the largest gender gaps in senior leadership, professional pilots and maintenance technicians. The Boeing Pilot and Technician Outlook for 2023-2042 shows long-term demand for aviation personnel will remain strong with the need for 649,000 new pilots, 690,000 new maintenance technicians and 938,000 new cabin crew members.

The School of Aviation is happy to support our teams in the Air Race Classic, said Steven Goetz, associate professor and chief flight instructor in the School of Aviation. We hope that through our support of the ARC and other outreach events like Girls in Aviation Day, more women will consider aviation careers. Aviation is in need of skilled labor, and encouraging women to consider aviation careers is a great way to meet the needs of the industry and provide for a very rewarding career for the individuals who choose that path. We wish all the Air Race Classic competitors tailwinds and blue skies. Go Dawgs!

SIUs teams and crew are:

The Saluki Aces

McDaniel, from Pinckneyville, is a May 2023 aviation management graduate and is a CFI in the program. She is only one of the six Salukis to compete in a prior race. Gaining additional flying experience and the opportunity to make more lifelong memories is her goal. McDaniel is the co-pilot this year, with Maya Marenda piloting their plane.

Being able to compete in such an awesome all-female event was more meaningful to me than receiving second place, McDaniel said. I learned so much and made so many lifelong connections with other female aviators in the field. I hope the same strategy Meadow and I used last year will help us be able to achieve another great finish this year. I hope to get some experience flying at higher altitudes in Colorado, although we dont get too far into the mountains.

McDaniel became inspired to pursue an aviation career through her family, especially her grandfather, Calvin McDaniel, a World War II pilot who bought his own planes when he returned. He was instrumental in the development and funding of the Pinckneyville-Du Quoin Airport, whose field bears his name.

She hopes to work for a regional airline after achieving 1,000 flight hours. She transferred into SIUs aviation program from another university.

Im so glad I ended it here. If I were to pick one reason for my decision, it would be the people, she said. I have loved spending time with all of my instructors and peers from SIU, and I'm happy to still be around them every day instructing.

Marenda, a senior in aviation flight and management from Oglesby, Illinois, said she has promised herself to take advantage of all the opportunities that come my way.

I could not be happier with my choice; this race seems like such an amazing experience, and Im grateful to be a part of an event that supports female pilots, she said, adding that McDaniel has been an amazing help, and I just want to make sure I can bring my best to strengthen our team. I have never experienced anything like this before, and being able to fly alongside some incredible and motivated women is going to be an honor.

Marenda became interested in aviation after taking a discovery flight at her local airport in high school. A great aunt and her private pilot flight instructor are SIU alumni, and that helped influence her decision to come to SIU. She already knew that SIU has one of the best aviation programs in the nation; however, I wanted to make sure that I felt home on campus. Marenda and her mother toured programs, including Western Michigan, Purdue and Florida Tech, but the feeling I got when I visited Carbondale was familiar, she said. I could see myself living there.

Tall Tails

FullerMoore, from Charleston, Illinois, is a 2023 aviation management graduate and a CFI with the program while also working toward being an airline pilot and exploring aviation management careers. She noted the preparation required for competitors to be ready and safe.

Reading rules and becoming familiar with a different type of flying in order to be comfortable has been the most time consuming, FullerMoore said.

FullerMoores interest in the aviation industry began in 2018. She was on a Delta Airlines flight, and a flight attendant noticed FullerMoores enthusiasm. A tour of SIUs transportation education center and close proximity to home convinced her to come to Carbondale. She added that her uncle, who recently retired from American Airlines, and her aunt were a huge help.

This is a career my family and I knew nothing about, but they have supported me so much along the way, FullerMoore said.

Hightower, who is from Chesterfield, Missouri, grew up in a general aviation family, and after getting to know family friends who are also pilots, decided to follow it as a career. She earned her private pilots license and chose to attend SIU to continue her flight training. She noted the detailed preparation she is learning that goes into the race, how the process works and what to anticipate. While it seems like a lot to comprehend, Hightower said, its one step at a time, and we will have everything ready before we know it.

In talking with previous competitors, Hightower said shes learned the relationships you make along the way are the best part of the race.

I look forward to meeting many incredible women and sharing this experience with my fellow Salukis, she said. The race sounds like the biggest sleepover/team bonding/storytelling adventure a pilot could ask for.

Air Dawgs

Loeb, who is from Dunkirk, New York, said having the event begin at her home airport adds an extra layer of personal significance, being able to have my peers see what the race entails and cheer us on from the start. She was drawn to SIUs aviation program because it had a small community feeling with big-school opportunities.

Throughout my flight training, the goal has been to fly the airplane accurately and with smooth application. I have never tried to get the plane to fly as fast as possible and perform flybys, Loeb said, adding that she is looking forward to expanding my pilot skills in a competitive environment, pushing my limits under pressure and improving my decision-making skills.

Loeb became interested in an aviation career when she was about 8. She grew up with a single mother who was a flight attendant, was often babysat by pilots, flight attendants and gate agents, and spent a lot of time in the JetBlue crew lounge at John F. Kennedy International Airport.

I loved flying and being around aviation professionals all the time. I really admired how passionate they were toward their work, said Loeb, who is enrolled in multiple cadet programs and plans to be a first officer with a regional airline.

For Gray, whose hometown is about 30 minutes from one of the competitions stops in Owatonna, Minnesota, it will be exciting to see her family when they fly in. One of the more challenging aspects has been the coordination in getting the aircraft ready for handicapping  where the test flight is completed to set the time to beat for their aircraft, along with anticipation leading the event and the unknowns.

With the demands of the race, not only on your aircraft, but your body and mind, you have to be at peak performance throughout the race. That has been a process to navigate leading up to the race, she said.

Grays parents are both SIU aviation management program graduates, and her father has worked in airline operations my whole life, so I say I got the aviation bug, and coming to SIU has been where I have started to see my dreams become a reality.

The caliber and structure of the degree program were exactly what I was looking for when looking at various universities, Gray said. Also, the flying season is very long here and is definitely different than back home in Minnesota, so SIU was and has been the best choice for me.
In a clinical trial conducted by Stanford Medicine investigators and their colleagues, a 15-day course of Paxlovid  an antiviral drug combination targeting SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19  proved safe as an extended-duration treatment but didnt lessen select symptoms of the syndrome known as long COVID: the persistence, or reappearance, of COVID-related symptoms three months or more after an initial COVID-19 infection.

The findings are described in a paper published June 7 in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Paxlovid is a highly effective antiviral agent licensed for treatment of acute COVID-19. Its approved by the Food and Drug Administration for the treatment of adults who are newly infected with SARS-CoV-2, have mild or moderate COVID symptoms, and are at high risk of complications because of age or various predisposing conditions. A five-day Paxlovid regimen has been shown to reduce recipients likelihood of hospitalization and death by more than 85%.

While the Stanford trial did not show that Paxlovid reduced long COVID symptoms, it did show that taking the drug for more than two weeks was safe.

Weve demonstrated the overall safety of a 15-day course of Paxlovid  thats three times as long as its being taken for acute COVID, said Linda Geng, MD, PhD, clinical associate professor of primary care and population health, who was one of the trials two co-principal investigators.

Geng is the papers lead author. Its senior author is the trials other co-principal investigator, Upinder Singh, MD, professor and chief of infectious disease and geographic medicine and of microbiology and immunology.

Desperate people

While there are now improved therapies and treatment practices for acute COVID, theres nothing FDA-approved for long COVID, people continue to suffer and the numbers keep piling up, Geng said.

An estimated 10% to 20% of SARS-CoV-2-infected people  tens of millions in the United States alone  develop long COVID. That estimate is fuzzy, because the definition of long COVID is ambiguous. More than 200 separate symptoms have been ascribed to the syndrome. These symptoms are often shared by other conditions, making a definitive diagnosis hard to pin down. It may well be that long COVID is a collection of different diseases set in motion by acute COVID but with different underlying mechanisms and effects and accordingly distinct methods required to alleviate them.
BRANCH COUNTY  A joint state and federal effort Tuesday returned former Union City resident Anthony Cuyler, 46, from Mexico to face 2019 charges of sexual assault of a 12-year-old and delivery of meth to a minor.

Union City Police officer Tony Renya waits for Anthony Cuyler brought to Detroit on a U.S. Marshall 737 jet Tuesday.

Branch County prosecutor Zack Stempien alleged Cuyler moved to Indiana and then fled to Mexico after a Union City police investigation in 2019.

Unable to locate and extradite Cuyler, the prosecutor's office requested help from the United States Marshals Service, who screened and accepted the case under Operation Survivor Justice. This program provides justice for the victims of sex crimes in the state of Michigan.

Marshalls located Cuyler, and when Mexico expelled him in March, they arrested him.

Marshalls flew Cuyler to Detroit Tuesday, and Union City officer Tony Reyna met and transported Cuyler to the Branch County jail.

Stempien said that the Michigan Attorney General's Office offered to lead the prosecution as part of Operation Survivor Justice.

Branch County Prosecutor Zack Stempien

"I am grateful for the efforts of all involved in this apprehension and extradition, and appreciative of local law enforcement, the Branch County prosecuting attorneys, and our U.S. Marshals Service for bringing this defendant home to face justice."

Stempien praised "The Union City Police Department for their investigation." He also thanked the Michigan Attorney's General's Office and the United States Marshals for their assistance.

Deputy Chief Corey Wilkerson learned from a mother a 12-year-old girl allegedly received meth from Cuyler on a day in late July 2019 and he sexually assaulted her.

He's facing the following charges:

Three counts of criminal sexual conduct degree, life felonies.

Delivery of methamphetamine to a minor, a 40-year offense.

Possession of methamphetamine, a 10-year felony.

Possession of ammunition by a felon, a five-year offense.

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At a Wednesday arraignment, Branch County District Court denied bond, appointed the Public Defender, and set a probable cause conference for June 25 and preliminary examination for July 2.

 Contact Don Reid: dReid@Gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Anthony Cuyler extradited from Mexico to face Union City CSC charges
Haiti welcomed a new government on Wednesday, completing the final step in a new political transition that many are hoping will bring a reprieve to the countrys ongoing gang-fueled crisis and pave the way for long-overdue general elections.

A new cabinet of ministers was presented by newly selected Prime Minister Garry Conille at a ceremony. Conille this week finalized his government after days of negotiations with members of the transitional presidential council. Conille, 58, a former regional director with UNICEF, the United Nations child welfare agency, managed to reduce the cabinet from 18 ministers to 14 by combining some ministries.

Like former Prime Minister Ariel Henry, who was forced to resign by the United States to pave the way for a transition amid gang attacks that erupted on Feb. 29, Conille will keep for himself the portfolio of interior minister. In Haiti, the interior ministry is responsible for issuing passports and staging elections.

Most of the members of Conilles new cabinet are unknowns or relative newcomers to Haitian politics. Most of their names, however, were put forward by the sectors represented on the nine-member presidential council, where seven members have voting rights and two serve as observers. Still, there are some notable names among them. They include Carlos Hercule, the new minister of justice; Dominique Dupuy, the minister of foreign affairs and Haitians Living Abroad, and Ketleen Florestal, the minister of finance and planning.

Hercule, a lawyer, formerly headed the Port-au-Prince bar association. In his role he will need to rebuild the justice system that today is wrestling with the escape of more than 4,000 inmates after armed groups raided the countrys two largest prisons in early March. There is also the thorny issue of the investigation into the assassination of President Jovenel Moise. More than 50 people, including the presidents widow, have been indicted and Hercule will face pressure to continue to pursue the case.

The justice ministry has also been intimately involved in the negotiations with the government of Kenya over the deployment of the Multinational Security Support mission to help the countrys beleaguered police take on powerful gangs.

Dominique Dupuy, Haitis former ambassador to UNESCO, has been named Haitis foreign minister.

Dupuy was Haitis ambassador to UNESCO and had been previously named as one of the seven members of the presidential council by a political party coalition led by former prime minister and foreign minister Claude Joseph. She resigned, citing threats to her life. She will be charged with not only overseeing Haitis foreign policy but cleaning up a ministry saddled with corruption allegations in some of its foreign embassies.

A Columbia University graduate, Florestal is an economist who began her career as a law intern and briefly served as chief of staff in Haitis justice ministry in the early 1990s. She replaces finance minister Michel Patrick Boisvert, who served as interim prime minister after Henrys resignation Florestal has worked on the Haiti portfolio at the three leading international lending institutions including the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank and the International Monetary Fund. Florestal holds a masters degree from Columbia University in economic policy management and a masters from Johns Hopkins University in applied economics.

The new government faces a host of challenges, from restarting the economy to addressing the ongoing violence.

Armed violence that escalated nearly four months ago has brought Haiti to the brink of both economic and humanitarian collapse. The most recent numbers from the United Nations show that theres been a 60% increase in the number of people displaced between March and June, from 360,000 to nearly 580,000.

On Wednesday, a court in Kenya postponed for two weeks a hearing on a new lawsuit against the governments efforts to deploy police officers to Haiti. Days earlier three Haitian police officers were killed after armed gang members set a trap, leading to their ambush in the Delmas neighborhood of the capital.

In March, the Caribbean Community, along with the U.S. and other nations, brokered a deal with Haitian political and civic leaders that led to the formation of a nine-member presidential council. Last month, after wading through more that five dozen applications, the council selected Conille, a former U.N. development expert who briefly served as prime minister between 2011 and 2012 , as the new prime minister.

Over the weekend, Conille needed medical care after experiencing breathing problems. He was discharged from a hospital after spending the night. Though he immediately addressed the population in a video about his ordeal, Conille has yet to provide specifics about his priorities or how he intends on governing Haiti.
An influential Delaware County Republican operative facing criminal charges of impaired driving with a gun in her car will have her case decided by a special prosecutor from northwest Ohio.

Henry County Prosecutor Gwen Howe-Gebers has begun reviewing the case of Catherine Nelson, who on Wednesday sought to have a Delaware County municipal judge suppress all evidence stemming from an April 19 traffic stop in Genoa Township on suspicion of impaired driving.

Genoa Township police body camera video shows Catherine Nelson before officers arrested her April 19 on suspicion of impaired driving.

The entire case was referred to Howe-Gebers, who will become a special prosecutor, who "steps into the role of the county prosecutor in whichever jurisdiction the special prosecutor is asked to serve," according to Brandi Orsini, spokeswoman for the Delaware County Prosecutor's Office.

"In this case, the Henry County Prosecutor will handle the case on our offices behalf in Delaware County, not Henry County," according to Orsini.

Delaware County judges and prosecutor, all Republicans, recused themselves from Nelson's case, apparently due to conflict of interest.

Nelson, 68, has for years been a force in Delaware County politics, organizing fundraisers, helping select candidates and choosing opponents for those not aligned with her ideology, multiple Republican party sources have said. She has not held public office.

After township police arrested Nelson, they alleged they found a loaded handgun in her SUV, along with a bottle of liquor. Nelson told police that she doesn't drink but later said she had one or two drinks earlier that day. She also said a medical procedure earlier that day required her to take codeine for pain. She later recanted both statements.

A date for Nelson's next court appearance had not been set as of Thursday afternoon.

dnarciso@dispatch.com

A previous version of this story incorrectly stated in which county the case would be heard

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Northwest Ohio prosecutor to hear Delaware County GOP DUI, gun case
What did these floods shut down in Miami and Broward? See whats running and whats not

An airplane is seen on the runway as heavy rain falls over the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Many flights were either canceled or delayed due to the bad weather.

South Florida is recovering from downpours that flooded homes, stalled cars and made roads impassable. With the forecast calling for more rain, some places in South Florida are expected to remain closed Thursday.

Heres a look at what is open and closed Thursday in South Florida:

Are buses running in Miami and Broward? What about Brightline and Tri-Rail?

 Miami-Dade Transit: Metrobus and Metrorail services are operating. Metrobus service also resumed at the Aventura terminal Thursday. But passengers should expect delays and possible detours on routes in flooded areas. Check Miami-Dade Transits website for up-to-date route info.

 Broward County Transit: Buses are running. But passengers should expect delays and possible detours due to flooding. Check Broward County Transits website for up-to-date route info.

 Tri-Rail said its trains are operating Thursday and that it has resumed service between its Metrorail Transfer and MiamiCentral stations.

 Brightline said its trains are operating Thursday, though it did have to modify its morning schedule. No further impacts are anticipated, the company said. Check the schedule at gobrightline.com.

Is the weather affecting South Florida flights?

 Miami International Airport and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport are open. Travelers should check with their airline to get an update on their flights status. FLL travelers, take note: A section of Easter Perimeter Road into the airport is closed due to flooding and is asking drivers to use alternate routes.

MORE: Is your Miami flight delayed from the rain and flooding? Here are easy ways to check

 MIA has canceled 187 flights and delayed 47 other flights as of 10:30 a.m. Thursday, according to Greg Chin, communications director for the Miami-Dade Aviation Department.

 FLL has canceled 77 flights  39 arrivals and 38 departures  as of 10:30 a.m. Thursday. Affected destinations include Dallas/Forth Worth; Charlotte/Douglas International Airport; Richmond, Virginia; San Francisco; and Guayaquil, Ecuador. The airport also expects an additional 29 flights to be delayed: 9 arrivals and 20 departures. Places affected include Boston; San Jose, California; La Aurora International Airport in Guatemala City; and Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, Jamaica.

Are summer camps open?

 Miami-Dade County Public Schools: All operations, including summer camps, are open. The school district is urging parents to use their best judgment and be attentive to local conditions and messages from individual summer sites. We ask that everyone use caution while driving, during drop off, and release times, the school district said on X, formerly known as Twitter.

In coordination with Miami-Dade County Parks and summer camps, @MDCPS remains OPEN tomorrow. All operations remain normal. We urge parents to use their best judgement and be attentive to local conditions and messages from individual summer sites. We ask that everyone use caution pic.twitter.com/b2qlfC4Uy0  Miami-Dade Schools (@MDCPS) June 13, 2024

 The city of Miami: Summer camps are suspended Thursday.

 Broward County Public Schools: Schools and offices are closed, and all school activities are canceled Thursday, including summer camps.

BCPS families and staff,



Due to the state of emergency declared by the governor regarding the floods, all Broward County Public Schools and offices will be closed tomorrow, Thursday, June 13, 2024.



All school activities are canceled, including camps. Updates on operations for pic.twitter.com/Xr78ZfTvz9  Broward Schools (@browardschools) June 13, 2024

Are government offices, buildings open?

 Miami-Dade County: Administrative buildings will remain open Thursday with reduced staff. The county is asking people to call their facility before heading there to ensure there is enough staff to help you.

 Broward County Government: The county is open Thursday for normal operations, although there are some closures:

Broward County Animal Care is closed due to flooding. Three county parks  Easterlin, Hawksbill and Hollywood Beach Park  are also closed. Three Broward County libraries  African American Research Library and Cultural Center, Hallandale Beach Branch and the Fort Lauderdale Reading Center  are also shuttered Thursday.

Because the severity of flooding varies by where you are in South Florida, its worth noting that some cities might have suspended services at certain locations. Some examples:

 Miami: All city services at Miami Riverside Center, City Hall, Parks and Recreation, Solid Waste, and its summer camps are suspended Thursday.

 Miami Beach: There wont be any trash pickup Thursday from Waste Connections, the citys residential service provider. However, trash pickup will continue as scheduled for multifamily and commercial customers.

 Fort Lauderdale: Administrative offices are closed Thursday.

Can you go the zoo? What about the mall, the movies or the arcade?

 Zoo Miami: Reopened Thursday morning and is continuing to monitor the weather.

 Malls, arcades, bowling alleys and movie theaters: All are likely open. However, this could depend on whether your go-to fun spot got any flooding damage. Your best bet is to call and ask. And make sure to pay attention to the forecast. You dont want to get stranded in a flood.

This list will be continuously updated.
By Anne Kauranen and Riham Alkousaa

HOILOLA, Finland (Reuters) - Only the whine of mosquitoes mars the tranquility of this idyllic spot amid the rolling forests and blue lakes of eastern Finland, on the European Union's longest border with Russia.

But Finnish authorities fear the peace and quiet of places like Hoilola could soon be shattered by the arrival of large numbers of asylum seekers - part of what Helsinki sees as a "hybrid war" being waged by Russia against the West.

Finland is deploying more border guard patrols, drones and electronic detectors and is building fences along sections of the border. In Helsinki, parliament is expected to approve before its summer recess tough new legislation that critics say will violate the country's human rights commitments.

Late last year Finland shut all crossing points for travellers along its 1,340 km (833 mile) border with Russia indefinitely after some 1,300 migrants from nations such as Syria and Somalia arrived via that route.

Since then, only a few dozen asylum seekers have crossed the heavily forested border into Finland, but Helsinki believes the Kremlin stands ready to funnel more migrants across at any time - something Moscow has strongly denied.

Under the planned new legislation, Finnish border guards will be able to call on thousands of reservists to help patrol the frontier, to detect migrants' phone signals, to send the migrants to detention centres and - most controversially - to push them back into Russia without accepting their asylum applications.

"Finland cannot just allow the opening of such a new route (for migrants) into Europe," Finnish Interior Minister Mari Rantanen, from the nationalist Finns Party, told Reuters.

"But overall this is not about a migrant route: this is about a situation in which the authorities of another country are helping or even pressing and pushing migrants to Finland's border," said Rantanen.

Relations with Moscow, once relatively cordial, have deteriorated sharply since Finland's decision to join NATO following Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022.

TWO FRIENDS

The tale of Syrian friends Mohammed, 25, and Mahmoud, 27, is illustrative of the challenge now facing Finnish authorities.

They entered Finland via the Salla crossing last November after riding through the snow in temperatures of -20 Celsius (-4 Fahrenheit) on bicycles they said they had bought for $350 each from Russian middlemen at the last Russian checkpoint. Walking between the Russian and Finnish border stations is forbidden.

Mohammed, who fled first to Egypt to avoid the Syrian military draft and then paid $2,500 for a student visa to Russia, insisted he had entered Finland "completely legally".

"I entered the Russian checkpoint legally and they gave me an exit stamp. In Finland, I showed them the exit stamp and they immediately let me in," he told Reuters, adding that he had then asked for asylum on the Finnish side.

Mohammed and Mahmoud said they had first paid $5,000 each to a Syrian smuggler to reach Germany via Belarus but had got beaten up and then pushed back by Polish and Lithuanian border guards. Echoing Finland's accusation against Russia, Poland and the Baltic states have accused Belarus, a Moscow ally, of similarly funnelling migrants to their shared border since 2021.

"Suddenly there was news that the Finnish border (with Russia) had opened. It was also on Telegram and there were smugglers already publicising their services to send people to Finland," Mahmoud recalled.

The Syrian friends are still awaiting a decision from Finnish authorities on their asylum applications.

Despite the increased tensions with Moscow, Finnish border guards still hold regular meetings with their Russian counterparts, deputy commander Samuli Murtonen said, as he made sure his German shepherd patrol dog did not cross the 10-metre (32 ft) forest clearing to the Russian side of the frontier.

"The basic issue is that, in their view, anyone who stays in Russia legally can leave the country," he told Reuters, adding that previously Russian border guards had not let anyone cross without a valid visa for the European Union.

'PROVOCATION'

Russia, for its part, has accused Finland of manufacturing the border situation by inviting the migrants itself.

"We believe that the deliberate provocation of a 'migration crisis' on the Russian-Finnish state border is necessary for the Finnish authorities to implement the plans of NATO and, above all, the United States to deploy military field infrastructure and deploy foreign troops on their territory, including in areas bordering Russia," the head of the Russian Federal Security Service's (FSB) border service, Vladimir Kulishov, told the state-run RIA news agency on May 28.

Rantanen dismissed that assertion as absurd. She provided no evidence for her February claim, which she said remained valid, that thousands of migrants were still in the border area waiting to cross into Finland, citing classified intelligence.

Her ministry has acknowledged that plans for temporary legislation to push migrants back into Russia would breach Finland's international human rights commitments.

Amnesty International said on Monday the plans undermined access to asylum and risked "serving as a green light for violence and pushbacks at the border".

Mahmoud, meanwhile, said it was clear to him that Russian border authorities had controlled their exit to Finland, allowing only a limited number of migrants through at a time.

"If Russia wants to drown Finland with refugees, it can. It can send tens of thousands of refugees," he said.

(Reporting by Anne Kauranen in Helsinki and Riham Alkousaa in Berlin, additional reporting by Andrius Sytas; Editing by Gareth Jones)
Former Delaware State Housing Authority Director Eugene Young on Wednesday announced he is suspending his congressional campaign.

Young, endorsed by Delaware Gov. John Carney for the seat in March, had yet to file his candidacy with the state Department of Elections.

The suspension of Youngs campaign for Delawares U.S. House of Representatives seat leaves state Sen. Sarah McBride as the sole candidate for the office. While Republican contender Donyale Hall expressed interest in running for the seat, she has not filed for candidacy as of June 12, 2024.

Former Delaware State Housing Authority Director Eugene Young is suspending his congressional campaign, leaving state Sen. Sarah McBride as the sole candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives seat.

After much reflection and consideration, my family and I made the difficult decision to suspend my campaign for the U.S. Congressional Democratic Primary race in Delaware, Young said in an email to campaign supporters Wednesday.

Young thanked his supporters for their incredible dedication over the past 11 months as his campaign made calls, knocked on doors, attended community gatherings and met Delawareans.

GOVERNOR SUPPORT: Gov. John Carney endorses former housing authority director Eugene Young for Congress

While this may be the end of my campaign, it is by no means the end of our shared mission, he said. The values we fought for  equality, fairness, and opportunity  are as important now as they have ever been. Current Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester is running for the U.S. Senate seat vacated by Sen. Tom Carper, who decided not to run for reelection, opening the U.S. representative seat.

McBride issued a statement on her Facebook page lauding Young for the work he's done to empower and uplift others in Delaware.

"Over the last year, my respect for Eugene has only grown. Hes run a positive campaign focused on the most important issues facing Delawareans: affordable housing and health care, good-paying jobs, and livable communities where all our families and neighbors can thrive," she said. "I know the story of Eugenes contributions to our state is only just beginning."

Changing candidates for US House

As with any political campaign, contenders for Delaware's congressional seat have evolved for months. The deadline for candidates to file for office with the state Department of Elections is noon on July 9.

McBride clinched state Treasurer Colleen Davis support after Davis ended her campaign for the seat in February due to personal health concerns and the need to care for her father during his ongoing illness.

Should Hall file for candidacy before the July deadline, it would set up a general election challenge with McBride in November. Hall, a veteran who has run for political office before, has said she intends to run as a Republican.

CAMPAIGN FINANCES: How much have Delaware candidates raised and spent so far in races for US House, Senate?

McBride has far outpaced her challengers in garnering donations to her campaign. According to her campaign in late May, McBride had raised well over $2.14 million since announcing her bid for the seat last June. The latest Federal Election Commission campaign finance data shows McBride's campaign raising $1.85 million in contributions through March 31.

Support grows for Sarah McBride

Delaware Democratic Party Chair Betsy Maron said with Young stepping out of the congressional race, state Democrats are "proud to unite behind our candidate for Congress," labeling the current state senator a "true changemaker."

"Sarah has garnered an incredible coalition of support in her campaign, including her Democratic colleagues in the state legislature and unions across our state," Maron said. "We look forward to working with her as she continues her steadfast commitment to Delaware and the values of the Democratic Party of Delaware."

State Treasurer Colleen Davis, left, talks with state Sen. Sarah McBride after endorsing McBride for U.S. representative March 4 in front of Legislative Hall in Dover. Davis ended her own campaign for the Democratic nomination for U.S. representative in February.

If elected, McBride  currently the country's highest-ranking transgender elected official  would become the first trans person elected to federal office, catapulting the already nationally known politician to an even bigger stage.

Annise Parker, president and CEO of LGBTQ+ Victory Fund, noted Wednesday that Young exiting the race clears the field for McBride to make history as the first transgender member of Congress. With the filing deadline weeks away, there's a "small chance that another candidate could join the race," Parker said.

The LGBTQ+ Victory Fund has endorsed McBride's run for the office. McBride previously interned with the Victory Fund and participated in LGBTQ+ Victory Institute's campaign training. With trans rights under assault in states across the country, Sarah McBrides ability to clear the primary field to represent Delaware in Congress proves that voters want their leaders focused on solving the issues that matter to their daily lives  not singling out their trans neighbors," Parker said in an emailed statement. "Our democracy works best when we all have a seat at the table, and our community is overjoyed today at the news that  for the first time in the 246 years since our Congress was created  the trans community is poised to have a voice in our national legislature."

Got a tip? Contact Amanda Fries at afries@delawareonline.com. Follow her on X at @mandy_fries.

This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Eugene Young suspends congressional campaign pursuit
Fort Meade votes to hire a city manager who had a short, contentious tenure in Haines City

Fort Meade voted to hire Edward Walker Dean as its new city manager Tuesday night. Dean was previously city manager of Haines City, where he was fired after eight months on the job.

Fort Meade may finally have a permanent city manager soon.

The City Commission voted 4-1 during Tuesday nights regular meeting to offer the position to Edward Walker Dean  to the disappointment of some residents, who wanted Interim City Manager Dustin Burke to remain in charge.

The vote came toward the end of a meeting that lasted nearly four hours. During a special meeting a week earlier, the City Commission interviewed two finalists  Dean, a former city manager in Haines City, and Shawn Gilman, a former city council member in Las Vegas.

As commissioners opened discussion of an agenda item labeled City manager search, Human Resources Director George McNerney informed them that Burke should also be considered as a candidate. The commission appointed Burke to the interim role in February, and the city charter only allows an interim city manager to serve for five months.

Fort Meades last permanent city manager, Jan Bagnall, resigned in August after 2 sometimes tumultuous years in the role. Commissioners appointed Assistant City Manager Maria Sutherland as the interim leader and began a search for a longterm replacement.

The City Commission  then with one vacancy and one member who lost a re-election bid  voted in December to offer the job to Pat Oman of Minnesota. But a revised commission with two new members rescinded the offer in January, citing Omans delay in relocating to Fort Meade.

Tommy King, director of the citys water and wastewater department, agreed to a brief role as temporary city manager before the commission selected Burke on Feb. 20.

Burke, 43, had applied for the position after Bagnalls resignation but had not made the list of eight candidates chosen by commissioners for consideration. He had questioned many of the citys practices under Bagnall and had filed numerous public records requests with the city.

Burke had no experience in city government. He had served as an executive at a home lending company in St. Petersburg. During his four months in the interim role, Burke has addressed perceived problems with the citys financial record-keeping and pledged an increase in transparency.

Burke has also fired Sutherland and the citys top code enforcement officer. He hired Greg King, Commissioner Jaret Williams former campaign manager, to a clerical position and then reassigned him as chief of staff and public information officer, with a salary of about $90,000.

Williams motioned to offer the job to Burke, describing him as very qualified. The motion did not receive a second from any of the other commissioners  Mayor Petrina McCutchen, Vice Mayor Samuel Berrien, James Possum Schaill and James Watts.

I don't understand why this is a difficult conversation and move, Williams said. But I want to voice that what Mr. Burke has done, the staff, has tremendously moved this city forward over the past three months.

Williams statement drew murmurs of agreement audience members. The audience was sometimes unruly throughout the meeting, prompting McCutchen to bang her gavel and call for quiet more than once.

During public comments at the start of the meeting, three speakers urged commissioners to install Burke as a permanent city manager.

Polk to Collier County FDOT is planning a 210-mile walking and biking trail

Even before Williams motion, Watts and Schaill expressed concerns that appointing Burke would violate a state anti-nepotism law. Fort Meades fire chief, Matt Zahara, is Burkes brother-in-law.

City Attorney Norman C. Powell had previously addressed that question, saying the law only applies to the hiring of a relative, not the supervision of one already on staff. His colleague, Shirlyon McWhorter, in attendance Tuesday night, reiterated that position.

A frustrated McCutchen sarcastically addressed Watts and Schaill: OK, so now yall have law degrees."

After Williams motion to hire Burke failed, Berrien made a motion to hire Dean, which quickly drew a second from Schaill.

Before the vote, Williams raised concerns about Deans work history. The Haines City Commission voted 4-1 to fire him in May 2022, only eight months after he was hired. Commissioners had discussed possibly dismissing Dean at five previous meetings.

Haines City Mayor Anne Huffman, who led the effort to oust Dean, had accused him of signing contracts without commission approval and excessive spending on his city credit card. Commissioners also questioned his actions in changing the terms of a development the city had approved.

At one point, Dean threatened to sue the city, claiming that he was a whistleblower facing retaliation for pointing out actions he considered to be violations of the city charter and state laws.

No records for such a lawsuit could be found.

There is a serious concern that I have for hiring Mr. Dean, (and having) Mr. Burke removed, Williams said. Just from the information that we all can find online, and the amount of money that he cost (the city) where he was previously employed. There's a long list of similarities from the previous city manager (Bagnall) that shows up here, and I just don't understand why we would make a move to go back.

Williams, who joined the commission in January, added: Im dumbfounded by it, Madame Mayor, and so I just want that to go on record.

Without further discussion, the commission voted 4-1 to offer the job to Dean. The outcome provoked an angry response, with one audience member saying, Shame on you.

McCutchen seemed upset by the audience reaction.

You say, shame on you, she said, her voice wavering. Im really  I didnt expect that.

McCutchen then addressed Burke.

You've done a stellar job of bringing the city back, getting a lot of alignment, a lot of things that were misaligned. That's appreciated; that doesn't go without recognition. But, for me, I was looking for someone with more experience with a city just like ours. I believe Mr. Walker has that experience.

McCutchen directed McNerney to contact Dean, who is 51, and begin negotiations on a contract. The commission did not discuss his potential salary.

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 Commission opts for former Haines City manager to fill role
LAS VEGAS, N.M. (KRQE)  The National Transportation Safety Board has released the final report detailing what caused the Bernalillo County Sheriffs Office Metro 2 helicopter to crash. The crash happened on July 16, 2022, and killed all four crew members, in Chapelle near Las Vegas, New Mexico.

According to NTSB, the probable cause of the accident was due to poor maintenance. The report states that the starter-generator input gear failed due to fatigue. The failure then led to the starter-generator driveshaft shearing, accessory gearbox seizure, and a total loss of engine power.

Story continues below

According to the report, about 17 flight hours before the accident, an engine chip event occurred and a small piece of ferrous metal was found on the magnetic chip plug. The oil system was then drained and flushed and the filter elements were removed, cleaned, and reinstalled. The chip and oil sample were shipped to a lab for analysis. However, the results of the lab analysis were not used by BCSO to troubleshoot the reason for the chip event. According to NTSB, had the operator conducted an analysis, they could have potentially identified the deteriorating component and impending failure.

The report also states that unsuccessful autorotation by the setting sun and high-density altitude contributed to the accident.

BCSO has responded to the report. The current Sheriff John Allen said that before this final report, BCSO grounded the air unit in 2023 to revamp policies. The sheriff said theyve since put in new, increased safety measures including adding another pilot and mechanic.

The Metro 2 helicopter was assisting fire crews with the East Mesa Fire. The crash killed BCSO Undersheriff Larry Koren, Lt. Fred Beers, Deputy Michael Levison, and Bernalillo County Fire Department Rescue Specialist Matthew King.

Timeline leading up to the crash below:

10:56 am  Launch Double Eagle Airport for PR event at Valle Del Oso on 2nd St.

11:12 am  Arrive to Valle Del Oso

12:48 pm  Depart Valle Del Oso to retrieve kayaks left on the Rio Grande river from the previous day near Rio Grande Blvd. and Chamisal Rd.

1:18 pm  Arrive to Double Eagle Airport

1:48 pm  Depart from Double Eagle Airport for East Mesa Fire to assist with bucket drops and short haul

2:50 pm  Arrive on the scene for East Mesa Fire and set up bucket for bucket drops

3:05 pm  Launch from initial scene and performed approximately 20 bucket drops before next landing

4:19 pm  Arrive to Las Vegas Airport to refuel

4:32 pm  Depart from Las Vegas Airport to perform more bucket drops

6:22 pm  Arrive to Las Vegas Airport to refuel; mission at East Mesa Fire complete for the day

6:36 pm  Depart from Las Vegas to return back to Double Eagle

7:18 pm  Last known location just south of Las Vegas, New Mexico

Wednesday evening BCSO sent this statement:

The Bernalillo County Sheriffs Office has received the final investigative report from the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) regarding the Metro 2 helicopter crash on July 16, 2022. This devastating event resulted in the loss of four invaluable lives, deeply impacting our team and our community. When Sheriff John Allen assumed office in January 2023, he recognized the potential for the NTSB report to suggest that improvements were needed in the operation of the Metro Air Support Unit (MASU). In response and noting the previous administrations rapid and premature reinstatement of MASU just months after the tragedy, Sheriff Allen immediately grounded the unit. He initiated a comprehensive review and overhaul of all operational procedures to enhance safety and effectiveness, including revamping and creating new standard operating guidelines and acquiring a new aircraft that meets the highest safety standards. Throughout his first year, Sheriff Allen, in collaboration with MASU members and Bernalillo County Fire Rescue, conducted a detailed evaluation of all protocols and procedures in accordance with industry standards. This comprehensive year-long review was crucial before the confident relaunch of MASU in December 2023, now supported by increased safety measures, including adding an extra pilot and mechanic. In light of the NTSBs findings, it is clear that our decision to pause and thoroughly overhaul MASU was not only necessary but critical, stated Sheriff Allen. We have taken every possible step to ensure such a tragedy does not happen again. We owe it to our community and to the families of Pilot Undersheriff Larry Koren, Lieutenant Fred Beers, Deputy Micheal Levison, and BCFR Rescue Specialist Captain Matthew King to uphold the highest standards of safety and service. We will honor their memory with our actions.

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 KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos.
CONCORD  The New Hampshire House voted Thursday against one bill that would tighten voter identification requirements, but another bill is still alive.

HB 1370 wouldve required photo identification without exception when New Hampshire residents go to vote and removed voter affidavits as proof of identification. It also wouldve set up a hotline where local election officials could call state officials to get proof of a voters citizenship. Once a voter has called the hotline, they must be taken care of within 20 minutes or they may vote anyway, Rep. Steven Smith, R-Charlestown, explained in the bills summary.

While the Senate passed the bill 14-10 in the morning, it was later tabled in the House 223-141, effectively killing it.

At the Special Committee on Voter Confidence Monday, Secretary of State David Scanlan said setting up the hotline the bill called for would be challenging, in no small part because of limited time to implement it before the state primary on Sept. 10.

This was part of the reason Sen. Perkins Kwoka, D-Portsmouth, among others, spoke against the bill.

Maybe if we had more time, wed feel more comfortable with it. But we dont have time, Perkins Kwoka said. This is too important, peoples right to vote.

Sen. James Gray, R-Rochester, and others in support of the bill said that it will make sure people arent voting illegally in New Hampshire.

Sen. James Gray, R-Rochester, speaks in favor of HB 1370 on the Senate floor on Thursday, June 13, 2024.

Americans should decide American elections, said Sen. Daryl Abbas, R-Salem.

But Perkins Kwoka pushed back.

In 2020, there were over a million votes cast. And only five investigations were opened, said Perkins Kwoka. This continues to be a solution looking for problems. We have safe and secure elections here in New Hampshire.

After a similar debate on the House floor, Representative J.R. Hoell, R-Dunbarton, made the motion to table the bill, citing its lack of a public hearing and arguing it should be taken up in a future session.

Another voter ID bill still alive

A similar bill, HB 1569, has already passed both chambers. It does not include the hotline that HB 1370 sought to set up, but it would eliminate affidavits and require voters to provide documentation of their citizenship with proof like a birth certificate, passport, or naturalization papers when they register to vote for the first time.

HB 1569 is heading to Gov. Chris Sununus desk. Sununu has not publicly said whether he would sign HB 1569, but he has said he does not see a need for changes to election laws this year.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: One NH voter ID bill killed, another heads to Gov. Sununu
An Arizona man who planned to commit a racially motivated mass shooting at a Bad Bunny concert was indicted by a federal grand jury on Tuesday.

Mark Adams Prieto was charged with gun trafficking and unregistered possession, as well as transfer of a firearm for use in a hate crime after he outlined his plans to FBI informants he met at a gun show.

Prieto had discussions with two individuals working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation to devise a plan to commit a mass shooting of African Americans and other minorities to incite a race war prior to the 2024 United States Presidential Election, a press release from the Department of Justice read.

The DOJ described Prietos plan to attack concertgoers at Bad Bunnys May 14th and 15th concerts in Atlanta, GA., and said that officers apprehended him on May 14 along Interstate 40, which runs between Arizona and Atlanta.

The indictment alleges that he began espousing suspicious and alarming comments, including advocating for a mass shooting, and specifically targeting Blacks, Jews, or Muslims to the informants before asking one if they were ready to kill a bunch of people.

Prieto told informants to shout racist messages including whities out here killing and KKK all the way during the shooting and added that they should carry out plans ahead of the election. He said of planned victims that these people dont belong here in this country anyway, echoing former President Donald Trumps rhetoric of an invasion of Hispanic immigrants.

The foiled plot comes as white supremacist terrorism trends upward, with the National Institute of Justice reporting that 227 incidents of far-right and racially-motivated extremism have killed more than 520 people since 1990. A report from the Anti-Defamation League noted that the two-year window between 2020 and 2022, with 40 right-wing terror incidents, was the most active in at least three decades.

Fears are further compounded as mainstream political figures move to legitimize racial violence. Criticism poured in last month after Texas Governor Greg Abbott pardoned a man who was convicted of murder after sending messages promising anti-Black violence.
A driver from La Habra in Southern California was killed Wednesday afternoon in a head-on crash after he fled Yosemite National Park following a reckless driving incident, a park official said Thursday.

The driver, who died in the crash on Highway 41 near the Road 222 to Bass Lake, had not been identified as of Thursday by the Madera County Coroner. Four occupants of two other vehicles were injured in the crash, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Park spokesman Scott Gediman said that about noon, rangers were alerted to a reckless driver behind a tour bus headed to Yosemite.

The driver, in a Toyota Yaris, sped through the entrance at the park gate, and drove about five miles into Yosemite toward Wawona, where park rangers made contact with him. The driver then flipped around and began to speed out of the park.

Gediman said rangers stopped following the driver at Fish Camp, but the CHP was alerted, and the collision took place about 13 miles later.

CHP spokesman Joel Heckman reported that the Yaris driver was moving at a high rate of speed when he collided with the back of a Nissan that was also southbound on 41.

The Yaris overturned and slammed into a northbound Chevrolet Trailblazer occupied by three people. The Yaris driver, who was not wearing a seat belt, died at the scene.

At least one of the Trailblazer occupants was injured and taken to St. Agnes Medical Center in Fresno. The Nissan driver was also hurt, but the extent of the injuries was not known.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/xMjPBBWZVpvxwTQ89
Suspect of Idaho motel killing was in jail weeks earlier. Why was he released?

In our Reality Check stories, Idaho Statesman journalists seek to hold the powerful accountable and find answers to critical questions in our community. Read more. Story idea? Tips@idahostatesman.com.

A Mountain Home man is facing a first-degree murder charge after authorities said he killed a man in a motel and was found in California. But that wasnt his first charge of a violent crime in the span of two months.

Less than two weeks before Brian McGehee allegedly killed a man at the Thunderbird Motel, off of U.S. 30 in Mountain Home, he was in custody at the Elmore County Jail on charges including felony strangulation, felony domestic violence with a traumatic injury and four misdemeanors. Authorities said he choked and threatened to kill his then-girlfriend in April, according to court records obtained by the Idaho Statesman.

But the two felony charges were dismissed, which led McGehee to bond out of jail. Had he been convicted, those charges would have carried a sentence of up to 25 years in prison in Idaho.

Elmore County prosecutors at McGehees preliminary hearing last month said they couldnt move forward that day because of a lack of evidence, adding that the woman who accused him of the crimes wasnt present, according to minutes filed with the court. Under Idaho law, defendants in custody are entitled to a preliminary hearing, where the prosecution will present evidence to prove the crimes occurred, within two weeks of their initial hearing.

The Elmore County Prosecutors Office didnt respond to questions sent by the Statesman, including one on what led to the dismissal of those charges. Prosecutors can still file charges against someone without the alleged victim.

McGehee had been in custody at the Elmore County Jail since April 10 and had his initial appearance the following day, court records showed. The prosecution then requested that 4th District Judge Brian Peterson, who handles criminal cases in Elmore County, dismiss the two felony counts with prejudice, meaning that they cant be refiled.

The defense didnt object to the motion and requested that McGehee be released on his own recognizance, which means he wouldnt have to pay anything to bail out of jail. Instead, Peterson reduced McGehees bond from $5,000 to $2,000, the minutes showed. McGehee paid the bond and was released that same day.

The Mountain Home Police Department reported to the Thunderbird Hotel 11 days later to conduct a welfare check on a missing person when officers found a man dead in one of the rooms, according to a news release from the agency. Police determined that it was a homicide, and that McGehee had fled with the victims car, the release said.

McGehee turned himself in to the Santa Monica Police Department in California a week after Elmore County issued a warrant for his arrest, according to the city of Mountain Home. The Elmore County Coroners Office declined to release any identifying information about the victim for this story.

McGehee accused of strangling then-girlfriend

McGehee is now awaiting extradition back to Idaho. If convicted, McGehee faces up to life in prison.

Mountain Home Police Chief Jon Thompson told the Statesman by email that the Elmore County Prosecutors Office is working with officials in California on the extradition, but that theres no timeline for his return. The Police Department also sent investigators to California to work on the case.

Thompson said theres no indication that the domestic violence incident and the killing were in any way connected.

Around 8 a.m. April 10, the Elmore County Sheriffs Office responded to a storage facility just outside Mountain Homes city limits, after McGehee placed his then-girlfriend in a chokehold, according to an affidavit of probable cause filed by Elmore County Sheriff Sgt. Lucas Varela. McGehee and the woman lived in a home connected to the storage facility.

The girlfriend told the Sheriffs Office in an interview that while she was in the kitchen, McGehee got behind her, began choking her and told her that she was ruining his life, she told the Sheriffs Office.

Im going to kill you, McGehee told her while choking her, the affidavit said.

After the woman attempted to grab her phone to call for help, McGehee began to choke her again while slamming her head into the cabinet for roughly 30 seconds, and then threw her onto the ground and began kicking her, the affidavit said. He also destroyed her phone, the affidavit said, but she was able to use the office phone to call for help.

Varela in the affidavit said the woman had a scratch under a swollen eye, and that he collected the victims broken phone as part of the investigation and a pen that she attempted to stab him with to defend herself, the affidavit said.

McGehee was arrested later that day around 4 p.m. and charged with the two felonies and four misdemeanors. The Elmore County Sheriffs Office didnt immediately respond to a phone call seeking additional information.
Chinese premier arrives in New Zealand for official visit

Xinhua) 08:10, June 13, 2024

WELLINGTON, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang arrived here Thursday for an official visit to New Zealand, the first leg of his three-nation tour from June 13 to 20.

Li said upon arrival that he looks forward to having in-depth exchanges of views with New Zealand leaders and people from all walks of life on China-New Zealand relations and issues of common concern, to further deepening exchanges and cooperation in various fields, and to updating the China-New Zealand comprehensive strategic partnership.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to New Zealand, as well as the establishment of the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and New Zealand, Li said, noting that his visit to New Zealand is intended to continue traditional friendship, promote mutually beneficial cooperation, and drive common development.

Although China and New Zealand are separated by vast oceans, their friendly exchanges have a long history, and they have a deep understanding and affection for each other, Li said.

Over the more than 50 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, under the strategic guidance of the leaders of both countries, the relationship between China and New Zealand has consistently been at the forefront of China's relations with developed countries, Li added.

Noting that the two countries have achieved fruitful results in cooperation in trade, investment, tourism, science and technology, and cultural exchanges, Li said that their cooperation has set a model of mutual benefit and win-win cooperation between countries with different social systems, historical cultures, and stages of development.

Li expressed his belief that with the joint efforts, China-New Zealand relations will surely usher in an even brighter future, bringing greater benefits to the people of both countries and contributing more to world peace, stability, development, and prosperity.

During his stay, Li will hold in-depth exchanges of views with Governor-General Cindy Kiro, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and other officials on China-New Zealand relations as well as international and regional issues of common concern.

Li will also pay official visits to Australia and Malaysia, and will co-chair the ninth China-Australia Annual Leaders' Meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
The Wisconsin Capitol on spring election day, April 7, 2020. (Photo by Henry Redman/Wisconsin Examiner)

This article has been removed while the newsgathering process used to produce it is reviewed.

The post Editors Note appeared first on Nebraska Examiner.
A North Carolina man convicted of a sexual assault in Lynchburg after a two-day jury trial in January recently was sentenced to 10 years in prison, the citys chief prosecutor said.

Richard Elton Whitted, 32, pleaded not guilty to one count of object sexual penetration that stemmed from a complaint of sexual assault filed by the victim the morning after she attended a party on Oct. 27, 2019, a news release from Lynchburg Commonwealths Attorney Bethany Harrison said. The victim went to a party with a friend then came back to the friends Northwynd Circle apartment heavily intoxicated, according to the release.

The victim only remembered bits and pieces of the night, the release said. At one point in the night, she woke up in her friends bed to a male on top of her making motions of what felt like having sex with her. A physical evidence recovery kit was performed on the victim and a DNA profile developed from a swab of the victims cervix.

The DNA profile was that of Whitted, who went out that night with the victim and her friend, according to prosecutors.

Lynchburg Police Detective David Dubie interviewed Whitted, who denied having sexual contact with the victim, the release said.

Whitted said he did not go near the victim but did stay in the same apartment with her the night of the incident in a different room, the release said.

The object sexual penetration felony count carries a punishment of five years to life in prison. At a May 24 hearing, Lynchburg Circuit Court Judge F. Patrick Yeatts sentenced Whitted to 40 years with 30 years suspended, according to Harrison. The suspended prison time is on condition of Whitted being on two years of supervised probation and 40 years of good behavior, Harrison said.

Yeatts on Wednesday denied a request from Whitted to remain on bond while appealing his conviction to the Virginia Court of Appeals, Harrison said in a statement. Whitted was taken into custody of the Blue Ridge Regional Jail, will be transferred to the Virginia Department of Corrections and will be required to register as a sex offender when released, Harrison said.
VANCOUVER, Jun 13 (News On Japan) - Canadian police have arrested a 32-year-old man for the fatal stabbing of Japanese chef Wataru Kakiuchi in Vancouver's Chinatown last week.

Timothy Isborne has been charged with second-degree murder.

According to the police, there was no prior acquaintance between the two individuals.

The 32-year-old chef was stabbed in the street on June 5 after seeing a friend off just before 3:30 a.m. and died before reaching hospital.

Previously: Japanese Chef Killed in Vancouver, Described as 'Bright and Energetic'

Source: ANN
TOKYO, Jun 13 (News On Japan) - The Shinkansen inspection train known as 'Doctor Yellow' will end its service in January next year due to aging.

Doctor Yellow, affectionately known as the "Shinkansen Doctor," is a special inspection train that supports the high-speed operation of the Shinkansen by examining various facilities and track conditions.

JR Central has announced that Doctor Yellow will cease operations in January next year.

The reason for the retirement is due to aging, and after its retirement, the inspections will be carried out using existing Shinkansen trains equipped with special devices.

Meanwhile, the Doctor Yellow owned by JR West will continue to operate for the time being.

Source: ANN
TAMPA, Fla. (AP)  Hurricane Milton barreled into the Atlantic Ocean on Thursday after plowing across Florida, where it knocked out power to more than 3 million customers and whipped up 150 tornadoes. The storm caused at least four deaths and compounded the misery wrought by Helene while spa
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The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) announced on Wednesday a 45.5 million loan to Eczacbas Consumer Products Maroc (ECP Maroc) to enable the Moroccan subsidiary of Turkish group Eczacbas Consumer Products (ECP) to acquire Jeesr, a leading manufacturer of tissue paper products in Morocco.

This is the Banks first cross-border acquisition financing package of its kind. The loan will help the Turkish Group to strengthen its presence in the local market.

By acquiring Jeesr, ECP Maroc will be able to unlock synergies in terms of economies of scale, cross-selling of products, efficiency improvements and optimization of production lines, leading to higher production capacity and efficiency.

Morocco is a founding member of the EBRD. Since 2012, the European Bank has injected 4.5 billion in 102 projects carried out in the North African Kingdom.
Morocco and Italy have agreed to strengthen further cooperation ties to counter common challenges, including terrorist threats, illegal migration and Transnational Organized Crime.

The agreement was reached during the meeting held Tuesday in Rabat between Moroccan interior minister Abdelouafi Laftit and Italian peer Matteo Piantedosi.

The two ministers discussed bilateral relations and regional issues of common interests especially in the Mediterranean basin, and stressed the need to enhance cooperation particularly in security and migration.

Mr. Laftit thanked Italian authorities for their input to ensure success of Mahraba Operation 2024, spearheaded by Mohammed V Foundation for Solidarity.

He briefed the Italian minister about Moroccos counter-terrorism strategy that includes vigilant & anticipatory security measures, prevention against radicalization, regional & international cooperation with partner security and intelligence bodies.

Mr. Laftit also spoke about Moroccos migration policy which is based on humanist approach, the Kingdoms border control, and the fight against human trafficking networks.

For his part, the Italian official stressed the key role played by Morocco in the fight against illegal migration, praising the two countries cooperation and joint initiatives destined to address migration issues, combat illegal immigration, and enhance security coordination.

The two ministers have agreed to set up a Permanent Joint Migration Group to ensure a better management of migration flows.
Algerias diplomacy refuses to look in the mirror as it continues to suffer setbacks in support of a Polisario separatist militia that has become a real liability for the military rulers in Algiers.

Algerias erratic diplomacy has reaped but defeats as the number of Polisario supporters has diminished to be limited to a handful of rogue states that depend on Algerias oil and gas charity.

Even in the Special Committee on Decolonization, in which Morocco was the first to list the Sahara territory when it was still under Spanish colonialism, the Polisario and its mentor Algeria are being dealt painful blows as more countries back Moroccos autonomy proposal for the territory.

Now, Algeria should make a choice: either to engage in a peaceful approach that respects the principles of neighborliness and peaceful conflict resolution, or to become entangled in the costly fiasco of its Polisario agenda, spending billions of dollars at the expense of the well-being of the Algerian people, who stand in line to obtain basic necessities, Moroccos Ambassador to the UN Omar Hilale told the C24 members.

Algeria should break away with its intransigence and take stock of three realities: The Sahara has always been Moroccan, autonomy under Moroccos sovereignty is the only solution, and the development push will continue at a steady pace in the territory, said Hilale.

The works of the C24 were marked with vocal support for Moroccos position on the conflict, starting with UN Security Council non-permanent member Sierra Leone that Algeria tried hard to instigate into adopting an anti-Moroccan stance in vain.

Sierra Leone, which has a consulate in the Sahara territory, backed Moroccos sovereignty and territorial integrity as well as the autonomy plan.

Speaking on behalf of the GCC, Qatar expressed a similar stand backing Moroccos right to restore its territorial integrity.

More recently, the central African republic made a similar stand in Rabat while Slovenia expressed support for the autonomy plan a few weeks after Algeria failed to use its gas export to the former Yugoslav republic in exchange for supporting the Polisario militias.

These diplomatic developments show that Rabat is always steps ahead of Algeria and that the Polisario will soon be an Algerian problem.

Morocco ended the conflict militarily and is now consolidating diplomatic gains in defending its legitimate rights to its pre-colonial territorial integrity.
Several UN petitioners have praised the growing international support for Moroccos autonomy plan offered for the Sahara under its sovereignty, highlighted the impressive socioeconomic development in the Sahara and denounced the human rights violations in Tindouf camps and the Algerian regime anti-Moroccan pathological obsession.

Addressing the annual session of the United Nations C-24 convening in New York, Mhamed Abba, an elected member from the Laayoune Sakia El Hamra region, said the autonomy plan proposed by Morocco in 2007 for the Sahara is backed by 107 UN member states as the only realistic solution to the Sahara regional conflict.

Furthermore, thirty countries and regional organizations have decided to open consulates in the cities of Laayoune and Dakhla, confirming their recognition of the Moroccanness of the Sahara, he said, warning against the status quo which leaves the door open to security risks, including violence, extremism, and human trafficking

The autonomy plan, which is based on an inclusive approach, is in line with international law. It has also been described as serious and credible in 20 resolutions of UN Security Council since 2007, said Mr. Abba, noting the plan enables local Sahrawis to enjoy their full political, social, and cultural rights contrary to the deplorable and alarming situation prevailing in the Polisario-controlled camps in Southern Algeria.

He also cited the impressive socioeconomic development the Sahara is witnessing thanks to the huge investments injected in the region and the new development model for the Southern provinces launched by King Mohammed VI in 2015.

The Royal initiatives helped to speed up the advanced regionalization project, aiming to ensure democratic governance and sustainable integrated human development, said Mr. Abba, citing in this regard the new Atlantic Port of Dakhla and Moroccos Atlantic policy making Moroccan Sahara gateway to Africa for Europe and the Americas.

For her part, Mrs. Ghalla Bahiya, elected member from Dakhla-Oued Eddahab region, hailed the social and economic development of Moroccos Southern provinces which are benefiting from modern infrastructure (roads, ports, and airports), good healthcare, education, and social coverage. The region also offers huge investment opportunities in industry, agriculture, renewable energies, tourism, mining, and fisheries.

Furthermore, the local Sahrawi population enjoy freedoms and benefit from security and equal opportunities, she said, stressing the importance of the Royal initiatives, namely the Morocco-Nigeria Gas Pipeline, the Atlantic Africa Initiative, and the Initiative to enable Sahel countries have access to the Atlantic.

These initiatives will make the Moroccan Sahara a platform for security, stability, and co-development in Africa, the Atlantic, and beyond, said Mrs. Bahiya.

She also condemned the sufferings endured by Sahrawi women sequestered in the Tindouf camps where they are daily reeling under abuse, torture and rape.

Women and childrens rights are violated in the Tindouf camps without any action taken by the host country, Algeria, which refuses to allow the UNHCR to fulfill its humanitarian mandate to protect the population of these camps, she said.

She also decried the embezzlement of humanitarian aid by the Polisario leaders and denounced the serious human rights violations committed by the polisario militiamen and Algerian soldiers in Tindouf camps as confirmed by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), which cited large-scale abuse, arrests and ill-treatment of local inhabitants.

Petitioner Khadija Ezaoui, a native of Southern Moroccan Saharan city of Laayoune, said Tindouf camps have become a brutal symbol of human suffering, where abuse, repression, extreme poverty and malnutrition are the norm rather than the exception.

The international humanitarian aid donated for the sequestered population in these camps is diverted to be sold in neighboring countries rather than delivered to those who need it most, she said.

The embezzlement, carried out by the Polisario leaders in connivance with powerful & corrupt Algerian generals, has been confirmed by the World Food Program (WFP) and the European Union Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF).

Moroccos ambassador to UN Omar Hilale has called on the Algerian regime to concede defeat in the Sahara issue after squandering billions of petrodollars on a lost cause instead of spending taxpayers money on the well-being of the Algerian people, who are lining up to obtain the most basic foodstuffs.

He told also the Algerian regime that the Sahara has always been Moroccan and will forever remain Moroccan; the Moroccan Autonomy Initiative is the one and only solution to this dispute, within the framework of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the Kingdom.

Morocco will carry on with determination the development strategy of its southern provinces, which are becoming a regional and continental hub, underlined the diplomat.
Photo-Illustration: Intelligencer; Photo: Major Harrison Mann

In May, Major Harrison Mann posted a letter to LinkedIn announcing his imminent resignation from the U.S. Army. He had served for 13 years and spent the past three posted at the Defense Intelligence Agency as a foreign area officer. After October 7, he had begun to feel complicit in a great wrong. Israel had responded to terror with a campaign of bloody collective punishment in Gaza, yet the U.S. governments support for Israel remained unshakeable. My work here  however administrative or marginal it appeared  has unquestionably contributed to that support, Mann wrote. The past months have presented us with the most horrific and heartbreaking images imaginable  and I have been unable to ignore the connection between those images and my duties here. This caused me incredible shame and guilt.

Mann submitted his resignation in November, and it took effect in early June. Now he has joined a small but high-profile series of official departures over U.S. support for Israels war in Gaza. Here, he speaks freely about his decision to leave the Army and publicize his resignation.

Could we start with your decision to enter the military? What drew you to the service?

Sure. This is a decision I made when I was in college. Im somebody who went through high school and graduated high school near the height of the Iraq War. And without understanding, I think, all of the geopolitical or even domestic political aspects behind it, I just sort of understood, Okay. This is the big struggle of our time, and this is the thing that to serve my country I should participate in, in the larger global war-on-terror framework. That is what led me to start studying Arabic, which was the in-vogue language to study back then if you wanted to be a national security or defense person, and it was part of what drew me into the Army. I had this idea that it was going to be a really developmental experience and kind of toughen me up and be a really extraordinary experience I couldnt get anywhere else. These were not the same decisions I would make today, but thats what drew me when I was like 19 to start down this path.

You served for the past three years at the Defense Intelligence Agency. Could you speak in broad strokes about what your responsibilities were?

For most of the past three years, I worked at the Middle East Africa Regional Center of the agency, which is responsible mainly for producing intelligence analysis and reports on the Middle East and Africa broadly. So while I was there, I served in a number of administrative and leadership positions. I also served as an analyst myself for a while. For my last year, I was in the executive-officer position, which is essentially the assistant to the director of that entire center. So thats a relatively senior intelligence official who oversees most of what the agency does related to that region. On October 7 and following that, it was a lot of, on my part, kind of behind-the-scenes work to help facilitate our crisis response.

You touched on this in the letter you posted to LinkedIn, but could you say more about the ways you felt like the work you were doing for DIA had contributed to the U.S. governments stance on Israel and Gaza?Well, this is actually a great week to talk about it because I think some of our very senior policymakers just announced that U.S. intelligence support contributed to the hostage-recovery operation that happened over the weekend in Gaza.

Thats not necessarily what I worked on, but that is an example of how U.S. intelligence support can be very valuable to Israeli operations. The two countries have a very close intelligence relationship. Our Department of Defense and their Ministry of Defense have a very close relationship, and you can infer that the main intelligence entity, the Department of Defense, also has a close relationship with its Israeli counterparts.

Could you walk me through the process of making this decision, starting with when you might have begun to feel misgivings about the U.S. stance postOctober 7?

I think immediately after October 7, anybody who follows this region, regardless of where they are ideologically, had this expectation that the Israeli response would be massive and violent. We saw in the first week after October 7 that the public statements of Israeli leadership indicated that they were interested in conducting some kind of collective punishment. They launched this air campaign where they were killing tons of civilians. So really from the first couple of weeks, it was clear that they were going to kill a lot of civilians, that that was not necessarily going to be accidental or a drawback for how they were conducting the operation.

We saw the risk, which was manifested very early on, that this was going to provoke a violent regional response by other forces or adversaries in the Middle East, both against Israel and, more important, against U.S. forces. And that started pretty quickly as well. I think the first attacks from the Houthis and maybe also from Iraqi militias started sometime in October. And finally, amidst this, it was pretty clear that the Israeli government did not have a serious or realistic plan for conducting the war. They didnt have an achievable end state that would allow them to declare victory and wrap this up, which is very troubling because it means the war can go on forever if you dont have an actual achievable goal.

Then, despite all of this, both at the public national level and what I was seeing where I worked, it was clear that U.S. support would be unlimited and was going to continue regardless of how Israel conducted the war, regardless of whether or not they had a plan, regardless of how badly things went. So that was communicated in the press by national leadership early on. It was also effectively communicated by the leadership in my community. It was clear that we were going to be along for the ride with whatever Israel did. As Ive mentioned, even in the month of October, we basically saw the first bombings of hospitals.

There was one, Al-Ahli, that we took a really close look at and ultimately determined that one was not Israel. But that was the last time we subjected large explosions in hospitals to any kind of scrutiny. After that event, I realized we were never going to really make a big deal about the Israelis bombing hospitals again, and it kind of sunk in that our support was not going to change. So at that point, I was confident in having the expectation that every day I stayed in the office, I knew what I would be contributing to.

As you may also know, getting out of the military takes a long time if youre an officer. So I told myself, Okay. Let me at least start my resignation now. And if nothing else, I can say I put in the paperwork in November, early on, and did the right thing. So that was that decision. You dont give two weeks notice in the Army; it takes six months to a year. So I didnt really have to do anything dramatic or make a big deal about it, and I didnt explain the truth about why I was quitting. I was very afraid of how people would react because I wasnt hearing anybody else expressing any concern and I knew I still had to be in the office for several more months.

I thought, Well, thats going to be really awkward and difficult if I tell everybody that I think were basically engaged in criminal activity here but then I still have to go to the office every day. I also held out a lot of hope, which became increasingly less grounded in fact and evidence, that maybe the war would end in some capacity. Despite all the really obvious and discouraging trends, I hoped that maybe somehow it would end or the U.S. would finally cut its support and then I wouldnt have to worry about this.

As you mentioned, I think, in your letter, you were leaving just shy of retirement. Was it difficult to reach the conclusion that this was what you needed to do?

I think I already was not planning on staying for 20 years to retirement, but I did have some ambitions and interest in doing another assignment. Yeah, it was difficult to think I was permanently closing that door.

My career specialty is normally people who staff embassies in the security cooperation office or the attache office. And since Ive been in that position before, part of the job is always that your local partners, the Army officers from the country youre working in, are going to ask you about whats going on in the United States and have questions about that. I tried to imagine how I would feel in an embassy somewhere  for me, it would only be the Middle East or North Africa  and having to answer questions from Arab officers about what we were doing with the Israelis in Gaza. And that I would be the one who had to carry water for that policy and how wrong that would feel. And I just kind of understood, I cant be in that position.

Was there an event or an incident when you knew the Biden administration was not going to reconsider its strong support for the state of Israel in this war?

There were several, and I think I kept hoping against hope that they would reconsider. The first was when, after Al-Ahli, we stopped looking into any more hospital bombings. Just to be clear, Al-Ahli was not the Israelis, but there were many other strikes that clearly were. That was kind of one event. Then when the Israelis were clearly bombing the corridors they had told the Palestinians in Gaza to flee through, that was another. I think another big one was in January when we had the Tower 22 attack in Jordan that killed three Army reservists, which was done by I think Iraqi militias but was instigated in part by the Gaza campaign.

That was a moment too where I thought, Okay, wow. Weve had the first U.S. servicemembers killed as part of this conflict. Will this be an indication that weve gone too far? And no, it wasnt. We bombed some people in Iraq and carried on business as usual. There was the World Central Kitchen strike that killed several western aid workers in Gaza. You may recall that was the biggest outcry and public outrage weve seen to date. I thought, Okay, wow. Maybe now theyve done it. That didnt change anything. I think that was a moment where I 100 percent lost hope, so I shared my letter with my office.

Then as I was thinking and getting ready to share the letter publicly, we had the invasion of Rafah, which, of course, wed said would be a red line. Then later that week, the president made a really unprecedented threat to curtail aid, and that also amounted to nothing. So with each of these, I went from hopeless to more hopeless.

In your letter, you describe yourself as a descendant of European Jews. On that basis, whats your response to arguments that Israels actions are necessary, that theyre defending Jewish life right now?

Well, thats just not true. The state of Israels actions have endangered Jewish life both in Israel and in the U.S. in ways that are unnecessary. The way Israel is conducting this war has prolonged it; it has incurred attacks from almost half a dozen different countries against Israel. On top of that, they are creating a situation where their children are going to grow up, I think, a lot like Russian children right now, which is they are going to find themselves in this pariah state. If they travel abroad, theyre going to feel embarrassed or like they need to conceal where theyre from.

Theyre going to just find themselves in this position that was totally preventable and that they didnt have to be in and that they werent in even a year ago. And its not just the way theyre conducting the war but the rhetoric that both Israeli and U.S. leaders have used to frame this as a war for all Jews that I find incredibly dangerous. Because Im an American Jew, I live in America, Ive served the American government. And we have people who should know better saying they are carpet-bombing and starving Gaza on my behalf, and I didnt agree to that. Describing the conflict in that way will inevitably make people associate me and American Jews with the crimes that are happening in Gaza.

What would you say to people who may be in a position similar to the one you were in, who are wrestling with similar concerns and misgivings?

Thank you for asking that. I think there are a lot of things you can do if youre in the position I was in, and some of them I didnt think of while I was there. I think resigning is great and can be effective. Its the most effective way, if you feel like youre complicit, to end your complicity. But I also understand thats not a feasible option for a lot of people. Everything Im going to list here, I know someone has done it or somebody is working on doing it. One of these options is applicable to you if youre in my position. Short of resigning, folks can ask for transfers.

They can tell their boss, Hey, Im going to keep doing 90 percent of my job, but the 10 percent thats Israel support, find somebody else to do it. I think its a good idea for people to do something I wish Id done, which is express their concerns quite clearly to their supervisor or their chain of command and ask for assurance in writing that what theyre doing is legal, in compliance with both U.S. and international law, and in compliance with their organizations code of ethics, which every military service and government agency has. I wish Id done that because I think that wouldve given some leaders higher up the opportunity to reflect on exactly what they were asking people to do.

For folks who feel they cant do that, I think the bare minimum, which still can be difficult but is much better than doing nothing, is just talking with the people you work with. Because as I discovered, there are a lot of people who feel this way who are afraid to voice their opinion. And once one person brings it up, theyre going to find out theyre not alone, and theyre going to find out that maybe somebody else they work with not only feels the same way but is empowered to take one of the other actions I described.

What did you hope to accomplish by making your resignation so public?

Once I understood that, because of who I am, my resignation would garner some attention and Id get to talk to people like you, I felt a little bit of an obligation because I felt there was more I could do. And I knew, at the very least, my resignation would help draw attention to the incredible cost of the policy were pursuing. I also really hoped it would help other people in my position to understand that theyre not alone and to start thinking about the options they have. Im really pleased that its had that result, and Ive had some people reach out to me because they saw my letter, they saw the stories, and they realized they could be doing more and wanted to figure out what their options were.

Has anything surprised you about the reaction to your resignation?

I dont want to tempt fate here, but the lack of hate and criticism. Which is not to say theres been none. But the responses Ive gotten  including from people I worked with and people from my industry in general  have been so supportive and so positive. I started out going to work and feeling crazy because I was like, Wow, am I the only one who cares about whats going on? After all this, I feel crazy for a new reason, which is, Oh, it turns out tons of people feel this way, but theyre all making this war happen anyway. So thats a better place to be in. I think if Id understood that six months ago, I wouldve felt much more confident in speaking out and trying to organize within my own workplace. So I think the extent of the sympathy that I found was surprising.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Trump arrives at the Capitol Hill Club to meet with House Republicans and diss Milwaukee on June 13, 2024. Photo: Allison Bailey/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty

You dont have to be an expert political strategist to know that presidential candidates shouldnt call any American city horrible. Thats particularly true if the city in question is in a battleground state. And it would be lunacy to denounce the site of your upcoming party convention.

Yet thats exactly what Donald Trump did on Thursday morning:

TRUMP TO HOUSE REPUBLICANS:



"Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city."  Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) June 13, 2024

So what was Trump thinking? Here are three possible explanations.

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Trump didnt publicly bash the largest city in Wisconsin. He made the remark during a closed-door meeting with House Republicans at the Capitol Hill Club in Washington, D.C. Its possible that he trusted his Republican pals to keep his remarks private, but it seems some Judas in the GOP conference leaked them to Jake Sherman of Punchbowl News.

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Wisconsin congressmen and GOP officials offered at least four different explanations for Trumps remarks, ranging from outright denial to claiming he was calling some specific aspect of Milwaukee horrible, not the whole city.

Three Wisconsin Republican congressmen with three different stories about Trump calling Milwaukee a horrible city. pic.twitter.com/wEzcXddAbt  Dan Shafer (@DanRShafer) June 13, 2024

GOP appears to be scrambling to spin. A convention spokesperson told me Trump "was referencing the ongoing political game the City and County are playing with Pere Marquette Park. Despite concerns being raised months ago, the City has still not designated a first amendment zone." https://t.co/mWiFa8cS1T  Adam Rife (@AdamRifeReports) June 13, 2024

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Perhaps Trump purposely insulted Milwaukee because hes laying the groundwork for skipping the Republican National Convention.

Trumps sentencing in the New York hush-money case is on July 11, just four days before the start of the convention. NBC News reported on Thursday that the convention is being set up so Trump can participate virtually, in case hes sentenced to home confinement (other possibilities include a fine, probation, or even jail time):

Preparations are being made at both Mar-a-Lago, his home in Florida, and in Milwaukee, the host city for the convention next month, should Trump either choose to make appearances from afar or be unable to attend, according to two sources familiar with the planning.

A Trump-campaign senior adviser denied this, telling NBC News, At no time has convention planning involved any option than President Trump in person to accept his formal nomination as president.

But other sources said the Republican National Committee is setting up a giant screen at Milwaukees Fiserv Forum, along with stages that match the convention theme at Mar-a-Lago, in case Trump cant go to Wisconsin or just doesnt feel like it:

The Republican operative who viewed the convention site said that the idea of Trumps being under house arrest was not discussed during tours in Milwaukee and that people were told there is a chance Trump could just choose to hold convention-related events from Mar-a-Lago.

A Trump campaign official, though, confirmed to NBC News that the idea that he could be under house arrest for the convention is part of the planning process.

Trump can now save face by claiming he didnt want to go to a horrible city like Milwaukee anyway.

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Trump has been negging Wisconsin since the run-up to the states 2016 GOP primary, as Mother Jones observed at the time:

Trump has made a habit of dissing the current condition of things in Wisconsin to promise a brighter future when hes president. 

Ive got statistics on Wisconsin that are unbelievable, Trump said [at a rally in Racine], breaking from his typical off-the-cuff speech to glance at some notes. You think were doing nicely and everybody thinks theyre doing well, but I have some statistics. You could write out some of the numbersyou look at your manufacturing jobs, you know better than anybody how theyve gone to other countries. Theyre gone. I mean, theyre literally gone.

I thought Wisconsin was doing well, Trump concluded, and its not true! Its oookay, its in the middle of the pack. Nothing spectacular.

Despite routinely insulting Wisconsin, Trump won it in 2016. But in 2020 Joe Biden flipped the state by an extremely narrow margin (0.63 percent). Trump challenged the results, but a recount only reaffirmed Bidens win.

Trump may still be seething about getting burned by Wisconsin voters. At a rally last month in Waukesha, he lightly threatened Wisconsinites while discussing the upcoming convention.

As you know, well be holding our convention in Milwaukee just a few months from now and we cant wait, Trump said. That means you got to vote for us because we are spending our money in your state to have the big convention. We had lots of options, and were coming here.

While he didnt say anything overtly insulting back then, it was hard to miss the disappointment in Trumps voice as he considered all the convention sites that are less horrible than Milwaukee.

This post has been updated with GOP responses to Trumps reported remark.
Justice Clarence Thomas strongly dissented in a 5-4 SCOTUS decision to invalidate state-imposed congressional term limits. Photo: Olivier Douliery/AFP/Getty Images

Donald Trump had a nice June 11 primary day in North Dakota with his endorsed candidates for governor (Kelly Armstrong) and Congress (Judy Fedorchak) both winning handily. But it may have annoyed him that voters in that state approved a constitutional amendment that seeks to keep octogenarians out of the congressional delegation. The measure bans congressional candidacies by anyone who will reach the age of 81 by December 31 of the year preceding the end of their proposed term. That means neither Trump (who will turn 78 this week) nor Joe Biden (who is 81) could run for Congress in North Dakota this year. It wouldnt directly affect current officeholders, as the New York Times noted:

At the moment, the measure would actually have no bearing on North Dakotas three current members of Congress, all Republicans, who range in age from 47 to 67.

Still, at least one of them, Senator Kevin Cramer, said he opposed the measure. I cant imagine why any patriotic conservative would vote to limit their choices, Mr. Cramer, who is 63 and seeking re-election in November, said in an emailed statement.

But the notably conservative North Dakota electorate approved the measure by a 3-2 margin.

Now, you could just write this off as a symbolic gesture in a year when Bidens age (and less so Trumps) has gotten a lot of attention. And legal experts immediately observed that state efforts to impose new eligibility criteria on candidates for federal office were struck down in a landmark 1995 U.S. Supreme Court decision invalidating state-imposed congressional term limits.

But the primary funder of the North Dakota age measure was the U.S. Term Limits organization, the losing party in the 1995 U.S. Supreme Court case. It seems entirely possible that term-limits fans are hoping for a fresh look at the constitutional question, either to validate an age limit or even a reversal of the ban on state-imposed term limits (it was a 5-4 decision).

As it happens, the one Supreme Court justice who heard that 1995 case and is still on the Court is Clarence Thomas, who wrote a dissent. Knowing Thomas, he probably hasnt found reason to reconsider his strong opinion back then:

Nothing in the Constitution deprives the people of each State of the power to prescribe eligibility requirements for the candidates who seek to represent them in Congress. The Constitution is simply silent on this question. And where the Constitution is silent, it raises no bar to action by the States or the people.

The idea of age limits on members of Congress is very popular beyond North Dakota; a Pew survey last October showed that 79 percent of Americans (including 82 percent of Republicans and 76 percent of Democrats) favor maximum ages for elected officials in Washington, DC. Around the same time, a University of Maryland survey showed that 83 percent of registered voters (including 86 percent of Republicans and 80 percent of Democrats) favor a constitutional amendment to impose term limits on Congress. If a challenge to the North Dakota measure causes the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn its 1995 decision, there could be a mad scramble in the states to restrict the tenure of those universally mistrusted politicians in Washington. And that could be a big deal: 19 current members of Congress are 80 or older. All of them could be affected by term limits.

So this development in North Dakota could bear watching. Yes, Biden and Trump are unpopular, but Congress is really unpopular: Per Gallup, that institutions job approval ratio is 13 percent favorable to 81 percent unfavorable. Just about anything restricting the age or tenure of members of Congress is going to have fans across party lines. It may be up to the Supreme Court whether to green-light such measures, and we already know this particular Court isnt strongly bound by its own precedents.
Southern Baptist Convention delegates voting on resolutions. Photo: Doug McSchooler/AP

In the latest stage of a multi-decade radical conservative makeover of the once fiercely independent religious denomination, the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention in Indianapolis adopted a resolution condemning the creation and destruction of embryos generally involved in IVF treatments. While it didnt demand a strict ban on IVF, the resolution called on the denominations 13 million members to advocate for the government to restrain actions inconsistent with the dignity and value of every human being, which necessarily includes frozen embryonic human beings, while also encouraging infertile couples to find other ways to have children.

Thus, the nations largest Evangelical Protestant community placed itself firmly to the right of the conservative Republicans who have been stampeding to proclaim their love for IVF in the wake of an Alabama Supreme Court decision that ruled IVF clinics might be subject to wrongful-death liability for discarding embryonic children under the states radical anti-abortion laws. Indeed, the GOP legislature and governor of Alabama (right there in the Southern Baptist heartland) raced to enact a law to allow IVF clinics to continue treatments despite the grim court ruling. In addition, the very favorite politician of conservative Evangelicals, Donald Trump, said he would strongly support the availability of IVF as president.

So will the SBC resolution make a difference out there in the real world where laws are made and treatments are secured (generally at great cost and difficulty to the patients)? Politicos Megan Messerly thinks so:

The move may signal the beginning of a broad turn on the right against IVF, an issue that many evangelicals, anti-abortion advocates and other social conservatives see as the pro-life movements next frontier  one they hope will eventually lead to restrictions, or outright bans, on IVF at the state and federal levels.

I dont know about that. Its not like the SBC delegates are pushing on an open door in attacking IVF as semi-homicidal. A Pew survey last month on IVF showed widespread support for IVF across all sorts of partisan, ideological, and religious lines. Republicans and Republican-leaning independents called access to IVF a good thing rather than a bad thing by a margin of 63 percent to 10 percent; Democrats and Democratic-leaning indies agreed by a margin of 79 percent to 5 percent. People who say they oppose allowing abortions in most cases backed IVF 60 percent to 11 percent; even those opposing abortion in all cases smiled on IVF by a two-to-one margin (40 percent to 20 percent). Most relevantly, white Evangelical Protestants, of which Southern Baptists are the largest single bloc, favored availability of IVF by a margin of 63 percent to 9 percent. That isnt much of a base for a counterrevolution on this subject.

Perhaps it would be useful to look at the influence on this subject of another large religious denomination that has taken a hard line against IVF. The Roman Catholic Church, as noted by the National Catholic Register, has been clear about it: The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that IVF is morally unacceptable because it separates the marriage act from procreation and establishes the domination of technology over human life.

Now its well known that the Vaticans opposition to artificial birth control based on the idea that it separates the marriage act from procreation is widely disregarded by the folks in the pews. But the recent Pew data suggest the churchs long-standing opposition to IVF isnt cutting much ice either: Self-identified Catholics says IVF is a good thing rather than a bad thing by a margin of 65 percent to 8 percent.

According to Messerly, SBC opponents of IVF are playing the long game:

Its going to be a long process. It took us 50 years to take down Roe, said Brent Leatherwood, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission, the public policy arm of the SBC. It may take us a similarly long time frame to get people to a place where they are thinking more deeply about something like this. Its okay. It takes time. We have to be patient.

Thats one way of looking at the tides of history. Another is that the SBC itself has been engaged in a half-century devolution on reproductive rights since its 1971 resolution that call[ed] upon Southern Baptists to work for legislation that will allow the possibility of abortion under such conditions as rape, incest, clear evidence of severe fetal deformity, and carefully ascertained evidence of the likelihood of damage to the emotional, mental, and physical health of the mother. At some point, the gap between the denominations official pronouncements on IVF and lay opinion could create a backlash rather than a confirmation of views that contradict the widespread belief that IVF is about as pro-family a practice as can be imagined.
Prosecutors Nathan Wade, left, and Daysha Young, right, look on during a hearing in the case of the State of Georgia v. Donald John Trump at the Fulton County Courthouse on March 1, 2024, in Atlanta, Georgia. Photo: Alex Slitz/Getty Images

Nathan Wade might need to rethink his media strategy.

The former Fulton County special prosecutor has been hitting the airwaves ever since he resigned from the team in charge of the Georgia election-interference case against Donald Trump, fielding interviews from MSNBC and even The View.

But Wades recent sit-down with CNNs Kaitlan Collins quickly grew awkward as Wade paused their talk midway to confer with a member of his team after Collins asked him about his past relationship with Fulton County district attorney Fani Willis.

My exchange with Nathan Wade tonight on the timeline of his romantic relationship with District Attorney Fani Willis  including an interruption from a member of his team as he was answering when it began and when it ended. pic.twitter.com/S5AJzdsmOC  Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) June 13, 2024

Earlier this year, it emerged that Willis and Wade, who worked on her team, had been in a romantic relationship. An attorney representing one of the defendants in the racketeering case filed a motion to dismiss the case, citing a conflict of interest between the two. Willis and Wade were grilled during a hearing on the matter, forced to answer deeply personal questions about the length of their relationship and whether the district attorney financially benefited from taking on the case. In the end, the judge ruled that Willis could continue on in the trial if Wade stepped down. He soon submitted his resignation.

During the CNN interview, Collins asked Wade about the current state of his relationship with Willis. We are great friends, he said. We speak regularly. The conversation has changed, though, whereas before our conversations were about this case.

Collins then asked Wade about when his relationship with Willis first started. Theres been this effort to say that these exact dates are at issue, Wade began, looking at someone off-camera. Im being signaled here, he said.

A man whom CNN identified as Wades media consultant came to his side and asked if they could briefly go off mic. Cameras continued to roll as Wade received help with removing his mic. He rose from his seat and huddled with his consultant with their backs turned. After speaking for a moment, Wade then sat down and the interview continued.

Everything okay? Collins asked.

Yeah, Wade said.

Collins then asked the question again, and Wade demurred this time, saying the public already has a clear timeline of his and Williss relationship from testimony and other interviews. It is not a relevant issue in this case, and I think that we should be focusing on more of the facts and the indictment in the case, he said. Wade indicated that he didnt want to comment further, citing the fact that the Georgia Court of Appeals is set to decide on the matter of Williss disqualification.

I do think the timing of the personal relationship I had was bad, Nathan Wade tells me in our interview. The only thing I regret is the timing of it. pic.twitter.com/cN89CWJW8g  Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) June 13, 2024

Wade said that while he regrets the timing of the relationship, he doesnt believe his actions played a role in the delay of the Trump cases, which has been put on hold by a Georgia appeals court.
you can never top isabella performance,especially the scene in the subway tunnel so why even try

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Get a job



Stay away from Possession!

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lmfaoooooo

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Booooo tomato tomato etc

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Granted good luck remaking that cause that movie is pure destructive chaos and really not commercial at all, so I mean are they gonna water it down?



Good luck to whoever has to follow Isabelle cause girl was driven to the breaking point over this movie.





Oh let's fucking go!!Granted good luck remaking that cause that movie is pure destructive chaos and really not commercial at all, so I mean are they gonna water it down?Good luck to whoever has to follow Isabelle cause girl was driven to the breaking point over this movie.

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allegedly she also considered suicide over the movie because it traumatised her so much.

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She did I think!!

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It took years for her to supposedly get over the trauma of making this movie

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okay i love rpattz but unless he's playing isabelle adjani i don't see this beinga good idea.

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I wouldn't be surprised if they did a gender swap. He's never been one for remakes, he tries to do original material as much as possible, so it would make sense that this movie would be radically different than the original.

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Have Ive seen possession?!



So I just watched it and it gave me anxiety like uncut gems did. It was a lot



Edited at 2024-06-13 02:24 am (UTC)

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Same. I ended up fast forwarding most of it because what I did watch made me so anxious and uncomfortable.

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Im so tired of reboots





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Not the point but why must men smolder in pics

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Idk but it gives me second hand embarrassment

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i actually really liked smile but possession does NOT need to be remade, this shit has got to stop

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I don't think I've ever seen the original so I'm putting the OG on my watch list. Something tells me I'm going to have to prepare myself (I love horror movies, but some stuff I have to take in waves).

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I just watched it and its anxiety inducing.

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No one could ever even touch Isabella Adjani's performance in this

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There is nothing topping this performance!



Edited at 2024-06-13 12:55 am (UTC) NONThere is nothing topping this performance!

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just a list of some horror films about traveling / going on vacation gone wrong <3 i also wanna point out that i only adds films that i've seen myself. 





The Ritual (2017)

: Sweden: Reuniting after the tragic death of their friend, four college pals set out to hike through the Scandinavian wilderness. A wrong turn leads them into the mysterious forests of Norse legend, where an ancient evil exists and stalks them at every turn.





Eden Lake (2008)

: The English countryside.: During a romantic weekend getaway, a young couple confronts a gang of youths, and suffers brutal consequences.





Hostel (2005)

: Slovakia: Best friends Josh and Paxton decide to spend the summer after college graduation on an all-out backpacking trip across Europe. While stopping in Amsterdam to indulge their tastes for drugs and sex, they meet Oli, a like-minded traveler from Iceland. When the three bachelors set off to investigate enticing rumors of a Slovakian hostel in a city populated by lusty women, they find themselves drawn unwittingly into a deadly game.





The Evil Dead (1981)

: Tennessee: Ashley "Ash" Williams, his girlfriend and three pals hike into the woods to a cabin for a fun night away. There they find an old book, the Necronomicon, whose text reawakens the dead when it's read aloud. The friends inadvertently release a flood of evil and must fight for their lives or become one of the evil dead. Ash watches his friends become possessed, and must make a difficult decision before daybreak to save his own life in this, the first of Sam Raimi's trilogy.





Wolf Creek (2005)

: Australia: Three backpackers travel into the Australian Outback only to find themselves stranded at Wolf Creek crater. Once there, they are encountered by a bushman, Mick Taylor, who offers them a ride back to his place. Little do the three know that their adventure into the Outback would be a complete nightmare after the backpackers find a way to escape.





The Ruins (2008)

: Mexico: Amy, Stacy, Jeff and Eric look for fun during a sunny holiday in Mexico, but they get much more than that after visiting an archaeological dig in the jungle. Carnivorous vines try to ensnare the friends in their tendrils, forcing the group to fight for survival.





The Cabin in the Woods (2011)

: somewhere in the us and a??: When five college friends arrive at a remote forest cabin for a little vacation, little do they expect the horrors that await them. One by one, the youths fall victim to backwoods zombies, but there is another factor at play. Two scientists are manipulating the ghoulish goings-on, but even as the body count rises, there is yet more at work than meets the eye.





Midsommar (2019)

: Sweden: Dani and Christian are a young American couple with a relationship on the brink of falling apart. But after a family tragedy keeps them together, Christian invites a grieving Dani to join him and his friends on a trip to a once-in-a-lifetime midsummer festival in a remote Swedish village. What begins as a carefree summer holiday in the North European land of eternal sunlight takes a sinister turn when the insular villagers invite their guests to partake in festivities that render the pastoral paradise increasingly unnerving and viscerally disturbing.





The Descent (2005)

: Appalachian Mountains (North Carolina): A year after a severe emotional trauma, Sarah goes to North Carolina to spend some time exploring caves with her friends; after descending underground, the women find strange cave paintings and evidence of an earlier expedition, then learn they are not alone: Underground predators inhabit the crevasses, and they have a taste for human flesh.





Cabin Fever (2002)

: Bunyan County: Bert, a college student vacationing with friends in the mountains, mistakenly shoots a local man with a skin infection while hunting in the woods. Panicking, he abandons the scene and leaves the man for dead. When the man stumbles into a reservoir, he infects the water supply, and soon one of Bert's friends becomes infected. The friends struggle to stop the contagious, flesh-eating disease while on the run from a group of ornery backwoods locals out for revenge.





Open Water (2003)

: Daniel and Susan embark on a tropical vacation with their scuba-diving certifications in tow. During a group dive, the two separate themselves from the others to dive a little deeper. An incorrect head-count suggests the entire group has returned, so the boat departs. When the pair surfaces, they make out a vessel in the distance, but it does not immediately set in that they have been left behind. With sharks lurking beneath, their survival chances grow smaller.The film is loosely based on the true story of Tom and Eileen Lonergan, who in 1998 went out with a scuba diving group, Outer Edge Dive Company, on the Great Barrier Reef, and were accidentally left behind because the dive-boat crew failed to take an accurate headcount. source: 
Also i don't know why Da Brat will be there because i remember on vh1's the surreal life

she threatened to attack an abusive boyfriend of one of the house occupants with 2 wine bottles

makes no sense
OSHA Cites Maestro Construction for Leaving Workers Vulnerable to Fall Hazards

The Illinois-based construction company now faces $264,407 in proposed penalties.

Federal workplace safety inspectors have once again discovered Illinois-based Maestro Construction Inc. is exposing employees to deadly fall hazards. Despite being cited seven times since 2020, the company has been found violating safety regulations at two homes under construction in Hanover Park in December 2023 and February 2024.

According to a recent release, OSHA inspectors observed damaged electrical cords as well as employees working at heights up to 20 feet without adequate fall protection. Some workers wore safety gear incorrectly, rendering it ineffective. In addition, the company failed to certify employees had training in fall hazards or proper use of PPE.

Contractors like Maestro Construction that willfully ignore federal safety standards for fall protection are endangering the lives and well-being of their employees, OSHA Area Director Jacob Scott in Naperville, Illinois, said in a statement. Despite being cited seven times since 2020, this company continues to show a callous disregard for their employees safety, and we will continue to hold them accountable for their defiance of regulations.

The violations, identified at two worksites on Greenbrook Court, led OSHA to issue Maestro Construction Inc. two willful, two repeat and two serious violations as well as one other-than-serious violation. The agency has proposed $264,407 in penalties. The company had previously been cited four times in 2023 for fall-related violations.
Hydrogen, a versatile energy carrier with multiple industrial applications, has been hyped up as a pillar of the energy transition. Green hydrogen, specifically, is being advertised as a must-have for a successful transition.

A lot of the talk around hydrogen has been advertising with little actual substance. Now, as hydrogen plans become more specific and actual money rather than pledges is at stake, the reality is reasserting itselfand it was high time it did.

Im sorry Lord Bamford [JCBs owner], I love that you have built an internal combustion engine that runs on hydrogen, but who is going to buy it? energy analyst and transition consultant Michael Liebreich wrote in a 2023 analysis of hydrogen applications that cited JCBs brand new hydrogen-powered digger.

Coming from someone intimately involved in the transition, the semi-rhetorical question comes as a rare dose of reality in a transition segment that has, for the most part, seen unrestrained verbal enthusiasm, pledges of billions of dollars, and promises to build a whole new hydrogen economy.

In reality, meanwhile, the UK recently shelved plans to replace natural gas with hydrogen for heating in a village trial set to test the applicability of this approach to decarbonization. The reason for the change of mind was opposition from the locals. And the reason for the locals opposition was safety.

Related: OPEC Slams IEA for Dangerous Forecast of Peak Oil Demand by 2030

Safety is one of the biggest problems with hydrogen. Highly flammable, the most abundant element in the universe needs special transportation infrastructure to avoid potentially devastating accidents. This means that the so-called hydrogen economy would need its own pipeline network if it is to happen because existing gas pipelines cannot simply be filled with hydrogen and used as they as, which is what some EU officials planned to do a couple of years ago.

Safety and transportation is a general hydrogen issue. Yet there are also specific issues with green hydrogen, the obviously preferred type of hydrogen for transition advocates. One is water consumption, which is considerable. The other is cost. These problems are inherent in green hydrogen production and are unlikely to be solved anytime soon.

Water consumption is what green hydrogen is all about. It is made by breaking down water into its constituent molecules through electrolysis using electricity generated by wind turbines or solar panelsor hydropower. There is no way to reduce this consumption and one really needs a lot of water to make hydrogenroughly 20 tons of water per one ton of hydrogen.

There is also the question of efficiency. The electrolysis that turns water into oxygen and hydrogen is not exactly a 100-percent-efficient process. In fact, it is rather inefficient, meaning a lot of energy gets lost during the course of this process. In other words, producing energy (in the form of hydrogen) via electrolysis takes a greater amount of energy. This is why green hydrogen has such a high cost. It is also why its many critics argue it makes no economic sense and will likely never will.

Yet the belief there will be demand for green hydrogen in the future is strongbecause some industries have no other path to decarbonization besides green hydrogen, according to a recent overview of the industry by the Financial Times.

There are certain industries where the carbon emissions simply cannot be abated, other than with green molecules, Marco Raffinetti, the chief executive of green hydrogen startup Hyphen, told the FT. The fertiliser industry is a big driver. Shipping is a big driver. Then power generation, fuel, steel production and so on. So we focus specifically on those use cases.

In other words, the only path to viability for green hydrogen is forcing the decarbonization of industries that can only implement this decarbonization by using the expensive hydrogen produced via electrolysis with wind or solar power.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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The worlds second-largest coal consumer, India, plans to increase its domestic coal production and reduce imports, G. Kishan Reddy, Minister of Coal and Mines, said on Thursday.

Reddy, however, did not provide details about volumes, Indian media report.

Earlier this year, Rajat Handa, vice president of international trade at Agarwal Coal, told Reuters that Indias coal imports are not going to be higher than 160 million tons in 2024.

Many coal users that previously imported coal have started to switch to domestic supply, Handa said.

As a result, Indian coal industry officials expect the countrys imports of thermal coal  the one used for power generation  to drop in 2024 for the first time since the start of COVID, due to rising domestic coal production and record-high levels of inventories.

In the 2023-2024 fiscal year ended March 2024, Indias total coal production rose by 11.65% to 997.25 million tons, according to data from the Ministry of Coal. So far into the 2024/2025 fiscal year, Indian coal production increased by 8.82% in April and May 2024 compared to the same period of 2023/2024, the data showed.

Amid a heatwave and reduced hydropower generation, India boosted its coal consumption to a record high in the first quarter of this year, which also drove up emissions from the power sector to an all-time high.

More coal-fired units were fired up at the start of the year in the country, amid a prolonged heatwave with above-normal temperatures which pushed electricity consumption higher. Power demand continued to rise with the expanding economic growth, too.

Utilities in India have also tried to limit the possibility of power outages ahead of the general election which was held between the middle of April and early June.

India raised the share of coal in its power generation in April as sharply lower hydropower output has threatened blackouts as summer approaches.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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Elon Musk has said that a purpose-built robotaxi will be the centerpiece of his long-term strategy for Tesla.

In about two months, on August 8, Musk is set to unveil the 'Robotaxi,' potentially positioning Tesla to compete with some of the largest ride-hailing services. However, before these robotaxis flood city streets and highways, Tesla must first solve full autonomous driving mode.

Tesla has yet to announce a timeline for the Robotaxi or Full Self-Driving (FSD) with no intervention.

Musk recently said that future FSD versions are getting so accurate that "it is starting to get to the point where, once known bugs are fixed, it will take over a year of driving to get even one intervention."

Tesla's latest FSD version (Full Self-Driving v12.4.1) has become more refined ahead of the robotaxi unveiling event.

At the recent JPMorgan European Automotive Conference in London, analysts from the bank, led by Ryan Brinkman, wrote in a note on Tuesday about a conversation with Tesla's Director of Investor Relations, Travis Axelrod.

Brinkman provided clients with a seven-point bullet list highlighting the most critical topics discussed:

The next wave of the company's growth will be led by the introduction of lower cost models expected in force by 2025 which utilize existing platforms and assembly lines rather than the earlier planned next-generation platform, suggesting the potential for less near-term reduction in COGS but also significant capital savings; Augmenting the re-acceleration of unit volume growth next year is expected to be continued strong growth in energy storage and services , and autonomy becoming a more meaningful contributor; Nothing has changed with regards to the company's ambitious long-term volume targets; Ratification of CEO Elon Musk's 2018 compensation plan at a shareholder meeting later this week was said in our meetings to be important in allowing the company to refocus on operational goals by putting the corporate governance issue behind it and because it would allow Mr. Musk to remain comfortable pursuing "real world AI" opportunities within Tesla; Mr. Musk's creation of a separate vehicle (xAI) to pursue more generalized or language model artificial intelligence opportunities outside of Tesla was said to not conflict with the automaker's more robotics focused AI efforts ; Management continues to believe in the superiority of its vision-only based approach to Full Self-Driving , believing it to be by far the lowest cost and most scalable way forward; Because Tesla expects varying degrees of interest on the part of customers when it comes to placing their private vehicles on a public robo- taxi network, it expects to augment this supply with a dedicated robo-taxi vehicle which will offer cost and utility advantages relative to a traditional consumer vehicle (the expected basing of this dedicated robo-taxi on Tesla's delayed next- generation platform in our view implies timing could be some years away).

Brinkman provides highlights from the conversation on robotaxi. The biggest takeaway is that the analyst doesn't believe there will be material revenue generation from these taxis "for years to come."

Tesla's Response: Management continues to believe in the superiority of its vision- only based approach to Full Self-Driving , believing it to be by far the lowest cost and most scalable way forward . Because Tesla expects varying degrees of interest on the part of customers when it comes to placing their private vehicles on a public robo- taxi network, it expects to augment this supply with a dedicated robo-taxi vehicle which will offer cost and utility advantages relative to a traditional consumer vehicle. The expected basing of a dedicated robo-taxi on Tesla's next-generation platform in our view implies timing could be some years away.

IR clarified that Tesla's Full Self Driving (FSD) offering today is an (exceptionally capable) Level 2 system requiring close driver supervision but which it hopes for all vehicles built since 2016 equipped with the requisite hardware to eventually evolve via a software update into a Level 5 (non- geofenced) entirely unsupervised system capable of scaling in virtually any jurisdiction. Management continues to believe that this can be accomplished via vision sensing alone, similar to how human drivers can adequately operate a vehicle with "two cameras attached to the front of their heads" (their eyes) accompanied by a "neural network" (their brain).

IR clarified, too, that it has all along intended to pursue a two-pronged approach in which its planned robo-taxi network could be operated with a combination of customer provided vehicles as well as a dedicated robo-taxi. Tesla has long discussed the potential for customers who purchase vehicles equipped with FSD to one day generate a return by offering their vehicles for use on the company's robo-taxi network when not needed for personal use. With that said, Tesla expects there will be varying degrees of interest on the part of customers when it comes to making their private vehicle available for public use ; as such, it plans to augment the supply of customer vehicles on its network with a dedicated robo-taxi. Not discussed in our meeting was who would be the owner of these vehicles  if Tesla would look to sell them to commercial fleet operators or to own and operate the vehicles itself (similar to Cruise). Tesla's asset-light approach to robo-taxi service operation has in our meetings with investors often been heralded by bullish investors as a superior and more quickly scalable approach to that planned by the likes of Waymo or Cruise which we expect to own the vehicles they plan to operate.

Tesla expects that a dedicated robo-taxi would be less expensive for it to manufacture than one of its standard vehicles, in contrast to the robo-taxis of its competitors such as Waymo, Cruise , and others which are reported to be many times more expensive. Tesla expects to reduce the cost of a robo-taxi by utilizing its lower cost next-generation platform, and by removing unnecessary content such as the steering wheel and other driver controls, such as turn signal and wiper indicators and brake and accelerator pedals, etc. A dedicated robo-taxi is also likely to not require the same speed, handling, and performance characteristics as a retail vehicle, given its likely employment in lower speed urban environments, suggesting additional savings when it comes to the battery, powertrain, and other features. All told, Tesla could see costs falling potentially to as low as $20K per vehicle , rivaling the cost even of public transportation and representing a very significant competitive advantage vs. competitor vehicles costing reportedly ~10x as much, given their use of numerous redundant LiDAR, radar, ultrasonic, and other sensor systems.

Here's the biggest takeaway from the robotaxi conversation:

Our Take: Competitor systems cost 10x as much as Tesla targets because of the use of redundant sensors competitors believe are critical to ensure safety and achieve regulatory approval. Tesla is pursusing a highly differentiated vision-only or primarily vision approach to autonomous driving that has the potential to be alternatively both a home run or ineffective. We do not know the outcome but fear that consensus expects and valuation demands it will be a home run, leading to Tesla capturing an out-sized share of the robo-taxi market, which is far from certain. We expect also that the timeframe for any company to generate material revenue from robo-taxi operations may be further out than market expectations . Other indications of high investor expectations along this front include TSLA shares reacting sharply positively to the announcement of the robo-taxi day and rising fully +15.3% on April 29 alone (vs. the S&P 500 +0.3%) simply on the news that China would allow some limited testing of FSD (in a way still much more restrictive than in the US). We expect Tesla to show a robo-taxi concept on August 8 and perhaps an accompanying app and to reveal more about its expected business model, but we do not expect material revenue generation likely for years to come. Some hint of this may have been implied in our meeting when it was suggested that the dedicated robo-taxi would be built on the company's next-generation platform which was elsewhere in our meeting said to not launch until the company is much closer to utilizing its current ~3 mn units of installed capacity (Bloomberg consensus currently forecasts Tesla delivering 3 mn vehicles only by 2027).

Robotaxis have the potential to be a major revenue driver for Tesla. However, as previously noted, fully solving FSD is a prerequisite before these taxis can hit the road.

By Zerohedge.com

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Europes natural gas prices have jumped by 40% over the past three months despite the EU exiting the winter heating season with a record-high level of gas still in storage.

The price move higher during the so-called shoulder season when household gas demand is low was the result of concerns about supply disruptions and an uptick in Asias LNG imports due to lower spot prices and heat waves in parts of China as well as India and other Southeast Asian countries.

The stronger pull of LNG to Asia has left Europe with fewer imports in the spring, and the major surplus in European gas storage levels, while still at a record high and well above seasonal averages, has narrowed since the end of the winter heating season.

Risks to Europes gas supply remain, as the most recent spikes in the continents benchmark prices have shown.

Europe will likely fill up its storage sites ahead of its self-imposed November 1 deadline for a second consecutive year, analysts say. But concerns about another cut-off in the remaining supply from Russia and unplanned outages in Norwaynow Europes single largest gas supplierwill keep the markets on edge and prices elevated toward the end of this year.

Record Storage Surplus Narrowing

The EUs gas storage sites were 72.3% full as of June 11, according to data from Gas Infrastructure Europe.

Refilling season has started, and the EU has raised its gas in storage levels from 58% at the end of the winter, which was in itself a record-high level of available gas for the end of a heating season, thanks to a milder winter and muted demand from industry.

Now that the refill season is in full swing, it has been an unusually slow start to the pace of refilling, the second-slowest since 2012 and well below the ten-year seasonal average, according to data compiled by Reuters market analyst John Kemp.

Related: OPEC Slams IEA for Dangerous Forecast of Peak Oil Demand by 2030

The surplus of gas stocks, compared to the ten-year average, has narrowed by early June compared to the end of the heating season on March 31.

That said, storage levels continue to be well above seasonal averages, and it is likely that Europe will hit its full-storage target well in advance of the November 1 deadline.

However, the slower-than-usual build-up of natural gas inventories has put upward pressure on European prices, which have also reflected risks to supply from Norway and Russia in recent weeks. Asia is also increasing competition for LNG supply as heat waves scorch south and Southeast Asia, diverting cargoes away from Europe.

Supply Risks Lift European Gas Prices

This month, Europes benchmark natural gas prices have already jumped on two occasions as the market feared supply shocks.

First, the Dutch TTF Natural Gas Futures, the benchmark for Europes gas trading, surged by 10% on a single day in early June to the highest level in six months, as supply from Norway crumbled amid unplanned outages.

The Sleipner hub offshore Norway was shut down, which also stopped operation at the Nyhamna onshore processing plant for several days. The Sleipner Riser offshore hub is a connection point for pipelines connecting the Nyhamna plant on the west coast of Norway with the Easington terminal in the UK.

The unplanned outage highlighted the vulnerability of Europe relying on natural gas imports as Norway became Europes top gas supplier after the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the slump in Russian gas exports to the EU.

Uncertainty about the remaining Russian gas supply via pipelines to Europe also lifted the gas prices at the Dutch hub this week.

Prices jumped by 3% on Wednesday morning after German energy giant Uniper terminated its Russian gas supply contracts, leaving the market concerned about the remaining flows of gas from Russia to Europe.

The announcement from Uniper and the recent warning from OMV that Gazprom could halt gas supply to Austria due to a foreign court ruling that could interrupt OMV payments to Gazprom Export, rekindled concerns about whether Russian supply would be further limited by Gazprom.

Higher Asian Prices Could Accelerate European Refill

But as prices in Europe have jumped by 40% in three months and Asias spot LNG prices hover around six-month highs, the higher Asian prices could create headwinds to Asias LNG demand growth in the near term, Wood Mackenzie said in a report this week.

Lower European demand has depressed prices and pushed LNG into Asia with imports to China alone up 22%, said Lucy Cullen, Research Director, EMEA Gas & LNG Research at Wood Mackenzie.

Looking ahead, high prices are likely to provide some headwinds to near-term Asian demand growth. As a result, European storage levels remain on track to reach full capacity by the end of September and stay that way through October, Cullen added.

Yet, Europe still faces supply risks, the greatest being Russian gas supply, whether this be via an early cut of transmission via Ukraine or as a consequence of pending arbitration proceedings between European energy companies and Gazprom.

Moreover, unplanned or extended Norwegian maintenance is set to play a more significant role in Europes gas prices and pace of filling up storage, as Norway is now Europes biggest gas supplier, WoodMacs Cullen said.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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The Middle Corridor AKA the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route, is a multimodal transport corridor connecting China to Europe. At over 4,700 km (and 2,000km shorter than Russias Northern Corridor according to the Caspian Policy Center), the Corridor is the shortest route and most sustainable transport corridor, between Europe and Western China. The Corridor received renewed attention after the start of the Russia-NATO war in Ukraine as it will enable Europe to trade with China and Central Asia while avoiding shipping goods via Russia and the Northern Corridor, and avoiding the route via the Red Sea and the Suez Canal which is threatened by Houthi attacks on Israel-linked shipping.

Per the World Bank: The Middle Corridor links China, and Kazakhstan by rail through Dostyk or Khorgos/Altynkol, crosses Kazakhstan by rail to the Aktau Port, crosses the Caspian Sea to the Port of Baku/Alyat, and Azerbaijan and Georgia by rail to then either continue by rail to Europe through Turkiye or crossing the Black Sea.

Of the five Central Asia states, only Kazakhstan has assumed a significant role in the Corridor by hosting rail lines, but the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan (CKU) railway which begins construction in October 2024 will add another leg to the East-West corridor. But, according to The Diplomat, the project is an enormous undertaking with unclear financing even though the World Bank reports it will triple freight volumes and halve travel time by 2030. One impediment to securing financing is that it will remain mostly a regional corridor, with transcontinental trade representing a small fraction of the volumes, according to the Bank.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development identified an ambitious menu of priority infrastructure investment needs in the Central Asia republics. Though the Bank says soft connectivity challenges are the greatest challenge to improved transport connections, eventually the bricks and mortar have to be paid for. Mr. Edward Chow of the Center for Strategic and International Studies argues that it is fanciful to discuss the MC without considering a role for China as a large volume of goods is needed to finance the required infrastructure, so a project sold as a way to minimize Russian involvement in the regions supply chain may instead be opening the door to more China.

Related: Uzbekistan's Bid for WTO Membership Hinges on Major Trade Reforms

Europe is shedding Russian natural gas and fertilizer and, without cheap energy, is facing a wave of deindustrialization as industrial capacity shrinks, most starkly illustrated by Germanys contracting chemical and heavy industry sectors. And theres another thing Europeans arent making more of  Europeans. Eurostat reports, Almost 2 times fewer children born in the EU in 2022 than 6 decades ago so Europe will have fewer workers and consumers in the future.

Europes limited prospects are opposed to Asia which will see an increasing share of global GDP rising from about 45% today to around 58% by 2030. And Forbes reports Asia is expected to contribute about 60% of economic growth in 2024.

And then theres Africa which will be the second-fastest-growing region after Asia, according to the African Development Bank. The Bank also notes that ten African countries will be among the worlds top 20 fastest- growing economies in 2024, sustaining the trend of the past two decades, though the outlook is mixed across the continent.

And the growth of Africas population will have the biggest impact on global demographics this century, increasing by a factor of almost five from 2000 to 2100. GDP per person employed as measured by the World Bank is vastly higher for Europe than for Africa, but a market of Africas size cant be ignored.

Countries mostly trade with their neighbors and the Central Asia republics are no exception. Their challenge is that the neighbors include Russia, Iran, and Afghanistan, all targets of Washingtons enmity for unfinished business: Tehran, the 1979 revolution; Kabul, the 2021 defeat of NATO; and Moscow, the peaceful end to the Cold War.

And opportunities to the South are sizeable: Pakistan (population over 240 million), Iran (almost 90 million), India (1.4 billion), and the Arab Gulf petro states (Gulf Cooperation Council states are classified by the World Bank as High income, and Iraq is Upper middle income).

Turkmenistan and Iran share over 2,200 km of land and maritime borders. During the first half of 2022 their trade $233 million, a big jump over 2021 trade of $227 million.

Turkmenistan wants to be a Central Asia transit hub and can link Russia, Iran, the Central Asia republics, and India via the North-South Transport Corridor, which Ashgabat joined in 2023.

Uzbekistan has publicly engaged with the Taliban in 2018 and in 2022 hosted a 30-nation conference on the future of the region in the wake of the Taliban victory. Tashkent also wants improved relations with Iran and access to the seaports of Bandar Abbas and Chabahar. Uzbekistans president Shavkat Mirziyoyev visited Iran in 2023 and the two sides inked agreements in agriculture, energy, customs affairs, Chabahar port, the environment, industry, and tourism, and announced their intent to increase trade to $3 billion annually.

Tashkents key regional initiative is the trans-Afghan railway to connect Central Asia to Pakistan, and to facilitate the exploitation of Afghanistans mineral resources, believed to be worth $1 trillion. The $6.9 billion project will face engineering challenges but a bigger risk is unresolved Taliban-Pakistan tensions. But if Pakistan and the Taliban cant resolve their dispute, Uzbekistan has Plan B, Irans ports and the North-South Transport Corridor.

Or, as Andrew Korybko has observed, even if the rail line gets no further than Afghanistan, that may allow Uzbekistan to backhaul the minerals for processing in Uzbekistan, or to export them to Russia or China.

Kazakhstan hosts the Middle Corridor but is also interested in Southern routes, in line with Astanas multi-vector foreign policy, reinforced in early 2024 when Kazakh president Kassym-Jomart Tokayev noted that the Middle Corridor complements Chinas Belt and Road Initiative.

Kazakhstan plans to increase trade with Iran, and in 2023 Kazakhstans prime minister noted that Iran is a strategic partner of Kazakhstan in the Persian Gulf. In 2022 Tehran and Astana inaugurated a rail link that connects Kazakhstan to Turkiye via Iran.

In November 2023, Tajikistans president Emomali Rahmon hosted a visit by Irans late president, Ebrahim Raisi, Raisis second visit in 18 months, in an effort to continue improving relations. In October 2023, Irans defense minister visited Dushanbe, and in May 2022, Irans chief of staff of the armed forces arrived and announced the launch of local production of the Ababil-2 drone.

Tajikistans foreign trade is with Kazakhstan, Switzerland, China, Turkey, Uzbekistan, and Russia. Tajikistan shares a 1,200 km border with Afghanistan that was a major smuggling route for Afghan opium before the Taliban banned opium harvesting so the countries have established transport route that can be repurposed to legitimate cargo.

The Central Asia republics value their ties to the U.S. but are uninterested in helping Washington with its unfinished business in Iran and Afghanistan, and would rather make up for the lost decades of the 2001-2021 American intervention in Afghanistan.

The republics will use the Middle Corridor to increase trade with Europe, but cant ignore their neighbors to the South who unfortunately have been targeted by U.S., European Union, and United Nations sanctions. Washington can tsk-tsk all it wants but it wont make up the lost opportunity that comes with ignoring trade with (and via) Iran and Afghanistan, or make up for the regions lost decades, create jobs for their large youth populations, or manage potential rural-to-urban migration as a result of climate change-induced water shortages.

Trade with Afghanistan is part of being a good neighbor, and that trade will help Afghanistan find jobs for the 1.5 million Afghan refugees who have returned from Pakistan and Iran. More jobs may lessen the appeal of fighting for the Islamic State of Al-Qaeda which will benefit the West, and satisfy a key objective of the Central Asian republics: stability along the border with Afghanistan.

And the republics understand they cant ignore geography: Tass reports Afghanistan is ready to ink a transit agreement with Turkmenistan, Russia, and Pakistan; Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan plan to build a logistics hub in northwestern Afghanistan to facilitate the export of Russian oil to South Asia by road and rail. These projects will do more than generate cash; they will start integrating Afghanistan into the affairs of the region and teach the Taliban the local rules of the road and so build confidence between the governments of the region.

Washingtons economic warfare on Iran and Afghanistan is a tax on the region, with no offsetting benefits. The completion of the Middle Corridor will please the Americans and will benefit the region, but it is an and solution not an or solution for Central Asias future connectivity and economic growth.

By James Durso

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U.S. tech giant Microsoft said Russian cyberattacks are becoming even more aggressive and warned that Moscow could deepen collaboration with U.S. adversaries in cyberspace, making it much harder to prevent intrusions.

Hackers from Russias Foreign Intelligence Agency (SVR) are no longer disengaging from a computer environment once they are discovered but are doubling down, leading to the equivalent of hand-to-hand combat in cyberspace, according to Brad Smith, vice chairman and president of Microsoft, who is scheduled to testify on June 13 to the House of Representatives' Committee on Homeland Security.

The committee made a transcript of Smiths statement to the committee available on June 12.

Smith said in the statement that Microsoft believes the SVR is now allowing its top engineers to use what they learn during the day in criminal ransomware operations they work on during their free time for financial gain as a way to retain them.

This is creating a vicious cycle reinforcing nation-state and ransomware activity, Smith wrote in the statement.

Smith will address the committee on Microsofts plans to boost security following successful intrusions by Russian and Chinese state actors. He said closer cooperation between Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran on the geopolitical stage could be replicated in cyberspace.

This is grave at multiple levels. Its one thing to engage in cyber combat with four separate nation-state adversaries, but quite another scenario if two or all four of these countries work in tandem, he wrote in his testimony.

He said each of those nations has its own strengths and weaknesses when it comes to cyber capabilities, and through cooperation they could enhance each others' effectiveness.

Unfortunately, this is where the future is likely going, he wrote.

Smith painted a grave picture of current cyberspace, saying lawless and aggressive cyber activity has reached an extraordinary level and that state actors are more sophisticated and better resourced than ever. He said Microsoft detects almost 4,000 password-based attacks against its customers every second.

He called for tougher responses to such countries, saying they suffer few consequences for their actions.

Deter nation-state threat actors by imposing appropriate punishment so that the actions of nation-state actors are not without a cost, he wrote in his testimony.

By RFE/RL

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The American Petroleum Institute (API) is filing on Thursday a lawsuit seeking to block the Biden Administrations new strict tailpipe emission standards, which opponents say are a de-facto mandate for electric vehicle (EV) manufacturing and purchases.

In March, the Environmental Protection Agency announced the finalization of new tailpipe emission standards. The agency boasted that these were the strictest standards ever, adding that they would save money, create jobs, and eliminate billions of tons of CO2 emissions.

API and other organizations argued at the time that the new regulation will effectively eliminate most new gas-powered cars and traditional hybrids from the U.S. market in just eight short years.

In April, the attorney generals of 25 U.S. Republican-governed states urged the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit to review the new rule on tailpipe emissions, find it unlawful, and vacate the agencys final action.

This is an attack on rural America and rural Americans who are working really hard to make ends meetthey are going to get bludgeoned by this rule, said West Virginia Attorney General Patrick Morrisey, who led the lawsuit effort along with Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman.

The National Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) has also criticized the new tailpipe emissions rule, saying last month that despite the dealers efforts and investments to promote EVs, the EPAs final rule remains far ahead of consumer demand.

As a result, this rule is not achievable in the time frame provided and would severely limit the ability of consumers to choose a new vehicle that meets their budget and transportation needs.

Now the API, which will be joined by corn grower associations that rely on gasoline to boost their ethanol industry, is taking the EPA to the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals to seek that the new rule be blocked.

Today, we are taking action to protect American consumers, U.S. manufacturing workers and our nations hard-won energy security from this intrusive government mandate, API Senior Vice President and General Counsel Ryan Meyers said, as carried by Reuters.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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A missile strike believed to have been launched by Yemens Iran-backed Houthis on a vessel in the Gulf of Aden on Thursday has set the ship on fire and intensified fears that the Houthis could further expand their campaign of maritime terror.

A merchant vessel made a radio distress call, saying it had been struck by a missile as it was en route from Malaysia to Venice, Italy, according to private security firm Ambrey.

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center also confirmed the attack and the subsequent fire in an announcement on X (formerly Twitter).

While there has been no official confirmation from the Houthis, the private security firm said the ship was aligned with the Houthi target profile, an apparent reference to a connection to Israel or its allies.

Since November last year, the U.S. Maritime Administration reports that the Houthis have launched some 50 attacks on vessels in the maritime area, with three sailors killed so far, one vessel seized, and one sunk. The U.S. has responded with an airstrike campaign against Houthi positions in Yemen, which the Houthis claim have killed at least 16 people. Washington was forced to relocate weapons to Qatar, diverting them from its base in the UAE, which had demanded that the U.S. seek permission before firing missiles at the Houthis from Emirati territory.

In March, the Houthis threatened that they would expand operations beyond the Red Sea, targeting Israel-linked ships traversing the Indian Ocean en route to the Cape of Good Hope. This is the longer, more expensive route being used by vessels attempting to avoid the dangers of the Red Sea.

The Gulf of Aden feeds into the Arabian Sea, through which vessels pass as they take the long way around the Horn of Africa.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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In a tragic incident, unidentified assailants attacked soldiers guarding the major Niger-Benin oil pipeline, resulting in the deaths of six soldiers. Three security sources confirmed the attack, which took place between the villages of Salkam and Tibiri in Niger's southeastern Dosso region.

The assault targeted a patrol unit assigned to protect the pipeline. Despite the violence, the pipeline itself sustained no damage, according to one source.

As of now, no group has claimed responsibility for the attack. However, the region is known for the presence of militant groups linked to al-Qaeda and ISIS, raising concerns about the potential involvement of these groups. This marks the first attack on security forces tasked with safeguarding the pipeline, highlighting the escalating risks in the area, including to oil infrastructure.

The Niger-Benin pipeline is designed to transport crude oil from Niger's Agadem field to the port of Seme in Benin, covering approximately 2,000 km. The pipeline represents a crucial economic development for Niger, providing a reliable export route that can boost its oil revenue.

Niger's oil industry, relatively nascent, began significant production in 2011 with the development of the Agadem oil field by China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC). The country's oil production, though modest compared to major global producers, is a critical component of its economy, contributing substantially to national revenue and attracting foreign investment in exploration and infrastructure development.

International oil companies are already facing difficult decisions in Niger, needing to find a balance between the potential for significant oil reserves against the geopolitical and operational risks. The country's relatively underexplored basins offer attractive opportunities for new discoveries, and the government has shown a willingness to work with foreign investors by offering favorable terms and supporting infrastructure development. However, security concerns, political instability, and underdeveloped infrastructure can pose significant hurdles to operations.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

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Pembina is about to make the final investment decision on a $4-billion LNG project in British Columbia, Bloomberg has reported, citing unnamed sources close to the company.

The Cedar LNG project will use funding from at least 15 banks, according to the report. Thats despite a push from climate activists for banks to stop funding energy projects that involve hydrocarbons.

If it materializes, the Cedar LNG facility, with a capacity of 3 million tons annually, will be the second Canadian LNG export project after LNG Canada which is led by Shell.

The Cedar LNG project is notable in the fact that one of the partners of Pembina in the project is the Haisla First Nation, which is really enthusiastic about the project. The enthusiasm follows the benefits that the community has seen from the LNG Canada projectchiefly in higher employment and, consequently, increased revenues.

The Haisla First Nation has also negotiated natural gas supply via the Coastal GasLink, which was built to feed natural gas to LNG Canada, for the Cedar LNG facility. The project will be powered with electricity produced from hydropower plants, making it one of the lowest-emission LNG facilities, according to its operators.

The news about the Cedar LNG final investment decision comes despite the fact that Canadas federal government does not consider the idea of LNG exports a priority in its energy agenda. In fact, earlier this year, Ottawa made this quite clear, with Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson saying the country was not interested in investing in any LNG projects or subsidizing such plans.

The government is opposed to using government money to fund inefficient fossil fuel subsidies. Were the first country in the world to actually do that, Wilkinson told CTV.

We are not interested in investing in LNG facilities. That's the role of the private sector. They need to assess the business case and make the investments, Wilkinson noted.

It seems the private sector has assessed the business case and found it to be present for as many as two LNG export projects.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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Russia will reach its oil production quota in June after exceeding its target output under the OPEC+ deal in May, the Russian Energy Ministry said on Thursday.

Russia slightly exceeded its OPEC+ quota in May, based on data from independent sources monitoring the agreement, the ministry said, adding that the issue with overproduction will be resolved in June, when the target will be achieved. The excess production volumes that Russia has pumped since April will be fully compensated for in the future, with the overproduction offset during the compensation period until the end of September 2025, the Russian energy ministry said today.

It also reiterated that Russia remains fully committed to the fundamental principles of the OPEC+ deal.

Last month, Russia said that it had slightly exceeded in April its oil output target under the OPEC+ pact and that it would compensate for the overproduction.

Last week, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said that Russia continued to cut its oil production in May per the OPEC+ agreements, in another attempt to reassure the market that OPEC+ producers are committed to the pact and to stabilizing the oil market.

Our reduction against April continued in accordance with our OPEC+ agreements, Novak told reporters on the sidelines of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, as quoted by Russian news agency TASS.

Asked about exact numbers for the May oil production, Novak said that the scale of the output cut would become clear in about a week.

When the OPEC+ members announced in early March their intentions to extend the cuts into the second quarter, Russia changed its production/export cut plan and said that it would reduce supply by 471,000 bpd in the second quarter in the form of cuts to oil production and exports.

In April, Russia pledged to reduce production by 350,000 bpd and exports by 121,000 bpd. In May, the 471,000 bpd reduction would be in the form of a 400,000-bpd cut to production and 71,000 bpd cut to exports, and in June the Russian supply cut would be 471,000 bpd entirely from production reductions.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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Saudi Aramco expects to buy liquefied natural gas from NextDecade Corporations planned train 4 at the Rio Grande LNG export facility in Texas under a 20-year agreement, the companies said on Thursday.

The Saudi state oil giant and the U.S. LNG developer signed a non-binding Heads of Agreement (HoA) for a 20-year LNG offtake deal, under which Aramco expects to purchase 1.2 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) of LNG for 20 years on a free on board basis, at a price indexed to the U.S. benchmark, Henry Hub.

Aramco and NextDecade are currently in the process of negotiating a binding agreement, the effectiveness of which will be subject to a positive Final Investment Decision on Train 4.

NextDecade targets to take the FID of Train 4 in the second half of 2024, subject to finalizing and entering into an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract, gaining appropriate commercial support, and obtaining adequate financing to construct Train 4 and related infrastructure.

Earlier this month, reports emerged that Saudi Aramco is in discussions with U.S. LNG developers to buy a stake in one planned project and sign a long-term LNG offtake deal from another proposed export facility, namely Train 4 at Rio Grande LNG. Aramco is in talks with U.S. company Tellurian to buy a stake in its Driftwood LNG export facility near Lake Charles, Louisiana, Reuters reported last week, citing sources close to the talks.

Aramco, the worlds top crude exporter and the worlds biggest oil firm, has been seeking a greater role on the global LNG market as it plans to ramp up its natural gas production and trading business.

Last autumn, Saudi Aramco entered the global LNG business by signing a deal to buy a minority stake in LNG company MidOcean Energy, which was in the process of acquiring interests in four Australian LNG projects.

Going into LNG trading would be another lucrative business for the Saudi oil giant, considering that LNG demand is only set to grow in the coming years as Europe ditches Russian gas and Asia looks to use more natural gas instead of coal.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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Africas top lender, Standard Bank, expects to help fund part of the planned $5-billion East Africa Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP), a controversial project that has had environmental campaigners call on banks to abandon financing for the pipeline.

The EACOP project, with a price tag of $5 billion, is for a 1,443 kilometer-long (897 miles) pipeline to be built from landlocked Uganda to the Tanga port in Tanzania. The oil pipeline is expected to bring crude from the Lake Albert project in Uganda to the international oil market. It is designed to transport 216,000 barrels of crude oil per day, with a ramp-up of up to 246,000 bpd, Uganda says.

The pipeline, which will be the largest in Africa, is part of Ugandas comprehensive plan to develop its oil resources.

The EACOP project is being developed and will be operated by EACOP Ltd, a company composed of the local subsidiary of French supermajor TotalEnergies, as well as UNOC, the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC), and the China National Offshore Oil Company (CNOOC).

Amid controversies and continued calls on banks to stop funding oil and gas exploration and infrastructure development, Standard Bank hired in 2021 an independent adviser to help it decide whether to accept involvement in the project.

The bank has completed its years-long environmental and due diligence review, Standard Bank chair Nonkululeko Nyembezi told Bloomberg in an interview published on Thursday.

We have all the lenders, the executive added.

Field developments are under way and TotalEnergies could make an announcement on the pipeline in the coming months, Nyembezi told Bloomberg, adding that there is complete commitment on the part of the sponsors of the oil projects to get it done.

Meanwhile, activists are calling on insurance firms to shun the project, while Human Rights Watch said in November that the planned oil pipeline in East Africa has devastated thousands of peoples livelihoods in Uganda and will exacerbate the global climate crisis.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

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In a recent meeting with House Republicans, former President Donald Trump declared his intention to completely reverse President Joe Biden's electric vehicle (EV) policies if he is re-elected. Trump criticized the current administration's push towards battery-powered cars, describing the mandate as "crazy," according to Idaho Representative Russ Fulcher. He emphasized that, if given the opportunity, he would overturn Biden's EV policies entirely.

Trump's remarks, delivered at the Capitol Hill Club, reflect his longstanding opposition to electric vehicles. He has consistently argued that EVs are ineffective and detrimental to American autoworkers, suggesting they primarily benefit countries like China and Mexico. Virginia Representative Morgan Griffith also highlighted Trump's sentiment, noting that Trump believes Biden is forcing Americans into buying electric cars, which he deems unreasonable.

Trump's comments come amid legal challenges to one of Biden's key EV policies. On Thursday, oil and ethanol industry groups filed a lawsuit to block the Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) new air-pollution limits, which they argue would compel automakers to increase their electric vehicle sales unlawfully.

Biden's administration has set an ambitious goal to have 50% of all new vehicle sales be electric by 2030. To support this transition, the administration offers consumers tax credits of up to $7,500 for purchasing electric vehicles. In stark contrast, Trump has vocally opposed these measures, criticizing them as impractical and harmful to the domestic automotive industry.

The opposition from Trump and the ongoing legal disputes underscore the significant political and industry resistance to Biden's EV initiatives. As the debate over the future of electric vehicles in the U.S. continues, the oil and gas industry, along with other stakeholders, will be closely monitoring the evolving policies and their implications.

By Julianne Geiger for Oilprice.com

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Severe weather advisories from the National Weather Service in Valley rose as the sun dipped to the horizon Wednesday evening.

The weather service issued a severe thunderstorm warning at 9:01 p.m.

The weather service said people attending Charles Schwab Field as the College World Series festivities kicked off should "seek safe shelter immediately!"

The affected areas included west-central Pottawattamie County in Iowa and southeastern Washington and northeastern Douglas Counties.

The storm dropped large hail on midtown Omaha, littering lawns and roads with balls of ice measuring 2 inches or more. It also brought wind gusts up to 60 mph.

Omaha Public Power District reported shortly before 10 p.m. that more than 700 people were without power, mostly around Omaha.

The warning expired for Omaha at 9:45 p.m. but other areas of Nebraska remained in line for storms, the weather service said.

Photo and video: Severe storms hit the Omaha metro area on Wednesday
LINCOLN  President Joe Bidens reelection campaign launched a new advertisement airing in Omaha on Thursday that takes aim at former President Donald Trumps role in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol.

The ad is being aired in conjunction with Trump returning to Washington, D.C., as the clear favorite to be the Republican nominee for president, the Biden campaign said. The 30-second video, titled Burn, accuses Trump of inciting the violence that occurred on Jan. 6, and noted he has since spoken favorably about his supporters who participated, including promising to pardon some of those convicted of crimes related to the riot.

According to a Biden-Harris 2024 campaign press release, the ad is being aired in multiple battleground states Thursday, including Nebraska. Democrats have been eyeing the states 2nd Congressional District for years as an area they could flip in an overall Republican-dominated state.

Unlike other districts, Nebraskas 2nd District  which includes Omaha and other parts of Douglas County  has a fairly even number of registered Republicans and Democrats. According to the secretary of states latest numbers, Republican voters hold a slight edge with roughly 154,000 registered voters to the Democrats 141,000.

Still, the district went to Biden in 2020, giving him one of Nebraskas five electoral votes. It was the first time the district went blue since 2008, when it favored former President Barack Obama.

The Biden-Harris campaign is working hard to build a broad coalition of Democrats, Independents and Republicans to win NE-02 again this November, Caroline Stonecipher, the campaigns deputy states communications director, said in an email.

Democrats are also aiming to flip the districts seat in the U.S. House, which GOP incumbent Rep. Don Bacon has held since 2016. He faces Democrat State Sen. Tony Vargas of Omaha, who challenged Bacon first in 2022, and lost by fewer than 6,000 votes.

This isnt the first anti-Trump advertisement the Biden-Harris campaign has aired in Omaha. Three weeks ago, a different ad launched with a similar message. The campaign also recently hired three campaign advisers to be based in Omaha to oversee the reelection campaigning on the local level.

Our best Omaha staff photos & videos of June 2024
The government, through the Ministry of Finance, has announced its intention of taxing the various online trading platforms.



The ministry noted that, there are many businesses who are plying their trade online without being taxed.



This was disclosed in an interview with the Deputy Minister of Finance, Dr. Alex Ampaabeng who disclosed this on Channel One TV with Bernard Avle.



According to him, taxing these online platforms will cushion the economy and help the ministry leverage on the opportunities online businesses bring to the economy.



Dr. Ampaabeng underscored the need to have this tax implemented noting that the companies, both local and international, generate appreciable funds from their clients in Ghana.



Dr. Ampaabeng cited the potential revenue sources which includes online businesses and content creation companies.



Dr. Ampaabeng questioned the rationale behind national companies operating in Ghana are taxed, but social media platforms like Youtube and Facebook, which run numerous advertisements, are not included in the Ghanaian tax system.



According to the deputy Finance Minister, owners of the social media companies earn profits from the advertisements they display, and online trading companies also earn income from the sale of their products and services.



Other online trading platforms which will be taxed in future are Jiji, Jumia, and Tonaton, which he believes surpass all physical marketplaces in Ghana in size.



He said, I cant think of a country which has not gotten a digital service tax system of some sort, so Ghana is long overdue. Just to make an example so that people will appreciate where Im coming from. Go to Youtube and play a video, within one or two minutes, you are going to watch about two, or three adverts.



What it tells you is that Facebook or Youtube is making profits right here in Ghana. Go to your Facebook account, and you are going to see a number of adverts on your right, left. What it is telling you is that Facebook is making profits right here in Ghana and not being taxed. Meanwhile, there are companies operating in Ghana, for jurisdiction reasons, of course, that are being taxed.



He further pointed out, So then, it comes to the question of the application of our tax laws. Revenues generated in Ghana are subject to taxes. We have Facebook, TikTok and all those players, these are digital platform owners.



He highlighted, Then we have the digital or market players, here we are talking about individuals who are using the digital platforms. We have Jiji, Jumia, Tonaton, these combined, are bigger than all physical marketplaces in Ghana. And it tells you the volume of transactions that are going on there.



He expressed his hope that individuals earning online profits from Ghanaian residents would be taxed.



There are conversations ongoing, I wouldnt want to pre-empt anything, maybe in the future, it might not be anytime soon, what I would like to see, is a Ghana where people who are earning all forms of profits in the country are subject to taxes. People who are trading online to Ghanaian residents, people who are generating revenue from Ghana are allowed to pay taxes, he noted.



Additionally, he proposed a collaboration with the government to curb cybercrime by registering and verifying these online trading companies.



We can have a system where the government engages these operators, so individuals will submit their Ghana Card and are registered and verified.





Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com









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Dr. Bernard Okoe Boye has assured Ghanaians that his outfit will clear the back lock of medical supplies donated to the Ministry of Health (MoH) in two weeks.



The medical supplies was donated to the ministry by Global Fund, an international organization, who over the years have been supporting Ghana with essential medical supplies.



This assurance is in sequel to plans by health-centric Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to stage a demonstration for the release of critical medicines for diseases such as malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV which are yet to be fully cleared at the port.



Reports gathered disclose that the medical supplies have been locked up at the port since May 2023 for unpaid duties.



The government has cited new exemption bill payment processes and additional charges as reasons for the holdup.



Nonetheless, Dr. Bernard Okoe Boye, has committed to meeting the two-week deadline for clearing the supplies. He said this when he interacted with the press in Accra on Thursday.



He said, We are committed to getting the containers out and for me personally, irrespective of the bureaucracies involved with government and all that, I have given myself two weeks. In two weeks, I myself will not be encouraged if there are two more or one more containers left at the port."



In fact, and this one you can take it from me. If by two weeks we still have containers at the port, you will not see me, I will be sitting rather at the port. I will sit at the port with them until everything comes out, he assured Ghanaians.





Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com









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An entrepreneur and Chief Executive of Aduro Ye Herbal Center, producers of Obuasi Bitters and Obuasi Gringo bitters Dr. Collins Amo has donated the sum of GH200,000 towards the ' Heal KATH' project, an initiative of the Asantehene Otumfuo Osei Tutu II.



The 'Heal KATH' project is aimed at raising an amount of $10 million to support the extensive renovation of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital in Kumasi.



It would be recalled that the Asantehene recently launched an appeal to encourage individuals and corporate organizations to help mobilize financial resources to undertake a comprehensive renovation of KATH to help improve and strengthen quality healthcare at the only referral hospital in the northern part of the country.



According to Dr Collins Amo, as a thriving business operating in the Ashanti Region, they were motivated to heed to the appeals by the King of Ashanti.



" We deemed the call by Otumfuo to support the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital as a laudable one and a worthy cause hence we decided to also donate and see a better KATH".



He congratulated the Asantehene on his 25th Anniversary of his installation as the 16th occupant of theGolden Stool saying, he has led by example and his reign has positively affected many people in Ghana and abroad.



Dr. Amoh also underscored the importance of the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital as a strategic referral hospital. He said it was important to improve the facilities of KATH to deliver the quality healthcare services that is expected of such a facility.



The Chairman of the Heal Komfo Anokye (Teaching Hospital) project team, Sammy Adu Boakye who received the donation commended Dr. Collins Amo and his team from Aduro ye Herbal centre for the donation.



He reiterated that the vision of the project as spearheaded by the Asantehene, Otumfuo Osei Tutu II, was to bring infrastructure at KATH to international standard to enhance healthcare delivery at the facility, which served about 12 regions of the country.



He called on other institutions and individuals to also come on board and contribute towards giving a facelift to the Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Lawyers defending Patience Botwe, a former househelp of Cecilia Dapaah, the former Sanitation Minister have filed a motion at the High Court in Accra to procure some documents at the office of the Special Prosecutor.



The documents according to the lawyers is to aid them in their cross examination of Daniel Osei Kuffour, the first Prosecution witness and other witnesses in the matter.



This came to light when the case was called today for the lawyers to further cross examine Daniel Osei Kuffour, husband of the former Minister.



We filed a motion (on Wednesday, June 12) with a return date of June 27 for an order of this honorable court to procure documents from the Office of the Special Prosecutor to enable us to effectively cross-examine the current witness as well as others listed in this matter.



We, therefore, humbly pray for the Honorable Court to indulge us with an adjournment to enable us to deal with the motion and procure the documents, Kormivi Dzotsi, Counsel for Patience Botwe told the court.



The Presiding Judge, Justice Marie-Louise Simmons after listening to the submission of lawyer Kormivi Dzotsi indicated that, the court will consider whether lawyers for the other accused persons will cross examine the first witness whiles lawyers for Patience Botwe persue their documents at the OSP's office.



I have listened to the submissions made by Counsel for A1 (First Accused- Patience Botwe) and knowing that he is still conducting cross-examination of PW1 (Daniel Osei Kufuor), I will oblige him the date.



In order not to waste the date of this trial, the court will consider whether cross-examination can be conducted by other Counsel while waiting for A1s (Patience Botwe) Counsel to procure whatever documents he needs to conduct a further cross-examination.



Patience Botwe, Benjamin Sowah, together with Malik Dauda, Sarah Agyei, Christiana Achab, Job Pomary, and Yahaya Sumaila are standing trial at the Criminal Division of the High Court in Accra for their alleged roles in stolen monies and items worth millions of cedis at the Ex-Minister's Abelemkpe residence.



They have all pleaded not guilty to the various charges pressed against them, ranging from Conspiracy to steal, stealing, dishonestly receiving, and money laundering.



Despite being granted bail on November 10 2023, they are still in lawful custody following their failure to execute their respective bails.



The case has been adjourned to June 18.

Source: Philipa Atanga/Court Reporter/Despite Media









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The government has secured a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Official Bilateral Creditor Committee (OCC) co-chaired by France and China after 16 months of negotiations.



The MoU, which follows an interim agreement in January, represents the final step in the countrys debt restructuring talks with the OCC, which the country owes $5.1 billion. Each official creditor is now expected to follow its internal procedures to sign the MoU.



Once signed, the agreed terms will be implemented through bilateral agreements with each OCC member. The agreement will now pave the way for the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to approve the second review of the countrys three-year programme with the fund aimed at restoring macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability.



The approval of the second review expected later this month will unlock the third tranche of $360 million from the IMF, bringing the total disbursement under the programme to $1.56 billion.



The $360 million will help shore up the countrys international reserves and help stabilize the Ghana Cedi, which has lost some ground against the major trading currencies since the beginning of the year.



The IMF Boards approval is also expected to trigger more financial assistance from development partners, particularly the World Bank.



Background



Following the formation of the OCC in May 2023, the IMF Executive Board approved Ghanas three-year programme with the fund. The IMF also approved the first review of Ghanas programme in January after the government reached an interim agreement with the OCC.



Although the government reached a staff-level agreement with IMFs mission in April for the second review, the Executive Boards approval was hinged on the countrys ability to formalise its agreement with the OCC through an MoU.

Source: graphic.com.gh









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The third accused in the ongoing ambulance case, Richard Jakpa, detailed his standard procedures in dealing with the Ghanaian government as a businessman.



According to Mr Jakpa, communications typically originate from Secretaries of Chief Directors or Deputy Ministers, who forward letters to the office of the substantive Minister of Finance.



Mr Jakpa explained that upon receiving these communications, the substantive Secretary of the Minister of Finance would seek approval from the Minister.



Once approved, the Secretary would affix the authorization seal on the letter, after which the Controller and Accountant General's Department (CAGD) or the Bank of Ghana (BoG) could proceed with implementing the instructions contained in the letter.



He emphasised that this authorization seal, bearing the Minister of Finance's approval, is crucial.



The businessman insisted that without this security measure, neither the CAGD nor the BoG would act on any directive to debit Ghana's consolidated accounts, whether for local or international payments.



During his cross-examination on Thursday, June 13, Mr Jakpa underscored that this stringent process is in place to safeguard Ghana's financial integrity.



It ensures that only the Finance Minister, with proper authorisation and oversight, can authorise debits from the country's consolidated account for payments related to services rendered or work completed by any Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assembly (MMDA).

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Bernard Allotey Jacobs has expressed excitement over the union of the presidential aspirants of the New Patriotic Party in Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia's campaign tour.



The tour of the Ashanti Region saw the Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, joined by four of his contenders in the party's presidential election.



Key among them that caught the eyes of the masses is the Assin Central MP and business mogul, Kennedy Agyapong.



Mr. Kennedy Agyapong gave Dr. Bawumia a run for his money but lost to the latter and just when people thought he had some qualms joining Bawumia's campaign team, the MP proved all naysayers wrong as he primarily featured in the campaign bus to the Ashanti Region.



He actively campaigned for Dr. Bawumia saying as a businessman and politician, I understand both politics and business. I acknowledge the current hardships but when you vote, remember that the NDC is not a viable option. They are very dangerous".



He continued "under the Akufo-Addo-Bawumia government, weve covered fees under Free SHS and even provided uniforms for your children" and stressed even in developed countries, governments dont buy uniforms for students. So, I urge all of you to recognize that even developed countries are facing economic crises. Dont be deceived by false promises. Remember the NDCs past governance. Lets all support Bawumia.



Allotey Jacobs was overwhelmed by the massive support Bawumia is receiving in what he termed as his "retail campaign", stating "the magic in this retail campaign has brought other contestants who were competing with him for the flagbearership; they're all back on board. For whatever they said, they are all back on board and they are going to help repair the damage they caused to move forward".



To him, "there is an Angel leading Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia and his campaign".



The former NDC Central Regional Chairman, Allotey Jacobs made these emphatic statements while speaking on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" morning show.





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









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Former NDC Central Regional Chairman, Bernard Allotey Jacobs has pleaded with the Attorney-General, Godfred Yeboah Dame, to spare the Minority Leader, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, in his trial over a shady ambulance purchase transaction.



Dr. Ato Forson is before the High Court for causing financial loss to the State.



Contributing to Wednesday's edition of "Kokrokoo" morning show on Peace FM, Allotey Jacobs sent a plea to the Attorney-General saying "Ato is a very good guy. Ato is a nice man. I don't wish evil for him. Ato is also part of me...He was a Minister. He was given an instruction; he's done his best".



He begged the A-G to settle the case out of court.





The Attorney-General has sued Minority Leader, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson, and one Richard Jakpa at the High Court presided by Justice Afia Serwah Asare-Botwe.Richard Jakpa is on trial with Dr. Ato Forson over an alleged financial loss to the State.They are accused of causing financial loss of 2.37 million to the State in a deal to purchase 200 ambulances for the country between 2014 and 2016.Per the A-Gs facts accompanying the charge sheet, in 2009, while delivering the State of the Nation Address, the then President, Prof. John Evans Atta Mills, indicated that new ambulances would be purchased to expand the operations of the National Ambulance Service.Jakpa, a local representative of Big Sea General Trading Limited, a company based in Dubai, approached the Ministry of Health with a proposal that he had arranged for finance from Stanbic Bank for supply of the 200 ambulances but subsequently 30 ambulances were purchased at a sum of 2.37 million, however all were found not fit for purpose.

Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









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Bernard Allotey Jacobs has urged the Police to arrest any individual who misbehaves in this year's presidential and parliamentary elections.



The nation is prepping for the December 7 polls to elect a new President.



About five presidential aspirants including independent candidates have popped up to contest the polls.



Among the five, Vice President Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, flagbearer of the New Patriotic Party, and John Dramani Mahama, former President and 2024 presidential candidate of the National Democratic Congress, are ticked to give each other a tough competition.



While the electorates await the big day for the election, Speaker of Parliament, Alban Bagbin has issued a warning to the Military stating we dont want to see [the] military during the election. When there is a need to call them, they will be called, but they should not be at polling or voting centres".



But the former National Democratic Congress' Chairman for Central Region, Allotey Jacobs has asked the Speaker to stay out of security affairs regarding the election.



He charged the Military and the Police to do their job stressing "arrest any person who wears camouflage; it will bring about peace".



Allotey Jacobs said this during "Kokrokoo" panel discussion show on Peace FM.





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









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The National Democratic Congress (NDC) has decided to be more vigilant as the December 7, 2024 elections draw closer.



The largest opposition party remains as such due to what they describe as a deliberate and consistent attempt by the ruling New Patriotic Party to drive the country into economic woes.



These assertions were made by the General Secretary of the NDC, Mr. Fifi Kwetey in an interview with Joynews PM Express on Wednesday, June 12, 2024.



According to Mr. Fifi Fiavi Kwetey, the NDC as a party, will remain vigilant before, during, and after the 2024 Parliamentary and Presidential polls, adding that, despite the visible dissatisfaction with the Nana Addo-led government leading the country into an unprecedented economic turmoil, it will stop at nothing in rigging the elections just to retain power.



"It is for the above reason and many others that the NDC, a party known for its probity and accountability, will also stop at nothing in making sure that the election is free, fair amd transparent. This reason, the NDC cannot be complacent and assume that the current economic meltdown and public dissatisfaction would automatically lead to electoral victory in the December polls."



Fifi Fiavi Kwetey said, It is normal in politics sometimes to see a level of frustration, anger, disappointment, the economic meltdown and the suffering that is going on and assume that somehow that is going to be enough for you to win an election.



He further noted, But I can tell you that for many of us who wrestled to take NPP out of power the last time when they were in power, we know that you never are complacent, especially when you're dealing with a desperate political party. This particular political party we are dealing with here is literally an entity that cares about nothing but power.



Fifi Kwetey stated that, if there is any political party that is hungry and thirsty for power, it is the NPP, hence Ghanaians should be mindful of what they are capable of doing thereby urging the supporters of the NDC and the general public to be vigilant of the NPP as a party.



So if there's any group that thinks that it's going to be easy taking out these very desperate people, especially after they have spent eight years, eight years that they have profited, corrupted the system, made all kinds of money, totally destroyed the economy and they are afraid that they are going to be prosecuted.



The desperation is even more massive. So I'm actually surprised that anybody will be thinking that it's a done deal when you know the level of desperation that we are facing with this political party."



You need to make sure you keep your eye on the ball and forget about all the difficulties that the economy is going through, don't assume that that alone is going to land you into victory. Remain focused and let's make sure we cross the line," he said.





Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com









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The Managing Director of the State Transport Corporation (STC), has opined that the government of the New Patriotic Party has not been able to achieve a satisfactory win over the fight against the menace of illegal mining, popularly known as galamsey.



According to him, although the government has made significant efforts in fighting the canker that has destroyed many water bodies and farms, it has not been able to achieve the feat it so desires.



The fight against galamsey had been one of the topmost challenges President Akufo-Addo sought to achieve, leading to the President putting his Presidency on the line upon assumption of office.



Evident in his quest to fighting galamsey was the launch of Operation Vanguard and Operation Halt, amongst other policy interventions.



I have said it in the Cabinet, and perhaps this is the first time I am making this public, that I am prepared to put my Presidency on the line on this matter, the President said at a workshop on galamsey for traditional leaders.



This dream is yet to be realised after almost eight years of assuming office as President.



However, in an interview on Accra based Joy FM, the former Member of Parliament for Okaikwei South emphasised the persistent challenges in combating illegal mining.



Every President has made efforts to stop illegal mining in the country, but despite their commitment and efforts, the results remain unsatisfactory, he said.



His comments come on the wheel of a recent comment made by the Parliamentary candidate for Amenfi East, Ernest Frimpong, who was captured in a video telling illegal miners to deal with any military officer who tries to interfere with their illegal activities.



Relatedly, the New Patriotic Party (NPP) parliamentary candidate (PC) for the Amenfi East constituency in the Western region has come under heavy criticism for allegedly inciting small-scale miners to attack military officers who prevent them from mining.



Mr. Frimpong, who has explained that, the actual intentions of comments have been misconstrued have been granted bail after the police arrested him.



Nana Akomea posited that, the fight against the illegal mining is a daunting task which demands a collective efforts from all and sundry.





Source: Kobina Darlington/peacefmonline.com









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Ghanaian sensation DarkoVibes will release his latest single Wifi available on all digital streaming platforms.



Known for his innovative and creative blend of Afrobeats, Hip-Hop and Highlife, DarkoVibes continues to push musical boundaries with this captivating new track.



In WI-FI, DarkoVibes conveys a feeling of fulfilment and gratitude while reflecting on how far hes come.



The songs electronic undertones, smooth production and catchy hook make it a standout relatable anthem for todays listeners.



Produced by Hylander, the track promises to be an instant hit among fans and new listeners alike.



WI-FI is a testament to DarkoVibes artistic growth and his ability to address contemporary themes through his music.



Stream WI-FI now on all digital streaming platforms.



Follow DarkoVibes on all social media platforms for the latest updates, show dates and more exciting news.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Ghana has missed a prime opportunity to host the Grammy Africa Awards set to become the biggest platform to celebrate and elevate the rich musical talents across the continent, echoing the success of the Latin Grammys introduced in 1997.



The Recording Academy, globally renowned for organising the prestigious Grammy Awards, recently announced plans to establish an African version of the event to bolster the Academy's influence in rapidly growing music markets.



However, as excitement mounts for the inaugural Grammy Africa Awards scheduled for either 2027 or 2028, Ghana finds herself excluded from the spotlight of this historic event after failing to fulfil the requirements to join the ranks of founding countriesNigeria, Kenya, Rwanda and South Africain hosting the awards.



In an interview with Graphic Showbiz on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, Lady Dentaa Amoateng, Senior Advisor to the Grammy CEO and President of Grammy Africa, disclosed Ghana was unable to finalise certain requirements with the Recording Academy, citing resource constraints as one of the reasons. (Related article Grammy organisers announce global expansion efforts in Africa)



"It's a bit unfortunate, but the agreement that would have solidified Ghana's participation didn't come to fruition. As a result, the four countriesNigeria, Kenya, Rwanda and South Africa will be the ones hosting the Grammy Africa Awards and enjoying the associated benefits. So for now, Ghana is not part of the founding member countries.



While Ghanaian artistes will still be eligible for nominations and participation in the Grammy Africa Awards, the country will miss out on the significant opportunities and prestige that come with being a founding member and host, she added.



This development marks a missed chance for Ghana to solidify her place on the global music stage and benefit from the cultural and economic advantages that come with hosting such a high-profile event.



Lady Dentaa however expressed enthusiasm for the upcoming event, stating it would significantly bridge the gap between African artistes and the global creative community.



She told Graphic Showbiz the Academy had been actively engaging with cultural ministries and key stakeholders across Africa and the Middle East for the past two years. This extensive engagement included listening sessions and high-level briefings with government officials and pioneering music creators aimed at fostering global connections for African music creators.



Although a formal announcement for the start of the awards is pending, Lady Dentaa said I've been working with them for the past two years and I would say it is in the pipeline. We are looking at probably 2027-2028. But the Recording Academy will put out a statement soon. Again, we just have to wait for this information. But I believe in 2027 or 2028, the continent will host its first Grammy Awards.

Source: Graphiconline









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Spanish is a romance language that evolved from Latin after the fall of the Roman Empire in the Iberian Peninsula, the southwest corner of Europe that includes present-day Spain and Portugal. The language was heavily influenced by surrounding Romance languages, such as Portuguese and Catalan.

Castellano, or Castilian Spanish, first evolved in northern and central Spain, which is why Spain is largely associated with the language. The local culture and the language were influenced by the presence of Moorish rule and their Arabic language. Standard Spanish today still uses words that were derived from Arabic, as well as grammatical features such as gender agreement between nouns.

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Between the 13th and 16th centuries, the language was further standardized in Madrid and Toledo. During the Reconquista, the language was brought into southern Spain. Andalusian Spanish evolved in the southern region and became predominant in the Americas.

In the 16th century the Spanish Empire expanded into Mexico, Central America and vast areas of South America. The Spaniards brought their language and culture along with them when settling in new areas, where natives were forced to integrate, thus creating multicultural populations and various dialects as a result of Spanish colonialism.

Many former Spanish colonies continued to use Spanish as the primary language even after gaining independence in the 19th century.

Following the Spanish-American War, the United States controlled Puerto Rico, but citizens continued to speak their native Spanish. Millions of Puerto Ricans have since immigrated to the United States, increasing native Spanish speakers on the mainland.

The United States unofficially recognizes Spanish as the nation's second language.
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:

An analysis of scientific papers published in a 15-year period on molecular methods to identify elasmobranch species shows that better detection of illegal trade has not enhanced protection. Credit: Marcela Alvarenga

The most advanced molecular techniques contribute significantly to the identification of endangered sharks, rays and skates, collectively known as elasmobranchs, and are therefore fundamental to the enforcement of the laws and regulations governing trade in fins and meat from these animals.

An article published in the journal Biological Conservation reports a study by Brazilian scientists showing that 15 years of research on these techniques have not reduced the extent to which the species concerned are threatened.

In fact, some elasmobranch species are more endangered than before: 83% of the 64 species detected in trade are considered at risk of extinction, and the degree of risk has increased for 33 of these in the last 15 years, according to the extinction risk categories used in the Red List of Threatened Species maintained by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The Red List is widely considered a critical indicator of the health of the world's biodiversity.

"Trade in endangered elasmobranch species is banned in Brazil, but their meat is sold as 'cacao' or under other names by grocers, street markets and fishmongers, so consumers don't know exactly what they're buying," said Marcela Alvarenga, first author of the article. She is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Porto in Portugal and a researcher with the National Center for Molecular Identification of Fish at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (CENIMP-UFRJ) in Brazil.

In most cases, it is impossible to identify the species on sale in stores as filets or cutlets. When the animal is displayed in its entirety, the head and fins are usually missing, and these are necessary to determine the species morphologically. The most accurate identification method therefore entails DNA sequencing to identify one or more genes.

"DNA sequencing is expensive. Even if you have the equipment and trained staff, the reagents are mostly imported, so more cost-effective techniques have been developed in recent years. They can identify degraded DNA in fins that have been left to dry in the sun for days before being exported to Asia, for example," said Rodrigo Domingues, a co-author of the article and a researcher at the University of Sao Paulo Oceanographic Institute (IO-USP).

Domingues referred to the international trade in shark fins, whose high value, especially in China, has made sharks targets for predatory fishing vessels. Because the fins must be attached to their bodies at offloading, there is an abundant supply of shark meat, which is nevertheless fetching steadily higher prices. Brazil also imports shark meat from other countries.

The law requires that sharks be landed whole in Brazil, which was one of the first countries to outlaw finning, the gruesome practice of cutting off a live shark's fins and throwing the rest of the animal back into the sea, where it dies a slow and painful death.

Unlike other ray species, the guitarfish, of which there are three genera, sell for high prices. One species, Pseudobatos horkelii, is listed by IUCN as Critically Endangered. Even shark meat may cost more than other fish in some of Rio de Janeiro's fish markets, for example.

Overfishing of sharks and rays is made worse by the fact that they are often entangled as bycatch in the nets of fishing expeditions that set out to catch more valuable species.

Techniques advance, protection retreats

The authors analyzed 35 peer-reviewed articles on the subject published between January 2008 and June 2023. Until 2014, most of the articles discussed the development of molecular tools for more cost-effective and rapid identification of elasmobranch species.

As of 2018, the predominant techniques were DNA-based sequencing tools directly applied to sharks and rays. In these papers, species were identified from traded body parts and fins seized by law enforcement agents.

These advances were not reflected in a reduction in the degree of extinction risk. In fact, the only such species was the Brazilian cownose ray (Rhinoptera brasiliensis), which IUCN downgraded from Endangered to Vulnerable, whereas 33 of the 64 species mentioned in the papers were upgraded, including 17 species not previously classified as threatened, and seven species whose extinction risk worsened by more than one category.

Fourteen species previously classified as Data Deficient had their extinction risk assessed, including two of the most traded species on the Brazilian coast: the Brazilian sharpnose shark (Rhizoprionodon lalandii) and the Caribbean sharpnose shark (R. porosus), both now classified as Vulnerable.

"Sharpnose sharks reproduce faster than other elasmobranchs, and we thought they weren't as badly threatened as other shark species. Previous studies warned they were being overfished and could be considered endangered, but unfortunately the warnings weren't heeded and we're now seeing the result," Alvarenga said.

"Our study very clearly shows the importance of using these molecular techniques to monitor the catch and bycatch with a view to law enforcement. Unfortunately, however, this kind of research is patchy, with a Ph.D. dissertation there or a master's thesis here, whereas it should be systematic," Domingues said.

The good news is that when law enforcement inspections are strictly conducted, as in the case of federal oversight of the fish processing industry, species substitution and fraud are less frequent, according to another co-author of the article, Antonio Sole-Cava, who heads CEMIMP-UFRJ.

"This can be seen from the fish sold by supermarkets, which are checked by the Department of Animal Product Inspection [DIPOA, an arm of the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Supply (MAPA)], as opposed to street markets, fishmongers and restaurants, which aren't. In supermarket fish, there's no substitution or fraud at all. Both are very common in the rest," said Sole-Cava, referring to a study published by his group.

Besides availability of fish, marine biodiversity is also threatened by reduction and extinction of sharks and rays. As apex predators and mesopredators (midranking predators in marine food webs), they help regulate the ecosystem, removing weak or sick individuals (contributing to selection of the fittest) and controlling populations of several species, among other ecosystem services.

Because of their position in the trophic chain, they absorb large amounts of mercury, making their consumption hazardous. Constant monitoring can help scientists understand the degree to which species are threatened, contributing to assessment of market trends in these products and adjustment of the legislation to conserve fish species and protect human health by warning people not to consume certain species.

More information: Marcela Alvarenga et al, Fifteen years of elasmobranchs trade unveiled by DNA tools: Lessons for enhanced monitoring and conservation actions, Biological Conservation (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.biocon.2024.110543 Journal information: Biological Conservation

Provided by FAPESP
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Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

A pair of NASA astronauts are scheduled to do a 6.5 hour spacewalk on the morning of June 13 outside the International Space Station.

At 8 a.m. Eastern time, astronauts Tracy C. Dyson and Matthew Dominick are expected to enter the vacuum of space to perform station maintenance and science work.

NASA said the two will remove some communications equipment from one of the ISS' laboratory modules, getting help from a robotic arm on the station. Astronauts Mike Barratt and Jeanette Epps will be maneuvering the Canadarm2 to assist Dyson and Dominick in their work.

Then, Dyson and Dominick will move on to a science experiment involving microorganisms. They will swab surfaces on the ISS to "determine if microorganisms released through station vents can survive the external microgravity environment," NASA said in a statement.

NASA TV will begin its spacewalk broadcast at 6:30 a.m. Thursday. Live coverage will air on NASA+, NASA Television, the NASA app, YouTube, and the agency's website.

Among those watching the spacewalk up close will be Butch Whitmore and Suni Williams, the crew of the Boeing Starliner which launched from the Kennedy Space Center on June 5 en route to the ISS.

Whitmore and Williams learned Tuesday that they will be spending more time on the space station than originally planned.

"Ground teams continue to assess and monitor Starliner's performance and planning for return of the mission no earlier than Tuesday, June 18, pending weather and spacecraft readiness," NASA said.

The space agency also said its teams are continuing to access what impacts, if any, five small helium leaks aboard the Starliner spacecraft would have on Whitmore's and Williams' return to Earth.

"Engineers evaluated the helium supply based on current leak rates and determined that Starliner has plenty of margin to support the return trip from station," NASA said. "Only seven hours of free-flight time is needed to perform a normal end of mission, and Starliner currently has enough helium left in its tanks to support 70 hours of free flight activity following undocking."

While Starliner is docked at the ISS, systems involving the helium leaks have been turned off, preventing further helium loss from the tanks.

Once cleared to return to home, NASA said the Starliner with Wilmore and Williams aboard, "will perform a deorbit burn before entering the atmosphere and landing in the southwestern United States under parachutes and landing airbags to complete the flight."

2024 Orlando Sentinel. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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A rare white buffalo calf, reportedly born in Yellowstone National Park's Lamar Valley, is shown on June 4, 2024, in Wyo. The birth fulfills a Lakota prophecy that portends better times, according to members of the American Indian tribe who cautioned that its also a warning more must be done to protect the earth and its animals. Credit: Erin Braaten/Dancing Aspens Photography via AP

Photos of a white bison calf in Yellowstone National Park have generated excitement as well as questions: How does that happen?

A park visitor said she took the photographs in the park earlier this month, showing a fuzzy white youngster being nuzzled by its dark brown mother. Park officials said this week that they hadn't yet spotted a white calf in the sprawling park in Wyoming and Montana, home to about 5,000 bison, also called American buffalo.

In the wild, there are two genetic variations that may result in unusually light-colored animalsleucism and albinism. In both conditions, the animal inherits two copies of the gene mutationone from each parent, who usually appear normally colored themselves.

Leucistic animals lack some cells that otherwise produce melanin, a natural pigment that gives color to fur, eyes, feathers and skin. Their bodies may appear almost entirely white, or only white in patches, and they generally have normal or dark-colored eyes.

Albinism, which is more rare, results from the complete absence of melanin. Albino animals are nearly totally white, and they may have light pink or orange-colored eyes and reduced vision. Albino bison will lack dark colors in their eyes, noses and hooves, said James Derr, a geneticist at Texas A&M University.

The Yellowstone calf, with its black nose and eyes, is not albino, said Jim Matheson, executive director of the National Bison Association.

A rare white buffalo calf, reportedly born in Yellowstone National Park's Lamar Valley, is shown on June 4, 2024, in Wyo. The birth fulfills a Lakota prophecy that portends better times, according to members of the American Indian tribe who cautioned that its also a warning more must be done to protect the earth and its animals. Credit: Erin Braaten/Dancing Aspens Photography via AP

There's a third possibility: A light-colored calf could be the result of a bison crossed with a white domestic cow. In that case, the calf may be light tan-colored, with brown eyes and a black or brown nose, said Derr.

Matheson said that it's unclear how often white bison calves are born in the wild.

"We just don't know how often it happens because we've never tracked this in history," he said.

 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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High-resolution image of the individual copper atoms (marked in red) of the heterogeneous catalyst (Cu-SAC) using a scanning transmission electron microscope (STEM). Credit: LIKAT

A catalyst developed at LIKAT in Rostock opens up new avenues in the synthesis of fine chemicals for pharmaceuticals, agrochemicals and household chemicals, for example. Its effect is based on isolated copper atoms applied to a solid carrier material around which the reaction solution flows.

This heterogeneous catalysis, so called because the aggregate states of the catalyst (solid) and the starting materials (liquid) differ, is highly unusual in the production of pharmaceuticals, for example. The researchers report on the new approach in the journal Chem.

Hot topic: Heterogeneous instead of homogeneous

In the production of fine chemicals, chemists usually use the classic workhorse, homogeneous catalysis: starting materials, catalyst and end product are in a liquid mix (homogeneous, i.e. in the same aggregate state) in one vessel. One advantage of this catalysis is the mild reaction temperatures, which are gentle on the sensitive structures of these complex molecules.

However, homogeneous catalysis has decisive disadvantages. This is why one of the "hot topics" in chemistry is to replace these processes with heterogeneous procedures. Two Humboldt Fellows at the Leibniz Institute for Catalysis in Rostock have succeeded in doing this for a single step within a multi-stage reaction cascade that fine chemicals usually undergo during their production.

Dr. Qiang Wang and Dr. Haifeng Qi developed a heterogeneous copper catalyst and were able to use it to re-establish important bonds between carbon and other chemical elements in numerous complex molecules at moderate temperatures of 60 degrees Celsius.

Single-atom structure on MOFs

When developing their catalyst, they applied the copper atoms to the carrier material in isolated form, i.e. individually. This so-called single-atom structure enabled Wang and Qi to enormously increase the precision of their catalyst, which chemists refer to as selectivity. Their copper catalyst has also outperformed the homogeneous process in terms of yield.

"Individually, copper atoms offer the reaction environment a much larger surface area than when they are connected in clusters or nanoparticles," say Dr. Kathrin Junge and Prof. Jagadeesh Rajenahally, explaining the principle.

Junge and Rajenahally are co-authors of the Chem paper and supervised Haifeng Qi and Qiang Wang. The two Humboldt Fellows are now working in other research groups in China and the UK. Kathrin Junge explains the significance of her research, "Active ingredients, vitamins and fragrances are often modeled on nature and are created through total synthesis, which in turn can involve a dozen or more reaction steps."

After each step, the substances must be separated, purified and prepared for the next reaction stage. However, the catalysts, usually organometallic complexes, are difficult to recover from the homogeneous reaction solutions. And metal impurities represent a real hurdle for the approval of drugs, as the authors write in the original paper.

The two Humboldt fellows circumvented this problem by stably bonding their metal to a solid carrier material. They used organometallic framework structures as carriers, which have been making a name for themselves in chemistry for several years under the name MOFs.

"These MOFs contain structures similar to those of ligands in homogeneous catalysts," explains Dr. Junge. Their function is simulated to a certain extent with the help of the corresponding structure in the heterogeneous copper catalyst.

Substances selected for specific applications

Qiang Wang and Haifeng Qi demonstrated the functionality of their heterogeneous catalyst using a variety of complex molecules that are used in organic synthesis chemistry. For example, for the production of pharmaceuticals, vitamins in animal feed production and fragrances in household chemistry.

Dr. Junge said, "The two colleagues have thus shown that their research work really does have potential applications in mind." Or, as the original paper puts it, "The use of more stable heterogeneous materials is a model for future catalysis in the field of organic syntheses."

More information: Qiang Wang et al, A general atomically dispersed copper catalyst for CO, CN, and CC bond formation by carbene insertion reactions, Chem (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.chempr.2024.02.021 Journal information: Chem
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Surface subsidence and water ponding along the CRCOP. Credit: NIEER

The buried China-Russia Crude Oil Pipeline (CRCOP), with its oil temperature above 0C, interacts with the permafrost environment in a complex way, causing permafrost degradation, frost geohazards, and various environmental problems along its route.

Prof. Li Guoyu's team from the Northwest Institute of Eco-Environment and Resources (NIEER) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences established a comprehensive on-site monitoring system to detect the geomorphological reshaping and water erosion caused by thawing permafrost along the CRCOP.

The researchers observed a gradual increase in oil temperature, which caused the permafrost around the CRCOP to warm and thaw rapidly. At a distance of 2 m from the pipeline center, the permafrost table decreased at a rate of 0.68 m/a, reaching a depth of -11.4 m by 2022.

The thawing of the permafrost caused settlement of the pipeline and subsidence of the ground surface, resulting in thermal erosion, ponding of water in summer, and icing in winter. The area near the pipeline experienced significant surface subsidence, creating lowlands that resulted in water ponding in summer.

The thermal erosion of ponding accelerated the topographical changes. The subsidence rate in ponding areas was 8.18 cm/a, which was significantly higher than the rate of 4.81 cm/a in the non-ponding areas.

Additionally, they proposed a series of technologies to mitigate permafrost thawing and control pipeline settlement, including thermosyphons, air ventilation ducts, and air convection pipeline embankments, to ensure safe operation of the CRCOP.

Finally, they discussed the effects of climate warming, fire, and human activities on permafrost degradation, illustrating the evolution process of talik and surface characteristics under the influence of multiple factors. The study provides significant data for the safe operation and maintenance of the CRCOP.

The study, titled "Permafrost thawing caused by the China-Russia Crude oil pipeline based on multi-type data and its impacts on geomorphological reshaping and water erosion," was published in CATENA.

More information: Kai Gao et al, Permafrost thawing caused by the China-Russia Crude oil pipeline based on multi-type data and its impacts on geomorphological reshaping and water erosion, CATENA (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.catena.2024.108134
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Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

As climate change unleashes ever-more powerful storms, worsening floods and rising sea levels, San Francisco remains woefully unprepared for inundation, a civil grand jury determined in a report.

The critical assessmentwhich was authored by 19 San Franciscans selected by the Superior Courtfound that the city and county lacked a comprehensive funding plan for climate adaptation and that existing sewer systems cannot handle worsening floods. Among other concerns, the report also concluded that efforts toward making improvements have been hampered by agency silos and a lack of transparency.

Members of the volunteer jury serve year-long terms and are tasked with investigating city and county government by reviewing documents and interviewing public officials, experts and private individuals. Jury foreperson Michael Carboy said it made sense to look into the issue of climate-related flooding because San Francisco is a "peninsula surrounded by water on three sidesand some would argue four sides, because the water is coming up from underneath."

"There's a couple hundred thousand people here, and at least 24,000 people, that are very much in harm's way that will arise from both sea level rise as well as the consequences of extreme precipitation meeting the reality of a combined sewer system that was designed 40 or 50 years ago," Carboy said. "We're all going to be getting our feet wet."

The report, titled "Come Hell or High Water: Flood Management in a Changing Climate," focused on several city and county agencies, including ClimateSF, which was created by the mayor's office in 2021 to bring together the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, the planning and environmental departments, and the office of resilience and capital planning in an effort to coordinate and oversee climate resilience projects.

But the jury found that ClimateSF was better designed for planning, not implementationand that it was struggling to bring projects to fruition. The report outlined a lack of coordination between departments, absenteeism at high-level meetings and a failure to publish annual reviews among its issues.

"Now that we are actively thinking about spending money on projects, the existing information sharing platform is no longer the right platform," said Carboy, a 29-year resident of San Francisco.

"It doesn't have the right governance model in place, it doesn't have the right senior people working together as peers... There is no coordination at the most senior levels with regard to planning, definitions of desired outcomes, and what victory looks like in this case."

In a statement, officials with the City and County of San Francisco said they appreciated the civil grand jury's work and will closely review its recommendations before responding formally to the report within 60 days.

"To meet our climate goals, climate resilience must be embedded into every department's work," the statement said.

"ClimateSF brings together city departments to coordinate climate initiatives that reduce San Francisco's climate risks and prepare the city to survive, adapt, and recover from climate hazards. Interagency coordination, planning, and strategic investments that ClimateSF facilitates are critical to meeting our climate goals."

The 71-page report outlines a number of additional items of concern, including that San Francisco lacks a plan to aggregate the costs of climate adaptation, and that it pays for avoidable costs, such as compensating claims for flood damage that might be obtained by insurance underwriting.

While the jury is precluded from commenting on items beyond the confines of the report, the findings should speak for themselves, said Jonathan Cowperthwait, a Bay Area native and another member of the jury.

"This is not just a problem of governance and information sharing," he said. "I would encourage every citizen who reads the report to remember the storms within recent memory that have led to water up to people's knees."

It was less than two years ago that California was hammered by a relentless series of atmospheric rivers. The storms caused extensive flood damage, landslides, downed trees and power outages in Monterey County, Santa Cruz and the San Francisco Bay Area, as well as at least 22 deaths across the state. More rain and snow pounded this region this winter.

San Francisco's Hazards and Climate Resilience Plan, released in 2020, identified 23,700 residents currently at a risk of inland water flooding, or 2.7% of the city's population. But increased warming driven by climate change will bring more extreme precipitation in the future and put even more people in harm's way, the jury's report said.

It also noted that the sea level along the West Coast of the United States is projected to rise 4 to 8 inches by 2050, and possibly more than 3.5 feet by 2100. The increase will cause tide and storm surge heights to increase and reach further inland, with "moderate" (typically damaging) flooding expected to occur 10 times more often on average than it does today, it said.

Carboy said the projections underscore the need for San Francisco's politicians and leaders "to be honest with with the city on what's it's going to cost to defend and protect the city with climate resilience and climate mitigation investments."

"We have to do that, otherwise we are going to be ruining business areas, we're going to be ruining neighborhoods from all areas of the economic stackfrom the very well-heeled to the economically disadvantaged neighborhoods," he said. "So it's in our collective interest to understand just how big the problem is, to not pretend it's not a problem, and to start taking planning action to do that."

Finances were a key part of the report. Climate resilience projects are not easily identifiable in the city's accounting, which is hindering both management and audits, according to the report.

What's more, the grand jury found that self-imposed limits on debt financing were keeping San Francisco from funding essential adaptation projects.

For example, policy dictates that some annual budgets approved by the Board of Supervisors limit the use of general obligation debt so as not to increase property owners' tax rates above fiscal 2006 levels. Projections show that the city's ability to issue additional general obligation debt will become hamstrung by this constraint as soon as 2028even without factoring in the billions that will need to be spent on seawall projects and improvements to the sewer system.

"As you can clearly see, we are at maximum debt capacity in 2028, and that's before we're even spending on some of these projects," Carboy said.

But city officials said San Francisco has been, and continues to be, a nationwide leader on climate resiliencemaking strides on flood management, sea level rise and extreme heat and precipitation.

Since ClimateSF launched, the city has moved forward with Federal Emergency Management Flood Map Insurance Program implementation, and has launched a heat and air quality resilience plan, sea level rise guidance, a climate action plan, and studies on extreme precipitation and groundwater, the city said in its response.

Officials also pointed to specific projects underway, such as the Ocean Beach Climate Adaptation Project. Ocean Beach, adjacent to Golden Gate Park, has experienced significant erosion in recent years, and the project outlines a managed retreat strategy that includes constructing a buried seawall to protect key infrastructure and enhancing coastal access and recreation. The project is slated for completion in late 2025.

Other projects include the Islais Creek Mobility and Adaptation Strategy, which will help protect the low-lying district against worsening flood hazards, and the Yosemite Slough Neighborhood Adaptation Plan, which aims to address disparities in climate adaptation planning in the coastal area.

"It's clear that city departments share the goal of making San Francisco safer and more resilient to the impacts of climate change," city officials said. "We recently hired a new program manager for ClimateSF, and we will continue to work on breaking down department silos and facilitating interagency collaboration on climate initiatives."

The San Francisco Public Utilities Commission similarly pointed to a variety of investments in capital projects that will help reduce the risk of flooding in low-lying neighborhoods, improve wastewater infrastructure and enhance stormwater capture capabilities.

Since 2019, its Green Infrastructure Grant Program has awarded 20 properties with a total of $20 million for projects that will divert nearly 13 million gallons of stormwater from the collection system each yearor enough to fill more than 19 Olympic-size swimming pools, agency officials said.

"When it comes to infrastructure, we took a fresh look at our entire capital plan through a climate lens," said John Cote, communications director. "Nearly every capital project in the latest iteration of the SFPUC's 10-year plan is either as a result of climate change or seeks to ready our systems for the worsening impacts of climate change."

The Commission's plan includes $11.8 billion in infrastructure investments over the next decade, he said.

Cowperthwait said the civil grand jury cannot make policy, only recommendations.

Among the recommendations outlined in the report are greater transparency around resilience projects; a rethinking of debt cap restraints; the creation of annual public reports summarizing the status of projects; and the development of a cross-departmental financial plan to relay the anticipated costs and potential funding sources for climate change resilience.

However, Cowperthwait said the city was cooperative and helpful throughout the process of creating the report.

"Everybody with whom we spoke was interested in helping explain and ultimately helping improve," he said.

Carboy concurred.

"The goal of the city is to improve," he said. "It's just sort of how to get them to move toward improving."

2024 Los Angeles Times. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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Hera, her CubeSats, and their rocky target destination. Credit: ESA/Science Office

ESA's Hera asteroid mission and its two CubeSats interacted as if they were in space, within the foam pyramid-lined walls of the Agency's Maxwell test chamber in the Netherlands. The trio communicated together, sharing data and ranging information at the same time as their Hera mothership received commands from its mission controllers at the European Space Operations Center in Darmstadt, Germany.

Testing took place inside the Maxwell electromagnetic compatibility chamber, part of ESA's ESTEC Test Center, the largest spacecraft test facility in Europe. Maxwell's 9-m high metal walls shield it from all external radio interference, while its interior foam pyramids absorb all radio waves from the space systems being tested. The result is a location that mimics the infinite void of space.

"Once the door of Maxwell is closed, this becomes the only place where we can operate the antennas of Hera and its two CubeSats together freely and safely," explains Hera CubeSats engineer Franco Perez Lissi.

"For the rest of the mission's test program telecommands were being sent to the spacecraft via cables instead. We already have detailed models of how the connection to Earth and the inter-satellite links between the satellites will work, but this testing allows us to validate these models against reality."

The testing extended to ESOC, allowing the Hera operations team based there to operate the spacecraft remotely, and downlink telemetry and data via Hera's 1.13-m diameter High Gain Antenna, exactly as they will once Hera is in space. At the same time Hera and its CubeSats were also communicating via dedicated inter-satellite links.

Credit: European Space Agency

Manufactured by HPS in Germany and Romania, Hera's High Gain Antenna boosts its X-band signal more than 4000-fold in order to reach distant Earth. The S-band inter-satellite links connecting Hera and its CubeSats are much weaker, comparable to domestic wifi.

Based on software-defined radio, these inter-satellite linkssupplied by Tekever in Portugal with antennas from Anywaves in Francedo double duty: not only exchanging data with Hera, which serves as a relay back to Earth, but also supplying ranging information, letting the trio know where they are at any one time relative to each other, minimizing any risk of collision.

The multi-point Doppler data provided through these inter-satellite links will also enable a more accurate measurement of the gravity fields of the Didymos and Dimorphos asteroids than Hera could achieve by itself.

"By having everything transmitting directly through the air we've proved that all the links can run without interfering with each other," explains Hera communications systems engineer Paolo Concari. "We actually expected to see some minor degradation but didn't really find anysomething called the 'coupling factor' where adjacent antennas can pick one another upso ended up with very good performance."

The test campaign also took in the initial part-deployment of the CubeSats from Hera's topside Asteroid Deck: the pair will be extended out from their Deep Space Deployers one at a time, but will remain connected to Hera until their operations and radio-links are with Hera are confirmed by testing.

Due for launch in October 2024, ESA's Hera spacecraft for asteroid planetary defence will spend two years flying to the Didymos binary asteroid system. There it will focus on the smaller of the two bodies, Dimorphos, which has previously had its orbit around its parent shifted by an impact with NASA's DART spacecraft. Hera will gather additional data on the mass, structure and composition of the Great-Pyramid-sized asteroid, to transform the DART impact from a one-off experiment into a well-understood and potentially repeatable technique that could be used for real if ever needed against an oncoming asteroid. Credit: European Space Agency

About Hera

Hera is ESA's first mission for planetary defense. Due for launch in October this year, Hera will fly to the Didymos binary asteroid system in deep space to perform a close-up survey of the Dimorphos moonlet in orbit around the primary body. The Great-Pyramid-sized Dimorphos is already historic, as the first solar system object to have its orbit changed by human activity, by the 2022 impact of NASA's DART mission.

Hera is intended to gather crucial missing data about Dimorphos for scientists, to turn DART's grand-scale experiment into a well-understood and potentially repeatable planetary defense technique. To increase its yield of data, Hera carries with it ESA's first deep space CubeSats, carrying additional instruments and planned to fly closer to the asteroid's surface than the main spacecraft, before eventually landing.

The Juventas CubeSat carries a radar instrument, to perform the first radar probe of an asteroid's internal structure, along with a gravity-detecting gravimeter. Its Milani counterpart hosts a multispectral imager to survey surface mineralogy as well as a dust surveyor.
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Burgundy snails, typically foraged from woodlands in central and eastern Europe, are being bred in Japan by an entrepreneur who believes he's the only person to have successfully farmed them.

Far from Parisian bistros serving up Burgundy snails, one Japanese man has figured out how to farm the slimy speciesa feat that has long eluded the French.

Toshihide Takase, 76, says he is "the only person in the world" breeding this specific delicacy after four decades of trial and error to find the right conditions.

French embassy and industry insiders also believe that Takase, who has invested a small fortune and taught himself everything about the creature, is a unique case.

Stuffed with butter, garlic and parsley then baked, Burgundy snailsor escargots de Bourgognehave been part of French gastronomy since the 19th century.

But they are notoriously difficult to farm because they don't take well to crowded conditions and grow slowly, usually taking two or three years to reach adult size.

The mollusc, whose scientific name is helix pomatia, has been a protected species in France since 1979 to save it from extinction.

The vast majority of the several thousand tonnes of snails eaten by the nation each year are foraged from woodlands in central and eastern Europe.

Around five percent are homegrown in France, but these are a different species, helix aspersa, which are easier to farm and do not have the "Burgundy" name.

Burgundy snails -- or escargots de Bourgogne -- are notoriously difficult to farm as they don't take well to crowded conditions.

"My sister gave me tinned escargots as a present after a trip to France" 45 years ago, Takase told AFP.

"But they didn't taste good, and smelled bad," said the retired entrepreneur.

Takase became obsessed with producing them himself, even though "at first, everybody acted like I was stupid".

Perfect conditions

He stubbornly devoured books on the subject and met French helix aspersa breeders to learn more.

It's a niche interest anywhere, but highly unusual in Japan, where sea snails are part of the rich cuisine but land snails are seen as a pest that can harm crops.

After seven years of bureaucratic wrangling, Takase was granted a permit to rear helix pomatia and imported 100 specimens from France to start his farm.

The indoor facility in Matsusaka, a town between Osaka and Nagoya, is called the Mie Escargots Development Laboratory.

Mie Escargots Development Laboratory president Toshihide Takase serves a dish of Burgundy snails in the canteen at his farm.

Crates of live Burgundy snails are stacked in three layers on custom-built metal racks, with humidity and temperature carefully controlled.

Next door is an active metalwork foundrythe first business set up by Takase, who used to manage several ventures.

He says the farm can produce up to 600,000 snails a year, with growth time reduced to just four months.

To achieve this, he adds a calcium-rich powder made from oyster shells to the humid soil, which helps the gastropods grow big and strong fast.

"They love it," said Takase, who spent 20 years developing his own nutritious snail food from soybeans and corn.

Their feeding containers are washed by hand every three days, because "snails love cleanliness", he added.

'At what price?'

Visitors to the "laboratory" get the chance to taste Takase's snails, which cost 9,900 yen ($60) for a pack of 30. There are different prices for restaurants or bulk sales.

Toshihide Takase poses at his snail farm in Matsusaka, Japan.

A mural of a Burgundy snail gazes down at the Mie Escargots Development Laboratory in Matsusaka.

For now, business is small-scale and domestic, but he is keen to pass on his know-how to French snail farmers and has launched talks with the embassy in Japan.

William Blanche, co-president of France's National Federation of Heliciculture, told AFP the species has a "reputation for being impossible to breed".

It's "ironic" that Burgundy snails eaten in France have been nowhere near the province of the same name, he said, so is intrigued by Takase's project.

Even so, Blanche questioned how successful it could be.

"Would our consumers, who are used to different snails, be interestedand at what price?"

A French snail industry insider, who spoke on condition of anonymity, also raised an all-important point.

"They must taste good," he said, skeptical that farmed Burgundy snails would be as delicious as wild ones with their "strong woodland taste".

But "I dream of one day seeing escargots de Bourgogne made in France," he added. "The marketing buzz would be huge."

 2024 AFP
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Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Global warming is projected to lengthen the ice-free period in the Hudson Bay, reducing the length of the resident polar bears' hunting season, according to research published in Communications Earth & Environment. Under a temperature rise of more than 2.1 degrees Celsius, the authors suggest that the duration of the ice-free period in the majority of Hudson Bay may be longer than the maximum fasting period adult polar bears can survive.

Hudson Bay, in the Arctic Ocean off northern Canada, is seasonally covered with sea ice and home to a population of approximately 1,700 polar bears. During the winter, when the bay is iced over, polar bears live out on the sea ice and hunt seals, their preferred prey. When the ice melts in spring, they come ashore and then fast throughout the ice-free period over the summer, before returning to the sea ice in the autumn.

Over the past three decades, the Hudson Bay area has warmed by more than 1 degree Celsius, which has led to the ice-free period lengthening from approximately 120 days to approximately 150 days. As polar bears in the bay rely on the sea ice to hunt, the lengthening of the ice-free period may reduce both their survival rate over the fasting period and their reproductive success during the next hunting period.

Julienne Stroeve and colleagues analyzed predictions from the IPCC's Coupled Model Intercomparison Project 6 (CMIP6) models to estimate future changes to the ice-free period in the western and southern Hudson Bay areas, where declines in the polar bear populations have already been recorded. Polar bears are thought to be able to safely survive an ice-free period lasting between 183 and 218 days.

The authors estimated that the ice-free period could extend beyond the 183-day limit in the western and southern Hudson Bay areas if global warming exceeds 2.1 degrees Celsius and 2.6 degrees Celsius, respectively. In addition, they estimate that seasonal ice-melt is likely to occur earlier in the spring. This may reduce the reproductive success of the bears as it could shorten the nursing period for cubs, which are typically born between November and January.

The authors stress that the Hudson Bay polar bear population is most likely to survive if we limit global warming to no more than 2 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

More information: Julienne Stroeve, Ice-free period too long for Southern and Western Hudson Bay polar bear populations if global warming exceeds 1.6 to 2.6 C, Communications Earth & Environment (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s43247-024-01430-7. www.nature.com/articles/s43247-024-01430-7 Journal information: Communications Earth & Environment

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First Nations infants have an exceptionally high rate of contact with Child and Family Services (CFS) compared to other Manitoba infants, a study jointly led by the Assembly of Manitoba Chiefs (AMC) First Nations Family Advocate Office (FNFAO) and University of Manitoba researchers has found.

The study was published in the journal Child Abuse & Neglect. The researchers analyzed de-identified (anonymous) government health and social service data that is stored in the Population Research Data Repository at UM's Manitoba Centre for Health Policy.

They studied the 20-year period from 1998 to 2019, tracking data for more than 47,000 First Nations infants and more than 169,000 non-First Nations infants from birth to age five. An infant was defined as a child under the age of one year.

The results revealed that:

About 36% of First Nations infants had an open CFS file (a rate more than four times higher than for non-First Nations infants).

About 9% of First Nations infants experienced placement in CFS custody (a rate nearly seven times higher than for non-First Nations infants).

Removal (apprehension) of a newborn from its parents at birth was about six times more common for First Nations newborns than for non-First Nations newborns.

About 5% of First Nations infants experienced legal termination of parental rights before turning five years old (a rate nearly eight times higher than for non-First Nations infants).

The rate of CFS contact increased the fastest among First Nations infants, growing by 22% over the study period, versus rising by 2% among non-First Nations infants.

"We knew before the study that First Nations children and families face vastly disproportionate involvement with Child and Family Services," said Dr. Kathleen Kenny, a postdoctoral fellow in community health sciences at the Max Rady College of Medicine, who led the study.

"We also knew that Manitoba has the highest rate of child removal and out-of-home placement in Canadain fact, one of the highest in the world. Our study is the first to quantify the staggering rate of CFS involvement among First Nations infants at the whole-population level and show how it has increased. Our results support calls to develop First Nations-led services to address this extreme inequity."

Researchers developed the study in consultation with representatives from the First Nations government, First Nations-led organizations, organizations serving First Nations families, clinical and policy experts, and parents and grandparents affected by CFS.

"It is heartbreaking to learn of the high rate of involvement of First Nations infants with the CFS system," said Grand Chief Cathy Merrick of the AMC. "The first year of life is so critical in terms of the bonds built between parents and their children. What is taking place that First Nation babies are being exposed to government involvement within hours, days and weeks of being born?

"This study highlights the urgent need for culturally sensitive solutions that prioritize the well-being and preservation of First Nation families. We must work together to address the root causes of this concerning trend and ensure that First Nation children are supported, nurtured and empowered to thrive in safe and loving environments."

Chief Betsy Kennedy of War Lake First Nation emphasizes that when infants are apprehended, it results in profound and irreparable losses in bonding and attachment. "This not only disrupts the infants' developmental stages but also severs their ties to ancestral lands, cultural heritage, First Nations language and collective nationhoodeverything that nurtures identity in a person."

Chief Kennedy, who is also chair of the AMC Women's Council that oversees the AMC-FNFAO, says this act of forced removal has been rightfully recognized as a dire crisis by First Nations leaders and has garnered significant international attention as a critical human rights issue.

The researchers' joint recommendations include:

End the practice of infant apprehension. Fund First Nations-led models that support the preservation of family and cultural bonds. For example, invest in First Nations-led family reunification homes.

Empower First Nations-led customary systems of care so that children grow up connected to their Nation and culture.

Establish community-based, supportive spaces outside of CFS where families in crisis can be referred as a first-line strategy to strengthen families and keep them intact.

More information: Kathleen S. Kenny et al, Infant rates of child protective services contact and termination of parental rights by first nations status from 1998 to 2019: An example of intergenerational transmission of colonial harm, Child Abuse & Neglect (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.chiabu.2024.106760 Journal information: Child Abuse & Neglect
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Wildlife camera photo of bear as part of the noise study. Credit: USDA Forest Service

We may go to the woods seeking peace and quiet, but are we taking our noise with us? A study published in the journal, Current Biology, led by scientists from the USDA Forest Service Rocky Mountain Research Station indicates that the answer is yesand that this noise can trigger a fear response, as if escaping from predators.

This new science calls into question whether otherwise high-quality habitat truly provides refugia for wildlife when recreationists are present and underscores the challenges land managers face in balancing outdoor recreational opportunities with wildlife conservation.

"Wildlife responses to recreation noise are often unobservable, and it was a fun research challenge," said Dr. Kathy Zeller, lead author of the study.

"Our study is the first to quantify responses to human-produced recreation noise based on recreation type, group size, group vocalizations, and wildlife species. Information like this can help managers balance recreation opportunities with wildlife management, which is critical as outdoor recreation continues to grow in popularity."

The study was conducted in the Bridger-Teton National Forest, Wyoming. Researchers used a novel experimental setup to isolate and investigate the effects of recreation noise on several mammal species.

Scientists placed wildlife cameras and speakers on wildlife trails throughout the study areas. Animals that entered study areas triggered speakers to broadcast different types of noise, and nearby cameras captured video of the animals' behavioral responses to the sounds.

The broadcasted noises were associated with different types of recreation such as hiking, mountain biking, and off highway vehicle use, as well as different-sized groups, and both with and without human voices. This setup allowed the researchers to observe both the immediate responses in animal behavior to recreation noise and changes in wildlife presence at the study areas.

Scientists analyzed the video footage and compared how wildlife responded to various recreation noises as well as nature sounds and periods without any broadcasted noise. Key findings from the study:

Increased fleeing and vigilance: Wildlife were 3.1 to 4.7 times more likely to flee and exhibited vigilance behaviors for 2.2 to 3.0 times longer when exposed to recreation noise compared to natural sounds or no noise.

Reduced wildlife presence: The local relative abundance of wildlife was observed to be 1.5 times lower in the week following the deployment of recreation noise.

Impact of group size and activity type: Larger groups, particularly vocal hikers and mountain bikers, caused the highest probability of wildlife flight, with 6 to 8 times greater likelihood.

Species sensitivity: Elk and black bears were the most sensitive to recreation noise, fleeing from the recreationist sounds most consistently, while large carnivores were the least affected.

Outdoor recreation activities like hiking, mountain biking, and motorized vehicle use are steadily increasing, both in numbers of people recreating and number of days spent participating in these activities.

Rocky Mountain Research Station research ecologist Dr. Mark Ditmer), a co-principal investigator and co-author of the study, said, "Our findings highlight the need for thoughtful planning, with potential consideration of noise mitigation measures to minimize the impact on wildlife while still providing outdoor recreational opportunities for people."

As Ditmer pointed out, "Noise from recreation can carry far beyond a trail system, so understanding how noise alone can affect wildlife is important for management."
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A sleek mountain lion filmed from behind the wheel of a Tesla on the edge of Griffith Park last month triggered a collective double take in Los Angeles.

Not long ago, the park's long-reigning kingthe cougar known as P-22 stalked the same hills.

While P-22's stint in Hollywood brought him fame and devotionlanding him on T-shirts and culminating in a sold-out memorial it also came with deadly trappings inherent to his urban-adjacent environment. Rat poison and car collisions battered him from the inside out. He was captured and euthanized in late 2022, deemed too sick to return to the wild because of injuries and infection.

A mountain lion living in Griffith Park today would likely suffer a similar fate.

"Has anything changed, in some respects, in Griffith Park? No," said Beth Pratt of the National Wildlife Federation, a vocal booster for Southern California mountain lions, P-22 in particular. "As much as people are really excited about this cat, a lot, including myself, are worried about him."

Cars still whiz along freeways that isolate small populations of lions and perilously limit genetic diversity. Some types of rat poison, which travels up the food chain to an apex predator like a puma, can still be bought at the hardware store.

But P-22's high-profile plight highlighted the challenges and helped inspire efforts to make the region a safer place to be a mountain lioneven if change hasn't caught up to the heartbreaking reality.

What's billed as the largest wildlife crossing in the world with a staggering price tag to matchis taking shape over a stretch of the 101 Freeway in Agoura Hills. A pair of bills that recently cleared the California Assembly would expand a ban on certain rodenticides and require cities to consider wildlife connectivity in planning documents.

P-22 "did spur us to action," Pratt said.

Very little is known about the lion spotted in mid-May in a parking lot east of Barham Boulevard on the edge of roughly 4,200-acre Griffith Park.

Vladimir Polumiskov captured video of the majestic creature on his phone after he and his wife and young son returned to their Hollywood Hills apartment after a weeknight dinner out. Headlights from Polumiskov's car illuminate the cat's sand-colored fur as he perches on a tree.

Researchers who have seen the video believe it's a young-leaning male lion. He's not wearing a collar and therefore not part of the National Park Service's 22-year study of mountain lions in and around the Santa Monica Mountains, of which Griffith Park marks the easternmost end.

Scientists involved with the study are trying to find himscouting primarily via remote camerasso they can add him, said Seth Riley, a wildlife ecologist with NPS. If he's captured and collared, scientists will be able to track his movements and analyze his DNA to see if he's related to other lions in their database.

Typically, young male mountain lions disperse, often traveling long distances to search for mates and a suitable home to call their own. That's probably what P-22 was afterthough he ended up in an abnormally small area for his species, and one believed to be lacking in lady lions. Experts didn't expect him to stay long, but he hunkered down for 10 years.

Griffith Park, surrounded on all sides by perilous freeways and roads, isn't an easy place for a lion to get toor leave.

Pratt said the recently sighted lion probably hails from the Santa Monica Mountains and took the same harrowing trek as P-22, who presumably traversed the 405 and 101 freeways. But it remains speculation in the absence of a genetic workup.

There's no telling whether he'll stick around.

There are some upsides to the park. Namely, plenty of deer and no other adult male mountain lions, which chase and sometimes even fight young lions to the death.

"He might not be in Griffith Park anymore," said Pratt, California regional executive director for the NWF. "Or he could be settling in and claiming this for his new home."

Last month, Pratt scrawled "For P-22" onto the final girder placed onto the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing, a construction milestone that completed the bridge's foundation. Numerous others honored P-22 in their own signatures, she said.

Those who want to see Southland lions succeed point to the $92-million crossing as holding perhaps the biggest promise. If the crossing had been built when P-22 was looking to settle down, he might have been able to cross it and go north to "mountain lion paradise," Los Padres National Forest, Pratt surmised.

The 101 Freeway functions as an "impenetrable wall," Pratt said. Lions to the south can't get out and lions to the north can't get in, forcing isolation and inbreeding. Birth defects, including kinked tails and deformed testicles, have already shown up in the small population sequestered in the Santa Monica Mountains. Next is likely sterility, Pratt said. A recent study found they could face extirpation within 50 years without intervention.

Based on what researchers have learned, "this crossing will really be helpful for animals to leave the Santa Monicas, but also it's kind of even more important, from a genetic point of view, that animals are able to come into the Santa Monicas," said Riley, who is the branch chief for wildlife at the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area and an adjunct professor at UCLA.

"Because we've documented low genetic diversity in the Santa Monicas, and we've documented a bunch of cases of close inbreeding, where fathers are mating with daughters and close relatives are breeding."

The crossing is slated to open in 2026. And there's a lot of work to be done before that to get it ready for animals on the move.

Pratt said they're currently working on the structure looming over a 10-lane stretch of freeway. Soon they'll lay down two big slabs of concrete, and by the end of the year soil and plants will be added. Next spring, they expect to begin working on the portion over Agoura Road.

Meanwhile, two bills that advanced out of the state Assembly last month aim to tackle mountain lions' top challenges: cars, connectivity and rat poison. The bills, both introduced by Assemblymember Laura Friedman (D-Glendale), need to pass the Senate by Aug. 31 to land on the governor's desk for final approval.

Vehicle strikes are the top killers of mountain lions studied by the National Park Service. Rodenticides are tied for second with fights with other animals.

P-22 was struck by a car toward the end of his life a few blocks south of Griffith Park and a subsequent exam revealed an old injury that may have been caused by another collision. He was also exposed to rat poison and developed mange.

Assembly Bill 1889, called the Room to Roam Act, would require local governments to consider and implement measures to protect wildlife connectivity as part of their general plan.

That could entail installing wildlife-friendly fencing or lighting or identifying and protecting a corridor known to be used by animals. (It does not require crossings to be built or land to be set aside.)

The bill directs cities and counties to plan development in ways that don't unnecessarily impact the movement of wildlife, said J.P. Rose, urban wildlands policy director at the Center for Biological Diversity, which sponsored the bill.

Connectivity isn't often considered until a specific development reaches the proposal stage, Rose said, which "misses a key opportunity to take a regional look at the issue of wildlife connectivity. And because it is a regional issue, the best place to look at it is in these kind of longer-term, broader plans."

The bill arrives about two years after the passage of a law that directed the California Department of Transportation to explore wildlife connectivity when it builds or expands roadways. The Room to Roam bill addresses the "other side of the coin," Rose said.

Though previous laws have limited the use of certain rat poisons, others remain widely available. Assembly Bill 2552 would place restrictions on additional types, including removing them for over-the-counter purchase and limiting their use in wildlife areas.

"This bill is an attempt to get some of those off the shelves so that people aren't going to Home Depot and buying these super toxic rodenticides and unknowingly poisoning wildlife," said Rose of the bill, also sponsored by the center.

The poisons being targetedchlorophacinone and warfarinare known as first-generation anticoagulant rodenticides. They stop a rat's blood from coagulating and stay in the animal's system after it dies. When an unsuspecting mountain lion or owl gobbles a dead or sick rator another animal that ate a tainted ratthe toxic substance is passed on.

Rose called the impacts "really heartbreaking." He said poisoned predators don't always die right away; sometimes they "slowly bleed to death from the inside." The poisons can cause skin diseases and lead to organ failure and a depressed immune system, which might prevent animals from being able to find food or shelter in their sickened stateanother pathway to death, he said.

Riley, of the National Park Service, said researchers are "still continuing to get exposure in basically every animal we test."

His team believes it's likely that the mountain lions they study are ingesting the poison when they eat carnivoresparticularly coyotes, their second-most commonly consumed prey after deer. Often cougars go straight for their nutrient-rich organs, including the liver, where the compounds are stored.

There's general consensus that these efforts are part of a long game. No single crossing or law will be enough to make Southern California a safe place for mountain lions (or other wildlife). The goal is to continue building out connectivity while detoxifying the landscapeand make environmental and development decisions with the cats in mind going forward.

Big cat supporters are already scheming about where to place future crossings.

National Park Service researchers are conducting a connectivity study along a portion of the 101 Freeway at the western end of the Santa Monica Mountains known as the Conejo Grade. It's an area with undeveloped land on both sides, Riley said.

Recently, there were renewed calls for crossings north of San Diego County, where the 15 Freeway strands another population of genetically isolated lions. There have also been informal talks about where crossings could be installed in or near Griffith Park, according to Pratt. The Cahuenga Pass, where P-22 is believed to have crossed, is on their radar.

If all goes well, P-22 might be the last of his kind.

"If, in the long run, all of these areas were better connected, then animals, hopefully, in the future, won't end up stuck in Griffith Park like P-22," Riley said.

2024 Los Angeles Times. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
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Governments are failing to provide a secure alternative for households unable to access social housing, new research suggests.

Private rental assistance is failing to provide a secure alternative for those unable to access social housing, says a new report. It finds low-income households are finding it difficult to find and sustain secure housing in the private rental market even with government subsidization.

A study titled "Getting off the waiting list? Managing housing assistance provision in an era of intensifying social housing shortage," undertaken for the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI) by researchers from UNSW Sydney and RMIT University, investigates how policymakers and housing providers can use other forms of housing assistance to support people who are otherwise eligible for social housing.

The research involved surveys and interviews with social housing tenants and applicants, interviews with representatives from housing provider agencies, and a review of statistics on social housing allocations and other forms of housing-related government support.

Most housing assistance in Australia is delivered through private rent assistance payments to help secure or sustain private rental housing rather than a social housing tenancy. However, the effectiveness of these assistance schemes is highly dependent on market conditions.

"Private rental assistance recipients are finding it increasingly difficult to secure private rental properties," says lead researcher Dr. Fatemeh Aminpour from the City Futures Research Centre at UNSW Arts, Design & Architecture. "This raises serious questions about the viability of private rental assistance as an alternative to social housing in jurisdictions like Australia, where the private rental sector is relatively under-regulated and volatile."

Just because households are allocated private rental assistance doesn't mean they are guaranteed access to a suitable private rental property. More than half of the participants in the research who had previously received a bond loan or ongoing private rental subsidy were unable to sustain their private rental tenancy.

High social housing demand

Social housing remains the form of housing assistance to which most rent assistance applicants aspire due to its relative stability, affordability, and security. However, Australia's social housing provision has drastically declined during the past 30 years, and new lettings to new tenants have been reduced by more than 61% when factoring in population growth.

"The scarcity of new social housing places means many applicants have no guarantee of when they will be housed," says Dr. Aminpour. "Instead, Australian governments are having to look to private rental market assistance as a way to support households."

In 2021-22, across Australia, over 174,600 households applied to live in social housing, but only 29,100 households were offered a home. At the same time, more than twice as many households (70,100 households) were offered private rental assistance.

"Social housing is increasingly aimed at households with acute or complex social or medical vulnerabilities, in addition to traditional considerations relating to financial hardship," Dr. Aminpour says. "The growing emphasis on private rental assistance by governments aims to relieve pressure on social housing waiting lists by diverting lower-need applicants to the private rental sector."

Rent assistance is ineffective in the current market

While private rent assistance aims to help lower-income households sustain private rental tenancies, the report finds that these forms of assistance are ineffective in the current market. Anglicare's Rental Affordability Snapshot 2024 found that just 8% of rentals in Greater Sydney were considered affordable for people on income support or minimum wage.

Private rental assistance programs emphasize the applicant's capacity to afford a private rental property. Most private rental assistance programs have eligibility cutoffs that only permit applicants to receive support if the rent for the property they are applying for is less than 50-55% of their income to prevent applicants from taking on unaffordable tenancies.

"Research participants widely considered private rent assistance schemes as ineffective due to the lack of affordable private rental housing available in their area," Dr. Aminpour says. "Being assisted in gaining access to housing, which is the prime aim of these types of interventions, did not necessarily overcome the problem of sustaining the private rental tenancy.

"For many, such help was perceived as failing to fully acknowledge the severity of their housing needs."

Improving rent assistance processes

Despite these challenges, private rental assistance remains essential in supplementing social housing waiting lists.

The research identifies various opportunities to improve current processes for managing private rental assistance for social housing applicants. This includes making the application process and housing assistance system more transparent by ensuring applicants have the necessary information and advice during the social housing application process and that housing assistance staff understand their client's needs and aspirations.

"Only 25% of recent social housing applicants were satisfied with the social housing application process," Dr. Aminpour says. "Many complained about the complexity of the application process, to the point that some had wanted to give up and not apply at all."

Developing individual plans for clients who may be eligible for social housing but not of high priority would also enable them to access other available services, including private rental assistance.

"We also see there is scope for state and territory governments to establish partnerships with private landlords to secure rental tenancies for low-income families who receive private rental assistance products," says Dr. Aminpour. "Governments could offer guarantees against any rental losses occurring in tenancies of homes covered by such an agreement."

More information: Fatemeh Aminpour et al, Getting off the waiting list? Managing housing assistance provision in an era of intensifying social housing shortage, AHURI Final Report (2024). DOI: 10.18408/ahuri7131201
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Water demand is increasing in India, the world's most populous nation, but supplies are shrinking.

Far from the gleaming high-rises of India's financial capital Mumbai, impoverished villages in areas supplying the megacity's water are running drya crisis repeated across the country that experts say foreshadows terrifying problems.

"The people in Mumbai drink our water but no one there, including the government, pays attention to us or our demands," said Sunita Pandurang Satgir, carrying a heavy metal pot on her head filled with foul-smelling water.

Demand is increasing in the world's most populous nation of 1.4 billion people, but supplies are shrinkingwith climate change driving erratic rainfall and extreme heat.

Large-scale infrastructure for Mumbai includes reservoirs connected by canals and pipelines channeling water from 100 kilometers (60 miles) away.

But experts say a failure of basic planning means that the network is often not connected to hundreds of rural villages in the region and several nearby districts.

Instead, they rely on traditional wells.

But demand far outstrips meager resources, and critical groundwater levels are falling.

"Our days and our lives just revolve around thinking about collecting water, collecting it once, and collecting it again, and again," Satgir said.

"We make four to six rounds for water every day... leaving us time for nothing else".

Villagers wait at a well to fill water, in Shahapur district of India's Maharashtra state.

Heat waves and dry wells

Climate change is shifting weather patterns, bringing longer-lasting and more intense droughts.

Wells rapidly run dry early in the extreme heat.

In the peak of summer, 35-year-old Satgir said she can spend up to six hours a day fetching water.

Temperatures this year surged above a brutal 45 degrees Celsius (113 Fahrenheit).

When the well dries, the village then relies on a government tanker with irregular supplies, two or three times a week.

It brings untreated water from a river where people wash and animals graze.

Satgir's home in the dusty village of Navinwadi, near the farming town of Shahapur, lies some 100 kilometers from the busy streets of Mumbai.

The area is also the source of major reservoirs supplying some 60 percent of water to Mumbai, local government authorities say.

Mumbai is India's second-biggest and rapidly expanding city, with an estimated population of 22 million.

Experts have warned of worsening water shortages in India.

"All that water from around us goes to the people in the big city and nothing has changed for us," Satgir said.

"Our three generations are linked to that one well," she added. "It is our only source."

Deputy village head Rupali Bhaskar Sadgir, 26, said residents were often sick from the water.

But it was their only option.

"We've been requesting governments for years to ensure that the water available at the dams also reaches us," she said. "But it just keeps getting worse."

Government authorities both at the state level and in New Delhi say they are committed to tackling the problem and have announced repeated schemes to address the water crisis.

But villagers say they have not reached them yet.

'Unsustainable rates'

India's government-run NITI Aayog public policy center forecasts a "steep fall of around 40 percent in freshwater availability by 2030", in a July 2023 report.

It also warned of "increasing water shortages, depleting groundwater tables and deteriorating resource quality".

Climate change is shifting weather patterns, bringing longer-lasting and more intense droughts.

Groundwater resources "are being depleted at unsustainable rates", it added, noting they make up some 40 percent of total water supplies.

It is a story repeated across India, said Himanshu Thakkar, from the South Asia Network on Dams, Rivers and People, a Delhi-based water rights campaign group.

This is "typical of what keeps happening all over the country", Thakkar said, adding it represents everything "wrong with the political economy of making dams in India".

"While projects are planned and justified in the name of drought-prone regions and its people, most end up serving only the distant urban areas and industries," he said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who began a third term in office this month, announced a flagship scheme to provide tapped water to every household in 2019.

But in Navinwadi village, residents are resigned to living on the strictly rationed supply.

When the water tanker arrives, dozens of women and children sprint out with pots, pans, and buckets.

Santosh Trambakh Dhonner, 50, a daily laborer, said he joined the scramble as he had not found work that day.

"More hands means more water at home", he said.

Ganesh Waghe, 25, said residents had complained and protested, but nothing was done.

"We are not living with any grand ambitions," Waghe said. "Just a dream of water the next morning".

 2024 AFP
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Illustration of the sensing principle of the distance-based miRNA assay. Credit: SIBET

Point-of-care testing (POCT) devices show great advantages over conventional diagnostic tests in being accessible to patients and providing timely diagnostic information. The global POCT market has grown remarkably over the past few decades. Distance-based devices are attracting great interest due to their simplicity, affordability, and ease of application.

Researchers at the Suzhou Institute of Biomedical Engineering and Technology (SIBET) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have proposed a distance-based visual miRNA biosensor based on a DNA hydrogel system. The results of the study, titled "Distance-Based Visual miRNA Biosensor with Strand Displacement Amplification-Mediated DNA Hydrogel Assembly," were published in ACS Materials Letters.

The target miRNA-initiated strand displacement amplification process will produce abundant single-stranded DNA, which are essential probes for the linking of the three-way junction scaffold of the hydrogel.

The phase transition of the solution is confirmed by elastic and electrochemical techniques. A distance-based paper biosensing method is thus set up by establishing the relationship between the seepage flow distance along the strip and the initial miRNA concentration.

Principle of the elasticity instrument and the optimization by amplitude comparison. Credit: SIBET

A. Photograph of filter strips after the reactions with different amounts of miRNA; B. Seepage flow distances of DNA hydrogel induced by miRNA; C. Linear relationship; D. Flow distances of DNA hydrogel induced by let-7a and the family members; E. Comparison of the flow distances; F. Concentrations of miRNA in control and patient samples. Credit: SIBET

Due to the strand displacement amplification, the biosensor is not only simple but also highly sensitive with a detection limit down to 1 fM.

Since the three-dimensional DNA hydrogel provides abundant binding sites, the detection range is quite wide, according to the researchers.

The biosensor is shown to be highly selective, and the results of human serum analysis are consistent with standard quantitative reverse transcription-PCR.

"This approach has the advantages of convenient operation and low cost, which meets the requirements of point-of-care testing," said Miao Peng, lead author of the study. "It is promising as a convenient tool for miRNA-related biological studies and clinical diagnosis."

More information: Chengyu Yan et al, Distance-Based Visual miRNA Biosensor with Strand Displacement Amplification-Mediated DNA Hydrogel Assembly, ACS Materials Letters (2024). DOI: 10.1021/acsmaterialslett.4c00650
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Team South Africa getting ready to board South Africa's polar research vessle, the SA Agulhas II, for the 2019 expedition to Antarctica. Credit: Wiida Fourie-Basson

The important role of the Southern Ocean in global biological processes and the carbon cycle has been confirmed anew by a study published in Science that, for the first time based on field evidence, reveals the underappreciated role of inorganic zinc (Zn) particles in these cycles.

The Southern Ocean plays the greatest role in global phytoplankton productivity, which is responsible for absorbing atmospheric carbon dioxide. In these processes, Zn, present in trace quantities in seawater, is an essential micronutrient critical to many biochemical processes in marine organisms and particularly for polar phytoplankton blooms.

When phytoplankton blooms perish, Zn is released. But to date, scientists have been puzzled as there was an observed disjunct between Zn and phosphorus, another nutrient essential for life in the oceans, even though both nutrients are co-located in similar regions in phytoplankton. Instead, a strong (but inexplicable) coupling between Zn and dissolved Silica is often seen.

Prof. Alakendra Roychoudhury, a specialist in environmental and marine biogeochemistry at Stellenbosch University (SU) and a co-author on the article, says they can now, for the first time, explain with confidence the biogeochemical processes driving the oceans' Zn cycle.

Since 2013, Roychoudhury's research group in SU's Department of Earth Sciences have joined three expeditions of South Africa's polar research vessel, the SA Agulhas II. Crossing the vast Southern Ocean on its way to Antarctica in both summer and winter, the team collected sea water samples from the surface and deep ocean, as well as sediments.

Dr. Ryan Cloete, co-first author on the paper and currently a postdoctoral fellow at the Laboratory of Environmental Marine Sciences (LEMAR) in France, participated in two of these expeditions. "Studying the Southern Ocean is so important as it acts as a central hub for global ocean circulation. Processes occurring in the Southern Ocean are imprinted on water masses which are then transported to the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific Oceans," he explains.

Working with researchers from Princeton University, the Universities of Chicago and California Santa Cruz, as well as the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, the samples were subjected to detailed particle by particle analysis, using X-ray spectroscopic techniques at a synchrotron facility, which allowed them to study the samples at atomic and molecular level.

A Conductivity-Temperature-Depth (CTD) rosette housing 24 GO-FLO bottles about to be lowered to a depth of 4,500 meters below surface during the SA Agulhas II 2019 expedition to Antarctica. Credit: Stellenbosch University

Unraveling the drivers of the global Zn cycle in our oceans

In summer it seems that higher productivity leads to a greater abundance of Zn in the organic fraction of the surface ocean, which can readily become available for uptake by phytoplankton. But the researchers also found high concentrations of Zn associated with debris derived from rocks and earth, and from atmospheric dust, present in these samples.

In the open ocean, the interplay between Zn's association or dissociation from particles is pivotal for replenishing dissolved Zn to support marine life.

Cloete explains, "Due to poor growing conditions in winter, Zn particles are literally 'scavenged' by inorganic solids such as silica, abundantly available in the form of diatoms, as well as iron and aluminum oxides. Diatoms are microalgaeunicellular organisms with skeletons made of silicathereby explaining the strong association between Zn and Silica in the oceans."

In other words, when Zn is bound to an organic ligand it is easy for uptake by marine life such as phytoplankton. Zn in a mineral phase, however, is not easy to dissolve and will therefore not be easily available for uptake. In this form, particulate Zn can form large aggregates and sink to the deep ocean, where it becomes unavailable for uptake by phytoplankton.

Implications for changing climate

This understanding of the global Zn cycle has important implications in the context of warming oceans, warns Roychoudhury. "A warmer climate increases erosion, leading to more dust in the atmosphere and consequently more dust being deposited into the oceans. More dust means more scavenging of Zn particles, leading to less Zn being available to sustain phytoplankton and other marine life."

Cloete says their novel approach to studying the oceanic Zn cycle now opens the door to investigating other important micronutrients. "Like Zn, the distribution of copper, cadmium, and cobalt could also experience climate-induced changes in the future," Cloete said.

For Roychoudhury, the findings reaffirm the Southern Ocean's global influence in regulating the climate and the marine food web.

"The Earth system is intricately coupled through physical, chemical and biological processes with self-correcting feedback loops to modulate variability and negate climate change. Our findings are a prime example of this coupling where biochemical processes happening at the molecular level can influence global processes like the warming of our planet," said Roychoudhury.

More information: J. Duan et al, Biogenic-to-lithogenic handoff of particulate Zn Impacts the Zn-cycle in the Southern Ocean, Science (2024). DOI: 10.1126/science.adh8199. www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adh8199 Journal information: Science
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Credit: CC0 Public Domain

New research has found that the public is more accepting of adoption and surrogacy if one or both parents are infertile, even when applied to methods of adoption and surrogacy which are currently illegal in the UK.

The interdisciplinary research from the University of Birmingham and the University of Nottingham and published in The Journal of Bioethical Enquiry, has revealed that while the UK public is broadly supportive of all forms of adoption and surrogacy, no matter the circumstances this support increases significantly when one or both parents are infertile.

Dr. Evelyn Svingen, Assistant Professor at the University of Birmingham, said, "Surrogacy and adoption are both family-making measures subject to extensive domestic and international regulation, and the UK is one country considering a legal overhaul with the Law Commission setting out its recommendations for reform surrounding surrogacy in March last year. Given the possible changes to the law, we wanted to understand the public attitudes to different forms of adoption and surrogacy.

"Our research found that both the family and fertility circumstances of a couple (that is, their fertility and whether they had children already) and the proposed form of adoption or surrogacy influenced participant attitudes."

The study set out hypothetical scenarios where a heterosexual couple would like to have a child without going through pregnancy and childbirth. The hypothetical couple had four sets of circumstances:

Fertile with children. Fertile without children. One partner infertile. Both partners infertile.

How the couple wanted to have a child was also split into four options:

Regular adoption. Using a surrogate mother and sperm/egg from the intending father or mother. Using a surrogate mother and donated sperm and egg (double donor surrogacy). "Clear-cut" planned private adoption.

Currently planned private adoption and double donor surrogacy are legally prohibited in the UK.

1552 UK adults were then asked to what extent they agreed that the couple should be allowed to acquire a child in the proposed way. The researchers measured the variation in public support for different policies and the influence that family circumstances and fertility issues had on the participants' attitudes.

The results showed that in the hypothetical scenarios in which one or both partners in the couple were infertile, participants expressed overwhelming support for most types of adoption and surrogacy. This includes a planned private adoption scenario, in which the fictional couple asks another couple to conceive a child and hand it over to them to raise. In the scenarios where the couple had no fertility issues, support for any use of surrogacy decreased, as did support use of adoption, although by a smaller margin.

The lowest levels of support were shown for clear private adoption scenarios where a couple experiences no fertility issues. Still, even those scenarios received agreement from around half of the participants (4750%), with the level of support increasing from 6971% in case of fertility difficulties. Levels of moral agreement also increased for the double donor surrogacy scenario in the presence of infertility, 5658% for fertile couples and 8490% for infertile couples.

These results show that most of the public surveyed showed higher levels of support for any policy allowing a couple experiencing infertility to acquire a child, including in the case of the two policies that are prohibited by current U.K.

Dr. Teresa Baron, Research Fellow at the University of Nottingham, concluded, "Our study found that the public expressed strong support for the current policy on surrogacy, with 6365% of the public surveyed supporting the policy in cases of a fertile couple and 8790% supporting the policy in cases of one of the parents being infertile.

"We also found that the level of support for any policy, including planned private adoption, currently illegal in the United Kingdom, significantly increases if at least one of the partners experiences fertility-related issues.

"These public attitudes may be something that policymakers want to consider when it comes to any changes in law; however, the law should not always and only seek to reflect public morality. Legal reform may sometimes play an important role in motivating public support for a policy."

More information: T. Baron et al, Surrogacy and Adoption: An Empirical Investigation of Public Moral Attitudes, Journal of Bioethical Inquiry (2024). DOI: 10.1007/s11673-024-10343-1
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Credit: Unsplash/CC0 Public Domain

Wetlands aren't the most eye-catching ecosystems. They include swamps, bogs, fens and other places where soil is covered by water most of the time. But they perform a huge range of valuable services, from soaking up floodwaters to filtering out pollutants and providing habitat for thousands of species of mammals, fish, reptiles, insects and birds.

In a high-profile 2023 ruling, Sackett v. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Supreme Court greatly limited federal power to protect wetlands. According to one estimate, this ruling stripped federal protection from up to 90 million acres of wetlands across the U.S.

Today, the U.S. is losing wetlands, mainly to development and agriculture, at an accelerating rate. With Congress polarized and gridlocked, new federal wetland protection laws are unlikely to be enacted in the next several years.

Some states have stepped up to fill the gap, but others have instead chosen to roll back their existing protections. This comes despite the fact that even before the Sackett ruling, people across the U.S. strongly favored more protection for wetlands.

We are environmental law scholars who recently conducted a study, to be published in a forthcoming issue of the Minnesota Law Review, that explores how private environmental governance can protect wetlands. This approach uses private agreements, certifications and other practices such as monitoring and dispute resolution to foster sustainability.

Relying on private action is not a substitute for regulation, but it can act as a stopgap while other legislative and regulatory efforts are developed. And it can complement new laws and regulations once those measures are in place.

Certifications and supply chain leverage

Corporations and nongovernment organizations have a variety of ways to encourage protection of wetlands.

The Supreme Courts 2023 Sackett v. EPA ruling left half of U.S. wetlands without federal protection.

First, certification bodies can develop standards for wetland-friendly goods, much like fair trade labels for products that promote safe working conditions, environmental protection and living wages for producers. Greater use of such standards can allow customers, investors and lenders to vote with their wallets. An example might be a label that identifies products made from ingredients grown on farms that preserve wetlands.

For construction, a gold standard already exists for the environmental certification of buildings: Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design, or LEED, certification. LEED already incorporates some wetland protections, and its requirements can be bolstered to ensure protection of wetlands exposed as a result of the Sackett ruling.

Next, corporate pressure can use supply chain contracting to influence the sectors most likely to fill in wetlands: farming, construction and forestry. Corporations could require suppliers to agree not to damage wetlands exposed by the Sackett decision, in the same way that companies already use contracts to address other environmental issues.

For example, Whole Foods Market requires suppliers to follow a code of conduct that includes minimizing their impacts on the environment, avoiding deforestation and seeking opportunities to conserve water. Similarly, Albertsons, the fourth-largest U.S. grocery store chain, requires suppliers to strive to reduce natural resource destruction and water contamination.

The role of banks and investors

Large institutional investors and lenders can also play a role. Those with sustainability policies can insist that developers seeking funds follow pre-Sackett wetland protections.

Major banks have already shown various degrees of commitment to sustainability. In 2003, 10 leading banks from seven countries adopted the Equator Principles, a set of principles designed to "serve as a common baseline and risk management framework for financial institutions to identify, assess and manage environmental and social risks when financing projects."

This includes conducting environmental risk assessments of projects applying for financing, adopting measures to minimize and mitigate risks, and as a last resort compensating for unavoidable effects. We believe this list should be expanded to include assessing the risk of wetlands loss in project financing.

Former industrial salt ponds around San Francisco Bay are being turned back into wetlands in a large-scale, multiyear restoration project with federal, state and private funding. One goal is to protect shoreline communities from flooding.

Several banks recently backed out of adhering to these principles but pledged generally to continue to follow them. Nongovernment organizations can help protect wetlands by tracking financing for proposed developments in vulnerable areas.

Reducing flood risks

Insurance companies can also help fill the gap in wetland protection. Because wetlands are valuable buffers against floods, property insurers have a vested interest in reducing wetland losses.

Many California insurance companies facing rising costs due to climate change have stopped issuing new policies there. Similar decisions are occurring in other disaster-prone states such as Louisiana and Florida.

Without access to insurance, businesses will be less likely to invest in these states. Reducing flood risks due to wetland destruction could help reduce risk for insurance companies.

Private insurers could refuse coverage to properties that significantly degrade wetlands no longer protected after Sackett, or they could make coverage contingent on binding commitments not to degrade wetlands. And conservation groups could work with private insurers to develop climate-focused coverage for particularly sensitive wetlands left uncovered after Sackett.

In an example of this approach, The Nature Conservancy, an environmental nonprofit, bought insurance in 2022 to fund restoration of Hawaii's coral reefs if they are damaged by hurricanes or tropical storms.

Retail customers, employees, community members and nonprofit groups can place economic pressure on companies to incorporate such protections into their operations. This kind of private pressure has already spurred companies to pledge to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions. Until states and Congress pass new laws to prevent wetlands from being destroyed, we see action by businesses and nongovernment organizations as the most promising substitute.

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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Credit: Chalmers University of Technology | Mia Hallerod Palmgren

Most people today would lean towards environmentally-friendly life choices, but not at the expense of being clean. When it comes to our washing habits, the fear of being perceived as dirty often wins out over the desire to act in an environmentally friendly way. And the more inclined we are to feel disgusted, the more we wash our clothes. This is shown by a unique study from Chalmers University of Technology, Sweden, that examines the driving forces behind our laundering behaviors and provides new tools for how people's environmental impact can be reduced.

An article on the study, "Pro-environmental behavior is undermined by disgust sensitivity: the case of excessive laundering," is published in the journal PLOS ONE.

Today, we wash our clothes more than ever before, and the emissions from laundering have never been higher. Some of the reasons are that we use each garment fewer times before throwing them in the laundry bin, technological advances have made it easier and cheaper to do laundry, and access to washing machines has increased.

Of the global emissions of microplastics, 1635% come from washing synthetic fibers. In addition, detergents contribute to eutrophication, and the use of energy and water for washing also has environmental impacts.

"Even though the machines have become more energy-efficient, it is how often we choose to wash that has the greatest impact on the climateand we have never done as much washing as we do today. At the same time, most of us seem to be uninterested in changing our laundering behaviors to reduce climate impact," says Erik Klint, doctoral student at the Division of Environmental Systems Analysis at Chalmers.

He has led a research study that takes a new, unexplored approach to our washing habits to examine the underlying mechanisms of excessive laundering from a psychological perspective. The study focuses on two driving forces that affect washing behavior: 1) environmental identityhow strongly we identify with the group of environmentally conscious people, and 2) how inclined we are to have feelings of disgust.

Two clearly conflicting driving forces, the study shows.

"We humans are constantly faced with different goal conflicts. In this case, there is a conflict between the desire to reduce one's washing to save the environment and the fear of being perceived as a disgusting person with unclean clothes. Disgust is a strong psychological and social driving force. The study shows that the higher our sensitivity to disgust, the more we wash, regardless of whether we value our environmental identity highly. The feeling of disgust simply wins out over environmental awareness," he says.

Disgust is an evolutionarily linked emotion

The fact that disgust drives our behavior so strongly has several bases. Erik Klint describes disgust as an evolutionarily conditioned emotion, which basically functions as a protection against infection or dangerous substances. In addition to this, the feeling of disgust is closely related to the feeling of shame and can thus also have an influence in social contexts.

"We humans don't want to do things that risk challenging our position in the groupsuch as being associated with a person who doesn't take care of their hygiene," he says.

This has implications for our washing behavior.

"Here, an evolutionarily rooted driving force is set against a moral standpoint, and in most cases you're likely to react to that evolutionarily linked emotion," he says.

'Washing campaigns have the wrong starting point'

According to Erik Klint, the study highlights that today's campaigns and messages to get people to act in an environmentally friendly way have the wrong starting point, since they often fail to take into account the psychological aspects behind people's behavior.

"It doesn't matter how sensible and research-based an argument you have, if they run counter to people's different driving forces, such as the desire to feel a sense of belonging to a group, then they won't work," he says.

The questions "How do we get people to wash less," and "How do we do it in a more environmentally friendly way?" are misplaced, says Erik Klint, who points out that the focus should instead be on the indirect behavior which leads to the actual washing.

It might be subtle, but he suggests that a better question is instead: "How do we get people to generate less laundry, specifically laundry that needs to be cleaned by a washing machine?"

"You do laundry because the laundry basket is full, because your favorite sweater is dirty, or because there is a free laundry timeslot in your shared laundry. Therefore, the focus needs to be on what happens before we run the washing machine, i.e., the underlying behaviors that create a need to wash. For example, how much laundry we generate, how we sort the clothes in the machine, or when we think the washing machine is full," he says.

One of the study's main suggestions is to encourage people to use clothes more often before they end up in the laundry basket.

"It can be about targeting excessive washing, with messages such as 'most people use their T-shirt more than once." But also replacing washing machine use with other actions, such as airing the garments, brushing off dirt, or removing individual stains by hand. One way could be to highlight the economic arguments here, as clothes get worn out when they go through the machine," he says.

Hoping to reduce the environmental impact of laundry

Gregory Peters, Professor of Quantitative Sustainability Assessment at Chalmers and co-author of the study, emphasizes that the research is a unique combination of behavioral science and natural science.

"This study is part of a more extensive thesis that goes beyond the usual research framework for LCAlife cycle assessmentsand has made it possible to create more holistic understanding of how we wash and what drives washing behavior. The direct result we hope for is to contribute to reduced environmental impact from laundry, but it is possible that the research can be generalized to other areas where behavior and technology interact," he says.

The study was led by researchers from the Division of Environmental Systems Analysis at Chalmers in collaboration with the research group for Decision Making, Environmental, Economic and Political Psychology at the University of Gothenburg.

The article is based on two different surveys, with about 1,000 respondents per survey. The surveys asked questions about washing behavior, habits, cleanliness norms, disgust sensitivity, and shame, among other things. All data was collected in collaboration with the knowledge and analysis company Novus. The participants were selected to constitute a representative sample of Sweden's population.

More information: Erik Klint et al, Pro-environmental behaviour is undermined by disgust sensitivity: the case of excessive laundering, PLoS ONE (2024). DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0302625 Journal information: PLoS ONE
CAPE MAY  The rehabilitation of the historic Franklin Street School into Cape May County's newest library is complete, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held at 3 p.m. Thursday.

Prior to the ceremony and dedication, a "Book Brigade" will be held at 1 p.m. at the location of the former library at 110 Ocean St., reenacting the same transfer of books that happened in 1982 when the Ocean Street library was dedicated.

Built in 1927 as a segregated elementary school, the building is a designated New Jersey African American Historic Site. It is located adjacent to the Harriet Tubman Museum.

The project finished four years after the Cape May County Library Commission submitted an application to the New Jersey State Library for funding to repurpose and rehabilitate the historic school. The commission was awarded nearly $3.5 million in November 2020 and was one of 38 approved grants in the state.

As I have said before, this project is a perfect example of how to preserve the past while preparing for the future, Mayor Zachary Mullock said Thursday in a news release. We have been able to save an important historic building by repurposing it into a 21st century library that honors that history while meeting the educational, recreational, technological and other needs of the community.

The project was supported by funds from the New Jersey Library Construction Bond Act, the National Park Services African American Civil Rights Historic Preservation Fund, the New Jersey Historic Trust and local contributions from the county and city of Cape May.
CAPE MAY  The city took a step into the future Thursday with its eyes set firmly on the past, what could almost be described as a community ethos.

The newest branch of the Cape May County Library system opened at 720 Franklin St., in a long-vacant, formerly segregated school, an $11 million, 18-month project, funded by the city, the Cape May County Library Commission and county government, along with a grant from the New Jersey State Library.

Also contributing to the cost of the project were the National Park Services African American Civil Rights Historic Preservation Fund and the New Jersey Historic Trust, according to details released by the county.

Leading up to the afternoon ribbon cutting, residents lined up between the former library on Ocean Street and the new location for a book brigade, passing books hand to hand between the two locations.

I was here for the first one in 1982, said Diane Muntz, a longtime Cape May resident who lives nearby.

When the Ocean Street location opened more than 40 years ago, that was how the collection was moved from the small library at City Hall to the new location.

For some residents and officials, it was important to keep that connection going.

About 500 people participated, said Shaine Meier, a City Council member and part of the organizing committee for the book brigade.

Cape May library dedication set for Thursday The rehabilitation of the historic Franklin Street School in Cape May into Cape May County's newest library is complete, and a ribbon-cutting ceremony will be held at 3 p.m. June 13.

Many parents brought their children, and several of the participants had been there for the original brigade.

Most of the collection was already on the shelves and in the computer system at the new library. Meier said the brigade moved about 100 volumes, most of which had a specific Cape May connection or were important to the community.

Leading the way was Mayor Zack Mullock, carrying a Bible that was present at the opening of the Franklin Street School in 1928.

Cape May has a complicated relationship with the school, which is part of the citys Black history, while serving as a reminder of segregation.

Built to educate Black children from kindergarten to eighth grade, the school closed in 1949 after the New Jersey Constitution ended segregation statewide.

After that, it was vacant or seriously underused for decades, architect Michael Calafati said while walking though the building, used as storage for confiscated bikes or left to the elements.

The Cape May arts, history and community group Center for Community Arts acquired the building and sought for years to renovate it.

The group replaced the windows and made other improvements, and Calafati and others have said without CCAs involvement, the building would have likely been beyond repair.

New library in Cape May still ways off It appears that the opening of a new Cape May library branch will take at least months longer than anticipated, but for now, residents have not lost their patience, Mayor Zack Mullock said Monday.

CCA will have new offices in the refurbished building, which will also include quiet reading areas, a computer room, space for events, meetings or classes, and multiple other offerings for which there would not have been room in the previous location.

Calafati said he initially got the contract for the project in early 2020, just before COVID-19 threw most plans up in the air. He said he had already worked with CCA and was familiar with the building.

In addition to the segregated school in the front, there was also a gymnasium in the back of the building, serving Cape May City High School when that was still across the parking lot in a building that now serves as City Hall.

There were no connections between the two sides, the segregated school and the later, integrated gym. That created some problems.

For one thing, the floors do not line up between the two sides, meaning the elevator needed five levels from the basement up. The elevator had to be installed as well, and a loft in the large gymnasium adds a second story for the book collection.

There was also a small addition on one side of the building, adding space for a young adult room, a computer room and quiet study. Extensive work was needed on the brick face of the structure, which was encased in scaffolding for more than a year.

Work was expected to be completed earlier this year, but the project took longer than originally anticipated.

After years of planning, construction started in 2022, and had been expected to be completed by December 2023.

Cape May library work expected to continue for months It appears that the opening of a new Cape May library branch will take at least months longer than anticipated, but for now, residents have not lost their patience, Mayor Zack Mullock said Monday.

A passageway had to be opened through a wall between the two sides, with a steel beam reinforcing the structure over it. Calafati left the masonry edges between the two sides rough, albeit protected by clear plastic, a physical representation of the rough edges moving from a segregated past into a new future.

Multiple officials were on hand for the ribbon cutting, and many of the participants of the brigade remained in the shade of the tree and the front of the building.

The opening of the Cape May County Library marks the beginning of a new era for the Franklin Street School, reads a statement from the county.

The Library Commission is thrilled that the construction of this new, 16,000 square foot, state-of-the-art library is now completed, Library Commission Chair Jackie Henderson said.

It has been four years in the making, but certainly worth the wait, county Commissioner Director Len Desiderio said. The county is proud to be a part of this great project that not only provides residents with opportunities for lifelong learning and social engagement, but also enhances everyones quality of life.

GALLERY: Cape May launches new library
LUSAKA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The Zambian government on Wednesday urged African countries to undertake an overhaul reform agenda in various sectors including education and skills training in order to align school curricula at both primary and tertiary level with market needs.

Minister of Finance and National Planning Situmbeko Musokotwane said African countries should also undertake reforms in the apprenticeships, internships and on-the-job training programs to ensure that the programs provide practical experience.

"Over time Zambia, like many other African countries, has seen an increase in the gap between the skills provided by the education system and the skills demanded by employers. Africa's education system, including Zambia, has continued to produce graduates that are lacking the practical skills needed by the current labor market," he said in remarks delivered at this year's Chief Economists of Government, an annual forum convened by the World Bank with an objective of strengthening knowledge-based support in policymaking in African countries.

The theme for this year's meeting is, "Job Creation in Africa: Constraints and Policy Options."

He said job creation in Africa faces several challenges that need to be addressed, including the rapidly growing young population, which has generated a significant demand for jobs. Unfortunately, the current job market is struggling to keep up.

The Zambian minister urged African countries to strengthen policies that encourage regional trade and economic integration with the sole aim of creating larger markets and enhance job opportunities across borders.

According to him, the objective of enhancing job creation in Africa will only be attained when countries harmonize their regulations and standards to facilitate business operations and investment within regional blocs.

Africa, he added, needs to pursue policy options that are promoting industrialization and diversification in key sectors such as manufacturing, agriculture and service. 
LOWER TOWNSHIP  The days could be numbered for a 25-year-old agreement for the Delaware River and Bay Authority to operate the Cape May County Airport.

The county Board of Commissioners has given notice that the DRBAs lease on the property will not be automatically renewed.

A statement from county board Director Len Desiderio said the county is willing to keep talking.

Those discussions, however, will focus on ensuring that the priorities and initiatives of this Board are addressed and resolved in a manner that is in the best interests of the residents and visitors of Cape May County, he said.

The DRBA is in receipt of CMCs official letter that the County has decided to terminate this agreement and engage with other interested parties to operate, manage and develop WWD, DRBA officials said in response to a request for comment, using the international airport code for the airport. The DRBA has appreciated the collaborative relationship it has enjoyed with CMC and remains proud of the incredible growth and renewal accomplished at Cape May Airport over the past 25 years.

The decision came at a special meeting of the commissioners Friday, and Commissioner Andrew Bulakowski read the statement in public at the regular board meeting Tuesday.

Commissioner Will Morey voted against the move. When contacted, he declined to comment as to why, saying he would issue a statement, but that was not received before 5 p.m. Thursday.

The DRBA took over airport operations in 1998 after years of attempts to revitalize the site. Several manufacturing companies had ended their operations at the airport, with some huge structures sitting vacant and derelict.

Naval Air Station Wildwood Aviation Museum awarded STEM collaboration of the year The Naval Air Station Wildwood Aviation Museum's AvSTEM Day was selected as the NJ STEM collaboration of the year by the New Jersey STEM Pathways Network for delivering exceptional STEM programming, the organization said Monday.

The lease called for the $1-a-year payment for the use of the county land, but the DRBA has spent way more than $25 on the effort.

Since then, the authority has spent tens of millions of dollars at the airport, both in terms of capital investments and in absorbing the annual operational deficits, according to DRBA spokesperson James Salmon.

That includes a new $7.4 million airport terminal. Officials broke ground last year, with a $250,000 contribution from the county, plus a commitment to road and parking improvements.

The initial 30-year lease will expire June 7, 2029. It could have been automatically renewed for another 30 years, unless the county gave notice by June 7 of this year. The county did so, without leaving much time to spare.

The change could cost county taxpayers, Desiderio acknowledged.

This decision is not taken lightly by the Board, and it could come with great investment from the county, but that investment also comes with tremendous opportunities to address some of the most pressing issues facing our residents, his statement reads. We are fully committed to addressing those issues.

County Administrator Kevin Lare released the statement via email Wednesday.

Lare said the county is still willing to talk to the DRBA about the future of the airport. He said the county has varying estimates of $24 million to $34 million in capital investments at the airport by the DRBA. That could include assets for which the DRBA would be reimbursed.

Lower, Middle townships tap AtlantiCare for ambulance services Middle and Lower townships on Monday approved separate five-year contracts with AtlantiCare to provide ambulance services.

This money, if paid to the DRBA, will be for acquisition of capital assets that DRBA made to the property, which include revenue generating properties, Lare said. It will also lead to the county regaining control of over 1,000 acres of land.

The airports roots are in World War II, when Naval Air Station Wildwood was built and served as a training facility for dive bomber squadrons who would fight in the Pacific. After the war, the close to 1,000 acres of the site on Breakwater Road were transferred to the county.

The airport at one time included commercial flights and housed several industrial uses, but by the time the DRBA took over operations, several redevelopment efforts had come up short.

Early this year, the DRBA and the county were calling the airport a success story, with a February announcement of a new $5.5 million commercial building on Ranger Road, the third for the airport. The area is now home to Lower Townships public safety building, the Naval Air Station Wildwood Aviation Museum, Cape May Brewing Company and other commercial uses.

During the past ten years, the Cape May Airport has been a hub for economic expansion, DRBA Executive Director Thomas J. Cook said in a statement in February. Working hand-in-hand with our Cape May County partners, were focused on creating an environment conducive for businesses of all types to be successful. We continue to see strong demand from the business community for space at the airport. Our teamwork approach is producing results.

The county seems ready to end that partnership. While neither the authority nor the county has ruled out a new agreement, Desiderio seemed unwilling to see the airport under authority control for an additional 30 years.

The county would have to convince the DRBAs Delaware based Administration and bi-state Board of Commissioners to agree and support the priorities and initiatives of our county, he said. The County owns 100% of airport land, and our residents deserve that its used in a manner that serves their best interests first and foremost, and without compromise.

The county did not specify what those priorities included, or whether there had been initiatives thwarted or delayed by the DRBA.

Third multitenant building to be constructed at Cape May Airport The Delaware River and Bay Authority has approved funding to construct a third multitenant light industrial building at the Cape May Airport.

The county is in good financial shape, Desiderio said, and while retaking the airport will include an investment, he said taxpayers will not feel the bite.

Additionally, the county is regaining control of more than 1,000 acres of land, capital improvements, and dozens of revenue-generating properties, he said. There has been substantial work completed at the airport over the past several years, and we are committed to continuing this trend in a way that addresses the countys initiatives, while not over-burdening our budget or taxpayers.

In April, county officials broke ground on a $6.35 million new tech building on Hornet Road at the airport, with a $3 million boost from the U.S. Economic Development Administration, part of what county officials described as a $50 million long-term effort to bring jobs and economic development.

While we are still in the research stages and substantial work still needs to be done, we are confident in this decision and excited about the opportunities that lie ahead, Desiderio said. The airport grounds are a great asset to our county, and we need to ensure that every effort is made to utilize them in a manner that places our residents first.

The DRBA operates the Delaware Memorial Bridge, from which it derives most of its budget, and the Cape May-Lewes Ferry. It is overseen by a bi-state agency, with members from New Jersey and Delaware.

Since taking on operations at the Cape May County Airport, the authority now also operates the Wilmington Airport, the Millville Executive Airport and others.

DRBA officials indicated a willingness to cooperate with a change.

The DRBA is committed to supporting a smooth transition of the airport, as soon as possible, or to the end of the designated lease term of June 7, 2029, the authority said Wednesday.
WILDWOOD  Bags are out this season, at least on the Boardwalk.

In a unanimous vote Wednesday, the Board of Commissioners approved an ordinance amendment banning backpacks and other bags larger than 8 inches from the beaches and Boardwalk after 8 p.m., a move officials say was prompted by rowdy teens who disrupted Memorial Day weekend.

Citing emergency powers, city attorney Steve Morris said the ban would go into effect immediately and would not require a second vote, which is when there is normally a public hearing. The public had a chance to comment at the Wednesday meeting, but there were no takers.

The ordinance is similar to one approved last year in Ocean City, also put in place after a chaotic Memorial Day weekend, with the aim of preventing young people from bringing alcohol or other contraband to the beach and Boardwalk.

The city police department identified a series of incidents involving backpacks and other bags containing illegal drugs and alcohol in the possession of minors over Memorial Day weekend and determined that the same contributed to the unruly and tumultuous behavior that led to the issuance of the local state of emergency, the ordinance states.

After midnight on the Sunday of Memorial Day weekend, Wildwood closed its Boardwalk in an effort to control a large number of young people. Throughout the weekend, a large number of fights and other problems overwhelmed police, with 911 calls swamping dispatchers.

Shore towns have their say on teens at GOP Senate hearing Shore officials blame changes to juvenile justice laws for another summer of disruptions from teens, but also alcohol, society, social media and mostly parents, at a GOP hearing held virtually Wednesday.

Calls far outweighed the manpower, Mayor Ernie Troiano Jr. said at the meeting, praising the work the police did that weekend.

In several instances, Troiano emphasized that the problems with juveniles have not been limited to Wildwood but have drawn concerns from shore communities and mainland towns throughout the state.

At the meeting, police Chief Joseph Murphy said the ordinance would improve the quality of life on the Boardwalk.

Like the Ocean City ordinance, the new Wildwood rules include some exemptions, including for medical devices that are immediately needed and news media carrying items needed for their reporting.

Lifeguards and police on duty are also exempt.

Bags, fanny packs, coolers, briefcases, luggage and other bags more than 8 inches will not be allowed, the ordinance states, describing that size as about the size of half a sheet of paper.

The ban will be in effect from May 1 through Sep. 30, from 8 p.m. until 4 a.m.
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WHAT WE KNOW: Geneseo is set to award a contract for work on North State Street this summer.

WHAT'S NEW: IMEG engineer Loren Rains told aldermen Tuesday that the bid opening for the State Street work is July 2 and hopefully the council will be able to award the project to a contractor at its July 9 meeting.

Permit approval has been received from the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency for the stormwater and water main replacements and engineers are waiting for approval for sanitary sewer replacements.

A meeting was held on the staging of the work last week and it was decided the contractor will have until Thanksgiving to complete the sewer, stormwater and water pipes  and hopefully all sidewalks done  from Park Street up to the south side of Palace Row. If the deadline is missed, the firm will have damages applied to them over winter. IMEG will meet with the contractors every two weeks and provide updates to the council.

WHAT'S NEXT: Aldermen voted 7-0 to combine the planning commission and zoning board and change the number of people on the new board from five and seven, respectively, to a combined nine members total.

The change was suggested at the last committee of the whole meeting, when it was noted, it has become increasingly difficult to find volunteers for both entities. Terms of some of the members had expired at the beginning of June plus there was a vacancy on one board with the result that Mayor Sean Johnson will have to appoint people by the end of the month to fill a couple of seats.

PHOTOS: Geneseo Christmas Walk Parade
Bettendorf and Davenport school districts will offer free summer meals for ages 18 and under this summer, Monday through Friday.

In Bettendorf, summer meal sites will take place at Mark Twain Elementary and Bettendorf Middle schools.

Breakfast and lunch will run from 8 to 9 a.m. and noon to 1 p.m., respectively, for the following sessions:

Monday, June 10 to Friday, June 28.

Monday, July 8 to Friday, July 26.

Mark Twain, 1620 Lincoln Road, will also offer free meals from July 1-3. Bettendorf Middle School is located at 2030 Middle Road.

For any questions about Bettendorf's meals, contact Michelle Riessen, nutrition and wellness manager for Bettendorf schools, at (563)-359-3681 ext. 4207.

Davenport schools will host its free summer meal sites from June 10 through Friday, July 26, at the following community locations:

Annie Wittenmeyer Pool, 2800 Eastern Ave.: Lunch from 11:30 to 11:50 a.m.

Fairmount Branch Library, 3000 N Fairmount Street: Lunch from 12:40 to 1:10 p.m.

Fairmount Pines, 4205 N Fairmount Street: Lunch from 11:40 a.m. to 12:10 p.m.

Fejervary Pool, 1800 W. 12th Street: Lunch from 11:35 to 11:55 a.m.

J.B. Young Community Center, 1702 N. Main Street: Lunch from 12:15 to 35 p.m.

Hope at Brick House, 1431 N. Ripley Street: Breakfast from 8:30 to 8:55 a.m.; lunch from 12:15 to 12:35 p.m.

Lincoln Center, 318 E. Eighth Street: Lunch from 12:45 to 1:15 p.m.

Sister Concetta Park, Sixth and Warren streets: Lunch from 12:55 to 1:10 p.m.

Bittner YMCA, 630 E. Fourth Street: Lunch from 11:05 to 11:35 p.m.

Davenport schools will distribute summer meals on a first-come, first-served basis. Meal sites at district buildings will open on Monday, June 17.

This summer, Central High School (1120 Main St. in Davenport) will be the sole outdoor district meal site, hosting breakfast from 7:40-8 a.m. and lunch from noon to 12:20 p.m.

The following indoor district sites will host breakfast from 7:20-8 a.m. and lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 12:20 p.m.:

Adams Elementary School: 3029 N. Division St.

Fillmore Elementary: 7307 N. Pacific Street

Hayes Elementary: 622 S. Concord Street

Garfield Elementary: 902 E. 29th Street

McKinley Elementary: 1716 Kenwood Avenue

Wilson Elementar: 2002 N. Clark Street

Mid City High School: N. Marquette Street

North High: 626 W. 53rd Street

Davenport schools will not offer summer meals on July 4 or July 5.

Photos: Mark Twain Elementary hosts a ribbon cutting and open house 010920-bet-twain-001a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-002a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-003a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-004a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-006a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-007a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-008a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-009a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-010a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-011a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-012a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-013a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-014a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-015a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-016a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-017a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-018a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-019a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-020a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-021a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-022a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-024a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-025a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-026a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-027a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-028a.jpg 010920-bet-twain-029a.jpg
China deplores EU plan to impose provisional duties on Chinese EVs

Xinhua) 08:17, June 13, 2024

BEIJING, June 12 (Xinhua) -- China is strongly dissatisfied with the European Union's plan to impose provisional duties on imports of Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), the commerce ministry said Wednesday, noting the move has ignored facts and World Trade Organization (WTO) rules.

The EU side has ignored China's repeated strong objections, as well as the appeals and dissuasions from the governments and industry in EU member states, said a spokesperson with the Ministry of Commerce (MOC).

"China is deeply concerned and strongly dissatisfied with this development. China's related industries are profoundly disappointed and firmly oppose this," said the spokesperson.

The findings by the European side in the pre-disclosure lacks both factual and legal basis, the spokesperson said, adding that the European Commission has ignored the fact that the Chinese EV industry's advantages stem from openness and competition. The European Commission also disregarded WTO rules, and failed to acknowledge the full cooperation of relevant Chinese enterprises during the investigation, said the spokesperson.

The European Commission, by arbitrarily creating and exaggerating China's "subsidy items" as well as abusing the "facts available," ruled that China offered subsidies at excessively high levels, according to the spokesperson.

Such an action is "blatant protectionism" that will create and escalate trade frictions, said the spokesperson, adding that the move not only undermines the legitimate rights and interests of China's EV industry, but also disrupts and distorts the global automotive industrial and supply chains, including those in the EU.

While holding high the banner of green development in one hand, the European Commission wields the stick of trade protectionism in the other, politicizing economic and trade issues and using them as tools, said the spokesperson. "This violates the consensuses reached by the leaders of China and the EU countries to strengthen cooperation, and will affect the atmosphere of bilateral economic and trade cooperation between China and the EU. It does no good to the interests of EU consumers, and will eventually undermine the overall progress of the EU's green transformation and global cooperation on climate change."

China urges the EU to rectify its wrong-doing immediately, implement the important consensuses reached during the recent China-France-EU trilateral meeting, and address economic and trade frictions through dialogue.

The spokesperson said that China will take all necessary measures to defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
LUSAKA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Zambia intends to establish a special purpose vehicle to spearhead the government's investment and trading in mineral resources in the mining sector, a government spokesperson said Wednesday.

Cornelius Mweetwa, the chief government spokesperson, said the decision was made during a Cabinet meeting Monday.

"(The) Cabinet has since found it necessary to establish a special purpose vehicle for investment in the mining sector in order to move away from the dividend payment model for mineral resources and adopt a production-based sharing mechanism to ensure benefits accrue to the people of Zambia beyond statutory obligations," he said in a statement.

Mweetwa, who is also the minister of information and media, said Zambia has been using the dividend payment model, as a business model for investment in the mining assets.

According to him, the implementation of the new business model will allow for the actual sharing of minerals produced and allow the government to negotiate its own prices for minerals.

He also said that this will guarantee revenue from the same of minerals, ensure correct declaration of mineral composition of consignments designated for export and domestic use as well as guarantee availability of raw materials for local companies engaged in value addition. 
South Dakotans by a wide margin support a constitutional amendment that would change the way the state conducts primary elections, according to a scientific poll of 500 registered voters co-sponsored by South Dakota News Watch.

The statewide survey, also sponsored by the Chiesman Center for Democracy at the University of South Dakota, showed that 55% of respondents favored the plan to change the states election format, with 33% opposed and 12% undecided.

Thats a jump in support from a similarly structured November 2023 poll, which showed 49% supporting the measure, 34% opposed and 17% undecided.

If passed, Amendment H would establish top-two primaries for governor, Congress and state legislative and county races rather than political parties conducting separate primary contests.

All registered voters would be eligible to weigh in on which two candidates advance to the general election. Currently in South Dakota, a voter registered with a political party can only vote in that party's primary. Those registered as non-affiliated can participate in Democratic primaries but not Republican contests.

The main argument for this amendment is fairness, said South Dakota Open Primaries chairman Joe Kirby, a Sioux Falls businessman and government reform advocate. All voters should have an equal voice in electing their representatives and leaders.

Could open primaries hurt Democrats?

The issue has gained prominence in the wake of historically low voter turnout in South Dakotas June 4 primary elections, which featured 44 Republican legislative primaries in addition to county contests but a lack of statewide engagement. There was one Democratic legislative primary in the state.

Just 17% of registered voters in South Dakota cast ballots in the election, including 10% in the states largest county, Minnehaha.

Julia Hellwege, an associate political science professor at USD and director of the Chiesman Center, said Democrats and non-affiliated voters feeling shut out of the process could lead to more willingness to explore alternatives, such as open primaries.

The News Watch poll showed that Amendment H is supported by 82% of Democrats and 59% of independent voters. Republicans arent as convinced that a change is needed, with 40% in favor of open primaries, compared to 43% against and 18% undecided.

Female voters support the measure by a margin of 62% to 28%, compared to men, who support it by a margin of 47% to 38%.

The Legislative Research Council estimated that if Amendment H passes, an average of more than 50,000 additional ballots every two years would be needed to meet voter demand for primary elections.

Its not clear if increased engagement will bring more political balance to South Dakota, where no Democratic candidate has won a statewide election since 2008.

If the feeling is that a Republican is going to win anyway, (open primaries) create a weird incentive for Democrats and Democrat-leaning independents to vote for a moderate Republican, which actually strengthens one-party control, said Hellwege. We already know that Democrats are losing ground and have lost financial support in the state, and this could actually make that worse."

More robust opposition expected

Mason-Dixon Polling and Strategy conducted the survey May 10-13. Those interviewed were selected randomly from a telephone-matched state voter registration list that included both landline and cellphone numbers. Quotas were assigned to reflect voter registration by county. The margin of error is plus or minus 4.5 percentage points.

With a proposed South Dakota abortion amendment drawing most of the controversy and media attention, open primaries mostly flew under the radar during the signature-gathering and certification process.

One of the detractors was South Dakota Freedom Caucus chairman Aaron Aylward, a state representative from Harrisburg, who told News Watch that the proposal would essentially create "two general elections in South Dakota."

Early opposition also came from South Dakota Republican Party chair John Wiik and U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds, who told News Watch that our current primary system has served us well."

Now that the primaries are over and Amendment H is certified for the ballot, more sparks are expected to fly.

Aberdeen businessman Toby Doeden, whose Dakota First PAC was involved in supporting more conservative Republicans against establishment foes in the primaries, said on Facebook that its time to refocus and re-energize and start working on things like the radical ballot initiatives coming up in November.

Doeden, who did not respond to an interview request from News Watch, listed the abortion and open primary amendments as his groups top two targets.

We would not be surprised to face opposition to our proposal to let all voters vote, said Kirby when asked about the Dakota First effort. Some folks like the system that lets 17% of voters decide the outcomes in South Dakota. We don't.

'We have a big job ahead of us'

Other responses in the News Watch/Chiesman poll revealed serious concerns among South Dakota voters about American democracy and the integrity of election systems.

More than 6 in 10 South Dakotans said they were dissatisfied with how democracy is working in the United States, including 32% who said they were very dissatisfied. By party affiliation, 41% of Republicans, 32% of independents and 13% of Democrats said they were very dissatisfied.

As for recent elections, 74% of respondents said they accept the outcome of the 2020 presidential election, with clear party distinctions. While 96% of Democrats and 88% of independents said they accepted President Joe Bidens win over Donald Trump, 58% of Republicans said they did.

Its not uncommon for people of a party label to disagree more with results that don't align with their preferences, said Hellwege. But here were seeing that it goes beyond that to where Republicans in particular are less likely to believe not only in the accuracy of election results but in democracy itself as a system.

Citizen groups such as the South Dakota Canvassing have pushed electoral activism in the state by echoing accusations from conservative media and demanding proof of secure systems, despite no evidence of substantial voter fraud in a state that Trump won in 2020 by 26 points.

Asked in the poll about the most recent election in 2022, only 31% of Republicans said they were confident that the results were counted accurately, compared to 97% of Democrats and 75% of independents.

These are registered voters  thats the more engaged population, said Hellwege. Election administrators, elected officials, practitioners and academics have a big job ahead of us to restore confidence in the accuracy in elections. Rather conclusively, academic research has shown that elections are accurate and free of fraud. We can be confident in the results. And yet even the more engaged registered voters dont believe us. We need to do more.

Counties with key races saw better turnout

Election canvassing in South Dakota has shown that when voters are invested in a specific issue or contest, they'll head to the polls.

Part of the reason for the low 2024 primary turnout was that the Republican and Democratic presidential nominees were already decided, and there were no U.S. Senate or U.S. House primaries to spark voter interest.

In 2008, when the Democratic presidential primary race was still roiling between eventual winner Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, South Dakota's voter turnout was 37%, including 51% among Democrats.

This year, the June 4 primary had a few examples where local issues on the ballot boosted participation in certain counties:

In Davison County, where 41% turnout was among the highest in the state, Mitchell voters weighed in on competitive races for mayor and on a bond issue regarding potential improvements to Lake Mitchell. Both election results were close enough to trigger a possible recount.

Also among the highest-turnout counties was Gregory (39%), where the ballot included an initiated measure on whether elections should be hand counted with paper ballots only, with no electronic voting devices or tabulators. Voters rejected the measure, as did voters in Tripp and Haakon counties, where turnout was 37% and 34%, respectively.

Haakon County auditor Stacy Pinner told News Watch that she was encouraged by the level of civic engagement on the hand-counting issue, and also the outcome.

The results showed that our citizens are confident in how elections are conducted in Haakon County, she said.

Three states use top-two primaries

Supporters of open primaries believe that Amendment H can bring that level of civic engagement to candidate primaries for statewide, legislative and county offices.

Though nearly half of states have some form of open primary system, only three currently use a top-two primary such as the one proposed for South Dakota.

California and Washington use top-two primaries (with party labels included) in races other than presidential contests, while Nebraska uses a nonpartisan primary for state legislative races as part of its unicameral system.

But Kirby points out that South Dakota's primary system is the least accessible for non-affiliated voters among the neighboring states.

"Iowa and Wyoming allow independents to vote in either major party primary," he said. "And in Minnesota, North Dakota and Montana, voters don't designate a party when they register. They choose which party primary they want to vote in when they arrive at the polls. Independent voters in all our neighboring states have a meaningful voice in their primary elections. Not so in South Dakota."

This story was produced by South Dakota News Watch, an independent, nonprofit news organization. Read more in-depth stories at sdnewswatch.org and sign up for an email every few days to get stories as soon as they're published. Contact Stu Whitney at stu.whitney@sdnewswatch.org.
The two children, ages 12 and 6, suffered minor injuries after falling 35 feet into a well located on the 7400 block of Studley Road in Hanover County. After being rescued from the well at 2:14 p.m., both juveniles were taken to a hospital for treatment.
Hanover County Public Schools are moving toward a stricter mobile phone policy designed to end the use of cellphones during the school day.

School staff and administrators discussed having exceptions for special cases, such as translation apps for English language learners and students with diabetes who use their phone to track blood sugar levels.

Steve Ikenberry, who represents the Cold Harbor District on the School Board, said cellphone use is having a profound effect on the emotional health of students. He said the phenomenon has become an addiction and that students are basically living through those devices.

Jennifer Greif, assistant superintendent for instructional leadership, said Hanover school buildings are facing a mobile device pandemic.

Greif said that while phones have become a distraction during class time, their use during breaks is also a major concern. She said one text during a break can cause problems in the next class. Also, Greif said face-to-face social interactions have decreased.

School board members added that an after-school fight originated from texts sent during the school day.

Other school systems taking steps

Schools across the country have started grappling with the idea of eliminating cellphone use from classes.

The Chesapeake school division banned phones and personal devices this school year

Hanover has considered portable locking containers, in classroom locking containers and nonlocking pouches in each classroom. Ultimately, the board and school administration have put forward a plan that would restrict all phone use from the moment students enter the building, until the last bell of the day.

Yondr-branded pouches were estimated to cost $500,000 for all 17,000 students in the division. Several school board members said they were wary of spending that much money on a solution.

School Board member Greg Coleman, who represents the Beaverdam District, said he thinks parents should lead the way in curbing their childrens cellphone use.

I saw this for myself as well, it starts at home, Coleman said. Were not trying to be the heavy fist on this whole thing. This is purely about the love of these children and their mental health. Thats how I see it.

Parents who spoke at Tuesday nights School Board meeting largely agreed with the move to restrict cellphone usage.

Tory Whittaker is the parent of a student at Atlee High School. She hoped the schools wouldnt restrict the use of phones after school.

I have a young junior. She wont have a license until October, Whittaker said. I drop her off on game days. I dont see or hear from her again until 11 at night. She needs a way to contact me.

Mark Kyllingstad told the board that they should do a better job enforcing rules they already have, versus taking devices from students.

Enforce what youve already got in writing, he said. Ive told you numerous times your student code of conduct isnt worth the paper its written on because its not enforced. Enforce what you have now.

I also find it ironic that youre going to tell these kids they cant have a cellphone, but then shove a Chromebook in their face, he said. Whats the difference between their device and your device. Because those kids use their Chromebook for ill just like they use their devices for ill.

Michelle Schmitt said her daughter with dyslexia is one type of student who would need an exemption to any cellphone ban.

She uses her cellphone during silent readings and classes that get done early. She puts it away, she is respectful, Schmitt said. (I dont agree with saying) lock it up and dont use headphones.

July 9 vote expected in Hanover County

School board members said they would be in favor of less severe consequences in elementary schools, compared to middle and high schools. Higher grade levels would have confiscations and suspensions after fewer violations.

What's next? The Hanover County School Board is expected to vote on changes to cellphone policy at their next meeting. When: 7 p.m. on July 9 Where: Hanover County Government Administration Building, 7516 County Complex Road

The School Board is expecting to vote on the matter at its meeting on July 9 for rules to be in place by the start of the upcoming school year.

Staff said they expect enforcement to be tough in the beginning. But Greif, the assistant superintendent, said she thought the students would come to appreciate the rules.

I anticipate that when this gets put into place, and students really do recognize the freedom that they gain by putting their cell phone away, I do believe that after a course of time that they will begin to understand why the decisions have been made and how it is benefiting them, she said.
Adverse weather conditions over the last six months to June 2024 has led to thousands of deaths and an economic loss of $41 billion, at the very least. This is according to a report by Christian Aid that mapped the impact of extreme weather in four of the most affected regions in the world.

East Africa recorded one of the highest levels of rainfall in the recent past resulting in devastating floods and landslides. The report, titled - Climate breakdown 2024: 6 months of Climate Chaos since COP28 - states that the environmental disasters claimed 559 lives and displaced 400,000 others in East Africa.

The heavy rains and flooding killed over 12,000 livestock and destroyed nearly 48,000 acres of cropland in Kenya alone. In Burundi, at least 19,000 homes and 200 classrooms were destroyed, and 10% of the farmland flooded, notes the report.

The above average rainfall resulted in full capacity dams forcing countries like Uganda to release the excess water further downstream. Christian Aid projects that this will cause flooding in countries along the Nile river, especially in South Sudan.

In South Sudan, more than 60% of the population is expected to be food insecure this year. Two million people in the country are internally displaced, with hundreds of thousands more entering the country to avoid conflict in Sudan, warns Christian Aid.

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Other countries in the region that experienced high levels of rainfall include Somalia, Rwanda, Ethiopia and Tanzania - whose coast was hit by Cyclone Hidaya in early May. In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), floods and two major landslides claimed over 317 lives between December 2023 and January 2024.

Citing a climate attribution study, the report links the recent adverse weather conditions to climate change despite El Nino conditions in East Africa. Additionally, poor urban planning and deforestation increased the impact of the floods in cities such as Nairobi, Dar es Salaam and Mogadishu where burst sewers exposed residents to water-borne diseases.

This years floods came after a three-year drought in the region, which was also hit by extreme rainfall in October and November 2023 - two events already found to have been made more severe due to climate change, asserts the Christian Aid report.

Speaking to Christian Daily International, Anglican Alliance Global Lead for Resilience and Disaster Response, Nicholas Pande, said the floods in East Africa exposed the weak disaster preparedness systems.

A majority of the affected persons in Kenya and other parts of the region were along riparian settlements. When the rivers burst their banks, the rescue efforts were slow. Early warning systems could have helped evacuate people from high risk areas in good time, said Pande.

The report calls for urgent implementation of action points agreed in Dubai during the UN climate conference, COP28, in November 2023. Countries agreed to move away from fossil fuels to reduce climate impact, and set up a Loss and Damage fund to compensate countries most affected by climate change.

The countries most vulnerable to climate change cannot afford further delays to deliver COP pledges. At Bonn [Climate Change Conference], countries must agree specific and urgent action to support countries impacted by climate change on adaptation, mitigation and energy transition efforts as well as Loss and Damage, recommends the report.

Other countries and regions that experienced devastating climate-related disasters include Brazil, Southwest Asia and India. In southern Brazil, floods in April and May killed 169 people and displaced over 600,000 others. 56 people are still unaccounted for since then.

In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Dubai received a years worth of rainfall in 24 hours, resulting in unusual flooding that shut the citys busy airport. Flooding at the Dubai International Airport led to over 1,200 flights being canceled. All forms of transport were disrupted, with an estimated $8 billion in aircraft assets exposed on the tarmac. The deluge forced authorities to close schools and businesses, and destroyed commercial real estate and luxury cars, the report said.

India, Bangladesh, Thailand, Palestine, the Philippines, Cambodia and Myanmar faced soaring unprecedented temperatures with some cities recording temperatures of up to 50C in the first quarter of 2024. Schools were shut down and labour productivity impacted across South and SouthEast Asia.
The Virginia Senate will return to special session on Tuesday  10 days earlier than previously announced  to consider a new legislative proposal that would exempt some military families from pending changes in eligibility for educational benefits at public colleges and universities under a state program that waives tuition for survivors and dependents of military veterans either killed or almost fully disabled on active duty.

The surprise announcement by the Senate Democratic Caucus on Thursday sets up a potential confrontation with Gov. Glenn Youngkin and other members of the General Assembly, including some Democrats, by not proposing to repeal changes that the legislature and governor made to eligibility for the fast-growing Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program in the two-year state budget that will take effect on July 1.

Youngkin, whose administration originally proposed the eligibility changes in legislation that the assembly shelved during its regular session, wants to repeal the budget provisions that would limit access to the program benefits  which waive tuition at public colleges and universities for eligible students  while directing a task force to study options for reducing the programs rising costs and protecting other tuition-paying students and their families. The task force held its first meeting last week.

The governor did not respond to the Senate initially on Thursday, but said in a statement on X: Weve heard from Virginia military families and heroes, now its time to come together and for the General Assembly to send me a clean bill that solely and fully repeals and reverses the eligibility changes made to the state program.

A bipartisan group of 18 legislators in the General Assembly Military and Veterans Caucus issued a statement with Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears on Wednesday that called on the legislature to fully restore eligibility for the program before engaging in a rigorous, transparent process to determine potential future action to solidify the programs future. The statement is signed by 12 Republicans and six Democrats, as well as the Republican lieutenant governor.

Take the politics out, bring the temperature down, said Sen. Bryce Reeves, R-Orange, co-chair of the caucus, in a telephone interview from Israel on Thursday morning. Lets get together and fix this.

Reeves introduced legislation on behalf of Youngkin to restrict eligibility for the program, but he revised the proposal to create a work group to study the issue after he realized the magnitude of the proposed changes and their effect on military families. The House Appropriations Committee shelved the bill for the assembly to reconsider next year, but then both chambers included most of the proposed changes in the budgets they adopted in February.

After an outcry by military families and their advocates, Youngkin sought to amend the budget to study the issue instead of changing eligibility standards, but the assembly rejected all of his proposed budget amendments in April as part of a larger political standoff over tax policy. However, the changes were included in the two-year budget that the assembly adopted and the governor signed on May 13.

The timing of the Senates decision poses a challenge because the House of Delegates is not returning to session at the same time and the reconvened session will occur on the same day as Republican and Democratic congressional primaries that include seven sitting legislators who are running for federal office. The House plans to return to session on June 28, as previously announced, and will consider legislation proposed by House Appropriations Chairman Luke Torian, D-Prince William, to repeal the pending budget changes to allow time to study the issue and recommend changes to program eligibility.

I have always been a steadfast supporter of our military servicemen and women, veterans, and their families, ensuring they receive the support they deserve, Torian said in a statement on Thursday. I am sponsoring this legislation to restore the program to its previous form until Governor Youngkins task force provides a comprehensive report and recommendations on how best to sustain this program long-term for veterans and their families.

Senate Finance Chair Louise Lucas, D-Portsmouth, is advocating a different approach, which she said would protect students enrolled in the program this year, while exempting members of Gold Star Families of those killed in active duty, as well as families entitled to line-of-duty benefits for public safety employees and people wounded as a result of military combat.

Her proposal would also require the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia  representing public colleges and universities  to issue official guidance for the program by Aug. 1 and direct the Joint Legislative Audit and Review Commission to review the program and make recommendations for the General Assembly to consider when it convenes in January for a 45-day session. JLARC is the nonpartisan legislative watchdog that the assembly uses to review complex government programs.

This budget was a product of bipartisan collaboration between the General Assembly and the governor, Lucas said in a statement issued by the Senate Democratic Caucus. We are committed to taking this necessary step to rectify unintended consequences as we continue to work together to conduct an independent review to find a long-term solution for the program.

Lucas plan came under immediate attack by Kayla Owen, leader of the Friends of VMSDEP, a coalition of military families that has rebuked both Youngkin and the Democratic-controlled General Assembly for approving changes to the program without a full hearing that includes families who would be affected.

The idea that Senator Lucas thinks it is acceptable to go rogue on this issue makes it clear she does not value veterans, Owen said in a text message. She is excluding an entire population whose lives have been severely impacted to the point the (Veterans Administration) has determined them to be 90-100% totally and permanently disabled.

People excluded include: victims of military sexual trauma, any training accidents or deaths, first responders, women and people suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, she said.

Senate Democratic leaders also emphasized their support of military veterans and their families, who make up a significant part of the population in a state with a heavy military presence and reliance on federal defense spending.

Senate Democrats are proud to support Virginias commitment to becoming the most veteran-friendly state in America, said Senate Majority Leader Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax, whose Northern Virginia district is home to many active-duty military members, veterans and retirees.

Senate Democratic Caucus Chair Mamie Locke, D-Hampton, who formally called the Senate back into session as chair of the Senate Rules Committee, emphasized that the pending budget includes the first appropriation of state funds to support the program  an additional $20 million a year to help pay for the rising cost of the program to colleges and universities, including Virginia Commonwealth University.

As the Education Subcommittee Chair for the Senate Finance and Appropriations Committee, I am committed to ensuring higher education is affordable for all students, Locke said in a statement.

The General Assembly expanded eligibility for the 94-year-old program in 2019 to include survivors and dependents of military veterans who became 90% disabled in active duty. Since then, the number of students in the program has quadrupled and its costs have risen from $12 million to $65.3 million a year, according to a recent report by the appropriations committee staff.

However, military families question the cost estimates and whether they increased tuition for students not covered by the program. They have also publicly condemned the legislative process that slipped far-reaching changes to program eligibility into the budget that the assembly passed and Youngkin signed last month.

We recognize that current and prospective VMSDEP enrollees have been rightfully angered and confused by the lack of transparency surrounding the new program requirements and the grandfather clause in the budgetary language, the assemblys military and veterans caucus said in its statement. Any potential changes should have had their fiscal and community impacts clearly articulated to the public before being finalized.

Veterans are honored at ceremony in Richmond 111123-rtd-met-veterans 111123-rtd-met-veterans 111123-rtd-met-veterans 111123-rtd-met-veterans 111123-rtd-met-veterans 111123-rtd-met-veterans 111123-rtd-met-veterans 111123-rtd-met-veterans 111123-rtd-met-veterans
Kidnapping suspect of six Cancun tourists to stand trial

Cancun, Q.R.  A suspect in the kidnapping of six Brazilian tourists and one Mexican national will stand trial after being formally charged. On Wednesday, local authorities announced the official charges against Brian Alejandro N to proceedings for his probable participation in events that could constitute the crime of kidnapping of seven people, one of Mexican nationality and six Brazilians.

Brian Alejandro N is accused of the kidnappings that occurred on May 20 of the current year outside a central Cancun bus station. According to local police, the first investigations, four men and two women from Brazil, requested transportation service through a digital platform. Once on board the vehicle, they were intercepted by two taxi units at the intersection of Pino Street and Tulum Avenue.

The group of six tourists and their Mexican driver where loaded into another vehicle and driven to an area adjacent to Lopez Portillo Avenue where they were physically assaulted and robbed of their personal belongings.

In a statement, local authorities reported that while the victims were tortured and harassed, the alleged kidnappers recorded videos that they sent to the relatives of the Brazilians to demand various amounts of money.

The Brazilian victims received assistance in the way of shelter and food during the time they were under protection to testify before a Cancun judge.

The judge has ordered Brian Alejandro N to remain in preventive detention for a period of two years pending trial. Police have not said if the vehicle interception and subsequent kidnappings were targeted or a random attack.
State announces new Felipe Carrillo Puerto General Hospital

Felipe Carrillo Puerto, Q.R.  A new General Hospital for Felipe Carrillo Puerto has been announced. Governor Mara Lezama Espinosa toured the land Wednesday where the New General Hospital of Felipe Carrillo Puerto is being built.

We have started the construction of this much-needed hospital for the extraordinary people of this municipality, she said.

During the tour, Lezama reported that to provide quality and efficient service, the hospital will have 14 outpatient clinics, clinical laboratories, an X-ray, tomography, ultrasound, mammography and 60 hospital beds.

The new hospital is being built next to the Maya Train station. Photo: Governor Lezama June 12, 2024.

The Governor stated that when corruption is fought, the peoples money goes further and shared prosperity is reflected in projects built at the service of the people.

In the meantime, the old General Hospital of Felipe Carrillo Puerto has been upgraded.

In the meantime, the old General Hospital was updated with new equipment. Photo: CGC June 12, 2024.

After several years of lack of investment in medical and quality equipment, the FCP General Hospital was rehabilitated in fundamental areas such as outpatient consultation, hospitalization, emergencies, mammography, X-rays and laundry, Lezama said.
Triggerman hospitalized for accidently shooting himself during the murder of Playa del Carmen woman

Playa del Carmen, Q.R.  Local police have confirmed the arrests of two men for the murder of a Playa del Carmen woman Wednesday. The woman was found shot to death behind the wheel of her red minivan after being chased.

The unidentified female driver was chased by two men on a motorcycle at Lilis Avenue. She eventually turned into a gas station parking lot where they located and shot her several times through the drivers side window.

She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police began a search for the men and their red motorcycle reported by witnesses. The pair were found hiding inside a building in the In House residential area in west Playa del Carmen. One of the men was bleeding from a self-inflicted bullet wound.

The man, believed to be the shooter, accidentally shot himself when he slipped climbing back on the motorcycle to escape the murder scene.

One man was found bleeding after accidently shooting himself in the leg. Photo: June 12, 2024.

Guadalupe N, 45 from Chiapas and Fabricio N, 30 from Tabasco, were arrested from inside a home in the irregular residential area of In House.

Guadalupe N was transferred to public security while Fabricio N: was transferred to the General Hospital for treatment after accidentally shooting himself in the leg.

In a statement, the SSC (Seguridad Ciudadana Solidaridad) said the Municipal Police of Solidaridad implemented an immediate reaction operation that resulted in the arrest of the subjects who possibly participated in an alleged confrontation on Avenida Constituyentes with Avenida Lilis, where a woman lost her life apparently with a firearm.

The woman was pronounced dead at the scene. Photo: June 12, 2024.

They were located when they tried to flee. One of the detainees has a gunshot wound for which he received medical attention and was transferred to the hospital.

The prompt reaction of the officers allowed the location and securing of Guadalupe N 45 years old, originally from Chiapas and Fabricio N 30 years old, from Tabasco in a property of the In House colony, who had in their possession 2 useful cartridges.

Police did not provide details or a motive surrounding the armed attack that left the woman dead.
Much has been said about William Anders, the astronaut who died recently at 90, when the plane he was flying solo crashed in the waters off Orcas Island in northwestern Washington state. He was a fighter pilot turned space explorer. A member of the first manned flight to the moon. A nuclear engineer and adviser to presidents.

He likely did not consider himself an artist. Yet Anders is best known as the creator of a photograph so breathtaking it changed human history, or at least the way we understand ourselves within history.

He was 35 years old, scrunched into an 11-by-13 space capsule orbiting the moon with two other men on Christmas Eve 1968, when it happened. Anders had been assigned to shoot the pocked lunar surface. But on the team's fourth circuit, the orientation of their Apollo 8 spacecraft shifted, and a startling image came into view.

Rising behind the moon's drab craters was a blue orb shining in the vast dark of space. Earth, a quarter-million miles away. Down there, as today, people were divided and angry, often violent. America was entangled in war. Leaders preaching peace had been assassinated. People demonstrated in the streets.

But from Anders' perspective, Earth emerged as an oasis in the darkness, improbable and miraculous.

"Wow, that's pretty," he said, scrambling for his camera.

Anders, who retired in Anacortes, Washington, would later describe the moment in poignant detail.

"The Earth we saw rising over the battered gray lunar surface was small and delicate," he said, "a magnificent spot of color in the vast blackness. Borders that once rendered division vanished. All of humanity appeared joined together on this glorious-but-fragile sphere."

He was career military, an Air Force lieutenant ordered to take specific shots of the moon in black and white. Instead, Anders followed his gut. He popped a roll of color film into his camera, pointed a long lens at the space capsule window and started improvising, hoping to capture what he was seeing, convey what he was feeling.

The resulting image, "Earthrise," shows our planet glowing in infinite space, vulnerable yet serene.

"Borders and division are merely a matter of perspective," Anders wrote 50 years later, on Christmas Eve 2018: "We are bound to a planet we all must share. We are all, together, stewards of this fragile treasure."

His vision altered the perspective of millions. It is widely credited with inspiring the environmental movement. And it is surely one of history's more poetic ironies that a man who once considered himself an arch cold warrior created an image symbolizing our collective experience, a lasting reminder of our unity as part of the human family.
A young Catholic mothers eyes welled up with tears and her hands shook as she recalled how a Muslim in Pakistan kidnapped her and tried to force her to convert to Islam and marry him.

A 20-year-old mother of a 3-year-old girl and an 18-month old boy in Okara District, Punjab Province, [First name withheld for security reasons] Masih was abducted from her fathers home in Chak No. 11/4L village on April 17 by five Muslims  Ali Raza, Muhammad Irshaad, Riaz Ahmed, Muhammad Imran and one unidentified person, she said.

I was staying at my fathers house since September after separating from my husband due to some family issues, Masih told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. On April 17, my parents had gone to visit some relatives in the evening, and I was alone in the house when the accused scaled the wall and abducted me on gunpoint.

They took her by car to a deserted government school, where Ali Raza raped her while his armed accomplices stood guard, she said.

Ali Raza lives in the same village, and he had been trying to force me to develop illicit relations with him whenever I used to go out for chores, she said. I told my father about this, and he had raised the issue with the village elders. However, our pleas for intervention were ignored, emboldening him further.

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After raping her, Raza took her to Lahore along with his accomplices, where they held her captive in a hotel room for three days, she said.

During this time, Ali Raza continued to rape me on gunpoint, she said. He beat me up when I resisted him and threatened that he would kill my parents if I screamed or called for help.

The distressed woman said that the accused then took her to his home in Okara where he and his accomplices tried to force her to convert to Islam and marry him by forcibly taking her thumbprint as a signature on a blank paper.

They wanted me to surrender to their demands so that if there was any legal issue, they could claim that I had eloped with Ali Raza and converted and married him with my will, she said. Even though they tortured me to take my thumbprint, I refused to renounce my faith and told them that I will not deny Christ come what may.

Angered by her refusal and fearing arrest, the suspects drove her to Quetta city, in Balochistan Province, about 900 kilometers (560 miles) from Okara District.

On our way, we were stopped at several police pickets [checkpoints], but Ali Raza warned me not to raise alarm, threatening that he would kill me instantly, she said.

After driving for nearly 20 hours, they stopped at a restaurant to eat and then left her there, she said.

I only came to know that I was in Quetta when I asked some men about the location, Masih said. I had no money and didnt know what to do. I was all alone in a completely strange city, my mind was already numb due to the mental and physical trauma, and I wasnt able to think of anything. I was so lost that I couldnt even recall any contact number for my family.

She was sitting on a roadside wondering what would become of her when a Muslim woman, Shumaila Bibi, saw her and approached her.

She asked me why I was sitting there, Masih said. When I told her what I had gone through, she offered to give me shelter in her house. Putting my faith in the Lord, I agreed, and she took me to her home in Loralai city, about 270 kilometers from Quetta, on a bus.

It took her some days to heal and regain clarity of thought, after which she phoned her father and told him what had happened, she said. The greatly relieved father, Gulsher Masih, said he would come for her, but it took him some days to raise donations from relatives for bus fare, she said.

A daily wage laborer, Masih said that he and his wife had almost given up hope of seeing their daughter when they received her phone call.

As days passed by without no information about her whereabouts and well-being, our hopes started to fade, but we kept on praying nonetheless, Gulsher Masih told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. When I heard her voice after 10-11 days, I cannot express how relieved I felt despite the pain of hearing what she had been through.

Gulsher Masih was finally able to raise money to travel to Loralai and bring his daughter back. Of the Muslim woman who took care of his daughter, he said, I can never thank her enough for treating my daughter like her own.

He had repeatedly tried to file a case with police and also took the matter to village elders, he said. Raza kept returning to his home during her disappearance, so his family was able to convince the elders and police that he was innocent and that Masih had eloped with someone else, he said.

Ali Raza denied before the elders that he had abducted her, Masih told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. He also tried to malign her reputation, saying that she must have eloped with someone, and I was wrongly blaming him for her disappearance.

After her return, Gulsher Masih sought help from legal advocacy group Christians True Spirit (CTS) to register a case against Raza and his alleged accomplices, he said.

However, they have obtained pre-arrest bail and are threatening me to withdraw the case or face the consequences, Gulsher Masih said. No matter what happens I will not stop the legal pursuit till my daughter gets justice from the court.

CTS lead lawyer Nadeem Hassan said Masih recorded her statement before a magistrate.

She has categorically denied converting to Islam and marrying Raza, Hassan told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News, adding that her case was another example of how abductors-rapists use religious conversion and Islamic marriage to escape criminal prosecution.

Hassan said he is hopeful that Okara Additional Sessions Judge Ishrat Abbas will cancel the bail of the suspects and order their arrest.

Her statement regarding her forced religious conversion, marriage and rape cannot be ignored by the court, and we are hoping that the judge will order addition of all relevant sections in the FIR, he said.

Pakistan ranked seventh on Open Doors 2024 World Watch List of the most difficult places to be a Christian, as it was the previous year.
After traveling from Ecuador to access care from leading sarcoma experts at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center  Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute, 20-year-old Andrea Najas partnered with Joel Mayerson, MD, to bring the world-class treatment she received to those in her home country. Credit: The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center

In 2020 during pandemic-caused lockdowns, Andrea Najas, then 17, was trying online exercises from her home in Ecuador.

"I started to do some workouts and moving a lot more, and I developed this strange, sharp pain above my knee," said Najas, now 20. "I didn't think much of it at first, but one afternoon, I couldn't move my leg at all. That's when I started to get really concerned."

After a trip to a physical therapist led to an MRI, Najas received news no teen expects to hear. The diagnosis was osteosarcoma, a rare type of cancer that affects mostly kids and young adults.

With few options at home in Ecuador, Najas and her parents opted to travel thousands of miles to seek lifesaving care from leading sarcoma experts at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer CenterArthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute (OSUCCCJames).

Throughout Najas' treatment, the destination medicine program at the OSUCCCJames helped arrange travel, appointments and housing to support her and her family as they navigated months-long treatment in an unfamiliar city, thousands of miles from their home.

During her time in Columbus, Najas was under the care of Joel Mayerson, MD, orthopedic oncologist and director of the sarcoma program at OSUCCCJames and a team of specialists.

With few options at home, teen travels thousands of miles for cancer care. Now 20 and cancer free, she partnered with her doctor to bring the latest treatments to her home country. Credit: The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center

"The standard treatment for osteosarcoma is about 10 weeks of chemotherapy, and then a surgical procedure where the osteosarcoma and a large part of the bone is removed and then reconstructed," said Mayerson.

Najas underwent nine rounds of chemotherapy before her surgery in January 2021. After surgery, she had another nine rounds of chemo and physical therapy.

"During Andrea's care, I was able to take advantage of a newer technique where we load her imaging studies into a 3D printer to custom design personalized cutting guides so we could get the exact location and size of where we wanted to cut her bone to remove all the cancer," said Mayerson. He then used a cadaver bone to rebuild Najas' femur bone.

With few options at home in Ecuador, Andrea Najas traveled thousands of miles to access lifesaving care from leading sarcoma experts at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center  Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute. Credit: The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center

A plan to bring the latest sarcoma care to Ecuador

Eventually, Najas was able to resume life as a young college student. Now cancer-free, Najas and her parents have partnered with Mayerson to start a collaborative board of oncologists in Ecuador with the goal to bring the latest in sarcoma care to the country. The collaborative also includes a fellowship program that trains Ecuadorian physicians in advanced sarcoma care.

The first visiting fellow from Ecuador to train alongside Mayerson is Carlos Cordero, MD, sarcoma surgeon with the Society for the Fight Against Cancer of Ecuador, also known as SOLCA, or the National Cancer Institute equivalent in Ecuador. Cordero has been with the OSUCCCJames since fall 2023 and plans to return to Ecuador in September 2024 armed with knowledge gained from his time with Mayerson and the Ohio State sarcoma team.

"I'm here to train in the latest in sarcoma care and treatment, and to learn everything I can to bring that back to my country so we can build the program in Ecuador," said Cordero. "It is going to take time and effort. This is the first step in trying to replicate the program that Dr. Mayerson and the team here at Ohio State has built."

"Ecuador is a small country where we have a lot of potential," said Cordero. "We have really amazing surgeons and I've been blessed to learn from my boss, but it's totally different here in the United States. The resources here do not compare to anything I have ever seen. And to get to share that knowledge doesn't have a price."

To learn more about cancer treatment and clinical trials at the OSUCCCJames, visit cancer.osu.edu.

Provided by Ohio State University Medical Center
By Jose Devasia and Chris Thomas

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, India (Reuters) - From a father-of-two who planned to leave his job to a 29-year-old due to visit his family in August, two dozen Indians from the southern state of Kerala died in a fire that ripped through a labour-housing facility in Kuwait on Wednesday, leaving their families bereft.

Around 40 Indians died in the blaze, which also killed at least 9 other people in Mangaf city, while more than 50 were injured, according to India's foreign ministry. Most of the Indian victims came from Kerala.

Norka Roots, a government agency for Keralites living outside the state, put the number of the state's dead at 24 with seven others injured and their condition serious. The federal government had arranged a special flight to bring the bodies, Norka Secretary K Vasuki said.

Among the Keralite victims was Muralidharan Nair, who had been working in Kuwait for 32 years, including 10 as a senior supervisor in the company that owned the housing facility where the fire broke out.

"He came on leave in December for two months with a plan to end his career in Kuwait. The company called him back," his brother, Vinu V Nair, told Reuters, adding that the family identified the 61-year-old from a list published by India's embassy. His two roommates also died in the blaze.

Millions of foreign workers make up the majority of the labour force in Kuwait and some of its Gulf neighbours, and often live in overcrowded accommodation.

For decades, a disproportionately large share of Indian workers in the Gulf have been drawn from Kerala, a densely packed state along southern India's Arabian Sea coast.

News of the disaster spread quickly in Kerala. The family of Saju Varghese, 56, found out about the fire from television and social media, and confirmed his death from friends and relatives in Kuwait.

Working in the Gulf nation for the last 21 years, Varghese planned to visit Kerala later this month to arrange his daughter's higher education.

"The family is in a state of shock," their neighbour, George Samuel, said.

Another victim, Stephin Abraham Sabu, 29, was an engineer in Kuwait since 2019 and called home almost daily.

He had visited his hometown Kottayam "two or three times" since he left, and had booked air tickets to return in August for the housewarming of his family's new home and to help them buy a new car, his friends said.

Sabu's father has a small shop in Kottayam while his mother is a housewife. His brother, Febin, also works in Kuwait but lived separately.

Authorities in Kuwait have not officially disclosed the nationalities of those who died. The other dead included three Filipino workers, the Philippine migrant workers ministry said on Thursday, adding that two others were hospitalised and in critical condition.

(Additional reporting by Mikhail Flores in Manila; Writing by Sakshi Dayal)
Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama arrives for his visit to the Tibet Institute Rikon in Rikon

By Shivam Patel, Michael Martina and David Brunnstrom

NEW DELHI/WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican Representative Michael McCaul is expected to lead a bipartisan U.S. congressional delegation to India in the coming days, where he and other lawmakers, including Democratic former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, plan to meet Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama.

McCaul, Pelosi and a group of other U.S. lawmakers will visit Dharamsala  the town in the northern Indian Himalayas where the 88-year-old Tibetan monk lives in exile - from June 18-19, an official of the Tibetan government in-exile, known as the Central Tibetan Administration, told Reuters.

The meeting comes days ahead of a planned trip by the Dalai Lama to the U.S. to undergo medical treatment for his knees, but it is unclear whether he will have any engagements during that time.

U.S. lawmakers have regularly visited Dharamsala and touted the Nobel Peace Prize-winning Dalai Lama's work to draw global support for linguistic and cultural autonomy in his remote, mountainous homeland. China considers him a dangerous separatist.

The lawmakers' trip is likely to coincide with a separate visit to India by top Biden administration officials, including National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan and Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, who have sought to boost U.S.-India ties amid Washington's growing rivalry with Beijing.

McCaul's office did not respond immediately to a request for comment. Pelosi's office said it could not confirm or deny any upcoming travel due to longstanding security policies.

Spokespersons for the U.S. State Department and the White House National Security Council did not immediately respond when asked about Sullivan and Campbell's trip and whether they planned to meet the Dalai Lama, or whether President Joe Biden or other U.S. officials would meet him in the U.S.

The Dalai Lama has met U.S. officials, including U.S. presidents, during previous visits to the U.S., but Biden has not met him since taking office in 2021.

As a candidate in 2020, Biden criticized Donald Trump for being the only president in three decades who had not met or spoken with the Tibetan spiritual leader, calling it "disgraceful."

Any such engagement would likely anger Beijing at a time when the U.S. and China have sought to stabilize rocky ties.

The Dalai Lama fled to India in 1959 after a failed uprising against Chinese rule in Tibet. Chinese officials chafe at any interaction he has with officials from other countries.

Last week, China's Washington embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu said Beijing "firmly opposes any anti-China separatist activities conducted by Dalai in any capacity or name in any country, and opposes any forms of contact by officials of any country with him."

(Reporting by Shivam Patel in New Delhi and Michael Martina and David Brunnstrom in Washington; Editing by Don Durfee and Daniel Wallis)
As blockchain technology becomes prominent, Iowa is evolving as a hub of innovation. Sioux City is positioning itself to be a big player in the future of cryptocurrency. Factors like strategic location, a skilled workforce, and an environment conducive to business have made Sioux City a destination for blockchain startups.

Blockchain's Potential Impact on Local Businesses

Blockchain technology, which underpins cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, has the potential to streamline operations and increase efficiency for businesses in Sioux City. By leveraging the security and transparency of blockchain, local companies may be able to reduce costs, optimize supply chain management, and enhance customer trust. Blockchain's decentralized nature could help mitigate fraud and improve data integrity across various industries. The technology's ability to create immutable records and facilitate secure transactions has the potential to revolutionize the way businesses operate in Sioux City and beyond.

Binance and the Crypto Market

As one of the world's leading cryptocurrency exchanges, Binance has played a significant role in the growth and development of the crypto market. The exchange has witnessed the Bitcoin price increase over time, with the flagship cryptocurrency reaching record highs in recent years. Bitcoin's price has experienced volatile fluctuations, from around $1,000 in early 2017 to nearly $20,000 by the end of that year. Despite the market's volatility, the long-term trend may suggest a growing interest in cryptocurrencies and their underlying blockchain technology. As more individuals and institutions in Sioux City embrace cryptocurrencies, the demand for secure and reliable exchanges like Binance is expected to rise.

Educational Initiatives and Workforce Development

Initiatives in Sioux City aim to equip individuals with the skills and knowledge needed to succeed in the rapidly evolving world of blockchain and cryptocurrencies. The Wall Street Journal has highlighted the increasing demand for blockchain-related skills in the job market, with companies across various sectors seeking talented professionals who can navigate this emerging technology. Several of Sioux City's educational institutions are responding to this demand by offering courses and programs focused on blockchain and its applications.

Regulatory Landscape and Challenges

As the blockchain industry continues to grow in Sioux City and beyond, regulatory challenges remain a key concern for businesses and investors. The lack of clear guidelines and the evolving nature of the regulatory landscape can create uncertainty for those looking to enter the market. CNN has reported on the efforts of government agencies and policymakers to establish a framework for regulating cryptocurrencies and blockchain-based applications, hoping to protect consumers and prevent illicit activities. Some of Sioux City's business and political leaders are working to create a supportive and transparent regulatory environment that encourages innovation while ensuring compliance with state and federal laws.

The Future of Blockchain in Sioux City

Despite some challenges, the future of blockchain in Sioux City looks promising. As more businesses and individuals recognize the potential benefits of this technology, the city is well-positioned to become a leader in the industry. Some have noted that the decentralized nature of blockchain aligns with the entrepreneurial spirit and innovative mindset of the Midwest, making cities like Sioux City attractive destinations for blockchain startups and investors. The city's growing blockchain ecosystem, which includes startups, established companies, and supportive organizations, is fostering collaboration and driving innovation in the sector.

As the blockchain industry continues to evolve, Sioux City is poised to play a significant role in shaping its future. By embracing this transformative technology and fostering innovation, Sioux City may become a model for other cities looking to harness the power of blockchain and cryptocurrencies.

The publisher does not represent or warrant that information in this content is accurate or complete as this article was provided by an outside contributor. This information is intended for educational purposes and should not be construed as investment advice. As with all investments, there is risk, and the past performance of a particular asset class does not guarantee any future performance. The views, thoughts and opinions in this contributor content belong solely to the content provider.

Lee Enterprises newsroom and editorial were not involved in the creation of this content.
SIOUX CITY  The Inclusive Sioux City Advisory Committee is down two more members since April.

LaShawna Moyle, who served as chair, resigned on April 12, two days after the committee held its first monthly meeting at City Hall without Semehar Ghebrekidan. Ghebrekidan, the city's first cultural inclusion liaison, was subsequently fired on May 28 after serving a more than three-month suspension.

Jim Jung, another committee member, resigned on June 1, which brings the 12-member committee's membership down to nine. Glenn Moore Jr.'s term expired in December 2023.

Just seven of the remaining members are voting members, as Sioux City Councilman Matthew O'Kane and City Manager Bob Padmore also sit on the committee, but are non-voting members. The current voting members are: Angel Wallace (NAACP), Margarite Reinert (Unity in the Community), Trisha Rivers (Native American community), Erica Carter (disability community), Sara Berntson (LGBTQ community), Ricardo Osorio (Latinx community) and Peggy La (Asian community).

Two of the vacancies on the committee are for Sioux City residents at large, while the other is for a member representing the religious community.

"I've been on day one with the Inclusive Committee, and I think the ship has gotten off course with the firing of the liaison. I fully support her," Jung said of Ghebrekidan Tuesday. "I think there's some differences in ideas with the committee and the council and the city manager."

Moyle did not immediately return a message from a Journal reporter seeking comment about her resignation from the committee.

Ghebrekidan had been on administrative leave since Feb. 21. She was ultimately fired for violating general standards of conduct, work rules, Iowa code and city administrative policy, according to documents obtained by The Journal. Since she was hired in 2021, Ghebrekidan oversaw the committee, which provides guidance to the City Council on matters relating to diversity, equity and inclusion.

During the investigation into Ghebrekidan, city officials and council members said little publicly about her suspension.

The documents obtained by The Journal revealed the allegations against Ghebrekidan included sharing portions of a confidential investigation report with outside individuals, attempting to log into City Manager Bob Padmore's International City/County Management Association account and representing herself as a city official on a private consulting business' website.

Jung called the members of the committee a "powerful" and "committed" group of people.

"And with the liaison they had a powerful person," he said.

More resignations coming?

The Journal obtained an email Councilman Alex Watters sent to members of the Inclusive Sioux City Advisory Committee on June 7, which mentioned the resignations.

"I recognize that there has been some changes in the membership of this committee and that some people have felt it necessary to resign. Furthermore, I understand that more individuals may feel it necessary to resign as well," Watters wrote in the email.

"To be fully transparent, I have felt very called to step away from this committee because of the lack of trust I feel; however, I have been able to find a better perspective in the last couple of weeks and recognize that sometimes the work is difficult and I don't always agree with what people will say or the actions they take, this work is essential to the betterment of our community and I want to do what I can to lead by example and be a part of the solution rather than the problem."

Watters added that he remains "dedicated to the inclusive efforts."

"I believe we can do a better job about recruiting and retaining staff members that reflect our community as well as creating an inclusive environment in our community, where everyone feels welcome and celebrated. Unfortunately, I remain deeply troubled by the misinformation and misinterpretation that was so quickly spread and the mistrust that I now feel due to the actions of some. I recognize some of you may be feeling that mistrust as well," he wrote.

Watters also wrote that he understands the "urge to move quickly to get back to work and look to hire a new inclusive liaison," but doesn't want to "act in haste."

"I look forward to all of us gathering together soon in an informal capacity to have a discussion regarding our work moving forward," he wrote.

The idea for the Inclusive Sioux City Advisory Committee came out of meetings between city staff and Sioux City NAACP leadership in the wake of protests that erupted in May 2020, following the death of George Floyd, a Black man who was killed by an ex-Minneapolis police officer. The talks were designed to explore how the city could begin moving forward.
Five Christian sanitation workers in Pakistan have died since Tuesday (June 11) from inhaling toxic gases, highlighting how they are forced to work without proper safety equipment, sources said.

Irfan Masih, Ratan Masih and Babar Masih succumbed on Wednesday (June 12) to the poisonous gases while cleaning a sewer disposal well in the Satellite Town area of Bhalwal in Sargodha District, Punjab Province. A fourth Christian worker, Naeem Masih, was in critical condition at Sargodha District Headquarters Hospital.

In Sindh Province, Christians Yunus Hidayat and Yunus Masih, and a Hindu, Badal Gujrati, died on Tuesday (June 11) after they inhaled toxic gases.

The tragedy in Punjab Province struck when a supervisor forced the workers to enter a well without proper safety equipment. Families of the deceased workers later staged a protest by placing the workers bodies in front of the Bhalwal municipal office.

The protesters demanded Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif order an inquiry and take action against those responsible for the deaths. They also demanded the government provide safety equipment to sewer workers, lamenting that dozens have died due to toxic gases without any action taken to address the dangers.

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Our brothers continue to die in manholes. but their deaths have failed to move the government, said Sikandar Farman, a Christian who was formerly a member of the Bhalwal Municipal Committee. How many more lives will it take for the authorities to understand the plight of these workers?

Punjab Minister for Minority Affairs Ramesh Singh Arora said the government regretted the deaths of the workers and would ensure provision of the safety equipment.

This is a very unfortunate incident, and Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif has announced a compensation of 3 million Pakistani Rupees [US$10,765) for the victims, Arora told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News. She has also sought a report on the incident from the authorities concerned.

He added that the government directed doctors to ensure best possible medical treatment for Naeem Masih and wished him an early recovery.

Deaths in Sindh Province

A day before the deaths in Bhalwal, two Christians and a Hindu died of asphyxia while cleaning a clogged manhole in Tando Muhammad Khan town in Hyderabad, Sindh Province.

Christians Yunus Hidayat and Yunus Masih, and a Hindu, Badal Gujrati, were cleaning a gutter near a mosque when they inhaled toxic gases and died. Masih left behind his wife and five children, while Hidayat was married but living alone. Gujrati is survived by his wife and an 18-month-old son, sources said.

The deaths triggered angry protest by relatives, who staged a sit-in that blocked the Tando Mohammad Khan-Badin road for four hours, severely disrupting traffic. Seven protesters, including three women, fainted due to the scorching heat during the blockade.

Tando Muhammad Khan Municipal Committee Chairman Syed Shahnawaz Shah told protesters the government would provide compensation of 300,000 rupees (US$1,077) for each deceased worker and promised jobs for their heirs. He promised further compensation from the Sindh government, after which the protesters dispersed.

Shah said at a later press conference the formation of a seven-member committee to investigate the deaths.

Marginalized Christians in Muslim-majority Pakistan often work the lowest paid, dirtiest and most dangerous jobs without proper protective equipment. Rights activists say that despite repeated assurances by the government, working conditions of sewer workers have shown no improvement.

Such incidents involving sanitary workers are not new; they have been happening for years, said Sunil Gulzar, a Christian working for the rights of sanitation workers. Many sewer workers have died or suffered serious and disabling injuries or health problems because they were not provided with safety equipment.

Gulzar told Christian Daily International-Morning Star News that sanitation workers were one of the most marginalized segments of Pakistani society.

We have been making efforts for years to persuade the government to provide special protection gear to these workers, but all we get is assurances, he said. It seems as if the lives of these workers do not matter to the state.

Christian sanitation workers Shan and Asif Masih died from toxic gases on March 17 in Faisalabad.

Pakistan ranked seventh on Open Doors 2024 World Watch List of the most difficult places to be a Christian, as it was the previous year.
Skeptical Science New Research for Week #24 2024

Posted on 13 June 2024 by Doug Bostrom, Marc Kodack

Open access notables

Wildfire smoke impacts lake ecosystems, Farruggia et al., Global Change Biology:

We introduce the concept of the lake smoke-day, or the number of days any given lake is exposed to smoke in any given fire season, and quantify the total lake smoke-day exposure in North America from 2019 to 2021. Because smoke can be transported at continental to intercontinental scales, even regions that may not typically experience direct burning of landscapes by wildfire are at risk of smoke exposure. We found that 99.3% of North America was covered by smoke, affecting a total of 1,333,687 lakes 10 ha. An incredible 98.9% of lakes experienced at least 10 smoke-days a year, with 89.6% of lakes receiving over 30 lake smoke-days, and lakes in some regions experiencing up to 4 months of cumulative smoke-days. Herein we review the mechanisms through which smoke and ash can affect lakes by altering the amount and spectral composition of incoming solar radiation and depositing carbon, nutrients, or toxic compounds that could alter chemical conditions and impact biota.

From Denial to the Culture Wars: A Study of Climate Misinformation on YouTube, de Nadal, Environmental Communication:

Climate change is becoming a new front in the culture wars, with YouTube as one of its key arenas. Centered on an Alternative Influence Network orbiting Spains right-wing populist party Vox, this article examines the underexplored role of YouTube political influencers in propagating climate misinformation. Using thematic analysis, it uncovers instances of post-denial narratives that accept the reality of climate change while targeting climate policy and the climate movement, often through conspiracy theories and misogynistic rhetoric. Disagreements extend beyond policy specifics, intertwining with ongoing culture wars against a woke wave encompassing feminism, anti-racism, and now environmentalism. Amidst escalating opposition to Net Zero policies, the study sheds light on how these climate narratives reinforce us vs them binaries and appeal to feelings of resentment among young white males disoriented by rapid cultural change, who increasingly turn to YouTube for news and community.

Climate changes and food-borne pathogens: the impact on human health and mitigation strategy, Awad et al., Climatic Change:

The impact of climate change on food-borne pathogens is multifaceted and includes changes in the environment, agriculture, and human behavior. This review article examines the effect of climate change on food-borne pathogens, explores the connection between climate change and food-borne illness, records the current evidence on the effects of climate change on food-borne pathogens and potential consequences for human health, highlights knowledge gaps and areas for further research, and summarizes the strategies for mitigation and adaptation.

Uncertain Pathways to a Future Safe Climate, Sherwood et al., Earth's Future:

Global climate change is often thought of as a steady and approximately predictable physical response to increasing forcings, which then requires commensurate adaptation. But adaptation has practical, cultural and biological limits, and climate change may pose unanticipated global hazards, sudden changes or other surprisesas may societal adaptation and mitigation responses. These poorly known factors could substantially affect the urgency of mitigation as well as adaptation decisions. We outline a strategy for better accommodating these challenges by making climate science more integrative, in order to identify and quantify known and novel physical risks including those arising from interactions with ecosystems and society. We need to do this evenor especiallywhen they are highly uncertain, and to explore risks and opportunities associated with mitigation and adaptation responses by engaging across disciplines. We argue that upcoming climate assessments need to be more risk-aware, and suggest ways of achieving this.

From this week's government and NGO section:

Navigating the Transition to Net-zero Emissions in Southeast Asia  Energy Security, the Role of Gaseous Energy Carriers and Renewables-based Electrification, Fekete et al., German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action:

The authors emphasize that rapid expansion of renewable electricity and electrification of energy end users is essential, not only to achieve climate mitigation targets but also to boost energy security and economic development across Southeast Asia. Focusing on Indonesia, Thailand, Viet Nam, and the Philippines the authors analyze net-zero pathways under two different decarbonization scenarios  one centered on reducing fossil fuel use through the deep electrification of energy demand, and the other achieving these reductions through the use of renewable gases such as hydrogen.

The Incredible Inefficiency of the Fossil Energy System, Walter et al., RMI:

Todays fossil energy system is incredibly inefficient: almost two-thirds of all primary energy is wasted in energy production, transportation, and use, before fossil fuel has done any work or produced any benefit. That means over $4.6 trillion per year, almost 5% of global GDP and 40% of what we spend on energy, goes up in smoke due to fossil inefficiency. Literally. The winds are changing, though, as fossil technologies are undercut by more efficient alternatives. End-use efficiency is driving out fossil fuels, reinforced by three new tailwinds that upend the energy landscape: renewable electricity, localization, and electrification. These drivers will allow us to drastically cut down on energy waste and phase out fossil fuels.

140 articles in 59 journals by 851 contributing authors

Physical science of climate change, effects

Changes in Compound Hot Extremes over the MidHigh Latitudes of Asia and the Underlying Mechanisms, Jiang et al., Journal of Climate 10.1175/jcli-d-23-0502.1

Observations of climate change, effects

Airsea heat fluxes variations in the Southern Atlantic Ocean: Present-day and future climate scenarios, Moura et al., International Journal of Climatology 10.1002/joc.8517

Analysis of tropical nights in Spain (19702023): Minimum temperatures as an indicator of climate change, Correa et al., International Journal of Climatology Open Access pdf 10.1002/joc.8510

Disastrous effects of climate change on High Mountain Asia, Cui et al., Advances in Climate Change Research Open Access 10.1016/j.accre.2024.06.004

Impact of ENSO and Trends on the Distribution of North American Wintertime Daily Temperature, Becker & Tippett, Journal of Climate 10.1175/jcli-d-23-0569.1

Rapid warming and increasing moisture levels in the Qaidam Basin, Zeng et al., Theoretical and Applied Climatology 10.1007/s00704-024-05058-7

Trends and shifts of climate extremes in Eastern Parana State, Brazil, de Bodas Terassi et al., Theoretical and Applied Climatology 10.1007/s00704-024-05027-0

Instrumentation & observational methods of climate change, effects Modeling, simulation & projection of climate change, effects

Airsea heat fluxes variations in the Southern Atlantic Ocean: Present-day and future climate scenarios, Moura et al., International Journal of Climatology 10.1002/joc.8517

Comparative assessment of dry- and humid-heat extremes in a warming climate: Frequency, intensity, and seasonal timing, Fan et al., Weather and Climate Extremes Open Access 10.1016/j.wace.2024.100698

Future Changes in Regional Tropical Cyclone Wind, Precipitation, and Flooding Using Event-Based Downscaling, Michalek et al., Earth's Future Open Access 10.1029/2023ef004279

Future exposure of rainfall and temperature extremes to the most populous island of Indonesia: A projection based on CORDEX simulation, Hendrawan et al., International Journal of Climatology 10.1002/joc.8537

Mesoscale convective system activity in the United States under intermediate and extreme climate change scenarios, Haberlie et al., Climatic Change 10.1007/s10584-024-03752-z

Response of atmospheric pCO to a strong AMOC weakening under low and high emission scenarios, Boot et al., Climate Dynamics Open Access pdf 10.1007/s00382-024-07295-y

Soil carbon-concentration and carbon-climate feedbacks in CMIP6 Earth system models, Varney et al., Biogeosciences Open Access 10.5194/bg-21-2759-2024

Unsupervised Classification Identifies Warm, Fresh, and Dense Regimes of the Antarctic Margins, Sohail & Zika Zika, Journal of Physical Oceanography Open Access 10.1175/jpo-d-23-0153.1

Variability of the Indian Ocean Dipole post-2100 reverses to a reduction despite persistent global warming, Wang et al., Nature Communications Open Access 10.1038/s41467-024-49401-y

Advancement of climate & climate effects modeling, simulation & projection

An improved and extended parameterization of the CO2 15 m cooling in the middle and upper atmosphere (CO2&cool&fort-1.0), Lopez-Puertas et al., Geoscientific Model Development Open Access 10.5194/gmd-17-4401-2024

Australian Summer Monsoon: Reanalyses Versus Climate Models in Moist Static Energy Budget Evolution, Mohanty et al., Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres Open Access 10.1029/2023jd040162

Delivering an Improved Framework for the New Generation of CMIP6-Driven EURO-CORDEX Regional Climate Simulations, Katragkou et al., Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society Open Access pdf 10.1175/bams-d-23-0131.1

Efficacy of climate forcings in transient CMIP6 simulations, Myhre et al., Frontiers in Climate Open Access 10.3389/fclim.2024.1397358

Improved Indian Summer Monsoon rainfall simulation: the significance of reassessing the autoconversion parameterization in coupled climate model, Bhowmik et al., Climate Dynamics 10.1007/s00382-024-07243-w

Sensitivity of atmospheric rivers to aerosol treatment in regional climate simulations: insights from the AIRA identification algorithm, Raluy-Lopez et al., Open Access pdf 10.5194/egusphere-2023-1155

Cryosphere & climate change

Deciphering the Biophysical Impact of Permafrost Greening on Summer Surface Offset, Wang & Liu, Earth's Future Open Access 10.1029/2023ef004077

Forcing and impact of the Northern Hemisphere continental snow cover in 19792014, Gastineau et al., Open Access pdf 10.5194/egusphere-2022-939

Intensified warming suppressed the snowmelt in the Tibetan Plateau, Li et al., Advances in Climate Change Research Open Access 10.1016/j.accre.2024.06.005

Review article: Melt-affected ice cores for polar research in a warming world, Moser et al., The Cryosphere Open Access 10.5194/tc-18-2691-2024

Snowpack variations and their hazardous effects under climate warming in the central Tianshan Mountains, HAO et al., Advances in Climate Change Research Open Access 10.1016/j.accre.2024.06.001

Sea level & climate change

A regime switch error correction model to project sea level rise, Fu & Fu, PLOS Climate Open Access 10.1371/journal.pclm.0000369

Exploring the tidal response to bathymetry evolution and present-day sea level rise in a channelshoal environment, Lepper et al., Ocean Science Open Access 10.5194/os-20-711-2024

Sea-level change in coastal areas of China: Status in 2021, LI et al., Advances in Climate Change Research Open Access 10.1016/j.accre.2024.06.002

Paleoclimate & paleogeochemistry

Extreme Planktic Foraminiferal Dwarfism Across the ETM2 in the Tethys Realm in Response to Warming, DOnofrio et al., Paleoceanography and Paleoclimatology Open Access 10.1029/2023pa004762

Polar amplification of orbital-scale climate variability in the early Eocene greenhouse world, Fokkema et al., Climate of the Past Open Access 10.5194/cp-20-1303-2024

Biology & climate change, related geochemistry

A circumpolar study unveils a positive non-linear effect of temperature on arctic arthropod availability that may reduce the risk of warming-induced trophic mismatch for breeding shorebirds, Chagnon?Lafortune et al., Global Change Biology Open Access 10.1111/gcb.17356

Acclimation to warmer temperatures can protect host populations from both further heat stress and the potential invasion of pathogens, Hector et al., Global Change Biology Open Access pdf 10.1111/gcb.17341

African dryland antelope trade-off behaviours in response to heat extremes, Berry et al., Ecology and Evolution Open Access 10.1002/ece3.11455

Assessing the hydroclimatic sensitivity of tree species in Northeastern America through spatiotemporal modelling of annual tree growth, Sylvain et al., Agricultural and Forest Meteorology Open Access 10.1016/j.agrformet.2024.110079

Climate change fluctuations can increase population abundance and range size, MacDonald et al., Ecology Letters Open Access 10.1111/ele.14453

Climate change is predicted to impact the global distribution and richness of pines (genus Pinus) by 2070, Salazar?Tortosa et al., Diversity and Distributions Open Access pdf 10.1111/ddi.13849

Climate change may shift metapopulations towards unstable source-sink dynamics in a fire-killed, serotinous shrub, Souto?Veiga et al., Ecology and Evolution Open Access 10.1002/ece3.11488

Consistent time allocation fraction to vegetation green-up versus senescence across northern ecosystems despite recent climate change, Meng et al., Science Advances Open Access 10.1126/sciadv.adn2487

Drought sensitivity in mesic forests heightens their vulnerability to climate change, Heilmayr et al., Science 10.1126/science.adi1071

Estimating the CO2 Fertilization Effect on Extratropical Forest Productivity From Flux-Tower Observations, Zhan et al., Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences Open Access 10.1029/2023jg007910

Global critical soil moisture thresholds of plant water stress, Fu et al., Nature Communications Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41467-024-49244-7

Modeling individual growth reveals decreasing gray whale body length and correlations with ocean climate indices at multiple scales, Pirotta et al., Global Change Biology Open Access 10.1111/gcb.17366

Natural regeneration of cork oak forests under climate change: a case study in Portugal, Ribeiro et al., Frontiers in Forests and Global Change Open Access 10.3389/ffgc.2024.1332708

Nonuniform response of vegetation phenology to daytime and nighttime warming in urban areas, Kim et al., Communications Earth & Environment Open Access 10.1038/s43247-024-01471-y

Out of the frying pan into the fire: Predicted warming in alpine streams suggests hidden consequences for aquatic ectotherms, Shackleton et al., Global Change Biology Open Access 10.1111/gcb.17364

Pacific salmon in the Canadian Arctic highlight a range-expansion pathway for sub-Arctic fishes, Dunmall et al., Global Change Biology Open Access pdf 10.1111/gcb.17353

Patterns and correlates of potential range shifts of bat species in China in the context of climate change, Ke et al., Conservation Biology 10.1111/cobi.14310

Possible extinction of Eversmannia subspinosa in Eastern Alborz by 2060 due to climate change: a MaxEnt study, Zaheri et al., Theoretical and Applied Climatology Open Access pdf 10.1007/s00704-024-05047-w

Rubble persistence under ocean acidification threatened by accelerated bioerosion and lower-density coral skeletons, Webb et al., Global Change Biology Open Access 10.1111/gcb.17371

Southern Africa's Great Escarpment as an amphitheater of climate-driven diversification and a buffer against future climate change in bats, Taylor et al., Global Change Biology Open Access pdf 10.1111/gcb.17344

The effect of temperature on photosystem II efficiency across plant functional types and climate, Neri et al., Biogeosciences Open Access 10.5194/bg-21-2731-2024

The Responses of Soil Nitrogen Transformations to Rainfall Reduction Mainly Occurred in the Early Growing-Season in a Temperate Meadow, Yang et al., Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences 10.1029/2023jg007749

Wildfire smoke impacts lake ecosystems, Farruggia et al., Global Change Biology Open Access pdf 10.1111/gcb.17367

GHG sources & sinks, flux, related geochemistry

Anthropogenic CO2, airsea CO2 fluxes, and acidification in the Southern Ocean: results from a time-series analysis at station OISO-KERFIX (51 S68 E), Metzl et al., Ocean Science Open Access 10.5194/os-20-725-2024

Atmospheric pCO2 Response to Stimulated Organic Carbon Export: Sensitivity Patterns and Timescales, Holzer et al., Geophysical Research Letters Open Access 10.1029/2024gl108462

Causal Drivers of Land-Atmosphere Carbon Fluxes From Machine Learning Models and Data, Farahani & Goodwell Goodwell Farahani, Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences Open Access 10.1029/2023jg007815

CFC-12 Emissions in China Inferred From Observation and Inverse Modeling, Ma et al., Geophysical Research Letters Open Access 10.1029/2024gl109541

Contrasting Methane Seepage Dynamics in the Hola Trough Offshore Norway: Insights From Two Different Summers, Ferre et al., Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans Open Access 10.1029/2024jc020949

How Much Can Riverine Biogeochemical Fluxes Affect the Arctic Ocean Acidification?, Zhang et al., Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans Open Access 10.1029/2023jc020404

Knowledge Gaps in Quantifying the Climate Change Response of Biological Storage of Carbon in the Ocean, Henson et al., Earth's Future Open Access 10.1029/2023ef004375

Quantitative Assessment of Factors Contributing to Variations in Sea Surface pCO2 in the Pacific Sector of the Arctic Ocean, Tozawa et al., Journal of Geophysical Research: Oceans Open Access pdf 10.1029/2024jc021012

Spatial and temporal variations of gross primary production simulated by land surface model BCC&AVIM2.0, Li et al., Advances in Climate Change Research Open Access 10.1016/j.accre.2023.02.001

The effects of environmental variability and forest management on natural forest carbon stock in northwestern Ethiopia, Kassaye et al., Ecology and Evolution Open Access pdf 10.1002/ece3.11476

The Growth and Carbon Sink of Tundra Peat Patches in Arctic Alaska, Cleary et al., Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences 10.1029/2023jg007890

The reduced net carbon uptake over Northern Hemisphere land causes the close-to-normal CO2 growth rate in 2021 La Nina, Liu et al., Science Advances Open Access 10.1126/sciadv.adl2201

Using Relationships Between Vegetation and Surface Soil Biogeochemical Properties to Assess Regional Soil Carbon Inventories for South Baffin Island, Nunavut, Canada, Gunther et al., Journal of Geophysical Research: Biogeosciences Open Access 10.1029/2023jg007776

Warming Reduces Priming Effect of Soil Organic Carbon Decomposition Along a Subtropical Elevation Gradient, Li et al., Global Biogeochemical Cycles 10.1029/2024gb008113

CO2 capture, sequestration science & engineering

Graphene membranes with pyridinic nitrogen at pore edges for high-performance CO2 capture, Hsu et al., Nature Energy 10.1038/s41560-024-01556-0

Synergies of storing hydrogen at the crest of CO2${rm CO}&{2}$ or other gas storage, Sun et al., Energy & Fuels Open Access 10.1021/ef010067n

The Realistic Potential of Soil Carbon Sequestration in U.S. Croplands for Climate Mitigation, Uludere Aragon et al., Earth's Future Open Access 10.1029/2023ef003866

Decarbonization

Effects of sandstorms on hybrid renewable energy sources and load demand in arid desert climates: A case study, Alanzi et al., Energy for Sustainable Development 10.1016/j.esd.2024.101473

Skillful seasonal prediction of wind energy resources in the contiguous United States, Yang et al., Communications Earth & Environment Open Access 10.1038/s43247-024-01457-w

Who will be making wave energy? A community-driven design approach toward just and sustainable energy futures in Alaska, Trueworthy et al., Energy Research & Social Science 10.1016/j.erss.2024.103615

Geoengineering climate

Investigating the effect of silicate- and calcium-based ocean alkalinity enhancement on diatom silicification, Ferderer et al., Biogeosciences Open Access 10.5194/bg-21-2777-2024

Aerosols

Aerosol-Cloud Interactions From Aviation Soot Emissions, Alsante & Cheng, Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres 10.1029/2023jd040277

Climate change communications & cognition

Assessing climate change awareness among mediterranean university students: a comparative study of french and greek universities, Bayraktar et al., Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences 10.1007/s13412-024-00946-w

Changes in Global Warmings Six Americas: an analysis of repeat respondents, Ayers et al., Climatic Change 10.1007/s10584-024-03754-x

Factors and paths influencing students low-carbon behavior, Xiang & Liu, Carbon Management Open Access 10.1080/17583004.2024.2349173

From Denial to the Culture Wars: A Study of Climate Misinformation on YouTube, de Nadal, Environmental Communication Open Access 10.1080/17524032.2024.2363861

The importance of place in climate action, Howarth et al., PLOS Climate Open Access 10.1371/journal.pclm.0000425

I start to doubt whether any of my actions will matter: youth activists experiences and expressions of the emotions associated with climate change, Zurba et al., Climatic Change Open Access 10.1007/s10584-024-03757-8

Agronomy, animal husbundry, food production & climate change

A climate change risk assessment in aquaculture in Korea, Kim et al., Climatic Change 10.1007/s10584-024-03758-7

Chinas mandarin and tangerine cultivation has not reached the carbon emissions peak, Liu et al., Mitigation and Adaptation Strategies for Global Change 10.1007/s11027-024-10145-1

Climate change attribution, appraisal, and adaptive capacity for fishermen in the Gulf of Alaska, Szymkowiak & Steinkruger, Climatic Change 10.1007/s10584-024-03753-y

Deforestation and climate risk hotspots in the global cocoa value chain, Parra-Paitan et al., Environmental Science & Policy Open Access 10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103796

Determinants of smallholder farmers adaptation to the effects of climate extremes: evidence from Legambo district in northcentral Ethiopia, Eshetu & Yimer, Environment, Development and Sustainability 10.1007/s10668-024-05104-4

Long-term straw return to a wheat-maize system results in topsoil organic C saturation and increased yields while no stimulating or reducing yield-scaled N 2 O and NO emissions, Yao et al., Agricultural and Forest Meteorology 10.1016/j.agrformet.2024.109937

Policy measures mitigate the adoption of crop diversification strategies by farmers: insights from the Tibetan Plateau, Zhang et al., Environment, Development and Sustainability 10.1007/s10668-024-05093-4

Six years of nitrous oxide emissions from temperate cropping systems under real-farm rotational management, Garnier et al., Agricultural and Forest Meteorology Open Access 10.1016/j.agrformet.2024.110085

The Essential Role of Local Context in Shaping Risk and Risk Reduction Strategies for Snowmelt-Dependent Irrigated Agriculture, Gordon et al., Earth's Future Open Access 10.1029/2024ef004577

The Realistic Potential of Soil Carbon Sequestration in U.S. Croplands for Climate Mitigation, Uludere Aragon et al., Earth's Future Open Access 10.1029/2023ef003866

Hydrology, hydrometeorology & climate change

Adapting reservoir operation to climate change in regions with long-term hydrologic persistence, Espanmanesh et al., Climate Risk Management Open Access 10.1016/j.crm.2024.100623

Anthropogenic Intensification of Cool-Season Precipitation Is Not Yet Detectable Across the Western United States, Williams et al., Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres Open Access 10.1029/2023jd040537

Assessing the potential of compound extreme storm surge and precipitation along China's Coastline, Li et al., Weather and Climate Extremes Open Access 10.1016/j.wace.2024.100702

Atmospheric processes dominate the changes in autumn rain hours over the Sichuan Basin: 19602018, Ni, Meteorology and Atmospheric Physics 10.1007/s00703-024-01024-0

Comparative Trend Variability Analysis of Reference Evapotranspiration in Bangladesh Using Multiple Trend Detection Approaches, Dia et al., Theoretical and Applied Climatology 10.1007/s00704-024-05044-z

How Much Does LandAtmosphere Coupling Influence Summertime Temperature Variability in the Western United States?, Zeppetello et al., Journal of Climate 10.1175/jcli-d-23-0716.1

Key drivers of vulnerability to rainfall flooding in New Orleans, Kane et al., Frontiers in Climate Open Access 10.3389/fclim.2024.1303951

Large-scale dynamics of extreme precipitation in the tropical Andes: combining weather radar observations and reanalysis data, Cordova et al., Meteorology and Atmospheric Physics 10.1007/s00703-024-01022-2

Snowpack variations and their hazardous effects under climate warming in the central Tianshan Mountains, HAO et al., Advances in Climate Change Research Open Access 10.1016/j.accre.2024.06.001

The Timing of Detectable Increases in Seasonal Soil Moisture Droughts Under Future Climate Change, Chen & Yuan, Earth's Future Open Access 10.1029/2023ef004174

Climate change economics

Greening to shield: The impacts of extreme rainfall on economic activity in Latin American cities, Van der Borght & Pallares-Barbera PALLARES BARBERA, Global Environmental Change Open Access 10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2024.102857

Revisiting urban environmental Kuznets curve hypothesis: evidence from carbon emissions in Chinas prefecture-level and above cities, Wang et al., Environment, Development and Sustainability 10.1007/s10668-024-05082-7

The link between human population dynamics and energy consumption during the Anthropocene, Lima, The Anthropocene Review 10.1177/20530196241255081

Climate change mitigation public policy research

A critical evaluation of the 2022 greenhouse gas mitigation quota in Germany from an environmental economics and policy perspective, Liepold et al., Energy Policy Open Access 10.1016/j.enpol.2024.114200

Are subsidies market manipulation? The politics of electricity market hybridization in the United States, Breslau, Energy Research & Social Science 10.1016/j.erss.2024.103623

Carbon permits price and real emissions, Cohen & Qadan Zhao, Environment Systems and Decisions 10.1007/s10669-024-09977-8

Characteristics of residents' carbon emission and driving factors for carbon peaking: A case study in Wuhan, China, Bei et al., Energy for Sustainable Development 10.1016/j.esd.2024.101471

Drivers and challenges of solar photovoltaics (PV) adoption by Turkish manufacturers, Tuzun et al., Environment, Development and Sustainability Open Access 10.1007/s10668-024-04943-5

Evaluation of efficient policies on the renewable penetration in electricity sector for an integrated energy planning model in TIMES, Taheri et al., Environment, Development and Sustainability 10.1007/s10668-024-05122-2

Exploring the carbon footprint of Nigeria's construction sector: a quantitative insight, Labaran et al., Environment, Development and Sustainability 10.1007/s10668-024-05111-5

Financialisation, energy transition, and the looting of clean energy business corporations in the United States, Wu et al., Energy Research & Social Science 10.1016/j.erss.2024.103614

Materiality in community energy innovation: A systematic literature review of hands-on material engagement in energy transition, Kuu-Park et al., Energy Research & Social Science Open Access 10.1016/j.erss.2024.103616

Perceived Carbon Pricing Effectiveness Impacts its Perceived Fairness  Applying and Extending a Theoretical Framework, Huttarsch & Matthies, Journal of Environmental Psychology 10.1016/j.jenvp.2024.102356

Questionable at best: why links between mitigation by single actors and global temperature goals must be made more robust, Lecocq & Winkler, Climate Policy 10.1080/14693062.2024.2362847

Residential renovations: Understanding cost-disruption trade-offs, Curtis et al., Energy Policy Open Access 10.1016/j.enpol.2024.114207

Residual carbon emissions in companies climate pledges: who has to reduce and who gets to remove?, Arendt, Climate Policy Open Access 10.1080/14693062.2024.2358989

Sharing a car with your next-door neighbor: Motivations and barriers to adoption of low-carbon mobility in Israel, Shemesh & Parag, Energy Research & Social Science Open Access 10.1016/j.erss.2024.103586

The economics of coal phaseouts: auctions as a novel policy instrument for the energy transition, Srivastav & Zaehringer, Climate Policy Open Access 10.1080/14693062.2024.2358114

The impact on climate and emissions of clean household cooking energy policies in Tanzania, Aamaas & Grimsby Grimsby, Energy Policy Open Access 10.1016/j.enpol.2024.114211

The Janus-Faced Role of Renewable Energy Development in Global Carbon Reduction Under Renewable Energy Policies, Chen et al., Earth's Future Open Access 10.1029/2024ef004535

The many faces of carbon tax regressivityWhy carbon taxes are not always regressive for the same reason, Linden et al., Energy Policy Open Access 10.1016/j.enpol.2024.114210

The transition towards solar energy storage: a multi-level perspective, Jayaraj et al., Energy Policy Open Access 10.1016/j.enpol.2024.114209

UK net-zero policy design  from optimisation to robustness, Rodriguez Mendez et al., Environmental Science & Policy Open Access 10.1016/j.envsci.2024.103804

Who is going to talk about my grandad? Who is going to talk about me?: Spatial politics in the advocacy of youth from the MENA region at COP 27, Ortiz et al., Climate and Development Open Access pdf 10.1080/17565529.2024.2360618

Climate change adaptation & adaptation public policy research

Climate hazards in Latin American cities: Understanding the role of the social and built environments and barriers to adaptation action, Dorothee Slovic et al., Climate Risk Management Open Access 10.1016/j.crm.2024.100625

Models of sub-national U.S. quasi-governmental organizations: implications for climate adaptation governance, Nix et al., Climatic Change Open Access 10.1007/s10584-024-03728-z

Navigating tensions in climate change-related planned relocation, Gini et al., Ambio Open Access 10.1007/s13280-024-02035-2

Sequential learning of climate change via a physical-parameter-based state-space model and Bayesian inference, Lai & Pozzi, Climatic Change Open Access 10.1007/s10584-024-03739-w

The climate niche of Homo Sapiens, Tol, Climatic Change Open Access 10.1007/s10584-024-03760-z

Climate change impacts on human health

Addressing risks to mental health from climate change: a policy capacity analysis of England, Turnpenny & Alexander, Climate Policy Open Access 10.1080/14693062.2024.2362848

Climate changes and food-borne pathogens: the impact on human health and mitigation strategy, Awad et al., Climatic Change Open Access pdf 10.1007/s10584-024-03748-9

Early life cold and heat exposure impacts white matter development in children, Granes et al., Nature Climate Change 10.1038/s41558-024-02027-w

Informed opinion, nudges & major initiatives

Beyond environmental harm: Industry claims, lived experiences, and the impacts of gas extraction, Caretta et al., Energy Research & Social Science Open Access 10.1016/j.erss.2024.103606

Central Africa's mesic savannas should be conserved, not afforested, Loft et al., Global Change Biology Open Access pdf 10.1111/gcb.17369

Greenhouse gas mitigation requires caution, Stein & Lidstrom, Science Open Access pdf 10.1126/science.adi0503

Solar photovoltaic energy development and biodiversity conservation: Current knowledge and research gaps, Gomez?Catasus et al., Conservation Letters Open Access pdf 10.1111/conl.13025

The climate benefits from cement carbonation are being overestimated, Van Roijen et al., Nature Communications Open Access pdf 10.1038/s41467-024-48965-z

To save the high seas, plan for climate change, Hannah et al., Nature Open Access 10.1038/d41586-024-01720-2

Uncertain Pathways to a Future Safe Climate, Sherwood et al., Earth's Future Open Access 10.1029/2023ef004297

Unpacking climate policy, Dubash, Science Open Access 10.1126/science.adq0862

Articles/Reports from Agencies and Non-Governmental Organizations Addressing Aspects of Climate Change

National Definition of a Zero Emissions Building Part 1: Operational Emissions from Energy Use, Version 1, Department of Energy

The definition uses standardized, consistent, and measurable minimum criteria for a zero-emissions building that users can achieve through multiple pathways. The definition is intended as a guide to help support the building sector in moving towards zero emissions and thereby advance public- and private-sector climate goals. The definition sets forth minimum criteria that public and private entities can adopt, and these entities can demonstrate additional climate leadership by exceeding the minimum criteria.

International Public Opinion on Climate Change: Household Climate Actions  Adoption and Barriers, 2023, Leiserowitz et al., Yale Program on Climate Change Communication and Data for Good at Meta

The authors present the results of an international survey investigating public climate change knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, policy preferences, and behavior among Facebook users. The survey included responses from 139,136 Facebook monthly active users (18 years of age or older). Responses were collected from 187 countries and territories worldwide. The data are derived from a subset of countries and territories within the survey that are classified as high-emissions based on both their above-average CO2 per capita emission levels and higher per capita income. This subset includes 37 countries and territories, with a total of 39,683 respondents. Interview dates: August 3  September 3, 2023.

Migration in the Context of Climate and Environmental Changes within Central Asia and to the European Union and the Russian Federation, Scissa et al., UN Migration

The authors focus on the intersection of climate and environmental changes with movements within Central Asia as well as from Central Asia to the European Union and the Russian Federation. The authors identify new trends in migration affecting the European Union and Central Asia and discuss the current state of legal and policy responses to these movements. It helps countries in the European Union and Central Asia fulfill commitments made in the Global Compact for Safe, Orderly, and Regular Migration related to understanding the drivers of migration in the context of climate and environmental changes.

Climate Migrants - Dominican Republic, World Bank

The Dominican Republic (DR) is vulnerable to climate change and has a high rate of natural degradation. The DR shows evidence of significant human mobility flows of (i) internal migration, mainly rural to urban; and (ii) international cross-border migration, especially from Haiti. Given this context, the DR is an important place to study migration induced by the impacts of climate change and natural degradation. Climate migration refers to migration that can be attributed largely to the slow-onset impacts of climate change on livelihoods through natural degradation such as shifts in water availability, crop productivity, and ecosystem productivity, or factors such as sea-level rise.

The Role of Biofuels and Biomass Feedstocks for Decarbonizing the U.S. Economy by 2050, Hawkins, National Renewable Energy Laboratory

Biomass is a versatile and energy-rich feedstock that we have found could be a cost-effective pillar of the United States decarbonization strategy. The authors identify potential scaleup of bioenergy deployment for trajectories consistent with long-term decarbonization.

Minnesota Building Decarbonization Analysis, deLeon et al., Clean Heat Minnesota

The authors identify the most feasible, equitable, and cost-effective pathways for reducing emissions from Minnesotas natural gas distribution sector at a pace and magnitude consistent with Minnesotas greenhouse gas emission reduction goals. Decarbonization of the building sectorparticularly in the residential building sector where emissions are increasingis one of the main strategies established for meeting the states goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. The primary source of emissions in the residential sector is natural gas used in home heating and appliances. For the commercial sector, emissions are generated from the use of oil and natural gas. For this reason, the authors focused on residential and commercial energy end uses and the impacts that their decarbonization would have on the gas and electric systems, on costs to customers, and on health and environmental issues.

Powering Canada: A blueprint for success, Canada Electricity Advisory Council

The Minister of Natural Resources convened the Canada Electricity Advisory Council to advise on policies to enable the electricity sector to play its pivotal role in Canadas transition to net zero. The Council is an independent body of 19 electricity sector leaders from every region in Canada. To achieve Canadas goals, the provinces and territories  the ultimate authorities over its electricity systems  will need to tackle a dual challenge: completing the decarbonization of existing electricity systems, while also rapidly growing capacity to meet new needs in everything from transport to buildings to industry.

Greenwashing the Amazon, Angeline Robertson and Alicia Guzman Leon, Coordinating Body of Indigenous Organizations of the Amazon River Basin and Standearth

The authors examine how the environmental and social risk management policies of the top banks financing oil and gas extraction in Amazonia fail to fully address the adverse impacts of their financing on people and nature. Over the past 20 years, just six banks  Citibank, JPMorgan Chase, Itau Unibanco, Santander, Bank of America, and HSBC  are responsible for almost half (46%) of all direct financing for oil and gas operations in Amazonia.

The Cleantech Revolution. Its exponential, disruptive, and now, Bond et al., RMI

The authors chart how the energy system is being disrupted by the exponential forces of renewables, electrification, and efficiency. The past decade has seen remarkable progress and growth in cleantech. Cleantech costs have fallen by up to 80 percent, while investment is up nearly 10 times and solar generation has risen 12 times. Meanwhile, electricity has grown to become the largest source of useful energy, and the deep force of efficiency has reduced energy demand by a fifth. As the drivers of change continue to overpower the barriers, cleantech will continue to grow up S-curves, pushing fossil fuel demand into terminal decline and pulling the Paris Agreement within our reach.

The Incredible Inefficiency of the Fossil Energy System, Walter et al., RMI

Todays fossil energy system is incredibly inefficient: almost two-thirds of all primary energy is wasted in energy production, transportation, and use, before fossil fuel has done any work or produced any benefit. That means over $4.6 trillion per year, almost 5% of global GDP and 40% of what we spend on energy, goes up in smoke due to fossil inefficiency. Literally. The winds are changing, though, as fossil technologies are undercut by more efficient alternatives. End-use efficiency is driving out fossil fuels, reinforced by three new tailwinds that upend the energy landscape: renewable electricity, localization, and electrification. These drivers will allow us to drastically cut down on energy waste and phase out fossil fuels.

Come Hell or High Water. Flood Management in a Changing Climate, San Francisco Civil Grand Jury, City and County of San Francisco

Climate change has brought to San Francisco the triple threat of the sea rising along its' shorelines, extreme storms dumping unprecedented volumes of water into our already strained sewer systems, and saturated surface soils preventing timely seepage into the aquifers. One resultincreased flooding. Given this unavoidable future, individual departments of the City and County of San Francisco have responded with plans to adapt to the increasingly extreme conditions. The authors particularly focus on flood management.

Navigating the Transition to Net-zero Emissions in Southeast Asia  Energy Security, the Role of Gaseous Energy Carriers and Renewables-based Electrification, Fekete et al., German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action

The authors emphasize that rapid expansion of renewable electricity and electrification of energy end users is essential, not only to achieve climate mitigation targets but also to boost energy security and economic development across Southeast Asia. Focusing on Indonesia, Thailand, Viet Nam, and the Philippines the authors analyze net-zero pathways under two different decarbonization scenarios  one centered on reducing fossil fuel use through the deep electrification of energy demand, and the other achieving these reductions through the use of renewable gases such as hydrogen.

Obtaining articles without journal subscriptions

We know it's frustrating that many articles we cite here are not free to read. One-off paid access fees are generally astronomically priced, suitable for such as "On a Heuristic Point of View Concerning the Production and Transformation of Light" but not as a gamble on unknowns. With a median world income of US$ 9,373, for most of us US$ 42 is significant money to wager on an article's relevance and importance.

Here's an excellent collection of tips and techniques for obtaining articles, legally.

Unpaywall offers a browser extension for Chrome and Firefox that automatically indicates when an article is freely accessible and provides immediate access without further trouble. Unpaywall is also unscammy, works well, is itself offered free to use. The organizers (a legitimate nonprofit) report about a 50% success rate

The weekly New Research catch is checked against the Unpaywall database with accessible items being flagged. Especially for just-published articles this mechansim may fail. If you're interested in an article title and it is not listed here as "open access," be sure to check the link anyway.

How is New Research assembled?

Most articles appearing here are found via RSS feeds from journal publishers, filtered by search terms to produce raw output for assessment of relevance.

Relevant articles are then queried against the Unpaywall database, to identify open access articles and expose useful metadata for articles appearing in the database.

The objective of New Research isn't to cast a tinge on scientific results, to color readers' impressions. Hence candidate articles are assessed via two metrics only:

Was an article deemed of sufficient merit by a team of journal editors and peer reviewers? The fact of journal RSS output assigns a "yes" to this automatically.

Is an article relevant to the topic of anthropogenic climate change? Due to filter overlap with other publication topics of inquiry, of a typical week's 550 or so input articles about 1/4 of RSS output makes the cut.

A few journals offer public access to "preprint" versions of articles for which the review process is not yet complete. For some key journals this all the mention we'll see in RSS feeds, so we include such items in New Research. These are flagged as "preprint."

The section "Informed opinion, nudges & major initiatives" includes some items that are not scientific research per se but fall instead into the category of "perspectives," observations of implications of research findings, areas needing attention, etc.

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Journals covered

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Previous edition

The previous edition of Skeptical Science New Research may be found here.
You cant step in the same river twice, but you can watch the same movie as often as you want. We say a movie has aged well, or poorly, but were the ones who do the aging, growing and decaying while it rests unchanged. The world moves on, but movies stand still.

Sam Greens movies arent like that, though. In fact, they might not be movies at all. He didnt invent the form, but Green has become the foremost practitioner of what he calls live cinema, a combination of spoken word, musical performance, and, yes, moving images projected onto a screen, something that he has been presenting, in movie theaters and elsewhere, since 2010.

Green has also made more conventional documentaries, like The Weather Underground, which was nominated for an Academy Award in 2004, and numerous retrospectives have been dedicated to his work. But this week marks the first time that his three feature-length live documentaries, 32 Sounds, A Thousand Thoughts, and The Love Song of R. Buckminster Fuller, have been performed back to back, as part of a Lincoln Center series called The Ephemeral Cinema of Sam Green.

Filling the 1,000-plus-seat Alice Tully Hall is a tall order for any movie, let alone a portrait of the midcentury visionary who designed the geodesic dome. But because most of Greens live movies exist in no other format, their rare performances create a sense of urgency that has become almost entirely alien to modern moviegoing. When a film slides from theaters to on-demand to streaming without a gap, theres no particular moment at which you have to see it, which for many people means they simply dont. You need only glance at your to-do list for a lesson in how easily something you can do anytime becomes something you never do. But Greens ephemeral cinema is part of a growing wave of films that push back against the logic of infinite availabilitymovies that its actually possible to miss.

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In 2022 the Thai filmmaker Apichatpong Weerasethakul, whose Tropical Malady was named one of the 100 greatest films of all time in the last Sight and Sound poll, announced that his new movie Memoria, starring Tilda Swinton as a woman obsessed with a mysterious sound, would only ever be shown in movie theaters and never released to streaming or physical media. (Two years later, that promise holds true, at least in the U.S., where the films never-ending tour brought it back to New Yorks IFC Center for a fifth weeklong run earlier this year.)

Gary Hustwits Eno, a portrait of the legendary musician and producer, is billed as the first generative documentary, created anew for each screening by a software engine that draws on hundreds of hours of footage, outputting one of billions of possible versions. When it screened at Sundance in January, my roommate returned from the premiere perplexed that the movie never mentioned one of Enos most well-known compositions: the startup chime for Microsoft Windows 95. When I saw it a few days later, there was Eno, booting up an ancient PC to show off his work. For the films two-week run at Film Forum in July, a different version will be shown every day: never seen before, and never to be seen again.

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Charlie Shackletons The Afterlight might be the most ephemeral of them all. Compiling shots from old movies of actors who have since died, the film mirrors the mortality of its subjects by existing only as a single 35 mm printthe idea being that it would visibly accumulate the wear and tear of successive screenings, becoming scratchier and more fragile until it was eventually impossible to show. But in a twist of fate that doubled as a conceptual coup de grace, the only print of The Afterlight was lost in transit last week, putting those whove seen it in an exclusive club whose membership can never be expanded.

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Sam Green didnt set out to change the face of an art form. Before he came up with his live documentaries, all he knew was that the movie he was trying to finish, a short documentary about the history of utopianism, wasnt working. He could explain what he wanted it to say, but the movie wasnt saying it. So he opted to say it himself, mixing his rough-cut footage with his own narration and a soundtrack by musician Dave Cerf. 2010s Utopia in Four Movements was also a reaction to the way movies, and especially the way people were watching them, were changing. It was the very beginning of people sitting at home, checking their email as they were watching a movie, and I was just pained by that, Green says. Live performance, even one incorporating prerecorded elements, gave an audience something that couldnt be replicated at home, something that, as Green wrote at the time, couldnt be reduced to a digital file.

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Although Green shoots original footage for his movies, hes particularly obsessed with archival materials. In 32 Sounds, which explores our relationship to the auditory world, he visits the British Library, whose collection of over 6 million recordings includes the mating call of the last male Kauai oo, a Hawaiian songbird unaware that the only surviving female who could have answered him was killed five years earlier. The Love Song of R. Buckminster Fuller gave Green a chance to dig into the Dymaxion Chronofile, a massive storehouse of bulging cabinets into which Fuller placed every scrap of paper he touched, from scientific notes to restaurant receipts, for 50 years. As he stands in front of a projection of Fullers Social Security card, Green exclaims, I love this shit!

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It might seem ironic that Green is so fascinated by the material remnants of past lives, bulging bankers boxes filled with old datebooks and discarded newspaper clippings, given that hes chosen to make art in a form that is singularly resistant to archival preservation. You can watch a recording of one of his live movies, shot from the back of the room with a clear view of the stage, but its nothing like being in the room itself. Some will argue that thats true of any moviethat theres no substitute for the experience of seeing a film in a theater, whether youre soaking in the roar of a blockbuster crowd on opening weekend or quietly thrumming to the introspective pleasures of an art-house classic. But that experience can be elusive in a world where theaters are frequently half-empty even on opening night and theres someone two rows ahead scrolling through texts with their brightness on full. With Greens movies, at least, you know what youre missing if you dont make it out to see them: everything.

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Although A Thousand Thoughts is structured as a history of the Kronos Quartet, the modern classic ensemble whose 50-year history includes collaborations with composers ranging from Philip Glass to Paul McCartney, it also doubles as a philosophical exploration of music and mortality. At the dawn of audio recording, Green says, Thomas Edison promised that the newfangled technology would allow us to preserve the voices of the dead. And yet music is fleeting by nature, each sound beginning to decay the moment it enters the world. Green and his footage take us through Kronos past, ranging from their hardscrabble early years to their emergence as a cultural phenomenon whose footprint includes several landmark movie scores (Darren Aronofskys Requiem for a Dream, Paul Schraders Mishima) and an appearance on Sesame Street. The quartet itself, positioned onstage in front of the screen, plays through that history alongside him, taking us right up to the present.

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Although Kronos has built an intensely devoted audience over the years, David Harrington, the quartets founder and only permanent member, says theres something especially intimate about the way crowds respond to A Thousand Thoughts. Its a little bit like having a friend over to the house and looking through a family album, he says. All of our concerts are, but this, it gives a chance for the audience to step behind the scenes a little bit more. Young musicians have been telling us when they come to see it, they had no idea what has gone into the music. Its a little more tactile.

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In one extraordinary passage, the film dwells on the death of violist Hank Dutts longtime partner and Harringtons 16-year-old son, the inspiration for minimalist composer Terry Rileys Requiem for Adam. Instead of playing along as Harrington recounts his personal tragedy on screen, the quartet sits silently in the dark, an extraordinary moment that highlights how much more goes into every performance than we are typically aware of. Initially, Harrington explains, Sam was hoping we would play, but when I heard my voice talking about losing Adam, the quality of my voice, I said, I wont be able to play. Im sorry. He said, Well, you could go offstage and come back. And I said, If I go offstage, I wont be able to come back. 

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Green himself faces a similar moment in 32 Sounds, where rooting though a box of old cassette tapes yields a recording of an answering-machine message from his late brother. Its an acute reminder of what technology can capture and what still eludes its grasp, restoring the feeling of life but not its essence.

Related From Slate A Thousand Thoughts Is Part Concert, Part Movie, and Everything Sundance Hopes to Be Read More

The gap between the permanence of recorded media and the fleeting nature of human existence is at the heart of what makes Greens live cinema performances unique. Although 32 Sounds also exists as a linear movie that can be exhibited in theaters, when Green does the piece live, with musical accompaniment by Le Tigres JD Samson, he equips each audience member with a pair of headphones that allows them to listen in binaural sound, a technology that effectively adds a third dimension to the sound. Cocooned in their own sonic universe and yet sharing a physical space with hundreds of others, they are both together and alone, acutely aware of the boundary between private reverie and collective experience.

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Live performance heightens our awareness of the moment, which Green underlines in A Thousand Thoughts by cueing a moment of silence so the audience can take in the sound of the space around them, and in 32 Sounds by coaxing viewers to close their eyes and simply listen until he tells us its time to look again. But it can also shift that relationship in other ways. In The Love Song of R. Buckminster Fuller, which features a live score by the rock trio Yo La Tengo, there are moments when you lose track of time altogether, drifting off to the groups hypnotic lull while images of Fullers trademark domes flicker by on screen. By the standard of a band whose live sets often include 20-minute jams, its barely an eyeblink, but its the kind of sequence that would try audiences patience in a more conventional film. In the pure movie version, you can have music for 30 seconds, and then its like, Hey, you have to cut, Green says. But with the live thing, its just domes and music for three minutes, and youll sit with it because its this weird form you dont have expectations around.

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Focusing on live performance has also allowed Green to establish a sustainable existence in an environment in which many filmmakers struggle to keep at it. I dont know any filmmaker who really is able to make a living off their work, he says. People make films and make commercials or people make films and teach or people make films and have a trust fund. But the world of artistic residencies and institutional subsidies is a kinder one, at least for now, than the ever-shrinking universe of commercial movie exhibition. The performing arts economy is a very different economy than the film economy, he explains. The commodity itself is live presence, which is still a valuable thing.

The flip side is that Greens live movies wont be around forever. A Thousand Thoughts wont be around for even another month. With long-standing members Hank Dutt and John Sherba leaving the group in a couple of weeks, Green is retiring A Thousand Thoughts as well. (He has already altered the film since its premiere at Sundance in 2018, to account for cellist Sunny Yangs replacement with current member Paul Wiancko.) Green will be filming its final performance, as part of next weekends farewell concerts, to see if he cant approximate the feeling of seeing it live in a different form. But he knows that it will never be the same. I dont want to make something that is just a diminished version of the live performance, Green says, because a lot of the time a concert film is just Wow, that concert must have been amazing. When you watch it and theyre there playing, you just say to yourself, Jesus, theyre incredible. How to make something that works without that is a huge challenge.
Our attention was piqued today by these delightful photos of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak meeting Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at the G7 summit. Their chemistry is electric. Their body language is charged. Even in group shots, they cant keep their eyes off each other.

Nancy, please contact us about our screenplay, titled The European Union, at tips@slate.com.

EXT. A terrace outside the Borgo Egnazia hotel near Bari, Italy, dusk. Its a reception at the end of the first day of the G7 summit.

RISHI SUNAK and GIORGIA MELONI stand in separate circles of conversation, their backs to each other, each looking a little bored. He holds a shaken martini, she a glass of Prosecco.

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They each turn at the same time toward a WAITER (JONAH HILL) carrying a tray between them. They each reach for the same salmon canape. Their hands touch, then their eyes meet.

SUNAK: Please, go ahead.

MELONI: No, I insist.

SUNAK: Ive always wondered why we have to call it a canape, anyway. Why the French get to take credit for putting a spot of food on a biscuit.

MELONI: It is  favor we do for them. They have so little else to be proud of. No Dante Alighieri, no Giuseppe Verdi.

SUNAK: No Roberto Benigni.

[MELONI laughs.]

SUNAK (gesturing toward a Cubist painting on a nearby wall): They say the best French painter was a Spaniard, too.

They turn to look at EMMANUEL MACRON. He is laughing too loudly at a joke told by German chancellor OLAF SCHOLZ, food spraying from the corner of his mouth.

MELONI: And what can the English do so well?

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SUNAK: Well, Im told we perfected rock n roll. And the handsome international playboy.

[They lock eyes again. A beat.]

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JONAH HILL: Uh, so, is anyone ever going to have an appetizer?

INT. A hotel room, the next morning. Light floods through a window, the Adriatic visible beyond.

An AIDE (SIMONA TABASCO) is pounding on the rooms door from the outside.

MELONI (scrambling out of bed): Un minuto! I  I misplace the book of briefing!

TABASCO: Whats going on in there? Youre five minutes late for your meeting with President Macron!

The door opensJONAH HILL has unlocked it with a universal key card. The aide (Tabasco) enters with her head down, a pile of papers in one hand and an iPhone in the other.

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TABASCO: Hes already had three plates of [She looks up. SUNAK is standing behind the bed, wearing nothing but blue boxer shorts, sheets clutched across his torso.] Oh.

MELONI: Its a foreign incursion!

We see a MONTAGE of British tabloid headlines (PMs Passion, Miss Right Wing and Mr. Right Now, etc.) accompanying paparazzi photos of SUNAK and MELONI leaving various European hotels. A photo of a grinning Macron with his arms around an irritated SUNAK and a grimacing MELONI in Paris is captioned G3s a crowd.

INT. A spacious apartment in Rome. Its three months since the summit. Melonis mother (ISABELLA ROSSELLINI) is bringing two cups of espresso from a kitchen to a table where MELONI sits.

ROSSELLINI: And you think he would do that?

MELONI: I think hes a man of his word.

ROSSELLINI: Trust me, men never are.

MELONI: And what makes you such an expert on men?

ROSSELLINI: Well, I married four of them.

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EXT. The grounds of Eton College. Security officers watch from a distance as SUNAK strolls with his old roommate (DOMHNALL GLEESON), now a successful columnist who supports the Labour opposition.

SUNAK: She likes me.

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GLEESON: She likes the idea of you, mate. She likes the excitement. It gives her something to do at these things besides listening to Olaf Scholz tell her for the fourth time that he would have helped pull down the Wall if he hadnt had to take his mum to the otolaryngologist.

SUNAK: She likes the idea of me?

GLEESON: And she likes the idea of 15 pence off the tariff on petrol.

INT. a busy central office in 10 Downing St., noon. The deputy prime minister (RICHARD E. GRANT) and the prime ministers chief adviser (NAOMIE HARRIS) are having a walk-and-talk.

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GRANT: Are you telling me the election is in three days and the prime minister is not in the country?!

HARRIS: Hes in Florence!

GRANT (increasingly hysterical): Whats he doing there??!!

HARRIS: Uh  admiring Europes great cultural treasures?

CUT TO: INT. Florence hotel room, day.

SUNAK feeds MELONI grapes in bed.

SUNAK (to Meloni): Theres only one voter whose opinion Im interested in any more, and its a funny thingshes not bloody eligible.

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MELONI (chewing on grapes): Ive spent years consolidating power and demonizing migrants. Its time to think about me.

INT. BBC studios. We see a BBC ANCHOR giving a report. A chyron at the bottom of the screen reads BREAKING: SUNAK TO STAND DOWN, MELONI DROPS FdL

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ANCHOR: The PM says he plans to move immediately to Rome to take the position of CoSecretary of Peace in Melonis government. And she says her new party will encourage, not demonize, migration to the Mediterranean country.

MELONI (at a press conference in Florence): Theres one immigrant in particular Im most excited to welcome.

SUNAK (standing between Meloni and Roberto Benigni): And Roberto and I cant wait to get started on our work.

FADE TO BLACK

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FADE IN

EXT. The terrace outside the Borgo Egnazia where we first met SUNAK and MELONI. More time has passed. ROSSELLINI and GLEESON stand on either side of a small stage. Panning over rows of guests, we cut to a side room in which SUNAK is staring into camera, straightening his bow tie. But then he turns, and we see from a new angle that he has walked away from a mirror to join MELONI as she attends to the wedding dress being worn not by her, but by her AIDE (TABASCO).

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TABASCO: I just dont know if was a good idea to have him do it. [On the other side of the room, we see a smiling Macron, who is wearing a wireless microphone, holding a Bible, and eating a sandwich.]

MACRON (mouth full): As a head of state, I am duly authorized to officiate any wedding within the boundaries of the EU.

SUNAK: I still cant believe you won.

MELONI (to the bride): The French people made the right choice in rejecting my former allies on the far right  and you made the right choice in love.

[MELONI and SUNAK clasp each others hands affectionately.]

JONAH HILL (from doorway, wearing a tuxedo) : Uh, so, are we ever going to have my wedding?

A cover of Thats Amore by Paul McCartney begins playing.

END CREDITS

FIN
This is part of Opinionpalooza, Slates coverage of the major decisions from the Supreme Court this June. Alongside Amicus, we kicked things off this year by explaining How Originalism Ate the Law. The best way to support our work is by joining Slate Plus. (If you are already a member, consider a donation or merch!)

A clutch of red-state attorneys general seem likely to try a last-minute gambit to reanimate the corpse of Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, a lawsuit challenging the abortion medication mifepristone. But they wont succeed, because states cant and shouldnt parachute into moribund litigation halfway across the country. That means the Supreme Courts decision today should end this threat to abortion accessat least for now.

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To recap: Since 2000, millions of pregnant people in the U.S. have safely and effectively used mifepristone and its partner, misoprostol, as part of an FDA-approved abortion medication regimen. Mifepristone is safer than penicillin and Viagra.

Over time, as it collected evidence showing the medications safety, the FDA dialed back its unnecessarily strict limits on prescribing and using mifepristone. In 2016, for instance, it allowed the two-medication regimen to be prescribed until 10 weeks from conception, up from an original seven weeks. And in 2023, it allowed certified pharmacies to dispense mifepristone, where before patients would have to get their medicine directly from a clinician.

But in 2022, a group of anti-choice doctors and medical associationsthe eponymous Alliance for Hippocratic Medicinesued to block the FDAs generation-old approval of mifepristone. Not by accident, they sued in Amarillo, Texasa division of the federal Northern District of Texas where virtually all cases get assigned to Matthew Kacsmaryk, a die-hard anti-choice jurist. And they got what they wanted. Last April, Kacsmaryk effectively enjoined the FDAs longstanding approval of mifepristone. On appeal, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit let a lot of that injunction stand.

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Judge-shopping, revanchism, religious dogma, and paternalistic nostalgia dressed up as administrative law: As Mark Joseph Stern has shown in these pages, thats not nearly as rare as it should be. The only mildly surprising part of the whole debacle was the appellate courts firm conviction that these doctorswho neither took mifepristone nor prescribed ithad any business in court in the first place. If you dont own a dog or bet on them, you dont get to sue over the race.

This is the standing doctrine. Plaintiffs cant sue in federal court unless they were injured by something the defendants did. And their injury cant just be that theyre really upset about it. Otherwise, anyone who cared about any aspect of federal policy could sueand courts, not legislatures, would be policymaking bodies.

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Conservatives once professed to care deeply about this doctrine. It served as a bulwark against progressives making a federal case out of, for instance, the EPAs failure to regulate greenhouse gases.

Related From Slate The Supreme Courts Abortion Pill Ruling Should Satisfy Nobody Read More

But in the 5th Circuit, at least, that aspect of our (otherwise venerated) history and tradition has gone by the wayside. Standing doctrine is hard for the right-wing grievance machine, which believes it is entitled to whine to the refs over every perceived slight.

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So, obligingly, the 5th Circuit held that the doctors did have standingafter all, the court reasoned, someday they might be forced to treat someone undergoing some unspecified mifepristone-related complication, compromising their deeply held ideals.

At the end of that meandering trail of implausible contingencies lay a false premise. As the Supreme Court explained in its decision reversing the 5th Circuit: None of the plaintiff doctors alleged that they had ever been in a situation where they were forced to provide abortion care of any sort. And nobody is ever forced to provide abortion care, since federal law protects doctors freedom of conscience.

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Whats more: Nobody, even like-minded anti-choicers, ever really believed the 5th Circuits standing logic. Thats how Idaho, Kansas, and Missouri got involved in a lawsuit filed in a state hundreds of miles away from any of them.

When the FDA asked the Supreme Court to temporarily block the 5th Circuits decision pending further litigation, it leaned hard into the plaintiffs lack of standing. And the Supreme Court seemed inclined to listen, granting that stay request and hearing the case on the merits.

The red states responded by jumping into the fray. A year had gone by since the case first started. The district court had already given the private plaintiffs everything they wanted. But the states were worried that all the mischief would be undone by plaintiffs lack of standing: The Federal Governments recent petition, they argued in their motion to intervene, spends the brunt of its analysis attacking the private plaintiffs theories of standing. But in this motion, the States press sovereign and economic harms that cannot be asserted by private plaintiffs. So, they contended, they should be allowed into a case that none of them could ever have filed in the first place because none of them has any plausible connection to Amarillo, Texas. Kacsmaryk, of course, was as obliging as ever.

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And now what? Since the private plaintiffs dont have standing, the district court would normally dismiss the entire case, wiping away the remaining vestiges of its preliminary injunction. But now there is a new set of state plaintiffs. Theyre likely to argue that they get to go on litigating, because they have different and untested claims of standing. And we already know how the district court and the 5th Circuit feel about the merits. Does the agony continue?

It shouldnt. Not, anyhow, if existing law means anything.

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If standing is broken at its inception, you cant fix it afterward. Plaintiffs need standing when they file their case. If they havent been injured, they shouldnt be in court in the first placeand courts have no power to do anything in the case other than dismiss it. Standing defects cant be cured by subsequent legal repositioningincluding by intervention. As one federal appellate court put it: Since intervention contemplates an existing suit in a court of competent jurisdiction and because intervention is ancillary to the main cause of action, intervention will not be permitted to breathe life into a nonexistent law suit.

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The alternative would open the door to all kinds of procedural machinationsincluding the one that the state intervenors are trying here. Litigation hoboes can just get a willing plaintiff, no matter how frivolous his arguments, to file a suit in a favorable district, and then slip in behind him before the stockcar doors slide shut. The railyard dicks will get the original railhopper, but his sly buddy gets to keep on traveling.

So this case should die now, because allowing Zombie AHM to survive would be bad law and bad policy. But it would also be profoundly harmful to any vestigial sense of state dignity.

States arent just like normal litigants. They have some unique prerogatives and interests and some unique litigation privileges, too. For instance: Standing applies differently to states. Unlike individuals, theyre entitled to go to court to protect their sovereigntytheir (limited but real) autonomous prerogative to appoint their own officials and make their own laws.

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Those special prerogatives grow out of the place of states in our federalism bargain. And they come with obligationsincluding the obligation not to act like litigation hoboes. Red states shouldnt sue the FDA over a safe 23-year-old medication that makes women healthier and freer. But if they do, they should have the same faith in the federal system that the federal system has in them, suing in their own home jurisdictions rather than decamping across state lines because a Texas judge will treat them nice.

None of that, of course, prevents a new set of litigantseven these statesfrom bringing a new suit. For now, mifepristone remains legal and accessible. Not even Matthew Kacsmaryk can undo thatperhaps temporarywin.
This is part of Opinionpalooza, Slates coverage of the major decisions from the Supreme Court this June. Alongside Amicus, we kicked things off this year by explaining How Originalism Ate the Law. The best way to support our work is by joining Slate Plus. (If you are already a member, consider a donation or merch!)

The Supreme Court on Thursday threw out a legal assault against the most common method of abortion, unanimously holding that the plaintiffs lacked standing to sue in the first place. Justice Brett Kavanaughs opinion for the court maintains access to mifepristone, the first drug in a medication abortion, which the Food and Drug Administration approved in 2000. The plaintiffs, a group of anti-abortion doctors and dentists, argued that federal courts must ban or roll back the publics access to mifepristone in all 50 states, presenting objectively false claims about its alleged dangers. These activists, however, will not prescribe the drug or treat patients whove used itand so, the court held, they have no right to challenge its approval in court.

Yet the decision was not a total defeat for anti-abortion activists. Among other things, Kavanaugh slipped language into his opinion that could expand protections for physicians who refuse to provide emergency abortions, potentially imperiling the lives of patients. On a bonus Slate Plus episode of Amicus, Dahlia Lithwick and Mark Joseph Stern discussed Kavanaughs concession to the anti-abortion movement. Their conversation has been edited and condensed for clarity.

To listen to the full episode of Amicus, join Slate Plus.

Dahlia Lithwick: Lets talk about the skunk in the elevator, which is conscience protections. What saved the FDAs approval of mifepristone, in part, was Justice Brett Kavanaugh saying: Look, we already have conscience protections for health care providers. Doctors are not going to be forced to do anything they dont want to, including terminating a pregnancy. But our friend Elizabeth Sepper, a professor at University of Texas at Austin School of Law, quickly pointed out that this is not a net neutral on conscience rights. In fact, she posits, Kavanaughs opinion significantly broadens conscience protections from what they were before.

Mark Joseph Stern: So there were two ways the Supreme Court couldve written this opinion. The first wayand the way I think it should havewas to say that adverse outcomes from mifepristone are very low. Very few people go to the hospital with life-threatening conditions after taking the drug. So the odds that a woman will take mifepristone, go to the hospital, and wind up getting treated by one of these doctors is essentially nil. And the Supreme Court said, in a 2009 case called Summers v. Earth Island Institute, that a plaintiff cant establish standing based on the statistical probability that some government action will implicate their rights in the future. You cant base standing on a statistical guess, which is what the 5th Circuit did. Its not allowed.

But that wasnt the Supreme Courts basis for reversing the 5th Circuit, right?

Right. Instead, Kavanaugh said that we have in this nation extremely robust protections for conscience rights for doctors and other health care providers. Theres a federal statute that provides ironclad protections against forcing a doctor to perform an abortion against their will or assist with any kind of abortion care. And Kavanaugh cites Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar, who talked about this issue during arguments in both this case and the case about EMTALA, which asks when doctors must provide emergency abortions.

During both arguments, Prelogar promised that federal law does not override an individual doctors conscience objections. And Kavanaugh quoted her on that. And he added that even in a healthcare desert, where theres no other physician who can step in, a doctor may refuse to treat a patient who had an abortion. Even if shes bleeding out on the table, even if she is likely to die without care. Thats how broadly he reads these conscience laws.

Is that right? That sounds like an extraordinarily sweeping interpretation of the conscience statutes. It could put patients lives at risk.

That is actually a hotly contested claim! The solicitor general embraced it to prevail in these cases, and I dont fault her for itshe has to do what she needs to to win. But as Sepper pointed out, this was actually a big fight during the passage of the Affordable Care Act. Republicans and the Conference of Catholic Bishops were pressing Congress to add new, stronger conscience protections to guarantee that doctors would never have to provide emergency abortions. But Congress did not do that!

So Kavanaugh effectively grafted those failed amendments into the law by simply declaring, as a statement of fact, that conscience protections are so strong that doctors never have to assist in emergency abortions. Its a clever move: In this so-called victory for medication abortion, Kavanaugh slipped in a wildly expansive reading of the conscience clause that was, up until now, very much in dispute. He turned this case into an opportunity to expand conscience protections for anti-abortion providers.

Right. As Sepper wrote, this reading creates a legal safe harbor to refuse emergency abortion care nationwide. Catholic hospitals and (where they exist) objecting providers will feel authorized by this court to deny care as pregnant people suffer serious jeopardy to their lives and health.

Related From Slate The Supreme Courts Abortion Pill Ruling Should Satisfy Nobody Read More

I should note that anti-abortion advocates are celebrating this aspect of the ruling, calling it a huge win for conscience objectors.

Im a little surprised that the three liberal justices didnt take it upon themselves to point out the more straightforward approach here, rooted in Summers and a rejection of the statistical probability theory of standing, instead of Kavanaughs more tendentious reasoning. I guess the liberals decided they would take this as a win, and I certainly respect their tactical choices. But it included a handout to the anti-abortion movement.

And what, really, did the decision give to pro-choice advocates? The status quo remains, and thats it. Abortion pills are still illegal in states that criminalize abortion. Theyre still a banned controlled substance in Louisiana. If you live in a red state that prohibits reproductive health care, this decision does not affect you at all. You still have no right to bodily autonomy. If you live in a blue state, you just maintain the rights you had yesterday. Unelected federal judges didnt take those rights away from you. At least, not yet.
This week, Hunter Biden was convicted on highly politicized gun charges after a heartbreaking trial in which loved one after loved one testified about just how dark and self-destructive the presidents younger son became while in the throes of addiction. While the trial has been thoroughly covered in the media, it hasnt been the kind of prurient, breathless spectacle one might expect; even Republicans, who pushed for the charges, dont seem to quite know what to do with this ostensible win. In many ways, this is progress, evidence of a more sympathetic and humane approach to people struggling with substance use disorders, and a deeper understanding of how those same struggling people may act in ways that shock, scare, and devastate their families. But this sympathy has been hard-won, and comes less from moral and intellectual inquiry than from experience: More than 700,000 American families have lost a loved one to a drug overdose, and some 70,000 Americans overdose and die every year. As of 2020, the Centers for Disease Control said that more than 40 million Americans live with a substance use disorder. Each of these people have loved ones who worry about them and desperately want them to recover; many have done things while under the influence of drugs or fueled by addiction that they would never consider in their sober lives.

The Hunter Biden story is simply sad. But it is also revealing, especially when contrasted to the headline-making criminal trial of Donald Trump. In both cases, we see women doing what women so often do: Taking care of those who need help, even looking past serious misbehavior and deep betrayals of trust. But in one, we see a family rallying around a member in crisis, and a family patriarch doing his best to hold it all together, even to his own personal and professional detriment; in another, we see the family patriarch making decisions out of pure narcissism and self-interest, and expecting everyone else to clean up his messes. Both trials gave the public some insight into two of Americas most prominent families. Both families, like most families, have their flaws. But only one came out looking even somewhat decent.

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At the center of Hunter Bidens trial were the women around him: His wife of more than two decades, from whom he is now divorced; his late brother Beaus wife, with whom Hunter had a grief-and-drug-fueled affair; his daughter; his current wife; his stepmother; his sister. Not all of the women testified, but they did sit in the courtroom, a wall of support from some of the people Biden had hurt the most.

The charges against Biden stem from his purchase of a firearm during a period in which he was using drugs but nonetheless signed a federal form attesting that he wasnt. Lying on that form is the kind of charge that would be vastly unlikely to be brought against an average citizen, and it doesnt exactly fit with the ethos of the right-wing gun-rights crowd, who generally object to government interventions into the purchase and ownership of firearms. But many Republicans, incensed that prosecutors are going after former President Donald Trump for actual crimes, have been hunting for some pretext to target President Joe Biden. Finding little, theyve set their sights on his family members. Its a deeply cynical, exploitative strategy. And luckily, it doesnt seem to be landing with a public for whom the stringing up of an ill and often dysfunctional man may hit a little too close to home.

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On the witness stand, Hunter Bidens daughter, Naomi Biden Neal, now 30, read text messages she had exchanged with her father in which she expressed her desire to see him and her sadness at his inability to make time for her. The prosecutors were trying to demonstrate that Biden was too busy buying drugs to respond to his daughter; the effect, though, was more of a heartbreak than an indictment. Even the most salacious part of the Biden storyhis affair with Hallie Biden, his sister-in-law, after his brother and her husband, Beau Biden, diedseemed, when told by Hallie, more tragedy than tabloid. They were both leveled by sorrow, and both turned to alcohol and crack cocaine to numb themselves. In that terrible time, they made terrible decisions.

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Kathleen Buhle, Bidens ex-wife, testified to the many ways her former husbands addiction blew up her family and shattered the life she knew. None of it made Biden sound like a good man. But the effect was not to paint him as a feckless, entitled criminal; it was, again, an intimate look into the dysfunction wrought by addiction and the confusion and betrayal in its aftermath.

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Related From Slate The Hunter Biden Trial Was Too Sad for the Right to Properly Politicize It Read More

None of the women were there to indict Biden, hard as the prosecution tried to get them to do just that. Instead, they painted a picture of a broken man seemingly determined to self-destructbut surrounded by family, and mostly by women, who fought to pull the detonator from his hand and helped to piece him back together when he did blow up his life.

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First lady Jill Biden sat in the gallery for part of the trial. Jill and Joe Bidens daughter, Ashley, was there too, sometimes crying. The president was overseas on government business, but has been a stalwart supporter of his troubled son. Overwhelmingly, though, the people hurt by Hunter Bidens addiction, and those showing up to try to help him through crisis yet again, were the Biden women.

This is not unique to the Bidens. Women are the worlds caretakers, and in the United States, they fill the many gaps in a tattered social welfare net. Much has been written about the disproportionate burden women carry when it comes to caring for children, but the same is true for elderly family members, and ill onesincluding those ill with substance use disorders. It is, over and over again, womenoften mothers, but sometimes grandmothers, wives, girlfriends, sisters, and daughterswho take on the work of tending to loved ones with addiction, trying to navigate Byzantine health insurance coverage and treatment options, providing a safe place to sober up, joining advocacy groups, raising left-behind children, choosing to forgive or forge through neglect or theft or even abuse. Women also struggle with substance abuse. But women are often the primary caretakers for those substance abusers, too.

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Donald Trumps criminal trial was in many ways the opposite of Hunter Bidens. Trump, too, has a long-suffering wife looking the other way and forgiving various bad acts and betrayals, although Melania Trumps decisions seem incentivized less by her deep love for her husband and more by the material comforts life with him affords. But the women in Trumps lifehis wife, his eldest daughterwere notably absent from the courtroom. And the story of his trial, which involved a payoff to an adult film actress in an effort to cover up an affair and interfere with the 2020 election, was not that of a struggling, troubled man, but rather one of a lifelong narcissist acting abhorrently, never apologizing or even admitting wrongdoing, demanding those around him fix his mistakes, and then lashing out if they didnt fix his problems. Trumps inner circle, it was clear at his trial, is made up of scumbags, liars, and criminals from whom he demanded absolute loyalty and offered none in return. The primary emotion triggered by the Hunter Biden trial was sadness; in the Trump trial, it was disgust.

Both men have now been convicted. Partisans on both sides believe the trials were politically motivated. But only one of these trials should matter for the 2024 electionand its not the one of a struggling man surrounded by a loving family just trying to pull him out of the depths.
Judging from reports of Hamas counteroffer to the U.N.backed peace proposal, an end to the war in Gaza feels even more distant than it previously seemedand it seemed pretty distant.

In a Slate column on Wednesday, I wrote that the main problem with the peace talks in Cairo and Doha, Qatar, which have been going on for months, is that Israel and Hamas have conflicting aims and interests in the war, motivations that no amount of diplomatic finessing can override.

This is still the fundamental issue, but since then, intermediaries to the talks have released Hamas counteroffer to the proposal on the table, and in no way can it be seen as serious. As Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, some of Hamas changes are workable, some are not. In any case, many go beyond positions that [Hamas] had previously taken and accepted, leading one to question whether theyre proceeding in good faith or not.

Blinken didnt spell out the terms of Hamas offer, but they have since been leaked to several news organizations. According to those reports, Hamas makes many demands that, whatever ones feelings about the war, are clearly unreasonable.

For example, Hamas requires that Israeli troops withdraw from all populated areas of Gaza on the first day a deal goes into effectand that they pull out of the Philadelphi Corridor, near the EgyptGaza border, by the third day. Both demands are logistically difficult if not impossible. More to the point, a withdrawal from the Philadelphi would leave unguarded the route through which weapons have been channeled to Hamas gunmen.

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Hamas also demands that by the end of Phase 1 (the first of three stages), no Israeli soldiers remain in Gazadespite the fact that it will take until the end of Phase 2 to release all the Israeli hostages.

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In other articles, Hamas wants to give Israel no say in which Palestinian prisoners can be freed as part of the exchange for hostages. (Under the U.N.backed plan, Israel could exclude certain prisoners convicted on charges of murder or terrorism.)

Hamas proposes too that the reconstruction of Gaza take place during Phase 1, not Phase 3, as the U.N. version recommends. This stance is either naive or cynical, and it means that the release of all hostages, at the end of Phase 2, would be delayed until after reconstruction. No one in any diplomatic forum has put forth a plan for reconstruction, so this proposal suggests that the hostages would remain in Hamas hands indefinitely.

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Related From Slate A Close Read of the Israeli Peace Plan Brought Me to a Grim Conclusion Read More

Finally, Hamas insists that the war not resume even if disagreements over Phase 2 are unresolved. The U.N.backed plan takes the opposite position, asserting that Israel can resume fighting if Hamas fails to abide by its obligations.

Israeli officials have deemed this counteroffer a non-starter, and they are right. Blinken has urged Hamas to stop haggling and, in his most recent trip to the region, has encouraged his Egyptian and Qatari counterparts to apply more pressure on Hamas to get a cease-fire goingthough the haggling seems to reflect deeper problems. Blinken also said he would continue to have emissaries attend the peace talksa move that keeps at least some hope alive and the Biden administrations intentions clear.

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The peace proposal, which Hamas has proposed amending to the point of rejecting, was initiated by Israel, polished by U.S., Egyptian, and Qatari negotiators, then endorsed, in a 140 vote (with Russia abstaining) at the U.N. Security Council.

Since the war began eight months ago, three of my friends, all journalists with extensive background covering the Middle East, have independently told me the same joke: The problem with liberals is they think every problem has a solution. (All three friends are, to some extent, liberals.) When it comes to this war, its looking less and less like a joke.
This is part of Opinionpalooza, Slates coverage of the major decisions from the Supreme Court this June. Alongside Amicus, we kicked things off this year by explaining How Originalism Ate the Law. The best way to support our work is by joining Slate Plus. (If you are already a member, consider a donation or merch!)

On Thursday, the Supreme Court did the bare minimum necessary to operate like an actual court of law, unanimously throwing out an absurd and dangerous lawsuit against medication abortion. The justices do not deserve extra credit for refusing to embrace this deeply unserious litigation, and they should earn no gold stars for maintaining the legal status quo on abortion pills. They merely acted as minimally responsible adults in a room of sugared-up preschoolers, shutting down the lower courts lawless rampage over all known rules of standing in desperate pursuit of an anti-abortion agenda. It is chilling to the bone that activist lawyers and judges were able to wreak as much havoc as they did before SCOTUS put them in timeout. And this bad joke of a case isnt even over: A lower court has already teed up a do-over that could once again jeopardize access to reproductive care in all 50 states. Dont call this decision a victory. It is at best a reprievean election-year performance of Supreme Court unanimity and sobriety that masks the damage the conservative supermajority has already inflicted, as well as the threats to reproductive freedom that lie ahead.

The ruling, FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, grew out of arguably the most obscene case of judge shopping in recent memory. A far-right Christian nationalist law firm called the Alliance Defending Freedom brought together a group of anti-abortion doctors and dentists in 2022 to serve as plaintiffs in a lawsuit against mifepristone. (The Food and Drug Administration approved mifepristone, which is the first medication in a two-part regimen that ends a pregnancy, in 2000.) The plaintiffs argued, falsely, that the drug is extraordinarily dangerous to women and girls, sends countless patients to the hospital with life-threatening conditions, and should never have been approved. The ADF called the phony association the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine and incorporated it in Amarillo, Texas. Why Amarillo? Because just one judge sits in the federal courthouse there: Matthew Kacsmaryk, who worked as an anti-abortion activist before former President Donald Trump appointed him to the bench. Kacsmaryk and his colleagues have rigged the rules to ensure that any case filed in Amarillo gets sent to him, a departure from the standard procedure of random assignment.

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Predictably, Kacsmaryk gave the plaintiffs a total victory in 2023, declaring the FDAs approval of mifepristone unlawful and ordering it off the market nationwide, for everyone. There are far too many problems with his decision on the merits to enumerate here. Most egregiously, Kacsmaryk ignored more than 100 scientific studies demonstrating that mifepristone is safe and effective, citing instead two studies based on anonymous blog posts compiled by anti-abortion advocates. (Both studies were later retracted.) But there was always an even more foundational problem with Kacsmaryks ruling: He held that the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine had standing to sue even though it could not demonstrate any remotely plausible injury to its members. Nevertheless, the increasingly rogue U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit agreed with his analysis, first in April 2023 and again, four months later, even after SCOTUS prodded it to reconsider. It didnt go as far as Kacsmaryk had, but the 5th Circuit did impose draconian nationwide restrictions on mifepristone, making it difficult if not impossible to access for many throughout the country.

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Now the Supreme Court has unanimously shot down the 5th Circuit and Kacsmaryk, an embarrassing rejoinder to these lower courts law-free militancy. Justice Brett Kavanaughs unanimous majority opinion methodically dismantles the plaintiffs theory of standing, dismissing it as complicated, speculative, unprecedented, and limitless. Standing requires a direct link between the plaintiffs alleged injury and the action they are challenging. As Kavanaugh points out, the plaintiffs cannot establish any such link. These doctors (and dentists!) have no obligation, of course, to prescribe mifepristone. Rather, they lay out a series of hypotheticals: 1) A different doctor prescribes mifepristone to their patient, 2) that patient will suffer complications, 3) she will find her way to the plaintiffs practice, and 4) the plaintiff will have to treat her, potentially assisting in an abortion or post-abortion care, treatment that violates their conscience.

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This link, though, is simply too speculative or too attenuated to support standing, Kavanaugh concludes. One big reason why: Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar avowed in her briefing and again at oral argument that federal conscience protections guarantee all doctors an absolute right to refuse the provision of any treatment they morally oppose. So, Kavanaugh wrote, the plaintiffs have not shown that they could be forced to participate in an abortion or provide abortion-related medical treatment over their conscience objections because existing law definitively protects their right to refusal. Thats true even in a healthcare desert, where other doctors are not readily available. A doctor who opposes abortion, the court affirmed, may stand by and watch a patient bleed out rather than treat her in contravention of his conscience. Ironically, then, an anti-abortion statute that protects anti-abortion doctors played a key role in defeating the plaintiffs claim. Their own lavish safeguards against terminating a pregnancyor even just treating a patient who already terminated a pregnancyhelped defeat their attempt to pull mifepristone off the market.

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The threats to the medication, however, are far from over. First, and most obviously, it remains unlawful to prescribe in states that criminalize abortion; it has even been deemed a controlled substance in Louisiana. Second, Kacsmaryk is not finished with this case. In January, seeing the writing on the wall at SCOTUS, the judge allowed three red states to intervene in the litigation. These states claimed that doctors in blue states were shipping mifepristone to their residents. Kacsmaryk is all but guaranteed to keep the lawsuit alive, relying on the red-state plaintiffs to reestablish standing. He will then presumably impose yet another nationwide restriction on mifepristone, which the 5th Circuit will likely uphold, giving SCOTUS a Groundhog Day redo of this frivolous case.

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Related From Slate The Supreme Courts June Opinion Dump Will Be Devastating and Unprecedented Read More

Third, the Supreme Court conspicuously declined to address an argument at the heart of the plaintiffs theory: that the Comstock Act of 1873 imposes a nationwide ban on medication abortion. Conservative lawyers and judges are foaming at the mouth to revive this zombie anti-vice law, which puritanical male legislators enacted during a fit of moral panic about womens equality. Jonathan Mitchell, one of Trumps top lawyers, has already said he believes that the former president can and will wield it as a total abortion ban if he secures a second term. Trump, whose views on abortion regulation continue to be incomprehensible, nevertheless appears to be in tacit agreement with anti-abortion advocates that he will weaponize this law should he gain office. Although Justices Samuel Alito and Clarence Thomas brought up Comstock at oral argument in this case, SCOTUS has ducked the matter for now, possibly in an effort to stop it from becoming a campaign issue. Should Trump prevail, Comstock will roar back with a vengeance.

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If you blink, you might just miss the fact that todays decision is not a win for reproductive freedom, not an end to attacks on abortion, and not even the end of the road for this particular litigation. It is a status quo decision that allows the FDA to continue to regulate safe drugs and that precludes objectors from running into courts with nothing more than feelings. But a good thing to bear in mind is that although SCOTUS dodged a bullet, the threat to abortion care looms larger than ever. Whether its new systemic attacks on in vitro fertilization, overt plans to use Comstock to end abortion rights by way of executive action, state court attacks on reproductive freedom, or a second, less publicized abortion case still pending at the Supreme Court, Thursday wasnt a triumph for abortion rights; it was a push.

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It is heartening to hear Kavanaugh offer up a full-throated defense of standing, even in a case in which he might favor the plaintiffs goals, accompanied by a renunciation of manufactured disputes and litigation by feelings. But this case was the direct result of a string of huge legal victories for those seeking to restrict access to basic reproductive care, who are exploiting a Supreme Court profoundly sympathetic to their aims. If there is a winner in this outrageous case, it is merely the principle that there is possibly, at least in a presidential election year, still such a thing as too far for a court that has shown scant inclination to police that line.
At a meeting with Prime Minister Gaston Browne, The Antigua Barbuda Evangelical Alliance (ABEA) has voiced deep unease about cannabis drug users disrespecting sacred spaces on the sovereign island nation.

The House of Representatives approved decriminalizing marijuana in the Misuse of Drugs (Amendment) Bill on Feb. 6 2018. The drug had been previously made illegal under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1973, signed by British Governor Wilfred Jacobs.

However, representatives of ABEA met with Prime Minister Gaston Browne on Friday (June 7) to express frustrations about people smoking the powerful herb in public on the islands, including at sites and during events considered sacred to the Christian faith, according to Pointville Communications Inc.

Concerns were particularly expressed about users smoking marijuana in and around church buildings and cemeteries during funerals.

Those present from the ABEA included President Olson Daniel; executive member, The Rev. Christopher Weekes; public relations officer, The Rev. Fitzgerald Semper; and Clovis St Romain, the general secretary.

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We asked the government to undertake a programme of education to inform the public that marijuana use in public places is not legal, Semper reportedly said after the meeting.

[PM Browne] said there are those who mis-interpret the decriminalization of marijuana as permission to smoke openly in public and the Christian leaders are concerned about the message this is sending especially to the younger more impressionable members of society.

Semper told the prime minister that a pastor known to him personally had found a man attending his church service holding a marijuana spliff in his hand. The pastor believed this was disrespectful to the church meeting happening at the time.

The evangelical alliance requested that local media on television and radio be deployed in public service announcements to promote the message that smoking cannabis publicly is not allowed.

Browne has supported the overturning of the laws on cannabis in part to give followers of the Rastafari religion sacramental rights to use ganja, or wisdom weed, as cannabis is variously called in the community, within religious rites in meditation.

The prime minister has been keen to build relations with the Rastafari community, whom he sees as having suffered oppression under the British for many years, because the drug was formerly illegal. Antigua and Barbuda achieved independence in 1981.

The Caribbean Customs Law Enforcement Council previously reported a statement given by PM Browne on the passing of the laws for marijuana, which included for medical use. Individuals are allowed to possess 15g of cannabis for personal use and four plants are allowed per household to take the criminal element out of cannabis production.

The use of marijuana is now socially acceptable, said Browne at the time. It is, in essence, a part of the culture of the country. I want to make it abundantly clear that my government is not advocating the use of cannabis; we are against anything that is smoked.

We do accept, though, on the other hand, that marijuana utilized in different forms has significant medicinal benefits and certainly well move pretty quickly to ensure that we legalize the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes.

On Saturday (June 8), Browne emphasized his public support of both respecting church sanctuaries and also users of cannabis within legal limits on the Browne and Browne radio show for Pointe FM 99.1. He stressed that smoking cannabis is banned in public but allowed in homes.

On the programme, where Browne acknowledged issues affecting Antiguans such as cruise ships dumping waste, he reminded listeners of the importance of respecting each others ethical values.

Even on the whole issue in terms of respecting peoples space, said Browne on the radio show, I had a group of a few pastors last week who were very concerned that some of our youngsters continue to go into church sanctuaries with spliffs, and when you get to that level you are taking it too far.

The prime minister elaborated on the fact marijuana is allowed in contexts in the form of medicine for ailments or in the privacy of homes, but it has not been legalized for public recreational purposes, if nothing else due to the threat posed by sanctions against the country if it did not meet international obligations.

You have to respect peoples values, continued Browne on the radio show, and whereas many of us are very tolerant and open to the use of marijuana, there are some who are offended and if within a sanctuary they insist there is to be no marijuana use, or use of a cigarette, you have to respect the church. So I have an obligation to remind our people that the use of cigarettes or marijuana or any form of smoking in public is prohibited by law.

Even when we go to funerals we see a number of our citizens smoking openly, as though it is permissible by law. We have decriminalized the use of marijuana and we expect people to use it for personal enjoyment in the comfort of their homes but not everyone is comfortable with inhaling secondary smoke through marijuana or cigarettes.

The prime minister underlined that the message of no smoking in public must also be obeyed for those using tobacco. He also called on respect for church institutions: As we evolve as a people, we have to become more respectful of the values of certain institutions.

Brownes comment about public smoking of cannabis appears to contradict earlier comments he made two years ago at a Grow Antigua Barbuda Cannabis License Ceremony televised address, that was recorded by ABS TV Antigua.

Speaking to the Rastafari community about the licensing of cannabis, he seemingly encouraged the Rastafarians to smoke ganja in public.

This is really a great day and I am so happy for Rastafari, to see that Rastafari has been mainstreamed, Browne said in the videoed event.

You dont have to worry about police, or Babylon coming to chase you for a spliff. You can smoke your spliff in public if you wish, even though technically we dont want to encourage that, but nobody trouble you, and generally you can carry your 15 gramme and nobody troubling you. That is how empowering my administration is.

During this previous address, Browne went on to criticize European and American nations for previously criminalizing some young people and others for smoking marijuana, but now they have done a flip, he said and were looking to cultivate and produce marijuana and related products for profit.

We have to make sure we get ahead of the curve and generate a sustaining and profitable industry, he said at the event.

Rastafari is an Africa-focused religion, which began after Haile Selassie I became King of Ethiopia in 1930. Followers believe Selassie is God and he will reunite descendants of African slaves with the originating country on the African continent. Ganja smoking is seen by adherents to be an essential part of their devotions, to support their sense of spirituality.

Operation World (OW), an evangelical ministry that examines statistics related to Christianity and issues prayer guides, states on its website that almost all Antiguans are Christian by background, including a large proportion of evangelicals. They encourage prayer for revival that galvanizes Christians to prayer, and for involvement that impacts their society.
This is part of Opinionpalooza, Slates coverage of the major decisions from the Supreme Court this June. Alongside Amicus, we kicked things off this year by explaining How Originalism Ate the Law. The best way to support our work is by joining Slate Plus. (If you are already a member, consider a donation or merch!)

On Thursday, the Supreme Court unanimously rejected an attempt to ban the abortion drug mifepristonebut as rare as it is for this court to unanimously agree on anything, the decision isnt the progressive victory you might think.

In a 90 decision written by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, the court concluded that the plaintiffs in FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine lacked standing to suein other words, that they hadnt convincingly proven that they were being harmed. The plaintiffs have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to elective abortion and to FDAs relaxed regulation of mifepristone, wrote Kavanaugh. But under Article III of the Constitution, those kinds of objections alone do not establish a justiciable case or controversy in federal court.

However, Kavanaugh also wrote that it is not clear that no one else would have standing to challenge the FDAs relaxed regulation of mifepristone.

So for now, mifepristone is safe and will continue to be available for use. However, the justices essentially opened the door, nice and wide, for someone else to step in and try to eliminate access to mifepristone.

During oral arguments, the conservative justices even laid out a potential legal argument for a new plaintiff to usethe Comstock Act of 1873. That law outlaws the mailing of any drug or medicine or any article whatever for causing unlawful abortion, but the government hasnt enforced it, considering it vastly outdated. However, the Supreme Courts conservative justices feel differently. Its not some obscure subsection of a complicated, obscure law. They knew about it. Everybody in this field knew about it, Justice Samuel Alito argued back in March.

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Related From Slate The Current Attack on Abortion Pills Will Fail. The Next One Will Be So Much Worse. Read More

Still, Alito and his fellow conservative justices simply could not ignore the gaping holes in FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine. For starters, it came to SCOTUS from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, a notoriously MAGA benchsix of its judges were appointed by the Trump administrationthat so consistently shovels its worst constitutional garbage upward that the higher court conservatives are often forced to reluctantly lob it back, as Dahlia Lithwick and Mark Joseph Stern put it.

District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk heard the case originally after it was shopped directly to his courtroom, and he initially tried to implement a nationwide ban on mifepristone last year. The Supreme Court ultimately froze his decision until they could hear FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine.

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The Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine was representing a handful of doctors who dont actually prescribe mifepristone. Yet, they argued that they could some day receive a patient who had previously been prescribed mifepristone by a different doctor and was now experiencing complications. These doctors would be forced to treat this patient and thereby be complicit in abortion, according to this hypothetical approach to standing.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson during oral arguments noted that the case reflected a mismatch between the harms alleged and the remedy plaintiffs wanted: Theyre saying, Because we object to having to be forced to participate in this procedure, were seeking an order preventing anyone from having access to these drugs at all. 

This case should have been dismissed from the onset, since they were merely speculating about the possibility of a future harm, which does not establish standing under Article 3 of the Constitution, Lithwick and Stern wrote after oral arguments. And that possibility really is quite remote, since mifepristone has been proved safe in more than 100 scientific studies. However, the plaintiffs strategically brought the lawsuit in Amarillo, Texas, where it was guaranteed to draw Kascmaryk, who relied on a scientific study that was later withdrawn as junk science in his decision. Jessica Ellsworth, the attorney representing the maker of mifepristone, argued before the Supreme Court that Kascmaryks decision was based on anonymous blog posts and data that had since been retracted for lack of scientific rigor and for misleading presentations of data.

So to recap: This case, which shouldnt have existed in the first place, was so full of holes that even the Supreme Courts conservative justices hands were tied. They may have reluctantly banded together with their liberal counterparts to dismiss this mifepristone casebut that probably wont be the case next time.
Opinionpalooza is Slates coverage of the major decisions from the Supreme Court this June. Alongside Amicus, we kicked things off this year by explaining How Originalism Ate the Law. The best way to support our work is by joining Slate Plus. (If you are already a member, consider a donation or merch!)

The end of the 202324 Supreme Court term is upon us. Its shaping up to be a bit of a whirlwind, as SCOTUS is still sitting on a number of big cases, and it seems as if theyre all going to come down in incredibly rapid succession.

To help you keep track of everything, and in an effort to convey the real stakes of what is going to happen to American law this term, were compiling a case tracker below. And if youre new here and not sure where to start, weve got you: This explainer breaks down the basics, while Dahlia Lithwick and Mark Joseph Stern are regularly detailing the bigger picture behind the courts decisions on the Amicus podcast.

The Stakes

Right now there is a conservative supermajority on the courtsix justices were appointed by Republican presidents, and just three were appointed by Democratic presidents. The reality of this imbalance hit home in 2022, when the majority reversed 50 years of precedent in overturning Roe v. Wade. And with so many parts of government currently deadlocked, decisions from the court end up enacting some of the biggest changes in American life.

A disproportionate number of these decisions are regressive, overruling settled law and imposing hard-right policies favored by the GOP. That can be attributed in part to the prevailing legal theory that has captivated so many of the justices: an interpretation of the law that purports to prioritize the original meaning of the Constitutionyou know, back when most Americans had no rights at all. This year, to welcome the end of the term, Slates legal analysts created a whole package and special podcast series dedicated to this theory, its origins, and the ways we can stop it. Read it here.

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The Cases

This term, the court accepted a historically low number of cases: just under 60. Yet a huge number of the cases that were chosen are politically charged, controversial blockbustersand the justices have saved the bulk of them to decide in June. What theyre doing is investing their time in these high-profile cases that take more of their time, more of their energy, Georgetown law professor Stephen Vladeck explained in conversation with Lithwick and Stern. They have so many of these high-profile cases that they just dont have room for the lower-profile stuff.

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The forthcoming opinions from the Supreme Court will cover a wide range of issues, and some of the most consequential ones will decide the future of abortion medication, whether domestic abusers have a constitutional right to own a gun, if Donald Trump is immune from criminal prosecution for actions he took while president, and more.

Here are a handful of cases we are closely watching.

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The Abortion Cases

 FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine challenges the legality of the abortion drug mifepristone. A group of anti-abortion doctors argues that the legality of the medication forces them to be complicit in abortion, because one day they could treat a patient experiencing complications from the drug if it was prescribed by a different doctor. The Food and Drug Administration argues that mifepristone has been safely used by millions of Americans since it was approved in 2000.

BY DAHLIA LITHWICK AND MARK JOSEPH STERN The Supreme Courts Abortion Pill Ruling Should Satisfy Nobody

BY SHIRIN ALI The Unanimous SCOTUS Abortion Drug Decision Isnt As Good As It Seems

BY DAHLIA LITHWICK AND MARK JOSEPH STERN Brett Kavanaugh Slipped a Big Poison Pill Into His Mifepristone Opinion

BY JOSHUA PERRY States Are Trying to Pull a Fast One on the Supreme Court Over Its Mifepristone Ruling

BY REVA SIEGEL AND MARY ZIEGLER The Supreme Court Just Laid Out a Road Map for Trump to Ban Abortion Nationwide

BY CARRIE N. BAKER One Big, Unintended Consequence of the Failed Attempt to Ban the Abortion Pill

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 Moyle v. United States considers whether states must follow a federal law, known as EMTALA, that directs doctors to provide stabilizing careincluding medically indicated abortionfor any patient in an emergency room, even if it conflicts with the states own abortion ban. This appeal was brought by the state of Idaho, which has a law that allows abortion only to prevent the death of a pregnant woman.

BY MARK JOSEPH STERN The Supreme Courts New Leaked Abortion Draft Reeks of Cynicism

BY REVA SIEGEL AND MARY ZIEGLER Amy Coney Barrett Signaled Something Very Scary About Where Abortion Bans Will Go Next

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The Gun Cases

 Rahimi v. U.S. considers whether the Second Amendment allows people who are subject to domestic violence restraining orders to purchase guns. The case was brought by Zackey Rahimi, a Texan who has been convicted on multiple gun-related charges and was banned from buying firearms. This case hinges on how the justices will apply a standard they themselves set in a separate gun case in 2022, New York Rifle and Pistol Association v. Bruen, which affirmed that restrictions on guns must be consistent with the countrys historical tradition of firearm regulation.

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BY MARK JOSEPH STERN The Supreme Court Walks Back Clarence Thomas Guns Extremism

BY RIA TABACCO MAR The Supreme Courts Gun Decision Is Not a Victory for Women

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BY DAHLIA LITHWICK AND MARK JOSEPH STERN The Supreme Court Just Opened the Door to New Second Amendment Chaos

BY SAUL CORNELL The John Roberts Balancing Act Is Back, at Least for Guns

BY GEMMA DONOFRIO The Supreme Courts Abortion Rulings Have Made Intimate Partner Violence Deadlier

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 Garland v. Cargill will decide the legality of bump stocks under federal law. It questions a regulation that the Trump administration enacted after the Las Vegas massacre that banned bump stocksa device that, if attached to a rifle, can drastically increase the number of bullets fired, making a rifle fire like a machine gun. This case will come down to how the justices interpret the literal mechanics of federal law and how it defines machine gun.

BY MARK JOSEPH STERN Clarence Thomas Opinion Legalizing Bump Stocks Is Indefensible

BY DAHLIA LITHWICK AND MARK JOSEPH STERN The Group Helping the Supreme Court Rewrite Americas Gun Laws Is Worse Than the NRA

 Amicus How SCOTUS Wrote a New Loophole for the Gun Industry

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The Immunity Cases

 Fischer v. U.S. argues that a 2002 obstruction law that the DOJ has used to charge 350 rioters on Jan. 6 has been misused. Joseph Fischer, one of those rioters, is being charged with seven felonies, and he argues that the obstruction law is referring to document destruction because it was created in the aftermath of the Enron scandal. The government has defended use of the law, noting that nothing like the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol has ever happened in U.S. history. The outcome of this case will directly affect Donald Trumps prosecution too, since special counsel Jack Smith has also charged Trump under this obstruction law.

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BY RICHARD L. HASEN That Big Jan. 6 Supreme Court Decision Is Not the Win for Trump People Think It Is

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 Trump v. U.S. addresses a question at the heart of Trumps federal election-interference indictment: Is a former president protected from criminal prosecution under a heretofore unknown doctrine of presidential immunity? This case was expedited to the Supreme Court in February, and during oral arguments, the justices seemed open to Trumps defense. To at least five of the conservatives, the real threat to democracy wasnt Trumps attempt to overturn the electionbut the Justice Departments efforts to prosecute him for the act, Lithwick and Stern wrote in Slate.

BY MARK JOSEPH STERN Dont Believe John Roberts. The Supreme Court Just Made the President a King.

BY RICHARD L. HASEN The Trump Immunity Ruling Will Be John Roberts Legacy to American Democracy

BY DAHLIA LITHWICK AND MARK JOSEPH STERN Can the President Send SEAL Team Six to Assassinate His Rival? After Monday, Yes.

BY SAMUEL W. BUELL AND DARRELL A.H. MILLER Heres a Short List of Some of the Presidents New and Terrible Powers

BY FRANK BOWMAN The Assassination Hypothetical Isnt Even the Scariest Part of the Supreme Court Immunity Ruling

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The Internet and Social Media

 Moody v. NetChoice LLC and NetChoice LLC v. Paxton will determine the future of content moderation on the internet. A trade association representing all the major social media companies sued Texas and Florida for laws they enacted in the aftermath of Donald Trump getting kicked off Facebook and X for his posts on Jan. 6. The laws were enacted under the premise that social media companies cannot remove content because that would amount to censorship. However, the social media companies argue that they are private actors and can claim a First Amendment right to moderate content that appears on their platforms.

BY RICHARD L. HASEN The First Amendment Just Dodged an Enormous Bullet at the Supreme Court

 Murthy v. Missouri will decide whether the government can encourage social media companies to take down disinformation spread by users. Missouri and Louisiana both argue that the Biden administration violated their residents First Amendment rights when it asked social media companies to remove lies about COVID-19 vaccines and the 2020 election. The government argued that it hadnt engaged in coercion but had simply encouraged social media platforms to enforce their existing rules around misinformation.

Whether the Government Can Enforce the Law

 Jarkesy v. SEC takes aim at the federal governments ability to penalize private companies that violate public rightsthink securities fraud, consumer scams, environmental crimes, labor violations, etc. George Jarkesy is a conservative talk-radio host who also manages $24 million in assets and was fined by the SEC for unlawful gains and banned from the securities industry. Jarkesy wants to strip the SEC of its enforcement power and argues that its actions are unconstitutional. This is a complicated case that comes down to allowing the federal government to hold on to its enforcement powers.

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BY SHIRIN ALI AND MARK JOSEPH STERN Meet the Hedge Fund Sleazebag Who Just Got SCOTUS to Kneecap the Government

BY ALAN B. MORRISON Under-the-Radar Supreme Court Ruling Threatens Untold Damage to Government

BY DAHLIA LITHWICK AND MARK JOSEPH STERN Sonia Sotomayor Is Trying to Warn Us About the Supreme Courts Dirtiest Open Secret

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 Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo and Relentless v. Department of Commerce mark efforts to overturn Chevron deferencethe 40-year-old principle that federal courts should defer to federal agencies interpretation of ambiguous laws. If the conservative justices kill Chevron, they will make it substantially more difficult for presidents, especially Democrats, to interpret and execute countless regulations.

BY MARK JOSEPH STERN Elena Kagan Is Horrified by What the Supreme Court Just Did. You Should Be Too.

BY DAVID L. FRANKLIN This Supreme Court Has Betrayed Antonin Scalias Legacy

BY DAHLIA LITHWICK AND MARK JOSEPH STERN The Presidential Debate Was a Big Distraction From the Latest Supreme Court Havoc

 AMICUS The Day SCOTUS Became President

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BY AUSTIN SARAT John Roberts Has His Very Own Dobbs

Compiled by Shirin Ali.
Smer leader Robert Fico is no longer a social democrat.

Boris Zala is a philosopher and former Smer politician. He also served as MEP in the past. (Source: SME - Jozef Jakubco)

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The author is a philosopher, former politician and MEP.

I was wandering the streets of Cordoba, Spain, when a journalist from Czech Public Radio contacted me to comment on Robert Fico's first speech after the shooting attack on May 15. I immediately listened to it several times, then read the initial reactions, and over the following days, I also read the commentaries.

I was surprised that I could not find anyone who had noticed what message Prime Minister Fico was sending to the country and its citizens. Most focused on whether his language pointed toward any form of reconciliation, and commentators unanimously concluded that it more confirmed the deepening of "hatred".

Manifesto of national conservatism

I read his speech completely differently. Fico delivered, literally and figuratively, a "manifesto of national conservatism". And he did it thoughtfully and consistently. All the chosen themes are from the repertoire and vocabulary of the far-right.

The core of the far-right's struggle and distinction from other parties has become straightforward anti-European vocabulary, anti-Brussels symbolism.

The prime minister does not dissect specific EU policies, but shoots symbolic arrows: the EU recognises "only one opinion". "Great democracies" impose their truth on us, the "small" ones. We, the "small" ones, must maintain our sovereignty.
Vienna honours late Slovak politician, PM Fico's departure from social democracy, and water adventures on the Hornad.

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Good evening. Here is the Thursday, June 13 edition of Today in Slovakia - the main news of the day in less than five minutes.

Journalist quits Pravda over alleged censorship

The Pravda daily is one of the best-selling serious papers in Slovakia. (Source: TASR)

Business journalist Tomas Bakos decided to quit the Pravda daily, one of the major serious newspapers in Slovakia, after three years. He cited censorship as the reason.

"I had to remove an entire paragraph from the article, in which I provided space for experts who criticised the government's changes to the Penal Code," he wrote on social media earlier this week. "I was not alone."

Lubos Kamenisty has been the editor-in-chief of Pravda since May 2022. He had run the Plus 7 dni magazine, owned by the Penta financial group's News and Media Holding publishing house, for two years before he joined the Pravda daily.

Pravda's in-house commentator Marian Repa also left the daily a few weeks ago, along with commentators and former left-wing politicians Boris Zala and Peter Weiss. Censorship was again the reason. According to omediach.com, more journalists are considering quitting Pravda, the daily owned by Czech entrepreneur and politician Ivo Valenta.

Bakos will join the Forbes magazine in mid-June.

Related: After 25 years, Miro Frindt, a long-time presenter and former news director at Slovakia's public broadcaster RTVS, decided to leave the broadcaster. "Since January, I haven't been involved in any of RTVS' premium news formats... When a company doesn't value you, why linger?" Frindt said. He is an outspoken critic of the new bill on Slovak Television and Radio (STVR). (omediach.com)

MORE STORIES FROM THE SLOVAK SPECTATOR WEBSITE

Opinion: Boris Zala, a former Smer party member who served as an MEP, has written an eye-opening opinion about PM Robert Fico and his latest speech.

Boris Zala, a former Smer party member who served as an MEP, has written an eye-opening opinion about PM Robert Fico and his latest speech. Business: There are so many amazing firms in Slovakia, but only some will walk away with an award later this month. Meet the finalists - responsible employers and partners in business - of the Via Bona Slovakia Awards.

There are so many amazing firms in Slovakia, but only some will walk away with an award later this month. Meet the finalists - responsible employers and partners in business - of the Via Bona Slovakia Awards. Travel: An exceptional tourism attraction has opened in the Kosice Region, with no parallel in Slovakia to date: a system of self-service kayak rental on the Hornad.

If you like what we are doing and want to support good journalism, buy our online subscription with no ads and a print copy of The Slovak Spectator sent to your home in Slovakia. Thank you.

FEATURE STORY

Pellegrini era is about to begin

Future Slovak president Peter Pellegrini. (Source: TASR - Jaroslav Novak)

President-elect and ex-Hlas party leader Peter Pellegrini will assume office this Saturday. For Bratislavans, it means traffic restrictions. For the nation, it means the start of a new era. Here's the full inauguration programme.

3 FREE EVENTS

Hungarian weekend in Bratislava

A still from a previous edition of the Hungarian culture festival. (Source: TASR)

A festival celebrating Hungary's culture will take place this weekend, beginning Friday. Come and indulge in Hungarian music and culinary delights.

IN OTHER NEWS

The influence of the commissioner investigating coronavirus pandemic management and MP Peter Kotlar (SNS) at the Health Ministry is increasing. Most recently, his acquaintance and neighbour, Matej Turzo, became the head of the crisis management section at the ministry led by Zuzana Dolinkova (Hlas). Turzo replaced expert Ildiko Kukanova, who held this position for several years. Anti-vaxxer Kotlar recently represented Slovakia in Geneva, where he refused to support the new WHO's International Health Regulations.( SME)

Most recently, his acquaintance and neighbour, Matej Turzo, became the head of the crisis management section at the ministry led by Zuzana Dolinkova (Hlas). Turzo replaced expert Ildiko Kukanova, who held this position for several years. Anti-vaxxer Kotlar recently represented Slovakia in Geneva, where he refused to support the new WHO's International Health Regulations.( SME) "In the next period, I would very much like to focus on something I call growth support. The area closest to this is education, possibly the academic field," President Zuzana Caputova said about her future during her last official foreign visit to Prague. Her term will end this Saturday.

President Zuzana Caputova said about her future during her last official foreign visit to Prague. Her term will end this Saturday. In Donaustadt, the 22nd district of the Austrian capital Vienna, a street will be named after the former Czechoslovak reform communist Alexander Dubcek. According to the social democratic mayor of Vienna, Michael Ludwig, Alexander Dubcek Street will be located between Lackenjochelgasse and Pfalzgasse.

Slovak actress Zuzana Fialova in the performance 'We Are Fine' during the Divadelna Nitra festival in Nitra on June 12, 2024. (Source: TASR )

The company Haleon, operating in the industrial park in Levice, manufactures known toothpastes like Sensodyne and Parodontax, which are sold worldwide. Today, they plan to build a 19 million development and testing centre in the town. Additional positions will also be created in production. Haleon will relocate production lines from a plant in Great Britain, which will be closed, to Levice. (SME)

Today, they plan to build a 19 million development and testing centre in the town. Additional positions will also be created in production. Haleon will relocate production lines from a plant in Great Britain, which will be closed, to Levice. (SME) Two stories about bears appeared in the media this week. A bear mauled and tore apart a sheep from a shepherd's hut in Liptov and ate it by a stream (video), and near Banska Bystrica, a female bear and her three cubs were shot. According to conservationists, the four bears posed a threat to people in Poniky. (Aktuality)

A bear mauled and tore apart a sheep from a shepherd's hut in Liptov and ate it by a stream (video), and near Banska Bystrica, a female bear and her three cubs were shot. According to conservationists, the four bears posed a threat to people in Poniky. (Aktuality) On Wednesday, parliament advanced to the second reading an amendment to the law on publishers, submitted by MPs from the nationalist party SNS. The proposed right to correction will allow anyone, including politicians, to request the publication of corrections to untrue or incomplete factual statements that affect their reputation. If the media do not publish a correction, they face a fine of 15,000. The Slovak National Party (SNS) also proposes that news websites obtain and verify in advance the identification details of individuals participating in discussions under their articles. (TASR)

WEATHER FOR FRIDAY: Mainly cloudy, with mostly clear skies in the morning. Some fog possible in the early hours. Daytime temperatures between 18C to 24C. (SHMU)

JUNE 14 NAME DAY IN SLOVAKIA: Vasil.

Thank you for subscribing and reading. It means a lot to us.

P.S. If you have suggestions on how our news overview can be improved, you can reach us at editorial@spectator.sk.

Follow The Slovak Spectator on Facebook and Instagram (@slovakspectator).
New York Yankees' Giancarlo Stanton hits a two-run home run during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Kansas City Royals Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP)  Jose Trevino capped a six-run first inning with a three-run homer, Gleyber Torres added a three-run drive in the seventh and the New York Yankees romped over the Kansas City Royals 11-5 Wednesday night for their third straight win in the four-game series.

Giancarlo Stanton hit a 449-foot, two-run homer into shrubbery next to a waterfall beyond left-center, a night after hitting a 446-foot home run over three fences beyond center field.

Stanton has five home runs at Kauffman, two to left field and two to center.

We got to get right field now, so I got one more game to do it, Stanton said.

The major league-best Yankees (49-21) have won 12 of their last 15 games and have outscored the Royals 25-8 in the series.

New York has scored 10 runs in the first inning of the three games and leads the major leagues with 57 first-inning runs. The Yankees are 25-3 when scoring in first with a .296 batting average, 20 homers and a .971 OPS.

A lot of good things, obviously, happened in that first inning, Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. Everyone putting together really good at-bats and capped off by a no-doubter by Trevvy. ... Thats a good offense, and they're playing well, getting some contributions from everyone.

New York has won 17 of its first 22 series, moved a season-best 28 games over .500 and improved to 17-1 against the AL Central, winning 15 in a row.

Alex Verdugo put the Yankees ahead with a two-run single and Anthony Rizzo had a sacrifice fly in the first for his first RBI since May 25. In a 1-for-36 slide this month, Rizzo singled in the seventh for his first hit since June 5.

Stantons home run was his 17th, and Trevino and Torres have six each.

"Big innings are tough to come back from regardless," Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. "Weve done it, and we worked hard to try to get back in it tonight as well. We just couldnt come through with a big hit a couple of times.

Juan Soto was in right field for the second straight night after missing three games with left forearm inflammation and went 1 for 2 with a pair of walks, raising his batting average to .317.

Backed by an 8-0 lead, Cody Poteet (3-0) allowed two runs and four hits in 5 1/3 innings.

Its just exciting, fun to watch, Poteet said. When you see that, you just want to go out there and pound the strike zone because (when) theyre scoring like that early on, you just want to have a shut-down inning.

AL batting leader Bobby Witt. Jr. doubled in Kansas Citys first run in the sixth, had three hits and lifted his average .326. The Royals have lost four in a row for the first time this season and 11 of 16 following an eight-game winning streak. Kansas City has allowed 19 runs in the first inning over its last six games.

Royals opener Dan Altavilla (0-1) gave up five runs, three hits and one walk while getting one out, raising his ERA to 33.75.

TRAINERS ROOM

Royals: Kansas City said OF Hunter Renfroes left big toe is not fractured as originally thought. Renfroe fouled two balls off his foot three pitches apart Monday. He is projected to miss two-to-three weeks, down from six-to-eight weeks.

UP NEXT

LHP Nestor Cortes (3-5, 3.68 ERA) starts Thursdays series finale for the Yankees and RHP Alec Marsh (5-3, 4.05 ERA) for the Royals.

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB
Cat Week on the Build-Outs of Coffee concludes with a visit to Reno, Nevadas Laughing Cat Coffee. In operation since 1990, Laughing Cat has received a major remodel to show off roasting and provide ample public seating, and is now operated by a new owner. Lets learn more!

The 2024 Build-Outs of Coffee is presented by Ceado and Dona. The 2024 Build-outs of Coffee is sponsored by Pacific Barista Series, La Marzocco, Acaia and Ghirardelli.

As told to Sprudge by Steven Horn.

For those who arent familiar, will you tell us about your company?

Steven Horn, a former global business development executive at Google and a successful entrepreneur, is embarking on a new venture as the owner of Laughing Cat Coffee, Renos first specialty coffee roaster established in 1990. Horns passion for coffee, honed over five years of roasting in his garage on a Bellwether Roaster and delivering weekly roasts to local offices and fans, has led him to this new chapter in his career.

With a background in guiding start-ups to successful exits and a deep appreciation for the arts, Horn brings a fresh perspective to Laughing Cat Coffee. His goal is to infuse the brands craft heritage with innovation and a focus on community connections.

Can you tell us a bit about the new space?

The existing space has been updated with a coffee bar window and guest seating upfront, with the roasting process visible to the public just behind.

Whats your approach to coffee?

I have a dual approach to our coffee offerings.

First, I am paying respect to the heritage of Laughing Cat and the previous owner, who was an early specialty coffee roaster and master blender. I am leaning into staple blends that are proven crowd-pleasers, giving them new twists with names inspired by the film industry, another passion of mine. Noir is our dark roast, RomCom is our medium roast, Epic is the house blend, and Matinee is our decaf.

My other approach to coffee is showcasing beautiful single-origin beans with unique varieties and processing methods that rotate seasonally. We feature the producer and region, highlighting the innovation that is happening at the farm level.

Any machines, coffees, special equipment lined up?

We are roasting on a San Franciscan SF 25, and an SF 1 is our sample roaster. Our espresso machine is a Slayer Steam, and our grinders are a Mahlkonig Peak and a Mahlkonig EK43.

How is your project considering sustainability?

We work closely with some of the industry leaders in green coffee sourcing and imports, so we rely on them for sourcing ethics. At our cafe, we are using 100% compostable to-go ware.

As we develop our line of rotating single origins, we strive to bring to life stories around origin, the struggle with climate change, and the leaders at each farm who are working to make specialty coffee equitable for everyone in the supply chain. There are so many specialists there, in the lab, at the mills, and in the fields picking only ripe cherries. My passion for story and coffee collide here, and thats where Im excited to develop our messaging and work with coffee producers.

Whats your hopeful target opening date/month?

Friday, June 7!

Are you working with craftspeople, architects, and/or creatives that youd like to mention?

I have been collaborating closely with Darleen Scherer, Owner of Black Sheep Coffee Collab, on the rebrand, product line development for roasted coffee and other extensions, menu creation, and general operations for a roastery and cafe. Garry Grow, owner of Coffee Medics, is my go-to equipment specialist. He installs and maintains all our coffee equipment, both at our coffee bar and for our wholesale partners.

Thank you!

Thank you!
Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in. Two weeks ago, with the help of some very industrious internet sleuths, we got to the bottom of Who Roasts for Rudy. We had previously reported that Rudy Giuliani had started his own coffee brand, Rudys Coffee. It was certainly weird timing for Americas Mayor, as he was currently embroiled in a bankruptcy case stemming from owing $148 million from a defamation suit.

We were less concerned with the personal indiscretions of such a man. What we really wanted to know what who was actually doing all the roasting. The answer is Darron Don Pablo Burke of Burke Brands and Don Pablo Coffee in Miami, Florida. This seemed like the natural denouement to the story, but there appears to be an epilogue: Burke Brands is also bankrupt.

Don Pablo may not be too stoked about all the extra attention Rudys Coffee is bringing his coffee company. As we previously reported, Giulianis new coffee endeavors drew the attention of his creditors, who subpoenaed all information relating to him from Burke Brands, alleging that the former mayors deal with the roaster funnels money into a corporate account linked to Giuliani, a means to divert income away from his debts, per the Independent.

But it turns out, Burke Brands also filed for bankruptcy, nearly a year before Giuliani did. In December 2022, Burke filed for Chapter 11, which resulted from facing a cash crunch during the pandemic and having to turn to high-interest lenders, the brands lawyer told the South Florida Business Journal in March.

The brand states they have emerged from Chapter 11, but last month sought to modify a court-approved plan to pay back hundreds of thousands of dollars to creditors in two large installments, instead asking for monthly payments. Burkes lawyer states the amended payment schedule has nothing to do with Rudys Coffee or Giuliani.

Despite all this, it still appears to be full steam ahead for Rudys coffee. The website is still taking pre-orders to ship in June. Some of you eagle-eyed chronologists may have already noted that we are, in fact, in the middle of the very month Rudys Coffee is supposed to start going out and that none appears to have just yet. Its just a little late, its still good, its still good.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240611/djiboutis-education-minister-welcomes-russias-hard-science-expertise--1118931608.html

Djibouti's Education Minister Welcomes Russia's Hard Science Expertise

Djibouti's Education Minister Welcomes Russia's Hard Science Expertise

Sputnik International

Russia and Djibouti signed a memorandum on professional training. Moustapha Mohamed Mahamoud - Minister of National Education and of professional training of Djibouti - explained Sputnik that African country is interested in Russias vast experience in hard science, including robotics, cybersecurity and program development.

2024-06-11T11:06+0000

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Russia and Djibouti have signed a memorandum on professional training. The African country is interested in Russias vast experience in hard science, including robotics, cybersecurity and program development, Minister of National Education and Professional Training of Djibouti Moustapha Mohamed Mahamoud said in an interview with Sputnik. He added that Djubouti is inspired by Russias history in establishing scientific and educational institutions. Nevertheless, the East African country will look to establish its own model of education.

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240612/some-100-people-request-medical-care-after-clashes-at-protest-in-yerevan---health-ministry-1118923613.html

Some 100 People Request Medical Care After Clashes at Protest in Yerevan - Health Ministry

Some 100 People Request Medical Care After Clashes at Protest in Yerevan - Health Ministry

Sputnik International

The number of people for sought medical assistance after clashes between protesters and police outside the Armenian parliament building rose to 98, the Armenian Health Ministry said.

2024-06-12T23:27+0000

2024-06-12T23:27+0000

2024-06-12T23:27+0000

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People rallied outside the parliament to demand Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyans resignation. They tried to break through the police cordon, prompting officers to push them back and fire stun grenades. One person with a wrist wound had to undergo surgery, the ministry also said, adding that there are no other serious injuries. Meanwhile, the Armenian Investigative Committee said that it had initiated criminal proceedings in connection with the "organization of mass riots," as the protesters had "disobeyed the legal demands of police officers and staged mass riots, accompanied by the use of violence against police officers."A spokesperson for the Armenian Interior Ministry told Sputnik that 98 people had been detained during the clashes.Clashes erupted as Prime Minister Pashinyan was being quizzed in parliament about his vision of the South Caucus countrys national security policy. The session was briefly interrupted by a brawl between members of the governing and opposition factions. Armenians have been protesting since May 9 in central Yerevan against the border delimitation with Azerbaijan and the transfer of four border settlements to it. The protests, led by Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, the primate of the Diocese of Tavush of the Armenian Apostolic Church, have also demanded the prime minister's resignation.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240405/armenia-azerbaijan-accuse-each-other-of-shelling-military-positions-on-border-1117770201.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/all-the-censorship-in-the-world-cant-hide-that-the-west-is-failing-1118923108.html

All The Censorship in the World Cant Hide That the West Is Failing

All The Censorship in the World Cant Hide That the West Is Failing

Sputnik International

Despite censorship efforts, the citizenry of the West is starting to wake up to the reality of their governments.

2024-06-13T00:52+0000

2024-06-13T00:52+0000

2024-06-13T03:46+0000

analysis

russia

the washington post

israeli defense force

sputnik

americans

disinformation

censorship

https://cdn1.img.sputnikglobe.com/img/104786/17/1047861797_118:0:1185:600_1920x0_80_0_0_921f2f9d26ee08e304c291a00473a225.jpg

Despite all the censorship and restrictions placed on their citizenry, the elite of the United States and the collective West cannot hide the fact that it is a declining empire that has been fleecing its taxpayers for decades to maintain and improve the lifestyles of the most wealthy.As of 2023, the top 10% financially in the US controlled 66.9% of the wealth, with the top 1% holding 30.6% of the wealth on its own. Meanwhile, the bottom 50% of the country held only 2.5% of wealth.That wealth inequality is becoming so drastic that Americans have been seeing its effects for themselves, no analysis or news reports needed. In December, chronic homelessness hit an all-time high in the US. In February, the collective credit card debt of Americans also reached an all-time high, surpassing $1.13 trillion.As a result, Americans are understandably concerned about the economy, with a recent poll showing that 55% of Americans believe that the US economy is in a recession, despite a high stock market, low unemployment, a rising GDP and countless officials and articles and news reports telling Americans that they are wrong, the economy is actually doing great.Who are you going to believe, me or your lying eyes? The Biden administration and mainstream media outlets seem to be asking Americans at every possible turn.[Americans are] forced to each and every day walk outside their house, go to work, eat lunch on the street, in the drive to work, and go, Wow, there's a lot of tents up here. Wow, that's a lot of trash. Wow, a lot of shuttered businesses. What is going on? explained the host of AM-Wake Up, Steve Poikonen, while on Sputniks The Critical Hour on Tuesday.The Gray Zone is not the only outlet attacked by Russophobic smear campaigns. Other outlets, like Consortium News and The Real News Network, among others, have been labeled disinformation agents by government-funded non-governmental organizations like the Hamilton 68 dashboard, which labeled not only the Consortium News editor a purveyor of Russian disinformation but hundreds of X accounts, including ordinary citizens.In May, rapper and MintPressNews contributor Lowkey was accused by one of the biggest newspapers in the UK of being promoted by a bot network from Russia, China and Iran on X.Lowkey has several protest songs supporting Palestine and often posts pro-Palestinian messages on social media.However, as pointed out by MintPressNews in their response article, the report relied almost entirely on an Israeli company named Cyabra, which was funded by the countrys military intelligence and half of its employees have left the company to rejoin the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) to fight in Gaza. According to MintPress, the report by Cyabra did not mention Lowkey by name and did not reveal its methods or a list of accounts it was accusing.In the social media age where every individual is essentially their own media outlet, the attacks are a direct assault on free speech in the West, particularly on the internet.The censorship is about all [the elite] have, with a bunch of other histrionics and then whatever version of events they can manufacture to try to sell the story, Poikonen said earlier. But we see them fall apart in real-time, thanks to the legitimate independent media and as citizen journalists on the ground in places where things are happening.Still, independent journalists and outlets need to be cautious of the corrupting influence of the elite, who would like to turn independent media into a tool of the mainstream media.There are people in independent media that are scrambling and climbing over each other [to] proceed to tables that the good Lord told them to flip over, Poikonen explained. We can stop trying to get seats at those tables. Were going to be in a [much] better spot regardless of what kind of censorship goes on because you cant stop the truth and you cant stop everyone from telling [it].

https://sputnikglobe.com/20231117/us-economy-in-real-terms-recession-despite-white-house-claims--academic-1115020419.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20231107/us-house-panel-says-disinformation-pseudo-experts-targeted-political-speech-online-1114775325.html

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The National Council of French Evangelicals (CNEF) has called on the countrys evangelicals to pray following President Emmanuel Macrons decision to dissolve the National Assembly and call a two-round snap election on June 30 and July 7.

European parliamentary elections earlier this month resulted in a boost to the far-right party National Rally, led by Marine Le Pen, with 32 percent of votes, as previously reported by Christian Daily International. Macrons own Renaissance party had been left behind with 15 percent, and the Socialist party scored 14 percent of the voting share.

In a televised address, Macron called the dissolution of the parliament in France the only way to clarify matters.

Because we are at a time when our country must rise to a number of challenges and cannot be blocked by the extremes and because it is an act of confidence in our people, in democracy, in the Republican spirit, in a national common sense. In my view, returning to the sovereign people is the only republican decision, he said.

In a statement sent to Christian Daily in French, CNEF gave no instruction on how evangelicals should vote in the snap-election other than to go and vote!

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It's important for us to encourage evangelical Protestants in France to get involved as citizens, a CNEF spokesman said.

On a regular basis, and in particular during national elections, the CNEF uses various means to offer believers guidelines for discernment informed by the gospel. While the CNEF seeks to stimulate reflection, it refuses to lead the way to the polling booth by issuing voting instructions. In this way, the CNEF keeps its distance from partisan posturing.

The organization is keen to distance itself from imposing Christian hegemony on society but focuses instead on sharing the gospel through witnessing and Christ-like service, the CNEF spokesman added.

Even so, the evangelical body sees prayer for the forthcoming snap election as essential and important from a Biblical perspective.

CNEF members respect the authorities in their mission to serve the common good, and pledge to pray on their behalf, whatever their political affiliation, said the CNEF spokesman. In particular, they pray that they show wisdom, act in favor of peace and the common good, and preserve freedom of conscience, worship and expression.

The spokesman referred to a CNEF-produced booklet originally created as a prayer guide for the recent European parliamentary elections, which carries similar advice for the snap election in France.

The CNEF spokesman acknowledged that the country faced important issues, which pose a challenge to the countrys harmony.

We're in a delicate period, following various crises that have weakened national unity and living together, added the CNEF spokesman. The forthcoming elections to the National Assembly may help to strengthen this unity, but they may also aggravate the fracture observed between different social milieus.

Let us pray that peace, unity and cohesion will be strengthened in France, leaving a social climate conducive to the spread of the gospel.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/argentine-police-clash-with-protesters-in-buenos-aires-1118923954.html

Argentine Police Clash With Protesters in Buenos Aires

Argentine Police Clash With Protesters in Buenos Aires

Sputnik International

The Argentine police used rubber bullets and tear gas during a clash with protesters in downtown Buenos Aires on Wednesday, a Sputnik correspondent reported.

2024-06-13T00:47+0000

2024-06-13T00:47+0000

2024-06-13T00:47+0000

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At present, the square in downtown Buenos Aires sits deserted, as the police persist in pushing protesters away from the congress building. The demonstration was taking place near the country's national congress in response to Argentine President Javier Milei's proposed reforms. Several streets around the congress were closed off, but protesters continued to arrive. The building was surrounded by metal barricades, behind which police were stationed.The police started to push back protesters after they set a car on fire.The protest was organized by left-wing forces and trade unions to oppose the proposed changes by the country's leadership in various areas. In particular, the opposition is rallying against privatization, the potential elimination of a teacher support fund, as well as regulations that would simplify the process of dismissing employees.The upper house will discuss a reform bill for several hours, possibly into the late night. It will vote on the bill as a whole and then on each provision separately.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20231221/argentinas-president-says-signed-decree-for-over-300-reforms-to-liberalize-economy-1115715552.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/biden-zelensky-sign-10-year-bilateral-security-agreement---reports-1118938770.html

Biden, Zelensky Sign 10-Year Bilateral Security Agreement - Reports

Biden, Zelensky Sign 10-Year Bilateral Security Agreement - Reports

Sputnik International

US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement, Reuters reported on Thursday.

2024-06-13T18:38+0000

2024-06-13T18:38+0000

2024-06-13T18:38+0000

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The text of the agreement recognizes the deal as a step towards Ukrainian membership in NATO, the report said. Under the terms of the agreement, US and Ukrainian officials will meet within 24 hours in the event of an armed attack against Ukraine to discuss a response, the report said.In April, Joe Biden signed a $61 billion military aid package for Ukraine. Following the announcement Volodymyr Zelensky said that Kiev and Washington were working on a long-term bilateral security agreement. The agreement was supposed to resemble the ones Ukraine had signed with France and Germany.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240429/ukraines-push-for-security-pact-with-us-foreshadows-looming-military-collapse---analyst-1118170362.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/germany-cannot-supply-more-patriot-systems-to-ukraine-urges-others---defense-minister--1118932242.html

Germany Cannot Supply More Patriot Systems to Ukraine, Urges Others - Defense Minister

Germany Cannot Supply More Patriot Systems to Ukraine, Urges Others - Defense Minister

Sputnik International

Germany cannot supply additional Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine, it has already supplied a quarter of what the country had, now it is up to partners, German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on Thursday.

2024-06-13T12:04+0000

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He explained that there is no space for additional defense systems. The minister said that the air defense system was more crucial than ever before, and he was glad that Germany and its partners  the Netherlands, Denmark and Norway  had provided Ukraine with more missiles for Patriot systems at short notice. The Kremlin has consistently warned against continued arms deliveries to Kiev since the start of Russia's military operation in Ukraine in February 2022, 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. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned that any cargo containing weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russian strikes.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240517/patriot-games-why-zelenskys-lobbying-for-us-air-defenses-wont-stop-ukraine-from-losing-1118503575.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/germanys-defense-ministry-aims-to-increase-army-staff-by-11-enlist-15000-people-a-year-1118924933.html

Germany's Defense Ministry Aims to Increase Army Staff by 11%, Enlist 15,000 People a Year

Germany's Defense Ministry Aims to Increase Army Staff by 11%, Enlist 15,000 People a Year

Sputnik International

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius has presented a plan for the development of the German armed forces, the Bundeswehr, which, among other things, includes increasing the number of personnel from 181,000 to 203,000 and enlisting 15,000 new recruits per year.

2024-06-13T04:44+0000

2024-06-13T04:44+0000

2024-06-13T04:44+0000

military

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The minister, as expected, did not announce the reinstatement of military conscription in Germany and instead suggested that the Bundeswehr enlist "the most qualified and the most motivated" recruits.Pistorius' plan suggests that all German citizens, regardless of their gender, will receive a letter from the defense ministry when they turn 18, inviting them to consider taking a six-month-long basic military training with a possible voluntary extension. Male citizens will then be required to complete an online questionnaire to answer a series of questions about themselves, their family and their health. Female citizens can complete the questionnaire at a wish, while male citizens will be held liable for refusing to take it. Through these measures, as well as by making the armed forces more attractive, the ministry aims to increase the number of recruits by 5,000 per year from the current 10,000 recruits per year. The ministry said in late January that Germany will meet NATO's target of spending 2% of its gross domestic product on defense in 2024 for the first time since the early 1990s. In June 2022, the German parliament backed Chancellor Olaf Scholz's initiative to create a special fund for the Bundeswehr worth 100 billion euros (over $108 million) so that the German armed forces could be considered the largest regular army in Europe after modernization.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/all-the-censorship-in-the-world-cant-hide-that-the-west-is-failing-1118923108.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/if-nato-launches-mission-in-ukraine-alliance-troops-to-be-deployed-eventually---budapest-1118932531.html

Hungary Warns of Potential NATO Troop Deployment in Ukraine Without Quick Peace

Hungary Warns of Potential NATO Troop Deployment in Ukraine Without Quick Peace

Sputnik International

If NATO launches a mission to coordinate assistance to Ukraine, sooner or later alliance troops will be deployed in the country, at least as peacekeepers, Gergely Gulyas, the Hungarian prime minister's chief of staff, said on Thursday.

2024-06-13T12:18+0000

2024-06-13T12:18+0000

2024-06-13T13:02+0000

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gergely gulyas

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russia

hungary

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jens stoltenberg

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"Sooner or later it will happen that if a peace treaty is not quickly concluded, within the framework of the NATO mission in Ukraine, NATO troops  at least of a peacekeeping nature will appear in the western regions of Ukraine. If Russia advances, military plans [of NATO] are already spoken about quite openly," Gulyas told a briefing. If NATO troops are attacked outside the alliance's territory, on Ukrainian territory, then Hungary will not be obliged to provide military assistance to the allies in accordance with Article 5 of the NATO Treaty, the official added.Earlier, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto decried NATO plans to let Ukraine use Western-supplied weapons to hit targets in Russia as "insane," warning that Russias response would be multifold.He also criticized a proposal made by NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg that NATO take over the coordination of military aid to Ukraine, giving the alliance a more active role in the conflict. Szijjarto argued that NATO was wiping out its own red lines.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240525/hungarys-bid-to-redefine-nato-status-signals-refusal-to-march-lockstep-into-war-with-russia-1118636002.html

ukraine

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military aid for ukraine, is us giving more money to ukraine, why is us giving more money to kiev, whats happening to money given to kiev, will us give more money to kiev, how much money does ukraine get, how much money us gives to ukraine, how much money eu gives to ukraine, how much money europe gives to ukraine, what weapons does ukraine receive, does us give ukraine new weapons
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/israels-all-out-war-with-hezbollah-what-us-thinks-about-scenario-1118925997.html

Israel's 'All-Out War' With Hezbollah: What US Thinks About Scenario

Israel's 'All-Out War' With Hezbollah: What US Thinks About Scenario

Sputnik International

Hezbollah earlier launched more than 200 rockets into northern Israel, in retaliation against the killing of the Lebanese militant groups highest-ranking commander Taleb Sami Abdullah by the Jewish state.

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The US is "scrambling" to prevent a full-blown conflict between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, according to Axios, citing unnamed American officials.The White House is also alarmed by the possibility that Israel could start or be drawn into a war with Hezbollah "without a clear strategy or consideration of the full implications of a wider conflict." In recent weeks, Washington has reportedly cautioned Tel Aviv against the notion of a "limited war" in Lebanon, warning that Iran could intervene.The Biden team is trying to address the fighting between Israel and Hezbollah while working to secure a hostage-ceasefire deal in Gaza, which the US sees as the only measure to de-escalate tensions on the Israeli-Lebanese border.Hezbollah, meanwhile, has vowed to intensify its attacks along the border to avenge Israel's killing of the group's top military commander, Taleb Sami Abdullah. Hezbollah fired hundreds of rockets into northern Israel on Wednesday, hours after Abdullah was killed in an Israeli airstrike.An ally of the Palestinian militant group Hamas, Hezbollah has traded fire with Israel almost every day since the beginning of the Gaza war on October 7. Hezbollah says it will only stop if there is a truce in Gaza.Hezbollah and Israel fought their last major war in July-August 2006, in which the Lebanese group lost about 250 men while killing 121 Israeli servicemen and injuring over 1,200 others.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240605/israel-ready-to-take-decisive-actions-against-hezbollah---netanyahu-1118784934.html

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a scenario of a full-blown conflict between israel and hezbollah, the us's efforts to prevent a possible full-blown conflict between israel and hezbollah, tensions between israel and hezbollah, killing of hezbollah's top military commander taleb sami abdullah by izrael
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/leaving-csto-after-freezing-membership-makes-sense-to-armenia-pm-pashinyan-says-1118927342.html

Leaving CSTO After Freezing Membership Makes Sense to Armenia, PM Pashinyan Says

Leaving CSTO After Freezing Membership Makes Sense to Armenia, PM Pashinyan Says

Sputnik International

The next logical step after freezing Armenia's membership in the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) would be the country's withdrawal from the organization, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said on Thursday.

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2024-06-13T08:12+0000

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collective security treaty organization (csto)

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On Wednesday, Pashinyan said that Armenia will withdraw from the CSTO when authorities deem it necessary. On February 23, Pashinyan said Yerevan was freezing its participation in the CSTO, as the Collective Security Treaty had allegedly not been implemented with regard to Armenia. In March, Pashinyan said that Armenia would withdraw from the CSTO if the organization did not answer the questions raised by Yerevan regarding the sovereign territory of the country.Earlier Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova explained that Moscow is actively discussing with Armenia its involvement in the anti-Russian policies of the Western countries and is trying to warn about possible risks.Nevertheless, Russia believes that CSTO is a democratic organization and Armenia as a sovereign country is free to decide whether to go or stay.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240319/nato-chiefs-yerevan-visit-served-goal-of-pulling-armenia-out-of-russias-orbit-1117424109.html

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240426/how-russian-nuclear-umbrella-shields-belarus-from-nato-and-minions-1118130566.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/russia-condemns-us-uk-pointless-strikes-in-red-sea-1118936436.html

Russia Condemns US, UK Pointless Strikes' in Red Sea

Russia Condemns US, UK Pointless Strikes' in Red Sea

Sputnik International

Russia condemns the United States' and United Kingdom's strikes in the Red Sea and considers them "pointless," Russian Ambassador to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia said on Thursday.

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"[W]e condemn the strikes by the US- and UK-led coalition targeting the sovereign territory of Yemen. This aggression is being perpetrated in violation of the UN Charter. It is pointless insofar as it cannot stop the attacks in the Red Sea," Nebenzia said during a meeting of the UN Security Council on the situation concerning Yemen. Nebenzia said that these "reckless instances" of the use of force by NATO countries leave behind them a stain of blood. On June 7, United Nations spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said the Allah Ansar movement in Yemen - whose supporters are popularly known as Houthis - had detained 11 UN personnel. Three days later, the Houthis said they detained spies linked to the US Central Intelligence Agency for allegedly carrying out intelligence and sabotage activities in Yemen.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240607/houthis-vow-to-continue-targeting-us-carrier-group-after-unveiling-new-hypersonic-missile-1118852457.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/russian-journalist-succumbs-to-injuries-after-shelling-in-donetsk-peoples-republic---gorlovka-mayor-1118937013.html

Russian Journalist Succumbs to Injuries After Shelling in Donetsk Peoples Republic - Gorlovka Mayor

Russian Journalist Succumbs to Injuries After Shelling in Donetsk Peoples Republic - Gorlovka Mayor

Sputnik International

Valery Kozhin, a Russian journalist who worked for the NTV broadcaster, succumbed to his injuries after the Ukrainian shelling of Gorlovka in the Donetsk Peoples Republic (DPR) on Thursday, Mayor Ivan Prikhodko said.

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russia

donetsk

russia

gorlovka

the united nations (un)

ivan prikhodko

ukrainian drone attacks on russia

donetsk people's republic

donetsk region

dpr

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Earlier in the day, Prikhodko said that the shelling injured three journalists. UN Condemns Attack on Russian Journalists in Donetsk - SpokesmanThe United Nations stands against all attacks on the media including today's deadly incident in which Russian journalists were attacked in the Donetsk region, the UN Spokesman Farhan Haq said on Thursday.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/sputnik-and-rt-editor-in-chief-simonyan-empathizes-with-wounded-ntv-journalists-1118934902.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/russian-northern-fleet-ships-in-cuba-photo-highlights-1118931733.html

Russian Northern Fleet Ships in Cuba: Photo Highlights

Russian Northern Fleet Ships in Cuba: Photo Highlights

Sputnik International

As part of Russia's ongoing bilateral cooperation with Cuba, four different tactical ships from the country's Northern Fleet are stationing in the port of Havana from June 12-17.

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cuba

russian northern fleet

russian navy

russia

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The current Cuba visit is just one of the tasks of the Russian Northern Fleet ships' long voyage and is carried out within the framework of Russia's international cooperation with other nations, the Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Navy Alexander Moiseyev told Sputnik earlier.In turn, Cuba's Ministry of Foreign Affairs clarified that the visit reflects the friendly relations between Havana and Moscow and strictly complies with international rules. The ministry also noted that none of the ships carry nuclear weapons and their anchorage does not pose a threat to the region.The Russian ship group at the Havana harbor is comprised of the Kazan nuclear submarine, the Admiral Gorshkov frigate, the Academic Pashin sea tanker and the Nikolay Chiker rescue tug ship.Explore Sputnik's gallery for an exciting sneak peek!

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A massive evangelistic effort has been agreed between two global ministries now looking to distribute 90,000 audio and visual Bibles to 700,000 prisoners in 70 countries over the next five years, with extra support planned for 90,000 vulnerable children and 40,000 caregivers.

Prison Fellowship International (PFI) and Faith Comes By Hearing (FCBH) announced the joint renewal plan to share the good news of Jesus Christ with prisoners and prisoners families taking part in two of PFIs frontline programs. The ministries state they have already worked together since 2021 and helped 34,000 prisoners to date.

One of the courses called The Listeners Way helps prisoners access the gospel in their heart language by using solar-powered, audio and visual scripture, according to the course website. The other program, PromisePath, gives education support, mentoring in a community setting and biblical resources to children of prisoners. These youngsters are at risk of abuse, neglect, exploitation, slavery and criminal behavior, according to the ministries.

The expansion of our partnership to encompass more TLW courses and increasing our reach to children and their caregivers through PromisePath underscores our joint commitment to ensuring all of those impacted by crime have access to the Gospel message, said Andy Corley, President and Chief Executive Officer of Prison Fellowship International. Observing the profound eagerness of these individuals to engage with Scripture reinforces the transformative potential it holds in each life.

The outreach to prisoners provided by The Listeners Way aims to overcome difficulties often faced with illiteracy. For example, about 50 percent of prisoners are functionally illiterate in the U.K, according to a study by the Shannon Trust. This means a reading level of an 11 year old or lower.

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The figure is even higher in the U.S. with 70 percent of prisoners unable to read at a fourth-grade level, according to a National Adult Literacy Survey.

Another aspect of the program is reaching those prisoners without access to electricity. The study helps prisoners read Lukes Gospel with Proclaimers and Acclaimers audio and visual Bibles charged via solar power. The idea is enabling gospel outreach to isolated prisoners in poverty-stricken countries.

Our strategic partnership to reach the worlds least and the lost with the Word of God has already been profoundly impactful, touching the lives of thousands of individuals and families impacted by incarceration, said Jonathan Huguenin, Chief Ministry Officer of Faith Comes By Hearing.

As we strive to broaden our reach, we remain steadfast in our commitment to providing hope and spiritual nourishment through the Word of God to all who seek it, fostering growth and renewal in communities worldwide.

Meanwhile, thousands of children of prisoners and caregivers will benefit from the PromisePath program utilizing support networks for families. The initiative employs direct interventions in education, mentoring and spiritual resources to support these at-risk children and their loved ones, hoping for a better future.

PFI was founded by the late Charles Colson, former advisor to US President Richard Nixon, in 1979. He had been imprisoned for obstructing justice in the Watergate Scandal. Colson surrendered to Christ after reading Mere Christianity by academic and author C.S. Lewis.

Colson became passionate about the welfare of prisoners and, upon his release, founded the first Prison Fellowship ministry in 1976 before it went international three years later. The ministry currently supports prisoners in 117 countries.

Jerry and Anet Jackson started Faith Comes By Hearing, formerly known as Hosanna, in 1972. It was originally a tape-lending library offering Christian resources and is now on the forefront of providing audio Bibles and related ministry. The listening programs have enabled the truths of the Bible to reach millions around the world, in 2,095 languages to date. The ministry has a vision to provide Gods word in every language free-of-charge by 2033.
https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/sputnik-afghanistan-journo-akifi-back-to-work-after-injury-from-ukrainian-drone-strike-in-belgorod-1118934663.html

Sputnik Afghanistan Journo Akifi Back to Work After Injury From Ukrainian Drone Strike in Belgorod

Sputnik Afghanistan Journo Akifi Back to Work After Injury From Ukrainian Drone Strike in Belgorod

Sputnik International

On Thursday, Khaibar Akifi accompanied by his parents, Shah Sultan and Malika, met with Dmitry Kiselev, the general director of the Rossiya Segodnya media group, Sputnik's parent company, to express his gratitude and present him with an Afghan carpet.

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russia

dmitry kiselev

belgorod

sputnik

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ukrainian drone attacks on russia

belgorod region

drone attack

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Sputnik Afghanistan journalist Khaibar Akifi has returned to work after being injured by a falling Ukrainian drone in Belgorod last year.Kiselev responded, "For me, the greatest joy is that you are such healthy, strong people. I want to emphasize that everyone who met Khaibar, whether I knew them or not  doctors, drivers, the helicopter pilot, everyone  treated Khaibar with all possible kindness. Its not just me; it's this whole country."The Akifi family also expressed their gratitude to the medical staff, including those at the Vishnevsky Hospital in Moscow and hospitals in Belgorod, as well as to Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko and Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov, who oversaw the treatment process.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240201/sputnik-journalist-injured-in-ukrainian-drone-strike-recovering-well-1116535878.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/sputnik-and-rt-editor-in-chief-simonyan-empathizes-with-wounded-ntv-journalists-1118934902.html

Sputnik and RT Editor-in-Chief Simonyan Empathizes With Wounded NTV Journalists

Sputnik and RT Editor-in-Chief Simonyan Empathizes With Wounded NTV Journalists

Sputnik International

RT and Sputnik editor-in-chief Margarita Simonyan on Thursday expressed empathy and support for the journalists of the Russian broadcaster NTV, who were wounded as a result of a shelling on the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR).

2024-06-13T15:14+0000

2024-06-13T15:14+0000

2024-06-13T15:14+0000

russia

margarita simonyan

donetsk

ntv

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donetsk people's republic

donetsk region

gorlovka

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Earlier in the day, the mayor of the DPR city of Gorlovka, Ivan Prikhodko, said that a journalist and two of his colleagues were injured in the settlement of Golmovsky. NTV confirmed on its Telegram channel that its workers had been wounded in the DPR and had been taken to hospital. According to the specified data, the correspondent Alexey Ivliyev and cameraman Valery Kozhin were wounded. The third victim was an accompanying officer.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240420/kremlin-accuses-ukrainian-military-of-deliberately-targeting-russian-journalists-1118028246.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/us-house-approves-ndaa-amendment-to-ban-gaza-reconstruction-funding-1118924505.html

US House Approves NDAA Amendment to Ban Gaza Reconstruction Funding

US House Approves NDAA Amendment to Ban Gaza Reconstruction Funding

Sputnik International

The US House of Representatives approved an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act on Wednesday that if passed will ban the use of US funds to reconstruct Gaza.

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hamas

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israeli-palestinian conflict

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House lawmakers approved the amendment by voice vote. The amendment, introduced by US Congressman Brian Mast, prohibits US funds from building or rebuilding in the Gaza Strip. The FY25 NDAA approves some $895.2 billion in national defense discretionary programs. The US House of Representatives is set to consider 350 amendments to the legislation. On October 7, 2023, Palestinian organization Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, which killed nearly 1,200 people. Israel subsequently launched a military operation in the Gaza Strip, which has killed more than 37,100 people in the Palestinian enclave, according to local authorities.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240610/an-endless-cycle-of-brutality-four-rescued-as-274-killed-in-gaza-1118898400.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/us-policy-on-strikes-deep-into-russia-has-not-changed---pentagon-chief-1118933211.html

US Policy on Strikes Deep Into Russia Has Not Changed - Pentagon Chief

US Policy on Strikes Deep Into Russia Has Not Changed - Pentagon Chief

Sputnik International

The United States has not changed its policy on not encouraging or enabling Ukraine to conduct strikes deep into Russian territory, Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin said on Thursday.

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2024-06-13T14:18+0000

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world

russia-nato showdown

us arms for ukraine

joe biden

ukraine

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He admitted that US granted permision "to conduct counter fire in the Kharkov area" with US weaponry. Earlier the White House saw a major policy shift, when US President Joe Biden granted Ukraine permission to use US weapons against military installations in Russia. However, a State Department spokesperson insisted that the permission was limited to what they called "counter-fire purposes" in Kharkov region.Commenting on US possible decision to allow Kiev to launch strikes deep into Russian territory, Russian President Vladimir Putin warned that NATO politicians must realize what they are playing with, especially given the size of their nations.No Changes in Patriot Air Defense System CoverageAustin added that the United States will not make any changes to its Patriot missile coverage in Poland in response to reports that the US will send a battery in the country to Ukraine.The New York Times on Tuesday reported that President Joe Biden approved the deployment of a US Patriot system in Poland to Ukraine.Polish Deputy Defense Minister Cezary Tomczyk said earlier on Thursday that a Patriot air-defense system in Poland would be replaced by another battery from another country.

https://sputnikglobe.com/20240612/russian-ships-entering-cuba-give-us-a-dose-of-its-own-medicine-1118912634.html

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https://sputnikglobe.com/20240613/zelensky-to-ukrainians-come-home-to-prison-1118924277.html

Zelensky to Ukrainians: Come Home to Prison

Zelensky to Ukrainians: Come Home to Prison

Sputnik International

During a press conference at the so-called Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin, Ukraines Volodymyr Zelensky called on his countrymen to return to Ukraine, ostensibly to help rebuild the country.

2024-06-13T04:52+0000

2024-06-13T04:52+0000

2024-06-13T07:46+0000

hungary

ukraine

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volodymyr zelensky

mark sleboda

the critical hour

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The call from Zelensky for Ukrainians to return to the country is a thinly veiled attempt to press-gang them into service and send them to the frontlines as cannon fodder, Mark Sleboda, a security and international relations expert told Sputniks The Critical Hour on Wednesday.Zelensky is hoping Ukrainians come back so their press gangs can beat, conscript [them] off the streets, like weve seen in hundreds after hundreds of Telegram videos from people filming from the streets as the press gangs seize their husbands and their sons and fathers and drag them off to the trenches, Sleboda warned.The request from Zelensky comes after the Ukrainian government suspended consulate services for Ukrainian men living abroad in an attempt to force them to return to Ukraine to renew their passports and some European countries, namely Poland and Lithuania, have said they will help Ukraine by sending military-aged men back to the country.Earlier this month Ukraine announced it would no longer allow Ukrainians with dual citizenship to leave the country, prompting the US embassy in Kiev to issue a warning to Ukrainian Americans to shelter in place.Meanwhile, the remaining men left in Ukraine are desperately trying to leave the country. According to Ukraines State Border Service, at least 45 Ukrainian men have died in recent weeks attempting to cross the Tisza River into Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and Serbia.Last week, a video appeared on social media showing what appeared to be a Ukrainian border guard planting landmines along the border of Romania. Days later RIA Novosti reported that several Ukrainian men had been killed by the mines, which were manufactured by the US.Men havent been able to leave the country since 2022, Sleboda noted, calling it a giant prison for the Ukrainian people.Over the past week, there have been two high-profile mass escapes from Ukraine, Sleboda added. A group of 32 escapees, many of them reportedly Ukrainian intelligence and police whom the conscription has resorted to cannibalizing their own security agencies to send to the front now, Sleboda described. They were helping send people to the front, but they didnt want to go there themselves.The other mass escape was a minibus, reportedly with 18 people inside of it, who managed to escape into Hungary, according to Sleboda and images online, And Hungary is a good location for this, of course, because theres no chance, at least in Hungary, that the government there will send them back to Ukraine at some point.But most Ukrainians arent so lucky and are forced to brave minefields and deadly waters or be forced to the front, where according to Russian Defense Minister Andrey Belousov, 35,000 Ukrainians died in May alone.That same month, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Kiev, where he went to a bar and played a rendition of Neil Youngs Rockin in the Free World. Perhaps The Eagles would have been more appropriate:You can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave.

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There wasn't any negotiating with Peace Talks ($5.50) in the $161,233 New York Sire Stakes for the three-year-old filly pacers on Wednesday afternoon (June 12) at Buffalo Raceway. The reigning two-year-old champion kept a tight hold of her crown and silenced her rivals with a 1-1/2 length victory over Leannes Choice in 1:54.4 over the fast track.

Peace Talks (Jim Morrill Jr.) had to work hard to get to the early lead as Bronx Barista played some hard ball before finally relenting. With sensible splits of :27.3 and :56.1 through the opening half posted by Peace Talks, Bronx Barista, sitting in second, broke stride coming out of the clubhouse turn, scattering the field a bit.

With a final panel to pace, Peace Talks still wasn't home free as a wall of three damsels were able to regroup and make one final push. But those efforts didn't materialize as Leanne's Choice (Marcus Miller) took the place position and Blue Point (Kevin Cummings) was third.

Owned by Henderson Farms, Robert Mondillo, Fac Racing and Jeffrey Bell, Peace Talks (American Ideal-Triple V Hanover) now has two wins in three attempts this season. The victory jacked her seasonal earnings to $125,275 and $354,604 in her career.

There were a trio of $27,397 events in the Excelsior Series for three-year-old filly pacers.

The only mild surprise came in the opening division as Melanies Megan ($9.10) turned back OBJ by three quarters of a length in 1:55.4. Marcus Miller guided her to the win.

Shine On Susan ($4.30) found room in the passing lane and got past Chriss Choice by a head in 1:56.1. Brett Beckwith steered her to the popular victory.

A Few Choice Words ($4.10) was the fastest in the Excelsior Series as she snapped Lady Saturn's six-race win streak with a 1:55.2 tour around the Hamburg half-mile oval. Jim Morrill Jr. was aboard the winner who took the 3-1/4 length decision.

In the $19,178 Open Pace for the fillies and mares, Oaxacan Dream N (Billy Davis Jr.) got a perfect trip from the outside and stunned Flip The Script by a length in 1:54.3.

Off the starting gate, Flip The Script ($32.00) played give and go with Oaxacan Dream N. After settling on the lead with fractions of :28.2, :57.0 and 1:26.0, Flip The Script had to deal with the pesky Oaxacan Dream N who was still in hot pursuit.

Turning for home, Oaxacan Dream N found plenty of room down the lightning lane and rolled on past Flip The Script (Drew Monti) while Center Attraction (James McNeight Jr.) was third.

Owned by Vogel & Wags Nags LLC, Oaxacan Dream N (Big Jim-Verde Lima) is conditioned by Maria Rice. It was her fourth win in 14 tries in 2024, earning $38,175 and $163,629 lifetime.

The $27,397 Spring Up Series finale for the pacers who were non-winners of $8,000 USD and had at least 10 starts before May 16 was contested. Dakota Roadster ($2.40) didn't disappoint as her went coast to coast in beating Grahams Teddy Bear (David McNeight III) in 1:56.2. R U Talkin (Davis Jr.) took the show honours.

Scoring his third victory of the Series and second consecutive win, Dakota Roadster (Joseph Chindano Jr.) is owned and trained by Jeffrey Martin. The 12-year-old Dakota Roadster (Duneside Perch-Parkontheroad) has now collected $26,670 in the campaign and $429,692 in his lifetime.

Racing will continue on Friday (June 14) afternoon at 2:30 p.m. with an 11-race program set.

(Buffalo Raceway)
Grand River Raceway announced the official opening of its new five-eighths of a mile racetrack, marking a significant milestone in the facilitys history. The ribbon-cutting ceremony, held on Wednesday, June 12, was attended by key stakeholders, community members and racing enthusiasts, celebrating the culmination of a transformative project that began in the winter of 2023.

The expansion, completed on time and within budget, showcases the commitment and collaboration of everyone involved. This ambitious project was made possible through the generous support of Ontario Racing and the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG). The track's design, credited to the renowned Greg and Dan Coon, reflects the latest advancements in racetrack engineering, ensuring a premier racing experience.

Opening night on June 5 set a new benchmark for Grand River Raceway, with record-breaking wagering of $404,000 across a thrilling 10-race card. This remarkable achievement underscores the tracks potential to enhance the local racing scene and attract significant attention from the wider racing community.

The new track is already receiving rave reviews from drivers and trainers alike, who commend its fast surface and modern design.

"The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive," said Facilities Manager Doug McCaig, who played an instrumental role in overseeing the day-to-day progress of the construction. "It's rewarding to see the hard work of our team and contractors pay off in such a significant way."

In addition to elevating the racing experience, the five-eighths mile track provides a valuable training ground for local horsemen, many of whom previously traveled to Woodbine Mohawk Park for training, broadening the facilities accessible to the racing community.

Grand River Raceway extends heartfelt thanks to all the contractors and workers whose dedication and expertise brought this project to fruition. Special recognition goes to Doug McCaig for his exemplary leadership throughout the construction phase.

As Grand River looks to the future, it remains committed to providing top-tier racing and training facilities, fostering a vibrant and competitive environment for all.

(with files from Grand River Raceway)
Toronto's historic St. Anne's Anglican Church went up in flames last Sunday-along with the artefacts it contained.

The four-alarm fire broke out just before 8 a.m. on June 9, and was already well under way when firefighters arrived. Although no one was inside during that time, the fire did destroy the church's domed roof, and the celebrated murals painted by three members of the Canadian artistic clique known as the Group of Seven.

St. Anne's was completed in 1908, designed by architect William Ford Howland, and heavily inspired by Byzantine art and architecture-unusual for an Anglican church. It was designated a national historic site of Canada in 1996. The church's murals were completed in 1923 by three members of the Group of Seven-JEH MacDonald, Fred Varley, and Franklin Carmichael-depicting Old Testament prophets and scenes from the life of Christ. St. Anne's was the only church to display any of the works of the Group of Seven.

Also destroyed was a harpsichord owned by Ron Greidanus, who was supposed to perform in a concert that afternoon.

St. Anne's destruction was mourned as a loss, not just to its parishioners, but also to the entire community. "It's something that we cannot replace in Canada, and in the world, but this is much more than just a building," said city councillor Alejandra Bravo. "This is a place that has provided support, home, love, brought people from the community together, served needs of people who needed it and provided the spiritual support that people so desperately needed in times where they've also fallen on hard times."

33 Canadian churches have burned down in the last two and a half years, many ruled to be arson. However, officials have said that investigations are still too early to determine the cause of the St. Anne fire.

In the meantime, police have set up an online portal for members of the public to send photos or videos that might help in the investigation, and St. Anne's congregants have started a fundraising campaign for the church.
Thumbs up: Farm safety training

Were big fans of hands-on learning and offering kids options for vocational training. Castle Rock High School has added another such educational option, and its quite a feather in the schools cap.

Last week, Minka Atkinson reported on the high school being the first in Washington to offer certification in farm safety. The first class had 50 seniors in attendance, so theres clearly plenty of interest among local students. Theyre going to learn useful skills for the agricultural sector which will help keep them safe and make them more attractive to employers, to boot.

A student also doesnt necessarily need to see agriculture as a long-term career to get value out of the class. Farm work is also a solid option for someone just looking to save up some extra money over the summer before they head to school.

Were also glad that the course is all about putting safety first. It is an unavoidable fact that farm work is potentially quite dangerous. According to a 2022 report from Penn State, agriculture has one of the highest rates of workplace injury in America. From 2015 to 2019, over 62,000 farm workers visited the emergency room due to nonfatal workplace injuries. Doing whatever we can to keep our kids from joining that number is a great move.

Working on a farm is a great opportunity for young people. It gets you outside, teaches useful skills and gives a real appreciation for what goes in to putting food on your table. Making it easier for kids to get into agricultural work, and arming them with the knowledge to stay safe when they do, is a great idea for a course. Were happy that Castle Rock High School is making it available.

Thumbs down: Shellfish toxins

Fans of clamming are used to being told theyre closing down the harvest for safety reasons. Commercial harvests, though, tend to not suffer starts and stops quite so much. Thats what makes the current closure so alarming.

The Pacific coastlines of both Washington and Oregon are now closed to shellfish harvests, according to a story from the Associated Press. The move comes after at least 31 people were sickened by exposure to a paralytic neurotoxin produced by algae. While these algae are always present in the ocean, a large bloom pushed toxin levels far beyond safe levels.

This is bad news for the regions maritime economy. The University of Washington estimates the value of our annual harvest of farmed shellfish at over $107 million, and any extended shutdown will seriously impact that number. It puts smaller fishing and farming operations at immediate risk, and will hurt bigger operations as well.

Matt Hunter, the leader of the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlifes shellfish project, kept using a word when he discussed the situation with The Oregonian: unprecedented. The closest comparison hed seen was a statewide closure of razor clam harvests in the early 90s.

Unfortunately, theres not much we can do except watch, wait and test toxin levels. Hopefully, this clears up in weeks, rather than months. Though weve made great strides in understanding the natural world, this is a reminder that there is also much that we still havent mastered.

Thumbs up: Behavioral health, addiction center

When the people of Cowlitz County are all on the same page, we do great things together. Chief Robert Huhta and Sgt. Tim Watson of the Longview Police Department see that as the path forward for the longterm behavioral health and addiction facility they proposed last week.

Watson discussed how he saw a gap that needed to be filled in our community. People dealing with mental health issues and drug addiction at the same time badly need our help.

But handling both problems simultaneously takes more than your average rehab center or mental health facility are equipped to provide. He and Huhta see a dedicated local facility to tackle both as the solution.

Huhta is correct in saying that this is a major undertaking. Between the cost of the building, finding staff and equipping them to do their jobs, its definitely a multimillion-dollar project. But hes also right that it would make a big difference, and help people who have nowhere to turn.

The project is still just a concept. Nevertheless, we want to congratulate Mayor Spencer Boudreau for the leadership he showed in expressing support. When project supporters speak to officials at other levels of government, they can point to having Longviews mayor already behind them. It will make their job that much 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: AI-generated image

The steady drumbeat of triumphant claims from artificial intelligence companies can be overwhelming. If AI models are so smart, is there anything left for humans to excel in?

Lindsay Brainard, Ph.D., assistant professor in the University of Alabama at Birmingham's Department of Philosophy, researches the philosophy of creativity, and with new claims of increased creativity and collaboration of new AI models, she is exploring what the future of human creativity looks like.

In her first paper, titled "The Curious Case of Uncurious Creation," which was published in the journal Inquiry in September 2023, Brainard attempted to assess whether these new AI models really are creative.

"That depends on how you define 'creative,'" Brainard said. "Is it the ability to generate things that are new and have value? If yes, ChatGPT could qualify.

However, she argues that an important aspect of creativity is curiosity, which is missing from the current AI models. Considering that, human creativity is safe for now, she says.

"I consider the question of whether these AI models stand to make human creativity in the arts and sciences obsolete, despite not being creative themselves," Brainard wrote in the abstract of her Inquiry paper. "I argue, optimistically, that this is unlikely. I'm not saying it is impossible, just that today's models do not meet the conditions for creativity."

In her second paper on creativity and AI, Brainard raises the question, "Should we still be striving to make our students, or our children, creative?" and will be exploring this topic in depth in her third paper.

"We are faced with a dilemma: We must either concede that AI can make human creativity obsolete or identify some value of human creativity that AI does not appear capable of achieving," Brainard said.

Given the latest developments in AI and students' interests, Brainard and colleague Joshua May, Ph.D., philosophy professor at UAB, are committed to conducting modern, up-to-date philosophical investigations about critical topics. They are currently developing a class on the ethics of AI that they hope to debut in spring 2025.

With Brainard's exploration so far, her answer for whether AI offers a substitute human creativity is "no."

"In my next paper, I will argue that there are at least four respects in which human creativity is valuable that cannot in principle be achieved by contemporary AI or its nearby descendants," Brainard said. "AI has yet to achieve originality, a particular form of self-cultivation, connectedness and imagination."

More information: Lindsay Brainard, The curious case of uncurious creation, Inquiry (2023). DOI: 10.1080/0020174X.2023.2261503
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Honeywell test pilots Joe Duval, left, and Clint Coatney fly a Boeing 757 test aircraft demonstrating runway hazard warning systems over the airport in Tyler, Texas, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. Credit: AP Photo/LM Otero

As a Delta Air Lines jet began roaring down a runway, an air traffic controller at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport suddenly blurted out an expletive, then ordered the pilots to stop their takeoff roll.

The controller saw an American Airlines plane mistakenly crossing the same runway, into the path of the accelerating Delta jet. JFK is one of only 35 U.S. airports with the equipment to track planes and vehicles on the ground. The system alerted the airport control tower to the danger, possibly saving lives last year.

The National Transportation Safety Board and many independent experts say pilots should get warnings without waiting precious seconds to get word from controllers. Just last week, the NTSB recommended that the Federal Aviation Administration collaborate with manufacturers to develop technology for alerting pilots directly.

Honeywell International, a conglomerate with a big aerospace business, has been working on such an early-warning system for about 15 years and thinks it is close to a finished product. The company gave a demonstration during a test flight last week. As pilot Joe Duval aimed a Boeing 757 for a runway in Tyler, Texas, a warning appeared on his display and sounded in the cockpit: "Traffic on runway!"

Honeywell test pilots Joe Duval, left, and Clint Coatney fly a Boeing 757 test aircraft demonstrating runway hazard warning systems over the airport in Tyler, Texas, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. Credit: AP Photo/LM Otero

The system had detected a business jet that was just appearing as a speck on the runway about a mile awayground the Boeing would cover in a matter of seconds.

Duval tilted the plane's nose up and pushed the throttle forward into a G-force-inducing climb, safely away from the Dassault Falcon 900 below.

Honeywell officials claim their technology would have alerted the Delta pilots who had the January 2023 near-miss at JFK 13 seconds before the air traffic controller screamed the expletive and told them to stop their takeoff. Merely removing the need for a controller to relay the warning from ground-based systems could be critical.

"Those are microseconds, but they are enough to make a difference," Michael McCormick, a former FAA official who now teaches air-traffic management at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Florida, said. "Providing alerts directly to the cockpit is the next step. This puts the tool in the hands of the pilot who actually has control of the aircraft. This technology is a game-changer."

A jet sits on a runway creating a hazard seen from a Boeing 757 test aircraft on landing approach to demonstrate runway hazard warning systems over the airport in Tyler, Texas, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. Credit: AP Photo/LM Otero

Honeywell plans to layer the cockpit-alert system on top of technology that is already in wide use and warns pilots if they fly too low.

Incidents like the one at JFK are called runway incursionsa plane or ground vehicle is on a runway when it shouldn't be. Some incursions are caused by pilots entering a runway without clearance from air traffic controllers. In other cases, there isn't enough spacing between planes that are landing or taking off, which can be the fault of pilots or controllers.

The number of incursions fell during the coronavirus pandemic and has not returned to the recent peaks of more than 2,000 incidents recorded in both 2016 and 2017. However, the most serious oneswhere a collision was narrowly avoided or there was a "significant potential" for a crashhave been rising since 2017. There were 23 in the United States last year, up from 16 in 2022, according to FAA statistics.

Reducing incursions has always been a priority for FAA "because that's where the greatest risk lies in the aviation system," said McCormick, the former FAA official.

Honeywell test pilot Joe Duval, left, pulls a Boeing 757 test aircraft out of a landing approach demonstrating runway hazard warning systems over the airport in Tyler, Texas, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. Credit: AP Photo/LM Otero

The worst accident in aviation history occurred in 1977 on the Spanish island of Tenerife, when a KLM 747 began its takeoff roll while a Pan Am 747 was still on the runway; 583 people died when the planes collided in thick fog.

Earlier this year, a Japan Airlines jet landing in Tokyo collided with a Japanese coast guard plane that was preparing to take off. Five crew members on the coast guard plane died, but all 379 people on board the airliner escaped before it was destroyed by fire.

The FAA has paid for airport improvements designed to reduce incursions, such as reconfiguring confusing taxiways. It has also paid for technology to alert people in the control tower when a plane is lined up to land on a taxiway instead of a runway.

That type of landing error nearly happened in 2017 in San Francisco, when an Air Canada jet pulled up at the last second to avoid crashing into four jets on the taxiway that were carrying about 1,000 passengers between them.

Honeywell test pilot Joe Duval pulls a Boeing 757 test aircraft out of a landing approach demonstrating runway hazard warning systems at the airport in Tyler, Texas, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. Credit: AP Photo/LM Otero

The FAA is also rolling out more simulators for controllers to practice directing traffic during times of low visibility. The NTSB last week recommended that the FAA require annual refresher training. The suggestion came after the NTSB determined that a controller who nearly caused a catastrophic crash between a FedEx plane and a Southwest Airlines jet during heavy fog in Austin, Texas, last year had not trained for low-visibility conditions in at least two years.

The NTSB's examination of the February 2023 close call in Austin also renewed attention on technology to provide cockpit warnings of possible incursions and included a brief reference to the system Honeywell is developing. The FAA has not certified the system, which Honeywell calls "Surf-A" for surface alerts, but the company thinks certification could happen in the next 18 months.

The FAA's best technology against runway incursions is a system called ASDE-X that lets controllers track planes and vehicles on the ground. But it is expensive, so it's only at 35 of the 520 U.S. airports with a control tower.

"Some people thought ASDE-X was the solution," former NTSB Chairman Robert Sumwalt said. "The problem is, there are a lot more than 35 air-carrier airports. A product (that warns pilots in the cockpit) goes to every airport that the airplane goes to."

Honeywell test pilot Joe Duval pulls a Boeing 757 test aircraft out of a landing approach demonstrating runway hazard warning systems over the airport in Tyler, Texas, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. Credit: AP Photo/LM Otero

Honeywell, which is based in Charlotte, North Carolina, began working on a cockpit warning system around 2008 and tried to convince airlines to support the idea, but it says it found no takers. The company suspended the project when the pandemic devastated aviation in 2020.

Then, as air travel recovered early last year, there were a series of high-profile close calls between planes at major U.S. airports, including the ones at JFK and AustinBergstrom International Airport.

"Traffic was picking up. You were having more of the near-misses," said Thea Feyereisen, part of the Honeywell team working on the system. The timing was right to revive the warning system.

"Previously, when we would talk to airlines, they were not interested. Last year, we go talk to the airlines again, and now they're interested," she said.

A jet sits on a runway creating a hazard, seen from a Boeing 757 test aircraft cockpit demonstrating runway hazard warning systems, at the airport in Tyler, Texas, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. Credit: AP Photo/LM Otero

A jet crosses a runway creating a hazard, seen from a Boeing 757 test aircraft cockpit demonstrating runway hazard warning systems, at the airport in Tyler, Texas, Tuesday, June 4, 2024. Credit: AP Photo/LM Otero

Still, Honeywell doesn't have a launch customer, and company officials won't say how much it would cost to outfit a plane.

Feyereisen was asked if the system would have prevented the close calls in New York and Austin.

"What our lawyers tell us to say (is) we reduce the risk of a runway incursion. We provide the pilot more time to make a decision" whether to, for example, call off a landing and fly around the airport instead, she said. "Still, the pilot needs to make a decision."

 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
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Different concepts for engineered geothermal systems, including a new approach described in a recent issue of Geothermal Energy. Credit: Trenton Cladouhos, Quaise Energy

Geothermal energy from the superhot rock miles below our feet has the potential to become a major player in the energy transition, but first we need to develop ways to not only access those rocks, but also extract their heat. Now a computer model sheds light on the latter, describing for the first time what happens when rock at those depths and temperatures is exposed to fluids that can eventually transfer the rocks' heat to the surface.

Essentially, the model shows the formation of microscopic cracks creating a dense "cloud of permeability" throughout the affected rock. This is in contrast to the much larger and fewer macroscopic fractures induced by the engineered geothermal systems (EGS) in use today, which operate closer to the surface and at much lower temperatures.

Simulations using the model, which was reported in the journal Geothermal Energy, "confirm that a superhot system can deliver five to ten times more power than typically produced today from EGS systems for up to two decades," says Trenton Cladouhos, Vice President of Geothermal Resource Development at Quaise Energy.

Cladouhos described the model and the importance of superhot rock geothermal systems in general on May 21 at the Geothermal Transition Summit, North America. His talk was titled, "Superhot Rock EGS: Methods, Challenges, and Pathways Forward."

Authors are Samuel Scott of the Institute of Earth Sciences at the University of Iceland, Alina Yapparova of the Institute of Geochemistry and Petrology at ETH Zurich, Philipp Weis of the GFZ Potsdam German Research Center for Geosciences, and Matthew Houde, co-founder at Quaise.

Superhot rock energy

Cladouhos' remarks focused on the challenges associated with extracting heat from far under the ground where superhot rocks sit at temperatures of more than 707 degrees Fahrenheit (375oC). Water seeping through those areas would become supercritical. This steam-like phase carries 34 times more energy than regular hot water, and when piped to turbines on the surface converts 23 times more efficiently into electricity.

Recovery of just 2% of the thermal energy stored in hot rock 3 to 10 km [2 to 6 miles] below the continental U.S. is equivalent to 2,000 times the primary U.S. energy consumption annually, according to "The Future of Geothermal Energy," a 2006 MIT-led study on the potential for geothermal energy within the United States.

One key problem to accessing that energy is simply getting there. The drills used by the oil and gas industries aren't designed to withstand the extreme temperatures and pressures miles down, where the mother lode of geothermal energy lies. That's why Quaise is working on a completely new way to drill using millimeter wave energy (cousins to the microwaves many of us cook with) that can literally melt and vaporize rock.

But drilling into superhot rock is only the first challenge. Extracting the heat is a puzzle that's at least as difficult as getting there, Cladouhos says.

Three-dimensional structure of a nominally ductile rock enhanced geothermal system (NDR-EGS) showing the fluid pressure distribution around a geothermal triplet, with a centrally located injector (blue) located between two production intervals (red). Results are shown after A-1 year and B-10 years for a simulation with an injection rate of 80 kg s1 and a maximum permeability of ~ 1015 m2. Credit: Geothermal Energy (2024). DOI: 10.1186/s40517-024-00288-4

Researchers around the world are working on engineered geothermal systems, essentially underground radiators or heat exchangers, that aim to do just that. There are a variety of approaches being developedand used in the fieldby companies such as Eavor and Fervo Energy, but none have been demonstrated at temperatures over about 200 oC.

"If we really want geothermal to be a game changer, we have to operate at superhot temperatures, or over 375oC," Cladouhos says.

But little is known about what happens when superhot rock at great depth is exposed to cold water pumped down at high pressures.

A new understanding

Currently there are three general concepts for how to extract the geothermal energy that is closer to the surface, or down to about two miles. These include closed-loop systems relying on a series of horizontal underground pipes that connect two wells.

Water pumped down one well travels through these pipes, picks up the energy from the rock, then travels back up to the surface via the second well. This is the approach used by Eavor. Another concept involves connecting two horizontal wells with a system of hundreds of manmade fractures. That is the approach used by Fervo Energy.

The model Cladouhos described at the Geothermal Transition Summitand a week later at the Clean Air Task Force's workshop Bridging the Gaps: Advancing Superhot Rock Energy in Icelandrepresents a new concept for tapping geothermal energy, focusing on what could happen when cold water is injected under superhot, super deep conditions.

Enter the microcracks. "The idea is that you're connecting wells via a large 'cloud' of permeability rather than specific, much larger fractures," Cladouhos says. "So it's more of a diffuse connection rather than a localized connection."

The model is based on what we know about alteration of formations under these extreme conditions. Think of the huge open pits of orange rocks from which copper and gold ores are extracted. It is also informed by tests in Japan that have shown microcracks forming under analogous conditions in the lab. The latter work was reported last year in a Geothermal Energy paper.

What's next

Cladouhos notes that the model, which Scott and colleagues continue to refine, "will help guide future tests of superhot rock in the field." Quaise aims to do just that over the next year or two at a site like Newberry volcano in central Oregon where superhot conditions can be reached at shallower depths.

He concludes, "This is a model. We don't know if the permeability due to microcracking will be enough to connect two wells in the real world. Now we need to test it and other concepts of fracturing superhot rock in the field. In the end, a hybrid approach involving planar fractures, natural fractures, and microfractures may be needed."

More information: Samuel Scott et al, Hydrological constraints on the potential of enhanced geothermal systems in the ductile crust, Geothermal Energy (2024). DOI: 10.1186/s40517-024-00288-4

Provided by Geothermal Transition Summit
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Tech billionaire Elon Musk is encouraging shareholders in electric automaker Tesla to vote in favor of a plan that includes a massive pay package for the company's founder and chief executive.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk said late Wednesday that the electric vehicle company's shareholders were voting to approve his multibillion-dollar pay package by "wide margins" before the ballot had been concluded.

The firm has campaigned to convince shareholders to approve Musk's giant compensation packageworth as much as $56 billionahead of Tesla's annual shareholder meeting, which is slated for Thursday afternoon.

"Both Tesla shareholder resolutions are currently passing by wide margins!" Musk wrote on his social media platform X, referring to the resolutions to approve his pay package as well as a plan to shift Tesla's place of incorporation from Delaware to Texas.

"Thanks for your support!!" the billionaire businessman added.

Official shareholder vote results have not yet been released.

Before the end of voting on Wednesday, Tesla said on a website for its annual meeting that the "future value we are poised to deliver for you is at risk," adding: "We need your vote NOW to protect Tesla and your investment."

In an effort to coax more shareholder participation, Tesla launched a sweepstakes of sorts where 15 investors who voted would be randomly picked for a tour of Tesla's plant in Austin, Texas personally led by Musk and vehicle designer Franz von Holzhausen.

Winners would also get choice seats for Tesla's annual meeting, to be held Thursday afternoon in Austin.

The company has employed the Musk-owned X platform, formerly Twitter, to publicize the effort.

The 'Musk premium'

Shareholders overwhelmingly backed the Musk compensation plan in March 2018, but it was struck down by a Delaware judge in January.

This year's vote was expected to be closer than the 2018 referendum after influential advisory firms Investor Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis came out against the windfall, with ISS dismissing the proposal as "excessive."

In April, Tesla revived the package, with chair Robyn Denholm imploring investors to "fix this issue" after the Delaware ruling.

"Tesla has been one of the most successful enterprises of our time. In just the past six years, we created more than $735 billion in value," Denholm said in a letter to shareholders.

"Our next growth vector is equally as ambitious."

Before the end of shareholder voting, CFRA Research's Garrett Nelson declined to speculate about the outcome, but predicted that sufficient support from institutional investors would be crucial.

Individual investors, who comprise about 40 percent of Tesla's investor base, were expected to back Musk, he said.

A defeat for the plan could "increase uncertainty regarding the future leadership of the company and jeopardize the 'Musk premium'" should the unpredictable chief executive exit, according to Nelson.

Musk backers, like billionaire investor Ron Baron, have offered unflinching support.

"Shareholders should ask themselves this question: is Tesla better off with or without Elon," Baron said in a public letter.

"At Baron Capital, our answer is clear, loud and unequivocal: Tesla is better with Elon. Tesla is Elon."

Among other large shareholders, Vanguard, which holds more than seven percent of shares, declined to comment, while BlackRock, which holds around six percent, did not respond to a request for comment.

But other investors including Norges Bank Investment Management, Norway's sovereign wealth fund, have said they will vote no.

So has California State Teachers' Retirement System.

CalSTRS chief investment officer Chris Ailman dismissed the package as "absurd."

Ailman told CNBC that he considers Musk "brilliant," but that the current package is "ridiculous."

"We need to have a serious salary. We'll pay him 140 times the average worker pay," Ailman said. "I think that's more than fair.

 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:

A SIM card is shown next to a cellphone in this photo taken on Tuesday, June 11, 2024 in London. Physical SIM cards are going away, replaced by eSIMs which make switching cell carriers easier. AP Photo/Kelvin Chan)

For summer trips overseas, a smartphone is essential for most people. How else will you check Google Maps to find your Airbnb, post an Instagram video from the Eiffel Tower, or WhatsApp friends and family back home?

Of course, if you're using apps that gobble up data while traveling in a foreign country, there's always a risk of racking up hefty roaming fees from your phone carrier. The solution? An international travel eSIM for your smartphone.

How do you use this technology? Here are some tips.

What's an eSIM?

If you've ever bought a new cellphone, you're probably familiar with the SIM card. Short for subscriber identity module, the SIM is a little chip the size of a fingernail that fits into a slot on most phones. Without it, you couldn't get cell service because it contains your account information and phone number.

But physical SIM cards are slowly being replaced by eSIMsthe e stands for embeddedbuilt into newer phones. These digital versions do the same thing and can make life easier, though people used to physical SIMs might find them confusing at first.

Why should I use an eSIM?

They make switching cell carriers easier. And if you've bought a new phone recently, you might not even have a choice: Apple got rid of the SIM card tray starting with the iPhone 14 released in September 2022.

They're especially beneficial for travelers. If you've got a compatible cellphone, you can add an eSIM from a virtual carrier that has better data roaming rates than your home network. Many phones will allow you to add more than one eSIM, making it easy to switch back and forth, orfor phones with the capabilityuse two at the same time.

Think of the convenience: Gone are the days of arriving in a strange country after a long flight, looking for a local phone company's airport kiosk, carefully popping open the SIM tray with a pin to swap in the new chip, and trying not to lose the existing one.

Where do I get a roaming eSIM and how much will I pay?

The eSIM market is booming. Kester Mann, director of consumer research at CCS Insight, says there are dozens of providers that can be found online, with names like Nomad, Holafly, Easysim, Airhub and Airalo.

"These guys have a role to play because I think they offer a very affordable and attractive opportunity for international travelers," Mann said.

The boom means there's plenty of competition keeping rates low. Prices are typically clearly displayed online, either through a menu of packages on the provider's website or a calculator based on the amount of data needed and trip length.

A SIM card is shown in this photo taken on Monday, June 10, 2024 in London. Physical SIM cards are going away, replaced by eSIMs which make switching cell carriers easier. AP Photo/Kelvin Chan)

Some 800 carriers support eSIMs, according to CCS, so international coverage is extensive. Many eSIM providers offer packages based on country or region, so you can check which ones have good rates for the place you'll be visiting and sign up in advance. Traveling to Europe and need data for a month covering 30 countries? Airalo offers, for example, 10 gigabytes at $37 while Holafly's package has unlimited data for 69 euros ($75).

For an upcoming trip to Prague, I bought 5 gigabytes of data for just $5 from Global Yo. I was slightly put off by some negative reviews professing problems buying, installing or activating the company's eSIMs, but I didn't have any problems myself.

How do I put an eSIM on my phone?

You'll need a phone that's unlocked for use with different wireless carriers.

If you're not setting up a new phone, the typical activation method is with a QR code, or a more conventional string of numbers and letters. If you're planning a trip and buy one before you leave, it's a good idea to print out the code if you don't want to activate right away.

For iPhones, go to your Settings menu, then to either the Cellular or Mobile Service section, then tap Add eSIM. You'll be prompted to scan the code, or manually enter it. The process is similar for Android users. Samsung has a guide for Galaxy devices, and Google has a help page for Pixel users, while eSIM carriers have step-by-step instructions. Apple has a YouTube video, as well as tip sheets on using eSIMs for international travel and on using two eSIMs simultaneously.

If you've got a phone that supports dual eSIMs, you "can pick potentially the best network based on price and or coverage" while traveling, said Mann.

Some carriers have their own apps to manage eSIMs and track data usage.

How do I know if my cellphone can use an eSIM?

More than 200 devices support the technology, CCS Insight says. U.K. phone company Vodafone has a list of compatible devices. Or dial (asterisk)#06#an EID code indicates it's compatible.

For iPhone users, it's any model released since the XS, XS Max or XR, as well as recent iPads. They're compatible with any Samsung Galaxy devices released since 2020, and Google Pixel 4 and newer models will work; some Pixel 3 devices also support them.

Does it always make sense to use a travel eSIM?

First check your own carrier's roaming costs for the places you're visiting. Sometimes it's not worth it.

"Roaming costs these days are far lower and less prohibitive than they once were," said Mann. They've even been abolished for European Union residents crossing the 27-nation bloc's internal borders. But travelers in Britain, which has left the EU, are facing them again for travel to the continent.

 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.
China urges U.S. to revoke illegal, unilateral sanctions against Chinese companies

Xinhua) 08:18, June 13, 2024

BEIJING, June 12 (Xinhua) -- China strongly opposes and condemns the United States' fabricating and spreading disinformation about Xinjiang, and urges it to revoke its illegal and unilateral sanctions against Chinese companies, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Wednesday.

Lin made the remarks at a regular press briefing in response to a notice from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, in which Washington added three Chinese companies to a list that bars imports from those firms on the grounds of alleged "forced labor."

He noted that the remarkable achievements in Xinjiang's development are evident, and the central government's policies have deeply resonated with the people.

"We have repeatedly cited a wealth of figures and facts to refute the baseless narratives of 'forced labor' and 'genocide,'" Lin said, adding that those narratives are lies concocted by a small number of anti-China individuals to disrupt Xinjiang, smear China and impede China's development.

The United States insists on implementing unjust laws related to Xinjiang, and adding Chinese companies to sanction lists based on lies, which severely interferes in China's internal affairs, disrupts the normal order of the market, and grossly violates international trade rules and the basic norms of international relations, Lin said.

It is, in fact, an attempt to create "forced unemployment" in Xinjiang, using human rights as a pretext to infringe upon the rights to survival, employment and development of the people in Xinjiang, and its ulterior motives of containing China are glaringly evident, Lin added.

He said that the United States is facing a multitude of domestic issues, such as racial discrimination, gun violence and drug abuse. If the country really cares about human rights, it should take measures to address these chronic problems, rather than interfering in other countries' affairs and abusing sanctions, Lin added.

"We urge the U.S. side to immediately stop smearing China, revoke its illegal unilateral sanctions against Chinese companies, and cease interfering in China's internal affairs and undermining China's interests under the guise of human rights," said the spokesperson.

Lin added that China will continue to take resolute measures to firmly safeguard the legitimate and lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
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Elon Musk is interviewed at the 2023 New York Times DealBook Summit in November. Tesla Inc. shareholders today are voting on reapproval of a massive pay package and the automakers proposed reincorporation in Texas. HAIYUN JIANG/New York Times Men wearing Texas flag-themed Western shirts stand next to a Tesla Cybertruck at the Tesla Gigafactory in Austin on Thursday. Tesla shareholders are charting the future of the electric vehicle company as they wrap up voting on whether to restore a massive pay package for CEO Elon Musk that was thrown out by a Delaware judge. Eric Gay/AP Vehicles pass the Tesla Gigafactory on Thursday ahead of the Tesla Inc. shareholder meeting that was set to start there in the late afternoon. Eric Gay/AP Teslas Gigafactory is seen Thursday as Tesla shareholders were wrapping up voting on whether to restore CEO Elon Musks massive pay package that was thrown out by a Delaware judge. Eric Gay/AP

Tesla Inc. shareholders voted Thursday to restore a massive pay package for CEO Elon Musk that had been thrown out by a Delaware judge earlier this year and in favor of moving the companys state of incorporation to Texas.

The votes signaled confidence in Musks leadership despite slumping sales and a precipitous drop in the Austin-based automakers stock price.

Vote totals werent immediately announced.

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Its incredible, a jubilant Musk told the crowd gathered at Teslas headquarters and factory in Austin. I think were not just opening a new chapter for Tesla, were starting a new book.

The favorable vote  which Musk had foreshadowed Wednesday  doesnt mean hell get the all-stock compensation anytime soon. The package is likely to remain tied up in the Delaware Chancery Court for months as Tesla appeals the rejection. If that appeal fails, moving the companys legal home to Texas would allow the board to revive the pay package in a new state with potentially more favorable courts.

Musk has raised doubts about his future with Tesla this year, writing on X, the social media platform he owns, that he wanted a 25% stake in the company in order to stop him from taking artificial intelligence development elsewhere. The higher stake is needed to control the use of AI, he has said.

Tesla also has struggled with falling sales and profit margins as demand for electric vehicles slows worldwide.

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But at the companys annual meeting Thursday in Austin, Musk reassured shareholders that he will stick around, telling them he cant sell any stock in the compensation package for five years.

Its not actually cash, and I cant cut and run, nor would I want to, he said.

Pay package

The pay plan was initially approved by Teslas board and stockholders six years ago.

The automaker last valued the package at $44.9 billion in an April regulatory filing. It was once as much as $56 billion but has declined in value in tandem with Teslas stock, which has dropped about 25% so far this year.

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Chancellor Kathaleen St. Jude McCormick ruled in January in a shareholders lawsuit that Musk essentially controlled the Tesla board when it ratified the package in 2018, and that it failed to fully inform shareholders who approved it the same year.

Tesla has said it would appeal, but asked shareholders to reapprove the package at Thursdays annual meeting.

A separate vote approved moving the companys legal home to Texas to avoid the courts in Delaware, where Tesla is registered as a corporation.

Musk and Tesla didnt win everything that was being voted on. Shareholders approved measures that trimmed board member terms from three years to one and cut the required vote on shareholder proposals to a simple majority.

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Legal experts say the issue of Musks pay will still be decided in Delaware, largely because his lawyers have assured McCormick they wont try to move the case to Texas.

But they differ on whether the new approval of the pay package will make it easier for Tesla to get it approved.

Charles Elson, a retired professor and founder of the corporate governance center at the University of Delaware, said he doesnt think the vote will influence McCormick, who issued a decision based on the law.

Her ruling essentially made the 2018 compensation package a gift to Musk, Elson said, and that would need unanimous shareholder approval, an impossible threshold. The vote, he said, is interesting from a public perception standpoint, but in my view it does not affect the ruling.

Strong signal

John Lawrence, a Dallas-based lawyer with Baker Botts who defends corporations against shareholder lawsuits, agreed the vote doesnt end the legal dispute and automatically give Musk the stock options. But he said it gives Tesla a strong argument to get the ruling overturned.

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He expects Musk and Tesla to argue that shareholders were fully informed before the latest votes, so McCormick should reverse her decision. But the plaintiff in the lawsuit will argue that the vote has no impact and isnt legally binding, Lawrence said.

The vote, he said, was done under Delaware law and should be considered by the judge.

This shareholder vote is a strong signal that you now have an absolutely well-informed body of shareholders, he said. The judge in Delaware still could decide that this doesnt change a thing about her prior ruling and doesnt require her to make any different ruling going forward. But I think it definitely gives Tesla and Musk strong ammunition to try to get her to revisit this.

If the ruling stands, then Musk likely will appeal to the Delaware Supreme Court, Lawrence said.

Multiple institutional investors had come out against Musks sizeable payout ahead of the shareholder meeting, some citing the companys recent struggles. But analysts said votes by individual shareholders likely put Musks pay over the top.

Earlier Thursday, Tesla disclosed that shareholders were voting for Musks pay package by a wide margin. In a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, its published Musks own posts late Wednesday on X with charts that appeared to show shareholders were in favor of his compensation package and the measure to move Teslas legal home to Texas.

That drove the companys shares up as much as 5% to $185.77 early Thursday. By the close of trading, they were up nearly 3% to $182.47.

Legal experts said releasing vote totals while balloting is in progress could present regulatory problems, and that may be why the company made the filing with the SEC, which is likely to look into the matter.

Shareholders could still cast votes online Thursday and in person Thursday afternoon. They also could change previously cast votes.

Anytime you tell people youre winning, youre encouraging others to join you and those who oppose you to pull back, said Charles Elson, a retired professor and founder of the corporate governance center at the University of Delaware.

Erik Gordon, a law and business professor at the University of Michigan, said Musks posts could draw legal scrutiny. His post had better be accurate or else anyone who bought stock relying on it will have a securities law case against him, Gordon said in an email.

The SEC declined to comment. Tesla didnt respond to a request for comment.

New developments

After the votes were announced, Musk began telling shareholders about new developments in the companys Full Self-Driving system. He has staked the companys future on development of autonomous vehicles, robots and artificial intelligence.

Full Self-Driving keeps improving with new versions, Musk said, and its safety per mile is better than human drivers.

This is actually going to work. This is going to happen. Mark my words, this is just a matter of time, he said.

Despite its name, Full Self-Driving cant drive itself and the company says human drivers must be ready to intervene at all times. Teslas Full Self-Driving hardware went on sale late in 2015, and Musk has used the name ever since as the company gathered data to teach its computers how to drive.

In 2019, Musk promised a fleet of autonomous robotaxis by 2020, and he said in early 2022 that the cars would be autonomous that year. In April of last year, Musk said the system should be ready in 2023.

Since 2021, Tesla has been beta-testing Full Self-Driving using volunteer owners. U.S. safety regulators last year made Tesla recall the software after finding that the system misbehaved around intersections and could violate traffic laws.

Musk also said the company is making huge progress on its Optimus humanoid robot. Currently it has two working at its factory in Fremont, California, that take battery cells off a production line and put them in shipping containers, he said.
An accessory dwelling unit, pictured in October 2022, sits behind Shelley Galbraiths King William house. Last year, Texas lawmakers considered legislation, which failed, that would have allowed such housing units, also known as granny flats, in single-family home backyards throughout the state. Charlie Blalock/ Contributor An accessory dwelling unit, pictured in October 2022, sits behind Shelley Galbraiths King William house. Last year, Texas lawmakers considered legislation, which failed, that would have allowed such housing units, also known as granny flats, in single-family home backyards throughout the state. Charlie Blalock/ Contributor

Texas Democrats and Republicans may be approaching a bipartisan consensus on how to tackle the states housing affordability crisis at a time when a majority of Texans say they spend too much money on keeping a roof over their heads.

The Texas Democratic Party last week adopted a platform that includes calls to relax local zoning regulations that determine what kinds of housing can be built and where. Housing experts and advocates argue those rules drive up home prices and rents by preventing real estate developers from building enough homes to meet demand.

The platform calls for ending racially motivated exclusionary forms of zoning which limit the supply of affordable housing options and undoing segregation era land use restrictions that divide communities, drive displacement, and fuel rising housing costs to this day, among other measures intended to ease the states housing crunch.

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We wanted to make it clear what the stance of Democrats writ large is these days, said Micah Erfan, a Houston housing advocate and Democrat who co-authored the platform language. Amongst Democrats that are really interested in the issue of housing, it really generally is a very YIMBY  yes in my backyard  stance, a pro-housing stance, a stance thats in line with President (Joe) Biden: that the solution to the housing crisis is building more housing where people want to live.

State lawmakers and policymakers across Texas cities have increasingly sought ways to rein in the states housing costs as high home prices freeze would-be homebuyers out of the market and tenants struggle to pay high rents. By various counts, Texas doesnt have enough homes to absorb demand amid the states booming population growth  and that shortage has contributed to elevated home prices and rents.

ALSO READ: West Side church explores building affordable housing on extra land

Housing advocates and policy experts have increasingly placed a good chunk of the blame for that shortage on cities zoning regulations that regulate, among other things, how much land a single-family home must sit on and whether other kinds of housing like duplexes and small apartment buildings can be built alongside single-family homes. Such rules limit how many homes can be built and drive up housing costs as a result, they say.

Texas lawmakers entertained proposals to relax some of those local regulations last year  including bills that wouldve reduced cities minimum lot sizes for single-family homes and allowed accessory dwelling units, often called granny flats, in single-family homes backyards.

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A bipartisan approach is crucial to enacting any kind of housing reform at the state level, proponents say. A group of younger Democrats crafted the platforms language on housing affordability in part out of anxiousness that the party was ceding the issue entirely to Republicans, but also to try to give Democrats a road map on how to approach the housing crisis.

Texas Democrats cannot just do nothing about the housing affordability crisis and let the Republicans run on it, said Skyler Korgel, another co-author of the platform language on zoning.

At a recent meeting of the Texas Senate State Affairs Committee, Sens. Bryan Hughes, a Mineola Republican, and Jose Menendez, a San Antonio Democrat, agreed theyd like to take up again the granny flats proposal, which cleared the Senate.

The urgency to tackle the problem comes as more Texans are struggling with housing costs than in years past, which may give state lawmakers a mandate to tackle the housing affordability crisis head-on when they convene next year.

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More than half of the states 4.2 million renter households spend too much of their income on keeping a roof over their heads, according to Harvard Universitys Joint Center for Housing Studies. That finding echoes the results of a Texas Lyceum poll released last month, which shows that nearly two-thirds of Texans, homeowners and renters alike, say they spend too much on housing  compared with 44% of Texans four years ago.

That agreement crosses partisan lines, with 69% of Democrats and 61% of Republicans telling pollsters that housing costs take up too much of their budget.

ALSO READ: Vacant building on near West Side could become affordable housing for seniors

The problem of housing has become too big and widespread for members of either party to ignore, said Joshua Blank, research director of the Texas Lyceum poll. It doesnt really matter whether you see your constituency as primarily urban, primarily suburban, or primarily rural: all three are facing a problem when it comes to housing costs. And ultimately, housing costs dont discriminate by party.

The idea of loosening local zoning regulations to allow more homes has proven to have bipartisan appeal elsewhere in the country. Blue states like California and Oregon and red states like Montana have enacted statewide zoning reforms in recent years to try to alleviate their states housing crises.

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That appeal not only applies to the notion of lowering housing costs. Conservatives like the idea of loosening zoning rules to reduce government regulations and free up the market while boosting individual property rights.

Liberals see loosening those same restrictions as a way to combat climate change: allowing more housing options closer to job centers, they say, would reduce commutes by car from far-flung suburbs.

They also see loosening those rules as a means to undo patterns of racial and economic segregation. Housing experts and advocates have argued that zoning restrictions adopted in the 20th century were a tool of racial segregation.

Biden has expressed support for easing local zoning rules in order to let more homes be built. The Austin City Council recently enacted a slate of local reforms intended to ease the affordability crisis  dramatically reducing its requirements for minimum lot size for single-family homes and allowing duplexes and triplexes to be built nearly anywhere single-family homes are allowed, among other changes. A coalition that included homebuilders, environmentalists, historic preservationists, business groups and the Texas arm of the AARP backed the reforms.

Opposition to zoning reform, too, is bipartisan. Republicans and Democrats alike count among their ranks Texans who have cultural attachments to the long-held notion of owning a single-family home on a large lot  and view efforts to allow other kinds of housing in their neighborhoods as an affront. Democrats also tend to resist zoning changes because they believe that doing so would accelerate displacement of lower-income residents and people of color from their neighborhoods  despite evidence to the contrary.

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Despite the Texas Democratic Partys embrace of zoning reforms, it remains to be seen whether Texas Democrats statewide will embrace the platform. After more than a decade of Republican lawmakers sapping authority from the states bluer urban areas, Democrats have tended to reject ideas that appear to take power away from cities.

ALSO READ: Legislature changes rules on controversial tax breaks used to incentivize affordable housing

House Democrats, in the minority, led a successful charge to kill last years granny flats proposal, in part because they felt cities should choose what kind of housing they allow, not the state.

The state ultimately grants cities their zoning authority.

If cities dont want to relax zoning restrictions and allow more housing, the state shouldnt force them to, said Kendall Scudder, a Texas Democratic Party finance official who is skeptical of zoning reform.

We are a local control party, Scudder said. We believe that local governments know their communities best, and we want to empower them to be able to make the zoning decisions that are best for them.

For Erfan, enacting zoning reforms to allow more housing at the state level would be a better approach than waiting for the states housing crisis to be addressed one city at a time. A statewide change would come all at once, expediting a solution for an urgent issue, he said.
The board of commissioners of Opportunity Home San Antonio voted Wednesday to fire President and CEO Ed Hinojosa Jr. Representatives from the Center for Health Care Services, Opportunity Home San Antonio and local officials cut a ribbon opening a new in-house health clinic at the Victoria Plaza Apartments senior living center in September. Kaylee Greenlee Beal In a file photo from early 2021, then-interim San Antonio Housing Authority President and CEO Ed Hinojosa is seen at the Alazan-Apache Courts. He later scrapped a plan to raze the historic housing development and instead led its redevelopment. Staff file photo

The board of commissioners of Opportunity Home San Antonio on Wednesday fired President and CEO Ed Hinojosa Jr., who had worked for the housing authority for two decades and was its top official since 2021.

The unanimous vote came after a three-hour executive session during the agencys monthly board meeting. No reason was given, but the decision comes after some commissioners last month said they were shocked and horrified the agency had issued notices to vacate to 625 residents who were delinquent on rent by sums as small as $1.

Hinojosas termination was effective immediately. Public affairs officer Michael Reyes was appointed acting president and CEO.

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It is not lost on this board the magnitude of this change but we believe it is needed to propel the organization into the future, said board Chair Gabriel Lopez. We ask the acting president and CEO to take immediate bold action to safeguard our families and to find creative solutions to the challenges this organization is facing.

Neither Lopez nor a spokesperson for Opportunity Home identified those challenges or elaborated on the decision. A statement issued by the board late Wednesday evening also failed to provide reasons for the termination.

The board believes the organization needs fresh leadership  to return to fulfilling its mission of providing quality affordable housing and building sustainable, thriving communities, it said. The board appreciates Mr. Hinojosas service to the organization and his championing of increasing affordable housing opportunities in our city.

Notices to vacate

At a May 1 board meeting, Opportunity Home residents and housing advocates decried the agencys decision to send notices to vacate to tenants who had fallen behind on rent.

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Agency staff told commissioners that notices had been sent to tenants who owed rent for over a year regardless of the amount but that they ranged from $1 to more than $10,000. The move came after the board had directed staff to recover rent after lifting a moratorium on evictions, but some commissioners said they didnt realize tenants owing low amounts would receive notices.

We were operating under (the) impression that we were dealing with high-dollar delinquencies, which is what precipitated our examination and, given that we were facing a year-over-year deficit in our public housing portfolio, what can we do to help offset that, said Lopez, who later said he was shocked.

Im horrified, said commissioner Leilah Powell.

Opportunity Home issued another statement Thursday, in which it said eligible notices to vacate would be rescinded immediately and tenants owing less than $3,000 would be automatically eligible for a repayment agreement.

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The agency said it will also propose to the board a one-time repayment policy change to double the permitted arrears balance up to $6,000 for balances accrued since the pandemic. That will keep more than 80% of tenants who previously received a notice in their homes, it said, as well as keep notices from being sent to more than 500 more families set to receive one under the existing policy.

We must do all we can to protect our vulnerable households, particularly those who are still reeling from the effects of the pandemic, Reyes said in a statement. This is the right thing to do and we will continue to find ways in the coming days and weeks to further protect our residents.

Firing decried

Kayla Miranda, who lives at Opportunity Homes Alazan-Apache Courts and is a public housing advocate, blasted the boards action and said commissioners were to blame for the foul-up with notices.

This is a mistake, she said. Ed Hinojosa was exactly the type of person it takes to run a housing authority and I am absolutely against his being fired.

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The board made the mistake by ordering the notices to vacate to begin with and they took it out on him, she added. I am so sorry that a good person lost their career because of the ego of another. We will suffer because of it. All public housing residents will suffer.

Support for Hinojosa was also heard at the May meeting, with Miranda, other residents and advocates praising him for his commitment to public housing and improving services at Opportunity Home.

Soon after becoming president and CEO in 2021, Hinojosa scrapped a plan to work with developer NRP Group to raze Alazan Courts, the citys oldest and largest public housing complex and replace it with a mixed-income development. Instead, he said, Opportunity Home would rebuild the housing units itself.

It was a surprising but welcome reversal for residents and community organizers who had pushed back against the proposal.

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Opportunity Home serves 61,700 residents, according to its 2024 annual report. Total budgeted positions at the organization increased to 690 this year from 670 in 2023.
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Daniel Negrila, a resident of San Antonios South Side, listens to speakers at a Planning Commission meeting Wednesday. Negrila told commissioners he is concerned about how proposed zoning and land use changes around Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas Inc.s plant would affect him and other property owners. Jessica Phelps South Side residents take photos of the Texas A&M-San Antonio Area Regional Center Plan at a Planning Commission meeting Wednesday. Jessica Phelps Fermin Rajunov, a landowner on San Antonios South Side, spoke at a Planning Commission meeting Wednesday about his concerns about the proposed Texas A&M-San Antonio Area Regional Center Plan. Commissioners recommended that the City Council approve a future land use classification Rajunov had requested for an apartment project in the area. Jessica Phelps John Whitsett, a member of the citys Zoning Commission, spoke at a Planning Commission meeting Wednesday about his concerns about the proposed Texas A&M-San Antonio Area Regional Center Plan and industrial compatibility overlay district around Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas Inc.s plant. Jessica Phelps Rodrigo Bocanegra spoke during a Planning Commission meeting Wednesday about his concerns about proposed zoning and land use changes around Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas Inc.s plant on the South Side. Jessica Phelps Rudy Nino, assistant director of the citys planning department, goes over changes made to the Texas A&M-San Antonio Area Regional Center Plan at a Planning Commission meeting Wednesday. Jessica Phelps

Over the past few weeks, dozens of frustrated South Side landowners have packed into city planning and zoning meetings expressing confusion about proposed changes to land around Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas Inc.s plant.

Some have denounced moves they fear will restrict the use of their property, making it less attractive to potential buyers even as construction of homes, stores and restaurants on the South Side is accelerating.

And some have questioned whether the city is pushing for the changes at the behest of Toyota because the move would essentially codify  while reducing  a buffer zone elected officials pitched to persuade the automaker to build its plant in 2006. It now employs more than 3,700 workers, while suppliers on its sprawling campus employ another 5,800.

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My concern is that I think Toyota is the one that runs the city of San Antonio, Alfred Garcia told the Planning Commission at a meeting this week.

The original deal, known as the Starbright Agreement, created a 3-mile zone to discourage residential construction and other uses Toyota considered incompatible with manufacturing. Critics have long contended it amounts to contract zoning, an illegal quid pro quo in which Toyota has authority over whats built. The citys new rezoning proposal reduces the zone to 2 miles.

Confusion over why and what it means has led frustrated residents  many clutching notices they received in the mail  to pack commission meetings seeking clarification about the impacts on them and their families. Some said they tried calling the city for information, but to no avail.

Would they have to leave their homes, they wondered? Can they continue farming? Can they build houses? Will the change affect the rural nature of their neighborhoods? Would their taxes go up?

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No consideration

Zoning Commissioner John Whitsett has also expressed concerns to other commissioners, the Planning Commission, Mayor Ron Nirenberg and City Council members  a rare move by a member of the panel.

The zoning and planning commissions are separate bodies whose appointed members make recommendations to the City Council, which will have the final say on what happens around Toyotas factory.

The public sector (city) is appearing to only be working with the private interests of Toyota with little to no consideration given to the thousands of other property owners/taxpayers/voters who will have this overlay imposed on their property restricting their rights, he wrote in a letter to council members last month.

Whitsett had more to say during this weeks Planning Commission meeting.

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Ultimately, if the city really thinks its necessary to provide a significant buffer and restrict development, they should buy the land that is impacted  or pay condemnation fees and let people keep their property, he told the Planning Commission.

The panel ultimately delayed a decision  the second time it has tabled the matter.

Theyre not alone. After hearing residents concerns last month, the Zoning Commission also postponed a vote on whether to recommend that the City Council create an industrial compatibility overlay district around Toyotas plant.

The overlay would consist of two zones, with Zone A limiting new residential and commercial development within 1 mile of the facility and Zone B extending another mile outward and restricting new residential projects.

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They directed city staff to host a public meeting, which is scheduled for July 2, to provide more information after some landowners who came to the May 21 meeting said they had received notices in the mail only a few days earlier.

Im not real impressed with how little thought was put into reaching out, Commissioner Taylor Watson told city staff. There were a number of occasions when this community has questions, where they were asking about the process or impacts.  You should have every process that may be related to this rezoning and overlay district thought through and be prepared to answer questions.

A Toyota spokesperson previously said the company is supportive of the citys process and zoning decisions are the sole responsibility of the city of San Antonio and not Toyota or any other business.

Managing growth

The overlay district is one of the recommendations outlined in a proposed plan aimed at guiding land use around Toyotas plant and Texas A&M-San Antonio as demand for housing, stores and medical services in the area is rising.

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Making the zoning change would "ensure compatible future development near heavy industrial uses, such as the Toyota Motor Manufacturing Texas plant, a draft of the document states. A future land use map shows parks and open space immediately around the plant and to its south, with government and light industrial uses to the north.

The Planning Commission first delayed a decision on the plan May 22. City staff then revised the document, removing some of its language referencing Toyota, including wording about limits on residential and nonresidential uses within one or two miles of the plant and sentences such as future land use designations also recognize and protect ongoing operations at the Toyota plant  one of the areas two major economic and employment anchors.

At this weeks meeting, commissioners said they had been briefed on the updates and were pleased with the changes. But residents who turned out said they were seeing the changes for the first time. They appeared to directly impact the issue some came to discuss.

Many of those who spoke voiced concerns about the industrial compatibility overlay district, but commissioners pointed out that zoning change is under the purview of a separate panel, the Zoning Commission.

Rudy Nino, assistant director of the citys planning department, addressed some of residents questions at the series of meetings. For example, no one would have to leave their home, he said.

There would be exceptions to the zoning overlay. Existing homes could be repaired and enlarged but owners could not add accessory dwelling units or subdivide their property.

Overlay exceptions

Undeveloped platted lots with residential zoning could be developed but not subdivided, while unplatted empty lots could be developed but not exceed one dwelling per acre. Owners with unplatted, undeveloped property with residential zoning would have to register with the city by Dec. 31, submit a plat and plan within two years and build their project within five years.

Some landowners would not be affected because their property is not within city limits, Nino said, but they received notices because the city had to notify owners along postal routes. He acknowledged the language in the notices was confusing but said thats because state law stipulates it and the city cannot add its own text.

Nino noted that the city has already given the green light to some projects near Toyotas plant. In fact, the Planning Commission recommended land use changes for two housing developments Wednesday, including apartments proposed by Fermin Rajunov, a developer who is suing the city and Toyota over use of the Starbright Agreement to stop another planned development.

Nino also defended the citys outreach efforts and said staff members hosted hosted multiple community meetings about the zoning change and regional center plan.

Nonetheless, the Planning Commissions move Wednesday pushed any decision out to at least June 26 to provide more time for residents to study the changes the city had made to the language. The Zoning Commission is scheduled to take up the overlay district at a July 16 meeting.

Despite Ninos defense, commissioners also expressed disappointment in City Halls process for the proposed changes.
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NMDC Energy (formerly NPCC), in partnership with French group Technip Energies and Japan's JGC Corporation, has secured a $5.5 billion contract from Abu Dhabi National Oil comopany (Adnoc) to provide engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for its lower-carbon Ruwais LNG project in Abu Dhabi.

The project, located in Al Ruwais Industrial City, consists of two natural gas liquefaction trains with a total LNG production capacity of 9.6 million tons per annum (Mtpa). The plant will use electric-driven motors instead of conventional gas turbines and will be powered by clean energy.

The Adnoc plant is set to be the first LNG export facility in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region to run on clean power, making it one of the lowest-carbon intensity LNG plants in the world.

The project will more than double Adnoc's LNG production capacity aligning with global natural gas demand and the shift towards decarbonization.

NMDC Energy CEO Engineer Ahmed Al Dhaheri said: "We are proud to be entrusted by ADNOC with the Ruwais LNG project, which strengthens our position in the UAEs energy landscape and underscores our dedication to advancing the countrys sustainable development."

"Utilizing nuclear energy for LNG production not only sets a new international standard for low-emission energy but also aligns with the UAEs strategy for a sustainable future," he stated.

Technip Energies CEO Arnaud Pieton said: "We are honoured to have been awarded by Adnoc the Ruwais LNG project, a pioneering initiative in the LNG sector. By powering electrified LNG trains with nuclear energy, this project sets a new standard for energy security and sustainability."

"By leveraging our low-carbon and electrified LNG leadership we will support Adnocs position as a reliable global natural gas supplier and commitment to decarbonization," he stated.

JGC Representative Director and President Farhan Mujib said: "We are highly honoured to have been awarded in this innovative lower-carbon LNG project, which will be the next generation of energy security and sustainability."

"We commit to leveraging our capabilities and experience for the lower-carbon Ruwais LNG project, bringing our proven track record in the LNG field. We are convinced this will contribute to the success of the project and enhance economic growth in the UAE," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
Leading regional project developers and construction majors have submitted bids to the Bahrain Ministry of Works for the development of the Busaiteen Link Package 4 project.

Those in the race are Bahraini heavyweights - Almoayyed Contracting, Haji Hassan Group and Cebarco as well as Saudi-based Al Rashid Trading and Contracting and Al Yamama Company for Trading and Contracting and Six Construct, a subsidiary of top Belgian construction company Besix.

The project scope includes development of Busaiteen Link (Junctions 4 to Junction 5), Signature Bridge and related approach ramps, loop road bridge connecting the new Busaiteen Link to Phase One of the existing North Manama Causeway, according to Bahrain Tender Board.

The Ministry of Work had in November invited bids for the Busaiteen Link Package 4, a major infrastructure project being financed by the Saudi Fund for Development.

As per the Bahrain Tender Board notification, the bids were open to Saudi contractors registered as per Deputy Ministry for Contractor Classification in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, under Class A for Roads Works or those registered as per Deputy Ministry for Contractor Classification in KSA under Class A for Roads Works in JV with Bahraini contractors registered under Category AA for Road Works as per Ministry of Works in the Kingdom of Bahrain or Saudi contractor registered as per Deputy Ministry for Contractor Classification in KSA under Class A for Road Works JV Foreign Contractor.

The Works Ministry said another key criterion for bidding is that these contractors must have vast experience in steel bridges with cable stay projects.

Earlier, our sister publication, the Gulf Daily News had reported that reclamation work on the new BD94 million ($247.4 million) Signature Bridge had begun in 2019.

The 550-m bridge, suspended 93 m above sea level, is an extension of the 7.8-km-long North Muharraq Highway project which also includes the 4.2-km-long Muharraq ring road. It will connect north Busaiteen and Bahrain Bay.
Emirates is tracking the delivery of SAF into the fuelling systems

Emirates has begun using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) as part of its fuel agreement with Neste on flights departing from Singapore Changi Airport, marking its inaugural SAF investment in Asia.

Approximately 3.3 million litres of blended SAF have been integrated into the fuelling system of Changi airport over the course of the last few weeks.

Emirates is tracking the delivery of SAF into the fuelling systems, accounting for and assigning its environmental benefits through widely used and accepted industry methodologies.

Earlier this year, the airline closely collaborated with Neste for the supply of 2.6 million litres of neat SAF in the fuelling systems of Amsterdam Schiphol airport.

The SAF being provided by Neste is produced from sustainably sourced and 100% renewable waste, as well as residue raw materials, including used cooking oil and animal fat waste.

SAF used as part of this agreement can be safely used in existing Emirates aircraft and airport fuelling infrastructure, and in neat form reduces lifecycle carbon emissions (CO2) by up to 80% compared to using conventional jet fuel.

Adel Al Redha, Deputy President and Chief Operations Officer, Emirates said: Emirates investment into Neste-produced SAF in Singapore marks a first step forward in our SAF adoption in Asia, a region that is primed to become a leading supplier of SAF, which continues to be in short supply.

While the activation of this agreement marks a milestone in our SAF journey in a new region, theres still a lot of work to do. And as we procure SAF for the short term, weve got our sights set on longer-term agreements to help scale up a steady supply of SAF for our operations.

Alexander Kueper, Vice President Renewable Aviation Business, Neste, said: We are excited Emirates has started using our Neste MY Sustainable Aviation Fuel at Changi Airport as the next step in our cooperation.

It makes Emirates the first international visiting carrier using SAF at the airport produced at our Singapore refinery and supplied into the airport via our integrated supply chain. We are looking forward to continuing working together on scaling up the supply of SAF for Emirates operations.

Emirates multi-faceted SAF strategy focuses on exploring opportunities to use SAF operationally wherever it is available in its network, share emissions reductions with corporate customers or freight forwarders where feasible, cooperate on longer-term SAF projects with reputable partners and support SAF ventures in the UAE with the potential to supply sustainable aviation fuel at its hub in the future.

Emirates currently operates flights from Amsterdam, London Heathrow, Paris, Lyon and Oslo with SAF.

The airline also integrated SAF into the fuelling systems at its Dubai hub late last year.

In 2023, Emirates was also the first airline in the world to operate two landmark demonstration flights from Dubai on the Boeing 777 and A380 with 100% SAF in one engine in partnership with Neste and other committed partners, supporting future certification where 100% drop in SAF is approved for commercial airline operations.

Currently, SAF is approved for use in all aircraft, but only in blends of up to 50% with conventional jet fuel.  TradeArabia News Service
Annasofia Scheve covers trending news for the Express-News. She can be reached at Annasofia.Scheve@express-news.net.

Annasofia has bachelor's degrees in journalism and political science from the University of Missouri. She is an Ohio native, and wrote for Cincinnati Magazine and the Cincinnati Enquirer before joining the Express-News in 2023.
Jumeirah celebrated on June 12 the 20th anniversary of its Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project (DTRP), by hosting a panel discussion on the collective efforts needed to protect the ocean.

Entitled Out of Sight is not Out of Mind: Our Collective Responsibility to Preserve our Ocean, the panel took place in Dubai this morning ahead of World Sea Turtle Day (June 16).

Led by a group of global experts, including Razan Al Mubarak, President of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN); Barbara Lang-Lenton, Director of Aquarium at Jumeirah Burj Al Arab and DTRP lead; Jo Ruxton, Founder and Director of Ocean Generation; and Dr Juan Antonio Romero, Mission Blue Scientist, Marine Biologist, and Filmmaker, the discussion delved into the most pressing challenges facing our ocean today.

The panel underscored that marine conservation is a shared global challenge requiring collaboration among governments, organisations, businesses, and individuals.

They also shared examples of innovative solutions and best practices for ocean conservation, highlighting the critical role of education, awareness-raising, and youth engagement in shaping a sustainable future for the ocean.

Razan Al Mubarak, the global leader in biodiversity, who has spearheaded progressive environmental protection and species conservation around the world, said: Over the past twenty years, the Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project has demonstrated the powerful role of corporate responsibility in the sphere of environmental care.

I commend their ongoing commitment to the health and vitality of marine life, which is crucial for maintaining our ecosystems balance.

Barbara Lang-Lenton, said: "I am incredibly proud to celebrate two decades of the Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project. Not only is it an important milestone for Jumeirah, it is also testament to Dubai and the wider UAEs efforts in enhancing biodiversity through conservation programmes.

Ruxton said: My mission is to bridge the gap between people and the ocean. Everyone needs to understand how vital a healthy ocean is to our survival; it supports all life on our blue planet.

The ocean is also our biggest ally when it comes to climate change, yet we recklessly exploit and damage this fragile ecosystem.

Dr Romero said: "In order to protect ourselves and the world as we see it today we have to protect the ocean. Without the ocean there would be no life.

Education, public awareness, and science are part of bridging the gap between the ocean and us. Providing tangible ways in which individuals can support this cause is also paramount in our mission to preserve and protect these precious ecosystems.

Prior to the event, Jumeirah, together with community members, guests and partners, released 63 rehabilitated turtles back into their natural habitat.

This included Hawksbills, Green turtles, and Loggerheads, bringing the total number of turtles released by the DTRP to more than 2,175 since its launch in 2004.

Among the turtles released was Barney, a 31kg young adult male Hawksbill turtle who was discovered in March in the Jebel Ali Area with an injury on his plastron  or shell as more commonly known. After receiving dedicated care and treatment, Barney made a full recovery and was returned to the ocean to rapturous applause.

Looking ahead to World Sea Turtle Day this Sunday, a range of sea turtle conservation activities have been organised across Jumeirahs portfolio.

In Abu Dhabi, Jumeirah Saadiyat Island, in partnership with the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi (EAD), The National Aquarium, and Yas SeaWorld Research and Rescue, hosted an intimate release of 50 sea turtles on its pristine beach.

Additionally, guests at Jumeirah Olhahali Island, Maldives will enjoy a mix of complimentary and bookable turtle-themed experiences.

These will include a marine talk from the in-house marine biologist, guided snorkelling around Olhahali Island's house reef, sand sculpture making, sustainable seafood dinners at its all-day dining pool-side restaurant, Glow, yoga sessions with turtle inspired poses at Talise Spa, and unique room decorations, all aimed at promoting sea turtle conservation and awareness.  TradeArabia News Service
Red Sea Global (RSG), the developer behind regenerative tourism destinations The Red Sea and Amaala, has announced that work has begun on its new hospital project located in Red Seas Turtle Bay area following the project design approval by Ministry of Health.

The Turtle Bay Hospital, once completed, will provide world-class healthcare to the community of people living in, working at, and visiting the 1.5million sq m waterfront site.

The Red Sea destination is set to welcome approximately 300,000 guests annually once the first phase of resorts is complete next year. Moreover, Turtle Bay will eventually be home to some 14,000 employees and their families, all of whom will benefit from easy access to quality healthcare and medical services.

Today the developer announced it received approval from the Ministry of Health (MOH) on the designs for the Turtle Bay Hospital, an achievement essential in allowing this world-class facility to commence operations.

It is the first project funded by the Public Investment Fund (PIF) to receive the MOH architectural approval and marks a substantial milestone for the project.

"Securing this approval is a momentous occasion for our team who are working tirelessly to ensure that first-class healthcare is available at The Red Sea. Our vision for Turtle Bay Hospital to be a state-of-the-art facility is part of our broader ambitions to deliver a robust healthcare ecosystem for our growing project portfolio," remarked

Nicholas King, Group Chief Development Officer at Red Sea Global.

The health and wellbeing of our guests and employees are our priority, and as we continue to champion Saudi capability, we are pleased to be working with a number of Saudi partners for the build, operations and supply of medical equipment. We eagerly anticipate the completion of Turtle Bay Hospital, which is set to open at the end of next year, he added.

Abdullah Saeed Alsayed & Partners Contracting Company was awarded the construction contract for the new hospital and is set to mobilize on site imminently.

The operator contract was awarded in early 2022 to StewardAlf Global Healthcare Company, a joint venture between Alf Healthcare, the health care arm of Saudi-based Alfanar, a renowned developer and operator of large-scale PPP projects, and leading international healthcare provider Steward Health Care International.-TradeArabia News Service
The Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) has published its Green Finance Framework to support decarbonisation projects and initiatives that contribute to the transition to a low-carbon economy, a report said.

The company also revealed that its recent acquisition of European speciality foundry Leichtmetall was fully funded with EGAs first green loan facility, said Emirates News Agency.

A green finance framework defines eligibility and governance mechanisms for financing from third-party institutions and funds that prioritise sustainability in their capital allocation, among other sources.

Publishing the framework advances EGAs sustainability goals by enabling access to a more diverse range of funding options for loans and bonds, potentially lowering the cost of borrowing while ensuring increased transparency.

Citi and ING acted as the lead sustainability structuring banks and First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) acted as the sustainability structuring bank to support EGA in the frameworks development.

EGA has publicly committed to reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, in line with the UAE Net Zero by 2050 strategic initiative.

Aluminium demand is expected to grow worldwide by between 50% and 80% by 2050. Recycled and low-carbon primary aluminium are expected to account for around 60% of supply growth between now and 2030, and around 70% of supply growth between 2030 and 2040.

EGA completed the acquisition of Leichtmetall in May. Leichtmetall uses renewable energy to produce up to 30,000 tonnes per year of aluminium billets at its plant in Germany, with secondary aluminium comprising some 80% of the input material.

Abdulnasser Bin Kalban, Chief Executive Officer of Emirates Global Aluminium, said: The aluminium EGA produces plays an essential role in the development of a more sustainable society. It is also important how sustainably it is produced.

This is both an enormous opportunity and a significant challenge for EGA and our wider industry. Our Green Finance Framework enables us to access a deeper pool of liquidity to finance projects and initiatives that advance our decarbonisation goals.

Our use of green financing for our recent acquisition of Leichtmetall is another first for EGA in our sustainability journey.

Separately, in 2023, EGA rolled out the first ESG-linked supply chain finance programme in the UAEs manufacturing sector to advance sustainability in its supply chain. The programme has provided some $73 million in financing to EGAs suppliers since October last year.

In 2022, EGA was among the first in the region to open sustainable corporate bank accounts, which ensure cash balances are used to finance or refinance sustainability initiatives elsewhere in the economy.

Over the past 20 months, EGA has deposited some $76 million in total in these accounts, maintaining an average cash balance of $25 million.
Dubai Multi Commodities Centre (DMCC) has attracted over 160 new Indian companies last year adding to the almost 3,900 Indian companies across its district and seeking to build upon the $85 billion India-UAE non-oil trade corridor.

Concluding its latest Made for Trade Live roadshow in New Delhi and Mumbai, DMCC highlighted the role of its district and infrastructure as a platform for Indian companies to expand internationally and unlock growth opportunities.

The UAEs bilateral trade with India has accelerated in recent years, surging 16% in 2023 after the implementation of the pioneering Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA). This growth is reflected at DMCC through its growing Indian member company base, which currently stands at 3,888, or 16% of its 24,000 members.

Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, DMCC, said: The UAE-India landmark CEPA agreement eliminated duties on 90% of Indias exports including gems and jewellery, food and energy  and we saw the impact of this first hand, with rapidly growing trade and investment and over 160 new Indian companies joining DMCC last year.

Tangible commercial opportunities

With bilateral trade set to surpass $100 billion within the next five years, we see clearly that the UAE-India trade corridor is not only deepening regional trade and investment but creating tangible new commercial opportunities on the ground. We are committed to furthering the enormous potential of this relationship and providing an enabling environment for Indian businesses to tap into global markets from Dubai.

The roadshow saw senior DMCC executives address over 200 Indian government bodies and business leaders from a range of sectors. Conversations focused on Dubais unique, business-friendly environment, its position as a gateway to international trade, and the host of benefits of setting up at DMCC.

India and the wider South Asia region are of strategic importance for DMCC, particularly in high growth areas such as technology, precious stones and metals, and agriculture. Last year, DMCC signed a number of partnership agreements with South Asian entities, including an agreement signed with the Bharat Subcontinent Agri Foundation to advance the global agricultural commodities sector.

Office in Mumbai

During its last India roadshow, DMCC also announced the opening of its representative office in Mumbai, which marked a pivotal step in the dedicated international expansion support expansion that Indian businesses can receive in their home market.

DMCCs roadshow programme plays a pivotal role in spotlighting Dubai as a premier business destination. Throughout the series, DMCC emphasises Dubais distinctive value proposition in attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) to the emirate. Notably, DMCC contributes 11% to Dubais annual FDI inflows, and in 2023, the business district achieved its second-best year on record, welcoming nearly 2,700 new companies. DMCC is now home to over 24,000 businesses from around the globe.--TradeArabia News Service
Bahrain Steel, a leading producer and global supplier of high-grade iron ore pellets, announced the arrival of the vessel, MV Ubuntu Unity, owned by Anglo American. This marks a milestone for Bahrain Steel, as it is the largest vessel to call on the company since its inception in 1984.

The Ubuntu Unity is a state-of-the-art Capesize+ Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) vessel, which stands out for its exceptional fuel efficiency, resulting in a remarkable 35% reduction in CO2 emissions compared to vessels using standard maritime fuel.

The name of the fleet was taken from the Zulu word Ubuntu, which means I am because you are  signifying the sense of community that Anglo American seeks to build with those who work with them, and wherever they operate.

Commitment to decarbonisation

This shipment highlights Bahrain Steels commitment to decarbonisation and its strategic partnership with Anglo American. Additionally, the shipment also witnessed the issuance of an electronic bill of lading (eBL), which signifies a move towards a more efficient, secure, and sustainable alternative to the traditional and complex paper-based process.

In line with Bahrain Steels commitment to decarbonisation, the arrival of the largest vessel with DR pellet feed marks a momentous step towards sustainable iron ore feed sourcing.

Dilip George, Group CEO at Bahrain Steel, said: Using the LNG fuelled, larger sized vessel for iron ore imports, together with electronic bill of lading and e-presentation of documents, not only enhances our supply chain efficiency, but also aligns with our commitment to significantly reduce our carbon footprint.

Our collaboration with Anglo American on environmentally responsible practices, is a testament to our joint commitment to drive the industry towards a more sustainable future.

Key customer

Matt Walker, CEO of Anglo Americans Marketing business, said: Bahrain Steel is one of Anglo Americans key customers, with whom we enjoy a longstanding partnership for the supply of our high-quality DR pellet feed. In addition, we also toll two million tonnes of pellets with them. By using our dual-fuelled LNG vessel, the Ubuntu Unity, to transport iron ore cargo for Bahrain Steel, coupled with transacting with electronic bills of lading, we demonstrate our commitment to collaborate in advancing both our companies sustainability efforts.

We have outlined our ambition to reduce our Scope 3 emissions by 50% by 2040 (against a 2020 baseline) in our Sustainable Mining Plan, something that can only be done via working closely together with like-minded industry partners. I am also delighted that Anglo American has achieved this milestone of having the largest vessel call on Bahrain Steel since their inception in 1984.--TradeArabia News Service
The Dubai Government Human Resources Department (DGHR) and the Dubai Centre for Artificial Intelligence (DCAI) have announced a partnership to support the One Million Prompters initiative.

This collaboration aims to bolster Dubais position as a global hub for AI talent and a premier destination for AI investment.

The partnership was announced at the AI Retreat 2024, held under the patronage of Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, Chairman of the Executive Council of Dubai, and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Dubai Future Foundation, on Tuesday, June 11, at the Museum of the Future and AREA 2071, Emirates Towers, Dubai.

One Million Prompters

Aligning with the objectives of the Dubai Universal Blueprint for Artificial Intelligence (DUB.AI) designed to expedite the AI adoption across all sectors, this partnership aims to directly support the goals of the One Million Prompters initiative, launched in May to upskill one million individuals in prompt engineering over the next three years.

Abdullah Ali bin Zayed Al Falasi, Director General of the Dubai Government Human Resources Department (DGHR), said: AI has created a quantum leap in technological advancement, especially over the last two years. It is a powerful tool that supports professionals across every industry and sector.

At the DGHR, we are proactively integrating AI, training employees, and raising awareness about the importance of AI ethical and responsible use. By doing so, we aim to unlock AIs potential to create innovative and advanced solutions. We are proud to partner with the Dubai Future Foundation in supporting the One Million Prompters initiative.

Khalfan Belhoul, CEO of Dubai Future Foundation, said: "Partnerships can empower talent and drive the expansion of AI applications across key sectors that form the foundation of Dubai's future. This readiness enhances Dubai's position as the worlds most future-ready city and a global destination for AI talent, innovation, and investment.

Strategic initiative

The One Million Prompters initiative supports this vision of our leadership to accelerate the adoption of AI applications and upskill a generation equppied to utilise AI to enhance the quality of life. We are pleased to collaborate with the DGHR to support this strategic initiative."

The two parties are collaborating to build the skills needed to create algorithms and guide AI in generating content and devising solutions through well-engineered prompts. They will provide a supportive environment for trainees, offering access to experts in AI and prompt engineering.

The partnership underscores the AI Retreat as a platform for major announcements and strategic collaborations. Jointly organised by the DCAI and the National Program for Artificial Intelligence, the retreat aims to drive the adoption of AI in areas such as digitalisation, knowledge, data, logistics, research, development, innovation, and more.

With more than 2,500 decision-makers, experts, and industry leaders from the government and private sectors, as well as global tech giants, the AI Retreat 2024 served as a platform for direct and open communication. It was also a chance to share future insights, innovative ideas, projects, best practices, and partnership opportunities between the public and private sectors.--TradeArabia News Service
Automechanika Dubai, the leading event for the automotive aftermarket industry, will return to the Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC) from December 10 to 12 and is slated to be the largest so far with 2,200 exhibitors.

Last year, the event drew 52,469 visitors and showcased 1,938 exhibitors.

Automechanika Dubai 2024 will provide a comprehensive platform that delves into the industry's latest trends, innovations, and challenges on a global and regional scale. The topics will revolve around five global pillars: sustainability, electrification and digitalisation, innovation, training, and recruitment. Additionally, there will be a specific regional focus on safety within the aftermarket sector.

Record-breaking edition

"Last year's Automechanika Dubai was a record-breaking edition, attracting 69% more attendees than the pre-pandemic period, said Mahmut Gazi Bilikozen, Portfolio Director at Automechanika Dubai organiser Messe Frankfurt Middle East.

He added: This year, we anticipate over 56,000 visitors who can look forward to vast business opportunities, insightful presentations, dynamic panel discussions, and informative workshops led by industry experts. Additionally, there will be networking sessions to facilitate meaningful business connections and knowledge exchange.

Over 70% of the exhibition space has now been sold, and first-time exhibitors for the 2024 edition of Automechanika Dubai include Anest Iwata Strategic Centre from Italy and Nissens Automotive AS from Denmark, and many more. With over 60 participating countries this year, Automechanika Dubai is a truly international event that will showcase 20+ international pavilions representing major manufacturing hubs such as Germany, India, Korea, China, USA, Taiwan and Turkiye.

Focusing on the rapid development of technologies, sustainability, and market dynamics, the Automechanika Dubai conferences will help catalyse innovation and advancements in the automotive aftermarket sector. The event will feature the best minds in the industry regionally and internationally, providing unrivalled opportunities to learn, advance, and collaborate.

Two new features

Automechanika Dubai 2024 is set to introduce two new features that will capture the industrys attention, including the Tyres and Batteries Conference and the Telematics Conference. In addition, the Lubricants Technology Conference has been renamed the Lubricants & Base Oil Conference, widening the scope for the lubricants and additives industry at the event.

Returning exhibition features include the Automechanika Dubai Academy, a knowledge-sharing platform for the automotive aftermarket and service industry, and Innovation4Mobility, a dynamic hub where groundbreaking technologies, futuristic concepts, and visionary ideas converge to shape the future of transportation.

The Modern Workshop will return, showcasing the cutting-edge technologies, tools and solutions revolutionising the automotive repair and maintenance industry, while AfriConnections will allow attendees to explore the rich diversity and dynamic opportunities that Africas automotive sector has to offer.

Automechanika Dubai 2024 will also host the fourth edition of the annual Automechanika Dubai Awards, which celebrates excellence and innovation in the automotive aftermarket and services industry.

Exhibition space

To accommodate the additional features and exhibitors at Automechanika Dubai 2024, we have added three additional exhibition halls, covering area of 82,700 sq m, which represents an 18% growth in exhibition space from last year, added Bilikozen.

Automechanika Dubai 2024 covers nine specialised product categories: Parts & Components, Electronics & Connectivity, Accessories & Customising, Tyres & Batteries, Car Wash & Care, Oils & Lubricants, Diagnostics & Repair, Body & Paint, and Management & Digital Solutions. The exhibition will be co-located with Logimotion, a new addition to the Messe Frankfurt Middle East portfolio and a pioneering event for the global logistics industry.--TradeArabia News Service
Bayanat, a leading provider of AI-powered geospatial and smart mobility solutions, and Oxa, a pioneer in autonomous vehicle (AV) technology, announced the formation of a strategic partnership aimed at advancing the development and deployment of autonomous vehicle solutions in the UAE and beyond.

This collaboration is supported by the Abu Dhabi Investment Office (ADIO) under its Smart and Autonomous Vehicle Industry (SAVI) cluster, underscoring the UAEs commitment to fostering innovation and technological advancement.

The partnership was officially inaugurated during a visit by a high-level delegation from Bayanat and ADIO to Oxas headquarters in Oxford, UK.

The collaboration will leverage Bayanats extensive AI-powered geospatial analytics capabilities and expertise in running autonomous vehicles alongside Oxas cutting-edge autonomous vehicle technologies to create innovative solutions for smart cities and autonomous transportation systems.

Abu Dhabis SAVI cluster was launched in 2023, creating a leading smart and autonomous vehicles hub in the MENA region to promote significant contributions across air, land and sea mobility applications.

SAVI supports innovation and the commercialization of smart and autonomous vehicle technologies in the UAE, unlocking their global potential by providing state-of-the art facilities and value-added services within an enabling regulatory environment.

The partnership between Bayanat and Oxa, endorsed by ADIO, is designed to create a regional powerhouse for developing and advancing autonomy across multiple verticals.

One of the key outcomes of the collaboration will be to explore the creation of an Autonomous Mobility Centre of Excellence, which will benefit from deep links across Abu Dhabis regional ecosystem.

The partnership also looks to promote the hiring and nurturing of local talent including software, hardware, and operations engineers, data scientists, legal professionals, and general support staff. T

his will be further supplemented with Oxas robust academic network, and its work with local academics and universities such as Mbzuai, on various topics, from future visions to engineering and entrepreneurship.

Bayanat and Oxa are also looking into partnering together to create cutting-edge services in the sector, supported by an advisory board formed from UAE industry representatives, along with senior leaders from Oxa.

Excited about the partnership with Oxa, Hasan Al Hosani, Managing Director of Bayanat, said: "This collaboration with Oxa marks a significant milestone in our journey towards revolutionising transportation and smart city solutions.

By combining our expertise in geospatial analytics and operational capabilities in AV with Oxas leadership in autonomous vehicle technology, we are poised to create groundbreaking solutions that will enhance mobility, safety, and efficiency in urban areas.

We are also grateful for the support from ADIO, which plays a crucial role in driving innovation and technological development in the region."

Gavin Jackson, CEO of Oxa, said: "As a B2B company, we look for partners who have the vision and capabilities to help us bring our world-class autonomy solutions to a wide range of companies  and Bayanat and ADIO are those partners.

Using the knowledge gained from our existing commercial deployments in the US and Bayanats technical capabilities and deep relationships throughout the GCC, we expect to accelerate the adoption of autonomy across multiple use cases.

Nayef Shahin, Director of Innovation and Knowledge at ADIO, said: When ADIO launched the SAVI cluster last year, our objective was to create a platform in Abu Dhabi that would connect the greatest global and local mobility innovators to pioneer new exciting pathways for the future of land, air and sea transport.

This partnership represents a significant step forward in autonomous vehicle technology, promising to deliver transformative solutions that will shape the future of urban mobility and smart city development, a statement said.  TradeArabia News Service
Lummus Technology, a global provider of process technologies and value-driven energy solutions, has announced that Qingyang Tongxin Petroleum Technology Co has selected Lummus Catofin technology for a new dehydrogenation unit in Qingyang City, Gansu Province, China.

Formed in 2023, Qingyang Tongxin Petroleum Technology Co is a subsidiary of XiAn Changqing Tongxin Petroleum Machinery Co. This is the companys first plant, and it will upgrade liquefied petroleum gas available in the region to produce chemical and refined products, said a Lummus statement.

Qingyang Tongxins selection of Catofin for their first plant is a testament to the confidence our customers place in the technology, said Romain Lemoine, Chief Business Officer of Polymers and Petrochemicals, Lummus Technology. We are the market leader in dehydrogenation technology, and this milestone underscores that position. It shows continued recognition of Catofin's exceptional reliability, robustness and feed flexibility.

We are pleased to join forces again with Lummus on this milestone Catofin project for Qingyang Tongxin, said Jace Wang, Head of Propylene, Vice President BU Catalyst at Clariant. Together, we continue to lead the market of on-purpose olefin production with a unique solution that is highly productive and profitable for our customers. We look forward to a successful start of operations, and excellent results for Qingyang Tongxin.

The scope of this award includes the technology licence and basic engineering, training and technical advisory services. Once complete, the unit will process 300 KTA C3/iC4 of combined propane and isobutane feedstocks.

Lummus is the exclusive licensor for the Catofin and Catadiene technologies, which utilise Clariants high-performance catalysts. With over 90 licensed Catofin and Catadiene units, the technologies are recognised worldwide for low operating costs, reliability and meeting or exceeding nameplate capacity. - OGN/TradeArabia News Service
The Executive Committee of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) Board of Directors has endorsed the final investment decision (FID) for the company's lower-carbon intensity Ruwais liquefied natural gas (LNG) project and the award of an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the project valued at approximately $5.5 billion (AED20.2 billion).

The Ruwais LNG project EPC contract was awarded to a joint venture led by Technip Energies, with JGC Corporation and NMDC Energy.

The Ruwais LNG project will consist of two 4.8 mmtpa LNG liquefaction trains with a total capacity of 9.6 mmtpa, more than doubling Adnocs existing UAE LNG production capacity to around 15mmtpa, as the company builds its international LNG portfolio. The facility will leverage artificial intelligence (AI) and the latest technologies to enhance safety, minimise emissions and drive efficiency.

The project, located in Al Ruwais Industrial City in Al Dhafra region of Abu Dhabi, will be the first LNG export facility in the Middle East and North Africa (Mena) region to run on clean power, making it one of the worlds lowest-carbon intensity LNG plants, the company said.

His Highness Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Council, chaired the meeting of the Executive Committee of the Adnoc Board of Directors.

Sheikh Khaled noted that the project will reinforce Adnocs position as a reliable global natural gas supplier and accelerate the development of Al Ruwais Industrial City by attracting investments and boosting the local industrial ecosystem.

The project will procure highly specialised equipment and materials and will see 55% of the EPC award value flow back into the UAEs economy under Adnocs In-Country Value (ICV) programme, stimulating economic and industrial growth and skilled private-sector jobs for Emiratis, he said.

During the meeting, Sheikh Khaled commended Adnocs recent strategic acquisitions in major lower-carbon LNG projects in the US and Mozambique. He was briefed on growth projects across Adnocs value chain and gave directives to continue focusing on targeted growth both locally and internationally to meet growing energy demand.

He also reviewed Adnocs strategy to further integrate artificial intelligence (AI) and technology across its business to generate greater value and deliver smarter, cleaner and safer energy to the world. As part of this strategy, Adnoc is leveraging its portfolio of low carbon energy to power the growth of AI whilst accelerating the integration and deployment of AI solutions across its value chain to unlock further value, lower emissions and keep people safe.

Other members attending the meeting included Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and Adnoc Managing Director and Group CEO; Suhail Mohamed Al Mazrouei, Minister for Energy and Infrastructure; Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, Managing Director and Group CEO of Mubadala Investment Company; and Jassem Mohammed Buatabah Al Zaabi, Chairman of the Abu Dhabi Department of Finance. - TradeArabia News Service
Ricardo Delgado covers the Hill Country for the San Antonio Express-News. He can be reached at ricardo.delgado@express-news.net.

He previously worked for The University Star at Texas State University.
Majid Al Futtaim, a leading shopping mall, communities, retail, and leisure pioneer, has launched the second phase of its Dare Today, Change Tomorrow sustainability strategy, with renewed 2028 Sustainable Business Commitments.

Majid Al Futtaims Dare Today, Change Tomorrow strategy aims to positively contribute to climate resiliency and inclusive economic development. Since its inception in 2018, the strategy has significantly evolved, shaping the group's operations and driving initiatives that support its 2028 Sustainable Business Commitments.

This holistic approach has led to notable advancements in sustainable finance, securing green building certifications, eliminating single-use plastics, and promoting diversity and inclusion in the workplace.

Long-term value

Today, the Dare Today, Change Tomorrow strategy continues to be rooted in creating long-term value for the regions in which the group operates. Covering the period from January 1 to December 31, 2023, the sixth group-wide annual report demonstrates Majid Al Futtaims sound management of ESG risks and opportunities, as well as its progress towards delivering on its sustainability targets across three strategic focus areas: Rethinking Resources, by rethinking the use of our resources to make a net positive impact; Transforming Lives, by providing a healthy, sustainable and fulfilling way of life for the communities we serve; Empowering Our People, by unlocking their full potential.

Majid Al Futtaims adoption of sustainable finance within its capital structure has been a key strategy in enabling the success of its ESG initiatives. To date, the company has raised a total of $4.95 billion through various sustainable instruments, including three Green Sukuk, one green hybrid bond, and two sustainability-linked loans.

These funding actions have improved the companys sustainability disclosures to the broader market, aligning it with best practices while linking its ESG performance to how it finances its operational and capital expenditure. This approach also embeds accountability for the ESG implications of its activities. Additionally, Majid Al Futtaim completed its first disclosure aligned with the Taskforce on Nature-related Financial Disclosures (TNFD), placing it in the top 3% of early adopters in the Mena region.

Three pillars

Ahmed Galal Ismail, Chief Executive Officer of Majid Al Futtaim, commented: Our sustainability actions in 2023, aligned to our three pillars of Rethinking Resources, Transforming Lives and Empowering Our People, delivered impressive results as highlighted in this report. For Majid Al Futtaim, and our region, this year presented important milestones in sustainability.

Notable progress was made towards securing the regions long-term prosperity, demonstrating our resoluteness in delivering value-accretive, profitable, and sustainable growth. This progress allowed us to confidently enter the second phase of our Dare Today, Change Tomorrow strategy, renewing our steadfast commitment to people and the planet.

Rethinking resources

Guided by robust policies that are aligned with the Groups environmental commitments, the Rethinking Resources initiatives set requirements in the areas of carbon, water, climate resilience, naturebased solutions, and circular economy.

Working towards its goal to achieve Net Positive operations by 2040, Majid Al Futtaim certified 2,070 additional assets, residential units and neighbourhood communities to LEED, BREEAM, or equivalent, reaching a total of 3,181 certified assets in 2023.

Furthermore, the company achieved a 24% reduction in Scope 1 and 2 emissions compared to the 2019 baseline. This was supported by milestone initiatives like the signing of the 36,000 kWp Power Purchase Agreement to provide solar power to 18 shopping malls in the UAE, Bahrain and Oman.

In partnership with Project Maji, a non-profit social enterprise, a rural Kenyan community was provided 1.9 million litres of clean water. Given the success of this partnership, we aim to expand this initiative across other countries of operation.

Transforming lives

Committed to having a positive and lasting impact on the communities which it serves, Majid Al Futtaim has taken steps to promote local economic development, drive innovation, and enhance customer wellbeing across its operations.

In line with the companys Sustainable Procurement Policy, 80% of spending in 2023 was with suppliers local to Majid Al Futtaim operations. The company also invested in six additional infrastructure projects in residential communities, including the opening of Distrikt at Tilal Al Ghaf, Dubai.

Majid Al Futtaim has also sought to support regional entrepreneurship, selecting seven innovative start-ups winners of its Launchpad programme in 2023, having received over 400 applicants since the programmes launch. The company also provided 57 internship opportunities to Emirati students through a partnership with the UAE Ministry of Education, and donated AED9.8 million ($2.67 million) to charities supporting social causes.

The group has recruited approximately 2,000 UAE nationals since September 2021, with a target to hire 3,000 Emiratis across its UAE workforce by 2026. The company was awarded the Best Large Company in Achieving Emiratisation Targets at the 2023 NAFIS Awards, demonstrating its commitment to developing home-grown talent and driving the UAEs economic leadership and competitiveness.

Empowering its people

Majid Al Futtaim is committed to empowering its people with the necessary tools and support to fully realise their full potential. In 2023, LinkedIn Top Companies ranked Majid Al Futtaim as the 4th best workplace to grow your career in the UAE.

Representation of women in the top three seniority levels increased to 26%, meeting the 23% target set for 2023 through our sustainability-linked loan. Additionally, Majid Al Futtaim held its 7th annual Wellness Week, spanning 10 countries with over 25,000 engagements and achieved over 40,556,000 safe working hours across its construction projects.

Climate action

2023 was a remarkable year for the UAE, with Dubai playing host to COP28 and the first Global Stocktake on progress towards the goals of the Paris Agreement. With that, the company doubled down on emissions reduction, signing a further 20,000 kW solar power agreement with Engazaat to power four malls in Egypt and Lebanon.

Majid Al Futtaim also invested in 250 carbon credits through Dubai Financial Markets (DFM) carbon credit platform pilot project and partnered with the American University in Cairo as a founding partner in the launch of the Executive Diploma in Sustainability.--TradeArabia News Service
Nikki Beach Hospitality Group, a global luxury lifestyle hospitality company, will open a new pop-up beach club in Baku, Azerbaijan in early July.

The pop-up will be located along the coast of the Caspian Sea, where the brands permanent resort and beach club will open in 2025 as a part of the expansive Sea Breeze seaside resort and a residential complex owned by Emin Agalarov. The summer attraction will operate until mid-September, aligning with the Azerbaijan Grand Prix.

Situated just 20 minutes from downtown Baku and 15 minutes from the airport, the pop-up will feature the area's first Nikki Beach presence, setting the stage for the brands comprehensive offerings in Baku.

Summer programming will include the brand's famed Amazing Sundays, a signature White Party in July to kick off the summer season, live music on weekends, and special events throughout Dream Fest and the Azerbaijan Grand Prix. The beach club itself will feature a restaurant with indoor and outdoor seating, a wine cellar, a pool surrounded by daybeds, and lounge areas complemented by an outdoor bar.

Lucia Penrod, Co-Founder, Owner & Chief Executive Officer of Nikki Beach Hospitality Group, said: "We are delighted to bring the Nikki Beach concept to the vibrant city of Baku. This pop-up beach club not only introduces our unique lifestyle to a new audience but also sets the foundation for our future full-service resort within the innovative Sea Breeze community."

Emin Agalarov, Owner of Sea Breeze, shared: "The forthcoming launch of Nikki Beach Resort & Spa Baku, a globally acclaimed brand, marks a significant achievement for us. This eagerly anticipated opening is set to transform the resort lifestyle not only in Sea Breeze but across the entire Caspian coast. Were elevating tourism development in Azerbaijan to new heights and are fully prepared and committed to meeting our partners' expectations. With ambitious development plans on the horizon, our guests and residents can look forward to a host of exciting experiences. We're thrilled to begin this journey with the launch of the beach club pop-up in July."

This activation is designed to deliver a vibrant and immersive experience, offering both locals and international guests an exclusive first glimpse into the distinctive Nikki Beach lifestyle, establishing Nikki Beach as the ultimate destination for seaside indulgence and global events in Baku.

The forthcoming resort will offer six overwater bungalows, 49 beach villas with private pools, and approximately 90 rooms and suites. The villas will be available for both vacation stays and residences.

Adding to the luxury and allure of the resort will be three signature restaurants: Cafe Nikki, Escape, and Soul Lounge. Guests will also enjoy two large swimming pools, Nikki Spa, Tone Gym, and a lifestyle boutique enhancing the experience of seaside luxury and relaxation.

Reservations for the beach club pop-up will open in mid-June.  TradeArabia News Service
Menzies Aviation, a leading service partner to the worlds airports and airlines, an Agility Global company, has partnered with the AlTanfeethi Company, a leading supplier of high-end travel services, to enhance passenger experience and expand Menzies network.

The agreement will see Menzies provide its newly rebranded Pearl Meet & Assist services to AlTanfeethi customers, including concierge services, fast track immigration, access to premium Pearl lounges, dedicated check-ins and more.

In return, Pearl customers will gain access to exclusive benefits and VIP travel experiences offered at AlTanfeethi terminals across all Saudi Arabian airports. This includes personal drivers, baggage transfer and collection, personal assistance, private security inspection, passport procedures and deluxe hospitality services.

The agreement was announced during a signing ceremony held recently at the European Business Aviation Conference & Exhibition (Ebace) in Geneva, Switzerland.

Gelban bin Mohammed Al-Gelban, AlTanfeethis CEO was joined by Mohammad Alhimsh, Chief Commercial Officer and Hayel A Altashkandi, Head of Aviation Business Development for the exclusive ceremony, with Menzies Group CEO Philipp Joeinig and Senior Vice President Commercial, Business Development and Lounges, Guy Yazbeck.

Hassan El-Houry, Executive Chairman, Menzies Aviation, said: AlTanfeethi has a proven track record of providing world-class high-end travel services, and were thrilled to be joining forces with the company. This collaboration demonstrates Menzies unwavering commitment to providing top quality executive services across the globe.

Joeinig said: Todays signing marks the beginning of a new collaboration to enhance the passenger experience and expand Menzies network. Were excited to work with AlTanfeethi and provide a global platform for its premium VIP airport and executive services.

Al-Gelban said: "Our new partnership with Menzies Aviation to expand the provision of high-end services to our members internationally is a continuation of our ongoing efforts to enhance our services to enrich the experiences and meet the aspirations of our guests."  TradeArabia News Service
Gulf Air, the national carrier of the Kingdom of Bahrain, launched its newest seasonal flights to Rhodes, Greece. It will operate two weekly flights from Bahrain International Airport (BIA) to Rhodes Airport (RHO) from June 1 to September 28, on Airbus 320neo aircraft.

The airline's flight to Rhodes was welcomed with a ceremonial water salute and a host of celebratory activities upon its arrival at Rhodes Airport.

This new route enhances Gulf Air's connectivity and provides passengers with more flexibility in their summer travel plans, a statement said.

A Gulf Air spokesperson said: "We are pleased to add Rhodes to Gulf Air's dynamic network, increasing the connectivity between Bahrain and Greece to three destinations: Athens as a scheduled destination and Mykonos as a seasonal destination, and now celebrating the inaugural flight to Rhodes.

This new route is an integral part of Gulf Air's strategic commitment to enhance its European network, offering passengers a wider choice of leisure destinations in Europe like Rhodes."

Gulf Air said the introduction of the new service reiterates its commitment to high-quality passenger travel experiences and enhanced services operating from Bahrain International Airport, connecting to over 60 destinations.  TradeArabia News Service
Finance Minister Colm Imbert says AR-15 semi-automatic rifles are murderous weapons and legislation is needed to ban them.

At the Parliament sitting yesterday, Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley spoke to the need to make legislative intervention to ban assault weapons.

In response, Opposition MP Ravi Ratiram said assault weapons were already banned in T&T, and he quoted a firearms expert.
Sig Christenson is a senior reporter for the Express-News covering the military and has been with the news organization since 1997. He can be reached at sigc@express-news.net.

He embedded with the 3rd Infantry Division during the Iraq invasion, and reported from Baghdad and Afghanistan seven times since. A University of Houston graduate, he covered the Branch Davidian siege, the 2003 space shuttle breakup, the 2009 Fort Hood shooting and its subsequent legal proceedings, as well as hurricanes, tropical storms and floods.

He's won awards from Hearst Newspapers and the Associated Press, was named "Reporter of the Year" by his peers in 2004 and is a co-founder and former president and board member of Military Reporters & Editors, established in 2002.
The Opposition Leader cited figures that showed the official entertainment for the Office of the Prime Minister moved from a revised estimate of $240,000 in 2024 to an estimated expenditure of $30 million in 2025.

This is an increase of 12,400%.
A new University of Arizona Cybersecurity Clinic will offer Southern Arizona businesses and nonprofits access to free cybersecurity services and support.

The cybersecurity clinic is an initiative established by the UAs College of Applied Science and Technology, according to a news release. The college, located at the universitys Sierra Vista campus, was awarded $1 million from Googles Cybersecurity Clinics Fund to create the clinic, which starting in January will provide free digital security services such as vulnerability assessments, security audits and compliance checks.

This clinic will be instrumental in advancing our communitys understanding of cyber threats and help develop innovative solutions, said University of Arizona President Robert C. Robbins in the release. This program reaffirms our commitment to producing highly skilled graduates who will be defenders in the digital age.

The UA clinic will also receive mentorship from Google employees, scholarships for the Google Career Certificate in Cybersecurity, and Google Titan Security Keys  USB devices that help prevent phishing attempts and improve overall cybersafety, the release said.

Paul Wagner, associate professor of practice and clinic director, will lead the clinic, however, UA students will take the reins in educating and improving clients cyber safety.

Our model is initially going to start off as a semester based model, Wagner said. Theres three different classes (students) could take: an internship, an independent study or a capstone project.

Over the course of the six-year grant, the program plans to reach 900 students. Students both in state and out of state will be given the opportunity to enroll. Wagner says he looks forward to giving students the opportunity to work with clients and get real-world experience.

The work we provide in the classroom is amazing, but there is always a lack of realism, he said in a release. With this clinic, we are not only helping our students become better future employees  were securing our communities.

The clinic anticipates serving 30 businesses during its first two semesters, and hopes to serve 150 by the end of the six years. Small businesses in Southern Arizona will be the main market for the first few years that the clinic is open, however, it will be serving businesses statewide by its third year.

Those who would like to learn more can contact the College of Applied Science and Technology in Sierra Vista at 520-458-8278. UA students can get more information from their advisors and look out for a newsletter and information session towards the beginning of the fall semester.
Rueben Uribe speaks before the San Antonio City Council votes to approve the first overhaul of its short term rental ordinance. Jessica Phelps District 8 council member, Manny Pelaez, speaks before the San Antonio City Council votes to approve the first overhaul of its short term rental ordinance., Jessica Phelps Mike Shannon, the development services director, Speaks before the San Antonio City Council votes to approve the first overhaul of its short term rental ordinance. Jessica Phelps District 10 council member, Marc Whyte speaks before the San Antonio City Council votes to approve the first overhaul of its short term rental ordinance., Jessica Phelps District 2 council member, Jalen Mckee Rodriguez, speaks before the San Antonio City Council votes to approve the first overhaul of its short term rental ordinance. Jessica Phelps District 5 council member, Teri Castillo, speaks before the San Antonio City Council votes to approve the first overhaul of its short term rental ordinance. Jessica Phelps Shelley Galbraith speaks before the San Antonio City Council votes to approve the first overhaul of its short term rental ordinance. Jessica Phelps

Short-term rental owners are now on the hook for permit fees at least three times higher than what they previously paid.

The fee hikes are part of a city crackdown on owners of short-term rental (STR) properties, some of whom community leaders blame for pushing longtime residents out of some neighborhoods and creating a nuisance for nearby homeowners.

The City Council on Thursday voted 9-0 to adopt major changes to the citys STR ordinance  amendments that, in addition to increasing fees, will make it easier for the city to collect hotel occupancy taxes on rentals and shut down operators who flout the local law.

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Since the end of 2023, a task force of STR owners, neighborhood leaders and affordable housing advocates have been hashing out the first overhaul of the city ordinance since it was adopted in 2018. The city wanted to go after operators who dont pay their taxes and circumvent the citys permitting regulations.

Owners previously paid $100 for a three-year permit. The task force recommended pushing the fee to $300  and council members agreed.

But they inserted a caveat: STR operators who dont live at their rental properties will have to pay $450 for a permit.

The $300 permits will be for owners who live on-site.

District 2 Council Member Jalen McKee-Rodriguez backed the fee hike because he said large-scale operators have forced some residents out of his East Side district, which has the second-highest concentration of short-term rental properties in the city. More than 600 short-term rentals currently operate on the East Side.

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With our permit fees being as low as they are, its an easy and profitable decision for investors and commercial businesses to use houses for short-term rentals instead of leaving them in the housing market, McKee-Rodriguez said. We need to make it less profitable for profit-seeking companies to take a scarce resource like housing and pimp it out as a small-scale hotel business instead of renting it to families in our community.

District 1, which encompasses most of downtown, has 863 short-term rentals. All other council districts have fewer than 300 short-term rentals each.

A faction of task force members, including Shelley Galbraith, chairwoman of the Short Term Rental Association of San Antonio, strongly disagree with claims that STRs cut into the citys stock of affordable housing and result in higher property taxes for neighboring homeowners.

Council members said they want part of the additional fee revenue set aside to hire a new code enforcement officer whose sole responsibility would be to monitor STRs.

Currently, one officer primarily monitors short-term rentals, but he also has other duties, according to Development Services Director Mike Shannon. Other officers help out when needed.

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Shannon said he will include funding for a new code enforcement officer in his department budget proposal this summer.

Its not wild

The city sees more violations among properties whose owners dont live on-site, Shannon said  in part because they make up most of San Antonios short-term rental market.

Despite the hike, the city still has some of the lowest permit fees for STR owners  lower than Waco, Dallas and Galveston. Austin has some of the most expensive fees, charging operators $863.80 for a first-time permit and a $490 annual renewal fee.

District 5 Council Member Teri Castillo echoed concerns voiced by housing advocates and was the most vocal proponent for higher fees. In April, she wanted to raise the payment to $975 every three years for people who dont live on-site, but dropped her proposal to $450 on Thursday following talks with city staff.

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I believe this amendment helps tee us up as we see the growth of short-term rental properties, Castillo said.

Galbraith and other STR owners staunchly opposed raising the fees to $975, but Galbraith was OK with the $450 permit that council adopted on Thursday.

While its expensive, its not out of the question expensive, Galbraith said after the meeting. Its not wild. Its not $975.

More tax revenue, shutdowns

To get a permit for a short-term rental, operators must have property insurance, a fire extinguisher, and working smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. They also are required to post their permit, floor plan and an evacuation map in the unit.

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Under the amended ordinance, the city will have an easier time pulling an owners permit for noncompliance. Currently, permits can be revoked after the city issues  and a municipal judge rules on  three citations within a six-month period. One of the changes adopted Thursday lengthens that time to three years.

Council members have long expressed concern about short-term rentals that serve as party houses. The citys ordinance allows the city to revoke an owners permit only if the person advertises an event or party at their rental property. But one of the amendments allows the city to step in if it finds a large number of partygoers at an STR house.

Shannon said 3,100 people have active permits and pay hotel occupancy taxes in San Antonio  but about 1,000 others were operating without doing either as of April.

The citys finance department collects hotel occupancy taxes at a rate of 9%. Bexar Countys rate is 1.75%. Operators pay an additional 6% to the state.

Airbnb and VRBO  which make up 90% of local short-term rental bookings  will work with San Antonio to ensure that operators on their sites pay their taxes.

The two sites agreed to automatically collect the taxes from STR operators and hand over the revenue to the city. Though the rest of the citys ordinance changes go into effect immediately, the tax components wont kick in for 90 days.

They also will remove postings from rentals whose owners dont have city permits.

The city collected $4.3 million in hotel tax revenue in its last fiscal year, which ended Sept. 30.

Galveston saw an increase of about 20% in its hotel occupancy tax revenue after it implemented similar changes, Shannon said.
A summer camp in Tucson is teaching girls the skills to be future leaders in quantum computing.

Quantum Quest, a free all-girls camp, was established in 2022 as a partnership between The Coding School's Qubit by Qubit, the University of Arizona and Girl Scouts of Southern Arizona. Its intended to help prepare girls for a future in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) by providing them with foundations in quantum computing, quantum mechanics, and coding.

We know that girls in particular are underrepresented in STEM, and so our mission was to really make sure that the girls of Tucson know that this could be an opportunity available to them, said Gabbie Meis, partnerships manager at the Coding School.

According to Meis, when the program started in 2022, it was the first ever all girls quantum computing camp in the world.

At its most basic, Meis said that quantum computing is an emerging area of computing thats informed by quantum physics. Current research in quantum computing focuses largely on the potential impacts and applications of the technology.

Theres been some really great findings in the past year, in research and in industry that are seeing this as a really viable option for increased computational power and complexity in our calculations, Meis said. Quantum machine learning, too, has been very active recently, but the real applications of quantum are predicted by 2035 to be in the multi billion dollar impact level.

Meis said that the potential applications of quantum computing are endless, including system modeling, cybersecurity and secure communication.

Weve seen students in other of our programs that are interested in applications in medical science and healthcare research or patient care, Meis said.

Over the week, the girls explored quantum mechanics, quantum chemistry and learned to navigate coding programs.

Most of them are coding for the very first time during this camp, so were teaching them Python and then teaching them the fundamentals of quantum computers, Meis said.

Another major component of the camp was connecting the girls with experts in STEM careers.

Were providing exposure to other women who are in the field, said Michelle Higgins, Associate Director of the Office of Societal Impacts at the University of Arizona. We have a woman who is a U of A alum who started her own quantum computing business. Shell be zooming in.

I think its really important for women in STEM just to be doing what theyre doing because there are not as many women in STEM, said 14-year-old Ella Burke, one of the camp participants.

Burke said she intends to pursue a career in a STEM field.

Ive always been interested in quantum computing, Burke said. And this was just a great learning opportunity.

Beyond valuable hands-on experience, Burke said that Quantum Quest created a space for her to make friends who share her interest in science and technology.

As the week comes to a close, Higgins is looking ahead to the future. Next year she hopes to bring the camp to new communities across the state.

I received funding from the Arizona Public Services Foundation to run this camp again next year in a rural area, Higgins said. So we will be taking this camp to girls who maybe dont have an opportunity to come to Tucson every day.

Higgins said the team is currently considering Yuma, San Luis, Casa Grande, or Douglas for next years program.

Im really excited to take it to the more rural areas and give girls these opportunities, Higgins said.
The following is the opinion and analysis of the writers:

We are at a pivotal moment for the University of Arizona. We are hiring our 23rd president, welcoming a new provost, managing the ongoing effects of financial mismanagement, and watching the transformation of higher education across our country. Nevertheless, this is a moment of opportunity and optimism. Our history, mission, and collective fortitude are on our side  we have what we need to succeed. But our leadership may not if they do not recognize and support our unique land-grant identity that comprehensively serves the educational, economic, and intellectual needs of Arizona.

Before there was the State of Arizona, there was the University of Arizona. Founded in 1885, 27 years before the territory became a state, the institution was created for Arizonans and designated as our states only land-grant university. The University of Arizona was designated a land-grant university by the Morrill Act and is positioned alongside Dine College and Tohono Oodham Community College which were designated land-grant colleges in 1994. Land-grant institutions aim to serve our communities and provide working people access to higher education while tethering research, innovation, and technological development to community needs. Although the land-grant mission initially centered around agricultural development in communities, every aspect of the educational landscape and economy of the state has been shaped by these institutions.

At the University of Arizona, the educational and research missions are rooted in accessibility and transformative engagement with diverse communities. Today, our land-grant status is fundamentally intertwined with being a federally recognized Hispanic Serving and Native Serving Institution. The University of Arizona welcomes students from borderland and rural communities and students from our own Tucson community and the 22 Tribal Nations. And while other universities in Arizona have prioritized online degrees and cutting delivery costs and decreased in-person enrollments, the University of Arizona has remained committed to the land-grant mission of providing a hands-on, in-person transformative education to on-campus students year after year.

Additionally, the University of Arizonas research mission has long centered on public good and community engagement via embedded Cooperative Extension faculty agents and staff in every corner and county of the state. This work includes projects focused on helping farmers and ranchers with water efficient practices in Yuma to working with elected tribal leaders and state legislators on agriculture, water and energy policies across the state.

The reach of University of Arizona expands well beyond education and research though  we are a flagship and internationally recognized institution that contributes to our local and global economy. Land-grant universities have led to substantial long term population growth and increased manufacturing productivity by nearly 60% within counties they reside in over the last 80 years. Specific to the University of Arizona, faculty and staff have developed more than 600 patents and 500 licenses and the university has launched more than 135 startups, generating an economic output of $1.6 billion in the last 5 years alone. Such evidence points to the far-reaching impact of the University of Arizona  one that may well exceed other Arizona state universities.

The success of our next president of the University of Arizona and the Arizona Board of Regents is dependent upon understanding of our history, identity, and mission, something that is lacking among our Regents now and will be exacerbated by a rushed presidential search. With the right leadership, we can move back to funding models that allocate state appropriations equitably across our Arizona universities and appoint new members to the Arizona Board of Regents that represent our southern Arizona communities. If our leaders trust and work together with the University of Arizonas faculty and staff who work tirelessly towards our public land grant mission, our university will remain what we have always been: a University for Arizona.
The Frio County Sheriff's Office will be "aggressive" and "thorough" in their investigation into the death of 10-month-old Nylah Gonzales. Kens 5

A South Texas county is still looking for answers in the death of a 10-month-old child this week.

The Frio County Sheriffs Office has begun its investigation into the alleged abuse of Nylah Gonzales, who died Wednesday night after being on life support, according to a KENS 5 report.

The sheriffs office reported that a mother called 911 to say she was rushing her unresponsive child to a hospital in Pearsall. Nylahs injuries were severe enough that she was transported to a San Antonio hospital by helicopter for more intensive care.

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Her family said her injuries were consistent with abuse.

Soon after the child was transported, the report said Frio County investigators returned to the mothers home with a search warrant to look for evidence. The mothers boyfriend, 28-year-old Deion Salazar, was arrested and charged with drug possession after being found with 100 grams of cocaine and other packaged drugs, authorities said.

Records show that Salazar was released from jail in less than 24 hours after being charged. His bail totaled $120,000.

Peter Salinas, a spokesperson with the Frio County Sheriffs Office, told the television station that deputies have been thorough in their investigation, which is very complicated.

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Salinas said they are waiting for information from the medical staff who took care of the baby before her death.

Once we have that information, it will kind of steer us in the direction that we need to move from here, he said.
Melissa Jacques Tulsa World Capitol Bureau Staff Writer Follow Melissa Jacques Close Get email notifications on {{subject}} daily! Your notification has been saved. There was a problem saving your notification. {{description}} Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items. Save Manage followed notifications Close Followed notifications Please log in to use this feature Log In Don't have an account? Sign Up Today

OKLAHOMA CITY  Gov. Kevin Stitt has signed the budget bill sent to him by the state Legislature.

The total budget of $12.47 billion is a little more than 5% less than the budget for the previous year, according to the House Budget Transparency Portal.

This was the most transparent budget process in state history, and that is something to be proud of, said Stitt in a Wednesday press release announcing the signing. Every Oklahoman had the opportunity to have a front row seat to the negotiations that took place and to see how their tax dollars were spent.

Stitt touted successes from the regular legislative session, including the grocery tax cut, which will go into effect in August. Stitt also celebrated the preservation of Oklahomas savings, keeping them at around $5 million.

The state has taken a step forward today, but our work is unfinished, the governor said. I will continue to fight for more tax cuts and keeping a lid on the growth in government in Oklahoma.

Notably, Stitt did not succeed in pushing through an income tax cut, something that he has repeatedly requested.

Other bills related to the budget are still waiting on the governors desk. While the budget bill appropriates money to agencies, other bills passed by the Legislature dictate how the money can be spent and authorize agency spending.

One of those bills, Senate Bill 1122, gained attention after a section was added prohibiting the state superintendent from spending any appropriated money on securing media interviews, public relations, or other public promotional purposes. This section was added after reports that State Superintendent Ryan Walters was spending state funds on Vought Strategies, a D.C.-based public relations firm, to book media interviews and write op-eds for $200 per hour.

At the end of the announcement that the budget bill was signed, Stitt congratulated Senate President Pro Tem Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, and House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, on their final session.

As Speaker McCall and Pro Tem Treat wrap up their final year in office, I want to commend them on their efforts to leave a legacy of transparency, Stitt said. I look forward to working with their successors and expanding on those relationships and the progress made this year.

The Tulsa World is where your story lives
Most stores, restaurants, and coffee shops along the coast in Da Nang, central Vietnam are encouraging cashless payment and up to over 80 percent of the daily transactions at these stores are cash-free.

Customers scan QR codes at these businesses to make money transfers via e-wallets or credit cards.

Restaurants, eateries, and drink shops along the coast are also using systems which allow clients to order through QR codes, including Ca Go Coffee Shop in Son Tra District, where customers have been ordering from their tables using smartphones since 2020.

Phan Thi Uyen Ly, the owner of the coffee shop, said they introduced the service at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic to reduce contact between staff and customers, which simplifies accounting.

Customers can order and make payments using QR codes. Photo: Truong Trung / Tuoi Tre

Tram Huong, the owner of a drink shop on Vo Nguyen Giap Street, said she was very confused when representatives of Viettel Money and other financial institutions approached her to start offering QR code payment solutions about six years ago.

She did not realize consumer behavior had changed so drastically.

Cashless payment methods not only make purchases more convenient but also ensure the safety of transactions.

According to the representative of an order-via-QR code solution provider in Da Nang, this form of payment is great for all types of businesses, including large restaurants, restaurant chains, coffee shops, and franchised fast-food stores.

Through digital menus, restaurants and coffee shops can take the initiative in adding promotion programs to stimulate customer demands.

They can also promote their business ecosystems.

Young people prefer digital payments. Photo: Truong Trung / Tuoi Tre

On Da Nangs beaches, swimsuit and SUP rental businesses, caterers, and retailers also accept cashless payments.

According to Ly, the rise of cash-free payments in Da Nang can be attributed to the citys early digital transformation and the fact that many customers of coastal restaurants and stores are young people and tourists.

Her coffee shop accepts more than 1,000 payment transactions via Viettel Money and other e-wallets per day.

Only a few clients make cash payments, she said, adding that these are primarily older people and travelers from East Asian countries.

Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper coordinated with units to promote digital payment services at coastal tourist destinations in Da Nang City, central Vietnam. Photo: Truong Trung / Tuoi Tre

Hoang Ha, the owner of a SUP rental store, said most of his customers prefer cashless payments.

Since his patrons are mainly travelers, they often use cashless methods for making deposits.

They often bring mobile phones and avoid taking wallets and other belongings to the beach, Ha added.

In addition to coastal establishments, other tourist destinations and even traditional markets in Da Nang have accepted digital payment services due to their convenience and safety.

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New Zealand plans to increase its scholarships for Vietnamese students for the 2024-25 academic year, according to Ben Burrowes, Asia regional director of Education New Zealand (ENZ).

ENZ is New Zealands government agency in charge of promoting the countrys education internationally.

Burrowes said in a recent interview with Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that diversifying the sources of international students is one of the main goals of New Zealands international education in the 2024-25 academic year.

China and India are currently the largest source countries of international students in New Zealand.

Therefore, New Zealand is seeking to expand its target markets in Southeast Asia, especially international students hailing from Vietnam.

In the lead-up to the 2024-25 academic year, New Zealand will map out strategies to help promote its educational system in Vietnam, including increasing the number of scholarships it offers to Vietnamese students.

The island country will also maintain the New Zealand Schools Scholarships (NZSS) program specifically designed for Vietnamese students from grade eight to grade 10, Burrowes added.

Ben Burrowes, Asia regional director at Education New Zealand, at a meeting with the press in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Trong Nhan / Tuoi Tre

This year, 14 Vietnamese students with outstanding academic performance were shortlisted for receiving scholarships from the NZSS initiative.

These NZSS recipients will begin studying at high-quality secondary schools in New Zealand in July 2024 or January 2025.

According to ENZ, the NZSS program was launched in 2019 by ENZ and New Zealand schools, providing a 50-percent subsidy for selected Vietnamese middle and high school students currently in grades 8 through ten.

Scott James, Trade Commissioner and Consul General of New Zealand in Vietnam, said the granting of government scholarships from New Zealand is expected to strengthen cooperation ties between the two countries based on their mutual respect and understanding.

James expressed his hope that the scholarship winners will make the most of their time in New Zealand to study, experience, and enhance personal development, as well as make active contributions to their classes and the local community.

The consul general added that Vietnam remains a crucial partner of New Zealand in the next fiscal year and in the years to come.

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BRUSSELS -- The European Commission said it will impose extra duties of up to 38.1% on imported Chinese electric cars from July, risking retaliation from Beijing which said on Wednesday it would take measures to safeguard its interests.

Less than a month after Washington announced plans to quadruple duties for Chinese EVs to 100%, Brussels said it would combat excessive subsidies with additional tariffs ranging from 17.4% for BYD to 38.1% for SAIC, on top of the standard 10% car duty.

That equates to billions of euros of extra costs for the carmakers at a time when they are struggling with slowing demand and falling prices at home, according to Reuters calculations based on 2023 EU trade data.

European automakers, meanwhile, are being challenged by an influx of lower-cost EVs from Chinese rivals. The Commission estimates their share of the EU market has risen to 8% from below 1% in 2019 and could reach 15% in 2025. It says prices are typically 20% below those of EU-made models.

Andrew Kenningham, chief Europe economist at Capital Economics, said the EU decision marked a big change in its trade policy because, although it used trade defences against China often, it had not done so for such an important industry.

European policymakers are keen to avoid a repeat of what happened with solar panels a decade ago when the EU took only limited action to curb Chinese imports and many European manufacturers collapsed. The EU launched an anti-subsidy investigation into Chineses EVs in October.

Shares in some of Europe's biggest carmakers which make a big portion of their sales in China, fell on fears of Chinese retaliation. Some like BMW will also now incur duties on their EVs made in China and sold in Europe.

Reuters Graphics

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said the EU's investigation was a "typical case of protectionism" and tariffs would damage China-EU economic cooperation and the stability of the global automobile production and supply chains.

Beijing, he said, would take all necessary measures to "firmly safeguard" its legitimate rights and interests.

The Chinese Passenger Car Association seemed less concerned.

"The EU's provisional tariffs come basically within our expectations, averaging around 20%, which won't have much of an impact on the majority of Chinese firms," CPCA Secretary General Cui Dongshu said.

"Those exporting China-made EVs that include Tesla, Geely and BYD still have huge potential for development in Europe in the future," Cui said.

Chinese EV makers and suppliers are also starting to invest in European production, which would avoid tariffs.

Will China retaliate?

Beijing passed a law in April to strengthen its ability to hit back should the U.S. or EU impose tariffs on exports of the world's No. 2 economy.

It has already launched an anti-dumping investigation into mostly French-made imports of brandy and French cognac producers are "deeply" worried about retaliation for EV tariffs, a trade body said on Wednesday.

The EU provisional duties are set to apply by July 4, with the investigation set to continue until Nov. 2, when definitive duties, typically for five years, could be imposed.

The Commission said it would apply an additional 21% for companies deemed to have cooperated with the investigation and 38.1% for those it said had not. The indicative tariffs are above expectations of analysts of between 10% and 25%.

Western automakers like Tesla and BMW that export cars from China to Europe were considered to be cooperating, the EU Commission said, adding that Tesla, currently the largest exporter of cars to Europe from China, has requested to have a separate company-specific rate set.

The Commission has still to determine whether to apply tariffs retroactively for three months, an official said.

Brussels said it had contacted Chinese authorities to discuss its findings and explore ways of resolving issues identified.

BYD declined to comment. SAIC and Geely, the two other companies investigated by the Commission, and Tesla did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Reuters Graphics

Europe's largest carmaker Volkswagen warned that the negative effects of tariffs would outweigh any potential benefits especially for the German automotive industry.

Mercedes-Benz said Germany, as an exporting nation, did not need increased barriers to trade. BMW said the planned tariffs were "the wrong way to go".

China accounted for around 30% of sales for the German carmakers in the first quarter.

Some economists said the immediate effect of the additional duties would be very small in economic terms. The EU imported around 440,000 EVs from China in the 12 months ending in April worth 9 billion euros ($9.7 billion) or around 4% of household expenditure on vehicles.

The Kiel Institute for the World Economy has forecast that a 20% tariff, around the average extra to be imposed by the EU, would reduce Chinese EV imports by 25%, largely offset by higher production in Europe, although European carmakers would not necessarily fill the gap.

Will Roberts, head of automotive research at RHO Motion, said Chinese manufacturers should be able to absorb some of the tariff levels into profit margins.

"The true test from today's announcement will be whether Beijing will retaliate in kind, or come to an amicable solution," he said.

Italy welcomed the EU decision while French car lobby group PFA said the Commission needed to defend European interests against anti-competitive practices.

($1 = 0.9296 euros)
Major Japanese hospitals are eagerly seeking Vietnamese orderlies who can work under long-term contracts, Takeshima Tenmi, president of Japans Osaka Medical Care Association, has announced, expecting the number of such patient care assistants will increase in Japan in the coming time.

Tenmi was speaking at a ceremony held in Hanoi on Wednesday for signing a contract between the association and the Center of Overseas Labor under the Vietnamese Ministry of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs (MOLISA) to supply Vietnamese orderly apprentices to Japanese hospitals.

The contract aims to select both nursing and high school graduates, with the latter to be trained in nursing for one year.

Upon selection, they will receive Japanese language training in Vietnam from eight to 11 months to reach Japans N4 level.

The association will cover the expenses for the training, one Japanese language exam, visas, two health examinations, and round-trip airfares (for both the departure from Vietnam to Japan and the return home after completing work contracts) for the selected orderlies.

According to the Vietnam News Agency, these orderly apprentices will be assigned to work at the associations healthcare facilities or its partner hospitals.

They will receive the same pay as Japanese staff in equivalent positions, approximately VND36 million (US$1,400) a month, excluding allowances and overtime pay, and will be entitled to social welfare and insurance benefits under Japanese law.

Tenmi announced that large Japanese hospitals are eager to hire Vietnamese orderlies under long-term contracts and expressed his expectation that the number of Vietnamese orderlies working in Japan will increase in the coming years.

He also noted that Vietnamese orderlies currently working in Japanese hospitals are considered the best among their Asian counterparts, according to the news site VnExpress.

Speaking at the ceremony, MOLISA Deputy Minister Nguyen Ba Hoan said Vietnam aims to bring 200 hospital orderlies to Japan in the next three years.

He added that orderlies who have returned home after satisfactorily completing their work contracts and now wish to come back to Japan for work will be given priority, the news site reported.

In 2019, the two sides also signed an agreement on selecting and sending nursing apprentices to Japan, the Vietnam News Agency said.

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The Ministry of National Defense on Wednesday held a drill to respond to oil spills at Chan May Port in Thua Thien-Hue Province, central Vietnam, with over 1,000 participants and dozens of vessels.

The drill simulated an oil spill from the 6,000-metric-ton Truong Sa 01 oil vessel from Hai Phong City in the northern region to Quang Ngai Province in the central region on Wednesday.

Part of the simulation involved a hypothetical collision with a cargo vessel at Chan May Port. The Truong Sa 01 held 1,200 cubic meters of oil and was carrying a crew of 12 at the time.

A result of the hypothetical collision was a piercing in the hull of the Truong Sa 01 oil vessel which caused some 50 cubic meters of the oil to leak.

Five crew members aboard the vessel fell into the sea during the impact and the engine room encountered a power surge and was on the verge of a fire and explosion.

Border guards in Thua Thien-Hue Province, central Vietnam save crew members of the oil vessel. Photo: Ngoc Binh / Tuoi Tre

Upon receiving news about the incident, authorities in Thua Thien-Hue Province immediately detached rescue, police, and military forces to the scene and reported the case to the Ministry of National Defense as well as other relevant agencies.

A steering unit was established at Chan May Port to cope with the oil spill.

The steering unit deployed many specialized ships to collect the spilled oil from the water's surface and used oil absorbents to minimize the spread of the spill.

The military force dealt with chemicals flowing inshore, warned ships and vessels in the area of the incident, and relocated residents away from dangerous sites.

Ships and vessels specializing in dealing with oil spills were dispatched to the scene. Photo: Ngoc Binh / Tuoi Tre

During the 90-minute drill, crew members aboard the Truong Sa 01 vessel were saved and taken ashore safely.

The spilled oil was collected and handled according to regulations in order to ensure safety.

After the drill ended, the administration in Thua Thien-Hue Province gave certificates of merit to 12 cooperatives and 15 individuals with outstanding achievements in oil spill drills in 2024.

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China now has 85 national-level tourist resorts

Xinhua) 08:27, June 13, 2024

Tourists visit the Zhangjiajie National Forest Park in Zhangjiajie, central China's Hunan Province, on Jan. 3, 2024. (Photo by Wu Yongbing/Xinhua)

BEIJING, June 12 (Xinhua) -- China's Ministry of Culture and Tourism on Wednesday announced that it has made 22 additions to its list of national-level tourist resorts, bringing the country's total to 85.

The latest additions are located across 22 provincial-level regions in China and include multiple types of attractions, many of which are situated in and around rivers, lakes, mountains, coastal areas and other landscapes.

As part of its efforts to boost tourism development and optimize tourism offerings, China recognized an initial selection of sites as national-level tourist attractions in 2015.

Recognition takes into consideration major resort factors such as infrastructure conditions, operational efficiency, information services and tourist satisfaction levels.

In 2022, China unveiled a cultural development plan for the 2021-2025 period, pledging to develop a diverse, well-balanced and high-quality tourism supply system with distinctive features, aimed at meeting the public's needs and bolstering the integrated development of tourism and culture.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
San Antonio police officer Damean Sergovia, 27, was arrested early Wednesday by UTSA police and charged with DWI. San Antonio Police Department

The San Antonio Police Department released the name of the 27-year-old officer who has been charged with driving while intoxicated.

In a news release, SAPD said Damean Segovia was arrested by the University of Texas at San Antonio police around 3 a.m. Wednesday.

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Segovia is being charged with a Class A misdemeanor DWI, states the news release.

The charge specifies that he has a blood alcohol concentration of 0.15 or higher.

Segovia, who has been with the department for one year, has been placed on administrative duty. SAPD will conduct an administrative investigation into his arrest.

Records show that he was booked into the Bexar County jail, and his bail is set at $1,500.
The Board of Supervisors of San Francisco in California State on Tuesday voted unanimously to formally declare Vietnamese an official language of the city, thereby making it a requirement to provide translation services for Vietnamese speakers there.

Along with other amendments to San Franciscos language access ordinance, the move aims to ensure that residents can be served in the language they are most comfortable with, the San Francisco Chronicle reported on the same day.

Under the ordinance, which was enacted in 2001, the citys departments are required to offer translation services into any language with at least 10,000 speakers in the municipality who have limited English proficiency.

Tuesdays amendment lowered the threshold to 6,000, thus qualifying Vietnamese for inclusion in the citys official languages thanks to the 6,791 San Francisco residents who identify as primarily Vietnamese speakers, the newspaper said, citing the citys language data dashboard.

As such, Vietnamese will join Chinese, Spanish, and Filipino as the languages in which the city must offer translated services as per the ordinance.

That means San Francisco will now have to provide telephonic interpretations, website text, written notices, and other official services in Vietnamese.

The draft amendment was initiated last year by San Franciscos District 10 Supervisor Shamann Walton, who advised that the city expand language access to facilitate its immigrant communities participating in the government process.

San Francisco is home to many diverse immigrant communities and is a national leader in providing language access services with one of the strongest and most comprehensive local language access laws, Walton said ahead of Tuesdays vote.

For those who support the move, the latest change is essential for efforts to address language access difficulties.

It also serves as a reminder about complying with regulations on language assistance for immigrants, for some once complained about the citys staff not providing services in Spanish.

On the other hand, promoting services in languages other than English is considered important to meet the requirements on fair treatment of immigrants in accessing welfare and benefits.

Currently, some immigrant communities of African or Caribbean origin are still facing difficulty using services in San Francisco.

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The Department of Transport in Kien Giang Province in southern Vietnam is coordinating with relevant units to hold a contest to seek solutions for building a sea-crossing bridge which is expected to cost an estimated VND3.9 trillion (US$153.3 million) in Rach Gia Bay, a leader of the department said on Wednesday.

The bridge is aimed at connecting An Bien District in Kien Giang Province and a coastal road to Ca Mau, the southernmost province of Vietnam.

Kien Giang authorities will establish an examiner council for the contest this month.

The results of the contest are expected to be announced in November this year.

We are drawing up a project to construct an over-60-kilometer coastal road from An Bien [District], Kien Giang Province to Ca Mau, using ODA loans," the leader of the provincial Department of Transport added.

Once the bridge and road projects are completed, they will help boost [the provinces] socio-economic development.

Authorities in Kien Giang Province, southern Vietnam will consult leading domestic and international experts over the position of the sea-crossing bridge. Photo: Buu Dau / Tuoi Tre

In late 2023, Mai Van Huynh, chairman of the Peoples Council of Kien Giang Province, signed a decision approving a plan to develop the bridge.

The bridge will start at an intersection with a coastal road stretching from Kien Giang to Ca Mau and end at an intersection with Ba Thang Hai and Ngo Quang Hon Streets in Rach Gia City, the provincial capital.

The capital for the 2.8-kilometer-long six-lane bridge project would be sourced from the provincial coffers.

The bridge construction was planned to last from 2024 to 2029.

The sea-crossing bridge will help ease traffic pressure on the current traffic system, pave the way for expanding the urban space, and foster socio-economic development in Rach Gia City and An Bien District as well as Kien Giang Province as a whole.

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Police in Thanh Hoa Province, north-central Vietnam on Wednesday announced the arrest of a 38-year-old woman for allegedly trafficking an infant, according to the Vietnam News Agency.

Pham Thi Hang, a 38-year-old from Tung Lam Commune in Nghi Son Town, is currently in police custody for 'transferring and trafficking individuals under the age of 16,' according to the public security division of Thanh Hoa City, which is the provincial capital.

On Tuesday afternoon, police officers caught Hang arranging to sell a five-day-old infant at a motel on To Vinh Dien Street in Dien Bien Ward, Thanh Hoa City.

Hang had planned to sell the newborn daughter of a woman from Vo Nhai District, Thai Nguyen Province, northern Vietnam to a family in Hoa Quy Commune, located in Thanh Hoa Provinces Nhu Xuan District, for VND45 million (US$1,768).

Prior to this incident, local authorities had discovered a social media group founded to help infertile families adopt children.

Within this group, several members posed as adoption agents and solicited couples looking to purchase babies.

During their investigation, authorities found that Hang, who had previously been convicted for falsifying documents, was an active member of the social media group and was preparing for the sale of the five-day-old newborn.

Initial findings also found that that N.T.M., the individual who agreed to sell the infant, had sought assistance from the social media group when she was nine months pregnant and realized she was in a difficult financial situation.

In her communications with Hang through Facebook, N.T.M. shard that she wanted to find a caregiver for her child.

Hang agreed to help N.T.M. find that caregiver and offered to cover all medical expenses and transportation costs from Thai Nguyen to Thanh Hoa.

Subsequently, Hang facilitated the sale of the baby to an infertile family in Nhu Xuan District for VND45 million.

However, authorities intervened and arrested Hang during the transaction.

During a search of Hangs residence in Hoang Dao Commune, Hoang Hoa District, Thanh Hoa Province, officers found three pregnant women living in the building and six birth certificates they suspected to be counterfeits.

Testimony from the three pregnant women revealed that Hang planned to arrange adoptions for each of their children, promising each woman VND10 million ($393) upon delivery.

Further investigations yielded many documents, primarily banking transactions, which implicated Hang's involvement in the trafficking of minors.

Consequently, police issued a decision to detain Hang temporarily, pending an extensive probe and rigorous legal proceedings for 'trafficking in individuals under the age of 16.'

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Comedian Matt Stewart, who has previously posted his Beer Pioneer clips on YouTube, gets a S2 broadcast on Community TV channel C31 Melbourne tonight.

S1 has also screened previously through iWonder.

Stewart recreates epic historical journeys, including a 3000km trip across Central Australia.

Very excited for season 2 of The Beer Pioneer to get released soon! Shane Dunlop and the team behind it are so talented, I just got to do the fun stuff! he wrote on Facebook.

9:30pm Thursday June 13 on C31 Melbourne.
Veteran ABC presenter Paul Higgins signed off for the last time, wrapping nearly 40 years in television.

He has been weather presenter at ABC News Victoria for 21 years.

But he joined ABC in 1986 becoming presenter and producer on Behind the News.

Every day we used to get all the newspapers, he said.

At that stage there were three in the morning and one at night  so Id just sit there and read it all.

In 1987 he joined Seven News, whilst still working for ABC.

When I started doing the weather at Seven, he says, we relied on faxes coming in from the weather bureau, which may or may not turn up, and theyd send in a weather map with isobars on it.

It was just a black-and-white blurry map and someone in the graphics department would have to sit there and trace it all out and then fill in the temperatures.

The satellite picture used to be couriered to us from the bureau, on this beautiful glossy map, he says.

In 1995 he became a Melbourne Chief-of-Staff for Nines Midday.

By 2003, was offered the permanent weather gig at the ABC in Melbourne.

Presenter Tamara Oudyn paid tribute to her colleague, introducing a montage before the crew presented him with flowers.

Higgins told viewers, Ive been overwhelmed by the lovely messages, thoughts and wishes Ive received over the last week and so grateful to have been given the opportunity to guide everyone through the weather and the news over a long innings.

Im honoured to have worked with so many talented, fearless and wonderful colleagues over the years and for those of you at home, I feel so privileged that youve welcomed me into your place each night for all these years.

Its very humbling. Be well, take care of yourself and those around you of course, and thank you.

Source: ABC News
Next Monday, Sunrise has an Australian exclusive with superstar Celine Dion, ahead of her Prime Video special, I Am: Celine Dion.

Dion speaks with US correspondent Mylee Hogan about her ongoing health battle with the rare Stiff Person Syndrome.

I dont have my mum, I dont have my dad, my kids are scared because they lost their dad, and theyre wondering if Im going to die. I dont want to die, Dion tells Sunrise.

Viewers will hear Dion sing again for the first time in years.

Monday, 17 June on Seven.
Bitwarden is een crossplatform- en opensourcewachtwoordbeheerdienst die persoonlijke gegevens in een versleutelde digitale kluis opslaat. Het is in de basis gratis te gebruiken en voor een klein bedrag per jaar is er toegang tot diverse extra's, zoals het kunnen opslaan van totp-codes, inloggen met een YubiKey en opslagcapaciteit voor bijlagen. Bitwarden is beschikbaar online, als desktopclient, als mobiele app en als plug-in voor diverse webbrowsers. Nieuw in deze versie is onder meer de mogelijkheid om extra verificatie voor gebruik van passkeys in te stellen. Het instellingenscherm van de browserextensie heeft een opfrisbeurt gekregen en Bitwarden werkt nu ook volledig in een privescherm binnen Firefox. De complete changelog ziet er als volgt uit:

Password Manager User verification for passkeys: Browser extensions may now prompt users to verify with biometrics, PIN, or master password when using a stored passkey to login. Learn more here.

In-product getting started: Users that are new to Password Manager will now be shown a getting started module to help them get started protecting credentials quickly.

Browser extension settings reorganization: Use the newly reorganized settings screen on browser extensions to quickly locate and modify browser extension settings.

Firefox extension gains full functionality in private windows: Bitwarden browser extensions used in Firefox private windows no longer have any limitations. Learn more here.

Additional location for product switcher: The product switcher, used to move between Password Manager, Admin Console, Secrets Manager, and Provider Portal can now also be found in the bottom left of your navigation.

Password-protected export for browser extensions and desktop: Browser extensions and desktop apps can now export password protected encrypted exports. Learn more here. Bitwarden Authenticator Import to Bitwarden Authenticator: Import data directly to Bitwarden Authenticator from a variety of other authenticator apps, including Google Authenticator, LastPass Authenticator, Raivo, and 2FAS. Learn more here. Secrets Manager Start a Secrets Manager trial: Start a Secrets Manager enterprise trial to test a proof-of-concept and gain access to enterprise features like SSO and SCIM integrations, enterprise policies, self-hosting, event logs, and priority support. Sign-up for a free 7-day trial of Secrets Manager today.

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Sanjana Chawla, TwoCircles.net

Lucknow: The 2024 general elections have reshaped the nations political landscape, with the surprising resurgence of the Samajwadi Party (SP) in Uttar Pradesh  a state known for its fierce political rivalries.

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In a remarkable turn of events, the SP clinched victory with 37 seats, overshadowing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which won in 35 constituencies. This dramatic reversal contrasts sharply with previous elections, signalling a notable shift in the states political dynamics.

UP, often viewed as a microcosm of Indias diverse political landscape, has long been a battleground for competing parties. With its vast electorate and diverse demographics, the state witnessed intense campaigning as parties sought to sway voters. Amidst this fervor, the SP emerged as the unexpected victor, altering the political landscape of the region.

Reflecting on 2019: The SPs Struggle

In retrospect, the Akhilesh Yadav-led party faced a challenging period leading up to the 2019 elections, raising doubts about its continued relevance in the states political landscape, and by extension, Indias. The outcomes of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections were particularly disappointing for the party, as it managed to secure only five seats, a significant decline from the 23 seats it held in 2014. This downturn not only shook the partys morale but also triggered widespread speculation about its potential for resurgence.

The SPs diminished performance in the 2019 elections was attributed to various factors, including leadership challenges, internal discord and an inability to effectively communicate its policies and vision to the electorate. It appeared to be losing touch with its traditional voter base, while its appeal among the youth dwindled.

The SP, once a dominant force in the states politics, appeared to be caught in a downward spiral.

However, the tide turned dramatically in the 2024 elections, as it secured a majority of 37 seats in Uttar Pradesh. This marked a significant turnaround from its previous performance and signalled a resurgence of the SP in the states political landscape. The partys unexpected victory not only surprised observers but also underscored its resilience and capacity to adapt to changing circumstances.

Revival of the Leader and Brand SP

In the realm of politics, leadership stands as a cornerstone, shaping a partys identity, policies and electoral fortunes. Within the SP, the stewardship of Yadav has been pivotal in orchestrating the partys remarkable resurgence.

Reflecting on SPs resurgence, Faraan Safwi, 28, national vice president of the partys youth wing, remarked, Under the continuous guidance of Shri Akhilesh Yadav, who actively engages with grassroots workers and members, we have endeavoured to restore the essence of our party to its former glory, reminiscent of the era of our leader, Neta Ji (Mulayam Singh Yadav).

Akhilesh assumed the mantle of leadership with a vision to rejuvenate the party, shedding its outdated image and presenting it as a progressive entity attuned to the aspirations of the contemporary electorate. This transformation entailed a significant departure from conventional politics, embracing a more forward-thinking and inclusive agenda. Prioritising issues such as unemployment, education, and healthcare, Yadav aimed to address the concerns of youth and marginalised communities.

We have actively provided opportunities to youths from diverse backgrounds, including the Shakya, Kushwaha and Maurya communities, Safwi explained.

Presently, the SP boasts five parliamentarians under the age of 30 and has extended electoral tickets to candidates from marginalised communities. For instance, consider Iqra Hasan in Kairana (29) and Awdesh Prasad Ji in Ayodhya, one a Muslim woman and the other from the Dalit community. We have diligently worked to ensure the effective implementation of policies benefiting the marginalised, Safwi affirmed.

The Youth Appeal

A pivotal element in the SPs triumph in the 2024 elections was its resonance with the younger generation. Recognizing the decisive influence of youth in electoral outcomes, the SP strategically targeted this demographic, addressing their concerns and articulating a vision aligned with their aspirations.

In this endeavour, the leadership of Akhilesh played a pivotal role. Akhilesh Yadav is adept at engaging with the youth and possesses mass appeal, affirmed Faraan, adding, His continuous interactions and receptivity to the concerns of young people provide him and the party with a distinct advantage in connecting with this demographic.

The SPs focus on pivotal issues such as unemployment, education and social justice struck a chord with the youth electorate. Promising to create more job opportunities, reform the education system and ensure social equity, the partys agenda resonated deeply with young voters.

The partys adeptness in addressing the aspirations and grievances of the youth has been a cornerstone of its success. Faraan underscored this approach in line with the vision of Mulayam Singh, emphasising, We continuously integrate young voices into our committees and maintain numerous youth-focused fronts.

The SPs electoral triumph signifies a notable shift in Uttar Pradeshs political landscape, with broader implications for the nation. The BJP, previously riding high on its electoral successes, found itself eclipsed by the SPs surge, reflecting the changing tides of political sentiment.

Policy Reforms and Public Reception

In the lead-up to the 2024 elections, the SP unveiled a series of policy reforms outlined in its manifesto, signalling a significant departure from previous approaches and underscoring its commitment to tackling pressing public issues. More than just a collection of policies, the manifesto served as a blueprint for the partys vision for the state and its citizens.

One of the cornerstone policy reforms introduced by the SP was its emphasis on addressing unemployment. Acknowledging the mounting concern, particularly among the youth, the party pledged to create additional job opportunities and foster skill development initiatives. In addition, a concerted effort was promised to enhance the education systems quality and accessibility. The party also committed to bolstering healthcare infrastructure and making medical services more affordable and accessible.

Reflecting on the factors that resonated with voters, Faraan remarked, Public sentiment shifted towards issues directly impacting their daily lives, transcending traditional divides of religion and caste. Farmers expressed concerns about rising expenses on agricultural inputs, such as fertilisers, and losses due to stray cattle, while the youth voiced apprehensions about unemployment and instances of exam paper leaks.

These policy reforms were not merely reactionary measures but represented a forward-looking vision for the states development. The SPs manifesto articulated a comprehensive strategy encompassing infrastructure enhancement, social justice initiatives and economic growth prospects.

The public response to these policy reforms was overwhelmingly positive, with voters appreciating the partys commitment to addressing critical issues such as unemployment, education and healthcare.

The partys resurgence in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls can be attributed to a combination of strategic reforms, a renewed focus on youth engagement and effective coalition-building efforts. The SPs capacity to adapt to evolving political dynamics and respond to citizens needs proved pivotal to its success. The astute leadership of Akhilesh and the initiatives undertaken under his stewardship also played a crucial role in the SPs resurgence.

The 2024 elections herald a new era in Uttar Pradeshs political landscape and the SPs continued trajectory will be closely watched. Reflecting on the significance of this victory for the party and its cadre, Faraan emphasised, Our dedication knows no bounds; this victory is not merely ours but a triumph for the ideals of socialism. Our struggle persists until we eradicate the politics of division and hatred.
District Attorney Joe Gonzales and Sheriff Javier Salazar hold a news conference at a double fatal shooting at 6403 Port Royal on Wednesday. Dec. 6, 2023. Ronald Cortes/Contributor Scene at double fatal shooting at 6403 Port Royal on Wednesday. Dec. 6, 2023. Ronald Cortes/Contributor

A man accused of killing his parents and four others in a shooting spree that spanned from San Antonio to Austin felt impending doom in the moments leading up to the killings, according to an arrest warrant.

Shane James, 35, is accused of killing his parents, Shane James Sr., 56, and Phyllis James, 55, at their Bexar County home in the 6400 block of Port Royal Street in December. Authorities believed he then drove to Austin and killed four others: Emmanuel Pop Ba, 33, Sabrina Rahman, 25, Katherine Short, 56, and Lauren Short, 30.

He is currently being held at the Travis County jail.

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Shane James Jr. was charged with capital murder of multiple people and booked into the Travis County Jail at 1:32 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 6, 2023. Austin Police Department

According to an arrest warrant issued in Bexar County last month, investigators with the sheriffs office traveled to Travis County to interview James in December. There, James provided details about the events leading up to the shooting.

James said he was feeling impending doom and getting worse. He also watched YouTube videos in his bedroom and angrily posted notes on his wall.

He told investigators that he went downstairs to the kitchen to ask his father a question, and his father made a joke, leading him to go upstairs to load his 1911 .45 caliber gun and shoot his father twice in the head.

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He then went to his parents bedroom and shot his mother in the head, James told investigators.

Shane didnt want his mother to suffer and shot her a second time in the head, the affidavit states.

James dragged their bodies to the primary bathroom, where deputies would find their bodies the next day.

He took the money from his mothers purse and traveled north in his fathers Nissan Versa, records said.

After his arrest in Austin, James asked investigators if theyd contacted his parents. He smirked when they said they were working on it, according to the arrest affidavit.

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In Travis County, James is facing four counts of capital murder, two counts of aggravated assault against a public servant for allegedly shooting two police officers and one count of aggravated assault mass shooting. In Bexar County, James is being charged with capital murder of multiple persons.

Sandra Pickell, a spokesperson with the Bexar County Sheriffs Office, said James has not been formally charged because he is in Travis County, but she confirmed the county submitted a warrant for his arrest for capital murder on May 16.

Bexar County District Attorney Joe Gonzales previously said it would take a while before Bexar County has its turn with James. After the shootings, the Travis County District Attorneys office said James would stay in custody pending trial. Gonzales indicated it could take a year or longer.

James was a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army at Fort Cavazos, formally known as Fort Hood. Family members told police that James was diagnosed with schizophrenia after being discharged from the Army for family violence and that his mental health had worsened.

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Bexar County Sheriff Javier Salazar said deputies responded to seven calls for disturbances at the home on Port Royal between April 2018 and August 2023.

In one of those cases, James was accused of assaulting his parents and another family member in the home. In another, deputies were called to the home after James family reported him having a mental health crisis. Salazar said James was naked, had barricaded himself in his room and refused to let anyone in. Deputies had to speak to James through a crack in the door.

Additionally, an Austin Police Department police report from March 2018 stated that James made troubling comments to a pastor after taking an Uber from San Antonio to a church in Austin. When police were called, James told an officer that a woman named Tawny told him he was going to be gunned down.

Gonzales said James would be extradited to Bexar County, where he will be charged in the deaths of his parents after Travis County finishes its prosecution.
Brazil's Lula says democracy at risk after far-right surge in EU vote

13 Jun (Reuters) - Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said on Thursday that democracy was at risk, commenting on the far-right gains in the European Parliament after last weekend's elections.

"We have a problem of democracy as we know it being at risk," the head of state told journalists ahead of an International Labor Organization event in Geneva, Switzerland.

"The denialist denies institutions, denies what Parliament is, what the Supreme Court is, what the Judiciary is, what Congress itself is," the leftist leader said.

Lula, who will take part in this week's Group of Seven (G7) summit in Italy after he was invited by Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, added that those who believe in democracy must fight to preserve it everywhere in the world.

In France, the far-right National Rally of Marine Le Pen won more than 31% of the vote, trouncing President Emmanuel Macron's centrist Renaissance party - which scored just 14.6% - and prompting his surprise move to call a national parliamentary election.

In Germany, the far-right Alternative for Germany took second place with 15.9% of the vote, ahead of Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrats, who garnered 13.9% in their worst-ever result.

Despite the far-right's surge in the European Parliament elections, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen's centrist group won a majority of seats and began trying to piece together a coalition on Monday.

(Reporting by Eduardo Simoes; writing by Stephanie Hamel; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)
By Laurie Chen and Liz Lee

BEIJING (Reuters) -China, skipping a weekend summit on a peace plan for Ukraine, has been lobbying governments for its alternative plan, 10 diplomats said, with one calling Beijing's campaign a "subtle boycott" of the global meeting in Switzerland.

Ninety states and organisations have registered to take part in the summit on Saturday and Sunday in the alpine resort of Lucerne, which will seek to build support for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's peace proposals, including the full withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine.

Moscow, which was not invited to Lucerne, has dismissed the meeting as futile. China, which has close ties to Russia, says it will not attend the conference because it does not meet Beijing's requirements, including the participation of Russia.

China and Russia proclaimed a "no limits" partnership just days before President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Russia's smaller neighbour in February 2022. Beijing says it is neutral in the conflict and has not supplied Moscow with weapons or ammunition.

After China said it was not going to the Lucerne summit, Zelenskiy accused Beijing of helping Moscow undermine the meeting, an accusation China's foreign ministry denied.

Ukraine, the United States and other Western governments had lobbied hard for China to attend the talks, as they seek legitimacy for the summit and a broad consensus on a roadmap to a future peace process.

In conversations with developing nations, China has not overtly criticised the Swiss summit or directly asked countries to abstain, the Beijing-based diplomats told Reuters.

But one who was briefed on the outreach said Beijing has told developing nations the meeting would prolong the war, while two diplomats with direct knowledge of the matter said China has been telling Western nations that many developing countries are aligned with its views on the conference.

The diplomats asked not to be named because they were not authorised to discuss the sensitive matter with the news media.

Responding to Reuters' questions, China's foreign ministry said its position on the Swiss conference was "fair, just and open".

"China has been in close communication with relevant parties, including Switzerland and Ukraine, and encourages the equal participation of all parties at the conference as well as fair discussion of all plans," spokesperson Lin Jin told a routine briefing on Friday.

Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said last week: "China sincerely hopes that a peace conference will not turn into a platform used to create bloc confrontation. Not attending it does not mean not supporting peace."

MEETINGS, CALLS, WECHAT MESSAGES

As the summit approaches, China has intensified its outreach through meetings with visiting foreign dignitaries, phone calls and messages to foreign missions on China's WeChat platform, diplomats said.

Beijing's special envoy for Eurasian affairs, Li Hui, last month visited Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates and has met officials of developing countries at their embassies in Beijing, the diplomats said.

While explaining why it will not attend the summit, China has been trying to enlist developing nations to join the six-point peace plan it issued with Brazil last month.

The proposal calls for an international peace conference "held at a proper time that is recognised by both Russia and Ukraine, with equal participation of all parties as well as fair discussion of all peace plans."

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has suggested that China could arrange such a conference. Putin has expressed support for China's plan for a peaceful settlement of the crisis, saying Beijing had a full understanding of what lay behind it.

The Chinese foreign ministry's Lin said more than 100 countries had supported the proposal, "reflecting the common expectations of the international community and the biggest common denominator in the world today."

Lin added, "We encourage even more countries to support and join the six-point consensus."

Reuters could not independently determine what impact China's lobbying has had, but the number of registered participants at the Lucerne summit is down from the 107 that Zelenskiy's office had said were confirmed by early June.

In Asia, U.S. allies the Philippines and Japan, as well as Thailand, Singapore and East Timor have confirmed their attendance. Malaysia has said it will abstain, as has Cambodia, which has close economic links to China. Cambodia's Senate President Hun Sen denied being pressured by Beijing to avoid the conference.

Indonesia will send its ambassador in Bern. Vietnam has not made its position clear.

(Reporting by Laurie Chen and Liz Lee in Beijing; Additional reporting by Joe Cash in Beijing, Gayatri Suroyo, Stanley Widianto and Kate Lamb in Jakarta, Fanny Potkin in Singapore, Panu Wongcha-um, Devjyot Ghoshal, Shoon Naing and Kay Johnson in Bangkok, Prak Chan Thul in Phnom Penh, Francesco Guarascio in Hanoi, Rozanna Latiff in Kuala Lumpur and Karen Lema in Manila; Editing by William Mallard and Clarence Fernandez)
By Elizabeth Pineau

PARIS (Reuters) -France's far-right National Rally (RN) is negotiating with potential allies to form a team that could run the government should it win a snap election, bringing in representatives from its ranks and beyond, a lawmaker told Reuters on Thursday.

Opinion polls project that Marine Le Pen's RN could, for the first time, top the June 30 and July 7 vote, but without enough seats to win an absolute majority and govern on its own.

The snap election, called by President Emmanuel Macron after his centrist alliance was trounced by the RN in Sunday's European Parliament ballot, has upended French politics, with parties rushing to field candidates and prepare platforms.

For the anti-immigration, eurosceptic RN, the challenge is to transform popularity into a win at home, and to convince voters it can be trusted to govern after decades on the margins.

"All the work carried out by Marine Le Pen over the past years has turned us into a party that can be in government," RN lawmaker Laurent Jacobelli told Reuters.

"We've been working for months on a 'Matignon' plan," he said, referring to the prime minister's official residence. Part of that plan included fielding candidates for all of France's 577 constituencies said Jacobelli, who is also an RN spokesman.

He said dozens would come from the ranks of the conservative Republicans (LR), which is in the process of imploding after its leader, Eric Ciotti, called for an alliance with the RN. The rest of the party leadership rebelled and kicked him out.

LR sources have cast doubt on whether Ciotti could take that many LR candidates with him.

Jacobelli said that, while the RN does not have a shadow government with a full list of potential ministers, it was looking at a cabinet line-up from within and beyond party ranks.

"What we want to do is a national unity government," he said, using a term that usually applies to a wide range of parties but would likely include RN members, hardline conservatives and non-party affiliated candidates.

The RN has been kept out of power for decades by voters mistrustful of the far right and its radical policies, as well as by a decades-old consensus among mainstream parties to join forces against it.

But under Le Pen and new party leader Jordan Bardella, they have worked to detoxify their image and woo a growing number of voters across the board.

'FRANCE FIRST'

The RN calls for protectionist "France first" economic policies. It would restrict childcare benefits to French citizens and withdraw residency for migrants who are out of work for more than a year.

It has also proposed higher public spending, despite already significant levels of debt, threatening to further raise financing costs at banks.

An RN election leaflet, printed for the parliamentary vote, said that bringing down electricity prices and cutting VAT on gas and fuel to unspecified levels would be priorities, as would a "radical cut in immigration", being tough on crime and cutting red tape.

Meanwhile, France's weakened, long divided left-wing parties were holding talks, which some of them described as tense, to agree on a joint platform and on the details of a plan to share out constituencies in a bid not to lose too many.

Prime Minister Gabriel Attal met his ministers and allies on Thursday to work on their own platform, and headed to northern France to start campaigning.

"I see many French people who are worried that the extremes could run the country," he told reporters. "We must convince them that we must choose our own path, which is a progressive, republican, democratic, social path."

(Writing by Ingrid Melander; Additional reporting by Dominique Vidalon, Tassilo Hummel, Zhifan Liu; Editing by Ros Russell, Angus MacSwan and Alex Richardson)
WARSAW (Reuters) - A Polish court decided on Thursday that a second man suspected of attacking Leonid Volkov, an exiled top aide to late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, will not be extradited to Lithuania, after taking the same stance on the other man last week.

The court said they should not be sent to Lithuania as there are wider proceedings against them taking place in Poland.

Volkov suffered injuries from hammer blows in the attack on March 12 outside his home in Vilnius, the Lithuanian capital. Two men suspected of attacking him were arrested in Poland in April on a European Arrest Warrant issued by Lithuania.

The two suspects are Polish citizens. They had been charged in Lithuania with intentionally causing minor bodily harm to Volkov because of his beliefs, which is punishable by a fine or a jail term.

Late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny died in February in a Russian Arctic prison. Russian authorities say he died of natural causes. His followers believe he was killed by the authorities, which the Kremlin denies.

(Reporting by Anna Koper; Editing by Toby Chopra)
Russia slowing down in Kharkiv area after lifting of arms restrictions, says Austin

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Russia's advance in the Kharkiv area is slowing and the frontline is stabilizing after some allies lifted restrictions on Kyiv's use of donated weapons on Russian territory, U.S. Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said on Thursday.

"What I see is a slowing of the Russians' advance and a stabilizing of that particular piece of the front. Now, I think we'll see incremental gains -- and we'll see puts and takes -- going forward," he told reporters on the sidelines of a NATO defence ministers' meeting in Brussels.

"But again, a couple of weeks ago, there was concern that we would see a significant breakthrough on the part of the Russians. I don't think we'll see that going forward."

U.S. President Joe Biden late last month approved the use of American weapons to strike targets inside Russia that were being used to attack Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest city, which is located close to the Russian border. Moscow has condemned that decision as a form of escalation by the West.

On Tuesday, Kharkiv's mayor told Reuters that Ukraine's army in the meantime has struck missile launch positions in Russia, helping to reduce the number of attacks on the embattled city.

While missile and drone strikes continue, Ihor Terekhov said the change had helped bring relative "calm".

"That is why maybe Kharkiv has ... this period of ... calm the last couple of weeks ... that there were no great strikes as it was, for example, in May." He was speaking through a translator.

Austin said the Ukrainians were putting donated weapons to a good use.

"The Ukrainians have done a lot to fortify their defensive positions and are making good use of the weapons and munitions that they're being provided," he told a news conference. "And more of that will continue to flow in. And so in my view, they'll get stronger as time progresses."

(Reporting by Sabine Siebold in Brussels and Phil Stewart in Washington; Editing by Benoit Van Overstraeten and Peter Graff)
LONDON (Reuters) -Britain on Thursday imposed its first sanctions targeting vessels in Russian President Vladimir Putins "shadow fleet" that it said was used to circumvent Western sanctions on the trade in Russian oil.

The action, part of 50 new sanctions and co-ordinated with G7 partners, also targeted suppliers of munitions, machine tools, microelectronics, and logistics to Russias military, including entities based in China, Israel, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey, the government said.

"Todays action includes the UKs first sanctions targeting vessels in Putins shadow fleet, used by Russia to circumvent UK and G7 sanctions and continue unfettered trade in Russian oil," a government statement said.

Britain also sanctioned Russia's leading financial marketplace, the Moscow Exchange, saying it had obtained a benefit from or supported the Kremlin "by carrying on business in a sector of strategic significance."

On Wednesday, U.S. sanctions against the same institution forced an immediate suspension of trading in dollars and euros on its leading financial marketplace.

"Today we are once more ramping up economic pressure through sanctions to bear down on Russias ability to fund its war machine," Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, who is at the meeting of the Group of Seven (G7) major democracies in Italy, said in the statement.

"Putin must lose, and cutting off his ability to fund a prolonged conflict is absolutely vital."

As the annual summit of the G7 nations gets underway, Britain also committed to providing 242 million pounds ($308.99 million) in bilateral assistance to Ukraine to support its immediate humanitarian, energy and stabilisation needs.

The G7 leaders are expected to announce the outline of a multi-year loan using profits from the impounded Russian funds, which legal experts will then finalise with the aim of raising cash by the end of the year.

($1 = 0.7832 pounds)

(Reporting by Muvija M; editing by William James)
Ukraine to sign security agreements with Japan and US at G7

KYIV (Reuters) - Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said he would sign a security agreement with Japan as well as one with the United States at the Group of Seven summit in Italy on Thursday.

The United States and Japan would be the last two G7 nations to sign such agreements, which pledge long-term support as the war in Ukraine continues with no end in sight more than 27 months since Russia's invasion.

A U.S. official had already said on Wednesday that President Joe Biden would sign a new security agreement with Ukraine on Thursday.

"The document with the United States will be unprecedented, as it should be for leaders who support Ukraine," Zelenskiy said.

The Ukrainian leader said in a statement on the Telegram messaging app that he would have meetings in Italy with the leaders of the United States, Japan, Italy, Canada, Britain, the European Council's president and the IMF's managing director.

He said faster training for Ukrainian fighter jet pilots, speedier plane deliveries to Ukraine and obtaining more air defences and long-range weapons were among Kyiv's priorities at the meeting.

Securing approval for the use of frozen Russian assets was also a priority, he said.

"Today is the G7 Summit in Italy, a meeting of our closest partners. And we look forward to important decisions today," Zelenskiy said in a post on X.

(Reporting by Olena Harmash; Editing by Tom Balmforth and Susan Fenton)
GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations refugee agency on Thursday said the number of people forcibly displaced stood at a record 117.3 million as of the end of last year, warning that this figure could rise further without major global political changes.

"These are refugees, asylum seekers, internally displaced people, people being forced away by conflict, by persecution, by different and increasingly complex forms of violence," said Filippo Grandi, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

"Conflict remains a very, very deep driver of displacement."

In its report on global trends in forced displacement, UNHCR said that there had been a yearly increase in the number of people forcibly displaced over the last 12 years.

UNHCR estimates that forced displacement has continued to increase in the first four months of 2024, and that the number of those displaced is likely to have exceeded 120 million by the end of April.

"Unless there is a shift in international geopolitics, unfortunately, I actually see that figure continuing to go up," Grandi said, referring to the risk of new conflicts.

The conflicts that have driven displacement include the war in Sudan, which Grandi described as "one of the most catastrophic ones" despite garnering less attention that other crises. More that 9 million people have been internally displaced and another 2 million have fled to neighbouring countries including Chad, Egypt and South Sudan, Grandi said.

"People are arriving in the hundreds every day," he said, referring to the influx of people seeking safety in Chad.

In Gaza, Israel's bombardment and ground campaign have caused around 1.7 million people  nearly 80% of the Palestinian enclave's population  to become internally displaced, many of them multiple times.

Grandi warned that the possible crossings of Gazans into Egypt from the southern border town of Rafah to escape Israel's military offensive would be catastrophic.

"Another refugee crisis outside Gaza would be catastrophic on all levels, including because we have no guarantee that the people will be able to return to Gaza one day," Grandi said.

(Reporting by Gabrielle Tetrault-Farber; Editing by Tomasz Janowski)
FILE - Abortion-rights activists holds a signs as they protest outside of the Supreme Court during a rally, March 26, 2024, in Washington. Louisiana lawmakers have approved a first-of-its-kind bill that would classify two abortion-inducing drugs as a controlled and dangerous substance. The final Senate vote Thursday, May 23, 2024, came despite widespread criticism from doctors, who note that the drugs have other critical reproductive health care uses. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File) Jose Luis Magana/Associated Press In the high courts first abortion-related ruling since it overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, the nine justices ruled to change nothing about the legal status of mifepristone, a common abortion-inducing medication. Allen G. Breed, STF / Associated Press Thursday's Supreme Court ruling is a rebuke to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of Amarillo. Gabrielle Banks / First Liberty Abortion-rights activists rally outside of the Supreme Court, Tuesday, March 26, 2024, in Washington. The Supreme Court is hearing arguments in its first abortion case since conservative justices overturned the constitutional right to an abortion two years ago. At stake in Tuesday's arguments is the ease of access to a medication that was used in nearly two-thirds of all abortions in the U.S. last year. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana) Jose Luis Magana/Associated Press

Mifepristone, a common abortion-inducing medication, will remain on the market without additional restrictions after the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously rejected an anti-abortion groups challenge to the drugs approval.

In the high courts first abortion-related ruling since it overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, the nine justices ruled to change nothing about the drugs legal status. The ruling is a rebuke to the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of Amarillo. The opinion was written by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, with a concurring opinion by Justice Clarence Thomas.

Medication abortion, typically performed with a combination of mifepristone and misoprostol, is the most common abortion method in the United States. In the nearly 25 years since it was first approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, mifepristone has been conclusively shown to be safe and effective.

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This case originated in Amarillo, where only one anti-abortion judge hears almost all cases, and then went to the conservative 5th Circuit in New Orleans, which upheld most of the ruling. The Supreme Court stepped in at that point and allowed mifepristone to remain on the market while the case proceeded.

With abortion all but banned in more than a dozen states, these medications have become a key part of the strategy to help people continue to access the procedure  and, as a result, a major focus for anti-abortion groups.

This ruling comes as a relief to abortion providers and advocates, but also pharmaceutical companies, who had expressed concern about the precedent of allowing a judge to overturn a long-standing drug approval.

The mifepristone challenge from Texas

Mifepristone was first approved in 2000 to be used alongside misoprostol to terminate a pregnancy up to seven weeks. The medication is also commonly used to pass fetal tissue after a miscarriage.

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Almost immediately, anti-abortion groups began challenging the drugs approval, starting with a citizen petition in 2002. The FDA did not respond to the petition until 2016, rejecting it the same day it announced new guidelines allowing the medication to be used through 10 weeks of pregnancy.

In 2019, the FDA approved a generic version of mifepristone. It later allowed the drug to be prescribed through telehealth, dispensed at retail pharmacies and sent through the mail.

In November 2022, the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, an anti-abortion medical group, filed a lawsuit arguing that the original 2000 drug approval was improper and should be reversed, alongside all the recent changes. The group filed the lawsuit in Amarillo, where all cases are heard by Kacsmaryk, a former religious liberty lawyer who previously litigated against abortion and contraception access before he was appointed to the bench by President Donald Trump.

In a ruling laced with anti-abortion rhetoric, Kacsmaryk ruled that the FDAs approval of mifepristone was improper and should be revoked.

The Court does not second-guess FDAs decision-making lightly, Kacsmaryk wrote. But here, FDA acquiesced on its legitimate safety concerns  in violation of its statutory duty  based on plainly unsound reasoning and studies that did not support its conclusions.

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Kacsmaryk gave the U.S. Department of Justice five days to appeal the ruling before it went into effect, which it did. The 5th Circuit ruled that the drug could remain on the market, but reinstated the restrictions that were in place before 2016. The Supreme Court stepped in at that point and ruled that nothing about mifepristones approval would change until the case was resolved.

In late March, the Supreme Court heard arguments about whether the drugs status should remain unchanged  or whether it should revert back to the pre-2016 restrictions, when it could be used only up to seven weeks of pregnancy, and not prescribed via telehealth or sent through the mail. The hearing also focused on whether the anti-abortion doctors who brought the lawsuit had legal standing to file their lawsuit.

Rolling back FDAs changes would unnecessarily restrict access to mifepristone with no safety justification, U.S. Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar argued. Some women could be forced to undergo more invasive surgical abortions. Others might not be able to access the drug at all. And all of this would happen at the request of plaintiffs who have no certain injury of their own. The Court should reject that profoundly inequitable result.

The ruling

In his opinion on Thursday, Kavanaugh wrote that the plaintiffs cant sue simply because they might desire to make a drug less available for others.

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The ruling notes that the plaintiffs bringing the lawsuit do not, in fact, use or prescribe mifepristone and are not required by the FDA to do so  and therefore they are unaffected by its accessibility in the market.

Federal law fully protects doctors against being required to provide abortions or other medical treatment against their consciences  and therefore breaks any chain of causation between FDAs relaxed regulation of mifepristone and any asserted conscience injuries to the doctors, the ruling reads.

On a broader scale, doctors do not and should not have the power to change federal public health policy and allowing the lawsuit to succeed would set a dangerous precedent, the ruling reads.

Allowing doctors or other healthcare providers to challenge general safety regulations as unlawfully lax would be an unprecedented and limitless approach and would allow doctors to sue in federal court to challenge almost any policy affecting public health, it reads.

The ruling also leaves open the possibility that another plaintiff, including one who could show direct injury or a sufficient likelihood of future injury could successfully bring the case in the future.

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Deep polarization, courtesy 10-years-of Modi rule, wont be undone easily

The hate spread against this community by the RSS combine has sunk deep into the social thinking, and by default, anti-Muslim thinking has become part of average perceptions of the society

Thursday June 13, 2024 2:01 PM , Ram Puniyani

Failure of the BJP to get past 272 has brought back the NDA into the forefront. While Vajpayee came to power and led the NDA government in 1998, still there was a strong imprint of the BJP politics in the government. Among other things, which were part of the Hindutva agenda that time, was the appointment of Venkatchaliah Commission to review the Constitution and Saffronisation of the textbooks and introduction of courses in astrology and Paurohitya (Rituals) in the curriculum.

Twice, in 2014 and 2019, Modi came to power as NDA but as BJP on its own had overwhelming majority, the other components of the government were on the silent mode and the BJP aggressively launched its Hindu nationalist agenda, building of Ram Temple and abolition of article 370.

In addition, the fringe elements killing Muslims on the pretext of cow-beef and love jihad had a free hand, enjoying impunity from the state. The other authoritarian streaks of Modi Sarkar, the subordination of the constitutional institutions were very dominating along with the role of conversion of media into godi media.

All this did make the opposition to wake up and come together as INDIA. Despite this formation coming into being Modi and BJP centered their election propaganda around anti Muslim rhetoric. Starting from the propaganda that the Congress manifesto was labeled as having the imprint of Muslim League , most other slogans and promises of the Congress were turned into being presented as appeasement of Muslims. Muslims were called ghuspathiye (infiltrators) and those having more children .

Modis propaganda reached a new low when he said the Congress party will do mujra (a dance which emerged during the Mughal rule) for them. Also, it was said that If the Congress comes to power, terrorists will be released and invited to have biryani, and Taliban rule will be established.

The system has been so tuned that names of many Muslims do not find place in electoral rolls , at election booths, many Muslims are turned away by the police . Muslims have been effectively turned into second class citizens and have been made politically invisible. All this intensifies the prevalent hate against this hapless community.

With this background, as the BJP failed to reach the propagated 400 par for NDA and more than 370 for the BJP, there was a big sigh of relief in the community. As the results came and Modi declared himself as the next Prime Minister , he toned down his language to recall Sarva Dharma Sambhav (Equal respect for all religions). This sounded as the sort of peak of hypocrisy in the light of what happened to Muslims (and Christians) during the last ten years.

What is in store for this community in times to come? A small relief is possible as probably the impunity enjoyed by the fringe elements may be slightly curtailed. There is a big if as the fringe elements by now are too much rooted in the system. Whether allies like Nitish and Naidu will be able to raise their voice against this scattered anti Muslim violence is yet to be seen. How effective they can be against the strong arm tactics of the Modi party, only time will tell. The hate spread by the Hindu nationalist is so widespread that it may not be easy to curtail it.

It is likely that the third pillar of Hindutva politics, Uniform Civil Code , may be deferred in all probability. The CAA , which discriminates against Muslims, is like a hanging sword and time alone will tell us how much pressure BJP will put to implement it. Surely after the remarkable Shaheen Bagh movement the communal party BJP will not insist on it unless they feel through experience that they can bulldoze their way despite the Naidu and Niteesh, who are more tactical in these matters. Already BJP has allied with Naidu who had initiated four percent reservation for Muslims.

The other major issue of caste census , to which BJP is opposed, may have to be rethought as it was Niteesh as CM of Bihar, where this was initiated and there is a strong national sentiment for it. There are no buyers for Modi propaganda that the INDIA alliance will remove the reservations for SC/ST/OBC and give it to Muslims.

What can we expect about the social, political and economic conditions of the Indian Muslims? The hate spread against this community by the RSS combine has sunk deep into the social thinking, and by default, anti-Muslim thinking has become part of average perceptions of the society. The consistent work of this RSS combine has gone up exponentially due to the other associates, the changes in textbooks, the role of media, and the word of mouth spread of misconceptions.

These myths, misconceptions are the solid pillars on which Hate is constructed and due to prevalent hate against Muslims, violence and subsequent polarization are brought in. While the role of RSS in 2024 elections needs further analysis, it is the RSS machinations which keep pumping up the hate against Muslims and now from the last two decades against Christians also.

Interestingly, the number of RSS shakhas has more than doubled up during the last ten years of Modi rule. One suspects that in a state like Orissa where Kandhamal violence took place and Pastor Stains was burnt alive, the roots of BJPs political rise were watered and now we see its results.

While in Kerala, BJP does win over a section of Christians for various reasons, nationally Christians are on the target of Hindu nationalist politics, as seen by the rising sub radar attacks on prayer meetings of Christians.

All said and done, the marginalization of Muslims will continue. It is not easy to undo the deep polarization introduced into the society due to the work done by this organization.

What RSS has been doing was well diagnosed by our first Home minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, when he wrote:

All their speeches were full of communal poison, as a result of the poison the country had to suffer the sacrifice of invaluable life of Gandhiji. (Writing after banning of Sangh in 1948).

This aspect of our political life was not curtailed-combated and it grew into a multi-headed hydra using every opportunity to intensify the religious division in the society. We cannot build the India of the dreams of our freedom fighters without undoing the massive hate which grips the social understanding.





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HA NOI  The country's textile, garment and footwear industries have long relied on imported raw materials, causing a current trend of foreign enterprises shifting industries to other countries, said insiders.

In response to concerns raised by deputy Pham Van Hoa of ong Thap Province at the 15th National Assembly (NA)'s question-and-answer on June 4, Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien said: "Viet Nam is no longer a haven for labour-intensive, land-intensive or low-productivity industries with cheap labour costs."

According to Minister Dien, over the past 10 years, textile, garment and footwear products have accounted for a significant portion of Viet Nam's export structure. The industry has contributed to the nation's growth in export value and helped create jobs and income for workers.

This was more prevalent in the initial phase, about 10 years ago, when it helped restructure the economy.

But the shifting of foreign enterprises in these industries to other countries is now considered normal, as Viet Nam no longer offers the advantages that initially attracted these low-productivity industries.

Going forward, Dien emphasised that all of the country's exporting manufacturers must aim for greater control over raw material supply. Relying on imports would limit profitability, as it is essentially just doing processing work.

To address this, the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) has recommended the Government implement comprehensive national, sectoral and local master plans. In the industry and trade sector, four national plans have been developed covering energy, electricity, petroleum and mineral resources.

The ministry emphasised that the four national master plans are crucial to providing raw materials for Viet Nam's manufacturing and exports.

These resource-based industries can not only meet the needs of export-oriented manufacturing, but also contribute significantly to local and national budget revenues.

The authority said that all exporting manufacturers, not just in the textiles and garment industry, must strive to utilise domestic raw material sources. By tapping local minerals, these industries can achieve self-sufficiency in raw materials.

This would allow them to move beyond low-cost processing and increase the value-add of their exports, Minister Dien stressed.

Recent customs data shows the textile and garment sector facing challenges, with exports declining 11.4 per cent year-on-year to US$33.3 billion in 2023, while textile fibre and yarn fell 7.6 per cent to $4.4 billion.

As a result, total textile and garment exports reached around $40 billion.

Meanwhile, Viet Nam's leather and footwear export value dropped 14.2 per cent to $24 billion. Footwear exports, which make up the majority of the industry, dipped 15.3 per cent to $20.2 billion, accounting for 5.7 per cent of the country's total exports.

Exports of related products like handbags, suitcases, hats and umbrellas also fell, down 7.8 per cent to $3.78 billion.

On the contrary, the industry still relies heavily on imported raw materials. The import value of raw materials for the textile, garment and leather-footwear sectors reaches tens of billions of dollars annually.

The localisation rate, or use of domestic raw materials, in these export-oriented industries is relatively low, currently estimated at 45-50 per cent, according to the MoIT.

A growing chip manufacturing hub

Southeast Asia and India stand to be net beneficiaries of companies diversifying manufacturing capabilities to complement existing bases in China, a recent report from Jones Lang Lasalle (JLL), a global commercial real estate and investment management company, showed.

Particularly, Viet Nam will grow significantly and be a hub with strengths extending beyond electronics manufacturing. Therefore, the investment wave is now turning to this industry.

The country's semiconductor industry is witnessing strong development, with numerous multi-million dollar foreign direct investment (FDI) projects coming to invest.

Leading chip makers like Intel, Samsung and Hana Micron have made significant investments in Viet Nam over the past few years.

Intel opened the world's largest chip assembly and testing facility in the country in 2021 as part of around $1.5 billion in total investment.

Samsung also revealed plans in 2022 to start producing semiconductor wafers in Viet Nam by late 2023, while South Korea's Hana Micron inaugurated a $600 million manufacturing project in the country in 2023, with plans to invest over $1 billion by 2025.

Amkor Technology, another South Korean semiconductor company, inaugurated a new $1.6 billion factory in Bac Ninh Province. The facility specialises in the production, assembly and testing of semiconductor materials and equipment.

In early December 2023, a delegation from the US Semiconductor Industry Association (SIA), with top executives from leading US semiconductor companies such as Intel, Synopsys, Ampere Computing, Marvell and ARM, visited Viet Nam to explore investment opportunities and support connections between businesses in the two countries.

Statistic from the Ministry of Information and Communications showed that Viet Nam emerges as major semiconductor exporter to the US, accounting for over 10 per cent of total semiconductor chips imported into the market. It ranks third in terms of semiconductor chip export revenue to the US, trailing only Malaysia and Taiwan (China).

These investments by top global semiconductor firms highlight Viet Nam's growing status as an important hub for high-tech electronics manufacturing and its favourable conditions for attracting more FDI in the industry.  VNS
HA NOI  Vinh Hoan Corporation, a major player in Viet Nam's pangasius industry or tra fish, has seen a significant rebound in the selling price of its product from the end of last year, pushing its net profit expectation to above VN1 trillion (US$39.3 million).

The country's pangasius industry has seen a solid recovery in the first four months of this year, with export volume increasing by 14.2 per cent from the same period last year to 270,000 tonnes. Export value also grew by 2.4 per cent to $587 million.

As the leading pangasius exporter in Viet Nam, Vinh Hoan has reported positive business results. The company's net revenue in the first four months surged by 25 per cent to over VN3.9 trillion.

As a result, the company now accounts for 15 per cent of the country's total pangasius export value, significantly outpacing the second-largest player.

However, the gross profit margins of Vinh Hoan and other pangasius exporters remain under pressure.

In the first quarter, the average selling price of pangasius dropped by 10 per cent year-on-year to around $2.2 per kg, even as raw pangasius material costs edged up slightly due to the rebound in export activities and rising transportation costs from the second half of 2023.

Vinh Hoan's gross profit margin in the first three months dropped sharply to 9.3 per cent, down 800 basis points from the same period in 2023. This led to a 16 per cent decline in the company's net profit to VN189 billion.

Nevertheless, some financial institutions believe the company's business results have now hit the bottom and expect a stronger recovery in the second half of the year. This optimism is driven in part by positive signs emerging in the US market, which is a major export market for the company.

Indeed, the US, European Union (EU) and China remain Vinh Hoan's top three export markets, accounting for 29 per cent, 19 per cent and 10 per cent of its revenue respectively, in the first four months of 2024.

Its export revenue to the US market has been on a positive trajectory, with three straight monthly gains. While the pangasius export price to the US is still lower than the same period last year, it has shown signs of recovery, reaching around $3 per kg - a 20 per cent increase from late 2023.

The advantage is gradually shifting in favour of Vietnamese pangasius exporters. This is due to the US ban on imports of Russian seafood, as well as the EU's decision to apply a 13.7 per cent tariff on all Russian fillet of pollock products, compared to the previous zero per cent rate.

Looking ahead, Phu Hung Securities Corporation forecasts that Vinh Hoan's average pangasius selling price in the US market will recover to around $3.3 per kg this year, representing a 4 per cent gain from 2023 levels.

While its export revenue to the US market has been on a bullish trend, the company is facing increased competition in the Chinese market from Russian pollock fish.

On the other hand, the pangasius selling price in China is projected to continue declining to an average of around $1.9 per kg - a 13 per cent decrease from 2023 levels.

However, the company's domestic business is showing bright spots. In the first four months of 2024, its domestic revenue grew by 43 per cent to nearly VN1.1 trillion. This was driven by increased warehouse rental activities, contributions from its subsidiary Sa Giang, as well as revenue from the recent expansion of its fish feed production capacity.

Given the current market dynamics, the securities firm expects Vinh Hoan's full-year net revenue to increase by 13.8 per cent to VN11.4 trillion in 2024, while net profit is expected to grow by 17.6 per cent to more than VN1.1 trillion.  VNS
HCM CITY  The 6th Denimsandjeans.com Viet Nam, an exhibition for large denim manufacturers in Viet Nam and over 10 countries around the world, will be held in HCM City on June 26-27.

With the theme of "Room to Roam", it aims to showcase the latest fashion trends and innovations in the global denim industry, focusing on sustainable development, as well as helping local manufacturers prove themselves with global buyers.

The exhibition will feature a Denim Bazaar area where Vietnamese fashion brands display their innovative, high quality denim products, including recycled ones, similar to the one held last year. This initiative will help improve the general public's understanding of Viet Nam's denim manufacturing capability.

Indian denim clothes manufacturer Balaji Enterprises is the organiser of the exhibition, which will be held at Riverside Palace in District 4.

Viet Nam's denim clothes exports have positive growth prospects, with many large orders and investment projects, the company said.

Viet Nam exports around 65-70 million denim clothing items per year, and this is expected to rise by the end of 2024, as more and more orders are being placed with the country to make use of the European Union  Viet Nam Free Trade Agreement.

According to the company, Viet Nam produces mid-priced to premium-priced denim products and jeans that satisfy sustainable development criteria, and the current geo-political condition is elevating Viet Nam's position in this industry which is poised to grow by over 10 per cent annually during the next five to seven years. VNS
HA NOI  Benchmark indices edged up on Thursday and rallied for a second straight session, while foreign investors continued strong net selling.

On the Ho Chi Minh Stock Exchange (HoSE), the VN-Index rose 1.32 points, or 0.1 per cent to close the trading session at 1,301.51 points.

The market's breadth was also positive as the number of gainers surpassed that of losers by 168 to 162. Liquidity on the southern bourse still remained high at VN23 trillion (US$900 million), equivalent to a trading volume of 891 million shares.

The 30 biggest stocks tracker, the VN30-Index, climbed 2.04 points, or 0.15 per cent, to 1,333.85 points. Fourteen ticker symbols in the VN30 basket edged up, while fifteen inched down, and one stock ended flat.

Leading the market's uptrend were pillar stocks in the banking industry.

Data compiled by the financial website vietstock.vn showed that the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BID) was the biggest gainer on the market and led the market's trend in terms of capitalisation. Shares of the lender rose by 2.53 per cent, contributing more than 0.6 points to the VN-Index.

It was followed by the Military Commercial Joint Stock Bank (MBB), whose shares increased 1.95 per cent; Vietnam Joint Stock Commercial Bank for Industry and Trade (CTG), up 1.19 per cent; Lien Viet Post Joint Stock Commercial Bank (STB), up 1.14 per cent and Tien Phong Commercial Joint Stock Bank (TPB), up 2.98 per cent.

Limiting the rallies, some big stocks still faced strong sell-offs. FPT Corporation (FPT) posted a decrease of 1.52 per cent, Sabeco (SAB) was down 2.09 per cent, and Bank for Foreign Trade of Vietnam (VCB) lost 0.34 per cent.

On the Ha Noi Stock Exchange (HNX), the HNX-Index also finished higher on Thursday. It rose 0.02 per cent to 248.36 points, the fifth consecutive positive trading session.

During the session, more than VN1.7 trillion worth of shares, equivalent to a trading volume of over 81 million shares, were moved on the northern market.

On the other hand, foreign investors extended their net selling spree as they net sold over VN1.4 trillion on the HoSE.  VNS
HA NOI  Forty direct business meetings were organised between a delegation of South Korean companies from the Korea Intellectual Property Strategy Agency (KISTA) and the Korea Environmental Industry & Technology Institute (KEITI) with Vietnamese importers on Wednesday.

Facilitated by the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA Hanoi), the event opened up new cooperation opportunities in the industrial and technology sectors between Korean and Vietnamese companies.

The delegation showcased various high-quality traditional products, including cosmetics, functional foods and beverages. Additionally, advanced medical devices and technologies such as Nano Knife cancer treatment therapy, and environmental technologies like unmanned surface vessels for monitoring and measuring, automatic air monitoring systems, and new water sterilisation technology garnered significant interest from Vietnamese experts and businesses.

Jung ChulWan, a specialist in business development research at KISTA, expressed his delight at the participation of four member companies and his hope for fruitful trade cooperation and the development of Korean products in the Vietnamese market.

KwangKeun Shin, senior specialist in industry and environmental technology at KEITI, shared: "Our institute brought three companies focusing on environmental, emission and medical fields to this event. We found that Vietnamese importers showed great interest. We hope to enhance exchanges, training and trade/export, especially in environmentally related products."

Representing Korean businesses, Brian Shin, CEO of RPG Lab Korea, which specialises in Makgeolli drink powder, said: "Young consumers in Viet Nam are increasingly seeking safe products. Our first customer this morning showed great interest in our product. We are very hopeful about entering the Vietnamese market."

This event highlights the growing cooperation between South Korea and Viet Nam, strengthening bilateral trade relations and paving the way for future collaborations in various sectors.  VNS
HCM CITY  The FABRICA. Italian Textile and Innovation Exhibition celebrating the history and evolution of Italian textile manufacturing has opened at the HCM City Museum.

The event is hosted by the Consulate General of Italy in HCM City, in collaboration with Harpers Bazaar Vietnam.

It marks the significant milestone of the 10th anniversary of the establishment of the Consulate General, and is part of the 2024 Aquafina Viet Nam International Fashion Week in the city from June 13-16.

Addressing the opening of the exhibition on June 13, Italian Consul General Enrico Padula said, the Fabrica exhibition speaks of Italian textiles, but also of a history and a vision of the future. This exhibition, promoted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and conceived by Corrado Anselmi and CMS Cultura, is an experience that, through the use of different modules, gives visitors the opportunity to directly experience the history, technique and Italian vision of the textile industry.

The exhibition showcases a series of panels set up by a network of over 20 companies in the sector, highlighting the richness and variety of Italian production, from fashion fabrics, materials in interior design, and sportswear fibres to sustainable fibres.

The showcase features the history and development of Italian textiles, wool production, the art of silk, yarn processing, and fabric production from the Middle Ages to the 18th century.

The event introduces fabrics used in garments and interior design, and natural fibres made of organic cotton, generated nylon yarn from pre-and-post consumer waste, and textile waste.

The exhibition also highlights technical fabrics which are characterized as high-performing and address specific needs.

The development of Italian textile machinery from the 15th century to the present are featured as well.

Padula said, Viet Nam also has a rich history, especially in silk and cotton processing, and a constantly expanding market. Its recent role as a hub also gives rise to an interest in deepening some common practices from a social, technical and sustainability perspective.

By sharing our history and experience today, we are confident that we can be an inspiration to a country that now plays an important role in the industry on a global level and shares the same challenges, he added.

The FABRICA. Italian Textile and Innovation Exhibition was conceived by the agency CMS Cultura, with the support of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Italian Fashion Industry Business Federation (Sistema Moda Italia), the Italian Association of Textile Machinery Manufacturers (ACIMIT), and the Italian Organisation of Crafts and Small-Medium Enterprises (Confartigianato Imprese).

It was first organised in Singapore in April, and then came to Ha Noi in May. It will later tour internationally.

The exhibition is open from 8am to 4:30pm until June 20. The museum is at 65 Ly Tu Trong Street in District 1.  VNS
NEW YORK  Permanent Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Nguyen Minh Vu has called on member states to continue implement the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in a spirit of goodwill.

While addressing the 34th meeting of UNCLOS (SPLOS-34), held in New York from June 10-14, he emphasised the role and importance of the convention as the 'Constitution of Oceans' - a comprehensive legal document that regulates all activities of countries in terms of their maritime activities.

It forms the basis for the implementation of the UN Sustainable Development Goal on the conservation and sustainable use of oceans, seas and marine resources.

He highlighted several challenges they are facing, including marine pollution, over-exploitation of resources, the development of new marine technologies and the emergence of various types of crimes at sea, escalating regional tensions and unilateral actions by countries that threaten maritime safety and security.

Regarding the East Sea (known internationally as the South China Sea), the head of the Vietnamese delegation suggested member countries implement maritime policies responsibly and legally, so they can work together to ensure peace, stability, prosperity and sustainable development.

Adding that a peaceful and a stable environment to serve the sustainable development in the East Sea can only be guaranteed when countries establish their maritime zones in accordance with the 1982 UNCLOS and seriously exercise their sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction under the convention, as well as maintaining restraint to jointly solve disputes by peaceful means in accordance with international law, including the UN Charter and the UNCLOS.

Vu stressed that Viet Nam always strives to work with regional countries to promote respect for the convention, fully implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the East Sea (DOC) and negotiate in order to achieve a substantive and effective Code of Conduct in the East Sea (COC), consistent with international law.

The official also said that the agencies formed under the convention all made important contributions to establishing legal order in the maritime and ocean fields, maintaining maritime peace and security ; referring to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea (ITLOS), the Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf (CLCS), and the International Seabed Authority (ISA).

He affirmed the role of ITLOS in the peaceful settlement of disputes related to the application and interpretation of the convention and called on member states to seriously implement its judgments and decisions as well as the dispute resolution mechanisms stipulated in the convention.

The Vietnamese delegation confirmed the importance of determining the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles to delimiting boundaries between the continental shelves of member countries and the international ocean floor area, thus creating conditions for the full and effective implementation of the convention's regulations on management and equitable sharing of benefits and mineral resources in this area.

On this basis, Viet Nam calls for practical measures to speed up the CLCS process of reviewing reports on the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles that have been submitted, he added.

Outside of the main meeting, the Vietnamese delegation met the UN Under-Secretary-General for Legal Affairs, the ITLOS President, the CLCS President and representatives of foreign delegations, including the Philippines, Laos and Malaysia to exchange views on issues of mutual concern and promote cooperation.  VNS
HA NOI  Chairman of the National Assembly (NA) Tran Thanh Man received new ambassadors and representatives of ASEAN member states and Timor-Leste in Ha Noi on Thursday.

Stressing the special and crucial position of Southeast Asian neighbouring countries and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Man said they form a top priority and an integral part of Viet Nam's foreign policy.

The top legislator noted that the NA always pays attention to and fully supports the Vietnamese Government's efforts to promote and elevate the framework of relations with other Southeast Asian nations to strengthen the sides trust, solidarity, friendship, cooperation, and bonds, serving the sustainable development and prosperity of the ASEAN Community.

Lauding the bloc's 2024 theme of "Enhancing Connectivity and Resilience", Man said he welcomes ASEAN's efforts in building the ASEAN Community Vision 2045, aiming for a people-centred, self-reliant, dynamic, and innovative region.

With proactive, positive, and responsible spirit, the NA will closely coordinate with the other member states parliaments to participate in and contribute effectively to realising the vision, he affirmed.

Welcoming ASEAN's initiatives in building various cooperation frameworks in such new areas as digital economy, circular economy, digital transformation, and energy transition, he held that it is necessary for the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) to contribute to maintaining peace, security, and stability in the region.

The leader stated Viet Nam hopes to step up and expand joint work with each ASEAN member country within the framework of bilateral cooperation, especially in potential areas to meet development needs and for mutual benefits and prosperity of the sides involved.

For his part, Ambassador Khamphao Ernthavanh of Laos  the rotating chair of ASEAN this year  said that over the nearly three decades since Viet Nam joined the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Organisation (AIPO)  the precursor of AIPA, the Vietnamese NA has put forth many initiatives and actively participated in enhancing the effectiveness of such cooperation.

The diplomat said he believes that ASEAN is key to promoting peace and stability regionally and globally and that ASEAN parliamentary leaders will work to promote the common values of the ASEAN Community and to address regional challenges in the year of Laoss chairmanship.

The ambassador expressed his confidence that under Man's leadership, Viet Nam's friendship and close cooperation with other member countries of the bloc and their peoples will be strengthened, contributing to maintaining regional peace, security, and stability in the years to come.  VNS
The U.S. Supreme Court unanimously rejected on Thursday a move to ban a widely used abortion pill, halting for now a case that could have drastically reduced access to reproductive care for millions of Americans.

Siding with plaintiffs would have added further obstacles for Texans, who have almost no legal access to abortion in the state. But all nine justices said the plaintiffs in the case did not having standing to sue over the federal Food and Drug Administration's approval of the medication, mifepristone, and its later actions to expand access to it. The high court did not weigh in on the merits of the case, only that the anti-abortion doctors and groups who sued hadn't sufficiently shown they were harmed by the regulations.

READ MORE: U.S. Supreme Court rejects Texas challenge to abortion pill

The case is not over, however. The justices sent it back to the district court level, where three Republican-led states have since joined on. They could try to revive the lawsuit and return it to the high court.

Here's what to know about the impacts of the high court's ruling for Texans.
HA NOI  Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice Le Thanh Long held talks with the Minister of Government Legislation of the Republic of Korea Lee Wan Kyu in Ha Noi on Thursday.

Deputy PM Long reiterated that Viet Nam treasures the comprehensive strategic partnership with the RoK and wants to enhance cooperation effectiveness across the board.

He said as Viet Nam is working to build and perfect the socialist law-governed state, the country needs to expand cooperation and experience sharing with legal and judicial agencies of countries with rich experience and good practice, including the Ministry of Government Legislation of the RoK.

Long also noted that with the large numbers of Vietnamese residing in the RoK and Koreans in Viet Nam, civil matters, marriage-family and trade relations, and more between the two countries are rising in quantity, resulting in the emergence of legal matters. For this reason, the two countries should promote legal and judicial cooperation so as to both ensure the rights and interests of their citizens and the foundation for their common development.

The Deputy PM appreciated the effective implementation of the 2012 MoU on cooperation between the Vietnamese Ministry of Justice and the RoKs Ministry of Government Legislation. He suggested that the two ministries further increase specific cooperative activities such as law popularisation in flexible forms, and coordinate and support each other in international organisations and at multilateral forums on legal matters.

Minister Lee expressed consensus with the proposals of the host, and pledged to promote cooperative activities to ensure the rights and interests of citizens of the two countries as well as meet the expectations of their leaders.

At the end of the talks, the two ministries signed a letter of intent on cooperation in building a law information system in Viet Nam for 2025-29 period.  VNS
HA NOI  President To Lam had a meeting with leaders and dignitaries of religious organisations in Ha Noi on Thursday, praising their contributions to the great national solidarity.

Reporting on the situation of religions in Viet Nam, Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Vu Chien Thang said that as of May 2024, the State recognised and licensed 43 organisations of 16 religions with more than 27 million followers, accounting for over 27 per cent of the population. There are over 54,000 dignitaries, 135,500 religious workers, 29,600 worship places of religions, and 54,000 worship places of beliefs across the country.

Thanks to the Party and States attention, religious organisations and the majority of their followers have brought into play the tradition of patriotism and solidarity and significantly contributed to national development and defence, he noted.

President Lam attributed the national development achievements obtained so far partly to dedications by religious organisations and dignitaries.

He affirmed that the Party and State always respect the right to freedom of belief and religion of all citizens and consider this as their legitimate demand.

Many religious ethics match the countrys traditional ethics and cause of building a new society, the State leader continued, adding that the Party and State always pay attention to and facilitate normal practice of religions for religious followers.

The President said for fast and sustainable development, firm protection of the Fatherland, and realisation of the goals for 2030 and 2045, strong resolve, all-out efforts, and active contributions are required for people from all social strata, including religious followers and firstly religious dignitaries.

He expressed his belief that religious organisations, dignitaries, and followers will further bring into play the ethical values of religions, stand side by side with the nation, and actively help with the building and safeguarding of the socialist Fatherland.

Lam also called on the religious leaders and dignitaries to keep playing their role as an important bridge linking the Party and State with followers.

He asked them to continue encouraging followers, both at home and abroad, to stay united with people nationwide; support patriotic emulation movements, economic - cultural - social development, defence, security safeguarding, and external affairs; comply with the Partys guidelines and the States policies and laws; fulfill citizens obligations; lead a good secular and religious life; and help develop an advanced Vietnamese culture deeply imbued with the national identity.

Pointing out many big opportunities as well as challenges to the country, the State leader requested ministries, sectors, and localities properly carry out the Partys guidelines and the States laws on religious affairs, support and facilitate the legal practice of religions, and create a favourable environment for healthy and stable religious and belief-related activities.  VNS
HA NOI  Viet Nam always considers the US as a partner of strategic importance and is ready to work closely with the US to develop the bilateral comprehensive strategic partnership in a more effective and practical manner on the basis of respecting each other's independence, sovereignty, territorial integrity and political institutions, thus bringing benefits to their people and contributing to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region and the world, said President To Lam.

While receiving US Ambassador to Viet Nam Marc Evans Knapper in Ha Noi on Thursday, President Lam asked the diplomat to convey his thanks to US President Joe Biden for his congratulations on Lam's election as the State President of Viet Nam.

The leader lauded the ambassador's great contributions to the Viet Nam-US relations and asked him to continue paying due attention to and promoting the good relationship.

Congratulating Lam on being elected as the State President of Viet Nam, Knapper reaffirmed the USs commitment to supporting a strong, independent, self-reliant and prosperous Viet Nam.

He said that after nearly 30 years of establishing diplomatic relations, the Viet Nam-US relations have achieved practical important progress in all fields, including politics - diplomacy, economy - trade - investment, security - defence, science - technology, innovation, education - training, health - humanitarian issues, and settlement of war consequences.

Knapper expressed his belief that the relationship between the two countries will continue to reap more achievements in the coming time.

Agreeing with the ambassador's opinions, Lam said that to maintain the momentum of cooperation and effectively implement the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership framework, the two sides need to increase meetings and delegation exchanges at all levels and channels, especially the high-level ones.

The two nations should promote cooperation, especially in economy - trade - investment to make it a bright spot and driving force of the bilateral relations, he said, adding that Viet Nam and the US also need to gradually expand cooperation in security and defence, including cooperation in the fight against terrorism and transnational crimes, and cyber security.

The President called on the US to continue supporting Viet Nam in overcoming the war consequences, responding to climate change, and developing high-quality human resources.

He also suggested the two sides to continue to cooperate closely and effectively at multilateral and regional mechanisms such as the United Nations, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), and jointly plan commemorations for the 30th anniversary of the establishment of their diplomatic relations in 2025.

Knapper said that he and US representative agencies in Viet Nam will coordinate closely with ministries, agencies and localities of the host country to effectively implement the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries in the coming time.

He affirmed that the US highly evaluates and supports the central role of ASEAN in the regional structure and will continue to promote the ASEAN-US comprehensive strategic partnership and the Mekong - US partnership.

The US will continue to coordinate with Viet Nam in solving regional and international issues of mutual concern, thus actively contributing to peace, stability, cooperation and development in the region, the ambassador stressed.  VNS
HCM CITY  Police are urging Van Thinh Phat group to collaborate with Tan Viet Securities and Saigon Commercial Joint Stock Bank (SCB) to compensate over 35,000 victims in a billion-dollar bond fraud case, considered the most severe in Viet Nams history.

Authorities have uncovered a scheme involving Van Thinh Phat, Tan Viet Securities, and SCB, orchestrated by Truong My Lan, who was chairwoman of Van Thinh Phat and also owner of SCB, to secure loans and issue fake bonds to deceive investors.

Lans 1,000-odd fake companies under Van Thinh Phat group carried out fraudulent bond issuances worth over VN30 trillion ($1.24 billion) and sold them to over 35,000 victims, mostly SCB depositors, according to the police.

The victims are calling on authorities to expedite the investigation as they face financial ruin.

The victims claimed they were misled by SCB staff, who reassured them the bonds were safe, given Truong My Lans position as chairwoman of Van Thinh Phat and owner of the bank.

But SCB has refused to take any responsibility, claiming it was only acting as an intermediary and did not guarantee repayment to investors.

Experts said the bank could be held responsible for failing to disclose the risks associated with the bonds.

The police also stated that SCB is facing accusations of playing a major role in the massive financial fraud suffered by its customers.

The police have seized substantial assets linked to the scam with a total value exceeding billions of dollars, including stakes in various companies and real estate properties connected to the defendants.

Victims are being assured of their priority in receiving repayment from the recovered funds, and authorities are continuing efforts to seize assets related to the scandal.

The police said they would continue to seize more assets linked to the scandal to compensate the victims.

Authorities continue urging all victims who hold bonds from the fraudulent issuances to come forward with information and related documents.

According to an investigation by the police, Truong My Lan orchestrated the scheme with former executives of SCB, Tan Viet Securities and Van Thinh Phat to issue fake bonds.

Vo Tan Hoang Van, former CEO of SCB, was found to have conducted training sessions for over 2,500 sales staff at various branches nationwide on how to defraud customers, the police said.

Lan has admitted to her wrongdoing and pledged to repay the victims, according to the police.

At her trial in April, Lan received the death penalty for financial frauds at SCB and was also ordered to pay compensation of VN673.8 trillion ($27 billion) to the bank.

Lan and others involved are also accused of engaging in illegal activities, including transporting and laundering billions of dollars across borders over the past decade.

The fraudulent activities have led to market instability and loss of confidence, resulting in a halt in bond issuances.

Lans arrest was part of a national anti-corruption campaign which has intensified since 2021.

In 1992, Lan and her family founded Van Thinh Phat, one of the countrys most prominent real estate companies.

While Lans arrest has exposed the massive scale of the fraud, experts have warned the scandal is just the tip of the iceberg in the financial sector.

Experts have warned it may take years to address all the consequences of one of Southeast Asias most severe financial crimes. VNS
HA NOI  ang Hoa Nam, General Director of the Department of Childrens Affairs under the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs has noted that over the past decade, Viet Nam has established a robust legal framework on child labour that aligns more closely with international standards.

This will help Viet Nam achieve significant progress in reducing child labour and ultimately eliminating child labour in the near future, he said.

The 2020 National Report on Child Labour by the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs indicated that over one million children were engaged in labour, primarily in agriculture, construction and services.

Child labour is particularly prevalent in rural and mountainous areas in the northern regions, the Central Highlands and the Mekong Delta, where economic conditions are less developed and access to education is limited.

According to a report by UNICEF in Viet Nam, the child labour rate in rural areas is nearly four times higher than in urban areas.

The ministry's report also revealed that 70 per cent of child labourers come from poor or near-poor families, and most children are unable to continue their education because they need to help their families earn a living.

To address child labour, Viet Nam has enacted various regulations to strengthen the legal framework protecting children's rights and preventing child labour.

The 2016 Law on Children and the 2019 Labour Code contain strict rules on child labour. The former explicitly defines children's rights, including protection from child labour and other forms of exploitation and proposes severe penalties for violations.

The 2019 Labour Code completely prohibits the use of child labour for those under 15 years old, except for certain light tasks that do not affect the child's health and education. For children aged 15 to 18, the law also includes strict regulations on working hours, types of work and working conditions.

The Vietnamese Government has signed and ratified several international conventions on children's rights and the prevention of child labour, such as International Labour Organisation (ILO) Conventions 138 and 182. Additionally, the 2021-2025 programme for the Prevention and Reduction of Child Labour is being implemented to address this issue. This programme includes measures to support education and vocational training and to improve living conditions for poor families.

The Government has also run numerous educational support programmes for poor children, especially in remote areas. Every year, thousands of disadvantaged students, including orphans, receive scholarships and tuition assistance, enabling them to continue their education.

In 2023, the Viet Nam Childrens Protection Fund provided 13,877 scholarships worth VN9.4 billion and supported 17,800 children in special circumstances with total funding exceeding VN20 billion.

Furthermore, many schools, especially in rural and mountainous areas, have been newly built or upgraded. The National Target Programme on Education and Training has contributed to improving learning conditions for hundreds of thousands of students. In 2023 alone, 272 facilities for children were newly constructed or upgraded.

Currently, the education sector aims to ensure that by 2030, at least 95 per cent of lower secondary school-age students and at least 75 per cent of upper secondary school-age students are enrolled, ensuring all children have the opportunity to study at least until the end of lower secondary education.

Livelihood support

International cooperation is one of the most effective measures to address major causes of child labour.

International projects have focused on providing livelihood support to vulnerable families, ensuring that children can work safely and legally.

The ENHANCE project, a technical assistance initiative aimed at preventing and reducing child labour in Viet Nam, has been implemented by the International Labour Organization (ILO) in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs since 2015. This project has brought positive results in three localities: Ha Noi, HCM City and An Giang.

ang Van Huy, a sixth grader from Chau Phu District in An Giang Province, helps with household chores and is proficient in assisting his mother with growing oyster mushrooms. Huys family is one of 13 households supported by the ENHANCE project.

Nearby, seventh grader Nguyen Thanh Nhan also benefits from the project. His father, Nguyen Minh Hung, said: I find this project very practical as it provides stable income support for our family. Oyster mushrooms can be harvested multiple times, are easy to grow and maintain. After deducting initial costs, the income is around VN12 million per crop.

Thanks to the project's support, my child can continue his education, he said.

Vo Quang Huy, a child protection officer in Chau Phu District, said that the ENHANCE project has yielded very positive results. In addition to supporting children's education, skills and awareness, it also helps families stabilise their livelihoods for the long term.

In Thach That District in Ha Noi, ang Thi Thuy Hien, 45, was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2012. Her husband worked temporary jobs at construction sites, while Hien, due to her illness, was unable to work, making it challenging to support her children's education and medical expenses.

Hiens family was among a group of 11 families selected to join the 'OCOP 4-star Potato Journey'. Starting last September, these families were allotted a total of 19,800 square metres of land for potato cultivation.

They received technical support and 90 per cent of the financial support needed for planting, seeds and fertilisers. They were trained on organic potato farming methods and household financial management and received support in promoting agricultural products as well as designing packaging, flyers and product samples for suitable markets.

Hien said: Income from potato farming has helped us a lot. I have additional income to support my children's education. I am very grateful for the project's and cooperative's support.

Over eight years, nearly 6,000 children have received educational and vocational training support, 1,600 households have improved their livelihoods and almost 550 children have received additional support such as health insurance and assistance for those affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

For ethnic minority children, especially girls at high risk of dropping out due to early marriage, the Ministry of Education and Training and the Committee for Ethnic Minority Affairs, in cooperation with UNESCO, have launched the 'We Can' project in Ha Giang, Ninh Thuan and Soc Trang provinces, with plans to expand to Cao Bang and Kon Tum provinces.

After more than two years, over 16,000 ethnic minority students have continued their education and 4,500 parents have become more aware of the importance of education.  VNS
HA NOI  A revised version of the Law on Pharmaceuticals 2016 will be presented to the National Assembly for discussion and feedback during a legislative meeting from June 17 to 28.

According to the Drug Administration of Vietnam, the version enacts special mechanisms for using medicines and vaccines during a COVID-19 outbreak, ensuring a stable pharmaceutical supply in case of future outbreaks.

Another focus is introducing more robust policies to attract investment, promote research and development in drug manufacturing and accelerate technology transfers in specialised medicines.

Accessibility is also a key theme. The version aims to diversify pharmaceutical supply by establishing a legal framework for pharmacy chains and pharmaceutical sales on e-commerce platforms.

Additionally, it grants pharmaceutical business licences to non-profit pharmaceutical entities that engage in commercial activities to ensure essential medicines reach a wider range of the population.

It also aims to empower foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs) to play a more active role in Viet Nam's medicine supply chains. This includes allowing FIEs to directly distribute pharmaceuticals they have manufactured, contract manufactured, or for which they have transferred technology in Viet Nam.

It also aims to simplify registration procedures by streamlining file extensions, defining scenarios for registration without the Pharmaceutical Registration Advisory Council's and Ministry of Health's approvals, and reducing file processing time from three months to 15 days and licence issuing time from 12 months to nine months.

It also allows continued use of expired drug registration licences if renewal applications have been submitted until renewal or the Ministry of Health's notification is received. This aims to ensure uninterrupted pharmaceutical circulation and prevent supply disruptions.

For fear that the prevalence of registered-but-not-circulated pharmaceuticals could obscure the true picture of drug availability, the version limits the renewal of licences for pharmaceuticals that have not been circulated for five years, except for some types of medicines.

It also decentralises recall authority to provincial Departments of Health for pharmaceuticals with quality issues of level 2 or level 3 within their jurisdiction. This would expedite local recall actions and align with regulations on product quality inspection.

Another focus involves Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP). The version adopts international GMP standards as the basis for evaluating foreign pharmaceutical facilities, ensuring a reliable supply of raw materials for Vietnamese manufacturers.

It also streamlines administrative procedures and reduces certain business requirements to give more elbow room to pharmaceutical enterprises. This includes eliminating confirmation procedures and allowing manufacturers to implement quality management measures based on GMP principles.

It also reinforces pharmaceutical price management by regulating declaration prices and projected wholesale prices to minimise intermediaries.

Procedures for registration of new drugs, brand-name drugs, specialised treatment drugs, biological products, high-tech drugs, and raw materials for drugs produced based on nationally approved scientific and technological tasks, and biotechnological drugs with technology transfer for production in Viet Nam, generic drugs of new drugs whose patent protection is about to expire, as well as traditional medicines produced using high-tech processes and from sources of medicinal herbs meeting GACP-WHO standards, will be streamlined under the new proposed law.

Rare drugs, WHO prequalified vaccines, and drugs that have undergone clinical trials in Viet Nam, will also be granted import licences.

Nguyen Thanh Lam, Deputy Director of the Drug Administration of Vietnam, said the Law on Pharmaceuticals 2016 had established a strong regulatory framework for pharmaceuticals for years.

However, the growing demand for high-quality medicines and the emergence of new diseases have exposed the need for revisions to the Law to keep manufacturers up with the times.

"This revised version will address current shortcomings in pharmaceutical management, paving the way for the industry's continued growth and ensuring accessibility to high-quality and affordable pharmaceuticals," said Lam.  VNS
Doctor Ta inh Cao from the National Psychiatric Hospital No 1 speaks to Suc khoe & oi song (Health & Life) newspaper on providing care to patients with mental disorders in the community.

How many patients with mental disorders are there in Viet Nam? How are psychiatric facilities, particularly National Psychiatric Hospital No 1, providing care and treatment for them?

According to the World Health Organisations classification (ICD-10), there are around 300 mental and behavioural disorders.

In Viet Nam, a ministerial-level research project led by National Psychiatric Hospital No 1 on the incidence of the ten common mental disorders was carried out in 2002.

The research showed that the most common mental disorders such as schizophrenia, depression, anxiety, behavioural disorders in adolescents, dementia or alcoholism accounted for 14.9 per cent of the total cases. If we take into account the countrys population of 96 million, the number of people affected by these disorders stands at more than 14 million.

However, only patients with schizophrenia, depression and epilepsy are receiving care and treatment in the community - about 320,000 people - a very modest figure compared to the number of people diagnosed with mental disorders.

At the moment, Viet Nam has 45 central psychiatric hospitals, including three at the national level and 42 at the provincial level. There are also non-communicable disease prevention departments (including psychiatric divisions) at provincial centres for disease control (CDCs); as well as psychiatric departments in general hospitals. There is almost no specialised department for psychiatry at the district level.

National Psychiatric Hospital No 1 is currently looking after about 600 inpatients.

Is at-home treatment for people with mental disorders recommended?

Managing and providing care for people with mental disorders in the community is very important to psychiatry. Since around 1998-2000, the national target programme on protecting the communitys and childrens mental well-being has been approved by the Prime Minister. This has been carried out by the Ministry of Health (MOH) and related departments to effectively contribute to social welfare and order.

Mental disorders result in significant burdens and we do not have enough resources to provide life-long inpatient care and treatment. Moreover, to relieve the burdens on families and society, we need to reintegrate patients back into the community in a stable state, where they can perform simple tasks to help their families.

Therefore, managing, providing care and rehabilitation for people with mental disorders is a prioritised recommendation of the MOH and particularly the psychiatry sector.

What are the current management models for patients with mental disorders in the community?

Currently, the target programme on health care and population for 2016-2020 has come to an end. At the moment, according to the PMs Decision No 155/Q-TTg on community mental well-being is part of the National Plan for Prevention and Control of Non-communicable Diseases and Mental Disorders for 2022-2025.

During this period, several management and financing mechanisms have changed, notably, localities will proactively allocate funding for community mental health care. Therefore, there are two models of management and dispensing medication for patients with mental disorders in the community.

The first is an old model where patients are examined, diagnosed and given prescriptions at a provincial health facility, then they are assigned to a local medical station for monitoring and drug dispensing. They will be given medications directly by medical staff at these stations.

In the second model, patients will receive examination and treatment according to health insurance policies and then be assigned to local health stations for monitoring, but they will not be given medications at these stations. They will need to go to district or provincial-level health facilities for prescriptions and drug dispensing. This can be difficult for the patients in terms of transportation.

In reality, there are many issues that need to be addressed in managing people with mental disorders in the community, such as the tragic cases of patients causing harm to others around them. What can we do to prevent similar incidents from happening?

Managing patients in their community is not only a responsibility of the health sector but also other departments, organisations and authorities of all levels, as well as the patients family. Most patients regain their state of stability after some time of hospitalisation, after which they will return home for care and rehabilitation from their family and community.

However, there could be a few reasons why some patients relapse and develop irrational emotions and behaviours such as screaming, aggression or wandering

The first reason could be that the patient has an irregular medication schedule or stops taking medication. Therefore, the first thing to do is for the family to ensure that they take their medication regularly, in addition to enhancing the familys awareness of caring for people with mental disorders.

The second thing is to strengthen the early detection and screening of mental disorders to provide treatment to the patients before they exhibit the behaviours mentioned above, this is very important.

The third thing is to have policies and frameworks to deliver medications directly to patients with mental disorders in their locality so that they do not abandon their treatment.

At the moment, if their treatment is covered by health insurance, the patients need to go to a district or provincial-level hospital for drug dispensing (which requires a certified physician for prescriptions).

This makes it difficult for patients as there are many other factors affecting their treatment such as geographical distances, finances and family. In fact, a significant number of patients quit their treatment due to these reasons.

What are the challenges in managing and providing care for patients?

As I mentioned, the challenges in managing patients with mental disorders lie in the limited coordination between different sectors, as well as the modest funding for mental health care.

Another challenge is the lack of staff, as currently, the ratio of psychiatrists at the district level is largely non-existent or unevenly distributed. Psychiatry is a unique discipline and it is facing issues in attracting and retaining medical personnel.

Allowances and support for grassroots health workers are also another issue, as managing and medicating patients is a huge workload for local medical staff, which often discourages them.  VNS
HA NOI  Phi Duy Phong has been working as an informal worker in the craft village of Chang Son Commune, Thach That District, Ha Noi for decades, but he has never participated in any form of insurance.

Phong said the main reason for that was the unstable nature of the job, with his income fluctuating but he also admitted that he simply did not clearly see the benefits of insurance.

He is among thousands of informal workers, who work on verbal agreements or with day-to-day contracts producing furniture in the craft village.

Pham Quang Hai, director of Hai Duong Manufacturing and Trading Services Joint Stock Company, which specialises in producing clean bottled drinking water, said when he suggested he could buy social insurance for his employees, they refused because they feared deductions from their salaries.

Moreover, due to the temporary nature of the work, workers did not feel the need to sign labour contracts and the need to buy insurance, especially social insurance.

According to the Management Board of ong Xuan Market in Ha Noi, there are 2,200 households engaged in regular trading, with people aged 60-70 accounting for over 70 per cent of those running stalls.

Chu Thi Anh Tuyet, a small trader at the market said "We just think social insurances are only needed by Government employees or workers. I just buy health insurance to prepare for illness.

Meanwhile, at Long Bien wholesale market in Ha Noi, there are hundreds of daily workers assisting at fruit stalls.

They say they are just looking for temporary work to tide them over, so buying social insurance seems something removed from their needs something not even worth considering, the Nhan dan (People) online newspaper reported.

Statistics from the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs showed that there are currently over 33 million informal workers nationwide.

However, only 0.2 per cent of them participated in compulsory social insurance, 1.9 per cent participate in voluntary social insurance and the remaining 97.9 per cent do not participate in any form of insurance at all.

Causes

Labour experts believe that there are three main reasons why informal workers are not enthusiastic about social insurance.

According to the experts, low income, unstable and precarious jobs, where you live 'hand to mouth' were blamed for the situation. The non-compulsory nature of social insurance also worsened the situation.

Moreover, they have not received full information about the benefits of social security policies such as social insurance, unemployment insurance, occupational accident and disease insurance, or leave and sickness pay.

Resolution No. 28-NQ/TW on social insurance policy reform sets a target of 60 per cent of the eligible workforce taking out insurance by 2030 and that should include five per cent of farmers and part-time workers.

The draft amended Law on Social Insurance closely follows the five orientations, consisting of building a multi-tiered, flexible social insurance system; expanding coverage of social insurance beneficiaries (pensions, monthly social insurance allowances, and social insurance retirement allowances); supplementing provisions on social insurance contribution and collection management; diversifying the investment structure of the social insurance fund according to the principles of safety, sustainability and efficiency.

One of the solutions proposed as a way of expanding the coverage of social security network is to require informal workers to participate in social insurance.

However, according to experts, it was very difficult to implement because informal labour income was low, while the State lacks the resources to boost worker contributions.

Solutions

Pham Thi Thu Lan, deputy director of the Institute of Workers and Trade Unions under the Viet Nam General Confederation of Labour said that it was necessary to study and amend the system of laws and policies and instead of following the current approach of two groups, formal and informal workers, it should redesign the policy system towards equality and coverage for all workers.

For example, all workers participating in social insurance in the labour market should be guaranteed equal rights, on the principle of contributions-benefits, they would receive accordingly, she said.

Le inh Quang, deputy head of the Law and Policy Department under Viet Nam General Confederation of Labour said the confederation's opinion was that all workers must have the right to participate in and benefit from social insurance policies.

Our direction is to expand the scope of social insurance participation, moving towards universal social insurance, he said.

Currently, the number of social insurance participants in the informal sector is very low.

To prevent informal workers from 'falling through the safety net' it needs to gradually abolish the gap between formal and informal workers by changing the labour structure, he said.

Also needed are policies to expand voluntary social insurance, especially voluntary social insurance, amending the Law on Social Insurance towards a more flexible, diverse and multi layered system to attract greater participation.

inh Thi Thu Hien, deputy director of the Department of Social Insurance Implementation under the Viet Nam Social Security said they needed to communicate better so that social insurance participants fully understand their rights when taking part, so there would be more voluntary participation in taking care of their own and their families' future.

The communication about the draft amended Law on Social Insurance with many new policies and benefits should be promoted so that informal workers know, actively participate in and stay in the network sustainably. VNS
SEOUL - An agricultural cooperative of Gangjin district in South Jeolla province of the Republic of Korea (RoK) is hiring 20 Vietnamese workers under a five-month contract starting from April 22 to harvest onions and garlic.

This part of a model to hire seasonal migratory agricultural labourers to cope with severe shortages of labourer in rural areas, which has been piloting in the province.

The project is implemented in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture, aiming to support localities facing difficulties in hiring labourers for working in rural areas.

Accordingly, cooperatives are hiring foreign labourers and provide manpower to small farms which cannot hire laborers directly.

To implement the project, in 2023, the Gangjin administration directly signed a cooperation agreement on providing seasonal labourers with Phung Hiep District in the Mekong Delta province of Hau Giang.

According to Yoon Jae-seon, Director of the Gangjin agricultural cooperative, the signing of contracts by cooperatives will help ensure legal and safety conditions for guest workers when they work in the RoK.

Local authorities are also striving to ensure that foreign workers can integrate and have stable living conditions, he added.

The South Jeolla administration reported that the number of foreign labourers working under the locality's seasonal work system has reached 3,846. Operating since 2017, the system has proven effective in addressing labourer shortages in rural areas. VNS
A NANG  Dozens of hectares of rice fields in the a Nang City area have withered due to saltwater intrusion.

The district People's Committee has actively pumped fresh water to save the rice, but the situation has not improved. Affected areas include the communes of Hoa Phong, Hoa Nhon and Hoa Tien in Hoa Vang District, a Nang City.

In Cam Toai ong Village in Hoa Phong Commune, vast fields have now turned into barren lands.

A farmer who wished to remain anonymous said she cultivated one hectare in the Cam Toai ong Village fields, but due to saltwater contamination 60 per cent of her crop has been lost.

She re-sowed for a second time, but the results remained unfavourable, Lao ong (Labour) online newspaper reported.

She said "For every 0.1ha, we sow 7-8kg of rice seeds. Now with 0.6ha of rice dried up, the loss is significant."

She and many surrounding farmers have brought young rice plants from other non-contaminated fields to replant in their own fields.

Cong, head of Group 3 in Cam Toai ong village said: "This is the first time our fields have experienced saltwater intrusion. One of the reasons is that the irrigation water is drawn from the Yen River."

He added that all fields irrigated with water from the Yen River were experiencing total crop failure, with barren fields and hectares of withered rice.

Many people, after re-sowing for the second time without favourable results, have abandoned their fields.

According to the district People's Committee, the summer-autumn crop plan for 2024 includes sowing 2,061ha.

So far, 99.8 per cent has been sown.

However, due to the effects of El Nino, areas irrigated from the Yen River, Cau o River and Tuy Loan River are experiencing saltwater contamination, causing toxicity to the rice plants.

Currently, around 56.35ha of rice have been damaged across the district, concentrated in the communes of Hoa Tien, Hoa Phong and Hoa Nhon.  VNS
A 6-year-old girl in Kyiv underwent a successful heart transplant on Monday, according to officials from the Heart Institute of Ukraine's Ministry of Health, despite the ongoing conflict and persistent fear of Russian missiles.

After a three-hour procedure on Sunday night, the girl was given the 4-year-old boy's heart who had been declared brain dead after suffering an aneurysm, as reported by CNN.

A First

According to the institute, it was the first time a heart transplant had been carried out on a child of this age in Ukraine.

A medical team under the direction of Dr. Boris Todurov, the head scientist of the Department of Surgery and Minimally Invasive Therapy, carried out the transplant.

(Photo: by RODGER BOSCH/AFP via Getty Images) TOPSHOT - This photograph taken on November 23, 2017, shows schoolchildren as they listen to a guide (R) speaking as she stands among silicon mannequins, together with some of the original equipment - which are used to give a very life-like experience of what the world's first heart transplant was like - are on display at the Heart of Cape Town museum, at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town.

The mother of the kid whose heart was given can be seen standing at the girl's bedside in photos from the procedure that were posted by the Heart Institute.

Read also: Children Who Undergo Heart Transplantations Live More than 15 Years After Surgery: Study

Other Organ Transplants Amid the War

Two other kids received a liver and two additional kidney transplants from the youngster at the National Children's Institution "Ohmatdyt," a different institution in Kiev.

A 12-year-old boy from the Kherson region's occupied territory received two kidney transplants. He resided at the Ohmatdyt and had been in need of a transplant for more than three years, the hospital wrote on Facebook. Additionally, a 15-year-old kid from the Kirovohrad region received a liver transplant.

Without the family of donors choosing "to save the lives of people they do not know after losing a loved one," Dmytrieva said, transplants would not be feasible. "This is humanity's highest expression," particularly when it involves the death of a kid.

What Happens When There's An Attack

According to the Heart Institute, 23 heart transplants have been carried out in Ukraine so far this year despite the conflict.

If an operation is already in progress and air raid systems are activated, the operation cannot be stopped and will carry on even if the city is attacked. The medical team and the patient wait for the air raid sirens to stop before starting the procedure if it hasn't already started.

All patients were transported to a bomb bunker that had been carefully outfitted earlier this year when Kyiv's air defenses were weaker.

According to the Heart Institute, those who could walk around independently went, while staff members assisted those who could not.

Patients in the intensive care unit were the lone exception; they were unable to move, so the on-call doctor and other medical personnel stayed with them.

In order to maintain operations during blackouts, the Heart Institute has invested in specialized generators and has a self-sufficient water supply.

The number of patients with cardiovascular diseases and chronic diseases that were becoming worse because of stress increased throughout the war.

Related article: David Bennett Dead: Man Who Got Heart Transplant From Pig Passes Away After "Condition Began Deteriorating"
HCM CITY  The media help promote overall development by safeguarding the law, combating negativity and protecting the interests of the people, as well as the legitimate rights and interests of businesses and entrepreneurs, said journalist Tran Luan Kim, Director of the Saigon Institute of Science and Technology Development.

The media help businesses by introducing their products to Vietnamese and global consumers, Kim said at a ceremony on June 12 to commemorate the 99th anniversary of Vietnamese Revolutionary Press Day coming on June 21.

Nguyen Thi Kim Oanh, representing the Tam Giao Business Community, said that the press contributes to refining policy mechanisms and market trends, thereby significantly impacting the business operations towards ensuring sustainability.

The event also featured various booths from businesses across HCM City, coming to showcase their products and networking.

The event was organised by the Saigon Institute of Science and Technology Development, the Tam Giao Entrepreneur Community, and the Media Services Centre in HCM City of Vietnam News Agency's Southern branch. VNS
The information was discussed at a VIR talk show themed "Embracing AI for the Modern Media" on June 12. The talk show was part of the celebrations for the 99th anniversary of Vietnam Journalists' Day and shed light on the rapid and powerful digital transformation in the press and media that is being driven by AI.

Commenting on Vietnams media and digital transformation landscape, Do Anh Duc, dean of the Multimedia Department at the School of Journalism and Communication, University of Social Sciences and Humanities, said, In Vietnam, there are government guidelines for almost everything, including media and digital transformation. The government has also set up a national strategy for media digital transformation with a vision for 2030. According to the strategy, media agencies in Vietnam will have to switch to digital and reconstruct their newsrooms towards digital conversion. All media agencies have to provide news and content on digital platforms like Facebook, Instagram, and Tik Tok.

In addition, the strategy outlines goals for university education in journalism and communications to retrain the media workforce and equip them with digital skills. Meanwhile, media agencies will have to increase revenue by 20 per cent in the next five years. This goal aims to encourage media agencies to try their best to keep up with cutting-edge technologies, he added.

Tran Dinh, head of the Fintech Committee at the Vietnam Blockchain Association, said, Blockchain technology is not widely applied in journalism, but it holds significant potential for many applications. There is a possibility to apply blockchain for content distribution in journalism, as many video and photo creators create content based on blockchain. Meanwhile, many news agencies are attracting users through micropayments, which are also supported by blockchain. News agencies can offer membership subscriptions with bitcoin or cryptocurrency. Blockchain also enhances authentication for video and photo content to avoid fake news.

Dr. Long Nguyen, associate programme manager for professional communications at RMIT Vietnam, pointed out some key strategies that media agencies can use to integrate technology to boost sales and marketing management. First is personalisation, as data analysis is now powerful. With AI-powered tools, media agencies can easily understand readers preferences and deliver personalised content. The media should take advantage of their readers data to explore their preferences, the time they spend reading the news, and their favourite sections like sports, business, or politics. With these insights, media agencies can apply customised news feeds and push notifications for relevant content to targeted readers.

There is also a lot of innovation in content formats, and media agencies can try to utilise technology to develop new formats. For example, virtual reality and augmented reality can be combined with storytelling techniques and different kinds of interactive formats to make news less boring, he added.

From the perspective of a media agency, Nguyen Thanh Son, chairman of MVV Group, said, We have made investments to explore AI opportunities for the last five years. We cant wait for the guidance of the government on digital transformation. We see AI as a labour force that we need to utilise.

According to Son, content creation is not just about the production. Actually, it covers certain processes, including the discovery phase to study the audience's insights. AI is excellent at data analysis to complete the discovery phase.

In the design phase, media agencies focus on designing the structures and channels of content. AI, especially generative AI, and humans can collaborate to complete this phase. However, in the production phase, AI has to compete with humans to develop content. In general, AI can cover a lot of things in journalism, from personalising content to automating writing, but it can not replace journalists, especially the professional ones.

AI explosion raises questions for press and media production AI can facilitate the smoother management of press and media operations, driving both results and performance, but the slow application of such tech also poses the risk of increased costs from old processes. This is creating a new challenge for Vietnamese press agencies and traditional media in the AI era.

Young journalists make efforts for gender equality With the role of shaping public opinion and creating social progress, young journalists and communications officers need to be the pioneers of gender equality. It is necessary for them to have the right and objective perspectives to avoid unintentionally reinforcing gender stereotypes.
On June 5, the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) announced the direct selling price of SJC-branded gold bars at four state-owned commercial banks at VND76.98 million ($3,200) per tael, down VND1 million ($41.50) per tael compared to the previous day.

Central bank targets ongoing price control of gold market

With this reference price, the four banks - Vietcombank, VietinBank, BIDV, and Agribank - and Saigon Jewellery Co., Ltd. (SJC) offered a direct selling price that was around $40 more than the SBV announcement, and $80 more than the set price from two days previous.

Apparently, people rushed into buying gold in the previous days and even yesterday, and have counted losses. The losses might even be bigger if people continue to rush on the gold market for speculation purposes, said economist Le Xuan Nghia.

He explained that by market rules, for the gold price to go down, the quantity needs to be sufficient, and gradually increase, and the SBV has the total capacity to do this.

Statistics from the World Gold Council show that the volume of gold imports to meet domestic demand in Vietnam is just about 20-30 tonnes per year, equivalent to about $2.5-3 billion. This is deemed a low volume compared to the countrys current import turnover value approximating $200 billion, as well as the SBVs foreign exchange reserves reaching $100 billion.

In the long term, the SBV needs to hand back gold trading to jewellery businesses which are now in the restructuring process to boost market transparency, reduce speculation, and use tax tools to control the bullion market, Nghia added.

On behalf of the SBV, Dao Xuan Tuan, director general of the Foreign Exchange Management Department, noted that the move to sell SJC gold bars directly to four state commercial banks SJC is to control and narrow the difference in the gold price between domestic and international market at an appropriate level.

The efforts to narrow the gap would likely lead to further decreases in the selling gold prices in the forthcoming time. People, therefore, need to be very cautious when buying gold amid current volatile world gold prices, said Tuan.

In recent times, the SBV has held a handful of auctions, supplying the market with 48,500 taels of SJC-brand gold bars, equivalent to more than 1.8 tonnes of gold.

The difference between the domestic price of SJC gold bars and the world price, however, still fetched high at about 20 per cent. According to experts, this illustrates that besides supply and demand factors, there might exist illegal acts such as price manipulation and speculation, causing instability in the market.

The goal of the fresh measure is to shortly narrow the gap between domestic and international gold prices to a suitable and sustainable level, said SBV Deputy Governor Pham Quang Dung.

Along with this, we are joining efforts with relevant management agencies and the state inspectorate to inspect the law obedience in performing gold business of credit institutions and businesses. Serious punishments shall be applied to any violations, he said.

Pham Toan Vuong, CEO, Agribank Agribank has fully implemented necessary conditions to start selling gold to the public from June 3. In the immediate future, the sales will take place in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City. We will monitor market developments to continue to expand, ensuring compliance with market demand. Basically, the procedures are convenient and simple. Customers, however, need to pay attention to personal identification procedures and ensure compliance with regulations on transactions, anti-money laundering, and legal invoice payments. With the responsibility of a commercial bank, we ensure to meet the legitimate needs of the people. Regarding the selling price, we participate in selling gold not for profit, but to achieve the goal of reducing the difference between domestic and international gold prices. Le Ngoc Lam, CEO, BIDV The plan to sell gold bars directly to state-owned commercial banks and SJC is the right policy. Our bank makes efforts to ensure synchronous implementation of the policy through specific solutions such as announcing the list of gold bar selling points, the time to start selling on the banks website, completing procedures for gold purchases with the SBV, and establishing a relevant distribution network in major gold trading areas. The move shall be deployed immediately in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. We are happy to play a role in implementing the gold market stabilisation policy of the government and the SBV. The gold bars will be sold to people at suitable price levels based on the purchase price from the SBV. This will contribute to the early realisation of the goal to reduce the difference between domestic and world gold prices.

Leaders up efforts to control domestic gold prices Amid an escalation of gold prices, the current method of gold bar auctions may not be the optimal direction to effectively control domestic prices, experts have warned.

Government urged to narrow domestic, global gold price gap Permanent Vice Chairman of the National Assembly (NA) Tran Thanh Man on May 13 voiced concern over skyrocketing gold prices, asking the Government to quickly review market management measures to narrow the wide gap between domestic and global prices.
Many investors, foreign organisations, and electrical users are showing an interest in utilising the upcoming direct power purchase agreement (DPPA) mechanism in Vietnam, and expect the government to place it into effect this year to assist in accomplishing sustainable development goals.

Demand escalating for solar power purchasing - illustration photo

The Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) promotes rooftop solar for self-consumption, and the long awaited DPPA would facilitate the direct sale of electricity between renewable energy producers and large electricity consumers. The national policy to encourage rooftop solar use in Vietnam expired in 2021, creating a huge gap in development of this potential power source.

The proposed mechanism specifically states that organisations and individuals with an average monthly consumption of 1MW, instead of 500,000 kWh in the old version, would be able to make use of the DPPA if approved.

The draft also further stipulates that before installing rooftop solar power, existing construction projects must ensure compliance with current laws on investment, construction, land, the environment, and fire prevention.

Nguyen Thuy Ngan, a representative of Solar BK, said that many businesses were approaching the company, especially those that export goods to developed markets, to seek rooftop electricity installations.

The demand for export manufacturing enterprises is very high and most concentrated in the past year, when buyers from Europe increasingly required sellers to have renewable energy certificates, Ngan said.

Our company and several others often advise manufacturing businesses on the most convenient way to get green certificates. The traditional way is for businesses to install or buy solar power, then declare and register. From there, it is converted into a renewable energy certificate, and we support businesses with this.

In order to reduce emissions and meet green standards, many businesses in provinces such as Ha Nam are looking to install rooftop solar power for the purpose of self-use for production. However, the installation is not easy for them to achieve.

For several years, businesses have contacted us to ask about installing rooftop solar power for their own use, but we dont know how to advise them. We hope that the MoIT will have specific instructions on the issue soon, said Le Nguyen Ngoc, director of Ha Nam Department of Industry and Trade, at last weeks conference on the issue held by the MoIT.

Sharing the same concern, Pham Khac Nam, deputy director of the Department of Industry and Trade of the northern province of Bac Ninh, said the locality boasts many strengths in industrial production. We are also receiving many documents and recommendations from businesses wishing to install solar power. However, because the government does not have an official policy, local state management agencies cannot give the green light to businesses to deploy anything, Nam said.

Samsung has submitted a document requesting the province to install 16 MW in the province, Nam added, while other businesses such as Canon are also interested. We recommend that the MoIT pays attention and solves this problem, Nam said.

Meanwhile, Pham Dang An, deputy general director of Vu Phong Energy Group, said at forum held last month that the initial investment cost for rooftop solar power in factories is substantial, while the amount of electricity produced cannot always be used in full.

Therefore, businesses want the government to create an open mechanism for businesses to sell electricity to other businesses and partners to quickly recover solar power capital, An said.

Businesses also want the MoIT to clarify the concepts of self-production and self-consumption because, up to now, many businesses are not willing to spend a sum of money to invest in energy conversion.

But they are willing to allow investment units like ours to invest in rooftop solar power and then sell electricity back to those same plants for them to consume 100 per cent, An said.

Deputy PM highlights incentive policies for rooftop solar power installation Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha highlighted the importance of rooftop solar power in ensuring energy security, saying that there needs to be mechanisms and policies to encourage organisations and individuals to invest in solar power.

Rooftop solar power puts IPs on the map Transferring to renewable energy through installing rooftop solar power systems is set to help foster competitive capacity and further the sustainable development of businesses.

Vietnam explores bypassing EVN on direct rooftop solar sales Rooftop solar, waste-to-energy, and biomass power projects may soon bypass state utility EVN for direct sales, according to Deputy Prime Minister Tran Hong Ha.
In today's rapidly evolving global market, Vietnamese businesses are striving to stay competitive and resilient amid economic uncertainties. Faced with significant challenges such as workforce instability and a pronounced talent shortage, particularly in the burgeoning IT sector, HR departments are under pressure to find innovative solutions.

Job van der Voort, CEO and co-founder of Remote

Business expansion outpaces growth of staff

Talent scarcity compounds these issues. According to the Tech Talents Report by TopDev, Vietnam's IT sector is expected to need 700,000 professionals by 2025, but the current workforce is around 530,000, leaving a gap of nearly 200,000 skilled workers.

This talent deficit poses a dual challenge for businesses in Vietnam: finding innovative solutions to bridge the gap and demonstrating strategic leadership in optimising internal resources.

Investing in training and skills development is essential for improving labour quality and optimising resources. According to the World Economic Forums Future Career Trends 2023 report, macroeconomic changes and technological advancements will significantly alter job roles and required skills over the next five years. Key future skills include analytical and creative thinking, technological proficiency, and a commitment to lifelong learning, all of which underscore the necessity for a dynamic and adaptable workforce.

Despite these challenges, Vietnamese businesses, including small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and large enterprises, remain optimistic about their economic prospects.

A study by United Overseas Bank (UOB) found that nearly 90 per cent of Vietnamese businesses surveyed plan to expand overseas in the next three years. Over half of these businesses are motivated by the potential to increase revenue, improve profitability, and establish an international reputation. However, a significant obstacle is the lack of in-house talent and expertise to drive this expansion.

Key for businesses expanding into international markets

Businesses in Vietnam or companies looking to enter the Vietnamese market are expanding their operations and solving talent shortage issues through hiring global talent. Great talent exists all over the world, and being able to utilise various talents makes it easier for companies to expedite their localisation and operation.

However, hiring remote talent is not an easy task for any company, especially SMEs. Setting up a legal entity in a foreign country while creating a local in-house HR system is extremely costly and time-consuming, not to mention all the regulations and compliance, payments, and benefits that need careful attention. While expanding to some countries like the UK and the US might not cause major issues, some companies may face major difficulties just on entity setup.

While some companies choose to resolve all HR matters internally, leveraging the HR platform could be a more feasible option.

For example, Remote, a global HR platform, provides an employer of record (EOR) service that does all the heavy lifting. An EOR handles all the legal legwork of hiring in different countries and provides the infrastructure for sorting out taxes, payroll, benefits, and onboarding new employees.

EOR services from companies like Remote can empower companies to employ workers legally in over 80 countries without the need for setting up local legal entities. Its important for businesses to select the right HR platform because itll greatly impact their growth and expansion.

The decision to expand a business globally is the first step. To succeed in the global dynamic business landscape, companies must consider setting up local talents to adapt faster in the local market.

According to UOB, 72 per cent of businesses in Vietnam have their eyes on Southeast Asia for their future expansion plans, and Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia are the preferred Southeast Asia destinations for businesses in Vietnam.

These three locations have been researched and identified as ideal places for talented professionals to work, providing businesses with an opportunity to address the talent shortage problem.

To be more exact, in Remotes Best Destinations Report, Thailand (Bangkok) was ranked 16th, Malaysia (Kuala Lumpur) was ranked 22nd, and Singapore was ranked 78th out of the 100 best places for remote work.

These rankings represent the overall attractiveness of remote work, which implies companies can leverage this chance to hire global talent in those areas and grasp better market knowledge to succeed faster. Additionally, the Remote Workforce Report found that 72 per cent of employers with international remote teams surveyed saw increased productivity and 69 per cent experienced increased retention. Furthermore, 57 per cent mentioned that it was easier to hire and retain talent with a remote workforce.

Navigating the complex landscape of classifying workers correctly, particularly across borders, presents a formidable challenge.

Misclassification can lead to serious legal ramifications, such as when a full-time remote employee is mistakenly classified as an independent contractor.

In Vietnam, misclassifying your employees involves incorrectly classifying your workers as independent contractors to deny them access to critical benefits like healthcare, without providing adequate compensation.

Vietnamese authorities may consider any case of misclassifying employees as deliberate and may impose fines or order you to pay damages for any benefits a worker should have been entitled to.

This may differ in other countries: having a written agreement that specifies a worker as a contractor isnt enough in most countries. It's also essential to recognise that remote workers do not automatically qualify as independent contractors simply because they work from another country or home.

Contractors are distinct legal entities entitled to specific rights, including autonomy in their work, the freedom to work for multiple clients, and control over their work schedule and payment terms. Ultimately, countries decide if someone is an employee or contractor by looking at the details of their work.

HR platforms like Remote are used by companies because the all-in-one platform offers legal, financial, and cultural expertise to onboard, pay, and manage employees and contractors in 200+ countries and jurisdictions.

From remote talent acquisition to HR management, Remote simplifies HR problems for all businesses. Tap into a distributed workforce and expand without having to worry about cost and time.

Empowering female leaders in tech: insights and aspirations shared at KPMG Tech Innovator 2023 Women are now playing a key role in determining the tech industry's future direction, according to KPMGs event Empowering Women through Entrepreneurship: Breaking through the Glass Ceilings on September 14.

Empowering women in tech: shattering cybersecurity ceilings in Vietnam In a discussion with VIR's Celine Luu, Deepa Kuppuswamy, director of security at ManageEngine, highlighted the evolving landscape of cybersecurity and the increasing role of women in tech.
According to a report on Vietnams labour shift towards 2030, delivered at a seminar on future labour trends on May 29, demand for labour across various economic sectors is shifting from state to private and foreign-invested enterprises (FIEs), which have a significant demand for highly skilled workers, particularly in areas like AI.

FIE and university tie-ups to breed high-tech workforce, Photo: Shutterstock

At the seminar, Tran Quang Huy, head of Training at the FSB Institute of Management and Technology, said enterprises have high demand for the digital competencies of their workforce.

There are five key factors that large enterprises seek in high-level personnel and are willing to train for the labour workforce from universities: systematic and thorough understanding of business management, finance, and human resources; logical thinking, analytical, and synthesising abilities; proficiency in foreign languages; digital technology skills; and the ability to adapt to a multicultural work environment, Huy said.

The International Monetary Fund predicted at the World Economic Forum earlier this year that by 2030, more than 40 per cent of the workforce will be affected by AI, and two-thirds of leaders will not hire individuals lacking AI competencies.

The era of one-way educational exchange is certainly over. Vietnamese educational institutions and enterprises need to do exceptional work in areas such as IT and AI. This presents a robust foundation for collaboration between global institutions and Vietnamese ones. So the tech sector and AI research is certainly an area of opportunity, said William Badger, co-chair of the Human Resources and Training Sector Committee under the European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam.

Building on this, joint initiatives, particularly in AI, could lead to groundbreaking advancements, fostering provisional growth. In which, FIEs support in technical skills and industry-specific knowledge for Vietnamese universities are essential.

Many European companies like Schneider Electric are looking for expertise in electrical engineering and automation technologies, and proficiency in software tools like System Application Programming, AutoCAD, or industry-specific applications, Badger added.

In a presentation at a forum on May 22 featuring FIEs and higher education institutions, a JobTest representative noted that Vietnams higher education institutions traditionally focus on theoretical knowledge rather than skill-based training tailored to the real needs of businesses.

This leaves graduates unprepared for the practical demands of workplace skills. By bridging this gap, Vietnam can cultivate a smarter workforce that is adaptable, innovative, and industry-ready, the representative said.

Nguyen Tien Dung, deputy director of the Department of International Cooperation under the Ministry of Education and Training, said that universities and FIEs need to strengthen cooperation in research and development through investment in equipment.

Key laboratories equipped with modern facilities funded by international enterprises and research development centres serve the continuous training needs of businesses, Dung said. Alternatively, enterprises can send engineers to universities for joint training to enhance the quality of the workforce. From this, along with structured guidance, universities can develop and bring products to the economic market.

Thomas Jacobs, country manager for the Mekong region of the International Finance Corporation, added that if more can be learned about sustainability, more job-ready students will be created.

This aligns with the idea that students should leave university with an understanding of their companys green requirements and initiatives. For European markets, in particular, being able to follow the environmental path and the green footprint of a product is crucial, Jacobs said.

Moreover, soft skills for high-tech workers such as effective communication, both in writing and verbally, teamwork and collaboration, professional and ethical standards, reliability, time management, and cultural awareness are highly valued. Understanding and appreciating different cultures are crucial for working in an international environment, Jacobs added.

In the journey of training a high-quality technical workforce equipped with comprehensive knowledge of technology and innovation, the government plays a crucial role in enhancing the connection between FIEs and universities in workforce training.

In developed countries like Japan, the solution is to promote a comprehensive ecosystem between universities, businesses, and the government to leverage the strengths of each role in training and maximising the potential of high-quality human resources, said Vu Kim Chi, representative of the Mitsubishi Research Institute at Mitsubishi Ecosystem Japan.

The institute has established initiatives that bring together over 600 governments, universities, businesses, and student startup projects. In Japan as a whole, various ministries have directly invested approximately $1 billion in public-private funds into universities to establish innovation programmes.

Vietnam can gradually learn and adopt this model into its system to enhance training connections between foreign-led companies and Vietnamese universities in developing a high-tech workforce, added Chi.

A strengthened high-tech workforce for semiconductors Vietnam has plenty of work to do if it wants to become a true global hub for semiconductor manufacturing. Dr. Quan Le, principal investigator for the Semiconductor Workforce Development Research Grant under Fulbright University Vietnam, covered the potential for Vietnam and how to reach it with VIRs Vy Vy.
South Korean companies have recently announced big investments in Vietnams biotech sector. In May, SK Group began construction of its Ecovance high-tech biodegradable materials factory project in Dinh Vu Industrial Park in the northern city of Haiphong. The project has an initial investment of $100 million. By 2030, the investment capital is planned to reach $500 million.

Prospects are strong for local and foreign businesses as a result of a push to attract biotech funding, Photo: Le Toan

The projects goal is to produce biodegradable plastic materials, products, and related materials for the production of biological materials. The project is designed with 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.

Another South Korean company, Hyosung TNC, also received investment approval for the Hyosung BDO project from Ba Ria-Vung Tau Peoples Committee in March as part of its efforts to build the largest bio-spandex factory in Vietnam. Specifically, Hyosung TNC plans to invest $1 billion to establish multiple bio-BDO production plants capable of making 200,000 tonnes annually.

Pritesh Samuel, head of Business Intelligence at consultancy firm Dezan Shira & Associates, said South Korea and Vietnam have had a very close relationship in recent decades.

Its no surprise that South Korean companies are investing in biotech projects as they diversify their investment industries. Vietnams government has strived to make it easier for investors to do business in Vietnam and, in terms of biotech projects, Vietnams labour costs are lower, making it attractive for manufacturing and clinical trials, he said.

Elsewhere, US biotech firm Kraig Biocraft Laboratories has also secured a stronger presence in the Vietnamese market. The company has opened its new recombinant spider silk production centre in the Central Highlands province of Lam Dong in February. The new facility is located in the heart of Vietnams booming silk economy, providing excellent access to fresh mulberry and cocoon reeling facilities. It will serve as the centre of operations for the companys growing spider silk production.

Besides foreign companies, local biotech enterprises and startups are ramping up research and development (R&D) capabilities for biotech across various fields from healthcare to agriculture and environmental management in Vietnam.

Vietnamese biotech firm Gene Solutions has raised $40 million in three previous rounds to expand its presence in Vietnam.

Nguyen Hoang Chuong, fundraising and investor relations managers at Gene Solutions told VIR, The funding will be used mostly for R&D to strengthen existing core products such as non-invasive tests and oncology tests, and develop next-generation genetic solutions. The remaining funding will be for building brand awareness, clinical validation, and lab network expansion.

In addition, the healthcare sector in Vietnam is witnessing rapid growth, with biotech playing a key role. The market for cancer liquid biopsy and gene therapy is expected to grow at least a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 20 per cent over the next decade, he added.

Meanwhile, LiveSpo Pharma is leading in breakthrough biotechnology, and medical probiotics with no adverse effects. Dang Quoc Hung, CEO of LiveSpo Pharma, told VIR, Vietnams biotech market has seen a steady increase in investment, with the market size expected to reach $10 billion by 2030, growing at a CAGR of 15 per cent from 2021. We have successfully navigated this landscape by securing $8.8 million funding from Mekong Enterprise Fund IV in 2021, supporting our innovative research and product development in spore-based probiotics technology.

The firms strategy focuses on developing innovative medical probiotics which reduce the use of antibiotics and shorten treatment times, improving patient recovery and lowering healthcare costs. Our presence at international conferences such as Vitafoods Europe 2024 and the BIO International Convention 2023 has enhanced our global visibility. These platforms allow us to showcase our high-concentration, multi-strain liquid medical probiotics, attract significant attention, and potential funding for further research, solidifying our position as a pioneer in the healthcare biotech sector, Hung added.

Vietnam has set a goal of becoming one of the top 10 leading countries in Asia in advanced biotechnology by 2030. Looking ahead to 2045, Vietnam envisions itself as a top hub for smart products and services, powered by a thriving biotech industry.

According to Samuel from Dezan Shira & Associates, this shows the investment climate is ripe for both domestic and foreign businesses as a result of the governments push to attract investment in biotech. Both domestic and foreign companies can propel the biotech industry in Vietnam, provided the right conditions.

Foreign companies can bring advanced tech, research methodologies, and market access, allowing local companies to implement these ventures. While local companies have deep knowledge of the market regulations, foreign companies can tap into this to create products tailored to Vietnams specific needs, but also to export markets, Samuel said.

DKSH enters new partnership with Wuxi NEST Biotechnology DKSH Business Unit Technology has begun a new partnership with Wuxi NEST Biotechnology, a manufacturer of plastic laboratory products in Australia, Indonesia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Vietnam moves to develop biotechnology Vietnam aims to develop and apply biotechnology as part of the country's sustainable development, striving to build an international-standard industry.
Why did Motorola decide to build a R&D centre here in Vietnam?

Saptharishi: Vietnam is renowned globally for its high-quality engineering talent and focus on advancing the digital economy.

Vietnam also has high levels of STEM education and high adoption rates of digital technology among our public safety and enterprise customers.

Our local software team designs and develops technology that features prominently in our safety and security ecosystem and is used by customers worldwide. We're proud to open a new R&D centre that draws on the strengths of our local team, here in the heart of Vietnam's innovation district.

Son: The opening of this centre in Vietnam is great recognition of the software development capabilities of our highly-skilled staff. This team has a strong track record of consistently developing innovative and practical new technology solutions that address challenges across a variety of different fields.

We place great value in the engineering talent in Vietnam, and we will continue to build a team of highly skilled experts here.

Dinh Tien Son, director and chief scientist, Motorola Solutions Vietnam Research and Development Centre (left) and Mahesh Saptharishi, executive vice president and chief technology officer of Motorola Solutions

What products are Motorola Solutions producing in Vietnam?

Our Vietnam team develops software solutions that leverage AI to create camera systems sensors and vehicle detection technologies.

These solutions feed directly into the command centres of public safety and enterprise organisations and help to dramatically improve public safety outcomes by focusing human attention where it's needed most. Used in public safety environments, that ultimately leads to improved decision-making and faster emergency response.

How does this new centre in Vietnam fit in with Motorola's global network?

Saptharishi: We have multiple R&D centres around the world, which help to drive innovation. Now we have a true centre of excellence for our software, AI and analytics technologies in the Asia-Pacific region here in Ho Chi Minh City.

This centre makes an important contribution to Motorola Solutions by designing and developing safety and security solutions used all over the world. This includes video security technologies that help capture vital insights from data, collate forensic evidence to support investigations, and improve emergency response and safety across the board.

What other activities is Motorola Solutions focussing on in Vietnam?

Saptharishi: We focus on three main areas, critical communications technology; video security and access control; and command centre software, which are used by emergency services to manage their workflows and data.

We have a strong presence in Vietnam's public safety and enterprise security market, with police agencies and other authorities using our voice communication and video security solutions.

Government agencies here are actually significant users of our video networks today. The Ministry of Public Security of Vietnam also implemented one of our TETRA digital trunked radio system in 2006, the first ever for Vietnam.

We look forward to continuing to invest in our local teams and highly skilled AI and data scientists and software engineers here to develop impactful solutions used all over the world.

Motorola Solutions Foundation contributes toward public safety in Vietnam Motorola Solutions Foundation, the charitable arm of global Motorola Solutions, just announced contributions totalling VND949.5 million ($45,000) to two organisations in Vietnam with the aim of enhancing public safety and recognising the sacrifice and dedication of brave first responders across the country.

Motorola Solutions targets enterprise mobility with the TC55 touch computer Nowadays, smartphone is more and more popular in people lives which is beginning to affect expectations surrounding devices within the workplace.

Motorola puts smartwatch on sale, upgrades phones Motorola kicked off sales of its new smartwatch on Friday (Sep 5), in a series of product launches which could be the last before the Google-owned electronics firm is sold to China's Lenovo.
Nguyen Hai Minh, vice chairman, European Chamber of Commerce in Vietnam Most European businesses still consider Vietnam one of the most attractive destinations globally. Vietnam has been chosen as a hub to specialise in manufacturing and processing electronic products. The new trend is that investors, especially European ones, tend to choose Vietnam as a logistics hub to facilitate the distribution of products to the market, especially ASEAN and China. However, the mechanisms and procedures for businesses to implement logistics projects are still complicated. The problem that foreign-invested enterprises encounter is the problem of on-site export. For foreign business buyers, they operate supply units in Vietnam in a chain. If up to now, goods from company 1 have been transported to company 2, we will still declare them as on-site import-export transactions. But there are currently problems slowing down this transaction, so some businesses have transferred orders to other countries to enjoy tax benefits. Businesses also encounter problems due to being affected by tax adjustment policies, work permits and visas. In addition, another important issue is that import-export businesses are looking to use renewable energy. Our policy mechanisms should be adjusted to facilitate business implementation. Pham Thi Ngoc, representative Vietnam Dairy Association The dairy industry is trying to recover, but has not seen much progress. It is an essential commodity, but bearing very high logistics fees to export, while consumers in Vietnam and around the world are still tightening their spending. The dairy industry appreciates the management of the government, changing from pre-inspection to post-inspection. But in reality, enforcement is not easy. In regulations, product quality registration dossiers with the Department of Food Safety are only sent once, but all dossiers in the dairy industry have to be sent many times, some of them have been working for six months without being passed. We have just heard that the Ministry of Finance (MoF) proposes to impose a special consumption tax on sugary drinks, and nutritional drinks. We are concerned about the phrase nutritional drinks, which currently has no definition (both domestically and internationally), or even a customs code. Meanwhile, the dairy industry provides nutrition for children, pregnant women, sick people, and the elderly. This is good for health, while the Party and state direct tax products that are harmful to health. This is being contradicted. We wish to raise our voices to comment on the draft of the MoF to build the most reasonable draft. In addition, we also propose that the government give solutions to support green and sustainable manufacturing businesses. For example, Vinamilk prepared for 10 years to build a net-zero farm/factory, and the cost/ investment was too expensive, as there was no support or priority for the products made in this factory. Promoting milk consumption also contributes to supporting cow farmers to have a higher income and better livelihoods. Chu Thi Van Anh, general secretary Vietnam Beverage Association Businesses in beverages are currently reducing production costs. In 2023, businesses in the beer industry reported declines in revenue and profits, especially beer manufacturers. In 2024, the industry is forecast to still have difficulties, as the alcoholic and beverage industry must suffer many policy impacts, such as on tax. The price of input materials also increased by 15-40 per cent compared to 2022. Meanwhile, demand for beverages is decreasing because people are tightening spending. Restaurant and related systems all recorded revenue drops due to drink-driving rule changes . In addition, businesses also bear the burden of implementing extended producer responsibility. One issue affecting businesses and manufacturers is that counterfeit alcohol is still widespread on the market, especially in rural areas. The industry is also concerned about the roadmap for changing tax policy. Currently, the government is planning to adjust a series of taxes such as VAT, corporate income tax, and special consumption tax in the direction of expanding taxable subjects and increasing taxes on alcoholic beverages. The roadmap for adjusting these taxes is also very close. Therefore, we are concerned that adjusting many taxes at the same time will increase production costs and raise the financial burden on manufacturers, especially small and medium-sized enterprises. Based on the above issues, we recommend that the current special sales consumption rate should be kept for the next 2-3 years to support businesses. Proposals for adjustments need to be based on science and have a comprehensive impact assessment. Secondly, we propose expanding the beneficiaries of the 8 per cent VAT rate until the end of 2024. Thirdly, for the alcohol level policy, we propose reducing fines for violations, with fined based on the violators income level. Communication options are needed to raise consumer awareness. We also recommend that localities and tax authorities review and handle counterfeit goods. Nguyen Minh Ke, chairman Vietnam Aluminium Association Raw materials that cannot be produced domestically must be imported, which is affected by political conflicts. The downturn in domestic real estate has lowered demand for industrial and construction aluminium sharply in the past two years. Under excess, the total designed capacity of the entire aluminium industry is currently 1.2 million tonnes on an annual basis. Only operating at 40-45 per cent, some businesses have had to temporarily suspend their operations. However, there are some Chinese investors arriving to explore the Vietnamese market to set up production and export facilities to avoid anti-dumping taxes on Chinese aluminium. Guangdong Xinfa Aluminum Company is proposing a factory project in the northern province of Hai Duong, with an annual total capacity of 150,000 tonnes. This is expected to strongly affect domestic aluminium enterprises, exacerbating the problem of overcapacity. We recommend that ministries and agencies consider continuing to reduce the VAT to 8 per cent, including on aluminium, to support production and business, and consider more carefully newly registered foreign-invested projects, thus contributing to protecting domestic production.
Chinese tech giant Alibaba last month revealed its plan to build a data centre in Vietnam to meet legal requirements for local data storage, and to meet increasing demand in one of Asias fastest-growing economies.

The countrys biggest telecoms groups getting involved in data centres have a massive slice of the market

The group said it is to rent a location to place servers in Vietnam, with its partners in the plan to be Viettel and VNPT, to store customer data locally. At the same time, data is also stored on Alibabas own servers in markets such as Taiwan and Singapore.

Data centre developments have been taking place at pace in recent times. Telecoms group Viettel in April opened its 14th data centre at the Hoa Lac High-Tech Park in Hanoi. It is designed with 60,000 servers over 21,000sq.m of floor area, and total power consumption of up to 30MW.

Meanwhile, FPT is building its fourth data centre in the Saigon High-Tech Park. Currently, FPT operates three data centres with a total floor area of 17,000sq.m.

Data centres play an important role in storing, processing, and managing huge amounts of data for the digital world. The industry in Vietnam is increasingly demonstrating strong growth in revenues, creating jobs for local workers. Currently, customers are using data centre services mostly in gaming, e-commerce, banking, and securities.

According to a report on the global data centre industry released in February by Research and Markets, the market in Vietnam is expected to reach over $1 billion in 2028 and almost $1.3 billion in 2030. Vietnam is currently one of the top 10 emerging data centres markets worldwide.

However, the size of Vietnams data centre market is still small compared to neighbours such as Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, and the Philippines.

Meanwhile, Asia-Pacific is a region with a much higher data centre development rate than others, with a value of about $30 billion and a growth rate of 19 per cent annually until 2028.

According to the Ministry of Information and Communications, Vietnam currently boasts 32 small- and medium-sized commercial data centres, with a total capacity of 145MW.

Currently, most companies participating in Vietnam are domestic telecoms companies such as NTT, VNTT, Viettel, VNPT, FPT Telecom, and CMC Telecom. The latter four companies currently account for approximately 97 per cent of the market.

IT infrastructure providers are mainly international, including HP, Cisco, Fujitsu, Hitachi, IBM, Lenovo, and Oracle.

Siemens holds first Data Centre Day in Vietnam Siemens Vietnam on April 9 held Vietnam Data Centre Day in Hanoi, attracting more than 130 delegates including industry experts, thought leaders, technology providers, and government representatives.

Nvidia Group may build an AI centre in Ho Chi Minh City During a recent visit of Nvidia Corporation's vice-president Keith Strier to Ho Chi Minh City on April 26, Phan Van Mai, Chairman of Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, expressed his desire that Nvidia would choose the southern metropolis as the destination to build a new AI centre and also become a partner in building a roadmap for applying AI to the public administrative service system.

Alibaba plans $1 billion data centre in Vietnam Chinese teach giant Alibaba Group Holding Limited plans to build a data centre in Vietnam to meet legal requirements for local data storage and to meet to increasing demand in one of Asias fastest-growing economies, according to Nikkei.

Hyosung plans data centre in Ho Chi Minh City South Korean industrial conglomerate Hyosung Corporation has expressed its intention to build a data centre in Saigon Hi-Tech Park (SHTP).

Microsoft, Amazon to invest billions in French tech 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.

ST Telemedia and VNG launch data centre partnership On May 15, Singapore-headquartered firm ST Telemedia Global Data Centres (STT GDC) and Vietnam's VNG Corporation announced a strategic collaboration to develop and manage international standard data centres in Ho Chi Minh City.
A convicted Jan. 6 protester running for congress in Georgia stormed out of a Republican primary runoff debate after accusing his opponent of arranging embarrassing "attacks on my wife."

Chuck Hand, who was convicted of a misdemeanor for illegally demonstrating in the U.S. Capitol, left the stage in Atlanta about 90 seconds after being asked an opening question about a farm bill on Sunday.

"I'm not interested in debating the issues of the 2nd District with a man who doesn't even reside in it, especially one who orchestrates attacks on my wife," he said.

Rival GOP candidate Wayne Johnson later called the move "pure political theater" and denied spreading information about Hand's wife Mandy, who was convicted of a drug charge in 2008 before the couple married, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

Another Republican who was eliminated from the race in a four-way May 21 primary, Michael Nixon, highlighted Mandy Hand's criminal record during a recent news conference in which he also mentioned charges filed against Chuck Hand in 2005 and 2010 that were later dismissed, the AJC said.

Johnson said he lives a few hundred yards outside the 2nd Congressional District in southwest Georiga, according to the AJC.

The Constitution doesn't require a member of the House to live in his or her district, only the state in which it's located.

Hand and Johnson are competing to challenge 16-term Democratic Rep. Sanford Bishop in November, who's heavily favored to win reelction.

Hand is one of at least four Republicans convicted of crimes related to the Jan. 6 attack who are running for congress this year, according to the Associated Press.

In 2022, both Hand and his wife pleaded guilty to illegally demonstrating inside the Capitol and were sentenced to 20 days in prison and six months of probation, according to the AJC.
This is the second such partnership that Sandoz has signed with a Vietnamese hospital since becoming a standalone company to improve local and international knowledge-sharing, and reinforcing its commitment to reducing the cancer burden in Vietnam.

Sandoz and the Vietnam National Cancer Hospital signed the MoU in Hanoi on June 12

Vietnam currently has over 190,000 new cancer diagnoses each year, with the disease claiming the lives of more than 120,000 people in Vietnam per year. It is second only to cardio-vascular disease as the leading cause of non-communicable disease deaths in the nation.

This partnership is about improving the connections and cooperation between domestic and foreign oncology organisations and experts, and builds upon more than a decade of collaboration between Sandoz and the Vietnam National Cancer Hospital, said Charaf Eddine Kadri, general director of Sandoz Vietnam.

The partnership will ultimately see Sandoz sponsor and support information seminars that help doctors at the countrys leading specialized oncology hospital, and, by extension, around Vietnams northern regions to discuss and develop prevention and treatment plans for patients, he added.

Sandoz is a longstanding leader in oncology. Over five million patients in Vietnam receive Sandoz treatments annually, including various cancer conditions which are covered by treatments in Vietnams public hospital system.

Professor Le Van Quang, director of the Vietnam National Cancer Hospital, added, The Vietnam National Cancer Hospital is the countrys leading specialised hospital in the field of oncology, with highly qualified medical experts and modern equipment. Our hospital always works with the leading pharmaceutical companies in education, technique transfer, and scientific research to deliver the highest standard of treatment for Vietnamese patients.

The hospital, located in the capitals central Hoan Kiem District, celebrated its 100th anniversary in November last year and is Vietnams largest oncology hospital, with over 450,000 medical examinations per year.

In March of this year, Sandoz also signed a similar partnership with the Ho Chi Minh City Oncology Hospital, which has already seen the company support its Annual Cancer Congress.

Sandoz, which became a wholly independent enterprise globally last year, and received its Vietnam licence earlier this year, entered the market under the stewardship of general director Charaf Eddine Kadri, with a commitment to pioneering access to patients through affordable generic and biosimilar treatments in areas including oncology, anti-infectives, and a wide array of other therapeutic areas.

Headquartered in Basel, Switzerland, Sandoz is the global leader in generic and biosimilar medicines, with a growth strategy driven by its purpose: pioneering access for patients. 22,000 people of more than 100 nationalities work together to bring Sandoz medicines to some 500 million patients worldwide, generating substantial global healthcare savings and an even larger total social impact. Its leading portfolio of more than 1,500 products addresses diseases from the common cold to cancer.

Sandoz leading in generics and biosimilar medicines in Vietnam Sandoz (a division of Novartis)  one of the world's leading companies in high-quality generics and biosimilar  is mapping its business in Vietnam with a passion to become the leader in this field. Ho Thi Thanh Van, country head of Sandoz Vietnam, shared her plan to implement this strategy with VIRs Bich Ngoc.
Phenikaa University in Hanoi is cooperating with major universities globally in semiconductor training such as Arizona, and tech enterprises such as Synopsys Corporation, as part of its effort to ramp up semiconductor training.

Some education establishments have invested in simulation-related facilities and equipped new software, photo Le Toan

With these collaborations, the university expects to learn from experience and receive technology transfer. They also cooperate in training programmes which are crucial to train engineers with internationally recognised certificates.

Le Anh Son, deputy general director of Phenikaa Group, and vice principal of Phenikaa University said that in early 2024, the university starts opening training programmes related to integrated circuit (IC) design. In May, it also opened the IC design training centre on the university campus.

He told VIR, The school has invested in simulation-related facilities and equipped with software from the worlds foremost brands. Regarding people, the school now has a training team available and is preparing for training the next-generation team.

Phenikaa marks strong steps in the semiconductor industry in Vietnam by having strategic investments, including establishment of Phenikaa Semiconductor Company in IC design and related services, and the IC design training centre to train people according to the upskill model based on customer needs.

By 2030, Phenikaa sets a goal of training at least 8,000 chip design engineers and 12,000 engineers following the upskill model, high-level workers in assembly, testing, and packaging factories, meeting about 40 per cent of the industrys expected personnel needs.

According to Professor Nguyen Quoc Sy, chairman of the VinIT Technology Institute, and Professor of Moscow National Energy University, to realise the governments goal of training about 50,000 Vietnamese semiconductor engineers by 2030, there needs to be supportive policies from the government for universities training workers in the semiconductor industry; and the participation of the private sector and major companies and universities worldwide.

The private sector has an important role in developing human resources in the semiconductor industry in Vietnam. They have the advantage of flexibility, are not constrained by institutions, and can proactively mobilise financial resources and others, Prof. Sy said. FPT University, Phenikaa, and Ho Chi Minh City National University are the top units following this trend.

Anticipating future potential, other universities have also made strong moves. Private technology group FPT, which operates FPT University, and Indias Jetking Academy launched a semiconductor circuit design programme in March.

The programme focuses on practical training, accounting for up to 70 per cent of the total studying time. After two years of studying, students will have practical knowledge and skills, meeting the needs of high-quality human resources in the semiconductor chip industry among Vietnamese and global businesses.

In September 2023, FPT University combined with FPT Semiconductor to establish a department to train high-quality human resources for the billion-dollar industry, starting this year.

FPT University is also cooperating with many universities in the US and Taiwan to design programmes, textbooks, and training standards. It is strengthening ties with tech companies in this field and plans to train 15,000 people, with 10,000 to be trained at its main facility in the central city of Danang.

Dr. Le Truong Tung, chairman of the FPT University Council, said, FPTs ambition is to have a large enough quantity and good enough quality to meet the needs of this industry abroad. For example, in Taiwan and South Korea, factories need large-scale human resources but are in serious shortage. Therefore, we need a training model that trains fast and has good quality.

This ambition is built on its goals of expanding abroad, where its revenue reached $1 billion last year.

Similarly, Vietnam National University in Ho Chi Minh City (VNU) is training about 6,000 students in industry groups directly and indirectly related to semiconductor technology.

Member universities of VNU are training over 1,800 engineers and 500 masters in circuit design, and VNU plans to build a modern training programme, granting industrial and international certificates in IC design to about 15,000 engineers.

A representative of VNU said, We invited experts from major universities in Japan, Taiwan, and South Korea to help build a semiconductor technology training programme. We are expected in 2024 to establish two new laboratories, capable of sharing throughout the university network and those in the southern region. In addition, the Institute of Semiconductor Technology has been established as a focal unit.

Other universities are also joining the race. According to statistics from the Ministry of Education and Training, up to now, many higher education institutions have announced that they have opened or are preparing to open this major, including Hanoi University of Science and Technology, Hanoi National University, Danang University, Can Tho University, and Saigon International University.

Le Anh Son of Phenikaa, however, admitted that it is a new field for Vietnam, and new approaches may be needed.

Like Phenikaa, all schools have difficulties with teaching staff. Fortunately, we have a fairly wide training network to attract experts from around the world to train our staff, Son said. In addition, semiconductor training requires large investments. This requires the cooperation of all parties, and specific supporting policies from the government for training as well as the industry as a whole.

Dr. Nguyen Quan, former Minister of Science and Technology, added, Currently, some universities are ready to prepare a team of lecturers so they can promptly introduce specialised training in microchips and semiconductors from the 2024-2025 school year. The problem is that it is necessary to investigate market demands and the possibilities of cooperating with the worlds major IC companies in training.

According to Prof. Sy, human resources are one of the important bottlenecks in developing the semiconductor industry in Vietnam. Senior staff and experts for training at sci-tech universities are needed, as well as a more modern equipment system and research documents for training.

Considering these factors, we are yet to have a sufficient force of experts with enough capacity to train. Equipment systems, research facilities, and specialised laboratories are still lacking, Prof. Sy admitted. Quantity is critical to meet market demand, but we need to pay close attention to output quality because the semiconductor training requires very high quality.

Le nam Trung, deputy director, Authority of ICT Industry and Communications Ministry of Information and Communications The Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) is currently gathering comments and ideas from ministries, agencies, domestic and foreign experts and international consulting groups to complete the content of the draft strategy for developing Vietnams semiconductor industry to 2030, with a vision towards 2050 and then will submit to the government for approval. The strategy identifies talent as the foundation of the semiconductor industry, taking human resources as top priority, the decisive factor to be autonomous and become a global semiconductor human resource centre at all stages. Vietnam has a young population, a large population size, and advantages in developing science, technology, engineering and mathematics human resources. Tools to support the design of semiconductor products are increasingly popular, creating stronger conditions for innovative startups and small- and medium-sized enterprises to participate in the semiconductor industry market. Vietnam has the potential to provide manufacturing services for the semiconductor industry, building a Vietnamese brand in semiconductors. To concretise the tasks of developing human resources in the semiconductor industry, the government assigned the Ministry of Planning and Investment (MPI) to develop a scheme on developing human resources in the semiconductor industry towards 2030, with a vision towards 2045 which is currently being submitted to the government for approval. According to the draft scheme, the MIC is responsible for developing policies to support human resource development for the semiconductor industry within the scope of management. To implement it, the MIC plans to coordinate with the MPI to implement the contents of the scheme to ensure adherence to the goals of the related strategy on developing the national semiconductor industry, while studying and proposing solutions to strengthen the connection of technology enterprises in the human resource training process; as well as research and development and tech transfer activities. Nguyen Thi Ton Cam Tram, general manager Business Unit Technology DKSH Vietnam The semiconductor technology industry in Vietnam is growing strongly, attracting the attention of many businesses and international organisations, gradually making Vietnam a reliable partner in the semiconductor ecosystem. However, to develop, Vietnam still faces many challenges, including concentrating large investment resources and training highly qualified human resources. Many international companies and corporations such as Intel, Samsung, and LG have invested in Vietnam, setting up production and research facilities. Currently, Intel and Samsung are two of the three largest chip manufacturers in the world, investing in the production of semiconductor devices and components in Vietnam. In addition, a number of other top businesses such as Renesas and Synopsys also choose Vietnam as their destination. Research institutes and universities in Vietnam are also promoting research and training in semiconductors. Cooperation with international organisations and businesses also helps improve the quality of training and research. With increasing demands for high-tech and electronic products, the semiconductor market in Vietnam is forecast to continue to expand. Semiconductor applications in many fields such as telecommunications, healthcare, automobiles and consumer electronics are creating many growth opportunities.

Vietnam welcomes Indian interest in hi-tech and semiconductor sectors The Vietnamese government opens its arms to Indian entrepreneurs and businesses to invest in high-technology, semiconductors, and digital technology, according to Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Bui Hoang Phuong.

Hung Yen prioritises Taiwanese semiconductor enterprises to invest in IP No. 5 A business delegation from the Taiwan Electrical and Electronic Manufacturers' Association (China) on May 22 came to the northern province of Hung Yen to seek investment opportunities.

US chipmakers hit ground running with Vietnam plans US chipmakers have bolstered their operations and partnership activities in Vietnam as the country emerges as a semiconductor hub amid the AI boom.
What is the current status of Vietnams data centre development?

Tom Over, logistics and industrial director at JLL Vietnam

Vietnam is set to experience substantial growth in the data centre market, driven by an expanding digital economy and increasing data consumption across the region. A tech-savvy population engaged in data-intensive activities like social media usage, e-commerce, and gaming, as well as the adoption of big data, the Internet of Things, and cloud technologies are all expected to fuel a significant expansion in the market over the next decade.

Currently, the Vietnam data centre market is dominated by local telecommunications and technology companies such as VNPT, Viettel IDC, FPT Telecom, and CMC Telecom which historically have used their existing capacity for internal operational requirements.

Recently, we have started to see these groups start to offer increased colocation capacity to the market as end users start to outsource their data centre requirements. At present, there is no foreign company operating at a significant scale, which we expect to change in the next five years as the diversity and scale of operations expands and as legislation supports further investment into the space.

However, international developers and operators are beginning to enter the market, including notable projects like the 20MW facility by Gaw Capital in Saigon High-Tech Park, a 30MW project by Singapore-based Worldwide DC Solution, and a partnership between Japanese telecom giant NTT with DQ Tek.

Notably, Alibaba has announced its plans to establish a data centre in Vietnam, indicating a trend where more global cloud services providers, particularly from the US, are expected to follow, thereby enhancing market competition and diversifying offerings. We believe that the Vietnam data centre market is at an inflection point, before significant investment, expansion and sophistication takes the market to the next level of development.

What advantages does Vietnam have in developing data centres compared to other countries in the region?

Firstly, it is demographic and economic drivers. A growing economy continues to develop its banking, technology and services sectors, which will increase outsourcing of data centre requirements as companies move their operations into the cloud. Furthermore, a young tech savvy, large population driving demand for digital applications. One example of a good fundamental is that smart phone penetration is very high (around 75 per cent) and the cost of data is fairly low.

The second aspect is about energy. Vietnam has a relatively low commercial energy rates and high percentage of renewables within the energy mix. Data centres require large amounts of power and a stable grid, and have strong sustainability mandates, so access to renewables is a major value add especially in light of wider climate implications. Vietnam is in a good position to be able to provide a mix of energy contracts for large data centre users.

Thirdly is infrastructure investment. Continued development of the quality of the energy grid, submarine cables, and fibre networks will be critical to support data centre investment.

How are the development costs and pricing trends of Vietnam data centres?

According to the JLL report on Vietnams data centres and the opportunities on the horizon, published in March, development costs for data centres in Vietnam typically span $6-13 million per megawatt, a range that reflects the bespoke agreements that characterise data centre constructions and the variable local construction expenses.

This variance is also reflective of the broader Asia-Pacific region where countries like Japan, Singapore, and South Korea are experiencing escalating build costs, in contrast to China and India.

In terms of operational costs, the report elaborates on the retail colocation pricing dynamics, emphasising that costs can fluctuate substantially based on the kilowatt per month consumption. This pricing variability is illustrated through comparative analyses within the region, highlighting the economic diversity and strategic costing that data centre operators must consider in different Asian markets.

The new Telecommunications Law, which will take effect in January 2025, is set to provide a more structured regulatory framework with clearer definitions and guidelines for data centre and cloud computing services as telecommunications services. This legislation, with a light-touch governance approach, is expected to provide a conducive regulatory framework for the sectors development, potentially attracting more foreign investment due to the liberalisation of market access conditions.

How will Vietnams data centres landscape evolve in the future, and what preparations does Vietnam need to undertake?

Following various trends we see around Asia-Pacific, the variety and scale of services which are offered to enterprise customers will continue to develop and expand. As large companies increase in size and their complexity, they may consider a move to outsourcing their data centre requirements and host their business-critical operations on the cloud network.

Furthermore, the wider implications of AI and machine learning have significant potential to considerably increase capacity demand from existing operators and end users.

Meanwhile, data centres require several factors to be in place to enable development, including but not limited to sufficient power and stable grid, alternative power contracts, high-quality fibre networks and submarine cables, supportive legislation, and access to data centre talent with experience.

All of these components are required to create the supportive environment to encourage data centre users and operators to invest and develop the wider market.

Hyosung plans data centre in Ho Chi Minh City South Korean industrial conglomerate Hyosung Corporation has expressed its intention to build a data centre in Saigon Hi-Tech Park (SHTP).

ST Telemedia and VNG launch data centre partnership On May 15, Singapore-headquartered firm ST Telemedia Global Data Centres (STT GDC) and Vietnam's VNG Corporation announced a strategic collaboration to develop and manage international standard data centres in Ho Chi Minh City.
Reflecting on my five-year stay in Vietnam, which concluded in 2017, I recall significant multi-billion-dollar investments from Thai conglomerates during that time. Notable examples include ThaiBevs acquisition of local beer company SABECO for $4.8 billion, Siam Cements expansion of their cement and building materials plant, Central Groups acquisition of Big Cs operations, and CP Groups plant expansions.

Aseem Goyal, managing director Factum Global Asia

Post-global financial crisis, Thai businesses recognised that their domestic market had matured, prompting them to seek growth opportunities abroad. While Indonesia, the Philippines, and China also benefited from this outward expansion, Vietnam received the bulk of Thai investment.

Vietnam emerged as a favoured investment destination for several reasons. It has experienced consistent high economic growth rates, averaging around 6-7 per cent annually over the past decade. Vietnams strategic location and extensive network of free trade agreements, surpassing those of Thailand, have also attracted Thai companies.

Meanwhile, labour costs in Vietnam are relatively low compared to Thailand. Combined with high education levels and significant female workforce participation, it appeals particularly to manufacturing and industrial companies.

With a population nearing 100 million, a young demographic, and a rising middle class, Vietnam presents a lucrative consumer market. At the same time, the Vietnamese government has implemented various initiatives, including tax incentives, simplified administrative procedures, and the establishment of industrial parks and special economic zones, to attract foreign investment.

While Thai investors initially focused on retail and manufacturing, they are now venturing into other industries. Major Thai banks such as Bangkok Bank, Kasikorn Bank, and Siam Commercial Bank have operated in Vietnam for many years and are now expanding their operations in the country.

Similarly, the energy sector, particularly renewable energy, has seen growing interest from Thai investors. B. Grimm Power has invested in solar and wind energy projects, and PTT has explored opportunities in the petrochemical sector.

Other ASEAN countries, particularly Singapore, have also been major investors in Vietnam. In just the first four months of 2024, Singapore contributed $2.92 billion, accounting for nearly half of the total foreign direct investment during the period.

Singaporean investment is primarily focused on real estate and financial services. Major Singaporean banks like UOB, OCBC, and DBS operate there.

Similarly, real estate companies such as CapitaLand, Keppel Land, Mapletree Investments, Frasers Property, and Ascendas-Singbridge have some of the most high-profile projects in residential, commercial, and industrial real estate.

Malaysia is another ASEAN country whose investment has seen significant growth. Malaysian investment in Vietnam includes real estate, renewable energy, healthcare, and pharmaceuticals. Noteworthy projects include Berjayas $2.5 billion Vietnam International University project, which started construction in 2024, as well as Top Gloves new glove factory in the southern province of Binh Duong.

Additionally, CIMB has expanded operations in Vietnam, partnering with South Korean fintech Toss, the countrys first unicorn.

ASEAN is a critical source of investment in Vietnam, with companies rapidly expanding their operations there.

Their focus and success can be attributed to three main factors: ASEAN investors appreciate that returns will take time and that they are in the country for the long term; having navigated their local markets regulatory complexities, ASEAN investors are better prepared to handle Vietnams business environment; and with a focus on ASEAN economic integration and limited opportunities in their own markets, investing in Vietnam makes strategic sense.

The increasing Thai and ASEAN investment in Vietnam signifies a robust economic partnership. Driven by Vietnams economic growth, strategic location, cost-effective production environment, and supportive government policies, ASEAN companies are strategically positioning themselves in key sectors.

As Vietnam continues to grow and integrate into the global economy, this trend is likely to accelerate, bringing mutual benefits and strengthening economic ties. This relationship enhances economic cooperation and fosters closer regional integration within ASEAN, contributing to the regions stability and prosperity.

Enticing FDI legal framework for dual transformation Vietnam is preparing for future foreign direct investment (FDI) shifts to ensure funding reaches the right areas and embraces green and digital goals.

FDI attraction in five months tops 11 billion USD More than 11.07 billion USD in foreign direct investment (FDI) was funneled into Vietnam during January-May, up 2 per cent against the same time last year, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT)s Foreign Investment Agency.

FDI to be expanded with green focus Vietnam is projected to improve its trade and investment flows as global demands increase, with a green trend on the rise in supply chains.
Among the tax amendments in 2024, the draft amended Value Added Tax (VAT) Law will be submitted to the National Assembly (NA) for comments at the ongoing seventh session. The law is scheduled to be approved at the eighth session in October.

Special attention will be paid to one amendment in the draft law, as fertilisers, machinery, and special-use equipment for agricultural production will be subject to VAT at a rate of 5 per cent instead of the current zero per cent.

As this change will have a widespread impact on the agricultural industry and millions of farmers, the amended law is expected to be a hot topic of debate at the NA forum.

To update market insights, VIR will organise a talk show titled Tax Amendments to Promote Business Activities to provide a forum to discuss the practical ground and policy purposes of completing the above content of the draft amended VAT Law.

The talk show will see the participation of industry experts, business representatives, and business associations to provide insights into this issue.

Taking place on June 14, it will be livestreamed on VIRs platforms, including baodautu.vn, tinnhanhchungkhoan.vn, and its fanpage. At the same time, in-depth articles will be published by VIR in both print and online channels.

The talk show is in partnership with Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam), Vietnam National Chemical Group (Vinachem), and Petrovietnam Ca Mau Fertiliser JSC.

AI explosion raises questions for press and media production AI can facilitate the smoother management of press and media operations, driving both results and performance, but the slow application of such tech also poses the risk of increased costs from old processes. This is creating a new challenge for Vietnamese press agencies and traditional media in the AI era.

VWAS 2024 panel discussion identifies global economic uncertainties Experts identified uncertainties facing the global economy and their impacts on the Vietnamese economy during the first panel discussion at the Vietnam Wealth Advisor Summit (VWAS) 2024 on June 6.
A second-grade teacher in California who was caught intoxicated while on the job won't face charges, as it's "not illegal to teach drunk."

Wendy Munson was arrested after teaching her class at Nuestro Elementary School while under the influence.

Munson failed a sobriety test and was found to be twice the legal limit in the two hours that followed her arrest.

District Attorney Jennifer Dupre announced that they didn't file any charges, revealing that "it is not illegal to teach drunk."

"While the District Attorney's Office agrees that it is highly inappropriate to teach while intoxicated, it is, unfortunately, not illegal," she said.

Furthermore, Dupre added, "We couldn't prove that her intoxication would endanger [the kids]."

While no charges were filed, Munson is no longer listed as a teacher on the school's website.
This years Juneteenth parade through Waco promises to be a landmark celebration as the reconstructed Elm Avenue corridor permits a smoother route.

The parade, organized by the Cen-Tex African American Chamber of Commerce, will start at 10 a.m. Saturday at Heritage Square, proceeding down Washington and Elm avenues to the historic Paul Quinn Campus.

Organizers last year avoided Elm Avenue, which was torn up amid a four-year, $12 million reconstruction project that would finish in September.

Chamber CEO and President John Bible said the return to Elm Avenue in the heart of East Waco is welcome.

We know that (the) Elm corridor is historic, and that was always the gathering place where people could really, really enjoy the complete parade without any detours, Bible said.

Last years parade was considered one of the biggest the city had ever seen, but chamber officials expect even bigger crowds this year.

I remember when I first started with the chamber around 2008, we probably had roughly about 200 or so participants in the parade, Bible said. And now we have over a thousand or so participants. And so, that growth has been shown each and every year.

This weekend will mark the fourth annual Juneteenth celebration parade since it was declared a federal holiday. Juneteenth is a commemoration of the emancipation of enslaved African Americans.

The Emancipation Proclamation was issued Jan. 1, 1863, to free all enslaved people, but most African Americans in the South had to wait for freedom until the Civil War ended two years later. In Texas, emancipation took effect when Union troops arrived in Galveston Bay on June 19, 1865, to proclaim and enforce the order. The celebrations that followed were named Juneteenth after the 19th of June.

In Waco, the Juneteenth parade will be followed by other public events.

The Waco-McLennan County NAACP will host its annual Juneteenth Community Celebration at a new location: Bridge Street Plaza, near Elm Avenue and Myrtle Street.

Peaches Henry, the president of the Waco NAACP chapter, said the historical appeal of Elm Avenue made moving an easy decision.

Elm used to be the major thoroughfare for people coming through Waco, and so were excited to see that happening again, Henry said. Its exciting to see all the businesses along Elm Street come to life.

Henry added that the NAACP celebration will have a DJ and that there will be 200 free barbecue sack lunches on a first-come, first-served basis.

And we will have traditional African American Juneteenth games, like bingo, dominoes and spades, she said. And we will be giving away adult prizes and kids prizes for the bingo games that were going to be playing.

And of course, because we are the NAACP, we will be registering voters and providing information about how to vote and working to get people engaged in the upcoming elections.

The celebration is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., but Henry said people are encouraged to head over right after the parade ends.

Waco radio stations Magic 94.5 and The Beat 107.3 will also host their annual Juneteenth Family Fun Day: R&B in the Park from 3 to 9 p.m. Saturday at Brazos Park East, 3516 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

This celebration will include live DJ performances, food vendors, KidZone activities and more. Doors open at 2 p.m., and lawn chairs and barbecue pits are allowed. Tickets are available at eventbrite.com or centexmagic.com at $10 admission. For more information, call 254-300-6330 or 254-772-0930.

Bible, a Waco native, said it feels good to see how everyone wants to be a part of (Juneteenth) now.

Thats what unity is all about, Bible said. And so, if we know that that historical moment in our American history is something that we all can appreciate, then thats something we all should be together to celebrate.
KEARNEY  Robin Marshall will be remembered as a talented auctioneer who used his skills helping worthy causes.

The thing that Ive always hung my hat on is that youve got to make a difference in this life, Marshall said in 2011 when he received the Kearney Hubs Freedom Award for voluntarism in business and industry.

Everybodys got certain talents and abilities and things they can do, Marshall continued. Id like to think that its one way for me to, hopefully, make a little difference somewhere to someone besides myself.

Marshall, 86, died May 26 at Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital in Lincoln.

People who knew him said he was a successful cattle producer and business operator with honesty, humility and generosity.

The biggest thing I learned is he treated everyone with respect, whether they were a big shot banker or a farming couple with 25 cows. He treated everyone with respect, said Norris Marshall, one of Robins three sons. The other sons are Art and Miles Marshall.

When I was 10 or 11, he fixed me a shop in an old chicken coop, Norris said. When he came in I had taken apart a lot of stuff, and he said, You know, Norris, maybe you need to finish something.

Luke Huddleston, who married one of Robin Marshalls granddaughters and works with Miles Marshall at Marshall Land Brokers & Auctioneers, said Robin Marshall was a natural teacher.

I loved the car rides with him. On the way to auctions he told stories about the community. When youre planning an auction the stories stick so much better than Xs and Os, Huddleston said.

Robin Marshall had anecdotes for any situation, Huddleston said, and he was extremely familiar with people in Nebraska.

No matter where he went he knew 90% of the people, Huddleston said.

Spanky Assiter, who was the lead auctioneer for Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auctions, spent a week early in his career shadowing Marshall to learn his ways.

Assiter said when Marshall stopped to visit a bank and introduce his friend from Amarillo, Texas, what Assiter witnessed changed his career.

Marshall greeted everyone at the bank, and as he and Assister were leaving, one more bank staffer arrived.

Assister waited while Marshall spoke with that person, too.

Whether you were the bank president or the maintenance man, Robin showed everyone respect, Assiter said. In the auction business youre often dealing with people having struggles. They may be forced to sell because of a death or some kind of distress. Whether Robin was selling a $1 million farm or a $2 cup of coffee, he treated everyone with respect.

Marshall appreciated opportunities to help with charity auctions. He acknowledged in the Hubs 2011 Freedom Award article that he had the most visible role at auctions, but he always credited the organizers, their helpers, and generous bidders for making events a success.

During a Kearney Catholic Foundation auction, Marshall raised $12,000 in eight minutes so KCHS could repair the schools furnace.

He also helped raise $60,000 for a new KCHS bus, and raised $96,000 for cancer research in just 20 minutes during the 2010 Cattlemans Ball.

In all, the Kearney event was the most successful Cattlemens Ball up to that point, raising $1 million for cancer research.

Marshalls skills and philanthropic nature were the keys to many fundraisers, but he said a number of elements combine for successful fundraising.

We had some good items, good people, good supporters and a good cause, Marshall would say.

Raising kids, raising cattle

Before they moved to Kearney, Robin and his wife, Judy, raised cattle southwest of Elm Creek. Marshall served as chairman of the Kearney Area Chamber of Commerce, Gateway Farm Expo and several community boards, including the Good Samaritan Hospital Foundation and Richard H. Young Psychiatric Hospital.

In addition to their three sons, Judy and Robin have 11 grandchildren and 18 great-grandchildren, with their 19th on the way.

Marshall was president of the Nebraska Auctioneers Association and the National Auctioneers Association from 1995-96. He traveled to 26 states and taught numerous auctioneer marketing sessions.

During Marshalls presidency, the NAA picked St. Jude Childrens Research Hospital as the groups national charity. Marshall had the honor of presenting a $1 million check to St. Jude.

Robin was such a great auctioneer. He sounded as good as any auctioneer you would want to hear, said Dick Keenan, an auctioneer friend from Port Elizabeth, Maine. He and Marshall spoke by phone twice a month. Marshall usually shared news about his sons and family.

He was a very proud father. Hes a saint, Keenan said.

Keenans great-grandparents lived in Gibbon and operated a hardware store near Fort Kearny.

When Keenan visited Gibbon to learn about his familys history, Marshall had prepared things. He even scouted out the graves of Keenans ancestors.

He was just that kind of a guy, very thoughtful, Keenan said.

After conducting more than 8,700 auctions himself, Keenan said Marshall ranked among the best.

The conductor

Auctioneering is like conducting an orchestra. You have to read the crowd. Theres a tremendous amount of psychology, Keenan said. Robin could sell time share condos just as easily as he sold cattle. Robin loved to help people.

Spanky Assiter, Marshalls auctioneer friend from Texas, said Marshall freely shared his knowledge.

What stood out about Mr. Marshall was his willingness to help all the rest of us in the industry, Assiter said. Robin shared completely. He never held anything back. He wasnt afraid his competitors might learn something he knew.

According to his obituary, Marshall owed his success to the support of his wife, Judy, and family.

He believed that successful people surround themselves with good people. He would say, The turtle didnt get on top of the post by himself.

PHOTOS and VIDEO from the 2023 Little Yellow Dog auction "Nixon" the teddy bear Bernedoodle puppy sold for $13,000 during the annual Little Yellow Dog auction at the Ho-Chunk Centre in Sioux City, Saturday. Proceeds from the auction benefit the Journal's Mr. Goodfellows charity to raise money for Christmas toys for Siouxland Children. 2023 Little Yellow Dog auction Rick Grenko, and Lynette Meyer stand with "Nixon" after winning the annual Little Yellow Dog auction for $13000 at the Ho-Chunk Centre in Siou 2023 Little Yellow Dog auction Auctioneer Bruce Brock, left, interviews Rick Grenko, and Lynette Meyer after they won the $13,000 auction for "Nixon" the Little Yellow Dog a 2023 Little Yellow Dog auction Mackenzie Keizer holds "Nixon" the 2023 Little Yellow Dog, while Brooklyn Keizer, right, pets him during the annual Little Yellow Dog auction  2023 Little Yellow Dog auction "Nixon," the male teddy bear Bernedoodle born on Oct. 6, roams around the Ho-Chunk Centre during the annual Little Yellow Dog auction in Sioux 2023 Little Yellow Dog auction Rick Grenko, right, and his wife Lynette Meyer meet "Nixon" the teddy bear Bernedoodle puppy before winning the highest bid for "Nixon" at $13 2023 Little Yellow Dog auction Greg and Julie Bakker donated this year's Little Yellow Dog, "Nixon," shown here at the annual Little Yellow Dog auction at the Ho-Chunk Centr 2023 Little Yellow Dog auction The Sioux City All America Band plays during the annual Little Yellow Dog auction at the Ho-Chunk Centre in Sioux City, Iowa, Saturday, Dec. 9, 2023. Local News 2023 Little Yellow Dog auction Watch the 2023 Little Yellow Dog auction held by the Ancient and Effervescent Order of the Little Yellow Dogs to benefit the Goodfellows chari
Attorneys for the gunman who murdered 10 Black people in a racially motivated mass shooting at a Buffalo grocery store are arguing the convicted killer should be exempt from the death penalty.

Since Payton Gendron was 18 years old at the time in May 2022 when he stormed Tops Supermarket armed with an AR-15 and sprayed unassuming shoppers in a predominantly Black neighborhood, his defense team said his brain was still undergoing cognitive development, inhibiting his decision making skills, and should thus be reason enough to spare his life.

"The science is ... clear and uniform: People under 21 are not yet adults and should not be punished as such," they wrote in their Monday filing, according to WHAM-TV. Gendron's lawyers argued against "executing individuals barely old enough to vote, unable to drink legally or rent a car, unable to serve in Congress, and still in the throes of cognitive development."

Gendron, who is white and now 20 years old, is currently serving life in prison on state charges of murder and hate-motivated domestic terrorism after he pleaded guilty to the slayings, according to the Associated Press.

But in a separate federal hate crime case, the government said it plans to pursue the death penalty, citing premeditation and a targeted location carefully chosen to "maximize the number of Black victims," the AP reported.

"Payton Gendron expressed bias, hatred, and contempt toward Black persons and his animus toward Black persons played a role," court documents filed earlier this year read, according to ABC News.

Gendron drove more than 200 miles from his Conklin, New York, to carry out the massacre that claimed the lives of victims between the ages of 32 and 86.
Russian Defence Ministry report on the progress of the special military operation (10 June 2024)

The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue the special military operation.

The Sever Group of Forces have engaged manpower and hardware of the AFU 57th Motorised Infantry, 42nd Mechanised, 3rd Tank Brigades, 113rd, 125th territorial defence brigades close to Volchansk, Veseloye, Goptovka, Radyanskoye, and Tikhoye (Kharkov region).

The Russian troops repelled seven counter-attacks launched by assault groups of the 82nd Air Assault Brigade, 36th Marine Brigade, and 416th Rifle Battalion of the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

The enemys losses amounted to up to 255 Ukrainian troops, nine motor vehicles, 152-mm Akatsiya self-propelled artillery system, two 122-mm D-30 howitzers, and two counter-battery stations.

The Zapad Group of Forces units improved the situation along the front line and inflicted fire damage on the 77th Airmobile, 14th, 43rd, 54th, 63rd, 116th mechanised brigades, 12th special brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and 18th National Guard Brigade near Serebryanka (Donetsk Peoples Republic), Berestovoye, Sinkovka, and Timkovka (Kharkov region).

The enemy lost up to 570 Ukrainian troops and four motor vehicles.

In counter-battery warfare, the Russian troops neutralised one U.S.-made 155-mm M109 Paladin self-propelled artillery system, one U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer, one 152-mm Msta-B howitzer, two 122-mm D-30 howitzers, and one UK-made 105-mm L-119 howitzer were destroyed.

The Yug Groups units improved the tactical situation and delivered strikes at manpower and hardware of the 46th Airmobile, 78th Air Assault, 24th, 28th, 41st, 54th mechanised brigades of the Armed Forces of Ukraine near Dyleyevka, Verkhnekamenka, Katerinovka, Kurakhovo, Dzerzhynsk, and Chasov Yar (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

The enemy lost up to 430 Ukrainian troops and seven motor vehicles.

In counter-battery warfare, the Russian troops hit one German-made 155-mm Panzerhaubitzer self-propelled artillery system, one U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer, one 152-mm Msta-B howitzer, three 122-mm Gvozdika self-propelled artillery systems, and one 122-mm D-30 howitzer.

In addition, one Bukovel-AD electronic warfare station and two AFU field ammunition depots were destroyed.

The Tsentr Group of Forces captured more advantageous lines and inflicted fire damage on the 71st Infantry Brigade, 115th Mechanised, 25th Airborne brigades of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, 109th Territorial Defence Brigades near Novgorodskoye, Kalinovo, Karlovka, and Rozovka (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

Five counter-attacks launched by assault groups of the AFU 59th Motorised Infantry Brigade, 24th, 47th, and 110th mechanised brigades were repelled.

The enemy lost up to 345 Ukrainian troops, four armoured fighting vehicles, including two U.S.-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicles, and two pick-up trucks.

In addition, three U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzers, three 152-mm Msta-B howitzers, three 152-mm D-20 howitzers, two 122-mm Gvozdika self-propelled artillery systems, and four 122-mm D-30 howitzers were eliminated.

The Vostok Group of Forces continued to advance into the depth of the enemys defence and liberated Staromayorskoye (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

The Russian Armed Forces inflicted fire damage on manpower and hardware of the AFU 58th Motorised Infantry Brigade, 72nd Mechanised Brigade, 123rd and 128th territorial defence brigades near Velikaya Novosyolka, Vodyanoye, Neskuchnoye, Urozhaynoye, and Ugledar (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

The AFU losses amounted to up to 140 Ukrainian troops, two motor vehicles, one UK-made FH-70 howitzer, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, and one 122-mm D-30 howitzer.

The Dnepr Group of Forces have engaged the 128th Mountain Assault Brigade of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the 35th Marine Brigade, and the 121st Territorial Defence Brigades near Mirnoye, Nesteryanka (Zaporozhye region), Osokorovka, and Tyaginka (Kherson region).

The AFU losses amounted to up to 60 Ukrainian troops, two pickup trucks, one 152-mm Giatsint-B gun, and one 122-mm D-30 howitzer.

Operational-Tactical Aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles, and Missile Troops and Artillery of the Russian Groups of Forces have hit the command post of the AFU tactical aviation brigade, the field artillery depot, as well as temporary deployment areas of foreign mercenaries, clusters of enemy manpower and military hardware in 147 areas.

Air defence units shot down one MiG-29 aircraft of the Ukrainian Air Forces.

During the day, the Russian Armed Forces intercepted one Neptune anti-ship missile, two U.S.-made HARM anti-radiation missiles, four aerial bombs (French-made HAMMER and U.S.-made JDAM), seven U.S.-made HIMARS and Uragan projectiles, as well as 51 unmanned aerial vehicles.

In total, 611 airplanes and 276 helicopters, 25,514 unmanned aerial vehicles, 528 air defence missile systems, 16,308 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,331 combat vehicles equipped with MLRS, 10,302 field artillery cannons and mortars, as well as 22,413 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation.

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Russian Defence Ministry report on the progress of the special military operation (11 June 2024)

The Armed Forces of the Russian Federation continue the special military operation.

The units of the Sever Group of Forces continue to advance into the depths of the enemy defences and inflicted fire damage on manpower and hardware of the AFU 42nd Mechanised Brigade and the 36th Marine Brigade close to Glubokoye and Tikhoye (Kharkov region).

Two counter-attacks by assault detachments of the 13th Ukrainian National Guard Brigade have been also repelled.

The AFU losses were up to 265 Ukrainian troops, two motor vehicles, one German-made 155-mm Panzerhaubitzer self-propelled artillery system, one 152-mm Akatsiya self-propelled artillery system, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, one 122-mm Grad MLRS combat vehicle, and one Nota electronic warfare station. In addition, one AFU field ammunition depot has been destroyed.

The units of the Zapad Group of Forces has liberated Artyomovka (Lugansk Peoples Republic) and Timkovka (Kharkov region).

In addition, Russian troops have launched the attacks on AFU 3rd assault, 14th, 28th mechanised brigades close to Kupyansk (Kharkov region) and Nevskoye (Lugansk Peoples Republic).

The AFU losses were up to 560 Ukrainian troops, five motor vehicles, one Polish-made 155-mm Krab self-propelled artillery system, one U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer, two 122-mm D-30 howitzers, and two electronic warfare stations. Two AFU artillery ammunition depots have been eliminated.

The units of the Yug Group of Forces have improved the situation along the front line and inflicted fire damage on manpower and hardware of 54th, 93rd mechanised, 79th air assault brigades of the Armed Forces of Ukraine near Konstantinovka, Andreyevka, and Razdolovka (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

The AFU losses were up to 740 troops, two armoured personnel carriers, 12 motor vehicles, one U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer, one 152-mm 2A65 Msta-B howitzer, four 152-mm D-20 howitzers, one 122-mm 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled artillery system, and two 105-mm U.S. M119 howitzers. In addition, three AFU ammunition depots have been destroyed.

The units of the Tsentr Group of Forces have improved the tactical situation and inflicted fire defeat on 24th, 28th mechanised, 68th jaeger brigades of the AFU and the 109th Territorial Defence Brigade near Ozaryanovka, Rozovka, Mayorsk, and Umanskoye (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

In addition, five counter-attacks of AFU 23rd, 110th mechanised, and 142nd infantry brigades have been repelled.

The enemy losses were up to 350 Ukrainian troops, one U.S.-made Bradley infantry fighting vehicle, one U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer, one 2A65 Msta-B howitzer, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, and three 122-mm D-30 howitzers.

The units of the Vostok Group of Forces have captured more advantageous lines and inflicted fire damage on manpower and hardware of the AFU 58th Motorised Infantry Brigade near Urozhaynoye (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

The enemy losses were up to 135 Ukrainian troops, one tank, five motor vehicles, one U.S.-made 155-mm M198 howitzer, and one 152-mm 2A65 Msta-B howitzer.

The units of the Dnepr Group of Forces have hit manpower and hardware of the 128th Mountain Assault Brigade, the 14th Infantry Brigade, and the 37th Marine Brigade of the AFU near Kamenskoye, Nesteryanka (Zaporozhye region) and Tyaginka (Kherson region).

The AFU losses were up to 105 Ukrainian troops, eight motor vehicles, one 152-mm 2A65 Msta-B howitzer, two 152-mm D-20 howitzers, and one 105-mm U.S.-made M119 gun.

Operational-Tactical Aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles, Missile Troops and Artillery of the Russian Groups of Forces engaged AFU manpower and hardware clusters in 118 areas.

In addition, Su-27 and Su-25 aircraft of the Ukrainian Air Force have been destroyed at airfields of departure.

Air defence facilities have shot down 45 unmanned aerial vehicles, two French-made Hammer aerial bombs, and ten U.S.-made HIMARS MLRS projectiles.

In total, 613 airplanes and 276 helicopters, 25,559 unmanned aerial vehicles, 528 air defence missile systems, 16,312 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,332 combat vehicles equipped with MLRS, 10,332 field artillery cannons and mortars, as well as 22,445 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation.

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Russian Defence Ministry report on the progress of the special military operation (12 June 2024)

This morning, the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation delivered a group strike by long-range air- and ground-based high-precision weapons and unmanned aerial vehicles at flight lines and infrastructure of the AFU Air Force base, as well as one temporary deployment area of foreign mercenaries, preparation sites of uncrewed surface vehicles, ammunition and explosives depots.

All the assigned targets have been engaged.

Units of the Sever Group of Forces continued advancing to the depth of the enemys defences. Losses were inflicted on formations of the AFU 42nd Mechanised Brigade, 57th Motorised Infantry Brigade, 82nd Air Assault Brigade, 125th, and 127th territorial defence brigades near Neskuchnoye, Liptsy, Tikhoye, Izbitskoye, Zovtnevoye, Volchansk, and Staritsa (Kharkov region). Six counter-attacks launched by assault detachments of the AFU 36th Marines Brigade and 17th National Guard Brigade were repelled.

The AFU losses amounted to up to 190 Ukrainian troops, four motor vehicles, one Polish-made 155-mm Krab self-propelled artillery system, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, and one BM-21 Grad MLRS combat vehicle.

Four AFU ammunition depots were destroyed.

Units of the Zapad Group of Forces improved the tactical situation along the front lines and inflicted losses on manpower and hardware of the AFU 3rd Assault Brigade, 14th, 43rd mechanised brigades, 1st, and 13th national guard brigades near Kupyansk, Petropavlovka, Zagoruykovka (Kharkov region), Stelmakhovka (Lugansk Peoples Republic), and Serebryansky forestry.

The AFU losses amounted to up to 500 Ukrainian troops, three pickup trucks, one UK-made 155-mm Braveheart self-propelled artillery system, one 152-mm 2S3 Akatsiya self-propelled artillery system, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, two 122-mm 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled artillery systems, and one U.S.-made 105-mm M101 howitzer.

Units of the Yug Group of Forces improved the tactical situation along the front lines and inflicted losses on manpower and hardware of the AFU 30th, 33rd, 41st mechanised brigades, 56th Motorised Infantry Brigade, 79th Air Assault Brigade, and 46th Airmobile Brigade near Zaliznyanskoye, Orekhovo-Vasilyevka, Grigorovka, Chasov Yar, Artyom, Katerinovka, and Kurakhovo (Donetsk Peoples Republic). Two counter-attacks launched by assault detachments of the AFU 10th Mountain Assault Brigade were repelled.

The AFU losses amounted to up to 600 Ukrainian troops, two armoured fighting vehicles, 10 motor vehicles, one U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer, one U.S.-made 155-mm M198 howitzer, one 152-mm D-20 howitzer, and one U.S.-made 105-mm M119 howitzer.

Five AFU ammunition depots were destroyed.

Units of the Tsentr Group of Forces improved the tactical situation and inflicted losses on formations of the AFU 23rd, 110th mechanised brigades, 25th Airborne Brigade, 144th Infantry Brigade, and 109th Territorial Defence Brigade near Novoaleksandrovka, Novopokrovskoye, Progress, Novgorodskoye, Kalinovo, and Vozdvizhenka (Donetsk Peoples Republic).

Seven counter-attacks launched by assault detachments of the AFU 24th, 47th mechanised brigades, and 78th Air Assault Brigade were repelled.

The AFU losses amounted to up to 350 Ukrainian troops, one tank, two infantry fighting vehicles, one U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzer, and one 122-mm D-30 howitzer.

Units of the Vostok Group of Forces took more advantageous lines and inflicted losses on manpower and hardware of the AFU 21st National Guard Brigade, 123rd, and 102nd territorial defence brigades near Neskuchnoye, Velikaya Novosyolka (Donetsk Peoples Republic), and Gulai Pole (Zaporozhye region).

The AFU losses amounted to up to 115 Ukrainian troops, two infantry fighting vehicles, six motor vehicles, and two Czech-made 122-mm MLRS combat vehicles.

Units of the Dnepr Group of Forces inflicted losses on manpower and hardware of the AFU 128th Mountain Assault Brigade and 35th Marines Brigade near Kamenskoye, Pyatikhatki, Stepovoye (Zaporozhye region), and Lvovo (Kherson region).

The AFU losses amounted to up to 80 Ukrainian troops, three motor vehicles, one U.S.-made 155-mm M109 Paladin self-propelled artillery system, and two U.S.-made 155-mm M777 howitzers.

Operational-Tactical Aviation, unmanned aerial vehicles, Missile Troops and Artillery of the Russian Groups of Forces engaged AFU manpower and hardware clusters in 113 areas during the day.

Air defence units shot down nine U.S.-made ATACMS operational-tactical missiles, two French-made Hammer guided aerial bombs, three Olkha MLRS projectiles, and 61 unmanned aerial vehicles.

In total, 613 airplanes and 276 helicopters, 25,620 unmanned aerial vehicles, 528 air defence missile systems, 16,319 tanks and other armoured fighting vehicles, 1,335 combat vehicles equipped with MLRS, 10,372 field artillery guns and mortars, as well as 22,486 units of special military equipment have been destroyed during the special military operation.

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Three new Wisconsin Dells restaurants are offering three different types of fare in time for the busy season.

Courtyard Cafe, Hofbrewzhaus and Asador Mexican Grill and Bar are now open on Broadway in the tourist city.

Courtyard Cafe offers breakfast and lunch fare with an emphasis on limiting gluten content. It is located in Bavarian Village, a German-themed courtyard area on the corner of Broadway and Cedar Street.

Hofbrewzhaus has German and American dishes and a large variety of primarily German beers on tap. The restaurant also has an expansive patio area with pretzel, beer, sausage and lemonade stands, as well as a small performance stage.

Asador Mexican Grill and Bar is a franchise of a Chicago-based chain, with the Wisconsin Dells location its third. The restaurant features a wide variety of Mexican seafood dishes, along with common fare such as tacos and burritos.

Courtyard Cafe

Courtyard Cafe opened on April 28 in a facility that was formerly used as a small performance stage. Nikki Lohr, a Wisconsin Dells resident who owns the cafe with her husband, Andy, said the restaurant specifically has food options for people who want to reduce gluten intake.

The breakfast menu has an egg sandwich menu, pancakes, waffles, omelets, corned beef and vegetable hashes, and skillets. Mini donuts and cinnamon rolls are among breakfast appetizers served, along with a nachos platter featuring waffle pieces covered with scrambled eggs, sausage, bacon, cheese and salsa.

One of the skillets satisfies anyone looking for their meat fill for the morning. The Meatlovers Skillet has ham, sausage and cheddar cheese and is served with toast and a small mixed greens salad with a bacon and onion dressing.

The salad and toast comes with every breakfast meal, and gluten-sensitive bread is available for $2.

Other offerings include biscuits and gravy and a childrens menu with waffles, pancakes, a peanut butter and jelly toast sandwich, and a smaller version of the adult menu breakfasts that includes an egg, hash browns and a choice of bacon, sausage or ham.

The lunch menu includes six salads, including taco, Caesar and cobb salads. Eight appetizers are on the lunch menu, including cheese curds made at neighboring Carr Valley Cheese, chicken tenders and fried pickles.

Nine sandwich and wrap options are available, including a chicken Caesar wrap, Reuben and two chicken sandwiches, which are also available as wraps. Four burgers, including a veggie burger, are also on the menu.

Coffee, mimosas, and Bloody Marys are also available, along with wines and beers.

Courtyard Cafe is open from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. seven days a week. During the summer, Lohr said, a walk-up window facing Bavarian Village will be open from 2 to 8 p.m. and will serve ice cream, alcohol drinks and appetizers. The walk-up window will sometimes be open later than 8 p.m., she added.

Lohr said the Bavarian Village courtyard was her favorite part of the downtown Wisconsin Dells location. Other family members, including Lohrs mother, children and aunt, help run Courtyard Cafe.

Its a whole family affair, she said.

Hofbrewzhaus

Hofbrewzhaus fully opened in mid-May after opening for drink service during the Spring Wine Walk on April 27. The German restaurant and beer bar, which also has its own wine brand, took the place of Latte Stone Brewing Co., a former Guam-themed restaurant and bar, in a century-old building on Broadway.

We have all the classic, traditional German favorites, food items, and 38 lines of draft (beer), Hastings said. Most of those are imported from Germany. We have great relationships with some of the German breweries.

Hofbrewzhaus has 12 food items on its menu, including six appetizers, five entrees and a spinach salad with bacon dressing and hard-boiled eggs.

Appetizers include a radish salad, large Bavarian pretzel, cheese curds and a German charcuterie  meat and cheese  platter. Entrees include a German bratwurst with sauerkraut, a similar cheddar bratwurst, a burger with provolone cheese and sauerkraut, and Leberkase, a beef and pork meatloaf dish.

Bayerische Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan, a German brewery which has been in existence since 1040, has five of its beers at Hofbrewzhaus. Hastings said roughly 80 percent of the 38 taps feature German beers, along with domestic offerings such as New Glarus Spotted Cow and Moon Man.

Owner Melissa Stuckart and her partner, general manager Chaz Hastings, repainted the historic Broadway building blue and white and renovated the fully enclosed front porch, adding a counter with stools across the porch.

It is coming together great, Stuckart said. Everyone is excited. The community is super happy and supportive. Everyone is so great to work with around here.

Stuckart and Hastings have also fully utilized the large patio area located west of the building, adding a stage, food and drink stands, and tables as part of its Biergarten, which is surrounded by speakers playing German music from a radio feed in Germany.

Hastings believes the Biergarten will bring a lot of business to Hofbrewzhaus. A large deck is slated to be added to the area as well. Staff will eventually wear German attire, Hastings added.

Hastings previously owned Von Rothenburg Bier Stube in Germantown before opening Hofbrewzhaus with Stuckart.

Asador Mexican Grill and Bar

Broadways newest Mexican restaurant opened on May 4, and is the third restaurant of the El Asador chain. The other two franchises are on Chicagos West Side.

Asador Mexican Grill and Bar features taco, burrito and torta plates, as well as a 30-taco platter. Steak and seafood combos, including fajita skillets, are also available, along with chicken dinners and enchiladas.

Among Asadors specialties are its six Molcajete dishes, which are shareable meat and seafood entrees served in a large, decorative elevated bowl. One of the Molcajetes, Molcajete de Mariscos, features mussels, crab legs, shrimp and other seafood. The Molcajete de Carnes features chicken, steak, Mexican and Polish sausage, avocado, cactus and grilled onions and jalapenos.

We do Mexican. and then we also have a great selection of seafood dishes, general manager Eddie Vazquez said, adding that some of spicy flavors originate from Nayarit, a state in western Mexico.

Other seafood platters available include Mariscada Dells, a $150 platter with crab legs, mussels, red snapper, prawns, shrimp and octopus. Vazquez said the restaurant also has oysters and other fish offerings.

Drinks at Asador include Mexican beers, margaritas, rice and hibiscus water, lemonade, pina coladas, and soda drinks with chili powder, salt and lime juice.

This building has been here for quite some time, Vazquez said. Its an amazing building. Its big. Its awesome.

Vazquez said he and owner Edith Quintero want to make Asador the spot for Mexican food along Broadway. He said the east end of Broadway in Wisconsin Dells does not attract as many visitors as the west end, and he feels Asador and the other new restaurants can increase tourism in the area.

We need more businesses on this side of town, he said. This is a great location. Were happy to be here in the Dells.

Future Big Boy

Stockard and Hastings are also opening a Big Boy burger franchise on the east side of Wisconsin Dells at the corner of Broadway and Capital Street. The location is the former site of Myrt and Lucys Chat and Chew, which closed last year.

Hastings said he is hoping to open the burger joint in mid-July. Three Big Boy statues are at the site, including one set down on the roof, which Hastings said will be standing once the restaurant is open. A large red chair with Big Boy printed on it is also at the site.
Following the arrests of eight Tajikistan nationals with ties to ISIS who crossed into the United States via the southern border, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials warn it is an alarmingly frequent occurrence.

"Sometimes there is just no information on individuals," ICE Acting Director Patrick Lechleitner told NewsNation Wednesday. "It is quite common where there is just nothing. You don't have anything. There's no criminal convictions, there's no threat information on these individuals."

Lechleitner said officials might learn of concerning information later on, which is what triggered the arrests of the Tajikistan nationals during a cross-country sting Tuesday in New York, Los Angeles and Philadelphia.

How is it possible 8 suspected terrorists with ISIS ties were able to cross the Southern border and have clean background checks?

Sometimes there is just no information on individuals. It is quite common where there is just nothing, ICE Acting Director Patrick Lechleitner says. pic.twitter.com/YTcvMuxa6G  Brian Entin (@BrianEntin) June 12, 2024

An unnamed source said investigators had been monitoring the individuals for about a month, according to CNN.

Authorities agreed to deport the group under ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations. Prolonging the FBI's surveillance could have potentially led to the materialization of a terroristic plot, the source explained.

ICE and the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force confirmed "agents arrested several non-citizens" who are "pending removal proceedings," according to the outlet.

"As the FBI and DHS have recently described in public and partner bulletins, the US has been in a heightened threat environment."
WAUBEKA  Each June, the people of Waubeka venerate perhaps the nations most enduring symbol, celebrating Flag Day, a holiday that escapes the notice of many Americans.

But this unincorporated Wisconsin town about 35 miles north of Milwaukee takes the day seriously. After all, it lays claim to being the birthplace of Flag Day, thanks to a tenacious teacher in a one-room schoolhouse.

Here are some things to know about the obscure flag-waving holiday.

What is Flag Day?

Flag Day commemorates June 14, 1777, when the Continental Congress determined the composition of the nations banner: Resolved, That the flag of the thirteen United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white; that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation.

President Woodrow Wilson issued a 1916 proclamation of June 14 as Flag Day, and, in 1949, President Harry S. Truman signed the formal observance into law. And it falls during Flag Week, after another congressional dictum in 1966.

What about July 4?

Yes, Independence Day makes prominent use of the flag. But the emblem is important enough to have its own day, according to David Janik, a Waubeka native and second-generation president of the National Flag Day Foundation.

July 4th, were celebrating our independence, Janik said. But on Flag Day, were celebrating the birth of our flag, which is the symbol of our country, the symbol that is seen all around the world as the helper, the people who wont leave you out in the cold.

Why Waubeka?

On June 14, 1885, Bernard J. Cigrand, an 18-year-old Waubeka native teaching at Stony Hill School, put a flag in his inkwell and assigned his students an essay about what the flag means to them. Cigrand left the next year for dental school in Chicago, but he never gave up his advocacy for a national day dedicated to the flag.

Cigrand realized his dream in 1916 when Wilson issued his proclamation.

Although he died in 1932, Waubeka never forgot Cigrand, and, in 1946, community leaders established the towns Flag Day celebration, which has run continuously since then.

Any other first Flag Days?

Yes. The earliest mention of Flag Day involves a man named George Morris who organized such a commemoration on June 14, 1861, in Hartford, Connecticut, marked by a patriotic program and prayers for Union Army success in a young Civil War. But apparently, the festivities were never repeated.

Pennsylvanians will challenge Cigrands coronation as Father of Flag Day. Pittsburgh native William T. Kerr began his advocacy in 1888 and a year later became national chairman of the American Flag Day Foundation, holding that position for a half a century. Kerr was among those standing beside Truman when he signed the Flag Day law.

As for the expected friendly rivalry, Janik said his father, the late Jack Janik, took care of that. The elder Janik traveled to Washington and lobbied Congress, which in 2004 adopted a resolution naming Waubeka the birthplace of Flag Day.

What about the essays?

Along with the parade, the bands, the patriotism awards, the military honor guards and a dog named Harlow who turns 8 on Flag Day and sported a red, white and blue boater on her head, there are the essays.

In the spirit of Cigrand and his students of 139 years ago, the Waubeka Flag Day celebration includes an annual essay contest and draws entries from across the nation  this year from New York to Nevada and Wisconsin to Texas.

The Stars and Stripes represent a nation where immigrants like my grandparents are welcomed, where diversity is celebrated and where justice is present for all, wrote Neel Sood, a fourth-grader from Bridgewater, New Jersey.

Adell seventh-grader Ryan Spang wrote that the American flag represents unity. We are one nation, united by our similarities and differences. We support people in our communities in times of need and we cheer them on in times of achievement.

Why isnt it a day off?

Flag Day isnt like Thanksgiving, Memorial Day and a smattering of other federal holidays that generally mean Americans can spend the day off work.

Instead, its officially recognized nationwide, but government services are still open and the mail still gets delivered. Only Pennsylvania marks it as a state holiday, allowing residents to stay home from work and school.

But another backyard barbecue isnt required to feel the love in Waubeka.

Our passion for the flag here is very deep, Janik said. The flag is the symbol of our country  it symbolizes individualism, success, loss, daring, chivalry. People need a compass to guide them, and the flag is a great compass.

OConnor reported from Springfield, Illinois.
First lady Jill Biden is kicking off her husband's outreach to older voters, an effort that will blend rallies and phone banks with social events like bingo nights and pickleball games.

While President Joe Biden is in Italy attending the Group of Seven summit, the first lady will travel to four swing states to launch the Seniors for Biden-Harris effort.

Dr. Biden is expected to visit Reno on Friday as part of that effort. At this time, there's no immediate information on if the event is public, or when or where it will take place.

Older adults are more likely than the average American to vote, and they make up larger shares of the population in some key swing states. Biden, who outperformed previous Democrats with the demographic in 2020, is looking to expand on the gains as his campaign seeks to maximize its chances of defeating former President Donald Trump, the Republican presumptive nominee.

Jill Biden's travels will also take her to Green Bay, Wisconsin; Duluth, Minnesota and Phoenix, the campaign said. While her events will feel like traditional rallies, the campaign also plans to use pickleball events and bingo nights to motivate older voters and keep them activated to help the campaign heading into November.

Seniors are such a critical part of our coalition, and it is vitally important that we engage them this election cycle because they know President Biden is the only candidate in this race fighting for lower prescription drug and health care costs and to protect and safeguard Medicare and Social Security, Biden campaign manager Julia Chavez Rodriguez said. "Dr. Biden is both a trusted voice for seniors speaking to the issues that matter most to them and a galvanizing force to activate our supporters ahead of the election.

Jill Biden had spent much of the last 10 days at a federal courthouse in Wilmington, Delaware, supporting her son Hunter Biden, who on Tuesday was convicted on federal firearms charges. The swing marks her return to the campaign trail after the trying experience for her family.

The Republican National Committee of Nevada and the Trump campaign both responded to the first lady appearing in Reno.

"Jill Bidens visit to Reno comes as senior citizens are dealing with skyrocketing prices, shrinking their hard-earned dollars," said Halee Dobbins, RNC NV Communications Director. "Nevada voters will not overlook the harsh realities they face under failed Joe Biden. Our seniors deserve better than a visit to play Bingo, rather than real solutions to the problems Bidenomics has created."

"President Trump delivered on his promise to protect Social Security and Medicare in his first term, and President Trump will continue to strongly protect Social Security and Medicare in his second term," said a statement from Karoline Leavitt, Trump Campaign National Press Secretary in part. "The only candidate who poses a threat to Social Security and Medicare is Joe Biden--whose mass invasion of countless millions of illegal aliens will, if they are allowed to stay, cause Social Security and Medicare to buckle and collapse."

(The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
A prescribed burn that authorities say "got away" from fire crews near Pyramid Lake is nearly full containment.

The fire, which started on Wednesday, briefly closed a portion of SR 447 and shut off power to the Nixon area.

As a result of the power outage, they temporarily closed the tribal administration building and other Nixon facilities.

According to Chief Don Pelt with Pyramid Lake Fire & Rescue, at approximately 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, due to a wind shift, their prescribed burn "got away from them and ran up the hill."

Update: June 12, 11:15 a.m.:

According to Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe in an online post the fuel mitigation burning is now moving away from SR-447 and into Dead Ox.

They advise that multiple cars have been seen driving on the dirt roads in the Dead Ox area and ask that people be cautious and consider other routes.

(Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe contributed to this story.)

Update: June 11

NDOT says in an online post, minor travel delays are expected.

Due to controlled burning and fire mitigation delays should be expected from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily through Thursday, June 13.

Travel lanes along SR-447 in the Nixon area will be reduced with a pilot car alternating traffic.

Use caution when driving through the work zones.

Original Post: June 10, 2024

Pyramid Lake Fire and EMS Department along with The Nevada Department of Transportation (NDOT) is planning to conduct fuel mitigation burning along the sides of SR-447 between Dead Ox and Little Nixon.

Burning will begin on Tuesday, June 11 and go through Thursday, June 13.

It will begin each morning at 8 a.m. until approximately 4 p.m.

Smoke may be seen in the valleys.

(Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe contributed to this report)
With the school year officially over, the Food Bank of Northern Nevada is kicking off its Kids Cafe summer program.

The program offers children aged two to eighteen free meals since they won't be able to get meals at school during the week.

The food bank says that the number of people in need is still continuing to grow in our community.

"We have seen our number of families needing our help skyrocket over the last year. We are helping about 153,000 people every single month, and those numbers are going up a little bit every single month," said Jocelyn Lantrip, director of marketing for the Food Bank of Northern Nevada.

Because so many people utilize this resource, there are going to be 27 locations throughout the Reno-Sparks area.

There is no paperwork of forms necessary for children to qualify, but you must eat the food on site.

For one mother, this program has been a big help for her over the last few years.

"Summers are tough because usually during the school year we have school meals provided so this is a nice little extra, especially with the economics the way that they are just having that extra snack time just helps for moods and hunger," said Shannon Clark.

This program will run through the beginning of August.

The food bank says that meals will be provided every day of the week, and some sites will offer food on Saturdays.

To find out more about the Kids Cafe schedule and locations, you can visit fbnn.org.
President Joe Biden joined the leaders of the Group of Seven major democracies on Thursday for the annual summit being held this year in an Italian resort city where they are expected to address a U.S. proposal on a $50 billion loan to Ukraine using seized Russian assets and other issues.

Where is the G7 summit taking place?

It's being held in the luxury resort Borgo Egnazia in Puglia, southern Italy, that has been made to resemble a medieval village with white-washed buildings and olive groves.

How long will the G7 Summit go on?

The summit kicked off Thursday and will continue until Saturday.

Who are the G7 leaders?



Along with Biden, the others include Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, French President Emmanel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Italian Prime Minister Giorgi Meloni.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel are representing the European Union.

Is Russia at the G7 summit?

Moscow has been excluded from the conferences since Russia illegally annexed Crimea in 2014.

Who else will attend the G7 summit?

Pope Francis is expected to address the gathering on Friday about his fears over the use of AI and the continuing fighting in Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, the Associated Press reported.

What is Biden's G7 summit proposal for Ukraine?

The president has proposed using profits from seized Russian assets as collateral for a multi-year loan to Ukraine, which would allow Kyiv to use the funds to purchase much-needed weapons instead of U.S. taxpayers.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will also meet with leaders at the summit to press the case for military aid.

What are the G7 summit discussions about the Israel-Hamas war?

Biden will ask his fellow leaders to support the recent cease-fire proposal that has been accepted by Israel, but which Hamas has not agreed to.
Charles Gary Sullivan, who was sentenced to 15 years in prison in 2023 for the 1979 murder of Julia Woodward, was denied parole.

Sullivan, who is 78, will not be eligible for parole again until August 2027.

"I applaud the parole boards decision to deny Sullivan parole, said Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford. Sullivan's crime robbed a young woman of her life, her family of a dear loved one and her community of its sense of peace. He deserves the full punishment he received.

Prosecutors say Sullivan was arrested in 2019 after his DNA was linked to Woodwards murder. In June 2023, he was sentenced on a no contest plea of second-degree murder to a definite term of 15 years with parole eligibility after five years. As Sullivan was given credit for the four years he served awaiting sentencing, he was eligible for parole this year.

The case was originally investigated by the Washoe County Sheriff's Office and submitted to the Office of the Attorney General for consideration in 2018.

The case went to a grand jury in 2019, and the grand jury returned an indictment charging Sullivan with one count of open murder.

Sullivan was arraigned in November 2019.

(Nevada Attorney General's Office contributed to this report.)

JUNE 27, 2023:

A man who pleaded no contest to a 1979 Reno killing was sentenced to 15 years in prison on Tuesday.

72-year-old Charles Gary Sullivan will be eligible for parole after five years.

On May 4th, 2023, Sullivan changed his plea to no contest.

Sullivan has already served 1,400 in jail and will count towards his sentencing.

Nevada Attorney General Aaron Ford and Washoe County Sheriff Darin Balaam held a press conference directly following the sentencing.

"Our job is justice. Today we're here to announce that justice has been served on behalf of Julia Woodward who nearly 45 years ago in 1979 was murdered and her body was mangled. Her killer fled the state, he likely though he evaded justice, but I'm here to tell you that he did not," said Attorney General Aaron Ford.

In the sentencing, the defense argued that the case was not as clear cut as it seems, and that the Sullivan's DNA found on Woodwards jeans did indicate that he was with her, but it did not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Sullivan murdered Woodward.

However, prosecutors brought up a 2007 case in which Sullivan was found to have sexually assaulted another young women.

The AG's Office, Washoe County Sheriff's Office, and FBI have been working on the reopened cold case investigation for nine years.

"This case also wouldn't have gotten sentencing without the assistance of the Washoe County Forensics Science Division they worked tirelessly with detective and evidence to investigate the case," said Washoe County Sheriff Darin Balaam.

Woodward's mother Cecily O'Conner gave a statement directly after the sentencing.

"I don't talk about closure because for me there is no closure I will always miss my daughter forever and think about her but anyway I am relieved to have this resolution. I wish the sentencing would have been harsher but this is good, it's a resolution, and anyway I'm grateful to everybody who brought this about," said O'Conner.

---

UPDATE, June 6, 2023

On May 4th, 2023, Charles Gary Sullivan changed his plea to no contest.

According to the court documents, Sullivan could face between five and fifteen years in the Nevada Department of Corrections.

Sullivan's sentencing is scheduled for June 27th, 2023.

---

UPDATE, February 26, 2020

A trial date is now set for the man accused of killing a young woman in Reno 40 years ago.

Charles Gary Sullivan is scheduled to go on trial on January 25, 2021.

---

UPDATE, January 2020:

In a court appearance on Monday, lawyers for Charles Sullivan filed to have the charges against him dropped.

He is accused of killing a young woman in Reno 40 years ago.

The Reno District Court did not make a ruling on Monday.

His lawyers say there was not enough evidence to charge him with the murder of Julia Woodward, who was found dead in Hungry Valley in 1979.

UPDATE, December 2019:

Lawyers for a man accused of killing a young woman in Reno 40 years ago want the charges against him dropped.

His lawyers filed a Writ of Habeas Corpus on Monday, saying there was not enough evidence to charge 73-year-old Charles Sullivan with the murder of Julia Woodward, who was found dead in Hungry Valley in 1979.

They say due to the lack of evidence, the charges against Sullivan should be dropped.

A hearing for that has not yet been set.

Original Story, November 2019:

Prosecutors are tying a 73-year-old Arizona man to two unsolved Reno-area killings in a bid to keep him in jail following his indictment in the bludgeoning death of a California woman more than 40 years ago.

Charles Gary Sullivans defense attorney, David Houston, didnt argue for his clients release Tuesday after Sullivan pleaded not guilty to murder in the 1979 bludgeoning death of 20-year-old Julia Woodward.

Sullivan remains jailed without bail pending another hearing in January.

In Nov. 7 court filing, state Attorney General Aaron Ford and prosecutors identified Sullivan a suspect in the killings of two other women in the Reno area: a 23-year-old in 1979 and a 17-year-old in 1978.

Sullivan isnt charged in those cases.

He was arrested in August in Flagstaff, Arizona.
One Nevada Credit Union is hosting its free community shred event to benefit SPCA of Northern Nevada and the community.

It is happening now until 2 p.m. today, at the One Nevada Credit Union Lemmon Valley branch located at 200 Vista Knoll Parkway, Reno.

Original Story, June 10:

One Nevada Credit Union is hosting a community shred event to benefit the community and SPCA of Northern Nevada.

The event will take place on Thursday, June 13 at their Lemmon Valley Branch, located in the Lemmon Valley Sky Vista shopping center at 200 Vista Knoll Parkway, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The event offers the community a secure way to dispose of sensitive documents and protect personal information.

The SPCA of Northern Nevada will be on-site collecting clothing and cash donations for their thrift store.
Three wildfires have hit our area recently.

Fire is often unpredictable, but the U.S. Forest Service, along with other federal agencies, are doing a lot of work with local and state departments to help prevent them.

United States Department of Agriculture Deputy Secretary, Xochitl Torres Small, made a trip to the silver state Wednesday.

Part one of her visit, included her stopping into Gardnerville.

Here, members of the Forest Service, East Fork Fire Protection District, and the Nevada Division of Forestry shared what work needs to be done.

Back in 1996, the Autumn Hills Fire burned 3,800 acres, and burnt down four homes near Kingsbury Grade.

They fear that this area may be susceptible for strong wildfires due to accumulated hazardous fuels.

Which is why they are putting it as a top priority.

"Nevada took a lot of initiative to identify as a priority area for investment and then the Biden-Harris Administration also identified it as a priority investment," Deputy Secretary Small said.

This effort is a Good Neighboring Authority project that received funding through President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law under the Nevada Shared Stewardship agreement.

This agreement helps local, state and federal jurisdictions come together to work out how they can reduce the threat of wildfires.

"I wish I could've counted the times that people talk about shared work because in a place like this there's so many jurisdictions," Deputy Secretary Small said. "There's different responsibilities and so it can be hard if you let those get in the way, but what I got to see today is how partnerships bridge those gaps."

The project's start date is planned for July and would include work with hand thinning, mastication and chipping.

The Deputy Secretary announced yesterday that an additional $430,000 will be put towards these efforts in Northern Nevada.

"We anticipate continuing to see investment here and that being used to leverage private partnerships, state funding and other opportunities to invest here," she says.

The second part of her trip brought her to the Carson City sawmill.

After a brief presentation of the benefits of it, she was given a tour of the facility.

Once she got to walk around the sawmill, she said it's nice to see where all these investment dollars are going and how they're helping with wildfire mitigation in our region.

"This is a crucial part of that strategy and those partnerships with local companies especially with sawmills help manage a forest in a healthy way," Deputy Secretary said.

The Tahoe Basin is currently overcrowded with trees, which effects forest health and poses for greater risks of fires.

"10 or 20 percent of trees are dead and that is just standing fuel for the next catastrophic wildfire," said Kevin Leary, Chairman of Tahoe Forest Products.

That's why federal organizations like the U.S. Forest Service and Nevada Division of Forestry are putting in efforts to help with this issue.

"It's kind of counter intuitive to think that you need to remove trees from the forest to have a healthier forest," Leary said.

Once those trees are cut down, this sawmill takes them and repurposes them for other resources.

Which is a big reason why they are gaining support from folks in Washington D.C.

"One of President Biden's priorities is his wildfire crisis strategy," Deputy Secretary Small said. "Investing in key places where we are protecting rural communities and investing in forest health for water sheds as well."

The sawmill just started production a few months.

They received about $2 million in grants from the President's Bipartisan Infrastructure Law.

Which is only the fraction of the cost it took to build the facility, but they say that partnership can really help them in others ways.

"What's really going to matter from our federal partners is that support to get the forest cleaned up," Leary said
U.S. reporter Evan Gershkovich, jailed in Russia on espionage charges, will stand trial in the city of Yekaterinburg, Russian authorities said Thursday.

Russias Prosecutor Generals office said an indictment of Gershkovich has been finalized and his case was filed to the Sverdlovsky Regional Court in the city in the Ural Mountains.

Gershkovich is accused of gathering secret information about a facility in the Sverdlovsk region that produced and repaired military equipment, the Prosecutor Generals office said in a statement, revealing for the first time the details of the accusations against the jailed reporter. Gershkovich has been charged with espionage.

The officials didnt provide any evidence to back up the accusations.

Gershkovich was detained while on a reporting trip to Yekaterinburg in March 2023 and accused of spying for the U.S. The Federal Security Service, or FSB, alleged at the time he was acting on U.S. orders to collect state secrets but also provided no evidence. Washington designated him as wrongfully detained.

He was the first U.S. journalist taken into custody on espionage charges since Nicholas Daniloff in 1986 at the height of the Cold War. Gershkovichs arrest shocked foreign journalists in Russia, even though the country had enacted increasingly repressive laws on freedom of speech after sending troops into Ukraine.

(Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without permission.)
President calls for expanding imports from developing nations

08:59, June 13, 2024 By Mo Jingxi ( China Daily

President Xi Jinping delivers a video speech to the opening ceremony of the celebration for the 60th anniversary of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, June 12, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]

President Xi Jinping said on Wednesday that China will actively seek to expand imports from other developing countries, step up cooperation in trade, investment, and development, and help implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

As this year marks the 75th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and the country is advancing Chinese modernization on all fronts through high-quality development, there will be new and greater opportunities for world development, he said.

Xi made the remarks when delivering a video address at the opening ceremony of the 60th-anniversary celebrations of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development.

The organization is an intergovernmental body headquartered in Geneva that promotes the interests of developing countries in world trade.

Xi said that since its founding, UNCTAD has vigorously advanced South-South cooperation, advocated North-South dialogue, promoted a new international economic order, and made important contributions to global trade and development.

He announced that over the next five years, China will donate $20 million to UNCTAD to support the implementation of the UN's 2030 Agenda, ensuring that no country is left behind.

In a world where peace and development face new challenges, the Chinese president said it is important to foster an international environment for peaceful development.

All countries, and particularly major ones, should pursue true multilateralism, advocate an equal and orderly multipolar world, abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and support a more effective role for UNCTAD and other multilateral agencies, he said.

Xi stressed the need to advocate universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization, promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, properly resolve development imbalances and other issues, and make the global governance system more just and equitable.

He said it is important to build an open, inclusive, and nondiscriminatory environment for the digital economy, follow the people-centered, AI-for-good principle and strengthen AI-related rules and governance within the framework of the UN.

Efforts should be made to help developing countries join the trend of digital, smart and green development, he added.

Noting that China will always be a member of the Global South and the developing world, Xi pledged that the country will work together with all parties to give the world a bright future of peace, security, prosperity and progress.

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun)
A 30-year old mother of four was found hanging from a dock in Texas in an apparent suicide but local police believe she was killed, and already have two persons of interest in mind, according to police and local reports.

On May 31, officers responded to reports of "a woman hanging off a dock of a marina" in the 700 block of Davis Road, according to the League City Police Department, adding that callers told authorities that the body appeared to be "lifeless" and "hung from a rope."

Responding officers and League City Fire Department staff quickly pronounced the woman, later identified by friends as Giselle Tapia-Salazar, dead at the scene.

Now, nearly two weeks after her body was discovered, police say that foul play is suspected.

"Because of the position of her arm, we believe she probably passed away somewhere else. Rigor Mortis set in and then she was moved, her arms stayed in that position," League City Police Lt. Eric Cox told KHOU.

Authorities are still waiting on a medical examiner's report and a toxicology report to determine her true cause of death, according to The Daily News, which also reports that no stab or gunshot wounds were discovered on the body.

The outlet also says police have two person's of interest in the case, and are combing through 2,000 security clips from the area.

Police aren't the only ones who noticed the awkward positioning of the body. Christian Allen, a neighbor who lives around the marina, also spoke to KHOU, revealing that the body was found partially submerged off the dock.

"At first, I thought it was a mannequin and then we realized... we recognized her," Allen said, adding that he "didn't buy the whole suicide thing."

After discovering the body, police confirmed that they spoke to a man at the dock who was "possibly the victim's boyfriend," who became, "very distraught and not come out of his boat" when he learned the news.

The boyfriend, later identified as James Hart, told reporters that the whole ordeal, "feels like a nightmare you can't wake up from."

A GoFundMe has been set up by the victim's brother to cover funeral expenses.

"...Giselle was a single mother of 4, leaving behind 3 little ones for my mother and I to raise," her brother wrote.

"God has a plan for everyone and the only thing giving my family peace is knowing that my sister no longer suffers."


ASX IPO Offer Closed

Sydney, June 13, 2024 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Resouro Strategic Metals Inc. ( ASX:RAU ) ( CVE:RSM ) ( 8TX:FRA ) ( RSGOF:OTCMKTS ) is pleased to provide an update in relation to the Company's planned listing on the Australian Securities Exchange("ASX") and announce that the concurrent placement has closed.



The Company lodged a Prospectus with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) on May 1, 2024 to raise AUD$8.0 million (approximately CAD$7.2 million) via the offer of 16,000,000 CHESS Depository Interests ("CDI") over common shares in the capital of the Company at an offer price of AUD$0.50 (approximately CAD$0.45) per CDI (the "Offer").



Resouro is pleased to announce that the Offer closed on June 12, 2024. The Offer was met with overwhelming enthusiasm from investors across the board, including institutional investors, high net-worth individuals, and retail investors. The demand from investors signals a remarkable vote of confidence in the company's vision, strategy, and growth potential.



Chris Eager, CEO, commented;



"Resouro is delighted with the strong support for the Offer and would like to thank existing shareholders for their continuing support, as well as welcoming a number of new investors to the Company's register. We are excited to continue accelerating drilling and feasibility activities at Tiros and thereby build shareholder value for all Resouro shareholders, and we look forward to updating the market in the near term in this regard."



Resouro intends to use the net proceeds raised pursuant to the Offer to increase shareholder value through the identification, exploration, definition and development of its Tiros Rare Earth Elements and Titanium Project, and Novo Mundo Gold Project as well as to meet working capital requirements.



Taylor Collison Limited, an Australian broker, acted as the Lead Manager for the ASX Offer. As compensation for its services, the Lead Manager will receive a capital raising fee of AUD$440,000 (approximately CAD$400,000) which is equal to 5.5% of the aggregate gross proceeds of the Offer and will be issued 1,843,643 stock options in the Company at an exercise price of CAD$0.68, vesting immediately, and expiring three years from the date of issue. The options will be subject to a 24-month escrow period.



The listing of the Company on the ASX remains subject to the Company meeting the ASX's listing criteria and the Company is working through the standard conditions of admission. Subject to the satisfaction of ASX's conditions to admission, the Company is targeting a listing date on the ASX of Friday, 14 June 2024.



Upon successful completion of the listing, the Resouro securities will be tradable on the TSX Venture Exchange ( CVE:RSM ), the Frankfurt Stock Exchange ( 8TX:FRA ), the Over-the-Counter market in the United States ( RSGOF:OTCMKTS ) and the Australian Stock Exchange ( ASX:RAU ), providing investors with increased flexibility and accessibility.





About Resouro Strategic Metals Inc.





Resouro Strategic Metals Inc. (ASX:RAU) (CVE:RSM) (OTCMKTS:RSGOF) (FRA:8TX) is a Canadian-based mineral exploration and development company focused on the discovery and advancement of economic mineral projects in Brazil, including the rare earth elements and titanium Tiros Project and the Novo Mundo and Santa Angela gold projects.



The Tiros Project, located in northern Minas Gerais, Brazil, is an exploration project focused on rare earth elements and titanium covering an area of approximately 450 km2. The Tiros Project comprises 17 exploration permits, and one exploration permit application held by the Company's Brazilian subsidiary; and 6 exploration permits and one exploration permit application that have been validly assigned to the Company's Brazilian subsidiary and are awaiting ANM approval. The Company holds, via its wholly owned Brazilian subsidiary, a 90% interest in the Tiros Project and the remaining 10% interest in the Tiros Project is held by RBM Consultoria Mineral Eireli (RBM), an unrelated third-party vendor.



The Novo Mundo Project is located in the Alta Floresta Gold Province close to the northern border of the state of Mato Grosso, central Brazil. Within the licensed area is the small town of Novo Mundo, which is 30km west from the larger town of Guaranta do Norte. It comprises three exploration permits. The Company also has another interest in an exploration permit, being the Santa Angela Project, which is not considered material to the Company's operations. Interests in the Novo Mundo Project and Santa Angela Project are held via the Company's wholly owned subsidiary.

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A 19-year-old Mississippi man told a friend that he didn't want to go into a store moments before he was gunned down Tuesday evening, his mother said.

Quintavious McCray was killed at a convenience store in Jackson, Miss., and his mother, Kami McCray, said she wants justice for her son and police to clear his name.

She said a black car pulled into the store's parking lot as shots were fired at the store, hitting her son.

"He told the boy, 'I didn't I don't want to go to the store,'" McCray told WLBT-TV.

"This is what they told me, said out his mouth. He said, 'I don't want to walk to the store. I feel like if I walk to the store I'm going to die. ... He felt it.'"

A number of incidents were occurring in the area at the same time of her son's shooting, and police initially believed Quintavious was involved.

His mother said those accounts are inaccurate.

"It's just sad that there's people out there that just want to harm people ... kids like that. Y'all have mothers, y'all have kids, sisters, mamas. Y'all don't have no sympathy, and it's sad," McCray told the station.

Police said they haven't been able to verify whether Quintavious was involved in any of the incidents, WLBT reported.

Police Chief Joseph Wade said the investigation is ongoing.

"We want to clear his name, want to make sure he had nothing to do with it," he said.

"And why someone would say he has something to do with it, we'll find out. We'll get to the bottom of it. She backs us up with a mother and whatever the issues are, whatever the information was given to us that was bogus or not true. We'll follow up on it as well. But the bottom line, we still have a shooter out here," Wade said, the station reported.
The Association of Indian Forging Industry (AIFI), the General Body of the Indian Forging Industry in India has announced the appointment of Mr. Ashwani Jotshi as its new Secretary General. With an illustrious career spanning over three decades at the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA), Mr. Jotshi brings a wealth of experience and a proven track record of leadership to AIFI.

Mr. Vikas Bajaj Managing Director and CEO Bajaj Motors and President of AIFI, congratulated Mr. Jotshi on his new role, stating, "We are delighted to welcome Mr. Ashwani Jotshi as the Secretary General of AIFI. His extensive experience and visionary leadership will be invaluable as we navigate the challenges and opportunities in the forging industry. We look forward to his strategic insights and initiatives that will further strengthen our industry."

Mr. Ashwani Jotshi, in a brief statement on his vision and goals for AIFI, said, " I am thrilled to take on the role of Secretary General at the Association of Indian Forging Industry (AIFI). The forging industry plays a crucial role as a key link between critical manufacturing segments and end-user industries. With its presence in vital sectors like Automotive, Off-Highway, Railroad Equipment, Agriculture Machinery, Defense, and Aerospace, the Indian Forging industry is globally recognized for its technical expertise. However, it faces challenges such as a shortage of skilled manpower, rising energy prices, low-cost imports, increasing raw material costs, and inadequate support for micro and small units. I am eager to work alongside the AIFI team to address these challenges and propel the Indian Forging industry towards greater success and global competitiveness."

During his tenure at ACMA, Mr. Jotshi led several notable projects and achieved significant milestones. He facilitated OEM customer visits, organized tech shows, and conducted B2B meetings, buyers-sellers meets, and exhibitions. He engaged with state governments on industry issues, conducted sessions on laws and regulations like GST, and initiated numerous training programs, workshops, and competitions. Mr. Jotshi was also responsible for expanding ACMA Western Region across Maharashtra, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh, establishing new offices in Pune, Ahmedabad, and Indore. During his tenure at ACMA, Mr. Jotshi travelled overseas on various assignments which helped to strengthen global connections. He also initiated the launch of HR, CFO, and Digital Forums, and promoted industry development through engaging activities.

As the new Secretary General of AIFI, Mr. Jotshi plans to focus on several immediate initiatives aimed at enhancing the association's impact and reach. He intends to broaden AIFI's membership base to include a wider range of stakeholders, increase the number of educational and knowledge-sharing sessions, and form strategic partnerships to benefit the association and its members. Additionally, Mr. Jotshi will also initiate forums for young business leaders and digital innovators and conduct comprehensive industry surveys to gather insights and drive development. His appointment marks a significant step forward for AIFI as it continues to advocate for the forging industry and address its critical challenges.
Today, Bumble, the women-first dating app, launched an India-wide integrated campaign that highlights Opening Moves, featuring new content with Bollywood actors Khushi Kapoor and Vedang Raina. Opening Moves is the dating apps new feature added to their Make The First Move functionality that gives women the option to set a question that their matches can respond to, creating a new way to engage with connections while keeping women in control.





In Bumbles new film, Khushi and Vedang bond over Bumble's new Opening Moves feature, with Khushi asking Vedang questions like Most iconic first date idea? and Whats your guilty pleasure? Their interactions unveil personal anecdotes, showcase their vibrant chemistry, and highlight the shift in the dating experience by offering more choice in how women can make the first move on Bumble.

Speaking on this partnership, actor Khushi Kapoor shares, "Being a part of this collaboration is really exciting for me. It represents a crucial shift in contemporary dating dynamics, empowering women to take charge of their own romantic journeys. I'm honoured to work with Bumble on this campaign which contributes to the transformation of the dating landscape, which is something that's really important to me and my generation."

Bollywood actor Vedang Raina added, "Making the first move is not always easy, and I love that Bumble has continuously chosen to stay true to their women-first philosophy by updating how women can continue to initiate conversations on their own terms with the introduction of Opening Moves! I'm thrilled to be a part of a campaign that's spearheading a shift towards a more equitable dating atmosphere. I hope that by watching us try Opening Moves, women see that they can use it to prioritise their preferences and dating approaches."

Bumbles campaign and this partnership come at a time when womens experiences have evolved, especially regarding empowerment in online dating. Keeping true to Bumbles mission, equality remains a priority in relationships with the overwhelming majority* (92%) of women stating it is a top marker in romance. However, how women define equality has evolved with almost 9 in 10* (88%) single women surveyed on the app globally stating that today, equality is about personal choice and autonomy to decide whats right for you.

Commenting on the campaign launch, Lucille McCart, APAC Communications Director for Bumble said, "We know that its important for women to have control over their experience, but weve also heard that some women feel like they are doing all of the work. In response to this, were introducing a choice in how you connect on Bumble. Now, more than ever, we need to advocate for women, so were considering this reset to be Bumbles vow renewal - to build the next chapter of dating that continues to put women at the forefront.

As we introduce these updates, our core principle of empowering women in every connection and relationship remains unchanged. We're excited to collaborate with Vedang and Khushi for our India campaign on Opening Moves, which underscores Bumbles continued commitment to making dating better for women by putting their experiences first, she adds.

Women can use one of Bumbles recommended Opening Moves, or craft their own. According to Bumbles research*, nearly half of women (46%) surveyed on Bumble shared that having more ways to start a conversation would make their dating app experience even better.

Whether using Bumble's suggested Opening Moves or crafting their own, women now have robust tools at their disposal to forge meaningful connections on the platform.
An angry Donald Trump demanded in an F-bomb-filled phone call with House Speaker Mike Johnson after he was found guilty last month in his New York hush money trial that "we have to overturn this," according to a report.

The former president has been ranting about Democrats weaponizing the justice system against him, a campaign he ramped up after his conviction in Manhattan criminal court of 34 counts of falsifying business records to cover up a $130,000 payment to one-time porn star Stormy Daniels in the weeks before the 2016 election, Politico reported.

In the days after his conviction on May 30, Trump reached out to Johnson, the Republican leader of the House, "dropping frequent F-bombs" in the call, the report said.

"We have to overturn this," Trump told him, according to Politico, in the call in which the former president asked him to head up the effort.

Johnson, who was among GOP lawmakers who trekked to Manhattan to show their support for Trump, "sympathized" with the former president, the report said.

The Louisiana Republican had been critical of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg's case and his belief that the justice system was being abused since before he took over the speakership.

In an interview on Fox & Friends on May 31, Johsnon called for the Supreme Court to "step in" to overturn Trump's conviction.

"There's a lot of developments yet to come, but I do believe the Supreme Court should step in, obviously, this is totally unprecedented," Johnson said.

"I think that the Justices on the court - I know many of them personally - I think they are deeply concerned about that, as we are. So I think they'll set this straight," he added.

Johnson and Trump have spoken multiple times since May.

The former president is in Washington, D.C., Thursday where he's meeting with Republican lawmakers in the House and Senate.
In an era where Google wields unparalleled influence over the digital landscape, small, independent publishers find themselves navigating an ecosystem, where visibility and survival are increasingly dictated by the search giants algorithms. The dominance of Google Search raises critical questions about fairness, competition, and the future of a diverse and healthy web. As small and independent publishers struggle to compete with larger, algorithmically favoured entities, there is a growing discourse around potential solutions  both regulatory and market-based  that could level the playing field.

The fourth and final part of this series delves into the heart of these discussions, exploring the viability of proposed measures and their implications for fostering a more equitable digital environment. Can new regulations curb Google's overwhelming power? Are there market-driven innovations that could support independent voices and ensure a vibrant, diverse internet?

Darshil Shah, Director, ChtrSocial, doesnt think any regulatory bodies can solve the concerns of independent publishers and promote a healthier web ecosystem. His bet is, if Microsoft plays their cards right with the OpenAI partnership by their side, they can even the playing field and bring a healthier balance in the search ecosystem with co-pilot, Bing, and ChatGPT.

In the long term, says Shah, SEO practices are sure to be impacted. Understanding of how Google crawls for SERP results forms the base of most on-page and off-page optimization practices today. Its sure to change, as the parameters for Google AI algorithm to pick preferred snippets will need to be reverse-engineered by SEO experts over time.

Siddharth Devnani, Co-Founder & Director, SoCheers, reckons that the concerns of independent publishers regarding Googles AI Overviews are being addressed through market-driven solutions like content licensing deals. OpenAI has been signing deals with publishers like News Corp & Vox, and with platforms like Reddit. They license their content to train OpenAIs AI products. This creates a revenue stream for publishers and ensures the AI has access to high-quality information. While there havent been confirmed announcements about a similar deal between many other players, these types of market-based solutions are likely to be the direction this moves in. Its a symbiotic relationship, and a way for publishers to monetise in these strange internet times. he concludes.

To promote a healthier web ecosystem and address the concerns of independent publishers, a multifaceted approach involving regulatory solutions is essential, opines Ranjit Thind, Director of Media and Tech, Asymmetrique. According to him, strengthening anti-trust laws can prevent monopolistic practices, promoting competition and ensuring no single entity, like Google, dominates to the detriment of smaller players.

In extreme cases, breaking up large tech companies might be necessary to reduce their market dominance. Transparency requirements, such as mandating algorithm transparency and providing clearer guidelines, can help independent publishers understand content ranking and compete more fairly. Supporting independent journalism through subsidies, grants, and public funding can also maintain diverse media sources, while strengthening data privacy regulations can level the playing field by limiting the data large companies can collect and giving users more control over their information, Thind says.

He points out that market-based solutions also play a significant role in enhancing the web ecosystem.

Encouraging publishers to diversify their traffic sources beyond Google, by leveraging social media, email newsletters, and optimizing content for alternative search engines, can reduce dependency on a single platform. Forming collaborative platforms, such as publisher coalitions and content syndication networks, can help smaller publishers share resources and increase visibility. Innovative revenue models, including subscription-based systems and crowdfunding, can provide steady revenue streams less reliant on ad revenue and search engine traffic. Additionally, utilizing technological innovations like AI, automation tools for content optimization, and personalized content can help independent publishers compete more effectively with larger entities, he says.

Thind is of the opinion that industry-led initiatives further support the development of a healthier web ecosystem. Developing ethical advertising networks that prioritize independent publishers can secure fair ad revenue without being overshadowed by larger players. Establishing industry standards and best practices for content quality, SEO, and ethical journalism can maintain a high-quality, diverse web environment. Certification programmes for high-quality, independent content can help these publishers gain recognition and trust from readers and advertisers alike, Thind says.

Russhabh R Thakkar, Founder and CEO, Frodoh World, feels that there are no simple solutions, but a multi-pronged approach promoting a balanced web ecosystem could help. This, according to him, includes increased transparency from Google on how their AI ranks and interprets content across languages/ regions. Collaborative efforts between publishers, startups and regulators to develop ethical AI governance principles supporting an unbiased, quality-focused internet are also valuable. However, market forces will ultimately favour engines that cultivate user trust through reliable, nuanced information delivery. Independent publishers adept at reinforcing their brand credibility and producing nuanced narratives that AI recognizes as authoritative can secure long-term success, he concludes.

Googles algorithm changes and AI Overviews will significantly impact the SEO landscape, online publishers, the visibility of high-quality content, and the overall user experience.

The long-term impacts of Googles transition to an AI-driven search and answer engine include potential shifts in SEO practices and content visibility. While Googles power over the web is substantial, regulatory measures, market-driven innovations, and ethical AI governance principles could support independent publishers and ensure a more diverse and vibrant internet.

Parting shot:

The large language model generates fluent language based on the provided sources, but fluent language is not the same as correct information, concludes Suzan Verberne, a professor at Leiden University.
Adgully has been turning the spotlight on the entrepreneurs who fought against all odds to bring their dreams to fruition in our special series  START-UP STARS. We at Adgully wholeheartedly support the Vocal for Local movement and have been featuring numerous local/ homegrown businesses, brands, and Apps in the country launched in the last few years.

In conversation with Adgully, Harshit Aggarwal, CEO and Founder of Novamax Air Coolers, speaks about the vision behind founding Novamax, government initiatives and policies, challenges encountered during the early stages, in-house research, development and production, and much more.

What was the initial vision behind the founding of Novamax?

Novamax was founded in 2018 with a vision to revolutionize the industry. Our journey began by introducing coolers designed to meet the needs of a diverse customer base at an affordable price. Our commitment towards innovation and quality ensures our products enhance comfort and satisfaction for all.

What challenges did you encounter during the early stages of Novamax, and how did you overcome them?

During the early stages, we faced some of the major challenges like constant weather fluctuations and competition from local players offering low-quality products at low prices. We overcame these by implementing a multifaceted approach, focusing on consistent production and superior quality. By emphasizing on innovation and reliability, we differentiated our products and built customer trust, ensuring our coolers stood out in the market, which is cluttered with substandard products.

In what ways does Novamax Air Coolers distinguish itself from competitors in the market?

Our unique in-house research, development, and production set us apart from the other competitors in the market. Our diverse product line, including commercial and dessert coolers, stands out for its environmental friendliness, ease of cleaning, virus resistance, and straightforward installation. These features ensure our coolers are high-quality, user-friendly and sustainable.

What strategies have enabled Novamax to become the 5th largest player in the industry?

Our focus on providing high-quality appliances at a reasonable rate is one of the reasons behind us becoming the 5th largest player in the industry. Additionally, we launched engaging Ad films themed around Indian elections and newsroom chaos to connect with consumers. Also, our products are backed by strong warranties and excellent after-sales service.

What was the initial investment amount for Novamax? What were the primary sources of funding during its early stages, and did the company seek any external investments or loans?

Our initial investment was Rs 3 crore. When we started in 2019, we sold 20,000 air coolers. However, from 2022 we saw significant growth, selling over one lakh units each season. We primarily relied on the founders savings and support from family and friends, without seeking external investments or loans. As of March 2024, we have made a revenue of Rs 160 crore, selling close to 2 lakh air coolers season-to-season.

How has Novamax achieved a significant turnover of Rs 160 crore since its inception with an initial investment of Rs 3 crore?

We achieved a significant turnover of Rs 160 crore by focusing on high-quality, affordable products that meet diverse customer needs. Strategic marketing, including engaging ad campaigns and a strong digital presence, boosted brand awareness. Our commitment to excellent after-sales service and leveraging technology for streamlined operations ensured customer satisfaction and loyalty. This customer-centric approach and continuous innovation drove our rapid growth and substantial market presence.

How have in-house research, development, and production contributed to Novamaxs commitment to quality and innovation?

In-house research, development, and production are integral to our commitment to quality and innovation. By controlling every aspect of the process, we ensure strict quality standards and encourage continuous improvement. This has allowed us to swiftly implement innovative features, tailor products to customer needs, and maintain consistency across our offerings.

Have any government initiatives benefited Novamax Air Coolers?

Programs promoting energy efficiency and environmental sustainability have aligned with our focus on eco-friendly products. Additionally, support for local manufacturing under the Make in India initiative has helped us streamline production and reduce costs. These initiatives have enabled us to enhance our product offerings, expand our market presence and contribute to our growth and success in the industry.

What advice would you offer to young entrepreneurs in your sector?

To young entrepreneurs in our sector, we advise focusing on quality and customer satisfaction. Always remember to understand your market and offer value through reliable and affordable products. Invest in strong marketing strategies, including digital media, to build brand awareness. Lastly, be adaptable and ready to innovate, as staying ahead of industry trends is crucial for long-term success.

What are Novamaxs future plans for expanding its product portfolio, and how do these plans align with its goal of becoming the top player in the industry within the next three years?

We plan to expand our product portfolio by venturing into new categories such as washing machines and air conditioners. Also, over the next few years, we aim to significantly increase our sales while maintaining our commitment to top-notch customer service. By using technology to streamline processes and enhance convenience, we are positioning ourselves to become the top player in the industry within the next three years.
To consolidate its business in the northern Indian market, MullenLowe Group has merged the operations of its two entitiesMullen Lintas and Lowe Lintasin New Delhi. This decision aligns with the company's strategy to enhance operational efficiency. When you want to achieve efficiency, a lot of synergies come into play. Delhi market has different dynamics and the nature and kind of clients are different as well. We keep improvising, stated S Subramanyeswar, Group CEO of MullenLowe Lintas Group and Chief Strategy Officer (APAC) at MullenLowe Global, in an interview with Campaign India.

This merger will not affect the Mullen Lintas entity itself. However, its Delhi NCR office has been closed, with its operations now integrated into the Lowe Lintas Delhi NCR office. Naveen Gaur, Group COO of Growth and Innovation at MullenLowe, will lead the combined operations. Naveen has been given the additional charge of Mullen Lintas. He will be looking after both the agency businesses now, Subramanyeswar confirmed. Gaur has been managing the merged operations since January 2024.

The agency's Delhi client portfolio includes notable brands such as Havells, Dulux, and Vadilal. Recently, the company launched the State of States initiative in partnership with Quantum Consumer Solutions. This initiative aims to provide detailed insights into India's diverse market and analyze 30 different cultures to better understand various domains and foster the creation of future brands.

In 2023, MullenLowe introduced a new global identity and updated positioning featuring an evolved octopus, designed by MullenLowe US. This new identity unifies 57 markets worldwide and symbolizes a kindred spirit that visually depicts how brands need to grow today.
Team Pumpkin, a leading integrated creative and digital marketing agency has announced the opening of its new office in Canada. This expansion marks a significant step forward in the company's global growth strategy and its commitment to serving clients across the North American market.

Team Pumpkin already boasts established offices in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, and Kolkata, solidifying its presence across key Indian cities. The Canada office will act as the central hub for their North American operations, focusing on delivering a comprehensive suite of integrated marketing and tech solutions tailored to international brands with a presence in the region.

We are thrilled to be expanding our presence into North America, with Canada as our launchpad for even deeper client relationships, said Ranjeet Kumar, Co-founder and CEO at Team Pumpkin. North America is a dynamic and growing market with a strong demand for integrated marketing solutions. By establishing a central hub here, we will be well-positioned to enhance the support we provide to our existing clients and forge deeper connections with potential partners across the continent.

Adding Further, Swati Nathani, Co-founder, Team Pumpkin, said, This marks a crucial chapter for our global expansion strategy. Our Canadian hub will be a powerhouse for tech-driven solutions from consultation to development. We'll offer a full spectrum of services, encompassing everything from cutting-edge tech and product development services and full range of marketing services social media, performance marketing, content creation etc. Through a comprehensive approach, with a strong focus on the latest technological advancements, we aim to drive top notch results for our clients. We've already begun assembling a talented team in Canada that is committed to setting new benchmarks for Team Pumpkin. We're excited to push the boundaries of creativity and redefine what's possible, not just in North America, but for our clients worldwide.

The agency was established in 2012 as a social media marketing agency, but it quickly blossomed into a full-service, 360-degree digital powerhouse, leading successful campaigns for international brands like Moozoom, XTC - Xtreme care, Vision Express, Pernod Ricard, Bosch, Brain gym jr., Wyng, Vedanta USA, American Standard, Hubdialer and Centrepoint to name a few.
Delhi Faces Severe Water Crisis Amidst Blame Game Between AAP and BJP 2

Delhi is currently grappling with a severe water crisis, experiencing a shortfall of 50 million gallons per day. This alarming situation was highlighted by AAP Water Minister Atishi on Thursday, who made an urgent appeal for citizens to conserve water.

Atishi emphasized that while restraining the tanker mafia is necessary, it alone wont solve the crisis. She pointed out that the average water production has significantly decreased, falling from 1,000-1,005 million gallons per day to 951 million gallons per day as of June 12. This decline has severely impacted areas at the tail end of the water pipeline network.

The water crisis is exacerbated by an unprecedented heatwave, leaving Delhiites in a dire situation. Both the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) are engaged in a blame game, accusing each other of failing to address the crisis effectively. Atishi assured that the Delhi government has taken all necessary measures, including issuing challans for water wastage and disconnecting unauthorized water connections.

Moreover, over 1,000 tankers are currently supplying water to areas lacking pipeline access. However, Atishi stated that even restraining the tanker mafia would not fully resolve the issue, as it only accounts for a minimal amount of the daily water shortfall. She called for a collective effort from the public and political will to overcome this challenging situation.
Tragedy in Kuwait: Fire Claims Lives of 40 Indians, Others Injured 2

A tragic fire incident in southern Kuwaits Mangaf area has claimed the lives of 40 Indians and injured over 50 others, according to officials on Wednesday. The fire broke out at dawn in a building housing around 195 migrant workers from various countries, including Pakistan, the Philippines, Egypt, and Nepal.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the incident as saddening and held a meeting with key officials, including External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and NSA Ajit Doval. Following the meeting, Modi announced ex-gratia relief of Rs 2 lakh for the families of the deceased and directed the government to extend all possible assistance.

Indian authorities are working closely with their Kuwaiti counterparts to investigate the incident and repatriate the mortal remains. External Affairs Minister Jaishankar has spoken to Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya, who assured a thorough investigation and necessary support. Minister Kirti Vardhan Singh is traveling to Kuwait to oversee the relief efforts.
An Augusta, Ga. man has been arrested after investigators say he sent pictures and messages through Snapchat to a 12-year-old Alabama girl.

DeKalb County Sheriff Nick Welden said Jehad Noman Saloum, 21, was arrested in Tampa, Fla. He was booked into the DeKalb County Detention Center on charges of electronic solicitation of a child.

He remains in jail on $150,000 bond.

The investigation began Feb. 2, when officers received a report of a 12-year-old receiving messages of sexual solicitation from an unknown man.

Welden said investigators had very little initial information. It took working with the Regional Organized Crime Information Center in Nashville to identify Saloum, Welden said.
The country music festival Kickoff Jam, slated to include headliners Garth Brooks, Carrie Underwood and Alabama, has been canceled, according to Billboard. The festival had been set to take place Aug. 30-Sept. 1 at Frank Brown Park in Panama City Beach, Florida.

After the success of Gulf Coast Jam (held May 30-June 2) this past weekend in Panama City Beach, we realized the weekend after Memorial Day is a much better time to host a festival, Kickoff Jam producers stated in a post on the festivals Instagram page. So, we are going to cancel Kickoff Jam and provide refunds.

In addition to Brooks, Underwood and Alabama, the festival was to include Randy Travis, Oak Ridge Boys, Pam Tillis, Randy Houser and Lauren Alaina, among others.

Three-day general admission tickets for the festival started at $299. Three-day general admission preferred tickets started at $799 and included a $20 per day food credit and access to a preferred viewing area. VIP tickets started at $1,399 and included a $40 per day food credit.

According to a post on the Kickoff Jam Facebook page, refunds have already begun processing and will be credited back to the original payment method. Purchasers should have their refunds within 7-10 business days from the announcement and expect refunds by June 21. You can go here to see more information.
Given all the water flowing through Lower Alabama, youd expect to find plenty of opportunities to explore with a kayak, canoe or paddleboard. And youd be right.

Theres an abundance of waterways, and on any of them you can find access points. Theres also been a trend toward blueway development: Mobile County has been developing a blueway for several years and says its approaching a point where it will begin focusing public attention on potential trail sites. The Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant program has mapped some of Baldwin Countys many access points into an Eastern Shore Blueway.

Other blueways and kayak trails in the region are a little further along, offering incredible access to unique coastal ecosystems and even opportunities for overnight trips. Heres a look at some of the best:

The camping platforms on Alabama's Upper Bartram Canoe Trail don't offer much in the way of amenities, but it's hard to argue with the views you get, as with morning coffee at Dead Lake Island.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

The Upper Bartram Canoe Trail

North of Stockton in the Mobile-Tensaw Delta, the state maintains six campsites. Two are land-based, the rest consist of floating platforms; theyre reachable via a network of public and private launches. The official trail guide lists a variety of itineraries one can take among them, and theres an excellent interactive website that helps plot trips and reserve campsites. Navigating the delta is not to be taken lightly, but the Upper Bartram trail offers wonderful opportunities to plunge into the wonders of Americas Amazon.

RELATED: Kayak getaway: Three days on Alabamas Upper Bartram Canoe Trail

The Perdido River is lined with countless beaches of fine gravel or sand, meaning you're never far away from a good spot to stop for a meal or a swim. On the Alabama side, the land along the Perdido River Canoe Trail is owned by the state.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

The Perdido River Canoe Trail

The Perdido River forms the squiggly line that separates Alabama from Florida at the western tip of the Panhandle. Its been the subject of an exceptional conservation effort, and one piece of that, the Perdido River Wildlife Management Area, stretches for 19 miles along its shore. Alabamas Perdido River Canoe Trail consists of a series of launches and shelters along the winding blackwater river. Its simply an incredible public resource for anyone wanting to plot an overnight trip. The same excellent website that serves the Bartram Trails provides interactive mapping and reservations for the Perdido trail.

RELATED: Perdido River Canoe Trail: Treasure for kayakers, campers is growing

The Mudhole Creek Shelter is the northernmost campsite on Alabama's Lower Bartram Canoe Trail, making it the one farthest from Causeway and Bayway traffic.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

The Lower Bartram Canoe Trail

If youre venturing out on the Upper Bartram Trail, youre going into a wilderness where the interaction of river current and tidal flow mean you cant always take upstream and downstream for granted. The Lower Bartram is a bit more beginner-friendly. It consists of three platform campsites north of the Causeway in Mobile. Each offers the chance to spend a night among the grassy expanses of the lower Delta. Again, the state website provides tons of information and a reservation system.

RELATED: Paddling away from it all: A night on Alabamas Bartram Canoe Trail

The Jeff Friend Kayak Launch on the north shore of Little Lagoon provides easy access to a body of protected water west of Gulf Shores.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

Coastal Alabama Back Bay Blueway  Gulf Shores

Stop by the Gulf Shores Welcome Center and theyll be happy to give you a nicely printed, splash-resistant brochure on local kayaking opportunities, and a couple on local kayak rental companies. On the Gulf Shores side, there are some nice launches that give access to the protected waters of Little Lagoon, partially bordered by the Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge, and Gulf State Parks Lake Shelby and Middle Lake. If you want a guided experience, Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism maintains an online guide to local rental and paddle tour operations.

Orange Beach Waterfront Park provides parking and a sandy access point from which to launch a kayak and explore waters around Bear Point and Wolf Bay.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

Coastal Alabama Back Bay Blueway  Orange Beach

The Back Bay Blueway map identifies a lot of launches in Orange Beach. To be honest, many of them suffer from limited parking and sketchy access, so it pays to scout out a site before committing. The shorelines here are much more developed than in Little Lagoon or Gulf State Park. But the opportunities are still there. Cotton Bayou provides access to the busy waters inside the Perdido Pass, for example. If you prefer to get closer to nature, look a bit further north to the Graham Creek Nature Preserve, which provides a dedicated kayak launch with floating dock. And heres one thats not on the trail map: Put in at the Josephine Park Boat Launch in Elberta and when you hit the waters of Cotton Bayou, youll be just a few minutes paddling away from the burgers and bushwackers of Pirates Cove.

RELATED: Where does the Bushwacker Trail begin? We rank 5 of the best
Little Lagoon beckons: a long, thin, mostly shallow expanse of water sparkling in the sun just west of Gulf Shores, walled off from Mobile Bay to the north by the bulk of the Fort Morgan peninsula and from the Gulf of Mexico to the south by the thin strip of land that supports West Beach Boulevard and a skyline of big beach houses and low condos.

This little put-in spot isnt much, just a loop of gravel road that approaches a small sandy beach. Theres abundant evidence that its a kayak-friendly spot, from the vehicles parked nearby to the marks in the sand where the stubby keels of small boats were dragged into the water. You might even find a row of brightly colored plastic kayaks just sitting there, the property of some local outfitter, idle between rental trips. It all makes for plenty of assurance that youre at liberty to put your own vessel in here. Even the name is inviting: The Jeff Friend Kayak Launch.

Welcome to the Coastal Alabama Back Bay Blueway. Little Lagoon is as good a place as any to start exploring.

Drag the boat in, settle into the seat, propel yourself a little way out. Poke down with a paddle every now and then, you might be surprised by how shallow it stays, how far out. When youve got a couple of hundred yards, turn 180 degrees and face north, back to where you started. To your left, the green expanse of Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge. To your right, development. Its not the wall-to-wall concrete towers of central Orange Beach, but it still shows how houses and piers tend to pop up on any parcel not set aside for preservation.

Where next? Going west, you can skirt the shoreline of the refuge, which sweeps around the entire west end of the Lagoon. Paddling across to the south puts you in more developed territory, though there are spits of wild land here and there that let you feel like youre doing some exploring. In the distance you may see groups picking their way along the shallows, or kayak anglers out in the open.

There are other launches to the east, on both sides of the lagoon, and from one of them you might paddle all the way to its west end, where youll be looking up at the backsides of Gulf Shores businesses. If you want, you could even cross under Ala. 59 and into a marshy zone leading to Gulf State Park and its Lake Shelby.

The Blueway isnt necessarily a fully developed concept. Theres a limited version of a map on the Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism website. To get the real thing, you have to stop by the Gulf Shores Welcome Center on the way into town and pick up a free copy. It gives you locations for 21 launches spread across four zones  Fort Morgan, Little Lagoon, Gulf State Park and Orange Beach/Wolf Bay.

Orange Beach Waterfront Park is one of several launch points that kayakers can use to explore waters around Bear Point. At right, a sign shows the level of the storm surge from Hurricane Ivan.Lawrence Specker | LSpecker@AL.com

So far, so good. But the launches arent all created equal. Some put you on the south shore of Mobile Bay, others on waters north of Orange Beach that contain the Intracoastal Waterway, and all of these expose you to the trifecta of wind, waves and tidal flow. Not all have ample parking (and its bad manners to park a trailer-less vehicle in a spot designed for one pulling a boat trailer). Some, particularly in Orange Beach, are better described as places where you could, technically, launch a kayak rather than a kayak launch. Even the official guide warns that at a few, you might have to portage your boat over rocks, or risk damage to marshes by launching.

All of which is to say: If a kayak is among the toys youre hauling down to the coast for your vacation, the opportunities are plentiful. It just pays to scout them out a little before you plunge in.

You might also consider using a rental service or an outfitter. Gulf Shores & Orange Beach Tourism maintains an online guide to many local rental and paddle tour operations. Sift through them and you can find everything from simple rentals to guided tours to fishing guides.

Easton Colvin, who works for the tourism bureau and specializes in outdoor activities and watersports, is an avid kayak fisherman himself. He said kayaking is a growing draw for visitors partly because of the accessibility.

Really, its about the ease of access and youre setting your own schedule, he said. Like, you can rent a kayak for the week and if you dont feel like doing it two days out of the week, you dont have to do it. But also, we talk about all the water that we have, weve got 32 miles of beach right here going to the Florida line. But when you consider the fact that were an island and its not a normal-shaped island, its not just a strip, the amount of shoreline we have got back through here is insane.

Not all of it is for beginners. In particular, anyone thinking about going offshore needs to be mentally and physically prepared for the effort it can take to handle waves, currents and tides. Some areas have significant boat traffic. But even those can be the gateway to quieter waters. The high-traffic area around the Perdido Pass in Orange Beach is a prime example, Colvin said.

Coming out of that Boggy Point Launch [on Marina Road in Orange Beach], its just a quick little paddle across the channel right there and youre at Robinson and Bird islands and youre fishing that big old grass flat right there, he said. You can run through there and fish all those docks, all through the canal, all of that stuff.

He also enjoys fishing out at the west end of the Fort Morgan peninsula, where two boat ramps are listed on the Blueway map. Make that fishing, and nature-watching.

I was out in Fort Morgan last year, last fall, and saw a bald eagle and an osprey fighting in the air. Im on a kayak and Im just trying to fish and Im like, Oh, theres a bite  I missed it. Oh, theres a bite  I missed it. Because Im over here watching this fight.

Chris Wiber of WildNative Tours said operations such as his can help people make the most of their visit. WildNative has operated for about 15 years, he said, and it offers a wide variety of guided experiences from the Mobile-Tensaw Delta to the coast. A popular option is a three-hour dolphin and wildlife kayak tour departing from the Oyster Bay Marina in Gulf Shores.

I recommend guided tours, he said. People from out of town, first of all, are not going to be familiar with our flora and fauna.

WildNative focuses on inshore tours, in part because aside from fishing, theres not really much to do offshore. Guided tours also provide an element of safety, he said, and that could be important because on the coast, even sheltered waters may be subject to rough conditions. Despite being fully separate from the Gulf and the Bay, he said, Little Lagoon is open enough for winds to whip up some considerable wave action. People can really struggle with it, he said.

If youre looking for a really beginner-friendly trail, Wiber suggested checking out the Graham Creek Nature Preserve, off Wolf Bay north of Gulf State Park.

But back to Little Lagoon. Its accessible, its sheltered and its accessible via three public launches on the Back Bay Blueway map. Its an appealing spot, said Gulf Shores city spokesman Grant Brown.

Brown, an avid kayaker himself, said he likes the waters around Oyster Bay and the Bon Secour River. Its just amazing backwaters, he said.

But Little Lagoon is an inviting spot where youre unlikely to get into trouble, he said. He suggested a trip starting at Mos Landing, a boat launch a bit east of the Jeff Friend Kayak Launch. Its geared more toward powerboats, but its in a park and has full restroom facilities close at hand.

On the south side, just south of Mos Landing, where West 10th Street goes north and south, theres a peninsula thats got a little point, he said. Thats actually city property. You can actually take your kayak from Mos Landing and paddle straight across [to the south], pull your kayak up on that little sandy point and walk to the beach at the West 10th Street beach access. So you can actually connect the Gulf of Mexico to the little lagoon via kayak and the crossing, which is pretty cool.

Overall, Brown said, kayaking isnt just another thing to do while youre at the beach. Its one that puts you closest to the elements of coastal life that residents treasure the most.

I think its an awesome experience for people who really want to get off of the public beaches and just experience what its like to live in this coastal community, he said.
The Republican National Convention is being prepared to nominate Donald Trump next month whether or not the former president is able to attend because of his hush money conviction, according to a report.

Plans are being made in Mar-a-Lago, Trump's Florida home, and in Milwaukee, where the convention will be held starting on July 15, in case the former president is unable to attend and makes an appearance remotely, NBC News reported, citing sources.

If Trump is sentenced to home confinement, the report said, the RNC is creating a convention-themed stage at Mar-a-Lago and a huge screen at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee.

"If you look at what has been released about the stage at our convention, it's going to be the highest-tech stage ever," a Republican operative who has toured the convention site told NBC. "It will allow the campaign to utilize people not in Milwaukee to be projected into the hall."

The operative said the possibility of Trump being put on house arrest was not discussed during tours of the convention site, but people were informed that he could hold events from Mar-a-Lago.

The Trump campaign told the network that planning is underway to "highlight the party and officially designate President Trump's nomination."

"President Trump will be featured as an active part of this official event and celebration of our pathway to victory in November," senior adviser Brian Hughes told NBC News.

After the story was published Thursday, Hughes sent another statement.

"At no time has convention planning involved any option than President Trump in person to accept his formal nomination as president," it said.

Trump was found guilty May 30 of 34 counts of falsifying business records to disguise a $130,000 payment before the 2016 election to former porn star Stormy Daniels.

He is scheduled to be sentenced July 11, days before the convention gets underway, and faces a fine, probation or a jail sentence. Home confinement is also an option.
An Alabama man charged in a string of violent crimes stretching from central Alabama to Georgia has been sentenced in the kidnapping and sexual assaults of two teen girls in Prattville.

Michael Jerome Butler, 37, pleaded guilty April 8 to two counts of first-degree kidnapping, two counts of first-degree rape, two counts of first-degree sodomy, robbery, and sexual torture.

Butler appeared Thursday morning before Autauga County Circuit Judge Joy Pace Booth, who sentenced the Greenville man to eight consecutive life sentences.

Butler is set to go to trial in November for the unrelated murder of a St. Clair County woman.

The violent 2022 crime spree happened while Butler was on mandatory release from the Alabama Department of Corrections.

CJ Robinson, district attorney for Alabamas 19th Judicial Circuit, described Butler as a monster and said he shouldnt have been on the streets.

The bottom line is simple. A monster like Michael Butler was in prison on his fourth felony by a court out of south Alabama, but was he released early without an ankle monitor (which was required) then failed to show up for supervision, Robinson said. Butler drove to our circuit and began his reign of terror.

There is no excuse, no justification, and no dollar amount that can soften the nauseating reality that these unspeakable acts of violence could have been avoided, the district attorney said.

The investigation began on Nov. 3, 2022, when two 17-year-old girls were carjacked and abducted as they left a Prattville Walgreens. The teen victims did not know Butler.

Butler took them to a remote location and sexually assaulted then at gunpoint.

The abduction happened about 8:30 p.m., that Thursday and it was just several hours later that investigators put Butler leaving the area in the victims car.

Investigators tracked Butler to Georgia - where he is accused in an armed home invasion, shooting, robbery and other crimes- and then back into Alabama.

Authorities at the time described as everybodys worst nightmare.

Unfortunately, he committed the murder in St. Clair County before we could get our hands on him, Prattville police Chief Mark Thompson said at the time. Theres no doubt he would have done more.

Victoria Malet (St. Clair County Sheriff's Office)

Just days later, on Nov. 6, 2022, 54-year-old Victoria Malets body was found about 11 a.m. off Cook Springs Road in Pell City. The discovery was made in a rural, wooded area and Malet had been shot multiple times.

Butler was captured when Leeds police officers, having received a lookout bulletin, set up surveillance on Interstate 20. Officers spotted the suspects vehicle and confirmed Butler was in the vehicle.

Police tried to stop the vehicle, but Butler refused to stop.

Leeds police Chief Paul Irwin said officers pursued Butler until he ran off the road and down an embankment. Butler then ran away on foot but was captured by law enforcement officers from the Leeds and Moody police departments, and the St. Clair County Sheriffs Office.

Butler was in possession of multiple guns.

Court records show Butler has a long list of arrests dating back to 2006, mostly for property crimes.

He pleaded guilty in 2017 to theft of property and was sentenced to 10 years in prison. It wasnt immediately clear when he was released from prison.

Robinson has been a vocal opponent to prison reform and has used Butlers criminal history to paint a picture of what can happen when inmates are released early without the supervision necessary to track them and maintain public safety.

I am so proud of the work of the Prattville Police Department in spearheading the multi-agency efforts to apprehend this evil soul, he said. While Chief Thompsons officers did an amazing job, the, true heroes are the two young women who lived through every parents worst nightmare.

Robinson said he has spent time with both girls and their families.

Neither girl ever lost her will to survive, Robinson said. They are not victims, they are survivors.

Sadly, when the State of Alabama went all-in on an experiment called prison reform in 2016, we committed to raising a generation of young people who have watched their parents/guardians, older siblings, and their friends face minimal to zero consequences for criminal acts, he said.

Robinson said nearly a decade of failed leadership, lies from special interest groups, and reckless policies based on skewed statistics infested our communities with drug dealers, thieves, violent offenders and sexual predators who continue to leave a trail of victims in their path.

We were routinely misled to believe our prisons were full of nonviolent drug addicts while thousands were being released with every type of prior conviction you can imagine, he said.

Thankfully, the last two legislative sessions we have taken great strides to begin re-establishing accountability and slow down the revolving door of violent offenders being released back into society after serving only a fraction of their sentence.
search is underway for a woman who is charged in the abuse/neglect death of her young special needs son.

Birmingham police are searching for Serena Starkey. She is a 53-year-old white female.

The investigation began March 2 when Birmingham Fire and Rescue Service was dispatched to a person down call at the Extended Stay America on Cahaba Park Circle off U.S. 280. It was about 7:30 a.m. that Saturday.

Aston Starkey, a 13-year-old boy with Downs Syndrome, was rushed to Grandview Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.

Sgt. LaQuitta Wade said South Precinct officers, as well as homicide detectives, responded to the hospital and launched an unclassified death investigation. Shelby County DHR also launched an investigation.

The preliminary investigation revealed Aston died under suspicious circumstances, Wade said.

On June 6, Shelby County Coroner Lina Evans notified Birmingham police that Astons autopsy showed he died as result of malnutrition and dehydration complicated by neglect. The medical examiners office ruled the manner of death a homicide.

The murder warrant against Starkey was issued June 7 by the Shelby County District Attorneys Office.

Authorities have been searching for the mother since then.

Aston was originally born in Florida. He and his mother moved around frequently, authorities said, and had been living in Birmingham for about a year. Aston was not in school and was rarely, if ever, taken to the doctor, authorities said. They may have previously lived in Montgomery.

Aston is Birminghams 67th homicide this year. Of those, seven have been ruled justified.

Anyone with information on Starkeys whereabouts is asked to call Birmingham police at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.
A child was rushed to the hospital Thursday afternoon following a shooting in eastern Jefferson County.

Center Point Fire and Rescue and Jefferson County sheriffs deputies were dispatched just after 2 p.m. to Hidden Valley mobile home park on Adam Drive.

Fire Chief Brad Dahlen said the child sustained a gunshot wound to a lower extremity.

The child was taken to Childrens of Alabama with non-life-threatening injuries.

Sheriffs spokesman Henry Irby said the preliminary investigations indicates the 2-year-old child was in a vehicle with his mother and an adult male when he found a gun and accidentally shot himself.
Gov. Kay Ivey joined Birmingham Mayor Randall Woodfin, Coca-Cola Bottling Co. United CEO Mike Suco and other officials Thursday for the ceremonial groundbreaking on a $330 million new campus for Coca Cola United in Birmingham.

This new campus will create jobs and secure existing ones, further boosting our economy, Ivey said. Lets celebrate by getting some dirt turned and drink some Coke.

Coca Cola officials passed out 8 oz. glass bottles of Coke for a ceremonial toast on the grounds of the former Stockham Valve property alongside Interstate 20/59 at the Tallapoosa Street exit.

Construction will take three years to complete.

When it moves to the new campus in 2027, the new facility will retain 750 jobs and add up to 50 more.

The new headquarters for the Coca-Cola Bottling United Co. is expected to become a landmark entranceway to the City of Birmingham.

Its one of the largest investments by a private company in Birmingham history.

Coca-Cola United was founded in 1902 at 109 North 24th Street in Birmingham after Crawford T. Johnson Sr. moved from Chattanooga to start the Birmingham Coca Cola Bottling Co. with franchise rights hed bought from bottlers in Tennessee.
Russias deployment of a naval flotilla to Cuba on Wednesday was generally consistent with routine military posturing by Moscow  with one exceptional detail, Jake Sullivan, the U.S. national security adviser, told reporters aboard Air Force One on Wednesday.

There are elements of this one that are different, that are distinct, he said. They have a submarine associated with this port visit that they have not had before.

The first deployment of a nuclear submarine to Cuba since the end of the Cold War has served not only as a message to the Biden administration of Moscows displeasure with continued U.S. support for Ukraine, but also of its increasing ability to stalk U.S. coastlines with stealth submersibles  a growing concern for the U.S. military, multiple officials familiar with the matter told McClatchy and the Miami Herald.

Just last month, the head of the U.S. Northern Command warned Congress that Moscow could soon deploy 12 similarly advanced nuclear submarines split evenly between the Pacific and Atlantic, creating a persistent conventional threat to the United States.

The threat will only become more acute later in the decade, Air Force Gen. Gregory Guillot said, once the Yasen-class submarines are regularly armed with hypersonic missiles capable of traveling many times the speed of sound.

U.S. officials are now assessing whether the current Russian deployment, which will culminate in military exercises in the Caribbean, could be the beginning of a pattern of Russian submarine activity that will require a more sustained change in U.S. force posture.

The Kazan, a Yasen-class sub, joined three other Russian combat vessels that U.S. officials characterized as routine visitors to Cubas shores.

The deployment is something we watch closely, carefully, Sullivan said.

THEY WILL DEFINITELY LOSE HER

As the Kazan breached the waters of the port of Havana on Wednesday, Russian state media reported that the vessel had demonstrated it is capable of quietly approaching U.S. shores within 50 kilometers, or about 30 miles. U.S. officials acknowledged to McClatchy on Tuesday that the Russian fleet had skirted the coast of Florida by a similar distance on its approach to Cuba.

If she wants to hide, they will definitely lose her, she will break away, said Mikhail Budnichenko, director of the submarine program, as quoted by TASS, a Russian state-run media organization. This is a very secretive ship, this is the latest achievement of Russian science and technology.

The Kazan, a nuclear-powered vessel capable of carrying and firing nuclear cruise missiles, is a state-of-the-art submersible that is part of a newly designed fleet intended to replace Russias aging Soviet-era nuclear submarines.

A U.S. official told McClatchy and the Herald that U.S. military assets never lost track of the Kazan on its approach to Havana. McClatchy confirmed on Tuesday that the U.S. Northern Command had dispatched three guided-missile destroyers  the USS Truxtun, USS Donald Cook and USS Delbert D. Black  as well as a Coast Guard cutter and a Boeing P-8 maritime patrol aircraft to patrol the Russian military movements.

But Moscows advancements in submarine technology have accelerated in recent years. Last year, Guillots predecessor warned Congress that Yasen-class submarines like the Kazan could begin routinely patrolling U.S. coasts this year or next.

The threat is absolutely increasing, Gen. Glen VanHerck told lawmakers, referring to the Russian submarine deployments, now not only the Atlantic, but we also have them in the Pacific.

Its just a matter of time  probably a year or two  before thats a persistent threat, 24 hours a day, VanHerck added. That impact has reduced decision space for a national senior leader in a time of crisis.

Last month, Guillot told the Senate that Moscows intent to deploy a dozen submarines across the Pacific and Atlantic would enable the Russian Navy to pose a persistent conventional threat to critical infrastructure throughout most of North America.

The threat will only become more acute later in the decade when [Russian submarines] are armed with the Tsirkon hypersonic missile, Guillot said.

U.S. officials told McClatchy and the Herald that the Kazan is not known to be carrying hypersonic missiles on its current deployment.

But TASS quoted another unnamed Russian official on Wednesday stating the Kazan and its escorts could be equipped with such powerful weapons that a close approach to the U.S. coast would not even be necessary.

A sub wouldnt need to come as close as 50 kilometers to the U.S. shore, TASS quoted the official as saying, but in principle, it can.

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(Miami Herald staff writer Nora Gamez Torres contributed to this story.)

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2024 Miami Herald. Visit at miamiherald.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Many people were left questioning the safety of Floridas waters following two separate shark attacks along Floridas Panhandle on Friday  so, how safe is it?

According to the International Shark Attack File, the odds of being killed by a shark are 1-in-4,332,817 which, when compared to the 1-in-5 odds of dying from heart disease, demonstrates the fact that fatalities from shark attacks are exceedingly rare.

And officials note that the most recent attacks, which occurred June 7 about 4 miles apart within a span of 90 minutes along Walton Countys beaches, were also very rare.

But the victims injuries were serious. A 45-year-old woman required the amputation of her lower left arm and suffered severe injuries to her midsection. A Mountain Brook teens hand was bitten off by the shark, and she also was forced to have her right leg amputated to the middle of her thigh.

Many swimmers and beachgoers might be understandably concerned about encountering these predators but knowing the types of sharks commonly found in Floridas waters can help increase awareness.

GulfLive.com recently spoke to Gavin Naylor, the director of the Florida Program for Shark Research at the University of Florida, who shared a rundown of the nine most common sharks found in Florida.

Atlantic sharpnose shark

The sharpnose is also known as the Newfoundland shark and the white sharkTeacher at Sea, NOAA Fisheries

Even fully grown, the Atlantic sharpnose is typically on the smaller end of the shark spectrum, growing between 2 and 3 feet long. They have a life span of about nine years and a streamlined body with a long, pointy snout, which they are named for.

Where theyre found: The Gulf of Mexico and the Florida Keys. As winter approaches, these sharks move offshore into deeper water, returning inshore to mate and give birth in spring.

Threat level: Moderate. Their habitat does tend to be close to humans; however, most bites inflicted by this shark are nonfatal and not serious.

Bonnethead shark

The head of a bonnethead shark is shaped like a shovel.Photo courtesy Virginia Institute of Marine Science

As the smallest member of the hammerhead family, these sharks can reach a length about 4 feet and have a life span of about 12 years.

Where theyre found: Often seen in the waters off Pigeon Key, the bonnethead shark is common all along the shallow sand and mud flats of Floridas coast. They are most abundant near the shoreline in warmer weather, moving into deeper coastal waters during the colder months.

Threat level: These sharks are typically harmless to humans.

Blacktip shark

A blacktip shark, Carcharhinus limbatus, is shown in the Mediterranean Sea. (Auscape | Universal Images Group via Getty Images)Universal Images Group via Getty

Reaching a length of just over 6 feet, according to the International Shark Attack File, blacktip sharks have historically been responsible for 29 unprovoked attacks (with one fatality) on humans around the world  including Florida.

Where theyre found: The Gulf of Mexico. Most often found in warm, shallow, coastal waters and estuaries, as opposed to the deep open ocean. They migrate from the north to Florida in January and often remain here through April.

Threat level: Most incidents result in relatively minor wounds, but they are responsible for roughly 20% of the attacks that occur in Florida waters, often striking surfers.

Spinner shark

A spinner shark jumps out of the water during a Florida Keys fishing trip on May, 2005, in Islamorada, Florida. (Ronald C. Modra | Getty Images)Getty Images

Known for its distinctive ability to perform aerial spins, adult spinner sharks are usually between 6 and 9 feet in length.

Where theyre found: Off the Florida and Louisiana coasts and in the Gulf of Mexico. Spinner sharks often move inshore during the spring and summer months to reproduce and feed.

Threat level: Spinner sharks are occasionally involved in shark bites on humans. According to the International Shark Attack File, the spinner shark has been responsible for 16 unprovoked attacks on humans, none of which have been fatal. With teeth made for seizing small prey, their bites usually result in relatively minor injuries.

Sandbar shark

A group of divers swim with a sandbar shark off Jupiter, Florida, on Feb. 24, 2024. Florida is the place in the world with the most shark attacks in 2023. The news might make you rethink those well-deserved vacations on the state's beaches; but experts have a message for you: These animals are not the sea monsters you imagine. Last year, 16 of 69 unprovoked shark attacks were reported in Florida, 23% of the overall number, according to a report released this month by the University of Florida. (Jesus Olarte | AFP via Getty Images)AFP via Getty Images

The sandbar shark grows to about 6 feet in length and typically weighs between 110 and 150 pounds as an adult.

Where theyre found: True to their name, this shark prefers the sandy bottoms of coastal areas. They are commonly found in Floridas Atlantic and Gulf coasts from May to August.

Threat level: According to Florida Museum, because these sharks prefer smaller prey and have a tendency to avoid beaches, they pose little threat to humans.

Bull shark

A bull shark swims around tourists, coming up close to inspect them, during an eco tourism shark dive off Jupiter, Florida on May 5, 2022. (Joseph Prezioso | Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Considered an apex predator, the bull shark is at the top of a food chain, without any natural predators of its own. With a maximum size of 11 feet in length, they have a life span of about 24 years.

Where theyre found: Bull sharks are found in both nearshore and offshore waters of the Gulf and the Atlantic coasts of Florida. Its also one of the few shark species that may inhabit freshwater.

Threat level: One of the more dangerous shark species, accounting for the third-highest number of attacks on humans.

Tiger shark

A tiger shark, Galeocerdo cuvier, is shown off Tiger Beach in the Bahamas. (Andre Seale | VW PICS/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)VW Pics/Universal Images Group v

Tiger sharks can reach a maximum size of about 18 feet  and a weight of 2,000 pounds. They have a life span of about 16 years.

Where theyre found: They are found in a variety of habitats, including river mouths, shallow bays and the open ocean. Tiger sharks are most plentiful in Florida from December through July.

Threat level: Tiger sharks are second only to the great white shark in the number of attacks on humans worldwide.

Lemon shark

Lemon sharks swim close to a group of divers off Jupiter, Florida, on Feb. 24, 2024. Florida is the place in the world with the most shark attacks in 2023. (Jesus Olarte | AFP via Getty Images)AFP via Getty Images

The lemon shark can reach between 8 and 10 feet in length and has a life span of around 27 years.

Where theyre found: They flourish in the estuarine and nearshore waters of the Gulf and Atlantic coasts of Florida and migrate south into deeper waters in the winter months.

Threat level: For the most part, they are considered shy and docile, but according to the International Shark Attack File, there have been 10 unprovoked attacks by lemon sharks, all of which occurred in Florida and the Caribbean. None were fatal.

Finetooth shark

A Finetooth shark is shown. (Brenda Bowling | Courtesy Texas Parks and Wildlife Department)Photo courtesy of Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (Brenda Bowling))

Finetooth sharks reach a maximum length of about 5 to 6 feet and have a life span of about 14 years.

Where theyre found: Finetooth sharks spend the winter months in the waters off the coast of Florida and favor coastal waters, bays and estuarine waters. They are commonly seen over mud and sand flats during summer months and move into deeper coastal waters during the colder months.

Threat level: This shark poses little threat to humans and has never been reported in a shark bite case.
U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., is joining five of his Republican colleagues in vowing not to allow fast tracking of any judicial or U.S. Attorney appointees by the Biden Administration.

In a post on social media platform X, Tuberville said the practice will continue until Election Day, in response to former President Trumps conviction on 34 counts of falsifying business records.

In a letter, Tuberville joins with Sens. J.D. Vance of Ohio, Mike Lee of Utah, Bill Hagerty of Tennessee, Roger Marshall of Kansas and Eric Schmitt of Missouri.

Democrats have WEAPONIZED our Justice System to go after their top political opponent, President Trump.



My colleagues and I will NOT ALLOW fast-tracking of Bidens judicial and U.S. Attorney nominees until the American people make their voices heard on Election Day. pic.twitter.com/14Z7N5QIGn  Coach Tommy Tuberville (@SenTuberville) June 13, 2024

In a letter, the six senators say their actions are pushing back against the Biden Administrations lawfare against his leading political appointment for the presidency.

The letter makes this clear, in that the signees say they will also not permit the fast-tracking of nominees who have suggested the Trump prosecutions were reasonable, endorsed President Trumps guilt in these sham proceedings, joined or supported organizations that celebrated the indictment of President Trump, or supported the candidacy of Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

They also vow to oppose anyone who supported lawfare or censorship in other ways.

Last month, Tuberville was among eight Republican senators to sign a letter by Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, pledging to block vote against any Democratic priority that comes to the Senate floor and to vote against any Biden administration political or judicial nominees.

A week ago, Tuberville said the countrys ongoing political battle is no longer between Democrats and Republicans, but between those who love America and those who want it changed.

The American people need to wake up. This is a war, Tuberville said, on Newsmax.
Tyson Foods has suspended its chief financial officer, a fourth-generation member of the company, after his arrest for driving while intoxicated Thursday.

The Wall Street Journal is reporting John Randal Tyson, 34, was arrested early Thursday by University of Arkansas police and was released about nine hours later. He was also charged with careless driving and improper turn charges, Fox24 reported.

The arrest comes about a year and a half after Tyson, the son of the companys chairman, John H. Tyson, was charged with public intoxication and criminal trespassing after he was found sleeping in someone elses home.

Tyson later apologized during a conference call and said he would seek counseling.

I just wanted you to hear all of this directly from me and to know that I am committed to making sure that this never happens again, he said in November 2022.

In that incident, a woman called police when she discovered Tyson, whom she said she did now know, asleep in her bed. She told authorities she believes the front door was left unlocked.

Police reportedly found Tyson there with his clothes in front of the bed. When police attempted to wake him, he sat up before laying back down.

Curt Calaway, a senior finance executive at the company, will take over as its interim CFO.

Tyson, the great-grandson of the companys founder, has been with the company since 2019. According to Tyson Foods, he also leads the companys enterprise strategy, corporate development and sustainability efforts, and serves as its chief sustainability officer.
President Joe Biden said Thursday that he will not use his presidential powers to lessen the eventual sentence that his son Hunter will receive for his federal felony conviction on gun crimes.

Biden, following the conclusion of a news conference held at the Group of Seven summit of the worlds wealthiest democracies, responded he would not when asked whether he plans to commute the sentence for his son. Hunter Bidens sentencing date has not been set, and the three counts carry up to 25 years in prison, though thats unlikely as a first-time offender.

Ultimately, it will be up to U.S. District Judge Maryellen Noreika, who was nominated to the bench by former Republican President Donald Trump, to decide how much time, if any, Hunter Biden serves behind bars.

Bidens remarks came one day after the White House declined to rule out a potential commutation for Hunter Biden. Both the president and the White House have said for months that Biden would not pardon his son.

Im extremely proud of my son Hunter. He has overcome an addiction. He is one of the brightest most decent men I know, Biden said earlier during the news conference Thursday. I abide by the jury decision. I will do that and I will not pardon him.
Portland's annual naked bike ride is canceled this year after organizers said they didn't get enough volunteers to work the event.

The group behind the ride said the annual event is a "huge undertaking" that takes months to plan but they didn't get started on time.

"By springtime we realized we were behind on our leadership recruiting goals," the organizers said.

The Portland World Naked Bike Ride started in 2004 as a global protest against the oil industry. It has grown to be the largest naked bike ride in the world with an estimated 10,000 riders in 2014.

The city was just named the best in the country for naked biking, due in part to its naked bike ride. The survey noted that while it is illegal to be naked in public in Portland, nudity is permitted as an act of political speech.

The ride organizers are already asking people to volunteer to work to help plan so they can bring the ride back next year.










English News China makes pioneering contributions to humanity's peaceful use of space

Alwihda Info | Par People's Daily - 11 Juin 2024



The whole world is anticipating the safe return of Chang'e-6 with the "lunar treasures." Moving forward, humanity will never cease the steps of space exploration. China will continue to deepen international aerospace exchanges and cooperation on the basis of equality, mutual benefit, peaceful use, and inclusive development. It stands ready to share development achievements with countries around the world, and work with them to explore the mysteries of the universe, expand human knowledge, improve the well-being of humanity, and serve human civilizations.

By He Yin, People's Daily The ascender of China's Chang'e-6 probe lifted off from the lunar surface on June 4, carrying samples collected from the moon's far side, which marked a historic step in humanity's peaceful use of outer space.



The international community has closely followed the Chang'e-6 mission, recognizing its significant contribution to the progress of space exploration for humanity. The mission was said to be a leapfrog achievement of China's space exploration, a key milestone of the country's aerospace development, and a historic moment in human lunar exploration.



The Chang'e-6 mission's voyage to the far side of the moon marked a historic milestone, not only for China's space exploration endeavors but also for humanity's peaceful use of space.



Before Chang'e-6 was sent to space, all 10 lunar sample return missions conducted by humans by far have taken place on the near side of the moon.



The South Pole-Aitken Basin on the far side of the moon is considered the largest, oldest and deepest basin on the lunar surface. Collecting and analyzing samples from this region would mark the first time for humanity to obtain samples from the far side of the moon, and thereby deepen humanity's understanding of the moon's formation and the evolution of the solar system.



To achieve this goal, Chang'e-6 incorporated a number of innovations, successfully overcoming the technical challenges in each stage of its mission, including landing on the far side of the moon, collecting samples, and lifting off from the lunar surface.



Josef Aschbacher, director general of the European Space Agency (ESA), congratulated China on the remarkable success of Chang'e-6 mission thus far, calling it a "wonderful accomplishment."



Al Jazeera of Qatar reported that the Chang'e-6 landing marks China's second descent on the far side of the moon, where no other country has reached. The mission "involves many engineering innovations, high risks and great difficulty," the report added.



China has always been actively promoting international cooperation in lunar and deep space exploration, exactly mirrored by the international payloads onboard the Chang'e-6 lander, which are from the ESA, France, Italy, and Pakistan.



During the Chang'e-6 mission, Chinese scientists have shared scientific data and conducted joint research with their foreign counterparts.



For instance, the French lunar radon detector functioned during the Earth-moon transfer, lunar orbit, and lunar surface stages; the ESA's lunar surface negative ion analyzer operated during the lunar surface stage.



Additionally, an Italian laser retroreflector mounted on the top of the lander of Chang'e-6 served as a position control point for distance measurements on the far side of the moon.



The Chang'e-6 mission also carried ICUBE-Q, a cube satellite from Pakistan, which marked the first step of Pakistan's space exploration and signified the dedication of Pakistani scientists.



Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that the ICUBE-Q moon satellite is Pakistan's first step in space and the country's scientists and engineers are proving their abilities in this field just like they did in the other fields. This is a historic moment in the journey of technological advancement as with this important success, Pakistan has entered a new era of utilizing space for its objectives, he added.



This year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of China's lunar exploration project. Over the past 20 years, the country has constantly set new records in humanity's exploration of the moon: from Chang'e-1 capturing a complete map of the moon's surface, to Chang'e-4 achieving humanity's first soft-landing on the far side of the moon; from Chang'e-5 returning with lunar soil samples, to Chang'e-6 successfully retrieving samples from the moon's far side.



Chinese space experts and personnel have always followed the lunar exploration spirit of pursuing dreams, daring to explore, cooperating in tackling difficulties and win-win cooperation. They are striving to make China strong in the aerospace sector, while also making pioneering contributions to humanity's peaceful use of space and building a community with a shared future for mankind.



James Carpenter, ESA's head of planetary science research, said that it is really fantastic to see how China's lunar program has grown and become world class. "We feel privileged and happy to be part of it. We are also interested in further cooperation exploring the solar system."



China's Chang'e-7 lunar exploration mission, scheduled for launch around 2026, will carry six scientific instruments developed by six countries and one international organization, namely Egypt, Bahrain, Italy, Russia, Switzerland, Thailand and the International Lunar Observatory Association.



Besides, the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS), a comprehensive scientific experiment facility program initiated by China and jointly developed by multiple countries and organizations, is moving forward rapidly. Recently, the ILRS has added new partners, including Nicaragua, the Asia-Pacific Space Cooperation Organization, and the Arab Union for Astronomy and Space Sciences.



The whole world is anticipating the safe return of Chang'e-6 with the "lunar treasures." Moving forward, humanity will never cease the steps of space exploration. China will continue to deepen international aerospace exchanges and cooperation on the basis of equality, mutual benefit, peaceful use, and inclusive development. It stands ready to share development achievements with countries around the world, and work with them to explore the mysteries of the universe, expand human knowledge, improve the well-being of humanity, and serve human civilizations.



Dans la meme rubrique : < > Basalt rocks made into national flag carried by Chang'e-6 probe Prospering telemedicine a reflection of China's rapid internet development Beijing Daxing International Airport marks five years of operation Pour toute information, contactez-nous au : +(235) 99267667 ; 62883277 ; 66267667 (Bureau N'Djamena)
How did Democrats convince so many Jews that Trump is racist and antisemitic in 2017?

The Democrats have been calling Republicans racists and worse for decades, so mere propaganda could not have achieved that.

What I found in searching for the answer might also explain how anti-Trump sentiment spread over society, rising to the level of Trump Derangement Syndrome.

Start with the series of JCC threats.

Begining before Trumps inauguration as 45th POTUS, hundreds of bomb threats were made against Jewish community centers and schools in the U.S.

The threats came in five waves: Jan. 9 (three days after the election's certification), Jan. 18 (two days before the inauguration), Jan. 31 (following the travel ban, fueling Big Tech-led insurrection), Feb. 20, and Feb. 28.

The media unanimously declared that these threats came from white supremacists in the U.S., allegedly emboldened by the election of President Trump.

The FBI knew that most of the threats were made over the Internet, could have been made from anywhere in the world, and likely came from abroad, but refused to say that officially. In hindsight, this can be linked to the agenda of FBI Director James Comey and his number two, Andrew McCabe. The agenda was to undermine the president whose election they had attempted to prevent and to hide how easy the Obama-Biden administration made it for foreign threat actors to obtain classified info and impact events in the U.S.

On March 23, the information about the perpetrator of most threats was published, refuting accusations against Trump and white supremacists. Almost all threats were made by an autistic 18-year-old, Michael Kadar, living in Israel. He was engaged in criminal activity online from his parents home. Among other things, he provided a service for making threats over the Internet. His claims of boredom as the motive are implausible, given that he did such things for money. Almost certainly, these threats were ordered by somebody who hated Trump.

The perpetrator could not know the identities of those who ordered those threats (this is how Internet crime works), but the FBI could have found them in other ways.

A small number of threats in the last two waves were made by a leftist African American journalist, who said he was trying to frame his ex-girlfriend.

When it became clear that the evidence vindicated Trump, the subject disappeared from the media agenda. The public impression that it was Trumps fault remained.

Then there was the attack on Rabbi Haskel Lookstein.

The internet and social media enabled a novel kind of attack on individuals by penetrating the small community of the target. Rabbi Lookstein was attacked this way in July 2016 when he accepted an invitation to speak at an RNC conference, which was to declare Donald Trump as the Republican candidate officially.

Rabbi Haskel Lookstein, then 84, was a rabbi of the modern orthodox congregation Kehilath Jeshurun and rabbi emeritus of the Ramaz School in New York. He was not political or partisan. He performed a public prayer for President Obama in 2009. That did not help him.

The attack was launched on July 14, 2016, by a petition posted on Change.org, titled Ramaz School: Rabbi Lookstein -- You May Speak for Trump, But Not in Our Name. The petition regurgitated the Hillary campaign falsehood and propaganda points (To embrace Trump and Trumpism goes against all weve been taught  his refusal to attend the NAACP convention). It was signed by one person, Jacob Savage, who claimed to be a former student of Ramaz school.

The petition invited signatures from people worldwide with any attitude toward Jews and the US but gained only 816 signatures. I found only one signer related to the Ramaz school community, an alumni named Yitz Landes. Yitz acknowledged that his politics are uncommon and even unacceptable in his circle: "At risk of alienating the few Facebook friends of mine who have not yet unfriended me because of my politics, I will say that Donald Trump is a horrible person. He also published the targets email: If you'd like to email R. Lookstein, his email is RHL@ckj.org. This is an invitation to harass the target, intentional or not. This attack also had offline components.

Consequently, R. Lookstein withdrew from the conference: Like my father before me, I have never been involved in politics. Politics divides people.

Of course, the public misinterpreted this as a repudiation of Trump. Democrat activists behind this attack learned that bullying works and escalated it against other targets. That evolved into the infamous search and destroy strategy against Trumps appointees.

Now, it is clear that many people stayed away from the candidate and, later, President Trump because they did not want to be targeted by a Democrat-triggered mob. Others interpreted this avoidance as a sign of disapproval of Donald Trump or an indication that Trump had unknown defects. This weakened the Trump presidency and encouraged attacks from all sides, including federal government employees.

There also was an attack on Rabbi Marvin Hier.

Rabbi Marvin Hier, the founder of the Simon Wiesenthal Center, was one of the religious leaders invited to pray at Trump's inauguration on Jan. 20, 2017. He was the first rabbi to speak at a presidential inauguration since 1985. As soon as it became known that the invitation was extended, a vicious campaign was launched against him. On Jan. 3, 2017 (just before the certification session of the Congress), a petition popped up on Change.org, signed by someone named Mya Stark and Movement for Accountability for the Trump Administration. Despite the invitation extended to the whole world, it gained only 3,299 signers.

R. Hier refused to yield and rebuked some detractors, saying they acted as if elections were not over.

After that came intimidation by the ruling party.

In May 2016, Hillary Clinton said on national television: I do not want Americans and, you know, good-thinking Republicans, as well as Democrats and independents, to start to believe that this [Trump] is a normal candidacy. Hillary Clinton represented the incumbent party. Calling a presumptive candidate from the opposition this way is intimidation. This threat was aggravated by the conduct of the Obama-Biden administration, which had successfully used the IRS to persecute and destroy the Tea Party, jailed dissidents, suppressed opposition media, and created an atmosphere more like a totalitarian state than the U.S.

It was also a signal to the intelligence and national security community. Remember this PageStrzok communication she [Hillary Clinton] might be our next president. The last thing you need us going in there loaded for bear This was February 2016, long before Obamas FBI targeted the Trump campaign. After that, Hillarys chances skyrocketed. In October 2016, some bookmakers paid out gamblers who bet on her victory.

Later calls against normalizing Trump were just references to that speech and veiled threats, not always intentional. I think that this intimidation campaign caused the Republican Jewish Coalition not to endorse Trump in 2016. Most RJC directors were businessmen, vulnerable to vindictive regulation expected from a Hillary administration. Such intimidation was unprecedented, and yielding to it was likely misinterpreted as a denunciation of Trump.

The role of social media, this kingdom of crooked mirrors, is out of scope.

To conclude:

The Obama-Biden administration and the Democrat campaign have intimidated prominent Jews against supporting and even associating with Donald Trump in 2016-2017. Because such intimidation had no precedent in this country, their silence was perceived as agreement with a vocal minority of Trump haters.

Trump was also wrongly blamed for threats against Jewish community centers, which started under the outgoing Obama-Biden administration, were likely ordered by someone associated with it, and abetted by its holdovers.

P.S.: Microsoft Copilot AI assistant refused to assist with this text because of its content.

Image: Sean Naber via Wikimedia Commons // CC BY 2.0 DEED
About a year ago, I received a phone call from John Eastman, the prominent constitutional scholar. He was facing disbarment proceedings for the advice he had given President Trump, had read my book (Debunked), and wanted me to testify on his behalf at the forthcoming California disbarment trial. Of course, I was eager to testify because I believed (and still believe) that the six key swing state elections in 2020 were not certifiable. The specific reasons are laid out in the book.

Originally, I was one of seven experts selected by Eastman and his attorney, Randy Miller. As experts, we would be able to give our opinions regarding the integrity of the election. However, well financed attorneys for the California State Bar Association (SBA) immediately objected  to every witness. Most of the time, Judge Yvette Roland was eager to oblige the SBA.

In my case, Judge Roland ignored the fact that I was a veteran auditor and CPA, had written a comprehensive numbers-based book on the 2020 election, had written a book describing 23 ways we can improve our elections, and had published at least 25 articles on the subject. The problem? I did not audit any of the state results for the 2020 election. Her statement was correct: no state or county offered to let me inspect and audit its election. To my knowledge, however, no state or county has ever invited any outside CPA firm to perform such an audit. The closest we came was in 2021, when the Cyber Ninja audit was forced upon the highly reluctant and totally uncooperative Maricopa County, in Arizona.

So I would not be an expert, but I would still be able to testify as a fact witness. I could testify about relevant observations I made and testing I performed, but I would not be able to express a general opinion. That did not bother me too much because the facts would speak for themselves. Besides, as a dismissed expert, I was in fine company.

In the final analysis, Her Honor disqualified most of the defense experts, including defendant John Eastman (arguably the nations foremost expert on constitutional issues); Michael Gableman (a former Wisconsin Supreme Court justice and the special counsel who conducted a comprehensive review of the 2020 Wisconsin election); and Garland Favorito, who has performed extensive election research for more than a decade and has testified as an expert in other courtrooms. We would be allowed to testify as fact witnesses. The testimony of some other experts was completely barred.

As a result of the purge, one side (the prosecution) would be able to expound on the accuracy and fairness of the election, whereas the other side (the defense) would not be able to express disagreement. For this and other reasons, the trial was a joke.

Although Judge Yvette Roland seems like a smart woman, and she may have a good grasp of the law, it is clear that she is a committed partisan. That is evident because she has donated to Democrat campaigns while serving on the bench. It is also clear because of her demeanor in the courtroom.

From the start, the judge showed great skepticism of every assertion made by Eastman and his attorney, Randy Miller. Almost all of Millers objections were overruled, whereas the objections of the SBA attorneys were mostly sustained. At one point, Judge Roland had the audacity to berate former Wisconsin justice Michael Gableman. He made the mistake of inquiring about the rules of evidence being used in the courtroom. Roland became so angry that she called for a five-minute break and told the defense counsel to have a conversation with Judge Gableman, maybe straighten out a few misunderstandings, or...well leave it at that.

When John Eastman referred to the vice president as him, Judge Roland corrected Eastman by saying or her. According to reporter Rachel Alexander, a trial observer tweeted that Roland seemed more like a prosecutor than a judge.

The president of Judicial Watch, Tom Fitton, took it a step further in a posting on X: Kangaroo court proceedings in California to disbar John Eastman, one of the nations leading constitutional lawyers, for daring to provide legal advice on the Biden election controversy.

Fitton hit the nail on the head: across the country, attorneys are facing disbarment and even jail time, simply for agreeing with the assertions of their clients, or for aggressively exploring the legal options available to their clients. That is unprecedented.

In the past, it was normal to hear a lawyer proclaim the innocence of his client. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, my client did not kill his wife! Later, when the jury decided that the client had, indeed, killed his wife, the attorney did not face disbarment for lying to the court. The lawyer who supported the views and legal options of her client was considered a good and dedicated defense attorney. Not anymore.

But lets get back to my testimony in the John Eastman trial. In the final analysis, I did not testify at all  even as a fact witness. That was extremely unfair to John Eastman, and to the standards of justice we used to cherish in America.

Late one afternoon in September, I was scheduled to testify and was ready to present many facts  not opinions. I had developed those facts by applying the audit skills I had developed in a 40-year career as a CPA. In some cases, the results were alarming.

In Pennsylvania, I tested the work of Rep. Frank Ryan and Verity Vote and could confirm that there were exactly 202,377 more ballots cast than identified voters when the state certified its election. That is not opinion; it is something that can be calculated from publicly available information. In the weeks following the election, the Pennsylvania voter deficit got smaller. However, on February 1, 2021  nearly 3 months after the election  there were still at least 90,000 more ballots cast than identified voters. Thanks to Judge Roland, that information was never presented at trial.

In Georgia, I calculated the statistical odds of Democrat Fulton County, the largest county in the state, having a rejection rate only 1/7 of that of the state as a whole, and less than any other comparable county (comparable in terms of per capita income, demographics, or population). It was less than 1 in a billion. That is not opinion  it is a statistical fact.

I also tested a sample of the bizarre findings of VoterGA. It can be proven that thousands of scanned ballot images had precisely the same timestamp, to the split-second. That is quite a trick when it takes a full second to scan each ballot. And in Michigan, it was not hard to calculate how many ballots were rejected for having bad signatures. It was just one in 2,500.

When I was about to testify, in late September 2023, the judge changed her mind: I no longer qualified  even as a fact witness.

The prosecutors asked me how I went about writing Debunked, and I responded that information was disappearing from the internet, so I started by grabbing as much as I could before it was gone. Then I reviewed the information and applied audit-type tests, using information from sources such as the Election Administration Voting Survey, Ballotpedia, secretary of state databases, and about two dozen county election administration websites. In a detailed overview of my data sources and procedures, Eastmans attorney listed 40 different information sources I used so that I could independently verify election information.

In the end, it was for nothing, and the judge would not let me testify. Why? Because I sounded more like an expert than a fact witness: To testify about his analysis of this material and, to offer an opinion regarding it, falls within the role of an expert.

Was that supposed to be a joke? When a judge is hostile, the defendant cannot win.

Joe Fried is an Ohio-based CPA who has performed and reviewed hundreds of certified financial audits. He is the author of the book Debunked? An auditor reviews the 2020 election and How Elections Are Stolen, which outlines 23 problems that must be fixed before the 2024 election. More information can be found at https://joefriedcpa.substack.com, Joes permanently free Substack account.

Image via Picryl.
Or do I mean gig or nano? Whatever the case, I believe that the dominant political party of the future will be the one whose candidates are conversant in the daily micro-realities that allow a city, or a state, or a nation to function. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. has some good ideas but does he know about permits and EIRs like Mr. Trump? Has he ever seen a building project through from blueprint to masonry?

In Mike Judges dystopian comedy, Idiocracy, we are presented with a future where teetering skyscrapers are anchored to one another with cables because no one knows how to repair or maintain them. When a man who was considered an idiot in the past saves this future society from itself, Judge invites us to consider the fate of a nation lacking sober-minded, knowledgeable leaders. Surveying the near-wreckage of the present, my position is that we are at a point where the next generation of leaders must not only be selfless, but possess 1) practical knowledge and 2) the discipline to forgo the more incendiary debates.

Some decades ago, an erudite gentleman once remarked to me: There was a time when a man would bring his girlfriend home to meet his mother and the mother would ask the girlfriend if she could cook. Its not such a bad question when you think about it: can this woman start and finish a project? Can she do something practical?

I recalled our conversation recently, during a municipal election. The town newspaper asked one candidate what had prompted her to run for city council. The woman, a naturalized citizen, replied that she wanted to represent her people.

Americans? I wondered aloud. Hobbiton-ers (not the name of my town)? All right, maybe she is referring to everyone in the Shire (not the name of my county)?

Here he goes again, my wife was thinking.

Of course I knew exactly what the candidate meant. She was referring to her fellow Mexicans, but she could have been referring to her fellow Star Trek enthusiasts. My quarrel was with her rationale for seeking office. There was no We, but only Us and Them. Nor did she claim to possess any special knowledge as, for example, if she had announced, I have studied the issue of water conservation extensively and have a solution for Hobbiton. Years earlier, when the community decided to provide housing for migrant farm workers, a committee was formed that, naturally, included contractors, architects, and engineers. Videogame developers and florists with lots of opinions were not invited.

Again, I might have asked if, owing to some peculiarity, her people needed a different type of sidewalk to stroll. If beings from another planet settled in Hobbiton, I would expect their candidate to speak this way: Since we are not human, I am running for office to represent my people. We dont drink H2O, for example, and would appreciate some consideration on this point.

Once again, I knew what the candidate meant, but I reject her assumption. Municipal governments should pursue matters of common interest  e.g. sidewalks and water. They typically do not have the resources or competence to do much else.

My sense of unease returned when California staged a recall election in 2021. Kevin Faulconer, a three-term council member and two-term mayor of San Diego, was the candidate with 14 years of micro-economic and administrative experience, but Republican voters were distracted by the candidacy of radio broadcaster Larry Elder. Elder had not held elected office, nor did he seem to possess some sort of equivalent experience. Had he ever worked with state officials on some vital issue? Had he served on the board of a local non-profit? What does someone who practiced law in Cleveland in the 1980s know about levees in the Central Valley? Perhaps a lot, but farmers along Highway 120 deserved a clear answer.

Though popular, Californias Governor Gavin Newsom is the ultimate distracted macro-politician. His state has been blindsided by a $97B budget shortfall, and its status as the home of reproductive freedom and a large itinerant population has tracked with the flight of companies and working-class families. Where it was once considered an outlier, California is now an anomaly.

If, then, progress is hamstrung by shallow politicians and fashionable issues, how can we pivot away from ideology? Let us ask every candidate, What are your qualifications? rather than What do you believe? In so-called purple states, I think that non-ideological candidates who demonstrate a familiarity with vital, common-benefit issues will be positioned for victory in the next few election cycles. Another key issue will be recruitment and candidate support. According to research by Chinoy and Ma, one third of current members of Congress are lawyers, and a substantial number of the remaining members are doctors, teachers, and those who were employed by non-profits. People who work in these fields are typically insulated from creative capitalism and modern finance.

California assemblyman Matt Haney is a trifecta for the purposes of this essay. The San Francisco Democrat has a background in non-profits, education, and law. In more than a decade of public activism, he has distinguished himself for a failed effort to rename his hometowns George Washington High School and for a $1.7M Noe Valley public toilet. The latter, a project for which Haney personally secured funding, was almost derailed when a New York Times expose questioned the cost of the project. Feeling the heat, Haney re-positioned himself as one of the toilets biggest critics, demanding to know why the project cost so much. A letter from the citys manager of the Recreation and Parks Department pointed to key guidance passed while Haney was a member of the Board of Supervisors. A feel-good ordinance, for example, restricting San Franciscos ability to contract with states that restrict abortion access added time and labor to the cost. What I want to focus on is that 1) Haney did not know how much a public toilet should cost (about $200,000) and 2) his preoccupation with national debates wasted taxpayer time and money.

In the micro sweepstakes, Donald Trump has given the Republican party an advantage by re-branding it, but there is also a strong possibility that the MAGA spirit will be repudiated if Trump fails in the general election. The Republicans will also stumble if they cannot recruit creative, broad-minded candidates with a history of community engagement and from a variety of career backgrounds. The spiritual and intellectual crisis of the West is also very real  and that debate must continue  but I see little opportunity for progress, especially in Congress, given that our nation is evenly divided on most of these questions. I do believe that a majority of the electorate want our leaders to stop shouting at one another, rebuild our communities, position our economy for the future, and restore our international credibility. Heres to the Age of Micro!

J.D. Palmer is a philosopher and essayist. He invites you to follow him on X and to visit his website, www.pistrinum.com.

Image: Don Hankins via Flickr, CC BY 2.0 (cropped).
On nearly every major issue, progressives are hurtling towards extinction.

Abortion, LGBT, guns, crime, open borders, even religion; all the things they relentlessly, senselessly agitate about, if extrapolated out to their inexorable ends, would result in the actual physical extinction of their population. Whatever neural highway connects the actions part of the human brain to the consequences part appears in them to be not merely broken, but never constructed in the first place.

Worse, we are now several generations deep into progressive parenting: too many people with too many decades of indoctrination on what to think rather than how to think -- and there are millions of them: people who, since birth, have had every adult around them hovering, helicoptering, and insulating them from even the most benign challenge, depriving them of the essential, evolutionary sting of a bad choice.

Now they are grown and thickly among us in all our public and private institutions, incapable of regulating their emotions to process even the smallest deviation from their Truth; their never-jostled internal compass they are certain points them morally and intellectually to true north. We, the unindoctrinated, are left scrambling for purchase, for even the simplest agreed upon objective truth (What is a woman?).

The rules for informed American citizenship used to be full sunlight and reasoned debate with objective truth -- or, at the very least, an agreed-upon set of facts -- emerging from civilized rough and tumble. (Think William F. Buckley or Milton Friedman debating liberals, who used to know how to comport themselves.)

The rules now seem to be: whoever is the wokest or loudest wins. They dont even have to prove their case on the merits. They just have to silence the opposition. Their opponents acquiescence is all thats required.

ABORTION

It goes without saying that the surest way to kill off a population is for that population to stop having babies. But in this case, its not just the killing off of ones own, its the proud killing of ones own. Safe, legal, and rare has devolved into Shout Your Abortion. Abortion up until the moment before birth is allowed in only a handful of countries, China, North Korea and the United States chief among them. Bills have been put forth to outlaw the practice, but to our everlasting shame, they have failed -- with Republican help. Looking at you, senators Collins and Murkowski.

LGBT, etc.

Again, self-explanatory: if everyone was gay, nobody would get born and the population would die off. Its not just the unproductive nature of homosexuality, its the absolutist pride of it. Once again, that slippery slope got awful slippery awfully fast. Since the Clinton era of dont ask, dont tell it has switched gears from passive acceptance to active, taxpayer-funded endorsement. Now Americas military will pay for your gender reassignment surgery and take time away from life-saving readiness training to instruct uniformed personnel on the proper use of pronouns.

Also: it used to be just adults. Now its kids -- and theyre getting younger. In 2005, the youngest ever sex reassignment surgery was performed on a 12-year-old boy, transitioning the child from Tim to Kim. Now? Toddlers -- barely more than babies -- are being mutilated at their parents request, and the families are taking their star turns on NPR with warm and glowing profiles about the normalcy of it all.

In a different America, in a more rational time, this type of intervention would have rightly been called Munchausen-by-Proxy.

GUNS

No matter what progressives tell you about the 2nd Amendment, the truth is that they want it repealed. When you ask what will happen to Americas guns (there is at least one gun for every man, woman, and child in our 330 million+ population), they really seem to think theyll all just vanish, magically.

The "common sense part of common sense gun legislation went flying out the window when, incredibly, they upped the ante from disarming American citizens to disarming Americas police.

These Democrats trust Iran with the means to make nuclear bombs more than they trust their fellow Americans with a Glock.

These are not serious people by any standard, and as much as practical, should be ignored. Where they cannot be ignored, they must be stopped.

CRIME

New York City has been a gusher of headlines since their no-cash bail law went into effect.

[Then Governor] Cuomo estimate[d] the new law will keep about 90% of defendants out of jail at least until their case gets resolved. These offenders will also have the added bonus of a new incentive program in New York City -- which will give released suspects things like New York Mets tickets and gift cards for showing up to court.

Rob a bodega, go to a Mets game! Make it Yankees tickets and you could probably eliminate crime in Gotham altogether!

San Francisco got in on the crazy-on-crime game too. The City by the Bay decided the first $950 of theft was free -- but you gotta do it during business hours. Which is nice! No more late nights.

Extrapolated out to its inevitable ends and there wont just be food deserts but everything deserts. Who in their right mind would open a business in that environment? Without business there are no jobs. Where there are no jobs there is destitution and misery and the hollowed-out shells of once great cities. See Detroit, where you can buy a home for $1. Detroit hasnt had a Republican mayor in over sixty years, since 1962.

OPEN BORDERS

Believe it or not, back in the 80s and 90s, the Democrats cited the flow of drugs and criminal immigrants as reasons to be tough on border enforcement. Back then, only 32% of Democrats said immigrants strengthen the country" Today? 83% of Democrats feel that way

We now have untold millions of illegal aliens roaming the American countryside, and the very same people who lock their doors at night and build high walls around their homes with elaborate security systems are the ones leaving Americas door wide open, and wanting you and law enforcement to disarm.

Most worrying, so-called OTMs are on the rise: Other than Mexican encounters are happening on the southern border at previously unknown record highs. According to Pew (a decidedly left-leaning outfit, so this is what a lawyer might call an admission against interest):

There has also been a shift in migrants origin countries. Historically, most encounters at the southwestern border have involved citizens of Mexico or the Northern Triangle nations of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras. But in December 2023, 54% of encounters involved citizens of countries other than these four nations.

Believing that open borders will give you nothing but a benign flood of law-abiding dreamers is truly magical thinking. Its the thinking of a child. A child who has been allowed to tantrum all his life without the sting of consequences.

RELIGION

Democrats like Nancy Pelosi and Joe Biden love to whip out the Catholic card when its convenient, but on any number of matters, abortion most prominently, their choices and their actions (like voting against born-alive bills), couldnt be further away from anything Christian.

When they chose to sue nuns, they proved it. What could be less American, more intrusive of a bedrock, First, and Founding principle, then forcing nuns -- nuns! -- to violate their conscience? We could have conscientious objectors to the Vietnam War, but not to the inclusion of abortifacients in an insurance policy?

Its not just nuns and its not just abortion. Simply want to practice medicine in peace? Not be forced to mutilate children? Nope. Your faith or conscience will be subservient to the State. If you have trouble reading the tweet, it says HHS Director Becerra admits that hospitals with religious objections to transgender surgery on adults and children will lose federal funding.

If the Biden Administration wasnt full of progressives issuing progressive policies but were instead full of enemy terrorists, what would they do differently?

Thats a deadly serious question. Everything they do, everything they advocate for, diminishes and imperils us. Their policies diminish all of us, and like any enemy, they cannot be reasoned with. You cannot reason someone out of something they have not been reasoned into, and theyve been indoctrinated to believe their impulses are always correct because theyve never even been allowed to feel the sting of their own choices.

So what can you use as leverage when the person you are facing has no mortal fear? When they really believe theyll survive anything because the State is with them?

All that they understand is raw power -- but only in the hands of a government occupied with their ideological opposites. Come this January, we simply have to have a federal population made of not merely Republicans but Trump cabinet and administration members possessed of the animating force of capital-C Conservatism.

Raw Power. Its their animating force.

It must be ours, if we are to survive. Pray we wield it, and wield it righteously.

Image: Pexels/Alexas Fotos
If this article doesn't scare you, I doubt anything will. Imagine that Biden is still our president, and it's 3:00 in the morning. Biden is in a deep, drug-assisted slumber to ensure he has the best chance of appearing cognitively normal for the five or six hours a day he's required to be sentient.

Putin and Xi believe there is no better time to try to decapitate the American government than now. One or the other contacts submarines patrolling less than 500 miles off our East Coast and gives the order to launch low-trajectory nuclear-tipped missiles at key Command Control nodes along our East Coast. Normally, the President would have twelve minutes to react. But a sneak attack on Washington would leave him only seven minutes or less.

Why might they choose this moment? Two reasons:

First, American satellites would detect the launch of an SLBM instantly from its heat signature. This information would be detected at both NORAD and STRATCOM, which would quickly verify the authenticity of the strike and then calculate impact points, timing, and other information.

This begins a chain of events leading to the President being awoken and briefed. Presumably, he would instantly retaliate. However, the attackers would have made their calculations based on the belief that Biden would not be mentally able to assess the situation and react within the required time. Therefore, there may be no immediate response to the attack. Essentially, we would ride it out with Washington and other critical installations wiped out.

Image: YouTube screen grab.

Second, few Americans know that there is currently a fierce debate about two subjects involving whether we should respond to nuclear attacks. The first subject is whether the decision to use nukes should belong solely to the president or be like the rest of the U.S. Nuclear Command and Control system requiring the two-man rule. The second revolves around a progressive-inspired and led policy of not retaliating with nuclear weapons, as described in the book "How the End Begins "by Ron Rosenbaum.

This policy is being discussed in high circles despite the provocative nature of preemptively talking about capitulating to enemies. The question for some progressives is why we Americans should save ourselves at the cost of destroying the rest of the world.

Welcome to the world of realpolitik. Three kinds of people in government are responsible for the most critical decisions that determine our country's direction and how we will respond in emergencies: The ideologue, the functionary, and the utterly self-interested. Biden rests squarely in the last category, although self-interest can always overlap with the first two categories.

Idealogues have a specific worldview that overrides all other considerations and are blind to contrary information. Many people ask me why the elites in positions of power do things against their future interests as well as ours, and the answer is that theyre ideologues. Functionaries, at their best, are efficient, honest, and hard-working. At their worst, they are officious, duplicitous, and uninterested in what is best for the people they ostensibly serve.

I used to trust the American people, who would select a leader every four years to manage the Washington, D.C., zoo. However, the election of effectively anti-American Presidents in recent years has largely restrained my enthusiasm. We've had depressingly dullard Presidents and politically questionable ones before, but they all were nominally patriotic Americans. That is, until Obama and now Biden.

What I now worry about, and what keeps me up at night, is that President Biden is more interested in raw power and the trappings of the office than in the American people. Politically, this makes him blind to the minefield he walks through (especially if he is unescorted) and subject to a variety of nefarious and potentially well-thought-out plots leading to the subversion of the American people.

A new dynamic is that we increasingly don't trust our leaders to tell us the truth or do what is in America's best interests. What happens if Biden is faced with the ultimate responsibility every American President has feared since Russia got the bomb and a means to deliver it in 1949?

This is the scariest scenario anyone could ever imagine. Biden has a praetorian guard of hard-left progressive advisors, although no one really knows who they are. We do know that Obama's telltale hands are all over the Biden administration, the leftist administration of all times. Who's to say that Biden's administration is not fully penetrated by ideologues who seek for the U.S. to be fully absorbed into some Woke New World fantasy?

If you believe my concerns are overblown, consider this: Russia is fielding a new first-strike weapon system, Poseidon, as I write this. Experts warn that this nuclear-powered and armed torpedo (the size of a school bus) would have the potential to devastate a coastal city, cause radioactive floods, and result in millions of deaths. The Russians have fielded this weapon already. And there is growing evidence that Russia has launched or is about to launch a new satellite armed with a nuclear weapon to destroy our satellites in orbit, another first-strike weapon designed to blind us.

I hope that when each of us goes and votes this November, the thought of someone trying to wake up Biden in the middle of the night is viscerally ingrained in them. Thinking of an angry old man who needs drugs to prop him up, being the only person in the world who can save us, scares me to death. What about you? To make it worse, how many of you expect him to survive the next four years? Think of Chatterbox shrieking Harris as the one making that fateful call. God help us all.

God Bless America.

Author, Businessman, Thinker, and Strategist. Read more about Allan, his background, and his ideas to create a better tomorrow at www.1plus1equals2.com
Since the 1960s many of Americas foremost cities, notably Detroit, Newark, St. Louis, and Baltimore have exhibited sharp declines in population, economic vitality, and overall quality of life. Today, other major cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, and even New York City may soon join this list. Our urban failures cannot be explained by the usual destructive forces. No foreign invader sacked them or bombed them into rubble; no earthquakes or plagues made them unlivable nor have economic depressions rendered them irrelevant. Their decline is entirely man-made, so as Pogo famously said, we have met the enemy, and he is us.

Like carbon monoxide poisoning, urban decline comes slowly, often barely noticed and decades may pass before a tottering-on-the brink city must be rescued by Washington. If one word explains this slide toward disaster, it is stupidity and, particularly, stupidity month after month, year after years and is the barely noticeable nature of insanity that makes it so difficult to reverse.

This death by a thousand stupidities is currently occurring in New York City with its attempts to rescue its public transportation from bankruptcy. The city desperately needs to upgrade its aging subway, bus, and rail system and without these vital improvements (estimated to cost $51.5 billion annually), the city risks paralysis from automobile traffic. Moreover, until very recently, there was a financial solution in the form of a $15 tax on all cars entering lower Manhattan to raise $15 billion, but at the last minute, Governor Hochul cancelled it due to public outrage. The state legislature may recuse the city, but this remains uncertain.

The situation is dire since lacking affordable, efficient public transportation, businesses will hire fewer workers, and thus be forced to cut back, close, or leave the city, and this may devastate the already struggling office building market while destroying the retail that depends on these daily workers. Foreclosures and bankruptcies will soar, and reduced taxes mean less money for police, schools, social services, sanitation and all else that makes the city livable. The doom loop may begin.

Central to this impending financial shortfall is the systems declining use. Currently, subway ridership is about 71% of what it was pre-Covid, bus use is down about 60% and commuter rail at about three-quarters of previous usage.

Crime drives this decline. In January of 2024 felony crime was up 47% compared to the previous year, grand larcenies also increased and there were older women randomly pushed off platforms into the tracks and incoming trains. Uncounted is the rational fear of crime -- crazy-looking men sleeping on benches, the deranged wandering the platforms loudly talking to themselves and aggressive, disheveled panhandlers strolling car-to-car,

The one offense that goes directly to the citys potential insolvency is fare evasion, at theft of Services, a violation of New York Penal Section 165.15, a Class A misdemeanor punishable by up to one year in jail though nobody ever serves jail time. It is estimated that the city has recently lost some $700 million thanks to people refusing to pay -- 46% of bus riders and 13% of subway riders and these fare evaders disproportionately commit crimes and otherwise deter riders. While police have recently cracked down on these crimes, it remains rampant and, critically, enforcement effort is often dilatory as many police officers just stand around talking or reading their cell phones. Tellingly, the police ignore the scary people whose presence may also lower ridership.

Nevertheless, as observant public transportation users will attest, not paying remains rampant at 900,000 per day, and public officials have just announced a new approach. Will offenders be arrested and incarcerated? After all, these tactics have proven records. Rest assured, a new plan is in the making, and the piece de resistance of this new approach is allocating between a half million and $1 million for experts to analyze the motivation of those who refuse to pay their fare. According to the city, historic approaches such as punishment have had limited success so we now must probe what motivates these miscreants so the city can get its $700 million annually.

Experts with behavioral change experience across multiple social science disciplines will be hired. They will analyze the motivations and socioeconomic background of fare evaders to develop "avant-garde" solutions. Almost guaranteed, these findings will reveal that that those who skip paying are poor, feel marginalized, and suffer from exclusion from the economic mainstream. So, fix the environment and the city will get its $700 million.

This non-punitive approach is popular. Past suggestions have included downgrading first offenses into mere warnings, not punishment, expanding income eligibility to allow increased free entry for some 500,000 transportation users. In addition, the state recently passed without any discussion a law which explicitly forbids the use of facial recognition software to catch fare evaders. A proposed NY State Senate bill (S5099) lowers the penalty for fare evasion and substitutes community service for fines. The CEO of the transit system was most worried that fare evasion creates this sense of illegality and disorder in the system. Awaiting financial collapse seemed less important than how riders feel about fare evaders. Meanwhile, the head of a transit advocacy group has suggested that more buses should be free to encourage ridership and thereby reduce car congestion. Eliminating fares will surely reduce crime.

The citys indifference to catching fare evaders reflects a truth that dare not speak its name: lack of enforcement is about equity since most of those riding for free are black, and in todays political climate, laws that disproportionately impacting minorities (89% are black or Hispanic) are impermissible. As such, going lightly on fare evasion reflects the larger radical project of defunding the police, no-cash bail, minimizing penalties for shoplifting, public drug use, loitering, and other offenses excessively committed by blacks. Equity rhetoric aside, this policy ignores the cost of this crime to business owners, taxpayers in general and those -- regardless of race -- who are victimized by blacks. Ironically, of course, fare evaders, too, are inconvenienced by delays and slow service.

A fundamental conflict exists between todays definition of racial justice and advancing the common good. Access to a financially solvent, efficient public transportation system benefits all New Yorkers regardless of race or socio-economic status and given that poor people disproportionately are heavily dependent on public transportation, undermining busses and subways only helps the rich who can afford taxis or limousines.

To believe that refusing to collect fares from those who are oppressed by racism helps minorities have it backwards. As Geroge Orwell said, Some ideas are so stupid that only intellectuals believe them. Absent viable public transportation, slum dwellers will be constrained in where they can attend school or find jobs. The city has always been the center of economic opportunity for the poor since even residents of the worst neighborhood could find a decent job by commuting. The citys colleges are justifiably called commuter schools. If those struggling to advance economically jump the turnstile, they might have saved a dollar or two, but if the subway never arrives, good luck on moving up the ladder. Functioning subways and buses are vital for economic progress.

If New York City dies, its tombstone should read, A City That Died from Stupidity/ RIP.

Image: PickPik
Why do some people feel the need to ambush and even kill police officers?

Weve seen such instances in the past and, sadly, we wont be seeing them slow down anytime soon.

This past Thursday, a police officer in Minneapolis was ambushed by a gunman that he was trying to help. As a result, he was killed in the line of duty. Police quickly responded to the matter, exchanging gunfire with the suspect before killing him and finding a third person dead in the apartment.

The officer was Jamal Mitchell, a father who was previously engaged to be married. He had only been with the department for one and a half years before he was killed in the line of duty. Absolutely heartbreaking.

Mayor Jacob Frey explained, Today is a devastating day in the city of Minneapolis. What I can tell you is that Officer Mitchell was attempting to assist the individual that shot him -- and that it happened very fast and that he ambushed him.

These officers put their lives on the line to help people regularly, and to see that these people would take such a cowardly action as to ambush and kill them is unfathomable.

Sadly, thats the way it is in todays world. The media and other politicians out there will have you absolutely believe that the police are the bad guys, so to speak. Theyll bring up the death of George Floyd, scream defund the police at the top of their lungs, and push for legislators to put funding into something else. Anything else.

But theyre letting their hatred push them too far. As a result, thousands of police officers have walked away from active duty, either for retirement reasons or simply believing that the effort just isnt worth it anymore, especially with the growing -- and completely unnecessary -- level of hatred that is out there.

Some have even committed suicide, including a couple of officers in Chicago who didnt have any mental health support to speak of. I cant even begin to stress how vital it is to have mental health support -- especially in a job where your life is literally on the line.

I could go off on President Biden here and his inability to keep his promise to fund the police, or how his Democratic cronies wont lift a finger when it comes to taking care of our men and women in blue. But the sad, simple truth is he wont listen. Hes too worried about his connections with overseas countries and his re-election campaign to actually do a thing for police officers.

Which is just sad. The fact is that a lot of these officers are continue to push forward in the line of duty, despite the hatred and the lack of support by government offices. And how are they rewarded? By people with the completely wrong frame of mind that think an ambush is the definitive answer to everything.

There needs to be a better balance in this country. Better mental health support. Fewer initiatives that welcome dangerous migrants into our borders. Anything to indicate that higher-ups actually care about those who are working to save lives on a regular basis. People take them for granted and dont realize just how many sacrifices they actually make.

Were losing young, talented, officers to unnecessary bloodshed. The American people cant ignore this.

My heart goes out to Mitchell, his family and his friends, and the other officers and firefighters that were injured on the scene with non-life-threatening injuries. Were doing whatever we can at InVest USA to help them out in their time of need.

Something has to change. We have to keep these officers standing tall, not laying them to rest.

As for Minneapolis, InVest USA is already offering to donate a number of Active Shooter Vests to officers in need in this department. We take care of our own here.

Michael Letts is the Founder, President, and CEO of InVest USA, a national grassroots non-profit organization that is helping hundreds of communities provide thousands of bulletproof vests for their police forces through educational, public relations, sponsorship, and fundraising programs. He also has over 30 years of law enforcement experience under his belt, hence his pro-police stance for his brothers and sisters in blue. Those interested in learning more about Letts can visit his official website here.

Image: Jobs for Felons Hub
2005: anti-liberty/gun cracktivists have hit on a new strategy for depriving Americans of arms: sue gun makers for the third-party criminal acts of others misusing their legal products about who they have no knowledge and over who they have no control. The strategy is akin to suing General Motors for the damage caused by Chevy-driving drunk drivers. Many judges wouldnt entertain such unjust suits, but enough would, and the strategy could easily bankrupt gun makersthat was the point--even if they never lose a single lawsuit. Death by a thousand cuts is still death.

In response a truly bipartisan Congress passed The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA), which prohibited that abuse of the civil justice system. Socialists and communists had not yet seized complete control of the Democrat Party, which did not yet vote entirely in lockstep, trampling on civil rights for transitory political advantage.

President Biden continues to lie about the PLCAA, claiming gun manufacturers have total immunity from lawsuits, unlike any other industry. Biden continues to demand the PLCAA be repealed. Even Politifact, among the most leftist fact checkers, has labeled Bidens claims false without trying to weasel around the truth. They wrote:

Graphic: X Screenshot

This isnt the first time Biden has made this claim. Hes made it repeatedly, including April 2021 remarks about gun violence after a man went on a shooting rampage at three spas in the Atlanta area, killing eight, and another gunman killed 10 people at a grocery store in Boulder, Colorado. He said it again in his 2022 State of the Union address. But the claim is inaccurate. The gun industry is susceptible to some lawsuits, and there are federal laws restricting liability for a number of other types of businesses.

2024: anti-liberty/gun cracktivists, surely using the survivors of the victims of the attack at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, TX, have come up with another strategy: sue common carriers for delivering lawful products used illegally by people about who they have no knowledge and over who they have no control.

Families of survivors of the Robb Elementary School shooting are suing the package shipping companies UPS and FedEx for allegedly violating state and federal law and their own corporate safety standards. The suit attacks UPS for delivering an AR-15 rifle to a licensed Federal Firearm Dealer in Uvalde. It was from that dealer the shooter legally bought the rifle. It also attacks UPS for delivering a Hellfire trigger system to the shooters home, which it claims was less than 1000 feet away from Robb Elementary school. It apparently does not specify the exact distance.

UPS is even more removed from responsibility for the criminal misuse of firearms than gun manufacturers. UPS has no way to know how a legal product it carries might be misused. The Hellfire trigger has been on the market for more than three decades. It does not make a semiautomatic firearm fully automatic, but merely allows it to fire slightly faster. It is entirely legal.

The 1000 foot accusation refers to the 1990 Gun Free School Zones Act, which was an attempt to make it illegal to possess guns in much of America simply because of ones position relative to a school. Under that law, even driving past a school while armed could be charged as a federal felony. In the 1995 Lopez Decision, the Supreme Court struck down the law on Commerce Clause grounds. CongressBill Clinton was then POTUSreenacted the law with a few language changes, and without the 1000 foot provision.

There is reason to believe, post Heller, McDonald and Bruen, the rewritten law is unconstitutional, and the text of the law states the federal government does not intend to occupy this particular field of law, leaving it to local and state authorities, who cannot enforce federal law.

Despite Joe Bidens continual misrepresentations of law, leftist lawyers have had little luck violating the PLCAA, but not for lack of trying. UPS, FedEx and other carriers have little financial incentive to keep transporting firearms and firearm parts, and might be intimidated into refusing to carry such goods, making it difficult and far more expensive for manufacturers to deliver their lawful products, which is precisely what anti-liberty/gun cracktivists intend.

Hopefully this too will be struck down by judges willing to obey the Constitution, but at the very least, it illustrates an aphorism attributed to Thomas Jefferson, among others: eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.

Mike McDaniel is a USAF veteran, classically trained musician, Japanese and European fencer, life-long athlete, firearm instructor, retired police officer and high school and college English teacher. He is a published author and blogger. His home blog is Stately McDaniel Manor.
How many times has Joe Biden and all his minions assured the public that the millions of illegal border crossers they are allowing into the country are "carefully vetted"?

A new Department of Homeland Security Inspector General report says they were not.

But that didn't stop the Biden administration from gaslighting of the public.

In May 2023 we got this from a DHS spokesperson, according to NBC News:

After more than 11,000 migrants were caught crossing the southern border on Tuesday, the Biden administration is now preparing a memo that will direct Customs and Border Protection to begin releasing migrants into the U.S. without court dates or the ability to track them, according to three sources familiar with the plans. ... A DHS spokesperson said the new policy will apply only to migrants who have been carefully vetted.

According to the Texas Public Policy Foundation, it always goes like this:

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas has stated numerous timespublicly and before Congressthat all non-citizen migrants are vetted before being released into the United States.

Or from Mayorkas himself, like this:

Question: Yes, uh, Secretary, we have read that the Administration is considering releasing migrants after they're being carefully vetted. And we just have some teams in El Paso yesterday that observed some migrants being vetted for an hour and then afterwards being released with a permit to stay in the country for a year. I wonder how that process is being done and how secure you are all those all those vettings taking place on the border? Secretary Mayorkas: So, U.S. Customs and Border Protection screens and vets individuals whom we encounter. Individuals  the vast majority of individuals will be returned, those who do not qualify from Border Patrol stations or Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facilities. We often, as has every administration, release individuals into immigration enforcement proceedings, and those individuals if they do not qualify for relief will be removed. We screen and vet individuals whom we encounter.

Now it comes out that actually, they don't, and what's more Mayorkas knew it.

According to a report from Fox News:

A concerning new report from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Inspector General concluded that DHS has not been effectively screening and vetting non-citizens and asylum seekers entering the United States. The report, obtained by Fox News' Bill Melugin, showed that U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents can not access all federal data to complete thorough screening and vetting of those seeking entry into the U.S. The report stated that without capabilities to effectively screen and vet non-citizens, CBP is unable to conduct complete screening and vetting of all non-citizen travelers at air and land ports of entry. Additionally, the inspector general's office said that without a dedicated technology capability and resources to conduct interim screenings, the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) may not promptly identify asylum seekers with derogatory information who remain in the country for extended periods of time while awaiting an asylum decision.

That's why we are seeing illegal migrants rolling into in the country like this:

Let's not even get into the terror suspects (and spies) who got let into the country on Mayorkas's watch, such as these charmers:

Terror suspect from Tajikistan illegally crossed border into San Diego, was let in by officers: sources -New York Post, June 12, 2024

They're just lettin' them in, even though they know they haven't properly vetted them instead of sending them back across the border to, at a minimum, wait until they can vet them.

Mayorkas, of course, did know that vetting was inadequate and they were letting them in anyway, as his 2022 statement, done in that avuncular, silkily assuring way, suggests, as World Tribune reports:

As he was being grilled by Republican members of the House Judiciary Committee on Thursday, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) chief Alejandro Mayorkas admitted that illegal immigrants who are released into the U.S. by Team Biden will undoubtedly commit crimes.

He also admitted that he had lost track of 42 terror-watchlist suspects his agency had allowed into the country.

Fox News, in its summary of the DHS watchdog report notes that five recommendations were issued regarding data access for Border Patrol with which to do vetting, as well as a section on continuous monitoring of these asylum "parolees" (which sounds pretty costly, actually, particularly since most will get their asylum cases thrown out as phony claims). No word on the costs added. There also was a section on handling "derogatory" information on alien criminals commiting crimes against Americans while claiming asylum -- apparently, every time they got a report, they ignored it.

The DHS says it signed off on the recommendations, but based on Mayorkas's leadership, more likely, Mayorkas's DHS will simply ignore them, claim they need more funds, and then wait for the next news cycle.

It's a valuable report to see for normal citizens, because the report is not a surprise -- all we have to do is read the newspapers for evidence that little or no vetting is being done and criminals and terrorists are rolling in, the cases of which seem to be accelerating in the number of outrages seen. Whole criminal gangs, after all, from Venezuela have been imported in and are operating their criminal enterprises here now. How'd that happen?

It should put Mayorkas on his backfoot for awhile, given the growing concern from the voters as to just what he has allowed in. While tech may be blamed for the lack of vetting, the big problem is policy. Letting anyone in who is unvetted is forbidden, or should be forbidden by law. Migrants who want in need to be told 'no' if resources are inadequate, not released with even less vetting than normal legal immigrants get. When Mayorkas spews blather about the immigration system being "broken," this is what is broken.

Image: KSAT12, via YouTube
Authorities in Louisiana are frantically searching for the two missing daughters of a woman discovered "brutally murdered" in her home Thursday morning.

Callie Brunett, 35, was found dead by her father inside her Loranger, Louisiana, mobile home, according to the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office, WVUE-TV reported.

It's unclear how she was killed.

Her brown hair, blue-eyed girls  6-year-old Jalie and 3-year-old Erin  are "unaccounted for," Sheriff Daniel Edwards said, according to the outlet.

Family members told investigators they became concerned after not hearing from Burnett since Tuesday and went to check on her when they came across the bloody crime scene, according to WGNO-TV and WDSU-TV. Her kids were nowhere to be found.

Authorities are searching for an unknown, armed and dangerous white male wanted for questioning. He's believed to be driving Brunett's black 2012 Chrysler sedan bearing Louisiana license plate 895GML, an AMBER Alert poster read.
Imagine youre an FBI agent assigned to interview other FBI agents to determine whether theyre a risk to national security. What kinds of questions would you ask? How would you investigate their answers and background?

Would you ask if they have any ties to organized crime? To terrorist regimes or organizations? Do they have sympathies for hostile foreign governments or ideologies? Have they had any contacts with agents of those governments? Do they hold any anti-American sentiments? Are they supporters of socialism or communism? Have they acted on those beliefs?

Obviously, those are the kinds of things youd ask, because youre a sane, patriotic American who expects people with security clearances to also be sane, patriotic Americans, people whose allegiance is to the Constitution and to our representative republic. Equally obviously, thats not what concerns the FBI under the Merrick Garland Department of Justice:

The memos show that agents for the FBIs Security Division asked at least three witnesses in spring 2022 whether the employee, whose name and job title was redacted from the memos, had been known to vocalize support for President Trump or vocalize objections to Covid-19 vaccination. Agents ascertained from at least one witness that the worker, in fact, had declined to get the coronavirus inoculation. [skip] The agents also asked witnesses whether the FBI worker had attended the Richmond Lobby Day event in January 2021, a rally for supporters of the Second Amendment in Virginia. The agents notes referred to the colleague they were vetting as a gun nut but who engaged in no promotion of violence.

Wait a minute. FBI agents carry guns, dont they? Theyre comprehensively trained on those guns, and must regularly qualify with them, right? So why would any FBI agent showing an interest in guns, or attending an event promoting the Second Amendment, be somehow suspect? Whats really going on at the FBI?

Graphic: FBI and Omaha Police Department Stand United in the Heartland Pride Parade--FBI Omaha. Wikimedia Commons.org. Public Domain

Special Agent candidates are subject to background and security checks proctologists would think excessive. No onewith the probable exception of diversity hires-- becomes an FBI agent without being vetted up one side and down the other. So why would the FBI open security investigations into people who had already been fully vetted?

Are they investigating people they have reason to believe have betrayed the United States? People who have violated their oath of office? People working for hostile foreign governments--spies? People who have committed crimes? No. Theyre removing people they consider politically unreliable. You know, Normal Americans, people who take the Constitution and rule of law seriously, people who think somethings wrong when FBI SWAT teams arrest grandmothers at 0500 for praying outside abortion clinics. Theyre people who think FBI agents have better things to do than harassing citizens who stood on the grass near the Capital on January 6. Worse, to the FBIs thinking, theyre people who might speak up about the unethical and illegal actions of superiors.

The FBls intentions are made clear by the questions it chose to put in black and white on a government document, added [the aforementioned agents attorney Tristan] Leavitt, whose group has represented the IRS whistleblowers in the Hunter Biden case as well as several FBI agents and analysts who claim their security clearances were suspended or revoked because of their political views. One of those FBI employees, intelligence analyst Marcus Allen, was vindicated last week when the bureau restored his clearance and paid him more than two years of back pay, according to CNN.

Who are the agents facing suspension and ruin? Apolitical men and women who play it straight, the kinds of people the FBI once sought and promoted. DEI hires and leftists have no fear of unwarranted security reviews. Theyre the people conducting them. The DOJ is systematically cleansing the FBI of honest, apolitical agents, people who are dedicated to equal justice for all regardless of political belief.

The same process has long been underway in the military, where actual war fighters and leaders have been harassed, hounded out of the service, even prosecuted. Its a process begun under Barack Obama and continued by his plants in the Biden Administration.

When two FBI agents show up at the front doorthey travel in pairs at leastAmericans want to believe they can be trusted, that theyre honest people fairly, ethically and honestly investigating violations of federal law. Perhaps many are, but with revelations like these and so many others, how can anyone know whether the two agents standing on the porch are honest or corrupt? Self-preservation demands one assume the latter.

When institutions like the FBI cant be trusted, can tyranny be far behind?

Mike McDaniel is a USAF veteran, classically trained musician, Japanese and European fencer, life-long athlete, firearm instructor, retired police officer and high school and college English teacher. He is a published author and blogger. His home blog is Stately McDaniel Manor.
I have a great friend from Tucson who passed on to me a sage bit of wisdom hed acquired from his communist-killing veteran father: Clean up your own st before you worry about somebody elses.

Obviously, its not wisdom that Joe Biden lives by though, and on the very same day that a court convicted his deadbeat drug addict son on felony gun charges, Joe spoke at, or rather mumbled and slurred his way through, a talking gig for the gun control group known as Moms Demand Action, telling the audience that he was going to do what he did before, and take away our constitutionally-protected firearms:

"Who in God's name needs a magazine which can hold 200 shells."



Joe Biden calls for a ban on "assault weapons," hours after Hunter Biden's guilty verdict. pic.twitter.com/SrLDbFQa9C  TENET Media (@watchTENETnow) June 11, 2024

I actually laughed out loud when he asked who needs a magazine that can hold 200 shells and some airheaded ditz from the audience yelled Nobody! because shes right, in the stupidest and most ignorant way; nobody needs a magazine that can hold 200 shells because no such thing exists. Magazines dont hold shells, they hold rounds, and shells are either a) the brass ejected from the chamber after a bullet has been fired, or b) shotgun cartridges.

That level of ignorance reminded me of the time the fake news reported that a gun had 200 rounds loaded in a pistol, which if true, would look like this:

Just a friendly reminder that gun grabbers have absolutely no clue what theyre talking about  pic.twitter.com/5ppIMGRTbW  Olivia Murray (@americaliv1) June 12, 2024

Its like a yard stick hanging out the bottom of the gun!

(The truth was that this Ohio gunman had extra ammo and magazines in his possession.)

Something with 200 rounds is going to be belt-fedgun friends, can you imagine trying to shoulder a rifle with some absurdly elongated magazine with 200 rounds? As a female who is not into strength-training I may not be the best litmus test, but that extra weight would really throw me off.

Oh, and Joe was back on the ol threatening-us-with-fighter-jets schtickat least I think, because hes pretty hard to understand:

BIDEN (slurring heavily): "If they wanna think to take on government if we get out of line ... guess what? They need F-15s! They don't need a rifle!" pic.twitter.com/9Lh28W52bU  RNC Research (@RNCResearch) June 11, 2024

He wants our guns because were the ones who cant be trusted? This is the federal government talking, an entity which has actually lost nuclear bombs. Cant find them, dont know where they went, and thats that.

This is also the guy who personally fathered Hunter Biden, a drug addict who lied on ATF forms and was so irresponsible with a firearm that he left it out to be discovered by his sloppy seconds bedmate who then threw it in a garbage can across the street from a school, and who also took naked pictures of himself while holding a gunwith his finger in the trigger well, and excuse the gross little censored-out cornichon:

In his speech today, Joe Biden talked about keeping guns safe and reforming how guns can be purchased, yet he never mentioned his son who has no idea about gun safety, and lied to obtain the gun. pic.twitter.com/PbQu9U76AB  NorCal News SA (@NorCalSmartAss) June 11, 2024

Even my six-year-old son knows you never put your finger on the trigger until youre on target and prepared to shoot.

But honestly, now that I think about it, any banning of guns ostensibly equates to a transfer of firearm ownership from me to the governmentwhich sounds illegal since the government could not pass a simple background check, being the culprit of the most gun deaths in world history and all, and if I hand my firearms over, odds are that theyd be used in the commission of crimes.

Cant be doing that now can I? I think Ill just keep em.

Image from X.
In the wake of the sweeping conservative victories across Europe, Reuters published this article:

French renewable energy sector says far-right victory risks trouble for industry The French renewable energy sector is bracing for a sharp slowdown in wind and solar projects if the far-right wins a majority in upcoming elections, just as new legislation was expected to boost the industry in nuclear-dominant France. President Emmanuel Macrons shock decision on Sunday to call a snap election could hand political power to Marine Le Pens far-right National Rally (RN) party, leaving it in charge of domestic policies including energy. The RN has pledged to end subsidies for renewables and wants to halt expansion of wind power, including pulling down already installed turbines. The party would instead invest in nuclear, hydropower and hydrogen, according to its website. It is clear that an RN-dominant parliament would facilitate the implementation of legislation that would at least slow down the development of renewable energy projects, said a spokesperson at Velocita Energies, a unit of Chinas Envision Energy, which operates wind farms in France.

So hold up, lets get a few things straight. Its not exactly the French renewable energy sector but the Chinese renewable energy sector about which were speakingso in reality its Chinese communists lamenting the electoral results, not true Frenchmen, which just shows how necessary it was for the elections to go the way they did. (Economics 101: If the industry cant exist without billions in subsidies for years on end, its just not a feasible industry, class dismissed.)

Secondly, I reject the use of the term far-right unless were talking anarchy, because these are conservative limited government ideologies that found support at the ballot box, not lawlessness and zero government.

And thirdly, just to be clear, when I say renewable energy sector, Im only using that term because its easily understood as the solar and wind energy industry, but its not at all accurate. Wind and solar are obviously renewable energy sources, but the sector is entirely reliant on another truly renewable energy source, and that is crude oil. (Crude oil is continuously made by the earth and even seeps out into the ocean, sustaining a host of marine bacteria that exclusively feed on it.) Unless the world returns to using shovels and manpower to mine critical minerals like cobalt and lithium, or can figure out how to dig out silicate for its silicon without relying on heavy diesel machinery or transportation, or lubricates wind turbines without petroleum-based products, calling wind and solar a renewable energy sector is false, and completely misleading.

Now, back to the matter at hand: Im going to go out on a limb here and suggest that the corporate handouts to foreign communists were one of many reasons that the French voted the way they did.

Or, I suppose it could have been other things too, like

The human locusts who have turned the nations sparkling capital into a filthy and crime-ridden tent city?

The tragic losses of bright and beautiful young French boys stabbed to death by gangs of feral African youth?

Muslim riots in Paris?

Maybe it was all of the above.

Whats next?

Leftist NGOs lamenting the victories because it risks trouble for their West-toppling migration schemes?

Socialists lamenting the victories because it risks trouble for their welfare benefits?

Third world invaders lamenting the victories because it risks trouble for their free ride?

Muslim jihadis lamenting the victories because it risks trouble for their bloody plans to Islamize Europe?

All these reasons are exactly why the people voted the way they did, and God bless them for it.

Image generated by AI.
The Hunter Biden gun conviction was the easy part. It was an easy case to prosecute and for the jury to finish. Frankly, I'm surprised that the Bidens didn't admit guilt and settle out of court. At least, it would have kept all that information about his personal life off the pages. Having relations with the brother's widow? Does it get any more obscene than that?

Now, it goes to the next case. Many believe that his problems are just beginning. This is the story:

With a verdict in Hunter Biden's gun trial now rendered, the president's son is next set to stand trial in California, where he faces nine federal tax charges in a second case brought by special counsel David Weiss. The president's son was indicted in December and has pleaded not guilty to all counts. Prosecutors allege that Hunter Biden engaged in a four-year scheme to not pay at least $1.4 million income taxes for the tax years 2016 through 2019. Weiss and his team claim that Hunter Biden made more than $7 million between 2016 and the fall of 2020, and spent millions on an "extravagant lifestyle" while failing to pay his taxes. Hunter Biden spent money on "drugs, escorts and girlfriends, luxury hotels and rental properties, exotic cars, clothing and other items of a personal nature, in short, everything but his taxes," according to the indictment. He is charged with six misdemeanor counts of failure to file his tax returns and pay taxes, one felony count of tax evasion and two felony counts of filing a false return. Hunter Biden's lawyers sought to have the indictment tossed out on numerous grounds. They alleged in part that the Justice Department's investigation into the president's son has been motivated by politics, Weiss was unlawfully appointed special counsel and a diversion agreement between Hunter Biden and prosecutors remains in effect.

The problem is that the next episode or case gets closer to his father and maybe his uncle. How did this troubled man with no experience in any business background generate this kind of money flow? What was he selling or what talent was he bringing to the table? The answer is a five-letter word, or "Biden."

See you in September, Bidens.

P.S. Check out my blog for posts, podcasts and videos.

Image: Louise Palanker
Antisemitism is getting uglier than ever now that the Brooklyn Museum's director and board members, some Jewish, have been targeted in their homes with extreme vandalism and threats of Hamas.

According to the New York Post:

The Brooklyn Museums director and a number of its Jewish board members were targeted overnight by antisemitic vandals who tossed red paint and scrawled blood on your hands across their homes, shocking images show. Director Anne Pasternaks coop apartment building in Brooklyn Heights was among those targeted by the vile mob when they strung up a sign that screamed, Anne Pasternak Brooklyn Museum White Supremacist Zionist. An inverted red triangle was also sprayed on her door  a symbol used in the past by Hamas to identify Israeli military targets and, more recently, has been spotted at anti-Israel tent encampment protests that plagued university campuses across the country.

That the red paint spattering attacks occurred at homes takes the matter one step closer to actual terrorism, well beyond peaceful protest.

The video below is particularly indicative of this, in that no groups claimed 'credit' for the attack.

Inbox: You take peace from the people, we take peace from you.



The homes of four Brooklyn Museum directors were vandalized overnight in retaliation for the museums use of NYPDs violence on pro-Palestine protestors. Per communique, targets include a Blackstone exec, HRC CFO. pic.twitter.com/WlJ3vuFdM0  Talia Jane  (@taliaotg) June 12, 2024

The vandals' video in the tweet in fact is absolutely repulsive, played as it was with foul-mouthed gangsta rap music to depict the gleeful spraying vandalism. The thugs knew that what they were doing was illegal as they filmed themselves covering the apartment building with red paint and the menacing triangle symbols used by Hamas. Mayor Eric Adams rightly called the act a "crime" and said he would catch the criminals.

This is happening as Jews are being openly targeted on New York's subway, suggesting an organized effort.

This on the NY subway is terrifying and open racism https://t.co/QkuxA8CWHP  S Sebag Montefiore (@simonmontefiore) June 12, 2024

Maybe it is one: A recent investigative report by NBC News found that the big money behind these protests are mostly foundations. They said they found no evidence that Hamas itself was financing the protests. But we learned something this past weekend that explained that: Foundations were bankrolling Hamas personnel itself, in the person of a supposed "reporter" who was holding three Israelis hostage.

I wrote about that here.

But what on Earth did the Brooklyn Museum, whose current signage displays former Beatle Paul McCartney's photographs, do to trigger this kind of terroristic protest?

On the surface, maybe it was a crime of opportunity. Brooklyn is where you go in New York when you want to meet an authentic Islamofascist, and I did it many times when I lived there.

Nominally, there was a scuffle at the museum a couple weeks earlier where pro-Hamas protestors took over the museum, and 34 protestors were busted by the cops. Amy Goodman at Democracy Now!, a very left-leaning broadcast program, has their side of the story.

The effort was led by one Nerdeen Kiswani, a wild-eyed fanatic who was last seen harassing child cancer patients at New York's Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, so she's not new to foul tactics. I wrote about that here.

Now unnamed vandals have struck in what they called "retaliation" for those arrests, targeting museum officials in their homes as Hamas military targets.

Here is a screen shot of their bloodthirsty message claiming retaliation:

I cannot imagine anything scarier, especially for dainty museum employees whose primary interest is in art, not politics, and who tend to be refined limousine liberals unused to thugs in their midst.

Was it Kiswani's group, called "Within Our Lifetime" that did this? They seem like a logical lead for the cops to follow up on, given that nobody cares about these protests but them, and the cops will, it is hoped, find out for sure.

It feels organized from without, though. The tactic in fact resembles what happened in Los Angeles a few months ago, in which a Brentwood lobbyist for Israel had his home targeted with smoke bombs and graffiti. That group was called "The People's City Council." I wrote about that here.



Notice that the People's City Council, on its Twitter feed, bills itself as a local group and posts mostly on local issues. But by some strange coincidence, they seem mighty interested in this vandalism case in Brooklyn across the country, retweeting the story again and again.

Maybe the groups are linked, as their tactics certainly suggest. If so, it may be a major criminal conspiracy to bring Hamas terrorism to America. That they keep getting closer and closer to it with each outrageous act suggests that that should be what authorities are watching for.

Image: Twitter screen shot
The president of the United States, the former president and his toadies, do not want to face the facts, said an embarrassed Nancy Pelosi after a video surfaced of her saying, We take responsibility for the breakdown of order on January 6.

They are trying to do revisionist history on January 6, Pelosi continued, but we cannot let us be dragged into their again [sic] false impression about what happened that day. They know what happened that day.

Unfortunately, many conservatives in the media and in government do not know what happened that day. Unlike Pelosi and her cabal mates, however, they are at least trying to get at the truth. As I explain in detail in Ashli: The Untold Story of the Women of January 6, a useful place to begin is the timeline of events. A quick review reveals an exculpatory fact so obvious and so powerful that it is astonishing that no one seems to have noticed.

On January 5, Trump posted on Facebook, I will be speaking at the SAVE AMERICA RALLY tomorrow on the Ellipse at 11AM Eastern. Arrive earlydoors open at 7AM Eastern. BIG CROWDS! For no reason I could discover, Trump started his speech an hour late. Had he started on time, audience members would have flooded onto the Capitol grounds just about 1 P.M.  just when the conspirators, friend and/or foe, were expecting them.

One oclock P.M. seems to have been the witching hour. At about 12:40 P.M., a woman spotted a six-inch pipe bomb as she walked down an alley near the RNC headquarters in Washington. The timer appeared to be set for the bomb to explode in twenty minutes, at 1 P.M.

At 12:53, Ray Epps and his crew breached the first line of bicycle racks on the Capitols west side. At 12:58, a single individual  conveniently not yet identified  pulled down the temporary fencing protecting the lawn and with it the signs saying, Area closed.

At 1 P.M., Vice President Mike Pence convened a joint session to certify the electoral votes. Minutes after 1 P.M., an undercover USCP officer spotted an apparent bomb sitting conspicuously in a bush next to a park bench outside the DNC.

At 1:06, while Rep. Paul Gosar was challenging the certification of the Arizona vote, Capitol Police deputy chief Eric Waldow ordered the less lethal team to begin shooting a barrage of grenades, gas, and rubber bullets into the still peaceful protesters now numbering about a thousand on the Capitols west side.

In violation of all norms, the police were shooting at head level. This bizarrely unprofessional attack helped enrage the crowd and likely killed one of them, Kevin Greeson. Greeson suffered a fatal heart attack when a flash bang exploded feet away. A body cam captured one officer lamenting, We can hit them with a lot of pain compliance, but were hitting innocent people. Were taking out one and getting ten angrier.

Trump has been accused of provoking the riot by telling his supporters during his speech on the Ellipse, And we fight. We fight like hell. And if you dont fight like hell, youre not going to have a country anymore. One problem with his charge, a rather large one: Trump made this statement at approximately 1:10 P.M. The Ellipse is roughly a 45-minute walk from the Capitol.

The late Ashli Babbitt stayed until the end of Trumps speech. At 2:00 P.M., a protester behind Ashli just happened to take a perfectly framed photo of her as she approached the Capitol, her Trump 2020 flag worn cape-like over her shoulders, her uncapped hair flowing down her back. Had Trump not delayed his speech, Ashli and thousands of others would have arrived just when they would have done the conspirators the most good.

At 1:38, Trump tweeted, Please support our local police and law enforcement. They are truly on the side of our Country. Stay peaceful. At 1:49, a riot was declared. Those who stayed to the end of Trumps speech, as Ashli Babbitt did, would not yet have arrived at the Capitol.

At 1:59, on the east side of the Capitol, demonstrators overwhelmed the police by their sheer mass and made their way to the east steps. When the police retreated into the building, the crowd followed. At 2:10, protesters/provocateurs managed to get by the police on the west side of the Capitol and began breaking windows.

At 2:12, Ray Epps texted his nephew boasting that he had orchestrated events at the Capitol. He certainly did his fair share. At 2:13, Trump tweeted, I am asking for everyone at the Capitol to remain peaceful. No violence! Remember WE are the party of law and order. In truth, Trump had no effective way of communicating with the crowd, most of whom had no cell coverage and no leisure to check their tweets.

At 4:17 P.M., Trump said on a posted video, You have to go home now. We have to have peace. We have to have law and order. We dont want anybody hurt. Ashli Babbitt had been shot and killed more than an hour earlier. Rosanne Boyland was still alive, but she never did get to hear Trumps plea.

Big Tech saw to that. Twitter promptly applied a warning label, saying, The claim of election fraud is disputed, and this tweet cant be replied to, Retweeted, or liked due to a risk of violence. Facebook blocked the post as well.

No, Nancy, the Capitol was your responsibility. It is hard to tell where incompetence leaves off and conspiracy begins, but youre not going to find the answer if you dont look.

Jack Cashills new book, Ashli: The Untold Story of the Women of January 6, is now available for purchase.

Image: Gage Skidmore via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0.
Dysfunctional - not performing normally, as an organ or structure of the body; malfunctioning. having a malfunctioning part or element: behaving or acting outside social norms

Grifter - a person who operates a side show at a circus, fair, etc., especially a gambling attraction; a swindler, dishonest gambler, or the like.

So, Hunter Biden was found guilty of a serious crime, the least serious crime he has committed in his life of depravity and debauchery.

He was his fathers bagman, sent around the world to sell American influence in Joes name for large amounts of money.

The Bidens are a family of grifters. They thought they were so clever. They went to great lengths to cover their illegal tracks by setting up countless LLCs and assorted bank accounts. The family has lived far beyond the means of a senatorial or vice-presidential salary for decades.

For fifty years, Joe Biden has been a thug, a plagiarist, a criminal. He is a pathological liar, as even the New York Times has noted.

He was a known racist for years, too; Robert Byrd of KKK infamy was his mentor.

Like most criminals, Joe is not very bright. Now, as the world watches him descend into the well-known signs of dementia, the left continues to pretend he is qualified to run for a second term when he is clearly not. Joe is over, done. He belongs in a care home.

The Biden family is obviously profoundly dysfunctional, rife with adultery, drug addiction, promiscuity, alcoholism, and criminality. Joes affair with Jill broke up her first marriage. Their daughter Ashleys diary revealed the fact that her childhood very possibly included inappropriate behavior by her father that led to her promiscuity and drug use. Hunter was expelled from the Navy for cocaine use.

As his laptop showed, he is a thoroughly degenerate man who was a drug addict who used prostitutes, some of them very young. After his divorce from his first wife, he had an affair with his sister-in-law, the widow of his deceased brother. He introduced her to cocaine. Both his wife and sister-in-law are mothers, of his own three daughters and his niece and nephew. How sick is that? Dysfunctional hardly describes how unstable the Biden family is.

Being the snobs they are, they continue to ignore the child Hunter fathered with Lunden Roberts but embrace the son by the newest wife. In a semi-normal family, wouldnt some of those adult children want to know their half-sister in Arkansas? Guess not. They are all without a shred of class or grace. They are all grifters.

Now convicted of the crime of lying on a gun-purchase form, will he be actually held accountable? Not likely. He has never been held accountable for his bad behavior in his life. Joe Biden says he will not pardon him, but he can and will commute his sentence with the stroke of that pen he uses so irresponsibly. It is safe to say he will certainly do exactly that if his son is sentenced to prison. Joes party is all about using lawfare to jam up his political opponents for fabricated crimes but they will not hesitate to protect all manner of lawbreakers in their own family and party.

Biden, or whoever is actually operating as president, is most likely doing Obamas bidding, fulfilling his transformation of America Marxist/communist agenda. The party that is so terrified of a second Trump presidency is terrified because they are guilty of so many crimes against the American people and the Constitution.

They assumed they would get away with their oh-so-clever crimes to take down the man who threatens their authoritarian hold on power over the American people. Now they are scared, for good reason. If Trump is elected and justice is to be done, those mobsters of the deep state, which is exactly what they are, will be indicted, brought to trial and sentenced for their crimes.

They know who they are: Jim Comey, Andrew McCabe, Andrew Weismann, Judges Merchan, Kaplan and Chutkin, prosecutors Letitia James, Alvin Bragg, Fani Willis, and a host of others.

As for trivial people like AOC, Joe Scarborough, Dan Goldman and their ilk, they wish they were important enough to be worried. Theyre not on Trumps radar; they are insignificant.

To say the country is at a crossroads is a gross understatement; we are at the edge of a Marxist abyss.

Joe Biden is an illegitimate president, and he has been a disaster for the nation from day one. There are no words to describe the damage done by this illicit administration; ten to fifteen million migrants have entered the country, unvetted, given a free pass, sheltered and fed on the taxpayer dime, any terrorist tendencies ignored. There are terrorists among them who have attempted to breach numerous military sites.

Surprised? Of course not. It is what the left wants. When and if there is a major terrorist attack, they will be prepared to absurdly blame it on Trump and his supporters while it will be the open borders left that is entirely responsible. They want chaos, tragedy, pandemics and escalating crime; anything to make people fearful and reduce the population by a variety of means.

If the Biden presidency has taught us anything, it is that we can never, never again install a man so corrupt, so incompetent, so anti-American as Joe Biden. He is the most destructive president in American history and if we prevail as a republic, he will be forever more known as exactly what he was and is, a man with a greedy, dysfunctional family of grifters.

Image: U.S. Secretary of Defense, via Flickr // CC BY 2.0 DEED
Tyson Foods is following in the footsteps of leftist companies across the U.S., having recently fired more than 1,000 Americans from a pork plant in Iowa as the company employs illegal aliens for other factory positions.

The food company recently announced that it would fire nearly 1,300 American employees, some of whom are legal immigrants, from its pork plant in Perry, Iowa. BizPacReview pointed out that the town is home to just 8,147 people and has little crime.

As Tyson Foods shuts down its factory in Iowa, the company is expected to open many job positions in New York and is reportedly seeking 52,000 illegal immigrants to be employed.

The company has allocated $1.5 million a year for legal aid services and will be providing its new employees with temporary housing, on-site child care, transportation, a relocation stipend, and paid time off to attend court hearings.

While speaking to Fox Business, a spokesperson for Tyson Foods explained the companys decision to shut down the factory in Iowa.

After careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to permanently close our Perry, Iowa, pork plant, the spokesperson told the outlet, adding that closing down the factory emphasizes our focus to optimize the efficiency of our operations to best serve our customers.

Fox Business noted that Tyson Foods is struggling as the company begins closing multiple facilities.

In 2023, Tyson Foods indicated six chicken processing facilities would close permanently, and more recently, the company added a pair of case ready value-added beef plants to the list of closures, according to the companys first-quarter earnings report, Fox Business wrote.

The shuttering of those facilities, which are located across six states, is meant to optimize asset utilization.

During an interview with Reuters, Perry mayor Dirk Cavanaugh said the pork plant is expected to close on June 28, 2024. He said such a move would devastate the community in Perry.

Its a big blow to the community, Cavanaugh said. Its our largest employer in the area. Its going to be tough to figure out what to do without them.

The food company has several other factories in Iowa that employ more than 9,000 individuals. In September 2023, Tyson Foods disclosed that it employed 139,000 workers, of which 114,000 worked in non-corporate sites across the U.S.

Image: kallerna via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped).
In the Washington Post editorial Biden is right. We must seize this opportunity for peace, veteran Post editorial author David Ignatius writes about the ceasefire plan that the Israeli war cabinet, Egypt, Qatar and the Group of Seven countries all endorse. He proffers that it seems to make sense for Hamas to accept the ceasefire terms because its in the best interest of Palestinian civilians who have suffered so much in this conflict. Ignatius has been covering the Middle East region for over 40 years. Its surprising, then, that he knows so little about the Palestinians. The Gaza leadership that they voted in -- Hamas -- doesnt care about the best interest of their people. They care only about what is in the best interest of their ideology -- to destroy Israel. If they cared about their people, they wouldnt have spent the last 20 or so years building massive underground military fortifications for the express purpose of battling Israel while not taking a millisecond or spending a dime on protective mechanisms for its people when war actually ensued. They have stolen food aid meant for civilians, blocked Palestinians from escaping through humanitarian corridors, and shot at them when they disregarded Hamas commands. They shoot from behind, besides, and below Palestinian civilians while wearing civilian clothing -- not something that a group would do if they wanted to act in the best interest of its people. There is a better argument that their goal and therefore what they see as in their best interest is to put their civilians in harms way since they believe that if they cant defeat Israel militarily -- which they cant -- they will defeat them in the court of world opinion by reporting a high number of casualties. With that, the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry exaggerates the number of Palestinians killed, and the world buys into this sympathy ploy because the other side of the conflict consists of Jews. It is nothing new for world opinion to behave this way when it comes to the Jewish people.

Does Ignatius really not understand that Hamas had no concern for protecting Palestinian civilians from what would obviously happen the day after Hamas brutally slaughtered 1200 Israelis, wounded thousands, and took hundreds hostage including Americans on October 7th -- that Israel would respond with the intent to defeat Hamas and get their hostages back?

If Hamas really cared about its civilians, they would have taken the huge amount of foreign aid they have received through the last 20 years - more aid per capita than any country in the world -- and turned Gaza into a Mediterranean Singapore. Instead, their people live in squalor (except the higher-ups in Hamas who live like kings), have antiquated infrastructure and an atrocious economy, and constantly fire missiles at Israel -- which responds, as any other country would.

Ignatius concludes that Hamas leaders have a chance to do the right thing for the Palestinian people they claim to be fighting for. But when has Hamas ever claimed that as their goal? Ignatius continues, I hope the Palestinian people can prod them to accept the ceasefire. But the Palestinians overwhelmingly support Hamas actions, despite the hell-hole Hamas has created for them. Maybe its hard for Ignatius (and most westerners) to understand this mentality. Why argue against this truth? All their actions are consistent with it. Ignatius has been wrong about this conflict for decades. It would be a welcome change if he acknowledged the true aims and goals of the Palestinians and their leadership, rather than maintaining his dream world of what he thinks would be in their best interest.

More importantly, the ceasefire that Israel, America, the other countries and David Ignatius endorse is one that doesnt leave Hamas in charge. However, who in their right mind thinks Hamas will ever go along with a deal that knocks them out of power? Thats not what medieval death cults do. The sooner world nations (and Ignatius) let this settle in and marinate as the unfortunate truth, the sooner there will be a chance for the region to find a real solution to what has been a conflict lasting over 75 years. What is compulsory, first, is that Hamas must be militarily defeated.

Dr. Michael Berenhaus is a freelance activist who works to combat anti-Israel bias in the media. He has been widely published in news sources such as the Economist, the New York Times, and the Washington Post.

Image: Kuhlmann/Munchner Sicherheitskonferenz
If anything out there tells us the worth of Joe Biden's so-called 'peace plan,' it's in the response of Hamas's top terrorist chieftain in Gaza, Yahya al-Sinwar, who launched the Oct. 7 massacre.

According to Legal Insurrection:

Hamas Gaza-based chief Yahya Sinwar triumphantly declared that we have the Israelis right where we want them as President Joe Bidens administration is pressuring Israel to agree on its ceasefire deal. Hamas Gaza-based chief boasted of the terrorist groups ability to wage war against Israel for months. As long as fighters are still standing and we have not lost the war, Sinwar claimed in a letter to Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, who is currently hiding in Qatar. We have the capabilities to continue fighting for months, the terror chief declared. Hamas chiefs claims come to light as the Biden administration is rallying support for its ceasefire deal at the United Nations, a body with a long history of harboring anti-Israel positions.

Both he and Israel's prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu understand that this is a win/lose war going on, with his side already the losing one. If Sinwar can get the Israeli Defense Forces off his back, which have been winning victory after victory at his terrorist gang's expense, he will be free to regroup, wait a while, get cash and arms from Iran, and then strike again.

He can see that Biden's so-called "peace treaty" is a load of drivel, which is why he had no trouble saying he was glad to sign onto it. Based on the terms of this plan, which Biden is pushing Israel to accept, Israel will be the one to lose as the war is played on his terms.

Hostages will be freed, but only in exchange for jailed terrorists who will be free to conduct more terror attacks and murders on Jews again. A ceasefire will take place and that suits his aims perfectly. Much easier to attack and massacre innocent unarmed civilians than have to fight the well-trained Israeli Defense Forces on Israel's terms.

Sinwar knows what's good for himself, and that alone is reason for Israel to shun this hideous "peace" treaty, which pretty well resembles all the previous "peace" treaties Israel has agreed to. Sinwar knows this, too, as it's worked out quite well for him in giving him the resources to launch newer and more lethal terror attacks.

This is far from the only repulsive sentiment he's expressed to reveal his own monstrous intentions.

Legal Insurrection continues:

The i24NEWS reported Sinwars remarks: Hamas chief in Gaza Yahya Sinwar in correspondence with his compatriots and mediators has expressed an opinion that the civilian losses in the Strip during the Israel-Hamas war are a necessary sacrifice for the Palestinian cause, reported The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), familiar to the letters. We have the Israelis right where we want them, the article cited Sinwars recent message to Hamas officials seeking to broker an agreement with Qatari and Egyptian officials. In a letter to the political leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, after three of his adult sons were killed in an Israeli airstrike, Sinwar wrote that their deaths and those of other Palestinians will inject life into the veins of this nation, and bring it to its glory and honor.

Had enough? "Necessary sacrifices"? Notice that it's never him making those "necessary sacrifices," only other people.

The ogre revels in death, the more deaths the better.

Not only does he revel in killing Jews, he likes to run the body count up among his own people, too, the better to get those photos out to the news media of weeping women and bawling children. Based on his remarks, it's pretty clear he rubs his hands together with glee.

He knows that the Western intelligentsia will reflexively blame Israel for all the deaths he set the stage for. He's not going to pay any price for it. And with Israel on the hot seat over that peace treaty, he does indeed have them "right where he wants them."

It calls to mind what Eric Hoffer wrote in his second book, The Passionate State of Mind and Other Aphorisms, published in 1955:

Those who would sacrifice a generation to realize an ideal are the enemies of mankind.

Eric (who was my friend) always knew how to read guys like this

Image: Al Jazeera video screen shot, via YouTube
A coroner in Colorado who claims he's overworked is demanding a raise from county leaders or he'll stop picking up bodies.

Prowers County Commissioner Ron Cook told KUSA-TV that he was surprised to get a call from EMS crews on June 1.

Cook said he was informed that county coroner Tommy Dunagan was refusing to respond to the scene of a death because he had already worked his 20-hour work week and his deputy wasn't available over the holiday weekend.

Dunagan stated that if county commissioners didn't want to get the person's body, it could just sit there until he was back on the clock.

"He did tell me that he couldn't go on Saturday and had nobody to take the call, and that he would respond the following day when he was back on call," explained Cook.

Dunagan did eventually respond to the scene, but only when commissioners agreed to meet and discuss his salary.

The coroner is currently paid part-time, though he works full-time hours and wants to be bumped up accordingly.

"I feel it's appropriate to call you guys because this is completely your decision," Dunagan said.

"It's no one else's decision whether I'm full-time or part-time."

Under state law, commissioners cannot amend the coroner's salary again until 2026.

Dunagan is considering the option of suing the commissioners, as well as requesting that Prowers County pay for his legal fees.
Paul Ryan says he wont vote for Trump because of his character. That means he and other NeverTrumps are glad to accept Biden for another four years because their vote could defeat Trump, which is their goal. I have never heard Ryan talk about Bidens character.

Former House Speaker Paul Ryan, meanwhile, recently said hell write in the name of a different Republican on his 2024 ballot. Character is too important to me, and its a job that requires the kind of character [Trump] just doesnt have, the former Wisconsin congressman said last month.

So I would ask Ryan to explain how the following things that Biden has done, or said, show that he has good character:

He took his son around the World collecting kickbacks for the Biden family.

He lied to the public continuously that he never had any involvement with his sons business dealings.

He intentionally lied to the public that Hunters laptop was Russian disinformation.

He continually lies about his personal biography.

He continually lies about what Trump said in Charlottesville to gin up racial hate and division.

He continually lies about what Trump said about soldiers.

He clearly supports abortion on demand because he wont support any limits.

He illegally took and mishandled classified documents and shared them with a ghostwriter.

He has an attorney general who targets Catholics, pro-lifers, parents, and Trump-supporters.

Obama and Biden had a Justice Department that lied to the FISA court and illegally spied on people surrounding Trump.

He has no compassion for the families of soldiers who died in Afghanistan.

He clearly doesnt care about the people of East Palestine, Ohio.

He supports Iran, which pledges death to Israel and death to America. He has built up the finances of terrorists while he lectures Israel.

He dictatorially and unconstitutionally pays off student loans. That is pure abuse of power.

He is willing to destroy the poor and middle class as he gives massive kickbacks to green pushers. Not once has he shown any scientific data to link temperatures to oil consumption because there is none.

He was willing to destroy children by keeping them out of schools at the behest of political supporters.

He fired people who wanted to exercise their freedom not to take a vaccine.

He is willing to block poor and minority children from going to better schools because he kowtows to political supporters.

He refuses to abide by his oath of office to enforce immigration laws.

I am sure people could come up with many more examples of the bad character of Biden.

But Trump paid a nuisance $130,000 and coded payments to an attorney as legal fees. What a crime! He also challenged an election, just as Democrats have done in many elections. He also told people to walk peacefully and patriotically to the Capitol while Pelosi failed to secure the Capitol, and that is her job.

Just think: Hillary and the DNC did opposition research far and wide on Trump, and all they could come up with was the fictional Russian dossier.

So I would ask Ryan and all the people who will gladly have Biden win another four years in office exactly what about Bidens character is admirable.

As for me, I will enthusiastically support Trump, who supports American strength and safety and giving power, money, and freedom back to the people, over Biden or any other Democrat, whose goal is to make the government more powerful and to make as many people dependent on the government as possible.

Image: Gage Skidmore via Flickr, CC BY-SA 2.0.
One of the biggest announcements during the latest WWDC24 was the integration of ChatGPT in iOS 18. However, for this, it seems that Apple and OpenAI reached an agreement that does not involve revenue-sharing strategies. That said, the Cupertino giant would resort to that monetization method in the future.

Apples market share in the smartphone segment is gigantic. Every year, the brand sells tens of millions of iPhones around the world. Therefore, ensuring a place as a service integrated into that ecosystem is a very appealing idea for anyone. Apparently, both Apple and OpenAI think the same, which is why, according to Bloomberg, neither is currently charging the other.

Neither Apple nor OpenAI are paying in their current deal for ChatGPT integration

The report indicates that Apple considers being present in its millions of devices around the world as of equal or greater value than monetary payments. While ChatGPT is pretty well known today, there are still people who are hesitant to try the service for the first time. But having it right at your fingertips, built into an iPhone, can be an ideal jumpstart to start enjoying the power of AI.

The source adds that Apple is not seeking exclusivity of any kind with ChatGPT. In fact, the company is said to be in talks with Google to integrate Gemini. Also with Anthropic, a startup focused on AI. It is even said that they would negotiate with Baidu and Alibaba to offer AI integration in China. This is because services from companies such as OpenAI or Google are limited or prohibited in the Asian country.

Apples goal would be to turn iOS into an access hub for the most popular AI services. These services would coexist with Apple Intelligence, the companys own AI platform. Third-party services would support tasks that Apple Intelligence cannot yet perform.

Apple would take a cut from OpenAI paid plans as future revenue share strategy

In the future, Apple would resort to a monetization model based on revenue share with OpenAI and other companies. The report indicates that the company would take a portion of the premium subscriptions made through its payment platform. Basically, it would implement a model similar to that of the App Store. Lastly, Apple would try to get people to replace traditional search engines with AI-powered services.
Samsung has had enough of Galaxy Watch FE leaks. The company has officially unveiled the new smartwatch, the first under the Fan Edition lineup. It aims to extend its advanced and holistic wellness experience to more users with this affordable Wear OS watch, a rebadged version of the Galaxy Watch 4.

Galaxy Watch FE goes official a month before Unpacked

Samsung is slated to host a major Unpacked event in Paris, France next month. It will bring new foldables, flagship watches, and more. Ahead of that, the company launched the Galaxy Watch FE, an entry-level product in its smartwatch portfolio. As said earlier, it is a rebadged Galaxy Watch 4, so we arent looking at an entirely new product. But it is still very much relevant in the market. Plus, there are a few salient upgrades.

The Galaxy Watch FE is powered by Samsungs Exynos W920 chipset. The same processor also powers the Galaxy Watch 5 series. It has a CPU speed of 1.18GHz and is paired with 1.5GB RAM and 16GB internal storage. The watch comes in a 40mm size featuring a 1.2-inch Super AMOLED display of 396396 pixels resolution. It boasts Always On Display (AOD) and has a Sapphire Crystal glass on top, something not found on the Galaxy Watch 4.

The body is made of aluminum and boasts 5ATM, IP68, and MIL-STD-810H durability ratings. In other words, the Galaxy Watch FE is strong enough to survive a swimming session or exposure to extreme weather and environmental conditions. Samsung has fitted the wearable with its modern straps featuring a one-click ejection mechanism introduced on the Galaxy Watch 6 series last year. The Galaxy Watch 4s original bands come with a pin-based mechanism.

The Galaxy Watch FE packs a 247mAh battery that should easily power it through the day. It charges wirelessly, with Samsung including a charging puck in the box. Connectivity options include NFC, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, GPS, and LTE (only on the LTE variant). The watch offers a wide range of health and fitness monitoring features, including Blood Pressure, ECG, Sleep, heart rate, body composition, and more. It supports Samsungs Camera Controller app.

Price and availability

Samsung will sell the Galaxy Watch FE in black, silver, and pink gold colors. The watch will run Wear OS 4-based One UI 5 Watch out of the box. The company says the Bluetooth variant will be available to purchase from its online stores, carriers, and third-party retailers in the US at $199. The LTE variant (supports eSIM) will arrive in October with a price tag of $250. The watch will also be available globally this summer.
Samsung Chairman Lee Jae-yong concluded his two-week business trip to the US with meetings with the CEOs of major tech companies. Lee met Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy, and Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon to discuss cooperation in various industry trends. Artificial Intelligence (AI) was one of the hot topics alongside foundry, chips, cloud services, and networks.

Samsung seeking cooperation with Qualcomm, Amazon, and Meta on AI

Lee Jae-yong left for the US in early June to meet with industry leaders and discuss how their companies can improve collaboration. Over the past two weeks, he held meetings with several big names from the industry. On June 10, Lee invited Qualcomm President and CEO Cristiano Amon to Samsungs Device Solutions Americas (DSA) office in San Jose, California. The duo discussed ways to expand cooperation in the emerging sectors of the semiconductor market.

As the industry ushers into a new era of AI, Samsung wants to be at the forefront of this revolution. The company has already set a trend with Galaxy AI. Lees meeting with Qualcomms CEO revolved around AI semiconductors and next-generation communication chips. The two companies already have a close partnership (Samsung often gets exclusive, overclocked versions of the latest Snapdragon chips) and this meeting might strengthen their bond.

On June 11, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg invited Lee to his home in Palo Alto, California. It was their second meeting in four monthsLee invited Mark to a Samsung guest house, during the latters Korea visit in February. During the most recent meeting, the two tech leaders discussed cooperation in the future ICT (Information and Communications Technology) industry. They also talked about AI, virtual reality, augmented reality, and other futuristic tech fields.

In a press release, Samsung said it expects to further expand its cooperation with Meta in the field of AI, though it didnt specify anything. During his Korea visit earlier this month, Zuckerberg described Samsung as a foundry giant with an important position in the global economy. This could be an important point in our cooperation with Samsung, the Meta head said. It appears the two firms are cooking something big in the AI industry.

Amazon and Samsung are collaborating in TV, mobile, and content

Lees final major meeting in the US was with Amazon CEO Andy Jassy on June 12. The meeting in Amazons headquarters in Seattle was also attended by Samsungs DS Division Head Jeon Young-hyun, Memory Business Division Head Lee Jung-bae, DSA Vice President Han Jin-man, and North America President Choi Kyung-sik. The executives discussed the future of various flagship businesses, including generative AI and cloud computing.

Lee and Jassy also shared their opinions on cooperation in these fields. Samsung and Amazon are already collaborating in TV, mobile, and content. This meeting may see the two firms extend their partnership to more areas. Samsung plans to hold a global strategy meeting of its key executives later this month. Lee may share his insights from the US visit with the executives during the meeting. The company is expected to develop a specific vision and business plan for the future.
Being inspired by the European Unions Digital Marketers Act, India has come up with a draft of the Digital Competition Bill to stop tech giants like Google, Microsoft, Apple, and others from dominating the market through anti-competitive practices.

The draft of the Digital Competition Bill aims to prevent giants like Google from taking anti-competitive measures

According to a report by The Indian Express, the draft of the Digital Competition Bill includes provisions aimed at preventing major corporations from engaging in practices that could lead to monopolistic dominance in the market.

The draft also promises to impose heavy penalties for violations of the act. The amount could be in billions of dollars, possibly a significant percentage of the companys turnover.

Reportedly, the Digital Competition Bill is similar to the EUs DMA, which came into complete effect last year and requires tech giants like Google and Apple to open their services to their competitors. You might have already heard about Apples web distribution of apps in the EU. Indias Digital Competition Bill could also require the companies to take similar steps in the country.

The Indian Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology will hold a meeting on June 18 with tech giants to address serious concerns and consider the interests of all parties involved.

The draft faces criticism from tech companies

Just like what we are seeing with the EUs DMA, tech giants could have to face a significant compliance burden in yet another region. As you may already expect, the bill has faced resistance from both tech companies and industry bodies funded by them.

As a result, the tech giants are seeking changes to strengthen the current competition law rather than moving to the newly proposed bill. For example, an industry executive told The Indian Express that because of the strict requirements of the EUs DMA, there has been a 4,000 percent increase in the time it takes to find things via Google search.

If the bill comes into effect, Apple will have to allow iPhone users to download apps from third-party sources alongside its App Store. Google also prioritizes its own app store for app downloads citing security risks of sideloading, even if Android allows it.
TikTok has been one of the hot topics in America lately, courtesy of the potential app ban situation in the country. Although the government is concerned about what information users see on the app, a recent survey has revealed Americans do love TikTok when it comes to consuming news.

A recent survey reveals TikTok is one of the go-to news sources for young adult Americans

On Wednesday, the Pew Research Center published a survey that talks about the role major social media platforms play in delivering news to Americans. Notably, the survey includes data related to social media giants like Facebook, TikTok, X, and Instagram. The survey reveals that TikTok grabs the second spot after X as the daily news source for young adult Americans.

Per the survey, young Americans believe that TikTok exposes them to first-hand news that theyre unlikely to find anywhere else. The same has been admitted by 35% of the surveyed TikTok app users. The fact that most TikTok users dont see the platform as a news source but as a fun gateway makes the findings of the survey even more interesting.

TikTok outranks Facebook and Instagram in this aspect

The survey also reveals that the news American TikTok users consume on the platform comes mainly from influencers and celebrities. On the other hand, X users get their news from media outlets and reporters. Whereas Facebook and Instagram users news comes from their friends and family, or other people they may know. Worth noting that Facebook and Instagram fall behind TikTok in this race.

All that said, the published survey hints at the growing popularity of TikTok as a news source among Americans. And, it could be one of the reasons why TikTok influencers are regrouping themselves to save the platform. Last month only, a group of TikTok creators filed a lawsuit against the US government opposing the potential app ban.
Donald Trump met with GOP lawmakers Thursday in his first visit to Capitol Hill since the Jan. 6 riots, much to the dismay of Democrats.

During the closed-door meeting with House Republicans at the Capitol Hill Club, the former president spent much of his time attacking his critics and complaining about his legal woes, stopping only to address policy matters briefly, a source told CNN.

He alluded to the importance of staying loyal to him, highlighting the majority of 10 Republicans who voted to impeach him over the riots are no longer in office, except two.

"I never loved him," Trump said of Rep. David Valadao of California, according to a GOP member, CNN reported.

Trump also addressed the ongoing feud between Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and House Speaker Mike Johnson, after her failed attempt to oust him from his seat, last month.

"He's always so sweet, recognizing me, and he said 'are you being nice to Speaker Johnson?' He was joking. And I said, 'eh,'" Greene said while gesturing with her hands, the outlet reported. "He said, 'OK, be nice to him' and I nodded my head."

Trump shifted the conversation to his recent convictions on 34 felony charges of falsifying business records in connection with the Stormy Daniels hush-money case, calling the Department of Justice "dirty no good bastards," while expressing his frustrations, another source said.

Allies said after the meeting the convictions only fueled and motivated the party to reclaim the presidency.

"Anybody who thought that this President was going to be down after the sham trial, after that crooked trial that we saw in New York, I think, again, it's only given him even more energy," House Majority Whip Tom Emmer said. "And what he did for us upstairs just now is, he showed us that energy and he showed us that positive outlook, despite all the garbage they've been throwing at him with their lawfare and their nonsense."

Trump drifted off-topic several times, insiders said, sounding off on former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and a hypothetical romance between the rivals, accusing one of her "wacko" daughters of saying he and Pelosi "would be perfect together, there's an age difference though," according to NBC.

Christine Pelosi responded on X, "Speaking for all 4 Pelosi daughters  this is a LIE. His deceitful, deranged obsession with our mother is yet another reason Donald Trump is unwell, unhinged and unfit to step foot anywhere near her  or the White House."

Before wrapping up the meeting, Trump advised Republicans to "follow their own heart" when it comes to the controversial topic of abortion.

"But like Ronald Reagan, you have to have three choices: life of mother, rape and incest you have to do, but you have to follow your own heart," Trump said, according to a source.

Thursday's gathering angered Democrats who said Trump should be using the visit to apologize to the officers involved in the Jan. 6 riots.

"[It is] insulting for the men and women who protected the Capitol with their lives to have to watch him come up to the Hill and pretend the insurrection never happened." Democratic Rep. Becca Balint of Vermont said, according to Axios.

Democratic Rep. Jasmine Crockett of Texas accused Trump of "hang[ing] out with the very same MAGA extremists who acted as his proxies on January 6th."
In early May, The Gentle Barn's Missouri location welcomed two special new residents. The animal sanctuary didn't hesitate to take in pot-bellied pigs Dottie and Jordan after the mother-son duo was found wandering near a gas station.

After a brief reunion with their owners, the pigs took a trip to The Gentle Barn, where they finally started to relax. Just when everyone thought they'd found their Happily Ever After, though, it turns out that this fairy 'tail' ending has a beautiful twist!

Dottie-Ann also had three other children at her previous home, so the animal rescuers at The Gentle Barn worked hard to bring them home to their mom and sibling. The sisters may be all grown up, but they're still part of the family!

Welcome home, girls! Their names haven't been decided yet, but there's no doubt that they're feeling comfortable in the animal sanctuary already. It's hard to say what their life may have been like before finding themselves at The Gentle Barn, but I'd bet almost anything that these pot-bellied pigs are all happier now that they're together.

Related: Pot-Bellied Pig and Cat BFF Watching the Sunset Together Are Making Everyone Smile

Commenter @justchoosejoy was completely right when she said that it's the "luckiest day of their lives!" There's no doubt that their "happy tails will be wagging forever." OK--but let's take a moment to appreciate the synchronized tail wagging! I didn't even know that pigs wag their tails out of happiness until recently, and I thought most pigs had curly tails. I'm sure I'm not the only one who thinks it's the cutest thing!

Jordan and Dottie-Ann had been found at a nearby gas station, but I think their greatest adventures with the rest of their family are yet to come. They have lots of space to explore, lots of food to eat, and all the time in the world to spend together. What else could a rescue animal need?

Do Pigs Have Familial Connections?

Parents will say, without a doubt, that there can be a strong between parents and children. The same goes for many other animal species, too, but people tend not to recognize the emotions and relationships of animals we don't keep as pets.

But in reality, pigs are deeply emotional, and they form complex bonds with people, other pigs, and even other species. Psychologists have witnessed pigs responding to other pigs' emotions and having emotional responses to the anticipation of future events.

Pigs can problem-solve and remember their surroundings, but do they remember family members? All current research points to yes, and so does Dottie-Ann's blissful reaction to being reunited with all of her children.

Now, this family's true Happily Ever After can begin!

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Aviciis father has said there is happiness and pain in looking at the pictures of his late son from a newly published photobook.

Avicii: The Life And Music Of Tim Bergling traces the life of the Swedish DJ and record producer, who took his life in 2018 at the age of 28.

Reflecting on what it has been like to look over childhood photos of his son, Klas Bergling told the PA news agency: It makes me happy to see him happy.

Avicii performs on stage during Capital FMs Summertime Ball at Wembley Stadium in 2015 (Yui Mok/PA)

We have very nice memories from his childhood and youth, etc.

At the same time, there is pain knowing the reality.

The photobook, published on Thursday, includes previously unpublished photos from the DJs career and childhood as well as an essay written by Mans Mosesson, the official biographer of Avicii.

Mr Bergling also spoke about suicide and said we must pay attention and we must act when it comes to the mental health problems affecting young people today.

Tim also struggled from time to time with mental health problems, he added.

This month a documentary about the DJ premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival called Avicii-Im Tim and Mr Bergling said he will absolutely watch it at some point in the future.

I havent seen the documentary, which has now showed at Tribeca, so I will build up the courage to see it, he said.

I look forward to it but its a big effort really.

Speaking about his sons legacy, he added: I hope it continues (he was a) very open-minded guy that created very, very nice music.

He was one of a kind, I hope he will be remembered for many years.

Avicii had hits with Wake Me Up and Le7els and collaborated with musicians including Madonna, Coldplay and Robbie Williams.

The photobook has been created in collaboration with the Tim Bergling Foundation, set up by Aviciis family in 2019.

All profits from the book will go to the foundation, which according to its website advocates for the recognition of suicide as a global health crisis.
Labour has put economic growth at the heart of its manifesto, but experts and small firms have raised fears over the absence of pledges on some key taxes.

The manifesto confirmed Labour would cap corporation tax at 25% until the next parliament as it looks to cement its pro-business stance.

It also unveiled a raft of plans to support small firms, including reiterating aims to overhaul business rates and help level the playing field between online and high street retailers.

But experts said the lack of any promises not to increase capital gains tax (CGT) has fuelled speculation that it may be in line for a hike if Labour wins the election, in what would be a blow to entrepreneurs.

Rachael Griffin, tax and financial planning expert at Quilter, said: The conspicuous lack of confirmation from the Labour manifesto that it would not raise CGT will spark significant concern among entrepreneurs and investors in the UK.

Both shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves and Sir Keir Starmer have in recent interviews doubled down on the fact they have no plans to increase CGT rates without completely ruling it out.

However, in its manifesto Labour has explicitly ruled out increases to income tax, national insurance, VAT and corporation tax, but make no mention of CGT.

Jason Hollands, managing director at wealth management and professional services group Evelyn Partners, added: The big three tax pledge  vowing not to raise income tax, national insurance or VAT  is a doubled-edged sword because in attempting to head off fear of higher taxes by explicitly ruling these out, it inevitably creates suspicion about which other areas could be vulnerable.

The change Britain needs.  The Labour Party (@UKLabour) June 13, 2024

Capital gains tax, inheritance tax and the tax-preferential treatment of pension saving have all featured in speculation around possible targets for a Government that needs to raise revenues down the line.

No party set for government would for instance pre-announce a rise in capital gains tax as it would inevitably lead to a rush by some investors to dispose of assets.

So, all eyes now are not just on the General Election, but also on the next governments first big fiscal statement, which is likely to be an autumn budget.

The opposition partys manifesto also reiterated Labours pledge to replace the current business rates system of property tax to level the playing field between the high street and online giants.

Kate Nicholls, chief executive of UKHospitality, said Its clear that Labour has listened and acted on UKHospitalitys policy recommendations, which will enable hospitality to continue to create places where people want to live, work and invest.

We are delighted to see a commitment to replace the broken business rates system and reduce the burden on high street businesses.

Simon Dodds, chief executive of pub firm Youngs, said: It is painfully clear that the current business rates system is in dire need of reform and we are encouraged that this is being recognised by political parties in their manifestos.

Action is vital to secure the long-term futures of businesses and livelihoods across the country, including pubs and the wider hospitality sector, which employs millions and drives economic growth.

Tina McKenzie, policy chair of the Federation of Small Businesses, said firms are looking for more reassurances over tax.

As questions swirl around tax in this election, the UKs 5.5 million entrepreneurs  who generate the jobs and growth that should be at the core of Labours mission  will want to hear more reassurance from the party on the huge taxes small firms already pay at every stage of running their businesses, she said.

Meanwhile, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) said Labours industrial strategy and proposals to streamline planning processes could support UK businesses.

Its chief executive Rain Newton-Smith said: Commitments to implementing an industrial strategy, a business tax roadmap, and improvements to speed up the planning system can all provide the certainty needed to unlock investment.

Reassurances that Labour will not increase corporation tax and will look at wholesale reform of the business rates system are especially welcome.
The Scottish Government is being urged to step in and save a famous Scottish battlefield site by pulling a planning application.

The National Trust for Scotland has criticised plans to build on land at the historic Bannockburn battlefield, where Robert the Bruce famously defeated King Edward IIs English army in 1314.

Stirling Council is currently considering a proposal to develop a trotting track for harness racing on the site.

But the National Trust for Scotland said the development, if it gets given the green light, would be sited in the vicinity of where Bruces army faced off against the vanguard of Edwards army on the first day of the battle.

Stuart Brooks, the charitys director for conservation and policy, said it is extremely disappointed Stirling Council planning department is considering the proposal for the track on what is a nationally designated site.

He added: We are calling for the Scottish Government to pull this planning application to ensure the future of this historic battlefield for the benefit of future generations.

The National Trust for Scotland has managed the battlefield, which attracts thousands of visitors a year from across the country and overseas, since 1943.

It is concerned the planned track would be built on one of the last undeveloped areas of the designated battlefield.

It also fears the parking and noise from racing events at the track would disturb visitors at what it describes as a place of pilgrimage for many.

Thanks to our supporters, were able to pass on the important stories of Scotland to the next generation. At Bannockburn, we hope to inspire a love of history in every student who comes to visit  Find out how: https://t.co/A81OKhC6av#ForTheLoveOfScotland pic.twitter.com/T0ZjKtQAjq  National Trust for Scotland (@N_T_S) May 15, 2022

Mr Brooks said: Bannockburn is much more than just a battlefield. It is the location of one of the most pivotal moments in Scottish history when Robert the Bruce, King of Scots, defeated the English army led by King Edward II.

The landscape surrounding the battlefield was instrumental in helping Roberts men beat their English rivals and ensuring the nations future.

Over previous decades much of the historic setting has been lost and we are deeply concerned about any new development that would encroach on this and further erode and degrade this iconic landscape.

We are calling for the Scottish Government to step in and save Bannockburn battlefield from this proposal to ensure the longevity of a site steeped in Scottish history.

A Stirling Council spokesperson said: We have received representation from the National Trust for Scotland on the proposed new trotting track at Chartershall. The proposed development will be considered by our planning and regulation panel in due course.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: Ministers have issued a notification direction for the trotting track.

This means if Stirling Council is minded to grant permission, it will be notified to ministers who will decide whether or not to call in the application for their own determination.
David Dimbleby is marking the end of his time as chairman of an art gallery by curating an exhibition with his daughter Liza Dimbleby.

The former Question Time presenter, 85, is known for previously fronting the BBCs general election and royal coverage, and will hold the Drawing The Unspeakable art show in Eastbourne.

Dimbleby said: Co-curating this exhibition has been an exhilarating experience. Liza has always been my companion and guide through the world of art. For a time, during the Covid lockdown, rather than write to each other, we would exchange drawings by email.

David and Liza Dimbleby (David Edwards/ Towner Eastbourne)

This was what gave Joe Hill the idea of asking us to put on this exhibition  drawing taking the place of words.

The guest curation takes place at Towner Eastbourne in the seaside town from October 2024 to April 2025 shortly after Dimbleby steps down as chairman of the art gallery, an independent charity, in September.

It will show work by prominent artists including painter David Bomberg, sculptor Barbara Hepworth, Madge Gill and caricaturist and printmaker James Gillray, along with drawings from Towner and from other collections such as Londons British Museum, Bethlem Museum of the Mind and Ben Uri Gallery and Museum.

Artists Dennis Creffield, Elisabeth Frink, Eric Ravilious, Denzil Forrester, Emma Talbot, Ansel Krut and Emma Woffenden are also among those with works featured in the exhibit.

Liza by Massimo Franco (Lizaby Massimo Franco/Towner Eastbourne)

Accompanying the body of work is a written conversation between Dimbleby and Liza about their different viewpoints as journalist and artist, respectively, and as father and daughter.

Artist Liza says: Drawing is a way of speaking. The hand-drawn image is able to convey ambivalence and even contradictory impulses, which can make drawing more eloquent than words in communicating the most confounding aspects of human experience, showing us things that even the person drawing may not foresee.

More than 100 drawings will feature to communicate experiences that are beyond words and navigate the impasse of speech to illustrate what can be shown when words fail.

The gallery also said it would draw on ideas such as disasters, war, displacement, destruction, mental illness, grief, loss, dreams, memories and imagining.

Andrzej Jackowskis artwork Study for Portrait of Dr Groddeck of Baden-Baden, 1978 (Towner Eastbourne/Andrzej Jackowski)

Joe Hill, director and chief executive of Towner Eastbourne, said: We are delighted to host David and Liza to curate this exhibition and to celebrate 10 successful years of Davids leadership of our board. Id like to take this opportunity to thank David for his dedication and work on our behalf .

What could be a more fitting end to his journey with us than to ask him to curate an exhibition with his daughter. This thought-provoking exhibition will encourage our audiences to look again at the drawings in our collection, through David and Lizas unique lens.

The exhibition takes place from Oct 5 2024 to April 27 2025.
Elon Musk has claimed that Tesla shareholder votes on a record-breaking payout to the billionaire boss and a plan to move the firms legal headquarters to Texas are currently passing by wide margins.

Shareholders in the car company have been voting on a number of proposals, including one that could give the multi-billionaire chief executive a record pay deal worth around 56 billion dollars (43.8 billion), which was first agreed in 2018.

A decision on the vote is expected later on Thursday.

Both Tesla shareholder resolutions are currently passing by wide margins!  Thanks for your support!!  pic.twitter.com/udf56VGQdo  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 13, 2024

Earlier this year, a judge in the US state of Delaware, where Tesla is incorporated, voided the pay deal after an investor sued on the issue, with the judge ruling that the sum was unfair and the process to award it to Mr Musk  which was made by a board controlled by the entrepreneur  was described as deeply flawed.

Tesla called that decision inconsistent with the will of the stockholders and submitted the deal to another vote, alongside a measure to consider moving the companys legal headquarters outside of Delaware.

The car maker has argued that Mr Musk deserves the pay package because he is crucial to the companys success and has helped the firm achieve ambitious targets through his leadership, and that it is a necessary deal to ensure he remains committed to the company.

Mr Musks other businesses include SpaceX and social media platform, X, formerly known as Twitter.

Even if successful with the vote, Mr Musk could still face legal hurdles over the pay package, with some legal experts noting that it was unclear whether the Delaware court which blocked the deal would accept the result of the new vote, because it is not legally binding.
What to expect on the General Election campaign trail on Thursday

Here is your guide to the main developments in the General Election campaign on Thursday:

 No surprises there

It is Sir Keir Starmers turn to launch a manifesto, which will contain no tax surprises, the Labour leader told journalists earlier this week.

The Liberal Democrats were in grid position one in this weeks race to publish policies, with an event in central London on Monday.

Rishi Sunak fronted the Conservative Party manifesto launch at Silverstone Circuit, the Northamptonshire home of the British Grand Prix, on Tuesday, followed by Green Party co-leaders Adrian Ramsay and Carla Denyer on a visit to Hove, Sussex, on Wednesday.

Labour campaigners have travelled up to Manchester to make their pitch to the nation, after a campaign which has so far been dominated by a one-word slogan: Change.

Throughout this years General Election campaign, Sir Keir has trailed five fully funded national missions and six first steps for change  among them pledges to set up a publicly owned energy company called Great British Energy and a new Border Security Command to smash criminal boat gangs.

 Over the border

Plaid Cymru is launching its manifesto in Cardiff and leader Rhun ap Iorwerth reckons the election is about one thing  the economy.

Among its headline pledges is a plan to secure the 4bn owed to Wales from HS2 to invest in improving our own public transport in all parts of the country and reversing cuts to local bus services, which Mr ap Iorwerth said he would fight every day for.

We will address the cost-of-living crisis and provide Welsh solutions to Welsh problems, he said.

(PA Graphics)

The party leader also told BBC Panorama he would put a fiver on Labour winning the election.

 Seven Up

ITVs Julie Etchingham is back in the studio after Sunak v Starmer, the first head-to-head TV debate of this years General Election campaign, on Tuesday last week.

She will host not two but seven senior party figures at 8.30pm on ITV1 and STV.

Viewers might recognise the line-up after the BBCs multi-party debate last Friday: Penny Mordaunt  Conservative Party; Angela Rayner  Labour Party; Daisy Cooper  Liberal Democrats; Stephen Flynn  SNP; Nigel Farage  Reform UK; Carla Denyer  Green Party; Rhun ap Iorwerth  Plaid Cymru.

 Cancer care

The Liberal Democrats have turned their attention to cancer care.

On the campaign trail, the party will trail its plan for a legal guarantee for all cancer patients to start treatment within 62 days of an urgent referral.

 Away from the trail

Rishi Sunak will be at the Borgo Egnazia resort until Saturday, where he will meet other G7 leaders  among them Frances Emmanuel Macron, Germanys Olaf Scholz and US President Joe Biden.

Ukraines President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will also be at the resort, which is near Fasano, in the Puglia region of southern Italy.

On the agenda are climate change, the situation in the Middle East, the conflict in Ukraine and artificial intelligence (AI).

From Ukraine to the Middle East, we will be discussing significant global threats at the summit, the Prime Minister said in a statement.

Such threats are why it is so vital to strengthen the UKs national defence, through our commitment to spend 2.5% of GDP on defence by 2030.
Ireland has elected 10 of 14 MEPs, as counting continued late on Thursday in search of finalised results in Midlands-North-West.

Fianna Fail has improved on its previous European election results, with a further gain possible among the remaining seats.

Fine Gael is on track to pick up two seats in the remaining constituency for a total of four, down one from 2019.

The fifth day of counting also saw three more MEPs lose their place in the parliament.

Billy Kelleher speaks to a member of An Garda Siochana as he awaits count results (Jonathan Brady/PA)

Sinn Fein representative Chris MacManus was eliminated from the running in Midlands-North-West, while the Greens Grace OSullivan and independent Mick Wallace were excluded from the running in Ireland South.

They followed the elimination of independent Clare Daly and Green representative Ciaran Cuffe in Dublin, also outgoing MEPs.

In Ireland South, Fianna Fails Billy Kelleher was re-elected as an MEP, calling it a crowning moment.

He celebrated with his family, colleagues and Tanaiste Micheal Martin, who said the party was hopeful of clinching a second seat in the South constituency.

Luke Ming Flanagan speaking at the TF Royal Theatre count centre in Castlebar, Co Mayo (Niall Carson/PA)

Independent Michael McNamara, Fianna Fails Cynthia Ni Mhurchu and Sinn Feins Kathleen Funchion took the final three seats, after Mr Wallace was ruled out.

It means Fianna Fail has held on to its two seats in Europe with the possibility of claiming one more as counting continues in Midlands-North-West.

It is in that constituency that Sinn Fein could also add to its tally of MEPs, after matching its current count with the election of Ms Funchion.

In Midlands-North-West, left-wing independent Luke Ming Flanagan was re-elected on the 19th count.

Sean Kelly celebrates with friends, family and supporters after becoming the first MEP to be elected in Irelands European elections (Jonathan Brady/PA)

As the first MEP to be elected for the region in the days-long count, he made a vow to constituents: Im certainly not going to let you down, youve been let down too often  youre not going to be let down by me.

The lengthy counting of ballot papers continues, with four MEPs left to be elected in the final stages of ballot processing in the 15-county constituency.

Unpredictable transfers, which political commentators said were not following traditional patterns, are adding to the drama of who will claim the final seats.

Sinn Feins Chris MacManus was eliminated from the running on Thursday morning (Cillian Sherlock/PA)

The top three candidates for the remaining four seats in Midlands-North-West are in a tight grouping going into the last counts.

They are Fine Gael candidates Nina Carberry, a former jockey, and Maria Walsh, who is seeking re-election, followed by Fianna Fail TD Barry Cowen.

Taoiseach and Fine Gael leader Simon Harris travelled to Castlebar to congratulate Ms Carberry and Ms Walsh on their expected confirmation as MEPs.

Mr Harris said he and other Government leaders had not had a discussion on the holding of by-elections and added: I certainly dont fear by-elections.

Asked about the fact that Fine Gael will be down by one seat by the end of the election, he said the party will review its strategy.

Mr Cowen is likely to be helped significantly by transfers from his now-eliminated running mate Lisa Chambers despite the partys campaign in the constituency being marred by infighting.

Outgoing MEP Mick Wallace (Jonathan Brady/PA)

It leaves Independent Ireland candidate and former RTE correspondent Ciaran Mullooly fighting it out with Sinn Fein representative Michelle Gildernew for the fifth and final seat.

If Ms Gildernew is succesful in reclaiming Mr MacManus seat, Sinn Fein will have increased its numbers in the European Parliament.

Sinn Fein candidate Kathleen Funchion in the count centre (Brian Lawless/PA)

Irish voters headed to the polls last Friday to pick 949 local councillors, 14 MEPs and the countrys first directly elected mayor.

Results emerging from the three elections have been seen as a political boon for coalition partners Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, while the largest opposition party, Sinn Fein, has initiated a review after performing well below its own expectations.

Michelle Gildernew from Sinn Fein listens to the results at the TF Royal Theatre (Niall Carson/PA)

On Tuesday night, the four MEPs who will represent Dublin in the European Parliament were elected at the end of three days of counting.

Fine Gaels Regina Doherty, Fianna Fails Barry Andrews, Sinn Feins Lynn Boylan and Labours Aodhan O Riordain all confirmed their places on the continent.

The count saw the elimination of Mr Cuffe and independent incumbent Clare Daly.

Fianna Fail candidate Barry Andrews was elected at the RDS count centre (Gareth Chaney/PA)

While the European picture is incomplete, Fianna Fail emerged as the largest party in local government after all seats in Irelands local election were filled.

The party won out in the battle for the remaining seats, putting them on a total of 248 seats compared with Fine Gaels 245.

In the local elections, both main Government parties attracted around 23% of first preference votes, representing a slight drop on their 2019 result.

Sinn Feins Lynn Boylan was elected in Dublin (Gareth Chaney/PA)

Sinn Fein has 102 councillors, an increase on 81 council seats won in 2019, but party leader Mary Lou McDonald has admitted the result fell below their expectations.

The popular vote of 12% is a dramatic turnaround in fortunes for the main opposition party which emerged from the 2020 general election on 24.5%.

Meanwhile, the Labour party is down one to 56 councillors, the Green Partys support fell to 26 council seats while the Social Democrats share rose to 35.

The number of Independent councillors has also increased.

The results have fuelled speculation that the Government may look to call a general election earlier than the current projected timeline of spring 2025.

Fine Gael leader and Taoiseach Simon Harris with Regina Doherty (Gareth Chaney/PA)

However, the leaders of all three coalition parties, Mr Harris, Mr Martin and Green Party leader Eamon Ryan, have all insisted they remain committed to the government going full term.

For her part, Sinn Fein leader Ms McDonald, who is facing questions over her stewardship of the party, has struck a defiant tone, urging Mr Harris to bring it on and call an early election.

With Mr O Riordain a sitting TD, and other TDs in contention for the remaining European seats, there will be a need for at least one by-election in the coming six months.

That has added to speculation that the Government may seek an earlier general election, rather than fighting several potential by-elections only months before the Dail is dissolved.

Elsewhere, in a landmark poll in Limerick for Irelands first directly elected mayor, independent candidate John Moran secured victory late on Tuesday afternoon.
Authorities arrested the boyfriend of a Louisiana mom "brutally murdered" after one of her two kids was found dead in the Mississippi woods Thursday, putting a tragic end to an AMBER Alert issued earlier in the day.

Four-year-old Erin Brunett's body was dumped in Jackson, Mississippi, in a wooded area near the stolen getaway car driven by her alleged kidnapper, Daniel Callihan, authorities said, according to WVUE-TV. Erin's 6-year-old sister, Jalie, was found alive in the vehicle.

"You don't want to see that as a police chief; you don't want to see that as a father," said Jackson Police Chief Joseph Wade. "A coward took this child from her family."

Callihan was arrested by U.S. Marshals responding to a report of a suspicious person following a brief police chase, according to WDSU-TV.

He and the girls' mother, Callie Brunett, 35, were said to be romantically involved up until he allegedly and "brutally murdered" in her Loranger, Louisiana, mobile home earlier this week.

Brunett's father found her body Thursday morning.

It's unclear how she or Erin were killed.

Jalie was transported to a hospital for evaluation.
Happy Days star Henry Winkler has thanked Irish firefighters following a blaze at his hotel in Dublin.

The 78-year-old American actor, known for playing Arthur Fonzie Fonzarelli on the US sitcom, was staying at the prestigious Shelbourne Hotel when he was evacuated alongside other guests.

On Twitter/X, he posted a picture alongside three fireman from Dublin Fire Brigade following emergency services attending the incident in the early morning on Wednesday.

Winkler wrote: Thank you Dublins fire department  our hotel was evacuated on our first morning !!!

The Emmy-winner, also known for other comedy roles including playing acting teacher Gene Cousineau in hitman series Barry and Barry Zuckerkorn in Arrested Development, said he initially thought the fire alert was an alarm clock.

Actor Henry Winkler (Sean Dempsey/PA)

When I heard the fire alarm I thought it was the clock radio  I thought somebody had set the alarm before we got there, like another guest, he told journalists.

And finally I went into another room and it was still buzzing. So I called downstairs and the woman said in a very calm voice Yes, were all evacuating, you must evacuate right now and I left.

Thank you Dublin s fire department  our hotel was evacuated on our first morning !!! pic.twitter.com/kyByb5VSoM  Henry Winkler (@hwinkler4real) June 12, 2024

When asked about thanking the emergency services, Winkler said: You know what, how wonderful are firemen? Some of my favourite human beings, firemen and firewomen.

They run in when other people are running out.

I think they deserve to (have their hands) shook.

Dublin Fire Brigade said the evacuation helped enormously.

The five-star hotel on St Stephens Green saw six fire engines, including a turntable ladder and emergency tender, attended the scene. and guests were allowed to return the same day.
The House of Lords faces immediate modernisation under Labour, although the party put no timeframe on Sir Keir Starmers long-held ambition to abolish the unelected chamber.

A mandatory retirement age of 80, the removal of hereditary peers and a new participation requirement would be introduced in the first term of a Labour government, according to the partys manifesto.

In December 2022, Labour leader Sir Keir said he would abolish the indefensible House of Lords as quickly as possible, ideally within the first term of government, and replace it with an elected chamber.

Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer launches his partys manifesto at Co-op HQ in Manchester, while on the General Election campaign trail (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

The manifesto states Labour is committed to replacing the Lords with an alternative second chamber that is more representative of the regions and nations, adding it will consult the public on this.

There are 92 hereditary places reserved in the Lords, following reforms under the previous Labour administration in 1999.

But the system has faced widespread criticism given the exclusive, male-dominated list of eligible candidates and the usually limited number of people able to vote in the contests.

Members of the House of Lords following the state opening of parliament in 2023 (Leon Neal/PA)

Labours Lord Grocott, 83, has led a long campaign to end idiotic by-elections used to replace hereditaries who have died or resigned.

Lord Bethell, who won a seat in the upper chamber after securing 26 of the 43 votes cast by fellow Conservatives with inherited titles, said throwing out existing hereditary peers would be harsh.

In total, there are 785 peers in the Lords and a mechanism does exist to allow them to voluntarily retire although there is no formal retirement age.

Labours manifesto states: Although Labour recognises the good work of many peers who scrutinise the government and improve the quality of legislation passed in Parliament, reform is long overdue and essential.

Too many peers do not play a proper role in our democracy. Hereditary peers remain indefensible. And because appointments are for life, the second chamber of Parliament has become too big.

The next Labour government will therefore bring about an immediate modernisation, by introducing legislation to remove the right of hereditary peers to sit and vote in the House of Lords.

Labour will also introduce a mandatory retirement age. At the end of the Parliament in which a member reaches 80 years of age, they will be required to retire from the House of Lords.

The manifesto adds: Labour will ensure all peers meet the high standards the public expect of them, and we will introduce a new participation requirement as well as strengthening the circumstances in which disgraced members can be removed.

We will reform the appointments process to ensure the quality of new appointments and will seek to improve the national and regional balance of the second chamber.

Whilst this action to modernise the House of Lords will be an improvement, Labour is committed to replacing the House of Lords with an alternative second chamber that is more representative of the regions and nations.

Labour will consult on proposals, seeking the input of the British public on how politics can best serve them.

Conservative former health minister Lord Bethell told Sky News: Getting rid of the principle of new hereditary peers, so for my poor old son Jacob, the chance he may have to run for election one day, that has been a longstanding commitment by Labour and if that was in the manifesto that wouldnt come as a huge surprise to anyone.

But throwing out the people who have committed a lot to the House of Lords, and who by the way contribute an enormous amount (to), despite what anyone says, a very successful second chamber, would be harsh and would be I think quite political and a bit of a blame game.

If the Labour Party want to reform the House of Lords top to bottom then good luck to them, they should embark on that project.

But to single out one group of peers for special treatment on the basis of some kind of class prejudice would be a shame, and would mean that some good people, not necessarily myself, but some really good people from the hereditary benches would lose out.
James Corden has admitted that Gavin And Staceys return for a Christmas special will mean a tight schedule to ensure it is filmed and edited in time.

The comedian, actor and former talkshow host, 45, announced in early May along with his Gavin And Stacey co-creator Ruth Jones that the beloved comedy series would return this year.

It last aired in 2019 for a one-off festive episode which ended on a cliff-hanger with Nessa, played by Jones, getting down on one knee to propose to Smithy, played by Corden.

Three series of the show, which aired from 2007 to 2010, followed the two titular characters Gavin and Stacey, played by Mathew Horne and Joanna Page, as they pursued a relationship across Essex and Wales.

Corden told BBC Radio 2s The Zoe Ball Breakfast Show on Thursday: Well be shooting it (Gavin And Stacey) around September/October time, its going to be tight to get it in and delivered.

But its such a building that show is like building a Jenga puzzle, the cast availability and all, things like that.

I think it will be okay, yeah.

He is set to be in a London stage production of political drama The Constituent at The Old Vic from late June, following his exit from talkshow The Late Late Show With James Corden.

Corden added that once he opens the play, he and Jones have to do one last pass and clean-up of the script before sharing it with the Gavin And Stacey cast.

He added: We dont really want to give it to anyone, unless we feel like it so we need to make a few trims, and a few little adjustments, but Im very excited to share it with people.

In an Instagram post on May 3, Corden shared an image of himself and Jones with the script titled: Gavin and Stacey: The finale.

He wrote: Some news Its official!!! We have finished writing the last ever episode of Gavin and Stacey. See you on Christmas Day, BBC One. Love Ruth and James.

Gavin And Staceys Christmas special airs on Christmas Day on BBC One and iPlayer.
Jodie Comer has expressed concern about the lengths people will go to to invade her personal space.

The Liverpool-born actress has seen her fame rise since starring in hit BBC series Killing Eve as Russian assassin Oksana Astankova, known as Villanelle.

The 31-year-old has followed this success with roles in historical film The Last Duel, opposite Adam Driver and Matt Damon, and Ryan Reynolds action comedy Free Guy.

Jodie Comer on the cover of Elle UKs July/August issue (Elle UK/Cass Bird/PA)

Comer told Elle UK: Its probably a load of crap, but I dont believe (fame) changes people.

Its just a magnifying glass that almost feeds a monster. I love acting. Ive had some amazing experiences.

And, yes, these opportunities are huge and glossy, but theyre so far from the life that I live.

Going to things for the sake of it and losing my anonymity  I really dont enjoy that. In fact, it makes me incredibly anxious.

Ive had moments in my life where I dont think you can under-estimate the lengths people will go to to invade that space.

I think its important as an actor that people connect with the work and not Oh, did you know yesterday she had eggs for breakfast?'

Jodie Comer won Olivier and Tony Awards for her one-woman play Prima Facie (Elle UK/Cass Bird/PA)

Her latest role is in 1960s-set The Bikeriders, which also stars American actor Austin Butler and British actor Tom Hardy.

She plays Kathy, the wife of a rider, who narrates the film, as Elvis star Butler takes on the role of her husband Benny.

Recalling her time on set, Comer said: It was all men, and I could feel myself shrinking, but not because of anything that was being done. It was fascinating to witness myself doing it. I had to have a word with myself.

She also said women have become integral to my life over the last few years, before adding: I think its all about surrounding yourself with people who can see something within you that you cant.

Last year, Comer won a Tony Award for her one-woman play Prima Facie, which follows a British defence lawyer who ends up in the witness box after being sexually assaulted. In 2023, she also took home the best actress prize at the Olivier Awards.

Jodie Comer said her one-woman play, Prima Facie, was a huge catalyst for her confidence (Elle UK/Cass Bird/PA)

She told the magazine she is seeing tiny changes in people after being able to speak to loved ones about what theyve gone through.

However, she said it is hard to see, when there is very little positive news being reported.

Comer went on: Growing up, I had a very unhealthy relationship with my body, and Ive always had a tendency to hide it.

Anything revealing or that showed my arms just wasnt in my comfort zone. I went through periods of being consumed by what people thought of me  less so now, because Im much more focused on myself.

I do think the play (Prima Facie) was a huge catalyst for that confidence. It was the first time Id truly respected my body, or at least fully took time to care for and nurture it.

I was so grateful for what it was enabling me to do, and that bled into all aspects of my life. It taught me grace.

 The July/August issue of Elle UK is on sale from June 20 and available here elle.com/uk/Jodie-Comer.

 The Bikeriders is in cinemas from June 21.
Caribbean writer Kevin Jared Hosein has won the 2024 Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction for his novel Hungry Ghosts.

The novel tells the story of marginalised Hindu communities in Trinidad during the 1940s when, in the words of the author, British colonial rule was loosening and Trinidad was starting to be reborn.

The judging panel, which included broadcasters Kirsty Wark and James Naughtie and was chaired by writer Elizabeth Laird, described the tale as richly imaginative, urgent and compelling.

Jared Hosein lives in Trinidad and Tobago, where he worked as a secondary school biology teacher for over a decade.

He is the author of two previous novels and won the Commonwealth Short Story Prize in 2018.

The writer said ahead of attending a prizegiving ceremony in the Scottish Borders it was truly a privilege to be shortlisted for the Walter Scott Prize.

Jared Hosein was awarded the 25,000 prize at the Borders Book Festival in Melrose on Thursday by Walter Scotts great-great-great-great grandson Matthew Maxwell Scott.

Mr Maxwell Scott is a trustee of his ancestors residence, Abbotsford, which also manages the prize, with support from Hawthornden Foundation, the Buccleuch Living Heritage Trust, and the Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry in honour of Elizabeth Buccleuch.

He said: As Scott was the inspiration for the genre of historical fiction, we hope this years nominees and winner can inspire many more authors in their writing careers.

Those of us involved in preserving Abbotsford and Scotts legacy could not be prouder to associate ourselves with this wonderful prize and its supremely gifted recipients.

The Walter Scott Prize is one of the UKs major literary awards, with previous winners including Sebastian Barry, Robert Harris, Andrea Levy and Hilary Mantel.

It is open to novels published in the previous year in the UK, Ireland or the Commonwealth, and set at least 60 years ago.
Tax hikes and spending increases within the Labour manifesto are trivial and do not address cuts already faced by buckling public services, economic experts have said.

Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS), suggested that delivering genuine change in Britain  Sir Keir Starmers flagship promise to voters  would require more funding than the policy document proposes.

Mr Johnson said some of Labours plans were better than a shopping list of half-baked policy announcements  an apparent reference to the Tories offering  but warned it would need to put actual resources on the table.

And Labours manifesto offers no indication that there is a plan for where the money would come from to finance this, he said.

Sir Keir Starmer unveils his partys manifesto with members of the shadow cabinet at the Co-op headquarters in Manchester (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

In a response to Sir Keirs launch of the policy document on Thursday, the IFS director said: This was not a manifesto for those looking for big numbers. The public service spending increases promised in the costings table are tiny, going on trivial  the tax rises, beyond the inevitable reduced tax avoidance, even more trivial.

On current forecasts, and especially with an extra 17.5 billion borrowing over five years to fund the green prosperity plan, this leaves literally no room  within the fiscal rule that Labour has signed up to  for any more spending than planned by the current government, and those plans do involve cuts both to investment spending and to spending on unprotected public services.

He added: This is a manifesto that promises a dizzying number of reviews and strategies to tackle some of the challenges facing the country. That is better than a shopping list of half-baked policy announcements. But delivering genuine change will almost certainly also require putting actual resources on the table.

Unprotected departments  which oversee services such as prisons, courts and councils  are already facing cuts of up to 20 billion a year by the end of the decade under current plans, the IFS has warned.

In its analysis of the spring Budget, it suggested these services would face real-terms cuts of 1.9% to 3.5% each year over the next Parliament.

Without extra money, they will suffer a squeeze that looks inconsistent with this manifestos stated ambitions in these areas, the think tank said.

Like the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats, Labour continues in a conspiracy of silence on the difficulties they would face.

Given that the manifesto doubles down on a commitment to get debt falling in the fifth year of the forecast, tough trade-offs on tax and spend are highly unlikely to simply disappear, senior research economist Isabel Stockton said.

Labours plan to borrow 17.5 billion over five years to fund green energy projects makes that fiscal rule even harder to keep, she warned.

The Resolution Foundation, a think tank focused on reducing poverty and improving living standards, said the party had opted for a cautious stance on tax and spend.

It welcomed the laudable aim to improve workers rights, which includes a ban on exploitative zero-hours contracts, but said the boldness of the partys employment policies went unmatched by its approach to the public finances.

In its response, the think tank said: Their current stance sets the scene for a Parliament of further tax rises, hard to deliver spending cuts, and the risk that a weaker productivity forecast from the OBR at the next fiscal event could force an incoming Labour chancellor into fresh hard choices in order to meet their stated fiscal rule of getting debt falling by the fifth year of the forecast.

Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer and deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner following the launch of his partys manifesto at Co-op HQ in Manchester (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Labours pledges to increase public spending largely lie in departments that are already protected, such as health and social care and education, the Resolution Foundation said.

Economic experts at the Institute for Government (IfG) also said the manifesto plans were not, alone, enough to ward off the cuts faced by some public services after the July 4 vote.

Chief economist at the institute, Gemma Tetlow, said: Like the Conservatives, Labour has done little to row back on the spending cuts already pencilled in for the next Parliament.

This coupled with its pledge not to raise any of the main taxes undermines the credibility of its promise to address failing public services.

In its costings document, Labour confirmed plans to raise more than 7 billion in revenue from tax, including 5.2 billion from closing the non-dom loophole for wealthy foreigners living in the UK and cracking down on tax avoidance.

The party wants to spend this money on policies such as the creation of 700,000 more dental appointments and the recruitment of 6,500 teachers in key subjects.

The policy document focused on a goal of generating economic growth and making Labour the party of wealth creation but Prime Minister Rishi Sunak claimed it would result in the highest taxes in history.

Launching a manifesto which contained no new policy announcements on Thursday, Sir Keir denied he was being overly cautious to safeguard a double-digit poll lead and put his party back in power for the first time since 2010.

He said too many communities were currently disregarded as sources of dynamism because of the toxic idea that economic growth is something that the few hand down to the many.

Today, we turn the page on that forever.

He promised stability over chaos, long term over short term, an end to the desperate era of gestures and gimmicks and a return to the serious business of rebuilding our country.
Canadian author Naomi Klein has won the inaugural Womens Prize for Non-Fiction.

The activist and film-maker, 54, known for her for critics of modern economics, took home the award in its first year at a Thursday ceremony in Bedford Square Gardens, London.

She was named as US author VV Ganeshananthan snapped up the Womens Prize for Fiction for her second novel Brotherless Night, about a family fractured by the Sri Lankan civil war.

Klein won the prize for Doppelganger: A Trip Into The Mirror World, which explores a woman with different views who is often mistaken for the author and launches her into a world of conspiracy theories, anti-vaxxers and demagogue hucksters.

Her and Ganeshananthan both receive a 30,000 prize each.

Klein, who was a guest speaker at a Labour Party conference when Jeremy Corbyn was leader, has also released the books No Logo: Taking Aim At The Brand Bullies and This Changes Everything: Capitalism Vs. The Climate.

Her best-selling 2007 book The Shock Doctrine, which argues global corporations have exploited major disasters to force through social and financial changes to their advantage, was also the winner of the inaugural Warwick Prize for Writing.

VV Ganeshananthan was announced as the winner of the 2024 Womens Prize for Fiction (Matt Crossick Media Assignments/PA)

Professor Suzannah Lipscomb, chairwoman of the Womens Prize for Non-Fiction judges, said: This brilliant and layered analysis demonstrates humour, insight and expertise.

Kleins writing is both deeply personal and impressively expansive.

Doppelganger is a courageous, humane and optimistic call-to-arms that moves us beyond black and white, beyond right and left, inviting us instead to embrace the spaces in between.

Klein also receives a limited-edition artwork known as The Charlotte, donated by the Charlotte Aitken Trust, for her win.

Ganeshananthan, from a Sri Lankan family, was previously also longlisted for the Womens Prize, then called the Orange Prize, for 2008s Love Marriage, which was focused on the Tamil diaspora.

Also a journalist, and born in 1980, she was a vice president of the South Asian Journalists Association and has taught an MFA programme at the University of Minnesota.

Monica Ali, chairwoman of the judges for the Womens Prize for Fiction said: Brotherless Night is a brilliant, compelling and deeply moving novel that bears witness to the intimate and epic-scale tragedies of the Sri Lankan civil war.

In rich, evocative prose, Ganeshananthan creates a vivid sense of time and place and an indelible cast of characters.

Her commitment to complexity and clear-eyed moral scrutiny combines with spellbinding storytelling to render Brotherless Night a masterpiece of historical fiction.

Ganeshananthan gets a bronze figurine known as the Bessie, created and donated by the artist Grizel Niven.
Penny Mordaunt and Angela Rayner frequently clashed

Penny Mordaunt, Angela Rayner and Nigel Farage were once again among the faces in the second seven-party debate of the campaign

Julie Etchingham, hosted the debate with tax, immigration and the health service among the key topics.

Exploding population putting pressure on NHS

Nigel Farage, the Reform UK leader, blamed an exploding population for the increase in pressure on the NHS.

He said: The NHS has two fundamental problems. One caseloads up by 43 per cent. Why? Because we have an exploding population.

All of our public services are under pressure because the population has increased by six million since the Conservatives came to power. Its impossible to keep up.

He said that the second problem was that Britain is getting worse returns on the money it invests in the NHS than other countries.

Penny Mordaunt, the Commons Leader, urged her rivals to keep political dogma out of public services amid a row over how much Labour would involve the private sector in the NHS.

She said: I think we should just keep political dogma out of the public sector and public services. Were all politicians up here, but most of the public dont care what colour the cat is, they just want some mice caught.

She also attacked Labour for cutting the NHS budget three times in Wales, insisting the funding must be kept strong.

Angela Rayner, Labours deputy leader, blamed the crisis on Tory austerity aided and abetted by the Lib Dems.

She denied that the party has suggested it will hold the door open to the private sector, insisting thats not true.

Hidden taxes

Ms Mordaunt has accused Sir Keir Starmer of hiding three quarters of the tax rises that he is planning to introduce if it wins power from voters.

The Leader of the Commons said Labour was going to have to raise taxes a lot more to pay for what she said was a 38.5 billion black hole in his spending plans.

Ms Rayner hit back, saying that under Rishi Sunak the tax burden has hit a 70-year high and that the country cant afford another five years of the Tories.

Ms Mordaunt said that the Labour manifesto, published on Thursday, included a 38.5billion black hole that would need to be filled with higher taxes.

Because public spending is going to have to go up the only way to do that is to raise taxes, the Commons Leader said.

Theyve only declared about a quarter of the taxes theyre going to have to put up. Theyre going to have to put up a lot more and they havent yet told you how theyre going to do that.

She added that with the economy now turning a corner this is not the time to suddenly rack up taxes on people.

Labour are going to do this, their leader has said that hes going to do this, she added. What you havent been told is what taxes and on what people, but the average is 2,000 per working household in this country. People cant afford that and it will choke off the recovery.

Ms Rayner denied that suggestion and said the Tories were promising tax cuts when youve already done that once and crashed the economy under Liz Truss.

Both main parties have accused each other of having unrealistic spending plans that will require sweeping tax rises.

Labour claim the Conservatives have made 71 billion in unfunded commitments, most of which is the cost of the long term ambition to abolish National Insurance.

Mr Farage, the Reform leader, warned that people are getting poorer and that younger generations could no longer afford what people his age enjoyed.

Its very much a country in which the big corporates and the big banks and a certain group of people have become richer exponentially and everybody else has fallen behind, he said.

He said the answer was to bring down net migration, to build more houses and to raise the income tax threshold to 20,000 to take millions of the lowest paid out of tax completely.

Crazy tax raid on private schools

Labours plan to launch a tax raid on private schools is crazy and will drive more children into the state sector, Ms Mordaunt has warned.

The Leader of the Commons said Sir Keir Starmers proposal doesnt serve anyone and is the kind of dogma we need to keep out of the public sector.

Addressing Ms Rayner, she said that what Angela and the Labour Party are going to do is, unbelievably, they are going to tax education.

She added: The result of that is some families will not be able to send their kids to the schools theyre currently going [to] but also theyve admitted this week class sizes will go up as a consequence.

Its crazy and it doesnt serve anyone and its the kind of dogma that we need to keep out of the public sector.

Mr Farage said that adding VAT to school fees would mean that one in four private school children would move to already oversubscribed state schools.

Those currently in private schools will then be a burden for state schools, the Reform leader said. Its a self-defeating policy that removes parental choice.

Ms Rayner defended the policy and suggested private schools should minimise the impact on the state sector by absorbing the costs of the tax raid.

She said: Our state schools have had austerity and cuts. Those [private] schools could absorb some of those costs so they dont have to pass it on.

We cannot afford to give private schools a tax break when our state system cannot have the right teachers in the classrooms.

Meanwhile, Daisy Cooper, the deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, refused to say that her party still believed in free university tuition fees.

The Liberal Democrats had pledged to abolish tuition fees in the run up to the 2010 election, and faced criticism after joining the coalition government which put up fees from around 3,000 a year to 9,000.

When challenged on the point, she said: On the point of tuition fees, we were punished for that, right?

In 2015, when we were out of coalition, the thing that the Conservatives did on their own is they removed maintenance grants, the grants that were there for the poorest students to give them a shot at going to university. And we have said that we would put those back in place.

Migration plans lacking

Ms Mordaunt told Ms Rayner you have no plan to cut migration in a fiery exchange during the seven-way debate.

The Tory leader of the House of Commons and the deputy Labour leader traded blows as the panel clashed over how to deal with sky-high immigration.

Ms Rayner said Britain must have an industrial and skill strategy so we can train and fill our skills gaps.

Ms Mordaunt cut in, saying: So why dont you have one? You havent had to do anything else other than come up with these ideas.

The Labour deputy leader hit back by pointing out the Tories have been in power for 14 years.

Ms Mordaunt pressed on, saying Labour did not have a proper plan. Weve got one, you dont, she said.

Later, when Ms Rayner was discussing Channel crossings, Mr Mordaunt said: That is illegal migration, and again you have no plan to do [anything about] it.

Mr Farage pointed out that cutting immigration is not in Sir Keir Starmers top six pledges.

These people have lied to us repeatedly, he said, adding: Labour, its not even in your first six priorities for government. You havent got the will to do anything about it.

Ms Cooper raised her hand when asked if she would like to see immigration go down.

Help for families

Mr Farage has said the two-child benefit cap should be lifted to encourage people to have families.

Asked whether he agreed with Suella Braverman, the former Tory home secretary, that the limit should be scrapped, he said: I think we should encourage people to have families. I think we should encourage people to have children.

Pressed on whether that was a yes to lifting the cap, he said: Yeah, weve got to help people. He also said married people should get some tax benefits.

Ms Rayner, the deputy Labour leader, refused to endorse the move. She initially dodged the question of whether she agreed with Mr Farage, insisting her party would not increase taxes on working people.

Rhun ap Iorwerth, Plaid Cymru leader, accused her of wanting to press ahead with a Tory policy, asking: Whats happened to Labour?

Pressed repeatedly on the point, she said Labour would not make unfunded spending commitments.

Because unless we can identify where that one is coming from Thats why housing responds to policy, so does peoples work, she added.

Politicians put each other on spot

Ms Mordaunt refused to say whether she would welcome Mr Farage into the Tory party as she accused the Reform leader of being a Labour enabler.

The Commons Leader was grilled over her stance by Ms Rayner in a section of the debate where the participants could each choose one rival to pose a question to.

Ms Rayner, the Labour deputy leader, looked to twist the knife with Ms Mordaunt who has been tipped for a Tory leadership run after the election.

She asked whether Ms Mordaunt would welcome Mr Farage in to the post-election Tories, to which the Commons Leader replied: Im a Brexiteer. I believe that if you cant reform European institutions you should be prepared to leave them. I set up a business before Parliament and I believe in rewarding personal responsibility.

You might think I have a lot in common with Nigel, but what Im standing against is letting you in and letting you tax the hell out of people. Nigel is helping you do that so weve got less in common than you might imagine.

Ms Mordaunt in turn asked her question to Labours deputy leader, pushing her to rule out an increase in capital gains tax if her party wins the election.

She accused Ms Rayner, who has previously suggested the tax is too low, of planning to increase the cost to families of selling second homes.

Ms Rayner did not rule out an increase but insisted: There is nothing in our manifesto which means that we have to raise capital gains tax.

Meanwhile, Mr Farage challenged Ms Mordaunt on the Tory party breaking successive manifesto pledges to bring down levels of migration.

When she accused him of opening the door for Sir Keir and higher migration, he replied: We are now ahead of you in the national polls - a vote for you is actually now a vote for Labour.

Mr ap Iorwerth, the Plaid Cymru leader, challenged Ms Rayner on Labours refusal to lift the two-child benefit cap.

He asked whether it was that or what he described as 18 billion worth of cuts to public services that would exacerbate child poverty on her watch.

She replied: Youre absolutely right to recognise that child poverty is a scourge, and that as someone who grew up in poverty, I absolutely know that we have to tackle it, and thats why wed have a strategic Number 10 unit that would look at tackling child poverty.

Ms Rayner was also challenged on Labours position on the war in Gaza, with Stephen Flynn, the SNP Westminster leader, asking if the party would end arms sales to Israel on day one in government.

She replied: What happened on October 7 was barbaric, and Israel had the right to defend itself. However, since then, the absolute loss of innocent lives, thousands of innocent lives, everyone in the House, everyone of all political persuasions have been pushing for a ceasefire, as well as our international counterparts.

But if we were in government, we would immediately review, as weve been asking the Conservatives, the legal advice on arms sales to Israel, and we will comply with international law.

Mr Farage said both main parties were mushy, SDP parties in the middle.

He said the House of Lords was an abomination and called to change the voting system.

He added: Lets give the people the ability to call more referendums so they can decide the biggest issue of their lives.
A British kayaker has died in a river in the French Alps - THIBAUT DURAND/AFP

A British kayaker has died in a river in the French Alps after heavy snow swelled the water to dangerous levels.

The man is the second to die in two days after an Irish pensioner capsized in the same area.

It comes amid warnings by local guides that a winter of heavy snow has caused water levels to rise to dangerous levels and that even experienced kayakers should take care.

The British man, in his 50s, was ten minutes into a supervised kayaking group trip on the Durance river near Briancon, in the southeast of France, on Tuesday when the group ran into trouble.

The party had left from Fontenil in the Upper Alps, at an altitude of around 1,200 metres.

At around 3pm his kayak flipped over, according to local media reports, rendering him unconscious.

Two guides rushed to his aid, according to witnesses, and emergency crews, including a rescue helicopter, later followed.

At 3.30pm, police issued a message on X, formerly known as Twitter, saying: A rescue operation is underway in the town of Briancon to try and help kayakers in difficulty in the Durance. Please do not interfere with the rescue operation.

Much higher water levels

Rescuers managed to save two other kayakers from the group of 10, but the British man could not be resuscitated after he was pulled out of the river.

I confirm the death of a man of English nationality, public prosecutor Marion Lozachmeur told outlet Dauphine Libere.

The man was reportedly an experienced kayaker, and an investigation has been launched into his death.

Speaking to the Telegraph, local kayak guide Pascal Gilbert of Eaurigine Rafting Briancon Serre-Chevalier said heavy snow has made a normally easy route perilous for kayaking.

We had sailed with a rafting group just beforehand and were on our way back up the river by van when we came across the rescue operation, he said.

There were two guides helping out. Apparently, the level of the group was decent. This is not one of the most challenging courses but we have much higher water levels than in previous years due to the amount of snow at altitude.

All it takes is for the person to flip over and hit a rock and lose consciousness. The problem is, you have to get the person back upright but its not easy to rescue another kayaker with these water levels as there are few places where you can stop, he added.

With these levels, we increase the difficulty level by one grade and advise people not to go beyond their level.

Investigation launched

The mans death follows that of a 73-year-old Irish man on Monday, who was also kayaking in the same area, with three others.

His fellow kayakers contacted emergency services but they were unable to resuscitate the man.

An investigation has been launched.

Mr Gilbert said like an avalanche poses a risk for skiers, heavy snow is a hazard for kayakers.

He said there have been lots of groups of foreign kayakers in the area in recent days and urged them to take care.

Mr Gilbert said the man who died on Tuesday had not used a local kayak company. It was either a British company or they were doing the route on their own.
The RSF opened fire in the hospital  assaulting staff, looting drugs and medical equipment before stealing an ambulance. - Sudan Tribune via Twitter

As bullets tore through the walls doctors and nurses threw themselves to the floor. The South Hospital in Sudans besieged city of El Fasher was under attack, and the staff had only moments to get themselves and their patients out.

When you have guns, everybody suddenly has to lie down on the ground, bullets sizzling in the air around you, said Joel Ghazi, a doctor with Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) which ran the hospital  the only medical facility in the city centre where over 1,300 people sought treatment in May.

It is a picture repeated across the country which, for 14 months, has been torn apart by civil war. Healthcare facilities have become a target for gunmen looking to pillage supplies, often murdering those in the way.

Since April 2023, the war in Sudan has killed more than 15,000 people and displaced nine million. It is the largest internal displacement crisis globally, with a massive influx of people seeking safety from the horrors of war pushing the country to breaking point.

Impunity remains at the heart of the conflict: There have been extreme violations of international law, including starvation being used as a weapon of war and women and girls subject to sexual violence.

Experts fear it could soon tip into genocide.

Healthcare facilities have become a target for gunmen looking to pillage supplies - Sudan Tribune via Twitter

The World Health Organization (WHO) condemned the attack on the South Hospital and other health facilities.

WHO is appalled by the recent attack on South Hospital, the only facility with surgical capacity in El Fasher, Darfur, it said in a post on X.

The hospitals closure following the attack has stretched the two other hospitals there beyond capacity, further limiting access to lifesaving services.

Militiamen in the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a paramilitary whose violence has haunting echoes of Sudans genocide that began almost 20 years ago, are facing off against the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF).

Currently, the RSF controls the majority of Khartoum and most of western Sudan, while the SAF controls much of the north and east.

El Fasher, the capital city of North Darfur and the centre of much of the fighting, has been encircled entirely by the RSF.

The United States envoy to Sudan has warned that El Fasher could fall to the RSF imminently.

US envoy Tom Perriello said that some RSF members believe that capturing all of Darfur will help them establish it as a breakaway state.

He told the BBC that the US would not recognise an independent Darfur under any circumstances.

I think if theres anyone in RSF territory who thinks taking El Fasher means somehow they will have a right to the state of Darfur, they need to disillusion themselves of that myth, he said. It does not mean that.

According to the UN, more than 800,000 civilians are in the direct firing line in El Fasher.

Mr Perriello said that upwards of a million people are being starved by the ongoing fighting and that many have been killed by bombings of hospitals.

We see 45,000 pregnant women who not only have no real prenatal care but dont even have enough meals a day to be nourished enough for a healthy pregnancy.

And as bad as it is, it could get worse any day if El Fasher falls, not only the horrors that would come from the battle but as people flee.

South Hospital, the only facility with surgical capacity in El Fasher, Darfur, was forced to close - Sudan Tribune via Twitter

The South Hospital has been propped up by MSF, who described it as the last functioning one in the area.

Last month, MSF reported that 134 people had died at the facility within two weeks, with 979 other casualties attended to.

There have been reports for several days of shelling hitting the hospital, causing injuries and deaths.

On Saturday members of the RSF entered the hospital and opened fire  assaulting staff, looting drugs and medical equipment and stealing an ambulance.

Amid the chaos, MSF has of yet been unable to identify if there were any dead or wounded but said they had evacuated the remaining patients.

We are seeing a total disregard of hospitals as safe places, said Mr Ghazi. Theres a lot of fear, a lot of trauma, a lot of uncertainty, not knowing where to go. Its been a trend throughout the war, but is accelerating.

The healthcare system is collapsing

The hospital was the only one remaining in the area equipped to deal with mass casualties and one of two with surgical capacity.

Its closure marks a major setback for civilians trapped in the middle of fighting as it was the first point of call for treating war-injured people.

The South Hospital had been hit by shelling and bullets at least three times in 10 days before the Saturday raid.

Two children were killed by a bombing on another hospital run by MSF in El Fasher in May.

The attacks represent the lawlessness of the conflict in Sudan, where there are no rules for fighting and both the RSF and SAF have been accused of widespread abuses.

It is also indicative of the situation medical facilities across the country face.

The countrys whole healthcare system is collapsing. It was already fragile before this war, but it hadnt collapsed, Mr Ghazi added. One year of war has been enough pressure to make it crumble.

Reports of shelling hitting the hospital, causing injuries and deaths have emerged - Sudan Tribune via Twitter

In the capital Khartoum, just a handful of hospitals are currently operational.

The price of essential medicines continues to soar, with no supplies of Oxycontin at Umdawanban Hospital, and dwindling stocks of basic equipment, like medical gloves and antiseptic for cleaning wounds at Bashair Teaching Hospital.

In the Turkish hospital, MSF receives over 100 patients a day, most of them children and pregnant women.

Many arrived critically injured after being forced to make the terrifying choice of travelling through volatile areas.

MSF reported that many have had to travel for miles by foot and across frontlines as there is no ambulance service and very few transport options available.

A four-year-old girl was brought to our emergency room after being hit in the abdomen by a stray bullet that entered her home, said Guy Vataux, MSF Head of Mission in Khartoum.

Her mother took her to three other hospitals before she was finally able to get surgical treatment at the Turkish Hospital.

The WHO also condemned another attack on a health facility in Wad Al-Nura in Al-Jazirah state south of Khartoum.

The attack caused the death of a nurse who was on duty and caring for patients at the time.

WHO strongly condemns attacks on healthcare. Health workers and patients should not have to risk their lives to provide and access health services, WHO said after shelling by the RSF on the village killed 100 people.

A looming malnutrition catastrophe

Mr Ghazi said that the situation in Sudan is one of the worst he has seen throughout his decade-long tenure at MSF.

Ive personally been in Ukraine and Syria and Haiti. Ive seen my share. For me, Khartoum is pretty much on the top in terms of how complex and difficult it is to function.

He worries that the healthcare system could collapse if the looming malnutrition catastrophe comes to fruition.

Around 18 million people in Sudan are acutely food insecure, according to the World Food Programme (WFP), including nearly five million who are now in the grip of emergency levels of hunger.

This is the highest number ever recorded during the harvest season Around 90 per cent of those in emergency are in areas where access is extremely limited due to heavy fighting and restriction, the WFP said.

Last month MSF found a major malnutrition crisis in Zamzam camp in North Darfur, home to 120,000 people.

The Zamzam camp in North Darfur, now home to 120,000 people, is facing a malnutrition crisis - Mohamed Zakaria/Handout via REUTERS

It screened more than 46,000 children, with results showing that a staggering 30 per cent were suffering from acute malnutrition, and eight per cent severe acute malnutrition (SAM).

Similar figures were found among the more than 16,000 pregnant and breastfeeding women who were screened: 33 per cent were acutely malnourished, with 10 per cent having SAM.

There are similar famine alerts across the rest of the country.

Were going to see thousands if not tens of hundreds of thousands of people dying out of hunger, said Mr Ghazi.

This is what is currently looming around Sudan. The casualties from this will be much bigger compared to casualties from armed clashes.

More people than any other conflict in the world have fled from fighting.

Gezira state, to the south of Khartoum, was captured by the RSF and the group has been accused of carrying out extensive abuse against the civilian population.

In the village of Wad al-Nourah, at least 150 people, including 35 children, were massacred by suspected RSF forces last week.

Rights groups have accused the RSF of using rape as a weapon of war and launching a campaign of ethnic cleansing.

On Tuesday, ICC Prosecutor Karim Khan said that his ongoing investigation seems to disclose an organised, systematic and a profound attack on human dignity.

The evidence my office has collected to date seems to show credible, repeated, expanding, continuous allegations of attacks against the civilian population, in particular, attacks directed against camps for internally displaced persons, he said.

It seems to show the widespread, prevalent use of rape and other forms of sexual violence. It seems to disclose consistently the shelling of civilian areas, the looting of properties and attacks against hospitals, he added.

Mr Ghazi said: If it stays like this, it is going to push hospitals already on the edge to breaking point.

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Texas-based Whataburger was started in Corpus Christi. This week it filed a trademark infringement lawsuit against What-A-Burger #13, a small chain based in North Carolina. Jill Karnicki/Houston Chronicle

Whataburger, the beloved San Antonio-based burger chain, is going to court to protect its good name.

The company on Tuesday filed suit in federal court against a North Carolina restaurant group, alleging trademark infringement. The other companys name? What-A-Burger. Or, to be more precise, What-A-Burger #13.

The suit alleges that the North Carolina restaurants sell food that is identical to Whataburgers offerings. What-A-Burgers menu, online, includes burgers, patty melts, chicken tenders and milk shakes as well as North Carolina specialties such as grits and pulled pork.

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The North Carolina chain is small, listing two brick-and-mortar locations in Mount Pleasant and Locust, both east of Charlotte. Its website explains that it is a family business, opened in 1969 by Marvin and Jane Bost and currently run by their son, Zeb Bost.

Whataburger, founded as a hamburger stand in Corpus Christi in 1950, says in the suit that it trademarked its name over a decade before the Bosts opened What-A-Burger #13.

The name became an issue a couple of years ago, when Whataburger, the Texas one, was planning to open its first restaurant in North Carolina. While most Whataburgers today are still in Texas, the company has been marching into other states since it was acquired by Chicago-based BDT Capital Partners in 2019. In January the chain surpassed 1,000 stores thanks to new locations in Georgia and Oklahoma.

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Whataburger says in its lawsuit that it reached out to What-A-Burger #13 in October 2022, and that the two businesses signed a confidential co-existence agreement that would have allowed the North Carolina restaurants to continue operating as What-A-Burger #13, albeit with certain limitations.
The average European household does four to five loads of laundry a week. Photograph: Wachiwit/Getty Images/iStockphoto

How often should you wash your clothes? Doctors dont really know, but the decision is more cultural than medical, anyway. Worried about leaving the house in sweaty shirts or stained shorts, people often chuck clean clothes in the laundry basket after wearing them just once.

But the urge to avoid whiffy garments carries a climate cost that has largely been ignored. New research shows that feelings of disgust and shame encourage excessive clothes washing even among those who care about their carbon footprint.

Swedish scientists surveyed a representative sample of 2,000 people and found that when asked, in effect, to air their dirty laundry, their fear of being seen as unclean overpowered environmental identities.

When it comes to behaviours, disgust simply wins out, said Erik Klint, a researcher at Chalmers University of Technology, in Gothenburg, Sweden, and lead author of the study. The study shows that the higher our sensitivity to disgust, the more we wash, regardless of whether we value our environmental identity highly.

Klint and his colleague knew from previous research that many people do not link their laundry to the environment, despite washing machines draining energy and water. After seeing that studies to alter habits had mostly failed, the researchers decided to explore the societal dimensions that make people overwash clothes.

They found a high sensitivity to disgust, shame or violations of cleanliness norms was associated with frequent use of washing machines. They found no such effect for environmental beliefs.

The dilemma, the scientists concluded, is that the risk of societal pushback takes priority over abstract intentions such as reducing emissions.

Klint said disgust was an evolutionary trait used as a proxy for potential pathogens. In practice this means that people intuitively must weigh an evolutionarily rooted driving force against a moral standpoint.

Fast fashion has long been under fire from sustainably minded shoppers, but wasteful washing practices have so far escaped much attention. The average European household does four to five loads of laundry a week, and though the frequency of washing has stayed steady for 20 years, the size of the machines drums has grown. The share of devices that could hold 6kg rose from 2% of sales in 2004 to 64% in 2015, according to a report commissioned by the French environment agency.

While there are no hard rules about how often clothes should be washed, clothing manufacturers and fashion blogs generally recommend doing it less frequently  even if just to make the clothes last longer.

About 70% of clothes enter the washing machine with no visible stains, according to a survey commissioned by Unilever as part of a campaign to market a detergent suited to 15-minute wash cycles.

The extreme end of the no-wash movement  such as wearing the same pair of underpants for a week  is unlikely to pass the sniff test for most doctors. But other garments get the go-ahead. Wool jumpers and denim jeans top the list of items that last a long time before warranting a place in the laundry basket. (Spot cleaning  gently pressing a slightly soapy cloth on to a stain  can help spare an otherwise clean piece of clothing an unnecessary spin cycle.)

In one of the only studies that managed to change peoples behaviour, said Klint, researchers gave participants excuse strategies that addressed their initial fear of social exclusion. But when they stopped washing their clothes so often, they realised nobody noticed. Theres a general consensus that people, at least in western countries, tend to wash clothes that others perceive as clean, said Klint.

The environmental benefits of washing clothes less often are sizeable. A single laundry load of polyester clothes can discharge 700,000 microplastic fibres, according to a report from the European parliaments research service.

Levis has estimated that consumers are responsible for more than a third of the lifetime climate impact of one pair of its 501 jeans. Washing the jeans after every 10 wears, instead of just a couple as is the norm in the US and UK, cut total water use by three-quarters.

Ian Walker, the head of the psychology school at Swansea University, who was not involved in the Swedish study, said it looked like a solid piece of research [with] good methods but added that self-reported data on habitual behaviours, such as washing machine use, was notoriously problematic.

He said the study provided a useful insight into the conflict between the environmental desire to run washing machines less often and feelings of disgust at rewearing clothes. At a practical level, the study might help  people find ways better to reconcile these contrary desires, perhaps through messaging about how normal it is to rewear things, or about how little dirt or germs clothes typically pick up.
David Cameron has condemned Rishi Sunaks closest parliamentary aide, Craig Williams, for making a clearly very foolish decision after he placed a bet on a July election three days before it was called.

The Guardian revealed on Wednesday that Williams, who is standing for re-election in Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr, placed a 100 with Ladbrokes on a July poll.

The Gambling Commission has launched an inquiry after the bet was referred by Ladbrokes. On Wednesday night, Williams, the prime ministers parliamentary private secretary, admitted to the flutter and said: I should have thought how it looks.

The foreign secretary was asked by BBC Breakfast about Williamss situation after the revelation. Lord Cameron said: His situation, having made this clearly very foolish decision, is that hes being investigated by the Gambling Commission, and they have considerable powers in terms of what the consequences could be, and I think we have to let that investigation take place. And so I cant really comment any further on it.

Asked if he was happy for Williams to stand as a Conservative candidate, Cameron said yes but then qualified this by pointing out it was too late for the party to remove Williams from ballot papers.

He said: All the nominations are in, and candidates are standing, and I dont think we can change that. In fact, its very important that we dont make alterations, after these things have been set. But obviously, hes going to be investigated, and well have to face the consequences of that investigation.

Oliver Lewis, the Reform UK candidate for the seat, called on the Tories to withdraw support for Williams. He told the Daily Telegraph: This is completely tawdry, low-grade behaviour by somebody who was at the right hand of the prime minister.

The party does have the option of pulling its support as Labour did with Azhar Ali, its candidate in the Rochdale byelection, over comments he made about the 7 October attacks on Israel. Alis name was on the ballot paper but without Labours official backing he slumped to fourth in a contest that was won by George Galloway.

On Wednesday a Conservative party spokesperson said: We are aware of contact between a Conservative candidate and the Gambling Commission. It is a personal matter for the individual in question. As the Gambling Commission is an independent body, it wouldnt be proper to comment further, until any process is concluded.

It is understood that a red flag was automatically raised at Ladbrokes as the bet in Williamss name potentially had been placed by a politically exposed person, and the bookmaker is particularly cautious over novelty markets.

Using confidential information to gain an unfair advantage when betting may constitute a criminal offence. The MPs code of conduct also prohibits members from causing significant damage to the reputation and integrity of the house. The bet was placed while parliament was still in session.

At the last election in 2019, before boundary changes, Williams had a majority of 12,000.
NHS staff are being hampered by a worsening workforce crisis and a chronic lack of equipment. Photograph: Jeff Moore/PA

Hundreds of thousands of people are being forced to wait months to start essential cancer treatment, with deadly delays now routine and even children struck by the disease denied vital support, according to a series of damning reports.

Health chiefs, charities and doctors have sounded the alarm over the state of cancer care in the UK as three separate studies painted a shocking picture of long waits and NHS staff being severely hampered by a worsening workforce crisis and a chronic lack of equipment.

Prof Pat Price, an oncologist and co-founder of the Catch Up With Cancer campaign, said the reports told a deadly story of delays, adding: Cancer patients not getting their treatment on time is a disaster.

The first report, by Cancer Research UK, found that 382,000 cancer patients in England were not treated on time since 2015. The charity investigated how many patients had begun treatment 62 days or longer after being urgently referred for suspected cancer. The national NHS target  under which at least 85% of people should start treatment within 62 days  was last met in December 2015.

The second report, by the Royal College of Radiologists (RCR), said delays in cancer care had become routine, with nearly half of UK cancer centres experiencing weekly delays in starting treatment. The RCR also warned of a staggering 30% shortfall in clinical radiologists and a 15% shortfall in clinical oncologists  figures it projects will get worse in the next few years.

The third paper, from four childrens cancer charities  Young Lives vs Cancer, Teenage Cancer Trust, Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust, and Childrens Cancer and Leukaemia Group  said young patients were being failed by a lack of support after diagnosis.

The Cancer Research UK report said hospitals were struggling with too few workers and a lack of diagnostic equipment such as CT and MRI scanners.

Naser Turabi, the charitys director of evidence, said the crisis was causing widespread treatment delays that negatively impact patients. One study has estimated that a four-week delay to cancer surgery led to a 6-8% increased risk of dying, and delays can also reduce the treatment options that are available. There are also the psychological effects  with waiting causing major stress and anxiety for cancer patients and their loved ones.

Michelle Mitchell, the charitys chief executive, urged political parties campaigning in the general election to focus on how they would end the unbearably long waits. Any incoming UK government must make tackling cancer waits a top priority, and pledge to meet all cancer waiting time targets by the end of the next parliament.

The RCR report was based on surveys of UK cancer chiefs and radiology directors. It found cancer centres experiencing severe delays had almost doubled in a year, with 47% facing weekly delays in administering chemotherapy, up from 28% in 2022.

The crisis was the same in radiotherapy, with weekly treatment delays nearly doubling from 22% in 2022 to 43% in 2023. Almost all (97%) of the radiology directors said workforce shortages were causing backlogs and delays at their place of work.

The RCR president, Dr Katharine Halliday, said: Todays reports reveal a stark reality: the crisis in the radiology and oncology workforce is jeopardising patients health  severe workforce shortages are significantly hindering our efforts.

Meanwhile, the third report, focusing on the needs and wellbeing of children and young people with cancer and their families, identified huge gaps in support and areas that require transformation.

Frank Fletcher, the chief executive of the Ellen MacArthur Cancer Trust, said: For too long too many young people and their families have fallen between the gaps and missed out on getting the vital support they need when they need it during the most worrying and stressful time imaginable.

The NHS said it was seeing and treating record numbers of people for cancer, with 30% more people treated last year than in 2015-16.

The Conservatives said survival rates were improving, but acknowledged there was more to do. The Liberal Democrats said delays had hit the worst levels on record.
Europol, Spains Guardia Civil, Croatias drug control unit and Brazilian police collaborated in order to bust the Balkan drug cartel. Photograph: Thomas Coex/AFP/Getty Images

Forty people have been arrested and eight tonnes of cocaine have been seized as a result of a four-year international police operation targeting a criminal network that trafficked large quantities of the drug from South America to Europe via west Africa and the Canary Islands.

The long-running investigation  which was led by Spains Guardia Civil force and coordinated by Europols operational taskforce  discovered that a Balkan cartel was using logistical hubs in west Africa and the Canaries to smuggle cocaine from Colombia, Brazil and Ecuador into EU countries.

Once the drugs reached Europe, they were distributed across the continent using handling centres in Belgium, Croatia, Germany, Italy and Spain.

Related: The cocaine superhighway: how death and destruction mark drugs path from South America to Europe

In a statement released on Thursday, Europol said the leaders of the drug trafficking organisation had been temporarily based in Turkey and Dubai.

From there, they operated the control and command centres of the criminal network, the EU law enforcement agency said. Investigations into this network identified a significant threat  criminal actors ability to collaborate closely and deploy criminal associates on a long-term basis on locations to facilitate their large-scale drug trafficking operations.

Europol said cooperation between nine national forces  Brazil, Belgium, Croatia, Germany, Italy, Serbia, Spain, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates  had proved crucial to taking down the network.

The involvement of the Guardia Civil began in September 2020 when officers from the force intercepted a Croatian-flagged sailing boat bound for the Canary Islands that was carrying one tonne of cocaine. They soon established that the boat had taken on the drug shipment from a freighter off the Gulf of Guinea. Encrypted communications obtained from the devices of the three people arrested on the sailing boat were then shared with Europol, which was already investigating the cartel.

In August last year, the Guardia Civil stopped another boat, carrying 700kg of cocaine, in waters off the Canaries. Information gathered from that bust showed that the same Italian-Croatian crew had used the boat for a similar run to bring 500kg of cocaine from Brazil.

When Europol shared the Spanish intelligence with other partner countries, it emerged that police in Belgium, Germany and Serbia were pursuing the same individual and their associates.

As part of the ongoing investigation, Spanish police arrested four people in Malaga and Tenerife on Wednesday and seized jewellery, luxury watches, a gun, electronic equipment and 109,000 in cash.

The Guardia Civil said the unprecedented international police cooperation had succeeded in dismantling the west African logistics centres that the cartel used to distribute cocaine across the EU.

The operation has resulted in the seizure of almost eight tonnes of cocaine, 40 arrests in different countries, the confiscation of 12.5m in cash in different European countries, $3m in Brazil, and the freezing of more than 50m in Serbia, it added.

In August last year, Spanish police seized 9.5 tonnes of cocaine that had been hidden among boxes of bananas in a container shipped from Ecuador to the southern Spanish port of Algeciras. The stash was the largest ever found in a single container in Spain, the police said at the time.
Nigel Farage says Reform UK is 'now the opposition to Labour' - ITV

With the same lineup as last weeks BBC debate, this could have been a tedious action replay, but Reform UKs surge past the Tories in a new poll has electrified Thursday nights events.

Nigel Farage wasted no time in celebrating the moment, using his introductory comment to tell the TV audience: Just before we came on air we overtook the Conservatives in a national opinion poll. We are now the opposition to Labour.

Even Penny Mordaunts hair seems to have gone a bit flat as a consequence. The rigid blonde helmet of last weeks appearance has been replaced by a less combative look, and on The Telegraphs live voting tool, Mr Farage is polling five times as many thumbs ups as her.

Shortly before the programme began, Reform ran a party political broadcast on Channel 4 that consisted of the message: Britain is broken. Britain needs Reform, on a black background for nearly five minutes, with no sound and no motion.

Whether or not it was effective, it was certainly novel, and Mr Farage is perhaps the only person offering anything different from what we heard in last Fridays seven-way debate.

On the NHS, he said the reason for a 43 per cent rise in caseloads was the exploding population - up six million since the Conservatives came to power.

Labours manifesto contained no mention of the population crisis, he said, telling the audience in Salford: One in 30 people walking on the streets out there has come in the last year alone.

Ms Mordaunt seemed less fired up than last week without Angela Rayner standing next to her but made a good fist of hammering home the point about Labour and taxes.

Telling the audience that Labours manifesto had a 38 billion tax gap in their spending plans, she told the audience that theyve only declared a quarter of the taxes they are going to put up.

Quite whether anyone understood her comment about no one caring what colour the cat is as long as it catches the mice is another matter.

Angela Rayner was the most wooden of the combatants, repeating her you crashed the economy line like an action figure with a pull-string in its back, though her only job is to not say anything stupid.

Daisy Cooper, the deputy leader of the LibDems, did at least look as though she was enjoying herself, pulling off the difficult trick of smiling and talking at the same time as she said her party would pump an extra 9 billion into the NHS and fix the crisis with dentists.

The audience, however, seemed rather bored by the whole affair. By the halfway point there had been barely a ripple of applause for anything anyone had said.
Dominic Raab and Sajid Javid have already repositioned themselves for life after Westminster

Of all the turbulent job markets in the world, MPs seeking employment after leaving the House of Commons this summer must be right up there. Browsing the LinkedIn profiles of the staggering number of senior MPs not seeking re-election in July is an eye-opening exercise in just how quickly theyre positioning themselves for life after politics. Dominic Raab: Senior Strategic Adviser on Global Affairs at Appian Capital Advisory LLP is one example. Sajid Javid is currently a senior adviser to Centricus Partners LP is another.

Indeed, with 158 MPs deciding to retire from front-line politics at this election, theres a sense that many have been trying to get ahead of their soon-to-be ousted peers for months by leveraging any remaining power, authority or expertise they still have to snap up potentially lucrative roles, rather than waiting for the electorate to force the issue.

One Westminster insider described this new job market as extremely tough. Headhunters and corporate recruitment agencies are being approached by MPs and companies alike to build relationships and find roles that suit both parties.

The way to think about any recruitment process  whether its concerning a politician or otherwise  is that they have to position themselves in a way that demonstrates commercial value to the client, says Kadeem Houson from Kea Consultants, a boutique search firm operating in the alternative investment space who partner with both clients and candidates.

To protect their privacy, Houson is not about to tell The Telegraph exactly which politicians theyve worked with. Its fair to say theres a few at the moment, but its tended to be opportunistic rather than proactive, he says.

According to the former MP (and now Telegraph columnist) Tom Harris being proactive isnt necessarily the best strategy for job-seeking MPs. Harris lost his seat in 2015, and admits he really should have been panicking given he was potentially going to have to fill not just his salary, but that of his entire family given his wife worked in his office.

Id already logically prepared for that, because I knew we were going to lose for six months, he remembers. So Id spoken to a lot of people who were giving me encouraging noises about future job prospects. I had gone to a couple of headhunters and given them my CV.

But actually, it was a friend in the SNP who gave me some really good support and advice. To just take a pause and see what was out there. That there would be opportunities and to be confident that one would come up that would suit. But I didnt feel entitled, far from it.

Theres often a lot of sensitivity

So what commercial value do soon to be ex-politicians have? There are several different ways that MPs on the job hunt can structure their CVs, says Houson. But the talents that most people suppose theyre hired for  lobbying and opening doors  isnt, in his experience, their biggest asset.

Actually, theres often quite a lot of sensitivity from our clients around being associated with anyone of a political persuasion, he says. That can be a positive or negative reputationally, and some dont want to be at the mercy of that.

So what you do find is that it is less about how these people can open doors, and more about their skills in understanding whats behind the doors once they are open  and advising what to do next. Its about knowing the geopolitics or the economies in different industries.

If one of my clients tried to cover a certain area or a certain geography, having someone who gets the general political system and even just the done things in these places can be of real commercial value. Thats a skillset that can be assessed regardless of political persuasion.

And that is an important point. Harris says what really worked for him was the cross-party relationships hed built up in Parliament. After all, this is a Labour MP who ended up advising the Conservative Party on Scottish issues. People did me favours and went the extra mile for me, and I remain so grateful for that, he says. But it helps if you can develop these personal relationships across the political spectrum  and certainly if you want to work in any kind of lobbying or public affairs field, you have to be able to convince these companies that theres not going to be any hostility to you.

Career politicians are less desirable

The language companies are using in their high-profile decisions to hire MPs certainly speaks to a more collegiate set of work skills. It is telling how some parliamentarians are looking to add to the second, third or sometimes even fourth jobs they took on while in office. Whatever the view on whether second jobs for MPs should be permitted at all  and Harris says its deeply illiberal to restrict them  the Parliamentary Register of Members Financial Interests makes for fascinating reading when it comes to what corporate entities think they can gain from MPs expertise.

Take Sir Brandon Lewis, the former justice secretary and Conservative Party chairman, as well as the soon to be ex-MP for Great Yarmouth. Last year, he held advisory roles at Thakeham Homes and the transportation infrastructure company FM Conway, alongside a consultancy job at Civitas Investment Management. He is also the chairman of the private equity firm LetterOne. All in all, says the register, 400,000 of income in one year.

All within the rules  for now  and plenty of MPs argue that allowing for second jobs brings a greater diversity of people, expertise and insight into the House of Commons. It is also worth reflecting that many MPs did have strong careers in the commercial world before entering politics. Javid worked at Deutsche Bank before entering Parliament; Raab was a lawyer in the City. I would always say to someone at the start of their political career that being a lawyer first is a very good safety net, laughs Harris.

Sir Brandon Lewis currently earns 400,000 a year, including income outside Parliament - Eddie Mulholland for The Telegraph

On balance, the less desirable candidates are the people who havent done anything else except politics, agrees Houson. Someone whos got a grounding in another area, whether it be pre, during or post-politics will have broader analytical skills and a background that can easily be repurposed or leveraged from their deep understanding of how the government and public sector operates.

Talking of less desirable candidates, could the very public nature of their political roles become an issue at the interview stage? Another recruitment consultant speaking on condition of anonymity says someone like Matt Hancock might have to work harder than most to convince.

Theres actually quite a lot of value in his CV, she says. His previous role as an economist at the Bank of England is one thing. For all the controversies and admitted failings, his experience at the heart of the pandemic response would be unrivalled, too.

We talk theoretically about crisis management a lot of the time; heres someone who lived and learned through the biggest crisis of all. Its whether clients could get over the CCTV [the leaked footage of him kissing his now partner Gina Coladangelo in his departmental office] and the Im A Celebrity stuff.



Houson says prior reputation all depends on the risk appetite of the client hiring. Any client naturally will have questions about the people theyre hiring, but that will be the case for anyone filling a very senior role, whether theyre a politician or not; theyre likely to have some kind of public profile and have commanded a higher level of scrutiny.

Which often means politicians who want to make a success of this transition into the corporate world have to leave their public face behind. A public face that they may have actually rather enjoyed. Thats why some find public speaking a short-term fix while they work out what they want to do next.

Famously, Boris Johnson has earned millions of pounds since leaving office, essentially by being the most entertaining and charismatic version of himself at private events. You can book the champion of democracy, freedom and free market capitalism quite easily via the Harry Walker Agency.

But while one might expect Johnson to be good  or at least in demand  for this stuff, it was quite the revelation earlier this year that Theresa Mays eponymous company had also made millions from speaking engagements. Rehabilitating her image into a thoughtful commentator on the importance of public service and democracy as opposed to populism and power in politics has literally paid dividends.

Not everyone can say they were a former prime minister, though. The rest will have to call on all their CV building powers in the months to come. And talking of CVs, it was one line from Tom Harriss early career that may have been instrumental in his post-parliamentary journey. He was a trained journalist who cut his teeth on Scottish regional newspapers before moving into political press office duties.

The Daily Telegraph were one of the first to offer me some work because there were so many interesting things happening in the Labour Party at that time, he remembers. And at around the same time, Dominic Cummings asked me to be the Scottish Director of Vote Leave  which meant I had some good relationships with most government ministers after that. And there have been non-executive jobs since then.

And that pause after Parliament that Harris is so keen to recommend for any soon to be ex-MPs will be slightly easier this summer, too. This parliamentary session saw the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority doubling the paid winding up period for MPs leaving office to four months. It applies whether theyve lost their seats or chosen not to stand.

In any case, what youd have to say is that politicians are very adept in dealing with change, says Houson.
The Dunn familys spokesperson said the US governments position was that lives of UK citizens like Harry ultimately do not matter. Photograph: Family Handout/PA

The parents of Harry Dunn, a teenage motorcyclist killed in a road collision, accused the US of obstructing their sons inquest, as they said they were looking forward to working with the next Westminster government to establish a public inquiry.

No representative of the US embassy nor the driver responsible, the American Anne Sacoolas, attended the four-day inquest, which concluded on Thursday. The absences prompted the Dunn familys spokesperson, Radd Seiger, to say Washingtons position was that lives of UK citizens like Harry ultimately do not matter.

Related: Anne Sacoolas said she drove like an American, Harry Dunn inquest told

Seiger told the PA news agency that Labour had promised the family a public inquiry into how Sacoolas was able to cause the 19-year-olds death in August 2019 and leave the country after diplomatic immunity was asserted on her behalf.

The coroner, Anne Pember, criticised the US government over a lack of driver training for diplomatic personnel based at RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire before Dunns death.

She recorded his death as being the result of injuries sustained during a head-on collision with a car travelling on the wrong side of the road.

Pember also issued three prevention of future death notices: two to the health secretary regarding drugs carried by paramedics and overstretched ambulance services; and one to the Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence addressing the training by the US of drivers in the UK.

Speaking outside Northampton coroners court, Dunns mother, Charlotte Charles, reiterated her disgust at the decision by Sacoolas and the US embassy not to attend the inquest, saying it was disrespectful to her son.

She told reporters: It further bolsters my opinion that they have no regard for myself or my family, our wider family  they just dont care.

Sacoolas, who at the time of the crash was the wife of a US diplomat stationed at the airbase, fled to the US after the incident and claimed diplomatic immunity. She was sentenced via video link in December 2022 to eight months in prison, suspended for a year, for causing death by careless driving.

Addressing the US governments conduct, Seiger told PA: It was not enough for them to kill Harry. It wasnt enough for them to then kick Harrys family in their darkest hour and seek to deny and delay the justice that they were entitled to.

As we have all seen this week, their attitude and approach to keeping their British hosts safe has been laid bare and they have positively obstructed the coroners inquiry and deprived the family of the answers they were entitled to as to why no one has ever addressed the issue of safety of UK citizens.

The next question is why have the UK governments over the years been happy to sit on the sidelines watching this scandal unfold. This Tory government have refused to get involved.

Labour have promised us a public inquiry into the way we were treated and the failure on the part of both governments over the decades to address the issue of safety, which has led to thousands of people being killed and seriously injured.

The inquest was told Saccolas, who supplied two new statements to the coroner, currently worked as an analyst for the US state department.

In one of the witness statements, Sacoolas apologised for the tragic mistake, saying she would live with it every single day for the rest of my life. She said she had not been aware she was on the wrong side of the road until after the collision, having instinctively moved to the right side of the road.

After the crash, she hysterically flagged down a motorist and begged her to get help, the statement said.

The proceedings were delayed twice this week because of talks over whether Sacoolas would attend the hearing.

Seiger said: The UK government have also now seen how the US government treats our courts and judges. The question for the next British government is  are they just going to stand by and let the Americans continue to treat us all and our lives with such contempt?

The US ambassador at the time of Harrys death was Woody Johnson. He told the UK government that after [Dunn] died there were far more important things than Harrys life. That is the American governments position. The lives of UK citizens like Harry ultimately do not matter.

We wont let them get away with it and we look forward to working with the next government to establish this public inquiry.

A Labour spokesperson said: A Labour-run Foreign Office would conduct an inquiry into the failures the Conservative government made over the case of Harry Dunn to ensure lessons are properly learnt.

No other family should have to go through this again. Our thoughts remain with Harry Dunns family, friends and loved ones.
Hungary's government has erected border fences and introduced hard-line policies against migrants - Jerome Cid/Alamy Stock Photo

The European Court of Justice will fine Hungary 1 million (845,000) every day until it stops breaking EU law and takes in more migrants.

Hungary was guilty of unprecedented and extremely serious infringement of European laws on claiming asylum and deportations of illegal migrants, the EUs top court said.

Budapest was hit with a 169 million fine for breaking EU asylum law and warned there would be additional daily fines until it observes the rules.

Viktor Orban, Hungarys long-serving anti-migrant prime minister, said that the outrageous and unacceptable fines were for defending the borders of the European Union.

He said: It seems that illegal migrants are more important to the Brussels bureaucrats than their own European citizens.

Mr Orban has regularly been at loggerheads with the EU over asylum policy since the migration crisis of 2015.

More than a million Syrians passed through Hungary during the crisis as the government erected border fences and introduced hard-line policies.

Hungarys fenced southern border with Serbia remains a target for migrants hoping to reach EU territory through the Balkans from Turkey, before travelling to richer countries such as Germany.

In December 2020, the European court said that Hungary broke EU laws on granting asylum and deportation of illegal migrants.

Viktor Orban, Hungary's long-serving anti-migrant prime minister, said that the fines were 'outrageous and unacceptable' - Markus Schreiber/AP

It illegally detained asylum seekers in transit zones between border fences, refused to allow failed asylum seekers to stay in Hungary even if they appealed a rejection of their claim and unlawfully deported some illegal migrants.

It also forced asylum seekers to travel to Kyiv or Belgrade to apply for a permit to enter Hungary rather than offer international protection at the border as the law demands.

The European Commission brought a fresh case against Hungary because it felt that it had not complied with the judgement, except in the case of the transit zones.

Brussels made the rare move of asking for financial penalties to be imposed and EU judges agreed in a judgement delivered on Thursday.

The court said that Hungarian lawbreaking undermined solidarity among EU countries and passed the responsibility for the migrants onto other member states.

EU member states have spent years trying to reform the blocs migration rules.

A new policy to speed up asylum procedures calls on counties to accept migrants from front-line states or pay 20,000 for each person they refuse.

Hungary has vowed to take no migrants from countries such as Italy, Greece and Spain, which have borne the brunt of illegal migration into the EU.

Budapest will take over the rotating presidency of the EU on July 1.

It will be entrusted with brokering intergovernmental agreements on policy, including the allocation of the blocs top jobs after European elections in which anti-migrant hard-Right parties made big gains.
Vaccination rates are lagging among younger and older Australians not up to date on Covid-19 and flu boosters during a winter wave of respiratory viruses, government data shows. Photograph: Bsip Sa/Alamy

Immunisation rates are lagging in Australias most vulnerable populations  the very young and old  with experts blaming practical barriers as well as the misinformation and vaccine hesitancy that took off during the Covid-19 pandemic.

In 2020 Australia achieved a record high rate of 95.09% five-year-olds fully immunised against infectious diseases, even surpassing the governments target of 95%, which provides herd immunity.

Between the ages of two months and five years, Australian children are supposed to receive vaccines against viruses including hepatitis B, diphtheria, whooping cough, meningococcal, polio, mumps, measles and rubella.

However, the latest government data shows Australian children have fallen below that target, with only 93.93% of five-year-olds who have had all vaccines recommended for their age, 91.24% of two-year-olds and 93.16% of one-year-olds.

Related: Without measles immunisation little spot fire outbreaks may become harder to control, experts warn

The governments data breaking down rates by primary health network also shows certain areas have consistently lower rates. New South Waless north coast, Queenslands Gold Coast and country Western Australias rates are all below 90% for one- and two-year-olds. Vaccination rates for five-year-olds in the Gold Coast and country WA were above 90%, but not among children of that age in NSWs north coast.

For the coastal Richmond Valley local government area within the north coast primary health network (PHN), immunisation rates are below 80% in the youngest age groups.

A new study of more than 3,000 Australian parents published in the Medical Journal of Australia found misinformation and vaccine hesitancy increased during the pandemic compared with the views of research participants in 2017.

But it also noted that practical barriers, such as disruption to routine vaccination services, was also a factor in decreasing childhood vaccination rates.

Vaccination rates are also lagging in older populations not up to date on Covid and flu boosters during a winter wave of Covid-19 and other respiratory viruses.

The most recent federal government data released in May shows only 40% of those over 75 are up to date in receiving their booster shot in the past six months, while only 25% of those aged 65-74 and only 4% of adults under 65 have received a booster shot in the past six months.

Only 74% of aged care residents have received a booster dose since the beginning of last year.

The governments advisory group for immunisation updated its its guidelines in May recommending a booster dose every 12 months for Australians aged between 18 and 74, who are also eligible for a booster every six months, while those over 75 are recommended to receive a booster every six months.

Related: Australia hit by big wave of Covid at same time as increase in flu

Prof Adrian Esterman, the chair of biostatistics and epidemiology at the University of South Australia, said Covid-19 has encouraged vaccine hesitancy.

I think the general thrust of what were seeing is that Covid has put a spanner in the works, he said. Its basically made a lot of people scared of getting vaccinated  not only adults but of getting their kids vaccinated  because of all the hype about how dangerous vaccines are.

The actual number of severe adverse events is minuscule compared to the millions and millions of doses given out, Esterman added.

Prof Robert Booy, an infectious diseases paediatrician, said the overall drop in vaccination rates among children was not a lot but its important.

We need to re-establish the strong trust weve always had for a long time with the Australian public about the safety and effectiveness of vaccination in children and adults, he said.

Prof Peter McIntyre, the head of womens and childrens health at the University of Otagos school of medicine, and a former director of Australias National Centre for Immunisation Research and Surveillance, said he believed vaccine hesitancy due to the pandemic was part of the picture but should not be overstated.

The number of people who are not vaccinated because they are actively avoiding vaccine is still a small percentage, he said. Its probably only about 3%  maybe its kicked up a little bit post-Covid.

McIntyre said the most common reason people were not vaccinated and had not immunised their children was due to service barriers.

He said there needed to be greater opportunities for accessing vaccination outside of appointments with GPs, who could often be difficult to get an appointment with, such as accessing vaccines through pharmacists or offering home-visit services.

McIntyre said Australia should consider requiring children to be vaccinated to attend school or childcare, as occurs in the US. There were recommendations for school children in Australia to be vaccinated but it was not enforced, he said.

Prof Julie Leask, a vaccine expert at the University of Sydney, said lagging vaccination rates were the result of issues including access to services and vaccine acceptance.

Leask said the disparity in rates between areas often demonstrated inequity in access to services where there is more poverty and social exclusion.

Theres been a big focus on vaccine refusal and misinformation as if theres this direct and linear impact, Leask said. People can reject vaccination because of negative experiences with health care and due to certain beliefs and values.
Israel is accused of 'harming Israelis at the same time as striking Palestinian militants' - GIL COHEN-MAGEN/AFP

The Israeli military likely killed more than a dozen of its own citizens during the October 7 attacks, a United Nations investigation has alleged.

The report by the UN commission investigating the attack on Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza documented strong indications that the Hannibal Directive was used in several instances that day, harming Israelis at the same time as striking Palestinian militants.

The directive  officially revoked in 2016  was put in place to prevent the capture of Israeli soldiers by enemy forces who may use them as bargaining chips, allowing troops to open fire even if it caused the death of a comrade.

UN investigators, led by Navi Pillay, a former UN human rights chief, concluded that at least 14 Israeli civilians, including 12-year-old twins and a 68-year-old grandmother, were likely killed as a result of Israeli security forces fire.

These specific accusations have not yet been addressed by Israel, but the government angrily rejected the overall report, which accused both Palestinian groups and Israel of committing war crimes. The UN panel also claimed Israels conduct of the war included crimes against humanity.

The Israeli government said the report was reflective of the systematic anti-Israel discrimination of this commission of inquiry, noting that it had ignored Hamass use of civilians as human shields.

It has also criticised the commission for outrageously and repugnantly drawing a false equivalence between Hamas and the Israeli military in relation to sexual violence.

The report examines both Hamass actions on October 7 and Israels military response in Gaza and provides legal analysis that could be used in future criminal proceedings.

The UN commission was denied access to Israel, Gaza and the West Bank and said Israel did not respond to six requests for information. It based its conclusions on remote interviews with survivors and witnesses, satellite imagery, forensic medical records, and open source data.

Buried in the detail are several examples when Israeli civilians may have been intentionally targeted by their own armed forces on the day thousands of armed Hamas terrorists violently attacked the Nova music festival and Kibbutz settlements near the Gaza border.

Hamas attacks on October 7 overwhelmed many of Israel's defences - AMIR LEVY/GETTY

The investigations conclusions on this question, much of which is derived from local media, refer to a video statement by an IDF tank crew which confirms that at least one individual tank team knowingly applied the Hannibal Directive that day.

It adds: In a statement given to an Israeli news channel, a tank driver and commander stated that they targeted two Toyota vehicles with militants and Israelis. This occurred at point 179, close to Kibbutz Nir Oz.

The commander, who believed his troops could be on the vehicles, was quoted as saying: I prefer stopping the abduction so they wont be taken, although he adds that, to his knowledge, he did not kill any soldiers.

Much of the information at the centre of the Hannibal Directive accusation stems from the death of Efrat Katz, 68, some 150m from the Gaza border, and another 13 Israelis who were likely killed either by tank shelling or caught in the crossfire after being trapped by terrorists in the house of Pessi Cohen in Kibbutz Beeri.

In their account of the Beeri incident, investigators say that about 40 terrorists brought 15 civilians, including twins Liel and Yannai Hetzroni, aged 12, into the house of local resident Pessi Cohen, leading to a standoff with the Yamam police counter-terrorism unit and the IDF.

At 3pm, Hasan Hamduna, the terrorists leader, called the Yamam through one of the female hostages, threatening to execute all the abductees unless they were given safe passage to Gaza.

At 4pm, the first large IDF contingency, led by Brig Gen Barak Hiram, arrived at the site.

According to the testimony of a surviving hostage, the Yamam commandos opened fire on the terrorists while seven hostages were in the yard, trapped between them, the report says.

Hamduna surrendered at 4.30pm, approaching the Israelis while using the female hostage as a human shield. He was detained and the hostage told the ISF about the 14 hostages and 40 militants still inside the house.

Hamduna agreed to use a loudspeaker to tell the terrorists to surrender but an exchange of small arms fire and rocket-propelled grenades continued, killing two hostages in the yard.

Negotiations are over

At about 5.30pm, the barricaded terrorists fired an RPG at the IDF troops and, according to the survivors testimony, at around 7pm, General Hiram allegedly gave an order to fire tank shells at the house.

A separate account in the New York Times in December recounted an argument between the general and a SWAT commander who thought more kidnappers might surrender.

The negotiations are over, General Hiram reportedly said after the terrorists launched an RPG. Break in, even at the cost of civilian casualties.

The Times and the UN report said that a tank fired two light shells at the house.

After the tank finished shooting, the survivor reported hearing Israeli security forces saying: there is an injured hostage, and retrieved another woman from the house, wrote the UN investigators.

The second survivor who survived the shelling told media sources that her husband had died as a result of the shelling, while she was injured by the shrapnel.

The 13 others were killed, although some died in crossfire in the yard.

The report refers to another media investigation that refuted some details by saying two warning shells were fired earlier in the day, followed by a decision by the IDF led by Yamam for a strike on the roof of the house that would aim to end the situation.

In the case of Efrat Katz, the investigators said they had verified information indicating that at least one resident of Kibbutz Nir Oz was killed as a result of Israeli helicopter fire as she was being abducted into Gaza in a tractor cart.

According to her daughters testimony to the media, an exchange of fire erupted between the terrorists and the IDF, who were trying to stop them, and Katz was killed.

Military investigation

Another freed hostage from the same kibbutz witnessed the incident and said she heard the sounds of a helicopter in the air and of shooting.

She realised that she had been hit by the gunfire and that Efrat had been hit too. She confirmed that Efrat died on the spot as a result of the helicopter fire.

The Telegraph contacted the IDF for comment.

In January, the families of the victims demanded a military investigation of the soldiers actions in Kibbutz Beeri that day, due to the suspicion that some civilians were killed by the army, including tank fire.

The families wrote in an open letter that they were demanding the IDF carry out an in-depth and transparent investigation of the decisions and the actions that led to this tragic outcome.

An IDF general staff team began a probe into the incident and General Hiram in February, said local media reports.

The IDF is conducting its own probe into both its failures in the run-up to the October 7 attacks and the battles over the next three days when it fought to restore control over the communities and army bases that had been invaded by Hamas, the Times of Israel reported.

The inquiry into the Beeri incident and shelling of the Cohen familys home is set to be presented in early July, while all battle investigations are expected to be completed by the end of August.

Separately, the Israeli government has discussed far-reaching measures against UN agencies operating in Israel and the Palestinian territories, including the possible expulsion of staff, reported the Financial Times.

Bubbling tensions spiked last week after Antonio Guterres, the UN secretary-general, added Israels military to a list of countries and organisations that fail to protect children in conflict  a move the Israeli ambassador to the UN described as shameful.
Cultures in Xinjiang propel civilization

09:22, June 13, 2024 By Cui Jia ( China Daily

Experts discuss archaeological findings at the International Forum on the History and Future of Xinjiang on Wednesday in Kashgar, Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region. More than 100 researchers from home and abroad attended the forum. (JIANG DONG/CHINA DAILY)

Learning more about the history of the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region can let the world see that its development has been deeply influenced historically by diverse cultures and religions, officials and scholars said at an international forum.

More importantly, they said, it can help people understand that the region's rich culture is an integral part of Chinese civilization.

Xinjiang has always been the home of people from many different ethnic groups with diverse cultures. Through coexistence and exchanges, different cultures in the region have integrated and flourished. And they are all part of Chinese civilization, Erkin Tuniyaz, chairman of the region, said on Wednesday in Kashgar at the International Forum on the History and Future of Xinjiang.

More than 100 scholars and archaeologists from countries including China, the United States, Australia, Germany, Egypt, and Kazakhstan took part in the forum in the city in southern Xinjiang, sharing the latest archaeological findings in the region and the ties between the history of the region and Chinese culture.

The forum can help Xinjiang further explore its history and look into how its unique culture was formed, which is valuable to China and boosts exchanges between the East and West, Erkin Tuniyaz said.

Internationally, there is a baseless narrative that separates Xinjiang culture and Chinese culture and even portrays them as being in opposition. However, a large amount of archaeological evidence shows that Xinjiang has always been an important part of the Chinese cultural sphere, Pan Yue, director of the National Ethnic Affairs Commission, said at the forum.

"The story of Xinjiang fully demonstrates that Chinese civilization has always remained vibrant through its inclusiveness," Pan said.

Because of the ancient Silk Road, jointly opened up by ancestors in the western regions and the Central Plains, numerous trading cities were built, including Kashgar, he added.

"Over several thousand years, people from all directions and ethnic groups migrated, settled, traded, intermarried, and formed a pattern of coexistence in Xinjiang. Ultimately, Xinjiang and the Central Plains belonged to the same political community, which was the inevitable result of the development of economic, social, and cultural communities," Pan said.

Wu Xinhua, a research fellow at the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, said the unique geological location of Xinjiang, which connects other parts of China with Central Asia, has determined that it is a natural hub for exchanges of cultures and religions.

"As a trade hub on the ancient Silk Road, the exchanges of the fruits of civilization around the world have happened in Xinjiang naturally and constantly. They are then integrated into the local culture and passed on to different regions via Xinjiang," Wu said. "And Xinjiang's role remains the same till today."

Pan said concerns that Xinjiang might lose its cultural identity are unnecessary, because Chinese civilization in modern times always strives for harmonious coexistence, consistently seeking common ground while reserving differences, and continually pursuing peaceful and mutually beneficial outcomes.

The preservation of the cultural heritage of different ethnic groups in Xinjiang is protected by law. Efforts to protect Xinjiang's culture have reached a new level in recent years, said Erkin Tuniyaz, the region's chairman.

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Liang Jun)
The Bird's Nest located at the front entrance of Toca Madera Connie Anderson/Connie Anderson Photography

Toca Madera, a Mexican steakhouse with exotic flair and a knack for getting celebrity customers, is making its Houston debut nearby other glitzy restaurants along Allen Parkway.

The restaurant opens June 18 on the ground floor of the Pavilion at The Allen, 1755 Allen Parkway Suite 101. This is the fourth Toca Madera from hospitality group Noble 33; other locations are in Los Angeles, Las Vegas and Scottsdale. Taylor Swift and boyfriend Travis Kelce dined at the Vegas outpost last month.

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We wanted to do something that highlighted different facets of Mexican food, Berman said. When we started looking at opportunities, Houston rose to the top. Its where we wanted to plant our flag.

The Houston location is the largest Toca Madera at 14,000 square feet (317 seats), equipped with two full-service bars, a lounge, a private member's club and a private dining room.

The main dining room at Toca Madera. Connie Anderson, Connie Anderson Photography

Design elements in the restaurant are the work of the firm Monochrome, including custom woodwork and two faux ficus trees in the dining room. The bold architectural choices, including an art piece meant to emulate a bird's nest, make for quite a setting for high-end Mexican food. The patio overlooks Eleanor Tinsley Park.

Servers present flaming drinks; dancers throw flames; and a DJ holds court from a booth made from quartzite.

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While the setting leans into "experiential dining," cofounders Mikey Tanha and Tosh Berman tell the Houston Chronicle food and drinks are top of mind while the space and the other elements are additives to enhance the overall dining experience.

Toca Madera Houston offers a unique high touch dining experience that speaks to all the senses, Berman said in a statement. Great detail and attention is given to the architecture, design and soundscape, all combined with an incredible menu for a bespoke dining journey.

Executive chef Christian Brennen is at the helm of the Houston kitchen. There's a strong focus toward premium Australian and Japanese beef, like the Toca Steak that can be ordered Wagyu, Kobe or Prime, and the "Tomahawk and Bone Marrow," served tableside with flames and floating over salsa verde.

Petite filet and Maine lobster tail at Toca Madera TJ Perez Cocktails at Toca Madera TJ Perez Australian wagyu top cap steak at Toca Madera, a modern Mexican steakhouse opening fall 2023 at The Pavilion at The Allen, a mixed-use project off Allen Parkway in Fourth Ward. Toca Madera and Meduza Mediterrania, a Mediterranean restaurant, both from Noble 33, a global hospitality group, will take up home at The Pavilion at The Allen. TJ Perez Cocktails at Toca Madera TJ Perez Scallops at Toca Madera TJ Perez Crispy wagyu tacos at Toca Madera, a modern Mexican steakhouse opening fall 2023 at The Pavilion at The Allen, a mixed-use project off Allen Parkway in Fourth Ward. Toca Madera and Meduza Mediterrania, a Mediterranean restaurant, both from Noble 33, a global hospitality group, will take up home at The Pavilion at The Allen. Alonso Parra The Tranquilo cocktail at Toca Madera TJ Perez

Other highlights include the Sashimi Mexicano (ahi tuna, cucumber, avocado, pomegranate, chile de arbol, leche de tigre) and A5 Wagyu Tacos served on crispy wontons with jalapeno slaw, pickled horseradish, cilantro and kizami wasabi.

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Beverage director Carla Lorenzo offers a large selection of tequila and mezcal. The signature cocktail is the Como la Flor, a tropical tequila drink with edible flowers and rose "air."

Toca Madera is the first Texas restaurant from Noble 33, and it already has plans for a second in Houston with its Mediterranean-influenced restaurant Meduza Mediterrania.
Sir Keir Starmer reiterated his promise not to increase income tax, National Insurance and VAT - Anthony Devlin/Getty Images Europe

Labour has unveiled plans to hike taxes by 8.6 billion through raids on private schools, overseas property investors and non-doms.

The partys manifesto says that its planned tax rises will raise a combined 8.6 billion by 2028-29, with the money used to pay for more NHS appointments and teachers.

Despite Sir Keir Starmer repeatedly insisting all his policies would be fully costed, the manifesto only provides a breakdown of costs for the final year of a Labour government.

It contains a summary of the revenues Labour would raise and the cost of delivering its pledges for 2028-29 but does not provide one for any other year.

The party has said it would raise 5.2 billion from closing further non-dom tax loopholes and investment in reducing tax avoidance, along with 1.5 billion in applying VAT to private school fees.

Other revenue streams include hiking stamp duty on purchases of residential property by non-UK residents by one per cent, and windfall tax on oil and gas giants.

Sir Keir Starmer reiterated his promise not to increase income tax, National Insurance and VAT during his speech to unveil the Labour manifesto at the headquarters of Co-op in Manchester on Thursday.

Tax Trap Manifesto

Jeremy Hunt slammed the document as a Tax Trap Manifesto, which he said contains only tax rises and no tax cuts.

Under Labours published plans, taxes will rise to levels never before seen in this country.

But thats only the tax rises theyre telling you about  it doesnt include the 2,094 of tax rises theyll need to fill their 38.5 billion unfunded spending commitments.

So whats most important is not whats in Labours manifesto, but its what they have kept out of it.

They are refusing to rule out taxing your job, your home, your pension, your car, your business and they think they can get away with it without anyone holding them to account.

In response to questions about the manifestos tax plans, Sir Keir said: There are no tax rises that we havent already announced. Yes, we want to bear down properly on the non-dom tax status and make sure the super-rich pay their fair share in this country.

Yes, we want the oil and gas companies to pay fair tax on the massive profits that theyre making. Yes, we want to make sure that private equity loopholes arent there  and yes weve taken the tough decision in relation to VAT.

On whether he would borrow more, cut spending or increase taxes if his growth plans do not deliver, he said: This manifesto is a total rejection of that defeatist approach that the only levers are tax and spend.

The tax elements of the Labour and Conservative manifestos are a key dividing line between the two parties.

Rishi Sunak on Tuesday unveiled plans for tax cuts, including scrapping National Insurance for four million self-employed workers and abolishing stamp duty for first-time buyers on properties worth up to 425,000.

Sir Keir hit out at Mr Sunaks tax pledges as he was challenged on the ambitions of his own manifesto.

Rishi Sunak, if theres one thing that he was supposed to do, it was to provide stability after Liz Truss, and here he is repeating it.
Keir Starmer at the podium during the launch of Labours manifesto in Manchester. Photograph: Anthony Devlin/Getty Images

Keir Starmer faced new questions over how Labour would pay to fix Britains broken public services as he vowed to turn the page for ever on held-back potential and to end political pantomime during the partys manifesto launch.

The Labour leader said he saw potential held back everywhere he went as a result of a lack of housing, the cost of living crisis, low wages and inadequate healthcare for children.

Putting wealth creation at the heart of the partys plan for government, Starmer said the manifesto was a rejection of a defeatist approach to the economy which suggested the only levers were tax and spend, rather than growth.

The way we create wealth is broken, he told an event in Manchester. It leaves far too many people feeling insecure. Wealth creation is our number one priority. Growth is our core business. If you take nothing else away from this today, let it be this.

But he faced scepticism over how he could avoid deep spending cuts to public services such as transport, justice and local councils, without fudging his fiscal targets or putting up taxes.

Paul Johnson, director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies thinktank, said Labour was part of a conspiracy of silence along with the other main parties on the scale of the fiscal challenge and spending cuts to come.

Delivering genuine change will almost certainly also require putting actual resources on the table, he said. Labours manifesto offers no indication that there is a plan for where the money would come from to finance this.

Starmer was later asked when his government would be able to deliver growth. As soon as possible. Im not going to put a date on it, he said.

He admitted that the challenges faced by Britain would not disappear overnight under a Labour government and he did not have a magic wand. He said the manifesto represented a credible long-term plan for the country.

Britain has lost its balance, the Labour leader said. It is too hard for people to get on. Opportunity is not spread evenly enough. And too many communities are not just locked out of the wealth we create, they are disregarded as sources of dynamism in the first place. Ignored by the toxic idea that economic growth is something that the few hand down to the many. Today, we turn the page on that for ever.

The pared-back manifesto focused on the partys five missions of economic growth, clean energy, halving crime, reforming childcare and education and building an NHS for the future.

The 133-page document, which contained no big policy surprises but 33 pictures of the Labour leader, was a deliberate contrast to the Conservatives more policy-heavy offering earlier this week.

It reflects Labours cautious approach to the election and a desire not to give the Tories any opportunities to derail its campaign or dent its 20-point poll lead, with Starmer saying every policy had been carefully costed.

He said: Im not going to do what Rishi Sunak does, which is offer things that he cant deliver because theyre unfunded. People have had too much of that. They are fed up with that.

Its not about rabbits out of a hat, not about pantomime. Im running as the candidate to be prime minister, not to run the circus.

The manifesto was intended to be business-friendly, targeted at former Tory voters and aimed at restoring the partys economic credibility. Labour plans to raise about 7bn in revenue from tax, its costings document confirms, including from non-doms, VAT on private schools and cracking down on tax avoidance.

The party has promised not to raise taxes on working people or corporation tax, but there remain questions over whether other taxes, such as capital gains, could go up in government.

Labour also promised to scrap the multimillion-pound heavily delayed plan to send migrants to Rwanda and use the money to pay for a new security border command. It would bring in legislation to remove the right of hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords and enforce retirement from the upper chamber at 80, with a longer term plan to abolish the upper chamber entirely.

Starmer pledged to build 1.5m new homes and reform the planning system, which he said acts as a major brake on economic growth, and reiterated Labours plan to create a state-owned, clean-energy generation firm Great British Energy, backed by 8.3bn over five years.

He said he was determined to do better than the Tories on standards after years of political scandals including PPE contracts, Partygate and MPs breaking the rules, which has continued despite Rishi Sunaks pledge to lead a government of integrity, professionalism and accountability.

Labour has promised to set up an ethics and integrity commission with an independent chair with powers to start investigations into misconduct. Senior figures denied they had watered down a promise to ban former ministers from lobbying the government for five years, although there was no detail in the manifesto.

We will get on with changing the codes and the ethics codes and the guidance that is in place straight away, said Starmer. But I know that nobody will believe its changed until they see the action that follows.

Turning on the Tories, Starmer said Sunaks plans would not address the UKs problems, no matter how many they throw at the wall hoping some of them will stick.

In a dig at Nigel Farage, who is standing for Reform UK in Essex, he said: If you want politics as pantomime, I hear Clacton is nice.

A YouGov poll for the Times shows Reform overtaking the Conservatives for the first time. The survey has Farages party on 19%, narrowly ahead of the Tories on 18%. Labour were reportedly down one percentage point to 37%, according to the poll of 2,211 adults.

A climate protester disrupted Starmers speech, complaining Labour was offering the same old Tory policies. As the woman was escorted out of the building, Starmer said: We gave up on being a party of protest five years ago. We want to be a party in power.

Laura Trott, the chief secretary to the Treasury, said Labours manifesto only contained tax rises, no tax cuts as she repeated the disputed Tory claim that the rival partys policies would cost every family 2,000.
Ellie Reeves, the partys deputy national campaign coordinator, wrote in an email to candidates that there was too much activity in some of our held seats. Photograph: Peter Nicholls/Getty Images

Labour election candidates have been told they are doing too much campaigning in their own safe seats and must spend more time in battleground constituencies, causing friction with candidates who are concerned about a backlash from Labour voters.

The instructions from Labour HQ have met opposition from some candidates, especially in London and big cities. A number of those in inner-city constituencies told the Guardian they were uncomfortable about ignoring voters locally, especially over the partys stance on Gaza.

Others said they were ignoring the missives from HQ because of a need to campaign in new parts of their constituency that they had inherited because of boundary changes.

One senior party figure said candidates had been told at the start of the election campaign that they should focus on tight battleground seats and should not spend time in very safe seats or unwinnable ones.

However, the person said that in the first three weeks of the campaign, the number of target seats had significantly increased as the potential scale of a Labour victory had grown. As a result London candidates were campaigning in areas previously regarded as safe Tory seats, such as Chelsea and Fulham.

Related: The era of reckless Tory economics is over. As your chancellor, I would make every penny count | Rachel Reeves

Ellie Reeves, the partys deputy national campaign coordinator, wrote in an email to candidates that there was too much activity in some of our held seats. She wrote: We are clear, our activity must be focused in our battleground seat areas if we want to win this election. You are key to this and must be out in our twin seats campaigning.

But several MPs said they were solely focused on their constituencies, even in seats with majorities of more than 20,000, but said they were anticipating a significant drop-off in activist activity.

Theres a way of framing this that isnt telling us off for speaking to our own voters, said one. Another candidate said it was often those with high majorities getting the hardest time on the doorstep. Time for change cuts more ways than one, they said.

Another activist said: As an MP youre wanting to shore up your core vote, and the data we always have is our hero voters, if theyre saying dont know  youre gonna be worried and not want to leave so much.

Activists in east London are being directed as far afield as Rochester and Strood in Kent, Hitchin in Hertfordshire and Kettering in Northamptonshire, and in north-west London are being redirected to Aldershot in Hampshire.

There are some seats that Labour is still directing activists to campaign in. Its campaigning tool on the Labour website is telling activists in Birmingham Ladywood to stay and campaign to hold the seat for the shadow justice secretary, Shabana Mahmood, who is facing a challenge from the Workers party candidate Akhmed Yakoob campaigning on a pro-Palestine platform.

It is also telling those in the neighbouring seat of Birmingham Yardley to stay to campaign for Jess Phillips and for activists in Bristol Central to campaign to hold the seat for Thangam Debbonaire who is under threat from the Greens.

The Conservative campaign has been warning voters they are fighting to prevent Keir Starmer from winning a supermajority even bigger than Labours 1997 landslide victory

In recent social media advertising, the party is urging potential Reform UK voters not to risk handing Starmer the opportunity to do anything he wanted in parliament.

The online advert says the Tories could be reduced to 57 seats in parliament on a 19% vote share, even if Reform picked up no MPs. The defence secretary, Grant Shapps, said the party was fighting for every single seat in this country.

Adverts have told voters not to hand Keir Starmer a blank cheque  adding that a vote for Reform or the Liberal Democrats means youll have no one holding [Labour] to account on your behalf.
Keir Starmer has positioned himself as the candidate for change - Anthony Devlin/Getty

The word change was everywhere at the launch of Labours election manifesto in Manchester. It is the title of the document and Sir Keir Starmer used it dozens of times. Yet he and his team are trying to persuade voters that they have nothing to worry about, because nothing much is going to change at all.

The manifesto says there will be no income tax rises (and certainly no cuts), no VAT increase, no spending splurge, no reversal of efforts to limit immigration. Indeed, the ostensible aim is to pursue pretty much the Conservative agenda but to succeed where Labour says the Tories failed.

A Labour government would trigger growth, boost Treasury revenues, reform planning, build more homes, reduce debt, cut NHS waiting lists, expand the Armed Forces, make the streets safer, and control our borders. In other words, the change Labour seeks is not one of direction but of governing party. Its hubristic pitch is that the party can run the country better, even though it will be the least experienced administration in history should it win power on July 4.

After 14 years of Conservative-led governments, a sense that the other lot deserve a chance is a powerful appeal to an electorate fed up with promises unfulfilled. Jacketless and with his shirt sleeves rolled up, Sir Keir trotted out the usual platitudes that no one could possibly disagree with. The manifesto was also curiously presidential with 33 photographs of him in the document.

Sir Keir would have us believe that, less than five years after supporting a neo-Marxist platform for power, Labour is now a pro-growth, wealth-creating, free enterprise party. Yet it still contains Left-wingers who do not share this worldview. Indeed, until recently they would have included Sir Keir himself. Maybe they still do.

There is a credibility gap a mile wide in this manifesto. No one believes that Labour will cut public services, and yet it would inherit Conservative spending plans predicated on precisely that for many departments.

There is nothing in the manifesto about what happens if the revenues from extra taxes on non-doms, schools and energy companies are insufficient. Everything hinges on generating growth at levels not seen anywhere in the West for years, in a country notorious for poor productivity that will not be improved by Labours cosiness with the public sector unions.

As with every manifesto, the devil is in the detail and there is precious little of that in the 132-page document. Taxes will not go up for working people, it says  but how are they defined? There is no mention of capital gains tax, inheritance tax or council tax. Middle-income professionals who have already been clobbered by fiscal drag and cuts in allowances should be worried.

The planning system will be overhauled. How? There is scant detail beyond the usual bromides. A new state-owned energy company will help cut prices apparently, even as the oil and gas giants are pushed out of the market by even higher windfall taxes.

Labour says everything has been costed but that is true only for the first year of the parliament. In 1997, Labour promised to keep the same plans as the outgoing Tories, yet within three years had opened the spending taps. As one Labour minister said when the party left office in 2010, there was no money left.

Moreover, the 1997 manifesto was notable for leaving out some of Labours most important innovations, such as independence for the Bank of England, announced within a few days of the election, and an attack on pension funds, which came in the first Budget, wrecking final salary schemes.

It is not what is in the manifesto that voters need to worry about, but what is not in it. If the country gives Labour what Grant Shapps has called a super-majority on such a deliberately half-baked programme, it will be buying a pig in a poke on the grandest of scales.

Labour will need money to fund its spending pledges; so where will it come from? The promises on income tax and VAT would not stop Labour introducing a wealth tax on assets, especially property, which has long been the ambition of the Left. Extending inheritance tax to pension funds or limiting the tax-free withdrawal, currently 25 per cent, are all open to a Labour government strapped for cash. Ominously, Labour is promising a review of the pension landscape. To what purpose?

As part of its green reforms, Labour will require all UK financial institutions  including pension funds, asset managers, insurers and banks  to develop and implement credible transition plans which are aligned with the 1.5C goal of the Paris Agreement. How will that work?

There is too much we do not know about Labours plans to trust them and too much of the old, familiar class-based spite to believe the party has changed, even if it has cast Jeremy Corbyn into the wilderness. The Left has been thrown its red meat in the form of removing hereditary peers from the Lords, banning trail hunting (why?), and imposing VAT on private school fees, pushing thousands of pupils into the state sector.

Above all, Labour has never been able to shake off Mrs Thatchers observation that socialists eventually run out of other peoples money. They will do so again. Sir Keir says he has changed his party for good. History suggests otherwise.
Lady Starmer watches her husband speak at last year's Labour Party conference in Liverpool. She largely stays out of Sir Keir's political activities - Jon Super/AP

Sir Keir Starmers wife did not attend the Labour manifesto launch, days after Akshata Murty attended the equivalent event for the Conservatives.

Lady Starmer, who works for the NHS, was absent as the Labour leader unveiled his change document in Manchester.

He did however refer to his wife at the event, telling party members and journalists that she would have preferred him to stay a lawyer rather than become a politician.

Ms Murty has regularly been seen on the campaign trail since Rishi Sunak called the snap election in May.

But Lady Starmer has not been spotted campaigning with her husband at all in recent weeks.

She largely stays out of his political career, other than attending the Labour Party conference with him each year.

The Labour leader has described his wife as someone who has her own life and protects it vigorously, as she largely keeps herself out of the spotlight.

Lady Starmer works in occupational health for the NHS in Camden, north London, after having a career as a solicitor.

It was through the legal profession that she and Sir Keir met.

Sir Keir and his deputy Angela Rayner celebrate the manifesto launch at the Co-op HQ in Manchester - Stefan Rousseau/PA

The Labour leader told Piers Morgans Life Stories in 2020: I was doing a case in court and it all depended on whether the documents were accurate.

I [asked my colleagues] who actually drew up these documents, they said a woman called Victoria, so I said lets get her on the line.

He said he heard her mutter Who the f--- does he think he is? before hanging up on him.

On Wednesday night, Sir Keir revealed that Lady Starmer had not wanted him to enter politics.

She thought it would be far better to continue being a lawyer on a reasonable salary and not have all the challenges that you get as a politician, he told Sky.

Meanwhile, Ms Murty has been visible in her support of the Prime Minister.

She even introduced Mr Sunak ahead of his keynote speech at the Conservative Party conference in October.

Labour has also kept the names of Sir Keirs two children, who are in their teens, out of the public domain.
Marion Marechal speaks to the media outside the National Assembly in Paris - 000381497007

Marine Le Pens estranged niece Marion Marechal appeared to have returned to the family fold on Thursday after she was fired by her former boss Eric Zemmour for insubordination.

The Le Pen love-in is the latest twist in the tectonic shifts that have roiled French politics since the European elections last Sunday, when Ms Le Pens populist National Rally (RN) trounced president Emmanuel Macrons centrist Renaissance party.

In the wake of his partys defeat, Mr Macron then called snap parliamentary elections on June 30 and July 7, urging all moderate parties to unite to forge a new democratic force to keep out both extremes.

This has sparked fractious attempts to build a common front on the Left and huge rifts within the mainstream Right.

Ms Marechal, 34, fell out with her aunt by coming out of political retirement to lead the EU election campaign for Mr Zemmours Reconquest party, which won 5.7 per cent of the vote.

Ms Marechal, whose strident views on Islam, immigration and abortion have made her the darling of the religious Right, secured herself an MEP seat.

Eric Zemmour with Marion Marechal at a campaign rally in 2022. He has now fired her from his party - Jean-Francois Badias/AP

Tensions between Ms Le Pen and her niece are said to hark back to the fact that Ms Marechal remained close to her grandfather, the 95-year-old party founder, Jean-Marie Le Pen, notorious for his anti-Semitic outbursts and convictions for hate speech.

Ms Le Pen tried to have him expelled as she sought to detoxify the then Front National after succeeding him as leader in 2011. Ms Marechal, on the other hand, praised him as a visionary.

Some believe that he brought Ms Marechal into politics to counter Ms Le Pen because he was jealous of his daughters success.

Ms Le Pen now says she has patched things up with her ailing father.

On Wednesday, the blonde hard-Right figure, whose supporters liken to Joan of Arc, launched a broadside against Mr Zemmour for fielding candidates against her aunts RN party and those loyal to Eric Ciotti, the renegade centre-Right Republicans boss who also called for an alliance with RN.

Mr Zemmours move, she warned, risked scuppering the unprecedented opportunity to beat Emmanuel Macron and the far-Left, adding that she refused to take part in yet another division of the Right.

Ms Le Pen appeared delighted with the announcement, saying: Faced with the seriousness of the issues at stake, Marion Marechal has placed the national interest above partisan considerations.

Jordan Bardella, who is leading RNs legislative campaign, praised her responsible statement that is part of a patriotic drive to win and act tomorrow.

Furious, Mr Zemmour announced that he was firing his former number two for betrayal.

Marion Marechal is shutting herself out of this party that shes always despised. She is joining the family camp, she is in favour of family reunification, he said.

Marine Le Pen seen after a meeting with Marion Marechal and Jordan Bardella - Abdullah Firas/ABACA/Shutterstock

Ms Marechal ruled out rejoining RN and said she expected no government position should her aunts party win a parliamentary majority next month, nor would she be running for a seat in the National Assembly as she was already an MEP.

However, there are obviously people around me who ... have taken the initiative to join this coalition, she said.

According to Le Journal du Dimanche, four heavyweight Reconquest allies who jumped ship have been offered the chance to run for the Le Pen party.

While smaller outfits fight among themselves, Ms Le Pens RN appears set to cruise to a massively increased parliamentary presence from its current 88 out of 577 seats.

The party will come out on top of the election with the largest parliamentary group but short of an absolute majority, Philippe Marliere, a University College London political scientist, told AFP.
Students with part-time jobs, when combined with time spent in lectures, classes and other study, are averaging 48-hour working weeks during term time. Photograph: Chris Radburn/PA

More than half of full-time students are working long hours in jobs to support themselves at university, spending nearly two days a week in paid employment during term time, owing to the cost of living crisis.

A survey of 10,000 full-time UK undergraduates by the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) found a record 56% had paid employment while they were studying, working an average of 14.5 hours each week.

Experts said that the lack of maintenance support was creating a two-tier higher education system, with a widening divide between students who need to work long hours to survive while their better-off peers are free to concentrate on their studies and improve their grades.

When combined with time spent attending lectures, classes and other study, students with part-time jobs are averaging 48-hour working weeks during term time, while some have 56-hour weeks  far above the average 36.6 hours by adults in full-time jobs, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Rose Stephenson, Hepis director of policy, said the traditional model of higher education, with undergraduates studying full-time away from home, was becoming unattainable unless student maintenance support was improved.

Stephenson said: As students battle the cost of living, the trend around part-time work becomes more concerning. Most students work and the number of hours they work is increasing, and if this trend continues full-time study may become unfeasible for many.

Related: UK universities face irreversible decline, global league table suggests

The UK prides itself on its traditional, full-time residential study model for many students, with high completion rates. Theres a chance that without intervention, the higher education model may accidentally evolve  into a two-tier system based on who can afford to attend university.

The cost of living crisis abruptly flipped the proportion of students mixing paid employment and full-time study. Before 2021, roughly two-thirds of students had no paid employment in term time. But this year, 56% of students said they had paid employment and were working longer hours than students in previous years.

Three-quarters of those in work said they did so to meet their living costs, while 23% also said they worked to give financial support for friends or family.

For a lot of students, paid employment isnt a choice, its something they have to do, Stephenson said.

Students on intensive courses, such as veterinary studies and dentistry, were averaging 56 hours a week on studies and paid employment, while 80% of students who had been in care were working in part-time jobs.

Nick Hillman, the director of Hepi, said many working students were now in the danger zone identified by earlier research, with higher drop-out rates and reduced chances of gaining first class degrees.

I think this is already a problem, Hillman said, adding that a bifurcated system was developing between undergraduates who can afford to enjoy the traditional university experience, including extracurricular activities and sports, and those for whom paid work has to come first.

Students working part-time were also more likely to use artificial intelligence (AI) programs, and more likely to view their lectures online. Of those who didnt have paid work, a third said it was because they couldnt find a suitable job. Only 23% said it was because they did not need to work.

The National Union of Students (NUS) said in a new report that the proportion of students using food banks had doubled as the cost of living crisis worsened. In the 2023-24 academic year, 14% of students told the NUS they had used a food bank, compared with 7% in 2021-22.

Chloe Field, the NUSs vice-president for higher education, said: Not only are students cutting back on food, they are working almost full-time on top of already full-time studies, leaving them exhausted and unable to commit proper time and energy to our studies.

The effects of the chronic underfunding of students are complex, but the solutions are simple: reintroduce maintenance grants that meet the true cost of living, increase maintenance loans, and make students eligible for universal credit.

Hillman said undergraduates were now spending more time on their studies each week than when the survey first asked in 2016, exploding the myth that students were snowflakes.

Despite their additional workload, 39% of students said their course was good value for money, as satisfaction levels rebounded from the lows seen during the Covid pandemic.

Only 26% of students said their course was poor value for money, the lowest proportion for a decade. Helpi said the improvement was driven by higher satisfaction among international students.

Hillman, a former special adviser to Conservative higher education ministers, said the Conservative partys manifesto promise to close low-value university courses in England and divert students into apprenticeships was nuts, for so many reasons.
Sir Keir Starmer launched his party's manifesto

Just over halfway through this wisdom-tooth extraction of an election campaign, and it looks like we are on the cusp of one of the bitterest ironies in British political history. From an 80-seat majority to 80 seats. Its not easy to squander that much popular support that quickly, but the Tories have given it their best shot.

Cast your minds back four and a half years. Who can forget the surge of joy and relief when the exit poll flashed up on the BBC and we knew that the Corbynbeast was slain? It was the luckiest Friday 13th ever. Boriss win proves the soul of our nation is intact  I am so proud of what our country has done, ran the headline above my column. The thought of Jews with their bags packed, ready to flee, I wrote, The thought of a man who loves hate preachers getting the keys to Number 10. The thought of our children and grandchildren being indoctrinated in the Marxists mirthless creed. It was awful, awful

People from every region and all political persuasions had pulled together to save Britain, and it felt amazing. (Apart from Sir Keir Starmer, who said Jeremy Corbyn would make a great prime minister, although he now claims he knew that would never happen so endorsing a Marxist mate of Hamas to lead the United Kingdom was no biggie.) Lots of readers were kind enough to say they cut my piece out of The Telegraph and stuck it on the fridge as a keepsake, a reminder of all that happiness and hope.

No such jubilation will greet the installation of a Labour government on July 5. Rishi Sunaks personal popularity rating may have sunk even further since the wretched D-Day debacle (The Shortest Day as one wag adapted the title on the film poster), but Sir Keir Starmers numbers are also deep into negative territory.

The mood of the Grimsby audience at the Sky News Leaders Special was sceptical, at times downright disdainful. Both leaders were openly mocked. Presenters and pundits claimed that excitement is running high. I sensed only weary resignation to our fate. More Just get it over with than Bring it on!

As Europe sees an astonishing Right-ward swing, voting against deluded eco-loons and culture-obliterating, open-border globalists, the UK is about to usher in the opposite on a grand scale. With the Tory implosion dominating the headlines, far too little scrutiny for my liking has been given to the barmy, Left-wing excesses headed our way.

Despite his best efforts to appear reassuringly managerial, the manifesto Starmer unveiled today hinted that the loony Left could be back with bells on. That silly gnu, Anneliese Dodds, who has horrible form in pushing radical gender ideology, has got her way. Just one doctor may be able to sign off a gender change, with possession of a penis apparently being no bar to womanhood. An appetiser no doubt for the aggressive activists goal of full self-ID  If I say Im a squirrel Im a squirrel and saying Im not a squirrel is a hate crime, OK?

Almost worse in upcoming Bonkers Britain is the proposed ban on trans conversion therapy, which basically means no one, not even a parent, is allowed to suggest to a confused teenager that taking life-altering hormones or cutting off your breasts may not be a good idea. Its an oxymoronic non-policy, which is impossible to uphold while respecting the findings of the landmark Cass Review, to which Wes Streeting and other senior party figures only recently gave their blessing.

Just when the tyranny of the trans orthodoxy was lifting, Labour doubles down. No British child, nor any female in a womens-only space, is safe if that depraved, misogynist, biology-denying lunacy enters the statute books.

For more self-harming pottiness, look at Labours commitment to net zero. It appears to think it is going to decarbonise the national grid within SIX YEARS when 60 would be a stretch. On Wednesday, 34 per cent of the electricity used in the UK came from gas but, never mind, folks. You might say our next government was going full throttle in a handcart towards blackout hell, except the hair-shirt Flintstones really dont want anyone to drive. Prepare yourselves for something called active travel previously known as Shankss Pony.

Shadow transport secretary Louise Haigh added to the general air of ideology untethered from reality saying her government will compel everyone who purchases a new car after 2030 to buy electric. As a matter of interest, where does Lou think the electricity for all those cars will come from, or the batteries, the lithium, the charging points, the high-voltage cables, the engineers, the infrastructure, or the money to pay for it all?

Yeah but no but yeah but no  whatevs, its green, innit? Bonkers Britain is all set to be the gobby, ignorant love child of Vicky Pollard and Soviet collectivisation.

With the new-look Parliament in Brussels likely to roll back rapidly on net zero, and with investors pulling out of renewables, Starmers Britain is soon going to come across as a crazy outlier intent on impoverishing a country that produces less than 1 per cent of global carbon emissions. How long before a population, which has no enthusiasm for its new government, is ready to pull the plug on this green dictatorship and launch a counter-offensive in the war on motorists

There is hope, Im glad to say. A Labour government, which would have relished cosying up to the old EU, and even trying to rejoin, will now find itself with decidedly uncongenial neighbours who hate its socialist guts. A Marine Le Pen government in France may well trigger a referendum on immigration. Reform UK and a reconstituted Conservative Party could then push for that to be a key plank of the fightback here. Labour would have no place to hide from an electorate that is sick of the mass immigration it has voted against time and again.

At least, to cheer us up, there is the prospect of one delicious encounter. I understand a meeting between the leaders of the UK and France is already in the diary for late July. How Prime Minister Starmer and Foreign Secretary David Lammy (who actually called Brexiteers Nazis) would have adored an entente cordiale with their ideological soulmates! Instead, with any luck, they will be obliged to meet Madame Le Pen and Le Toy Boy, the possible new French PM 28-year-old Jordan Bardella, who makes Nigel Farage look like Nick Clegg. Id buy tickets for that, wouldnt you?

Four and a half years on from that glorious 80-seat Tory majority, and with a new general election upon us, I think of the tragedy of wasted opportunity. I think of unforgivable betrayal and of the Labour landslide and ruinous policies that will sadly be its punishment. I think of all the cuttings of my jubilant column on so many fridges: forlorn, faded, hanging from one bit of Blu Tack now, a poignant reminder of the hope that we had, of what might have been.

But the people rose up once to save their country from the nutters, and, when the call comes, they will do it again. Bonkers Britain is not forever.
Putin

Despite the alarm among some in the Western media, we are not in Cuban missile crisis territory with Russias deployment of two warships and two naval support ships to Havana. The nuclear-powered submarine Kazan is certainly one of the most potent vessels in Moscows fleet, but in reality it is not the sub that you can see that you need to be worried about.

This deployment is a political statement, not a genuine military threat. It is aimed at strengthening ties with Cuba at a time when Vladimir Putin needs all the allies he can get, even a small Caribbean basket case. It is also a show of force meant to demonstrate Russias ability to project maritime power around the world. But with half the flotilla made up of a fuel tanker and a rescue tug, its not a very impressive one.

Much as Putin might hope to relive the glory days of the Cold War, this is a mere shadow of the kind of force the Soviet Union was able to generate at its height. Today, Russia cant hope to challenge the US Navy anywhere in the world, least of all off its own eastern seaboard. Dont forget, even in its home waters, the Black Sea Fleet has been battered by a country without a navy. Using a combination of Western-supplied and home-made missiles, plus explosive-laden drone boats, Ukraine claims to have severely damaged or sunk a third of the fleet.

There is little doubt, however, about the intent behind this deployment. The visit to Havana will be followed up by a large-scale multinational air and maritime exercise in the Caribbean, the first that Russia has organised in five years. So far, little more than angry threats have been bandied about by the Kremlin in response to multiple red lines being crossed by Ukraines Western supporters. But now, for the first time, America has allowed long-range US-supplied missiles to be fired at targets inside Russian territory and it seems that the first tranche of Ukrainian-piloted F-16 combat planes may take to the skies within weeks. The Russian ships appear to be a display intended to rattle Putins Western adversaries and undermine their resolve.

Wise to that ploy, the Americans have gone out of their way to shrug it off and explain it away. Lest anyone should suggest that the appearance of Russian warships 90 miles from US shores might in any way be a reflection of Joe Bidens weakness, a Pentagon spokesman was at pains to remind us these are routine naval visits that weve seen under different administrations.

Despite such soothing words, this event has already triggered a degree of fear in the US, with misplaced comparisons to the 1962 Cuban missile crisis, and concern about the supposedly undefeatable Zircon hypersonic missiles carried by one of the ships. Such apprehension is fundamentally misguided.

Russias attempted show of strength is in truth a demonstration of Putins weakness. He has been unable to stop the West crossing his red lines time and time again, and the Kharkiv offensive has stalled. These failed intimidation tactics show just how few cards he has left to play.

His best hope is for the White House to pressure Kyiv into agreeing a ceasefire in time for the US elections, allowing Biden to pose as a peacemaker on Putins terms, and rescuing the Russian autocrat from humiliation. But if the US holds its nerve, Putin may have to fold. All his latest gambit has shown is that Russia is a declining force.
Nigel Farage believes working-class communities in Wales have been forgotten by Westminster - GEORGE CRACKNELL WRIGHT

Nigel Farage will hold Reform UKs manifesto launch in the Welsh valleys as he opens up a new front in the general election by taking the fight to Labour.

Mr Farage believes Reform can take seats from Labour in Wales, which voted to leave the EU in the 2016 referendum.

He believes working-class communities in the principality have been forgotten by Westminster in the years since devolution, and that they have been poorly served by the Labour-controlled Welsh Assembly.

All but five council areas in Wales voted Leave in 2016, including the former mining communities in the valleys in South Wales.

The Reform manifesto, to be unveiled on Monday, will contain plenty of criticism of the Conservative government, but will also highlight the disaster of the devolved Labour government in a left-behind part of the country, according to a party source.

Devolution disaster

Reform claims some polls show it is already ahead of the Conservatives in the popular vote in Wales, and that every party led by Mr Farage has beaten the Welsh nationalist Plaid Cymru party in the popular vote in every election they have contested.

A spokesman for Reform UK said: Everyone else has launched their manifesto in nice, shiny venues in areas that are friendly to them. We are going to do something different.

Since devolution Westminster has almost forgotten the existence of Wales and Scotland.

Wales has been left behind and we will highlight that, and what the people of Wales have had to put up with, like the terrible impact of net zero on Port Talbot.

Earlier this year the Abbey steelworks in Port Talbot announced the loss of 2,500 jobs, which has been blamed on the Governments net zero strategy, backed by Labour.

Reforms membership grew by 50 per cent in the week after Mr Farage unexpectedly announced he was returning as the partys leader and standing for parliament, having previously ruled out doing so.
Oscar De La Garza, Harris County fabrication technician carries a mosquito trap collected from a location in Harris County, Tuesday, June 11, 2024 and prepares to deliver it to the Mosquito Survey facility where the trapped mosquitoes will be sorted by species and then tested for the presence of West Nile virus and St. Louis encephalitis virus in Houston. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Female mosquitoes collected from traps around Harris County are selected and then sorted by species at the Mosquito Survey facility Tuesday, June 11, 2024 where they will be tested for the presence of West Nile virus and St. Louis encephalitis virus in Houston. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Oscar De La Garza, Harris County fabrication technician retrieves a sewer mosquito trap collected from a location in Harris County, Tuesday, June 11, 2024 and prepares to deliver it to the Mosquito Survey facility where the trapped mosquitoes will be sorted by species and then tested for the presence of West Nile virus and St. Louis encephalitis virus in Houston. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Brandon Henriquez, Harris County Mosquito Survey lab coordinator refers to a reference book to identify a female Culex or southern house mosquito caught in a trap and taken to the Mosquito Survey facilty Tuesday, June 11, 2024, so that the numbers and species of mosquitoes found in Harris County can be recorded and then tested for the presence of West Nile virus and St. Louis encephalitis virus in Houston. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Victoria Adesuyi tests mosquitoes Tuesday, June 11, 2024, collected from traps placed around Harris County for the presence of West Nile virus and St. Louis encephalitis virus in Houston. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Female mosquitoes collected from traps around Harris County are selected and then sorted by species at the Mosquito Survey facility Tuesday, June 11, 2024 where they will be tested for the presence of West Nile virus and St. Louis encephalitis virus in Houston. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Female mosquitoes collected from traps around Harris County are selected and then sorted by species at the Mosquito Survey facility Tuesday, June 11, 2024 where they will be tested for the presence of West Nile virus and St. Louis encephalitis virus in Houston. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Raquela Calvillo, Harris County mosquito survey technician, collects the contents of a mosquito trap Tuesday, June 11, 2024, so that the numbers and species of mosquitoes found in Harris county can be recorded and then tested for the presence of West Nile virus and St. Louis encephalitis virus at the Mosquito Survey facility in Houston. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Mosquitoes are visible in a trap collected from a location in Harris County, Tuesday, June 11, 2024 and will be delivered to the Mosquito Survey facility where the trapped mosquitoes will be sorted by species and then tested for the presence of West Nile virus and St. Louis encephalitis virus in Houston. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Oscar De La Garza, Harris County fabrication technician carries a mosquito trap collected from a location in Harris County, Tuesday, June 11, 2024 and prepares to deliver it to the Mosquito Survey facility where the trapped mosquitoes will be sorted by species and then tested for the presence of West Nile virus and St. Louis encephalitis virus in Houston. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer Yellow collor appearing in a test sample, Tuesday, June 11, 2024, center, when compared to control reference sample, lower left, is an indication of the possible presence of West Nile virus taken from a mosquito collected from a trap placed in Harris County. Kirk Sides/Staff photographer

Oscar De La Garza begins every workday by heading out to assess his mosquito haul.

De La Garza is part of a team of employees who are responsible for setting and collecting the 317 mosquito traps the Harris County Mosquito and Vector Control Division aims to set each week. The traps are the first step in the surveillance of mosquito-borne diseases, a critical public health tool to prevent such diseases from spreading.

The approximately 50 mosquitoes De La Garza finds in a trap outside a home in Houstons Greater OST-South Union neighborhood are fairly typical for this time of year because mosquitoes thrive in warmer temperatures. But he notes that it rained the previous night, and pools of standing water are perfect breeding grounds for mosquitoes.

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By next week, he said, well see a lot more.

Mosquito-borne diseases are uncommon in Harris County, though experts worry that climate change could increase the risk over time. For now, the majority of cases are found in individuals who recently traveled to areas where such diseases are endemic.

Last year there were just two cases of West Nile virus in Harris County. There were also 34 cases of malaria and two cases of dengue fever, but all of those were related to travel, according to Harris County Public Health. The county also tests for Zika virus, chikungunya and St. Louis encephalitis.

READ MORE: Mosquitoes are thriving in Houston, and climate change could make them a bigger nuisance

Surveillance is critical because it can prevent a disease from spreading, said Jennifer Rocha, the surveillance manager of the Mosquito and Vector Control Division.

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We have a lot of mosquitoes in Houston. Were near the Gulf, she said. Its just making sure that the public doesnt get sick.

Collecting the traps

Six employees begin each workday by driving around Harris County to set or collect mosquito traps. Each route takes them to roughly 15 traps, Rocha said.

Many of the traps are outside homes where residents have agreed to allow them. Others are placed in sewers or areas with lots of vegetation, such as parks.

Mosquitoes thrive in Houston when the weather is warm, from mid-May through October. They appear in greater numbers shortly after it rains, breeding in pools of standing water in bins, kiddie pools or birdbaths.

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De La Garza said the most mosquitoes hes ever collected at one time came in Kingwood, after Tropical Storm Imelda in 2019.

The complete (mosquito) net was filled, he said.

Harris County uses three types of traps, each with a different purpose. The first, a Biogents Sentinel, uses a combination of dry ice and a lure that smells like human sweat to draw in mosquitoes. Once inside, a small fan pulls them in and prevents them from escaping.

The trap primarily collects Aedes mosquitoes, a genus that carries dengue, Zika and chikungunya, Rocha said.

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The second type, a Gravid trap, attracts female Culex mosquitoes ready to lay eggs. The trap sits on top of a pool of water and hay that has been fermenting for a month, creating a strong  and unpleasant  odor. Gravid traps also use a fan to keep the mosquitoes from escaping once theyre inside.

Harris County also places traps in storm sewers to collect mosquitoes that largely stay out of the sun.

Most of our mosquitoes, its Houston, its hot, Rocha said. They want to go underground to find shade.

Identifying the mosquitoes

Employees collect traps each day and take them back to the Mosquito and Vector Control Division office, where they are placed in freezers set to minus 80 degrees. That temperature is cold enough to kill the mosquitoes within a few minutes, but it will not kill the virus they might be carrying, Rocha said.

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READ MORE: Houston experts offer tips on choosing a mosquito repellent and when to know if a bite is concerning

The mosquitoes from each trap are then sorted into small boxes, roughly the size of a box of staples, which are labeled so employees know where and when they were collected.

Those boxes are then taken to a lab, where an entomologist analyzes each mosquito to determine its type. There are 88 types of mosquitoes in Texas, and at least 61 of them have been found in Harris County in the past two decades, Rocha said.

Mosquito Surveillance Lab Manager Brandon Henriquez can identify a mosquito by looking at it under a magnifying glass, a skill he learned while earning his masters degree in entomology at Oklahoma State University.

Henriquez begins by discarding any male mosquitoes, which are easier to spot because theyre smaller and have feathery-looking antennae. Only female mosquitoes bite humans, so the males dont need to be checked for disease.

For a female mosquito, Henriquez looks at the shape of the abdomen and whether it has stripes on its legs or marks on its head. He identifies one as a culex quinquefasciatus, commonly known as the southern house mosquito.

It has a kind of half-moon shape to its abdomen that you can easily recognize, he explains. Its a very plain mosquito compared to other ones.

READ MORE: Harris County health prepares to tackle mosquito season ahead of summer swarms

On most days, Henriquez can get through all of the mosquitoes collected from the traps on one route in 10 or 15 minutes. It's more difficult if the mosquitoes are squished or otherwise damaged, or if theyre more abundant.

If we get a lot of those mosquitoes that look similar to each other, he said, then I can be in here forever.

Checking for virus

The mosquitoes final stop is the virology lab, where they are checked for disease. For years, the lab has used enzyme-linked immunoassay, a common lab technique to detect antibodies. But this year it began a switch to polymerase chain reaction, which is considered the gold standard in testing for a virus.

The PCR tests are quicker, returning results within a few hours instead of the next day. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention uses PCR testing for mosquitoes, Rocha said.

Last Tuesday, seven of 146 samples came back positive for West Nile in an initial round of testing. If a second test confirms those results, the information is added to Harris Countys online map of mosquito-borne disease activity.

That lets the residents know that Hey, we found virus in this specific area, Rocha said.

READ MORE: How effective is mosquito spraying? What to know as summer and swarms of pests arrive

According to the CDC, West Nile is the leading cause of mosquito-borne disease in the continental United States, with 1,000 to 3,000 cases reported in a typical year. About 1 in 5 people who are infected develop a fever and other symptoms, and about 1 in 150 people develop a serious illness.

Mosquito control trucks will then spray the area where the positive sample was found for three nights, Rocha said. Larvicides kill larvae, and adulticides kill adult mosquitoes, according to the CDC.

The spraying takes place between 8 p.m. and 3 a.m. and targets only areas where disease has been found.
People prepare food in a yard in the besieged southern port of Mariupol, Ukraine, on 23 March 2022. Photograph: Alexander Ermochenko/Reuters

Russia engaged in a deliberate pattern of starvation tactics during the 85-day siege of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol in early 2022, which amounted to a war crime, according to a fresh analysis submitted to the international criminal court.

The conclusion is at the heart of a dossier in the process of being submitted to the ICC in The Hague by the lawyers Global Rights Compliance, working in conjunction with the Ukrainian government. It argues that Russia and its leaders intended to kill and harm large numbers of civilians.

It has been estimated that 22,000 people were killed during the encirclement and capture of the city of Mariupol at the beginning of the war in Ukraine. Civilians were left without water, gas or electricity within days of the siege as temperatures fell below minus 10C.

Catriona Murdoch, a partner at Global Rights Compliance, said the aim of the research was to see if there was a broader narrative that amounted to a deliberate denial of food and other amenities necessary for life by the Russian military and its leadership, a strategy of starvation that could be said to amount to a war crime.

Related: Mariupol: The ruin of a city

What we could see is that there were four phases to the Russian assault, starting with attacks on civilian infrastructure, cutting out the supply of electricity, heating and water. Then humanitarian evacuations were denied and even attacked, while aid was prevented from getting through, Murdoch said.

In the third phase, the remaining critical infrastructure was targeted, civilians terrorised with aid and water points bombed. Finally, in phase four, Russia engaged in strategic attacks to destroy or capture any remaining infrastructure items, she said.

The phased targeting of Mariupol, she said, demonstrated that Russia had planned to capture the frontline city without mercy for its civilian population, which was estimated at 450,000 before the full invasion began in 24 February 2022.

The dossier concludes that an estimated 90% of healthcare facilities and homes in the city were destroyed or damaged during the siege, and food distribution points were bombed as well as humanitarian evacuation routes.

Given the importance of Mariupol and the centralisation of Russian decision-making, culpability for the deaths of thousands of civilians went to the top, it says. Vladimir Putin is culpable, Murdoch said, and echelons of the Russian military leadership, although she did not name commanders.

The ICC accepts third-party submissions although it does not necessarily act on them. Starvation and the denial of amenities necessary for civilian life are considered war crimes, but this remains a relatively new area of international law, and so far no alleged perpetrator has been prosecuted.

Last month, Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor at the ICC, applied for an arrest warrant for Israels prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and minister of defence, Yoav Gallant, arguing that the two had deliberately inflicted starvation on Palestinians in Gaza  a claim rejected by Israel.

Israel has intentionally and systematically deprived the civilian population in all parts of Gaza of objects indispensable to human survival, Khan said. Three Hamas leaders were also subject to similar applications, relating to the war that began with the attack by the group on Israel on 7 October.

Murdoch said Khans applications for the arrest warrants linked to the conflict in Gaza were the first of their kind relating to starvation as a war crime, and had highlighted the issue in the minds of lawyers and prosecutors. What it showed is where the ICCs thinking is, she said.

The lawyers said initially they were unsure as to how easy it would be to create a war crimes dossier for Mariupol because the Russian occupation made evidence-gathering difficult, despite the fierce fighting and high numbers of casualties.

But they developed a technique that used a specially created algorithm to map the destruction of specific locations, as monitored by satellite imagery, with what explosives experts assessed as Russian attacks.
A Russian soldier standing near a bombed-out building in Mariupol, in August 2022 - YURI KOCHETKOV/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK

Russian forces bombed food distribution points and vital infrastructure as part of a deliberate plan to starve civilians during the battle for Mariupol, a new legal report has claimed.

Global Rights Compliance, an international legal foundation working in tandem with Ukrainian prosecutors, said Russian forces should be prosecuted for the war crime of starvation, after a year-long review of open-source evidence revealed a deliberately calculated use of starvation tactics during the 85-day siege.

Its 76-page report, released today, is to be submitted to the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court as part of a wider dossier of war crimes evidence collated by Ukraines prosecutor general.

Capturing the Azov sea port of Mariupol was one of the primary objectives of Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

Russian forces encircled the city in the first week of the invasion. The subsequent siege and urban battle ended only when the last Ukrainian defenders of the Azovstal steel plant surrendered on May 20.

A shell strikes the Azovstal steel plant, in May 2022 - MINISTRY OF INTERNAL AFFAIRS DONETSK PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC/REUTERS

Much of the city was destroyed and the municipal government in exile estimated when it fell that at least 25,000 civilians had been killed in the fighting.

The report published on Wednesday says much of the destruction was deliberate, rather than collateral damage, and designed to accelerate surrender by making the city unlivable.

The investigation was part of the Atrocity Crimes Advisory Group, an initiative funded by the EU, UK, and US, which was set up in 2022 to help Ukrainian prosecutors investigate war crimes.

It reviewed 1.5 billion square metres of satellite imagery, as well as photographs, videos, official public statements, and other digital data collected between May 2022 and February 2024.

The report also includes evidence provided by Ukrainian authorities, as well as previously unpublished photographs taken during the siege.

Mariupol residents at a market, in December 2022 - SERGEI ILNITSKY/EPA-EFE/SHUTTERSTOCK

Investigators found the targeting of critical infrastructure began on or before February 27, when Russian forces struck a major powerline, blacking out about half of the city.

This was immediately followed by a four-day onslaught of shelling that fully cut power and gas to over 450,000 Ukrainian residents, the report said.

Russian forces went on to damage or destroy 90 per cent of the citys medical facilities and at least 22 supermarkets being used to distribute necessities, the report found. The March 16 bombings of the Mariupol drama theatre and the Neptun swimming pool, both being used as aid points, were also part of the pattern.

The attacks crippled Mariupol civilians access to critical resources and were combined with Russian forces impeding access to aid and evacuation routes, as part of a ruthless plan to starve the citys population into submission, the report said.

The goal of civilian starvation was to accelerate the capture of the besieged enclave, with such efforts manifestly increasing and culminating with the declared capture of Mariupol City on 20 May 2022, it added.

A Mariupol shopping mall lying in ruins - PAVEL KLIMOV/REUTERS

Catriona Murdoch, director of the Starvation and Humanitarian Crisis Division at Global Rights Compliance, and a co-author of the report, told the Telegraph that her team had identified Russian military units and individual suspects who they believed could be charged with the war crime of starvation, but said they would not be named publicly while investigations continue.

I urge the International Criminal Court to consider these crimes and the collective punishment against innocent Ukrainian civilians, in pursuit of justice to Russian leadership, all the way up to the Kremlin, she said.

Starving a civilian population as a weapon of war was outlawed under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court in 1988, but has never been prosecuted at the international level.

Neither Russia nor Ukraine are state parties of the Rome Statute, but Ukraine has accepted ICC jurisdiction over alleged crimes occurring on its territory. Russia has denied war crimes during its invasion.

The ICC has issued arrest warrants for Vladimir Putin over the alleged mass deportation of Ukrainian children in July 2023, and for two senior Russian military officers over the bombing of civilian electricity infrastructure.
A firefighter works to extinguish a gas pipeline fire after a Russian rocket attack in Kyiv in January. Photograph: Evgeniy Maloletka/AP

The climate cost of the first two years of Russias war on Ukraine was greater than the annual greenhouse gas emissions generated individually by 175 countries, exacerbating the global climate emergency in addition to the mounting death toll and widespread destruction, research reveals.

Russias invasion has generated at least 175m tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2e), amid a surge in emissions from direct warfare, landscape fires, rerouted flights, forced migration and leaks caused by military attacks on fossil fuel infrastructure  as well as the future carbon cost of reconstruction, according to the most comprehensive analysis ever of conflict-driven climate impacts.

The 175m tonnes includes carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide and sulphur hexafluoride (SF6), the most potent of all greenhouse gases. This is on a par with running 90m petrol cars for an entire year  and more than the total emissions generated individually by countries including the Netherlands, Venezuela and Kuwait in 2022.

Historically, governments have accounted poorly for the climate cost of war  and of the military industrial complex more broadly. Official data is extremely patchy or nonexistent due to military secrecy, and there is limited frontline access for researchers. The economic cost of the greenhouse gases, which will have global consequences, is even less well understood.

Related: Revealed: repairing Israels destruction of Gaza will come at huge climate cost

But according to the new report by the Initiative on Greenhouse Gas Accounting of War (IGGAW)  a research collective partly funded by the German and Swedish governments, and the European Climate Foundation  the Russian Federation faces a $32bn (25bn) climate reparations bill from its first 24 months of war.

The UN general assembly has said that Russia should compensate Ukraine for the war, leading the Council of Europe to establish a registry of damage, which will include climate emissions. Frozen Russian assets could be used to settle the costs. The reparations estimate draws on a recent peer-reviewed study that calculated the social cost of carbon as $185 for every ton of greenhouse gas emissions.

The IGGAW lead author, Lennard de Klerk, said: Russia is harming Ukraine but also our climate. This conflict carbon is sizeable and will be felt globally. The Russian Federation should be made to pay for this, a debt it owes Ukraine and countries in the global south that will suffer most from climate damage.

The report is the most comprehensive analysis of the climate cost of any conflict  and the first time reparations have been calculated for war-related climate impacts.

The report found:

A third of the warfare emissions come directly from military activity, with fuel used by Russian troops accounting for 35m tCO2e  the single greatest source of greenhouse gases. Other sources include the manufacturing of carbon-intensive explosives, ammunition and defence walls along the frontlines by both countries, as well as the fuel used by allies to deliver military equipment.

Another third is attributed to the vast quantities of steel and concrete that will be needed to reconstruct the damaged and destroyed schools, homes, bridges, factories and water plants. Some reconstruction has already taken place and in some cases the replaced structures have been destroyed again. The scale of the carbon impact will, in the long term, depend on whether traditional, carbon-intensive or modern, more sustainable techniques and materials are used to rebuild, according to Neta Crawford, the author of The Pentagon, Climate Change and War.

The final third was generated by fires, rerouting of commercial planes, strikes on energy infrastructure and, to a lesser extent, the displacement of nearly 7 million Ukrainian people and Russians.

Landscape fires have increased in size and intensity on both sides of the border since the invasion. In the first analysis of its kind, 1m hectares (2.47m acres) of scorched fields and forests were linked to military causes, accounting for 13% of the total carbon cost. Most fires took place close to the frontlines, but small blazes got out of control countrywide due to the redeployment of foresters, fire crews and equipment. Almost 40% of Ukraines 4,216 fire trucks have been damaged.

Russia deliberately targeted energy infrastructure, especially during the first months of the war, generating major leaks of potent greenhouse gases. The methane that escaped into the sea after the destruction of the Nord Stream 2 pipelines generated about 14m tCO2e. Another 40 tonnes of SF6 (equivalent to about 1m tonnes of CO2), is thought to have leaked into the atmosphere due to Russian strikes on Ukraines high-voltage network facilities. SF6 is used to insulate electrical switchgear and has nearly 23,000 times more heating potential than carbon dioxide.

Aviation fuel consumption has rocketed as European and American commercial airlines are banned from Russian airspace, while Australian and some Asian carriers have been taking circuitous routes as a precaution. The extra miles have generated at least 24m tCO2.

The forced movement of people  escaping the impact of war or conscription  has generated almost 3.3m tCO2e, the analysis found. This includes the transport-related emissions by more than 5 million Ukrainians seeking refuge in Europe as well as millions of internally displaced people and Russians fleeing Russia.

The analysis is the most up-to-date and thorough snapshot we have of the climate consequences of Russias invasion, helping to lift the fog of war that exists also when it comes to the environmental costs of conflict, said Ruslan Strilets, the minister of environmental protection and natural resources of Ukraine. It will be an essential plank in the reparations case we are building against Russia.

Overall, the climate consequences of war and occupation are poorly understood. Thanks in large part to pressure from the US, reporting military emissions is voluntary, and only four countries submit some incomplete data to the UN framework convention on climate change (UNFCCC), which organises the annual climate talks.

One recent study found that militaries account for almost 5.5% of global greenhouse gas emissions annually  more than the aviation and shipping industries combined. This makes the global military carbon footprint  even without factoring in conflict-related emission surges  larger than that of all countries except the US, China and India.

Russias invasion of Ukraine has triggered a surge in military spending, particularly in Europe, boosting demand for explosives, steel and other carbon-intensive materials that will inevitably lead to more military emissions  which will not be accounted for by countries or international climate action plans.

The new monetary estimate of climate damage highlights the important role of greenhouse gas emissions accounting for conflicts, said Linsey Cottrell, an environmental policy officer at the Conflict and Environment Observatory. We critically need international agreement on how conflict and military emissions are measured and addressed.
JK Rowling received death threats after sharing concerns about the encroachment of transgender campaigning on women's rights - TOLGA AKMEN/AFP

A play that criticises JK Rowlings views on gender is struggling to cast women with 90 actresses so far rejecting parts.

The stage production, which is set to debut at the Edinburgh Fringe, has already caused outrage over a working title which labelled the gender-critical Harry Potter author a c----.

The production is yet to cast any of the female roles, including that of Rowling herself.

The part of Harry Potter film star Emma Watson has also been repeatedly turned down, and around 90 actresses have refused to take part in the project amid concerns over its critique of Rowling.

The author has become a figure of hate online among some activists, and received death threats after publicly sharing concerns about the encroachment of transgender campaigning on womens rights.

Actors have been found for male leads, who will portray Harry Potter cast members Rupert Grint and Daniel Radcliffe.

Creative producer Barry Church-Woods told the Telegraph: This project has met some kind of resistance every step of the way, though Ive been generally surprised by how difficult it has been for us to recruit the female cast in particular.

Its a well-paid gig meeting industry standards and the script is terrific.

He added: I think its fair to say that a few things are coming into play in casting.

Harry Potter stars Rupert Grint, Emma Watson and Daniel Radcliffe have all criticised JK Rowling over transgender issues - JAAP BUITENDIJK

The play, which was written by queer-identifying Hollywood scriptwriter Joshua Kaplan, tells the story of a fictional intervention staged for Rowling by the stars of the Harry Potter franchise, Watson, Grint and Radcliffe.

The three actors publicly denounced Rowling in 2020 when she first raised concerns about the spread of gender ideology, the belief that gender is unfixed and changes according to how people self-identify.

The work was initially titled TERF C***, with TERF standing for trans-exclusionary radical feminist, a term which has been deployed pejoratively against women who have opposed trans ideology.

It is understood that 30 actresses have turned down the role of Rowling in the play, and 60 have refused the part of Watson, while agencies representing aspiring female stars have been nervous to put their clients forward for the project.

There is some suggestion that the actress may have ideological misgivings about the play, or be concerned about a potential backlash.

It has been suggested by producers that some actresses may not want to appear in a play critiquing Rowling and ruin their chances of appearing in the lucrative new Harry Potter TV series on the Max streaming service.

Rowling is acting as executive producer for the series, and will be involved in key decision-making.

Mr Church-Woods said: Weve had agents reluctant to put names forward, I suspect, because they do not want to damage their clients chances of landing roles on the new Potter TV series.

Writer Mr Kaplan has insisted that his play does not carry a set message, and is more about relationships and how Rowlings opinions evolved rather than a work interrogating the substance of her opinions.

TERF plays the Sir Ian McKellen Theatre from August 2 to 25.
Sir Simon Picken

A senior judge has been reprimanded after being caught editing a confidential supposedly independent reference another judge wrote for him in order to boost his promotion prospects.

Sir Simon Picken, a High Court judge, was given a formal warning after his nominated referee accidentally emailed the reference with his extensive edits on it to the judicial appointments commission.

Alex Chalk, the Lord Chancellor, and Lady Chief Justice Sue Carr concluded his actions in connection with an application for promotion compromised his integrity and could have seriously undermined confidence in the judicial appointments process.

Sir Simon, 58, was appointed to the High Court in 2015 and became one of the judges of the Commercial Court the following year.

Earlier in 2024 he applied for promotion to the Court of Appeal. As required, he nominated two independent assessors to provide an evidence-based assessment of his suitability for the role.

The rules dictate that candidates can speak to their nominees about writing their assessment, for example to suggest people they should speak to and to highlight their work. But the assessment is confidential and must not be disclosed to the candidate.

Comments and suggestions

One of Sir Simons nominees accidentally sent the appointment body a partially completed draft of their assessment form, which included extensive comments and suggestions by him.

Sir Simon, who was the most senior judge for Wales between 2018 and 2021, told a judge appointed to investigate the case that he had a brief conversation with the nominee. He said he explained that the assessment needed to be evidence-based and suggested some people to whom he could speak.

However, the accidentally emailed copy of the draft showed that it went well beyond simply reminding the assessor of the need for evidence-based examples and included extensive suggestions which were aimed at improving the assessment.

In his defence, Sir Simon said that he had not read the reference to confidentiality at the head of the assessment form and did not think that the nominee was prohibited from sharing the draft with him. He said that he regretted that he had caused anyone to question his integrity.

Sir Simon was educated at Cardiff High School, his local state secondary, before studying law at Cardiff University and then Cambridge where he obtained a starred first class masters degree.

He was called to the Bar in 1989 and from 1991 practised at 7 Kings Bench Walk in commercial law, taking silk in 2006. He was the commercial law QC (now KC) to the Welsh Government from 2009 until 2015 and also the QC Church Commissioner, appointed by the archbishops of Canterbury and York between 2013 and 2015.
Patients are reported to have lied to obtain injections despite being too slim to be eligible - Hollie Adams/REUTERS

Slim young women are trying to get beach body ready by using weight-loss jabs, Britains most senior doctor has warned, amid reports of users ending up in A&E.

Prof Sir Stephen Powis, NHS medical director, has raised concerns about patients who have lied to obtain injections despite being too slim to be eligible.

He intervened as senior medics warned that A&E units were now treating casualties of Wegovy injections  marketed as Ozempic for diabetes  on a daily basis.

The medicine is available privately from online pharmacies, which are supposed to only prescribe to those who meet particular criteria, including being obese or overweight and suffering from weight-related health problems.

But experts say customers, especially girls and young women, are lying about their weight, and staging photographs which exaggerate their size, to get hold of the injections, in an attempt to slim for the summer.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) has said that semaglutide, the generic name for Wegovy, should only be used by patients with a body mass index (BMI) of at least 35 and at least one weight-related comorbidity or who meet other specific guidelines.

Prof Powis said: We know these new drugs will be a powerful part of our arsenal dealing with obesity  but they should not be abused. Buying medication online without a doctors supervision can lead to complications and dangerous consequences.

Drugs including Ozempic and Wegovy should only be used by people prescribed them for obesity or diabetes  Im worried about reports that people are misusing them  they are not intended as a quick fix for people trying to get beach body ready.

He told the NHS Confed Expo conference in Manchester that the new class of weight-loss jabs would play an important part in tackling Britains obesity epidemic.

But he said: It does alarm me, though, when I hear reports that they are being inappropriately used. These are powerful medications that have side effects and complications. And can in certain circumstances, be dangerous. So, they need to be used under medical supervision. They are absolutely not quick fixes. For those who are otherwise healthy, who just want to lose a few pounds.

Dr Vicky Price, president-elect of the Society for Acute Medicine, said medics were treating patients suffering serious problems, such as pancreatitis and ketoacidosis, after taking injections they should never have been prescribed.

She said: Almost every shift Ive done recently has seen a complication from a young girl taking the new weight-loss drugs that theyve bought from an online pharmacy.

None have been overweight. Theyve paid 100-200 and just lied about their weight.

She added: I and many other colleagues in acute medicine across the UK are very concerned about the increasing numbers of patients we are seeing with complications from new weight-loss drugs they have purchased online.

Sadly we are seeing serious, life-threatening complications including inflammation of the pancreas gland and alterations in blood salt levels in these patients who were not aware of the risk they were taking.

We have raised concerns about this inappropriate use with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. There is a need for urgent regulation and control of access for weight loss drugs online to avoid more patients becoming unwell.

One medic told Chemist + Druggist magazine that they had treated several such patients, including one who ended up in intensive care after presenting with pancreatitis.

By the time the patient arrived in A&E, she could not stand up and appeared about to pass out, after struggling to eat while on the jabs.

The doctor said she was not at all overweight, but said they found two or three online pharmacies that allowed them to bypass the rules.

I just look at these young, beautiful girls. Oh, my wordit really makes me very sad, the medic said.

At some point, were going to have a death, arent we? And then at that point, people might do something about it.

The medic said she was absolutely staggered to learn that the girl had got the drugs from Boots Online Doctor.

A spokesman from Boots said: The Boots Online Doctor weight loss service is for patients aged 18 and over who are worried that their weight is impacting their health to access prescription treatment to support weight loss.

Patients are required to complete an online consultation, which is reviewed by a Boots Online Doctor clinician to determine if treatment is appropriate.

We have a number of safeguards in place to ensure Boots Online Doctor prescribes weight loss medication where clinically appropriate and in line with the product licence.

Patients are required to submit a photo of themselves and ID document for verification and must also answer questions on their medical and psychological history.

Patients are only supplied with a prescription if they provide their GPs details. Boots Online Doctor informs each patients GP of the prescription as an additional safety measure and may contact the patients GP if required.

All patients receive follow-up care and support from Boots Online Doctor clinicians through the platforms messaging function and clinicians may also call patients if required.

Mark Voce, the General Pharmaceutical Councils chief strategy officer, said: We take patient safety extremely seriously and will be looking into the issues raised by this clinician relating to the supply of weight-loss medicines by online pharmacies.

He said the regulator had responded to concerns and stopped some pharmacies from supplying medication.
Anas Sarwar says Labour needs to save the health service from the SNP - KEN JACK/GETTY IMAGES EUROPE

Cancer sufferers in Scotland have been forced to pay privately for more than 1,000 rounds of chemotherapy thanks to SNP failure and incompetence on the NHS, John Swinney has been told.

Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, said his party had obtained horrifying figures showing the amount of private treatment being sought to tackle the countrys biggest killer in the past year.

He told First Ministers Questions that families had been forced to find thousands of pounds for treatment in the midst of a cost-of-living crisis as a result of SNP incompetence.

In addition, he said private hip, knee and cataract operations in Scotland last year cost people more than 83 million.

SNP leader Mr Swinney said he regretted that people feel the need to take recourse to private treatment and he had to face up to the reality of the challenges facing our National Health Service.

Lengthy waits in A&E

But he also came under fire from the Tories, after it emerged more than 100 Scots, aged 100 or older, had been forced to wait 12 hours for help in the countrys accident-and-emergency departments.

Douglas Ross, the Scottish Tory leader, said the total since the start of 2023 was appalling and unacceptable and accused Mr Swinney of prioritising independence above the NHS.

The exchanges at Holyrood came in the wake of an election TV debate this week in which Mr Swinney was challenged by an audience member over the SNPs management of the health service.

She said her 93-year-old mother waited six hours for an ambulance to arrive and another two hours before being admitted to hospital.

Mr Ross, Mr Swinney and Mr Sarwar taking part in a televised debate on Tuesday

Mr Swinney has claimed Scots should vote SNP on July 4 to protect the NHS from privatisation by Labour or the Tories, despite it being the devolved responsibility of his government.

Mr Sarwar argued that Labour needed to save the NHS from the SNP, claiming that the founding principle that it provides care free at the point of need no longer applies in Scotland.

He told MSPs that the number of Scots forced to go private for treatment had surged by 86 per cent by 2019 to a record high.

This included 1,500 people forced to pay nearly 16,000 each for knee replacements, he said, 8,000 cataract operations, costing more than 2,800 each, and almost 3,000 hip replacements, costing more than 14,000 apiece.

Scotlands biggest killer

The SNPs mismanagement of our NHS is so bad that it is those who are in pain, who are sick and injured who are forced to literally pay the price, Mr Sarwar said.

Perhaps most horrifying of all, there are people who are being forced to go private and having to pay for their cancer treatment. Cancer. Scotlands biggest killer, and something that touches us all.

He added: Last year more than 1,000 rounds of chemotherapy were paid for privately. Scots should not be forced to pay for their life-saving cancer treatment because of SNP failure and incompetence.

Mr Ross said: It is appalling and unacceptable that so many people aged over 100 are having to wait more than half a day to be treated in A&E. All the public seem to get from John Swinney and the SNP are excuses.

But Mr Swinney quoted Wes Streeting, Labours Shadow Health Secretary, as stating he wants more private-sector involvement in Englands NHS.

The First Minister said: What we have here is a classic example of what Anas Sarwar gets up to in public debate. He comes here in Scotland and says one thing and in England his bosses are doing a completely different thing.

I dont want anybody to have to pay for cancer treatment in Scotland, but I have to face up to the reality of the challenges facing our National Health Service.

Mr Swinney accepted not everybody is getting the treatment they require as quickly as they require it and blamed congestion in hospitals for the long waits.
Rishi Sunak says it would not be appropriate to comment as an independent inquiry is ongoing - Christopher Furlong/PA

Rishi Sunak was dragged into the scandal over his aide betting on a July election as he faced questions over whether he told him the planned date.

Craig Williams has apologised for placing a 100 bet on a July election three days before the Prime Minister announced it would take place on July 4.

On Thursday, Mr Sunak was asked specifically whether Mr Williams was in any key meetings on planning the election date.

However, the Prime Minister refused to answer and simply pointed to the independent inquiry by the Gambling Commission.

Its very disappointing news and you will have seen Craig Williams has said that it was a huge error of judgement, he said.

Youll know that theres an independent inquiry which is necessarily confidential and Im sure youll understand that it wouldnt be appropriate for me to comment while that inquiry is ongoing.

Asked whether he felt personally let down by Mr Williams conduct, the Prime Minister said: It is very disappointing. Craig Williams has said that its a huge error of judgement.

Now there is an independent inquiry which is confidential and its important that that is allowed to continue. Its not appropriate to say anything while thats ongoing.

Mr Sunak could be asked to provide information to the Gambling Commission about what Mr Williams knew about the election date as part of the inquiry.

Craig Williams confirmed in a statement he had 'put a flutter on the general election some weeks ago' - Matthew Horwood/Getty Images Europe

Mr Sunak was speaking at the summit of G7 leaders near Bari in southern Italy.

The Gambling Commission is dealing with the incident, according to Dyfed-Powys Police which said it was not a police matter:

A spokesman said: Dyfed-Powys Police have not received any complaints in relation to this incident.

We have established that no offences have been committed under the Representation of the People Act 1983 or the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000.

Officers have liaised with the Gambling Commission who have confirmed they are dealing with this incident, and it does not require police involvement.

The Gambling Commission has the powers to investigate and prosecute under the Gambling Act.

Downing Street declined to comment on whether the Prime Minister would cooperate with the inquiry and whether he would be questioned.

Should have thought about how it looks

It emerged on Wednesday that Mr Williams, Mr Sunaks parliamentary private secretary, had taken out a 5-1 bet with Ladbrokes on the timing of the election.

The Tory, who is standing for re-election in Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr, admitted on Wednesday to a flutter on one of his betting accounts and conceded: I should have thought about how it looks.

On Thursday he told the BBC: Ive clearly made a huge error of judgment, thats for sure. And I apologise.

Mr Williams has refused to say whether he placed the bet on the basis of insider information about when Mr Sunak was planning to hold the election.

As I have said, I will not be expanding on that statement, he said.

Im not expanding because its an independent process. The Gambling Commission is looking at it now.

And all I can say was it was a huge error of judgment. A huge error of judgment and I wont be adding to the statement Ive already made.

Lord Cameron, the foreign secretary, said Mr Williams had been very foolish.

Asked if he was happy for him to stand as a Conservative candidate, Lord Cameron said yes but qualified this by saying it was too late for the party to remove Mr Williams from ballot papers.

Hes going to be investigated, and will have to face the consequences of that investigation, Lord Cameron said.

Mr Williams with Lord Cameron in 2007 - Phil Rees/Shutterstock

Professor Jon Tonge, who teaches British politics at the University of Liverpool, said: One of the questions it raises is did he try to bet more with other accounts, because a 100 bet is probably the maximum that you could put on a bet like that, with a single bookmaker, before you start raising suspicions.

Im absolutely certain the Gambling Commission will want him to come clean about whether he placed any other bets on the same outcome.

Prof Tonge added: He [Williams] may claim that it was a hunch it wasnt the product of any inside information. And its true that Rishi Sunak kept the election date very secret, and most Conservative MPs were taken completely off guard.

If he knew the date he should probably have been alerting his fellow Conservative members, rather than making a quick bet with the bookies.

I think it was very, very foolish because there was every chance of a bet like that leaking out. The optics of it are awful. He should have been more self-disciplined and not put it on.

He said the bet was potentially the political version of insider trading if it could be proved Mr Williams knew of the date of the election. But he added: It would be very difficult to prove unless theres a communication trail that shows that he was in possession of the knowledge of the election date.
Cheng Lei joked in her show in Melbourne that in her darkest hour the lights were always on in her cell. Photograph: Sarah Hodges/Australia's Department of Foreig/AFP/Getty Images

Cheng Lei, the journalist who was detained in China for three years, has offered to reciprocate the hospitality when the countrys premier, Li Qiang, visits Australia later this week.

Making her comedy debut in a one-off show in Melbourne with Vicky Xu  a writer and well-known Chinese dissident  Cheng joked that the premier had got the dates wrong and would miss their performance.

She said if she had met him, she would have said: Hello premier, thank you so much for the rent-free accommodation. Can I please reciprocate the hospitality. You look worried but I insist, dont you want a bit of a digital detox weight-loss program?

Related: Like being buried alive: Australian journalist Cheng Lei on life in a Chinese prison

Cheng said for much of her time in detention she was fed cabbage stew and dreamed of shoplifting a whole tray of meat pies from a bakery. Since her release in October, she said shes enjoyed cheese toasties, pizzas, steaks and many chippies.

Ive put on seven kilos since coming out of detention. Its the first time in my adult life Ive been really happy about putting on weight, Cheng said.

She said detention was easy compared to comedy but was keen to give it a go for several reasons.

First of all, I have endorsement from Chinas ministry of state security, because they think that Im such a good performer that Ive been embedded as a spy in China for 20 years, Cheng said.

She said also joked that while she tells her friends she was in a dark place during her time in detention, the lights were always on in her cell.

In the darkest hour of your life, the lights are always on. Thats the fucking irony, Cheng said.

The show, at Club Voltaire in North Melbourne on Thursday night, took the form of an interview, in which the duo asked each other about their experiences drawing the ire of Beijing.

Several of their friends and supporters were in the crowd, including Kylie Moore-Gilbert, the Australian-British academic who was detained by Iran on espionage charges for more than two years.

It was through Gilbert that Cheng and Xu met, just earlier this week. While it was Chengs debut, for Xu it was a return to performing after she bombed her last stand-up show at the same venue two years earlier.

Related: Panda diplomacy: Chinese premier Li Qiang could announce two new rare bears for Australia during state visit

I was in my darkest moment, I was literally screaming at the audience, and they did not know what to do with me, Xu told Guardian Australia ahead of Thursdays show.

The audience was shocked. So I just thought Id give it another go. Then I met Cheng Lei and she seemed really interested in comedy, and I said, You should do comedy too. So its become a double act.

At the time of the last performance, Xu had made headlines after co-authoring a report on forced labour in Chinas Xinjiang province that was published by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI).

The report led her to become the target of a widespread campaign of intimidation and online abuse by agents and supporters of Beijing. At events, she was routinely heckled.

During Thursdays set, Xu spoke of how the Chinese government released a four-part documentary on her, which made false claims about her sex life and drug use.

[They] accused me of doing a lot drugs and being in these massive orgies with 15 white men, which Ive never done  like I would forget if I was in that situation, she said.

Xu also spoke of her plan to meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, to give him a hug and heal him.

Hes really traumatised. His family was purged during the Cultural Revolution, his father was sent to jail. his half sister killed herself. Xi Jinping was bullied by his peers, he was jailed at the party school and one time he escaped, he went back home to steal food from his kitchen and his own mother reported him, she said.

Hes a psycho for good reason.

Xu now lives in Taiwan and has taken up mixed martial arts and competes in local competitions. Cheng now works for Sky News Australia as news presenter and columnist.

On the events page on ticketing platform Eventbrite, Xu warned that there would be at least one person from the Chinese consulate in attendance. She suggested people with Chinese passports and those who travel regularly to China to wear a mask or some other type of disguise. About a dozen audience members followed her advice, wearing masks and sunglasses.

Li, the Chinese premier, will be in Australia from Saturday to Tuesday. It is the first visit by a Chinese premier since 2017, which the prime minister, Anthony Albanese, has described as a step towards stabilising the often tense relationship.
The Conservative and Labour election manifestos hold clues as to what the next government might mean for your money. (Handout via Getty Images)

The Conservative manifesto is peppered with new policies in the hope of offering a new start without a change of government while Labour's manifesto seems to play it safer  to avoid damaging what has become a commanding lead in the polls. Yet both hold clues as to what the next government might mean for your pocket.

Both major parties have committed to some very similar vote-winning policies. These include not raising income tax, national insurance or VAT during the life of the next parliament, and sticking with the pensions triple lock. However, there are also some significant differences.

Tax

The Conservatives are focusing on tax cuts. These include the "triple lock plus"  a tax break for pensioners to ensure most wont pay tax on their state pension.

Theyre also promising another 2p national insurance cut for employees, and to abolish the main rate of self-employed national insurance by the end of the parliament.

Plus, theyve made a number of council tax commitments, and say they wont raise capital gains tax either.

Read more: What Labours U-turn on lifetime allowance means for your pension

Labour steers clear of capital gains tax pledges in its manifesto  although Keir Starmer highlighted that nothing in the manifesto will need additional tax rises.

By contrast, Labour plans to raise tax for very specific wealthy groups  namely non-doms, those using offshore trusts to avoid inheritance tax, private equity managers, non-UK residents buying residential property, and parents paying private school fees.

However, the tax that could make the biggest difference to a lot of people is the one that didnt make the manifestos. Neither party is pledging to change the frozen income tax thresholds that have been busy laying waste to our finances for years. It means whoever is elected, as you get pay rises, youll still pay more tax and risk being pushed into a higher tax bracket.

Property

There are pledges from both parties on property. Both say theyll continue the mortgage guarantee scheme, and both want to build more homes  with 1.6 million pledged by the Conservatives and 1.5 million from Labour. They agree that planning reform holds the key.

Elsewhere on housing, both parties plan to pass the legislation ending no-fault evictions for renters and to reform leasehold.

Read more: General election campaign ignoring looming 12bn public finances hole

However, the Conservatives are suggesting a handful of other schemes. These include making the current temporary stamp duty holiday permanent for first time buyers, a new Help to Buy equity loan scheme, and a temporary two-year capital gains tax holiday for landlords who sell to tenants.

Pensions

The Conservatives are going further in making promises to pensioners  pledging to maintain all current pensioner benefits, including free bus passes, winter fuel payments, free prescriptions and TV licences for those who qualify.

Plus they promise to leave the tax benefits of pensions untouched  including tax free cash and tax relief on contributions  which theyre calling the "pension tax guarantee".

Social care

The Conservative manifesto says it will act on reforms laid out in its white paper  which could include a cap on care costs.

Labour, meanwhile, doesnt mention the cap, but emphasises fair pay and standards for carers, and building consensus for long-term reform. It doesnt bode well for swift changes to protect people from the sometimes catastrophic costs of care.

Parents

Help for parents from the Conservatives centres on a plan to make the child benefit clawback on those earning 60,000 and over fairer.

Read more: How to get the best holiday exchange rates

Labour, meanwhile, is offering free breakfast clubs in every primary school, and a limit on expensive, branded school uniforms.

Lower-paid workers

The Conservatives say they will maintain the national living wage at two-thirds of average earnings, while Labour says it would also factor in the actual cost of living to help people keep on top of rising prices.

Labour also pledges to end age bands, so all adults receive the same minimum wage.

Investments

The Conservative manifesto commits to the sale of the Natwest (NWG.L) shares to retail shareholders, and the tax incentives for investors supporting small businesses  including the Enterprise Investment Scheme and Venture Capital Trusts. Neither make the Labour manifesto.

The price to pay

Unfortunately, in these fully costed manifestos, there is a price to pay. For Labour, there are the tax rises for specific groups, while for the Conservatives, the focus is on 12bn of welfare cuts. For many voters, this will lie at the heart of the difference between the two manifestos.

But this isnt going to be the last of it for either party. The manifestos are designed to deliver the good news, and help get a party elected. We can expect the bad news to come once the new government is installed in Downing Street.

Given that all the costings are based on enormous departmental spending cuts, theres every chance this could include cuts to public services or tax hikes  which isnt the kind of thing theyll be printing in the manifestos in a hurry.

Watch: Rishi Sunak: I am not blind to the fact people are frustrated with me

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Evan MacDonald is a reporter for the Houston Chronicle, covering health and medicine. He can be reached at Evan.MacDonald@houstonchronicle.com.

A Boston native, he joined the Chronicle in 2022 from cleveland.com and The Plain Dealer in Ohio. He is a graduate of Emerson College and the Columbia University School of Journalism.
Two NSW police officers have been charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm against a 92-year-old man. Photograph: Dean Lewins/AAP

Two New South Wales police officers have been charged with assaulting a 92-year-old man who was later admitted to hospital with a fractured elbow and significant bruising to his head and arms.

The alleged assault occurred at a home in Picton, in Sydneys south-west, in January after police were called to a domestic violence incident by the elderly mans wife, who had made two calls to triple zero and likely had dementia.

The NSW police commissioner, Karen Webb, told reporters on Thursday the 92-year-olds injuries occurred while he was handcuffed by police.

Webb said the mans wife likely had dementia and it was too hard to say whether or not a domestic violence incident had taken place.

Related: NSW police urged to improve mental health training after string of deaths involving vulnerable people

Its obviously a complex matter when youve got someone elderly, someone who has mental decline through dementia or through something else, that cant actually articulate any concerns to police properly, Webb said. That will all form part of the investigation and the police response.

Webb said she wasnt sure of the 92-year-old mans current living circumstances, but said he had received support from the police force since the incident.

After an internal investigation, a senior constable and a constable were served court attendance notices on Wednesday. Both officers were charged with assault occasioning actual bodily harm. The constable was facing a further charge of assault.

What the court will need to determine is whether there was excessive force used in that interaction, Webb said.

Webb told reporters she had viewed the officers body-camera footage of the incident and she had her own thoughts and feelings on what was captured. However, the commissioner said she did not want to comment as the matter was before the court.

One of the officers was scheduled to appear at Campbelltown local court on 30 July while the other was due to appear at the same court on 6 August.

Both officers were suspended with pay, NSW police said.

Asked whether it was time to admit there was an issue with police training in responding to mental health incidents, Webb told reporters she had confidence in officers responses.

We respond to over 2 million calls for service across this organisation across NSW every year. Over 140,000 are just domestic violence, she said.

If there are occasions that we have some concerns about the way we respond, then we will investigate  like weve done in this matter.
Russian frigate Admiral Gorshkov launches a Zircon hypersonic missile. At present, the best US defence against hypersonics is the SM-6 ship-launched interceptor missile - now reportedly being test fired from US F-18 fighters also - Russian Defense Ministry

The RIM-174 Standard Missile-6, or SM-6 for short, might be the US militarys most versatile missile. Its normally fired from a US Navy warships vertical launch cells, but recently its been seen for the second time under the wing of a fighter jet. The SM-6 could be on the cusp of becoming even more versatile.

America may be solving the wrong problem here, however. Theres an argument to be made that the military should be spending every available dollar buying additional SM-6s, rather than making more ships and planes able to fire off the currently limited number in the US arsenal.

If the Navy does not have enough missiles to sustain a fight in the western Pacific, the numbers of available vertical-launch-system cells or long-range anti-ship-missile-capable aircraft is meaningless, Jack Montgomery, a US Navy cadet, wrote in an award-winning essay.

The SM-6, built by US firm Raytheon, is a development of the older SM-2, which is still the free worlds main naval surface-to-air missile. Thousands of SM-2s arm hundreds of American and allied warships.

F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jets on the deck of a US Navy aircraft carrier. The F/A-18 may soon be able to carry the powerful SM-6 missile, previously deployed in warship vertical launch cells - MCS 3rd Class Maxwell Orlosky/US Navy via AFP

To produce the SM-6 starting in the early 2000s, Raytheon and the US Navy took the airframe of the SM-2, added the newer SM-3s rocket booster, plugged on the seeker from the beyond-visual-range AMRAAM air-to-air missile and also added GPS.

The resulting weapon can target missiles and aircraft in the air, ships at sea and targets on land. Its one of the few truly omnirole missiles in the American arsenal  and the US forces are finding more and more new applications for it.

At first, SM-6s only armed warships  and only engaged targets in the air. The Navy expanded the missiles target set to include ships at sea and targets on land. More recently, the US Army adopted the missile  and stood up new SM-6-armed missile batteries whose main mission is attacking targets on land from land.

Now the SM-6 seems to be heading into the air. In 2021, an F/A-18F fighter belonging to a US Navy test squadron was photographed carrying an inert SM-6  missing its first-stage rocket booster  over a California test range.

That 2021 test apparently supported Raytheon and the US Navys effort to develop a new very-long-range air-to-air missile. Three years later in April, another US Navy F/A-18 appeared over the same California test range carrying a possible live SM-6.

Clearly, Raytheon and the US Navy are still developing the SM-6 for possible airborne launch. The benefits are obvious. The 3,300-pound SM-6 ranges as far as 230 miles  thats probably more than twice as far as the US Navys current long-range air-to-air missile, the AMRAAM.

As an anti-ship or land-attack missile, the SM-6 also has advantages over the US Navys existing aerial munitions. With its Mach-3.5 top speed, its much faster than the current Harpoon anti-ship missile and Joint Air-to-Surface Standoff Missile land-attack weapon, both of which are subsonic. A faster missile is harder to intercept.

The SM-6 is also desirable as it is assessed as having at least some capability to knock down inbound hypersonic weapons, often considered impossible to defend against. This would be an important mission no matter what an SM-6 was launched from: but the US Navy would be particularly glad to have SM-6s on its defending fighters as well as its escorting destroyers, in the event of Chinese or Russian hypersonics being fired at a US aircraft carrier.

Perhaps most importantly of all, the SM-6 switches modes with the press of a few buttons. An F/A-18 fighter hauling a clutch of SM-6s could wait for targets to appear in the air, at sea or on land  and attack any or all of them with the same munitions. No need to land and re-arm.

If theres a problem with the SM-6, its that the high-tech missile is expensive. Each 22-foot round costs more than $4 million  and that weighs on the production rate. In the first 15 or so years of procurement, the US fleet built up a stockpile of around a thousand SM-6s. More lately, its been acquiring fresh missiles at a rate of 125 a year.

This is far too few missiles. The US Navys destroyers and cruisers have thousands of missile cells between them. If the US fleet also armed its hundreds of F/A-18s with SM-6s, it would create far more demand for missiles than its limited inventory  and anaemic production rate  could satisfy.

Its possible to imagine that, in a major war with China, American ships and planes  to say nothing of those US Army batteries on land  would fire off every SM-6 ever produced in the span of just a few days.

Arguably, the US Navys top priority shouldnt be adding launch platforms for its best missile but, instead, adding missiles to the existing launchers. More precision-guided munitions will be necessary for a high-end conflict, Montgomery wrote. Should China decide to invade Taiwan before the end of the decade, the Navy will have insufficient stocks of high-value munitions at the start of conflict. Time is of the essence.
US president Joe Biden and Japan's prime minister Fumio Kishida are attending the summit alongside Rishi Sunak and Giorgia Meloni - Guglielmo Mangiapane/REUTERS

It has hosted the likes of Madonna, the Beckhams and Justin Timberlake, but a luxury resort in southern Italy will today receive the leaders of the democratic world as they gather for a three-day G7 summit.

Rishi Sunak will join the leaders of the United States, France, Germany, Japan, Canada and Italy to discuss the war in Ukraine and other global issues at the Borgo Egnazia resort in Puglia.

The heel of the boot-shaped Italian peninsula, the sunbaked region of Puglia has become so popular with British and other expats that it is dubbed Trullishire, after the conical-roofed traditional trulli houses that dot the landscape of olive groves and wheat fields.

On Thursday evening, the G7 leaders and their partners will be whisked by helicopter to a formal dinner in a 13th-century castle in the port of Brindisi, on the coast of Puglia.

The summit, which is being hosted by Giorgia Meloni, Italys prime minister, has much to deliberate on - from using seized Russian financial assets to help the Ukrainians, to tackling Chinas support for Moscow in the conflict, to the war in Gaza.

Three of the seven leaders are gearing up for high-stakes elections in the coming weeks and months - Yara Nardi/REUTERS

But the gathering has already been written off by some as a lame duck summit before it has barely started.

It is being held at a time of great political uncertainty - three of the seven leaders are gearing up for high-stakes elections in the coming weeks and months.

Mr Sunak faces almost certain defeat on July 4, Emmanuel Macron has staked his future on a high-stakes snap election at the end of June and Joe Biden could lose to Donald Trump in the US elections in November.

Agathe Demarais, a senior police fellow at the European Council on foreign relations, said: This unusual political context means that the American, British and French leaders will be in wait-and-see mode as they await to know their political fates.

As a result, substantive progress on key issues is unlikely.

A summit of lame ducks, was the uncompromising judgment of La Repubblica newspaper on Thursday.

Not only do the leaders of the UK, France and the US face stiff electoral challenges, but Olaf Scholz has been shaken by the success of the far-Right AfD party in the European elections, the paper said in a long editorial.

Of the European leaders, only Ms Meloni has emerged triumphant from the EU vote, the Left-leaning daily said.

An aerial view of the Borgo Egnazia resort where the likes of Madonna, the Beckhams and Justin Timberlake have stayed - GIUSEPPE LAMI/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Still, there will be sunshine to enjoy, as well as the delights of Italian cuisine.

A local ice cream maestro, Enzo Iannacone, has come up with seven new flavours of gelato, one for each of the G7 leaders - although it wont be served to the leaders themselves.

On the menu at the castle dinner will be traditional dishes from Puglia, including locally caught fish such as snapper.

Regional wines will be served, followed by amaro, the classic Italian after-dinner digestif.

An aperitif will be followed by an informal dinner hosted by Ms Meloni.

On Friday, there will be a performance by Andrea Bocelli, the world-famous Italian tenor, amid the piazzas and swimming pools of Borgo Egnazia.

A welcome cake for the participants of the G7 summit to Puglia - DONATO FASANO/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Also invited to attend are heads of state or government from a host of other countries, including Recep Tayyip Erdogan, president of Turkey, and Narendra Modi, prime minister of India.

There will also be Javier Milei, Argentinas mercurial leader, Antonio Guterres, UN Secretary-General, and senior officials from the IMF, the World Bank and the African Union.

Pope Francis, no less, will also make an appearance, speaking about the dangers posed by artificial intelligence. He will become the first pontiff ever to take part in a G7 summit.

On Thursday, Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraines president, will attend a discussion on the progress of the war and is expected to press for more help from Western allies.

The G7 leaders hope to bash out an agreement on using the profits from the interest on $300 billion (235 billion) of frozen Russian central bank assets to help Kyiv in its fight against Putins forces.

All of this will be taking part far from the gaze of the hundreds of journalists assigned to the event: they are being consigned to a media centre in the port of Bari, nearly 40 miles away from the summit venue.
Debate

Tonights ITV debate saw Penny Mordaunt, Angela Rayner and Nigel Farage face off for a second time in a lively seven-party debate which began only minutes after news broke that Reform UK has overtaken the Conservatives in an opinion poll for the first time. Here our writers give their verdicts on who performed best.

For Tim Stanley, Nigel Farage and Stephen Flynn were the big winners. For Sam Ashworth-Hayes, Angela Rayner showed some awareness of the need for big ideas to fix the NHS. Tom Harris argues the main loser was the audience.

Not another debate? said Bertie, my dog. Afraid so, old friend. This is the future now: a debate every night till the world ends or Daisy Cooper stops smiling (whichever comes first).

The winners were Nigel Farage and Stephen Flynn, who also provided the brightest sparks (they clearly hate each other). Farage, boosted by a poll showing him in second place, hammered home the impact of the population explosion; Flynn successfully tarred Angela Rayner as Tory-lite, muttering shameful, shameful at every ambiguity. The Green lady (dont know her name) read out a student union manifesto to the wrong camera. The Welshman (cannot pronounce his name) seems to want to fill Wales with immigrants.

Rayner had reduced her sleeve volume by 40 per cent since the last debate; Penny had been at the hair straighteners, and was wearing a fetching Mao suit. Mordaunt attacked Ange, but Ange held her end up well  till she had to apologise for forgetting one of her answers. No problem, host Julie Etchingham appeared to have forgotten her question (shed dropped her cards).

These things are not about winning in the sense of making a good point or persuading the audience. Theyre about connecting with various key demographics at home, and are only interesting to the swing voter in that they give away where the parties think they stand. How curious then that Daisy Cooper  so chipper, she smiles when talking about food banks - indicated that the Lib Dems are now critical of mass migration. Reform has even shifted the loony centre to the centre-right.

Overall the debate earned three yawns from Bertie.

If you learned anything from that debate, congratulations. The format was a mess, with six irritable politicians yelling over each other and Nigel Farage, understandably, grinning off to the side.

We kicked off with the NHS. Did anyone have any big ideas for fixing it?

The answer: no, not really. One by one, the politicians got up to say that they wanted to spend and hire more. That the government has spent and hired more while productivity has cratered didnt seem to register. Farage gleefully took the opportunity to turn the question round to immigration, before pointing out this broken link between inputs and outputs, and suggesting that perhaps a French-style insurance system might work better. In other words, only Reform wanted reform.

Angela Rayner, to be fair, did eventually work her way to arguing for more scanners and efficiencies. But she didnt really set out how this was to be achieved. It was a great opening for scrutiny. Unfortunately, what we got was Stephen Flynn rambling on about privatisation, and Penny Mordaunt embarking on a metaphor about the colour of cats catching mice.

The next question was on education. Penny started brightly, saying our education system is world class: the crowd laughed. It was a dispiriting and accurate illustration of the state of the campaign. Education is genuinely a Conservative success story. But they have failed to capitalise on this, failed to get this message across, and the sense of futility hanging around the party is such that people simply assume further failure.

On to migration, and what our strategy should be. From a long term perspective this is probably the most significant question facing the country today. Up stepped Rayner to answer it: we will introduce a skills strategy. Right then.

Nigel, as might have been expected, made some hay. The Greens and SNP, in turn, decided to attack him for scapegoating, dog whistling, and various other verb-animal combinations. It was at this point that Mordaunt scored a spectacular own goal. As Angela Rayner blamed the Tories for a flatlining economy reliant on overseas workers, Penny turned on her in thunderous denunciation: youve had 14 years to come up with some ideas!. Well, quite. And so have you.

It was the evening in a nutshell. Too brief from each participant, too bad tempered and short paced, not able to give us the detailed scrutiny that might actually change opinions. This was an exercise in futility.

Viewers might be forgiven for thinking they were watching a repeat. Every single participant in tonights ITV debate appeared together at an identical event last week, offering exactly the same solutions and arguments, not to mention the same cliches.

And to what end? Everybody knows that the story of this election is the unassailable lead of the Labour Party and the impending implosion of the Conservatives. Most of those watching could not be less interested in the fate of the SNP, the Greens or Plaid Cymru. Very few could tell you who the leader of the Liberal Democrats is, although granted, the future of Nigel Farages Reform UK could provide a number of popcorn moments in the weeks ahead.

But still they had at it: shouting over each other, making accusations of this or that betrayal, furiously alleging secret plans to decimate the public finances, giving the distinct impression that what they said would have a profound impact on the nation.

As before, the SNPs Stephen Flynn proved to be one of the most forceful participants, benefiting from Angela Rayners peculiar reluctance to challenge him on his partys dreadful record in Scotland. It fell to Farage to burst Flynns self-confidence by pointing out that Scotland, once considered a world leader in education, is now trailing in the international league tables.

On the evening when it was reported that Reform had overtaken the Conservatives in one poll, it was perhaps inevitable that Farages tail was up (when is it not?), earning a smattering of applause when he refused even to respond to an accusation of dog-whistling from Plaid Cymru. Yet again, in an unseemly and noisy free-for-all, it was Farage who emerged happiest.

But the main achievement of this debate was not to inform or educate the audience, and certainly not to help anyone who has not already made up their mind; its chief achievement was to make the case against having debates with more than two participants. Had microphones been placed above the studio audience, we might have heard, over the sound of seven various deputies and stand-ins exchanging accusations and pretending to be personally offended/amused by others answers, the rolling of a hundred pairs of eyes.
The leader of an online paedophile ring who convinced women to abuse children has lost a parole bid to be freed from jail amid concern over his extreme sexual interests.

IT consultant Colin Blanchard, considered one of Britains worst paedophiles, was branded warped, wicked, dangerous, devious and manipulative by his sentencing judge who said his crimes caused widespread revulsion and disbelief.

The father-of-two, from Rochdale, was warned he may never be released from jail when he was handed in effect a life sentence, known as an indeterminate imprisonment for public protection, in 2011.

The judge ordered him to serve a minimum of nine years behind bars before he could be considered for release after Blanchard admitted a string of more than 20 charges.

In a hearing behind closed doors last month as part of his first parole review since sentencing, Blanchard said he wished to be freed from jail.

But the Parole Board found his sexual interests were pervasive.

Mr Blanchard caused very serious harm to victims through his offending, the panel said on Thursday.

After considering the circumstances of his offending, the progress made while in custody and the evidence presented at the hearing, the panel was not satisfied that release at this point would be safe for the protection of the public.

The 53-year-old was not prepared to acknowledge his feelings may return after he claimed to no longer experience extreme sexual fantasies, according to papers documenting the decision.

While Blanchard had accepted greater responsibility for his crimes, the parole panel still found evidence of minimisation and deflection and questioned whether he truly understood his extreme sexual interests.

He had developed a clear preference for prepubescent children and bestiality, with, in the panels view, a fetish of parents having sex with their own children, the document said.

Blanchard enlisted four female accomplices  Vanessa George, Tracy Lyons, Tracy Dawber and Angela Allen  to sexually assault young children and share images after meeting them over the internet.

A work colleague called police after finding child sex abuse images on Blanchards computer in 2009 and detectives then identified Plymouth nursery worker George, mother-of-nine Lyons, community care worker Dawber and former sex worker Allen as being the other members of the gang.

Blanchard will be eligible for another parole review in around two years time.
The winner of a prestigious business award for her work at a specialist insurance firm said she hopes the accolade will raise the profile of the industry.

Tracy Blackwell, co-founder of the Pension Insurance Corporation, won the Veuve Clicquot Bold Woman Award, with judges praising her work for growing her companys asset portfolio.

She said: Despite its importance to the future welfare of millions of people, not to mention the infrastructure we fund, the pensions industry flies beneath the radar much of the time.

To be recognised with such a prestigious award will help to raise the profile of this crucial industry.

The 56-year-old started her career in the male-dominated investment banking sector, before switching to the equally male-dominated pensions industry.

She told the PA news agency that her philosophy was to encourage a culture of openness and transparency which she believes has proved attractive to potential recruits.

She understands that people have a life, she said, adding: I hope I can inspire the next generation of game-changing, bold, female entrepreneurs.

Francesca Brady, chief executive of indoor air quality certification business AirRated, won the Veuve Clicquot Bold Future Award, which celebrates female entrepreneurs of the future.

She studied environmental science before co-founding AirRated, which offers guidance to companies about the air quality in buildings.

She also hopes that winning the award will highlight her work on indoor air quality as well as increasing the number of women in science.

She told PA she has found leadership relatively straightforward because of the high level of empathy she believes women have.

The 31-year-old said the main issue she faces is age-related as some people do not think she has the same experience as older colleagues.

Jean-Marc Gallot, president of Veuve Clicquot, said: Succeeding in typically male-dominated sectors, both our winners excelled across the key areas our judges assess.

They both are successfully reinventing traditions, have clearly demonstrated entrepreneurial daring, championed better representation of female leaders and maintained an ethical approach.
American record producer and songwriter Quincy Jones has been announced as the recipient of an honorary Oscar at this years Governors Awards.

British screenwriter Richard Curtis, American casting director Juliet Taylor and James Bond producers Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli will also be honoured by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences at this years ceremony.

Jones, 91, who was given the Hersholt Award in 1994, will receive the Honorary Award, an Oscar statuette that is given to honour extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the Academy.

Richard Curtis will be given the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award (Ian West/PA)

The veteran songwriter has earned a total of seven Oscar nominations for his work on movies that include neo-noir crime film In Cold Blood (1967).

Taylor, whose credits include Taxi Driver (1976), The Exorcist (1973), Sleepless In Seattle (1993) and Schindlers List (1993), will receive the same award.

Love Actually filmmaker and Notting Hill screenwriter Curtis, 67, will pick up the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for his charitable efforts, while producers Wilson and Broccoli will receive the Irving G Thalberg Memorial Award.

Curtis is a co-founder of Comic Relief and has co-produced the Red Nose Day live night of TV for the BBC since 1988 which has now made over 1 billion for projects in Africa and the UK.

Academy president Janet Yang said: The recipients of this years Governors Awards have set the bar incredibly high across their remarkable careers, and the Academys Board of Governors is thrilled to recognise them with Oscars.

The selection of Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli is a testament to their success as producers of the fan-favorite Bond series and their contribution to the industrys theatrical landscape.

Quincy Jones is being recognised (Yui Mok/PA)

Richard Curtis is a brilliant comedic storyteller whose tremendous charitable efforts embody the meaning of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.

Quincy Joness artistic genius and relentless creativity have made him one of the most influential musical figures of all time.

Juliet Taylor has cast iconic and beloved films and paved a new path for the field.

Their profound love of cinema and indelible contribution to our art form make these five individuals truly deserving of these honours.

The Oscar statuettes will be presented at the Academys 15th Governors Awards on November 17 in the Ray Dolby Ballroom, Hollywood, close to the Dolby Theatre where the Oscars takes place.
Reform UK has overtaken the Conservatives in a major opinion poll, as Rishi Sunak continues his absence from the General Election campaign trail to meet world leaders in Italy.

A YouGov survey commissioned by the Times newspaper had Nigel Farages party at 19% to the Conservatives 18% in voting intention, in a crossover moment which is the latest blow to Tory hopes of returning to government.

Mr Farage hailed the poll, claiming his party were now the opposition to Labour, while in Italy the Prime Minister said he was not feeling dejected about his prospects in the election and would be back on the campaign trail as soon as he returned from the G7 summit.

Mr Sunak told reporters in Puglia he was definitely not down in the dumps after Wednesday nights televised leaders event, in which a snap poll found Sir Keir Starmer came out on top.

The Prime Minister said there was a clear choice between his offer and that of Labour, which launched its manifesto on Thursday.

Mr Sunak added: Im energised to make that argument to the country with you here today.

And then as soon as Im back youre back on the campaign trail as soon as youre back.

Asked if he was missing campaigning amid the summit alongside the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States, he said: You have to be able to do both things in this job.

In the YouGov poll which revealed the Tory-Reform reversal, Labour remains in the lead at 37% of voting intention, with the Liberal Democrats at 14%, the Greens at 7%, the SNP at 3%, Plaid Cymru at 1% and others at 2%.

It was conducted on a sample size of 2,211 adults in Britain between June 12 and 13.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (PA)

During ITVs seven-way election debate on Thursday night, Mr Farage took aim at Conservative frontbencher Penny Mordaunt, and pointed to rising net migration despite Tory promises to control it.

Why on earth should anybody believe the fifth manifesto that promises cuts to net migration? he asked.

Ms Mordaunt was laughed at by the audience as she replied: Because of the record of this Prime Minister.

She warned: Nigel is a Labour enabler. He is enabling no cap, no target, and no plan.

But Mr Farage flipped the Conservative campaign rhetoric, which has also been used by Mr Sunak while canvassing for votes.

As for being a Labour enabler, we are now ahead of you in the national polls. A vote for you is actually now a vote for Labour, the Reform leader said.

We are now the opposition to Labour, he told the audience as the programme began, not long after the poll was published.

Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer arrives on board his election battle bus at a campaign event in Halesowen (PA)

The Tory and Labour election battle buses are not expected to take to the road on Friday but campaigning will continue.

Shadow health secretary Wes Streeting will promote Labours mental health offer, after warning there is a crisis in mental illness that is keeping people out of the jobs market and costing the country billions.

He will visit a mens mental health facility as he seeks to showcase the proposal.

Elsewhere Lib Dem deputy leader Daisy Cooper will visit the east of England, as her party promotes its plans for a national food strategy aimed at curtailing household shopping costs.

The proposed strategy, revealed in the Lib Dem manifesto, would be backed up by a plan to boost the farming budget by 1 billion a year and is also aimed at supporting British farmers.
With Prime Minister Rishi Sunak out of the country at the G7 summit in Italy and Sir Keir Starmer launching his partys manifesto in the safe Labour seat of Manchester Central, Sir Ed Davey was the only one of the main leaders on Thursday to hit the campaign trail.

The Liberal Democrat leader visited the constituency of Tunbridge Wells in Kent  a seat that has been held by the Conservatives since its creation in 1974 but which ranks at number 49 on the Lib Dems target list.

Sir Eds party needs a swing of 13.4 percentage points to take the seat and overturn a notional Tory majority of 14,645.

A profile of the constituency of Tunbridge Wells (PA Graphics)

Greg Clark, who won Tunbridge Wells for the Conservatives at every general election from 2005 to 2019, is not standing this time.

Sir Ed has now visited 26 seats since the start of the campaign, 23 of which are being defended by the Conservatives.

The other three are the safe Labour seat of Hackney South & Shoreditch, where he launched the Lib Dem manifesto earlier this week; Cowdenbeath & Kirkcaldy in Scotland, won by the SNP in 2019 and more plausibly a Labour target at this election; and the safe Lib Dem seat of Bath.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has visited 25 seats, 17 of which are being defended by the Tories.

He has also held events in five Labour seats, including Thursdays manifesto launch in Manchester Central; two SNP seats in Scotland; and Brighton Pavilion in East Sussex, which is being defended by the Greens.

Seats visited by the main party leaders during the election campaign (PA Graphics)

Mr Sunak has clocked up the most number of constituencies, 33, of which 30 are Conservative defences.

He has visited only one Labour seat so far: Blyth & Ashington, a new constituency at this election, but one which would have had a notional Labour majority in 2019 of 6,118.

The other two seats in which he has held campaign events are Caithness, Sutherland & Easter Ross (won by the SNP in 2019) and Belfast East (won by the DUP).
The family of Sheku Bayoh have called for the public inquiry into the 31-year-olds death to be allowed to examine why police were not prosecuted after the incident.

Speaking after a meeting with Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes at the Scottish Parliament on Thursday, the familys lawyer Aamar Anwar said charges have not been brought against any of the officers involved, and that it is unacceptable that the guardians of law and order should escape scrutiny.

He said the family told Ms Forbes of their anger and upset that Police Scotland appear to be rowing back from recognising the existence of institutional racism within the force, and they called for meaningful change to follow the completion of the Sheku Bayoh inquiry.

Mr Bayoh, a father-of-two, died after he was restrained on the ground by six police officers in Kirkcaldy, Fife, on May 3, 2015 and the public inquiry into his death is currently ongoing.

Mr Anwar said: The family let the Deputy First Minister know of their anger and upset that Police Scotland appear now determined to turn back the clock on the radical statement of former chief constable Iain Livingstone in accepting institutional racism.

Sheku Bayoh died in May 2015 after being restrained by police (family handout/PA)

The family call for a commitment by the Government for meaningful change at the end of this inquiry to let no institution stand in the way of the form of legal and regulatory change required.

In May 2023, outgoing chief constable Sir Iain admitted Police Scotland was institutionally racist and discriminatory, and said acknowledging the issue was essential to it becoming an anti-racist service.

Mr Anwar also called for the inquiry to be allowed to examine why police were not prosecuted following Mr Bayohs death.

The family called on the Government to review its terms of reference for the Sheku Bayoh public inquiry to allow the inquiry to consider why the Crown Office did not prosecute any of the police officers or Police Scotland, he said.

It is unacceptable that the guardians of law and order should escape scrutiny by hiding behind claims of the need to be independent when all they have done is betray justice.

There wasnt a single, not a charge of culpable homicide, not a charge of serious assault, assault with severe injury, minor assault, attempt to pervert the course of justice, not a single charge.

When it was pointed out that it is unusual for the terms of reference of an inquiry to be changed mid-inquiry, he said They were changed in the Covid inquiry, they were changed in other inquiries, and can be changed going along.

Issues have arisen at the inquiry during the process, and its an artificial divide in that the inquiry cant go beyond the terms of reference.

Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes said it was humbling to meet the Bayoh family (Andrew Milligan/PA)

Ms Forbes said after the meeting: It was humbling to meet the family of Mr Bayoh and I welcomed the opportunity to hear from them directly.

The Scottish Government remains firmly committed to the public inquiry establishing the facts surrounding the circumstances leading to Mr Bayohs death. The family expect answers and I believe these proceedings are the best way to give them that.

The public inquiry is independent of Scottish ministers so it would be inappropriate for me to comment further on proceedings.

A Police Scotland spokesperson said: The chief constable underlined our ongoing commitment to building an anti-racist, anti-discriminatory service which delivers for all communities during a meeting of the Scottish Police Authority board last month.

This month, an assistant chief constable was appointed to lead this work.

They added of the ongoing inquiry into Mr Bayohs death: It is vital that the role and independence of the public inquiry is respected to ensure the application of the rule of law, due process and justice being served.

Police Scotland will continue to participate fully in an open and transparent manner.
Miles Joseph Fridrich sits in a Montgomery County courtroom on Jan. 29, 2024 in Conroe. Fridrich, 25, is charged with murder in the stabbing death of Conroe pediatrician Talat Khan, 54, while she was sitting at a picnic table in her apartment complex on Oct. 29, 2023. Brett Coomer/Staff photographer Dr. Talat Khan, 54, was stabbed to death while she was sitting at a picnic table at her Conroe apartment complex on Oct. 29, 2023. Courtesy of ABC13

Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon has recused himself and his office from the prosecution of Miles Fridrich in the stabbing death of Conroe Dr. Talat Khan in October.

According to court documents, Ligon said his office and Khans family expressed dissatisfaction with the direction and scope of the district attorneys investigation, specifically the issue of the incident being a hate crime.

In December, the Houston chapter of the Council of American-Islamic Relations, along with Khans family, called for a federal investigation into the death as a possible hate crime.

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Concerning the question of whether Miles Fridrich committed the murder based on the ethnic or religious identity of Dr. Khan, I can say that neither the Federal Bureau of Investigations, the United States Attorneys Office for the Southern District, Conroe Police Department, or my office have uncovered facts that would lead to the offense being characterized as a hate crime, Ligon said Wednesday. In any case such as this, investigation into any possible motives will continue until the case is resolved, but as of now, we do not believe the public should be concerned that Miles Fridrich committed the alleged acts for any known ideological or personal reasons connected to Dr. Khan.

In a statement released late Thursday, Council of American-Islamic Relations officials said they would "continue to monitor this case closely and look forward to seeing justice served for Dr. Khan."

Judge Phil Grant of the 9th state District Court granted the recusal June 6. The Texas Attorney Generals Office will take over the prosecution of the case, court documents state.

Picnic bench attack

Fridrich, 25, is accused of attacking Khan, 54, as she sat at a picnic bench outside the Alys Apartments in the 15000 block of Mansions View in Conroe.

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Fridrich remained in the Montgomery County Jail on Thursday with bail set at $500,000. He was indicted on first-degree murder in January. In March, Grant denied a motion to reduce Fridrichs bond to $50,000.

Fridrich has undergone a mental health evaluation but the findings have not been released.

In February, Grant ordered the Montgomery County District Attorneys Office to release grand jury testimony to Fridrichs Houston-based defense attorneys, Lisa Andrews and Cary Hart.

While grand jury proceedings are secret to protect witnesses, according to state law, if an attorney establishes a particularized need, a judge can order the release of testimony.

According to the motion, the defense requested the release of the testimony for preparation for an effective defense and to refresh the recollection of a witness, test the credibility of a witness, or impeach a witness.

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The motion also states the disclosure of the testimony will allow the defense to properly challenge the presence of unauthorized people in the grand jury room.

Andrews and Hart have not returned calls for comment.
Sir Keir Starmer said Labour had a plan to turn the country around after 14 years of Tory chaos but cautioned that there would be no quick fix if he is handed the keys to No 10 by voters on July 4.

Launching a manifesto which contained no new policy announcements, Sir Keir denied he was being overly cautious in his efforts to put his party back in power for the first time since 2010.

Repeatedly stressing how he had changed Labour since taking over from Jeremy Corbyn, Sir Keir said he was now offering a serious plan for the future of our country.

The manifesto focused on a goal of generating economic growth and making Labour the party of wealth creation.

But Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the Labour plan would result in the highest taxes in history.

Sir Keir warned that there was no magic wand and the problems an incoming Labour administration would inherit will not disappear overnight.

He said: We must rebuild our country. It will not be easy. Not only because there is no quick fix to the mess the Conservatives have made.

But also, because their failures have sapped our collective confidence that Britain can still achieve great things.

Sir Keir rejected that defeatism, insisting that there was a brighter future: A new Britain, where wealth is created in every community.

But he said too many communities were currently disregarded as sources of dynamism due to the toxic idea that economic growth is something that the few hand down to the many.

Today, we turn the page on that forever.

He promised stability over chaos, long-term over short-term, an end to the desperate era of gestures and gimmicks and a return to the serious business of rebuilding our country.

Sir Keirs manifesto launch speech was interrupted by heckling from a climate protester, but he shot back: We gave up on being a party of protest five years ago, we want to be a party in power.

In his manifesto foreword, Sir Keir who took over following the 2019 electoral mauling the party suffered, said: The defining purpose of my Labour leadership has been to drag my party away from the dead end of gesture politics and return it once more to the service of working people.

The manifesto:

 Spells out Labours plans to raise 7 billion in taxes.

 Some 5.2 billion would come from closing loopholes for non-domiciled people and cracking down on tax avoidance schemes.

(PA Graphics)

 1.5 billion would come from imposing VAT and business rates on private schools, with the rest from closing a carried interest loophole and increasing stamp duty on purchases of residential property by non-UK residents by 1%.

 Confirmed Labours pledge not to raise income tax, VAT or national insurance and to cap corporation tax at its current 25% rate.

 Promised legislation to remove the right of hereditary peers to sit in the House of Lords and confirmed plans to enforce retirement from the upper chamber at 80.

 Pledged to build 1.5 million new homes and reform the planning system which acts as a major brake on economic growth.

 Restated Labours plan to create state-owned clean energy generation firm Great British Energy, backed by 8.3 billion over the course of the parliament.

 Said legislation for the so-called New Deal for Working People, including moves to ban exploitative zero-hours contracts would be introduced in the first 100 days of a Labour government.

Sir Keir was challenged about the lack of eye-catching new policies and whether he was being careful to do nothing that might dent his 20-point poll lead  the so-called Ming vase strategy.

Acknowledging the absence of a rabbit out of the hat in the policy document, Sir Keir said If you want politics as pantomime, I hear Clacton is nice this time of year.

The Essex seat is where Reform UK leader Nigel Farage is campaigning to become an MP.

Asked whether it was a Captain Caution manifesto, he said: It is a serious plan for the future of our country.

He added: Im not going to do what Rishi Sunak does, which is offer things that he cant deliver because theyre unfunded.

People have had too much of that, theyre fed up with that.

The Labour Partys manifesto during the launch event (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt attacked the plans, labelling it a tax trap manifesto.

Under Labours published plans, taxes will rise to levels never before seen in this country, he said, before claiming that further hikes could be needed.

They are refusing to rule out taxing your job, your home, your pension, your car, your business and they think they can get away with it without anyone holding them to account.

Be under no illusion, from cradle to grave you will pay more taxes under Labour.

The manifesto was also criticised from the left, with the Momentum campaign group saying the commitments fall short of what is needed, arguing that measures to scrap the two-child benefit limit and renationalise the water industry should have been included.

Sharon Graham, general secretary of the Unite union which declined to back the manifesto during the drafting process, said: Whilst we all want growth and Labours proposed changes may move the dial somewhat  that alone is not likely to be enough.

Unite had previously accused the party of weakening its package of workers rights

Sir Keir also faced questions on whether he was watering down a proposed ban on former ministers lobbying government for five years after leaving office  the manifesto only commits to enforcing restrictions on ministers lobbying for the companies they used to regulate, with meaningful sanctions for breaching the rules.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies said the trivial tax and spending increases did not address the looming squeeze on public finances current forecasts implied.

IFS director Paul Johnson said delivering genuine change would require putting actual resources on the table.

Labours manifesto offers no indication that there is a plan for where the money would come from to finance this, he said.
One of Rishi Sunaks closest parliamentary aides has said he made a huge error of judgment by betting on the date of the General Election just days before the Prime Minister called it.

Craig Williams, who served as Mr Sunaks parliamentary private secretary and is the Conservative candidate for Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr, apologised for placing the bet but refused to say whether he did so on the basis of insider information.

The Conservative former MP, who represented Montgomery until the election was called, is alleged to have placed a 100 bet on a July polling day some three days before Mr Sunak named the date as July 4, at a Ladbrokes in his constituency.

Mr Williams told the BBC: I clearly made a huge error of judgment, thats for sure and I apologise.

He said on Wednesday that he was facing a Gambling Commission investigation, writing on social media that he would fully co-operate with some routine inquiries.

Asked repeatedly whether he had had insider information, Mr Williams told the broadcaster on Thursday: I will not be expanding on that statement because its an independent process.

The Gambling Commission are looking at it now.

As a parliamentary aide, Mr Williams acted as a go-between for the Prime Minister and his MPs, and is understood to be a trusted member of Mr Sunaks team.

The Guardian reported that the bet would have led to a payout of 500 based on 5/1 odds.

Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron criticised Craig Williamss very foolish bet (Leon Neal/PA)

Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron condemned Mr Williamss move.

He told BBC Breakfast: His situation, having made this clearly very foolish decision, is that hes being investigated by the Gambling Commission, and they have considerable powers in terms of what the consequences could be.

The Cabinet minister said Mr Williams is already standing as a Conservative candidate and I dont think we can change that, adding Mr Williams will have to face the consequences of the Gambling Commission probe.

The Liberal Democrats called for a Cabinet Office inquiry to look into what Mr Williams knew at the time of his bet, with the probe to be given access to any communications between Mr Sunak and his No 10 staff.

Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey told broadcasters in Kent: If someone knows the outcome of something, it seems to me morally questionable for them to put a bet on it if they know the result of that outcome.

His deputy Daisy Cooper said: Rishi Sunak must stop being so weak and call a Cabinet Office inquiry into this latest scandal.

This inquiry is needed to get to the bottom of who knew what when, and uncover whether Craig Williams knew the election date at the time the bet was placed.

The Conservative Party has been mired in endless sleaze and scandal for years and the British people are sick to their back teeth with it.

People across the country want a change thats why theyre backing their local Liberal Democrat champion to kick these Conservatives out of office.

Rhun ap Iorwerth, leader of Welsh party Plaid Cymru, said there were now very serious questions surrounding Mr Williams continuing to stand in the election.

Speaking to the press following his partys manifesto launch, he said: I dont know how quickly that investigation will be concluded, but clearly there are very, very serious questions about the propriety of him remaining as a candidate at all in this election.
John Swinney is spreading misinformation and lies about Labours spending plans, Anas Sarwar said as he disputed SNP attacks on his partys manifesto.

The Scottish Labour leader said new spending powers his party is proposing for the Scotland Office would be used to help the most deprived communities north of the border.

A newspaper report has suggested Ian Murray, currently Labours shadow Scottish secretary, would have a 150 million war chest from what is currently levelling up funding.

The SNP has repeatedly accused Labour and the Conservatives of seeking to usher in austerity, claiming both parties are refusing to level with the public that 18 billion of spending cuts are required.

First Minister Mr Swinney and Mr Sarwar had a heated exchange on the issue during a BBC Scotland election debate earlier in the week.

Anas Sarwar accused John Swinney of lying about Labours spending plans (PA)

Mr Sarwar said the Labour manifesto explicitly rules out austerity.

He was asked about the issue while campaigning on Thursday in North Berwick, East Lothian, with Labour candidate  and former UK government minister  Douglas Alexander.

Asked about the First Ministers comments, Mr Sarwar told the PA news agency: John Swinney continues to spread misinformation and lies to the public because its a desperate politician desperately trying to find a message and desperately trying to make himself relevant in this election campaign.

He likened Mr Swinneys stance to the Conservatives Brexit referendum claim that 350 million was going to the EU each week.

Mr Sarwar continued: Hes told two big lies in this election campaign already.

Hes lied about the NHS being privatised and the second big lie that he is telling is that somehow there will be a continuation of austerity.

Ive said quite clearly therell be no return to austerity.

(UK Labour leader) Keir Starmer today said quite clearly therell be no return to austerity, (shadow chancellor) Rachel Reeves, when she was in Scotland last week, said clearly therell be no return to austerity.

The UK Labour manifesto explicitly says there will be no return to austerity.

Mr Sarwar also declared that the Labour manifesto is an opportunity for change that Scotland cant afford to miss.

The document sets out some of Labours approach to fiscal policy, saying due to spending on public services south of the border Scotland will receive an additional 320 million per year through Barnett consequentials at the end of the next Parliament.

The manifesto also pledges a reset on relations between the UK Government and Holyrood, as well as greater collaboration with the Scottish Government on certain international issues.

The Daily Record reported the Scotland Office will receive a 150 million war chest to fight poverty.

Asked about this, Mr Sarwar said: If you look at where the key points of deprivation are across our country, if you look at where there are specific challenges around child poverty, thats where we will look to strategically do interventions to support infrastructure and projects to alleviate poverty.

Ian Murray, right, is Labours shadow Scottish secretary (Jane Barlow/PA)

This funding is a down payment on the first steps of a Labour government, if we get the privilege of being in government, Mr Sarwar said.

Earlier, Mr Swinney accused Labour of being a clear and present danger to the NHS.

The SNP leader said: The future of the NHS is a crucial issue in this election  and Labour must use their manifesto launch to U-turn on the creeping privatisation agenda set out by (shadow health secretary) Wes Streeting, and commit to backing the SNPs Bill to ensure the NHS is always in public hands.

By carving up Englands NHS and  in his words  holding the door wide open to private interests, Wes Streeting is not even hiding his intentions.

Unless they change course, it is clear that Keir Starmer and Wes Streeting represent a clear and present danger to the NHS.

SNP candidate for Inverness, Skye, and West Ross-Shire Drew Hendry commented on Labours manifesto, pointing to reactions from think tanks like the Institute for Fiscal Studies.

He said: Throughout this campaign, the Labour Party have been desperately trying to hide their plans for 18 billion of spending cuts  but the truth has caught up with them and they have been well and truly caught out.

It used to be the Tories who said they were sick of experts  clearly the same now applies to the Labour Party who have been dismissing their repeated warnings that Sir Keir Starmers plans involve massive spending cuts to public services.

Voters now have a right to know where the axe will fall under Labours plans for 18billion of cuts, which mean less money available for Scotlands NHS and schools, less money to tackle poverty, and less money to help families with the cost of living.

Scotland has been made to suffer 14 years of austerity, topped off with Brexit and a cost of living crisis.

We need an escape from this, not more of the same.
Taylor Swift said the Eras tour has been the most exhausting, all-encompassing, but most joyful, most rewarding, most wonderful thing that has ever happened in my life as she confirmed it will end in December.

The pop superstar played the first of three back-to-back shows at Liverpools Anfield on Thursday as part of her record-breaking tour, before she is set to play in Cardiff, London and Dublin.

Celebrating the 100th show of the tour, Swift confirmed it will be coming to a close at the end of the year, having added dates in South America, Asia, Australia, Europe, and an additional North American leg since she first announced the tour in November 2022.

Music fans watch Taylor Swift perform on stage during her Eras tour (Jane Barlow/PA)

During the section of the show dedicated to her 2012 Red album  at the stadium which is home to Liverpool Football Club, dubbed the Reds  she told the audience in videos circulating online: You know, this is actually the 100th show of the tour.

Absolutely, that blows my mind. That doesnt feel like a real statistic to me, because this has definitely been the most exhausting, all-encompassing, but most joyful, most rewarding, most wonderful thing that has ever happened in my life, this tour.

Swift said the 100th show marked the first time she has admitted to herself that this tour is going to end in December, like thats it.

I think that this tour has really become my entire life, the 34-year-old continued.

It has taken over everything.

I think I once had hobbies, but I dont know what they were anymore, because all I do when Im not on-stage is sit at home, and try to think of clever acoustic song mashups, and think about what you might want to hear.

When Im not on the stage, Im dreaming about being back on the stage with you guys.

Swift praised her fans who had done so much to be with us.

Youve made plans so far in advance, you planned what you were going to wear, you memorised lyrics, you got yourselves here, you figured out parking, you figured out transportation, and I want to spend the 100th show just thinking about that, and living in this moment with you, and being here with you.

Just know that I appreciate every single ounce of effort that you put in to be with us when this tour reaches triple digits of shows, so thank you.

Swift then played the 10-minute version of 2021 hit song All Too Well.

The UK leg of Swifts mammoth international Eras tour began in Edinburgh and saw the enthusiastic dancing of the nearly 73,000 Swifties picked up by earthquake monitors 3.7 miles away.

Swift is set to return to London in August to end the UK and European stint of the tour, which is estimated to be worth up to 1 billion to the UK economy.

Her last show will be on December 8 in Vancouver, according to her website.
The enthusiastic dancing by tens of thousands of Taylor Swift fans at her record-breaking concerts in Edinburgh was picked up by earthquake monitors.

Nearly 73,000 Swifties attended each of three concerts at Murrayfield Stadium from Friday to Sunday and their rapturous reception for the star meant earthquake readings were detected up to 3.7 miles away.

The British Geological Survey (BGS) said fans on the first night of the UK leg of Swifts mammoth international Eras tour generated the most seismic activity, with spikes caused by dancing particularly evident during her songs Cruel Summer, Ready For It? and Shake It Off.

Seismic data from the first night of Taylor Swifts Eras tour in Edinburgh (BGS/PA)

The earthquake monitors recorded fans dancing in time to the music and reached a peak at 160 beats per minute during Ready For It?, with the BGS saying the crowd was transmitting around 80kW of energy  equivalent to around 6,000 car batteries.

The four-minute applause during Champagne Problems the same night also caused a spike on the monitors.

A similar pattern occurred on all three nights, with Friday recording 23.4 nanometres (nm) of movement compared to 22.8nm on Saturday and 23.3nm on Sunday.

The seismic activity from the concerts was detected at two monitoring stations, the furthest of which was 3.7 miles away at the BGS office in the Lyell Centre.

Earthquake monitors have recorded activity during other dates on the Eras tour, including in Los Angeles and Seattle in the US.

Callum Harrison, BGS seismologist, said: BGS is the national body responsible for recording earthquakes to inform the Government, public, industry and regulators, and allow for a greater understanding of earthquake risk and plan for future events.

Its amazing that weve been able to measure the reaction of thousands of concertgoers remotely through our data. The opportunity to explore a seismic activity created by a different kind of phenomenon has been a thrill.

Record-breaking crowds attended each night of Taylor Swifts Eras tour in Edinburgh (Jane Barlow/PA)

Clearly Scotlands reputation for providing some of the most enthusiastic audiences remains well intact.

The BGS said the vibrations generated by the concert are unlikely to have been felt by anyone other than those in the immediate vicinity.

Edinburgh City Council approved an increase to the stadium capacity to 72,990 for each night and Swift thanked fans for breaking the all-time attendance record for a stadium show in Scotland three times in a row.

The US superstar plays the first of three nights at Anfield Stadium in Liverpool on Thursday, and will then move on to Cardiff and London.

She will then play three nights in Dublin and, after a host of shows in Europe, will return to London in August to end the UK and European stint of the tour, which is estimated to be worth up to 1 billion to the UK economy.
TikTok prankster Mizzy has been handed a community order after he stole a womans phone as he rode past her on an e-bike, before fleeing police and attempting to ditch the device in a bush.

Mizzy, whose real name is Bacari-Bronze OGarro, was riding a green Lime e-bike on June 15 2022 as he snatched the phone out of a womans hand in central London, Highbury Corner Magistrates Court heard on Thursday.

Amy Gault, prosecuting, said police officers in the area pursued the teenager, then aged 17, after they noticed Mr OGarro cycling in a way that they deemed him to be trying to get away from something and he was eventually arrested.

OGarro, who is known for his controversial pranks on the social media platform TikTok, was found guilty of theft at the same court in April.

Bacari-Bronze OGarro was riding an e-bike when he snatched the phone out of a womans hand in central London in June 2022 (Victoria Jones/PA)

On Thursday, district judge Michael Oliver ordered the teenager, now 19, to pay 500 in compensation to his victim alongside a 12-month community order.

Mr Oliver said the sentence would serve to punish you and make reparation to the community at large.

The court heard Ruby Hewitt was left stressed, anxious and quite scared for my safety after OGarro  wearing a blue tracksuit with a blue-and-white scarf on his head  grabbed the iPhone 13 Pro Max, worth about 1,000, from her hand as she was distracted, texting on the device, in Highbury New Park in Islington.

Three Metropolitan Police officers in an unmarked police car, who did not witness the incident, later became suspicious of OGarro, who was exhibiting erratic behaviour, going in and out of the road and moving on to the pavement, Pc David Clifford previously told the court.

OGarro fled the officers, throwing the device over a fence into bushes before an officer forced him off the bike and he ran away on foot before being arrested.

Keren Weekes, mitigating, said the teenagers previous detention at a young offenders institution had had a detrimental effect on his mental health and he was now working to make a positive change in society.

The sentencing hearing was held at Highbury Corner Magistrates Court (Anthony Devlin/PA)

OGarro, who has a son, was undertaking two internships  one at a content creation business and the other at a video news outlet  alongside a vocational qualification course in creative media, she added.

Ms Weekes said he was also co-leading the production of an anti-knife crime video as part of his internship for Video Production News.

The court heard OGarro had three previous convictions at the time of the offence and had been sentenced for a separate theft in July 2022, receiving a youth rehabilitation order with a curfew.

Mr Oliver said the phone theft really ought to have been dealt with at the same time.

He said he had considered the fact OGarro was under 18 when the offence took place, and therefore a youth in the eyes of the law.

The judge added: You are still, now, only 19 years of age  You are still a young person  obtaining the age of 18 is not a cliff edge.

Ms Gault told the court OGarro, who appeared in the dock on Thursday, had been arrested in May on suspicion of assault but had not been charged.

The community order requires OGarro to undertake 100 hours of unpaid work and 15 days of rehabilitation activity requirement.

The prankster, of Hackney, east London, had earlier pleaded not guilty to the offence, claiming he had been given the phone by a friend, had not taken part in any previous theft, and fled because he felt scared of the police.

Mr Oliver said taking the phone could have had a catastrophic impact on the victim, including the loss of precious photographs.

He added: It was plainly your intention that the victim would not get her phone back, its just good fortune that those consequences did not happen.
Rishi Sunak said it was very disappointing that one of his closest parliamentary aides had placed a bet on the date of the General Election just days before the Prime Minister called it.

Craig Williams, who served as Mr Sunaks parliamentary private secretary and is the Conservative candidate for Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr, has apologised but refused to say whether he placed the bet on the basis of insider information.

The Prime Minister also declined to say whether Mr Williams knew when polling day would be when he put money on it, saying it would be inappropriate to comment while the Gambling Commission investigates the matter.

Mr Williams, who was the Tory MP for Montgomery until the election was called, is alleged to have placed a 100 bet on a July polling day some three days before Mr Sunak named the date as July 4, at a Ladbrokes in his constituency.

He told the BBC on Thursday: I clearly made a huge error of judgment, thats for sure, and I apologise.

Asked about the case while attending the G7 summit in Puglia, the Prime Minister told broadcasters: Its very disappointing news and you will have seen Craig Williams say that it was a huge error of judgment.

Now, theres an independent inquiry that is ongoing, which is necessarily confidential, as well as independent. And youll appreciate that, given that, it wouldnt be appropriate for me to comment while thats ongoing.

Pressed on what Mr Williams knew at the time of the bet, Mr Sunak repeated that it wouldnt be right for me to comment while the probe is being carried out.

Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron criticised Craig Williamss very foolish bet (Leon Neal/PA)

Mr Williams said on Wednesday that he was facing a Gambling Commission investigation, writing on social media that he would fully co-operate with some routine inquiries.

Asked repeatedly whether he had had insider information, Mr Williams told the BBC on Thursday: I will not be expanding on that statement because its an independent process.

The Gambling Commission are looking at it now.

As a parliamentary aide, Mr Williams acted as a go-between for the Prime Minister and his MPs, and is understood to be a trusted member of Mr Sunaks team.

The Guardian reported that the bet would have led to a payout of 500.

Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron condemned Mr Williamss move as very foolish.

The Cabinet minister told BBC Breakfast that Mr Williams is already standing as a Conservative candidate and I dont think we can change that, adding Mr Williams will have to face the consequences of the Gambling Commission probe.

The Liberal Democrats called for a Cabinet Office inquiry to look into what information Mr Williams had at the time of his bet.

Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey told broadcasters in Kent: If someone knows the outcome of something, it seems to me morally questionable for them to put a bet on it if they know the result of that outcome.

His deputy Daisy Cooper said: Rishi Sunak must stop being so weak and call a Cabinet Office inquiry into this latest scandal.

This inquiry is needed to get to the bottom of who knew what when, and uncover whether Craig Williams knew the election date at the time the bet was placed.

The Conservative Party has been mired in endless sleaze and scandal for years, and the British people are sick to their back teeth with it.
Passengers who suffer flight disruption are often left unsure what they are entitled to.

Here the PA news agency answers 14 key questions on assistance and compensation.

Passengers often struggle to receive the assistance they are entitled to during major disruption (Victoria Jones/PA)

 What flights are covered by UK consumer law?

Flights operated by an airline departing from a UK airport, flights operated by a UK or EU airline arriving at a UK airport, or flights operated by a UK airline arriving at an EU airport.

 How long must a flight be delayed before I am entitled to assistance?

It depends on the distance of the flight.

For flights under 1,500km (932 miles) such as from Glasgow to Amsterdam: at least two hours.

For flights between 1,500km (932 miles) and 3,500km (2,175 miles) such as from Manchester to Marrakesh: at least three hours.

For flights over 3,500km (2,175 miles) such as from Heathrow to New York: at least four hours.

 What should this assistance include?

A reasonable amount of food and drink (often via vouchers), a means for you to communicate (often by refunding the cost of phone calls), and accommodation and transfers if an overnight stay is required.

 What happens in reality?

Airlines often fail to provide this assistance during major disruption due to being overwhelmed by requests and there being a shortage of available rooms in local hotels.

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) says in this scenario, passengers can organise their own assistance and claim the costs back from the airline by submitting receipts.

 Does that mean I should book a luxury hotel suite and order champagne?

Airlines are unlikely to reimburse you for that. The CAA advises passengers not to spend more than is reasonable.

 How long must assistance be provided?

Until your flight takes off or you accept a refund after deciding not to travel.

 What about getting to my destination?

If a flight is cancelled, airlines are required to get you to your destination if you still want to travel.

Most will book you onto another of their flights, but you may be entitled to travel with another airline or by an alternative mode of transport if it will get you to your destination significantly sooner.

Passengers doing this are often required to purchase their own tickets and submit a claim to their original airline for reimbursement.

 What if I no longer want to travel?

You are entitled to a refund if you have been delayed by more than five hours.

 Am I entitled to compensation for a delayed flight?

Airlines may be liable for compensation if the reason for a delay is deemed within their control, such as a fault with the aircraft or pilot sickness.

Causes of disruption classed as outside their control include severe weather, air traffic control restrictions and security alerts.

 How much can I claim for a delay?

It depends on the length of the flight and how much its arrival was later than scheduled.

For flights under 1,500km (932 miles): 220 for a delay of at least three hours.

For flights between 1,500km (932 miles) and 3,500km (2,175 miles): 350 for a delay of at least three hours.

For flights over 3,500km (2,175 miles): 260 for a delay of at least three hours but less than four hours.

For flights over 3,500km (2,175 miles): 520 for a delay of at least four hours.

 What if my flight is cancelled?

You are entitled to a refund or a replacement flight.

 What are my rights to assistance?

The same as if your flight is delayed.

 Can I claim compensation if my flight is cancelled?

You can if the reason is deemed within the airlines control, you received no more than 14 days notice, and depending on the timings of a new flight offered.

 If I can claim, how much money will I get?

Between 110 and 520, depending on the length of the route and the timings of a new flight.
The Prince of Wales has made a private visit to MI6, with the details shrouded in secrecy.

Heir to the throne William met with the Secret Intelligence Service, which deals with foreign intelligence and protects the UK from risks abroad, on Thursday afternoon.

The visit was not publicised in advance and only appeared afterwards in the Court Circular, the daily list of official royal engagements, which is published the next day.

The headquarters of MI6 in London (Anthony Devlin/PA)

It is not known whether the prince met MI6 boss Sir Richard Moore, codenamed C.

The entry in the Court Circular read simply The Prince of Wales this afternoon visited the Secret Intelligence Service with no location or additional details given.

Kensington Palace declined to provide further information on the visit.

William, as the Duke of Cambridge, made a similar visit in 2022, and went to the MI6 headquarters in London with the now-Princess of Wales in 2012.

In 2019, he also spent three weeks working with MI5, MI6 and GCHQ to learn how the UKs security and intelligence agencies work.

William meeting 007 star Daniel Craig, who played the fictional MI6 spy James Bond, in 2021 (Chris Jackson/PA)

These agencies are full of people from everyday backgrounds doing the most extraordinary work to keep us safe, he said at the time.

They work in secret, often not even able to tell their family and friends about the work they do or the stresses they face.

In March, MI6 launched a recruitment drive to hire more spies from black and Asian backgrounds.

The first black spy to give a live broadcast interview told BBC Radio 1Xtra that working for MI6 was more exciting than James Bond  the fictional MI6 spy who serves king and country.
An Indiana woman has been taken into custody after authorities discovered 61 pounds of cocaine in her possession at a Chicago airport.

Officials with the Drug Enforcement Administration Chicago Division consensually searched luggage at Chicago Midway International Airport that allegedly belonged to 27-year-old Chania R. Logan from Indianapolis, according to a DEA press release. She and another individual, who was not publicly identified, had traveled to the city from Los Angeles.

Inside her luggage, authorities found 31 pounds of suspected cocaine.

More: Woman tried to board flight at Memphis Airport with 56 pounds of marijuana: Reports

The luggage of Southwest Airlines passengers waits to be claimed in the baggage claim area at Chicago Midway International Airport in Chicago, Illinois, on December 28, 2022.

Second person ran away from law enforcement

According to the DEA release, when officials tried to speak with the second individual, he fled the scene, leaving his two bags behind. In total, law enforcement seized 61.7 pounds of cocaine.

The woman, who was ordered to be on electronic monitoring by Judge William N. Fahy, was charged with controlled substances trafficking and possession of a controlled substance with the intent to deliver, authorities noted.

It's unclear how much the drugs found in the woman's luggage are worth, but in 2021, after arresting a woman who tried to smuggle 59.73 pounds of cocaine, California's El Centro Sector Border Patrol estimated the haul $948,000.

Memphis woman arrested with more than 50 pounds of marijuana in bags

Earlier this year, in April, a Memphis woman was caught with 56 pounds of marijuana in her luggage. She gave police permission to search her belongings that were "busted open" on a United Airlines cart.

The 21-year-old was charged with possession of a controlled substance with the intention to manufacture, deliver or sell.

Taylor Ardrey is a news reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach her at tardrey@gannett.com

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 61 pounds of cocaine found in luggage at Chicago Midway Airport
Hana Ikramuddin is a Hearst Fellow in Connecticut. She spent the first part of her fellowship at the Houston Chronicle.

Raised in the Twin Cities, Hana majored in journalism and political science at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis.

She has held internships with the Star Tribune, APM Reports and Sahan Journal. In her free time, she loves to cook, make chai and take care of her houseplants.
Andrew McCarthy has come to accept, even love, the Brat Pack. But it's been a journey.

For years, the "Pretty In Pink" and "St. Elmo's Fire" actor bristled at the mention of the unshakable description thrust upon a generation of young rising stars in the 1980s. Yet in his new Hulu documentary "Brats" (streaming Thursday), McCarthy embarks on a journey tracking down other forever-branded members  stars like Demi Moore, Ally Sheedy, Rob Lowe and Emilio Estevez  to talk Brat Pack.

"There's only a handful of us that this all happened to, the only ones who know what it felt like. But we never talked about it," director McCarthy, 61, tells USA TODAY of his "Brats" discussions with co-stars he hadn't spoken with in decades. "We have something really profound that happened in our lives, and they were willing to talk to me about it on camera."

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How did Andrew McCarthy get the Brat Pack to talk in 'Brats'?

Ally Sheedy (from left), Andrew McCarthy and Demi Moore attend the "Brats" premiere at Tribeca Film Festival in New York on June 7, 2024.

"Brats" begins with McCarthy reaching out to the Brat Pack by pulling out old contacts, even wrangling Judd Nelson's phone number from a manager. McCarthy makes the first filmed call to Estevez, who was the subject of a snarky 1985 New York Magazine cover story that coined the instantly permanent term Brat Pack.

"I felt that I had lost the narrative of my career overnight," McCarthy says of the infamous article. The ensemble movie "St. Elmo's Fire" (starring Estevez, Moore, Sheedy, Lowe and Nelson), released a few weeks later, became the white-hot center of the Brat Pack sensation.

Contrary to the public imagination, the Brat Pack members didn't hang out, especially after the article came out. And they didn't keep in touch. McCarthy's cold calls kicking off "Brats" are raw. Many go to voicemail.

"When I'm calling somebody, it's the first time in more than 30 years. But it's like, 'Let's call Emilio,' " McCarthy says. "I wanted the viewers to be on this journey with me. I seem wary and trepidatious at first."

When McCarthy meets with Estevez, 62, at his Malibu home in "Brats," it's their first face-to-face encounter since the premiere of "St. Elmo's Fire." The conversation hits on Estevez's past telling comment that "Brat Pack will be on my tombstone" (he still believes it and accepts it). The "Young Guns" actor also reveals that he avoided starring in movies with McCarthy and the others because they were "kryptonite to each other."

"Emilio was particularly poignant," McCarthy says of the discussion before the two hugged it out.

In successive conversations with Lowe, Sheedy and Moore (whom he calls "the Obi-Wan Kenobi of my film"), McCarthy explores the confusing Brat Pack past and the long, often painful road to appreciating their shared history.

"Everybody started at the same point: Everybody hated it when it happened. And then over time, everyone's evolution toward it has been different," McCarthy says. "But we never talked about it because the minute it happened, those relationships scattered and those ensemble movies stopped. No one wanted to be in a movie together. So the very naming of the Brat Pack ended the Brat Pack, in a certain way."

Judd Nelson, from left, Emilio Estevez, Ally Sheedy, Molly Ringwald and Anthony Michael Hall in John Hughes' "The Breakfast Club." The actors in the film are considered part of the Brat Pack.

Are Molly Ringwald and Judd Nelson in 'Brats'?

John Hughes' 1985 film "The Breakfast Club" is a cornerstone of the Brat Pack library, with a cast that includes Estevez, Sheedy, Nelson and Molly Ringwald. The latter two stars did not ultimately sit down for "Brats" interviews.

"We asked Judd, we asked Molly," McCarthy says. "It didn't work out."

There's a recurring "Brats" theme of McCarthy wrangling Nelson  talking to him on the phone, leaving messages, and traveling to Los Angeles to find that Nelson is out of town.

"Then eventually, finally, (Nelson) said, 'You know what? I don't feel like doing it.' Which is fine," says McCarthy, who points out that Nelson and Ringwald appear in "Brats" through "really insightful" archival interviews.

Andrew McCarthy reconnects with fellow actor Demi Moore in "Brats."

The vintage footage of the actors being probed about the derivative term during interviews are painful to watch.

"For like the first two months, the Brat Pack is brought up all the time. And we're reacting to it, often twitching and cringing," McCarthy says. "Clearly, everybody's publicist said 'No Brat Pack questions.' So then everybody's asking about it without using the two words. Which is really awkward because, clearly, that was forbidden. But that didn't work either."

Through the "Brats" interviews, which include pop-culture social scientist Malcolm Gladwell, McCarthy furthers his appreciation of why fans looked to these stars during the youth-movie explosion the Brat Pack ignited.

"The public realized very quickly, 'This is awesome. These guys represent us,' " McCarthy says. "So they understood something we didn't at the beginning."

Andrew McCarthy works the phones to speak to the Brat Pack for his new Hulu documentary "Brats."

People are still talking about the Brat Pack 39 years after the article, sharing memories with McCarthy on the streets of New York City, where he resides. He accepts these talks with a grateful state of mind.

"This film is all of us being like, 'What the heck was all that?' to 'Wow, that was a beautiful thing.' We are the avatars of a generation's youth. I wouldn't trade this for the world. But if you told me that 30 years ago, I would have said that you were crazy."

Like Estevez, McCarthy is sure the Brat Pack will follow him beyond this life.

"If there is an obituary, that will be in the first sentence. Fair play. The beauty of it is that now I'm cool with that. It's like, I'll take that."

Looking for reliable streaming options to catch "Brats" on Hulu? Check out USA TODAY Home Internet for broadband service plans in your area.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How Andrew McCarthy wrangled the Brat Pack for 'Brats' documentary
President Joe Biden reminded voters that the fight for women's reproductive freedom is not over despite the Supreme Court's decision on regulation of the abortion pill mifepristone on Thursday, which preserved access to the medication nationwide.

"Today's decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues," Biden said in a statement. "It does not change the fact that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, and women lost a fundamental freedom."

The Supreme Court decision and Biden's comments come in an election year where abortion is a key issue for many voters. Both Biden and his opponent, former President Donald Trump, have worked to address abortion as they campaign.

MORE: Supreme Court unanimously strikes down legal challenge to abortion pill mifepristone

PHOTO: President Joe Biden speaks at a 'Reproductive Freedom Campaign Rally' at George Mason University, Jan. 23, 2024, in Manassas, Va. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Biden said that although the decision means that "women can continue to access" mifepristone, he pointed to other laws to show that the fight for access to reproductive freedoms is ongoing.

"Women are being turned away from emergency rooms, or forced to go to court to plead for care that their doctor recommended or to travel hundreds of miles for care," Biden said in the statement. "Doctors and nurses are being threatened with jail time, including life in prison, for providing the health care they have been trained to provide."

He said that this efforts was part of an "extreme and dangerous agenda" from Republican elected officials to "ban abortion nationwide."

PHOTO: Boxes of the drug mifepristone sit on a shelf at the West Alabama Women's Center in Tuscaloosa, Ala., March 16, 2022. (Allen G. Breed/AP, FILE)

"The stakes could not be higher for women across America," Biden said.

The Biden campaign stressed that the state of abortion rights in America remains on shaky ground.

"Here's the reality: this case, brought on by Donald Trump's allies, was only one tactic in a broader, relentless strategy to strip away access to reproductive freedom everywhere in this country," campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez told reporters on a press call hours after the Supreme Court's decision.

PHOTO: Supreme Court is seen on Capitol Hill, April 25, 2024. (J. Scott Applewhite/AP, FILE)

MORE: What to know about mifepristone after Supreme Court strikes down legal challenge to abortion pill

Chavez Rodriguez and Mini Timmaraju, president and CEO of Reproductive Freedom for All, stressed that a second Trump presidency would threaten reproductive rights.

"Let me be clear: this attack on medication abortion is only possible because Donald Trump overturned Roe v. Wade," Timmaraju said, referring to the former president's appointment of conservative justices who voted in 2022 in favor of striking down the federal protection for abortion.

Trump said in April that abortion should be decided by the states. He has not said if he personally favors a certain number of weeks into pregnancy at which state-level bans should take effect, though he has publicly criticized a six-week ban in Florida and, more recently, talked privately about the idea of a national 16-week ban with exceptions, sources told ABC News in February.

Biden also vowed that he and Vice President Kamala Harris will fight for abortion rights.

MORE: Trump doesn't mention abortion during brief remarks to anti-abortion group

"We will continue to fight to ensure that women in every state get the health care they need and we will continue to call on Congress to restore the protections of Roe v. Wade in federal law -- that is our commitment," Biden said.

Harris said a vote for Biden is a vote for reproductive freedom.

"The contrast is stark: While Trump relentlessly attacks reproductive freedoms, President Biden and I will never stop fighting to protect them," Harris said in a statement. "Americans have repeatedly made it clear they want more freedom, not less, and they will make their voices heard at the ballot box once again this November."

Mifepristone is the first pill taken in a two-drug regimen for medication abortion, which is the most common method of abortion in the country.

The court's ruling means mifepristone will remain available under preexisting conditions, which include allowing women to receive the medication by mail and without any in person dispensation requirement.

Biden says the 'fight for reproductive freedom continues' despite SCOTUS mifepristone ruling originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
WASHINGTON  Former President Donald Trump talked about backing his fellow Republicans on the campaign trail this fall and laid out a conservative wish list on issues ranging from tariffs to abortion rights as he met with GOP lawmakers in Washington on Thursday.

It's not uncommon for presumptive presidential nominees to meet with lawmakers from their party to plot their agenda should they win in an election year. But this trip marks the first time Trump has returned to Capitol Hill since leaving office nearly four years ago and when a mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021.

Trump said he plans to help the majority of House Republicans win reelection in a nod to the infighting among the group that has at times extended to the campaign trail. Moderate Republicans have endorsed primary challenges against their more conservative colleagues and vice versa, sparking even more tension in the conference.

Trump declined to name names, but the former president has railed against Rep. Bob Good, R-Va., chair of the ultraconservative House Freedom Caucus, for alleged disloyalty. The Virginia Republican is facing a competitive primary challenger who's backed by Trump and the more moderate wing of the House GOP conference.

Trump was also genial with the room of senators he met later on Thursday, including Sens. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, and Bill Cassidy, R-La., who have been critical of Trump, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., with whom he has had a famously frosty relationship.

"I've been here five years. That's probably the warmest meeting that I have been in with senators and Trump," said Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo. "He said several times 'I know we've had some disagreements in the room, but we have those, we work 'em out.'"

The visit comes after Trump was convicted by a New York jury in his hush money trial and weeks before he's slated to be formally nominated at the Republican National Convention. The twin meetings with congressional Republicans are supposed to help bring them together as GOP lawmakers have, at times, struggled to agree on major policy priorities, such as providing additional aid to Ukraine.

But the welcome was so warm in Washington that House Republicans sang happy birthday to Trump  who turns 78 on Friday  and gifted him a bat and baseball from Wednesday night's Congressional Baseball Game (Republicans routed Democrats during the annual tradition, winning 31-11). At the Senate meeting, Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., presented him with a birthday cake.

Trump met with House Republican lawmakers in the morning at the Capitol Hill Club and gathered with Senate Republicans in the afternoon at the National Republican Senatorial Committee office, both locations adjacent to the Capitol grounds.

Former President Donald Trump raises his fist as he departs the Capitol Hill Club after meeting with congressional House Republicans on June 13, 2024, in Washington, D.C.

However, some moderate members skipped the meeting with Senate Republicans, such as Sens. Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska. Several of their peers said that's not necessarily a problem.

I think theres lots of reasons for people to not show up, including scheduling conflicts, said Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D. It's a grand opportunity for us all to get together to kick off the official campaign but also to prepare, possibly, for a transition."

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) arriving before a gathering with Former President Donald Trump at the Capitol Hill Club and Congressional House Republicans on June 13, 2024 on Capitol Hill.

House GOP tries to portray unity and rally behind Trump

The presumptive GOP nominee was "upbeat" during the morning meeting with House members, according to Rep. Ralph Norman, R-S.C., and joked about the GOP members in the room who previously voted to impeach him, including, Reps. David Valadao, R-Calif., and Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Wash.

Trump also praised House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., and joked with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., telling her to be "nice" to the speaker, according to Norman. Greene led a failed push last month to oust Johnson and has been one of his most vocal critics.

House GOP conference chair Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., a top Republican on Trump's vice presidential shortlist, said at a press conference after the meeting that it was "a unifying event."

The former president also touched on policy, including tariffs and abortion rights, Rep. Kevin Hern, R-Okla., said. Trump reiterated "the Dobbs decision" overturning the constitutional right to an abortion "was the right decision for America and that the American people need to decide the issue as they're doing right now," Hern said.

Trump also brought up a proposal he announced at a Nevada rally to eliminate tax on workers' tips, according to another GOP member in the room.

But Trump also joked about the upcoming campaign season. The former president said Milwaukee, Wisconsin, which will host the Republican National Convention, "is a horrible city," according to a lawmaker in the room.

Several Wisconsin Republican lawmakers quickly pushed back on reports of Trump's comments. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis., said Trump was referring to the crime rate in Milwaukee, while Rep. Bryan Steil, R-Wis., said Trump did not make those remarks at all.

The Democratic National Committee also seized on those remarks: "Donald Trump and the RNC havent even bothered to set up a real campaign operation in Wisconsin  theyd rather stick to telling voters how much they hate the city they chose to hold their convention in," DNC Rapid Response Director Alex Floyd said in a statement.

Hours before Trump arrived in Capitol Hill, President Joe Biden's campaign also released a new ad attacking the former president over the Jan. 6 Capitol attacks. "Make no mistake  Trump has already cemented his legacy of shame in our hallowed halls." former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said in a statement in an announcement from the campaign.

Former President Donald Trump departs after delivering remarks at a House Republicans Conference meeting at the Capitol Hill Club on June 13, 2024, in Washington, D.C.

Donald Trump, Mitch McConnell met for the first time in years

McConnell and Trump have for years had a tense relationship, though the Kentucky Republican endorsed the presumptive Republican nominee in March. The two had not met in person since 2020, as McConnell accepted the results of the 2020 presidential election and blamed the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol attack on Trump.

But at the meeting Thursday, McConnell and Trump shook hands. Trump even went out of his way to say McConnell is not to blame for Republicans failing to win control of the Senate in 2022.

During the Senate meeting, Trump also spoke about his abortion position  reiterating that he believes states should decide how and whether to regulate it. He also delved into Republican priorities on immigration, energy and the economy, and he did not repeat his unfounded claim that the 2020 election was stolen: "He talked about the future. What we did in the past, what we're going to do again. That we're in good shape but taking nothing for granted," said Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.

Trump also spoke extensively about the plan to eliminate taxes on tips, which he "thinks is a great example of how working people in this economy just cant get ahead," said Hawley.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., arrives for a news conference at the Republican National Committee after meeting with former President Donald Trump and the House Republican Conference on June 13, 2024.

Trump went into detail on energy policy, according to Barrasso, including plans to protect gas-powered cars.

The meetings may have also served another purpose: Giving Trump face time with several of the people he is considering as his running mate. That includes Sens. JD Vance, R-Ohio, Tim Scott, R-S.C., and Marco Rubio, R-Fla., as well as House members such as Stefanik and Byron Donalds, R-Fla.

Trump reportedly named all three of the Senate contenders in the afternoon meeting, but he spent the most time praising Scott.

He told Fox News following the Senate meeting that his future pick for vice president was "probably" in the room with him.

"I think we'll probably announce it during the convention," he said. Adding that he has a "pretty good idea" of who his pick will be.

Multiple senators said Trump expressed optimism about the path to victory for senators in competitive states this fall. Democrats are on offense this year in the race to control the upper chamber. That's because Democratic incumbents hold most of the vulnerable seats, including in two states that Trump won by a large margin in 2020, Sens. Jon Tester, D-Mont., and Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio.

In the days leading up to Trump's meetings with Republicans in Washington, GOP lawmakers told USA TODAY they expected the gatherings to be critical for building a working relationship should the GOP take full control of Washington, picking up the White House and the Senate and maintaining control of the House.

That kind of sweep would be an uphill battle for either party.

Thats the main thing that we need to make sure we talk about: That we communicate for the next few months, have a plan going into January, said Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala. As for what was on the table? You name it. All the crap that we had to put up for four years.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump meets with Republicans in Congress to talk 2025 GOP priorities
The plaintiffs cited a series of tweets by Elon Musk, several of which reference his penis - AP

Elon Musk pursued women at his company for sex, including a former intern more than 20 years his junior with whom he had a relationship, according to a report.

Former executives at Mr Musks SpaceX wrote in signed affidavits  first reported by The Wall Street Journal  that the billionaire also had a month-long affair in 2014 with a second female employee who reported to him directly.

The newspaper claims she faced recriminations when the relationship ended badly, and she left the company and signed an agreement prohibiting her from discussing her work for Mr Musk.

Mr Musk, SpaceXs chief executive, is also alleged in 2013 to have asked a third member of staff to have his children.

According to the affidavit, the employee refused Mr Musks advances and he then denied her a raise.

Mr Musk and SpaceX have been approached for comment.

Former SpaceX executives told the newspaper that company policies are not enforced with Mr Musk, and that contributes to a culture of sexism and harassment.

SpaceXs president, Gwynne Shotwell, told the newspaper that the company fully investigates all complaints of harassment and takes appropriate actions in response.

In a separate case, SpaceX and Mr Musk were sued on Wednesday by eight engineers who say they were illegally fired for raising concerns about alleged sexual harassment and discrimination against women.

The engineers  four women and four men  claim that Mr Musk ordered them to be sacked in 2022 after they circulated a letter calling the billionaire a distraction and embarrassment and urging executives to disavow sexually charged comments he had made on social media.

In the lawsuit, which was filed in a state court in Los Angeles, the plaintiffs cited a series of tweets by Mr Musk, several of which reference his penis, including one from 2022 telling the former chief executive of YouTube if you touch my wiener, you can have a horse.





Hi Chad, long time no see!



Fine, if you touch my wiener, you can have a horse.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) May 20, 2022

The lawsuit says Mr Musks conduct fostered a pervasively sexist culture at SpaceX where female engineers were routinely subjected to harassment and sexist comments and their concerns about workplace culture were ignored.

Senior engineers, for example, used euphemisms for sexual acts and male genitals to describe rocket components, according to the lawsuit.

These actions ... had the foreseeable and actual result of offending, causing distress, and intruding upon Plaintiffs well-being so as to disrupt their emotional tranquility in the workplace, the plaintiffs said in the filing.

SpaceX did not respond to a request for comment on the California lawsuit but it has in the past denied wrongdoing, saying the 2022 letter was disruptive and the workers were properly fired for violating company policies.

The company has also denied that Musk was involved in the decision to fire the engineers.

The plaintiffs are seeking unspecified damages and an order barring SpaceX from continuing to engage in its allegedly unlawful conduct.

Allegations of sexual harassment and retaliation at SpaceX have been raised in previous legal filings, including California civil rights complaints earlier this year.

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Tesla (TSLA) shareholders reapproved Elon Musks record-breaking pay pact and signed off on a new Texas incorporation in a show of support for the CEO as he fights legal battles on multiple fronts.

"Hot damn, I love you guys," Musk said after the votes were tabulated while speaking at the company's annual shareholder meeting in Austin, Texas.

Tesla said 72% of votes cast by shareholders, excluding Musk and his brother Kimbal, were in favor of a $56 billion compensation package that was awarded in 2018 and then voided this year by a Delaware judge. That pay plan is now valued at roughly $48 billion.

The pay pact received 73% support when it was first granted six years ago.

The voting count was 84% for a reincorporation in Texas instead of Delaware  a move made in reaction to the January ruling against Musk's pay. That total also excluded shares owned by Musk and his brother.

Musk said Friday on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter that he owns, that he would send a cake to Delaware with the Latin phrase "Vox Populi, Vox Dei" as a "parting gift."

Sending this cake to Delaware as a parting gift  pic.twitter.com/uLKE7LDSCW  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 14, 2024

Teslas stock was little changed premarket on Friday and fell 1% in early trading. It rose 3% during market hours Thursday after Musk previewed this final outcome by saying that both proposals were "passing by wide margins."

Musk became the latest of many bosses this year who successfully defeated attempts to tamp down their pay.

Just two companies out of 340 that held such shareholder votes as of June 6 had their executive pay packages rejected, according to ISS-Corporate. That failure rate of 0.6% is lower than any full year since 2020.

But Thursdays results may not spell the end of the corporate governance drama at Tesla.

For one, shareholders unhappy with the result could challenge its legality before the same Delaware court that voided Musks pay earlier this year.

One shareholder already filed a lawsuit last week in that state challenging both Tesla's pay and redomestication proposals, alleging that Musk used "strong-arm, coercive tactics" in his efforts to persuade shareholders to ratify the proposals.

"It is likely Tesla will end up back in Delaware courts defending the package against lawsuits," Jerry Comizio, a business law professor at American University's Washington College of Law, told Yahoo Finance.

Comizio said shareholders might claim that the process leading to Thursday's vote suffered from the same type of disclosure, corporate governance, and fiduciary duty deficiencies that caused the Delaware judge to invalidate the 2018 vote.

Elon Musk arrives at a prize ceremony in April at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP) (Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP)

The Delaware judge, Kathaleen McCormick, ruled that Teslas board didnt act "in the best interests" of Tesla shareholders in approving the $56 billion deal.

The central thrust of McCormick's decision, according to Case Western Reserve University School of Law corporate law professor Anat Alon-Beck, was that Tesla's board did not follow proper procedures and disclosures or address numerous conflicts of interest with Musk.

"They always had the opportunity to do so, but chose not to," Alon-Beck said. "Instead, they materially failed to comply with disclosure obligations to shareholders that have been central tenants of Delaware law for decades."

But corporate compensation and governance attorney Bob Lamm said it's possible the company disclosed enough this time around to insulate itself from added litigation.

"You cant disclose everything," Lamm said. "At some point, the courts got to say: 'Tesla, you've done your job.'"

'Motivating' Musk

The ongoing drama around the vote intensified in recent weeks as Tesla chair Robyn Denholm and Musk advocated forcefully for a newly submitted pay package that was similar to the original 2018 award invalidated by the judge.

Publicly, Denholm submitted an open letter urging shareholder approval of Musks compensation package.

"Fairness and respect require that we honor the collective commitment we made to Elon  a commitment that was, and fundamentally still is, about retaining Elons attention and motivating him to focus on achieving astonishing growth for our company," Denholm wrote in her letter.

Denholms choice of words  "retaining Elons attention and motivating him"  raised eyebrows, as most independent board chairs generally do not pen open letters urging shareholder approval of management pay packages, let alone claiming the compensation is needed to keep the CEO motivated.

Even before the 2018 pay package was invalidated by the Delaware court, Musk threatened shareholders about his divided attention, as he is in charge or spends significant amounts of time at SpaceX, X.com (formerly Twitter), and the Boring Co., among other ventures.

"I am uncomfortable growing Tesla to be a leader in AI & robotics without having 25% voting control. Enough to be influential, but not so much that I cant be overturned," Musk said from his X account in January. "Unless that is the case, I would prefer to build products outside of Tesla."

Tesla board chair Robyn Denholm. (Photo by Alex Ellinghausen/Sydney Morning Herald via Getty Images) (Fairfax Media via Getty Images)

Case in point: Tesla recently had to deal with reports that Musk ordered Nvidia (NVDA) AI chips meant for Tesla to be diverted to X.com. Musk defended the move after the report's release, claiming Tesla lacked space to use the chips, and they would have sat in a warehouse otherwise.

In the days leading up to the vote, there were even more legal distractions for Musk and Tesla.

Late Tuesday the Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island (ERSRI) filed another lawsuit in Delaware accusing Musk and his brother Kimbal Musk of selling a combined $30 billion of stock using inside information  that being the two knew the proceeds would be used to fund Elon's purchase of Twitter (now X) and that two brothers were also aware that Tesla's vehicle deliveries had fallen below projections.

The Wall Street Journal also published a story late Tuesday night alleging Musk had numerous inappropriate relationships with employees at SpaceX, the rocket and spaceship company Musk founded and where he still serves as CEO.

Then separately on Wednesday eight former SpaceX employees filed a lawsuit against Musk for sexual harassment and retaliation in California state court, alleging that Musk created an "unwelcome hostile work environment" based on his behavior, among other allegations.

'Key man risk'

Musk was apparently involved in some efforts to bring big shareholders over to Tesla's side.

He reportedly joined recent meetings with proxy adviser Glass Lewis and money management giants Vanguard Group, State Street (STT), and BlackRock (BLK), all of which are among the top five institutional holders of Tesla.

Glass Lewis and another proxy adviser, ISS, recommended that shareholders vote against the remuneration.

But Teslas lobbying campaign apparently succeeded with at least some of those giant investors. The New York Times reported Thursday that both BlackRock and Vanguard voted in favor of the pay package.

Both Tesla shareholder resolutions are currently passing by wide margins!



 Thanks for your support!!  pic.twitter.com/udf56VGQdo  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 13, 2024

This time around, Tesla shareholders had slightly more information than they did before the vote on Musks pay six years ago.

Back then, in 2018, no one knew that Musk would satisfy all of the deal's revenue and operating milestones that unlock his right to purchase Tesla options at $70.

Had Musk failed to satisfy the escalating revenue and market cap requirements, his stock-option-based CEO compensation would have been zero.

He said Thursday in response to a question posed at the shareholder meeting that he has to own Tesla stock for five years.

"Its not actually cash, and I cant cut and run, nor do I want to," he said.

There were some smaller shareholder groups that came out against Musk's pay package, as well as one big one: Norway's $1.7 trillion sovereign wealth fund.

"We remain concerned about the total size of the award, the structure given performance triggers, dilution, and lack of mitigation of key person risk," Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), the operator of the fund, said.

Thank you.

Thank you to each and every one who voted.

And to those who still can't, you will be able next time. I will do everything in my power to help.



Your votes will help to remedy a true injustice. And it's just the beginning.



Don't mess with Tesla Retail Shareholders  pic.twitter.com/T6la80aGhO  Aleandra Merz (@TeslaBoomerMama) June 13, 2024

The fund, which also opposed Musk's pay package in 2018, holds a $5.6 billion stake encompassing 31.57 million shares, or 0.99% of all shares outstanding, making it Tesla's seventh-largest shareholder, per Capital IQ.

And the California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS) also said it would vote against Musk's pay package, with the pension fund's chief investment officer telling CNBC the stock awards were "ridiculous." CalSTRS owns around 4.7 million shares of Tesla.

But some Musk supporters doubled down on the argument that his presence is necessary for the future of Tesla.

Longtime Tesla shareholder Baillie Gifford said it would vote in favor of Musk's package, according to Bloomberg sources, with the reasoning being the package was aligned with shareholder returns.

"Elon is the ultimate key man of key man risk," billionaire Tesla investor Ron Baron wrote last week in an open letter arguing for approval of the pay package. Without his relentless drive and uncompromising standards, there would be no Tesla.

Some small stockholders took to social media to drum up votes and support for Musk. One who posted on X as @TeslaBoomerMama said Thursday, before the final vote was announced, that "your votes will help to remedy a true injustice."

"Don't mess with Tesla Retail Shareholders."

Correction: A previous version of this article misspelled attorney Bob Lamm's name. We regret the error.

Click here for in-depth analysis of the latest stock market news and events moving stock prices.

Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance
MINNEAPOLIS - The legislative session may be over, but the drama of its members continues on.

The Minnesota Senate Subcommittee on Ethical Conduct delayed action on the ethics complaint against state Sen. Nicole Mitchell, Woodbury-D, on Wednesday after the alleged felony burglary of her late father's ashes from her stepmother.

The committee met in St. Paul and agreed to hold off further action on the complaint against Mitchell until further developments in the case are released. Mitchell has a court hearing scheduled for July 1.

Mitchell's lawyer, Bruce Ringstrom Jr., told the four-person committee that his client's case won't be resolved for several months.

Minnesota State Senator Nicole Mitchel, D-District 47

Since she was removed from her committees in April, top Minnesota Democrats, including Gov. Tim Walz, D, and DFL Party Chairperson Ken Martin, have called for the 49-year-old's resignation.

Mitchell has refused to resign her seat.

More: Minnesota elections Minnesota elections: Post-Super Tuesday, what's next?

What does the Minnesota Senate ethics complaint say?

The Minnesota Senate ethics complaint alleges Mitchell violated Senate rules by illegally entering the home of her stepmother and attempting to steal. It also alleges that she tried to cover up the incident through the media by spreading misleading information.

Following her release from Becker County Jail, Mitchell posted on Facebook.

"Over the weekend, I learned of medical information which caused me grave concern and prompted me to check on that family member. I entered a home I have come and gone from countless times in the past 20 years, where my son even once had his own room. Unfortunately, I startled this close relative, exacerbating paranoia, and I was accused of stealing, which I absolutely deny," Mitchell wrote in the post.

The complaint alleges this information contradicts documented events detailed in the criminal complaint.

"As outlined in the criminal complaint, Senator Mitchell's actions not only represent a felonious violation of state law, but they also clearly betray the public trust and bring the Senate into dishonor and dispute," the ethics complaint said.

Why was Nicole Mitchell arrested?

In April, Mitchell was arrested after being found one morning in her 74-year-old stepmother's Detroit Lakes home, wearing all black, according to the criminal complaint.

The criminal complaint said Mitchell told officers that she was there to pick up her father's ashes as well as other personal belongings. She also said she left her home in Woodbury around 1 a.m. to drive to the house, where she entered through the window. The complaint said Mitchell was not speaking with this family member at the moment.

"I was just trying to get a couple of my dad's things because you wouldn't talk to me anymore," Mitchell told the victim, according to the complaint.

Mitchell was charged with first-degree burglary.

The subcommittee is set to meet again on July 25 to address the complaint, hoping that new information will be available to assess.

 Sam Woodward is the Minnesota elections reporting fellow for USA Today. You can reach her at swoodward@gannett.com, on X @woodyreports, or on Threads @samjowoody

This article originally appeared on St. Cloud Times: Senate delays Minnesota Sen. Nicole Mitchell burglary ethics complaint
Courtesy Lindsay Karp

This Fathers Day, my husband will awaken to his favorite breakfast: a cup of espresso, browned sunny-side-up eggs, and fresh fruit. Hell receive handmade cards from our boys, and theyll embark on a hike through our favorite mountains: the Catskills. Were celebrating deeply this year because my husband recently survived colon cancerand we had no idea he was even at risk until a routine screening saved his life.

Until just three years ago, the recommended age for an initial colonoscopy screening was 50 years old. But as rates of colorectal cancer have risen among younger adults, the recommendation for that initial screening was lowered to 45.

My husband was completely healthy. He hadnt experienced unintentional weight loss. There was no blood in his stool. Hed never had pain and had no family history of colon cancer. But as a physician, he felt he should follow the advice he gives his patients. So this past March, right after his 45th birthday, he had his first colonoscopy screening. He rarely takes a day off, so he was eager to receive a clear report and return to work the following day.

After the procedure, he was told that two small polyps were removed during the screening, but a larger one, measuring 55 millimeters, had to be surgically removed and biopsied the following week. Without any symptoms, he was surprised a polyp that size had grown covertly within him.

The call we dreaded

A few days later I got the news I had been fearing: They found cancer, my husband texted from the hospital where he works. A few minutes later, he repeated those words on the phone and my heart trembled as they sunk in. We were shocked and thrown off-kilter in an instant. Our routine that had provided comfort and stability crumbled beneath us.

I have had a long history of dealing with disease: My father had stage four tongue cancer when he was in his late 40s, so I knew what that word meant for our family. I was 17 when my dad went through radiation, chemotherapy and a lymph node resection. Id cry on my bedroom floor wondering if hed be at my high school graduation or if hed be present to walk me down the aisle on my wedding day. He was, and he didbut now my husband had cancer in his 40s and here I was facing it all over again from a different angle.

Suddenly, the strong, supportive husband and father who kept our household afloat seemed fragile and weak. Our leader and caregiver needed what hed always given usreassurance and positivity.

Having gone through my own 13-year diagnostic journey searching for a diagnosis to explain why walking and standing were a burden, we found ourselves now fulfilling opposite roles: I was providing support, and he was leaning on me in moments when crushing fear overwhelmed him. Surgery will cure this, right? hed ask. We both knew I didnt have the answer. But each time I responded definitively: Yes.

I had to put my chronic struggles with multiple sclerosis (MS) aside, knowing from experience that he needed me at my best, most positive self. Having faced medical uncertainty firsthand, I knew he required unwavering faith even when I wasnt sure I had it myself. It was the only way to move forward together.

Shannon Moriah

Telling the kids

We never envisioned having to tell our children that one of us has cancer. But we knew that in the days and weeks following the diagnosis, my husband would bring idiosyncrasies home from work and there would be a fearful atmosphere in our home. Our rhythm would be off, and I was sure theyd feel it, so being honest was the only option.

The polyp had some cancer in it. So, to be sure all the cancer is gone, they have to take out a piece of Daddys colon, I explained to my 9- and 12-year-old boys. The doctors think the cancer may already be gone, but this surgery will make sure it is, I said, presenting our daunting situation in the most positive way possible.

I had trouble accepting my fathers cancer diagnosis at 17, and I was worried that my boys, who were younger than I had been, would become anxious but lack the maturity to find enough strength to push on. Its going to be okay, we reassured them. After my older son asked a few questions about my husbands treatment and prognosis, they were able to move forward while focusing on school and extra visits from their grandparents.

My husbands physicians felt confident that the cancer had likely been cured with the removal of the polyp, but we remained cautiously optimistic as we awaited pathology results. The scientific reasoning my husband depended on as a physician crumbled internally as he found himself on the other side of the doctor-patient equation. Fear grew larger than knowledge.

After the initial colonoscopy and the procedure to remove the larger polyp, my husband had a right hemicolectomy, in which part of his colon was removed. After surgery, as my husband was lying in a hospital gown in the unit where he has treated patients for years, his colleagues cared for him as if our world had turned upside down. And it had. For almost a week, we tiptoed around our high hopes, wishing for good pathology results, but not wanting to be let down in the end.

Thankfully, we werent.

Healing and spreading the word

The wall of his colon where the polyp had been attached and the lymph nodes in the surrounding area showed no evidence of cancer. The screening had caught the growth in time for a surgical curechemotherapy and radiation werent needed. Finally, after three weeks, we could breathe again. Slowly, we found our way back to our routine, but with a healthy serving of caution remaining.

In a year, hell have another colonoscopy to check for polyps again. His screenings will occur at closer intervals to prevent any future polyps from growing large or becoming cancerous. It is recommended that our boys receive their first screening at 35 years old, as genetics can play a role in occurrence. This humbling journey has reminded my husband that no one is immune to disease. It has given him a new perspective and an ability to empathize with his patients on a more personal level.

As my family and I prepare to celebrate Fathers Day, my husbands story is a reminder of the importance of cancer screenings. According to the American Cancer Society (ACS), the lifetime risk of developing colorectal cancer is about 1 in 23 for men and 1 in 25 for women. In early 2023, the ACS reported that 20% of colorectal cancer diagnoses were in patients under 55which is about double the rate in 1995.

Cancer surgeons who treat colorectal cancer are urging people younger than 45even college studentsto be aware of any suspicious symptoms. But in the early stages there may be no symptoms, and thats what makes screenings so necessary.

We hope my husbands story can be the reason lives are saved this year. Were celebrating his second chance at lifeand theres no better Fathers Day gift than that.

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Henrik Fisker and Geeta Gupta-Fisker mismanaged Fisker to the brink of bankruptcy, former and current workers told Business Insider. Araya Doheny/Patrick Fallon/Getty Images; Jenny Chang-Rodriguez/BI

Henrik Fisker's second automotive startup filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Monday.

Fisker was pitched as a Tesla rival, but workers say mismanagement led to compounding problems.

Business Insider spoke with 27 former and current Fisker staff that charted the startup's downfall.

Fisker's staff was in chaos as they prepared to deliver the company's first batch of electric cars to US customers.

It had been four years since famed automotive designer Henrik Fisker unveiled his Tesla rival, an SUV called the Ocean, and the vehicle still wasn't ready.

In the weeks leading up to the big June 2023 event, Fisker staff raced to fix faulty parts on at least four of the 22 EVs that were set to be delivered  even stripping parts off the CEO and CFO's personal cars to repair the vehicles, including door handles and seat sensors, according to 11 sources familiar with the incident.

Two days later, Fisker board member Wendy Gruel's Ocean SUV, one of the cars that had been delivered at the event, shut off on a public road while going full speed, five sources said. Later, the same thing happened to Geeta Gupta-Fisker, Henrik's wife and the company's CFO and COO, workers said.

A Fisker spokesperson denied that workers used parts from pre-production vehicles for customer cars and said Gruel's car didn't stop on a public road. The company said Gupta-Fisker's vehicle had malfunctioned, but the issue was resolved.

When TechCrunch previously reported the incident with Gruel's car, the publication said the company had confirmed the incident and said the issue was fixed.

The issue was unrelated to Fisker's part swapping, but one thing was clear: the electric cars had barely hit the road and already the problems were piling up.

Henrik Fisker's EV startup seemed to be an easy sell at first. The 60-year-old automotive veteran boasts a long history in the industry, known for being the designer behind the Aston Martin V8, the BMW Z8 roadster that famously appeared in a 1999 James Bond film, and helping design Tesla's Model S.

Even though it was Henrik's second automotive startup after his first company went out of business in 2013, some workers told Business Insider that it was easy to dismiss worries early on that his second company could meet the same fate.

For his part, Henrik said he planned to do things differently this time. He would follow Apple's model by outsourcing production through Magna International and he also aimed to target the middle of the market with a more affordable EV option that could compete with Tesla's best-selling Model Y. Fisker Inc emerged in 2016 and went public in 2020 via a SPAC backed by Apollo Global Management. At one point, the company's market value soared as high as $8 billion.

At the time, Fisker was one of several EV startups to burst onto the scene  Rivian, Lucid, and Lordstown all wanted the chance to compete with Tesla. Since then, production and market headwinds have pushed some EV startups to shutter and major players like Ford and GM to scale back their electric-vehicle operations. Even Tesla has struggled, seeing revenue decline and layoffs.

"I was hopeful at first," one former VP, who worked at both Fisker startups, said. "Initially, at least, it seemed like he'd learned from his mistakes. It became obvious later on that they hadn't."

A Fisker spokesperson said it would be "unfair" to compare the two companies.

On Monday, the company announced it had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after months of struggling to stay afloat. The company cited "various market and macroeconomic headwinds."

Business Insider spoke with over two dozen current and former Fisker employees who worked at the startup during various periods from its launch in 2016 to the present. The workers, whose identities are known to BI, requested anonymity as they were not authorized to comment on Fisker's behalf and feared professional reprisal.

A husband and wife duo who workers say mismanaged their way into a mess

Many of Fisker's woes can be traced back to the husband-wife duo that launched the brand, multiple former and current workers told BI.

They described a disorganized environment in which unqualified people were brought in to lead major programs and basic automotive standards were ignored.

While Henrik often served as a figurehead, Gupta-Fisker was heavily involved in everyday decisions, including on the engineering side, 11 workers said. Prior to taking on the role of CFO and COO at Fisker, Gupta-Fisker had served as an investment manager for the Fisker family office and as an advisor at a nonprofit. She had no prior experience in the automotive industry. But at Fisker, the workers said she managed deals with Magna and outside parts suppliers, frequently popped into engineering meetings, and weighed in on everything from parts purchases to software decisions.

A spokesperson for Magna declined to comment on Fisker. A Fisker spokesperson denied comments that Henrik took on a more passive role and said he was "deeply involved."

Henrik Fisker shows off the Fisker Karma. The car he produced under his first automotive venture, which filed for bankruptcy a decade ago. Reuters/Phil McCarten

49-year-old Gupta-Fisker quickly became known in the company for her shrewd cost-cutting abilities. But, her strategy meant that at times Fisker ended up using components that didn't match the correct specifications for the Ocean, five former and current workers said. Gupta-Fisker made several decisions to use cheaper parts against Fisker executive and Magana executives' advice, two workers said. The mismatches led to issues with over-the-air updates, the five workers said.

The company said Magna oversaw the majority of parts sourcing and a "significant" amount of the parts came from Magna and its suppliers.

In conversations with BI, staff blamed many of the Ocean's faults on the cost-cutting efforts.

Several workers said that in the months leading up to the vehicle's launch, they filed internal reports recommending that the product undergo further testing and development before its release. They said they were told the company planned to proceed anyway.

"The focus was on getting the car to market as soon as possible," one former worker said. "The overarching belief was we could fix things with updates later on."

A Fisker spokesperson said Magna was responsible for testing and releasing the Ocean and it had been fully certified by regulators in the US and Europe. The company has been sending out over-the-air updates since 2023, the company said.

Ahead of the release, Fisker engineers were aware of multiple issues with the vehicle, according to five current and former workers, as well as internal documents viewed by Business Insider. Engineers had identified issues with the effectiveness of the car's door handles, key fobs, and seat sensors.

Over the past year, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has launched four investigations into Fisker's SUV, including issues with inadvertent braking and flaws in the vehicle's door latch system. The company said it is cooperating with NHTSA.

Fisker has also faced dozens of lemon law lawsuits. Last week, Fisker issued a recall for a software-related issue that it said caused some of its vehicles to suddenly lose power.

Cutting corners led to compounding issues

In its haste to bring the car to market, Fisker failed to set up an effective system for processing repair orders and warranty claims, seven current and former workers said. Technicians were tasked with filling out the work orders and many of them said they hadn't been trained on the process.

In lieu of a working warranty system, some workers began processing the repairs without the proper California Bureau of Automotive Repair codes and EPA license numbers, using "123456" as a placeholder on a number of repairs, according to an internal document viewed by BI. In March, a VP at Fisker warned the issue made the company non-compliant with NHTSA protocols and unable to properly track and report safety concerns.

A Fisker spokesperson said the issue was "an internal error with only draft work orders early in the service process that was immediately corrected."

The Fisker Ocean hit US roads in June 2023. Fisker

Without a proper system to process warranties or repair orders, the majority of repairs went unaccounted for, seven current and former workers said. That meant there wasn't an adequate way for Fisker to keep track of which parts were being used for repairs for its own financial records. It also meant many customers did not get a record of their repairs, workers said.

Meanwhile, Fisker also struggled to find the necessary parts for all of the fixes. The company hadn't set up much inventory for aftersales parts, so some of the parts used for customer fixes either came directly off the factory line, meaning they were meant for production vehicles, or the parts were stripped off pre-production and production vehicles, 11 workers with knowledge of the issue said.

In one instance, Fisker stripped parts off an engineering test vehicle that had been shipped from Magna's facility in Graz, Austria under an import bond, according to three former workers and emails viewed by BI. The vehicle was supposed to be destroyed in its entirety shortly after it was delivered to comply with the terms of the import. This is typically within a year, according to NHTSA, but the period can be extended in one-year increments up to 3 years. The vehicle's parts were not intended to be used for customers' cars.

The company denied any test vehicles had been used for parts and said all vehicles that had been imported for testing were destroyed under NHTSA's supervision within the allotted time period.

The spokesperson also denied that Fisker had a shortage of after-sales parts: "The Service department made its own forecast for parts, based on their sector knowledge. The Purchasing department supported those requests."

Fisker staff also looked for clever ways to address the parts shortage. In some instances, workers who visited Graz were told by managers to bring parts back in their suitcases to avoid paying import fees, seven workers said. One worker recalled having to leave personal belongings behind to fit air vents and key fobs into their luggage; another said they packed a larger bag to fit trim panels.

Fisker declined to comment on the claims.

A sales scramble amid negative reviews and vanishing demand

Fisker was initially successful in generating interest in the Ocean, with over 65,000 reservations initially placed.

But in the year since the Ocean's release, the company has delivered around 7,000 vehicles, a Fisker spokesperson said. Negative reviews  including YouTuber MKBHD calling it the "worst care I've ever reviewed"  took a toll on the brand, driving thousands of would-be customers to cancel their reservations.

In November, Fisker moved to bring in hiring recruiters to help sell the vehicle, as well as orchestrate the delivery of the car after the sale had been processed, six former workers said. In many cases, the recruiters, who had initially been brought onto the human resources team, had zero experience in automotive sales.

A Fisker spokesperson said that recruiting staff did join the sales efforts, though the company said they were asked to stay because they were successful in the new role.

Marques Brownlee reviewed the Fisker Ocean and called it "the worst car I've ever reviewed." YouTube

Selling the car wasn't easy either. The recruiters found themselves directly competing with the company's established sales team and there weren't enough leads to go around. Four former workers said Fisker's reservation numbers included many duplicate names in its count and it was difficult to track which customers had connected with a sales worker. As a result, some people on the reservation list would find themselves getting multiple calls per day from different Fisker representatives.

At one point, sales workers were instructed to target customers who had canceled their orders and pepper them with calls in an attempt to get them to reverse their decision, three former workers said.

Fisker also began hosting pop-up events to boost sales, including events in partnership with fan blog Fiskerati, two former employees told BI. The events varied from meetups at Panera parking lots to larger-scale test drive events. In at least one instance, the event was shut down after Fisker failed to get permission from the owner of the location, the two sources said. Queues of Fisker owners that needed repairs also showed up at the events, three former workers said. Fisker told BI that the event hosted at Panera was not a company event.

"Sometimes it was hard to sell the cars when you'd take someone on a test drive and any number of error messages would pop up," one former worker from sales said. "As time went on and it became clear the writing was on the wall, we became even more honest with the customers on the risk," they added.

Fisker said it was aware of the ADAS issues but it was fixed with an update.

Meanwhile, some customers who'd canceled their orders and never paid for the car ended up mistakenly receiving delivery of the vehicle anyway, four former workers said. Former Fisker Ocean owner Kurt Mechling told BI he received delivery of the vehicle before he'd signed off on the order or had his payment successfully processed.

In March, TechCrunch reported that Fisker temporarily "lost track of millions of dollars in customer payments" for multiple months. Four workers with knowledge of the issue confirmed to BI the incident involving misplaced payments occurred.

When the carmaker conducted an internal audit in December over the issue, workers began scrambling to find the missing payments and bring some of the vehicles that had been mistakenly delivered back, the workers said. Some workers were encouraged by upper management to threaten the customers by saying they'd put them on a repossession list which could impact their credit score, the former workers said.

A Fisker spokesperson said the company had an "organized process" to address issues with vehicles that had not been paid for that was in line with industry standards.

Filing for bankruptcy  again

Fisker had been facing the possibility of bankruptcy for months.

Fisker warned in March that it might go out of business within the year. The stock was delisted from the New York Stock Exchange in April after it fell to 9 cents per share.

Fisker warned staff in an April filing that they could be laid off if the company couldn't find a buyer or additional investor. The company brought in a chief restructuring officer who was given "sole authority" over some financial matters, including a potential sale, as part of an agreement with one of its investors.

Fisker also dropped prices by as much as $24,000 for some versions of the vehicle and conducted a series of layoffs that whittled the company down to the bone.

Ahead of the bankruptcy filing, Fisker's workforce consisted of less than 100 people, according to two sources with knowledge of the issue. The remaining workers were involved in last-ditch efforts to offload the company's remaining inventory, the people said.

A week before the bankruptcy filing, Fisker denied it had less than 100 workers left and told BI it continues to sell vehicles in the US and in Europe. It declined to specify how many workers remained.

In its Chapter 11 filing, Fisker said that its manufacturing pause would remain in place but that it plans to file "customary motions" with the bankruptcy court to ensure it can continue to pay employee wages and its vendors.

Over the past few months, workers have expressed dissatisfaction with what they view as Henrik and Gupta-Fisker's inability to take accountability for their actions. A Fisker spokesperson pushed back on the comments questioning Henrik's business prowess.

For Henrik, whose earlier company, Fisker Automotive, filed for bankruptcy in 2013, his present predicament echoes the past.

"I think it's a story of ego. He wanted to make a car and stamp his name on it. Henrik is a great designer, but he doesn't have the business acumen beyond that," an individual who worked with Henrik at several companies, including his first automotive startup. "The lessons he should have learned from the first startup were never implemented and he rushed a car to market once again."

June 18, 2024: Updated to reflect that Fisker filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

June 12, 2024: Added clarification that NHTSA requires temporarily imported vehicles to be destroyed within 3 years and that Fisker said it had done so within the allotted time period.

Do you work for an EV company like Fisker or Tesla? Reach out to the reporter from a non-work email and device at gkay@businessinsider.com or 248-894-6012.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Mark James, a Songwriters Hall of Fame member who wrote or co-wrote Suspicious Minds, Always on My Mind and Hooked on a Feeling, died June 8 at his home in Nashville. The news was reported by his hometown newspaper, the Houston Chronicle.

James was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2014. BMI named him one of its Songwriters of the Century in 2000, citing all three of the aforementioned tunes as being on a list of the 100 greatest songs of the 20th century.

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James won two Grammys, both in 1983 for Always on My Mind, which he shared with co-writers Wayne Carson and Johnny Christopher. It won both song of the year and country song of the year after being recorded by Willie Nelson, who took it to No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 1 on the country songs chart. It was previously recorded by  and is often associated with  Elvis Presley, although his 1972 version was not a major hit at the time in the U.S., having been issued as an Elvis B-side. A cover version by the Pet Shop Boys was arguably as big internationally as Nelsons, reaching No. 1 in the U.K. and No. 4 in the U.S. The song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2008.

James had several of his biggest successes come with Presley recordings. Suspicious Minds, which was a solo James composition, remains one of the Kings signature songs. James was actually the first to record it, when he was trying to get his own recording career going in 1968. But in 1969, Presley had his final No. 1 song with it. It was later remade by Fine Young Cannibals, who had a top 10 U.K. hit with it in 1986.

Presley also recorded Moody Blue, the title track to his final album, along with Its Only Love and Raised on Rock.

Always on My Mind and Suspicious Minds were not the only songs of James to become hits in different decades. Hooked on a Feeling went to No. 5 for B.J. Thomas in 1969. Five years later, Blue Swedes version  with its infamous, incongruous ooga-chaka addition  hit No. 1. As recently as this year, the Hives did a cover of Hooked, for Spotify, keeping the Blue Swede chant.

Hooked on a Feeling was often licensed for films, from Quentin Tarantinos Reservoir Dogs to Guardians of the Galaxy.

Suspicious Minds may be the most significant song in James catalog, not just for what it did for his career, but for Presleys. The superstar had been in a slump after his popularity waned in the wake of the British Invasion, but this anthem of romantic paranoia at least briefly made him seem relevant again to pop record buyers, and kick-started a wave of appreciation that led to him becoming the biggest entertainer in Las Vegas through his death eight years later. It wasnt just the songwriting Presley had to thank him for; the arrangement of the song was closely modeled on the one James himself had recorded.

Talking with the Wall Street Journal in 2012, James recalled the origins of the song, which came about during a recording session for his own album with Chips Moman, who went on to introduce Suspicious Minds to Presley. Late one night, fooling around on my Fender guitar and using my Hammond organ pedals for a bass line, I came up with a catchy melody. I was married to my first wife then but still had feelings for my childhood sweetheart, who was married back in Houston. My wife suspected I had those feelings, so it was a confusing time for me. I felt as though all three of us were all caught in this trap that we couldnt walk out of.

Although James left the Memphis sessions where Elvis was cutting the song, feeling there was discomfort at having a stranger there, he learned of Presleys appreciation later. In the years that followed, whenever I saw Elvis, hed cross the room just to say hello to meno matter who was with him. After he died, I heard hed always asked the guys in the studio, Did Mark send me any more songs? Golly, I wish I had known that. But his run of both singles and album tracks with Presley was enviable.

James is also a member of the Texas Songwriters Hall of Fame, the New York Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

In 2021, Sony/ATV Music Publishing announced that it had reupped its deal with James, renewing a contract that began 50 years earlier when he signed with Screen Gems/EMI.

James is survived by his wife of 53 years, Karen Zambon ,his daughters Sammie and Dana Zambon, and grandchildren and extended family. The family said in a statement: Marks legacy and zest for life will live on in the hearts of those who loved him, and through his timeless lyrics and melodies that have been the soundtrack of lovers for generations.

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The stars of 'Full House' and the fashion world have been in the spotlight since they were just months old

Ron Galella, Ltd./WireImage; Jim Smeal/WireImage Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in the early 1990s

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen are marking another milestone.

The famous sisters turn 38 on June 13, 2024, and have truly grown up in the spotlight, joining the cast of Full House as Michelle Tanner when they were 6 months old, and going on to careers in movies, TV and fashion in the years that followed.

"We remember small things," Ashley said of their early acting days on a 2010 episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show. "I'm not sure if they're memories or old footage," added Mary-Kate.

Here, take a trip down memory lane with some sweet throwbacks of the stars.

1989

ABC via Getty The cast of 'Full House'

"We grew up with three comedians who just had fun together," Ashley Olsen told Ellen DeGeneres in 2014 of the sisters' time on Full House alongside Bob Saget, Dave Coulier and John Stamos.

The sisters said they would watch the show once in a while if a rerun crossed their screen, but it was most touching to know how much fans still care.

"People who grew up with us are now having kids and their kids are watching it," Ashley said. "It's still relevant and that's amazing."

1991

Ron Galella, Ltd./WireImage Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 1991

The sisters had one of their many matching moments at an ABC press tour event in 1991.

1993

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 1993

The stars were in stripes  and hats! and bows!  at a 1993 network event.

1994

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 1994

At 8 years old, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen looked all grown up in their lacy dresses, sweet white flats and matching pearls.

1998

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 1998

Not only were they big on screen but on paper, too: the sisters autographed copies of their children's mystery book series The Adventures of Mary-Kate & Ashley in 1998 in N.Y.C.

1999

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 1999

One of their many memorable on-screen moments was 1999's Passport to Paris.

1999

Jim Smeal/WireImage Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 1999

On a 2010 episode of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Ashley Olsen said the twins stopped dressing alike "probably [at] 12 or 13."

"It was alike but different," Ashley said of their matching style. "It wasn't by choice I don't think," added Mary-Kate.



2000

Getty Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 2000

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen had all the early 2000s vibes at a launch party for Nintendo's Game Boy Pocket Planner.

2002

Steve Granitz/WireImage Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 2002

Their complementary butterfly tops at the Los Angeles premiere of Austin Powers in Goldmember were a vibe, too.

2004

Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 2004

The sisters brought their signature styles to the Los Angeles premiere of 2004's New York Minute, their last joint film project together.

2004

Mark Mainz/Getty Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 2004

Another so early '00s photo: Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen at MTV's TRL in New York City.

2005

Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen in 2005

By 2005, Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen were fully into the fashion world, attending their first Met Gala together in N.Y.C.

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Read the original article on People.
Model Marcie Hunt said she danced to "Rio" at her wedding, but had no idea a fashion spread she'd done in 1981 had inspired the famous album cover

Emma McIntyre/Getty Duran Duran (L-R Roger Taylor, Nick Rhodes, John Taylor and Simon Le Bon) in 2022.

In 1982, Duran Duran took the world by storm with Rio, an album that featured hits like Hungry Like the Wolf and the title track. But for decades, the identity of the black-haired beauty who graced the albums cover has remained a mystery.

Forty-two years later, a dedicated fan account has tracked down the model who inspired the art  and its news to her!

On June 8, an Instagram account called Patrick Nagel Arts revealed that theyd finally tracked down the modeling photo that inspired illustrator Patrick Nagel to create the cover art for Rio.

The images source was an editorial for fashion designer Angelo Tarlazzi that was featured in the February 1981 issue of Vogue Paris, and featured model Marcie Hunt wearing a black hat, red lipstick and yellow sunglasses.

Though Nagel, who died in 1984 at age 38, took some creative liberties in creating the Rio cover, like ditching the hat and sunglasses, the resemblance was unmistakable, and his technical art assistant Barry Hahn confirmed the find to the owner of the Instagram account.

Related: Duran Duran's Andy Taylor Says Cutting-Edge Cancer Treatment Saved Him from 'End-of-Life Care'

We suspect the model and maybe the band Duran Duran had no idea Nagel was influenced and used this image to create the cover of their musical masterpiece Rio, the caption, which credited user @nagel_angel with making the discovery, read. He certainly changed many things, most specifically removing her glasses, but he obviously loved her smile. And that smile has been an iconic piece of Duran Duran history for decades.

Duran Duran eventually reposted the Instagram, adding, WOW!

It eventually caught the attention of Hunt herself, who commented on the bands post saying she had no idea her photo was the inspiration, but that she was a long-time Duran Duran fan.

This is so cool! I absolutely did not know until now that this photo of me was used for the Rio cover, she wrote. Very exciting! Love Duran Duran, and danced to their music often in the '80s. And later at my husband Toms and my wedding. Thank you all for your wonderful comments. And yes, Im still alive!

Fin Costello/Redferns Duran Duran L-R (back): Nick Rhodes, Simon Le Bon, Andy Taylor, (front): John Taylor, Roger Taylor

Related: Duran Duran to Release Cover of David Bowie's 'Five Years' on What Would Have Been His 74th Birthday

Hunt later shared a longer post on the Instagram account she runs for her wine company Dos Lagos, and said Rio played at her wedding nearly 31 years ago.

Still so impressed by the tours and music Duran Duran has created, and continues to create. So amazing! Thanks so much to the illustrator of this album cover, Patrick Nagel, who is no longer with us, she wrote. And now Barry Hahn, his technical assistant who confirmed that the cover and smile is inspired by this photo. Who knew! 

Rio was Duran Durans second album. The band  comprised of Simon Le Bon, Roger Taylor, John Taylor and Nick Rhodes  released their 16th album Danse Macabre in October.



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For most of the last century, the story of the Gresham Palace closely mirrored that of the city in which it was built.

Built at the turn of the 20th century in prosperous Budapest, it quickly became the Hungarian capitals hottest address. After enduring two world wars, it suffered neglect under communism before rising majestically, once again, in June 2004 to become one of the citys, perhaps even central Europes, grandest hotels.

This summer, the building  one of the finest examples of Art Nouveau design in Budapest  is celebrating two decades in its most recent incarnation, as the Four Seasons Gresham Palace, a luxury hotel with panoramic views of the mighty Danube river.

The anniversary marks a new milestone in the preservation of this architectural gem that was both ahead of its time when it was built and very much a celebration of the intellectual golden age in which it emerged.

The Gresham Palace was conceived around the time that Budapest emerged as one of Europes largest cities after the 19th-century unification of affluent Buda on one side of the Danube with rapidly developing Pest on the other, and the absorption of nearby town Obuda.

At the time, the Chain Bridge was the main link across the river, and so it was decided to build the palace on the Pest side to act as a kind of bricks-and-mortar gatekeeper.

After the unification of Buda, Pest and Obuda in 1873, Budapest became a big cosmopolitan city, a European capital, Jozsef Laszlovszky, director of the cultural heritage studies program at Central European University, tells CNN. Buda and Pest, for a long time, were only connected by the Chain Bridge, thus Szechenyi Square at the end of the bridge on the Pest side was one of the most prominent public spaces with Gresham Palace overlooking them both.

Passionate affair

The hotel has 179 rooms and suites. - Four Seasons Gresham Palace

Widely adored today, Greshams construction in 1906 was also a story of affection  its also known locally as the palace of hearts. Heart motifs carved into the building were said to be added by the architect, Zsigmond Quittner, because of his love for a future tenant of the palace.

Another more probable tale says the hearts were inspired by a passionate affair between Countess Irma Szechenyi and Thomas Gresham, an Englishman behind the buildings construction. Gresham was said to have gifted Szechenyi a heart-shaped pendant which she asked to be woven into the fabric of the palace.

Quittner, who won a commission from the Gresham Life Assurance Company, to build the palace, delivered, along with the help of his associate Jozsef Vago, a prime example of Art Nouveau architecture, infused with the avant-garde flair of Vienna and Paris of that era.

It was built to reflect the grandeur of the powerful Austro-Hungarian empire at the time, with lavish interiors and detailed ironwork. Renowned glass-painter and mosaic-maker Miksa Roth was also brought in to create ornate exterior glass mosaics and stained glass windows.

The palace was not only an architectural triumph but also a hub of technological innovation, featuring central heating and a pioneering dust extraction system. The building also boasted a T-shaped shopping arcade with a glass roof, a novel concept in Budapest in the early 1900s.

Upon its completion, Gresham Palace instantly became Budapests most sought-after address  as a place to live for the wealthy, and somewhere to shop and be seen in the exclusive boutiques and cafes on the ground floor.

Throughout its history, the palace served Budapest as a cultural hotspot, housing the famous Gresham-Venezia Cafe and the Podium Cabaret, known for its satirical and sometimes politically daring performances. However, the Soviets siege of Budapest in 1944 left the building heavily damaged, and subsequent nationalization under communist rule in 1948 led to further decline.

Influential artists

The hotel is known locally as the "palace of hearts." - Four Seasons Gresham Palace

Gresham Palace and its coffee house were famous among artists and collectors, says Laszlovszky. The so-called Gresham-circle was an informal, but very important, artistic meeting place before World War II.

Members of the circle, like Robert Bereny, Pal Patzay, Beni Ferenczy, Jozsef Egry, Istvan Szonyi were painters or sculptors, the best artists of the period. Interestingly, they followed different artistic trends, but they were all influential people in the art life of the period.

Despite suffering during wartime and enduring decades of neglect, the palaces spirit seemed to survive intact until 2001, when luxury hotel group Four Seasons embarked on an ambitious three-year project to restore the buildings original splendor while integrating modern luxuries.

A team of leading Hungarian architects, interior designers and craftsmen was assembled for the project. Architect Gabor Kruppa was responsible for the complete reconstruction of the palace, alongside restoration artist Miklos Szenkiralyi.

It took thousands and thousands of hours for a unique team of highly trained masters from a variety of trades to cut this magnificent, Art Nouveau gem into a brilliant jewel, Szenkiralyi said at the time. The Gresham Palace has been born again in wonderful unity, serving as a crown jewel of outstanding beauty that complements our magnificent Chain Bridge.

Extraordinary history

The palace was once a hangout for Budapest's intellectuals. - Four Seasons Gresham Palace

Since its reopening in 2004, the Four Seasons Hotel Gresham Palace has provided visitors with a well-appointed sanctuary, offering 179 rooms and suites with panoramic views of the Danube or the cityscape. Its interiors, from the grand lobby to the spa atop, exude a regal air.

Gresham Palace is one of Budapests most iconic buildings, and today, through its mere existence, unique location, and architecture, it shapes the image that the city presents to any tourist wishing to explore it, Thibaut Drege, the hotels general Manager, tells CNN Travel.

The fact that Four Seasons was able, 20 years ago, to renovate such a jewel reflects the extraordinary history that this building has undergone since its creation. Ultimately, it is this architecture that reflects an era when Budapest held a prominent position as a destination for high society Europeans. The city is now reclaiming this position, with growing interest notably from high-end travelers.

As well as luxurious accommodation, guests and visitors of the hotel can also enjoy some of Budapests top dining and relaxation spots.

These include KOLLAZS, a contemporary French brasserie which offers whats arguably the grandest setting in Budapest. The venue serves local Tokaji wines, artisan cocktails and a menu crafted by Executive Chef Arpad Gyorffy, one of the finalists at the prestigious Bocuse dOr Hungary competition.

The hotels MUZSA bar also offers artisan cocktails plus Asian food in a setting designed to transport visitors to Budapests golden age. The venue also has a cultural program with ballet evenings and live performances.

In a city renowned for its thermal baths, theres inevitably also a luxurious spa, offering steam rooms, a relaxation pool and a Hungarian Moor Mud treatment, thats said to be popular with Hollywood A-listers.

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By John Kruzel

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas took at least three additional trips funded by billionaire benefactor Harlan Crow that the conservative justice failed to disclose, the Democratic chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee said on Thursday.

Crow, a Texas businessman and Republican donor, disclosed details about the justice's travel between 2017 and 2021 in response to a Judiciary Committee vote last November to authorize subpoenas to Crow and Leonard Leo, another influential conservative figure, according to Senator Dick Durbin.

Thomas has previously come under criticism for failing to disclose gifts from Crow. Thomas on June 7 revised his 2019 financial disclosure form to acknowledge that Crow paid for his "food and lodging" at a Bali hotel and at a California club.

But the filing by Thomas failed to disclose that Crow had paid for his travel by private jet related to the Bali and California trips, and an eight-day excursion on a yacht in Indonesia - omissions revealed on Thursday in a redacted document that Durbin's office said contained travel itineraries for which Crow had provided the justice with transportation.

The document shows private jet travel in May 2017 between St. Louis, Montana and Dallas; private jet travel in March 2019 between Washington and Savannah, Georgia; and private jet travel in June 2021 between Washington and San Jose, California.

Crow reached an agreement to provide information requested by the committee dating back seven years, Crow spokesperson Michael Zona said. As a condition of this, the committee agreed to end its probe into Crow, Zona added.

"Despite his serious and continued concerns about the legality and necessity of the inquiry, Mr. Crow engaged in good faith negotiations with the committee from the beginning to resolve the matter," Zona said.

A Supreme Court spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"The Senate Judiciary Committee's ongoing investigation into the Supreme Court's ethical crisis is producing new information - like what we've revealed (Thursday) - and makes it crystal clear that the highest court needs an enforceable code of conduct, because its members continue to choose not to meet the moment," Durbin said.

Under pressure from criticism over ethics, the Supreme Court last November adopted its first code of conduct.

Critics and some congressional Democrats have said the code does not go far enough to promote transparency, continuing to leave decisions to recuse from cases to the justices themselves and providing no mechanism of enforcement.

(Reporting by John Kruzel; Editing by Will Dunham)
Amber Portwood, who made her debut on "16 and Pregnant" before starring on the spinoff show "Teen Mom," is asking for fans' help in locating her fiance.

"Teen Mom" alum Amber Portwood is pleading for information about fiance Gary Wayt, who went missing earlier this week shortly after the two reportedly got engaged.

"My fiance is missing right now, and we don't know where he is," the 34-year-old said tearfully Tuesday during a livestream on the Elle Bee YouTube channel. "He is missing. This is a huge deal. His parents, everybody is very worried. I'm worried. ... We are very scared right now."

She described their last conversation before Wayt disappeared as "emotional."

The Bryson City Police Department in North Carolina posted a missing person alert for Wayt on Tuesday, describing him as a 39-year-old, 6-foot-1 man with brown eyes who was last seen Sunday in the Arlington Avenue area of Bryson City, located more than 60 miles west of Asheville.

According to Us Weekly and E! News, police located Wayt in Oklahoma via video footage.

Bryson City Police Chief Charlie Robinson told local ABC affiliate WLOS News 13 that Wayt and Portwood were visiting from Indiana for Portwood's brother's wedding on June 8 and had also recently gotten engaged.

USA TODAY has reached out to Portwood and Bryson Police for comment.

Congratulations to Kailyn Lowry! 'Teen Mom 2' star announces she gave birth to twins

Amber Portwood hits back at claims she and her fiance had a 'blowout fight'

Portwood made her reality TV debut on MTV's "16 and Pregnant" and went on to star on six seasons of the spinoff show "Teen Mom"  which was later renamed "Teen Mom OG"  from 2009 to 2017. For more than a decade, she has faced legal issues due to domestic violence and drug possession.

The former MTV star claimed people were speculating online that the couple had an explosive argument before Wayt went missing. "There was not a big blowout fight or anything like that, OK?" she said. "I am not what people have been saying about me all of these years. I changed a long time ago."

She added, "We have not had explosive fights; we are very in love. This man asked me to be with him. This man then asked me to marry him. I have not touched this man in any horrible way. He does not touch me in any horrible way. We do not yell at each other. We have a wonderful relationship."

Portwood, who called Wayt "the love of my life," pleaded, "Please don't just make up stories and think that something happened when it comes to me and him. We have a beautiful relationship. ... This is the first time in my life that I've had a good man."

Amber Portwood's troubles with domestic violence, drug possession

In 2011, Portwood pleaded guilty to domestic battery following an incident involving her partner at the time, Gary Shirley. Shirley is her 15-year-old daughter Leah's father.

She ultimately served time in prison for violating her probation terms and graduated from the Clean Lifestyle Is Freedom program during her sentence, she told Indiana's The Herald Bulletin in 2015.

"In any 12-step program, you learn that you have to change your people, places and things. When I got out of prison I stayed with my grandmother for a little while. I needed to change everything. I didnt hang out with my old friends. I didnt go to the same places," she said at the time.

'16 and Pregnant' star's death: Jordan Cashmyer died from fentanyl, cocaine intoxication

Then in October 2019, Portwood pleaded guilty to two felony charges of domestic battery and intimidation and was sentenced to probation. Police had claimed several months earlier that she'd swung a machete at boyfriend Andrew Glennon while he was holding their son, James, who was 1 year old at the time.

"This is not about my past. It's not about the show. It's about this person is missing. His family is hurting; I am hurting so bad. This is my love," she said in the Elle Bee livestream on Tuesday. "Don't worry about me; I am stable. I've been stable for years now, OK? I've been stable. Do not think the worst."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'Teen Mom' star Amber Portwood says fiance Gary Wayt is missing
Today Tesla shareholders will finally answer a $56 billion question hanging over the company: Can CEO Elon Musk keep his record-breaking pay?

While Musk posted late Wednesday night that the votes were trending for passage of his pay package, official word won't come down until later today  though Tesla stock was up nearly 7% in early trading.

Securing Musk's compensation, if truly passed by investors, did not come without a battle.

Both Tesla shareholder resolutions are currently passing by wide margins!



 Thanks for your support!!  pic.twitter.com/udf56VGQdo  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 13, 2024

To review: Musks all-stock pay package, awarded in 2018, has been embroiled in controversy and was struck down by a Delaware court earlier this year, with the judge finding that Teslas board didnt act in the best interests of Tesla shareholders by approving the $56 billion award.

Since then, Musk and Teslas board, led by chair Robyn Denholm, have been advocating rather forcefully for Tesla shareholders to approve a newly submitted pay package, which is very similar to the original 2018 award invalidated by the judge.

On the eve of those results, Musk and Tesla are getting assailed from a number of fronts.

Late Tuesday the Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island (ERSRI) filed another lawsuit in Delaware accusing Musk and his brother Kimbal Musk of selling a combined $30 billion of stock using inside information  that being the two knew the proceeds would be used to fund Elon's purchase of Twitter (now X) and that two brothers were also aware that Tesla's vehicle deliveries had fallen below projections.

Will he get a raise? Tesla CEO Elon Musk is pictured at the Breakthrough Prize Ceremony at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on April 13, 2024, in Los Angeles. (Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic) (Axelle/Bauer-Griffin via Getty Images)

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reported Elon Musk has joined recent meetings with proxy adviser Glass Lewis and investors, including "Vanguard, State Street and BlackRock, alongside Tesla Chair Robyn Denholm and others," to drum up support for Musk's pay package.

If that wasn't enough, the Journal also published an expose late Tuesday night alleging Musk had numerous inappropriate relationships with employees at SpaceX, the rocket and spaceship company Musk founded and where he still serves as CEO.

Then separately on Wednesday eight former SpaceX employees filed a lawsuit against Musk for sexual harassment and retaliation in California state court, alleging that Musk created an "unwelcome hostile work environment" based on his behavior, among other allegations.

'Motivating' Musk

The ongoing drama around the vote has been building for weeks now. The battle to get Musk's pay package passed picked up steam last week when Denholm submitted an open letter urging shareholder approval of Musks compensation package.

"Fairness and respect require that we honor the collective commitment we made to Elon  a commitment that was, and fundamentally still is, about retaining Elons attention and motivating him to focus on achieving astonishing growth for our company," Denholm wrote in her letter.

Denholms choice of words  "retaining Elons attention and motivating him"  raised eyebrows, as most independent board chairs generally do not pen open letters urging shareholder approval of management pay packages, let alone claiming the compensation is needed to keep the CEO motivated.

Even before the 2018 pay package was invalidated by the Delaware court, Musk threatened shareholders about his divided attention, as he is in charge or spends significant amounts of time at SpaceX, X.com (formerly Twitter), and the Boring Co., among other ventures.

"I am uncomfortable growing Tesla to be a leader in AI & robotics without having 25% voting control. Enough to be influential, but not so much that I cant be overturned," Musk said from his X account in January. "Unless that is the case, I would prefer to build products outside of Tesla."

Case in point: Tesla recently had to deal with reports that Musk ordered Nvidia (NVDA) AI chips meant for Tesla to be diverted to X.com. Musk defended the move after the report's release, claiming Tesla lacked space to use the chips, and they would have sat in a warehouse otherwise.

Musk also just withdrew his lawsuit against ChatGPT-maker OpenAI ahead of a hearing on Wednesday, giving no explanation for it. Musk's venture, xAI, is directly competing with OpenAI, among others.

Musks AI and robotics threat, odd strategic moves and backtracks, and his own advocacy for his pay package have shareholders concerned that he won't care as much about Tesla if he doesnt get what he wants. Denholm even acknowledged as much, claiming there are other places Musk could take his time and energy.

What we recognized in 2018 and continue to recognize today is that one thing Elon most certainly does not have is unlimited time. Nor does he face any shortage of ideas and other places he can make an incredible difference in the world, she wrote.

Musk supporters have doubled down on the argument that his presence is necessary for the future of Tesla.

Longtime Tesla shareholder Baillie Gifford said it will vote in favor of Musk's package, according to Bloomberg sources, with the reasoning being the package was aligned with shareholder returns.

Elon is the ultimate key man of key man risk, billionaire Tesla investor Ron Baron wrote last week in an open letter. Without his relentless drive and uncompromising standards, there would be no Tesla.

Id argue that no other executive is as aligned with shareholders as @elonmusk who committed to no salary, no bonus, no stock comp FOR 10 YEARS, unless he created tremendous value for @Tesla shareholders, ARK Invest founder and CEO Cathie Wood posted on X late last week.

Musk fan: Cathie Wood, chief executive officer and chief investment officer at Ark Invest, speaks during the Milken Institute Global Conference in May in Beverly Hills. (PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images) (PATRICK T. FALLON via Getty Images)

Conversely, proxy adviser firm Glass Lewis urged shareholders to vote against Musks compensation, arguing that the excessive size of the award and the dilutive effect of it on existing shareholders were major concerns. ISS, the other major proxy adviser firm, recommended that shareholders vote down the package as well.

While a few smaller shareholder groups came out against Musk's pay package, one big one weighed in against Musk over the weekend  Norway's $1.7 trillion sovereign wealth fund.

"We remain concerned about the total size of the award, the structure given performance triggers, dilution, and lack of mitigation of key person risk," Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), the operator of the fund, said.

The fund, which also opposed Musk's pay package in 2018, holds a $5.6 billion stake encompassing 31.57 million shares, or 0.99% of all shares outstanding, making it Tesla's seventh-largest shareholder, per Capital IQ.

And earlier this week, the California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS) also said it will vote against Musk's pay package, with the pension fund's chief investment officer telling CNBC the stock awards were "ridiculous." CalSTRS owns around 4.7 million shares of Tesla.

Other large funds that own the largest Tesla stakes  Vanguard, BlackRock (BLK), and State Street, among others  have not commented on Musk's pay package.

The drama could be much ado about nothing when the votes are counted, however, with shareholders expected to give Musk what wants.

"[Musks pay package] has been an area of hot button contention among some investors but we would expect the 2018 package will be overwhelming [sic] reapproved," Wedbush analyst Dan Ives predicted in a note to investors late last week.

While approval of the pay package will remove one "overhang" on Tesla stock, Ives believes Tesla needs Musk more than ever to navigate the company through a crucial time.

"Musk needs to commit all AI initiatives will be under the Tesla hood and will be not be separated," Ives said, reiterating his Outperform rating and $275 price target.

CFRA's Garrett Nelson believes the vote will be closer than expected.

"Clearly, the Board is concerned about the vote given its shareholder outreach efforts," Nelson said in a statement to Yahoo Finance, writing that the vote will likely come in below the 73% approval the plan received in 2018.

Nelson added: "We have long argued that one of the primary reasons the stock trades at such a massive premium to the rest of the industry is the innovation of Musk. If the pay package were to be voted down, it could increase uncertainty regarding the future direction and leadership of the company.

Pras Subramanian is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. You can follow him on Twitter and on Instagram.

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Nikki Cross, guardian of Uziyah Garcia, cries as she holds hands with her husband Brett Cross while listening to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland deliver remarks about the Department of Justices report on the Robb Elementary shooting during a press conference at Herby Ham Activity Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News The Department of Justices report on the Robb Elementary School shooting, which was released on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas, is 500 pages long. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland delivers remarks about the Department of Justices report on the Robb Elementary shooting during a press conference at Herby Ham Activity Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. The DOJ stressed that the report is a critical incident review of the response to the May 24, 2022, mass shooting, not a criminal investigation. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News Brett Cross, guardian of Robb Elementary school victim Uziyah Garcia, listens to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland deliver remarks about the Department of Justices report on the Robb Elementary shooting during a press conference at Herby Ham Activity Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, center, delivers remarks about the Department of Justices report on the Robb Elementary shooting alongside Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta, left, and COPS Director Col. Hugh T. Clements Jr. during a press conference at Herby Ham Activity Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News Sen. Roland Gutierrez, center, talks to Jerry, left, and Veronica Mata, whose daughter Tess Mata was killed in the Robb Elementary shooting, before a press conference at Herby Ham Activity Center in Uvalde, Texas, on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024. The meeting was held to detail the findings of the Department of Justices report on the May 24, 2022, shooting. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News Veronica Mata, whose daughter Tess Mata was killed in the Robb Elementary shooting, listens to remarks from U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland about the Department of Justices report on the Robb Elementary shooting during a press conference at Herby Ham Activity Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News April Elrod, whose daughter Makenna Elrod was killed in the Robb Elementary shooting, listens to remarks from U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland about the Department of Justices report on the Robb Elementary shooting during a press conference at Herby Ham Activity Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News Dora Mendoza, left, and Berlinda Arreola, both grandmothers of Robb Elementary shooting victim Amerie Jo Garza, embrace as they leave a meeting at the Herby Ham Activity Center on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas, where Attorney General Merrick Garland shared a report on the findings of an investigation into the 2022 school shooting. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News Artist Abel Ortiz, left, gives Attorney General Merrick Garland, right, a tour of murals of shooting victims, Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. The Justice Department is planning this week to release findings of an investigation into the 2022 school shooting. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) Eric Gay/Associated Press Attorney General Merrick Garland, right, and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta, left, tour murals of shooting victims, Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. The Justice Department is planning this week to release findings of an investigation into the 2022 school shooting. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) Eric Gay/Associated Press Felix Rubio, whose daughter Alexandria Lexi Rubio was killed in the Robb Elementary School shooting, leaves a meeting at the Herby Ham Activity Center on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas, where Attorney General Merrick Garland shared a report on the findings of an investigation into the 2022 school shooting. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News Berlinda Arreola, step-grandmother of Robb Elementary shooting victim Amerie Jo Garza, talks to media after attending a meeting at the Herby Ham Activity Center on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas, where Attorney General Merrick Garland shared a report on the findings of an investigation into the 2022 school shooting. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News Police evacuate students and staff from Robb Elementary School in Uvalde on May 24, 2022. A teenage gunman killed 19 fourth graders and two teachers that day in the worst school shooting in Texas history. Pete Luna /Uvalde Leader-News Dora Mendoza, right, is hugged by a friend as she leaves a meeting where Attorney General Merrick Garland shared a report on the findings of an investigation into the 2022 school shooting at Robb Elementary School, Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. Mendoza is the grandmother of 10-year-old Amerie Jo Garza who was killed in the shooting. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) Eric Gay/Associated Press Brett Cross, top right, guardian of Robb Elementary shooting victim Uziyah Garcia, and Berlinda Arreola, bottom right, step-grandmother of victim Amerie Jo Garza, talk to media after attending a meeting at the Herby Ham Activity Center on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas, where Attorney General Merrick Garland shared a report on the findings of an investigation into the 2022 school shooting. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News Oscar, left, and Jessica Orona, center, talks with news media as they leave a meeting at the Herby Ham Activity Center on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas, where Attorney General Merrick Garland shared a report on the findings of an investigation into the 2022 school shooting. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, left, listens to Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta, right, delivers remarks about the Department of Justices report on the Robb Elementary shooting during a press conference at Herby Ham Activity Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News Artist Abel Ortiz, left, gives Attorney General Merrick Garland, right, and Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta, center, a tour of murals of shooting victims, Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. The Justice Department is planning this week to release findings of an investigation into the 2022 school shooting. (AP Photo/Eric Gay) Eric Gay/Associated Press Family members and others affected by the Robb Elementary shooting leave a meeting at the Herby Ham Activity Center on Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas, where Attorney General Merrick Garland shared a report on the findings of an investigation into the 2022 school shooting. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News Thalia Garcia holds a quilt with pictures of all 21 victims of the Robb Elementary School shooting victims during a silent protest outside the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. Garcia lost two relatives in the massacre, 9-year-old Jacklyn Jackie Cazares and 10-year-old Annabell Rodriguez. Sam Owens/Staff photographer U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, center, speaks to reporters on June 8, 2022, before meeting with members of a team that will conduct a review of the law enforcement response to the Uvalde school shooting. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images A mourner pays respects to the 21 victims of the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde. Kin Man Hui/Staff photographer A woman sobs on May 24, 2022, as she leaves the Uvalde Civic Center, where families of the victims of the Robb Elementary School shooting learned what happened to their loved ones. William Luther Early morning light shines on a memorial for the 21 victims of the Robb Elementary School shooting. Josie Norris/Staff photographer U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland delivers remarks about the Department of Justices report on the Robb Elementary shooting during a press conference at Herby Ham Activity Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. The DOJ stressed that the report is a critical incident review of the response to the May 24, 2022, mass shooting, not a criminal investigation. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News Brett Cross, guardian of Robb Elementary school victim Uziyah Garcia, speaks to the media after listening to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland delives remarks about the Department of Justices report on the Robb Elementary shooting during a press conference at Herby Ham Activity Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. The DOJ stressed that the report is a critical incident review of the response to the May 24, 2022, mass shooting, not a criminal investigation. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland delivers remarks about the Department of Justices report on the Robb Elementary shooting during a press conference at Herby Ham Activity Center on Thursday, Jan. 18, 2024, in Uvalde, Texas. The DOJ stressed that the report is a critical incident review of the response to the May 24, 2022, mass shooting, not a criminal investigation. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News

UVALDE  A U.S. Department of Justice report on the Robb Elementary School shooting found that chaos pervaded the police response to the massacre, resulting in unnecessary delays and confusion over whether the gunman was an active shooter.

With no one clearly taking the role of on-scene commander, worsening a cascade of poor decisions, a team of law enforcement officers didnt confront and kill the shooter until 77 minutes into his rampage, DOJ investigators said in their 575-page report, released Thursday.

Had law enforcement followed generally accepted practices in an active-shooter situation and gone right after the shooter to stop him, lives would have been saved, and people would have survived, U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a news conference at Uvaldes Herby Ham Activity Center.

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Family members of victims cried and passed tissue boxes among themselves as Garland and other Justice Department officials discussed their findings. Many had hoped the report would call for criminal charges against some of the nearly 400 officers who responded to the school shooting  but they were left disappointed.

Garland declined to say whether he believed the Uvalde County district attorney should prosecute officers involved in the sluggish law enforcement response. He said the DOJ could not file charges because his department has criminal jurisdiction only when a federal crime has occurred.

I hope that the failures end today, and that local officials do what wasnt done that day to do right by the victims and survivors of Robb Elementary  terminations and criminal prosecutions, said Kimberly Mata-Rubio, whose 10-year-old daughter, Lexi, was one of 19 children and two teachers who were killed.

The Robb Elementary shooting is widely regarded as an egregious law enforcement failure. As hundreds of officers from local, state and federal agencies responded to the scene  but failed to formulate a plan to confront the gunman quickly  children called 911 from inside the classroom, pleading to be rescued.

Its hard to look at the truth  that the law enforcement response on May 24 was an unimaginable failure, and that a lack of action by adults failed to protect children and their teachers, Associate Attorney General Vanita Gupta said at the Thursday news conference.

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The federal report is the most comprehensive accounting yet of what went wrong on May 24, 2022, but it revealed few new details about the law enforcement response and did not provide new insights into the shooters motives.

One of the reports main conclusions was that law enforcement officers gravest error was designating the gunman as a barricaded subject instead of an active shooter.

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Law enforcement also erred by waiting for a sniper, SWAT team and heavier firearms, wasting many precious minutes, the report noted.

Time is not on the side of law enforcement  every second counts, Garland said. And the priority of law enforcement must be to immediately enter the room and stop the shooter with whatever weapons and tools officers have with them.

Officers also spent 43 minutes evacuating surrounding classrooms, but the effort took too long and caused a significant delay in confronting the shooter, the report said.

The investigation after the shooter was killed at 12:50 p.m., including crime scene preservation, also was mishandled. Officers did not follow proper protocols and didnt document who was entering the crime scenes. (There were a total of six crime scenes at Robb Elementary.)

The chaos and confusion of the final law enforcement response, while the shooter remained a threat, also defined the aftermath of the shooting, Garland said.

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The report noted that the team of DOJ investigators interviewed individuals who were on the scene after the shooter was killed. The witnesses reported that numerous senior officials passed through the crime scenes in the hours and days after the massacre.

For example, the (Texas Department of Public Safety) regional director walked past the law enforcement officers bringing injured and deceased victims out of the classrooms and entered classrooms 111 and 112 with no intended purpose or action identifiable, the report said. Eventually a San Antonio special weapons and tactics (SWAT) team member stood in front of room 112 to preserve the crime scene.

The federal review also found that the chaotic police response prevented some survivors from receiving timely medical care. And conflicting and incorrect information released by local and state officials in the hours and days after the shooting worsened the suffering of victims families and eroded public trust.

The report said at least 380 law enforcement personnel from 24 agencies responded to the mass shooting. There were 587 children and many teachers and staff at Robb that day.

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The first police agencies to respond were officers from the Uvalde Police Department, Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District, Uvalde County Sheriffs Office and DPS. There was no recognized incident commander, though Pedro Pete Arredondo, then the head of the school police force, should have assumed a leadership role, the report states.

Officers sense of urgency eased as they began to consider the gunman a barricaded suspect instead of an active shooter, even as more officers arrived and children trapped inside the classrooms continued to make frantic calls to 911. Protocols for responding to a barricaded suspect call for a slower-moving, more methodical approach than to an active shooter.

Leadership from UPD, UCISD, UCSO and TX DPS demonstrated no urgency for establishing a command and control structure, which led to challenges related to information sharing, lack of situational statuses, and limited-to-no direction for personnel in the hallway or on the perimeter, the report said.

Eleven officers arrived within the first few minutes of the rampage, enough to confront the shooter. But only six tried to go to the classroom where the shooter was located, and they retreated once two officers were hit by shrapnel. Only one tried to approach the classroom again, according to the report.

At least five officers have lost their jobs over the Robb Elementary response, including Arredondo and two DPS officers.

Security footage from Robb Elementary School shows law enforcement personnel in a hallway near the classroom where a teenage gunman was holed up with his victims. Associated Press

The Uvalde school district dismissed its entire police force and hired new officers and a new chief. Superintendent Hal Harrell retired under public pressure in October 2022.

The DOJ report mirrors some of the findings in a Texas House investigative committee report, released nearly after two months after the school shooting. That investigation found that poor communication among police officers and the absence of a clear command structure led to a chaotic, ineffectual response.

School district officials said in a statement Thursday that they were mindful of our responsibility to take every necessary step to prevent such incidents from happening again.

We continue to remember the 21 lives taken and the many lives impacted on this tragic day, they said. We remain committed to ensuring our schools are safe places for learning and growth.

Pedro "Pete" Arredondo, then chief of the Uvalde school police, is seen on security video in a hallway at Robb Elementary School on May 24, 2022. Just so you understand, theres some injuries in there, Arredondo is heard saying. He was later condemned for treating the shooting as a barricaded suspect situation, in which police had time to wait out the gunman, rather than as an active shooter scenario, which called for immediate action to confront and neutralize the shooter. Courtesy City of Uvalde

The federal review

Department investigators reviewed body camera footage, interview transcripts, training policies and many other documents and data sets. The department also spent 54 days in Uvalde and conducted more than 260 interviews, federal officials said.

Garland announced in June 2022 that he had opened a federal investigation at the request of then-Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin. The Justice Department went to work with 10 subject-matter experts on the critical incident review.

The department has conducted similar probes of other mass shootings  most recently the June 12, 2016, massacre at Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla., in which 49 people were killed.

Justice Department officials, including Garland and Gupta, briefed families of those killed and injured at Robb Elementary in a closed-door, two-hour meeting in Uvalde on Wednesday night.

These families didnt need a  500-page government report to learn that law enforcement failed them in a historic way, Joshua Koskoff, a lawyer representing 17 of the families in civil litigation, said Thursday. They didnt need a report to tell them that law enforcement violated the most sacred responsibility, and that is to protect our children in a time of great need.

The federal review, conducted by the DOJs Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, is one of four separate investigations into the shooting.

Only one of those inquiries  by the special Texas House committee  had made its findings public before Thursday. The Justice Departments Uvalde investigation is separate from the Texas Rangers yearlong criminal probe into what led to the shooting and the police response.

In June, the Rangers turned over the results of their investigation to Christina Mitchell, who serves as district attorney for Uvalde and Real counties. Mitchell initially said she planned to convene a grand jury by the end of 2023 to consider the case.

Mitchell said this week that her office is still dissecting the Rangers report, which is quite voluminous. She did not say when she plans to present evidence to a grand jury.

Steve McCraw, director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, faulted Pedro "Pete" Arredondo, then chief of the Uvalde school police, for failing to take immediate action to confront and kill the Robb Elementary School gunman on May 24, 2022. It was the wrong decision, period," McCraw said. "There's no excuse for that. Sam Owens/San Antonio Express-News
NEW DELHI: Following back-to-back terror attacks in the last four days, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday reviewed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir in a high-level meeting. He asked the officials to deploy the "full spectrum of counter-terror capabilities."

According to sources, national security adviser Ajit Doval and other senior officials attended the meeting, where the Prime Minister was given a full overview of the security-related situation in the region and was apprised of the counter-terror efforts being undertaken in Jammu and Kashmir.

Modi also spoke to Union home minister Amit Shah and discussed the deployment of security forces and counter-terror operations, government sources said.

Modi spoke to Jammu and Kashmir lieutenant-governor Manoj Sinha as well and took stock of the situation in Union territory. Sinha briefed him on the efforts being undertaken by the local administration, the sources further said.

Meanwhile, the security forces have detained 50 people in connection with the probe into the recent terror attack on a bus carrying pilgrims in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir, the UT police said on Thursday.

The sources in the security setup also said that to hunt down the terrorists, the security forces have launched a massive search operation that has been expanded to the Reasi district's far-flung Arnas and Mahore regions to track down and neutralise the attackers at the earliest.

The Arnas and Mahore areas in Reasi district were once terrorist hotbeds between 1995 and 2005, which were sanitised after successive operations in the past.

In the last four days, the terrorists struck at four places in Reasi, Kathua and Doda districts of Jammu and Kashmir, killing nine pilgrims and a CRPF jawan and leaving seven security personnel and several others injured.

So far, two suspected Pakistani terrorists were killed in an encounter with security forces in Kathua and a huge cache of arms and ammunition was recovered from them.

The first terror strike was made on Sunday when they opened fire at a passenger bus carrying pilgrims en route to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra from the Shiv Khori temple. The bus ferrying pilgrims from Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi fell into a deep gorge following gunfire, killing nine people and injuring 41 others.

On Tuesday, terrorists fired at a joint checkpost of the 4 Rashtriya Rifles and police at Chattergalla in Bhaderwah, while a search party in the Gandoh area of the district was attacked on Wednesday, resulting in injuries to seven security personnel, including a policeman.
Mumbai: Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange on Thursday withdrew his hunger strike by giving a months time to the Eknath Shinde government for implementation of a draft notification that recognises all sage soyre (blood relatives) of Maratha community members as Kunbis, an agrarian group classified as an OBC (other backward class) community. The quota activist said that if the government fails to fulfill the demand, they would defeat the candidates of the ruling parties in the upcoming Assembly election to be held in mid October.

The activists announcement came after assurance given by a delegation of the state government to fulfill his demands within a period of one month. The delegation was comprised of Eknath Shindes close aide and cabinet Minister Shambhuraj Desai and Shiv Sena MP Sandipan Bhumre. Mr. Desai urged Mr.Jarange to give at least a months time to the government to act on the communitys demands. The cabinet minister assured him that he would personally monitor the issue and take weekly follow up of the issue.

In a response to the governments request, Jarange pointed out that he had already given five months to the state government as the draft notification was issued on January 27 of this year. On this, the delegation informed him that due to election related issues, it got delayed.

Jarange, who was on a hunger strike in Antarvali Sarati, Jalna district, said that respecting the governments request, he is calling off his hunger strike.

The activist said that if the communitys demand is not fulfilled, they would enter into the politics of the state. The government should comply by July 13 or face the consequences. We will field candidates in all 288 constituencies in the Assembly polls. If our demands are not fulfilled, we are now going to enter into politics, he said.

This was the fifth time in the last 10 months that Jarange had gone on hunger strike.

In the recently concluded Lok Sabha election, the ruling parties especially the BJP suffered major losses due to the Maratha backlash.

Mr. Desai said that a meeting will be held on Friday over the issue. We will take a positive decision on the demands of the Maratha community within a month. If additional manpower is needed to expedite the work, we will do so, he said.

Bhumre said that they had sought two months from Jarange. But he told us to resolve our issues within a months time, he said.
At the end of an informal meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing earlier in May, the two leaders hugged each other, something rather unusual for Mr Xi (though he did it with Prime Minister Narendra Modi as well). US National Security Council spokesman John Kirby jokingly commented: Im not good at talking about personal human bodily affection one way or the other. I think Ill leave it to these two gents to talk about why they thought it was good to hug one another.

Whatever the US spokesman may say, the encounter was significant, as it heralded a still closer relationship between Russia and China. According to Reuters: Russia, grappling with Western sanctions after its invasion of Ukraine, is increasingly reliant on its booming trade with China, which is challenging US supremacy in areas from quantum computing to espionage and hard military power. The leaders signed a lengthy statement that sharpened their opposition to a US-led world order and pledged cooperation across fields ranging from space and nuclear technologies to finance and manufacturing.

It is a fact that for Moscow, though the Chinese economy may be facing serious difficulties, Beijing is an ally of weight.

The Three Battles

At the same time, China is more and more asserting itself all over the planet. Long Kaifeng, a PLA commentator associated with the Kunlun Policy and Strategy Research Institute, a Communist Party of China think tank, recently wrote about CPCs 3-Battle Scheme to erode Americas power prior to a clash in the Taiwan Strait; among other things, the author argues that the outcome of the Three Battles will see the US dollar becoming worthless.

Long explains: On a global scale, three major battles are in Europe, the Middle East and Asia respectively. The Ukrainian war represents the European front; the Middle Eastern battle will be a conflict between Israel and Palestine, and the Asian theatre might be the second Korean war. After these battles, the US military and dollar dominance established post-Cold War will fall. The US dollar will depreciate, becoming worthless -- a trend seen as inevitable.

The PLA scholar further notes: Given the current situation, Russia seems poised to win in Ukraine. Reconciliation between Saudi Arabia and Iran and unity in the Arab world are crucial to counter US-Israeli dominance. In East Asia, North Korea is ready, possessing nuclear capabilities and openly challenging US dominance.

Beijings Assertiveness

In Indias neighbourhood, this translates, for example, in the Maldives falling for Beijings promises or in Nepal, a recrudescence of territorial claims in the Kalapani area, clearly influenced by Beijing.

Regarding Africa, China is, of course, deeply involved. In a research paper, Hema Narang from Delhi University believes that infrastructure diplomacy is the key to Chinas influence in Africa.

The scholar gives an example: China gifted Zimbabwe a new Parliament building in 2023. This gift is emblematic of Chinas strategy of gifting large-scale projects worldwide, especially in Africa, to establish itself as a modernisation facilitator and gain international prestige. These projects, often grand structures such as government buildings and stadiums, transform the dynamics of donor-recipient relationships, augmenting Chinas global reputation and subtly reinforcing material inequalities, while their architectural grandeur and visible labels such as China Aid prominently emphasise Chinas commitment to development and cooperation.

She concludes: In international societies, gifts work in a similar way, establishing prestige for the giver and reaffirming the receivers position.

At the same time, everybody is not fooled by Beijings generosity: a gift does not always mean a free meal.

The Ukraine War

Another question often asked: Is China supporting Russia in the Ukraine war? There is no doubt that China is a vital partner for Russia, helping Moscow to soften the impact of sanctions imposed by the United States.

When asked if China was providing Russia with weapons, US secretary of state Antony Blinken told BBC: Whats not happening is the provision of actual arms by China to Russia for use in Ukraine. However, the US leader added: About 70 per cent of the machine tools and 90 per cent of the microelectronics Russia imports come from China.

Without Beijing, Moscow would certainly not have survived the Western sanctions so easily.

The Hamas War

More important perhaps is Chinas hand behind the Hamas attack on Israel. A newspaper article says: The evidence of the PRC green-signalling Hamas attack on Israel goes beyond the circumstantial.

Quoting Guermantes Lailari, a retired US Air Force foreign area officer specialising in counter-terrorism, who recently visited New Delhi, the article says: Massive quantities of Chinese arms, ammunition, military grade communication and other intelligence gathering equipment were found in Hamas warehouses in Gaza during the raids conducted by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF), in the aftermath of the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel by the Palestinian terrorist group. At least two tunnel engineers from Chinas Peoples Liberation Army were captured by the IDF, suggesting that extensive Chinese help was given to Hamas to construct the huge network of tunnels under Gaza City. Apart from this, the PLA has been giving military training to Hamas.

The informant added that the head of Hamas military wing, Mohammed Deif, who masterminded the attack on Israel, lived in the China for years, and maintains deep contacts with the PLA.

One More Battle

One more front (or battle) seems to be in the French enclave of New Caledonia, which witnessed an insurgency from of the local population. While President Emmanuel Macron struggles to restore some order, a question is recurrently asked: Who is behind the unrest?

Paris has put the blame for the violence on extremist independence groups, supported from outside; Gerald Darmanin, the interior and Overseas France minister, asserted that Azerbaijan has some responsibility for the unrest: Its not a fantasy, its a reality, he said. The Azerbaijan flag was repeatedly seen in the hands of rioters.

The next question is logically: Who is behind Azerbaijan?

Has Russia opened up a second front in its proxy war against France?

Though Azerbaijan has described the allegations insulting, and said: We deny any link between the leaders of the Caledonian freedom struggle and Azerbaijan, one could also put the question differently.

Who benefits most from the current mess in New Caledonia?

No doubt China is trying hard to make its presence felt in the chain of Pacific islands and an independent Caledonia would be a great boon for Beijing, while President Macron has never been in such a weak position, particularly after the recent European Parliament elections.
From the Dicastery for the Promotion of Christian Unity a "study document" summarising the responses received from the other Christian confessions to the invitation launched 30 years ago by John Paul II to take up the ministry of the Bishop of Rome together. Among the hypotheses also the idea of a "synodality ad extra" with periodic meetings between the leaders of the different Churches.

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - The primacy of Peter is no longer an obstacle but an opportunity for unity among Christians. Beginning with that redeclension that is already underway in the Church of Rome through the relaunching of the dimension of synodality and the "new climate" that for years now has been breathed in relations between the leaders of the Christian confessions.

This is a glance summary of the perspective presented in the study document "The Bishop of Rome. Primacy and synodality in ecumenical dialogues and in the responses to the encyclical Ut unum sint', approved by Pope Francis and presented today at the Vatican by the Dicastery for the Promotion of Christian Unity.

A long and articulated text that for the first time summarises the contents of the ecumenical confrontation opened almost thirty years ago by John Paul II, who in 1995 in the encyclical letter Ut unum sint had hoped that Christians could find together the most appropriate forms so that the ministry of the bishop of Rome "may realise a service of love recognised by one another".

That appeal has received around 30 responses from other Christian denominations in recent years, as well as 50 ecumenical dialogue documents on the subject, on which Pope Francis has invited the dicastery to continue working.

The result is this summary that lists the results of the theological confrontation, but also "some practical suggestions" for moving forward towards what is called "a ministry of unity in a reconciled Church".

The document emphasises how practically all the texts received today agree on the need for a service of unity on a universal level, even if there are different opinions on the foundations and ways of living it out.

"Referring to the apostolic tradition, some dialogues maintain that, from the very origins of the Church, Christianity was founded on principal apostolic sees that occupied a specific order, of which the see of Rome was the first".

In this sense - therefore - in the ecumenical world the question of primacy is no longer seen simply as a problem, but as an opportunity for reflection on the nature of the Church and its mission in the world. In theological reflection itself, there is more attention to what Scripture says about Peter's role among the apostles, rather than to doctrinal developments and the wounds of history; and this allows for "challenging some traditional confessional interpretations".

This does not mean, of course, that all obstacles are overcome: many Christian denominations, for example, ask the Catholic Church for a 'reformulation' of the teachings of the First Vatican Council, with its definition of universal jurisdiction from the pope and the dogma of infallibility.

The intention is to distinguish between what was linked to the historical context in which they were proclaimed and what remains relevant today, in the light of the ecclesiology of communion later affirmed by the Second Vatican Council and the current cultural and ecumenical context. Just as - especially in the world of Eastern Christians - the condemnation of Uniatism remains firm: it is not the Eastern Rite Catholic Churches, they argue, the model around which to rethink unity in diversity.

Instead, the path indicated for Christian unity in the 21st century passes through "a mutual interdependence between primacy and synodality at every level of the Church". From a theological point of view, the document defines it as "an articulation between 'all', 'some' and 'one'" as three complementary spheres.

It evokes "the community dimension, based on the sensus fidei of all the baptised, the collegial dimension, expressed above all in episcopal collegiality, and the personal dimension expressed by the primatial function". But these are articulations that do not only affect the relationship between the successor of Peter and the different ecclesial communities in the world, but they arise as in a dynamism at every level.

For example, there is much insistence also from ecumenical interlocutors on the enhancement of national and regional Catholic bishops' conferences. In a Church that recognises the principle of subsidiarity: 'No issue that can be adequately dealt with at a lower level should be taken to a higher one'.

In this sense, some voices insist that 'the power of the bishop of Rome should not exceed what is necessary for the exercise of his ministry of unity at the universal level', while recognising the need for 'a sufficient degree of authority to deal with the many challenges and complex obligations associated with his ministry'.

Finally, it is hoped that there will also be a growth in synodality ad extra, with periodic opportunities for meetings between the leaders of the Christian denominations. Much has already been done in this sense in recent decades, including with the initiatives and apostolic trips that Pope Francis has promoted together with patriarchs of the East and Anglican and Protestant leaders. But the document also hypothesises the idea of "regular consultations" to "make visible and deepen the communion they already share".
A South Korean newspaper broke the story. For a year, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida has been trying to organise a summit with North Koreas dictator Kim Jong Un, while North Korea has issued statements to the contrary in recent months. The issue of Japanese nationals kidnapped by Pyongyang remains an important issue.

Tokyo (AsiaNews/Agencies)  Representatives of Japan and North Korea met secretly in mid-May in Mongolia to discuss several bilateral issues, this despite Pyongyangs official refusal to talk with Tokyo, which demands news about the fate of Japanese citizens kidnapped by North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s to train North Korean spies in Japanese language and customs.

A South Korean newspaper, JoongAng Ilbo, broke the news reporting that the Japanese delegation included a politician, while the North Korean delegation was made up of three people, one of whom was an intelligence officer.

Pyongyang appears to be exploring a "breakthrough economically and diplomatically, the newspaper writes, noting that representatives from the two countries were also scheduled to meet last week in the Chinas e Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, but it is unclear whether (the contact) was made as planned, a source said.

Bilateral relations have been tense in recent months with various statements coming from either side. Last year, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida pledged to hold "high-level discussions" for the purpose of organising a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

In February, the dictator's sister, Kim Yo Jong, opened up to the possibility of a visit by Kishida to North Korea, as long as Japan did not raise the kidnapping issue, which would be an "obstacle. The following month, she issued a new statement saying that Tokyo was clinging to unattainable issues.

It is impossible to improve the bilateral relations full of distrust and misunderstanding, only with an idea to set out on a summit meeting, reads a statement by the Korea Central News Agency, the official mouthpiece of the North Korean regime.

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida has remained open to talks, but the issue of kidnappings, especially in Japanese public opinion, remains important, while Pyongyang, more interested in closer ties with Moscow and Beijing, accuses Tokyo of committing heinous crimes during its colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.

The two countries do not have diplomatic ties, but, in the early 2000s, came close to normalising relations.

Five out of 17 Japanese citizens (13 according to Pyongyang) have returned home. For North Korea, the issue is settled, claiming that the others are dead, but in Japan many continue to campaign on behalf of those who never returned.

According to some analysts, Kishida is trying hard to organise a summit with Kim Jong Un to turn his political fortunes around, after his approval rating dropped to 20 per cent in February.

Other argue that the Japanese prime minister wants to show that he can act as a mediator with North Korea, especially for people in Washington, at a time when North Koreas relations with the United States are at a standstill and those with South Korea are going from bad to worse.
The Harris County Criminal Justice Center, 1201 Franklin St., is shown Tuesday, Sept. 12, 2023, in Houston. Melissa Phillip/Staff Photographer

A Houston Parks Department ranger is accused of using his uniform and a gun to take money from a gay man at a city park, and may have targeted more people, a Harris County prosecutor said Thursday.

Joey Ellis, 23, of Webster, was arrested Wednesday and charged with official oppression after the Tuesday night encounter in Cullen Park in northwest Houston.

Ellis made his first appearance in Harris County courtroom on Thursday, when a prosecutor revealed more details about his alleged scheme, and indicated investigators were looking into reports of more potential victims.

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PAXTON TAKES OVER: Texas Attorney General's Office to handle prosecution in Conroe doctor's stabbing case

Kimberly Smith, an assistant district attorney in the DA's public corruption division, said Ellis is accused of "abusing his authority and abusing his badge."

Ellis is accused of approaching two men who were inside a parked car around 11 p.m. at Cullen Park, Smith said. He demanded the men get out and said something about knowing what gay men do together in the park, Smith said. Ellis threatened to arrest the men and demanded $300, Smith said. He was wearing a gun at the time but didn't take it out, Smith said.

One of the men handed over cash and transferred more money to Ellis using a CashApp, Smith said.

Ellis then forced one of the men to strip off his clothes and made him film a confession video about a crime the man did not commit, Smith said. He also is alleged to have forced the man to use an app to try to convince other gay men to come to the park, Smith said.

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The man eventually managed to run away and called police from a gas station, Smith said. Ellis was arrested early Wednesday morning.

Following reports about his initial arrests, Smith said prosecutors learned about another person with a similar complaint about a park ranger in Cullen Park. She said investigators were looking into the complaint and encouraged people who may have been victims to contact authorities.

"We're just asking that if anyone recognizes this defendant, if anyone feels that they've been a victim as well, please come forward and make a report," Smith said.

Smith described the charge against Ellis as a "hybrid misdemeanor." The prosecution will be conducted as a felony case, but the punishment Ellis could receive under the official oppression is limited to jail time or fines based on a misdemeanor and not a more serious crime. It's possible Ellis could be charged with other crimes, Smith said.

ASSISTANT DA ARRESTED: Harris County assistant district attorney charged with DWI

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"This defendant was receiving CashApp payments from all these individuals, in exchange essentially for threatening to send them to jail for crimes that don't even exist," Smith said.

Ellis was on the job at the time of the alleged shakedown, but was supposed to be at Hermann Park, Smith said. He also wasn't supposed to be carrying a gun on duty, Smith said.

Ellis was released on bond Wednesday and appeared in court Thursday with his defense attorney, William Weston Rucker. Ellis didn't say anything while 208th District Court Judge Beverly Armstrong decided on the condition of his release, which includes a prohibition on travel outside the Houston area and an order to stay out of city parks.

After the hearing, Rucker said Ellis was an upstanding citizen who had never been in legal trouble before.

He strongly contests these charges, and we think as the evidence unfolds, it will be seen that it was a mistake to bring these cases, Rucker said.

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A parks department spokesman on Wednesday said Ellis had been taken off the department's work schedule. Ellis in court said he was unemployed.

He is scheduled to return to court in August.

The accusations against Ellis were alarming to Avery Belyeu, the CEO of the Montrose Center, an LGBT social services agency.

Our community continues to be targeted, Belyeu said. The work is not yet done.

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Belyeu drew a parallel between the arrest and the celebration of Pride Month, which draws its origins to the Stonewall Riots, a clash between gay people and uniformed police officers in New York in 1969. Theres long been a distrust between LGBT people and police because of historic discrimination, Belyeu said.
Negotiations for a Gaza truce face a new challenge after Hamas demanded "unworkable" changes to the US proposal, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said during a press conference in Qatar.

"Hamas has proposed numerous changes. Some of the changes are workable, some are not," said Blinken, who also pledged to "continue to press urgently" with Qatar and Egypt to try to conclude the deal.

We are going to continue an urgent push with our partners to close the ceasefire deal. It's in the interests of Israelis, Palestinians, the region, and indeed, the entire world. pic.twitter.com/t3ThXdn3mB June 12, 2024

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani made a similar point, pledging "to close the gaps and find a way to end the war as soon as possible".

Blinken, during his eighth visit to the region since the start of the war, stressed that the proposed agreement was "virtually identical" to the one Hamas presented on 6 May. Washington's Middle East allies have endorsed the proposal, while the UN Security Council voted in favour of the plan earlier this week.

In its initial phase, the ceasefire proposal calls for a cessation of fighting, the release of some Israeli hostages from Gaza, the release of some Palestinian prisoners, an increase in humanitarian aid for Gazans, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from populated areas of Gaza and the return of Palestinian civilians to their homes and neighbourhoods.

Subsequently, a permanent cessation of hostilities is envisaged in exchange for the release of all remaining hostages in Gaza and a full withdrawal of Israeli troops from the Palestinian enclave and, finally, progress on a multi-year reconstruction plan for the Gaza Strip. The last phase also includes the return of the bodies of the deceased hostages still in Gaza.

During his trip to Israel, Blinken said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had "reaffirmed his commitment" to the proposed six-week ceasefire. "Everyone has said yes, except Hamas," he said, making it clear that if Hamas did not accept it, it was "clearly their fault".

"Hamas could have answered with a single word. Yes."



Blinken on Hamas's changes to the UN Security Council- and Israel-approved ceasefire/hostage deal.



Make no mistake: This deal was the endpoint of negotiations, not a start.



Hamas could end the war today. pic.twitter.com/PkDnTzEym9 June 12, 2024

For this reason, Blinken urged the international community to press Hamas to accept it, stressing that this latest proposal represents the best chance to secure the release of all remaining hostages in Gaza, end the war and "alleviate the terrible suffering of the Palestinians".

However, far-right members of Netanyahu's government do not welcome the proposal either, threatening to quit the executive if the war is ended without first defeating Hamas. In addition to threats from his own political allies, Netanyahu is also under pressure from thousands of Israelis, including the families of hostages, to accept Washington's deal.

Live from Tel Aviv IDF HQ.

Protests every damn day. https://t.co/bPZvRF9bQq  Noga Tarnopolsky     (@NTarnopolsky) June 12, 2024

Changes demanded by Hamas

Israeli media outlet Ynet reports on the alleged demands Hamas has made in order to accept a ceasefire with Israel. Firstly, the terrorist organisation demands that Israeli troops withdraw from all populated areas of Gaza during the first day of the truce, and then from strategic areas such as the Saladin road - the main road in Gaza - or the Philadelphi corridor - the strip of land parallel to the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.

Regarding the release of Israeli hostages, Hamas intends to release 32 hostages alive and not 33 in the first stage, threatening to halt the release if the Israeli withdrawal from populated areas of Gaza is not completed within a week.

New details about the Hamas counteroffer are emerging. It is actually far more different than we believed. Here are all the changes Hamas demanded. It is quite the list:



1) On the first day Israel has to withdraw from all the populated areas in Gaza.

2) On the third day Israel  Shaiel Ben-Ephraim (@academic_la) June 12, 2024

On the other hand, they call for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails to be released in order of seniority, regardless of their crimes.

At the end of this first phase there must be no Israeli soldiers left inside Gaza, demanding a declaration from Jerusalem committing to a permanent end to hostilities. Hamas called for China, Russia and Turkey to be added as guarantors of the agreement.

After the end of the fighting, the terrorist group demands the release of some of its members - without any Israeli veto - and calls for the conditions of detainees in Israel to be improved back to post-7 October levels.

These are the 'tweaks' that Hamas is demanding to the hostage release deal:



 The IDF would need to begin its withdraw from Gaza on day 1

 Israel would have to agree to a permanent end to hostilities before all hostages are released

 Israel would not be allowed to veto the  Aviva Klompas (@AvivaKlompas) June 13, 2024

In conclusion, Hamas wants 50 of its fighters in Gaza to be transferred daily to Egypt for medical care, while demanding that Israel provide Gaza with all the electricity it needs. Also, all terrorists will return to their homes and none will be deported from Gaza.

These modifications would allow Hamas to remain in power in Gaza, something both Israel and the US have openly rejected as it would continue to pose a threat to the Hebrew state. Similarly, while not publicly admitting it, many of the Arab countries in the region do not welcome Hamas's continued power.

The Palestinian armed group, in addition to being backed and funded by the Islamic Republic of Iran, also has strong ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, an Islamist organisation at odds with many of the region's Arab governments.

A Palestinian holds Hamas flags - AFP/JOHN MACDOUGALL

Hamas calls civilian deaths in Gaza "necessary sacrifices"

Hamas's main goal in this war is to maintain its hold on power in Gaza, an aim also pursued by Tehran to consolidate its influence in the region through its proxies. To achieve this, the terrorist group is willing to "sacrifice" as many Gazan civilians as necessary, a strategy that some of its leaders have admitted on several occasions.

In this regard, The Wall Street Journal has reported on recordings of Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader in Gaza, in which he describes the civilian casualties as "necessary sacrifices" to bring Israel to its knees.

BREAKING: The IDF releases a video of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar taken on October 10th. In the video Sinwar is seen in a tunnel in Khan Younis with his brother, wife and kids pic.twitter.com/XTE6UAOoWj  Barak Ravid (@BarakRavid) February 13, 2024

The conversations - which are undated - show that the 7 October attack in which 1,200 Israelis were killed and more than 200 kidnapped was aimed at forcing a brutal military response from Israel and thwarting a peace plan between the Jewish state and Saudi Arabia.

"We have the Israelis right where we want them," admits Sinwar, who is believed to be hiding somewhere in a Gaza tunnel.

Earlier, when the US announced its new proposal for a truce, Arab mediators said Sinwar was "in no hurry to end the war", believing that the conflict was isolating Israel internationally and advancing the Palestinian cause.

Hezbollah fires 200 shells into Israel after IDF eliminates senior commander

While the war rages in Gaza, where more than 37,000 people have been killed, according to Hamas-controlled Health Ministry figures, the so-far low-intensity conflict on the Israel-Lebanon border is intensifying, stoking fears of open war between the IDF and the Iranian-backed Hezbollah.

170 rockets fired by Hezbollah, a proxy of the Islamic republic, in the number of hours. This is the reality millions of Israelis are facing today, on a Jewish holiday, while our hostages remain in Hamas captivity. Hamas is another proxy of the Islamic republic of Iran. All the pic.twitter.com/rwChplV5fx  Emily Schrader -     (@emilykschrader) June 12, 2024

In recent hours, after Israel confirmed the death of Taleb Abdullah, a senior Lebanese militia commander, Hezbollah has launched more than 200 missiles into northern Israel. Abdullah is the most senior member of the organisation Israel has eliminated since the start of hostilities in October, so Hezbollah's response attack has also been the most intense since then.

IAF aircraft eliminated Sami Taleb Abdullah, the commander of the Nasr Unit in the Hezbollah terrorist organization, last night. This was part of a strike on a Hezbollah command and control center in the area of Jouaiyya in southern Lebanon, which was used to direct terrorist pic.twitter.com/DE4qKnC7Mk  Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 12, 2024

The shells even reached the city of Tiberias, 65 kilometres from the border, and other towns even further south where alarms have been sounding in recent hours.

BREAKING: On the morning of Shavuot, as Israeli families head to the Sea of Galilee to celebrate, Hezbollah fires a massive 160-rocket barrage at northern Israel, targeting Tiberias for the first time.



The Iron Dome intercepted some rockets, but others caused fires upon impact. pic.twitter.com/eJS4VKkZ6X  Hen Mazzig (@HenMazzig) June 12, 2024

Local authorities and residents who have not evacuated the area accuse the government of "abandoning the north", demanding measures to restore security and allow all displaced people to return home.

   .

 ,     .    pic.twitter.com/TkFrOXIb4u  Jonathan Elkhoury-   (@Jonathan_Elk) June 11, 2024

Hezbollah attacks have intensified significantly in recent weeks, sparking numerous fires in northern Israel and increasing fears of a wider conflict that would have devastating consequences for both Israel and Lebanon.
Shakari Briggs is a reporter for the Houston Chronicle. She can be reached at shakari.briggs@houstonchronicle.com.

Before joining the Chronicle in November 2023, she worked for Spectrum News as a digital journalist based in her hometown. Shakari comes to the Houston newsroom with experience in broadcast reporting and producing as a former multimedia journalist and associate producer. The Dallas native has also worked at small to medium-sized newspapers throughout her career.

Her reporting on the rise and fall of a shopping mall won an Arkansas Associated Press Managing Editors Contest award. She also earned an Arkansas Press Association award for freelance reporting.
13 June 2024 10:21 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

During an event celebrating the official birthday of Britain's King Charles III, Azerbaijani Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov highlighted that the UK is the largest foreign investor in Azerbaijan, with total investments exceeding $35.9 billion, Azernews reports.

"The UK has been a strategic partner from the beginning, playing a crucial role in Azerbaijan's development through its investments and support in the energy sector. The United Kingdom remains the largest foreign investor in our country, with total investments surpassing $35.9 billion," Shahbazov stated.

He noted that investments and trade are growing as cooperation expands, with trade turnover increasing by 16% in the first three months of this year.

"Our long-term and productive cooperation in the energy sector is vital for global energy security. Initiated in 1994 with the "Contract of the Century," our energy collaboration has ensured the success of major projects. The Southern Gas Corridor has solidified Azerbaijan's position as an energy supplier to Europe. The commencement of mining at the "Central East Azeri" field, marking the 30th year of our partnership with bp on the "Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli" project, is another significant milestone," he added.

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13 June 2024 10:39 (UTC+04:00)

Nazrin Abdul Read more

"We are committed to close cooperation with Azerbaijan under our COP29 presidency," stated Jennifer Baumvoll, a specialist at the United Nations Development Program - Office of Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction, Azernews reports.

Baumvoll emphasized the UN Development Program's focus on supporting financial and trade issues: "We will collaborate closely on how to assist member countries in the areas outlined by Azerbaijan for COP29, and we are prepared to engage."

Liva Kaugure, a natural resources specialist from the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, affirmed support for Azerbaijan's priority issues: "Our objective is to aid countries in combating food scarcity. Azerbaijan has prioritized this issue, urging global attention and civic engagement. We stand ready to collaborate closely under the COP29 presidency."

Azerbaijan unveiled its initiatives under the Action Agenda of COP29 during a June 12 event in Bonn, Germany, as part of the Climate Conference. The comprehensive action plan covers gender equality, energy, agriculture, water, tourism, diversity, education, and other critical issues, receiving significant interest and support.

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13 June 2024 09:00 (UTC+04:00)

Speaker of the Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova met with the Prime Minister of the Republic of Belarus Roman Golovchenko during her official visit to the Republic of Belarus, Azernews reports, citing the Press and Public Relations Department of the Milli Majlis.

Appreciating the last month as the month of Azerbaijan-Belarus cooperation, the Prime Minister said that during this period there was a sufficient intensity in mutual visits between the country's officials. According to him, the visit of the President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko to Azerbaijan, the visit of the Prime Minister of Azerbaijan to Belarus, as well as the visit of the Chairman of the Milli Majlis to Belarus against the background of the next meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission held in Minsk, is an indication of the high level of our relations, besides making very important contributions to the development of relations between our countries.

The role of high-level relations between the heads of state in the development of relations between the two countries was specially emphasized at the meeting. It was reported that the tasks of the heads of state on the expansion of our relations are successfully carried out by the relevant state institutions.

It was noted that the official visit of President Ilham Aliyev to the Republic of Belarus in 2018, including the state visit of President Alexander Lukashenko to Azerbaijan last month and the documents signed during these visits gave a special impetus to our relations. It was recalled that up to now, about 150 documents covering political, economic, social, humanitarian, scientific-technical and regional cooperation issues have been signed between Azerbaijan and Belarus, which created a solid legal basis for the development of bilateral relations.

Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko expressed his satisfaction that the relations between our parliaments are at a high level in accordance with the spirit of relations between our countries, and noted that this visit of the Chairman of the Milli Majlis will make an important contribution to the further expansion of relations at the parliamentary level.

Speaker of Milli Majlis Sahiba Gafarova informed about the meetings held within the framework of the visit. It was reported that within the framework of the visit, views were exchanged on many areas of cooperation between our countries. In particular, there were useful discussions on further deepening of relations in the field of legislation. It was noted that in order to make an even greater contribution to the relations between our countries, joint activity in the field of legislation, including further deepening of cooperation between parliamentary committees, is appropriate.

Informing the other party about the achievements of Azerbaijan during the period of independence, the Chairman of the Milli Majlis said that after the National Leader of our people, Heydar Aliyev, came to power in our country at the insistence of our people, Azerbaijan has embarked on the path of development. The foundations of the economic and social development of the country have been formed. The oil strategy implemented under the leadership of the Great Leader has opened up great opportunities for our country. Currently, under the successful leadership of President Ilham Aliyev, Azerbaijan is making great achievements in all directions.

Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko also said that Azerbaijan has made great progress during its independence.

During the conversation, Speaker Sahiba Gafarova gave information about the restoration and reconstruction works carried out in the Garabagh and Eastern Zangazur economic regions. It was brought to attention that the concepts of "smart city" and "smart village" are applied in these works, and renewable energy sources are used. The agreement reached regarding the participation of Belarusian companies in the restoration works was highly appreciated.

It was emphasized at the meeting that the cooperation between Azerbaijan and Belarus in economic and commercial fields is developing dynamically, and there are good opportunities to achieve even higher results in agriculture, the processing industry, and a number of other fields.

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13 June 2024 10:58 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova Read more

The parliamentary delegation led by Speaker Sahiba Gafarova from the Milli Majlis visited the National Library of Belarus during their official trip to the Republic of Belarus, Azernews reports, citing the Press and Public Relations Department of the Milli Majlis.

During the visit, the delegation explored the library's facilities and learned about its extensive collection of books. They also visited the section dedicated to Azerbaijan, where the Speaker of the Milli Majlis presented books on Azerbaijan's statehood history and "Karabakh: before and after the occupation".

Following this, Sahiba Gafarova signed the library's memorial book.

In addition, the Azerbaijani parliamentary delegation visited the "Horizont" Center for Electronics and Innovations and the first National Trading House in Minsk. Here, they were briefed on various Belarusian products.

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13 June 2024 11:50 (UTC+04:00)

The positions of the Azerbaijani army in the vicinity of Nakhchivan came under fire, Azernews reports citing the Ministry of Defense.

On June 12, from 10:05 a.m. to 5:50 p.m., units of the Armenian armed forces fired several times from small arms at the positions of the Azerbaijan Army located in Havush of Sharur district, Nurgut of Ordubad district, and Guney Gishlaq of Shahbuz district.

Response measures were taken by units of the Azerbaijani Army in the mentioned directions.

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13 June 2024 14:34 (UTC+04:00)

By News Centre

Qaiser Nawab, Founder and President of the Pakistan-Azerbaijan Alumni Association (PAAA), extends his heartfelt congratulations to the people of Azerbaijan on the momentous occasion of raising the national flag at Khojaly Airport. This significant event marks yet another milestone in the proud history of Azerbaijan.

The raising of the national flag at Khojaly Airport symbolizes the strength and resilience of the Azerbaijani people. This achievement is a testament to the leadership and vision of His Excellency Mr. Ilham Aliyev, the Supreme Leader and President of Azerbaijan. Under his guidance, Azerbaijan has consistently demonstrated its commitment to sovereignty, peace, and development.

According to Azerbaijans Defense Ministry, the withdrawal of the Russian peacekeeping contingent, which was temporarily deployed in the territory of Azerbaijan after the Patriotic War, was completed on June 12. This event underscores the successful efforts of the Azerbaijani government in restoring and maintaining peace and stability in the region.

This victory holds profound significance as it is deeply connected to the tragic events of the Khojaly Genocide. On February 26, 1992, Armenian forces and the 366th CIS regiment carried out the mass killing of Azerbaijani civilians in the town of Khojaly. This massacre became the largest single atrocity in the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, leaving an indelible mark on the national consciousness of Azerbaijan. The raising of the flag at Khojaly Airport serves as a poignant reminder of the sacrifices made and the enduring spirit of the Azerbaijani people.

Qaiser Nawab stated, "The hoisting of the national flag at Khojaly Airport is not just a victory for Azerbaijan, but a symbol of hope and unity for all of us who believe in the principles of national integrity and self-determination. We stand in solidarity with the people of Azerbaijan and celebrate this historic achievement."

As the President of the Pakistan-Azerbaijan Alumni Association, Qaiser Nawab reaffirms the strong ties between Pakistan and Azerbaijan. The PAAA continues to support and foster relations between the two nations, promoting cultural exchange and mutual understanding.

This event is a beacon of pride for every Azerbaijani and a reminder of the enduring spirit that drives the nation forward. The Pakistan-Azerbaijan Alumni Association looks forward to many more such victories and extends its best wishes to the leadership and people of Azerbaijan.

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13 June 2024 15:39 (UTC+04:00)

Ulviyya Shahin Read more

Azerbaijani Ambassador to Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark Zaur Ahmadov participated in a working lunch hosted by Norwegian Minister of International Development Anne Beathe Tvinnereim within the co-chairmanship of the Alliance of Champions for Food Systems Transformation (ACF), Azernews reports.

The event was attended by representatives of relevant international organizations and ambassadors of several countries.

Addressing the event, Ambassador Zaur Ahmadov provided insight into the ongoing preparations for COP29, as well as spoke about the initiative put forward by Azerbaijan's COP29 Presidency in the field of agriculture and food security - the "Harmoniya" initiative aimed at better coordination of existing partnerships.

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13 June 2024 14:55 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova Read more

Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Azerbaijans Mine Action Agency (ANAMA) Samir Poladov met with a delegation led by Deputy Ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to the country Edward Evans, Azernews reports.

Samir Poladov informed the UKs deputy ambassador about the mine problem and the consequences caused by mines, the activities carried out to address this problem, the progress achieved, as well as the international cooperation in the field of mine action.

The ANAMA Chairman of Board noted that Great Britain has supported the humanitarian demining activities carried out in Azerbaijan from the first day, and emphasized the existence of quite successful projects in this field.

During the meeting, Edward Evans acknowledged the significant scale of the landmine problem that Azerbaijan faced, commending the work done in this area.

The meeting also included an exchange of views on expanding UK's support for the humanitarian demining activities carried out in Azerbaijan, enhancing existing cooperation in this field, as well as other issues of mutual interest.

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13 June 2024 14:00 (UTC+04:00)

President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev attended the opening of the Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex in the Gobustan village of the Absheron district, Azernews reports.

Fuad Naghiyev, Chairman of the State Tourism Agency of Azerbaijan, briefed the head of state on the development of the complex.

The Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex covers an area of 12 hectares and includes an administrative building. The newly established tourism infrastructure has generated over 60 job opportunities for local residents, particularly those from surrounding areas. The Tourism Information Center at the complex features an exhibition hall and workshop.

The Nature History Exhibition Hall showcases a diverse collection, including 98 animal skeletons from Azerbaijan and around the world.

Moreover, the Minerals exhibition displays nearly 80 types of minerals found in Azerbaijan.

Additionally, a 110-seat restaurant has been constructed on the premises.

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13 June 2024 20:00 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova Read more

The signing of the Shusha Declaration by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and the President of Turkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Shusha on the alliance relations between the two countries has a special political and historical significance.

The signed Declaration of Alliance elevates the relations between the two countries to a high level. Thus, Azerbaijan-Turkiye relations have now reached their highest peak. The fact that the peoples have the same ancestry, language, religion, culture and many other mutual ties has always made the countries close to each other, and the two Turkish peoples were by each other's side in all times.

In a comment on the topic for Azernews, Turkish reserve general Yucel Karauz said that the Shusha Declaration is the most strategic agreement in the world.

"There are political and economic cooperation agreements between countries in the world. However, an agreement covering political, military, and cultural fields to this extent is just the Shusha declaration," the expert said.

Karauz drew attention to the military cooperation between the two countries.

"If we look at it from the point of view of security, as per Article 5 of NATO, any attack against Azerbaijan and Baku is considered as an attack against Ankara and Turkiye. Similarly, an attack against Turkiye is considered as an attack against Azerbaijan," the military expert stressed.

From this point of view, both military combat work and defense industry work have started to improve. In this context, issues such as the joint production of Bayraktar, raiders, ATAK helicopters of TAI, HURKUSH, HURJET and Kaan aircraft have been brought up.

The expert spoke about the exchange of military experience between the two countries. He said that Azerbaijan has transitioned to the army model of the Turkish Armed Forces.

"Within the framework of military education events, activities such as student exchange, increasing the number of unit commander exchange exercises, creating a common airspace between Turkiye and Azerbaijan, and creating an air-tactical landscape were carried out, and the Azerbaijani army moved to the army model of the Turkish Armed Forces. Besides, as a result of the establishment of commando units and the National Defense University, the Azerbaijani army has moved to the army model of NATO's second and the world's eighth strongest army," Karauz added.

The general also touched upon the military exercises between Azerbaijan and Turkiye following the declaration.

"During the 3 years following the signing of the declaration, a joint meeting of the national security councils, as well as the joint activities of intelligence organizations, and then their members, were carried out," the expert said.

Yucel Karauz announced that Azerbaijan and Turkiye have made a great contribution to the understanding of the Turkic world.

"Another important point is that this declaration is an agreement that ensures the coming together, strengthening and encouragement of new cooperation between the two Turkish states. Within the framework of this agreement, Turkey and Azerbaijan have almost switched to the philosophy of one nation, two states, and state institutions have begun to perform complementary and supporting functions in a coordinated manner.

Yucel Karauz said that it is possible to divide the relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey into two parts, before the Shusha Declaration and after the Shusha Declaration.

"Although Turkish-Azerbaijani relations have a long history, the relations between the two countries should be evaluated separately before and after this declaration. Because, as I mentioned earlier, it is a limited model of cooperation in world political history," the military expert said.

The general spoke about President Erdogan's upcoming visit to Shusha.

"The signing of the peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia forces Azerbaijan and Turkey to act together, show common sense and a decisive position. This week Mr. President Ilham Aliyev and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed this in Ankara. Therefore, Turkey and Azerbaijan, especially now, are one breath, one heart," the military expert concluded.

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Caroline Wilburn is a breaking news reporter for the Houston Chronicle.

A May graduate of Texas A&M University, Caroline worked as an election stringer for the Associated Press and as a breaking news fellow at the Texas Tribune. At the Tribune, she got a crash course in interpreting data, distilling complicated policy and following statewide trends on a tight deadline. Shes also a skilled video editor and podcast producer.

She won a first-place award for audio news production at the Texas Intercollegiate Press Association.
13 June 2024 17:18 (UTC+04:00)

Fatima Latifova Read more

Azerbaijans Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsman) Sabina Aliyeva has commented on French governments biased position against the Azerbaijani journalist, Azernews reports.

An Azerbaijani journalist who visited Germany to participate in an event organized by the Secretariat of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Bonn was detained at Cologne/Bonn Airport on June 11 and informed that his entry into the Schengen area was blocked by France. After being held at the airport for several hours, investigations conducted by the relevant German authorities revealed that there was no legal grounds for this requirement, and the journalist was subsequently allowed to enter the country.

Such mistreatment of the Azerbaijani journalist grossly violates the norms and principles of international law, particularly the rights to freedom of speech, media freedom, and access to information. It also promotes the imposition of restrictions on the free activity of journalists, Sabina Aliyeva said.

Under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, everyone has the right to freedom of opinion and expression, including the freedom to hold opinions without interference and to seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers. Furthermore, France's actions are also contrary to the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the European Convention on Human Rights, both of which France is a party to.

Considering that this year Azerbaijan will host the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCCC (COP29), it is unacceptable to obstruct the participation of an Azerbaijani media representative in an event dedicated to the topic of climate change in this manner.

Frances obstruction of the journalists professional activities and restriction of his freedom of movement due to political relations and unfounded biased attitudes should be condemned by the relevant international organizations, and necessary investigations should be conducted regarding the matter, the Azerbaijani Ombudsman emphasized.

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13 June 2024 20:19 (UTC+04:00)

The French newspaper "Le Monde" has praised Turkish Airlines (THY) and Istanbul Airport.

The news stated that the results achieved by the national airline company Turkish Airlines (THY) have reached unprecedented levels.

THY was commended in "Le Monde's article titled "Air transportation is an important tool of power for Erdogan's Turkiye."

The article highlighted that THY's airport network has significantly expanded, particularly with new domestic flights bolstering its connections to transportation hubs like Ankara and Istanbul.

According to the report, THY plans to inaugurate 54 new routes22 to Europe, 9 to America, and 13 to the Far East and Asiawhile also expanding the international reach of its subsidiary, AnadoluJet. This ambitious plan aims to substantially increase flight volume within the next decade.

"Established in 1933 and once regarded as a secondary airline, THY has emerged as a major player in the global aviation industry, rivaling major European and Gulf carriers," the article emphasized, attributing this success to Turkey's effective development strategy.

As of April, THY reported a net profit of 5.52 billion euros, surpassing the net profit of 2.43 billion euros of IAG, the parent company of British Airways, Europe's most profitable scheduled airline. THY's total revenue reached 20.94 billion euros, with a net profit margin of 28.8 percent.

The article highlighted Istanbul Airport's transformation into Europe's busiest airport since its inauguration in 2018, positioning Turkey as a "new center of globalization."

Described as "one of the world's busiest air hubs," Istanbul Airport exceeded the passenger traffic of Heathrow, the largest airport in England, with 64.3 million passengers in 2022.

The news also mentioned THY's acquisition of 220 aircraft from Airbus in December 2023 and reported that THY's Board of Directors and Executive Committee Chairman, Ahmet Bolat, announced discussions with Boeing for the potential purchase of approximately 250 aircraft on June 4.

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13 June 2024 18:40 (UTC+04:00)

Otag, the fire management aircraft named after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and called Turkiye's flying headquarters, instantly makes all the data it obtains available to those concerned, thanks to its equipment.

First, let's find out more about Orag, especially the features of the fire management aircraft.

Fire management aircraft Otag started to be used in Turkiye, the 5th country after 4 countries that are very advanced in forestry in the world. Otag can be reconnected with satellite equipment even in steep terrain where communication is lost during a fire.

Bekir Karacabey, General Manager of Forestry, stated that the fire management plane Otag instantly makes all the data it obtains available to those concerned, thanks to its equipment. Karacabey opened the doors of Turkiye's first and only fire management aircraft, "Otag", to members of the press and gave information about the aircraft within the organization.

Stating that they designed a management plane to manage the processes in addition to the forest fire intervention tools, Karacabey said that they called it "flying headquarters" and that President Recep Tayyip Erdogan named the plane "Otag".

Stating that the aircraft started operating last year, Karacabey said, "The fire management aircraft Otag started to be used in Turkiye, the 5th after the 4 countries that are very advanced in forestry in the world. We can happily say that this aircraft is the one equipped with the latest technology among its peers." said.

Stating that Otag is a flying fire management center, Karacabey stated that there is no difference in terms of technology between the Fire Management Center in the General Directorate and Otag. Karacabey pointed out that the opportunities offered by the aircraft helped the fire commander make quick and effective decisions and said:

"Thanks to its 2 different cameras and satellite communication equipment, Otag instantly makes all the data it obtains from the field during the fire available to those concerned. With the TK-9 camera on the aircraft, it can produce images in 7 different bandwidths depending on the purpose of the operation. TK-9 produces analyzable data with high resolution." "It can detect hot spots in the shooting area. It can also be reconnected with satellite equipment in steep terrain where communication is interrupted during a fire."

"It provides great convenience in planning forests"

Pointing out that Otag's capabilities are not limited to forest fire fighting, Karacabey said:

"In addition to fire data, Otag is equipped to instantly transmit all forestry activities in a certain region to the authorities as high-resolution images. For example, the detection of trees that are diseased or exposed to insect pests, the structure of the forest, the structure of the trees, their type, volume, the moisture status of the soil with an accuracy of 18 centimeters. "At the same time, we can determine how many trees of each species there are from the plane, even in mixed forests with different tree species. This provides us with great convenience in planning the forests."

Stating that Otag can stay in the air for 8 hours while operating at full capacity, Karacabey stated that the data obtained by the aircraft can also be monitored instantly from the Fire Management Center and Air Management Center.

Stating that Otag can stay in the air for 8 hours while operating at full capacity, Karacabey stated that the data obtained by the aircraft can also be monitored instantly from the Fire Management Center and Air Management Center.

The most powerful fleet in the history of the Republic

Emphasizing that the General Directorate of Forestry has the most powerful equipment in the history of the Republic in terms of air and land vehicles in fighting fires, Karacabey said, "For now, we will fight forest fires from the air with 105 helicopters, 26 planes and 14 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). As a land force, we will have 1649 sprinklers." "We are ready for duty with 2,453 first response vehicles, 821 work machines and 25 thousand personnel." he said.

Karacabey, who informed that 4 planes and 2 helicopters used in fire extinguishing last year were included in the inventory of OGM, stated that they added 4 additional fire extinguishing planes to the inventory list of the institution this year.

Karacabey stated that the UAVs they have been using since 2019 were also included in their inventory this year and made the following assessment:

"We first started with 1 UAV, and increased it to 4. Then, when we saw the benefits of these vehicles in forest fire control and surveillance activities, we increased it to 14. Currently, the station installations of these UAVs in the field have been completed, 4 of them are active. Within a week, the others will be added. He will be on duty.

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13 June 2024 21:42 (UTC+04:00)

By Alimat Aliyeva

Japan and North Korea held a secret meeting in Mongolia in mid-May, Azernews reports.

It is reported that there was one politician in the Japanese delegation at the meeting near Ulaanbaatar, and there were three people from the North Koreans, one of whom is connected with the main intelligence bureau of the DPRK.

Japanese government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi declined to comment on the news, citing the "nature of the issue."

According to the newspaper, the meeting can be considered as an attempt by the DPRK to find a "breakthrough in diplomatic and economic terms."

The newspaper also reported that Japan and North Korea were scheduled to meet last week in China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, but "it is unclear whether contact took place as planned."

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UC Los Angeles appoints new chancellor in aftermath of campus turmoil over pro-Palestinian protests

Xinhua) 09:31, June 13, 2024

Academic workers protest at the University of California (UC), Los Angeles, in Los Angeles, California, the United States, on May 28, 2024. (Photo by Zeng Hui/Xinhua)

Julio Frenk will be the first Latino to lead the elite Los Angeles school in its 105-year history. He will succeed Gene Block, who is facing criticism over the response to pro-Palestinian demonstrations on campus.

LOS ANGELES, June 12 (Xinhua) -- University of California (UC), Los Angeles, announced on Wednesday it has appointed a new chancellor for the No. 1-ranked public university in the United States, in the aftermath of campus turmoil over pro-Palestinian protests.

Julio Frenk, currently the president of the University of Miami, will begin his role as the campus' seventh chancellor on Jan. 1, 2025, UCLA announced in a statement.

Frenk will be the first Latino to lead the elite Los Angeles school in its 105-year history. The appointment marks the culmination of a seven-month international search by a 17-member committee that included UC President Michael Drake, UC regents and representatives of UCLA's faculty, staff, students, alumni and foundation.

Frenk, a U.S. citizen originally from Mexico, is a distinguished global public health researcher, according to the statement.

Since 2015, Frenk has led the University of Miami, a private institution of more than 17,000 students. He previously served as dean of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and as Mexico's national health secretary.

Frenk will succeed Gene Block, who has been UCLA chancellor for 17 years. Block is facing criticism over his response to pro-Palestinian demonstrations on campus.

"At this crucial moment for higher education, returning to the public sector to lead one of the top research universities in the world ... is an exciting opportunity and a great honor for me," said Frenk in the statement.

"I do think that we're at a critical moment in higher education. There has been an erosion of trust in institutions in general, including higher education institutions," Frenk added, noting that "The biggest challenge for us is to reaffirm our value to society -- we have to constantly earn that trust. But the opportunity is huge."

Frenk's appointment came less than two days after 25 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested by police at UCLA. Protesters returned to UCLA campus and clashed with police on Monday after setting up the third campus encampment in recent weeks in support of the Palestinians amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza.

Over 200 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested on May 2 as police moved to dismantle an encampment at the university. On May 23, a group of protesters briefly established a second encampment on UCLA campus before police moved in to disband the efforts.

UC's controversial response to pro-Palestinian protests had led to a rolling strike as academic workers at six of UC's 10 systemwide campuses, including UCLA, walked off the job.

The strike by United Auto Workers (UAW) Local 4811, which represents 48,000 academic workers across the UC system, was ordered to pause by a judge on Friday after UC filed a lawsuit and requested injunctive relief earlier last week against UAW for breach of contract. UAW Local 4811 vowed in a statement that the union is prepared to keep defending its rights in a "long fight."

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Shown is visible satellite aboard the Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellite, or GOES, taken Thursday afternoon over the Gulf of Mexico. Invest 90L can be seen near Florida, but a second area to watch in the Bay of Campeche could develop into a tropical depression next week. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

The Atlantic hurricane season that began almost two weeks ago has had a relatively tame start compared to years past. Since 1970, only two years had no named storms in the Atlantic or eastern Pacific through June 17, according to meteorologist and Colorado State University researcher Philip Klotzbach.

But in the Gulf of Mexico, a plume of deep tropical moisture is getting pulled into Florida this week and the National Hurricane Center is closely monitoring a broad area of low atmospheric pressure in the Bay of Campeche near southern Mexico that may develop over the weekend.

A storm system dubbed Invest 90L has prompted flood watches in Florida, from Miami to Naples. On Wednesday, flash flood emergencies resulted in numerous stranded cars in Miami as two-day rainfall estimates topped 20 inches in some locations. More flooding is expected in already hard-hit locations Thursday, according to the National Weather Service in Miami.

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Truly tropical downpours miss the Houston metro area this week, but that isnt expected to last much longer. Before discussing the potential for tropical development in the Gulf of Mexico, lets define what a tropical invest is first.

Tropical invest defined

A tropical invest, short for investigation, is a designated area of disturbed weather in the tropics that has the potential to develop into a tropical cyclone. This classification is used by the National Hurricane Center to identify and track areas of interest for further investigation. An invest area is typically monitored closely through satellite imagery, surface observations and sometimes reconnaissance aircraft to assess its development potential.

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It is given a number, such as 90L that formed early Tuesday, to facilitate identification and tracking. This numbering convention allows meteorologists to analyze its structure, predict its movement, and provide early warnings if it intensifies into a tropical depression, tropical storm or hurricane.

Keep in mind that tropical invest regions arent necessarily areas where tropical development will occur. Its simply an area that is being investigated for a variety of reasons.

Increased development odds in the Gulf

National Hurricane Center forecasters have their eyes on the Bay of Campeche, the southernmost section of the Gulf of Mexico, with south-central Mexico on one side and the Yucatan Peninsula on the other.

Shown is the 7-day Graphical Tropical Weather Outlook, according to the National Hurricane Center. The area in orange is the region the NHC will closely monitor over the weekend for potential development into a tropical depression. National Hurricane Center

Thursday mornings update from the National Hurricane Center suggests the first tropical depression of the season may develop early next week. This area of unstable air, while not particularly organized based on satellite imagery, does have favorable odds of developing into a stronger storm because it is expected to remain in an area with little wind shear and warm sea surface temperatures.

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Its too early to say if the weather in this area will develop into a named storm or where that potential storm could track. Both European and American forecast models suggest whatever develops will stay mainly south of the Rio Grande. That doesnt mean the Houston area will dodge tropical downpours.

Shown is the Weather Prediction Center's flash flood outlook for Monday into Tuesday. The area in green has a 1 out of 4 chance of seeing heavy rain that could result in flash flooding, including much of Houston and Harris County. Weather Prediction Center

A surge of tropical moisture early next week will result in the chance of heavy rain that could result in localized flooding. The area most susceptible to flooding will be along and south of Interstate 10, according to the Weather Prediction Centers flash flood outlook for next Monday and Tuesday.

In addition to heavy rainfall through midweek, elevated tides could keep you from going into the water.

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Now that Kamala Harris has been coronated the Democratic Socialist designee for nomination as their candidate for President of these United States, after that political party's contrived primary process "democratically" elected Joseph R. Biden: What are your feelings about this party's progressive posture within their self-styled exercise of "Saving Democracy for America," and how truly critical the outcome of this presidential election will be?

8.7% I am ecstatic that this "Democracy's" First partially Black, First partially Indian, First female Co-Parent, and this nation's primary necessity is to her elect our First woman president.26.09% I really do not care about all these "Firsts." I will continue to pray, and work for this Representative Republic to elect someone competent, and brilliantly patriotic to be our next president.65.22% I will never vote for any politician that "first" does not have the core values to understand how dire this Constitutional Republic's situation has become.
Here are three lawsuits involving physicians and illegal drug prescription that Becker's has reported on in the last month:

1. Orthopedic surgeon Evangelos Megariotis, MD, admitted to multiple counts of illegally prescribing pain medication to patients. Dr. Megariotis pleaded guilty to seven counts of a 34-count indictment accusing him of illegally prescribing oxycodone, oxycontin, and oxycodone-acetaminophen to five patients.

2. Former Alabama physician Francene Aretha Gayle, MD, pleaded guilty in federal court alongside her wife for her role in a $2.3 million fraud scheme involving illegal opioid prescription. Dr. Gayle and Schara Monique Davis billed payers millions of dollars for patient visits that Dr. Gayle was supposed to have conducted but were instead conducted by other clinic staff.

3. lan Nelson, MD, a physician in East Norwich, N.Y., was ordered to close his practice and surrender his license for illegal opioid prescription. From 2020 to 2021, Dr. Nelson prescribed at least 92,700 milligrams of oxycodone to a patient without a medical purpose.
A federal judge denied a motion to dismiss claims that the former president, CFO and partial owner of Cardiac Imaging violated Stark law, according to court documents.

The Justice Department filed a complaint in February alleging Rick Nassenstein played a central role in a scheme in which the company paid referring cardiologists exorbitant fees to supervise PET scans from at least 2017 through June 2023.

Judge Ewing Werlein Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas on June 11 denied the motion to dismiss the allegations.

Among other allegations, Mr. Nassenstein is accused of entering pay arrangements with referring cardiologists where they were paid as if they were supervising scans even if they were providing care in an office or were off-site. According to the complaint, Mr. Nassenstein's fraudulent conduct resulted in more than 75,000 false Medicare claims.

In October, Oakbrook Terrace, Ill.-based Cardiac Imaging and former CEO Sam Kancherlapalli agreed to pay more than $85 million to resolve False Claims Act allegations.
A $231 million expansion project that will nearly double the number of beds at Memorial Hermann Sugar Land (Texas) Hospital is set to be completed in late 2026.

The community hospital resides in one of the fastest growing regions in Greater Houston, with the expansion expected to support the facility's ability to provide more advanced levels of care, leaders told Community Impact in a June 13 report. The project includes the addition of 120 more beds, a third medical plaza, a seven-story north tower with new medical-surgical beds, an expanded neonatal intensive care unit and other renovations.

Construction on the north tower, which includes the expanded NICU, is slated to start early next year. Hospital officials said the expansion will strengthen its application with the state's health department for a higher NICU designation. The facility currently has a Level II NICU designation and is seeking a Level III designation.

"We have a desire to move up in our leveling to treat higher-acuity babies," Matt Kelly, vice president of operations at Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital, told the publication. "Us going up to a Level III, part of that requires us to have more space and more ability to do different things, and this [expansion] project will allow us to do that."

Construction of the third medical plaza is expected to finish in July, with the parking garage and a third catheter lab slated to open in December.
Speaker of the House and presumptive run-off winner in the District 21 Representative race Dade Phelan is celebrated by supporters at his election party at JW's Patio. Photo made Tuesday, May 28, 2024 Kim Brent/Beaumont Enterprise Kim Brent

When Gov. Greg Abbott signed a bill into law in 2017 banning straight-ticket voting, the message was clear: the days of one-punch voting for every candidate with an R or a D next to their name were over. It was time to do some homework, voters.

I think itll give us better candidates and better elected officials, said then-state Rep. Ron Simmons, R-Carrollton, the bills sponsor. It wont have people getting voted out just because of their party identity.

It was a good change. Part of what drove it was Republicans' frustration about highly respected Republican judges getting swept out of office every time the political tides turned. The same happened to good Democratic judges although Democrats tended to pull the straight-ticket lever more often. Eight years later, some Texas Republicans are sending a far different message to primary voters: party identity is, in fact, all that matters.

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Hard-liners now prefer to weed out voters turning out for Republican primaries who consider candidates based upon things like qualifications and positions on relevant issues. They prefer blind allegiance  a vote for party, and not necessarily for person.

Consider the failed effort to oust House Speaker Dade Phelan in a Republican primary runoff last month. After the final votes were tallied in Phelans favor, his opponent and a segment of GOP activists cried foul. They blamed the outcome on Texas' open primary system, which allows voters, regardless of affiliation or ideology, to pick which partys primary they want to vote in.

Its clear that Phelan understood his only path to reelection was through the support of Democrats in his district, said David Covey, Phelans challenger, in an election night statement.

He may be right.

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The Chronicles Taylor Goldenstein reported that Phelan survived in part thanks to a small percentage of voters in the runoff  1,473 total or 6%  who had voted in at least one of the last four Democratic primaries. In a runoff where Phelan squeaked out victory by 366 votes, these voters may well have pushed him over the finish line. The numbers were crunched by Republican strategist Derek Ryan, who noted that the share of nominal Democratic voters in Phelans runoff was only slightly higher than all other contested statehouse runoffs.

Our open primary is designed to encourage these kinds of crossover voters, who function as a moderating force or even a check on powerful party leadership. As Ryan noted, voting in a Democratic primary does not make one a bleeding-heart liberal, just as voting in a Republican primary does not necessarily mean you are a Donald Trump acolyte.

A Democrat who voted for Phelan could have been passionate about protecting public education and respected that he backed the members of his conference who were opposed to an Abbott-backed private school voucher bill which repeatedly failed to pass the Legislature. Its also possible these voters picked the candidate with a track record of common sense and integrity: Phelan allowed a House impeachment vote against fellow Republican, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, over a mountain of corruption allegations. Covey, meanwhile, is an oil and gas consultant endorsed by Trump and bankrolled by two billionaires who want to turn Texas into a Christian nationalist state.

Texas' open-party system is intended to let people vote with their brains as well as their hearts.

Yet if some Texas Republicans have their way, the states open primaries would be slammed shut. At their biennial convention last month, Texas Republicans approved a rule change that would close primary elections so that only registered Republicans can participate. While this rule change is not binding  the Legislature would need to pass a bill changing the state election code  it illustrates some Republicans' preference for purity over representative democracy.

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LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Dade Phelan is the best Speaker I've ever witnessed

Already, the results of Texas' statewide and federal elections arent all that representative. Largely due to gerrymandered political maps that favor Republicans and a few Democratic incumbents, races are less competitive in November. That means the election that really counts is the March primary, specifically the GOP primary, in which only a single-digit percentage of the Texas voting-age population participates.

Since 1994, every single Republican who has won the primary for statewide office has gone on to win in November.

Closing the GOP primary would deprive independent voters or democrats living in gerrymandered Republican-dominated districts a say in who represents them.

Jim Pikl, vice chair of the Texas GOP executive committees rules committee, told the Chronicle: Why should the Democrats be allowed to select our team?

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Answer: because in Texas, the deck is so stacked for the GOP, that your team, Mr. Pikl, may be the only game in town.

LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Southeast Texas should re-elect Dade Phelan

Closed primaries dont just hurt moderate voters. They hurt sensible voters who dont want to see their parties  Republican or Democrat  pushed further to the extremes.

We ask any state lawmaker weighing closed primaries to consider these downsides. We believe it would shut out the candidates and voters who earnestly want to do the work of the people and break the hyper-partisan fever that has stricken both parties. Maintaining our open primaries is the only way to empower voters who prefer to assess their candidates by competence rather than by tribalism.

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Following Change Healthcare's admission that it paid off hackers after its ransomware attack, there has been a spike in healthcare-related cyber incidents, Wired reported June 12.

In April, cybersecurity firm Recorded Future identified 44 instances of cybercriminal groups targeting healthcare organizations with ransomware attacks. These attacks involved stealing data, encrypting systems and demanding ransom payments while holding networks hostage. This marks the highest number of healthcare ransomware victims recorded in a single month during Recorded Future's four years of data collection, Allan Liska, a threat intelligence analyst at the company told Wired.

Mr. Liska said that while the exact cause of the increase is uncertain, it is unlikely to be a coincidence that it followed UnitedHealth, the parent company of Change Healthcare, paying a ransom to the hacker group AlphV, also known as BlackCat, which orchestrated the attack on Change.

"These kind of large payments are absolutely going to incentivize ransomware actors to go after healthcare providers because they think theres more money to made be there," Mr. Liska said.

According to Wired, over the past two months, several healthcare organizations have experienced severe disruptions due to ransomware attacks. Among the organizations are St. Louis-based Ascension, Hospital Simone Veil in France, and pathology firm Synnovis.

But ransomware attacks targeting healthcare organizations were already increasing before the February Change Healthcare incident. Mr. Liska noted that each month in 2024 has experienced more healthcare ransomware attacks compared to the same month in any previous year he has monitored. Although there were 32 healthcare attacks in May, slightly fewer than the 33 in May 2023, Mr. Liska told Wired he anticipates that figure to grow as more incidents are reported.

However, Mr. Liska highlights the April surge captured in Recorded Future's data as a likely consequence of Change's crisis  not just due to the substantial ransom paid to AlphV, but also because of the prominent disruption caused by the attack.

"Because these attacks are so impactful, other ransomware groups see an opportunity," he said.

Mr. Liska said that ransomware incidents in healthcare have continued to rise, contrasting with overall ransomware trends which have remained stable or decreased. For example, from January to April 2024, there were 1,153 incidents, compared to 1,179 during the same period in 2023.

In response to Wired's request for comment, a United Healthcare spokesperson highlighted the increasing trend of healthcare ransomware attacks since 2022, indicating that this pattern began before the incident involving Change Healthcare. The spokesperson also referenced United Healthcare CEO Andrew Witty's testimony during a congressional hearing on the Change Healthcare ransomware attack.

"In addressing the numerous challenges posed by this attack, including navigating ransom demands, my foremost priority has been safeguarding individuals' personal health information," Mr. Witty said during the hearing. "As CEO, the decision to authorize a ransom payment was mine alone. It was undoubtedly one of the most difficult decisions I've ever faced, and one I wouldn't wish upon anyone."
A former Trinity Health hospital could be named after Terri Schiavo, a Florida woman whose story of being in a persistent vegetative state for 15 years captivated the nation in the early 2000s, the Detroit Free Press reported.

Livonia, Mich.-based Trinity Health said May 31 it agreed to sell its Livingston hospital in Howell, Mich., to Wildwood, Mo.-based Catholic Healthcare International. The nonprofit may turn the facility into the Terri Schiavo Home for the Brain Injured, according to the June 8 article.

"That's been the plan from the beginning ... if the hospital was established, we would home a rehab center in there in my sister's memory," Ms. Schiavo's brother, Bobby Schlindler, president of the Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network, told the news outlet. "That is the hope, but it's going to be a lot of work. Obviously, we have to raise the money, and a lot of questions still need to be answered before the doors open."

Ms. Schiavo became the subject of legal and political wrangling after entering a vegetative state due to cardiac arrest in 1990. After her husband elected to remove her feeding tube, her parents fought the decision, eventually leading to intervention from politicians including then-Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and President George W. Bush. A federal appeals court ultimately allowed the tube's removal in 2005, after which she died at the age of 41.

Trinity Health declined to comment to the Free Press, while Catholic Healthcare International, a nonprofit also aiming to build a hospital and Catholic medical school in the U.S., told the newspaper the facility is still in the "exploratory stages."
Los Angeles-based Prospect Medical Holdings has been ordered to pay more than $17.3 million of unpaid bills to hospital vendors within 10 days by Rhode Island Superior Court Judge Brian Stern on June 12, according to court documents obtained by Becker's.

The news comes after Prospect sued Yale New Haven Health on June 6 and alleged that the Connecticut health system failed to comply with its contractual obligations to acquire Waterbury (Conn.) Hospital and Eastern Connecticut Health Network in Manchester, Conn.

Providence, R.I.-based CharterCare Health Partners, part of Prospect Medical Holding, owns and operates two Rhode Island hospitals: Our Lady of Fatima Hospital in North Providence, R.I., and Roger Williams Medical Center in Providence.

Prospect has hit roadblocks in recent months in trying to sell CharterCare and the two hospitals. An application submitted by The Centurion Foundation in December to purchase the assets remains under review by Rhode Island's attorney general and department of health.

In 2021, Attorney General Peter Neronha set multiple conditions for the hospital to meet in a deal approved under the Hospital Conversion Act.

Prospect was required to put $80 million in either escrow or letter of credit to ensure that its two hospitals would continue to operate. It had to comply with the conditions for five years, according to the documents.

However, by November of 2023, Prospect owed over $24 million to its hospital vendors and certain elective surgeries were being canceled due to delays in surgical supply orders, according to a lawsuit filed by Mr. Neronha in 2023.

"Prospect Medical Holdings must comply with our 2021 HCA decision, including paying $17 million within the next 10 days for outstanding invoices owed to vendors of Our Lady of Fatima Hospital and Roger Williams Medical Center, to facilitate the continuation of safe, reliable patient care at these two essential safety-net hospitals," Mr. Neronha said in a June 12 news release. "The decision unambiguously and correctly concludes that Prospect repeatedly failed to comply with important conditions set in our 2021 decision."

Prospect did not have a comment for Becker's at this time.
Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C., has appointed Gina Cronin senior vice president and chief people officer, effective July 8.

Ms. Cronin currently serves as chief talent officer and director of the administrative fellowship program at Cleveland Clinic.

"Gina will be instrumental in supporting our strategic vision of a truly integrated health system, focusing on our people and processes while enhancing our workforce and supporting our mission to provide world class pediatric care," Children's National President and CEO Michelle Riley-Brown said in a June 13 news release.

Ms. Cronin received her master's degree in healthcare administration from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and is an alumnus of the Cleveland Clinic administrative fellowship.

She has served as an executive operational leader at Cleveland Clinic for two decades.
Benjamin Abella, MD, has been named chair of the department of emergency medicine at New York City-based Mount Sinai Health System and its Icahn School of Medicine. He will step into the role on Sept. 1, the health system announced June 13.

Dr. Abella  a nationally recognized expert in sudden cardiac arrest and cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR)  joins Mount Sinai from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, part of Penn Medicine. There, he served as the William G. Baxt Professor of Emergency Medicine, vice chair for research in the department of emergency medicine, and director of the Center for Resuscitation Science.

Dr. Abella is known for his role in improving the delivery of CPR through advancements in defibrillator technology. As a leader at the American Heart Association, he created international guidelines for resuscitation care.

As chair of emergency medicine at Mount Sinai, he will lead advancements in clinical and basic research efforts while overseeing high-quality emergency services across the system. He succeeds Jolion McGreevy, MD, who served as acting chair over the past six months.
Norfolk, Va.-based Sentara Health has selected new leaders for its acute and post-acute care division and its ambulatory division, as well as a new chief consumer officer.

Eric Conley was hired as executive vice president and president for acute and post-acute care. Mr. Conley joined Sentara in April, according to a health system statement shared with Becker's. Before that, he served as president of the south region, and president of Froedtert Hospital, at Milwaukee-based Froedtert ThedaCare Health.

Prasanna Mohanty joined Sentara in May as executive vice president and president for ambulatory. Mr. Mohanty previously served as COO for Renton, Wash.-based Providence's clinical network in California, according to Sentara's statement. He also has held roles at Oakland, Calif.-based Kaiser Permanente, Sacramento, Calif.-based Sutter Health and Los Angeles-based Cedars-Sinai Health System.

Adam Holyk joined Sentara in May as the organization's inaugural executive vice president and chief consumer officer. Mr. Holyk previously served as senior vice president of strategy at Walgreens Corp. in Illinois, according to Sentara's statement. While at Walgreens, he served in leadership positions including senior vice president and chief marketing officer.

Mike Kafka, a Sentara spokesperson, told Becker's the acute and post-acute care and ambulatory divisions previously reported to the health system's COO and were updated "to increase integration with Sentara Health Plans as part of our operational model update." In their new roles, Mr. Conley and Mr. Mohanty will report directly to Sentara President and CEO Dennis Matheis.

Mr. Kafka said the chief consumer officer role "will evolve existing capabilities and build new relationships with our patients, members and community." Mr. Holyk will also report to Mr. Matheis.






Gregory Johnson, MD, will step into the role of chief medical officer at West Des Moines, Iowa-based UnityPoint Health July 8.

Dr. Johnson has spent more than 15 years in clinical executive roles. He most recently served as CEO of the hospital medicine service line and chief health equity and diversity officer at Sound Physicians, a multi-specialty medical group that works with more than 400 hospitals in 45 states.

UnityPoint Health operates 17 regional and 19 community network hospitals across Iowa, Western Illinois and Southern Wisconsin.
Lee Boyles has served as president of Intermountain Health's Montana and Wyoming market and president of St. Vincent Regional Hospital in Billings, Mont., since March.

Mr. Boyles brings a wealth of experience to his new role.

Most recently, he served as CEO of St. Anthony Summit Hospital in Breckenridge, Colo., part of Chicago-based CommonSpirit Health. He also previously served as president of Catholic Health Initiatives' St. Gabriel's Health in Little Falls, Minn., CHI Oakes Hospital in Oakes, N.D., and vice president of strategic development at Glendive Medical Center in Glendive, Mont.

Mr. Boyles told Becker's he's excited about the new role, particularly St. Vincent Regional Hospital's official verification as a level 1 trauma center by the American College of Surgeons. He discussed the trauma center verification, which indicates the hospital has met ACS criteria for providing extensive trauma care, as well as physician recruitment and organizational culture.

Editor's note: Responses have been lightly edited for length and clarity.

Question: What is the biggest way your hospital has changed in the last year?

Lee Boyles: The trauma center verification was a great accomplishment by the team here. The announcement was made in April, and it took lots of hard work from our team and our amazing physician leaders. That's one of the biggest changes for us and will positively impact us going forward, being a regional trauma center. Trauma in Montana is challenging since patients have to travel longer distances compared to urban areas. Having a team of physicians and caregivers that can handle those challenges is really exciting for us.

It's a big accomplishment that puts a stamp of approval on the level of care we've been providing. It also has a halo effect on the rest of the hospital and our region. Additionally, it will help us step up our recruitment and retention of specialists and positions needed to maintain that trauma designation. Recruiting and retaining physicians in Montana, which is still considered rural in most parts, is one of our challenges. We need to ensure we have an incredible culture and attract people to it, making sure we continue to have the specialists available to serve that trauma designation.

Q: What are the next steps you foresee for 2024, and do you anticipate any changes as a result of the trauma center verification?

LB: Our next steps involve prioritizing recruitment and supporting our physicians and providers in the best way possible. We have an incredible team, but with the nationwide shortage of physicians, we face challenges with certain specialties and subspecialties. It's important to ensure competitive compensation, support structures, and a good work-life balance for our physicians and surgeons. This trauma designation will shape the rest of this year and several years going forward.

Q: Which bonus structure do you find most effective for employees in the healthcare setting? Sign-on bonus? Retention bonus? Performance bonus?

LB: I couldn't say definitively which is most effective. I think having options depending on the specialty is important. Performance-based incentives aligned with quality, safety and patient experience outcomes are crucial. Work-life balance is also important. For instance, new physicians might prioritize student loan repayment, while those later in their career might prefer performance-based incentives. It's about being creative and meeting physicians where they are, ensuring that incentives align with their needs and ultimately benefit patients and the community.

Q: Anything additional to add?

LB: One thing I would emphasize is the importance of culture. We have an incredible culture here, and it's palpable when you walk in. Focusing on culture makes everything else easier. Engaging caregivers and physicians positively impacts patient experience, cost effectiveness, and other areas. At the end of the day, all strategies boil down to the culture of the organization. A positive, engaged culture supports caregivers and ensures success in all areas. People are more mobile now, and they move for better opportunities. Focusing on culture is critical; it's the foundation for quality, safety and patient experience.






Indianapolis-based IU Health has shared plans to cut noncompete clauses from all contracts with practicing primary care providers, effective Dec. 15.

News of the cancelation comes after the Federal Trade Commission voted to ban noncompete agreements on April 23.

The Indiana General Assembly passed legislation during its 2023 session to ban noncompete clauses in contracts of new providers who practice primary care. While the law did not require the amendment of existing contracts, IU Health made the decision to extend the benefit to currently employed providers, according to a June 13 IU Health news release shared with Becker's.

"We believe removing noncompete clauses for this group of physicians will be a benefit and help foster an environment where our physicians can continue to provide exceptional care without barriers, ultimately improving health outcomes in our shared communities," Kevin Gebke, senior vice president of community medicine at IU Health, said in the release.

The change coincides with IU Health's launch of new employment agreements for its medical group, the IU Health Medical Group. The employment agreements that remove noncompete clauses should be available by Aug. 1.

"The organization will continue to monitor and evaluate this topic to understand its impact on IU Healths mission to make Indiana one of the nations healthiest states," the release said.
Service Employees International Union 121RN was ordered May 31 by a Los Angeles-based federal arbitrator to pay Riverside (Calif.) Community Hospital, part of Nashville, Tenn.-based HCA Healthcare, $6.26 million in damages for holding an "unlawful strike" in June 2020.

The union was found liable in a May 2023 decision for a 10-day strike that, under the collective bargaining agreement, "deprived the hospital of the rights it was due," according to a June 12 Riverside Community Hospital news release shared with Becker's.

Collective bargaining agreements spell out the terms for when unions are allowed to strike.

The recent ruling found SEIU 121RN liable for holding a strike in disregard of its collective bargaining agreement terms. "There is no intellectually honest way to escape the conclusion that the strike scenario in this case seriously violated the CBA, deprived RCH of the bargain the Union made with RCH, and subjected RCH to a strike the Union did not have the right to execute under the CBA," the arbitrator's ruling said, according to the release.

The awarded damages will cover the cost of replacing employees who left their job during the strike, regardless of hospital leadership warnings that it would violate CBA terms.

Rosanna Mendez, executive director for SEIU local 121RN, told Becker's that the union is working to use every legal option available to ensure that the decision is reversed.

Ms. Mendez said the June 2020 strike was based solely around understaffing at Riverside Community Hospital, an issue that nurses at the hospital have continued to shed light on for years.

"Because they [the nurses] were asked by reporters about the PPE situation during a global pandemic, and nurses responded about the situation related to PPE, they were dinged for that," Ms. Mendez said.

Although the strike was about staffing, which was permissible under the nurses contracts', Ms. Mendez said that because the discussion expanded to PPE during the strike, the arbitrator found that not permissible.

"...They have free speech rights. All workers do, to talk about health and safety conditions, and that is protected under Federal OSHA and Cal OSHA," Ms. Mendez said. "For an arbitrator to award so much money out of the pockets of nurses to a multibillion-dollar corporation for speaking about the lack of PPE during a global pandemic, while they were on strike for understaffing is just completely unconscionable."
The opinion desk welcomes and encourage letters from readers in response to articles published in the Houston Chronicle.

Please include the headline, the page and the day it was printed. Include name, address, and day and evening phone numbers for verification purposes only. Letters have a maximum word count of 250 words, though are generally closer to 100 words, and may be edited.

The best way to submit letters is by sending it to viewpoints@chron.com.
Arlington-based Texas Health Resources will have da Vinci 5 robotic systems installed at 12 of its hospitals by the end of June, the health system said in a news release shared with Becker's.

Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Dallas and Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Fort Worth added the da Vinci 5 system in April and May, respectively. Ten more Texas Health hospitals are also getting the latest version of the Intuitive Surgical robot, including:

Texas Health Arlington Memorial Hospital

Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Alliance (Keller)

Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Hurst-Euless-Bedford

Texas Health Harris Methodist Hospital Southwest Fort Worth

Texas Health Hospital Frisco

Texas Health Hospital Rockwall

Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Denton

Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Flower Mound

Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Plano

USMD Hospital at Arlington

The da Vinci 5 robot is used for minimally invasive surgical procedures for urologic, gynecologic, thoracic, colorectal, bariatric and general surgeries. It allows surgeons to feel and see more during procedures, with a next-gen 3D display and image processing, according to Intuitive. Patient benefits include reduced blood loss and trauma to the body, shorter hospital stays, less postoperative pain and discomfort, less risk of infection and less scarring.
The Indiana State Budget Committee has approved $30 million to go toward the orthopedic industry retention initiative to attract and retain orthopedic talent in the area, according to a June 12 report from the Journal Gazette.

Warsaw, Ind., currently houses one-third of the world's orthopedic manufacturing companies, and two-thirds of the world's hip and knee manufacturing companies, earning it the title of "orthopedic capital of the world."

The state awarded the $30 million to local nonprofit OrthoWorx, which focuses on filling voids in the orthopedic industry through retention and training efforts.

The funds will be used to subsidize development of workforce housing, add community amenities to northern Indiana and create an orthopedic innovation research center, among other projects, according to the report.
Opening a spine practice is a daunting task, but with the right strategies, it can be a rewarding option for physicians.

Three spine surgeons share their advice for colleagues who are looking to take that leap.

Ask Spine Surgeons is a weekly series of questions posed to spine surgeons around the country about clinical, business and policy issues affecting spine care. Becker's invites all spine surgeon and specialist responses.

Next question: When it comes to AI in spine surgery, whats one thing you're excited about and one thing youre nervous about?

Please send responses to Carly Behm at cbehm@beckershealthcare.com by 5 p.m. CST Wednesday, June 19.

Editor's note: Responses were lightly edited for clarity and length.

Question: What are three key tips you have for a spine surgeon looking to set up their own practice/business this year?

Emeka Nwodim, MD. Centers for Advanced Orthopaedics (Bethesda, Md.): To a spine surgeon looking to set up their own practice or business this year, my advice is multifaceted. First, always be diligent in creating the practice you envision for both the present and the future. This involves maintaining discipline in your surgical indications and non-surgical recommendations, ensuring that your practice remains focused and effective. Second, understand your value and strive to grasp the business side of medicine. Whether you are in an employed, academic, or private setting, humbly recognizing what you bring to the table and developing the ability to negotiate and find compromises will be invaluable. Finally, prioritize work-life balance as much as financial success, if not more. Achieving a balance between your professional and personal life is crucial for long-term fulfillment and sustainability in your career.

Yoav Ritter, DO. HCA Florida University Hospital (Davie, Fla.): Develop a practice that treats everyone like family. At our practice, we prioritize a compassionate and holistic approach to patient care. Family is important and we try to treat our patients just as wed treat our own family members. Whether it's a surgical technique approach or other modalities of treatment. We see patients and we try multiple treatment modalities that are non-surgical to see if we can avoid the surgical aspect of the treatment. Only when nonsurgical treatments fail to provide relief and the patient's well-being is significantly compromised do we discuss surgical intervention.

Christian Zimmerman, MD. St. Alphonsus Medical Group and SAHS Neuroscience Institute (Boise, Idaho): Optimizing one's choice for such an important far-reaching decision should be based on critical fact finding and thought and ultimately be the proper fit for that practitioner's future. Choosing the correct practice should include surveying the character, integrity and surgical acumen of the practitioners one interviews. Albeit well established practices usually have most dysfunctions under control, peer support and newly formed allegiances build practices and reputations of the future. The maximum blend of spinal case acuity is also a consideration as practice creation and community establishment progresses over years with reputational accomplishments and medical staff integration.

One current fact in medical economics is the continued growth of government-based reimbursements and insurance index shifting to the populace. This speaks to focus upon larger health systems, higher acuity care centers and Medicare prioritization and less focus on private coverage. Another consideration as more physicians opt out of certain patient care models and acceptance.
The building is now being marketed as a corporate co-working space

From left, Brian McConville, chairman at Rathbane Group and Barry McStravick, head of property at Rathbane Group

The company behind fit-out firm MJM Marine has completed a multi-million pound renovation on a Belfast office building.

Rathbane Group, based in Co Down, has redeveloped the listed building Pearl Assurance House at Donegall Square East. An extension has added a roof terrace on the third floor.

The building is now being marketed by Rathbane Group as a corporate co-working space with rooms and desks which can be hired for short or long-term use.

Barry McStravick, head of property for Rathbane Group, said: We had a vision for the redevelopment of Pearl Assurance House which included modernising the interior into Grade A office accommodation, while retaining the history, character and charm of the property.

"This historic building deserved to be restored to its former glory.

He said the building will have a manager, 24-hour access, virtual office and fully automated access. It has a lounge, meeting spaces, event space and Members can avail of a lounge, meeting spaces and event space as well as the terrace.

He added: We look forward to welcoming our first tenants in the coming weeks, which include a healthy, fast food cafe on the ground floor.
Eamonn Holmes and Ruth Langsford will still remain as co-directors of their media firm despite announcing their split last month.

The Sun reported their couple's radio broadcasting company Holmes & Away Ltd will still be co-directed by the pair - according to documents posted at Companies House this month, in which both Eamonn and Ruth recently confirmed they will continue in their roles for at least another year.

Eamonn is listed as a managing director while Ruth has the role of operations director.

The pair, both 64, founded Holmes & Away Ltd in 2009 and it has handed over Corporation Tax payments of 164,000 over the last two years, meaning it raked in around 1million over that period.

Ruth also runs a media firm called Hey Ho Ltd in her own right and it is worth 2m, according to books filed this year.

Eamonn's own broadcasting company, Red, White & Green Ltd, meanwhile, has a balance sheet of of 18,000.

Earlier this month, the Sun also reported the showbiz former couple split after she discovered messages between him and another woman.

The discovery on a computer led to the television presenters ending their 14-year marriage, which had seen the once-couple present This Morning and welcome one son named Jack, born in 2002. Eamonn also has three children from a previous marriage.

Eamonn and Ruth confirmed their divorce last month, which later saw Ruth extend her leave from Loose Women due to her divorce from Eamonn, a GB News anchor.

The Belfast-born presenter was recently seen with another female companion, whom he reportedly took to Center Parcs and to see Manchester United play. It has not been confirmed if this was the same woman involved in the messages.
I was standing in Ukraine in a graveyard not far from the front line, and all these fresh graves with all the flowers on them and Im just saying to myself, whats this all about?
He allegedly tested positive for firearms or explosive residue during jail checks

Police have confirmed the man alleged to be the leader of the New IRA in Derry has been released having been arrested at the border after allegedly testing positive for explosive or firearms residue as he tried to visit inmates at a prison in the Republic.
The biggest environmental issue in Northern Ireland is the need for an independent environmental protection agency to be set up.

Friends of the Earth director James Orr

Campaigners have been calling for that for 25 years and it remains a number-one priority.

Most of the issues we care about are devolved issues, but that doesnt mean they cant be addressed by politicians in Westminster.

The second key issue is the need for a just settlement for Lough Neagh, which means bad food policy, water policy, sewerage policy all need to be looked at, as well as underinvestment.

That is something MPs could lobby the Chancellor of the Exchequer on.

Mr Orr said it is impossible to find a political party that is fully signed up to transitioning away from an extraction economy, which is all about taking, to a more balanced, regenerative economy.

There are people in all parties that are interested in these issues, but no party is interested in them all, so it doesnt seem to translate into political power.

It is confusing for voters who are guided by environmental principles  there isnt really a focus on this type of politics at Westminster.

People elect MPs on the old issues, which totally eclipse the real issues, which are land, air and water.

That tends to squeeze out debate on more important stuff.

Johnny Graham

 Retired pensioner Johnny Graham (77), from Lisburn

I am very conscious its a Westminster election, so it doesnt affect what happens up on the hill, but I am very exercised about health and education.

I have a 10-year-old granddaughter who is getting an excellent education at her primary school, but I worry that the system isnt properly fit for purpose.

Im concerned about young peoples mental health, so that means I am also concerned about the health service, which is one of the reasons Im voting.

Im also concerned about older people like me, but more about those under the age of 18.

Im fed up listening to the main parties weaponising a subject, he said about why he is voting for the Alliance Party.

Particularly when it came to the budget, they should have sat down and agreed on a long-term solution and try to get us somewhere with the health service, instead of just going away for their own little area.

I am confident in Sorcha Eastwood. I wouldnt be voting Alliance if I wasnt confident.

Theyre not stuck with dogma [like] some of the other main parties. I want practical solutions to improving public services, not b****ing about it.

Im keen that stuff is done for the mental health of young people, but also for the care home problem and the waiting list issues. Its not rocket science, surely?

Jessica Rice

 Journalist Jessica Rice (22), from Armagh

I think the main thing young people want to see as a result of the election is economic change.

We cant remember a time when Northern Ireland was economically prosperous.

We grew up during the recession and now, as we are entering the workforce and adult life, we are faced with the cost-of-living crisis.

Young people arent socialising the way they did 10 or 20 years ago. And its not because we dont want to, its because we cant afford to.

Many of us have accepted we will probably never own a home, especially if we stay in Northern Ireland.

Every weekend it feels like its another persons going-away party.

Educated and skilled people who want to stay in Northern Ireland are moving to Australia or Dubai for better pay and working conditions.

We just want the new Westminster Government to change something to give the economy a much-needed boost so that we can afford to live comfortably from now on.

Eimear McGovern - Belfast Telegraph (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph)

Young parent Eimear McGovern, from Coleraine

As a young mum of one child, my biggest priority when it comes to voting in the Westminster election is childcare, which is where most of my money goes and which is a devolved issue.

But any future MP in my constituency of East Londonderry could help me by advocating for further tax credits to cut the cost for parents centrally.

They could also work to increase child benefit to reflect the struggle parents face as the cost of living creeps higher and higher each year, completely out of pace, personally, with my wage.

A candidate who is strong on health issues would also catch my eye, to ensure my familys continued wellbeing, now and into the future.

Im pregnant and will have to give birth to my second child in a different hospital because my local hospital is no longer carrying out full maternity services, so Im well aware of the difficulties which have been faced for many years in the health service.

Ronan Campbell

Co Tyrone farmer Ronan Campbell

The agri community is a small proportion of the electorate and, unfortunately, we are not at the forefront in election campaigns.

Wed like to see a fair promotion of our industry and product, fighting our corner when required, but also holding us accountable if and when required.

Mr Campbell, from Ardboe, said there needed to be a recognition that not just farmers were to blame for Lough Neaghs problems.

Agriculture has to shoulder some of the blame, but not to the extent that is being broadcast.

I run the family farm with environment in mind, like the vast amount of farmers do, but it only takes a few to tarnish us all.

The agricultural community is a very resilient bunch. We get up, whether sick, tired, rain, hail or snow, and work away.

We hope bureaucracy will decrease and that if legislation is to be introduced, it is for local areas, not one-size-fits-all.

We live in hope.

Stephen Titoli

 Belfast Tattoo Club owner Stephen Titoli

The Belfast Tattoo Club is a tattoo parlour at Pottingers Entry in the heart of old Belfast.

As the owner of this small business, and as a tax payer, I would like to see more interest from the Government into the state of the city centre. From the car park to the streets, the increase of antisocial behaviour is out of control.

The old entries are used by some businesses as a back alley to store their bins.

Drug addicts are shooting themselves up, leaving human waste and needles around, and drunk people are often found lying about and exposing themselves to passers-by in the mornings.

An implementation of lights and urban infrastructure to make the city more vibrant at night would help to have a safer environment for the many tourists, locals and potential customers that walk those streets.

It would also be nice to see some investment in the old beautiful entries of Belfast, in the way other cities do.

Compiled by Liam Tunney, Brett Campbell, Niamh Campbell and Kurtis Reid
North Down general election candidate Stephen Farry has called on candidates to condemn the removal of some of his posters  some of which were replaced with paramilitary flags.

The Alliance deputy leader said some of his posters were removed in Knocknagoney and Bangor.

He said: I expect all candidates to condemn such criminality.

This only increases my resolve, and for voters to stand up for democracy.

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Mr Farry is seeking re-election in the North Down constituency, going up against independent Chris Carter, Tim Collins from the UUP and independent Alex Easton, along with the SDLPs Deirdre Vaughan and Barry McKee of the Green Party.

Earlier this month, police carried out an investigation after surreptitious photographs were taken of Mr Farry, along with other members of the Alliance Party, without his knowledge and shared on social media.

Mr Farry said the incident was "rather sinister and pathetic". He added: Pictures and videos of me and my colleagues clandestinely taken as we go out about our democratic business. Such intimidation is an issue for the safety of me and my team, but it won't deter us. I call on all fellow candidates in North Down to condemn such behaviour."

A PSNI spokesperson said: Police are aware of these social media posts and an investigation is ongoing.

The Electoral Commision recently shared research which showed that half of all electoral candidates received threats, abuse and intimidation in the recent local election  with women being targeted more than men.

The Electoral Commission found in the May 2023 local elections in Northern Ireland, women candidates were more likely than men candidates to have experienced harassment, with the harassment most frequently coming from members of the public and anonymous sources.

Of the abuse, 17% was received from campaigners and volunteers and 13% from other candidates.

The Electoral Commission, alongside the PSNI and the Jo Cox Foundation, has now called for a campaign free from abuse in Northern Ireland ahead of the upcoming election on Thursday July 4.

Police said that they are aware that election posters are reported to have been removed in the east Belfast and Bangor areas, and enquiries are ongoing to establish the circumstances.

We will thoroughly investigate all incidents which are reported to us involving the damage to and theft of election posters. Any identified suspects will be liable to prosecution, said a PSNI spokesperson.
Javier Cazares fights back emotions while he speaks during a press conference at the State Capitol as Uvalde families and other concerned Texans express their outrage and concern over the weekends mass shooting in Allen, Texas that killed eight people on Monday, May 8, 2023. Kin Man Hui/Staff photographer Veronica Mata (left) and Kimberly Mata-Rubio hold a tapestry of photos of the victims of the Robb Elementary shooting as Uvalde families and other concerned Texans gahter for the most recent mass shooting in Allen, Texas that killed eight people came to the State Capitol in Austin to voice their anger and outrage on Monday, May 8, 2023. Kin Man Hui/Staff photographer Manuel Rizo holds a sign while he attends a press conference by Texas Rep. Roland Gutierrez as Uvalde families and other concerned Texans gather at the State Capitol to express their outrage and concern over Saturdays mass shooting in Allen, Texas that killed eight people on Monday, May 8, 2023. Kin Man Hui/Staff photographer Jazmin Cazares, 17, embraces her father, Javier Cazares, as he speaks in favor of House Bill 2744, which would have raised the purchase age for an assault-style weapon to 21. They were part of a contingent from Uvalde pushing for the reform. Sam Owens, San Antonio Express-News / Staff photographer Brett Cross embraces his wife Nikki Cross as they listen to Rep. Joe Moody, D-El Paso, reveal horrific new information about the crime scene at Robb Elementary during a Community Safety Committee hearing at the state capitol in Austin, Tuesday night, April 18, 2023. Uvalde families, including the Crosses, waited for more than 13 hours to testify in favor of House Bill 2744, which would raise the age to purchase a semi-automatic weapon from 18 to 21. Sam Owens/Staff photographer Javier and Gloria Cazares at the 10th Annual National Vigil for All Victims of Gun Violence at St. Mark's Episcopal Church Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. earlier this month. The couple lost their 9-year-old daughter Jacklyn Jackie Cazares in the May 24 shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde. I will continue to fight for her until the day that I die, Gloria Cazares said. Sam Owens, San Antonio Express-News / Staff photographer Sen. Roland Gutierrez addresses the media during a press conference where he introduced more gun safety legislation alongside families of who lost loved ones in the Uvalde and Santa Fe mass shootings at the Capitol in Austin, Texas, Tuesday afternoon, Feb. 14, 2023. Sam Owens/Staff photographer Kimberly Mata-Rubio (right) hugs Gloria Cazares as Uvalde families share an emotional moment after the Committee on Community Safety votes 8-5 to approve the raise the age bill on Monday, May 8, 2023. Earlier, the families and other concerned Texans gathered to express their outrage over the most recent mass shooting in Allen, Texas that killed eight people at the State Capitol in Austin. Kin Man Hui/Staff photographer Kimberly Garcia (right) wipes away tears as Berlinda Arreola speaks during a press conference at the State Capitol as Uvalde families and other concerned Texans express their outrage and concern over the most recent mass shooting in Allen, Texas that killed eight people on Monday, May 8, 2023. Kin Man Hui/Staff photographer Brett Cross expresses his anger at inaction by state politicians as Uvalde families and other concerned Texans gather for the most recent mass shooting in Allen, Texas that killed eight people at the State Capitol in Austin on Monday, May 8, 2023. Kin Man Hui/Staff photographer Faith Mata, right, looks down at a picture of her sister Tess Mata, one of 19 children killed in the Robb Elementary massacre, as their mom Veronica, a Uvalde Elementary school teacher, stands beside her during a press conference at the capitol in Austin, Texas, Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2023. Sam Owens/Staff photographer Irma and Joe Garcias sister Marissa Lozano, from left, nephew Tres Duran, and sister Velma Duran talk to Rep. Tracy King, D-Uvalde, outside of his office during End Gun Violence Advocacy Day at the Capitol building in Austin, Texas, Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023. Sam Owens/Staff photographer Sandra Sanders, 51, left, and her daughter Olivia Urena, 11, right, hold signs with photographs of Sanderss sister, Eva Mireles, and another teacher, Irma Garcia, who were killed in the Robb Elementary School shooting in Uvalde Texas in May 2022, at the Texas Capitol in Austin, Texas on Saturday, March 25, 2022. The March for Our Lives rally held in the front of the Capitol featured speakers who have lost loved ones to gun violence. Sanders said that she was at the Capitol in protest, to hopefully make a change because what is place [in terms of gun laws] is not working. Sanders went on to say that she doesnt think that Texas Governor Greg Abbott would understand unless it was someone in his family who had died from gun violence. Matthew Busch/For The San Antonio Express-News

Gloria Cazares sat in a Republicans office in the Texas Capitol holding up a poster of her slain 9-year-old daughter Jackie.

Her No. 1 priority for the Texas Legislature  banning those under 21 from buying powerful AR-15-style assault rifles, as the Uvalde school shooter had done  was about to fail, docked in a committee chaired by Rep. Dustin Burrows. She was in his office for herself, but she was also there for the dozens of Uvalde family members who had rallied for the bill in Austin the day before.

She stared silently at Jackies picture as other advocates made their case to a Burrows staffer. He listened to their pleas but couldnt promise that the committee would advance the bill. I know its not the answer yall want, he said, instead offering copies of a sweeping school safety bill authored by Burrows. They declined.

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Wait until youre a parent, Cazares said, suddenly compelled to speak. She gestured to the photo of Jackie, smiling in a white lace dress. This is my daughter. This was her First Communion. This was the dress that she was buried in. Just remember that.

She walked out.

The interaction on May 9 was emblematic of a year of advocacy and debate over the deadliest school shooting in Texas, which left 19 fourth-graders and two teachers dead. Though the families didn't get the gun reform they wanted, the shooting at Robb Elementary School inspired the most significant action on federal firearm laws in decades and an unprecedented investment in school safety measures.

The state Legislature adjourned this week touting those accomplishments, as Uvalde families returned home to mourn their loved ones and schedule their next advocacy trip.

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Were it not for their efforts, we wouldn't have made it that far, and I'm just grateful to them, said state Rep. Tracy King, a moderate Democrat who represents Uvalde and authored the raise-the-age bill. They need to never give up, keep on trying.

At least $1.4 billion for school safety

Burrows House Bill 3 gives school districts an extra $10 per student, plus $15,000 per campus, every year for school safety upgrades. Another $1.1 billion in grants will help schools meet new facility requirements from the Texas Education Agency, for a total of at least $1.4 billion.

There are a host of other reforms: New regional education service centers, using material from the Texas School Safety Center, will help schools come up with emergency plans. Every campus in Texas will receive an annual security audit funded by the state. Further, districts will conduct similar audits at least once every three years, school officers will participate in active shooter training every four years, and the safety center will re-evaluate best practices every five years.

The bill requires at least one armed security officer on each campus during regular school hours. The state will also conduct a vulnerability assessment of each school district randomly every four years and issue recommendations afterward.

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The legislation, which still awaits Gov. Greg Abbotts signature, asks the education agency to issue standards for informing parents about ongoing violence on campus. It also requires districts to come up with clear guidelines for students to report concerning behavior.

We want accountability, said state Rep. Joe Moody, an El Paso Democrat, who experienced a mass shooting in his hometown in 2019. Are the safety plans in place actually being carried out? Because what we saw in Uvalde is that there are a lot of plans on paper, but  if you don't follow them, tragic things can happen.

A small portion of the bill also addresses law enforcement response. In Uvalde, nearly 400 officers responded to the shooting, but a chaotic on-scene response, a lack of clear leadership and faulty radio communications contributed to delays in confronting the shooter that may have cost lives.

Officers did not breach the classroom where the gunman was hiding for 77 minutes.

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HB 3 mandates that districts provide the Department of Public Safety and local law enforcement officials with maps of campuses and allow them to walk through the schools. Sheriffs in counties with populations under 350,000 will also have semi-annual meetings to discuss school safety issues, including police response, radio operability and chain of command.

Republicans have to walk a fine line between empowering law enforcement to limit access to guns, making sure that guns don't get in the hands of ineligible people, but also protecting students in schools and Second Amendment rights, said Brandon Rottinghaus, a professor of political science at the University of Houston. They're doing a lot, politically, that is challenging in a world where there's a lot of gun violence.

The Legislature has separately funneled millions more into mental health care, especially in rural areas. School employees will get state funding for mental health training to help them identify and support children who may pose a threat.

The state is putting $16 million toward efforts to expand capacity at mental health hospitals, especially for children and adolescents. And Uvalde, specifically, is getting at least $10 million to support local mental health services.

In total, the state budget allocates $11.6 billion for mental health initiatives across all state agencies.

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But Democrats say those efforts are not sufficient. Everyone likes to talk about mental health after mass shootings, Moody said, but when it comes to actually putting things in action, I do think that we've been woefully inadequate.

We haven't put the proper connections in place across the state so that some of the people who do need that health care can access it, he said.

The GOP leaders who spearheaded this work  Burrows of Lubbock, state Sen. Robert Nichols of Jacksonville, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dade Phelan  all declined or did not respond to requests for comment for this story.

Burrows, as he laid out HB 3 in April, said the bill is neither perfect nor totally complete, but these collaborative, accountability-driven efforts can drive the sort of team approach that is vital to turning the tide of senseless violence.

At the end of the day, teachers, students and their families deserve safe classrooms and school administrators need the support of the state and cooperation of law enforcement to make those safe classrooms a reality, he said.

The legislation built on a similar package that lawmakers passed in 2019, a year after a teenage gunman killed 10 people at Santa Fe High School. During that session, legislators expanded mental health initiatives in schools, established threat assessment teams and trained students to use bleeding control stations during emergencies.

Republicans have been strategically smart about framing this issue as a safety issue instead of as a gun issue, said Rottinghaus, the UH professor. Democrats, on the other side, have had a hard time changing the narrative.

Moody said it shouldnt be an either-or situation. Lawmakers should discuss all of the aspects of mass shootings, he said  firearms, school security, mental health care, police accountability.

It is incumbent upon us to discuss all these things at once, and it's complicated, but that is what our job requires, he said.

Punished for bipartisan gun reforms

Just weeks after the Uvalde shooting, the states congressional delegation was in Washington debating a response. U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, Texas senior senator, became chief negotiator on a broad legislative package  the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act  that offered billions in funding for mental health and school safety initiatives.

It also offered the most significant federal gun reform in decades, though the changes themselves were limited. The measure expanded background checks for gun purchases and introduced greater scrutiny of young buyers.

It also offered new federal funding for states that pass red flag laws that temporarily remove firearms from people deemed a danger to themselves or others. States that don't have those laws get similar funding instead directed to crisis intervention programs.

On May 24, Cornyn highlighted those legislative achievements in an op-ed published in the Austin American-Statesman.

In the wake of the shooting, people in Uvalde wanted to ensure this tragedy was not in vain, he wrote. They wanted something good  something productive  to come from it, and I believe it has.  I hope they can take some solace in knowing that their calls for action were heard and answered.

U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, a San Antonio Republican who represents Uvalde, was one of the few GOP members of the House to vote in favor of the legislation when it reached his chamber. But he said much of the money set aside for mental health and school safety initiatives has been stuck in Washington, and hes still working to get it distributed to local communities.

Gonzales knows that more legislation is needed to keep students safe, and he said he has been trying to figure out his next steps. Over the past few weeks, he has met with several local leaders in Uvalde  from the mayor to survivors parents to teachers who were shot  to ask for their perspectives.

In all cases, they talk about the need for a solution, he said. They don't know what that looks like, but they know something needs to happen, and I agree with them. Something more needs to happen, and it's honestly up to me in Washington to navigate that and figure out what can and can't work politically.

Gonzales recently formed the Bipartisan School Safety and Security Caucus with U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz, a Democrat from Parkland, Florida, where a teenage gunman killed 17 students at a high school on Valentines Day 2018.

Its not enough for many of the Uvalde family members, who have broader demands at the U.S. Capitol  a federal ban on assault rifles. Some feel like Cornyn and Gonzales have failed them personally, and many of them plan to travel to Washington, D.C. next week for a survivor sit-in.

On the opposite end, Texas Republicans censured Gonzales and booed Cornyn at the state GOP convention last year for their votes on the gun legislation.

'We laid the groundwork for the next time'

The raise-the-age legislation in the statehouse, House Bill 2744, never made it to the House floor. The Uvalde families were disappointed, but it wasnt a total loss. The bill advanced further this year than any similar bill has in past sessions.

After hearing emotional testimony from the family members in April, a House committee passed the bill by a vote of 8 to 5. Two Republicans voted in favor. The bill died in the calendars committee, chaired by Burrows.

Similar legislation never got a hearing in the Senate.

I worked everybody that I needed to work in order to try to get it over to calendars, and we weren't able to do it, but we laid the groundwork for the next time, said King, the Uvalde Democrat who authored HB 2744. Big legislation takes several sessions.

READ THE TESTIMONY: Uvalde families forced to wait 13 hours for Texas House hearing on AR-15 changes

But it would require a shift in political climate, Rottinghaus said. Politics have only grown more polarized and more extreme over the past several years  on both sides of the aisle  and Texas Republicans have created an intractable problem on guns, he said.
A copy of the retired army officers remarkable revelations was obtained by the Sunday World

A retired British army officer who openly admitted colluding with UDA bombers 50 years ago is sunning himself in the south of France.

In a recorded contribution to an oral history project, Major Vernon Rees talked freely about his involvement in the 1972 bombing of Aghalane Bridge in Fermanagh  and incredibly admits he was fully aware he was co-operating with loyalist terrorists.

The officers first-hand account of the bombing is held on file and is available to the public at the Imperial War Museum in London.

A copy of the retired army officers remarkable revelations was obtained by the Sunday World.

The bridge spanning the border after the blast

Rees also speculates over whether he could still face prosecution because of his illegal dealings with UDA bombers.

He said: I dont know whether they could prosecute me still for this. They probably could.

But when Sunday World tracked him down to his luxury villa in the Toulouse region of southern France this week, Major Rees declined to respond to any questions about his past life as a senior soldier serving in a cavalry regiment in Northern Ireland.

A voice message on his phone informs callers: If you send me an email, I may respond, but I never answer unknown numbers or listen to voice messages.

Sunday World also sent the Sandhurst Military College-trained soldier a series of electronic messages, but again he failed to reply.

Now 79, Major Rees was in charge of security while serving with the Royal Horse Artillery in west Fermanagh during the worst year of the Troubles when more than 500 people were killed.

In the museum archive, Rees says he was a 27-year-old captain when he agreed to create a troops-free zone around a border crossing known as Aghalane Bridge to facilitate a UDA bomb team on November 21 1972.

Rees also revealed how he feared arrest after he acquiesced to a loyalist request to pull his soldiers out prior to a UDA terror attack.

Speaking on the record as part of an history project retained at the Imperial War Museum, Rees admitted he had privately harboured concerns. But he still agreed to withdraw his men after a senior RUC officer introduced him to Ulster Unionist councillor John Leahy, who was also a member of the then legal UDA. Leahy died in 2015.

According to Rees account, the meeting with Leahy took place the day after the IRA shot dead a Protestant farmer and his wife in the Aghalane Bridge area.

Thomas & Emily Bullock

Thomas Bullock  a 53-year-old member of the Ulster Defence Regiment  was murdered alongside wife Emily in their farmhouse home.

Recalling his meeting with Leahy 33 years after the event, retired Major Rees said: He [Leahy] said, Would you feel better if that bridge wasnt there? I said, Of course I would, but theres no way we can doing anything about that.

He said, Your men are forever patrolling in that area, Captain. I said, I know, its one of the worst areas in our patch. According to Rees, the politician who spoke to him was also a leading member of the UDA in south Fermanagh.

Rees added: Anyone who would help me defeat the IRA was a friend of mine. And in those days, that included the UDA.

In a recorded recollection, Rees said Leahy asked him to keep his men away from the Aghalane Bridge area on the night of November 20/21 in 1972.

But Rees was troubled about crossing a legal line which saw him conspire with terrorists.

He contemplated the effect it could have on his army career: Ive nearly been suspended twice. Am I about to co-operate with a terrorist in the Ulster Defence Association in the destruction of a main road in the United Kingdom?

But Rees crisis of conscience soon evaporated and he agreed to go along with the UDA plan. He told RUC Special Branch that his soldiers had been withdrawn, in the knowledge they would pass on the message to the UDA.

And I thought, All those little farmers around here. They have never used that road. Its just far too dangerous. It would be wonderful if that bridge was down.

So I leaked it through the Special Branch that there would be no soldiers in that area between eight and midnight, that Thursday night, said the retired officer.

At 1am on Thursday November 21, 1972, a Garda patrol car in the vicinity of Aghalane Bridge found its route blocked by bales of hay. A handwritten sign bearing the word BOM had been placed on top of one of the bales.

Aghalane Bridge was a picturesque 19th century stone arch construction over the Woodford River, linking Enniskillen in Fermanagh with Belturbet in Co Cavan. Using it saved local people a 12-mile detour.

But the security forces were convinced IRA men based in the Republic were also using the bridge to mount attacks inside Northern Ireland. As gardai were still examining the hay bales near Aghalane, a loud explosion ripped through the stillness of the night, partially damaging the bridge.

The following morning, Captain Rees arrived at the scene as an army explosives expert was still surveying the bomb site.

On realising the bridge could easily be repaired, Rees instructed the soldier to blow up the remainder of the bridge which was still standing. Incredibly, Rees later told the army archive: The central arch collapsed. But I think as a result of that being blown up, we saved dozens of lives of innocent-ish  theres no such thing as innocents  in Northern Ireland.

And with a giggle, Major Rees added: I dont know if they could prosecute me still for this? They probably could.

No one was ever charged or convicted of the Aghalane Bridge bombing.

Members of the Ulster Defence Association (UDA)

The Irish government was seething that a bridge which had linked the two parts of Ireland since partition was demolished on the word of an officer in the Royal Horse Artillery.

Engineers from the Irish Defence Forces were ordered to reopen the road as quickly as possible, and less than a month after the original bridge was demolished, a new Bailey bridge forded the Woodford River. On Christmas Eve 1974, cross-border traffic began to flow normally once more.

But four days later, loyalist paramilitaries  a male and a female  drove a large car bomb across the Bailey bridge to Belturbet in Co Cavan, where it detonated on the Main Street without warning.

Geraldine OReilly (14) died instantly and 16-year-old Patrick Stanley was also killed. At least 12 other people were injured.

The same night, two loyalist bombs were detonated in Clones, Co Monaghan, and in Pettigoe, Co Donegal. It is believed a UVF nest based in Enniskillen was behind all three attacks.

Soldiers from the Royal Engineers dismantled the temporary bridge at Aghalane, and the crossing was closed to local people until April 1999, when a new bridge named after US peace envoy Senator George Mitchell was opened.
GB News has confirmed their Twelfth coverage plans with host Dame Arlene Foster set to be based outside Carrickfergus Castle and joined by Charlie Lawson.

It had already been confirmed Dame Arlene was back again for coverage of the celebration but the channel has now set out their plans in more detail.

Dame Arlene said it will be a privilege to share the excitement and passion of the Twelfth with viewers across the UK.

The channel will mark the Twelfth for the third year running parades with a day of special live broadcasts and will be on the ground outside Carrickfergus Castle.

Dame Arlene will also be joined by historian Dr Gavin Hughes, who will provide analysis on unfolding events.

In the last three years the broadcaster has stepped in to televise live parades after BBC NI decided to end its live coverage in 2022.

Bands and marchers will take to the streets at 19 locations across all six of Northern Irelands counties to mark the 334th anniversary of the Battle of the Boyne.

Parades will be held in Belfast and Ballymena  the only two venues in Northern Ireland to hold a main Twelfth demonstration each year.

Other locations in Co Antrim include Ahoghill, Broughshane, Cloughmills, Carrickfergus and Derriaghy.

In Co Down, the venues are expected to be Annalong, Ballynahinch, Gilford and Newtownards.

The north-west demonstrations will be held in Londonderry and Moneymore

Meanwhile, in Tyrone, parades are scheduled for Ballygawley, Benburb and Newtownstewart.

Fermanaghs parade will take place in Irvinestown, while Armaghs parade  traditionally the biggest  is set for Killylea.

The Independent Orange Order will hold its Twelfth parade in Mosside, Co Antrim.

Dame Arlene said: "We are looking forward to being in Carrickfergus and covering what is sure to be a colourful spectacle and trying to capture the passion and emotion of the Orange Parades.

"There is huge interest in the day nationally and internationally, especially in other parts of the UK where there is a significant Orange presence such as Scotland and in parts of England where they also hold parades.

"This is a great celebration and it is a privilege to be able to share the excitement and the passion with the whole of the UK. I'll also be looking forward to working with Charlie Lawson once again."

She added: "GB News' commitment to covering the parades is very significant, as it stepped in when the BBC decided not to show it.

"This is the third year and it's deeply appreciated by those who can't get out to go to the parades and it shows that GB News really cares about the whole of the UK. It's really important and I'm really proud that GB News is doing that."

GB News' Northern Ireland correspondent Douglas Beattie will also be on the ground.

He said: "For the Twelfth programme, we are following the journey of the first Ulster Scots settlement in the USA. We are also looking at the story of James McGregor, a Presbyterian minister who was in the siege of Derry at 12 years of age. He was the man that led the 5 ships from Coleraine and Londonderry.

"We are also looking at how the glorious revolution changed the thinking of the new world and how unrest began when James was defeated."
The PSNI in east Belfast have warned of anti-social behaviour in large amounts taking place on Thursday night.

Officers from Tactical Support Group and Local Policing Teams said they were responding to these reports in the Short Strand and Newtownards Road areas this evening.

A spokesperson added: "There are large groups of youths gathering in these areas. Parents - please know where your children are and help us to resolve these issues.
Luke Ming Flanagan has been re-elected as an MEP in Midlands-North-West after days of vote counting.

Mr Flanagan, an independent in the Left grouping, is the first person to be elected in the five-seat constituency.

He reached the quota on Thursday evening after the 19th count, helped by thousands of transfers following the redistribution of votes for Aountu leader Peadar Toibin, who was eliminated in the previous round.

Family and supporters hoisted him into the air on their shoulders, as he chanted Viva Palestina and Championes.

Speaking after his election, an emotional Mr Flanagan said: Im elated and just honoured to get the opportunity for the third time to represent this constituency.

Theres a few people not here today  my mother, my father and my father-in-law. Im missing you all.

Its just absolutely brilliant, its beyond my wildest dreams  thanks Midlands-North-West.

Luke Ming Flanagan with his wife Judy after being elected at TF Royal Theatre (Conor McKeown/PA)

In a further message to voters, he said: Im certainly not going to let you down, youve been let down too often  youre not going to be let down by me.

Mr Flanagan said he wanted to secure his place on the European Parliaments Agriculture Committee to get real justice for farmers in his constituency.

He also said he would go to the petitions committee to get justice for people affected by defective concrete blocks in their homes.

Mr Flanagan also called on other Irish MEPs not to support the re-election of Ursula von der Leyen as European Commission President.

Asked how he would celebrate, Mr Flanagan said he would relax and have an Indian meal: Im looking forward to some peshwari naan bread  I cant wait for it.

Mr Flanagans election also saw the elimination of Fianna Fails Lisa Chambers, whose votes are being redistributed to five candidates vying for the remaining four seats at the TF Royal Theatre count centre in Castlebar, Co Mayo.

The top three are in a tight grouping going into the final counts. They are Fine Gael candidates Nina Carberry, a former champion jockey, and Maria Walsh, who is seeking re-election, followed by Fianna Fail TD Barry Cowen.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Ms Carberry said she was overwhelmed by the amount of people who believe in her.

She said: It is amazing and I really want to do them proud now.

Ms Carberry said she did her fair share of debates, but added that her campaign was about getting out and meeting the people.

She said she wanted to be a strong voice for farmers and those in the Dublin commuter belt.

Later, asked if Fine Gael was running a strategy of fielding celebrity candidates, party leader and Taoiseach Simon Harris described the characterisation as pejorative and said: Nina Carberry is not a celebrity  shes a champion.

He further defended her electoral strategy by saying she had resounding support from the people of Midlands-North-West.

Mr Harris said he was absolutely ecstatic with the expected election of his partys candidates.

Meanwhile, Ms Walsh said she would be voting for Ursula von der Leyen if she is nominated by the Council.

Mr Cowen is likely to be helped significantly by transfers from his running mate Lisa Chambers despite the partys campaign in the constituency being marred by infighting.

It leaves Independent Ireland candidate and former RTE correspondent Ciaran Mullooly fighting it out with Sinn Fein representative Michelle Gildernew for the fifth and final seat.

Mr Mullooly has a 4,000 vote lead over Ms Gildernew going in to the end of the race.

Earlier, Sinn Fein representative Chris MacManus became the third MEP to lose his seat nationwide.

Speaking following his elimination, Mr MacManus said: I left nothing on the pitch.

Me and my team worked as hard as we could over the last number of weeks during the actual campaign.

Sinn Feins Chris MacManus and Michelle Gildernew (Conor McKeown/PA)

Asked if he would consider running in a general election, Mr MacManus said: I dont think its the last time youll see my MacManus name on a ballot paper.

Earlier in the counting, Ms Gildernew almost ruled herself out of the race after saying she was not overly optimistic about catching Mr Mullooly.

But Sinn Fein later insisted it still had a fighting chance for that final spot  and transfers from Mr McManus significantly closed the gap.

Unpredictable transfers, which political commentators said were not following traditional patterns, are adding to the drama of who would claim the final seats.
Lib Dem leader Sir Ed Davey on an assault course during a visit to Kent (Gareth Fuller/PA)

Sir Keir Starmer said voters had the chance to turn the page decisively on 14 years of Conservative chaos as he set out Labours plan for government.

Plaid Cymru also launched its manifesto while Prime Minister Rishi Sunak left the campaign trail behind as he joined other G7 leaders in Italy.

Meanwhile, Sir Ed Davey showed the Lib Dems were ready for an election battle as he took on an assault course.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and deputy Angela Rayner stand together smiling, with colleagues looking on from above, after the launch of the party manifesto (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Members of the Labour Party listened to leader Sir Keir Starmer as he set out his plans for government (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

The manifesto launch was not all plain sailing, though, as a person heckled leader Sir Keir Starmer (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Sir Keir Starmer speaking at the launch of the manifesto (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

Plaid Cymru also launched its manifesto at an event in Cardiff (Ben Birchall/PA)

Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth pledged to put Wales first, with a fight for fairer funding for the country at the manifesto launch event (Ben Birchall/PA)

Sir Ed Davey was up for the challenge of an assault course, including running in and out of tyres, as he visited Kent (Gareth Fuller/PA)

Sir Ed also showed he was not afraid of heights, jumping into action on the General Election campaign trail (Gareth Fuller/PA)

Meanwhile, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage took to the airwaves as he spoke to listeners of LBCs Nick Ferrari at Breakfast show (Aaron Chown/PA)

Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said said he wants to lead a national opposition to Labour if Sir Keir Starmers party wins the General Election (Aaron Chown/PA)

Rishi Sunak took some time away from the campaign trail to attend the G7 summit in Italy, where he was greeted by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni (Christopher Furlong/PA)
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak attends a meeting with President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky at the G7 leaders summit at the Borgo Egnazia resort, in Puglia, Italy (Christopher Furlong/PA)

Rishi Sunak has said the fact he does not have bilaterals scheduled with G7 leaders at a summit in Italy does not mean they are snubbing him.

The Prime Minister has so far had bilateral meetings with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the event in Puglia.

He was greeted warmly by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Thursday morning with an embrace as they posed for a photo to mark the summits start.

Asked whether he was being snubbed, Mr Sunak emphasised that though he has not held bilateral talks with the other G7 leaders from the US, Italy, France, Germany, Canada and Japan, he has held meetings in the margins.

Mr Sunak said: Weve been here a half a day already and I sat down with a bunch of people I need to in the margins. Thats kind of how these things work.

So, Ive already sat down with Emmanuel [Macron], spoken to Olaf [Scholz] about a bunch of things, and you can do that  the benefit of these meetings because theyre small, because it is only the G7 obviously plus the EU, is that you have the time and the ability to talk to people in small groups, one on one. Thats the beauty of summits like this, actually the intimacy of them.

Asked if he had apologised to Emmanuel Macron for leaving D-Day commemorations early last week, he said he had had a very good meeting with the French president

The G7 countries have agreed to fund a 50 billion US dollar (39 billion) support package for Ukraine that uses the profits of assets seized from Russia.

The money is provided by the G7 as a loan and then secured against the profits of the assets that have been immobilised, the Prime Minister said.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak was given a warm welcome by Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni (Christopher Furlong/PA)

He said the package would support Ukraines military and economic reconstruction, and also act as a deterrent to Vladimir Putin.

Some 285 billion dollars (222 billion) worth of immobilised Russian assets are held in G7 jurisdictions.

The UK also announced 242 million in bilateral funding for Ukraine and 50 new sanctions designations and specifications.

They mark the UKs first such measures that target vessels in Mr Putins shadow fleet, which Russia uses to circumvent UK and G7 sanctions to trade in Russian oil, Downing Street said.

The sanctions also take aim at the Moscow Stock Exchange and other institutions at the heart of Russias financial system. The US designated the Moscow Stock Exchange on June 12.

French President Emmanuel Macron (left) and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (centre) meet a member of a parachute jump team (Christopher Furlong/PA)

Mr Sunak said it was a move to ramp up pressure and cut off Mr Putins ability to fund a prolonged conflict.

The Prime Minister also plans to press other leaders to recognise migration challenges across the route and to take collective action.

Mr Sunak and Ms Meloni have previously found common ground on migration. The Prime Minister travelled to Rome in 2023 to speak at her partys annual gathering.

Mr Sunak touted his flagship Rwanda scheme  which he says will go ahead with deportations starting in July if his party is re-elected  during a recent trip to Austria.

Fifteen EU countries, including Austria, signed a letter last month calling on the European Commission to tighten migration policy and to look at third country schemes.
Daisy Cooper said the cost of the weekly food shop has got out of control (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

The Liberal Democrats have accused the Conservatives of standing idly by while food prices grow, as the party launches its plans for a national food strategy aimed at curtailing costs.

Lib Dem deputy leader Daisy Cooper will be on the campaign trail in the east of England touting her partys food strategy offer, which also aims to support British farmers.

The proposed national food strategy, which was revealed in the Lib Dem manifesto, would be backed up by a plan to boost the farming budget by 1 billion a year.

Under the Lib Dems, the strategy would be a top priority for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), and involve industry experts from agriculture, farming and fishing, and nutrition.

Henry Dimbleby, who helped to produce the Governments existing national food strategy, was critical of the response to it from ministers, claiming it was not a strategy and may not do enough to combat poverty.

The Lib Dems proposals to bring down food prices also include renegotiating the Australia and New Zealand trade agreements in line with their objectives for health, environmental and animal welfare standards.

They also want to extend free school meals to all children in poverty in England and to cut red tape for British farmers and fishermen.

Ms Cooper said: The Conservatives have been standing idly by whilst families and pensioners struggle to put food on the table.

The cost of the weekly shop has got out of control yet the Conservative Party are too out of touch to care.

The best way to bring down food prices is to back British farmers. Our farmers have been taken for granted by the Conservative Party, left to cope with sky-high energy bills and botched overseas trade deals.

By bringing together the best of British farming and industry experts, the Liberal Democrats plan to bring down food bills will ease the pain on hard-pressed families and pensioners.
An alleged tube pusher has appeared in court charged with attempted murder after going on a spree of violence against strangers on the London Underground (Philip Toscano/PA)

A man went on a motiveless 35-minute spree of violence against strangers on the London Underground, including pushing a passenger onto the rails, a court heard.

Donovan Kenlyn, 39, chased and punched Tube passenger Samer Jawad at Baker Street Underground station in October 2022, a jury at the Old Bailey was told.

Minutes later, Kenlyn got off a train at Finchley Road station and propelled Angel Cambeiro onto the rails, narrowly missing the ones that were live.

He then travelled to nearby West Hampstead station where he struck a third man, Peter Acton.

None of the three men knew the defendant.

Kenlyn accepts that he was involved in all three incidents but denies the charges because he was suffering with schizophrenia.

Judge Philip Katz KC told the jury: The physical actions arent in dispute, this is a case where you will be considering mental health, at least.

Opening the trial at the Old Bailey on Thursday, prosecutor Michael Williams said: On the morning of Thursday October 27 2022, the defendant Donovan Kenlyn undertook a spree of violence against members of the public on the London Underground.

He said the spree lasted 35 minutes and was without any known motive.

Mr Williams said: It is accepted on behalf of the defendant that he was the man who punched Mr Jawad, who caused Mr Cambeiro to fall onto the tracks, and who struck Mr Acton.

Shortly after 10am, Kenlyn got on the Central Line at Hanger Lane Underground station, west London  the closest stop to his house at the time.

An hour and 20 minutes later he was seen on CCTV at Baker Street wearing a bobble hat and dark clothing.

Mr Jawad was visiting London and travelling to the station to meet a friend at nearby Regents Park.

When he went to leave the Bakerloo Line train he felt a presence to his left and saw Kenlyn, who had not been on board until then.

In a witness statement read to the court, Mr Jawad said: I then realised this person was actually facing me, and that they were talking aggressively towards me  they were being very hostile towards me, but I just didnt know why.

He said Kenlyn accused of him of saying something including did you say black? and the complainant fled down the platform.

Mr Jawad said: It was like he had his eyes set on me, he was furious and I was still running, he was still saying did you say black?

At some point while I was being chased I said I didnt say anything, I didnt say anything.

CCTV footage played to the court showed Mr Sawad on the floor and Kenlyn hitting him.

Mr Jawad said he was punched two or three times while he was on the ground and two landed on his face.

Fellow passengers tried to intervene and the complainant again tried to flee.

He said: I wasnt sure where I was going to flee to. (I was) trying to find people for safety.

However, Kenlyn caught up in the station concourse and Mr Jawad said: That was when he stuck me on the right hand side, I didnt know where he was coming from or what had struck me for that matter.

I fell forwards to the ground and thought I was going to black out.

Mr Williams said that Mr Jawad suffered no significant injuries but it was a very frightening incident.

Within nine minutes Kenlyn was at Finchley Road station  three stops away on the Jubilee or one on the Metropolitan line.

Mr Williams said Mr Cambeiro spotted Kenlyn looking aggressive and walking towards him along the platform with a clenched fist.

The defendant raised his fist and the next thing Mr Cambeiro knew he was on the tracks with a dislocated and broken elbow, the prosecutor added.

Mr Williams said: Mr Cambeiro confirms that without the help of the staff and his fellow passengers he would have simply been unable to get back onto the platform, owing to the injuries in his right arm.

Minutes later at West Hampstead station, Kenlyn ran into a carriage after Mr Acton and struck him, causing him to fall onto the seat dividers and fracture his ribs.

Kenlyn, of North Circular Road, Ealing, left the carriage after striking Mr Acton and by 1.45pm that day he had returned to the stop by his house.

Kenlyn is charged with attempted murder and assault causing grievous bodily harm with intent to Mr Cambeiro, of assault occasioning actual bodily harm to Mr Acton and assault by beating against Mr Jawad.

The trial continues.
Students are taking on more paid work alongside their studies, a report found (Alamy/PA)

The average number of hours that full-time university students are spending doing paid work alongside their studies has increased, a survey suggests.

Nearly three in five (56%) university undergraduates are in paid employment during term time, compared with 55% the previous year, the study has found.

Students in paid employment are working an average of 14.5 hours per week, compared with 13.5 hours last year, according to the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) think tank and Advance HE report.

The director of Hepi warned that students are now divided into those who can afford to have a traditional experience and those who have to do paid work.

Three in four (75%) students feel that the cost-of-living crisis has negatively affected their studies, according to the survey of 10,319 full-time undergraduates studying in the UK.

Cost-of-living concerns was the most stated factor influencing perceptions of value for students who state that they received poor value for money, according to the report.

The 2024 Student Academic Experience Survey, carried out between January and March, suggests that students now spend an average of 42 hours per week in paid work and study.

The report said this level is above the UK average number of paid working hours for the full-time working population  which stands at 36.9 hours.

Students studying health subjects such as medicine, dentistry or veterinary studies typically spend an average of 55.9 hours per week in paid work and study, according to the report.

The report found that nearly three in 10 (28%) students said concerns or challenges around the cost of living had negatively affected their studies a lot, compared with 26% last year.

Meanwhile, 47% of students said the cost-of-living crisis was affecting their studies a little.

The report warns that university students are now embattled by the cost-of-living crisis, which could affect the higher education delivery model if its impact remains unaddressed.

It added: Most students now work, and the average number of hours worked by those students is teetering on levels that may impact their studies.

Should this trend continue, there is a risk that full-time study becomes unsustainable for an increasing number of students.

The cost-of-living pressures may also force a further move to commuting, rather than residential living.

The report calls on the Government and devolved governments to review their maintenance support systems to ensure that students are adequately funded while completing their studies.

It says universities should consider that part-time work for students is the new normal and they should consider compressing timetabled hours into fewer days per week or providing paid work.

The survey also found that 62% of students use artificial intelligence (AI) in their studies in a way that is allowed by their university.

There is some evidence of a digital divide, with male students and international students more likely to use AI tools more frequently, it found.

The report said: The data shows that students who have more contact hours, students who do more intensive courses like medicine, those who do more hours of paid employment and those who commute a longer distance are all more likely to use AI tools daily.

This suggests AI tools are being used by at least some students to save time in busy schedules. Some students may also be using AI while doing paid work.

The survey also found that 69% of students said they still had at least some of their lectures held online despite a return to face-to-face interactions following the pandemic.

The report suggests that potential changes in students preferences  and advances in the ability to use technology to maximise flexibility and inclusiveness  are likely to have played a role in the continuation of hybrid teaching on multiple courses in many institutions.

Nick Hillman, director of Hepi, said: Students have responded to the severe cost-of-living pressures by doing more paid employment alongside their academic studies.

But more students, especially those from poorer backgrounds, are doing so much paid work that their studies are being adversely affected.

He told a press briefing in London: We already have more than half of full-time undergraduates doing levels of paid work that are in the danger zone.

(It means) much less extracurricular activity from those people and also there is evidence that shows it affects your academic studies in terms of getting a first and a 2.1 and things like that.

He added: My view is that were already in the danger zone.

We bifurcated the undergraduate between those who can afford to have the traditional university experience most of us had, and those for whom actually paid work has to come first.

Rose Stephenson, director of policy and advocacy at Hepi, said the increase in the number of students balancing paid work with their studies could affect their studies and result in them missing out on the social side of university.

She told the media: As students battle the cost of living, the trend around part-time work becomes more concerning.

Most students work and the number of hours they work is increasing. And if this trend continues, full-time study may become unfeasible for many students.

The UK prides itself on its traditional full-time residential study model for many, not all, students with high completion rates. Theres a chance that without intervention, the higher education model may accidentally evolve.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arriving at the G7 summit in Borgo Egnazia, Italy (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)

Leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies have agreed to engineer a 50 billion dollar (39 billion) loan to help Ukraine in its fight for survival.

Interest earned on profits from Russias frozen central bank assets would be used as collateral.

Details of the deal were being hashed out by G7 leaders at their summit in Italy. The money could reach Kyiv before the end of the year, according to US and French officials who confirmed the agreement before a formal announcement.

Here is how the plan would work:

 Where would the money come from?

Most of the money would be in the form of a loan mostly guaranteed by the US government, backed by profits being earned on roughly 260 billion dollars (203 billion) in immobilised Russian assets. The vast majority of that money is held in European Union nations.

A French official said the loan could be topped up with European money or contributions from other countries.

A US official said the G7 leaders official statement due out on Friday will leave the door open to trying to confiscate the Russian assets entirely.

 Why not just give Ukraine the frozen assets?

That is much harder to do.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky walks with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni upon his arrival at the G7 summit in Borgo Egnazia, Italy (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)

For more than a year, officials from multiple countries have debated the legality of confiscating the money and sending it to Ukraine.

The US and its allies immediately froze whatever Russian central bank assets they had access to when Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022. That basically was money being held in banks outside Russia.

The assets are immobilised and cannot be accessed by Moscow, but they still belong to Russia.

While governments can generally freeze property or funds without difficulty, turning them into forfeited assets that can be used for the benefit of Ukraine requires an extra layer of judicial procedure, including a legal basis and adjudication in a court.

The EU instead has set aside the profits being generated by the frozen assets. That pot of money is easier to access.

Separately, the US this year passed a law called the REPO Act  short for the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians Act  that allows the Biden administration to seize five billion dollars (3.9 billion) in Russian state assets in the US and use them for the benefit of Kyiv. That arrangement is being worked out.

 How could the loan be used and how soon?

It will be up to technical experts to work through the details.

Ukraine will be able to spend the money in several areas, including for military, economic and humanitarian needs and reconstruction, the US official said.

US President Joe Bidens national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the goal is to provide the necessary resources to Ukraine now for its economic energy and other needs so that its capable of having the resilience necessary to withstand Russias continuing aggression.

US President Joe Biden arrives at the G7 summit in Borgo Egnazia, southern Italy (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)

Another goal is to get the money to Ukraine quickly.

The French official said the details could be worked out very quickly and in any case, the 50 billion dollars will be disbursed before the end of 2024.

Beyond the costs of the war, the needs are great.

The World Banks latest damage assessment of Ukraine, released in February, estimates that costs for reconstruction and recovery of the nation stand at 486 billion dollars (380 billion) over the next 10 years.

The move to unlock Russias assets comes after there was a long delay in Washington by Congress in approving military aid for Ukraine.

At an Atlantic Council event previewing the G7 summit, a former US ambassador to Ukraine, John Herbst, said the fact that American funding is not quite reliable is a very important additional reason to go that route.

 Who would be on the hook in the case of a default?

If Russia regained control of its frozen assets or if the immobilised funds were not generating enough interest to pay back the loan, then the question of burden-sharing arises, according to the French official.

Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia and Eurasia Programme at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said last week that there were worries among European finance ministers that their countries will be left holding the bag if Ukraine defaults.
Houston Mayor John Whitmire gavels in a city council meeting Tuesday, Jan. 2, 2024, in the city council chambers at city hall in Houston. Mayor Whitmire was publicly sworn earlier in the morning. Jon Shapley/Staff photographer

The budget is up $1.1 billion over last year and leaves the city with a $192 million deficit after council members added new spending measures just before the vote, Finance Director Melissa Dubowski said. The budget does not include new taxes or fees.

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More changes could be in store as the council will address proposals to implement a trash fee and examine the maximum hours the city pays its terminated employees in upcoming meetings.

Theres no such thing as a perfect budget, Whitmire said ahead of the 15-2 to pass vote.

The votes against the budget came from Council Members Edward Pollard and Tiffany D. Thomas. Pollard told the council he was concerned the budget wasnt bringing enough new tax revenue given the city's growing financial challenges.

Were going to have to start to become much more serious about our spending trends  because all were doing is enlarging our structurally unbalanced budget, Pollard said.

Thomas told the Chronicle after the meeting that she had concerns about the citys $650 million settlement with the Houston Professional Firefighters Association and the hole it could blow in the budget next year. Controller Chris Hollins did not certify the money to pay the agreement due to a range of questions, prompting a standoff with Whitmire. The mayor is urging the council to take swift action to avoid having the agreement expire.

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The council did, however, vote to certify the bond debt that relies on taxpayer money to pay off the deal over the next 25 to 30 years, assuming it wins final council approval. The council approved the debt 14-3 with Pollard, Thomas and Council Member Mary Nan Huffman voting in opposition.

Council member amendments

In addition to passing the budget, the council considered about 50 last-minute budget amendments proposed by 12 members.

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The council voted in favor of Council Member Julian Ramirezs proposal to add $4 million for a sixth cadet class for Houstons Police Department.

I know this is going to require the academy staff to stretch, and the department to stretch in terms of recruiting, Ramirez said. But I know they can rise to that challenge, and the results will hopefully be more officers on the streets and shorter response times.

Council Member Tarsha Jackson won approval for $8 million to create more drainage projects. Some of that cash will likely go toward Northeast Houston, where residents have struggled with deteriorating sewer systems for years.

The proposals passage was met with applause from the Northeast Action Collective, a local environmental nonprofit whose members have spent hours in City Halls public comment sessions in recent months asking the city to help their communities.

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After an emergency purchase order in Public Works led to 14 criminal charges against vendors and a city workers arrest, Council Member Amy Peck offered a proposal that would require the city to disclose when a company being paid to conduct emergency work was created within the past year. It passed unanimously and goes into effect in the next 30 days.

PUBLIC WORKS INVESTIGATION: Former Houston Public Works official charged in corruption case involving waterline repair contracts

An amendment from Council Member Abbie Kamin will add a lawyer to the citys legal department to help council members as leaders work through kinks in Proposition A, which has allowed council members to team up to add items to council agendas.

Tensions have emerged at City Hall over the past few months over how the newly passed city charter amendment should work, as well as how it should be interpreted.

PROP A DRAMA: Tensions flare at Houston City Council over voter-approved historic rule change

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Whitmire created a committee to vet council members proposals ahead of appearing on a council agenda, but some council members have been leery of potential mayoral influence because new rules could require a review from the citys legal department. The city attorneys office reports to the mayor.

Council Member Joaquin Martinez offered proposals to help generate money for Solid Waste Management, which has struggled to have adequate funding and resources for years. One proposal from Martinez would establish a one-time $26.20 fee for new residents to receive city trash pickup. The other attempts to establish a monthly trash fee.

We need to start having these conversations, Martinez said. We need to start right-sizing all of our departments.
Pontiff reported to have again used the term  which Vactican has previously apologised over  when discussing the issue of homosexuality among men training in seminaries

Pope Francis has been accused of using a highly offensive homophobic slur again, just a few weeks after the Vatican apologised over the use of the word.

The initial outcry came after the head of the Catholic Church used the Italian slur frociaggine at an Italian bishops conference on May 20, where one of the topics being discussed was whether to allow celibate gay men to undergo training for priesthood at Catholic seminaries.

The Pope was reported to have said that there was already too much frociaggine  which translates as f*****ness  in some seminaries, in response to proposals to allow gay men to undergo training for priesthood at Catholic seminaries.

The 87-year-old pontiff is said to have spoken against the idea, saying that while it was important to embrace everyone, it could risk the person leading a double life.

An apology later issued by the Vatican insisted the Pope never intended to offend or express himself in homophobic terms, with several bishops in the room at the time claiming to Italian newspapers that the pontiff might not have realised the term was offensive.

Now Francis has now been accused of repeating the slur in a closed-door meeting on Tuesday.

According to Italys Ansa news agency and the Catholic website Silere Non Possum  which claimed to have a recording of his meeting with 200 young priests  Francis told the priests that there is an air of frociaggine in the Vatican.

Asked about the latest report, the Vaticans press office made reference to a statement it had issued regarding Tuesdays meeting with the priests, in which the Pope reiterated the need to welcome gay people into the Church and the need for caution regarding them becoming priests.

The Pope has previously been regarded as taking a somewhat less hostile approach towards the LGBT+ community than his predecessors.

In 2013, Pope Francis said gay people should not be marginalised and told reporters: If a person is gay and seeks God and has good will, who am I to judge?.

Last year, the pope approved a ruling allowing priests to bless same-sex couples  but not in the context of marriage, civil unions or regular church rituals. The Vatican has said the Church does not have the power to bless same-sex unions because God cannot bless sin.

However, the Pope said in a letter in 2023: We cannot be judges who only deny, push back, exclude.
President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, left, shake hands after signing a security agreement on the sidelines of the G7 in Savelletri, Italy (Alex Brandon/AP)

US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky have signed a 10-year security agreement that they hailed as a milestone in relations between their countries.

But that alone was not enough to stop Mr Zelensky from wondering how much longer he could count on Americas support.

Mr Zelensky also said his country urgently needed additional air defence systems to protect Ukrainians and the nations infrastructure from Russias continued bombardment.

The leaders signed the agreement on the sidelines of the annual Group of Seven summit, held this year in Italy, and Mr Biden said the goal is to strengthen Ukraines defence and deterrence capabilities.

Mr Zelensky said at a joint news conference that the signing made for a truly historic day, but he also wondered about the durability of support from the United States and other allies.

Ukraines president said the right question to ask is for how long the unity in the world will remain? The unity in the US, together with European leaders and how it will be influenced by the outcome of elections this year in many of those countries.

Topping that list is voting in the US in November in a campaign that could see the return of Republican Donald Trump to the presidency.

Mr Trump has been sceptical of providing additional military aid to Ukraine, at one point criticising the endless flow of American treasure.

He more recently has expressed openness to lending money instead and has said Ukraines independence is important to the United States.

Mr Zelensky went on to deliver a stark warning about Russian aggression, saying that if Ukraine does not withstand, the democracy of many countries, I am sure, wont withstand either.

The US and European countries also agreed to keep sanctioned Russian assets locked up until Moscow pays reparations for its invasion of Ukraine, clearing the way for a 50 billion dollar (39 billion) loan package for Ukraine.

President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky arrive to sign a bilateral security agreement on the sidelines of the G7 in Savelletri, Italy (Alex Brandon/AP)

Combined with new sanctions against Russia announced earlier in the week, Mr Biden said the series of actions to support Ukraine show Russian President Vladimir Putin that he cannot wait us out. He cannot divide us.

The highly anticipated agreement will leverage interest and income from more than 260 billion dollars (203 billion) in frozen Russian assets, largely held in Europe, to secure a 50 billion dollar loan from the US and additional loans from other partners.

Ukraine will receive the first payments sometime this year, but it will need time to use all the money, a US official said on Thursday.

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the agreement, which will be included in the G7 leaders communique on Friday.

Ukraine will be able to spend the money in several areas, including for military, economic, humanitarian and reconstruction needs, the official said.

The leaders statement on Friday will also leave the door open to confiscating the Russian assets entirely, for which the allies have yet to secure the political will, largely citing legal and financial stability concerns.

Mr Biden and Mr Zelensky met on Thursday for the second time in two weeks to discuss the security agreement as the international group of wealthy democracies has been looking for new ways to bolster Ukraines defences against Russia.

The agreement on how to use the frozen Russian assets to benefit Ukraine comes several months after the White House broke through a logjam in Congress that stalled approval of some 60 billion dollars (47 billion) in US aid for Ukraine.

Ukraines President Volodymyr Zelensky talks to journalists during a news conference after signing a bilateral security agreement with US President Joe Biden during the sidelines of the G7 summit at Savelletri, Italy (Andrew Medichini/AP)

The delay gave Russia time to make up ground on the battlefield.

Mr Biden publicly apologised to Mr Zelensky for the hold-up when they met last week in France.

The agreement does not commit US troops directly to Ukraines defence against Russia.

That is a red line drawn by Mr Biden, who does not want the US pulled into a direct conflict with nuclear-armed Moscow.

The security pact, which would remain in effect for 10 years, does not offer Ukraine any new money but includes a commitment by the US to work with Congress on a source of sustainable funding for the future.

Text of the agreement released by the White House also describes how the US will co-ordinate with Ukraine and other US allies and partners to make sure Ukraine has the military, intelligence and other means necessary to defend itself and deter Russian aggression.

The US and Ukraine would also consult at the highest levels in the event of a future armed attack by Russia against Ukraine.

Either side may terminate the agreement in writing with six months notice, which means a future US president, including Mr Trump if elected in November, could cancel the arrangement.

President Joe Biden answers no to a question about pardoning his son as he shakes hands with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky after signing a bilateral security agreement on the sidelines of the G7 in Savelletri, Italy (Alex Brandon/AP)

Scores of countries and organisations are set to meet over the weekend in Switzerland to discuss peace for Ukraine.

Mr Biden is not scheduled to attend the summit, and that has disappointed Mr Zelensky.

Vice president Kamala Harris will represent the US instead while the Democratic president attends a campaign fundraiser in Los Angeles.

Mr Zelensky recently said the Swiss summit needs Mr Bidens participation because other leaders value the US viewpoint.

He said Mr Bidens absence will be only an applaud to Putin, a personal applaud to Putin.
Constitutional changes tinker with the electoral process but do not improve understanding of the political leadership roles, writes Tess Newton Cain.

Casting a referendum ballot in Dumbea Hall voting station in Port Vila, on 29 May, 2024. More than 200,000 citizens were eligible to vote in Vanuatus referendum.

It has become something of a truism that there is no political stability in Vanuatu, motions of no confidence are common, and prime ministers rarely serve a full four-year parliamentary term.

Vanuatus first ever constitutional referendum saw citizens vote overwhelmingly in favor of greater political stability, especially after three prime ministers held office in a space of two months last year.

Two questions on restricting party hopping and forcing newly-elected independent members of parliament to align with political parties were answered with pronounced yes votes.

The results were announced on Wednesday evening but official voter participation figures have not been released.

Vanuatu, about 1,900 kilometers (1,180 miles) northeast of the Australian city of Brisbane, is a young country. In 2025, it will mark 45 years since independence in 1980. The constitution has been changed seven times, but this is the first requiring a referendum because it relates to the nations electoral system.

For the first decade of its existence as an independent country, Vanuatus politics were as stable as they come. The Vanuaaku Pati led by Fr Walter Lini governed for more than 10 years. Since then, a fracturing of political alliances and the rise of independents has led to government by coalition, many being both fragile and fractious.

Hence the volatility. Hence the reforms.

Vanuatus parliament house (right) in the capital Port Vila- built with Chinese aid and opened in 1993 - pictured on 11 November, 2022. [Stefan Armbruster]

The first referendum question asked, if an MP leaves or is kicked out of their party, should they lose their seat? Ni-Vanuatu voted 59.28 percent in favor of inserting Article 17A into the constitution to enforce this.

The second more contentious question asked if a newly-elected independent MP should be required to join a registered political party within three months of taking office, and if they do not, their seat be vacated? Again the vast majority of voters (57.98 percent) supported the change to Article 17B.

This assumes that stability is a good thing. There is no doubt that ongoing instability is a drain on resources, notably time and energy.

Prime ministers who are constantly watching their backs have little room to drive good policy for the betterment of the nation. But we can certainly point to examples of where too much stability can be sub-optimal.

If the criterion of stability is continuing leadership, Fiji would certainly qualify during the period from 2006 to 2022 under military coup leader, turned elected prime minister Voreqe Frank Bainimarama. He led his Fiji First party into government on the countrys return to democracy in 2014.

This stability was not very beneficial for Fiji's economy, leaving many in poverty, a health service in crisis, soaring national debt, as well as the negative impacts on human and civil rights documented during that time.

Since being voted out, Bainimarama has been jailed and the Fiji First party is disintegrating.

But assuming that more stability is what is needed and wanted  as these results indicate is the case  will these changes bring that about?

Parliament passed the associated enabling legislation in December last year, with a vote of 47 to none.

Citizens queue up at the Chiefs Nakamal voting station in Saralana, Port Vila, on 29 May, 2024 to vote in Vanuatus first referendum since independence. [Nikiatu Kuautonga/Island Roots]

In the immediate term of parliament, Article 17A should make unseating a government with a motion of no confidence a little harder but not impossible, partly because there are still independents and micro-parties  parties with only one MP  in parliament.

They currently constitute nine out of a total of 52 seats, and so can wield a large amount of influence where numbers are tight.

The story will be very different after the next election scheduled in 2026, unless another feature of Vanuatu politics occurs, the snap election. Article 17B, which will not take effect until an election, forces all MPs to be aligned with a political party, reinforcing the intention of Article 17A.

Removing the right to sit in parliament as an independent looks like a radical move; no other Pacific countries stop MPs sitting as independents and there is talk this constitution change could be subject to legal challenge.

More fundamentally, these reforms are best seen as tinkering with the machinery of how Vanuatus parliament is constituted. They do little or nothing to get to the heart of the matter, which is how political leadership is understood by the governed as well as the governing.

In Vanuatu, as is the case elsewhere in Melanesia, the role of a parliamentarian as a legislator working in the national interest has yet to be fully understood and embraced. MPs are seen, and often see themselves, as gatherers and distributors of resources. This skews how politics operates at elections and on the floor of Parliament.

As Vanuatu embraces these changes and moves on in its political life, more will be needed to build the bedrock of civic education to strengthen political leadership for the future.

Tess Newton Cain is an associate professor and project lead for the Pacific Hub at Griffith Asia Institute, Griffith University. She has worked as an independent consultant and researcher in the South Pacific for more than 25 years. The views expressed here are her own and do not reflect the position of BenarNews.
Meanwhile, a binding code of conduct on the South China Sea is at least another two years away.

Southeast Asia wont pick sides in the strategic rivalry between the United States and China and believes both powers have a role to play in Asia, a top regional official said Thursday.

Speaking with reporters at Arizona State Universitys Washington campus, Kao Kim Hourn, secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), said the 10-nation organization wanted Beijing and Washington to work out their differences.

But until that happens, he said, Southeast Asian nations would work with both powers and oppose any efforts to be shoehorned into the rivalry.

They should not ask us to choose sides. We will not choose sides, said Kao Kim Hourn, who was an adviser to former Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen before taking on his role with ASEAN in 2022.

This is a strategic competition between China and the United States, he said. Its not a strategic competition with ASEAN.

Kao Kim Hourn, ASEAN secretary-general (center), participates in a media roundtable at Arizona State Universitys Washington campus, June 12, 2024. [ASEAN]

The ASEAN states hoped the rivalry will not have repercussions for Southeast Asia and wanted the sides to talk more to avoid economic or military blowback for the region, he said.

We want to see the superpowers get together, he said.

Asked about remarks often made by Chinese government officials that the United States was an outsider in Asia and should focus on its own backyard, Kao Kim Hourn said many in ASEAN disagreed.

We consider the United States as a friend and as a partner, he said. In this regard, I dont think ASEAN considers the United States as an outsider. The U.S. has been involved in the region for many years.

On Wednesday, Kao Kim Hourn visited students at Herndon High School in Virginia, which he attended in the 1980s after escaping the Cambodian Civil War that followed the 1979 overthrow of the Khmer Rouge.

He also met with U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.

South China Sea

On Wednesday, Kao Kim Hourn held talks with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell. A day later, Campbell publicly called on Southeast Asia to adopt a unified stance on assertive Chinese claims against Philippine waters, which has included water-cannon attacks.

A Philippine Coast Guard ship is water cannoned by the China Coast Guard as it tries to approach the waters near Scarborough Shoal in the South China Sea, April 30, 2024. [Philippine Coast Guard via AP]

ASEAN should send an unmistakable message about concerns with respect to provocations in what is clearly the Philippines' waters, Campbell said at a forum at the Stimson Center in Washington.

However, the bloc, which requires consensus among its 10 member states to issue positions, has been unable to offer a unified stance on Chinas claims to the South China Sea since Cambodia in 2012 hosted the groups annual summit and vetoed any such statement.

As a close ally of Beijing and one of its largest aid recipients  and with no claims itself to the South China Sea  Phnom Penh has since prevented the bloc from criticizing Chinas aggressive claims.

At the roundtable on Wednesday, Kao Kim Hourn noted that only four of the 10 ASEAN states  Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines  had direct claims to the South China Sea, and said even within the bloc there were overlapping claims that needed to be resolved.

A Philippine official this week, for instance, said that Manila was monitoring island-building by Vietnam in a disputed part of the sea, even as he stopped short of condemning the land reclamation and said ties between Vietnam and the Philippines remain friendly.

The Vietnamese-claimed Southwest Cay island in the Spratly island group is seen from a Philippine Air Force C-130 transport plane during a visit to the Philippine-claimed Thitu Island by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Armed Forces Chief Gen. Eduardo Ano and other officials in disputed South China Sea, April 21, 2017. [Francis Malasig/AP]

Kao Kim Hourn said ASEAN had to sort out the counterclaims that exist among its own members before it could adopt a unified regional stance on Chinas overlapping claims  even if that meant allowing Beijing to press ahead with increasingly assertive behavior.

A long-awaited code of conduct governing how claimants behave in the South China Sea, which was first floated in talks with Beijing in the 1990s, could be at least another two years away, he said.

Theyre trying to work within that time frame, he said. But, again, it depends on the speed and, of course, the process of negotiating.
The Southwest Cay controlled by Vietnam in the Spratly archipelago is seen in this satellite image, June 9, 2024.

The Philippine navy is monitoring Vietnams island-building activities in South China Sea waters within Manilas exclusive economic zone, a naval official said.

Navy spokesman Commodore Roy Vincent Trinidad, told a radio station that both the navy and the department of foreign affairs were watching the situation.

Manila claims jurisdiction over a group of reefs and rocks, called the Kalayaan island group in the Philippines. Most of the reefs are within the Spratly archipelago, which is contested by several countries in the region.

The Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) think tank said in a recent report that in six months Vietnam had created as much new land in the South China Sea as the previous two years combined.

Vietnam has reclaimed a total area of 2,360 acres, about half the area that China has built up throughout the years, according to AMTI.

Namyit Island is seen in this satellite image, May 16, 2024. [AMTI/Maxar Technologies]

The Philippines measured response to the report of Vietnamese land reclamation in areas that it also claims comes after a period of intensifying confrontation between Manila and Beijing over other features in disputed waters.

The Philippines and Vietnam have friendly relations, Trinidad told the Super Radyo dzBB station on Sunday.

Vietnam does not initiate illegal, coercive, aggressive, and deceptive actions against us, unlike China, he said.

Earlier, another Philippine official said Vietnam was reclaiming features it had occupied before a 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.

Vietnam focuses on minding their own affairs, Philippine Coast Guard spokesman Jay Tarriela told reporters. They do not engage in harassing our fishermen or illegally deploying coast guard vessels and maritime militia in the waters surrounding our occupied maritime features.

Divisive issue

The Philippines has in the past issued a formal diplomatic protest against Vietnams island building, which was the usual practice in response to any such foreign activity in the West Philippine Sea, said Jay Batongbacal, a maritime legal analyst. West Philippine Sea is what Manila calls its South China Sea territories.

It was more about the concern over the environmental impact of such activities as the Philippines gives great value to marine habitats and species diversity, Batongbacal told Radio Free Asia, a news service affiliated with BenarNews. This has not affected Vietnam-Philippines relations overall.

Botongbacal said the two countries had been engaged in constant dialogue as two claimants from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations in accordance with the 1992 ASEAN Declaration of Conduct for parties in the South China Sea and the 2002 Declaration of Conduct between the bloc and China.

Manila and Hanoi established a strategic partnership in 2015 and have been working together to manage overlapping claims in the South China Sea amid new maritime challenges posed by their big neighbor Beijing.

On Wednesday, Meynardo LB. Montealegre, Philippine Ambassador to Vietnam, called Vietnam our twin brother in the ASEAN region, adding that the two countries are sharing the South China Sea as our common space for growth, our life-giving source for development and equally essential for our co-existence.

Yet Vietnams recent efforts could become a divisive issue between them.

Columnist Rigoberto Tiglao recently wrote in the Manila Times that Vietnam is the Philippines other threat.

As sure as the sun rises in the East, if China vacates its occupied artificial islands in the South China Sea, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam will be landing its troops on each and every island, and it has been preparing to do so for a decade, he wrote.

Tiglao is commonly seen as pro-China.
One estimate says over 250 offshore gaming firms illegally operate in the country.

The Philippines is monitoring offshore gaming operations, the national security adviser said Thursday, amid concerns that Beijing could use these to stir up trouble in the country.

Previously, government officials, including Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr. and at least two senators, said Beijing could be using illegal gambling operations to weaken governments with which it had ongoing conflicts.

Currently, we do not view [Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators or POGOs] per se as a national security threat at the level that would necessitate the direct involvement of the armed forces, National Security Adviser Eduardo Ano said in a statement. At the moment, it is a national concern that law enforcement and regulatory agencies can address.

He said his agency would continue to work with legislators and other government officials to provide a balanced and informed perspective about POGOs.

POGOs are online gaming firms that cater to foreign customers, especially nationals from China, where gambling is illegal.

Over 250 POGOs are suspected to be operating without a license, according to the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR), a government-owned entity. By comparison, 46 operate legitimately in the country, contributing more than 5 billion pesos (U.S. $85.32 million) gross revenues last year.

Ano noted that legitimate POGO operators are licensed by the government, but illegal operators have been involved in scams and other crimes that should not be tolerated.

Police crackdown

Police said they recently stepped up operations against illegal POGOs, shutting down several firms for having alleged links to crimes including human trafficking, online fraud, and prostitution.

In a raid last week, police found Chinese military uniforms and other paraphernalia in Lucky South 99, a cluster of buildings that catered to POGO operations in Porac town north of Manila. Authorities said the Chinese military uniforms are being checked for their authenticity.

Some illegal POGOs are operating near military sites under the Enhanced Defense Cooperation Agreement (EDCA), the Presidential Anti-Organized Crime Commission said on Thursday. EDCA is a pact signed by Manila and Washington in April 2014 that aims to bolster their alliance and defense cooperation.

The Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) does not consider POGOs a national security risk.

For now, that is not yet considered a threat to national security. In terms of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, we remain committed to maintaining a balanced approach in safeguarding our economic interests while securing the well-being and security of our citizens, AFP spokeswoman Col. Francel Padilla said on the ABS-CBN program Dateline Philippines on Wednesday.

Concern

Also on Wednesday, Teodoro said China could be behind these POGOs to weaken a perceived enemy.

Why is this a national security concern? Because they weaken our political, economic, social and peace and order fabric, he told reporters.

The most effective way of weakening your enemy is to cause trouble in its country, said Teodoro, who last week said criminal syndicates posing as POGOs are national security concerns.

The Chinese Embassy in Manila did not immediately respond to BenarNews requests for comment. But in 2022 it said that it was willing to assist Manila in its POGO crackdown because gambling is illegal in China whether done online or overseas.

On Thursday, Sen. Win Gatchalian, an administration ally, called for an immediate ban on all POGOs in the country.

In addition to the proliferation of heinous crimes associated with POGOs, the industry has raised serious national security concerns that must be addressed promptly and with strong political will, he told reporters.

Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada echoed Gatchalians concern.

Aside from security concerns raised on POGO operations near our military bases, reports on some 250 others operating without licenses should prompt our concerned authorities to conduct a crackdown on these illegal entities, he said.

In addition, Chinese workers and others caught in POGO raids should be subject to mass deportation, Estrada said.

POGOs began proliferating when former President Rodrigo Duterte, whose six-year term ended in 2022, allowed them to operate in droves. Dutertes successor, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., has blamed Duterte's pro-China stance for emboldening Beijing to be more assertive in the South China Sea.

The Philippines and China are locked in a years-long dispute over the resource-rich waterway. Other countries including Vietnam, Brunei, and Malaysia have overlapping claims to the waters. Taiwan is also a claimant.

Jojo Rinoza and Gerard Carreon contributed to this report.
Vietnamese activist Y Quynh Bdap is seen in a video he filmed himself days before his arrest in Bangkok, June 7, 2024.

A Vietnamese human rights activist with refugee status in Thailand was arrested in Bangkok this week and risks being deported to Vietnam, where he faces a 10-year prison sentence on terrorism charges.

Thai police arrested Y Quynh Bdap on June 11, according to his lawyer and rights activists. The arrest came exactly one year after dozens of people attacked two public agency headquarters in Vietnams Dak Lak province, in the Central Highlands, leaving nine dead.

Since then, scores of individuals have been tried and convicted in hearings that have been criticized as show trials. Y Quynh, who had left Vietnam in 2018, was sentenced in absentia to a decade in prison.

He has denied being involved in the attacks, calling the convictions politically motivated retaliation for his activism.

The area where the attacks took place is home to about 30 indigenous tribes who have a long history of conflict with the Vietnamese majority, and claim they have been discriminated against and persecuted.

They are often referred to as Montagnards, a term coined by French colonialists to describe the tribes, many of whom are Christians, but Vietnam has rejected use of the term.

Y Phic Hdok, who founded Montagnard Stand for Justice, or MSFJ, along with Y Quynh, said he received a text message on Tuesday reading: I have been arrested.

A June 11 arrest warrant seen by RFA lists his arrest as a warrant for extradited criminals and notes he has been found guilty of acts of terrorism.

A Thai police official who asked not to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media told RFA, a news service affiliated with BenarNews, that the activist would likely face trial for overstaying his visa.

Granted refugee status

Y Quynh left Vietnam in 2018, sought asylum in Thailand and was granted refugee status that same year by the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, or UNHCR. He has spent his time in Thailand collating rights abuses by the Vietnamese government for his MSFJ reports.

Because of his refugee status, Y Quynh has the right to resettle in a third country and had applied for asylum in Canada. But his refugee card offers him little protection in Thailand, which has never ratified the 1951 Refugee Convention.

That has meant Y Quynh and other activists can easily be picked up by Thai police on visa violations, and rights campaigners have accused Thailand of participating in transnational repression. A Human Rights Watch report issued last month noted Thailand facilitated forced returns and even abductions of refugees and dissidents.

His colleague, Y Phic, urged the Thai government to respect international human rights standards and reject Vietnams request to extradite Y Quynh.

Because the UNHCR has recognized Y Quynhs political refugee status, Thailand should have the obligation to protect his rights, he said.

Officers from Thailands National Human Rights Commission met with Y Quynh on June 7 and sent a letter marked most urgent to the Immigration Bureau asking that he not be deported, given his refugee status and expected resettlement in Canada.

The letter cites Thailands anti-torture law, which prohibits extradition in cases where the deportee could face torture or forced disappearance.

Hunting me down

In a video Y Quynh filmed days before his arrest, published by several rights campaigners immediately following, the activist says that Vietnamese authorities have been hunting me down since late 2023 and accused the Thai police of aiding their pursuit.

Out of fear for the safety of my family and myself, we have been in hiding for the past six months, he said. But on June 6, 2024, the Thai police found our location and have surrounded us since then.

In March, RFA reported that Thai police had been visiting Vietnamese refugees from the Central Highlands, urging them to return home, and that they were asking for the whereabouts of Y Quynh.

There is a worrying trend of Thailand deporting HRDs [human rights defenders] awaiting UNHCR resettlement to neighbouring countries to face unfair trial, Mary Lawlor, the United Nations Special Rapporteur for human rights defenders wrote in a tweet about Y Quynhs case.

Several Thai immigration officials declined to speak with RFA.

As a registered refugee, Y Quynh would have been entitled to protection from the UNHCR, which on its website tells asylum seekers in Thailand it will advocate for your right to non-refoulement to be respected.

It is unclear whether protection officers were present at his arrest, and the agency told RFA it would not comment on individual cases.

A letter sent by his lawyer, Christopher MacLeod, to the UNHCR representative in Canada and Canadas ambassador to Thailand, noted that Y Quynh attended an asylum claim interview at the Canadian Embassy one day before his arrest.

Afterward, staff from the UNs International Organization for Migration (IOM) transported him to a safe place to await Canadas decision to grant him asylum.

It seems inexplicable that he could be arrested while under the protection of the U.N., MacLeod wrote.

Neither the IOM nor the Canadian UNHCR representative responded to requests for comment.

Since the attack occurred, Vietnam has accused overseas groups of masterminding it. In March, the Ministry of Public Security labeled Y Quynhs Montagnard Stand for Justice as one of two terrorist organizations that helped plan the attack.

Y Quynh has long denied such charges. In an interview with RFA last year, he insisted the Vietnamese authorities had used the attack in Dak Lak to slander him for the purpose of smearing my reputation and silencing my voice of human rights protection.

Rights groups have urged Thai authorities to release Y Quynh, arguing that theres little to substantiate Vietnams allegations against him.

The terrorism charges brought by the Vietnamese regime against Y Quynh Bdap are clearly baseless and trumped up and the Thai government must not be complicit in his refoulment, which is a violation of international law and standards, said Josef Benedict, civil space research officer for global civil society alliance CIVICUS.

This incident highlights a growing trend of transnational repression by Vietnam with activists and dissidents seeking refuge in Thailand facing arrests, harassment, surveillance and physical violence, often with the cooperation of Thai authorities.

Phil Robertson, director of Asia Human Rights and Labor Advocates, said the activist would likely face violence in custody if forcibly returned to Vietnam.

The Vietnamese government has a long, horrid track record of severely persecuting Montagnard political and religious activists, so there is a real fear that Y Quynh Bdap would face arrest, torture in custody and a long prison term if Thailand forced him back to Vietnam, he said.

Last year, Duong Van Thai, a Vietnamese blogger, disappeared from the streets of Bangkok in an apparent kidnapping with Vietnamese authorities, later saying he was in state custody. The case was similar to that of RFA contributor Truong Duy Nhat, who disappeared from Bangkok in 2019 and reemerged in a Hanoi prison.

Y Quynh expressed such a fear in his video.

He called on the U.N., NGOs and democratic governments to please protect me. Dont let them arrest and bring me back to Vietnam as in the cases of Truong Duy Nhat and Thai Van Duong.
Banks, corporations and politicians in Thailand and Malaysia are identified in rights groups report.

An ethnic minority militia force based on Myanmars border with Thailand is suspected of enabling extensive internet fraud, human trafficking, forced labor and other crimes, and is being enriched by a business network that extends across Asia, a rights group said in a report.

The group Justice for Myanmar detailed a multitude of business links that the junta-allied Karen Border Guard Force, or BGF, has established in Thailand, Malaysia and beyond, and it called on governments to act to stop the illegal activity.

The militia was formed by fighters who broke away from the Karen National Union insurgent group in the 1990s and sided with the junta. It became one of several military-backed Border Guard Forces in 2009.

Control over border crossings gave the group access to lucrative revenue streams, while its self-ruled zones became a magnet for illegal casinos, online gambling and scam centers that have proliferated along Myanmars borders with both China and Thailand.

The operations, which gangs organize throughout the region, are often run on the labor of people tricked into thinking theyve landed legitimate jobs but forced to adopt false identities online in what have become known as pig-butchering schemes, forming relationships with victims then tricking them into investing in fake schemes.

University of Texas researchers estimated in a March report that scammers had tricked investors out of more than U.S. $75 billion since January 2020.

The leader of the Karen force, Saw Chit Thu, has built a criminal business network with his family members and associates  (overseeing) a proliferation of illegal casinos, online gambling and cyber scam centres run with trafficked labour from across the world who have been subjected to forced criminality, torture and extortion.

The Myanmar army in return has benefited through revenue from BGF organized crime, the rights group said in its report.

Saw Chit Thu did not respond to repeated phone calls from RFA seeking comment.

A BGF officer, Maj. Tin Win, in a recent interview with the Irrawaddy news outlet, said his group only had a small business and he was not aware of scams operations. He said his group rented out land for casinos and he had little knowledge of their operations beyond their use of computers. He also rejected accusations of forced labor, saying his group had checked and found no such cases.

RFA could not contact Maj. Tin Win for comment.

But Justice for Myanmar spokesperson Yadanar Maung said governments and businesses across the region were enabling cyber scam operations by failing to take action against the profitable flows they generate.

Transnational criminal organizations have established networks in Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Cambodia that profit from trafficking, slavery and the theft of wealth from scam victims across the world, she said in a statement to RFA.

Those governments have failed to crack down on the sometimes well-connected investors profiting from these crimes.

Thai businesses

The BGFs hub of business operations is Shwe Kokko, a sprawl of buildings on the Myanmar side of a border river, 32 km (20 miles) north of the Thai town of Mae Sot.

That is where a joint venture called Yatai International Holding Group Co. Ltd. was established by the Border Guard Force and a businessman called She Zhijiang to develop Shwe Kokkos Yatai New City real estate project, Justice for Myanmar said in its report.

She Zhijiang is a naturalized Cambodian national born in China who owns property and gaming ventures across Myanmar, Cambodia and the Philippines. He was arrested in Thailand in 2022 and was not available for comment.

Britain imposed sanctions on She Zhijiang in 2023, along with Saw Chit Thu and another top officer in the border force, Col. Min Min Oo, on suspicion of human trafficking, forced labor and other abuses. RFA was not able to contact Min Min Oo for comment.

Yatai says its business is registered in Hong Kong and headquartered in Bangkok. The Thai address it lists online matches one for a hotel, Bizotel. The hotel did not respond to inquiries from RFA.

Another branch of the operations, Myanmar Yatai International Holding Group Co. Ltd., leases a shop in Mae Sots airport.

Thailands Department of Airports declined to comment on whether Mae Sot airport was taking money from Myanmar Yatai International Holding Group or the Border Guard Force. An official who declined to be identified told RFA the department could not confirm whether the organization or its associates had any outlets at the airport. Mae Sots airport lists the shop on its website.

Some major companies from Thailands financial sector have at least shown an interest in Shwe Kokko, Justice for Myanmar said in its report. It published a photograph of people it said were representatives of four Thai banks visiting Shwe Kokko in 2020. It also cited a Thai associate of the BGF, who it said had posted the photograph, as saying the purpose of the visit was to explore the potential financial support for the growing economy.

In this image included in a report by Justice for Myanmar, representatives from Thai banks are pictured in Shwe Kokko in 2020, according to the group. [Image via Justice for Myanmar]

Justice for Myanmar said in its report it could not confirm whether the Thai banks had struck any agreements.

One man who was forced to work at what he said was a scam operation in the zone said his family had to pay to get him out. The 28-year-old Chinese man, who asked to be identified as Neo Lu, told RFA that he was tricked into a job at the compound in June 2022.

After Lus release was brokered by an unidentified Chinese national, a member of the BGF agreed to take him across the border for a trafficking fee. In text messages seen by RFA, Lu asked his parents for a payment of 15,000 baht ($409) through Thailands Kasikorn Bank to an account designated by the BGF, belonging to a Mrs Win.

Kasikorn Bank did not respond to a request for comment from RFA.

Malaysian links

A major investor in the facility Lu was forced to work in, Dongmei Park, south of Myawaddy town, is a Washington-sanctioned former Chinese triad boss, Wan Kuok-koi, also known as Broken Tooth, Yin Gouju. He is also wanted by Malaysian police, Justice for Myanmar said in their report.

The group said Wan, former leader of the 14K Triad crime gang, set up Dongmei Park with well-connected Malaysian citizens. Those individuals included a politician from what was for decades Malaysias ruling party, the United Malays National Organization, Mashitah Ibrahim, and her husband, Abdul Shakor Abu Bakar, in addition to two individuals named Sri Liong Kee Huat and Yong Mun Hong. The United States in 2020 sanctioned Wan and Dongmei Park, which it said was another name for Dongmei Investment Group Co. Ltd.

Mashitah, who is still active in politics with UMNO, was deputy minister in the Prime Ministers Department from 2008 to 2013.

BenarNews called Mashitah for comment several times on her mobile phone and sent her text messages. Her only response was: Not interested.

Justice for Myanmar said Mashitah had posted accounts on her Facebook page that showed she was at least acquainted with Broken Tooth and associated with the Dongmei Park project.

BenarNews could not find any public record for Liong Kee Huat, or a phone number for Yong Mun Hong. No one answered the door at a residence in Kuala Lumpur listed under Mun Hongs name in Dongmei Groups corporate registration in Hong Kong.

Police Chief Razarudin Husain and Home Minister Saifuddin did not respond to requests for comment on any involvement of Malaysian investors with the former triad boss and the Myanmar militia.

Justice for Myanmar called for action from Asian governments.

This criminal business network is a global threat  causing widespread suffering to local communities, workers from across Myanmar and the world who are kept in slave-like conditions, and the victims of cyber scams everywhere, it said in its report.

Authorities in the region, notably China, Hong Kong, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, should investigate the involvement of their citizens, residents and companies that are perpetrating, enabling and benefiting from the transnational crimes and human rights violations committed in Myanmar, and hold them accountable, the group said.

This story was reported by Kiana Duncan in Mae Sot, Thailand, Pimuk Rakkanam in Bangkok, Iman Muttaqin Yusof in Kuala Lumpur and Shailaja Neelakantan in Washington.
Fe Bencosme prepares to depart the Metropolitan Multi-Service Center at West Gray after voting on Saturday, May 4, 2024, in Houston. Annie Mulligan/Contributor

A Texas state legislator who chairs the House elections committee is considering removing top election officials in counties across the state, expanding a controversial new law abolishing the Harris County elections office.

Under SB1750, a law authored by state Sen. Paul Bettencourt, R-Houston, the Legislature last year forced Harris County to return duties for overseeing elections back to the two elected positions that ran them until Commissioners Court voted in 2020 to create an appointed administrator. At a Texas House Elections Committee hearing on Wednesday, Committee Chair Reggie Smith, R-Sherman, raised the question of whether they should broaden the law moving forward to apply to more counties.

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The next legislative session wont convene until January 2025, but lawmakers are holding interim committee hearings over the summer to monitor key issues and prepare for the year ahead.

Committee members on Wednesday questioned Christina Adkins, director of the Texas Secretary of States elections division, and Harris County Clerk Teneshia Hudspeth about how the law has been implemented since going into effect last September. Hudspeth took over election duties, while Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector Ann Harris Bennett assumed responsibility for voter registration.

Adkins said her office has observed steady improvements in Harris County with Hudspeth at the helm.

More than half of Texas' 254 counties have appointed elections administrators, but SB1750 applies only to counties with a population greater than 3.5 million. Harris County is the only county of that size.

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Smith asked Adkins on Wednesday whether lawmakers should consider lowering the population bracket, which would make the law apply to more counties.

Do we have some other counties around the state that are having issues that are analogous to what was going on with Harris County that would benefit from some attention on the part of SB1750? Smith said.

Adkins said other large counties in Texas have elections administrators, like Harris County used to, and that they tend to have more reported problems than smaller counties.

(In) larger counties were always going to see more complaints, were always going to see more concerns, just based on population and numbers, Adkins said.

Adkins told Smith she would look into complaints they have received and provide more information at a future hearing.

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No further details were discussed and the next interim meeting has not been scheduled.

The Harris County Clerks Office declined to comment about expanding the law. The Texas Association of Elections Administrators did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Hudspeth attended the hearing in Austin, though her office is in the process of administering a runoff election  the sixth she has run since September. She warned that while she has been able to implement SB1750 smoothly, Harris County may not be an effective road map for handing election duties to county clerks in other areas.

As gratified as I am to share our successes, Hudspeth told lawmakers, I will concede that had I not worked in the Harris County elections department for 15-plus years and become intimately familiar with the elements that guide elections in Texas prior to assuming the role of the countys chief election official, then the outcome of the law and the story may have been different.

SB1750 supporters argued last year that Harris Countys elections office should be abolished after the March 2022 primary elections had long delays in reporting results and about 10,000 ballots initially werent included in the countys vote count. Months later, the November 2022 election was marred by a ballot paper shortage.

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However, state and local Democrats contended the bill was a partisan effort to disenfranchise voters of color.

The legislation was an unprecedented move by the state to remove a local official by targeting just one county without its consent.

After Harris County challenged the law in court, a Travis County district court judge wrote that the county should not be forced to implement an unconstitutional statute that was designed to deprive Harris County of a statutory right available to every other county in Texas.

The Texas Supreme Court, however, cleared the way for the law to go into effect.

Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis, a former member of the state Senate, said Wednesday that bipartisan praise for Hudspeth is richly deserved, but he continues to oppose SB1750.

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The states recent track record is hostile and destructive to voting rights, particularly the rights of minority voters and those with disabilities, Ellis said in a statement.

The success of recent Harris County elections has been due to Hudspeth and her team, not state legislation, Ellis added.
Thousands of people will make their way to Jiminy Peak this weekend. A new yoga festival is calling them there
It is not that we don't understand the real issues flagged by councilors who backed the amendment and its cut to city schools. Yet the outcome of this amendment is that the council forced a cut on a school district budget that, even before this reduction, entailed slashing the equivalent of 22.8 full-time positions  just to shave $200,000 off the city's $216 million budget.
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STOCKBRIDGE  Homeowners who use the towns transfer station will find new pricing when they pick up their annual stickers for 2024-25.

The stickers for unlimited, all you can throw dumping are on sale at the transfer station, 1 West Stockbridge Road (Route 102) for $150, valid from July 1 through June 30 of next year. There are additional fees for some specialized items.

Last week, the Select Board voted 2-1 to approve the new price for residents  a sharp increase from the previous $50 sticker cost. But that low fee has been in effect for more than 10 years, Town Clerk Terri Iemolini said.

The facility costs the town $300,000 a year, Board Chairman Chuck Cardillo pointed out.

Its open seven days a week, way past any other town, so we do provide a really good service," Cardillo said. "And the $150 fee is well below most other towns.

Town Administrator Michael Canales noted that revenue from the increased sticker prices would be added to the towns local receipts, allowing a $62 a year annual cut to the average single-family property tax bill.

Thus, the net effect of the $100 increase would be only $38 for those who choose to use the transfer station, Canales emphasized. Seniors or others with difficulties paying the new sticker fee can apply to qualify for potential exemptions, he added.

Theres no limit on the amount of household garbage, paper or cardboard that can be dumped. But furniture such as couches, mattresses and box springs have to be taken to the Casella Waste Systems transfer station on Willow Creek Road in Lenox Dale.

Canales pointed out that Great Barrington charges $550 a year for dumping and its open only Friday through Sunday with limited hours. Sheffields fee is $250, open for a few hours Tuesday through Sunday. New Marlboroughs charge is $225, while Lee and Lenox offer no town trash pickup or facilities, Canales said.

Alford still charges $50 but requires every household to purchase a sticker and its transfer station is open half days on Tuesdays and Saturdays, he noted.

Ahead of the vote, Select Board member Jamie Minacci called the new price reasonable, since the town staffs the transfer station seven days a week.

Its a bit of a big jump because we havent raised it in a long time, but we have to pay our employees, she said.

The cost of trash keeps going up and continues to accelerate, Canales explained, noting most of the states garbage is hauled out of state since only one active landfill remains in Massachusetts, so transportation is the biggest cost.

Select Board member Patrick White, referring to the sticker fee as a flat tax, proposed keeping a progressive tax approach  leaving the sticker at $50 but the rest of the trash disposal costs paid by property taxes based on the value of a single-family home, as has been done in the past.

Government is not a business, we dont have profit and loss, and we should keep in mind the people with the least means when we make decisions, White said. He voted against the fee increase.

For a household requiring another sticker for a second car, the additional charge is $50. Short-term rental properties are charged $300 a year.

The Stockbridge transfer station is open on weekdays from 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Saturdays from 7:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. and Sundays from noon to 3 p.m.
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As an early missionary to the Gentile people of the world, the Apostle Paul went to many places. He also developed a reputation, and churches would seek him out for advice. One of these groups were the Gauls of modern day Anatolia in Turkey. These people were related to the Celtic people; they were very different from the Jews living in Jerusalem, or even from the Romans. They had their own language, customs, and religious observances.

As they began to hear the good news of a Savior, the Galatians began to turn to Him. But they needed guidance. Paul wrote his Epistle to the Galatians to help assist these early churches, primarily to address the concern of whether or not they were also subject to the Mosaic law, like the Jews were.

This book provides a bridge from the Old Testament to the New, and shows that while there are divisions in this life, all are one in Christ. One day we shall live as one people in Gods kingdom.

About the Book of Galatians and Its People

Galatia as a formal region no longer exists, but scholars know that it was located in modern day central Turkey. The people group that lived there were actually related to the Gauls, for whom the region was named by the Romans. They had relocated to that region from further inland on the European continent.

While they had begun to assimilate into the Hellenistic cultures around them  during Jesus life and ministry, and well after Pauls missionary journeys  they maintained a separate sense of identity. It is unclear whether or not Paul wrote the book to the churches in the region of Galatia, in southern Anatolia in Turkey, or to the broader people group called the Galatians.

Paul visited the region three times, and it is believed this letter was written between his first and second missionary journeys, meaning the Epistle was written between 47-48 AD. In it, he addressed confusion occurring amongst the gentile church.

Why Was There Confusion?

When Jesus came to live on earth, He was born into the family of David, one of the Jewish nation. As a people, they knew to be looking for a Messiah, as they had been given the Law and the Prophets. God has pursued a direct relationship with the nation of Israel for centuries, and wanted them to share His truth with the world.

After Jesus death and resurrection, thousands of Jews put their faith in Him and began to share the good news with the Gentile world. One of the changes believers experienced when they realized the Messiah had come was the new freedom they had. Many felt they should still uphold the Law, while others still believed Gentile converts had to take on the Law, or at least markers of the Law. One of the crucial ones pushed on the Galatians, and other Gentile churches, was circumcision.

The act of circumcision, the removal of part of a mans foreskin, was a sign of the covenant between God and Abraham.

This is my covenant, which you shall keep, between me and you and your offspring after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and you (Genesis 17:10-11).

Many gentiles began to feel pressure to undergo circumcision, and others desired guidance. The Book of Galatians cuts through the confusion of whether or not circumcision applies to Gentile Christians, as well as other elements of the Law.

This letter was not the first to address this topic. Other letters show that this question arose in other locations. For example, Paul wrote to the Church in Corinth: For neither circumcision counts for anything nor uncircumcision, but keeping the commandments of God (1 Corinthians 7:19). Some of the Jews pressuring Gentiles to conform to the Law were well-intended, but confused, while others were trying to make it difficult for them, as they were reluctant to see outsiders come into the faith.

Key Verses from Galatians

But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed (Galatians 1:8-9).

Yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified (Galatians 2:16).

Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, In you shall all the nations be blessed. So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith (Galatians 3:7-9).

Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith (Galatians 3:23-26).

There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus (Galatians 3:28).

And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, Abba! Father! So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God (Galatians 4:6-7).

Freedom in Christ

Even today, many gentile Christians struggle with how much of the Old Testament Law they should obey. Jesus clarified in His ministry that God looks at the heart, and the Law exists to condemn people.

Now that Jesus has paid the price for the sins of each individual human, the Law no longer holds people who go to Him for forgiveness under a heavy yoke. All someone needs to do to be saved is to go to Jesus, and ask for forgiveness, put their faith in Him for eternal life. And that begins an eternal relationship with the living God. Paul clarified for all people, much of what defiled the body under the Law is now clean, and that circumcision is a commitment between God and the Jews.

In todays culture, Gentiles do sometimes get circumcised, but for non-religious reasons. Whether or not that is something Gentile parents wants to pursue for their sons is a personal decision, but the Book of Galatians makes it clear they are not under obligation, and that all people now have the opportunity to approach God as a son, and a co-heir with Jesus Christ.

Sources

Stephen Mitchell, 1993. Anatolia: Land, Men, and Gods in Asia Minor vol. 1: "The Celts and the Impact of Roman Rule." (Oxford: Clarendon Press) 1993.

Vos, Howard. Galatians A Call to Christian Liberty. Chicago: The Moody Bible Institute, 1970.

Wiersbe, Warren. Be Free (Galatians): Exchange Legalism for True Spirituality. Colorado Springs: David C. Cook, 2010.

Photo credit: Getty Images/BrianAJackson

Bethany Verrett is a freelance writer who uses her passion for God, reading, and writing to glorify God. She and her husband have lived all over the country serving their Lord and Savior in ministry. She has a blog on graceandgrowing.com.
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Telangana government commits to support innovative companies in their global endeavours

Minister Sridhar Babu inaugurated Innovera Pharma's latest site in New Jersey, USA, during his recent visit.

The roots of this robust collaboration were established during a key meeting at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos wherein Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and Minister Sridhar Babu led a delegation earlier this year. These discussions paved the way for the company to invest in Telangana.

Solidifying this partnership, within 30 days of announcement, a groundbreaking ceremony was held on February 22, 2024, in Suryapet, Telangana. This event marked the commencement of a significant project aimed at enhancing local manufacturing capabilities and infrastructure.

Minister Sridhar Babus recent inauguration of Innovera Pharma's new site in New Jersey signifies a milestone in the companys global efforts. This state-of-the-art facility is expected to play a crucial role in expanding Innovera Pharmas research, development, and production capabilities. His presence at the inauguration highlights the importance of international collaboration and the Telangana governments commitment to supporting innovative companies in their global endeavors.

The partnership also exemplifies how regional governments can support enterprises in scaling their operations globally. By fostering such alliances, Telangana continues to position itself as a leader in the pharmaceutical and biotechnology sectors, attracting investments and enhancing its global footprint. This active partnership not only strengthens Innovera Pharma's global presence but also reinforces Telangana's status as a pivotal player in the global healthcare landscape.
Waymo has issued a software fix after another one of its robotaxis suddenly crashed into a telephone pole during one of its operations in Phoenix, Arizona.

In a statement to The Verge, Waymo claimed the latest update is meant to fix a "mapping and software issue" to help its robotaxis account for hard road edges in alleyways and narrow curbs.

Local reports noted that the vehicle was unoccupied during the incident and that the Waymo car only caused "low damage" to the vehicle.

This is the second system recall Waymo has made this year. A software fix was issued earlier to 444 vehicles after two minor collisions were reported last February.

The incident came amidst an ongoing regulatory probe on the company after regulators received 22 reports of Waymo cars exhibiting "unexpected behavior" and potentially violating road safety rules.

Also Read : Waymo Under Federal Probe After 22 Driverless Road Violations

US Regulators Seek Additional Details on Waymo Robotaxis

Amid ongoing investigations, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is currently seeking additional details from Waymo about its self-driving system, Reuters reported.

The agency particularly wanted to know if any vehicles involved in the previously reported 17 collisions were grounded or received adequate updates to address the issue.

The inquiries came as the NHTSA claimed that many of the collisions are incidents "a competent driver would be expected to avoid," including crashing into "clearly visible" and "stationary" objects.

Waymo is expected to answer the additional inquiries on Aug. 6, as the company provides the NHTSA comprehensive details on all of its robotaxis' public road travels.

Related Article : San Francisco Sues California Regulators for Allowing Self-Driving Cars in the City

Regulators Crack Down on Self-Driving Cars

Waymo is not the only robotaxi service currently facing regulatory scrutiny as more road incidents involving self-driving systems have been reported.

The NHTSA has already opened an investigation into General Motors' Cruise and Amazon's Zoox after both ride-hailing services were also involved in several road collisions.

Cruise, in particular, dragged a pedestrian 20 feet last year, prompting regulators to revoke its license to operate in California.

These are in addition to Tesla also facing potential class-action lawsuits over its "full self-driving" EVs amid its plans to launch a robotaxi venture.
A Wyoming mayoral candidate is hoping to let an AI make the decisions for the state if he ever wins in the upcoming 2024 Elections.

Mayoral candidate Victor Miller claimed that the ChatGPT-powered Virtual Integrated Citizen, or VIC, will be the one handling all of Cheyenne's governmental affairs.

According to a Cowboy State Daily report, Miller would be more of a human assistant to VIC rather than the traditional elected candidate sitting in office.

Since an AI cannot exactly run for position, Miller's name is still the one listed in the official voting ballots. He is set to run against Cheyenne's incumbent Mayor Patrick Collins and several other candidates.

Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray has already urged Cheyenne officials to reject Miller's registration over its "violation of both the letter and spirit, of Wyoming's Election Code," Quartz reported.

Miller does not expect to win the Wyoming election but will help provide "serious commentary" on AI's presence in government and politics.

Before running for mayor, Miller is a computer assistant and facilities technician for the Laramie County Library, according to his LinkedIn profile.

AI Tech Creeps into 2024 Elections

Miller's proposal came amidst AI's growing popularity in politics and election campaigns despite watchdogs and AI experts expressing concerns about the technology's reliability and performance.

Last May, the Federal Communications Commission proposed AI use in political ads ahead of the 2024 Elections.

FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel said that political campaign teams still need to disclose the use of generative AI in their political ads on TVs and radios.

The proposal is being touted as part of the FCC's move to regulate the spread of AI use in election campaigns and prevent misuse.

The commission banned earlier the use of generative AI in spam and robocalls following reports of audio deepfakes of US President Joe Biden, who is also running for his second term, spreading across New Hampshire.

Also Read : AI Tools May Soon Come to Political Ads Under New FCC Proposition

AI Firms Steer Clear from Politics

Amid politicians' aspirations to use AI technology in their campaigns, most AI firms remain hesitant about the prospect.

OpenAI has previously pulled down several AI chatbots of presidential candidates as it vows to prevent abuse and misuse of its AI in political propaganda.

Other platforms like Meta will also increase guardrails to identify AI-generated political ads on the platform as the election period looms closer.
Happy Days star Henry Winkler has thanked Dublin firefighters following a blaze at his five-star hotel.

The 78-year-old American actor, known for playing Arthur Fonzie Fonzarelli on the US sitcom, was staying at the prestigious Shelbourne Hotel when he was evacuated alongside other guests.

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On Twitter/X, he posted a picture alongside three fireman from Dublin Fire Brigade following emergency services attending the incident in the early morning on Wednesday.

Winkler wrote: Thank you Dublins fire department  our hotel was evacuated on our first morning !!!

The Emmy-winner, also known for other comedy roles including playing acting teacher Gene Cousineau in hitman series Barry and Barry Zuckerkorn in Arrested Development, said he initially thought the fire alert was an alarm clock.

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Actor Henry Winkler (Sean Dempsey/PA)

When I heard the fire alarm I thought it was the clock radio  I thought somebody had set the alarm before we got there, like another guest, he told journalists.

And finally I went into another room and it was still buzzing. So I called downstairs and the woman said in a very calm voice Yes, were all evacuating, you must evacuate right now and I left.

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Thank you Dublin s fire department  our hotel was evacuated on our first morning !!! pic.twitter.com/kyByb5VSoM  Henry Winkler (@hwinkler4real) June 12, 2024

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When asked about thanking the emergency services, Winkler said: You know what, how wonderful are firemen? Some of my favourite human beings, firemen and firewomen.

They run in when other people are running out. I think they deserve to [have their hands] shook.

Dublin Fire Brigade said the evacuation helped enormously.

The five-star hotel on St Stephens Green saw six fire engines, including a turntable ladder and emergency tender, attend the scene. Guests were allowed to return the same day.
A man who was charged with dangerous driving has been convicted in the District Court after dash-cam evidence submitted by a concerned citizen who witnessed the incident was shown in court.

Sergeant Majella OSullivan told Midleton District Court that on November 11th, 2023, the witness was driving along Fota Road, Fota Island, Cork at 4.25pm when they were aggressively tailgated by another driver.

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The witness said the driver, later identified as Tihamir Buinjac (50), of West Beach, Cobh, Co Cork, then overtook them on a solid white line and almost collided with an oncoming vehicle.

The witness had front and rear dash cam footage of the incident, and subsequently made a complaint to gardai.

Buinjac was identified from the footage and pleaded guilty when charged with dangerous driving.

Defence solicitor Aiden Desmond said Buinjac was a former professional driver who was originally from Croatia. He said his client was fully cooperative with gardai, had admitted the offence at the first opportunity, and was very apologetic.

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He added that Buinjac made a poor decision on the day and did not realise he had crossed a solid white line.

Judge Colm Roberts said: This is clearly a case of dangerous driving. The fact that he was a professional driver makes it even worse. He is 50-years-old, he has plenty of experience, he is not some young fella.

He knows the rules, and he knows crossing a solid line is not allowed. The lack of a proper explanation for his behaviour does cause me some concern.

Buinjac was disqualified from driving for two years and fined 350 which he has three months to pay.
Investigations have been launched by the EU Commission after an RTE documentary which highlighted illegal slaughtering and traceability defects among hundreds of horses killed for human consumption.

After it received material from RTE Investigates, the European Commission issued alerts for horses slaughtered in Ireland, Italy, and Spain, because there was evidence animals should have been removed from the food chain - or they had been declared dead a considerable time - before they were supposed to have been slaughtered.

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The material compiled during research by RTE raised issues beyond Ireland and highlighted significant concerns related to other EU member states.

The resulting non-compliance notices were issued in recent weeks through the Commissions Agri-food network, which shares information among EU member states on potential fraud cases.

On Wednesday night, RTE broadcast the findings of its investigation, which involved compiling and comparing a large number of datasets held by countries and bodies across Europe.

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Included in the documentary was evidence of illegal activities to change the identities of horses and compromise the integrity of the human food chain at a site connected to Ireland's only active abattoir for horses, operated by Shannonside Foods in Straffan, Co Kildare.

The report also showed undercover footage in which experts said was the microchipping of horses by Shannonside Foods staff prior to being sent for slaughter.

Significant issues around how horses are processed for human consumption through slaughterhouses in mainland Europe were also detailed.

In April, after it received material from RTE Investigates, the European Commission issued non-compliance notices in respect of 332 horses slaughtered in Ireland, Italy, and Spain. The notices identified the issue as illegal slaughtering, traceability defects".

In the Dail on Wednesday afternoon, Minister for Finance Michael McGrath said he was "sickened and appalled" at what was contained in the reporting broadcast so far, adding it is now the subject of a "thorough investigation" by the Department of Agriculture.

He said the Government "unreservedly condemns" what was shown in the programme, adding the "full force of law" will apply if breaches are proven in court.
A teenager has been arrested after he was removed from a flight that diverted to Shannon Airport on Wednesday evening.

Jet2Holidays flight LS-155 was travelling from Glasgow, Scotland to Tenerife in Spains Canary Islands and was about 300 kilometres off the south coast of Ireland when the crew turned around, with 202 passengers and crew on board.

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The crew contacted air traffic controllers in Shannon and advised them of the situation, indicating they wished to divert to Shannon Airport.

The crew of the Boeing 737-800 series jet told controllers they had a "disruptive passenger" on board and that fighting had broken out in the passenger cabin.

The crew said they would need police on arrival, and Gardai based in the airport were alerted.

In a statement released on Thursday morning, Gardai confirmed a male aged in his late teens was arrested after officers boarded the plane in Shannon shortly after 5.30pm on Wednesday.

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"During the incident, a woman in her 20s was assaulted," the statement added.

The teen was arrested under the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997, and remains detained under section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act 1984 at a Garda station in Co Clare.

Gardai said investigation into the matter are ongoing.

A spokesperson for Jet2Holidays said: "We can confirm that flight LS155 from Glasgow to Tenerife has diverted to Shannon Airport this afternoon so that police could offload a disruptive passenger."

A second Jet2 aircraft arrived at Shannon Airport from East Midlands Airport at 7.45pm on Wednesday evening, and was understood to have brought replacement crew members to allow the diverted flight could continue its journey to Tenerife.

The diverted flight resumed its journey shortly before 9pm.
Those responsible for the abhorrent treatment of horses, which was revealed in a TV documentary, will face the full rigours of the law, the agriculture minister has said.

Charlie McConalogue said the scenes of the mistreatment of horses were abhorrent and distressing.

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Serious animal welfare abuses were uncovered in an RTE Investigates documentary which aired on Wednesday night.

HRI Statement on RTE Investigates documentary.



Read More Here: https://t.co/sFCP8tExUx pic.twitter.com/DijuWLl7IN  Horse Racing Ireland (@HRIRacing) June 12, 2024 Advertisement

It revealed the mistreatment of horses that are being bred for slaughter at the countrys only equine abattoir, which produces horse meat food for export.

Horse Racing Ireland said it will actively support the Department of Agriculture and Garda investigations, and urged anyone with information about mistreatment of horses to report it to gardai.

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The welfare abuse was filmed in a building used by Shannonside Foods Ltd in Straffan, Co Kildare.

Mr McConalogue said an investigation has been launched into the incidents alongside gardai.

The scenes we saw last night and the treatment of those horses was abhorrent and distressing. Horses are beautiful, sensitive animals and that was absolutely unacceptable, Mr McConalogue said.

Its certainly not representative of the way that people across this country and those in the industry treat and care for their horses. We already have commenced an investigation in the Department of Agriculture.

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Weve also requested all of the footage that RTE has, and any other evidence as well to make it available to the investigation team.

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Obviously, I would avoid saying anything that might be prejudicial to the conduct of that investigation. But I can assure you and I can assure the public that this will be fully investigated, and that the full rigour of the law will be applied here.

The law is adequate but what we saw last night was not lawful, and it was breaches of the law.

The Fianna Fail minister said there are strict laws in place around the management of what enters the human food chain.

He said that no stone will be left unturned in the investigation.

Serious animal welfare abuses were uncovered in an RTE Investigates documentary which aired on Wednesday night. Photo: RTE

He said that the traceability of horses has been significantly improved over the last 10 years.

The system in place at European level is an evolving process and weve done a lot here in Ireland over the last 10 years, he added.

Ireland Horse Racing Ireland 'shocked and appalled' at abu... Read More

Asked whether he can ensure that no horses are being beaten today, the minister said: You can never be sure that somebody is not mistreating in any avenue of life, but what we have in place is very strict laws and very strict penalties in relation to that.

What Im also very sure of is right across our equine industry, that people and everyone involved in that industry are massively respectful and provide tremendous care to the horses  but you can have incidents where people mistreat and break that law.

Certainly the incidents we saw last night speak to that and the full rigours of the law now will be brought to bear in relation to the evidence that has been brought to this.
Nato defence ministers gathered on Thursday hoping to agree on a new plan to provide long-term security assistance and military training to Ukraine, after Hungary promised not to veto the scheme as long as it is not forced to take part.

The ministers are meeting over two days at Nato headquarters in Brussels in the last high-level talks before a summit hosted by US president Joe Biden in Washington on July 9th-11th, where the military organisations leaders are expected to announce financial support for Ukraine.

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Ukraines Western allies are trying to bolster their military support as Russian troops launch attacks along the 1,000km front line, taking advantage of a lengthy delay in US military aid. European Union money has also been held up by political infighting.

US defence secretary Lloyd Austin with Ukrainian defence minister Rustem Umerov prior to bilateral talks on the sidelines of a Nato defense ministers meeting in Brussels (Virginia Mayo/Pool/AP)

Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, who is chairing Thursdays meeting, said Ukraines beleaguered armed forces need longer-term predictability about the kinds of weapons, ammunition and funds they can expect to receive.

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The whole idea is to minimise the risk for gaps and delays as we saw earlier this year, he told reporters.

The hold-up, he said, is one of the reasons why the Russians are now able to push and to actually occupy more land in Ukraine.

Since Russias invasion in February 2022, Ukraines Western backers have routinely met as part of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group, run by the Pentagon, to drum up weapons and ammunition for Kyiv. A fresh meeting was held at Nato headquarters on Thursday.

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Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Ukraines armed forces need longer-term predictability about the kinds of weapons, ammunition and funds they can expect to receive (Efrem Lukatsky/AP)

While those meetings have resulted in significant battlefield support, they have been of an ad-hoc and unpredictable nature. Mr Stoltenberg has spearheaded an effort to have Nato take up some of the slack.

The idea is for the 32-nation military alliance to co-ordinate the security assistance and training process, partly by using Natos command structure and drawing on funds from its common budget.

Mr Stoltenberg said he hopes Mr Biden and his counterparts will agree in Washington to maintain the funding level for military support they have provided Ukraine since the war began.

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He estimates this at around $40 billion worth of equipment each year.

On Wednesday, Hungary announced that it would not veto the plan as long as it is not forced to take part.

Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban said: I asked the Secretary-General to make it clear that all military action outside Nato territory can only be voluntary in nature, according to Nato rules and our traditions. Hungary has received the guarantees we need.

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Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban said Hungary would not veto the plan as long as it is not forced to take part (Denes Erdos/AP)

The worlds biggest security alliance does not send weapons or ammunition to Ukraine as an organisation, and has no plans to put troops on the ground, but many of its members give help on a bilateral basis, and jointly provide more than 90 per cent of the countrys military support.

The other 31 allies see Russias war on Ukraine as an existential security threat to Europe, but most of them, including Mr Biden, have been extremely cautious to ensure that Nato is not drawn into a wider conflict with Russia.

Nato operates on the basis that an attack on any single ally will be met with a response from them all.
Tensions in the lower house of Italys Parliament erupted into a fistfight over a controversial government proposal that opponents say will further impoverish the poor south.

One opposition politician was taken to hospital.

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Video of the fight on Wednesday showed politicians converging on Leonardo Donno, of the 5-Star Movement, who opposes the changes, after he tried to hand an Italian flag to regional affairs minister Roberto Calderoli.

Mr Calderoli, a firebrand politician from the Lega party with northern roots, drafted the contested expansion of regional autonomy which would mostly benefit regions like Lega strongholds of Veneto and Lombardy.

Italian media reported that Mr Donno was taken to hospital after being hit in the head and the chest.

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Italian foreign minister Antonio Tajani, interviewed on Sky TG24, expressed disappointment at the scene.

I have no words, he said. We need to set another example, not punches to resolve political problems. Its not braggadocio, its not shouting, its ideas that need to be explained well to persuade voters.

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The proposal would give additional regions expanded autonomy in specific functions, a move that the opposition says will further increase the north-south divide in Italy.

Currently, five regions have autonomy, which in part reduces the tax revenue due to the central government in Rome.

They range from Trento-South Tyrol in the north, which is comprised of the autonomous provinces of Trento and South Tyrol, to Sicily in the south.

The other three are Friuli-Venezia Giulia in the north-east, Aosta in the north-west, and the island of Sardinia.
The G7 summit in Italy opened on Thursday with agreement reached on a US proposal to back a 50 billion dollar (39 billion) loan to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets as collateral, giving Kyiv a strong show of support even as Europes political chessboard shifts to the right.

US President Joe Biden said the agreement to tap into the windfall profits on some 280 billion dollars (219 billion) in frozen Russian assets held in Europe would put that money to work for Ukraine.

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Another reminder to (Vladimir) Putin: Were not backing down. In fact, were standing together against this illegal aggression, Mr Biden said at an evening news conference, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky by his side.

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The agreement was hashed out hours before Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni opened the summit at a luxury resort in southern Italy, saying she wanted the message of the meeting to be one of dialogue with the global south and unity.

She likened the G7 to the ancient olive trees that are a symbol of the Puglia region, with their solid roots, and branches projected toward the future.

Beyond the war in Ukraine, Pope Francis will become the first pontiff to address a G7 summit, adding a dash of celebrity and moral authority to the annual gathering.

He will be speaking on Friday about the promises and perils of artificial intelligence, but is expected to also renew his appeal for a peaceful end to Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

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The G7 comprises Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Italian paramilitary police officers patrol near Borgo Egnazia, venue of the G7 summit in southern Italy (Gregorio Borgia/AP)

Italy, which is hosting the summit, has invited several African leaders  Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Kenyan President William Ruto and Tunisian President Kais Saied  to press Italys development and migration initiatives on the continent.

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Other guests include Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, fresh off his own election, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

With Mr Biden, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and now French President Emmanuel Macron facing elections in the coming months, pressure is on the G7 to get done what it can while the status quo lasts.

The US proposal involves engineering a 50 billion dollar (39 billion) loan to help Ukraine in its fight against Russia which would use interest earned on profits from Russias frozen central bank assets, most of them held in the European Union, as collateral.

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A French official, briefing reporters on Wednesday, said a political decision by the leaders has been reached but that technical and legal details of the mechanism to tap into the assets still have to be worked out.

The issue is complicated because if the Russian assets are eventually unfrozen  for example, if the war ends  then the windfall profits will no longer be able to be used to pay off the loan, requiring a burden-sharing arrangement with other countries.

Mr Zelensky listed the asset deal as one of many arrangements he hoped to see finalised during the summit, including the bilateral security agreement with the US.

I am grateful to our partners for their belief in us and our victory, he said in a post on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.

The summit is being held at the luxury Borgo Egnazia complex in Italys Puglia region (Luca Bruno/AP)

In addition to the deal, Mr Sunak announced up to 242 million (310 million dollars) in non-military aid to Ukraine for humanitarian, energy and stabilization needs.

Washington also sent strong signals of support, with widened sanctions against Russia to target Chinese companies that are helping its war machine.

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni goes into the meeting fortified at home and abroad after her far-right party had an even stronger showing in the European Parliament election than the national general election in 2022 that made her Italys first female premier.

Known for its revolving-door governments, Italy is now in the unusual position of being the most stable power in the EU.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Melonis far-right party had a strong showing in the European Parliament election (Luca Bruno/AP)

The leaders of the G7s two other EU members, Germany and France, did not fare nearly as well, rattled after hard-right parties made strong showings in the vote.

Mr Macron called a snap election and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz saw his Social Democrats finish behind mainstream conservatives and the far-right Alternative for Germany.

As a result, Ms Meloni is likely to be able to steer the three-day meeting to her key priority items as she further cements her role on the world stage, analysts said.

In one sign of her flexed far-right muscles, Ms Melonis office denied media reports that Italy is trying to water down language about access to abortion in the final communique.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen attend a roundtable session entitled Africa, Climate Change And Development at the G7 summit (Christopher Furlong/Pool/AP)

A French official said there are diverging views with Italian negotiators on some topics, including on sexual and reproductive health and vaccines.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani confirmed abortion is being discussed, but said talks are continuing.

Nick OConnell, deputy director of the Atlantic Council, said: While its unlikely the recent results will radically shift the focus of the upcoming G7 summit, this electoral win offers Premier Meloni additional leverage to frame this as an essentially Mediterranean Summit.

That includes pushing her migration agenda as she seeks to leverage her programme for a non-exploitative relationship with Africa to boost development while curbing illegal migration to Europe.
Apple briefly defeated Microsoft as the most valuable company in the world after the tech giant introduced its AI plans during the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) last June 10.

The company recorded a market cap of $3.3 trillion just a little above Microsoft's market cap of $3.2 trillion before closing the bell.

Read Also : Elon Musk Threatens to Ban Apple Devices Amid Recent Partnership With OpenAI

Apple Experiences Market Cap Increase After WWDC Announcements

According to reports, Apple's expansive plans for AI helped boost the shares by more than 7 percent after the WWDC keynote event. The increased shares were extended up until the next day, recording another boost of 2.8 percent.

Morgan Stanley, Evercore and Bank of America analysts discussed that Apple Intelligence will encourage users to get the latest products, such as new iPhones. The analyst wrote that imposing exclusive AI features on recent iPhone models will increase sales.

Earlier this week, Apple held its annual developers conference which introduced its generative AI plans for the future. The tech giant debuted the much-awaited upgrade for Siri and other iOS 18 updates.

Apple AI Plans Affects Microsoft

Apple's success in reaching the top was brief as Microsoft managed to close the gap before the market closed for the day. Regardless, both companies are expected to move forward together as the AI competition increases.

Microsoft will most likely benefit from Apple's AI goals as the company welcomed OpenAI across its devices. ChatGPT is now integrated on devices running on iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia.

The upgraded Siri will tap into ChatGPT's power to process any documents and photos from users. Apple's Writing Tools are also enhanced using ChatGPT to improve user's writing outputs.

Before WWDC, Apple saw defeat in market cap as NVIDIA briefly became the second most valuable company.
Leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies have agreed to engineer a $50 billion (46 billion) loan to help Ukraine in its fight for survival.

Interest earned on profits from Russias frozen central bank assets would be used as collateral.

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Details of the deal were being hashed out by G7 leaders at their summit in Italy. The money could reach Kyiv before the end of the year, according to US and French officials who confirmed the agreement before a formal announcement.

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Here is how the plan would work:

 Where would the money come from?

Most of the money would be in the form of a loan mostly guaranteed by the US government, backed by profits being earned on roughly $260 billion in immobilised Russian assets. The vast majority of that money is held in European Union nations.

A French official said the loan could be topped up with European money or contributions from other countries.

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A US official said the G7 leaders official statement due out on Friday will leave the door open to trying to confiscate the Russian assets entirely.

 Why not just give Ukraine the frozen assets?

That is much harder to do.

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Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy walks with Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni upon his arrival at the G7 summit in Borgo Egnazia, Italy (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)

For more than a year, officials from multiple countries have debated the legality of confiscating the money and sending it to Ukraine.

The US and its allies immediately froze whatever Russian central bank assets they had access to when Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022. That basically was money being held in banks outside Russia.

The assets are immobilised and cannot be accessed by Moscow, but they still belong to Russia.

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While governments can generally freeze property or funds without difficulty, turning them into forfeited assets that can be used for the benefit of Ukraine requires an extra layer of judicial procedure, including a legal basis and adjudication in a court.

The EU instead has set aside the profits being generated by the frozen assets. That pot of money is easier to access.

Separately, the US this year passed a law called the REPO Act  short for the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians Act  that allows the Biden administration to seize $5 billion in Russian state assets in the US and use them for the benefit of Kyiv. That arrangement is being worked out.

 How could the loan be used and how soon?

It will be up to technical experts to work through the details.

Ukraine will be able to spend the money in several areas, including for military, economic and humanitarian needs and reconstruction, the US official said.

US president Joe Bidens national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the goal is to provide the necessary resources to Ukraine now for its economic energy and other needs so that its capable of having the resilience necessary to withstand Russias continuing aggression.

US president Joe Biden arrives at the G7 summit in Borgo Egnazia, southern Italy (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)

Another goal is to get the money to Ukraine quickly.

The French official said the details could be worked out very quickly and in any case, the 50 billion dollars will be disbursed before the end of 2024.

Beyond the costs of the war, the needs are great.

The World Banks latest damage assessment of Ukraine, released in February, estimates that costs for reconstruction and recovery of the nation stand at $486 billion over the next 10 years.

The move to unlock Russias assets comes after there was a long delay in Washington by Congress in approving military aid for Ukraine.

At an Atlantic Council event previewing the G7 summit, a former US ambassador to Ukraine, John Herbst, said the fact that American funding is not quite reliable is a very important additional reason to go that route.

 Who would be on the hook in the case of a default?

If Russia regained control of its frozen assets or if the immobilised funds were not generating enough interest to pay back the loan, then the question of burden-sharing arises, according to the French official.

Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia and Eurasia Programme at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said last week that there were worries among European finance ministers that their countries will be left holding the bag if Ukraine defaults.
The British Labour Party has committed to recognising a Palestinian state amid the ongoing war in Gaza.

Long-term peace in the Middle East will be an immediate focus if Labour is elected, the partys UK general election manifesto states.

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Sir Keir Starmers position on the conflict has previously caused unease among some in his party, with the leader facing criticism for not calling for an immediate ceasefire sooner.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer launches his partys manifesto at Co-op HQ in Manchester (Stefan Rousseau/PA)

In November last year, a host of Mr Starmer's shadow ministers broke ranks to call for an immediate ceasefire, including Naz Shah, Paul Barker and Afzal Khan.

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A total of 10 shadow ministers and parliamentary aides rebelled, with some 56 Labour members defying a three-line whip and backing an amendment to the Kings Speech.

The party also faced setbacks in the local elections in some previously safe areas, particularly those with large Muslim populations.

The manifesto document states: Long-term peace and security in the Middle East will be an immediate focus.

Labour will continue to push for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages, the upholding of international law, and a rapid increase of aid into Gaza.

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Palestinian statehood is the inalienable right of the Palestinian people. It is not in the gift of any neighbour and is also essential to the long-term security of Israel.

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We are committed to recognising a Palestinian state as a contribution to a renewed peace process which results in a two-state solution with a safe and secure Israel alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state.

Labour will also strengthen support for British nationals abroad. We will introduce a new right to consular assistance in cases of human rights violations.

The move is likely to anger the Israeli government, which reacted with fury when Ireland, Spain and Norway moved to recognise Palestinian statehood last month.
The European Unions top court has fined Hungary 200 million for persistently breaking the blocs asylum rules despite a previous European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruling, plus an additional 1 million for every day it fails to comply in future.

Hungary had not implemented a 2020 ruling from top EU judges in Luxembourg, the ECJ wrote in a press release.

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That failure, which consists in deliberately avoiding the application of a common EU policy as a whole, constitutes an unprecedented and extremely serious infringement of EU law.

#ECJ: #Hungary is ordered to pay a lump sum of  200 million and a penalty payment of  1 million per day of delay for failure to comply with the Court of Justices judgment of 17 December 2020 #asylum  https://t.co/ATb3CgbPxg  EU Court of Justice (@EUCourtPress) June 13, 2024 Advertisement

Hungarys anti-immigrant government has taken a hard line on people entering the country since well over a million people entered Europe in 2015, most of them fleeing conflict in Syria.

The case concerns changes Hungary made to its asylum system in the wake of that crisis, when some 400,000 people passed through Hungary on their way to Western Europe.

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Hungary built fences protected by razor wire on its southern borders with Serbia and Croatia and a pair of transit zones for holding asylum seekers on its border with Serbia. Those transit zones have since closed.

The measures were part of Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbans increasingly strict anti-immigration policies and the extreme minimisation of Hungarys asylum system.

In 2020, the ECJ found that Budapests policies had restricted access to international protection, unlawfully detained asylum applicants, and failed to observe their right to stay in Hungary while their application went through the full due process, the court recalled on Thursday.

The transit zones were closed in 2020, shortly after the first ECJ ruling.

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Fences protected by razor wire on Hungarys borders with Serbia and Croatia were part of Prime Minister Viktor Orbans increasingly strict anti-immigration policies (Denes Erdos/AP)

But the European Commission, which is responsible for monitoring the 27 EU member states compliance with their shared laws, took the view that Budapest has still not complied and requested the European Court of Justice to fine Hungary, the ECJ said on Thursday.

After the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, the Hungarian government also pushed through a law forcing people seeking international protection to travel to Belgrade or Kyiv to apply for a travel permit at its embassies there to enter Hungary. Only once back could they file their applications.

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The European Commission took Hungary to the European Court of Justice over the law, insisting that the country had failed to fulfil its obligations under EU rules. The rules oblige all member countries to have common procedures for granting asylum.

People have the right to apply for asylum or other forms of international protection if they fear for their safety in their home countries or face the prospect of persecution based on their race, religion, ethnic background, gender or other discrimination.
US president Joe Biden and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskiy have signed a 10-year security agreement that they hailed as a milestone in relations between their countries.

But that alone was not enough to stop Mr Zelenskiy from wondering how much longer he could count on Americas support.

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Mr Zelenskiy also said his country urgently needed additional air defence systems to protect Ukrainians and the nations infrastructure from Russias continued bombardment.

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The leaders signed the agreement on the sidelines of the annual Group of Seven summit, held this year in Italy, and Mr Biden said the goal is to strengthen Ukraines defence and deterrence capabilities.

Mr Zelenskiy said at a joint news conference that the signing made for a truly historic day, but he also wondered about the durability of support from the United States and other allies.

Ukraines president said the right question to ask is for how long the unity in the world will remain? The unity in the US, together with European leaders and how it will be influenced by the outcome of elections this year in many of those countries.

Topping that list is voting in the US in November in a campaign that could see the return of Republican Donald Trump to the presidency.

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Mr Trump has been sceptical of providing additional military aid to Ukraine, at one point criticising the endless flow of American treasure.

He more recently has expressed openness to lending money instead and has said Ukraines independence is important to the United States.

Mr Zelenskiy went on to deliver a stark warning about Russian aggression, saying that if Ukraine does not withstand, the democracy of many countries, I am sure, wont withstand either.

The US and European countries also agreed to keep sanctioned Russian assets locked up until Moscow pays reparations for its invasion of Ukraine, clearing the way for a $50 billion (46 billion) loan package for Ukraine.

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President Joe Biden and Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy arrive to sign a bilateral security agreement on the sidelines of the G7 in Savelletri, Italy (Alex Brandon/AP)

Combined with new sanctions against Russia announced earlier in the week, Mr Biden said the series of actions to support Ukraine show Russian president Vladimir Putin that he cannot wait us out. He cannot divide us.

The highly anticipated agreement will leverage interest and income from more than $260 billion in frozen Russian assets, largely held in Europe, to secure a $50 billion loan from the US and additional loans from other partners.

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Ukraine will receive the first payments sometime this year, but it will need time to use all the money, a US official said on Thursday.

The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the agreement, which will be included in the G7 leaders communique on Friday.

Ukraine will be able to spend the money in several areas, including for military, economic, humanitarian and reconstruction needs, the official said.

The leaders statement on Friday will also leave the door open to confiscating the Russian assets entirely, for which the allies have yet to secure the political will, largely citing legal and financial stability concerns.

Mr Biden and Mr Zelenskiy met on Thursday for the second time in two weeks to discuss the security agreement as the international group of wealthy democracies has been looking for new ways to bolster Ukraines defences against Russia.

The agreement on how to use the frozen Russian assets to benefit Ukraine comes several months after the White House broke through a logjam in Congress that stalled approval of some $60 billion in US aid for Ukraine.

Ukraines president Volodymyr Zelenskiy talks to journalists during a news conference after signing a bilateral security agreement with US president Joe Biden during the sidelines of the G7 summit at Savelletri, Italy (Andrew Medichini/AP)

The delay gave Russia time to make up ground on the battlefield.

Mr Biden publicly apologised to Mr Zelenskiy for the hold-up when they met last week in France.

The agreement does not commit US troops directly to Ukraines defence against Russia.

That is a red line drawn by Mr Biden, who does not want the US pulled into a direct conflict with nuclear-armed Moscow.

The security pact, which would remain in effect for 10 years, does not offer Ukraine any new money but includes a commitment by the US to work with Congress on a source of sustainable funding for the future.

Text of the agreement released by the White House also describes how the US will co-ordinate with Ukraine and other US allies and partners to make sure Ukraine has the military, intelligence and other means necessary to defend itself and deter Russian aggression.

The US and Ukraine would also consult at the highest levels in the event of a future armed attack by Russia against Ukraine.

Either side may terminate the agreement in writing with six months notice, which means a future US president, including Mr Trump if elected in November, could cancel the arrangement.

President Joe Biden answers no to a question about pardoning his son as he shakes hands with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy after signing a bilateral security agreement on the sidelines of the G7 in Savelletri, Italy (Alex Brandon/AP)

Scores of countries and organisations are set to meet over the weekend in Switzerland to discuss peace for Ukraine.

Mr Biden is not scheduled to attend the summit, and that has disappointed Mr Zelenskiy.

Vice president Kamala Harris will represent the US instead while the Democratic president attends a campaign fundraiser in Los Angeles.

Mr Zelenskiy recently said the Swiss summit needs Mr Bidens participation because other leaders value the US viewpoint.

He said Mr Bidens absence will be only an applaud to Putin, a personal applaud to Putin.
A US Navy submarine has arrived in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in a show of force as a fleet of Russian warships gather for planned military exercises in the Caribbean.

US Southern Command said the USS Helena, a nuclear-powered fast attack submarine, pulled into the waters near the US base in Cuba on Thursday, just a day after a Russian frigate, a nuclear-powered submarine, an oil tanker and a rescue tug crossed into Havana Bay after drills in the Atlantic Ocean.

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The stop is part of a routine port visit as the submarine travels through Southern Commands region, it said in a social media post.

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Other US ships have also been tracking and monitoring the Russian drills, which Pentagon officials say do not represent a threat to the United States.

This is not a surprise. Weve seen them do these type of port calls before, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said on Wednesday when asked about the Russian drills.

We of course take it seriously, but these exercises dont pose a threat to the United States.

The exercises, however, come less than two weeks after president Joe Biden authorised Ukraine to use US-provided weapons to strike inside Russia to protect Kharkiv, Ukraines second-largest city.

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Russian president Vladimir Putin then suggested his military could respond with asymmetrical steps elsewhere in the world.

Ms Singh said it would not be a surprise to see more Russian activity around the United States in such global exercises.

The drills are in international waters, and US officials expect the Russian ships to remain in the region through the summer and possibly also stop in Venezuela.

Russia is a longtime ally of Venezuela and Cuba, and its warships and aircraft have periodically made forays into the Caribbean.

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STATEMENT: The fast-attack submarine USS Helena is in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba as part of a routine port visit as it transits the U.S. Southern Command geographic area of responsibility while conducting its global maritime security and national defense mission. The vessel's location pic.twitter.com/icbeuonjgp  U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) June 13, 2024

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Russian ships have occasionally docked in Havana since 2008, when a group of Russian vessels entered Cuban waters in what state media described as the first such visit in almost two decades.

In 2015, a reconnaissance and communications ship arrived unannounced in Havana a day before the start of discussions between US and Cuban officials on the reopening of diplomatic relations.
39th Stellar Awards - Co-Host Rickey Smiley, Co-Host Loni Love, Honoree Kim Burrell, & Honoree Tye Tribbett | CR8 Agency

(CHICAGO, IL) June 12, 2024 - Central City Productions recently announced the nominees in 36 categories for the 39th Annual Stellar Gospel Music Awards taping on Saturday, July 20th, returning to Las Vegas at the Orleans Arena. Hosted by Emmy Award-winning TV personality and comedian Loni Love, alongside Marconi Award-winning radio/TV personality and comedian Rickey Smiley, the evening will bring together gospel musics brightest stars for a celebration billed as The Greatest Night in Gospel Music. The 39th Annual Stellar Gospel Music Awards will premiere on the Stellar Network on Saturday, August 3rd at 8PM and 10PM EST and in broadcast syndication from August 10, 2024 - September 8, 2024.

Don Jackson, Founder of the Stellar Awards and Chairman of Central City Productions, Inc. commented, The Stellar Awards has always been a beacon of hope and inspiration, celebrating the very best in gospel music. We are thrilled to have Loni Love and Rickey Smiley as our hosts this year, and we know they will bring a special touch of joy and excitement to the evening.

Celebrated artist Kim Burrell is set to receive the Aretha Franklin Icon Award; and GRAMMY Award and multiple Stellar Award winner Tye Tribbett is set to receive the James Cleveland Lifetime Achievement Award.

Adding to the excitement, this years Stellar Awards is part of the STELLAR PLUS week, a fun-filled extravaganza centered around the flagship show. From fashion and Afrobeats day events to masterclasses and more, the Stellar Plus week offers a diverse array of activities for attendees. Whether youre a music enthusiast, fashion lover, or someone seeking inspiration, theres something for everyone. For those planning to attend, a full list of events and ticket information is available at stellarplusexperience.com. Dont miss out on this incredible opportunity to be a part of gospel music history and celebrate the artists who inspire us all. Stellar Plus events are sponsored by: Amazon Music, Compassion, The Recording Academy and more. Stellar Plus Event tickets are available now at stellarplusexperience.com.

Stellar Awards taping Tickets are available now at www.stellarawards.com or Ticketmaster.com. Additional announcements regarding ancillary events will follow. Some of the biggest names in Gospel will be appearing as participants in this years show  stay tuned for future announcements and follow @thestellars on Instagram and Twitter, or Stellar Gospel Music Awards on Facebook for the latest news and updates about the Greatest Night in Gospel Music.

This years Stellar Awards is Sponsored by Procter & Gamble with Presenting Sponsorship provided by AT&T, State Farm, McDonalds, Disney, Walmart, AFLAC and General Motors.

The 39th Stellar Gospel Music Awards show is Executive Produced by Don Jackson with Jennifer J. Jackson serving as Producer and Executive in Charge of Production; Michael A. Johnson as Producer and Director, Erin Johnson as Talent Producer and Daniel Moore as Music Director.

A full list of the 39th annual nominees can be found on the official Stellar Awards website. For more information, please visit stellarawards.com and join the conversation using the hashtag #TheStellars.
Tesla shareholders approved chief executive Elon Musks $US56 billion ($84 billion) pay package, the electric vehicle maker said on Thursday (US time), a big thumbs-up to his leadership and an enticement for keeping his focus on his biggest source of wealth.

Shareholders also approved a proposal to move the companys legal home to Texas from Delaware, Tesla said at its annual shareholder meeting in Austin, Texas. They also approved other proposals, including the re-election of two board members: Musks brother, Kimbal Musk, and James Murdoch, son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch.

Elon Musk speaks at Teslas annual meeting in Texas.

Its incredible, a jubilant Musk told the crowd gathered at Teslas headquarters and large factory in Austin, Texas. I think were not just opening a new chapter for Tesla, were starting a new book.

If I wasnt optimistic, this wouldnt exist, this factory wouldnt exist, Musk said to applause. But I do deliver in the end. Thats the important thing.
This story is part of the June 15 edition of Good Weekend. See all 12 stories . Through a childs eyes, 2023 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 As I perch upon the electrical box on the corner of Swanston and Little Bourke streets, Melbourne, I watch tens of thousands of protesters stream by me like a river, trying to divert the course of history. As I look out over the sea of signs I look directly down to these eyes, a deep gaze observing me for a fleeting moment before moving along with the current. Luke Currie-Richardson Luke Currie-Richardson is a Naarm/Melbourne-based artist and photographer. Through a childs eyes, 2023. Credit: Luke Currie-Richardson (indistinct chatter) 3, 2023 This is an intimate and personal work that pictures an improvised duet between my father, Travis Byng, and me. Together we move vulnerably and tenderly, negotiating each others limbs, with the subtle tensions inherent in the shared discovery and exploration of cultural and familial themes. The title refers to a caption seen in films, when multiple conversations are taking place but no particular dialogue is discernible. Arini Byng Arini Byng is a Naarm/Melbourne-based artist and photographer.

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(indistinct chatter) 3, 2023. Credit: Arini Byng Maman Simin, 2023 This is my maternal grandmother, Maman Simin. She died recently, and this is the last photograph I took of her before she passed away. The portrait also represents her as a personification of the nurturing and life-giving Mother Earth, the homeland, and all our ancestors. Looking at the image, I am reassured that she is in a good place, resting in the infinity, while praying for her children. The photograph was printed on clear glass, then broken by hand, and reassembled to create a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts. Ali Tahayori Iranian-born Tahayori is an artist based on Gadigal Land in Sydney. Maman Simin, 2023. Credit: Ali Tahayori

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Mikayla with her brothers, 2023 It was hot down at the river. Jax waded into the water, his mum yelling at him to come back and get into the photo. Four siblings, all tired from the night before, looked at me through my lens. I remembered what it was like to feel as though everything my parents asked me to do was a burden, and I knew that later in life Mikayla and her brothers would be grateful for these moments together. Zoe Helene Karouzos The Australian-Greek photographer is based in Kamberri/Canberra. Mikayla with her brothers, 2023. Credit: Zoe Helene Karouzos Reinhold, 2023 In May 2023, Papa caught a plane to see me in Melbourne for one day and one night. We looked at art, walked a little, ate, took trams and sat by the river. It was the first time he had come to visit on his own since losing Sharon, his partner of 23 years. Katrin Koenning Koenning is a Naarm/Melbourne-based artist.

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Reinhold, 2023. Credit: Katrin Koenning Alfie Barker (right view), 2023 The feeling of being as at home in my body as I did before I went through puberty is indescribable. Transitioning for me has been like undoing as much of puberty as I can, back to who I was before I went through school. Before I knew what was expected of a female to wear and do and act like. Before school made me wear a dress every day. Before I was thrown into a society obsessed with rules on gender and the expectations that came with that. I am so proud every day that I made it back at age 24.  Alfie Barker

Shea Kirk Kirk, a Naarm/Melbourne-based artist, won the 2023 National Photographic Portrait Prize. Alfie Barker (right view), 2023. Credit: Shea Kirk Stripe search, 2023 This is a staged portrait of a woman hiding in plain sight. Susan is trying to evade the facial-recognition technology that tracks our every move. People born in the internet age have likely been tracked since birth. Everywhere we go, were recorded without consent. Governments have used facial-recognition drones to track criminals, leading to wrongful arrests and myriad ethical concerns. I decided to approach this subject with humour instead of fear as we enter an uncertain, AI-influenced future. Jo Duck

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Photographer Jo Duck lives and works in Naarm/Melbourne. Stripe search, 2023. Credit: Jo Duck Old growth/New growth, 2023 This image was made in an old-growth forest in a secret corner of Walbunja Country near Braidwood, NSW, four days before the birth of our twins. Both photographer and subject are on a precipice; our world was about to change forever. Like the seed that preceded that giant tree, our boys contain a universe and that universe is contained within my wife Bridgette. The joy she possessed in that moment has carried through every day of being with our boys; a mother blossoming like the small white flowers of the tree behind her.

Dean Cross Dean Cross is an artist and Worimi man. Old growth/New growth, 2023. Credit: Dean Cross S & T in the window, 2023

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Snowy Hydro has suspended its cloud-seeding operation, which over a decade has thrust at least 366 kilograms of silver iodide into storm clouds to precipitate more snow onto the peaks of the Snowy Mountains and boost the production of hydroelectricity.

A cloud-seeding trial began in 2004 and Snowy Hydro established a permanent program in 2013 after analysis found the technique was boosting snowfall on the mountains by an average of 14 per cent.

Snowy Hydros cloud seeding program aims to boost snowfall during winter so theres more meltwater  and more hydroelectricity  come spring. Credit: Alex Ellinghausen

More snowfall in winter means more meltwater come spring, which bolsters the systems energy production. But cloud seeding can only occur in certain conditions and the number of hours Snowy Hydro has spent cloud seeding plunged by more than half between 2019 and 2022.

Snowy Hydro normally fires up 20 or so propane burners that release silver iodide over popular ski fields including Perisher and Thredbo over winter.
The final panel discussion has just ended. The thoughts of Dr Mark Merry, principal of Yarra Valley Grammar, were in high demand.

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As principal of the private school in Melbournes outer-east, Merry had to manage and respond to news that a spreadsheet ranking female students had been produced and circulated on social media.

Two boys were expelled over the spreadsheet containing photos of their female peers posted to messaging app Discord. The document ranked the students in categories including wifeys, cuties, mid, object, get out and then finally unrapable.

Merry said his school, sadly, was not alone.

If there is a principal out there who thinks its not going on at their school, it is. It really is.

He said while the fallout played out at school because it involved students, families also had a central role to play.

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Even though schools are talking about respect, diversity and dignity in class and on campus, said Merry, they are competing with [controversial social media personality] Andrew Tate at home. Thats what we are up against.

Fellow panellists Lisa Holt, principal at Rosebud Secondary College, and Robert Pyers, from the school performance division at the Education Department, agreed.

I think its a partnership and I think parents really need the support, Holt said.

She said she didnt think parents understood what was going on online, but she believed they wanted to.
Senior CPC official meets Cuban communist party delegation

Xinhua) 09:53, June 13, 2024

Li Xi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, meets with a delegation of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) led by Gladys Martinez Verdecia, member of Politburo of the Central Committee of the PCC and first secretary of Artemisa Provincial Party Committee, in Beijing, capital of China, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Yue Yuewei)

BEIJING, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Li Xi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, met with a delegation of the Communist Party of Cuba (PCC) led by Gladys Martinez Verdecia, member of Politburo of the Central Committee of the PCC and first secretary of Artemisa Provincial Party Committee, in Beijing on Wednesday.

Li, also secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, said that China and Cuba are both socialist countries led by communist parties and share common ideals and convictions.

The two sides should firmly implement the important consensus reached by the top leaders of the two parties and countries, intensify strategic communication, deepen pragmatic cooperation, strengthen the exchange of experience in governance, guide the better development of their respective socialist causes, and work together to build a community of shared future between China and Cuba, Li said.

The PCC thanks the Chinese side for its firm support and valuable assistance to Cuba's just cause, Martinez said, expressing the willingness to work with the CPC to implement the consensus reached by the top leaders of the two parties and countries, deepen the exchange of experience on party and state governance, promote practical cooperation in agriculture and other fields, and push for greater development of China-Cuba relations.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Google plans to release more of its generative AI-powered features to ChromeOS soon as the tech giant introduces Android functions to the operating system.

In a blog post on Wednesday, Google-owned Chromium unveiled plans to bring Android-based tech to ChromeOS to "allow us to accelerate the pace of AI innovation."

The transition towards more AI features is expected to start with the arrival of more Android-based apps and "unifying our Bluetooth stacks" for ChromeOS 122.

Google touted the new additions of Android features as an "opportunity to put powerful tools in the hands of more people to help with everyday tasks."

AI-Powered ChromeOS Not Ready Yet, Google Says

The company said that while integration of its AI features is already starting, full rollout "won't be ready for consumers for quite some time."

Chromebooks, which use ChromeOS, are among the most widely used devices in the US with four out of five Americans estimated to own one.

The cloud-based laptop is often distributed to schools, businesses, and institutions to provide everyone access to Google's web-based tools.

Also Read : Chromebook Plus Offers Google One AI Premium for a Year

Google Expands AI Applications Amid Technical Concerns

ChromeOS is not the only Google-owned digital platform the tech giant has included as it expands its revamped Gemini AI across its products.

During its annual I/O conference, Google unveiled plans to introduce Gemini to Google Search, Mail, Calendar, and YouTube despite the technology's recent shortcomings.

Google earlier faced criticisms after its Gemini-powered AI Overviews was reported providing users with inaccurate and even dangerous inquiry results.

This is in addition to the AI's previous version being caught giving users "hallucinated" answers and generating racially inaccurate images of historical figures.

It is uncertain if the previous issues have already been resolved with the new Gemini AI version.

In response, Google blamed users for the "odd and erroneous" overviews shared online as it moves to limit "nonsensical queries" on the AI.
Banks is a man with a sharp sense of humour, but there is nothing remotely funny about Victorias tobacco war. He has spent several years investigating bikie and Middle Eastern crime gangs. Since October, he has headed Taskforce Lunar, set up to investigate the illicit tobacco war. Taskforce Lunar was supposed to be Luna, but someone slipped an r on the end. Banks strategy is contrary to usual police policies. Traditionally police try to draw out a problem to stamp it out, whereas Banks wants to force illicit tobacco back into the shadows. The trade may be the perfect business model. There is a high demand, you have access to unlimited cheap stock, there are about 1300 retail outlets and you dont pay tax. Every one of the shops is a money spinner. But there is more. The syndicates go to the retail outlets and force them to sell their businesses, or they must pay protection and stock only the syndicates under-the-counter product.

Banks estimates protection alone is making the syndicates more than $100,000 a month, the big shops are moving up to $50,000 in stock a week and the industry is making millions a month. The money is laundered through cryptocurrency, buying retail food outlets and purchasing property in Australia and the Middle East. A tobacco shop firebombed in Epping in May. Credit: Nine News And so everyone should be happy, right? Wrong.

This is where smart crooks get seriously stupid. These syndicates arent happy making lots of money. They want to make all the money. Which is why we wake most mornings to hear of another arson attack on a tobacco shop. We (police) have enough on our plate with drugs, juvenile crime and domestic violence, and so the selling of illicit tobacco was not a big priority, says Banks. Well, it is now. What they are doing is not good for business. They are asking to be looked at. They (many of the tobacco shops selling illicit cigarettes and vapes) wont be there in 12 months. First off, lets take a step back and look at how these gangs work.

Police say there are four serious groups. Each group is led by an alpha male. The exception for a time was Meshilin Marrogi, who was the brains behind the Notorious Crime Family gang run from behind bars by her brother George. Meshilin, 30, died of COVID-19 in 2021, and enemies of her family robbed her grave in 2023. Jailed crime boss George Marrogi. Banks shakes his head as he talks of how George Marrogi has been able to make millions of dollars while in custody, having been able to have his hundreds of calls, supposedly made to his legal team, diverted so that he could run his syndicate. Pictures found on his computer via a smuggled dongle showed up to $15 million in cash, bricks of cocaine and multiple weapons.

Banks says the gang leaders rise to the top when they have the support of the core group that are usually related (siblings and cousins) with the remaining members having shared Middle Eastern origins. The crimes are organised, but the structure is not. There may be up to 100 associates called upon to commit specific crimes, ranging from arson to assault, drug distribution, theft and standover work. Kazem Kaz Hamad in about 2015. Kazem Kaz Hamad controls his syndicate remotely. Having been deported from Australia, he is now based in Dubai, although he regularly flies key members to meet him for friendly catch-ups and to discuss business strategies. He can order a shop in Brunswick torched from his home 11,658 kilometres away. Hamad is determined to dominate the illicit tobacco industry, which means he has gone to war with the Haddara crime family, who live in a fortified compound.

The Age reported earlier this year there had been at least 60 violent incidents suspected of being related to Hamads underworld campaign, including at least 52 arson attacks, two murders, two non-fatal shootings and numerous standover extortion attempts. Some of these syndicates did co-operate when it came to large drug shipments, but when it comes to illicit tobacco, it is a fight to the death. Boxer Sam The Punisher Abdulrahim has taken more shots in the street than the ring. The brutality hasnt gone away. The violence used to be personal, and now it is a struggle over the business, says Banks. Take the case of Sam The Punisher Abdulrahim. He was shot eight times outside his cousins funeral, escaped unharmed after 17 shots were fired at him outside his house and wasnt home when it was shot up again. Rather than invest in more security, Sam would do well to engage a career adviser, as a change of occupation could turn out to be a wise investment.

And it is not just crooks versus crooks. The organised gang expert says that in at least one in three cases the business next door to the tobacco shop firebombed is damaged. People have been living above many of the shops, and Banks says it is just luck someone has not been trapped and burned to death. Police alone rarely defeat organised crime, because the crooks have identified a market they can supply. Smokers, sick of massive government taxes on what remains a legal pastime, see nothing wrong in going to the backyard suppliers to buy smuggled cigarettes. Any moves by the cops must be supported by elements of the community, which is why police are dealing directly with the landlords who own the shops that are selling the smokes.

They have sent two sorts of letters. One is to tell the landlords their shops have been raided and have been found to be selling illegal tobacco, and the other is to say they have intelligence that the shop is part of the blackmarket trade. Loading The letters advise landlords their insurance may be voided if they have been warned by authorities the properties are likely to be the target of arson. I think if I owned a business next door to one of these outlets and the landlord did nothing I would be very unhappy if my property was damaged, says Banks. The police letters to landlords are, for the moment, just friendly advice. The next step may be a little bit sterner. If a property owner is knowingly making money from an illicit source, that income and perhaps even the property could be subject to asset seizure.

The plan is simple. Close as many of the shops as possible so that smokers do not have immediate access to the product. Banks knows this wont kill the market, but will push it online and underground. Loading Most Melbourne people are just minutes by car from an outlet. Making access more difficult is a start. We want to force the industry back underground so mum and dad smokers cant just walk down the road to buy the illegal products, says Banks. As we dry up the open illicit tobacco retail business they will try to control legitimate tobacco shops.

But we wont let mugs like them stand over legitimate people. The Middle Eastern crime gangs have been a force in Victoria for 20 years. The violence was usually targeted. I dont like you, so Ill go and shoot you. They were crimes of hate, Banks says. Now the ruthlessness means the gangs dont care who gets in the way. A group on one side might book a function room for an event and another side will burn it down. They target innocent people just because it serves their purpose. There is no playbook any more. There are no boundaries.
A man who claimed he was one of Perths leading cosmetic medical professionals has been struck off this week after the Medical Board of Australia found he tested positive for a long list of illegal drugs and was also having a sexual relationship with a patient.

Dr Ilan Josephs was the owner and medical director at Fresh Faces Cosmetic Medicine in Alfred Cove when he was accused of a string of allegations that breached the medical code of conduct.

Dr Ilan Josephs has been struck off for professional misconduct. Credit: Instagram

The allegations date back to 2021 where Josephs, who specialised in emergency medicine before becoming a cosmetic doctor in 2010, tested positive to methamphetamine, amphetamine, MDMA, cocaine, Cocaethylence, Benzoylecgonine, Diazepam and Nordiazepam via a hair sample.

He later told a psychiatrist he had been taking cocaine since February 2021 and used prescribed and/or self-prescribed diazepam to aid in sleep on occasions where he used cocaine.
A woman has been killed every four days in 2024. We bring you stories of lives lost in recent years. Some of the cases featured are still before the courts.

She had been struck in the head 30 times.

A man has been found guilty of the murder of Janet Dweh.

Hassan Jabbie, 53, denied he was responsible for taking the life of 36-year-old Janet Dweh, whose distraught family found her body in her bed in October 2021.

A jury has returned a guilty verdict for a man accused of using a claw hammer to bludgeon his pregnant lover to death in her Dayton home 2 years ago.

Police arrested Jabbie and charged him with her murder after an investigation revealed he was the father of her unborn child and had wanted her to have an abortion. She was eight months pregnant at the time of her death.

During a seven-week trial, members of the jury were confronted with horrific evidence pointing to Jabbies guilt, including voice messages he sent Dweh, calling her a prostitute and a harlot and telling her to get rid of the baby.

Jabbie was married but had been separated from his wife during his relationship with Dweh.

During the trial the jury were played voice messages Jabbie sent Dweh, calling her a disgrace to humanity and telling her she was dirty and nasty.

After his arrest, police planted into his holding cell at the Perth Watch House an undercover officer who asked Jabbie about what he had been charged with.
Through the first six months of 2023-24, net overseas migration added 258,300 residents to the country. Without migration collapsing, the budget forecast will be surpassed. Migrants continue to head mainly to NSW and Victoria, although both had their lowest quarterly intake since mid-2022. In 2023, NSW absorbed 184,619 net migrants while Victoria took in 160,175. Together, they took in 63 per cent of the nations migrants. Population growth has put a strain on key infrastructure such as public transport. Credit: Wolter Peeters The government plans to cut the number of permanent migration visas to 185,000 from 190,000 as part of a broader effort to reduce net overseas migration to 260,000 in the coming financial year. The Coalition has promised to cut migration visas to 140,000 for two years before increasing it to 150,000. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said he made no apologies for reforming the migration system by tightening eligibility for foreign students who have largely driven the lift in immigration numbers.

Speaking at Flinders University in Adelaide, Albanese said the government had inherited a mess in the migration system when it came to power. Foreign students will continue to play an important role. Its an important export for Australia and its good for our economy, its good for our universities, but its also good for our international standing, he said. But deputy executive director of the right-leaning Institute of Public Affairs Daniel Wild said based on the net overseas migration intake through the final six months of 2023, the government would miss its budget forecast for the full financial year by 121,600. The federal governments failure to rein in out-of-control migration is making it harder for Australians to get ahead at a time of acute cost-of-living pressures, he said.

Per capita GDP has been negative for five consecutive quarters, meaning Australians at an individual level are in a recession. Loading HIA chief economist Tim Reardon said although net overseas migration in 2023 was 26 per cent higher than in 2022, it was starting to slow. Despite that slowdown, the countrys total population was about 25,000 below its pre-COVID forecast. Reardon said the housing sector would struggle to deliver the housing needed for such a fast-growing population.

The building industry has consistently argued for stable and reliable population growth. The boom-bust cycles in migration seen over the pandemic period leads to undesirable economic, social and business outcomes, he said. Without migration, Australias population growth would be barely above replacement levels. Through 2023, the country recorded 287,000 births, the lowest number since 2006 when the Howard government-era baby bonus was in operation. Births peaked at 315,000 in 2021, a small baby bump during the pandemic after a fall in 2020. But since then, births have fallen by 8.9 per cent. Deaths over the same period have climbed by 6.3 per cent. As a share of the population, births have fallen to just 1 per cent from 1.3 per cent a decade ago.

Natural population growth added 46,000 people to NSW in 2021, but last year it slipped to 32,500, a drop of 29 per cent. Victoria had a fall of 26 per cent over the same period. Nationally, natural population growth was just 103,900 last year, the lowest calendar year result in records going back to 1981. Over the past two years, it has fallen by 27 per cent due to the drop in births and the rise in deaths that has affected every state and territory. The figures confirmed Western Australia continues to be the fastest-growing state or territory, with its population up by 3.3 per cent or 93,800 through the year. It is now home to almost 2.93 million people and on track to surpass 3 million by the end of the year. Victoria added the most residents through 2023 with 186,500 people. Its population has reached 6.9 million, although overall growth slowed through the final three months of last year.

NSWs population swelled by 185,500 last year to take its total number of residents to 8.4 million. Loading While the population grows, the fall in births also means there are relatively more older Australians across the country. Retirement Living Council executive director Daniel Gannon said with people aged between 75 and 79 the largest growing population cohort in the country, more accommodation for the elderly was needed. Over the next two decades, the number of Australians over 75 will increase from 2 million to 3.4 million people, which will have socio-economic impacts on the nation, he said.
If we stumble, theyll see that now. If we move forward, they will see that too. Mohameds diplomatic role, the first of its kind among leading world economies, came from an Albanese government election promise to work in genuine partnership with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to progress Indigenous rights globally through international forums such as the United Nations, and help grow First Nations trade and investment. A Yes supporter reacts the inner west Yes2023 official referendum function on October 14, 2023. Credit: Getty Foreign Minister Penny Wong said at the time of Mohameds appointment, in March 2023, that it was part of elevating the perspectives of First Nations people  the lands first diplomats  to help deepen international engagement with many of Australias closest partners, particularly in the Pacific. Mohamed, a Gooreng Gooreng man originally from Bundaberg, Queensland, has been an Indigenous leader for more than 30 years in the Aboriginal community-controlled government and corporate sectors on issues spanning health, social justice, human rights and reconciliation.

Most recently, he was the deputy secretary of Aboriginal justice in the Victorian government, and he has also held the position of chief executive of Reconciliation Australia and chaired the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisation. He was clear when offered the role that he was not prepared to be an apologist for the federal governments lack of progress on Indigenous issues. At a United Nations forum last year he had to respond to a presentation for an Aboriginal group that shamed the Northern Territory government for its failures in responding to the Don Dale royal commissions recommendations. Justin Mohamed says because his role is both a first in Australia and globally, theres no real blueprint on how it should work. Credit: Kiran Ridley It was a fact, the least I could do was acknowledge that was the truth, he says. You cant make up a whole lot of reasons why it hasnt happened  the truth is it hasnt happened. There is definitely room for improvement, theres a number of things that we arent getting right. I think the more you try to skirt around that or hide that, you never really take the time to say how were going to address it because you spend most of the energy trying to manoeuvre around and sidestep the truth that is in front of you.

In the same week he is in Paris for diplomatic talks, including at UNESCO, there is a story in the French newspaper Le Monde condemning Australias high rate of Indigenous children being removed from their families and in child detention. As the face of Indigenous Australians around the world, how can he justify this? Loading Child protection issues, the number of Indigenous children and young people that are removed from their parents in Australia is unacceptable. These numbers the world can see. It is internationally known. And it shouldnt be. That, together with incarceration rates, is something that has to change, and we cant settle for anything less, he says. But there are things on a world stage that we can be proud of and there are things where we are a long way behind on. This is why we have to be transparent about these things. We can also learn from the Indigenous experience elsewhere in the world, from South America, from Canada  many other places.

As part of his European mission, he was involved in the conclusion of a landmark treaty that established a new form of legal recognition for Indigenous peoples traditional knowledge in the international intellectual property system at the World Intellectual Property Organisation in Geneva, Switzerland. For the first time, applicants will be required to disclose the origin or source of genetic resources and associated traditional knowledge in patent applications. Part of this role is fighting for Indigenous peoples to have the rights to speak about issues that affect them in these kinds of forums, he says. And its now generating a broader conversation in places like UNESCO and OECD and other UN forums. The world is watching ... the spotlights on Australia. For all the right reasons and wrong reasons. Justin Mohamed on the international reaction to the failure of the Voice referendum. We know that Indigenous communities will be affected the most by climate change. So we should be at the table. And we know in Australia that weve also got a lot to contribute. Mohamed says because his role is both a first in Australia and globally, theres no real blueprint.

We cant head off over to another country to get a sense of how they established or what their priorities were or the path they walked, he says. Its exciting, but it comes with a bit of responsibility to ensure the first steps we take are the right ones. Loading The response Ive had globally from many other First Nations groups, but also governments, has been both warm and curious. Ultimately, Mohamed remains an optimist. He knows he wont change the world but hopes his contribution in the role is to bring a sharper focus on Indigenous human rights and also promote Australian success stories to the world. This role isnt going to fix every issue, its not going to achieve everything we want to do, but its about setting up the pathway, to ensure that we have the right people speaking for First Nations people, he says.
Future outlook on AI in SMEs

With AI tools rapidly evolving and becoming more accessible, even smaller businesses are expected to recognise their potential to save costs and time. As the landscape of digital tools expands, the integration of AI in everyday business practices is likely to become more common, helping businesses of all sizes to improve efficiency and innovation.
Its exciting to be here in Perth to acknowledge the achievements of our members and the outstanding outcomes they are delivering for their clients, MFAA CEO Anja Pannek said. Not only did we receive a phenomenal number of submissions this year, but the quality of entries was also impressive. I congratulate all our finalists and, of course, our winners.
The Hubble Space Telescope has finally released its first image weeks after a hardware malfunction temporarily halted its operations.

NASA first unveiled the newly captured image of spiral galaxy NGC 3059, located 57 million light-years away from Earth, last week as the telescope poses to resume full operations.

The magnificent image was captured via the data the Wide Field Camera 3 collected last May while the telescope was suffering from blurry vision due to a misshapen mirror.

Although the astronauts quickly fixed the technical issue, NASA said the breakdown would limit the telescope's performance for several weeks before it returned to normal operations by mid-June.

The damaged gyroscope is one of the remaining two functioning lenses the Hubble Telescope still has since it first received six new gyroscopes during the astronauts' final visit in 2009.

With its primary mission already completed, NASA is set to retire the telescope sometime between 2030 - 2040.

Also Read : Euclid Telescope Images Reveal Detailed Look into Far Galaxies

More Hubble Telescope Images Expected Soon

With the Hubble Telescope soon to return to operations, NASA also expects the telescope to provide more images in the upcoming space events and phenomena this year.

The agency has yet to announce schedules for future image releases, although scientists are expected to provide further findings about black holes and new galaxy structures in the coming months.

NASA Plans to Retire the ISS Soon

The Hubble Space Telescope is not the only US-owned satellite NASA is expected to retire soon as the agency opens the door for private-owned space stations.

The agency has already declared plans to crash the International Space Station in January 2031 into the Pacific Ocean as it fully enters Earth's orbit, over three decades since it first launched.

NASA expects the operations to cost almost $1 billion to safely land the 925,000-pound space station.

The ISS is one of the two currently fully operating space stations in the world, the other is China's Tiangong Space Station which was launched in April 2021.
The Centre is working on a dedicated financial package to turn the financially beleaguered ONGC Petro Additions Ltd (OPaL) profitable in the next two years, officials said.



Aimed at reducing the debt equity ratio of the petrochemicals producer, the package may be announced in the next few months, they said.



ONGC had set FY25 as the deadline for turning around the mega petrochemicals complex in Dahej, Gujarat, which has suffered major losses owing to a lopsided capital structure. The issue is under discussions with the finance ministry, which has to green light a proposed investment by ONGC into OPaL, officials
New Delhi: A child waits to collect water from a municipality tanker, at Chanakyapuri area in New Delhi, Thursday, June, 6, 2024. (Photo: PTI)

In a development in the Supreme Court case regarding Delhis escalating water crisis, Himachal Pradesh on Thursday stated it does not have surplus water to send to the national capital, reported NDTV.

The statement comes a day after its previous claim that it had released water for Delhi, which needed to pass through Haryana. Click here to connect with us on WhatsApp

Delhi residents are struggling with the dual challenges of a heatwave and a water shortage. Earlier, this week, the Supreme Court had instructed Himachal Pradesh to release 137 cusecs of surplus water to Delhi and directed Haryana to facilitate its flow. The court emphasised that the drinking water shortage had become an existential problem in Delhi.

Yesterday, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu told the media that the state had released the water. We have released water. We have asked advocates to inform the Supreme Court about this. The water we have released, we are ready to give that water. There are no ifs and buts, he stated.

However, on June 13, the counsel for Himachal Pradesh informed the top court that the 137 cusecs of water was unutilised after use of irrigation and part of the natural course of river flow. He acknowledged a communication error. We could not convey it properly earlier. Our correct statement may come on record. Maybe we made a mistake earlier, but I have been briefed. I will correct and withdraw the earlier statement that flow was obstructed, reported LiveLaw.

SC directs Delhi govt to Upper Yamuna Board

The Supreme Court has instructed the Delhi government to seek water supply from the Upper Yamuna River Board (UYRB). A vacation bench comprising Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and Prasanna B Varale directed the Delhi government to file its application for water supply on humanitarian grounds with the Board by 5 pm on June 13, if it hasn't already done so.

The court expressed that the issue of water sharing between states that have an existing agreement is both complex and sensitive, and that the court lacks the expertise to determine the appropriate formula for distribution, reported Indian Express.

The UYRB was asked by the court to hold a meeting on June 14 and make a prompt decision on the matter. If necessary, the Board can meet on a day-to-day basis, the court stated.





ALSO READ: Rs 2,000 fine for wasting water in Delhi, Jal Board to deploy 200 teams Additionally, the court took note of the Himachal Pradesh governments correction regarding their previous claim about the availability of 137 cusecs of water, allowing them to retract the statement.

Delhi Jal Board at over 70,000 crore loss: Bansuri Swaraj

Meanwhile, Bansuri Swaraj, the newly elected BJP MP from New Delhi, criticised the Delhi government for its handling of the water crisis, accusing AAP ministers of prioritising press conferences over on-the-ground problem-solving.

The Delhi Jal Board (DJB) once had a Rs 600 crore profit, but under the Kejriwal administration, it has plunged to a Rs 73,000 crore loss in just ten years. The DJBs infrastructure, including pipelines and water storage, is in disarray, Swaraj told news agency ANI.

She further stated, The Supreme Court strongly criticised the AAP for making false statements in court. Haryana is supplying the required water, but AAP is neglecting the deteriorating infrastructure of the DJB. Despite being in power for a decade, they have not addressed the pipeline or infrastructure issues. It seems the AAP may be colluding with the illegal tanker mafia in Delhi. The Supreme Court questioned their actions and noted that AAP had previously approached the Yamuna Jal Board. The court instructed them to present their case to the Yamuna Jal Board by 5 PM today.
(Photo : Unsplash/Unleashed Agency)

Three sources familiar with the situation revealed that Airbus has informed employees at its A220 factory in the Montreal area that it intends to enforce compulsory weekend overtime to address the production backlog of the financially unprofitable aircraft.

Sources speaking on condition of anonymity revealed that representatives from Airbus's Canadian division are scheduled to meet with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) union on Wednesday to discuss the proposed plan.

Mirabel facility's employees are unlikely to react positively to this, given their recent labor negotiations with Airbus, which lasted until early May of this year. With their contract expiring in December 2023, workers rejected two proposals from Airbus. They resorted to pressure tactics to decelerate production before reaching a new five-year contract agreement on May 1st.

Airbus' Delays Caused by Parts and Labor Shortages

Discussions occur amid mounting concerns regarding supply problems at the world's largest aircraft manufacturer. Reuters reported last month that Airbus is grappling with a fresh wave of industrial challenges stemming from shortages in parts and labor and that several dozen aircraft are anticipated to encounter additional delays in the assembly process during the year's second half.

According to industry sources, the single-aisle A220, which typically accommodates approximately 110 to 130 seats, is currently one of the models most significantly impacted by production delays. The extent of the recent delays and their impact on Airbus' overarching delivery goal of 800 planes this year remains uncertain. Analysts suggest that Airbus tends to establish its delivery targets cautiously, but the buffer for coping with additional industrial challenges seems to be diminishing.

READ ALSO: United Airlines Cites Boeing Plane Shortages, Asks Pilots to Take Time Off Without Pay

A220 Aircraft Challenges and Goals

Reuters reported a decline in productivity at the Airbus factory in the Montreal area, one of two A220 aircraft manufacturing sites, which occurred in March when the plant's 1,300 employees engaged in pressure tactics during contract negotiations.

Airbus aims to expand the production of A220 jets to 14 planes per month by 2026, to be distributed between the factory in Mirabel, Quebec, and a plant in Mobile, Alabama. This target represents a significant rise from the six planes per month reported in December 2022, the most recent publicly disclosed rate.

An Airbus spokesperson declined to comment on production planning and internal affairs but reiterated that jet deliveries are expected to be backloaded towards the year's second half and that the operational environment continues to present challenges.

Implications of The Mandatory Overtime for The Union

Christian Bertrand, president of the Machinists' Union local representing the A220 workers, emphasized the importance of adhering to mechanisms outlined within the collective agreement before implementing over time.

Unions have taken advantage of the tight labor markets to advocate for increased flexibility in working conditions. Unionized workers at Boeing, Airbus' US rival, seek to eliminate compulsory weekend overtime as part of their ongoing contract negotiations with the company.

RELATED ARTICLE: Boeing Grilled on Safety Concerns, Faces Another Setback as Whistleblower Speaks Up on Alleged Retaliation

 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
(Photo : Unsplash/Mariia Shalabaieva)

SpaceX and the company's CEO, Elon Musk, faced a lawsuit on Wednesday from former employees who claim wrongful termination for raising concerns about gender discrimination and sexual harassment at the rocket company.

The Dark Side of SpaceX's Workplace: Gender Bias and Harassment

In a lawsuit filed in California state court, eight engineers, four women and four men, who were terminated in 2022 allege that Elon Musk, aiming to lead the way in space travel innovation, operates SpaceX in the dark ages, treating women as objects of sexual desire, evaluating them based on their bra size, fostering a workplace environment filled with lewd sexual banter, and responding to objections about the Animal House atmosphere by suggesting dissenters find employment elsewhere.

The eight former employees who filed the lawsuit were among those who participated in crafting a 2022 open letter that criticized Musk and called on SpaceX executives to foster a more inclusive culture. Signed by at least 400 other employees, the letter urged SpaceX management to clarify that Musk's statements, especially those on Twitter, did not represent the company's views or values and asserted that SpaceX's purported "No A**hole" policy was not effectively implemented.

The former employees claim that engineers frequently used crude and demeaning names for products that often target women and LGBTQ+ individuals, such as Upskirt Camera, which is a term being used to refer to a camera on the first stage of the Falcon rocket, observing the underside of the second stage. Another instance being outlined in the complaint alleges a SpaceX HR director responding to allegations of inappropriate workplace behavior during an internal event by saying he must not be hot enough because he has never been sexually harassed.

The plaintiffs asserted in the lawsuit that these actions had the foreseeable and actual effect of causing offense, distress, and disruption to their emotional well-being in the workplace.

READ ALSO: SpaceX Wrongfully Terminating Eight Workers, Faces Criticism on Labor Laws and Working Conditions

The company has denied any wrongdoing, stating that the 2022 letter was disruptive and that the terminated employees were appropriately dismissed for breaching company policies.

Holding SpaceX Accountable

Paige Holland-Thielen, one of the plaintiffs, emphasized in a statement provided by her lawyers that Wednesday's lawsuit aims to hold SpaceX leadership accountable and drive revisions to workplace policies. She encouraged her colleagues to remain resilient and continue advocating for a better workplace.

The eight engineers' termination is currently at the center of the U.S. National Labor Relations Board case for alleged violations of their rights to advocate for improved working conditions under U.S. labor law.

SpaceX initiated a lawsuit asserting that the labor board's in-house enforcement proceedings violate the U.S. Constitution. Last month, a U.S. appeals court temporarily halted the NLRB case while it reviewed SpaceX's request to prevent it from progressing until the resolution of the company's lawsuit.

The lawsuit filed on Wednesday alleges that SpaceX and Musk engaged in retaliation and wrongful termination, contravening California law, along with sexual harassment and sex discrimination. It also contends that SpaceX fails to address the harassment, hostile work environment, and retaliation as employees perceive them. The plaintiffs are pursuing unspecified monetary damages to cover lost wages, earnings, employee benefits, emotional distress, and an injunction to prevent SpaceX from continuing its alleged unlawful behavior.

RELATED ARTICLE: SpaceX Accused of Forcing Unlawful Severance Agreements Amidst Legal Battle Over Labor Board Constitutionality

 2017 Jobs & Hire All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
European Commission announced on Wednesday it would impose extra duties of up to 38.1 per cent on imported Chinese electric cars from July. (Photo: Shutterstock)

Beijing hopes the European Union will reconsider tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles and stop going further in the "wrong direction" to shield its auto industry from competition, according to state news agency Xinhua.



The reaction from China and others embroiled in the dispute, including European and Chinese car makers, points to clear opposition to the EU decision and an eagerness to de-escalate the situation.



Industry insiders say both Europe and China have reasons for wanting to strike a deal in the months ahead to avoid the addition of billions of dollars in new costs for Chinese electric car makers, as the EU process allows for review.



China said it would take measures to safeguard its interests after the European Commission announced on Wednesday it would impose extra duties of up to 38.1 per cent on imported Chinese electric cars from July.



"In light of their economic structure and sheer size, China and the EU are best served by teaming up on major economic and trade issues," Xinhua said in a commentary.



Brussels seemed to have left some room for the two sides to continue their consultations to find a solution and avoid the worst scenario, the Xinhua commentary added.



"It is hoped the EU will make some serious reconsideration and stop going further in the wrong direction," it said.



Beijing has rejected the EU and US argument that China's EV industry is running at a degree of overcapacity that threatens overseas automakers through subsidized exports. It says tariffs will slow the uptake of electric vehicles, endanger climate-change goals and push costs higher for consumers.



The EU move comes less than a month after Washington revealed plans to quadruple duties for Chinese EVs to 100 per cent.



Brussels said it also would combat Chinese subsidies with additional tariffs ranging from 17.4 per cent for BYD to 38.1 per cent for SAIC, on top of the standard 10 per cent car duty.



That takes the highest overall rate to nearly 50 per cent.



State-owned SAIC, which counts on joint ventures with Volkswagen and General Motors to be China's largest automaker, said on Thursday it was deeply concerned by the tariffs.



SAIC has been China's biggest automaker for nearly two decades but its sales have come under pressure and it has been working to reduce headcount, Reuters has reported.



The EU has made clear that European regulators would view loans from Chinese state-owned banks and government ownership as subsidies subject to additional tariffs.



In a sign China has little intention of dialling back on support, the government of the city of Shenzhen on Thursday announced measures to encourage the integration of new energy vehicles with the electric grid, including subsidies of up to 15 million yuan ($2 million) for each vehicle-to-grid project.



Chinese EV shares mixed



China's auto industry, a mix of state-owned and private firms, has cost advantages over foreign competitors in part because of government subsidies and the nation's dominance of battery-minerals refining, analysts say.



But the hypercompetition in China's EV market, the world's largest, has also driven companies to innovate in ways that have brought down costs.



The EU provisional duties are set to apply by July 4, with the investigation due to continue until Nov. 2, when definitive duties, typically for five years, could be imposed.



Chinese EV maker stocks mostly shrugged off the news, which was expected. The Hong Kong-listed shares of BYD surged more than 7 per cent, on track for their biggest one-day percentage gain since November 2022.



"The EU tariff hike result is slightly positive for BYD vs our previous tariff expectation of 30 per cent, which improves BYDas export growth visibility into 2Q/3Q24," Citi said in a research note.



Geely Auto climbed more than 3 per cent, Leap Motor surged 3 per cent and Great Wall Motor's Hong Kong shares eased 1.2 per cent. In Shanghai, shares of SAIC Motor fell 1.6 per cent.



Joe Mazur, senior analyst at research consultancy Trivium China, said Chinese EV makers would be forced to pass along some of the cost increases to consumers.

"But it's by no means a death blow to the to the Chinese EV industry in Europe," he said.



Chinese automakers have charged more for exports than they have in their home market, offering some protection from the tariffs. BYD, for example, charges more than double sometimes nearly triple the price it gets for three key models in China.



While European automakers are being challenged by an influx of lower-cost EVs from Chinese rivals, there is virtually no support for tariffs from the continent's auto industry.



Some of the biggest opponents include Europe's largest automakers such as BMW, Volkswagen, Stellantis , and Mercedes Benz.



German automakers in particular are heavily dependent on sales in China and fear retribution from Beijing. European auto firms also import their own Chinese-made vehicles.


Ant Group (or the Company) today released its 2023 Sustainability Report, showcasing the Companys significant progress since the introduction of its ESG strategy in 2022 and demonstrating its commitment to transparency and to its sustainable business practices.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240612743798/en/

Technological Innovation (Graphic: Business Wire)

The report highlights noteworthy advancements across key areas, underpinned by four core pillars: Technological Innovation, Digital Inclusion, Green and Low-Carbon Development, and Open Ecosystem.

Looking ahead, we are constantly reflecting on how to stay true to our original aspirations in this era of rapid change, continuously bringing about more small yet beautiful changes to the world, said Eric Jing, Chairman & CEO of Ant Group. Since our journey started from Alipays inception in 2004, technology-driven innovation has always been the fundamental force propelling our growth. It will play an even greater role in shaping our future.

Technological Innovation

To drive innovation for consumers, small and micro-sized enterprises (SMEs) and partners, Ant Group has increased its investment in technology R&D for three consecutive years, reaching a record high of RMB 21.19 billion yuan (~ 2.92 billion USD) in 2023. Ant Groups BaiLing Foundation Model, which was approved to serve the Chinese public in 2023, has been powering AI assistants that make it easier for users to access various life services on the Alipay platform, from smart life assistant, to smart healthcare manager and smart financial manager.

Digital Inclusion

By leveraging digital payment and finance innovation, Ant Group, together with its associate MYbank, have served more than 87 million SMEs as of 2023.

On the Alipay platform, thousands of Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) have developed more than 700 digital solutions for 4.27 million merchants, enabling them to seize more business opportunities through digital operations. In 2023, the annual transaction volume of merchant operated Alipay mini-programs grew by 68% year-on-year.

Green and Low-Carbon Development

By the end of 2023, Ant Group had achieved operation-wide carbon neutrality for three consecutive years, with a 43.19% reduction in absolute Scope 1 & 2 emissions compared to the 2020 baseline year. In accordance with standards such as the "Greenhouse Gas Protocol: Corporate Value Chain (Scope 3) Accounting and Reporting Standards" and the "Global Financial Industry Greenhouse Gas Accounting and Reporting Standards," Ant Group conducted the Companys first comprehensive accounting for Scope 3 carbon emissions in 2023, covering 11 categories related to activities along Ant Group's value chain, which provides a scientific basis for further emission reduction initiatives.

Since its launch in 2016, Alipay Ant Forest has encouraged more than 690 million users to make everyday low-carbon choices. As a result, 475 million trees have been planted by local partners with financial support from the Company.

Open Ecosystem

To better connect travelers with merchants and facilitate cross-border commerce, more than 25 leading e-wallets and banking apps have adopted Alipay+, a suite of cross-border digital payment and digitalization technology solutions. Alipay+ enables their users to pay and travel like locals, bringing international businesses to over 88 million merchants worldwide. In addition, with its one World Account, WorldFirst has served one million SME traders to pay, connect, and manage money globally.

The 10x1000 Tech for Inclusion program has provided exchange and learning opportunities for 6,243 certified learners from over 100 countries and regions, of whom nearly half are women participants.

Ant Group, after establishing 19 sustainability issues with 3-year OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) and plans in 2022, has upgraded its governance and incentive system in line with global best practices. This includes linking senior managements remuneration to the Companys risk management and sustainability performance metrics.

In 2023, Ant Group used relevant Sustainability Accounting Standards Board(SASB) industry standards as a guiding reference for its sustainability reporting for the first time. Ant Group also bolstered its climate-related disclosures with reference to the International Sustainability Standards Board (ISSB) requirements, including detailing how its executives and senior management tackle climate-related decisions as well as the establishment of an early warning platform to monitor extreme weather's impact on business operations.

Note: All figures are as of December 31, 2023 unless otherwise specified. The 2023 Sustainability Report is available in Chinese. The English-language version will be available on Ant Groups official website soon.

About Ant Group

Ant Group aims to build the infrastructure and platforms to support the digital transformation of the service industry. Through continuous innovation, we strive to provide all consumers and small and micro businesses equal access to digital financial and other daily life services that are convenient, sustainable and inclusive.

For more information, please visit our website at www.antgroup.com or follow us on Twitter @AntGroup.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240612743798/en/




Merck Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Merck KGaA Germany conducted the Merck Foundation Ghana Annual Summit and Awards Ceremony 2024 in Accra, Ghana, chaired by The First Lady of Ghana, H.E. Mrs. REBECCA AKUFO-ADDO, Chairman of Merck Foundation Board of Trustees, Prof. Dr. Frank Stangenberg-Haverkamp, and CEO of Merck Foundation, Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej. During the Summit, they met and acknowledged the Merck Foundation Alumni and the Winners of the Merck Foundation Recognition Awards 2023 from Ghana.



Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej, CEO of Merck Foundation and President of More Than a Mother Campaign emphasized, It is a great honor to meet my dear sister, H.E. The First Lady of Republic of Ghana and the Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than a Mother to discuss our long-term partnership, celebrate our great achievements and mark an important milestone of success and impact of our programs, since 2018. I am very happy to share that we have together transformed the patientcare landscape of Ghana by providing 146 scholarships of One-Year Online PG Diploma and Two-Year Master Degree for local doctors in many underserved and critical medical specialties in Ghana such as Fertility, Cancer, Diabetes, Cardiology, Endocrinology, Respiratory, Acute Medicine, Sexual and Reproductive care, Embryology, Respiratory, Critical care, Psychiatry, General Surgery, Dermatology, Emergency and Resuscitation Medicine, Gastroenterology, Neuroimaging for Research, Pain Management, Rheumatology, and Neonatal Medicine and more. This is a huge milestone and revolution in patient care across Ghana.



Moreover, it was amazing to felicitate the 33 winners of Merck Foundation Media, Fashion and Song Awards 2022 and 2023 from Ghana and discuss with them the critical role they can play to create a culture shift, be the voice of the voiceless and be the Merck Foundation health and social champions, added Senator, Dr. Rasha Kelej.



Prof. Dr. Frank Stangenberg Haverkamp, Merck Foundation Board of Trustees emphasized, Our aim is to improve the overall health and wellbeing of people by building healthcare capacity across Africa, Asia and other developing countries. We are strongly committed to transforming patientcare landscape through our scholarships program.



H.E. Mrs. REBECCA AKUFO-ADDO, The First Lady of Republic of Ghana, Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than a Mother expressed, It is a pleasure to welcome and meet Merck Foundation Chairman and CEO to our country. Together we celebrated an important milestone of the great success of our joined programs and also shared the impact of our partnership journey that we have with Merck Foundation to build healthcare capacity, transform patientcare, break infertility stigma and support girl education in our country since 2018.



In a very short time, we have been able to provide 146 scholarships to our young doctors in many specialties which are very critical for us.



Merck Foundation has provided 1810 scholarships to doctors from 52 countries in 42 critical and underserved medical specialties.



Merck Foundation and The First Lady of Ghana are together transforming the cancer care in the country, Dr. Rasha Kelej Added.



Out of the total 146 scholarships provided in Ghana, Merck Foundation has provided 39 scholarships to doctors for Fertility, Embryology, Sexual & Reproductive Medicine and Womens Health. This is a huge number that will advance womens health in the country.



61 scholarships have been provided for Diabetes, Endocrinology, Preventive Cardiovascular, and Obesity & Weight Management, for Ghanaian doctors from different provinces across the country, which is very important to improve access to quality and equitable diabetes and hypertension patient care not only in Accra but nationwide. After completion of the course, these doctors will be able to establish diabetes or hypertension clinics in their Health Centre or Hospital with the aim to help prevent and manage the disease in their own communities. 6 scholarships have been provided to doctors for Oncology.



Moreover, Merck Foundation has also provided 40 scholarships to Ghanian doctors for other critical and underserved specialties like Acute Medicine, Respiratory, Critical care, General Surgery, Dermatology, Psychiatry, Gastroenterology, Pain Management and many more, as part of Merck Foundation Capacity Advancement Program.



During the Summit, Merck Foundation Awards Ceremony was held, during which Merck Foundation Chairman, Merck Foundation CEO together with Ghana First Lady met and acknowledged the 33 Winners of the Merck Foundation Awards.



Moreover, Merck Foundation also conducted their Health Media Training in partnership with The First Lady of Ghana and Ghana Journalists Association for the Ghanian journalists, to emphasize on the important role that media plays to influence society to create a cultural shift with the aim to address wide range of social and health issues such as: Breaking Infertility Stigma, Supporting Girl Education, Women Empowerment, Ending Child Marriage, Ending FGM, and/ or Stopping GBV at all levels; to underscore the importance of Empowering Girls and Women in Education and to understand the Influence of infertility stigma and other social issues like GBV, Child Marriage, FGM etc. on women and couples - Social and Psychological Impact. Apart from this, the media training also included a session on the importance of increasing the awareness of early detection and prevention of Diabetes and Hypertension. The training session was addressed by prominent Medical and Media Experts.



Moreover, Merck Foundation is working closely with Ghana First Lady foundation to inspire girls and sensitize communities about the importance of girl education. As a part of their Educating Linda program, Merck Foundation will sponsor the education of 20 deserving schoolgirls. Together, they also executed the TV program Because I Want To Be with the aim to reduce dropout rate for adolescent girls and make sure they stay on in school till after SHS and to provide employable skills to adolescent girls who cannot go back to school.



I really believe that when the girls are educated, their countries become more powerful, stronger & prosperous, added Senator Kelej.



Moreover, Merck Foundation Chairman, and Merck Foundation CEO together with The First Lady of Ghana signed a few copies of their different childrens storybooks titled: More Than a Mother created for children and youth to emphasize and strengthen family values of love and respect from an early age; Educating Aku, Jacklines Rescue and Ride into the Future to emphasize on the importance of empowering girls through education, Not Who You Are to teach boys to love and respect their future wives and eliminate domestic violence, to emphasize on the importance of empowering girls through education and Sugar Free Jude and Marks Pressure to promote a healthy lifestyle and raise awareness on the early detection and prevention of Diabetes & Hypertension. Thousands of copies of these storybooks are going to be distributed to school students of Ghana.



Winners from Ghana in partnership with The First Lady of Ghana, H.E. Mrs. REBECCA AKUFO-ADDO & Ambassador of Merck Foundation More Than a Mother are:



Merck Foundation "More Than a Mother" Media Recognition Awards 2023

Raissa Sambou, The Spectator, First Position, Print Category

Emelia Naa Ayeley Aryee, Myjoyonline, First Position, Online Category

Mavis Offei Acheampong, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation (GBC), Second Position, Radio Category

Emmanuel Samani, TV3, First Position, Multimedia Category

Stanley Nii Blewu, TV3, Second Position, Multimedia Category



Merck Foundation "Diabetes & Hypertension" Media Awards 2023

Jennifer Ambolley, Chronicle, First Position, Print Category

Godwin Awuni Anafo, Daily Graphic, Second Position, Print Category

Muniratu Akweley Issah, Ghana News Agency, Second Position, Online Category

Cecilia Lagba Yada, Ghanaian Times, Third Position, Online Category

Grace Hammoah Agyemang, TV3, First Position, Multimedia Category



Merck Foundation "More Than a Mother" Media Recognition Awards 2022

Agnes Opoku Sarpong, New Times Corporation, First Position, Print Category

Georgina Appiah, Citinewsroom.com, First Position, Online Category

Raissa Sambou, Ghanaian Times, Third Position, Online Category

Emelia Naa Ayeley Aryee, Freelance Journalist, Third Position, Online Category

Mavis Offei Acheampong, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, First Position, Radio Category

Ohemeng Tawiah, JoyNews TV, First Position, Multimedia Category

Emmanuel Bright Quaicoe & Anita Serwaa Adzoga, Multimedia Group, Third Position, Multimedia Category

Sarah Apenkroh, TV3, Third Position, Multimedia Category



Merck Foundation "Diabetes & Hypertension" Media Awards 2022

Abigail Nana Efua Arthur , Ghanaian Times, First Position, Print Category

Ernest Senanu Dovlo, Metro Television Online, Second Position, Online Category

Vida Essel, GhanaPlus.com, Third Position, Online Category

Muniratu Akweley Issah, Ghana News Agency, Third Position, Online Category

Zadok Kwame Gyesi, Daily Graphic Online, Third Position, Online Category

Sarah Teiki Ofori, Ghana Broadcasting Corporation, First Position, Multimedia Category



Merck Foundation "More Than a Mother" Fashion Awards 2022

Esther Awukubea

David Kwabena Appiah

Ambe Odette Awah (Ody Fachy)



Merck Foundation "Diabetes & Hypertension" Fashion Awards 2022

Eric Adomako

Linda Mensah

Dorcas Baliki

Jude Aryeetey

Bridgette Prah



Merck Foundation "More Than a Mother" Song Awards 2022

Fouad Sarpong (eftii)



During the training session, the Call for applications for their 8 important awards in partnership with The First Lady of Ghana were announced for Media, Musicians, Fashion Designers, Filmmakers, students, and new potential talents in these fields. Details of the awards below:



Details of the Awards:



1. Merck Foundation Africa Media Recognition Awards More Than a Mother 2024: Media representatives and media students are invited to showcase their work to raise awareness about one or more of the following social issues such as: Breaking Infertility Stigma, Supporting Girl Education, Women Empowerment, Ending Child Marriage, Ending FGM, and/ or Stopping GBV at all levels.

Submission deadline: 30th September 2024.



2. Merck Foundation Film Awards More Than a Mother 2024: All African Filmmakers, Students of Film Making Training Institutions, or Young Talents of Africa are invited to create and share a long or short FILMS, either drama, documentary, or docudrama to deliver strong and influential messages to address one or more of the following social issues such as: Breaking Infertility Stigma, Supporting Girl Education, Women Empowerment, Ending Child Marriage, Ending FGM, and/ or Stopping GBV at all levels.

Submission deadline: 30th September 2024.



3. Merck Foundation Fashion Awards More Than a Mother 2024: All African Fashion Students and Designers are invited to create and share designs to deliver strong and influential messages to raise awareness about one or more of the following social issues such as: Breaking Infertility Stigma, Supporting Girl Education, Women Empowerment, Ending Child Marriage, Ending FGM, and/ or Stopping GBV at all levels.

Submission deadline: 30th September 2024.



4. Merck Foundation Song Awards More Than a Mother 2024: All African Singers and Musical Artists are invited to create and share a SONG with the aim to address one or more of the following social issues such as: Breaking Infertility Stigma, Supporting Girl Education, Women Empowerment, Ending Child Marriage, Ending FGM, and/ or Stopping GBV at all levels.

Submission deadline: 30th September 2024.



5. Merck Foundation Media Recognition Awards 2024 Diabetes & Hypertension: Media representatives are invited to showcase their work through strong and influential messages to promote a healthy lifestyle and raise awareness about the prevention and early detection of Diabetes and Hypertension.

Submission deadline: 30th October 2024.



6. Merck Foundation Film Awards 2024 Diabetes & Hypertension: All African Filmmakers, Students of Film Making Training Institutions, or Young Talents of Africa are invited to create and share a long or short FILMS, either drama, documentary, or docudrama to deliver strong and influential messages to promote a healthy lifestyle raise awareness about prevention and early detection of Diabetes and Hypertension.

Submission deadline: 30th October 2024.



7. Merck Foundation Fashion Awards 2024 Diabetes & Hypertension: All African Fashion Students and Designers are invited to create and share designs to deliver strong and influential messages to promote a healthy lifestyle and raise awareness about the prevention and early detection of Diabetes and Hypertension.

Submission deadline: 30th October 2024.



8. Merck Foundation Song Awards 2024 Diabetes & Hypertension: All African Singers and Musical Artists are invited to create and share a SONG with the aim to promote a healthy lifestyle and raise awareness about the prevention and early detection of Diabetes and Hypertension.

Submission deadline: 30th October 2024.
NorthWall Capital (NorthWall), a leading credit investment firm delivering private capital solutions to counterparties in Western Europe, today announces the final close of its flagship NorthWall European Opportunities Fund II and associated vehicles (NWEOF II or the Fund), attracting more than 640m in investor commitments.

The Fund and associated vehicles surpassed the 500m target, receiving strong support from new and existing global institutional investors and more than doubling the size of its predecessor, NorthWall European Opportunities Fund I (NWEOF I).

NorthWalls European Opportunities strategy, established at the firms inception in 2017, invests across the broad opportunity set in European opportunistic private credit by delivering scalable private capital solutions to counterparties in Western Europe. NorthWalls systematic sourcing approach, coupled with a focus on creating bespoke funding solutions, enables the firm to structure opportunities that deliver strong downside protection while targeting uncorrelated returns. The strategy also makes tactical allocations to areas of dislocation and has successfully participated in the dislocation in asset-backed opportunities.

Prior to the final closing, NWEOF II was already substantially deployed, having committed c. 60% of its capital to 14 transactions across five countries in Western Europe.

The Fund attracted capital commitments from a global base of institutional investors, consisting of pension funds, insurance companies, large institutional single and multi-family offices and private banks from across Europe, North America and APAC. The Fund received strong support from a large US-based consultant and an Australian superannuation fund.

The firms principals have been investing in European private credit for nearly 20 years, and the NorthWall team has deployed over 1.0bn in the European Opportunistic Credit strategy to date. In addition to the flagship funds, the firm has extensive expertise in legal assets, asset-backed and senior lending opportunities.

Fabian Chrobog, Founder & Chief Investment Officer of NorthWall Capital, said: We are honoured by the success of the fundraise for NWEOF II and would like to thank our existing and new investors globally for their partnership. We remain committed to delivering scalable investment opportunities that generate attractive risk-adjusted returns for our investors while also serving as a reliable partner to our counterparties. We continue to observe one of the most compelling opportunity sets in European credit in recent history and will continue to thoughtfully scale NorthWall in a way that allows us to lean into areas of dislocation. I also wanted to congratulate and thank the NorthWall team that has been working tirelessly to deliver the best outcomes for our stakeholders.

About NorthWall Capital

NorthWall Capital is a London-based credit investment firm, delivering private capital solutions to counterparties in Western Europe. The firm manages 1.5bn of AUM in long dated funds on behalf of global institutional investors, seeking to capture compelling risk-adjusted returns from Western European credit markets.

For more information, please visit www.northwallcap.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240612730325/en/
RegenLab, a pioneering biotechnology company specializing in the research, development, and manufacturing of patented cell and tissue engineering medical devices, has been honored with the Innovation Champion Award by the European Investment Bank (EIB) at the European Convention Center in Luxembourg.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240611846846/en/

RegenLab France receives prestigious EU-EIB Innovation Champion Award. Antoine Turzi, CEO and Founder of RegenLab, pictured between two officials of the European Investment Bank. (Photo: Business Wire)

This prestigious award recognizes RegenLab Frances commitment to reshoring by establishing a state-of-the-art biotechnology factory in Paris-Saclay and its innovation, the REGENMATRIX PRP-HA. This next-generation product combines Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) with cross-linked Hyaluronic Acid (HA) in a single tube, designed specifically to address the needs of patients with advanced grade III-IV knee osteoarthritis. Currently, a clinical study is underway in 16 university hospitals across France to demonstrate the effectiveness and safety of this groundbreaking treatment.

We are honored and delighted to receive this award from the European Investment Bank, said Mr. Antoine Turzi, Founder & CEO of RegenLab France. This recognition celebrates the successful completion of our French factory and our ongoing R&D efforts. Our goal is to innovate in cell therapies and enhance the well-being of patients, while supporting industry reshoring in France.

RegenLabs achievement not only highlights its dedication to advancing medical science but also underscores the pivotal role of the EIB in promoting innovation, its sustainable growth across Europe and its competitiveness worldwide.

About RegenLab

Based in Paris Saclay, RegenLab France is a company specialized in the R&D and manufacturing of tissue engineering medical devices supported by 100 patents. The Companys solutions are commercialized in more than 90 countries. The core technology of the Company is manufacturing of medical devices for autologous platelet-rich plasma (PRP) & Tissue Engineering, consisting in reinjecting the patients own cells and platelets into tissue lesions in order to stimulate tissue healing. The RegenKit, CellularMatrix brands, have been CE marked EU-MDR 2017/745 and approved by US-FDA, CFDA & worldwide regulatory agencies; they are routinely used for the treatment of a wide variety of indications including joint osteoarthritis, tendinopathies, woman health and dermo-aesthetics. The Companys medical devices are also manufactured in the factory of Le Mont-sur-Lausanne (Switzerland) & New York (USA).

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240611846846/en/
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MPA responds to government proposals for a UK CBAM

Peter Bell By 13 June 2024

Government proposals for a UK carbon border adjustment mechanism (CBAM) have been welcomed by the UK cement industry, but the Mineral Products Association (MPA) and UK Concrete say it has to happen by 2026.

A CBAM in the UK is also important to reduce the risk of high-emission cement undercutting domestic production and flooding the UK market. Cement imports already account for 30 per cent of the UK market (3.6Mt) and, according to analysis from the MPA and UK Concrete, have accelerated in recent years from Turkey and north Africa.

The MPA has requested:

 UK CBAM to be introduced in 2026 rather than 2027 as currently proposed to match the start of the EU CBAM, and prevent the diversion of imports in 2026 from the EU to the UK to avoid EU charges

 importers of cement to fully measure and report embodied emissions as domestic producers do

 clarity on the calculation of CBAM rates to ensure these do not result in under- or over-payment of CBAM liability for different products

 greater transparency in UK trade data to enable cross checks of any default values introduced. Currently almost all (95 per cent) of cement imports are listed as being from a confidential country

 strict enforcement procedures and high penalties for non-compliance to deter circumvention of the law.

The MPA says that UK cement producers have shown substantial commitments to transitioning to net zero to meet the UKs 2050 ambition. The rise in cement imports comes at a time when the UK cement and concrete industry has already cut carbon emissions by 53 per cent since 1990, claims Politics Home.

Dr Diana Casey, MPA executive director for energy and climate change, said: A well-designed CBAM is vital to maintain the level playing field and ensuring competitiveness of domestic cement production while it continues its transition to net zero. A failure to align with EU CBAM 2026 timing will potentially expose the UK industry to a surge in imports.

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Canada and UNIDO join forces to decarbonise Thailand cement sector

Suzanne Starbuck By 13 June 2024

The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) is joining forces with the Canadian government to help decarbonise Thailands cement and concrete sector. A combination of technical assistance and investment support will be given to Thailand to help develop decarbonisation-centric policies, a regulatory framework, and a country-driven national and industrial net-zero roadmap.

In addition, the project will support effective monitoring, as well as review and verification systems for the cement and concrete sectors, and provide guidance on the development of green public procurement targets and standards for low-carbon cement and concrete.

The collaboration includes funding of CAD8m (US$5.8m) from the Canadian government to support projects and research both in Thailand and other south Asian countries to help accelerate decarbonisation of the cement sector. According to UNIDO, over the next three years, grant support will be given for pilot demonstrations to deploy and commercialise low-carbon technological solutions in the cement and concrete sectors, with a focus on local, home-grown solutions that have a strong greenhouse gas emissions reduction potential.

The project will also support capacity building and pilots that can be co-financed or scaled up through private finance, along with training to develop expertise and industrial skills, which can then be shared with other countries such as Indonesia, Philippines and Vietnam.

Commenting on the collaboration, Gerd Muller, director general of UNIDO, said, UNIDO is committed to supporting developing countries in sustainable economic and industrial development. In working towards this goal, we greatly appreciate and welcome the support from the Government of Canada to help decarbonize industries in Thailand. This unique cooperation between UNIDO, the Government of Canada and the Government of Thailand will contribute to much needed climate change mitigation and to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.

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Chattanooga Police Department's Homicide Unit arrested 20-year-old Jamarie Jones and 32-year-old Darrisha Danforth in relation to the murder of two brothers that occurred in the 1100 block of Arlington Avenue on May 1.





During the course of the homicide investigation, the Homicide Unit obtained surveillance footage and statements that linked Jamarie Jones and Darrisha Danforth to the homicide. The detectives determined that Jones pulled a mask over his face just before he walked with the victims into the breezeway of the apartments.Jones was then observed shooting in the direction of the victims. After the shooting, Jones left the area in a vehicle driven by Darrisha Danforth.

Police said De'Aaron Triplett, 21, and De'Jyron Triplett, 19, were found with multiple gunshot wounds. They were dead at the scene.

The brothers were from Macon, Miss., but were living in Chattanooga at the time. DeJyron Triplett graduated from New Hope High School in 2023. De'Aaaron Triplett was a graduate of Noxubee High School.





Detective Jason Gunn obtained arrest warrants charging Jones with first-degree murder and weapon violations; and arrest warrants charging Danforth with accessory after the fact.

Police said Jones was a felon who was not suppose to be carrying a weapon.

Police said Ms. Danforth initially said that Jones was in her apartment at the time of the shooting. Police said after the shooting Jones ran to Ms. Danforth's blue Hyundai Sonata.





Earlier Tuesday, CPD's Fugitive Unit in conjunction with the United States Marshals Service developed information on the location of both suspects. They located and arrested Jones and Ms. Danforth on their outstanding warrants. Jones and Ms. Danforth were transported to the Hamilton County Jail and Detention Center.
At Georgia Northwestern Technical Colleges (GNTC) recent Open House for its Associate of Science in Nursing (ASN) program, prospective students toured the facilities, met instructors and learned about program entry requirements, course scheduling and admissions testing.

The ASN program is housed at GNTCs Walker County Campus in Rock Spring and includes academic and occupational courses, along with a variety of clinical experiences to integrate theory and practice under the clinical instructors guidance.



Nurses are part of an interdisciplinary team that works together, always keeping our patients and their families at the center. We make a difference, said Michelle Spears-Sevy, program administrator for Registered Nursing at GNTC.



When their neighbors are at their most vulnerable, nurses provide care, assistance and education to help them maintain their health status, prevent illness and return to health after they become ill or injured, Spears-Sevy said. Sometimes the nurses role is to help a patient find peace and comfort when there is no cure for their illness or condition.



Students utilize laboratory equipment including Gaumard patient simulators, or manikins, that can replicate various human patient physiology such as respiration, heart beat and pulse. This hands-on equipment prepares students for their clinical experiences when they will work with human patients.



Upon completion of the program, graduates receive an associate degree in Nursing and are eligible to sit for the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX)-RN exam to become a Registered Nurse (RN). Registered Nurse is one the states high demand career fields, and officials say the shortage is hitting rural areas the hardest.



High demand career fields represent the occupations in each of Georgias key industries that are in-demand, pay an above average entry-level wage and are considered strong options for pursuing a successful career in Georgia, said Dr. Heidi Popham, GNTC president. These occupations are critical to these industries success and Georgias economic health.



The American Hospital Association estimates that approximately 100,000 RNs left the workforce between 2021-23, with more than 500,000 more intending to leave by 2027; Beckers Hospital Review asserts that the financial cost to hospitals for RN staff turnover ranges from $45,100 to $67,500 per nurse annually, Spears-Sevy said.



Nurses are needed in assisted living facilities, behavioral health facilities, doctors offices, home health providers, hospices, hospitals, schools and skilled nursing facilities, as well as in private duty nursing and travel nursing.



Within GNTCs nine-county service area and up into Chattanooga, RNs salaries can vary widely, Spears-Sevy said. Our graduates have been offered as much as $30-$45 per hour, depending on factors such as where they work, whether they work day or night shift, whether they work weekends or weekdays, etc. In general, the minimum offered has been $30 per hour.



Many area hospitals also now offer nurse residency programs for new graduates so that they can begin learning the hospital system and protocols while waiting to take their licensure exam, Spears-Sevy said. Then the nurses transition to nursing units to continue training and mentorship, often for up to a year.



The nursing residency program is very different from the sink or swim mentality that many nurses graduated into in the past, Spears-Sevy said. At least two GNTC ASN graduates since 2017 have already gone on to become directors of Nursing in their respective long-term care and rehabilitation facilities.



The program takes a minimum of four semesters to complete after being admitted into Nursing occupational courses. Students may enter the program at the beginning of the fall semester for the occupational curriculum or the beginning of any semester for the pre-occupational curriculum.



Students interested in pursuing the ASN program are required to attend one mandatory group advisement session to be considered for program admission. Session pre-registration is not required to attend. All sessions are located on the Walker County Campus in Room 6101 and start at 10 a.m. on Saturday, July 13, and 2 p.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 6.

Selection for admission to the ASN program is based on a point system, which includes consideration of course grades, state of residency, number of core courses that have been completed at GNTC and pre-entrance examination scores. The deadline to have all of these requirements completed to enter into the next available fall cohort is June 15.

To be eligible to enter the Nursing pre-occupational curriculum, applicants must be at least 17 years of age, have a high school diploma or GED diploma and achieve minimum scores in reading, writing and numeric skills on the entrance test. Applicants failing to attain minimum scores may receive refresher/remedial instruction through the Learning Support program at GNTC in order to meet admission requirements. Previous training and/or education may be evaluated to provide advanced placement in the program.
Incumbent District 28 Representative Yusuf Hakeem will host a blood drive on Tuesday, June 19 to celebrate Juneteenth and World Sickle Cell Day.The drive will be held at Carver Community Center, 600 N. Orchard Knob Ave. from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Blood donors will receive free Chic-fil-A while it lasts.As a regular donor who recently was recognized for donating ten gallons of blood over his lifetime, Rep. Hakeem will partner with Blood Assurance and the Nicholas Foundation to encourage black and brown Chattanoogans to donate blood."World Sickle Cell Day is always held on June 19 to highlight the critical shortage of blood donations from the black community, which could have a significant impact on the health communitys ability to treat Sickle Cell Disease," officials said.Rep.Hakeem will kick off the blood drive with a news conference at 10:30 a.m. to share his legislative accomplishments from the 113th General Assembly, including a new law requiring defibrillators in every high school in Tennessee.
Morning Pointe Senior Living campuses across the Southeast are celebrating National Certified Nursing Assistants Week, June 13-19.



Also known as CNAs, nursing assistants provide clinical assistance, helping assisted living and memory care residents with activities of daily living (ADLs) such as bathing, dressing, eating and more. They also bring emotional support for residents and their families. These professionals help monitor health conditions, provide essential basic care and serve as an additional communication bridge to keep families updated.



During Certified Nursing Assistants Week, Morning Pointe Senior Living is saying a special thank you to each CNA across its 38 communities in Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama and Indiana.



"Certified nursing assistants are the backbone of our care teams, said Greg A.

Vital, Morning Pointe Senior Living co-founder and president. Their dedication, compassion and hard work make a profound difference in the lives of our residents every day. We are immensely grateful for their unwavering commitment to providing exceptional care and support."I love being here because theres different residents with different backgrounds, and you get to know everybody, said Tiffany Murphy, a CNA at Morning Pointe Senior Living. I love what I do.Contact your local Morning Pointe community to see how it is recognizing National Certified Nursing Assistants Week. Some communities are having themed dress-up days, while others are providing special treats for their CNAs and more. Area communities are located in Chattanooga, East Hamilton, Hixson, Collegedale and Walker County, Ga.
Dalton State President John Fuchko (left) presented Bob Shaw (center) and Dottie Shaw each with an honorary doctor of business administration degree during the colleges spring 2024 commencement exercises on May 14. Bob Shaw spoke to members of Dalton States spring 2024 graduating class after receiving an honorary doctor of business administration during the colleges commencement exercises on May 14. Dottie Shaw spoke to members of Dalton States spring 2024 graduating class after receiving an honorary doctor of business administration during the colleges commencement exercises on May 14. Previous Next

Dalton State College, on behalf of the University System of Georgia Board of Regents, awarded honorary doctor of business administration degrees to Robert E. Bob Shaw and Dorothy Dottie S. Boring Shaw during the colleges spring 2024 commencement exercises on May 14.The Shaws enduring friendship to Dalton State College and our students across six decades have enriched the institution beyond measure, Dalton State President John Fuchko said. Their gifts have supported scholarships, facilities, engineering technology equipment and more, ensuring that Dalton State is able to offer educational experiences and opportunities that equip our students with the knowledge and skills to be successful.Mr.Shaw has been a key Dalton State supporter since the college opened in 1967.Anytime I see someone with a gown and cap on, youve earned it, and Im proud of you, Mr. Shaw said to the group of soon-to-be graduates after receiving his honorary doctorate.He was co-founder and chief executive officer of Shaw Industries Inc. for 48 years and retired in 2006. A few years later, he established Engineered Floors LLC. Today, Engineered Floors operates more than 10 major facilities and employs nearly 5,000 associates.Shaw Industries made its first gift to the college in 1972. The company was an early and prominent supporter of the colleges first bachelors degrees in the late 1990s, and it has given generously over several decades for a wide array of projects across campus.Mr. Shaw described to graduates the community changes and economic growth he has witnessed since his family moved to Dalton on the eve of the attacks on Pearl Harbor in December 1941, when Dalton had only 10,400 residents.We went from being the bed spread center of the world to the rug center of the world. Today, were the carpet center of the world, and were making one more step forward with the floor covering center of the world. We do this with pride, and we do this with a lot of admiration for the people here in Dalton, Mr. Shaw said. We have our college, we have our churches and we have our schools; without these we would have just one more town with upwards of 55,000 people.Mrs. Shaw taught accounting at Dalton Junior College from 1970 to 1981. Her commitment to higher education was manifested in her own career, as well as her support for Dalton Junior College's transition from a two-year institution to a four-year college during the 1990s and her service to the Dalton State Foundation.I have loved watching the college evolve from Dalton Junior College to this dynamic and still growing Dalton State College, Mrs. Shaw said.She and her late husband, Kenneth E. Boring, endowed a scholarship in 2000 to support Dalton States growth and encourage students seeking careers in the health professions. She has continued to support that endowed scholarship fund, and in 2020 she helped endow and equip the colleges new engineering technology lab.I have chosen to remain connected here over the years as a donor, a participant of college campus events and a community supporter of one of the most important assets in Northwest Georgia, Mrs. Shaw said. We are all part of the Dalton State College family. I am proud of this recognition by a place that has been and continues to be such a big part of my life.
In the United States, the presence of a father in a child's life is a critical systemic issue. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, in 2023, 17.8 million children, nearly 1 in 4, will live without a biological, step, or adoptive father in the home. Research shows that a father's absence negatively impacts children, while a father's presence positively influences both children and mothers.

In this era of fatherlessness, we confront the harsh reality of its aftermath. We witness individuals who are discarded, shattered, left to fend for themselves, and meandering aimlessly, like souls adrift in a vast sea. The absence of fathers' involvement has been proven to contribute to detrimental emotional, social, academic, and behavioral outcomes for children. Research has shown that the most accurate indicator of criminal behavior is not poverty or race but rather the absence of a father figure during childhood.

Yet, we also witness the incredible transformation that father involvement can bring. We see individuals who, with the unwavering support of their fathers, are empowered, resilient, and self-assured in facing life's trials. The impact of fathers and father figures is profound.

Fathers play a critical role in child development. When both parents are involved, infants form attachments to both. Father involvement positively affects infant health and leads to better outcomes for children. Children with involved fathers are more likely to succeed academically and less likely to engage in risky behaviors. Father engagement reduces behavioral problems in boys and rates of depression in young women.

Children with active, involved fathers enjoy tremendous advantages during childhood and adolescence. Fathers must be active and emotionally engaged with their children. Positive father involvement yields numerous benefits, while a father's absence can be profoundly detrimental. The lasting impact of a father on a child's life is undeniable.

Former President George W. Bush addressed the issue in office: "Over the past four decades, fatherlessness has emerged as one of our greatest social problems. We know that children who grow up with absent fathers can suffer lasting damage. They are more likely to end up in poverty, drop out of school, become addicted to drugs, have a child out of wedlock, or end up in prison. Fatherlessness is not the only cause of these things but our nation must recognize that it is an important factor." The issue has likely grown worse.

Researchers have found these narratives accurate, as Psychology Today reported. The impact of a father's absence on children is nothing short of disastrous across various dimensions. The absence of fathers in children's lives can lead to multiple adverse outcomes, including diminished self-concept, behavioral problems, truancy, poor academic performance, delinquency, promiscuity, drug and alcohol abuse, homelessness, exploitation and abuse, physical and mental health issues, limited life chances, challenges in future relationships, and increased mortality rates.

Our public policies frequently fail to recognize the vital role of parents in children's lives and the significance of parental involvement in their well-being. Children need access to both parents, and parents require support from social institutions to fulfill their responsibilities towards their children. Children need fathers and mothers to love, support, and understand them.

Fathers should be knowledgeable, active, and emotionally engaged with their children. They should remember to always speak positively about the mother in front of their children, define their role as a father, establish regular one-on-one time with each child, and share stories from their own lives to strengthen their bond with their children. Make sure to actively participate in your child's social, educational, and spiritual activities.

Becoming a father is a significant milestone, and regardless of biological ties, being a father entails a lifelong commitment. It's essential for fathers to actively participate in their children's lives, whether they live with them or not. Let's encourage fathers to recognize their importance in their children's lives and the meaningful influence they possess. A father plays a crucial role in a child's future success in education, career, and relationships. This Fathers Day let's urge all men who are fathers, stepfathers, adoptive fathers, or father figures to remain involved in their children's lives.

JC Bowman

Executive Director of Professional Educators of Tennessee
The Tennessee Department of Education on Thursday released statewide average 3rd grade and 4th grade results for the ELA portion of the spring 2024 Tennessee Comprehensive Academic Program assessment. Third grade student scores remained steady as 4th grade student scores showed significant improvement, thanks to the nation-leading, comprehensive statewide literacy strategy for Tennessee public schools, said officials. "Tennessee's strategic education investments have resulted in significant gains in reading for students across the state," said Governor Bill Lee. "As we continue our work to ensure that all Tennessee students can read at grade level, we remain committed to supporting teachers and empowering families with multiple pathways to achievement so every student can thrive in their academic journey." On the ELA portion of the spring 2024 TCAP, 3rd grade improvement remained steady with a slight increase to 40.9 percent proficient. Overall, 4th grade students achieved a 2.9 percentage point increase in their proficiency rate to 46.4 percent proficient, demonstrating the year-over-year gains for this cohort of students who reached an historic achievement level last year. Additionally, the fewest number of 4th grade students scored in the below expectations proficiency performance level than ever before, meaning more 4th grade students are meeting or are within reach of meeting expectations. "Due to the hard work of students, teachers, districts, and families, the investments and initiatives to improve literacy rates in Tennessee have resulted in year-after-year gains, thanks to the dedication of Governor Lee and the Tennessee General Assembly, said Lizzette Reynolds, commissioner of Education. With the partnership of our districts and schools, we will continue the course to ensure all students are provided with opportunities and resources to be successful readers and learners.

Statewide Averages of 3rd Grade ELA Performance, 2017-2024
A new study by an international team of researchers, published in Nature climate change, has revealed significant progress in the drive to reduce atmospheric levels of chemicals that destroy the Earths protective ozone layer, confirming the success of historic regulations limiting their production and use. Empa scientists contributed to this study with measurements from the high-alpine research station at Jungfraujoch.

The study, led by researchers at the University of Bristol, show for the first time a notable decline in the atmospheric levels of potent ozone-depleting substances (ODS), called hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs). These HCFCs are also harmful greenhouse gases (GHGs), so their reduction should also lessen global warming.

The Montreal Protocol was agreed to internationally in 1987 to introduce controls on the production and use of ODS, which were once widely used in the manufacturing of hundreds of products, including refrigerators, aerosol sprays, foams and packaging. HCFCs were developed as replacements for chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). While production of CFCs has been banned globally since 2010, HCFC production and use is currently still being phased out globally, with a completion date slated for 2040. They will be replaced by non-ozone-depleting hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and other compounds.

The results are very encouraging. They underscore the great importance of establishing and sticking to international protocols", says lead author Luke Western from the University of Bristols School of Chemistry. Without the Montreal Protocol, this success would not have been possible. So its a resounding endorsement of multilateral commitments to combat stratospheric ozone depletion, with additional benefits in tackling human-induced climate change.

Decline faster than anticipated The international study shows the total amount of ozone-depleting chlorine contained in all HCFCs combined peaked in 2021. Because these compounds are also potent GHGs, their contribution to climate change also peaked in that year. This maximum occurred five years earlier than predicted in the last ozone assessment report published in 2022. Although the drop between 2021 and 2023 was less than 1%, it still shows HCFC emissions are heading in the right direction. For Empa scientist and co-author Stefan Reimann, the study represents a "milestone in the history of measures to contain the ozone hole, in which we were able to show for the first time that even the replacement products for the even more ozone-depleting CFCs are now decreasing  and this even five years earlier than expected." According to the Empa researcher, this was only possible thanks to the continuous tightening of international protocols and their verification with the help of atmospheric measurements, for instance on Jungfraujoch.

The results rely on high-precision measurements at globally distributed atmospheric observatories, using data from the Advanced Global Atmospheric Gases Experiment (AGAGE) and the National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration (NOAA) in the US, including the high-alpine research station on Jungfraujoch, where Empa scientists carried out their atmospheric measurements. "We use highly sensitive measurement techniques and thorough protocols to ensure the reliability of these observations," said co-author Martin Vollmer, an atmospheric scientist at Empa.
U.S. youths' visit to Chongqing Stilwell Museum refreshes historic friendship

Xinhua) 10:04, June 13, 2024

CHONGQING, June 12 (Xinhua) -- A group of American youths commended the Chongqing Stilwell Museum for its important role in fostering close people-to-people and cultural relations between the United States and China during their recent trip to southwest China's Chongqing Municipality.

The group of 23, including college students, entrepreneurs and engineers, are members of the "Bridge of the Future" China-U.S. Youth Exchange Program Flagship Event. Their five-day visit to the city started on June 7.

Chongqing Stilwell Museum is named after Joseph Stilwell, a former U.S. general who helped the Chinese people in the fight against Japanese aggression during World War II.

Located in Stilwell's former residence in Chongqing, the museum houses abundant exhibits that serve as a reminder of the history and friendship between Chinese and American people during the war. It's the only museum in China named after a foreign military figure.

"It's awesome to see all the pictures, like the soldiers training, and it's also very cool to see actual things from back then like the buttons, the suits, and even the gallon tank for the Hump planes," said Peter Cruse, a student from Northern Arizona University.

Over the years, many American visitors have come to the museum and created cherished memories. Stilwell's great-granddaughters, Susan Cole and Nancy Millward, visited the museum in August 2023 as part of efforts to commemorate the 140th anniversary of Stilwell's birth, and they planted an osmanthus tree symbolizing friendship and peace at the museum.

In November 2023, a 36-member delegation including Harry Moyer and Melvin McMullen, two veterans of the U.S. 14th Air Force, also known as the "Flying Tigers," visited the museum. The members also left their signatures at the museum's exhibition hall.

"The museum provided opportunities and platforms for people from both countries to know each other," said Jason Yang, a student from the University of California, Berkeley, after seeing the tree and the signatures.

During the visit by the group of youths to the museum this past Sunday, a symposium attended by its members and students from China was also held to further promote people-to-people exchange.

"It's meaningful to bring young people from both countries together at such a historic museum. The museum connects the past, the present, and the future and serves as a platform for fostering friendship between Chinese and American young talents," said Zhu Ying, a professor from Southwest University of Political Science and Law, at the symposium.

"I will tell my friends in America about China. I think our relationship is formed through trust, communication, and transparency and there could be a very good connection in the future," said Maggie Melendez, a student from Northern Arizona University.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
We are now half way through the founding conference of the Revolutionary Communist International (RCI). And at this point we can say with confidence that we are building on a foundation of solid granite: the revolutionary ideas of Marxism; and the Bolshevik attitude of dedication shared by all our comrades! At the end of the third day, comrades across the International demonstrated their determination to build this historically necessary instrument of world revolution with an astonishing collection that raised 474,000, smashing our target. With half of the conference to go, you can still sign up to participate in the rest!

In three days, weve already had 11 talks, covering philosophy, our historical tradition, and economic analysis, with much more to come! The discussions have been lively and far-reaching, showcasing the very high political level of our cadres: a conquest of many years of commitment to education.

Global enthusiasm

Around the world, this conference has been met with a wave of enthusiasm. Social media has been abuzz with images and videos of comrades following the discussions in North America, the Middle East, Europe, Pakistan and beyond.

In addition to the 500 delegates and visitors physically present, over 7,000 people are attending the conference online. Watch parties have been organised in many countries, deepening the profound sense of international unity that this event has fostered. Here are a few highlights:

Sweden

USA

Canada

Pakistan

Many more countries have watch parties planned for later this week, including Britain  where groups of comrades will meet in over 18 towns and cities  as well as Austria.

Please keep sharing your pictures and videos of yourselves watching the stream, either individually or in groups, with the hashtags #CommunistsAreComing and #RCI24.

Why not join one where you are by checking out the national sections page of our website, and if there isnt a section or group where you are: why not take the initiative? We invite you to get together with friends and comrades, host a watch party, and post the images online! This could be the basis for a new communist branch or cell.

The algebra of revolution

All agree that, aside from the first session on our Manifesto, the highlight of the event so far was Alan Woods talk on dialectics: the algebra of revolution.

The pessimistic, eclectic rubbish passed off as philosophy in universities today  especially the pernicious trend of postmodernism  deliberately seeks to confuse and demoralise young minds, rather than explain the world. This is no accident.

The crisis of capitalist society is also a crisis of culture: of art, human relations, and of thought. The representatives of official bourgeois philosophy have fallen far from the heights of the towering geniuses like Hegel, Spinoza or Leibniz. As Alan noted, the sole purpose of todays bourgeois philosophers is to trap our minds in an arid wasteland, where nothing fertile can grow.

In contrast, dialectics, as the Russian revolutionary democrat Alexander Herzen explained, is the algebra of revolution. It is a framework for understanding the world as it really is. Rather than taking a collection of dead facts, it draws out the laws of motion of nature, society and human thought. As Alan explained:

We wish to change the world. And a task as complex as that requires serious study. In order to change the world, you first have to understand it.

Marxs great accomplishment was to combine to place the revolutionary dialectic of Hegel on a materialist footing. As Alan explained, Marxs writings are full of facts and figures. However, the dialectical materialist method does not consist of picking out an isolated figure or fact to justify an argument: it is the search for rational insight.

The method of Marxism, scientific socialism, seeks to accumulate all the relevant facts about the material world, not for their own sake, but to uncover the underlying laws and processes behind them.

Once we understand how to look beneath the surface of the world around us, we realise quickly that the apparent stability of capitalist society is an illusion. In every country in the world, a seething anger is bubbling under the surface.

Just as the subterranean movements of the tectonic plates lay the basis for sudden earthquakes or volcanic explosions, sooner or later the masses internationally will burst onto the scene in one country after another. Without dialectics, these developments would take us by surprise. But by mastering this method, we can anticipate and intervene.

The bourgeois cynics scoff that revolution is impossible  look at the facts! This worship of the accomplished fact, as Lenin put it, means they only see things as they are, or as they appear to be, and not as they will become.

The task of communists is to make a serious study of dialectics, not only to lay the basis for all of our practical work, but to raise our sights to the stars, as Alan put it. We are seeking not only to win this or that reform, but to win a higher form of existence. The RCI alone has taken a serious approach to this fundamental task.

The session concluded with an exciting announcement by Alan that he is working on a new book on philosophy, to draw out and explain thoroughly, but in the simplest terms that the subject will allow, the philosophy of dialectical materialism. This is a follow-up to his excellent History of Philosophy (available here). Undoubtedly this text will be an invaluable weapon in the arsenal of Marxists everywhere.

Catch up

The following fantastic sessions are all worth catching up on:

The necessity of a revolutionary philosophy

The Russian Revolution: The greatest event in human history

How the Bolshevik Party was built

What is capitalism?

Did communism really fail?

Lenin and Trotsky: What they really stood for

How the Communist International was built

What is imperialism?

Revolutionary determination

The third day of the conference culminated in a breathtaking collection, where we raised 474,000 to fund the forces of communism internationally. There was a palpable energy in the room, as cheers and applause spontaneously broke out in admiration of the comrades willingness to sacrifice.

Staggering donations were received from the developed capitalist countries such as Switzerland, Britain and Austria. Movingly, there were also significant donations from comrades living in North Africa and the Middle East, as well as El Salvador, Sri Lanka and Puerto Rico, where workers experience extremes of exploitation and are where the depth of the global capitalist crisis is felt most acutely.

The monumental contributions of all comrades to the founding of the RCI show our political resolve and personal determination to build the world party of socialist revolution.

Unlike the bourgeois parties, the RCI is not at the beck and call of the billionaires. Our financial independence guarantees our political independence.

The RCI is funded entirely by the generous donations of our comrades and supporters. Thanks to this, the RCI will be launched with an expanded team of dedicated, full-time revolutionaries, able to produce even more vital analysis and theory, here on marxist.com, in the In Defence of Marxism magazine, and through our publishing house Wellred Books; and to help guide and develop the forces of revolutionary communism around the world.

The unprecedented growth of our organisation (which we will detail in a future update), and the even faster growing influence and audience our ideas are reaching, means our work has become far more complex. We urgently need to increase our full-time staff to take advantage of these opportunities.

There is no more worthy cause in the world to give money to! If you would like to donate to help us in the fight for communism, you can do so here.

The founding conference of the RCI has already been an immense success  and there are still three days to go!

If you want to get the most out of the event, register here to watch the talks live. We start up again tomorrow at 9am Italian time.

And if you havent already, we appeal to you: join us and help us build the Revolutionary Communist International!
From Texas to Nebraska, clouds of dust driven by high winds swept through the region during a drought in the 1930s. This area of the United States was referred to as the Great Plains.

The period of severe dust storms was given the name of the Dust Bowl. Many people, livestock, and crops died during the drought. The Dust Bowl also worsened the economic impacts of the Great Depression.

The Dust Bowl began in 1930 and lasted for a decade. A severe drought struck parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, and New Mexico.

In the years before the Dust Bowl, farmers had been over-plowing land to increase crop production, removing the grasses that helped hold the soil in place.

Furthermore, farmers were desperate to make ends meet during the Great Depression, which exacerbated the poor soil conditions.

In 1931, strong winds blew the loosened topsoil around, creating massive dust storms. The dust was so thick that it reduced visibility to zero, buried buildings, and made it hard for people and animals to breathe.

Crops failed, and animals died due to respiratory problems and the lack of food. By 1934, around 35 million acres of land was deemed useless for farming.

As a result, thousands of farming families migrated west in search of work and a better life. They were known as Okies, regardless of whether they came from Oklahoma or not. Okies faced discrimination and harsh working conditions in their new homes.

President Franklin D. Roosevelts response to the crisis was pivotal. He established a number of New Deal programs aimed at helping displaced farmers and preventing future occurrences.

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In England, a team of researchers digging among mass burial sites has come across the DNA of the bacteria that caused the Bubonic plague in some human remains dating back to the Bronze Age. It is the earliest known evidence of the disease in Great Britain.

It turns out that 4,000 years before the Black Death that devastated medieval Europe in the 14th century, the plague was already making its rounds in Britain.

Previously, the oldest strain was from 1,500 years ago and was discovered in 2018 at Edix Hill, a burial site in Cambridgeshire.

The bacteria that caused the plague is called Yersinia pestis, and it was found at two different burial sites. One bacteria sample was taken from southwest England in the county of Somerset.

The other was from the northwestern county of Cumbria. According to the studys lead author, Pooja Swali, the distance between the sites indicated that the disease was widespread during that time.

To locate the ancient bacteria, scientists analyzed the remains of 34 bodies across the two sites. They drilled into the skeletons teeth to remove the dental pulp.

Since teeth are very resistant to decay, the dental pulp can preserve DNA remnants of infectious diseases.

Ultimately, experts determined that the plague made a significant appearance in Britain twice throughout the ages.

It first emerged 4,000 years ago and again 1,500 years ago. However, the strain of Yersinia pestis extracted from the burial sites did not carry the gene that allowed it to be transmissible through fleas, which was a trait that was present in the strain that brought about the Black Death.

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Illustration by Mallory Rentsch Tlapek / Source Images: Getty

I serve as senior pastor of a medium-sized church in Cary, North Carolina. Besides being multicultural and multiethnic, we are also politically diverse: There are Democrats, Republicans, and many politically homeless people who have a difficult time identifying with either party.

This year, like many pastors and church leaders in the United States, I find myself yet again leading my congregation through a season of deep division over the political future of our country.

But I have received valuable lessons in navigating these troubled waters from what might appear to be an unlikely source: Christians in China.

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In the US, we often think about China in economic or political terms: trade deficits, global manufacturing, or the rise of Xi Jinpings authoritarianism.

Narratives often pit the two countries as strategic rivals, breeding a sense of fear and competition. More than 4 in 5 American adults (83%) have an unfavorable view of China and its geopolitical role, according to a Pew Research Center survey last year. Survey respondents felt that China interferes in other countries affairs and that its actions do not contribute to global peace and stability.

As American Christians, however, we need to think carefully about our relationship with China. Instead of allowing cultural rivalry to become our driving perspective about China and its people, we are called to be Jesus-first, not economy-first or America-first.

The gospel has taken root in China, despite the indoctrination of materialistic atheism at every level of society and severe persecution under President Xi. Conservative estimates put the number of Christians in China at 40 million, while others say it is closer to 116 million.

How can the church in America support our brothers and sisters in China as they undergo these trials? We can refrain from escalating anti-Chinese rhetoric, embrace political advocacy, and learn from their example.

Sowing goodwill

Ongoing competition between the US and Chinese economies will likely fuel anti-Chinese rhetoric, aimed at swaying the American middle class in the voting booth in the upcoming November 5 election.

The vitriol often directed at mainland China inevitably impacts Chinese people living in the United States. Many of my East Asian congregants worry that there may be more incidents of anti-Asian violence if presidential candidates turn to anti-Chinese speech to motivate their support bases.

Their fears arent unfounded. Xenophobia against people of Asian descent has surged worldwide since the pandemic. Nearly 3 out of 4 Chinese Americans reported experiencing racial discrimination last year. And a growing number of Asian Americans are considering buying guns for self-protection, according to a CNN report.

As followers of Jesus, we can choose not to fuel conversations that bear anti-Chinese rhetoric online and in real life. Ephesians 4:29 charges us not to engage in unwholesome talk but to use our words to encourage others. James 1:26 says that if a person does not keep a tight rein on their tongue, their religion is worthless.

In learning to think Jesus-first, we can muster up the courage to verbally correct misconceptions and reject stereotypes about China and its people during election season. We can grow in loving our Chinese neighbors in America. Rather than engaging in speech that escalates anxiety about China and its people, we can sow goodwill in times of animosity by helping others discover how God is at work through the Chinese diaspora to expand the gospel within China and around the world.

The power of advocacy

Refraining from anti-Chinese rhetoric is one way we can use our words wisely. Another way is to speak up on behalf of brothers and sisters in Christ who face persecution or repression of their freedoms.

Within the Chinese house church network, pastors are routinely called in by police for tea time and are warned against preaching the gospel. Many consider it the norm to undergo home surveillance, face unannounced evictions, or lose access to basic utilities without notice.

Chinese Christians like Yang Xiaohui and Chen Shang (who use pseudonyms for security reasons) were thrown into prison in 2022 for participating in an alleged illegal religious gathering. While there, they ministered to their fellow inmates and jailors through sharing stories about Jesus and singing hymns.

They are not the only bold ones in a country that has banned evangelism: Chinese churches continue to send mission teams to share Christ on many Chinese university campuses, even though access to college campuses is more restricted than ever.

Our Chinese brothers and sisters are willing to face these trials because of their love for Jesus Christ. They continue to plant churches, raise up young pastors, and serve their local communities.

When we hear about these injustices facing Christians under Chinas repressive government policies, we have an opportunity not just to experience or express anger but also to increase our love and compassion for the people of China. As we Americans know, living in a country doesnt automatically mean we are endorsing its leaders.

Moreover, as people who do not live in a nation-state where Christians are being persecuted, we are called to advocate for those who suffer for their faith in Jesus.

We can become a voice for the voiceless, encouraging our leaders to urge the Chinese government to act as Gods servants for the good of the nation (Rom. 13:4). We can share about the plight of Chinese house churches in our small groups or sermons to help other American believers realize how costly it is to follow Jesus in China.

The way of the cross

Discouraging anti-Chinese rhetoric and advocating for our persecuted brothers and sisters in Christ are important ways to support the Chinese house church. But we can also do so in learning from their example.

In America, identifying ourselves as either blue or red is becoming central to our Christian identity. I face pressure from the right and left to align myself, and my church, with various political causes or candidates.

In China, tensions exist within house churches concerning how to faithfully respond to the repressive regulations that Xis government is placing on religious groups. Some pastors feel that a more careful approach is needed, which means limiting in-person church gatherings or meeting online only. Other church leaders believe that greater boldness is warranted and that increased evangelism and church planting should be pursued.

Both American and Chinese Christians can find common ground here: We should prioritize the kingdom of God over the pursuit of our political privileges.

The Chinese house church, through the life of prominent pastor Wang Yi, can teach us about what this looks like. Wang was arrested on December 9, 2018, for preaching the gospel. He is currently serving a nine-year prison sentence on the trumped-up charges of subverting state power and illegal business operations.

Before Wang was arrested, he was warned many times to stop preaching. Instead, he intentionally gained 30 pounds to prepare himself for prison. He also readied his soul to suffer for Christ.

The Church must be willing to fight to the death, not for the civil rights and legal statures that we can see, but for the keys to the kingdom of heaven and the power of the Gospel that we cannot see, Wang and other pastors and elders from the Early Rain Reformed Church wrote in 95 Theses, a document that outlines the churchs theology amid suffering.

The Church should never give up her most important asset  the Holy Word.

Wang Yis approach to living under political duress is an example of what it looks like to live fully surrendered to Jesus. While America and China may be experiencing geopolitical conflict, Wang exhorts us to remember that our highest allegiance is to Christ. Believers in both countries share and hold on to hope in Jesus, who has torn down the dividing wall of hostility (Eph. 2:14).

A surrendered life

Becoming Christians who are Jesus-first, rather than economy-first or America-first, is a process that requires humility, self-reflection, and conviction.

As American believers, we can consider how the choices we make, whether in public rhetoric or private voting, impact not only our economy and our security but also the growth of gospel witness in the United States and around the world.

And as we follow our Lord Jesus, who endured the cross so that a global people could be reconciled to God and to each other, we can resist perpetuating discriminatory speech and actions against people of Chinese descent. We can advocate for our brothers and sisters in Christ in China and pray for God to protect, encourage, and embolden them as they suffer for his name. And we can be renewed in our desire to preach the gospel and to live a life that is given over completely to building the kingdom of God.

Corey Jackson is senior pastor of Trinity Park Church in Cary, North Carolina, and founder and president of The Luke Alliance.
From a wider slate of six candidates, president Clint Pressley takes the strange honor of leading the conventions growing factions toward missional unity.

Sonya Singh / Baptist Press

In the weeks before the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) annual meeting, newly elected president Clint Pressley finished reading Malcom Gladwells book on precision bombing in World War II, Erik Larsons bestseller set in the lead-up to the Civil War, and a history of a 19th-century mutiny on a Royal Navy vessel.

A few years ago, these stories could have been a metaphor for the convention. Back then, an even more conservative wing had emerged with literal pirate flags and a rallying cry of take the ship, and the previous few presidential races pitted a Conservative Baptist Network (CBN) candidate against a more traditionalist nominee.

But the 2024 slate wasnt split between two factions. Southern Baptists decided among six presidential candidates and took a historic three rounds of voting to elect Pressleya sign of the ranging positions and priorities among the countrys largest Protestant denomination.

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Pressley, a sharp-dressed 55-year-old North Carolina pastor, steps into the presidential role knowing the challenge of finding consensus among todays Southern Baptist leaders from autonomous churches, who sometimes clash with each other on ministry styles, theology, or the work of the conventionand whose clashes are increasingly on display online.

He didnt refer to the presidency as a battle to win but as a chance to dampen divisions and bring unity.

As a convention, we want to be unified around not only our understanding of the Bible and love for the Bible, love for the gospel, and love for the mission. Were unified around the Baptist Faith and Message that we affirm, Pressley said. Theres a lot that we can really be glad of.

The SBC presidency now goes to the very capable hands of @pastorclint. I look forward to working with him over the next two years and promoting the Gospel work going on across our Convention. https://t.co/MbJmjwBFWc  Brent Leatherwood (@LeatherwoodERLC) June 12, 2024

The biggest piece of business for Southern Baptists this year was a proposal to add a constitutional requirement that SBC churches name only men as any kind of pastor. A majority were in favor61 percentbut the vote fell short of the two-thirds threshold needed to add it to the SBCs governing document.

While Southern Baptists remain complementarian, theyve taken nuanced positions on this particular move to restate their position in their constitution. They disagreed on whether to support the amendment, the rationale for doing so, and the importance of the vote at all.

Arguments for and against swirled online in recent months and at auxiliary events during the week of the annual meeting itself, held by groups like the Center for Baptist Leadership, The Danbury Institute, Founders Ministries, Baptist21, 9Marks, and The Baptist Review.

Jared Cornutt, a founder of The Baptist Review, said these networks can be helpful for fellowship and friendship within the convention. But they also risk fostering an echo chamber or a sense of tribalism.

There are so many groups, said Cornutt, who pastors a church in Birmingham. Were really seeing how diverse and divided we are.

Pressley, lead pastor of Hickory Grove Baptist Church outside Charlotte and a council member for the Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood, had taken a stance in favor of the amendment, saying it makes sense with what he sees the Bible and the Baptist Faith and Message affirm about ministry roles.

But he also saw it as a move for clarity, not a response to a significant egalitarian presence in the SBC. Before the vote, Pressley said that, either way, were going to have to be OK  and keep moving forward with the mission and what we do as a complementarian convention.

The convention has held to that stance for affiliated churches without an explicit mention in the constitution. Last year, the SBC deemed Saddleback Church not in friendly cooperation with the convention over its female preaching pastors; this year, it did the same for a Virginia church that espoused egalitarian beliefs.

The SBCs Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission was applauded for its work on behalf of life and religious liberty, even though a failed motion to dissolve the entity garnered votes from a sizable minority.

From the convention stage and in related events, leaders acknowledged the disagreements among Southern Baptists but urged them to recognize their shared beliefs in Scripture, complementarianism, and evangelization, especially against a society moving further away from those convictions.

Your enemy is not in this room, charged pastor Dean Inserra in the convention sermon, lamenting that denominational infighting can hinder their gospel work.

Pressley has a solid conservative background and a history of involvement in Southern Baptist life. He was elected as the first vice president of the convention a decade ago, serving alongside former president Ronnie Floyd.

He currently holds a position on the board of trustees for The Southern Baptist Theological SeminaryPressley said its president, Albert Mohler, would be his first call in a time of crisis. He is pursuing a doctorate from Southern and holds a masters from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary.

Fellow North Carolina pastor Chris Justice, who nominated Pressley, said he operates with a joyful orthodoxy, which will be a blessing for the SBC.

Pressley came to faith as a teen and attended Hickory Grove before going on to serve on staff. After pastoring churches in Mississippi and Alabama, he returned as Hickory Groves senior pastor in 2010.

His church recently reported a volunteer to police over abuse allegations and disclosed the situation to the congregation. This week, he thanked the SBCs Abuse Reform Implementation Task Force for its resources on addressing abuse. We would not have known what to do had this not come up. So theres some very real and tangible results that have already happened.

Speaking after the annual meeting concluded on Wednesday evening, Pressley said it was a strange honor to have won the election, but with all thats going on in our convention, he felt like now was his time to run.

Part of the presidents job, he said, is to do all you can by way of influence to make sure that, as a convention of churches, we are focused on what our mission is.
Pro-life doctors had argued the drug isnt safe. Now Christians are looking for other ways to engage on the issue.

Jemal Countess / Getty Images for Court Accountability

The Supreme Court rejected a bid for more restrictions on the drugs for medication abortions, ruling against a group that included pro-life Christian doctors.

The doctors had argued that one drug, mifepristone, was unsafe, and that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) failed to uphold proper procedure when it relaxed regulations to obtain the drug by mail and at later stages in pregnancy. Assisting patients suffering complications from the medication would be against pro-life doctors consciences.

Drug abortions constitute more than 60 percent of abortions in the US and have grown in popularity since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade.

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The court ruling was unanimous but on narrow grounds, holding that the doctors lacked standing, or the legal right to sue, because they were not the ones harmed by the drugs.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh, a Trump appointee, wrote for the majority. He acknowledged that the doctors are pro-life, oppose elective abortion, and have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to mifepristone but said that they had not proved they would be harmed by the current regulations around the abortion drug.

Under Article III of the Constitution, a plaintiffs desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue, he said. The plaintiff doctors and medical associations do not prescribe or use mifepristone. And the FDA has not required the plaintiffs to do anything or to refrain from doing anything.

Kavanaugh noted that existing federal laws would protect doctors from being required to perform abortions or act in other ways that would run afoul of their consciences.

One of the doctors who was party to the case, Christina Francis, CEO of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists (AAPLOG), told CT in a March interview that the pro-life movement has work to do in countering the argument that abortion is good for [women].

There are a myriad of immediate complications that [abortion] can cause, she said. The abortion pill, which is now being pushed on women in really unsafe ways, causes a host of complications.

Francis, a Christian, told CT Thursday in an email statement, As an organization dedicated to serving both our maternal and pre-born patients, we are deeply alarmed that the FDAs recklessness is permitted to continue unchecked, risking the lives and health of women across this country.

AAPLOG represents over 7,000 physicians. Other groups party to the case included several individual doctors, who object to abortion for religious or moral reasons, and several pro-life medical groups, including Christian and Catholic organizations.

In the case, the doctors argued they may have to treat a woman who had taken mifepristone and suffered complications that would require an emergency room visit. That may require a physician with a conscience objection on religious or moral grounds to assist with an abortion.

During oral arguments, the Biden administration countered that the argument rest[s] on a long chain of remote contingencies  and even if that happened, federal conscience protections would guard against the injury the doctors face. Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys, who brought the case, noted that, according to the FDA, between 2.9 and 4.6 percent of women taking the drug end up in the emergency room.

Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys also argued the case that overturned the right to an abortion nationwide established by Roe v. Wade.

Mifepristone, also known by its brand name Mifeprex, was approved in 2000 by the FDA as a way to administer chemical abortions during early stages of pregnancy. In 2016, the FDA held that Mifeprex could be used for abortions at 10 weeks gestation and allowed health care providers to prescribe it. The FDA also required, at that time, one in-person visit to receive the medication. In 2021, the FDA announced it would no longer require the in-person visit.

Pro-life organizations have long (unsuccessfully) petitioned the FDA to reconsider its approval of abortion drugs. The doctors asked a district court judge to pull back the expanded access to the drug and to rescind the FDAs approval of the drug entirely.

The district court sided with the doctors and suspended the drugs approval and its expanded availability in 2016 and 2021. The US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit partially reversed the lower court ruling, but it upheld the part that clamped down on expanded access to the drug.

The Supreme Court put the ruling on hold, allowing women to continue obtaining abortion drugs. Thursdays decision, FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, sent the case back to the lower courts.

The ruling left pro-life advocates disappointed, but advocates said they would continue to challenge the availability of abortion drugs in the country.

Jeanne Mancini, president of March for Life, said in an email statement that the organization will continue to educate and advocate on the need for commonsense protections when it comes to womens health and well-being and defending the most vulnerable.

New legal challenges may emerge, and the ERLC will look for opportunities to engage, Brent Leatherwood, president of the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, stated. We all should be resolute in our efforts to elect leaders and support legislative solutions that protect innocent lives and defend mothers against the predatory abortion industry. Students for Life of America president Kristan Hawkins, whose organization filed an amicus brief in the case, said in a statement that the ruling is not the end of this case.
Home News 5 reactions to the Hunter Biden verdict

Tuesday's conviction of Hunter Biden is drawing mixed reactions from both sides of the aisle as politicians and pundits debate the substance of the charges against him and what it means for politics and the justice system in the United States.

A jury in Wilmington, Delaware, found Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden, guilty of "making a false statement in connection with the acquisition of a firearm," "making a false statement with respect to information required to be kept in records" and possessing a firearm despite his status as "a person who is an unlawful user of or addicted to a controlled substance." Tuesday's guilty verdict comes less than five months before the 2024 presidential election, where Biden is seeking a second term.

Concerns about Hunter Biden's criminal activity date back to his father's days as a Democratic presidential candidate and nominee in the 2020 presidential election. While Hunter Biden pled guilty to charges of tax evasion and unlawful possession of a firearm, he still finds himself under the microscope for other potentially illegal activities and influence peddling.

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For example, financial records obtained by the U.S. House of Representatives Judiciary Committee suggest that Biden may have paid for prostitutes to travel across state lines in violation of federal law.

The verdict against the president's sole surviving son comes less than two weeks after a Manhattan jury found former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, guilty of falsifying business records in connection with a $130,000 payment made to former porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election so that she would remain silent about an alleged affair between the two that took place a decade earlier.

Here are five reactions to Hunter Biden's conviction.
Home News Baptist Women in Ministry praise failed SBC ban on female pastors as Mike Law vows to fight on

While the majority of Southern Baptist messengers were left disappointed Wednesday by the failure of a proposed amendment to the Southern Baptist Convention's constitution to permanently ban women from serving as pastors "as qualified by Scripture," groups like Baptist Women in Ministry applauded.

The Texas-based advocacy group, which supports women who pursue ministry and leadership in Baptist churches, represents a coalition of women connected to denominations such as the Southern Baptist Convention, Alliance of Baptists, American Baptist Churches USA, Baptist General Association of Virginia, Baptist General Convention of Texas, Cooperative Baptist Fellowship, General Baptist State Convention of North Carolina, National Baptist Convention, USA, National Missionary Baptist Convention and Progressive National Baptist Convention.

Some 5,099  or 61% of messengers who cast ballots at America's largest Protestant denomination's Annual Meeting in Indianapolis, Indiana  voted in favor of the proposed amendment to the SBCs constitution, known as the Law Amendment. The proposal needed 66.66% of the votes to be ratified. About 38%, or 3,185 messengers, opposed the motion.

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Baptist Women in Ministry offers appreciation to all the messengers of the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) who voted against the Law amendment BECAUSE of their commitment to support and affirm women serving as pastors of all kinds in the SBC, the group said in a statement Wednesday following the vote.

We are grateful to churches and messengers represented at the SBC who came to send the message that women have equal value to God. We know that others voted against the amendment for other reasons, but we hope the message of your support for female pastors will be amplified, the statement added.

The amendment received much less support than it did when it was proposed by Pastor Mike Law of Arlington Baptist Church in Virginia at the SBC's Annual Meeting in June 2023, which passed with approximately 80% of the vote from more than 12,000 messengers.

In his statement on the failed proposal, Law urged Southern Baptists to keep fighting for biblical faithfulness as some openly discussed leaving the denomination on social media because of what they see as a liberal drift.

Southern Baptists, I am grateful to God for you. Yes, I am disappointed in the results, but I am not disheartened. 61% of Southern Baptists voted for the Amendment, that is a majority, that is encouraging, and that is something we can build upon, Law wrote.

Realize that leaving loses the ground gained, your labors for this amendment were not in vain, therefore my beloved brothers and sisters, be steadfast, immovable, and always abounding in the work of the Lord (1 Corinthians 15:58), he continued. Now is not the time to leave, but to lean in, lead, and labor for biblical faithfulness, while believing the best about brothers and sisters who came to a different conclusion on this Amendment.

The Baptist Faith and Message 2000 defines "pastor" as "one who fulfills the pastoral office and carries out the pastor's functions." Article VI of The Baptist Faith and Message 2000 further notes that the scriptural offices are pastors and deacons and "[w]hile both men and women are gifted for service in the church, the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture."

Messengers overwhelmingly voted in support of the amendment to permanently ban women from serving as pastors last year, hours after 88% of messengers voted to uphold the removal of Rick Warren's Saddleback Church for allowing a woman to serve in the office of a teaching pastor. The removal of Fern Creek Baptist Church for having a woman pastor was also affirmed by a vote of 92%.

In his arguments supporting the amendment, Law noted that as of June 2023, there were more than 1,000 SBC churches with female pastors in direct contradiction to both Gods Word  and the Baptist Faith and Message 2000.

These churches are confused in thinking that embracing Gods word on this issue will lead to institutional decline. Many of these churches dont understand that the same interpretive method that leads to female pastors also leads to practicing homosexual pastors, Law argued.

He stated that the denomination has already lost dozens of churches due to the toleration of female pastors.

Generally speaking, history shows that once a denomination has female pastors, its usually just a matter of time until they ordain homosexual pastors, he said.

He pointed out that the American Baptist Churches USA allowed female pastors in 1985 and by 1999 they were allowing homosexual pastors. The Episcopal Church USA made that shift in 1976 and by 1996 they began allowing homosexual pastors. He pointed out that the ELCA, the PCUSA, and the United Methodists all followed a similar trajectory.

The reality is this issue has been a canary in the coalmine for many denominations. If we cannot be clear and unashamed about what the Bible says a pastor is now, then there is little hope that we will stand firm on other teachings of Gods Word that are out of step with the standards of the world, he wrote. We must believe what the Bible teaches and go wherever it leads regardless of cost or consequences.

Outspoken SBC Pastor Dwight McKissic, who founded and leads Cornerstone Baptist Church in Arlington, Texas, was among the minority of SBC pastors celebrating the failure of the Law Amendment.

Really hopeful that Mike Law will now go back to minding his own business and church affairs, and to stop combing other churches websites looking for a female occupying the role and title of childrens pastor, he wrote on X after the vote.

This has been a major two year distraction. Now that the vote is over, its time to let bygones be bygones, circle the wagons, and move forward. Its not helpful or healthy for our convention to engage in this unnecessary & divisive fight year after year. Two years is more than enough. Drop your weapons.
Over 500 communists from every corner of the globe gathered for the first day of the founding conference of the Revolutionary Communist International (RCI), with 7,160 more having signed up to watch online so far. The atmosphere was electric as comrades discussed the class struggle on every continent, with a focus on the central task of the RCI in its founding week: recruiting and training communists for the coming revolution. If you havent yet registered to watch the founding conference, you can still do so: sign up now!

The international character of this event was clear from the very beginning. 500 comrades attended in person from Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Czechia, Denmark, El Salvador, Finland, France, Germany, Mexico, Morocco, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Netherlands, Pakistan, Peru, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Spain, Sri Lanka, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, USA, Venezuela, and the countries of former Yugoslavia, including Bosnia, Serbia and North Macedonia, and other countries too numerous to name.

For the first time, this was a hybrid event, with watch parties taking place on every continent, and attendees following the stream in 120 different countries.

The conference began with the announcement of comradely greetings sent by Ivan Pinheiro, the historic leader of the Brazilian Communist Party (PCB). Pinheiro is part of a group that was bureaucratically expelled by the PCB due to their principled position on war and imperialism and is now organised as the PCBR (Brazilian Revolutionary Communist Party). We have published his greetings in full here.

The Manifesto of the RCI

Rob Sewell officially opened the conference to a wave of applause: welcome to the founding conference of the Revolutionary Communist International! In preparation for this conference, we launched our founding document to the world: the Manifesto of the Revolutionary Communist International. The Manifesto has already been translated into 25 languages and represents, at one and the same time, a scientific study of the key processes in the world, and a call to communist workers and youth around the world to organise under this banner.

As Alan Woods explained, this is a text which speaks for itself. The RCIs ideas are nothing less than the ideas of genuine, scientific communism, which have retained all their relevance and freshness since the Communist Manifesto was written by two young men, Marx and Engels. This is the tradition that we proudly represent.

While communists may not have the militaries, weapons, navies or air forces that the ruling class possesses, our bold international movement, grounded in the genuine ideas and methods of Marxism, has the potential to completely transform the world. As Victor Hugo once said: nothing, no army, is as powerful as an idea whose time has come.

Shifts in consciousness

The global crisis of capitalism that every day confronts the masses with the horrors of war, imperialism and oppression. But like the enormous pressures beneath the thin crust that separates us from the seething magma of the Earths mantle, as that pressure builds and builds, eventually it finds a weakness. Eventually that pressure explodes in cataclysms: earthquakes and volcanic eruptions. The same dialectical process is developing among the consciousnesses of millions, preparing revolutionary explosions. With life under capitalism increasingly becoming intolerable for billions, more and more people are looking for the most radical possible break with the status quo.

Empieza el congreso fundacional de la Internacional Comunista Revolucionaria #RCI24

500 comunistas de todo el mundo asisten al evento de forma presencial, pero seguidos por camaradas de 120 paises de forma online #SchoolOfCommunism #ICR pic.twitter.com/LsV8NrcuyR  Organizacion Comunista Revolucionaria (@comunistas_ocr) June 10, 2024

Israel's genocidal war, commented on by many comrades, has acted as a massive accelerant in this process. In the United States, Genocide Joe Biden's unconditional backing Netanyahu has graphically exposed the imperialist nature of the US ruling class. This exorbitant military spending can only further undermine the US working class confidence in the capitalist system at a time when the US economy is laden with crippling debt.

In Britain, a surprise general election has been called in which the public are struggling to distinguish between Sunak and Starmer, both of whom grovel before US imperialism, and have lined and have lined up to defend Israels war of slaughter. This has caused significant backlash among workers and youth, who have nothing to gain from a victory of either major party.

The furious mood in society helps to explain the staggering impact of the live TV appearance of British comrade Fiona Lali, who demolished the most prominent representative of the Tory right wing, Suella Braverman, exposing her as a liar and warmonger.

Footage of Fionas performance has exploded, accumulating tens of millions of views online, on the back of which, the comrades of the RCP in Britain took the exceptional step to run Fiona as a revolutionary communist candidate for parliament. The comrades bold, communist campaign has already tapped into the deep desire for a fundamental change in society, which no other party offers.

In the Middle East, the war in Gaza threatens to ignite a powder-keg the likes of which we have not seen since the Arab Spring. With Israel showing no signs of letting up in its war, a social explosion in this region is on the order of the day. Such a movement would send shockwaves around the world, acting as a revolutionary beacon to workers and youth internationally.

The communists are coming

The enemies of communism often accuse us of being utopians. But as Alan explained, there is not a drop of utopianism in our ideas. The most hopeless utopians are those, on the contrary, who believe that this system can be patched up.

As we can see, explosive events are being prepared worldwide. The ideas of communism are gaining in popularity among a wide layer of youth. The downfall of capitalism is just as inevitable as the feudal system that it once replaced. But its overthrow must be a conscious act. Alan likened capitalism to the character of Russian folklore, Koshchei the Deathless who limps on and on, despite the disgusting decay of his body until one day he is killed. Capitalism too will not die of its own volition. The working class must consciously destroy it, but to do so it must have a conscious, communist leadership. Towards that end, we are founding the RCI. As Alan explained: We must now boldly strike out in a new direction, and boldly raise the banner of a new party and of a Revolutionary Communist International.

Starting the founding Congress of the Revolutionary Communist International - 500 present in Italy, comrades following from 120 countries. #RCI24

Live broadcast: https://t.co/X7SK5SkS3F pic.twitter.com/zqwp50iECL  Jorge Martin  (@marxistJorge) June 10, 2024

At the close of the day, the conference unanimously approved the Manifesto of the Revolutionary Communist International, to more singing of the Internationale.

The founding conference of the RCI has started with a bang. We will continue to publish reports throughout the week, but to make the most of this historic event, sign up now and watch online with us as we continue tomorrow!
Home News Bolivian bishops fight forced closure of Catholic teachers' college, appeal to international court

The Bolivian Catholic Conference of Bishops has filed a complaint to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights against the Bolivian state over the forced closure of a longstanding Catholic educational institution.



The dispute, which concerns the closure of the Instituto Normal Superior Catolico Sedes Sapientiae, or INSCSS, centers on the Education Act enacted by Bolivia's Plurinational Legislative Assembly under Law No. 070, colloquially known as the "Avelino Sinani Law."



The legislation not only nationalized teacher training but also mandated the cessation of private institutions dedicated to educating future educators, effectively closing the doors of the INSCSS, a facility with a 54-year history of service at the time of its closure.



The legal advocacy group ADF International represents the Bolivian Catholic Conference of Bishops in its challenge to the Bolivian government's 2010 decision to shutter private teacher training colleges as part of a broader move to monopolize this sector.



"Both the Bolivian Constitution and international law protect the right to educational and religious freedom, including the right to create and operate educational institutions. Bolivian authorities have blatantly violated both of these rights by forcibly closing the Catholic teachers college," said Tomas Henriquez, director of advocacy for Latin America at ADF International and lead legal advisor for the Bishops' Conference.



Founded in 1956 at the request of Archbishop Abel Antezana of La Paz, the INSCSS was designed to train educators across various educational levels and certify their qualifications in line with national standards.



Over its operational years, the college has contributed significantly to the Bolivian education system, training over 12,750 teachers and producing 125 educational texts, including 14 in different indigenous languages. This contribution was recognized with several prestigious awards, including the National Decoration of the Order of the Condor of the Andes and accolades from the Plurinational Legislative Assembly of Bolivia.



The INSCSS was targeted by the 2010 educational reform, which stripped private institutions of the ability to train teachers. The abrupt closure sparked a series of legal challenges from the Bishops' Conference, including a petition to the Bolivian Ministry of Education and a constitutional challenge, both of which were ultimately dismissed by the national authorities.



After exhausting the constitutional avenues, the case has now been taken to the IACHR by the Centro de Estudios Juridicos Tomas Moro, an allied organization of ADF International. The Bishops' Conference views the legislation as an infringement of religious and educational freedoms.



"It is our hope that the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights will take this case and hold the Bolivian state accountable for these blatant human rights violations," Henriquez said. "Such overt violations of fundamental freedoms cannot be allowed to stand."



The "Avelino Sinani Law" also raised concerns about the politicization of education, as the curriculum may be used to promote specific political ideologies, particularly those aligned with then-President Evo Morales' Movement for Socialism party, which promotes leftist policies. The incumbent, President Luis Arce, is from the same party.



ADF International notes that Article 13.4 of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights guarantees the freedom to establish and direct educational institutions, provided they meet state-defined minimum standards.



However, Bolivian law contradicts this by broadly banning organizations and churches from founding and managing teacher colleges without setting the minimal standards needed for operation.



The IACHR is expected to decide on the admissibility of the case in the coming months.
Home News Europes top human rights court upholds Hungary's ban on assisted suicide in landmark ruling

The European Court of Human Rights has affirmed the sovereignty of nations to prohibit assisted suicide, ruling 6-1 on Thursday in support of Hungary's prohibition of the practice.

The decision reaffirms a commitment to preserving life in alignment with international law amid ongoing debates about the ethical implications of euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide.

"The Court further notes that it has found it justified for Hungary to maintain an absolute ban on assisted suicide," the ruling states.

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"Furthermore, as mentioned above, the right to refuse or withdraw consent to interventions in the health field is recognised also in the Oviedo Convention, which, in contrast, does not safeguard any interests with regard to [physician-assisted dying]. ... The Court therefore considers that the alleged difference in treatment of the aforementioned two groups of terminally ill patients is objectively and reasonably justified."

In the case of Karsai v. Hungary, Hungarian national Daniel Karsai, a human rights lawyer in an advanced stage of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), argued that Hungary's ban on assisted suicide infringed on personal freedoms and dignity.

The legal advocacy group ADF International, alongside the U.K.-based NGO Care Not Killing, intervened in this case, arguing that the country's prohibition is consistent with Hungary's obligations under the European Convention on Human Rights to protect life.

Jean-Paul Van De Walle, legal counsel for ADF International, praised the court's decision.

"We applaud today's decision by the European Court of Human Rights, which upholds Hungary's essential human rights protections," he stated. "Although we deeply empathize with Mr. Karsai's condition and support his right to receive the best care and relief possible, it is clear from other jurisdictions that a right to die quickly becomes a duty to die."

ADF International contends that the preservation of legal prohibitions on assisted suicide is essential to protecting vulnerable citizens. The court echoed this sentiment, stating that there is "no basis for concluding that the member States are thereby advised, let alone required, to provide access" to assisted suicide.

The court acknowledged the inherent dangers of removing legal protections for life, noting that such removal can lead to pressures on vulnerable individuals to end their lives due to fears of being a burden.

The ruling reaffirms the decision made in the 2002 ECHR case, Pretty v. U.K., which also upheld a ban on assisted suicide, citing the need to prevent exploitation and abuse of the vulnerable.

The judgment also discussed the role of medical and palliative care, stating that "it is part of the human condition that medical science will probably never be capable of eliminating all aspects of the suffering of individuals who are terminally ill."

The court emphasized a humane approach to palliative care, guided by compassion and high medical standards to manage such vulnerabilities.

Globally, the legalization of assisted suicide remains highly contentious, with only a few countries permitting the practice. The court's ruling notes that despite the trend of countries legalizing or decriminalizing assisted suicide, the majority of Council of Europe member states continue to prohibit and prosecute assistance in suicide.

Van De Walle asserts that legal "safeguards" intended to prevent abuse have proven insufficient, as evidenced in various countries where assisted suicide is legal. Instances of abuse include euthanasia of young adults for incurable depression and elderly individuals for symptoms related to aging, reflecting the slippery slope of such legal frameworks.

In 2012, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe issued Resolution 1859, stating, "Euthanasia, in the sense of the intentional killing by act or omission of a dependent human being for his or her alleged benefit, must always be prohibited."

"Once we as a society open the doors to intentional killing, there is no logical stopping point," Van De Walle further remarked. "How do we distinguish between the person we talk down from the bridge and the person we let die at the hands of their doctor? The state is obligated to protect the fundamental value of human life. We should not set in motion legal changes that undermine this obligation to the detriment of all of society."
Home News PCA votes to launch investigation into Sarah Young's book Jesus Calling

RICHMOND, Va.  The Presbyterian Church in America has approved a resolution to investigate the influence of Sarah Young's book Jesus Calling on the denomination and might decide to ban it.

Less than a year after Young died at age 77, commissioners at the PCA General Assembly on Thursday morning voted to approve Overture 33, which called on two denominational agencies to investigate the book.

Specifically, the amended overture called on the Committee on Discipleship Ministries to make a report assessing the books appropriateness for Christians in general and to outline its reasons for withdrawing the book from its inventory previously and not offering it for sale since.

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Additionally, the amended overture called on Mission to the World, a PCA missions ministry, to investigate the ministry groups relationship with the book and consider actions that it and the General Assembly should take in light of this study of the book and of the agencys relationship to it.

The final tally was 947 in favor of the overture, 834 against, and 20 abstaining, with most of the commissioners who came up to speak during the debate opposing the proposal.

Jerid Krulish, a teaching elder from Faith Presbyterian Church of Anchorage, Alaska, spoke against the overture, claiming that it was a fishing expedition that was a waste of the committees times.

This book is a book that, as far as I can tell, no one in the PCA reads. Ninety-nine point nine percent of us had no idea that Sarah Young was even a member of the PCA, said Krulish. It is not in use in the PCA; it is not published by any agency of the PCA.

Pastor Zachary Groff of Antioch Presbyterian Church spoke in favor of the overture, countering that there are many people in the PCA that I know who read this book, including the wives of ordained teaching and ruling elders.

Our committees exist in part to help us, as an assembly, to evaluate things of national import that affect the Church as a whole, he added. This book is, perhaps, the bestselling book of any member of the PCA.

Another supporter of the overture was Teaching Elder Chuck Williams of the Christ the King Chapel in Wesley Chapel, Florida, who argued that the book had had destructive effects on a church group he was formerly a part of.

This book defies the sufficiency of Scripture very clearly, Williams claimed. Scripture gives us much warning about people claiming to speak from God when they are not called.

Stephen Young, the widow of Sarah Young, defended his late wifes work, telling those gathered that Sarah was a humble servant of Jesus who did not seek self-glory and prayed for her readers to know and deeply love the only Savior, Jesus Christ.

Her writings do not add to Scripture but explain it, he continued. She would stand with Martin Luther and declare that her conscience was captive to the Word of God.

I humbly ask that you join me in voting down these potentially divisive amendments and thank God for the good fruit that continues to be born through Sarah Youngs books.

A PCA missionary and author, Young is best known for her book Jesus Calling, a 365-day devotional originally released in 2004 that has sold tens of millions of copies and was named "Christian Book of the Year" in 2013 and 2018.

The devotionals success led to other works under the Jesus Calling brand, including the 2021 prayer devotional Jesus Listens, childrens devotionals, Bible storybooks and journals.

The book is not without critics, however. Some have expressed concern about the mystical nature of the devotional and how it could mislead people into thinking they received divine revelation.

"The biggest problem with Jesus Calling is very simple: Jesus did not speak these words. If these were His words, then Jesus Calling would be Scripture, which is by definition the words of God," said Christian author Randy Alcorn in a 2018 critique.

"So if it's not (and it isn't) on an inspired and trustworthy level like Scripture itself, then it's making a false claim. In fact, regardless of whether it's biblically sound, it's an entire book built on falsehood."
Home News Pope Francis accused of using derogatory gay slur again after recent apology

Pope Francis has reportedly again used a derogatory Italian term for homosexual men during a closed-door meeting in Rome earlier this week, even after a rare apology from the Vatican two weeks ago for having used the same word.

Francis used the vulgar word when speaking to approximately 160 priests at the Pontifical Salesian University in Rome on Tuesday, according to sources close to the meeting cited by multiple Italian outlets.

A website called Silere Non Possum published a full Italian transcript of his purported remarks Wednesday but did not name a source for them.

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The purpose of the meeting with the priests was to address whether to admit men "with homosexual tendencies to seminaries, reiterating the need to welcome them and accompany them in the Church and the prudential indication of the Dicastery for the Clergy regarding their entry into the seminary," according to the Vatican Press Office.

During his reported remarks, Francis recounted how a monsignor asked him about the rumors of the Vatican's pervasive gay culture, to which he said he replied by confirming there is "un'aria di frociaggine" in the institution, which translates, "an air of faggotry."

"I said, 'Yes, there is an air of faggotry. It's true, in the Vatican, there is,'" the pontiff reportedly told the monsignor. "'But look, monsignor, today it is an honorific for our culture. Let us be careful, not to despise people with homosexual tendencies but to accompany them, there are so many good people.'"

"'Accompany them, help them. Send them to psychologists. Please, however, be careful about accepting them in the seminary,'" Francis said he also advised the monsignor.

Echoing his remarks during another closed-door meeting with members of the Italian bishops' conference at Vatican City last month, Francis advised against men with homosexual tendencies from attending Catholic seminaries but noted such individuals should not be rejected by the Church altogether.

"What I said on this issue: If a young man wants to enter the seminary and has a homosexual tendency: stop him," Francis is quoted as saying.

"This is something that the Dicastery for the Clergy has said and I support, because today the homosexual culture has progressed so much and there are good young men who want the Lord, but it's better not to [admit them to seminary], better not to."

The leaked transcript marks the second time the pope, whose native language is Spanish, has used the vulgar Italian word "frociaggine" when speaking of homosexuals in recent weeks.

After news broke of the pope's alleged use of the term, Vatican spokesman Matteo Bruni issued a statement on May 28 claiming the pontiff did not intend to offend anyone.

"As he has had the opportunity to state on several occasions, 'In the Church there is room for everyone, for everyone! No one is useless, no one is superfluous, there is room for everyone. Just as we are, everyone,'" Bruni said at the time.

"The pope never intended to offend or express himself in homophobic terms, and he extends his apologies to those who were offended by the use of a term, reported by others," Bruni added.

Italian news outlet Corriere reported last month that the pope "sometimes stumbles over somewhat creative Italian without being aware of the nuances," according to Catholic News Service.

In December, with Francis' approval, the Vatican's Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a document allowing priests to provide blessings to same-sex couples.

The document drew criticism, and the Vatican clarified that it would simply allow priests to "bless couples in irregular situations and same-sex couples without officially validating their status or changing in any way the Church's perennial teaching on marriage."
Home News SBC amendment to permanently ban women pastors falls short

A proposed amendment to the Southern Baptist Convention's constitution, known as the Law Amendment, that would have permanently banned women from serving as pastors "as qualified by Scripture," fell 5 percentage points short of the required two-thirds support from messengers on Wednesday.

Some 5,099  or 61% of messengers who cast ballots at America's largest Protestant denomination's Annual Meeting in Indianapolis, Indiana  voted in favor of the measure that needed 66.66% of the votes to be ratified. About 38%, or 3,185 messengers, opposed the motion.

The amendment received much less support than it did when it was proposed by Pastor Mike Law of Arlington Baptist Church in Virginia at the SBC's Annual Meeting in June 2023, which passed with approximately 80% of the vote from more than 12,000 messengers.

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Supporters of Law's effort to codify the ban on women pastors in the denomination hailed him as a "hero."

"Mike Law is a hero," William Wolfe, executive director of the Center for Baptist Leadership, said in a statement on X. "If the SBC is going to have any future, we must replace the corrupt and compromising Platform leadership with men like Mike Law at every position."

In comments made prior to the vote Wednesday, Law stated that "Last year, we learned there were over 1800 churches in the SBC" with women pastors.

Grant R. Castleberry, senior pastor of Capital Community Church in Raleigh, North Carolina, who voted to support the measure, openly prayed for it to be ratified, saying it could be "one of the most consequential decisions in modern SBC life."

Steve Gentry, pastor of Village Church RVA in Midlothian, Virginia, agreed.

"Since we went to secret ballots, I want to be clear, I voted for the Law amendment. Regardless of outcome, it is a vital and timely amendment that is needed in the life of the SBC," Gentry wrote on X before the votes were tallied.

The Baptist Faith and Message 2000 defines "pastor" as "one who fulfills the pastoral office and carries out the pastor's functions." Article VI of The Baptist Faith and Message 2000 further notes that the scriptural offices are pastors and deacons and "[w]hile both men and women are gifted for service in the church, the office of pastor is limited to men as qualified by Scripture."

Messengers overwhelmingly voted in support of the amendment to permanently ban women from serving as pastors last year, hours after 88% of messengers voted to uphold the removal of Rick Warren's Saddleback Church for allowing a woman to serve in the office of a teaching pastor. The removal of Fern Creek Baptist Church for having a woman pastor was also affirmed by a vote of 92%.

During that meeting, roughly nine out of every 10 messengers voted to disfellowship churches with female pastors.

The SBC's newly elected president, Clint Pressley, pastor of Hickory Grove Baptist Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, expressed his support for the amendment.

Some Southern Baptists, like former president J.D. Greear, called it "unwise" and "unnecessary." He warned that if it were ratified, it could lead to a hemorrhaging of minority churches.

"I remain convictionally opposed to this amendment, not because of its content but because of its attempt to undermine our historic principles of cooperation," Greear, who served as the SBC's president from 2018 to 2021, wrote on his website before the vote.

"It overturns a system that works. I don't oppose the Law Amendment because I'm a closet moderate or soft on theological issues. I am concerned that the missional, cooperative balance that has characterized our Convention since the Conservative Resurgence is about to be overturned."

While Greear argued that he does not believe amending the SBC's constitution is necessary to keep women from serving as pastors, Heath Lambert, senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Jacksonville, Florida, disagreed.

"Historically, this became an issue at the 2022 SBC meeting in Anaheim. At that meeting, rather than make a recommendation to remove Saddleback Church for employing female pastors, the Credentials Committee recommended further study to determine what a pastor is. This recommendation led to a great deal of tumultuous debate, to a withdrawal of the recommendation from the committee, and the ultimate removal of Saddleback in 2023," Lambert wrote ahead of the vote.

"It has been alarming that some leaders could express confusion about the clear biblical teaching restricting the office of pastor to men that is required by the BFM and SBC Constitution."
Home News SBC passes IVF resolution urging Christian couples to consider adopting frozen embryos

The Southern Baptist Convention has passed a resolution on the topic of in vitro fertilization, expressing concern about the procedure while also encouraging the adoption of frozen embryos.

Known as On the Ethical Realities of Reproductive Technologies and the Dignity of the Human Embryo, the measure was adopted by the messengers on Wednesday afternoon via raised ballot.

Daniel Taylor of Charity Baptist Church of Paris, Michigan, proposed an amendment to the resolution that would change some of the phrasing in parts of the measurement.

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Taylor spoke about a God-fearing Christian couple he knew who ethically and morally used IVF at great sacrifice and expense to themselves, driven by the love of a child not yet born: their son, and my godson.

Each implantation was a painful procedure for the mother, who told me afterwards that it was one of the hardest things she had ever been through, he explained. If the love of a child not yet born had not been motivating her, she would not have gone through with it.

I request this resolution be amended because, in its original form, the resolution would castigate and condemn the entirely moral and ethical actions of these two friends of mine, calling their faithful sacrifice, struggle and blessing a wicked thing.

Resolutions Committee Chair Kristen Ferguson responded to the proposed amendment, saying that it was our goal as people who want to share the love of Christ to not take this topic lightly.

Ferguson pointed to Resolved No. 6, which was added to commend couples who, at great cost, have sought to only utilize infertility treatments and reproductive technologies in ways that are consistent with the dignity of the human embryo.

Messenger Monica Hall of Oak Grove Baptist Church of Paducah, Kentucky, who supported the resolution, explained that she had adopted two frozen embryos that were transferred into her womb, but they did not survive for long. She described IVF as callous toward human life, given how frozen embryos are often discarded.

The only possible ethical stance on IVF is to advocate for more Christian couples to be willing to give the 1 million-plus embryos in freezers a chance at dignity and life by adopting them, she said.

Most embryos created through IVF die at some point in the process. How could it be considered ethical to create human life knowing death is a probability? My babies died, but I am so thankful that they lived for a few days in the womb and were and still are fiercely loved and cherished.

The messengers rejected the amendment via a vote of raised ballot.

According to a preliminary copy of the resolution, the measure called on the SBC "to reaffirm the unconditional value and right to life of every human being, including those in an embryonic stage, and to only utilize reproductive technologies consistent with that affirmation."

"In Vitro Fertilization most often engages in the destruction of embryonic human life and increasingly engages in dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting, based on notions of genetic fitness and parental preferences," reads the resolution.

"The In Vitro Fertilization process routinely creates more embryos than can reasonably be implanted, thus resulting in the continued freezing, stockpiling and ultimate destruction of human embryos, some of which may also be subjected to medical experimentation."

The resolution called on Southern Baptists to "continue to promote adoption as one way God may call upon couples to grow their families and to consider adopting frozen embryos in order to rescue those who are eventually to be destroyed" and encouraged couples "to consider the ethical implications of assisted reproductive technologies as they look to God for hope, grace, and wisdom amid suffering."

IVF has garnered increased scrutiny in recent years, and in February the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that embryos created via the controversial process and kept frozen are protected by a state law known as the Wrongful Death of a Minor Act.
Home News Supreme Court unanimously rejects challenge to FDA's approval of abortion drug mifepristone

The U.S. Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that pro-life doctor organizations have no standing to challenge the U.S. Food & Drug Administration's approval of the abortion-inducing drug mifepristone.

In a decision released Thursday morning in the case of FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, Justice Brett Kavanaugh delivered the opinion of the court, writing that the plaintiffs want FDA to make mifepristone more difficult for other doctors to prescribe and for pregnant women to obtain.

Under Article III of the Constitution, a plaintiffs desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue. Nor do the plaintiffs other standing theories suffice. Therefore, the plaintiffs lack standing to challenge FDAs actions, wrote Kavanaugh, appointed to the bench by former President Donald Trump.

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Justice Clarence Thomas, another conservative justice, authored a concurring opinion, writing that the ruling correctly applies our precedents to conclude that the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine and other plaintiffs lack standing.

Our precedents require a plaintiff to demonstrate that the defendants challenged actions caused his asserted injuries. And, the Court aptly explains why plaintiffs have failed to establish that the Food and Drug Administrations changes to the regulation of mifepristone injured them, wrote Thomas.

So, just as abortionists lack standing to assert the rights of their clients, doctors who oppose abortion cannot vicariously assert the rights of their patients.

The case centers around the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's removal of in-person dispensing requirements for mifepristone in 2021 and its 2016 decision to enable medical professionals other than doctors to dispense and prescribe the drug.

In November 2022, the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians & Gynecologists, the Christian Medical & Dental Associations and four individual doctors sued the FDA over their decisions.

Last year, Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a Trump appointee, sided with the plaintiffs and struck down the FDA's approval of mifepristone in the U.S. The chemical abortion pill essentially destroys the environment in the uterus and starves an unborn baby to death.

The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the lower court ruling striking down the relaxed requirements for the abortion pill but put on hold the ruling against the decision to strike down the FDA's 2000 approval of the abortion pill.

On April 21 of last year, the Supreme Court released an unsigned ruling that allowed the chemical abortion drug to remain on the market while the legal proceedings continued.

Oral arguments before the Supreme Court were held in March.
Home News Tony Evans will remain headliner for Christian cruise despite stepping away from pulpit

Despite stepping away from his pastoral duties at Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship for "healing and restoration" after confessing to an undisclosed sin, renowned Evangelical leader Pastor Tony Evans will remain a headliner for a Christian cruise to the Mexican Riviera this fall.

A representative of The Urban Alternative, a Christian Bible teaching and resource ministry founded over 40 years ago by Evans, which is hosting the cruise set for Nov. 9  16, told The Christian Post Wednesday the event remains on track even after Evans stepped away from the helm of his church earlier this week.

An agent with Inspiration Travel, which is administering the cruise that features suites costing up to nearly $4,000 per traveler, told CP Tuesday that the cruise is still on because The Urban Alternative is a separate entity from Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship. The agent noted that The Urban Alternative has a contractual obligation to continue with the cruise.

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Evans is headlining the cruise with his eldest child, Chrystal Evans Hurst, as well as his son, musician Anthony Evans.

"Throughout the cruise, we'll experience powerful teachings, encouraging messages from Chrystal Evans Hurst and uplifting music from Anthony Evans, Jr. We will also find moments of pure relaxation as we soak in the beauty of God's creation," a note from Evans on the Inspiration Travel website says. "We'll visit exciting and vibrant Cabo San Lucas, Mazatlan and Puerto Vallarta ports and take in the hospitality and elegance of the Holland America Koningsdam."

In another video on the website, Evans described the cruise as "a great time of fun, food, fellowship and strengthening our faith."

The 74-year-old Evangelical icon is the first black American to earn a doctorate in Theology from Dallas Theological Seminary. He is also the first African American to write and publish a full Bible commentary and study Bible.

In a written statement on Sunday, Evans confessed that though he did not commit any crimes, he fell short of the biblical standards espoused by his ministry "a number of years ago," suggesting it was "due to sin."

"The foundation of our ministry has always been our commitment to the Word of God as the absolute supreme standard of truth to which we are to conform our lives. When we fall short of that standard due to sin, we are required to repent and restore our relationship with God," Evans stated.

"A number of years ago, I fell short of that standard. I am, therefore, required to apply the same biblical standard of repentance and restoration to myself that I have applied to others. I have shared this with my wife, my children, and our church elders, and they have lovingly placed their arms of grace around me," he added. "While I have committed no crime, I did not use righteous judgment in my actions. In light of this, I am stepping away from my pastoral duties and am submitting to a healing and restoration process established by the elders."

A spokesperson for The Urban Alternative did not respond Wednesday when asked if they expect Evans to complete his restoration process before the cruise this fall.
Home News Why is it wrong to say 'love is love'?: Christian apologist explains

What's wrong with the mantra love is love, and why does it go against God's design for relationships?

Jason Jimenez, a pastor and Christian apologist, used scriptural insights to address concerns with the popular phrase during a recent episode of his "Challenging Conversations" podcast, noting that it suggests all forms of romance, sexual orientations and gender identities should be affirmed.

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Jimenez said "love is love" is a phrase "that promotes unbiblical definitions of love" and that "we cannot simply accept this statement at face value."

We have to consider the implications," Jimenez warned. "We have to understand the potential conflicts that this mantra has with God's design for human sexuality and relationships.

"Because if God has a standard, if He has a model, and we, as human beings, are saying no, we have a different one, and we apply that to what we believe love to be and then force it down everyone's throats, that is dangerous."

Before Christians can understand why the mantra is morally wrong, they should first try to understand what love is, Jimenez advised, as there are different words for love in the languages of the Bible.

There are different Greek terms for love, the biggest being agape; the more common portrayal of love, which is unconditional love, which is a reflection of God. And if you look at the Hebrew term of love you see this covenant of affection and commitment that is being used, Jimenez explained.

The modification that we see in the New Testament is one that is filtered through Kairos or the Greek term which means grace.' This unmerited favor. So, we have unconditional love, and we have this unmerited favor that is being mashed into relation between God and human beings. And so, it's beyond just this emotion. It's a deliberate choice to act in the best interest of another, even when things are difficult."

Jimenez referenced 1 John 4, which states that God is love, with him adding that "true biblical love is not based on emotion or physical attraction alone."

"It's a sacrificial commitment that mirrors God's love for humanity. In essence, the first concern that we have with this mantra is that love is love reduces love  God, who is love  to a subjective sentiment, he said.

Jimenez clarified that he is not devaluing the fact" that same-sex couples "are actually looking genuinely to be loved, noting that people are all wanting to be affirmed.

Jimenez said that, nevertheless, Scripture is clear that sexual intimacy between two people in a covenantal opposite-sex marriage alone makes up the totality of humanity.

There's a sexual intimacy that is expressive in that love. It's an unconditional love that represents that of Christ and His love for the Church. He's the bridegroom; the Church, we are His bride. And so, we must uphold to that sanctity of God's Word in the principles that we see that are established there, Jimenez said.

At the heart of all of this, when we are seeking these things out, to be loved, we know that love is the fulfillment of the law, Romans 13:8-10. How are we actually living out love, which is God, in the world rather than redefining [love]?

The mantra love is love also "rejects objective morality," Jimenez noted, stating that it's "based on subjective feelings" and "is not looking at the standard of the essence of what love is universally."

"Now, the fact that we are talking about love is transcultural to all people at all times in all places. So, it speaks to it in that objective sense, Jimenez said. Objective morality, what it asserts and what we can ascertain from it, is that there are moral principles: there is an objective good and an objective evil."

And so, when it comes to this whole claim that we have equality, that anyone can love whoever they want, at any given time how they want, that is actually false, he stressed.

That is rejection of objective morality. Because God has a certain standard that He's put into His creation and it's beautiful. And if or when we taint it, we will see that we're not truly loving our Maker and as such, we are not truly loving ourselves; therefore we cannot truly love others.
SBC Amendment To Ban Women Pastors, Trump Promises Comeback For Christians, Churches Must Do More To Reach Muslims

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In this episode, we discuss the recent developments within the Southern Baptist Convention as a measure to permanently ban women pastors falls short. We also hear from a Muslim Somalian refugee turned Christian missionary, urging churches to evangelize the growing Islamic population in the United States.

Former President Donald Trump addresses Christian conservatives, promising a significant comeback if he is reelected. Lastly, we delve into the surprising news from Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship, where Pastor Tony Evans has temporarily stepped down without further explanation from the church. Tune in for these stories and more.
Home Opinion Can a Christian be kept in bondage by ancestral powers?

I worked as a deliverance minister in one of the megachurches in Nigeria for 5 years and have witnessed symptoms of demonic bondages in the lives of many Christians. In the deliverance sessions, we deal with ancestral lineage, curses, and evil covenants.

While I was there, I kept wondering why these powers should still torment Christians despite their newfound faith in Christ. One of my pastors who taught us Introduction to deliverance ministry told us that Africans should not emulate Western Christianity because most of us are the first generation of Christians in our families. According to him, every African man is rooted in idolatry and any attempt to move from idolatry to Christ is always resisted by ancestral powers.

I sincerely do not believe that ancestral power can hold Christians in bondage. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! (2 Corinthians 5:17). Every Christian is a new creature and should not be held captive by ancestral powers. The blood of Christ is a ransom for our redemption, and we are already set free by the blood that brings with it the best promises. I am convinced beyond every reasonable doubt that if the son of Man sets us free, we are free indeed.

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However, many Christians in Africa, out of ignorance of who they are in Christ, still claim that there is evidence of manifestations of evil patterns in some families even after they have become Christians.

They are of the opinion that there are families with a history of untimely deaths, marriage failures, drunkenness, barrenness, sexual perversion, and that these evil patterns run through the family blood and continue to manifest even when the family members have become Christians.

In the school of deliverance that I attended many years ago, we were told that it is not only in Africa that ancestral powers are wreaking havoc. Our lecturer claimed that even biblical characters suffered from the same affliction. Notable among them, allegedly, were Moses and David. According to this lecturer, these characters sinful traits were hereditary and affected their walk with God. Moses could not make it to the Promised Land because he had anger issues and David messed up his relationship with God because of sexual perversion.

Sin is a reality in believers lives. No one can deny that. But an even greater reality of those in Christ is that our sin nature no longer defines us; it longer controls us. We have received new lives through Christ: But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God (John 1:12). This is the Scripture that has uprooted us from our ancestral lineages and grafted us into Gods family. In Christ, we are no longer yoked to our sin and its curses; we are yoked to God, through Christs sacrifice.

If it is possible for a Christian to be kept in bondage by ancestral powers, then it means that Christians can be possessed by the devil. The words of God do not agree with this and the Scriptures cannot be broken. Many of the deliverance churches have done more harm than good by teaching people unbiblical concepts to attract followers. They manipulate people into believing that there is bondage where none exists. If Christ has set us free, and we are free indeed.
Home Opinion Israel: A nation under siege for 76 years

The nation of Israel is different from any nation on earth, as it has been in an existential battle for survival from the moment of its birth in 1948 until this very day. It is a nation under constant siege, and without constant vigilance (and the mercy of God), it would be wiped off the map.

Tell me another nation on the planet that needs every young person, both male and female, to serve in the military for two to three years immediately after high school. Or that requires all men until the age of 40 to serve in the reserves  meaning, to go back into the military if needed. (The only exceptions to these rules are ultra-Orthodox Jews, who are exempt from military service.)

I write these words this week from Israel, where I have been since Sunday, June 9, and everywhere you turn, there is the reality of war.

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Getting off the plane, I was met by an airport employee named Yehudah, a young man who was born in South Africa and immigrated to Israel 6 years ago. As a reservist, he recently served in Gaza for more than 190 days and will soon be deployed again.

When I asked him how he felt about going back into a war zone, he didnt have much to say. He has no choice in the matter, and its for the good of the nation. These are the realities of war.

After I spoke at a gathering of believers Monday night, I met another young man, dressed very casually, but carrying his rifle on his back. He has been deployed on the northern border of Lebanon where Israeli troops are at war with Hezbollah and will soon be returning. But as a soldier, he cannot go anywhere without his gun.

He told me that his unit had just been hit in a drone attack but thankfully, without any casualties. He too is about to return to the warfront.

A woman introduced me to her son, whom I had not seen in years. He is in his 30s and was just returning from several months deployment as a reservist. When he is needed again, he will return. It is his duty, if not a sacred privilege, to protect his country during a time of war.

And then there are the ongoing internal terror attacks, be they car rammings, stabbings, shootings, or bombings.

A headline from February 22, 2016, selected at random out of an almost infinite number of choices, gives an idea of the realities of life in Israel: Israeli Military Chief: All Off-duty Combat Soldiers Must Carry Their Weapons.

The story then explains, Off-duty Nahal soldier Tuvia Wiesman was not carrying a weapon when he went to the assistance of terror victims and was himself stabbed to death.

Welcome to life in Israel.

The Jewish Virtual Library states that, From the Oslo Accords (Sept. 1993) until September 2000 nearly 300 Israelis were killed in attacks.

During the Al-Aqsa Intifada (Sept. 2000 - Dec. 2005), another 1,100 Israelis were killed.

Since September 2000, Palestinian terrorist attacks have claimed at least 1,429 Israeli lives. Hundreds more have been wounded.

The only reason that you can walk the streets of Israel in safety or live without constant fear of annihilation is the ceaseless vigilance of the Israeli military and security arms of the government. Otherwise, Israels sworn enemies would have wiped the tiny nation off the map decades ago.

And what happens when there are serious, inexcusable lapses in security? October 7th happens, becoming an inspiration for future terror attacks.

As reported on November 1, 2023, A senior member of Hamas has hailed the systematic slaughter of civilians in Israel on October 7, vowing in an interview that if given the chance, the Palestinian terror group will repeat similar assaults many times in the future until Israel is exterminated.

In a similar spirit, Iranian leaders have called for Israels extermination.

As reported on May 22, 2020, Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, launched into a lengthy anti-Israel diatribe on Twitter Friday as he marked Quds Day, a holiday held in Iran toward the end of the month of Ramadan meant to express support for Palestinians and opposition to Israel's existence.

The leader, in 25-unthreaded tweets, compared Israel to a cancerous tumor and the coronavirus, as he called for the nation to be uprooted and destroyed.

Yet this is nothing new.

Rather, it is what Israel has faced since the announcement of the UN Partition Plan in 1947.

As summarized by the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, on November 29, 1947, the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution 181 calling for the partition of Mandatory Palestine into Jewish and Arab states. The Jews accepted the plan with a mixture of joy and hesitation, while the Arabs rejected it and launched a war to forcibly prevent its implementation.

And what happened the day after Israel announced its independence in May 1948? The Jewish Virtual Library explains: On May 15, 1948, the day the British Mandate over Palestine ended, the armies of five neighboring Arab states invaded the new State of Israel, which had declared its independence the previous day. The invasion, heralded by an Egyptian air attack on Tel Aviv, was vigorously resisted. From the north, east and south came the armies of Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Transjordan, and Egypt.

Israel has been under siege since its modern rebirth, and it remains under siege to this day.

For good reason both Jews and Christians point to the words of Psalm 121, reminding us that he who watches over Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.

If not for divine mercy, Israel would not be.
Home Opinion Longing for a pure(r) church

Have you ever attended a "pure" church? Not a church without any sinful people in it (because there is no such thing), but a church where everything just functioned and operated biblically and in a godly way? I've only experienced it a few times in my life, but those are churches I'll never forget.

One was a small congregation that was among the best I've ever attended. The pastor was biblically deep and sound, yet humble, very kind and personally hospitable in every way. The Sunday school classes had more theological depth than any I'd ever attended. Everyone knew their Bibles really well and insisted upon obedience to the Lord in all things, and yet I never saw any Christians genuinely love and care for each other more than in that congregation, even to visitors  and even to a member who fell into serious sin and had to be disciplined. What's more, every Christian there knew just how unusual that church was and commented on it often: "The Lord has truly blessed this church!"

It's hard to go to a church like that and then have to move away, as I had to do. But it's even harder to go to a church like that and never find a church quite like that again. Whenever I dwell on it, that quote from Martin Luther often floats through my head: "Farewell to those who want an entirely pure and purified church. This is plainly wanting no church at all."

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I wonder, though. If it really is the case that we shouldn't want a pure church, then why did the Lord Jesus say what He said to Pergamum and Thyatira in Revelation 2?

To the church at Pergamum (Rev. 2:12-29), which was filled with false temples and pagan religions, the Lord said: "I know where you dwell, where Satan's throne is. Yet you hold fast my name, and you did not deny my faith even in the days of Antipas my faithful witness, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells (v. 13)." That's impressive. These Christians were surrounded by paganism, yet didn't deny the name of Jesus. Nor did they deny the Christian faith when one of their brothers was martyred.

Then came the Lord's rebuke: "But I have a few things against you: you have some there who hold the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, so that they might eat food sacrificed to idols and practice sexual immorality. So also you have some who hold the teaching of the Nicolaitans. Therefore repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth."

The whole church drew the Lord's rebuke because some in the church were holding to false teaching: "the teaching of Balaam" and "the teaching of the Nicolaitans." Notably, the Lord had just commended the church at Ephesus in Rev. 2:6 by saying, "Yet this you have: You hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate."

So what was the Lord's warning to Pergamum? "Therefore repent. If not, I will come to you soon and war against them with the sword of my mouth (v. 16)." This is not the Lord telling His church that it was fine to tolerate a little error, because there's no such thing as a pure church. His command was to repent and purify His church, or He would deal with those who held to false teaching Himself!

The church at Thyatira had a similar problem. The Lord commended believers there for their works, their love, their service and their patient endurance, and He praised them because their latter works exceeded the first. Then came His rebuke: "But I have this against you, that you tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess and is teaching and seducing my servants to practice sexual immorality and to eat food sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, but she refuses to repent of her sexual immorality."

The Lord's warning to Thyatira was next: "Behold, I will throw (that prophetess) onto a sickbed, and those who commit adultery with her I will throw into great tribulation, unless they repent of her works, and I will strike her children dead (v. 22)."

Does this sound like the Lord is tolerant of an impure church, of a congregation of believers who may have great faith and works but tolerate among them false teaching and those who hold to it? Does the Lord ever say He understands it is sometimes necessary to put up with a few confused Christians who may be into a heresy here and there? Does He say something very modern like "have patience with them; they are still learning?" Absolutely not!

Christian author and speaker Vance Havner reflects on this truth in his book, "Repent or Else!"

"The trouble with the Christians in both Pergamum and Thyatira was that they put up with Balaamism and tolerated Baalism instead of standing with the Lord in direct opposition. They probably thought they were exercising charity and forbearance, but they were terribly mistaken. Today we are living in a tragic hour when getting along with everything and everybody is the accepted policy in both the nation and the church ... (but) Paul wrote, 'If any man preach any other gospel unto you than that ye have received, let him be accursed,' and what he is really saying is, 'Let him be damned.' We are told to reject a heretic after the first and second admonition (Titus 3:10). Even the loving John forbade hospitality to false teachers lest we be partakers of their evil deeds (2 John 10, 11). One reason why Balaam and Jezebel are making such headway in churches today is that so many have the notion that it is noble and Christian for the Church to take under her wing all shades of doctrine in an all-inclusive tolerance. It is not unchristian to oppose heresy. It is unchristian not to oppose it."

This is extremely sobering truth, in light of all the worldly doctrines  and even outright heresies  that our churches are tolerating today. Sure, churches accused of tolerating false doctrines among their members may point you to their sound doctrinal statements to alleviate any concerns you may express about false teachings floating among their members or being bandied about in Bible study discussions, but how does that make them any different from the churches at Pergamum or Thyatira?

Those churches, too, were commended for holding fast to the truth of the gospel and for their love and faith  and then they were commanded to repent for their dangerous "tolerance!" Why? To be faithful to the Lord and His Word and to help preserve  as much as humanly possible  the purity of the church to retain "the faith once delivered to the saints."

There is no end to the way the devil can infiltrate our churches with error and destructive heresies, and it's all around us. He can introduce them through educated pastors or ignorant new Christians or through longtime believers whom we always thought were sound and then went off the rails. He can derail our fellow Christians into accepting or even practicing sexual immorality. Through believers in our midst, he can get every heresy from false prosperity or "hyper-grace" gospels to Gnosticism, Marcionism or Montanism into even the soundest of churches.

The devil also has a modern way to usher false teachings into our churches these days and maybe in the most subversive way possible: through outside media our fellow members or pastors consume, especially online. Without anyone necessarily realizing it, they then regurgitate these falsehoods inside our churches, Sunday school classes or Bible studies. Satan can usher in false teachings through political influences and heretical propaganda consumed outside the church, too, either on the Left (Wokeness and social justice) or on the Right ("Woke Right" Christian nationalism, with its antisemitism and kinism).

I can tell you assuredly: Don't ever assume that a "Christian" celebrity or a "Christian" podcast or a "Christian" book or a "Christian" conference  or, dare I say, a "Christian" radio show  is sound just because it carries Christ's name! Any media bearing the name of Jesus must be even more strictly scrutinized as a Berean, since the very name of Jesus on it can tempt Christians to drop their guards and trust the source immediately.

And more and more, not only do we have to test everything in light of God's Word and hold fast to the truth, but we must be willing to expose the falsehoods we discover that are tolerated in our churches  even if someone in the church gets upset about it. This is not about "heresy hunting." This is just faithful Christianity.

We want revival. We recognize how badly our churches need it, and we desire greater purity of life and doctrine within them. Those are good and godly things to want. But consider the Lord's strong words to Pergamum and Thyatira. Before revival and greater purity comes, first there must be repentance in our churches for our intolerable tolerance of that which is poisoning the Body. The lesson of the Lord's words to those churches is that if we don't repent of the same sins and deal with the poison in our churches, the Lord will!

Our churches will never be entirely and permanently pure on earth, but we can be purer than we are. We can be more faithful to the Lord Jesus. We can love Him more and, in doing so, refuse to tolerate the error He hates! It is nothing less than the privilege and the duty that we owe the Savior we love  the One who "laid down His life for us" (I John 3:16) and said, "Why do you call Me, "Lord, Lord,' and do not do what I say?" (Luke 6:46)

We must take truth seriously, and that also means taking error seriously  first and foremost, inside our churches. As Havner put it, "We have but one responsibility: none other burden but to hold fast the old faith till Jesus comes."
Home Opinion Why LGBT public school agenda should concern parents

Can you imagine not being able to opt your kindergartener out of wholly inappropriate LGBT propaganda at school? This is a reality in Marylands largest school district where the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit decided parents have no say in whether their K-5-aged children must sit through classes and read books addressing LGBT sexuality and gender.

Public schools are often the breeding ground for this radical ideology to be forced on minors. Whether it be boys in girls sports, drag queen story hour in the library, or forcing sexual themes on minors in the classroom, a war is being waged on our children in the name of LGBT activism that wont stop until every parent, child, and educator surrenders to its demands.

Annually in June, Pride Month brings a heightened onslaught of the LGBT agenda in the public square and reminds us of the No. 1 target of this perverse ideology: children.

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Coming for our children?





Last June, LGBT activists chanted, Were here! Were queer! Were coming for your children! in New York Citys annual drag march. And well never forget when in 2021, the San Francisco Gay Mens Choir sang Were Coming for Your Children, with the chilling lyrics: You think that well corrupt your kids if our agenda goes unchecked. Funny, just this once, youre correct. Well convert your children.

Though they claim these threats to come after our children are actually tongue in cheek, it is evident that impressionable, vulnerable children are the primary victims of radical LGBTQ ideology.

Look no further than the state of public schools, where children are paying the price of this gruesome social experiment that affirms lies to pander to the LGBTQ lobby.

The National Education Association, for example, helped draft and encouraged sexual education standards for teachers to discuss inappropriate topics like sexual orientation with children despite parental concerns.

In recent years, its been revealed that some school libraries offer sexually-charged and sometimes pornographic books on their shelves. And some schools have even socially transitioned students without their parents knowledge or consent. In Marylands largest public school district, internal data from 2022 showed a 582% increase in just two years in students who identify as gender nonconforming.

We are witnessing the carnage this pervasive ideology has had in radicalizing school policies to the detriment of students physical well-being. In 2021, for instance, we were struck by the news that a ninth-grade girl in Loudoun County, Virginia was sexually assaulted after a boy dressed in a skirt was allowed to enter the girls bathroom, which sparked national outrage.

With the Biden administrations redefinition of sex in Title IX, which will be enacted in August unless the courts intervene, I fear these stories will become even more common as schools that receive federal funds will be subjected to affirming a student who identifies as the opposite gender. This opens the door to a plethora of safety, privacy, and ethical concerns and would allow boys in girls bathrooms, locker rooms, and sports.

When we were kids, our parents didnt have to worry about radical indoctrination and dangerous policies in public schools. Sadly, that is no longer the case as public schools have attempted to co-opt the role of the parent and sabotage the foundation upon which a childs worldview is established, attacking truth as basic as the definition of male and female.

On top of this, government-run schools are failing to provide a quality education, as evidenced by adult literacy rates and declining test scores, especially since COVID.

A Christian solution





If anything, the COVID-19 pandemic and school closures revealed the cancer that has seeped into the classroom as parents witnessed the ideologies certain teacher activists were promulgating on their students. This is one of the reasons parents pulled their children out of public school in droves as public education numbers continue to fall.

With a new school year quickly approaching, I implore parents to pray about where their children are receiving instruction five days a week and become serious about the responsibility to train up a child in the way he should go (Proverbs 22:6), understanding whats at stake in this post-Christian world.

The average childs worldview is in place by age 13, based on research from George Barna. Who do you trust to help shape your childs worldview in some of the most crucial years of development?

Christian parents should consider the importance of a private Christian or homeschool education with godly educators who acknowledge truth and believe parents are the primary stakeholders in their childs education.

Parents need to understand that select alternatives to public school provide a quality education from a faith-based perspective and Christian worldview that wont compromise on values.

Your child is being discipled one way or another; ensure theyre being discipled in Christ and not in the world. This can change the course of a generation and the trajectory of childrens lives and spiritual growth.

As Voddie Baucham said, We cannot continue to send our children to Caesar for their education and be surprised when they come home as Romans.

Originally published at The Washington Stand.
Auction of world's oldest Christian book nets millions

A Christian manuscript dating back to the 3rd century has been sold for just over 3m after going under the hammer at London auction house, Christie's.

The Crosby-Schyen Codex, believed to be Christianity's oldest surviving book and one of the oldest books in the world, was auctioned off in London on Tuesday, with bidding finally closing at 3,065,000.

The codex was one of the texts that formed part of the Bodmer Papyri, a collection of several texts discovered in the 1950s that included Christian writings, Biblical extracts, and pagan literature, and changed hands several times before being acquired by Dr Martin Schyen in the 1980s.

Inscribed on papyrus by monks in an ancient Egyptian monastery, its remarkable preservation has been attributed to the region's arid climate. Its 104 pages, or 52 leaves, are now protected between double-sided plexiglass plates, and offer a unique window into the early life of the Christian faith.

The manuscript is written in Coptic, and its contents include the earliest complete versions of the First Epistle of Peter and the Book of Jonah ever found, as well as an Easter homily. Experts believe that it was written between 250 and 350 AD in one of the first Christian monasteries for use in liturgical services.

"The earliest monks in Upper Egypt in the earliest Christian monastery were using this very book to celebrate the earliest Easter celebrations, only a few hundred years after Christ and only a hundred or so years after the last Gospel was written," Eugenio Donadoni, Christie's senior specialist in books and manuscripts, told the BBC.

According to Mr Donadoni, the book possesses "monumental importance as a witness to the earliest spread of Christianity around the Mediterranean", and Christie's said Dr Schyen, who started his collection of books as a teenager in the 1950s, deserved to be "remembered among the pantheon of great bibliophiles".

Around 60 lots from Dr Schyen's collection were auctioned alongside the codex, with more than 7.5 million being raised by the sale of items including ancient legal texts, decorated religious manuscripts, and historical chronicles.
Faith is the answer to America's problems, says Pence

Former Vice President Mike Pence addressed Southern Baptists at a luncheon event focused on public service where he criticized President Joe Biden, questioned the future of the Republican Party and upheld faith as the answer for the country's problems.

He spoke during a Tuesday luncheon held at a hotel across the street from the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention with Brent Leatherwood, president of the SBC's Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission.

After trumpeting his role in the Trump administration's appointment of justices who "sent Roe versus Wade to the ash heap of history," Pence made it clear that he has found nothing to appreciate about the current presidency.

"I've never voted for Joe Biden," he said. "I can't think of a thing he's done that I agree with. And I've known Joe Biden a long time. And, I mean, there's a big debate over the president's condition, ability to do the job. Let me just assure you, Joe Biden has always been that wrong. I mean, that's not new."

Some of the audience, about 400 people dining on boxed lunches of turkey sandwiches, pasta salad and chocolate chip cookies, laughed, and even more applauded the overturning of the constitutional right to legal abortion in the U.S. two years ago.

Pence, who was drawn to the Republican Party during the Ronald Reagan era, said he's focused on "traditional conservative values" and advocating for them through his Advancing American Freedom, a foundation he created in 2021. But he sees division in his political party.

"The influential men and women in this room need to know there's also a very healthy debate within my party about whether we're going to stay on the course of a strong national defense of American leadership in the world, of limited government and balanced budgets, traditional moral values, the right to life and an affirmation of religious liberty and marriage," he said, "or whether we're going to start to move in another direction."

One of those divides, he said, is future legislation about abortion at every level of U.S. political life.

"I honestly think we haven't come to the end of the debate over life: We've come to the end of the beginning," Pence said. "I think the destiny of this nation is inextricably linked to whether we restore the sanctity of life to the center of American law."

Leatherwood asked Pence how he deals with personal attacks, including about decisions that have made headlines, such as to not dine alone with a woman not his wife.

Pence drew laughter again when he described then-President Donald Trump's reaction to a news story about that personal policy when they were with his team in the Oval Office: "He goes, 'Can you all believe it? After everything they said about me, they're attacking Mike Pence for being faithful to his wife.'"

But Pence included a clarification for those in Tuesday's audience who did not know the history of that choice of personal behaviour.

"It wasn't Mike Pence's rule: It's the Billy Graham rule," he said, referring to the famed evangelist. "When we got busy in public life, Karen and I sat down and just made some decisions about putting our marriage and our families first and that was one of them."

Pence said he and Trump, on the other hand, may never agree on the decision Pence made to support the outcome of the 2020 election  even as election deniers attacked the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, some threatening his life. But Pence said he focuses on the faith on which he relied then and now.

"I know it's God's grace that saw us through that day," he said.

Leatherwood asked Pence if he had any advice for approaching the upcoming election, as research has shown that most Americans do not want a presidential rematch between Biden and Trump.

"If there was a time to go back to that pulpit and tell your folks pray for America, it'd be now," the former vice president said, adding that repentance is also necessary.

He recommended "calling our neighbours and friends, not just the people out there that disagree with us openly, that don't embrace our faith in Jesus Christ, but I'm talking about including people who do and say let's all examine our hearts and see how it is that we can, in our own lives, have a change of heart that will inspire the nation."

In the beginning and end of his remarks, Pence expressed his gratitude for those in the audience who are leading and preaching to congregations across the country.

"I want you all to know how grateful I am for the role that you play in the lives of families and communities that you serve," he said. "I will always believe that the pulpits that you speak behind are infinitely more valuable to the life of this nation than any podium that I've ever had the privilege to stand on."

 Religion News Service
Lessons from the European elections

This is a big year for elections. Already the biggest electorate in the world, that of India, has chosen to stay with its current leader. The election in the UK appears to be stumbling towards a foregone conclusion. And the unbelievable choice the American electorate have to make will come to a head in November. But last week it was the turn of the 400 million voters in the European Union and the results were revealing.

There was a general move towards the right, with the exception of the Scandinavian countries. While the centre right held on  and even gained a few seats - the centre left and the Greens took a battering. The Greens lost 20 seats, the 'Renew' centre left grouping lost 23. Meanwhile Meloni in Italy cemented her power and demonstrated her increasing leadership in Europe by an astonishing result.

In Germany the AFD, despite a disastrous campaign in which they were disowned by Marie Le Pens' National Rally as being too extreme, came second. The governing party, Olaf Scholt's SPD, only got 13.9% of the vote  their worst result since 1949. In Austria, the right-wing Freedom Party won, despite only being formed during Covid as a reaction to lockdown measures.

But it was the result in France which had the most impact. Le Pen's RN got 31.47% of the vote, more than double the result of Macron's party coming in second with a mere 14.56%. As a result, Macron pushed the 'nuclear' button and dissolved parliament, setting new elections for the beginning of July. His job as president is not up for grabs but he seems to be gambling that when faced with a choice of the right-wing FN or his centrist party - in a parliament where the results matter because, unlike the EU, the French parliament has real power - the French electorate will come to heel.

There are four major lessons to be learned:

1. Immigration, Net Zero and progressive 'woke' policies are a real vote loser for many people. The lack of genuine debate and the marginalisation of anyone who questions the self-evidently 'correct' views, has pushed many to the margins.

2. Religion  and particularly Islam  has become a major issue. The question of whether Islamic political theology is compatible with Western liberal democracies based on Christianity is one that has yet to be answered.

3. Young people are in general moving more towards the right. In one sense this was really surprising. The general assumption has been that the younger you are the more likely you are to vote for Green/Left/Progressive parties. It was on that basis that the SPD and Greens in Germany lowered the voting age to 16. The youth rewarded them with 17% of under 24 year olds, and a majority of 24 to 30 year olds voting for the AFD. In France 32% of 18 to 34-year-olds voted for the RN  more than double that of 2019. But when you think about it, a youth rebellion against the progressive establishment is not that surprising. Around 50% of young people do not go to university and are not subject to the indoctrination that has now become mainstream. Plus, young people rebel. To be Green and Progressive is the Establishment position. To be right wing is to be a rebel now.

4. Democracy is under threat. Those on the progressive left would entirely agree with this statement, but they do not realise that they are as much a major threat to democracy as the far right. Why? Firstly, because they make the dangerous assumption that democracy is under threat because people voted for parties the left do not like. That is democracy. When you threaten to ban groups or limit free speech (for example banning Tik Tok or 'misinformation'), in order to get the result you want, that is the real threat to democracy. It is interesting that the BBC for example regularly refers to Le Pen's RN as far right, or extreme right, but never refers to the radical left-wing La France Insoumise (LFI), who gained almost 10% as far left. They can't even bring themselves to say that about the Communists! When you have such bias in the media, academic and political classes, it is the far right who benefit  because people think that if wanting less immigration, less woke policies, and supporting traditional marriage makes them far right, then they might as well support parties which take advantage of that.

Democracy is also under threat in another way. The EU elections are very unusual. They are for a parliament which has very limited power. It is the only democratic parliament in the world which does not have the power to initiate its own legislation. That is why many regard the EU elections as the biggest opinion poll in the world. The EU Commissioners are the people who have the real power. Given that they are appointed by national governments it is assumed that the democratic control comes through them. But the trouble is that no EU government would dare go against the Commission  they could not survive.

The European Union is a supranational body, not a collection of independent nation states. In effect when a nation state joins the EU it gives up some of its national sovereignty to what is essentially a bureaucratic technocracy. The EU faces economic stagnation, a growing militarisation in the light of the Russia/Ukraine war, a disenfranchisement and disillusion among many people (only 50% of people bother to vote); the increasing costs of Net Zero; the growing immigrant crisis and the question of how Islam fits into a post-Christian Europe.

These last elections show us that the people of Europe are unhappy with the current situation. They will not change anything. The basic structure of the EU was designed to prevent such 'populist' movements (what some might call democracy). From a Christian perspective the greatest change that Europe needs is a revival of vital Christianity. The ultimate choice is not between right and left, democracy or technocracy, progressivism or conservatism, free markets or big government. The real choice is whether Europe is going to regress to paganism, become an Islamic theocracy, or return to its Christian roots. May the Lord show mercy and shine his light in the darkness.

David Robertson is the minister of Scots Kirk Presbyterian Church in Newcastle, New South Wales. He blogs at The Wee Flea.
Vatican convenes astrophysicists to discuss black holes, quantum theory

Renowned physicists, including two Nobel Prize winners, will gather at the Vatican Observatory near Rome next week to ponder the unresolved mysteries of the cosmos and to honor the legacy of Georges Lemaitre, the priest who first theorized the Big Bang and the expansion of the universe.

"We think we have put together a dream team that we vehemently hope will lead to some innovative thinking," said Fabio Scardigli, a theoretic physicist from the Polytechnic Institute of Milan and one of the organizers of the event, during a news conference Tuesday presenting the meeting.

The workshop June 16-21 will bring together experts from two sides of the scientific community: those who study cosmology and the theory of relativity, and those physicists who study quantum theory. Organizers of the event hope that the gathering will foster dialogue about these two different and at times irreconcilable theories.

"Among the goals of this conference is to take small steps, through discussion and debate, to reconcile these two theoretic constructions of the 20th century," Scardigli said.

The Vatican Observatory, called Specola Vaticana, was established in 1891 by Pope Leo XIII to promote dialogue between faith and science. Forty physicists will participate at the gathering, including Adam Riess, who was awarded a Nobel Prize for proving that the expansion of the universe is accelerating, and Roger Penrose, who won the Nobel Prize for his groundbreaking study of black holes.

Participants also include Andrei Linde and Joseph Silk, who revolutionized cosmology through their studies on the first moments of the universe; Wendy Freedman, known for her groundbreaking research on the expansion of the universe; Licia Verde, an expert on dark matter and energy; Cumrun Vafa, who is considered a trailblazer for his studies on geometry and quantum physics; and Edward Witten, best known for his pioneering contributions to string theory.

Participants are scheduled to meet with Pope Francis at the Vatican on June 19, and organizers believe the pope will deliver a speech.

While the Vatican might strike some as an unlikely partner for the advancement of science, the Catholic Church has played a key role in the field of physics throughout history. "I was a scientist for 20 years before I joined the Jesuits, and the most common reaction from fellow scientists was a freedom from them to tell me about the churches they belong to," said Brother Guy Consolmagno, the director of the Vatican Observatory, during the news conference.

"In the field of cosmology, where we are so much aware of what we do not know, there is an openness to reflect on why there is something instead of nothing," Consolmagno said, adding that "in the academic world you find more atheists in the literature department than among physicists."

The verdant setting of Castel Gandolfo, where the Specola resides, offers a neutral ground for scientists to discuss theories, present their research and studies and butt heads on the cosmos's conundrums, organizers said.

"It's a place where scientists, researchers and academics can feel free to speak unencumbered by academic structures where they are bound to one type of theoretical current or another," said the Rev. Gabriele Gionti, the vice director at the observatory.

In 2022, Gionti and the Rev. Matteo Galaverni, a priest in the Diocese of Reggio Emilia-Guastalla in northern Italy, theorized a new way to study gravity after the Big Bang. Their study was highly regarded in the scientific community and published in the prestigious Physical Review D journal. Gionti's life work has been to attempt to reconcile quantum physics and cosmology, following in the footsteps of another influential physicist and priest: Lemaitre.

Born in Belgium in 1894, Lemaitre was an innovator in the field of physics and theology, having joined the Priestly Fraternity of the Friends of Jesus. In 1927, he proved that the universe was expanding before Edwin Hubble, which led Lemaitre to theorize the existence of "the primeval atom," when the universe must have been compressed before the Big Bang.

That same year, the first theories on quantum physics emerged, challenging our understanding of the universe. Lemaitre, whose studies outlined what would later be described as quantum gravity, was a friend of Albert Einstein, despite Einstein's opposition to the theory of an expanding universe and quantum physics. Recognition of Lemaitre's lasting impact has been growing recently, with the International Astronomical Union voting in 2018 that the Hubble Law, which describes the speed at which galaxies are moving away from Earth, should be renamed the Hubble-Lemaitre Law.

Quoting St. John Paul II, Consolmagno described faith and reason as two wings leading toward the truth. "Truth is the goal," he said, "and for those of us who believe that God is the truth, exploring the truth leads us closer to God."

 Religion News Service
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There was an increase in cases involving business liability, business interruption and non-hurricane homeowners policies in 2023 amid an overall drop in insurance cases in 2023, a new report shows.

A report from Lex Machina, a LexisNexis company, examines insurance litigation trends in federal district and appellate courts focusing on the three-year period from 2021 to 2023.

In 2023, 17,654 insurance cases were filed in federal district courts, down 6% from 2022. The drop is a divergence from the upward trend that insurance cases have exhibited since 2016, according to the report.

From 2021 to 2023, the highest number of insurance cases was filed in the Eastern District of Louisiana, while the highest number of insurance appellate cases was docketed in the Ninth Circuit, the report shows.

Most insurance cases terminated in the last three years were either settled or resolved on procedural grounds. However, of those that were resolved on substantive grounds, claim defendants won five times as often as claimants. Claim defendants primarily prevailed on summary judgment, judgment on the pleadings, and default judgment, while claimant wins were primarily on summary judgment or at trial, according to the report.

For insurance cases that were appealed to a federal appellate court and terminated from 2021 to 2023 with a decision on the merits of the appeal, 21% were ultimately reversed, the report states. During the same three-year period, $1.56 billion in total damages were awarded as Approved Class Action Settlements.

In 2023, $1.2 billion of insurance damages were awarded, above the range of annual insurance damages awarded each year over the past decade of between $150 million to $700 million per year. The report shows the number of cases in which insurance damages were awarded in 2023 was consistent with the other years in the past decade, but the high amount of damages awarded in 2023 was primarily driven by a significant number of large class action settlements related to life insurance policy changes.

The most active defendants in insurance litigation over the three-year period were insurance companies. State Farm Fire and Casualty Co. defended against the highest number of insurance cases (5,833 cases in 79 districts). State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Co. was second with 2,138 cases in 78 districts, followed by Allstate Vehicle and Property Insurance Company with 1,368 cases in 50 districts, the report shows.

Those who wish to view the full report is available can register to get a copy.
People walk through the Canary Wharf financial district of London, Britain.

The U.K. has a serious problem.

Only 10% of U.K. workers were found to be feeling engaged with their jobs, according to Gallup's new State of the Global Workforce 2024 report, with the country trailing behind the U.S. and several European countries.

This means a staggering 90% of employees are feeling detached from their roles and more than likely hopping onto the "quiet quitting" trend of the past few years.

Additionally, 40% of employees in the U.K. were found to be experiencing daily stress and 27% reported feeling daily sadness  the second highest across all European countries. Another 20% of workers reported feeling daily anger.

Comparatively, 23% of employees globally reported feeling engaged at work and 33% of U.S. workers said they were engaged at work.

Data for Gallup's report was collected in 2023 and it surveyed 128,278 working adults in over 160 countries. The survey was carried out annually either face-to-face or via phone.

"Actively disengaged workers may often be trapped in jobs they do not like for economic reasons," the report said.

"Economic factors likely play a significant role in active disengagement. We infer that job opportunities allow bitter employees to leave bad situations and find better ones."

Less than half of U.K. employees said it's now a good time to find a job and almost one-third said they were actively looking for another job.

U.K. workers weren't confident about the job market because vacancies have been declining since the post-pandemic peak in 2022, according to data from the U.K. Office for National Statistics analyzed by McKinsey.

Job vacancies dropped by 31% in January 2024, compared with two years ago, meaning workers feel compelled to stay put because there aren't as many opportunities out there.
Adobe shares jumped 17% in extended trading on Thursday after the design software maker reported earnings and revenue that topped estimates and lifted full-year guidance.

Here's how the company did in comparison with LSEG consensus:

Earnings per share: $4.48 adjusted, vs. $4.39 expected

$4.48 adjusted, vs. $4.39 expected Revenue: $5.31 billion vs. $5.29 billion expected

Adobe's revenue grew 10% year over year in the quarter, which ended on May 31, according to a statement.

The company called for adjusted earnings per share of $4.50 to $4.55 for the fiscal third quarter, with $5.33 billion to $5.38 billion in revenue. Analysts polled by LSEG were looking for $4.48 in adjusted earnings per share and $5.4 billion in revenue.

Net-new annualized recurring revenue for the Digital Media business that includes Creative Cloud subscriptions came in at $487 million, above the StreetAccount consensus of $437.4 million.

Adobe bumped up its view for the 2024 fiscal year, calling for full-year adjusted earnings per share between $18.00 and $18.20 and revenue of $21.40 billion to $21.50 billion. Analysts surveyed by LSEG had projected $18.02 per share in adjusted earnings and $21.46 billion in revenue. The forecast in March was $17.60 to $18.00 in adjusted earnings per share, with $21.30 billion to $21.50 billion in revenue.

In recent weeks software peers SentinelOne, UiPath, Veeva reduced their full-year revenue guidance citing economic weakness and corporate interest in artificial intelligence development. CEO Shantanu Narayen told analysts on a conference call that there were no changes to the economy that were worth calling out.

During the quarter, Adobe announced the availability of a service for fine-tuning the company's Firefly generative artificial intelligence models to deliver image content consistent with clients' brand guidelines.

"We're excited about the accelerating pace of innovation across the Digital Media business and pleased with the adoption of AI functionality as well as its early monetization across Document Cloud and Creative Cloud, including our flagship applications, Firefly services and Express," David Wadhwani, president of Adobe's Digital Media business, said on the call.

Adobe is seeing Creative Cloud subscribers upgrading their plans to access Firefly capabilities, he said.

Before Adobe issued Thursday's statement, shares were down 23% so far this year, while the S&P 500 index was up around 14%.

WATCH: Adobe CEO on AI innovation, expanding AI strategy and revenue growth
Broadcom has a pathway to "join the trillionaires club," Bank of America said as it reiterated a buy rating on the chipmaker Thursday. The firm raised its price target to $2,000 per share from $1,680, a forecast that implies nearly 34% upside from Wednesday's $1,495.51 close. Broadcom's current market cap is roughly $693 billion. If it were to breach the $1 trillion mark, it would join the ranks of Microsoft, Apple, Nvidia, Alphabet, Amazon and Meta Platforms. Analyst Vivek Arya said Broadcom's steady semiconductor sales and its exposure to multiple secular product cycles could help it get there. AVGO YTD mountain Broadcom stock. The call follows strong second-quarter results that surpassed Wall Street estimates. Broadcom also announced a 10-for-1 stock split, which will take effect on July 15. On Thursday, Broadcom stock rallied more than 15% and touched a fresh 52-week high. Shares have gained about 34% year to date. Arya's new price target envisions that the stock will trade at the upper end of its historical range  and at a premium to some of its peers  which he said is "justified given double-digit EPS growth and best-in-semis profitability, [free cash flow] generation, and returns." The analyst noted that demand for Broadcom's chips isn't solely limited to artificial intelligence, and it's made efforts to pay down its debt. "We rate Broadcom Buy due to its high-quality diversified exposure to secular product cycles in the smartphone, cloud data center, telecom and enterprise storage markets," Arya said. "Additionally, with 45%+ EBITDA/FCF margins, Broadcom is among the most profitable semiconductor companies, which is likely to continue to drive strong cash returns," he said.
The Boeing Company is seen on a soccer field across the street from their headquarters on January 31, 2024 in Arlington, Virginia.

Boeing told the U.S. Justice Department it did not violate a deferred prosecution agreement after fatal crashes involving the 737 MAX, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday.

The U.S. planemaker was responding to a Justice Department determination in May that Boeing violated a 2021 deferred prosecution agreement (DPA). The DPA had shielded the company from a criminal charge arising from fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people.

"We'll decline to comment on any specific communications with the Justice Department, however, we continue to engage transparently with the Department, as we have throughout the term of the agreement," a Boeing spokesperson told Reuters.

The Justice Department did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment.

The Justice Department found in May that Boeing had failed to "design, implement, and enforce a compliance and ethics program to prevent and detect violations of the U.S. fraud laws throughout its operations," according to a court filing.

However, Reuters earlier this month reported that Boeing executives are unlikely to be criminally charged over fatal crashes as the statute of limitations has likely passed.

Prosecutors have until July 7 to inform a federal judge in Texas of their plans, which could include proceeding with a criminal case and negotiating a plea deal with Boeing, according to a person familiar with the matter, court filings and correspondence that Reuters reviewed. Short of a prosecution, the Justice Department could also extend the DPA a year.

Boeing had earlier said it believes it has "honored the terms of the agreement" and looks forward to responding to the Justice Department.
Broadcom shares closed up 12% on Thursday after the company posted second fiscal quarter earnings that beat analysts' estimates and showed that it's benefiting from the artificial intelligence boom.

Broadcom reported earnings per share of $10.96 ahead of LSEG consensus estimates of $10.84 per share. The company reported revenue of $12.49 billion, beating the expected $12.03 billion.

The chipmaker said it expects about $51 billion in sales during its fiscal 2024 year, an increase from the company's previous forecast and slightly higher than consensus expectations of $50.42 billion.

Analysts see Broadcom as a beneficiary of increasing investments in AI.

"Alongside Nvidia , we view Broadcom as a critical piece to the ongoing AI infrastructure build-out, and reiterate our Buy rating on the stock with 8% potential upside (vs. AVGO's after-hour price of $1,713) to our updated 12-month price target of $1,850 (from $1,550 prior)," Goldman Sachs analysts said in a note to investors on Thursday.

Bank of America analysts reiterated a buy rating and said they consider Broadcom a top AI pick because it is positioned to grow in custom AI chips and Ethernet networking. They also said Broadcom can upsell VMware to enterprise customers deploying AI.

"We model FY24E sales at $51.5bn, above guidance on continued upside to AI, with FY25/FY26E sales growth raised to 16%/10% YoY from 14%/8% prior," the Bank of America analysts said.

Broadcom also announced a 10-for-1 stock split on Wednesday. Shares are set to begin trading on a split-adjusted basis on July 15.

 CNBC's Michael Bloom contributed to this report.
A Swiggy delivery agent as seen in Kolkata , India , on 3 July 2023 . Famous food delivery company Swiggy faced a loss over 80% in 2022 according to investor filling. (Photo by Debarchan Chatterjee/NurPhoto via Getty Images)

This report is from this week's CNBC's "Inside India" newsletter which brings you timely, insightful news and market commentary on the emerging powerhouse and the big businesses behind its meteoric rise. Like what you see? You can subscribe here.

The South Asian giant had a flood of listings in 2023 , which hit a nine-year high of 238 with 614 billion Indian rupees ($7.35 billion) raised, according to FactSet data.

The spotlight has seemingly shifted in the past year toward companies going to market, hoping to ride on the coattails of India's growth story.

Investors wanting to cash in on India's growth have traditionally focused on storied conglomerates  like Reliance Industries and Adani Enterprises operated by the nation's tycoons  or tech startups altering the way people live.

Among the names that re-kindled interest in initial public offerings was the listing of Mankind Pharma  a manufacturer of condoms and pregnancy test kits  last year. Although the company operates in a less prominent segment, it does offer steady revenue growth and healthy profits.

However, the real takeaway was that attractive opportunities could be found in seemingly ordinary segments of an economy experiencing phenomenal growth.

India's IPO boom shows no sign of abating, with 130 new listings and 313 billion Indian rupees raised so far this year, according to FactSet.

"I expect a record-breaking year for India with a significant number of IPOs and private equity exits," Neil Bahal, founder of Negen Capital, told CNBC's Inside India.

"The IPOs are not because some tech company guys think they should raise money from the stock market instead of from private equity. There is amazing fundamentals in equity markets with supportive policies from SEBI [Securities and Exchange Board of India], retail participation and broad-based opportunities," he said.

IPO frenzy

India's tech startups are at the cusp of significant listing momentum with the likes of food and grocery delivery player Swiggy, online travel portal ixigo, software-as-a-service firm Unicommerce, and payments company MobiKwik at varying stages of the process.

The push comes as venture capital and private equity players see India's stock markets as a "great way to exit their investments and leverage on retail investor participation," says Dhruba Jyoti Sengupta from Wrise Private Middle East. He expects Ola Electric, Aakash Educational Services, and PhonePe to go public in the future.

Ola Electric has secured SEBI's approval for a $660 million IPO. Sengupta expects the manufacturer of electric two-wheelers to have a valuation of "nothing less than" $4 billion to $5 billion.

Sengupta's pick of Aakash Educational Services is unusual given that it has inadvertently been embroiled in its parent company Byju's bankruptcy case. What sets Aakash apart, however, is that it has been doing "exceptionally well," with several of its students acing their examinations, the wealth manager said. Word on the street is that the company will go to market this year to "quickly raise some funds," he added.

Elsewhere, Sengupta sees Walmart -owned Indian e-commerce marketplace PhonePe going to market soon thanks to its "brilliant ecosystem." While the company said that it has no plans to list, Sengupta says its expansion beyond India via collaborations in the United Arab Emirates and Sri Lanka are "typical signs of a company looking at an IPO."

Growing foreign listings

The allure of India's stock markets has trickled to companies beyond its shores  with foreign entities eyeing a share of its growth.

Hyundai India made headlines this week after reports of its $2.5 billion IPO. If successful, it will reportedly be one of the country's largest listings following Life Insurance Corporation of India 's offering in 2022.

India's bourse is no stranger to the listing of foreign companies' Indian entities thanks to the likes of Maruti Suzuki India , Hindustan Unilever , Siemens and ABB India .

Such listings add strength to India's markets, says M&G Investment's Asian Equities Portfolio Manager Vikas Pershad. He expects foreign companies to take this route "once they reach a certain scale."

Expensive market?

The optimism on India's IPO boom is sometimes marred by concerns over elevated valuations of its stock market  and whether it is headed toward a bubble.

India is trading at around 21 times price-to-earnings  which global emerging markets strategist Malcolm Dorson acknowledges is "a little expensive."

However, he says it presents good relative value compared to other emerging markets.

"When we look at India, we see continued economic and earnings per share growth and higher levels of profitability," Dorson from Global X told CNBC's Inside India. Global X's parent, Mirae Asset, is one of India's largest foreign asset managers.

"We need to look beyond multiples and price to intrinsic value. And India offers quality growth now."
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.

Shares of Tesla popped higher after Elon Musk said shareholders are set to approve his controversial $56 billion pay package and a resolution to move the electric car maker's incorporation to Texas.

The company's stock was up about 3% as of 10:45 a.m. ET.

Tesla shareholders have been voting on two resolutions and can have their say up to the company's annual meeting on Thursday. Most Tesla shareholders had to submit their votes by the end of the day on Wednesday. Others attending the shareholder meeting are eligible to vote in person or online on Thursday.

The first measure under consideration is whether to green light a $56 billion pay package that shareholders originally approved in 2018, before being voided by a Delaware judge in January.

The second resolution is whether Tesla should transfer its state of incorporation from Delaware to Texas. That proposal was put forward after Musk asked his followers on social media platform X earlier this year whether Tesla should carry out such a move  to a resounding yes.

Musk now said that both of these resolutions are currently passing by "wide margins," without disclosing specifics or his sourcing.

It's likely that even a majority vote for ratification of Musk's pay plan will be challenged in court, and require judicial review, according to Yale law professor Sarath Sanga.

CNBC has reached out to Tesla for comment.

The initial pay package had aggressive targets for Tesla's financial performance and market value  and, while the company has turned into one of the world's largest electric auto makers, a lot has changed since 2018.

Tesla is facing slowing growth and increased competition, especially from Chinese players. In that time, Musk also bought Twitter, now called X, and has ramped up focus on other projects, including in his brain computer interface firm Neuralink and artificial intelligence company xAI.

Critics of the pay deal argue that Musk is distracted by his other endeavors, and that the package, the largest in U.S. corporate history, is excessive. More recently, they say that Tesla's financial performance has not been up to scratch.
A new endorsement of Starbucks from a top Wall Street research firm doesn't budge our skepticism about the coffee giant's ability to deal with the multiple challenges holding back its stock. Goldman Sachs on Thursday initiated coverage of Club name Starbucks with a buy rating and a $100-per-share price target. That price target represents more than 25% upside to the prior session's close. The analysts see signs of a bottom in the stock thanks to a new digital push to improve customer wait times on mobile orders  something Jim Cramer has been particularly worried about. The Goldman team thinks Starbucks' current valuation of about 20 times forward earnings is "an attractive risk-reward opportunity," citing expectations of sales momentum ahead. The analysts are modeling full-year fiscal 2024 through 2026 earnings-per-share above consensus estimates. Goldman believes the worst is behind Starbucks and investors should start to see improvement in the company's third quarter. Jim said, however, that nothing in the Goldman note made him want to change his view. "We still have to wait," he explained. Starbucks is still "very much in the penalty box," he added. Starbucks rose 1% on Thursday to just over $80 per share. But the stock was still about $8 below where it was trading before it dropped nearly 16% on May 1  the day after disastrous earnings. SBUX YTD mountain Starbucks YTD Everybody knew that Starbucks was going to miss when fiscal second-quarter results were released on April 30 after the closing bell. Jim had been saying it for weeks. But when the numbers actually hit, we realized the company was in much worse shape than we had anticipated. A steep decline in store traffic, an inability to meet consumer demand, and unaffordable prices were contributing factors. That night, we downgraded the stock to a 2 rating and cut our price target to $90 per share. The morning after earnings, Jim blasted Starbucks CEO Laxman Narasimhan in a CNBC interview. He questioned Narasimhan's ability to right the ship. The CEO acknowledged some of the problems and offered an action plan. But he kept going back to the idea that the business foundation is "really strong." Jim criticized Narasimhan for being Pollyanna and not recognizing the severity of the challenges. There are a lot of things going wrong for Starbucks right now including slow throughput, an industry term for the number of customers who can be served in a given period; underperforming drinks, such as its Oleato branded olive oil-infused coffee; tough competition from cheaper brands in China; and backlash over the incorrect perception that the company is taking sides in the Israeli-Hamas war. Despite Goldman's optimism, we feel we have to wait a few more quarters to see whether management's turnaround plans can translate into improved financials and an end to a series of disappointments. (Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust is long SBUX. See here for a full list of the stocks.) As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade. Jim waits 45 minutes after sending a trade alert before buying or selling a stock in his charitable trust's portfolio. If Jim has talked about a stock on CNBC TV, he waits 72 hours after issuing the trade alert before executing the trade. THE ABOVE INVESTING CLUB INFORMATION IS SUBJECT TO OUR TERMS AND CONDITIONS AND PRIVACY POLICY , TOGETHER WITH OUR DISCLAIMER . NO FIDUCIARY OBLIGATION OR DUTY EXISTS, OR IS CREATED, BY VIRTUE OF YOUR RECEIPT OF ANY INFORMATION PROVIDED IN CONNECTION WITH THE INVESTING CLUB. NO SPECIFIC OUTCOME OR PROFIT IS GUARANTEED.

A store of Starbucks Coffee shop chain located in Amsterdam city center with people sitting inside, enjoying a coffee after shopping in the cafe, while others are walking by. Nicolas Economou | Nurphoto | Getty Images
The head of OPEC said Thursday that the world will need to invest in fossil fuels for decades to prevent an energy shortage, dismissing predictions that oil demand will peak soon.

OPEC Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais said oil demand will grow by 25 million barrels per day, or bpd, in the developing world through 2045, with China and India alone contributing 10 million bpd, as billions of people need access to basic services such as electricity, cooking gas and transportation.

"Those that dismiss this reality are sowing the seeds for future energy shortfalls and increased volatility, and opening the door to a world where the gap between the 'energy haves' and 'energy have nots' grows even further," Al Ghais said in a statement.

The OPEC chief called for "continued oil industry investment, today, tomorrow, and many decades into the future given the products derived from crude oil are essential for our daily lives."

OPEC's predictions of future demand starkly contrast with those of the International Energy Agency, whose membership is primarily developed economies in North America, Europe and Northeast Asia.

The IEA warned Wednesday that the world will face a massive surplus of oil in the coming years as production increases while demand slows and ultimately peaks by the end of the decade. Oil supply capacity will rise to 114 million bpd by 2030, 8 million barrels more than global demand, according to the IEA.

While oil demand will remain strong in Asia in the coming years, those gains will be offset by the adoption of electric cars, fuel efficiency and the declining use of oil for electricity generation in the Middle East, according to the IEA.

The looming surplus threatens to upend OPEC's efforts to support prices and will challenge the rapid growth of the U.S. shale industry, according to the IEA. Oil companies should consider adjusting business strategies to prepare for the changes, IEA chief Fatih Birol said in a statement.

OPEC's Al Ghais rejected those predictions, calling them "dangerous, especially for consumers and could lead to unprecedented volatility."

Helima Croft, global head of commodity strategy at RBC Capital Markets, said everything would have break perfectly in terms of clean energy subsidies for the IEA's predictions to come true.

Gains made by the far right in the European Union's recent parliamentary elections and a potential Republican victory in the November U.S. elections are headwinds for the energy transition, Croft said.

"I'm just not sure that we're facing the type of policy environment that could see this being realized, before we even talk about the demand side of the situation," Croft said in an interview on CNBC's "Last Call" Wednesday.

Robert McNally, president of the consulting firm Rapidan Energy, sees a shortage in transportation fuel by 2028 if more refineries are not built.

"I see no evidence of this imminent peak demand," McNally said on "Last Call." "Efficiency gains in cars aren't rising fast enough and EVs can't come fast enough."

"We're going to be really tight," McNally said.

Deutsche Bank and Citi, however, see OPEC coming under pressure in the coming years. OPEC+ announced plans to roll as much as 2.5 million bpd of oil back onto the market from October through September 2025.

It is "inconceivable that the market could absorb anything close" to that amount of oil, Deutsche analyst Michael Hsueh told clients in a note last week.

Citi analysts see a substantial oil surplus in 2025 as production keeps growing in North America, Brazil and Guyana, while demand slows due to energy efficiency improvements and electric vehicle adoption. The price of global benchmark Brent could drop to $60 per barrel next year as a consequence, according to Citi.

"Without supply disruptions, OPEC+ looks hard-pressed to return oil to market, without also accepting a lower price range," Citi's commodity analyst told clients in a note this week.
Shares of AFC Energy , a provider of hydrogen-fueled power generation technologies, is expected to more than double over the next year, according to RBC Capital. The London-listed company, founded in 2006, makes a range of proprietary hydrogen fuel cell systems aimed at off-grid and remote power generation for construction, mining, and transportation industries. The British company's shares have fallen from an all-time high in 2021, but the investment bank believes that the ongoing commercial momentum is not reflected in AFC's current valuation. "AFC is on the cusp of substantial growth in the coming years," said RBC analysts Erwan Kerouredan and Victoria McCulloch in a research note to clients on June 11. While the analysts have an "outperform" rating on the stock, they also suggest there is a "speculative risk" on it. The investment bank expects shares to rise 159% over the next 12 months to 40 pence a share  the most conservative price target among analysts. U.K. shares are generally priced in pence, with 100 pence equal to one British pound ($1.28). The stock is also traded over the counter in the United States and Germany with limited liquidity. The average price target of four analysts covering the stock implies a 282% upside. AFC-GB 5Y line This week, AFC announced that it raised 15.8 million by issuing new shares to finance the growth of its power generation business. The stock fell about 18% on the announcement as the new shares were priced at a discount. The company has said it plans to use the money to build out inventory and speed up the delivery of its H-Power generators to customers. The 30-kilowatt generators consume hydrogen for fuel and will be available to customers in the U.K. through its joint venture with equipment hire firm Speedy Hire . The three-year deal with Speedy Hire  under its Speedy Hydrogen Solutions brand  will target U.K. and Irish construction and emergency power markets. SDY-GB 5Y line Last year, AFC Energy also inked a deal with Saudi Arabia's TAMGO to sell or lease its zero-emission generators in the Middle East and North Africa region. TAMGO supplies equipment to Saudi Arabia's mega and large-scale infrastructure and mining projects, including the $500 billion NEOM . While a portion of the capital raised from its newly minted equity is expected to be spent on delivering on its partnership with Speedy Hire, RBC Capital analysts expect a "significant part of that capital raise to be directed to TAMGO orders."
Sometimes, quitting your job is the best move to make. Just ask former longtime "Law & Order" actor Sam Waterston.

Stepping away from the NBC drama, for which he worked for nearly 20 years, Waterston "felt a door opening" and newfound happiness, he said in a commencement speech at Princeton University last month.

"For me, more and more, the things that give me joy have to do with stopping," he said.

That's despite the financial and industry security his enduring role as District Attorney Jack McCoy on the crime series brought. The part "did for me the long-haul things everyone needs from a job," Waterston said. "It kept a roof over our heads, it put our kids through college, it kept me out of trouble, it made it easier to get other work."

Filming over 400 episodes of the show was a significant mental occupation, too  that's the "astonishing" and "thrilling" realization Waterston didn't make until after throwing in the towel. "When I did finally quit, I was amazed by the amount of space the job had been taking up in my head," he said. "A big piece of myself that I didn't even know I'd rented out is mine again."

Overall, when you change your routine, "you buy space to think and shut up and to be still," Waterson said. Now he can fully appreciate springtime weather and feel the effects of regular meditation.
A Houston-based startup called Solugen has locked in a $214 million loan commitment from the U.S. Department of Energy via the program that's most famous for financing electric vehicle maker Tesla in its early years.

According to Solugen CEO Gaurab Chakrabarti and CTO Sean Hunt, the company will use the loan to build a "bioforge," or sustainable chemicals plant, in Marshall, Minnesota.

The company turns corn sugar (also known as dextrose) into sustainable chemicals that are critical ingredients for the production of concrete, industrial and wastewater treatments, and household detergents. Solugen's chemicals can replace or reduce the need for others made from petroleum.

With about 200 full-time employees today, mostly in Texas, Solugen plans to add around 60 more employees in Minnesota long term. The new facility is near large American manufacturers  General Mills and 3M  which have served as inspiration to Hunt and Chakrabarti, the co-founders told CNBC.

While expanding operations to the north, Solugen is also designing and developing additional enzymes also from renewable feedstock. They are currently focused on new sustainable chemicals from sugar that can be used to manufacture plastics and nylon without leaving behind anything harmful like heavy metals or PFAs, the CEO said.

Before attaining the substantial loan commitment from the DOE, Solugen ranked 36 on the 2024 CNBC Disruptor List, and had raised more than $640 million in venture funding from firms including Baillie Gifford, GIC, Temasek, BlackRock, Founders Fund, Fifty Years and Refactor.

Chris Creed, chief investment officer for the Loan Programs Office at the DOE, said Solugen is one of about 20 companies to secure a loan commitment from the agency for "industrial decarbonization" and the only one focused on chemicals production.

"Our objective as an organization," Creed said, "is to catalyze the clean energy economy. We provide debt financing for American entrepreneurs and companies to build projects here in the U.S. that will employ American workers and provide community benefits while reducing green house gas emissions in their industries."
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares speaks to media on June 13, 2024 following the company's investor day at its North American headquarters in Auburn Hills, Mich.

AUBURN HILLS, Mich.  Stellantis is correcting what CEO Carlos Tavares described Thursday as "arrogant" mistakes by himself and the company in the automaker's U.S. operations that led to sales declines, bloated inventories and investor concerns.

Tavares said the convergence of three factors led to the problems: not selling down vehicle inventory fast enough; manufacturing issues, specifically with two unnamed plants; and lack of "sophistication in the way to go to market."

"We had a convergence of three things that should have triggered, from me and nobody else, an immediate task force to address those things," he told media Thursday after the company's investor day at its North American headquarters. "When I'm saying that you are arrogant, I'm talking about myself. I'm talking about the fact that I should have acted immediately recognizing that the convergence of those three problems was there."

During the investor day, Tavares and his top lieutenants broadly updated investors on the company's operations and how Stellantis plans to achieve ambitious financial targets amid industry and economic uncertainty. The company also reconfirmed its 2024 guidance and vowed to continue to return capital to shareholders going forward.

Tavares did not elaborate on the manufacturing or go-to-market problems, but Stellantis' inventory of vehicles leads major U.S. automakers as the company has held back incentives and cut marketing budgets. Stellantis' U.S. sales were off 10% during the first quarter, leading to notable declines in revenue.

In May, Cox Automotive reported days' supply of vehicles at Stellantis' Jeep and Ram brands were more than twice the industry average of 76 days. Stellantis was the only major automaker to report a decline in U.S. sales last year; its market share dropped below 10%; and Hyundai , including Kia, outsold Stellantis for the first time ever.

While sales have been down, the company remains among the most profitable automakers globally. Since merging Fiat Chrysler and PSA Groupe to form Stellantis in 2021, the automaker's adjusted operating income rose by 31% from 2021 through last year. Its adjusted profit margin is also up, rising 0.4 percentage point during that time frame, to 12.8%.

Stellantis reported a 12% decline in revenue in the first quarter, citing lower sales and foreign exchange effects, even as net pricing held firm. Its average vehicle transaction price in the U.S. was $57,266, according to Cox Automotive. That compares to an industry average of $48,389.
AUBURN HILLS, Mich.  Stellantis expects to grow sales of Jeep vehicles globally by 50% in the next three years, as the automaker attempts to leverage the quintessential American SUV brand for increased profits.

The trans-Atlantic automaker on Thursday said it will expand production and sales to roughly 1.5 million units by 2027. To do so, the company will grow its vehicle and powertrain offerings.

"The Jeep brand can be a local hero anywhere," Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares told investors Thursday during Stellantis' investor day at its North American headquarters. "We are going to reinforce the manufacturing footprint of Jeep."

Jeep plans to expand its vehicle nameplates from 10 to 13 by 2027, Jeep CEO Antonio Filosa said. Those vehicles will include 27 different powertrain offerings  traditional internal combustion engine, hybrid, extended-range/plug-in hybrid electric and all electric. That's up from 18 currently.

"We want to grow," said Filosa outlining three pillars of its strategy: customer choice of powertrains, increasing market coverage and globalization.

Much of the expected growth is targeted in North America, where the brand aims to top sales of 1 million units by 2027, up from roughly 700,000 last year.
Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has omitted at least three private jet trips gifted by Republican megadonor Harlan Crow from his annual financial disclosures, a top Senate Democrat alleged Thursday.

Those trips included private flights in 2017, 2019 and 2021 that Thomas failed to disclose, according to Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin of Illinois.

Durbin's office said it obtained documents revealing the trips as a result of the Judiciary panel authorizing a subpoena for Crow in November as part of an ethics probe of the Supreme Court.

Crow's office told CNBC that it struck an agreement to provide the committee with relevant information stretching back seven years  in exchange for the panel dropping its investigation into the real estate magnate.

"Despite his serious and continued concerns about the legality and necessity of the inquiry, Mr. Crow engaged in good faith negotiations with the Committee from the beginning to resolve the matter," his office said in a statement.

The documents revealed a private flight in May 5, 2017, taking Thomas from St. Louis, Missouri, to Kalispell, Montana, and a return flight to Dallas, Texas, on May 9, the senator's office said in a press release.

Crow's documents also showed round-trip flights from Washington, D.C., to Savannah, Georgia, on March 23, 2019, and to and from D.C. to San Jose, California, on June 29, 2021, Durbin's office said.

The Senate probe of the Supreme Court "makes it crystal clear that the highest court needs an enforceable code of conduct, because its members continue to choose not to meet the moment," Durbin said in a statement.

Spokespeople for Thomas and the Supreme Court did not immediately respond to CNBC's requests for comment.

The Judiciary chairman released the information less than a week after Thomas amended his 2019 financial disclosure report to include trips to Bali, Indonesia, and Monte Rio, California, that he had accepted from Crow that year.

Thomas said in his latest disclosure that those two trips were "inadvertently omitted" at the time.

ProPublica first revealed them last year, reporting in a bombshell investigation that the Bali trip could have exceeded $500,000 if the conservative justice paid for it himself. Thomas' amendment in last week's disclosure does not say how much the trips were worth.

Thomas' attorney Elliot Berke said in August 2023 that the justice had correctly followed judicial guidance that at the time did not require him to disclose transportation.

The new information from Durbin also follows a recent analysis from judicial reform group Fix the Court, which found that Thomas has accepted millions of dollars' worth of gifts during his more than three-decade tenure on the nation's highest court.

That figure dwarfs the combined value of all the gifts received by the eight other current justices, Fix the Court's analysis showed.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk is pictured during a visit at the company's electric car plant in Gruenheide near Berlin, eastern Germany, on March 13, 2024, as employees resumed work after production had to be halted due to a suspected arson attack that caused a power outage.

Tesla's annual meeting on Thursday in Austin, Texas, will feature a final vote on a contentious proposal asking shareholders to "ratify the 100% performance-based stock option award to Elon Musk" granted in 2018.

Even if investors back the measure, the courts will have the last say.

The proposal, one of a dozen for shareholders to consider, is on the ballot because a Delaware court in January ordered the Tesla CEO's compensation package to be rescinded. The pay package included performance-based stock options previously worth around $56 billion.

Judge Kathaleen McCormick found that Tesla's board members lacked independence from Musk, failed to properly negotiate at arm's length with the CEO and didn't to give shareholders the full picture before asking them to vote on his 2018 pay plan.

Ann Lipton, a corporate and securities law trial attorney who now teaches at Tulane Law School, said shareholders aren't in a position to overturn the judge's ruling.

"Some people apparently believe (incorrectly) that a vote in favor will settle the legal disputes," Lipton told CNBC in an email. "It won't. It will make them more complicated."

A vote to reinstate the pay plan would serve as a public relations win for Musk, who's dealing with a host of major challenges at Tesla and beyond. The electric vehicle maker is mired in a sales decline due to an aging lineup, increased competition especially in China, and brand deterioration that a recent survey attributed partly to Musk's "antics" and "political rants."

Large institutional investors, including CalPERS and CalSTRS (California's giant retirement systems) as well as Norway's sovereign wealth fund and SOC Investment Group have come out staunchly against voting for the pay plan.

"The compensation is excessive when compared to executives at peer companies, highly dilutive to shareholders, and isn't tied to the long-term profitability of Tesla," CalPERS CEO Marcie Frost said in a statement Wednesday.

By contrast, Tesla said in an April proxy filing that it's heard from several institutional shareholders who disagreed with the court's decision, and indicated they would support a vote to reinstate Musk's pay package.

Tesla shares rose 2.9% on Thursday to $182.47 after Musk said shareholders are set to approve his controversial pay package and a resolution to move the electric car maker's incorporation to Texas.

In a post on X Wednesday night, Musk wrote, "Both Tesla shareholder resolutions are currently passing by wide margins!"

Sarath Sanga, a Yale Law School professor, said the proposal to ratify Musk's pay plan is an effort by the company to fix what the court determined was a "defective process" under the 204 statute of Delaware business law.

"You need to have an independent board negotiating with the CEO, and then you need to submit all the proper details for a vote," Sanga said. "The court said they didn't. And it's likely that even a majority vote for ratification will be challenged and require more judicial review."

A resounding shareholder vote in favor of the pay plan could help Musk sway a court to give him the options in the future, Sanga noted.
The new Tesla Model 3+ is on sale at a Tesla store in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, China, September 26, 2023.

Tesla on Thursday said it will likely increase the Europe prices of its Model 3 vehicle from July 1 after the European Union said it could impose provisional higher tariffs on electric cars imported from China.

"We're anticipating a requirement for us to increase pricing for Model 3 vehicles as of 1 July 2024," a notice on Tesla's website said. "This is due to additional import duties likely to be imposed on electric vehicles manufactured in China and sold in the E.U."

The company did not disclose by how much it plans to hike the Model 3 price for Europe at this time.

The European Commission, the EU's executive arm, this week said it is raising tariffs on cars imported from China to the 27-nation bloc. The higher duties are the result of an EU probe into the Chinese EV sector which concluded that the battery-electric vehicles value chain in China "benefits from unfair subsidisation."

These provisional duties will come into effect from July 4, if the EU does not reach a solution with Chinese authorities. So-called definitive measures will be implemented four months after this.

Chinese EVs face tariffs up to 38.1% so far. While some EV makers received specific duties, Tesla has not yet been told the exact duty it will have to pay for cars it makes in China and imports into the EU.

The commission said at this stage, Tesla "may receive an individually calculated duty rate."

Shanghai is home to one of Tesla's biggest Gigafactories. In 2023, the U.S. automaker delivered 947,000 vehicles from its Shanghai factory with 600,000 going to the China market and the rest exported, according to Chinese state media.
Here are the biggest calls on Wall Street on Thursday: Deutsche Bank resumes Nike as buy Deutsche Bank resumed coverage of the stock and said it's bullish. "We believe NKE is taking bold steps to transform its business and embark on a multi-year innovation cycle that should deliver an acceleration in top-line trends and market share gains." Bank of America reiterates Broadcom as buy Following Broadcom's earnings report, Bank of America said the company has "potential to join the trillionaires club." "Broadcom (AVGO) reported a 4% beat on FQ2 sales, raised its FY24 sales outlook by $1bn to $51bn, and declared a 10:1 stock split." Citi adds Coca-Cola and Royal Caribbean to the focus list Citi said it was refreshing its conviction ideas list and added Coca-Cola and Royal Caribbean , among others, to it. "We refresh our highest conviction ideas. Within we highlight key points of differentiation and next catalysts. Adding: EVRG, KO, RCL, and TEAM. Removing: FHN, WMT." Oppenheimer names Ulta a top pick Oppenheimer said shares of Ulta are too attractive to ignore. "A Compelling Risk/Reward Scenario Supports Our Addition to Top Pick Ranking." Jefferies reiterates Microsoft as a top pick Jefferies said in a headline note that Microsoft is a "top AI pick going for AI gold, not silver." "While MSFT can't comment on other companies AI announcements, it remains enthusiastic about its partnership with OpenAI to provide cloud services. We note that MSFT is likely positioned to benefit from this deal given its profit sharing agreement with OpenAI and position as OpenAI's cloud provider." Oppenheimer reiterates Nvidia as outperform Oppenheimer said it's sticking with its outperform rating following a meeting with company management. "We see NVDA as best positioned in AI, benefiting from its full stack AI hardware, networking, and software solutions. Maintain Outperform and $150 target." Bernstein reiterates Meta as outperform Bernstein said in a bull/bear note that it's standing by its outperform rating on Meta. "We like it for today, and we like it for tomorrow. Remain Outperform. PT $565." Goldman Sachs initiates Chipotle and Starbucks as buy Goldman said in its initiation of Chipotle and Starbucks that the companies are compelling. "We are less worried about a pullback in the restaurant spending or share of PCE given a still-healthy spending outlook and more lasting behavior shifts post-covid." Morgan Stanley initiates Goodyear Tire as equal weight Morgan Stanley said in its initiation of the stock that "margins and cash returns remain low" " Goodyear looks to transform the business through self-help, asset disposals and price/mix enrichment." Wolfe upgrades 3M to outperform from peer perform Wolfe said in its upgrade of the stock that its valuation is "deeply discounted." "New CEO Bill Brown brings The Right Stuff to 3M , giving us more confidence in the medium term EPS outlook." Morgan Stanley downgrades Corning to equal weight from overweight Morgan Stanley downgraded Corning mainly on valuation. "Improved Demand Picture Reflected in Valuation; Downgrade to Equal-weight." TD Cowen initiates Civitas Resources as buy TD Cowen said the carbon-neutral energy producer is "underappreciated." "We initiate coverage of Civitas Resources with a Buy rating and a $90/shr NAV- [net asset value] based PT." KeyBanc reiterates Netflix as overweight KeyBanc raised its price target on the stock to $707 per share from $705. "Our latest Media Survey shows several positive signs: 1) Consumers using Netflix the most improved for the second straight quarter - 40% places Netflix back toward levels that existed pre-paid-sharing. We believe this corresponds to improved content and less competitive pressure. 2) Pricing power persists - Intent to cancel remains consistent with historical levels at 23%." Bank of America reiterates Dell as buy Bank of America said it sees several positive catalysts ahead for Dell. "We see the setup into 2025 as attractive as all areas of DELL's business could be strong in unison." Bank of America upgrades Kimberly-Clark to buy from underperform Bank of America double-upgraded the home care products company and said there's a "favorable setup" ahead. "Upgrading KMB to Buy from Underperform; Structural Change Ahead." Morgan Stanley reiterates Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, Microsoft and Adobe as overweight Morgan Stanley named several tech stocks that it said are well positioned for AI. " GOOGL, MSFT , AMZN, META and ADBE stand out as the leaders so far." Morgan Stanley reiterates Colgate-Palmolive as a top pick Morgan Stanley said it sees a "pet inflection on the horizon" for Colgate. "Reiterate OW With a Pet Topline/Profit Inflection Ahead." Wells Fargo reiterates Roblox as overweight Wells raised its price target on the stock to $41 per share from $37 and said it's sticking with the stock. " Roblox's competitive positioning remains strong, unlikely to be challenged by Fortnite in the near term." Stephens upgrades Par Technology to overweight from equal weight Stephens said the hardware and software solutions company has a "line of sight into profitability." "We are upgrading shares of PAR to OW/Vol. from EW/Vol. and raising our price target to $60 from $46." Barclays downgrades NextEra Energy Partners to underweight from equal weight The firm said it sees too many negative catalysts for the stock. "While NEP does have many advantages due to its proximity to NEE (the world's largest renewable developer), the company's ability to grow is highly dependent on capital-intensive dropdown acquisitions from NEER [NextEra Energy Resources]. Wedbush reiterates Tesla as outperform Wedbush said it's sticking with an outperform rating following a post by Elon Musk on X saying his pay package has been approved. "It is a pop the champagne moment for Musk and Tesla shareholders as based on Elon's X post overnight both the hot button 2018 Comp Package and Incorporation in Texas have been overwhelming[ly] approved." Bank of America reiterates Boeing as neutral Bank of America raised its price target on the stock to $200 per share from $180 but said it's sticking with its neutral rating. "On one hand, the company has somewhat de-risked 2024e expectations after the late May announcement about burning FCF. Boeing remains uniquely positioned to the robust air traffic demand environment, with the moat that the duopoly creates. However, on the other hand, turning around operations could take time and uncertainties remain in the near future."
Throughout his 2024 campaign, former President Donald Trump has managed to keep his political operation afloat by walking a delicate financial tightrope. The guilty verdict in a Manhattan hush money case added to a long list of legal challenges that have cost him more than $100 million in donor money to date.

Campaign finance experts say a unique combination of fundraising tactics and legal maneuvers have helped the Trump campaign climb out of a financial sinkhole that raised questions about his ability to compete in the race.

Since he left the White House in 2020, Trump has taken advantage of a little-known loophole in campaign finance law to pay for his mounting legal costs, which Federal Election Commission filings show amount to around $90,000 per day over the past three years.

Campaign disclosures show Trump has used a web of political action committees, or PACs, to funnel donor money to a leadership PAC he founded called Save America, which is primarily paying his legal bills. These groups are separate from his official campaign and not subject to the same restrictions by the FEC.

"This has been a problem for years, if not decades," said Saurav Ghosh, director of campaign finance at the Campaign Legal Center. "Leadership PACs are often used by candidates and officeholders as kind of a slush fund to pay for whatever they want without really any oversight."

The practice of using political donations for a candidate's legal purposes is not uncommon. Filings show President Joe Biden recently used donations from the Democratic National Committee to pay lawyers in a classified documents case. U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, who is running for reelection and on trial in an alleged bribery scheme, has spent $2 million in campaign funds on legal services.

These practices are technically allowed under FEC rules since they relate to a candidate's ability to run for office. For personal legal matters, such as Trump's New York business fraud case, experts say the use of political donations is prohibited.

Ghosh said the FEC and Congress are unlikely to pursue enforcement action against Trump, as both parties benefit from the practice.

"Trump is the most visible example because he's doing it on a scale beyond anything we've ever seen before, but pretty much everybody does it," Ghosh said. "That's the problem."

Ghosh said the FEC has received more than 40 complaints regarding Trump's misuse of campaign funds but not a single case has been investigated.

With an additional three criminal cases awaiting trial dates, Trump's legal costs are expected to continue mounting. But a new wave of megadonor support and influx of small-dollar donations following the May 30 guilty verdict has helped counter the financial drain on his campaign. In the week following the trial, Trump's team and the RNC reported having raised $141 million during the month of May, bolstered by millions raised in the aftermath of the verdict.

Experts say the fresh wave of funding is part of a strategy from the Trump campaign to capitalize on his legal challenges and also pursue wealthier donors.

Watch the video above to learn more about who these megadonors are and how Trump has managed to keep his political operation running amid unprecedented legal obstacles.






John R. Tyson speaks on stage during The Fight for Food: Value Chains and Partnerships at The 2022 Concordia Annual Summit in New York on September 21, 2022.

Tyson Foods said on Thursday it has suspended its chief financial officer, John R. Tyson, after he was charged with driving while intoxicated in Arkansas. The company said it has appointed Curt Calaway as its interim CFO.

Tyson, 34, was arrested at 1:32 a.m. on Thursday and released nine hours later, according to Washington County Detention Center. Tyson Foods is headquartered in Springdale, Arkansas.

In 2022, two months after being named CFO of the meat giant, Tyson was arrested after becoming intoxicated and falling asleep in the wrong house. A week later, he apologized to investors for the incident on the company's earnings call. Tyson plead guilty to the charges.

Tyson is the son of the company's chairman, John H. Tyson, and the great-grandson of founder John W. Tyson. He joined the company in 2019 after working in investment banking, private equity and venture capital. His appointment raised some eyebrows on Wall Street.
Republican presidential candidate former President Donald Trump gives remarks to the press at the National Republican Senatorial Committee building in Washington, June 13, 2024.

Donald Trump huddled with at least 80 CEOs on Thursday in Washington with a clear pitch: If he is elected president again in November, the CEOs are going to see tax cuts and a curtailment of business regulations, according to people who attended the meeting.

CNBC spoke with people who attended the Business Roundtable's quarterly meeting and others familiar with what took place there, all of whom were granted anonymity in order to speak freely about a private gathering.

Trump said that if he is returned to the White House he will cut taxes, including income taxes, and bring back the same economic policies he enacted during his first term, according to people who were in the meeting.

"We're going to give you more of the same for the next four years," a person who was in the room said, describing Trump's message for the company leaders.

Trump said he wants to bring the federal corporate tax rate down from 21% to 20% if he were to become president, according to a person familiar with his remarks.

Trump also mentioned to the CEOs a recent proposal he rolled out in Nevada, to eliminate taxes on worker tips, said people who were in the room. Trump then told the CEOs a story about how excited tipped workers were about his proposal, prompting laughter from the corporate leaders, according to multiple people.

Trump spoke for about an hour at the meeting, said people in attendance. The audience included JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser and Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan, according to spokespeople from their companies.

Apple CEO Tim Cook was also there, said two people who were in the room. A spokesperson for Cook declined to comment on whether he attended the meeting.

President Joe Biden's chief of staff Jeff Zients addressed the group earlier in the day, one attendee said.

Representatives for the Trump campaign and the Business Roundtable did not respond to requests for comment before publication.

For Trump and the CEOs who attended, the meeting represented an effort to mend relations after some have distanced themselves from the former president.

In 2017, the Trump administration's major business advisory groups were disbanded after members began resigning in response to Trump's attempt to equate "both sides" of the Charlottesville, Virginia, protests, one side of which featured white nationalists. During the riot on Jan. 6, 2021, on Capitol Hill, executives, including members of the Business Roundtable, called on Trump to stop the violence.

In the meeting Thursday, Trump also took a dig at Biden. "We need a president who is at the top of his game, and let's face it, this president is not at the top of his game," Trump said, according to a person who was in the room.

Trump told a meeting full of House Republicans earlier in the day about the idea of imposing an "all tariff policy" that he said would enable the U.S. to get rid of income tax, according to attendees who were granted anonymity to speak about a private meeting.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks to the Economic Club of New York in New York City, U.S., June 13, 2024.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Thursday that the $50 billion loan to Ukraine that President Joe Biden and other leaders of Group of Seven highly developed nations have agreed to could be the first of multiple loans backed by frozen Russian assets.

"This is not the last time this can be done. This is the first tranche and if necessary, there's more behind it," Yellen told reporters at an event hosted by the Economic Club of New York. "We're getting Russians to help pay for the damage that it's caused."

The $50 billion loan will be backed with at least $260 billion worth of frozen Russian central bank assets as collateral. Most of those funds are held in European Union countries.

On Thursday, Biden and his G7 counterparts struck a deal on the loan, which will help pay for military resources, humanitarian aid and support for rebuilding Ukraine, as Russia's bloody invasion stretches well into its second year.

Yellen has been actively involved in negotiating the loan. But she said that actually distributing the funds would be complicated.

"While we're trying to move quickly on this, I can't give any type of timeline as to when money would actually start flowing to Ukraine," Yellen said.

Part of hashing out the details will be figuring out how much money each G7 nation is willing to contribute to the loan.

If necessary, the U.S. will commit the entire $50 billion, a senior administration official told reporters Thursday on a press call. But Washington expects at least some of the G7 nations to pledge at least a portion of total.

"I think it's important for Putin to realize that we remain completely united in support of Ukraine," Yellen said. "We intend to give Ukraine the resources it needs to wage an effective war against Russia."
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China appreciates enlightened Japanese' courage to expose historical truth on Japanese bacteriological warfare

Xinhua) 10:06, June 13, 2024

BEIJING, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Regarding the Japanese scholars' donation of historical materials on Japanese biological warfare in China, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Wednesday that the historical documents once again provide solid evidence that Japanese militarism committed bacteriological warfare crimes in China, and China appreciates the courage of enlightened Japanese to expose and confront the historical truth.

Spokesperson Lin Jian made the remarks at a regular press briefing when asked to comment on Japanese scholars' donations. Recently, two Japanese scholars donated a large amount of historical materials on Japanese bacteriological warfare to China and expressed their hope for friendship and peace between Japan and China.

Lin said that during the World War II, the Japanese invaders flagrantly violated international law and launched appalling bacteriological warfare against the Chinese people, conducting inhumane experiments on humans and committing heinous crimes against humanity.

The historical materials they donated again demonstrate the undeniable and irrefutable evidence that Japanese militarism launched bacteriological warfare in China, he added.

Lin said Japan should face up to and deeply reflect on its history of aggression by Japanese militarism, learn from history, and avoid repeating past mistakes.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Teenage years can sometimes be the most difficult time to deal with, for children as well as for parents. It's when they are neither considered adults nor a child. This could be confusing and adolescents find it very difficult to cope with the situation. The physical, psychological and hormonal changes could make them fussy or irritated, and this certainly reflects in their interpersonal and social relationships.

A study by researchers from University of Missouri describes how adolescents' developing personalities and coping habits affect their behaviors toward others.

"We're each born with some personality tendencies; for example, we see that babies are fussy or calm," said Gustavo Carlo, the Millsap Professor of Diversity in the MU Department of Human Development and Family Studies, in a news release. "Those characteristics can change over time as people experience certain events or as a result of their parents, peers or communities. At the same time, as we get older, our personalities become more stable."

The researchers surveyed 1,557 students aged between 12 and15 years in Valencia, Spain, to study how the adolescents felt towards each other, their past pro-social and physically aggressive behaviors, their emotional stability, and how they manage stress, the news release stated.

It was found that adolescents, who were empathetic, could cope with stress by eliminating it from its source by being more problem-focused. Also, these adolescents were found to more pro-social and could work towards the benefit of others by volunteering etc.

However, emotionally unstable adolescents showed signs of aggression and were found to be more likely to on emotion-focused coping tactics such as venting, avoidance or distraction.

"Empathetic kids are generally very good at regulating their emotions and tend not to lose their tempers," Carlo said. "When you're good at regulating your emotions, you're less concerned about yourself and more considerate of other people. On the other hand, impulsive children are more self-focused and have difficulty engaging in problem-focused coping."

According to Carlo, it will be helpful to teach adolescents different ways of coping with stress, so that they can learn to deal with different situations in different ways without getting stuck at one method of coping with it.

"Sometimes we get stuck dealing with stress in one way because it was successful in the past; that coping style may not be effective with other stressors and in other situations," Carlo said. "There is more than one way to cope in situations, and people need to know when to apply which coping mechanisms.

The study was published in the Journal Personality and Individual Differences.
Sadfishing is a social media trend where people exaggerate their emotional struggles online to gain attention and sympathy.

Understanding Sadfishing

The term "sadfishing" was coined by journalist Rebecca Reid in 2019, when she used it to describe the act of posting exaggerated accounts of one's emotional troubles on social media in an attempt to attract sympathy and attention. The phenomenon gained significant attention when Kendall Jenner's emotional post about her "debilitating" acne was revealed as a promotional stunt for her collaboration with Proactiv. This event highlighted how some celebrities fabricate emotional struggles to gain public sympathy and attention.

The Difference Between Sadfishing and Genuine Vulnerability

Sadfishing is not simply about seeking support online. It involves a calculated exaggeration of emotional states to attract sympathy. Behavioral specialist and researcher Cara Petrofes has studied this trend extensively. She described it as a tendency among social media users to amplify their emotional states to garner sympathy. In a paper published in the Journal of American College Health, Petrofes and her colleagues examined sadfishing among college students. They found it to be a common "maladaptive" coping mechanism.

Petrofes explained that people with anxious attachment styles tend to seek validation from others. This need for consistent interaction and a higher number of online and in-person friendships can lead to sadfishing. Therefore, while being vulnerable online is not inherently negative, sadfishing represents a specific and exaggerated attempt to gain attention.

Impact on Young People

Research conducted by Digital Awareness UK (DAUK) examined the behavior of 50,000 young people aged 11 to 16. They found that when children genuinely seek support online, they are often accused of sadfishing. This accusation can lead to feelings of isolation and misunderstanding.

For instance, one student shared his struggles at home on Instagram, hoping for support from friends. However, his genuine attempt to seek help was dismissed as an emotional ploy for attention. This incident, reported by Sky News, illustrates the negative impact of being labeled a sadfisher. The student felt worse in some ways but also supported in others, highlighting the complex effects of this trend.
A recent study conducted by researchers from the University of Turku and Turku University Hospital in Finland delves into the relationship between coffee consumption and Parkinson's disease, focusing on its effects on dopamine levels in individuals already diagnosed with the condition.

Parkinson's disease, characterized by the loss of dopamine-producing cells in the substantia nigra region of the brain, prompted researchers to investigate the potential influence of coffee consumption on disease progression and symptoms.

Neurologist Valtteri Kaasinen pointed out the significance of their study, noting its unique focus on caffeine's impact on dopamine function in Parkinson's patients, a topic previously unexplored.

"Our study is the first to focus on the effects of caffeine on disease progression and symptoms in relation to dopamine function in Parkinson's disease," Kaasinen noted, as per Science Alert.

Involving 163 early-stage Parkinson's patients and 40 healthy controls, with 44 participants undergoing a follow-up assessment six years later, the study compared coffee consumption to dopamine transporter binding in the brain.

Results indicated that individuals consuming three or more cups of caffeinated coffee daily exhibited lower dopamine transporter binding, suggesting reduced dopamine production. However, no evidence suggested caffeine's restorative effects on Parkinson's symptoms.

"While caffeine may offer certain benefits in reducing the risk of Parkinson's disease, our study suggests that high caffeine intake has no benefit on the dopamine systems in already diagnosed patients," Kaasinen explained. "A high caffeine intake did not result in reduced symptoms of the disease, such as improved motor function."

Kaasinen emphasized that while caffeine may reduce Parkinson's risk, it doesn't benefit dopamine systems in diagnosed patients, failing to alleviate symptoms such as impaired motor function.

The observed downregulation of dopamine in heavy coffee consumers mirrored effects seen in healthy individuals and with other psychostimulant drugs, indicating a balancing mechanism in the brain.

Interestingly, consuming coffee before clinical dopamine transporter imaging may impact test results, potentially complicating interpretation.

While the study contributes vital evidence on dopamine-Parkinson's relationships, it doesn't advocate caffeine treatment for newly diagnosed patients, emphasizing the need for caution in recommending increased coffee intake.

Published in the Annals of Neurology, the research provided valuable insights into Parkinson's disease management, though it doesn't suggest a significant role for coffee consumption in alleviating symptoms.
When someone tells you theyre a stinker, believe them

Bugs Bunny is more than a wascally wabbit. Hes also a wacist, a fascist and a bit of a Fweddy Kwuegew.

14 Hes Given Countless Rabbits Tummy Trouble Rabbits can eat some carrots, but their high sugar and low fiber contents are a great recipe for rabbit diarrhea. Because of Bugs, everyone thinks carrots and rabbits are a match made in heaven, but he only chomps a carrot to mimic Clark Gable in It Happened One Night.

13 Is Bugs Bunny to Blame for Justin Roiland? Mel Blanc chewed actual carrots while voicing the character, for authenticitys sake. Sounds a lot like Roilands habit of getting rip-roaring drunk to voice Rick for Rick and Morty. We cant say for sure, but its not unlikely that Roiland got this idea from Blanc.

12 Bugs Bunny Gave Blanc an Eating Disorder Mel Blanc hated carrots. He would spit out the chewed-up carrot goop into a bucket he kept next to him while recording. Textbook disordered eating.

11 Hes Hipster Trash Bugs Bunny  specifically his accent  is from Flatbush, Brooklyn. Thats the primordial ooze from which polycules and handbag-mustache boyfriends emerged. Advertisement Advertisement

10 He Had a Stranglehold on Mel Blancs Psyche Blanc once fell into a coma after a bad car accident. His family tried desperately to get through to him, but he wouldnt respond  for 14 days!  until a neurologist asked Bugs Bunny, how are you doing today? Blanc immediately responded Myeeeh, whats up, doc? Chilling.

9 He Freddy Kruegerd His Way into Other Peoples Brains, Too A 2001 memory study exposed participants to a fake ad for Disneyland, describing Bugs Bunny as one of the attractions. One-third of participants later recalled meeting Bugs Bunny at Disneyland  a legal impossibility. Advertisement Advertisement

8 Bugs Even Left an Indelible Mark on Mel Blancs Gravestone Bugs let, nay, forced Blanc to live for 81 years, but Blanc finally escaped in 1989. His tombstone reads, THATS ALL FOLKS.

7 His Fascist Bona Fides Are Concerning, to Say the Least Bugs Bunny has been the official mascot of various military gunneries, quadrants and bombardment groups. In 1943, the Marines made it official: After Bugs appeared in an animated short in full Marine regalia, they awarded his propaganda by making him an honorary master sergeant. Advertisement Advertisement

6 He Forever Tarnished the USPS Bugs Bunny was the first cartoon to appear on a U.S. postage stamp in 1997, forever altering the path of the hallowed institution. Contemporary critics said putting a cartoon on a stamp would fuel the commercialization of stamp art, and it seems they were right  its the 7th most-popular stamp in history.

5 Elmer Fudds Offensive Counterparts Before Fudd was locked in as Bugs archnemesis, there was sort of a villain-of-the-week situation going on. A couple of the more offensive hunters that Bugs picked on were Willoughby, a mentally handicapped hound dog based directly on Lennie from Of Mice and Men, and an unnamed African American that renowned animator and racist Tex Avery really went to town on. Advertisement Advertisement

4 Bugs Wouldnt Quit Skewering Indigenous People He also went up against Hiawatha, an indigenous stereotype, and another unnamed indigenous stereotype that Bugs derogatorily called Hiawatha.

3 He Wasnt Kind to Residents of the Axis Powers in World War II In a 1944 film with a title too racist to type, Bugs off-screen murders a bunch of Japanese people, is accosted by an extremely stereotypical sword-wielding soldier and goes in drag as a geisha in order to try and hook up with a Sumo wrestler. Advertisement Advertisement

2 He Fought Slavery with Brownface In 1953s Southern Fried Rabbit, Yosemite Sam (correctly!) believes slavery isnt over. Bugs escapes his wrath by dressing like an enslaved person and saying all the stuff youd imagine he would in that scenario. Then he transforms into Abraham Lincoln to admonish Sam for mistreating enslaved people.
Things may seem pretty bleak right now, thanks to climate change, political uncertainty and every interview Jerry Seinfeld has given in the past eight weeks. Now, finally, we have some small measure of hope on the horizon: Theres a new Paddington movie coming out.

The trailer just dropped for Paddington in Peru, which finds everyones favorite CGI bear journeying to his South American home country to visit his Aunt Lucy, along with the Brown family, of course. There are also a few new characters, including a nun played by Olivia Colman and a handsome boat captain played by Antonio Banderas. Judging from the trailer, its a wonder that this movie wasnt titled Paddington 3: Mrs. Brown Cheats on Her Husband and Immediately Files For a Divorce.

Theres something kind of familiar about the way Banderas is acting in this trailer, right? Could it be that his cartoonishly flirtatious vibe and over-the-top sexy voice are because Antonio Banderas is doing an impression of Chris Kattans impression of Antonio Banderas?

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Beginning in 1998, Kattan regularly played Banderas on Saturday Night Live, depicting him as an aggressively seductive TV host who creeps on the female guests of The How Do You Say, Ah Yes, Show  despite warnings from his in-house band that his actions were too sexy.

It does seem that Banderas is pretty happy to parody the excessively sexy persona that SNL helped cement these days. For example, during a 2015 appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, he was tasked with turning the most unerotic statements imaginable into aural aphrodisiacs, including Im Jeb Bush, and Im running for president.

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But as for the Kattan impression specifically, Banderas may not have been the biggest fan. And, really, who could blame him? One sketch ridiculed his then-wife Melanie Griffith, while others had him straight-up committing sexual assault.

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In a 2022 interview for the Behind the Velvet Rope podcast, Kattan confessed that the real Banderas wasnt too happy with the sketches. So much so that when Banderas hosted SNL in 2006, three years after Kattan left the show, the comedian asked Tina Fey if he could come back and perform the sketch with the real Banderas, but (Banderas) wouldnt allow it.

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Instead, after flying from Los Angeles to New York, Kattan performed a Weekend Update bit all about how miffed he was that nobody had asked him to do his beloved Antonio Banderas impression in the episode.

Weirdly, Kattan told this story slightly differently in his memoir Baby, Dont Hurt Me, claiming that it was really Fey who put up roadblocks. Kattan What makes you think you can just come on the show and do your Antonio Banderas sketch? Fey allegedly informed him once he arrived at the SNL offices. When Kattan stormed off, she yelled, Chris Kattan, everybody!

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In this version of events, Kattan was then invited into Banderas dressing room by an NBC page, where the Desperado star lauded him for his impression. Chris. Oh, my God. You are so de funny. Really. No joke. I am so de serious right now, Banderas said, per Kattans book.

Banderas then questioned why they werent performing a How Do You Say, Ah Yes, Show sketch together, and Melanie Griffith told Kattan, We love the sketch. You got him dooown, honey.

If this element of the story were true, it seems more than a little odd that Kattan would later claim that Banderas wasnt a fan of his impression. If Paddington in Peru features a guitar-playing Jimmy Fallon, I guess well know for sure.

You (yes, you) should follow JM on Twitter (if it still exists by the time youre reading this).
Stephen Colbert, Chris Rock and Conan OBrien walk into a party thrown by the Pope  is this some kind of joke?

This Friday, Pope Francis will host an audience of many of the most prominent English-speaking comedians in the world at the Apostolic Palace in Vatican City. Along with the above comedy A-listers, His Holiness list of guests includes Jim Gaffigan, Jimmy Fallon, Whoopi Goldberg, Stephen Merchant and Tig Notaro, and the Vaticans official press release claims that the humor summit promises to be a moment of meaningful intercultural dialogue and sharing of joy and hope.

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The Pope himself has said in an interview with an Italian news station that, in advance of his meeting with many of Americas top comedians and the guy who started The Office, he prays daily in the words of St. Thomas More, asking the Lord to grant him a sense of humor. Apparently, if Jesus cant make you funny, the holiest path to humor is to splurge on importing the worlds most expensive comedy talent using all those tax-free donations that God doesnt want his top servant wasting on the needy.

Beyond teaching Pope Francis how to be funny, the Vaticans expectations for their illustrious guests are confusingly vague. According to the Vaticans official channels, the Dicastery for Culture and Education and Dicastery for Communication organized the meeting of the top comedy minds and the head of the Catholic Church as a way to celebrate the beauty of human diversity and promote a message of peace, love and solidarity. Ironically, that was Targets exact reasoning when they rolled out their Pride-themed bath towels back on June 1st.

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On that note, the timing of the meeting is especially suspect considering that the Pope has recently been caught repeatedly using homophobic slurs during closed-door conversations with Italian bishops. While closed-minded leanings on issues like sexual orientation are an obvious given from the head of the Catholic Church, reports from inside the Vatican that Pope Francis has been complaining about an air of faggotry in the church's city-state brush against his image as a cool, progressive-ish Pope who can appeal to the younger demographic.

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Perhaps this comedy summit with goals as vague as a sixteen-year-old's Instagram captions is all just a crafty bit of damage control from the Catholic Church, and collecting all the most prominent Catholic-raised comedians is a cynical attempt to distract young Catholics and potential converts from the more prickly aspects of the Pope and the church itself. Maybe the only lesson they learned from their 2002 PR nightmare was to use a little more comic relief in their cover-ups.
One curious tale from the history of stand-up comedy  that in no way involves Milton Berles prodigious johnson  is the story of how Lenny Bruce responded to the assassination of John F. Kennedy.

As legend would have it, Bruce performed a scheduled stand-up set on November 22, 1963, mere hours after JFK was fatally shot in Dallas. When he took the stage, Bruce just stood in the spotlight for a few seconds, the room silent with tension and apprehension. What would the controversial comedian say?

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Well, Vaughn Meader is fucked! Bruce finally quipped, referring to the nightclub comic who became a national sensation purely due to his Kennedy impersonation  and who really did turn out to be fucked, by the way.

This story has been recounted by everyone from Marc Maron, to former Howard Stern sidekick Jackie Martling, to whoever runs LennyBruce.org, the official website of Lenny Bruce.

But is it actually true?

The biggest red flag is the detail that Bruce performed stand-up comedy on the same day that Kennedy was killed. Famously, most businesses and schools abruptly closed following the tragedy. Even the New York Stock Exchange shut down. The suggestion that a comedy club would stay open, and somehow still attract a crowd of people willing to watch a stand-up show, seems pretty hard to swallow.

There are also inconsistencies in the various stories. One Bruce biography claimed that his opening joke had nothing to do with Meader, suggesting that he went with the far more incendiary line: Dont shoot!

The most detailed account of this show can be found in the book Ladies and Gentlemen  Lenny Bruce!! by Albert Goldman. First of all, it happened on November 30, 1963, a full eight days after the assassination, which makes a lot more sense.

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Even then, things were extremely tense. Bruce was worried that he, too, might be assassinated at the show, which might seem paranoid, if not for the fact that the theater had been set ablaze by arsonists just a few nights before Bruce was scheduled to headline the theaters debut performance. Bruce speculated that the perpetrators may have been homicidal Catholic maniacs who blamed him and his influence for Kennedys death.

Bruce wasnt the only performer that night, the opening act was Cuban percussionist Mongo Santamaria.

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When Bruce eventually took the stage, some audience members were worried how Lenny would treat the subject of the assassination. But he had no intention of talking about Kennedy, or making light of his death. Instead he came up with a line that allowed him to confront the elephant in the room, while also sidestepping the assassination completely. After a few moments of standing silently, and appearing to be in deep reflection, Bruce whistled, then spoke softly Wow! Boy! Sssssss! Poor Vaughn Meader.

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The theater erupted in laughter and then applause. Note that Bruce didnt drop an F-bomb, as some have claimed. He underplayed the moment, ramping up to the punchline with a tender sensitivity that was really laser-focused misdirection. This account of Bruces phrasing was backed up by British comedian Jonathan Miller of Beyond the Fringe fame, who was in the audience that night.

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After giving the tense crowd a cathartic release, Bruce went on to perform a set that, per Goldman, wasnt exactly his best. For the second show of the evening, he tried out some other bits related to the grim news of the day, even joking about Lee Harvey Oswalds name: Oswald is the name of a rabbit!

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Amazingly, while theres been a lot of misinformation about this one show circulating the internet, it was actually taped, and an audio recording of Bruces 1963 set is seemingly available through the Columbia University library.

Finally, college tuition pays off!

You (yes, you) should follow JM on Twitter (if it still exists by the time youre reading this).
Photo: Courtesy Elegran

Details: Price: $6.15 million ($9,985 monthly maintenance) Specs: 3 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms Extras: Gallery entrance, butlers pantry, home office, 3 gas fireplaces 15-minute walking radius: Mr. Chow, the River Club, Bergdorf Goodman Listed by: Charles Holmes, Elegran

In the 1980s, Carolyne Roehms life was as close as anyone could come to one of the socialites in Tom Wolfes Bonfire of the Vanities. Her second husband was Henry Kravis, a private-equity scion known for his leveraged buyout of Nabisco, and they lived in a $5.5 million Park Avenue apartment, furnished with Louis XV furniture and paintings by Renoir and Sargent. She had her own career, too; she had been an assistant, model, and muse to Oscar de la Renta, then left to found her own line. Post-divorce, she started teaching the rest of the world to live just as opulently as she did through coffee-table tomes on interiors and exteriors and, gift-wrapping, and floral design  which she studied from a master in France.

Many of her books were written in a Sutton Place duplex co-op that she found in 2004, a decade after her split from Kravis. She bought the place for $4.7 million from Marion Gilliam, a magazine publisher who now lives in Massachusetts. Gilliam says the apartment was owned by a relative of his wife, and he had ended up as the executor, overseeing it only for a short time. When Roehm arrived, she was thrilled to find she shared the tastes of the family and kept most of what she found: a double-high gallery entrance walled in limestone bricks that matched the buildings exterior, an oval dining room with a curved pocket door that closed off the kitchen, and a mahogany-paneled library with the feel of an enormous humidor.

Roehm in the apartment with two of her beloved dogs. At one point, she owned 12. Photo: Courtesy Carolyne Roehm

But the real draw was a great room capped with a coffered ceiling and striped in neoclassical pilasters that reminded her of her home at Weatherstone, an 18th-century manor in rural Connecticut that Roehm had rebuilt after a fire. The flavor was virtually identical, she wrote in A Passion for Interiors. Both homes had double-height ceilings, which she had learned created a special feeling. Though it may seem counterintuitive to say so, such rooms are like cocoons. You can see the whole world, it appears, through the windows, but feel cozy and protected in your big box. The great room also had a practical use; it was big enough that she could spread proofs of her books over the carpet to see them as a single composition while portraits from her collection of 17th- and 18th-century figure painters stared down in judgment. (Theres a Reynolds, a Van Dyck, and several Vigee Le Bruns.)

The high-ceilinged great rooms of 322 East 57th Street were designed for the scale of paintings like these. The boutique 1929 co-op is one of the citys studio buildings  more commonly found along West 67th Street  that were designed to be big and bright enough for an artist to work. Tamara de Lempicka rented here for almost 20 years, following the stuffier portrait painters Jere Wickwire and Douglas Chandor. As wealthy New Yorkers followed them, creatives kept coming: Andre Kostelanetz, the conductor who married the coloratura Lily Pons; Clay Felker, the founder of this magazine, and his wife, Gail Sheehy; the book collector John Fleming and, reportedly, the actor and director Orson Welles. (Still, the building is best known by the ground-floor tenant Mr Chow, where bow-tied waiters have been serving Peking duck since 1979.)

Roehm hosted friends, including magazine executive Joe Armstrong, broadcaster Phyllis George, and her mentor and former boss Oscar de la Renta. Photo: Courtesy Carolyne Roehm

The high ceilings make apartments in the building feel airy and light, but Roehms feels even airier thanks to an unusual amount of storage space for a New York City apartment. A butlers pantry is camouflaged with a panel that closes flush to the wall. Hallways are lined in deep closets with invisible doors that click open at a touch. Everythings sort of hidden, said Charles Holmes, Roehms listing agent. Its very discreet. Still, there wasnt quite enough storage for Roehms particular needs. She turned a second bedroom into a dressing room with a wall of closets 20-inches deep. Much of the furniture drifted over from her previous apartment, at 1 Sutton Place, but she picked up knickknacks here and there. Thats the fun of doing apartments and houses, she said on a phone call from Weatherstone. Youre always trying to improve it.

The gallery, lined in limestone, echoes the buildings exterior and its tiled lobby. Photo: Courtesy Elegran

Off the entrance, theres a butlers pantry with mahogany paneling that matches the upstairs library. Photo: Courtesy Elegran

The dining room. A curved wall hides a door to the kitchen. Photo: Courtesy Elegran

The kitchen. Photo: Courtesy Elegran

Photo: Courtesy Elegran

The stairs in the limestone gallery lead up to a hall that looks over the great room and winds past a library. Photo: Courtesy Elegran

A peek into the library (right) and toward a private elevator entrance behind the wood door (left). Photo: Courtesy Elegran

The library resembles another one in the building that was used as a showroom for the rare-book dealer John Fleming. Photo: Courtesy Elegran

Roehms primary bedroom. Photo: Courtesy Elegran

One of three gas fireplaces in the apartment. Photo: Courtesy Elegran

The primary bathroom, paneled in mahogany, like the library. Photo: Courtesy Elegran

Roehm turned a second bedroom into a dressing room. Photo: Courtesy Elegran

A slim bedroom designed for a maid was transformed into the office where Roehm wrote many books. Photo: Courtesy Elegran

A mirrored bath off the dressing room. Photo: Courtesy Elegran
Keir Starmer is very much hoping you wont notice that he plans a revolution in the way Britain is governed.

He wants to steal power from our ancient, sovereign Parliament and hand it instead to lawyers, the devolved mini-states in Scotland and Wales, and of course to judges.

The historian David Starkey, who is livid about the way the scheme has been barely discussed, says bluntly that the proposed reforms will eradicate our traditions of parliamentary government.

He says Gordon Brown, who pushed for many major and damaging government changes in the Blair years, now seeks to entrench them in law, and make them irreversible.

Sir Keir Starmer said he doesn't see '[the Gordon Brown plan] as handing power away. I see it as putting power where it should be'

This is a direct and deliberate blow at the whole basis of Parliaments power. If the people elect it to do so, Parliament can reverse any law. Not any more, if this stuff goes through.

Damaging

The document, A New Britain: Renewing Our Democracy And Rebuilding Our Economy, has been lying about largely unnoticed since Gordon Brown and Sir Keir Starmer launched it together in Leeds in December 2022.

Sir Keir showed he was well aware of what he is up to. He claimed that our existing system hoards power at Westminster. He added: I dont see it [the Brown plan] as handing power away. I see it as putting power where it should be.

Well, he would say that, wouldnt he? Our elected Parliament has always been an obstacle to the fiercer long-term plans of Labour.

When people actually experience Labour government, they tend to vote it out quickly. And tough opposition in the Commons can take the edge off Labours appetite for public money and state power.

Labour intellectuals have wrestled for years with the problem of how to stop anyone reversing their actions when the people, annoyingly, vote them out. Now they have found a way. This plan will remove huge amounts of power from Parliament. That power will go instead to Edinburgh and Wales, and to big (usually Labour-controlled) local government. Parliament will be forbidden by law to take this power back.

This plan is hidden behind flowery language such as A New Britain that gives the British people the power and respect they and their communities want and rightfully deserve to build their own futures.

In hard fact, the proposals attack the ancient basis of our freedom. The House of Lords will go, but be replaced by something even worse, a Chamber of the Nations and Regions modelled on the German senate and undoubtedly crammed with nationalists and Leftists.

Then there will be an explicit constitutional requirement to rebalance the UKs economy so that prosperity and investment can be spread more equally between different parts of the UK than it is today.

This will give Labours Supreme Court the power to intervene in the running of the economy. It will, as far as I can see, be able to overrule the economic decisions of the Cabinet in London.

A new British Business Bank is to be given a new remit to promote regional economic equality. And, in a measure that could unleash a disguised wealth tax on Britains homeowners, Local government should be given more capacity to generate its own revenue with new fiscal powers.

Labour leader Sir Keir with former prime ministers Tony Blair and Gordon at King Charles's Accession ceremony at St James's Palace, London

The far-from-successful Welsh and Scottish devolved governments will be constitutionally protected by strengthening the Sewel Convention and protecting it from amendment.

No, you wont have heard of the Sewel Convention, part of the Scotland Act of 2016. But Gordon Brown has.

This is what it says: It is recognised that the Parliament of the United Kingdom will not normally legislate with regard to devolved matters without the consent of the Scottish Parliament.

I suspect Gordon Brown wants to get rid of that normally  a change which moves Scotland much closer to real independence even if it stays in the UK.

But perhaps the most dangerous proposal is for new, constitutionally protected social rights  like the right to health care for all based on need, not ability to pay.

Look at what the courts have already done with human rights, turning them into a pretext for judges to make and unmake the law. Imagine what they might do with this formula.

The new rights would cover health, education, poverty and housing. Brown makes it quite clear he wants to stop any future government undoing what Labour has done, saying: In our view embedding [social rights] in the constitution is the most important thing, as it will entrench them against future threats of removal.

Judges would be able to overrule any government which sought to unravel Labours scheme for taking money from the middle classes to give to Labour voters. Its impact will be immense.

Stealthy

The plan says such rights will be very wide, and reach into such areas as the economy and culture. Brown, on p.134, actually proclaims that his document involves reconstruction of the British political system, and he is right.

Well, if it is all so wonderful, why do they talk about it so little? How many people are even aware of the existence of this fascinating document?

When it was launched 18 months ago its Recommendation 40 on p.146 said: We recommend that the necessary consultation and preparatory work should begin now, and this should include a ground-up conversation with the people of Britain. Well, it hasnt turned up anywhere near me. Yet these things are vastly important. Most of us, looking at the jungle of quangos, regulators and agencies which now run so much of the country, long for a reformer to slash through the knots and chains, and the invented rights which sustain them.

What we need in this country is not a more complex state, with more centres of power, but a simpler one  one in which ministers are once again responsible to Parliament for the actions of their departments, and in which government offices actually answer the telephone.

But the Blair Revolution, which Brown hopes to complete through this scheme, does not agree.

Pilfer

It wants to pilfer the powers of Parliament and give them to other bodies, less accountable but more in tune with the liberal elite. It wants yet more of our government subject to the political intervention of judges, who will have a whole new charter of politicised rights to play with.

And it knows (as few in politics seem to grasp) the Judicial Appointments Commission, which it created 18 years ago, has tilted the judges of this country to the Left.

The plan has been lying about largely unnoticed since Sir Keir and Mr Brown launched it together in Leeds in December 2022

The supremacy of Parliament has been, for nine centuries, the greatest gift we possessed. It is the main reason, apart from the sea surrounding us, why this country became a uniquely free nation ruled by widely respected laws.

But the problem for Left-wing Utopians such as Gordon Brown, is that they do not really accept a key part of British freedom.

A free, sovereign Parliament can and does change hands at elections. Often the outcome is badly needed reform, but just as often the reform goes too far and has to be reined in.

Former victors have to live with being defeated and put up with some of their ideas being undone. This is called Losers Consent and democracy cannot function for long without it.

In Gordon Browns reform plans I see a stealthy way of withdrawing that Losers Consent, which gravely endangers our free constitution.
There will be no peal of bells. No service of thanksgiving is planned. With one or two exceptions, it is a celebration which is about to pass Britain by  which is odd given that this is one anniversary which was made for raising a glass.

Monday will mark 200 years of a social, cultural, commercial and legal institution which can truly be said to be part of our national psyche: the pint of beer.

The taste, strength and colour of British ales may have changed over the years, but the basic ingredients  including the green, flaky hops crumbling in my hand in one of our oldest breweries  are much the same. And the measure has not changed one jot.

For it was on June 17, 1824 that the United Kingdom formally adopted a new system for quantifying the size of pretty much everything in daily life. The Weights and Measures Act laid down strict rules on the units which would govern food, drink, goods, precious metals and land.

Robert Hardman holds a beer and a 100-year-old measuring jug on a visit to Harvey's Brewery in Lewes, East Sussex, for the 200th anniversary of a pint

This applied not just in Britain but around much of the world. Known as the imperial system, it laid down specific standards, some of which  like the pennyweight, the dram, the peck and the barleycorn  have all but vanished.

The rise and rise of drearily utilitarian though mathematically convenient metrication has created a confusing, generational divide between those of us who might still walk miles for a pound of butter and those who might run a 5k to lose a few kilos. Bureaucratic zealotry has, famously, led to market traders being persecuted for selling stuff in ounces rather than grams. Some of us still talk about being in the final furlong, though our days are probably numbered. We still grade our cars by their miles to the gallon but then fill them up in litres.

Yet, one unit has reigned supreme in one area of national life for two centuries and it shows no sign of relenting.

Going for a pint is still going for a pint. Walk in to any British pub and you cannot order draught beer or cider in any other denomination. You can have a half if so minded. You can, increasingly, have a third thanks to the growing popularity of stronger craft beers. But the law states that your glass will be a fraction of the same unit calibrated in 1824.

The lasting impact of the Weights and Measures Act was that it replaced a variety of gallons with a single imperial gallon and that one eighth of that gallon would equal a pint.

No longer, it stated, could there be great confusion and manifest Frauds about what constituted a pint or a quart (two pints).

The purpose of this Act was for the Remedy and Prevention of these Evils for the future.

The original pint weights and measures jug from 1883

Whats more, for the avoidance of doubt, a very precise measuring set of vessels  including the perfect pint  would be kept at Westminster in the same place which had previously housed Acts of Parliament and the monarchs treasure.

And I am glad to say it is still there. Immediately next to College Green (now covered in television cameras and political pundits) is a very ancient building housing an intriguing little museum and cafe. I must have walked past the Jewel Tower umpteen times without ever bothering to look inside. Yet its an absolute gem.

Built by Edward III and now run by English Heritage, it is where Parliament used to store the original scrolls bearing our laws. It also held a strongroom for the royal gold and silver.

At the bottom, free to enter, is a small cafe  and there on the wall, behind rocket-proof glass, is a display cabinet containing a full set of official brass measuring devices.

These ones, which now belong to the Science Museum, date back to the days when the tower was home to the Standards Office of the Board of Trade.

This set, stamped 1885, is identical to the 1824 original. Should the precise volume of a pint ever be subject to dispute, here was the official benchmark.

We had a mix of Saxon and Germanic measures and then Henry VII started what became known as the Winchester measures, says English Heritage manager, James Parkes.

By the early 19th century, British officialdom was demanding a system of trustworthy measurement. Once the Napoleonic wars were over, there was a fresh desire for better government. Politicians and officials wanted standardisation, says Mr Parkes. It also helped with raising taxes.

It is a lot harder to cook the books when your goods or cargo are weighed or poured according to a rigid set of standards.

And the pint has been with us ever since. I find it astonishing that something which is so emblematic of empire and also avowedly un-European has not been dragged into either the culture wars, the Brexit debate or both.

Yet the pint has escaped unscathed despite a 2006 EU ruling that it should carry a CE (European conformity) certification, making the old crown symbol an optional extra. Even Irish republicans, proudly allergic to all forms of British hegemony, still drink their Guinness in pints.

No politician with a scintilla of common sense is going to legislate on the pint  with one possible exception.

I dare say that if Nigel Farage ever did become Prime Minister, then he might proclaim June 17 a national holiday.

With the start of the Euros this weekend, not to mention Fathers Day, this is surely a perfect excuse for a trip to the pub.

Going for a pint means so many things, says Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association. It means: Lets have a conversation. Lets spend time together.

 Going for a litre doesnt have the same ring to it.

With the election in full swing, though, Ms McClarkin wants to put the pub on the political agenda. We saw 536 pubs close last year and each one of them was a sad loss.

We want greater recognition of the role the pub plays in the community, she says.

And pubs contribute five times more in business rates than other businesses.

Some pubs will be marking the anniversary. For example, Joseph Holt, the Manchester brewery, has decided to tie in the bicentenary with its own 175th birthday and offer pints for just 1.75 at selected pubs.

Robert dons a white coat and helps brew the hops at Harvey's Traditional Brewery

Chief executive Richard Kershaw, who is the fifth generation of the family to run the business, says that the vast majority of drink sold is in pints and there is absolutely no pressure from customers to buy beer any other way.

This is a national institution. If I ask someone out for a litre, its not the same, he tells me. There is a sense of camaraderie which goes with a pint.

I head down to Lewes in Sussex to see a brewery which was making beer on the same spot on the day the pint came into force in 1824. Harveys is a traditional family brewery, built in the centre of the county town, and still using the same local hop farmers it has used for years.

The brewery is an age-old interaction between the rural economy and the urban economy, says joint managing director and head brewer, Miles Jenner, president of the Brewery History Society. Aside from the public sector, Harveys is the top employer in town.

The brewerys shop also has one of those original 1824 brass pint vessels to verify its measurements. There is, obviously, only one place to check its accuracy. So over the road we go to the John Harvey pub to check it out.

Two centuries on, I am glad to say, my pint of Best is accurate to the last drop.
Will the rise of the hard-Right in Europe lead progressives to question their conviction that civilisation thrives south of Calais, whereas Brexit Britain is narrow, reactionary and inward-looking?

Such prejudices are not new. For at least a hundred years, English intellectuals have looked longingly across the Channel in the belief that in almost every respect life is superior on the Continent.

George Orwell wrote about the phenomenon in 1940, famously asserting that England is perhaps the only great country whose intellectuals are ashamed of their own nationality.

He added, accurately, that the English intelligentsia are Europeanized. They take their cookery from Paris and their opinions from Moscow.

Dame Emma Thompson, a fervent anti-Brexiteer, who before the 2016 referendum described Britain as a 'tiny, little, cloud-bolted, rainy cake-filled, misery-laden, grey old island'

Has anything changed? The war obviously put a slight dampener on the progressives certainty that, culturally and politically, Europe had much to teach dingy old Britain.

Hitler in Germany and Mussolini in Italy  not to mention Stalinist Russia, Franco-ist Spain and Vichy France  rather punctured the view that European countries could be held up as exemplars of good governance.

But after the war it didnt take long for intellectuals  who, as Orwell pointed out, are overwhelmingly of the Left  to gaze covetously at Europe once more, and wherever possible to get into a car or jump on a train to enjoy its delights first-hand.

Books by Elizabeth David about French and Italian cooking were snapped up by people who needed little persuading that English food was dull and tasteless, and far inferior to European cuisine. Roast beef and Yorkshire pudding was considered an abomination.

Intellectuals lapped up Marxist continental writers such as Jean-Paul Sartre or Bertolt Brecht with an enthusiasm they could never quite summon for their home-grown counterparts.

Let me stress that I love France and Italy, and revere their great art and beautiful architecture, though not their political systems. But such esteem hasnt made me feel less affection for my own country, of which I have certainly never been ashamed.

Not so the actress Dame Emma Thompson, a fervent anti-Brexiteer, who before the 2016 referendum described Britain as a tiny, little, cloud-bolted, rainy cake-filled, misery-laden, grey old island. The poor woman has evidently never enjoyed a good Victoria Sponge or Dundee Cake!

The actor Sir Ian McKellen was no less down on his own country, as well as awestruck by Europe, in the immediate aftermath of the referendum. He lamented: Everything thats good about being British is related to Europe. Surely some mistake, as the late Tory politician and journalist Bill Deedes might have said.

Thompson and McKellen could have been speaking on behalf of generations of middle-class intellectuals who have deprecated their own land, and uncritically venerated all aspects of Europe.

For years they have flocked to the Continent like homing pigeons. They may nest in Chiantishire (a fictitious British enclave in Tuscany) unaware of the perennial political volatility in Italy, which in the 1970s exploded into far-Left and far-Right terrorism.

Sir Ian McKellen also lamented: Everything thats good about being British is related to Europe'

Or perhaps they have roosted in the Dordogne, a beautiful department in south-west France, and ignored the 1968 student uprising in Paris, which necessitated President Charles de Gaulles sudden flight from the French capital.

Or conceivably (though Germany is a less popular venue for our itinerant intellectuals) they perched in the Rhine valley in the 1970s and 1980s, blissfully ignorant of the activities of the Baader-Meinhof Gang, which was responsible for bombings, assassinations, kidnappings and bank robberies.

Britain seems tame by comparison. Weve had our difficulties  Im thinking of Islamist terrorism, also experienced by other European countries  but since the war, as before it, our politics have been calmer and less violent than those of other major European countries. Northern Ireland was an ugly tragedy, but the contagion barely spread to Britain.

Might the virulent denigrators of this country concede that our constitutional monarchy and long history of parliamentary government have created an enduring stability that is sometimes absent in Europe? No! They will never admit that Britain has any intrinsic advantages over its neighbours.

The success of the hard-Right over the weekend in European elections, in France, Germany, Italy and several other countries, wasnt a bolt from the blue. It is a cancer that has been growing and spreading for years, so that in one months time there could be a hard-Right government in France.

What do the intellectual detractors of Britain with funereal faces say now  the Thompsons and the McKellens, as well as novelists such as Julian Barnes and Ian McEwan, who decried Brexit as an act of stupidity and blind insularity? Do they give thanks for our dependable political arrangements? I have heard nothing.

Believe me, I dont rejoice that the hard-Right is on the march in Europe. But I am glad its still only on the fringes in Britain. Nigel Farage cant be equated with Marine Le Pen in France, or even the slightly more moderate Giorgia Meloni in Italy. We arent about to catch Europes disease. The worst we have to fear is the stolid, rather boring, democratic socialist, Sir Keir Starmer.

As I say, our political institutions have deep roots. We are also not cursed with proportional representation, which inevitably gives a bigger voice to radical parties of Left and Right. An unlikely alliance of Farage, the Lib Dems and the Green Party wants to get rid of first-past-the-post, the very system that offers protection against extremists.

But I believe theres something deeper  a tolerance and sense of fairness, remarked upon by Orwell, that distinguishes the British from other races. Many people are furious about uncontrolled immigration, and understandably so, but they havent turned to the hard-Right. Lets pray they never do. Our rainy little island that supposedly owes everything to Europe turns out to be more stable, more grounded in its democratic ways, than most of the countries the other side of the Channel.

Zealous anti-Brexiteers will never admit as much, of course. Nor will they recognise that the economic fortunes of Germany, France and Italy are worse than our own. The other day, the head of Deutsche Borse, a huge German multi-national, declared that Germany is little more than a developing country. An exaggeration, of course, but one sees his point.

Brexit hasnt ruined the UK economy, though you would think it had if you relied solely on the Financial Times, Guardian or BBC. In 2021, Britain was ranked the seventh-largest exporter in the world by the UN Conference on Trade and Development. It now stands in fourth place, following rapid growth in the export of services.

Point this out next time you are abroad and a well-meaning foreigner, influenced by wrong-headed British progressive intellectuals who in the long tradition of their kind run this country down, looks pityingly into your eyes and offers to send you a food parcel.

The sub-text of this election campaign is that Britain is a crumbling, depressed, dysfunctional country in urgent need of emergency surgery.

Believe that if you will. But when I look across the Channel, and see a rampant hard-Right and economies dickier than our own, I can only count our blessings.
There is a worrying sense across the country that the General Election result is a foregone conclusion.

The only question now in many people's minds is not whether Labour is going to win, but what the margin of victory will be.

If the polls are to be trusted, the word 'landslide' may not express the scale of it.

Survey after survey predicts Sir Keir Starmer is on course for a victory that would eclipse even Tony Blair's whopping 179-seat majority in 1997.

Sir Keir Starmer, addresses the audience during a Sky News election event with Sky's political editor Beth Rigby

'Democracy,' wrote acclaimed author Poul Henningsen (pictured), 'can only be measured by the existence of an opposition'

But if the Conservatives are reduced to a rump of a few dozen MPs  troublingly feasible with tactical voting  who will hold a Labour government's feet to the fire?

Not the Lib Dems if, by some nightmare, they form the official opposition. They disagree with Sir Keir on virtually nothing.

This is why it is so vital that disillusioned Tory voters do not fall into the trap of handing Labour a 'super-majority'.

Defence Secretary Grant Shapps is right to warn that would be 'very bad news'.

Ex-attorney general Sir Geoffrey Cox is even blunter. We risk, he says, 'sleepwalking into a one-party socialist state'.

Of course, it is understandable that many voters think the Tories deserve all the punishment they get. Their failures on everything from immigration to levelling up are seen by millions as a betrayal.

But the consequences if the country's main centre-Right party is wiped out are too grim to contemplate.

'Democracy,' wrote acclaimed author Poul Henningsen, 'can only be measured by the existence of an opposition'.

Without an effective adversary in Parliament, Labour could ride roughshod over all other points of view. This is catastrophic for democracy.

There is another reason such untrammelled power is dangerous. Sir Keir has been troublingly vague about what he has in store for the country.

This matters because his most radical ideas have not featured in the campaign at all. We may be enlightened by Labour's manifesto today, but let's not hold our breath.

There are deeply worrying elements of class war socialism in the limited policies that have been unveiled so far  especially the spiteful tax raids on independent schools which could well end up placing an additional burden on the state sector.

How else is he going to raise money for his promised public sector spending splurges? The nagging fear is he will target hard-earned wealth and pensions.

Without an effective adversary in Parliament, Labour could ride roughshod over all other points of view. This is catastrophic for democracy

Nigel Farage arrives at a fundraiser for Donald Trump, hosted by former Neighbours star Holly Valance, in London on June 12

A super-majority would also allow Labour to rig the electoral system to its advantage. Sir Keir favours giving votes to 16-year-olds who are traditionally (and naively) Left-wing. What will stop him enfranchising EU citizens? Or even prisoners?

And he plans to place more power in the hands of the unelected, Left-leaning judiciary and quangos. Such constitutional vandalism could make it near-impossible to remove Labour from government.

Nigel Farage is long on rhetoric but the vagaries of our electoral system mean his insurgent party has no chance of winning more than a tiny number of seats, if that.

There is no better way of inadvertently giving Labour a blank cheque to wreak havoc on the country than voting for Reform UK  or staying at home  on July 4.

So disgruntled Tories who think there is nothing at stake should think again.

Even if they hold their noses, their votes can make a difference to the size of Sir Keir's majority.

If they act in haste, under a Labour government they will repent at leisure. Perhaps for a generation.
Would Britain have done better to stay out of the Second World War?

Ian Gribbin, the Reform party candidate for Bexhill and Battle, certainly thought so as recently as July 2022, when he posted on the Unherd website that 'Britain would be in a far better state today had we taken Hitler up on his offer of neutrality'.

It is a shame, he continued, that 'Britain's warped mindset values weird notions of international morality rather than looking after its own people'.

Winston Churchill's military strategy, so far from being 'abysmal', was inspired. We should honour his memory

British Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain shakes hands with Adolf Hitler at Munich in 1938

Elsewhere, Mr Gribbin states that 'We need to exorcise the cult of Churchill,' and to recognise that 'in both policy and military strategy, he was abysmal'.

Although Gribbin has since apologised for these comments, Reform's official spokesman has not - preferring, instead, to double down on the sentiments when speaking to, of all publications, the Jewish Chronicle.

According to Reform, Gribbin's remarks were no more than neutral analysis, 'written with an eye to inconvenient perspectives and truths. That doesn't make them endorsements, just arguing points in long-distant debates.

'[Gribbin's] historical perspective of what the UK could have done in the 1930s was shared by the vast majority of the British Establishment, including the BBC of its day, and is probably true.'

Ian Gribbin has stated that 'We need to exorcise the cult of Churchill,' and to recognise that 'in both policy and military strategy, he was abysmal'

No fewer than 41 of Reform's candidates are Facebook friends with Gary Raikes, the leader of a neo-Nazi group called the New British Union

Reform's dismissive views of Churchill, Britain and our war-time sacrifice are troubling enough. This, after all, is a political party which openly seeks to rival the Conservatives at Westminster.

But Reform's stance is positively disturbing in the light of the recent revelation that no fewer than 41 of its candidates are Facebook friends with a man called Gary Raikes, the leader of a neo-Nazi group called the New British Union which has called for a 'Fascist revolution'.

That's why it is now imperative that the Party come clean. Just where does it stand on Winston Churchill's leadership in the Second World War  and on Britain's determination to oppose the Nazis?

Reform pretends that Gribbin was taking part in a long-running debate about Appeasement in the 1930s, but in fact it appears that Gribbin was talking about agreeing a WARTIME TRUCE with the Nazis.

If Reform UK genuinely thinks that Britain should have remained neutral in the Second World War, the case deserves to be argued on its merits  if only to be despatched more efficiently.

It is a well-known trope that has been put forward over the years by respected historians such as Dr John Charmley, the late Alan Clark MP and Professor Maurice Cowling of Cambridge University, but also, before that, by Sir Oswald Mosley and his British Union of Fascists.

It simply doesn't stand up to serious investigation.

Adolf Hitler offered Britain neutrality on July 19, 1940, ten months into the war and less than a month before he had invaded Russia. He did so in the hope of freeing dozens of German divisions guarding his western flank and transporting them to fight against the Soviet Union in the east in the forthcoming Operation Barbarossa.

If Britain had declared neutrality  and had not conducted bombing missions on Germany from August 1940 onwards  the Fuhrer would have been able to use the totality of the Luftwaffe in his invasion of Russia rather than 70 per cent of it.

Even so, Hitler got to within 40 miles of Moscow, where Joseph Stalin's personal train sat ready to take him to safety beyond the Ural Mountains.

A neutral Britain would have been in no position to help Russia with convoys of tanks and planes.

Our refusal to fight would have fatally confirmed the United States in its isolationism, and thus our country could not have been used as the unsinkable aircraft carrier from which the British, Americans and Canadians launched D-Day  the start of the extraordinary campaign which ultimately liberated Western Europe.

For half a millennium, British strategy has been to oppose the hungry ambitions of European tyrants. This explains why we fought the Spanish Armada, the War of Spanish Succession, the Napoleonic Wars and the Great War.

We took part not because, as Gribbin put it, 'Britain's warped mindset values weird notions of international morality', but out of clear-sighted realpolitik. We wanted to ensure British security.

Since Adolf Hitler ripped up every treaty he ever signed, no meaningful neutrality would have been possible.

We can be certain that, once he had defeated Russia, Hitler would have turned on us. And in doing so, he would not have been fighting on two fronts  the weakness that eventually destroyed him.

Reform's spokesman was correct to tell the Jewish Chronicle that Britain lost 'a massive amount of blood and treasure' because of Churchill's decision to fight on, but it was a fraction of what she would have lost if she'd had to confront the Nazis later  and without Russia and America as allies.

Britain did not go to war to save Jewry, but Churchill was inspired by his moral loathing of Nazism. And Mr Gribbin, who points out that he has a Russian-Jewish maternal grandmother, probably owes his life to this.

His grandmother is unlikely to have survived had Hitler controlled the entire European continent from Brest to the Urals throughout the 1940s.

The cost for Britain was heavy: the loss of empire abroad and the rise of socialism at home. But these things were the necessary price to pay for the untarnishable glory of contributing to the crushing of Nazism. The empire was on the way out by the mid-1930s, anyhow.

Equally, if the Soviets had defeated the Nazis, a neutral Britain would also have been in a desperate situation, with Stalin  every bit as expansionist as Hitler  as the master of Europe.

Without a British and American army in France, there would have been nothing to prevent the Red Army reaching Paris.

We would have been faced with a communist Europe, one which posed just as much of a long-term threat to British security as the Nazis.

Winston Churchill's decision to fight on when Hitler offered peace was his greatest single act of statesmanship. And it is disgraceful that the Reform Party's official spokesman should denounce it.

As it happens, Reform's leader, Nigel Farage, is a military history geek and, like me, an admirer of Churchill. He, for one, knows that Churchill's military strategy, so far from being 'abysmal', was inspired.

It was Churchill who devised military strategies for North Africa and the Mediterranean and then sold them to the Americans, ensuring the Germany First policy  committing the U.S. to war in Europe  was adopted by President Franklin Roosevelt.

It was Churchill who ensured that D-Day did not take place until total air dominance was achieved and the Battle of the Atlantic won, and he who kept the Big Three  himself, Stalin and Roosevelt  together, bravely travelling a combined total of 120,000 miles outside the United Kingdom to do so.

At the very least, Gribbin is historically ignorant  certainly too ignorant to be a parliamentary candidate  and the Reform party should sack him on that ground alone.

But it also needs to root out other members who are more interested in PR and posturing than honouring the memory of Winston Churchill.

How, otherwise, can Reform criticise Rishi Sunak over missing one part of the D-Day commemorations  when its own spokesmen are suggesting that D-Day should never have happened in the first place?

Is this the sort of 'patriotism' that British voters really want to choose?

Andrew Roberts is the author of Churchill: Walking With Destiny.
Wes Streeting and me. We go back a long way. We go back nearly 15 years, me and Wes, so we do.

We have never met, nor spoken on the telephone, exchanged an electronic communication nor a single word or glance. Yet still here we are trapped as one, a pesky fly on a spiral of glue paper, twisting together in the wind.

I like to think that this says more about him than it does about me, but you must make up your own mind. Im not here to persuade anyone to vote either way, to side with me or plump for Wes (right) politically or morally.

I gave up on all that years ago. What I have learned is that people are going to think what they want to think; they are going to follow their belief systems and coddle their own prejudices until they reach the assumptions they find most comfortable, whether based in truth or not.

Yet for Wes and me, our shared past is used as a weapon against both of us, by those who wish to cause either of us harm or mischief. And as the election gets closer and the ambitious Streetings star rises, it is getting worse and worse. The Jan & Wes unholy alliance crops up with increasing frequency on social media and in newspapers, flaring up in bitter little fires across the great divide.

It has got to the stage where people often ask what I am going to do about Wes Streeting and up until now, my answer has always been: absolutely nothing. However, silence isnt an option any more. Im going to have to address the fact the current Shadow Health Secretary once publicly insinuated he wanted to kill me.

'There would be nothing natural about Jan Moir's death if I shoved the bigoted old bag under a train,' Wes Streeting once tweeted

It happened after my column about pop star Stephen Gately was published in 2009 and wrongly interpreted by many as being homophobic. Infamously, it caused one of the first ever Twitterstorms and became headline news on TV bulletins for days, not that I am proud about any of that. The column was investigated by the Press Complaints Commission, by the Met Police and also  good God  by the Crown Prosecution Service, which examined every word and comma to see if any crime had been committed.

The PCC did not find that the column was homophobic, the police and CPS both concluded there was no case to answer and, in my own defence, wasnt it unlikely that someone who had been a journalist for more than 20 years, who had publicly supported gay marriage and written thousands of articles free from even a whiff of homophobia, had suddenly, like the alien bursting out of John Hurts chest, turned into a raging homophobe overnight?

But Streeting thought he knew better. There would be nothing natural about Jan Moirs death if I shoved the bigoted old bag under a train, he tweeted, managing to be viciously offensive, ageist and sexist in one sentence. Really, I doff my Glenda cap to him; none of we professionals, the old bag sorority as he might call us, would dare to go for the triple crown of outright odium in so few words.

He was referring to my assertion back then that there was nothing natural about Gatelys death. What I meant was the natural duration of the 33-year-olds life had been tragically shortened in a way that was shocking and out of the ordinary. Certainly, his death was unusual enough for a coroner to become involved and reports had all pointed to enthusiastic consumption of drink and drugs.

In my original, unedited column I had referred to the type of dangerous party drugs then popular in gay nightclubs and which were becoming a public health issue  could they have been a factor?

A coalition of Mail executives and lawyers  acting with the best of intentions  removed those paragraphs because they believed them to be in bad taste. I know. Cue explosion of the worlds biggest irony-o-meter. This excision, which was genuinely meant to be compassionate, only succeeded in giving the column a different complexion. It made it easier to negatively misinterpret my words were you minded to do so, and plenty of people were perhaps understandably so.

The ambitious Wes Streeting, photographed as a student, harbours Labour leadership aspirations, Jan Moir writes

It will always be a matter of regret to me that this innocent mans death became the subject of such fevered speculation  and that fault is entirely mine.

Yet I still maintain that it was more homophobic to conclude I had been homophobic and if you want to be outraged by that, be my guest. There is so much more I want to write and say about all these events, but this is neither the time nor the place. Were here for the Wes side story.

Wes tweeted he wanted to push me under a train, and later under a bus, so you cant say the guy doesnt know his way around public transport.

Later he compared me to Geert Wilders, the far-Right Dutch politician who was then facing trial for discrimination and inciting hatred and had been banned from visiting the UK. Oh, come off it, Wes. I admit my column was poorly timed and badly judged, but Im not trying to wipe Islam off the face of the Earth.

It has become increasingly clear the ambitious Streeting harbours Labour leadership aspirations.

To this end, he has come under pressure to apologise for his alarming history of abusive tweets, against me and others.

In no particular order, he has threatened to punch people, to slap people, to use a rifle on tax dodgers and to burn down the flat of someone who annoyed him.

Last month, during the London mayoral elections, he tweeted that a win for Conservative candidate Susan Hall would be a win for racists, white supremacists and Islamophobes the world over  a repellent and inflammatory assertion that Hall said put her in danger and at risk.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer and health spokesman Wes Streeting may take control of the entire country in the not-too-distant future

Wish the Tories lining up to condemn my tweet were as vocal in calling about [sic] the abuse that Sadiq (Khan) receives, he meeped on Twitter, a typically Wes

piece of peevish whataboutery. He has a way of apologising without apologising, of appearing contrite while actually doubling down

on his latest violent threat or absurd transgression.

He has had to apologise for calling Jeremy Corbyn senile, and for saying trans women are women because he changed his mind and now believes women cant have a penis, so at least there is some progress there. In 2022 he surpassed all expectations by issuing a third-person apology by proxy over what he had written about me. It was a chancers masterstroke, an expression of regret which was really an orgy of apology to no one but himself.

I was still deeply homophobic, abhorrent and offensive so no change there, boo hoo. However, his spokesman insisted poor, misunderstood Wes was sorry for the way in which his anger and upset at this piece was framed.

Really? What pompous, self-serving nonsense. I understand why politicians need to muck out their stables now and again, but is it entirely fair of Wes Streeting to burnish his reputation and try to make himself more electable and agreeable at the expense of myself and others he has abused?

Here he is, rushing towards power, his hands outstretched as he prepares to take control of the NHS, the Labour Party and quite possibly even the entire country in the not-too-distant future.

Yes, you are right. It is a horrifying thought. But not as awful for me as knowing that despite the lack of personal contact or consensus between Wes and me, our names are entwined now and forever more, a pair of tarnished links in a charmless bracelet of unhappy circumstance.
Confronting people can be intimidating for some, and so their preferred method of communication is via a note.

These signs, which were spotted around the world and collated into a gallery by Bored Panda, show how petty people can be when they are not in a face-to-face conversation.

In an effort to get their point across, many of the people who wrote these signs used sarcasm.

Among the signs, is one outside a lone shop which has shut down operations. After letting people know they are closed for business, the sign writers added 'thanks to everyone'.

Another of the images shows how far one aggrieved motorist went after seeing some poor parking, actually getting chalk to draw lines on the floor to mark out where the vehicle had been placed between the allotted places, and writing: 'Parking spot just for you.'

This hand drawn sign, thought to be in North America, shows how far some people will go to make a point, getting two different colours of chalk to create their message

To add an extra edge of sarcasm, the angry sign writer finished their etchings with three hearts.

Meanwhile, another of the photos shows a sign explaining that some toilets are now no longer available for use due to vandalism. As a finishing touch, the note says: 'This is why we can't have nice things.

Here, FEMAIL shares hilarious passive aggressive signs that show just how petty people can be...

Spotted outside a now-closed shop, thought to be in North America, this sign is perhaps more passive-aggressive than the writer intended

Whoever wrote this sign seemed annoyed about having to close these bathrooms, and couldn't resist adding a final flourish to the note, lamenting that 'this is why we can't have nice things'

The original sign, thought to be from the UK, may not be passive aggressive, but the addendums created by 'Carolyn' certainly are

Whoever wrote this sign, believed to have spotted in the UK, may have had to clean up a lot of dirty toilet paper - and is not happy about it

The writer of this sign, which is thought to have been spotted in Hawaii, went with classic sarcasm, suggesting that a number of people have, in fact, used this potted plant as an ashtray

IT'S FINE: This clever sign uses passive aggression to make a joke about passive aggressive club

Whoever designed this message may not have intended to come across as so passive aggressive, but the words 'we hope you're happy' certainly read as sarcasm

While this sign left on someone's car window opens with 'thank you', the rest of the note shows that the writer was actually being sarcastic

This sign, thought to be from North America, shows how petty people get when others don't pull their weight with domestic chores

While this sign may not be particularly passive aggressive, the three huge red arrows certainly are
Queen Maxima of the Netherlands once again proved she's queen of the quick change today as she continued her four-day tour of America with her husband King Willem-Alexander.

The mother-of-three, 53, first toured NY Creates, a tech hub for semiconductor research and development, during a visit to Albany, New York.

Looking every inch the professional, the Argentinian-born royal and her husband donned protective gear, which covered their bodies but left their faces viewable, as they entered the cleanroom.

Next, Maxima and Willem-Alexander visited New York Governor Kathy Hochul and her husband William J. Hochul Jr., alongside Dutch Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Liesje Schreinemacher.

For this visit, Maxima ditched the protective gear from earlier and donned a bright yellow gown, complete with cream floral detailing on the bodice.

Queen Maxima of the Netherlands (pictured left) once again proved she's queen of the quick change today as she continued her four-day tour of America with her husband King Willem-Alexander

Commanding attention in her vibrant ensemble, the Dutch Queen sported a matching headpiece, while leaving her blonde locks loose and curly.

She added a touch of glitz to her ensemble with a pair of pearl drop earrings and a dazzling bracelet.

Standing alongside her equally smart-looking husband in one photograph from the event, Maxima carried a cream clutch and gloves in her hand.

Willem-Alexander, meanwhile, appeared sophisticated in a pinstriped suit teamed with a white shirt and a bright blue tie.

On Tuesday, the king and queen of the Netherlands spent the second day of their US tour in Georgia's founding city, Savannah, a tourism magnet for its wealth of historic architecture and a growing powerhouse in global trade.

The Dutch royals stepped from their motorcade Tuesday morning and onto a red carpet that had been rolled across the sidewalk outside Savannah's gold-domed City Hall, where Mayor Van Johnson greeted them.

'We are so honoured today to have his majesty the king and her majesty the queen here in our beautiful city,' Johnson said to kick off a roundtable discussion between city staff and Dutch dignitaries. 'Today is a day for us that creates and speaks of opportunities - opportunities that we can explore and opportunities that we can expand.'

King Willem-Alexander of The Netherlands and Queen Maxima visit the Governor of the State of New York Kathy Hochul (4th L) and her husband William J. Hochul Jr.

The mother-of-three, 53, first toured NY Creates, a tech hub for semiconductor research and development, during a visit to Albany, New York

The Dutch King and Queen donned protective gear as they visited New York Creates

The Dutch royals' (pictured today) four-day US trip began Monday in Atlanta

For this visit, Maxima (pictured left) ditched the protective gear from earlier and donned a bright yellow gown, complete with cream floral detailing on the bodice

The Dutch royals' trip to Georgia has featured a mixture of stops at cultural sites and meetings focused on strengthening economic ties.

In Savannah, the king and queen took a stroll beneath majestic live oaks draped with Spanish moss in the prized historic district of the city founded by British colonists in 1733.

At Savannah State University, the royal couple climbed onstage with students and danced during a marching band performance.

Afterward, they toured the Port of Savannah, the fourth-busiest US seaport for cargo shipped in containers.

The giant metal boxes are used to transport goods ranging from consumer electronics to frozen chickens. Savannah handled 4.9 million container units in 2023, more than any US port other than New York, Los Angeles and Long Beach, California.

Commanding attention in her vibrant ensemble, the Dutch Queen (pictured right) sported a matching headpiece, while leaving her blonde locks loose and curly

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of The Netherlands visit the Governor of the State of New York Kathy Hochul and her husband William J. Hochul Jr.

Willem-Alexander, meanwhile, appeared sophisticated in a pinstriped suit teamed with a white shirt and a bright blue tie

The king and queen chatted with crane operators on the dock as containers were being loaded onto a mammoth cargo ship behind them.

Then they sat in a shaded tent for a recap of discussions held earlier in the day between Georgia and Dutch representatives on ways to make seaports more efficient and environmentally sustainable.

Total trade between Georgia and the Netherlands was $2.9 billion last year, according to the Georgia Department of Economic Development.

Georgia sent $1.8 billion in exports, including medical instruments and automatic data processing machines, to the Netherlands in 2023. The state imported $1.2 billion in goods from the Netherlands, including aircraft parts and malt beer.

The Dutch royals' four-day US trip began Monday in Atlanta, where the king and queen met with Gov. Brian Kemp at Georgia's state Capitol, toured the burial site of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and visited a recording studio in a city known for hip-hop artists.

The king and queen are scheduled to spend Wednesday and Thursday in New York to wrap up their US tour.
An Australian burger chain has launched the nation's spiciest burger - and it's so hot they needed the permission of the government to release it.

Burger Urge's Scorpion Death Wish $35 burger will soon be available across their 39 outlets including the Gold Coast, Cairns, Glendale NSW and Wodonga VIC.

The burger is made with a bright red bun, two smashed beef patties, Moruga scorpion chilli puree, a dash of 'scorpion death wish' sauce, jalapenos, cheese, red onion, lettuce, tomato and an edible Asian forest scorpion.

The importation of the latter required the permission of the federal government.

The Moruga chilli hails from Trinidad and has five times as much heat as the humble habanero pepper.

An Australian burger chained has launched the nation's spiciest burger - and it's so hot they needed the permission of the federal government to release it

Burger Urge's Scorpion Death Wish burger will soon be available across their 39 outlets including the Gold Coast , Cairns, Glendale NSW and Wodonga VIC

Paul Bosland, director of the Chile Pepper Institute in New Mexico in The US, describes the experience of eating this particular chilli as 'not bad initially', but then the heat 'builds and builds' until it turns 'quite nasty'.

On Saturday the 15th and Saturday the 22nd of June customers can try their stomach at the Scorpion Death Wish Challenge.

To enter competitors need to be 18 or older and register online. Goggles and gloves are provided but the burgers themselves are in limited supply so it's first come, first served.

While chilli is loaded with Vitamin C and boasts anti-inflammatory health benefits, the downside of consuming too much can be nausea, diarrhea and vomiting.

Those thinking of putting their alimentary canal up for the challenge might want to consider having one (or three) of Burger Urge's popular and less controversial drinks on hand

Scorpion also has the potential to improve your health, with practitioners of traditional Chinese medicine using it to treat pain and spasms.

Many fans of the burger joint were steering well clear, with one exclaiming 'you're on your own with this one'.

However, a few took no exception to the extreme elements of the burger, only wanting to know if there was a gluten free or halal option available.

Those thinking of putting their stomach to the challenge might want to consider having one of Burger Urge's less controversial drinks in hand, such as their peanut butter and Nutella shake with whipped cream, to temper the spice.

If that's even possible.
A luxe Asian fusion restaurant nestled in Circular Quay, Sydney is bringing innovative and modern fine dining to a 'very Sydney setting'.

Luna Lu, an Australian Good Food Guide winner (2024 and 2023), is hidden in the beautiful Campbells Cove and is serving up small and large plates, brightly-hued dim sum and signature Peking duck to guests.

The spacious and luxuriously styled interiors offer wide views of the harbour and opera house and provide a suitably dramatic backdrop to masterful Asian dishes such as black truffle duck spring rolls and tasty lobster and king prawn wontons.

This creative Asian fusion style kitchen is helmed by executive chef Dario Nencioni, native of Siena, Tuscany, who comes to Luna Lu via 15 years experience - most recently at The Commissary by Ormeggio in Mosman.

Dario spoke to FEMAIL about his respect of the 'traditional flavours' of Asian cuisine while 'artfully infusing them with elements from his Italian heritage'.

A luxe Asian fusion restaurant nestled in Circular Quay, Sydney is bringing innovative and modern fine dining to a 'very Sydney setting'

Luna Lu, an Australian Good Food Guide winner (2024 and 2023), is hidden in the beautiful Campbells Cove and is serving up small and large plates, brightly-hued dim sum and signature Peking duck to guests

Nencioni hopes diners appreciate the 'beautiful balance' he and his team try to strike between Asian flavours and surprising new twists so that people receive 'the best of both the Eastern and Western worlds'.

'This fusion creates a unique offering that surprises our guests, and has won us a chef hat,' he said.

The executive chef goes out of his way to ensure that 'fresh, locally sourced Australia ingredients' are in play 'elevating the entire dining experience'.

The top five dishes at Luna Lu are the 'very popular' seafood candied rice, the entire range of dim sum ($20-$25), Peking duck Luna style ($58), the glacier 51 toothfish ($60) and edamame fried rice ($18).

Nencioni's personal favourites are Hiramasa kingfish mosaic ($33) and the 'elegant flavours' of the wok-tossed wagyu beef egg noodles ($62).

views of the harbour and opera house and provide a suitably dramatic backdrop to masterful and 'exquisite' Asian dishes

Enjoy the stunning toothfish and eat out under the stars in Luna Lu's private dining dome

The dumplings are another thing entirely, with each morsel crafted fresh daily with natural fruit and vegetable purees.

This results in bright jewel-coloured pockets encasing elegant flavour combinations, making them as 'captivating to the eyes are they are delightful to the palate'.

The dumplings are so enticing in part because of the wonderful dipping sauces that accompany them. Nencioni's house made sauce is concocted from brown sugar, soy sauce and some ginger for extra heat.

The dumplings - which come with a generous two vegan options - are delicious and suited to sharing,

The secret dipping sauces that make Luna Lu so popular Black Vinegar Sauce - Dumpling Sauce - 1 tbsp brown sugar - 2 tbsp soy sauce - 10g ginger Sesame Sriracha Sauce - Dumpling Sauce (Spicy) - 1 tbsp sriracha - 3 tbsp sesame oil Advertisement

Canton style salmon ($65) is one of the popular dishes

Dumplings are crafted fresh daily with natural fruit and vegetable purees

The prawn toast ($26), which also comes in a gluten free version, is a stand-out menu item and is one of the most discussed on social media.

'Our prawn toast is incredibly popular for several reasons. Firstly, it is made fresh daily, ensuring the highest quality and best taste,' Dario said.

'What truly sets our prawn toast apart is the accompaniment of our beetroot mayo. This vibrant pink condiment not only adds a unique and delicious flavour but also enhances the visual appeal of the dish, making it as delightful to the eyes as it is to the palate.'

It's not just about the food, however, with mixologist Kenny Le designing a 'rich tapestry of drinks' that pairs perfectly with the plates.

Along with the usual wines that one would expect at any fine dining experience, Luna Lu also presents Chinese yellow wine and Baijiu - a Chinese spirit to enjoy in 'small sips to kindle conversation and spark ideas over fine food'.

Luna Lu is open for lunch and dinner throughout the week.
A celebrity makeup artist sadly has passed away from brain cancer after ignoring a common symptom.

Anca Molnar, who was known for her work with celebrities in her native Romania, was diagnosed with a brain tumour over a year ago after suffering with a series of headaches.

According to her close friend Alina Radi, the influencer from Timisoara had ignored the headaches, which is often a sign of a brain tumour, for some time.

It was only when the pain became severe and they started affecting her daily life that she went to the doctor.

After undergoing intensive treatment plans for more than a year, Anca sadly passed away on Tuesday and will be laid to rest in her hometown today.

Shortly before her death, she shared a heartbreaking post with her TikTok 630,000 followers.

Anca Molnar, who is from Timisoara, Romania, sadly has passed away from brain cancer after ignoring a common symptom

She wrote: 'I came, lived beautifully and left for another world. I fought as best I knew how and with all my strength... Until the last drop of HOPE.

'I leave my gratitude in my heart for how beautiful my life was and my smile will remain a testimony that I lived it to the fullest.

When she was initially diagnosed doctors in her native Romania said there wasn't much they could do to help her due to the progression of the tumour.

So Anca decided to fly to Turkey for oncological treatment, where she had brain surgery twice and underwent numerous rounds of radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

After her first brain surgery her tumor went into remission, however a second tumour was found a short time later and she was forced to have another surgery to remove it.

@makeup_anca Am venit, am trait frumos si am plecat spre o alta lume. Am luptat cum am stiut mai bine si cu toate puterile mele... Pana la ultima picatura de SPERANTA. Va las in suflet multumirea pentru cat de frumoasa mi-a fost viata si zambetul meu sa va ramana marturie ca am trait-o din plin. Mi-am dorit de atatea ori sa iau telefonul in mana pentru ultima data si sa va las un ultim indemn: traiti frumos si traiti din plin! Eu, Anca Molnar am plecat...Acasa. Dar de acolo, voi continua sa va veghez mereu! Ramaneti cu bine si cautati-ma printre stele. Din cand in cand, am sa va fac cu ochiul!  sunet original - Anca Molnar

Shortly before her death, she shared a heartbreaking post with her TikTok 630,000 followers saying she fought with all her strength

Anca, who often shared glamorous snaps on social media, also shared her cancer journey with her followers

She even took to social media to share parts of her brave journey with her followers.

Sharing. video of her treatment she wrote: 'Today I had my first radio oncology and chemotherapy session.'

Alina told local media: 'She had been experiencing excruciating headaches more frequently.

'Initially, she didn't think much of them, because that's how we are, but she found herself struggling to carry out her daily tasks consistently.

Anca flew to Turkey for oncological treatment, where she had brain surgery twice and underwent numerous rounds of radiotherapy and chemotherapy

Anca was diagnosed with a brain tumour over a year ago after suffering with a series of headaches

When she was initially diagnosed doctors in her native Romania said there wasn't much they could do to help her due to the progression of the tumour

After her first brain surgery her tumor went into remission, however a second tumour was found a short time later and she was forced to have another surgery to remove it

Anca, who is married to Claudiu, gushed about his support on social media in her final weeks

Anca even took to social media to share parts of her brave journey with her followers

After fighting for over a year undergoing intensive treatment plans, Anca sadly passed away on Tuesday and will be laid to rest in her hometown today

'So, she decided to go for a specialised check-up. She told me she had a brain tumour.'

Anca, who is married to Claudiu, gushed about his support on social media in her final weeks.

Sharing an emotional clip of the pair she wrote: 'I have the strongest and best man by my side, in good times and bad. Thank you my love.'

The makeup artist was ignoring painful headaches until they became too severe

Anca wrote on social media: 'I came, lived beautifully and left for another world. I fought as best I knew how and with all my strength... Until the last drop of HOPE'

Anca pictured in Turkey before starting her treatment and undergoing her first brain surgery

Many of her followers flocked to the comments with their emotional farewells to Anca

'I wanted so many times to pick up the phone for the last time and leave you one last exhortation: live beautifully and live to the fullest!

'I, Anca Molnar, have left...Home. But from there, I will continue to watch over you always!

'Stay well and look for me among the stars. From time to time, I will give you a wink!'

Many of her followers flocked to the comments with their emotional farewells to Anca.

Brain Cancer Symptoms Brain tumours can affect people of any age, including children, although they tend to be more common in older adults. More than 12,000 people are diagnosed with a primary brain tumour in the UK each year, of which about half are cancerous. The symptoms of a brain tumour vary depending on the exact part of the brain affected. Common symptoms include: headaches seizures (fits) persistently feeling sick (nausea), being sick (vomiting) and drowsiness mental or behavioural changes, such as memory problems or changes in personality progressive weakness or paralysis on one side of the body vision or speech problems Sometimes you may not have any symptoms to begin with, or they may develop very slowly over time. Treatments for brain tumours include: steroids medicines to help with symptoms surgery radiotherapy chemotherapy Source: NHS Advertisement

One person wrote: 'I don't know her, I got this painful message that made me cry and realize that my problems are small! God rest you in peace! Much strength to the grieving family!'

Another said: 'I do not know her! But the message he left.. tore me to pieces!! May God rest her in peace and quiet! And to those close to you, much strength and comfort to overcome this trial!'

Someone else said: 'Anca, dear, I hoped until the last moment that you would win. Smooth road to heaven Anca.. sad.. heartbreaking and very painful...'
Eliza Morrison and her partner exchanged wedding vows at a picturesque manor house in the Surrey countryside to the cheers of their family and friends.

But once her guests were engrossed in champagne and canapes, she gave her sister, mum and chief bridesmaid a surreptitious nod  before slipping away. Upstairs in the bridal suite with the door locked behind them, her sister, Sara, produced a pair of scissors, held the Hollywood curls that Elizas bridal hairdresser had so carefully created hours earlier  and chopped off eight inches of Elizas blonde locks.

It was a wildly thrilling moment, with us all squealing and cheering as she cut off my hair, says Eliza. On reflection, it symbolised stepping into a new beginning as a wife.

Eliza Morrison says the moment when her was cut off on her wedding day 'symbolised stepping into a new beginning as a wife'

Forget changing unexpectedly into a second gown  or even a third  in order to make your wedding memorable. This summers brides are resorting to ever more drastic transformations, with #weddingchop amassing millions of views on TikTok.

Elizas wedding planner, Lauren Goodman, even timed the other major events around the revelation of her wedding chop. It was essential to build it into the timeline because all eyes are on the bride. If she disappears for half an hour people are going to wonder whats going on, says Lauren, founder of Bluebird Creative. Id never come across a wedding chop before and thought it was a terrific way to up the ante and create something memorable.

Eliza, 32, who works in event marketing and lives in north London, has been with Julian, 39, a finance director, for eight years.

It was a friend who suggested she try the chop, a few months before the big day last July. It didnt take me long to buy into the idea of creating a memorable moment, says Eliza. It would have cost a fortune to pay my bridal hairdresser for her time, waiting around for me to sneak upstairs  so she showed me how the chop should be done on the day and I came up with the idea of my sister doing it instead.

Sister Sara is a radiographer with zero experience of hairdressing, which would account for the way her hands were trembling when she did the deed. Elizas hair was tied into a ponytail, which Sara simply snipped off.

Sara was absolutely petrified, says Eliza. Her own hairdresser pleaded with her not to do it for fear of it going horribly wrong. My mum was trying to look away, as she was so nervous about how it might turn out, but also film the moment on her phone.

My bridesmaid couldnt stop laughing as my ponytail fell to the floor and in ten minutes my hair was transformed into a swishy shoulder-length bob.

Eliza, 32, who works in event marketing and lives in north London, wed Julian, 39, a finance director who she had been with for eight years

Then she had the chop, saying: 'As soon as I looked in the mirror I loved it and didnt have any nerves'

Julian 'was totally shocked, but loved it'. He told Eliza it reminded him of how she looked the day they met in 2016

She adds: I already had Hollywood-style curls from the start of the day, so all I had to do was throw on a headband. As soon as I looked in the mirror I loved it and didnt have any nerves. It was something so special to share with the most important women in my life.

As soon as wed finished I literally ran down the stairs to show Julian  who had no idea what Id been doing  as I was so excited for him to see it. Ironically, at first Julian didnt bat an eyelid. Eliza says: He was waiting in the foyer for our final guests to be seated for the meal and the first thing he noticed was that Id detached the tulle overskirt from my wedding dress to reveal a long fitted skirt.

I ran my fingers through my hair to alert him to my new style and asked if hed noticed anything else different, to which he replied: Oh, youve put a headband in your hair!

By then I was laughing. He finally noticed Id cut my hair and was totally shocked, but loved it. He told me it reminded him of how Id looked the day we first met in 2016 when my hair had been much shorter, which was very romantic.

Elizas wedding chop didnt escape the notice of their family and friends, who clocked it the moment the couple walked into the reception. There were lots of surprised faces, cheers and people asking if Id had hair extensions that wed whipped out, Eliza adds. They couldnt believe Id actually had my hair cut off in the middle of the wedding or that my sister had done it.

I had reasoned that if it looked a bit messy or wasnt how I wanted it, Id got a couple of days to get it professionally cut before we went to Tanzania and Zanzibar on honeymoon, but actually the cut was perfect as it was.

Courtney Sneddon, 27, a PA from Edinburgh, had her hip-length dark hair lopped off into a shoulder-skimming bob in the middle of her big day at a barn in Fife in November 2022.

She had been with business analyst Cameron, 32, for four years when he proposed in 2020. Although our wedding was fairly traditional, Im known for being fun and spontaneous, and as my hair grows quickly Ive had it long and short and everything in between over the years, says Courtney. Indeed, she spent two years growing her hair long specifically for her wedding.

Her hairdresser  and trusted school friend  is celebrity hairstylist Christopher Laird, whos worked with stars including Cate Blanchett, Geri Halliwell and Rosie Huntington-Whiteley. He suggested the daring move.

We were having a wedding hair trial a few weeks before and I asked Chris if he had an appointment the Monday after the wedding to cut my hair.

Id been growing it for two years for the wedding, but looking after it was driving me a bit nuts, says Courtney, who now has a three-month-old son, Finn.

His response was: Why dont we just do it at the wedding, seeing as Im one of the guests anyway? He then told me about the TikTok trend and it sounded like a lot of fun. Chris had never done a wedding chop before so we were both pretty excited.

My only concern was that I didnt want to miss much time with my guests, so we decided wed slope off during dessert when people would be relaxing and moving around. I told Cameron I was nipping to the loo. Chris chopped it all off to well above my shoulders, then ran the curling iron through it.

Courtney Sneddon, 27, prepares to have her hip-length dark hair lopped off into a shoulder-skimming bob in the middle of her big day in 2022

Just 25 minutes later, Courtney had a new look  one that made husband Cameron do a double take

The PA from Edinburgh wed business analyst Cameron, 32, in a barn in Fife

Just 25 minutes later, Courtney had a new look  one that made husband Cameron do a double take. Thankfully he said straight away that he absolutely loved it, although he was certainly taken by surprise, laughs Courtney.

When the couple reappeared, Courtney says the reaction of their 100 or so guests was well worth missing out on her tropical fruit panna cotta for. I walked casually back into the reception and straight away a table of Camerons friends noticed and started whooping and

clapping, then the whole room followed suit. It took a few minutes for my in-laws to realise what all the fuss was about and they were in shock.

When I look back at our wedding photos, I love the fact I had two different hairstyles. Having very long hair allowed me to wear it up in a formal up-do for the ceremony, while the shorter style gave me a new lease of life to party into the night. My only regret is that I didnt keep the chopped-off hair as a memento.

Angharad Jones, 28, also cut her long hair off mid-wedding  to the astonishment of her husband Gavin, 30, an energy consultant, and their 110 guests at a venue in rural Shropshire last September.

When Gavin proposed in April 2022, after five years together, Angharad asked her hairdresser friend Leonie to do her bridal up-do, growing her hair especially to allow her to have a traditional loose bun, with wavy tendrils falling around her face. I wanted to wear it up to show off the pretty lace detailing and cutout back of my dress, says Angharad.

After seeing the TikTok chop trend, she loved the idea of then having it chopped for the evening party  especially as we were going on honeymoon to Kenya 36 hours after the wedding. I wanted short hair for the hot weather.

Only Leonie and I were in on the secret, and when we had a little break between the reception and the evening do at around 5pm, we slipped away.

A nervous Leonie took around 45 minutes to chop, blow-dry and re-curl Angharads hair, rumbled only by a gobsmacked maid of honour who stumbled into the bridal suite mid-chop to re-touch her make-up.

The first thing she said was: I might have known youd do something like this! as Im known for being spontaneous, says Angharad. Gavins always loved my hair shorter and when I went to find him he said: Have you cut your hair? It looks amazing!

The look on everyones faces was priceless. They couldnt believe it. Some didnt twig that it had actually been chopped but made comments such as: Im sure your hair looked different this morning.

In years to come, I realise that our guests wont remember what they ate or what music they danced to at our big day  but theyre unlikely to ever forget the huge surprise of my wedding chop.
A new documentary has lifted a lid on Instagram star Bianca Devins' brutal murder by an incel who then posted gruesome pictures of her mutilated body online - as her family laid bare the trauma of seeing 'sick people' turn her death into a social media 'spectacle.'

In July 2019, Instagram sensation Bianca, from Utica, New York, then 17 - who had gained a legion of followers from posting about emo fashion and video games - was killed by an older man who she had met online, named Brandon Andrew Clark, then 23.

After slitting her throat, Brandon uploaded a slew of gory photos that showed her bloody body to Instagram and to the chat app Discord, where they quickly went viral.

In the aftermath, members of the incel community - a group of men who are 'involuntary celibate,' meaning they're unable to find a partner - rallied around Brandon, posting horrific comments about Bianca online, calling her 'worthless' and 'disgusting' and branding Brandon as a 'legend' who 'did the world a favor.'

Now, her loved ones have spoken out about the 'disgust' and 'anger' they felt after seeing the images of her body on the internet and the horrifying messages that followed in an upcoming episode of ID's new show Deadly Influence: The Social Media Murders.

A new documentary has lifted a lid on Instagram star Bianca Devins' brutal murder by an incel who then posted gruesome pictures of her mutilated body online

In 2019, Bianca, from Utica, then 17, was killed by an older man who she had met online, named Brandon Andrew Clark (seen), then 23, who then shared photos of her body to Instagram

In an exclusive sneak peak at the episode, which will air on Monday, June 17 at 9pm ET/8pm CT, her mother, Kimberly Devins, detailed the 'devastating' pain she felt over not being able to 'protect' her daughter from not only her killer, but from the 'internet' after her death.

Now, her family laid bare the trauma of seeing 'sick people' turn her death into a social media 'spectacle' in an upcoming episode of ID's show Deadly Influence: The Social Media Murders

'People posted the picture [of her dead body] under my Facebook profile picture, they would send it to [Bianca's sister] Olivia and I constantly,' she recalled.

'They would tag us in it. It felt like as soon as we got one picture removed another one was posted.

'As a mother, it was very devastating because I feel like I couldn't protect her from that.

'I couldn't protect her from her murder and then I couldn't protect her from being exploited on the internet.'

One of Bianca's friends, named Young Shim, recalled 'people reposting the images over and over.'

'They just shared it because it would garner clicks. I felt disgust, anger, hatred,' he said.

'I still carry a lot of resentment and negativity. Thousands of people online thought it was something to laugh or joke about.'

In an exclusive sneak peak at the episode, her mother, Kimberly Devins (seen), detailed the 'devastating' pain that she felt over not being able to 'protect' her daughter

'It was very devastating,' Kim (seen with Bianca and her other daughter) said. 'I couldn't protect her from her murder and I couldn't protect her from being exploited on the internet'

One of Bianca's friends, named Young Shim, recalled 'people reposting the images over and over,' adding, 'They just shared it because it would garner clicks. I felt disgust, anger, hatred'

Another one of the late Instagram star's pals, named Gianna Rosado, said, 'I could still see it in my head, she was just exposed. All these sick people can just look at it when I ever they want'

Another one of the late Instagram star's pals, named Gianna Rosado, added, 'I could still see it in my head, she was just exposed. All these sick people can just look at it when I ever they want.'

Bianca, who was preparing to study psychology at Mohawk Valley Community College, was murdered by Brandon after the pair returned to Utica from a concert in New York City the night of July 14, 2019.

After she was killed, he shared numerous photos of her body, which remained up for almost a day before being removed.

Immediately after the images began to circulate online, multiple people called 911 and law enforcement quickly started searching for Bianca.

But Brandon then called the police himself to report what he had done, telling them, 'My name is Brandon, the victim is Bianca Devins, I'm not going to stay on the phone for long because I still need to do the suicide part of the murder-suicide.'

He then cut his own throat - but police arrived just as he was stabbing himself in the neck. He was taken into custody and hospitalized, ultimately recovering.

'At first people who saw the post were incredibly disturbed. But when Brandon survived that suicide attempt, the incel community reared forward and presented themselves in a way that was celebrating Brandon,' Kelly Ruhl, true crime podcaster, explained in DailyMail.com's exclusive clip from the upcoming ID episode.

Bianca was murdered by Brandon after the pair returned to Utica from a concert in New York City the night of July 14, 2019

Brandon (seen) cut his own throat after killing her - but police arrived just as he was stabbing himself in the neck. He was taken into custody and hospitalized, ultimately recovering

In the aftermath, members of the incel community rallied around Brandon, posting horrific comments about Bianca all over the web and branding him as a 'legend'

As she spoke, screenshots of comments that said things like, 'Brandon Clark is a hero,' 'He did the world a favor,' and, 'She was disgusting and treated people like they were worthless, she was worthless,' popped across the screen.

'In the aftermath of Bianca's murder her social media accounts became a spectacle, and to this day people are still on her accounts leaving comments,' another woman explained in the show.

But as the ordeal took over social media, she said Bianca's supporters quickly stepped in and tried to 'redirect what people saw when they looked up her name.'

And even now, five years on from her passing, there are 'still people spamming the comments' of her posts with both 'negative' and supportive messages.

'If we were to go on there right now, the most recent comment would be two hours ago, and that to me is just insane,' her friend, Gianna, said.

'The incel community reared forward and presented themselves in a way that was celebrating Brandon,' Kelly Ruhl, true crime podcaster, explained in DailyMail.com's exclusive clip

The status of Bianca and Brandon's relationship has been debated, with her loved ones insisting that they were only 'friends,' while others called him her 'boyfriend'

The status of Bianca and Brandon's relationship has been debated, with her loved ones insisting that they were only 'friends,' while others called him her 'boyfriend.'

In addition, during his trial it was revealed that he had filmed a sex tape with her right before killing her.

Brandon (seen in court) ultimately pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, and was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison

It was also said that he murdered her because he got jealous after she kissed another man at the concert they had attended together.

He ultimately pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, and was sentenced to 25 years to life in prison.

He apologized to the judge during his sentencing, stating that Bianca 'didn't deserve what happened to her.'

'I think I need to realize what I did I can't undo, as much as I want to,' he told the court.

'I have to face it. I apologize to all the people that knew and loved her.

'I apologize to everybody affected by this - everybody who had to see that horrific picture of her.

'I know sorry is not enough and it wont take back what I did. I wish I had more to give.'
The late Queen grew to really trust the Princess of Wales with the pair sharing a 'grandmotherly bond,' experts have told a new documentary.

The Princess of Wales, 42, who married Prince William in 2011, saw her husband's grandmother as a 'guide' when she joined the royal family.

Speaking in Kate & The Queen: A Special Relationship which airs on Channel 5 on Saturday, the Daily Mail's editor-at-large Richard Kay explained how the pair ended up with a special bond.

'The queen grew to trust Kate. I don't think she really trusted anyone on first impression, we're all performing the same show, the show is supporting the Queen.

'But with Kate and the Queen it grew deeper than that, there was a real grandmotherly affection between the two'.

Ingrid Seward, royal expert and editor of Majesty magazine echoed his comments, adding: 'I think the Queen saw her strength and saw that she is a caring person who had this amazing affiliation to duty.

The late Queen grew to really trust the Princess of Wales with the pair sharing a 'grandmotherly bond,' experts have told a new documentary. The pair are pictured at Buckingham Palace in June 2022

'I think Kate would have really appreciated the kindness and attention the Queen had given to her, and she knows better than anyone how busy the Queen is. She put time aside to make Kate feel appreciated.'

Kate is believed to have formed a stronger bond with the late monarch after welcoming her three children - Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, nine and Prince Louis, six, and made a great effort to involved Her late Majesty in the children's lives.

Speaking in the Queen at 90 documentary in 2016, Kate said: 'It's very special us having a new little girl to the family. Very lucky that George has got a little sister. The Queen, she was really thrilled that it was a little girl and I think as soon as we came back here to Kensington [Palace] she was one of our first visitors here.

'I think she's very fond of Charlotte, always watching what she's up to. George is only two and a half and calls her 'gan-gan'.' She always leaves a little gift or something in their room when we go and stay and that just shows, I think, her love for her family.'

The Queen was also said to be a guide for Kate after she married into the Firm.

'The Queen was perfectly aware of how daunting it was for an outsider to join the royal family, so they would have had their techniques of making someone look at home,' Simon Vigar, Channel 5's royal correspondent added.

Royal expert Victoria Murphy added that Kate always described the Queen as 'a gentle guidance'.

Kate with The Queen on the balcony of Nottinghams Council House during The Queens Diamond Jubilee tour of the UK, 13 June 2012

Kate with Prince Louis and the Queen on the balcony of Buckingham Palace during Trooping the Colour, June 2019

'Right from the beginning, Kate had a lot more in common personality wise with Elizabeth.

'They have something about them which has that inner poise and the capacity to lead and command respect,' she added.

India McTaggart, royal correspondent at the Telegrpah, added: 'Catherine has said the Queen was very supportive of her as she was undertaking her first engagements without William. I think she influenced her by showing her by example.'.

Speaking in 2016, Kate explained that the Queen wasn't 'forceful in her views'.

'The most memorable engagement for me I suppose was an away day to Leicester and I went without William so I was rather apprehensive about that. I think there is a real art to walkabouts, everyone teases me in the family that I spend far too long chatting so I think I've still got to learn a little bit more and pick up a few more tips I suppose.

The pair are pictured at Queen's Diamond Jubilee tour of the UK

'She was very supportive. The fact she took the time to make sure that I was happy and looked after for that particular occasion, which probably in everything that she's doing is a very small element, which just shows how caring she is, really.'

Many observers believe William and Kate are modelling themselves on the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh, who were married for 73 years until his death in April 2021.

Speaking in 2016, Kate spoke of her special bond with the Queen.

'You would expect a lot of grandeur and a lot of fuss, but actually what really resonates with me is her love for the simple things,' she said.

'And I think that's a special quality to have. I can remember being at Sandringham for the first time at Christmas, and I was worried what to give the Queen as her Christmas present.

'I was thinking: 'Gosh, what should I give her?' I thought: 'I'll make her something', which could have gone horribly wrong, but I decided to make my granny's recipe for chutney. I noticed the next day that it was on the table. Such a simple gesture went such a long way for me.'

Kate & The Queen: A Special Relationship, Saturday 15th June at 9pm on Channel 5
Queen Letizia looked stunning in a colourful blazer as she was joined by her husband today to attend an annual charity meeting in Madrid.

The royal, 51, looked in high spirits as she greeted officials alongside King Felipe at the El Pardo Royal Palace in the Spanish capital city.

Letizia opted for a modest, yet stylish, ensemble consisting of a red, white and black tweed blazer which had frayed detailing along the hem and silver buttons embroidered with a flower print.

The mother-of-two paired this eye-catching garment with chic cigarette trousers, which showed off her toned, slim figure.

No stranger to comfortable footwear, Letizia sported shiny strappy black shoes for the meeting, rather than heels.

Letizia opted for a modest, yet stylish, ensemble consisting of a red, white and black tweed blazer

After a week of solo-visits as rumours swirl about the state of their marriage, Letizia was joined by her husband Felipe today

She wore her glossy mid-length brunette tresses down in a straightened, styled blow dry

This morning, the royal couple were presented with a detailed report on the work it carried out last year

She also wore her glossy mid-length brunette tresses down in a straightened, styled blow dry and chose her usual glamorous makeup, consisting of shimmery eye shadow, lipstick, highlighter and bronzer.

The Queen kept things simple with her jewellery and wore classy silver pearl drop earrings, in-keeping with her elegant outfit.

Letizia and Felipe met members from the Princess of Asturias Foundation, a non-profit private institution founded in 1980.

According to the charity's website, their goals are to 'contribute to extolling and promoting those scientific, cultural and humanistic values that form part of the universal heritage of humanity and consolidate the existing links between the Principality of Asturias and the title traditionally held by the heirs to the Crown of Spain.'

This morning, the royal couple were presented with a detailed report on the work it carried out last year, as well as a report on the financial situation and assets of the Foundation.

King Felipe looked dapper in a smart grey chequered suit which he paired with shiny black loafers, a baby blue shirt and a sapphire patterned tie.

Their attendance has broken a string of solo-visits from Letizia over the past couple of weeks as rumours continue to swirl around the state of their marriage.

The royal, 51, looked in high spirits as she greeted officials alongside King Felipe at the El Pardo Royal Palace in the Spanish capital city

She chose her usual glamorous makeup, consisting of shimmery eye shadow, lipstick, highlighter and bronzer

Letizia and Felipe met members from the Princess of Asturias Foundation, a non-profit private institution founded in 1980

The Queen kept things simple with her jewellery and wore classy silver pearl drop earrings, in-keeping with her elegant outfit

The mother-of-two paired this eye-catching blazer with chic cigarette trousers, which showed off her toned, slim figure

Yesterday, the Spanish Queen met with the Board of Trustees of the Residencia de Estudiantes in Madrid without Felipe.

On Tuesday, Letizia donned a lavender suit as she attended the 'Euros de tu nomina' (Euros from your paycheck) event alone.

Letizia also travelled to Guatemala on a solo three-day trip last week to learn about various projects where Spanish cooperation works.

These visits came after journalist Jaime Penafiel, 91, launched a fresh attack on the European Queen with his new book 'Letizia's Silences', which was published in Spain last week.

Following his first best-selling book 'Letizia & I' (which alleged that Letizia had an affair with her ex brother-in-law Jamie del Burgo), the veteran royal reporter claims in his latest work that Felipe was 'aware' of his wife's alleged infidelity 'in real time'.

In January, Jaime Penafiel was sacked by the Spanish newspaper El Mundo after 20 years following a series of damaging allegations made in his first book 'Letizia & I'.

His best-selling book alleged that Queen Letizia had an affair with her ex-brother-in-law Jamie del Burgo. The Spanish Royal Household refused to comment on the claims at the time.

In his latest work, Jamie claims that Felipe was 'aware that Letizia was cheating on him in real time' as her bodyguards have an obligation to report on her whereabouts.

The author alleges that bodyguards joined Queen Letizia on a trip she took to New York in 2011 with her 'lover' Jaime del Burgo, whom she had dated before meeting Felipe.

These visits came after journalist Jaime Penafiel, 91, launched a fresh attack on the European Queen with his new book 'Letizia's Silences'

The couple chatted to each other in the royal Palace in Madrid as they met officials from the charity

The mother-of-three smiled for the cameras today as she had an annual meeting with a charity

The couple have been faced with rumours about the state of their marriage

No stranger to comfortable footwear, Letizia sported shiny strappy black shoes for the meeting, rather than heels

The author wrote: 'That day [in New York], she was accompanied by her faithful escorts, who, without a doubt, any, they would pass a report to the Ministry of the Interior or [the Palace of] Zarzuela.'

Following this, Jaime claims that Felipe has been left 'crushed and destroyed' by his wife's alleged cheating.

The royal reporter - who worked for Hola! magazine for 20 years - claims that Felipe has been 'plunged into hell' by his wife's supposed 'betrayal' and 'wants to get out'.

Elsewhere in the book, Jamie labels Queen Letizia 'cold, emotionally immature and passive aggressive' and makes unsubstantiated claims she is 'hated' by King Felipe's family.

Jaime Penafiel, 91, was sacked by the Spanish newspaper El Mundo after 20 years earlier this year following the publication of first book on the Queen called 'Letizia & I'.

The book sent shockwaves through the Spanish Royal Family after the author alleged that the Queen had a romantic relationship with her ex-brother-in-law Jaime del Burgo. The Spanish Royal Household refused to comment on the claims at the time.

Following his dismissal, the veteran journalist has now written another book - called 'Letizia's Silences' - which begins by delving into her early romance with King Felipe.

In the opening chapter, the author sensationally claims that 'everything in Letizia's world has been broken' as a result of alleged 'deceit, adultery and betrayals'.

The author goes on to claim that Queen Letizia has a 'cold, indestructible and determined' aura about her and that the royal's silence on the recent allegations signify her 'emotional immaturity'.

Jaime claims the royal 'resorts to silence as a way of controlling and punishing other people'.

He then goes on to claim that Letizia's 'passive aggressive' behaviour towards King Felipe is the reason her 'mother-in-law [Queen Sofia] and sisters-in-laws [Infanta Cristina and the Duchess of Lugo] hate her so much'.

In the following chapter, Jaime alleges that King Felipe fell in love with his future wife while watching her present the news.
McDonald's fans were left furious after the fast food chain snubbed an iconic character on his birthday - one year after his limited-edition milkshake completely took over the web.

Last year on June 12, the company released a new beverage in honor of Grimace's 52nd birthday, and immediately, the drink became immensely popular.

It sparked a hilarious social media trend that saw people drinking the bright purple shake and then acting like a monster afterwards - ultimately turning the round furry character into an icon beloved by millions along the way.

Thousands of videos of customers participating in the viral phenomenon took over TikTok, X, Instagram, and YouTube, and people turned up at McDonald's all over the US in droves to get their hands on the shake.

This year, McDonald's brought the beverage back for the purple monster's birthday - but only at its Canadian locations - and many people in the US were outraged by the news.

McDonald's fans were left furious after the fast food chain snubbed the iconic character Grimace on his birthday - one year after his limited-edition milkshake took over the web

Last year on June 12, the company released a new beverage in honor of the purple monster's 52nd birthday, and immediately, the drink became immensely popular

It sparked a hilarious social media trend that saw people drinking the bright purple shake and then acting like a monster afterwards

In addition, social media users slammed the burger chain for failing to even mention Grimace's big day online.

Last year, on the other hand, McDonald's posted a slew of content featuring Grimace.

'Dawg, I'm so heated for Grimace right now everyone forgot his birthday this year,' one person wrote.

'Happy birthday king, I don't care if the hype has died down I'm still riding for you.'

'Here it is, Grimace's birthday, but not a peep from the McDonald's people about it. Disappointing,' scathed another user.

'So are we just not celebrating Grimace's birthday this year?' asked someone else, who tagged McDonald's.

'Happy birthday Grimace, even though McDonald's doesn't care about you,' read a fourth tweet.

A fifth said, 'McDonald's really forgot about Grimace's birthday this year,' with a sad face.

'Happy birthday, Grimace. Your party last year in 2023 was epic. McDonald's, why aren't we celebrating Grimace today like our friends in Canada are?' inquired another angry person.

This year, McDonald's brought the beverage back for Grimace's birthday - but only at its Canadian locations - and many people in the US were outraged by the news

In addition, social media users slammed the burger chain for failing to even mention Grimace's big day online

Last year, on the other hand, McDonald's posted a slew of content featuring Grimace

'WHERE IS THE GRIMACE SHAKE?' a frantic user wrote.

One mom revealed that her child 'forced' her to put Grimace's birthday into her calendar so she wouldn't forget and they could go get the shake.

She said she didn't know how to break the news to the youngster that it wasn't coming back this year.

Someone else said they were 'running to every McDonald's' looking for it on his birthday, only to find out it wasn't available.

Another person jokingly asked the company, 'Are you mad at me? Where is the Grimace Shake? Why not in the US?'

McDonald's shared the news that the Grimace Shake was coming to Canada last month for a 'limited time.'

McDonald's shared the news that the Grimace Shake was coming to Canada last month for a 'limited time'

Grimace spent his birthday throwing out the first pitch at the New York Mets versus Miami Marlins game (seen)

'After several reported sightings, McDonald's Canada is confirming Grimace has officially arrived in Canada,' read a press release.

'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.'

'When the Grimace Shake dropped [in the US last year], the response we got from fans here in Canada was overwhelming,' said Alyssa Buetikofer, Chief Marketing Officer or McDonald's Canada.

'Inspired by the sheer creativity and passion we saw for the Grimace Shake, we had to bring it to Canadian menus.'

Grimace spent his birthday this year throwing out the first pitch at the New York Mets versus Miami Marlins game.
When I started dating again after my marriage of 13 years ended, I wasnt sure what sexual landscape awaited. Had everything changed? I certainly had.

I was now a 47-year-old mother of three children and one recalcitrant dog. If I was going to get naked again, did I need to change my body shape? Last time around, thin was what was required for successful pulling, but now it was curvier, or what millennials call thick. Luckily I have always erred towards the thick, even more so nowadays, with my snack drawer stuffed full of baked goods (for the kids), so that was some comfort.

Certainly a gym membership was on the cards, new underwear was a necessity. I had the underwear of the long married: comfortable pants inscribed with dog hair, slack-mouthed bras, and a thong with Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here printed on the front, given by a friend as a joke.

But my first sexual encounter happened before I had even thought about Googlemapping my way to Agent Provocateur. I wasnt looking to meet anyone. My husband and I were still in the middle of a long and brutal untangling, and learning slowly and painfully not to rely on each other.

But that was before I went to a party in east London, a grown-up affair: lots of food, very little music. I was slightly bored, flushed with the awkwardness of attending a party alone, when across the room I spotted Victor.

Annabel Bond (a pseudonym), a 47-year-old mother of three, met Victor at a party

Victors suit was made of silk, his waistcoat strained over his ample chest. He was in the middle of a gaggle of laughing women; when he caught me looking at him, he smiled.

Later on, after a few more wines, he held my stare again. A pulse of electricity throbbed between us. I was amazed, astonished. Could such a flamboyant and popular man be interested in me? I was just a mum; I hadnt been hit on so blatantly for years. The flirtations I did have were short-lived. But now I was single again, I realised with excitement, and also trepidation, anything could happen.

When Victor came over he seemed just as astounded as me. You like me, dont you? he said. I smiled tipsily, too shy to affirm. Dont you? he insisted.

A couple of vodka tonics in hand, Victor inveigled me into a corner of the sofa. He told me he was a famous flute player. He sometimes played at the Albert Hall, hed get me a ticket if I liked. I did like. He was upbeat, hilarious. Every cheesy line was underscored by a self-deprecating tone.

We werent more than a few drinks in when Victor moved on to where and how we could have sex. Perhaps, he suggested, he could take me up to the bathroom right now? He was sure he could give me pleasure beyond my wildest dreams.

Victor saw my shocked face and laughed. I think a queue might build up outside, I said primly, thinking of the walk of shame past my rather uptight host. Anyway, he was joking, wasnt he, unless things had changed a lot since I was last single?

Victor leant forward and let his lips tickle my ear. He smelt of lemons.

Victor said he was a famous flautist who sometimes played at the Royal Albert Hall (stock image)

Victor and Annabel's flirtation involved talk of going into a John Lewis changing room together

What about... we go shopping in John Lewis, and afterwards I take you to the changing rooms and give you a good seeing to. He blew softly into my ear. I could... and here he described in graphic detail exactly what he could do. In many different ways, and at many different angles, my pleasure was to be assured.

I flushed, laughed again. Victor drew back, also laughing: Theyre very roomy!

The idea that my first sexual encounter post-husband should be in the hallowed halls of John Lewis, where I had been only last week to choose my elder daughters first bra, was hilarious. But the sexy talk... I have to admit, it was quite hot. Talk like this had long since dried up in my marriage. Nowadays my husband and I only spoke to each other through lawyers or angry notes left on the fridge. Was this the tonic I needed?

Victor was loquacious and inventive. And flattering too: to him I wasnt a mother of three going through a painful divorce, I was someone he could not keep his hands off. And so, as he walked me to the train station, I decided: why not go for an adventure ride with this master of the flute?

I arranged to meet him the following week when his landlady was away. I turned up at the Tube station as arranged, in the middle of a week day afternoon.

I was shy, but Victor was business-like and took hold of my elbow. In the flat, he pinned me to the corner of the sofa again, this time with greater intention. I was still trying to tell myself that we were on a date, that undressing in front of a virtual stranger was not actually going to happen.

I was waiting for a return of the exciting talk to get me in the mood, but instead he kissed me, and you cannot kiss and talk at the same time. It was nice, though, if strange. My husband did not kiss like this, these were a whole different set of lips. After a while he suggested we go to the bedroom, and I apprehensively agreed.

When Victor unwrapped himself, his body was so extremely different to my husbands it discombobulated me, but he set to work enthusiastically, as promised, without thinking of himself.

It was all very goal-orientated, which should have been good, after all, how many men prioritise women before themselves?

But it seemed a bit too business-like. After all that talk, now we were actually doing it, there was too much pressure on me to live up to my side of the deal, which appeared to be to climax spectacularly.

Pressure is not sexy, and I was too new at this to calm things down. Eventually I managed a mediocre orgasm, by letting my mind drift to another scenario, and  thank God  it was time to move on to him.

But in spite of Victor labouring away for many long minutes, he couldnt seem to get there. In fact, things definitely seemed to be deflating. Perhaps it was me? Again, I didnt know him well enough to ask. But at last mercifully, it was over. Victor may have faked it, but I was past caring.

I put my clothes back on, but Victor was in no rush. Naked, he served me a drink, then he went to get his flute from the living room and sat on a chair with his legs apart and began to play, fixing his eyes on me. I tried hard to stare back... into his eyes.

The hilarity returned, only this time it was mine alone  any connection we had was gone. There was no doubt Victor was gifted and talented  on the flute. But for me, there would be no repeat performance.

Annabel Bond is a pseudonym.
King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands put on a loved-up display as they toured New York City today.

The Dutch King and Queen ended the final leg of their four-day tour of America on a high with a stroll arm-in-arm around the area, meeting local residents and taking in some of the city's most well-known sights.

They looked striking in matching ensembles - the Queen in an elegant blue dress with sheer patterned material over the top and her husband in an electric blue suit with pale blue tie that complemented the paler tones of Maxima's ensemble.

The couple were seen posing against the backdrop of the Hudson River and New York's impressive skyline, before taking a walk along Brooklyn Heights Promenade arm in arm.

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima arrived in America on Monday for a four-day tour of America, kicking off their visit in Atlanta and Savannah in Georgia before traveling north to Albany and New York City.

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima took a stroll arm-in-arm along Brooklyn Heights Promenade

During their whistle-stop tour of New York, Willem-Alexander and Maxima also visited East Flatbush, a Brooklyn neighbourhood.

They met with local residents and learnt more about their empowering community projects and the urban challenges they face around climate, affordable housing and building a resilient society.

The Dutch royal couple were pictured enjoying a stroll around the neighbourhood with local residents dressed in equally colourful attire as they took in Brooklyn's sites.

They also visited some of the different businesses including a barber shop and coffee shop to learn more about local trade in the residential neighbourhood of East Flatbush.

Following that was a visit to Newlab in Brooklyn Navy Yards, which is home to more than 800 entrepreneurs and inventors.

It's been a busy trip for the Dutch royals, who have packed in numerous engagements throughout their four-day tour.

Yesterday, King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima made their way to New York City from Albany, New York, after touring NY Creates, a tech hub for semiconductor research and development.

The couple were also seen posing against the iconic backdrop of the Hudson River and New York's impressive skyline

Willem-Alexander and Maxima dodged runners along the Promenade for a quick photo by the river

The Dutch royal couple were pictured enjoying a stroll around the neighbourhood with local residents dressed in equally colourful attire

King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima took in the sights of Brooklyn neighbourhood East Flatbush

During the visit to Brooklyn the Dutch royals spoke with residents and organizations about urban challenges, such as climate, affordable housing and a resilient society

Queen Maxima shakes hands with a local business owner at a coffee shop in East Flabush

Here, Maxima and and her husband donned protective gear to enter the cleanroom, before a quick change of outfit to meet with New York Governor Kathy Hochul and her husband William J. Hochul Jr., alongside Dutch Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Liesje Schreinemacher.

On Tuesday, the couple were in Savannah to meet with Mayor Van Johnson, who expressed how thrilled he was to have the royals paying a visit.

'We are so honoured today to have his majesty the king and her majesty the queen here in our beautiful city,' Johnson said to kick off a roundtable discussion between city staff and Dutch dignitaries.

'Today is a day for us that creates and speaks of opportunities - opportunities that we can explore and opportunities that we can expand.'

While in Savannah, the king and queen also visited Savannah State University, where they joined students on stage during a marching band performance.

They also toured the Port of Savannah, which is the fourth-busiest US seaport for cargo shipped in containers and took a stroll around the historic district of the city, which was founded by British colonists in 1733.

The Dutch royals' four-day of America began on Monday in Atalanta, where they met with Gov. Brian Kemp at Georgia's state Capitol and toured the burial site of Martin Luther King Jr. The tour is set to conclude today.
Lady Amelia Windsor and Emma Weymouth are throwing out the rule book when it comes to summer dressing, ditching florals and bright dresses for chic black outfits for a star-studded Vivienne Westwood event at Christie's London.

Tonight's event saw the fashion elite gather at the auction house in London's St James for a private viewing of the archive collection, despite the miserable British weather.

Model Amelia, 28, who is the granddaughter of Prince Edward, Duke of Kent - making her 43rd in line to the throne, looked relaxed in a stylish cropped jacket with a patent finish, black high-waisted trousers and a midriff-baring black crop top.

Emma wore a fitted black blazer with a plunging neckline and a floor-length black skirt, finished with pointed heels and - befitting for the event - a signature Vivienne Westwood clutch bag.

The Marchioness of Bath stood proudly by her husband Ceawlin Thynn, Viscount Weymouth, who looked smart in a dapper blue suit and crisp white shirt.

Emma Weymouth, Marchioness of Bath, and Ceawlin Thynn, Viscount Weymouth, attended the private view of Vivienne Westwood: The Personal Collection

Vivienne Westwood: The Personal Collection is an exhibition and online auction of nearly 300 pieces from the late designer's personal collection, showcasing her eclectic style.

'It is a free exhibition, made up of several hundred pieces,' says Adrian Hume-Sayer, the head of the sale, via Galerie Magazine. He continued: 'I've worked in private collections since 2010 and this is a highlight.'

Vivienne Westwood fans have the chance to get their hands on some of the iconic designer's own archive pieces via an online auction of the collection, which will take place from 14 June until 28 June.

'This is her everyday wardrobe, and in better condition than you might expect,' Hume-Sayer continued.

It's been a busy week for socialites Lady Amelia Windsor and Emma Weymouth who attended the Royal Academy of Arts Summer Exhibition party together yesterday.

Lady Amelia commanded attention in a vibrant purple gown as she stepped out at the lavish event in London.

The Dolce & Gabbana model, who is no stranger to premieres and launch parties, added an edgy feel to her outfit with a black handbag, designed like a cottage, and a pair of chunky flat shoes.

Adding a touch of glitz to her off-the-shoulder ensemble, Lady Amelia, who is cousins with Princes William and Harry, donned an array of glittering jewellery, from dazzling bracelets to colourful gem-filled rings.

Lady Amelia Windsor looked elegant in a black cropped jacket and high-waisted trousers

Emma Weymouth carried a signature Vivienne Westwood clutch as a tribute to the designer while Lady Windsor opted for a cropped black jacket with a patent finish

Elsewhere, Emma, 38, looked equally stylish in an eye-catching scarlet maxi dress, featuring daring cut-out embellishments, a plunging V-neck and dainty straps.

The Marchioness of Bath teamed her daring ensemble with a matching red handbag and heels, whilst opting for a bright ruby lipstick to finish off her fiery look.

Emma no doubt turned heads in her dress, which featured a billowing skirt and cinched waist detailing.

She finished off her outfit with a shimmering pair of diamond earrings and an immaculate pink manicure.

Held every year since 1769, the RA's Summer Exhibition celebrates contemporary art spanning mediums including painting, printmaking, film and photography.

It is the world's oldest open submission exhibition, meaning anyone can submit their work to be considered for inclusion.

Last month, Emma showed off her sartorial prowess as she stunned in a bridal-inspired gown as she wowed at the Hotel Martinez during Cannes Film Festival.

Showing off her Hollywood-style glamour, the former Strictly star slicked her hair back into a sleek bun and wore a full face of make-up as she posed at the bottom of a staircase inside the French festival.

She added diamond drop earrings and a matching oversized necklace, perfectly complementing the white strapless gown.

The dress also had a long train, with Emma having her own Marilyn Monroe moment by twisting and letting her skirt billow in the air.

Emma is often pictured a glamorous events, and recently let her hair down with Princess Diana's niece Lady Kitty Spencer in London.

Emma married her husband Ceawlin Thynn, 8th Marquess of Bath, 49, at their stunning home Longleat in June 2013 and welcomed their first child John, in October 2014.

Following a pregnancy struggle, the couple welcomed their second child, a son Henry, via a surrogate in Los Angeles in December 2016.

At the time, Emma told the Daily Mail: 'We are simply ecstatic. His arrival has completed our little family and brought us so much happiness.'

Earlier last year the couple purchased a property in West London once lived in by Winston Churchill for 18.5 million.
A psychotherapist has revealed a surprising link between your attachment style and your water bottle - and the shocking truth lurking behind 'trendy' buys.

Julie Sweet, a registered clinical counsellor from Sydney, told FEMAIL that people's water bottles have turned into their 'safety blankets' in adulthood.

Julie Sweet, a registered clinical counsellor from Sydney

'Emotional support water bottles have become widespread as a means for individuals to cope with their mental wellbeing and emotions,' she said.

While people who have a secure attachment style are typically drawn to functional, durable water bottles, those who are anxiously attached are constantly in search of what is 'trending' and prefer brighter colours.

'Carrying the water bottle offers an anchoring sense of comfort and stability often for those dealing with stress, depression or anxiety. Water bottles represent an individual's character and beliefs, highlighting personal traits and passions,' Ms Sweet said.

Why do people have emotional support water bottles?

Ms Sweet revealed that modern people are very 'self aware' and 'insightful' - and they are actively looking for tools to help them combat everyday anxieties.

'An emotional support water bottle provides someone who is feeling anxious a soothing feeling.

'Anxiety can in some cases be traced back to an infant's attachment to the primary caregiver. Yet as adults, we can move away from the caregiver, such as a parent, to a transitional object like a water bottle.'

Water bottles tend to soothe anxieties because they hydrate you and stabilise your central nervous system.

Drinking water aids digestion, maintains your internal temperature, and keeps your tissues and joints lubricated.

Ms Sweet revealed that modern people are very 'self aware' and 'insightful' - and they are actively looking for tools to help them combat everyday anxieties

People have begun to associate feeling 'better' through hydration with their bottles and dubbed them an another mechanism of self-soothing.

'Australians are becoming very health conscious. So, I think water bottles are a great staple for anyone to have.'

What's your attachment style?

Clinical psychology expert Stan Tatkin assigned nature phenomenons to the three types of attachment styles.

Secure people are anchors, anxious people are waves, and avoidant people are islands.

Secure attachment style

'Different attachment styles are drawn to the emotional support water bottle for different reasons,' Ms Sweet noted.

'The securely attached person looks for the emotional support water bottle as a real practical functional object. It's an extension of themselves.

'They're confident and grounded. They don't care about the colour or sense of style, but how durable the bottle is. Is it strong? Powerful? Will it deliver what it needs to deliver? If they care about colour, it'll most likely be black or white.'

'The securely attached person looks for the emotional support water bottle as a real practical functional object. It's an extension of themselves,' she said

Ms Sweet also drew attention to the brand new Ninja Thirsti bottles (from $49.99) that just hit Australian shelves.

'Securely attached people will love this because it has a bubble lock and leak lock technology. The bottles are very practical,' she said.

Anxious attachment style

'On the other hand, anxiously attached people are drawn to sentimentality. It's about the design, colour, and the sense of safety and security of what a water bottle represents,' Ms Sweet said.

'So they're looking more so at the sentimental value. Also image-wise, what's on trend, and what's popular. They can be worried about what looks good and what can support them to make them feel secure.'

The psychotherapist said that people with anxious attachment styles are drawn to calming colours like blue and grey.

'The anxiously attached are more insecure around the objects, so they would hold a lot of importance if they were to lose the object.

'If their bottle was misplaced, it would be very difficult for them because it would be as if they lost their sense of self.'

Water bottles tend to soothe anxieties because they hydrate you and stabilise your central nervous system

Avoidant attachment style

'Avoidant people are similar to securely attached ones because they value functionality, but it is also about what is convenient for them. They want something clean, easy, accessible.

'The island will really be very individual. They'll go against that trend - very dissimilar to the anxiously attached person.

'They look at functionality, but they also look at a really clean line - something that's functional, durable, but also minimalistic.'

Ms Sweet said that 'islands' are into 'classic' aesthetics when it comes to water bottles.

In terms of colour, avoidant people are drawn to minimal hues like pastels and pale earthy tones.
Many have claimed the move as 'oddly disturbing'

Bar hoppers have discovered a unique establishment in a converted old prison, with many racing their for food, drinks and, potentially, a paranormal experience.

Olivine Wine Bar is in the stone walls and long double-storey corridors of 173-year-old Pentridge Prison in Coburg, 8km north of the Melbourne CBD.

Many have dubbed the bar 'spooky' because its dark past however some have taken issue with the conversation calling it 'oddly disturbing'.

Guests enter through the stately bluestone prison gates and the past huge timber doors of the former cell block into the vast room with an art-deco style bar in the middle.

The stunning space is lined with former jail cells that have been converted into private booths.

Olivine Wine Bar is in the stone walls and long double-storey corridors of 173-year-old Pentridge Prison in Coburg, 8km north of the Melbourne CBD

Guests enter through the stately bluestone prison gates and the past huge timber doors of the former cell block into the vast room with an art-deco style bar in the middle

While sipping on a top-notch wine, guests can snack on a 'tantalising' selection of share plates with rock oysters and gourmet cheese and deli meats

The dimly-lit booths are contrastingly cosy compared to the prison corridor with ambient lighting, elegant velvet seating and funky patterned carpet.

Diners can enjoy a drop from the venue's walk-in cellar with an extensive 'book' of wines which recently won the Three Glasses Award for Australia's Best New Wine List.

While sipping on a top-notch wine, guests can snack on a 'tantalising' selection of share plates.

Fan favourites include the plates of rock oysters as well as the barbecue padron peppers with macadamia and Paprika and plates of gourmet cheese and deli meats.

Melbourne bar lovers have expressed their excitement over visiting Olivine which is part of Pentridge's Adina Apartment Hotel for its 'spooky' vibes.

The stunning space is lined with former jail cells that have been converted into private booths with ambient lighting, elegant velvet seating and funky patterned carpet

Diners can enjoy a drop from the venue's walk-in cellar with a extensive 'book' of wines which recently won the Three Glasses Award for the Australia's Best New Wine List

Many have dubbed the bar 'spooky' because it's dark past however some have taken issue with the conversation calling it 'oddly disturbing'

'That place would be so haunted,' one woman said and another replied: 'It's okay, they serve all kinds of spirits'.

'I bet the staff are there frequently enough to have some spooky stories and I wanna hear them,' a third wrote.

'I stayed in the hotel part of this last month and I'm convinced it was haunted so much stuff happened while I was there,' a fourth claimed.

'Love this place! Such a beautiful ambience. The re-purpose of the building is incredible and to sit inside local history,' someone added.

But not everyone is happy with the revamp of the Pentridge prison which closed in 1997.

'Bad mojo in there... hard pass,' one person said.

'This is very wrong. Gentrification at its worst,' a second complained.

'Not feeling the vibe. Need good energy around me to have a good time,' a third wrote.

'Something oddly disturbing about this,' another agreed.
More than 380,000 cancer patients have faced 'untold suffering' as a result of treatment delays over the past decade, a charity has warned.

Cancer Research UK said the failure to meet the 62-day waiting time to start cancer treatment is costing lives.

They said the General Election must be 'a turning point for cancer' or it could see decades of progress fighting the disease eroded.

It comes as a separate report from the Royal College of Radiologists (RCR) said delays in cancer care have become 'routine'.

Almost half of cancer centres reported weekly holdups giving treatment such as chemotherapy  despite evidence that every month of delay can raise the risk of death by 10 per cent.

More than 380,000 cancer patients have faced 'untold suffering' as a result of treatment delays over the past decade, a charity has warned (stock image)

The college described a 'staggering' 30 per cent shortfall in clinical radiologists and 15 per cent in clinical oncologists hindering timely care, with both projected to worsen in coming years.

Cancer Research UK analysed data on the number of patients starting treatment in England more than 62 days after being urgently referred for suspected cancer.

This key NHS target - where 85 per cent of people start treatment for their cancer within this timeframe - was last met in December 2015.

The proportion of patients in England waiting no longer than 62 days to receive their first cancer treatment in March was 68.7 per cent, with figures for April due later today.

Despite recent improvements, it blamed too few workers and a lack of diagnostic equipment, such as CT and MRI scanners for failing to keep up with demand.

Michelle Mitchell, Chief executive of Cancer Research UK, said some 2.2m people across the UK are expected to be diagnosed with cancer in the next parliament.

Describing the added anxiety from delays, she said: 'Each of these numbers is a friend, family member, and loved one who is facing unbearably long waits for their treatment to begin, causing stress and anxiety.

'The General Election must be a turning point for cancer. Nearly one in two people will get cancer in their lifetime and it affects every family in every community.

'Any incoming UK government must make tackling cancer waits a top priority, and pledge to meet all cancer waiting time targets by the end of the next parliament.'

The RCR reports were based on surveys of cancer centre heads and clinical directors of radiology departments in the UK, all of which replied.

Responses showed the number of cancer centres experiencing severe delays has almost doubled in a year from 28 to 47 per cent.

The situation is similar for radiotherapy, with weekly treatment delays nearly doubling from 22 per cent in 2022 to 43 per cent in 2023.

Nearly all (97 per cent) clinical directors surveyed said workforce shortages were causing backlogs and delays at their place of work, with demand 'vastly outstripping' capacity of the cancer workforce.

Dr Katharine Halliday, RCR president, said: 'Today's reports reveal a stark reality - the crisis in the radiology and oncology workforce is jeopardising patients' health.

'Despite our dedication to providing the best possible care, severe workforce shortages are significantly hindering our efforts.

'We simply do not have enough doctors to manage the increasing number of patients safely, and this problem will only worsen as demand continues to rise and more doctors leave the NHS.'

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The typical age of consultants leaving the workforce has fallen, from 57 in 2021 to 54 in 2023 with a third of consultants leaving the workforce aged below 45.

Dr Halliday said this was the result of doctors 'working under extreme stress' and urged the new government to implement a forward-thinking strategy to recruit, train, and retain staff.

Mairaid McMahon, policy manager at Macmillan Cancer Support, said: 'The latest census from the Royal College of Radiologists once again highlights the significant shortages that remain within the cancer workforce.

'These shortages impact negatively on patient care, cause delays to diagnosis and treatment, and could potentially to lead to worsening outcomes for people with cancer.'

The RCR reports were based on responses from all 60 UK cancer centres with radiotherapy services as well as every NHS acute trust or health board employing clinical radiologists, making it the most comprehensive snapshot of the cancer workforce in the UK.

Professor Pat Price, a leading oncologist and co-founder of the Catch Up With Cancer campaign, said: 'These cancer stats tell a deadly story of delays to crucial cancer patient care.

'Whoever forms the new Government must acknowledge there is a crisis in cancer and take radical action to address it.

And that action must include a new dedicated cancer plan, backed by investment in people and technology in crucial areas of cancer treatment, like radiotherapy.

'Cancer patients not getting their treatment on time is a disaster that cannot be allowed to continue in the next parliament.

'Anything less than this and we will never get out of the cancer crisis.'

An NHS spokesperson said: 'The NHS is seeing and treating record numbers of people for cancer, with 30 per cent more people being treated last year than in 2015/16 and almost 3 million people receiving potentially lifesaving cancer checks in the last 12 months  ensuring more people than ever before have been diagnosed at an early stage and cancer survival is at an all-time high.

'It is vital that people come forward if they are concerned about cancer symptoms. Getting checked early saves lives.'
A woman has been denied her contraceptive pill prescription at a pharmacy after a worker claimed he could not sell it to her due to 'religious beliefs'.

Wendy, who is a registered nurse, went to a pharmacy in Sydney on May 29 to collect two of her prescriptions - one of which was her contraceptive pill Yaz.

After waiting 30 minutes for her prescriptions, Wendy was called to the counter to pay and saw the Yaz box and another medication in her basket.

However, a male pharmacist took over after Wendy asked for a receipt for her items so she would be able to claim half the costs.

Wendy said she assumed the man was printing her a receipt but was then told she could not purchase the medication because it had expired.

Wendy, who works as a registered nurse, visited a pharmacy in Sydney to pick up two prescriptions, including her oral contraceptive Yaz

The pharmacy refused to sell her the item claiming the contraceptive had expired. Wendy asked for Yaz to be ordered in and was told the pharmacy does not stock it due to 'religious beliefs' (stock image of a pharmacy)

She then asked the pharmacist to order it in, to which another pharmacist interjected and said 'no'.

'Another pharmacist pipes up and he just says; 'No, we don't order it. We don't stock this. We don't dispense it. We don't do that here',' Wendy told news.com.au.

She added the pharmacy told her it does not 'provide oral contraceptives'.

Wendy paid for her other prescription and left as she was running late for work, claiming to have felt judged by the staff.

The next day a man claiming to be the pharmacy co-owner called Wendy to apologise for her experience.

He told her the pharmacy did not stock any form of contraception due to 'religious beliefs', adding he understood why some people choose to take the pill but that the pharmacy 'just don't supply it'.

Wendy said the man informed her the pharmacist should not have taken the prescription off the shelf and put it in her basket as it was expiring.

He said Yaz was intended for disposal along with some other items that were expiring and that the worker did not realise until the other pharmacist intervened.

Wendy questioned why the pharmacy did not have any signs informing customers that contraceptives were not sold.

She claimed the man acknowledged she had wasted her time but that she could buy the contraceptive products at another pharmacy and even offered her a $50 voucher.

Wendy rejected the man's voucher and asked whether condoms were sold at the pharmacy as she would have bought $50 worth and handed them out at the front of the store.

It is understood condoms are not sold at the pharmacy, while the 'family planning' section of the pharmacy was labelled as 'feminine hygiene' and only featured pregnancy tests, personal lubricants and period products.

The pharmacy co-owner explained all contraceptive items including condoms were not sold at the store (pictured, shopper choosing condoms in the health care aisle of Coles)

Wendy said she was shocked by the experience, adding she would be fired if her political or religious views influenced her while at work.

'I would lose my job. If I went to work today on the hospital floor and started talking about my political beliefs or religion I would be reported to the Health Care Complaints Commission and they'll probably deregister me because that's so unprofessional,' Wendy said.

She added professionals should not judge customers on their choices and that the owners should not run a pharmacy if they did not 'believe in modern medicine'.

The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency's Code of Conduct states a patient should have access to medical care free from bias and discrimination.

Health practitioners should 'not allow moral or religious views or conscientious objection to deny patients access to healthcare,' the code of conduct reads.

The code of conduct does stipulate a health professional is free to decline, provide or participate in the care themselves.

However, in such situations, the health professional should 'respectfully inform the patient (where relevant), your employer and other relevant colleagues, of your objection and ensure the patient has alternative care options'.
A tourist on a dream Bali holiday thought she had just fallen ill with the flu, but it turned out to be potentially life-threatening dengue.

Emma Cox, 27, had been on the tropical island in Indonesia for just 10 days before coming down with muscle and joint pain and a severe headaches so painful she had to wear sunglasses indoors.

Urgently booking a flight home to the UK, she developed a full body rash shortly following her arrival and the 'terrified' West Yorkshire-native rushed to A&E where medics confirmed she had been infected with the mosquito-borne virus.

'The virus gave me a rash that spread right across my body  I felt horrendous, and thought it wasnt ever going to go away,' she said.

Experts warn Ms Cox's experience could be coming much closer to home with the dengue cases having exploded in Europe as the mosquitos which carry the virus become increasingly common on the continent.

Emma Cox, 27, had been on the tropical island in Indonesia for just 10 days before coming down with dengue

Three days after returning to the UK she awoke to find a 'horrendous' rash covering her body

The content creator also experienced muscle and joint pain and a severe headaches so painful she had to wear sunglasses indoors

With the insects now being reported in France, public health scientists now fear the Paris Olympics in July could turn into a dengue 'superspreader event'.

Ms Cox arrived in Indonesia on May 6 this year and began feeling unwell on the fifth day of her trip, but initially dismissed this as just being due to the air-conditioning.

She woke up with muscle pain and joint pain  as well as a burning sensation behind her eyes, classic signs of dengue infection.

Ms Cox also felt exhausted - but paradoxically too restless to get any sleep with painful headaches forcing her to wear sunglasses inside 24/7.

With hindsight she now knows it was the mosquitoes that were plaguing her in the night that gave her the dengue virus.

'In my room, the glass on the window was cracked and there was a big hole in it,' she said.

'It sounds so stupid, but I couldnt see it because it was covered by a curtain.

'Every night while I was staying there, Id wake up, covered in bites.

'The only precaution I really took was spraying myself with repellent.'

At the time the content-maker thought she had just come down with the flu and decided to cut her trip short.

'My next thought was oh god, Im going to have to spend 23 hours flying home,' she said.

'I genuinely thought I had the flu, and I was expecting it to go fairly quickly.'

On the day of her departure and arrival back in the UK Ms Cox said she started to feel much better.

'The symptoms went away,' she said. 'I was absolutely fine - I thought I mustve got away with it.'

However, three days later she awoke to find a 'horrendous' rash covering her body.

'It was so strange, I felt fine within myself,' she said. 'But Id woken up with bumps all over my body - Id never seen anything like it.

Ms Cox sought advice about the rash from social media and she eventually went to A&E for help from medics

The 27-year-old originally thought she had fallen ill from the air-conditioning but it was eventually revealed a crack in a window in her accommodation was letting mosquitoes in

Dengue is spread by infected mosquitoes passing the virus onto to people through bites. Pictured are some of the NHS blood tests Ms Cox undertook while seeking help for her condition

Dengue is a potentially deadly virus passed to people by infected mosquitoes and was historically known as 'breakbone fever'

'They were really itchy, and they kept spreading.'

Posting about the experience on social media users advised her to go to call NHS 111 and mention she'd been in a dengue hotspot.

Advised by the NHS to go to A&E Ms Cox found herself being put into quarantine while medics ran tests in attempt to uncover the cause of her symptoms.

'They put me on an IV, and together we came up with a complete timeline of each place Id visited,' she said.

'I had blood tests for loads of things - like Malaria, and HIV.

'It felt like they didnt really know how to treat someone with dengue.

What is dengue fever? Dengue is a viral infection spread by mosquitoes. In most cases, the infection is mild and passes in around a week. Symptoms usually include: Fever

Severe headache

Pain behind the eyes

Muscle and joint pain

Nausea and vomiting

Widespread rash

Abdominal pain

Loss of appetite There is no cure or specific treatment. Patients can relieve their symptoms via painkillers, staying hydrated and resting. In rare cases, dengue symptoms can develop into severe dengue, with symptoms including: Severe skin bleeding with spots of blood on and under the skin

Blood in the urine and stools

Respiratory distress - when the lungs cannot provide the vital organs with enough oxygen

Organ failure

Changes in mental state and unconsciousness

Dangerously low blood pressure Severe dengue is usually treated via a blood and platelet transfusion, IV fluids for rehydration and oxygen therapy if levels are low. Advertisement

'I was there for an hour, and they told me, because I didnt seem fatal, I could go home. They checked up on me with phone calls, once a day, for seven days'.

Ms Cox's rash eventually cleared up on its own, within eight days.

While Ms Cox caught dengue in the tropics where the virus is most common, cases of the potentially deadly virus are on the rise in Europe and British holidaymakers heading to the continent could be at risk.

A total of 130 cases of the disease were recorded in the EU and EEA last year, almost double the number compared to the previous year.

And health officials fear this is part of a growing trend. Case totals for 2023 and 2022 are a huge spike compared to the 73 cases recorded on the continent between 2010 and 2021.

Dengue historically known as 'breakbone fever' because of the severe pain it can cause in the muscles and the joints, is normally endemic to Central and South America, the Caribbean and Southeast Asia.

But experts warn that climate change is making the Mediterranean more hospitable for the mosquitoes that carry the disease.

Dengue symptoms typically strike between four to 10 days after being bitten, which means holidaymakers may still need to keep an eye for potential signs upon their return to Britain.

A dengue infection typically manifest as flu like symptoms.

Typically, patients suffer a fever that lasts for between two and seven days  this may peak, reduce and then peak again during this time.

During the first days, this may be accompanied by facial redness.

Other common symptoms at this stage include a severe headache, pain behind the eyes, muscle and joint pain  giving the disease its 'bone-breaker' moniker  nausea and vomiting and swollen glands.

A flat, red rash may appear over most of the body within three to seven days after the fever starts  thought to be caused by an immune system reaction to the virus. This is itchy is around a quarter of patients.

Although less common, bleeding gums may also be seen.

Brits with dengue symptoms who have been in an area where the disease is prevalent are advised to contact their GP or NHS 111 for an urgent appointment.

This is due to a risk of a potentially life-threatening complication that typically strikes just as people start to feel better.

While people infected with dengue recover after one to two weeks, there is a chance some can develop a far more serious form of the infection.

Called 'severe dengue' this is a life-threatening condition that develops in about one to 20 cases (five per cent) of people being infected with the virus.

Experts estimate this version of dengue kills half of people who suffer it.

Dengue is normally transmitted by mosquito bites, but exposure to infected blood can also result in people catching the virus

Symptoms of severe dengue include severe stomach pain, repeatedly being sick, fast breathing, bleeding gums, nose bleeds, extreme tiredness, restlessness and blood in your vomit or faeces.

These typically strike after between 24 to 48 hours after the initial wave of dengue symptoms has passed and people start to feel better.

It is a serious medical emergency and people with symptoms are advised to call 999 or head to A&E as soon as possible.

People who have had dengue previously are known to be more at risk of suffering a severe version of disease in the future from subsequent infections.

warns people that dengue is a risk on European holiday-destinations like Croatia, France , Italy , Spain , and Portugal and Madeira between Spring and November. The NHS now

It also advises that people who are more vulnerable to dengue, such as young children, the elderly, pregnant women and those with a weakened immune system should avoid traveling to areas where the virus is present.

Dr Simon Clarke, an infectious disease expert University of Reading, told MailOnline that Brits heading to the continent needed to be aware of potential dengue symptoms even after they returned home.

'Dengue fever is something that has traditionally been associated with more unusual and exotic destinations, but more recently France, Italy and Spain have recorded multiple infections, so travellers from the UK should be more aware of this potentially fatal infection,' he said.

'Travellers need to be made aware not only of the increasing risk, but also of the symptoms, the 4fourto 10 days it can take for them to appear after someone has been bitten by an infected mosquito, and the importance of getting medical advice if they think theyve contracted dengue.'

He added that as climate change is predicted to make the mosquitos that carry dengue more common in Europe controlling the insects would be an increasing important consideration for holiday destinations.

Professor Ian Jones, a virologist at Reading, also told this website that while there was no need re-think holiday plans yet, dengue in Europe is likely going to get worse.

The risk of contracting dengue in Europe remains low, far more cases are imported from countries where the infection is common, but the numbers are increasing, and we should expect this trend to continue in the near-term,' he said.

'A number of virus infections, including dengue, are transmitted by insects and as climate change expands their range, the incidence of virus infection also increases.'

He urged holidaymakers to take sensible precautions to reduce their risk of catching the virus when travelling in known dengue areas.

Prevention is considered the best way to avoid getting dengue and people visiting areas where the disease is prevalent are take steps to reduce their risk of mosquito bites.

Dengue fever is a viral infection transmitted by mosquitoes that has been historically confined to tropical or subtropical climates . It infects an estimated 400million people a year. Pictured: A house in Peru being fumigated against mosquitoes to prevent the spread of the disease

This map shows areas where mosquitoes capable of carrying dengue have been introduced in Britain. These populations have not yet established a permanent presence in the UK but experts have warned climate change means their spread is inevitable

These include wearing long sleeved clothing and trousers, using insect repellent, keeping unscreened windows closed in their accommodation, and sleeping under a mosquito net.

People should be especially cautious during the early morning and early evening as these are when mosquitoes are most active.

Dengue transmission is currently not considered a risk in the UK, though mosquitoes capable of carrying the virus have been found in the wild in Britain previously.

Normally, people with dengue cannot pass the virus to others directly, though mosquitoes can bite them and then go on to infect other people.

However, very rare cases of dengue being passed on through contact with infected blood via transfusions or organ donation have been recorded.

A total of 634 dengue cases were recorded by The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) in 2023.

These were all imported cases, where someone was infected while overseas and then fell ill upon returning.

UKHSA officials warned the figure was now approaching pre-Covid levels after cases naturally dived during the pandemic due to travel restrictions and urged travellers to be vigilant.

Experts have previously warned dengue is among a number of diseases that could become established the UK due to a 'slow march north' of insects due to climate change.

Globally, there were a reported 6.5million cases of dengue of which 7,300 resulted in death in 2023, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

However, the WHO says modelling suggests there are 390million actual infections per year.
A pleasant summer's afternoon became a nightmare after a three year old girl brushed against what turned out to be a toxic plant.

Ella Cain from Vassalboro, Maine, erupted in blisters and burns over her arms, legs, and face, after coming into contact with the toxic sap of an innocuous-looking weed in her yard.

Her mother, Audrey, believed the outbreak must have been caused by a poison ivy and applied lotion to ease the pain to her daughter.

However, the lotion steroid lotion doctor's gave little Ella to treat the condition only made them worse.

The plant responsible for the burns was the invasive wild parsnip, which was growing unchecked across the family's 113-acre property.

It is widespread in American, commonly seen in northeastern and midwestern states, as well as southern Canada.

Little Ella, whose doctors determined needed a steroid cream to treat the burns, was made to stay indoors and covered from the sun all summer

Mrs Cain noticed the burns just a few hours after her daughter came in contact with the toxic sap

Ella, then two years old, was playing innocently in the family's yard when she spotted the wild parsnip plant.

Wild parsnip is common in backyards from Vermont to California, flowering from from May to July. Fields can stretch for miles, though the exact extent of its spread is hard to pin down, because it is so widespread and varied in its distribution across lands.

The curious toddler smelled it and touched the stems. Her mother also believes Ella's leg brushed against the plant, given the blistering there and on her arms, cheek, and nose.

Mrs Cain said: 'We have that plant all over our property. We just thought they were some kind of flowering plant, we never knew that it was anything dangerousWe didn't think anything of it.

'Next thing you know she's broken out in all these burns and they progressively got worse over the next few days, including all down her face.'

The blistering did not begin immediately. They appeared the following morning.

Mrs Cain woke her young daughter up when she spotted them and was quick to apply a calming lotion to reduce inflammation in the skin and alleviate the burning.

The curious toddler touched the stem of the wild parsnip plant and smelled it, resulting in burns on her arms, face, and legs

The invasive species grew unchecked on the 100-acre property

It only took a few hours for the blisters to become angry burns all over the girl's body.

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Doctors prescribed hydrocortisone cream, a topical steroid that reduces inflammation in the affected area, alleviates itching and burning, makes healing quicker, and minimizes redness.

But the steroid was not the end of the line in Ella's treatment.

She had to avoid the sun's harmful rays during a time when they are strongest, wearing long sleeves all the time and playing in the shade.

Mrs Cain said: 'The burns lasted up to two weeks before they healed, that whole time she said how sore it was It was heartbreaking seeing her in so much pain with these burns all over her.

'I was worried she would be scarred for life, but I think using vitamin E oil when she was in the healing stages really helped because she doesn't have any scarring.'

The burns required treatment with a topical steroid

Mrs Cain said she also applied vitamin E oil to her daughter's skin, which she says helped reduce scarring

The wild parsnip plant is native to the northeast and Midwest, often beside roads and fields.

The plant can grow up to four feet in a season. And with its bright yellow flowers, children may find them appealing.

Mrs Cain said: We live on 113 acres of land so it would be impossible to get rid of all of them but we trim them down as much as we can and spray the area.

'I'm sharing what happened just so people are aware of it and know to stay away from it.'
Doctors have revealed a bitter sweet case of a man who survived a gunshot to the head from close range.

The 29-year-old farmer from the Greek island of Crete was shot with a handgun at a range of about 10 meters.

The bullet shattered as it tore through the left hemisphere of his brain lodging near the back of his skull.

He was rushed to hospital in a 'comatose state' an hour after being shot, with doctors performing emergency surgery where they removed part of his skull to retrieve the bullet fragments. Some could not be extracted.

The above picture is a scan of the man's skull highlighting the path of the bullet (arrow) and the point where the bullet was found lodged (end of the arrow)

Less than three percent of people survive a gunshot wound to the head, estimates suggest.

Of these, even fewer fully recover from their injuries and continue living as they did before suffering the shot.

Two-and-a-half years after being shot in the head, the man is still alive  but he is no longer able to speak in more than 'monosyllabic utterances' and struggles to understand complex language.

He is also suffering from involuntary spasms on the right side of his body, and difficulties moving muscles on the left side.

Nonetheless, researchers said he still has emotions and is able to signal his desires with sounds and his facial muscles  such as wanting to go home.

Family members also told doctors they were sure that he remembered previous events, although evidence for this was not provided.

The bullet pierced the left side of his brain  which is involved in speech and processing language and directing movements on the right side of the body.

The right side, which is involved in emotions and problem solving and movements on the left side, was unharmed.

These two scans, also revealed in the report, show the path of the bullet (left, black arrow) and also the bullet's entry point into the brain (right, black arrow head)

The case was revealed in the American Journal of Case Reports by doctors at the General University Hospital of Heraklion, Greece.

It was not clear where the injury occurred or why the man had been shot; whether it was an accident or an intentional attack.

Unlike the rest of Greece, where strict gun laws almost entirely block ownership, on Crete there is a strong gun-owning tradition  with one local report saying of the island: 'Crete and guns go together'.

The man was also reported to be right-handed, and to have been shot with a bullet traveling at low velocity  or at a speed slower than 300 meters per second.

Most people who are shot in the head die almost instantly either from shock or because critical functions are disrupted.

An area of the brain at its base controls actions like breathing and the heartbeat, with these ceasing if it is damaged  and death following shortly after.

In rare cases, however, patients do survive if damage to the brain does not impact critical structures and they rapidly receive medical care.

This was the case with the patient who was injured in the left hemisphere, with the area linked to language but not controlling critical bodily functions.

This means it is possible to survive an injury to the area, although individuals will likely be disabled for the rest of their lives.

Doctors said they were revealing the case to show how the brain can recover after receiving an injury to the left hemisphere.

In this case, the man was reported to have suffered extensive damage to the left cerebral, and left cerebellar hemisphere  linked to controlling movements.

Doctors immediately sutured the wound and performed surgery to ease pressure on the brain and remove shards of the bullet.

This was done via an emergency craniectomy  a surgery involving removing part of the skull to relieve pressure on the brain.

He was hospitalized for two-and-a-half-months, during which time he also had a cranioplasty  or partial skull reconstruction  before being moved to a patient rehabilitation center for 18 months.

Two years after the injury, he was brought back to the hospital for a check-up.

Doctors diagnosed him with severe global aphasia, or severe communication difficulties leaving him struggling to comprehend language.

But they did find that he was able to follow basic instructions, such as understanding who to hand a pen to out of two people after receiving instructions.

They also found he was able to produce sounds in response to instructions or to express emotions, such as a desire to go home.
Home buyers are being warned by Lloyds Bank to be vigilant over the rise of a scam which could cost them their entire deposit - with first-time buyers particularly vulnerable.

Conveyancing scams have increased 29 per cent over the past year, with fraudsters hacking email accounts of home buyers to con them out of their deposit payments.

Victims have an average of 47,527 stolen by scammers, analysis from Lloyds shows, but in some cases criminals have stolen more than 250,000.

While conveyancing scams are far less common than other types of fraud, the bank says the average amount stolen by opportunist scammers is by far the highest - and have dubbed it Britain's 'costliest scam'.

Verification: House buyers should meet their solicitor in person in order to verify their payment details

Reaching well into the tens of thousands, the average conveyancing scam dwarfs investment scams, which lose victims an average of 9,037, and romance scams which see an average of 6,340 stolen by fraudsters.

Conveyancing scams begin with the email address of a home buyer or a solicitor being hacked, after which point scammers will follow emails relating to a property purchase.

From there, they choose their moment to send false payment details to the buyer, that appear to be from the solicitor's email address.

In some cases, this could be from the solicitor's actual address, but in most instances fraudsters will spoof an address, using the names, logos and signatures that they have already seen in the earlier email exchanges.

They may even call you, impersonating the solicitor's firm.

The scam has been around for years and plays on victims being in a rush - and stressed - in getting such a large sum of money over to secure their new home.

Liz Ziegler, fraud prevention director at Lloyds, said: 'Buying a new home is one of the most exciting moments many of us will ever experience.

'But it can also be incredibly stressful, given the amount of money involved, and the need to navigate a complex legal process.

'While the financial consequences of these scams are severe, the emotional toll can be even greater.

'The fraud often leads to the collapse of a property transaction, with a devastating long-term impact on those involved.'

The bank said almost half, 45 per cent, of the victims who reported the scam were under the age of 39, meaning that scammers could be targeting first time buyers due to their lack of experience with the homebuying process.

Chloe, whose name has been changed, was one such first time buyer who was scammed out of 5,000 when she tried to transfer her deposit for a 195,000 two-bed flat in Birmingham.

Chloe was waiting for her solicitor to send her details for transferring her deposit, so when she received an email with invoice and payment instructions a few days later, she thought little of it.

While she paid the first instalment of her deposit to the fraudster, luckily for Chloe, the second 5,000 payment she tried to make was blocked by her bank, which then spoke to Chloe and told her to contact her solicitor's trusted phone number.

Unfortunately, the damage was already done.

'Fraudsters prey on weaknesses in email security and exploit a conveyancing process that most people may only experience a handful of times in their lives,' Ziegler said.

'It's vital that solicitors also grasp the importance of educating their clients on the risk of this type of scam and make a point of sharing payment details in person at the start of the homebuying process.'
The Labour Party has unveiled its manifesto as Sir Keir Starmer hopes the desire for change will convince voters to put him in Downing Street this summer.

With the polls showing Labour is very likely to form the next government, taxpayers will be keeping a watchful eye on what the party's pledges mean for their finances.

Meanwhile, the Labour Party is very keen not to put off any of those considering voting for it.

The Labour leader has promised a 'tax lock' with no increase on rates of income tax, NI and VAT, while also protecting the triple lock for pensioners.

Change: Sir Keir Starmer unveiled his manifesto with a pledge to not increase taxes

Starmer is also pledging to prioritise economic growth, with the launch of a national wealth fund and new housebuilding targets.

We look at what the proposed policies mean for your finances.

'Securonomics': Going for growth

Labour is promising to turn the page on Conservative ideas 'that have caused the chaos' and is prioritising economic growth and wealth creation.

Starmer told Labour supporters in Manchester that 'social justice and economic growth must go hand in hand.'

Figures from the Office for National Statistics released on Wednesday showed the economy recorded no growth in April, following growth of 0.4 per cent in March.

Starmer said the manifesto is a 'total rejection' of 'tax and spend' and he would prioritise wealth creation and economic growth.

The party's manifesto states that Labour's fiscal rules are 'non-negotiable and will apply to every decision taken by a Labour government.'

Its first steps will include delivering economic stability, with 'tough spending rules' to grow the economy and keep taxes low.

Its manifesto says: 'We will embrace a new approach to economic management - securonomics - that understands sustainable growth relies on a broad base and resilient foundations.'

Among its plans include a new industrial strategy and a National Wealth Fund to pay for ports and supply factories, new gigafactories, and help rebuild the steel industry.

Taxes: No increase in income tax, NI and VAT rates

Starmer has been adamant that taxes will not rise under a Labour government, despite plans for significant investment.

He has ruled out an increase in income tax, national insurance and VAT. The Institute for Fiscal Studies warned that this leaves no room based on current forecasts for any more spending than planned by the Conservatives.

The IFS added: 'And those plans do involve cuts both to investment spending and to spending on unprotected public services'.

But while there is a pledge not to raise tax rates, taxes will rise due to fiscal drag. Labour has previously said that it will go ahead with the Conservatives' planned freeze on income tax thresholds to 2028, which drags more of people's earnings into tax and pushes people into higher tax bands. The IFS estimates that it is equivalent to putting up income tax by 6p.

What's not mentioned: Capital gains tax, pension lifetime allowance, inheritance tax While Labour has promised not to raise tax on working people, there are some key omissions in the manifesto on taxes on wealth. Capital gains tax, inheritance tax and the pension lifetime allowance were all absent, leaving the door open for the future. The pension lifetime allowance was axed by the Conservatives last year, after successive Tory chancellors had spent years reducing the limit to the point where it started causing problems in public services. Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves immediately said she would bring it back but this week rumours emerged those plans would not be in the manifesto. This is Money's pension columnist Steve Webb pointed out that not putting it in the manifesto is not the same as a commitment not to bring it back. There was a lack of confirmation in the manifesto that Labour would not raise capital gains tax, which could cause concern among investors. Starmer and Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves have said there are 'no plans' to increase CGT rates but haven't ruled it out. Rachael Griffin, tax and financial planning expert at Quilter, said: 'Those who face CGT in the UK  primarily higher rate taxpayers and entrepreneurs who realise gains from the sale of residential property, investments, and other chargeable assets  have already seen their annual exempt allowance slashed by the current Conservative government to just 3,000 a year. 'If Labour is to win the election and then increase rates, it would serve as a double whammy with higher rates and lower exempt allowances considerably increasing the capital gains tax take.' Meanwhile, inheritance tax has also not had a mention. It is considered as ripe for an overhaul and the Office of Tax Simplification delivered a damning report into inheritance tax that the Tories have not acted on.

Business: Tax cap, VAT on school fees and higher minimum wage

For businesses, Labour will also cap corporation tax at the current level of 25 per cent and replace the business rates system to raise revenue 'in a fairer way,' but did not provide specific details.

Labour has also pledged to remove the VAT and business rates exemptions on private schools, meaning parents could pay up to 20 per cent more on fees.

Starmer intends to pay for his 'tax lock' and public spending with changes to the non-dom regime, which allows foreign nationals living in the UK to avoid paying tax on their overseas income.

Like the Conservatives, Labour said it will crack down on tax evasion and avoidance, raising around 5billion a year.

Labour also says it will ensure the minimum wage is a 'genuine' living wage.

It says: 'We will change the remit of the independent Low Pay Commission so for the first time it accounts for the cost of living.

'Labour will also remove the discriminatory age bands, so all adults are entitled to the same minimum wage, delivering a pay rise to hundreds of thousands of workers across the UK.'

Pensions: Commitment to triple lock

Labour has previously reiterated its commitment to the state pension triple lock, although it has not gone any further to protect the state pension from income tax.

The Conservatives have committed to a 'triple lock plus' if they are reelected, which pledges that the state pension is never taxed.

In the manifesto, Labour says: 'We will also undertake a review of the pensions landscape to consider what further steps are needed to improve pension outcomes and increase investment in UK markets.'

However, it has not committed to any specific reviews, but plans to reinstate the pensions lifetime allowance are not mentioned in the manifesto.

The Government abolished the old 1.073million lifetime allowance last year, but at the time Labour said it would bring it back if elected.

Housing: Affordable homes and mortgage guarantee scheme

Labour says the 'dream of homeownership is now out of reach for too many young people' and is pledging to build 1.5million homes over five years.

It says it will take action to ensure that planning authorities are strengthened in favour of development and support local authorities by funding additional planning officers.

It says it will take a 'brownfield first approach' and prioritise the development of previously used land, before looking at building on low quality 'grey belt' land.

Combined authorities will be given new planning powers too.

Labour has also pledged to 'deliver the biggest increase in social and affordable housebuilding in a generation' with changes to the Affordable Homes Programme to ensure more homes are built from existing funding.

For first-time buyers, Labour says it will work with local authorities to give them the first chance to buy homes.

It also says it will introduce a mortgage guarantee scheme to support first-time buyers struggling to save for a deposit.
At last, the political silence has been broken. Labours manifesto promises that the proposed 3.6billion takeover of the Royal Mail by Czech Sphinx Daniel Kretinsky and lesser-known business associates will be properly scrutinised.

Someone has been listening to Dave Ward, general secretary of the Communications Workers Union (CWU), in an interview and as a guest City columnist on these pages.

Unlike the flaccid board of the Royal Mail, which surrendered at the first smell of cordite, the union recognised that it would be a huge mistake for a utility, part of the national furniture since the 16th century, to fall under overseas ownership.

Successive chief executives have blamed the unions for obstruction on modernisation and for weakening the company. In representing its members, the CWU has not been easy to deal with.

The board, headed by BA exile Keith Williams, should never have thrown up its hands in horror and accepted assurances from its biggest shareholder Kretinsky.

Review: Labour's manifesto promises that the proposed 3.2bn takeover of the Royal Mail by 'Czech Sphinx' Daniel Kretinsky and lesser-known associates will be properly scrutinised

Its job was to defend a malfunctioning but great British institution, and prevent it falling under the spell of debt-fuelled overseas owners with controversial connections.

The water industry shows that such mixed marriages, whatever the pledges made about investment, end up in the sewage.

At the heart of the Royal Mail is the universal service obligation. Amid falling volumes of snail mail, down from 20bn to 7bn letters a year, a new model was needed.

Ofcom and the companys German chief executive Martin Seidenberg have come up with ways to future-proof the service.

Instead, the board is selling from under their feet. Labour is now offering to come up with a new business and governance model which gives workers and customers a greater say.

Preferably, this will be done in the context of a public listed company rather than through some half-baked public ownership proposal.

The possibility of Government intervention ought to stop the takeover timetable in its tracks. Kretinsky should refocus his attentions on the Euro 2024 footie.

Slim chance

BT was the growth company which outlived ownership by the General Post Office. But, like its step-sibling at the Royal Mail, it is under siege from overseas investors.

Latest to join an already lumpy share register is Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim, who heads a 40billion Latin American telecoms colossus.

He joins telecoms titans Patrick Drahi, with a 24.5 per cent stake and a debt problem, and Deutsche Telecom, with 12.5 per cent. It is carrying a 3.5billion paper loss.

The arrival of Slim has blindsided BT. Chairman Adam Crozier should be reaching out to understand his intentions.

Slim presumably knows that seeking full control would be opposed. Telecoms networks are part of the nations security.

BT has been a serial underperformer. There are two poison pills: a stubborn pension fund deficit and an obligation for an expensive fibre-to-door broadband network.

Under the newish leadership of Allison Kirkby, group finances are healthier.

The shares have climbed 25 per cent since Kirkby took the helm, wielding the axe by getting rid of troublesome global services and easing back on capital expenditure.

Nevertheless, the shares are way below pre-pandemic levels and Slim recognises an upside.

Labours intervention at the Royal Mail deal suggests a tilt at BT, from any or all of the protagonists, will get short shrift.

Ukraine gambit

After months of wrangling, G7 advanced countries in Puglia, Italy, have come up with a way of funnelling cash to Ukraine.

They have agreed to leverage the accumulating interest on some 235billion of frozen assets to fill a 40billion funding gap.

Undecided is which banks will cough up the loans and whether or not they will attract some kind of sovereign guarantee.

The fear has been that confiscating Russian assets could cast a pall over China, Japan and others holding Western currencies in their reserves.
Some of the world's rarest bottles of champagne will go under the hammer next week, as Sotheby's holds the first ever auction dedicated solely to the famous French sparkling wine.

On 20 June, approximately 1,500 bottles of champagne will go up for auction via Sotheby's, with some dating from the 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s.

The champagne going up for auction is part of a wine collection amassed over decades by Taiwanese billionaire entrepreneur Pierre Chen.

In November, the first offering of wines from Mr Chens cellar made $16.8million in a two-day auction at Hong Kongs Mandarin Oriental hotel.

Entrepreneur: Part of Pierre Chen's colossal wine collection is going up for auction

One of the lots going up for auction in Paris is five bottles of 1971 Salon Le Mesnil, Blanc De Blancs Champagne, with an estimated guide price of between 14,000 to 18,000.

Also on offer is a 1966 Dom Perignon bottle, with an estimated price tag of between 7,500 to 9,500.

Other deep-pocketed bidders may wish to plump for the 1996 Krug Clos Du Mesnil magnum, with a guide price of between 5,000 to 6,500.

A Louis Roederer Cristal Methuselah six litre bottle of champagne is expected to fetch between 4,500 to 6,000

Dating from 1990, a Louis Roederer Cristal Methuselah six litre bottle of champagne is also on offer, and is expected to fetch between 4,500 to 6,000.

According to Sotheby's: 'The 1990 Louis Roederer Cristal is a champagne of exceptional quality from an outstanding vintage.

'It features ripe orchard fruit, bright citrus, toasted almond, and brioche aromas. The palate is rich and fullbodied with a creamy texture and crisp acidity, leading to a lingering, luxurious finish.'

This collection of Krug bottles of champagne dating back as far as 1959 will also be up for sale

The second of two special auctions being held by Sotheby's will take place a fortnight later, as it sells some of Mr Chen's Burgundy wine collection, with bottles there expected to fetch much more.

On 2 July at Couvent des Cordeliers in Beaune, the 'creme de la creme' of Burgundy wines will be up for grabs, Sotheby's said.

Stemming again from the collection of Mr Chen, the Burgundy wines on offer include bottles from brands like Domaine de la Romanee-Conti, Domaines Leroy and dAuvenay, Coche-Dury, Leflaive, Dujac, Rousseau and Ponsot.

For investors with deep pockets, there are 12 bottles of Domaine de la Romanee-Conti wine going under the hammer on 2 July, with an estimated price of between 60,000 to 90,000.

Bubbling up: There are five bottle of Salon Le Mesnil, Blanc de Blancs 1971 Champagne going up for auction, with an estimated price tag of between 14,000 to 18,000

Simply red: There are 12 bottles of Domaine de la Romanee-Conti wine going under the hammer on 2 July, with an estimated price of between 60,000 to 90,000

Notably, the auction also includes a vertical of magnums of Faiveley Musigny, bottled by Faiveley exclusively for Mr Chen, comprising every vintage since Mr Chens purchase of a parcel of the Grand Cru vineyard.

Sotheby's claimed these bottles cannot be found elsewhere.

The upcoming auctions will be the second in 'The Epicureans Atlas,' the series of five auctions that will liquidate Mr Chens bottles.

The investor base for fine wine has grown significantly in recent years, thanks to the growing affluence of consumers in previously unreached corners of the world, the emergence of user-friendly trading platforms, and a fall in the minimum cost of investment. It's also a physical, tangible asset, like property or gold.

However, investing is wine is not for the faint of heart. Provenance is crucial and additional costs and taxes may need to be factored in.
Two of the richest men in the world have snapped up stakes in stalwarts of the London stock market.

In moves that will raise eyebrows in boardrooms across the City, Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim bought more than 3 per cent of BT while US activist Nelson Peltz took a major holding in Rentokil.

The stake-building is likely to be seen as further evidence that British firms are hugely undervalued, making them attractive to investors  and buyers.

The stock market has seen what has been described as a relentless feeding frenzy of takeover activity this year as foreign bidders seek to snap up London-listed companies on the cheap.

Last night Slim and Peltz remained tight-lipped over their plans for BT and Rentokil, which are long-standing members of the FTSE 100 index of leading blue-chip stocks. But the investments will raise questions over the futures of both firms.

Big hitters: Activist investor Nelson Peltz (right) has taken a major stake in pest control group Rentokil while Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim (left) bought more than 3% of BT

Slim, whose 3.2 per cent stake in BT is worth 400million and was bought through his family business Inbursa, joins other high-profile investors on the shareholder register, including telecoms billionaire Patrick Drahi and German group Deutsche Telekom.

Drahi is currently BTs largest shareholder, with a 24 per cent stake.

New BT boss Allison Kirkby has embarked on a turnaround plan since taking over in February.

Last month she outlined her blueprint, which included another 3billion of cost-cutting, sending shares up more than 17 per cent in their biggest one-day gain for nearly quarter of a century.

But Karen Egan, telecoms expert at Enders Analysis, said the swoop from Slim showed the group was still undervalued.

The telecoms sector as a whole has been out of favour with investors for a long time, she said.

Slim, estimated to be the 17th richest man in the world, made his 72billion fortune from America Movil, the largest telecoms group in Latin America.

BT said last night that we welcome any investor who recognises the long-term value of our business and look forward to engaging with Inbursa just as we do with all investors.

A spokesman for Slim, the richest man in Latin America, described it as a financial investment  something the group usually does.

Paolo Pescatore, a telecoms expert at PP Foresight, said: This is a bolt out of the blue and one that underlines the confidence in BTs strategy and growth plans under Kirkby.

Slims investment in BT emerged just hours after Peltzs hedge fund Trian Partners revealed it is now a top ten investor in royal ratcatcher Rentokil.

Lucrative: Rentokils rat catching services are in demand

Analysts expect Peltz, 81, to wage a proxy campaign at the company, and warned this could even involve a push to switch its primary stock market listing to New York in yet another blow to the City.

Rentokils stock soared 13.7 per cent, or 57p, to 472.2p yesterday after the Wall Street asset manager said it has contacted Rentokils top brass to discuss boosting shareholder value.

Peltz is a prolific activist investor who has battled with the boards of household name businesses including Disney, Procter & Gamble and Heinz.

AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould said Peltz was likely to pursue a big shake-up.

This could include a push to shift its primary listing to the US, which would be another blow to the prestige of London as a listing venue, Mould said.

It comes at a crucial time for Londons stock market, which has suffered a mass exodus of firms.

Trian said it looks forward to working with Rentokils leadership team.

Peltz, whose daughter Nicola is married to David and Victoria Beckhams son Brooklyn, last month sold his stake in Walt Disney for a reported $1billion (780million) after losing a boardroom battle.

He is also on the board of Unilever, which is the London-listed maker of Dove soap and Hellmanns mayonnaise.

And within weeks of Peltz taking a stake at Ferguson in 2019, it unveiled plans to spin off historic UK division Wolseley and appoint a new chief executive.

Ferguson then moved its listing to the US three years later.

Peltz won a seat on the Heinz board in 2006 after a bitter proxy battle and became instrumental in the baked bean brands merger with US firm Kraft, and the spin-off of Mondelez.
Apple has leapfrogged Microsoft to become the worlds most valuable company as investors cheered its plans to use artificial intelligence (AI).

On Wall Street, the iPhone makers shares rose more than 5pc to a record high above $218  giving it a value of more than $3.3 trillion, or 2.6 trillion.

That means it was last night worth more than Microsoft, which is valued at just under $3.3 trillion (2.5 trillion).

And chip maker Nvidia  also worth more than $3 trillion (2.3 trillion)  remains the worlds third most valuable company.

In comparison, the entire FTSE 100 of the London stock markets leading firms is valued at slightly more than 2 trillion.

Big Apple: In a bumper session on Wall Street, Apple's shares rose more than 5% to a record high above $218- giving the iPhone maker a value of more than $3.3trillion

Apple shares have now risen more than 12 per cent since Monday when it announced it has joined forces with OpenAI, giving iPhone users access to use its ChatGPT AI technology.

The surge has added 290billion to its value.

With a battle for AI dominance raging between US tech giants, Apple chief executive Tim Cook set out how the firm would incorporate it into its devices.

And he confirmed speculation that it is integrating its products with ChatGPT.

This will allow users to ask a question via its Siri feature and the AI chatbot will give a response, which can be used to create a bedtime story for children and add pictures  at no extra cost to customers.

Michael James, managing director of equity trading at Wedbush Securities, said: All those questions about Apple lagging from an AI technology standpoint were answered.

But he added that Apple, Nvidia and Microsoft would continue to battle it out to win the AI race over the next year.

Microsoft first passed Apples market cap earlier this year.

And this month Nvidia briefly topped Apples value before dropping back.

But some experts have said Apples rally may be a poisoned chalice.

Dan Coatsworth, analyst at AJ Bell, said: Apple overtaking Microsoft puts it under the spotlight.

The iPhone maker has been the laggard among the mega-cap tech names this year due to concerns about sales of its core product in China and being left behind in the AI race.

The former issue has still to be resolved, but progress with AI means it is now seen as a catch-up candidate, hence the rally.
BT shares raced to their highest level of the year after Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim snapped up a 3 per cent stake.

The British telecoms giant rose 4.3 per cent, or 5.6p, to 135p  giving it a value of 13.4billion  as it took gains since Allison Kirkby became chief executive in February to 20 per cent.

The rally came after Slim  at one point the worlds richest man  snapped up a 3.2 per cent holding through his family business Inbursa.

The Mail understands BT only found out about the investment when it was disclosed to the authorities.

Slim is the latest high-profile investor on the share register alongside billionaire telecoms tycoon Patrick Drahi and German group Deutsche Telekom.

Stake: BT shares rose 4.3%, or 5.6p, to 135p  giving it a value of 13.4bn  after Mexican billionaire Carlos Slim (pictured) snapped up a 3% stake

The backing from one of the worlds richest men may be seen as a vote of confidence in BT under Kirkby.

But Slims motive remains unclear, and, according to sources, he has yet to make contact with BT, a spokesman for the Mexican stating only that it is a financial investment like many the group makes.

So who is Slim, and why is he eyeing up the company?

The businessman, 84, made his fortune through telecoms giant America Movil, which dominates the Latin American market with 384m customers.

His parents are Lebanese but moved to Mexico as children. His father Julien Slim Haddad opened a dry-goods store in Mexico City before snapping up property on the cheap.

HOW THIS IS MONEY CAN HELP How to choose the best (and cheapest) stocks and shares Isa and the right DIY investing account

This financial savvy was passed on to his children and by the age of 12 Slim had shares in the Bank of Mexico and was keen to be an entrepreneur.

Starting as a stockbroker, Slim bought major stakes in Mexican construction, consumer goods, mining and property firms.

At one point he held a 17 per cent stake in The New York Times newspaer.

But his real money spinner was America Movil, which was formed in 2000 and saw Slim become the worlds richest man in 2010.

His empire suffered following Donald Trumps US presidential election win in 2016 as global markets tumbled and Mexicos peso fell to a record low.

He fell down the wealth rankings and today he is the 17th richest person in the world, with a 72billion fortune.

However, those close to Slim say that despite his mega wealth, he remains relatively frugal. He has reportedly lived in the same six-bedroom house for 40 years and has kept business in the family by carving up his empire between his three sons and three daughters.

His push for BT will raise eyebrows about whether British telecoms are becoming a foreign affair.

United Arab Emirates-based group E& recently bought a 14 per cent stake in Vodafone, while Xavier Niel, the French billionaire founder of Iliad, owns a 2.5 per cent of it.

At BT, Switzerland-based Drahi is the biggest shareholder with a 24.5 per cent stake while Deutsche Telekom has a 12 per cent holding.

Slims 3.2 per cent slice is valued at 430million. stake while Deutsche Telekom has a 12 per cent holding. Slims 3.2 per cent slice is valued at 430million.

On the rise: BT rose 4.3%, or 5.6p, to 135p  giving it a value of 13.4bn  as it took gains since Allison Kirkby (pictured) took over as chief exec in February to 20%

Enders Analysis telecoms expert Karen Egan said Slim could shift power away from Drahi, whose stake has fuelled speculation that he may wish to launch a takeover bid.

It will further dilute any prospect Drahi had of having influence at BT, she said.

Kester Mann, analyst at CCS Insight, said Slim may have eyes on a bigger stake himself  and could even buy out Drahi.

Slims move on BT could form a beachhead, having recently reduced his interest in Dutch operator KPN, he said. Should that be the case, he may find a willing seller in Patrick Drahi.

BTs share price is still down more than 70 per cent since the peak in 2015 and Slims investment comes at a crucial time.

Some analysts believe that the move is a vote of confidence in Kirkby.

Last month she outlined her blueprint, which included another 3billion of cost-cutting, sending shares up more than 17 per cent in a day.

As such, the latest rise on the back of Slims investment will no doubt be welcomed by Kirkby and her lieutenants.

However, the board, which is led by chairman Adam Crozier, will want to know precisely what Slim is planning.

Sophie Lund-Yates, an analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: It potentially opens the door to some interesting developments down the line.
Elon Musk declared victory last night ahead of a vote by Tesla shareholders on his record 44billion pay package.

Just hours before the electric car makers annual meeting, the billionaire said investors were set to approve the highest-ever pay deal in US corporate history.

Both Tesla shareholder resolutions are currently passing by wide margins, Musk wrote in a post on X. Thanks for your support!

Tensions have mounted since a Delaware court voided his compensation package in January, finding it had been inappropriately set by the board.

Musk, one of the worlds richest men, has been rallying support after a flurry of shareholders suggested they would revolt.

Record pay: Tesla boss Elon Musk (pictured) said investors were set to approve his 44bn package

Influential proxy advisers, Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis, opposed the deal and Teslas eighth-largest shareholder, Norways sovereign wealth fund, came out against the package.

The deal, set six years ago, was tied to performance targets, such as the share price and profits, and meant Musk was entitled to 44billion.Musk, worth an estimated 154billion, does not receive a salary at Tesla.

In January, a US judge struck down the package but directors insisted the pay was aimed at keeping Musk incentivised as he juggles owning several other companies including X, and satellite firm Space X, amid fears he may walk away from Tesla.

Dan Ives, tech analyst at Wedbush Securities, said a vote in the tycoons favour would show that Tesla is Musk and Musk is Tesla.

He added: In a nutshell, if this proposal went south a lot of bad things and scenarios could have happened, including Musk beginning a path to not being chief executive officer.

'Instead its roses and rainbows in Austin although demand challenges remain and this is pivotal period for Tesla and Musk to navigate this turbulent period.

Last nights pay deal vote was not legally binding.

That means that Musk could face legal challenges, including the prospect of the Delaware courts still not recognising the vote and still voiding the deal.

A vote by shareholders wouldnt cause an automatic reversal of [the courts] decision. We are in uncharted waters here, said Samantha Crispin, attorney at law firm Baker Botts.

Tesla shares climbed 3.7 per cent last night.
Labour has vowed to robustly scrutinise the Royal Mail takeover and give workers a stronger voice in a pre-election pledge that throws the deal into doubt.

In its manifesto, Sir Keir Starmers party promised to look into the proposed 3.6billion sale of the 508-year-old postal service to a billionaire known as the Czech Sphinx.

Crucially, Labour said it would explore giving workers more of a say in how Royal Mail is run.

The pledge appeared to cede ground to unions demanding that posties gain part-ownership through a collective employee trust. Analysts said it could come too close to nationalisation for buyer Daniel Kretinsky and put him off.

Shares in parent company International Distribution Services dipped almost 2pc following the publication of Labours election manifesto yesterday.

Scrutiny: Billionaire investor Daniel Kretinsky (pictured), who is known as the Czech Sphinx, agreed a 3.6bn deal to but the Royal Mail

The price recovered to around 0.7 per cent, or 2.4p, down at 329.6p, which is well below the 370p offer price tabled by Kretinsky and accepted by the IDS board.

The gap suggests many do not expect the deal to go through.

It is the markets way of saying it thinks there is even less of a chance that the takeover will complete, said Dan Coatsworth, an investment analyst at AJ Bell.

Labours intention to let workers and customers have a stronger voice would give them nearly the same rights as a shareholder.

He added: Kretinsky might think that is a step too close to nationalisation.

Kretinsky no doubt wants to take Royal Mail out of the public spotlight so that it can be fixed without investors demanding constant updates.

But Labour drawing up a list of demands because Royal Mail is a vital part of UK infrastructure could effectively keep that spotlight shining bright.

Kretinsky has promised to keep the Royal Mail name and brand and retain its UK headquarters and tax residency to keep it tied to Britain.

But the Communication Workers Union, which represents around 110,000 workers, wants posties to have a stake.

Under a collective employee trust, workers would have a say in how the business is run and a share in its profits. It would also reduce the risk of industrial action.

Writing in the Mail this week, CWU leader Dave Ward called for a new ownership and governance model for Royal Mail.

Our plan will build back trust from the public and businesses and win over tens of thousands of workers who have been demoralised by the leadership by giving them a major stake in their businesses, he said.

Business Secretary Kemi Badenoch was due to hold talks with Kretinsky this week.

She previously sought commitments from the current management that Royal Mails universal service obligation would be protected.

The takeover could also be derailed under the National Security and Investment Act, but so far both Labour and the Tories have stopped short of threatening to block the deal.

Kretinsky has hinted that he would back managements plans to reform the postal service, which include cutting second class post to three days a week.
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has defended its decision to allow Shein to join amid concerns over treatment of workers.

Scrutiny of the Chinese fast fashion giant is growing ahead of a potential 50billion float.

Shein has been criticised for using suppliers who exploit lowp-aid workers to sell its clothes cheaply.

It has been trying to woo the British business community and says it has improved its supply chain.

Concerns: Shein has been criticised for using suppliers who exploit low-paid garment workers in China

This year it became a member of the BRC, which represents around 200 firms including M&S and Burberry.

BRC chief Helen Dickinson said all new members must be willing to engage in key issues such as employment practices and environmental concerns before being approved.

The conversation with Shein joining is the same as it is with any member joining, she said.

And she said it was not the BRCs job to defend Shein or act as regulator, the policeman, the due diligence decider.

We dont defend any of our members, we defend our industry, said Dickinson. It is not our job to be responsible for individual actions of any member.

Rivals are unhappy that Shein can dodge hefty custom taxes as it ships directly from China.

The fashion brand has said it is investing millions of pounds in improving standards across its supply chains
House prices in some areas have gone up 42% since Lisa was launched in 2017

Proportion of 'unauthorised' Lisa withdrawals doubled in last three years

More than 185,000 Lifetime Isa savers have been fined for withdrawing their own money, a freedom of information request has uncovered.

And the proportion of account holders fined for making these 'unauthorised withdrawals' has more than doubled in just three years, according to the request made by mortgage lender MPowered.

The uptick in savers charged the penalties is down to rising house prices according to MPowered, which also analysed existing data from HM Revenue and Customs.

Home hunting: But first-time buyers could be charged to take money from their Lifetime Isa if their dream property costs more than 450,000

This is because savers face a charge if they withdraw Lifetime Isa money for any reason other than to buy a first home costing 450,000 or less, to help fund retirement after the age of 60, or because they are terminally ill.

This is classed as an 'unauthorised' withdrawal under the scheme's rules, and the saver is charged a penalty equal to 25 per cent of the amount taken out.

Because this fine applies to the whole pot and not just the amount the saver paid in, it not only means they lose the 25 per cent Government bonus paid on savings of up to 4,000 each year, but also some of their own cash.

As house prices have gone up, more people are buying homes that breach the 450,000 limit and incurring the charge.

The average home in London now exceeds that limit, as well as in 27 other local authorities around the UK including Oxford, Cambridge and Buckinghamshire.

The total amount savers have lost to withdrawal charges since the Lifetime Isa, also known as a Lisa, launched in 2017 is 127million, which includes lost interest, according to MPowered. The average penalty paid per saver has been 684.

Seven per cent of Lisa savers made an unauthorised withdrawal in 2022-2023, it found, compared to only 3.2 per cent in 2019-20.

MPowered also said that since launch, just 12 per cent of Lisa savers, around 170,000, have successfully used their account to buy a home.

The rest are either still saving, with around 4billion held in Lisas at the Government's last count in 2022, or have withdrawn it.

As Lisas are only for those under 40 and the scheme started in 2017, no account holders have reached the age of 60 yet.

Stuart Cheetham, CEO of MPowered Mortgages, said 'Lifetime Isas were created to help first-time buyers save up to buy a home, but thousands of savers are being unfairly penalised each year for doing just this.

'The Lisa withdrawal penalties are designed to ensure savers only use these accounts for what they are designed for - buying a first home or saving for retirement - but the cap on the value of property they can be used for means Lisas are increasingly unfit for purpose.'

How do Lisas work?

There are currently 1.06million Lisa accounts open.

Savers under the age of 40 can open a Lisa and until they hit 50, the Government will pay a bonus of 1 for every 4 they save, giving a 1,000 bonus on the maximum 4,000 a year you can put into the account.

Two people buying a home together can each use their Isa towards a deposit, but the value of the property still must not exceed 450,000.

Because the withdrawal fine applies to the whole pot including the bonus, and not just the amount the saver paid in, it not only means they lose the 25 per cent Government bonus, but also some of their own cash.

An example of how this works from the Government website is as follows:

Assuming no growth, initial savings of 800 will earn a 25 per cent Government bonus of 200 and give you a pot of 1,000.

If you wish to withdraw the entire pot, a 25 per cent charge will apply to the full 1,000. You'll have to pay a Government withdrawal charge of 250. This will leave you with 750.

How much is the average home?

According to the latest Land Registry data which relates to March 2024, the typical UK house price is 283,000.

In April 2017 when the Lifetime Isa was launched, it cost 220,094. Some argue that the property price limit on the Lisa should be increased in line with house price rises during that time.

The average price in London already breaches the Lisa limit at 500,000, though all other regions are still under the cap on average.

However, the average home is now more than 450,000 in 27 local authorities which are not within London.

Savings penalty: Those breaching the property price cap will not only lose the Government bonus, but also some of their own cash

While most are in the South of England, they include cities and large towns such as Oxford, Cambridge, Chichester, Guildford and Winchester.

This is Money has outlined these in the table below, based on Land Registry data for March 2024.

Those needing a larger home, for example because they have children, may also be in danger of breaching the limit.

This risk could increase as the typical first-time buyer gets older. According to the Office for National Statistics the average first-time buyer is now 36, compared to 32 in 2004.

And separate research from Santander this week revealed that in 2023, around one in five first-time buyers had at least one dependent - up from 10 per cent in 2009.

The average detached home in the UK breaches the cap at 465,000, according to the Land Registry.

Cheetam added: 'In some parts of the country the average price paid by a first-time buyer has risen by 42 per cent since the Lisa rules were written.

'The average home in London already costs 500,000, and the return of rising prices increases the likelihood of Lisa savers outside the capital falling foul of the 450,000 limit too.'
When the UK was plunged into the first Covid lockdown, many believed working from home was a temporary measure - and that normal working habits would resume post-pandemic.

Yet more than two years since the last restrictions were lifted in Britain, and after bosses repeatedly asked workers to return to the office, people continue to work remotely.

That's despite government ministers and business owners raising concerns that working from home is negatively impacting productivity and could damage the economy.

And today MailOnline can reveal how firms are offering would-be employees six-figure salaries - all while working from home.

The highest-paid WFH jobs on offer are 150,000 per year, while billing supervisors are being recruited at 100,000 annually, according to job search website Jooble.

Other options include working as a commercial property solicitor for up to 60,000, a tutor paid 51,000 per year and a human resources assistant on 40,000 - while an IT systems administrator can count on receiving up to 55,000 per year.

Six-figure salaries are on offer for people working from home across the UK post-pandemic

Working from home jobs on offer online promise per annum earnings of up to 150,000

Top-prized roles also include equity release advisors on 75,000 per annum, financial controllers offered 70,000 and remotely-working legal counsel hired for as much as 100,000 over the course of a year.

TOP-PAYING WORKING FROM HOME JOBS 150,000 Mortgage advisor, Orphan Client Bank (Edinburgh) 150,000 Banking rates analyst (London) 100,000 Billing supervisor, SF Recruitment (Manchester) 100,000 Commercial contract solicitors legal counsel (London) 90,000 Legal counsel, Cutover (London) 80,000 Software engineer, Interact Consulting (Manchester) 75,000 Equity release advisor (Newcastle) 70,000 Financial controller (Manchester) 67,000 Investment bank executive assistant (London) 60,000 Venture capital data analyst (Birmingham) Source: Jooble.org Advertisement

Employers are targeting recruits who prefer clocking on from within the comfort of their own four walls - as Swedish furniture giant IKEA becomes the latest to tout new remote working roles.

The company is offering rates of up to 13.15 per hour to serve customers from home as part of its virtual store Roblox crew - adding up to 43,197.75 per year.

Those earnings are comfortably more than the UK's average salary of 34,963, according to the Office for National Statistics - 5.8 per cent up on last year's 33,061.

WFH specialists online are touting roles they say pay as much as between 30 and 48 per hour, such as e-commerce assistants for app developers - and top salaries reach as high as 150,000 without needing to go into an office.

Nine-hour working days across a whole year could net 48-hourly employees almost 158,000 - although online ads suggest much of such work is part-time, with a suggested minimum of five hours per week.

Jooble says average salaries for people working from home in London is 66,845 - 51 per cent more than the UK average - and which amounts to 5,570 per month, 1,285 per week and 33.03 per hour.

The company is currently promoting working from home roles such as service administrators paid an annual 43,000, photography agents on up to 54,000 and loan closers offered as much as 67,000.

Other advertised posts include equity release advisors on 75,000 per annum, financial controllers offered 70,000 and remotely-working legal counsel hired for as much as 100,000 annually.

Daily rates include 450 per day for data analysts in Leeds, 550 for similar roles in Cambridgeshire and the same for educational psychologists in Peterborough.

Roblox is a free online gaming platform that lets users build their own virtual worlds. It allows users to play games created by themselves or by others (file photo)

Within the virtual experience, IKEA fans will be able to 'live their home furnishing dreams' and get paid for it, the Swedish firm says

Yet there can be drawbacks, with recent research suggesting that working from home can decrease overall productivity by as much as 20 per cent.

Jacob Rees-Mogg, the former business secretary, was one of the ministers pushing for civil servants to return to the office amid productivity fears.

After it emerged that Britain was the working from home capital of Europe last July, he said: 'No wonder our productivity record, especially in the public sector, continues to be so bad.'

Meanwhile, Charlie Mullins, founder of Pimlico Plumbers, said: 'It is something that is definitely going to damage the economy.

'How, for example, can you start a new company from scratch if everyone works from home? How do you train the next generation of workers? Other countries are going back to the office while we lag behind.'

James Micklethwait, vice-president of Kahoot!, told how the 'changing post-pandemic work environment' was prompting firms to offer better deals to WFH Gen Z-ers

But contact centre home working specialists Sensee insists 'homeworking is a better way' for employers, employees and customers.

The job firm, which has tied up with businesses such as Bupa, Allianz, Northumbrian Water, Staysure and L&G, highlights research suggesting 74 per cent of workers say clocking on remotely gives them a better work-life balance.

A third of businesses now allow their employees to log in from anywhere across the world, according to a study by accountancy firm RSM UK.

Yet some firms are desperately trying to tempt Gen Z-ers back into the office by offering perks such as free breakfasts and woodland meditation retreats.

Britain's post-lockdown WFH boom means many young workers are demanding 100 per cent remote-working and even refusing to come into the office for job interviews, bosses have said.

One media chief told how the pendulum of power has swung away from the employer towards the employee, saying: 'Gen-Z candidates want to know what the employer can do for them first - theyre the ones in power.'

James Micklethwait, vice-president of online educational firm Kahoot!, told MailOnline how the 'changing post-pandemic work environment' was prompting firms to offer better deals to WFH Gen Z-ers - for fear they could be tempted elsewhere if denied at least hybrid working.

A recent survey by Deloitte found some 77 per cent of Gen Z-ers in the UK and 71 per cent of slightly older millennials would consider looking for a new job if told they had to turn up at their workplace full-time.

Mr Micklethwait said: 'With many Gen Zs entering the workforce for the first time after having experienced remote education as a consequence of the pandemic, they are increasingly seeking non-traditional desk roles as a result.

'With this, companies need to manage the generational divide and begin to embrace technology that can ease their transition into the workplace.

'With Covid lockdowns permanently altering the way we work, it is likely that we will see an increase in roles that would have once been considered out of the ordinary, as employers look to appeal to the demands of younger, tech-minded workers.'

Sausage-maker HECK has built a creche for dogs designed to look like the office staff work in next door.

And a software firm with all staff working from home has decided to book a week in the sun for workers each year to make up for a lack of bonding in the office.

More businesses are also handing out cakes on important days, free breakfasts and lunches as well as meditation courses in woodland, known as 'forest bathing'.

Salary sacrifice schemes for crypto-currency and help with mortgages to get young people on the property ladder are also being provided more widely.

Yet a survey of HR directors conducted by money-saving website Nous.co found 25-to-34-year-olds were unimpressed by offers of breakfasts, pool tables, after-work drinks - when they would prefer instead help with their finances and mental health.

Health and Safety Executive figures reveal a rise in the number of days lost to stress, anxiety and depression post-pandemic, especially among younger age groups.

Those in the 25-to-34 age bracket report more illness than any other group, while the proportion of those between 16 and 24 claiming work-related stress has overtaken that of people more than twice their age.

The new IKEA roles promise 13.15 per hour to work in a virtual version of the company's stores.

The 'fully remote' role will include helping customers choose their furniture while also serving up meatballs in a digital recreation of the IKEA bistro.

A study conducted earlier this year concluded Brits are spending an average of less than two days a week in the office

The company is taking applications from now until this coming Sunday, though cautions that only 10 posts are available.

The retailer said: 'Candidates will be recruited to work inside our newest store, located on the gaming platform Roblox, getting a taste of what careers are like in a real life IKEA.

'Gamers and Ikea fans alike will be able to work, explore and experience the virtual world of Ikea.'

Hopefuls have to fill out an application form that asks questions such as 'How do you feel about being turned into pixels?' and 'What would you do if we ran out of pixelated hot dogs in our bistro?'

The recruitment process also includes a questionnaire and will require an updated CV, while videos can also be submitted.

Meanwhile, the boss of Santander UK - who earns 3.3million a year - has admitted he works from home and would not have accepted the job if he had to work in London five days a week.

Chief executive Mike Regnier spends up to two days a week working in the company's main offices in Milton Keynes and London.

For the rest of the week, the 52-year-old works from his home in Harrogate, North Yorkshire, or travels the country to visit branches and other satellite offices.

He said last month: 'I don't think it's absolutely vital that people spend all five days a week in the office as they did pre-Covid.

'And, actually, had it not been for Covid, I wouldn't have accepted this job, because I wouldn't have wanted to be away from home five days a week in London. That wouldn't have been good for the family or for me.'

Mike Regnier, chief executive of one of Britain's biggest banks Santander, spends up to two days a week working in the company's main offices in Milton Keynes and London

Yet earlier this year workers at Disney were called to return to the office for four days each week after managing director Bob Iger said 'nothing can replace' staff being physically together.

And Goldman Sachs chief executive David Solomon described working from home as an 'aberration' that was bad for collaboration and innovation.

The Mail revealed how fewer than four in ten civil servants working for the taxman are actually showing up to the office each day.

Despite complaints about poor customer service, just 38 per cent of UK-based staff at His Majestys Revenue and Customs were at their desks on an average day last month, the Mail can reveal.

This number fell to as low as 24 per cent for mandarins based in the departments Whitehall office.
The Animal Rising activists who vandalised King Charles's first official portrait won't be arrested as it is revealed serial disruptors have previously abducted beagles and staged a steakhouse sit-in.

Daniel Juniper, 29, and Ben Thomas, 22, targeted the painting earlier today as it hung the Philip Mould gallery in London.

This latest stunt saw the duo plaster a Wallace and Gromit face over his Majesty's alongside a speech bubble that read: ''No Cheese, Gromit. Look At All This Cruelty On RSPCA Farms!'

However campaigners have been seen at other high profile disruption across the country, all in the name of building 'sustainable future for all life'.

At around 12pm two campaigners stuck Wallace and Gromit posters attacking the RSPCA over the face of His Majesty

Daniel Juniper, 29, targeted the painting earlier today as it hung the Philip Mould gallery

Speaking to MailOnline today he said: 'We chose to take part in the action today to directly communicate with King Charles today.

'He is the Royal patron of the RSPCA and we have released the UK's investigation into the RSPCA.

'We are calling on the RSPCA to drop the assured scheme and for King Charles to stand up for the animals and the environment that he loves and start protecting it by getting the RSPCA to drop the assurance scheme.

'We didn't damage the painting at all. The painting is covered in glass.

'The aim of today was to create public discourse and directly communicate with King Charles, the RSPCA and the public, but we were ok with getting arrested because we believe this issue is really important.'

Last May Daniel led a sit in alongside nine other supporters at The Cow & Sow in Queens Square, Bristol in protest to their use of meat.

They held up placards showing the condition inside UK farms, holding out for an hour before the police were called to remove them.

Mr Juniper said: 'Today [we are] disrupting The Cow & Sow in Bristol - a steakhouse with an extensive selection of meat.

'In a time where the public opinion is changing about how we view animals, this type of restaurant is outdated and destructive.

'So I and eight other supporters of Animal Rising are here to disrupt their Saturday night service. To sound the alarm and call for change. There is an alternative and it is kinder and loving.'

The man was carried away by four police officers after being removed from the racecourse

His co-conspirator, 22-year-old Ben Thomas has also got a colourful past of disrupting major events and being in the crosshairs with the police.

Speaking today to MailOnline he defended his actions claiming it to be 'funny' and receiving a 'positive reaction' from those in the art gallery.

He said: 'American tourists who saw the action were laughing and they found it funny and asked to take pictures of us. The reaction was quite positive.

'In this portrait specifically there is a butterfly on King Charles' shoulder to represent how he cares for the environment.

'He takes a lot of pride in caring about the environment and animal farming is a huge contributor to the climate crisis.

'So if he was actually aware of what this scheme which he is a patron of is actively doing then I believe he would be against that and be pro the message we are trying to present.'

Also just last year he was spotted at Epsom Derby wearing a pink t-shirt that read 'Animal Rising for all life'

head of the event, environmentalists and animal welfare zealots Animal Rising said protesters would attempt to shut down the race in their bid to protect the animals

In 2022 he took part in a 'rescue mission' to save beagles from MBR Acres, a facility that breeds the animals for medical research.

Protesters used bolt cutters to break into a beagle breeding facility and release 18 dogs as police later arrested 14 people in connection.

In photographs released by Animal Rising, protesters appeared to pass a dog over the top of a metal fence.

The protest group said in a statement it was 'not true' that animal testing was necessary, adding 'there are better alternatives.'

Also just last year he was spotted at Epsom Derby wearing a pink t-shirt that read 'Animal Rising for all life'.

At the same event, police had to arrest 31 people over plans to 'cancel or severely delay' the race.

Ahead of the event, environmentalists and animal welfare zealots Animal Rising said protesters would attempt to shut down the race in their bid to protect the animals.

Police have confirmed they will be taking no further action as no damage had been done to the painting and the gallery 'did not wish to report a crime'.

A Met spokesperson said: 'In response to footage circulating on social media, officers attended a central London gallery to carry out enquiries. Police had not been called to the incident.

'Staff at the venue were spoken to. They confirmed no damage had been done to either the painting or the glass that covered it.

'The protestors were asked by staff to leave following the incident, which they did.

'The gallery did not wish to report a crime and as such there is no further action by police.'
EXCLUSIVE

An Australian restauranteur faces brutal corporal punishment in Singapore after he was identified by cops as the lead suspect in an armed robbery because he was 'fatter than the average person'.

Jose Manuel Pacheco, 39, may be lashed 12 times with a 1.2m rattan cane after he allegedly threatened a 31-year-old female clerk with a knife at money lender Accredit Private Limited in the Tampines district of Singapore on June 4.

Singaporean police allege Pacheco, from Perth, was wearing a disguise - a mask and cap - when he confronted the worker at about 1.40pm and demanded she put S$6,095 (AU$6,810) in a bag.

The female clerk remained calm and took careful note of the alleged robber's appearance and clothing so she could pass on the information to police.

Using the victim's description, police arrested Pacheco half an hour later as he allegedly lurked near the crime scene, watching the investigators without his disguise.

He was confronted by an officer and allegedly confessed to armed robbery.

Australian national Jose Manuel Pacheco (pictured) has been charged over an alleged armed robbery in Singapore

If convicted, he could face 12 lashings. Pictured is a prison officer at Changi Prison in Singapore demonstrating a caning on a mannequin

The officers approached Pacheco, who police will allege seemed at a loss to know how to answer their questions before eventually admitting to the armed robbery.

Singaporean police will allege the Aussie chef believed he could fly under the radar watching the investigation unfold after removing his mask and cap.

Yimeng, a manager of a nearby store, told local media police came in to ask for CCTV before officers began canvassing the area for the alleged perpetrator.

He said officers arrested Pacheco after spotting him sitting in a staircase next to his store.

'The man they saw was sitting at the staircase, facing the crime scene, looking like he was watching the police handle the case,' he told Zaobao.

'He spoke to the police in Malay. He was fatter than the average person, had long hair and a beard.

'Although he had taken off his mask and hat, he still couldn't escape the investigators who were observing his surroundings carefully.'

Police were able to seize the knife allegedly used in the robbery and recover all the cash.

Singaporean police will allege he stole from the Accredit Money Lender (pictured) in the Tampines district

Singapore has low crime rates due to its severe penalties for criminal activities, which has seen the Asian nation consistently rank as one of the safest countries in the world.

In Singapore, individuals can be sentenced to caning for more than 30 offences, including kidnapping, robbery, sexual abuse, drug abuse, rioting, vandalism, extortion and unlawful possession of weapons.

Caning is mandatory for certain offences, such as rape, drug trafficking and illegal money lending, and for foreigners who overstay their visas by more than 90 days.

The punishment, which is only given to men, is delivered in jail by a trained prison guard while the offender is naked, bent over and restrained in a wooden frame - resulting in bloody cuts to the buttocks.

If convicted, Pacheco, who has been charged with one count of armed robbery, faces between three and 14 years in jail and at least 12 strokes of the cane.

Pacheco, originally from Perth, has been living and working in Singapore in recent years

Daily Mail Australia can reveal Pacheco is a restaurant manager originally from Perth, who had been living and working in Singapore in recent years.

According to his LinkedIn account, the West Australian has worked in hospitality since he was 14 and was most recently employed as the Head of Tapas Club, a premium Spanish restaurant chain.

He was also previously employed as the head of Singapore's Yole Cafe, as well as a general manager at Heart of Darkness Brewery in Vietnam.

'My work and personal life revolves on what positive impact I can make on somebody that will create a lasting memory and leave a legacy,' Pacheco wrote in his bio on his since-deactivated LinkedIn page.

'This translates well into my professional life as a main focus of mine is to create personal connection between the business I represent and the clients we are taking care of.'

The items Pacheco allegedly used are pictured

Pacheco allegedly stole S$6,095 (AU$6,810) (pictured), according to Singapore police

Just eight months ago, Tapas Club Singapore shared a gushing post about Pacheco, featuring a photo of him serving up a plate for a customer at the buffet.

'When our very own Head of Tapas Club, Jose, steps out to serve you, you know it's a special day!' the business wrote on Facebook.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted dplus1, the parent company of Tapas Club, for comment.

Pacheco faced court last week via video link, where a police prosecutor asked District Judge Lim Tse Haw for a four-week adjournment to give police time to complete their investigation, the Straits Times reported.

The prosecutor applied for Pacheco to be granted bail of S$20,000 (AU$22,340), which was granted.

While on bail, Pacheco must stay contactable by the police and must surrender his passport.

His family declined to comment.

Singapore police will allege Pacheco was arrested after officers noticed him lurking near the crime scene
A serving police officer pledged his support to a convicted rapist colleague by writing 'Good luck mate' on Facebook days before he was due to be sentenced, MailOnline can reveal.

PC Andy Collis, who works for West Midlands Police, made the ill-advised comment to show his backing for PC Aron May, who had been found guilty of two counts of rape and was jailed for 12 years on Monday.

Responding to a photograph posted onto Facebook on June 5 showing May posing with his partner and their black Labrador, PC Collis left a message with the words 'Good Luck mate' accompanied by a prayer emoji.

May  also a West Midlands officer  was found guilty of the sex attacks back in April but appeared at Worcester Crown Court earlier this week for sentence.

PC Andy Collis, from West Midlands Police, pledged his support to convicted rapist colleague

PC Aron May was found guilty of two counts of rape and was jailed for 12 years on Monday

PC Collis left a message with the words 'Good Luck mate' accompanied by a prayer emoji

Today PC Collis, 57, was unrepentant at his home in Coleshill in Warwickshire, confirming that he sent the message in support of May before deleting it.

It came as Judge Martin Jackson expressed concern about some of the character references submitted on May's behalf which contained 'ill judged' and 'derogatory' comments about both the jury's verdict and the victim.

Speaking to MailOnline from the doorstep of his detached home on a quiet cul-de-sac, PC Collis - who made local headlines in 2013 when he grew a Magnum PI-style moustache for Movember to raise awareness of men's health - refused to elaborate on what his message meant.

He said simply: 'It meant 'Good luck mate', that's it. Ok. Thank you. Off you go.'

Before closing the door, he told the reporter to go to West Midlands Police headquarters, adding: 'You're going to have to go to Lloyd House. I ain't going to give anything.'

Speaking to MailOnline from the doorstep of his detached home on a quiet cul-de-sac, PC Collis - who made local headlines in 2013 when he grew a Magnum PI-style moustache for Movember to raise awareness of men's health - refused to elaborate on his message

Today PC Collis, 57, was unrepentant at his home in Coleshill in Warwickshire, confirming that he sent the message in support of May before deleting it

May was found to have preyed on the same woman twice in a matter of weeks and was dismissed by West Midlands Police before he was jailed.

The officer carried out his first attack on August 14, 2019, before striking again at the end of the August bank holiday weekend.

He picked up and carried his victim into another room on the first occasion, ignoring her pleas for him to stop having sex with her.

His second attack was launched when she was asleep.

The victim confronted the officer about his crimes while secretly recording him, the court was told during his trial.

May unleashed a volley of abuse in the audio, which was later used as evidence to convict him.

Passing sentence, Judge Jackson told May that his position as a police officer was a 'serious aggravating factor' as it undermined public trust in policing.

He said: 'I note that you still maintain your denial of having committed either office. That is your privilege.

'But it leads me to this conclusion: that the continued denial shows no remorse in your actions and that while you may have insight on an abstract level about the seriousness of the offence of rape when committed by others, you have no insight into your own behaviour.'

May is understood to have been a star rugby player in his youth and even represented Wales at u18 level.

The court was told that the Police Federation, which represents rank and file officers, paid through its insurance for May to be defended in court by a senior lawyer, Michelle Heeley KC.

Addressing the character statements written in support of the officer, the judge warned that offenders often showed 'very different faces' to those who know them through work, or socially, which masked their true predatory nature.

May is understood to have been a star rugby player in his youth and even represented Wales

PC Collis told MailOnline: 'It meant 'Good luck mate', that's it. Ok. Thank you. Off you go'

He told May, of Romsley, Shropshire that his offences were about 'satisfying your needs' and 'exercising control' over his victim before sentencing him to seven years for the first rape and five years for the second rape, to be served consecutively.

A restraining order was also imposed forbidding him from contacting his victim.

In an earlier statement to the court his victim, who cannot be identified for legal reasons, told how she could get her life back together and said: 'Once he is sentenced, I will finally be able to breathe again.

'The relief of him being found guilty was immense and I broke down.'

Although May was a West Midlands Police officer, the rapes were investigated by neighbouring West Mercia Police.

Following the sentencing, Deputy Chief Constable Scott Green of West Midlands Police said: 'Aron May was dismissed from West Midlands Police in May 2024 following a misconduct hearing which took place after his conviction at Worcester Crown Court for two counts of rape.

'Today, he has been sentenced to 12 years.

'The public quite rightly expect the highest standard of professionalism from our officers and staff and we are determined to ensure that those who breach these standards are held to account.'

A West Midlands Police spokesperson added: 'As part of the sentencing process for former PC Aaron May, two serving West Midlands Police officers gave character evidence on his behalf.

'They described their previous working relationships with him, and make no comment about the victim or any other detail of the case.

'Our thoughts continue to be former PC Mays victim.'
Everything about Operation Arnon, the audacious rescue of four Israeli hostages  Noa Argamani, 26, Almog Meir Jan, 22, Andrey Kozlov, 27, and Shlomi Ziv, 41  from two heavily guarded buildings in Al-Nuseirat, Gaza, seemed to be mission impossible.

For starters, the raid  by undercover operatives of Yamam, the secretive anti-terrorism unit of the Israeli police, and Shin Bet, the Israeli equivalent of MI5  took place in broad daylight, not under cover of darkness.

It also involved attacking two buildings full of heavily armed men simultaneously, slap bang in the middle of one of the worlds most overcrowded refugee camps and an area already teeming with Hamas terrorists who had been anticipating a raid for weeks and had built up security and fortifications accordingly.

But it was meticulously designed, planned like a surgical brain operation by Israeli forces, was based on weeks of covert surveillance and relied on being the ultimate surprise.

Noa Argamani is reunited with her father following the audacious rescue of four Israeli hostages in Operation Arnon

Astonishingly, all four hostages were rescued, but it was nearly a total disaster.

It also seems to have come at an appalling cost to the residents of Al-Nuseirat, with claims that hundreds were killed and injured.

Over the last couple of days, conflicting accounts of what did  and did not  happen have been circulating.

So, whats the truth?

Here, we bring you a definitive blow-by-blow report of one of the most daring and destructive rescue operations in modern times.

Early May

Israeli intelligence officers discover that Noa Argamani is being held in a low-rise apartment block near the Al-Nuseirat market.

The 26-year-old was abducted, along with her boyfriend Avinatan Or, from the Nova music festival in Southern Israel when Hamas launched its October 7 attack.

A video of her abduction, showing her between two men on a motorcycle screaming Dont kill me!, made her one of the most recognised hostages.

In January, she also appeared in a hostage video alongside fellow captives Yossi Sharabi, 53, and Itai Svirsky, 38, both of whom were later reported to have been killed.

Officers also discover three more hostages  Almog Meir Jan, Andrey Kozlov and Shlomi Ziv  are being held barely 200 metres from Noa by Hamas terrorist Abdullah Al-Jamal, at his home alongside his family in another apartment block.

Yamam operatives construct replicas of the two, three and four-storey buildings where the hostages are held so they can simulate the rescue missions.

Two weeks ago

Two teams made up of several dozen Yamam and Shin Bet special forces operatives smuggle themselves into the Al-Nuseirat refugee camp from an undisclosed location. Some arrived on foot, others in dusty vehicles  all disguised as refugees and speaking Arabic.

Special forces made up of undercover operatives of Yamam and Shin Bet surround one of two heavily guarded buildings in Al Nuseirat, Gaza

They then storm the apartment and are greeted by a hail of bullets from the terrorists

They find two hostages being held by Hamas terrorist Abdullah Al Jamal who are shocked, silent and not sure who to trust

Thursday, June 6

War Cabinet dissolves amid fallout over hostage deal while special forces secretly start making final preparations to rescue four of the captives.

Saturday, June 8

10:45 am

Israeli ground surveillance and airborne technological tracking confirm the area is clear, with no suspicious movement detected in the two buildings.

10.58 am

Israels Defence Minister Yoav Gallant meets nations top military brass in the Command Room. Following approval from Gallant, Lt Gen Halevi, head of the IDFs Intelligence Directorate, orders Yamam, the special counter terror police unit: Go!

Once the green light is given, all communication with the operatives on the ground is cut to remove any chance of the enemy picking up radio chatter and blowing the mission.

11.00 am

The central market in Al-Nuseirat is teeming with refugees doing their shopping, along with hundreds of Hamas terrorists.

At least 50 members of Israeli special forces are hiding among them. Some, disguised as displaced Gazans escaping the IDF operation in Rafah, had arrived in a white car with a mattress strapped to the roof as cover, and rented a base near the busy market. Others pose as members of the resistance, wearing helmets and resistance badges.

A second group, also posing as displaced persons, arrived in trucks filled with furniture.

All head, under cover, for the central market area where their targets are the two low-rise apartment blocks, 200 metres apart.

In the first building, Noa is under armed guard. She has been held with a relatively wealthy family, who allegedly forced her to clean for them and kept telling her: Thank God that we are the family you ended up with.

In the second building are the three men. Both buildings are inhabited by Gazan families as well as Hamas guards.

11.25 am

Two teams of between 20 and 25 Israeli elite special forces snake towards the two buildings.

They came out of the trucks in Yamam uniforms  and then everything started, Zohar Dvir, former head of the National Counter Terrorism Unit, tells the Daily Mail.

Israeli forces blast their way into each compound simultaneously  any delay between the two groups and Hamas would have executed the remaining hostages  and enter from every possible access point to maximise chaos and confusion.

In Noas building, some operatives climb in using a ladder; others take the stairs. Her guards are surprised completely and are killed immediately by Israeli forces.

Noa is also shocked when the door to her room opens suddenly and a soldier says: Hi Noa, it is the IDF.

At first, after eight months of captivity, she assumes it is a joke and doesnt move. But then the solider says: I am going to put you over my shoulder, all right? And they set off.

She is extracted in less than 60 seconds. As they exit, her rescuers message back to base with the code word Diamond to confirm they have her.

11.26 am

In the second building, the team is greeted by a storm of fire from militants.

The elite Yamam units Chief Inspector, Arnon Zmora, is shot in the head as they enter the house.

As other Israeli forces advance up the stairs, they shoot and kill any residents they see, including Hamas terrorist Abdullah Al-Jamal along with his wife, both 36, and father, Dr Ahmed, 74.

Their daughter Zainab, 27, is also wounded.

The hostages he was holding are shocked and silent and not sure who to trust  until the Yamam teams shout: This is the IDF, we came to rescue you!

They are fitted with ceramic bullet-proof vests and raced to the exit on foot.

Almog Meir Jan, 22, raises his hand in celebration as he is brought to the Sheba Medical Centre in Ramat Gan, Israel

Shlomi Ziv, 41, was rescued by Israeli forces during the daylight raid

Andrey Kozlov, 27, a Russian sous-chef, was kept handcuffed for weeks on end and forced to eat and drink with his hands bound behind his back

11.27 am

Despite the gun battle, the rescuers have all three hostages and the injured Zmora ready to leave in less than two minutes.

But as they head to the evacuation vehicle, they face a blizzard of fire.

After the firefight all the locals woke up and a lot of terrorists came from all over with rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs), missiles, everything in order to hit the trucks, says Zohar Dvir.

11.28 am

The Israelis escape vehicle is disabled in the crossfire and they are all forced back into a building to hide. This activates their back-up plan and the Israeli Air Force immediately launches a bombardment of air strikes and artillery.

In scenes reminiscent of Americas legendary Battle of Mogadishu, also known as the Black Hawk Down incident, aircraft provide cover to create a protective perimeter around the special forces sheltering in nearby buildings. They have to unleash a ring of fire so ferocious it holds back the terrorist commandos.

They were completely surrounded, against a force with undercover networks, explains Dvir. Terrorists can jump out from anywhere with RPGs  every place, houses, underground, running from shelter to shelter.

Huge clouds of smoke billow into the sky above and buildings are reduced to rubble.

Gunfire was exchanged in a crazy manner, says one eye-witness. We lay down on the ground and the planes started bombing from every direction.

Midday

A replacement vehicle arrives to ferry the hostages to safety but it is also damaged in the brutal crossfire.

12.10 pm

The car Noa is in faces mechanical problems on the way to safety, possibly caused by crossfire, and it grinds to a sudden halt.

12.15 pm

Back in Al-Nuseirat, the Air Force continues its bombardment, the Yamam operatives rescuers continue to fight off fierce rocket fire and the hostages hide and await yet another car.

Chief Inspector Zmora is treated as they wait, but is fading fast.

12.30 pm

Noa (Diamond One) reaches her helicopter rendezvous in an Israeli-controlled section of the Gazan coastline, south of a US-built floating pier.

The helicopter takes off towards Sheba Medical Centre in Tel Aviv.

Her family is notified of the mission for the first time and told that she is on her way home. They rush to meet her.

12.50 pm

Noa lands and is greeted by her overjoyed father, whose birthday it is. I am so happy to be here, she says. Thank you for everything, thank you for this moment.

She is also reunited with her mother, Liora, who has late-stage brain cancer and thought she might never see her daughter again.

1.15 pm approx

A third escape vehicle arrives to evacuate the trapped hostages and, eventually, under a hail of gunfire, the rescuers get them to the car and race them towards the same rendezvous point where they will link up with their helicopter extraction team.

1.35 pm

The three remaining hostages, along with the injured Zmora, board the helicopter. As it takes off, Major General Yaron Finkelman reports in: Army tech. I want to report to you that the three Diamonds took off from the runway towards the country.

Their families are informed that they have been rescued.

The mission took place in the middle of one of the world's most overcrowded refugee camps and an area already teeming with Hamas terrorists in Al Nuseirat, Gaza

2 pm

Almog Meir Jan, Andrey Kozlov and Shlomi Ziv arrive at Sheba Medical Centre, eight months and one day after they were taken hostage.

Chief Inspector Zmora is rushed to emergency treatment, but doctors cannot save him. He is pronounced dead soon afterwards.

2.30 pm

Back in Al-Nuseirat the Palestinians survey the damage, count the dead and rush the wounded to hospital.

Some say they have never seen such a devastating barrage of fire in eight months of war.

According to the Palestinian health authorities, there are 274 dead and almost 700 people have been injured.

The Israeli authorities estimate a much lower figure: roughly 100 dead, most of whom they say were terrorists.

Though there is an outpouring of national joy in Israel at news of the rescue, about 120 hostages still remain unaccounted for, including Noas boyfriend.

For now, their fate remains in the lap of the gods.
After killing two angelic young boys in a boozy hit and run crash and callously refusing to apologize to their shattered mom, Rebecca Grossman has few people left in her corner.

But the socialite-turned-pariah, 61, can at least count on the continued support of her estranged husband Peter Grossman  one of the nations top burns doctors  as she begins a 15-year prison sentence, DailyMail.com can reveal.

Peter, 61, surprised onlookers by attending court in stoic solidarity with his wife of two decades even as jurors heard their marriage was effectively over and Grossman was with a new lover the day she wiped out brothers Jacob, eight, and Mark Iskander, 11.

Close friends say the plastic surgeon was appalled by the 2020 deaths but made a promise to his own children, Alexis, 19, and Nick, 17, to stick by their mom until the bitter end.

Peter was shocked when he heard about the accident and the kids were devastated, a source told Dailymail.com.

Famed Doctor Peter Grossman is standing by his convicted child killer wife Rebecca because he promised his children he'd stick with their mom until the bitter end

Rebecca was sentenced to 15 years to life for the murder of 11-year-old Mark Iskander and his 8-year-old brother Jacob

Alexis Grossman told the judge her mother had been abandoned by her father and molested as a child and

He put his work on the back burner for the first time to be with the kids. The children pleaded with him to help save their mom and out of love for his children he agreed to stand by their mother.

Peter comes from a strong Jewish family, who were always there for each other. He was taught to rally around family members. He wasnt raised to bail out,' added the source.

Now that Rebecca is behind bars, Peter is vowing to be there for his kids and his friends and co-workers are vowing to be there for him.

Grossman was convicted in February of two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter and one count of hit and run with fatality.

LA Superior Court heard she was speeding through Westlake Village as fast as 81mph in a 45mph zone before slamming into the two boys on a crosswalk as their mom, Nancy Iskander, looked on in horror.

Grossman was following a car being driven by her new flame, the former World Series-winning pitcher Scott Erickson, after the pair drank margaritas over lunch.

She didnt stop until a safety feature on her Mercedes SUV cut off the fuel, prosecutors told a six-week trial.

Later that night Grossman bumped into Nancy at the hospital after the mom had made the heartbreaking decision to take Jacob off life support.

She said nothing to her, the court heard.

Grossman sobbed as she was jailed Monday, finally extending a belated apology to Nancy and her husband Karim four years later, claiming she would give her life to bring Mark and Jacob back.

Prosecutors asked for two consecutive terms of 15 years-to-life plus four years for fleeing the scene. But she got less than half that as Judge Joseph Brandolino ruled the terms should run concurrently.

Shell be eligible for parole in six to seven years with good behavior.

The sad episode caps an astonishing fall from grace for Grossman, a philanthropist and well-heeled LA socialite who jointly founded the Grossman Burn Foundation in 2007 to help poor communities across the globe treat burns.

Peter, 61, surprised onlookers by attending court in solidarity with his wife of two decades even as jurors heard their marriage was effectively over and she had a new lover

Sources told DailyMail.com Peter was appalled by the 2020 deaths but made a promise to his own children, Alexis, 19, and Nick, 17, to support their mother

Friends say Peter, worth an estimated 10 to 15 million dollars, stands by his decision to put his groundbreaking work on hold to attend court each day

Friends say Peter, worth an estimated 10 to 15 million dollars, stands by his decision to put his groundbreaking work on hold to attend court each day.

He was also front and center in a slickly produced 30-minute video played by defense lawyers Monday that began with Peter defending his wife but insisting: We dont compare our pain to theirs.

It was then Alexiss turn to describe how her mom was abandoned by her own father and molested as a child.

In a letter to the court Nick added: Nothing compares to what the Iskanders are going through, but ever since the accident, its just felt like the world hates my mom and everyone is against our family.

Grossmans lawyers told the court that Erickson, who won his World Seres ring when playing for the Minnesota Twins in 1991, was the driver who hit the boys but jurors didnt believe her.

Peters decision to lay on a top-shelf legal defense for his estranged wife despite learning of her fling with the former Orioles, Dodgers, Yankees, Mets and Texans player raised eyebrows.

But the top doc wasnt blindsided by the fling because they had agreed to an amicable, informal split the year prior, according to friends, and he was aware she was back on the dating scene.

It became apparent in late 2019 that Peter and Rebecca wanted different things from life at this point, and Rebecca brought up the subject of divorce, our source said of the split.

But Peter didnt want to put their kids through that, and after 20 years of marriage, he was advised it could end up being a messy divorce.

So, the couple agreed on having an open marriage instead. They owned two homes and Rebecca agreed to move into the one in Westlake Village. The kids would spend time with each parent.

Grossman was separated from her husband at the time of the crash and had been dating World Seroes-winning pitcher Scott Erickson, who she then attempted to blame for the boys' death

The couple had agreed to an amicable, informal split the year prior to the crash, according to friends, and he was aware she was back on the dating scene

Grossman plowed into the boys at more than 70mph in a 45mph zone, in a luxury Mercedes

Peter was busy with work and not interested in dating. His top priority was the kids and caring for his patients.

'With Rebecca gone, he had more time to do the things he valued in life.

Mondays hearing also heard from Zubaida, an Afghan woman whom the Grossmans took into their home as a ten-year-old girl when she was set alight in an accident involving a kerosene lamp.

Their foundation spent more than a million dollars treating burns that Peter described as the worst he had ever seen. Zubaida, now an adult, said Grossman was like a mother to her.

She was one of numerous patients helped by Peter and his father, Dr. Richard Grossman, who founded the Grossman Burn Center in Sherman Oaks, where they treated firefighters, children, and celebrities such as Richard Pryor and Jay Leno.

Peter comes from a family of physicians who spent their lives treating disfigured and burned patients, the family friend explained.

As a child, he would follow his dad around while he made rounds at the hospital and from the age of eight he knew he was going to be a doctor like his father and his fathers two brothers, Jack and Joel.

Peter joined his dads burn center about the same time he met and married Rebecca.

He was a nose to the grindstone kind of guy while she relished the glitz and glamor of being a famous doctors wife.

Friends say this may eventually have led to the downfall of the couples marriage around 2020.

By then they had accumulated a fleet of swish cars, boats and multiple homes, including a nine-bed, $10 million mansion in swish Hidden Hills and the $2.5 million property where Grossman was living at the time of the crash.

Rebecca loved the social side of being a celebrity doctors wife. She loved the parties, expensive cars, and shopping sprees, the source added.

Peter did take time off to support their two kids but he wasnt interested in hobnobbing with the rich and famous the way Rebecca was.

Grossman had no prior criminal record and her attorneys asked Judge Brandolino to consider probation or a suspended sentence which he duly rejected because of her 'incredibly selfish behavior.

Grossman sobbed as she was jailed Monday, finally extending a belated apology to Karim and Nancy Iskander, sayingshe would give her life to bring Mark and Jacob back

The brothers were crossing the street when Rebecca was speeding through Westlake Village at up to 81mph in a 45mph zone before slamming into the two boys on a crosswalk

She is currently languishing in the notorious Twin Towers Correctional Facility in downtown LA as inmate number 6755799 but will be transferred to state prison within weeks.

Peter is no stranger to lengthy court battles himself, having spent the best part of a decade contesting his fathers will after he died in 2014, aged 81.

In 2014 he and his brother Jeffrey accused Richards fourth wife Elizabeth Grossman of manipulating her ailing husband into changing his final trust papers two years earlier to disinherit them while claiming his $18 million estate for herself.

The case was settled four years later with each complainant receiving a chunk of the inheritance, according to local paper, the Daily Acorn.

Rebecca Grossman, acting as guardian for her children, and Jeffrey, then sued Peter Wakeman, the attorney who drafted the will, for malpractice.

A 2022 jury trial found in their favor but allegations of financial elder abuse and a claim for punitive damages were thrown out, the Acorn reported.
Australia is accepting more than 10,000 immigrants a week despite Anthony Albanese vowing to halve the number of new arrivals by next year.

More than 1,500 new arrivals are arriving each day, or 60 migrants every hour, according to new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Australia will take in more than 500,000 immigrants in 2024 alone as the population battles a worsening housing and cost-of-living crisis.

An additional 4,200 homes are needed every week to keep up with the current level of growth, however less than 1,000 are currently being built.

The sobering immigration figures come just weeks after the Prime Minister vowed that his government would halve immigration levels within a year.

Australia is accepting more than 10,000 immigrants a week despite Anthony Albanese vowing to halve the number of new arrivals by next year

More than 1,500 new arrivals are arriving each day or 60 migrants every hour, according to new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (pictured, commuters in Sydney)

Sustainable Population Australia president Peter Strachan called for immigration to be cut immediately.

'We understand calls for an end to immigration in light of the dire effect that adding a million migrants in two years had on the housing market, as well as on infrastructure and services,' he said.

'Over the past 20 years, immigration has been far too high, based on the false claim that we lack sufficient skilled workers. The resultant population growth has created more skills shortages than it has filled.

'The real reasons for mass immigration are to keep wages low and house prices rising. This is not in the interests of Australians, nor the interests of migrants who are among the disadvantaged for both jobs and housing.'

Mr Strachan urged net overseas migration to be limited to just 70,000 per year.

Australia is expected to be home to 45million people in 2070 following a push to grow the population by 75 per cent in just a few generations.

'We can maintain the refugee intake at 20,000 and still have room for the skilled migrants employers want to sponsor, along with their family members,' Mr Strachan said.

'However, Australia should stop importing people on points-tested visas, who tend not to get skilled jobs.

'The only reason the government does this is to push immigration above the numbers employers want. This drives consumption and GDP up, but productivity and per capita GDP go down.'

With an election due within 12 months, the Treasury is now expecting the immigration intake for 2023/24 to shrink to 395,000.

'We're determined to do that. We inherited a system that was a mess,' Mr Albanese told 3AW in April.

A new plan from Labor will force universities to build more international student accommodation amid a huge influx of students (pictured, the University of Sydney)

'And what we've been doing is making sure that in areas such as vocational education, for example, some people were coming here doing courses that were, frankly, Mickey Mouse courses, using that to stay here for a very long period of time.

'What we're doing is putting integrity and rigour back into the system. Now, students coming here is an important source of economic income.'

Mr Albanese didn't reveal what he thought the annual immigration figure should be.

'We're not going to just pluck a figure out of the sky, but what we are projecting is that the net overseas migration is projected to come down to 250,000 in the coming financial year in 2024-25,' he said.

Meanwhile, a new plan from Labor will force universities to build more international student accommodation amid a huge influx of students.

Treasurer Dr Jim Chalmers announced in May that universities would need to build more housing for international students if they wanted to keep relying on their upfront fees for a lucrative revenue stream.

By the end of 2024/25, the foreign inflow was expected to halve to just 260,000  down from 528,000 in 2022/23.

But over the five years to 2027/28, 1.38million migrants on a net basis are still expected to move to Australia.

With construction workers in short supply, it's hoped forcing universities to build more accommodation would make it harder for the higher education sector to accept so many enrolments.

International students make up the bulk of long-term arrivals in the immigration figures, with the permanent intake of migrants capped at 190,000.

'If universities want to take more international students, they must build more student accommodation,' Dr Chalmers said.

An additional 4,200 homes are needed every week to keep up with the current level of growth, however less than 1,000 are currently being built (stock image)

'We will limit how many international students can be enrolled by each university based on a formula, including how much housing they build.'

Almost half of Australians believe there too many migrants moving to Australia according to a poll conducted by the Lowy Institute earlier this month.

The poll revealed 48 per cent of respondents said the total number of migrants coming to Australia each year was too high.

This result was a slight increase from the last time the question was asked in 2019, and remains six percentage points lower than its 2018 peak.

The number of people who believed the migration intake was 'about right' has also dropped from 47 per cent in 2014 to 40 per cent in 2024.

Despite this, nine in 10 Australians still believe the nation's culturally diverse population has been positive for Australia.
A regional council has found itself at the centre of a book-banning controversy after a group of concerned locals pushed to have sex education material aimed at teenagers put into a restricted area.

The call to have the books removed from the library in Albany, on Western Australia's south coast, was made to the city's council during a May 28 meeting.

Representing the Keeping Children Safe Albany Committee, Michelle Kinsella petitioned the council to put books the group finds 'inappropriate' for children into an age-restricted area of the library.

The former One Nation candidate for Albany in the state's 2021 election said all adults should be 'appalled' that the material is freely available at a public library.

It comes after intense public scrutiny forced Sydney's Cumberland Council to backflip on a similar ban of sex education books at its public library in May.

Former One Nation candidate Michelle Kinsella (pictured) has called for sex education books for teenagers to be banned from the Albany Public Library

Keeping Children Safe Albany has called on the local council to investigate the library's young adult catalogue for sexually explicit material.

They also requested 'inappropriate' books be placed in a restricted area of the library that are 'not on open display'.

If passed, anyone under the age of consent - 16 - who wishes to read those restricted books would then need to have consent from a parent or guardian.

Handing out photocopies of sections from the book 'Welcome to Sex' by Dr Melissa Kang and Yumi Stynes to those in the council chamber, Ms Kinsella claimed the book encourages the 'grooming' and 'sex abuse' of children.

The book was awarded 'Book of the Year for Older Children' by the Australian Publishers Association for 'its "no silly question" guide to sexuality and pleasure.

A month after winning the award in June last year, however, the book was temporarily pulled from store shelves in Big W amid backlash over its contents.

'They shouldn't be in our library, they shouldn't be on display and we want you to work with us so we can get this under control,' Ms Kinsella petitioned councillors, the Albany Advertiser reports.

In a video posted to Facebook on Monday, Ms Kinsella highlighted more books in the library's young adult section she says should be restricted.

'This is promoting the sexualisation of minors, which, as far as myself and members of our community are concerned is a gross violation of our rights as parents to say what our children are exposed to,' she told followers.

'We've had enough, we're taking back our parental rights.

'I get to decide, as a parent, what my 11-year-old's exposed to, not the library.'

The video also revealed a box of free condoms had been left next to the library's young adult section, which the former political candidate said she was going to remove and take to the council for an explanation.

'We're not going anywhere because we're going to win this fight,' Ms Kinsella said.

'Because my rights as a parent trumps a person who thinks this is acceptable to be legal.

'It's immoral, not in our community.'

Ms Kinsella said books such as 'Welcome to Sex' (pictured) encouraged the 'grooming' and 'sex abuse' of minors, and called on the Albany Council to pull the books from shelves

City of Albany chief executive Andrew Sharpe said the library is an 'inclusive and welcoming space' which follows the Australian Library and Information Association's free access to information statement.

Mr Sharpe added the statement declares 'library and information services have particular responsibilities in supporting and sustaining the free flow of information and ideas'.

'The Albany Public Library is a public facility for use by all community members and is required to offer a service to all residents without discrimination,' he told the publication.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Albany Council, Albany Public Library, Dr Melissa Kang and Yumi Stynes for comment.

Just weeks prior to Ms Kinsella's appearance before the council, protests were held outside of Cumberland Council as they debated a recent ban on books about same-sex relationships.

The book, which is called Same-Sex Parents, features a gay male couple and their young son on the cover.

Councillor Steve Christou, who pushed for the original ban, told Daily Mail Australia that he opposed 'any form of sexualisation of our children, whether it's a heterosexual or homosexual'.

The ban was reversed with by a vote of 13 to 2 while demonstrators from both sides of the debate were separated by police outside the council in a tense standoff.
A mother who lost her young son to sepsis is urging other parents to learn its symptoms, saying that if she can help just one family, he won't have 'died in vain.'

Derek Thaiday, 12, tragically died on Sunday, June 9.

'He fell off his scooter on Tuesday and had a cold on Wednesday. When his wrist started swelling on Thursday, I thought it was just from the tumble,' Ms Thaiday told Daily Mail Australia.

'We took him to the hospital and he deteriorated in a couple days. By Sunday, he was in an induced coma and on Monday, he was on life support.'

Doctors believe Derek had a lung infection which spread to his blood, causing him to go into septic shock.

Derek Thaiday (pictured with his mother) died on June 9 after going into septic shock from a suspected lung infection

Derek (pictured) was just a few months shy of turning 13 and was the youngest of eight siblings

'Sepsis is a disease that kills. I've had eight kids, and I've seen them sick, but nothing like this,' Ms Thaiday said.

'Doctors were saying he was the sickest kid in Queensland, it's mind boggling because it's a disease you can't see. It's terrifying.

'People need to know the signs of sepsis. I want to scream it from the rooftops, it needs to be taught.'

SEPSIS SYMPTOMS Getting very sick, very quickly

Difficulty breathing

Confusion

Not needing to urinate all day or less often than usual

A rash or blue, grey, pale or blotchy skin

Feeling your child is very sick - trust your instincts Source: NSW Health Advertisement

Derek's family made the difficult choice to turn off his life support after his body could no longer fight the infection.

By that point, there was no circulation to his limbs and his lungs were irreparably damaged.

'Derek fought hard to stay with us for five weeks and one day,' Ms Thaiday said.

The 12-year-old, whose mum said they preferred to be called an 'almost 13-year-old', was the family's second young child to pass away in just over a year.

Ms Thaiday's grandson and Derek's nephew, Andre Daisy, died on February 5, 2023, aged five.

He suffered a severe case of meningitis and took his last breath just four days after he started showing symptoms.

One thing his family took great comfort in was giving the little boy a personalised funeral.

The touching service involved singing and dancing at a hall decked out in Andre's favourite colours.

Derek's mum, Glenda Thaiday, said he 'fought hard to stay with us for five weeks and one day' (pictured, Derek's sister fixing his curly hair)

Derek (right) passed a little over a year after his nephew Andre Daisy (left) died from meningitis

His casket was decorated with photos of himself and his favourite video games.

Ms Thaiday hoped to give Derek the same send off but has been forced to turn to online fundraising after being told she likely won't be able to access her superannuation.

'I need to do the right thing and send my child off in the best way humanly possible,' she said.

'I'm 52, I've contributed to my super and at the moment I have nothing to bury my son with - yet I've been told I don't fit the criteria to release my super early.

'I've got to beg to give my son a proper burial - you can't rest unless you know you've done everything you can.

'Thank god for things like GoFundMe, otherwise we could be giving Derek a pauper's funeral.'

Despite their limited finances, the family has started organising the details that would have meant the most to Derek.

Derek's relatives will meet his body as it arrives in Townsville, his hometown, on Thursday as preparations continue for his funeral.

His family said it is taking comfort in the 'signs' they've seen that his nephew, Andre, is waiting for him on the other side.

'It sounds crazy but on Sunday we were taken to the paediatric wing and Derek was put in Andre's room,' Ms Thaiday said.

'My daughter [Andre's mother] and I were put in the same room she and her partner stayed in the day Andre passed.

'The diseases that took them both were similar too, they were attacking their poor little bodies. Andre's attacked his brain, Derek's attacked his blood.'

Derek and Andre (pictured together) were 'very close' with Ms Thaiday saying: 'They were each other's ride or dies, there's no one more fitting to be there for Derek'

Ms Thaiday added the young boys were 'very close'.

'They were each other's ride or dies, there's no one more fitting to be there for Derek,' she said.

The GoFundMe for Derek's funeral and medical bills has received more than $3,400 from 53 donations.
Ukraine will auction state-owned companies and landmarks this summer in a desperate to raise money to fund its resistance against the Russian invasion.

The Hotel Ukraine, a confiscated shopping centre and Europe's biggest titanium miner are among 19 large assets set to go up for sale to plug a 3.9bn gap in the country's defence budget.

Kyiv hopes to be able to bring in 80mn by the end of 2024 by drastically slashing prices - a fraction of the tens of billions recently offered by the United States, or the 31bn ($40bn) already allocated to defence.

'The budget is in the red,' Oleksiy Sobolev, Ukraine's deputy economy minister, admitted in an interview. 'We need to find other ways to get money to keep the macroeconomic situation stable, to help the army and to win this war against Russia.'

Kyiv hopes that privatising state assets may also create more jobs and tax revenues for the nation, with the war forcing many business to close and taking employees out of the workforce.

Bidding for the Hotel Ukraine is expected to start at 20million as Ukraine seeks to raise fund

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy meets with Olaf Scholz in Berlin on Tuesday

Among the assets listed are the Ocean Plaza shopping centre, the United Mining and Chemical Company, and the four-star Hotel Ukraine, a 14-storey complex in Kyiv's independence square.

With rooms still available online, the hotel advertises that it has an 'equipped bomb shelter' and air distress systems - a bleak reminder of the toll the war has taken on ordinary civilian life in Ukraine.

The square it overlooks has been a focus of Ukrainian political action since the beginning of the country's independence movement in 1990, reprising its role in the 2004 Orange Revolution and Euromaidan in 2013-14.

Now, the hotel stands to be auctioned from just 20million in order to raise funds.

The hotel is some 800,000 in debt, as reported by The Times, with Ukraine's tourism industry having been devastated by the invasion.

Tax revenues in the first quarter of 2023 compared to Q1 2022, when the war erupted, were down 29 per cent, according to Visit Ukraine.

The first quarter of the year notably tends to receive the lowest revenues, softening the impact slightly.

Kyiv hopes that foreign investors might see the potential in the hotel and restore it to its former glory as leaders meet to cost the rebuilding of the beleaguered nation.

'Maybe the name of a famous hotel chain will be added to the Hotel Ukraine name,' Oleksandr Polishchuk, a spokesman for the State Property Fund of Ukraine, told The Times.

Officials met with allies in Berlin on Tuesday to discuss plans for rebuilding the country, including seeking backing from EU banks to encourage investment.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz estimated $500bn ($390bn) would be needed over a decade to build back, citing City World Bank estimates.

He said companies would now need to be offered a strong business case to invest, talking up Ukraine's potential in sectors including renewables, IT and pharmaceuticals.

Scholz suggested that sending air defence systems now would help avoid much larger costs later on.

'The best kind of reconstruction is the one that doesn't have to happen at all,' he said.

Defence Minister Boris Pistorius announced Germany would deliver another 100 Patriot air defence missiles in an initiative with Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway.

Weapons offerings have increased since Russia reopened its assault on the northern city of Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest, last month.

At the conference on Tuesday, Kharkiv's mayor said Western weapons - and permission to use them against targets in Russia - was already helping to restore calm in the city.

Ukraine is meanwhile in the process of drawing up insurance deals with foreign nations to protect investments in case they are destroyed during the war.

Tokyo has said it will compensate Japanese investors if assets bought at auction are destroyed, Polishchuk told The Times.

But experts warn skepticism about corruption could prove another challenge in selling off state assets.

The Ocean Plaza shopping centre is among the assets Ukraine hopes to sell off

Ukraine will need $500bn in a decade to rebuild, according to estimates (Odesa, March 15)

In March, Adrian Karatnycky, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council and the founder of Myrmidon Group, observed how costly corruption had been to Ukraine in the past, but suggested reforms under former president Petro Poroshenko had been extended under Volodymyr Zelenskyy with some success.

He wrote in Foreign Policy magazine that tax administration reforms and an enforcement crackdown had eliminated tax losses by as much as $1bn per year.

Vitaliy Koval, the head of Ukraine's State Property Fund, managing state companies, said in a recent interview he saw state-owned properties as a 'breeding ground for corruption and other illegal activities'.

The Ukraine State Property Fund is now conducting a 'triage' of assets to determine how they could be reformed, sold off, liquidated or kept under state control.

'Privatisation is synonymous with cleansing,' he said.

The government's goal is to retain just 100 companies, according to the New York Times.
A Queensland family is mystified as to why their electricity bills suddenly became astronomical when they weren't doing anything different.

When Kylie Hill, who lives with her husband and four children, got a quarterly power bill for $1,774.79 she was shocked and called her supplier, AGL, to question it.

'I said, "Are you sure you've got the right house?" "Yes", they said,' Ms Hill, who lives in Brisbane's south-western suburbs, told A Current Affair.

'Straight away, I was confused... like, I don't own a big factory!'

She initially put the bill down to running too many appliances and made changes including turning things off when they weren't in use.

When Kylie Hill (pictured), who lives with her husband and four children, got a quarterly power bill for $1,774.79 she was shocked and called her supplier, AGL, to question it.

It worked, sort of. Their next bill was a lot cheaper, but the mum said it was still quite a bit more than they expected.

'That was $750. Even that's a lot,' she said.

'Then the next few quarters though, all over the $1,000, $2,000, $3,000 ... $3,900 was the biggest bill,' she said.

She was still no wiser as to what was using so much power to send their bills skyrocketing, and the family was paying thousands of dollars more than they thought they should be.

Despite their consumption-cutting efforts and no one being at home during the day, electricity bills have totalled $15,000 over the pat two years.

Ms Hill came to the conclusion that there was something wrong with her meter and asked AGL to do some tests.

When the tester came, he found that 'the watts were up so high that we had enough electricity going in here for like five houses'.

But there was nothing running constantly other than the fridge, so AGL put the family's account on hold while it investigated the cause of the high power bills.

They didn't find any solution, though, and started billing again. The last two bills have come to nearly $7,000.

Electrician Justin Czarkowski did an independent assessment and said though the cost of their bills was concerning, the meter's figures seemed accurate.

Poll Have you experience higher than expected power bills? Yes No Have you experience higher than expected power bills? Yes 332 votes

No 110 votes Now share your opinion





'We measured the actual current with the fluke meter, and then compared that to what the meter is saying and those measurements are comparable, they're within a milliounce of each other,' he said.

But he couldn't find any particular issue within the home that would lead to such large bills.

'There's not a lot on in this house as it stands, and doesn't really explain why you would be getting a $3,000 bill,' Mr Czarkowski said.

A Current Affair sent the family's data to financial experts to see if they could figure out the answer.

Richard Foxworthy of Bill Hero, a service that breaks down and compares energy bills, found the Hills used more than five times the average consumption.

'It's certainly possible to consume that amount of energy, but it would be unusual if that's actually the case for Kylie and her household,' he said.

The $1,774.79 bill (pictured) was a shock, but even higher bills followed for the Hill family

AGL said it was 'committed to working with customers', but that the Hill's usage bill is accurate.

'We want to help our customers understand the safe and simple changes they can make around the home to conserve energy and reduce their bills,' a statement from AGL said.

So there is still no answer for the family, just a lot of very expensive electricity bills.

'We've done the right thing with AGL and paid everything they've sent us except for the last one... they need to give us a break,' Ms Hill pleaded.
Chinese researchers use gene editing to combat wheat "cancer"

Xinhua) 10:19, June 13, 2024

XI'AN, June 12 (Xinhua) -- A research team from China has employed gene editing technology to improve wheat resistance to stripe rust, an airborne fungal disease described as "cancer" for this crop.

The research team, led by Prof. Wang Xiaojie from Northwest Agriculture and Forestry University, in their 18-year-long study found a susceptible gene in wheat, named TaPsIPK1, which confers susceptibility to the stripe rust pathogen, with the results published online in the journal Cell in 2022.

A recent field experiment conducted by the team showed that the stripe rust resistance of the cultivar with edited TaPsIPK1 was enhanced from high susceptibility to medium or high resistance, and also revealed that this could be done without significant difference in yield.

Notably, the cultivar retained the agronomic traits of the original variety, showing great potential for application.

Going forward, the research team will work on wheat synchronous resistance to stripe rust, powdery mildew and gibberellic disease through gene editing.

This is an important step in efforts to achieve green and high-quality agricultural development and ensure food security, Wang noted.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Elon Musk had sexual relationships with a SpaceX executive and a former intern as well as asking another staff member to have his babies, it is claimed.

These are the latest unflattering reports about the tech billionaires personal life that accuse him of crossing boundaries while at work.

The Wall St Journal alleges Mr Musk, 52, was involved with an intern 20 years his junior and tried to rekindle the romance when she formally joined the firm.

She allegedly first met Mr Musk in the early 2010s when she was still in college after she contacted him about improving SpaceX.

Chief Executive Officer of SpaceX and Tesla and owner of Twitter, Elon Musk gestures as he attends the Viva Technology conference in June 2023

Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceXs chief operating officer, said the Journals reporting painted a completely misleading narrative (A spacecraft launched by SpaceX, Musk's company)

He flew her to Sicily in Italy, where he was attending an exclusive Google conference.

In 2017, Mr Musk got in touch again to offer the woman a full-time job at SpaceX where she would identify problems at the company. The Journal claimed he invited her for drinks and touched her breasts.

He supposedly said: Oh Im so bad. I shouldnt be doing this.

In an affidavit provided to the Journal from the woman, she said she rejected his advances. But one of her friends said he would still text her a lot and once invited her to his home.

In the interns affidavit, she said there was no romantic relationship during her time at SpaceX and he was never predatory.

Mr Musk is also accused of repeatedly asking another female employee to have children with him before she received a 780,000 payoff and left the firm in 2013.

It is additionally alleged Mr Musk had a relationship with a female SpaceX executive in 2014 when he was separated but not divorced at the time from now ex-wife Talulah Riley.

He approached the woman, who was working directly for him and putting in 17-hour days.

Mr Musk allegedly asked her to join him for a drink at his mansion in Bel-Air and praised her for having beauty and brains.

Elon Musk attends the Viva Technology conference at the Porte de Versailles exhibition centre in Paris in 2023

The Wall St Journal alleges Mr Musk, 52, was involved with an intern 20 years his junior

The Journal reports they had sex and the next morning he promised the woman Tesla stock. But she is said to have begun to feel used and negotiated an 66,000 exit package from SpaceX.

The three allegations follow claims that in 2016 Mr Musk, who is worth at least 160billion, propositioned a flight attendant for sex by offering to buy her a horse.

She was one of several former employees who have said Mr Musk  who founded Tesla, SpaceX and now owns X  made advances towards them or gave them undue attention.

Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceXs chief operating officer, said the Journals reporting painted a completely misleading narrative. Mr Musks lawyer Alex Spiro did not respond to a request for comment.
An experienced British kayaker in his 50s has tragically died after 'getting into difficulty' in a French river while he was on a group trip.

The man, who has not yet been identified, sadly died on Tuesday during a group whitewater kayaking trip in the Durance river in Briancon, southeastern France.

He was described as an experienced kayaker, and was in a group of around ten other kayakers when he died.

Emergency services were called to a stretch of river between Briancon and the nearby town of Saint-Martin-de-Queyrieres to search for three people.

The three people went into the water near a local shopping centre in the town, which has a population of more than 12,000.

The man, who has not yet been identified, sadly died on Tuesday during a group whitewater kayaking trip in the Durance river in Briancon (pictured)

Local reports suggested that two people jumped in to come to the aid of the third, who was unconscious in the water

Local reports suggested that two people jumped in to come to the aid of the third, who was unconscious in the water.

While two of kayakers were recovered from the water, the British national was sadly found dead, police sources told local media.

Police helicopters were scrambled to search for the missing people during the roughly three hour search, which ended at 6pm on Tuesday.

Local media reported that the high flow of water in the river was caused by melting snow.

Briancon sits at an altitude of 4,350 ft, and sits on the edge of the French alps, known for their year-round snow.

It is officially the highest city in France.

MailOnline has contacted the UK's Foreign Office for comment.
It has been 131 days since mother-of-three Samantha Murphy went missing and her family are no closer to knowing where her body may be.

The 51-year-old left her home in Ballarat East, northwest of Melbourne, on February 4 for her usual morning run but never returned.

Her disappearance made headlines around the country, sparked countless police and community-led searches and left her husband Mick and their three children devastated.

In early March, Patrick Orren Stephenson, 22, was charged with her alleged murder.

Stephenson is the son of former AFL Richmond and Geelong AFL player, Orren Stephenson, and is not known to the Murphy family.

The mysterious disappearance of Samantha Murphy (pictured) has touched the hearts of Australians and leaves many unanswered questions

Criminologist Dr Xanthe Mallett (pictured) believes the disappearance of Ms Murphy has resonated so much because it could have been one of us

Melbourne-based lawyer Paul Galbally from Galbally & OBryan, one of Australia's top criminal lawyers, has reportedly been hired by Stephenson to head his defence case.

In a significant development, Ms Murphy's phone and 'items of interest' were found on May 29 by a private dam near Slaughterhouse Road, south of Buninyong.

The dam sits about 15km from Ballarat East where Ms Murphy took off on her last run.

Then, on Wednesday police concluded a two-day targeted search into Ms Murphy's disappearance, be

Dr Xanthe Mallett, a Forensic Criminologist at the University of Newcastle, said the case has resonated with so many Australians for one simple reason.

'My first thought when I saw that Samantha had vanished, was that could be any one of us doing very normal things, going about their life and yet she's been allegedly the victim of a violent crime,' she said.

'So many women could imagine being her, they could sympathise.'

She gave her valuable insight to Daily Mail Australia into the unanswered questions surrounding Ms Murphy's alleged murder.

Why hasn't Ms Murphy's body been found?

Dr Mallett said it was always going to be a challenge recovering Ms Murphy's body due to the type of landscape where she was last seen.

'It is very open, there's no CCTV or other forms of surveillance that could have helped the police,' she said.

'There aren't many people around, so it was always going to be a challenge when there are such large areas that could potentially be of forensic interest to the police.'

She added it would be a different case in an urban area: 'It's difficult to disappear in a city, given you have lots of witnesses, you have CCTV on buildings, you have dashcams, you have all of this different technological information as well as eyewitnesses to help build that picture. But none of that was available in this case.'

The hunt for clues in the Samantha Murphy case continues

Samantha Murphy still has not been found, despite a massive search effort involving police, SES and countless volunteers (pictured)

Why do some accused people not share any information they may have?

Dr Mallett said, as in any case, 'people have the right to remain silent and not provide information to police they believe may incriminate them, or they may genuinely not know anything'.

'Somebody can be alleged to have committed a crime, but until that's been through the courts, and they've been found guilty beyond reasonable doubt, there's always the possibility that they may not actually be able to disclose the information that the police are seeking,' she said.

Dr Mallett explained in the Samantha Murphy case: 'We're a very long way from a court process having been concluded yet.'

In a major development, Ms Murphy's phone and 'items of interest' were found on May 29 by a private dam near Slaughterhouse Road, south of Buninyong

Police have been forced to scour rugged terrain in the search for Ms Murphy's body

Patrick Orren Stephenson, 22, (above) has been charged with murder over the disappearance of Ballarat mum Samantha Murphy

What would Ms Murphy's family be going through?

Dr Mallett said she has worked on many missing persons cases and others where it is believed the victim is deceased and the body has not been found.

'I've worked with many families over the years, and the worst thing they always say is the not knowing.

'It's what we would class as ambiguous loss, and in essence, there's always the hope that because no remains have been found, one day, that person will walk through the door.'

Dr Mallett added it was 'impossible to give up on that hope for most people, until there's a final, albeit devastating conclusion and remains are found.'

Her disappearance made headlines around the country, sparked countless police and community-led searches and left her husband Mick (pictured) and their three children devastated

She said in this case it is believed Ms Murphy is deceased, 'but ultimately, the family will not give up hope until they know'.

'My heart goes out to them, because until they have answers, they have no way of beginning to move forward and process what has happened.'

In her experience dealing with families of those who have gone missing, and been subject to violent crime or murdered, Dr Mallett said they never use the word closure.

'Closure is not something that families ever get.

'They may get answers, they may begin to move forward. They may start to accept a new reality that that person is not coming home, but they will never speak to having closure.

'They know that they will never achieve closure, that pain will be ongoing.'

She said she can only recall one case when a family member of a missing person said, stop looking, they're deceased.

'That struck me as very unusual,' Dr Mallett said.

What information could Ms Murphy's phone reveal?

When news broke Ms Murphy's phone was recovered, Dr Mallett said she initially believed police wouldn't be able to retrieve any information, as it was assumed it had been underwater in mud for four months.

'Then it transpired that the phone is in almost perfect working order, which was a total surprise to me, and so I would say that that geolocation data would be the first thing that the police would look to.'

She said to track the movements of the phone does not necessarily indicate it was with Ms Murphy, but it does give police more geolocation points to help understand at least where the phone was.

Dr Mallett said in similar cases police also investigate all contacts who had been phoning or texting and websites that had been viewed, to build a picture.

'Obviously, there may be some limitations was the phone on at the time? Did it have battery life? These things will limit what the police can get from that phone.'

How would police be building their case?

Dr Mallett said it is a very detailed investigation, and the police were obviously searching for Ms Murphy's body.

'Not only for the family's benefit, although they do desperately need to know where she is, they need to return to them, but that Samantha's body will also be a primary source of information for them, and so they will very much need that for the investigation.'

She said cases can proceed on a no body basis, so police would be looking to all of the movements of the accused and people they may have spoken with.

She also noted that the recovery of the phone might have prompted new witnesses to come forward.

'So they will be building that full picture from the time that Samantha vanished to obviously to the arrest, and looking at all of the details around that to determine who did what, when, who was in contact with whom and who shared what information.'

Dr Mallett said the police will no doubt ensure everything is being done correctly because it was such a high-profile case.

'Everybody is going to be watching this case, because I think it resonates, because she was such a normal woman.

'We've seen so much violence against women recently. And this is just another occasion where a woman can't go about her normal activity safely, and that is something we desperately need to address, not just safety in the home, but safety in public.'

The investigation into Ms Murphy's disappearance continues.

Anyone with information has been urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
An Arizona gun nut wanted to 'incite a race war' ahead of the presidential election by shooting up a Bad Bunny concert in Atlanta and planting Confederate flags, it has been revealed.

Mark Adams Prieto, 58, of Prescott, was arrested last month traveling on an interstate in New Mexico - after spending months planning the mass shooting at the State Farm Arena with an undercover FBI agent and his informant.

He targeted Atlanta for its large black population and had planned for the three of them to open fire at the arena on May 14 and 15 - when Bad Bunny was scheduled to perform - and leave behind Confederate flags while shouting 'KKK all the way' and 'whities out here killing, what's we gonna do,' according to an affidavit released Tuesday.

Prieto even allegedly told the undercover agent he wanted to send a message that 'we're going to fight back now, and every whitey will be the enemy across the whole country.'

Mark Adams Prieto, 58, allegedly planned to shoot up a Bad Bunny concert in Atlanta to 'incite a race war'

FBI agents said they first started investigating Prieto in late 2023, after an informant who had spoken to the gun nut at previous gun shows noticed that he began to make some suspicious and alarming comments - including asking him whether he was 'ready to kill a bunch of people' and saying he wanted to target 'blacks, Jews or Muslims.'

The informant told agents Prieto believed martial law would be implemented shortly after the 2024 presidential election, and specifically told the informant he wanted 'to incite a race war' before then.

By the end of January, the informant introduced an undercover agent to Prieto at the Crossroads of the West gun show in his hometown, where the suspect was selling his personal firearms - admitting that he would only take cash to avoid any interference from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

He then allegedly proceeded to ask the two if they would help him carry out a shooting in Atlanta - bemoaning its large black population.

'The reason I say Atlanta, why, why is Georgia such a f***** up state now?' Prieto reportedly explained to the undercover agent.

'When I was a kid that was one of the most conservative states in the country. Why is it not now? Because as crime got worse in LA, St. Louis and all these other cities, all the n****** moved out of those and moved to Atlanta.

'That's why it isn't so great anymore,' he said. 'And they've seen there a couple, several years.'

He unknowingly planned the mass shooting with an undercover FBI agent and his informant

Over the next few months, Prieto would go into more specifics about his plans - saying they should find a place to store the guns in Atlanta before the concert and discussing how they should remove firearm residue from their bodies.

Prieto even allegedly sold two automatic rifles to the undercover agent - an AK-47 at a gun show in Phoenix at the end of February and an AR-15 the following month, saying it would be 'a good gun to use in the attack.'

He allegedly stressed that it was important for there to be a large death count, telling both the agent and the informant they should show 'no mercy' and advising that they 'can't have any feeling.'

'They're not real people, they're monsters as far as I'm concerned,' Prieto allegedly told the two of the proposed victims.

Prieto allegedly stressed the need for a large death toll at the concert

As the dates of the concert grew closer, Prieto also told the people he thought would be accomplices he was planning to scout out the venue in May, after visiting his mom in Florida.

He was then caught on May 14 traveling on a New Mexico interstate with five firearms in his vehicle, according to the affidavit.

An ensuing raid on his Arizona home later uncovered even more firearms, including an unregistered short-barreled rifle.

Upon questioning, agents say, Prieto admitted to selling an AR-15 to the FBI agent and discussing an attack at the concert venue 'where young people and minorities [would be]' - but insisted he was just traveling to Florida to visit his mother at the time of his arrest.

Prieto is now facing federal charges of firearm trafficking, transfer of a firearm for use in a hate crime and possession of an unregistered firearm.

He is in custody at the US Marshals Service for transport back to Arizona, according to NBC News.

If convicted, Prieto could face up to 15 years in prison for each charge of firearms trafficking and transfer of a firearm for use in a hate crime, as well as another 10 years behind bars for having an unregistered firearm.

Additionally, he could be fined up to $250,000 for each charge.
A city council in a hipster part of Melbourne has voted to investigate charging far higher rates to landlords than to those who own and live in a unit or house.

Merri-bek City Council, which covers suburbs such as Brunswick, Coburg and Pascoe Vale, passed a motion on Wednesday night that could lead to a doubling of rates for property investors and halving them for owner-occupiers and businesses.

The motion from Independent councillor James Conlan, who said he was 'really excited', was passed by six votes to five, though council staff expressed reservations over the plan's legality.

'This could slash rates for residents by around $900/year for every home owner and around $2,700 for each local business,' Mr Conlan, who was a Greens member until February 2023, wrote on Facebook.

'It was interesting to see which councillors chose to side with property investors instead of local residents and businesses by choosing not to give them a massive rate cut.

Merri-bek City Council, which covers suburbs such as Brunswick (pictured), Coburg and Pascoe Vale, passed a motion on Wednesday night that could lead to a doubling of rates for property investors and halving them for owner-occupiers and businesses

'One councillor actually said that "Property investors are improving the rental market",' he wrote.

Among those backing the motion was Greens mayor Adam Pulford, who lives in a rented property in Coburg.

But a statement posted to the council's website said the proposal is by no means certain ever to become reality.

'Council staff have previously advised it is very unlikely that it is feasible to apply a differential rate for property investors who have more than one residential property in Merri-bek.

'This is due to strict Victorian legislation and ministerial guidelines setting out how local government can charge rates and how differential rates may be applied.'

The statement added: 'As the first part of the investigation, Council will seek legal advice as to whether the proposal can legally be implemented.'

It said that if legal advice shows there are legal ways to bring in differential rates, 'it would require careful consideration and analysis'.

'This would include investigation of potential implications for different groups of ratepayers, and investigation of how to avoid unintended consequences.'

Under Mr Conlan's plan, landlords and investors' rates bills would double to an average of $3,600 per year per property.

Poll Should landlords have to pay higher rates than owner-occupiers? Yes No Should landlords have to pay higher rates than owner-occupiers? Yes 32 votes

No 181 votes Now share your opinion





His motion said investors have a fallback if they're struggling financially, but owner-occupiers don't.

'Unlike owner-occupiers and renters, investors can sell at least one residential property without making themselves homeless.

'Ratepayers unable to keep up with expenses associated with maintaining an investment property may sell their investment properties,' the motion said.

But council staff also said that doubling the rates charged to property investors with two or more properties would fund the halving of rates for owner-occupiers, commercial and industrial ratepayers.

SQM Research founder Louis Christopher said increasing rates for landlords in Merri-bek would just lead to higher rents.

'We can't tax our way out of a rental crisis. This will make the situation worse for the local area in terms of rental vacancy rates and rents,' he told the Australian Financial Review.

There was some immediate pushback to Mr Conlan's proposal on social media, with one commenter saying 'so you've pushed a motion which as far as I'm aware isn't even legal'.

'AND even if it is, renters are the only people who will be worse off, a LOT worse off. This is the pinnacle of economic illiteracy. And a clown show.'

Another said 'What happens once all the investors sell up? Do rates still stay low because then council is losing money?

'Do you believe in the tooth fairy and Santa clause?'

A sold sign is pictured in front of a terrace home for sale in the inner-northern suburb of Brunswick in Melbourne

The motion from Independent councillor James Conlan (pictured), who said he was 'really excited', was passed by six votes to five

A third wrote that 'Rental property owners have worked hard and scrimped and saved in order to buy an investment property so they have an income when they retire in their later years'.

'Now you want to take that away from them and penalise them.'

A report into the feasibility of the proposal is expected to be delivered and debated by the council in August or September, though if more complex investigations are required the report may take longer to complete.

Councillor James Conlan told Daily Mail Australia he would have more to say when the report on the proposal returns to council later this year.
Hillary Clinton has made a rare move by backing the primary opponent of a sitting House Democrat in New York, sparking considerable backlash from some in her party.

The one-time Senator from New York endorsed Westchester County Executive George Latimer for the congressional seat that is currently held by Representative Jamaal Bowman.

'With Trump on the ballot, we need strong, principled Democrats in Congress more than ever,' wrote Clinton on X on Wednesday.

The former first lady's endorsement of Latimer upset a number of progressives who were quick to condemn the move, with some suggesting it was more of a reason to cast their ballot for Bowman.

'Imagine taking Hillary Clintons advice in a year with Trump on the ballot,' wrote Bhaskar Sunkara, a democratic socialist journalist, taking a swing at Clinton's historic 2016 loss.

Hillary Clinton endorsed Westchester County Executive George Latimer in his primary against incumbent Democratic Rep. Jamaal Bowman

Bowman (pictured) is likely in trouble with recent polling suggesting Latimer, 70, may walk away with a landslide victory over the incumbent

Briahna Joy Gray, a former press secretary for Bernie Sanders who was just fired from her job hosting The Hill's 'Rising' after rolling her eyes during an interview with the sister of an Israeli hostage, said that Clinton's endorsement of Latimer is a 'clear' indication that people should be voting for Bowman.

'Hillary Clinton endorsed the AIPAC challenger to @RepBowman who recently dog whistled that Bowman's constituency was Dearborn,' she wrote.

Bowman, who is competing for his third term in Congress, is a progressive Democrat and member of the so-called 'Squad,' who has been met with criticism from his own party and elsewhere for his ongoing criticism of Israel in the wake of October 7.

His primary against Latimer is one of the most competitive races in the House and is being watched carefully by Democrats and Republicans.

His seat - New York's 16th Congressional District - covers half of Westchester County and a small portion of the Bronx. The territory is deep blue, meaning whichever candidate emerges victorious from the Democratic primary will all-but-certainly be headed to Congress.

'In Congress, @LatimerforNY will protect abortion rights, stand up to the NRA, and fight for President Bidens agenda - just like hes always done. Make a plan to vote by June 25th!' wrote Clinton.

Latimer, responding to the 2016 presidential candidate's endorsement, responded: 'Im honored to have the support of Hillary Clinton, whose decades of service are an inspiration,' and flagged that early voting begins this weekend.

Bowman, whose district has a large Jewish constituency, has arguably alienated significant numbers of his voters by staking a fervently anti-Israel position and repeatedly digging in the months since the outbreak of the war.

'Hes gone far enough out that even the left-leaning Israel advocacy group J Street withdrew its endorsement of Bowman in January, complaining that he had crossed a line in putting the blame for the conflict too much on Israel and not on Hamas,' wrote CNN's Manu Raju last month.

While Latimer has defended Israel as the war provoked by Hamas's terrorism rages on, Bowman, 48, was quick to call Israel an 'apartheid state' in the weeks following the attack.

He was also an early supporter of the narrative that claims rapes of Israeli women and murders of children were 'lies.' He later walked back some of those comments.

For these reasons and others, Bowman has seen a decline in support from members of his own party - the latest example being Clinton's pointed endorsement of Latimer.

However, despite Bowman's popularity among mainstream Democrats, others in the party who exist far to the left of the Clintons have found ample reason to condemn the critical endorsement of Latimer.

Their reasoning ranges from Latimer being Islamophobic, to Latimer being backed by Trump supporters, to general disdain for Clinton and her politics.

During a recent debate between the primary opponents, Latimer criticized Bowman for paying more attention to progressive constituencies around the country than his voters in Westchester.

'What [Bowman's] done is give speeches all across the country. When you get as much money as you get from outside the district, your constituency is Dearborn, Michigan.

'Your constituency is San Francisco, California. It's not Harrison. It's not Tuckahoe. It's not Scarsdale. You're not even there to be part of the events of those communities,' he said.

Some heard Latimer's reference to Dearborn, a heavily Muslim city in the metro-Detroit area, as Islamophobic.

Im honored to have the support of @HillaryClinton, whose decades of service are an inspiration.



Early Voting kicks off on Saturday. Vote Early before 6/23, or vote on 6/25. Just make sure you vote for #RealResultsNotRhetoric! https://t.co/6ZUPliMFhZ  George Latimer (@LatimerforNY) June 12, 2024

While Latimer (pictured) has defended Israel as the war provoked by Hamas's terrorism rages on, Bowman, 48, was quick to call Israel an 'apartheid state' in the weeks following the attack

Journalist Mehdi Hasan, whose Peacock show was canceled last November, but was frequently accused of airing anti-Semitic coverage before that, called Latimer's comment 'straight up Islamophobia.'

Georgia State Representative Ruwa Romman, who identifies as Palestinian, wrote 'This endorsement coming right after Latimer's islamophobic comments is on brand tbh, and I'm tired of everyone ignoring it.'

Recent polling suggests Latimer, 70, may walk away with a landslide victory over the incumbent.

Late last year, Bowman was also censured by the Republican-led House after pulling a fire alarm in what looked like an effort to disrupt a vote.

The congressman claims to have 'mistakenly' pulled the alarm while on his way to the Chamber to cast a vote. But, security footage clearly showed the lawmaker removing warning signs on a blocked exit door before opening it and eventually pulling the alarm.

The warning signs noted that an alarm would sound if the doors were opened.
A California high school senior was prohibited from walking at her graduation ceremony by the school because she was wearing traditional Hawaiian lei, her family has claimed.

Sophia Noelani Iliana Benzon was set to graduate from Eastlake High School in Chula Vista on June 7, and for the ceremony, wore the lei around her neck.

But her family were stopped by school administrators in the gymnasium just minutes before she was supposed to walk along with the rest of her peers.

Her older brother, Julian Benzon, claims the school ordered Sophia to take off her lei or leave the ceremony.

But that didn't deter Sophia's father, Kurt Benzon, from speaking his mind to one of the female school employees blocking his daughter from having her once-in-a-lifetime moment.

Sophia Noelani Iliana Benzon pictured after her graduation, which her family said she was barred from for wearing her lei

The heated interaction was recorded and posted to TikTok by Sophia's other brother, Kainoa, where it got over 6.8 million views.

Benzon said the district already gave them permission in advance for Sophia to wear the lei.

One of Sophia's brothers explained that they gifted her the lei over the years, making them very significant. Families with Hawaiian roots often gift these garments to loved ones on special occasions such as birthdays, weddings and graduations.

'It takes us years to get these lei, we don't get these every graduation,' the brother is heard saying on the video to the school employee wearing a sun hat.

'I'm so sorry,' the woman starts to say before being cut off by Benzon.

'You're not sorry. I don't want to hear sorry, I want my daughter to be out on that field walking with her traditional garb like every one of my other family members in the past who have graduated,' Benzon said.

Kurt Benzon, Sophia's father, argued with a female faculty member, saying she wasn't sorry for prohibiting his daughter from walking at graduation

The faculty member Sophia's father was primarily arguing with in the school gymnasium minutes before Sophia was supposed to walk

It was pointed out that both of Sophia's brothers were allowed to wear their lei at their graduations.

The woman in the sun hat then notices she's being recorded and puts a hand up.

'You don't have my permission to videotape me,' she said.

Off camera, Benzon replied, 'It's a public school, it doesn't matter.'

At this point the camera panned over to a crying Sophia, still decked out in her pink and white floral lei.

In the video caption, Kainoa claims the school went so far as to restrict Sophia's access to her phone when they saw she was wearing the lei. On top of that, he wrote that they forced her to 'say she was not going to participate in the ceremony in order for her to contact her parents.'

As she waited for her parents, she was allegedly held in the gymnasium while the graduation was going on.

'She was discriminated and excluded from her peers as she stood crying in disbelief waiting for her family to arrive,' Kainoa wrote.

A cop was standing by throughout the argument in the gym, and after two minutes of arguing back and forth, the officer spoke up and said Sophia wouldn't be allowed to walk if she kept her lei on.

In a post after the graduation fiasco, the Benzon family flips off the school district for what transpired

Sophia is pictured in the parking lot after the confrontation in the gymnasium. She refused to take off her lei and be allowed to walk

'We have six minutes, what do you want to do?' the officer asks.

'Do the right thing and let her walk down there,' her father responds.

He then points at his daughter, agitated, and tells her to go walk with her lei.

'Let them tackle you, see what happens. Go down there with your lei, baby.'

According to her brother's Facebook post, Sophia 'held her head high and left.'

Viewers of the TikTok video were confused as to why the school restricted her from wearing her traditional garb, with some even suggesting the family take legal action.

'I dont understand why this is a big deal to the school at all???' one person wrote.

Another person said they were also forced to take off their lei at graduation.

Many people commented on how quick Sophia's dad was to intervene and defend his daughter.

'This dad is so amazing and stood up for his daughter I wish I could high five hi,' a viewer commented.

The family ended up celebrating in the parking lot of the school and back at home.

'We gave her more flowers in the parking lot and embraced our strong Hawaiian princess in tears on her special day,' her brother Julian wrote.
More than two thirds of university students still have at least some of their lectures online despite the pandemic being over, a new report has found.

A survey of 10,300 students by the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) found 69 per cent still have remote lectures.

The report's authors said the finding was 'striking' and noted some online element was likely 'to stay in place'.

Broken down, the figures show 13 per cent of students - one in eight - had more than 50 per cent of their lectures online.

Meanwhile, 22 per cent - one in five - had between 21 and 50 per cent of their lectures online.

A survey of 10,300 students by the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) found 69 per cent still have remote lectures (Stock Image)

The report's authors said the finding was 'striking' and noted some online element was likely 'to stay in place' (Stock Image)

During the Covid-19 outbreak of 2020 and 2021, students were ordered to stay at home and lectures were delivered remotely.

At the time, many raised concerns they were not getting the true 'university experience' despite continuing to pay 9,250 per year in tuition fees.

Universities were then criticised for keeping many lectures online even after the national lockdowns had finished.

The same Hepi survey conducted in 2022 found nearly 90 per cent of students had at least some of their lectures online.

Today's report said: 'Since the pandemic, when a high proportion of lectures took place online, we have seen a gradual return to face-to-face interactions, but it is striking that a significant proportion of online delivery remains.

'It does appear that a significant proportion of online delivery is set to stay in place.

'It is likely that a proportion of this online delivery was already in situ before the pandemic, but potential changes in students' preferences, and advances in the ability to use technology to maximise flexibility and inclusiveness, are likely to have played a role.'

However, Paul Wiltshire, a parent campaigner for in-person teaching, said: 'It's clearly the case that lots of students like online teaching, but the problem is that they like it because it is a chance to stay in bed.

'It's not because it's better for them educationally. It's an agreement with the devil.

'In addition, if universities want to be in the business of selling degrees that include online lectures, they need to be upfront about it and advertise it in their prospectuses.'

During the Covid-19 outbreak of 2020 and 2021, students were ordered to stay at home and lectures were delivered remotely (Stock Image)

The Student Academic Experience Survey, conducted in partnership with Advance HE, polled full-time undergraduate students in the UK between January and March this year.

The report noted that students with paid employment, caring responsibilities and commutes to campus were more likely to have lectures online.

It said these students may have more 'demands on their time' and therefore may 'seek out or take up' the opportunity of online learning.

Many universities are providing online lectures and other flexible learning tools specifically to help such students.

The wide-ranging report also said students are now spending more hours on their part-time jobs.

Nearly three in five have a job during term time, and are working an average of 14.5 hours per week, compared with 13.5 hours last year.

Students now spend an average of 42 hours per week in combined paid work and study - higher than the average number of hours for the full-time working population - which stands at 36.9.

Nick Hillman, director of Hepi, said: 'More students, especially those from poorer backgrounds, are doing so much paid work that their studies are being adversely affected.'
A tourist seen walking along the streets of Bali covered head to toe in bandages after falling off a motorbike had been on an action-packed trip around Asia at the time.

James Marsland, a marine engineer, had been riding in the Indonesian holiday hotspot when his phone fell out of its holder.

He instinctively reached down to grab it, lost control of the motorbike and crashed onto the asphalt.

A video of Mr Marsland walking along the streets of Canggu went viral last week, showing the young man with bandages covering his feet, knees, arms and face.

The owner of the Instagram account that shared the video said he'd spoken to Mr Marsland who managed to avoid any serious injuries.

James Marsland was photographed in Canggu sporting multiple bandages

'He was going slow and was wearing a helmet, once you go on a bike the danger percentage is higher no matter what,' they said.

'It was an accident. Nothing dangerous or stupid, he just went straight to the asphalt.

'Perhaps it's a funny way to remind people how dangerous driving a bike can be and to always be very, very careful with eyes on the street.'

Mr Marsland, understood to be from the UK, had been posting snaps from an adventure-packed holiday around Asia in the lead up to the accident.

In May he travelled to Thailand and completed an advanced scuba diving course.

He shared several photos from the experience including underwater shots of himself with fellow divers.

Mr Marsland had been enjoying an action-packed holiday around Asia before his motorcycle accident

Mr Marsland is understood to be from the UK and has been travelling around Asia including visiting Thailand and the Maldives

He also shared photos from the night markets and island-hopping around the country.

Mr Marsland had also enjoyed time in the Maldives in March where he snorkelled with nurse sharks and wakeboarded.

When footage of the Brit covered in bandages first circulated, many joked Mr Marsland looked like a 'mummy'.

'Bali kiss next-level. The mummy. Luckily, still in one piece. Unbelievable!' one commented.

'Bali kiss' is the term given when a tourist falls off their scooter or motorbike on the holiday island.

'If you've been to Bali, this is funny, because you see a bunch of white people with bandages all over and you know it's from scooter accidents,' one commented.

In May he travelled to Thailand and completed an advanced scuba diving course

Another quipped: 'That's more than a kiss, that's at least second base.'

'Think he was actually on his way to audition for the new Mummy movie,' one said.

Mr Marsland was seen walking gingerly through the streets following the accident.

His arms were completely covered in bandages while he also suffered injuries to his chin, nose and left eyebrow.

His hands and fingers were also bandaged.
Taylor Swift might have said she would Shake It Off, but no one could have expected she meant it so literally.

From last Friday to Sunday, over 220,000 Swifties flocked to Edinburgh's Murrayfield stadium to catch the Scottish leg of the American superstar's Eras Tour.

Their synchronised dancing was so enthusiastic that it triggered an earthquake which could be picked up by seismologists more than 3.7 miles (six kilometres) away.

Thanks to Swift's identical performances each night, scientists have even been able to figure out which songs got the biggest reaction.

And while Shake it Off might have been fitting, it was the 2017 hit Ready For It? which sent the biggest shockwaves through Scotland.

Taylor Swift's Eras Tour performance at Edinburgh's Murrayfield stadium was so enthusiastic that her dancing fans triggered seismic activity which could be detected by earthquake monitoring stations

Taylor Swift fulfilled her promise to 'Shake It Off' at Edinburgh's Murrayfield stadium this weekend as her fans' dancing triggered a small earthquake

Taylor Swift's musical vibrations were recorded by researchers from the British Geological Survey (BGS) working at a monitoring centre in Edinburgh.

These experts usually use their sensitive equipment to detect earthquakes, but on Monday the team spotted a different kind of activity in their recordings.

Because Swift's performances are so precisely choreographed, the data from each of the three nights could be layered together to filter out the background noise of Edinburgh.

What they found was a series of clear spikes showing the exact moments when the fans' favourite songs started to play.

Callum Harrison, a seismologist for the BGS, says: 'It's amazing that we've been able to measure the reaction of thousands of concert goers remotely through our data.

'Clearly Scotland's reputation for providing some of the most enthusiastic audiences remains well intact!'

The BGS was able to spot fans dancing to Shake It Off, Cruel Summer, and even detected a tremor caused by the four-minute applause to Champagne Problems.

The BGS was able to spot fans dancing to Shake It Off, Cruel Summer, and even detected a tremor caused by the four-minute applause to Champagne Problems

Murrayfield's best concerts, according to seismic data Taylor Swift , 2024: 23.4 nanometres of displacement Harry Style s , 2023: 15 nanometers of displacement Beyonce , 2023: 14 nanometers of displacement Bruce Springstee n , 2023: 13.8 nanometers of displacement Advertisement

However, it was Ready For It? that produced the biggest seismic spike as fans transmitted energy equivalent to 6,000 car batteries directly into the Earth at 160 bpm.

The seismic data even shows which night was the liveliest, with Friday night coming out on top based on the distance the ground moved.

At its peak on Friday, the Earth was displaced by 23.4 nanometres, compared with 22.8 nm and 23.3 nm on the Saturday and Sunday respectively.

However, the BGS says that the tremors wouldn't have been strong enough to be felt outside the stadium.

Earthquakes typically release energy very quickly, in a quick burst lasting seconds rather than the length of a whole song.

Even though the energy released during a song might have been the same as a small earthquake, the amount of shaking is a lot lower.

Yet while the displacement might have been small by the standards of earthquakes and isn't even big enough to earn a magnitude ranking, it is massive for a concert.

Swift isn't the first to shake Murrayfield stadium, but her performances over the weekend dwarf previous records.

Beyonce's Renaissance tour only managed to move the ground 14nm while Bruce Springsteen's fans only managed a paltry 1.8nm.

Murrayfield's capacity was expanded to 72,990 specifically for the Eras Tour, but that didn't stop fans lining up from 5am to get the best spots

Swift might be pleased to know that her fans beat the previous record for seismic activity at Murrayfield set by her ex Harry Styles. The pair were believed to have briefly dated in 2012 (pictured)

And, perhaps quite satisfyingly for Swift, her fans also smashed the previous record set by her ex Harry Styles.

This weekend's ground-shaking performance might have been aided by the decision to expand Murrayfield's capacity especially for the Eras Tour.

The stadium agreed to allow an additional 5,860 fans for the visiting pop star, increasing the maximum by almost nine per cent to a record 72,990.

Even with the expanded capacity, fans were out as early as 5am to secure their spot at the front of the queue for the sold out show.

This isn't the first time that Swift's billion-dollar Eras Tour has literally shaken up its host town.

At a performance to 70,000 fans in L.A fans generated a 0.85 magnitude 'Swift-quake' as she performed Shake It Off.

In another 2023 concert in Seattle's Lumen Field, Swift triggered seismic activity equivalent a 2.3 magnitude earthquake.

For comparison, an earthquake of 2.5 or more is the threshold at which tremors begin to be felt and cause minor damage.

During that concert, Swift played to a crowd of 144,000 fans and produced tremors even bigger than the city's 2011 'Beast Quake' triggered by an NFL game.
A murder investigation into the death of a well-known surfer has prompted his family to call on anyone with information to come forward.

Emergency services were called to a unit complex on Pittwater Road at Manly after reports of an assault about 5.45pm on February 27.

They found local surfer Guy Haymes, 59, with serious head injuries. He was rushed to hospital but he later died on March 15.

Mr Haymes was a popular surfer at beaches from Sydney's Northern Beaches down to Wollongong and had earned himself the nickname 'Creature'.

Detectives have spent three months investigating his death and on Thursday appealed to the public to help solve the suspected homicide.

Police have made a public appeal for information after local surfing legend, Guy Haymes (pictured), died in March from injuries sustained during a suspected assault at a unit in Manly

The 59-year-old was well-known at surf breaks from Sydney's Northern Beaches down to Wollongong and had earned himself the nickname 'Creature' (pictured, a young Mr Haymes)

Detective Superintendent Patrick Sharkey said there are people who 'have information about this assault' who are yet to come forward.

His brother, Mark Haymes, said Creature's sudden death has left his family in shock and seeking answers as to why he would have been targeted.

'Guy was fun-loving and sociable, and he got along with everyone,' he told reporters on Thursday.

'Our whole family is shocked and in disbelief that he had his life cut short  and in such a brutal way.

'Not knowing what happened that day and not having the answers is the hardest part.

'If anyone out there has any information, please come forward as our whole family needs closure.'

Mark said he 'can't imagine' who would want to hurt his brother who was well liked across the local and surfing communities.

Mr Haymes learnt to surf in Sydney's north and is considered one of a small group of locals to have kickstarted surfing at Avalon Beach, which is now one of Sydney's surfing hotspots

The surfer's family have called on anyone with information to come forward to aid the investigation as they 'can't imagine' anyone who would want to hurt Mr Haymes

Mr Haymes grew up learning to surf on the Northern Beaches alongside his family who are all popular in the local surfing scene.

He is considered part of a small group of locals to have kickstarted surfing at Avalon Beach which is now one of Sydney's hotspots.

Members of his family, John and Matthew, took to social media shortly after Mr Haymes' death to honour the popular surfer.

'The life of The Creature was an interesting one and I'm sure everyone who crossed paths with him has a funny story or two to tell,' Matthew wrote.

'Such sad news, (Mr Haymes is) a true Avalon legend in so many ways,' one local commented.

'Creature was one unique individual, funny as hell and one hell of a surfer, so sad to hear this news,' a second wrote.

'I will always remember him in one of the biggest meanest barrels Ive ever seen.'

Another remembered him as a 'great friend, great waterman, cheeky bastard and a great all round sportsman' who will be 'sadly missed'.
A Colorado coroner is refusing to pick up any more bodies unless he gets a pay raise - and is threatening to sue if the county commissioners refuse.

Tommy Dunagan, the coroner of Prowers County, argues that he is only a part-time employee and should not have to work more than 20 hours if he is not being paid as a full-time employee.

The issue came to a head over Memorial Day weekend, when he allegedly refused to attend the scene of a death because he already 'had his hours in' and didn't have enough hours to work the following weekend.

He told county officials that none of his five deputies were able to respond to the scene, either, and 'that he would respond the following day when he was back on call' the following day, Chairman of the Commissioners Ron Cook said at a special meeting on June 4.

As a result, Cook claimed, the body was left laying in a field while an ambulance at the scene waited for county officials to find someone who is legally allowed to transport a body.

Tommy Dunagan, the coroner of Prowers County, is refusing to pick up any more bodies unless he gets a pay raise

Finally, after a back-and-forth, Dunagan finally agreed to respond to the scene when county commissioners agreed to hold a special meeting to discuss raising his salary, 9 News reports.

At that special meeting last week, county commissioners expressed their frustration with Dunagan's response, with Cook noting that he 'took an oath as the coroner... to take care of any deaths in the county' and is responsible for having someone available to perform those duties if he is not available.

'It is very unfortunate that we were put in that position,' he said of the delayed response on June 1, noting that he knew the deceased.

'It was very upsetting that this conversation had to go public,' Cook added. 'I think there were ways to handle this more professionally.'

County commissioners met last week to discuss his salary after he reportedly refused to pick up a body

Residents at the meeting also hit out at Dunagan for his apparent new rule, with one woman noting that he 'campaigned on bringing dignity, transparency and compassion' to the coroner's office.

'Does anybody in this room, and I defy you if you say yes, think there's any dignity, compassion or transparency to leaving a body?'

She went on to call his apparent refusal to respond 'despicable,' while another resident said it was 'inappropriate.'

'At that moment you decided to dig your heels in and leave a human body, disrespectfully, waiting for you to decide whether or not they are paying you enough money.'

Chairman of the Commissioners Ron Cook recounted how Dunagan told him there were no deputies available and 'that he would respond the following day when he was back on call'

Dunagan has since denied that there was a delay in his response and claimed the decedent was not 'left lying in a field because I refused to respond.'

But at the meeting, he just seemed to double down, noting that he has never left a body 'before now' and claiming there isn't 'much else I can do without being compensated'.

'I don't feel that beyond 20 hours I should have to take calls after that,' he claimed at the meeting.

Dunagan has brought up issues about working more than 20 hours in the past, leading state lawmakers to pass a measure allowing county commissioners to make him a full-time employee by January 2024.

Instead, the commissioners gave him money to hire some deputies and increased the Coroner's Office budget by $15,000, to be used to replenish supplies.

They cannot amend his salary again until 2026, under state law.

But Dunagan has now hired his own attorney to push lawmakers to raise his salary, and is demanding that the county pay for his legal fees.

He has also hit out at the commissioners for inviting 'several uninterested parties and my political rivals to the meeting and [providing] them information on an active death investigation.

'It [was] wrong and improper to do so and was disrespectful to the decedent and their family, especially while they were trying to cope with the unexpected death of a loved one,' Dunagan wrote in a letter to the editor of SECO News, claiming that the decedent is 'a friend of mine and to suggest that I neglected my duties [is] absurd and disgusting.'

Dunagan has hired an attorney to try to compel county commissioners to raise his salary

Still, he noted that he has to respond to about 100 deaths each year and spend about 15 hours investigating each one.

'The chief coroner is on call 24/7, 365 and is expected to respond to all deaths,' Dunagan wrote. '

This does not include the management of the office, training, organizing and scheduling of deputy coroners and other deputies and responsibilities of the office.

'Since taking my post, I have averaged 50 hours a week.'

He concluded his essay by saying he wants to be the 'best coroner in the state of Colorado' but 'I also believe that full-time work deserves full-time pay.'
A midwestern man has been sentenced to forty years in prison after his toddler died in a shallow river on Thanksgiving in 2021.

Jeremy Sweet, 41, wept as he was handed his sentence this week in Indiana court, where he'd previously pleaded guilty to one count of neglect of a dependent resulting in death, in addition to a habitual offender enhancement from drug crimes.

Sweet's young daughter, Emma, died after he drove his truck into a shallow river. She was just two years old.

The father-daughter pair were seen for the final time together on November 24, 2021, and reported missing the following day.

On November 26, Jeremy was discovered and rescued by local duck hunters. His truck was spotted at about 6am, submerged in shallow water.

Jeremy Sweet (center), 41, was sentenced to 40 years in prison for the role he played in his two-year-old daughter's death

Emma Sweet died after her father drove his truck into a shallow Indiana river and failed to save her

Sweet was subsequently hospitalized with hypothermia and placed on a 72-hour hold as detectives investigated the circumstances of the submersion.

During his sentencing hearing, Sweet assumed responsibility for what had happened.

He broke down as he apologized to his ex-wife for their daughter's death.

'Theres nothing I can say to change what has happened. But I swear to God on everything I love that Im so sorry,' he said as he sobbed, according to a courtroom report.

Initially, following his rescue, Sweet told authorities that he'd been taking a friend to work and become lost in some fields before taking a wrong turn that sent his truck into the White River.

He also provided several differing accounts of what happened to his young daughter, first telling officers that he'd dropped her off somewhere before driving into the river, then admitting she was with him during the accident.

Sweet, 41, pleaded guilty to one count each of neglect of a dependent resulting in death and a habitual offender enhancement for drug crimes on Tuesday in Indiana Count

An affidavit filed in his case reads: 'Jeremy said that water was coming into the truck, so he put Emma on the hood or roof of the truck. Jeremy said that he and Emma fell into the water.'

He later said that the pair climbed to the roof of the truck, where he held Emma for a while before falling into the water.

He then said that he placed Emma atop the vehicle alone and eventually fell asleep. When he awoke, his daughter was gone, said said.

Sweet told police that his daughter was last seen alive on the roof of the pickup, 'yelling for her mom.'

Where his truck was discovered, the river was three-to-five feet deep, according to law enforcement. Several days after the accident, Emma's body was found by divers.

The day after Sweet was rescued, he admitted during an interview with detectives that he had used marijuana and methamphetamines on Thanksgiving Day, according to the local Fox affiliate.

An image of Sweet's pickup truck submerged after he was found by duck hunters, rescued, and treated for hypothermia

County officials oversaw the removal of the truck from the river. Days after her father was rescued, Emma's body was found

Eventually, investigators discovered the father had been at a nearby casino through the night with two friends on the day before the fatal accident.

He then went to go pick up his daughter because her mother had to go to work. Police assessing the scene and Sweet's story said they doubted if he'd ever really been lost.

Sweet was sentenced to three decades in prison for his first offense, and an additional decade for the second - the court determined that the sentences will run consecutively.
Two NSW police officers have been charged with the assault of a 92-year-old man following an incident in Sydney's southwest earlier this year.

The alleged assault took place at a home in Picton at about 8.45pm on January 21 after the officers were called to a domestic incident.

The 92-year-old man suffered a number of injuries during the interaction and was rushed to hospital with a fractured right elbow.

The man also suffered significant bruising to his head and arms.

Following an internal investigation, a senior male constable and a male constable, both attached to the South West Metropolitan Region, were served court attendance notices on Wednesday for assault occasioning actual bodily harm.

NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb told a press conference on Thursday that she was 'disappointed' by the alleged assault.

NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb (pictured on Thursday) told a press conference that she was 'disappointed' by the alleged assault of a 92-year-old man

An internal investigation was launched the day after the alleged assault.

'[The officers] were charged last night,' Commissioner Webb said.

'And it's important that I say to the community... where something is questionable and we have concerns about the conduct of an officer, we will take action.'

Police received two triple-zero calls seven minutes apart from an elderly woman at the home who officers were treating as the victim, Ms Webb said.

She confirmed that one of the persons involved suffered from dementia.

'Police respond to many calls for domestic violence, and often walk into situations not knowing what they're walking into,' she said.

'I'm not aware that we've been called to that address before.'

Ms Webb was asked if elderly people could feel safe calling for police assistance.

'As I said, we respond to thousands and thousands of calls every week, every year, in NSW. And most of the time, we get them right - almost all the time,' she said.

'We respond to victims in a very empathetic, caring manner.

'But if we have concerns as an executive, as a leadership, that officers haven't responded appropriately, then we will investigate.'

The alleged assault took place at a home in Picton at about 8.45pm on January 21 after two officers were called to a domestic incident (stock image)

Ms Webb said the elderly man had received support from NSW Police in lieu of the incident and that officers had liaised with his family this week.

She added that the officers involved were 'experienced' but not 'veterans'.

One of the officers will appear at Campbelltown Local Court on July 30.

The other is due to appear at the same court on August 6.

Both officers have been suspended with pay and were restricted to station duties after the internal investigation was launched on January 22.
Do as I say, not as I do. That is the message new ABC chair Kim Williams sent when he publicly criticised Opposition Leader Peter Dutton's policy on nuclear energy.

It comes just weeks after top ABC political journalist Laura Tingle was formally sanctioned for criticising Dutton's policy on immigration at the Sydney Writers' Festival.

In March this year - shortly after Williams took over as ABC chair - he boldly declared that there is no place for political 'activism' at the public broadcaster and anyone who can't abide by that standard should get up and leave.

But with more than four years left on his term I can only assume Williams won't be taking his own advice.

I'm not sure what offends me more: the stupidity of the ABC Chair making the comments, especially in the current climate, or the obvious political bias that they so openly put on display.

We should note that Williams isn't bound by the ABC's editorial guidelines. He is not a journalist.

But if he doesn't want to be accused of hypocrisy - the pot calling the kettle black as it were - he should have shut up.

Anthony Albanese appointed Kim Williams the chairman of the ABC at the beginning of the year

Instead, Williams joined the After The Fact panel, alongside the director of the Vivid Festival and the CEO of IndigenousX, telling his audience Dutton's nuclear policy is 'absent any of the normal fabric of policy formulation'.

Putting to one side Williams' psychic powers (the Opposition's nuclear policy hasn't actually been released yet) surely the new chair of the ABC must realise how inappropriate it is for him to weigh in on such an issue?

Apparently not, because he also told his audience he was only speaking as an 'Australian citizen', as though it is that easy for one of the highest profile roles in the Australian media to take his ABC hat on and off whenever he chooses to throw a few partisan barbs.

Would Tingle's comments have also been OK had she drawn this tenuous distinction when she said 'We are a racist country, let's face it'?

It just shouldn't be so hard for someone occupying a role like Williams to do better.

He could offer his musings about Dutton's nuclear policy credentials in private, at home, amongst friends and family. Out of earshot of anyone with a recording device, and certainly not on stage at a public event.

Quietly think them to yourself if you like.

It beggars belief that this comes so soon in the aftermath of the Tingle saga, and with so many parallels. The ABC managing director David Anderson even had to front Senate Estimates in Canberra and admonish the conduct of his star journalist.

Yet Williams has now done this. Perhaps the worst part of what has happened is that Tingle and others at the ABC might learn the wrong lesson and think two wrongs make a right. If the Chair can do it so can we.

The extent of Williams' denial was on display when, after ripping into Dutton's allegedly poor policy making skills, he told the audience 'I'm not being political'.

Really? Perhaps it was a case of emulating George Costanza from Seinfeld: 'Jerry, it's not a lie if you believe it.'

Would Williams have even been invited to join a panel flagged as discussing 'soundbite politics' if he wasn't the Chair of the ABC?

Given the obvious political content likely to be discussed by the panel, shouldn't Williams have known better and politely declined?

Laura Tingle (left, with Brittany Higgins and Grace Tame) sparked controversy when she described Australia as a 'racist country' during a panel discussion

The rest of the ABC Chair's attempt to diss Dutton's policy making skills as subpar unfortunately only revealed his own ignorance of how the policy making process works from Opposition.

Williams confidently asserted 'I grew up at a time when governments published green papers... then they published white papers... from which debate would follow in the parliament... that was the traditional process for public policy formulation... I think it's a pretty good system.'

Guess what Kim, it is a pretty good system - and that's still how it works.

But Dutton isn't in government, he's in Opposition.

The same policy making processes don't exist because the Opposition doesn't have a team of departmental bureaucrats to design their policies.

It also doesn't control the Parliament, or at least the lower house. So oppositions can't follow the traditional policymaking cycle the way governments should and sometimes do.

But putting to one side Williams' (failed) attempt to school Dutton on the policy making process, he simply shouldn't have weighed in on such a hot political topic.

And he's absolutely kidding himself if he thinks he can take his ABC hat off anytime he wants to weigh in.

The real world doesn't work that way.

If having been appointed to the chairmanship by the current Labor government Williams can't help but offer opinions on one of the central policy issues likely to dominate the next election campaign, he should only do so over a beer amongst friends.

Or more likely in the case of the former head of the Sydney Opera House Trust, over a nice glass of chardonnay.

If he can't abide by that basic rule then he should quit.
ABC's chairman Kim Williams has launched a blistering attack on Peter Dutton's nuclear power plan, just days after 7.30 correspondent Laura Tingle was 'counselled' for her comments about the Coalition.

Speaking on a panel at Sydney's Vivid Festival on Wednesday night, Mr Williams said Mr Dutton's nuclear policy was 'absent any of the normal fabric of policy formulation'.

In comments reported by news website Crikey, the national broadcaster's boss said the Coalition had announced the policy 'as a sound bite, with no detail as to emissions targets'.

Mr Williams, who is not a journalist and therefore not subject to the ABC's editorial guidelines, said he was 'not being political' and not 'in any way  speaking for the ABC'.

'I'm speaking as an Australian citizen, and I'm entitled, like any Australian citizen, to have a view as to the necessity of good public policy in our nation.'

ABC's chairman Kim Williams (pictured) has launched a blistering attack on Peter Dutton's nuclear power plan, just days after 7.30 reporter Laura Tingle was 'counselled' for her comments about the Coalition

Nationals leader David Littleproud said if the Coalition wins the next election and goes ahead with its nuclear plans, power plants will be in National Party seats. A nuclear power station is pictured

Speaking at the Sydney Writers' Festival on May 26 Tingle, who is the 7.30 program's chief political correspondent, called Australia 'a racist country'.

'We are a racist country, let's face it. We always have been, and it's very depressing,' she said.

She also accused Mr Dutton of fanning the flames of anti-migrant sentiment, and praised Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's leadership.

Tingle accused Mr Dutton of 'dog whistling' and said his call to cut immigration didn't make 'rational sense'.

She later doubled down on her claims in an article published on the ABC's website.

'I did indeed make the observation on Sunday that we are a racist country, in the context of a discussion about the political prospects ahead,' she wrote.

'I wasn't saying every Australian is a racist. But we clearly have an issue with racism.'

ABC News director Justin Stevens said Tingle's initial remarks 'lacked the context, balance and supporting information of her work for the ABC and would not have met the ABC's editorial standards'.

He added that the broadcaster's 'editorial standards serve a vital role. Laura has been reminded of their application at external events as well as in her work and I have counselled her over the remarks.'

In March, Mr Williams told ABC staff should leave if they broke the national broadcaster's code about being balanced.

'If you don't want to reflect a view that aspires to impartiality, don't work at the ABC,' he said.

On Thursday, Rick Morton, a senior reporter at the Saturday Paper, tweeted that he 'Can't wait for Justin Stevens' note saying Kim Williams would have breached editorial policy.'

Just hours before Mr Williams comments, Nationals leader David Littleproud said if the Coalition wins the next election and goes ahead with its nuclear plans, power plants will be in National Party seats.

Poll Should ABC employees, or those on the ABC board, be allowed to make comments about politicians? Yes No Should ABC employees, or those on the ABC board, be allowed to make comments about politicians? Yes 18 votes

No 74 votes Now share your opinion





Mr Littleproud said Australians would 'know very soon the specific sites' being proposed.

'We've been very clear that they will be limited to where existing coal power stations are, so we don't need the extra 28,000 of transmission lines to plug the renewables.

'We're clear, there are 12 to 14 existing coal-fired power stations across the country so we can limit to that,' he told ABC breakfast.

But Mr Williams said the Coalition was not doing near enough to explain what its nuclear plans are.

He said in the past, governments published green papers, which were designed to generate discussion from all interested parties on major issues.

'And then they published a white paper, which is an announcement of intended government direction from which debate would follow in the Parliament, and then legislation would appear,' he said.

'That was the traditional process for public policy formulation, particularly on critical matters such as energy policy. I think it's a pretty good system.'

Mr Williams has stood by his comments, telling Crikey that he 'was trying to be as careful as I can be but still answer the question'.

Speaking at the Sydney Writers' Festival on May 26, Laura Tingle (pictured), who is the 7.30 program's chief political correspondent, called Australia 'a racist country'

ABC's Laura Tingle accused Peter Dutton (pictured) of 'dog whistling' and said his call to cut immigration didn't make 'rational sense'

'It wasn't said in a sort of vigorous "I'm taking on the opposition here", it was said as a commentary about public policy and public policy formulation and public policy process.'

An ABC spokesman told Daily Mail Australia: 'The ABC Chair Kim Williams is not an ABC employee and is not directly involved in creating and publishing journalism.

'Mr Williams declared he was making his observations as a private citizen.'

Mr Dutton has also been contacted for comment.
A journalist was told to leave a cafe after spending just one hour working there and has now been banned from all of the owner's venues.

Mark Story, the deputy editor of New Zealand paper Hawke's Bay Today, recently opened up about his surprising treatment at Smiths cafe in Napier.

He said he'd spent $12.50 on a coffee and some brioche and was happily working at the cafe until he was told to leave after an hour had passed.

The journalist added he liked to occasionally work from a cafe but knew to move along if he was taking up space for customers.

The row began when a staff member asked if Mr Story wanted any more food or drinks which he declined.

Mark Story, the deputy editor of New Zealand paper Hawke's Bay Today, recently opened up about his surprising treatment at the Smiths cafe in Napier

Poll Do you think it was fair of the cafe to ask Mr Story to leave? Yes, he wasn't going to buy anything else No, he was only there for an hour Do you think it was fair of the cafe to ask Mr Story to leave? Yes, he wasn't going to buy anything else 1618 votes

No, he was only there for an hour 1192 votes Now share your opinion





The worker then said words to the effect of 'then I'll need you to move on. I'm mindful of other paying customers,' Mr Story said in an opinion piece.

When he pointed out there were other tables available, the cafe worker then said he'd only had a coffee.

Mr Story said he'd also had some brioche but then left the premises.

He later emailed the venue to ask about his abrupt ejection but received no response.

He then called and was referred to the owner Lisa Caro.

Mr Story said the owner had asked if his enquiry was 'newsworthy'.

He had spent $12.50 on a coffee and brioche and was happily working at the cafe (pictured) until he was told to leave after an hour because he wasn't going to buy anything else

'Twas the briefest of chats. But long enough for Caro to confirm she'd now upgraded my punishment to a total ban on entering any of her Hawke's Bay establishments,' Mr Story wrote.

'I bear Smiths and its ownership no ill will at all. I love that place. Should my expulsion ever expire, I'd happily recouple.

'But the reality is one of us has seriously misread the room.'

Mr Story said the cafe was approached for comment on various occasions but declined.

Mr Story asked others in the hospitality industry what the deal was with staying in a cafe after the meal was finished.

The general consensus was that if the table was free, they were happy for someone to sit there regardless of how much they ordered.

They added it was appealing to other customers to see someone sitting inside.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Smiths for further comment.
Murderer and former rugby league star Chris Dawson has lost a bid to be freed from prison after the state's highest court threw out his appeal against his conviction for killing his wife.

Now the ex-teacher, who was found to have killed his wife Lynette to be with a teenage student and babysitter, is facing the prospect of dying in jail.

Dawson, 75, on Thursday appeared before the Court of Criminal Appeal when a three-judge panel dismissed his appeal following a three-day hearing in May.

Dawson was jailed in August 2022 for the murder of his wife, Lynette Simms, who vanished without a trace from their Bayview home on Sydney's northern beaches in January 1982.

In the days after she vanished, Dawson moved his teenage lover  a former student and the family's babysitter  into his Gilwinga Drive address.

Murderer and former rugby league star Chris Dawson has lost a bid to be freed from prison after the state's highest court threw out his appeal against his conviction for killing his wife



Nearly two years ago, Supreme Court Justice Ian Harrison found Dawson killed his wife to have 'unfettered access' to the young woman, JC.

In a judgment handed down on Thursday afternoon, Justices Julie Ward, Anthony Payne and Christine Adamson dismissed Dawson's high-stakes appeal.

After being sentenced to 24 years in prison, with an 18-year non-parole period, Dawson was previously told that he will likely die in jail.

Dawson's only avenue to be freed before he dies is to take his case to the High Court.

Lynette Simms was last seen on Friday, January 8, 1982 when she spoke to her mother on the phone.

According to Dawson's version of events, given to police at Beenleigh, south of Brisbane, in January 1991, Dawson claimed he dropped off his wife at a Mona Vale bus stop early on the morning of Saturday January 9.

Lynette Simms disappeared from her Bayview home in January 1982, which she shared with her husband and their two young children

Dawson told detectives that she failed to meet him at the Northbridge Baths, where he worked as a part-time lifeguard.

He had claimed he received a long-distance phone call from Lynette during his shift, saying she needed time away, and had several further phone calls with her in the ensuing days before she ultimately told him she would not be returning to their home.

Crown prosecutors during his 2022 trial, as well as his appeal earlier this year, relied on the fact that Ms Simms never had any contact with any person after January 8, 1982, including her family, friends, colleagues and children.

She was described as a devoted mother and the court heard that she underwent numerous procedures to have children.

Crown prosecutor Brett Hatfield told an appeal hearing earlier this year it was 'inherently unlikely' that she would have voluntarily abandoned her family  including her children given her struggles to conceive.

He further said she would not have cut off communication with her parents and her siblings, even if she had left Dawson.

The court heard that in the months leading up to her disappearance, Dawson had made attempts to leave Ms Simms, including just before Christmas 1981, when he attempted to move to Queensland with JC and start a new life

The court heard that in the months leading up to her disappearance, Dawson had made attempts to leave Ms Simms, including just before Christmas 1981, when he attempted to move to Queensland with JC and start a new life.

During the trial, the court was told that Ms Simms found out about Mr Dawson leaving when she arrived home to find a note on the bed.

The court heard the note read: 'Don't paint too dark a picture of me to the girls.'

The court heard that JC and Dawson did not make it to Queensland after she became ill and asked that he turn the car around.

Mr Hatfield argued that Dawson had refused to accept JC's attempt to break off their relationship before she left to holiday at South West Rocks in early 1982.

JC went to South West Rocks to holiday in a caravan park with family and friends before Dawson travelled north to collect her in January 1982.

The crown prosecutor said Lynette Simms (pictured) would not have 'voluntarily abandoned the husband she idolised' and the 'children she adored'

The court heard that after moving JC into his family home, where she slept in the matrimonial bed, Dawson allowed her to go through Lynette's clothing and jewellery.

Judge Harrison, who found Dawson guilty, concluded that he was 'obsessed' with JC and the prospects of losing her.

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 students at a Sydney high school in 1980.

He was sentenced by District Court 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.
Kentucky 'warrior' mother-of-two Lucinda Mullins has taken her first steps on her own since losing all four of her limbs to sepsis following a routine kidney stone surgery.

In a video posted to her TikTok page on Wednesday, Mullins, 41, could be seen walking out of a room at the Cardinal Hill Rehabilitation Hospital in Lexington - showing off her new prosthetic legs.

She took a few brief steps without any support from the nurses nearby, as she was apparently strapped to a walker.

Nurses at the hospital also seemed to get in on the celebration, holding up her former prosthetics as they mouthed a scene from The Princess Diaries in which a stylist says, 'Paolo take 'this' and 'this' and give you a princess.'

Mullins would later share the video on her Facebook page, writing 'I made my first TikTok today' as she touted the work of her physical therapists.

Lucinda Mullins, 41, posted a video showing her taking her first steps on her own since she was forced to amputate all four of her limbs

Mullins, a mother of two boys, has also recently been retrofitted with robotic arms that move when she shrugs her shoulders, WKYT reports.

Photos posted to a GoFundMe raising money for her adaptive equipment show her using the black metallic arm to grab items from a basket.

The movements mark huge milestones for Mullins, a nurse herself, who had to get her limbs amputated after she became septic during a routine operation to get kidney stones removed before Christmas.

She and her husband DJ have previously described to DailyMail.com how she became dizzy and collapsed after she pulled her stent out, and her blood pressure dropped to dangerously low levels.

Mullins was immediately rushed to a local hospital, where doctors discovered that an unremoved kidney stone had become infected.

Mullins had to get her limbs amputated after she became septic during a routine operation to get kidney stones removed before Christmas

She was told that she had gone into septic shock, with her organs beginning to shut down. Doctors stabilized her and placed on a ventilator before she was transported to a larger hospital in Lexington.

For a week, Mullins 'wasn't moving, wasn't talking, wasn't responding,' DJ said.

'They said she was on the edge of a cliff and it was about to get worse.'

Over the next several days, while her organ function began to improve, blisters broke out across her limbs.

When she was conscious again, doctors told Mullins that she would survive the infection - at the cost of her hands and legs.

The mother-of-two has said her family's support has helped her get through the ordeal

Surprisingly, Mullins said she 'was at peace' and 'okay with it' when the doctors told her the news.

'There was just this presence of God around me that told me this is all going to be okay,' she explained.

'I was alive and I got to see my family again and my friends. And if that was a sacrifice that I had to make, you know, I was fine with it.

'That was the only way to save my life and I never questioned it. I just felt that God chose me for this to happen and he was going to use me in a big way.'

She then underwent a series of amputations concluding with the removal of her lower arms in February.

Following hours of physical therapy sessions, Mullins regained her ability to eat by herself and learned to sit upright on her own

To get through the recovery, Mullins said she leaned on the comfort of knowing her family would be with her every step of the way.

'I know there will be hard times ahead but just knowing I could see my kids again and that I had the support of my family, I think that gave me peace to be okay with it.'

With their support, Mullins was able to eat by herself within a matter of weeks - posting a video to her Facebook page showing her using a black strap that can be affixed to her arm with a fork jutting out of it.

Soon, she also learned to sit upright by herself and scroll on her phone using her nose.

Mullins' friends say she is truly is a 'princess' and a 'soldier' as they celebrated the news of her first steps on Tuesday

In March, Mullins began the grueling task of learning to walk again on artificial legs.

'Stepping in the right direction. One happy chick,' her friend Heather Beshears captioned the photos. 'These are the training legs. They will introduce the knees when she is ready.'

Now Mullins' friends say she is truly is a 'princess' and a 'soldier' as they celebrated the news of her first steps on Tuesday.

'Truly a soldier, so strong!' one friend commented on her post. 'You will be back, nothing will hold you back.'

Another called the video 'wonderful' and 'a blessing.'
Nathan Wade was in the middle of an interview with CNN when the disgraced Donald Trump prosecutor was suddenly interrupted by his media consultant in bizarre scenes.

Wade was being questioned by CNN's Kaitlan Collins about the timeline of his relationship with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.

Collins asked Wade when his romantic relationship with Willis began, but just as he was about to answer, he was interrupted by a man who told him to stop and remove his microphone.

Wade has seconds earlier revealed that he still 'regularly speaks' with Willis, and noted how the election interference case against Trump 'will live on' despite him being removed from the case.

'When did the romantic relationship between the two of you start?' Collins then asked.

Trump prosecutor Nathan Wade was in the middle of an interview with CNN on Wednesday when he was suddenly interrupted by a 'media consultant'

Former prosecutor Nathan Wade was being questioned about his relationship with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. The pair are seen together in a photo from August 2023

'Yes, so we get into... there's been this effort to say that, OK, these exact dates are at issue and these exact dates are,' he began to answer.

It was at that point, Wade suddenly appeared distracted and looked off camera stating that he was being 'signaled'.

Wade and his media consultant then went to huddle in the corner of the room for almost a minute as they whispered to one another, presumably to discuss how to answer the question.

Collins appeared bewildered as she sat waiting for Wade's return.

Watch the moment Nathan Wades team interrupted him mid-interview with @kaitlancollins, as the former Fulton County prosecutor was talking about his romantic relationship with D.A. Fani Willis. pic.twitter.com/BP5KTB5aUM  TheSourceCNN (@TheSourceCNN) June 13, 2024

Willis had begun answering a question when he was in interrupted by his consultant who told him to take his microphone off

In the background, a CNN producer was heard telling the cameraman to 'keep rolling.'

When Wade got back to his seat, Collins resumed her line of questioning, asking Wade if he was 'ok'.

'Just to revisit the question, it was to clarify when the romantic relationship started and when it ended,' Collins told Wade once again.

'I don't choose to say or do anything that would jeopardize the case or the court's ruling,' he said

'I believe that the public has through, through the testimony and other interviews, the public has a clear snapshot that this is clearly just a distraction.

'It is not a relevant issue in this case. And I think that we should be focusing on more of the facts and the indictment of the case,' Wade responded, pushing to change the subject.

The pair then went to huddle in the corner of the room to whisper to one another

Collins was left sitting in her chair while Wade stepped away in the middle of his interview

He added: 'Certainly I would have never done anything that would have jeopardized that hard workI do believe though the timing of the personal relationship I had was probably bad, it was bad timing but you don't pick and choose when those things happen.

'What I believe is this whole conversation is a distraction that's all. It's a tool to stop the train, to slow down the inevitable, which is the trial of the defendant's name in the election interference case.'

Collins asked Wade if a sitting president could be put on trial.

'I don't believe it looks good to the rest of the world, but I don't think there is anything that would prevent that from happening', Wade said.

Collins suggested she did not think a sitting president would be sent to jail.

'We know that sentencing is entirely up to a trial court. And it's up to the court to determine if the appropriate sentence is jail time', Wade added.

The appeals court might hear arguments in October over Trump's efforts to have Willis removed from the election interference case she brought against him.

Willis arrives at a press conference with Wade after a Grand Jury brought back indictments against Trump

Former President Donald Trump said following arguments at a federal appeals court in Washington, D.C., that Fulton County, Georgia DA Fani Willis was 'totally compromised,' following allegations she had a 'romantic' affair with a private lawyer acting as a paid special prosecutor

What is known is that Wade was hired by Willis to lead the investigation on November 1, 2021 - just one day before he filed for divorce.

Wade has testified that the relationship between the two started 'around March' 2022.

Willis, meanwhile, told Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee that it began 'between February and April' of that year.

But neither Willis nor Wade have given a precise date of when their tryst began.

The pair have also given different answers for the time periods as to when their romance ended.

Wade has said things came to an end in June or July 2023. Willis has August 2023 as her end date for the relationship.

'The only thing I regret is the timing of it', Wade has said previously.

Last week the appeals court froze Trump's criminal trial proceedings for which he faces 13 felony counts, as it takes up his appeal to remove Willis from the case.

'The Georgia Court of Appeals has properly stayed all proceedings against President Trump in the trial court pending its decision on our interlocutory appeal which argues the case should be dismissed and Fulton County DA Willis should be disqualified for her misconduct,' Steve Sadow, Trump's lead Georgia defense attorney, said in a statement.

Wade was the former special prosecutor in Fulton County and helped lead former President Trump's criminal prosecution in Georgia.

He resigned from his position in March after Judge Scott McAffee, who is overseeing the case in the Superior Court of Fulton County, ruled that Willis could only stay on the case if Wade stepped down.
An Australian dad allegedly caught with meth in Bali fronted court for the first time as he faces a possible 12-year sentence if found guilty.

Troy Smith, from Port Lincoln in South Australia, was allegedly caught with 3.19g of methamphetamine inside a Colgate toothpaste container at Champlung Mas Hotel in Legian, Bali, on April 30.

Police allegedly found a further 0.4g of the drug that had been bought in Bali, along with a bong and a lighter.

Mr Smith, 49, was initially charged with drug trafficking, which carries a possible life sentence, but those charges were changed to drug possession and use earlier this month.

He had originally been languishing in a shared prison cell with a dozen other inmates but was released to a rehabilitation facility last month after Bali's National Narcotic Agency concluded he 'was using drugs for himself' and not part of a criminal enterprise.

Troy Smith, from Port Lincoln in South Australia, was allegedly caught with 3.19g of methamphetamine inside a Colgate toothpaste container at Champlung Mas Hotel in Legian, Bali, on April 30 (pictured fronting court on Thursday)

Mr Smith, 49, nervously played with his wedding ring as he sat on a wooden bench awaiting his fate (pictured)

Mr Smith appeared ashen-faced as he was brought out the back of a police van in handcuffs on Thursday.

The father-of-two, who was wearing a white shirt, tan chinos and a prison-issue red gilet, did not answer questions from waiting journalists and hid his face in the corner of a holding cell.

He was then ushered past the media scrum into the court where he nervously played with his wedding ring as he sat on a wooden bench awaiting his fate.

Mr Smith was charged with two alternative articles of Indonesian Drugs Law, one relating to drugs possession and the other drug use.

The former carries a maximum prison sentence of 12 years, while the latter carries a maximum of four years, with the possibility of being sent to a rehabilitation facility if it can be proven he is an addict.

The prosecutor said Mr Smith had possessed, kept, controlled or supplied narcotics, including 3.15 grams of crystal methamphetamine without permission from authorities.

'The methamphetamine was sent by a friend from Australia, while the other meth was bought on the street around Jalan Melasti Legian Kuta, Badung, from someone selling it,' the prosecutor told the court.

Mr Smith did not lodge an objection to the indictment after it was read to the court.

His trial is expected to continue next week and he has been remanded to the rehabilitation centre.

Mr Smith's case was taken up by 'fixer' John McLeod who worked to help free Schapelle Corby from jail.

Mr McLeod revealed on Thursday that Mr Smith was 'committed to following all legal protocols diligently'.

'Our legal team has prepared thoroughly, and we trust in the integrity of the Indonesian judicial system,' Mr McLeod added

'Troy is making significant strides in his recovery at the rehabilitation clinic. His determination to overcome his addictions is evident, and he is benefiting from daily professional support.

'With newfound enthusiasm for life, Troy is committed to conquering his challenges.'

Mr Smith had been on holiday with his wife Tracey when he was arrested by police (the pair are pictured together in happier times)

Mr Smith's lawyer Sienny Karmana Previously told The Advertiser his charges were reduced after Bali's National Narcotic Agency concluded he was using drugs for himself.

'The drugs assessment team found him as a drug user,' Ms Karmana said.

'He has been addicted to drugs for years.'

The narcotics agency, which determines whether people arrested on drug charges in Indonesia are users, addicts or dealers, also concluded that Mr Smith was not part of any narcotic syndicate.

Ms Karmana said her client needed rehab more than he needed jail.

'We, as lawyers, only hope that the judge could sentence him to rehabilitation as he has suffered addiction.

'What he needs now is rehabilitation, not jail.'

Mr Smith had been on holiday with his wife Tracey when he was arrested by police.

The pair, who met on Tinder, had married in her hometown of Nairobi, Kenya's capital, in December.

Mr Smith has struggled with alcoholism in his life, which resulted in his children cutting off contact with him and his marriage breaking down.

Before his arrest he was enjoying a globetrotting life as a newlywed, having tied the knot with his wife.

The father-of-two, who was wearing a white shirt, tan chinos and a prison-issue red gilet did not answer questions from waiting journalists and hid his face in the corner of a holding cell

'I've had an interesting last twelve years,' Mr Smith said in a video.

'Chronic alcoholic, absolutely hit rock bottom. You couldn't have drunk any more than me.

'I didn't see any way out and I probably should be dead to be honest. Kids don't speak to me anymore.

'But then in the most bizarre of circumstances, in a Tinder meeting I met this girl in Nairobi and I've since been to Bali.

'Now I'm loving life. This girl gives me motivation to do everything. She's my life now.'
The family of a man who was critically injured in an e-bike crash have made the difficult decision to turn off his life support as friends posted tributes on what would have been his 58th birthday.

Shane McGrath, 57, came off his bike while crossing the Story Bridge at Kangaroo Point, in Brisbane's south, on Sunday morning.

Police believe he was riding on a shared footpath when he lost control and crashed about 3.10am.

Emergency services attended the scene and transported him to the Princess Alexandra Hospital in a critical condition.

Shane McGrath, 57, came off his bike while crossing the Story Bridge at Kangaroo Point, in Brisbane's south, on Sunday morning

Mr McGrath was placed into an induced coma and his family made the heartbreaking decision to switch off his life support on Wednesday.

His friends have paid tribute to him on what would have been his 58th birthday.

Peter Gabites paid tribute to his friend, who he used to go riding with.

'A sad day today with the passing of Shane McGrath,' he wrote on Facebook.

'One of the guys I was touring central with when I had my big-off during Covid.

'I wish you'd been able to follow through with our conversations about touring Romania together.

Mr McGrath's family have made the difficult decision to turn off his life support

'It would have been great to have been riding the Transfagarasan with you today. RIP mate!'

Peter Fuller also paid tribute to his life-long friend on social media.

'I had the great pleasure to have Shane as one of my best friends over the last 50 years and we stayed in close contact over that time,' he said.

'I will miss you Shane, love you mate.'

Mr McGrath's family and friends are gathering at the Story Bridge Hotel on Thursday night to celebrate his birthday and his life.
Emmanuel Macron will support a proposed ban on the use of smartphones for under 11s and social media for under 15s across France, it emerged last night.

The French President is backing the proposals made in a report earlier this year by a panel of experts commissioned by the Elysee Palace amid growing concern over the negative effects of tech and social media use on children and teenagers.

Macron entered the issue into his presidential agenda at the beginning of the year amid sagging approval ratings.

But there is no word on how such a blanket ban would be implemented, with lawmakers now set to decide which apps will qualify for the ban and to hash out the finer details of bringing the recommended measures to bear.

President of France Emmanuel Macron is seen during a news conference on June 12, 2024 in Paris, France

Macron will support a proposed ban on the use of smartphones for under 11s and social media for under 15s across France, it emerged last night

The expert panel, which was led by neurologist Servane Mouton and psychiatry professor Amine Benyamina, and also included education, law and tech experts, delivered its findings to Macron in April.

It recommended that all children under the age of 11 must not be permitted to use a smartphone, and must not be given a smartphone with access to the internet before age 13.

Social media apps should be forbidden for anyone under 15, they added, and minors over 15 should only have access to platforms deemed 'ethical' - though the report did not specify which platforms would be excluded from such restrictions.

There is currently no timeline for new legislation and it is unclear to what extent it would follow the experts' recommendations.

The group said any future moves should focus on tightening rules for tech companies.

'Those are the ones who are primarily responsible,' Mouton told a news briefing back in April.

The way in which such a ban would be implemented remains unclear, with commentators divided on whether appmakers and tech companies would be compelled to build in age restrictions into their applications, or whether parents would bear responsibility for enforcing the ban at home.

Some tools for limiting screentime and runtime on social media applications are already built into most smartphones, but these limits can be changed by the user at any time.

This has sparked questions over whether the French government will seek to introduce legislation obligating tech companies to enable some kind of age verification tool.

Olivier Ertzscheid, a lecturer in information and communication sciences, told AFP in January that the key questions centre around the legal basis and social acceptability of such an obligation.

'This type of measure would be unprecedented in a democratic European country,' he added.

But there is a battery of evidence to suggest that young people's mental health is adversely impacted by social media use.

Macron entered the issue into his presidential agenda at the beginning of the year amid sagging approval ratings in a bid to respond to growing international disquiet that new technologies may be causing more harm than good on young minds

There is a battery of evidence to suggest that young people's mental health is adversely impacted by social media use

Internet addiction rewires teenagers' brains and may make them more likely to engage in other addictive behaviour, new research suggests (file photo)

A UCL study published earlier this month found that the addictive nature of social media platforms rewires teenagers' brains and may make them more likely to engage in other addictive behaviour.

The findings, published in the journal PLOS Mental Health, indicate that internet addiction is associated with disrupted signalling in the regions of the brain involved in multiple neural networks.

Their study, which reviewed 12 separate neuroimaging studies of adolescents displaying heavy internet use, found that when internet addicted tees engaged in activities governed by the brain's executive control network  such as behaviour requiring attention, planning, decision-making, and especially impulsivity  those brain regions showed a 'significant' disruption in their ability to work together.

Study co-author Max Chang said: 'These networks play an important role in controlling our attention, in association with intellectual ability, working memory, physical coordination, and emotional processing.

'All of which in turn have an impact on mental health.

'Given that adolescent brains are more capable of changing than those of adults, understanding the effects of internet addiction on the brain and behaviour is vital for society as a whole.'
Residents in one of Australia's richest suburbs are up in arms about a proposed $230m development that would knock down an 1960s apartment block and replace it with luxury units.

Dozens of residents and neighbours of the apartments at Billyard Ave and Onslow St in Elizabeth Bay in Sydney' east met with the NSW Land and Environment Court this week to voice their fury over the plan from developer Fortis to transform the 28-unit block.

Warren Fahey AM from the Potts Point Preservation Group said the proposal would be 'detrimental' to the area's architectural heritage and its community cohesion.

'It's not the most significant building, but in our area, you've got to understand there's only 1km that encases Elizabeth Bay, Potts Point and Kings Cross, and we are losing housing at a rate that is appalling,' he told ABC Radio on Thursday.

'There doesn't seem to be anybody in state or the city that is snapping to attention to help us so the residents have got off their backsides and are protesting.'

Dozens of residents and neighbours of this 1960s apartment building in Elizabeth Bay are opposed to the proposed demolition of the complex

The City of Sydney has knocked back the development application, but Fortis is appealing the decision to the Land and Environment Court.

Mr Fahey said he and other upset community members were not against all development, but what he called 'unnecessary development', and noted the development would degrade housing supply by reducing the number of units to 22.

He said there were five DAs in the area and if all were approved, the total number of apartments would collapse from 174 to 73.

'That's a 56 per cent loss,' he said.

An artist's impression of the proposed Fortis development at Elizabeth Bay in Sydney's east

'But no one bedders, no studio apartments.

'If we keep becoming a yuppie kingdom, we will force out all the interesting parts of the history of this area and this includes young people and older people and they simply can't afford to spend millions on apartments and that is what is happening before our eyes.'

Mr Fahey also slammed the style and technical aspects of Fortis' proposal.

'(The) excessive height, the bulk, the scale, the insufficient setbacks, and it frankly lacks any design excellence,' he said.

'It's detrimental to the area. We don't believe good solid 1960s, 1970s, 1950s buildings should be knocked down just so some developer can put in some luxury apartments.'

'We want the architectural streetscapes to remain pretty much as they are. We're not anti-development.

'We're just anti-unnecessary development and we don't want the social fabric to be changed so that young people and older people can't afford to live here.'

Many say the proposal would be 'detrimental' to Elizabeth Bay (pictured) and its architectural heritage and community cohesion

The court has the power to overturn council decisions on developments, but Mr Fahey suggested community anger was gaining ground in the battle over the block.

A spokeswoman for Fortis said the developer would continue to engage with the community over the project.

'Community is at the heart of our work and we remain open to addressing matters as they arise,' the spokeswoman said.

'We always consider relevant feedback and collaborate with local community and planning authorities to achieve the best development outcomes for each location.'
A woman has been charged after police unravelled multiple alleged Facebook marketplace scams that ripped off victims across the country.

Police allege a 37-year-old woman from Donvale in Melbourne, listed high-end fashion items for sale online during April and May.

Once customers paid the items, the Melbourne woman allegedly pocketed the money and never sent the goods to the buyers.

There were at least 20 victims netted in the alleged scam who are believed to be from all over Australia.

At least 20 victims from around the country were allegedly scammed by a woman on Facebook Marketplace

'The deceptions are in the thousands of dollars worth,' a Victoria Police statement read.

The Melbourne woman was arrested at her home in Donvale on Wednesday.

She was charged with 25 counts of obtaining property by deception.

The woman was refused bail to appear in Ringwood Magistrate's Court on Thursday.

Anyone with further information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
Media Watch host Paul Barry will leave the ABC show in December.

The 72-year-old veteran of the public broadcaster announced his departure on Thursday afternoon.

'It's a great privilege to host Media Watch and I've enjoyed it enormously,' Mr Barry said.

'But I've been in the hot seat for 11 years and it's time to give someone else a go.'

'Thanks to all our viewers. I'll be with you until December. And I'm sure the program will go on to great things without me.

'I'm hanging up the mic at the end of this year. But lots of fun to be had before then.'

Media Watch host Paul Barry will leave the ABC show in December

Mr Barry first hosted Media Watch in 2000 before his return in 2013. It is unclear if he will remain at the network.

The investigative reporter ruffled plenty of feathers in the media business due to his uncompromising approach.

While he was known for twisting the knife into commercial media outlets, he was also his own network's harshest critic - which didn't win him many friends at the ABC.

One notable highlight from his tenure hosting Media Watch came in 2013 during his stoush with columnist Andrew Bolt, who had asked Barry to reveal his salary on air.

Much to everybody's surprise, Barry did just that: $191,259.

One notable highlight from his tenure hosting Media Watch came in 2013 during his stoush with columnist Andrew Bolt, who had asked Barry to reveal his salary on air. He happily obliged

An ABC spokesperson said: 'The award-winning journalist will leave the show at the end of the year with a track record of independent commentary, analysis and robust discussion about the media industry and its ethics  or lack thereof.'

The ABC will announce a new host later this year.

The English-born journalist has won countless awards for his investigative journalism, and first joined the ABC in 1987, a year after he moved from the UK.
A pair of Russian soldiers who are accused of a string of heinous rapes - including that of a 16-year-old girl - have been unmasked by Ukrainian investigators.

Russian corporal Nadbit Dabaev, 23, and unit commander Nikolai Senenko, 37, were both identified by investigators following harrowing testimonies given by their victims.

The younger Russian allegedly twice raped a young woman after he tore her away from her parents' house in a village near Kyiv in the early days of the war following the February 2022 invasion by Vladimir Putin's forces.

Senenko meanwhile is said to have sexually abused a pregnant 16-year-old after having threatened to call a company of 20 men to gang-rape her if she did not comply.

The cases form part of an ever-expanding dossier being compiled by Ukrainian and international investigators of war crimes committed by Putin's invaders.

Suspected war criminal Russian corporal Nadbit Dabaev, 23, of the 8th company of the 37th separate motorised rifle brigade, has been identified by a new Ukrainian investigation as accused of twice raping a woman after Vladimir Putin's invasion in 2022

Suspected war criminal Russian soldier Nikolai Senenko, 37, has been identified by a new investigation as accused of raping a pregnant girl, 16, after Vladimir Putin's invasion in 2022

Nadbit Dabaev, 23, is said to have twice raped a young Ukrainian woman on consecutive days

Maryna [name changed], then 16, was allegedly raped by Nikolai Senenko, 37, and threatened with gang rape if she didn't comply

Dabaev's alleged victim, speaking under a pseudonym of Darya, told police she was raped by the Russian serviceman twice in as many days when she was captured while staying at her parents' village of Havronshchyna on the outskirts of Kyiv.

The family hid in the cellar from bombing in the weeks after the invasion before Moscow's troops were repelled from the regions around the capital, but invading Russian soldiers found them there, the Kyiv Independent revealed.

Putin's troops accused the family of reporting the coordinates of their units to Ukrainians to direct artillery and mortar fire, and Darya was taken for 'interrogation' allegedly by Dabaev, a serviceman from the Buryatia region in Siberia with the 8th company of the 37th separate motorised rifle brigade.

'He picked up my phone and asked: ''Who's phone is it?'' I said: ''It's mine'',' Darya recounted.

'He said: ''Get your things ready, you are coming for interrogation''.'

Nadbit put Darya in her father's car, blindfolded her and took her to a neighbour's abandoned house.

'He took me by the hand, walked me to the second floor of the building, sat me on the bed and told me: ''Undress''.

'I understood what was going on and asked if he was going to question me about the phone. He said that he was not interested in my phone.

'You understand what happened next. It was not an interrogation. It was a rape.'

Darya testified that he came back the next day, took her to the same building and raped her again.

Dabaev is said to have revealed that he had a pregnant girlfriend waiting for him back in Russia, and that his uncle was a senior military figure.

Darya told the newspaper: 'I accepted what was happening. I psychologically ''left'' my body, so to speak.

'I waited until it all ended and ''returned'' back to my body. I didn't want anyone to know.

'I didn't even want to go to the police [after Ukrainian rule was restored following the 2022 Russian retreat from Kyiv region].

'But my mum went to the police, and told them everything.'

Suspected war criminal Russian corporal Nadbit Dabaev, 23, of the 8th company of the 37th separate motorised rifle brigade

Suspected war criminal Russian soldier Nikolai Senenko, 37

Maryna [name changed], then 16, was allegedly raped by Nikolai Senenko, 37, a soldier with the Putin controlled Donetsk People's Republic, when she was five months pregnant

Darya [name changed] was allegedly twice raped by Russian corporal Nadbit Dabaevv, 23, of the 8th company of the 37th separate motorised rifle brigade, after Vladimir Putin's invasion in 2022

Senenko meanwhile, a unit commander in the Putin-sponsored Donetsk People's Republic army, was 'drunk' and armed when he and another soldier came to a house in the village of Krasnovka in Ukraine's southern Kherson region.

His victim - going by the pseudonym Maryna - and her relatives were cowering in a cellar. He asked everyone how old they were.

'He was asking girls,' said Maryna, who at the time of the ordeal was just 16 years old and pregnant.

'He called my mum into a different room. He let her go very quickly. After that he called me. And... he raped me.'

Maryna continued: 'He threatened me that if I fought back he would shoot me...

'I told him I was pregnant and told him I don't want this. But he said: ''Why are you being difficult?''

Senenko then issued a chilling ultimatum.

'If you don't want to do it with me I'll call 20 men now and they will all do it to you one by one. So you choose me or them.

'I tried to push him away but even though he was drunk he was still stronger.'

The identification of Dabaev and Senenko comes just months after the UN declared Russian troops were conducting a campaign of war crimes in Ukraine, including 'systematic' torture and rape.

The high-level Commission of Inquiry (COI) on the rights situation in Ukraine said that it had found fresh evidence of widespread abuses.

The investigators said they compiled their latest report after speaking to more than 800 people during 16 separate visits to Ukraine, having found that Russia's treatment of civilians and prisoners of war was 'horrific'.

'The report documents incidents of rape and other sexual violence committed against women in circumstances which also amount to torture.

'It also details incidents of torture with a sexualised dimension and threats of rape against male prisoners of war,' COI chief Erik Mose told reporters.

Investigators also found 'additional evidence' that Ukrainian children had been unlawfully transferred to areas under Russian control.

'The evidence shows that Russian authorities have violated international human rights and international humanitarian law and committed corresponding war crimes,' Mose said.

'Further investigations are required to determine whether some of the situations identified may constitute crimes against humanity,' he added.

Dabaev is seen posing in an area near Chernobyl following the invasion of Ukraine in this social media image

(FILES) This photograph shows a empty coffin after the exhumation of bodies in the mass graves dug during the Russian occupation in the city of Izium, eastern Ukraine on January 2, 2023

A garage adjacent to a courthouse in the village of Bilozerka, in Ukraine's southern Kherson region where Ukrainian authorities say Russian forces were stationed and unlawfully detained civilians

The 23-year-old Dabaev is also wanted over another sickening incident in March 2022.

He interrogated a group of residents at gunpoint, threatening to kill them, according to Ukraine prosecutor general Iryna Venediktova.

'He interrogated the residents for a long time, holding them at gunpoint, and threatened to kill them.

'Then the monster put everyone in a line one after another.

'He explained to the ''targets'' that he did not want to waste extra cartridges on shooting them.

'After that, he shot at the ceiling and left, promising to come the next day and shoot people.'
President Joe Biden is set to sign a deal with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky intended to commit the U.S. to a decade of military support  a move that could pressure rival Donald Trump if he takes the White House.

The move is a key 'deliverable' of Biden's G7 meetings set to begin in the Apulia region of Italy Thursday. The president arrived last night, and meets one on one with Zelensky before the two leaders are set to hold a joint press conference Thursday evening local time.

'We want to demonstrate that the U.S. supports the people of Ukraine, that we stand with them, and that well continue to help address their security needs not just tomorrow but out into the future,' White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to the annual confab.

'This is a big deal,' he added Thursday. He called it a 'real marker of our commitment, not just for this month, this year, but for many years ahead, to continue to support Ukraine, both in defending against Russian aggression and in deterring future aggression.'

The bilateral deal would not have the strength of a treaty ratified by the U.S. Senate, so Biden or any successor could withdraw from it.

President Joe Biden begins meetings with G7 leaders in Italy on Thursday after arriving Wednesday night

But it would still present a barrier should Biden's Republican successor retake the White House. It is one of several efforts considered in Congress to try to 'Trump-proof' elements of the established order.

It comes after Biden was able to push through a $60 billion measure to aid Ukraine after overcoming prolonged opposition from Republican lawmakers in Congress. Trump heads to Capitol Hill Thursday to meet with Republicans who currently control the House and are in position to potentially seize control of the Senate in the November elections.

Trump's White House tenure featured an angry impeachment clash triggered in part over a split within his administration over withholding military aid to Ukraine amid accusations by Trump allies of corruption in the country.

Moscow launched its latest invasion of Ukraine in 2022, dramatically esacalating its 2014 invasion of the Donbas region.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meets Biden on Thursday

Biden's visit will include a meeting with Pope Francis on Friday

The president was back in Europe just a day after his son Hunter was found guilty by a Wilmington, Del. jury on gun charges

Biden's rival Donald Trump meets with Republican lawmakers in Washington Thursday

Another deal emerging from the G7 meetings is an agreement to provide Ukraine with a $50 billion loan amid its territorial losses to Russian forces.

The money comes from interest on $300 million in seized Russian assets  and gets around opposition from within the alliance to using those funds.

Details were still being worked out and administration officials were loath to confirm earlier reporting on the outlines of the deal. But the funds could reach Kiev by year's end.

Sullivan told reporters Thursday morning that progress was likely, but he stopped short of offering guarantees on Russian sovereign assets and other issues.

'I think were teed up for success in that regard  well have to see how the next two days unfold,' he said.

Sullivan stopped short of promising immediate success. He said it wouldn't come today, and said leaders were on 'the verge of a good outcome.'

'I think we will have the major tent poles of this decided,' he said, with some of the specifics yet to be resolved.

The diplomatic slog through arcane financial architecture comes at a summit where Biden and fellow G7 leaders will meet at an elegant medieval style village at Borgo Egnazia (although local police protecting them complained of dirty water and torn mattresses on the 'Goddess of the Night' tour ship that has been housing them.

All of Hunter Biden's children are accompanying the president on the trip, which comes as the family is still processing Hunter's guilty verdict and Biden has yet to speak publicly on it.
A British kayaker has died after reportedly getting into difficulties in a French river.

The man, in his 50s, was on a kayaking group trip on the Durance river near Briancon, in the southeast of France, on Tuesday afternoon around 3pm.

But he got into difficulty in the water after his kayak flipped over, local media reports.

Two others dived in after the man to try and save him as he appeared unconscious, according to witnesses.

Emergency crews, including a rescue helicopter, were deployed and successfully rescued two of the kayakers, but the British man could not be resuscitated after he was pulled out of the river.

The man, in his 50s, was on a kayaking group trip on the Durance river near Briancon, in the southeast of France, on Tuesday afternoon (file image of the Durance)

The man was said to be an experienced kayaker and was part of an organised group of ten, according to local reports.

He got into difficulty just ten minutes after the group got into their kayaks, the reports claimed.

'I confirm the death of a man of English nationality,' public prosecutor Marion Lozac'hmeur told outlet Dauphine Libere.

An investigation into his death has been launched by the local authorities.

The water reportedly was at a high level because of melting snow and could have been a factor in the man getting into difficulty.

MailOnline has contacted the Foreign Office for comment.
He's one of the most recognisable faces in British politics, with a voice capable of stopping 650 squabbling adults in their tracks.

And within minutes of the first episode of the US celebrity version of BBC show The Traitors, ex-Speaker John Bercow had already recreated his bellowing 'Order!' - sparking bemusement.

For it appears that none of his fellow contestants - who all competed for a prize pot worth up to $250,000 - knew who he was.

Appearing alongside the likes of Love Island's Ekin-Su, Drag Race's Peppermint and The Challenge's Johnny Bananas on the second season, the former Speaker was asked: 'So John, you were, like, actually a member of Parliament?'

Appearing somewhat surprised, Mr Bercow confirmed he had been in the House of Commons. Fellow faithful Mr Bananas continued: 'I thought you were the host when you first got here.'

As Speaker of the House of Commons between 2009 and 2019, Mr Bercow chaired proceedings in the Commons, led debates and ensured the code of conduct was followed.

The Traitors US first aired in the US back in January but has now been released in the UK on BBC iPlayer.

Within minutes of the opening episode John Bercow, 61, had already recreated his shout of 'Order!' to a rather bemused reaction from his fellow contestants

Former speaker of the House of Commons John Bercow appeared on the second series of The Traitors US

Mr Bercow was Speaker of the House of Commons for ten years from 2009 to 2019

Introducing himself on the show, the former Conservative-turned-Labour MP told producers: 'I'm a retired politician. Backstabbing, deception, are all part and parcel of the political life.

'Over the years I've developed a knack for detecting who frankly is trying to live to deceive to cheat for material gain.'

He also seemingly developed a knack for being loud - after having to control a rowdy 650 MPs for much of his political career.

But his volume soon riled some of the other contestants, with one saying in a confessional video: 'Oh my god. He's so loud.'

The opening episode saw the celebrities win $30,000 for the prize fund by building a giant seal out of large blocks in the middle of a Scottish loch.

The task was identical to that seen in the opening episode of the UK's second series, hosted by Claudia Winkleman.

Both series are filmed in the same castle in the Scottish Highlands, but the US version is hosted by actor Alan Cumming.

In one shot from the show Mr Bercow was seen sipping from a teacup while staying in Scotland for the show

Mr Bercow greets his fellow contestants on arrival at the castle in the Scottish Highlands

During the first episode Mr Bercow made a splash during a $30,000 challenge on a Scottish loch

The hit series, hosted by Claudia Winkleman in the UK, is filmed in a castle in the Scottish Highlands

The shows 21 contestants were all trying to walk away with a prize pot worth up to $250,000

During the challenge, Mr Bercow fell into the loch after a somewhat haphazard attempt at rowing.

'My boating experience is being rowed or powered by others,' he said to camera afterwards.

As the team raced to complete the task in the final seconds, Mr Bananas described chaotic scenes, and joked: 'You've got John on shore who I think is just shocked that he hasn't drowned.'

Mr Bercow is one of the faithfuls in the series, whose task it is to find and vote out the traitors.

If only faithfuls remain at the end of the show, they split the prize pot, but if any traitors are left, they will steal all of the cash.

Many fans of the show on this side of the pond were baffled when Mr Bercow was first announced as a contestant on the American version of the show - and even more so when Love Island's Ekin-Su Culculoglu was also unveiled.

Mr Bercow swapped the Speaker's chair for reality TV as he took on the role of a faithful

But Mr Bercow developed a cult following in the US for his explosive outbursts in the House of Commons when things got too heated during the efforts to get a Brexit deal through Parliament.

The series first aired in the US in January, but was only made available to watch on the BBC's iPlayer on Wednesday.

Mr Bercow was first elected to Parliament in 1997 as part of Tony Blair's landslide victory for Labour.

He was the first speaker to be elected without first being a Deputy Speaker since Selwyn Lloyd in 1971.

Before his election he was a councillor in the London borough of Lambeth.

He was replaced by current speaker Lindsay Hoyle in the House of Commons at the last election in 2019.

But Mr Bercow's political career ended in turmoil when he faced being banned for life from Parliament in 2022.

An official probe by the standards watchdog today branded the ex-Tory MP a 'serial liar' as it ruled his treatment of three staff would warrant expulsion from the Commons had he not quit in 2019.

Among his behaviour were episodes where he threw a mobile phone so that it shattered over a secretary, and berated another by calling them 'f*cking stupid', the report said.

In another tirade he was described as 'physically shaking with fury, his fists bunched and trembling, his eyes popping'.
A man has died while a young woman was rushed to hospital with serious burns to 40 per cent of her body after a horror fire engulfed a unit complex.

The blaze broke out at a unit at the rear of a small apartment complex in Amelia St, Albion in Brisbane's north-east about 4.30pm on Thursday.

Emergency services rushed to the scene where firefighters spent half an hour battling the blaze.

A man's body was found in the gutted living room after the fire was extinguished.

A woman, 33, was pulled from the burning home and treated on the footpath by advanced care paramedics for facial, hand and airway burns.

She was heard screaming as she was stretchered into an ambulance before being rushed under lights and sirens to the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital in a serious condition.

A man is dead and a woman suffered serious burns in a unit complex in Brisbane's north-east

Firefighters spent more than half an hour battling the inferno

'Tragically a man's body has been located within the actual unit, crime scene has been declared and investigation are ongoing,' Inspector Steve Crabbe said.

It's understood the injured woman told neighbours that she was asleep in the unit at the time before she woke up to flames surrounding her.

Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Superintendent Graeme Hall described the blaze as a 'very intense fire' and completely gutted the living area of the unit.

Shocked neighbours recalled seeing the complex fully alight and a woman's frantic screams that someone was still inside the burning home.

'There were flames coming out of the door, I ran to the front of the door at the bottom of the stairs,' one man told the Courier Mail.

'The occupant of the house the woman ran out on the road, fell at the end of the driveway, with another woman looking after her, men running around trying to find hoses.'

The complex suffered extensive damage (pictured) in the blaze on Thursday afternoon

Others feared the blaze would spread to neighbouring properties.

'It sounded like they were throwing things in the back of a ute, metal, the woman kept on screaming,' one woman recalled.

'When I came out I saw the flames at the back of the place and I thought my house was going to catch fire.'

The street was cornered off by police tape as police established a crime scene.

Fire crews warned residents in the area to stay inside and close windows and doors to avoid inhaling the smoke.

Investigations into what sparked the blaze are ongoing.

The fire is currently deemed as suspicious.

'Police are working to determine the circumstances of the fire and are appealing to anyone with information to come forward,' a statement read.'
Aussie households could soon pay a lot more for orange juice amid a global shortage.

NSW farmers fear that prices will double within months if major supermarkets choose to increase prices as insects and bad weather take a heavy toll on the international market.

Brazil produces 70 per cent of the world's orange juice but its orchards have been destroyed by both disease and drought - with a quarter of its juice production expected to be lost next year.

The Albanese government has urged the supermarket giants to not use the shortage as an excuse to 'profiteer' from Aussie families.

Australians are being warned that the global shortage of oranges could impact availability and prices of orange juice

The Albanese government has warned supermarkets to not use the global shortage of oranges as a reason to increase juice prices during the cost of living crisis

Federal agriculture minister Murray Watt said the global orange shortage will affect Aussie juice producers but assured that they will still have access to locally grown fruit.

He urged supermarkets to keep prices down during the cost of living crisis, the Daily Telegraph reported.

'Its important we dont see supermarket chains use overseas supply issues to profiteer from Australian shoppers,' Mr Watt said.

'The Albanese governments work on competition reforms is designed to ensure farmers and families both get a fair deal from the supermarket chains.'

Farmers have warned that Australia doesn't produce enough of the citrus fruit to fill in the gaps left by the global shortage and are concerned that prices will continue to soar.

They added that an overreliance on cheap imported orange concentrate has weakened the domestic market.

Most of Australia's juice concentrate - which is usually mixed with fresh Aussie orange juice - comes from Brazil, which makes products cheaper and more affordable for consumers.

Many Australia orange juice producers use imported juice concentrate and mix it with locally squeezed citrus to keep costs down

Riverina orange producer and NSW Farmers Horticulture Committee chair Jo Brighenti Banard said supermarkets were already limiting orange juice shelf space nd that Aussies can expect to see more blends with other fruits.

'What well see is prices rise, the juice wont go on special  it will get to the point where customers will baulk at the price,' she said.

The shortage of oranges has already impacted North America and Europe with empty shelves in their supermarkets.

In Australia, it's understood Aldi is experiencing supply issues, which has resulted in a lack of availability for some of their orange juice products.

Woolworths uses imported juice concentrate in many of its products and says it's monitoring the orange shortage.

Seventy per cent of the world's supply of oranges comes from Brazil which has experienced crop diseases and drought and is pushing up prices as a result

A Woolworths spokesperson told publication it was not currently experiencing a 'notable impact' on orange juice availability but wouldn't say whether prices would rise in the future.

Citrus Australia chief executive Nathan Hancock said there had already been a big price increase for Australian juicing oranges.

He said off-run oranges not good enough for the supermarkets but can be used for juice, were around $50 a tonne and are now more than $400 a tonne.

Quality Valencia oranges used for juicing were previously $250 a tonne but are now more than double at almost $600 a tonne.

Daily Mail Australia contacted Aldi and Woolworths for comment.
Taxpayers forked out thousands to fund a trip Peter Dutton took on a private jet to speak at an event addressing the cost of living crisis.

The Federal Opposition Leader racked up a $23,000 bill when he flew from Canberra to Tamworth in last August to attend the Bush Summit, an annual event held by NewsCorp to discuss issues affecting rural communities.

Mr Dutton was a guest speaker at the event where he slammed Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's handling the cost of living crisis.

He told attendees that the Coalition focus was to 'hold the government to account' on the issue.

Federal Opposition Leader Peter Dutton (pictured) racked up a $23,000 bill when he travelled by private jet from the nation's capital to country NSW last August

The expense was revealed by the Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority (IPEA), a government run website that tracks the work expenses of parliamentarians.

It was established in January 2017 by then- prime minister Malcolm Turnbull.

The latest figures for political expenses released by the IPEA detailed expenses for the July to September 2023 quarter.

The flight Mr Dutton took to Tamworth was listed as 'unscheduled commercial transport'.

The expense was classified under 'parliamentary duties' and the flight was categorised as a 'non-commercial airline' and 'non-air sector'.

Mr Dutton also claimed the expense for a commercial flight from Tamworth to Sydney, before he flew home from Sydney to Brisbane the same day.

The total cost for these flights was $1,259.57.

Figures by the Independent Parliamentary Expenses Authority showed revealed the expense (pictured) incurred during the July- September 2023 quarter

Mr Dutton is understood to have had a prior commitment in Canberra, which meant he couldn't take a commercial flight to be able to attend the event in time, The Guardian reported.

A spokesperson for Mr Dutton's office said in a statement he took the trip in his capacity as the Federal Opposition Leader.

'Mr Dutton did travel on a chartered aircraft from Canberra to Tamworth only, under his entitlement as leader of the opposition,' the spokesperson said.

Daily Mail Australia contacted Mr Dutton's office for further comment.

According to the figures released by IPEA, Mr Dutton took six trips during the July-September 2023 quarter using 'unscheduled commercial transport' at a total cost of $199,694.

The transportation expense category covers expenses for trips made using charted jets and long taxi fares.

Among the travel expenses Mr Dutton incurred under this category included a trip from Nhulunbuy in the Northern Territory, to Archerfiled in Brisbane on May 18, at a cost of $45,970.

According to the figures by the IPEA, Mr Dutton (pictured with wife Kirilly) took six trips during the July to September 2023 quarter using 'unscheduled commercial transport' at a total cost of $199,694

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese spent the most out of any parliamentarian during the same quarter and incurred expenses that totalled $911,708.

This included $646,970 in employee travel and $161,259 in international travel.

Major airlines Qantas and Virgin operate flights every week from Canberra to Tamworth with a connecting flight from Sydney.

Mr Albanese also attended at last year's Bush Summit in Tamworth.

But the cost of his flights on government funded VIP jets don't appear on the IPEA website due to security reasons.
A Texas man has died after being electrocuted in a hot tub at a private resort in Puerto Penasco, Mexico, and his wife rushed to hospital with life-threatening injuries.

State of Sonora officials said Jorge Guillen, 43, and Lizette Zambrano, 35, from El Paso, Texas, were in a jacuzzi just after 8pm on Tuesday at Sonoran Sea Resort.

Jorge was electrocuted and according to Mexican outlet Norte Digital, his wife Lizette was transported to a US hospital on the border where she remains in critical condition.

While officials are still trying to determine the exact details of what happened, it is believed that the tub had a surge of electricity run through it while guests were using it.

According to the General Prosecutor's Office for the state of Sonora, an eyewitness first noticed that the couple were not moving in the jacuzzi.

A Mexican-American couple have been the victims of a terrible tragedy. Jorge Guillen, 43, and Lizette Zambrano, 35, (pictured) were in a jacuzzi at the Sonoran Sea Resort in Puerto Penasco when they were electrocuted. Jorge died and Lizette remains in a critical condition

A video capturing the aftermath of the tragic accident has been making the rounds on social media. Footage shows people gathering around a jacuzzi at the Sonoran Sea Resort in Puerto Penasco after a witness saw an unresponsive couple in the water

The witness told officers at the scene that she tried to enter the tub after she noticed the couple was non-responsive, but as she tried to enter, she was shocked.

It is unclear if other guests were injured.

A video taken from one of the resort's rooms captures the horrifying and tragic the aftermath of the incident.

Footage shows eyewitnesses standing around the jacuzzi and a woman performing CPR on one of the couple.

A submerged body can be seen floating in the water.

The couple are from El Paso, Texas

Horrified onlookers can be heard screaming, and some walk away from the tragic scene. Others crowd around the tub to help. A body is seen floating in the water

The incident happened in a resort in Puerto Penasco, in the state of Sonora, Mexico

The tourist couple were both dual Mexican-American citizens, AP reported.

According to her LinkedIn, Lizette is an elementary school teacher in El Paso.

A friend of Lizette's posted on Facebook to express her heartbreak at the tragedy.

'As I woke up this morning we received a message from our best friends mom. A message you dont want to wake up to. As many of you have seen on social media and the news, a tragic event happened.

'I will not go into detail here. It would be greatly appreciated if you all could donate to help get Jorge home and help with medical expenses. Lizzette has a ways to go in recovery and we are all here to help her through.'

A GoFundMe has been set up by Lizette's friends to help with her medical costs and to bring Jorge's body back to the US.

'Our best friends have experienced a horrible accident. Jorge had a heart of gold and was always there for family and friends. The love they shared was one for ages. We are asking for your help to bring him home and help with medical expenses for her,' the GoFundMe post reads.
Vladimir Putin's forces are yet again drilling strikes with tactical nuclear weapons on Ukraine or the West with land, air and sea-based launches this week.

The Russian defence ministry stressed the launches were simulated, but everything else was performed by troops as it would be in a genuine attack.

A naval crew were seen pressing the button on a nuclear hit from a warship believed to be in the Baltic Sea to hit a target some 220 miles away, while Tu-22M3 nuclear capable bombers were pictured taking off from an undisclosed airstrip.

Meanwhile, a land-based mobile crew in Leningrad Military District in northwest Russia was shown loading suspected Iskander nuclear-capable mobile short-range ballistic missiles, although the warheads were blurred in the footage.

The unsettling footage comes as the US announced an expansion of its sanctions regime against the Kremlin, prompting Russia's deputy chairman of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev to declare that Moscow should inflict 'maximum harm on the USA and their 'f***king allies'.

Russian soldiers load a Iskander-M short-range ballistic missile launchers at a firing position as part of Russian military drill intended to train the troops in using tactical nuclear weapons

A still image taken from a handout video made available by the Russian Defence Ministry press-service shows Russian servicemen operating a non-strategic nuclear missile for Iskander operational-tactical missile system during the second stage of tactical nuclear drills of Russian and Belarus armed forces at an undisclosed location

Russian servicemen operating a non-strategic nuclear missile for Iskander operational-tactical missile system

In this photo taken from video released by the Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, Russian military personnel load a cruise missile on board a warship during Russian military drills

n this photo taken from video on Monday, June 10, 2024, and released by the Russian Defense Ministry Press Service, A Russian Tu-22M3 bomber is seen in flight during joint Russian-Belarusian drills intended to train the military to use tactical nuclear weapons

In accordance with the decision of the President of the Russian Federation, the second stage of the exercise of non-strategic nuclear forces has begun, the Kremlin said

A pair of MiG-31 fighter jets of the Russian air force taxi out for a training mission with two Tu-22M3 bombers seen in the background during joint Russian-Belarusian drills intended to train the military to use tactical nuclear weapons

Russia's deputy chairman of the Security Council Dmitry Medvedev today declared that Moscow should inflict 'maximum harm on the USA and their 'f***king allies'

The drills are the second of several phases of tactical nuclear weapons exercises planned by the Russian defence ministry, which are taking place in coordination with the forces of Belarus.

'The second phase of drills involving Russia's non-strategic nuclear forces included electronic missile launches by rocket units and naval patrol operations,' said a statement from the Russian defence ministry.

'During the second phase of the exercises, personnel from the rocket division of the Leningrad Military District practised covert movement to designated positions and conducted electronic missile launches at simulated enemy targets.

'Additionally, Navy crews involved in the exercise deployed to their assigned patrol areas.

'Earlier, tasks were completed for receiving special training ammunition for arming sea- and land-based missile carriers.'

Tactical nuclear weapons - which top Russian officials have threatened to use - could create horrific devastation but on a lesser scale than the obliteration caused by a much larger strategic nuclear missile.

The Russians did not give a location for the targets, but previously threats have included Ukraine or NATO territory.

A day earlier footage showed naval crews 'equipping sea-based cruise missiles with training special warheads' before moving to 'designated patrol areas'.

Nuclear-equipped 3M-80/82 Moskit/-M anti-ship missiles were reportedly shown being loaded into the launcher of a Project 12411M vessel of Russia's Baltic Fleet.

Russian ally Belarus is also involved in the second stage of the tactical nuclear missile tests currently in progress.

Moscow has claimed it wants the tactical nuclear drills to 'cool the hot heads in Western capitals'.

This followed French President Emmanuel Macron hinting at sending European troops to fight in Ukraine.

British Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron also said Kyiv had the right to use weapons provided by London to strike targets inside Russia.

Since then, the US has permitted Kyiv to use American missiles to attack border region targets inside Russia used to hit Ukraine.

Military jets take off from the airfield during the second stage of tactical nuclear drills of the armed forces of Russia and Belarus at an undisclosed location, in this still image from video released June 11, 2024

Russian soldiers load a Iskander-M short-range ballistic missile launchers at a firing position as part of Russian military drill intended to train the troops in using tactical nuclear weapons

Russian heavy armour and missile launchers are seen deploying to firing positions

Missiles are loaded into launch tubes aboard a Russian warship

The exercises are aimed at maintaining the readiness of personnel and equipment of units for the combat use of non-strategic nuclear weapons of Russia and Belarus, the Russian Ministry of Defence said

Dmitry Medvedev, (R) deputy head of the Kremlin's powerful security council, and a former Russian president and prime minister, pictured with Vladimir Putin (L)

In a stunning rant published on the Telegram messaging app, former Russian President Medvedev this morning hit out at the US and Western partners after the White House announced it had expanded its sanctions regime on Moscow.

'Here are the new American sanctions. There will be new European ones soon. Do we need to respond to them? It seems not, their number is already measured in tens of thousands. We have learned to live and develop with them.

'On the other hand, it is necessary. Not only to the authorities, the state, but to all our people in general. To everyone who loves our Motherland - Russia. After all, they - the USA and their f***ing allies - declared war on us without rules!

He went on: 'Every day we must try to inflict maximum harm on those countries that have imposed these restrictions on our country and all our citizens. Harm in everything that can cause harm. Harm to their economies, their institutions and their rulers. Harm to the well-being of their citizens.

'Cause damage in all places, paralyzing the work of their companies and government agencies. Find problems in their most important technologies and strike them mercilessly. Literally destroy their energy, industry, transport, banking and social services. Instill fear of the imminent collapse of all critical infrastructure.

He concluded the rant with a terrifying call to action.

'Let's turn their life into a complete crazy nightmare in which they will not be able to distinguish wild fiction from the realities of the day, infernal evil from the routine of life. And no rules regarding the enemy!

'Let them get everything in full for harming Russia and as painfully as possible! Everyone can contribute!,' he said.
Two people who were kicked out of court and allegedly proceeded to assault protective service officers have been arrested following a chase in Melbourne's busy legal district.

A 36-year-old man and 25-year-old woman, both from South Yarra, were arrested after they allegedly assaulted the officers outside the Supreme Court on William St in Melbourne's CBD at about 12.45pm on Thursday.

It is understood the pair had been removed from court for being disruptive before they allegedly assaulted the officers and attempted to run away.

A 36-year-old man and a 25-year-old woman were arrested after they allegedly assaulted protective service officers

Police proceeded to chase after the man and woman and there was a second confrontation where the pair 'lashed out at officers', a Victoria Police spokesperson said.

Pepper spray was deployed before the pair were arrested.

'The PSOs were not injured during the incident,' the Victoria Police spokesperson confirmed.

The man and woman are assisting investigators with their enquiries.

NCA NewsWire understands the man was running along William St, before he was chased up the stairs at the Supreme Court of Victoria's entrance, where he was caught.

The man was chased and pepper sprayed by police outside the Supreme Court of Victoria

After he was pepper sprayed, the man was seen sitting on the ground in front of the Supreme Court with his eyes closed, grimacing.

He was given water and paramedics could be seen briefly checking over him.

He was marched down the steps by multiple police officers and taken away in the back of a police van.
A jilted bride-to-be has been fined for bombarding her ex-fiance with messages, emails and texts accusing him of sleeping with other women after they split.

Adele Layman, 32, repeatedly messaged and phoned warehouse supervisor Jamie McDougall over a 13-day period following their break-up.

One of her messages read: 'I hope you are having a great time moving on from us', while another said: 'This guy is messaging me saying that you are sleeping with Caz and that you are s****ing me off. I knew I was right all along.'

McDougall, who was planning a dream trip to Vietnam at the time, insisted he had not been sleeping with anyone.

But the mother-of-two, from Rudheath, Northwich, emailed him saying: 'Have fun finding a skanky cheeky-eyed bit to wear my ring. Enjoy your dirty skanky b****es over there.'

Police were later called and when quizzed, the former care assistant admitted she had been 'emotional and jealous' following the break-up of the couple's four year romance.

According to Facebook the pair announced their engagement on Christmas Eve 2019.

At Warrington Magistrates Court, Layman pleaded guilty to harassment without violence and was also ordered to pay 117 in costs and victim surcharge.

Adele Layman, 32, (pictured) repeatedly messaged and phoned warehouse supervisor Jamie McDougall over a 13-day period following their break-up

McDougall, (pictured) who was planning a dream trip to Vietnam at the time, insisted he had not been sleeping with anyone

JPs turned down a prosecution application for a restraining order against her after hearing she was already subject to a non-molestation order imposed in a family court.

Nicola Parr, prosecuting, said: 'The complainant has provided a statement. He was with the defendant for four years, He described the relationship as being very up and down depending on the mood of the defendant.

'The relationship ended around August 2023 and then afterwards he received numerous emails, calls and messages from the defendant.

'On November 24, the complainant received an email saying: 'This guy is messaging me saying that you are sleeping with Caz and that you are s****ing me off. I knew I was right all along.' The complainant said he had not been sleeping with anyone and he told her she had no reason to contact him.

'Later on that evening there were further emails from the defendant. 'Have fun finding a skanky cheeky eyed bit to wear my ring. Then you want things to be ok with [our daughter] when you say things like that. Enjoy you dirty skanky b****es over there.'

'Mr McDougall had made a personal joke on Facebook about an upcoming trip to Vietnam and he believed that the defendant was looking at his Facebook profile despite being blocked from the account.

'On November 30, the complainant received a WhatsApp message: 'Hope you have fun finding your little s***s.' He ignored the message.

'There were various other messages on December 1 including 'I hope you are having a great time moving on from us,' and a further message on WhatsApp of a photo of his daughter which he had posted on Facebook.

When quizzed, the former care assistant admitted she had been 'emotional and jealous' following the break-up of the couple's four year romance. Pictured: Adele Layman

At Warrington Magistrates Court, Layman pleaded guilty to harassment without violence and was also ordered to pay 117 in costs and victim surcharge

'The complainant immediately deleted the messages. On December 2 he received messages again referring to a relationship that she believed he was having that he said he was not. From 12.20am to 2 am there were five missed calls from a withheld number and then a further three missed calls. Then there was a further message on WhatsApp on December 3 and a further four missed calls to which he did not reply.

'The defendant has no previous convictions. She is of good character. In respect of the sentencing guidelines the offence is aggravated by being domestic in nature but is at the lowest level of category.'

In mitigation Layman's lawyer Richard Sibeon said: 'This was a period of behaviour between November 23 and December 5, a relatively short period of time, just over a fortnight. It was the end of a relationship and the end of relationships bring with them human emotions, bitterness, jealousy, anger and frustration. That is really the nature of the contact here.

According to Facebook the pair announced their engagement on Christmas Eve 2019

'She has a two-year-old daughter with this young man and that relationship did end. She accepts that she had contacted him when he did not want that contact and contact at a level that was above and beyond what it should be.

'It was relatively juvenile, silly and offensive but not like the more serious kind that we can see before the courts. There was not any suggestion of threats. She has lost her good character by her guilty plea. She lives on her own and has two children. She has a seven-year-old child from a previous relationship.

'I did ask why police have not dealt with this by way of a caution but she wanted the matter to be dealt with today. She does now have a criminal record. She knows that when she has a problem she can seek help and she has the support of her mother. But she accepts that the relationship is over. An application for a restraining order on this occasion is neither necessary or proportionate.'

Sentencing Layman JP Alan Ayers said: 'We have heard everything that has gone on. We understand that it was the end of a relationship and we think your solicitor puts the matter quite succinctly. We feel this is at the lower end of the scale and that is how we are going to treat it.

'We feel that the non-molestation order is sufficient and we do not want to over complicate things. We want to give the judge in the family court freedom of action to do what he wants to do in the best interests of the children.'
A designer who creates work for the Pope and the LGBT+ community has revealed how the Catholic church feels about his business venture.

Filippo Sorcinelli has made more than 50 garments for the late Pope Benedict XVI, as well as 20 for Pope Francis, giving him extensive experience in the field of ecclesiastical design.

Spending up 1,000 hours working on some individuals robes, Filippo said that prices for them range from 1,000 to 7,000.

He does not limit himself to just the one business venture, with another shop which sells fragrances designed by him, one of which is called Cruising Area.

Speaking in an interview with DW News, which was uploaded to YouTube in November 2023, he said: 'The church should be welcoming, it should not shy away from anything and be open to all aspect of our society.

A designer who creates work for the Pope and the LGBT + community has revealed how the Catholic church feels about his business venture. Pictured: ecclesiastical designer Filippo Sorcinelli poses topless in a picture posted on his Instagram account

Filippo can be seen here working on garments used in the Catholic church, over 70 of which he has made for the last two Popes

Pope Francis leaves at the end of his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square, at the Vatican on Wednesday

'The church should face everything without fear because that is also part of the Christian message.'

He said that the creations of artists such as Caravaggio, Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci serve as proof to him 'that the creation of beauty overcomes all'.

His comments preceded those made by Pope Francis, after the leader of the Catholic church was reported to have once again used a homophobic term.

Pope Francis, 87, apologised last month for saying gay men should not be admitted to church seminaries because 'there's already too much f*****ry' in closed-door meeting.

According to Italian news agency ANSA, the current Pope repeated the term on Tuesday as he met Roman priests, saying 'there is an air of f*****ness in the Vatican'.

He added that it was better that young men with a homosexual tendency not be allowed to enter the seminary - a college that trains students to become priests.

Asked about the latest report, the Vatican's press office made reference to a statement it had issued regarding Tuesday's meeting with the priests, in which the pope reiterated the need to welcome gay people into the Church and the need for caution regarding them becoming seminarians.

Filippo poses topless while reading sheet music. He said that the creations of artists such as Caravaggio, Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci serve as proof to him 'that the creation of beauty overcomes all'

Pope Francis during his weekly general audience in the Vatican

The Pope had been credited with making substantial moves towards being more welcoming of the LGBT+ community during his 11-year papacy.

Some observers of the Vatican say his recent missteps undermine his authority and raise questions about his convictions and the reform path he has in mind for the Church.

In May, Italian news agency Adnkronos, citing sources, reported that the Pope said in his speech: 'Look, there is already an air of f*****ry around that is not good. There is today's culture of homosexuality with respect to those who have a homosexual orientation [who] are better off not being accepted [into the seminary].'

The remark was met with 'incredulous laughter', bishops told newspaper Corriere della Sera, but represents a huge step back for campaigners after prolonged efforts to reform the church's position on LGBTQ+ rights.

The Pope apologised the following week, with the Vatican releasing a statement that said: 'The Pope never intended to offend or express himself in homophobic terms, and he apologises to those who felt offended by the use of a term reported by others.'
As President Joe Biden joined his fellow G7 leaders for a family photo on Thursday, nearly all of them have escaped political peril back home for a brief respite at the luxury resort on the Italian coast.

In fact this year's meeting in Italy features the weakest gathering of leaders the group has seen in decades. All but Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni face tough elections, domestic crisis, or political peril - in some cases all of the above.

The G7 meeting comes less than a week after far-right parties dominated in European Parliamentary elections, indicating next year's gathering could face an entire new crop of leaders standing with Meloni.

That doesn't bode well for their agenda over the next two days, which includes the war in the Ukraine, the battle in the Middle East and China's push for global dominance. Some leaders will be reluctant to make commitments when they face angry voters back home.

'With the exception of Meloni, the leaders at the G7 summit are all pretty weak,' Ivo Daalder, who served as U.S. ambassador to NATO under former President Barack Obama, told Politico.

'Trudeau is probably not going to win the next election. Biden has a tough election race. Scholz is weakened. Macron is weakened. Sunak is a 'dead man walking,' and Kishida has serious issues at home as well.'

In fact, although the G7 is scheduled to go through Saturday, most of the leaders, including Biden, are leaving Friday night.

From left : President of the European Council Charles Michel, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, US President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen pose for a family photo at the G7

Here's a look at where things stand back at home for the G7 leaders:

U.S. President Joe Biden

U.S. President Joe Biden

Nervous world leaders are watching the upcoming American election carefully and wondering if it will be Joe Biden or Biden Trump who will join them at next year's G7 meeting in Canada.

Trump is leading in the key battleground states that will decide the next inhabitant of the White House. The former president has been a critic of world alliances like NATO and the G7. And world leaders don't see him as a reliable ally on the Ukraine, the Middle East, or, well, anything.

The 81-year-old Biden faces his first presidential debate with Trump less than two weeks after he returns from Italy. And he arrived at the G7 the day after his son Hunter Biden was convicted of lying about his drug use to illegally buy a gun.

National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, in a briefing with reporters on Thursday, downplayed political concerns.

'The great thing about the G7 is we're all democracies, so the leaders here don't get to pick and choose how things go in their countries politically, day in day out, they leave that to the people of their countries,' he said.

'But at the same time, I think the President like the other G7 leaders who have just come off elections to get them focused on the task at hand.'

Sullivan added that Biden is 'going to set kind of the broader election context aside and really focus on the work that needs to get done here and he's going to measure a successful G7 by whether or not we made tangible progress on those issues.'

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak

British PM Rishi Sunak is battling a snap election campaign he called in an attempt to reverse his sagging political fortune.

But he's made a series of major public relation mistakes - including leaving last week's D-Day ceremony early to conduct at TV interview - that have caused him to sink lower and lower.

Polls indicate the July 4 election will result in a center-left landslide for opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer.

Sunak's conservative party has been struggling in the UK as it dealt with fallout from Brexit.

The prime minister had to call the election before the end of this year and there seemed to be no good time to do it but every campaign move he's tried seemed to backfire, leading most pundits to predict a massive loss for him.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau

Justin Trudeau, who has been prime minister for nine years in Canada, is in danger of losing the upcoming election to his main challenger, Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre.

Trudeau, who faces low approval ratings back home, must call an election within the next year.

He is expected to go for a fourth term but his polling is worse than Biden's - he has trailed rivals by double digits for nearly a year.

He has lamented the rising political tide on the right.

'We have seen around the world a rise of populist right-wing forces in just about every democracy,' Trudeau said on Monday. 'It is of concern to see political parties choosing to instrumentalize anger, fear, division, anxiety.'

French President Emmanuel Macron

French President Emmanuel Macron

French President Emmanuel Macron called for snap elections after his rival Marine Le Pen's far-right National Rally (RN) crushed his party in the European elections.

Le Pen's party won twice the number of Parliament seats as Macron's. She, like Trump, pushes nationalist, anti-immigration as her agenda.

Many French voters used the EU election to express dissatisfaction with Macrons management of the economy, farming rules, or security.

Macron dissolved the French National Assembly and the election will be held in two rounds: June 30 and July 7.

He said his decision was a last-ditch attempt to keep the far right out of power.

'Everybody sees the flood waters of the far right rising. Everybody is saying [Macron] will hand them the keys of power. I don't want to give them the keys to power in 2027,' he said.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz

Chancellor Olaf Scholz, like Macron, was slammed by far-right nationalists in last weekend's European Parliament election.

There are concerns he could soon be toppled himself.

He has presided over the most unpopular government in modern German history.

Projections showed support for Scholzs center-left Social Democrats at 14%, their worst post-World War II result in a nationwide vote.

His party came in third and, while he has not called for new elections, he is under political pressure to do so.

Also of concern, the far-right Alternative for Germany made good gains despite a string of scandals surrounding its top two candidates for the EU legislature.

That's especially sobering to many, given Germany's Nazi past.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida

Prime Minister Fumio Kishida faces his lowest personal approval ratings ahead of a leadership contest later this year.

He has faced calls to step down after a political funds scandal damaged his Liberal Democratic Party.

But he has refused, thus far, to do so.

Hurting him is the fact that members of his own party, in down-ballot contests, are losing. And, in April, his party lost all three seats in parliament.

His Cabinet faces record-low approval ratings.

He had reportedly considering calling a snap election, with a win by the ruling bloc buoying him ahead of September's ruling party leadership race. The head of the ruling party concurrently serves as prime minister.

But he has not yet called for elections and it's unclear when he will do so.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is the most politically secure of all the leaders she is hosting.

Her party did well in last week's election, even improving its performance from the 26% it won in the 2022 general elections.

She is positioning herself as one of the most powerful leaders in the European Union, but Italy is not considered a world superpower, which calls into question the limits of her influence.

A massive fan of 'The Lord of the Rings' and other works by the British writer J.R.R. Tolkien, Meloni used to dress as a hobbit.

'I think that Tolkien could say better than us what conservatives believe in,' Melon, said shortly after her election.

She sees the books as sacred text.

'I don't consider 'The Lord of the Rings' fantasy,' she said.

Her party did well in last week's European election, further cementing her power.

She has expanded this year's G7 meeting, inviting leaders of several other countries, including Ukraine, Turkey, India, Argentina, Brazil, Algeria and Kenya.

Saudi Arabia is a first-time participant at a G7 summit.

Pope Francis, who will lead the discussion on AI, is guest of honour.
Elon Musk has thanked Tesla shareholders for voting to approve his $56billion pay package and to move the electric vehicle maker's legal home to Texas.

Musk, in a post on his social media platform X, claimed the shareholder resolutions had passed by 'wide margins', adding: 'Thanks for your support!!'

But the vote does not guarantee the move will be approved. Musk could still face a lengthy legal battle to convince the Delaware judge who said the Tesla board was 'beholden' to him, while potentially fielding fresh lawsuits over the latest vote.

Musk's shareholder update came just hours after he took to social media to brand the New York Times as 'disrespectful' and 'unkind' over its recent report that a remote Amazon tribe became addicted to porn after the arrival of Starlink internet.

The leader of the Marubo tribe rejected the newspaper's claims, which made headlines worldwide. The Times has since issued a clarification stating that the 'Marubo people are not addicted to pornography'.

Elon Musk (pictured in June 2023) has thanked Tesla shareholders for voting to approve his $56billion pay package and to move the electric vehicle maker's legal home to Texas

The CEO, in a post on X, claimed the shareholder resolutions had passed by 'wide margins'

Tesla shares were up 6.6 per cent in premarket trading on Thursday after rising 3.9 per cent a day before the shareholder meet.

Overwhelming shareholder approval of the largest remuneration terms in US corporate history could allay investor concerns about Musk's future at Tesla.

It could also give the electric carmaker ammunition in its fight to reverse a court decision to void the pay package.

The result will be announced at a meeting at Tesla's headquarters in Texas today at 4.30pm (2130 GMT).

A person familiar with the preliminary voting tally said a combination of big institutional investors and retail investor votes got the 'yes' result over the line.

However, Adam Badawi, a law professor at UC Berkeley, warned: 'Even if the shareholders do approve the old package, it is not clear that the Delaware court will allow that vote to be effective.'

Major proxy firms Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) had urged shareholders to reject the pay package, and large investors including Norway's sovereign wealth fund had said they would vote against it.

Shareholders are allowed to change their vote up to the start of the annual meeting.

Tesla shareholders also cast ballots on other proposals including the move of its legal headquarters from Delaware to Texas, as well as the re-election of two board members: Musk's brother Kimbal Musk and James Murdoch.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott congratulated Musk after his post, saying on X: 'Welcome to a state that has neither a personal nor a corporate income tax.'

Musk shared a graph demonstrating the support for his pay package. A person familiar with the preliminary voting tally said a combination of big institutional investors and retail investor votes got the 'yes' result over the line.

He also showed a graph depicting that shareholders voted in favor of moving Tesla's headquarters to Texas. But the vote does not guarantee the move will be approved. Musk could still face a lengthy legal battle to convince the Delaware judge who said the Tesla board was 'beholden' to him, while potentially fielding fresh lawsuits over the latest vote

It comes as Starlink internet - operated by Musk's company SpaceX - came under fire after the Times alleged that the Marubo people, who live in remote villages in the Amazon, became addicted to porn after getting access to its services last year.

New York Times journalist Jack Nicas alleged in his article last week that young members of the 2,000 person tribe in Brazil have now started sharing pornographic content via private chat groups.

The newspaper on Tuesday published an article clarifying that the Marubo tribe is not addicted to porn and alleged that its previous report had been misquoted.

'The Marubo people are not addicted to pornography. There was no hint of this in the forest, and there was no suggestion of it in The New York Times's article,' the new report stated.

'Instead, the article mentioned a complaint from one Marubo leader that some Marubo minors had shared pornography in WhatsApp group chats. This was especially concerning, he said, because Marubo culture frowns upon even kissing in public.'

The Times added that Nicas' report was about the people living in the Amazon who had recently received high-speed internet and 'was in part about the Marubo people's introduction to the ills of the internet'.

But Musk on Wednesday slammed the newspaper over the original report, tweeting: 'It was disrespectful & unkind of The New York Times to say that about the tribe'.

Tribe leader Enoque Marubo also rejected the porn addiction allegations, claiming they 'reflect a prejudiced ideological current that disrespects our autonomy and identity.'

He added that while the addiction claims were false, Marubo confirmed that some youths did share pornography in WhatsApp group chats.

Musk's shareholder update came just hours after he took to social media to brand the New York Times as 'disrespectful' and 'unkind' over its recent report that a remote Amazon tribe became addicted to porn after the arrival of Starlink internet

Tesla shares were up 6.6 per cent in premarket trading on Thursday after rising 3.9 per cent a day before the shareholder meet

Meanwhile, some investors have reportedly claimed that they viewed Wednesday's vote on Musk's pay as a test of confidence in his leadership.

While Musk is undoubtedly Tesla's driving force, and is credited with much of its success, the company has recently seen slowing sales and profits.

Tesla's stock has lost nearly 60 per cent of its value from its peak in 2021, when Musk started selling billions of dollars' worth of his stake partly to help finance his purchase of Twitter, sparking concerns that he would be spread too thin.

He now runs six firms, including rocket-builder SpaceX, social media giant X - formerly Twitter - and the artificial intelligence firm xAI, which Musk created in 2023.

Musk's outspokenness and knack for creating controversy have also weighed on Tesla's reputation and sales.

The pay package would enable Musk to strengthen ownership 'at the expense of diluting the value of those belonging to other shareholders,' Marcie Frost, CEO of the California Public Employees' Retirement System said.

Tesla has been drumming up support for Musk's pay package, especially from retail investors, who make up an unusually high percentage of its ownership base but who often do not vote.

Company executives have posted messages on X, saying Musk is critical to Tesla's success. Tesla has run social media ads, and Musk has promised a personal tour of Tesla's factory in Texas to some shareholders who cast votes.

The board said the world's richest person deserves the package, because he hit all the ambitious targets on market value, revenue and profitability.

The pay package is also needed to keep Musk devoted to Tesla, the board said, even though the Delaware judge said the 2018 pay plan failed to make sure that Musk committed a substantial amount of time to Tesla.

Musk has threatened to build AI and robotics products outside Tesla, if he fails to gain enough voting control, which requires the 2018 pay package to be approved.

Tesla shareholders on Wednesday also cast ballots on other proposals including the move of its legal headquarters from Delaware to Texas, as well as the re-election of two board members: Musk's brother Kimbal Musk and James Murdoch. Pictured: An aerial view of Tesla Corporate Headquarters in Travis County, Texas

The Delaware court that invalidated the compensation package had said its the plan was proposed by a conflicted board with close personal and financial ties to its top executive.

The board held the shareholder vote as a way to bolster its appeal of the ruling, in which the judge cited the board's failure to fully inform shareholders before approving the pay package in 2018.

'How the shareholders vote now doesn't really answer the question whether the board violated its duties in 2018, and that's the issue on appeal,' Ann Lipton, a corporate law professor at Tulane University, said.

Musk has to wait months or years to get his pay package restored as appeals wind their way up to Delaware's Supreme Court.
A Harley Street physician has been struck off after he was accused of trying to 'exploit' a dying patient into paying 33,000 to undergo an unlicensed cannabis-based treatment programme in the belief it might cure his terminal cancer.

Dr Julian Kenyon, 77, may have given the unnamed man 'false hope' after he recommended vitamins and cannabidiol along with sound and light therapy.

Kenyon, who is medical director of a private surgery in Hampshire, told the patient: 'You have had all the standard treatments, and you are running out of treatment options.'

The man, known only as Patient A, believed he had as little as six months to live.

He was informed by the Harley Street doctor the treatment would initially cost 13,000, but if it were unsuccessful, then further treatment would cost 20,000.

Dr Julian Kenyon (pictured) may have given the unnamed man 'false hope' after he recommended vitamins and cannabidiol to cure his terminal cancer

Kenyon (pictured), who is medical director of a private surgery in Hampshire, told the patient: 'You have had all the standard treatments, and you are running out of treatment options.'

Dr Kenyon also told Patient A that he would need to have some blood tests which would cost 750.

Whilst telling the patient he could not be cured, Kenyon was said to have 'bamboozled' him with literature, insisting there was a 'ten per cent chance' of his stage four prostate cancer getting a 'complete response, no tumour' with the new treatment.

The patient, who was already undergoing conventional treatments on the NHS, was said to have felt 'distressed and under pressure' due to the cost of the private treatments.

After consulting his daughter who worked as a doctor, he decided against the treatment. He died 12 months later.

Married grandfather Kenyon, who ran the Dove Clinic in Twyford, Hampshire, was later reported to the General Medical Council.

The probe found Kenyon had previously been ordered to work for a year under a series of restrictions in 2014 after holding a similar consultation with another terminally ill patient at his London clinic.

During that meeting, which cost the patient 300, Kenyon offered him sound and light therapy for his late-stage cancer.

He said: 'I am not claiming we can cure you, but there is a strong possibility that we would be able to increase your median survival time with the relatively low-risk approaches described here.'

Further inquiries revealed he had been given a warning for failing to provide good clinical care to a patient in 2013.

He had also been caught touting his controversial treatments to an undercover investigator from a Sunday newspaper.

At the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) in Manchester, a disciplinary panel accused Kenyon of profiteering from a 'vulnerable man' saying his conduct was 'wholly unacceptable, morally culpable and disgraceful'.

The doctor declined to attend the sanction hearing saying: 'Forget it. I won't be turning up to this kangaroo court.

'It's a complete waste of time and effort.'

His Twyford surgery closed last year, owing creditors almost 154,000.

Kenyon's private surgery based in Twyford, Hampshire

The Twyford surgery (pictured) closed last year, owing creditors almost 154,000

The hearing was told Patient A had been diagnosed with stage four metastatic prostate cancer in December 2019 and was receiving conventional medical treatment through the NHS including chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

Patient A began looking at alternative medication and examined the possibility of undergoing Ozone treatment in Germany but went to see Kenyon in May 2022 on the advice of a close family friend who is also a doctor.

On the day of the meeting, Patient A attended the clinic with his wife plus the family friend who met privately with Kenyon for 15 minutes prior to the consultation.

Subsequently Kenyon recommended a treatment plan for Patient A that included the use of cannabidiol, the vitamin Claricell, and digestive enzyme Similase, as well as photodynamic therapy.

The hearing was told Dr Kenyon informed Patient A he had around six to nine months to live and advised him to start his treatment 'sooner rather than later,' as he 'did not have much time.'

Patient A was said to have felt 'slightly uncomfortable' by the costs for blood tests and the treatment for prostate cancer, as well as 'feeling under pressure.'

The family friend then said the blood tests would be carried out independently before Patient A paid Dr Kenyon's consultation fee and left the clinic.

Later the same day, Kenyon sent an email to Patient A in which he set out the treatment options discussed and to which he attached research papers which related to the programme.

Patient A subsequently spoke to his daughter who then 'Googled' Kenyon and advised her father not to go ahead with the treatment.

Just a week later Kenyon contacted Patient A to ask 'when he would like to commence treatment' adding: 'In Cancer Immunotherapies where the Cancer has spread, ten per cent get a complete response, no tumour, 40 per cent get increased survival, 50 per cent get no response. It is completely without side effects...'.

But the patient asked to think about it saying he was due to undergo kidney surgery at the time. He died in May last year.

A Consultant Oncologist, known as Dr E, told the hearing that Kenyon's treatment programme was 'inappropriate', as Patient A had just started a type of hormone therapy called Enzalutamide and there had been no time to review whether it was working.

Dr E said Enzalutamide has 'proven benefits' in prostate cancer response and survival and there were other licenced conventional treatments available for him to try.

The expert said whilst photodynamic therapy was used to treat skin cancer, there was no evidence of it being effective for prostate cancer.

He dismissed Kenyon's claims as 'unverifiable and extremely unlikely' and added that his evidence was so poor 'it in effect makes this a total fabrication.'

The Consultant Oncologist said the literature Kenyon sent to Patient A was 'of no use.'

Dr E told the hearing: 'Given Patient A had recently started a new conventional therapy, recommending an additional treatment with no proven efficacy would not serve his patient's needs.

'The treatment plan could in no way be described as based on the best available evidence.

'The evidence it was based upon would be considered of a poor quality and as such should not be used to recommend treatment outside of a clinical trial.'

Subsequently Kenyon recommended a treatment plan for Patient A that included the use of cannabidiol (Stock Image)

A patient undergoing photodynamic therapy (Stock Image)

In his evidence Dr Kenyon claimed Patient A had wanted to give up his existing treatments saying he was 'totally wiped out with it'.

He said the efficacy of his own programme came from cancer immunotherapy literature and his review of results from the 500 patients he had treated at the Dove Clinic with photodynamic therapy over the past 20 years.

But counsel for the General Medical Council Amy Rollings said: 'This was serious misconduct involving a terminally ill patient who turned to Dr Kenyon at a difficult time.

'Dr Kenyon's conduct was poor and exploitative both during the consultation with Patient A and afterwards by his actions in his email communication with Patient A.

'His conduct during these proceedings is poor and he has shown no insight into his actions.'

MPTS chairman Mrs Aaminah Khan said: 'Dr E's evidence was clear, rational and persuasive.

'He had considerable experience as a Consultant oncologist, having treated approximately 5,000 patients with prostate cancer over the course of his career.

'The Tribunal accepted the view of Dr E that there were so few patients that were comparable with Patient A in the studies done by Dr Kenyon, that the quality of this research was poor.

'Whilst Dr Kenyon gave evidence that he has treated cancer patients in his clinic for many years, he accepted that he has no experience in clinical oncology.

'His evidence on the issue of the treatment plan's efficacy to be unpersuasive.

'The treatment plan's efficacy, as cited by Dr Kenyon to Patient A, was misleading and inconsistent with other advice given by Dr Kenyon.

'It referred to how "ten per cent get a complete response, no tumour" which would not appear to apply to Patient A, as Dr Kenyon's evidence is that he had advised Patient A that the treatment was "non-curative".

'Furthermore, Dr Kenyon only gave Patient A articles, written by himself, which were supportive of the treatments recommended, when he accepted that there would likely be other contrary papers that disagreed with his view.

'Dr Kenyon overstated the efficacy of the treatment plan to Patient A.

'In addition, Dr Kenyon gave inadequate advice to Patient A, which did not share information regarding the associated risks and uncertainties.

'The literature Dr Kenyon sent to Patient A could have had the effect of 'bamboozling' Patient A into agreeing to have the treatment.

In his evidence Dr Kenyon (pictured) claimed Patient A had wanted to give up his existing treatments saying he was 'totally wiped out with it'

Mrs Khan added: 'Furthermore, as Dr Kenyon was the Medical Director of the Dove Clinic, he had a financial interest in recommending the treatment plan, rather than referring Patient A back to conventional treatment available on the NHS, which appeared to affect the advice given.

'During his oral evidence, Dr Kenyon did not accept any wrongdoing. He did not express any apology or regret for the treatment he provided to Patient A or to his family, for any distress they had suffered, nor express any sympathy for their loss.

'Patient A's daughter said he was distressed following the consultation and felt pressured to undertake the expensive treatment Dr Kenyon was offering.

'Dr Kenyon's actions by overstating the efficacy of the recommended treatment plan may have given false hope to Patient A, who was terminally ill and vulnerable.'
Nigel Farage today tried to downplay controversial views held by Reform UK election candidates - including one who backed appeasing Hitler - suggesting it was just 'ordinary' pub banter.

He was quizzed over remarks made by some of the party's slate of election hopefuls, including Ian Gribbin, who suggested the UK should not have fought Nazi Germany in the Second World War.

In a difficult LBC phone-in he suggested his predecessor as leader, Richard Tice, was to blame for the failure to vet candidates, saying he had only been in the post for nine days.

Asked why they had not been deselected by Reform, Mr Farage said: 'I can't, they are legally on the ballot paper. I can disown them, I might well do that... its ordinary folk down the pub speak.'

He was quizzed over remarks made by some of the party's slate of election hopefuls, including Ian Gribbin, who suggested the Uk should not have fought Nazi Germany in the Second World War.

Ian Gribbin, who is standing for Nigel Farage 's party in Bexhill and Battle, said that Britain would be better off today if it had taken up the German fascist dictator's 'offer of neutrality'.

In comments made in 2022, unearthed shortly after the 80th anniversary of D-Day, he criticised Britain for prioritising 'weird notions of international morality rather than looking after its own people' by staying out of the conflict.

Mr Gribbin, who is standing for Nigel Farage's party in Bexhill and Battle in Sussex , said that Britain would be better off today if it had taken up the German fascist dictator's 'offer of neutrality'.

In comments made in 2022, unearthed shortly after the 80th anniversary of D-Day, he criticised Britain for prioritising 'weird notions of international morality rather than looking after its own people' by staying out of the conflict.

In remarks made on the conservative Unherd website and unearthed by the BBC he said the UK had to 'exorcise the cult of Churchill and recognize that in both policy and military strategy, he was abysmal'.

Mr Gribbin had previously written on the site that women were the 'sponging gender' who 'only take from society'.

He tonight apologised for his comments, telling the BBC: 'I apologise for these old comments and withdraw them unreservedly and the upset that they have caused.'

Mr Gribbin said that he himself had been 'upset at the way these comments were taken out of context especially when my mother was the daughter of Russian Jews fleeing persecution.'

Mr Farage used the phone-in to claim his party was close to a 'tipping point' where it would eclipse the Conservative Party.

He pointed to a poll for Sky News which put Reform just one point behind the Tories.

'Do I think I'm capable of leading a national opposition to a Labour Party with a big majority, where I can stand up and hold them to account on issues? Yes.'

He added: 'I would be prepared to lead the centre-right in this country, a centre-right that stands up for small business, a centre-right that believes in borders, a centre-right that isn't scared of standing up for the British people.'
Nigel Farage goaded that he is ready to lead a merged Tory-Reform party today as ministers warned the insurgents will only deliver an 'even bigger' win for Labour.

The Brexit champion said he was 'prepared' and 'capable' of taking charge of a 'centre-right' political force after the election.

He repeated his boast that Reform is near a 'tipping point', with some polls showing support closing on the Conservatives.

However, fears have been growing about the implications of splitting the right-wing vote, with senior figures now openly voicing alarm at the prospect of a 'one-party socialist state' after July 4.

Rishi Sunak has cautioned that Sir Keir will change the voting system if he wins to ensure he remains in power.

In an LBC phone-in, the Reform UK leader suggested the Conservative Party here 'may well be dead, this may well be the end of their journey'

In a round of interviews this morning, Lord Cameron insisted 'if you vote for Reform you are more likely to get Keir Starmer in Downing Street '

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt told Politico's Power Play podcast: 'All that a vote for Reform does is give Labour an even bigger majority.'

Mr Farage repeated his boast that Reform is near a 'tipping point', with some polls showing support closing on the Conservatives

In a round of interviews this morning, Lord Cameron insisted 'if you vote for Reform you are more likely to get Keir Starmer in Downing Street'.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt told Politico's Power Play podcast: 'All that a vote for Reform does is give Labour an even bigger majority.

'And that is a polar opposite of what most Reform voters want. So it doesn't solve any problem to vote Reform.'

Mr Farage has suggested his political model is Canada's Stephen Harper, who orchestrated a merger between Reform and their Conservative rivals to unite the right.

In an LBC phone-in, the Reform UK leader suggested the Conservative Party here 'may well be dead, this may well be the end of their journey'.

He aid he believed 'something new is going to emerge on the centre-right' of politics.

'Do I think I'm capable of leading a national opposition to a Labour Party with a big majority, where I can stand up and hold them to account on issues? Yes.'

He added: 'I would be prepared to lead the centre-right in this country, a centre-right that stands up for small business, a centre-right that believes in borders, a centre-right that isn't scared of standing up for the British people.'

Tory campaigning has shifted to warn would-be Reform voters that Labour could end up with a landslide win, urging them to back the Conservatives instead in order to provide a large opposition force  although Mr Sunak has insisted he has not given up on victory.

But Mr Farage pointed to a YouGov poll which put Reform on 17 per cent, just one point behind the Conservatives to suggest: 'I think we are very close to a tipping point.'

Other polls have given a wider gap between Mr Sunak's party and Mr Farage's, but the average of recent surveys suggests Reform are about eight points behind the Tories.

Mr Farage has been offered additional private security by the Home Office after being targeted on the campaign trail.

He said he was more targeted than other politicians because he was prepared to walk into crowds and because he dared to 'break the consensus' by talking about mass migration unlike his rivals.

He said: 'They are scared of the mob. And do you know something? I am not going to surrender to the mob. Never.'

Asked if he was scared, he said: 'I do get thoughtful but I cannot let these people win.

'If they win, our whole democracy is under threat.'

Mr Farage was challenged about a Times newspaper report that one-in-10 Reform candidates are 'friends' on Facebook with Gary Raikes, leader of the fascist New British Union.

Rishi Sunak (pictured at the G7 in Italy today) has cautioned that Sir Keir will change the voting system if he wins to ensure he remains in power

'I'd never heard of Gary Raikes until yesterday,' Mr Farage said.

'Don't forget, I've come in right at the last minute, we have not had time to do full vetting of candidates. It's been impossible for us.'

But he added: 'Not all of our candidates have been to Eton, not all of our candidates have been to Oxford, not all of our candidates are part of the London set.

'And people like things on Facebook without having a clue where they come from.'

Asked about Ian Gribbin, the party's candidate in Bexhill and Battle, who has said that Britain should have 'taken Hitler up on his offer of neutrality' instead of fighting the Nazis in the Second World War, Mr Farage said it was a 'stupid thing to say'.

But he suggested there would be no disciplinary response: 'What can you do? His name's on the ballot paper, I can't remove it.'
Neighbours fans have rushed to point out the resemblance between Tony Blair's statue and a former star of the long-running Australian soap opera.

The statue was unveiled in Ferizaj, Kosovo on Wednesday to commemorate 25 years of the country's liberation from the former state of Yugoslavia.

Its sculptor, Agon Qosa, and other ethnic Albanians in Kosovo idolise Blair for his leadership role during a NATO bombing campaign in 1999 that halted Serb forces' advances and ultimately helped the small Balkan nation win independence.

Reacting to the unveiling of the statue, eagle-eyed viewers on social media joked that the statue of Blair, 71, looked akin to a former Neighbours actor.

They took to X, formerly Twitter, to point out what they perceived to be an extreme likeness between the two.

A statue of Tony Blair was unveiled in Ferizaj, Kosovo on Wednesday to commemorate 25 years of the country's liberation from the former state of Yugoslavia

Kosovo Albanians are seen taking part in the inauguration of the statue of the former British Prime Minister

Crowds gathered in the city of Ferizaj to witness the unveiling of the statue

Jason Donovan appears on an episode of Good Morning Britain in London on December 5 2023

Blair attends a Service of Thanksgiving for Admiral The Lord Boyce at Westminster Abbey on July 13, 2023

Comparing the former Prime Minister to Jason Donovan, who rose to fame on the show from 1985 to 1989, one fan said: 'Go Kosovo for loving Jason Donovan!'

A second wrote: 'This is like one of those posts where someone posts a picture of someone famous but says "happy birthday" to another for lolz. e.g. '"Happy Birthday Jason Donovan"'.

Replying to an image of the statue posted by Blair's former secretary and spokesperson Alastair Campbell, another quipped: 'Thats clearly Jason Donovan though.'

A fourth added: 'Jason Donovan statue revealed lol. Should be Tony Blair'.

A quarter of a century later, the clay statue of Blair depicts the former Prime Minister smiling in a suit, with one arm raised in a wave.

More than 13,000 people, mainly local Albanians, were killed in the 1998-99 war. Blair, who was Britain's prime minister from 1997 to 2007, backed the NATO bombing of Serbia to force it to withdraw from Kosovo.

Many supporters later became disillusioned with Blair over Britain's subsequent role in the invasion of Iraq in 2003, which was led by the United States, but many people in Kosovo share Qosa's enthusiasm.

According to the country's national statistics office, more than 10 people are named Tonibler, Toni or Bler - with the spellings altered to fit local pronunciations.

Bill Clinton, who was U.S. president at the time of the NATO bombing campaign, also has a statue in Kosovo's capital, Pristina.
A global search has been launched for the retired county sheriff deputy who went missing while on a hike on the Greek island of Amorgos on Tuesday, as the tourist's friends and family are set to travel to Greece to help find him.

The former cop, who has been identified as 58-year-old Albert Calibet from Hermosa Beach, California, departed from the port settlement of Aegiali in the northwest of the island shortly after 7 am.

His intended destination was Katapola, the island's main port along the western coast of the island. The trail is estimated to take around four hours.

After he failed to return after eight hours, he was reported missing by a friend.

A rescue operation was launched on Tuesday afternoon, and reinforcements were called in from Naxos island.

58-year-old Albert Calibet from Hermosa Beach, California went missing on Tuesday in the Greek island of Amorgos after setting off on a hike

In an interview with Fox Los Angeles, the man's brother Oliver Calibet choked up, telling the broadcaster: 'My best hope is that they find him, and we can patch him up and get him home'.

Oliver, who is desperate to bring his brother home, added: 'We are going on almost three days here, and there's no water. I'm just...I'm very distraught.'

Some of Albert's family and friends will fly to Athens to help search for the missing man.

According to those close to him, Albert is a seasoned hiker who is in good physical shape and has sharp survival skills. Although he is retired, he still works part-time at the sheriff's department.

He has reportedly visited Greece 50 times. He is also very familiar with the island where he went missing.

The missing man's brother, Oliver Calibet, spoke to Fox News. He says he is 'distraught' at the news of his brother's disappearance and is desperate to bring him home

Albert's friends and family will travel to Greece to help with the rescue mission

Albert is a retired sheriff deputy, but still works part-time

'He had completed the Aegiali to Katapola hike several times in the past,' Calliope Despotidi, the deputy mayor of Amorgos, told news website Greek Reporter.

'It is strange because he is not a person who walked the route for the first time. He knows Amorgos better than me.'

'He may have lost consciousness because of the heat and hopefully found shade in one of the caves along the route,' the deputy mayor added.

Albert's girlfriend Debbie LeShane posted on a local Facebook group for the island about his disappearance.

The social media post said: 'Hello, you may have seen on the news we are looking for my boyfriend that left for a hike yesterday about 7 am. He was traveling from Aegiali to Katapola. He was seen in Chora. He is still missing. You may see helicopters circling in a few hours plus rescue teams on the ground. If you have seen him please send me a message. Thank you.'

The American tourist disappeared in the Greek island of Amorgos (file image)

The missing American departed from the port settlement of Aegiali in the northwest of the island shortly after 7 am. His intended destination was Katapola, the island's main port along the western coast of the island. The trail is estimated to take around four hours

The latest update she gave said: 'CORRECTION!!! I was incorrect when I posted he was seen in Chora. He stoped for a water and a coke Near Church of Agios Nikolaos at Steki tou Machera!!!!! He is still missing.'

She also wrote: 'We are worried sick!! ... More rescue teams are arriving including dogs and helicopters'.

An X user, formerly Twitter, posted on the social platform about the missing tourist.

'Saw search helicopter go over a few hours ago searching for this man. Incredibly hot here on Amorgos, and walking trails completely exposed to heat. Madness to be walking.'

Deptuty Mayor of Amorgos Calliope Despotidi said: 'Calibet is well-known on the island. He has been visiting for several years, adding that the tourist 'had completed the Aegiali-Ketapola hike several times in the past'.

The American tourist's disappearance comes after British presenter and celebrity doctor Michael Mosey was found dead on Sunday in the Greek island of Symi. He had gone missing four days before when he set off on a walk on his own.

Police said Dr Mosley died of heat exhaustion after 'sitting down and losing consciousness' just yards from a holiday resort after walking across the Greek island in searing 104F heat.

Dr Mosley, 67, was found dead by a fence at the resort of Agia Marina on Sunday morning just 260 feet from a beach bar and safety.

Temperatures at the time had been nudging 40C and the excessive heat is thought to have played a role in his death.

Searing heat in Greece has prompted a mini lockdown for two days starting today, with some schools closing and the Acropolis in Athens restricting visiting hours.

The sweltering temperatures have prompted the Health Ministry to issue a warning to older people or people with illnesses to stay indoors. Greek authorities have also advised anyone who works outdoors to avoid strenuous activity from noon to 5pm.

The island of Amorgos is also subject to a 'severe high temperature warning' this week.
A university has been rocked by allegations that dozens of female students were unknowingly filmed in toilets on campus over the course of a month.

A man, 24, is accused of committing the alleged offences in bathrooms between May 6 and June 1 at University of Queensland's St Lucia campus and in Sunnybank in Brisbane's south.

He was arrested at Brisbane Airport late Tuesday night.

Police seized the mans phone during the arrest and allegedly uncovered 'a number of indecent videos of women taken in public areas in Brisbane without their consent'.

The Woolloongabba man faces 155 charges of observations or recordings in breach of privacy and an additional 10 counts of entering a premises with the intention of offending.

A 24-year-old man allegedly filmed females 'inappropriately' in toilets at the University of Queensland's prestigious St Lucia Campus (pictured) , as well as in the Brisbane suburb of Sunnybank

He appeared in Brisbane Magistrates Court on Wednesday where he was refused bail.

He will reappear at the same court next month.

Students at the St Lucia campus were shocked to hear about the allegations.

'Quite unsettling for a lot of young women, especially just on this campus and in general,' one told Seven News.

Another added: 'Its disgusting. I would feel so unsafe if I was in a bathroom with someone filming me.

A University of Queensland spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia that the accused man is now banned campus grounds.

They added that the university will support the 'ongoing police investigation'.

The man faces a total 165 charges, including 155 count of observations or recordings in breach of privacy for allegedly filming women in toilets. Pictured is University of Queensland's St Lucia campus

'The university would like to make it clear that we have zero tolerance for this type of alleged behaviour,' the spokesperson said.

'We have assured staff and students today that UQ has taken immediate action to prevent the individual attending our campuses should he be released from custody.

'Our Sexual Misconduct Support Unit offers safe and confidential support services to any members of our community with concerns related to this or other matters.

'As the matter is before the courts, we are unable to provide further information.'
Rishi Sunak today reunited with his Italian counterpart and biggest fan Giorgia Meloni as the pair joined other world leaders at the G7 summit.

Pictures showed the pair beaming as they warmly greeting each other at the summit in Puglia under the canopy of an olive tree.

Sunak clasped Meloni's hands and they appeared to share a joke together as they stood in a group that also included US president Joe Biden and French president Emmanuel Macron ahead of the sit-down talks.

Meloni, dressed in a baby pink suit, appeared less enthusiastic when welcoming Biden and Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, formally shaking their hands while posing for photographs.

Things appeared chilly between Meloni and Macron, too. The pair were courteous, but soon turned away from each other after their initial greeting, with Meloni appearing stony-faced as Macron went to take his place with the other leaders.

The G7 summit comes after Macron this week called snap elections at home after his party was trounced in European parliament elections by France's right wing nationalist party, which Meloni's party has far more in common with.

By contrast, Sunak and Meloni's friendship has flourished since they took office in 2022 within days of one another, with the British Prime Minister's spokesperson saying in December they 'obviously get on'.

Rishi Sunak (left) today reunited with his Italian counterpart and biggest fan Giorgia Meloni (right) as the pair joined other world leaders at the G7 summit

Sunak and Meloni are seen kissing each other on the cheek as they gathered with other G7 leaders ahead of this weeks three-day summit in Italy

Pictures showed the pair beaming as they warmly greeting each other at the summit in Puglia under the canopy of an olive tree. They also appeared to share a joke together

Sunak and Meloni are seen posing for the cameras together. Sunak and Meloni's friendship has flourished since they took office in 2022, with the British Prime Minister 's spokesperson saying in December they 'obviously get on'

This was put down to them having been elected 'at a similar time,' Politico reported, with Meloni taking office on October 22, 2022 - and Sunak three days later.

But the ties between the two leaders runs deeper than friendship. They have bonded over shared policy goals, too, such as taking a hard-line approach on immigration.

There are also political and diplomatic reasons for them to stay close, with Sunak needing an ally among the larger EU member states, one EU diplomat told Politico last year. 'He tried with France, but the bromance with Macron didn't really work.'

They told the publication that Sunak does not appear to have hit it off too well with Germany's centre-left Olaf Scholz, either, who is cut from a different political cloth.

Similarly, Sunak is not close with Spain's Pedro Sanchez who has caused headaches in 10 Downing Street with the dispute other Gibraltar.

As for Meloni, she has been more than happy to forge close ties with Sunak - providing him with a key ally on the European council.

The diplomat told Politico: 'Meloni needs to showcase that she is accepted by the big guns around the world' on account of her hard right political background not being shared by other key EU leaders, like Macron, Scholz and Sanchez.

Meloni found her political roots in Italy's neo-fascist youth movements. She also once praised dictator Benito Mussolini as a 'good politician' - but did also admit that he made 'mistakes' including the imposition of race laws.

Sunak and Meloni greet each other in Italy at the G7 summit

Meloni grins while speaking with Sunak as the pair greeted each other at the G7 summit

US president Joe Biden and Meloni are seen embracing ahead of the G7 summit

Meloni, dressed in a baby pink suit, appeared less enthusiastic when welcoming Biden and Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, formally shaking their hands while posing for photographs. Meloni's body language did not appear as affectionate with the US president as it did when she greeted Sunak

Things appeared a bit chilly between Meloni (left) and Macron (right) too. The pair were curtious, but soon turned away from each other after their initial greeting

Macron this week called snap elections at home after his party were trounced in European parliament elections by France's right wing nationalist National Rally party

Meloni (right) shakes hands with Ursula von der Leyen , the President of the European Commission. The G7 meeting comes in the wake of the European Parliament elections

Despite their political differences, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Meloni appeared to share a joke together as the Italian leader welcomed her German counterpart today

US President Joe Biden, center, shakes hands with Sunak, right, next to Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, second right, French President Emmanuel Macron, left, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as they prepare for a group photo during the G7 summit in Italy

Her friendship with Sunak helps with her gaining more legitimacy, experts have said.

Riccardo Magi, the president of the leftwing party Piu Europa, told The Guardian in December that Sunak is a more palatable leader to cosy up to than Meloni's other friends, such as Hungary's nationalist prime minister, Viktor Orban.

'Having the prime minister of an important country on your side is something that helps her, even if it is no longer a member of the EU,' Magi told the newspaper.

'There is a chemistry between them and they are obviously trying to consolidate their rapport, especially for external communication reasons. But this is something all rightwing parties do.'

Both Sunak and Meloni are also known to share similar objectives.

The Italian leader, who founded the Brothers of Italy party in 2012, has laid out a nationalist agenda and focused on the issue of immigration.

In the past, she has called her country 'Europe's refugee camp' and has laid out plans to send asylum seekers to Albania in a deal with the country.

But in October, Italian judges blocked her government from deporting people to unsafe countries - much like what happened with Sunak's own battle with judges in the UK over sending migrants to Rwanda.

The leaders of the G7 pose for a photograph together in Italy, while being joined by President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen (right) and President of the European Council Charles Michel (left)

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni attends a welcome ceremony on June 13, 2024 in Fasano

Sunak and Meloni have publicly backed eachother by each showing up for events the other has organised.

When the British PM hosted an artificial intelligence summit in November, Meloni was the only other G7 leader who accepted his invitation.

Sunak returned the favour by attending a right wing political festival organised by the Brothers of Italy party in Rome in December.

A relationship has also been developing between Sunak's Conservative party and Meloni's Brothers of Italy party.

'There's obviously a big Italian diaspora here and what they seem to be doing is attempting build something like Republicans Abroad,' Paul Scully, a Conservative MP who hosted them, said at the time.

'They've come to the UK first, which may well be off the back of that warm relationship between the two leaders.'

The flourishing relationship between Sunak and Meloni may not last much longer while they are both leaders of their respective countries, however.

Facing an election in early July at home, polls suggest Sunak and the Conservative party is facing an electoral wipe-out on July 4.

Sunak acknowledged that people were 'frustrated' with him and admitted the Tories 'have not got everything right' at his party's manifesto launch. But the Prime Minister has insisted he had 'absolutely not' lost hope of winning the election.

The G7 summit opened today with an agreement on a US proposal to back a 39 billion loan to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets as collateral, giving Kyiv a strong show of support even as Europe's political chessboard shifts to the right.

Diplomats confirmed an agreement had been reached on the deal before the leaders even landed for the three-day gathering.

The leaders of the G7 sit around a round table during today's summit

This handout picture released by the Palazzo Chigi Press office shows Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni shooting a selfie with the press before the arrival of other G7 leaders ahead of today's summit, hosted by Italy in the country's Apulia region, on June 13, 2024

Sunak and Meloni attend a political festival in Italy in December 2023

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak welcomes Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at Downing Street in London, Britain April 27, 2023

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is expected to sign a separate bilateral security agreement with US President Joe Biden.

Beyond the the war in Ukraine, Pope Francis will become the first pontiff to address a G7 summit, adding a dash of celebrity and moral authority to the annual gathering that is being held this year in Borgo Egnazia in southern Italy's Puglia region.

He will be speaking on Friday about the promises and perils of artificial intelligence, but is expected to also renew his appeal for a peaceful end to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

The G7 comprises Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.
President Joe Biden stood before the cameras of the global media in Italy Thursday at the start of the G7 conference  back in the spotlight again during a period where the White House has avoided questions about the Hunter Biden guilty verdict.

The G7 summit underway on Italy's Adriatic coast begins at an awkward time for the president, coming just hours after a jury convicted his son in federal court in Wilmington on gun charges.

Nevertheless, the White House has managed to keep reporters at bay through a series of tactics. The first was in a written statement issued in Biden's name minutes after the verdict came down.

The White House cancelled a press briefing with Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre that had been set for Tuesday just as the news broke, which could have turned into a 40-minute interrogation on the subject.

Then, in a previously unannounced trip, the president jetted to his hometown of Wilmington, hugging his son on the tarmac and providing an emotive visual image of support.

He also spoke to Hunter's wife Melissa Cohen and son Beau Biden, but a pool of reporters traveling with him was positioned too far away to shout questions, according to the pool.

President Joe Biden was back in the spotlight in Italy for the G7, where he was greeted by Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. His only response to his son Hunter's guilty verdict has been in a written statement

That left Wednesday's flight aboard Air Force One as the first opportunity for a smaller group of reporters to finally get information about how the president and the administration were grappling with the historic verdict.

Jean-Pierre tried to preempt those questions by reading from Biden's written statement, where he said he and first lady Jill Biden 'love our son,' and we are so proud of the man he is today, mentioning addiction and saying they 'will always be there for Hunter and the rest of our family.'

When more questions did come, Jean-Pierre was insulated by her own lack of information. 'I haven't spoken to the President about this since the verdict came out,' she told the press.

(That didn't keep her from making news when she refused to rule out the president commuting Hunter's sentence, even though he has forsworn a pardon. 'I have not spoken to the President about this,' she said.) Biden arrived in Italy at night.

The White House organized a zoom briefing with national security advisor Jake Sullivan Thursday morning, but that was centered around foreign policy matters and was restricted to the more limited group of pool reporters who were with Biden). The broader press corps could dial in to listen, but couldn't ask a question.

Reporters caught a bit of a pool 'spray' with G7 leaders, but Meloni was speaking the whole time

Biden arrived in Italy Wednesday night

Biden briefly greeted his son Hunter in Delaware after the verdict, but pool reporters were too far away to question him

Hunter BIden was spotted going to lunch at a Thai restaurant in LA Wednesday

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre told reporters she hadn't spoken to Biden about the verdict  which prevented her from being able to comment on his reaction

Biden's statement on Hunter Biden guilty verdict

As I said last week, I am the President, but I am also a dad. Jill and I love our son, and we are so proud of the man he is today. So many families who have had loved ones battle addiction understand the feeling of pride seeing someone you love come out the other side and be so strong and resilient in recovery. As I also said last week, I will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal. Jill and I will always be there for Hunter and the rest of our family with our love and support. Nothing will ever change that Advertisement

At the luxurious Borgo Egnazia resort where G7 leaders were meeting, Biden was protected by the run of events. He warmly greeted Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, then joined the group of leaders during a brief 'spray' at the start of their first meeting.

At that event, Meloni was the only person speaking, and the press were only there briefly, denying the opportunity to pose an inquiry to Biden.

There was a second Biden meeting scheduled to open to reporters Thursday afternoon for a quick 'spray', providing another narrow opportunity for questions.

But that event ended up being closed to the press.

The White House has scheduled a press conference Thursday evening local time with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

That event will give members of the press the chance to finally question Biden directly.

But the press conference will be limited by an expected format allowing just two questions from the U.S. side. That forces members of the media to choose between asking about stalled cease fire proposal for Gaza, Ukraine, or the stunning legal developments.

At his last such press conference, Biden chided a reporter who tried to get in a two-part question.

The format, alongside the embattled Zelensky who is struggling to counter the Russian invasion of his homeland, allows Biden to maneuver away from unwanted questions by pointing to new agreements to support Ukraine for a decade and provide new funds based on the interest of seized Russian assets.
Sir Ed Davey was given a makeover on live morning television today in the Liberal Democrat leader's latest bizarre campaign stunt ahead of the General Election.

The 58-year-old was compared to 'The Man From Del Monte' as he pranced about on a catwalk in front of hosts Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard on ITV's This Morning.

The politician put on a linen blazer, navy chinos and leather trainers after his team asked stylist Laura Puddy for the 'perfect summer outfit for the campaign trial'.

Emerging after an advert break, the presenters welcomed him out as Deeley declared: 'It is time for the big reveal, come on out, I feel like we need glitter!'

As Sir Ed walked to the Jamelia song Superstar, Deeley urged him to 'suck in your cheekbones', 'clench your buttocks' and 'turn around'  which turned his face red.

But Shephard said: 'Ed, you've been falling off paddleboards, you've been swinging on things and this is the thing you're embarrassed by. You look fantastic.'

Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley watch Sir Ed Davey on the catwalk on ITV's This Morning today

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey poses on the catwalk while on This Morning today

Sir Ed Davey was compared to 'The Man From Del Monte' in the famous television adverts

The politician put on a linen blazer, navy chinos and leather trainers on ITV's This Morning

Ms Puddy said the 129 linen blazer gave a 'softer tailoring' and also highlighted the 'subtle stripe' on the 40 shirt, with both items from Marks & Spencer.

She then handed him the sunglasses and a fedora hat, saying it was the 'perfect summer look'.

The studio then played the Right Said Fred track I'm Too Sexy.

Deeley added: 'Ed Del Monte, he say yeah'  a reference to the classic adverts for Del Monte with the catchline: 'The Man From Del Monte, he say yes!'.

Sir Ed said he was 'very grateful' for the new look and had 'never been made up like this before.' He added that he was 'really comfortable' and they had 'got my sizes right'.

The politician has carried out a series of slapstick photo ops in recent weeks, including getting drenched falling off an aquatic obstacle course in Henley-in-Arden, Warwickshire, yesterday.

Cat Deeley urged Sir Ed to 'suck in your cheekbones', 'clench your buttocks' and 'turn around'

Sir Ed said he was 'very grateful' for the new look and had 'never been made up like this before'

The look was quite a makeover from Sir Ed's suit and tie appearance on the programme today

Ben Shephard and Cat Deeley speak to Sir Ed Davey - before the makeover - on This Morning

It was reminiscent of his attempt at paddleboarding in Windermere a fortnight ago, when he sought to draw attention to the polluted state of Britain's waters.

Two days later, he hurtled himself down a giant slip 'n slide in an inflatable ring in Frome, Somerset, to promote the party's child mental health policies.

He has also been pictured with his legs spread wide open as he rode a bike during a visit to Knighton in Wales, and joined care home residents in a DrumFit class at Abbotswood Court Care Village in Romsey, Hampshire.

The politician was also pictured yesterday roasting marshmallows while visiting Willow Forest School of the Elm Nursery in Guilford.

Betting firm Ladbrokes has now set up a betting pool for what activities Sir Ed is likely to take part in before the General Election on July 4 - with options including riding a bucking bronco, bungee jumping or being fired out of a cannon.

TODAY: Sir Ed took on an assault course during a visit to Arena Pursuits in Wadhurst, Kent, while on the General Election campaign trail

The Liberal Democrat was put through his paces as jumped over some wooden hurdles

Sir Ed was all smiles as he emerged from a tunnel

He leapt into the air in front of the cameras and raised his arms high up into the air

Sir Ed found the tyre run course a bit more challenge as he appeared to stumble

Sir Ed crawls underneath a net on the assault course

Sir Ed tackles the wooden hurdles at the assault course in Kent

YESTERDAY -- Sir Ed Davey falls from an Aqua Jungle floating assault course on a visit to Spot-On-Wake in Henley-in-Arden, Warwickshire, on the General Election campaign trail

YESTERDAY -- Sir Ed Davey jumps into the water on his visit to Henley-in-Arden, Warwickshire

YESTERDAY -- Sir Ed Davey saws wood as he visits Willow Forest School in Guildford, Surrey

MONDAY -- Sir Ed rides on the Colossus rollercoaster at the Thorpe Park theme park in Surrey

MONDAY -- Sir Ed Davey smiles during the official launch of the Liberal Democrat manifesto

On Monday, Sir Ed launched the party's manifesto in London and unveiled his vision for Britain to rejoin the European Union.

He has committed to rejoining the single market, which would result in the return of free movement, as one of four steps towards the 'longer-term objective' of EU membership.

The proposal was among a host of radical plans  including cannabis shops on high streets, gender self-ID and a 500 per cent increase of council tax on second homes  in the 116-page manifesto.

MAY 31 -- Sir Ed Davey and ten-year-old Verity Pember taking part in a baking lesson with students from High Beeches Primary School during a half-term holiday camp in Hertfordshire

MAY 30 -- Sir Ed Davey slides down an 'Ultimate Slip N Slide' in Frome, Somerset

MAY 29 -- Sir Ed Davey clowns around on a bike during a visit to Knighton in Wales last month

MAY 28 -- Sir Ed Davey falls from a paddleboard on Lake Windermere during a campaign visit

MAY 5 -- Sir Ed Davey joins care home residents in a DrumFit class in Romsey, Hampshire

Overall, the party plans to hike taxes by almost 27billion to fund major investments in health, social care and public services. It includes reforms to capital gains tax  paid on profits from selling an asset  which would raise 5billion by 2028/29.

There was also a package of health and care pledges  with a plan to recruit or retain 8,000 extra GPs to give a right to be seen by a doctor within seven days.

Sir Ed also wants a new clean water authority to replace Ofwat and has promised to 'end the sewage scandal' by transforming water firms into public benefit companies, banning bonuses for water bosses until discharges and leaks stop, and replacing Ofwat with a new regulator.
A woman was left stunned after a brooch which spent decades sitting in a bedside drawer turned out to be a treasure worth thousands of pounds.

Helen Scaife, 51, decided to get her mum's inherited jewellery valued on BBC's Antiques Roadshow after it had spent years gathering dust in her bedroom.

She was left gobsmacked when experts revealed the brooch was hundreds of years old and a highly valuable rare relic with Ancient Roman origins.

The historic piece of jewellery - crafted during the Renaissance period more than 300 years ago - is now expected to sell for as much as 7,000.

Helen plans to put the money towards her mother's retirement, saying: 'That's a heck of a lot of money at a time when my mother doesn't have much.'

The brooch was identified as an intaglio gryllus cameo brooch dating back to the late 16th or early 17th century

Helen Scaife, 51, was stunned to discover the true value of her mother's brooch on Antique Roadshow

Depicting a gryllus, a strange creature with conjoined human and wild boar heads, the brooch will be up for grabs at Hansons Auctioneers, in Etwall, Derbyshire, on June 27.

Helen said the rare piece had been in her bedside drawer for decades and handed down from mother to daughter for at least three generations.

'It's certainly been in the family since the 19th century. My grandmother was born in 1909 and it's definitely been in the family since before then.

'My mother inherited it over 30 years ago. She has worn it occasionally but for the most part it's been tucked away in a bedside drawer.'

Nobody in Helen's family knew how they came to own the brooch and had no idea of its worth until its historical pedigree was revealed on TV by jewellery expert Geoffrey Munn.

It produced one of the series' classic jaw-dropping moments, and sparked gasps from Helen.

Jewellery expert Geoffrey Munn (pictured) revealed to Ms Scaife the brooch's true worth

Ms Scaife was left gobsmacked when experts revealed the brooch was hundreds of years old and a highly valuable rare relic with Ancient Roman origins

Helen, a civil servant from Cardiff, said: 'My friend got tickets for the Antiques Roadshow and invited me to go with her.

'We went because we love the show, and she had a few little bits to take.

'I immediately thought of the brooch because we have always been curious as to what it was as we hadn't seen anything like it.

'All the cameos we'd seen in the past, or Googled, were invariably faces of women or Greek gods.

'Nothing we ever came across looked like our brooch so I hoped someone would be able to tell us what it was and where it came from.

'I was not expecting what we found out which is evident from the show I think.

'When I got home mum didnt believe me at first. She thought I was pulling her leg.

'I was going to try to keep it a secret until the show aired, but I decided in the end it wouldn't be fair to her. And she has a way of getting information out of me.'

Helen has decided to part with the family heirloom 'for a combination of reasons'.

She said: 'Firstly, now we know how much it might be worth, my mother is concerned about insurance.

'Also, if it does turn out to be worth what Geoffrey suggested, that's a heck of a lot of money at a time when my mother doesn't have much.

'She's just turned 78 and I want her to spend the rest of her life enjoying herself.

'If the sale of the brooch enables that to happen, then it's worth an awful lot more to me than it is sitting in a drawer.'

She added: 'I love it and think it's a beautiful object, but I wouldn't wear it, and it seems a terrible shame for it to be hidden away.'

Ms Scaife discovered her mother's old brooch was actually a historic piece of jewellery crafted during the Renaissance period more than 300 years ago

The brooch - which was collecting dust in a bedroom drawer - is worth up to 7,000

The brooch was identified as an intaglio gryllus cameo brooch dating back to the late 16th or early 17th century.

The gryllus, carved in agate stone, is a comic combination of animals and human forms seen in Greco-Roman glyptic art.

Speaking of the brooch, Helen Smith, head of jewellery at Hansons Auctioneers, said: 'What a find. The brooch is a miniature work of art, extraordinary and beautiful. It's so rare, I've never handled an example like it before.

'Collectors will be fascinated by its depiction of a gryllus, a mythical creature.'

The name Gryllus is derived from the Italic word 'Grillo meaning freak and the latin word 'Gryllus' for caricature.

Ms Smith continued: 'These fanciful creations were popular subjects in Ancient Rome and were often carved into gemstones.

'Though these grotesque depictions were amusing, they had more serious connotations.

'It was believed they protected whoever wore them against demonic spirits.

'It's a wonderfully intricate object. The carving depicts three conjoined heads, two classical figures and a wild boar's head.

'The cream ground highlights the dark and light intricacy of the carving. The attention to detail is incredible.

'The agate itself measures only 20mm x 17mm and is set within a later gold and pearl-set mount dating to circa 1840s.

'Agate stone symbolises strength, protection and courage. It's often associated with emotional stability, inner calm and self-confidence.

'So both the choice of decoration and the material used to make it may have been interlinked.'

Ms Smith added: 'A mythical beast to scare away demons made out of a material believed to calm the wearer.

'For any jewellery connoisseur this brooch is exceptional. It also acts as a reminder to reach into those dusty corners, empty those drawers and look under the bed.

'So often, these are where the best auction finds are made.'
A man was today jailed for more than four years for rape after taking his condom off midway through sex in a landmark legal case.

Guy Mukendi, 39, from Brixton, removed the condom without the woman's knowledge despite her only consenting to sex if he wore protection.

Non-consensual condom removal is sometimes referred to as 'stealthing' and is classified as rape under English law, although prosecutions are very rare due to under reporting.

The young woman made a report of sexual assault to the Met on May 9, 2023 and said she had consented to sex with Mukendi on condition that a condom was used.

Officers obtained texts of messages where he apologised for taking his condom off and claimed he did so because he had not had sex in a long time.

Guy Mukendi, 39, from Brixton, removed the condom without the woman's knowledge despite her only consenting to sex if he wore protection

The woman took screenshots of the messages before Mukendi deleted them.

He denied rape but was convicted and sentenced today at Inner London Crown Court to four years and three months in prison.

Detective Constable Jack Earl, who led the investigation, said: 'Throughout this investigation Mukendi denied any wrongdoing  but our officers built a compelling case against him to leave no doubt in the jury's mind.

'We were dedicated to securing justice for the victim and will continue to raise awareness that this crime is a form of rape.

'The victim did the right thing to call the police straight away and her bravery should not be overshadowed.

'If you have been a victim of sexual violence and not yet reported it  please contact your local police service and we will do all that we can to help and bring you justice.'

Kate Holmes, Head of Sexual Violence Helplines at Survivors Gateway, said, 'Survivors of sexual violence in London can contact the Survivor's Gateway on 0808 801 0860 to be connected with support.

'Our Navigators provide a confidential, non-judgmental space, and can make referrals for counselling as well as practical advocacy support.'
The mother of a premature baby girl today described making the 'hardest decision of her life' to turn off her daughter's life support and 'let her go' - three days after Lucy Letby allegedly tried to murder her.

The child, known as Baby K, had been born weighing just 1lbs 8oz, 15 weeks early at the Countess of Chester Hospital when her mother went into labour unexpectedly early, in February 2016.

By then, Manchester Crown Court heard, the former neo-natal nurse had already murdered five babies  three boys and two girls  and would go on to murder two more boys from a set of triplets a few months later.

The prosecution allege Letby, 34, was caught 'virtually red-handed' trying to murder Baby K by dislodging her breathing tube less than two hours after she was born.

They say a senior doctor spotted Letby alone with tot and 'doing nothing' to help as she collapsed in the early hours of a nightshift, when the nurse designated to care for her was away, updating her parents on her condition.

Letby denies attempted murder and not been charged in connection with baby K's subsequent death at a more specialist hospital, where she was moved around 12 hours after her birth.

Lucy Letby, 34, was convicted in August last year of the murders of seven babies and the attempted murders of six other infants

The former nurse is now on trial at Manchester Crown Court accused of the attempted murder of a baby girl, known as Child K, in February 2016

Lucy Letby is pictured in a court artist sketch during her re-trial at Manchester Crown Court

In a moving statement, which was read to the jury on the second day of the re-trial, Baby K's mother said: 'As we walked into the room I could see the monitors and sats readings were low. I knew straight away things weren't great.

'The doctor confirmed the worst. I asked if it was just a waiting game now or if she was going to get better. We had a long conversation and she said what happens next was entirely our decision.

'I remember saying to the doctor that she had been poked and prodded from the moment she was born, her tiny, little, delicate body had swollen up so much I didn't want her to be suffering any more.

'We didn't want to be informed that we'd lost our little girl by alarms on the machines going off, we didn't want to prolong things anymore.

'We made the decision to switch off the machines and let her go. It was by far the hardest decision of my life.

'One of the staff showed us to a family room where it was peaceful and quiet. Our daughter was wrapped in a blanket and was wearing a little hat. Our daughter was in my husband's arms when she took her last breath and silently passed away.'

Baby K's mother dabbed her eyes with a tissue as the statement was read to the jury. She and her husband are present in the public gallery, sitting just yards from Letby, who is in the glass-panelled dock, flanked by three security guards.

She committed the murders and attempted murders between June 2015 and June 2016 at the Countess of Chester Hospital, where she worked

The jury was told that, after being 'caught virtually red-handed' by senior paediatrician Dr Ravi Jayaram, Letby tampered with Baby K's breathing tube twice more over the next three hours on the same shift to cover her tracks and make it appear the child was prone to collapse.

Although Baby K was in the neo-natal unit of the Countess of Chester Hospital for less than 12 hours and Letby never knew her first name, she searched for her parents on Facebook more than two years later, the court heard.

Letby, formally of Hereford, denies attempted murder.

Her barrister, Ben Myers KC, told the jury she can't remember the night Baby K was born but she denies dislodging her breathing tube or causing her harm.

Neither the baby or her parents can be named for legal reasons.

The trial, expected to last around four weeks, continues.
Dozens of hikers have been left violently-ill after hiking through a remote part of the Grand Canyon.

Havasupai Falls in the Grand Canyon National Park, in Arizona, is one of the most sought after areas of the renowned park, but getting to it can be difficult.

Groups are now in some cases having to leave the picturesque area by helicopter after being struck down by a mysterious illness that leaves unable to hike out.

Maylin Griffiths is one of those who had to flee the remote area after falling ill while on a hike celebrating her 40th birthday last week.

'We had a lovely hike in, it was wonderful. We did early morning on the 6th, then set up camp - we had a wonderful campsite', she told AZ Family.

Havasupai Falls in the Grand National Park is one of the most sought after areas of the renowned park, but getting to it can be difficult

Maylin Griffiths is one of those who had to flee the remote area after falling ill while on a hike celebrating her 40th birthday last week

The birthday celebration quickly soured, after Griffiths started being violently sick, recalling: 'I was throwing up, and it then just got progressively worse and worse.'

Griffiths and one of her friends, who also made the hike, started to fall down with the illness also, with the two hiking several miles back to a village for help.

The two sought the help of a local doctor. Griffiths said: 'He discovered our temperatures were really high.

'Mine was 104 and friend was 105. We were violently ill. They were able to admit us to the clinic there because they considered it life threatening.'

Griffiths had to be airlifted out of the canyon by helicopter with more than 150 people there waiting in line - many of whom were sick too.

She added: 'My hope is that they close things down for a bit. I wouldn't want anyone to hike in and experience what I did, especially with the heat rising.'

Madeyln Melchiors also told the outlet that she had to use a mule to help her make it out with her camping gear after being struck down with illness on her trip.

She said: 'It was something I have never experienced before. Ended in the heat of the day which was terrible.'

Griffiths and one of her friends who also made the hike starting to fall down with the mysterious illness also, with the two hiking several miles back to a village for help

Griffiths had to be airlifted out of the canyon by helicopter with more than 150 people there waiting in line - many of whom were sick too

People on social media have also reported being sick with similar experiences like Griffiths.

While Wendy Rose Gould posted: 'Just got back from Havasupai today. It was beautiful, of course, but curious how many people got violently ill like myself.

'I was projectile vomiting for ~24 hours and had extreme nausea, diarrhea, and fatigue, as well. Many others were sick  at least 5-6 other people I ran into.

'The night I was sick I even had a vomit buddy by the bathrooms. Curious if this was possibly heat exhaustion or something viral. Be careful down there!!'

It remains unclear what is making hikers unwell, with the Havasupai Tribe Tourism Office saying the test the water regularly.

A notice released on social media said: 'The public water sources on the Havasupai reservation are tested regularly by the Havasupai Water Department.

'The last test of the Fern Spring was on June 6, 2024. The results confirmed the water from Fern Spring is safe for human consumption.

'The next water test of the Fern Spring will be conducted in 2 weeks. There is an excessive heat warning at this time.

It remains unclear what is making hikers unwell, with the Havasupai Tribe Tourism Office saying the test the water regularly

'The Havasupai Tribe reminds all tourists to properly hydrate before, during and after your visit to Havasupai.'

Griffiths added: 'I don't know that a consensus was medically confirmed but it felt like it was norovirus.

'Definitely some type of virus is what the doctors were discussing. My hope is that they close things down for a bit.

'I wouldn't want anyone to hike in and experience what I did, especially with the heat rising.'

In 2022, the National Park Service investigated what might have caused more than 100 people suffering from a stomach bug while visiting the Grand Canyon.
Miss USA insiders have leveled shocking claims against the pageant's president, claiming things in the organization were so dire the winner was left homeless.

The allegations come after the reigning winners of Miss USA, Noelia Voigt, and Miss Teen USA, UmaSofia Srivastava, resigned within days of each other.

The winners suggested in their public statements that they were mistreated by the organization but could not say more due to nondisclosure agreements.

The newly-revealed claims are focused on Miss USA president and executive director Laylah Rose, who last summer bought the rights to manage the pageant for an initial payment of $1.5million.

Pageant insiders told The New York Times that Rose was 'self-obsessed' and created a toxic work environment that left contestants feeling taken advantage of and unprotected.

The allegations come after the reigning winners of Miss USA, Noelia Voigt, right, and Miss Teen USA, UmaSofia Srivastava, resigned from their titles within days of each other

Noelia's mother said she had to pay her own way to accompany her daughter to the Miss Universe pageant after Rose did not go, citing a family matter.

The beauty queen was promised a $100,000 salary, a luxury car and an apartment in Los Angeles for the duration of her reign. However, the LA apartment never materialized, and Noelia, who had already moved out of her home in Utah, was forces to stay with friends.

While the prizes were advertised on the Miss USA broadcast, Rose told the NYT that only the salary was guaranteed.

It wasn't until March, Miss USA finally provided Noelia with a car and a place to live in Miami.

The newly-revealed claims are focused on Miss USA president Laylah Rose, who last summer bought the rights to manage the pageant for an initial payment of $1.5 million

In her internal resignation letter seen by the Times, Noelia cited the issue with the promised prizes and said the title had affected her health, causing her anxiety and forcing her to take medication to manage it.

Noelia also cited an incident where she claims she was sexually harassed during a Christmas parade in Florida when the driver of her car asked her if she was 'into old men with money.'

She said the organization failed to support her when she reported the incident.

In a 10-page response to Noelia's resignation, Rose accused her of carrying out a 'smear campaign' against Miss USA.

Miss Teen USA's UmaSofia's mom Barbara Srivastava told the Times said Rose could be 'abrasive' in emails to her then-16-year-old daughter.

The models' resignation was coordinated alongside the resignation of Miss USA social media manager Claudia Michelle (pictured, centre), who stepped down on May 3

Barbara Srivastava (left) and Jackeline Voigt have spoken out about their daughters' resignations from Miss USA and Miss Teen USA

Barbara said she eventually asked Rose to stop communicating with her daughter directly.

'I said, 'I don't want that woman bullying my daughter,'' she said.

Both Noelia and UmaSofia declined to speak to the Times, citing nondisclosure agreements they have signed.

Women who participated in Miss USA under Rose, meanwhile, said the content was like the 'Fyre Fest' of pageants, referencing the infamous failed music festival.

Miss USA and Miss Teen USA contestants were reportedly required to to sign a 25-page document that authorized the organization to conduct 'physical and mental examinations' of contestants and to request their medical records.

The mandatory document also covered the organization if they wanted to fire Miss USA in the case of 'facial or physical disfigurement.'

Users in the comments of were quick to point out that the first letter of each sentence in Voigt's (pictured) message spelled out 'I AM SILENCED,' insinuating that there was more to the story than the former pageant queen was allowed to say

The announcements sent shockwaves around the beauty industry, especially after fans noticed that the first letter of each sentence of Noelia's statement spell out, 'I AM SILENCED'

Meanwhile Claudia Michelle Engelhardt, who resigned as social media director for Miss USA in May, said Rose used the official Miss USA and Miss Teen USA to leave positive comments about herself that looked as if they were written by the beauty queens.

Noelia and UmaSofia's resignations last month left the longstanding pageant group without its top two titleholders for the first time in 72 years and drew calls for more transparency.

The former Miss USA announced her departure from the organization in an Instagram post , citing her decision to prioritize her mental and physical wellbeing.

'In life, I strongly value the importance of making decisions that feel best for you and your mental health,' she wrote.

'My journey as Miss USA has been incredibly meaningful, representing Utah with pride, and later the USA at Miss Universe. Sadly, I have made the very tough decision to resign from the title of Miss USA 2023.'

Users in the comments were quick to point out that the first letter of each sentence in Voigt's message spelled out 'I AM SILENCED,' insinuating that there was more to the story than the former pageant queen was allowed to say.

The sudden resignation of Miss Teen USA UmaSofia Srivastava (pictured) has prompted calls from former contestants to release former Utah representative Noelia Voigt of her NDA with the organization

'After careful consideration, I've decided to resign as I find that my personal values no longer fully align with the direction of the organization,' Srivastava's statement (pictured) read

Just two days after she gave up her title as the Miss USA representative, Miss Teen USA UmaSofia announced her resignation in an Instagram post, which looked eerily similar to Noelia's.

'After careful consideration, I've decided to resign as I find that my personal values no longer fully align with the direction of the organization,' her statement read.

The caption of the statement read, 'While this was certainly not how I saw my reign coming to a close, I am excited to continue my advocacy for education and acceptance, start applying to colleges, and share some exciting new projects.'

The 17-year-old thanked her family and fans, said she was glad to represent her state as a first-generation Mexican Indian American and noted she was eager to apply to colleges and work on her multi-lingual children's book.

A caption accompanying the statement said 'this was certainly not how I saw my reign coming to a close' but called the experience a privilege.
British tourists in Rhodes have described 'the whole airport shaking' in the wake of a 4.8 magnitude earthquake that hit the Greek island on Wednesday night.

According to the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC), the epicentre was detected in the Aegean Sea around 67km (41 miles) south-west of the island, which is a popular holiday destination for many Brits.

As the earthquake only recorded a magnitude of 4.8, it is understood that the rupture did not cause any severe damage to buildings but would have been felt by people on the island.

However, holidaymakers in a number of locations across the island took to X, formerly Twitter, to share how they witnessed the tremor.

One user shared how they had felt the 'whole airport shaking, prompting concerns from fellow travellers who had jetted away to other parts of the island.

A locator map shows Rhodes - which is the largest of the Dodecanese Greek islands - and nearby Karpathos

A file image shows the popular beach resort of St Paul's Bay

They continued: 'Yeah like the whole airport shook so quick outta nowhere, the walls and floor shaking. It felt weird and crazy'.

Another said: 'Just felt it in Rhodes in our hotel room'.

A third joked: 'Near Faliraki. Table was shaking on our hotel balcony. Thought Id had a few too many'.

A further comment read: 'Felt it in Gennadi! right down south!!'

Another individual on holiday said that they had felt the quake in LIndos.

The EMSC said that nearby towns such as Gennadi, Lardos, Archangelos and the island's eponymous capital of Rhodes may have felt weak shaking, while Greek media reported that the tremor was also felt in Turkey.

A spokesperson for the EMSC said: 'Our monitoring service identified a second report from the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ) which listed the quake at magnitude 4.9 as well.

'Based on the preliminary seismic data, the quake should not have caused any significant damage, but was probably felt by many people as light vibration in the area of the epicenter.'

Earthquakes are not uncommon on the Greek island, with a powerful 5.9-magnitude earthquake hitting Rhodes in January 2023.

Such was the force of that earthquake that tremors were felt as far away as Egypt and Lebanon.

Holidaymakers in a number of locations across the island took to X, formerly Twitter, to share how they witnessed the tremor.

The earthquake, with a depth of 16 miles, struck in the Aegean Sea about 36 miles southeast of Lindos.

It was also felt in the nearby Turkish provinces of Mugla, Izmir and Antalya as well as in both Crete and Cyprus.

The largest earthquake in Greek history hit Amorgos, located in the Cyclades archipelago, back in 1956, which measured 7.7 on the Richter scale and destroyed multiple buildings on the island.

53 people died with 100 more injured as a result of the disaster, which also resulted in a tsunami.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer apparently lost her connection on virtual media interviews at least two times.

In both instances, the Democrat said she could no longer hear the interviewers at the exact moment she was being pressed on some uncomfortable issues  including the Hunter Biden trial and criticism over her response on COVID-19.

Hunter, 54, was found guilty this week of three felonies related to a 2018 firearms purchase.

Whitmer is co-chair of President Joe Biden's 2024 campaign and is considered a voice for his reelection efforts.

She was on the shortlist to be his running mate in 2020. She was also considered someone who could be the Democratic presidential nominee in November in the instance Biden did not run for reelection.

Speaking with CNN on Sunday in a virtual interview, Whitmer claimed to start to lose her connection at the moment State of the Union host Dana Bash was asking her to respond to the guilty ruling against Biden's son.

Democrat Gov. Gretchen Whitmer of Michigan conveniently appeared to lose her audio connection during a virtual interview on Sunday when she was asked about the Hunter Biden gun trial

Hunter Biden was found guilty of three felony charges related to a 2018 firearms purchase where he lied about his drug use. Pictured: Hunter and wife Melissa Cohen Biden arrive at court on June 11

'Hunter Biden  he is on trial for obtaining and possessing a firearm while under the influence of illegal drugs, which was against the law. Republican Lindsey Graham says that 'an average American would not have been prosecuted for this,' Bash started but was cut-off by the governor.

'Dana, are you there?' Whitmer asked while a faint dialing noise could be heard in the background. She appeared to be looking at an aide off-camera.

'Yes, governor. Can you hear me?' Bash asked, before adding: 'Ok, it sounds like the governor can't hear me. We are going to take a very quick commercial break and get this fixed and we'll be right back. Don't go anywhere.'

Whitmer's state is vital for the 2024 presidential election.

Michigan is a swing state that went red for Donald Trump by a tiny 0.3 percent margin and swung blue for Biden in 2020 by a 2.8 percent margin.

Some users on X were quick to point out that Whitmer has 'lost audio' or been disconnected from interviews in the past at convenient times when she was facing tough questions.

Speaking with Fox 2 Detroit previously, Whitmer suddenly said she couldn't hear anymore when she was asked about her record on handling COVID-19 in Michigan.

Whitmer has previously said she lost audio connection during virtual interviews when being pressed on criticism of her policies  including the above interview with Fox 2 Detroit when she was asked about her record on handling the COVID-19 pandemic

'When it comes to your handling of the pandemic, we all know the critics over the last few years. Do you have any regrets and is this  ?' the anchor started to ask the governor in the virtual interview.

'I'm sorry,' Whitmer cut-in while touching the ear-piece and it appeared she or an aide off camera said: 'Oh, s***.'

'Can you hear me OK?' the anchor asked. 'You got me governor?'

'Did I do that when I touched the ear thing?' Whitmer asked to the off-camera aide, explaining: 'It started to fall out.'

'No, it's OK,' the aide replied.

As the governor of a purple state, Whitmer has gained widespread criticism for her COVID-19 pandemic response for being one of the most restrictive in the country.
President Joe Biden kicked off the G7 summit in Italy with a warm greeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who he kissed on the head and gave an odd salute.

Biden was the last of the world leaders to arrive, having landed in Italy's Apulia region Wednesday night.

The two shared a prolonged greeting, shaking hands and clasping each other's arms.

At one point, Biden even raised his hand to engage in a halfway salute to his counterpart, who is hosting this year's confab as rotating head of the gathering.

The Italian PM had to wait for Biden to arrive, after greeting other leaders. She appeared to tailor her greetings to the personalities and cultural expectations of her guests.

The Italian gave a more traditional greeting to Germany's Olaf Schultz and Japan's Fumio Kishida, while engaging in a long embrace with France's Emmanuel Macron.

When Biden was down, he slowly walked down the short steps to gather with other leaders for a group photo.

(It was at a similar event, the G20 in Hiroshima, where Biden nearly stumbled).

Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni welcomed President Joe Biden at the start of the G7 summit, being held in the Apulia region

The greetings come at an event where Meloni was uniquely strengthened by elections for the European parliament, with Biden and several others struggling at home.

Among the most endangered in the beleaguered group is British PM Rishi Sunak, who had his own very long greeting with Meloni, and who could lose power within weeks in snap elections he called.

Biden faces his own electoral challenges. He is trailing Republican Donald Trump nationally and in key swing state polls, with a dangerously low approval rating. And while his rival was convicted in Manhattan in the Stormy Daniels case, Biden's son Hunter was convicted in Delaware on Tuesday on gun charges.

The leaders still have details to hammer out on the agenda.

Biden is set to sign a deal with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky intended to commit the U.S. to a decade of military support  a move that could pressure rival Donald Trump if he takes the White House.

At one point the president gave a kiss on the head to the Italian leader

Meloni grabbed a moment to snap a selfie

Biden is joining the business meetings, but is not expected at Thursday night's dinner

Meloni surprised some of her critics by backing European support for Ukraine even after campaigning on a right wing platform

Meloni's hand was strengthened by conservative party gains in European parliamentary elections

Swan song: British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (L) faces snap elections in weeks

Meloni gave stage directions not just to Biden but to other leaders after she greeted them

The move is a key 'deliverable' of Biden's G7 meetings set to begin in the Apulia region of Italy Thursday. The president arrived last night, and meets one on one with Zelensky before the two leaders are set to hold a joint press conference Thursday evening local time.

'We want to demonstrate that the U.S. supports the people of Ukraine, that we stand with them, and that well continue to help address their security needs not just tomorrow but out into the future,' White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One en route to the annual confab.

'This is a big deal,' he added Thursday. He called it a 'real marker of our commitment, not just for this month, this year, but for many years ahead, to continue to support Ukraine, both in defending against Russian aggression and in deterring future aggression.'

The bilateral deal would not have the strength of a treaty ratified by the U.S. Senate, so Biden or any successor could withdraw from it.

But it would still present a barrier should Biden's Republican successor retake the White House. It is one of several efforts considered in Congress to try to 'Trump-proof' elements of the established order.

It comes after Biden was able to push through a $60 billion measure to aid Ukraine after overcoming prolonged opposition from Republican lawmakers in Congress. Trump heads to Capitol Hill Thursday to meet with Republicans who currently control the House and are in position to potentially seize control of the Senate in the November elections.

Trump's White House tenure featured an angry impeachment clash triggered in part over a split within his administration over withholding military aid to Ukraine amid accusations by Trump allies of corruption in the country.

Moscow launched its latest invasion of Ukraine in 2022, dramatically esacalating its 2014 invasion of the Donbas region.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meets Biden on Thursday

Biden's visit will include a meeting with Pope Francis on Friday

Another deal emerging from the G7 meetings is an agreement to provide Ukraine with a $50 billion loan amid its territorial losses to Russian forces.

The money comes from interest on $300 million in seized Russian assets  and gets around opposition from within the alliance to using those funds.

Details were still being worked out and administration officials were loath to confirm earlier reporting on the outlines of the deal. But the funds could reach Kiev by year's end.

Sullivan told reporters Thursday morning that progress was likely, but he stopped short of offering guarantees on Russian sovereign assets and other issues.

'I think were teed up for success in that regard  well have to see how the next two days unfold,' he said.

Sullivan stopped short of promising immediate success. He said it wouldn't come today, and said leaders were on 'the verge of a good outcome.'

'I think we will have the major tent poles of this decided,' he said, with some of the specifics yet to be resolved.

The diplomatic slog through arcane financial architecture comes at a summit where Biden and fellow G7 leaders will meet at an elegant medieval style village at Borgo Egnazia (although local police protecting them complained of dirty water and torn mattresses on the 'Goddess of the Night' tour ship that has been housing them.

All of Hunter Biden's children are accompanying the president on the trip, which comes as the family is still processing Hunter's guilty verdict and Biden has yet to speak publicly on it.
Naomi Biden is relaxing with husband Peter Neal in Italy after her devastating testimony in dad Hunter's gun trial last week.

The couple joined President Joe Biden on his trip for the G7. They hitched a ride on Air Force One along with Naomi's sisters Finnegan and Maisy.

The Bidens' oldest granddaughter on Thursday posted a photo of Neal and an unidentified male friend at the luxury seaside resort where the president is staying. She is not visible in the shot.

Calling it 'mis amores!!!' (Italian for 'my loves'), the photo shows Neal and the friend sitting on lounge chairs, a plate of fruit nearby. It appears to be taken near a swimming pool. Olive trees are in the background against a lush, blue sky.

The Biden clan is staying at the luxurious faux medieval resort town Borgo Egnazia that has hosted the likes of Justin Timberlake and Madonna. Timberlake married actress Jessica Biel there in 2020.

Naomi Biden posted a photo of husband Peter Neal and a friend in Italy

A developer constructed the entire town, modeling it on a 15th century village. It features modern pools, rooms cost $1,000 per night and upwards, and views of olive groves, coastal scenes, and farmhouse chic interior settings, with suites going for $2,000.

There are even rescue donkeys on the property for the guests' amusement.

The total cost of the project was $160 million and took years to complete.

All of Hunter Biden's adult children are at the resort with their grandfather (first lady Jill Biden was never scheduled to attend the G7).

30-year-old Naomi testified at Hunter's trial.

She was called to testify on his behalf, where she painted a rosy picture of Hunter's sobriety in the lead-up to his October 2018 gun purchase over which he was charged.

But the prosecution read text messages between her and her father that contradicted what she said.

Naomi faltered under the ambush, saying: 'I don't remember any of this.'

She looked on the verge of tears, wiping one eye as she walked out after hugging her father.

She was dressed in all black, with a black jacket over dark, baggy clothes.

There has been speculation that she is pregnant with her now-husband Peter's child.

The couple have made no formal announcement but it was 'the talk of the state dinner' last month, according to sources in the room.

Naomi Biden (left) departs court on Friday alongside husband Peter Neal (right). The young couple are heading to the G7 with President Joe Biden and Naomi's sisters Finnegan and Maisy on the heels of their father's federal gun conviction

Borgo Egnazia is an entire medieval-style town and cost $160 million to build. It played host to Justin Timberlake's wedding to Jessica Biel

Naomi is said to be due before the November election.

It is unclear who is paying for the Biden family members to travel alongside the president to the high-stakes meeting abroad, but on previous foreign trips on board Air Force One family members have paid their way.

It is a quick trip. Biden is scheduled to depart on Friday night for Los Angeles, where Hunter lives.
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Welcome to DailyMail.com's daily US politics blog, with live coverage of Donald Trump's return to Capitol Hill and President Joe Biden's trip to the G7 in Italy.

The former president, 77, is back for the first time since the January 6, 2021, Capitol Riot, and will meet with House and Senate Republicans to set out his 2025 agenda.

His 81-year-old rival is in Italy meeting with G7 leaders, many of whom are facing elections or dwindling popularity back home.

Follow updates from our reporters in Italy and Washington D.C.
King Charles has been given permission to build a 25-acre luxury glamping site on his royal Sandringham estate in Norfolk.

The monarch can now add 15 'safari tents' to the Sandringham Estate Caravan and Motorhome Club Campsite - but they can only be used by 'short stay' holidaymakers.

The site which will play host to the tents boasting their own verandas and built-in barbecues is in the heart of the estate, about six miles from King's Lynn, and currently has 138 pitches including 11 tents.

Plans submitted to King's Lynn and West Norfolk Council have now been approved and allow King Charles to extend the site to create 28 new all-weather touring caravan pitches.

He can also expand to 12 camping pitches and 15 glamping safari tent pitches, as well as four premium pitches and two new accessible pitches.

King Charles can now add 15 'safari tents' to the Sandringham Estate Caravan and Motorhome Club Campsite after winning permission from King's Lynn and West Norfolk Council

He can also expand to 12 camping pitches and 15 glamping safari tent pitches, as well as four premium pitches and two new accessible pitches at the Sandringham estate (pictured)

The plans for the glamping site have been published on the local authority's website

He has received further permission to make improvements to existing pitches, as well as enlarge and refurbish the existing reception building and create two new toilet block buildings.

But the planning consent comes with the condition that the glamping tents can 'only be occupied for holiday purposes and shall be made available for short stay holiday accommodation' of up to 28 days per visit.

The letter from Stuart Ashworth, assistant director environment and planning at the council, says the glamping tents 'shall not be occupied as a person's sole or main place of residence'.

He added: 'The owners/operators shall maintain an up-to-date register of visits/occupation and shall make this available at all reasonable times to the Local Planning Authority.'

The council has also stated that vegetation clearance can only be done outside of the nesting bird season, which runs from March to August.

Alternatively, owners must 'otherwise follow an inspection no more than 48 hours before works commence, 'to confirm nesting birds are absent'.

If bats are discovered while the original toilet block is being demolished, then work should 'cease and advice should be sought immediately'.

The plans include modernising the reception area to include a shop and converting an existing pitch to allow for a pop-up takeaway van, which could provide an evening meal for members.

King Charles, pictured at Windsor Castle on May 3 this year, has been granted permission to make improvements to existing pitches at his Sandringham estate in Norfolk

A general view of Sandringham House in Norfolk (pictured)

The new glamping site will be created at the north corner of the site, within a wooded area, with a mix of different sized Safari tents, sleeping up to six people.

The tents will feature a decked area at the front, with a veranda, and a sofa, dining table and kitchenette inside.

The design and access proposal, submitted by The Caravan and Motorhome Club, states: 'These will be carefully positioned within the woodland so as not to damage the existing trees nor reduce the visual amenity of the site from neighbours.

It added: 'The Sandringham Estate Club Campsite is one of the most popular on the network and is often fully booked.

'The proposal is to extend the touring and camping facility to the south west of the existing site as the land lends itself naturally due to its topography and by being easily accessible from the existing road network.

'This area will be home to a mixture of all weather, serviced, premium and universally accessible pitches which will appeal to a wide range of visitors. The pitches are all at least 3m in separation to ensure that fire cannot spread between units.

'The proposed experience freedom village of 15 safari tents are to be built into the existing sloping gradient that will have its own woodland feel.

'The Caravan and motorhome club have been operating these types of accommodation for sometime and they have proved to be extremely popular with visitors who do not own their own caravans.

The Prince and Princess of Wales are pictured here attending church at St Mary Magdalene Church in Sandringham, Norfolk, on Christmas Day last year

The Sandringham estate's campsite has been described by council officials as 'one of the most popular on the network', being 'often fully booked'

A new maze was recently unveiled at the estate as part of the King's Sandringham makeover

'Sandringham is also an ideal setting for safari tents as they will blend into the existing landscape. The overall intention is to offer not only more pitching to enhance visitors to the site and surrounding area but to also offer a wide range of options that will further appeal to a wider demographic of visitors.'

The Sandringham site has been occupied since the Elizabethan era, when a manor house was built, which was replaced in 1771 by the Hoste Henley family.

In 1862, Sandringham and 8,000 acres of land was purchased for Albert Edward, Prince of Wales, later Edward VII, as a country home for him and his future wife Princess Alexandra of Denmark.

It has remained in the Royal family ever since and upon the death of Queen Elizabeth II, the house passed to King Charles III.

In 1977 Queen Elizabeth II opened the house up to members of the public to commemorate her Silver Jubilee.
David Cameron lashed out at 'foolish' Tory MP Craig Williams today as the aide to Rishi Sunak faced condemnation for placing a 100 bet on the date of the election.

The Foreign Secretary admitted it was too late to take the Conservative candidate for Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr off the ballot paper this close to the election.

Mr Williams is under investigation by the Gambling Commission for a wager on a July election placed four days before Mr Sunak announced the vote on July 4.

The Prime Minister's parliamentary private secretary today admitted to 'a huge error of judgement' amid calls for him to be thrown out by the Tories.

Using confidential information in order to gain an unfair advantage when betting may constitute a criminal offence of cheating under section 42 of the Gambling Act, the Commission said yesterday.

Asked about the row today, Lord Cameron told BBC Breakfast: 'His situation, having made this clearly very foolish decision, is that he's being investigated by the Gambling Commission, and they have considerable powers in terms of what the consequences could be, and I think we have to let that investigation take place.'

David Cameron lashed out at 'foolish' Tory MP Craig Williams today as the aide to Rishi Sunak faced condemnation for placing a 100 bet on the date of the election.

The Foreign Secretary admitted it was too late to take the Conservative candidate for Montgomeryshire and Glyndwr off the ballot paper this close to the election.

He said he was happy to have Williams run as a Tory, but added: 'All the nominations are in, and candidates are standing, and I don't think we can change that.

'In fact, it's very important that we don't make alterations, after these things have been set. But obviously, he's going to be investigated, and we'll have to face the consequences of that investigation.'

Mr Williams placed a 100 with Ladbrokes from within Montgomeryshire on May 19, backing a July election.

On May 22 Mr Sunak announced July 4 would be the date of the vote, outside No10. That would have landed Mr Williams 500. Ladbrokes raised the bet with the GC, which reportedly told No10 last week.

This morning he told the BBC: 'I clearly made a huge error of judgement that's for sure and I apologise.'

Liberal Democrat deputy leader Daisy Cooper said: 'Rishi Sunak must stop being so weak and call a Cabinet Office inquiry into this latest scandal. This inquiry is needed to get to the bottom of who knew what when, and uncover whether Craig Williams knew the election date at the time the bet was placed.

'The Conservative Party has been mired in endless sleaze and scandal for years and the British people are sick to their back teeth with it.
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The husband of an Aussie woman paralysed when a Singapore Airlines flight hit turbulence has slammed a compensation offer which he found out about on social media.

Singapore Airlines is offering passengers who suffered serious injuries $US25,000 ($37,567) and $US10,000 ($15,150) for those with minor injuries when the flight hit severe turbulence on May 21.

The flight plunged almost 2000m within a few minutes as it flew over Myanmar which left one man dead and 109 passengers and crew injured.

Adelaide dance teacher Kerry Jordan, who was travelling with her husband Keith Davis, broke her spine when she she was flung violently around the cabin.

She is yet to gain feeling from the waist down, still can't move her hands or fingers and may never walk again.

The airline claimed the compensation offer was issued to affected passengers on Monday.

But Mr Davis claimed he only found out about the comp offer two days later when friends sent the link on Facebook, which he described as 'a hell of a shock.'

The happy couple (pictured) were both injured on flight SQ321, with Kerry Jordan (right) suffering a broken spine after being thrown around the cabin after the flight flew into severe turbulence

Kerry Jordan (pictured with her husband Keith Davis) may never walk again and still cannot move her fingers and hands

The mother-of-one's husband said the company's compensation offer was 'beyond insulting' and has added to the couple's distress.

'It was quite a lot of distress for Kerry who is facing some enormous challenges,' Mr Davis told Seven News

'I expect they would provide adequate compensation for the whole of Kerry's life,' .

'It is a totally life-changing condition that's going to face her.

'We're just hopeful for small gains, her mobility is restricted to her arms and her neck and shoulders.'

Mr Davis added that Singapore Airlines chief executive Goh Choon Phong visited his wife in hospital and offered to visit her again before Ms Jordan declined.

He branded the airline's efforts to apologise to customers as 'an absolute joke'.

He also gave an update on his wife, who was in a 'stable' condition.

'Having said that, I could not have said that same statement two days ago. So it is a very much a daily situation,' he said.

The Singapore Airlines flight, which departed from London's Heathrow Airport and was scheduled to fly to Singapore, had 229 people on board, including 18 crew. One person died and 109 were injured in the incident

Kerry Jordan is yet to gain feeling from the waist down, still can't move her hands or fingers and may never walk again

The couple's lawyer, former senator Nick Xenophon is part of a legal team pushing for a better deal for injured passengers.

He believes the airline should be offering seriously injured passengers at least $US175,000.

'The Montreal Convention, which governs these incidents in the air, is very clear about what the caps are and what the damages ought to be,' Mr Xenophon said.

Singapore Airlines said in their statement the $25,000 payment is to cover 'immediate needs' and have invited passengers with serious injuries to 'discuss a compensation offer to meet each of their specific circumstances' when they are well enough to do so.

'(The $25,000) will be part of the final compensation that these passengers will receive,' it said.

Keith Davis, (pictured) only found about the airline's compensation offer on Wednesday when friends sent him the Facebook post

The company said all passengers' medical costs were covered, they were paid $1000 to meet their immediate expenses and flight costs were refunded for everyone on the flight - even if they were uninjured.

'All affected passengers should have received their offers of compensation via email, along with information on how they may proceed with their claims,' the airline said.

Singapore Airlines also declared it 'remains committed to supporting the affected passengers who were on board SQ321.'
An entrepreneur who founded a self-serve frozen yogurt chain has died at the age of 44.

Solomon Choi founded the 16 Handles franchise which grew to 40 locations internationally before he sold the business in 2022 during the pandemic.

No cause of death was listed for Choi in his obituary who died on Friday, with his death being announced by Neil Hershman, who bought his yogurt business.

Hershman said in a statement: 'We are deeply saddened by the unexpected passing of 16 Handles' founder and former CEO Solomon Choi.

'He was a visionary who came to New York City in his 20s and founded this iconic frozen dessert brand.'

Solomon Choi founded the 16 Handles franchise which grew to 40 locations internationally before he sold the business in 2022 during the pandemic

Hershman continued: 'Part of the mission statement for 16 Handles is to 'create moments of happiness.

'Our hearts go out to his family, friends and all those who loved him and worked with him during this incredibly difficult time.'

Choi is survived by his wife Hannah and their two children, seven-year-old Jubilee and four-year-old Joshua.

The couple met in 205 and were engaged shortly after meeting one another inside a 16 Handles location in Manhattan, New York.

Born in Seoul, South Korea, Choi moved to the US in the early 2000s where his interest in frozen yogurt grew.

In 2008, he founded 16 Handles in Manhattan's East Village, with the name referring to the 16 rotating flavors available at any time.

In 2019, he founded Jabba Brands to 'advise, invest and operate companies that improve the way people eat, drink and live harmoniously'.

Choi is survived by his wife Hannah and their two children, seven-year-old Jubilee and four-year-old Joshua

In 2008, he founded 16 Handles in Manhattan's East Village, with the name referring to the 16 rotating flavors available at any time

He had been scheduled to appear on a panel on Tuesday about the future of digital transformation in the limited-service segment, according to his LinkedIn.

His obituary said: 'Solomon was an outstanding example of a man driven by his purpose and faith in God and passionate about sharing the love of Christ with others.

'He led a Christian men's group and was committed to supporting and challenging those around him to be the best versions of themselves.

His loved ones said his 'legacy will live on forever,' and made note of his 'relentless optimism, his discipline & fearlessness, and his Michael Jackson dance moves.'
This is the bizarre moment a woman uses a man who appeared to be dead on a wheelchair to withdraw money from an ATM.

The cell phone video first made rounds on social last week and showed the woman placing her left hand behind the man's neck and then placing his right index finger over the scanner to record the fingerprint.

For a moment it seems that the scanner is having issues accepting the fingerprint and the woman proceeds to hold his arm while pressing his finger down.

The woman then notices that the man's head is tilted back and places her left hand behind the neck area for support while she presses the key pad.

She subsequently pulls out the money from the dispenser slot and places the cash inside her top just before the recording comes to an end.

A viral video showed the moment a woman used the body of a man who appeared to be dead to withdraw money from an ATM. The incident reportedly took place in Brazil although the police have not commented

The woman placed her left hand to support the man's neck from tilting back while she placed the cash in her top

The incident allegedly took place in Brazil, however, authorities have not commented on it.

Some social media users expressed doubts over the veracity of the video footage, claiming it was a prank that evoked memories of Erika de Souza, who in April wheeled the corpse of her uncle Paulo Braga, 68, into a Rio de Janeiro bank branch to attempted to withdraw a $3,250 loan.

De Souza, a 42-year-old mother-of-six, was caught on camera trying to give Braga water moments before she placed fingers on a pen to try to sign the bank document.

The bankers were worried with de Souza's behavior and called the police. Paramedics were dispatched to the bank and tried to revive Braga.

The woman reached back to stop the man's head from tilting back while she was trying to place his finger on the ATM to register his fingerprint and withdraw cash

Cell phone video footage capture the shocking moment a woman placed the finger of an alleged dead man on an ATM pad to withdraw money in Brazil

Investigators found that Braga had already been dead for about two hours because there were cadaver marks visible on his head.

'There is no doubt that Erika knew about Paulo's death,' Rio de Janeiro Civil Police chief Fabio Souza said in his findings.

'But as it was her last chance to withdraw the money from the loan, she entered the bank with the corpse, simulated for several minutes that he was alive, even pretending to give water, took the pen and held his hand close to the hand of Paulo's corpse.'

De Souza is being held in pretrial detention and is facing vilification of a corpse and attempted theft through fraud charges.
She has been nicknamed Sir Keir Starmer's 'reluctant First Lady'.

Instead of being accompanied by Lady Victoria Starmer to his manifesto launch today, the Labour leader sat next to cancer sufferer Nathaniel Dye and worked the room with his deputy Angela Rayner.

While she is ever-present on polling day and at Labour conferences, 'Lady Vic', as she is known fondly in party circles, has been missing from the election campaign completely.

The last major public event she attended with her husband appears to have been a state banquet at Buckingham Palace last November.

Party insiders have claimed that her absence is to protect the couple's children because they are 'completely freaked out by the idea of being in Downing Street and the public eye'. Their oldest son is also taking his GCSEs this month.

But some close to the Labour leader, branded a 'political robot' on the Sky News debate last night, believe that he would benefit from her support because his 'no-nonsense' and 'sassy' wife has no qualms about 'telling people about the real Keir'.

Her straight-talking was clear from their first meeting in around 2000 when she slammed down the phone after yelling: 'Who the f*** does he think he is?' By 2007 they were married.

Sir Keir and Lady Victoria attend Buckingham Palace for the State Banquet held in honour of South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol last November - the last public event they attended together. Insiders say she is focused on their children, one of whom is doing his GCSEs

Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer and deputy Labour leader Angela Rayner following the launch of his party's manifesto at Co-op HQ in Manchester today

Victoria pictured with Sir Keir during a count for the 2017 general election. She has become a more public companion of her politico husband in recent years - but she still remains reluctant to be in the limelight

Sir Keir and Victoria with his parents Josephine and Rodney, taken on their wedding day in 2007

Sir Keir and Lady Victoria clapping for key workers outside their home in London in May 2020. Lady Vic works in the NHS and will not give up her job if her husband becomes PM

In an inauspicious start to their relationship, Britain's prospective First Couple had an almighty row that ended with a shower of expletives from Mrs Starmer who then told him to get lost.

What sparked the cascade of swears? Her future husband asking if she was '100 per cent sure' her work was correct.

Sir Keir later told Vogue: 'It was absolutely classic Vic. Very sassy, very down to earth, no nonsense from anyone, including from me'.

Undeterred, he asked her down the pub to make up for his blunder. She gave him a second chance and fast forward to today they have been married for 17 years.

'Lady Vic' left law and retrained to be an occupational health therapist for the NHS in Camden, where they still live with their two teenage children.

Insiders have suggested that the shock election called by Rishi Sunak couldn't have happened at a worse time for the family because the couple's 15-year-old son is in the middle of his GCSE exams.

Last night Sir Keir gave a major hint about why his wife has stayed away, admitting that she had not wanted him to be a politician in the first place.

When he was accused of being a 'political robot', he said: 'She thought it'd be far better to continue being a lawyer on a reasonable salary and not have all of the challenges that you get as a politician.

'But I was clear in my mind, I wanted to come into politics because I wanted to serve my country.'

Labour has been quite clear that there will no interviews with Mrs Starmer before July 4.

And insiders have suggested that her absence is very much part of her husband's plan, especially if he is heading to No 10 Downing Street - although some believe it is a mistake.

A Labour MP told The Telegraph: 'It's a real shame. Sir Keir is principled, tough, strategic and determined  the kind of man who is a planner and will make an excellent prime minister. But the trouble is, he doesn't have the charisma for campaigning. He could really do with his wife telling people about the real Keir.'

Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer delivers a speech on stage during the launching of Labour Party election manifesto, in Manchester

Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer speaks with cancer sufferer Nathaniel Dye who is a music teacher and a musician

Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer and Angela Rayner, Deputy Leader speak with supporters

Asked about his biggest fear if he becomes prime minister, Sir Keir replied on the Sky News debate: 'The only real fear I suppose I have is for my family.'

He said his son is almost 16 years old and his daughter 13.

Sir Keir said: 'My only fear really is the impact it's going to have on them. That's why we never name them in public, never have a photoshoot with them, I want them to be able to walk to school and have their own lives.

'I don't fear the big decisions, in fact I relish the chance to change our country.'

One insider said that he wants privacy for his family, especially his children who are at 'really difficult ages'

The insiders said: 'They have got teenagers who are completely freaked out by the idea of being in Downing Street or in any way being in the public eye.

'It has got pretty heavy recently with children's shoes, representing the dead kids in Gaza, being left outside the Starmer house  Sir Keir is determined that his family won't be dragged into any of this.'

Earlier this month the Labour leader said his wife won't give up her work if he becomes Prime Minister.

He said of Victoria: 'She's absolutely going to carry on working, she wants to and she loves it. It's also good for me because it gives me an insight into the NHS.'

Sir Keir Starmer and his wife Victoria heading out to vote in north London in the May local elections

The pair share a kiss on stage during the 2023 Labour Party conference, also held in Liverpool

Victoria and Sir Keir walking into the 2022 Labour Party conference in Liverpool. She has not been afraid to be pictured in public - but is not seen as a typical 'political spouse'

It isn't the first time the potential future PM has spoken about his wife's work in the health service - despite her keenness to remain out of the limelight.

Sir Keir said he wanted his teenage son's education to be 'untroubled' by a potential move to No 10.

He said: 'Our boy is in the middle of his GCSEs. At the moment I just want to create the environment where he can get on with what he's got to get on with as untroubled as he can be.

'He's got 21 exams. My job is just to create space for him to get on with that.'

Unlike the incumbent prime minister Rishi Sunak's wife Akshata Murty - a multi-millionaire heiress to IT firm Infosys's $70billion (54.9bn) fortune - little is known of Lady Victoria Starmer.

Sir Keir himself has said that she 'has her own life and protects it vigorously' - as he told the Sunday Mirror.

However, she is not an invisible spouse, and regularly appears with Sir Keir at public events and Labour party conferences. She stood on the doorstep to clap for carers, and stepped out with her husband to vote in the May local elections.

Comparisons have been made with Sarah Brown, wife of one-time Labour PM Gordon - someone who was content to be in the background with their own interests to pursue outside of their spouse's politics.

Sir Keir met Victoria Alexander while the pair worked as lawyers. Their first contact was an awkward phone call that ended with her muttering 'Who the f*** does he think he is?' after he asked whether documents she had drawn up were accurate.

'(She) then put the phone down on me. And quite right too,' said Sir Keir in a 2020 Piers Morgan's Life Stories interview.

Undeterred, the future Labour leader asked her on a date to the Lord Stanley pub in Camden in the early 2000s, and they married in 2007.

Lady Victoria is seen regularly in public with her husband - including here at the Platinum Jubilee celebrations for the late Queen Elizabeth II in June 2022

The couple pictured here in Liverpool during the 2023 Labour Party conference

They now share a 1.75million Kentish Town home with their two children - a teenager named Toby and a younger daughter whose name has not been made public.

Lady Victoria is Jewish, and Sir Keir has said he tries to uphold the Shabbat tradition of Friday night dinners as often as possible - despite being an atheist himself.

He previously told the Mirror: 'She's a streetwise grounded, brilliant, gorgeous woman who wants as far as she can to get on with her own life and to protect it.

'She loves working for the NHS. She loves the team that she's working with.

'And she and I are doing our best to raise two happy and confident children and that matters hugely to us.'

Outside of her NHS work, she has also served as also a governor at her children's school in Camden borough. In short, she has plenty to be getting on with should her husband become the new tenant in No 10.

As one insider presciently told The Telegraph in 2021: 'If he ever gets into Downing Street, shes going to be very much leading her own life.'
One of Britain's worst paedophiles, who convinced nursery worker Vanessa George to abuse dozens of children, was today refused parole because he still has 'extreme sexual interests.'

Colin Blanchard, 53, from Rochdale, appeared before the Parole Board in a rare two-day hearing on May 29 and 31 and told the panel that he should be set free.

But the three person panel decided that Blanchard is still a danger and announced today that he will not be considered for release again until at least 2026.

In a damning written summary, the panel warned that the former IT expert was still 'deflecting' and 'minimising' responsibility for his offending and questioned whether Blanchard 'truly understood his extreme sexual interests.'

It wrote: 'He had developed a clear preference for prepubescent children and bestiality, with, in the panel's view, a fetish of parents having sex with their own children.'

Colin Blanchard, 53, convinced George to abuse 64 babies and toddlers in her care at Little Ted's nursery in Efford, Plymouth before sending him videos of the vile acts

The paedophile had convinced George (pictured) to abuse 64 babies and toddlers in her car

Under the heading 'risk assessment' it wrote: 'Mr Blanchard has accepted that he had a sexual interest in children and in bestiality. He discussed the difficulties he had faced at that time in his life, including in his relationship, and how extreme sexualised behaviour gave him relief and helped him to cope.

'He said that sex had become the most important thing for him at the time.'

In making its decision, the panel considered Blanchard's relationships with professionals in prison. It wrote: 'Concerns had been raised about Mr Blanchard's engagement with professionals.

'It was reported that Mr Blanchard can be forthright with professionals and there was some concern that he had tried to manipulate people.

'Mr Blanchard accepted that he could get angry and frustrated because he is reliant on the prison for everything in his life. He felt that he received little or no support.

'The panel accepted the professional evidence about Mr Blanchard's custodial behaviour and his engagement with professionals.'

The nursery worker cruelly refused to tell police the names of all her victims, leading to a decade of 'hell' for families

The summary continued: 'The panel noted that Mr Blanchard does not believe that he will offend again because he is of the view that he can now manage the triggers to his offending.

'He believes that the work he has completed in prison has helped him to address this. The psychologist instructed by Mr Blanchard's legal representative supported his release on licence and felt that he had insight into his offending behaviour and could be safely managed in the community.

'All other witnesses did not support release.'

It added: 'The panel examined the release plan provided by Mr Blanchard's probation officer and weighed its proposals against assessed risks. The plan included a requirement to reside in designated accommodation as well as strict limitations on Mr Blanchard's contacts, movements and activities.

'Mr Blanchard would be subject to extensive monitoring by probation.

'The panel noted that there was a lack of clarity over Mr Blanchard's ability to openly discuss future risk situations. The panel considered that the release plan would be heavily reliant on the external controls of supervision and licence conditions.'

In an unusually detailed decision summary it stated: 'After considering the circumstances of his offending, the progress made while in custody and the evidence presented at the hearing, the panel was not satisfied that release at this point would be safe for the protection of the public.

'The panel noted that Mr Blanchard caused very serious harm to victims through his offending. The panel considered his sexual interests to be pervasive. Mr Blanchard told the panel that he no longer experiences extreme fantasies.

'The panel accepted that this may be true, however, it only had Mr Blanchard's word to support this. The panel was concerned that he is not prepared to acknowledge that these feelings may come back and he had not worked on strategies to help him manage his own risk if this were to happen.

'The panel determined that there would need to be greater certainty that Mr Blanchard can manage himself safely and that he fully understands his risks and triggers. He will be eligible for another parole review in due course.'

During his sentencing at Bristol Crown Court in 2011, Blanchard was described as a 'Svengali' figure at the centre of one of the 'most sickening paedophile rings this country has ever seen'

Blanchard was handed an indeterminate sentence in 2011 for sex abuse charges and told he would serve a minimum of nine years. So far, he has been behind bars for a total of 12-years.

The paedophile had convinced nursery worker George to abuse 64 babies and toddlers in her care at Little Ted's nursery in Efford, Plymouth.

She shared videos of her attacks with Blanchard and was jailed for seven years and released in September 2019.

Blanchard had originally been given a one day hearing on February 8 but, as MailOnline revealed, it was adjourned at the last minute due to the complexity and sensitivity of the appeal.

The decision to give the hearing an extra day was taken to ensure that the panel could thoroughly question Blanchard, who will give evidence via a video link from a closed prison.

He was buoyed by extra time given to the hearing as he believed his behaviour in jail and the number of courses he'd undertaken to address his sex offending meant he has a good chance of being recommended for release on licence.

The former IT worker is currently being held at Category C HMP Wymott, near Leyland, Lancaster, which has specialist facilities for housing sex offenders.

The two-day hearing reflected the high profile of the case, which made national headlines after Blanchard was described at his trial as a perverted 'svengali' who persuaded a number of women to abuse children for his own personal pleasure.

During his sentencing at Bristol Crown Court in 2011, Blanchard was described as a 'Svengali' figure at the centre of one of the 'most sickening paedophile rings this country has ever seen'.

Blanchard persuaded a string of middle-aged women he met on Facebook to abuse children for his sexual pleasure.

Angela Allen and Tracey Lyons, who were both jailed for their roles in the ring, have already been released from prison.

Police uncovered their activities only when Blanchard forgot to log out of his personal email account and his business partner spotted images of child abuse at the firm in Manchester.

Police officers outside Little Ted's Child Day Care Unit in Laira, Plymouth, after it was closed

After sentencing, Detective Constable Andy Pilling, of Greater Manchester Police, said: 'Blanchard is the common link between all these women.

'However, no one should be under the misapprehension that they were somehow forced into abusing children  they willingly took part.'

Families of the many young victims were allowed to write statements about Blanchard's potential release.

George cruelly refused to tell police the names of all her victims, leading to a decade of 'hell' for families.

Blanchard's last appeal was in 2020 when it was rejected.
Harry Dunn's furious family have said they will 'forever feel bitterly disappointed' in their son's killer Anne Sacoolas, after she failed to turn up to his four day inquest.

Mr Dunn was hit by Ms Sacoolas in August 2019, after she drove her Volvo on the wrong side of the road in Northamptonshire leading to the fatal head on collision.

However, 19 days after the incident she successfully managed to leave the UK under diplomatic immunity laws, as she is married to a CIA operative.

Speaking at court today, Mr Dunn's mother, Charlotte Charles, reiterated her 'disgust' at Sacoolas's and the US Embassy's decision not to attend the inquest - labelling it 'disrespectful' to her son and adding that it would 'forever leave us feeling bitterly disappointed in her'.

She said: 'We have come to the end of our huge fight. Does it bring closure to our loss? I don't think that ever happens.'

Adding: 'It further bolsters my opinion that they [US government] have no regard for myself or my family, our wider family - they just don't care.'

Sacoolas had been driving on the wrong side of the road for 20 seconds before she hit Mr Dunn (pictured) outside RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire

Harry Dunn's mother Charlotte Charles is seen arriving at the Old Bailey in London on December 8 last year for the sentencing of Anne Sacoolas

Harry Dunn's father Tim Dunn alongside his wife Tracey Dunn holding tissues after his second funeral in March 2024

Anne Sacoolas (pictured) insisted she was a 'safe driver' and was driving 'like an American' on the day she careered into the teenager's oncoming motorbike outside an RAF base

The family of Harry Dunn were told Anne Sacoolas was willing to attend the inquest remotely provided their lawyer did not ask questions.

Sacoolas's evidence was delayed twice during the inquest in Northampton, after eleventh hour talks were held to further invite her to attend.

The Dunn family were told that the 45-year-old could have potentially agreed to give live evidence, but only on the condition that questions came only from the coroner and not the family's lawyer Patrick Gibbs KC.

Family spokesman Radd Seiger said the parents rejected the proposal.

Speaking about the last-minute talks, Mr Seiger said: 'What on earth were they thinking of?

'Who would seek to restrict a grieving family's opportunity to understand how their son died in that way.

'This appeared to us to be yet another attempt to have Mrs Sacoolas do things in our justice system that suited her.

'As much as the family wanted to hear from her, they are principled people and believe in doing things according to the rules.'

The family of the teenage motorcyclist said that they are now looking forward to working with 'the next government to establish this public inquiry', after it was announced that Labour had promised the family a fresh inquiry into how Sacoolas was able to leave the country under diplomatic immunity.

Anne Sacoolas (pictured) was driving the car that killed Mr Dunn. She was then a member of the US Intelligence Community and the wife of a CIA operative

The US State Department asserted diplomatic immunity on behalf of Sacoolas and she was able to leave the UK 19 days after the fatal collision which killed Harry Dunn (pictured)

His family also accused the US government of 'obstructing' the inquest into his death.

Spokesman for the family Radd Seiger expressed his outrage today at the US government's handling of the situation claiming that they think 'lives of UK citizens like Harry's ultimately do not matter'.

Northamptonshire coroner Anne Pember also criticised the US government over a lack of training for diplomatic personnel at RAF Croughton before Mr Dunn's death.

She recorded his death as being as a result of 'injuries sustained during a head-on collision' with a car on the wrong side of the road.

Ms Pember also issued three prevention of future death notices: two to the Health Secretary regarding drugs carried by paramedics and overstretched ambulance services, and one to the Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence addressing the US's training of drivers in the UK.

Sacoolas appeared before a High Court judge at the Old Bailey via video-link in December 2022, where she pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving.

She was advised against attending her sentencing hearing by her employer, which prompted the family to say they were 'horrified' that the US government was 'actively interfering in our criminal justice system'.

Harry Dunn, 19, was killed in the collision outside an RAF base in Northamptionshire in 2019

Harry Dunn's mother Charlotte Charles and his twin brother Niall Dunn embrace at the second funeral

Drive on left arrows on the road outside RAF Croughton on October 2019

Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb handed her an eight-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months.

Addressing the US government's role prior to Harry's death, Mr Seiger said: 'It was not enough for them to kill Harry. It wasn't enough for them to then kick Harry's family in their darkest hour and seek to deny and delay the justice that they were entitled to.

'As we have all seen this week their attitude and approach to keeping their British hosts safe has been laid to bare and they have positively obstructed the Coroner's inquiry and deprived the family of the answers they were entitled to as to why no-one has ever addressed the issue of safety of UK citizens.

'The next question is why have the UK governments over the years been happy to sit on the sidelines watching this scandal unfold.

'This Tory government have refused to get involved. Labour have promised us a public inquiry into the way we were treated and the failure on the part of both governments over the decades to address the issue of safety which has led to thousands of people being killed and seriously injured.'

He continued: 'The UK government have also now seen how the US government treats our courts and judges.

'The question for the next British government is are they just going to stand by and let the Americans continue to treat us all and our lives with such contempt.

Charlotte Charles (left) the mother of 19-year-old Harry Dunn, with stepfather Bruce Charles arrives at Westminster Magistrates' Court in 2022

'The US ambassador at the time of Harry's death was Woody Johnson. He told the UK government after he died that there were far more important things than Harry's life.

'That is the American government's position. The lives of UK citizens like Harry ultimately do not matter.

'We won't let them get away with it and we look forward to working with the next government to establish this public inquiry.

'We were all horrified as a nation to see how the US government treated Harry's family. This must never happen again.

'The American national anthem ends land of the free home of the brave. They haven't demonstrated an ounce of bravery at all preferring to run, hide and obstruct.'
A female motorcyclist who had been reported missing in Central California was found dead near the 5 Freeway in Los Angeles County on Wednesday.

Harley Davidson motorcycle rider Rita Flasch was found dead after the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department was reportedly contacted regarding a 'critical missing' biker on Tuesday evening.

Reports had emerged that a rider traveling down a canyon road had careered off a cliff.

She was reported missing on social media.

A Facebook group called 'Bikers4Fun' made a post which read: 'Our friend Rita Flasch is missing since Monday...She was last seen leaving a Chevron station in Castaic, CA (on surveillance camera at 12:26pm). She was by herself (riding her 2022 Burgundy Harley Heritage) and another truck...was about 30 minutes behind her.'

Pictured: Rita Flasch, who was found dead after plunding 300 ft down a cliff while riding her motorcyle

Flasch's loved ones have taken to social media to pay tribute to the female biker, who was reported missing on Tuesday after she failed to turn up when she had plans to meet a friend. Her body was found by authorities in an embankment by authorities

According to the post, Flasch was meant to meet up with a friend but never showed.

When officers arrived at the suspected crash site at around 7.30 am on Wednesday morning, they found Flasch down an embankment.

She was pronounced dead at the scene by the LA County Fire Department, according to KTLA.

She was located after her cell-phone location was pinged.

The cause of the crash remains unclear, but it appears that the rider went off the road, and collider with an electrical tower before plunging around 300 feet down the embankment.

But Flasch's loved ones and fellow motorcylists have been quick to pay tribute to the rider.

A friend of Flasch's said she 'always had a bubbly personality with an infectious smile and laughter' in a Facebook post.

Another social media post said: 'There are no real words to express how I am feeling...She was one of the first people to welcome me into the neighborhood and work. She went out of her way to invite me to places, dinners, and to have fun. She could plan a get-together like no one I had ever met and followed through all the way. She was a gracious host and a great friend. She never showed up empty-handed and would roll up her sleeves to help out. To all that are mourning her too early, undeserving, and tragic departure, I join you in your sorrow. Rest in Peace, Rita Flasch.'

According to one of her friend's on Facebook, Rita was from Hungary.

Members of the motorcyclist community have organised a memorial ride on Saturday to say their farewells to Flasch, where the group will drive to the site of the crash.
The arrest of a black man on a busy Chicago street sparked fury among onlookers after a black woman insisted a white man could not film it because her rights are 'different' to his.

The white blogger headed to the scene near North Wells Street on Wednesday afternoon after a police radio scanner tweeted about an off-duty officer being assaulted by a man in a Dodge Charger.

He pulled out his phone after finding three white officers arresting the dreadlocked driver who was not resisting, but found a different subject when a female onlooker demanded he stop filming and accused him of racism.

With the arresting officers looking on in bemusement, he told her he knew his rights and suggested that she should know hers.

'Oh, I know my rights, and my rights are different from yours,' she shot back. 'You want to know why? Because that's a black man, and you're a white boy.'

The white blogger was filming the arrest of a black suspect by three white police officers

One of the onlookers then turned to him and demanded he put his camera down: 'Stop exploiting him, what are you doing? You're going to exploit black people?' she said

The blogger, who goes by the X handle @ASPARAGUSJCRU, had been alerted to the incident by this tweet from a police radio scanner

The angry confrontation erupted when the smartly dressed woman spotted her fellow onlooker with his camera out.

'Stop taking a picture,' she demanded.

'Stop exploiting him, what are you doing? You're going to exploit black people?'

Whipping out her phone, she said: 'You get ready to exploit black people so let me exploit yo ass.

'Let me exploit you, you racist piece of s*** because I'm going to put you everywhere, because I bet you I've got more followers than you.'

As the confrontation escalated, she appeared to suggest that the blogger's camera work was also infringing the rights of the now-four white officers arresting the black suspect.

'You want to exploit a black man. You want to exploit these police officers doing whatever they're doing. What if it was your brother? Because you don't care,' she asserted.

'Do you know the constitution, ma'am?' the blogger asked her?

'F***. You,' she replied emphatically.

'You can record things,' he pointed out.

'His Constitution don't mean s*** to you,' she growled. 'His rights.'

'Know your rights,' the man told her, prompting her to angrily insist that her rights are different to his.

'I know my rights, and my rights are different from yours,' she told the blogger. 'You want to know why? Because that's a black man, and you're a white boy.'

Another onlooker stepped forward in a bid to calm things down, telling the blogger 'You got the right to record, you go ahead it's ok'

The arresting police officers looked on in bemusement as the argument unfolded next to them

The blogger is now looking forward to seeing his adversary make good on her promise to post footage of the encounter

The blogger, who identifies himself as James on X, found himself at the center of an online storm when he passed footage of the encounter to the Chicago Contrarian website.

'Where did this arrogance and entitlement come from?' demanded one poster after they uploaded it to X.

'Notice how she inserts her racism by calling that grown man a White boy,' added a second.

'The last minute inclusion of exploitation of officers, was quite the audible,' wrote a third.

An intervention from a black onlooker did little to calm the situation as he appealed to the pair to 'keep the peace.'

'Look you got yo footage?' he asked the man.

'You got the right to record, you go ahead it's ok, though look..'

'You're a white boy, and you're exploiting our lives,' the woman broke in. 'You don't care? I know you don't care.'

'Don't commit crimes,' the blogger told her.

'That is not a f***ing crime,' she hit back. 'You don't know what he's doing.'

'I saw it on Twitter,' he pointed out.

Some online admired the woman's spirit, with one writing: 'I hope she approaches those teens with that same energy that are up to no good downtown too!

'Respect to the guy who came in to break it up though,' another wrote.

More than 250,000 people have seen the footage in less than 24 hours after it was posted to X by the Chicago Contrarian website

While a third simply noted that 'Karen's come in all colors, shapes and sizes'.

James is now looking forward to seeing his adversary make good on her promise to post footage of the encounter.

'Do you think I'm going to get cancelled?' he asked.

'I really didn't do anything that crazy but in today's world you never know.'
A shocked day-tripper was left feeling spooked after an eerie visit to Hampton Court Palace ended in a close encounter with the 'ghost' of Catherine Howard.

Harrison Hopkins, 23, captured chilling footage of the 'apparition' during a day out with his girlfriend Charlie at the historic Royal palace.

The spine-tingling 10 second video shows a teenage girl wearing a white Tudor-style dress standing just yards away from him in King Henry VIII's wine cellar.

The girl terrifyingly looks directly towards Harrison in the footage and appears to be screaming.

Harrison, who works as a film stagehand, says he was unaware of the spooky presence at the time but made the eerie discovery when he looked through his videos and photos when he returned home.

Harrison Hopkins, 23, was spooked after spotting what he believes to be an 'apparition' of Catherine Howard at Hampton Court Palace (pictured)

The film stagehand from Berkshire is convinced Henry Viii's fifth wife - who was beheaded for adultery at the age of 19 haunts the halls of the historic palace (pictured: Lauren McQueen as Katherine Howard)

He is convinced the footage shows Henry VIII's fifth wife who is said to haunt the corridors of the stately home which dates back to the early 16th century

Catherine was beheaded at the Tower of London in 1542, aged 19, for adultery and treason.

Harrison, from Finchampstead, Berks said: 'I was shocked when I saw it. I couldn't believe it.

'When I took the video I didn't see anything - there was nobody there.

'When I watched it back for the first time my heart went. I thought 'Oh My God'.

'Families go with children to Hampton Court but we would have remembered a girl in white staring straight at the camera.

'I zoomed in and her face seemed to deteriorate and change which made me realise it can't just be a girl. She is dressed in a gown that they used to wear in those days.

'I took a few screenshots of it. She looks like a teenager but as her face changes in one of the photos when she is screaming she looks like an old woman and then she appears to turn into a skeleton.'

Harrison insists the unedited footage was taken on his iPhone 14 at 1.52pm while sunlight was shining through the window - but the footage shows the room in complete darkness.

'Before walking into the cellar a massive gust of wind hit me and I got goosebumps. Literally as that happened I turned a corner and we were there,' he said.

The spine-tingling 10-second footage seemingly shows a young girl in a white Tudor-style dress

'I zoomed in and her face seemed to deteriorate and change which made me realise it can't just be a girl,' he said

'I opened my phone and started videoing and taking photos. What is really weird is that the video showed the room in complete darkness when it was light.

'The photos have come out showing the room as it was but in the video it is really dark with the girl lit up. It really is spooky.

'I have really analysed it and I just can't understand why it came out as being dark on my phone. It was very weird.'

HENRY VIII'S SIX WIVES Catherine of Aragon: Five infants stillborn or died just after birth. Only survivor was Mary. Marriage ended in divorce - and split with Rome - in 1533. Anne Boleyn: One surviving child, Elizabeth. Had at least two miscarriages - including a boy lost after four months. Executed for treason in 1536. Jane Seymour: Married Henry in 1536. Produced his only male heir Edward. Said to be Henry's favbourite, she died 12 days after the birth in 1537 at the age of 29. The King felt she was his 'first true wife'. Anne of Cleves: Queen from January to July 1540, aged 24. Marriage was never officially consummated and subsequently annulled. She was given a generous settlement. Catherine Howard: Married 1540, aged around 15. Found Hentry repulsive and had an affair with a courtier, who was Henry's cousin. She was executed for adultery in 1542 Katherine Parr: Married at 31 in 1543. Remarried six months after Henry died in 1548 and became pregnant for the first time in her mid-30s. Advertisement

Harrison said that he wanted to visit the cellar after a similar experience as a child.

He added: 'I had been to Hampton Court only once before when I was about six or seven.

'We went into that cellar and my dad took a photo of me and my sister. When we looked at the photo there appeared to be a grey figure behind us.

'Unfortunately my dad lost that camera years ago.

'We decided to visit Hampton court as I thought it would be interesting to have a look around.

'I had what had happened before in the back of my mind when I went with my girlfriend which is why we went to look for the cellar which is near the historic kitchens.

'After I took the video my dad went back and spoke to the staff and they could not come up with any explanation for it. They were shocked when he showed it to the people there.

'There's been different opinions from friends I have shown. Some just haven't believed it. Others say it's just a bad quality video but a lot of people have been very creeped out about it as well.'

After carrying out research Harrison firmly believes the supposed apparition to be the beheaded wife of Henry VIII - Catherine Howard.

He said: 'The girl in the video looks the same age as Catherine Howard when she died.

'Watching the video back was creepy. I've also had a nightmare about it where the ghost was directly in front of me screaming and I couldn't move.

Spooky ghost stories began emerging at Hampton Court as far back as the Victorian era - with numerous reported sightings of Henry VIII's fifth wife.

Hampton Court Palace (pictured) has become renowned for it's ghostly sightings over the centuries

Chilling tales of the spirit of Catherine Howard (pictured) running across the halls date all the way back to the Victorian era

When she was arrested at Hampton Court, it is claimed the terrified teenager broke free of her guards, running along what is now known as the 'Haunted Gallery' screaming.

Crying out to her King for mercy, Catherine never reached Henry, who was praying in the chapel.

And so the story goes, she was dragged away - and never saw her husband ever again.

It is believed that her anguished ghost now repeats this heart-breaking journey, screaming and haunting her final home for eternity.

In 2015 bus driver Trevor Tye, 45, also claimed to have captured Catherine's beheaded ghost on camera.

He took a routine photo on the marble staircase and spotted the figure of a young woman standing eerily in the public entrance.

Mr Tye claims he sent the picture to the palace, which informed him that a security guard had spotted the ghost of a young woman or girl in the same spot on more than one occasion.

Mr Tye, from York, said: 'I didn't even realise I had caught anything unusual until I got home and a friend looked at some of my pictures and said 'who is that girl?'

'I couldn't believe it as the room was completely empty when I took the picture so I know that there is no way it is someone in the shot.

'I have had the picture examined by experts and everyone has said the picture has not been tampered with at all, so for me the only explanation is that it is a ghost.'

Catherine isn't the only wife of the bloody Tudor King to haunt the halls, as some have reported sightings of his beloved Jane Seymour (pictured)

However Catherine isn't the only wife of the bloody Tudor King to haunt the halls of Hampton Court - supposedly his most favoured wife Jane Seymour has also been spotted.

Hampton Court Palace's website says: 'Stories persist today that at least two of Henry VIII's wives haunt Hampton Court Palace: his beloved third wife Jane Seymour who died after giving birth in 1537 and most famously, his fifth wife Catherine Howard, executed for adultery in 1542.'

The website explains that in the early 20th century, the darker episodes of palace history were retold for 'enjoyable chills' after the Victorians discovered that 'terror sells tickets'.

It says: 'Ghostly legends grew until visitors expected an ectoplasmic encounter around every corner.'

Mysteriously, the palace goes on to ask whether there are more to 'the spooky sightings than we like to think'.
Highest court ruled plaintiffs did not have standing to bring mifepristone case

The Supreme Court upheld access to the abortion pill mifepristone and rejected a lawsuit that would have impacted abortion access nationwide.

It is the conservative court's first major decision on reproductive rights since it overturned Roe v. Wade, ending the constitutional right to an abortion nationwide in 2022.

Mifepristone is used in more than half of abortions in the United States and has been used by more than 5.6 million women since its approval in 2000.

The case FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine involved a group of anti-abortion medical professionals who filed a lawsuit attempting to block access to the drug.

However, the country's highest court ruled that the pro-life plaintiffs in the case did not have standing to bring their lawsuit.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the decision for a unanimous court, handing President Biden a major victory as his administration works to ensure access to abortion.

Mifepristone is one of drug used in the medication abortion process and is used in more than half of all abortions in the U.S. More than 5.6 million women have used mifepristone since it was approved in 2000

The ruling is a major setback for the anti-abortion groups.

Pro-life plaintiffs in the case had raised issue with the Food and Drug Administration approval of the drug more than 20 years ago.

'Here, the plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate that FDAs relaxed regulatory requirements likely would cause them to suffer an injury in fact,' Kavanaugh wrote.

'For that reason, the federal courts are the wrong forum for addressing the plaintiffs concerns about FDAs actions. The plaintiffs may present their concerns and objections to the President and FDA in the regulatory process, or to Congress and the President in the legislative process,' he continued.

The ruling keeps mifepristone widely available, but it also leaves the opportunity for future lawsuits to be brought.

The court heard oral arguments in the case in late March, and the majority of the court appeared poised to reject blocking access or further restricting the commonly used abortion pill.

The case looked at actions taken by the FDA to relax restrictions around the pill in 2016 and 2021, making it easier to obtain nationwide as many states have moved to further restrict abortion since Roe fell in 2022.

The United States Supreme Court has a six-three conservative majority. Justice Brett Kavanaugh (second row, second from right) wrote the unanimous decision for the court

The Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine first challenged the FDA in the conservative U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas on a number of grounds in November 2022.

Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk on April 7, 2023 sided with plaintiffs and attempted to block the FDA approval of mifepristone. But the Justice Department appealed the decision to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

In August 2023, the Fifth Circuit court ruled to reinstate some of the pre-2016 restrictions but not to remove the drug from the market, and a Supreme Court stay remained in place.

Leading up to the decision, abortion rights advocates warned the Supreme Court decision could have national implications.

Abortion has been a galvanizing issue since the Supreme Court overturned the landmark decision of Roe v. Wade and returned the issue of abortion rights to states.

Anti-abortion protesters outside the Supreme Court on June 13 as the mifepristone decision came down

Abortion is expected too be a top issue in the 2024 presidential election after the overturning of Roe v Wade played a pivotal role in the midterms

Mifepristone is used in more than half of all abortions in the United States.

The anti-abortion group Susan B Anthony Pro-Life America said the ruling is 'deeply disappointing.'

'The stakes of elections are higher than ever for unborn children and their mothers,' said SBA Pro-Life America President Marjorie Dannenfelser.

Democrats and pro-abortion rights groups celebrated the decision but warned the door remains open for future cases to restrict abortion access and the abortion pill.

'I have both relief and anger about this decision,' said Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights.

'Thank goodness the Supreme Court unanimously rejected this unwarranted attempt to curtail access to medication abortion, but the fact remains that this meritless case should never have gotten this far,' she said.

Pro-abortion rights protesters gathered outside the Supreme Court carrying signs and chanting as the court heard oral arguments in March. They warned the case wouldn't just impact abortion access in states that have banned abortion but all 50 states including those that have expanded access

Anti-abortion rights protesters gathered with signs focused on the health of women and argued 'abortion pills kill' as the country's highest court heard arguments

Research by Guttmacher Institute, a pro-abortion rights research organization, found medication abortions in the United States made up 63 percent of all abortions last year.

Medication abortion is more accessible than procedural abortion. In 2021, 40 percent of facilities that provide abortions only offered medication abortions.

The use of telemedicine and mailing of abortion pills has also increased over the past few years. In 2020, only 7 percent of all providers used telemedicine and mailed abortion pills. In 2022, 31 percent were mailing abortion pills.

While 14 states have near-total abortion bans since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022 and more than a handful of additional states have implement additional restrictions on abortion ranging from six to 18 weeks, multiple states that still have some abortion access have further restrictions on medication abortion.

Despite the FDA relaxing rules to allow additional medical practitioners like physicians assistants and nurse practitioners to prescribe abortion pills besides doctors, 15 states have laws requiring it to be provided by a physician according to tracking by Guttmacher.

They also found at least five states require patients have an in person visit with a physician and at least one state, Arizona, has banned the mailing of abortion pills.
Israeli soldiers have launched fireballs into Lebanon using a medieval-style trebuchet.

Footage appears to show IDF soldiers firing the trebuchet right next to the Lebanese border as it fires the flaming projectile over the border, right into Lebanese plantations.

'This is a local initiative and not a tool that is widely used,' the military told Israeli state broadcaster KAN News.

'The area on the Lebanese border is characterised by boulders, thickets, and dense thorn vegetation, which poses a challenge to the IDF troops deployed in defense,' the IDF added as a reason for launching the fireballs.

The trebuchet was commonly used during the Middle Ages in sieges involving castles and other fortified locations, with large stones and projectiles being launched at enemy lines.

Israeli soldiers have launched fireballs into Lebanon using a medieval-style trebuchet

Footage appears to show IDF soldiers firing the trebuchet right next to the Lebanese border as it fires the flaming projectile over the border, right into Lebanese plantations

'The area on the Lebanese border is characterised by boulders, thickets, and dense thorn vegetation, which poses a challenge to the IDF troops deployed in defense,' the IDF added as a reason for launching the fireballs

Another video posted to X appears to show an IDF soldier as she shoots a flaming arrow over the border to Lebanon.

This comes as Lebanon-based terror group Hezbollah said it had launched rockets and weaponised drones at nine Israeli military sites in a coordinated attack today.

The attacks were carried out in retaliation for an Israeli strike on Tuesday that killed a senior Hezbollah field commander.

A security source told Lebanon it was the largest attack waged by Hezbollah since October, when the group started exchanging fire with Israel in parallel with the Gaza war.

Hezbollah said in a statement it had fired volleys of Katyusha and Falaq rockets at six Israeli military locations. Its Al-Manar television reported more than 100 rockets fired at once.

Hezbollah's statement said it had also launched attack drones at the headquarters of Israel's northern command, an intelligence headquarters and a military barracks.

A security source told Reuters that involved firing at least 30 attack drones at once, making it the group's largest drone attack to date in the eight-month-old war.

The Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel have been trading near-daily fire since the eruption of the Gaza war in October, but the last two days have seen a sharp rise following the Israeli strike that killed the Hezbollah commander.

Smoke is seen following over border attacks from Lebanon, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, close the Israeli border with Lebanon, on its Israel side, June 13, 2024

Israeli firefighters work following rocket attacks from Lebanon, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, near the border on its Israeli side, June 13, 2024

Two men stand by a truck as they watch smoke plumes rising from a fire in a field after rockets launched from southern Lebanon landed near the outskirts of Katzrin in the Israel-annexed Golan Heights on June 13, 2024

Israeli strikes have killed more than 300 Hezbollah fighters in Lebanon - more than it lost in 2006, when the sides last fought a major war, according to a Reuters tally.

The number of civilians killed is around 80, the tally says. Attacks from Lebanon have killed 18 Israeli soldiers and 10 civilians, Israel says.

The exchanges of fire have also displaced tens of thousands of people on both sides of the border.

'Diplomatically or militarily, peace will be returned to our north. Israel will defend itself. There should not be any doubt about this whatsoever. This [situation] cannot be a sustained reality,' Israeli government spokesperson David Mencer said.

G7 leaders meeting in Italy said in a draft communique that they were very concerned by the situation on the Israel-Lebanon border.
Jeremy Corbyn is facing a hard fight to hold onto his Commons seat in the face of a powerful effort by Labour to unseat its former leader.

Allies of the 75-year-old hard Left icon fears the race for Islington North, the seat he has held since 1983, is 'neck and neck'.

Mr Corbyn is running as an independent in the north London constituency after being blocked from representing Labour for failing to apologise for comments about anti-Semitism.

If he was to lose to Labour challenger Praful Nargund it would strike a blow to the party's remaining left faction and strengthen successor Keir Starmer's hand yet further.

Sir Keir continued his efforts to kick the Corbyn years into touch today, after being heckled by a climate protester at the launch of the Labour election manifesto.

Sir Keir, who is no stranger to being interrupted by protesters, told the activist from Green New Deal Rising that Labour 'gave up on being a party of protest five years ago, we want to be a party in power'.

It was a snark aimed at Mr Corbyn's reign, which ended after the party's 2019 election disaster.

The 75-year-old hard Left icon fears the race for Islington North, the seat he has held since 1983, is 'neck and neck'.

Sir Keir continued his efforts to kick the Corbyn years into touch today, after being heckled by a climate protester at the launch of the Labour election manifesto.

The i newspaper reported that Corbyn campaign sources believe it is a two-horse race between Mr Corbyn and Cllr Nargund.

One told the newspaper: 'According to our data and projections, if enough supporters of Jeremy and his politics join the campaign and knock on doors, we will win.

'But there is a real risk of the Labour candidate sneaking a victory if supporters stay at home on the assumption that Jeremy can win without them.

'While we've had good numbers so far, we need more volunteer power to compete with Labour's resources.'

Mr Corbyn had remained a Labour Party member, despite being kicked out of the parliamentary party in late 2020 over comments he made about a probe into anti-Semitism under his leadership.

This meant that technically he could still be picked as a party candidate. But Sir Keir Starmer blocked his attempts to be chosen until he apologised for what he said.

Instead Mr Corbyn announced last month that he would stand as an independent, a move that saw him automatically expelled from Labour.

He had a majority of 26,188 at the 2019 election when running as a Labour candidate and becomes the first former leader to run against the party since Ramsay MacDonald in 1931.

He has unveiled a left-wing manifesto which includes banning all nuclear weapons, the introduction of universal basic income and a wealth tax, and reparations to countries that were former British imperial territories.

Mr Corbyn today hit back at Sir Keir's claim that he did not think Labour would win the 2019 general election.

In an interview with Beth Rigby on Sky on Wednesday, Sir Keir was questioned over his support for his predecessor in 2019 and his subsequent attempts to distance the party from Mr Corbyn.

Sir Keir said he was 'certain' Labour would lose the election but made 'no apology' for backing Mr Corbyn at the time.

It comes after Sir Keir said the Conservatives have built a 'Jeremy Corbyn-style manifesto' that will 'load everything into the wheelbarrow' without explaining how to pay for it.

Speaking to the PA news agency, Mr Corbyn accused Sir Keir of 'double standards'.

He said: 'Well, he never said that to me, at any time. And so I just think rewriting history is no help.'

Mr Corbyn added: 'It shows double standards, shall we say, that he now says he always thought that, but he never said it at the time, or anything about it.

'He was part of the campaign. He and I spoke together at events and I find it actually quite sad.

'Get over it and get on with it. He was in the shadow cabinet, he was at the Clause 5 meeting. Both those meetings unanimously agreed the 2019 manifesto, and he was there.'
England's 'most patriotic estate' has had to cut back on flags this year due to the cost-of-living crisis, with locals saying the price of patriotism has skyrocketed.

Locals on the Kirby Estate in Bermondsey, southeast London, say their homes have been decked out with fewer flags this year after the price soared up from 33p to over 3.

Chris Dowse, who organises the decorations during international tournaments, says that despite cost difficulties everyone has done their best to gather as many flags as possible.

The 45-year-old said: 'They are just so expensive now. When we started doing it we would go to the pound shop and buy 20 of them at a time, and we wouldn't think anything of it. But now with these prices it's like blimey, we can't afford that.

'We used to get them on a deal for 33p each, then it shot up to 3 a flag, and now they are even more expensive. It is really disheartening.

Locals on the Kirby Estate in Bermondsey, southeast London, say their homes have been decked out with fewer flags this year after the price soared up from 33p to over 3

The Kirby Estate has unveiled a new mural to a local boy, England and Crystal Palace winger Eberechi Eze

Mr Dowse says despite the financial troubles the community refuse to accept any external money for the flags and take great pride in funding it themselves'

'Over the years the flags have been damaged so we need to keep replacing them. We need at least 200 flags, and at 3 a pop we can't ask people here to pay that.

'There's no way that we weren't going to do something. We have done the best that we can.'

Mr Dowse says despite the financial troubles the community refuse to accept any external money for the flags and take great pride in funding it themselves.

He added: 'People are asking why we don't start a GoFundMe to get help for the flags but we have always done this ourselves. It will always be off our own backs.

'We definitely don't want any politicians to do it. Politics shouldn't be a part of this because everyone in this estate will have different opinions.'

Alan Putman, 54, agreed that the estate's love for the flags is going strong and the rising prices are the only cause of the decrease.

Mr Putman, who has lived in the estate for 16 years, said: 'I love them. I am very proud and passionate about the flags. And that is what it is all about.

'You have to be proud of your country. We wish the other estates would get involved. I don't understand why they don't.

'We used to buy the flags all the time for other people and other estates, but we just can't afford it anymore. It's too expensive.

'Now we have had to tell people that if they buy their own flags we will put it up for them but we can't buy them all one.'

The estate in south-east London has become famous for its impressive displays during international tournaments

Tugce Yildrim, 33, is supporting the Three Lions and her native Turkey in the Euros

Many other residents echoed that their love for the flags has not dampened

Rebecca Robins, 36, who has lived in the estate for eight years says that the combination of poor weather and rising prices is what has caused the flag shortage - not a lack of love for them.

She said: 'There are less this year. It is because of finances. It has been really difficult purchasing them all.

'The residents fund it ourselves and all chip in, but with the rising cost of the flags it's caused us to not be able to get as many as previous years.

'The flags we put up get quite a battering from the great English weather, so they need replacing a lot. It is not the lack of wanting to put them up, everyone is really keen, it's just the cost.'

Many other residents echoed that their love for the flags has not dampened.

Alice Mitten, 39, who has lived in the estate for 9 years, said: 'I love it. It makes people smile. I thought there were fewer this year.

'Every day when I come home from work and see the flags it makes me smile so much. It just makes me so proud to be English.

'I put money towards it. I think they have done really well considering the price rises. They put so much time and effort into it. It is a shame that they have gone up so much in price.'

Local Paula Ribolla, 21, added: 'I think they are a nice reminder and they motivate the residents. It makes everyone want to cheer for England.

'There are less than normal, probably because of the cost-of-living crisis. I appreciate that they are still doing all the flags, even when the price keeps going up.'

A local man walks past the new Eze mural on a brick building on the estate

The 25-year-old Three Lions star was born and raised just down the road in Greenwich

After living in the estate for five years Miss Ribolla says she is now encouraged to take part, stating: 'Maybe I will buy some now to try and pitch in.'

The Kirby Estate has also unveiled a new mural to a local boy, England and Crystal Palace winger Eberechi Eze.

The 25-year-old was born and raised just down the road in Greenwich.

On the decision to honour local boy Eze, Chris Dowse said: 'It was going to be Harry Kane but we decided not to do that because one he's already got one.

'Around London Bridge, there's a mural of him, Bukayo Saka and Gareth Southgate. When we looked into it, Eze was born and raised in Greenwich and played for Millwall as a youngster.

'He's a local lad and we believe that given the chance he's going to smash the Euros. I think he's going to be one of those rough diamonds that is going to shine through.

'I always think we are going to win it. We go in with hope, that's the England way. But yet again, we have the best squad on paper. We will see how it goes.

Writer Peter Gordon, 54, who lives on the estate, said he loved the flags.

Patriotic locals say the flags are a great way to foster community spirit

He said: 'It's not exclusionary and has a bit of cheeky rivalry with the Scottish flag and Turkish flags about.

'It's good for locals to see, especially with the connection to Eze who is from around here. It's all very much community based and that's great. It reclaims the flag for the people.'

Tugce Yildrim, 33, is supporting the Three Lions and her native Turkey in the Euros.

She said: 'I've lived here for three years and it's really nice. I live with my sister and my nephew who is five and he really enjoys it.

'We are originally from Turkey so we put the Turkish flag up as well because we will be supporting them and England.

'And it's just different. It makes our estate stand out from the others around here.'

Long-term Kirby Estate resident Winston Peckett, 83, also said he loved the decor.

He said: 'I love it. The flags are really nice and they give a good vibe to the place. I am originally from Jamaica and have lived here for 12 years but it livens up the estate.'
Cops in El Salvador can be seen setting fire to $67 million worth of cocaine in video footage released by the country's Attorney Generals Office.

The government said its military seized two boats transporting 2,699 kilos of cocaine about 1,000 miles off the Pacific coast south central department of La Paz last month.

The marines intercepted one vessel transporting 1.3 kilos of cocaine on May 19 and another with a shipment of 1.4 kilos on May 24.

The drugs were taken to a forest in the town of Ilopango, east of San Salvador, the capital, and set ablaze on Monday.

A Drug Enforcement Administration spokesperson told DailyMail.com that each kilo could have fetched between $18,000 and $19,000 in the United States.

A dark cloud of smoke hovered over a forest near San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador, on Monday after authorities set 2,699 kilos of cocaine on fire

El Salvador's marines participated in an operation that led to the seizure of 1.4 kilos of cocaine on May 24, approximately 1,012 miles off the Pacific coast south central department of La Paz

The drug traffickers were identified as Ecuadorean nationals Miguel Lopez, 24 and Cristian Mero, 26; Oscar Torres, 44, and Johnson Renteria, 51, both of Colombia.

Mexican nationals Alejandro Trias, 28, Joel Armento, 54, and Eduardo Contreras, 32, were also taken into custody.

All seven men were placed in pre-trial detention as part of the investigation.

The Attorney Generals Office didnt say where the drugs were being transported to and which drug trafficking organization it belonged to.

In the video, the kilos were covered in plastic and featured special labels, including Corona and Patek Philippe logos. It's tactic used by drug cartels to identify their product.

A Salvadoran law enforcement official inspects the cocaine packages before they were set on fire on Monday

Many of the cocaine packages featured Corona beer logos - a tactic used by drug traffickers to identify their product

The government of El Salvador set fire to 2,699 kilos of cocaine worth $67 million dollars on Monday. The drugs were seized off two shipments that were busted by the military in the Pacific Ocean on May 19 and 24

The massive cocaine shipment's burning comes after three men from Ecuador were busted sailing on a vessel with a shipment of cocaine worth $25 million on June 4 in the same region.

While the worlds cocaine supply comes out of Bolivia, Peru and Colombia, transnational drug trafficking organizations depend on maritime routes to ship their product.

Maritime drug busts accounted for 89 percent of the seizures in 2021, according to the United Nations Office for Drug and Crime.

El Salvador seized 3.18 tons of cocaine in 2023 in different operations.
Ukrainian civilians resorted to drinking from puddles and radiators batteries as Russian forces used ruthless starvation tactics during their 85-day siege of Mariupol City, a new report has revealed.

Mariupol was one of the first cities to come under attack when Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine and was under a blockade between February and May 2022.

Experts have now concluded that Russian troops intentionally used the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare during the siege, the Global Rights Compliance has claimed in a new report published Thursday.

The international human rights foundation said a 12-month investigation revealed a 'pattern' of Russia attacking 'critical civilian infrastructure' to prevent Ukrainians from having access to energy, water, food and distribution points, and healthcare.

Investigators allege the Kremlin also obstructed humanitarian evacuation routes and prevent the distribution of aid to trapped civilians as part of a 'ruthless plan to starve the city's population into submission'.

Ukrainian civilians resorted to drinking from puddles and radiators batteries as Russian forces used ruthless starvation-tactics during their 85-day siege of Mariupol City from February to May 2022, a new report has revealed. Pictured is a Russian soldier in Mariupol on June 13, 2022

Mariupol was one of the first cities to come under attack when Putin launched his invasion of Ukraine and was under a blockade between February and May 2022. Pictured: An explosion in an apartment building that came under fire from a Russian tank in Mariupol on March 11, 2022

Mariupol came under attack in the opening weeks of Putin's war with Russian forces deliberately attacking energy infrastructure as early as February 27, 2022, a 76-page report released Thursday has claimed.

Investigators allege that Moscow struck a power line, blacking out half of the city, and then carried out a four-day shelling that cut power and gas to over 450,000 residents as winter temperatures reached -12.4C.

The attack neutralised water pumping stations, investigators have claimed, which cut off access to heating and drinking water.

Citizens were then forced to melt snow for drinking water and in some cases drank radiator water or street puddles to avoid dehydration, the report stated.

The Global Rights compliance, along with international lawyers, open-source intelligence researchers and arms and munitions experts, carried out a 12-month investigation and analysis into 85-day siege in Mariupol.

Investigators analysed more than 1.5 billion square metres of satellite imagery, photographs, videos, official public statements, and other digital data that was collected between May 2022 and February 2024.

Analysts have since concluded Russian forces would 'deliberately attack and destroy' infrastructure to cripple civilians' access to critical resources and aid, while 'simultaneously denying them access to organised evacuation routes'.

Experts have now concluded that Russian troops intentionally used the starvation of civilians as a method of warfare during the siege, according to a new Global Rights Compliance report. Pictured: Aftermath of a Russian airstrike on a maternity hospital in Mariupol on March 9, 2022

Pictured: The destroyed Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) building in Mariupol, Ukraine, on May 21, 2022

Pictured: Rubble of a collapsed tram depot in Mariupol, Ukraine on May 21, 2022

Kremlin forces would treat city blocks as military targets and made 'no effort to mitigate risk to civilian life or objects', the report claimed, further alleging that troops damaged and destroyed 90 per cent of the city's residential homes during the siege.

Ukraine set up distribution points across the city to provide citizens with access to basic necessities, but these also fell under Russian attack, according to the report.

At least 22 supermarkets were damaged or destroyed during the siege despite reportedly having been established distribution points.

Ninty per cent of healthcare facilities in the area were also struck during the blockade, with all 19 of the city's hospitals having been impacted by end of May 2022.

In one attack investigated by the team, satellite imagery revealed that there was a 'clear presence of hundreds of civilians queuing' at the distribution point at the Neptun Swimming Pool Complex just days before it was attacked.

Similarly, investigators allege Russian forces attacked the Mariupol Drama Theatre, where several hundred people were residing, despite signs in Russian indicating children were inside.

Analysis has determined the signage was 'clearly visible from the altitude range from which Russian warplanes would have dropped the involved ammunition and unavoidable to surveying flights', the report states.

Service members of pro-Russian troops wait atop an armoured personnel carrier before the expected evacuation of wounded Ukrainian soldiers from the besieged Azovstal steel mill in the course of Ukraine-Russia conflict in Mariupol, Ukraine on May 16, 2022

A member of the Ukrainian Territorial Defence Forces looks at destructions following a shelling in Ukraine's second-biggest city of Kharkiv on March 7, 2022

Pedestrians walk past a destroyed car following a shelling in Ukraine's second-biggest city of Kharkiv on March 7, 2022

Russian authorities, apparently seeking to justify these attacks, claimed these areas had been overtaken by Ukrainian forces, but analysts found a 'lack of evidence of any legitimate military targets'.

The report also finds that throughout the siege, 'efforts to alleviate the suffering of civilians were severely obstructed, with agreed-upon evacuation routes and humanitarian corridors subjected to airstrikes and shelling'.

Catriona Murdoch, Global Rights Compliance Vice President and Director of the Starvation and Humanitarian Crisis Division, said: 'The present report further captures the broader narrative of the siege through the patterned lens of attacks against objects indispensable to survival (OIS) of the civilian population - electricity, heating, drinking water, food, and medical care.

Naomi Prodeau, international lawyer on the Starvation Mobile Justice Team and co-author of the report: 'It does so because - in the aggregate - the seemingly isolated attacks against OIS, when paired with associated violations and crimes related to the weaponisation of humanitarian aid, the denial of humanitarian access and humanitarian evacuations, filtration, and arrests of humanitarian actors, reveal a deliberately calculated method of warfare carried out by pro-Russian forces who intentionally employed several starvation tactics as a means to an end.'

G7 agree 39billion loan package for Ukraine using frozen Russian assets as collateral

Leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies have agreed to engineer a $50billion loan to help Ukraine in its fight for survival. Interest earned on profits from Russia's frozen central bank assets would be used as collateral.

Details of the deal were being hashed out by G7 leaders at their summit in Italy. The money could reach Kyiv before the end of the year, according to US and French officials who confirmed the agreement before a formal announcement.

Here's how the plan would work:

Where would the money come from?

Most of the money would be in the form of a loan mostly guaranteed by the US government, backed by profits being earned on roughly $300 billion in immobilised Russian assets. The vast majority of that money is held in European Union nations.

A French official said the loan could be 'topped up' with European money or contributions from other countries.

A US official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the agreement said the G7 leaders' official statement due out Friday will leave the door open to trying to confiscate the Russian assets entirely.

Leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies have agreed to engineer a $50billion loan to help Ukraine in its fight for survival

In this photo provided by the Ukrainian Emergency Service, emergency workers clear the rubble as they search for victims after a Russian missile hit the area, in Kryvyi Rih, Ukraine, Wednesday, June 12, 2024

Why not just give Ukraine the frozen assets?

That's much harder to do.

For more than a year, officials from multiple countries have debated the legality of confiscating the money and sending it to Ukraine.

The US and its allies immediately froze whatever Russian central bank assets they had access to when Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022. That basically was money being held in banks outside Russia.

The assets are immobilized and cannot be accessed by Moscow, but they still belong to Russia.

While governments can generally freeze property or funds without difficulty, turning them into forfeited assets that can be used for the benefit of Ukraine requires an extra layer of judicial procedure, including a legal basis and adjudication in a court.

The EU instead has set aside the profits being generated by the frozen assets. That pot of money is easier to access.

Separately, the US this year passed a law called the REPO Act - short for the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians Act - that allows the Biden administration to seize $5billion in Russian state assets in the US and use them for the benefit of Kyiv. That arrangement is being worked out.

A police officer inspects the rubble of a private building hit by shelling, in Orikhiv, near the frontline in the Zaporizhzhia region, southeastern Ukraine on June 10, 2024

Rescuers and firefighters work at residential house after Russian air attack on June 7, 2024 in Poltava Oblast, Ukraine. The aftermath of a missile that fell at a residential house is seen, where a woman was rescued from under the rubble and hospitalised in a serious condition

A burnt-out car is seen outside a building damaged by the overnight Russian missile attack in the Novobavarskyi district of Kharkiv, northeastern Ukraine on May 31, 2024

How could the loan be used and how soon?

It will be up to technical experts to work through the details.

The US official said there are certain jurisdictions that prefer to send their money to help with reconstruction and others that prefer to earmark funds for military support.

President Joe Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said the goal is 'to provide the necessary resources to Ukraine now for its economic energy and other needs so that it's capable of having the resilience necessary to withstand Russia's continuing aggression.'

Another goal is to get the money to Ukraine quickly.

The French official, who was not authorized to be publicly named according to French presidential policy, said the details could be worked out 'very quickly and in any case, the $50billion will be disbursed before the end of 2024.'

Beyond the costs of the war, the needs are great.

The World Bank's latest damage assessment of Ukraine, released in February, estimates that costs for reconstruction and recovery of the nation stand at $486 billion over the next 10 years.

Damaged car lies amid rubble after Russian missile attack on May 31, 2024 in Kharkiv, Ukraine

Rescuers remove rubble from partially destroyed residential building after night Russian missile attack on May 31, 2024 in Kharkiv, Ukraine

The move to unlock Russia's assets comes after there was a long delay in Washington by Congress in approving military aid for Ukraine.

At an Atlantic Council event previewing the G7 summit, a former US ambassador to Ukraine, John Herbst, said 'the fact that American funding is not quite reliable is a very important additional reason to go that route.'

Who would be on the hook in the case of a default?

If Russia regained control of its frozen assets or if the immobilized funds were not generating enough interest to pay back the loan, 'then the question of burden-sharing arises,' according to the French official.

Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said last week that there were worries among European finance ministers that their countries 'will be left holding the bag if Ukraine defaults.'
He accepts his involvement but denies the charges as he is schizophrenic

On Oct 2022 Donovan Kenlyn assaulted three people on the Underground

An alleged Tube pusher has appeared in court charged with attempted murder after going on a 'spree of violence' against strangers on the London Underground.

On October 27 2022 at Baker Street Underground station Donovan Kenlyn, 39, 'chased and punched' Tube passenger Samer Jawad.

He would then go on a 35-minute 'spree of violence', as he got off a train at Finchley Road station and 'propelled' Angel Cambeiro onto the rails, narrowly missing the ones that were live.

He then travelled to nearby West Hampstead station where he struck a third complainant, Peter Acton.

None of the three men knew the defendant.

Donovan Kenlyn has denied attempted murder, causing grievous bodily harm with intent and assault occasioning actual bodily harm after a commuter was pushed into the tracks on October 27 last year

Angel Cambeiro was hit in the chest Finchley Road tube station and fell onto the tracks, but was helped up by other people

Mr Cambeiro reportedly fell within inches of the live track at the underground (file image)

Kenlyn accepts that he was involved in all three incidents but denies the charges because he was suffering with schizophrenia.

Judge Philip Katz KC told the jury: 'The physical actions aren't in dispute, this is a case where you will be considering mental health, at least'.

Opening the trial at the Old Bailey on today, prosecutor Michael Williams said: 'On the morning of Thursday October 27 2022, the defendant Donovan Kenlyn undertook a spree of violence against members of the public on the London Underground.'

He said the spree lasted 35 minutes and was 'without any known motive'.

He said: 'It is accepted on behalf of the defendant that he was the man who punched Mr Jawad, who caused Mr Cambeiro to fall onto the tracks, and who struck Mr Acton.'

Shortly after 10am, Kenlyn got on the Central Line at Hanger Lane Underground station, west London - the closest stop to his house at the time.

An hour and 20 minutes later he was seen on CCTV at Baker Street wearing a bobble hat and dark clothing.

Mr Jawad was visiting London and travelling to the station to meet a friend at nearby Regent's Park.

When he went to depart the Bakerloo Line train he 'felt a presence to his left' and saw Kenlyn who had not been on board until then, Mr Williams said.

The prosecutor said Kenlyn was 'furious' and started hurling 'aggressive abuse towards him for no reason', accusing him of 'saying something' including 'did you say black?'

The complainant ran down the platform and shouted 'I didn't say anything, I'm sorry', Mr Williams said.

Railroad tracks and platforms at Finchley Road Underground Station

He fell and CCTV footage played to the court showed Mr Sawad on the floor and Kenlyn punching him while he was on the ground.

Fellow passengers tried to intervene and the complainant again tried to flee, but Kenlyn knocked him down.

Mr Williams said that Mr Jawad suffered no significant injuries but it was a 'very frightening incident'.

Within nine minutes Kenlyn was at Finchley Road station - three stops away on the Jubilee or one on the Metropolitan line.

Mr Williams said Mr Cambeiro spotted Kenlyn 'looking aggressive' and walking towards him along the platform with a clenched fist.

The defendant raised his fist and the next thing Mr Cambeiro knew he was on the tracks with a dislocated and broken elbow, the prosecutor added.

Mr Williams said: 'Mr Cambeiro confirms that without the help of the staff and his fellow passengers he would have simply been unable to get back onto the platform, owing to the injuries in his right arm.'

Minutes later at West Hampstead station, Kenlyn ran into a carriage after Mr Acton and struck him, causing him to fall onto the seat dividers and fracture his ribs.

Kenlyn, of North Circular Road, Ealing, left the carriage after striking Mr Acton and by 1.45pm that day he had returned to the stop by his house.

Mr Williams said: 'Mr Acton got off at Finchley Road and reported what had happened to him, and of course there were then employees and police there dealing with what had just had happened at that station'.

Kenlyn is charged with attempted murder and assault causing grievous bodily harm with intent to Mr Cambeiro, of assault occasioning actual bodily harm to Mr Acton and assault by beating against a Mr Jawad.

He denies the charges.
Nancy Pelosi's daughter avidly denied Donald Trump's account that one of the former speaker's daughters had told him he and her mom would have been 'great' together in another life.

'Nancy Pelosis daughter is a whacko, her daughter told me if things were different Nancy and I would be perfect together, theres an age difference though,' the former president said in a meeting with House Republicans on Thursday, according to Punchbowl's retelling.

Multiple members confirmed to DailyMail.com that Trump had told the story of her daughter mentioning Pelosi and Trump would be 'great' together.

'Speaking for all 4 Pelosi daughters  this is a LIE. His deceitful, deranged obsession with our mother is yet another reason Donald Trump is unwell, unhinged and unfit to step foot anywhere near her  or the White House,' Christine Pelosi shot back to the comments on Twitter.

Nancy Pelosi 's daughter avidly denied Donald Trump 's account that one of the former speaker's daughters had told him he and her mom would have been 'great' together in another life

'Nancy Pelosis daughter is a whacko, her daughter told me if things were different Nancy and I would be perfect together, theres an age difference though,' the former president said in a meeting with House Republicans on Thursday

Trump visited Capitol Hill on the heels of his conviction of 34 counts of falsifying business records related to Stormy Daniels payments. He spoke with House Republicans at popular GOP member hangout Capitol Hill Club and will speak to Senate Republicans in the afternoon.

During the meeting, the former president also riffed about his opposition to Ukraine aid, told Republicans they need to get better at messaging on abortion and his love of tariffs.

He made light of the feud between Speaker Mike Johnson and Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene asking the Georgia Republican if she was 'being nice' to the speaker.

The GOP conference started the meeting by singing Trump Happy Birthday - he turns 78 on Friday.
A married love-rat businessman who contacted prostitutes on iMessage is taking Apple to court over the 5million he lost when his wife divorced him after she found the 'deleted' texts on the family iMac.

Richard, not his real name, said he had started meeting prostitutes in the later years of his marriage, speaking to them over iMessage. After agreeing to meet them, he would delete the messages, believing that they would never resurface again.

But to his horror, when his wife clicked on iMessage on the linked family iMac, it showed the last message he had sent to another person's iPhone was to a prostitute.

When she delved into the messages further, she uncovered several years' worth of messages to prostitutes which her husband thought would never appear again, The Times reports.

After unearthing her husband's trail of his infidelity, she filed for divorce within a month.

Richard, not his real name, said he had started meeting prostitutes in the later years of his marriage, speaking to them over iMessage. (File image of iMessage on phone)

When his wife clicked on iMessage on the linked family iMac, it showed the last message he had sent to another person's iPhone was to a prostitute. (File image of iMessage on laptop)

Richard, a middle-aged businessman and father from England, is now launching legal action against Apple in a bid to recover the 5million he lost in the divorce, plus legal costs.

He claims the tech giant does not make it clear that iMessages sent to another iPhone user can be seen on other linked Apple devices - even if they have been deleted on the phone.

He told The Times: 'If you are told a message is deleted you are entitled to believe it's deleted.

'It's all quite painful and quite raw still. It was a very brutal way of finding out [for my wife]. My thoughts are if I had been able to talk to her rationally and she had not had such a brutal realisation of it, I might still be married.'

Richard told the newspaper that he and his wife were happily married for over 20 years until his infidelity was exposed.

He believes that what he was doing was not as bad as having a full-on affair and that the couple may have been able to get through the saga if it 'hadn't been so sudden and brutal and upsetting'.

Richard said that he thought he was going to have a heart attack from the stress the situation has caused and has had to take beta blockers to reduce panic attacks.

Richard, a middle-aged businessman and father from England, is now launching legal action against Apple in a bid to recover the 5million he lost in the divorce, plus legal costs. (File image)

London law firm Rosenblatt is taking the legal action against Apple. It is looking into the possibility of a class action lawsuit on a no-win, no-fee basis.

Richard says since his divorce he has heard of others experiencing the same problems he did.

In one instance, he says one father's messages were going to a teenage son's iMac, which led him to see messages he should not have.

And in another case, messages being sent by a man on his phone downstairs were appearing on an Apple TV being watched by the wife upstairs.

Simon Walton, from Rosenblatt, told The Times that Apple is being 'misleading' by telling iPhone users that their messages are being deleted when they are still being found on other linked devices.

MailOnline has contacted Apple for comment.
Celebrity fitness trainer Jillian Michaels says she moved away from California because its move to the left got 'too crazy' for her.

Michaels moved with her wife DeShanna Marie Minuto and adopted kids Lukensia, 14, and Phoenix, 12, from Los Angeles, where she grew up, to Miami in June 2021.

She previously said the last straw was when her home was broken into by an intruder with 'duct tape and a video camera' who was let out of jail due to Covid.

Michaels frequently blames Governor Gavin Newsom for what she doesn't like about California, and expanded on that theme on Sage Steele's podcast.

The former reality TV star is the latest in a line of celebrities including Elon Musk and Sean Hannity to move from liberal-leaning states like New York and California to Republican-run ones like Florida and Texas that have no state income tax.

Celebrity fitness trainer Jillian Michaels with her daughter Lukensia, 14, whom she adopted from the Congo, and son Phoenix, 12

Michaels moved her kids, along with her wife DeShanna Marie Minuto, from Los Angeles, where she grew up, to Miami in June 2021

Michaels said the liberal state was decriminalizing crimes like drugs and prostitution, which she mostly supported, but not regulating it afterwards.

'Some of these laws that are passing here are absolutely f**king mind-boggling,' she claimed.

'In relation to crime, protecting our kids, like, we're decriminalizing everything, which arguably I would probably be okay with but we're not regulating any of it.'

Michaels used prostitution as an example, saying she would say 'yes, of course' if it was followed up with regulation to protect sex workers.

'You're gonna decriminalize sex work but only so women can loiter on the streets, not to keep them safe, not to have them pay taxes, not to make them regularly check for STDs, not to take away the pimps out of the equation,' she said.

'I could be liberal! I could go there with you! I grew up this way!'

Michaels said she felt in California like she was very liberal, but over time the state's politics shifted to the left and she stayed where she was.

'I grew up here. I'm a woman. I'm a gay woman. My mom's a Jew. My dad's an Arab. I have a black kid. And believe it or not, my son is half Latin, even though he doesn't look like it,' she said.

Michaels said California was decriminalizing crimes like drugs and prostitution, which she mostly supported, but not regulating it afterwards

Michaels frequently blames Governor Gavin Newsom (pictured) for what she doesn't like about California, saying she left specifically because of him

'I hold a million cards in your game of woke victimology poker. And when I leave California, maybe you've lost your f**king mind. Just maybe! Like when you have me running from home, maybe it's gone way too far.'

Michaels then returned to a topic she was frequently critical of - allowing sex changes for minors.

She was quick to point out she wasn't anti-trans, she was just critical of children her son's age being given 'off-label cancer drugs to irreparably change their body'.

'If my son came to me and said, 'Mom' - or my daughter - 'I think I'm trans'. I'd say okay, you want to dress this way, You want me to call you whatever the heck you want... fine, explore it. I love you,' she said.

'I'm cool, do you as long as we're safe, but we're not changing your body until it's fully developed. I'm sorry. Conversation's over. Can't get a f**king tattoo!'

The health expert last week enthusiastically celebrated the American College of Pediatricians calling on other medical groups to stop promoting puberty blockers, hormone drugs and gender surgery to children.

Lukensia was adopted from the Congo as a two-year-old in 2012 and in the same 24 hours her then-fiancee Heidi Rhoades gave birth to their son Phoenix.

Lukensia was adopted from the Congo as a two-year-old in 2012 and in the same 24 hours her then-fiancee Heidi Rhoades gave birth to their son Phoenix (all pictured together in 2016)

Michaels regularly goes after Newsom and said even Florida was 'less crazy' with him in charge, blaming his policies for her home break-in.

'Guess who let the guy out during Covid, because I got the letter. Newsom!' she said on Real Time with Bill Maher in February.

'It was the guy's third offense, he broke into our house, he had duct tape and a video camera. Anyway, long story, third strike, guy goes to jail, gets let out during Covid. I mean give me a f**king break.'

Not long after, she packed up and moved to Miami, insisting 'I left because of him (Newsom)' - but even that was dramatic.

Michaels called police on her movers from FlatRate and then sued them, claiming they damaged 80 per cent of her family's belongings and lost $30,000 worth of clothes, tools, and outdoor furniture.

She later married fashion designer Minuto in July 2022, having split with Rhoades in June 2018. She has a 40-60 shared custody of Lukensia and Phoenix with her ex.
I was the first journalist to authenticate Hunter Biden's laptop using top cyber forensics experts back in early 2021. I've followed his story ever since then.

Now that he has been convicted of three felonies, the most important thing to know is this: Hunter Biden doesn't matter.

He's not a public servant. He's not running for office.

But he and his infamous laptop do provide a window into the inner circle of our nation's President. And that is extremely important.

So when I peered through that window, what did I see?

Evidence that Joe Biden was involved in his son's shady foreign dealings, and has been lying about it ever since.

Hunter Biden himself is not important and whether he wriggles out of his conviction of three felonies is not of huge significance to the nation

As the first journalist to authenticate Hunter's laptop using top cyber forensics experts back in early 2021, all I saw was evidence that Joe Biden was involved in his son's shady foreign dealings, and has been lying about it ever since

An email lists 'the Big Guy' as a potential 10% partner in a deal with CEFC, a company proven by the Justice Department to be part of a Chinese government influence operation.

Text messages between partners in that deal warn not to mention that Joe was indeed involved.

Hunter texted his Chinese business partners that Joe was sitting right next to him and wanted to know why they hadn't wired $10million yet - while geolocation data shows Hunter was at Joe's house that day.

A 2018 voicemail from Joe, after the New York Times wrote a tentative story suggesting Hunter might be involved with CEFC, does not express shock or dismay.

Instead, Joe read the story and told Hunter: 'I think you're clear'.

Joe repeatedly dined with Hunter's business partners, meeting them at the White House, talking to them on speakerphone with Hunter.

And an anonymous whistleblower told me he was on a conference call with then-Vice President Joe, Hunter, and others discussing 'revenue projections' for a Latin American online gambling firm.

That's why I keep writing about Hunter.

I believe we should chase down evidence of public corruption, even if it leads to one's preferred presidential candidate.

Amid all the shocking messages involving Joe Biden, possibly the most important email of the 154,000 on Hunter's abandoned laptop is the infamous 'big guy' email, written by Hunter's partner James Gilliar, which suggested that the president was secretly involved in, and set to profit from, an alleged Chinese influence operation

Experts concluded there were no indications 'found that would suggest the data was manufactured.' Pictured: A selfie of Joe and Hunter (left) and former Biden associate Tony Bobulinkski (right)

Hunter's gun felonies can be viewed through the same lens: they are important, insofar as they reflect on Joe Biden.

Were this not the First Family, Joe might have been a prosecution witness last week.

He had lunch with Hunter five days before his gun purchase, then told him in a voicemail three days afterwards that he needed to 'get some help'.

'What, President Biden, did you see during that lunch that prompted you to tell your son to get some help?' a prosecutor might have asked.

Not only did Joe know that Hunter was an addict; there is good evidence he knew back then that Hunter bought a gun.

According to the gun store owner, Secret Service agents showed up demanding Hunter's purchase form.

Are we to believe they never briefed former Vice President Joe? Or that Hunter or Hallie never told him?

And yet the President has previously stated his son has 'done nothing wrong'. It now appears he knew that was false.

Hunter, who is known to have battled drug abuse, was convicted of lying about his addiction on a federal form he used to purchase a firearm on October 12, 2018. He is pictured left posing nude with a gun

Text messages between partners in that deal warn not to mention that Joe was indeed involved

Joe tried to take the moral high ground last week by telling ABC that he won't pardon Hunter (note, however, he said nothing about commuting his son's sentence).

It was a statement designed to elicit a comparison with his political opponent Donald Trump, who complained his own trials were 'rigged', and has been happy to wield the power of the presidential pardon for his own ends.

But Joe's pious acceptance of Hunter's conviction also serves to distance him from his son's actions, when at every level the two are tightly tied.

Even now, Joe says he is supporting his son appealing his conviction on second amendment grounds.

Again, Hunter himself is not important. Whether he wriggles out of his conviction is not of huge significance to the nation.

But if Hunter wins on those grounds, that will set a legal precedent that could prevent the prosecution of drug abusers who buy guns. And that, I would argue, is antithetical to the safety of Americans.

Nobody missed the irony in Joe learning Hunter was convicted for gun crimes while he was at a pro-gun control event in Atlanta on Tuesday.

Emails, texts, photos and documents unearthed by DailyMail.com have added to a still-growing body of evidence suggesting Joe had ties to his son Hunter's shady business dealings

It brought into sharp relief how supporting his son in his Second Amendment appeal is nothing short of hypocrisy.

Yet still, investigation of the Bidens has been cast as unimportant, morally reprehensible, or slavishly partisan.

This has been the message from Democrats and left-leaning news outlets, who portray themselves as morally superior to their rivals on the right.

Venerable newspapers such as the New York Times and Washington Post turned a blind eye for years to the treasure trove of information in Hunter's laptop pointing to the potential corruption of our current president.

They dismissed the laptop as 'Russian disinformation' - a claim proven false yet again by the FBI's paper trail laid out in Hunter's trial last week.

So, I'll admit, it's a low bar to claim moral superiority to Trump, who lied on his loan applications, falsified records of payments to a porn star to keep quiet about his alleged affair, and pushed baseless election fraud conspiracy theories.

But the best and brightest in American news media have doggedly and adeptly investigated those misdeeds. They should apply the same treatment to 'the Big Guy'.
A top law professor is enraged about people eating bagels outside her $1.5million Washington DC home after a popular deli opened up on her street.

Melinda Roth, a law professor at George Washington University, is one of 16 people who made an impassioned plea against the shop, Call Your Mother, at a recent meeting- and even suggested a less successful business open in its place.

The business, run by Daniela Moreia and 'Chef Doughboi,' Andrew Dana, is a 'Jew-ish' deli located in Georgetown - one of seven locations in the DC area - including a pop-up tent at a local farmer's market.

The bright pink deli is seated just a couple houses down from Roth's home, as her and other furious residents are fed up with the presence of customers in their neighborhood.

During a Board of Zoning Adjustment hearing on Wednesday, the professor shared a PowerPoint presentation and proposed to the board that the issue was 'not a popularity contest,' and that a 'quiet sleepy business that isn't super successful' should replace the bagel shop.

Call Your Mother Deli in Georgetown, Washington DC, is under fire by furious residents who are trying to push the successful bagel shop out of their neighborhood over zoning issues and 'disrespectful' customers

Melinda Roth, a law professor at George Washington University, is one of 16 people who made an impassioned plea against the shop at a recent Board of Zoning Adjustment hearing

'We all want them to continue to be successful, but as youll hear, we want them to be successful in the right place,' Roth said.

'And not on a block in the middle of a residential neighborhood that is ill-equipped to handle the consequences of their great success.'

The shop, which sits on the corner of O Street, opened its doors in July 2020, and since its inception, tourists and locals have flocked to the eatery for good bagels, coffee, 'Schmearz' and 'Fixin's.'

The location began as a grocery store before it was transformed into an antique shop, and just before the deli, a flower shop.

Topher Matthews, an advisory neighborhood commissioner in the area, told The Washington Post that the building was around during the pre-Civil War times.

Matthews explained that the antique shop was approved for a zoning exception in the 1970s after it replaced the grocery store, changing it to a retail business.

The deli is not considered a retail shop, and before it opened its doors, management applied for a zoning board exception, but locals fought against it.

The opposing residents voiced their concerns and even took them to the DC Court of Appeals, where they were awarded a partial victory in 2022. The court agreed that the zoning board needed to further authorize approval for the location to sell prepared food.

After Wednesday's meeting, Roth took to her Facebook to share her concerns about the 'bagel wars'

The co-owner, Dana, then had to go before the zoning board again to fight to keep his shop alive.

Dana has been very vocal about the challenges his business is facing, as he posted a video last week asking for customer's for help in keeping their Georgetown location up and running.

'Do you guys love this Georgetown store as much as I do? Might be my favorite location,' he said.

'We're dealing with some zoning issues which could affect our ability to be here for the super long-term.'

'So you wanna see us, be able to bring joy to the neighborhood, we would love your support,' Dana said, encouraging people to reach out and learn more about how they can support the deli.

Under his post, a person who said they 'frequent' the shop, wrote that they find it 'disrespectful' how customers sit on neighbor's properties and 'leave trash around.'

'You all need to patrol this better. Especially when the students are back,' they added.

During Roth's presentation, she showed images and videos of patrons sitting on people's stoops eating bagels, overflowing trash bins, and an image that she said showed a 'humongous rat.'

The Washington Post reported that an exterminator at the hearing testified and said that the bagel shop has not caused more rodents in the area.

'One man even uses a garbage can as a table to eat his bagels,' Roth recalled during the hearing.

She went on to complain about loud delivery trucks and customers who snagged up 'rare residential parking spaces'.'

Roth told the board: 'The owners of these houses have been unable to get people to move. People get very belligerent. They want to eat their bagels. They want to eat their sandwiches. Thats part of the experience.'

Another opposing resident that joined Roth in her fight was Michael Savage, a former local resident who decided to move after he noticed the shop was opening on his street.

Savage took matters into his own hands and sold his home on O Street after he saw the hysteria at the Park View location.

After the meeting, Roth took to her Facebook to give an update on the zoning battle.

'Tough day (all day, over 10 hours) in the bagel wars,' she said.

'When you don't have the law on your side, you go low and try and discredit the opposition.'

'I am appalled by the bullying tactics, misrepresentations and the fact that people do not understand that successful commercial enterprises belong in commercial zones and not in the heart of a residential one. Zoning is not a popularity contest.'

While some have been left outraged over Call Your Mother, others have embraced the successful business in their neighborhood.

Chris Itteilag, the man who purchased Savage's home, said that those against the deli bring a 'gross misrepresentation' of the neighborhood's overall experience.

Itteilag contested that the customers aren't the one's trashing' the area, but the residents on the block are. He also showed pictures of cars with parking tickets, alleging that they belonged to locals, not customers.

One person commented under the shop's call for help and complained that they find it 'disrespectful' how customers sit on neighbor's properties and 'leave trash around'

'Myself and other supporters actually live and reside on the block with our families,' Itteilag said.

Another happy customer, Josh Randle, said that he and his daughter really enjoy going to the shop on their street.

'Call Your Mother saves the day, every time,' Randle said.

'From 8 to 2, as far as I'm concerned, they're our neighbors.'

A couple, Judith Fedo and Joseph Dains made sure to visit the bagel shop with their three-year-old after hearing about the zoning uproar on social media.

Danis, 40, told The Washington Post that the shop and area was 'not rowdy.'

The bright pink deli is seated just a couple houses down from Roth's home, as her and other furious residents are fed up with the presence of customers in their neighborhood

Poll Whose side are you on? Homeowner Bagel Shop Whose side are you on? Homeowner 225 votes

Bagel Shop 224 votes Now share your opinion





'I want to know what idyllic community these neighbors who are complaining are envisioning in their heads, because when you look around you can sense this kind of, you know, European vibe, this old-world vibe. And when you go to the U.K. or Europe, its not stagnant and super quiet,' Danis added.

Another local, 90-year-old Joe Katalina, who has lived on the block since 1987, said it doesn't bother him when customers enjoy their bagels on his doorstep.

'I don't mind it at all. They're going to sit somewhere... I'm used to it.'

'I get tired of people complaining about this neighborhood,' Katalina added.

Roth told DailyMail.com that the bagel shop 'have not been good neighbors.'

The shop opened its doors in July 2020, and since its inception, tourists and locals have flocked to the eatery for good bagels, coffee, 'Schmearz' and 'Fixin's'

'While they might be a great business, they knowingly violate the law, lie about it and have never reached out to solve any of the myriad of problems that have been inflicted on the nearby neighbors until they are caught and have to show up to argue now that they will do better and they will somehow be better neighbors now,' she added.

'Having CYM on our block is like living in the middle of a parking lot of a drive through restaurant.'

'The rest of us expect the protection of the zoning laws,' Roth said. 'I have no objection to them being a true takeaway bagel store -- or any other commercial business that does not wreak havoc on the neighborhood. But selling sandwiches with no seating is a recipe for disaster, and it has been a disaster.'

Dana told DailyMail.com that Roth 'appealed us before we even opened.'

Despite the battle, Dana said that an 'overwhelming majority of the neighborhood is supporting us.'

'Truth will prevail. We are confident the zoning board will be in our favor,' he added.
On Wednesday evening, Sir Keir Starmer and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak went head-to-head once again as ITV hosted a general election debate between the leaders of the UK's two largest parties.

It marks the second in a packed line-up of debates throughout June, all hosted by either the BBC, ITV or Sky - which comes after Mr Sunak challenged Sir Keir to six TV debates leading up to the general election, with one debate each week.

Julie Etchingham, a veteran journalist and presenter who has been with ITV since 2008, hosted ITV's second debate last night, which featured senior figures from seven of the UK's largest parties.

With at least some version of a debate scheduled weekly until the final face off on June 26, it remains to be seen if the party leaders will participate in all or if deputies will step in for some.

Ms Etchingham is no stranger to hosting political debates, having hosted a significant debate featuring the then-Prime Minister David Cameron in 2015 - but, who is the renowned journalist? Here's everything you need to know.

Julie Etchingham (pictured, centre), hosted ITV's second debate last night, with Sir Keir Starmer and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak going head-to-head once more

Who is Julie Etchingham?

Julie Etchingham, 54, began her journalism career in 1994 as a trainee at the BBC before moving to Sky News in 2005.

Born in 1969 in Leicester to teacher parents, she attended Cambridge University, earning a degree in English, according to The Independent.

In 2008, she joined ITV News at Ten as a newscaster and continues in this role alongside other ITV projects, including the Tonight programme.

Ms Etchingham is renowned for extracting the infamous confession from former Prime Minster Theresa May that the naughtiest thing she had ever done was 'run through a field of wheat.'

Alongside Phillip Schofield, she has since covered the Royal weddings of the Prince and Princess of Wales and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex, and with Tom Bradby she co-presented coverage of the late Duke of Edinburgh's funeral.

In 2008, Ms Etchingham joined ITV News at Ten as a newscaster and continues in this role alongside other ITV projects, including the Tonight programme

What is the 'mic drop' moment that took place between Julie Etchingham and David Cameron in 2015?

Ms Etchingham is no stranger to political debates, having hosted the ITV Leaders' Debate in 2015, the only debate that cycle to feature then-Prime Minister David Cameron.

She was praised for her composed moderating style, which earned her similar roles in the 2017 and 2019 leaders' debates and the 2022 Conservative leadership debate.

Despite her calm demeanor under pressure, Ms Etchingham experienced a notable slip-up in 2007 while working for Sky News.

During a political event, she accidentally quipped an awkward response to David Cameron's remarks on immigration, unaware her microphone was on.

Speaking about immigration at a political event, Mr Cameron said: 'Here our policy should be obvious...' before Ms Etchingham followed with: 'Extermination.'

Sky News quickly apologised for the incident, and Etchingham personally apologised to Cameron, calling it 'not my finest hour.'

Lord Cameron took it in good humour, having a toy Dalek delivered to Etchingham's home and recording a video for her 40th birthday poking fun at the gaffe.

However, the string of heated debates between Starmer and Sunak promises to have a significant influence on votes as the UK heads towards the general election, with Etchingham's experienced hand guiding the discourse.

During a political event, she accidentally quipped an awkward response to David Cameron's remarks on immigration, unaware her microphone was on
Radical preacher Anjem Choudary went on trial today accused of 'directing an international terrorist organisation' after being released from jail for supporting Islamic State.

The 57-year-old is said to have taken on a 'caretaker role' directing and encouraging support for banned terrorist organisation Al-Muhajiroun (ALM) just months after his licence conditions ended.

Woolwich Crown Court heard that the convicted cleric has a 'warped and twisted mindset' and 'never gave up' his ambitions, instead he 'just bided his time' after being jailed for inviting support for the Islamic State group in 2016.

Following his release from prison in 2018, Choudary was initially subject to licence conditions preventing him from preaching.

But when they expired in July 2021 he was free to preach again, it was said.

Radical preacher Anjem Choudary went on trial yesterday accused of 'directing an international terrorist organisation' after being released from jail for supporting Islamic State (Pictured here in 2021)

The 57-year-old is said to have taken on a 'caretaker role' directing and encouraging support for banned terrorist organisation Al-Muhajiroun (Pictured in 2021 near his home)

Prosecutor Tom Little, KC, told jurors that Choudary had been a member of the ALM terrorist organisation for 'many years' and was determined to 'spread and foist a warped and twisted view of religion onto others.'

But he was caught out after undercover officers made secret recordings of Choudary's lectures and teachings online to supporters in America, jurors were told.

In 2022 Choudary started 'regularly and passionately lecturing' a branch of ALM in New York, which had changed its name to Islamic Thinkers Society (ITS) because terrorist organisations 'lurk in the shadows seeking to avoid detection, seeking to avoid investigation and prosecution', Mr Little said.

He told jurors: 'Anjem Choudary has been a member of that (ALM) organisation for many years and he also directed that terrorist organisation for a significant period of time from 2014 onwards and more recently he has also encouraged support for that organisation by addressing online meetings of the Islamic Thinkers Society.

'At the time that he did so, the Islamic Thinkers Society (ITS) was, we say, part and parcel of the same terrorist organisation, so that is ALM.

'Anjem Choudary did much of that, we say, whilst the spiritual leader of ALM was incarcerated in prison in the Lebanon.

'So in the absence of his leader, Anjem Choudary took a caretaker role at ALM for some of the time.'

He said: 'Anjem Choudary never gave up. He bided his time.' Choudary's conviction 'undoubtedly made him more cautious in who he would speak openly to.

Woolwich Crown Court heard that the convicted cleric has a 'warped and twisted mindset' and 'never gave up' his ambitions (Pictured in July 2021)

'However, his desire to further the aims of ALM caused even him sometimes to let down his guard,' the prosecutor added.

Khaled Hussein, a 29-year-old from Canada described as a 'follower and dedicated supporter' said to 'idolise' Choudary, is also on trial accused of membership of ALM, which he denies.

Choudary denies directing a terrorist organisation, being a member of a proscribed organisation and addressing meetings to encourage support for a proscribed organisation.

Yesterday the bearded defendant sat in the dock wearing a white robe and headphones as clips of his lectures were played to the court.

The trial continues.
A New York lawyer has shockingly claimed that Gilgo Beach serial killer suspect Rex Heuermann dabbled in cannibalism - and that his family was involved in his alleged crimes.

John Ray, who represents the family of Shannan Gilbert, whose remains led to the discovery of Heuermann's alleged victims, suggested on Thursday that the architect's relatives participated in the killings.

The attorney, who also represents other women who say they survived encounters with Heuermann, showed artwork he claimed was shared by Heuermann's daughter Victoria, 27, on Tumblr as 'circumstantial evidence.'

Ray claimed that one image that appears to show 'half eaten' remains proves Victoria was interested in cannibalism.

Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney has repeatedly said that Heuermann's relatives are not suspects in the case and were out of town during each of the murders. Prosecutors have also never said cannibalism is involved in the killings.

John Ray, who represents the family of Shannan Gilbert, suggested on Thursday that Rex Heuermann's relatives participated in the killings

'We are not talking about merely murder,' Ray said, without offering solid evidence about his claims.

'Were talking about people who are involved and interested in torture, horrifying torture of the people that we know that are dead and many more that are to come.'

Ray claimed they show Victoria was 'brought up in this sickness.'

'When you take all of these things collectively, are you going to be able to reasonably say who knows if the mother really knew what was happening in the house? Who knows if Mr. Heuermann knew what was going on with his daughter?'

He added: 'Its BDSM to the max,' he added. 'Its demonic.'

Heuermann's estranged wife Asa Ellerup's lawyer Bob Macedonia said Ray's suggestions are 'reckless.'

Heuermann, 60, is now accused of killing six women in total over a span of 30 years

The attorney showed artwork he claimed was shared by Heuermann's daughter Victoria, 27, on Tumblr as 'circumstantial evidence'

Kerri Rawson, the daughter of BTK serial killer Dennis Rader and a victims' advocate, also slammed the attorney over his claims.

'John Ray is not credible at all. This is disgusting and I hope Asa and her children seek all legal recourse,' Rawson wrote.

'Victoria Heuermann was 13 at the most when the latest victim went missing that is tied to her father, Rex Heuermann. Who is to say that Rex didnt use Victorias online accounts? Asa and her children are victims of Rex.'

Ray was accompanied by clinical and forensic psychologist Dr. Gary Brucato who specializes in serial killers, mass murders and sexual offenses.

The scandalous press conference comes a week after Heuermann, of Long Island, was indicted for the murders of 20-year-old Jessica Taylor in 2003 and 28-year-old Sandra Costilla in 1993.

Victoria and her mother Asa Ellerup in July 2023, after Heuermann was charged

Search crews removing items from the basement of Rex Heuermann's home

Charging documents say the alleged serial killer was linked to the new victims through DNA, thanks to male hair found on both of their remains.

Heuermann, 60, is now accused of killing six women in total over a span of 30 years.

Prosecutors say they found 'planning documents' that Heuermann allegedly used to map out his killings in a hard drive found during the search.

Heuermann was arrested in July and initially charged with killing Melissa Barthelemy, 24, Megan Waterman, 22, and Amber Lynn Costello 27.

In February, he was also charged with the murder of Maureen Brainard-Barnes, 25.

The women were found wrapped in burlap and buried along the remote stretch of Ocean Parkway on Long Island's South Shore over a decade ago.

Heuermann, an architect, has pleaded not guilty to all counts and currently remains in jail awaiting trial. A date for trial has not yet been set.

The first victim, 24-year-old Melissa Barthelemy, was discovered by Suffolk County Police on December 11, 2010. The body of Megan Waterman, 22, from Maine, was found two days later

Heuermann is also charged with killing Amber Costello (left) and Maureen Brainard-Barnes (right)

The Gilgo women's remains were discovered during the search for 23-year-old Shannan Gilbert, an escort from New Jersey who had vanished in May 2010 after making a frantic 911 call.

Her remains were found along the same stretch of coast in December 2011 - and it was her body that led police to the discovery of the 'Gilgo Four'.

No one has ever been charged in Gilbert's death and police said it may have been accidental - but her family believe she was murdered.

The women were among 11 found on the desolate stretch of coastline close to Heuermann's Long Island Home between 2010 and 2011.
Senate Democrats forced an election year vote on a bill to protect access to in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and other fertility treatments, putting Republicans on the spot.

Despite voting down the legislation Thursday, all 49 Senate GOP lawmakers signed a memo stating they 'strongly support continued nationwide access to IVF.'

They took issue with the Democrats' bill, saying it goes too far and is a 'political stunt.'

Last week, Republicans also blocked another Democrat-led bill to secure access to contraception saying it was a 'false scare tactic' ahead of the election.

Sens. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and Katie Britt, R-Ala., have their own version of a bill to provide IVF and fertility services, but the Democrats say it doesn't go far enough.

The vote comes months after fertility clinics started pausing services following the Alabama Supreme Court ruling that embryos are children. The decision sparked outrage across the country - from both Republicans and Democrats - and put thousands of families trying to have children through IVF in limbo.

Sens. Ted Cruz , R-Texas, and Katie Britt, R-Ala., have their own version of a bill to provide IVF and fertility services

A month later, Alabama Republican Gov. Kay Ivey signed a law protecting access to IVF following the outcry.

The vote Thursday also occurred hours after the Supreme Court upheld access to the abortion pill mifepristone and rejected a lawsuit that would have impacted abortion access nationwide.

It is the conservative court's first major decision on reproductive rights since it overturned Roe v. Wade, ending the constitutional right to an abortion nationwide in 2022.

Mifepristone is used in more than half of abortions in the United States and has been used by more than 5.6 million women since its approval in 2000.

'The anti-abortion movement is not yet finished,' Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said Thursday.

'Now that Roe is gone, [Republicans] have set their sights on a new target: in vitro fertilization So today the question before the Senate is very simple: Do we agree that Americans should be free to use IVF if they want to?'

The vote comes months after fertility clinics started pausing services following the Alabama Supreme Court ruling that embryos are children

Senate Democrats push bill protecting access to fertility treatment called the Access to Family Building Act after the Alabama Supreme Court ruled embryos are babies

Earlier this year, Sen. Tammy Duckworth, D-Ill., along with Senators Patty Murray, D-Wash., and Tammy Baldwin, D-Wis., introduced legislation that would protect a person's right to access fertility services such as IVF and healthcare providers that provide such services.

The bill would also protect a person's rights regarding the use or disposal of their reproductive genetic materials and would allow the Justice Department to pursue civil action against any state or government official that violates such protections.

Duckworth noted the issue is very personal to her. The senator and mother of two daughters is the first sitting senator to have a baby while in office. She noted she was only able to become a mom through IVF after her military service in Iraq.

Duckwoth blasted the ruling saying the people claiming to be 'defending family values' are actively trying to enact policies that would prevent Americans from creating those families.

The push by Senate Democrats to protect IVF is the latest effort as families, healthcare providers and officials have been scrambling in the wake of the bombshell Alabama ruling which raises concerns that clinics could be held liable for destroying fertilized eggs.

Some fertility clinics in Alabama have already paused treatments amid fear of prosecution as the ruling opened the door to wrongful death lawsuits in all cases where embryos do not survive being thawed and transferred to the uterus.

Embryo selection for IVF shown under a light micrograph - the treatment is overwhelmingly popular with Americans

The highlighted states have laws on the books stipulating that life begins at the moment of fertilization. In Louisiana, the intentional disposal or destruction of a human embryo is illegal

President Biden called the ruling 'outrageous and unacceptable' in a statement.

Democrats have slammed the decision as a direct result of the Supreme Court decision in 2022 to overturn Roe v Wade.

'Make no mistake: this ruling is a direct result of Donald Trump's promise to overturn Roe v. Wadeand I've been warning that IVF would be next for years,' Duckworth said on Tuesday.

She put the onus on Senate Republicans saying if they 'truly care about the sanctity of families, then they need to show it by not blocking this bill.'

Republicans have been scrambling to reject the Alabama ruling.

Former President Donald Trump said he would 'strongly support the availability of IVF' and called on Alabama to find an immediate solution.

GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley said she sees frozen embryos as babies but later attempted to clarify that she did not say she agreed with the Alabama ruling.

Former President Trump called on Alabama to find a solution following the ruling and said he supports the availability of IVF treatment. Democrats say the AL ruling is the direct result of the Supreme Court overturning Roe v Wade with the addition of three justices he appointed

Haley, who has talked in general terms about her personal struggles with fertility, said she used artificial insemination to have her son Nalin, the second of her two children. She said she views embryos as babies but later clarified she does not agree with the Alabama ruling

The National Republican Senatorial Committee also told DailyMail.com that none of their candidates support a ban on IVF.

Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., said in a statement following the court ruling that he supports IVF treatment.

But he along with 124 other House Republicans backed the Life Begins at Conception bill last year. It does not include a carveout for IVF treatment, though it does state nothing in the bill should be 'construed to authorize the prosecution of any woman for the death of her unborn child.'
An end-of-term exam at Oxford University has been cancelled after pro-Palestine students occupied the building and started 'chanting out the window.'

A witness said that about half a dozen students caused the disruption in the university's East Writing School on Oxford's high street.

Second year students at Oxford University arriving this morning to take a Chemistry exam were instead met with pro-Palestinian protesters who had draped a flag out a window and were preventing the highly anticipated examination from taking place.

A person who witnessed the events, speaking to the Oxford Mail, said that protesters 'hung the flag and chanted out the window' just after 9am today but were then brought 'under control.'

Thames Valley Police has confirmed there have been no arrests.

Students at Oxford University arriving this morning to take a Chemistry exam were instead met with pro-Palestinian protesters who had draped a flag out a window

Police were photographed at the scene. An end-of-term exam at Oxford University has been cancelled after pro-Palestine students occupied the building. Thames Valley Police has confirmed there have been no arrests

Since May 6, the Oxford Action for Palestine group have staged encampments across the university's campus as they demanded an end to violence in Gaza.

As recently as May 23 they started a sit-in at offices on Wellington Square demanding a meeting with university leaders over its policies towards the conflict.

However, the group have claimed that they are not involved with today's protests.

But a spokesperson from Oxford University said this action 'goes beyond the bounds of acceptable protest'.

The spokesperson said: 'The university is disappointed with this morning's occupation of the exam schools and the absolutely unacceptable disruption caused to our students.

'We are putting into place contingency plans to ensure all students will have the opportunity to sit their examinations with as little disruption as possible.

'It is unclear who the occupying group are representing, as they claim to be acting without the knowledge of the OA4P encampments.

'While the University supports the right to peaceful protest within the law and our rules, this action plainly goes beyond the bounds of acceptable protest.'

Pro-Palestine protesters at Oxford University last month. Since May 6, the Oxford Action for Palestine group have staged encampments across the university's campus as they demanded an end to violence in Gaza. The group have claimed that they are not involved with today's protests

Pro-Palestine protesters take part in an encampment outside the Pitt Rivers Museum on May 10

In a statement, Oxford Action for Palestine said: 'This morning, an autonomous group of protestors occupied one wing of the Examination Schools, renaming the East School to Dahshan School after the Palestinian scholar and martyr Saeed Dahshan.

'The protesters have made it clear that their action was unaffiliated with OA4P and was undertaken without OA4P's knowledge.

'The support for Palestine on this campus extends far beyond OA4P. The urgency expressed by this action is a reflection of the mounting frustration that has been felt by countless in the University community, who for months have urged Oxford's administration to act against israel's ongoing and catastrophic genocide in Gaza.'

The statement continued: 'As a student-led movement, OA4P supports the right of all students to pursue their education. Our particular solidarity is, as always, with those facing scholasticide in Gaza.

'We remain committed to continuing dialogue with the University. We look forward to working closely with the University to address its urgent obligation to act in the face of genocide.'
Horrifying bodycam footage shows a bloated 14ft alligator with the body of a 41-year-old mom in its stomach.

Sabrina Peckham was eaten by the alligator after being dragged by the beast into a canal in Clearwater.

Peckham was unhoused at the time and had been staying at an encampment close to where the alligator was located and killed.

New footage from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission shows the aftermath of the deadly attack.

Video shows the huge gator surrounded by police moments after it was shot to death. Its stomach is visibly swollen with Peckham inside.

Horrifying bodycam footage shows a bloated 14ft alligator with the body of a 41-year-old mom in its stomach

Police also released footage showing the moment the beast was gunned down.

'Watch them, watch them,' a voice is heard shouting before the trigger is pulled with a bang and a splash.

A passerby raised the alarm in September of last year after spotting the reptile with what appeared to be a body in its mouth.

Soon afterwards several other local residents spotted the gruesome sight as the alligator dragged its prey away with some even recording the scene.

Emergency responders, together with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, managed to pull the alligator from the water before shooting it dead, with officials describing it as having been 'humanely killed' following the horrific attack.

Sabrina Peckham was named as the homeless Florida woman mauled to death and dragged into a waterway by a huge alligator in Largo, Clearwater

Video shows the huge gator surrounded by police moments after it was shot to death. Its stomach is visibly swollen with Peckham inside

Officers taped the animal's mouth shut and used rope and chains to pluck in from the canal

Officers taped the animal's mouth shut and used rope and chains to pluck in from the canal, Fox13 reports.

They had to slash the side of its belly in order to remove some of Peckham's remains.

After her mother's death, Peckham's daughter came out to deny that her mom had been taunting the animal.

'My mother was a part of the homeless population that lived in the nearby wooded area,' Breauana Dorris wrote in a Facebook post.

'It is believed that she may have been walking to or from her camp site near the creek in the dark and the alligator attacked from the water.

'We expected to have many many more years with her. Unfortunately god has called her home sooner than our hearts were ready.'

'Some details I would like to share is that my mother did not 'taunt' the alligator as some are saying in the news outlets comments,' Breauna Dorris (right) the daughter of Sabrina Peckham said

Two months before her untimely death, Peckham was arrested on July 14 for trespassing on a county wetland just half a mile from where she was mauled, reports WFLA. She was ordered to pay $500 for that incident.

Peckham reportedly ignored warning signs placed around the area and pleaded no contest to the misdemeanor charge on September 8.

It was not the first time that she was apprehended for trespassing, as she has multiple misdemeanors to her name dating to 2014, records show. Peckham also had a history of theft convictions and run-ins with the police.

'No matter how you put it, no one deserves to die like this,' her daughter wrote online.

Breauna Dorris said nobody deserves to suffer the same gruesome fate as her mom

'To my mother: I love you more than I ever expressed, I miss you more than you'll ever know and I pray that you are looking down over me and your grandchildren.

'Please protect us. I'm so sorry this happened to you. I pray you are at peace and you are no longer struggling or hurting. I pray you found momo and pop and you all are watching down from above.'

It is understood the deadly reptile had come from a nearby alligator-infested lake known as Ridgecrest Park.
The Tories have sunk to their lowest-ever level of support with just three weeks to go until the general election, a new poll has shown.

The latest Redfield & Wilton Strategies survey found the Conservatives on just 18 per cent support, which is their lowest-ever vote share recorded by the polling firm.

It is one point worse than the Tories' lowest level of support under former prime minister Liz Truss, who was replaced by Rishi Sunak in October 2022.

In the latest poll, conducted yesterday and today, Labour were found to hold a 24-point lead over the Conservatives, with Sir Keir Starmer's party backed by 42 per cent of voters.

Nigel Farage's Reform UK were on 17 per cent, just one point behind the Tories, while the Liberal Democrats enjoyed a 13 per cent vote share.

This was the highest level of support for Sir Ed Davey's party this year.

The poll results were released after Mr Farage earlier goaded he is ready to lead a merged Tory-Reform party.

The Brexit champion said he was 'prepared' and 'capable' of taking charge of a 'centre-right' political force after the election.

The latest Redfield & Wilton Strategies survey found the Conservatives on just 18 per cent support, which is their lowest-ever vote share recorded by the polling firm

In an LBC phone-in, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage suggested the Conservative Party here 'may well be dead, this may well be the end of their journey'

Mr Farage repeated his boast that Reform is near a 'tipping point', with polls showing the party's support closing on the Conservatives.

However, fears have been growing about the implications of splitting the right-wing vote, with senior figures now openly voicing alarm at the prospect of a 'one-party socialist state' after July 4.

Mr Sunak has cautioned that Sir Keir will change the voting system if he wins to ensure he remains in power.

In a round of interviews this morning, Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron insisted 'if you vote for Reform you are more likely to get Keir Starmer in Downing Street'.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt told Politico's Power Play podcast: 'All that a vote for Reform does is give Labour an even bigger majority.

'And that is a polar opposite of what most Reform voters want. So it doesn't solve any problem to vote Reform.'

In a round of interviews this morning, Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron insisted 'if you vote for Reform you are more likely to get Keir Starmer in Downing Street '

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt told Politico's Power Play podcast: 'All that a vote for Reform does is give Labour an even bigger majority.'

Mr Farage has suggested his political model is Canada's Stephen Harper, who orchestrated a merger between Reform and their Conservative rivals to unite the right.

In an LBC phone-in, the Reform UK leader suggested the Conservative Party here 'may well be dead, this may well be the end of their journey'.

He aid he believed 'something new is going to emerge on the centre-right' of politics.

'Do I think I'm capable of leading a national opposition to a Labour Party with a big majority, where I can stand up and hold them to account on issues? Yes.'

He added: 'I would be prepared to lead the centre-right in this country, a centre-right that stands up for small business, a centre-right that believes in borders, a centre-right that isn't scared of standing up for the British people.'

Tory campaigning has shifted to warn would-be Reform voters that Labour could end up with a landslide win, urging them to back the Conservatives instead in order to provide a large opposition force  although Mr Sunak has insisted he has not given up on victory.

But Mr Farage pointed to a YouGov poll which put Reform on 17 per cent, just one point behind the Conservatives to suggest: 'I think we are very close to a tipping point.'

Other polls have given a wider gap between Mr Sunak's party and Mr Farage's, but the average of recent surveys suggests Reform are about eight points behind the Tories.

Mr Farage has been offered additional private security by the Home Office after being targeted on the campaign trail.

He said he was more targeted than other politicians because he was prepared to walk into crowds and because he dared to 'break the consensus' by talking about mass migration unlike his rivals.

He said: 'They are scared of the mob. And do you know something? I am not going to surrender to the mob. Never.'

Asked if he was scared, he said: 'I do get thoughtful but I cannot let these people win.

'If they win, our whole democracy is under threat.'

Mr Farage was challenged about a Times newspaper report that one-in-10 Reform candidates are 'friends' on Facebook with Gary Raikes, leader of the fascist New British Union.

Rishi Sunak (pictured at the G7 in Italy today) has cautioned that Sir Keir will change the voting system if he wins to ensure he remains in power

'I'd never heard of Gary Raikes until yesterday,' Mr Farage said.

'Don't forget, I've come in right at the last minute, we have not had time to do full vetting of candidates. It's been impossible for us.'

But he added: 'Not all of our candidates have been to Eton, not all of our candidates have been to Oxford, not all of our candidates are part of the London set.

'And people like things on Facebook without having a clue where they come from.'

Asked about Ian Gribbin, the party's candidate in Bexhill and Battle, who has said that Britain should have 'taken Hitler up on his offer of neutrality' instead of fighting the Nazis in the Second World War, Mr Farage said it was a 'stupid thing to say'.

But he suggested there would be no disciplinary response: 'What can you do? His name's on the ballot paper, I can't remove it.'
Counter-terrorism police have arrested a man in West London on suspicion of supporting Hamas.

A 43-year-old was taken into police custody on Wednesday as officers swooped on a London address as part of the investigation, the Metropolitan Police said in a statement.

Support for Hamas, the de facto governing authority of Gaza, has been banned in the UK as a proscribed terrorist organisation since 2021.

The Met said a member of the public had reported online posts allegedly showing support, before the posts were investigated by detectives.

The man was subsequently released from police custody and has been bailed to a date in September, with enquiries ongoing.

File photo. Members of Hamas' al-Qassam Brigades during a gathering in January 2016

Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Met's Counter Terrorism Command, said: 'Ever since the terrible attacks in Israel last October, and the subsequent conflict, there has been a significant increase in the amount of extremist and terrorist material being referred to us by the public.

'Each and every referral gets assessed by specialist officers and anything that is considered a potential terrorism offence here in the UK will get passed on for further investigation.

'From that investigation, if and where we find evidence of a crime being committed, then we'll look to identify, arrest and bring the person responsible to justice.'

The ongoing war between Israel and Hamas has seen widespread expressions of support for the Palestinian people in the beleaguered Gaza Strip.

But police have also been pressed to tackle support shown for the central authority in Gaza, responsible for killing some 1,170 people and taking around 253 hostage last October.

Support for the Gaza-based group is banned in the UK because it is a proscribed terrorist organisation, and has been since before the war.

The United Kingdom has proscribed Hamas' military wing as a terrorist organisation since 2001, extending the proscription to in November 2021 to the group as a whole.

According to the government: 'At the time it was HM governments assessment that there was a sufficient distinction between the so called political and military wings of Hamas, such that they should be treated as different organisations, and that only the military wing was concerned in terrorism.

'The government now assess that the approach of distinguishing between the various parts of Hamas is artificial. Hamas is a complex but single terrorist organisation.'

The government's own policy paper on proscribed terrorist groups observes that 'Hamas commits and participates in terrorism. Hamas has used indiscriminate rocket or mortar attacks, and raids against Israeli targets.'

Hamas is also officially designated a terrorist group by many countries including Israel, the United States and the European Union.

Protests mount worldwide over the devastation in the Gaza Strip. Pictured: a man looks at the aftermath of a strike on a UN-run school in the Nuseirat Refugee Camp on June 6, 2024

An Israeli army tank rolls along a position in an area of Israel's southern border with the Palestinian Gaza Strip on June 13

The Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU) is a national Counter Terrorism Policing unit within the Met's Counter Terrorism Command.

The CTIRU was set up in 2010 to remove unlawful terrorist material from the Internet, focusing on UK-based content.

Earlier this month, Head of Counter Terrorism Policing North East, Detective Chief Superintendent James Dunkerley said in a statement that the CTIRU had received more than 3,000 public referrals relating to the conflict in the Middle East.

'The majority of these referrals relate to pro-Hamas content, he said.

The Met advises anyone wishing to report extremist or terrorist content can do so online via: www.gov.uk/report-terrorism
Killer socialite Rebecca Grossman faces an anguished jailhouse meeting with the mother of the two young brothers she murdered.

A heartbroken Nancy Iskander said she wants to see Grossman show remorse for the hit-and-run deaths of her sons, 11-year-old Mark and 8-year-old Jacob, as the family crossed the street in a residential area of Westlake Village, Calif. on September 29, 2020.

'Most people who see me say, "I'm sorry for your loss, I'm sorry for what happened to you.'" Iskander told Fox News. 'She's not in that category. She needs to say, "I'm sorry I killed them." She's not there at all. ... She does not see it.'

Nancy Iskander said she wants to speak to Rebecca Grossman in prison and demand an apology for killing her two sons

Prosecutors said the socialite used her money to 'buy her way' out of taking full responsibility for the hit-and-run deaths of Mark and Jacob Iskander

Iskander continued, 'My plan is to give her a visit in prison, in a few months or maybe a year, and I will ask her that question directly. I will say, "Are you able to say, 'I am sorry I killed them?' This will allow me to forgive, because I need to get through what she's done.'

Prosecutors described Grossman as a 'complete self-serving narcissist' who drove her Mercedes SUV at about 81 mph as she ran over the two boys and kept driving.

Grossman's attorneys argued it was her ex-lover, former Dodgers pitcher Scott Erickson, who actually hit the Iskander boys on the crosswalk. The two were racing their vehicles, reaching speeds in excess of 70mph in a 45mph speed zone.

Erickson was initially charged with misdemeanor reckless driving, but it was later dropped after the former MLB player issued a public service announcement about the importance of safe driving.

Alexis Grossman, Dr. Peter Grossman, and Nick Grossman provided testimony of support for Rebecca in a 30-minute video that was played in court during Monday's sentencing

Prosecutors asked for a sentence of 34 years to life for two counts of second-degree murder and other charges. On Monday, Judge Joseph Brandolino instead sentenced Grossman to a concurrent sentence of 15 years to life.

Prosecutor Ryan Gould told DailyMail.com that Grossman could be eligible for parole in 7 to 10 years.

Iskander slammed the sentences, alleging the judge treated their deaths as 'one kid' despite 'two different lives' having been lost.

'I don't think I'll ever be able to accept that ... or even understand the judge's point of view,' Iskander told Fox News of the judge's decision.

Grossman, who co-founded a renowned burn unit with her plastic surgeon husband Dr. Peter Grossman, lived a life a privilege and thought her wealth would 'buy her freedom,' prosecutors wrote in an affidavit.

Several former classmates and friends of the Iskander boys provided emotional testimony and asked the judge for the highest possible sentence for Rebecca Grossman

They also said the socialite used dirty tactics, including instructing her 19-year-old daughter Alexis and husband Peter on jailhouse calls to hunt down witnesses and jurors as a way to sway the judge to give her a new trial.

Grossman, who turns 61 on Friday, provided an emotional statement during Monday's sentencing and directly addressed the Iskander family.

'All l've ever wanted to do is to tell you how sorry I am,' Grossman said as she sobbed. 'And I did write. I don't know if the prosecution ever gave them to you. ... They said I would be tampering with witnesses if I reached out to you. ... I'm so sorry I wasn't able to because I was threatened by the prosecutor.

'I just wanted to be a human being. When I couldn't be a human being and talk to you parent to parent, mother to mother... I wanted to leave this world because I didn't want to be here anymore and you have to believe me. And I believe God is in this room right now, and I believe He knows the truth.'

The Iskander family as they left Monday's emotionally-charged hearing where Rebecca Grossman was sentenced 15 years to life in prison. The family said they are upset the judge failed to consider there were two victims in the case

Iskander said Grossman made an anonymous donation of $25,000 toward funeral costs, which she said violated her right to refuse.

Before Grossman was sentenced, her attorney also handed the Iskanders a check in the amount of $47,161.89 for victims' restitution.

Garrett Dameron, a supervisor in the LA County District Attorney's Office, said Grossman continued to use her money to influence the outcome of the trial.

Prosecutor Garrett Dameron said Rebecca Grossman tried to use her money and influence to tamper with the outcome of the trial

'She essentially attempted to buy her way out of this,' Damero said to Fox News. 'Never has she once shown a modicum of remorse or sympathy or never has she even hinted at taking responsibility for this.

He continued, 'And my issue with the judge is he had made comments throughout the trial that he didnt like the murder charges in this case. Instead of objectively pronouncing [the] sentence as he shouldve, I think he's attempting to legislate from the bench.'

Grossman remains behind bars at a the notorious Downtown LA Twin Towers Correctional Facility as she awaits to be transferred to a women's prison in California.
Giorgia Meloni welcomed world leaders to a luxury resort in southern Italy today to kick off delicate talks on issues ranging from Ukraine and the Middle East to climate change.

The Italian Prime Minister was still riding high on her party's success at the European Parliament elections last weekend as she met with G7 counterparts among the olive trees of the luxury Boro Egnazia resort.

Leading two days of talks in Puglia, Meloni was especially well received by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as the group finally agreed a new $50bn loan for Ukraine using profits from frozen Russian assets.

But the leader of the far-right Fratelli di Italia party received almost as warm a greeting from Rishi Sunak, pictured clasping her hands as they smiled and appeared to share a joke outside the resort.

Meloni was more careful with US President Joe Biden as they embraced in front of cameras ahead of the summit, and offered just a firm handshake to Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission.

Things appeared almost chilly with French President Emmanuel Macron, whose party fared far less well in the recent elections - as Meloni is tipped to steer European politics with rare popularity for an EU leader.

Meloni welcomed Zelensky as the group announced some $50bn in funding for Ukraine

Meloni grins while speaking with Sunak as the pair greeted each other at the G7 summit

The Italian Prime Minister appeared to have a more frosty interaction with the French premier

US president Joe Biden and Meloni are seen embracing ahead of the G7 summit

Rishi Sunak reunited with his 'biggest fan' in Apulia, Italy today as the group met for two days of talks on global issues.

The pair's relationship has blossomed since taking office within just three days of each other in 2022, Sunak's spokesperson saying in December they 'obviously get on'.

Sunak held Meloni's hands as they joked and laughed, Meloni gesturing with loud, expressive motions as Sunak remained upright.

The British Prime Minister hugged, kissed and posed with his Italian counterpart, with whom he has found common ground on key policy issues including migration to Europe.

Meloni appeared more starchy with French President Emmanuel Macron, acting courteously and pausing to allow photographers to picture them together, but turning away after their initial greeting.

As Meloni celebrates her party's triumph in the recent elections, flying under the banner of her 'just write Giorgia' campaign, Macron took a shock decision to call a snap election after his party fared less well.

While Macron has spent recent months campaigning to lead the direction of Europe on foreign policy, warning of the looming threat in Russia and welcoming China's Xi Jinping to France, the result now threatens to undermine his influence within the EU.

French outlet Le Monde assessed that Meloni, meanwhile, had consolidated her position 'both in Italy and Europe' by her party winning 28.9 per cent of the vote.

Biden's late appearance - the last of the world leaders to arrive in Apulia, Italy - was marked by a hug and kiss - before the 81-year-old appeared to give Meloni an odd salute.

The two shared a prolonged greeting, shaking hands and clasping each other's arms.

Meloni gave more traditional greetings to Germany's Olaf Scholz and Japan's Fumio Kishida in front of the luxury resort reportedly much loved by Madonna.

But it was the teary reaction of Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky that carried the most weight as leaders finally agreed a new $50bn loan for Ukraine using profits from frozen Russian assets.

The emotional Zelensky, dressed his customary green fatigues, was welcomed with open arms by Meloni outside the Borgo Egnazia on Thursday before talks began.

'The Group of Seven in recent decades has assumed an irreplaceable role in the management of global crises, especially those that jeopardise our freedom and our democracy,' Meloni told the opening session after her counterparts arrived.

Rishi Sunak (left) today reunited with his Italian counterpart and biggest fan Giorgia Meloni (right) as the pair joined other world leaders at the G7 summit

Sunak and Meloni are seen posing for the cameras together. Sunak and Meloni's friendship has flourished since they took office in 2022, with the British Prime Minister 's spokesperson saying in December they 'obviously get on'

Ukraine was among several topics covered as Meloni stressed the precarious global situation

Zelensky, left, greets Meloni ahead of the G7 summit in Puglia earlier today

Biden and Meloni talk ahead of the summit on June 13

Meloni smiles as she holds the hand of US President Joe Biden

The US president places his hand on Meloni as they greet each other at the resort

The world leaders announced today they had finally agreed to provide Ukraine with an additional $50bn loan using profits from frozen Russian assets.

The G7 and the EU have frozen some 300 billion euros ($325 billion) of Russian assets, much of it frozen by Euroclear, an international deposit organisation based in Belgium.

The availability of these assets for use has been floated for some time, though leaders in Europe had until recently shouldered much of the blame for not redirecting cash from frozen assets Ukraine's way.

Agreement on $50bn is considered a significant step forward after months of gridlock, with leaders in Europe divided over how - and whether - to repurpose seized assets for Ukraine's benefit.

'We have political agreement at the highest levels for this deal,' a senior Biden administration official said on condition of anonymity.

'And it is $50 billion this year that will be committed to Ukraine.'

Germany's finance minister, Christian Lindner, also reacted positively to the announcement: 'Good news from the G7: another $50 billion for Ukraine.'

He said it showed Russian President Vladimir Putin our 'unity, greatly helps Ukraine and relieves the burden on budgets' - but confirmed the details still needed working out.

Rishi Sunak said a 50 billion US dollar support package for Ukraine that uses the profits of assets seized from Russia agreed by G7 countries is 'game-changing'.

'What we're announcing is a game-changing package of support for Ukraine that will be funded from the G7, and it will be funded by the profits on the seized Russian assets,' the Prime Minister told reporters at the summit in Puglia.

It will be up to technical experts to work out the exact details of how the money can be used and when, though it is expected to be spread between military, economics, humanitarian and rebuilding priorities.

US President Joe Biden's national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the goal is 'to provide the necessary resources to Ukraine now for its economic energy and other needs so that it's capable of having the resilience necessary to withstand Russia's continuing aggression'.

The 50th G7 summit will bring together the Group of Seven member states leaders in Borgo Egnazia resort in southern Italy from 13 to 15 June 2024

Meloni was still riding high on the success of the recent elections as she welcomed G7 leaders

US President Joe Biden (C), Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attend the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment Event during the G7 Summi

Meloni (left) speaks alongside Joe Biden (centre) and Fumio Kishida during the summit today

The loan is seen as something of a middle-ground between directly handing Ukraine the assets and offering Kyiv interest accumulated on the 300 billion sum.

But Ukraine nonetheless welcomed the decision as something to break the deadlock.

'Finally, we see the first step of fairness in making sure that the aggressor, and not the good people from countries that support us, are paying for Ukraine's victory,' said Kira Rudik, an opposition leader in Kyiv's parliament.

'We applaud this step. We hope that it is only the first of many more steps. And we will use this money wisely.'

Zelensky, who was due to hold a joint press conference with Biden later Thursday, has meanwhile been engaged in a flurry of diplomacy aimed at boosting international support.

He spoke earlier this week in Berlin at a reconstruction conference and is set to join more than 90 countries and organisations this weekend for a peace summit in Switzerland.

Zelensky said he would sign two more security agreements with Japan and the United States in Puglia.

The reopening of the Russian offensive in Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest city, has appeared to tip the balance for Western support in the last month, with donors allowing Ukraine to use their weapons against targets in Russia.

Ukrainian officials in Kharkiv have said since that the green light has restored a degree of calm to the city.

Ukraine has also received substantial funding from the United States to help fend off the attack - only a matter of weeks since the $61bn lifeline passed at the end of April.

Russia has, in turn, responded with threats against the West for the perceived escalation of the war.

Putin has threatened 'densely populated territories in the West with 'grave consequences' for lending materiel support to Ukraine.

Repurposing Russian funds to give to Ukraine is similarly not without controversy.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in December that Russia would challenge any confiscation in the courts.

'If something is confiscated from us, we will look at what we will confiscate,' Peskov said. 'We will do this immediately.'

The pair were joined by leaders from Britain, France, Germany, Canada and Japan

President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky attends a meeting with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at the G7 leaders' summit

The event brings together the leaders of G7, as well as the President of the European Council and the President of the European Commission representing the European Union

From right, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, U.S. President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Council President Charles Michel watch a skydiving demo during the G7 world leaders summit today

The world leaders talk and laugh at the parachute drop on day one of the summit

In the wake of Putin's 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the United States and its allies prohibited transactions with Russia's central bank and finance ministry, blocking around $300 billion of sovereign Russian assets in the West.

Like other central banks, the Russian central bank placed some of its gold and foreign exchange reserves in liquid assets such as major currencies, gold and government bonds. About half of those reserves were held in the West.

The United States previously proposed that working groups from the Group of Seven (G7) major industrialized nations explore ways to seize that money.

EU countries say they could generate between 2.5 and 3.0 billion euros per year for Kyiv from the profits on the interest.

Speaking in the House of Lords in April, David Cameron, the Foreign Secretary, suggested allied powers in the West were close to a breakthrough.

He assured that there was an 'emerging consensus' between Western countries on how to use the assets, with the US endorsing a plan to borrow billions to send to Ukraine in loans against future interest on the Russian assets.

Bill Browder, the CEO and co-founder of Hermitage Capital Management, told Radio 4 that issuing bonds on the future value of interest paid on the frozen assets was 'just overly complicating matters' and 'not the right approach'.

Dismissing the legal controversy around the seizure of such assets explicitly for Ukraine, he added: 'I think it's a political issue. Should the UK taxpayers be forking out money to Ukraine before Putin forks out the money?

'And I think the answer is Putin should pay for it before we pay for it.'
Republicans tore into President Biden's 'insane' and 'politically suicidal' opposition to giving junior enlisted members a nearly 20 percent pay boost amid recruitment issues.

In a Tuesday statement about opposition to the House's version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the White House Budget Office said a plan to give low-ranking troops a 19.5% boost in basic pay next year would be too expensive.

'Joe Biden managed to become a multi-millionaire on a public servant salary,' Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Wis., told DailyMail.com. 'And he is snatching food out of our junior enlisted people's mouths.'

Van Orden said that while he was an active duty Navy Seal, his wife had to use WIC coupons to keep their children fed.

'It's disgusting and reprehensible. I can't feel more strongly about it. That is bulls**t.'

After bipartisan lawmakers spent months studying quality-of-life issues in the military, the House decided to offer a 4.5 percent across-the-board pay raise and an additional 15 percent bump for junior enlisted in their yearly Pentagon policy bill.

In a Tuesday statement about opposition to the House's version of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the White House Budget Office said a plan to give low-ranking troops a 19.5% boost in basic pay next year would be too expensive.

Republicans tore into President Biden's 'insane' and 'politically suicidal' opposition to giving junior enlisted members a nearly 20 percent pay boost amid recruitment issues

The Senate's version of the bill does not currently include the additional 14.5 percent hike for junior enlisted.

Some early-career enlisted service members can make as little as $24,000, not including their housing allowances and free health care. The House plan would ensure that service members make at least $30,000 per year.

'It's completely insane,' Rep. Mike Garcia, who has led the fight for better military pay, told DailyMail.com of the Biden position. 'I can't understand that the rationale and in what universe it would make sense, either from a policy or from a political perspective.'

'They're actually going out of their way to say no to this and explain why this is a bad idea and it's, it's completely irrational and politically it's actually suicidal.'

Former President Donald Trump brought the issue up in a meeting with House Republicans on Wednesday, according to Garcia, and said he thought it would be a 'front burner issue.'

'[Trump] said ,everyone knows that we're having challenges in our military right now. So why would you not support getting them to the equivalent of a minimum wage which the rest of the universe has in our country?'

'This is a pay raise targeted at the E1 through E4 level,who are currently making literally $12 an hour, right now, which in California is about half of what the fast food workers make at McDonald's.'

The targeted pay raises would cost more than $24 billion over the next five years, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Rep. Don Bacon, R-Neb., called the White House opposition 'one of the dumbest things I've ever heard come out of [Biden's] mouth.'

One quarter of the military population experienced food insecurity between 2018 and 2020 , according to the US Department of Agriculture.

More than 22,000 active-duty troops used the food stamp program in 2019, the most recent year with data available, according to the Government Accountability Office.

'You got one out of eight ballistic guys on staff at food and water food banks, particularly in DC, San Diego,' Bacon, a member of the Armed Services Committee and retired Air Force officer, said. ''And we figured we worked hard to figure out would the price need to be to get them above that threshold.'

The U.S. entered this year with one of its smallest defense forces in over 80 years as active-duty troop numbers sunk to less than 1.3 million as the Department of Defense is facing sever recruitment issues.

Recent recruitment targets were missed in the Army, Navy and Air Force, although the Marine Corps and the newly established Space Force reached their goals.

White House officials said the proposal 'would lead to pay compression in some parts of the enlisted military basic pay table' and said it should be delayed until a full review of military compensation rules is completed next year.
Almost half of likely voters expect President Joe Biden to make a series of embarrassing flubs when he goes to head-to-head with Donald Trump in their first debate this month.

Some 49 percent think he will forget where he is and 41 percent said they expect him to walk off the wrong side of the stage, according to a new poll by J.L. Partners.

Another 40 percent think he will trouble standing up during the CNN debate in Atlanta, Georgia, on June 27.

In contrast, voters expect a domineering performance from his Republican rival, and overwhelming expect him to emerge the winner.

Some 79 percent expect Trump to interrupt Biden and 54 percent think his microphone will be cut off at some point.

J.L. Partners polled 500 likely voters from June 10 to 11 and asked them what they expected to happen when Joe Biden and Donald Trump face off in their first presidential debate

Pollster James Johnson said the numbers were dreadful for Biden.

'They show voters' deep concerns about his ability to govern,' he said. 'However, there may be a medium-term win for Biden in that Trump has clearly set expectations for Biden in the debate very low.

'If Biden gets through and doesn't have a major mishap then that will be a win for the president.

The two candidates are due to face each other on the debate stage later this month and then again in September.

To test the public's expectations, J.L. Partners asked 500 likely voters for their views on June 10 and 11.

Half said they expected Trump to win, while only 39 percent said they expected Biden to win.

Almost three quarters said they thought Biden, who has battled a stammer for his entre life, would fluff his words at some point.

The results are a reminder of Biden's recent bumbling performances, which have provided plenty of ammunition for the army of Trump meme makers.

However, both candidates are ageingBiden is 81 and Trump turns 78 on Fridayhave a tendency to speak in meandering sentences that end suddenly or are filled with non-sequiturs.

All groups in the poll said they expected Trump to beat Biden in the first debate in Atlanta

Former President Donald Trump was on Capitol Hill meeting Republicans on Thursday

Meanwhile President Joe Biden was with other world leaders at the G7 in Italy

Trump offered his own, less scientific assessment in a typically freewheeling appearance at the National Rifle Association convention last month.

And he acknowledged that Biden could benefit from low expectations and a soft media lens.

'If this horrible individual finishes the debate, which I think he will ... if he's standing, if he's standing, they'll say it was a brilliant performance,' said Trump, before imagining the reviews.

'It was a brilliant performance. They've never seen anything like it ... very much reminiscent of the days of FDR.'

FDR, he said, had a 'beautiful patrician voice, magnificent voice, great debater.'

The poll also found that 61 percent of voters expect Trump to tell a rambling story.

But in his NRA speech, Trump claimed the circuitous stories were carefully delivered.

'You know there is a genius to what I'm doing,' he said, interrupting a meandering story about President Macron of France, which may or may not have had something to do with tariffs, and included a brief interlude in praise of the name 'Emmanuel' and an attack on CNN.

'You do know that I go from here to there, and it all comes back into a beautiful picture.

'It's a beautiful thing.'
Two young children have vanished in Louisiana after their mother was found brutally murdered in her Loranger home early Thursday morning.

An urgent search has been issued by state police for the two missing sisters, 6-year-old Jalie and 4-year-old Erin, following their disappearance. They are believed to have been abducted before 8 am Thursday.

Callie Brunett, 35, was reported missing for 24 hours and ultimately found dead in her home early Thursday.

Brunett was found brutally murdered in her home at 56044 N. Cooper Road. Her lifeless body was found on the bedroom floor of her bedroom by her father in her mobile home, police said.

Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office Chief Jimmy Travis called the scene an 'obvious homicide' with 'blood everywhere,' and said there is a reason to believe the children are currently in danger.

Callie's mom, Debbie Smith Brunett, shared a haunting comment on her daughter's last Facebook post. 'CALL ME!!' she wrote on Callie's final post at 8:27pm Wednesday evening.

An urgent search has been issued by state police for the two sisters, 6-year-old Jalie and 4-year-old Erin, following their disappearance

Callie Brunett, 35, was reported missing for 24 hours and ultimately found dead in her home early Thursday

Brunett's car, a black 2012 Chrysler 200 with Louisiana license plate 859GML, is also missing

She had been missing for over 24 hours before detectives found her body, according to the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office.

The chief said at this point the children could be half way across the country but they will be using all resources to get the children home.

'This morning.. the victim's father discovered her body in the mobile home behind me. Her four-year-old and six-year-old child along with her car are missing.'

'This time period is very crucial. We need to find these children,' the chief said.

'We can't do nothing for the victim,' Chief Travis said. 'Our priority is to find these children and to get them back to their family.'

There are no current suspects and the whereabouts of the children is unknown.

Callie's mom, Debbie Smith Brunett, shared a haunting comment on her daughter's last Facebook post. 'CALL ME!!' she wrote on Callie's final post at 8:27pm Wednesday evening

There are no current suspects and the whereabouts of the children is unknown, said Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff's Office Chief Jimmy Travis

In the amber alert, detectives said they are looking for a white male for questioning regarding a domestic violence incident related to Brunett's death

'This time period is very crucial. We need to find these children,' the sheriff said

The manner of Brunett's murder has not been disclosed.

Authorities are investigating her death as a homicide.

In the amber alert, detectives said they are looking for a white male for questioning regarding a domestic violence incident related to Brunett's death.

Erin is described as approximately 3 feet tall and weighing 32 pounds, while Jalie is about 4 feet tall and weighs 58 pounds. The clothing they were wearing at the time of the abduction is currently unknown.

He is considered armed and dangerous, and the public is advised not to approach him.

The chief said at this point the children could be half way across the country but they will be using all resources to get the children home

Police called the scene an 'obvious homicide' and said there is a reason to believe the children a re currently in danger

Authorities are urging anyone with information on the whereabouts of the children to contact 911 immediately

Authorities are urging anyone with information on the whereabouts of the children to contact 911 immediately.

Brunett's car, a black 2012 Chrysler 200 with Louisiana license plate 859GML, is also missing.

Polive have issued an AMBER alert for the two children.

A GoFundMe has been set up with 'all funds raised going toward funeral costs for Callie and Erin, and to help support little Jalie and the Brunett family as they navigate through this tragedy.'
A Fox news host has crushed Jen Psaki in book sales despite the former White House press secretary's book coming out weeks before his.

Pete Hegseth's book 'The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men who Keep us Free' has sold 60,000 copies since it was released on June 4.

By comparison, ex-Biden spokeswoman Psaki's 'Say More' which was released May 6 has sold less than 22,000 total copies to date according to Bookscan.

Her MSNBC colleague Joy Reid's 'Medgar and Myrlie' has sold 28,469 copies since being published in early February.

And Hegseth has also hammered CNN host Jake Tapper's 'All The Demons Are Here', which has sold just 15,427 copies in the 11 months it has been on sale.

Hegseth's debut went to number one on the New York Times bestseller's list, his fourth time making an appearance on the weekly rankings.

It comes despite research by the Economist which suggests the newspaper's iconic bestsellers list is less likely to include works by conservative authors, even if they sell the same amount of copies as other works.

Fox news host has Pete Hegseth has crushed Jen Psaki in book sales despite the former White House press secretary's book coming out weeks before his

Tech mogul Elon Musk is among those who sounded the alarm over potential political bias.

He tweeted that the NYT is 'pure propaganda' after the book 'Troubled', the book which exposes the hypocrisy of the American elite by social critic Rob Henderson. failed to dent the listing despite healthy sales in its first week.

The NYT has never disclosed the metrics behind its weekly rankings leading other conservatives to believe they too have been targeted.

Other alleged victims include Ted Cruz, radio host Clay Travis and former White House press secretary under George W. Bush, Ari Fleischer.

The study found that on on average, books by conservative publishers are seven percentage points less likely to make it onto the NYT bestseller list than those with comparable sales.

Hegseth's latest title explores d how changes in the armed services has affected those in uniform and uncovered 'deep dysfunction' in the military.

Hegseth's book 'The War on Warriors: Behind the Betrayal of the Men who Keep us Free' has sold 60,000 copies since it was released on June 4.

Former Biden spokeswoman Psaki's 'Say More' which was released May 6 has sold less than 22,000 total copies to date according to Bookscan

The news anchor was an infantry Major in the Army National Guard with tours in Afghanistan, Iraq and Guantanamo Bay.

He holds two Bronze Stars and a Combat Infantryman Badge for his service in Iraq and Afghanistan.

He joined FOX News as a contributor in 2014 and is currently a co-host of Fox & Friends alongside Will Cain and Rachel Campos-Duffy.

Hegseth's latest book has also outsold MSNB host Joy Reid's 'Megar & Myrlier' which has sold less than 30,000 copies since it came out in February.

'Publishing this book has been a moving experience from start to finish, Hegseth said.

'I am honored and humbled that The War on Warriors has resonated with so many people; most especially with actively serving troops, veterans, and military families. This book is for them, and for our country.'
A farm worker has been killed by a cow after it charged at her as she she tended to a newborn calf.

Flor Lopez, 28, died after the cow struck her multiple times as she worked on Flack Farm in Lisbon, New York, near the Canadian border, on Sunday.

She was rushed to Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center in Ogdensburg but did not survive, police said.

It was not known if the cow that killed Lopez was the calf's mother.

A farm worker has been killed by a cow after it charged at her as she she tended to a newborn calf

Flor Lopez, 28, died after the cow struck her multiple times as she worked on Flack Farm (pictured) in Lisbon, New York

Some of the cows on the farm near the Canadian border where the farm worker was killed

The St Lawrence County Sheriff's Office is investigating and an autopsy will be conducted to determine the exact cause of death.

Jefferson County agricultural coordinator Jay Matteson was shocked that a cow had attacked the worker badly enough to kill her.

'You're dealing with a live animal that weighs a thousand pounds or more and sometimes you just can't predict what they may do,' he said.

'It's something that has caused a lot of sorrow and we in agriculture send our condolences to Flor's family and also the owners of the dairy farm.'
TikTok prankster Mizzy was today photographed flashing a 'power up' hand sign made famous by influencer Andrew Tate as he was spared jail.

Mizzy - real name Bacari-Bronze O'Garro - posed for the cameras outside Highbury Corner Magistrates' Court after being handed a community order, and ordered to pay 500 in compensation to a woman for stealing her phone as he rode past her on an e-bike.

He then fled from police and tried to ditch the device in a bush. The woman later got her phone back.

The sign is believed to be traditional Buddhist hand gesture but since being used by Tate has become associated with concepts like 'the illuminati' and 'the Matrix' online.

However, Tate revealed he copied it from his American chess International Master father, Emory Tate, who used to regularly make the gesture while playing sport.

TikTok prankster Mizzy was photographed flashing a 'power up' hand sign made famous by influencer Andrew Tate as he was spared jail

Andrew Tate said he copied the gesture form his father and explained: 'The reason I do it is because when your brain is as advanced as mine, you have to complete the circuit,' saying he was 'full of electricity' with 'blood on fire'

According to The New York Post, Tate explained in one video 'I'm not associated with the Illuminati' and said the sign was a 'power up'.

'The reason I do it is because when your brain is as advanced as mine, you have to complete the circuit,' he said, saying he was 'full of electricity' with 'blood on fire'.

'I do it because it increases my powers - it's like a power-up,' he said.

In the clip, Tate told his 'gentleman' followers to try it.

The 19-year-old revealed in May 2023 how Tate and his brother Tristan had reached out to him.

He said he was 'in talks with the Tate brothers', adding: 'I have the power now.'

At the time O'Garro released a video alongside a lengthy statement on social media in which he admitted to having 'put my mind into Mizzy being the biggest menace in the UK'.

He said: 'The Tate Brothers have been helping me immensely, teaching me to actually take people's feelings in and hold more accountability for my actions as I develop into a man.

'They are also showing me that I can accomplish what I want in ways that won't make me look like a villain and in the process also help others.'

The TikTok menace was snapped at a previous court appearance in August last year using the hand sign, but insisted he wasn't copying anyone.

Tate (centre) handcuffed to his brother Tristan as he arrived to the Court of Appeal in Bucharest, Romania in February 2023

Tate said he does the hand sign 'because it increases my powers - it's like a power-up'

O'Garro revealed in May 2023 he was 'in talks with the Tate brothers', adding: 'I have the power now.'

'I am my own person and he [Andrew Tate] just helped me realise how doing this could benefit me,' he said in a social media post.

'This is called a mudra, it is a symbolic hand gesture commonly used in in Hinduism and Buddhism.

'Mudras help link the mind to the body and your conscious to your sub conscious. It gives me power.

'People thinking it's an illuminati pose are brainwashed bots.'

O'Garro was jailed last year for 18 weeks after breaching criminal behaviour orders on multiple occasions imposed on his TikTok videos.

The order blocked him from filming people without their consent.

However, despite previously being convicted of stealing a woman's phone, he avoided being sent back to jail today as he was still a youth when he committed the offence.

The court heard O'Garro - who appeared in the dock dressed in a black suit with a white tie and shirt - had 'turned his life around' since his experience in prison, which was the 'shock to the system he needed'.

His later convictions in relation to his TikToks were not considered as aggravating factors, as they occurred after the phone theft.
President Joe Biden said he would not commute his son Hunter Biden after he is sentenced for his three felony convictions tied to a 2018 gun purchase.

Biden also repeated his vow not to pardon his son in his first public comments on Hunter since last week's conviction. Hunter could face up to 25 years in prison.

He also said he was satisfied his son got a fair trial and reiterated his support for him.

'I'm extremely proud of my son Hunter. He has overcome an addiction. He's one of the brightest, most decent men I know. And I am satisfied that I'm not going to do anything. I said I would abide by the jury decision. I will do that. And I will not pardon him,' Biden said on Thursday.

And he answered a simple 'no' when asked directly if he would commute Hunter's sentence.

The president made his remarks during a press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the G7 meeting in Italy.

President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the G7

Two of Hunter's daughters, Finnegan and Maisy, sat in the audience as Biden answered questions. Peter Neal, the husband of Naomi Biden, was also in the audience.

Naomi Biden is on the trip but stayed behind closed doors amid speculation she is pregnant.

30-year-old Naomi testified at Hunter's trial.

It's unclear what punishment Hunter will get as a first time offender. The date of the sentencing is in October. He could get a suspended sentence, jail time, house arrest or community service.

Presidents have the power both pardon and commute, or reduce, sentences in federal cases.

Hunter faces a second trial in September on tax charges.

Aides are reported to be worried about the toll of the trial on President Biden, who is close to his son and said to continuously worry about him.

Hunter Biden has grappled with addiction issues for years.

The trial revealed some of the family's darkest moments as they dealt with Hunter's drug use.

Biden has said he will not use his power as president to pardon his son and has been careful to distance himself from the Justice Department case.

He released a statement of support after Hunter's conviction. Hunter was convicted on three counts of lying on a government form about his drug use in his purchase of handgun in 2018.

'As I said last week, I am the president, but I am also a Dad. Jill and I love our son, and we are so proud of the man he is today. So many families who have had loved ones battle addiction understand the feeling of pride seeing someone you love come out the other side and be so strong and resilient in recovery.'

President Joe Biden hugs his son Hunter Biden upon arrival in Wilmington, Del.

All three of Hunter's adult daughters traveled with Biden; Above left is Finnegan Biden boarding Air Force One and above right is Naomi Biden after testifying at Hunter's trial

The Biden family is staying at the Borgo Egnazia resort in Italy

Biden's stay in Italy will be brief.

He arrived late Wednesday night and departs on Friday evening where he'll head straight to Los Angeles for a campaign fundraiser with George Clooney, Jimmy Kimmel and Julia Roberts.

Hunter Biden also lives in Los Angeles.

It is unclear who is paying for the Biden family members to travel alongside the president to the high-stakes meeting abroad, but on previous foreign trips on board Air Force One family members have paid their way.
President Joe Biden snapped at a reporter for failing to 'play by the rules' at a press conference Thursday when he asked about a stalled Gaza ceasefire deal instead of Ukraine.

Biden lashed out a reporter for Bloomberg News who asked him about the situation in the Middle East, even while he was touting a 10-year U.S. security commitment to Ukraine alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

'I wish you guys would play by the rules a little bit,' Biden harrumphed.

There is no such agreement by the media to stay on a certain topic at press conferences.

'Im here to talk about a critical situation in Ukraine. Youre asking me about another subject,' Biden complained. 'I'll be happy to answer in detail later.'

President Joe Biden tore into reporters for failing to 'play by the rules' by asking questions about topics other than Ukraine at a press conference Thursday at the G7 in Italy

The war in Gaza is a top issue among the U.S. and key allies, and it has come up repeatedly during White House press briefings, including one earlier Thursday.

And Biden's team had already announced the Ukraine security deal earlier in the trip.

Biden may have been sore at the previous reporter, who asked him about his son Hunter being found guilty by a Delaware jury in a federal court on a gun charger.

But even that question was phrased as an inquiry about addition and struggle in his family, rather than about the most unseemly aspects of the trial. It came after a series of efforts to shield Biden from questions about his son during the trip.

Biden's answer indicated it wasn't a lack of fluency in the issue that forced him to vent.

He noted that the latest plan for a phased ceasefire was backed by the UN Security Council, the G7 and the Israelis.

'The biggest hangup so far is Hamas refusing to sign on even though they have submitted something similar,' he said, echoing pressure by his administration on Hamas.

Off script: The president admonished reporters for failing to 'play by the rules' after they asked off topic questions. Biden's presser had a huge sign proclaiming a new security agreement with Ukraine

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy expressed appreciation for the deal and called for unity. He thanked Congress and both parties for a supplemental appropriation that is providing billions in new aid, despite battlefield setbacks to the Russians

Time is on his side (until the sun goes down). Biden let one rule of good manners slip himself: he was an hour late for his press conference

One war at a time: Biden chided Bloomberg News reporter Josh Wingrove for asking a question about a phased deal that would free hostages and Palestinian prisoners and establish phases meant to bring a ceasefire in Gaza

The main 'rule' for the presser that the media did comply with was a 'two and two' format where each side's media got two questions, from the U.S. and Ukraine.

Biden routinely chides reporters who ask multi-part questions as a way to get around the strict limitation.

Despite Biden's grumbling, the structure of the event was established to suit his interests. It didn't descend into a free-for-all.

He faced a single question about Hunter's historic trial during the event while it was underway.

There were shouted follow-up questions in the end, and Biden gave a single-word answer, that 'no' he would not commute his son's sentence. (He has said previously and said again Thursday he would not pardon him).

There are a new mores that the White House has deployed that clash with the way press events went in the past. One is the use of blaring music at the conclusion of the event, which has the effect of preventing a series of shouted questions from being captured on video while the president exits, and might even deter him from hearing them.

Another is the tactic of having White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre use a microphone to declare an end to the event. Jean-Pierre took a mic Thursday as the press conference was nearing its predetermined end.

Biden once again had a card with him with the two predetermined reporters he would call on at the event.

The White House Correspondents' Association issued a rare statement in response to Biden's claim about a rule violation.

'While the White House does determine the number of reporters the president will recognize, it is up to professional journalists to decide what to ask,' said the statement.

'Any leader may prefer that reporters ask only one question or ask only about a topic that is of most interest to the president or another world leader, but a free press functions independently,' the WHCA said.

The topic that the White House wanted to focus on was made plain with a large poster between the president and Zelensky: UNITED STATES-UKRAINE BILATERAL SECURITY AGREEMENT.'

The deal, which the two men signed at the beginning, commits the U.S. to supporting the country for years  although as a non-treaty it would not bind a future U.S. administration. Nevertheless, it is a policy that could pressure Donald Trump to stay the course if he were to defeat Biden and regain the White House. (Trump has said he would end the war in one day if elected without saying how).

Biden veered from one pre-established part of the program: the start time. He came out almost exactly an hour after the 7:45 announced beginning. That had the effect of undercutting his advance team, who had selected an attractive backdrop of olive trees on the grounds of the high-end hotel where he is staying.

Many of the shots that photographers got from the event showed a dark background. His remarks were also interrupted at one point by a loud helicopter flying overhead.

Biden also cheered a separate agreement, to rely on proceeds from seized Russian assets to provide $50 billion to Ukraine.

But he used langauge indicating the details were not entirely worked out. The administration has said the U.S. would loan up to $50 billion, but that other unnamed nations would also step up. The loans would be backed by interest on the seized assets, which total about $300 billion.

Biden said it would 'put that money to work for Ukraine' and 'prove that we're not backing down.'
ROK-born giant panda Fu Bao greets the public in SW China, promoting bond between two countries

Xinhua) 10:41, June 13, 2024

CHENGDU, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Fu Bao, the first giant panda born in the Republic of Korea (ROK), met the public for the first time on Wednesday morning since returning to southwest China's Sichuan Province, the hometown of pandas.

Visitors and international media waited for the panda star, before Fu Bao walked into the yard of her enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve at 9:35 a.m., following two months of inspection, quarantine and adaptation.

She paced slowly, sniffing and looking around curiously. After exploring her yard, she found the food prepared for her in the playground, where she indulged herself in a feast of bamboo shoots.

According to Cheng Jianbin, Fu Bao's breeder, the panda is fed 30 to 40 kilograms of bamboo daily, while she is also given five to 10 kilograms of bamboo shoots each day. Veterinarians and breeders monitor her food intake, defecation habits and mental state to ensure that Fu Bao lives a comfortable life.

Li Desheng, deputy director of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda, said that Fu Bao's current weight served as proof of her quick adaptation to her new environment. "It has been between 103 and 106 kilograms during the past two months," he said. "It is about the same as her weight in the ROK, and within the normal range of pandas in this age group."

Fu Bao returned to China in early April this year. Wei Rongping from the Shenshuping giant panda base noted that the biggest challenge for her was fitting into the "panda family" at the base.

"During the transitional period, Fu Bao could interact and get acquainted with her pals through odor and sound, or visit her neighbors, so as to adapt to the new environment quickly," said Cheng.

The Shenshuping giant panda base covers an area of 150 hectares and is located at an altitude of 1,700 meters in the Giant Panda National Park. With an ideal natural living environment surrounded by mountains and featuring a mild, humid climate, the base is home to over 70 giant pandas, including Xiao Qi Ji, another popular giant panda, who was born in the United States.

Starting from Wednesday, a flow restriction will be implemented to regulate visitor numbers, thereby ensuring a suitable environment around Fu Bao's enclosure, with the duration of visits limited to five minutes per group.

A BOND BETWEEN PEOPLES

Born in July 2020, Fu Bao, meaning "lucky treasure" in English, is the first cub of giant pandas Ai Bao and Le Bao, who were sent to the ROK from China in 2016 on a 15-year lease. She quickly became an online sensation among netizens in the ROK after her birth, and proved a source of joy for people during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Fu Bao won the hearts of people in the ROK thanks to her lovely appearance and unique charm. Around 5.5 million people visited Panda World in Yongin park to see the panda family after Fu Bao first met the public in January 2021.

Before she left for China, thousands of panda lovers braved rainy weather to bid her farewell, keeping silent when a specially-made vehicle carrying Fu Bao passed through the crowd in a bid to prevent her from being surprised or frightened by noise.

After the beloved giant panda returned to China, some ROK travel agencies even introduced "panda tourism" packages, offering tourists the opportunity to visit Sichuan and see the pandas up close.

On Wednesday morning, Korean tourists were among about 500 visitors who came to see Fu Bao, many of whom were carrying cameras to capture her images. Some waited for around two hours to see the panda.

"She was born in the ROK, and was like our daughter," said Korean journalist Lee Do-seong (pronunciation) who was reporting from the Shenshuping giant panda base.

According to the National Forestry and Grassland Administration, by the end of last year, China had collaborated with 20 institutions in 18 countries in promoting giant panda protection. There were a total of 56 giant pandas living overseas at that stage.

Photographer Zhou Mengqi, 70, has spent about three decades taking photos of pandas. He has hosted photo exhibitions in different countries including Australia and Thailand, and witnessed the passion of people across the world for these bears.

"As a unique species and a symbol of China, the giant panda has gained love and recognition around the world, and helped enhance understanding between Chinese and foreign people in a special way," he said. "It has become a bond of friendship between peoples."

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Scots sub-postmasters wrongly convicted as part of the Post Office Horizon scandal will finally be cleared when a new law comes into force today.

Holyrood ministers announced that the legislation, passed two weeks ago, received royal assent yesterday.

It means the victims of the IT blunder, which saw hundreds of staff across the UK convicted for crimes they had not committed, will be officially exonerated.

Justice Secretary Angela Constance said she hoped the Post Office (Horizon System) Offences (Scotland) Act will go some way to righting the terrible wrongs of the past.

The Scottish Government will now work with the Crown Office, the Scottish Criminal Cases Review commission and the Post Office to notify those affected and ensure police and court records are amended.

Justice Secretary Angela Constance said new legislation automatically exonerates Scots sub-postmasters caught up in the Horizon scandal

Ms Constance will also write to the victims of wrongful convictions to tell them their convictions will be quashed and setting out the next steps  including compensation as part of a UK-wide scheme.

The UK Parliament had already passed its own legislation to clear the convictions of sub-postmasters involved in the Horizon scandal, which has been branded the greatest miscarriage of justice in the legal system.

That covered England, Wales and Northern Ireland, but the Westminster Government refused repeated requests from SNP ministers to extend its Bill to Scotland, citing the separate legal system north of the Border.

As a result, the Scottish Government brought in its own emergency legislation, which was unanimously passed by MSPs and sailed through the stages at Holyrood in only 16 days.

Ms Constance said: This legislation automatically exonerates sub-postmasters who were convicted of crimes of dishonesty that they did not commit due to the Post Offices faulty Horizon IT system, meaning they are eligible to access the redress scheme.

Of course, no amount of compensation can fully mend the lives that were torn apart by this miscarriage of justice.

I do hope, however, that this legislation goes some way to righting the terrible wrongs of the past.

I will be writing to those affected to tell them their convictions have been quashed and ensuring court records are changed, so the victims of this scandal can have their good names restored as quickly as possible.

They have already waited too long for justice.

In Scotland, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service was responsible for convictions but the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission received only 16 applications for potential miscarriages of justice out of around 80 identified cases.

The new law will automatically clear those convicted of relevant offences where the individual concerned worked in a Post Office at the time and the crime was connected to Post Office business.

In addition, the Horizon system would have to have been in use at their workplace.
Vice President Kamala Harris celebrated the 20th anniversary of the show Queer Eye on Thursday as part of her ongoing celebration of Pride Month.

The vice president welcomed co-founders and producers of the show David Collins and Michael Williams to her ceremonial office at the White House Executive Office Building as well as cast members Carson Kressley, Jai Rodriguez, Karamo Brown, and Jonathan Van Ness.

The group was noticeably missing prominent star Bobby Berk, who announced in January he was leaving the show after an alleged dispute with one of his costars.

The group of stars and cast members were welcomed by Harris despite controversy roiling the long-running reality show after star Van Ness was labeled a 'monster' in a shocking Rolling Stone expose.

Van Ness, who identifies as nonbinary, was accused of being 'emotionally abusive', having 'rage issues', and being a 'nightmare,' by sources.

Kamala Harris speaks at a Pride celebration at the vice president's residence

Harris was expected to have a conversation with the creators and cast to talk about the show's impact on its 20th anniversary, but she opened up the event with comments on the Supreme Court ruling on the abortion pill.

'This is not a cause for celebration,' she said, 'Because the reality is certain things are still not going to change. We are looking at the fact that two thirds of women of reproductive age in America live in a state with a Trump abortion ban. This ruling is not going to change that.'

With President Joe Biden spending most of his June in Europe, the vice president has taken the lead on celebrating Pride Month by opening up access to LGBT journalists, social media influencers, and celebrities.

On Thursday evening, Harris threw a Pride celebration at the vice president's residence with members of the Queer Eye cast and other prominent LGBT figures in Washington, DC including California U.S. Sen. Laphonza Butler, Chasten Buttigieg, and Politico's White House correspondent Eugene Daniels, according to The Advocate.

LGBT celebrities Raven Symone, Billy Porter, and Dyllon Burnside also attended. Drag performer and winner of the show Ru Paul's Drag Race Nymphia Wind emceed the event.

Harris urged her guests to celebrate their cultural victories and remember the 49 victims of the 2016 Pulse gay nightclub shooting eight years ago.

'It is important that every day we remember the struggle but we also not allow anyone or anything to strip us of our joy and so we remember the struggle and in the struggle we always remember that the sacrifices and the pain are almost unbearable but for the sake and in memory of those who have sacrificed so much,' she said.

Kamala Harris welcomed the stars of the show Queer Eye for the Straight Guy to celebrate their 20th anniversary of the show

Kamala Harris welcomed LGTB figures to a Pride event at her residence

Last week Harris met with a crowd of cheering LGTB figures at Los Angeles Airport and gave an exclude interview to the Washington Blade about the upcoming election.

She warned that former President Donald Trump represented a threat to the gay community, even as they were celebrating their progress.

'All of that progress is on the line this November. Donald Trump and his MAGA allies attack Americans' rights and freedoms  and have all but promised to go after the right to love who you love, ban books, and restrict surrogacy,' she said.
More criminals including prisoners serving life for murder must be sent to soft-touch jails amid an overcrowding crisis, a watchdog has demanded.

HM Chief Inspector of Prisons for Scotland Wendy Sinclair-Gieben said more use must be made of open prison  and jails where inmates are handed the keys to their own cells.

Prisoners are also given access to the community when they are in lower-security facilities, so placing them in softer conditions would help prepare more of them for release, she said.

The findings of the Chief Inspectors review were partly based on interviews with 600 prisoners  with many complaining about the length of time it takes to be moved to open jail.

HM Chief Inspector of Prisons for Scotland Wendy Sinclair-Gieben said more use must be made of space in open prisons

Scotlands open prison, Castle Huntly, near Dundee

The report comes ahead of the release of around 550 prisoners who are set to be freed early after controversial proposals from SNP ministers were approved by MSPs on Wednesday.

Scottish Tory justice spokesman Russell Findlay said: Given past incidences of absconding, proper consideration must be given to any increased use of open prisons  public safety cannot be put at risk due to the SNPs prison crisis.

Scotlands open prison is Castle Huntly, near Dundee, while so-called top end facilities allow a staged approach to community access  these are housed inside Greenock prison and Barlinnie in Glasgow  before prisoners progress to the open estate.

Ms Sinclair-Giebens review found that Castle Huntly had an untenable position of operating below design capacity.

The open estate has 284 places but has operated at around 60 per cent of that capacity over the course of the last few years.

Ms Sinclair-Gieben said open prison and top end facilities were vital to prepare inmates for their eventual release.

Her report said: Failure or delay in facilitating access to opportunities for prisoners to begin being tested in preparation for successful community reintegration may affect the overall number of people in custody in the context of an increasingly overcrowded prison system in Scotland.

The top end facilities differ in many ways to those in the closed prison estates as there are lower staff-to-prisoner ratios and individuals have a key to their own room  while there is a less structured regime to encourage the individual to be more independent.

They also provide individuals with the opportunity to take their first steps back into the community.

One inmate told the watchdog: Its amazing  the prison service say you cant go to open conditions until youve done your programme; the Parole Board say you cant be released early until youve done your programme.

So it doesnt matter how well youve done, youre not getting progression because the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) cant resource the programmes.

Ms Sinclair-Gieben added: By promoting a system that prioritises rehabilitation, support and successful reintegration, we can work towards a society that reduces crime, and ultimately creates safer communities for all.

An spokesman for the SPS said: We welcome this report which will help inform our ongoing review of risk management and progression.
Nigel Farage piled pressure on the Tories and Labour tonight as he surprisingly backed the lifting of the two-child benefit cap.

The Reform UK leader told an ITV general election debate that 'we should encourage people to have children', while he backed greater tax relief for married couples.

This evening's seven-way debate also saw renewed clashes between Conservative minister Penny Mordaunt and Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner over tax.

Ms Mordaunt pointed to a 38.5billion 'black hole' in Labour's general election manifesto.

The House of Commons Leader warned Labour have only declared a quarter of the taxes they will have to put up if they win power on 4 July.

But Ms Rayner shot back at Tory manifesto plans for a 17billion package of tax cuts.

'We can't afford five more years of the Tories,' she told Ms Mordaunt.

'You're promising tax cuts when you've already tried it once and crashed the economy.'

The ITV debate kicked-off shortly after Reform were shown to have overtaken the Tories in an opinion poll for the first time - with Mr Farage hailing an 'inflection point' in British politics.

A YouGov survey for The Times put Reform up two points to 19 per cent, with the Tories unchanged on 18 per cent.

The symbolic moment of Reform moving ahead of the Conservatives is another shattering blow to PM Rishi Sunak with just three weeks until the general election.

The poll showed Labour with an 18-point lead, with Sir Keir Starmer's party backed by 37 per cent of voters.

The Liberal Democrats were four points behind the Tories on 14 per cent.

Ms Mordaunt used tonight's ITV debate to brand Mr Farage a 'Labour enabler' as she continued to push Tory claims that voting for Reform makes it easier for Sir Keir to become PM.

But Mr Farage replied: 'As for being the Labour enabler, we are now ahead of you in the national polls. A vote for you is actually now a vote for Labour.'

Nigel Farage piled pressure on the Tories and Labour tonight as he surprisingly backed the lifting of the two-child benefit cap

This evening's seven-way debate also saw renewed clashes between Conservative minister Penny Mordaunt and Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner over tax

Ms Mordaunt pointed to a 38.5billion 'black hole' in Labour's general election manifesto

The ITV debate kicked-off shortly after Reform were shown to have overtaken the Tories in an opinion poll for the first time - with Mr Farage hailing an 'inflection point' in British politics

A YouGov survey for The Times put Reform up two points to 19 per cent, with the Tories unchanged on 18 per cent

The two-child benefit cap prevents parents from claiming universal credit or child tax credit for a third or additional child born after April 2017.

Charities have called for the abolition of the cap and pointed to record levels of child poverty in the UK.

But both Mr Sunak and Sir Keir have said they will keep the cap in place after the general election.

Mr Farage was challenged by debate host Julie Etchingham about his own stance on the cap.

She noted how Tory former home secretary Suella Braverman last month broke ranks with the PM to call for it to be abolished.

Asked if he agreed with Mrs Braverman, Mr Farage said: 'I think we should encourage people to have families.

'I think we should encourage people to have children. I think we should also encourage people in marriage to have some tax benefits as well.

'We've got to help people.'

Earlier, the Reform leader warned the NHS 'isn't working' and suggested Britain copy France's health system.

'We need to look at countries like France, who spend exactly the same sum of money, but get far better services, by people paying into an insurance fund,' he said.

'Those that can't pay don't. They get better results. Let's think more broadly.'

Mr Farage, in part, blamed the UK's 'exploding population' for pressures on the NHS.

The senior politicians engaged in a second live on-air bout, six days after they engaged in heated exchanges in a previous seven-way BBC debate.

Also appearing were the Liberal Democrat's Daisy Cooper, SNP's Stephen Flynn, Green Party's Carla Denyer, and Plaid Cymru's Rhun ap Iorwerth.

This evening's debate saw clashes over immigration, with Ms Rayner saying: 'What we need at the moment is a skills strategy.

'We have not had an industrial and skills strategy, so what we have is we've been over-reliant in our economy from overseas workers to fill our skills gap.

'And they've done a tremendous job in doing that and we have needed that, but what we really need is, as employment levels have gone higher again, is we need to really match those skills to give people opportunity to take those jobs.'

Mr Farage said: 'Well, it's funny Angela Rayner says that because Labour today launched their six key priorities at the general election and didn't mention the single most important issue affecting the lives of everybody in this country, namely the population explosion caused directly by migration.'

Plaid Cymru's leader Rhun ap Iorwerth said: 'We need to heed and listen to people who have genuine concerns about the impact of the movement of population, pressures on public services.

'But we have to put that in the context of public spending cuts by the Conservatives.'

He accused Mr Farage of having been on 'a dogwhistle tour of the UK for many, many years and exploiting the anxiety that people have'.

Stephen Flynn (centre), the SNP's Westminster leader, told voters that the Westminster electoral system is 'broken'

The senior politicians engaged in a second live on-air bout, six days after they engaged in heated exchanges in a previous seven-way BBC debate

Ms Mordaunt was laughed at by the ITV audience when she described the UK's education system as 'world class'.

Host Julie Etchingham said ITV had received messages from hundreds of teachers saying schools are in crisis while one 12-year-old had written in about his crumbling school building.

'Be honest, do you think our education system is still world class?' the host asked.

Ms Mordaunt said: 'I think it is world class and we have improved.'

To laughter, she added: 'Well, when we took office literacy rates were trailing the world, now they are leading them.

'We have 90% of our schools are good or outstanding and we have undertaken an enormous refurbishment programme.'

Mr Farage has agreed with Mr Flynn, the SNP's Westminster leader, that the Westminster electoral system is 'broken'.

Mr Flynn said: 'The Westminster system  the way it operates  is broken. It's been built on failure, Brexit being the most obvious one of recent times.

'Hold your politicians to high standards and vote for what you believe in.'

Mr Farage said: 'I do agree. The first-past-the-post system has led to the two big parties  well, one was big, not after today's polls, but there we are  they're both mushy, sort-of SDP parties in the middle.

'I would change the voting system. I think the House of Lords is an abomination, the fact that it's filled up with party donors is a complete disgrace. There must be an elected element.

'And finally, let's give the people the ability to call more referendums so they can decide the biggest issue of their lives.'

Replying, Mr Flynn said: 'I was just surprised that Nigel Farage wants another referendum on Scottish independence. I'm sure there's a lot of folk back in Scotland who'd be keen to see that happen.'

Mr Farage quipped: 'Oh come on, you don't want to lose again, do you?'

Ms Cooper challenged Ms Mordaunt's claims about tax, saying: 'Penny Mordaunt has said the Conservatives haven't put tax up but really?

'I mean of course they've put tax up. They have frozen the personal allowance (so) people were dragged into paying a higher rate of tax  that's an invisible tax increase by the Conservatives.

'But the fact is the cost of living crisis has been made so much worse by the mini-budget which blew a hole in the public finances and made people's rent and mortgages go absolutely sky high and people have felt that and they are still trying to recover now.'
Russia, Iran, China and Israel have been judged to have the most negative influence of 14 countries and institutions around the world, with global perceptions taking a significant hit over the last five years, according to new research.

A global poll of some 23,800 people from five continents found around half now believe Russia uses its influence for 'bad' on the world stage, with Iran, Israel and China also proving divisive in policy.

Public opinion has shifted significantly in the last five years, with comparative polling from 2019 revealing a 22 per cent rise in the share who feel Russia has a largely negative influence in the world.

While global conflicts and tussles for control of strategic corridors and resources may have soured the public's view of these global players, the perception of Great Britain and the US remains largely the same.

The survey carried out by Ipsos and the Policy Institute at King's College London found 26 per cent of the global public believe Britain uses its influence for good, placing behind only Canada and Germany.

Russian T-90M and T-14 Armata tanks parade through Red Square during the general rehearsal of the Victory Day military parade in central Moscow on May 7, 2022

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting of the Council for Science and Education at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research in Dubna today

Iranian demonstrators burn a barricade during a protest for Mahsa Amini, a woman who died in custody after being arrested by the republic's 'morality police', in Tehran, September 2022

Polling thousands of international respondents on their perceptions of foreign nations, the researchers found significant shifts in how some of the world's main players are viewed.

Forty-eight per cent said they believe Russia to use its influence in the world for 'bad', with just nine per cent believing it to be using its power for 'good'.

This put the eastern European giant ahead of all others by a considerable margin, followed most closely by Iran.

As many as 37 per cent judged Iran to be using its influence for 'bad', compared to just eight per cent who believed it was working for the common good.

Iran scored lowest of the 14 nations and institutions examined on this front, although 17 per cent felt Iran was using its influence for both good and bad purposes.

Israel, in the midst of a devastating conflict with Hamas in Gaza, ranked only above Russia and Iran for perceptions of doing good in the world, at 12 per cent.

Around a third of 23,800 respondents believed Israel to be doing more harm around the world - with 21 per cent perceiving some balance.

The 'mostly good' assessment has fallen one percentage point since the last polling while 'mostly bad' rose nine per cent.

China and Russia also saw hefty jumps in the number of people judging their actions to be 'mostly bad', from respondents in 23 countries taking part in both waves.

The number of people judging China to be having a negative influence rose 10 percentage points as those concerned about Russia rose by nearly a quarter.

People holding Iranian flags gather to stage a demonstration in support of Iran's attack on Israel in Tehran, Iran on April 14

Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) members march during the annual pro-Palestinians Al-Quds, or Jerusalem, Day rally in Tehra,. April 29, 2022

A ball of fire and black smoke rises moments after an Israeli air strike targeted a residential building in the city of Bureij in the central Gaza Strip on June 3, amid the conflict with Hamas

Canada came out top for nations perceived to be using their influence for good, though perceptions had fallen by eight percentage points since the last count.

The UN, tasked with maintaining international peace and security, came just behind the UN on its reputation acting for the good.

By nations, Britain came third after only Canada and Germany - perceived to be doing good around the world by 26 per cent.

The EU and NATO both ranked around the same for perceptions of having a positive influence, with 28 per cent and 27 per cent respectively.

Britain has offered sizeable donations to Ukraine's resistance effort against the Russian invasion since 2022.

It has also imposed sanctions on Iran and China, though remains and ally to Saudi Arabia and Israel, which both rank among those perceived to be having a more negative influence on the world presently.

But Britons themselves are now less likely to see their country as a force for good around the world.

Between 2019 and 2024, this fell eight percentage points from 40 per cent to 32.

Americans also had their reservation, the number appreciating Britain's influence in the world falling 13 points.

France came just below Britain, with one quarter of respondents judging the country to be having a positive influence.

The 'mostly good' assessment fell five percentage points since the last polling, while 'mostly bad' rose by three.

To get a broad range of viewpoints, Ipsos interviewed nearly 24,000 adults in 31 countries between March and April of this year.

The research pulled together opinions on some of the world's most prominent agents on the global stage from North America, South America, Europe, Africa and Asia.

The global survey was conducted to mark the 2024 Fulbright Distinguished Lecture by Washington Post columnist and CNN host Dr Fareed Zakaria on 14 June.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak attends a meeting with Ukraine President, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, during day one of the 50th G7 summit on June 13

A Challenger 2 main battle tank of the British forces during the NATO's Spring Storm exercise in Kilingi-Nomme, Estonia, Wednesday, May 15

Ukrainian soldiers fire with mortar during a military training with French servicemen in Poland, April 4, 2024

While the polling did not enquire as the causes of changing perceptions, the study's authors provided some insight.

Dr Zakaria said: 'The results of this survey are fascinating. Around the world, when it comes down to it, people still want liberalism in all sorts of ways.

'What surprised me was that the international paragon of good governance is the European Union. And the great irony is that while people in most countries have a more favourable perception of the United States than they did five years ago, the one place where this was not true was in America itself.

'It seems it is the inheritors of the liberal tradition who have the most self-doubt about their role in the world.'

Professor Bobby Duffy, director of the Policy Institute at King's College London, said: 'We are living in an increasingly multi-polar world, with very different views of how nations are acting and whether their models should be emulated in our own countries, which is bound to test international relations.

'It's particularly important for people in liberal democracies to recognise just how increasingly diverse these views are around the world.'
An American teenager is stranded in an Italian hospital after falling off a 60ft cliff and breaking is leg on a school trip to Europe.

Hayden Hill, 18, was walking to a beach outside Rome on Saturday with his New Hope High School senior class from Huntsville, Alabama.

He hopped a fence to take what he thought was a shortcut to the sand, but realized too late the fence was guarding a sheer drop.

Hayden survived but suffered a dislocated hip, broken ankle and foot, and a 'small head injury', his mother Sharon Hicks said.

'The fact that he survived this fall is nothing short of a miracle,' she said.

Hayden Hill, 18, (pictured with his mother Sharon Hicks at his graduation) is stranded in an Italian hospital after falling off a 60ft cliff and breaking is leg on a school trip to Europe

He hopped a fence to take what he thought was a shortcut to the sand, but realized too late the fence was guarding a this sheer drop - and fell off the edge

'The community here calls him "the miracle boy" and they have gathered around us with so much support and kindness.'

However, Hayden is stuck in a small community hospital about 90 minutes drive from Rome where 'the language barrier is almost unbearable'.

'We ended up in a very low quality hospital (even the Italians say this),' Sharon explained in a Facebook post.

'And we got stuck with the one doctor here that hates Americans. I will probably hear this man's screaming in my nightmares for the rest of my life!'

Hayden's family want to get him home to the US as soon as possible so he can be treated there, and he may need more surgeries.

Sharon, in a series of updates, told how Hayden was cleared by a neurologist on Tuesday, but the orthopedic doctor was making leaving difficult.

'The ortho doctor came in screaming and yelling at everyone and will not release Hayden until a US doctor walks in here shakes his head and says I'll take this boy off your hands and be responsible for him now,' she wrote on Wednesday.

'Thats not going to happen.'

Hayden survived but suffered a dislocated hip, broken ankle and foot, and a 'small head injury'

Hayden during the trip to Europe in a photo posted by his mother a few days before his fall. 'I think hes having the time of his life in Italy! And I think that Italian leather jacket might look good on mama too,' she wrote

Sharon said the Italian physician wanted an American doctor and nurse to come to Italy and accompany Hayden, on a stretcher, all the way home to Alabama.

The longer Hayden stays, immobilized, in hospital, the more his condition worsens and he is developing bed sores and is at risk of pneumonia.

'Hayden needs to be in physical therapy out of this bed, out of a diaper, and sitting up so he doesnt get pneumonia,' Sharon said.

'He has started coughing up dark brown mucus and he is getting a bed sore on his lower back.

'Hayden is not hooked up to any monitors, all his vitals are clear, we honestly just can not get the doctors to communicate with us in any way about helping us get out of here so we can go home for treatment.'

Sharon said her son wasn't even given a bedpan by hospital staff and was stuck in adult diapers flat on his back all day.

The US Embassy would provide a wheelchair and van to get Hayden to the airport and on to a plane, but only if they could find a flight - and be allowed to discharge him from hospital.

'If we cant find a way to leave here and get home by Saturday we are going to at least transfer to a better hospital in Rome where more people speak English and he might receive better care,' Sharon wrote.

Hayden's family (pictured with his parents Chris and Sharon Hicks) want to get him home to the US as soon as possible so he can be treated there, and he may need more surgeries

The longer Hayden stays, immobilized, in hospital, the more his condition worsens and he is developing bed sores and is at risk of pneumonia

Hayden had at least one good moment in hospital when he met the first responders who rescued him from the cliff after he lay there in agony for an hour.

'This absolutely made Haydens day.. they even did a zoom call with all the other rescue men so they could see him too,' his mother said.

Hayden had travel insurance, but his family had difficulty interfacing it with the Italian health system, and the upfront costs of repatriation before reimbursement could be tens of thousands of dollars.

Family friends are raising money back in the US to pay for the specialized medical flight across the Atlantic and home via Atlanta.

'The cost for Sharon to fly to Italy to be with her son was not cheap!' they wrote on the fundraiser.

'At this time, Hayden will more than likely need to be transported back to the states in a medical aircraft that will cost more than we could possibly imagine.

'The goal is to get Hayden back to the states no matter the means or the cost.'
In lockdown, they flew off the shelves as sneaky staff found the perfect gadget to convince bosses they were busy working from home.

And now a top bank has fired more than a dozen workers for using mouse movers while being away from their desks.

Poll Has working from home made employees lazy? Yes No Maybe Has working from home made employees lazy? Yes 1084 votes

No 201 votes

Maybe 126 votes Now share your opinion





Bosses at US firm Wells Fargo sacked employees in its wealth and investment management department following claims that they were using devices that gave the impression of active work.

The products  also known as mouse jigglers  exploded in popularity during the pandemic as staff tried to escape the watchful eyes of bosses while apparently working from home.

The contraptions let users leave their desks for hours at a time without being detected by their employer, by moving their computer mouse autonomously.

Bosses at US firm Wells Fargo sacked employees in its wealth and investment management department following claims that they were using mouse movers (File image)

The bank fired more than a dozen workers for using mouse movers while being away from their desks (File image)

The products  also known as mouse jigglers  exploded in popularity during the pandemic (File image)

First used by gamers who did not want their sessions to time out, they took off in lockdown as workers swapped tips on social media sites such as Reddit and TikTok on where to buy them. Today you can pick up a mouse mover for under 6 on Amazon.

The sackings at Wells Fargo, which were revealed via disclosures filed with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority and first reported by Bloomberg, did not make it clear whether the sacked employees were faking active work from home or in the office.

But the saga will be a major blow to the bank, which has been on a mission to clean up its act after a scandal erupted in 2016 when it emerged staff were opening fake customer accounts to meet sales quotas.

In a statement, a company spokesman said: Wells Fargo holds employees to the highest standards and does not tolerate unethical behaviour.

Other City firms here have been keen to track workers as they wrestle to get them back to the office.

Law firm Hogan Lovells has been monitoring swipe card entry to see how often lawyers work from its London and Birmingham offices.

Meanwhile, Clifford Chance, Slaughter and May, and Big Four auditor EY have all admitted monitoring office attendance. But the stakes are high for bad behaviour.

In February, the husband of a BP manager admitted insider trading after overhearing his wife talking about a major deal while she was working from home.

The US Securities and Exchange Commission alleged that Tyler Loudon made 1.4million in illegal profits from eavesdropping. His wife also lost her job due to the debacle in Houston, Texas.
A runaway Household Cavalry horse which was injured after bolting through central London will take part in the Kings Birthday Parade.

Tennyson was one of five horses who was spooked by building works in Belgravia and galloped off through the capital. Five people - including three soldiers - were injured in the rampage on April 24.

Now Tennyson has been named as one of the Sovereigns Escort during the parade, which will feature more than 240 horses and one extremely large dog.

Because of his ongoing cancer treatment, the King will inspect the soldiers from a carriage rather than riding a horse during the parade tomorrow. Two other horses involved in the rampage, Trojan and Vanquish, will also be back in the public eye, providing the ceremonial guard at the official entrance to the Royal Palaces.

The two more seriously injured horses, Vida and Quaker, are still receiving care from the Horse Trust.

Tennyson (pictured) has been named as one of the Sovereigns Escort during the parade, which will feature more than 240 horses and one extremely large dog

Tennyson was one of five horses who was spooked by building works in Belgravia and galloped off through the capital. Five people  including three soldiers  were injured in the rampage on April 24

The horses bolted and went on a six-mile rampage through central London

Two other horses involved in the rampage, Trojan and Vanquish, will also be back in the public eye, providing the ceremonial guard at the official entrance to the Royal Palaces

Captain Charles Carr-Smith praised Tennyson as the epitome of a Cavalry Black.

He added: Tennyson has returned to service without missing a step. His return has lifted the spirits of those in 1 Troop the Life Guards.

Due to so many well-wishers sending in mints, it goes without saying that Tennyson has the freshest breath of any horse on parade.

Jeanette Allen, the chief executive of the Horse Trust, said she was proud to see the three horses return to service last month.

She added: Anything we have done to help them complete their recovery, to the point of returning to full duties, means a great deal to us.
Two 12-year-olds who murdered a teenager with a machete should be stripped of their anonymity, the Policing Minister has said.

Chris Philp said the boys, who became Britain's youngest convicted murderers since James Bulger's killers, must be named to act as a future deterrent.

The pair were granted automatic anonymity due to their age after they were found guilty of killing Shawn Seesahai, 19, in an unprovoked attack.

However, it could be lifted at their sentencing, which is expected to be next month, if the judge decides there are exceptional circumstances.

Chris Philp (pictured) said the 12-year-old killers must be named to act as a future deterrent

Pictured, police handout of one of the 12-year-old killers posing with a 16-inch machete tucked into his trousers

Shawn Seesahai, 19, was brutally hacked to death by two 12-year-old boys in a Wolverhampton park in November 2023

Mr Philp told The Sun's Never Mind The Ballots show: 'I think in exceptional cases  and this is obviously an exceptional case  the public interest may well be served by doing that to understand a bit more about the background to this and to learn lessons on how it can be prevented in the future.

'It is ultimately a question for the judge but I think there is an exceptional public interest in this case, yes.'

The two boys are the youngest to be convicted of murder since 1993, when Robert Thompson and Jon Venables, both 11, were found guilty of killing two-year-old James.

One of the boys was obsessed with knives and sent a photo of himself with a machete hours before the murder.
Polar blast to see temperatures plunge across Australia

Temperatures are set to plunge as a polar blast strikes Australia this weekend.

A strong cold front will sweep across much of southeast Australia, leading to frosty mornings and significantly lower temperatures.

Weatherzone meteorologist Quincy Tut told Daily Mail Australia that showers would persist throughout the weekend.

'A low-pressure system that has brought rain over the last few days has moved offshore with shower activity expected to start from this afternoon,' he said.

Rain will start to fall over Victoria on Friday morning before the system moves up to New South Wales and then Brisbane on Saturday.

The second week of winter will see a powerful cold front blast much of southeast Australia bringing frosty mornings and low temperatures (pictured, commuters in Sydney)

Temperatures in Victoria were trending one to two degrees below maximum average temperatures for June (pictured, a bureau of meteorology weather map)

'A southerly burst associated with a deepening low over the Tasman will start to move up the coast,' Mr Tut said on Friday.

'Starting from this afternoon, showers will persist across most of NSW.'

Showers are expected to ease on Sunday afternoon as the low-pressure system moves further offshore, but temperatures will remain icy.

Mr Tut said temperatures in Victoria were trending one to two degrees below maximum average temperatures for June.

Temperatures are also slightly below average in NSW.

Sydney

There's a strong likelihood of rain ranging from 5mm to 15mm in Sydney from the afternoon through to the evening on Friday, with temperatures reaching a high of 17C.

Morning showers are also forecast for Saturday, especially along the coast, with a temperature range between 11C to 17C, however showers should ease by Sunday.

The cold front brings decent snowfalls to the alpine resorts after a less-than-favourable opening to ski season. The Bureau of Meteorology predicts 5cm to 20cm.

Sydney has already received almost double its average June rainfall in just two weeks, with showers forecast to continue this weekend.

The heaviest falls of 30mm to 40mm are expected in the metropolitan area and NSW's Hunter region.

Temperatures are expected to reach highs of 18C and lows of 7C this weekend.

A high chance of rain between 5 to 15mm is expected for Sydney from the afternoon and into the evening, with highs of 17C on Friday (pictured, people are soaked in Melbourne)

Weatherzone meteorologist Quincy Tut told Daily Mail Australia that showers and icy temperatures would persist throughout the weekend (pictured, a BOM weather map)

Brisbane

Brisbane is expected to stay dry and avoid frost, with sunny conditions and light winds forecasted. Temperatures are set to reach a high of 23C and a low of 9C over the weekend.

Canberra

Canberra is predicted to dip into negative digits on Sunday morning with a frosty forecast of -1C, rising to just 13C over the weekend.

Those conditions are expected to continue into next week when the nation's capital is forecast to see minimums as low as -3C until Tuesday.

Melbourne

Melbourne was on track to experience its coldest day in five years with the maximum temperature just 10.1C at 3pm on Thursday - 4C below average.

'Today was easily the coldest day of the year so far in Melbourne, certainly shifting those goal posts closer and closer to mid-winter,' Sky News Meteorologist Alison Osborne said of the low temperatures.

Late showers are forecast for the city on Friday, however temperatures could rise to a maximum of 13C.

Temperatures on Saturday are forecast to reach a low of 7C and a high of 15C. A range of 5C to 14C is predicted for Sunday, with a slight chance of a shower in the northwest suburbs.

Perth

Not escaping the rain, Perth was warned to brace for a very high chance of rain on Saturday with as much as 7mm on Sunday.

Weekly rainfall totals exceeded 100mm and there were isolated totals of more than 200mm in NSW's Illawarra district, while parts of the Central West and Gascoyne districts in Western Australia recorded weekly totals of more than 100mm.

High temperatures are expected to stay in the low 20s with a minimum of 10C.

Adelaide

Adelaide is expected to receive heavy rain, with a 100 per cent chance of up to 8mm on Friday, decreasing to 2mm on Saturday.

Temperatures will reach a minimum of 5C and maximums of 17C this weekend.

Hobart

Hobart's weekend forecast includes temperatures dropping as low as 6C, with a high chance of receiving up to 7mm of rain, particularly on Sunday afternoon.

Friday has a medium chance of showers, most likely in the morning, followed by rain over the weekend.

Darwin

Darwin is the place to be this week for those who hate the cold.

The Northern Territory's capital is set receive sunny conditions with high temperatures expected to stay in the low 30s.
A retired Colorado doctor with terminal cancer has admitted to dealing cocaine and ketamine almost one year after cops in Massachusetts busted him with the drugs and an unlicensed gun onboard his yacht.

Dr. Scott Burke, 70, who practiced medicine in Denver and also has an address in Key Largo, Florida, was arrested in September after authorities received a call about a woman who had possibly overdosed and wanted to leave the ship - and found '43g of cocaine, 14g of ketamine, two handguns and ammunition' onboard.

He initially pleaded not guilty to the criminal charges against him, but in Nantucket District Court on Tuesday, Burke pleaded guilty Tuesday to possessing cocaine with intent to distribute, possessing ketamine with intent to distribute and possessing a gun and ammunition without a license, the Boston Globe reports.

Charges related to the possession of a large capacity firearm were then dropped as part of a plea deal, and he was sentenced to one year probation.

Dr. Scott Burke, 70, pleaded guilty Tuesday to possessing cocaine and ketamine with the intent to distribute, as well as possessing a gun and ammunition without a license

He was sentenced to serve one year probation as part of a plea deal

Police have said they found the drugs and three firearms - one of which was loaded - in Burke's bedroom onboard his 70-foot motor yacht, dubbed the Jess Conn, after they received a call from a man in Dallas, Texas who was worried about his friend onboard.

The man told authorities he had been speaking with his friend, a 33-year-old woman, all night on FaceTime and that she 'mentioned wanting to get off the boat' before she passed out and the call dropped.

First responders on the scene then found the woman lying on a bed 'awake but extremely lethargic,' according to court documents obtained by the Globe.

The woman would later tell cops on the boat that she did not feel safe and was 'afraid to be on the boat.'

She was then transported to Nantucket Cottage Hospital, while police continued to raid the ship.

Police boarded Burke's yacht in September after receiving a call for a welfare check of a woman onboard

They found two handguns and various ammunition in Burke's bedroom, a loaded gun on the bookshelf, a plastic bag of cocaine, and two priority overnight FedEx envelopes, according to the Globe.

Law enforcement sources also told the Nantucket Current that sex workers were discovered aboard the boat during the raid.

When questioned about the items, Burke claimed he has licenses for the guns - but authorities later discovered it had been issued in Florida and expired one year prior.

He also claimed he was unaware of any drugs onboard his yacht - which he apparently named after his children, Jessica and Connor.

Burke initially told authorities he was unaware of any drugs onboard the vessel and that he had a license for his guns

Burke would appear in Nantucket court later that month to face criminal charges for the first time.

At that hearing, his attorney claimed the woman who had apparently overdosed was a friend of the ship's captain who had been hired to work as a server.

He noted that Burke had more than a dozen guests on board the Jess Conn in the week before his arrest - including some who were invited by crew members.

Then when some of the crew left the yacht to attend a wedding, the woman asked if she could stay on board for a few days until they returned, attorney Hank Brennan claimed.

He said Burke agreed that the woman could stay, and blamed the raid on a 'disgruntled ex-boyfriend,' the Globe reports.

Burke, who practiced medicine in Colorado, apparently named the yacht after his children

'This was simply a case about a gentleman who had authority to own firearms and was not aware that his Second Amendment right was not reciprocated over a mile off the shore of Nantucket,' Brennan said following his client's guilty plea this week.

'We are appreciative of [the] District Attorney's thoughtful consideration and delicate balance between advocating for the community and demonstrating empathy.'

Brennan added that he is 'confident that Dr. Burke would be vindicated if we pursued a jury trial, however time is not a luxury that was available to us,' noting that Burke has late-stage cancer.

A spokesperson for the Cape and Islands District Attorneys Office indicated that Burke's failing health was a factor in its decision to offer the plea deal.

'It was brought to our attention that the defendant was being treated for terminal cancer during the pendency of the case,' spokeswoman Danielle Whitney said.

'In light of the defendant's age, lack of criminal record and health status, we agreed to the terms of his disposition.'
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis said Thursday in an appearance at a church that she has been 'attacked and over-sexualized' - blasting the media amid her election fraud case against former President Donald Trump going off the rails.

Willis spoke to the congregation at Turner Chapel AME Church in Marietta, Georgia, with her ex-lover, former special prosecutor Nathan Wade, in the audience, according to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

That relationship has caused Trump's Georgia election interference case to be put on hold, a Georgia appeals court ruled last week, to allow for a challenge based on Willis' affair with Wade.

'That same media will jump at the morsel of a chance to tear a sister down,' Willis told churchgoers.

She didn't bring up the Trump case, her relationship with Wade nor the ongoing court battle during the speech - though she did use the address to knock a top Trump ally - House Judiciary Chairman Jim Jordan of Ohio.

Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis said Thursday at the Turner Chapel AME Church that she has been 'attacked and over-sexualized' by the media. 'That same media will jump at the morsel of a chance to tear a sister down,' Willis told churchgoers

In the audience sat her ex-lover, former special prosecutor Nathan Wade. Willis' relationship with Wade has caused the Georgia election fraud case against former President Donald Trump and his allies to go off the rails

She didn't identify Jordan by name but called him a 'clown.'

'Hes been sitting there for 17 years and passed zero laws,' the Democrat claimed.

Jordan's Judiciary Committee has been investigating Willis' election fraud case in an attempt to undermine it to benefit Trump and the other 14 co-defendants, who include Mark Meadow and Rudy Giuliani, among others.

They were charged in a plot to appoint a slate of pro-Trump fake electors, with Trump also captured on tape asking Georgia's Secretary of State Brad Raffensberger to find '11,780 votes,' the exact number needed to overtake President Joe Biden's lead in the Peach State.

That case - like the federal election fraud case brought by Special Counsel Jack Smith and the federal classified documents case in Florida - is now in limbo.

Georgia Judge Scott McAfee issued a ruling to allow Willis to remain on the case after bombshell court hearings that detailed lavish vacations and angry disputes about when the relationship with Wade started.

Wade was dismissed from the case.

Former Trump special prosecutor Nathan Wade (right) was in the middle of an interview with CNN's Kaitlan Collins (left) on Wednesday when he was suddenly interrupted by a 'media consultant' after being asked when his relationship with Fani Willis began

The media consultant (left) and Nathan Wade (right) huddled in the corner of the room while CNN kept the cameras rolling. When he returned he continued to refuse to give a straight answer on the timetable of his affair with Fani Willis

Watch the moment Nathan Wades team interrupted him mid-interview with @kaitlancollins, as the former Fulton County prosecutor was talking about his romantic relationship with D.A. Fani Willis. pic.twitter.com/BP5KTB5aUM  TheSourceCNN (@TheSourceCNN) June 13, 2024

In an interview with CNN's Kaitlan Collins Wednesday night, Wade said he remained 'great friends' with Willis.

When Collins pressed him on additional details about when their romantic relationship began his media consultant suddenly interrupted the Q&A.

Wade is instructed to take off his mic and huddled with the gentleman in the corner of the room while CNN's cameras kept rolling.

When he returned to his seat, Collins pressed him again on when the relationship started.

'I believe that the public has through, through the testimony and other interviews, the public has a clear snapshot that this is clearly just a distraction,' Wade then answered.

'It is not a relevant issue in this case. And I think that we should be focusing on more of the facts and the indictment of the case,' the former special prosecutor added.

The CNN journalist followed up by asking if Wade's romantic relationship with Willis jeopardized the case.

'And therein lies the issue, why we wouldn't touch upon the work of the court of appeals or some higher court, because it's a pending issue before them,' Wade responded.

He said they should stand back and let the higher courts make their decisions, continuing to refuse to say when his relationship with Willis began and ended.

With the Georgia case in disarray, and the other two cases against the ex-president also paused, only the hush money trial in New York saw Trump in court ahead of the November election.

Late last month, Trump was indicted on all 34 charges of business record fraud over hush money payments given to porn star Stormy Daniels ahead of the 2016 presidential election.
King Charles loathes confrontation so there was some surprise when he  or those close to him, perhaps  declared war on younger brother Prince Andrew in the usually staid pages of The Times.

There is, according to the newspaper, an increasingly bitter stand-off between the Monarch and the Duke of York over the fate of Royal Lodge, which has been Andrews family home since he paid 1million for a 75-year lease in 2003.

Andrew, who shares it with his ex-wife, Sarah, Duchess of York, spent more than 7.5million on extensive renovation work to the sprawling Grade II-listed mansion in Windsor Great Park.

Prince Andrew rides out in Windsor grounds last week

Andrew has spent more than 7.5million on extensive renovation work to the sprawling Grade II-listed mansion in Windsor Great Park

However, the King is said to have made it clear that he wants Andrew to move out and live elsewhere.

Under the headline, Location! Location! Eviction?, The Times reported that Andrew is refusing to budge, much to the frustration of his brother.

Describing the battle of wills, a source was quoted saying, somewhat menacingly, that, If he doesnt agree to move to a property better suited to his needs, then the King may have to reconsider the levels of support he is willing to provide.

What was missing from the report, however, was any sense of why the King is apparently so keen to evict his brother from his home of two decades.

Money can hardly be a motivation, given His Majestys great wealth.

The article suggested that Royal Lodge, which is owned by the independent Crown Estate, could be let to a private tenant instead.

Yet a National Audit Office report of 2005 made it clear this could not happen, because of the sensitive location of the property in the centre of the Windsor Great Park with its consequential management considerations, and because of security concerns surrounding the Royal Familys access to the Royal Chapel.

The Royal Chapel of All Saints - where Andrews daughter Princess Beatrice married Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi in 2020 - sits in the grounds of Royal Lodge.

The Crown Estate, meanwhile, took the view that it would be appropriate were the property to remain under the occupancy of the Royal Family. According to my sources, that position hasnt changed.

There has been some suggestion, it is true, that the Prince and Princess of Wales and their three children could move into 30-room Royal Lodge.

The Waleses currently live in four-bedroom Adelaide Cottage at Windsor.

However, a source close to William and Catherine tells me they are very happy there and have no wish to leave. In due course, they will occupy Windsor Castle.

The last thing William and Catherine would want is a load of controversy about their getting another big house, says a friend.

They already have their large home at Kensington Palace and their Norfolk property, Anmer Hall, in addition to Adelaide Cottage. There was a fair bit of criticism of the cost of renovations to their Kensington Palace home and they would not want to go through all that again.

More than one friend of the Yorks has suggested: could it be that the King sees Royal Lodge as a potential future home for Queen Camilla?

What, then, is the real reason behind the Kings determination to evict Andrew and Fergie, who  like Charles and the Princess of Wales  has been through a recent cancer battle?

More than one friend of the Yorks has suggested the same intriguing answer to me: could it be that the King sees Royal Lodge as a potential future home for Queen Camilla?

Like anyone who has been seriously ill, the King is said to have been thinking about every possible contingency. Who wouldnt?

He will know that, were his wife to outlive him, she would be left with a somewhat uncertain status.

As dowager Queen, Camilla would be stepmother  not mother  to King William. And William will inherit everything, just as Charles did from his mother, including Clarence House, where Charles and Camilla live when they are in London. As Prince of Wales, William already owns the Kings beloved Gloucestershire home, Highgrove.

Andrew and Charles attend a Service of Thanksgiving to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee in 2012

So, Charles will be determined to make sure that Camilla is kept in the manner to which she has become accustomed. Might that include guaranteeing her a country bolthole in Windsor Great Park?

Even before he ascended the throne, Charles made great efforts to give her the status he felt she deserved.

Seven months before Queen Elizabeths death, the late Queen announced that she wanted Camilla, then the Duchess of Cornwall, to be known as Queen Consort when Prince Charles became King. Few can have doubted the influence of Charles in that decision, which contradicted a statement from Clarence House when Camilla married Charles in 2005 that she would in future be known as Princess Consort, such was the sensitivity around the thorny subject.

Although Queen Camilla owns her own country home, Ray Mill House in Wiltshire, it is hard to imagine her ever retreating completely from royal life.

Where better to continue to live like a queen than at Royal Lodge - the Queen Mothers beloved home until her death in 2002?

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In Britain, we are more used to measuring our homes by how many bedrooms it has, rather than by square footage - indeed, research suggests three in five do not know the size of their property by sqft.

But an in-depth study by Savills shows with the average property price of 340,837 the huge discrepancies in size across the country.

In London, that sum would typically land you a studio flat and 551 square feet, the estate agency giant says.

However, it would secure you a five-bedroom house in the North East, with a square footage of 1,955 - almost quadruple that of London.

Best value: Heading to the North East of England is where buyers will get the most from their money

Meanwhile, in Scotland, the average house price could buy a large four-bedroom house, 1,743 square feet in size.

In Wales, Yorkshire & The Humber and the North West, this figure would be enough for a four bedroom house just over 1,500 square feet, while it could be enough to afford a 1,300 square foot house in the East and West Midlands.

On the other end of the spectrum, 340,837 would purchase just 1,000 square feet in the South West, and 928 square feet in the East.

While homebuyers would have by far the least purchasing power in London, the second most expensive area is the South East, where the average would secure you 825 square feet, or a medium-sized two bedroom house.

Lucian Cook, head of residential research at Savills, said: 'Exactly what an average just shy of 341,000 can allow you to purchase varies dramatically across Britain, from a small studio flat in central London to a large four or five-bedroom house in parts of North East England.

'This has significant implications for who can buy where and, in turn, the pressures on different types and tenures of housing in different locations.

'It also dictates how far households have to stretch themselves financially to meet their housing aspirations in the place they would like to call home.'

What you get for 340k across Britain Region Square footage Home type North East 1,955 Medium 5 bed house Scotland 1,743 Large 4 bed house Wales 1,593 Medium 4 bed house Yorkshire & The Humber 1,566 Medium 4 bed house North West 1,536 Medium 4 bed house East Midlands 1,334 Small 4 bed house West Midlands 1,308 Small 4 bed house South West 1,000 Small 3 bed house East of England 928 Small 3 bed flat South East 825 Medium 2 bed house London 551 Medium 1 bed flat

Square footage is not the be-all and end-all when it comes to buying a home, with a mixed housing stock of extremely old properties all the way to new builds.

With three in five Britons not knowing the size of their homes in square feet, number of bedrooms is a more traditional marker of size.

For example, a house you are looking to buy might have an enormous kitchen, but if you aren't especially into cooking then there might be an alternative property that is configured in a way that suits your needs better.

However, if you are looking to get the most square footage for your money, choosing Easington, County Durham, would allow you to afford a 2,858 square foot, five bedroom house.

The village sits 12 miles south of Sunderland.

Meanwhile, the 340,837 would typically secure 2,625 square feet in Rhondda, Wales or 2,551 square feet in Na h-Eileanan an Iar, in the Western Isles of Scotland.

On the other hand, in St Albans, Hertfordshire, you could by just 547 square feet, equivalent to a one-bedroom flat.

The average would also only buy you less than 600 square feet in Esher & Walton, Epping Forest and South West Hertfordshire.

In central areas of London, meanwhile, your purchasing power would be greatly reduced.

Outside of London: Most and least space Constituency Sq ft Home type Constituency Sq ft Home type St Albans 547 1 bed flat Easington 2,858 Large 5 bed house Esher & Walton 553 1 bed flat Rhondda 2,625 Large 5 bed house Epping Forest 553 1 bed flat Na h-Eileanan an Iar 2,551 Large 5 bed house South West Hertfordshire 583 1 bed flat Middlesborough 2,508 Large 5 bed house Mole Valley 601 1 bed flat Liverpool, Walton 2,445 Large 5 bed house

In Kensington, for example, you would be able to afford just 220 square feet or 236 square feet in Westminster.

In Dagenham, on the other hand, your money would stretch to 770 square feet.

We picked three homes that are currently on the market with Rightmove, that you could snap up for around the average UK house price.

Family home: This property has both family bathroom and an ensuite

1. Cardiff: Three-bed house, 350,000

This three-bedroom semi-detached home in northwest Cardiff is currently on sale for 350,000.

The newbuild boasts a double driveway, a spacious kitchen and two bathrooms.

South of the river: This semi-detached house is located near to three different train stations

2. Lewisham: One-bed house, 345,000

This one-bedroom property in Lewisham, South London, is on the market for 345,000.

The semi-detached house is set over two floors, and has a private patio.

The property is located near to bus links and amenities, as well as Catford train station.

Edinburgh fringe: This three-bed property is located on the edge of the city, near to the town of Musselburgh

3. Edinburgh: Three-bed house, 350,000

This three-bedroom detached house in Edinburgh could be yours for 350,000.

The house, which has a two-car driveway, boasts a large kitchen diner, and is within easy reach of Newcriaghall train station.
Inbreeding between Neanderthals and humans may have given rise to autism in today's society, a new study has revealed.

Researchers have discovered that certain genetic variations traced back to Neanderthals are more common in autistic individuals than those without the disorder.

The DNA variants were also linked to traits like intellectual disability, language delay and language regression, suggesting that they also influence a person having multiple diseases or illnesses.

Their findings could help scientists understand the complex nature of autism and how the blending of archaic and modern humans DNA shaped modern health conditions today.

Autism has been linked to archaic DNA from Neanderthals that lived between 40,000 and 130,000 years ago. Humans coexisted with Neanderthals for nearly 3,000 years

Humans coexisted with Neanderthals for nearly 3,000 years and interbreeding between the two species resulted in higher levels of the rare genetic variants occurring in roughly one percent of the population today.

The study, published in Molecular Psychiatry, marked the first time researchers have provided strong evidence that a subset of Neanderthal DNA has led to autism - for which there is no known cause.

'In our study, we've found that autistic people, on average, have more rare Neanderthal variants, not that they have more Neanderthal DNA in general,' Emily Casanova, the study's lead author and assistant professor of neuroscience at Loyola University New Orleans told PsyPost.

'That means that while not all Neanderthal DNA is necessarily influencing autism susceptibility, a subset is.'

Researchers at Clemson and Loyola University used exome sequencing - a type of genetic analysis - to understand the cause of symptoms or disease.

They compared autistic individuals against their unaffected siblings.

The study found that a person's cultural background influenced whether they had the rare DNA, with it being more prevalent among three ethnic groups: black non-Hispanic, white Hispanic and white non-Hispanic

The team identified 25 rare and common Neanderthal genes called single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that were significantly more common in people with autism.

'These results strongly suggest Neanderthal-derived DNA is playing a significant role in autism susceptibility across major populations in the United States,' the study said.

'I know a lot of people are going to read the headline and immediately assume that autistic people have more Neanderthal DNA than non-autistic people that they're somehow 'more Neanderthal,'' Casanova told PsyPost, adding: 'I wouldn't say I blame them for the assumption.'

However, she clarified: 'Our results are a little more nuanced than 'autistic people are just more Neanderthal.''

The rare DNA was most prevalent in three ethnic groups including black non-Hispanic, white Hispanic and white non-Hispanic and was more significantly more common among those who also suffered from epilepsy and had a family history of the autism.

'I was rather surprised that many of the Neanderthal-derived variants we found that were associated with autism dramatically varied by ethnic group,' Casanova said.

'To me, it suggests that our tendency to 'whitewash' genetics and ignore variants that aren't implicated across all genetic backgrounds means that we're missing out on a lot of important genetic factors,' she added.

Additional research needs to be conducted to look at the entire genome to confirm that the Neanderthal DNA is undoubtedly influencing the development of autism.

The team also plans to look at the Denisovan genome which comes from the Altai Neanderthals who lived in Siberia to see if they could replicate the results for autistic people with Asian and Native American heritage.
So-called 'green' fuel refineries have used loopholes in federal regulation to become massive polluters, according to a new report.

The 275 Biofuel and ethanol manufacturers in the US released 12 million tons of toxic materials into the air in 2022 compared to 15 million emitted by oil refineries, the report detailed.

Further, these plants released more of four kinds of toxic chemicals that can cause vomiting, diarrhea and shortness of breath in the short term, and have been linked to cancer in the long term.

These green fuel companies use products like corn or vegetable oil to make fuel instead of petroleum.

A majority of the biofuel facilities are located in the Midwest, with one in Illinois that generated the largest source of Hexane, a toxin that can cause nerve damage.

The Environmental Integrity Project gathered publicly reported data from the Environmental Protection Agency to compare emissions from 'green-fuel' producers to traditional petroleum manufacturers.

'Green' fuel plants pump gasses into the air that are similar to those produced in traditional oil and gas manufacturers.

Courtney Bernhardt, Director of Research for the Environmental Integrity Project (EIP), the group that released the report, said: 'Despite its green image, the biofuels industry releases a surprising amount of hazardous air pollution that puts local communities at risk  and this problem is exacerbated by EPAs lax regulation.'

The EIP is a nonprofit watchdog group focused on environmental law, and has been calling for increased federal regulation of the 'green' fuel industry.

Their report reviewed 2022 data that the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) released from 191 ethanol plants, 71 biodiesel plants and 13 renewable diesel plants.

Not only were the 'green' manufacturers emissions nearly on par with oil and gas, they also released more of particularly potent toxins than the petroleum manufacturers - including hexane, acetaldehyde, acrolein and formaldehyde than traditional oil and gas refineries.

Formaldehyde fumes can cause cancer, and acetaldehyde is a suggested carcinogen as well. When hexane gas is inhaled, it causes dizziness, nausea and headaches, according to the EIP.

Acrolein, which is also found in cigarettes and build materials, can cause vomiting and shortness of breath and has been linked to asthma.

On top of that, the process of cultivating the raw materials and transforming them into biofuels isn't better for the environment than traditional oil and gas, the report found.

The biofuel plants in the US emitted 33 million tons of greenhouse gasses in 2022. That's equivalent to the amount of greenhouse gases coming from 27.5 oil refineries.

Even as reports of this sort are increasing, the 'green fuel' industry is booming.

This is thanks in part to increased funding from the Biden administration, which has allocated billions in funds for developing a green aviation fuel, Inside Climate News reported.

It's difficult to total how much money the administration has funneled towards this industry through the different agencies of the executive branch.

But just the most recent announcement from President Biden included $238 million for expanding biofuel production.

Ever since 2005, the US government has mandated that petroleum manufacturers blend their product with biofuels like ethanol.

This has likely played a role in the rapid expansion of these manufacturers- where the number of plants has increased eight times over since 2000.

Ethanol is a type of fuel that's made from corn. Roughly 40 percent of all the corn grown in America goes towards making the fuel.

In response, corn production has expanded too - adding roughly 7 million acres of new corn farms each year after the new federal regulations.

These plants are primarily located in rural areas, near the farms that supply the raw materials for their fuel - in states like Illinois and Iowa.

This has caused the tilling of land that would've been conserved for its natural plant and animal life, Reuters reported.

One of these biofuel plants, Archer Daniels Midland, located in Illinois, was found to be the biggest source of hexane in the country, a toxin that can cause nerve damage.

This has caused nearby residents to develop dizziness and nausea, Robert Hirschfeld, Director of Water Policy at the Prairie Rivers Network, said.

On top of the problems that the manufacturing itself has caused, the report writes, the increased demand for corn has made farmers clear and allocate more farmland for the crop.

This has contributed to deforestation and habitat loss that worsens global warming and potentially endangers animal species, according to research from University of Minnesota.

Ethanol is manufactured from corn. Approximately 40 percent of US corn production goes towards making the fuel.

Since 2005, the US government has required gas manufacturers to blend their product with ethanol, which is part of the reason production has ramped up, experts said.

In addition to providing funding for biofuel initiatives, federal regulators have allowed these companies to avoid oversight, David Van Gilder, Senior Policy and Legal Director for the Hoosier Environmental Council, who was not involved in the study, said.

He added that the report, 'reveals the need to promote energy conservation efforts instead of subsidizing industries that significantly contribute to emissions of hazardous air pollution and greenhouse gases.'

Though using corn to make fuel is theoretically sustainable, in practice, problems have emerged.

'Corn ethanol is not a climate-friendly fuel,' Professor Tyler Lark, a scientist at University of Wisconsin-Madison Center for Sustainability and the Global Environment, who wasn't involved in the EIP report, told Reuters in 2022.

From the farm to the pump, ethanol production released 24 percent more carbon than traditional fuel sources, a 2022 report from Professor Lark found. Carbon emissions are thought to be one of the biggest drivers of climate change.

In addition, the farms that grow corn have polluted some agricultural regions so thoroughly that locals are advised not to swim in, eat fish from or drink form local fresh water sources.

This is the case in Decatur, Illinois, thanks to both corn farms and the Archer Daniels Midland plant, Hirschfeld said.

Groups that represent biofuel companies have pushed back against the EIP's report, calling it flawed, Inside Climate News reported.
A once-in-a-generation sighting of a white buffalo being born has occurred in Yellowstone National Park - an event viewed as a religious prophecy.

The Native American tribes see the arrival of the rare calf as a sign that major change is incoming - but it is considered both a 'blessing and warning' to the world.

Montana photographer Erin Braaten took photos of the white buffalo in the Lamar Valley on June 4 while visiting the park with her children.

Records show it the first white bison to be born from the last wild herd in the US, with other births in recent decades occurring in captivity.

The legend says that a woman appears to the tribe at a time of peril, promising to restore harmony to a troubled world.

'The birth of this calf is both a blessing and warning. We must do more,' said Chief Arvol Looking Horse, the spiritual leader of the Lakota, Dakota and the Nakota Oyate in South Dakota, and the 19th keeper of the sacred White Buffalo Calf Woman Pipe and Bundle.

The birth of a rare white buffalo in Yellowstone National Park fulfills a Lakota prophecy that portends better times, according to members of the American Indian tribe who cautioned that it's also a signal that more must be done to protect the earth and its animals

Traffic ended up stopping while bison crossed the road, so Braaten stuck her camera out the window to take a closer look with her telephoto lens

The birth of the sacred calf comes as after a severe winter in 2023 drove thousands of Yellowstone buffalo, also known as bison, to lower elevations

He believes the arrival is also a sign that people need to take better care of the planet.

The birth of the sacred calf comes as after a severe winter in 2023 drove thousands of Yellowstone buffalo, also known as bison, to lower elevations.

More than 1,500 were killed, sent to slaughter or transferred to tribes seeking to reclaim stewardship over an animal their ancestors lived alongside for millennia.

Erin Braaten of Kalispell took several photos of the calf shortly after it was born on June 4 in the Lamar Valley in the northeastern corner of the park.

Her family was visiting the park when she spotted 'something really white' among a herd of bison across the Lamar River.

Traffic ended up stopping while bison crossed the road, so Braaten stuck her camera out the window to take a closer look with her telephoto lens.

'I look and it's this white bison calf. And I was just totally, totally floored,' she said.

After the bison cleared the roadway, the Braatens turned their vehicle around and found a spot to park. They watched the calf and its mother for 30 to 45 minutes.

'And then she kind of led it through the willows there,' Braaten said. Although Braaten came back each of the next two days, she didn't see the white calf again.

For many Native tribes of the Great Plains, including the Lakota people, the birth of a white buffalo calf with a black nose, eyes and hooves is akin to the second coming of Jesus Christ.

The 2,000-year-old Lakota legend says that when nothing was good, food was running out and bison were disappearing a White Buffalo Calf Woman appeared, presented a bowl pipe and a bundle to a tribal member, taught them how to pray and said that the pipe could be used to bring buffalo to the area for food.

As she left, she turned into a white buffalo calf.

'And some day when the times are hard again,' Looking Horse said in relating the legend, 'I shall return and stand upon the earth as a white buffalo calf, black nose, black eyes, black hooves.'

A similar white buffalo calf was born in Wisconsin in 1994 and was named Miracle, he said.

Troy Heinert, the executive director of the South Dakota-based InterTribal Buffalo Council, said the calf in Braaten's photos looks like a true white buffalo because it has a black nose, black hooves and dark eyes.

'The birth of this calf is both a blessing and warning. We must do more,' said Chief Arvol Looking Horse, the spiritual leader of the Lakota, Dakota and the Nakota Oyate in South Dakota , and the 19th keeper of the sacred White Buffalo Calf Woman Pipe and Bundle

A naming ceremony has been held for the Yellowstone calf, Looking Horse said, though he declined to reveal the name. A ceremony celebrating the calf's birth is set for June 26 at the Buffalo Field Campaign headquarters in West Yellowstone

In Yellowstone and the surrounding area, the killing or removal of large numbers of bison happens almost every winter, under an agreement between federal and Montana agencies that has limited the size of the park's herds to about 5,000 animals

'From the pictures I've seen, that calf seems to have those traits,' said Heinert, who is Lakota. An albino buffalo would have pink eyes.

A naming ceremony has been held for the Yellowstone calf, Looking Horse said, though he declined to reveal the name. A ceremony celebrating the calf's birth is set for June 26 at the Buffalo Field Campaign headquarters in West Yellowstone.

Other tribes also revere white buffalo.

'Many tribes have their own story of why the white buffalo is so important,' Heinert said. 'All stories go back to them being very sacred.'

Heinert and several members of the Buffalo Field Campaign say they've never heard of a white buffalo being born in Yellowstone, which has wild herds. Park officials had not seen the buffalo yet and could not confirm its birth in the park, and they have no record of a white buffalo being born in the park previously.

Jim Matheson, executive director of the National Bison Association, could not quantify how rare the calf is.

'To my knowledge, no one's ever tracked the occurrence of white buffalo being born throughout history. So I'm not sure how we can make a determination how often it occurs.'

Besides herds of the animals on public lands or overseen by conservation groups, about 80 tribes across the U.S. have more than 20,000 bison, a figure that's been growing in recent years.

More than 1,500 were killed, sent to slaughter or transferred to tribes seeking to reclaim stewardship over an animal their ancestors lived alongside for millennia

In Yellowstone and the surrounding area, the killing or removal of large numbers of bison happens almost every winter, under an agreement between federal and Montana agencies that has limited the size of the park's herds to about 5,000 animals.

Yellowstone officials last week proposed a slightly larger population of up to 6,000 bison, with a final decision expected next month.

But ranchers in Montana have long opposed increasing the Yellowstone herds or transferring the animals to tribes. Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte has said he would not support any management plan with a population target greater than 3,000 Yellowstone bison.

Heinert sees the calf's birth as a reminder 'that we need to live in a good way and treat others with respect.'

'I hope that calf is safe and gonna live its best life in Yellowstone National Park, exactly where it was designed to be,' Heinert said.
America's hospitals are under attack as a new report has found that the public healthcare system has been hit harder than any other sector.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released its latest internet crime report, revealing that in 2023, nearly 1,200 organizations were affected by ransomware. Of those, 250 were submitted by medical groups - the most of 16 sectors.

However, experts have warned that hospital attacks don't just steal a patient's information, but pose a serious threat to public safety. Due to such cyberattacks, Americans were blocked from receiving lifesaving medication and in one case, a nine-month-old baby lost her life.

Cybersecurity expert Steven McKeon told DailyMail.com that rickety infrastructures and outdated security systems have made it too easy for hackers to infect networks with ransomware, saying that the situation will only get worse.

Teiranni Kidd's (pictured) daughter died nine months after she was born because doctor's didn't know the umbilical cord was wrapped around the baby's neck. A cyberattack had shut down the computers needed to monitor the baby's heartbeat

A cyberattack caused Jes Kraus (right) to be denied radiation indefinitely when it shut down the computer systems in 2023

Experts at the Ponemon Institute, an independent research group that studies critical security issues, surveyed more than 600 health care facilities, finding mortality rates increased at a quarter of locations following a ransomware attack.

While the FBI report noted 2023 was an all-time high for hospital hacks, such attacks have been rampant for years - one in 2019 resulted in the death of an infant.

Springhill Medical Center in Alabama fell victim to a malicious ransomware attack that crippled the hospitals internal network systems and public-facing web page.

Teiranni Kidd reported in a lawsuit filed against the Alabama medical center that she didn't know there was an ongoing ransomware attack when she arrived at the hospital to deliver her baby.

She was also unaware that computers on each floor had been disabled for the previous eight days because of the attack.

The computers are necessary to provide essential information about the baby's heart rate during delivery, but without the technology, the staff didn't know the umbilical cord was wrapped around Kidd's daughter's neck.

Nicko Silar was born with the cord still wrapped around her neck, cutting off her blood and oxygen supply and causing severe brain damage.

NIcko died nine months later.

Kidd reportedly reached an undisclosed settlement with Springhill Medical Center in April of this year, but her attorneys claim the hospital is now refusing to pay, Fox10 reported.

In February, Change Healthcare - a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group - experienced a major cyberattack that disrupted insurance co-pay systems, effectively denying people access to essential drugs.

Donna Hamlet, 73, is a breast cancer patient who takes a medication called IBRANCE that costs $16,000 out of pocket, but when the cyberattack struck she was left fumbling to find a way to get a hold of the drug.

Without the drug, 'the cancer would fill up my body, and I guess I would die,' Hamlet told NBC News.

John Paul Miller was likewise affected when he tried to use his discount card to pick up insulin needed to treat his Type 2 diabetes and congestive heart failure at a pharmacy in South Dakota.

He was told that the card couldn't be processed and he would need to pay hundreds of dollars to cover the cost.

'When you are diabetic, whether it's Type 1 or Type 2, without insulin they're going to die,' his wife, Ronda Miller told the outlet.

In another attack, Ascension, a St. Louis-based nonprofit network that covers 140 hospitals across 19 states was impacted just last month when hackers disrupted the healthcare facilities' access to electronic records and phone systems that are used to order tests, procedures and medications.

The attack forced the impacted hospitals to divert ambulances to other locations while it tried to get its systems up and running.

In 2022, Jes Kraus was denied radiation indefinitely when he showed up to his appointment the University of Vermont Medical Center.

He had been going to the center daily for aggressive radiation and chemotherapy to treat his stage three colorectal cancer, which he'd been fighting for three years.

'Radiation was canceled for a week,' Kara Kraus, Jes's wife, told ABC News at the time.

'We were afraid. We weren't sure if that would affect the outcome. Again, the tumor, would it start growing back within that week? What was going to happen?' she said.

Although cyberattacks are increasing, affecting more people in the US and around the world, the issue has been ongoing for years.

Donna Hamlet, 73, is a breast cancer patient who takes a medication that costs $16,000 out of pocket, but when the cyberattack struck she was left fumbling to find a way to get a hold of the drug

The healthcare and public health sectors were the most targeted by cybercriminals last year with one institution paying out a record-breaking $22 million ransom

Major payouts incentivize hackers to issue more attacks against health insurance companies and hospitals because they'll see it as a lucrative opportunity.

'These cyberattacks on our hospital infrastructures here and abroad only highlight the very urgent need for improved cybersecurity in healthcare overall,' said McKeon, cybersecurity expert and founder of MacguyverTech.

'With 1 in 3 Americans impacted by data breaches, modernizing these systems and enhancing cybersecurity measures are essential in protecting patient data and ensuring safety and continuity of care,' he said.

A Washington, DC-based law firm told Newsweek that the number of people filing lawsuits for health care data breaches has 'exploded' over the last five years and as of June 7, the firm had more than 100 pending class action lawsuits.

Cyberattacks have previously been associated with threats to patient's privacy and medical information, but the more concerning issue is the potential harm to patients, Josh Corman, a leading expert on cybersecurity and health care told ABC.

A cyberattack can cripple any of their systems which can render medication access useless,' McKeon told DailyMail.com.

'It can prevent anyone from accessing systems or using it to look up medication information.'

The FBI reported that healthcare and public health sectors suffered a total of 249 cyberattacks last year and McKeon said the solution is to fix outdated technology and 'enhance cybersecurity measures' that 'are essential in protecting patient data and ensuring safety and continuity of care.'
Sir Richard Branson is opening his first Virgin Hotels site in London this summer, complete with a showcase Spanish restaurant, a rooftop bar, a private members club and more.

The new hotel will be the eighth Virgin Hotels location and the 17th property for the wider Virgin Hotels Collection.

It follows the announcement of a new property in Kenya and the launches of Virgin Hotels Edinburgh and Virgin Hotels New York in 2023.

Bookings for the 120-bedroom hotel, located at 45 Curtain Road in the heart of Shoreditch, will open in early July for reservations starting on August 1.

Sir Richard Branson is opening the first Virgin Hotels site in London this summer. The hotel will be the eighth Virgin Hotels location and the 17th property for the Virgin Hotels Collection. Above is a rendering of the upcoming hotel, located in Shoreditch

The upcoming hotel is a conversion of the existing Mondrian London Shoreditch.

Virgin Hotels London-Shoreditch will form part of a long-term agreement between Virgin Hotels and real estate investment and development firm Reuben Brothers, which owns the property.

It will offer its 'showcase' Spanish restaurant BiBo in association with chef Dani Garcia, a rooftop bar pool, restaurant, private members club, gym, and treatment rooms managed by Blue Marlin Ibiza. All of which guests will have access to.

Sir Richard Branson, Founder of the Virgin Group, commented: 'We're all absolutely delighted that Virgin Hotels Collection will be opening a Virgin hotel in London.

'Since the inception of Virgin Hotels, we've had our sights set on London, a place that so many of our customers either call home or name as one of their favourite destinations  and, of course, where Virgin's story started.

'At Virgin, we've been disrupting the travel industry for more than 40 years, from land to air to sea  even space. Our success comes from identifying where we can make a difference.

The 120-bedroom hotel (rendering above) will be taking bookings from early July for reservations starting on August 1

'Virgin Atlantic customers have always said to me that we give them a wonderful experience in the sky, but they don't have the same Virgin experience when they land. Well, we've sorted that in Las Vegas, New York, Edinburgh and now London.'

James Bermingham, CEO of Virgin Hotels Collection, said: 'This year marks 10 years of Virgin Hotels and what a way to start the early celebrations as we announce our newest hotel in one of the world's most famous cities.

'We are all truly delighted Shoreditch, London will be home to the next location for Virgin Hotels and what an extraordinary one it will be.

'We pride ourselves in having hotels in the very best locations across our key cities, and Virgin Hotels London-Shoreditch will be in the epicentre of one of London's most cultured and creative areas.'

The London expansion also gives members of the Virgin Hotels' The Know loyalty programme and Virgin Red, the rewards club for Virgin, a London home to earn and redeem Virgin Points. Further details are expected to be announced later this year.

For more information about Virgin Hotels London-Shoreditch, visit virginhotels.com/london-shoreditch or find out more on the portfolio at www.virginhotels.com.
In 2012, former British Airways boss Willie Walsh famously bet Sir Richard Branson that his airline  Virgin Atlantic  wouldnt exist in five years time.

Its a bet that Mr Walsh has comprehensively lost, with MailOnline watching on this week as Sir Richard waded fully clothed into the pool at his Las Vegas hotel (see video) in celebration of Virgin Atlantics 40th birthday.

Once hed dried off, we sat down with the famously clever founder and the airlines CEO, Shai Weiss, to discuss the airlines 'secret sauce', its most remarkable moments and more

Throughout the interview, one thing was clear: it's Virgin's swagger, lack of fear and mission for change that's carried the airline this far.

One of the most profound, Branson recalled, started with a simple change.

Change, please

MailOnline asked Sir Richard for his favourite left field or unsuspecting airline decision that has had a profound impact over the past 40 years.

Simplicity can be brilliant.

Sir Richard said: I'd always come home from trips and put my change in a drawer, to which my wife one day said, Why don't you do something with all that change, why don't you donate it to someone?

In 2012, former British Airways boss Willie Walsh famously bet Sir Richard Branson that his airline  Virgin Atlantic  wouldnt exist in five years' time. Sir Richard is pictured above with Virgin Atlantic CEO Shai Weiss in Las Vegas, celebrating the carrier's 40th birthday

From this simple married person's exchange at home, an idea was born and Virgin Atlantic launched arguably the world's first airline appeal for change at the end of each flight from passengers, resulting in over 1million ($1.2million) in donations in the first year.

From there, many airlines, including BA, followed and now countless millions are donated globally by airlines annually to charity appeals.

Saddam Hussein and the most remarkable Virgin flying moment

When pressed on the most remarkable moments in the airlines history, there were many involving normal passengers, yet it was the airline's ability to help people and governments that stood out.

Branson recalled being moved by the hostage situation in Iraq in 1990 and immediately feeling a duty to help.

He drafted a letter, he admitted cheekily, to Iraqi ruler Saddam Hussein asking for the release of foreign hostages who were young or unwell.

To his surprise, Saddam Hussein accepted, after Sir Richard offered medical supplies for the Iraqi people as an exchange gesture of goodwill.

'We've always been nimble,' said Sir Richard, joking with Weiss (right) that they simply make decisions and the team makes it so just like that

Branson got on the phone to Ted Heath, a former prime minister to secure the deal in person on the ground.

Virgin Atlantic, with Sir Richard on board, flew an all-volunteer mission from Gatwick to Baghdad, an airport virtually abandoned for over two years and full of challenges.

Branson spoke of the fear on arrival, knowing it could all go so wrong, particularly as hordes of soldiers marched onto the tarmac.

Like a real-life scene out of Hollywood film, Argo, Sir Richard recalls vividly the mix of jubilation from the rescue and the sombre feeling when reflecting on those left behind.

The feeling of immense joy as the hostages cleared Iraqi airspace is one the mogul says will always be top of mind.

The first Virgin Atlantic flight in 1984, from London Gatwick to New York, with passengers disembarking Sir Richard's Boeing 747-200 at Newark Liberty International Airport

Commenting on the first flight (above), Virgin Atlantic said : 'What a day that was. Alongside our first-ever customers were Richard and his family, plus a load of 80s celebrities, pop stars and journalists, and 60 crates of champagne. The rest, as they say, is history'

The Virgin Atlantic secret sauce

We partner extremely well, said Weiss.

I'd pitched a difficult question of how Virgin Atlantic can hold on to a differentiated advantage in an increasingly data driven airline world, and both Weiss and Branson remained un-phased.

Sir Richard was in exceptionally good spirits during the first flight

Sir Richard poses atop his first-ever aircraft. This 747 flew for Virgin until 2001, when she was delivered to Nigerian carrier Kabo Air. Sir Richard said on Instagram that Virgin Atlantic 'was created to provide a bright red, fun and friendly choice that made flying better for everyone'

Weiss pointed to the success of the airline's partnership with U.S-based Delta Air Lines as a pivotal moment for the airline.

Business in the U.S is set to reach an all-time high, as Delta customers embrace the Virgin Atlantic way, leading to over 40 per cent of traffic coming from U.S customers.

At a press conference in Las Vegas, Virgin announced a brand-new route to Toronto in collaboration with partner WestJet, a case in point to the partner thinking.

We've always been nimble, said Sir Richard, as he joked with Weiss that they simply make decisions and the team makes it so just like that.

Weiss, highly amused, revealed that whether it be changing an iconic red uniform or adding an amenity to the service, the reply is often simply sure, Richard.

Its that easy, he added.

Both agree that the airline's ability to simply try things and innovate is a huge differentiator.

On this subject, Sir Richard couldnt resist a subtle dig at British Airways.

They don't have hotels, or cruise ships, or spaceships, he said with glee.

Loyalty is the bright red future for Virgin

Princess Diana carrying out one of her last official engagements - naming a Virgin Airbus A340-300 'Lady in Red' with Richard Branson at Heathrow in 1993

Princess Diana took a short flight with around 200 guests on the new A340-300

Lady in Red went on to fly for Virgin Nigeria and Air Comet

In 2003, Virgin Atlantic delivered 60 tons of aid to Iraq using a Boeing 747. Sir Richard is pictured above with the aircraft at Basra airport

Both Weiss and Branson look on with intent and focus as we dive into the future.

No one thought the airline would last 40 years, so what's next?

Virgin Red, the loyalty program connecting the ability to earn and redeem points across all Virgin brands and experiences is a core focus for both.

Sir Richard said, if you stay at the hotels enough, fly enough, cruise enough and live enough, you might get enough points to fly to space on a Virgin Galactic spaceship.

This is a man who has turned sky-high thinking into businesses in orbit.

And you'd be a fool to bet against another successful 40 years for Virgin Atlantic.

Gilbert Ott is Founder of travel site www.godsavethepoints.com. He can be found tweeting at @godsavethepoint.
It's the kind of baggage that would make or break any relationship.

A protracted and increasingly bitter divorce battle that continues to drag out in court, as an ugly and very public rift between a father and his children deepens.

But for Brad Pitt, 60, and girlfriend Ines de Ramon, his ongoing legal woes with ex-wife Angelina Jolie and his estrangement from his kids have only strengthened their relationship, DailyMail.com can reveal.

In fact, when it comes to love, the twice-divorced dad-of-six seems to be happier than ever, and isn't swearing off the idea of a third marriage or having more children with his lady love.

The Bullet Train star is said to be 'on board' with starting over with de Ramon and has even told friends the jewelry designer, 34, would make a 'wonderful mother,' according to a friend of the star.

Brad Pitt, 60, is said to be 'in it for the long run' with girlfriend Ines de Ramon, 34, insiders tell DailyMail.com

The couple, pictured on a romantic stroll on the beach in Santa Barbara last month, are going strong despite Pitt's ongoing legal battle with ex-wife Angelina Jolie and growing rift with his children

A friend of Pitt told DailyMail.com: 'It's devastating for Brad that he basically had no relationship with his kids, but Ines has been a real source of comfort and it's actually brought them closer together.

'Having more kids in his life is not out of the question. Ines is young and Brad said he's 100% on board if she wants to have kids. He loves the idea of building a life with Ines and nothing is off the table.'

'Brad said Ines would be a wonderful mother. She's patient, easy going and as a great sense of humor.

'In other words, their relationship is smooth sailing and drama free. He's in it with Ines for the long run,' the friend added.

Pitt's strained relationship with his children as well as his acrimonious split from ex-wife Angelina Jolie was thrust into the spotlight again after it was revealed his daughter Shiloh filed to drop her father's last name on her 18th birthday.

Last week, a source close to the Oscar winner said his erasure from his daughter's life is just another indication that he has 'lost his children,' according to People.

But even as Pitt has been dogged by family drama and lingering divorce issues in recent months, his relationship with de Ramon has only intensified.

The couple, who have been linked romantically since late 2022, were reported to have moved in together in February this year.

And last month, the loved-up pair were snapped in a rare but intimate outing as they enjoyed a romantic morning stroll on the beach in Santa Barbara.

Brad and Angelina remain locked in a bitter legal battle years after their 2016 split

Despite the drama, friends say the Bullet Train actor is not swearing off starting a family with his new lady love. The two are pictured together celebrating Pitt's 60th birthday in Paris last December

Meanwhile, Pitt's relationship with the six children he shares with ex Angelina Jolie has become increasingly fraught, with the kids dropping 'Pitt' from their names, according to People. Jolie is seen with daughters Zahara (L) and Shiloh (R) in 2021 in Rome

At one point, the two-time Oscar winner even wrapped his arm around his live-in girlfriend and was seen pulling her close during their walk.

The Hollywood heartthrob shares four daughters and two sons with ex-wife Angelina Jolie, 49.

Notably, Pitt was already in the process of legally adopting a daughter who had been a part of his life for months before he and then-partner Jolie had announced she was pregnant with Shiloh in January 2006.

Jolie had traveled to Ethiopia to adopted her first daughter Zahara, 19, in July 2005, and Pitt had come with her on the trip.

'He's aware and upset that Shiloh dropped his last name,' the source claimed. 'He's never felt more joy than when she was born. He always wanted a daughter.'

They added that the distance between Pitt and his six children  Maddox, 22; Pax, 20; Zahara; Shiloh; and twins Knox and Vivienne, 15  'pains him.'

However, they noted that 'he's still happy with Ines [de Ramon],' his girlfriend.

Another source described as close to Pitt told the publication that the Tree Of Life star 'still loves all of his kids tremendously.'

Pitt (pictured with three of his children and his parents in 2014) shares four daughters and two sons with his ex-wife

Pitt's strained relationship with his children as well as his acrimonious split from ex-wife was thrust into the spotlight again after it was revealed his daughter Shiloh filed to drop her father's last name on her 18th birthday

'This whole process has been very hard for the whole family,' they added.

If Shiloh's request is granted  and there is no indication that it would not be  she will subsequently go simply by 'Shiloh Jolie,' rather than her original full name, 'Shiloh Jolie-Pitt.'

People previously reported that Pitt's youngest daughter Vivienne  who served as her mother Angelina Jolie's assistant when she produced the Broadways musical adaptation of The Outsiders  had listed her name as 'Vivienne Jolie' in the Playbill for the show.

It is unclear if Vivienne has legally changed her name, but the minor would likely need either parental consent or extenuating circumstances to be allowed to do so before turning 18.

Zahara previously introduced herself as 'Zahara Marley Jolie' when she joined the Mu Pi chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority at Spelman College late last year.

Pitt and Jolie's oldest sons, Maddox and Pax, have reportedly not publicly used their father's last name in years, and both have been openly antagonistic toward him.
Mitchell Orval recently launched his latest business venture Tiny Truck Tribe online and managed to spruik it to Today hosts Karl Stefanovic and Sarah Abo on Wednesday amid evolving controversy surrounding his new company.

However, despite getting his toy forklifts in front of the glamorous breakfast show hosts, the controversial influencer, 27, has already been forced to defend himself against critics.

Eyebrows were raised this week over how quickly Mitch gained a 4.9-star review average from more than 25 customers during a pre-sale period, with accusations the father-of-two is only 'drop shipping' the remote control vehicles - a claim Mitch denies.

Drop shipping is a form of retail business in which the seller accepts customer orders without keeping stock on hand, by direct delivery from the manufacturer to the customer.

Orval's appearance on the Today breakfast show saw hosts Karl, 49, and Sarah, 38, playing around with the toy forklifts in their Channel Nine studio as they crossed live to Mitch at his home.

Mitchell Orval, 27, recently launched his latest business venture Tiny Truck Tribe online and managed to spruik it to Today hosts Karl Stefanovic, 49, (left) and Sarah Abo, 38, (right) on Wednesday amid evolving controversy surrounding his new company

'These days I feel like your kids are just, all they want to do is be stuck behind iPads and TV screens,' Mitch told the hosts from his backyard as his three-year-old son Arti operated a toy forklift behind him.

'I wanted to come up with something that gets them out of the house, gets them learning but also has a little bit of fun,' he continued.

'The way I look at it, they're the future builders of our generation, so why not get them started early?'

Hilarious behind-the-scenes footage emerged just a few hours after the segment, which showed Today anchor Sarah cramming herself inside one of the tiny vehicles as Karl used a remote to drive it across the studio.

Despite the positive press Mitch received on TV, the influencer has been forced to contend against online critics who have pointed out apparent inconsistencies in his website which have raised questions.

'These days I feel like your kids are just, all they want to do is be stuck behind iPads and TV screens,' Mitch (pictured) told the hosts from his backyard as his three-year-old son Arti operated a toy forklift behind him

Instagram watchdog Aussie Influencer Opinions took to social media on Monday to point out Mitch had 'only made 100 units' for pre-order but had '25+ customer reviews' on the product's website.

The account went on to share several messages they received from followers also pointing out the confusing timeline of the reviews.

One person said: 'Somehow the website had 25+ positive reviews when the pre-sale went live... but he only had 100 to sell, so would he really be sending out 25 in advance that people have reviewed as "the best investment we've made".'

Hilarious behind-the-scenes footage emerged just a few hours after the segment, which showed Today anchor Sarah cramming herself inside one of the tiny vehicles as Karl used a remote to drive it across the studio

Despite the positive press Mitch received on TV, the influencer has been forced to contend against online critics who have pointed out apparent inconsistencies in his website which have raised questions

Another claimed his website had customer reviews up before the product had even launched.

According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), product reviews 'should be independent and reflect the genuine opinion of the person who experienced the product or service'.

'It's against the law for a business to create fake or misleading reviews [and/or] arrange for others to create fake or misleading reviews,' it states.

Since the reviews were called into question, at least seven vanished from his Tiny Truck Tribe website.

His company has also responded to followers on its Instagram account who have asked about the early reviews, saying: 'We've had the product for a while now.

'There's been a lot of backend work, content creating, testing of the product through friends and families before we actually went live to the public and news.'

However, critics of his company have gone on to point out further discrepancies in his product reviews and accused the influencer of 'drop shipping' his tiny trucks - a claim Mitch vehemently denies.

Eyebrows were raised over how quickly the controversial influencer gained a 4.9-star review from more than 25 customers for his toy forklifts during a pre-sale period. Pictured: Mitch's toddler sons Arti and Sunny

Some followers pointed out images of the product included in his website reviews can be found on other websites like the UK toy company Outside Play and Ali Baba.

'People need to know that Mitch hasn't "made" this product,' Aussie Influencer Opinions wrote alongside screenshots of since deleted comments from Mitch's Instagram account accusing him of drop shipping.

'The exact same product is available on several other websites, for $100-$300 less than the selling price on Tiny Truck Tribe.'

Mitch is selling his toy forklifts for a 'discounted' price of $575, with the full price being listed on his website as $675.

The influencer has now taken a firm stand against the drop shipping claims and invited his naysayers to take a tour of the warehouse where he manufactures his 'tiny trucks'.

Instagram watchdog Aussie Influencer Opinions took to social media on Monday to point out Mitch had 'only made 100 units' for pre-order but had '25+ customer reviews' on the product's website

Since the reviews were called into question, Mitch has removed at least seven of them from his Tiny Truck Tribe website

His company has also responded to followers on its Instagram account who have asked about the early reviews

'We are manufacturing these and ordering into our warehouse. This product cannot be drop shipped,' the Tiny Truck Tribe wrote on its Instagram account when followers asked the company to address the drop shipping claims.

'Drop shipping means you can sell an individual item and they ship it to the customer. This product requires you to manufacture a minimum order.

'If anyone can find a way to drop ship this product and beat our price, we encourage you to show us.'

Meanwhile, over on Mitch's Instagram account, he posted a screenshot of a drop shipping accusation and wrote: 'It's always the people sitting around watching everyone else in the arena who have the most to say.

Critics of his company have gone on to point out further discrepancies in his product reviews and accused the influencer of 'drop shipping' his tiny trucks - a claim Mitch vehemently denies.

Some followers pointed out images of the product included in his website reviews can be found on other websites like the UK toy company Outside Play

Mitch has now taken a firm stand against the drop shipping claims and invited his naysayers to take a tour of the warehouse where he manufactures the toy forklifts

'Remember most people that want to see you fail, is because it makes them feel better about never trying in the first place [sic],' he added.

Drop shipping occurs when a person or company acts as a middleman to sell goods on their website which are manufactured, stocked and shipped by another supplier.

When customers place an order on the website, the middleman will send the order to another company which stocks the goods and ships them to the customers.

The middleman will usually charge the customer more money for the product so they can take a cut of the profit made by the supplier.

Despite the criticism Mitch has received on his personal and company Instagram account, friends and fans have flocked to the comments in support of his latest business venture

Fitness influencer Kayla Itsines (right) shared a video to her Instagram account which showed her toddler Jax Stokes Woodroffe, one, (left) sitting in one of Mitch's toy forklifts

Despite the criticism Mitch has received on his personal and company Instagram accounts, friends and fans have flocked to the comments in support of his latest business venture.

Melbourne TV presenter Emmylou MacCarthy wrote: 'These [toy forklifts] are so cute! I wish my little ones were still little ones to get one of these!'

Nine weekend news presenter Mia Glover added, 'These look so good!' while influencer Sarah's Day commented: 'Stop it right now and take my money.'

Elsewhere, fitness influencer Kayla Itsines shared a video to her Instagram account which showed her toddler Jax Stokes Woodroffe, one, sitting in one of Mitch's toy forklifts.

'OMG Tiny Truck Tribe. Best present ever!' she captioned the video.

Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Mitch for comment.
Andy Cohen revealed which Housewife was allegedly quoted in New York Magazine and was fired.

On an episode of SiriusXM's Radio Andy, the Bravo executive, 56, opened up about who he thought was the anonymous source behind the negative quote, and the Housewife later confirmed it herself.

Previously, an anonymous Housewife from the New York City franchise was quoted in an article about Cohen titled The Last Inappropriate Man on Television, which was published on June 3.

In the story, the previously anonymous source slammed the show and said that 'everybody dances for Andy Cohen.'

'The show went from silly humor about middle-aged women getting drunk and being delusional about their status and having funny, petty arguments, to Housewives investigating and doing opposition research and making up false story lines and leaking stories on each other and trying to get one another fired,' the former Housewive told the outlet.

Knowing that the Housewive was fired, Cohen  who slammed Bethenny Frankel for her 'reality reckoning' and is reportedly 'paddling really, really fast under the water' to maintain his TV career amid the drama  narrowed it down and shared the identity of the source, adding that it was 'very obvious.'

Andy Cohen revealed which Housewife was allegedly quoted in New York Magazine and was fired. On an episode of SiriusXM's Radio Andy, the Bravo executive, 56, opened up about who he thought was the anonymous source behind the negative quote, and the Housewife later confirmed it herself; seen in May 2024

Knowing that the Housewive was fired, Cohen said it was 'very obvious' it was Carole Radziwill. The Real Housewives of New York City alum, 60, responded to Cohen's accusation with a series of harsh tweets; seen in May 2023

'I know exactly,' he said. 'It's Carole Radziwill, no question.'

He added: 'It's the one mean quote in there, and it's the only anonymous quote. There are 18 reasons why it's Carole. It's not even a question that it's Carole.'

The Watch What Happens Live! host added, 'Carole has said a lot of unkind things that she's tweeted and been quoted about. Why are you going off the record here?'

Because it was so 'obvious,' he said it was 'weird' that she wanted to be anonymous.

'We haven't really fired that many New York Housewives. It's very obvious,' he said.

'I didn't understand. Why not just put your name to it? That was so weird. Yeah, it was definitely Radzi, without question.'

Shortly afterwards, Radziwill, 60, responded to Cohen's accusation with a series of tweets on X, formerly Twitter.

The reality TV personality, who was on the Real Housewives of New York City for six seasons until her departure in 2018, clapped back and called him a 'bully' and 'nasty' for outing her as the anonymous source.

-Previously, an anonymous Housewife from the New York City franchise was quoted in an article about Cohen titled The Last Inappropriate Man on Television, which was published on June 3. In the story, the previously anonymous source slammed the show and said that 'everybody dances for Andy Cohen'; seen in December 2023

'I know exactly,' he said about the identity of the anonymous source. 'It's Carole Radziwill , no question.' Because it was so 'obvious,' he said it was 'weird' that she wanted to be anonymous. 'We haven't really fired that many New York Housewives. It's very obvious,' he said; seen in November 2023

'Hey Carole here,' she wrote in response to a clip from Cohen's recent radio show episode. 'Someone can make a truthful observation [and] there's always one short-ish dude waiting to be offended.

'At this point why would any normal person use their name? They're all so vindictive which I believe is the point of the quote [and] confirmed by Andy's nasty response,' she continued.

She retweeted the same tweet again and added: 'Can't wait to catch up. @Andy so fun!!'

Then, Radziwill responded to a series of Bravo fans' tweets and shared her thoughts.

One social media user replied to her and wrote: 'I actually don't think he was being nasty. Just stating what he thought was "unkind" commentary about him. Did I miss something?"'

In response, Radziwill said that 'condescending was too many characters.'

On the other hand, another X user defended her and claimed Cohen 'needs to keep up the facade of uplifting, supporting, championing women' but does the opposite.

Radziwill concurred and wrote: 'It's just [a] classic [bullying] tactic. Imagine outing a woman for whatever reason chooses to remain anonymous. He's absurd [and] should apologize immediately. But I'm not holding my [breath].

Shortly afterwards, Radziwill, 60, responded to Cohen's accusation with a series of tweets on X, formerly Twitter; seen in May 2022

The reality TV personality, who was on the Real Housewives of New York City for six seasons until her departure in 2018, clapped back and called him a 'bully' and 'nasty' for outing her as the anonymous source; seen in February 2023

In response to a clip of Cohen on his radio show, Radziwill slammed him for his 'nasty response' and also called him a 'short-ish dude waiting to be offended'

When one X user reacted to her calling him 'short-ish,' Radziwill laughed and said she was 'not above being petty'

In response to one fan coming to her defense, she claimed Cohen was a 'bully' and 'should apologize immediately'

She also tagged Cohen and tweeted to him that she 'can't wait to catch up'

One social media user defended Cohen and Radziwill clarified that she thought he was 'condescending'

When one social media user tweeted in defense of Cohen and said Radziwill 'talked mad s*** on him publicly,' she replied: 'Well I haven't sued him or threatened to destroy him.

'He should focus on the people who are gunning for him. I've said nothing except to stand up to all of his nonsense,' she added.

One user emphasized that Radziwill used the word 'short-ish' to describe Cohen and she retweeted, adding: 'Lolzzzz. I am not above being petty.'

Meanwhile, one fan theorized that Radziwill chose to stay anonymous to avoid 'being called a clout chaser' and she agreed.

'I couldn't have said it better myself,' she wrote in response to the X user's tweet. 'I didn't want to put my name in an article in which I had no idea of the context.

'I told the writer they're all vindictive [and] then Andy proves it by outing me. He's lost his mind likely from all the legal trouble. Hope he gets [the] help he needs.'

This comes shortly after Anderson Cooper has claimed Cohen is battling to maintain his TV career amid a series of explosive lawsuits from former Bravo stars.

He has endured a turbulent few months after RHONY star Leah McSweeney alleged in a lawsuit that he shared cocaine with Real Housewives cast members, played favorites, fostered a toxic workplace culture  all of which he has denied.

When one of her fans defended her choice to stay anonymous, she agreed and said she 'couldn't have said it better myself.' The reality star then said her former boss 'lost his mind likely from all the legal trouble'

Another X user said she 'talked mad s*** on him publicly,' and Radziwill quipped that she hasn't 'sued him or threatened to destroy him'

She also suggested that she was successful before Cohen when one X user said he gave her a 'platform'

She also referenced Taylor Swift's song Karma in one response

Radziwill also shared a meme about the 'war' between her and Cohen being 'reignited'

In the ensuing weeks, NBCU revealed a workplace investigation, New York Magazine's Vulture reported, as 'rumors swirled that Cohen was hiring a crisis-PR team and negotiating a "departure package."'

Cooper said he 'makes it look easy' but is 'paddling really, really fast under the water' without adding specifics.

Lawsuits mentioned in the story included a 2022 suit from The Real Housewives of Atlanta alum Nene Leakes against him, Bravo and NBCU alleging racism.

Another noted was Dorinda Medley's butler Marco Vega's filing against Bravo and NBCU over Real Housewife of Beverly Hills' alum Brandi Glanville's conduct during production of the Bravo series Ultimate Girls Trip: Return to Bluestone Manor in 2021.

Another suit was filed by Real Housewives of New Jersey alum Caroline Manzo, against Bravo and NBCU over Glanville's conduct during production of Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip.

Glanville earlier this year publicly accused Cohen of sexual harassment.

Cohen told Vulture that he 'didn't like' being at the center of the storm, adding that 'there was a lot of noise' and he 'was definitely sad about it.'
Jodie Comer has revealed she had 'unhealthy relationship' with her body after becoming 'consumed' by what other people thought of her in a new interview.

Posing in a cropped blazer and a series of other stylish looks to cover the July / August edition of ELLE UK on Thursday, the actress, 31, discussed finding 'confidence' and how she overcame her insecurities.

Speaking about her past 'tendency to hide' behind clothes, she explained how she has now grown to 'respect' and 'look after' her body.

Jodie, who's latest film The Bikeriders is set for release later this month, explained how starring in West End play Prima Facie helped her to build confidence.

She told the magazine: Growing up, I had a very unhealthy relationship with my body, and Ive always had a tendency to hide it. Anything revealing or that showed my arms just wasnt in my comfort zone. '

Jodie Comer, 31, has revealed she had 'unhealthy relationship' with her body after becoming 'consumed' by what other people thought of her in a new interview

Posing in a cropped blazer and a series of other stylish looks to cover the July / August edition of ELLE UK on Thursday, the actress discussed finding 'confidence'

The actress continued: 'I went through periods of being consumed by what people thought of me  less so now, because Im much more focused on myself.

'I do think the play was a huge catalyst for that confidence. It was the first time Id truly respected my body, or at least fully took time to care for and nurture it.

'I was so grateful for what it was enabling me to do, and that bled into all aspects of my life. It taught me grace!

Speaking of having a healthy sense of ego, she added: Its important not to go through life constantly self-deprecating.

'You can feel lucky to be there, but also f****ing show up. Own your space, honour yourself in that way. Dont run away from it.

Jodie is set to star in the new crime epic The Bikeriders alongside Austin Butler and Tom Hardy - she was the only woman on set.

The film, about a midwestern motorcycle gang the Vandals, sees the actress play the main narrator in her role as Kathy, the concerned girlfriend of Butler's character Benny.

She had to learn how to smoke and drive on American freeways to realistically portray her character.

Speaking about her past 'tendency to hide' behind her clothes, she explained how she has now grown to 'respect' and 'look after' her body

Jodie, who's latest film The Bikeriders is set for release later this month, explained how starring in West End play Prima Facie helped her build confidence

She told the magazine: Growing up, I had a very unhealthy relationship with my body, and Ive always had a tendency to hide it. Anything revealing just wasnt in my comfort zone'

Everythings so spread out, so I was like, Right Jodie, you have to get in a car, put on your big-girl pants and do it," she admitted.

With smoking, you can tell if theyve not inhaled. Kathy literally ate [cigarettes] for breakfast, so I had to get it right.

Bikeriders is based on the 1968 book by American filmmaker Danny Lyons which was a collection of photographs and anecdotes chronicling the Chicago Outlaws Motorcycle Club.

The July/August issue of ELLE UK is on sale from 20 June

Seen through the lives of its members, the film follows the Vandal club's evolution over a decade from a gathering of local outsiders to a more sinister group.

Recalling her first time on set, Jodie told ELLE: 'I went onto that set and it was all men, and I could feel myself shrinking, but not because of anything that was being done.

'It was fascinating to witness myself doing it. I had to have a word with myself.

On her past projects she has surrounded herself with women, something which she has found to be 'powerful.'

In the past couple of years, Ive met so many women who have become integral to my life, and who all nurture parts of me,' Jodie explained.

'I think its all about surrounding yourself with people who can see something within you that you cant.

The July/August issue of ELLE UK is on sale from 20 June.

The actress continued: 'I went through periods of being consumed by what people thought of me  less so now, because Im much more focused on myself'

Jodie is set to star in the new crime epic The Bikeriders alongside Austin Butler and Tom Hardy - she was the only woman on set (pictured)
Rebel Wilson has revealed she is yet to meet her fiancee' Ramona Agruma's parents for a heartbreaking reason.

During an interview on the Today show in the US, the Bridesmaids star, 44, who started dating Ramona in June 2022 before the pair got engaged months later, explained her partner comes from a conservative background.

'Ramona was born in Latvia, and it's not as LGBTQ+-friendly as other countries are,' she said.

'There are still parts of the world that aren't as accepting.'

She added that the couple will be soon heading to Europe for a holiday and she hopes this will allow her to finally meet her future in-laws and introduce their 19-month-old daughter Royce to them in person.

Rebel Wilson has revealed she is yet to meet her fiancee' Ramona Agruma's parents for a heartbreaking reason

'I'm really excited to meet them because I know they are very smart. Ramona's mother is a doctor. Roycie is the real icebreaker. They've been FaceTiming with her.'

Earlier this month, Rebel admitted while she feels 'lucky' her family were accepting of her relationship, her partner hasn't had such a comfortable ride.

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's 'Desert Island Discs' program, Rebel said: 'I'm lucky in my case, it went very, very well... My grandparents, who are in their 90s, so cool with it.'

During an interview on the Today show in the US, the Bridesmaids star, 44, who started dating Ramona in June 2022 before the pair got engaged months later , explained her partner comes from a conservative background

'Ramona's family, not as much. Her mum has luckily come around now, her father still doesn't talk to her, but we're hoping that will change,' she added.

The actress had been in the process of using a surrogate to have a child when she first met Ramona, and was thankful her partner was quickly accepting of her family plans.

'I'd already been planning to use a surrogate to have a child and I'd done several rounds of IVF and I had one embryo transfer, which sadly didn't work.'

The Bridesmaids actress revealed she was dating Ramona Agruma in a June 2022 Instagram post, with the pair getting engaged months later. They welcomed Royce Lillian Elizabeth Wilson via surrogate in 2022

'Almost right at meeting Ramona, I was planning on the second embryo transfer and I was like, "Babe I don't know how to tell you this, but I'm going to have a child kind of around November",' she said.

'Ramona just looked at me and said, "Well, I love you and if you have a child, I'm going to love your child exactly the same way."'

The SAG Award nominee and her fiancee Ramona Agruma welcomed Royce Lillian Elizabeth Wilson via surrogate in 2022.
Australian celebrity astronomer and BBC star Greg Quicke died earlier this week aged 62 after being diagnosed with cancer last year.

The Western Australian-native was born in 1961 and as a TV presenter hosted a series of astronomy specials on the BBC and ABC called Stargazing Live alongside Professor Brian Cox.

He was affectionately known as 'Space Gandalf' thanks to his strong resemblance to the Lord of the Rings character played by Sir Ian McKellen.

Quicke's family said in a statement he helped viewers better understand the cosmos.

'He brought the universe to us all and translated it into a language we all understood,' they said.

Australian celebrity astronomer and BBC star Greg Quicke (pictured) died earlier this week aged 62, after being diagnosed with cancer last year

'He was watched by millions of people around the globe and carried out his life work with inspirational spirit and freedom.'

English TV presenter Bill Bailey interviewed him as part of his Wild West Australia series where Quicke explained what he loved most about his work.

'It brings me a lot of joy. Everyone thinks it's all about stars but it's not... it's about people,' Quicke told him.

He also hosted a ten-part miniseries for the ABC called A Stargazers Guide to the Cosmos, and wrote several books on the subject.

The Western Australian-native was born in 1961 and as a TV presenter hosted a series of astronomy specials on the BBC and ABC called Stargazing Live

BBC presenter Professor Brian Cox (right) paid a fitting tribute to Greg on social media

In addition to his TV work, he was also a popular tour guide and over the years had taken more than 100,000 people on a guided journey to see WA's breathtaking star constellations.

Professor Brian Cox paid a fitting tribute to Quicke on social media: 'I love what he wrote on seeing the solar eclipse in 2023. "My body spent, my heart full, I crash into a deep eclipse fuelled communion with the other worlds."

'I hope that's where he is now,' Cox concluded.

Quicke is survived by a daughter, his parents and sister.
While Sofia Vergara is hard at work on season 19 of America's Got Talent as one of judges, the reality star and actress appears to getting a jump on summer personally and professionally.

On Wednesday. the Modern Family alum took to her Instagram page and shared a series of snaps showing her modeling a swimsuit from her Sofia Vergara Swim collaboration with Walmart.

'One week til first day of summer get your bathing suit game ready,' Vergara, 51, reminded her 34.8 million fans and followers in the caption of the post.

For the cover photo, the Barranquilla, Atlantico, Colombia native is laying back on her couch dressed in a dark brown one-piece.

Accessorizing with rings and bracelets on both wrists, Vergara rounded out her overall look by having her dark brown tresses styled long, straight, and flowing down well past her shoulders with a part in the middle.

Sofia Vergara, 51, slipped into a one-piece swimsuit from her Sofia Vergara Swim Walmart collaboration, for a promo post on her Instagram page, one week ahead of summer

She would follow up with a couple of photos of herself sitting more upright on the couch to give viewers a different look at the one-piece.

This angle showcased the swimsuit's V neck and lace up design, along with Vergara's ample cleavage, compliments of the plunging neckline.

In the second picture, the Griselda star has her legs crossed while leaning back on her hands on the sofa.

The mother of one then uncrossed her legs, slightly leaned forward, and rested both arms on her long gams, all while looking at the camera.

Vergara is currently enjoying critical accolades for her performance in the titular role of Griselda Blanco, a notorious crime boss who ran a drug cartel between Colombia and the U.S. in the 1970s and 80s.

In addition to playing the lead role, Vergara was also an executive producer on the show.

The six-episode limited series, Greselda, is a fictionalized version of Blanco's life.

Created by Doug Miro, Eric Newman, Carlo Bernard and Ingrid Escajeda and directed by Andres Baiz, the story follows Blanco during her pursuit of power and wealth amid her rise in the Miami scene.

The actress and television personality would also lean upwards while sitting down to showcase the swimsuit's V neck, lace up design, and her ample cleavage

The former Modern Family star slipped into promo mode with summer starting June 20

The Columbia beauty had her dark brown locks styled long, straight, and flowing for the series of snaps for her Walmart collaboration

Blanco's lethal blend of unsuspected savagery and charm helped her expertly navigate between business and family, leading her to become widely known as 'the Godmother.'

Along with Vergara, the main cast also consists of Alberto Guerra, Martin Rodriguez, Juliana Aiden Martinez, Vanessa Ferlito and Christian Tappan.

The recurring cast includes the likes of Jose Zuniga, Jose Velazquez, Orlando Pineda, Martin Fajardo, Fredy Yate, Camilo Jimenez, Diego Trujillo, Maximiliano Hernandez, Michael Reilly Burke, Carolina Giraldo, Paulina Davila, Alejandro Barrios, Gabriel Sloyer, and Julieth Restrepo.

Vergara is enjoying widespread accolades for her performance in the titular role of Griselda, which is based on Griselda Blanco, a notorious crime boss who ran a drug cartel between Colombia and the U.S. in the 1970s and 80s

One week after premiering on Netflix on January 25, the show debuted at number one in 90 countries and topped Netflix's Global Weekly Top 10 TV (English) chart with a total of 20.6 million viewers and 113.8 million hours viewed.

It maintained the position in the following week, garnering 114.1 million viewing hours

Griselda had more than 20 million views in its first two weeks, and 10 million in its third week.

The film is serving as a comeback of sorts for Vergara after playing the much-loved Gloria Delgado-Pritchett on the ABC hit sitcom Modern Family for more than a decade.
ABC's hit drama series Grey's Anatomy will return for Season 21 this fall, with a very familiar face making his return.

Jason George - who starred as Dr. Ben Warren on Grey's since Season 6 - will return as a series regular, according to Deadline.

George was a series regular on Grey's from Seasons 12 through 14, before leaving to play the same character on the spin-off Station 19.

Now that Station 19 has come to an end, with the series finale airing on May 31, George's Dr. Ben Warren will be returning to Seattle Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital.

The actor himself let his 1.4 million Instagram followers in on the news with a brief video post.

ABC's hit drama series Grey's Anatomy will return for Season 21 this fall, with a very familiar face making his return

Jason George - who starred as Dr. Ben Warren on Grey's since Season 6 - will return as a series regular, according to Deadline

'Wellit WAS kind of hush-hush. But now its official. Where my scrubs at?' he said in the caption of his post, which already has over 20K likes after just three hours.

Warren's return comes after the explosive Season 20 finale that found Ellen Pompeo's Meredith Grey quitting the hospital after publishing her Alzheimer's research.

Dr. Ben Warren started his career as an anesthesiologist before he became a surgical resident at Grey Sloan.

He was bumped up to a series regular in Season 12, though after Season 14, he left the show to join the spin-off Station 19, where he would change careers again.

Towards the end of his time at Grey's, he revealed to his wife Dr. Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) that he was accepted into the Seattle Fire Academy.

He ultimately opted to leave Grey's and become an EMT and PRT Physician at Station 19, though he would frequently return to Grey's as a guest star.

His move to EMT also didn't hinder his ability to go back and complete his residency, which is exactly what he'll be doing.

Ben was a fifth-year resident when he left for his career as an EMT, and he revealed to Captain Andy Herrera (Jaina Lee Ortiz) in the Station 19 finale that he was returning to Grey's to finish his residency.

'Wellit WAS kind of hush-hush. But now its official. Where my scrubs at?' he said in the caption of his post, which already has over 20K likes after just three hours

Dr. Ben Warren started his career as an anesthesiologist before he became a surgical resident at Grey Sloan.

Towards the end of his time at Grey's, he revealed to his wife Dr. Miranda Bailey (Chandra Wilson) that he was accepted into the Seattle Fire Academy

He ultimately opted to leave Grey's and become an EMT and PRT Physician at Station 19, though he would frequently return to Grey's as a guest star

Station 19 also featured another Grey's transplant - Stefania Spampinato's Carina - however there are no immediate plans for her return quite yet.

There is still the possibility that Spampinato's Carina could return as a guest star at some point in the future.

George has also been featured in movies such as Barbershop, Playing for Keeps, Breaking In, Indivisible and Give Me An A.

His other TV roles include Mistresses, Off the Map, Eli Stone, What About Brian?, Eve and Sunset Beach.
Fans of a controversial Australian influencer have shown their concern over her changing voice over the years.

Christie Swadling, 27, is a New South Wales-based fitness blogger who overcame an eating disorder and now promotes a healthy and active lifestyle.

But within the span of five years, the blonde's voice has deepened drastically and left her followers wondering why.

Influencer watchdog account @before.after_influencers, who shares mostly Australian influencers and celebrity transformations, posted a series of videos revealing Swadling's higher-pitched voice in April 2019 followed by a video of her speaking in March 2024.

In the recent video, Swadling's voice sounds more hoarse and deep.

Christie Swadling (pictured), 27, is a New South Wales-based fitness blogger whose voice has drastically changed over the years

Influencer watchdog account @before.after_influencers posted a series of videos revealing Swadling's higher-pitched voice in April 2019 (left) followed by a video of her speaking in March 2024 (right)

'Do you think it just comes down to natural ageing and maturation?' the account asked in the caption.

'Is the video slowed down in the last ones because she's also speaking a lot slower?? Maybe its a health thing?' one user suggested in the comments.

In 2021, when Swadling was 24 years old, she addressed the 'rumours' about the change in her voice and shut down any speculation that she was using steroids, and it is not suggested otherwise.

'I've been on YouTube for years. I started my channel when I was 16, around that age. and yes, my voice has definitely got deeper,' Swadling explained in the YouTube video.

'I'm now 24 years old. I have definitely matured over the years, I like to think, I like to say.'

In 2021, when Swadling was 24 years old, she addressed the 'rumours' about the change in her voice and shut down any speculation that she was using steroids, and it is not suggested otherwise

She continued: 'Like I said I have grown up and I am sorry if there's people out there who don't like that but I'm not going to change my personality or change my voice just because I'm fearing I'm gonna get hate comments.

'What pisses me off the most is that people are using this whole voice getting deeper as evidence and I'm on steroids.'

'Look, I am like ... yeah, I've gained some muscle. But honey, does it look like I'm on steroids?

'Yes, I definitely have gained some muscle and shattered some fat in my time. But that happened through like maybe my like consistency of training and eating healthy. I don't know.

Swadling has been in spotlight recently for a number of controversial issues.

Earlier this week, she filmed and posted her fiance Joel Price, 38, driving dangerously, using his knees to steer the wheel of his car while air drumming with his hands.

The pair were singing and dancing to the song Sail by Awolnation, when Price let go of the steering wheel and began to air drum.

Attempting to keep the wheel straight, Price used his knees to steer the large vehicle.

According to Transport for NSW, drivers must always have proper control of a vehicle and failing to do so could land drivers a $481 fine and three demerit points.

Earlier this week, Swadling filmed and posted her fiance Joel Price, 38, driving dangerously, using his knees to steer the wheel of his car while air drumming with his hands. Both pictured

Swadling also failed to wear her seatbelt correctly - with the sash under both of her arms.

In NSW, there is a penalty of up to $2,200 for drivers and passengers over the age of 16 years who fail to wear their seatbelt properly adjusted and fastened if the vehicle is moving or stationary, but not parked, unless reversing.

Daily Mail Australia contacted Swadling for comment.

Swadling also filed for bankruptcy in 2022 after racking up a pile of debt she can't pay back.

Documents leaked online in February, 2023, showed the social media star was in financial strife, even though she projects a lavish lifestyle on social media.

Swadling filed for bankruptcy in 2022 after racking up a pile of debt she can't pay back

It was revealed in February that Swadling was bankrupt after an anonymous user on the Tattle Life forums paid $15 to obtain the paperwork on her bankruptcy filing (pictured here)

It was revealed Swadling was bankrupt after an anonymous user on the Tattle Life forums paid $15 to obtain the paperwork on her bankruptcy filing.

The Instagram model listed her job as an 'advertising and marketing professional' in the publicly available document filed on December 29, 2022.

The status of her bankruptcy is 'undischarged', which means she will still need to pay back particular debts and she won't be able to borrow again from financial institutions without the disclosure of her bankruptcy.

While the release of the debtor's petition did not specify the outstanding debts, the Australian Financial Securities Authority says a creditor must be seeking $10,000 or more to apply to make you bankrupt.

On April 20, Swadling attended court for a financial examination to evaluate her property and financial circumstances as a means of satisfying the judgement debt.

She carried a Louis Vuitton handbag worth a jaw-dropping $2,840 as she prepared for the examination to determine her ability to repay her debts.
Minnie Driver cut a stylish figure as she was spotted exiting the Today Show in New York City on Wednesday.

The 54-year-old British actress  who recently opened up about sexism in Hollywood  looked angelic in a sleeveless white calf-length dress.

The elegant frock showed off her sculpted arms and a matching belt cinched in her already tiny waist.

She wore her brunette locks parted down the middle while accessorizing with dainty hoop earrings and trendy sunglasses.

Minnie rocked a soft glam makeup look that included a radiant complexion, glossy lip and peachy-pink flush.

Minnie Driver cut a stylish figure as she was spotted exiting the Today Show in New York City on Wednesday

The 54-year-old British actress looked angelic in a sleeveless white calf-length dress

Driver strolled the Big Apple's bustling sidewalks in a pair of cross-strapped white heels.

Minnie happily waved to fans upon arriving at the Today Show studio after sharing the dating advice she'd give her younger self.

'Don't date actors, but I had the best time doing it' Minnie said bluntly. 'I wish she knew all the stuff I know now.

'I would tell her, "Honey find a nice plumber, find an electrician, find someone who jut wants to stay home and support you,"' she said.

Minnie went on to explain that while looking back she is grateful for the experiences with the men she has worked with on set as an actress.

'I have only love, like it was the most extraordinary moment in my life,' she said to the outlet, 'nothing but love for all those men.'

Back in March, the movie star shared similar advice she would have given herself about her 1998 split from Matt Damon while on The Jennifer Hudson Show.

The elegant frock showed off her sculpted arms and a matching belt cinched in her already tiny waist

She wore her brunette locks parted down the middle while accessorizing with dainty hoop earrings and trendy sunglasses

Minnie rocked a soft glam makeup look that included a radiant complexion, glossy lip and peachy-pink flush

Minnie happily waved to fans upon arriving at the Today Show studio after sharing the dating advice she'd give her younger self

'Don't date actors, but I had the best time doing it' said Minnie, who was previously romanced by her Good Will Hunting co-star Matt Damon back in the 90s. 'I wish she knew all the stuff I know now'

Driver said: 'I wish I could have told her, "Honey its cool, you can celebrate and lifes gonna be great and beautiful and hard and amazing, youre going to love again, itll be fine.'

Driver and Damon started a relationship after starring as love interests in the film Good Will Hunting, but went their separate ways following their year-long whirlwind romance in 1998.

The pair risked an awards season run-in on Sunday as they both attended the Vanity Fair Oscar party in LA.

By the time the Oscars rolled around, Damon had already moved on with a new girlfriend who attended the ceremony with him.

'Matt had ended our relationship a few weeks before this, and was at the Oscars with his new girlfriend... I was devastated. Wish I could have celebrated more as it was an amazing moment for all of us, and for this wonderful film!' Driver commented.

The mum-of-one has been dating Addison O'Dea since 2019. She shares son Henry, 15, with television writer and producer ex Timothy J. Lea, 64.

Driver and Damon started a relationship after starring as love interests in the film Good Will Hunting, but went their separate ways following their year-long whirlwind romance in 1998

The mum-of-one has been dating Addison O'Dea since 2019; seen in 2024

Damon married his wife of 19-years, Luciana Bozan, back in 2005 and share three children

As for Damon, 53, he has been married to Luciana Bozan since 2005 and the pair share three daughters.

The world learned Damon and Driver had called it quits after the actor revealed their split on The Oprah Winfrey Show, saying: 'Well, Im single. I was with Minnie for a while, but were not really romantically involved anymore, were just really good friends. I love her dearly.'

'I care about her a lot. We care about each other a lot. It wasnt meant to be and if it wasnt meant to be then its not meant to be.'
Kim Kardashian introduced her 362 million followers on Wednesday to one of the most important people in her life  her dermatologist.

The 43-year-old reality star posted a short video of her Instagram Stories as she recorded Dr. Simon Ourian, a cosmetic dermatologist that she has turned to throughout the years to keep her skin looking fresh and youthful.

In addition to be a regular provider for Kim, Dr. Ourian is also an in-demand dermatologist for numerous models and Hollywood stars, and he also serves all of Kim's family members.

In one photo posted to her Instagram Stories, Kim showed off a minimal makeup look while showing off plump lips as if puckering up for a kiss.

The American Horror Story actress gazed into the camera while snapping a selfie with Dr. Ourian at her side.

Kim Kardashian, 43, introduced her 362 million Instagram followers to her cosmetic dermatologist Dr. Simon Ourian in an Insta Stories video on Wednesday

Kim put the medical professional front and center in a another video she shared on Instagram.

'OK guys, Dr. Ourian, my cosmetic dermatologist, my therapist, my... everything,' Kim began before the doctor interject with a 'thank you.'

The clip seemed to cut out before she could say more about the dermatologist, who wore a gray sport coat with peaked lapels over a thin black sweater.

Kim was dressed more causally in what looked like a black fleece top, and she had her platinum blond locks parted down the middle and tied back tightly to reveal her encroaching raven roots.

It wasn't clear if she had visited Dr. Ourian at his office, or if he was making a house call, as the room  which had a rack of black coats in the corner  had the kind of minimalist design that Kim tends to favor.

Dr. Ourian has made a name for himself with a variety of non-surgical procedures designed to adjust the shape of a patient's nose or to contour their jawline without having to go under the knife, which can require a longer recovery period and can increase the likelihood of infections or severe pain.

In 2022, Ourian told Allure that part of the secret to Kim's beauty is simply genetic.

He told DailyMail.com that he considers symmetry and proportion to be two of the most important qualities in a beautiful face, and he has remarked in the past that she has a remarkably symmetrical, properly portioned face.

That year, Kim posted a photo of an appointment with the doctor in which he described her face as 'wonderful and symmetrical.'

Kim put the medical professional front and center in a another video she shared on Instagram

'OK guys, Dr. Ourian, my cosmetic dermatologist, my therapist, my... everything,' Kim began before the doctor interject with a 'thank you'

Ourian is a specialist in using non-surgical procedures, and Kim has previously admitted to using his Coolbeam laser treatments, which can reduce the appearance of stretch marks

'This man is a necessity in my life,' Kim previously joked on Instagram in 2022. Her entire family sees Dr. Ourian, as do several models and Hollywood stars

'This man is a necessity in my life,' Kim joked when she posted the clip to her Insta Stories.

Kim has previously admitted to having Dr. Ourian use his Coolbeam laser treatments on her, which can help to remove or decrease the appearance of stretch marks.

She is also rumored to have had a non-surgical tummy tuck, though she has not confirmed having the procedure.

It's unclear if Kim is looking forward to Dr. Ourian performing any more procedures on her, but she did clarify that she 'missed him' in a caption to her Instagram Stories clip.
Ruth Jones has reveled how she teases fans of Gavin and Stacey by telling them the final episode of the heartwarming sitcom will feature a shocking death.

It was announced last month that the beloved show was returning for one final time on Christmas Day, nearly five years after the last episode aired in 2019.

Show creators Ruth and James Corden reunited in secret to pen the final episode after denying a special was in the works.

Now speaking on co-star Rob Brydon's podcast the actress, 57, said how she is constantly badgered by fans following the announcement, desperate to know what happens in the finale.

Currently starring in West End musical Sister Act she said: 'A couple of people at the stage door, say "Whats going to happen, is Smithy going to say yes?".

Ruth Jones has reveled how she tricks fans of Gavin and Stacey by telling them the final episode of the heartwarming sitcom will feature a shocking death

It was announced last month that the beloved show was returning for one final time on Christmas Day, nearly five years after the last episode aired in 2019

Now speaking on co-star Rob Brydon's podcast the actress, 57, said how she is constantly badgered by fans following the announcement, desperate to know what happens in the finale

At the climax of the last Christmas episode in 2019, Nessa (Ruth) got down on one knee to propose to Smithy (James), but viewers never got to hear his response.

Ruth went on to say despite telling fans that they may regret having the surprise spoiled, fans continue to beg.

She laughed: 'So, I go (jokingly) "theres going to be helicopter crash, most of the cast are going to get killed" and I just make stuff up!'.

It comes after Joanna Page said she believes that the upcoming Christmas episode will be the last time she ever plays her iconic character.

The Welsh actress, 47, told her podcast Off The Telly podcast, which she hosts with Natalie Cassidy, that she believes it will '100 per cent' be her last time as Stacey.

'I mean there's so much they could do, isn't there?' Joanna said, as she admitted she didn't know what was in store for the characters.

The Christmas special will take place five years after the last special, and 17 years after the show's first ever episode, which aired in 2007.

Of the time passed since that first episode, Joanna added: 'I'm older now than Mel [Melanie Walters] was playing Gwen on the first series.'

Currently starring in West End musical Sister Act (pictured) she said: 'A couple of people at the stage door, say "Whats going to happen, is Smithy going to say yes?".

She laughed: 'So, I go (jokingly) "theres going to be helicopter crash, most of the cast are going to get killed" and I just make stuff up!'

It was previously reported that a new episode of Gavin And Stacey was in the works but Ruth Jones denied it, saying: 'It's sadly a rumour'

In May, Ruth and James took to Instagram to share a black and white photo of themselves holding up the script.

Alongside the post, they wrote: 'Some news... It's official! We have finished writing the last ever episode of Gavin and Stacey. See you on Christmas Day, BBC One. Love Ruth and James!'

Fans expressed their joy at the news under James and Ruth's post. Among those sharing their delight was Rio Ferdinand who wrote: 'I'm clearing the diary.'

Other celebrities including Gordon Ramsay, John Bishop, Ferne Cotton and Amanda Holden all shared their delight.

Joanna Page, who plays Stacey, reshared James and Ruth's photo to her Instagram and wrote: 'Oh my God it's happening! So excited! Last ever Gavin And Stacey! Christmas Day @bbcone Can't wait to start filming!'
Paris Hilton was pictured stepping out in New York City on Wednesday holding her one-year-old son Phoenix.

The socialite, 43, who shares two children with husband Carter Reum, 43, had her blonde locks styled in long pigtails on her daytime outing in the Big Apple.

The reality star donned an all-black ensemble of a t-shirt with a mini-skirt and knee-high heeled boots, accessorizing with fingerless black gloves and pink-framed reflective sunglasses.

The baby was outfitted in a white shirt with a black cap and white sneakers.

The This Is Paris star and Reum - a venture capitalist who has a daughter with reality star Laura Bellizzi - are also parents to baby daughter London Marilyn, who they welcomed last November via surrogate.

Paris Hilton, 43, was pictured stepping out in New York City on Wednesday holding her one-year-old son Phoenix, who she shares with husband Carter Reum, 43

The socialite, 43, who shares two children with husband Carter Reum, 43, had her blonde locks styled in long pigtails on her daytime outing in the Big Apple

Hilton was seen in the city ahead of a DJ set slated for Saturday evening in Musica Club NYC in support of her second album, Paris Hilton: Infinite Icon.

Hilton is slated to release the record this September 6, which comes 18 years after the release of her initial debut album, titled Paris.

The record featured the hit single Stars Are Blind, and follow-ups Turn It Up and Nothing in This World.

In the near-two decades since the release of her first album, Hilton has stayed active musically with her DJ career and standalone singles such as 2015's High Off My Love, 2018's I Need You and last year's Hot One.

Hilton said that she found herself creatively-inspired after putting together the latter track with DJ Alex Chapman.

'I was instantly inspired and knew we had to make this record,' Hilton told Rolling Stone in June of 2023.

'We went into Sunset Sound Studio and ended up recording three songs in just one day! It was magic!'

Hilton was on the same page style-wise as she was a day before in New York City, where she was pictured in a similarly-sassy ensemble.

The reality star donned an all-black ensemble of a T-shirt with a mini-skirt and knee-high heeled boots

Paris completed her look with a baby pink $6,300 Chanel quilted backpack as she went about another busy day in New York

The hotel heiress earlier this week announced that she was taking a trip east aboard a new private jet she had acquired.

She took to Instagram Stories with a clip of herself boarding the aircraft in her pajamas, captioning the clip, 'Taking off to NYC in my new plane! #SlivAir.'

Hilton earlier this month brought her son as she joined her sister Nicky at their mother Kathy's Beverly Hills mansion for an event promoting the launch of an upscale rug line, Ruggable x The Hiltons.

Among those in attendance at the afternoon proceedings included Kelly Osbourne, Kris Jenner, Faye Resnick and Bijou Phillips.

Hilton kicked off June at an event called Night of 1000 Parises in West Hollywood, in support of Pride Month.
An Australian actor has pointed out the heartbreaking reality of Robert Irwin's life after he lost his father Steve in 2006.

Steve, known as 'The Crocodile Hunter', was tragically killed when he was barbed by a stingray on September 4, 2006, at Batt Reef near Port Douglas in far north Queensland.

In a now viral clip captioned 'If people talked to everyone like they do Robert Irwin', Crane highlighted that Robert's late father is often brought up in conversation in front of the 20-year-old.

Social media users were quick to share their thoughts in the comment section.

'Everyone focuses on their dad and I never see people talking about Terri raising two incredible kids mostly on her own,' one user wrote.

An Australian actor has pointed out the heartbreaking reality of Robert Irwin 's life after he lost his father Steve in 2006

'And the Irwins are too polite to tell people to stop asking about it,' another agreed.

'No bc someone asked Bindi in a RECENT interview how she feels about stingrays like WHAT,' a third commented.

'Every video he makes has hundreds of comments like that. I feel bad for him,' another said.

In a now viral clip captioned 'If people talked to everyone like they do Robert Irwin', Crane highlighted that Robert's late father is often brought up in conversation in front of the 20-year-old

Steve, known as 'The Crocodile Hunter', was tragically killed when he was barbed by a stingray on September 4, 2006, at Batt Reef near Port Douglas in far north Queensland

One fan suggested: 'I feel like they've healed and celebrate Steve to the point that when someone brings him up, they feel honor and happiness, not pain. Like, its a good thing to talk about him.'

The news of Steve's tragic death sent shockwaves across Australia and around the world as his fans grieved the tragic loss.

Steve's family has carried on his mission to promote and protect wildlife through Australia Zoo.
Coleen and Wayne Rooney celebrated their 16th wedding anniversary on Wednesday by sharing a clip of their lavish 2008 nuptials to Instagram.

The couple, both 38, tied the knot in a romantic ceremony in Italy, with the big day said to have cost an estimated 5m.

Coleen shared a clip of herself watching back their wedding video as Wayne gave his speech before the couple enjoyed their first dance.

The bride looked gorgeous in a strapless gown with veil while the baby faced groom was dapper in a suit, she captioned the clip '16 years happy anniversary @Waynerooney'.

Meanwhile Wayne marked the occasion on his own grid and shared a loved up snap from the time of the wedding, with Coleen this time in a white Grecian gown, amid one of her three dress changed on the big day.

Coleen and Wayne Rooney celebrated their 16th wedding anniversary on Wednesday by sharing a clip of their lavish 2008 nuptials to Instagram.

He wrote: 'Happy Anniversary @coleen_rooney. 16 years today. Love you'.

The bill included close to 1million on pre-wedding celebrations, 400,000 to book Coleens favourite band, Westlife, and 200,000 on her dress.

Five private jets flew 64 guests from the UK to the four-day celebrations, which also a luxury yacht trip, masked ball and champagne breakfast every morning.

After both a civil and church ceremony the newlyweds celebrated at the Villa Durazzo, for a champagne reception, which continued on until 4am.

A live band played a medley of Frank Sinatra songs and enjoyed a 50,000 firework display. True to form, the couple reportedly decided against sophisticated fare, opting for a sit-down meal of pizza.

Since then, the pair have welcomed four sons and have battled through their fair share of hardships, but have continued to stand by one another.

Back In 2009 it was revealed that former escort Helen Wood had a threesome with the then-Manchester United player Wayne and her friend, and former escort, Jenny Thompson.

Helen has previously said that the glare of the media spotlight was unwelcome and uninvited and came only after Jenny went to the tabloids to name her.

Coleen shared a clip of herself watching back their wedding video as Wayne gave his speech before the couple enjoyed their first dance

The couple, both 38, tied the knot in a romantic ceremony in Italy, with the big day said to have cost an estimated 5m

The bill included close to 1million on pre-wedding celebrations, 400,000 to book Coleens favourite band, Westlife (pictured) and 200,000 on her dress

Since then, the pair have welcomed four sons and have battled through their fair share of hardships, but have continued to stand by one another

In 2019 the former England captain's marriage was said to be 'hanging by a thread' after he was spotted drinking with barmaid Vicki Rosiek until 2.30am.

In 2017, just before he was due to move to the US, the former England captain apologised for his 'unforgivable lack of judgement' as he was banned from driving for two years and given 100 hours' community service after a drinking heavily with a party girl.

He was stopped by police while driving 29-year-old Laura Simpson home from a night out in her Volkswagen Beetle in Wilmslow, Cheshire, at 2am on September 1. Rooney was stopped because Miss Simpson's car had a faulty brake light.

Coleen was then pregnant with the couple's fourth child - and was seen without her wedding ring. For a period it appeared they were living separately but she took him back after his apology.
Riley Keough and her daughter Tupelo Storm Smith-Petersen reunited with her father Danny Keough for a casual lunch outside upscale grocery store Erewhon Market in Los Angeles on Wednesday.

The 35-year-old Emmy nominee put her 22-month-old toddler in her lap as she caught up with the 59-year-old ex-bass player and another gentleman.

Riley (born Danielle) later carried little Tupelo - named after her grandfather Elvis Presley's birth place - while dressed down in a beige bucket hat, matching straw bag, grey T-shirt, denim cut-offs, and black sandals.

Danny met the Under the Bridge producer-star's late mother Lisa Marie Presley in 1985 and became the first of her four ex-husbands, whom she divorced in 1994 (20 days before marrying Michael Jackson) after five years of wedded bliss.

Despite their split, Keough went on to co-write two songs - Better Beware and Sinking In - on Presley's debut studio album To Whom It May Concern in 2003.

Riley Keough (R) and her daughter Tupelo Storm Smith-Petersen reunited with her father Danny Keough (L) for a casual lunch outside upscale grocery store Erewhon Market in Los Angeles on Wednesday

Lisa Marie was only 54 years old when she passed away on January 12, 2023 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.'

Presley never got over the death of her and Danny's son Benjamin Keough, at age 27, in 2020 from a self-inflicted shotgun wound inside her former $1.8M Calabasas mansion.

Last Tuesday, Riley unveiled the cover and title of her mother's 272-page autobiography From Here to the Great Unknown, which Random House will publish on October 15.

The Camera D'Or winner co-wrote the memoir and narrated the audiobook, which will also include 'never-before-heard recollections' from her mother's own voice.

'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.

The 35-year-old Emmy nominee (L) put her 22-month-old toddler in her lap as she caught up with the 59-year-old ex-bass player (R) and another gentleman

Riley (born Danielle) later carried little Tupelo - named after her grandfather Elvis Presley's birth place - while dressed down in a beige bucket hat, matching straw bag, grey T-shirt, denim cut-offs, and black sandals

Danny met the Under the Bridge producer-star's late mother Lisa Marie Presley (L, pictured in 1991) in 1985 and became the first of her four ex-husbands, whom she divorced in 1994 (20 days before marrying Michael Jackson) after five years of wedded bliss

Despite their split, Keough went on to co-write two songs - Better Beware and Sinking In - on Presley's debut studio album To Whom It May Concern in 2003

Lisa Marie was only 54 years old when she passed away on January 12, 2023 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)

Presley never got over the death of her and Danny's son Benjamin Keough (L), at age 27, in 2020 from a self-inflicted shotgun wound inside her former $1.8M Calabasas mansion

Last Tuesday, Riley unveiled the cover and title of her mother's 272-page autobiography From Here to the Great Unknown, which Random House will publish on October 15

Last year, the Camera D'Or winner paid a $1M settlement and $400K in legal fees to her grandmother Priscilla Presley so she could legally became the sole trustee of Lisa Marie's estate as well as the sub-trusts belonging to her 15-year-old half-sisters Finley and Harper Lockwood (pictured in 2021)

The flame-haired 79-year-old is scheduled to host An Evening with Priscilla Presley this Saturday at the Mooresville Performing Arts Center in Mooresville, NC

Keough (pictured last Thursday) 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

The LA-born heiress welcomed little Tupelo via surrogate with her husband of nine years, SAG Award-winning stuntman Ben Smith-Petersen (posted May 29)

'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.'

Last year, Riley paid a $1M settlement and $400K in legal fees to her grandmother Priscilla Presley so she could legally became the sole trustee of Lisa Marie's estate as well as the sub-trusts belonging to her 15-year-old half-sisters Finley and Harper Lockwood.

The flame-haired 79-year-old is scheduled to host An Evening with Priscilla Presley this Saturday at the Mooresville Performing Arts Center in Mooresville, NC.

Meanwhile, Keough 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.

The LA-born heiress welcomed little Tupelo via surrogate with her husband of nine years, SAG Award-winning stuntman Ben Smith-Petersen.

Riley originally met the Australian 32-year-old in 2012 on the sandy set of Mad Max: Fury Road, and he reprised his role as Ace Warboy in Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga this year.
West, 47, is accused of of sexual harassment, wrongful termination, breach of contract and a hostile workplace in the lawsuit; he denies the claims

Kanye West boasted about a three-hour sexual encounter with A-list celebrity that was fueled by Viagra, ex-OnlyFans model Lauren Pisciotta alleges in her bombshell sexual harassment lawsuit against the rapper.

New details revealed in a legal complaint reviewed by DailyMail.com reveal Pisciotta, 35, said West, 47, would not stop talking about sex during her time as his employee spanning from July of 2021 until October of 2022.

Pisciotta said West frequently sent her text messages of a sexual nature, including one in which he said, 'One time I took Viagra and f***ed [A-list celebrity] for three hours. Not sure why that thought came to me.'

Pisciotta said West sent her a text that involved her in his fantasies; it read, 'l just thinking back to the bowling alley thinking of what the headline could have been .... "Ye arrested for f***ing the s*** out of his assistant on the bowling alley floor."'

Pisciotta's attorneys noted that 'this text was especially offensive since it suggested or insinuated that [Pisciotta] wanted to have sex with [West] and actually had sexual intercourse with [West,] when in fact she did not want to do so and never indeed did so.'

Kanye West, 47, boasted about a three-hour sexual encounter with A-list celebrity that was fueled by Viagra, his former assistant Lauren Pisciotta, 35, claims in her bombshell sexual harassment suit against the rapper

Pisciotta said in her legal complaint that West also sent her X-rated videos he created, such as one that spanned 24 seconds, in which he received oral sex from a model.

'The video was followed by a text conversation wherein [West] asked [Pisciotta] if he should edit the video as he wanted to make sure his penis looked big enough,' an excerpt from the legal filing read.

The Can't Tell Me Nothing artist expressed ongoing hang-ups about the appearance of his genitalia in the sex videos, Pisciotta said in the suit.

In one instance, West 'cropped his penis out of the frame because he said it did not look big enough to send to one of his friends,' Pisciotta's legal team said in the suit.

Pisciotta said West frequently spoke of how he wanted to have sex with the mother of one of his Yeezy employees - and for the employee to observe the relations.

He said in a screenshot of text, included in the complaint, I 'want you to watch me f*** your mom.'

Pisciotta told the court that West once asked her to visit him at Nobu, a Malibu hotel he was staying at, under the false pretense that he needed his Netflix log-in credentials.

West later 'admitted that [he] had [Pisciotta] come to his hotel because he wanted a hug for his birthday,' Pisciotta said.

West's former assistant Pisciotta has filed a sexual harassment suit against the rapper, claiming he sent her a series of graphic text messages and videos. Pictured in March in LA

Pisciotta said West recruited her to work for him at a time she was pulling in seven figures annually via an OnlyFans account

Pisciotta said in legal docs that West's 'offensive and abusive conduct' toward her 'occurred at the Soho Warehouse in Los Angeles in early 2022.'

In the incident, a male and female guest visited the studio, Pisciotta told the court, with West telling the male guest that he could have sex with Pisciotta if he allowed him to have sex with the female guest.

West told the male guest that Pisciotta 'has great p****,' her legal team said, adding that it insinuated that they 'had previously had sexual intercourse.'

West has yet to file legal docs in response to Pisciotta's lawsuit, according to The U.S. Sun, which has a hearing date of October 1 slated for Los Angeles Superior Courthouse.

Pisciotta said West recruited her to work for him at a time she was pulling in seven figures annually via an OnlyFans account, in excerpts of the lawsuit filed June 3.

Pisciotta said West went on to send her several graphic videos and text messages; told her he had been playing with himself to the sound of her voice; and badgered her about the genitalia sizes of her past boyfriends.

Pisciotta said she worked for West from July of 2021 until October of 2022, when he terminated her employment. After they agreed on $3 million in severance, Pisciotta said in legal docs that West never made good on the amount.

Pisciotta in her suit accuses West of sexual harassment, wrongful termination, breach of contract and a hostile workplace, according to the outlet.

Pisciotta said she worked for West from July of 2021 until October of 2022, when he terminated her employment

Pisciotta said West, pictured in March in LA, sent her a series of sexually-charged texts and videos that were graphic in nature

Pisciotta said she initially crossed paths with the rapper in July of 2021 at a time when he was working on endeavors in the fashion industry, the outlet reported, citing legal docs.

Pisciotta told the court that she had collaborated with West on a trio of songs from his studio album Donda, which was released in August of 2021.

Pisciotta said she maintained her lucrative OnlyFans account until the summer of 2022, when West requested she get rid of it as he wanted her to have a 'God Like' image. Pisciotta told the court West offered her a $1 million annual incentive to abandon the profitable accounts, which she agreed to.

Pisciotta said in legal docs that West commenced with a series of graphic text messages and videos pertaining to sex, and incorporating scenarios involving raceplay and cuckoldry.

One alleged text sent by West entered into the lawsuit read: 'See my problem is I be wanting to f*** but then after I f*** I want a girl to tell me how hard they been f***ed while I'm f***ing them. Then I want her to cheat on me.'

West continued with a series of graphic communications to his then-employee.

One text sent by West entered into the court docs by Pisciotta, according to the outlet, read: 'Is my d*** racist? It is. This f***ing racist d*** of mine. I going to beat this f***ing racist d*** for being f***ing racist.'

It continued: 'I'm going to stare at pictures of white woman with Black a**es and beat the s*** out of my racist d*** ... beating the s*** out of his big Black c***.'

Pisciotta told the court West terminated her employment in October of 2022 and offered her $3 million in severance, which he did not make good on

Pisciotta told the court West would apprise her to when he was playing himself and ask her if she could hear the activity in the background, the outlet reported.

Pisciotta said in legal docs that West 'was fixated on the penis size of her boyfriends,' according to the outlet.

Pisciotta told the court that West often sent pornographic materials to her, on two occasions clips of himself involved in sexual activity with a woman identified as a model.

Pisciotta said in legal docs that at one point, she was earning a rate of $4 million annually serving as a position West titled his 'Chief of Staff.'

Pisciotta's time working for West ended in October of 2022 - the same month his career, reputation and earnings began to nosedive after he made a series of anti-Semitic remarks across multiple media platforms.

Pisciotta told the court West terminated her employment and offered her $3 million in severance, which he did not make good on.

Earlier this month, a rep for the Grammy-winning artist denied the accusations, and said West plans on pursuing litigation against his former assistant.

'In response to these baseless allegations, Ye will be filing a lawsuit against Ms. Pisciotta, who actively pursued him sexually to coerce employment and other material benefits, then engaged in blackmail and extortion when her advances were rejected,' the rep told NBC News in a June 4 statement.

Pisciotta said in legal docs that West 'was fixated on the penis size of her boyfriends'

In November of 2022, Adidas had launched an internal probe into employee complaints about West's conduct during their professional partnership, which was terminated in the wake of West's racist rants.

Employees for Adidas, the company which presided over West's Yeezy line, told Rolling Stone the rapper would speak about his fondness for porn, play adult films during work meetings, and showed workers pornographic videos he made of himself with others, as well as explicit images of his ex-wife Kim Kardashian.

West in 2019 opened up about what he described as an 'addiction' to pornography during an appearance on Apple Musics Beats 1 Radio.

'For me, Playboy was my gateway into full on pornography addiction,' he said. 'My dad had a Playboy left out at age five and it's affected almost every choice I made for the rest of my life. From age five till now, having to kick the habit and it just presents itself in the open like it's OK and I stand up and say, "No, it's not OK."'
Amy Poehler has revealed what she loves most about Australians.

Sitting down on The Jess Rowe Big Talk Show podcast, the SNL alum, 52, explained why she thinks Aussies are full of joy.

'Australia's so good at joy. I have to say,' she shared.

'They do joy very well because they're interested in these big moments and they're outdoor people and so they have these giant endorphins,' she added.

The comedian, who voices the character Joy in Inside Out 2, divulged her perception of the emotion.

Amy Poehler, 52, (pictured) has revealed what she loves most about Australians

'Joy... you can only feel it if you're actually where you're supposed to be in the real moment. When we think ahead or when we think about what we regret we get a little bounced out of that state,' she explained to Jessica Rowe.

Amy travelled to Australia in May for a special Vivid Ideas event at the Sydney Opera House.

During her time in the country, Amy also shared a very relatable tale about a big night out in Sydney.

The comedy queen revealed she partied hard one night in the harbour city with Aussie country music star Jade Hurley.

Sitting down on The Jess Rowe Big Talk Show podcast, the SNL alum explained why she thinks Aussies are full of joy

In an interview with Pedestrian, the Parks and Recreation star said the night started innocently enough.

'I went and saw [Hurley] perform some of his covers and hits and he was an incredible musician,' she said.

'We all got so drunk that we left our wallets at the bar  that's how great it was! And we're hoping to do something like that tonight...who hasn't been there?' she added.

'Australia's so good at joy. I have to say. They do joy very well because they're interested in these big moments and they're outdoor people and so they have these giant endorphins,' she shared

But Jade Hurley isn't the only Australian entertainer with which Amy has shared a beverage.

The Mean Girls star opened up about a surprising gift she received from Hugh Jackman.

The American comedian revealed Jackman, 55, holds a special place in her heart.

Amy travelled to Australia in May for a special Vivid Ideas event at the Sydney Opera House

'You know who was one of my faves, Hugh Jackman, an absolute prince and so talented,' she told The Daily Telegraph.

'He gave everyone in the cast a case of Fosters beer.'

Jackman was a guest host on the long-running American sketch comedy show in December 2001, and hammed it up alongside Poehler and Maya Rudolph.

Poehler added although she was no longer with SNL when Chris Hemsworth, 40, guest hosted in 2015, she heard he had a 'powerful' presence and his 'essence remained' long after he left.
Rebecca Judd is living the high life in Paris as she jetted off to Europe for a paid partnership.

The AFL WAG, 41, documented several luxurious activities as she joins designer sisters Bianca and Bridgett Roccisano and stylist Lana Wilkinson as part of a rebrand for their fashion label.

Taking to Instagram on Wednesday, Bec was seen outside Hotel Plaza Athenee, enjoying a fine dining experience at Girafe, shopping at designer stores like YSL and Celine and exploring the sights like the Eiffel Tower and Louvre.

She spent the morning at a nine-hour shoot at several locations across the French capital for Bianca and Bridgett.

On her Instagram Story, Bec praised the hair and makeup artists for the shoot after her look held in place for the entire nine hours.

Rebecca Judd is living the high life in Paris as she jetted off to Europe for a paid partnership

The AFL WAG, 41, documented several luxurious activities as she joins designer sisters Bianca and Bridgett Roccisano and stylist Lana Wilkinson as part of a rebrand for their fashion label

'Unbelievable. This was at the end of the day after 9 hours of shooting at multiple locations across Paris. Bravo!' she wrote.

The label's design team have been working for over a year on the Bianca and Bridgett rebrand, announcing that Bec is the face of the new campaign.

'We have new manufacturers with an incredible quality that we are so incredibly proud of! The good news? Our price point isnt changing!' they revealed in an Instagram post.

On her Instagram Story, Bec praised the hair and makeup artists for the shoot after her look held in place for the entire nine hours

She went on a shopping spree at designer stores like YSL and Celine

'We wanted to celebrate this launch in a special way! We thought a beautiful new collection needs a magnificent campaign which we thought was only fitting to shoot in our favourite city, Paris!'

It comes after Bec hinted at a number of exciting career opportunities coming her way in the future.

Speaking to Daily Mail Australia during a trip to celebrate Virgin Australia's new direct flights from Melbourne and Brisbane to Uluru, the model revealed she will soon be announcing a new chapter in her life.

'I've got some good things coming up. I can't say anything now, in another month or two,' she said.

'It will pretty much take up all my time. I won't have time for other things.'

The social media star and businesswoman shares four children - daughter Billie, nine, son Oscar, 12, and twin sons Darcy and Tom, seven, with her ex-AFL star husband Chris.

The brunette bombshell balances her busy life as a designer and influencer with raising her kids.
Former top cop Gary Jubelin has apologised to an ex-lover for an 'unforgiveable' act during sex - answering his phone during the throes of passion.

Mr Jubelin conducted a remarkably candid interview with his ex-girlfriend, fellow former homicide detective Pam Young, during an 'I Catch Killers' podcast discussion this week.

The detective - who was famously removed from investigating the disappearance of William Tyrrell in 2019 - asked Ms Young to name the best and worst parts of living with him.

Ms Young, who has worked on murder cases such as alleged gay hate death of US maths student Scott Johnson, replied that he was 'a very passionate and generous lover'.

Jubelin replied, 'I wasn't expecting that, but thank you'.

Former homicide cop Pam Young discusses the nitty gritty about her sex life with former top William Tyrrell cop Gary Jubelin

Although Young describes Jubelin as a passionate lover, she complained that he always answered calls from informants or others during their sexual encounters

She continued: 'The bonus was that you were also good at cleaning the house, so that combination was perfect.'

Jubelin cut in, 'what were the problems (with) living with (me)?'

Young replied, 'definitely the fact that every time, um, we were having sex, your phone would ring.

'Which you can understand - busy cases and on call and all that. But it was the fact that you answered it, Jubelin.

'That is unforgivable and disrespectful and very disappointing.'

Grinning from ear to ear, Jubelin replied, 'they were important phone calls. Half the time they were informants,' to which Young interjected, 'when the other activity wasn't, thank you!'

Jubelin responded, 'ah sh*t, I'm digging myself into a hole. Anyway, I regret that Pam, I publicly said I apologise for answering the phone whilst having sex.'

Gary Jubelin was head of the task force into the missing William Tyrrell case, but left the police force and was later charged over illegally recording a witness

Mr Jubelin has become a podcaster and journalist since leaving the NSW Police Force.

After exiting the job as boss of Task Force Rosann - which has yet to charge anyone over the abduction or probable death of William Tyrrell - Mr Jubelin himself was charged.

In 2020, Mr Jubelin was found guilty of illegally recording four conversations with a potential William Tyrrell witness and and fined $10,000. He failed to win an appeal against the convictions.

William Tyrrell vanished from Kendall on the NSW Mid North Coast on September 12, 2014 and has never been seen since, nor his remains located.

Gary Jubelin (above) as head detective at Kendall searching with officers in 2018 for missing toddler William Tyrrell

Ms Young, a former detective chief inspector, controversially claimed that Scott Johnson's December 1988 death could have been a suicide.

The 27-year-old's body was found at the base of a cliff at North Head, a well known gay beat on Sydney's northern beaches.

In 2020, Scott Phillip White was arrested and later pleaded guilty to manslaughter, accepting legal responsibility for Mr Johnson's killing.

He later withdrew his guilty plea, pleaded guilty to manslaughter, and will be eligible for parole in 2026.
Kim Kardashian was spotted leaving her appointment at Epione, a celeb-loved skincare center in Los Angeles, on Wednesday afternoon.

The SKIMS founder, 43, emerged makeup-free and her complexion looked incredibly smooth after meeting with cosmetic dermatologist Dr. Simon Ourian.

Along with skincare essentials and facials, Epione offers a wide-array of procedures  from non-surgical face lifts to laser tattoo removal.

Kim looked happy with her results as she bid farewell to a member of Dr. Ourian's office staff with a hug.

She was noticeably dressed down in baggy black sweatpants, a windbreaker jacket and slide sandals.

Kim Kardashian was spotted leaving her appointment at Epione, a celeb-loved skincare center in Los Angeles , on Wednesday afternoon

The SKIMS founder, 43, emerged makeup-free and her complexion looked incredibly smooth after meeting with cosmetic dermatologist Dr. Simon Ourian

She layered her jacket over a tiny black bandeau top that showed off her enviably toned midriff.

Kim's bleach blond hair was slicked back in a bun and she wore sunglasses over her eyes.

The SKKN by Kim CEO did not have her purse with her and, instead, kept her iPhone in hand.

Kim gave fans a look at her Epione appointment on Wednesday as she introduced them to Dr. Ourian on her Instagram Story.

The mother-of-four has turned to him throughout the years to keep her skin looking fresh and youthful.

In addition to be a regular provider for Kim, Dr. Ourian is also an in-demand dermatologist for numerous models and Hollywood stars, and he also serves all of Kim's family members.

In one photo posted to her Instagram Stories, Kim sported a minimal makeup look while showing off plump lips as if puckering up for a kiss.

The American Horror Story actress gazed into the camera while snapping a selfie with Dr. Ourian at her side.

Kim put the medical professional front and center in a another video she shared on Instagram.

Along with skincare essentials and facials, Epione offers a wide-array of procedures  from non-surgical face lifts to laser tattoo removal

The Kardashians star was noticeably dressed down in baggy black sweatpants, a windbreaker jacket and slide sandals

Kim looked happy with her results as she bid farewell to a member of Dr. Ourian's office staff with a hug

Kim's bleach blond hair was slicked back in a bun and she wore sunglasses over her eyes

She mingled outside the office before heading to her car

'OK guys, Dr. Ourian, my cosmetic dermatologist, my therapist, my... everything,' Kim began before the doctor interject with a 'thank you.'

The clip seemed to cut out before she could say more about the dermatologist, who wore a gray sport coat with peaked lapels over a thin black sweater.

Kim was dressed more causally in what looked like a black fleece top, and she had her platinum blond locks parted down the middle and tied back tightly to reveal her encroaching raven roots.

It wasn't clear if she had visited Dr. Ourian at his office, or if he was making a house call, as the room  which had a rack of black coats in the corner  had the kind of minimalist design that Kim tends to favor.

Dr. Ourian has made a name for himself with a variety of non-surgical procedures designed to adjust the shape of a patient's nose or to contour their jawline without having to go under the knife, which can require a longer recovery period and can increase the likelihood of infections or severe pain.

In 2022, Ourian told Allure that part of the secret to Kim's beauty is simply genetic.

He told DailyMail.com that he considers symmetry and proportion to be two of the most important qualities in a beautiful face, and he has remarked in the past that she has a remarkably symmetrical, properly portioned face.

That year, Kim posted a photo of an appointment with the doctor in which he described her face as 'wonderful and symmetrical.'

Kim Kardashian, 43, introduced her 362 million Instagram followers to her cosmetic dermatologist Dr. Simon Ourian in an Insta Stories video on Wednesday

Kim put the medical professional front and center in a another video she shared on Instagram

'OK guys, Dr. Ourian, my cosmetic dermatologist, my therapist, my... everything,' Kim began before the doctor interject with a 'thank you'

Ourian is a specialist in using non-surgical procedures, and Kim has previously admitted to using his Coolbeam laser treatments, which can reduce the appearance of stretch marks

'This man is a necessity in my life,' Kim previously joked on Instagram in 2022. Her entire family sees Dr. Ourian, as do several models and Hollywood stars

'This man is a necessity in my life,' Kim joked when she posted the clip to her Insta Stories.

Kim has previously admitted to having Dr. Ourian use his Coolbeam laser treatments on her, which can help to remove or decrease the appearance of stretch marks.

She is also rumored to have had a non-surgical tummy tuck, though she has not confirmed having the procedure.

It's unclear if Kim is looking forward to Dr. Ourian performing any more procedures on her, but she did clarify that she 'missed him' in a caption to her Instagram Stories clip.
Just weeks after the tragic killing of soap opera actor Johnny Wactor, his close friends organized a march in downtown Los Angeles to help bring his killer to justice.

Wactor was just 37 years old when he was leaving a bar shift in downtown Los Angeles and confronted thieves who were stealing his car's catalytic convertor.

The thieves opened fire and shot the actor, as he shielded his female co-worker from the gun fire in the early hours of May 25.

Micah Parker, one of Wactor's best friends, organized the march, and told TMZ why he did so.

'We put this together, a group of close friends, there's a whole team of us working on this. The mission of today was really two-fold. Number one was we want to keep the light on this case, on Johnny's case, so there's that pressure not to relent until they catch these guys,' Parker said.

Just weeks after the tragic killing of soap opera actor Johnny Wactor, his close friends organized a march in downtown Los Angeles to help bring his killer to justice

Micah Parker, one of Wactor's best friends, organized the march, and told TMZ why he did so

'They're still out there, these killers, so we want them brought to justice, we want to prosecute it, and that takes pressure for that,' Parker added.

'But also, we want to shine a light on a more broad problem that lead to Johnny's killing, this air of anxiety and fear, you walk around L.A. and you don't know if you're going to be the Johnny Wactor in the news,' Parker said.

'And I know there's a lot of frustration from the citizens of L.A. and we wanted to give him a platform to come and stop having those secret conversations and have them out loud, have them loudly, where City Hall can hear us,' he added.

Parker added the turnout was, 'incredible,' and to, 'hear his name shouted as we walked down the streets.'

'In the midst of tragedy we've seen the worst of humanity but we've also seen the best,' Parker continued, adding they are, 'thankful' for everybody for showing up.

Wactor was leaving his side job at a rooftop bar with a female colleague at around 3:25am Saturday in the area of West Pico Boulevard and South Hope Street, when he saw the three men near his vehicle.

Believing he was being towed, he approached the men to try to discuss it, though that was not the case.

One of the men then looked up and pointed a gun at Wactor, who put his body in front of his female co-worker as he was shot. The three men, who police say were all wearing masks, then fled the scene in another car.

Wactor was rushed to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead a short time later. The suspects remain at large.

Johnny's younger brother Grant confirmed his death to DailyMail.com and said it didn't surprise him to hear his sibling was putting others first at the time.

'They're still out there, these killers, so we want them brought to justice, we want to prosecute it, and that takes pressure for that,' Parker added

Parker added the turnout was, 'incredible,' and to, 'hear his name shouted as we walked down the streets.'

'In the midst of tragedy we've seen the worst of humanity but we've also seen the best,' Parker continued, adding they are, 'thankful' for everybody for showing up

Johnny's younger brother Grant confirmed his death to DailyMail.com and said it didn't surprise him to hear his sibling was putting others first at the time

Grant said that they were raised as 'southern gentleman', and his brother's last act was one of bravery.

'We're Southern, born and raised, and we would never let a female walk to their car by herself,' he said.

'He came across them and he thought his truck was being towed. So he said something to the guys, like, 'Hey, are you towing?

'And then once he turned around, he saw what was happening and he put his coworker behind him. And that's when they shot him.'
Roxy Jacenko is currently living life to the fullest while on a luxurious holiday in The Maldives' capital city Male, with her two children Pixie and Hunter.

The PR maven, 44, shared a gallery of stunning vacation snaps to Instagram on Thursday, which captured her living it up at the five-star Waldorf Astoria resort.

One jaw-dropping photo captured Roxy flaunting her stunning beach body in a racy one-piece black bikini, as she took in the stunning beach sights.

Another picture captured Roxy having a relaxing coffee break at an outdoor cafe by the beach, as she laughed it up with her son Hunter, ten.

A third snap showed Roxy flaunting her jaw-dropping curves in a black lace dress as she enjoyed a scenic stroll across a pier.

Roxy Jacenko (pictured) is currently living life to the fullest while on a luxurious holiday in The Maldives' capital city Male, with her two children Pixie and Hunter (right)

The PR maven, 44, shared a gallery of stunning vacation snaps to Instagram on Thursday, which captured her living it up at the five star Waldorf Astoria resort. One jaw-dropping photo captured Roxy flaunting her stunning beach body in a racy one-piece black bikini

Roxy and her family looked to be having the time of their life on the lavish getaway at Maldives' premium getaway location, which can cost over $3000 a night.

Her scenic trip comes after Roxy released a new statement to Instagram, after her former business partners said they regretted going into business with her.

The Singapore-based Australian publicist made headlines last month when she promised to personally refund all 7,000 people who had signed up to her online business course Roxy's Brand Bootcamp.

The promotion, which Roxy had launched with business partners Youssef Tleis and Kassim Alaouie, included a number of prizes, including a luxury Cronulla home.

Entrants paid between $29 and $499 for a chance to win the extravagant prizes, but faced uncertainty after Roxy called in liquidators to the trio's ailing company, Roxy's Bootcamp Pty Ltd.

In a joint statement released on social media, Youssef and Kassim apologised to those affected: 'Our primary concern has always been you, the public, especially those who participated and purchased an entry into this promotion,' they stated.

A third snap showed Roxy flaunting her jaw-dropping curves in a black lace dress as she enjoyed a scenic stroll across a pier

'We sincerely apologise to you all. We fought as hard as we could and were even willing to give personal undertakings to support our fight,' the pair added.

'We want to express our deepest regret for entering into this partnership with Ms Jacenko. It has been an incredibly challenging and eye-opening experience. We sincerely apologise,' the pair added.

Meanwhile, in a statement by Roxy, she revealed she will be personally refunding those with tickets.

Roxy and her family looked to be having the time of their life on the lavish getaway at Maldives' premium getaway location, which can cost over $3000 a night

'In life, we can all make mistakes. We are only human. This "partnership" was a mistake and is a life lesson. I want to make it clear that I never did anything other than act in the interest of the consumers who purchased the course to try and deliver,' she wrote in an Instagram statement.

'It became apparent this wasn't going to end well and so l had to seek a court injunction in the Supreme Court of NSW which was granted on June 5, 2024.'

Prior to this legal action, Roxy revealed she took proactive steps to settle outstanding bills and ensure the $250K prize fund's integrity for the eventual winner.
Teen Mom star Amber Portwood spoke out about her fiance Gary Wayt's disappearance on Wednesday and opened up about what happened before she reported him missing just days earlier.

Portwood, 34, shared that she has 'very worried' and 'scared' for Wayt, 39, since she reported him missing on Monday, the day after he was last seen.

In an emotional interview with YouTuber Elle Bee, Portwood's voice cracked as she broke down in tears about her partner, who she recently got engaged to, and his disappearance.

'Nobody has found or head from him yet. I'm trying my best to not think the worst. I have not ate [sic] in three days. I slept maybe an hour.'

She also explained that they were 'in the mountains' of North Carolina  a place she said he is unfamiliar with before adding that he has 'never driven in the mountains.'

Teen Mom star Amber Portwood, 34, spoke out about her fiance Gary Wayt's disappearance on Wednesday and opened up about what happened before she reported him missing

Portwood shared that she has 'very worried' and 'scared' for Wayt, 39, since she reported him missing on Monday, the day after he was last seen. In the YouTube video, she said that her fiance had taken his wallet and keys with him but not his phone when he left the residence they were staying at by himself

'This is a huge deal, his parents, everybody is very worried. I am worried,' she said.

In the YouTube video, she said that her fiance had taken his wallet and keys with him but not his phone when he left the residence they were staying at by himself.

She also added that Wayt's car does not have a GPS to help him navigate.

'We are in the mountains,' the MTV star continued. 'He has never driven in the mountains. We are very scared right now.'

Portwood then denied the rumors that the pair got into a heated, 'explosive' argument and speculation that Wayt stormed out.

'There was not a big blowout fight or anything like that, OK. He is a missing person right now,' she said before later revealing that they had an 'emotional' conversation prior to his disappearance.

'I am not what people have been saying about me all of these years,' she said as she referred to previous allegations that she attacked her ex-boyfriend Andrew Glennon with a machete.

'I changed a long time ago, OK. You have to understand this. Please listen to what I am saying. I am an honest person to you guys,' she said.

Portwood then denied the rumors that the pair got into a heated, 'explosive' argument and speculation that Wayt stormed out. However, she later revealed that they had an 'emotional' conversation prior to his disappearance but did not elaborate further beyond that their talk was about 'his parents being Vietnamese' and her being who she is

About her relationship with Wayt, Portwood continued: 'We have not had explosive fights. We are very in love. This man asked me to be with him. This man then asked me to marry him.

'I have not touched this man in any horrible way,' she insisted. 'He does not touch me in any horrible way. We do not yell at each other. Please understand this. People change.'

Portwood then said she and Wayt did have an 'emotional' conversation but did not elaborate further beyond that their talk was about 'his parents being Vietnamese' and her being who she is.

About her fiance, she then said he was the 'best man' she's ever been with and implored people to pray for him and his safety.

This comes shortly after she made the shocking admission that her new fiance disappeared on Monday.

She contacted local authorities in North Carolina and filed a missing persons report for her fiance at the police station, according to TMZ.

The development comes just weeks after he proposed to Portwood and the pair got engaged.

On Thursday, just four days before Portwood told police her fiance had disappeared, he had made his first appearance on her reality series Teen Mom: The Next Chapter.

This comes shortly after she made the shocking admission that her new fiance has disappeared on Monday. She contacted local authorities in North Carolina and filed a missing persons report for her fiance at the police station, according to TMZ

In a social media post from the Bryson City Police Department, Wayt was described by police as being 6ft1in tall and weighing 205lbs. The authorities also noted he is bald and has brown eyes

In a social media post from the Bryson City Police Department, Wayt was described by police as being 6ft1in tall and weighing 205lbs. The authorities also noted he is bald and has brown eyes.

He's said to be driving a gray 2009 Nissan Rogue SUV with Indiana plates.

According to the incident report, which was obtained by TMZ, Portwood said the last time she saw her fiance was on Sunday evening at their hotel in North Carolina.

She added that Wayt is from Indianapolis, Indiana  which is also her hometown  so he doesn't have roots in the area.

An insider revealed on Friday that Portwood and Wayt had gotten engaged, according to Us Weekly.

The source said the reality television star is 'really, really happy' with her new man, adding that the proposal happened 'within the last two weeks.'

It was noted that Portwood's engagement ring was created using 'a family stone that was reset into a new ring.'

And the future husband and wife have 'been in couple's therapy and talk about everything,' the source added.

DailyMail.com has reached out to reps for Portwood for comment.

He's said to be driving a gray 2009 Nissan Rogue SUV with Indiana plates

According to the incident report, which was obtained by TMZ, Portwood said the last time she saw her fiance was on Thursday evening at their hotel in North Carolina; pictured in 2017

'They're being very proactive in their relationship and are doing the work to prevent problems before they start,' the person said.

It comes five months after news broke that Portwood was in a new romantic relationship.

'She met him on a dating app four months ago. They are taking their time getting to know each other, but it's getting serious,' a source told Us Weekly at the beginning of the year.

He does not have kids, but is close to his parents and 'very family-oriented,' it was reported.

According to the publication, Wayt had never seen Portwood's reality series Teen Mom.

'All the guys Amber has dated before she met on social media and were fans of the show,' the source explained.

'This new man in her life has actually never seen Teen Mom so she feels she can finally date in the way she's always wanted to,' the person close to Portwood said.

Portwoodwas introduced to MTV audiences on 16 and Pregnant in 2009.

She moved on to become a cast member on Teen Mom and Teen Mom OG, which lasted from 2009 to 2021.

She was back in front of cameras on 2022's Teen Mom: Family Reunion and 2023's Teen Mom: The Next Chapter.

Portwood is mother to daughter Leah, 15, with ex Gary Shirley, whom she dated from 2008 to 2011.

An insider revealed on Friday that Portwood and Wayt got engaged the day before. According to Us Weekly, the 34-year-old reality television star is 'really, really happy'

Portwood is mother to daughter Leah, 15, with ex Gary Shirley, whom she dated from 2008 to 2011. She also shares six-year-old son James with ex Andrew Glennon, with whom she was involved from 2017 to 2019

Portwood gave birth to daughter Leah, now 15, in November 2008

She also shares six-year-old son James with ex Andrew Glennon, with whom she was involved from 2017 to 2019.

In 2011, Portwood lost custody of Leah after fighting with Wayt and getting arrested the previous year.

A source told Us Weekly in January that the two now co-parent 'amicably.'

However, she does not currently have custody of son James, who lives in California with his dad.
The Block's Liberty Paschke has sent fans into a frenzy after making a cringeworthy gaffe during the latest episode of her Try Before You Die podcast.

Liberty, 34, stumbled over the Norwegian word 'Fjord', which she hilariously mispronounced as 'fa-jawed'.

Her sister and podcast co-host Eliza, 37, was quick to make fun of the error after the show's producer announced the correct way to pronounce the word.

'I have not been to my local 'fa-jord' for quite some time,' Eliza said between fits of laughter.

The embarrassing slip of the tongue came after Liberty was discussing the recent Chris Hemsworth documentary Limitless.

The Block's Liberty Paschke has sent fans into a frenzy after making a cringeworthy gaffe during the latest episode of her Try Before You Die podcast. Pictured

The embarrassing slip of the tongue came after Liberty was discussing the recent Chris Hemsworth documentary Limitless. Pictured

In one episode, the Hollywood superstar discussed the health benefits of exposing the body to very low temperatures after swimming through a Norwegian sea inlet, known as a fjord.

'Anyway he swam across an icy Nordic...Fa-jord,' Liberty said during the podcast.

After a producer gave her the correct pronunciation Liberty then asked: 'What is a fjord out of interest?'

After a clip of the gaffe was posted onto the Eliza and Liberty's Instagram fans appeared to be delighted by the former Blockhead's handling of the unfamiliar word.

'A fjord shall forever now be pronounced exactly like this,' wrote one fan.

'Just like Nigella's microwave is forever known as a Mick-row-wa-vae,' they added.

Meanwhile, other followers simply posted laughing emojis.

After a clip of the gaffe was posted onto the Eliza and Liberty's Instagram fans appeared to be delighted by the former Blockhead's handling of the unfamiliar word

It comes after the fan favourites announced that they were dipping their toes into stand up comedy.

Appearing on their Try Before You Die Podcast, where they try new experiences, the fan favourites revealed they had been requested to attempt stand-up comedy.

'You can only come if you're going to give us sympathy laughs,' Liberty said after announcing the shock career move.

'I've been losing sleep over this.. the idea of doing this is so horrific to me.'

'I feel like my daily life is a stand up routine so I feel like I'm going to be just fine,' Eliza added.
Since announcing that she's expecting her first child with Justin Bieber in May, Hailey Bieber has kept fans updated on her pregnancy.

And on Wednesday, the Rhode skincare founder, 27, revealed that she has been struggling with lower back pain.

'So who was gonna tell me about the lower back pain?' wrote Hailey on her Instagram Story, tacking on two pregnant woman emojis and a spiral eyes emoji.

She included a selfie that showed her making a pouty face as she relaxed in a wooden chair outdoors.

The model had on black spandex biker shorts that highlighted her baby bump.

Pregnant Hailey Bieber revealed Wednesday that she's been suffering from lower back pain

She completed her comfy maternity outfit with a green zip-up fleece sweatshirt.

Lower back pain is very common in pregnant women and is only a concern if the pain becomes severe or if it lasts longer than two weeks.

It is related to hormonal fluctuations, posture and overall physical changes a female experiences during pregnancy.

Hailey and her husband Justin Bieber shocked fans when they announced her pregnancy last month.

The couple  who have been married since September 2018  jetted to Hawaii to renew their wedding vows and revealed the big news in an Instagram video.

The videographer zoomed in on Hailey's stomach, showing that she was expecting.

Though she didn't confirm her pregnancy until May, Hailey is reportedly seven months along.

Hailey has been eagerly sharing photos of her growing belly on Instagram as the couple await their child's arrival.

Hailey and her husband Justin Bieber shocked fans when they announced in May that they are expecting their first child together

The couple have been happily married since 2018 and they will celebrate their sixth wedding anniversary in September

Hailey has been eagerly sharing photos of her growing belly on Instagram as the couple await their child's arrival

Last week, she snapped a mirror selfie in her walk-in closet that showed her wearing a 3/4-sleeve pink striped top that exposed the bottom of her baby bump.

She wore her sunglasses inside the closet she stood in and held a large, black hobo style handbag.

She wore her hair pulled up into a top knot while Justin's clothes hung in the background.

Hailey hasn't allowed pregnancy to stop her from running her successful Rhode skincare line.

Hailey launched Rhode  named after her middle name  in June 2022 and the business has been booming ever since.

CEO Melanie Bender, who joined the company in October 2022, previously told Vogue Business about the brand's astronomical sales.

'We crossed the eight-figure [sales] threshold in just 11 days of selling. Its surpassed anything Ive ever seen,' Bender said.

She added that Hailey is also involved in all aspects of the business.

And earlier this week, Rhode excited fans when they revealed their expansion into makeup.

Hailey hasn't allowed pregnancy to stop her from running her successful Rhode skincare line

Earlier this week, Rhode excited fans when they revealed their expansion into makeup with cream blushes

The viral brand announced their new $24 cream blushes on Tuesday and they will be available to purchase on June 20.

The pocket blushes, which come in compact, twist-off packages, will come in six shades with adorable names - juice box, a hot pink, toasted teddy, a bronze terracotta, spicy marg, a bright coral, piggy, a baby pink, sleepy girl, a soft mauve, and freckle, a neutral peach.

Rhode Skin explained that the cream products will give you a 'super natural flush of color,' similar to waking up from a nap or sitting in the sun for a bit too long.

Hailey has been teasing the blushes for quite a while now, discreetly hiding it in her overall pocket in one Instagram post.

She even used one of the shades during a recent get ready with me video on her hit YouTube channel.
Georgia Steel put on a very busty display in a lime green bikini as she shared sexy Instagram snaps during her holiday in Greece on Wednesday.

The former Love Island star, 26, showcased her enviable figure and snatched waist as she posted a slew of racy bikini snaps.

The beauty slipped into a strappy green two-piece with a stunning white lace maxi skirt while posing for the photoshoot.

Days before, Georgia shared throwback snaps from her luxurious holiday in Ibiza, which saw her slip into a risque pearl top.

Georgia went braless for the jaw-dropping shoot and covered her modesty with her hands as the pearls draped across her body.

Georgia Steel, 26, put on a very busty display in a lime green bikini as she shared sexy Instagram snaps during her holiday in Greece on Wednesday

Days before, Georgia shared throwback snaps from her luxurious holiday in Ibiza, which saw her slip into a risque pearl top

In another snap, she wore a simple white strappy bikini as she struck a pose against the stunning hotel interior.

Georgia recently revealed she had suicidal thoughts after she and her family were sent death threats and abuse by cruel internet trolls following her stint on Love Island All Stars.

The reality star appeared on the ITV2 series in January and February this year, and finished in fourth place with ex-boyfriend Toby Aromolaran.

Her time on the show was turbulent, and she revealed after leaving the villa that she had been subjected to 'vile trolls' and 'death threats', causing her to briefly leave social media.

She credits her loved ones with keeping her on track but admits she struggled with the nasty messages, prompting her to consider leaving reality television for good.

When asked if she had suicidal thoughts, Georgia told The Sun: 'I dont want to use that term lightly at all as so many people are affected by suicide and my heart goes out to them, but there were times where I was thinking, "What is the point? Everyone hates me".

'That is literally how I felt, like everyone hated me, and if it wasnt for my family and my really, really close friends and their support then who knows, I could have gone down the road of suicidal thoughts.'

Georgia said she lived in fear as she wondered if the people who had sent her 'death threats' would target her in person and try to harm her away from the internet.

The beauty slipped into a strappy green two-piece with a stunning white lace maxi skirt while posing for the photoshoot

Georgia went braless for the jaw-dropping shoot and covered her modesty with her hands as the pearls draped across her body

The former Love Island star showcased her enviable figure and snatched waist as she posted a slew of racy bikini snaps

In another snap, she wore a simple white strappy bikini as she struck a pose against the stunning hotel interior

Georgia sent pulses racing in her gorgeous snaps

The reality star appeared on the ITV2 series in January and February this year, and finished in fourth place with ex-boyfriend Toby Aromolaran

The influencer split from her Love Island beau Toby shortly after the show, less than a month after the pair reached the final of the All Stars series together (Pictured on the show's final in February)

Admitting she didn't leave her home for a week at one point, she said: 'I could be walking down the street thinking, "Oh God, is she the one who wants to kill my family?" That is the worst part.

'And when people came up to me and asked for a photo, Id think, "Are you one of the trolls?"'

In March, Georgia spoke to Sky News about how the online trolling affected her and her family, saying: 'My family and my friends, they had death threats. My mum got messages "How could you raise a girl like this?"

'Yeah, which is awful, because like in reality... I just want to make the people that support and love me proud.'

Georgia then challenged the trolls over their actions, asking if they would dare say those things to a person's face - and whether they had considered that their comments could be the thing to 'tip someone over the edge'.

The influencer split from her Love Island beau Toby Aromolaran last month, less than a month after the pair reached the final of the All Stars series together.

For support, contact the Samaritans 24 hours a day by calling 116 123 or by email at jo@samaritans.org
Sienna Miller looked loved up with her boyfriend Oli Green as they attended Charlotte Tilbury's house party in London on Wednesday evening.

The actress, 42, who recently praised her 'wise' and 'well-adjusted' partner, 27, arrived hand-in-hand to the star-studded bash.

Sienna showed off her chic sense of style in a red and beige suede jacket which she paired with loose fitting black jeans.

She added some western style heeled boots and styled her hair into tousled waved to top off her look.

Meanwhile, Oli opted for double denim, wearing a shirt with matching jeans and layering a washed black jacket over the top.

Sienna Miller looked loved up with her boyfriend Oli Green as they attended Charlotte Tilbury's house party in London on Wednesday evening

The actress, 42, who recently praised her 'wise' and 'well-adjusted' partner , 27, arrived hand-in-hand to the star-studded bash

Speaking in a new interview Sienna gushed over her 'wise' and 'well-adjusted' boyfriend Oli and said his 'generation of men' are more respectful to women.

The couple were first linked in February 2022 and welcomed a baby daughter together five months ago.

Making rare comments about her fiercely private relationship, she lauded Oli as being 'wise and well-adjusted' and said his generation of men respect women more.

Sienna famously faced public humiliation in 2005 when her then-boyfriend Jude Law, now 51, confessed to cheating on her with his children's nanny Daisy Wright.

Speaking about Oli she said: 'I didn't expect to take it seriously and then quite quickly, I fell in love. I wasn't like, 'I'm gonna get a younger boyfriend.' It was more, 'F*ck! Why are you young? That's so annoying.'

'There is a difference in the way that generation of men respect women. It's specific to him, he is very wise and well-adjusted, but I do believe it's also that generation.

'They have grown up with a slightly more level playing field. I see it in his female friends as well as in the men.'

As well as the five-month old she shares with Oli, she has daughter Marlowe, 11, with her ex partner Tom Sturridge.

The couple were first linked in February 2022 and welcomed a baby daughter together five months ago, with Sienna recently saying his 'generation of men' are more respectful to women

As well as the five-month old she shares with Oli, she has daughter Marlowe, 11, with her ex partner Tom Sturridge (pictured together in May)

Sienna opened up about family life during a candid interview with The Guardian, following a 'rough baby night' with her youngest daughter.

She explained that the 10-year age gap between her daughters is, 'actually quite useful because one is tiny and portable, and the other is becoming increasingly independent.'

Speaking about Marlowe, who walked the Cannes red carpet with her mother last month, Sienna said: 'She's so stylish and very critical.'

'She's like a young Anna Wintour in her total disdain for some of the things I wear. In New York she thought I was mortifying. She wished I would brush my hair.'
Pregnant Aisling Bea was seen for the first time since announcing she's expecting her first child with her producer boyfriend Jack Freeman, in Los Angeles on Sunday.

Back in April, Aisling opened up about her horrifying accident that left her arm 'hanging off'.

And in her first public outing as a mother-to-be, Aisling displayed her growing bump in a comfy casual attire.

She wore blue denim maternity jeans and a black and white jumper, teamed with flat shoes.

At one point, Aisling took a rest from their night out as she was seen perched down on the floor.

Pregnant Aisling Bea was seen for the first time since announcing she's expecting her first child with boyfriend Jack Freeman, in Los Angeles on Sunday

And in her first public outing as a mother-to-be with boyfriend Jack, Aisling displayed her growing bump in a comfy casual attire

The couple, who have been dating for almost two years, enjoyed a date night with some friends to celebrate their pregnancy.

Aisling looked every inch of the doting mother-to-be as she enjoyed a wholesome night out with her lover.

Showing off her tummy in her announcement post, Aisling shared funny videos and snaps of a cartoon face painted onto her bare tummy after performing a back-up dance with comic Seth Herzog.

She captioned her post: 'Dignity Intact. Got pregnant so I could try & put something beside Paul Rudd's face to make him look older.

'Thanks to the @bigslickkc , Paul, @sethherzog super boy @travisKelce & mostly our angel @sherylcrow for helping me show off my bump in the most dignified & classy way possible.

'Sheryl said myself & Seth could be her very professional back up dancers with our ridiculous idea, how on brand!She really does just wanna have some fun, yawl.

And thanks to @jackoby.freeman & @elsie for doing full bump glam & to one of them in particular for getting me pregaroo in the first place.

'Just to note if you use sharpie pen on your skin, it will be there for about two days. Just if you are weighing up what a commitment to a joke is worth. Gentle dermatitis is the answer.'

The comedian revealed the joyful news in a hilarious post last week which saw her debut her blossoming baby bump

She wore blue denim maternity jeans and a black and white jumper, teamed with flat shoes

At one point, Aisling took a rest from their night out as she was seen perched down on the floor

She refreshed with a can of water while they sat on the curb in the middle of the street

Aisling looked every inch of the doting mother-to-be as she enjoyed a wholesome night out with her lover

The couple, who have been dating for almost two years, enjoyed a date night with some friends to celebrate their pregnancy

While Aisling scrolled through her phone, Jack was stood over her chatting

Aisling looked trendy in cropped denim jeans and a causal jumper

In true comedian style, Aisling made her friends laugh in stitches

She took a break from her night out as she sat down while waiting for a taxi

At one point, her friends were seen applauding the comedian

Aisling's post showed a slew of snaps of the moment she unveiled her bump while dancing on-stage at the charity event.

The star previously dated actor Michael Sheen in 2018 for less than a year, before his ex Sarah Silverman confirmed their romance was over.

The following year she then sparked dating rumours with Spiderman star Andrew Garfield, after they were pictured together during a night out at the theatre.

Aisling and Jack marked their first anniversary on Instagram last year, writing: 'To 1 whole year with m'lady @weemissbea.'

Aisling's stage surname 'Bea' is in memory of her father Brian who died by suicide when she was three years old. Her real surname is O'Sullivan.

She has starred in comedies Trollied and The Delivery Man in before acting in a serious role in The Fall.

In 2023, Aisling had a starring role in Take That jukebox musical film Greatest Days.

Back in April, Aisling opened up about her horrifying accident that left her arm 'hanging off'.

The comedian shared the news in a fun Instagram post after debuting her bump at the Big Slick '24 event over the weekend

Showing off her tummy, Aisling shared funny videos and snaps of a cartoon face painted onto her bare tummy after performing a back-up dance with comic Seth Herzog

In the caption of her post, Aisling also shared that she was expecting her baby with her boyfriend Jack Freeman, and one clip showed the producer drawing a face on her bump

One image, Aisling and Seth danced around the stage with their tummies on display while Sheryl performed

She has starred in comedies Trollied and The Delivery Man in before acting in a serious role in The Fall

Aisling shared on social media that she was expecting her first child with Jack, who she has been dating for two years (pictured in July 2023)

During an appearance on The Jonathan Ross Show this week the comedian, 40, revealed she got 'knocked down off her bike in the pandemic' which left her needing surgery to have her shoulder 'totally reconstructed'.

She said: 'I was supposed to have keyhole surgery on my shoulder from an accident two days beforehand but when I went in, they found out my arm was hanging off.

'They had to go in and totally reconstruct my shoulder while I was asleep. I got knocked down off my bike in the pandemic.'

Aisling was due to start filming the second series of fellow comedian Romesh Ranganathan comedy-series Avoidance but the script had to be adapted to include her sling.

She admitted she was 'out of her head on painkillers' while on set and due to the sling was not able to 'move very much'.

The actress, who played Megan, added: 'We were scheduled to film for a week and a half. Out of my head on painkillers. I just remember it as one long day.

'We had to make my sling part of the character but I really couldn't move very much.'
Gemma Collins was told her mother Joan could die after she was rushed to hospital in recent weeks.

The former TOWIE star, 43, was left horrified after her mother, 80, stopped breathing shortly after a family meal and was told doctors may not resuscitate her.

Speaking to The Sun, she said: 'I've had a lot of stress the last couple of weeks.

'My mum was suddenly taken into hospital and I was told she could die. They would not resuscitate her if she went into cardiac arrest.

'So imagine that, you know, I'm in the hospital having been out for dinner the day before, and then the next day I'm like, 'wow', so that was a massive shock.'

Gemma Collins was told her mother Joan could die after she was rushed to hospital in recent weeks

The former TOWIE star, 43, was left horrified after her mother, 80, stopped breathing shortly after a family meal and was told doctors may not resuscitate her

Gemma revealed to her social media followers in May that Joan had been rushed to hospital and was in intensive care.

The reality TV personality shared sweet snaps with her mum to social media, telling fans Joan is 'really ill at the minute'.

In a video shared to Instagram, Gemma - who has openly spoken about her mother's health struggles in the past - explained: 'My mum is really ill at the minute, she's in intensive care.

'It's been a hell of a time and you know, I'm really happy, and well not that happy, because my mum's in intensive care, but she is on the mend, thank god.'

Gemma later wrote: 'Last week I had the shock of my life when my mum stopped breathing. I called an ambulance and was told to prepare for the worst and would I like to resuscitate her.

She then reassured worried fans that Joan is now 'stable' and will 'hopefully' be much better soon.

In August last year, Gemma shared a snap of her mother with a breathing tube in her nose after being admitted to Queens Hospital in Essex.

She penned: 'Such a scary moment when Mum comes to hospital. Thank you Queens Hospital Romford for all you're doing.'

Gemma said: 'My mum was suddenly taken into hospital and I was told she could die. They would not resuscitate her if she went into cardiac arrest'

Gemma revealed to her social media followers in May that Joan had been taken to hospital and was in intensive care

The reality TV personality shared snaps with her mum to social media, telling fans Joan is 'really ill at the minute'

Sharing another snap of her mother on her grid, she added: 'Love your parents as hard as you can. Thank you to everyone looking after mum @joancollins1 at QUEENS HOSPITAL ROMFORD.'

Many of Gemma's followers shared their own messages of support in the comments, with Jedward writing: 'Your mom is the most loving and caring soul ever - sending healing energy.'

Gemma said her mother spent time in the intensive care unit but is doing 'amazing' now a few weeks after the terrifying incident.

In March 2023, Gemma revealed she was having a life-saving gene test after Joan was diagnosed with breast cancer.

The Diva Forever star was left shaken after learning her mum Joan found a cancerous lump between her breast and armpit.

Gemma, who has also lost a family member to cancer, has spoken to her doctor about undergoing a BRCA gene test, which screens her DNA to see if she has inherited a faulty gene which means she may be more susceptible to cancer.

Former The Only Way Is Essex star told The Sun she broke down in tears the moment her mother told her she'd had cancer over the phone.

She explained: 'It was over the phone. I was in the back of a taxi in London and I was like, 'Are you all right, mum? Where are you?'  as we say every day, ten times a day.

'She said, 'Ah I didn't want to tell you, but I've had a lump in my breast'. I was like, 'What?', and she said, 'But it's fine I've got the all-clear'. I was like, 'Oh, my God. Why didn't you tell me?''

Gemma didn't share exactly what prompted the sudden hospital admission, but has openly spoken about her mum's health struggles in the past

She then reassured worried fans that Joan is now 'stable' and will 'hopefully' be much better soon

In August last year, Gemma shared a snap of her mother with a breathing tube in her nose after being admitted to Queens Hospital in Essex

Gemma said Joan chose not to tell her daughter about her diagnosis as she was filming Diva Forever at the time.

Former Celebrity Big Brother housemate Gemma said her mother found the lump on the right side of her breast and doctors caught it 'in the nick of time'.

She added: 'She knew that I would have fallen apart in the worst-case scenario so she kept it to herself because she didn't want to upset me  but she was very scared.'

Gemma praised the NHS for their swift action, saying they removed the lump straight away.

Joan was diagnosed in 2016 with ductal carcinoma in situ, which means the cells in the lining of the breast tissue become cancerous, and she now attends a screening every year.

The cancerous cells are contained inside the milk ducts and have not spread to the surrounding breast tissue.

Hereditary breast cancer is most commonly caused by an inherited mutation in the BRCA1 or BRCA2 gene.

If a woman has inherited a mutated copy of these genes from either parent, they are at a greater risk of developing breast cancer, with up to a 70 per cent chance of getting the disease by the age of 80.

Gemma noted that her mother is lucky to be a breast cancer survivor and she hopes telling her story will encourage other people to go for checks.
Bikini-clad Lucy Mecklenburgh and her shirtless fiance Ryan Thomas took part in a sweet TikTok trend with their two children Roman and Lilah in Portugal on Thursday.

The former TOWIE star, 32, flashed her abs in a strappy tan bikini while Ryan displayed his toned torso as they each jumped over the camera.

Lucy cradled her youngest child Lilah, two, while Ryan held Roman, four, on his hip.

The video captures the family-of-four in the airport at first and quickly transports to them on holiday in their bikinis.

Over the last week, Ryan celebrated his birthday with a host of celebrity guests and family on the island.

Bikini-clad Lucy Mecklenburgh, 32, and her shirtless fiance Ryan Thomas, 40, took part in a sweet TikTok trend with their children Roman, 4, and Lilah, two, in Portugal on Thursday

The former TOWIE star flashed her abs in a strappy tan bikini while Ryan displayed his toned torso as they each jumped over the camera

Ryan's oldest daughter Scarlett, 15, who he shares with ex Tina O'Brien, was also in attendance.

Lucy also shared a gorgeous snap posing with Ryan in their stunning evening attire as they enjoyed their last meal out of the holiday.

The mother-of-two pulled out all the stops as she threw Ryan an incredible 40th birthday over the weekend.

She was seen downing shots with her husband-to-be before they partied into the night with their celebrity pals, including Ashley James and her partner Tommy as well as Lydia Bright and her new boyfriend Ben Davies.

Lucy looked incredible in a white, strapless gown with cut-out sections and gold buttons, with her hair pulled back into a sleek bun.

Standing beside her, Ryan opted for a linen shirt and white trousers, accessorising with a straw hat.

During the epic bash, the actor was seen waving a sparkler in the air and dancing while his friends and family cheered him on.

Scarlett, who is currently playing Izzy Charles in the Waterloo Road reboot, got up on stage to sing Shallow, from A Star Is Born.

Lucy cradled her youngest child Lilah while Ryan held Roman on his hip

The video captures the family-of-four in the airport at first and quickly transports to them on holiday in their bikinis

Lucy also shared a gorgeous snap posing with Ryan in their stunning evening attire as they enjoyed their last meal out of the holiday

The mother-of-two pulled out all the stops as she threw Ryan an incredible 40th birthday over the weekend

Lucy was seen downing shots with her husband-to-be before they partied into the night with their celebrity pals

Lucy looked incredible in a white, strapless gown with cut-out sections and gold buttons, with her hair pulled back into a sleek bun

Guests were seen dancing to a live band and enjoying a healthy breakfast the next day in a bid to cure their hangovers.

Sharing some photos to Instagram, Ryan thanked Lucy writing: 'You made my 40th unforgettable. Love you my angel.'

The previous day, Lucy wore a summery one-shoulder yellow dress and gold heels as she shared a glimpse at the celebrations on her Instagram.

Lucy and Ryan posed for a snap with Tommy and Ashley who wore a beautiful light pink ruffled dress.

Ryan looked jazzy in a multicoloured patterned shirt for the party which he teamed with beige chinos.

Guests at the bash were treated to a three-course dinner of oysters, steak and salmon before musical guests got the real party started with singing and dancing.

The table settings were beautiful and personalised to each guest with their name attached to the napkin.

Ryan's brother Love Island star Scott shared images of the family lunch the day before.

Celebrity pals, including Ashley James (pictured) and her partner Tommy as well as Lydia Bright and her new boyfriend Ben Davies flew out for the party

Lydia wore a stunning sequinned gown while her boyfriend Ben opted for a linen shirt

Ryan's daughter, Scarlett, 15, who he shares with his ex Tina O'Brien, was also present (pictured with his brother Scott)

Ryan (centre) pictured with his brothers Adam (left) and Scott (right)

Scarlett, who is currently playing Izzy Charles in the Waterloo Road reboot, got up on stage to sing Shallow, from A Star Is Born

Ryan danced and gave his youngest daughter Lilah a sweet kiss

Sharing some photos to Instagram, Ryan thanked Lucy writing: 'You made my 40th unforgettable. Love you my angel'

Guests were seen dancing to a live band and enjoying a healthy breakfast the next day in a bid to cure their hangovers

Lucy soaked up some sun and relaxed following the revelry

The previous day, Lucy wore a summery one-shoulder yellow dress and gold heels as she shared a glimpse at the celebrations on her Instagram

Sharing her snaps of the big weekend Ashley penned in her social media caption: 'We came on our first childfree weekend away to celebrate @ryanthomas84 40th birthday and it was so much fun!.

'One of the funnest nights ever celebrating you @ryanthomas84 ! What an amazing bunch of people!

'You're very loved! @lucymeck1 you smashed every detail - please can you organise all parties going forward!'

Other Instagram footage showed the crowds of guests enjoying drinks and canapes ahead of the dinner.

It comes after Lucy opened up about her struggle with endometriosis and adenomyosis, which cause her to bloat '80 per cent of the time'.

Endometriosis is a condition where tissue similar to the lining of the womb grows in other places, such as the ovaries and fallopian tubes.

Meanwhile, adenomyosis is a gynecologic condition that causes endometrial tissue in the lining of the uterus to grow into the muscular wall of the uterus.

Lucy opened up about having the 'severe' condition recently as she told her followers it has 'really affected her' since having Lilah.

The couple posed for photos with Ashley and Tommy

Lucy and Ryan posed for a snap with Tommy and Ashley who wore a beautiful light pink ruffled dress

Ryan looked jazzy in a multicoloured patterned skirt for the party which he teamed with beige chinos

Guests at the bash were treated to a three-course dinner of oysters, steak and salmon before musical guests got the real party started with singing and dancing

Lucy boosted her height with strappy gold heels and accessorised with a clutch bag and matching statement earrings

Other Instagram footage showed the crowds of guests enjoying drinks and canapes ahead of the dinner

The mother of two said that she was surprised by the diagnosis because her symptoms didn't include period pain and fertility issues, which are typically associated with endometriosis.

Sharing a picture of This Morning doing a segment on the condition, Lucy praised them for raising awareness on the topic.

She wrote: 'Well done This Morning. For something so common in women there really isn't much information out there & as I'm realising now a huge lack of research!

'So amazing to see a lot more conversation around endometriosis. After over a year of test I've recently got the answer, which is quite severe endometriosis & adenomyosis.

Revealing she is still finding her feet since the diagnosis, she said: 'Not fully ready to talk about it yet I'm just getting my head around it and processing it myself for now...

'But I didn't have the symptoms I associated with endo which was period pain and fertility issues so it was a huge shock to me but it has really affected me in other ways since I had Lilah.'

A few days later, Lucy shared a picture of her stomach and revealed she had been struggling with bloating as one of the symptoms of the condition.

She said: 'The joys of endometriosis and adenomyosis. I'm actually fed up of trying to cover the bloating I get 80 per cent of the time.

Ryan's brother Love Island star Scott was also in attendance and shared images of the family lunch the previous day

Ryan looked like he was having a great time as he moved to the front of the crowds to dance to the music

Plenty of Ryan's male pals were in attendance at the bash (Ashley's partner Tommy seen far left)

'This is actually mild bloating for me. I've tried every spanx, every supplement (even though I knew they prob wouldn't work) eating well and exercising does hugely help.

'But the anxiety of spring/summer approaching and wearing swimwear and summer clothes in general is really getting to me.

'I know there's so many worse things but it's so horrible having zero control of symptoms like bloating even with a healthy lifestyle. Advice very welcome.'
She's the 'nude' artist who regularly puts on a racy display on social media.

But on Thursday night, Dina Broadhurst opted for a more modest look as she stepped out to attend the opening of Nadia Bartel's Henne store in Sydney.

Known for her provocative and daring online presence, Broadhurst was unrecognisable as she covered up double denim.

The eastern suburbs identity turned heads in a '90s style corset paired with jeans.

She completed her look with a luxurious white coat that draped gracefully over her small frame and opted to boost her height with pointed white heels.

She's the 'nude' artist who regularly puts on a racy display on social media, but on Thursday night Dina Broadhurst opted for a more modest look. Pictured

The 46-year-old stepped out to attend the opening of Nadia Bartel's Henne store in Sydney

Dina's hair was styled in a sleek, straight look, and her makeup was kept minimal, showcasing her natural beauty.

The event, celebrating the launch of Nadia Bartel's Henne store, was attended by a host of celebrities including radio star Jackie 'O' Henderson and Pip Edwards.

The sighting comes after Dina finally confirmed her new romance with multimillionaire fridges heir John Winning last month.

Dina swapped her usual revealing attire for a stylish and cosy outfit

Dina is no stranger to flaunting her physique on social media

She often dazzles her online followers with racy displays

She recently enjoyed some fun in the sun with a friend

The sighting comes after Dina finally confirmed her new romance with multimillionaire fridges heir John Winning last month. (Both pictured)

The couple went Instagram official earlier in May when Dina posted a series of snaps to Instagram from a romantic getaway to New Zealand.

It was not the couple's first trip away together as they also recently attended a rave in Pioneertown, California, and also went on a European vacation together.

She was reported to have started dating the CEO and fourth-generation heir of Winning Appliances in March after knowing him for some time.
Nicola Coughlan's school teacher has revealed how the actress' setbacks during her school years mirror her character's story arc in Bridgerton.

The Irish actress, 37, plays Penelope Featherton in the hit Netflix show, with the newly released third season following her character's steamy romance with Colin Bridgerton.

Before her friendship with Colin moved to love, Penelope was left on the sidelines by suitors, as depicted in the first two series.

Add to that her mother and sisters' belittling attitude toward her, and Penelope was very much out of the spotlight.

Now, Nicola's teacher Caroline Moggan, who taught her between the ages of 13 and 15 at Calasanctius College in Oranmore, near Galway, has revealed how Nicola herself was on the sidelines when it came to her early stage appearances.

Nicola Coughlan 's school teacher has revealed how the actress' setbacks during her school years mirror her plot lines in Bridgerton

Nicola's teacher Caroline Mogganhas revealed how Nicola was on the sidelines when it came to her early stage appearances

'She had a real presence on stage, even back then,' History teacher Caroline, who also helped out with school plays, has told The Mirror, explaining how she had to break the news to Nicola that she hadn't been given the lead in the school musical.

'Even though she hadn't landed the main part, we would always say there's no such thing as a small part. When you're introducing them to the stage, you want pupils to understand what makes the bigger parts look good,' the teacher said.

Caroline is now thrilled that her former pupil is getting her time in the limelight, saying: 'It doesn't surprise me at all how well she has done. But at the same time, I can't say I had that foresight early on, just that she had something.'

'She was a real open book. She seemed to be able to click with adults and with her peers at the same time. She was happy in her own skin with always a smile and always a "hello".'

The last six years have been a whirlwind for Nicola, who was cast as Claire Devlin in the BBC sleeper hit Derry Girls which skyrocketed her to national fame.

After a role as Hannah Dalton in Harlots in 2018, she then went on to make her West End debut in The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie, before being cast in Shonda Rhimes' smash hit Bridgerton in 2020, putting her on the international stage.

The role has taken her from a supporting character in the period drama show's previous two seasons to becoming Netflix's biggest star in one of its biggest hits.

But it's been a long journey to the top for Nicola, who worked in an opticians while living with her parents, hopping between Galway and London where she was a jobbing actor for decades.

The Irish actress, 37, plays Penelope Featherton in the hit Netflix show, with the newly released third season following her character's steamy romance with Colin Bridgerton

Before her friendship with Colin moved to love, Penelope was left on the sidelines by suitors, as depicted in the first two series. Add to that her mother and sisters' belittling attitude toward her, and Penelope was very much out of the spotlight

'She had a real presence on stage, even back then,' Caroline says, explaining how she had to break the news to Nicola that she hadn't been given the lead role in the school musical (pictured before she was cast in Derry Girls in 2017)

'I was 31 when Derry Girls happened,' she told Marie Claire.

'It's important for people to know I wasn't an overnight success. In my twenties, I didn't have money to be living in London and going to a million auditions.'

'I had to work full time and it was hard. I left London a couple of times [and moved home], because it just wasn't happening.'

Nicola then worked in various 'mundane retail jobs' while auditioning for theatre productions and small films, she even scored a 100 a day role as an extra on Made in Chelsea.

The Irish actress only shot to fame fairly recently for her role as Clare Devlin in Derry Girls in 2018

The star has admitted she is 'terrified of scrutiny' stepping up into her Bridgerton role, but is ready to take on the challenge.

'It's taken a while to get comfortable with being the lead in a show this big and this loved, but I'm really f****** proud of myself,' she told Stylist.

Nicola has also said she's very happy she didn't get famous in her twenties. Her first professional acting role was aged nine, in 'My Brother's War' starring James Brolin.

'I used to look at the Olsen twins. I was like, 'God, look, look at where they are,' she told the LA Times.

She then went on to do voice work in cartoons until getting the big break in Derry Girls.

After weeks of anticipation, the ultimate bonkbuster returned on Thursday, with fans finally able to witness show leads Penelope and Colin Bridgerton's (Luke Newton) friends to lovers arc

But Bridgerton has pushed her success even further.

Pointedly, the new season of Bridgerton will see the actress perform sex scenes for the first time.

She added that there's one scene where she is 'very naked on camera by choice'.

'It was the biggest f*** you,' she said. 'When I'm 80 I want to look back and think how hot I was,'.

After weeks of anticipation, the ultimate bonkbuster returned on Thursday, with fans finally able to witness show leads Penelope and Colin Bridgerton's (Luke Newton) friends to lovers arc.

The nation held its breath as they waited to see how the couple would fare in their racy moments after viewers were promised the 'steamiest season yet'.

Yet even the most diehard fans were no doubt left choking on their cornflakes when part two of season three was released at 8am on Netflix.

Just 15 minutes into the period drama, viewers were faced with an explicit six-minute long sex scene featuring the show leads.
Pregnant Emily Miller displayed her blossoming bump in an Instagram snap on Thursday as she prepares to welcome her baby boy with Cam Holmes.

The Too Hot To Handle star, 30, shared her 'bittersweet' feeling of welcoming her child as she marked two years since she suffered an ectopic pregnancy.

Emily and Cam, who first met on the 2020 series, revealed they were expecting their baby in January.

The mother-to-be shared a raw and honest paragraph alongside a slew of snaps, describing her past trauma.

She wrote: 'Its a bitter sweet feeling today which marks 2 years since my ectopic pregnancy.

Pregnant Emily Miller, 30, displayed her blossoming bump in an Instagram snap on Thursday as she prepares to welcome her baby boy with Cam Holmes

The Too Hot To Handle star shared her 'bittersweet' feeling of welcoming her child as she marked two years since she suffered an ectopic pregnancy

'My due date is only a week away but I had always secretly thought how weird it would be if I gave birth on the exact day. But Im now glad that wasnt the case as they both deserve their special day.'

An ectopic pregnancy is when a fertilised egg implants itself outside of the womb, usually in one of the fallopian tubes.

The fallopian tubes are the tubes connecting the ovaries to the womb. If an egg gets stuck in them, it won't develop into a baby and your health may be at risk if the pregnancy continues.

Unfortunately, it's not possible to save the pregnancy. It usually has to be removed using medicine or an operation.

She added: 'I lost my little Twix [dog] a month before I found out I was pregnant which is ironic in itself because Twix hated babies and children and I always said I would never be able to have a child with Twixxy being my number 1 baby as it just wouldnt work.

'Fast forward a few months I then lost my wee Nan. This too is ironic because the reason I got Twix was that he was my grandads dying wish for me.

'Expect he was supposed to be a white Siberian cat. Not a stray dog from Batterseabut thats another story.

'Long story short- I always felt my grandads presence in Twix. My Nan and Twix had this incredible bond and I dont know why but I just alwayssss knew that they would cross over at the same time.

Emily and Cam, who first met on the 2020 series, revealed they were expecting their baby in January

The mother-to-be shared a raw and honest paragraph alongside a slew of snaps, describing her past trauma

She wrote: 'Its a bitter sweet feeling today which marks 2 years since my ectopic pregnancy. My due date is only a week away but I had always secretly thought how weird it would be if I gave birth on the exact day. But Im now glad that wasnt the case as they both deserve their special day' (pictured last month)

She added: 'I lost my little Twix [dog] a month before I found out I was pregnant which is ironic in itself because Twix hated babies and children and I always said I would never be able to have a child with Twixxy being my number 1 baby as it just wouldnt work'

'Fast forward a few months I then lost my wee Nan. This too is ironic because the reason I got Twix was that he was my grandads dying wish for me', she added

'Long story short- I always felt my grandads presence in Twix. My Nan and Twix had this incredible bond and I dont know why but I just alwayssss knew that they would cross over at the same time', she continued

'Anyway to cut to the point Ive never been hugely into spirituality but I do feel like this has all been linked together and to top it off we are calling our son after my Grandad which Cam & I decided way before my nans death', she continued

'Its crazy how our mind and body recovers so quickly from trauma when its replaced with love and hope', she added

'And would you believe it - as my Nan got sicker with Dementia and Twix got older neither of them were giving up until eventually it was only a few months apart when they both died.

'Anyway to cut to the point Ive never been hugely into spirituality but I do feel like this has all been linked together and to top it off we are calling our son after my Grandad which Cam & I decided way before my nans death.

'Its crazy how our mind and body recovers so quickly from trauma when its replaced with love and hope.'

In June 2022 Emily revealed she suffered an ectopic pregnancy, after finding out she was pregnant a few weeks before.

She detailed the tragic news in a lengthy post to Instagram, telling followers that she 'collapsed in pain' and was rushed to hospital.

Emily detailed that she was 'extremely emotional' after the surgery and suffered a panic attack, adding that despite the physical pain, 'mentally it was even harder.'

The television personality explained that despite the 'shock' pregnancy she was 'quite excited' before being admitted to A&E with stomach pain.

Alongside a photo for her hospital bed, Emily penned: 'So a few weeks ago I discovered I was pregnant. Although it was a shock it was something I was also quite excited about.

In June 2022 Emily revealed she suffered an ectopic pregnancy, after finding out she was pregnant a few weeks before

'However on Tuesday. I collapsed whilst being at the shops. I cannot even describe to you the pain- it felt like my whole stomach was collapsing and was quickly rushed to hospital. I waited in A&E until 3pm the next day, when I finally got my scan.'

She continued: 'As I laid on the table squeezing Cams hand the 2 nurses were so silent. I asked if everything is ok and she replied 'I'm just going to get my colleague for a second opinion' as the 3 nurses gathered round it was then they confirmed I had something called an ectopic pregnancy.

'For those who haven't heard of this (like me) it's basically where the fetus gets stuck and grows in your Fallopian tube which is fatal and if I had left it much longer my Fallopian tube would of burst.

'It's one of those things you just think will never happen to you. I was just so scared. Not only was I about to lose my baby but I was about to have my Fallopian tube removed with the potential of my ovary too.

'All I wanted to do was speak to my mum and I'm pretty sure I scared all the poor women in that waiting room with my crying.'
A guest on the US version of Antiques Roadshow was left stunned when it was revealed that his wife's late aunt's painting was worth a staggering six-figure sum.

The man had appeared on the PBS daytime series with the hopes of getting some cash for an old-fashioned style piece of art that belonged to his relative.

The painting in question depicts a countryside scene of a man accompanied by his dog, shooting some birds in a field.

And before it was valued by Alan Fausel, the owner admitted he had 'no idea' how much it would be worth.

'We received it from my wife's aunt, who lives in New Jersey. It was in her aunt's estate, and she passed it on to us about 20 years ago,' the guest recalled.

A guest on the US version of Antiques Roadshow was left stunned when it was revealed that his wife's late aunt's painting was worth a staggering six-figure sum

The man had appeared on the PBS daytime series with the hopes of getting some cash for an old-fashioned style piece of art that belonged to his relative

Adding: 'Her husband worked in New York, I understand he was friends with people in the Field and Stream office but beyond that, I really have no idea.'

The man was soon left speechless after he was told that the painting was actually by the famous artist Lynn Bogue Hunt and was created in January 1942.

Fausel gushed: 'This is sort of a perfect storm for a Lynn Bogue Hunt, for what you want from him.

'It's in good condition, it's oil on canvas, it's a Field And Stream cover which is as good as a Saturday Evening Post, it's sort of the Saturday Evening Post for the sporting set.

'And you have the right dogs and you have the right birds. You have an English Setter and an English Pointer.

'These [birds] are bobwhite quail. On the back there's a couple of notes there, this is from the Long Island manufacturer of the stretcher and a little bit of a Field And Stream label that's been left attached to it.'

He added: 'This is about as good as it gets. We try to be conservative when we estimate things for auctions but I would estimate this for $20,000 (15,600) to $30,000 (23,400). His works have gone up to at least six figures.'

The guest couldn't believe what he was hearing and stammered: 'Wow. Kind of floors me, I didn't realise it would be that much.'

The painting in question depicts a countryside scene of a man accompanied by his dog, shooting some birds in a field

Lynn Bogue Hunt was a prolific American wildlife artist, with some reports dubbing him the best outdoor illustrator of the mid-20th century.

Hunt was born in New York in 1978, before he moved to Albion in Michigan at the age of 12.

He returned to the Big Apple in 1903 and began his career as a freelance artist, specialising in illustrations for books, magazines, and advertisements - game bird hunting and saltwater fishing were hHunt's particular interests.

The artist released a portfolio of 18 color reproductions of his paintings called Our American Game Birds in 1917, and also regularly contributed to Field & Stream magazine.

His final cover for the publication was in 1951 and he sadly gave up painting in 1952 after suffering with his eyesight.

Hunt retired to Long Island and died in Mineola in 1960, at the age of 82. His work is still floating around today and fetching hefty sums.

This discovery comes just after another guest on the American show became emotional as she was given a valuation for some children's art prints that she said were 'just sitting in a drawer.'

The woman explained that her uncle, who owned his own party planning and promotional event company, gifted her the collection in 1998.

He also worked for Fox and had a contract with the network, as the prints were part of a promotion for the station's iconic Fox Kids Saturday morning cartoons.

After reviewing the collection, which featured 'pastiche' pieces of some of the greatest historical works of art, appraiser Travis Landry told the woman that they are worth $4,000- $6,000.

The woman was left stunned as she said: 'Are you kidding? Holy cow! Okay. It was literally just sitting in a drawer.'
Billionaire Kanye West proved he's still down to earth when he was spotted flying economy to Japan.

The musician, 47, was seen enjoying a snooze while wearing a personalised 'Ye' robe while sitting next to his glamorous wife, Bianca Censori, 29.

She could be seen scrolling through her phone while wearing a modest, oversized dress, which was quite unlike her usual attire.

A baffled passenger filmed the pair on-board the flight earlier this week, before uploading the video on TikTok.

They captioned the image with the words: 'Was not expecting to see Kanye when i walked out of the bathroom to say the least #fyp #fypviral #kanyewest #biancacensori.'

Billionaire Kanye West wore a personalised 'Ye' robe and took a nap as he and his wife Bianca Censori flew economy to Japan earlier this week

The couple were spotted wearing the same outfits on arrival to an airport in Florence, Italy at the weekend before making their onward journey.

They flew from there to another airport before heading to Japan and have since been pictured in Tokyo.

The post comes after Bianca put on another jaw-dropping style display as she flaunted her posterior in a thong leotard for a shopping trip after landing in Tokyo.

She showed off her bottom in a ribbed cream leotard as she picked out luxury items with Kanye whose ex-assistant has filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against him.

The star flashed her toned legs in the scanty ensemble which she teamed with white rubber shoes as she walked through a public shopping mall.

Her locks were pulled back in a sleek bun as she held hands with the rapper - who was clad in a quirky white hooded tracksuit.

Bianca - who previously risked being banned from Venice over her risque outfits - also went braless in the sheer ensemble, appearing to leave shop assistants shocked over her attire.

Earlier this month, Kanye's ex-assistant, Lauren Pisciotta, filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against him. She also accused the star of wrongful termination as well as breach of contract.

A baffled passenger filmed the pair on-board the flight earlier this week, before uploading the video on TikTok

The post comes after Bianca put on another jaw-dropping style display as she flaunted her posterior in a thong leotard for a shopping trip after landing in Tokyo

Earlier this month, Kanye's ex-assistant, Lauren Pisciotta, filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against him. She also accused the star of wrongful termination as well as breach of contract

In the lawsuit, Lauren has also claimed that both West and Censori bragged about having a five-person orgy in one of many sexually explicit phone calls; seen in February in Milan

Following being sued by his former employee, the rapper - who also goes by Ye - notably hit back and claimed she was fired due to 'lascivious and unhinged' conduct and had also demanded a whopping $4 million salary.

He also denied her claims, calling them 'baseless' and accused her of 'blackmail and extortion.' He declared he would file a countersuit but has yet to do so.

In the lawsuit, Lauren has also claimed that both West and Censori bragged about having a five-person orgy in one of many sexually explicit phone calls.

Pisciotta claimed in the complaint filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court that West frequently sent her explicit text messages and images.

These included video of himself having sex, and extreme oversharing about his sex life in what she claimed was an effort to get her to join in, it said.

The lawsuit explained that part of her duties - which involved being at West's beck and call 24 hours a day - was to organize transport for women to meet him.

'On one such occasion, in August 2022, after [Pisciotta] had arranged an Uber ride, Kanye West a.k.a. Ye and Bianca Censori called [her] wanting to discuss the orgy (five-some) they had participated in the day before,' the lawsuit claimed.
Nick Frost has undergone knee replacement surgery after suffering with arthritis for years.

The Hot Fuzz star, 52, shared selfies from his hospital bed as he recovered from the operation, telling fans he was 'in agony but so happy'.

Making faces as he posed in his hospital gown, Nick explained: 'Im fine! Im awake! I have a new knee. Im in agony but Im so happy.'

'Ive suffered with arthritis for years and now that is gone!!! Cant wait to start my recovery! Send kisses. (and Morphine!)'

A day earlier the star shared another hospital photo as he told fans he was about to go in for the op, writing: 'here we go! Just know that I loved you. Goodbye Knee! (L).'

Nick Frost has undergone knee replacement surgery after suffering with arthritis for years. The Hot Fuzz star, 52, shared selfies from his hospital bed as he recovered from the operation

Making faces as he posed in his hospital gown, Nick explained: ' Im fine! Im awake! I have a new knee. Im in agony but Im so happy'

The star, who is famous for his screen partnership with Simon Pegg, previously spoke out on his battle with an eating disorder which saw him secretly binge on junk food.

The comedy actor has since lost six stone in a bid to be around for his young family, explaining: 'I have a two-year-old, you know, and I'm just aware that big fat men in their fifties don't become big fat men in their sixties, and that's just a fact.'

Speaking to The Sunday Times magazine in September 2023 about his battle with eating, Nick explained how he would 'hide in his car and eat two iced buns and four Snickers', and that he knows he was suffering from a form of disorder.

Nick went on to discuss how his struggle with eating largely began when he quit smoking and drinking, as he replaced his old bad habits with a new one.

He said: 'It was interesting stopping cigarettes and any kind of mind-altering chemicals and drinking, and thinking, "Yes, I'm good, I've done it."

And suddenly you find yourself eating six Wispas in a dark room and hiding all your s***, enjoying the James Bondness of addiction, all the secret bits.'

However, Nick says he has now taken responsibility for his eating and his health, he proudly told the publication he had lost six stone, adding: 'So now only an XXXL.'

Revealing how he lost the weight, he said: 'I've taken responsibility for it, because it's fine me saying, "I'm gonna make sure the kids have the best dad they can have," but it's b******t if I'm secretly eating in the toilet. So I've had to not do that.'

'Ive suffered with arthritis for years and now that is gone!!! Cant wait to start my recovery! Send kisses. (and Morphine!)' the star told fans

Nick shares his daughter, two, and his son, four, with his partner and the family live together in southwest London.

Nick's girlfriend has never been photographed and their little boy's name has never been shared publicly.

He also has a 12-year-old son, Mac, from his marriage to ex-wife Christina.

They were married in 2008 and after seven years of marriage, the couple split in 2013, before divorcing in 2015.

Last year Nick opened up for the first time about suffering from an eating disorder where he described secretly binging on junk food (picturedin 2023)
Ashley Roberts went braless in a stylish grey dress as she departed Heart FM radio studios on Thursday.

The showbiz correspondent, 42, flaunted her sensational physique in the figure-hugging garment as she strutted through London.

She showcased her jaw-dropping physique in a gorgeous affordable 45 dress, from 4th & Reckless.

She complemented her ensemble with pink-rimmed sunglasses and carried an off-white Miu Miu handbag.

Ashley elevated her frame with towering white heeled boots for her stint on the radio show.

Ashley Roberts, 42, went braless in a stylish grey dress as she departed Heart FM radio studios on Thursday

The showbiz correspondent flaunted her sensational physique in the figure-hugging garment as she strutted through London

This week on Heart FM, Davina McCall stepped out for Amanda Holden to join co-host Jamie Theakston while she was on holiday.

Davina said of her new role: 'Im so excited to be stepping in for Amanda to guest host Heart Breakfast.

'Ive known Jamie for forever so this isnt going to be like work, more like a two week playdate! I love listening to Heart, on the train, at home, anywhere really!

'I cant wait to get into the Heart studios and play all the best feel-good music for you all!'

Amanda will return to Heart Breakfast on Monday, June 24.

It comes after Ashley enjoyed a lavish break in Turkey with her tattoo artist boyfriend George Rollinson.

Ashley and George, 25, publicly enjoyed a 300-a-night stay at D-Resort Gocek after previously hiding their relationship.

Despite being together for the best part of a year, the couple did not go Instagram official till April.

She showcased her jaw-dropping physique in a gorgeous affordable 45 dress, from 4th & Reckless

She complemented her ensemble with pink-rimmed sunglasses and carried an off-white Miu Miu quilted handbag

Ashley gracefully entered her private car to head onto another destination to continue her day

It came after Ashley enjoyed a lavish break in Turkey with her tattoo artist boyfriend George Rollinson, 25

They travelled to the Chipping Norton retreat for some down time, during which they shared their first photo as a couple.

George is Ashley's first serious partner since her separation from Strictly Come Dancing professional Giovanni Pernice in 2020.

Ashley was in much higher spirits during the outing, following the sad death of her friend Anthony TJ Paradise.

On Wednesday, she took to Instagram to pay tribute to her friend with a series of joyful snaps of the pair and write: 'Cant (sic) believe weve had to say good bye.

'Our handsome TJ. Ill remember your kindness, those beautiful brown eyes, your big heart, your insane cooking skills (those meatballs) and how you and Bobby always opened your gorgeous home to me.

'Weve been friends for so long. Wish this wasnt true. May you rest in peace dear friend. Spread those wings angel. You will be forever loved.'

'Even though I'm not exactly saying anything I should have - nay be writing more in the amount of time than I did? How to increase typing speed I wonder. Sometimes it's scarily fast.

'So sorry @bobbynewberry my heart breaks for you. Love you so much Swiss. Youre not alone.'
Tina Malone has shared an emotional post marking 13 weeks since her 'world fell apart' when her husband Paul Chase died by suicide.

The Shameless star's husband Paul, 41, died on March 13 after what the soap star has now confirmed was a long struggle with his mental health, specifically Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Taking to X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday, Tina, 61, wrote: '13 weeks ago this morning my world fell apart. I CANT stop crying.'

Tina previously revealed that she is speaking out about how he died in the name of 'transparency' and to encourage conversations around supporting veterans.

She has revealed he turned to drink and drugs in an attempt to cope with his time serving in the armed forces - and believes he is now 'in a better place'.

Tina Malone shared an emotional post on X on Wednesday marking 13 weeks since her 'world fell apart' when her husband Paul Chase died by suicide

The Shameless star's husband Paul, 41, died on March 13 after what the soap star has now confirmed was a long struggle with his mental health , specifically Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (Pictured in 2019)

Taking to X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday, Tina, 61, wrote: '13 weeks ago this morning my world fell apart. I CANT stop crying'

In May, Tina recalled receiving her late husband's final texts hours after he sent them on the night he took his own life.

Tina told how because she has an 'old phone' the messages did not come through until it was too late for her to do anything to help.

She explained that the police knocked on her door to share the heartbreaking news about Paul's passing, just as received the texts from him.

Tina revealed Paul sent her a text at 4am on the night of his death, which read: 'I am sorry I left you, you lit up my life every time I saw you. I'm sorry.'

Tina had tragically read that message just as police had arrived at her Liverpool home, after Paul had not returned home that night.

The Brookside actress was just about to take their 10-year-old child Flame to school when police arrived and informed her that Paul was dead.

In the text, the former military man also wrote: 'Tina, please forgive me and one day when you are up here with me we will meet again. Xxx I love you Tina, I will visit you when I find a way. I am sorry my love, you made my life perfect, throughout the chaos. Xxx I will come and visit you and Flame in spirit. Please forgive me xxx'

Speaking to OK magazine, Tina said: 'His last texts were sent at about 4am but I have an old phone and they didn't come through straight away. When they finally arrived the police were already at my house breaking the news that he'd gone.'

Tina added: 'I've not spoken about this publicly until this minute. It's the first time I've said it and confirmed it. Paul did commit suicide. I believe in transparency.'

Paul was a former member of the 22nd Regiment of the Cheshires, serving in Northern Ireland, Belize, Iraq, Afghanistan and the Falklands - where he was nicknamed Chevy by fellow squaddies because of his surname, after the comedian.

Tina previously revealed that she is speaking out about how he died in the name of 'transparency' and to encourage conversations around supporting veterans (seen in 2014)

Paul (pictured during his time with the Cheshire regiment) served all over the world - including in Afghanistan, Iraq and the Falklands

Tina revealed that her husband Paul sent her a text at 4am on the night of his death (pictured all together in 2014)

War hero husband Paul Malone's last texts were sent at about 4am

She penned on Twitter: 'Six weeks ago today was the worst day of my entire life, my world fell apart, my hubby Paul is dead, but he lives forever in my heart x'

But Tina said he would talk often about the Army when he was drunk - and she encouraged him to seek help to cope with what he saw while serving his country.

Paul - with whom she had daughter Flame, now 11, via IVF - was eventually diagnosed with PTSD three years ago.

Tina said: 'When he got drunk he'd ramble about the army and I'd tell him, 'You have depression, you have emotional issues because of what you've seen'. But he'd sweep it away. He'd say, 'How will I get a job if I have that?''

She and Paul met at a boot camp event where he was a personal trainer after her appearance on Celebrity Big Brother.

But their relationship was troubled in 2017 as Tina was arrested and cautioned for cocaine possession - being sacked from a pantomime in the process - while Paul lost his job caring for violent teenagers.

The couple were left facing bankruptcy and Tina says his mental health spiralled during this time, using prescription drugs and cocaine in an attempt to cope before attempting to take his own life.

He was admitted to psychiatric care, and was given help by an veterans charity, but Tina said he would experience mood swings.

Eventually, Tina said, Paul 'couldn't fight anymore'. After making food for Flame, he kissed Tina, went out - and was dead hours later.

'He felt lost, he felt useless,' she said.

Tina's remarks, reported by the Mirror, come as she intends to launch a new charity in his name, Paul's Flame to help people in times of crisis.

She added: 'This is a man who served his country. The only way I can get through is by fighting for change, addressing the issues facing veterans and soldiers, trying to help others.'

Last year, statistics on British military veteran suicides were published for the first time and expose the mental health crisis facing our soldiers as they retire from service and attempt to return to civilian life.

According to the Office for National Statistics, in 2021  the most recent figures available  suicides by men aged 35 to 44 were almost twice as high among veterans as non-veterans, at 33.5 per 100,000, compared to 18.8.

Tina previously confessed that she is 'broken' following the death of her husband Paul, after she revealed the last conversation they had on the day he died.

In a social media update, she responded to fans who had left her 'kind messages' and shared their own personal stories of loss

Tina Malone and Paul Chase pictured together in 2017. She says his death has left her 'bereft'

Tina took to her social media this week to admit the loss of her husband has left her 'bereft'.

In a heartbreaking post, she detailed Paul's final hours before he died, revealing that he had made breakfast for their daughter and kissed Tina goodbye.

She tweeted: 'Four weeks ago at 4pm today my hubby made scrambled eggs, bacon, beans, sausages for Flame, kissed me and said see you later.

'10 hours later he was dead, I am broken, so bereft.'

Paul was laid to rest two weeks ago, with a crowd of mourners gathering outside Tina's home in Liverpool, where she joined them and received hugs and comfort from friends and relatives.

Many could be seen drying their eyes as fellow veterans helped to carry Paul's coffin to his hearse, which was draped in a flag with his dress hat from the Cheshire Regiment placed on top.

The Cheshire Regiment Association, which Paul belonged to, shared pictures of the former officer in his military uniform, in honour of the man they affectionately knew as 'Chevy'.

Friends from the regiment turned out in force for his funeral, with many in the group wearing regimental ties and some of his pallbearers proudly showing their medals.

A statement on Facebook read: 'We have received the very sad news that Paul 'Chevy' Chase died yesterday at the age of 42. Paul was married to the actress Tina Malone.

'RIP Paul. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family and friends at this sad time.'

Tina tied the knot with Paul, who is 19 years her junior, in 2010 and they were married for nine years, before briefly separating in 2019 - getting back together just months later in February 2020.

Following their 2020 reunion, the soap star said their relationship was back to normal and said their 'love never went away.'

She told Closer magazine at the time: 'The love never went away, we're working on things now, our problems were compounded by depression but I learned that in tough times you have to pull together and not apart.'
It is is arguably one of the best Christmas romcoms of all time.

And now Jude Law has confirmed he would be up for starring in a sequel of The Holiday as he failed to rule out the possibility of its return.

The actor, 51, who starred as the widower Graham who falls in love with Amanda (Cameron Diaz) in the film, confessed he would love for the cast to get back together, 18 years after the original was released.

Speaking to E! News at the New York City's Tribeca Festival on Tuesday, Jude exclaimed: 'I love the idea.'

Although he admitted he would have to ask director and writer Nancy Meyers first, he added: 'Why not?'

Jude Law has confessed he would love to star in The Holiday sequel as he teased the romcom's return (pictured with Cameron Diaz in the 2006 Christmas film)

The actor, who starred as the widower Graham who falls in love with Amanda (Cameron Diaz) in the film, confessed he would love for the cast to get back together, 18 years after the original was released

The original movie told the tale of Surrey-based journalist Iris (Kate Winslet) who swaps homes with Amanda , a movie producer from Hollywood, following respective heartbreaks.

While in Surrey, Amanda finds romance with Iris's book editor brother, widower Graham while Iris meets Miles (played by Jack Black) and dates him.

Graham is father to children Olivia and Sophie, played by Miffy Englefield and Emma Pritchard, as the girls also fall in love with Amanda as they accept her into their family.

Despite his on screen daughters being grown up now, Jude believes the plot could still be revisited as he added that he doesn't believe his character will have changed much.

'I think Graham still has cardigans and glasses, and reads,' he joked. 'He's probably worried sick about the girls, right? The daughters will be 28, 29.'

It comes after Jude recently admitted he tried to play against his good looks in his early twenties, joking that now he is in his fifties, he regrets not 'playing them up'.

The star earned a reputation as a heartthrob and shot to global fame playing a slew of classically handsome characters.

He famously starred as the charming playboy Dickie Greenleaf in 1999's The Talented Mr Ripley, while playing romantic leads in films like The Holiday.

Speaking to E! News at the New York City's Tribeca Festival on Tuesday, Jude exclaimed: 'I love the idea'

Graham is father to children Olivia and Sophie, played by Emma Pritchard and Miffy Englefield, as the girls also fall in love with Amanda as they accept her into their family

He added: 'I think Graham still has cardigans and glasses, and reads,' he joked. 'He's probably worried sick about the girls, right? The daughters will be 28, 29'

It comes after Jude recently admitted he tried to play against his good looks in his early twenties, joking that now he is in his fifties, he regrets not 'playing them up'

Kate Winslet and Jack Black also starred in the hit, as the actress played Iris who swapped homes with Amanda and began dating Miles (Jack)

But his latest role in historical film Firebrand, has seen him looking a world away from his usual attractive self, as he transformed into Henry VIII.

Appearing on the June issue of DuJour magazine, Jude said that he found it 'satisfying' playing the repellent King, instead of his typical roles.

The Oscar nominee added that he had tried to play less attractive roles in his younger years, claiming he couldn't now as he was 'saggy and balding'.

He said: 'I didnt feel like I really ever leaned into playing handsome, but there were roles that required an attractive energy.

'I was trying to play against my looks in my early 20s, and now that Im saggy and balding, I wish I had played it up.'

Recently he has taken on different roles that 'have not leaned in to any sort of attraction'.

Jude admitted: 'Its been satisfying not having to turn that switch on.'

His new film sees him playing opposite Alicia Vikander, who stars as Henry's sixth and final wife Catherine Parr.
Angel Strawbridge has revealed the cheeky comment she made to husband Dick to hint that she was ready to have children with him.

The Escape to the Chateau star, 46, met her husband Dick, 64, back in 2010 at a mutual friend's party, before crossing paths again on the show Celebrity Masterchef.

Appearing on Elizabeth Day's How To Fail podcast, she explained how they spend all night chatting and opened up on what drew her to him.

Angel recalled: 'We just sat and talked after him cooking for this huge big party of guests.

'Everyone wanted to talk to Dick, to congratulate him and talk about the food and he just came and sat next to me and we just talked all night.'

Angel Strawbridge has revealed the cheeky comment she made to husband Dick to hint that she was ready to have children with him

The Escape to the Chateau star, 46, met her husband Dick, 64, back in 2010 at a mutual friend's party, before crossing paths again on the show Celebrity Masterchef

Appearing on Elizabeth Day's How To Fail podcast, she explained how they spend all night chatting and opened up on what drew her to him

She continued: 'He's so passionate about life, about everything. He's a story teller and he's got a certain energy.

'Honestly, even now he's got this aura about him of authority. It makes my hairs go on end, he's a very strong, powerful man, that is very kind as well and he'll do anything for anyone.'

Angel went on to say that just two years after meeting, she was ready to have children with Dick and chose to tell him in a very naughty way.

She explained that she jokingly marked a date in the calendar with the phrase 'impregnate me' as a hint to her partner.

She soon ended up getting her wish of having both a boy and a girl as the couple welcomed son Arthur, 11, and daughter, Dorothy, 10, who have also featured on the show.

Angel said that prior to meeting Dick she had been too busy for relationships and had no desire to get married.

However, she admitted that her family's constant questions about whether she had a boyfriend yet made her feel like a failure.

She said: 'I think growing up, 25 is a really big number and if it doesn't happen, it makes you feel a bit odd and different.

Angel went on to say that just two years after meeting, she was ready to have children with Dick and chose to tell him in a very naughty way

She soon ended up getting her wish of having both a boy and a girl as the couple welcomed son Arthur, 11, and daughter, Dorothy, 10, who have also featured on the show (pictured)

'I was too busy [to find love]. I genuinely never met somebody who I knew was the one and I just had a busy life. And I just thought well if you're really the one, I haven't got time.'

Dick is 18 years Angel's senior, but in 2020 she insisted that the age gap 'didn't matter' because it was 'love at first sight'.

She told Fabulous Magazine: 'Age is but a number, and Dicks always had a really wonderful energy and hes a doer'.

It comes after Angel spoke out for the first time defending herself over the foul-mouthed rant that led Channel 4 to drop her as she explained she fell into a pre-laid trap.

The TV star admitted that while she wishes the incident hadn't happened she will not apologise for what she did.

Angel and Dick found fame renovating their home over nine seasons of Escape to the Chateau, before they were engulfed in a bullying scandal which led to Channel 4 cutting ties last year after an independent investigation.

A leaked recording revealed Angel branding a producer a 'f***ed up little c**t'.

On the podcast, she confessed in that moment she saw red, saying: 'I was the one in the wrong for losing my temper, but do you know what, I will not apologise - he was so disrespectful in our house, he was so upsetting to me, my family, and I stand by what I did.

It comes after Angel spoke out for the first time defending herself over the foul-mouthed rant that led Channel 4 to drop her as she explained she fell into a pre-laid trap

Angel and Dick found fame renovating their home over nine seasons of Escape to the Chateau, before they were engulfed in a bullying scandal which led to Channel 4 cutting ties last year after an independent investigation

'If I was to apologise and say "I'm sorry for using bad language and chucking you out" I would just be disingenuous to me.'

She added: 'Would I like to erase that? Yeah, I'd love to. But I would also like to erase what he was doing because my rage just didn't pop out of nowhere.

'It grew over time and it was provoked and therefore I'm not ashamed of what happened in the end, I just wish it hadn't happened.'

It was revealed in May 2023 that Channel 4 had cut ties with the couple following an independent investigation into their conduct.

The TV channel confirmed they would no longer work with the pair on any new productions 'following a review' after they were branded 'spiky and volatile'.

Dick and Angel are currently back on screens in a new travel programme, Secret France, which is on Channel 4, but was filmed before the station cut ties.

While the couple have previously dodged questions relating to the bullying scandal, Angel finally gave her side of the story as she discussed the incident, a year after the recording emerged.

Speaking about the backlash that followed her rant, she said: 'The actual incident, it actually happened a long time ago - so it happened about six years ago.

Speaking on Elizabeth Day's podcast How To Fail, Angel admitted that while she wishes the incident hadn't happened she will not apologise for what she did

Channel 4 confirmed in May 2023 they would no longer work with the pair on any new productions 'following a review' after they were branded 'spiky and volatile' (pictured in 2018)

'We had so many amazing people filming Escape to the Chateau, but in this particular quite small time frame, we had someone that wasn't particularly very nice.

'His behaviour was completely unacceptable, but it didn't just happen in one little moment, it happened over lots of different occasions.

'It was a high point towards the end of filming a series. We set a lot of stories in parallel activity. We were particularly busy, and I think that's why we just didn't have the head space to address his behaviour.

Recalling his behaviour she explained: 'He was not very nice, he was doing these weird pictures of Dick killing animals and posting them on his Instagram. He was so horrible with the children.

'There was this one incident, and I actually truly believe that because he knew he was caught, I think in my heart that is why he set up this filming.

'Because the way that he was acting was how he'd never acted with me before. You don't accidentally film someone when you're not filming. Completely happened secretively and on purpose.

'He broke all of the kids' fishing rods and the next day I was upstairs and he came up in a really very out of character way for him and was really in my face, in a really angry like he'd lost it kind of way.

'I've not listened back, it makes me feel a little bit sick if I do. But obviously all of my friends have, and they're like "I can hear you" - he actually took out what he said - "I can here you gradually getting more angry, more angry, more angry".

'And then I just say like "get out of my f***ing house". I can't even remember what I said. I think I said a really bad word beginning with c, I think that's how pissed off I must have been.'

Angel said the fallout after the incident felt really 'disproportionate', adding: 'There was so much noise going on on one side.

'And on the other side there was this sort of like outpouring of love and understanding, and people saying "you know what, it's ok to be human".

'But when you have children you have to be able to zone this out because the kids pick up on everything.

'But for me the children put everything into perspective. And also this went global. I couldn't believe the momentum that everything took.

'I just had to focus on the family, the business. And looking back I probably did feel a little bit ashamed that the kids would listen to it, or someone at the children's school would listen to it.

'But I also think that anyone with a little bit of understanding or common sense, could possibly understand what happened.

'I just regret that I didn't do it sooner and probably in a calmer way. If I'd just taken a breath two weeks beforehand and thought to myself "we need to get him out and get a new person in", then I think it would have played out differently.

Angel said the fallout after the incident felt really 'disproportionate', adding: 'There was so much noise going on on one side

'We don't teach our children to use bad language, but when you're pushed that far and are seeing red, it's kind of hard.

'I don't want to say I regret using it. I stand proud for just defending myself at that moment against his behaviour. I probably wish that I hadn't said the c-word. I don't even like that word.'

Asked if she might have been treated differently if she was a man, she said: 'There's a lot of people that make a great living out of that. There probably is a bit of truth in that.

Last October, Dick and Angel dodged questions about the hit Channel 4 show's bullying scandal during an appearance on Lorraine.

As Lorraine host Christine Lampard made reference to the scandal, Angel explained: 'You know the saying "Never complain and never explain", I think that was just the best way.

'None of it made sense because we had made that family decision a long time ago that it was the right time for Escape to come to its natural end.'

Dick insisted that it was their decision to leave the show and it was decided almost two years ago.

He said: 'As a family, we made a decision that last year was going to be the finale. We told everyone two years ago, so this, it wasn't news for us.'

Steering clear of directly addressing the bullying claims, he said: 'We made the decision just not to get involved in any of the conversations.'

Escape to the Chateau aired its ninth and final series in late 2022, but spin-off travel show Escape To The Chateau: Secret France was already in the works.

The programme was reportedly wrapped and scheduled for release in 2023, but after the production company cut ties with the couple Channel 4 has not confirmed whether it will be broadcast.

In May, sources claimed Two Rivers Media, the company that produces Escape to the Chateau, raised concerns about the presenting duo, according to Deadline.

The exact nature of the allegations is not known, but the publication reported that three of their former colleagues alleged the couple have clashed with producers.

A source said at the time: 'There has been a deteriorating relationship between Two Rivers and Dick and Angel's Chateau TV for various reasons and it all came to a head.'

'People who try to remote manage them from the UK, that doesn't work, or people who come into their house and boss them around, that doesn't work either,' the source added.

'Producers turn them into this perfect, brilliant, funny couple, they're that on camera, but that's about it.'

Escape to the Chateau aired its ninth and final series in late 2022, but spin-off travel show Escape To The Chateau: Secret France was already in the works

A Channel 4 spokeswoman told MailOnline: 'Following a review, we have taken the decision not to work with Dick and Angel on any new productions in the future.'

A spokesperson for Two Rivers added: 'We can confirm that we will no longer work with Dick and Angel and cannot comment further at the moment.'

Sources close to the couple told MailOnline that their behaviour on set was nothing like their 'gorgeous' on screen personas.

A source said: 'Dick and Angel come across on screen as the most gorgeous and lovely couple, literally like butter wouldn't melt, but they're not like that off screen.

'It's a full-on show, production is with them at the chateau for weeks so they can't hide their real characters - they can't turn it on for two hours of recording and then not go back to their real persona.

'They're just spiky and volatile people and, as you can imagine, that's a nightmare to work with.'
The Golden Bachelor star Gerry Turner has officially finalized his divorce from Theresa Nist just two months after filing documents to end their brief union.

TMZ reports a summary decree for dissolution of marriage was submitted into the Indiana court system on Thursday.

In addition, a marital settlement agreement was entered into the system on Thursday. A judge has already signed off on it.

No details of the settlement have emerged, however the paperwork indicates Turner, 72, paid just $157 in court fees when he first filed the divorce documents. The paperwork also states the duo did not share any children together.

The former couple did have a prenuptial agreement in place, which likely led to the expedited resolution.

The Golden Bachelor star Gerry Turner has officially finalized his divorce from Theresa Nist just two months after filing documents to end their brief union

The former couple had a televised wedding only five months ago

Turner filed for divorce from Nist on April 12 - the same day they announced their split following a three month marriage.

Gerry and Theresa, 70, announced the news of their split on Good Morning America in April, when they opened up about the reasons for their shock separation.

'Theresa and I have had a number of heart-to-heart conversations, and weve looked closely at our situation, our living situation, so forth and - and weve kind of come to the conclusion mutually that its probably time for us to - dissolve our marriage,' Gerry told host Juju Chang.

In divorce papers obtained by TMZ and filed by Turner that same day in his hometown of Petersburg, Indiana, the star cites an 'irretrievable breakdown' of the marriage as the reason for the split.

In their interview Turner admitted that their decision to separate was motivated in large part by their 'dedication' to their respective families - hinting that this has made it incredibly difficult for them to decide on a place to settle down together.

Both Gerry, a retired restauranteur from Indiana, and Theresa, a securities professional from New Jersey, have kids from past relationships; he has two daughters and two granddaughters, while she has a son, daughter, and six grandsons.

'The thing that strikes me the most in our conversations, its been how dedicated both of us are to our families,' Gerry explained.

'So we look at these situations and I think we just feel like its best for the happiness of each of us to live apart.'

Turner filed for divorce from Nist on April 12 - the same day they announced their split following a three month marriage

Gerry, 72, and Theresa, 70, announced the news of their split on Good Morning America in April, when they opened up about the reasons for their shock separation

In divorce papers obtained by TMZ and filed by Turner that same day in his hometown of Petersburg, Indiana, the star cites an 'irretrievable breakdown' of the marriage as the reason for the split

However, Theresa insisted that the former couple tried their utmost to reach a compromise that would work for both of their families, revealing that they had looked at different locations across the country in the hopes of finding a ideal home to start their new lives together.

'We looked at homes in South Carolina, we considered New Jersey, and we just looked at home after home, but we never got to the point where we made that decision,' she said.

'We have received so much love and support from so many people who watched The Golden Bachelor, and I dont think we can tell you how many people told us that it gave them so much hope,' Theresa added. 'We want none of that to change for anybody.'

When asked if they 'fell out of love,' Gerry insisted, 'No. I still love this person. There's no doubt in my mind, I am still in love with her and still root for her every day.'

They added that they were going to have to 'give their rings back,' but that they were happy they could keep 'the memories' that they shared.

In divorce papers obtained by TMZ and filed by Turner in his hometown of Petersburg, Indiana, the star cites an 'irretrievable breakdown' of the marriage as the reason for the split

'We've kind of come to the conclusion mutually that its probably time for us to - dissolve our marriage,' Gerry said during an interview with GMA today

It seems as though the couple struggled to decide on a place to settle down together, as they were still living in separate homes three months after their nuptials. Gerry's home is seen

Gerry was living at his lake house in Northern Indiana, while Theresa remained in her house in New Jersey (seen), where she'd been living with her family

On Good Morning America, Gerry admitted that their decision to separate was motivated in large part by their 'dedication' to their respective families

Gerry has two daughters and two granddaughters, while Theresa has a son, daughter, and six grandsons. They're seen with some of their adult kids

The couple met on the first season of the Golden Bachelor, which premiered late last year, and Gerry proposed during the show's finale.

They then tied the knot in January during a televised wedding, with Theresa gushing in her vows, 'I promise to be your calm in a storm, to comfort you when you're sad, to laugh with you when you're happy, and just stick with you throughout it all.'

In an interview with GMA after the wedding, they insisted that they had 'found their person.'

Gerry and Theresa's shock announcement comes just days after it was revealed the pair were still living in separate homes three months after their nuptials.

Furthermore, TMZ reported that the married couple were actually residing in separate states - with Gerry living at his $637,000 lake house in Northern Indiana, while Theresa remained in her house in her $568,000 New Jersey home, where she'd been living with her family.

'The problem is, Theresa cant just pick up and leave her job, and she has family in New Jersey,' a source told Life & Style recently. 'Initially, they thought Gerry could move in with her but that didnt happen.'

Back in December 2023, Gerry admitted that finding a place to live was 'a big problem' for them.

At the time, he told People that they were planning to buy a house in Charleston, South Carolina, together - but it seems that never happened.

'All of a sudden its like, theres a big problem that is gone,' he said at the time. 'The issue of compromising on where to live and how to reconcile families and all of that is, its no longer an issue.'

Gerry pulled on the hearts of millions when he appeared on the show, as he was presented as a loving retired restaurateur who had not had a single date since his wife of 45 years, Toni, suddenly passed away from an infection in 2017.

But an investigation by The Hollywood Reporter released after the finale quickly shattered that reputation.

The publication reported that he had a professional and personal history that did not match with the persona of a grieving man who hadn't gone on a first date in decades.

Instead, it claimed that he had a secret past that included a three-year relationship after the death of his wife and various blue-collar jobs.

He reportedly dated a woman named Carolyn, who is 14 years his junior and claimed he dumped her because she gained 10 pounds.

In addition, his LinkedIn profile showed that he had not owned a restaurant since 1985, when he sold his Mr Quick hamburger franchise in Iowa, where had worked his way up since high school.

Gerry was presented as a loving retired restaurateur on the show, who had not had a single date since his wife of 45 years, Toni, suddenly passed away from an infection in 2017

But an investigation released after the finale quickly shattered that reputation, claiming he dated a woman for three years after his wife died. He's seen with his late wife

In addition, his LinkedIn profile showed that he had not owned a restaurant since 1985, when he sold his Mr Quick hamburger franchise in Iowa (seen)

Since then, he worked various sales and management jobs in the meat industry, per his resume on the website. He's seen in front of his lake house

Since then, he worked various sales and management jobs in the meat industry, per his resume on the website - despite the show claiming he had been retired for decades. He also worked installing hot tubs and as a maintenance man in Iowa.

It was during his time as a maintenance man at the Vera French Mental Health Center in Davenport that he met Carolyn, but the two did not get together until two months after his wife died.

Carolyn told The Hollywood Reporter the two began dating after Gerry called her following his wife's death to ask for help donating some clothes to charity.

She claimed she quit her job to move in with him in July 2018, but things soon went south, as his demands began to emerge.

For example, she alleged that he he soon informed Carolyn she would have to pay about $1,000 a month for her share of expenses, which she managed to negotiate down to $850.

Gerry was reportedly so concerned with dividing costs that Carolyn would pay for her meals at restaurants beforehand so when the check came, he could pretend he was paying the whole tab.

The reality star was also allegedly obsessed with cleanliness and demanded Carolyn make the bed every morning before they had breakfast.

The romance ended in late 2019, when, according to Carolyn, Gerry said he would not be taking her to his high school reunion because of her weight.

The Golden Bachelor then allegedly told Carolyn she had to be out of the house by January 1, 2020, according to THR, which reviewed emails and texts between the former couple and spoke to people who witnessed the relationship.

Carolyn fell down the stairs while she packed and required emergency surgery - but said Gerry accused her of using the fall as an excuse to extend her stay at his home and claimed she was planning on suing him over it.

He reportedly wouldn't even let her stay at the home while she finished the two weeks of notice she had to give at her new job in Indiana, forcing her to stay at a hotel, she claimed.

When asked if the scandal 'played in' to their split, Theresa insisted, 'No. Gerry had already discussed that with me and explained it before the report was ever released. So we were good with that.'

People quickly rushed to social media to share their thoughts on the divorce - and many admitted that they were 'not surprised.'

'Oh no surprise there,' one person wrote on X, formerly Twitter. Another agreed, 'Hate to say it but not really... Told ya so.'

'Are we surprised?' someone else asked, while a fourth person simply stated, 'Called this one.'

Others said they 'understood' their situation, with a fifth tweet reading, 'Most women in her 70s would tell you, "My grandkids and kids are everything." I wouldn't move away from my family for anything. Especially a man. Nope.'

A sixth said, 'At that age, who wants to give up their life and family to go and live with some stranger that just came into your life? You dont have much time left. Spend it with family.'
Controversial comedian Shane Gillis found himself in a different type of hot seat as he was the latest celebrity putting his spice tolerance to the test on Hot Ones.

The 36-year-old funnyman who became a huge online star after being fired from Saturday Night Live over racist and homophobic remarks  was reduced to chugging milk to help tamper the most fiery of hot sauces on the hit YouTube series.

'Be careful, cause sometimes the dairy and hot sauce mixture can cause more problems,' host Sean Evans warned Shane, who was clearly struggling with the spice level as he pleaded for 'more milk'.

At one point, the creator of Netflix's Tires series also joked about collecting 'Nazi' keepsakes when Evans asks him about the 'U.S. history memorabilia hanging from the walls of [his] apartment.'

The Hot Ones episode was released on Thursday, coinciding with calls from several Asian American groups in Los Angeles for him to apologize for using 'offensive racial remarks' in his stand-up performances, per Variety.

Controversial comedian Shane Gillis found himself in a different type of hot seat as he was the latest celebrity putting his spice tolerance to the test on Hot Ones

Gillis was reduced to chugging milk to help tamper the most fiery of hot sauces on the hit YouTube series

Representatives from the Media Action Network for Asian Americans, the Chinese American Citizens Alliance Los Angeles, and the Greater Los Angeles Japanese American Citizens League convened at the Chinese American Citizens Alliance Lodge for a press briefing.

During the event, the groups called on Netflix to cancel Tires and urged Bud Light to withdraw all promotional support for his comedy tour until he issues an apology.

In 2019 several clips surfaced in which the star used racist and homophobic slurs on numerous occasions - including on an episode of Matt and Shane's Secret Podcast.

In the podcast, Gillis and Matt McCusker mocked comedians Judd Apatow and Chris Gethard, referring to them as 'white f****t comics' and 'f***ing gayer than ISIS.'

Gillis is also heard telling McCusker that their conversation is 'nice racism, good racism.'

Another clip emerged from a September 2018 podcast episode in which Gillis referred to people living in New York City's Chinatown as 'f***ing c***ks'.

He also mocked a Chinese accent and the language barrier in the video, saying: 'Chinatown's f***ing nuts.'

'The translation between you and the waiter it's just such a f***ing hassle, it's like can you, I'm pointing at it, like this is the f***ing noodles.

At the time the clips resurfaced, Gillis had just been announced as a new addition to Saturday Night Live, but the ensuing controversy led to his dismissal from the show a mere four days later.

He made a statement shortly after the firing, saying, 'Im happy to apologize to anyone whos actually offended by anything I said. My intention is never to hurt anyone.

'But Im trying to be the best comedian I can be. And sometimes that requires risks.'

'Be careful, cause sometimes the dairy and hot sauce mixture can cause more problems,' host Sean Evans warned Shane, who was clearly struggling with the spice level as he pleaded for 'more milk'

At one point, the creator of Netflix 's Tires series also joked about collecting 'Nazi' keepsakes when Evans asks him about the 'U.S. history memorabilia hanging from the walls of [his] apartment'

The Hot Ones episode was released on Thursday, coinciding with calls from several Asian American groups in Los Angeles for him to apologize for using 'offensive racial remarks' in his stand-up performances; (pictured 2023)

In February, Gillis, who was fired from SNL, returned as host with a shockingly risque monologue joking about Down syndrome, race and gays

At the Chinatown press conference on Thursday, MANAA founding president Guy Aoki criticized the quote as a 'lame apology.'

He added: 'All of this sends a very hurtful message. If you duck a few years, slowly build your career back up and continue on as if nothing had happened, you can come back even stronger than ever.

'Theres a history of the industry allowing comedians who make offensive racial remarks to not have to apologize.'

In February, Gillis returned as host to SNL with a shockingly risque monologue joking about Down syndrome, race and gays.
Paris Hilton stepped out in another chic look in New York City this week.

The Sliving founder exposed miles of her long, slim legs in an A-line, black miniskirt which she paired with a black sweater with 'infinite' written across the chest in hot pink and one white stripe down each sleeve.

The mom of son Phoenix and daughter London with husband Carter Reum, 43, paired the flirty skirt and top with a pair of $2,000 Christian Louboutin over-the-knee boots.

The Hottie or Nottie star, 43, accessorized with saucy white cat-eye sunglasses, a black newsboy style hat and fingerless black gloves that accentuated her manicure.

Her long, blonde hair was tied into two space buns at the base of her skull.

Paris Hilton stepped out in another chic look in New York City this week. The 'Sliving' founder exposed miles of her long, slim legs in an A-line, black miniskirt which she paired with a black sweater with 'infinite' written across the chest in hot pink and one white stripe down each sleeve

The mom of son Phoenix and daughter London with husband Carter Reum , 43, paired the flirty skirt and top with a pair of $2,000 Christian Louboutin over-the-knee boots

This is the third black, pink and white look that the heiress has worn in as many days in the Big Apple.

Paris also shared a transformation she did at the LGBTQIA+ Youth Center for Pride Month.

In a video she teased the reveal of a new closet for gender-affirming clothing at the center.

'Happy #Pride Month! Paris Hiltons nonprofit @1111Media Impact teamed up with @iHeartRadio and @Bobby to renovate the @LALGBTCenter laundry room and closet, where homeless LGBTQIA+ youth have access to affirming clothing.

'We really wanted to create a more welcoming and supportive space for the community and are so proud of this project and the positive impact it will have!,' she continued.

'Huge thanks to @ihlgroup, @proctergamble, @fabletics, @harpercollins, @niceandbella, @tempaper_designs for donating such amazing products for these deserving youth! Heres to celebrating love and self-acceptance!,' she added.

'Dont miss the full reveal - you can watch #CantCancelPride on @hulu on iHeartRadios FB + YouTube pages or Revry TONIGHT at 8pm ET / 5pm PT!'

The redesigned space includes new washing and drying machines, a new supply of laundry essentials and a closet full of new clothes.

Paris also shared a transformation she did at the LGBTQIA+ Youth Center for Pride Month

In a video she teased the reveal of a new closet for gender-affirming clothing at the center

'Happy #Pride Month! Paris Hiltons nonprofit @1111Media Impact teamed up with @iHeartRadio and @Bobby to renovate the @LALGBTCenter laundry room and closet, where homeless LGBTQIA+ youth have access to affirming clothing'

This project is part of the larger project called Cant Cancel Pride, a collaborative effort from iHeartMedia and P&G that combines music and activism to support LGBTQ+ organizations.

Paris is in New York City this week ahead of a DJ set slated for Saturday evening in Musica Club NYC in support of her second album, Paris Hilton: Infinite Icon.

Hilton is scheduled to release the record this September 6, which comes 18 years after the release of her debut album, titled Paris.

The record featured the hit single Stars Are Blind, and follow-ups Turn It Up and Nothing in This World.
Matt Damon was a proud a proud dad as he arrived to his 18-year-old daughter Isabella's high school graduation in Brooklyn, New York on Thursday afternoon.

While celebrating the milestone, alongside the rest of his family, including his wife Luciana Barroso, the Oscar winner, 53, was spotted sharing a few laughs with family and friends.

For the occasion, he sported a charcoal grey polo shirt, slacks, white sneakers and a pair of aviator sunglasses over his blue eyes.

He and Barroso, 47, were joined by their second eldest child, Gia, 14, who looked beautiful in a white floral maxi dress as she supported her older sibling.

Like her father, Isabella seemingly inherited his sense of humor as Damon has previously described her as 'one of the funniest people' he's ever met.

Matt Damon was a proud a proud dad as he arrived to his 18-year-old daughter Isabella's high school graduation in Brooklyn, New York on Thursday afternoon

'She's really cool,' he told E! News in 2021.

The actor also mused that his teenager only watches his films if the reviews are 'terrible.'

'If they come out and they're good, she's going to pass ... She's looking for ammunition all the time,' he joked.

Isabella is the oldest child of Damon and Barroso, who also share Gia and 13-year-old Stella.

Barroso and her ex-husband Arbello Barroso share a daugher named Alexia Barroso, 24.

During an interview with Tara Hitchcock, also in 2021, Damon raved that managed to gift get Isabella the greatest gift of all time.

'Last Christmas, my wife, it was a one-two punch,' he said. 'We gave my 15-year-old a life-size cardboard cutout of Harry Styles. Harry Styles did a little video and said 'Hello' to her, and she lost her mind. I think that was the best we've done so far. I don't know how we'll top it.'

He managed to top the gift by taking Isabella and her two younger sisters to a Styles concert and was in awe watching her know 'every word to every song.'

While celebrating the milestone, alongside the rest of his family, including his wife Luciana Barroso, the Oscar winner, 53, was spotted sharing a few laughs with family and friends

'It was great. Yeah, yeah it was great,' he told People, at the time. 'They love him. And that album dropped, or at least I became aware of it, in that first lockdown. So we had that on repeat.'

Following Isabella's birth in 2006, Damon credited her for changing his life and priorities.

'I really used to have no life outside movies. I'd work all day, go to the gym and go to sleep,' he told UK's Sunday Express. 'Now I have a place to be so I come home after work.'

Matt and Luciana met while the Oscar-winner was filming Stuck On You in Miami in April 2003 and she was working in a bar.

After the couple got engaged in September 2005, they wed nearly three months later in a private civil ceremony at the Manhattan Marriage Bureau.

Isabella is the oldest child of Damon and Barroso, who also share Gia, 14, and 13-year-old Stella; seen in March 2023

Matt pictured last year with his two youngest daughters Gia (right) and 12-year-old Stella (left)

Love life: Matt and Luciana (pictured in June) met while the Oscar-winner was filming Stuck On You in Miami in April 2003 and she was working in a bar and tied the knot two years later (seen in 2023)

The couple have been going strong ever since and often make very loved-up appearances together, including the 2024 Met Gala last month.

While at the event, he joked it only took him 'about five minutes' to get ready for the fashion extravaganza.

Speaking with People, he cracked he took 'about five minutes' to get ready for the A-list event.

'We've been in the room all day,' he told the outlet as he departed from the Mark Hotel. 'It's a production.'
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Rebel Wilson is offloading the sprawling five-bedroom Los Angeles mansion that she used for years as an 'office house.'

Her memoir Rebel Rising - in which she accused her The Brothers Grimsby co-star Sacha Baron Cohen of inappropriate on-set behavior that he has strenuously denied - was largely written on the premises.

The 44-year-old actress acquired the home in 2016, just one year after it was constructed, and shelled out $2.95 million.

Now the Pitch Perfect star has significantly marked up the luxurious property, which currently has a list price of $4.15 million.

Real estate agent Tracy Tutor holds the listing at Douglas Elliman for Rebel's workspace, which is located in the upscale Fairfax District in West Hollywood.

Rebel Wilson is offloading the sprawling five-bedroom Los Angeles mansion that she used for years as an 'office house'

Her memoir Rebel Rising - in which she leveled allegations that Sacha Baron Cohen has strenuously denied - was largely written on the premises

With 4,409 square feet spread across two floors, the building includes a media room as well as a private gym and a balcony overlooking the swimming pool.

'She worked there every day and has spent an occasional night there,' Tracy explained, adding that Rebel also socialized on the property.

'This was a great space for her to be creative, write, host meetings, host parties,' the realtor shared in an interview with the New York Post.

'I love real estate, so I thought if I need an office, I'll make it an investment,' Rebel told the Wall Street Journal of her initial decision to obtain the property.

Meanwhile, her main residence - where she lives with her fiancee Ramona Agruma and her one-year-old daughter Royce - is located in the Hollywood Hills.

As Rebel is currently devoting more of her time to Ramona and Royce, she wants a smaller office, and is consequently selling the property in the Fairfax District.

Rebel revealed that she is offloading the estate because she feels 'it's better to streamline,' but confessed that 'it's sad because it's such a good house.'

In its day, the 'office house' was the site of a great deal of Rebel's social media content, as well as hosting brainstorming sessions for multiple films.

Rebel and Sacha are pictured together in their 2016 film The Brothers Grimsby

Between work obligations Rebel, who lost 80lbs and has been open about the various methods she tried including Ozempic, can avail herself of a home gym

The 44-year-old actress acquired the home in 2016, just one year after it was constructed, and shelled out $2.95 million

Now the Pitch Perfect star has significantly marked up the luxurious property, which currently has a list price of $4.15 million

With 4,409 square feet spread across two floors, the building includes a media room as well as a private gym and a balcony overlooking the swimming pool

Real estate agent Tracy Tutor holds the listing at Douglas Elliman for Rebel's workspace, which is located in the upscale Fairfax District in West Hollywood

'She worked there every day and has spent an occasional night there,' Tracy explained, adding that Rebel also socialized on the property

'This was a great space for her to be creative, write, host meetings, host parties,' the realtor shared in an interview with the New York Post

'I love real estate, so I thought if I need an office, I'll make it an investment,' Rebel told the Wall Street Journal of her initial decision to obtain the property

As Rebel is currently devoting more of her time to her fiancee and daughter, she wants a smaller office, and is consequently selling the property in the Fairfax District

Rebel revealed that she is offloading the estate because she feels 'it's better to streamline,' but confessed that 'it's sad because it's such a good house'

In its day, the 'office house' was the site of a great deal of Rebel's social media content, as well as hosting brainstorming sessions for multiple films

One of those movies was The Hustle, a gender-flipped remake of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels that starred Rebel alongside Anne Hathaway

Equipped with a garage and driveway, the 'office house' features a gate at the front of the lawn to provide the owner a level of added security

One of those movies was The Hustle, a gender-flipped remake of Dirty Rotten Scoundrels that starred Rebel alongside Anne Hathaway.

Equipped with a garage and driveway, the 'office house' features a gate at the front of the lawn to provide the owner a level of added security.

The elegantly appointed kitchen is fitted with appliances by Sub-Zero / Wolf, as well as an island with a separate sink and an exhaust hood with classic boiserie.

With a small dining alcove in one corner, the kitchen is situated in an open-plan style, with no wall or door separating it from the vast dining room-living room complex.

A flight of stairs leads up to an airy open-plan office space filled with natural light, as well as posters for Rebel's films, such as JoJo Rabbit and Isn't It Romantic?.

There is also a closed-off study, suitable for working when the owner needs a bit of privacy, but still featuring a window that can let in plenty of sunlight if needed.

The manse includes a 'Jack and Jill bedroom,' which is to say two bedrooms that are connected to one another by a single adjoining bathroom.

Meanwhile the master suite comes with access to a sumptuously wide balcony that offers attractive views of the backyard below.

The elegantly appointed kitchen is fitted with appliances by Sub-Zero / Wolf, as well as an island with a separate sink and an exhaust hood with classic boiserie

With a small dining alcove in one corner, the kitchen is situated in an open-plan style, with no wall or door separating it from the vast dining room-living room complex

A flight of stairs leads up to an airy open-plan office space filled with natural light, as well as posters for Rebel's films, such as JoJo Rabbit and Isn't It Romantic?

There is also a closed-off study, suitable for working when the owner needs a bit of privacy, but still featuring a window that can let in plenty of sunlight if needed

The manse includes a 'Jack and Jill bedroom,' which is to say two bedrooms that are connected to one another by a single adjoining bathroom

Meanwhile the master suite comes with access to a sumptuously wide balcony that offers attractive views of the backyard below

The suite also encompasses a long walk-in closet, which is in turn connected to an enviably spacious master bathroom complete with a ceramic tub

One of the house's four bathrooms currently has the poster for Rebel's 2016 movie How To Be Single - also starring Dakota Johnson - on the wall

The 'office house' includes a number of options for exercise, such as a long swimming pool, which is filled with saltwater

Rebel's narrow but stylish backyard also includes a covered patio and high walls of hedges that can be lit from underneath at night

Many of the wood fixtures come with boiserie reminiscent of the 18th century

The suite also encompasses a long walk-in closet, which is in turn connected to an enviably spacious master bathroom complete with a ceramic tub.

One of the house's four bathrooms currently has the poster for Rebel's 2016 movie How To Be Single - also starring Dakota Johnson - on the wall.

Between work obligations Rebel, who lost 80lbs and has been open about the various methods she tried including Ozempic, can avail herself of a home gym.

The 'office house' includes a number of options for exercise, such as a long swimming pool, which is filled with saltwater.

Rebel's narrow but stylish backyard also includes a covered patio and high walls of hedges that can be lit from underneath at night.
Jessica Alba was seen posing with her chic daughters Honor, 16, and Haven, 12, this week. The family was at the screening of Netflix Film Trigger Warning at the Tudum Theater in Los Angeles on Tuesday.

At the event, Jessica stood next to her little girls, and in doing so, Honor proved she is taller than mom.

Also at the event, Jessica said she wants her children to have 'leadership' roles in showbusiness.

The 43-year-old - who also has six-year-old Hayes with husband Cash Warren - has been active in Hollywood for over 20 years and when asked if she wants her kids to follow in her footsteps, admitted that she would rather they stepped behind the camera.

She told People: 'The thing is, I think if you tell your kid anything, they're going to do the opposite, right. If they do want to be a performer, then being able to be a producer and a writer, or a director.'

Jessica Alba was seen posing with her chic daughters Honor, 16, and Haven, 12, this week. The family was at the screening of Netflix Film Trigger Warning at the Tudum Theater in Los Angeles on Tuesday. At the event, Jessica stood next to her little girls, and in doing so, Honor proved she is taller than mom.

The Into The Blue star added, 'I think having that leadership role is really important to the art and be part of the art in a way where they feel like they can have more autonomy and there's more dignity.'

The siren got her big break when she was cast in the leading role of Dark Angel in 2000 and felt a 'desperation' in taking the job at the time, but noted that feeling stood her in good stead for the rest of her career.

She said: 'You're just so happy to be there and it's like, "Did the check clear?" And there's a desperation like, "Please God, I need this job." It just puts you on your back foot. You're not always taking the roles that are the best.'

The Honey star has now served as an executive producer on a number of projects but wishes she had had that sort of skill set earlier on in her career.

She said: 'You're just taking roles to survive, which teaches grit and perseverance, but I do wish I would've had the skill set and the wherewithal to write and to know about writing and directing and producing earlier in my career.'

This comes after Alba's daughter Honor rejected her mother's offer to host her 16th birthday party.

On the left is Jessica's daughter Haven who is 12

Alba's husband Cash Warren was on the far left as the family looked happy

The tag line for Alba's June 21 movie is 'vengeance becomes her'

The actress had proposed to host her daughter's birthday celebrations, but the teenager dismissed the 'Sin City' star's 'embarrassing' offer.

During an appearance on 'The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon', the 'Fantastic Four' star told the host: 'I was like, '[It's] your 16th birthday, this is my moment to really shine as a party-thrower.'

'And she's like, 'No, mom, it's so embarrassing.''

Jessica said Honor  who will be turning 16 later this week (07.06.24)  ''couldn't think of anything worse'' when she suggested the birthday party.

The actress told her daughter: ''I'm the best party-thrower in the world!''

However, Honor wasn't keen on the idea, with Jessica recalling her daughter saying: ''I just wanna, like, have dinner with my friends  like maybe 22 of them or something  and we're just gonna play games.''

Though Jessica was ready to enthusiastically embrace the teenager's suggestions, she was still ordered to stay away from the planning.

Also at the event, Jessica said she wants her children to have 'leadership' roles in showbusiness. The 43-year-old - who also has six-year-old Hayes with husband Warren - has been active in Hollywood for over 20 years and when asked if she wants her kids to follow in her footsteps, admitted that she would rather they stepped behind the camera

She told People: 'The thing is, I think if you tell your kid anything, they're going to do the opposite, right. If they do want to be a performer, then being able to be a producer and a writer, or a director'

Jessica and Honor seem very close as they often pose together on Instagram

She recalled telling her: ''Oh my god, I have a game guy. And we can, like, do stations.  We can do cut-outs of you. And everyone can wear pyjamas!''

The 'Dark Angel' actress admitted Honor was even less impressed with that offer, and said to her: ''Are you kidding me? Do you want me to, like, ever see my friends ever again?''

As well as her daughter's birthday, Jessica discussed her decision to step down as CCO of the eco-friendly beauty and baby business The Honest Company  which she co-founded in 2012 - and admitted leaving the corporation in the hands of its new CEO Carla Vernon felt like she had 'sent [her] baby off to college'.

Here the family is seen with the youngest child, son Hayes, at Monster Jam

She said: 'I have Carla Vernon, and she's running the company, and it's great. And there's a whole senior leadership team that's fantastic.

'I feel like it's my fourth baby and I like sent it ... sent my baby off to college.'

The actress emphasized she was 'ready for the next chapter' of her life as she makes her acting return in Netflix's upcoming flick 'Trigger Warning', which she also executive produced.
Kim Kardashian took the next step in her business endeavor and opened her very first permanent SKIMS store on Thursday.

The 43-year-old reality star  who recently opened up about daughter North's 'ridiculous dances' she 'forces' her to perform on TikTok  welcomed shoppers to her brand's stand alone store in Georgetown, Washington DC.

She took to Instagram to announce the store's grand opening and give her 362million followers a glimpse of the of the interior.

'NOW OPEN: SKIMS GEORGETOWN. Visit our first permanent location at: 3300 M Street NW Georgetown, Washington, DC 20007. Hours: Mon-Sat: 10AM-8PM Sun: 11AM-7PM,' she wrote in the caption.

In the carousel of photos, the store can be seen decorated with various mannequins modeling different toned SKIMS underwear and bras.

Kim Kardashian took the next step in her business endeavor and opened her very first permanent SKIMS store on Thursday

She took to Instagram to announce the store's grand opening and give her 362million followers a glimpse of the of the interior

According to WWD, the brand will roll out an additional four brick-and-mortar locations in Aventura, Florida; Austin and Houston, Texas; and Atlanta, Georgia.

The location was decorated in minimalistic style and had a nude theme throughout the store.

On the walls, campaign images of Kardashian and other models sporting shapewear from her collection were on display.

Prior to this permanent addition, SKIMS was only available for purchase online, through pop-up locations, or via third party in-store retailers.

The announcement made fans go wild, racking up over 107k likes and 841 comments as many took to the comments to pen their support.

One top commenter wrote, 'Congratulations Kim... good job,' while various other fans requested the internet starlet open other locations.

'Open the Miami one!' one customer said. 'Vegas location pleaseeeeeeee,' another chimed in.

Back in 2019, the businesswoman joined forces with Swedish entrepreneur Jens Grede to found the successful company.

In the carousel of photos we see the store decorated with various mannequins modeling different toned SKIMS underwear and bras

The location was decorated in minimalistic style and rock a nude theme throughout the store

The brand, which was recently valued at $4 billion, initially sold shapewear before branching out into loungewear, swimwear, and most recently, menswear

'When I said I wanted seamless shapewear, everyone looked and thought that I was crazy. The thing that always bothered me [with other brands] was that there would be a seam up the front,' she explained

'I always think you can do it all, so why not have everything that you need as far as your products?' the mum-of-four said about her brand

The brand, which was recently valued at $4 billion, initially sold shapewear before branching out into loungewear, swimwear, and most recently, menswear.

SKIMS has a focus on body positivity and inclusivity across the brand and practice inclusive sizing.

Back in 2020, a year after being in business, the ex-wife of Kanye West opened up to Bazaar about what inspired her to start the company.

'When I said I wanted seamless shapewear, everyone looked and thought that I was crazy. The thing that always bothered me [with other brands] was that there would be a seam up the front,' she explained.

'You would have this really tight dress and then see this seam, defeating the purpose of wearing something that is supposed to look like there is nothing underneath. Im all about comfort and glamour at the same time.

'I always think you can do it all, so why not have everything that you need as far as your products?' the mum-of-four finished.
Cybill Shepherd was pictured on a rare outing in Los Angeles on Thursday with an assistant, donning a sleeveless top as the weather heats up in Southern California.

The actress, 74, wore a black sleeveless top with a sleeveless black vest with blue jeans and sneakers on the sunny day.

The Memphis, Tennessee-born actress, who's been seen in cinematic classics such as The Last Picture Show and Taxi Driver, donned sunglasses and had her dark blonde locks pulled back as she was seen during the daytime outing.

Shepherd's most recent role came as author Nancy Crampton-Brophy in the 2023 TV movie How to Murder Your Husband, written and directed by Stephen Tolkin.

Shepherd's costars in the production included Steve Guttenberg, Sandy Minh Abley and Primo Allon.

Cybill Shepherd, 74, was pictured on a rare outing in Los Angeles on Thursday with an assistant, donning a sleeveless top as the weather heats up in Southern California

Shepherd starred on the popular series Moonlighting opposite Bruce Willis, as the duo played the respective characters of Maddie Hayes and David Addison on the dramatic comedy.

Shepherd was feted for her work on the TV series, which ran from 1985-1989 on ABC, with two Golden Globe wins in the category of Best Performance by an Actress in a Television Series - Comedy or Musical in 1986 and 1987, also receiving a nomination in 1988.

She was also nominated for an Emmy for her work on the show in 1988.

She would go on to receive three more Emmy nominations from 1995-1997 for her work on the CBS series Cybill, which also earned her another Golden Globe in 1996 and a nomination the following year.

Willis, 69, has made headlines over the past two years amid his battle with frontotemporal dementia, as his family jointly announced in March of 2022 that he would be stepping back from his acting career amid his health issues.

Willis' daughter Rumer Willis, 35, said last month on the TODAY show that her father is doing 'so good' as he's surrounded and supported by family amid the tough times.

Rumer in the appearance said that she and her relatives have shared details with the public about Bruce's health battle in an effort to spread awareness about the condition.

'Our vulnerability and transparency as a family about what he's going through to me is so important,' Rumer said, 'because if it can have any impact on another family that is struggling in any way with something like this, or bring more attention to the disease in hopes of finding a cure or anything that can be of service to anybody else, I think is really important.'

The award-winning actress was pictured at an event in LA in December of 2022

Shepherd starred on the popular 1980s series Moonlighting opposite Bruce Willis, as the duo played the respective characters of Maddie Hayes and David Addison on the dramatic comedy

Shepherd was feted for her work on the TV series, which ran from 1985-1989 on ABC, winning two Golden Globes

Shepherd appeared opposite Robert De Niro in the 1976 classic Taxi Driver

In the wake of Willis' diagnosis going public, Shepherd had kind words to say about her one-time costar while appearing at a Race to Erase MS benefit gala in Los Angeles in May of 2022.

'I will always love Bruce,' Shepherd told Extra.

She noted how the charismatic star won the role on the TV series, which helped pave the way for his breakout movies with hits such as the Die Hard series, Pulp Fiction and The Sixth Sense.

'I just have to say one thing about Bruce - no one else was ever considered for the part when he walked in the room,' Shepherd said.

Shepherd opened up on the chemistry they shared with one another that resonated with viewers.

'My temperature went up 10 degrees,' Shepherd said. 'That meant two things to me: one, I was very attracted to him, two, I would never act on it, 'cause we were both very attracted to each other.'
Hilary Duff was seen with her bouncing baby girl nearly six weeks after giving birth.

The 31-year-old Lizzie McGuire star looked radiant on an outing with her five-week-old daughter Townes Meadow Bair in Los Angeles on Thursday.

Hilary had the bundle of joy - who is her fourth child - strapped to her body in a soft pale pink patterned baby carrier.

She looked every bit the cool mom as she sported an oversized black shirt over clinging top and baggy blue jeans.

Hilary Duff was seen out in LA with her bouncing baby girl Townes Meadow Bair nearly six weeks after giving birth

Last month the star announced announced the arrival of her fourth child as she and her husband Matthew Koma welcomed Townes on May 3. Townes is their third child together and Hilary's fourth overall.

The actress accessorized with black designer cat eye shades with gold jewelry including large earrings, a bracelet, and rings.

Her signature blonde locks were put up in a messy bun as she showcased her natural looks by going make-up free.

Last month the star announced announced the arrival of her fourth child.

The Disney Channel alum and her husband Matthew Koma welcomed Townes on May 3. Townes is their third child together and Hilary's fourth overall.

Duff announced Townes' arrival on Instagram, sharing snaps from her emotional water birth along with precious photos of her bundle of joy.

'Townes Meadow Bair (teddy bear emoji), now we know why she made us wait so longShe was perfecting those Cheeks!' Duff captioned the Instagram post.

'I Have been dreaming of holding you in my arms for months and the past 5 days of getting to know you, stare at you and smell you has been pure moments of magic. We all love you like youve been here all along beauty.'

Matthew shared the same snaps to his Instagram account as he announced Townes' arrival, writing in the caption: 'My literal warrior goddess of a wife gave birth to our beautiful Townes Meadow Bair at home on 5/3/24.

She looked every bit the cool mom as she sported an oversized black shirt over clinging top and baggy blue jeans

He jokingly added: 'Shes happy, healthy, chunky and looks like nobody in our genetic pool so if anyone knows of @hilaryduffs whereabouts roughly 9 months ago to date, please reach out for a cash reward.'

Duff and her husband of five years already share two children together: daughters Banks Violet, five, and Mae James, three.

The Lizzie McGuire vet also has son Luca Cruz, 12, from her previous marriage to Mike Comrie.

The emotional photos Hilary posted captured the actress meeting the newest addition of her family after giving birth in a pool of water.

Duff tenderly kissed her baby on the forehead and also shared a smooch with her husband as she held the child in her arms.

Koma held his newborn daughter as she lay wrapped up in a soft towel.

Hilary announced her pregnancy with Townes back in December with a hilarious Christmas card featuring her family.

Showing off her bump in Sleeper pajamas, the star playfully screamed in the card captioned: 'So much for Silent Nights.'

She kissed her husband as she held their newborn child

'She was perfecting those Cheeks!' Duff gushed in the caption

She also wrote on the post: 'Surprise surprise!' and 'Buckle up Buttercups, we're adding one more to this crazy bunch' alongside photos of her children.

Koma also shared the snap with the location hilariously tagged as 'vasectomy clinic'.

In March, Koma did end up undergoing a vasectomy.

Duff wed Koma, 36, in 2019 after first striking up a romance in 2016.

She was previously wed to Mike Comrie, 43, from 2010-2016.

Townes is their third child together and Hilary's fourth overall

Koma lovingly held his newborn daughter

Hilary announced her pregnancy with Townes back in December with a hilarious Christmas card featuring her family

She posted this precious snap of her newborn on her Instagram Stories on Tuesday

Last June, Hilary spoke with Shape about raising three children.

'I've had to get really good at being disappointed in myself,' she told the publication.

She added, 'I think that when you have a baby, you're just wired to think that you are loaded with all the answers and all of the capability, and we're still just human beings.'

The proud parent also noted that motherhood is 'endlessly rewarding' and shared, 'I just love watching my kids form into their own individual unique selves.

'I love [parenting] with my husband. I love feeling like hugs and cuddles can make everything better. I love the pressure of being like, "How the f**k are we going to make it through this day?"

'And making it through the day and being like, "I don't know how everyone is tucked in and fed and happy after all the things we've had to do today."'
Jude Law has revealed that he was offered the role of Superman but turned it down as he felt as it was 'a step too far'.

The DC Comics superhero has been played by fellow Englishman Henry Cavill since 2013's Man Of Steel.

Jude, 51, told The Playlist Podcast Network how he was approached for the role - and why he didn't think it was the right move.

The Star Wars: Skeleton Crew actor explained: 'There was a process of flirtation going on and I always resisted, because it just felt like...

'And I know you can say: "Well, but you played Yon-Rogg and Dumbledore!", it just felt like a step too far.'

Jude Law, 51, has revealed that he was offered the role of Superman but turned it down as he felt as it was 'a step too far'

The DC Comics superhero has been played by fellow Englishman Henry Cavill, 41, since 2013's Man Of Steel (pictured)

Superman was notably portrayed by Christopher Reeve from 1978 to 1987, and was first scene on screen in 1948 played by Kirk Alyn

Jude played Yon-Rogg in Captain Marvel (2019), made by DC Comics' rival Marvel, and Albus Dumbledore in the Fantastic Beasts films.

He continued: 'It was when Brett Ratner was going to direct, I think. And they didn't have a script, if I remember rightly.

'Did they have a script? I don't remember reading one. It is a long time ago. They brought me the suit. It wasn't [Christopher] Reeve's suit. It was an iteration. It was more metallic.

'Anyway, I tried it on and I looked in the mirror and part of me initially was like, "Wow, this would be (amazing)," and then I just thought: "No, you can't - you can't do this. You can't."

'I didn't sell it to myself. And I stepped away and the film never happened anyway. So maybe it probably wouldn't have done [anything].'

The late Christopher Reeve, who became paralysed from the neck down in a shock accident, played Superman from 1978 to 1987.

He starred in Superman, Superman II, Superman III, and Superman IV: The Quest For Peace and died in 2004.

Superman was first portrayed on screen in the 1948 serial Superman with Kirk Alyn in the titular role.

Jude played Yon-Rogg in Captain Marvel (2019), made by DC Comics' rival Marvel, and Albus Dumbledore in the Fantastic Beasts films (pictured, with co-star Dan Fogler)

George Reeves then played The Last Son Of Krypton in 1952 in the character's first-ever feature film, Superman And The Mole Men.

BAFTA Award-winner Jude appeared on the podcast alongside Tomb Raider star Alicia Vikander.

The two star in 2023 drama Firebrand, a drama about the sixth wife of Henry VIII, Catherine Parr.

Firebrand enjoyed its Tribeca Film Festival premiere on Tuesday night.
Business leaders in California have slammed the state's decision to hike the minimum wage to $20-an-hour for fast food restaurant employees.

Nearly 10,000 positions across chains from Pizza Hut to Burger King have been cut since the law was signed in September 2023, according to a trade group.

Fast food chains have been hiking their prices and slashing jobs to cut costs to afford the new minimum wage. This week, In-N-Out raised prices - with the Double Double meal now more than $10.

Beloved Mexican chain Rubio's Coastal Grill has filed for bankruptcy and is shutting 48 restaurants in the state becauseof the wage hike.

Desperate business leaders have slammed Governor Gavin Newsom for forcing the law through - and are pleading with him to stop attacking companies.

'Business owners are fed up. Quite frankly, it's having a ripple effect now on everybody,' Tom Manzo, president of California Business and Industrial Alliance (CABIA), told Fox & Friends on Monday.

Business leaders in California including Tom Manzo (pictured) have slammed the state's decision to hike the minimum wage to $20-an-hour for fast food restaurant employees

CABIA put out an advert in the June 6 edition of USA Today with mock 'obituaries' of popular brands to highlight the impact the new law is having on businesses.

'The biggest issue California faces is continued increased cost and a continued anti-business climate,' Manzo said. 'That's why we decided to run this ad in the first place.

'People can't afford fast food when it should not be a luxury item. Fast food isn't a luxury item.'

The trade group's tongue-in-cheek advert, titled 'In Memoriam: Victims of Newsom's minimum wage', highlighted the issues faced by smaller brands including Rubio's, and fast food giants including Pizza Hut, Burger King , Subway and McDonald's.

It features news clips documenting the changes made by companies in response to the wage increase.

This includes raising prices, letting go of workers to cut labor costs - and in some cases shutting down locations.

One says: 'A McDonald's franchisee who owns 18 outposts in California is considering reducing store hours, hiking menu prices and delaying renovations to offset the impact of the state's $20 hourly minimum wage for fast-food workers.'

Manzo said: 'That's why we continue to advocate because legislators, the governor, they need to wake up. You cannot be this anti-business.'

'We're going to continue to fight. We advocate for small to medium-sized businesses, people that don't have a voice. And California is a great place to live.

'It's just we need to change the direction. We need to change the direct trajectory, and that's what we're going to do. That's our mission.'

Governor Newsom's office claim 4,500 jobs were added in limited service restaurants since the bill was signed last year.

His office added that there were 6,600 new fast-food jobs in the state between April 2023 and April 1.

Restaurant Business editor-in-chief Jonathan Maze does not believe the minimum wage increase has actually helped workers.

'It's a tough thing to do,' he said. 'You got two issues. You have the fact that it was done almost overnight.

'You have the fact that it was a 25 percent increase in the wage rate. Both of those things, happening simultaneously, is a really hard thing for restaurants' bottom line, and you're seeing the effects of it.'

He said Americans are now eating out less than before due to the increases in prices.

'This has been a challenging environment,' Maze added. 'If you looked at what McDonald's had reported just a couple of weeks ago, their prices are up 40 percent since 2019.

'Everything costs a lot more. Construction costs are up, and that requires companies to increase prices.

'The result of all of this is that fast food has largely lost its reputation as a value player. The result of this is consumers are dining out less often. They're not going to McDonald's or other places as often as they had been.'

Even before the law was made official earlier this year, chains including Pizza Hut and Round Table let go of more than a thousands delivery workers to brace for the financial ramifications of the change.

The law, signed by Newsom in September last year, increases fast-food workers' minimum wages to $20-an-hour at chains with more than 60 locations in the US.

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the fast-food bill raising the minimum wage payable by certain chains on September 28, 2023

To highlight the impact of the law, a trade group took out a fake ad in Thursday's edition of USA Today with mock 'obituaries' of popular brands

Rubio's Coastal Grill announced it would shut 48 restaurants in the state (Pictured: The grand opening of the third Rubio's location in the Pacific Beach neighborhood of San Diego, California in 1986)

Critics warned that businesses would turn to digital ordering kiosks as a way to cut down on wage costs for staff

That is 25 percent more than the standard minimum wage of $16-an-hour in California, which itself came into effect in January.

On a national level, Congress has not touched the minimum wage in decades - it is still $7.25-an-hour. Instead, so-called 'wage wars' play out on a state level.

When the Democrat governor signed the law in 2023, Newsom said the state was getting 'one step closer to fairer wages, safer and healthier working conditions, and better training by giving hardworking fast food workers a stronger voice and seat at the table.'

But Republican critics claimed the wage hike would simply mean workers are replaced with self-checkouts and 'robot cooks.'

Harsh Ghai, a Burger King franchisee with 140 restaurants on the West Coast announced in April how he planned to have digital kiosks installed in all his locations in two months.

Until the wage hike, he planned to roll them out over the next five to ten years.
More bad news for customers of Southwest Airlines - the 'bags fly free' perk faces the ax.

It is the only US airline not to charge, and it is customer friendly policies like this and open seating have been its trademark.

Only last month it ramped up a fees for those customers who want to board early in a bid to grab a better seat - the first sign it was changing tact.

Now further changes are being demanded by an activist investor. Elliott Investment Management announced on Sunday it had bought a $1.9 billion stake - 11 per cent of the airline - and is seeking to force out the CEO. It has backing from other investors.

The most notable is ditching the hugely popular policy of giving passengers two checked bags for free. All other US airlines charge, and last year it brought in billions of dollars of revenue for the likes of Delta, American, United, Spirit and Frontier.

Fees of $30 to $50 a bag would be welcome income for the financially struggling airline, analysts say. That could mean an extra $100 per flight for two bags.

Southwest Airlines offers two free bags, but that is set to change

Elliot sees the freebie as a missed opportunity to charge for bags and pull in tens of millions in fees.

Free bags is part of Southwest's DNA, and has regularly featured in its adverts. Changing it could alienate its regular flyers.

Elliot also wants to end the open seating policy and instead sell seats costing different amounts, such as basic economy and more premium options, instead.

Shares in the airline rose 7 percent on Monday, their second-best day since 2020, as Wall Street cheered the intervention, which was announced on Sunday.

In a letter to Southwest's board, the investment firm complained that Southwest's stock price has dropped more than 50 percent in the last three years.

Southwest CEO Robert Jordan 'has delivered unacceptable financial and operational performance quarter after quarter,' the letter read.

They are calling for Jordan to go.

But heJordan said Wednesday he will not resign and said Southwest will present its plan in September at an investor day.

Jordan said Southwest is investing in better technology - critics blamed outdated systems for contributing to massive flight cancellations in December 2022.

He said the airline is also improving the customer experience with better WiFi, larger bins for carry-on bags, and more power outlets.

Elliott, whose stake in Southwest is estimated by analysts to be around 11%, declined to comment on the CEO's remarks.

For years, Southwest appealed to cost-conscious flyers by not charging fees for a checked bag or changing a reservation.

All major airlines in the US,including Delta, charge for baggage - apart from Southwest

Fees for baggage from the biggest gloabal airlines is on the rise

Its planes don't have a premium cabin. Its closest rivals dropped change fees during the pandemic, however, and they are winning over upscale travelers with better seats and amenities.

In April, when Southwest reported a $231 million first-quarter loss, Jordan seemed to bend to those market pressures by announcing that Southwest was considering changes to its boarding and seating policies.

The airline even took the rare step of dropping four cities from its map.

A report out earlier this year showed how airlines including Delta, United and American pocketed a staggering $33.3 billion from just baggage fees last year - a sharp 15 percent rise from $29 billion in 2022.

This sum is solely made up of fees from larger carry-on bags, standard checked baggage fees, and fines for overweight or extra large checked bags and accounted for 4.1 percent of global airline revenue last year.
Families who have turned their backs on the struggle to own their own homes in the overheated property market say they have few regrets  even if it means being priced out forever.

The proportion of single-family homes being built for rent has doubled in two years as corporates eye up those who have had enough of paying a mortgage.

Analysts warn that the trend will only drive prices higher for those determined to buy, but the temptation to halve their housing costs and ditch the worries of ownership is proving hard to resist, with a third of all rentals now single-family homes.

Chelsey and Spencer Marks had just spent thousands of dollars on repairing the air-conditioning at their California home when they realized they would have to buy new windows and a replacement pump for the pool.

'I was like, I can't do this anymore,' Chelsey, 41, told the LA Times. 'One day I came home and I was like, 'We're selling the house'.'

Chelsey and Spencer Marks despaired at the cost of maintaining their three-bedroom house in Cathedral City, California, after spending $15,000 on air conditioning alone

The couple has wiped out their debt and improved their standard of living in a new rent-only subdivision 15 miles up the road at La Quinta

They moved 15 miles up the road from Cathedral City to SolTerra, a 131-home subdivision built solely for rent, wiping out their credit card debt, boosting their savings and allowing for an Italian vacation.

'I don't need to own it to be living that life that I want to live.'

Mortgage rates have doubled in the last three years and the US Federal Reserve announced on Wednesday that the base rate would stay at its 23-year high.

California's Legislative Analyst's Office calculates that monthly payments to buy a mid-tier home are up 80 percent since the start of the decade when taxes, maintenance and insurance are taken into account, making it twice as expensive to buy a two-bedroom home than to rent it.

Erick Carcelen, 47, realized he would pay $6,000 a month to buy his dream home before moving into a four-bedroom, three-bathroom rental in Menifee with his wife and three daughters.

'I'd rather pay $3,800 and be like, I'm freaking comfortable,' he said.

Corporate investors became seriously interested in the rental market after the credit crunch of 2008 and are now increasingly building entire rental estates according to Doug Ressler of commercial real estate firm Yardi Matrix.

'There's still an inadequate supply of housing, the cost of housing has continued to rise, renters are renting longer,' he said.

'The large providers are looking at build for rent as a legitimate strategy to be able to fulfill demand for those people that are on a budget and looking to have a larger square footage than an apartment.'

Erick Carcelen, 47, cut his monthly housing bills from $6,000 to $3,800 by moving with his wife and three daughters to a rental only development in Menifee

Now his family enjoys amenities including a lap pool, spa and clubhouse in a gated community

The 300-home estate was built solely for rental by Tricon Residential, a development company bought for $3.5 billion last month by Blackstone, the world's biggest private equity firm

Developer Bill Shopoff of Shopoff Realty Investments built the SolTerra estate in La Quinta after realizing the huge untapped demand for larger rental homes.

He fitted out his three and four-bedroom homes with Spanish-style roofs, colorful mosaic tiles, private garages and state of the art appliances.

Tenants can get to know each other in the community pool, clubhouse and landscaped parks.

The estate opened last summer with rents ranging from $3,299 a month for a 1,520-square-foot home to $4,460 for those with 2,400 square feet.

'I'm not sure that if you didn't see the rental sign you'd be able to discern the difference,' he said. 'That's our intention. It lives and feels as if you were a homeowner.

California Assembly Member Christopher M Ward is drawing up legislation in a bid to restrain the new rental giants

'That looks like a hole in the market that we should be trying to solve.'

Some of the world's largest firms have smelled hefty profits in the distorted housing market and Blackstone, the world's biggest private equity fund, snapped up leading developer Tricorn Residential for $3.5 billion last month.

It built Carcelen's home alongside 300 others in Menifee and 170 in neighboring Wildomar, with plans afoot for another 493 in Winchester.

But critics have warned that the American dream of home ownership is becoming increasingly unobtainable for young families squeezed out of a market now geared to renting.

California Assembly Member Christopher M Ward is drawing up legislation in a bid to restrain the new rental giants, warning that corporate investors 'have a significant advantage over a typical California family'.

'You are allowing a new phenomenon in transactions that is inherently uncompetitive,' he added.

But Shopoff says corporate interest is increasing the number of homes being built and allowing people to realize an otherwise impossible lifestyle.

'It's interesting that government wants to restrict capital, but capital is only responding to the demand,' he added.

The proportion of single-family homes being built for rent is now at its highest since data started being collected in the 1970s but some renters are determined to return to home ownership.

Roofing contractor Deonte Palm is one of Carcelen's neighbors on the Menifee estate after moving from an apartment where 'we were feeling the walls closing in on us'.

'I was like, I can't do this anymore,' said Chelsey, 41. 'One day I came home and I was like, 'We're selling the house'.'

SolTerra opened last summer with rents ranging from $3,299 a month for a 1,520-square-foot home to $4,460 for those with 2,400 square feet

Tenants can get to know each other in the community pool, clubhouse and landscaped parks

The 30-year-old has now moved with his wife and new baby into a four-bedroom new build which they share with his brother, his girlfriend and their two-year-old.

The two families are happy to split the $3,400 rent between them while they wait for mortgage rates to come down.

'More space and saving money,' he said.

But Ressler warned that those moving into rental risk being permanently shut out of ownership.

'The rising costs of housing and mortgages is going to be around really for an extended period of time,' he added.
Another classic American restaurant is shuttering - due to the crippling costs of food, bills and labor since the pandemic.

After surviving for 62 years, Mr Powdrell's Barbeque will shut for good at the end of the month.

First, it will have a big farewell party for all its customers in Albuquerque on the Fourth of July. They will enjoy the outlet's famous BBQ sauce and slow-cooking method invented in 1870 and handed down through generations of the family.

Joe Powdrell got teary eyed as he reminisced about the restaurant's incredible journey - from his parent's opening it the 1960s - and told stories of his favorite customers.

'It's been a good experience of life,' Joe, now the boss Mr. Powdrell's Barbeque, said as he spoke to the Albuquerque Journal.

Pete Powdrell set up Mr Powdrell's Barbeque in Albuquerque in 1962. It was then run by his son Joe, who is now closing the final location

Joe Powdrell spoke to KOB4 TV station about the closure of the final location on Forth Street - and said rising costs after Covid hit the business

'It has had a whole bunch of trials, a few tribulations, but after all of that, it is still a very triumphant and a very victorious experience and we're still able to see that,' added Powdrell, who ran the location on Forth Street with his wife Rita.

His parents Catherine and Pete Powdrell began the forerunner to the iconic restaurant in 1962.

They had arrived in New Mexico four years earlier from west Texas, which the family said was less-integrated.

Catherine pssed in 2004 and Pete in 2007. They had 11 children.

But the roots of the restaurant can be traced back to much further to 1870.

Isaac Britt - Pete Powdrell's grandfather and Joe's great-grandfather - came up with the barbecue sauce recipe and the slow-cooking method in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Pete inherited the recipe and took it first to Texas and then Albuquerque.

'The times were very segregated and it had limited horizons for us,' Joe Powdrell told KOB4 as he spoke of his parents moving the family from Texas in 1958.

'Dad, mom, young parents, a bunch of kids, we had family in New Mexico here, as early as the 1930s beckoning us to come here. So we came, cranked up our barbeque thing.'

The restaurant moved to its current location - Shalit House built in 1936 - on 5209 Forth Street in June 1984. The building is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

It is not the first time Mr Powdrell's has shut a location. Their other restaurant on Route 66 at 11301 Central was shuttered in October 2023 after struggling to recover from problems caused by the pandemic. It had been on that site for more than 50 years.

'Covid examined all of what we needed to know. The rise and change in society, the rise in prices. That's been challenging, not only to us but to other businesses. It's challenging business, period,' Joe said to KOB4.

Joe Powdrell talking to customers at the much-loved Mr Powdrell's in Albuquerque. It will shut on June 29

Mr Powdrell's Barbeque is favorite in New Mexico but rising costs means it is being shuttered

It has had its fair share of famous customers too - and Powdrell has a picture of Spike Lee on the wall.

'You know, Spike Lee,' he told KOB4 said as he pointed to the photo

'If you know Spike, you know the motion picture industry. Danny Glover is another one. Yolanda King, Martin Luther King Jr.'s daughter. Malcolm X's daughter. I mean, they were here at the same time.'

Mr Powdrell's Barbeque in Albuquerque might be having a farewell party on July 4 - but it might not be the end.

After that, the location might still be around - as an event space. Powdrell said he has done weddings before, as well as working with a car company to show off cars parked out front.

And he plans to have the sauce bottled and sold in stores.
A new threat is posing further obstacles to electric vehicle ownership for Americans.

Thieves are targeting charging stations and stealing the cables. This can mean the loss of $1,000-plus cables - but there is an even bigger knock-on effect.

Crooks cutting wires can disable entire stations - forcing owners to search desperately for another working charger that might be miles away.

So-called 'range anxiety', slow charging and a lack of public stations have long put Americans off switching to EVs - despite tax credits from President Biden.

And now broken down chargers are exacerbating the problem - giving skeptical buyers one more reason to stick with gas cars for now.

'For the myriad reasons people give for EVs not working, cable theft is the one that would worry me the most,' one user wrote on X, formerly Twitter.

The reason thieves are targeting EV charging cables is because they contain copper wiring.

The price of copper is near a record high on global markets, so criminals stand to collect rising sums of cash from selling the material.

But while it costs $1,000 to replace a charging cable, authorities say, thieves only stand to make $20 reselling the metal.

Thieves have been caught on camera in Seattle targeting an EV charging station on the edge of a shopping center parking lot.

CCTV footage shows them using bolt cutters to snip several charging cables and load them into a truck - all in just a few minutes.

And these incidents are on the rise, according to Electrify America, which runs the nation's second-largest network of direct-current fast chargers.

While two years ago, a cable might be cut perhaps every six months at one of its 968 charging stations, 129 cables were cut through May this year.

That is four more than the total number in the whole of last year.

At one Seattle station, cables were cut six times in the past year, said Anthony Lambkin, Electrify America's vice president of operations.

'We're enabling people to get to work, to take their kids to school, get to medical appointments,' Lambkin told AP.

'So to have an entire station that's offline is pretty impactful to our customers.'

Two other leading EV charging companies - Flo and EVgo - have also reported a rise in thefts.

Charging stations in the Seattle area have been a frequent target. But sites in Nevada, California, Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas and Pennsylvania have also been hit.

Stations run by Tesla, which operates the largest fast-charging network in the US, have also been targeted in Seattle, Oakland and Houston.

Thieves have hit Tesla stations four times this year compared with just once last year, according to the Seattle police.

But the problem is not confined to urban areas.

In rural Sumner, Washington, about 30 miles south of Seattle, thieves cut cables twice at a Puget Sound Energy charging station.

The company is working with police and the property owner to protect the station, which cost more than $500,000 to install.

Stations run by Tesla, which operates the largest fast-charging network in the US, have also been targeted in Seattle, Oakland and Houston

The reason thieves are targeting EV charging cables is because they contain valuable copper wiring

Some EV owners have expressed their frustration online about the rising problem.

'As long as copper is worth money this is going to be an issue,' one user wrote on Reddit. 'Efficient wireless high-powered charging needs to come quick.'

'I guess if you're getting into the black market economy, scrap metal is the way,' another added.

Various people suggested new infrastructure should be put in place which requires people to bring their own cable.

'This is one of the reasons I prefer the European-style chargers that require you to bring your own cable,' one user wrote.

In one case in Houston, Texas, thieves swiped 18 or 19 cords at one Tesla station alone.

Sgt. Robert Carson, who leads a police metal-theft unit in the city, visited the station to inspect the damage and said that in the first five minutes he was there, around ten EVs that needed charging had to be turned away.

The charging companies say it has become clear that the thieves are after the copper that the cables contain.

In late May, copper hit a record high of nearly $5.20 a pound, a result, in part, of rising demand resulting from efforts to cut carbon emissions with EVs that use more copper wiring.

The price is up about 25 percent from a year ago, and analysts envision further increases.

Charging companies say there is not actually very much copper in the cables, and what copper is there is difficult to extract.

Carson estimates that criminals can get $15 to $20 per cable at a scrap yard. But the cables cost around $1,000 to replace.

He urges EV owners to watch for suspicious people near chargers and to call the police.

'If people are driving down the road and you see a gas-powered vehicle, a truck, at a charging station, that probably doesn't belong there,' he said.

Because charging stations are often situated in remote corners of parking lots, Carson suggested that many more security cameras are needed.

The Biden administration has set out targets to gradually phase out gas cars

America's major automakers have made heavy financial bets that buyers will shift away from combustion engines and embrace EVs as the world faces the worsening consequences of climate change - and the Biden administration announces plans to gradually phase out gas cars.

Stellantis envisions 50 percent of its passenger cars being EVs by the end of 2030.

Ford set a target of producing 2 million EVs per year by 2026 - about 45 percent of its global sales - though it has since suspended that goal.

General Motors, the most ambitious of the three, has pledged to sell only EV passenger cars by the end of 2035.

Any such timetables, of course, hinge on whether the companies can convince more would-be EV buyers that a charge will always be available when they travel.

More than two years after President Biden pledged to build 500,000 EV charging stations throughout the US, only seven are now operational across four states.

In particular, those living in low income areas are facing exclusion from the charging network, analysis by Bumper has revealed, with more than 70 percent of America's public charge ports located in the wealthiest counties.

This disparity is also stark according to state lines, with Louisiana, Mississippi, Kentucky and Alabama having the lowest number of charge ports per capita, according to the study.
A stunning Maine island with a population of just 90 is appealing to new residents to live there.

Isle au Haut is encouraging people to settle permanently on the remote, 13 square mile island which is only accessible by boat.

But for anyone looking to escape the rat race, the idyllic community could be the perfect spot.

And with adorable clapboard homes offered at below market rates there are bargains to be snapped up.

'Many people daydream about moving to a remote island village like ours: for those readers who can answer 'yes' to the above question, that daydream could very well become a reality,' the community states on its website.

A stunning Maine island with a population of just 90 is appealing to new residents to come and live there

'To sustain a vibrant year-round community, we readily welcome new year-round residents.'

Families with children who could attend the local school, as well as commercial fishermen are particularly sought after.

'Though it's not everyone's cup of tea, it's ours. And who knows, it may very well be yours,' the Isle au Haut Community Development Corporation states.

The median price for a typical home on Isle au Haut's most affordable street is around $300,000, according to Realtor.

By comparison, an average home elsewhere in Maine sold for a median of $391,000 in April.

However, island life is not without its challenges which include having to take a ferry to the nearest medical center or hardware store.

While a US census put the population at 92 in 2020, locals say there are just between 30 to 40 full time residents.

In the summer months this swells to 300 as tourists flock to take advantage of the rugged natural beauty and biking trails.

Isle au Haut is encouraging people to settle permanently on the remote, 13 square mile island which is only accessible by boat

A Post Office manned by a postmistress who works four hours per day is available to residents and visitors

But IDC volunteer Molly Siegel told the Boston Globe that experiencing a winter with its beach bonfires and book clubs is what truly makes you an islander.

'By the time you emerge on the other side of your first winter, you look back at the time that you spent with people,' she said.

'Those are those essential, foundational experiences that make you a part of the community

For full-time islanders, there is a Post Office manned by a postmistress who works four hours per day, a church, town hall, island store and several artisanal businesses.

The local school offers grades K-8, with students having to travel to Deer Isle for the nearest high school.

However, high schoolers continue to receive support from the community.

The island also boasts a church, town hall, island store and several artisanal businesses.

'Whether a graduating student goes to a nearby public high school or a private boarding school, the town contributes toward tuition costs,' the website states.

Dakota Waters is a newcomer to Isle au Haut newcomer and has lived on the island since April.

'As of Friday, I start on a lobster boat,' Waters, who moved from Northborough, told the Boston Globe. 'I've never lobstered, fished, or been on a boat a day in my life.'

Once he posted about news of his family's relocation Water was inundated with help moving from other islanders.

This included locals turning up at the ferry port with a truck to help him move in as well as taking his child to school for the first two weeks.

Isle Au Haut is off the coast of mainland Maine and only accessible by boat

The local school offers grades K-8, with students having to travel to Deer Isle for the nearest high school

The median price for a typical home on Isle au Haut's most affordable street is around $300,000, according to Realtor

'You're going out to go tromp through the woods, go see if you can get some sea glass and some seashells off a beach,' said Waters. 'It's everything that a child would grow up and see as a wonderland.'

Isle au Haut is not for those who need to eat out every day or catch the latest movie, Siegel says.

But there is plenty to keep locals busy, with many giving up their time to help the community by joining the local fire brigade or taking up leadership positions.

Most recently a recruitment drive filled affordable housing options on the island, but there are still home available including one 800 square foot one bedroom property for $249,000.

'Life on the island requires a certain amount of self-sufficiency, creativity, and practicality,' the IDC said.

'While life here doesn't always qualify as easy, it certainly qualifies as unique.'
In what could be called as a sweet and juicy milestone, India has made its debut in the premium pineapple market by exporting its first batch of high quality MD2 Golden Ripe also known as Super Sweet pineapples to the UAE, a sector traditionally dominated by Costa Rica, Thailand and the Philippines

The Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), under the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, facilitated the successful export of the first consignment of MD 2 variety pineapples to the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

The consignment, comprising 8.7 metric tons (650 boxes) of the MD 2 pineapples, was ceremoniously flagged off by Chairman, APEDA, Abhishek Dev, in the presence of senior officials from APEDA and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research - Central Coastal Agricultural Research Institute (ICAR CCARI).

This marks a pivotal moment in Indias agricultural export history, showcasing our ability to produce and supply premium quality pineapples to global markets, said Abhishek Dev. The MD 2 variety is renowned for its exceptional sweetness and quality, and we are thrilled to introduce it to the UAE market, he said.

The MD2 or Dinar pineapple is developed through hybridization by Del Monte scientists in Costa Rica and holds great popularity in the international market. Its superiority in terms of color, flavor, shape, lifespan, and ripeness set it apart from other varieties.

As a result, it has become the gold standard in the pineapple industry, with significant cultivation in countries like Costa Rica, the Philippines, and Thailand.

An official said that ICAR CCARI provided essential technical support for post-harvest management and development of sea protocol for the MD 2 pineapple produced in the Sindhudurg district of the Konkan region in Maharashtra. A private firm successfully grew this variety on 200 acres in partnership with local farmers, ensuring optimal quality and yield.

The harvested pineapples were meticulously graded, sorted, packed, and stored in Panvel, Navi Mumbai. From there, the consignment was transported to Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) for its onward journey to the UAE.
Modi's top priorities should include strengthening of bilateral ties with neighbours and herald a new era of dialogue to counter China's influence

The Narendra Modi Government must give priority to wean away neighbours who have drifted towards China. The presence of leaders from the neighbourhood and the Indian Ocean region at the inauguration of Narendra Modi's third term as Prime Minister highlights the significance New Delhi accords to these countries.

Notable attendees included Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe. The swearing-in ceremony also witnessed the participation of Bhutan Prime Minister Tshering Tobgay, Nepal Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal, Mauritius Prime Minister Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, Seychelles Vice-President Ahmed Afif and Maldives President Mohamed Muizzu. The inclusion of President Muizzu is being interpreted as a good diplomatic move, especially when both nations currently have strained ties .It may be recalled that Modi invited leaders from the eight member States of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) to his swearing-in ceremony in 2014. For his 2019 inauguration, the guests included leaders from the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), along with Mauritius and Kyrgyzstan.

The Modi-led Government will have its plate full of national and international issues, which will warrant immediate attention and formulation of strategy and action plan. Experts feel that India must resolve the US threat to impose sanctions if the Chabahar Port deal with Iran was not scrapped. Interestingly, the US did not raise any objection when India took up the construction of the port because it suited the US owing to its occupation of Afghanistan. But now that the US has moved out, it has no interest in the port.

Former Prime Minister Pt Jawaharlal Nehru's Indian National Congress achieved a remarkable victory, securing 44.7 per cent of the vote and winning 361 out of 494 seats in 1962. In contrast, the BJP, under Narendra Modi, won 238 seats out of 543, with the NDA collectively securing 294 seats. Unlike the BJP, which relies on coalition partners like the TDP and others, the Congress under Nehru stood strong on its own. This scenario isn't unique to India. In Britain, leaders like Margaret Thatcher and Tony Blair also managed to secure three terms. However, managing a coalition Government with a thin majority presents its own challenges. The reduced strength can increase the bargaining power of smaller coalition partners.

The Modi Government's foreign policy has alienated neighbours like the Maldives, Nepal etc. Hence it needs a 'relook' as they have drifted towards China, which is using them to expand its influence. Regarding Pakistan, India should respond to its initiative to have trade ties by keeping the political issues aside. The Sharif brothers may not be averse to it. China's expanding ties in the region are evident, and India needs to tread cautiously to counter its influence, as seen in the case of Nepal. The recent political shift in Nepal towards a communist Government ideologically aligned with China is concerning, especially considering China's 'Debt Trap' strategy.

Pakistan serves as a stark example, with China extending a massive debt of $23 billion, a substantial portion of which is tied to the Belt and Road Initiative. Pakistan's mounting debt to China, totalling $67.2 billion from 2000 to 2021, underscores the risks associated with this debt dependency.

Regarding neighbours, India needs to be worried as Maldives has already moved in the lap of China, and Nepal has also shown red flag as the communist Government led by Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' has moved closer to China.

Modi will govern India for the next five years with a relatively weakened position but he has shown resolve to carry on economic reforms to make India a world power. In this backdrop, the Opposition is expected to play a constructive role in the interest of people of the country.

(The writer is a political analyst and senior journalist based in Shimla; views are personal.)
Modi's G7 debut amidst global turmoil underscores diplomatic finesse

In less than a week of assuming office as the Prime Minister for the largest democracy in the world, Mr Modi is back where he excels. He was in Italy this week, meeting the leaders from the powerful group of nations also known as the G7. On the sidelines were several bilateral meetings with leaders of African, and Arab nations, besides several clear messages to the primarily American and European groups leaders.

This was PM Modi's first trip abroad, after assuming office for a third time ( a remarkable feat in itself), where nearly 670 million voters patiently waited in queues under an extremely harsh summer sun over a period of nearly two months to choose the leader of the largest democracy. PM Modi and his party, despite setting ambitious expectations, could not manage a majority by themselves and are now dependent on a bunch of pre-poll alliance political parties to lead the National Democratic Alliance government. This assumes significance at a time when several parts of Europe, not to mention the US are going their own set of democratic churns. The US goes to poll end of the year, and voices on either side of the aisle, are getting harsher and louder. Similarly, the elections to the European Parliament have thrown a resurgence of far-right parties, which is likely to have an impact on the geopolitical dynamics for a long time. What Mr Modi may be comforted by is the fact that he may not need to look around for carefully worded diplomatic statements while explaining the state of Indian democracy to the Western nations.

In the past few years, several questions have been raised across the Western nations and in the US regarding the health of the Indian democracy, its report card on minority rights, religious freedom, the existence of the press etc. The near majority verdict, by the Indian electorate, with ample scope of checks and balances to keep the party with the highest seats under leash, a robust opposition presence in the parliament would be a clear talking point for the PM and his set of diplomats to set out a gold standard for democracy when engaging with several nations.

Mr Modi, with his nearly three decades of experience as head of the state and nation, is not new to diplomacy and in several interviews, leading up to the general elections, has articulated his target of enhancing India's global image. The grand spectacle around G20 ( not to forget backroom diplomatic negotiations to arrive at a joint statement ), several high-level state visits, a bunch of rescue operations carried out for citizens and neighbours from war-torn areas, supply of emergency medicines during COVID are all pointers towards the focus the Prime Minister's Office attaches to global reputational management. PM's third-term visit to G7 assures continuity and explores fresh engagement strategies with current and potential allies, emphasizing continuity and innovation.

Mr Modis' visit to Italy comes at a time when the Ukraine war is unrelenting, and despite severe reluctance, there seems to be chinks in the united European approach towards the aggressor Russia. Many of them, would have, similar concerns regarding Israel's war on terror, which has refused to die down in months. It may be recalled that both Israel and Russia are close allies of India, and India has so far walked a tightrope when commenting on both of these volatile situations. The dynamics of the past relationship, while building deeper relations with recent allies such as the US are likely to be a sensitive diplomatic trope. It is no wonder, that PM Modi has picked up S Jaishankar, a seasoned diplomat as the External Affairs minister for a second term, to retain the continuity and foreign policy focus achieved during his last term. The evolving geo-political landscape and India's role in global affairs would continue to be tested and chiselled in days to come.

(The writer is a policy analyst; views are personal)
BJP leader Amit Shah on Tuesday here took charge as the Union Home Minister for the second consecutive term. Shah, who has been holding the portfolio since 2019, has returned to the Modi 3.0 government in the same capacity.

Before taking charge of the ministry, Shah visited the National Police Memorial in the city's Chanakyapuri area to pay homage to policemen who had laid down their lives while serving the nation. The 59-year old Shah was elected from Gandhinagar constituency in Gujarat in the Lok Sabha election. Shah has also retained his other portfolio in the Ministry of Cooperation.

In the fresh tenure as home minister, the immediate priority of Shah will be the implementation of the three newly enacted criminal laws -- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita 2023 and Bharatiya Sakshya Adhiniyam 2023.

These laws, scheduled to come into effect from July 1, are set to replace the Indian Penal Code, Code of Criminal Procedure and the Indian Evidence Act, marking a significant shift towards a more efficient and effective legal framework.

Aimed at reshaping the landscape of the country's criminal justice system, Shah brought the three laws last year aimed at modernising and replacing outdated British-era legislation.

As Union home minister in the second Modi government in 2019, Shah had played a pivotal role in shaping key policies, including the abrogation of Article 370 and the enactment of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

Known for his meticulous approach, Shah's tenure has been marked by proactive decision-making and a commitment to strengthening national security and justice systems, exemplifying his enduring influence in Indian politics.

Shah has also been instrumental in quelling Maoist violence and restoring peace in the northeastern states through strategic peace accords.

Known as the second most influential figure in the country after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a person dedicated to the saffron ideology, Shah rose as the BJP's master organiser when its alliance secured 73 seats from Uttar Pradesh in 2014 under his leadership as the party's general secretary.

Recognised for his political acumen and strategic prowess, Shah has played a pivotal role in the phenomenal growth of the saffron party.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday directed officials to deploy a full spectrum of counter-terror measures in Jammu and Kashmir in a high-level meeting attended by National Security Advisor (NSA)Ajit Doval and other senior officials. The review was held in the backdrop of four terror attacks in as many days in Reasi, Kathua and Doda.

Given this development, Modi also spoke to Home Minister Amit Shah and Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and discussed the deployment of security forces and anti-terror operations. Sinha briefed Modi on the efforts being undertaken by the local administration.

In the wake of a sudden upswing in the terrorist violence across different districts of the Jammu region, the security forces deployed in Jammu and Kashmir are bracing for a bigger challenge of peaceful conduct of the 52-day-long Amarnath yatra starting June 29. The meeting, meanwhile, also took stock of deployment of security forces and counter-terror operations and Modi was given a comprehensive overview of the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir, including the ongoing counter-terrorism efforts.

The Prime Minister directed officials present at the meeting to deploy the full spectrum of the country's counter-terror capabilities to restore peace in the region.

Terrorists struck at four places in Reasi, Kathua and Doda districts over the past four days, killing nine pilgrims and a Central Reserve Police Force(CRPF)jawan and leaving seven security personnel and several others injured.

Massive search operations were launched by security forces in forest belts of different districts of Jammu and Kashmir to track down and neutralise the ultras involved in the recent terror attacks in the Union Territory.

Jammu and Kashmir Police has also released sketches of four terrorists involved in two attacks in Doda district and announced a reward of Rs 20 lakh for information leading to their arrest.

"Jammu and Kashmir Police have released sketches of four terrorists who are believed to be in the upper reaches of Bhaderwah, Thathri, Gandoh and carrying out terror-related activities," a police spokesperson said.

On Sunday, terrorists opened fire on a 53-seater bus carrying pilgrims when it was en route to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra from the Shiv Khori temple. The bus, ferrying pilgrims from Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi, plunged into a deep gorge following the gunfire, killing nine people and injuring 41 others.

On Tuesday, terrorists fired at a joint checkpost of the 4 Rashtriya Rifles and police at Chattergalla in Bhaderwah while a search party in the Gandoh area of the district was attacked on Wednesday, resulting in injuries to seven security personnel, including a policeman.

This year's annual pilgrimage to the cave shrine of Amarnath is expected to attract over 5 lakh pilgrims. In 2023, over 4.45 lakh pilgrims paid obeisance inside the cave shrine.

Since the yatra is taking place in the shadow of 'audacious' terror strikes on pilgrims and security forces the entire focus is shifted to ensuring the safety and security of the pilgrims reaching here to offer special prayers.
As Delhiites are reeling under the double blow of a relentless heatwave and water crisis, blame game continued between Delhi, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh in the Supreme Court on Thursday.

In a twist in the Supreme Court battle over Delhi's spiralling water crisis, Himachal Pradesh has said it does not have surplus water to send to the national Capital, a day after the hill State said it had released water for Delhi and the supply needs to go through Haryana while the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Delhi Government filed a fresh affidavit saying it cannot take action against tanker mafia as they are operating on the Haryana side of the Yamuna River. Haryana should explain why action was not taken, the Delhi Government said in the affidavit shifting the responsibility.

After hearing all stakeholders, a vacation bench of Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and Prasanna B Varale said sharing of Yamuna water between States is a complex and sensitive issue and this court does not have the technical expertise to decide on it even on an interim basis. The bench, therefore, left it to the Upper Yamuna River Board to examine if some relief can be extended to Delhi in terms of releasing additional water supply.

The bench has asked the Delhi government to submit an application to Upper Yamuna River Board (UYRB) for water supply, seeking water for the national capital on humanitarian grounds. "The issue should be left to be considered by the body constituted with the agreement of parties in the memorandum of understanding dated 1994. "Since UYRB has already directed Delhi to submit an application for the supply of additional 150 cusecs of water on humanitarian grounds, such an application be made, if not already made, today by 5 pm, and thereafter the board shall convene a meeting tomorrow and take decision in the matter at the earliest. If need be, the board can convene on a day to day basis," the bench said while disposing of the plea filed by the Delhi government.

The ongoing water crisis in Delhi has escalated into a blame game as the AAP and office of Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena, with both accusing each other of shielding the water tanker mafia and mismanagement of supply even as residents continue to scramble for the supply. Exhausted women and children could be seen walking long distances and standing and sitting in serpentine queues for a few buckets of water that the tanker would bring. Many would return home with not enough water to cook a meal or quench their thirst. A large part of the national capital has been getting sufficient water supply since the start of the summer season. The DJBs production is hovering around 950 million gallon water per day (mgd) while demand is over 1300 mgd daily here. South Delhi, Central and West and North East are among the worst affected areas in the national capital.

The national capital was in for a huge disappointment when the Himachal Pradesh government took U turn on Thursday and told the court it does not have surplus 136 cusecs of water, recanting an earlier statement. "We could not convey it properly earlier. Our correct statement may come on record. Maybe we made a mistake earlier, but I have been briefed. I will correct and withdraw the earlier statement that flow was obstructed," the counsel of Himachal Pradesh said. This drew a warning from the court. "We can haul you up for contempt and summon your Chief Secretary," it said. The Himachal government counsel apologised and said they will submit an affidavit and withdraw their earlier response.

In an affidavit filed before the top court, the Delhi government said water tankers are needed to cater to areas not connected to water supply lines or where the supply is inadequate.It said the total water supplied by the Delhi Jal Board and private tankers in the city is around 5-6 million gallons per day which constitutes only 0.5 per cent of total supply.

"DJB has been trying to improve the availability of water tankers so that even private tankers can be replaced by public tankers. Multiple letters have been written by the Petitioner Government to the Lieutenant-Governor of Delhi (who is at present in charge of ensuring action)."The tanker mafia is operational on the Haryana side of the Yamuna river over which DJB has no jurisdiction," it said. Highlighting the steps taken by the Delhi government to stop water wastage, it said it has reduced losses in water transmission from Haryana to Delhi from 30 per cent to 5 per cent. "Earlier the raw water from Yamuna and Ravi, Beas sources used to come in Delhi at Wazirabad and Haiderpur through river course and unlined Delhi sub Branch (DSB), resulting in 30 per cent loss in unlined canal. "DJB spent about Rs 500 crore in constructing Carried Lined Channel (CLC) and the losses reduced from 30 per cent in the river course to 5 per cent.

Delhi government's advocate Abhishek Singhvi said everything possible to augment water availability will be done. He, however, suggested that the court should consider constituting a committee as boards have been reduced to bureaucratic bodies, an apparent swipe at UYRB. Highlighting the steps taken by the Delhi government to stop water wastage, Singhvi said instructions like ban on car washing have been issued. He said the water level at Wazirabad barrage was not being maintained at its optimum level.

Senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for the Haryana government, disputed his claim and asserted that the requisite water level was being maintained in Wazirabad. Divan said since the matter involves highly technical aspects of water allocation, it should be left to UYRB to decide. Additional Solicitor General Vikramjeet Banerjee, representing UYRB, agreed with him and said the issue can be resolved by the board.

Meanwhile, as Delhi continues to reel under a severe water crisis, city police patrolling has begun around Munak Canal (Bawana Nahar) to keep a check on the tanker mafias, who are reportedly active in the area.
Reiterating Prime Minister Narendra Modis vision of hawai chappal se hawai jahaz tak, the newly appointed Civil Aviation Minister Kinjarapu Rammohan Naidu on Thursday vowed to review the surging prices of air fares so that it becomes affordable for the common man.

Naidu said to make it a reality, the ticket prices have to be affordable and that benefits of the aviation sector should reach every corner of the country, with focus on Tier two and Tier three cities.

"I am going to hold review meetings. Definitely, my intention would be to bring down the (ticket) prices because that is a challenge for the common man. Our intention is to take air travel to the common man, unless you make it affordable, it is not going to happen," Naidu, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MP said soon after he assumed the charge of Civil Aviation Minister.

The 36-year-old three-time MP is the youngest Cabinet Minister in the Modi 3.0 Government.

Increase in airfares is an important issue and it has been a talking point. Dynamic pricing and fluctuating airfare prices have been an issue with travellers across India.

Over the past few months, ticket prices have seen sharp increases, impacting the ease of flying for both domestic and international routes.

Besides, due to Go First's insolvency, flight suspension, high demand during the busiest travel season, and capacity issues, travellers now have to pay more for their tickets.

Additionally, Indian airlines do not have enough aircraft to launch new routes right now.

Naidu said the key priorities of the Ministry would be to create an 'ease of flying' scenario, making air travel more accessible and convenient for every citizen. In February, a parliamentary panel proposed that the Government should frame guidelines to control sudden surges in airfares, adding that a route-specific fare ceiling can be examined, keeping in mind the interests of both the airlines and the customer.

Moreover, the country's aviation sector has been grappling with global supply chain disruptions, which have delayed plane deliveries and pushed fares higher. Domestic air traffic has grown by 23 per cent in 2023, reaching a record 153 million passengers, with analysts forecasting this number to climb to 300 million by 2030.

Naidu expressed his gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for entrusting him with the crucial responsibility of leading the Ministry of Civil Aviation. He emphasised that the choice of a young and energetic leader signifies a forward-looking approach, focused on shaping the future of the aviation industry for the next 25 years. Naidu acknowledged the support of the people of Srikakulam and Andhra Pradesh, thanked Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and recalled the role of his father, Late Kinjarapu Yerran Naidu, a distinguished politician from Andhra Pradesh.

In line with Prime Minister Modi's vision for Viksit Bharat, he said we are going to formulate and implement a 100-day action plan to drive immediate progress in India's aviation sector. This plan will serve as a stepping stone towards achieving the long-term Vision of Viksit Bharat as India celebrates 100 years of its independence in 2047. The Union Minister also emphasised on the importance of use of technology in enhancing passenger experience, and plans to leverage artificial intelligence and social media to address passenger concerns effectively. He assured that the ministry would prioritise passenger comfort and convenience in all policy decisions.

Regarding the completion of the Greenfield airport in Bhogapuram in Vizianagaram district, the Minister expressed his personal commitment to expedite the project.
Amid a raging row over the NEET-UG examination, the National Testing Agency (NTA) will re-conduct the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test, Undergraduate (NEET UG) 2024 exam for over 1,563 aspirants on June 23 while the result will be declared on June 30. For those who do not wish to appear, their original scorecards (without the grace marks) will be considered.

The NTA informed a vacation bench of justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta that all 1,563 candidates who suffered as they got less than the allotted time to write NEET 2024, will be given the option for the re-test.

If they choose to take the re-exam, their earlier NEET score will stand cancelled (and the new score after the re-exam will be counted instead). If these students choose not to take the retest, their original scores would remain but without counting grace marks awarded earlier on account of the loss of time, the NTA told the court. The NTA conducts the all India pre-medical entrance test.

The development has come amid controversy that the "arbitrary" award of grace marks led to a shocking surge of top scorers during the NEET, with several claims being made of malpractices, cheating and irregularities in the conduct of the exam. Scores of students and their parents are protesting at the Jantar Mantar against the irregularities in the NEET-UG examination and demanding a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Refusing to stall the counselling for NEET-UG, 2024, scheduled to commence from July 6, the bench said, "As per the recommendations it has been suggested that scorecard of affected 1,563 candidates will be cancelled and withdrawn and actual scores will be informed without grace marks and re exam will be conducted for them.

Result of those who do not take the retest will be the exam's actual scores without grace marks.

Taking note of the submissions, the bench said all the pleas, including the one filed by Alakh Pandey, the chief executive of EdTech firm Physics Wallah over the issue of award of grace marks, will be taken up for hearing on July 8.

The Court was hearing petitions questioning the manner in which the NEET for undergraduate medical college admissions was held this year. The petitions included those questioning the award of grace marks, with some seeking the cancellation of the NEET results announced on June 4.

At the outset, lawyer Kanu Agarwal, appearing for the Centre and the NTA, said the committee set up to look into the grievances decided on June 12 to "allay the fears of the students". It was of the view that the grace marks be withdrawn and replaced with an option of re-test for these candidates which will be conducted on June 23. A notification to this effect will be issued during the day. He said the committee was of the view that the award of grace marks on grounds of loss of time while taking the test resulted in a "skewed situation" as it had to be limited only to the questions that remained un-attempted.

After examining all aspects, the panel concluded that it would be appropriate to recommend cancellation of scorecards of these beneficiary candidates. "According to the recommendations, it has been suggested that the score-cards of the affected 1563 candidates issued on June 4, 2024 will stand cancelled and withdrawn. These affected 1563 candidates will be informed of their actual scores without compensatory marks. Further, re-examination will be conducted for the affected 1563 candidates.

"The results of the affected candidates who do not wish to appear for the re-examination will be declared on their actual marks without compensation obtained by them in the examination held on May 5, 2024 and the marks obtained by the candidates who will appear in the retest will be considered and their marks based on the examination held on May 5, 2024 will be discarded," the bench noted in the order. The results of the re-test will be declared on June 30 and the counselling for admissions to MBBS, BDS, and other courses will start on July 6, the Centre said.

Lawyer J Sai Deepak, appearing for Alakh Pandey, the chief executive of EdTech firm Physics Wallah', assailed the random award of grace marks and said the option of re-test be given to all those students who could not approach the court alleging loss of time.

The bench declined the plea saying that it cannot expand the scope of the case to those who had not approached the court.

The bench issued notices to the Centre and the NTA on three petitions and tagged them with the pending pleas. It said they all will be taken up together on July 8 after the summer vacation. Pandey has assailed the alleged random award of grace marks to over 1,500 candidates and urged the top court to set up an expert panel under its supervision to "enquire into the examination process and results of NEET (UG) 2024.

He has, in his plea filed through lawyer Rohit Jain, the managing partner of law firm Singhania & Co', also sought a direction to the expert panel he has mooted "to come up with improvement in the process of conducting NEET examination and without hampering the interest of the other students".

Another petition filed by Abdullah Mohammed Faiz and Dr. Shaik Roshan Mohiddin sought recall of the NEET-UG 2024 results and conduct of a fresh exam over allegations of paper leak and other malpractices. The third plea, filed by NEET-UG aspirant Jaripiti Kartheek challenged the award of grace marks as compensation for alleged loss of time during the exam.

The examination was held on May 5 across 4,750 centres and around 24 lakh candidates took it. The results were expected to be declared on June 14 but were announced on June 4, apparently because the evaluation of the answer sheets got completed earlier. The allegations have led to protests in several cities and filing of cases in seven high courts as also the Supreme Court. Scores of students protested in Delhi on June 10 seeking a probe into alleged irregularities.

As many as 67 students scored a perfect 720, unprecedented in the NTA's history, with six from a centre in Haryana's Faridabad figuring in the list, raising suspicions about irregularities. It has been alleged that grace marks contributed to 67 students sharing the top rank.
hief Minister Champai Soren today conducted a high-level review of the progress of the work being done by the Road Construction Department related to the Flyover Bridge, traffic system of Ranchi and other cities in the Jharkhand Ministry. In the meeting, Soren directed the officials to complete the construction work of the flyover from Sirmatoli to Mecon by the end of September 2024. He said that the Sirmatoli flyover is a better option to control the traffic problem of Ranchi city. There should not be any delay in the construction work of this flyover. He said that our government wants that the residents of Ranchi city should be relieved of the problem of traffic jam as soon as possible. He said that traffic control is the priority of our government in the entire state.

In front of the CM, Principal Secretary of the Road Construction Department, Sunil Kumar kept an updated information about the progress of the flyover to be built from Sirmatoli to Mecon through a power point presentation. Kumar informed the CM that in the construction work of the flyover being built from Sirmatoli to Mecon, cable stay bridges are to be built at two places, for this purpose cooperation has been sought from the railways. Almost all the work has been completed except the two places where cable stay bridges are to be built.

The DRM of Ranchi Railway Division has said that he will give full cooperation so that the construction work of the cable stay bridge can start soon. As soon as instructions are received from the Railway Department, the construction work of the cable stay bridge will be completed by employing additional manpower. On the occasion, DRM Jasmeet Singh Bindra told the Chief Minister that the State Government and Ranchi Railway Division have established mutual coordination and all the procedures are being done as per the rules so that the construction work at the two places where the cable stay bridge is to be built can be completed by the month of September, the construction work will start soon.

Kumar informed the Chief Minister that about 4 decimals of land under the main post office Doranda will be used in the construction of the flyover, for this talks have been held with the Post Master General, he has assured the department of all possible cooperation. In exchange for giving four decimals of land by the Postal Department, the state government is providing them land at another place. The CM told the Post Master General and the state government officials that the Postal Department and the Road Construction Department should resolve this problem soon by making mutual coordination.

Information about the important works being done by the Road Construction Department to solve the traffic problem in Ranchi and other cities was presented before CM. Kumar informed the CM that the department has started work on the proposal to build an internal ring road in Ranchi. The total length of the internal ring road to be built in Ranchi will be 52 kilometers. This work is to be done in 11 sections, in which administrative approval of three departments has also been received. Three sections of the internal ring road are already constructed, the process of making DPR for the remaining construction work is in progress.

Departmental officials informed the CM that a proposal has been prepared to construct 12 flyovers to strengthen the traffic system in the entire state. 2 flyovers will be constructed in Saraikela and one in Dumka, while all the remaining flyovers are proposed to be constructed in Ranchi. Kumar informed the CM that the Road Construction Department is preparing DPR for construction of bypass roads in Dumka, Daltonganj, Chaibasa, Giridih and Jamshedpur of the state.

The CM was informed that DPR has been prepared for construction of flyovers from Karamtoli in Ranchi to Booti Mor via RIMS and from Hinoo to DPS School via Birsa Chowk. The department also presented a power point presentation of this scheme before the Chief Minister.

Chief Secretary L. Khiangte, Additional Chief Secretary to Chief Minister Avinash Kumar, Principal Secretary to Road Construction Department Sunil Kumar, Secretary to Chief Minister Arwa Rajkamal, DRM Ranchi Railway Division Jasmeet Singh Bindra, Assistant Postmaster General Rupak Kumar Sinha, CE, CDO, RCD KK Lal, Chief Engineer Traffic Manohar Kumar along with other officials of Road Construction Department and representatives of L&T were present in the meeting.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Thursday launched intra-state air service named 'PM Shri Paryatan Vayu Seva' by flagging off the first flight under it from Bhopal to Jabalpur. He also gave boarding passes to the flyers and opened a ticket-booking counter.

Mohan Yadav said Madhya Pradesh is an attractive tourist destination for all kinds of travellers from across the corners. The intra-state "PM Shri Paryatan Vayu Seva" will enhance connectivity and improve the travelling experience of visitors in the entire state. Efforts are also being made to connect both Omkareshwar and Mahakaleshwar Jyotirlingas with air service to have darshan of both the Jyotirlingas in less time than Indore or Bhopal. Religious places like Orchha, Salkanpur, Katni and Datia will also be connected by air connectivity for a memorable spiritual journey.

Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Culture, Tourism, Religious Trusts and Endowments, Shri Dharmendra Singh Lodhi said the launch of the first Intra State air service in the country marks an important and unforgettable day. The service is starting to connect 8 cities of Madhya Pradesh to make Madhya Pradesh a safe and accessible tourism destination.

With this, Bhopal, Indore, Jabalpur, Gwalior, Ujjain, Rewa, Khajuraho and Singrauli cities in Madhya Pradesh will be getting connected by air, officials said. To boost the air service, a 50 per cent discount in fare has been doled out for 30 days, they said.

Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board (MPTB) will operate the air service. It is being run on Public Private Partnership (PPP) basis with M/s Jet Serv Aviation Private Limited (Flyola), an official release said.

According to some flyers, the fare of the intra-state service will be little more than the tariff of Vande Bharat Express train after a 50 per cent discount for 30 days. They said that it will take just 55 minutes to reach Indore from Bhopal via the air service.

"On the basis of the response, we are going to expand the service," MPTB principal secretary and managing director Sheo Shankar Shukla told over phone. "Right now, the planes which are being run are six-seater with twin engines. If the response is good, we will go for 11-seater and then 20-seater aircraft and so on to expand the service," he added.

"These planes are very safe and meet international standards. We are going to provide the best and regular service at competitive prices," Shukla said.

along with the tourism sector, air service will also be beneficial for trade, health, education and the promotion of culture and art. The booking counters have been set up at the airports of Indore, Bhopal and Jabalpur for booking air services. At present, 8 cities of the state are being connected through air service which will be expanded to some more cities in the coming time.

In the presence of Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, air service will start from Ujjain on the June 16. "PM Shri Paryatan Vayu Seva" will be operated in the state on a Public Public Partnership (PPP) basis through Jetserve Aviation Private Limited (Flyola).
Delhi BJP on Thursday attacked the AAP Government over the water crisis in the national Capital, demanding an answer from Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal government about how Delhi Jal Board, which was in a profit of Rs. 600 crores ten years ago, is in a loss of Rs. 73000 crores. It accused the AAP of failing to prevent wastage of water and misleading people on the issue.

Addressing a press conference, New Delhi MP Bansuri Swaraj and Delhi BJP Media Head Praveen Shankar Kapoor said due to the shortage of water, people are being fleeced by the tanker mafia. "The Kejriwal Government is answerable that the Delhi Jal Board which was running at a profit of 600 crores during the tenure of the then Chief Minister of Delhi Sheila Dikshit, has today reached a loss of 73000 crores. This question needs to be properly discussed," she said.

Earlier in the day, Delhi Police here began patrolling the Munak canal area to check the activities of the tanker mafia and Water Minister Atishi inspected a pipeline network supplying water to south Delhi residents.

Hitting out at Atishi, Swaraj alleged that instead of ensuring action against the tanker mafia, the minister is extending protection to them. "Atishi says that even if the tanker mafia is stopped, not much water would be saved. This is very unfortunate because people facing water shortage are being fleeced by the tanker mafia," she said.

The BJP leader also criticised the AAP government for "failing" to prevent wastage and leakage of water and "misleading" people on the issue. "I want to ask the AAP government and Atishi how long will they continue to come up with excuses and mislead people. They should come out of their air-conditioned press conference rooms and see the plight of the people," Swaraj said.

On Atishi's letter to Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena seeking a probe into alleged collusion between senior officers and the tanker mafia, Swaraj said the Delhi government faced the Supreme Court's wrath on the issue of the tanker mafia but it was trying to shift the blame on the officers.

"It is regrettable that the Kejriwal government, which failed to stop water theft and wastage in Delhi, tried to put the problem arising out of its own mistakes on the neighbouring states by calling it a water shortage crisis," she said, adding that Supreme Court's statement that if the Delhi Government cannot stop tanker theft, then it should be handed over to the Delhi Police is a slap on the Kejriwal Government.

The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Delhi government to approach the Upper Yamuna River Board (UYRB) for water supply as Himachal Pradesh took a U-turn and told the top court that it did not have surplus water to spare. The court asked the Delhi government to submit an application to the UYRB by 5 pm seeking supply of water to the national capital on humanitarian grounds.
Delhi Water Minister Atishi on Thursday inspected a pipeline network supplying water to South Delhi residents in the national Capital while the police began patrolling the Munak canal area to check the activities of tanker mafia as the water crisis in the city worsened.

A senior officer said police teams have set up pickets and started patrolling the 15-kilometre stretch of the canal on the Haryana borders, supplying water to the national capital.

The canal enters Delhi from Bawana and reaches the Haiderpur Treatment Plant. Teams from Bawana, Narela Industrial Area, Shahbad Dairy and Samai Pur Badali police stations have been tasked with patrolling the Munak Canal and its nearby areas.

"Police personnel have been asked to prevent anyone from taking water from the canal in their tankers," the officer said. Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena on Wednesday directed the Delhi Police chief to ensure a strict vigil along the Munak canal to prevent the theft of water and sought an action taken report within the week.

According to sources, police are also inspecting the posh colonies of Delhi, asking about their water consumption.

Meanwhile, Atishi, accompanied by senior officials of Delhi Jal Board and Revenue Department, inspected the South Delhi Mains pipeline network that supplies water from the Sonia Vihar water treatment plant to millions of people across South Delhi.

"Along with senior officials of Jal Board and Revenue Department, inspected the South Delhi Mains pipeline network that supplies water from Sonia Vihar WTP to millions of people across South Delhi. The Delhi Government is ensuring through patrolling by ADMs and SDMs across the city that not even a single drop of water is wasted due to leakage from the main pipelines. During the water crisis, when Delhi is getting less water, the production of WTPs has decreased. In such a situation, wastage of water will not be tolerated," she said on X (formerly Twitter).

The plight of Delhiites braving an unprecedented high summer heat has been further aggravated by an acute shortage of water supply. Delhi is getting less water and the production at water treatment plants has decreased. In such a situation, wastage of water will not be tolerated, she said. During the inspection, Atishi said that the production of water has gone down by 40 MGD in Delhi and unless Harayna releases more water for the city through the Yamuna, the shortfall cannot be met.

She stated that the government is ensuring that not even a single drop of water is wasted due to pipeline leakage in this hour of crisis.

"Efforts are also being made to get additional water from Haryana and Himachal because in the current situation as Delhi is not getting enough water, which has affected the production of our water treatment plants. In such a situation, it is very important that not even a single drop of the water available is wasted," added Atishi.
Delhi Congress president Devender Yadav wrote to the Central Vigilance Commissioner (CVC) seeking a probe into the Rs 17,575 crore scam in the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) over leakage of water from the DJB being diverted for the 'tanker mafia' to misappropriate.

Following AAP and Congress not continuing their alliance for the Delhi Assembly elections in 2025, Yadav, in his letter to the CVC, pointed out that there has been a "significant uptick" in the volume of leakage of water in recent years, as indicated by Government-provided data.

Highlighting the figures climbing from 42 per cent in 2019-20 to 58.28 per cent in 2022-23, he said "This 16.28 per cent surge in the leakage of water over a span of three years is deeply worrisome, despite the fact that the Delhi Jal Board had made substantial spend from its budgetary allocation for the replacement and installation of supply lines. With an annual allocation of approximately Rs 30 crore for metering and plucking the water leakage, the escalation of water leakage has become more perplexing."

He added that even if 10-20 per cent leakages are justified due to transmission and distribution loss, the approximate loss of Rs 17,575 crore suffered by the DJB is much bigger. "In the three areas where Public Private Partnership (PPP) projects are operational, leakages stand at just 26 per cent, and such a significant disparity has raised suspicions of organised malpractice by the tanker mafia, officials and ruling party politicians in the water supply," he stated.
A female elephant crushed his mahout to death while he was sleeping near the elephant on Wednesday night near Bhanpur Bridge.

The female elephant was the pet elephant of the mahout. He was sleeping near the elephant on Wednesday night, when the elephant picked him up with its trunk and threw him down. It dragged him by her trunk and crushed him with its feet. The incident happened late Wednesday night near Bhanpur Bridge. Chola Mandir police have brought the elephant to the police station.

The police said that Narendra Kapadia (55), a resident of Salaiya in Satna district, was killed by his pet elephant.

ASI Rakesh Shukla said, Narendra used to take the elephant around the country with five companions. His expenses were met from the donations received during this time.

He reached Bhopal via Parwaliya on Wednesday night. There was a plan to go to Vidisha on Thursday morning. The elephant was tied under a tree in an empty field near Bhanpur Bridge. Ate food at around 9 pm and slept near the elephant.

The mahout and his companions used to take donations by roaming with the elephant. Police took the elephant in custody

After the incident, the police took the elephant into custody. The deceased's fellow mahouts brought the elephant to the police station in the presence of the police. The elephant has been tied to a peepal tree in the back of the police station. The police have asked one of the deceased's fellow mahouts to stay in the police station to take care of the elephant.

The mahout's companion Bhupendra said, "The elephant started trumpeting loudly at around 11.30 pm. We all woke up. When we looked, the elephant was picking up Narendra with its trunk and throwing him down. When we tried to free him, the elephant dragged Narendra and crushed him with its feet. He died. We immediately informed the police. The police sent the body to the mortuary late at night.

Principal Chief Conservator of Forest Shubh Ranjan Sen says that the elephant is privately owned. Therefore, its custody and care will be taken by the elephant's owner only." Principal Chief Conservator of Forest Shubh Ranjan Sen says that the elephant is privately owned. Hence, its custody and care will be taken by the elephant owner.

Mahout's nephew Deepak Kapadia said, I was informed on phone at 12 o'clock at night that my uncle has been trampled by the elephant, but no one informed me about the death. I reached here by car at night, then I came to know that my uncle had died.

Deepak said that the elephant had killed a young man two years ago too. About a year ago in Bhopal itself, a young man had come to feed bananas to the elephant at night, he was also attacked. It should be handed over to the forest department.

Swati Gaurav, Bhopal director of People for Animals, said that the female elephant that trampled the mahout is named Janaki. We were following her for the last 15 days.

It is also not appropriate to take them around in residential areas. We had complained about this to all the officials including the DFO. If action had been taken on time, the incident could have been averted. Recently this elephant was seen in Awadhpuri, even then the senior forest officer was informed, but no action was taken.
Amidst the persisting water and power crises in the national Capital, Delhi Water Minister Atishi and AAP Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha on Thursday met Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal lodged in the Tihar jail and were directed to take measures to curb the problems as soon as possible.

The AAP convener is lodged in Tihar jail's number 2 in the excise policy-linked money laundering case. "Today I met Kejriwal, who is lodged in Tihar jail in a fake case by the central government. But, he still worries about the people of Delhi, more than himself," Atishi said.

"He inquired about the issues related to power and water and he told me that he watched the water crisis in Delhi on television in Tihar," she stated, adding that Kejriwal has directed them to take all necessary steps and arrangements that could be made to overcome the water crisis as soon as possible.

"He has directed all the AAP legislators to go on the ground and take all possible steps to provide water to the people in their areas," she said. Atishi further said that Kejriwal inquired about the power cuts in Delhi which had occurred due to a fire incident in Uttar Pradesh two days ago.

"He told us to hold the meetings with the concerned department officials to prevent the power crisis from happening in the future," she said. The education minister further said that Kejriwal only thinks about the people of Delhi and their problems, even while staying behind bars. According to Tihar sources, both Atishi and Chadha met Kejriwal for half-an-hour in the visitor's room (Mulakati Jangla) in Tihar.
The Himachal Pradesh unit of the Congress has appointed three ministers as in-charges for by-election to Dehra, Nalagarh and Hamirpur assembly seats.



The three Independent MLAs -- Ashish Sharma (Hamirpur), Hoshiyar Singh (Dehra) and KL Thakur (Nalagarh) -- resigned from the assembly on March 22 and joined the BJP the following day. The by-elections will be held on July 10.



A statement issued here said Agriculture Minister Chander Kumar has been appointed in charge of Dehra assembly seat, Education Minister Rohit Thakur for Nalagarh and Technical Education Minister Rajesh Dharmani for Hamirpur. The Congress leaders have been alleging that nine MLAs, including six Congress rebels, and the three Independents who voted in favour of the BJP in Rajya Sabha polls on February 27 and BJP tried to topple the government by using money.



The statement said that the party won four seats in the recent assembly by-elections, which proves that the people of Himachal Pradesh are happy with the policies, programmes and leadership of the Congress government and the voters have rejected the horse-trading policies of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).



"In the upcoming bypolls, the Congress will unitedly face the unethical tactics of the BJP and hoist the victory flag on these three seats," the statement added.
The PMLA Special Court on Thursday took cognizance of the charge sheet filed by the ED against 10 accused including Jharkhand Mukti Morcha leader Antu Tirkey in the land scam related to former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren. The trial will be heard after the charge is framed against these accused.

The accused include two employees of the Registrar of Assurance office in Kolkata, Sanjit Kumar and Tapas Ghosh, Hazaribagh resident deed writer Md. Irshad, land dealer Afsar Ali, Priyaranjan Sahay, Saddam Hussain and Bipin Singh. All of them were arrested by the ED last month. Later, the agency interrogated several accused including JMM leader Antu Tirkey by taking them on remand.

A large number of fake deeds were recovered from the residences of some of these accused in the raid conducted by the ED in 2023 in the land scam. During the investigation, it has been confirmed that the original documents of many of these lands were made missing from the office of Registrar of Assurance in Kolkata and made available to the land mafia and after this, fake deeds were prepared by tampering with these documents.

In the charge sheet filed by the agency, JMM leader Antu Tirkey and other accused have been said to be involved in the scam. According to the charge sheet, all the accused in collusion with each other made the restricted category land free from restriction by tampering with the original documents of the land. In return, a huge amount of money was transacted.

JMM leader Antu Tirkey, one of the accused, has been the metropolitan president of the party. In the year 2019, he left JMM and contested the assembly elections from Khijri seat of Ranchi on the ticket of Jharkhand Vikas Morcha. He has been doing land business for a long time.

In this land scam case, more than a dozen people including former Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, former Deputy Commissioner of Ranchi Chhabi Ranjan have been arrested.

The Jharkhand High Court on Wednesday heard the arguments of Enforcement Directorate challenging the bail plea moved by former chief minister Hemant Soren. The ED counsel challenging the bail plea of former CM pleaded that, former CM Soren was instrumental in illegally acquiring land at Bargain in the capital.

Challenging the bail plea, ED counsel SV Raju pleaded that Soren had acquired the land in 200910 and a boundary wall was constructed to secure its possession. Earlier, Soren, had filed a petition before the high court on May 27, seeking bail in a money-laundering case linked to an alleged land scam.
Delhi Urban Development Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj on Thursday directed the Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar to immediately provide the list of drains desilted by June 10 and ensure an independent third-party audit of these works is conducted by June 30.

On June 5, Bharadwaj had instructed Kumar to send a report of the desilting progress reminding him of the water logging situation in the national capital of the last monsoon season. In the review meeting dated June 10, concerning the desilting process, PWD had claimed that out of 2156 km drains about 61 per cent of drains i.e. 1293 km drains have been completely de-silted. Similarly, Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) had also claimed that 87.14 per cent of drains taken under Ph.-I have been completely de-silted.

"Therefore, it is directed that all the claims of the desilting by the agencies like PWD and MCD should be audited by the third party independent agencies. It is also worth noting that these claims must be verified well before the monsoon arises in the City because once it rains in the city, the department will take excuse that the silt in the drains has been deposited recently due to rains," Bharadwaj stated.

He said a few years back the Petitions Committee of Delhi Legislative Assembly had taken up this matter of desilting of drains.
The opposition, upbeat after their recent victory in the Lok Sabha polls, got further ammunition to attack the Yogi Adityanath government after a letter related to the recruitment process through outsourcing in Uttar Pradesh Police went viral on Wednesday.

However, just a few hours after the letter went viral, the UP Police made a swift move to overcome the embarrassment to the Yogi Adityanath government. They clarified that the letter was issued by mistake and there was no such move of outsourcing.

Even after this, the opposition parties grabbed the opportunity. Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said that by bringing the Agnipath scheme, the Bharatiya Janata Party government had weakened both the Army and the future of the youth and now an attempt was being made to do the same in UP Police.

Priyanka wrote on twitter that recruitments through outsourcing are being considered at the level of sub-inspector in Uttar Pradesh Police and in this regard, a letter was sent to the district officials, which has gone viral on social media.

By bringing the Agnipath scheme, the Bharatiya Janata Party government weakened both our army and the future of the youth. Now an attempt is being made to do the same in UP Police. Instead of improving every institution of the country, the BJP governments are working to weaken them, she said.

She further wrote that the clarification presented by the UP Police was beyond comprehension. Crores of youth of the state are angry with the news of paper leaks one after the other. Agniveer, lakhs of vacant posts and now outsourcing in police recruitment. BJP should come forward and give a clear answer about this, she stated.

Former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh and national president of Samajwadi Party, Akhilesh Yadav, also raised many questions about this recruitment by tweeting on the letter on Thursday morning.

Akhilesh alleged that the BJP government of the state has adopted a careless attitude towards the police system, due to which the morale of the criminals is high.

He said, After one acting DGP after another, now outsourcing of some police services is being considered. If the police will be on contract, then neither will it have any accountability, nor will confidential and sensitive information be prevented from going out.

Akhilesh expressed apprehension of the UP government taking money from companies through outsourcing.

He said, The youth wishing to join the police service fear that behind this there may be a plan to take money in exchange for work from the companies that become the medium of outsourcing because it is not possible to recover money from a government department through the back door in this way.

As the basis of his allegation, he gave the example of a private company making Covid vaccine. He alleged that the BJP, going against the rules, gave the contract to make the vaccine despite a government company making the vaccine and collecting donations from it.

Meanwhile, in clarification, UP Police tweeted on Wednesday night that the letter of recruitment through outsourcing had been issued by mistake and it was being canceled.

Giving clarification on the mistake, the police stated that the system of outsourcing of class four employees in the police is already prevalent. The letter issued by mistake for outsourcing of ministerial staff instead of class four employees has been canceled. No such case is pending at the police department or government level, it added.

As soon as the letter went viral on social media, discussion started, after which DGP Prashant Kumar issued the order for its clarification.
In a significant show of discontent, government employees in Uttar Pradesh have voiced their dissatisfaction with the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance government through their postal ballot votes in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections.

Out of the 2,36,508 votes cast via postal ballots, the NDA secured 40.75 per cent, while the opposition alliance garnered 45.41 per cent, giving them a notable edge. The NDA failed to reach the 1,00,000 votes mark and received fewer votes than the opposition in 45 out of 80 constituencies.

The primary cause of discontent among UPs 1.6 million government employees is the unresolved issue of the Old Pension Scheme (OPS). The BJPs failure to address the OPS issue has significantly impacted its support in the state.

Government employees have been consistently agitating for the reinstatement of the OPS. The Central governments reluctance to revert to the old system, opting instead to form a committee to improve the National Pension System (NPS), has only heightened their frustration, leading to votes against the NDA.

The government employees are demanding the restoration of the Old Pension Scheme in UP. Various state governments, including Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh, have reverted to the OPS following poll assurances. In UP, different employees unions are demanding the restoration of the OPS. The employees expressed their anger through the postal ballot in this election, said Ram Karan Singh, an office-bearer of the UP Secretariat Employees Union.

Postal ballots, used by the government employees, also included votes from disabled individuals and elderly people above 85 years. Akbarpur recorded the highest number of postal ballot votes at 7,135, followed by 5,572 in Azamgarh, 5,448 in Basti, 5,354 in Ballia and Kanpur, 5,246 in Fatehpur Sikri, and 5,145 in Baghpat. The Samajwadi Party won the Akbarpur Lok Sabha seat, where its candidate Lalji Verma defeated Ritesh Pandey of the BJP. In this constituency, the SP received 145 more postal votes than the BJP. In Hardoi, despite BJP winning the seat, the SP candidate received more postal ballot votes (1,389) compared to the BJP candidate (1,053).

In several constituencies where the BJP won, it still trailed in postal ballot counts. These constituencies include Gorakhpur, Bhadohi, Shahjahanpur, Misrikh, Hardoi, Bansgaon, Bareilly, Phulpur, Pilibhit, Deoria, Domariyaganj, Jhansi, Gonda, Kushinagar, Kanpur and Unnao.

Conversely, the INDIA bloc lagged behind the NDA in postal ballot count in 13 of the seats they won. According to the Election Commission of Indias data, the SP-Congress alliance received fewer postal ballot votes than the BJP in 13 out of the 43 seats they won. For instance, in Hamirpur, the BJP received 681 postal ballot votes compared to SPs 680, a difference of just one vote. Other seats where the SP-Congress had fewer postal ballot votes include Etawah, Kairana, Kaushambi, Jalaun, Fatehpur, Budaun, Moradabad, Mohanlalganj, Rampur, Sambhal, Saharanpur and Hamirpur.

In Nagina, Chandrashekhar, who won the seat, received 740 postal ballot votes, while the BJP secured 1,328. The Samajwadi Party and Bahujan Samaj Party received 270 and seven votes, respectively.

The All Teachers Employees Welfare Association (ATEWA) had actively campaigned for the restoration of the Old Pension Scheme prior to the elections. This campaign, dubbed Vote for OPS, significantly influenced the election outcomes.

Abhinav Singh Rajput, national secretary of the National Movement for Old Pension Scheme (NMOPS), stated that employees were more inclined to vote for parties that promised to restore the OPS.

If all teachers and employees had voted via postal ballot, the INDIA bloc would have shown even better results, he said.

Sudhir Gangwar, district president of the UP Secondary Teachers Association (Ekta), emphasised the widespread demand for the restoration of the Old Pension Scheme across all districts, as evidenced by the postal ballot results. He urged the government to prioritise implementation of the OPS.
A delegation of journalists along with Ranchi Press Club President Surendra Lal Soren met Gandey's newly elected MLA Kalpana Soren at her residence in Ranchi on Thursday. During the meeting, the journalists congratulated Kalpana Soren and submitted a demand letter in the interest of the state's journalists. RPC president Surendra Soren said through a demand letter that the matter of health insurance of journalists is pending for a year, and there is a need to implement pension scheme, housing scheme, journalist protection law in the state soon.

He said that the government should take necessary steps towards the repair of the Press Club building while officially transferring it. For the past few months, entry of journalists has been banned in Jharkhand Ministry, which seems to be undemocratic and a wrong decision in the direction of clean, fearless and transparent journalism. Also, Secretary and Director level officers need to ensure time to meet journalists and share the achievements of the department with the media once a month. Regarding these demands, Kalpana Soren assured that she will take positive initiative and request the Chief Minister to take steps in this direction.

The delegation that met included the club's joint secretary Ratan Lal, treasurer Kuber Singh, executive members Rana Gautam, Monu Kumar, Saurabh Shukla and former president of the Press Club Rajesh Singh, former secretary Javed Akhtar, Shakeel Akhtar and Vivek Pandey.
Letter from China: How China's batteries are powering global energy shift

11:11, June 13, 2024 By Wang Aona ( Xinhua

HEFEI, June 12 (Xinhua) -- When we talk about modern life, we cannot ignore the crucial role played by electricity. With the flip of a switch, our life becomes so convenient, broad and bright.

Among the more significant developments in this field is the invention of the power battery. By storing enough energy to power equipment intermittently and for ever longer periods of time, batteries have reshuffled the way we live, allowing us to power almost everything from small electronic gadgets to family cars.

Now battery packs are reshaping the automotive industry.

Recently, I had the opportunity to visit Gotion High-tech Co., Ltd., one of the earliest Chinese manufacturers to develop power batteries for new energy vehicles (NEVs).

I was wowed by their ultra-modern products, with the combination of state-of-the-art technology and novel appearance.

In the company's exhibition center, I saw an array of batteries of various sizes and shapes. At first glance, it looked something like a computer workshop. The battery packs resembled either computer mainframes or large chip boards, depending on the scenarios to which they apply.

Inside the cases, electrodes and electrolytes work their magic. Global NEV battery makers have optimized the formulas through technological innovation, achieving faster charging rates, longer endurance and higher stability, so as to better address the "range anxiety" of NEV users.

Gotion is no exception. The company believes that range anxiety is in essence an anxiety about charging.

Talking with Cheng Qian, Gotion's president of Asia-Pacific Business and director of its international engineering research institute, I was impressed by the company's newly-released "Stellary" battery. Adopting self-developed new materials and with a higher energy density, it can be charged from 10 percent to 70 percent within nine minutes.

The market potential in the field of power battery is huge. Projections from the International Energy Agency (IEA) suggest that by 2030, global demand for NEVs will surpass last year's figures threefold, reaching 45 million vehicles, with power battery demand skyrocketing to 3,500 GWh.

In recent years, China's innovation and manufacturing prowess has made green technologies more affordable, putting them on a faster development track, both inside and outside the country.

Through competition and cooperation with overseas peers, Chinese automakers have also cultivated a robust competitive environment and contributed their share to the green energy shift.

Another Anhui-based energy-storage supplier, Sungrow Power Supply Co., Ltd., has set up its European headquarters, Sungrow Europe, in Munich, Germany.

The new headquarters mainly provides photovoltaic inverters, energy-storage systems and other products to meet market demand for local projects, according to Moritz Rolf, vice president of Sungrow Europe.

Rolf said that Sungrow Europe has more than 500 employees, of which 90 percent are local European employees, who play a vital role in the development of various business areas.

It became clear to me that China's battery output capacity was never a one-sided story dominated by China. The output was driven by the specific problems and needs of countries seeking to promote e-mobility and the improvement of livelihoods, and Chinese enterprises were ready and willing to seize the opportunities.

Clearly, no company can claim it is capable of doing everything. Just as a battery is only part of an NEV or a power station, one or two countries alone cannot constitute a global supply chain.

Besides, the cooperation on production capacity is a two-way street, with foreign companies also seeking investment opportunities in China's energy transition. For example, German automaker Volkswagen Group has already become Gotion's largest shareholder, as part of its move to build up local NEV production capacity in Hefei.

According to the IEA, China accounts for almost 60 percent of new renewable capacity expected to become operational globally by 2028. This makes China a major contributor to the global goal of tripling the world's renewable capacity by 2030.

If one includes the amount of renewable capacity that China helps other countries to build, the number grows even bigger. While China is realizing its own green development, it is also providing support to the international community through various cooperative projects.

The development of green industries continues to gain in importance in government agendas across the globe. The green industrial sector is both a big cake and a competitive racetrack for those global companies involved. If they wish to remain at the forefront of this field, they must hone their competitive edge through innovation and cooperation.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
A number of jobs are set to be axed at a Derry call centre, it can be revealed.

Firstsource announced to staff on Wednesday that a number of redundancies would be taking place.

The company said that approximately 50 of the 63 affected employees live in the Derry area.

A spokesperson for Firstsource said: Firstsource has yesterday (Wednesday) commenced a redundancy consultation process relating to work for our client, NOW Broadband. It affects 63 employees in Northern Ireland.

Staff impacted have been informed today, and as a responsible employer, we are working closely to support them throughout this process. Firstsource remains committed to Derry/Londonderry.

But as the company announced the redundancies or redeployment of the impacted staff this morning across Microsoft Teams, this support was not felt.

That is according to one employee, Conal OHara, who was given the news yesterday morning.

He said: Our contract specifically was for customer service for NOW Broadband.

We were told on this call that because no new orders would be coming in, our customer base would essentially just get smaller and smaller as people drop off, so a decision was made to discontinue the jobs in Derry and to manage these customer accounts in already existing Sky teams or just expand the NOW team in India.

They will now initiate proceedings to make those on the NOW contract in Derry redundant.

We were advised there will be opportunities for redeployment, but they didnt expand on that to say what number of openings are available compared to the redundancies.

The individual making the call then said they are not able to answer any questions we might have about all of it until we elect an employee representative to negotiate with management.

And then we were told to take the rest of the day on paid leave.

Im worried after hearing this news, as with the date they announced for this to happen, it only gives me nine weeks to find another job, but I dont even know if Im being made redundant.

This news has not been taken lightly across Derry, with the knowledge that these jobs are important to the city.

SDLP leader Colum Eastwood made a statement about the loss of jobs in the Firstsource Derry office.

The Foyle Westminster candidate said: " News that 50 jobs are at risk at Firstsource in Derry will cause real concern and uncertainty for many families in our city. Firstsource is a major employer in this area and my thoughts are with everyone affected by this announcement across the North as they face a difficult few months while this situation is resolved.

" This announcement is particularly disappointing given the high levels of support Firstsource has received from Invest NI over the years. If we are going to address the economic issues that have plagued our city for generations then we need to attract well-paid jobs and investment and I am determined to keep fighting to deliver that for Derry.

Representatives of the SDLP are also set to meet with the company and raise the concerns of staff.

While Sinn Fein MLA, Padraig Delargy, also stated his intention to sit down with Firstsource in a bid to save people's jobs.

The Foyle MLA said: News that Firstsource Solutions have begun redundancy with workers at their Derry offices is deeply concerning.

We have been in contact with Firstsource following todays announcement, and we will be arranging an urgent meeting with them.

All efforts must be made by this company to re-skill or re-deploy workers who are being made redundant.

And it is vital these workers are kept fully informed at every step of this process.

People Before Profit Foyle General Election Candidate Shaun Harkin has described the redundancy announcement from Firstsource as 'deeply concerning.'

And Councillor Harkin said: Yet again we have the bombshell news of massive job losses within a major employer in Derry.

The lack of consultation from Firstsource bosses again shows their appalling attitude towards Derry workers.

I send solidarity to the workers at Firstsource during this challenging time. People Before Profit will fight for their jobs and offer them all the support we can.

I have requested a meeting with Firstsource management to discuss options to keep the workers on in another capacity rather than laying them off."
Rural Support held their annual Service of Remembrance through its Life Beyond programme for the farming community across Northern Ireland on Sunday.

This event was held in partnership with Embrace FARM, in St Johns Church of Ireland, Moneymore and was compered by Peter McCann from the Irish Farmers Journal.

This commemorative event provided the congregation the opportunity to come together to pay tribute to and to honour those who have passed away within the agricultural community, be that family, friends, colleagues or neighbours.

The service was opened by Rev Dr Iain Jamieson, Rural Dean of Church of Ireland Tullyhogue, with praise led by the Farmers Choir.

Several supporters from the agricultural sector also paid their respects within the ceremony by offering words of sympathy and comfort to the congregation, highlighting the impact of loss within the farm family has and how much their lives made a difference to all who had known them.

Speakers included George Mullan CEO of ABP & Chairperson of the Life Beyond Steering Group, Gyles Dawson Head of Therapeutical Services & Crisis Support at Rural Support, Victor Chestnutt Founder of Life Beyond, Kevin Doherty CEO of Rural Support and Norma Rohan Founder of Embrace FARM.

Commenting on this Service of Remembrance, CEO of Rural Support, Kevin Doherty said: Our annual Service of Remembrance celebrates the lives of those who are no longer with us and honours the contributions they have made to the agricultural community as well as our lives. It was heartwarming to hear so many memories and stories from the loved ones who were reminiscing about those who have passed away. It was also encouraging to hear how our Life Beyond Programme has helped and supported so many different farm businesses and families across Northern Ireland. Its a privilege to be a part of this incentive, knowing we are helping the farming community to come through their grief and move forward. I would like to extend our thanks to St Johns Church of Ireland for allowing us to use their beautiful facilities and to everyone who attended to show their support and sympathy at this commemorative event.

A roll of honour was read out on this special occasion and long-time supporter of Rural Support, Camilla Mackey, Health & Safety Executive NI alongside Melissa Wylie, Crisis Support Co-ordinator at Rural Support, switched on the Tree of Life and this allowed participants to write a message of hope and comfort in remembrance of their loved ones. Closing prayers were made by Rev Dr Iain Jamieson, Rev Dr Sam Mawhinney and Father Aidan McCaughan; followed by You are my Strength, by the Farmers Choir.

Holding this communal service of remembrance can foster a sense of support and coming together for one purpose such as this creates a sense of understanding and empathy, whilst reducing isolation in grief. The service that Rural Support provides through its Life Beyond programme is invaluable; supporting with both immediate and long-term matters as they arise. Id like to thank not only the Rector and congregation of St Johns Church of Ireland, but also my fellow committee members for all of their hard work and dedication; it has been a privilege to be your chairperson, said George Mullan, CEO of ABP and Chairperson of the Life Beyond Steering Group.

If you were unable to attend this Service of Remembrance, you can watch the full service on the Rural Support YouTube Channel here

If you would like to find out more about the Life Beyond programme or the range of services and programmes available at Rural Support, visit the NI Farm Support hub here or telephone the Support Line on Freephone 0800 138 1678 available Mon-Fri 9am-9pm.
Tommy Tiernan is one of three Irish comedians invited as part of an audience of more than 100 with Pope Francis.

The Derry Girls star is set to meet the Pope in the Vatican on June 15.

Tiernan has for years included religion and God in his stage material, and the 54-year-old has been open in recent years about his faith. The Donegal-born comedian goes to mass regularly.

Ardal OHanlon and Patrick Kielty will join Tiernan in Rome.

O'Hanlon is known primarily for his starring role in the Irish sitcom about priests, Father Ted, playing the dim-witted character Fr. Dougal McGuire.

But the Monaghan-born comic is nothing like this character.

The 58-year-old is an intelligent and thoughtful individual, as witnessed in the documentary he recently fronted, The Last Priests in Ireland.

And Co. Down man Kielty has often dealt with an intersection of politics and religion in Northern Ireland.

Kielty has called for the abolition of segregated schools in Northern Ireland to bring an end to tribalism and sectarianism, an important cause for him following the murder of his father Jack in 1988 by Loyalist paramilitaries.

The Irish trio will be joined by other comics from around the world, including the likes of Conan OBrian, Chris Rock, Jimmy Fallon, and Stephen Colbert.

The audience with the Pope was jointly organised by the Vaticans Dicastery for Culture and Education and Dicastery for Communication, and more than 100 entertainers will gather on Friday at the Apostolic Palace at 8.30am.
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Three people facing explosive and firearm charges after an incident in Creggan last September have had the charges withdrawn at Derry Magistrate's Court today.

Father and daughter Shannon Kelly (26) of Creevagh Heights and Gerard Kelly (48) of Victoria Place both in Derry had been charged with possessing explosives namely two Soviet grenade heads, plastic explosives and two detonators with intent to endanger life on September 7.

They were also charged with possessing the same items in suspicious circumstances.

Both were also charged with possessing a Browning short barrelled firearm and a quantity of ammunition with intent to endanger life on September 7 as well as a charge of possessing the weapon and ammunition in suspicious circumstances.

Gerard Kelly's brother John Martin Kelly (43) of Columbcille Court in Derry had been charged with similar offences.

At today's sitting a prosecutor told the court that all charges against all three accused were being withdrawn.

No explanation was given to the court except that it had been decided that the test for prosecution had not been met.

There had been significant disorder in the Creevagh Heights area during the police operation that had resulted in the arrests and 16 police officers had been injured.
The Derry branch of the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign (IPSC) is planning to hold a hustings event focused on the issue of Palestine.

The event will take place at 7.00pm on June 25 in St Columbs Hall, bringing together candidates from all the political parties standing in the Foyle constituency.

The hustings will be chaired by the esteemed journalist and author Darach McDonald, who will guide the discussion on how the next MP for Foyle will address and support the cause of Palestine.

DIPSC have sent individual invitations to all the candidates from the political parties who are standing for election in the Foyle constituency.

The hustings will be an important opportunity for a robust and informative debate and the DIPSC hope that party candidates from across the political spectrum will attend.

The Derry IPSC is committed to raising awareness and fostering support for the rights of the Palestinian people.

The huge mobilisations for Palestine across the Foyle constituency shows that the Israeli war in Gaza is a major concern for voters of this region.

The DIPSC firmly believe that Palestine is the most important issue in this election.

This will be a unique opportunity for those seeking election to address the people of Derry on where they stand in relation to how the Palestinian cause can be furthered.

Members of the press are welcome to attend, and we encourage the public to join us in what promises to be a compelling and significant event.
Two Derry astro-photographers have been selected for the next stage of the prestigious Reach for the Stars astrophotography competition, run by the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS).

The competition aims to find the best astro-photographs taken in Ireland over the past year.

Patryk Sadowski has been shortlisted in the Back on Earth - Landmark category for his image Pink Moon Rising over Grianan and Back on Earth  Landscape category for his image Fanad Head  Aurora 2024.

While Derry's Ronald McClelland has been shortlisted in the Back on Earth - Landmark category for his image The Flare.

While a high-profile judging panel will select the overall winning entries in the coming weeks, an online vote was launched today (13.06.24), so members of the public can also have their say.

All shortlisted images can now be viewed on the Reach for the Stars website, www.reachforthestars.ie, and members of the public can cast their vote for their favourite image.

Over 230 images were submitted to the competition in total this year  the most ever received  with 50 selected for the shortlist and public vote. Entrants were invited to submit entries across five distinct categories in the competition:

Night Sky in Your Hand: Images taken with only a smartphone, and without telescopes, of an astronomical scene. Out of this World  Planetary: Images of the planets, sun and moon. Out of this World  Deep Sky: Images of celestial objects that exist outside our solar system such as nebulae, star clusters, and galaxies. Back on Earth  Landscape: Images that depict a feature of astronomical interest as a prominent feature and elements such as nature, land or water. Back on Earth  Landmark: Images that depict a feature of astronomical interest as a prominent feature and elements such as cityscapes, buildings, houses, historical structures or monuments.

The winning images selected by the judging panel and the public vote will be announced in July, and an outdoor exhibition will be staged by DIAS to showcase the best images.

Alongside the winner of the Public Choice Award, the overall winners will be chosen by the judging panel for Reach for the Stars, which includes: Professor Peter Gallagher, Head of Astrophysics at DIAS; Brenda Fitzsimons, Picture Editor of The Irish Times; Michael McCreary, President of the Irish Astronomical Society; and Niamh Breathnach, Director, Alice Public Relations.

Ronald McClelland has been shortlisted in the Back on Earth - Landmark category for his image The Flare

Commenting today, Dr. Eucharia Meehan, CEO and Registrar of DIAS, said: The online public vote to select the winner of the Public Choice Award is a chance for the public to have their say in this years top astro-photographs. The online exhibition is a great opportunity for people to learn about our solar system, the galaxies around us and what lies in the night sky. It will be a difficult task to choose a favourite from the shortlisted entries!

Im so impressed by the level of creativity and skill we have amongst photographers in Derry and right across the country. This year has seen the highest number of entries in the history of the competition, and we hope to see the interest in our night skies continue to grow.

Also, commenting today (13.06.24), Professor Peter Gallagher of DIAS said: Im delighted to return for a fourth year of judging for the Reach for the Stars competition. Photographers have shown great creativity and technical skill capturing everything, from stars and galaxies that are millions of light years away to stunning scenery back on earth.

We hope the people of Derry will get involved again this year and have their say by voting for their favourite image.

Votes for the Public Choice Award are restricted to one vote per person, and voting will close at midday on Friday, 5th July 2024.

Shortlisted images can be viewed on Reach for the Stars, where members of the public can cast their vote for their favourite image.
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Legacy tier-1s find themselves in tight spot as automakers transfer cost pressure

Legacy automotive tier-1 suppliers are in hot water because major automakers face fierce competition and scale back their EV investments. Carmakers continue to pressure tier-1s, saying suppliers might be kicked out of the supply chain if they cannot reduce prices as needed.

Supply chain sources said legacy tier-1s are impacted as carmakers meet difficulties in transformation. Many tier-1 companies invested significantly in new projects per automaker's requests but did not receive the number of orders that they had expected. In the second half of 2023, some tier-1 suppliers had to sell or restructure business units that did not achieve desirable profits.

Due to fluctuating vehicle sales and price competition from Chinese carmakers, major automakers are shifting their pressure to tier-1s. Stellantis, the world's fourth-largest car company, said if the supply chain does not accelerate new technology development and cut costs simultaneously, the company might increase the portion of self-produced components and stop working with some existing suppliers.

According to media reports, legacy tier-1s like Valeo, Continental, Magna, Forvia, and Aptiv will suffer as they are Stellantis' primary tier-1 suppliers.

Stellantis owns several vehicle brands that focus on the mass market and are directly impacted by China's low-cost vehicles. To counter the threat, Stellantis has obtained a stake in China-based Leapmotor, adding a new brand and new tier-1 suppliers to the group.

As automotive electrification continues, many European car brands, including Germany's Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz, and BMW, have partnered with China-based automakers. In the future, they will likely adopt an approach similar to Stellantis'.

Sources said legacy tier-1s have started to lose their advantages as carmakers hit roadblocks in electrification and new tier-1 suppliers rise. Moreover, legacy suppliers have yet to see their efforts in partnering with China-based emerging automakers paid off. These car companies tend to work with domestic suppliers to deal with the price war. The collaboration can also receive government subsidies.
Icarus on fire: the heat of China's solar market battle

The global solar industry is on the brink of a significant transformation as the transition from P-type PERC to N-type TOPCon solar modules gains momentum.

Market analysts forecast a full-scale shift by 2024, driven primarily by China's dominant supply chain, which commands over 80% of global market share. This rapid pivot to N-type modules has precipitated a fresh wave of oversupply, with production capacity tripling and prices plummeting by 70%.

At the SNEC PV+ 17th (2024) International Photovoltaic Power Generation and Smart Energy Conference & Exhibition in China, industry leaders voiced their concerns about the sector's aggressive competitive dynamics. The rapid expansion of China's TOPCon production, coupled with a slowdown in demand, has led to fierce internal competition and unsustainable pricing.

China's solar industry, which has long dominated the global market, is no stranger to trade wars. These conflicts have historically spurred rapid domestic market development. However, 2024 brings new challenges: grid bottlenecks, policy shifts, and market uncertainties have clouded the domestic outlook, exacerbating oversupply and competitive pressures.

The Southeast Asian supply chain, led by Chinese manufacturers, is expected to be a focal point in 2024. The expiration of the US exemption for bifacial modules from Southeast Asia in June will subject these imports to tariffs, dampening the already limited momentum for solar installations in the US market. This has led many Chinese factories in Southeast Asia to scale back production.

Adding to the uncertainty, the US is preparing a second wave of anti-subsidy and anti-dumping investigations targeting Southeast Asian imports. Chinese companies, anticipating these moves, acknowledge the relatively limited TOPCon cell production capacity in Southeast Asia. For Chinese firms already facing losses, the unclear outlook diminishes the urgency for further investment.

Regions without trade barriers are emerging as key targets for Chinese module sales, where the competitive edge of Chinese-manufactured prices surpasses those from Southeast Asia. This situation has led to an internal rivalry between Chinese companies, with Taiwan closely monitoring the influx of Southeast Asian modules and its impact on local manufacturers.

During the conference, GCL Group underscored the necessity of international expansion for future opportunities, asserting that global market penetration is inevitable for China's solar industry. Trina Solar criticized the uncoordinated investments and excessive profit-seeking driven by capital markets, along with overambitious local government investment drives. They called for a new development framework, emphasizing industry-academia collaboration, technological innovation, and strengthened intellectual property protection.

Industry insiders highlight the robust ecosystem of China's solar supply chain, bolstered by substantial capital and policy support. The global push towards net-zero carbon emissions has further fueled cross-industry integration, encompassing renewable energy, energy storage, charging stations, and electric vehicles.

Despite the challenges, the rapid upgrade to TOPCon technology, characterized by low technical barriers and aggressive capacity expansion, has resulted in a production capacity estimated to be three times China's domestic demand. While oversupply was anticipated, it is unlikely to deter new entrants from ramping up their investments in this burgeoning sector.
China-based National Silicon Industry to double wafer production capacity to foster self-reliant chip ecosystem

National Silicon Industry, the top wafer provider in China by market share, announced a plan to double its wafer production as the country has been growing its self-reliant semiconductor ecosystem.

According to an official announcement on June 12, China-based National Silicon Industry plans to invest CNY13.2 billion (approximately US$1.82 billion) to double its production capacity of 300mm silicon wafers for integrated circuits. Following completion, the company's monthly capacity for 300mm wafers will increase from the current 600,000 wafers to 1.2 million wafers.

The third-phase investment includes Taiyuan and Shanghai projects. The Taiyuan project is expected to have a total investment of about CNY9.1 billion, with an epitaxy capacity of 600,000 wafers per month and a cutting, grinding, and polishing capacity of 200,000. The Shanghai project is expected to have a total investment of approximately CNY4.1 billion, with a monthly cutting, grinding, and polishing capacity of 400,000 wafers.

According to the announcement, this investment aims to align with China's semiconductor development strategy, advance its long-term strategic goals, optimize its portfolio, enhance competitiveness, and capitalize on opportunities to expand its market share.

According to Chinastarmarket, as of the end of 2023, National Silicon Industry had achieved a total monthly production capacity of 450,000 300mm wafers, reaching full production output for its first-phase project. The company is expected to complete its second-phase project and reach its target monthly production capacity of 600,000 300 mm wafers by the end of 2024.

Chinastarmarket reported, citing an unnamed source at National Silicon Industry, that the expansion is driven by anticipated future demand. Despite the company's performance being somewhat impacted in 2023 by cyclical factors in the semiconductor industry, they remain optimistic about the medium to long-term outlook. They point to the rapid advancements in new energy vehicles, big data, and AI as key drivers for sustained growth in the semiconductor industry.

According to National Silicon Industry's annual report, its sales fell from CNY3.6 billion in 2022 to CNY3.19 billion in 2023. Profits attributable to shareholders declined by 42.61% to CNY1.8 billion for the same period.

National Silicon Industry Financial Summary (CNYm) Financial 2022 2023 YoY (%) Sales 3,600.36 3,190.30 -11.39 Profits attributable to shareholders 325.03 186.54 -42.61

Source: National Silicon Industry, April 2024
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Dundalk Chamber of Commerce in association with the Cross Border Partnership for Employment Services hosted a free Tax Breakfast on Tax Implications for Cross Border Workers & Employers in the Cross Border Region on Wednesday the 12th June in the Ballymascanlon Hotel.

Attended by over 100 delegates the event covered topics such as redundancy payments, pensions lump sums, tax relief on pension contributions and tax requirements for the cross-border worker.

Also discussed at the event was the implications and updates for employing cross border workers and the implications and updates for employers with staff members who work in both jurisictions.

Speakers also covered social insurance benefits and pensions in a cross border situation.

Speakers at the event were Brenda McGeeney Adviser for the Cross Border Partnership for Employment Services, and Rose Tierney of Tierney Tax Consultancy.

Pat McCormick, President of Dundalk Chamber, said he was delighted with the attendance at the event and how important these issues are for cross border workers and employers

For more information on the Cross Border Partnership Employment Services and how it can assist you log on to www.cbpes.com

For a copy of the presentation email brenda@dundalk.ie or call Dundalk Chamber on 042 9336343
Business leaders and stakeholders from across the island are gathering in Dundalk today, for the annual Ibec/CBI Northern Ireland All-Island Economy Conference to consider shared policy concerns including energy, infrastructure, investment and the All-island Labour Market.

Commenting ahead of the conference, the Ibec-CBI Joint Business Council said that many aspects of the all-island economy have performed strongly despite the challenges of Brexit but there are a number of areas which would benefit from further cooperation.

In particular, it said, it is clear to business leaders that there is an urgent need to progress North/South policy coordination to protect the Single Electricity Market, secure the islands energy supply and meet legally mandated Net Zero climate action goals. There is also a need to address obstacles to cross-border working to take full advantage of the All-Island Labour Market.

Ibec CEO Danny McCoy said: There is a lot of political change happening both on the islands of Ireland and Britain this year, and it is important we push forward with an all-island economic agenda that can deliver real opportunities on both sides of the Irish border.

"With restored political stability in Northern Ireland and a functioning North-South Ministerial Council (NSMC), businesses across the island of Ireland are looking to policies that can maximise economic benefits from cross-border cooperation. Ibec, along with our partners at CBI, believes that constructive conversations and concrete actions are key to securing and propelling prosperity.

"Collaboration across key areas such as infrastructure, the labour market and energy will underpin this effort, as will the new macroeconomic model for the all-island economy, which will inform future opportunities."

Setting out the Ibec/CBI Joint Business Councils priorities for 2024, Angela McGowan, Director, CBI Northern Ireland, said: We are delighted to again support this joint annual conference, which comes at a pivotal time for the all-Island economy following the restoration of the Northern Ireland Executive and Stormont Assembly.

"Significant shifts in geopolitics, supply chains, energy sources and labour markets, make it even more important for business and policy makers to collaborate on the best way forward for the all-island economy. With good co-operation in a range of areas combined with high levels of ambition, we can maximize the economic benefits and build long term resilience for both economies.

"The business community want to see good collaboration both North-South and East-West. Firms are hungry to reap all the potential advantages that a well-developed all-island economy can deliver. These advantages include: a bigger market for sales and supply chains, a greater labour market pool, improved connectivity for trade, tourists and workers as well as access to a secure supply of cheaper green energy. By working together, we are much more likely to deliver that economic prize.

The key priorities for the Ibec/CBI Northern Ireland Joint Business Council are:
Above: Ian Snowden, Permanent Secretary, Department of the Economy NI, Emer Deane, Assistant Secretary, Department of the Taoiseach, Angela McGown: Regional Director CBI NI Podium, Danny McCoy, Ibec CEO, Dr. Adele Bergin, Associate Research Professor, Esri and Fergal O'Brien, Executive Director of Lobbying and Influence at Ibec

Business leaders and stakeholders from across the island gathered in Dundalk today for the annual Ibec/CBI Northern Ireland All-Island Economy Conference. They discussed shared policy concerns including energy, infrastructure, investment, and the All-Island Labour Market.

Delegates heard how the restoration of power-sharing in Northern Ireland, as well as the expected political changes in the UK and Ireland this year, can be harnessed to create greater economic opportunities for the island as a whole.

Emer Deane, Assistant Secretary of the British and Northern Ireland Affairs Division, and Ian Snowden, Permanent Secretary of the Department for the Economy, were among the keynote speakers outlining the North and South governments' focus on all-island cooperation.

Many aspects of the all-island economy have performed strongly, the conference hears, despite the challenges of Brexit but there are a number of areas which would benefit from further cooperation.

In a statement from IBEC, it said that, in particular, it is clear to business leaders that there is an urgent need to progress North/South policy coordination to protect the Single Electricity Market, secure the islands energy supply and meet legally mandated Net Zero climate action goals. There is also a need to address obstacles to cross-border working to take full advantage of the All-Island Labour Market.

Ibec CEO Danny McCoy said ahead of the conference: There is a lot of political change happening both on the islands of Ireland and Britain this year, and it is important we push forward with an all-island economic agenda that can deliver real opportunities on both sides of the Irish border.

"With restored political stability in Northern Ireland and a functioning North-South Ministerial Council (NSMC), businesses across the island of Ireland are looking to policies that can maximise economic benefits from cross-border cooperation. Ibec, along with our partners at CBI, believes that constructive conversations and concrete actions are key to securing and propelling prosperity.

"Collaboration across key areas such as infrastructure, the labour market and energy will underpin this effort, as will the new macroeconomic model for the all-island economy, which will inform future opportunities."

Setting out the Ibec/CBI Joint Business Councils priorities for 2024, Angela McGowan, Director, CBI Northern Ireland, said: We are delighted to again support this joint annual conference, which comes at a pivotal time for the all-Island economy following the restoration of the Northern Ireland Executive and Stormont Assembly.

Significant shifts in geopolitics, supply chains, energy sources and labour markets, make it even more important for business and policy makers to collaborate on the best way forward for the all-island economy. With good co-operation in a range of areas combined with high levels of ambition, we can maximize the economic benefits and build long term resilience for both economies.

"The business community want to see good collaboration both North-South and East-West. Firms are hungry to reap all the potential advantages that a well-developed all-island economy can deliver.

"These advantages include: a bigger market for sales and supply chains, a greater labour market pool, improved connectivity for trade, tourists and workers as well as access to a secure supply of cheaper green energy. By working together, we are much more likely to deliver that economic prize.

The key priorities for the Ibec/CBI Northern Ireland Joint Business Council are:
Fianna Fail has retained its seats in the European Parliament, as a fifth day of counting also saw two MEPs lose their place.

Sinn Fein representative Chris MacManus was eliminated from the running in Midlands-North-West as the party claimed his running mate had a fighting chance of reclaiming the seat while the Greens Grace OSullivan was excluded from the running in Ireland South.

Both had sat as MEPs in the Left grouping within the Parliament.

Meanwhile in Ireland South, Fianna Fails Billy Kelleher was re-elected as an MEP, calling it a crowning moment.

He celebrated with his family, colleagues and Tanaiste Micheal Martin, who said the party was hopeful of clinching a second seat in the South constituency.

Occurring after the re-election of Barry Andrews in Dublin, it means Fianna Fail has held on to its two seats in Europe with the possibility of claiming two more.

In Midlands-North-West, left-wing independent Luke Ming Flanagan was re-elected on the 19th count.

The first MEP to be elected for the region in the days-long count made a vow to constituents: Im certainly not going to let you down, youve been let down too often  youre not going to be let down by me.

The lengthy counting of ballot papers continues in Ireland, with seven MEPs left to be elected in the final counts at two massive constituencies.

Irish voters headed to the polls last Friday to pick 949 local councillors, 14 members of the European Parliament and the countrys first directly elected mayor.

Results emerging from the three elections have been seen as a political boon for coalition partners Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, while the largest opposition party, Sinn Fein, has initiated a review after performing well below its own expectations.

In the European elections, Sinn Fein is expected to increase its tally of MEPs despite Mr MacManus being eliminated from the running on Thursday morning.

Unpredictable transfers, which political commentators said were not following traditional patterns, are adding to the drama of who will claim the final seats.

In Ireland South, Fine Gaels Sean Kelly was deemed elected after the first count on Monday but it has taken days to fill the other positions.

Sinn Fein TD Kathleen Funchion has remained in a good position to take a seat after attracting 60% of her running mates transfers on Wednesday, as well as transfers from the Social Democrats Susan Doyle.

Independent TD Michael McNamara is also in a good position to take a seat.

Fianna Fail candidate and 1994 Eurovision host Cynthia Ni Mhurchu and outgoing MEP Mick Wallace are battling it out for the final seat, which are to be decided by the redistribution of votes for Ms OSullivans votes.

Ms OSullivan voiced her concerns about Irelands representation in the European Parliament on climate issues without any Green MEP  after her party colleagues were eliminated in the other constituencies, including Ciaran Cuffe who failed to retain his seat in Dublin.

Calling her comments the swan song, she said it was up to government parties to speak up on the need for action to tackle climate change.

In Midlands-North-West, the top three candidates for the remaining four seats are in a tight grouping going into the last counts.

They are Fine Gael candidates Nina Carberry, a former jockey, and Maria Walsh, who is seeking re-election, followed by Fianna Fail TD Barry Cowen.

Mr Cowen is likely to be helped significantly by transfers from his running mate Lisa Chambers despite the partys campaign in the constituency being marred by infighting.

It leaves Independent Ireland candidate and former RTE correspondent Ciaran Mullooly fighting it out with Sinn Fein representative Michelle Gildernew for the fifth and final seat.

On Tuesday night, the four MEPs who will represent Dublin in the European Parliament were elected at the end of three days of counting.

Fine Gaels Regina Doherty, Fianna Fails Barry Andrews, Sinn Feins Lynn Boylan and Labours Aodhan O Riordain all confirmed their places on the continent.

The count saw the elimination of Mr Cuffe and independent incumbent Clare Daly.

While the European picture is incomplete, Fianna Fail emerged as the largest party in local government after all seats in Irelands local election were filled.

The party won out in the battle for the remaining seats, putting them on a total of 248 seats compared with Fine Gaels 245.

In the local elections, both main Government parties attracted around 23% of first preference votes, representing a slight drop on their 2019 result.

Sinn Fein has 102 councillors, an increase on 81 council seats won in 2019, but party leader Mary Lou McDonald has admitted the result fell below their expectations.

The popular vote of 12% is a dramatic turnaround in fortunes for the main opposition party which emerged from the 2020 general election on 24.5%.

Meanwhile, the Labour party is down one to 56 councillors, the Green Partys support fell to 26 council seats while the Social Democrats share rose to 35.

The number of Independent councillors has also increased.

The results have fuelled speculation that the Government may look to call a general election earlier than the current projected timeline of spring 2025.

However, the leaders of all three coalition parties, Taoiseach Simon Harris, Mr Martin and Green Party leader Eamon Ryan, have all insisted they remain committed to the government going full term.

For her part, Sinn Fein leader Ms McDonald, who is facing questions over her stewardship of the party, has struck a defiant tone, urging Mr Harris to bring it on and call an early election.

With Mr O Riordain a sitting TD, and other TDs in contention for the remaining European seats, there will be a need for at least one by-election in the coming six months.

That has added to speculation that the Government may seek an earlier general election, rather than fighting several potential by-elections only months before the Dail is dissolved.

Elsewhere, in a landmark poll in Limerick for Irelands first directly elected mayor, independent candidate John Moran secured victory late on Tuesday afternoon.
Luke Ming Flanagan has been re-elected as an MEP in Midlands-North-West after days of vote counting.

Mr Flanagan, an independent in the Left grouping, is the first person to be elected in the five-seat constituency.

He reached the quota on Thursday evening after the 19th count, helped by thousands of transfers following the redistribution of votes for Aountu leader Peadar Toibin, who was eliminated in the previous round.

Family and supporters hoisted him into the air on their shoulders, as he chanted Viva Palestina and Championes.

Speaking after his election, an emotional Mr Flanagan said: Im elated and just honoured to get the opportunity for the third time to represent this constituency.

Theres a few people not here today  my mother, my father and my father-in-law. Im missing you all.

Its just absolutely brilliant, its beyond my wildest dreams  thanks Midlands-North-West.

In a further message to voters, he said: Im certainly not going to let you down, youve been let down too often  youre not going to be let down by me.

Mr Flanagan said he wanted to secure his place on the European Parliaments Agriculture Committee to get real justice for farmers in his constituency.

He also said he would go to the petitions committee to get justice for people affected by defective concrete blocks in their homes.

Mr Flanagan also called on other Irish MEPs not to support the re-election of Ursula von der Leyen as European Commission President.

Asked how he would celebrate, Mr Flanagan said he would relax and have an Indian meal: Im looking forward to some peshwari naan bread  I cant wait for it.

Mr Flanagans election also saw the elimination of Fianna Fails Lisa Chambers, whose votes are being redistributed to five candidates vying for the remaining four seats at the TF Royal Theatre count centre in Castlebar, Co Mayo.

The top three are in a tight grouping going into the final counts. They are Fine Gael candidates Nina Carberry, a former champion jockey, and Maria Walsh, who is seeking re-election, followed by Fianna Fail TD Barry Cowen.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Ms Carberry said she was overwhelmed by the amount of people who believe in her.

She said: It is amazing and I really want to do them proud now.

Ms Carberry said she did her fair share of debates, but added that her campaign was about getting out and meeting the people.

She said she wanted to be a strong voice for farmers and those in the Dublin commuter belt.

Later, asked if Fine Gael was running a strategy of fielding celebrity candidates, party leader and Taoiseach Simon Harris described the characterisation as pejorative and said: Nina Carberry is not a celebrity  shes a champion.

He further defended her electoral strategy by saying she had resounding support from the people of Midlands-North-West.

Mr Harris said he was absolutely ecstatic with the expected election of his partys candidates.

Meanwhile, Ms Walsh said she would be voting for Ursula von der Leyen if she is nominated by the Council.

Mr Cowen is likely to be helped significantly by transfers from his running mate Lisa Chambers despite the partys campaign in the constituency being marred by infighting.

It leaves Independent Ireland candidate and former RTE correspondent Ciaran Mullooly fighting it out with Sinn Fein representative Michelle Gildernew for the fifth and final seat.

Mr Mullooly has a 4,000 vote lead over Ms Gildernew going in to the end of the race.

Earlier, Sinn Fein representative Chris MacManus became the third MEP to lose his seat nationwide.

Speaking following his elimination, Mr MacManus said: I left nothing on the pitch.

Me and my team worked as hard as we could over the last number of weeks during the actual campaign.

Asked if he would consider running in a general election, Mr MacManus said: I dont think its the last time youll see my MacManus name on a ballot paper.

Earlier in the counting, Ms Gildernew almost ruled herself out of the race after saying she was not overly optimistic about catching Mr Mullooly.

But Sinn Fein later insisted it still had a fighting chance for that final spot  and transfers from Mr McManus significantly closed the gap.

Unpredictable transfers, which political commentators said were not following traditional patterns, are adding to the drama of who would claim the final seats.
Zambia tourism body seeks stronger cooperation with China

Xinhua) 11:23, June 13, 2024

LUSAKA, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Officials at the Tourism Council of Zambia (TCZ) have said that the council wants to see increased cooperation with China.

The TCZ is keen to tap into the huge Chinese market to boost Zambia's tourism, said Tecla Zondiwe-Ngwenya, the TCZ treasurer.

"It is a market that we are paying much attention to and respect," she said in an interview Wednesday.

The Chinese are welcome to visit tourist sites in Zambia and invest in various untapped tourism areas in the country, Zondiwe-Ngwenya said.

She said the Zambian government's decision to include China in the visa waiver initiative was made with the consideration of the potential China could add to Zambia's tourism growth, adding that plans to introduce direct flights between the two countries will go a long way in boosting both tourism and trade cooperation.

Victor Inambwae, the TCZ chief executive officer, applauded the cordial cooperation between the two countries in various sectors, including cultural exchanges and tourism.

He said the launch of the 2024 Zambia-China Culture and Tourism Year last month in China, which included not only a display of Zambia's rich culture but also a promotional session for Zambian tourism attended by nearly 1,000 industry professionals from the two countries, would go a long way in enhancing the tourism cooperation between the two countries.

China has played a pivotal role in supporting Zambia's tourism, Inambwae said, citing the construction of the TAZARA Memorial Park, in Chongwe district in Lusaka Province, as one example of helping attract more international tourists.

Stephen Mwansa, a TCZ service-level consultant, said the two countries stand to benefit from enhanced cooperation in the tourism sector as Zambia has many tourist areas that have not been developed and need investments from countries like China.

He said China could also help promote Zambia's tourism resources.

"As you know China has constructed a lot of infrastructure here which could be marketed," he said.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
Snap Ireland has received dual recognition as the Franchise of the Year at the InBusiness Chambers Ireland Recognition Awards 2024 as well as at the Irish Franchise Association Awards.

The honour of taking home two prestigious awards highlights Snap Irelands commitment to excellence and innovation, not only in the franchising industry but also the design and branding arena in Ireland.

With more than four decades of experience, Snap Ireland has proved to be the preferred partner for more than 70% of top Irish businesses.

Renowned for its unparalleled array of offerings, Snap provides a diverse range of solutions including graphic design, print, signage, corporate gifts, branded clothing, web design, video design, and more.

This versatility has solidified Snaps reputation as a leading service provider, catering to the design, print and branding needs of businesses across the nation, who wish to market or promote their business.

The award was accepted by Sean Murray, CEO of Snap Ireland, during the awards ceremony, hosted by Ian Talbot, chief executive at Chambers Ireland and ICC Ireland.

We are honored to receive the Franchise of the Year Award, remarked Mr Murray.

This achievement underscores our teams commitment to delivering top-notch service and innovative solutions to our clients.

It is a testament to the hard work of our team members who continually strive for excellence.

For businesses seeking to explore Snaps services, including bespoke design and branding solutions tailored to their unique requirements, see:

https://www.snap.ie/contactacentre
LIMERICK might have the countrys first directly elected civic mayor, but one West Cork town would argue its a decade ahead of the Treaty City.

Last weekend, Clonakilty held its third mayoral election in 10 years, with 1,722 locals turning out to Scoil na mBuachailli to vote for the towns voluntary, non-political, community-led mayor.

The five candidates with the highest number of votes will each serve a year in the role.

There were nine candidates on the ballot paper: Yousuf Janab Ali, Brendan Collins, Anna Groniecka, Chris Hinchy, Anthony McDermott, Evie Nevin, Conan ODonovan, Eileen Sheppard, and James White.

Polls opened in the school at 10am on Saturday and closed at 7pm, and for over seven hours on Sunday, and across seven counts, some 30 volunteers managed the vote and count.

On Sunday, four volunteer counters, Donal ODonovan, Marian Cadogan, Ger ODriscoll, and Ted Murphy, under the supervision of Jerome JC OSullivan and Tomas Tuipear of the Duchas Clonakilty Heritage mayoral sub-committee, worked all day without a break in ODonovans Hotel.

The first count saw Eileen Sheppard receiving 516 first preferences, and Conan ODonovan 317, with both deemed elected.

Yousuf Janab Ali was next with 241 votes and was elected on the fourth count, followed by James White on 172 who got the fourth seat on the fifth count when he exceeded the quota.

It went down to the wire  and the ninth count  before Anthony McDermott beat Chris Hinchy by 10 votes, with Mr McDermott elected without reaching the quota.

It was around 5.15pm when Jerome JC OSullivan formally announced the successful candidates in order of election: Eileen Sheppard, Conan ODonovan, Yousuf Janab Ali, James White, and Anthony McDermott.

The installation of Ms Sheppard as mayor and Mr ODonovan as deputy mayor for the next year will take place at a public ceremony at 7pm this evening in Asna Square, to which all are invited.
ONE of north Corks most famed restaurants and hotels, Longueville House, has been earmarked to accommodate 123 international protection applicants, according to a briefing note sent to local TDs by the community engagement team at the Department of Children, Equality, Diversity, Integration, and Youth.

The note was sent yesterday and stipulated that the applicants would be housed in 27 rooms at the establishment near Ballyclogh, not far from the town of Mallow, and said that all relevant State support services in the area had been informed of what was planned.

They are preparing what additional supports will be needed to assist these people settle in to the local community, the note said.

Ireland is legally required under EU law to provide accommodation for people seeking international protection here. As we are sure you are aware, this is a nationwide urgent situation and emergency centres, such as this one have been opened in all parts of the country. All counties in Ireland are providing help and assistance with this.

There have been over 190 accommodation locations utilised since January 2022 across 26 counties. These options must be considered to prevent homelessness for people with their families and children arriving seeking international protection.

The document seen by The Echo was sent to a number of TDs.

Councillors contacted by this newspaper last night were unaware of the briefing note or its contents.

Longueville House and the Department of Children, Equality, Diversity, Integration and Youth were contacted for comment.
A TIPPERARY man who was absent without leave (AWOL) from a trainee post in the Irish army attacked a taxi driver by punching him three times in the face during a late night violent incident.

The assault on the taxi driver occurred in Bishopstown when the accused man and another man were travelling as backseat passengers.

Mark Beresford, aged 30, of Gortnataggart, Thurles, Co Tipperary, got out of the car, opened the drivers door, and from a standing position outside the car he punched the driver three times in the face causing him facial injury, from which he is still suffering the consequences three years later.

A fully suspended jail term was imposed on the assailant at Cork Circuit Criminal Court where he pleaded guilty to a charge of assault causing harm to the driver on May 1, 2021, at Curraheen Road, Bishopstown, Cork.

Defence barrister Mahon Corkery said the man brought compensation for the injured party to court in the sum of 2,000, and he wanted to gather 4,000 more.

Judge Cormac Quinn said it was a term of the suspension that the accused would hand over 4,000 to An Garda Siochana for onward transmission to the injured party.

Garda Danny Murray told the court that the taxi driver picked up the two men in Cork city that night and they asked to be driven to Thurles, Co Tipperary.

However, at Lower Glanmire Rd, they changed their mind and said that instead they wanted to be taken to Bishopstown.

The defendant argued with the driver at Bishopstown and he got out of the back seat.

He opened the drivers door and punched him three times in the face, Garda Murray said.

It later was established that Mr Beresford was AWOL from Defence Forces training at the time of this incident.

Judge Quinn said: This was an unprovoked attack on the taxi driver which has had a bad effect on the unfortunate driver. He has four children to provide for. He spends his time looking after his children or providing for them.

The judge said that previous public order convictions against the accused were an aggravating factor in the case.

Questioned about the assault by gardai, the defendant said he could not remember it but did not deny it happening.

Judge Quinn accepted that the defendant showed appropriate remorse and shame. The judge said: I will impose a sentence of 18 months. I will suspend it fully.

He is required to keep the peace for the next two years, present another 4,000 compensation by September and attend for all probation service appointments in the next 18 months. He is also required to engage with addiction services.
EVERY season has something unique to offer  youre coming into the spring of the year, theres new growth, the days are getting longer. In the summer, the island is a hive of activity. You go into autumn and its nice to kick down a gear after a hectic summer, you have the bird watching season and so on. Christmas is a lovely time of year to be on Cape Clear but January and February can be like anywhere with storms and what-not! We appreciate the summer all the more because of it.

So said Niamh Ni Dhrisceoil, a skipper for many summers of a ferry that brings people to and from Oilean Cleire/Cape Clear, Corks only Gaeltacht island community, and a science teacher in Ballincolligs Colaiste and Gaelcholaiste Choilm, while speaking to The Echo.

The teacher has stepped back from the ferry skipper role for the time being as her teaching responsibilities have increased but shes back and forth to the island every weekend during term time and spends the entire summer on the island. She can be occasionally called up for duty to substitute for ferry colleagues who may be off ill or on holidays.

Island life is challenging but its clear that Niamh is up for that  shes been involved in the local Gaeltacht co-operative for almost 20 years. Comharchumann Cleire Teo is, for all intents and purposes, the islands governing body  it has started a number of local businesses and runs the Irish Summer college on the island and, when it comes to representing the views of islanders, its the voice of the island on shore and internationally.

It was for her role in the Comharchumann that Niamh was recently awarded the runner up award in the social enterprise category of the Image Magazine Business Woman of the of the Year awards and she was also nominated for the Leadership Trailblazer of the Year award at the Women of Vision Awards in May.

For Niamh this is a vindication that islanders can stand toe to toe with people on the mainland notwithstanding or maybe even because of the challenges they face.

There are far more advantages than there are disadvantages and when you think about it, very often people think that coming from an island that it would hold you back or that it would be a disadvantage to you in some way.

But I was in a room last month with nearly a thousand people, business women of the highest calibre, extremely successful, and I came from an island with a population of around 130 people, one of many, and it certainly hasnt held me back at all.

Niamhs Comharchumann role has involved being to the forefront of a number of campaigns  including a project to build a number of houses on the island which would be aimed at attracting families with young children to come and live there and, most importantly, be educated in the local school. She is also a brand ambassador for 3Sq Miles Gin.

The Cape Clear Distillery, which makes 3Sq Mile, is one of a number of initiatives to boost life and business on the island. Another is a very successful G-tech remote working facility which provides desks and superfast broadband  this was developed by the Comharchumann in partnership with the Gaeltacht development authority, Udaras na Gaeltachta.

The Comharchumann is also involved in a housing venture, to ensure that they can provide homes for families who come to the island.

This is vital to ensure that the local school, which is at the heart of the community, stays open and continues to provide education on the island.

The plan to build the houses was hatched during covid when Niamh was able to spend 11 and a half weeks on the island in one block. We did a lot of work in the background, we purchased the site thats only about 200  300 metres from the local national school with the intention of developing a gateway housing initiative, it would have been our flagship project.

It would be a game-changer not just for Cape Clear but for all the islands of Ireland.

The idea at the back of the model is that we would have looked at studies on the Scottish islands who would have done a similar project.

Weve taken their ideas but weve refined it to better suit our context and, in Scotland, not only did they stop population decline but they reversed it.

Were hoping the gateway housing will attract people in, families in particular with children who will attend the primary school.

We found over the years that theres no scarcity of people who want to come to the island but theres a huge scarcity of housing accommodation for them.

Weve lost countless families in the last ten/fifteen years because of it.

Niamh explained that families could come for a year to try out island life  parents have taken career breaks, kids have attended school and enhanced their Irish; and though work circumstances may not have allowed them to move permanently to the island, they still have a very strong connection to it and return on a very regular basis.

Even those children who are now adults are returning on a regular basis as well, she said.

We have other families who would initially have come for a year but have remained on but ultimately would have wanted to build on the island.

They undertook their gateway housing project in order to have autonomy as they seek to keep the community life on the island as vibrant as ever and to avoid the possibility of the island being blighted by holiday homes which would be empty most of the year.

At least we have autonomy of the houses  if a family comes for a year and decides to move on, the houses are still owned by the island and available for another family.

We wont face the issue that we have an island full of holiday homes and locked up and not available to rent or, indeed, may not be suitable for winter inhabitation.

A recent survey carried out by Udaras na Gaeltachta found that there were far more holiday homes in some coastal Gaeltacht areas than there were homes for all-year residency.

The other thing about it is that the houses that are going on sale the prices are beyond reach of any local or islander  the last three properties that went on sale were sold off the internet without anyone coming to view the property, said Niamh.

Last year they encountered an issue with a gateway housing project which would have seen four new houses being built on the island. We put in for planning to build four houses initially and we were going to do this independently, she said.

We were advised to remove our application 24 hours before it was due to be deliberated on because we fell between two policies  so local policy is in favour of cluster housing, national policy is also in favour of cluster housing but only within a certain limit of a town or village and the issue there is that there are no towns or villages on the island.

This policy is anchored, of course, in a mainland understanding of community life because although theres no town or village on the island, it is nonetheless a vibrant community.

While this is a setback, it hasnt halted the project in the sense that the Comharchumann is in discussions with local councillors and the county council to see what can be done.

To get the planning over the line, were falling between a rock and a hard place and that would a common trait on all islands.

Were working really, really hard and were facing the exact same challenges as our mainland counterparts but these challenges are exacerbated because of the nine miles of salt water that separates the two, she said, mentioning for instance the higher cost to bring building materials on to the island or the greater difficulty in getting tradespeople over as other difficulties, apart from policy matters, which they face.

Policies that are tailored for mainland living impede progress because theyre ill-suited to an island context thus hindering effective solutions like the one we proposed  think square pegs to round holes.

This is the missing piece in the jigsaw as far as Niamh is concerned and the issue she highlighted about the different contexts for island and mainland life are, for instance, mentioned in the Housing Commission Report published in May which urged the provision of dedicated supports to island and Gaeltacht communities to ensure their long term viability.

Everything weve been doing, working concurrently with the various projects, a rising tide floats all boats, and once we rectify the housing issue, everything else will pay dividends.

If we get our gateway housing, it will be a game-changer, not just for us but it could be a model adapted by all of Irelands islands.
DISABILITIES Minister Ann Rabbitte has said that she needs Corks Rainbow Club to have a fit-for-purpose premises for autistic children.

Ms Rabbitte was speaking to The Echo after she confirmed in the Dail that a Mahon premises, which was previously owned by the HSE, will this week be signed over to Cork City Council.

Once the premises is handed over, the local authority is expected to seek expressions of interest in the building from community and charity groups.

The Rainbow Club, which provides a lifeline to families living with autism, was founded by Karen and Jon OMahony, whose sons, Sean and Stephen, are autistic.

In October 2022, the then taoiseach Micheal Martin told a fundraising ball for the Rainbow Club that he was hopeful that the HSE property could be transferred to the council within weeks, and he expressed the hope that it might be made available to the club.

The transfer looks set to be completed this week, and while Ms Rabbitte said she was hopeful that the Rainbow Club would soon have a premises, she did not link the charity to the former HSE site.

She said that the Cork charity was providing vital services and pledged to support it.

I need the Rainbow Club. It is delivering 1,200 interventions a week, in its current environment. I need the Rainbow in a permanent, fit-for-purpose premises, Ms Rabbitte said.

She added that she had been begging for the former HSE premises to be transferred to the city council.

While it has been a long, slow, tedious, drawn-out process, it is now great to think that this Friday the city council will be in possession of a building that they can make available for a community-led initiative of need in the Mahon area.

Cork Fianna Fail TD Padraig OSullivan said he was hopeful that, pending a public consultation by the council, someone like the Rainbow Club would be the beneficiary.

Ms Rabbitte indicated to Mr OSullivan that if the Rainbow Club was successful in its application, she would make capital funding available for the refit of the premises.
WITH World Blood Donor Day tomorrow, the Irish Blood Transfusion Service (IBTS) in Cork is appealing for donors to come to a clinic in the city this afternoon, Thursday June 13.

The IBTS is holding a clinic this afternoon from 2.30pm to 6.50pm in Super Valu Pairc Ui Chaoimhs Seandun Suite.

New and regular donors are welcome to call in this afternoon, and while potential donors are asked to ring 1800 731 137 for an appointment if possible, the clinic is also welcoming walk-ins.

If you are interested in making a blood donation, please fill out the IBTS eligibility quiz on www.giveblood.ie to see if you are eligible to give blood.

Ahead of World Blood Donor Day on June 14, the 3rd class boys of St Anthonys Boys School in Ballinlough are helping to raise awareness by drawing some pictures and learning about the importance of blood donation.
Viral sensations Kabin Crew have been announced for this months Kaleidoscope Festival following the release of their highly-anticipated track The Spark.

Performers from Kabin Crew - a not-for-profit vibrant music and creative hub for young people on Cork citys northside - will take to the stage as part of RTEjrs Kaleidoscope Festival line-up at Wicklows Russborough House.

The festival news has been announced in conjunction with the release of their track The Spark featuring Lisdoonvarna Crew via Rubyworks / 95, which has gained over 350 million views since the video was released on YouTube as part of the Cruinniu na nOg festival.

The response has been amazing, said Garry McCarthy of GMCBeats, the creative director of the Kabin Studio and co-producer of The Spark.

The kids energy and positivity have inspired people worldwide. Its been all over TikTok especially. Its bonkers, weve never seen something like this.

The Spark was born from a spontaneous burst of creativity at Kabin Studio, a repurposed metal container turned into a non profit youth music space in Knocknaheeny on the northside of Cork city.

Established in 2012 with the support of Music Generation Cork City, Garry McCarthy said that The Kabin has grown out of a love for hip hop, songwriting, performance and building confidence within young people.

Kaleidoscope Festival will return to Russborough House in Blessington, Co Wicklow from June 28 to June 30 with its biggest programme of events of all ages.

Global music stars The Kooks and The Waterboys will headline the festival, alongside homegrown talent Lyra, Dec Pierces Block Rockin Beats and King Kong Company.

There will also be hundreds of family shows, activities and surprises over the three days of the family music camping festival for the whole family to enjoy.

Tickets and full festival line-up now available at Ticketmaster and kaleidoscopefestival.ie.
A FORMER scout leader was described yesterday by the victims of his sexual assaults more than 30 years ago as an animal and a monster and they expressed the hope that justice would be done.

Judge Helen Boyle jailed Michael Noel Sheehan, aged 78, of Chimneyfields, Glenville, County Cork, for four years, saying that at events that should have been fun and an adventure, they were preyed upon by you when you were in charge of their welfare.

The 78-year-old still refuses to accept any wrongdoing and rejects the unanimous decision of the jury, who found him guilty of indecently or sexually assaulting five boy scouts.

Through defence senior counsel, Ray Boland, Mr Sheehan complained about sharing a cell with two men in Cork prison who smoke. Prisons are one of the few places where the smoking ban does not apply.

Four of the five victims of the scout leaders sexual abuse spoke of the devastating effect that it had on their lives.

Three resorted to drink or drugs and some of them self-harmed.

VICTIM IMPACT STATEMENT

They read their victim-impact evidence in court, while the report from the fifth victim was handed in to the judge as he was not present for the sentencing.

The first young man said that the scouting motto of Bi ullamh, or Be prepared, was ironic as nothing could have prepared him for what happened at the hands of Sheehan on overnights for scouting weekends.

The shame I felt was torture. I did not want to have a child (when he got married) in case something similar happened to the child.

He tried to intimidate me in the corridors of the court house, standing in front of me with a smirk of arrogance  like a predator circling his prey  not getting a reaction no matter how much he poked the bear, the victim said.

He said he would not have a marriage or a job if he did not get counselling for his issues with authority figures.

This led to therapy, for which he is very grateful. He said he was glad to present the victim impact statement for his childhood self who was abused by Sheehan.

The second victim was also sexually abused between the ages of 10 and 12 on scouting weekends.

Generally, the sexual abuse took the form of the defendant putting his hand inside the childs sleeping bag and fondling their genital area, inside or outside their clothing.

I felt frightened and ashamed and became very isolated. I turned to drink and drugs. (In court) seeing that animal for the first time since the abuse, making us out to be troublemakers, he said.

As with some of the other victims, this man blamed his own parents also for what Sheehan did to him, and felt they should have known or should have intervened.

The third man said he first made a complaint against the defendant 20 years ago but the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) decided not to prosecute.

He said he was contacted again by the gardai in 2021. After some consideration he decided that he would renew his complaint in the hope that it would protect children in the community. He has been slipping through the hands of the criminal justice system for far too long, he said.

The fourth man said his life had been destroyed and that he turned to alcohol at the age of 13 so that drink would help me with all these demons in my head.

Instead he got into more addictions to drugs and found himself going in and out of prison over the years.

I hope this monster gets what he deserves for what he done to me and the other kids. He absolutely destroyed us and our families, he said.

He was convicted by the unanimous decision of a jury of four women and eight men on 16 counts of indecent assault.

He pleaded not guilty to 17 charges at the outset of a six-week trial at Cork Circuit Criminal Court but on April 25 the jury told Judge Helen Boyle that they were unanimous in finding him guilty on 16 charges. A formal disagreement was recorded in respect of one count only.

Judge Boyle remanded the 78-year-old in jail for sentencing.

Prosecution barrister, Katherine McGillycuddy, told the trial that Sheehan was a scout master for a troop of scouts in Cork in the late 1980s and that he used to take the boys in the troop away on camping weekends.

She said five complainants described being indecently or sexually assaulted by the touching and fondling of their private parts both inside and outside their clothing during these camping weekends.

The defendant had been charged with six counts of indecent assault against each of two of complainants, three counts of indecent assault in respect of another complainant and one count of indecent assault against each of the other two complainants.

Sheehan had denied all the offences which occurred when his victims were aged between 10 and 13 at a scout hall at Old Schoolhouse, Chimneyfields, Glenville, some at Mount Melleray, County Waterford, and one at Drishane Castle, Millstreet, Co Cork.

I have unequivocal instructions that he does not accept the verdicts from the jury which precludes me from offering any remorse, defence senior counsel Ray Boland said.

In February 2022 the same defendant was convicted of indecently assaulting a boy scout in similar circumstances back in the 1980s and he was given a two-year sentence with the last year suspended.

These were all young boys, aged between 10 and 12. You were the leader of the scout troop and were the person in charge, Judge Helen Boyle said of indecent assaults on five young boys.

Events that should have been fun and adventure. Instead they were preyed upon by you when you were in charge of their welfare. Parents entitled to believe their children were safe, she said.

The only person to blame is you.

Judge Boyle said Sheehan was in a position of trust and abused that trust. She imposed a total sentence of four and a half years and suspended the last six months.

The judge commended the bravery of the victims for coming forward and the eloquence of their victim impact statements.
IRELAND is now emerging as a hub for Offshore Renewable Energy (ORE), with offshore wind recently taking centre-stage due to the proven commercial readiness of fixed offshore wind technology.

However, fixed offshore wind will not be suitable in all locations off our coast and if Ireland is to reach its ambitious target of net zero emissions by 2050, a mix of ORE solutions will be required.

In the shadows of offshore wind lately, somewhat forgotten about is the enormous potential for wave energy off our shores. The resource is particularly abundant off our Atlantic and Celtic Sea facing coasts.

The main reason wave energy has recently been overlooked, is the immaturity of the technology in comparison to offshore wind and the perception that it will not be a viable alternative anytime soon. However, the technology is now fast progressing.

An Irish wave energy technology developer, Ocean Energy based here in Cork, will soon test a scaled-up wave energy device in Scotland. The Cobh-registered company will trial their OE35 Wave Energy Converter (WEC) in open sea conditions at the European Marine Energy Centre (EMEC) in the Orkney Islands.

Meanwhile, Swedish based CorPower Oceans WEC is undergoing full-scale testing in the Atlantic Ocean off Portugal. CorPower estimate that a farm comprising their WEC technology will generate more electricity per square kilometre of ocean than an offshore wind farm with the same geographical footprint.

With technology evidently maturing, there are now plans for a full-scale wave energy demonstration project off the west coast of Ireland by the end of this decade. The 5MW Saoirse project, which is being developed by ESB and Corks Simply Blue Group, will use CorPower Oceans WEC technology in a pre-commercial array off Clare once sea trials in Portugal are complete. This will pave the way for future scaled-up commercial arrays elsewhere in Ireland into the 2030s.

With Corks massive coastline (approx. 1,200km) straddling both the Atlantic Ocean and Celtic Sea, it may come as no surprise that ours is a wave energy resource as plentiful as any.

The seas off Corks coast are also quite deep, particularly to the southwest. Similar to Floating Offshore Wind (FLOW), most wave energy devices can be deployed at depths beyond those at which fixed offshore wind becomes unviable (approx. >60m). With visual impact and supply chain issues an expected future challenge for FLOW in Ireland, wave energy holds the advantage of having almost no visual impact and requiring less port infrastructure for deployment in comparison to FLOW.

A recent scientific paper from MaREI at UCC has also indicated that the feasibility of commercial scale wave energy farms could be on par with that of FLOW if deployed in the right places, including Cork.

A figure from the diagram pictured top above, maps the levelized cost of wave energy off Ireland and the UK. This shows areas of highest feasibility in blue (lowest levelized cost) evidently hugging Corks coastline, particularly down along West Cork.

Ross OConnell (Post-Doctoral Researcher at MaREI, the SFI Research Centre for Energy, Climate and Marine coordinated by the Environmental Research Institute (ERI)

Renowned for its spectacular Wild Atlantic Way coastline, visual impact may be of particular significance in the nearshore areas of places like West Cork, thus indicating that wave energy may be a better option here than offshore wind. Furthermore, the possibility for a domestic supply chain utilising local ports and harbours could create jobs in remote coastal communities suffering from a declining fishing industry in recent years.

Further out to sea, where visual impact is less of a concern, there is also the prospect of combined offshore wind and wave energy arrays, a potentially good option for Cork given the abundant wind energy resource which also exists off our coast.

The concept, which acknowledges the often asynchronous relationship between wind and wave energy resource availability, is one where WEC devices could produce energy when wind power production is low, i.e. on a calm day when there is still a significant swell out at sea.

Whichever the concept, utilizing the natural forces of the ocean could revolutionise our regions energy landscape, providing us with a consistent and reliable source of clean energy and reducing our reliance on imported fossil fuels, whilst also having a positive impact on our coastal communities.

The development of wave farms off our coast would not only promise to create new job opportunities and stimulate rural economic growth but would also demonstrate Corks maritime embrace.

As the world shifts toward renewable energy solutions, County Cork has an opportunity to become a leader in wave energy harnessing, with offshore arrays powering our homes and businesses onshore in a more sustainable and energy secure future for the next generation.

Ross OConnell is a Post-Doctoral Researcher at MaREI, the SFI Research Centre for Energy, Climate and Marine, coordinated by the Environmental Research Institute (ERI) at University College Cork.
EACH time I go to Lourdes, I have a different experience, and each time I try and write about it - well, I just dont know where to start after my latest visit.

Its not that I havent a head full of thoughts and memories - in reality, after every single visit I could nearly write a small book!

So much to write, and yet I feel I cannot truly describe the very essence of what Lourdes is and what it means to me.

They say, if you want to know me, come live with me, and tis a bit like that with Lourdes.

Words are great, they are descriptive and can convey so much, but God, knows Ive written a lot about this special place in recent years and yet I often wonder - am I really explaining it correctly?

Then how can one put down in words the feelings of emotion, the little miracles that happen in Lourdes every day?

In midsummer, among the throngs of tens of thousands, or in deserted December, Lourdes means so much to me.

Im always thrilled when someone who has travelled to the little Village of St Bernadette for the first time says to me: John, I never, ever imagined it would be like this.

Yes, theyd read all about it, but nothing beats being there - I can guarantee anyone that!

Yet I write these lines a few days after coming home and once more and again Im fumbling and fostering trying to tap out the right words.

A difficult yet exquisitely beautiful task, as I attempt to paint a picture of the comings and goings, tears and laughter, songs and prayers of six amazing days.

Inspiration comes from the strangest of sources and in so many ways I am very lucky to meet people and hear things that give me that Wow feeling.

On Tuesday morning, I was over in Mallow for the launch of a lovely, informative booklet entitled Staying Well - a huge crowd attended. The guest speaker was former Mountjoy Governor John Lonergan.

Ive heard John speak several times before and he never fails to inspire. On Tuesday, however, he bowled me over with his train of thought. There was I turning and tossing things in my mind in relation to Lourdes and how it was for me and others this year. John was telling us of whats important and whats not.

He honed in on three aspects of life and living that are keys to happiness - kindness, gentleness and the ability to listen. Well, says I to meself, thats it, bingo - those three things summed up exactly what our trip to Lourdes this year was all about.

From the time we gathered at half six in the morning at Cork Airport until we returned six days later, the kindness and gentleness shown by so many was stunning.

It was back in March of 1971 that I - a curly, foxy-haired, freckly boy of 14, first went to Lourdes. The middle of five children, Mam took us all over, one by one, in successive years to a place that meant so much to her.

We left a squally, sleety Cork around 7am and were back Leeside about 7pm the following evening - with no sleep in between!

In truth, I remember little enough of that trip, which included an All Night Vigil at the Grotto. Two things I recalled - all the crutches and walking sticks stacked and piled in at the back of the Grotto, and eating cheval in our hotel.

Though I was studying French in St Colmans at the time, I could never, ever imagine any connection between the strongish-tasting dark meat and Arkle, LEscargot or Northern Dancer!

Last year, in our first year after three Lourdes-less Covid years, we were back as a Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes and Murphys Law came into play Anything that can go wrong will go wrong, and it did in spades!

The planes were late coming, flights delayed, buses missing at Tarbes Airport, eating our supper at nearly three in the morning...

This year it was the opposite -everything went like clockwork.

You know, the gathering of pilgrims at the airport in Cork is just one of the very special aspects of going to Lourdes.

Some from our own area wed have met now and then in the last 12 months and others from far-flung parts we had not since last years trip.

It was in 2007, to mark my 50 years on this mortal coil, that I decided to go back to Lourdes again after an absence of 36 years. Little did I think on June 1 of that year that the little town nestled under the Pyrenees would be like a magnet for me.

Since that day, I think Ive been back to Lourdes either 29 or 30 times, Wow is right.

This year, for the first time ever, our group of Youth Helpers drawn from our secondary schools were with all of us adult helpers, Doctors, nurses and assisted pilgrims on the first flight. That was just brilliant as these young people got to meet those theyd be working with all week.

As a group, they had met just once before travelling to Lourdes, and most didnt know what to expect. Oh, they were just a wonderful group, displaying such kindness and gentleness and tenderness to those in their care.

Maybe public displays of Christianity arent as popular as in days of yore, but actions speak louder than words and these teenagers were stunning. From the time we landed at Tarbes Airport just outside the town of Lourdes til our return the following Wednesday, their spirit of friendship and wanting to help was humbling.

It was brilliant to arrive at our destination early in the afternoon -plenty time to settle in and relax. We had close on 50 guests staying in the Accueil Notre Dame - we call it the Hospital, but in reality its more like a cross between a hotel and guest house. Some had been in Lourdes before, for many it was their first time.

There are nine official pilgrimage ceremonies across the six days, but our first afternoon was free so people had time to visit the Grotto -the heart of Lourdes.

Crossing the bridge from the Accueil and standing there before the Crowned Virgin Statue is like the rite of passage at the start of each visit. Its the first and last place where I pray in Lourdes on each visit.

We were absolutely blessed with the weather this year as it was cool with very little rain. Yes, we had warm sunshine a few days, but I never put on a hat and the Factor 50 stayed in my case! With so many of our activities outdoors, conditions were just perfect.

After we left, folk from Waterford and Lismore came and it was real hay-making weather with temperatures close to 30.

Amongst our first timers this year were two people from Ballyhooly - six decades apart in age. Both had strong family links with Lourdes, but for this 20-year-old and 80-year-old, the journey to Lourdes was a new venture. They were simply awe-struck by the pilgrimage and by all aspects of Lourdes. They immediately fell in love with the place.

They spoke in amazement of the Grotto, the churches, the water, the crowds - vast crowds - but most of all the peace and tranquillity that envelopes the sacred place.

We were busy this year with plenty to do. I think I never actually got to sit by the Grotto for very long, but then we go there to work and serve others - and what a joy that is.

Bernadette Soubirous suffered an awful lot during her short life but never complained. Even when she left Lourdes in 1866 to go to the Convent in Nevers, she smiled through her pain. She had the reputation of being a bit of a prankster!

A curious journalist knocked at the Nevers Convent door and Bernadette answered. The visitor asked could he speak to Bernadette, she turned away and said shed see if she was in - and then returned with a broad smile on her face!

To be continued next week...
THE very popular Cork Proms at the Opera House is offering three different concerts over the next week to kick off The Midsummer Festival.

Tonight its Heyday, a mix of Irish rock and pop with new arrangements of beloved songs by artists and bands such as Sinead OConnor, The Cranberries, The Pogues, Enya, Thin Lizzy and more.

It is a night to be truly proud of Irelands incredible musical legacy and celebrate the best music this country has produced from the 1960s through to the modern day.

Joining the Cork Opera House Concert Orchestra, conducted by John OBrien, will be soloists Jack ORourke, MayKay, Lucia Evans, Laoise Leahy and Niall McCabe.

Thats followed on Sunday by New World Symphony and Rhapsody In Blue, also featuring music by composers Copland, Korngold and Barber; and on Wednesday and Thursday next, Theres No Place Like Home, celebrating the best of musical theatre. Beautiful events, dont miss any of them.

Call 021 427 0022 or see www.corkoperahouse.ie

Night Dance.

And tons of things are going on elsewhere during the festival - down at the Marina Market from tonight until Saturday, for example, Night Dances, an exhilarating, ferocious performance of pure dance and live music from Emma Martin to a live soundtrack by Daniel Fox. 8.30pm start.

At the Granary tonight, tomorrow, and Saturday, Suisha Inclusive Arts/Cope Foundation present Home Sweet Home, a play about housing, horror films and protest. An ambitious, disability-led production, it features creatively-embedded access including audio description, captioning, Irish sign language interpretation, and relaxed performances. Thats 7pm tonight and tomorrow, 3pm Saturday. Suitable for 12+.

One of the most exciting events has to be Alter by Kamchatka, an extraordinary award-winning collective of international artists.

You meet in the city centre and are taken on a late-night journey to a secret location for an unforgettable experience. Seven characters appear, each carrying a suitcase. Who are they, what are their stories? 12+ accompanied by a parent or guardian, meet at 10pm. This Friday to Sunday, June 14-16, booking in advance is essential, when you will receive the exact meeting point. Thrilling or what?

This really is the most diverse and fascinating of festivals, all praise to those who make it happen! See https://www.corkmidsummer.com/whats-on/ to be sure you dont miss anything.

Theres still time to take the little ones to The Summer I Robbed A Bank at the Everyman, it must end this Sunday. A delightful romp of an adventure across Achill Island which makes a childs holidays something never to be forgotten. There is a special access performance on Sunday at 2pm, but you do need to specify that when you are booking. 021 450 1673 or www.everymancork.com

Music Network presents Linda Fredrikssons Juniper at the Triskel tomorrow, Friday, offering Cork audiences a rare opportunity to hear this jazz band, winner of the Teosto Prize in 2022, one of Scandinavias most prestigious awards. Juniper also won an Emma for Best Jazz Album in 2022. 8pm start. 021 427 2022 or triskelartscentre.ie for bookings.

Something excellent in the way of dance is coming up at the Triskel next week, also as part of the Cork Midsummer Festival, when Dance Cork Firkin Crane present two matinee screenings of This Is It, by Laura Murphy Dance. Pioneering women in dance in Ireland are the focus of this series of candid multimedia portraits.

Collaborating with filmmaker Pato Cassinoni, animator Alan Early and composer Irene Buckley, Murphy presents an innovative, multifaceted exploration of eight women: Jean Butler, Alicia Christofi Walshe, Lisa Cliffe, Finola Cronin, Joan Davis, Katherine OMalley, Mary Nunan and Angie Smalis. Fri/ Sat, June 21/22 at 3pm. Tickets at www.corkmidsummer.com
BEING awarded the Network Ireland Cork Businesswoman of the Year Award  Employee Rising Star category means the world to me.

So said Lorna Horgan, Account Manager for Corks 96FM & C103, who judges described as a woman who stands out from the rest and has excelled in her career.

And some more!

Originally from Kilcorney, in north-west Cork, Lorna, 29, said she came from humble beginnings.

I grew up in rural North Cork as an only child in a single parent family. My parents separated when I was three and seeing my mom work so hard when I was growing up really instilled a strong work ethic in me from a young age. Im also very close to my Nana Peggy, who is like another parent to me, she said.

As well as a having a strong work ethic, Lorna said shes also always had a passion for learning, from primary school, secondary school and through her undergraduate and postgraduate studies in university.

I achieved a 2.1 degree in New Media and English with a Certificate in TESOL (Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages) from University of Limerick, but a large component of my undergraduate degree was my voluntary and part-time professional roles.

Winner of the Employee Rising Star award Lorna Horgan, 96fm & C103 at the Network Ireland Cork Branch, Businesswoman of the Year Awards 2024 in the Vienna Woods Hotel. Picture: Darragh Kane

I was elected Class Representative for each of my four years of studies and elected Department Representative alongside this in my final year. The pastoral care element of supporting my classmates in academic and social issues was a real passion for me and still exists today with my internal and external voluntary roles on committees, she said.

Within the company, shes co-chair of the Disability Network for News UK and sits on the DE&I Committee for News Ireland. Outside of work, she is one of the social media officers for Network Ireland Cork and also sits on the Marketing Institute of Ireland, Cork Committee.

And theres more: she achieved a 1.1 in her Level 9 Postgraduate Professional Diploma in Marketing Management during the pandemic, while working full-time and maintaining a voluntary role as well, which is probably one of her proudest achievements.

She worked as a Business Development and Marketing Manager at UL but left this role on completion of her postgraduate studies and during the lockdown.

My initial goal was to take a break and enjoy my volunteer role with Network Ireland Limerick at the time, however, three months later, I organically fell into freelancing with there being such a demand for digital skills among the connections I made via the virtual events with members of Network Ireland Limerick. I spent a year and a half managing social accounts and delivering consultations for marketing strategies, she said.

The workload was busy, and ultimately Lorna realised she was suffering from burn-out and was over-committing herself.

I wasnt leaving anything in my cup, she said.

She recalls how, typically, her brain would be constantly churning, shed have trouble sleeping, leading to exhaustion, while still being busy during the day, which caused physical, emotional and physiological burn out.

Around this time, friends of hers had received an ADHD diagnosis which led Lorna to join some dots herself. She was diagnosed with ADHD (Combined Type), which means she has inattentive and hyperactive-impulsive symptoms.

Why have one type when you can have both? she laughs.

Getting the diagnosis two years ago was a long process  it took two years, as it was such a holistic approach, but it was a huge learning journey for me and worth it.

She now has a rigorous recovery plan in place and nurtures self-awareness around her behaviour, but says she still faces internal battles every minute of the day.

This is something I was born with  its my brain chemistry. But with awareness and learning it becomes less of a battle and something I can manage. Getting the diagnosis was the best thing I ever did.

Winning the Network Ireland Cork award meant so much, she said.

I took a moment with my mother, Marion, and boyfriend, Saidas, to decompress and take it in and I realised that even though Im putting myself first now, Im still achieving things, just at a balanced pace.

Lorna joined Network Ireland Cork as a member in October, 2022.

Despite being from Cork, I spent the first eight years of my adult professional life in Limerick and a subsequent two years in the Netherlands, so it created an opportunity to create a professional network in a city that was new to me as a working professional.

I have been on the committee since 2023 and have had roles such as Podcast Officer and social media officer to-date. The experience has been incredibly inspiring, supportive and collaborative.

Whats next for this ambitious young woman?

Im just really happy for now  and thats something Ive never been able to say before.

Lorna will go on to the national finals in September.

We will continue our series of interviews with the winners of the Network Cork and Network West Cork Businesswoman of the Year awards in WoW! in the weeks ahead.
(Screenshot from BBC)Pope Francis delivering his 2017 "urbi et orbi" address on East Sunday, April16, 2017.

Pope Francis has given Catholic priests the same advice on homilies as editors often give to reporterskeep it short, or the faithful might nod off.

Francis again appealed to priests to keep their homilies short, advising that homilies should be no longer than eight minutes or "people will fall asleep," Catholic News Agency (CNA) reported on June 12.

He was speaking in St. Peter's Square for his weekly Wednesday catechesis, a summary or exposition of doctrine used in teaching.

The Pope explained that the goal of a homily is to "help move the Word of God from the book to life."

"But the homily for this must be short: an image, a thought, a feeling. The homily should not go beyond eight minutes because after that time, you lose attention, and people fall asleep," said Francis.

A homily in a Roman Catholic service usually follows a reading from the Bible and is used to reinforce the teaching, Reuters news agency reported.

Francis has spoken in the past of the need for priests not to ramble on during sermons, "but his own use of language is now under scrutiny," Reuters commented.

"Pope Francis often exceeds this time limit in his own homilies. On Holy Thursday this year, the pope's homily for the chrism Mass was more than 20 minutes long."

The Pope made the comments on homily length off the cuff during a reflection on how the Bible is "inspired by God and authoritative."

CNA reported that it was not the first time the pontiff had stressed the importance of short homilies.

In 2018, the Pope urged priests to "be brief" and ensure that their homilies are "no more than 10 minutes."

"It can happen that in a certain passage of the Scripture, that we have read many times without particular emotion, one day we read it in an atmosphere of faith and prayer, and then that text is unexpectedly illuminated, it speaks to us, it sheds light on a problem we are living, it makes God's will for us clear in a certain situation," the Pope said in his June 12 sermon.

"The words of the Scripture, under the action of the Spirit, become luminous; and in those cases, we touch with our own hands how true is the statement in the Letter to the Hebrews: 'The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword' (Heb 4:12)."
Netflix is taking advantage of some high drama in the hot dog-eating world with its next live-streaming event. A couple of days ago, Joey Chestnut was banned from Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Content over his apparent partnership with a plant-based brand, as pretty much every major news site in the world inexplicably reported.

Cue Netflix, which leaped in with its own frank-eating event called Chestnut vs. Kobayashi: Unfinished Beef, set to be live-streamed on Monday, September 2. It features two of the best-known (only-known, for most people) hot dot-eating personalities in the form of Chestnut (40) and Takeru Kobayashi (46), with the latter coming out of semi-retirement for the occasion.

"Through all of my years in competitive eating, Kobayashi stands out as my fiercest rival," Chestnut said in a Netflix press release. "Retiring for me will only happen after I take him down one last time," added Kobayashi.

A rivalry simmering for 15 years.



CHESTNUT VS. KOBAYASHI: UNFINISHED BEEF  the ultimate hot dog eating competition  will air LIVE on Netflix, Monday, September 2. pic.twitter.com/MeVQP1lQuS  Netflix (@netflix) June 12, 2024

Chestnut (40) won 16 of the last 17 Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contests (held by the Major League Eating organization) and holds the all-time record with 76 hot dogs and buns eaten set in 2021. Kobayashi (46), meanwhile, is known as "the father of competitive eating" and won the Nathan's event six consecutive times. At one point, he was also banned from that event (for non vegan-hot-dog reasons).

The New York Post reported that Chestnut partnered with Impossible Foods, which manufactures the plant-based "Beef" hot dog. That was apparently anathema to Nathan's, which makes what it calls "100 percent beef hot dogs" (that the nonprofit Environmental Working Group considers not very healthy).

"We are devastated to learn that Joey Chestnut has chosen to represent a rival brand that sells plant-based hot dogs rather than competing in the 2024 Nathan's Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest," Nathan's told CBS in a statement. "It seems that Joey and his managers have prioritized a new partnership with a different hot dog brand over our long-time relationship."

By hosting its own hot-dog eating event, though, Netflix is taking the meat out of Nathan's annual July 4th contest  Sherlocking it Apple style, if you will. Previous Netflix live streams include The Roast of Tom Brady, and following the Chestnut vs. Kobayashi affair, Netflix will stream the Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight on November 15, 2024.

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Allegations that President Joe Biden and his wife Dr. Jill Biden cheated on their respective former spouses with each other have resurfaced as the Biden family was dealt a blow by Hunter Biden's conviction in his federal gun trial.

Dr. Biden became a trending topic on X, formerly Twitter, Wednesday after far-right social media influencer Laura Loomer's posts brought up affair allegations that the former first lady had previously debunked.

In her now-viral X posts, Loomer blasted a recent statement from President Biden about his son's conviction in which he referred to Hunter as his and Jill's son.

"Hunter is the son of your DEAD WIFE Neilia. You know, the one you were cheating on with Jill Biden. You know, your first wife who died in a suspicious car accident that you falsely blamed an innocent man for while you were having an affair with Jill," the far-right political activist alleged in one tweet, which has received over 3 million views, without providing evidence to back up her claims.

Hey @JoeBiden,



I know your dementia has eaten your brain worse than Beaus, but your degenerate son Hunter isnt Jills son.



Hunter is the son of your DEAD WIFE Neilia. You know, the one you were cheating on with Jill Biden. You know, your first wife who died in a suspicious https://t.co/6jTk30CdNz  Laura Loomer (@LauraLoomer) June 11, 2024

President Biden welcomed his sons Hunter and Beau as well as daughter Naomi with his first wife, Neilia Biden, before she died in a car crash in 1972 along with their youngest child.

Jill helped raise Hunter and his now-late brother Beau after she tied the knot with Joe in 1977. According to the Associated Press, Hunter has called Jill mom since then.

Despite receiving flak over her first post, Loomer doubled down on her claims, writing in another viral tweet: "Joe Biden's first wife, the mother of Hunter, died in a car accident while Joe was having an affair with Jill Biden. Even Jill Biden's own ex husband confirmed this."

Alongside the message, Loomer shared a screenshot of a 2020 New York Post report about the affair accusations.

Why is everyone so triggered by this factual tweet I posted about the Bidens?



Everything I said below is true.



1. Joe Bidens brain is in worse shape than someone who has brain cancer.



2. Jill Biden is not Hunters mother.



3. Hunter Biden called Jill Biden a c**t



4. Joe https://t.co/CsTdX1oHc0 pic.twitter.com/C3cGyWafbb  Laura Loomer (@LauraLoomer) June 12, 2024

The twice-failed congressional candidate was referring to Jill's ex-husband Bill Stevenson's allegations that the educator began seeing Joe while she was still married to him.

"I was betrayed by the Bidens. Joe was my friend. Jill was my wife," Stevenson claimed in an interview with Inside Edition in 2020, as seen in a resurfaced video.

Stevenson alleged that he introduced Joe to Jill in 1972 and that the two began a secret relationship in 1974 -- long before their divorce was finalized in May 1975.

Jill Bidens ex-husband, Bill Stevenson, refutes Joes claim of when/how/where he met Jill.



Listen to this!  pic.twitter.com/fbfLv1Qbxx  ProudArmyBrat (@leslibless) June 12, 2024

However, according to her profile on the White House's official website, Jill first met Joe in 1975.

Dr. Biden also denied her ex-husband's claims at the time, calling them "fictitious" and suggesting he made them to "sell and promote a book."

"The relationship of Joe and Jill Biden is well documented," her spokesman told Inside Edition. "Jill Biden separated from her first husband irreconcilably in the fall of 1974 and moved out of their marital home. Joe and Jill Biden had their first date in March of 1975, and they married in June of 1977."

Loomer's posts sparked mixed reactions from X users. Some said they believed that Joe and Jill had an affair, while others accused Loomer of spreading false claims.

"Tell it like it is Laura!!!" one supporter commented on her post.

One critic responded to Loomer: "Nobody is triggered, we are just calling out how damn evil you are with your damn lies!"
Thursday, June 13, 2024

Typically, a real estate team provides your clients with two or more experienced real estate agents working on their behalf without paying more in commission. A client can contact any other team member for assistance if one particular agent isnt available. Some of the positions to fill include Listing Manager, Transaction Coordinator, Marketing Director, and Administrative Manager.

A broker is an individual or firm that acts as an intermediary between an investor and a securities exchange in an agency capacity. Brokers do not trade on their own account or hold securities in their inventory. They earn their income primarily through commissions or fees charged for their services, based on the size or value of the transactions they facilitate. Business brokers, also called business transfer agents, or intermediaries, assist buyers and sellers of privately held businesses in the buying and selling process.

In this scenario, when a client buys a currency pair, the broker sells it to them, and if the client sells, the broker essentially buys it, all without executing the trade in the market. In this model, the How To Open A Web-based Brokerage Account In 2025 brokers revenue comes from trading spreads and potentially from the clients trading losses. After obtaining your license, you should gather as much experience as possible in the real estate industry.

Its crucial to keep your agents productive and offer a high enough split to motivate and retain them. Its an exciting, rewarding and potentially lucrative profession  but its not necessarily for everyone. The IBBA Steps to Success program is a collection of business broker training resources designed to help you answer the questions, Is Business Brokerage right for me?  We suggest you begin by downloading our free Guide to the Business Brokerage profession below, and then tapping into our growing collection of supplemental webinars and whitepapers.

Pricing is by far the biggest consideration by clients when selecting a broker. An experienced copywriter with a deep financial background and a knack for producing accessible, fascinating and valuable content. I demystify the world of fintech and crypto by producing engaging content in this field. I believe that every intricate concept, idea and methodology can be presented in an understandable and exciting way, and it is my job to find that way with every new topic. I constantly challenge myself to produce content that has indispensable value for its target audience, letting readers understand increasingly complex ideas without breaking a sweat.

Investors should further consider the extent of control they want over their investments. Investors with little financial experience tend to give the firm full autonomy over their investment capital, whereas experienced investors often prefer to manage their funds. In the actual sense, individuals act as brokers whether in the real estate or investment industry. The connect a buyer and seller of securities or help clients purchase or sell securities in exchange for a fee. Individual brokers can work for brokerage companies or function as independent agents in an investment or real estate transaction. The essence of brokers or brokerage firms lie in the fact that market investors or real estate buyers do not have sufficient information required to make the best decisions.

A robo-advisor is an online investment platform that uses algorithms to implement trading strategies on behalf of its clients in an automated process. The online brokers automated network is the middleman, handling buy and sell orders that are input directly by the investor. Some full-service brokerages offer a lower-cost discount brokerage option as well. Many full-service brokers seek out affluent clients and establish minimum account balances that are required to obtain their services, often starting at six figures or more. A full-service brokerage provides a wide range of professional services to customers, such as tax tips, investment advisory, equity researching, etc.

However, you will most likely lose out on any full-time and experienced brokers who wish to take up margin trading, derivatives, exchange-traded funds or any other complex trading strategies.

A brokerage firm is essentially a company that connects buyers and sellers.

Brokers employ various approaches to facilitate trading and market making.

However, regulations require that B-Book brokers adhere to fair practices, and are prohibited from manipulating market prices or trading conditions to cause client losses. Brokers employ various approaches to facilitate trading and market making. The approach adopted significantly impacts factors such as cost structure, execution methods, and risk framework. You can also partner with franchises or find buyers and sellers in an area with an open space to fill. Find your niche and concentrate all your efforts on this specialty with your brokerage.

Then they will get a smaller but ongoing annual residual income payment over the policys entire life. Instead, we must get better at focusing on the specific market segments whose needs match our offerings. Lease office space averages $1.10  1.60 per square foot to equal an approximate of $1,500 per month, plus utilities, for efficient leased office space. Commercial lease will be for a three to five year agreement with the first month and a security deposit equal to the monthly lease rate payable at the time of lease start date.

The B-book or market maker (MM) is a model of risk management in brokerage firms, where the broker serves as a liquidity provider for a client transaction that does not reach the interbank. Unlike A-Book, the FX B-book model does not imply overlapping trades via liquidity providers. Thus, a B-book broker bears the responsibility to the client with their own funds, i.e. the clients profit is the brokers loss and vice versa. An online brokerage firm is a brokerage firm that provides its services through the internet. And then there are those that operate under a full-service or discount firm.

As stated in the Services sectionwe outline the services we will be supplying to the agents, sellers and buyers (all of which this corporation considers to be our customer). As stated in the Objectives sectionwe outline the profits to be gained with each agent striving for one seller and one buyer each month. We also state the extensive marketing plans, goal setting and training provided by this corporation to assist each agent in reaching this goal.

Unlike traditional brokers, there is no need for extensive phone calls, time-consuming meetings, and other activities as online brokers execute every desired transaction digitally. Now, customers can have their own investment account and communicate with a broker through an intuitive online system. They introduced their online trading platform, WealthWEB, in August 1994. This was the first instance where individuals could execute stock trades over the Internet, marking a significant shift in the brokerage industry.

One more advantage of such an approach is the lower cost of the license and simplified regulation conditions. Now it matters a lot because traders tend to choose brokers with the regulation in well-known jurisdictions, and offshore companies without regulation lose clients and trust. There are different kinds of brokerage services offered by different types of brokerage firms. The most common types of firms include full-service firms, discount firms, and online firms. Generally, brokerages make money by charging various fees and commissions on transactions they facilitate and services they provide.

Remember, even the slightest inconvenience or delay can encourage your potential customers to convert to your competitors. So, the quality of your digital product and services should be impeccable since we are dealing with highly sensitive consumers. With an in-house team, you are sure to acquire a highly customised and personalised digital platform, but the costs might be too much to handle at the starting stages of your business. Some choose to deal with simple foreign exchange and avoid complex financial mechanisms. This standard of conduct differs significantly from the standard applied to financial advisors registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as registered investment advisors (RIAs).

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Wednesday, June 12, 2024

During his recent visit to Taiwan to attend a technology conference, the CEO of Nvidia, Jensen Huang, was followed everywhere by huge crowds of adoring fans. The rock-star treatment was an open expression of admiration by those thousands of ordinary Taiwanese who took pride in the fact that a person born in their country had achieved an astronomical level of success in the field of technology in America.

Mr. Huang was born in Taiwan but he moved to America in the early 1970s at age 10. He is now an American citizen. In 1993, he and two other men founded Nvidia, an American semiconductor company based in Santa Clara, CA. Nvidia specializes in the manufacturing of high-end graphics processing units (GPUs), which are now powering the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution.

At the beginning of 2020, Nvidia had a market capitalization of $144 billion. The current market value of the company is $3.1 trillion, a more than twenty-fold increase over the four-year period. Nvidia recently overtook Apple to become the second most valuable company in the world, trailing only Microsoft. Such meteoric success should be cause for celebration everywhere, and the Taiwanese had every justification to jubilate, even if Mr. Huang is no longer a citizen of their country.

As I read about Mr. Huangs reception in Taiwan, I recalled the case of another tech company CEO next door in mainland China. Jack Ma, the CEO of Alibaba, Chinas equivalent to Amazon, was similarly celebrated in China during his companys heydays. Unfortunately for him, Chinese President Xi Jinping and leaders of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) didnt quite like his celebrity status. The CCP bosses generally frown upon anyone and anything that threatens to overshadow the Party. They found a way to cut Mr. Ma down to size.

In November 2020, Mr. Ma disappeared from public view. A few days before then, he had given a speech in which he criticized the Chinese financial system and its regulators. At the time, his newest company, Ant Group, was about to launch what was expected to be the worlds biggest initial public offering (IPO) on the Shanghai Stock Exchange. Ant Groups Alipay mobile finance app had become a dominant force in the digital payment market in China. For his critical comments, Mr. Ma was summoned to appear before the regulators, who subsequently stopped the IPO. That run-in with state officials reportedly wiped off about $76 billion from the value of Mr. Mas companies.

In the free world, businesspeople and corporate leaders routinely criticize government officials and regulators, often quite harshly, with little consequence. That latitude creates an enabling environment in which all kinds of enterprises flourish. The dramatic rise in valuations of corporations like Nvidia, Tesla, and others, creates enormous wealth not only for people like Mr. Huang, but for all Americans and citizens from other countries who invest in them.

Many pundits have noted that the heavy-handed approach to business regulation in China, typified by the treatment of Mr. Ma, has had a chilling effect on the entire technology sector in the country. Such toxification of the business environment kills the animal spirits that drive national economic engines. The Chinese people are clearly the primary losers, but the entire world is also negatively impacted by it.

In the last couple of decades, China has served as one of the main drivers of global economic growth. The recent slowdown in Chinas economy is therefore bad news for people everywhere. Through their capricious actions, the Chinese leaders destroy wealth on such a massive scale that investors, wherever they live and whatever nationalities they are, come out worse. That is because nowadays, everyones investment portfolio has exposure to both domestic and foreign markets. With Chinas large population, market size, and overall economic potential, there is no reason a company like Alibaba couldnt have Nvidia- or Amazon-like (about $2 trillion) valuation. The current market cap of Alibaba is just below $190 billion.

The saddest part of it all, for me, is the impact that the behavior of the Chinese leadership is having on the future prospects of the countrys young men and women. Much has been written in the last couple of years about high youth unemployment in China, which some reports have estimated to be over 20 percent at times. Companies like Alibaba are the ones that create the kinds of jobs that most college students crave these days. By impeding the growth of such firms, the CCP leadership is killing the dreams of the countrys young people and damaging their future prosperity.

There are few things worse than having tens of thousands of young people graduate from universities and not find suitable jobs, as is the case in China today. For the sake of these young Chinese, and indeed the rest of the world, President Xi Jinping and his lieutenants should start showing a bit more humility.
RAVENNA, Ohio Tour guides and staff can name dozens of scenarios that landed animals at the sanctuary: goats rescued from a barn in deplorable conditions, potbellied pigs abandoned because they didnt live up to the teacup pig myth, roosters rescued from a cockfighting ring.

But at Happy Trails Farm Animal Sanctuary in Ravenna, rescued animals are just one part of the story. Volunteers and staff are the driving force behind the farms mission to rescue, rehabilitate and rehome criminally abused, neglected and abandoned farm animals. Each member of the team is armed with the passion, knowledge and determination to provide the best care to every animal on the 11-acre property and educate the public about the lesser-known crises that impact farm animals.

My greatest moments (as executive director) are seeing our team come together for our mission, Laurie Jackson, executive director of Happy Trails, emphasized. My favorite moments are the accomplishments of our staff.

Volunteers play a major role at the farm, participating in the cleaning and upkeep of animal environments, scrubbing water and feed buckets, mending fences and shelters, acting as tour guides for visitors and getting the word out about events. Caring for farm animals is an around-the-clock job, as caregiving staff at Happy Trails work tirelessly to give animals a second chance at a better life.

The future of Happy Trails is to take care of the people that take care of the animals. To create that future, the farm is fundraising for and building a new welcome center.

The rescue was recently awarded $500,000 from Ohio through the Substitute House 2 Bill, which allocated funds for one-time project funding from the Strategic Community Investment Fund, which helped the farm meet its fundraising goal of $1.6 million for the construction costs. At the end of 2023, the farm had already raised $1.3 million for the cause.

The funds are helping the farm break ground on the welcome center, which is estimated to be completed in the fall of 2025 and will serve as a place for guests visiting the farm, educational exhibits and a secure lab area.

The Welcome Center is going to be the hub for all that we do, Jackson said. All rescue work is hard, but our rescue work happens outside, no matter what. We really need a space for volunteers and staff to be able to shower after a rescue or sit down and have lunch. Im really hoping that it sets the stage for decades more of our mission work.

Mission driven

Many people are familiar with the rescue work of shelters catering to cats and dogs, but few are aware of the need to rescue and rehome farm animals like pigs, chickens and horses. Happy Trails fills a community need by providing local law enforcement and humane societies a space to house animals that have fallen victim to cruelty.

Because (Portage Animal Protective League) is the humane society in Portage County, and we employ a humane agent, we can directly investigate reports of abuse and neglect, said Chalan Lowry, executive director of the Portage Animal Protective League. However, our shelter was not built to house livestock, so in cases where we intake livestock or other farm animals, we do rely on and partner with local rescues like Happy Trails to assist.

While it might be easy to spot animal cruelty in pets like dogs and cats, Jackson says that the abuse and neglect of farm animals can be harder to spot.

[Neglect] isnt as easy to see as it is in dogs and cats. You can hear a dog yelping for help or see how skinny a cat is, Jackson said. A lot of times, in the cases of farm animal and horse neglect, you dont even know that there are animals on the property. You cant tell whats in that dark barn or in that overgrown pasture off the road.

Not all criminal cases happen because people intentionally want to hurt animals. Instead, Jackson says that many cases Happy Trails is involved with are related to hoarding, a mental illness where people collect too many things like animals and have a difficult time relinquishing or caring for the pets theyve accumulated. Sometimes, animal hoarding occurs after a milestone event in someones life like a death in the family, divorce, illness or financial hardship. In other cases, animal owners may become ill and no longer able to adequately care for their pets, or families are left with livestock after a loved one has passed but arent interested in assuming ownership.

Jackson said that the Happy Trails team started to brainstorm how they could help animals before their situations became criminal. With open stalls and spaces for livestock, the organization decided to implement programs that could offer a lifeline to people struggling.

The cases that were falling prey to becoming criminal were those (where people) had nowhere to turn and didnt know what to do, Jackson said. It was very obvious that there was a need for owner relinquishment.

The Owner Relinquish Initiative began at Happy Trails in 2021, providing an option for people who arent able to properly care for their animals. People struggling with the animals in their care can reach out to the team at Happy Trails and allow the rescue to take ownership of the animal, providing them with proper care, veterinary attention and a home while they await adoption.

This year, Happy Trails launched the Solutions to Avoid Intake program for horses. The purpose is to provide a short-term helping hand to horse owners to avoid relinquishment.

Ultimately, whats best for the animal if they have a good home is for them to stay in it, Jackson said. The STAI program is for when people find themselves in a short-term financial crisis or medical crisis, and we can evaluate those cases and provide grants that would directly fund hay and feed or veterinary care.

Happy Trails also offers the Amish Horse Retirement Initiative, a program that provides an option to the Amish community to rehome equine that would otherwise be taken to auction. The program has been in place for over 20 years with many Amish horses finding retirement at Happy Trails after their time as a buggy horse has come to an end. Although Happy Trails has previously provided education and support to the Amish community, Jackson says that the program mainly spreads by word of mouth.

Adoption

Ultimately, the staff at Happy Trails hopes to find new, loving homes for the animals in their care. People who are interested in adopting a farm animal are invited to fill out an application, which staff review. Then, the farm works with each adopter to find the animal that best fits their needs.

Theres plenty of animals that need our help, and an extension of our help is adoptive homes, Jackson said. We want our adoption process to be easy, welcoming, friendly and conversation-based.

Happy Trails also opens its barn doors and pasture gates to visitors during tour season. Visitors can get up close and personal with farm animals while learning more about their care. Its also an opportunity for people to find a forever friend in an adoptable farm animal. Roosters and farm pigs are the animals that are most overlooked.

As one guest put it, as Peppa, a potbellied pig, ran up to the gate of her pasture: Who wouldnt want to come home to a friendly pig greeting them after a long day at work?
HANOVERTON, Ohio  The Hicks and Hayseeds 4-H club met June 4 in Hanoverton. Some members worked on the silent auction item the club will donate, and other members cut fabric for a table runner.

After pledges, roll call and secretarys report, President Rett Herring announced dates for the upcoming clinic and skill-a-thon, Trent Ellyson showed the group how he throws discus and Logan Casto explained the details of reading a feed tag.

The meeting ended with members enjoying a snack donated by the Hoopes family. For more information about 4-H, contact Audrey Dimmerling at 330-879-1165.
Labour has said that "food security is national security" as the party announced its general election manifesto today.

Unveiled by Sir Keir Starmer in Manchester, the manifesto says Labour would "champion British farming whilst protecting the environment".

It includes some proposals for the farming industry, including a target to ensure half of all food purchased in the public sector is British-made.

The document, which contains no big policy surprises, gives no details about the future of the agricultural budget.

It does, however, confirm that Labour would end the "ineffective badger cull."

"Labour recognises that food security is national security," the manifesto says, "that is why we will champion British farming whilst protecting the environment."

The party pledges to introduce a land-use framework and make environment land management schemes "work for farmers and nature".

On the environment specifically, Labour promises to expand nature-rich habitats such as wetlands, peat bogs and forests.

It accuses the Conservatives of leaving Britain "one of the most nature-depleted countries in the world."

"Labour will deliver for nature, taking action to meet our Environment Act targets, and will work in partnership with civil society, communities and business to restore and protect our natural world," the manifesto says.

It comes after the Conservatives said that Labour will 'never be on the side' of farmers as the party's manifesto was launched yesterday.

The Liberal Democrats also launched their manifesto earlier this week, promising to 'rescue' farmers from 'years of neglect'.
Egg producers have called on the next government to introduce a ban on lower quality, lower standard egg imports.

The British Egg Industry Council (BEIC) has set out its asks ahead of the next general election, which is due on 4 July.

In the manifesto, the body calls on the government to provide appropriate protection against egg imports not produced to the UK's standards.

It also underlines the need for stronger collaboration between government and the egg sector to develop evidence-based solutions for environmental issues.

Continued inclusion of the sector in future grant funding, such as manure stores, must also be included, BEIC says.

The BEIC owns the Lion Quality trademark and runs the Lion Quality Scheme for egg production, which accounts for 95% of UK production.

BEIC chief executive, Gary Ford, said the sector was one of British farmings success stories, providing consumers with a super food at an affordable price.

He said: "It is absolutely essential that the next UK government puts the conditions in place to ensure the industry is able to operate sustainably for years to come."

On workforce, BEIC says key workers for the laying hen sector must be placed on the skilled worker visa: immigration salary list and called for a removal of the government cap on worker numbers.

On biosecurity, it says the government must ensure that there are sufficient resources available through the Animal Plant and Health Agency (APHA) to help deal with future bird flu outbreaks and to bring compensation in line with other livestock species.

BEIC says the government must also meet the needs of the UK production base whilst protecting the environment through reform of the planning system, to enable the sector to grow and meet consumer demand.

Finally, on public procurement, the manifesto calls on the next government to promote British ingredients within food products, and across the public sector, through procurement in schools and hospitals.
The tenanted farming sector has urged the next government to better support those farmers who do not own their land, as it outlines four key asks.

The Tenant Farmers' Association (TFA) has announced its key priorities ahead of the next generation election, due to take place on 4 July.

TFA national chair, Robert Martin outlined the significance of a policy reset and the opportunity to scrutinise candidates' commitment to agricultural issues.

Mr Martin said: In listening to the views of the TFA membership, we have identified four key areas of concern."

These areas include implementing recommendations from the Rock Review into agricultural tenancies, and ensuring fairness in food and agricultural supply chains.

The other two asks are enhancing agricultural exports post-Brexit while reducing unnecessary regulation, and balancing food, environmental, and energy security.

Mr Martin said the Rock Reviews recommendations provided "a comprehensive policy template" for the next government.

This included designing new government schemes, legislative changes, taxation adjustments, and improved dispute handling mechanisms.

He said the establishment of the Tenant Farming Commissioner was a positive step, but urged the need for further progress, specifically in Agricultural Property Relief to encourage longer tenancies.

He also called for fair market returns for tenant farmers and growers, adding that farmers and growers "are not subsidy junkies."

"There is enough evidence to show market failure in food supply chains in this country," Mr Martin said.

There is enough evidence to show that there is market failure in food supply chains in this country and we need a government that is committed to ensuring that those market failures are addressed.

Up to now, we have been tinkering around the edges. A more fundamental regulatory approach, focusing on an expanded role for the Groceries Code Adjudicator is needed.

Mr Martin said 'scant use' had been made of post-Brexit freedoms so far, including using them to enhance the UK's trading position as an exporting country and in removing 'unnecessary regulations'.

He said: We have only scratched the surface of the benefits that could be achieved from taking full control of the levers that influence our trade, policy and domestic legislation,"

We need a bold government willing to set aside old EU playbooks, that seem to dog much of the Whitehall approach, to achieve much, much more.

Mr Martin also criticised policies that prioritised non-agricultural land use, such as tree planting, rewilding, and solar energy.

He called for a more balanced approach that recognised the dual role of farmers in producing food and delivering environmental benefits, including carbon sequestration.

We have seen too much emphasis on taking land out of agricultural production for tree planting, rewilding, solar energy, biodiversity net gain and schemes to achieve nutrient neutrality for housebuilders, he said.

Farmers and growers have a unique ability to deliver high quality food and significant benefits for the environment, including the sequestration and storage of vast amounts of carbon.
Amber Portwood is "scared" and "worried" about her missing fiance.

Amber Portwood's fiance is missing

The 'Teen Mom OG' star's partner Gary Wayt was reported missing earlier this week and the 34-year-old beauty - who met her partner on a dating app in 2023 - admitted his disappearance is a "huge deal", particularly because there hadn't been anything dramatic happen before he vanished.

She said in a video shared to YouTube: This is a huge deal, his parents, everybody is very worried. I am worried.

There was not a big blowout fight or anything like that, OK. He is a missing person right now."

Amber told how Gary left the North Carolina house they are staying at without his phone but was later spotted alone at Walgreens on Sunday (09.06.24), and though he took his keys and wallet, he doesn't have GPS in his car to find his way around.

She said: We are in the mountains. He has never driven in the mountains. We are very scared right now.

She then tearfully added: Nobody has found or heard from him yet. Im trying my best to not think the worst. I have not ate [sic] in three days. I slept maybe an hour.

The TV star dismissed reports she and her fiance had had an "explosive argument" before he disappeared as she seemingly referred to previous claims she allegedly attacked ex-boyfriend Andrew Glennon with a machete.

She said: I am not what people have been saying about me all of these years.

I changed a long time ago, OK, you have to understand this. Please listen to what I am saying, I am an honest person to you guys.

We have not had explosive fights. We are very in love, this man asked me to be with him, this man then asked me to marry him.

I have not touched this man in any horrible way. He does not touch me in any horrible way. We do not yell at each other  Please understand this, people change.

But the former '16 + Pregnant' star admitted she and Gary had had an "emotional" conversation, which she didn't provide specific details of but explained it came from "his parents being Vietnamese" and him being who he is.

Amber - who has Leah, 15, with Gary Shirley and six-year-old James with Andrew - asked fans to pray for her fiance and described him as the "love of [her] life".

She added: We have a beautiful relationship. This is the first time in my life that I have had a good man.

Bryson City Police are investigating the disappearance of Gary, who is around 30 years old.
Paris Hilton feels "so happy" for Sofia Richie after she became a mom for the first time.

Paris Hilton is thrilled for Sofia Richie

The 25-year-old model welcomed her daughter Eloise in May, and Paris - who grew up alongside Nicole Richie, Sofia's sister - has revealed that she's thrilled for Sofia.

Paris, 43, told E! News: "It's so special. Being a mom is my favourite area and I have known Sofia since she was born."

The socialite admitted that she's really pleased for her showbiz pal, noting that Sofia looks "exactly like" her daughter.

Paris - who has son Phoenix, 16 months, and daughter London, seven months, with her usband Carter Reum - shared: "Her baby, I just saw a photo of her the other night, looks exactly like her. It's like a twin. I'm just so happy for her."

Paris loves that her children and those of her friends are able to grow up together.

She said: "All our babies are gonna be growing up together and be friends. I can't wait for all these memories together we get to make."

Paris and Nicole Richie starred alongside each other on 'The Simple Life' in the early 2000s, and Paris recently revealed that she's "so excited" to be reviving the hit reality show.

The heiress is relishing the opportunity to reunite with Nicole, her long-time showbiz pal, for the revival.

She told Us Weekly: "I'm so excited to do this with Nicole. We have been best friends since we were two years old. So many of my best and most fun memories are with her. What we created together is so special and this is just going to be so iconic. I am so excited to do this for all the fans."
Prince William "stepped up to the mark" in the absence of King Charles.

Prince William has been praised by the royal photographer

The 41-year-old royal has helped to fill the void while the monarch - who recently returned to public-facing duties - and his wife, the Princess of Wales, have undergone treatment for cancer.

Royal photographer Samir Hussein told Us Weekly: "I think it remains very positive that Prince William has really stepped up to the mark with the king being out of action for a few months."

Samir praised the Prince of Wales for how he's dealt with the situation.

He said: "Prince Williams been through so much, obviously, with whats been happening with Kate, which we didnt know about for so long.

"I think hes done remarkably well in really, really trying circumstances.

"Hes still being himself on engagements, hes still been joking when he meets with the public."

Buckingham Palace announced in February that Charles had been diagnosed with cancer.

At the time, it was revealed that the monarch felt "positive" about his treatment and that he was keen to return to public duties as soon as possible.

The statement read: "During The Kings recent hospital procedure for benign prostate enlargement, a separate issue of concern was noted. Subsequent diagnostic tests have identified a form of cancer.

"His Majesty has today commenced a schedule of regular treatments, during which time he has been advised by doctors to postpone public-facing duties. Throughout this period, His Majesty will continue to undertake State business and official paperwork as usual.

"The King is grateful to his medical team for their swift intervention, which was made possible thanks to his recent hospital procedure.

"He remains wholly positive about his treatment and looks 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."
Taylor Swift has donated to foodbanks in Edinburgh.

Taylor Swift has donated to foodbanks across Edinburgh

The 34-year-old pop superstar arrived in the Scottish city in early June with her 'Eras' tour and although the Edinburgh Food Project would not disclose exactly how much she has given them, it has been confirmed that her donation will "make a big difference" to those in need.

Bethany Biggar, Edinburgh Food Project Director, told the Daily Record: We are thrilled that Taylor has decided to support the foodbanks and leave a lasting impact on Edinburgh. Things are really tough for a lot of people right now, so it is lovely to see someone like Taylor spreading such positivity.

The 'Anti-Hero' songstress has been committed to donating to local foodbanks since her mammoth tour started in 2023 and the charity then called on the Swifties to help as well.

Taylor was forced to briefly stop playing her guitar during one of her dates in Scotland because she was suffering with cramp due to the chill in the air.

She told the crowd: "My hand has frozen in a weird cramp  this is so embarrassing ... it's like performing with a claw.

"No one relates."

And when she returned to the venue on Saturday (08.06.24), she was wearing a pair of black gloves, seemingly to prevent the cramp coming back.

Despite the cold, Taylor relished the experience of performing for her fans in Scotland, admitting that she had an "unforgettable" evening.

The blonde beauty - who performed some of her best-known songs, including 'Cruel Summer' and 'Lover', during the show - said: "Edinburgh, you have given us everything you could possibly give us tonight."

In a nod to Taylor's favourite number, 13, the charity took to social media to ask fans to donate 13 if they could as they thanked the global superstar for her support.

A Facebook post read: "As fans gathered at Murrayfield on Friday for the first of three record-breaking gigs, Edinburgh Food Project found out that Taylor Swift would be making a donation to support foodbanks across the city Tay.lors visit will live in Edinburghs memories for years to come, and this gift will mean people in crisis will also feel the long-lasting impact.

Thank you so much Taylor  you have changed Edinburgh for good

Want to help? Donate 13."

The 'Love Story' hitmaker continues the European dates of her global tour across Liverpool before hitting Wembley stadium in London on Friday 21 June.
The US net cotton sales of Upland, totalling 177,100 RB (running bales, each weighing 226.8 kg or 500 pounds) for 2023-2024, were up 28 per cent from the previous week but down 2 per cent from the prior 4-week average.

According to the export sales report from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) for the week ending June 6, the increase in cotton exports was noted primarily for China (77,500 RB, including decreases of 900 RB), Vietnam (28,900 RB, including 1,000 RB switched from Indonesia, 300 RB switched from South Korea, and decreases of 200 RB), Pakistan (16,900 RB), Macau (14,800 RB), and Mexico (6,200 RB). Higher exports to these markets were offset by reductions for El Salvador (1,900 RB).

US net cotton sales of Upland totalled 177,100 RB for 2023-2024, up 28 per cent from the previous week but down 2 per cent from the prior 4-week average. Major buyers included China, Vietnam, and Pakistan. Net cotton sales for 2024-2025 reached 177,400 RB, with Vietnam and China as primary buyers. Pima cotton sales rose 87 per cent from the previous week.

For this week, net cotton sales of 177,400 RB for 2024-2025 were primarily for Vietnam (73,500 RB), China (67,300 RB), Mexico (11,400 RB), Indonesia (8,700 RB), and Peru (4,800 RB). Total exports of 186,600 RB were up 19 per cent from the previous week but down 3 per cent from the prior 4-week average. The destinations were primarily China (73,400 RB), Turkiye (17,700 RB), Vietnam (16,600 RB), Pakistan (14,000 RB), and Bangladesh (11,400 RB).

As per the USDA report, the net sales of Pima, totalling 3,700 RB for 2023-2024, were up 87 per cent from the previous week but down 29 per cent from the prior 4-week average. Increases were primarily for India (2,800 RB), Peru (400 RB), Italy (100 RB), Thailand (100 RB), and Indonesia (100 RB). Exports of 9,000 RB were up 12 per cent from the previous week and 10 per cent from the prior 4-week average. The destinations were primarily India (3,100 RB), Pakistan (2,300 RB), China (1,300 RB), Vietnam (900 RB), and Thailand (400 RB).

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KUL)
Director Karan Johar has moved to Bombay High Court to file a suit over unauthorized use of his name in the film Shaadi Ke Director Karan Aur Johar, seeking to remove the filmmakers name from the title of the film.

Karan has also filed an interim application seeking urgent relief of restraining the films release scheduled on Friday, during the pendency of the suit. The director claims that he has no affiliation to the film and the defendants are using his name unlawfully.

The filmmaker has sought a permanent removal of the use of his name in the title of the film including any scenes and promotional materials such as advertisements, social media posts and posters. Johar has repeatedly stressed on the fact that he has no relation with the film.
Highview Power kickstarts its multi-billion pound renewable energy programme to accelerate the UK's transition to net zero in Carrington, Manchester.

Highview Power has secured the backing of the UK Infrastructure Bank and the energy industry leader Centrica with a 300 million investment for the first commercial-scale liquid air energy storage (LAES) plant in the UK.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240612456776/en/

Highview Power CEO Richard Butland. (Photo: Business Wire)

The 300 million funding round was led by the UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB) and the British multinational energy and services company Centrica, alongside a syndicate of investors including Rio Tinto, Goldman Sachs, KIRKBI and Mosaic Capital.

The investment will enable the construction of one of the world's largest long duration energy storage (LDES) facilities in Carrington, Manchester, using Highview Power's proprietary LAES technology. Once complete, it will have a storage capacity of 300 MWh and an output power of 50 MWs per hour for six hours. Construction will begin on the site immediately, with the facility operational in early 2026, supporting over 700 jobs in construction and the supply chain.

UKIB's investment demonstrates the Bank's role in mobilising private finance to help first-of-a-kind technologies which are critical for the transition to net zero to reach commercial scale, whilst driving regional, local and economic growth.

Energy leader Centrica comes on board as Highview Power's strategic partner and a key player in the UK's energy transition, supporting Carrington and the accelerated roll-out of the technology in the UK through a 70 million investment. The programme will set the bar for storage energy systems around the world, positioning the UK as the global leader in energy storage and flexibility.

Highview Power will now also commence planning on the next four larger scale 2.5 GWh facilities (with a total anticipated investment of 3 billion). Located at strategic sites across the UK, these will ensure a fast roll-out of the technology to align with UK LDES support mechanisms and enable the ESO's Future Energy Scenario Plans.

Highview Power has developed its LAES technology in the UK over the last 17 years. The technology can store renewable energy for up to several weeks, longer than battery technologies, and is ready to be deployed across key grid locations at scale today. Highview Power's technology will also provide stability services to the National Grid, which will allow for the long-term replacement of fossil fuel-based power plants for system support.

This storage will help reduce curtailment costs which is significant as Britain spent 800m in 2023 to turn off wind farms.

Highview Power aims to accelerate the roll-out of its larger facilities across the UK by 2035 in line with one of National Grid's target scenario forecasts of a 2 GW requirement from LAES, which would represent nearly 20% of the UK's long duration energy storage needs. By capturing and storing excess renewable energy, which is now the cheapest form of electricity, storage can help keep energy costs from spiralling, and power Britain's homes with 24/7 renewable clean energy.

Beyond contributing to the UK's energy security by reducing the intermittency of renewables, Highview Power's infrastructure programme will make a major contribution to the UK economy, requiring in excess of 9 billion investment in energy storage infrastructure over the next 10 years with the potential to support over 6,000 jobs and generate billions of pounds in value add to the economy. It will also contribute materially to increasing utilisation of green energy generation, reducing energy bills for consumers and providing significantly improved energy stability and security.

Richard Butland, Co-Founder CEO of Highview Power said: "There is no energy transition without storage. The UK's investment in world-leading offshore wind and renewables requires a national long duration energy storage programme to capture excess wind and support the grids transformation.

"UKIB and Centrica and our partners have today backed our ambitious plan to bring renewable energy storage into the UK economy at scale, liberating the potential of what is both the greenest and by far the cheapest energy source for the UK economy and provide energy security. Our first project in Carrington will be the foundation for our full scale roll-out in the UK and expansion with partners to share this British technology internationally."

Chris O'Shea, Group Chief Executive, Centrica said: "The energy transition is an opportunity that could transform lives across the UK. But with a changing energy mix, and more intermittency from renewables, we have to explore new, innovative ways to store energy so our customers have electricity available when the wind doesn't blow and the sun doesn't shine. Low carbon storage is an essential part of the solution when looking at how we manage peaks in demand.

"That's why I'm delighted that Centrica is investing in Highview Power. Not only are we bringing capital to the table to support rollout and expansion, but we'll be also sharing our expertise on the energy transition and power storage. Through partnerships like this we can manage the challenges net zero might present while providing cleaner, greener power to customers."

Regional Quote:

Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham said: "My vision is for Greater Manchester to be a leader in the green transition and Highview Power's decision to build one of the world's largest long duration energy storage facilities at Carrington is a huge boost for the region.

This new plant will deliver renewable energy to homes and business across our region and bring world-leading technology, jobs, skills and investment to Greater Manchester. I'm delighted to welcome Highview Power."

National Grid Quote:

Julian Leslie, Director Chief Engineer National Grid ESO said: "Integrating long duration energy storage into the grid is going to be vital to delivering the UK's long term energy strategy. Our recent Future Energy Scenarios report shows that 4GW of liquid air storage will be required over the coming decades. Highview's plans are welcomed to support this target and help us on the journey to a 100% zero carbon electricity system."

Company Quotes:

Colin Roy, Co-Founder Chair of Highview, said: "Hard tech is hard! Few nowadays have the vision and courage to finance the development and scale-up of game-changing new heavy tech. So, my appreciation is immense for all those who have come together to make Highview and LAES a reality: Our fantastic lead investors today, UKIB and Centrica and the other great new investor partners; several departments of the British Government, who have tirelessly supported us since 2011; Sumitomo Heavy Industries and Janus, who helped us go big; the many executives and engineers who made a mere idea a working reality; our next generation leadership around Richard, the creator of new Highview; and the 169 private individuals and families, who have joined me for over 16 years and carried the heaviest load with such commitment to make an important thing happen."

Nigel Steward, Chief Scientist, Rio Tinto said: "We believe long duration energy storage can play a critical role in ?rming renewable energy sources. The investment from us and other partners marks a signi?cant step in helping to build a greener, more resilient and more stable energy infrastructure for generations to come in the UK and beyond".

Richard Gnodde, CEO of Goldman Sachs International said "We are proud to partner with clients to drive the energy transition, by helping to scale the commercialisation of cutting edge energy storage technologies with financing and trading services".

Kasper Trebbien, Vice President, Head of Energy Transition Investments at KIRKBI said: "KIRKBI is dedicated to drive a positive impact on climate challenges through our investments. With this important investment and the dedicated team behind Highview Power, we are looking to support the UK's first commercial-scale liquid air energy storage facility and play a positive role in the UK's energy transition. Our investment aligns with our commitment to advance green energy, bolster global renewable energy production, and further mature long duration energy storage solutions."

Tomas Harju-Jeanty, CEO of Sumitomo SHI FW, said: "As a long-term partner of Highview Power, Sumitomo Heavy Industries (SHI) warmly welcomes today's announcement, which will cement Highview's position as the leading provider of long duration energy storage in the UK. Through our license we have a commitment to Highview Power's innovative liquid air energy storage technology, and we are excited to continue to support the company as it realises its ambitious programme of infrastructure investment."

To learn more about the companies involved in this transaction:

Highview Power visit: www.highviewpower.com

Centrica visit: www.centrica.com

UK Infrastructure Bank visit: www.ukib.org.uk

Rio Tinto visit: www.riotinto.com

Goldman Sachs visit: www.goldmansachs.com

KIRKBI visit: www.kirkbi.com

Sumitomo visit: www.shi-fw.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240612456776/en/

Contacts:

Highview Power:

media@highviewpower.com

UK: +44.203.617.1930

US: +1.512.215.4425

Julie Kirby

Mercom Communications

Julie@mercomcapital.com

+44 (0)7956 955625

Neil Thomas

Fourtold

Neil.thomas@fourtold.eu

+44 (0)7912 018085
OMODA showcases its commitment to bricks and mortar as research reveals the car showroom still matters in the digital age

Nearly half (46%) of car buyers trust showroom sales assistants more than anybody else when it comes to purchasing decisions

More than a quarter (27%) of car buyers would be more likely visit a car showroom if it had an AI sales assistant

76% of car buyers stated that visiting a showroom is still important when purchasing a car

Vehicles are up there with a list of purchases consumers would prefer to make in real life, including pets and houses

LONDON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Despite the rise of digital customer journeys, almost three out of four car buyers still value visiting car showrooms, according to the latest research from OMODA.*

The innovative automotive brand, dedicated to pioneering the future of travel, has commissioned research which underscores the importance of physical showrooms in the automotive purchase process. Most importantly, the research also shows how to bring these into the future.

Among the highly valued features of showrooms are test drives, with 64% of buyers still wanting a hands-on experience with the vehicle. This comes as no surprise; however, when asked what features they'd like to see in future showrooms, 40% of respondents listed virtual test drives.

The research also found that a fifth of UK car buyers would trust a virtual test drive. The most popular options for virtual test drive locations are 72% offroad, 65% on a racetrack and 48% along a beach. Interestingly, some want to go even further afield - 14% said they'd want to test drive a car on Mars.

Despite many sounding the death knell for traditional showrooms, the research shows they still play an important role in the car buyer journey. OMODA is committed to maintaining and enhancing this vital aspect of the buying experience. By the end of 2025, OMODA plans to have a presence in over 100 car dealerships, with a strategic initiative already seeing over 60 showrooms open to customers in the UK.

Designed to be the showrooms of the future, not the past, customers can expect an innovative and interactive experience that redefines car shopping. From augmented reality displays that allow you to visualise vehicles in various settings, to virtual reality test drives, future showrooms will be equipped with the latest technology to enhance the consumer experience. OMODA is committed to creating a dynamic and engaging environment that not only showcases the products, but also elevates the entire purchasing process.

Victor Zhang, Executive Vice President of OMODA & JAECOO UK, comments: "Our 2035 future showroom will be an experiential hub offering immersive, customised and fun customer journeys. The showroom isn't just transactional, it's a place for customers to learn about the vehicle in a way that suits them. With our vehicles offering an increasing amount of technology, education is a huge part of the retail experience. Our research shows that buyers still value having a place to visit, so it's about bringing the showroom into the future."

The research looked at several areas of the car buying journey. It found that:

In-depth knowledge in demand

The research found that almost half (43%) of UK car buyers value salespeople with in-depth knowledge. This is especially true for those looking to purchase EVs, and 24% percent said that speaking to a knowledgeable expert about their local charging infrastructure was vital.

Pet hates

When asked about what they disliked most about the showroom experience, 61% said pressure from sales staff, 47% said feeling rushed, and 46% said the hidden costs (46%).

The future showroom

As well as virtual test drives, when asked what features they would most like to see in showrooms, more than half (52%) responded with interactive digital displays and 48% wanted tech support areas. Over one in five (22%) would most like to see AI / robot sales assistants, and 60% say they would find in-showroom training in car technology useful.

*Focal Data research carried out in May 2024 on 2,000 UK car buyers

About OMODA

Chery Automobile Co., Ltd was founded in 1997 and in 2023 saw one million export sales plus two million domestic sales. Chery has successfully created several sub-brands with cumulative global sales of more than 10 million units, making them China's top exporter of cars for over 20 consecutive years. In the UK and Europe, sales will be led by OMODA which has a focus on futuristic compact SUVs. OMODA is committed to design, technology and environmental responsibility, values embodied in their first model to arrive in the UK - the OMODA 5. This model, the first in a series due to be introduced to the UK, has already sold over 130,000 units internationally. Combined, OMODA & JAECOO are the fastest growing global automotive brands, with over 220,000 cumulative sales to date.

For more information, visit our website:

https://omodaauto.co.uk/

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2435783/OMODA_Research.jpg

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/omoda-reveals-showroom-visits-remain-crucial-for-76-of-car-buyers-despite-digital-shift-302169672.html
Advanced Training Programs and Customer Engagement Are Driving LG's Expansion and Strong Performance in the Global HVAC Market

SEOUL, South Korea, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- LG Electronics' (LG) Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) Academy is reinforcing the company's human resources infrastructure by training over 30,000 HVAC professionals annually. Building a network of skilled installation and service engineers, the academy is playing an important role in supporting the company's global B2B expansion strategy.

Operating in 62 locations worldwide, the LG HVAC Academy provides comprehensive training on installing and maintaining LG's residential and commercial HVAC systems, including its high-efficiency chillers. The academy enhances the skill-and knowledge-base of local technicians, equipping them with the ability to ensure the optimal set-up and performance of the company's advanced HVAC solutions - which is crucial in delivering the differentiated customer experiences LG is known for.

The LG HVAC Academy estimates it will provide training to approximately 37,000 individuals this year. Each branch of the academy features integrated showrooms and training rooms where attendees can gain hands-on experience with the company's B2C and B2B products. Along with product installation and maintenance training, LG's academy introduces the company's new HVAC solutions and offers specialized regional training programs, technical forums and customized on-site classes at clients' offices.

Last April, the LG HVAC Academy hosted the five-day 'Train The Trainer (TTT)' program at LG headquarters in Seoul, South Korea. The program was designed to further HVAC trainers' capabilities, giving them the tools to adapt to changes in customer engagement, as well as the valuable opportunity to exchange ideas and experiences with their peers from different regions and subsidiaries.

LG is also expanding its region-specific programs with events such as last month's LG HVAC Consultant Leaders' Summit (Seoul) for technical consultants from across Asia. Furthermore, the company is continuously adding to its existing HVAC Academy infrastructure, and is set to open a new branch in Lyon (France) by the end of this year. Notable recent additions to the network include sites in Boston (USA), Taipei (Taiwan), Chennai (India) and Kolkata (India).

With the rise of AI, there is a growing need for high-efficiency, high-performance cooling systems, especially in data centers and semiconductor plants where effective heat management is essential for maintaining server efficiency. LG is targeting continuing growth in the global HVAC market - which had an estimated value of approximately USD 58.4 billion in 2023* - with its high-efficiency heat pump HVAC systems, which have been designed with the latest electrification and environmental trends in mind. Moreover, the company aims to more than double the revenue generated by its residential and commercial HVAC business by 2030 and reinforce its position as a worldwide leader in air conditioning.

"The LG HVAC Academy plays a key role in enhancing the capabilities of engineers in each region," said James Lee, head of the Air Solution Business Unit at LG Electronics Home Appliance & Air Solution Company. "We will continue to increase customer engagement to deliver more value and drive our global HVAC business forward."

*According to market research company IBIS World, the estimated value of the global HVAC market as of 2023 was approximately USD 58.4 billion.

About LG Electronics Air Solution Business Unit

LG air conditioning provides optimized solutions for every sector and climate with a wide range of cutting-edge systems that bring exceptional heating, ventilation and air conditioning performance to buildings worldwide. Through our unmatched expertise and industry knowledge, we respond directly to the needs of businesses seeking digitalized and eco-conscious HVAC solutions. We are the partner your business has been looking for, and are well prepared to integrate our leading technology into your day-to-day operations, supporting you and your business every step of the way. For more information, please visit www.lg.com/global/business/hvac .

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2436630/LGE_HVAC_academy_2.jpg

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2436631/LGE_HVAC_academy_1.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/lg-hvac-academy-continues-to-develop-technical-experts-strengthen-the-companys-b2b-business-302171419.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.



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The Economic Development Bureau of the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin

ZHUHAI, China, June 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As of the end of this May, the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin (here in after referred to as the "Cooperation Zone") has been implementing tier-specific management for nearly three months. The Cooperation Zone represents a major exploration of China's high-level institutional opening-up. It is also accelerating the construction of key areas such as livelihoods, industries, and legal systems, thus opening a new chapter in high-quality development.

According to Antonio Lei, Director of the Economic Development Bureau of the Cooperation Zone, the implementation of tier-specific management has further enhanced the convenience of travel from Macao to Hengqin. The Cooperation Zone, in collaboration with Macao, plans to leverage the two-way mobility and interaction of personnel to host more signature MICE events. These events aim to attract global buyers, exhibitors, and representatives from the financial industry. In addition, it will facilitate the flow of logistics, human resources, capital, and information, thus promoting the development of the new "industry + exhibition" business model.

Antonio Lei believed the official implementation of tier-specific management will bring more benefits and opportunities for exhibition cooperation between Macao and Hengqin. For example, companies participating in events in the Cooperation Zone can temporarily import exhibition items under bonded conditions. Besides, some large non-disposable exhibition materials can be transported back to Macao after the event. It will further facilitate the "multi-venue event" model between Hengqin and Macao, thus attracting more international exhibitors to extend their activities to Hengqin.

"This year, we will continue to collaborate with Macao to host several events with global influence under the model of 'multi-venue event', such as the High-quality Consumption Exhibition & Global Bay Areas Forum and the BEYOND Expo. By sharing resources, we seek to continuously expand the influence of the 'MICE Macao x Hengqin brand," said Antonio Lei.

In the future, Macao and Hengqin will jointly promote the establishment of a terminal of the Macau International Airport, launch a Macao tourism bus route and co-host events such as the "Camping Fair" in the Cooperation Zone. They will also develop more island tour products, strengthen cooperation on investment promotion for the MICE industry, and form a professional team to attract more international events to the two places.

In addition, the thriving MICE industry in Macao and Hengqin has created numerous employment opportunities. For example, hosting MICE events involves a wide range of professionals specialising in event planning, marketing, venue management, and technical support, thus providing a vast market space for related industries to attract skilled talents. Moreover, by jointly hosting various MICE events and building exhibition brands, Macao and Hengqin will present their diverse industrial development to a broader audience. This approach not only promotes talent exchange within the industry but also helps to reserve more outstanding professionals for both places.

Source: The Economic Development Bureau of the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin
LEM HOLDING SA / Key word(s): Miscellaneous

CFO Andrea Borla to leave LEM by end of November 2024



13-Jun-2024 / 07:00 CET/CEST

Release of an ad hoc announcement pursuant to Art. 53 LR

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.





Geneva, 13 June 2024 - LEM (SIX: LEHN), a global leader in electrical measurement for automation, e-mobility, renewable energy, power network and railroad applications, announces that its CFO Andrea Borla will step down at the end of November 2024 after nine years as Chief Financial Officer and Member of the Executive Board. He is leaving LEM to pursue a next career step with a renowned worldwide leading and privately held Swiss company.

Over the past nine years, Andrea Borla has played a significant role in the business transformation of LEM Holding, leading to important achievements and milestones. Andreas Hurlimann, Chairman of the Board of Directors of LEM Holding, stated: "We regret that Andrea Borla is leaving our company. As Chief Financial Officer he made significant contributions to the successful transformation of the company, not only ensuring financial stability and efficiency, but also actively contributing to the strategic direction of LEM. Furthermore, his compelling work as a link to the capital market and the financial media was highly valuable to LEM."

The Board of Directors and executive management team at LEM Holding extend their gratitude to Andrea Borla for the successful collaboration during his tenure and wish him all the best in his new role. The succession process has been launched.

From 1 December 2024, Thomas Mellano will lead the finance organization on an interim basis. Thomas Mellano (49) is an experienced finance professional who has worked for LEM in various functions such as consolidation & reporting and treasury.

A leading company in electrical measurement, LEM engineers the best solutions for energy and mobility, ensuring that our customers' systems are optimized, reliable and safe.

Our 1'800 people in 17 countries transform technology potential into powerful answers. We develop and recruit the best global talent, working at the forefront of megatrends such as renewable energy, mobility, automation and digitization. With innovative electrical solutions, we are helping our customers and society accelerate the transition to a more sustainable future.

Listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange since 1986, the company's ticker symbol is LEHN.

www.lem.com

Investor contact Andrea Borla, Chief Finance Officer +41 22 706 1250 investor@lem.com Media contact Dynamics Group Thomas Balmer, +41 79 703 87 28, tba@dynamicsgroup.ch Christian Wolf, +41 79 457 72 05, cwo@dynamicsgroup.ch

ATTACHMENTS:

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Regulatory News:

Azelis (Brussels:AZE), a leading innovation service provider in the specialty chemicals and food ingredients industry, is proud to announce that it has been included in the BEL20 index, the benchmark stock market index of Euronext Brussels, consisting of the 20 largest traded companies in Belgium. This inclusion, effective June 24th, is a testament to Azelis' strong positioning, performance, and commitment to providing value to all stakeholders.

The BEL20 tracks the performance of 20 companies in Belgium with the largest free-float market capitalization, and the composition of the index is reviewed annually. As one of Euronext's blue-chip indices, the BEL20 serves as an underlying benchmark for structured products, funds, exchange traded funds, options and futures.

Anna Bertona, Azelis Group CEO, comments:

"We are pleased to be included in the BEL20 index just a few short years after our IPO. This inclusion is a significant milestone for Azelis and is a clear signal of our growth and progress as one of 20 indicators for the Belgian stock market. This recognition also demonstrates to our customers, principals, and shareholders that Azelis is committed to furthering our commercial and operational performance by providing sustainable and innovative formulations. As a company proudly headquartered in Belgium, we're honored to increase the visibility of Azelis in our home market and play an important role in the Belgian economy."

END

About Azelis

Azelis is a leading global innovation service provider in the specialty chemical and food ingredients industry, present in 63 countries across the globe with over 4,200 employees. Our knowledgeable teams of industry, market and technical experts are each dedicated to a specific market within Life Sciences and Industrial Chemicals. We offer a lateral value chain of complementary products to more than 63,000 customers, supported by +2,800 principal relationships, creating a turnover of 4.2 billion (2023). Azelis Group NV is listed on Euronext Brussels under ticker AZE.

Across our extensive network of more than 70 application laboratories, our award-winning staff help develop formulations and provide technical guidance throughout the customers' product development process. We combine a global market reach with a local footprint to offer a reliable, integrated, and unique digital service to local customers and attractive -business opportunities to principals. Top industry-rated by Sustainalytics, Azelis is a leader in sustainability. We believe in building and nurturing solid, honest and transparent relationships with our people and partners.

Impact through ideas. Innovation through formulation.

www.azelis.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240612010927/en/

Contacts:

Contact information

Azelis

Meredith Wood

Senior Corporate Communications Business Partner

T: +32 (0)485 29 36 65

E: meredith.wood@azelis.com
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

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London, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --Tokyo Steel Japan is pleased to announce the launch of their new proprietary green steel brand - enso. The enso circle holds deep symbolism and cultural significance in Japan. As a symbol, it represents various concepts including eternity, infinity, harmony & balance, and the cyclical nature of life. As such, enso symbolises Tokyo Steel's commitment to the "circular economy" through their products, whilst the circular enso logo transitions from charcoal to green to symbolise the evolution from carbon intensive production to green steel.

Tokyo Steel achieves lower embodied carbon emissions through the use of electric arc production utilising recycled steel scrap, applying highly efficient operating processes and, through the elimination of certain emission-intensive steps involved in the traditional blast furnace process.

The enso product range will initially include Hot Rolled Coil ("HRC") and Hot Rolled Plate ("HRP"), with plans to expand the range downstream over time. When compared to similar products from the market leading EU blast furnace producer, enso HRC includes approximately one third of the embodied carbon emissions, and enso HRP includes approximately one fifth of the embodied carbon emissions.

Tokyo Steel has been supplying its range of HRC and HRP products to the EU market on a stable monthly basis for some time, fulfilling growing demand from its customers for low embodied carbon steel. These products form the feed supply for numerous down-stream industries, including construction, manufacturing and renewable energy generation.

To further enhance the enso product range, Tokyo Steel has plans to make an ultra-low carbon emissions product, manufactured using 100% renewable energy. This should be available to customers later in 2024.

Hisanori-Sakai, Executive Officer GM of International Sales Department of Tokyo Steel said: "Tokyo Steel is by definition a low-carbon emission producer of steel products. Whilst we have had a stable export business supplying European customers who recognise the important advantages our production route brings; we decided it was important to launch the enso brand to highlight our commitment to the circular economy and attaining even lower levels of embodied carbon emissions.

We are grateful for the loyalty of our customers who share our vision of a low carbon emission steel sector. Tokyo Steel will continue to work towards achieving the lowest possible levels of embodied carbon emissions with the application of proprietary technological advances and enhanced levels of renewable energy in the production process. Tokyo Steel will manage supply of enso to Europe in accordance with and reflecting all import regulations and requirements set by the European Union.'

The enso brand has been developed in partnership with Stemcor, a leading independent global steel trading company.

A Stemcor Group spokesperson said: "As society continues to build the infrastructure to achieve a greener future, steel remains the world's most important engineering and construction material. As a result, we have been seeing a steady increase in demand from a number of European sectors for lower embodied carbon emissions steel products. Additionally, as we head closer to full implementation of the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism ("CBAM"), companies are proactively looking to secure supply chains of these cleaner basic materials and Tokyo Steel's enso product range is therefore highly attractive."

www.tokyosteelenso.com

https://www.stemcor.com

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2436663/Tokyo_Steel_1.jpg

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2436664/Tokyo_Steel_2.jpg

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/tokyo-steel-announces-new-enso-green-steel-brand-302170881.html
LONDON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- EcoOnline, a leading software provider for EHS, ESG, and Chemical Safety, announces its new CSRD Assessment capability within the company's ESG software solution, helping organisations confidently comply with the European Union's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD). The software simplifies the process of CSRD data collection, covering European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS) topics and standards, allowing businesses to identify material risks efficiently, drive powerful data insights, and produce audit-ready CSRD-compliant reports.

The EU CSRD was developed to enhance environmental, social, and governance (ESG) reporting standards, providing organisations with a clearer understanding of their sustainability performance and related business impacts and risks. Increasing pressure from governments, investors, employees, and customers to operate sustainably compels many organisations to adopt comprehensive reporting practices. Even businesses not currently required to comply with CSRD find themselves driven by external demands to provide specific components of the reports.

"EcoOnline ESG software doesn't just provide a place for customers to collect their CSRD data but makes it truly easy to get the answers," comments Bertrand Revenaz, VP Product, ESG & Data Intelligence at EcoOnline. "Our CSRD reporting capabilities are unparalleled, combining a sophisticated calculation engine with comprehensive climate and scenario analysis to help organisations identify and manage material risks effectively. This ensures that our clients not only comply with CSRD requirements but also gain valuable insights into their sustainability performance and can make informed decisions regarding material ESG topics, ultimately improving overall business outcomes."

EcoOnline's CSRD Assessment comes with the following innovative features to meet market demands, all backed by expertise from in-house sustainability analysts:

Powerful Calculation Engine : Automatically selects, converts, and computes greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as well as CO2 equivalents, ensuring accurate reporting across any framework.

: Automatically selects, converts, and computes greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as well as CO2 equivalents, ensuring accurate reporting across any framework. Physical Climate Risk Analysis : Simplifies the process of identifying material risks and managing data for the organisation, locations, and the supply chain to comply with CSRD reporting requirements.

: Simplifies the process of identifying material risks and managing data for the organisation, locations, and the supply chain to comply with CSRD reporting requirements. Audit-ready Workflows : Built-in QA workflows assist CSRD preparers in ensuring data quality and availability for third-party external assurance.

: Built-in QA workflows assist CSRD preparers in ensuring data quality and availability for third-party external assurance. Data Collection : Provides a comprehensive question structure covering all ESRS standards, facilitating data collection ready for drafting a CSRD disclosure.

: Provides a comprehensive question structure covering all ESRS standards, facilitating data collection ready for drafting a CSRD disclosure. Scenario Analysis: Enhances materiality assessment by incorporating data-driven insights from our climate risk module, offering insights into transitional, financial, and both acute and chronic physical climate risks across various scenarios and time scales.

According to independent analyst firm Verdantix, "Institutions are seeking complex and varied answers to ESG-related questions to inform sustainable investment preferences and exclusions. More accurate reporting is therefore critical, not only to give investment managers better insight into business performance and exposure to risks on certain metrics, but to provide the firm itself with information to understand how it has made improvements over time. In this way, the reporting process moves beyond a tick-box exercise, to deliver against goals and drive change in line with a firm's sustainability strategy."1

EcoOnline's ESG software offers extensive data-driven capabilities, including access to over 4 million data points that can be queried at once. It also provides robust monitoring of millions of hectares of land and tracks over 400,000 individual locations. The new CSRD Assessment represents a significant step forward in helping organisations meet their sustainability reporting obligations while driving responsible business practices and climate resilience.

EcoOnline recently released its free Sustainability Navigator Tool to guide business through their eligibility requirements for reporting obligations, including if there is a need to comply with CSRD.

The CSRD Assessment is available immediately in English, with other European languages scheduled for later in the year.

About EcoOnline:

EcoOnline makes it easier for you to protect your workforce and the planet. Champion worker safety and climate compliance with EcoOnline's intuitive suite of software solutions in Chemical Safety, Sustainability Reporting, and all aspects of Environmental, Health, and Safety (EHS) including Learning and Training.

With over 25 years of experience in 90 industries, EcoOnline is trusted by more than 10,000 brands worldwide. To make a significant impact to the safety and sustainability of your business visit www.ecoonline.com

1 Verdantix, "Strategic Focus: CSRD And ESG Reporting Readiness," Guy Lewis & Kim Knickle, 23 February, 2024

Contact: Alyssa Fishwick, Senior Director of PR: Alyssa.fishwick@ecoonline.com

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/ecoonline-launches-unparalleled-csrd-assessment-capability-302171287.html
The world leader in metal detecting technologies launches X-TERRA ELITE Series for a never-before detecting experience

CORK, Ireland, June 13, 2024, the world leader in metal-detecting technologies for gold prospecting, treasure hunting and landmine clearance, has announced the latest development in metal detecting. In an exciting summer 2024 rollout, Minelab will debut its most rigorously equipped detector: the all-new X-TERRA ELITE series - where affordability meets innovation. As a bonus to treasure enthusiasts, historians and tech-seekers around the globe, Minelab takes it one step further with the X-TERRA ELITE Expedition Pack.



"With state-of-the-art technologies powered by Multi-IQ, this model is a riveting development in the world of detection. We have addressed every detail and feature to make the hunt incredibly accurate and exciting. The design does the work on land and water with unique developments that make it easier than ever to tune in and sync up the search between man and machine," said Rob Wells, Vice President of Minelab Europe.

NEVER COMPROMISE WITH THE X-TERRA ELITE

The all-new Minelab X-TERRA ELITE series is powered by Multi-IQ - a breakthrough in treasure detection combining cutting-edge technology and affordability. Designed for the savvy hunter in search of a fully-waterproof, feature-rich machine with proven multi-frequency technology, the X-TERRA ELITE stands unbeatable. It offers an impressive set of features, including:

Minelab Multi-IQ - With Minelab's revolutionary Multi-IQ technology, you've got the combined power of multiple detectors in one - all working for you at the same time. Nothing goes undiscovered and no terrain is off limits.

- With Minelab's revolutionary Multi-IQ technology, you've got the combined power of multiple detectors in one - all working for you at the same time. Nothing goes undiscovered and no terrain is off limits. All-Terrain Detecting - Choose between 2 x Park, 2 x Field, and 2 x Beach pre-programmed Search Modes. Whether you're swinging in the fields or swimming in the shallows, X-TERRA ELITE finds treasures others miss.

- Choose between 2 x Park, 2 x Field, and 2 x Beach pre-programmed Search Modes. Whether you're swinging in the fields or swimming in the shallows, X-TERRA ELITE finds treasures others miss. Fully Waterproof - With IP-68 waterproof capability to 16 ft (5 m), take X-TERRA ELITE anywhere and own the ground beneath your feet.

- With IP-68 waterproof capability to 16 ft (5 m), take X-TERRA ELITE anywhere and own the ground beneath your feet. Extreme Precision - The Multi-IQ engine delivers Stable IDs for even the deepest targets. Recover even the faintest echoes of treasure with 25 levels of sensitivity - when you've got a target, switch to Pinpoint to zero-in further.

- The Multi-IQ engine delivers Stable IDs for even the deepest targets. Recover even the faintest echoes of treasure with 25 levels of sensitivity - when you've got a target, switch to Pinpoint to zero-in further. Rich Audio - With multiple tone audio, the sound of treasure is clear. X-TERRA ELITE's all-tone audio means you'll not only 'hear' if a target is trash or treasure, but you'll also be able to gauge its size and depth simply by listening.

- With multiple tone audio, the sound of treasure is clear. X-TERRA ELITE's all-tone audio means you'll not only 'hear' if a target is trash or treasure, but you'll also be able to gauge its size and depth simply by listening. Iron Control - When it's time to take command of your hunt and sort treasure from junk, X-TERRA ELITE offers versatile 3-level Iron Bias and nuanced 25-level Iron Volume settings.

- When it's time to take command of your hunt and sort treasure from junk, X-TERRA ELITE offers versatile 3-level Iron Bias and nuanced 25-level Iron Volume settings. Choice of Coils - An array of waterproof coils are available with V12X 12"x9" Elliptical Double-D included as standard on ELITE. V8X 8"x5" Elliptical Double-D and V10X 10"x7" Elliptical Double-D coils available as an accessory. X-TERRA ELITE is also compatible with all EQUINOX series coils.

- An array of waterproof coils are available with V12X 12"x9" Elliptical Double-D included as standard on ELITE. V8X 8"x5" Elliptical Double-D and V10X 10"x7" Elliptical Double-D coils available as an accessory. X-TERRA ELITE is also compatible with all EQUINOX series coils. Lighting and Vibration - The daylight may have ended, but that doesn't mean your hunt has to - with Control Pod Flashlight, Red Backlight Display, Backlit Keypad, and Handgrip Vibration you can power on long after the sun has gone.

- The daylight may have ended, but that doesn't mean your hunt has to - with Control Pod Flashlight, Red Backlight Display, Backlit Keypad, and Handgrip Vibration you can power on long after the sun has gone. Loud and Clear Audio - Enjoy the crystal-clear audio with In-Built Speaker (Included), or Wired Headphones, Low Latency Wireless Headphones and Waterproof Headphones (Accessories).

- Enjoy the crystal-clear audio with In-Built Speaker (Included), or Wired Headphones, Low Latency Wireless Headphones and Waterproof Headphones (Accessories). Built to Last - Committed to leading the pack for performance and support, X-TERRA ELITE is backed by Minelab's global network and 3-year warranty.

Take the adventure one step further with the X-TERRA ELITE Expedition Pack. This impeccable new offering helps detectorists achieve the same extraordinary results as the X-TERRA ELITE model, PLUS, it comes with a second coil (V8X 8"x5" Elliptical Double-D) and lightning-fast ML-85 low latency wireless headphones.

The X-TERRA ELITE and X-TERRA ELITE Expedition Pack are available online and at retailers globally.



For more information, visit minelab.com and follow on Facebook , Instagram , and Twitter .

ABOUT MINELAB:

Minelab is an Australian, multi-award-winning business that has successfully scaled world markets to command global leadership in its key areas of operation. Based in Mawson Lakes, South Australia, with regional offices in Cork, Ireland; Dubai, UAE; Monterrey, Mexico; Itajai, Brazil; and Chicago, U.S.A., the company specializes in advanced electronic technologies. Since its origins in 1985, Minelab has been the world leader in providing metal-detecting technologies for gold prospecting, treasure hunting and landmine clearance. Through devotion to research and development and innovative design, Minelab is today the major world manufacturer of handheld metal detector products. Over the past 30 years, Minelab has introduced more innovative and practical technology than any of its competitors and has taken the metal detecting industry to new levels of excellence. Minelab is a Codan Limited company (ASX: "CDA").

To learn more about Minelab, visit minelab.com.

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NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION, DISTRIBUTION OR DISSEMINATION, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATES

News Release Highlights:

Alset investee Cedarcross signs Nvidia H100 GPU server contract for an initial three (3) servers (for a purchase price of $1.37 million), with the customer having an option to acquire an additional 200 servers (for a purchase price of $91.7 million) valid until September 30, 2024.

Cedarcross achieves approx. $29.7 million cumulative revenue year to date with its high-performance computing ("HPC") server distribution business vertical alone.

Nvidia's H100 GPU Servers are used in "Transformational AI Training", offering up to "7x higher performance for High Performance Computing applications."1

Alset Capital Inc. (TSXV:KSUM)(OTC:ALSCF)(FSE:1R60, WKN:A3ESVQ) ("Alset" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that its investee company, Cedarcross International Technologies Inc. ("Cedarcross"), has signed an agreement with an arm's length counterparty, Big Energy Investments Inc., DBA Ceti AI ("Ceti AI") to distribute three (3) Nvidia H100 HGX 8GPU servers, which is anticipated to generate $1.37 million in revenue for Cedarcross, with an option for the counterparty to acquire up to 200 H100 HGX 8GPU servers, which if exercised would generate $91.7 million in revenue (the "Transaction").

Following Cedarcross' two previously announced distribution agreements announced on April 22, 2024 and May 16, 2024, this agreement marks an important advancement in Cedarcross' distribution business within the high-performance computing (HPC) server market. Cedarcross has now secured cumulative revenue year to date of approximately $29.7 million through its HPC server distribution business vertical alone. These distribution agreements underscore the significant demand and strategic market positioning of Cedarcross in the HPC landscape.

"This transaction represents another significant milestone for Cedarcross" said Morgan Good, CEO of Alset. "It highlights their strong partnerships, which provide access to high-performance computing Nvidia GPU servers for both in-house use and third parties. Additionally, this distribution vertical enhances their existing compute leasing business unit, fostering diversity in their offerings and deeper market penetration."

The estimated gross margin from the initial $1.37 million purchase order is approximately $176k, and the estimated gross margin assuming all 200 H100 HGX 8GPU servers are purchased is approximately $11,782,000.

As of this announcement, the Company has been informed that Cedarcross has received a 10% downpayment for the initial $1.37 million purchase. The payment schedule is as follows:

$413,055 due within fourteen (14) days of June 4th, 2024

$275,370 due when the servers are ready to ship

$275,370 due upon receipt of the servers by Ceti AI

$275,370 due seven (7) days after Ceti AI receives and accepts the servers

The sale of up to 200 servers to Ceti AI is subject to Ceti AI obtaining approval from the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) compliance.

All amounts in Canadian Dollars unless otherwise specified. These figures are converted from US dollars at an exchange rate of 1.37 (USD to CAD).

(1) Nvidia.com

On behalf of Alset Capital Inc.

"Morgan Good"

Morgan Good

Chief Executive Officer

About Alset Capital Inc.

Alset Capital Inc. is an investment issuer that is focused on investment in diversified industries such as technology, healthcare, industrial, special situations, operating businesses through both debt and equity using cash resources or shares in its capital. The Company is led by an experienced, entrepreneurial group of executives having a diverse industry and capital markets background.

Alset Capital Inc.'s investment portfolio comprises 49% ownership of Cedarcross International Technologies Inc. and 49% ownership of Vertex AI Ventures Inc.

About Cedarcross International Technologies Inc.

Cedarcross Technologies is an Artificial Intelligence cloud computing provider, with a vision of becoming one of Canada's largest AI compute providers. The Company is dedicated to democratizing access to cutting-edge AI computing, offering access to the world's fastest AI servers powered by Nvidia's H100 HGX 8GPU Servers. Focused on leasing compute resources to enterprise clients, Cedarcross Technologies anticipates significant revenue growth.

For further information about Alset Capital Inc., please contact:

Morgan Good, CEO and Director

T: 604.715.4751

E: morgan@alsetai.com

Cautionary Note regarding Forward Looking Statements

Certain statements in this press release may contain forward-looking information (within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation), including, without limitation, the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the distribution and option agreement, the closing of the Transaction as contemplated or at all, approval from OEM Compliance in the event the option to acquire the additional 200 Nvidia H100 HGX 8GPU servers is exercised, the Nvidia H100 HGX 8GPU servers' revenue generation, and the growth of the global cloud AI market. 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 guarantees 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.

Cautionary Note Regarding Future Oriented Financial Information

This news release also contains future-oriented financial information and financial outlook (collectively, "FOFI") about the Cedarcross' forecasted revenues from the sale of the three Nvidia H100 HGX 8GPU servers and the option it has granted for the sale of an additional 200 Nvidia H100 HGX 8GPU servers and the receipt of OEM's approval if the option to acquire the additional 200 Nvidia H100 HGX 8GPU servers is exercised, which is subject to the same assumptions, risk factors, limitations, and qualifications as set forth in the above paragraphs. FOFI contained in this news release was made by management as of the date of this news release and was provided for the purpose of providing readers with an understanding of the importance of such sale and option to Cedarcross' business, and are not an estimate of profitability or any other measure of financial performance. Readers are cautioned that the FOFI contained in this news release should not be used for purposes other than for which it is disclosed herein. The Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any FOFI contained in this News Release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless required pursuant to applicable law. FOFI contained in this news release should not be used for purposes other than for which it is disclosed herein.

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: Alset Capital Inc.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Commerzbank AG (London Branch) - Pre-Stabilisation Notice Heidelberg Materials AG EUR 10yr

PR Newswire

LONDON, United Kingdom, June 13

Pre-Stabilisation Notice Heidelberg Materials AG EUR 10yr

Pre-Stabilisation Notice

June 13, 2024

Not for distribution, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States or any jurisdiction in which such distribution would be unlawful.

Heidelberg Materials AG

EUR Benchmark Fixed Rate Notes due 19 July 2034

Standalone documentation

Commerzbank AG (contact: John Gray; telephone: +44-207-7475-1817) hereby announces, as Stabilisation Coordinator, that the Stabilising Managers named below may stabilise the offer of the following securities in accordance with Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1052 under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU Regulation 596/2014).

The security to be stabilised: Issuer: Heidelberg Materials AG Guarantor (if any): none Aggregate nominal amount: EUR Benchmark Description: EUR Benchmark Fixed Rate Notes due 19 July 2034 Offer price: tbc Other offer terms: Standalone documentation, denoms 1k/1k, listing Luxembourg Stock Exchange. ISIN: XS2842061421 Stabilisation: Stabilisation Coordinator: Stabilising Managers: Commerzbank AG BofA Securities, Citigroup ING, SEB, Standard Chartered Bank AG Stabilisation period expected to start on: June 13, 2024 Stabilisation period expected to end on: no later than 30 days after the proposed issue date of the securities Existence, maximum size and conditions of use of over-allotment facility. The Stabilising Managers may over-allot the securities to the extent permitted in accordance with applicable law. Stabilisation trading venue: Luxembourg Stock Exchange

In connection with the offer of the above securities, the Stabilising Manager(s) may over-allot the securities or effect transactions with a view to supporting the market price of the securities during the stabilisation period at a level higher than that which might otherwise prevail. However, stabilisation may not necessarily occur and any stabilisation action, if begun, may cease at any time Any stabilisation action or over-allotment shall be conducted in accordance with all applicable laws and rules.

This announcement is for information purposes only and does not constitute an invitation or offer to underwrite, subscribe for or otherwise acquire or dispose of any securities of the Issuer in any jurisdiction.

This announcement is not for distribution, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States or any other jurisdiction in which such distribution would be unlawful.

END
Adarga, the leader in AI-driven information intelligence, today announced the acquisition of US strategic risk intelligence firm, J2X Solutions. This move further strengthens Adarga's expanding ecosystem of products and services, providing its fast-growing global customer base with the unparalleled quality, speed, and breadth of intelligence needed to gain decision advantage in today's unpredictable threat landscape.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240613895907/en/

Adarga's acquisition of J2X Solutions bolsters its marketing-leading range of products and services, which includes its AI-driven information intelligence software, Vantage (pictured). (Credit: Adarga)

The J2X team has decades of experience in identifying, assessing, and mitigating complex risks for the US government and private corporations. Comprised of elite former military officers, federal law enforcement officers, and intelligence analysts, they specialise in areas such as supply chain risk, insider threat, due diligence, and geopolitical risk. They have helped organisations to minimise losses, de-risk global operations, identify emerging threats, and streamline security.

Combined with Adarga's cutting-edge AI platform built to enrich and accelerate intelligence outputs with state-of-the art information analysis capabilities the J2X team's unique skills and expertise will enhance Adarga's existing risk intelligence services. They will also inform its continuously evolving product roadmap and reinforce Adarga's competitive position in the market as it delivers organisational resilience to some of the world's most demanding customers in the face of increasing competition.

The acquisition supports and accelerates Adarga's expanding US growth, marked by recent contract wins with the Defence National Security community. The combination of the two companies will deliver added value to J2X's existing customers by leveraging Adarga's technology and its proprietary curated data sets, enabling the team to rapidly interrogate, contextualise, and connect millions of global data points to derive valuable insight and foresight into near- and long-term threats.

"We are thrilled to integrate J2X's leading capabilities with our robust products and services," said Adarga CEO and Founder, Rob Bassett Cross, adding "This acquisition reinforces our commitment to delivering unrivalled excellence in information intelligence. Combining deep expertise and innovative technologies, underpinned by our state-of-the-art AI platform, will empower organisations across the UK, US and our allies with the foresight and clarity needed to navigate today's complex geopolitical environment."

"Joining forces with Adarga represents a significant milestone for J2X Solutions," noted Chris Gore, J2X's President. "Our longstanding commitment to providing strategic risk intelligence aligns perfectly with Adarga's industry-leading approach to information analysis. Our combined strengths will deliver enhanced intelligence capabilities to our customers and enable them to counter an ever-growing number and range of threats."

About Adarga

Adarga is an AI software leader specialising in information intelligence. Its technology is deployed to allied armed forces, national security organisations, and the commercial sector, delivering information and decision advantage in a world of increasing geopolitical threats. Headquartered in London, UK, Adarga has an expanding global footprint in the US and Australia.

Adarga's flagship product, Vantage, is underpinned by its state-of-the-art AI platform, and provides analysts, planners, and commanders with a vital ability to rapidly extract, contextualise, interrogate, and connect information drawn from millions of internal and external sources in over 75 languages in a single, secure environment.

Adarga's services offering includes an AI innovation and deployment team that is supporting customers to design, develop, and scale AI capabilities, and an in-house geopolitical research unit that provides analysis-as-a-service to strengthen organisations' operational resilience.

About J2X Solutions

J2X Solutions is a veteran-owned consulting company with a team that draws on decades of experience in the military and federal law enforcement. Specialising in areas such as supply chain risk, insider threat, due diligence, and geopolitical risk, J2X's executives are experienced in delivering robust strategic risk intelligence programmes to the US Government, Global Fortune 50 enterprises, and small businesses.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240613895907/en/

Contacts:

press@adarga.ai

Follow Adarga on LinkedIn
Research reveals vital human skills gap in maximizing potential of AI and Cloud as 97% of companies prioritize upskilling workforce

STANS, Switzerland, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- SoftwareOne, a leading global software and cloud solutions provider, has released further findings from its Cloud Skills Report, highlighting the need to bridge the Human-Machine divide. The biggest pain point for companies in their digital transformation efforts is ensuring employee skills growth matches the rapid rate of innovation. Nearly two-thirds (62%) report currently having inadequate skills to leverage AI and 41% of organizations are struggling to find AI skilled employees.

The research underscores a pressing reality: prioritizing close collaboration between human workers and advanced technologies is paramount amidst a widening cloud skills gap and apprehension around AI. This symbiotic relationship is set to redefine organizational dynamics, with 97% of organizations planning to prioritize upskilling their workforce according to the research.

The cloud skills shortage has increased the individual workloads of 62% of respondents, and led to significant repercussions, including burnout and high turnover rates within departments. Notably, almost a quarter of global IT managers (23%) are contemplating quitting due to the skills gap, while a staggering 84% of companies perceive IT retention issues as a significant challenge.

But these retention issues are compounded by conflicts within teams. 34% of respondents said that the cloud skills gap has caused tension between themselves and their boss, while 42% say it has caused tension within the team. And one in five (22%) of respondents said they don't feel comfortable asking for additional training to advance their skills.

"Rapid advancements in AI and generative AI offer exciting prospects for companies worldwide, but organizations are sitting on a ticking talent time bomb if they don't upskill and retrain their workforces now to fulfil the potential of AI," said Brian Duffy, CEO at SoftwareOne. "Our research shows the overwhelming majority of organizations are planning to upskill their IT teams in order to fast-track AI adoption and accelerate the cloud journey. By putting people at the center and showcasing how these innovations can enhance their roles rather than pose threats, organizations can cultivate a culture of empowerment and optimism that helps to increase retention, boost productivity and make work more meaningful."

To find out more about the Cloud Skills Report, and the role SoftwareOne can play in accelerating cloud, data and AI adoption to help businesses achieve their digital transformation goals, please visit Cloud Skills Report | SoftwareOne.

About SoftwareOne

SoftwareOne is a leading global software and cloud solutions provider that is redefining how organizations build, buy and manage everything in the cloud. By helping clients to migrate and modernize their workloads and applications - and in parallel, to navigate and optimize the resulting software and cloud changes - SoftwareOne unlocks the value of technology. The company's ~9,300 employees are driven to deliver a portfolio of 7,500 software brands with a presence in over 60 countries. Headquartered in Switzerland, SoftwareOne is listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange under the ticker symbol SWON. Visit us at www.softwareone.com

SoftwareOne Holding AG, Riedenmatt 4, CH-6370 Stans

About the research

The SoftwareOne Cloud Skills Survey canvassed the opinions of 500 IT decision-makers (ITDMs) from the UK, Benelux, North America, and Australia to understand how the cloud-skills shortage is impacting IT teams and how they plan to combat it in 2024.

Media Contact

Stuart Marks, Global Leader, Content & External Communications

stuart.marks@softwareone.com

Shane Conway, Global PR Director

shane.conway@softwareone.com

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LONDON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Faissola Foundation today announces an extension of its strategic partnership with the London Academy of Excellence (LAE) in support of students from low-income households.

The extension of the partnership will make possible an annual university-style residency programme for a group of LAE Faissola Scholars. The scholars are chosen based on contextual factors, such as their family's history of education and household income, as well as their exceptional academic achievement. The first residency took place at UWC Atlantic College, St. Donats Castle in Wales. Future residency programmes are planned in Liguria, Italy.

Founded by Michele Faissola, the Faissola Foundation has supported students at the LAE since 2022. The first round of LAE Faissola Scholars included students now studying at Oxford, Cambridge and the London School of Economics & Political Science.

The LAE, based in Stratford, East London, is the top-ranked state sixth form provider in England and Wales, according to The Sunday Times Parent Power Survey. The school, twice rated 'Outstanding' by Ofsted, recently became the first state school in the world admitted to the World Leading Schools Association.

The Faissola Foundation aims to tackle inequality caused by socioeconomic circumstance by providing support for young people in the UK and Europe. Founder Michele Faissola said: "Both of my parents were teachers. They taught me that all children can build a foundation for success given the right tools and resources. The Faissola Foundation is happy to support organisations such as the LAE that are devoted to addressing the current crisis in educational inequality."

Alexander Crossman, Headteacher of the LAE, said: "We are delighted to extend our partnership with the Faissola Foundation to provide ambitious, hard-working young people from low-income homes with the sort of educational opportunities that those from more affluent families take for granted."

NOTES TO EDITORS:

BACKGROUND

Disadvantaged students are those who have been eligible for free school meals during their secondary education, as determined by the Department for Education. The Department for Work and Pensions estimates that 4.3 million children and young people in the UK live in relative poverty and 3.6 million in absolute poverty, leading to reduced opportunities for education and employment. In the London Borough of Newham alone, where LAE is based, 50% of children live in poverty.

ABOUT THE FAISSOLA FOUNDATION:

Founded by Michele Faissola in 2020 in honour of his parents, The Faissola Foundation provides educational opportunities to European children from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. The foundation is based on the premise that education is the key to success, but that many underprivileged children unfortunately do not have the same educational opportunities as others. By providing financial and emotional support, the foundation seeks to give these children the tools they need to shape a better future for themselves. For more information on the Faissola Foundation, visit: https://www.faissolafoundation.com/

ABOUT THE LONDON ACADEMY OF EXCELLENCE (LAE)

LAE was established in Stratford in 2012 to improve progression rates in Newham for students aspiring to win places at top universities. LAE's admissions criteria positively discriminate in favour of students who have been eligible for free school meals during their secondary education. In less than a decade, LAE has sent more than 150 students to Oxford and Cambridge, more than 200 to medical schools and more than 1,500 to Russell Group universities. For more information visit https://www.lae.ac.uk/

Contact

Anthony Butcher

info.foundation@faissola.com

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TOKYO, June 13, 2024 - (JCN Newswire) - Honda Motor Co., Ltd. will begin sales in Japan of a new commercial-use mini-EV (electric vehicle), the N-VAN e:, on October 10, 2024.N-VAN e: product site: https://www.honda.co.jp/N-VAN-e/ (Japanese)The N-VAN e: is a commercial-use mini-EV model developed by adding user-friendly features unique only to EVs to the gasoline-powered N-VAN, which has been popular as a versatile vehicle that accommodates a broad range of customer needs for both commercial and recreational uses. While maintaining popular N-VAN features - such as a large cargo space realized by the flat, low floor and high ceiling and a large opening on the passenger side made possible by eliminating the center pillar - the N-VAN e: features added value unique only to EVs, such as a power output function and a quiet cabin.The N-VAN e: realized both a sufficient practical range and a large cargo space required for commercial use through the adoption of a large-capacity battery, downsizing of the eAxle, and by minimizing the space occupied by components through a centralized layout of high-voltage components. In addition to realizing a range of 245 km*1 (152 miles) on a single charge in WLTC mode, which is sufficient for a delivery service, one of the main commercial uses of EVs, customer convenience was pursued with charging time of approximately 4.5 hours for normal charging (6.0 kW output) *2 and approximately 30 minutes for fast charging (50 kW output) *3.Moreover, the battery cooling and heating system inhibits battery performance degradation caused by the high or low temperatures, contributing to shorter charging time and longer range, especially during winter.Type variationsFour types of N-VAN e: are available to meet a wide range of customer needs for both commercial and personal uses.- e: L4The e: L4 is the standard 4-seater type that can be used for a wide range of commercial and personal purposes. While the battery is mounted under the floor, a cargo space as large as that of gasoline-powered N-VAN was realized. Other features include a 7-inch LCD meter capable of displaying a variety of information and two-tone exterior color variations which broaden the range of choices for customers.- e: FUNDeveloped based on the e: L4 type, the e: FUN type features styling that blends in well with customers' hobbies and leisure activities. The interior is a light, natural beige color, and two-tone exterior color variations are also available for the e: FUN type. In addition to LED headlights, the e: FUN type comes with additional features such as fast charging capability as standard equipment.- e: GThe e: G type was developed in the pursuit of functionality, exclusively for commercial uses. This type has only one seat, based on an assumption that it will be used by one driver. The passenger side dashboard is shaped in a way that enables long items to fit well. Compared to the gasoline-powered N-VAN, the interior length was increased by 95 mm, and the floor height was lowered by 120 mm*4compared to the four-seater e: L4 and e: FUN types by eliminating the passenger seat. These dimensional changes have enhanced user-friendliness for commercial uses.- e: L2The e: L2 type features a front/rear tandem configuration of seats on the driver side. The vacant space without seats and the large opening without a pillar on the passenger side highlight the value inherited from the N-VAN, making it easier for users to get in and out of the vehicle and while loading and unloading.The e: G and e: L2 types are only available for lease sales through the Honda Fleet Sales Division and the Honda ON, Honda's new vehicle online store. For more information about leasing these models through Honda ON, please access the following URL.Honda ON "N-VAN e: Value Plan" special website: https://on.honda.co.jp/nvan-e (Japanese)Safety PerformanceAdvanced safety and driver-assistive functions are available for all types as standard features*5. Moreover, the N-VAN e: will be the first model*6 among all commercial-use light van models available in the market to be equipped with side curtain airbags for both the driver and front passenger seats as standard equipment. The N-VAN e: also will be the first model among all mini-vehicle models in Japan to adopt the Post-Collision Braking System, a technology to mitigate secondary damage in the event of a collision.List of safety functions available for N-VAN e:e: L4/e: FUN Honda SENSING1. Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS)2. Collision Mitigation Throttle Control*63. Rear Collision Mitigation Throttle Control*64. Pedestrian Collision Mitigation Steering System5. Road Departure Mitigation (RDM) System6. Lane Keeping Assist System (LKAS)7. Adaptive Cruise Control (ACC)8. Lead Car Departure Notification System9. Traffic Sign Recognition10. Auto High Beam Headlights11. Parking Sensor System (Front/Rear) *712. Unintended Acceleration Mitigation*8e: G/e: L21. Collision Mitigation Braking System (CMBS)2. Pedestrian Collision Mitigation Steering System3. Road Departure Mitigation (RDM) System4. Auto High Beam Headlights5. Parking Sensor System (Rear)*7Honda CONNECTBy obtaining an ID for Honda Total Care, Honda's members-only support service, the customer can use functions to set 1) the departure time for temperature control, 2) optimal timing for charging, 3) the maximum charging level, and 4) the minimum SOC*9 required for power output, free of charge*10. These functions can be remotely controlled via the Honda Total Care smartphone app. Utilization of these functions contributes to the enhanced comfort of the mobility experience, reducing electricity costs and extending the range.- Setting the departure time for temperature control:When the user sets a departure time through the app, the system will ensure a comfortable in-vehicle temperature at the time of departure. In addition, the system controls and optimizes the temperature of the battery according to outside temperature. This function enables the user to start driving with a warmed-up battery even during the winter when the outside temperature is low, thereby contributing to maximizing the range.- Setting the optimal timing for charging:The user can set desired times of day to charge their EV battery for each day. This enables the customer to avoid charging the vehicle at times when high (peak-hour) electricity prices are applied.- Setting the maximum electric currentBy setting the maximum amount of electric current for EV charging, the user can ensure that EV charging will be done without exceeding the capacity the household/business contracted with the power company.- Setting the maximum charging levelThe upper limit of charge level can be set between 80% and 100% according to customer preference. This reduces the battery load and helps inhibit battery performance degradation.- Setting the minimum SOC required for power outputThe user can preset the minimum SOC for the system to automatically stop power output when their EV is connected to an AC external power output device such as the Honda Power Supply Connector*11 and outputting electricity to electric appliances for outdoor or leisure activities. This function will prevent overuse of EV electricity for power output.(1) Range per charge is measured under the specified test conditions. The range may vary significantly depending on the usage environment (weather, traffic congestion, etc.) and driving style (sudden acceleration, use of air conditioning, etc.) of each customer.WLTC (Worldwide harmonized Light vehicle Test Cycles) mode: Internationally standardized driving mode consisting of city, suburban and highway driving modes, with time allocated according to average use time.(2) Regular charging: Approximate time it takes to fully charge the battery from the time the low charge warning light comes on.(3) Fast charging: Approximate time it takes to charge the battery to 80% from the time the low charge warning light comes on. (The charging time may be longer especially in summer and winter).(4) Honda internal measurement(5) Honda SENSING is standard equipment on e: L4/e: FUN types. Honda SENSING functions are intended to assist the driver: therefore, there is a limit to the capabilities (e.g. recognition capability and control capability) of individual functions of Honda SENSING. Please do not overestimate the capabilities of each Honda SENSING function and drive safely while paying constant attention to your surroundings. For more information about Honda SENSING, please visit, Honda website: https://global.honda/en/tech/Safety_and_driver-assistive_technologies_Honda_SENSING/(6) Honda internal research (as of June 2024)(7) To display on the navigation screen, a compatible navigation system is required.(8) The factory default setting for the function is off. To turn on this function, it requires a separate setting using special equipment available at Honda dealers. A separate setup fee (dealer option) is required.(9) State of Charge (SOC)(10) Telecommunication charges for the device will be incurred while using the app.(11) Dealer optionFor more information, visit https://global.honda/en/newsroom/news/2024/4240613eng-n-van-e.html.Source: Honda Motor Co, LtdCopyright 2024 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
IFS will provide an 'out-of-the-box solution' to support digital transformation and supply chain re-design for healthcare education and medical simulator provider.

LONDON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- IFS, the leading technology innovator in cloud and Industrial AI software, today announced that Laerdal Medical, the Norway-based healthcare education and medical simulator provider with 2000+ employees, has chosen IFS Cloud as its global ERP platform.

With subsidiaries around the world, Laerdal needed an integrated IT platform to provide a single version of truth across its operations. IFS Cloud will provide the healthcare manufacturer with consistency over its business processes globally whilst also supporting scalability as it continues to grow its operation and migrate toward subscription-based services and implement a configure-to-order business model.

IFS Cloud will provide Laerdal with the agility required to navigate this transition and manage the late-stage customization and shorter lead times that the new business model will demand, all while improving customer satisfaction. Laerdal will be able to leverage the composable nature of IFS Cloud to better integrate new and emerging technologies, including embedded AI and advanced automation capabilities, to further enhance its service offerings into the future.

Simon Dreyer, Corporate IT Director at Laerdal Medical, said "In the face of customer demands, changing regulations, supply chain disruption, and our commitment to sustainable solutions, it is critical for Laerdal to rapidly support new business capabilities required to achieve our ambitions. On our mission to helping save lives, our partnership with IFS and the implementation of IFS Cloud are key strategic components of leveraging technology through a partner that is committed to delivering cutting-edge technology on a continuously evolving platform."

The IFS ERP solution will be rolled out to all Laerdal's sites globally, including production facilities in Norway, the United States, Mexico, and China. The solution will support multiple core business processes across these sites from supply chain management, to procurement, warehouse management and finance.

Glenn Arnesen, President of Europe North & Central at IFS, said, "Laerdal's mission is to improve healthcare quality around the world by providing the industry with high-quality simulation and resuscitation equipment backed by leading education and training. Accessing the latest innovative technology is key to fulfill that vision and we are excited to have the opportunity to help Laerdal on their journey. With IFS Cloud, they are set to remain at the forefront of their industry in the years to come."

About Laerdal Medical

Laerdal Medical is a world leader in healthcare education and resuscitation training that uses immersive technologies and data-centric insights to increase survival and improve healthcare quality. We empower our heroes/life savers, and healthcare workers, to help them save more lives. Improving the quality of care is part of our mission, to help save more lives. And we have established the goal to help save one million more lives. Every year. By 2030. However, we can't do this alone. This is a shared goal of the Laerdal Group. A group of companies that develops healthcare-related solutions and programs focused on a common mission to help save lives, together with our Partners. The Laerdal Group is composed of Laerdal Medical, Laerdal Global Health, Million Lives Fund and Laerdal Foundation. Laerdal is a global company in 26 countries worldwide with its head office located in Stavanger, Norway. For more information, visit www.laerdal.com.

About IFS

IFS develops and delivers cloud enterprise software for companies around the world who manufacture and distribute goods, build, and maintain assets, and manage service-focused operations. Within our single platform, our industry specific products are innately connected to a single data model and use embedded digital innovation so that our customers can be their best when it really matters to their customers - at the Moment of Service. The industry expertise of our people and of our growing ecosystem, together with a commitment to deliver value at every single step, has made IFS a recognized leader and the most recommended supplier in our sector. Our team of over 6,000 employees every day live our values of agility, trustworthiness, and collaboration in how we support our 6,500+ customers. Learn more about how our enterprise software solutions can help your business today at ifs.com.

IFS Recognition

IFS ranked #1 for EAM market share in the Gartner Market Share: All Software Markets, Worldwide, 2023 report for third consecutive year

Gartner Peer Insights Customers' Choice 2023 - Cloud ERP

IFS named a leader in IDC MarketScape: Worldwide Field Service Management Solutions 2023-2024

Top 100 Companies (3rd), The Software Report, 2023

Contact information

EUROPE / MEA / APJ: Adam Gillbe

IFS, Director of Corporate & Executive Communications

Email: press@ifs.com

Phone: +44 7775 114 856

NORTH AMERICA / LATAM: Mairi Morgan

IFS, Director of Corporate & Executive Communications

Email: press@ifs.com

Phone: +44 7918 607 299

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LONDON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Comviva, the global leader in customer experience and data monetization solutions, today announced the appointment of key executives in Europe and the North America markets for accelerating business expansion and growth. The new leaders will specifically aim to support Comviva's strategic vision based on new market expansion and deeper client relationships in an accelerating digital economy.

Ian Paul Smith will drive the North American business as the new Head of North America's Direct Business Market Unit. He shall be responsible for building and maintaining strategic partnerships and alliances with Telcos in the region. Ian joins in with over 20 years of experience working with Tier 1 global technology companies, in sales leadership and senior management roles. Most recently, Ian was heading up digital transformation sales at Amdocs and previously held senior sales and business development roles at Ericsson and Microsoft.

With an overly increased focus on growing the Europe business for Comviva, European business has been further divided into two independent focused sub-regions; Europe 1 and Europe 2. Each sub-region is being led by a senior leader to enhance focus and depth with Telecom customers in Europe.

Salah Rich, Head of the Europe 1 subregion, will lead the markets of France, Iberia, Italy, and all Eastern European countries, including Russia. Salah, who has been with Comviva since 2012, brings over three decades of leadership experience in the technology and sales sectors.

Rishi Ramphal, Head of the Europe 2 subregion, will oversee direct sales operations across key growth European markets, including the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, the Nordics, the UK, and Ireland. Rishi, who was formerly the Chief Information Officer (CIO) at MTN Group, brings extensive experience in senior technology leadership roles. Rishi is also the Chief Delivery Officer of Comviva and has global experience of handling Telecom clients globally for Comviva in his current role as the CDO of Comviva.

Rajesh Chandiramani, Chief Executive Officer at Comviva, said, "These strategic appointments underscore our commitment to accelerating growth and deepening our presence in key markets. With Ian, Salah and Rishi at the helm in North America and Europe, respectively, we are poised to drive innovation and forge stronger partnerships with our clients. Their extensive experience and proven track records in the industry will be instrumental in realizing our vision of expanding Comviva's footprint and delivering exceptional value in the digital economy. We are confident that their leadership will propel us towards sustained growth and greater success in these critical regions."

Comviva is making significant investments to strengthen its portfolio of digital commerce, data monetization, and customer experience solutions. The company is also enhancing its research and development, as well as operational support, in MarTech, FinTech, DigiTech, and RevTech. These efforts aim to drive innovation and lead the digital transformation of the industry.

For further information, please contact:

Sundeep Mehta

DGM, Corporate Communications

Email: Sundeep.mehta@comviva.com

Contact no. +91-9910030732

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ZIGUP plc - Transaction in Own Shares

PR Newswire

LONDON, United Kingdom, June 13

NOT FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION OR DISTRIBUTION, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN OR INTO OR FROM ANY JURISDICTION WHERE TO DO SO WOULD CONSTITUTE A VIOLATION OF THE RELEVANT LAWS OR REGULATIONS OF SUCH JURISDICTION

12 June 2024

ZIGUP PLC

("ZIGUP" or the "Group" or the "Company")

Transaction in Own Shares

ZIGUP plc (LSE:ZIG) announces that on 12 June 2024 it purchased the following number of its own shares to be held in treasury:

Class of shares : Ordinary shares of 50p ("shares") Number of shares purchased : 50,000 Weighted average purchase price paid 416.25 pence per share Highest purchase price paid 419 pence per share Lowest purchase price paid 413.5 pence per share

Following the above transaction, the Company's issued share capital consists of 246,091,423 ordinary shares of 50p each, of which 20,239,362 ordinary shares are held in treasury, and 1,000,000 preference shares of 50p each which do not carry any rights to vote. Therefore, the total number of voting rights in the Company is 225,852,061 which may be used by shareholders as the denominator for the calculations by which they will determine if they are required to notify their interest in, or a change to their interest in the Company under the FCA's Disclosure Guidance and Transparency Rules.

In accordance with Article 5(1)(b) of Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 (the Market Abuse Regulation) as incorporated into UK domestic law by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, the schedule below contains detailed information about the purchases made by Numis Securities Limited on behalf of the Company as part of the Company's buyback programme.

Schedule of Purchases - Individual Transactions (as at 12 June 2024)

Number of shares

purchased Transaction price

(GB pence per share) Time of transaction Transaction reference number Venue 25,000 25,000 413.50 419.00 08:27:23 15:26:07 00070255597TRLO0 00070269933TRLO0 LSE LSE

Notes

This announcement is made in accordance with the requirements of Listing Rule 12.4.6.

For further information contact:

Buchanan

David Rydell/Jamie Hooper/Hannah Ratcliff +44 (0) 207 466 5000

Notes to Editors:

ZIGUP (formerly Redde Northgate plc) is the leading integrated mobility solutions provider, with a platform providing services across the vehicle lifecycle to help people keep on the move, smarter. The Company offers mobility solutions to businesses, fleet operators, insurers, OEMs and other customers across a broad range of areas from vehicle rental and fleet management to accident management, vehicle repairs, service and maintenance.

The mobility landscape is changing, becoming ever more connected and ZIGUP uses its knowledge and expertise to guide customers through the transformation, whether that is more digitally connected solutions or supporting the transition to lower carbon mobility through providing EVs, charging solutions and consultancy.

The Company's core purpose is to keep its customers mobile, smarter - through meeting their regular mobility needs or by servicing and supporting them when unforeseen events occur. With our considerable scale and reach, ZIGUP's mission is to offer an imaginative, market-leading customer proposition and drive enhanced returns for shareholders by creating value through sustainable compounding growth. The Group seeks to achieve this through the delivery of its new strategic framework of Enable, Deliver and Grow.

ZIGUP supports its customers through a network and diversified fleet of approx. 130,000 owned and leased vehicles, supporting over 700,000 managed vehicles, with over 175 branches across the UK, Ireland and Spain and a specialist team of over 7,500 employees. We are a trusted partner to many of the leading insurance and leasing companies, blue chip corporates and a broad range of businesses across a diverse range of sectors. Our strength comes not only from our breadth of our award-winning solutions, but from our extensive network reach, our wealth of experience and continual focus on delivering an exceptional customer experience.

Further information regarding ZIGUP plc can be found on the Company's website: www.zigup.com
LONDON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- AAG Financial Education, a leading provider of comprehensive financial wellbeing solutions, is proud to announce its nomination alongside client Telegraph Media Group, for the Employee Benefit Award for Best Financial Wellbeing Strategy.

The Employee Benefit Awards acknowledge innovation and excellence withing the employee benefits space and have recognised AAG Financial Education and Telegraph Media Group for their collaborative efforts to provide a best in class financial wellbeing programme for TMG employees. The nomination is a testament to their commitment to empowering individuals with the knowledge and resources needed to navigate personal finance landscape.

AAG Financial Education and Telegraph Media Group have partnered to develop and implement a comprehensive financial wellbeing strategy, tailored to the unique needs of TMG's workforce. This strategy encompasses a range of initiatives, aimed at enhancing employees financial literacy, resilience and confidence.

"We're thrilled to be recognised alongside TMG for our joint efforts in promoting financial wellbeing among employees" said Ashleigh Gibson, Head of Financial Education at AAG. "This nomination highlights our shared dedication to empowering employees with the skills and knowledge needed to achieve their financial goals & objectives".

Through their collaboration, AAG Financial Education and TMG have demonstrated a steadfast commitment to prioritising the financial wellness of employees. By equipping individuals with the necessary tools and knowledge, TMG aim to drive financial security and positive financial futures for their employees.

The Employee Benefit Award nomination serves as a great marker of the impact of AAG's unique approach to financial education; each programme is tailored to the needs of the employees, targeted to employee demographics and shaped by employee feedback.

The winners of the Employee Benefit Awards [Best Financial Education Strategy] will be announced at a prestigious ceremony on 20th June where industry leaders and innovators will gather to celebrate excellence in employee benefits.

For more information about AAG Financial Education and their comprehensive financial wellbeing solutions, visit aag.co.uk.

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The Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown, ECW Executive Director Yasmine Sherif and ECW Global Champion Somaya Faruqi mark 1,000th day of ban on girls' education in Afghanistan

NEW YORK, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, people across the globe mark a tragic milestone for human rights, children's rights and girls' rights: 1,000 days since girls were banned from attending secondary school in Afghanistan. To commemorate and reflect on this unacceptable milestone, Education Cannot Wait (ECW), as global fund for education in emergencies and protracted crises within the United Nations, is launching the second phase of its compelling AfghanGirlsVoices campaign.

The campaign features inspiring artwork, poetry, cartoons and more from some of the world's leading artists, along with powerful, moving quotes from Afghan girls denied their right to education, but who hang on to the hope that their right will be restored.

The first phase of the AfghanGirlsVoices campaign was launched by the UN Special Envoy for Global Education, The Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown, ECW Executive Director, Yasmine Sherif, and ECW Global Champion Somaya Faruqi, the former captain of the Afghan Girls' Robotics Team, in August 2023. Since the launch, the campaign has been viewed and supported by millions worldwide.

This second phase is already rallying additional global leaders and prominent supporters, including bestselling authors, Khaled Hosseini (The Kite Runner) and Christina Lamb (I Am Malala); ECW Global Champion and Al-Jazeera TV Principal Presenter, Folly Bah Thibault; UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Afghanistan, Richard Bennett; Global Citizen Co-Founder Mick Sheldrick; 2023 Global Citizen Prize winner and founder of LEARN Afghanistan, Pashtana Durrani; and many more, including several leading Afghan women activists.

"The world must unite behind Afghan girls. The denial of the right to a quality education is an abomination and a violation of the UN Charter, the Convention on the Rights of the Child and fundamental human rights. Through the global AfghanGirlsVoices campaign, people everywhere can stand up for human rights and stand up for gender-justice by sharing these stories of courage, hope and resilience," said The Rt. Hon. Gordon Brown, UN Special Envoy for Global Education and Chair of the ECW High-Level Steering Group.

"As a global community, we must reignite our global efforts to ensure that every adolescent girl can exercise her right to an education. Gender discrimination is unacceptable and will only hurt the already war-torn Afghanistan and her long-suffering people. Girls' right to an education is a fundamental right as outlined in international human rights law. For the people of Afghanistan - men, women, girls and boys - adolescent girls' education is essential to rebuild Afghanistan and ensure that every Afghan enjoys the universal right to an education," said ECW Executive Director Yasmine Sherif.

"Girls in Afghanistan are strong and resilient, and they refuse to give up their hopes and dreams. One thousand days without access to education is a severe injustice for Afghan girls. This must stop," said ECW Global Champion Somaya Faruqi.

Approximately 80% of school-aged Afghan girls and young women are out of school, and nearly 30% of girls in Afghanistan have never entered primary education, according to UNESCO.

With the bans on girls' secondary and tertiary education, decades' worth of education and development gains have been wiped out. Between 2001 and 2018, enrollment increased tenfold across all education levels, from 1 million in 2001 to 10 million in 2018. By August 2021, 4 out of 10 students in primary school were girls. Along with these jumps came social and economic growth, and other improvements that benefited vast swaths of Afghan society.

The change in leadership sent seismic waves across all aspects of the Afghan economy and society. Today, 23.7 million people - over half the population - require urgent humanitarian support, 6.3 million people are displaced, and basic human rights are under fire. Girls and boys are at grave risk of gender-based violence, child labour, early marriage and other human rights abuses. Despite the urgent needs of the $3 billion total humanitarian response funding ask, only $221 million has been received to date, according to UNOCHA.

Since ECW launched its investments in Afghanistan in 2017, the Fund has invested US$88.8 million, reaching more than 230,000 children with quality, holistic education support. ECW's multi-year investments focus on community-based learning that reaches girls and boys through a variety of activities such as the provision of teaching and learning materials, teacher training, and mental health and psychosocial support.

Join the AfghanGirlsVoices campaign

Quotes from high-profile campaign supporters are available here.

The campaign's social media kit and visual assets are available here.

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LONDON, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Specialist agriculture investor AgDevCo is pleased to announce its latest investment in Cote d'Ivoire, into Cashew Coast, a fast-growing cashew nut processing business, which employs 750 people and sources from more than 7,000 smallholder farmers.

Cote d'Ivoire is the largest producer of cashew in the world. Most cashew nuts are still exported in raw form for processing in Vietnam and India, before being shipped to end markets in Europe and the USA, a lengthy and expensive round-trip.

Cashew Coast is in the vanguard of a drive to capture more value in the domestic industry. By processing the cashews at source and shipping directly to supermarkets and ingredient users, the company can pay higher prices to its farmers for fully traceable, organic cashew nuts.

With a commitment to the highest standards, Cashew Coast was the first processor in Cote d'Ivoire to achieve BRCGS certification (the leading global standard for food safety) for cashew kernel exports. It also won the prestigious Fairtrade Africa Award in 2023.

AgDevCo's mezzanine loan of 9.0 million (5.9 billion FCFA) will finance the expansion of the company's processing capacity and the construction of new warehouses, alongside farmer productivity programmes. The investment will double the company's processed volumes to 19,000 tonnes of raw cashew nuts a year.

"On both commercial and sustainability grounds, it makes sense to process cashews at origin. We are delighted to begin this partnership with Cashew Coast which will support the company's continued growth, create more jobs in rural areas and help build a globally competitive cashew processing industry in West Africa," said Ismail Sentissi, AgDevCo's Investment Director for West Africa.

"AgDevCo brings long-term, flexible capital, combined with agricultural acumen and a network of contacts that will help us achieve our ambitious goals," said Salma Seetaroo, Cashew Coast's CEO and co-founder. "We are very pleased to close this investment and hope this key milestone will entrench Cashew Coast as a successful and replicable African business model."

AgDevCo is a specialist investor in African agriculture, growing sustainable and impactful agribusiness, with USD 280m under management. Their vision is a thriving commercial agriculture sector, which benefits both, people and planet, by investing in and supporting agribusinesses to grow, creating jobs, producing, and processing food and linking farmers to markets. They support their partners to work towards climate sustainability, and where possible, regenerative solutions. AgDevCo has made more than 65 investments to date. More information can be found at www.agdevco.com

Contact Details for media:

Ismail Sentissi, info@agdevco.com
Information Office of Jinan Municipal People's Government

JINAN, China, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Jinan, also known as the "City of Springs", is located in the central-western part of Shandong Province, China. Renowned for its 72 springs and the abundance of willow trees, this northern city exudes a southern charm. On June 12, an overseas media team, invited by the Information Office of Jinan Municipal People's Government and themed "Opportunities in China, Charm of Jinan", visited Jinan to appreciate Baotu Spring and Black Tiger Spring, and explore Jinan's cultural and urban enchantment along the moat as a "City of Springs".



The moat in Jinan, which spans 6.9 kilometers, is the only moat in China formed by the convergence of spring water. Along the way, the Black Tiger Spring boasts 16 springs. It is a common practice for many locals to bring home a bucket of spring water to make tea. During the hot summer days, taking a sip of the refreshing spring water at the drinking water point is truly invigorating. One guest exclaimed, "So refreshing!" This vividly illustrates the essence of Jinan's "spring" culture.

The springs in Jinan are not only abundant in number but also diverse in form, presenting a spectacular sight. Taking a boat ride at Black Tiger Spring and traveling along the moat to the "First Spring in the World", Baotu Spring, is really an impressive trip. Baotu Spring has been a symbol of Jinan since ancient times, with a saying that goes, "A trip to Jinan is incomplete without visiting Baotu Spring." With three water outlets, Baotu Spring's clear and sweet water has inspired numerous poems and literary works.

Another famous attraction in Jinan, Daming Lake, is also closely linked to spring water. Experts explain that the spring water from the four major spring clusters in the old city of Jinan flows through the moat and Qushuiting Street from different directions before converging into Daming Lake, making it a unique "spring-fed lake".

One guest remarked, "This is a city inseparable from its springs, and a city with unique charm."

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LONDON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Markel, the insurance operations within Markel Group Inc. (NYSE: MKL), today announced it has appointed Kyle McGrath as its Head of Fine Art - North America, with immediate effect.

In her new role, McGrath will be responsible for leading Markel's Fine Art business in North America, and driving the strategic, profitable expansion of this class of business. As part of this, she will be tasked with developing the regional underwriting strategy, product offering and regional footprint, working closely with Markel's Fine Art underwriting team in the US.

Operating from Markel's New York office, McGrath will report to Dan McCarthy, Director of Marine at Markel in London.

McCarthy commented: "The global fine art insurance market is expanding, driven largely by an increase in the individual and institutional collector base in the US. Meanwhile, rising art valuations and a changing risk landscape for collectors make having the right risk and insurance partner more important than ever before. I'm therefore delighted to welcome Kyle to Markel. Her knowledge and experience of working in the fine art insurance market will be of enormous benefit to our existing clients as we support them in meeting their specific risk(s) and insurance needs."

McCarthy added: "At the same time, we see significant potential for profitable growth in this space. I'm confident that Kyle has the right leadership qualities to develop our regional Fine Art team and insurance offering and enhance our reputation as we look to become a leading Fine Art and Specie insurer in North America."

McGrath, who joins Markel's expanding North American Fine Art business, brings with her more than 12 years of experience of working in the insurance industry, working across underwriting, business strategy and broking. She joins from Private Client Select (formerly AIG Private Client Group), where she spent three years as Vice President - Head of Fine Art and Collections for the insurer's private client group, working out of New York. Prior to that, McGrath spent seven years at AXA XL, working in various senior roles in the organisation's North American Fine Art and Specie team and global chief underwriting office.

About Markel

We are Markel, a leading global specialty insurer with a truly people-first approach. As the insurance operations within Markel Group Inc. (NYSE: MKL), we operate the Markel Specialty, Markel International, and Markel Global Reinsurance divisions, as well as State National, our portfolio protection and program services operations, and Nephila, our insurance-linked securities operations. Our broad array of capabilities and expertise allow us to create intelligent solutions for the most complex risk management needs. However, it is our people - and the deep, valued relationships they develop with colleagues, brokers and clients - that differentiates us worldwide.

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Vehicle-mounted solution, developed with Dedrone Defense partners, provides on-demand, mobile counter-drone capabilities with highest degree of accuracy

Dedrone, the global leader in smart airspace security, today announced the launch of its latest airspace security solution, DedroneOnTheMove (DedroneOTM). This solution expands Dedrone's suite of offerings for agile, modular, adaptable, battle-proven counter-drone defense for expeditionary forces deployed in volatile or high-risk environments. DedroneOTM was developed in partnership with several Dedrone customers, partners and world-renowned defense suppliers like Supacat, and it will be on display at Eurosatory from June 17-21 in Paris.

DedroneOTM is equipped with Dedrone's award-winning Counter Uncrewed Aerial Systems (cUAS) command and control (C2) sensor-fusion platform for 360-degree drone detection, DedroneTracker.AI, which has consistently performed at a 95% accuracy level for all defense and civilian Counter small Uncrewed Aerial Systems (CsUAS) test events with direction finding within 2.5 degrees of accuracy for defeat, including kinetic defeat systems.

"Ukraine has shown the world that all conflicts, now and in the future, will heavily feature drones for surveillance, combat, long-range strikes and more. DedroneOTM was created in response to this paradigm shift in warfare, offering a fully mobile cUAS kill chain to make ground movements safer," said Rob Campbell, General Manager of Dedrone Defense. "We continue to work closely with our defense partners to continuously test, develop and improve new technologies for the dynamic and complex environments in which today's forces operate."

The vehicle-mounted DedroneOTM solution offers detection, tracking, identification and mitigation (DTI-M), leveraging DedroneSensors combined with mitigation from Dedrone's handheld smart jammer (DedroneDefender) to deliver a complete CsUAS DTI-M kill chain. DedroneSensors, informed by the DedroneDNA library, can detect the largest variety of drones of any sensor on the market, and the library is continuously updated with new drone signatures. In total, DedroneDNA can identify over 200 different drone types, including the Orlan-10, from 70 manufacturers, including DJI and Zala, as well as many homemade and FPV drones. Dedrone has invested heavily in a world-class Signals Intelligence team to continuously improve its industry-leading drone DTI-M capabilities by processing live data from the Ukrainian battlespace.

The DedroneOTM solution includes:

Comprehensive DedroneTracker.AI sensor-fusion platform

Robust DedroneDNA library with over 200 drone protocols, including FPV, DIY and emerging battlefield drones sourced by designated Signals Intelligence team

Precise targeting capability with accuracy of 2.5 degrees offering kinetic kill viability

Dedrone passive RF detection sensor(s)

Ruggedized on-vehicle compute tablet with networking

Telescopic mast (optional)

DedroneDefender handheld smart jammer

MIL-STD-1275 compatible vehicle power supply

Designed to meet MIL-STD-810H weather and vibration specifications

"National security initiatives now must include multiple layers of counter-drone capabilities to be truly comprehensive. Governments around the world understand this new reality, which is why we partner with six of the G7 nations, the Ukrainian defense forces and a total of 20 government entities around the world. DedroneOTM is the latest product of these close working relationships, focused on force protection on the move," said Aaditya Devarakonda, CEO of Dedrone. "Like all of our solutions, DedroneOTM features our comprehensive C2 sensor-fusion platform powered by AI/ML, DedroneTracker.AI providing forces easy to deploy, affordable and comprehensive airspace security needed in conflict situations."

DedroneOTM is compatible with any military vehicle currently in the field, and Dedrone has established a new partnership with Supacat, a leader in high-mobility platforms, which will enable all variants in Supacat's HMT family of vehicles to be equipped with DedroneOTM as a standard modular feature. Supacat will have an HMT 400 vehicle with DedroneOTM installed on display at its Eurosatory exhibit later this month.

"High Mobility Transporter vehicles are essential for effective operations. Supacat's modular design capabilities allow for the integration of various mission systems to protect vehicles and troops, and effectively engage targets. Drones are widespread in today's battlefield, so safeguarding against this new threat is critical. There is a solution! The DedroneOTM provides counter-drone capabilities, which offers the vehicles an increased level of protection; this technology will enhance the HMTs' responsiveness, enabling the crew to maneuver around the battlefield more safely," said Phil Applegarth, Managing Director, Head of Supacat. "DedroneOTM provides our Supacat HMT with unprecedented confidence to maneuver around the battlefield and counter new drone threats. We are looking forward to enhancing our relationship with Dedrone, and seeing HMT variants upgraded and in active service as soon as possible."

Dedrone is implemented across 32 countries and is used by six of the G-7 nation governments; 829 sites, including 49 airports and 59 stadiums; 15 US federal entities and 20 non-US governments. The company actively provides counter-drone solutions for some of the most high-profile events and organizations, working with public safety entities to protect over 360 sites globally. It is the first counter-drone company to earn Support Anti-Terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies Act of 2002 (SAFETY Act) Designation status from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Office of SAFETY Act Implementation (OSAI).

About Dedrone

Dedrone is the global leader in smart airspace security. Hundreds of commercial, government and military customers around the world rely on Dedrone's comprehensive, C2 solution to protect against the persistent and escalating threat from drones while enabling "good" drones to fly. By leveraging AI/ML, Dedrone is the only solution that provides continuous, autonomous interrogation and verification of drones that enables both multi-sensor and multi-mitigation options onto a single "pane-of-glass." Whether on-premise/air-gapped or in the cloud, Dedrone customers can easily detect, track, identify, analyze, and mitigate drone threats. Dedrone has been named one of TIME's Best Inventions in 2023, Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies in 2024 and a CNBC Disruptor 50 recipient for 2023 and 2024. Dedrone is headquartered in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area with additional offices around the world. For more information on drone-related activity visit our Global Incident Center or to reach our airspace security experts, visit dedrone.com and follow us on X, Vimeo, and LinkedIn.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240613178641/en/

Contacts:

Songue PR for Dedrone

dedrone@songuepr.com
Chinese FM meets with governor of Russia's Irkutsk region

Xinhua) 11:24, June 13, 2024

IRKUTSK, Russia, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Wednesday met here with Igor Kobzev, governor of Russia's Irkutsk region.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, expressed congratulations on Russia Day and wished for the successful realization of the development and revitalization goals of both Russia and the Irkutsk region.

Wang noted that Irkutsk has a long history of exchanges with China. The regional capital, the city of Irkutsk, was once an important hub on the ancient tea road, and Lake Baikal is well-known among the Chinese people.

Recently, Russian President Vladimir Putin successfully conducted a state visit to China, during which President Xi Jinping and President Putin had in-depth strategic communication, setting the course for the development of China-Russia relations, Wang said.

China is actively advancing Chinese modernization, while Russia is accelerating the development of its Far East region, presenting a historic opportunity for cooperation between the two countries, he added.

Local cooperation is a vital part of China-Russia relations, Wang noted, adding that the Irkutsk region, with its abundant natural resources and strong industrial base, has unique advantages for developing cooperation with China.

China supports closer mutually-beneficial cooperation at sub-national level between the two countries, including that with Irkutsk, to benefit the people of both sides, he said.

Kobzev expressed his great honor to welcome Wang on Russia Day and noted that China is Irkutsk's largest trading partner, accounting for 70 percent of the foreign trade and maintaining a strong growth momentum.

The region highly values cooperation with China and hopes to expand further exchanges and cooperation in such fields as agriculture, energy resources, culture, education and tourism, and to attract more Chinese investment, Kobzev said, adding that the region is willing to provide a better business environment for Chinese enterprises.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Liang Jun)
CHICAGO, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The report "Construction Glass Market by Type (Low-E Glass, Special Glass), Manufacturing Process (Float, Rolled/Sheet), Chemical Composition (Soda-Lime, Potash-Lime, Potash-Lead), Application (Residential, Commercial), and Region - Global Forecast to 2029", is estimated at USD 112.0 billion in 2024 and is projected to reach USD 144.3 billion by 2029, at a CAGR of 5.2% from 2024 to 2029. The key segments in the construction industry include residential, commercial, and others. Others include construction of educational institutes, stadiums, airports, bridges, and others. The growth in the residential segment is high due to increase in population, urbanization, increase in the number of nuclear families, and the economic condition. The growth in the commercial segment can be attributed to factors such as growth in economy, increased need for IT industries, demand for retail, and increase in foreign trade resulting in the demand for warehousing, and others. This is fuelling the demand for construction glass from various applications of construction industry.

Browse in-depth TOC on "Construction Glass Market"

360 - Tables

67 - Figures

291 - Pages

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The special glass type segment accounted for the largest market share in 2023, in terms of value.

In 2023, special glass type segment dominated the global construction glass market, in terms of value. Glasses with unique characteristics such as low heat transmission, toughness, unbreakable, scratch-resistant, low noise transmission are termed as special glasses. These glasses are a result of innovations in the construction glass industry which have varied application. These glasses include double glazing glass which are basically used in residential and commercial windows and building exterior glazing.

Float glass manufacturing process accounted for the largest market share, in terms of volume in 2023.

Global construction glass market has been segmented based on the manufacturing processes. In 2023, float glass process dominated the market in terms of volume and value by contributing to the highest market share. The float glass process manufactures 100% flat glass. The flat glass produced is further processed as per the requirement. This glass is produced globally and is used mostly in the construction industry. The demand for flat glass varies as per the economic conditions of the construction sector.

Soda-lime chemical composition segment to remain the largest chemical composition type in terms of volume during the forecast period.

In 2023, soda-lime chemical composition segment accounted for the largest market share of global construction glass market, in terms of volume. Soda-lime silicate is the flat glass used in the construction industry, obtained by melting the mixture at high temperature. The soda lime glass is the most widely used glass. The benefits of using soda-lime glass are that it is inexpensive, easy to melt & shape, and recyclable. It has certain limitations such as poor durability, low chemical resistance, and poor thermal shock resistance.

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Commercial application segment to remain the largest end-use application in terms of volume during the forecast period.

In 2023, commercial application segment accounted for the largest market share of global construction glass market, in terms of value. Commercial buildings include offices, infrastructure, and others. These buildings account for major emissions and energy consumption. The need to reduce these emissions and consumption is driving the market for construction glass in commercial buildings. There is an increase in awareness on the part of builders regarding the benefits they could gain from energy-efficient buildings.

Asia Pacific region accounted for the largest share in 2023, in terms of volume.

In 2023, Asia Pacific region accounted for the highest market share, in terms of volume in global construction glass market. This market in the Asia Pacific region is driven by increasing competition, large number of manufacturing facilities, technological advancements, and government regulations. The Asia Pacific region is estimated to be the dominating region during forecasted years. Increasing purchasing power, along with rising urbanization, and growing population in the region are some of the kay factors driving the growth of construction industry and thereby demand for construction glass.

Key Players:

Prominent companies in the construction glass market include AGC Inc. (Japan), NSG Group (Japan), Saint-Gobain (France), Guardian Industries (US), Sisecam (Turkey), SCHOTT AG (Germany), Central Glass Co., Ltd. (Japan), Vitro (Mexico), China Glass Holdings Limited (China), Corning Incorporated (US) and Xinyi Glass Holdings Limited (China).

Browse Adjacent Market: Ceramics and Glass Market Research & Consulting

Related Reports:

Insulating Glass Window Market - Global Forecast to 2026

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TOKYO, June 13, 2024 - (JCN Newswire) - On June 12, 2024, NTT DATA Japan Corporation ("NTT DATA") and DENSO CORPORATION ("DENSO") have signed a memorandum of understanding to form a strategic partnership for software development. Through the agreement, the companies will deepen their collaboration on strategy, talent management, and technology as they jointly contribute to the advancement of Japan's automotive industry and help address social issues. The partnership between DENSO, which has strengths in vehicle (in-car) technologies including in-vehicle software, and NTT DATA, which has strengths in outside-car technologies including cloud computing, aims to quickly and efficiently develop and offer in-vehicle software, which is becoming more prevalent and sophisticated in new vehicles. The two companies will also hire more advanced software engineers and upskill current engineers at both companies to create a globally deployable software-oriented mobility service platform, which will help support a mobility-centered society in the era of software-defined vehicles ("SDVs").As the first initiative, the two companies will jointly establish a software development system, as well as training engineers and increase the number of engineers to 3,000 engineers by 2030.BackgroundRecently, in response to automated driving, electrification, and artificial intelligence, including the rise of ever-connected cars, there is a need to enhance the ability to develop large-scale, advanced in-vehicle software and drastically increase development efficiency. Meanwhile, the concept of SDVs, in which software dramatically raises the value of vehicles and services, has become widely desirable, making software development increasingly important and necessitating closer linkage between vehicles and infrastructure. Accordingly, initiatives using cloud technology have become essential. With various social issues emerging in society, such as challenges relating to public transportation, population growth and driver shortages in the logistics industry, mobility services are needed to help solve these issues and an underlying platform needs to be built by connecting vehicles with the cloud via software and ensuring data linkage.NTT DATA and DENSO have been collaborating with each other for many years. In 2016, DENSO took a stake in NTT DATA MSE, a software development company. In 2022, NTT DATA and DENSO launched an initiative to build an industry-wide ecosystem for electric vehicle batteries. The two companies have strengthened their ties by working on software initiatives together to transform the automotive industry.Details of the partnershipAgainst this backdrop, the two companies have reached a basic agreement on a strategic partnership for software with the aim of accelerating conventional activities, developing the automotive industry and solving social issues. The synergies of the two companies will be maximized in terms of strategy, human resources, and technology by leveraging the cloud technology strengths of NTT DATA, which has worked in various industries, and the in-vehicle software strengths of DENSO, which has mainly focused on the automotive industry.This partnership will tackle the following initiatives.(1) Expansion of global software resourcesSoftware will be the key to automotive development in the future, as exemplified by automated driving, electrification, and SDVs, necessitating substantial software resources. NTT DATA and DENSO will establish a global development system with 3,000 engineers by 2030 to maximize the synergies of software resources at their group companies in Japan and overseas, in order to develop increasingly large-scale and sophisticated in-vehicle software.(2) Cultivating advanced software engineersNTT DATA and DENSO will establish a program in the software domain to train human resources who can generate business value. The two companies aim to update the definition of software engineers whom the two companies have cultivated, reinforce and standardize the program, and deploy and utilize the program throughout the automotive industry.(3) Enhance the platform to support software developmentIt is crucial to increase the speed and efficiency of developing in-vehicle software, which is becoming larger in scale and more sophisticated, for the era of SDVs. It is indispensable to build a common platform to support the software development, which underpins the development of various other functions, including AI-based evaluation tools. NTT DATA and DENSO aim to jointly develop and deploy an optimal platform to support the development based on combinations of solutions by harnessing the advanced IT that they have refined.(4) Joint initiative to tackle social issuesNTT Data has been providing services that contribute to the growth of businesses and the resolution of social issues, using IT, extending beyond the boundaries of various companies and industries to social infrastructure. DENSO aims to reduce its environmental burden and realize a society with zero traffic accidents. DENSO has been expanding the technology it has cultivated in the automotive field to various other areas, continuing to provide new value to society.To realize a mobility-centered society in the future, NTT DATA and DENSO will jointly study the possibility of developing solutions to solve social issues by leveraging their strengths. The two companies aim to accelerate the initiative, including field tests on social implementation, and deploy the initiative globally in the future.Future outlookThrough this partnership, NTT DATA and DENSO will quickly create and jointly deploy a platform for new mobility services. The two companies will deepen the alliance while coordinating their respective strengths in the in-car and outside-car domains. They will help make vehicles more attractive through software for the era of SDVs.Source: DensoCopyright 2024 JCN Newswire . All rights reserved.
Exploration Target between 77,000 and 154,000 ounces gold.

Exploration Target between 2 million and 3 million tonnes, with gold

grades between 1.20 g/t and 1.60 g/t.

grades between 1.20 g/t and 1.60 g/t. Based on compilation of 70 historic drill holes from the 1940s and 1980s.

Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - Searchlight Resources Inc. (TSXV: SCLT) (OTCQB: SCLTF) ("Searchlight" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the completion of an Exploration Target calculation based on the compilation of historical drill holes at the Robinson Creek Gold project, located approximately 15 km west of Creighton, Saskatchewan, and Flin Flon, Manitoba.

Searchlight engaged Terra Modelling Services Inc. of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, to review the compilation of 70 historic drill holes, create a 3D model of the data, and calculate a set of Exploration Target quantities. An Exploration Target between 2 million and 3 million tonnes, with gold grades between 1.20 g/t and 1.60 g/t, was calculated. This equates to an exploration target between 77,000 ounces and 154,000 ounces which is amenable to open-pit mining. Searchlight is currently planning further work to upgrade the Exploration Target to a Mineral Resource.

Ore Quantity (Tonne)

Range Gold Grades (g/t)

Range Gold Quantity (Oz)

Range





2,000,000 to 3,000,000 tonnes 1.2 to 1.6 g/t 77,000 to 154,000 ozs

Disclaimer: The potential quantity and grades are conceptual in nature. There has been insufficient exploration drilling to define a mineral resource and it is uncertain if further exploration will result in the Exploration Target being delineated as a mineral resource.

"This new Robinson Creek Exploration Target result demonstrates the gold potential of the Flin Flon Greenstone Belt, which also includes Searchlight's Bootleg Lake high-grade gold deposits. These results, along with the 2021 surface sampling program which yielded multiple high-grade gold samples, shows the potential for a surface deposit amenable to near-term mining," stated Stephen Wallace, Searchlight's CEO.

The Robinson Creek Gold project consists of 7 claim blocks covering 2.93 square km, located approximately 15 km northwest of Searchlight's Bootleg Lake claims. It is a structurally controlled mesothermal lode gold system comprising three gold zones - the Vein, Bleiler, and Quartz Zones - over a strike length of approximately 1 km along the Mosher Lake Shear Zone (Map 1).

Searchlight's compilation of 70 historical diamond drill holes from the 1940s and 1980s, shows multiple gold intersections throughout 60 drill holes, with 45 gold intersections greater than 2 g/t over at least one metre.

A field sampling program in 2021, comprising 60 outcrop samples and 12 soil samples, confirmed the surface locations of the Vein, Bleiler, and Quartz Zones. Multiple samples yielded greater than 10 g/t Au from all three zones, and over 40% of outcrop samples yielded greater than 0.5 g/t Au (Map 2). These results include grab samples of 17.17 g/t Au from the Quartz Zone, 19.31 g/t Au from the Bleiler Zone, and 13.98 g/t Au from the Vein zone.

Map 1. Robinson Creek Gold Project historical drill holes with gold grades, overlaid on Total Magnetic Intensity.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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Map 2. Gold assays (g/t) of outcrop samples from the Robinson Creek Mineralized Zones.

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Qualified Person

Fred Brown, P.Geo., RM-SME of Terra Modelling Services Inc. is the Qualified Person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 who reviewed the compiled drill holes and produced the Exploration Target data.

Stephen Wallace, P.Geo., is Searchlight's Qualified Person within the meaning of National Instrument 43-101 and has reviewed and approved the technical information contained in this news release.

About Searchlight Resources - Where the Critical Elements Supply Chain Begins

Searchlight Resources Inc. (TSXV: SCLT) (OTCQB: SCLTF) is a Canadian mineral exploration and development company focused on Saskatchewan, Canada, which has been ranked as the top location for mining investment in Canada by the Fraser Institute. The Company's exploration model of Project Generation coupled with Targeted Exploration, focuses on uranium, rare earths, copper, nickel and gold throughout the province.

On behalf of the Board of Directors,

"Stephen Wallace"

Stephen Wallace, President, CEO and Director

SEARCHLIGHT RESOURCES INC.

For further information, visit the Company's website at www.searchlightresources.com or contact:

Searchlight Resources Inc.

Alf Stewart, VP Corporate Development

(604) 331-9326

info@searchlightresources.com

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. The Company cautions that all forward-looking statements are inherently uncertain and that actual performance may be affected by a number of material factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to the Company's limited operating history 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, the Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise forward-looking information.

NEITHER TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE NOR ITS REGULATION SERVICES PROVIDER (AS THAT TERM IS DEFINED IN THE POLICIES OF THE TSX VENTURE EXCHANGE) ACCEPTS RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212789

SOURCE: Searchlight Resources Inc.
The longtime global partnership between Univar Solutions and Ingredion will provide select European regions with a diverse range of specialty ingredients that meet the growing demand for healthier, more sustainable, and flavor-rich products.

DOWNERS GROVE, Ill. and WESTCHESTER, Ill., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Univar Solutions, LLC ("Univar Solutions"), a leading global solutions provider to users of specialty ingredients and chemicals, and Ingredion Incorporated (NYSE: INGR), a global provider of specialty ingredients and innovation leader, today announced a significant geo-expansion of their distribution partnership into Germany, Italy, and Switzerland for the food and beverage market. The longtime strategic partners have worked together for more than 30 years in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), providing expansive food portfolios for starches, plant-based proteins, and sweeteners. Univar Solutions and PureCircle by Ingredion also work closely together to deliver stevia flavor modifiers and sweeteners that provide food manufacturers with deep sugar reduction solutions.

"We are extremely pleased to further expand our relationship with Ingredion, a supplier partner with an outstanding global portfolio of nutrition, health, and wellness specialty ingredients," said Nick Powell, SVP and divisional president, Ingredients & Specialties for Univar Solutions. "Univar Solutions and Ingredion are two of the most influential and respected companies known for providing innovative and high-performing ingredient solutions. As we look to positively shape the future of food, our continued partnership over many years reinforces our shared commitment to delivering exceptional ingredients, service, quality, and innovation to customers worldwide. We value Ingredion's trust in us and our dedicated Foodology by Univar Solutions team as we leverage our strong commercial reach to unlock new growth areas for customers worldwide."

With growing health-consciousness and more sustainable nutrition on the minds of consumers, products that provide not only taste but also value and nutrition, and have sustainable origins are in demand. Food and beverage manufacturers are increasingly looking for ways to add nutrition, health, and wellness benefits to their products. Together, Ingredion and Univar Solutions can provide manufacturers with a leading, innovative food ingredient portfolio that includes modified, organic, and clean-label starches, plant-based proteins, and Stevia natural sweetener products. Ingredion's food ingredients work in a broad range of applications ranging from bakery and dairy to savoury and beverages. These innovations are designed to enhance product performance and customer appeal, facilitating reductions in fat and sugar content, along with improvements in texture and cost efficiency. Paired with consumer-friendly labeling, these efforts lead to the introduction of higher-quality products in the market.

"We are excited to extend our collaboration with Univar Solutions in key European markets," said Michael O'Riordan, senior vice president of texture and healthful solutions for EMEA and Asia-Pacific at Ingredion. "This enhanced collaboration will provide our customers with improved access to digital tools and strategic insights for accelerated growth, reflecting our commitment to providing innovative solutions in texture and health. Our combined efforts aim to increase our responsiveness and speed to market, enabling our customers to quickly adapt to consumer trends with relevant ingredient solutions."

From specialty ingredient innovation to recipe testing, food brands of all sizes turn to Foodology by Univar Solutions for help tackling product development challenges. Knowledgeable in-house chefs and food scientists refresh and develop formulas to enhance the efficacy of products through its network of food Solution Centers and test kitchens worldwide. The companies will collaborate within Univar Solutions' Global Solutions Centers, including a flagship location in Essen, Germany. Staffed by leading chemists, food scientists, and application development specialists, these innovation hubs help customers solve product challenges, meet the latest market trends, and take their products to the next level.

Learn more about how the longstanding Univar Solutions and Ingredion partnership is enhancing the eating experience for today's consumers.

About Ingredion

Ingredion Incorporated (NYSE: INGR), headquartered in the suburbs of Chicago, is a leading global ingredient solutions provider serving customers in nearly 120 countries. With 2023 annual net sales of approximately $8 billion, the Company turns grains, fruits, vegetables, and other plant-based materials into value-added ingredient solutions for the food, beverage, animal nutrition, brewing and industrial markets. With Ingredion Idea Labs?innovation centers located around the world and more than 12,000 employees, the Company co-creates with customers and fulfills its purpose of bringing the potential of people, nature, and technology together to make life better. Visit ingredion.com for more information and the latest Company news.

About Univar Solutions

Univar Solutions is a leading global specialty chemical and ingredient distributor representing a premier portfolio from the world's leading producers. With the industry's largest private transportation fleet and technical sales force, unparalleled logistics know-how, deep market and regulatory knowledge, formulation and recipe development, and leading digital tools, the Company is well-positioned to offer tailored solutions and value-added services to a wide range of markets, industries, and applications. While fulfilling its purpose to help keep communities healthy, fed, clean and safe, Univar Solutions is committed to helping customers and suppliers innovate and focus on Growing Together. Learn more at univarsolutions.com.

Forward-Looking Statements and Information

This communication contains "forward-looking statements" under applicable law regarding financial and operating items relating to the Company's business. Forward-looking statements generally can be identified by words such as "believes," "expects," "may," "will," "should," "could," "seeks," "intends," "plans," "estimates," "anticipates" or other comparable terms. All forward-looking statements made in this communication are qualified by this cautionary language.

Forward-looking statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties, many of which may be beyond the Company's control, that could result in expectations not being realized or could otherwise materially and adversely affect the Company's business, financial condition, results of operations or cash flows. Although the forward-looking statements are based on what management believes to be reasonable assumptions, we caution you that the forward-looking information presented in this communication is not a guarantee of future events or results, and that actual events or results may differ materially from those made in or suggested by the forward-looking information contained in this communication. For additional information regarding factors that could affect the Company, please see the Company's most recent annual report and other financial reports, including the information set forth under the caption "Risk Factors." Any forward-looking statements represent the Company's views only as of the date of this communication and should not be relied upon as representing the Company's views as of any subsequent date, and the Company undertakes no obligation, other than as may be required by law, to update any forward-looking statement.

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Based on Quantum Aviation case study, FOX3 Telematic Gateways honored for excellent innovation in growing IoT market segment

IRVINE, Calif., June 13, 2024magazine. Lantronix won for its FOX3 telematic gatewaysbased on its Quantum Aviation case study. This award honors excellence in innovation utilizing IoT technologies to automate the asset tracking functions to increase efficiencies, reduce theft or optimize utilization of the asset.



A long-standing customer of Lantronix telematic products, Quantum Aviation Solutions of Frankfurt, Germany, incorporated the Lantronix FOX3 series to gather real-time data for its fleet management software, which is installed at airports around the world. With the FOX3 gateway, critical signals are collected and transferred to the Quantum software solution that provides immediate visibility as well as historic analysis that supports increased efficiency and reduced cost.

Ursula Hess, CEO of Quantum Aviation, said, "Utilizing Lantronix's FOX3 series telematic gateways, we are able to feed reliable, real-time data to our cloud-based software solution, which gives our aviation customers access to critical information for real-time visibility and actions as well as long-term analytics."

According to Berg Insight, the global shipments of aftermarket telematics devices will grow at a CAGR of 10.5 percent in the next five years, reaching 77.6 million units in 2027 for a total market value estimated to reach $3.7 billion by 2027.

"We are delighted to be honored for our contributions in IoT asset tracking management," said Brian Jaroszewski, director of Product Line Management for Lantronix. "Our successes with Quantum Aviation and other customers provide reliable proof of our ability to deliver innovation telematics management solutions that enable our customers to drive growth and success."

Lantronix Quantum Aviation Case Study Highlights

Quantum Aviation utilizes Lantronix's FOX3 telematic gateways for:

Fleet management transparency and digitization

Analytics for improved efficiency and cost reduction

Remote management via Web or Desktop

Advanced encryption, including AES, SSL/TLS

To learn more about Lantronix telematic devices and the benefits they bring to the IoT asset management segment as well as read other use cases, visit https://www.lantronix.com/.

About Lantronix

Lantronix Inc. is a global leader of compute and connectivity IoT solutions that target high-growth industries, including Smart Cities, Automotive and Enterprise. Lantronix's products and services empower companies to achieve success in the growing IoT markets by delivering customizable solutions that address each layer of the IoT Stack. Lantronix's leading-edge solutions include Intelligent Substations infrastructure, Infotainment systems and Video Surveillance, supplemented with advanced Out-of-Band Management (OOB) for Cloud and Edge Computing.

For more information, visit the Lantronix website.

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995: This media alert contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws, including without limitation statements related to its FOX3 telematic gateways, including statements about their reliability, security and flexibility. These forward-looking statements are based on our current expectations and are subject to substantial risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results, future business, financial condition, or performance to differ materially from our historical results or those expressed or implied in any forward-looking statement contained in this news release. The potential risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, such factors as the effects of negative or worsening regional and worldwide economic conditions or market instability on our business, including effects on purchasing decisions by our customers; our ability to mitigate any disruption in our and our suppliers' and vendors' supply chains due to the COVID-19 pandemic or other outbreaks, wars and recent tensions in Europe, Asia and the Middle East, or other factors; future responses to and effects of public health crises; cybersecurity risks; changes in applicable U.S. and foreign government laws, regulations, and tariffs; our ability to successfully implement our acquisitions strategy or integrate acquired companies; difficulties and costs of protecting patents and other proprietary rights; the level of our indebtedness, our ability to service our indebtedness and the restrictions in our debt agreements; and any additional factors included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended June 30, 2023, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") on Sept. 12, 2023, including in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in Item 1A of Part I of such report; in our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended Dec. 31, 2023, filed with the SEC on Feb. 8, 2024, and for the fiscal quarter ended March 31, 2024, filed with the SEC on May 2, 2024, including in the section entitled "Risk Factors" in Item 1A of Part II of such report; as well as in our other public filings with the SEC. Additional risk factors may be identified from time to time in our future filings. The forward-looking statements included in this release speak only as of the date hereof, and we do not undertake any obligation to update these forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent events or circumstances.

 2024 Lantronix, Inc. All rights reserved. Lantronix is a registered trademark. Other trademarks and trade names are those of their respective owners.

Lantronix Media Contact:

Gail Kathryn Miller

Corporate Marketing &

Communications Manager

media@lantronix.com

949-212-0960

Lantronix Analyst and Investor Contact:

Jeremy Whitaker

Chief Financial Officer

investors@lantronix.com

949-450-7241
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.

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NextSource Materials Inc. (TSX:NEXT)(OTCQB:NSRCF) ("NextSource" or "the Company") is pleased to announce the signing of a Mandate Letter with International Finance Corporation ("IFC"), the private sector investment arm of the World Bank Group, to lead a senior debt facility totaling US$91 million (the "IFC Debt Facility") to fund an expansion of the Molo Graphite Mine (the "Molo mine") in southern Madagascar.

In December 2023, the Company released the results of a Technical Feasibility Study (the "FS") that confirmed the positive economics of a large-scale expansion of the Molo mine and processing facility from its current production capacity of 17,000 tonnes per annum (tpa) to 150,000 tpa of SuperFlake graphite concentrate. The FS estimated a capital cost of US$161.7 million (including contingency) plus working capital of US$25.2 million, resulting in a pre-tax NPV8 (using an 8% discount rate) of US$424.1 million and a pre-tax Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of 31.1%, and a NPV8 of US$370.0 and IRR of 29.0% on a post-tax basis.

IFC has provided indicative financial terms to lead the coordination of the overall debt syndicate with other select commercial banks and development finance institutions. The IFC Debt Facility would fund approximately 50% of the capital costs and working capital requirements for the mine expansion to 150,000 tpa.

Craig Scherba, P.Geo., President, and CEO of NextSource commented:

"We are delighted to announce the signing of a Mandate Letter with IFC, marking a significant milestone in our journey to expand the Molo Graphite Mine and support the diversification of global supply chains for critical battery materials. This partnership underscores the confidence placed in NextSource's Molo mine expansion by one of the world's leading development finance institutions. With IFC's support, we are poised to unlock Molo's vast potential and further contribute to long term sustainable development in Madagascar."

IFC's mandate to provide financing to NextSource is subject to satisfactory technical, social, legal and environmental due diligence, documentation and execution of acceptable terms, obtaining final credit, and regulatory and board approvals. Due diligence has commenced and is anticipated to complete in Q1 2025.

About NextSource Materials Inc.

NextSource Materials Inc. is a battery materials development company based in Toronto, Canada that is intent on becoming a vertically integrated global supplier of battery materials through the mining and value-added processing of graphite and other minerals.

The Company's Molo Graphite Mine in Madagascar is one of the largest known and highest-quality graphite resources globally, and the only one with SuperFlake graphite. The Molo Graphite Mine has begun production, with Phase 1 mine operations currently undergoing ramp-up to reach its nameplate production capacity of 17,000 tpa of graphite concentrate.

The Company is also developing a significant downstream graphite value-add business through the staged rollout of Battery Anode Facilities capable of large-scale production of coated, spheronized and purified graphite for direct delivery to battery and automotive customers, outside of existing Asian supply chains, in a fully transparent and traceable manner. The Company intends to build its first Battery Anode Facility in Mauritius.

NextSource Materials is listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "NEXT" and on the OTCQB under the symbol "NSRCF".

The FS was filed on under the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca and was posted on NextSource's website at www.nextsourcematerials.com.

The FS has an effective date of September 1, 2023 and was prepared by Erudite Strategies Ltd. ("Erudite") of South Africa, an independent engineering and consulting firm specializing in the mining and processing of commodities and battery materials and authored by the following "qualified persons" as defined under NI 43- 101: Johann De Bruin, (Pr. Eng) (ECSA), Hector Mapheto, Pr.Eng. (ECSA), Schalk Pienaar, Pr.Eng. (ECSA) and Hercu Smit, Pr.Eng. (ECSA) (Erudite Strategies Ltd.), Philip John Hancox, PhD, Pr.Sci.Nat. and Desmond Subramani, Pr.Sci.Nat. (Caracle Creek International Consulting (Pty.) Ltd.), Oliver Peters, P.Eng. (PEO) (Metpro Management Inc.), Euge`ne de Villiers, Pr.Eng. (ECSA) (ECMA Consulting (Pty.) Ltd.), Nico Hamman, Pr.Tech.Eng. (ECSA) (Eco Elementum), Alkie Marais, M.Sc. (Geohydrology) (Geostratum Water Management Consulting), and Ruan Daffue, M.Sc.Eng. (Practara (Pty.) Ltd).

For further information about NextSource Materials, please visit our website at www.nextsourcematerials.com or contact us at +1.416.364.4911 or email Brent Nykoliation, Executive Vice President at brent@nextsourcematerials.com, Craig Scherba, President and CEO at craig@nextsourcematerials.com, or Aura Financial at nextsource@aura-financial.com.

CAUTIONARY NOTE

This news release contains statements that may constitute "forward-looking information" or "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable Canadian and United States securities legislation. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information or statements. Forward looking statements and information are frequently characterized by words such as "plan," "expect," "project", "intend", "believe", "anticipate", "estimate", "potential", "possible" and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions "may", "will", "could", or "should" occur. Forward-looking statements include any statements regarding, among others: timing on the completion of commissioning, achieving nameplate capacity, commercial sales of graphite concentrate, anticipated results of the FS including in respect of financial metrics, capital and operating costs, mineral resource and mineral reserve estimates, metallurgy, and pricing; intended expansion and construction plans; demand for CSPG; discussion of the FS results with potential strategic partners; debt or equity investments by potential strategic parties or investors, purchase preferences of off-takers; the staged rollout of Battery Anode Facilities; as well as the Company's intent on becoming a fully integrated global supplier of critical battery and technology materials. These statements are based on current expectations, estimates and assumptions that involve a number of risks, which could cause actual results to vary and, in some instances, to differ materially from those anticipated by the Company and described in the forward-looking statements contained in this news release. No assurance can be given that any of the events anticipated by the forward-looking statements will transpire or occur or, if any of them do so, what benefits the Company will derive as a result. Although the forward-looking statements contained in this news release are based on what management believes are reasonable assumptions, the Company cannot assure investors that actual results will be consistent with them. The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are made as at the date of this news release and the Company does not undertake any obligation to update publicly or to revise any of the forward-looking statements, whether because of latest information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable securities laws. These forward-looking statements are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement.

SOURCE: NextSource Materials Inc.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Northern Superior Resources Inc. ("Northern Superior" or the "Company") (TSXV:SUP)(OTCQX:NSUPF) is pleased to unveil its exploration plan for the next 9 months on the Philibert gold property, located 60 kilometres southwest of Chibougamau, Quebec, Canada (the "Philibert Project" Northern Superior: 75%, SOQUEM: 25%1). The exploration activities are set to commence in the coming weeks.

In 2023, the Company filed a transformational Mineral Resource Estimate ("MRE") for the Philibert deposit of 48.46 million tonnes of inferred mineral resource averaging 1.10 grams of gold per tonne for 1,708,800 ounces of gold, and 7.88 million tonnes of indicated mineral resource averaging 1.10 grams of gold per tonne for 278,920 ounces of gold. The Philibert Project is located only 9 km away from IAMGOLD Corporation ("IAMGOLD")'s Nelligan project. IAMGOLD recently shared an operational update on its activities in the Chibougamau Gold Camp (see IAMGOLD's MD&A filed on Sedar on May 9, 2024, page 18).

The Company will continue to advance its assets in the Chibougamau Gold Camp with an immediate focus on the Philibert Project. The recent $8 million equity financing (see press release dated May 28, 2024) is sufficient to execute the entirety of the program detailed herein.

Program Highlights:

Impactful Program: Over 20,000 metres of expansion drilling planned for next 9 months, i) along strike to the east and west and, ii) along the hanging wall trend north and down dip of the open pit resource and defined pit;

planned for next 9 months, i) along strike to the east and west and, ii) along the hanging wall trend north and down dip of the open pit resource and defined pit; Great Potential: Work conducted to date on the Philibert Project is based on 3 km of mineralization while geophysics is indicative of an additional 4 km of mineralization spreading east and west of the resource ( see Figure 1 );

of mineralization spreading east and west of the resource ( ); Expansion Drilling with Demonstrated Mineralization: Notable historic drill holes over 300 metres east of the current resource returned 2.17 g/t Au over 17.9 metres , and 1.66 g/t Au over 8.27 metres with both requiring further sampling (see Figure 1,2 and 3) ;

, and 1.66 g/t Au over 8.27 metres with both requiring further sampling ; Plan to Connect Mineralization: Historic drilling located over 1,500 metres southeast of the current resource (see Figure 1,2 and 3) returned 1.55 g/t Au over 26.0 metres starting at 72.5 metres , and 1.09 g/t Au over 13.7 metres with both drill holes requiring further sampling above and below the intersections;

of the current resource returned , and 1.09 g/t Au over 13.7 metres with both drill holes requiring further sampling above and below the intersections; Great potential to the west: Approximately 300 metres west of the defined pit along the hanging wall trend returned 1.76 g/t Au over 7.0 metres, including 10.8 g/t Au over 1.0 metre starting at 162.5 metres from historical drilling. Other anomalous gold values were returned but requiring further sampling above and below the intersection. The western trend is defined by a linear magnetic anomaly interpreted to correspond to the gabbro host of Philibert extending on the property for over 2 km . The Company is planning some geochemical and geophysical surveys to help define the targeted zone (see Figure 1,2 and 3) ;

. The Company is planning some geochemical and geophysical surveys to help define the targeted zone ; Strike extensions: Expansion drilling southeast of the Corsac Fox zone part of the interpreted hanging wall with an additional potential of 700 metres of strike extension (see Figure 1,2 and 3) ;

; Building on great metallurgy: Further metallurgical testing is being planned for the eastern end of the pit to build on initial testing with flotation concentrate returning recoveries up to 95.6% (see press release dated July 6, 2023) ; and,

; and, Underground Potential: While the MRE published in 2023 did not include any of the underground potential, a previous study of the economic potential of the Philibert Project,2 focused exclusively on underground resources from the western domains, with approximately 239,000 ounces at 5.68 g/t gold (see Figure 2). Such underground potential will be further explored, evaluated, and potentially included in a subsequent mineral resource estimate (see Figure 3).

"The Philibert Project has already demonstrated significant potential with its initial NI 43-101 resource estimate published in 2023, showcasing a relatively high-grade profile for a bulk tonnage operation. Additionally, the project benefits from a low nugget effect, minimal overburden cover, and promising initial metallurgical recovery results. These attributes firmly position the Philibert Project as a cornerstone of the Chibougamau Gold Camp, which is rapidly gaining recognition as it nears the 10-million-ounce mark, with key deposits located within 10 km of one another. We are very excited to continue developing this cornerstone asset," commented Simon Marcotte, President and Chief Executive Officer of Northern Superior.

Figure 1: Plan view showing the resource classification over High Resolution Total Magnetic Intensity Map with arrows identifying possible structures to test for mineralization.

Figure 2: Plan view showing the conceptual open pit and the pit-constrained block model; color coded Au g/t.

Figure 3: Longitudinal view showing the conceptual open pit with block model filtered to 1.5 g/t Au, arrows identifying potential areas under the conceptual pit.

The current pit is defined along a 3 km strike and up to a vertical depth of 450 metres in the west and up to 150 metres in the south. In the western end, the hanging wall zone widens the mineralization corridor up to 500 metres compared to 200 metres near the middle of the pit. The Company plans to complete drilling along the 700-metre corridor to define the hanging wall mineralization aimed at widening the pit northward. This work will also define mineralization down dip and plunge in the eastern end of the pit from Fennec Fox to Grey Fox.

Drilling will also focus on expansion to the east, southeast and west following the additional 4 km linear magnetic trend interpreted to define the Obatogamau formation fractionated gabbro, host to the Philibert deposit. In the southeast area, two separate trends are identified from limited historic drilling with significant mineralization intersected including 1.55 g/t Au over 26.0 metres, 2.17 g/t Au over 17.9 metres, and 1.96 g/t Au over 10.0 metres. All mineralization is recorded as being associated with disseminated pyrite mineralization within a quartz rich gabbro host.

Less drilling has been completed along the western trend, but the host gabbro is interpreted to coincide to a well-defined northwest trending linear magnetic anomaly. One drill hole completed 300 metres west of the defined pit returned 1.76 g/t Au over 7.0 metres, including 10.8 g/t Au over 1.0 metre.

A number of high priority exploration targets are planned to be tested including the magnetic fold feature to the south of the east end of the defined pit with a historic hole returning 0.73 g/t Au over 15.1 metres, including 1.52 g/t Au over 6.2 metres starting at 43.6 metres.

The Patino showing is located to the northwest of the defined pit constrained resources includes historic intersections of 0.66 g/t Au over 5.18 metres, 1.45 g/t Au over 2.8 metres and 0.94 g/t Au over 3.05 metres. Mineralization is recorded as hosted within a graphitic sediment horizon with quartz-carbonate veins and semi-massive to massive pyrite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite and pyrrhotite. The Patino showing is associated with an additional structure that appears to be oriented in a more east-west direction.

Other groundwork is being planned to follow up on historic mapping and channel sampling which identified mineralization within a similar looking gabbro host to Philibert but located between 1 km and 1.2 km north of the resource.

The Company is also planning to complete 10,000 metres of sampling from selectively sampled historic core within and outside the currently defined pit in order to improve the ore to waste ratio in pit and help define mineralized trends outside the current resource.

Corporate Matters

Furthermore, the Company wishes to announce the granting of 2,250,000 incentive stock options under its 2022 Equity Incentive Plan (the "Plan"), including 1,630,000 options which were granted to certain directors and senior officers of the Company. Each option is exercisable at a price of $0.65 per common share, for a period of five years, subject to regulatory approval. In addition, the Company has also granted 50,000 Restricted Share Units ("RSU") under the Plan to an officer and a consultant of the Company, which RSU shall vest on June 11, 2025, subject to regulatory approval.

About Northern Superior Resources Inc.

Northern Superior is a gold exploration company focused on the Chibougamau Camp in Quebec, Canada. The Company has consolidated the largest land package in the region, with total land holdings currently exceeding 62,000 hectares. The main properties include Philibert, Lac Surprise, Chevrier and Croteau. Northern Superior also owns 72% of ONGold Resources Ltd. (TSXV:ONAU) which is advancing promising exploration assets in Northern Ontario, including the district scale TPK Project.

The Philibert Project is located 9 km from IAMGOLD Corporation's Nelligan Gold project which was awarded the "Discovery of the Year" by the Quebec Mineral Exploration Association (AEMQ) in 2019. Philibert hosts a new maiden 43-101 inferred resource of 1,708,800 ounces Au and an indicated resource of 278,900 ounces of Au.3 Northern Superior holds a majority stake of 75% in the Philibert Project, with the remaining 25% owned by SOQUEM, and retains an option to acquire the full 100% ownership of the project. Chevrier hosts an inferred mineral resource of 652,000 ounces Au (underground and open pit) and an indicated mineral resource of 260,000 ounces Au.4 Croteau hosts an inferred mineral resource of 640,000 ounces Au.5 Lac Surprise hosts the Falcon Zone Discovery, interpreted to be the western strike extension of IAMGOLD Corporation's Nelligan Gold project.

Northern Superior is a reporting issuer in British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec, and trades on the TSX-V under the symbol SUP and the OTCQB Venture Market under the symbol NSUPF. For further information, please refer to the Company's website at www.nsuperior.com or the Company's profile on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca.

About SOQUEM

SOQUEM, a subsidiary of Investissement Quebec, is dedicated to promoting the exploration, discovery, and development of mining properties in Quebec. SOQUEM also contributes to maintaining strong local economies. Proud partner and ambassador for the development of Quebec's mineral wealth, SOQUEM relies on innovation, research, and strategic minerals to be well-positioned for the future.

Qualified Person

The technical content and scientific aspects of this press release have been prepared by Ms. DeLazzer Vice-President Exploration of Northern Superior.

The content of the disclosure has been reviewed and approved by Mr. Claude Duplessis, P. Eng. of the Order of Engineers of Quebec, an independent Qualified Person as defined by the National Instrument 43-101 - Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects ("NI 43-101").

Northern Superior Resources Inc. on Behalf of the Board of Directors

Simon Marcotte, CFA, President and Chief Executive Officer

Contact Information

Simon Marcotte, CFA

President and Chief Executive Officer

Tel: (647) 801-7273

info@nsuperior.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.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Information

This Press Release contains forward-looking information and statements (collectively, "Forward-Looking Statements") that involve risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made herein. When used in this document, the words "may", "would", "could", "will", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect" and similar expressions are intended to identify Forward-Looking Statements. Such statements herein include, but are not limited to, statements regarding the Company's ability to convert inferred resources into measured and indicated resources; parameters and methods used to estimate the mineral resource estimate (the "MRE") at the Philibert Project; the prospects, if any, of the Philibert Project and its other projects in the area; and the significance of historic exploration activities and results. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the Company's expectations include the results of exploration activities, the Company's financial position and general economic conditions, the ability of exploration activities to accurately predict mineralization; the accuracy of geological modelling; the ability of the Company to complete further exploration activities; the legitimacy of title and property interests in the Philibert Project and its other projects in the area; the accuracy of key assumptions, parameters or methods used to estimate the MRE; the ability of the Company to obtain required approvals; the evolution of the global economic climate; metal prices; environmental expectations; community and non-governmental actions; the Company's ability to secure required funding; and other risks detailed from time to time in the filings made by the Company with securities regulators available at www.sedarplus.ca.

The Forward-Looking Statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. All Forward-Looking Statements in this news release are made as of the date of this news release and the Company does not undertake to update or revise any such statements contained herein to reflect new events or circumstances, except as may be required by applicable securities laws.

Information Concerning Estimates of Mineral Resources

The disclosure in this news release and referred to herein was prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 which differs from the requirements of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). The terms "measured mineral resource", "indicated mineral resource" and "inferred mineral resource" used in this news release are in reference to the mining terms defined in the Canadian Institute of Mining, Metallurgy and Petroleum Standards (the "CIM Definition Standards"), which definitions have been adopted by NI 43-101.

Investors are cautioned not to assume that any part or all of mineral resources will ever be converted into reserves. Pursuant to CIM Definition Standards, "inferred mineral resources" are that part of a mineral resource for which quantity and grade or quality are estimated on the basis of limited geological evidence and sampling. Such geological evidence is sufficient to imply but not verify geological and grade or quality continuity. An inferred mineral resource has a lower level of confidence than that applying to an indicated mineral resource and may not be converted to a mineral reserve. However, it is reasonably expected that the majority of inferred mineral resources could be upgraded to indicated mineral resources with continued exploration. Under Canadian rules, estimates of inferred mineral resources may not form the basis of feasibility or pre-feasibility studies. Investors are cautioned not to assume that all or any part of an inferred mineral resource is economically or legally mineable.

Effective February 25, 2019, the SEC adopted new mining disclosure rules under subpart 1300 of Regulation S-K of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "SEC Modernization Rules"), with compliance required for the first fiscal year beginning on or after January 1, 2021. The SEC Modernization Rules replace the historical property disclosure requirements included in SEC Industry Guide 7. As a result of the adoption of the SEC Modernization Rules, the SEC now recognizes estimates of "measured mineral resources", "indicated mineral resources" and "inferred mineral resources". Information regarding mineral resources contained or referenced in this news release may not be comparable to similar information made public by companies that report according to U.S. standards. While the SEC Modernization Rules are purported to be "substantially similar" to the CIM Definition Standards, readers are cautioned that there are differences between the SEC Modernization Rules and the CIM Definitions Standards.

1 Northern Superior has the option to acquire from Soquem the remaining 25% (in order to own 100%) of the Philibert Project for a cash payment of CAD$3.5 million.

2 Historical information: Roche Ltee., (1991) Economique, Propriete Philibert. Projet: 11044-001. 3 Northern Superior announces 1,708,809 gold ounces in inferred category and 278,921 gold ounces in indicated category at 1.10 g/t in maiden NI 43-101 pit constrained resource estimate at Philibert; Northern Superior's press release dated August 08, 2023. 4 NI 43-101 Technical Report Mineral Resource Estimation for the Chevrier Main Deposit, Chevrier Project Chibougamau, Quebec, Canada, October 20, 2021, Prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 by Lions Gate Geological Consulting Inc. IOS Services Geoscientifiques Inc. for Northern Superior. 5 Chalice Gold Mines Limited and Northern Superior Resources Inc. Technical Report on the Croteau Est Gold Project, Quebec, September 2015, Prepared in accordance with NI 43-101 by Optiro Pty Ltd ("Optiro") to Chalice Gold Mines Limited and Northern Superior. SOURCE: Northern Superior Resources Inc.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
San Diego, California--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - Direct Communication Solutions, Inc. (OTCQX: DCSX) (CSE: DCSI) (FSE: 7QU0) ("DCS" or the "Company") a leading provider of information technology and managed solutions for the Internet of Things (IoT) market, is excited to announce it has made significant progress in executing on our strategic plan of transitioning to a Software as a Service ("SaaS") focused company. DCS restructured financial and operational obligations significantly, which will allow the company to focus on higher margin, long-term recurring revenue opportunities.

DCS is pleased to announce that the company has restructured a $6.1M financial obligation with one of our key suppliers. The supplier will forgive DSC 3M in overdue accounts payable; restructuring will reduce the debt by 47% and provide a 5-year term loan for the remaining $3.1M bearing 10% annual interest with no principal payment required for the duration of the loan term. DCS is required to do a minimum capital raise of $1M, which is in process. "Working with our partner to restructure this financial obligation will allow us to focus on growing the recurring revenue," said Chris Bursey, CEO. "I am humbled and honored that our partner recognized the value DCS brings to the IoT market. I look forward to continuing the long partnership in the future."

During the first quarter of 2024, DCS restructured the company and significantly reduced costs and will continue to reduce costs as necessary to focus on the SaaS recurring revenues. DCS reduced overall operational cost reduction expenses by 30% in Q1 2024. These cost reduction measures were difficult, but necessary to get the company back to profitability and provide the value our shareholders expect. "Restructuring and cost reductions are never easy, but sometimes they are necessary for companies to execute on a strategy transition," said Bursey

DCS will continue to reduce operational costs to create efficiencies as we continue to execute on our business strategy of transitioning to a SaaS solutions enabler and focus on creating value in the company by growing the recurring revenue. DCS is growing and positive updates show that our strategy is working as our recurring revenue grows, and most importantly, we have partners that recognize the value we have, and they support us long term.

About DCS

DCS is a technology solutions integrator focusing on connecting the Internet of Things. We provide real solutions that solve real problems. Our software applications and scalable cloud services collect and assess business-critical data from all types of assets. DCS is headquartered in San Diego, California and is publicly traded on the OTCQX ("DCSX"), Canadian Securities Exchange ("DCSI") and Frankfurt Stock Exchange ("7QU0"). For more information, visit www.dcsbusiness.com. DCS and the DCS logo are among the trademarks of DCS in the United States. Any other trademarks or trade names mentioned are the property of their respective owners.

Contacts:

Chris Bursey, CEO - DCS

cbursey@dcsbusiness.com

858-525-2483

Julie Hajduk, CEO - Purple Crown Media

julie@purplecrown.ca

778-240-7077

Forward-Looking Statements

This release contains forward-looking statements, which reflect management's current views of future events and operations. These statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially. We believe that these potential risks and uncertainties include, without limitation: the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Company's dependence on third-party manufacturers, suppliers, technologies and infrastructure; risks related to intellectual property; industry risks including competition, online security, government regulation and global economic conditions; and the Company's financial position and need for additional funding, Statements in this release should be evaluated in light of these factors. These risk factors and other important factors that could affect our business and financial results are discussed in our Management's Discussion and Analysis, periodic reports and other public filings which are available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com and posted with the OTC Disclosure and News Service. DCS undertakes no duty to update or revise any forward-looking statements.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212733

SOURCE: Direct Communication Solutions, Inc.
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - Romios Gold Resources Inc. (TSXV: RG) (OTCQB: RMIOF) (FSE: D4R) ("Romios Gold" or the "Company") is pleased to report that Photosat has recently completed an in-depth, advanced re-interpretation of the previously reported Short Wave Infrared (SWIR) satellite image study that outlined the specific alteration minerals associated with mineralization on Romios' Kinkaid property in Mineral County, Nevada.

This new work used proprietary Deep Learning Technology to differentiate the types of sericite associated with the known mineralized structures and then outlined the same signature on several major, previously unrecognized, linear alteration zones potentially associated with additional mineralized vein systems.

John Biczok, VP Exploration, stated: "This advanced processing of the satellite imagery over Kinkaid by Photosat has provided some significant new targets in terms of both size and their similarity to the alteration minerals along the high-grade Au-Cu-Ag vein deposits mined in this area historically. At least one broad, circular zone of persistent sericite alteration >1 km wide was also identified, along with several clusters of spot anomalies; these zones generally overlie high-grade Cu-Au+/-Ag vein deposits (see Photo 1) and may outline the upper portions of buried porphyry copper systems."

HIGHLIGHTS

The same sericite alteration signature detected along the known, 400-500 m long Au-Cu-Ag vein deposits has now been detected in 2 nearby, parallel zones, also 4-500 m long. One of the known deposits has 3.2 km of historic, underground mine workings.

The favourable sericite signature has also been outlined in a >1 km wide, persistent circular pattern over the new KIN target discovered in 2023. At this site, nine mineralized boulders sampled along a 300-metre-long stretch of a dry stream bed returned copper values from 0.73% to 13.3% Cu, averaging 5.03% Cu (see Romios press release October 12, 2023). One boulder of magnetite, a common component of veins in many porphyry copper and skarn systems, assayed 12.7 g/t Au. The mineralized samples were located near numerous large boulders with strong epidote alteration very similar to porphyry copper and/or skarn alteration zones.

(see Romios press release October 12, 2023). One boulder of magnetite, a common component of veins in many porphyry copper and skarn systems, assayed The mineralized samples were located near numerous large boulders with strong epidote alteration very similar to porphyry copper and/or skarn alteration zones. A team of Romios' senior personnel will be following up on these new targets beginning June 14th.

Stephen Burega, President and CEO stated: "We have been working on the assumption that these high-grade veins are part of the upper portion of a buried porphyry copper system(s) and this new revelation of a >1 km wide sericitic alteration zone, centred over an area of known porphyry-type alteration and high-grade mineralization in boulders, is a major step forward for this project and supports Romios' porphyry modelling."





Photo 1: Secondary copper minerals exposed in a trench within one of the 1 km wide sericite anomalies. Samples from this zone assayed up to 36.3 g/t Au and 4.8% Cu.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/5376/212769_48e889edc49e1b5a_002full.jpg

Background

The Kinkaid property now consists of 131 claims, covering approximately 11.0 sq km, located 18 km east of the town of Hawthorne where the prolific Walker Lane trend overlaps the southern edge of the mineral-rich Basin and Range geological province. The claims are largely accessible by road and short hikes.

For more information, please click here for Romios' website.

Qualified Person

The technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by John Biczok, P. Geo., Vice President, Exploration for Romios Gold and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101. In addition to his extensive experience with several major mining companies exploring for a wide variety of ore deposit types across Canada and India, Mr. Biczok spent 12 years conducting exploration and research at the Musselwhite gold mine in NW Ontario.

About Romios Gold Resources Inc.

Romios Gold Resources Inc. is a progressive Canadian mineral exploration company engaged in precious- and base-metal exploration, focused primarily on gold, copper and silver. It has a 100% interest in the Lundmark-Akow Lake Au-Cu property plus 4 additional claim blocks in northwestern Ontario and extensive claim holdings covering several significant porphyry copper-gold prospects in the "Golden Triangle" of British Columbia. Additional interests include the Kinkaid claims in Nevada covering numerous Au-Ag-Cu workings, and two former producers: the Scossa mine property (Nevada) which is a former high-grade gold producer and the La Corne molybdenum mine property (Quebec). The Company retains an ongoing interest in several properties including a 2% NSR on McEwen Mining's Hislop gold property in Ontario; a 2% NSR on Enduro Metals' Newmont Lake Au-Cu-Ag property in BC, and the Company has signed a definitive agreement with Copperhead Resources Inc. ("Copperhead") whereby Copperhead can acquire a 75% ownership interest in Romios' Red Line Property in BC.

For more information, visit www.romios.com.

As part of our ongoing effort to keep investors, interested parties and stakeholders updated, we have several communication portals. If you have any questions online (Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn) please feel free to send direct messages.

To book a one-on-one 30-minute Zoom video call, please click here.

For further information, please contact:

Stephen Burega, CEO & President - 647-515-3734 or sburega@romios.com

John Biczok, P. Geo., VP Exploration - 613-410-7877 or jbiczok@romios.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212769

SOURCE: Romios Gold Resources Inc.
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Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - Appia Rare Earths & Uranium Corp. (CSE: API) (OTCQX: APAAF) (FSE: A0I0) (MUN: A0I0) (BER: A0I0) (the "Company" or "Appia") is pleased to announce the details regarding their upcoming diamond drilling program at their Loranger property, SK. Located within the eastern Wollaston Domain, Loranger is situated adjacent to the renowned, uranium-rich Athabasca Basin and holds strong potential for hosting valuable uranium deposits. The focus of this program is to strategically target highlighted NE-SW electromagnetic conductors at depth (Figure 1) using results from the VTEM Plus geophysical survey conducted in 2021 by Geotech Airborne Geophysical Surveys Ltd.

Stephen Burega, President, stated: "We are looking forward to getting our diamond drilling program at Loranger underway. The project is adjacent to the east side of the uranium-rich Athabasca Basin, and this program targets NE-SW electromagnetic conductors identified by the 2021 Resistivity Depth Imaging survey, aiming to uncover significant uranium deposits."

Starting mid-June, 2024, Appia aims to drill 1,000 total meters across 3 to 4 drill holes, targeting depths of 200 to 300 meters. The operation will be supported by Mustang Helicopters Inc., utilizing one Hydracore Diamond Drill supplied and operated by Apex Diamond Drilling Ltd. In a collaborative effort with YNLR and the local Hatchet Lake First Nations Band, the Loranger project will be proudly supported by local community employees, infrastructure, materials, and resources.

The Loranger drilling program will mark a significant advancement in the exploration and development of this Saskatchewan property, underscoring the Company's commitment to engaging and supporting local communities while pursuing its strategic objectives.

Dr. Irvine R. Annesley, P.Geo., Senior Technical Advisor and a Qualified Person as defined by National Instrument 43-101, has reviewed and approved the technical information in this news release.

Figure 1 - Loranger Diamond Drill Targets, Wollaston Lake, SK, 2024

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/5416/212770_ca44c8fcb497bae2_001full.jpg

About Appia Rare Earths & Uranium Corp. (Appia)

Appia is a publicly traded Canadian company in the rare earth element and uranium sectors. The Company holds the right to acquire up to a 70% interest in the PCH Ionic Adsorption Clay Project (See June 9th, 2023 Press Release - Click HERE) which is 40,963.18 ha. in size and located within the Goias State of Brazil. (See January 11th, 2024 Press Release - Click HERE) The Company is also focusing on delineating high-grade critical rare earth elements and gallium on the Alces Lake property, and exploring for high-grade uranium in the prolific Athabasca Basin on its Otherside, Loranger, North Wollaston, and Eastside properties. The Company holds the surface rights to exploration for 94,982.39 hectares (234,706.59 acres) in Saskatchewan. The Company also has a 100% interest in 13,008 hectares (32,143 acres), with rare earth elements and uranium deposits over five mineralized zones in the Elliot Lake Camp, Ontario.

Appia has 136.3 million common shares outstanding, 145 million shares fully diluted.

Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements: This News Release contains forward-looking statements which are typically preceded by, followed by or including the words "believes", "expects", "anticipates", "estimates", "intends", "plans" or similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are not a guarantee of future performance as they involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions. We do not intend and do not assume any obligation to update these forward-looking statements and shareholders are cautioned not to put undue reliance on such statements.

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor its Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

For more information, visit www.appiareu.com.

As part of our ongoing effort to keep investors, interested parties and stakeholders updated, we have several communication portals. If you have any questions online (X, Facebook, LinkedIn) please feel free to send direct messages.

To book a one-on-one 30-minute Zoom video call, please click here.

Contact:

Tom Drivas, CEO and Director

(c) (416) 876-3957

(f) (416) 218-9772

(e) tdrivas@appiareu.com

Stephen Burega, President

(c) (647) 515-3734

(e) sburega@appiareu.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212770

SOURCE: Appia Rare Earths & Uranium Corp.
VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Metallic Minerals Corp. (TSXV:MMG);(OTCQB:MMNGF) ("Metallic Minerals" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the commencement of the 2024 exploration programs at both the Keno Silver project in the Yukon Territory, Canada, and the La Plata copper-silver-gold-PGE project in southwest Colorado, USA.

At the Keno Silver project, where the Company announced an inaugural resource of 18.2 million ounces of silver equivalent1 in 2024, preparations are in the final stages for a diamond drilling program set to begin in July. This drilling initiative aims to expand existing resources and test the potential to define new resources at the highest priority drill-ready targets (see Figure 1). An important focus of the program will be on resource expansion at the Formo target, which is the largest current resource at the Keno Silver project. All four deposits comprising the existing mineral resource, including Formo, start at surface and remain open for further expansion.

The 171-square-kilometer ("km2") Keno Silver project is directly adjacent to Hecla Mining Company's ("Hecla") high-grade Keno Hill mining operations and mill, which is projected to produce 3-4 million ounces of silver in 20242. The Keno Silver project features excellent infrastructure with access via highway, well-developed and maintained roads on the property and access to the Yukon power grid.

At the La Plata copper-silver-gold-PGE project in southwest Colorado, field programs have commenced, including mapping and surface sampling to advance and prioritize newly identified targets for drill testing within the 10km2 footprint of the district-scale copper porphyry system. Advanced targets include Copper Hill, Renegade and Morningstar (shown in Figure 2), which all show very strong surface geochemical signatures. Drilling is anticipated to start with an initial focus on extending higher-grade mineralization at the Allard resource area, where five separate drill holes have intercepted 500 to 900-meter-thick zones of continuous copper and precious metals mineralization. Additional drilling is planned to test the highest priority targets outside of the Allard resource area.

Scott Petsel, President of Metallic Minerals, commented, "We are excited to initiate our exploration activities at both Keno Silver and La Plata for 2024. Our team is eager to apply the knowledge gained from previous programs to this year's drilling at targets selected to maximize opportunity for success. At Keno Silver, there is a clear opportunity to rapidly grow high-grade silver ounces once initial resources are established in such a productive structural setting, as has been repeatedly demonstrated through the long and productive history of the district. With 40+ promising target areas across our prospective Keno Silver district holdings, we see excellent potential to significantly grow our current resources, as well as to make new discoveries."

"Similarly, at La Plata, we have established a US-based critical minerals resource consisting of over 1.2 billion pounds of copper and 17.6 million ounces of silver3. We see the opportunity to continue to grow existing resources by drilling at the existing Allard resource area, as well as for new discoveries by first drill testing of major new targets. Over 20 additional porphyry centers with very high-grade surface samples have been identified and prioritized at La Plata that are supported by geophysical indicators. An updated mineral resource estimate for the La Plata Project is underway that will include the addition of gold, platinum, and palladium, along with copper and silver based on the positive results from the 2023 drill program. While it is still early days in terms of the potential of the project, the addition of these critical minerals is anticipated to enhance the size and robustness of the Allard resource considerably. We look forward to providing further updates as these programs and other initiatives advance."

Newmont Top-Up Right Financing Closed

As previously announced on May 8, 2024, Newmont Corporation exercised its 'top-up right' to purchase additional common shares of Metallic Minerals to maintain its 9.5% interest in the Company under the provisions of the Investor Rights Agreement dated May 18, 2023. Newmont Corporation purchased 342,750 shares at $0.33 per share with the issued shares subject to a four-month plus one day hold period from date of issuance, in accordance with applicable Canadian securities laws and the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange. The shares have not been registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or any U.S. state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons, absent registration or any applicable exemption from the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act and applicable U.S. state securities laws. The issuance remains subject to the final approval of the TSX Venture Exchange.

Figure 1 - Resource and priority target areas for the Keno Silver project

Figure 2 - La Plata project metal-in-soil and rock sample values highlighting priority target areas

Yukon Mining Alliance Property Tours and Investment Conference

Metallic Minerals will be participating in the 2024 YMA Property Tours & Investment Conference in Dawson City, Yukon from June 22-26th. This year's event will include Metallic hosting investors and media at our high-grade Keno Silver project adjacent to Hecla's mining operations in the Keno District of Central Yukon. We look forward to reconnecting with our Yukon peers, Yukon and First Nations governments as well as the investors, analysts and media attendees. More information about the Yukon Mining Alliance can be found here: https://investyukon.ca/.

National Western Mining Conference & Exhibition

Metallic Minerals is proud to be presenting on Wednesday June 19th at the 126th National Western mining Conference & Exhibition held in Grand Junction, Colorado. The conference, presented by the Colorado Mining Association, is the largest mining related conference in Colorado and will feature an excellent program of expert speakers, a broad range of exhibits and networking opportunities from throughout the industry. More information about the Colorado Mining Association and the conference can be found here: https://www.coloradomining.org/.

About Metallic Minerals

Metallic Minerals Corp. is a resource-stage mineral exploration company, focused on copper, silver, gold, and platinum group elements in top North American mining jurisdictions. Our objective is to create shareholder value through a systematic, entrepreneurial approach to making exploration discoveries, growing resources, and advancing projects toward development.

At the Company's La Plata project in southwestern Colorado, the expanded 2023 NI 43-101 mineral resource estimate highlights a significant porphyry copper-silver resource containing 1.2 Blbs copper and 17.6 Moz of silver3, with numerous additional targets showing potential for a district-scale porphyry system. In May 2023, the Company announced a 9.5% strategic investment by Newmont Corporation (previously Newcrest Mining which was acquired by Newmont Corporation in November 2023). The U.S. Geological Survey has identified the La Plata mining district as a critical minerals resource area under the Earth Mapping Resources Initiative program and in 2023 completed significant geologic and geophysical studies to enhance understanding of the critical mineral occurrence in the district. The La Plata project is located between the communities of Mancos and Durango, Colorado, north of Highway 160.

In Canada's Yukon Territory, Metallic Minerals has the second-largest land position in the historic high-grade Keno Hill silver district, directly adjacent to Hecla's operations, with more than 300 Moz of high-grade silver in past production and current M&I resources. The new 2024 Resource Estimate at the Company's Keno Silver project adds 18.2 Moz silver equivalent1 to the Company's total resources. Hecla is the largest primary silver producer in the USA and soon to be Canada's largest with full production at its Keno Hill operations in 2024.

The Company is also one of the largest holders of alluvial gold claims in the Yukon and is building a production royalty business by partnering with experienced mining operators.

Metallic Minerals is led by a team with a track record of discovery and exploration success on several major precious and base metal deposits in North America, as well as having large-scale development, permitting and project financing expertise. The Metallic Minerals team is committed to responsible and sustainable resource development and has worked closely with Canadian First Nation groups, US Tribal/Native Corporations, and local communities to support successful project development.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT:

Website: www.mmgsilver.com Phone: 604-629-7800

Email: cackerman@mmgsilver.com Toll Free: 1-888-570-4420

Footnote 1: Keno Silver Mineral Resource Estimate

See news release dated February 24, 2024 and associated NI 43-101 Technical Report

Footnote 2: Hecla Mining Keno production guidance

See Hecla news release dated February 14, 2024 and First Quarter 2024 Report

Footnote 3: La Plata Mineral Resource Estimate:

See news release dated July 31, 2023 and associated NI 43-101 Technical Report

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release includes certain statements that may be deemed "forward-looking statements". All statements in this release, other than statements of historical facts including, without limitation, statements regarding potential mineralization, historic production, estimation of mineral resources, the realization of mineral resource estimates, interpretation of prior exploration and potential exploration results, the timing and success of exploration activities generally, the timing and results of future resource estimates, permitting time lines, metal prices and currency exchange rates, availability of capital, government regulation of exploration operations, environmental risks, reclamation, title, statements about expected results of operations, royalties, cash flows, financial position and future dividends as well as financial position, prospects, and future plans and objectives of the Company are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. Although Metallic Minerals believes the expectations expressed in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, such statements are not guarantees of future performance and actual results or developments may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are based on a number of material factors and assumptions. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in forward-looking statements include failure to obtain necessary approvals, unsuccessful exploration results, unsuccessful operations, changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined, results of future resource estimates, future metal prices, availability of capital and financing on acceptable terms, general economic, market or business conditions, risks associated with regulatory changes, defects in title, availability of personnel, materials and equipment on a timely basis, accidents or equipment breakdowns, uninsured risks, delays in receiving government approvals, unanticipated environmental impacts on operations and costs to remedy same and other exploration or other risks detailed herein and from time to time in the filings made by the Company with securities regulators. Readers are cautioned that mineral resources that are not mineral reserves do not have demonstrated economic viability. Mineral exploration, development of mines and mining operations is an inherently risky business. Accordingly, the actual events may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements. For more information on Metallic Minerals and the risks and challenges of their businesses, investors should review their annual filings that are available at www.sedar.com.

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Metallic Minerals Corp.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
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.



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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.



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Leveraging Microza expertise to enable lower energy consumption and higher water quality

Asahi Kasei has announced that in April 2024 it began selling a membrane system to produce WFI (water for injection), a type of sterile water that is used for the preparation of injections. The membrane system was developed as an alternative to the conventional distillation processes for the production of WFI by leveraging system design and development capabilities of Microza hollow-fiber membrane for water treatment and filtration of liquid products. By reducing the need to generate steam, this system enables lower CO2 emissions and lower costs in the production of WFI.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240613981746/en/

Membrane system for WFI (Photo: Business Wire)

With its Microza hollow-fiber membrane, Asahi Kasei has provided membrane filtration solutions in a wide range of fields including pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, food processing, environmental protection, and water treatment. Pharmaceutical water, which is used in the pharmaceutical manufacturing process, is one application in which Microza has gained a strong reputation among customers for its high filtration performance and outstanding technical support.

The WFI membrane system is based on steam-sterilizable ultrafiltration (UF) membranes for water treatment that have been widely used in the pharmaceutical industry. Being designed by the membrane manufacturer, the system features a compact form and excellent operability. It offers various advantages compared to the conventional distillation processes, such as a reduced need to generate steam, resulting in lower CO2 emissions and energy costs. It also offers a simplified process with no need for cooling and condensing steam, and enables higher water quality to be obtained. Previously published research with the same membranes (Steam Sterilizable UF Module System) indicates an endotoxin removal rate of >99.999% compared to 99.9% with distillation.

By facilitating a transition from the traditional distillation processes to the membrane filtration processes, Asahi Kasei expects that the new system will allow its customers to reduce CO2 emissions while producing a stable supply of safer WFI for the pharmaceutical industry.

The system will be exhibited at PharmaLab Expo, June 26-28, 2024, at Tokyo Big Sight, booth #51-14.

https://www.interphex.jp/hub/en-gb/about/rd.html

More information on Microza

https://www.asahi-kasei.co.jp/membrane/microza/en

More information on the WFI membrane system

https://www.asahi-kasei.co.jp/membrane/microza/en/solution/pharmaceutical/

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 business, 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 sustainable society by providing solutions to the world's challenges through its three business sectors of Material, Homes, and Health Care. 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/.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240613981746/en/

Contacts:

North America:

Asahi Kasei America Inc.

Christian OKeefe

christian.okeefe@ak-america.com

Europe:

Asahi Kasei Europe GmbH

Sebastian Schmidt

sebastian.schmidt@asahi-kasei.eu
Sitka Gold Corp. ("Sitka" or the "Company") (TSXV:SIG)(FSE:1RF)(OTCQB:SITKF) is pleased to announce that it has recommenced the previously announced 15,000 metre diamond drilling program (see news release dated March 5, 2024) at its road accessible RC Gold Project ("RC Gold" or "the Project") located in the prolific Tombstone Gold Belt in the Yukon. Sitka successfully completed two diamond drill holes during the winter portion of this year's drilling program to test the continuity of higher-grade gold mineralization south of the Blackjack gold deposit. A total of 1085 metres (m) was drilled during the winter program with visible gold observed in both drill holes and assay results that returned 191.0 m grading 1.16 g/t gold including 11.0 m of 5.80 g/t gold within 89.0 m of 2.03 g/t gold (DDRCCC-24-057 or "Hole 57" see news release dated May 1, 2024) and 154.0 m of 1.47 g/t gold including 37.0 m of 3.07 g/t gold and 8.0 m of 4.61 g/t gold (DDRCCC-24-058 or "Hole 58" see news release dated May 23, 2024).

"Drilling currently underway is focused on continuing to expand the Blackjack deposit following up on the higher-grade gold mineralization discovered during the winter diamond drilling program outside of the current resource," said Cor Coe, Director and CEO of Sitka Gold Corp. "Our updated geological model suggests this higher-grade gold zone continues south and we plan to investigate that possibility this summer along with follow-up on several other high-priority targets as we push to expand our rapidly growing gold resource and make additional discoveries across our one hundred percent owned, district-scale RC Gold Project."

In addition to extending Blackjack gold mineralization to the southeast, objectives for the Company's 2024 exploration season include further drilling of the Saddle East zone (84 m of 1.21 g/t gold drilled in 2023), further drilling of the Eiger Deposit (Inferred Resource of 440,000 oz gold published in 2023), further drilling of the Josephine Stock (visible gold discovered at surface in 2023) and further investigation of the nine known intrusions with associated gold mineralization that have been discovered to date on the Company's 386 square kilometre RC Project.

Figure 1: Plan map of the Northern Extent of the Clear Creek Intrusive Complex where several drill intervals and surface samples have demonstrated the high-grade nature of the Reduced Intrusion Related Gold System present. The projection of the Blackjack fault and Blackjack Mineralized Corridor are highlighted along with the priority targets in this area for 2024. Yellow stars indicate where outcrop rock samples or drill hole intervals have returned >10 g/t gold. Several additional targets with the potential to host intrusion related gold deposits of significant size and grade have yet to be drilled within this approximately 3 km x 5 km area. The Saddle Zone priority target area (between the Blackjack and Eiger gold deposits) remains largely untested by drilling and contains the largest and strongest gold-in-soil anomaly on the property.

Figure 2: Plan map showing current proposed 2024 diamond drilling and the projection of the recently identified Blackjack Mineralized Corridor and the Blackjack Fault which remain open to the south of the Blackjack gold deposit. This fault appears to be an important structural control for the intrusion related gold mineralization being discovered at the Blackjack deposit area and remains wide open to the north and south of the current extent of drilling.

Figure 3: Diamond drilling currently underway south of the Blackjack gold deposit at the district-scale, road accessible RC Gold Project.

About the flagship RC Gold Project

The RC Gold Project consists of a 386 square kilometre contiguous district-scale land package located in the heart of Yukon's Tombstone Gold Belt. The project is located approximately 100 kilometres east of Dawson City, which has a 5,000 foot paved runway, and is accessed via a secondary gravel road from the Klondike Highway which is usable year-round and is an approximate 2 hour drive from Dawson. It is the largest consolidated land package strategically positioned mid-way between Victoria Gold's Eagle Gold Mine - Yukon's newest gold mine which reached commercial production in the summer of 2020 - and Victoria Gold's former producing Brewery Creek Gold Mine.

On January 19, 2023 Sitka Gold announced an Initial Mineral Resource Estimate prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") guidelines for the RC Gold Property of 1,340,000 ounces of gold(1). The road accessible, pit constrained Mineral Resource is classified as inferred and is contained in two zones: The Blackjack and Eiger deposits. Both of these deposits are at/near surface, are potentially open pit minable and amenable to heap leaching, with initial bottle roll tests indicating that the gold is not refractory and has high gold recoveries of up to 94% with minimal NaCN consumption (see News Release July 13, 2022). The Mineral Resource estimate is presented in the following table at a base case cut-off grade of 0.25 g/t Au:

RC Gold Inferred Mineral Resource Estimate

COG g/t Au Blackjack Zone Eiger Zone Combined Tonnes 000's Au g/t 0z Au 000's Tonnes 000's Au g/t 0z Au 000's Tonnes 000's Au g/t 0z Au 000's 0.20 35,798 0.80 921 32,523 0.45 471 68,321 0.63 1,391 0.25 33,743 0.83 900 27,362 0.50 440 61,105 0.68 1,340 0.30 31,282 0.88 885 22,253 0.55 393 53,535 0.74 1,279 0.35 29,065 0.92 860 17,817 0.60 344 46,882 0.80 1,203 0.40 26,975 0.96 833 14,506 0.66 308 41,481 0.86 1,140

Notes

1. Mineral resource estimate prepared by Ronald G. Simpson of GeoSim Services Inc. with an effective date of January 19, 2023. Mineral Resources are classified using the 2014 CIM Definition Standards.

2. The cut-off grade of 0.25 g/t Au is believed to provide a reasonable margin over operating and sustaining costs for open-pit mining and processing

3. Mineral resources are constrained by an optimised pit shell using the following assumptions: US$1800/oz Au price; a 45 pit slope; assumed metallurgical recovery of 85%; mining costs of US$2.00 per tonne; processing costs of US$8.00 per tonne; G&A of US$1.50/t.

4. Mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability.

5. Totals may not sum due to rounding.

RC Gold Deposit Model

Exploration on the Property has mainly focused on identifying an intrusion-related gold system ("IRGS"). The property is within the Tombstone Gold Belt which is the prominent host to IRGS deposits within the Tintina Gold Province in Yukon and Alaska. Notable deposits from the belt include: Fort Knox Mine in Alaska with current Proven and Probable Reserves of 230 million tonnes at 0.3 g/t Au (2.471 million ounces; Sims 2018)(1); Eagle Gold Mine with current Measured and Indicated Resources of 233 million tonnes at a grade of 0.57 g/t Au at the Eagle Main Zone (4.303 million ounces; Harvey et al, 2022)(2); the Brewery Creek deposit with current Indicated Mineral Resource of 22.2 million tonnes at a gold grade of 1.11 g/t (0.789 million ounces; Hulse et al. 2020)(3); the Florin Gold deposit, located adjacent to Sitka's RC Gold project, with a current Inferred Mineral Resource of 170.99 million tonnes grading 0.45 g/t (2.47 million ounces; Simpson 2021)(4) and the AurMac Project with an Inferred Mineral Resource of 347.49 million tonnes grading 0.63 gram per tonne gold (7.00 million ounces)(5).

1. Sims J. Fort Knox Mine Fairbanks North Star Borough, Alaska, USA National Instrument 43-101 Technical Report. June 11, 2018. https://s2.q4cdn.com/496390694/files/doc_downloads/2018/Fort-Knox-June-2018-Technical-Report.pdf

2. Harvey N., Gray P., Winterton J., Jutras M., Levy M.,Technical Report for the Eagle Gold Mine, Yukon Territory, Canada. Victoria Gold Corp. December 31, 2022. https://vgcx.com/site/assets/files/6534/vgcx_-_2023_eagle_mine_technical_report_final.pdf

3. Hulse D, Emanuel C, Cook C. NI 43-101 Technical Report on Mineral Resources. Gustavson Associates. May 31, 2020. https://minedocs.com/22/Brewery-Creek-PEA-01182022.pdf

4. Simpson R. Florin Gold Project NI 43-101 Technical Report. Geosim Services Inc. April 21, 2021. https://sedar.com/GetFile.do?lang=EN&docClass=24&issuerNo=00005795&issuerType=03&projectNo=03236138&docI d=4984158

5. Banyan Gold News Release Dated February 7, 2023 (Technical Report to be filed within 45 days of news release) https://banyangold.com/news-releases/2024/banyan-announces-7-million-ounce-gold-updated-mineral-resource-estimate-aurmac-project-yukon-canada/

Upcoming Events

Sitka Gold will be attending and/or presenting at the following events*:

Yukon Mining Alliance Property Tours, Dawson City, Yukon: June 20 - 26, 2024

Takestock Investor Forum, Stampede Event, Calgary, Alberta: July 3, 2024

Precious Metals Summit, Beaver Creek, Colorado: September 10 - 13, 2-024

*All events are subject to change.

About Sitka Gold Corp.

Sitka Gold Corp. is a well-funded mineral exploration company headquartered in Canada. The Company is managed by a team of experienced industry professionals and is focused on exploring for economically viable mineral deposits with its primary emphasis on gold, silver and copper mineral properties of merit. Sitka is currently exploring its flagship RC Gold Project within the Tombstone Gold Belt in the Yukon Territory with a 15,000 metre diamond drill program planned for 2024. The company is also advancing the Alpha Gold Project in Nevada and currently has drill permits for its Burro Creek Gold and Silver Project in Arizona and the Coppermine River Project in Nunavut.

The scientific and technical content of this news release has been reviewed and approved by Cor Coe, P.Geo., Director and CEO of the Company, and a Qualified Person (QP) as defined by National Instrument 43-101.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF

SITKA GOLD CORP.

" Donald Penner "

President and Director

For more information contact:

Donald Penner

President & Director

778-212-1950

dpenner@sitkagoldcorp.com

or

Cor Coe

CEO & Director

604-817-4753

ccoe@sitkagoldcorp.com

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Cautionary and Forward-Looking Statements

This release includes certain statements and information that may constitute forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws. Forward-looking statements relate to future events or future performance and reflect the expectations or beliefs of management of the Company regarding future events. Generally, forward-looking statements and information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "intends" or "anticipates", or variations of such words and phrases or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "should", "would" or "occur". This information and these statements, referred to herein as "forward-looking statements", are not historical facts, are made as of the date of this news release and include without limitation, statements regarding discussions of future plans, estimates and forecasts and statements as to management's expectations and intentions with respect to, among other things, the use of the proceeds raised under the Offering and the Company's anticipated work programs.

In making the forward-looking statements in this news release, the Company has applied several material assumptions, including without limitation, that the Company will complete its anticipated work programs and use the proceeds of the Offering as currently anticipated.

These forward-looking statements involve numerous risks and uncertainties and actual results might differ materially from results suggested in any forward-looking statements. These risks and uncertainties include, among other things, market uncertainty, the results of the Company's anticipated work programs and that the Company will not use the proceeds of the Offering as currently anticipated.

Although management of the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements or forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements and forward-looking information. Readers are cautioned that reliance on such information may not be appropriate for other purposes. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statement, forward-looking information or financial out-look that are incorporated by reference herein, except in accordance with applicable securities laws. We seek safe harbor.

SOURCE: Sitka Gold Corp

View the original press release on accesswire.com
BTU METALS CORP. ("BTU" or the "Company") (TSXV:BTU)OTCQB:BTUMF) announces it has finalized the transaction to acquire a 100% interest in two large gold exploration projects in the active Wawa gold area of northern Ontario; the Echum Gold Project adjacent to Alamos Gold Inc. (TSX-AGI) and the Hubcap Gold Project adjacent to Red Pine Exploration Inc. (RPX-TSX:V).

Each of the projects covers areas of historic gold mineralization and neither project has been the subject of significant or comprehensive exploration in recent years. The Echum property is adjacent along trend of the Alamos Gold Inc. ("Alamos") Island Gold Mine property and the Hubcap property is adjacent along the geological trend of the gold mineralization that has been extensively drill tested by Red Pine Exploration Inc. ("Red Pine").

Figure 1: Map showing the Echum and Hubcap properties and Their Location in Relation to the Properties of Red Pine and Alamos

Asset and Area Highlights

Each project is adjacent to an active, large scale gold exploration/development project

Both projects host historic gold mineralization

Echum, the northern property, covers the extension of geological host rocks that occur on the adjacent Alamos Island Gold Mine property

Hubcap, the southern property, just southeast of the town of Wawa covers the extension of the geological trends on the Red Pine property, starting approximately 1200m from their historic Darwin Grace gold mine

The Hubcap project includes the historic Centennial Gold Mine where underground mine work was last undertaken in the 1930s

The properties, to be purchased 100%, have no ongoing or contingent payments, and are subject only to net smelter royalties of not more than 2%, (on the majority of the claims the royalty can be reduced to not more than 1%)

Only two drill holes have been drilled on the entire property position in the past 6 years

Existing data sets and work by neighbouring companies will allow the Company to quickly vector in on the best exploration targets

Both projects have excellent proximity to infrastructure. Roads, highways (including Trans Canada Highway), town of Wawa, airport, water, power, mining aware population and mining labour pool

No work commitments other than ongoing assessment work requirements with the Ontario government

The properties cover more than 750 mining claims over a total of 16,048 hectares

Alamos has acquired other exploration/development projects in the area over the past 2 years and also purchased a 19.9% interest in Red Pine in late 2019

BTU CEO Paul Wood commented; "We are excited to have closed the acquisition of the Echum and Hubcap properties and now be in a position to get in the field on both projects. We know from previous work on the projects which included surface exploration, drilling and, in the case of one area on the Hubcap project, mining, these are projects of considerable merit. We are funded and intend to start exploration on the properties this month. At the same time, Kinross continues to progress early exploration work at Dixie Halo project under the terms of the 2023 Exploration Option Agreement. Dixie Halo is located adjacent to their world class Great Bear project outside Red Lake. We will also continue to pursue additional high-quality projects in strong jurisdictions."

Asset Acquisition

The consideration paid by BTU on closing for a 100% interest in the Echum and Hubcap properties was: CAD$25,000 and 5 million BTU treasury common shares. The only remaining obligation of the Company is in regards to undertaking to honour net smelter royalties to the original vendors.

About the Purchased Properties

The Company entered into a property purchase and sale agreement with Kingsview Minerals Ltd., pursuant to which BTU purchased an undivided 100% interest in and to 763 mining claims (34 Boundary Cell Mining Claims, 2 Multi-cell Mining Claims, and 727 Single Cell Mining Claims) covering approximately 16,048 hectares of land, located in the Sault Ste. Marie District of Ontario. The properties are in good standing, there are no ongoing payments and there are no work commitments on any of the claims (other than as required by the province of Ontario to keep the claims in good standing). Underlying royalties on the properties are a maximum of 2% of the net smelter returns, the majority of which can be reduced to 1% for a payment of $1 million. The claims that have a 2% net smelter returns royalty payable to the original vendors without a buydown provision, include a first right of refusal to the owner of the property (which will be the Company). Some claims have no underlying royalty payable.

Bruce Durham, P. Geo., a qualified person as defined by National Instrument 43-101 has reviewed and approved the technical information in this press release.

About BTU

BTU Metals Corp. is a junior mining exploration company looking to acquire high quality exploration projects to add to its portfolio for the benefit of its stakeholders. The Company's main assets are the Dixie Halo Project located in Red Lake, Ontario immediately adjacent to the Great Bear Project and the recently acquired Echum and Hubcap properties in the active Wawa gold district. The Company has no debt, no property obligations and maintains a cash balance of approximately $1.5M.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD

"Paul Wood"

Paul Wood, CEO, Director

pwood@btumetals.com

BTU Metals Corp.

Telephone: 1-604-683-3995

Toll Free: 1-888-945-4770

Cautionary Statement

Trading in the securities of the Company should be considered highly speculative. No stock exchange, securities commission or other regulatory authority has approved or disapproved the information contained herein. Neither the TSX-V nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX-V) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains certain "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities laws that are based on expectations, estimates and projections as at the date of this news release. The information in this release about future plans and objectives of the Company is forward-looking information. Other forward-looking information includes but is not limited to information concerning: the intentions, plans and future actions of the Company.

Any statements that involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions, future events or performance (often but not always using phrases such as "expects", or "does not expect", "is expected", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", "plans", "budget", "scheduled", "forecasts", "estimates", "believes" or "intends" or variations of such words and phrases or stating that certain actions, events or results "may" or "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken to occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and may be forward-looking information and are intended to identify forward-looking information.

This forward-looking information is based on reasonable assumptions and estimates of management of the Company at the time it was made, and involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Such factors include, among others: risks relating to the global economic climate; dilution; future capital needs and uncertainty of additional financing; the competitive nature of the industry; currency exchange risks; the need for the Company to manage its planned growth and expansion; the effects of product development; protection of proprietary rights; the effect of government regulation and compliance on the Company and the industry; reliance on key personnel; global economic and financial market deterioration impeding access to capital or increasing the cost of capital; and volatile securities markets impacting security pricing unrelated to operating performance. The Company has also assumed that no significant events occur outside of the normal course of business. Although the Company has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. The Company undertakes no obligation to revise or update any forward-looking information other than as required by law.

SOURCE: BTU Metals Corp.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - District Copper Corp. (TSXV: DCOP) ("District Copper", "District", or the "Company") is pleased to report that it will be mobilizing field crews in the next few days for its Phase I 2024 summer field program at its flagship Copper Keg project near Cache Creek, BC. The property covers approximately 6,628 ha, and is considered to be highly prospective for the discovery of porphyry-style copper mineralization. The property is located at the north end of the Guichon Creek batholith which hosts Teck's Highland Valley Copper operations.

GroundTruth Exploration, of Dawson City YK has been contracted to conduct an extensive soil sampling program. It is anticipated that this will be followed by a Phase II program consisting of either ground or airborne geophysics.

Jevin Werbes, President and CEO of District Copper commented, "We are excited to get boots on the ground to further enhance the prospectivity of the main porphyry target and the associated anomalies."

About the Copper Keg property

Historical exploration spans from the late 1800's to 2012. The early stage exploration is reported to consist of mining high grade copper veins.

The property exhibits the geochemical/alteration/lithologic features typical of the argillic altered potion of a porphyry copper system at/along the potassic/propylitic contact. The property is characterized by a large, pyrite bearing, argillic zone exposed along the surface trace of the Barnes Creek fault, a major NNW trending that crosses the Guichon Creek Batholith. The high-grade copper veins noted above, reflect supergene enrichment of distal base metal veins typically associated with a porphyry copper system.

Mapping has described pale grey-green (possibly phyllic alteration) outcrops of Guichon intrusive and late-stage Quartz Feldspar and Quartz Feldspar Hornblende dikes indicating multi-phase intrusive activity. The hydrothermal alteration is post Guichon intrusive and pre-dates the late-stage intrusive dikes.

The erratic and wide range of copper values (0.025 to 0.76%), in the gossanous (after pyrite), argillic altered zone, exhibit characteristics typical of a leach cap to a porphyry system.

The project is underlain by an intrusive phase of the Guichon Creek batholith intruded the surrounding Nicola Group rocks.

Petrographic work and K/Al: Na/Al ratios indicate an alteration package ranging from argillic-phyllic- potassic (all alteration phases associated with porphyry copper systems) supported by alteration minerals indicative of the inner actinolite subzone of a porphyry system as well as secondary biotite (Potassic alteration) and sericite (phyllic alteration), quartz veinlets with pyrite and chalcopyrite.

A large pyritic zone exhibits spatial association with the argillic altered zone and could be representative of what is commonly referred to in porphyry copper terms as the "pyrite shell". Chalcopyrite, bornite and malachite (secondary copper carbonate) have been observed in outcrop and support the presence of a porphyry system.

Two highly altered gossans have been identified along the interpreted trace of the Barnes Creek fault, a major structure within the Guichon Creek batholith. The first area (800m long by 200m wide); the second area is 600 m south and smaller in extent. These gossans exhibit erratic copper concentrations, weak copper-silver soil anomalies and copper mineralogy typical of a leach cap.

Since the Company acquired the property in 2021, it has completed mapping and prospecting, soil sampling, and ground and airborne geophysical programs. Results from this work are consistent with the presence of a leach cap to a porphyry system.

Qualified Person

Chris M. Healey, P.Geo., Chief Geologist, and a Director of District Copper Corp., is the qualified person under NI 43-101 guidelines who is responsible for the technical content of this release and approves its release.

About District Copper

District Copper is a Canadian company engaged in the exploration for porphyry copper deposits in south-central British Columbia.

For further information, please visit www.districtcoppercorp.com to view the Company's profile or contact Jevin Werbes at 604-363-2506.

______________________________

Jevin Werbes, President & CEO

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release. This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to sell any of the securities described herein in the United States. The securities described in this news release have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available. This news release is not for distribution in the United States or over United States newswires.

Cautionary Statement on Forward Looking Statement

Certain information contained in this news release, including information as to our strategy, projects, plans or future financial or operating performance and other statements that express management's expectations or estimates of future performance, constitute "forward looking statements". Actual results may differ materially from those indicated by such statements. All statements, other than historical fact, included herein, including, without limitations statements regarding future production, are forward-looking statements that involve various risks and uncertainties. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements.

In connection with the forward-looking information contained in this news release, District Copper has made numerous assumptions regarding, among other things: the geological advice that District Copper has received is reliable and is based upon practices and methodologies which are consistent with industry standards and the reliability of historical reports. While District Copper considers these assumptions to be reasonable, these assumptions are inherently subject to significant uncertainties and contingencies.

Additionally, there are known and unknown risk factors which could cause District Copper's actual results, performance, or achievements to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information contained herein. Known risk factors include, among others: the dimensions and shape of the mineralized areas may not be as estimated; the targets outlined by the MVI study may not be associated with felsic intrusives porphyry style alteration or mineralization; the proposed surface program may eliminate these areas as potential targets for future exploration; the NNW trending structures may not contain indications of magnetite destruction typical of hydrothermal alteration; uncertainties relating to interpretation of the outcrop sampling results; the geology, continuity, and concentration of the mineralization; the financial markets and the overall economy may deteriorate; the need to obtain additional financing and uncertainty of meeting anticipated program milestones; and uncertainty as to timely availability of permits and other governmental approvals.

A more complete discussion of the risks and uncertainties facing District Copper is disclosed in District Copper's continuous disclosure filings with Canadian securities regulatory authorities at www.sedar.com. All forward-looking information herein is qualified in its entirety by this cautionary statement, and District Copper disclaims any obligation to revise or update any such forward-looking information or to publicly announce the result of any revisions to any of the forward-looking information contained herein to reflect future results, events or developments, except as required by law.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212732

SOURCE: District Copper Corp
Research uncovers strategies for smaller institutions to attract and retain younger consumers

Apiture , a leading provider of digital banking solutions, today released key findings from a survey of more than 2,000 U.S. consumers conducted with market research and analytics company The Harris Poll. The study finds that although 80% of Gen Z and 75% of millennials have chosen a large bank as their primary financial institution, roughly half of younger consumers are willing to switch to a community bank (52%), online-only institution (50%), or credit union (47%).

Apiture reports this and other findings in Attracting Gen Z and Millennials: Seven Essential Strategies for Community Banks and Credit Unions, the first paper in its Banking Through the Ages series. The paper identifies important generational differences in consumers' banking habits and preferences that will help smaller financial institutions better attract and serve young, digital-native consumers.

Key findings include:

Younger consumers are least likely to choose community banks: Only 6% of Gen Z and 8% of millennials consider a local bank their primary institution. Credit unions have captured 14% of Gen Z and 20% of millennials, while 11% of Gen Z and 18% of millennials have an account with an online-only institution.

Physical locations are waning in importance: Despite 57% of Gen Z and 60% of millennials stating that branches are an imperative, 45% of these consumers do not remember the last time they went to a physical branch. Further, across generations, half of Americans would not change where they bank if their institution closed all its physical locations.

Modern digital banking technology is critical for attracting young customers: 80% of Gen Z and 81% of millennials report that digital banking is at the core of their banking preferences, and 53% of Gen Z and 51% of millennials identify it as a top need for choosing a new institution.

Digital account opening is an imperative: Financial institutions need to meet young customers where they are - online. While many institutions still require a branch visit to open an account, 41% of Gen Z and 38% of millennials consider the ability to open an account online a top need when choosing a financial institution.



"The country's largest banks are winning across generations. Our research with The Harris Poll reveals critical insights for banks and credit unions competing with national brands to capture a larger share of the vital Gen Z and millennial demographic," said Apiture Chief Operating Officer Chris Cox. "Apiture is committed to providing the industry-leading online and mobile banking solutions needed to attract and retain today's most digitally savvy consumers."

Apiture SVP of Product Jennifer Dimenna will discuss the survey findings and explore how financial institutions can gain a greater slice of Gen Z and millennial populations in a webinar hosted by Bank Director on June 18 at 2 p.m. EDT. To join the discussion, register now .

To learn how community and regional banks can bolster their share of young adult account holders, download Attracting Gen Z and Millennials: Seven Essential Strategies for Community Banks and Credit Unions here .

About Apiture:

Apiture delivers award-winning digital banking solutions to banks and credit unions throughout the U.S. Our flexible, highly configurable solutions meet a wide range of financial institutions' needs, from leveling the playing field with larger institutions to supporting growth through innovative data intelligence and embedded banking strategies. With our API-first approach, our clients can maximize the capabilities of their platform while preserving a seamless user experience. Our exclusive focus on digital banking, and a team with hundreds of years of collective experience working at U.S. financial institutions, means we're dedicated to meeting the unique needs of our clients while providing a level of support that's unmatched in the industry. Apiture is headquartered in Wilmington, North Carolina, with offices in Austin, Texas. To learn more, visit www.apiture.com and follow Apiture on LinkedIn .

Media Contact:

Heather Valle

Caliber Corporate Advisers

heather@calibercorporate.com

SOURCE: Apiture

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - Stakeholder Gold Corp.(TSXV: SRC) ("Stakeholder" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the receipt of licensing for the Company's second (2nd) quarry, a White Quartzite Quarry located in Minas Gerais, Brazil near to the Company's first operating quarry.

On the June 12th the State Forestry Institute of Minas Gerais, Instituto Estadual de Florestas ("IEF"), granted Stakeholder's Brazilian Subsidiary, Mineracao VMC Ltda. ("VMC"), authorization to clear the new project area for commercial production. VMC has now commenced building quarry infrastructure on site for the Company's second operating quarry.

A sample block is being produced for marketing purposes. Full commercial operations will begin once the Regional State Environmental Agency, Superintendencia Regional de Meio Ambiente, ("SUPRAM") grants the environmental license, which is now pending.

"White quartzite from Diamantina and the surrounding region is in strong demand. Many buyers have had difficulty sourcing white quartzite for their cutting and polishing operations. We believe that our new white quartzite quarry will find a ready market with steady demand, and that it will provide healthy margins and steady operating profits for the company," said Marcus Chase, president of VMC.





Figure 1 - White Quartzite produced from test block, VMC Quarry # 2



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3082/212721_stakeholder1.jpg

Four (4) New Quarries Planned for 2024

Licensing for VMC's third (3rd) quartzite quarry is also nearly complete. The application for an environmental license has received an initial response from SUPRAM. The area under consideration has already been issued a license by the federal mining agency, the Agencia Nacional de Mineracao ("ANM"), and so VMC will be able to begin commercial operations immediately upon receipt of an environmental license. The Company expects to be able to report progress on this licensing application shortly.





Figure 2 - Blue-Grey Quartzite produced from test block, VMC Quarry # 3



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3082/212721_stakeholder2.jpg

"The blue quartzite produced from the company's proposed third quarry, has excellent esthetic and physical characteristics. The test block has an attractive mix of blue and white, and the material cuts and polishes easily. These characteristics will appeal to our clients."

VMC's second (2nd) and third (3rd) quarries (Figures # 1&2 above) are both located within a 2km radius of the Company's current operating quarry. The Company expects to benefit from synergies resulting from access to existing personnel and equipment.

VMC's planned fourth and fifth (4th and 5th) quarries are also currently in pursuit of licensing. The materials for these proposed quarries have never been brought to market and will likely be able to command premium prices which the Company anticipates being in the range $2,500 USD/m3.





Figure 3 - Grey-White Quartzite produced from test block, VMC Quarry # 4



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3082/212721_stakeholder3.jpg





Figure 4 - Teal Blue Quartzite produced from test block, VMC Quarry # 5



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3082/212721_stakeholder4.jpg

"Our objective is to expand from a single operating quarry to five (5) operating quarries in 2024. We are also initiating direct sales of these building materials into the Canadian market, beginning in the GTA in Ontario, where we see evidence of rapid and sustainable growth in urban development." Stated Christopher Berlet, President & CEO of Stakeholder Gold Corp.

"Stakeholder has twin channels for shareholder growth. The first is an expanding revenue stream from high margin quarry operations producing exotic stone for the building business. The quarries provide an opportunity for robust cash flow growth, while helping to restrict treasury share issuance. The second channel derives from the potential for substantial gold and copper discovery on the company's 100% owned Ballarat Gold Project located in the heart of the White Gold District of the Yukon Territory, Canada."





Figure 5 - Quartzite arrives at warehouse in Etobicoke, GTA, Ontario



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3082/212721_stakeholder5.jpg

For further information please contact:

Stakeholder Gold Corporation

416 525 - 6869

cberlet@stakeholdergold.com

Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking information. All information, other than information of historical fact, constitute "forward-looking statements" and includes any information that addresses activities, events or developments that the Corporation believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future including the Corporation's strategy, plans or future financial or operating performance.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212721

SOURCE: Stakeholder Gold Corp.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - Homerun Resources Inc. (TSXV: HMR) (OTCQB: HMRFF) ("Homerun" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the Company has signed an exclusivity agreement dated June 10th, 2024, for the acquisition of silica sand mineral rights in the municipality of Taperoa, Bahia, Brazil.

The agreement comprises the mining rights 870.335/2022, 871.743/2016, 872.794/2015 and 870.051/2024 before the ANM (National Mining Agency, currently held by a local citizen, directly and through an individual legal entity fully owned by this person) (the "Property").

An assay performed on a representative bulk sample from the deposit by the current owner returned a value of 99.68% SiO2, while a historical report produced on the Property in 2022 interpreted the entire mountain range as having the potential to host commercial grade high purity silica sand.

Exclusivity Agreement

According to the agreement, HMR will have a 90-day exclusivity period for the performance of a due diligence in the areas, and if the results are satisfactory, the parties may enter into a contract for the total assignment of mining rights, the basis of which will be the payment of royalties at R$ 30.00 (thirty reais) per ton of material extracted, until the exhaustion of the deposit, with monthly payments according to the actual production.

The Company is engaging Dr. Roque Yuri Tandel, to perform a physical visit to the areas and complete a review and confirmation of the legal standing of the mineral rights. Dr. Roque Yuri Tandel is a Technical Consultant with more than 30 years of experience, and he is a Qualified Person registered by the CBRR (registration no. 017015) in the specialties of Mineral Exploration and Estimation of Mineral Resources. Dr. Roque Yuri Tandel, was previously Geologist / Systems and Quality Manager for Sibelco Mineracao Ltda.

The Company will also engage a local auditing firm to assess the legal and financial status of the current owner of the mineral rights and once the due diligence is complete a more comprehensive press release will be issued.

Brian Leeners, CEO of Homerun stated, "Securing this exclusivity agreement and adding this exceptional silica sand deposit with very favourable logistics to our portfolio, represents another step forward in positioning Homerun as a leading supplier for the growing global demand for high-purity silica. The Property will compliment our asset base in Belmonte in servicing bulk HPQ industrial markets, while the higher purity Belmonte silica is delivered into HPQ Energy Verticals."

Figure 1. Silica sand on the Property

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/4082/212836_07f3fe7e14987bc8_001full.jpg

"Geologically, this asset seems to have many similarities with the Company's flagship Belmonte asset. By assuming control of this ground, HMR aims to become the largest silica sands powerhouse in the Americas," says Armando Farhate, COO of Homerun.

About Homerun Resources (https://homerunresources.com/)

Homerun Resources is focused on the development of its business within the critical and energy materials sectors. With a steadfast commitment to operational excellence, sustainability, and building shareholder value, Homerun Resources Inc. is poised to make a lasting impact in these industries.

Qualified Person

Technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Case Lewis, P.Geo., a "Qualified Person" as defined under NI 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of

Homerun Resources Inc.

"Brian Leeners"

Brian Leeners, CEO & Director

brianleeners@gmail.com / +1 604-862-4184 (WhatsApp)

FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE

The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements relate to information that is based on assumptions of management, forecasts of future results, and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. Any statements that express predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements".

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.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212836

SOURCE: Homerun Resources Inc.
Leading wellness-tech company unveils plans to bring clean air to the U.K. and beyond with AmazingAir

Ideal Living,maker of AmazingAir and AquaTru, today announced its upcoming booth appearance at the Health Optimisation Summit. The annual conference, held from June 15-16 at London's Business Design Centre, brings together global experts and thought leaders to reveal their insights on biohacking, nutrition, longevity, fitness and functional and preventative medicine. During the summit, Ideal Living will share its new product offerings and continued expansion of AmazingAir air purifiers and AquaTru reverse osmosis water purifiers into the U.K. and European markets.

Health Optimisation Summit attendees will get to experience cutting-edge health technologies that can supercharge their wellness routine. Ideal Living's booths will allow attendees to interact with AmazingAir and AquaTru units, purchase units at exclusive summit prices, meet the U.S., U.K. and European teams, and sign up to join Partnership programs.

"People everywhere are looking for proven solutions to help jumpstart their wellness journeys, and AmazingAir AquaTru are answering the call," said Helen Christoni, Senior Vice President of Business Development and Partnerships at Ideal Living. "The Health Optimisation Summit gathers the highly respected members of the wellness community, like biohackers, health practitioners and tech enthusiasts, so we are excited to introduce AmazingAir AquaTru to the U.K. and beyond."

The summit will feature keynotes from international icons in the health optimisation space who are shifting the health paradigm. Current speakers, who are also Ideal Living affiliate partners, include Jim Kwik, Dr. Mindy Pelz, Ben Greenfield and Dr. Steven Gundry.

"Ideal Living is right up there with the biohacking all-star brands, because they have the best air filter I've found to date, and my favourite water filtration system too!" said Tim Gray, founder of the Health Optimisation Summit. "I'm super excited that we can help spread awareness of these U.S. brands around the U.K. and the rest of Europe which will help so many people live healthier lives, easily!"

To learn more about Ideal Living and its products, please visit the team at booths S12 and S15 during the Health Optimisation Summit.

About Ideal Living

Ideal Living believes in providing everyone access to pure water, clean air and a solid foundation for wellness. With a focus on wellness solutions, Ideal Living develops innovative products that promote physical, mental and emotional well-being. From advanced water and air purification systems to lifestyle accessories, Ideal Living offers a range of solutions to enhance every aspect of daily life whether at home, work, school, the gym or on vacation. For more information, visit www.idealliving.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240613693540/en/

Contacts:

Emily Roberts

PRforIdealLiving@bospar.com
Interoperability work continues in key project areas, including 1600ZR/1600ZR+ and EEI specifications

OIF's Q2 Technical and Market Awareness Education (MA&E) Committees meeting, held May 7-9 in Athens, Greece, concluded with the launch of a Common Electrical I/O (CEI) CEI-224G-Linear project and the publication of two Common Management Interface Specification (CMIS) white papers.

Additionally, the Physical Layer User Group (PLUG) Working Group released a new system vendor requirements document for Energy Efficient Interfaces (EEI).

The event had robust attendance from member companies and featured discussions and debates on advancements in optical networking technology interoperability, as well as a guest speaker from ETH Zurich.

The meeting included ongoing efforts in many technical work areas, including 1600ZR/1600ZR+ and EEI, underscoring OIF's leadership in tackling the complex challenges facing today's high-speed optical networks.

"OIF's commitment to interoperability standards and tackling technological challenges was evident at the Q2 meeting," said Nathan Tracy, OIF President, and TE Connectivity. "The high attendance, start of the CEI-224G-Linear project, CMIS white papers, and the vendor requirements document for EEI, alongside David Moor's insightful presentation on advanced transceiver design, underscore our leadership in promoting industry-wide collaboration and innovation."

New Project

The new CEI-224G-Linear project will build on the approach of CEI-112G-Linear in terms of specification methodology. It will support 224G full linear optical modules for next-gen applications (e.g., Ethernet, Ultra Ethernet Consortium (UEC), Artificial Intelligence/Machine Learning [AI/ML]) with low power, cost/complexity and latency. The TP1/TP1a and TP4/TP4a electrical specifications will enable up to 224G full linear optical modules for Linear Pluggable Optics (LPO), co-packaged optics (CPO) and Near Package Optics (NPO), supporting next-generation application requirements.

"The CEI-224G-Linear project will represent significant progress in our technological capabilities, weaving the precision of CEI-112G-Linear with groundbreaking innovations," said Mike Li, OIF Board Member and Intel. "By enabling 224G full linear optical modules and leveraging the advanced 224G DSP SERDES architecture and technology, this initiative is poised to redefine the landscapes of Ethernet, UEC and AI/ML applications. As we embrace lower power, cost and latency, this project is a giant step forward in next-generation computing and connectivity driven by AI/ML."

New White Papers

Common Management Interface Specification (CMIS) White Paper on Management of Smart Optical Modules

This white paper explores how the DWDM functions, parameters and operational aspects of "smart" optical pluggable modules can be handled more efficiently to address various challenges. It introduces an alternative control paradigm for optical modules that decouples optical layer control from packet layer control and from host software and packet controller software development and outlines the pros and cons of this approach. This paradigm is called "host independent management," enabling advanced capabilities of smart optical modules via additional management methods. The white paper is available for download here.

CMIS-Based Out-of-Band Messaging for Link Training

This white paper provides background on link training and a proposed message catalog by which any transmit SerDes can be trained initially (or tuned adaptively while in service) based on the needs of the corresponding receive SerDes, with the help of message exchange.

It promotes out-of-band (OOB) messaging via the ubiquitous CMIS management link as a flexible solution for exchanging link training messages. The technical specifications of the messaging facility and the representation of the messages will be defined in a CMIS-LT supplement. Potential CMIS-LT applications could include CEI-112G Very Short Reach (VSR), Extra Short Reach (XSR), XSR+, and Medium Reach (MR), IEEE 802.3 AUI C2M links, Fibre Channel, InfiniBand, Optical Transport Network (OTN), etc. Download the white paper here.

Requirements Document

System Vendor Requirements Document for Energy Efficient Interfaces

In today's fast-paced technological landscape, where data processing and communication demands for AI continue to soar, pursuing energy-efficient solutions is critical. This requirements document for EEI is a direct result of engaging with end users to understand their needs and expectations. It seeks to prioritize applications and establish fundamental criteria for the next generation of energy-efficient electrical and optical link projects and specifications.

Through these discussions, it's clear the most pressing need for EEI is in high-density application scenarios. The document outlines critical requirements to achieve optimal performance for various applications that necessitate the utilization of such interfaces. These requirements encompass a range of factors, including energy targets, latency targets, desired form factors, degrees of interoperability, traffic types and more.

Download the requirements document here.

Guest Speaker

The event was further highlighted by guest speaker David Moor, a representative from ETH Zurich and the FLEX-SCALE consortium. Moor discussed the development of an optical digital-to-analog converter (oDAC) supporting Tbps+ data rates with lower power per bit than conventional modulation methods. According to Moor, this design utilizes currently available electronics and photonic devices and is well suited to support high-capacity transport with improved power efficiency.

For more information about the OIF and to access the latest white papers, please visit OIF's website.

About OIF

OIF is where the optical networking industry's interoperability work gets done. With more than 25 years of effecting forward change in the industry, OIF represents the dynamic ecosystem of 150+ industry leading network operators, system vendors, component vendors and test equipment vendors collaborating to develop interoperable electrical, optical and control solutions that directly impact the industry's ecosystem and facilitate global connectivity in the open network world. Connect with OIF on LinkedIn, on X at @OIForum and at http://www.oiforum.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240613908066/en/

Contacts:

Leah Wilkinson

Wilkinson Associates for OIF

leah@wilkinson.associates

703-907-0010
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Global logistics is in the midst of a transformative shift, driven by the increasing demand for rapid and reliable supply chain solutions. DP World Logistics has embarked on a journey to expand its services with the launch of its international air freight forwarding service. This strategic move is set to redefine the capabilities of global trade support across Peru and beyond.

A Strategic Airborne Entry

Earlier this year, DP World Logistics proudly welcomed its first charter flight into Jorge Chavez Airport in Lima, Peru. This flight, originating from Miami and carrying cargo from Luxembourg, marked a significant milestone in our operations. The cargo, an impressive 200 cubic meters of machinery - equivalent to four 40-foot shipping containers - showcased the immense potential of air freight in modern logistics. This successful shipment underscores our unwavering commitment to handling significant cargo volumes with utmost efficiency, setting a precedent for our future operations.

A Comprehensive Logistics Solution

With the introduction of air freight services, DP World Logistics now offers a comprehensive suite of logistics options, seamlessly complementing our existing maritime solutions. This all-encompassing approach allows for the integration of multimodal transport solutions, blending air, maritime, and other transportation methods. This integration is designed to maximize time and efficiencies for our esteemed global traders, offering them a one-stop solution for all their logistics needs.

Certified and Secure

DP World Logistics is expanding services while maintaining the highest operational excellence standards. Holding the international IATA certification, we meet rigorous criteria that authorize us to manage air cargo through all airlines associated with the International Air Transport Association. This certification ensures that DP World Logistics meets the best industry practices and safety standards. Our commitment to operational excellence and global connectivity is unwavering, providing our clients with the confidence and security they need in their logistics partner.

Enhancing Global Connectivity

DP World Logistics's introduction of air freight forwarding is timely. According to the National Superintendence of Customs and Tax Administration (SUNAT), air transport in Peru mobilized significant volumes of exports and imports in 2023-73,000 and 78,000 tons, respectively. Air transport plays a critical role in Peru's foreign trade, making DP World's new service a timely enhancement to the national and global logistics landscape.

This service expansion positions DP World Logistics as a 360 logistics operator capable of managing various logistics challenges. With a network of offices in over 80 countries across multiple continents-America, Europe, Asia, Africa, and the Middle East-DP World Logistics is set to offer unmatched logistical advice and solutions, further facilitating international trade flows.

Looking Ahead

As DP World Logistics continues to expand its service offerings, the impact on global supply chains is expected to be profound. The ability to offer integrated, end-to-end logistics solutions streamlines operations and drives down costs and transit times for clients worldwide. This forward-thinking approach by DP World Logistics is poised to set new industry benchmarks, ensuring that it remains at the forefront of global logistics innovation.

To see our team in action, check out our video showcasing the journey and execution of this pivotal project. At DP World Logistics, we're not just moving cargo; we're setting new standards in the logistics sector, driving forward with innovative solutions that redefine what's possible in freight forwarding.

###

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from DP World on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: DP World

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/dp-world

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: DP World

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Xcyte Digital to power online access to MCON's global expos for the military veteran community, providing access to disabled veterans unable to physically attend

MCON 2024 to expand to reach audiences virtually for the first time with Xcyte Digital

NOT FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES OR FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES

Xcyte Digital Corp. (TSXV:XCYT) ("Xcyte" or the "Company"), a spatial computing event technology aggregator and developer that provides a high value, cost-effective, multi-platform event technology subscription service that powers physical, virtual, hybrid and immersive events, and professional managed services for physical and hybrid events, announces that it has entered into a share exchange and asset purchase agreement dated June 12, 2024 (the "Agreement") with MCON Live Inc., a Nevada corporation ("MCON"), pursuant to which, among other things, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Xcyte will acquire 5% of the common stock of MCON (the "MCON Shares") and 100% of MCON's online business (the "Transaction"). MCON is a veteran-owned company that hosts various annual events that bring the military community together through a celebration of military culture.

As consideration for the Transaction, Xcyte will issue MCON 50 multiple voting shares in the capital of Xcyte (each an "MV Share") each of which is convertible into 10,000 subordinate voting shares in the capital of Xcyte (each an "SV Share"), subject to adjustment in certain circumstances, for a total of 500,000 SV Shares, in exchange for the MCON Shares and certain intangible assets related to MCON's online business. Following the closing of the Transaction (the "Closing"), MCON will receive 25% of the revenue generated by such online business, after deducting all third-party expenses, sales commissions and other direct costs.

All securities issued in connection with the Transaction will be subject to a hold period under applicable Canadian securities laws of four months and one day from the date of issuance and will be restricted securities under United States securities laws. None of the securities will be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "1933 Act"), or applicable state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold to, or for the account or benefit of, persons in the United States or "U.S. Persons" (as such term is defined in Regulation S under the 1933 Act), unless registered under the 1933 Act and applicable state securities laws, or an exemption from such registration is available. Pursuant to the terms of the Agreement, the securities will be also subject to a voluntary escrow for up to 18 months.

The parties shall use commercially reasonable efforts to close the Transaction within 30 days of the execution of the Agreement. The Closing is subject to the satisfaction of certain customary closing conditions, including the approval of the board of directors of the Company, the approval of the TSX Venture Exchange (the "TSXV"), and the completion of due diligence by the Company. No finder's fees will be paid in relation to the Transaction, which has been negotiated at arm's length.

MCON's next live event is expected to be held on October 24, 2024, and will be a global event powered by Xcyte Digital, enabling an immersive/hybrid format for the first time in its history. The event is expected to feature a wide range of activities and attractions, including live music and performances, speakers and exhibits, cultural experiences, curated culinary and beverage experiences, family-friendly activities, and networking opportunities. Experiences are expected to include the MCON Wellness Village, Gaming Pavilion, Possibilities Expo, Military Impact Summit and more.

"We are thrilled to be able to leverage Xcyte to bring MCON to a global audience. Our last event had over 1,500 attendees, but we have so many in our community who cannot attend in person due to their obligations at home or service abroad and they will now have the opportunity to attend virtually and experience the magic of MCON. This also gives MCON the power to reach the estimated 5.4 million veterans and their families who have a disability and enable them to attend virtually," said Todd Brockman, Co-Founder & CEO of MCON.

"MCON expands our service offerings towards the highly engaged military veteran community," said Xcyte Digital CEO, Randy Selman. "Xcyte Digital is proud to partner with our veterans, and we look forward to expanding MCON's reach to draw in greater numbers of active military personnel and veterans."

About MCON Live Inc.

MCON was created by veterans to bring the military community together for an epic celebration of military culture. It is an organization that values service, purpose, and sacrifice, whose mission is to create community, facilitate connection and improve the well-being of those who served and their families. For more information, visit https://mcon.live.

About Xcyte Digital Corp.

Xcyte Digital (TSXV:XCYT) is a spatial computing event technology aggregator and developer providing high value, cost-effective, multi-platform subscription services to host online virtual and immersive events as well as professional managed services for physical and hybrid events. Xcyte Digital was formed in 2022 through an amalgamation of operating businesses and assets in the virtual and immersive event sectors. The Company went public on the TSXV on November 15, 2023. Headquartered in Toronto, Ontario (Canada) and Fort Lauderdale, FL (USA), Xcyte also has personnel and operations in London, UK; Charlotte, NC; Houston, TX; Union, NJ and Cape Town, SA. Xcyte Digital provides immersive event technology, virtual event technology and event support services. Visit us at xcytedigital.com.

For further information, please contact:

Xcyte Digital Corp.

Randy Selman, Chief Executive Officer and Director

Phone: (647) 777 7501

Email: investment@xcytedigital.com

Investor Relations

Nikhil Thadani, Sophic Capital

Email: nik@sophiccapital.com

Phone: (647) 777 7501

To receive Xcyte investor news, please sign up at https://xcytedigital.com/investors/

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

Forward-Looking Information

Certain information in this news release constitutes forward-looking statements and forward-looking information under applicable Canadian securities legislation (collectively, "forward-looking information"). Forward-looking information in this release includes, but is not limited to, statements with respect to the expected timing of the Closing, the expected synergies that Xcyte may realize as a result of the completion of the Transaction, the impact that the Transaction may have on Xcyte's growth prospects generally, and MCON's next live event expected to be held on October 24, 2024. Statements containing forward-looking information are not historical facts but instead represent management's expectations, estimates and projections regarding future events. Forward looking information is necessarily based on a number of opinions, assumptions and estimates that, while considered reasonable by management as of the date of this news release, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements and future events to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including that the MCON may not perform or generate revenue at the levels experienced historically; that the Company may not obtain the approval of the TSXV for the Transaction; that the synergies anticipated by the completion of the Transaction may not materialize to the extent expected or at all; and other factors that apply to the Company's business generally as described in greater detail in the documents filed under the Company's profile at www.sedarplus.ca. 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. Investors are cautioned that undue reliance should not be placed on any such information, as unknown or unpredictable factors could have material adverse effects on future results, performance or achievements of the Company. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update the forward-looking information in this release except as otherwise required by applicable law.

SOURCE: Xcyte Digital Corp.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Cisco Systems Inc.

By Francine Katsoudas

Cisco's Purpose - to Power an Inclusive Future for All - extends beyond connecting people. It ensures that those connections are meaningful and secure - and it empowers every individual to participate in the fabric of their communities, including elections. In this "year of the global election," Cisco's integral role in enabling an informed and empowered society has never been more important.

With a historic number of elections this year-including the expansive multi-week process in India, the presidential elections in the U.S. and Mexico, and the collective voice of 27 nations participating in the European Parliament elections taking place June 6 to 9-our positive impact and that of technology on democratic processes is more pronounced than ever.

Time to Vote

And of course, that starts with us. At Cisco, we believe in the criticality of civic engagement and democratic processes. We are committed to fostering a culture that respects and encourages the active involvement of all employees in civic duties, including voting.

This year, for the first time, Cisco has teamed up with the European Parliament for their "Use Your Vote" campaign to encourage citizens to exercise their civic duty. Our partnership with the EU reflects who we as a company have always been. For example, Cisco offers employees paid time off to vote in elections. Our vision extends beyond the polling station as we think critically about and advocate for the policies that help us fulfill our purpose.

Ten Tech Policies to Power the Future

Cisco's "Ten Tech Policies to Power the Future" is a call to action for policymakers, industry leaders, and communities to collaborate on using tech as a force for good, safeguarding our shared digital landscape, and fostering an environment where everyone can participate fully in our digital society. Covering everything from AI and cybersecurity, workforce and talent development, connectivity, trade, and sustainability - our brand-new microsite demonstrates the importance of each of these areas and a subset of our specific policy goals.

These interconnected policies contribute to a resilient, informed, and proactive world. While there is still work to do, we are committed to progress. Evidenced by our global IT skills-to-jobs Networking Academy program, connectivity initiatives, and the recent launch of Cisco Hypershield, we are as committed to promoting digital literacy as we are to global internet access and advancing the state of cybersecurity. Our work advances the goal that all individuals have the right tools and knowledge to make informed decisions and participate in the 21st-century digital economy.

Shared Responsibilities: Bolstering Election Security

As the worldwide technology leader that securely connects everything to make anything possible, we aim to provide safe platforms that enable society to function and flourish. In the context of elections, we enable the functionality of democratic systems across the globe-whether it's securing critical infrastructure or providing connectivity that helps voters make informed decisions.

We all have a role to play in ensuring our elections are secure, safe, and free of mis/disinformation, and there are shared responsibilities to ensure the resilience of democratic processes and protect the integrity of our elections. This includes actions we as voters can take to keep ourselves protected - such as practicing good information hygiene. Separately, the public and private sectors must partner to invest in network resilience, facilitate information sharing, and synchronize efforts to address cyber challenges like election security.

Technology for Good

As we approach global democratic milestones, including the European Parliament elections in just a few days, let's embrace the power of technology to foster a well-informed electorate and secure the foundation of our democratic institutions. After all, technology reflects our values, commitment to progress, and unwavering belief in the power of human potential.

And most importantly, let's move forward with empathy and purpose-using technology to connect us and protect the integrity of every voice in our society. Together, we set the standard for a future where technology truly is a champion for the people and the democracies they build.

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View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Cisco Systems Inc. on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Cisco Systems Inc.

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/cisco-systems-inc

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Cisco Systems Inc.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Salt Lake City, Utah--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - From June 10th to 12th in Salt Lake City, USA, BioGrowing participated in the "IPA World Congress + Probiota Americas" conference, engaging with top global experts and industry leaders to explore the vast potential of probiotics.

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This summit not only served as a platform for scientific exchange but also as a catalyst for business innovation and collaboration. Discussions delved into the scientific foundations of probiotics, spanning basic research to clinical applications, and comprehensively analyzed their innovative potential in functional foods and innovative nutrition supplements. The summit fostered international exchanges, propelled global cooperation in probiotics research, accelerated the translation of outcomes, provided strategic insights to enterprises and research institutions, and drove industry upgrades and market expansion.

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On the afternoon of June 10th, Hongwei Wang, Chief Technology Officer of BioGrowing, participated in the "Microbiome Revolution for Women's Health" panel discussion. He engaged with renowned global experts to explore the future possibilities of the microbiome in women's health, sharing BioGrowing's research achievements and progress on upcoming women's health products.

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During the Roundtable Discussion on June 11th, the BioGrowing team joined global experts to exchange ideas on the theme "Discover The Extraordinary Probiotics Solution for Oral Health."

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BioGrowing's Flora-Foucs oral probiotics feature the combination of Lacticaseibacillus paracasei LPc-G110 and Ligilactobacillus salivarius LS-G60. These probiotics outcompete pathogenic bacteria for target sites, and aim to reduce levels of proinflammatory factors, enhance the host immune response, and reduce halitosis related factors.

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The Flora-Foucs oral probiotics series comprises of probiotic powder, toothpaste, oral lozenges, and other formulations. These products play a crucial role in maintaining oral microbiota balance, thereby aiming to promote oral health and improving overall oral conditions.

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Remaining dedicated to innovation and market needs, BioGrowing has unveiled a range of probiotic solutions targeting various health functions.

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The IPA World Congress + Probiota Americas conference served as more than just a platform for BioGrowing-it was a hub for learning and collaboration. BioGrowing showcased its premium products, fostering partnerships with industry experts. Looking ahead, BioGrowing is committed to advancing research and development, expanding globally, and delivering top-tier health solutions to customers.

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Media contact

Company Name: BIOGROWING CO.,LTD.

Contact: Echo Sun

Add: No.10666 Songze Avenue, Qingpu District, Shanghai, P.R. China

Email: cs@biogrowing.com

Phone: +86 21 3920 5777

Website: www.biogrowing.com

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212830

SOURCE: Global News
Illuminating the latest in energy policy news.

Originally published on NRG Energy Insights

By NRG Editorial Voices

NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / What is happening in energy policy? From the ongoing nuclear reactor discussion in Texas to Massachusetts' latest price report, this edition highlights the latest energy policy news and major headlines across several markets for March and April.

How is FERC impacting the energy markets?

Court scraps last-minute FERC rule change in largest power market

A federal appeals court ruled against the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC) approval of grid operator PJM's rerun of a capacity auction. The court found that FERC exceeded its authority by allowing PJM to retroactively change auction rules, citing violations of the filed rate doctrine and prompting uncertainty about implementation and market impact.

NRG VP of Regulatory Affairs, Travis Kavulla, called the 3rd Circuit's decision "a vindication for certainty in how these electricity markets are conducted."

FERC sets date for landmark transmission rule

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission held a special meeting to consider a proposed rule that could significantly alter how power grid expansions are planned and funded. The rule, aimed at improving grid reliability and integrating renewable energy, faces challenges related to cost allocation among states and coordination between federal and state regulators.

How is the East looking to improve infrastructure?

New England states apply for US government transmission and energy storage funding

New England states are seeking federal funding through the U.S. Department of Energy's Grid Innovation Program for electricity transmission and storage projects. They aim to enhance grid reliability and resilience, with two proposed projects focusing on grid interconnection upgrades and increased electricity transfer capacity.

How is retail competition affecting Massachusetts' energy prices?

Report Says Massachusetts Customers Could Have Saved $1.7 Billion Over Past 2 Years by Shopping for Retail Supplier

A report revealed potential savings for Massachusetts customers enrolled in competitive electric supplier. The analysis suggests that if all customers had chosen the lowest-cost competitive supplier, they could have saved approximately $1.7 billion over two years - emphasizing the benefits of retail electric choice for consumers.

Will there be more generation in Georgia?

Georgia Power Makes Deal for More Electrical Generation, Pledging Downward Rate Pressure

Georgia Power Co. has struck a deal with regulatory staff to accelerate building and acquiring more electrical generation, promising reduced rates for existing customers. The deal, subject to approval by the Georgia Public Service Commission, involves credits toward future rate calculations and commitments to solar generation with battery storage.

Are changes coming to the Texas grid?

Texas Republicans take a stand against bill to connect ERCOT to national grid

Texas congressmen, including Randy Weber, Troy Nehls, Pat Fallon, and John Carter, are introducing a resolution opposing the "Connect the Grid Act," which aims to integrate Texas' electric grid with the national grid. The resolution asserts Texas' autonomy in managing its grid and rejecting federal oversight. Proponents of the bill argue that integration would enhance resilience, lower costs, and aid climate goals without altering the grid's operation under ERCOT.

Small nuclear reactors may be coming to Texas, boosted by interest from Gov. Abbott

In hopes of addressing issues highlighted by the state's electric grid vulnerabilities, Governor Greg Abbott is exploring the possibility of smaller nuclear reactors to meet Texas' growing energy needs. Proponents see small reactors as a solution and continue discussions around the future of nuclear power in Texas and beyond.

Are energy rates lowering in Alberta?

Province unveils plan to stabilize electricity rates in Alberta

Premier Danielle Smith announced legislation to stabilize default electricity rates in Alberta. Set every two years, new rates are expected to take effect January 1, 2025, saving Albertans up to $800 annually. The policy aims to rename the default rate to "Rate of Last Resort," provide clarity to consumers, and encourage them to explore competitive rate options.





View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from NRG Energy on 3blmedia.com.



Contact Info:

Spokesperson: NRG Energy

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/nrg-energy

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: NRG Energy

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Over the last five years, Duke Energy's Share the Light Fund has provided more than $3 million of assistance, which has helped support more than 10,000 Indiana households

PLAINFIELD, IN / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Duke Energy Indiana customers who may be struggling to pay their energy bills can apply now for up to $300 in financial assistance. The company announced today it has dedicated an additional $100,000 through its Share the Light Fund to help individuals and families in need.

"As temperatures climb, these funds will help reduce the burden of energy expenses for those who need it most," said Stan Pinegar, president of Duke Energy Indiana. "We want to remind customers who may be having trouble paying their utility expenses to contact us about options for managing their bills, including interest-free payment plans."

Duke Energy works with the Indiana Community Action Association to distribute funds to qualifying customers to help pay energy bills, deposits and reconnection/connection charges. Individuals should contact their local community action agency to see if they are eligible. Click here to find a listing of service providers by county.

Over the last five years, Duke Energy, its employees and its customers have provided more than $3 million in bill assistance through the Share the Light Fund, which has helped support more than 10,000 Indiana households.

Duke Energy has more than a dozen energy assistance and bill-lowering tools, including:

Usage Alerts that send customers a notification of how much electricity they are using and its cost so they can make adjustments before their billing period ends



that send customers a notification of how much electricity they are using and its cost so they can make adjustments before their billing period ends Free Home Energy House Calls , where energy professionals assess a home for efficiency and provide homeowners with a toolkit of energy saving devices



, where energy professionals assess a home for efficiency and provide homeowners with a toolkit of energy saving devices Budget Billing , which helps ease the impact of higher seasonal bills by leveling out monthly payments



, which helps ease the impact of higher seasonal bills by leveling out monthly payments Interest-free payment plans for customers needing flexibility

To learn more about these programs, visit duke-energy.com/HereToHelp.

Duke Energy Indiana

Duke Energy Indiana, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, provides about 6,300 megawatts of owned electric capacity to approximately 900,000 customers in a 23,000-square-mile service area, making it Indiana's largest electric supplier.

Duke Energy

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of America's largest energy holding companies. The company's electric utilities serve 8.4 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and collectively own 54,800 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas utilities serve 1.7 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky.

Duke Energy is executing an ambitious clean energy transition, keeping reliability, affordability and accessibility at the forefront as the company works toward net-zero methane emissions from its natural gas business by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions from electricity generation by 2050. The company is investing in major electric grid upgrades and cleaner generation, including expanded energy storage, renewables, natural gas and nuclear.

More information is available at duke-energy.com and the Duke Energy News Center. Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook, and visit illumination for stories about the people and innovations powering our energy transition

Contact: McKenzie Barbknecht

Phone: 800.559.3853

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Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Duke Energy

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/duke-energy

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Duke Energy

View the original press release on accesswire.com
CF Search Marketing, a leader in white-glove digital and traditional marketing services for dealerships and automotive businesses, is proud to announce their return to the industry's most important conferences throughout 2024 and 2025.

Celebrating 16 years of driving success for their clients, CF Search Marketing will be showcasing their expertise at the following events:

Digital Dealer 2024 (Las Vegas, Nevada - October 8-10): Visit CF Search Marketing at booth #717 in the Expo Hall at the MGM Grand.

Modern Retailing Conference (MRC) 2024 (Palm Beach, Florida - November 17-19): CF Search Marketing will be a Bronze Sponsor and lead a 30-minute mini workshop for attendees, both virtually and in person, at the Eau Palm Beach Resort.

NADA 2025 (New Orleans, Louisiana - January 23-26): CF Search Marketing will exhibit alongside their sister company, Carrera Advertising, at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.

Trusted Partner for Automotive Marketing Success

CF Search Marketing is a Google Premier, Sprout Social, TikTok, Birdeye, and Polk (S&P Global Mobility) partner, offering dealerships and businesses within the automotive industry a comprehensive suite of marketing solutions. As a founding member of the automotive standards council for GA4 with Brian Pasch Enterprises, CF Search Marketing stays at the forefront of industry trends and best practices for dealership analytics.

"We're thrilled to be back again at these major conferences, connecting with our clients and industry partners face-to-face," says Kasia Wagner, VP of Sales at CF Search Marketing. "We're excited to share our latest innovations and data-driven strategies to help dealerships succeed in the ever-evolving automotive landscape."

Stay Connected for More Information

For more details on CF Search Marketing's conference appearances, please visit their website at www.cfsearchmarketing.com. Sign up to receive updates on these events and other industry insights.

About CF Search Marketing

CF Search Marketing is a leading provider of digital marketing solutions, specializing in PPC, paid social, SEO, and more. With a focus on innovation and client success, CF Search Marketing empowers businesses to achieve their marketing goals and drive sustainable growth in the digital age.

Media Contact:

Connie Gundrum

Chief Marketing Officer

Phone: 866-599-3490

Email: connie@cfsearchmarketing.com

Website: www.cfsearchmarketing.com

SOURCE: CF Search Marketing

View the original press release on accesswire.com
2-10 Expands Express Protection Program to Pearson Smith Brokerages Along the East Coast

DENVER, CO / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / 2-10 Home Buyers Warranty continues to expand its trusted Express Protection Program by extending it to Pearson Smith Realty clients. All eligible Pearson Smith Realty listings' sellers will be automatically enrolled in complimentary 2-10 Seller Coverage, which provides protection against expensive, inconvenient breakdowns while the home is on the market.

"2-10 Express Protection is a powerful program for protecting homes and transactions throughout the listing period," said 2-10's Vice President of Real Estate Sales Leo Jaisingani. "It's a perfect complement to Pearson Smith Realty's extensive growth since 2018, and we're confident that it will enhance their sellers' experiences of selling their homes."

2-10's Express Protection Program has grown rapidly, providing sellers with a trusted strategy for managing risk and offering a solution to breakdowns of major home items, such as HVAC, plumbing and electrical systems, along with kitchen appliances.

"2-10 gives us another pathway to pursue our goals of showing customer focus and commitment to deliver authentic, transparent and defined value," said Pearson Smith Realty CEO and founder Eric Pearson. "With 2-10 Express Protection, we're supporting our agents' clients to not only protect the transaction but also help the home stand out."

A home service plan is an effective home-selling incentive according to New American Funding. 2-10 Express Protection also gives the opportunity to convert coverage from home seller to buyer, which extends protection and helps agents address a major source of buyer's remorse.

For more information about 2-10, visit www.2-10.com/agent.

About 2-10

Founded and based in Denver, the 2-10 family of companies has covered over six million homes with its complete line of warranties, system and appliance home service plans and risk management products. Since 1980, 2-10 has been a market leader in helping builders, real estate agents and homeowners protect their businesses and budgets against the unexpected. 2-10 continues to work with thousands of the nation's finest real estate professionals, home builders and service contractors. For more information about 2-10, please visit 2-10.com.

About Pearson Smith Realty

Founded in 2014, Pearson Smith Realty's mission is to create a culture that motivates and assists real estate professionals in building a business focused on providing a level of service that exceeds all client expectations. For more information, visit www.pearsonsmithrealty.com.

Contact Information

Mark Plumb

Marketing Manager

mplumb@2-10.com

720.747.6142

SOURCE: 2-10 Home Buyers Warranty

View the original press release on newswire.com.
The Langhe area opens the wine tourism season, offering superb wines and magnificent landscapes

MILAN, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Data collected from a study by Divinea indicate that 43.8% of those who booked a wine cellar experience in Italy in 2023 are 25 to 34 years old, and the number of cellars open for visits on Saturday has risen to 78.1%. While this phenomenon varies greatly from one wine producing land to another, once more the Langhe have proven themselves to be a highly attractive area.

A new phenomenon: the de-seasonalisation of wine tourism

Two factors encourage visits to cellars during the entire year. Milder autumn and winter temperatures on the one hand, and the rising number of cellars that have developed targeted seasonal offerings on the other.

A unique land

The Langhe are in southern Piedmont. The name, of Celtic origin, means "strips of land" and refers to the elongated hills, often very steep-sided, which run parallel to each other, forming numerous narrow and steep valleys. The Langhe area is one of the most generous regions in the world in terms of the quality and variety of its wine production.

The roots of these great wines stem from the singular geographic position, suitable climate and rich substrate, which distinguish these hill areas, making them an environment rich in biodiversity.

Uniqueness and exceptionalness have meant that over the years the Langhe have become an important tourist and wine tourism destination, responding effectively to a demand that has progressively surfaced in the general public, in Italy and beyond.

The Barolo Barbaresco in numbers

The Barolo Barbaresco Alba Langhe e Dogliani includes 579 member wineries to date, 10 thousand hectares of protected denomination vine fields, which break down as follows: Barolo 2,258 hectares; Barbaresco 859; Dogliani 766; Diano d'Alba 204; Barbera d'Alba 1,734; Nebbiolo d'Alba 1174; Dolcetto d'Alba 934; Langhe 2,620 hectares.

With 66 million bottles of wine produced, it boasts 9 protected denominations (Barolo, Barbaresco, Dogliani, Dolcetto di Diano d'Alba, Barbera d'Alba, Langhe, Dolcetto d'Alba, Nebbiolo d'Alba, Verduno Pelaverga).

Barolo & Barbaresco World Opening is part of the European campaign "Top Tales: a piece of Europe on your table," a project funded by the European Union and promoted by the DOCG Barolo and Barbaresco, Fontina PDO Valle d'Aosta, and Riso di Baraggia Biellese e Vercellese PDO.

Website: https://www.toptales.eu

PHOTO LINK

Funded by the European Union. Opinions and viewpoints expressed belong solely to the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the European Union or the European Research Executive Agency (REA). Neither the European Union nor the issuing authority shall be held liable for them.

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Increase in sales of automobiles globally, rise in customer demand for advanced safety features, and strengthening safety regulations drive the growth of the global automotive bumpers market.

PORTLAND, Ore., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Allied Market Research published a report, titled, "Automotive Bumper Market by Type (Standard Bumper, Deep Drop Bumper, Roll Pan Bumper, Step Bumper, Tube Bumper), Material (Steel, Aluminum, Fiber, Plastic), and Vehicle Type (Passenger Vehicle, Commercial Vehicles): Global Opportunity Analysis and Industry Forecast, 2022-2032". According to the report, the Automotive Bumper Market size was valued at $18.8 billion in 2022, and is estimated to reach $28 billion by 2032, growing at a CAGR of 4.2% from 2023 to 2032.

Prime determinants of growth

The global automotive bumpers market has experienced significant growth and transformation, driven by a combination of increase in sales of automobiles globally, an increase in customer demand for advanced safety features, and strengthening safety regulations. Also, technological advancement, the use of composite materials, and the growing trend towards lightweight components are likely to shape the industry's future, enhancing safety and efficiency.

Request Sample of the Report on Automotive Bumper Market Forecast 2032:

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Report coverage & details:

Report Coverage Details Forecast Period 2023-2032 Base Year 2022 Market Size In 2022 $18.8 Billion Market Size In 2032 $28 Billion CAGR 4.2 % No. Of Pages In Report 280 Segments Covered Type, Material, Vehicle Type, And Region. Drivers Increase In Sales Of Automobiles Globally Increase In Customer Demand For Advanced Safety Features Strengthening Safety Regulations Opportunities Technological Advancement And The Use Of Composite Materials Growing Trend Towards Lightweight Components Restraints Fluctuation In The Price Of Raw Materials Increasing Trend Towards EV

Procure Complete Report (280 Pages PDF with Insights, Charts, Tables, and Figures)

https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/checkout-final/automotive-bumper-market-A14788

The standard bumper segment to maintain its leadership status throughout the forecast period.

Based on type, the standard bumper segment held the highest market share in 2022, and a CAGR of 4.9%. It is estimated to maintain its leadership status throughout the forecast period 2023 to 2032, owing to its simple design, low maintenance cost, and easy integration with different vehicle models. However, the tube bumper segment is projected to have the highest CAGR of 6.1% from 2023 to 2032, owing to simple and compact design. Similarly, tube bumpers are also extensively used in SUVs and offroad vehicles as they provide maximum protection during off-road adventures and in harsh driving environments.

The plastic segment to maintain its leadership status throughout the forecast period.

Based on material type, the plastic segment held the highest market share in 2022 and is estimated to maintain its leadership status throughout the forecast period, owing to plastic bumpers being easy to manufacture, repair, and install in various vehicle models, making them a popular choice among automobile manufacturers. In addition, due to the growing trend towards reducing overall vehicle weight is also driving the demand for plastic bumpers. However, the fiber segment is projected to manifest the highest CAGR of 5.4%, owing to an increase in use of fiber bumpers in high end and luxury vehicles. Manufacturers are using different materials such as carbon fiber and glass fiber to manufacture durable automotive bumpers. With the growth in the luxury vehicle segment, the demand for fiber bumpers is anticipated to witness a strong growth rate.

The passenger vehicle segment to maintain its lead position during the forecast period.

Based on vehicle type, the passenger vehicle segment accounted for the largest share in 2022, and is estimated to maintain its leadership status throughout the forecast period. Passenger vehicle segment is also projected to witness the strongest growth rate of CAGR 4.4% during the forecast period owing to increasing disposable income among consumers in the developing economy and growing inclination towards personally owned vehicles. Furthermore, rapid urbanization across the globe with a growing population in cities has resulted in consumers spending more on owning a passenger vehicle for daily commute. Moreover, with the growth in electric and hybrid vehicle e-technology, the demand for the passenger vehicle segment is anticipated to continue to grow in the coming years.

Asia-Pacific to maintain its dominance by 2032.

Based on region, Asia-Pacific held the highest market share in terms of revenue in 2022 and is estimated to maintain its leadership status throughout the forecast period. Similarly, the Asia-Pacific region is anticipated to witness the strongest growth rate of CAGR 5.0% during the forecast period, owing to the higher adoption rates of smart mobility solutions, such as EV and hybrid vehicles in the region, due to an increase in disposable income and growing urbanization. The growing government regulations towards decreasing vehicle emissions, increasing fuel prices, and the trend toward adopting non-fossil fuel-based vehicles are creating more demand for automobiles. The growing vehicle sales in developing countries such as India, China, and Indonesia are creating lucrative opportunities for the automotive bumpers market in this region. Moreover, various technological advancements related to the automotive sector because of government initiatives and rising investment in R&D further propel passenger vehicle sales in the region.

To Talk With Our Industry Expert @ https://www.alliedmarketresearch.com/connect-to-analyst/A14788

Leading Market Players: -

TOYODA GOSEI Co., Ltd.

FORVIA Faurecia

TOYOTA BOSHOKU CORPORATION

SMP Deutschland GmbH

Flex-N-Gate Corporation

Plastic Omnium

MONTAPLAST GmbH

WARN International Ltd.

NTF GROUP

KIRCHHOFF Group

The report provides a detailed analysis of these key players in the global automotive bumpers market. These players have adopted different strategies such as new product launches, collaborations, expansion, joint ventures, agreements, and others to increase their market share and maintain dominant shares in different regions. The report is valuable in highlighting business performance, operating segments, product portfolio, and strategic moves of market players to showcase the competitive scenario.

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NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Eastman:

Pevas Bailey began his career in the textiles industry when he was 10 years old in Statesville, North Carolina. That's where his uncle was a mechanic at a local mill.

"When most kids were playing with toys, I was putting together knitting machines with him in our basement," Bailey said.

After more than four decades in the industry, he's now using his experience and knowledge to help customers produce more sustainable textiles with Eastman Naia cellulosic fiber. The fibers are developed to be more eco-friendly by minimizing waste, conserving natural resources and lowering environmental impact.

His work takes him around the globe, a long way from his beginnings in North Carolina.

A family path

After being known as one of the top textile mechanics in the industry, Bailey's uncle eventually started his own company. Bailey began working there in high school. By the time he entered the Wilson School of Textiles at North Carolina State University, he knew almost everything about manufacturing.

"I got my degree in textile management because my uncle wanted me to have the business side of the education," he said. "The technical side I had."

Each weekend he'd return home from college to work for his uncle. One Thursday, a professor explained that it was only possible to knit fabrics one way. Bailey spent the weekend with his uncle modifying a machine to create a new way of knitting, which he showed his professor the following Monday. Bailey and his uncle were going to commercialize it, but emerging computerized technology outpaced their mechanical process.

With graduation nearing, Bailey wasn't applying to many jobs. He wanted to earn his degree and work for his uncle to thank him for getting him started.

When Bailey's professors and assistant dean learned he skipped a recruitment session with the Sara Lee Corporation, which owned the Hanes clothing brand, they asked the company to interview him. He was offered a job and went on to work at multiple Sara Lee locations across North Carolina, Virginia and Georgia in the first four years after college.

In 1998, he and his wife moved back to Statesville to help his uncle expand his business and to raise their two children. Seven years later, his uncle was diagnosed with cancer and died shortly after. Bailey inherited the business and ran it for several years.

His uncle inspired Bailey to always put quality first through his commitment to work and to people. And that legacy lives on.

"I closed the business in 2010, and I still have some of his former employees calling me to this day just to say nothing but 'I was thinking about your uncle and missed him,'" he said. "That's how beloved he was."

The future of textiles

Bailey had never heard about sustainability within textiles, but his daughter encouraged him to learn more about the topic around the time he interviewed at Eastman before joining the company in 2019.

Today, as an application development and technical service representative, he's passionate about helping customers. He helps them learn how sustainable fibers and manufacturing practices can make a positive environmental impact. His deep industry knowledge and manufacturing experience allow him to help customers implement Naia into their machines and designs.

Bailey is hopeful about what sustainable fibers promise for mitigating climate change and preventing pollution because he wants a bright future for his grandchildren.

"We've got to start fixing this now or our kids don't stand a chance," he said. "We have to start thinking of how we can change this world. I'm glad Eastman's taking the stance to make that change, and I'm glad to be a part of moving in that direction."

Weaving diversity into the workplace

When Pevas Bailey moved to Kingsport, Tennessee, and began working at Eastman, he wanted to find community for his family. He joined Connect, an Eastman Resource Group (ERG) that promotes the inclusion, development and advancement of African American and Black team members throughout the company. ERGs help underrepresented employees grow professionally, network with colleagues and maximize their business contributions.

"The Connect group is one of the reasons why my family's happy here," Bailey said. "Having this community helped us transition to this region. I think Connect is a good vehicle to show our value and encourage more acceptance because of some of the activities that we get involved in."

Bailey is a mentor with IGNITE, a program started by Connect and Eastman Public Affairs to help middle and high school students plan for their future and career. He's also participated in events like the annual Martin Luther King Jr. parade in Kingsport.

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Eastman on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Eastman

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/eastman

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Eastman

View the original press release on accesswire.com
Sustainability in Brief

Originally published on Essity.com

Commitment to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

As a leading global hygiene and health company, Essity plays an important role in contributing to the UN SDGs. We focus on goals 3, 5, 6, 12, 13 and 15, this is where we have our expertise and can contribute the most.

The UN SDGs provide the global community with a roadmap on how to combat challenges related to economic, social, and environmental sustainability. The goals reflect a growing awareness of the relationship between good hygiene and health, improving well-being and driving economic and environmental progress in the world. They also create a framework for accelerating action and partnership.

As a signatory of the UN Global Compact, we are working to address global challenges through cooperations and partnerships.

Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

3. Good health and well-being - Essity contributes to Goal 3 through our intensive work to promote better global hygiene and health standards. By providing access to our leading solutions, we are contributing to increased quality of life and well-being. We enable more people to live fuller lives every day by offering access to sustainable hygiene and health solutions and providing education.

5. Gender equality - Essity wants to drive progress on gender equality where we operate, both within the company and in society. By pursuing educational initiatives and collaborations to break the silence around issues related to hygiene and health, Essity contributes to greater gender equality. We are working towards breaking taboos around topics like menstruation and incontinence, enabling those affected, including women, girls, men, and care-giving relatives, to fully participate in society.

6. Clean water and sanitation - Essity works to achieve efficient water usage throughout the entire life cycle of our products and to improve treatment and the quality of the effluent water discharged from our facilities.

12. Responsible consumption and production - Essity, together with our customers, consumers, suppliers, and other business partners, works toward a sustainable and circular society. We ensure resource efficiency and sustainable design of our products and services in the entire life cycle. It is about ensuring social and environmental performance during use and after use for our customers and consumers.

13. Climate action - Essity addresses the challenges of climate change through investments in sustainable innovations, low carbon materials, fossil free energy and breakthrough technologies. We focus on carbon reduction throughout the life cycle, from responsible procurement, to resource efficient production and to sustainable solutions during and after use for our customers and consumers.

15. Life on Land - As a global purchaser of renewable fiber, we require our fresh fiber, recycled fiber and alternative fibers suppliers to comply with our Global Supplier Standards and policies. We responsibly use fiber and other materials from sustainable and renewable sources. Essity is committed to responsible forest management and to preserving the biodiversity of forests and other ecosystems.

Sustainability Priorities

Sustainability is integrated into Essity's strategy and is a priority for long-term profitable growth. As a company, we are committed to improving the well-being of people and societies, while reducing our environmental impact.

In 2022, Essity further developed its sustainability framework. We identified key areas where we can improve the well-being of people, while at the same time reducing our environmental impact, respecting biodiversity, contributing to a circular society, and achieving net zero emissions by 2050.

"Collaboration will be key to achieving our sustainability targets"

Committing to targets is not a difficult thing, but to deliver on them is a challenge. I work as Business Strategy Director in Essity's Group Function (Strategy and Business Development) and together with my strategy colleagues throughout the company, we formulate Essity's long-term strategy, bring it to life and make sure that the company is on the right track to achieve the strategic targets.

One key pillar of the company's strategic framework is sustainability - our commitment to net zero by 2050 and the ambition to bring sustainable solutions to our customers, consumers, and patients. The external demands on us are increasing every day in all areas of social and environmental sustainability, and we need to continuously assess consumer trends, emerging regulations, but also physical nature risks, to identify business opportunities or mitigate occurring risks.

In 2022, we developed a sustainability framework that we call the "Essity sustainability playing field" summarizing what sustainability means in the Essity context and defining the areas where we as a company want to shape societies and drive the green transformation. The framework is important in enabling us to focus on the areas where we can have the biggest impact, to track progress and chart our path forward.

Sustainability is managed in a decentralized way at Essity - it is built into the organization everywhere. We have ambitious colleagues throughout the company who are passionate about sustainability and are working hard every day to drive Essity's sustainability work. Our role as Group Strategy Function is to consolidate ongoing efforts, ensure alignment with the corporate sustainability priorities and, together with the expert colleagues, formulate our direction forward. Succeeding in sustainability and reaching our targets will be determined by collaboration.

Sabine Glosmann

Business Strategy Director, Essity

The name Essity stems from the words "essentials" and "necessities". Hygiene and health are the essence of well-being. As a global, leading hygiene and health company, we offer products and services that are essential to people's everyday lives. That is why we are called Essity.

Read more about Essity's strategic priorities, earnings and leading sustainability work in the Annual and Sustainability Report 2023, which can be downloaded at www.essity.com.





View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Essity on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Essity

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/essity

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Essity

View the original press release on accesswire.com
HALIFAX, NS / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Namibia Critical Metals Inc. ("Namibia Critical Metals" or the "Company" or "NCMI") (TSXV:NMI)(OTCQB:NMREF) announces that it has amended the share purchase agreement with Sylla Gold Corp. ("Sylla") to divest four non-material gold properties located in Namibia as announced on March 19, 2024. Under the agreement, Sylla is to acquire NCMI's 95% interest in its Namibian subsidiaries that own the rights, title and interest to the Grootfontein, Erongo, Otjiwarongo, and Kaoko licences, and certain associated assets.

Terms of the Agreement

As consideration for the acquisition, Sylla shall: (i) issue to NCMI 3,000,000 common shares at a deemed issuance price of $0.05 per common share; and (ii) make a cash payment to NCMI of $100,000. The closing date of the transaction has been amended and extended to no later than August 31, 2024. All other terms of the agreement remain in full force and effect.

Closing is subject to the satisfaction (or waiver) of a number of conditions precedent, including, but not limited to receipt of all regulatory approvals and the acceptance of the TSX Venture Exchange. The transaction is a Non-Arm's Length transaction pursuant to TSX Venture Exchange policies as Darrin Campbell, President and a director of NCMI, is also a director of Sylla.

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).

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.

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
The study coincides with Amazon celebrating the ten-year anniversary of its Career Choice training programme and the announcement of 40 million in further investment in skills training for Amazon employees across Europe.

More than half of European workers (54%) believe that on-the-job-skills training or apprenticeships are more valuable for preparing people for work today than traditional university degrees, a new European career insights and workplace trends study commissioned by Amazon has found. In fact, the study found that just under three quarters (73%) of workers feel there needs to be a wider range of apprenticeship or internship opportunities available to young people.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240613014196/en/

The Amazon Future of Work Career Development European study, conducted by Ipsos, also found that a majority of European employees* (89%) think it's important to learn a new skill to improve or change their career path, even more so than receiving a promotion (73%). Alongside factors such as pay/salary (94%) and office/worksite location or flexible/hybrid or remote working (93%), 91% of adults say on the job training or career development training is essential or important when looking for a new job or role, and that training programmes offered by a potential employer are more important than company culture (78%). One potential reason is that many workers in the study said it would make them feel motivated (39%), encouraged (32%), valued (31%) or supported (30%) to work for a company that provides access to career development training. Additionally, almost one in five workers in Europe (19%) admit they couldn't afford to pay for training.

Amazon has long adapted to the ever-changing career and education landscape, investing more than 100 million in training programmes in Europe since it launched its Career Choice programme in the region in 2014. The programme provides 95% of pre-paid tuition, up to 8,000 over four years, for nationally recognised courses from more than 85 schools throughout Europe. It offers various training opportunities in a range of popular, in-demand job fields, from tech and sustainability to business administration and logistics, for Amazon's hourly and salaried workers across the region.

To mark the ten-year anniversary of Career Choice in Europe, Amazon plans to invest 40 million in 2024 and to add more than 25 new programmes across five countries in Europe this year to support current and future job needs for the thousands of employees who participate in Career Choice. Currently, Amazon employees in Europe have access to over a hundred different programmes to help them maximise their potential within the company or outside of Amazon. Some of the new courses added in 2024 include Cloud Support, Cyber Security, Information Security, Web and Graphic Design, Mechatronics, Procurement Logistics, and Big Data, Virtualisation, and Machine Learning.

Since its launch ten years ago, more than 40,000 Amazon employees across Europe have participated in the programme. While some employees leave Amazon to pursue other career opportunities with their newly acquired skills and certifications from Career Choice, thousands have stayed and transitioned into new roles. The popularity of the programme continues to increase, with about one in ten of all eligible employees in Europe participating in Career Choice in 2023. Popular areas of study vary from technology and sustainability, to mechanical and industrial systems, transportation and logistics, and administration and business studies.

"I attribute a lot of my growth at Amazon to Career Choice," said Mo Abdullahi, Senior Operations Manager and Career Choice participant number four in the UK from 2014. "It gave me an opportunity to learn more about the role that I wanted and helped me with obtaining the qualifications that I needed. I'm still super surprised of my journey and growth through Amazon. If I look back ten years ago and starting as a temporary worker, I certainly wouldn't have assumed that I would be at the level I am right now and with the responsibility I have now. It's been an incredible journey."

When it comes to jobs in the future, the study shows that training will need to play a key role in alleviating worker concerns, as 32% of European workers are worried they won't have the training and skills to be relevant in their job in the coming years. In fact, two-thirds of European workers (67%) believe that people in the workforce today will need to continue to retrain and update their skills to continue working in the future. However, only 15% of employees say they have access to training to help them change their career path, and over one in five (22%) employees say they don't have any access to training with their current employer.

"The latest research and the growth of our Career Choice programme over the past ten years clearly demonstrates the strong desire for workers across the Europe to develop their careers through relevant and accessible skills training programmes," said Robert Marhan, Global Operations Vice President of People Experience Technology (PXT). "Amazon is proud to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the Career Choice skills training programme in Europe and to expand the course options available, so that thousands of employees across Europe can advance their skills and take on new career opportunities both at Amazon and beyond."

The Career Choice programme is currently available to Amazon employees in Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Slovakia, South Africa, Spain, the U.S., and the UK. It has a rigorous selection process for third-party partner educators, choosing partners that are focused on helping employees through their education programmes, assisting them with job placements, and overall offering education that leads to career success.

To learn more about the Career Choice programme, visit Amazon Career Choice https://www.aboutamazon.eu/news/tag/working-at-amazon/career-choice

Sources:

*The research was carried out by Ipsos UK on behalf of Amazon. Ipsos UK interviewed a representative quota sample of 16,482 adults using its online omnibus, and within that a sample of 9,686 employees. Fieldwork was carried out in 8 markets across Europe, including Spain, Germany, UK, France, Italy, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Poland. The sample achieved is representative of the population aged 16-75 in all markets except Czech Republic and Slovakia, where the participants were aged 16-65. Interlocking quotas were set on Age within Gender, and on Region and Working status. The data has been weighted to the known offline population proportions for interlocking cells of gender within age and working status, as well as region and education to reflect the adult population of each market. A country average weight was also applied. Fieldwork was carried out between the 26th April and 27th May 2024. This research was conducted as part of a global study across Australia, Canada, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Poland, South Africa, Slovakia, Spain, and the UK.

**Amazon Career Choice participation data collected in Europe between 2014-24.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240613014196/en/

Contacts:

Louise Thach thachl@amazon.com
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / In celebration of this year's Black History Month theme "African Americans and the Arts," our BLK Catalyst business resource group sponsored a new display at the Kohler Design Center in Kohler, Wisconsin, from Oakland-based artist Woody De Othello.

"We wanted to provide a platform to celebrate and honor the work of up-and-coming artists like Woody," said BLK Catalyst Culture Committee Lead Maya E. "After hearing how he wants to not only make art that is positive, but meaningful and healing, too, we knew we wanted to showcase his work for our fellow Kohler associates and the community."

De Othello is a former Arts/Industry artist-in-residence, where he spent three months in the Kohler Pottery in 2020 collaborating with skilled Kohler manufacturing craftspeople to explore forms and concepts not possible in his own studio. Arts/Industry, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, is administered by the John Michael Kohler Arts Center and hosted by Kohler, inviting artists for residencies in the Kohler Co. manufacturing facility, giving them access to expert craftspeople and the materials used for toilets, sinks and faucets. Artists learn the skilled craftmanship of the factory artisans and expand their portfolio with new material sets and inspired works of art.

The displayed sculpture, titled "Starting Off," is part of a series of animated and cartoonish interpretations of everyday objects.

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Kohler Co. on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Kohler Co.

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/kohler-co

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Kohler Co.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
BRONX, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / The Bronx Neighborhood Housing Services (Bronx NHS) is gearing up to host its highly anticipated Affordable Housing Fair 2024 on Saturday, July 13. The event aims to offer actionable solutions to the housing challenges facing Bronx communities.

The latest Housing Risk Chart from The Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development highlights that Bronx community districts 1-7 and 12 rank among the top 10 for high eviction filings, rent-burdened households, and tenant-initiated housing court cases, among other issues. Bronx NHS has been at the forefront of efforts to provide equitable access to affordable homeownership by mobilizing resources to empower residents and address these challenges directly.

"Affordable housing is not just about roofs over heads; it's about stability, opportunity, and community resilience," asserts Gladstone Johnson, interim executive director of Bronx NHS. "Our fair isn't just an event-it's a catalyst for change, a platform for empowerment, where all residents can benefit--whether it's securing funding and a real pathway to own your home, making crucial repairs, or simply ensuring you can keep your home, you'll find it all right here, directly from the experts."

The Affordable Housing Fair 2024: A Gateway to Homeownership

The fair, sponsored by Chase Bank, promises a plethora of resources and guidance for renters, landlords, first-time home buyers, and current homeowners alike. From workshops on home buying strategies to insights on obtaining grants and mortgage financing, attendees will have access to a wealth of information to turn their homeownership dreams into reality.

"We have a wealth of resources and opportunities to make homeownership dreams come true," Johnson continues. "If you have any questions or concerns, we're here to help you with the answers! Let's get started."

A Collaborative Effort for Community Empowerment

The event will feature representatives from Chase Bank, mortgage lenders, real estate agents, insurance agents, attorneys, home inspectors, and more, offering personalized assistance and advice. Additionally, esteemed guests including New York State Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie, Senator Jamaal T. Bailey, and NYC Council Member Kevin C. Riley will be present to engage with attendees and address community concerns.

Redefining Possibilities: Grants, Raffles, and Beyond

Bronx NHS will provide information on grants up to $100,000 through the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development's HomeFirst Program, as well as private grants up to $10,000. Attendees will also have the chance to participate in a raffle for prizes, including an HD TV provided by J. Carol Marketing.

About Bronx Neighborhood Housing Services CDC, Inc.

Bronx Neighborhood Housing Services CDC, Inc. is a revered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to empowering Bronx residents through financial education, counseling, grants, and affordable loans. With a mission to promote investment and self-sufficiency, Bronx NHS collaborates with stakeholders to preserve and enhance Bronx neighborhoods for generations to come.

Join Us at the Affordable Housing Fair 2024

Date: Sat., July 13, 2024

Time: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Location: 1451 East Gun Hill Road, Bronx, N.Y. (at the corner of Gun Hill Road and Adee Avenue)

Admission: Free

For more information, visit www.bronxnhs.org.

Join us as we pave the way for brighter futures and stronger communities at the Affordable Housing Fair 2024!

Contact Information:

J. Carol Marketing, Inc.

Jenise Richardson

917-809-9922

jenise@jcarolmarketing.com

SOURCE: The Bronx Neighborhood Housing Services

View the original press release on accesswire.com


EQS Newswire / 13/06/2024 / 17:30 CET/CEST

Cementing Global Government and Industry Partnership, Securing Green Fund to Propel Thai Cement Industry Towards Net Zero Future BANGKOK, THAILAND - Media OutReach Newswire - 13 June 2024 - Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA) in collaboration with Thai Cement Manufacturers Association (TCMA) successfully hosted "GCCA CEO Gathering and Leader Conference 2024", the first cement and concrete industry summit in Thailand. This conference marks a significant milestone in uniting efforts from governments, international organizations and alliances of leading cement and concrete producers across the globe, underscoring Thailand's success in attracting global support, securing an innovation and green fund valued CAD 8 million to advance Thai cement industry towards a Net Zero Future.



The Success of Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA) CEO Gathering and Leader Conference 2024 in Bangkok

Thailand's Minister of Industry, H.E. Miss Pimphattra Wichaikul, presided over a remarkable global conference, "GCCA CEO Gathering and Leaders Conference 2024," which convened over 200 CEOs and leaders from the world's leading cement and concrete manufacturers around the globe gathered in Bangkok. "Thailand is one of the first countries in the word with a credible national roadmap for delivering on the cement industry's Net Zero Emission. Key to success is innovation, cross-sectorial cooperation, strong leadership with clear targets and international collaboration to drive policy and implementation. I would like to congratulate cement industry- GCCA and TCMA on the collaboration and the CAD 8 million green fund from the Government of Canada, facilitated through UNIDO to support crucial projects and researches on decarbonizing the cement industry in Thailand and across Asia. This is a significant step forward"



Dr. Nattapol Rangsitpol, Permanent Secretary, Ministry for Industry honoured to open the GCCA 2024 "Ministry of Industry of Thailand realizes the importance of climate change and work closely with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment and TCMA to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the industries by applying the concept of Bio-Circular-Green economy to generate the balance of economic, social, and environmental dimensions, together with, enhancing industrial competitiveness under environmentally supporting measurements. 'SARABURI SANDBOX LOW CARBON CITY' is one of a good tangible action. As we share the same beliefs, pursue the same purposes, and act according to the same approaches. It is now the right time to move forward together"



Dr. Chana Poomee, Chairman of the Thai Cement Manufacturers Association highlighted the success of the GCCA 2024 themed 'Cement Industry Progress - What's next for our collective action and future' as a result of concerted efforts at domestic, regional, and global levels, reflecting the synergy of leading agencies. "This first green fund delivered to the Thai cement industry is a crucial stepping stone which elevates the position and potential of TCMA and Thai cement producer members. TCMA is ready to collaborate with all sectors, including UNIDO's global network of experts, to realize the Net Zero goal as outlined in the Thailand 2050 Net Zero Cement and Concrete Roadmap, which encompasses operational capacity building, pilot projects, and deployment of low-carbon technologies in cement and concrete industries, as well as strengthening an innovation ecosystem"



Mr. Thomas Guillot, CEO of the Global Cement and Concrete Association (GCCA), commended Thailand and TCMA for their exceptional Thailand 2050 Net Zero Cement and Concrete Roadmap, "Despite our industry's efforts, challenges remain if we are to reach our shared goal of net zero concrete, including policy and procurement issues. We welcome the support of organizations through UNIDO. Only by working together will we be able to deliver on our global commitment to deliver net-zero concrete"



Hashtag: GCCA TMCA ThaiCementManufacturersAssociation

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.

News Source: Thai Cement Manufacturers Association

13/06/2024 Dissemination of a Financial Press Release, transmitted by EQS News.

The issuer is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.



Media archive at www.todayir.com


London, England--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - Money20/20 is the global financial conference and the platform for content, sales, and networking. This event gathers thousands of C-level executives in Amsterdam to spend three days sharing experiences among market players. From June 4th to June 6th, 2024, Sends and other leading fintech, crypto, marketing, legal companies met in the Netherlands for the annual conference.

Sends



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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Money20/20 runs shows not only in Europe but also in Bangkok (Asian region) in April and in Las Vegas (USA) in October. During the year, organizers set up major fintech conferences around the world.

'Being a part of the fintech community is vital for the Sends Company. We find offline networking and international events to be a component of our success and progress. That is why our team is a regular visitor to the local meetings in London and global-scale events,' commented Alona Shevtsova, owner of the Sends Company.

Money20/20 Europe typically attracts around 6,000 to 7,000 attendees. The conference is known for its Innovation Halls and Startup Pitches, where emerging companies and startups present their latest products and technologies to potential investors and partners.

'Attendees have numerous opportunities to network through organized events, informal gatherings, and networking spaces. We can call it a prime venue for forging partnerships and collaborations. Money20/20 is not just a conference, but a pivotal event in the global financial services calendar,' said Anastasiia Pervushyna, Director/MLRO.

It is worth mentioning that the Sends company will also participate in London Fintech Week 2024, which will take place next week in London. Sends offers financial solutions such as Internet acquiring, currency exchange, multicurrency business accounts and more.

Address: Office 39.18, Level39, One Canada Square, London, England, E14 5AB

Anna Davies

Marketing Department contacts: pr@sends.co

To learn more about Sends and its special offer, please visit www.sends.co.

*Sends is a trade name of SMARTFLOW PAYMENTS LIMITED.

SMARTFLOW PAYMENTS LIMITED is registered in England and Wales (Company number 11070048).

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212687

SOURCE: United Press
Pancreatic cancer remains difficult to diagnose accurately using conventional methods often leading to late-stage diagnoses or unnecessary surgeries

New publications confirm once more Cellvizio's far superior ability to accurately classify the risk of pancreatic cystic lesions with 98% sensitivity and accuracy, surpassing conventional methods

Regulatory News:

Mauna Kea Technologies (Euronext Growth: ALMKT), inventor of Cellvizio, the multidisciplinary probe and needle-based confocal laser endomicroscopy (p/nCLE) platform, today announces a new body of evidence supporting the use of Cellvizio for the classification and risk stratification of pancreatic cystic lesions (PCLs), presented at the Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2024 Conference held in Washington, DC.

Conventional diagnostic testing of PCLs which involves performing an endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) and then collecting and testing the cyst fluid through fine needle aspiration (FNA) is considered as suboptimal at accurately diagnosing and risk stratifying PCLs. Cellvizio can be added to EUS as an adjunct via the existing FNA needle ("EUS-nCLE"), providing real-time imaging of the cyst characteristics and aiding in appropriately gauging the potential risk posed by the cyst prior to any surgical intervention.

In one publication1 pooling two separate studies with a combined sample size of 420 patients, the sensitivity and diagnostic accuracy of EUS-nCLE for classifying mucinous vs. non-mucinous PCLs was 98% and 97%, respectively, compared to 74% and 81% for fluid analysis (CEA) cytology, 77% and 80% for CEA cytology glucose, and 76% and 86% for next generation sequencing (NGS), respectively. This sharp positive increase in sensitivity and accuracy with Cellvizio (EUS-nCLE) would translate to a marked reduction in late-stage diagnoses of advanced pancreatic cancer and unnecessary surgeries on benign or low-grade lesions, totaling as many as 2,000 unnecessary surgeries per year in the United States2

In a second publication3 evaluating data from 65 patients enrolled in a multi-year study, EUS-nCLE demonstrated high accuracy in preoperatively predicting dysplasia in branch duct intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasms (BD-IPMNs), with high interobserver agreement of 0.711.

A third publication4, using the same patient data, concluded that improved preoperative accuracy can be achieved by incorporating nCLE in the preoperative risk stratification of BD-IPMNs, improving the decision criteria for evaluating a patient's candidacy for surgery, and ultimately improving patient management.

"The combination of these publications and presentations from DDW underscore, once again, the critical role Cellvizio can play as a key adjunct to the tools physicians use to diagnose and manage pancreatic cysts," said Sacha Loiseau, Ph.D., Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Mauna Kea Technologies. "Pancreatic cancer remains one of the more elusive cancers, often termed the 'silent killer' because of its lack of symptoms and discovery by incidental imaging. Obtaining an accurate diagnosis is critical to ensure only patients who need surgery receive it, and to ensure the correct risk stratification of malignant cysts. This new corpus of data confirms that there is no combination of techniques which is superior to direct microscopic observation of the pancreatic cystic lesion in real time with Cellvizio. We are confident that with all the confirmatory positive data and the growing support from many experts around the world, nCLE with Cellvizio is fast approaching its prime time and the status of standard of care, thus creating a very significant market opportunity for Mauna Kea.

About Pancreatic Cysts

The prevalence of pancreatic cystic lesions in the adult asymptomatic population ranges from 2.4% to 24.3%5. With the large majority of pancreatic cystic lesions being discovered through incidental imaging and an estimated 40% of surgeries being performed unnecessarily on benign or low-grade dysplasia lesion patients, there is a need for more accurate classification methods, including risk stratification, earlier in the patient's diagnostic workup. Conventional diagnostic testing involves performing an endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) and then collecting and testing the cyst fluid through fine needle aspiration (FNA). In some advanced facilities, next generation sequencing (NGS) may be performed to provide additional data. The gold standard remains resection of suspicious tissue, often introducing complications such as chronic pancreatitis, even if the cyst is benign. Although most facilities employ a combination of a range of conventional diagnostic methods, sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy remain critically low, potentially exposing patients to unneeded surgical procedures.

About Digestive Disease Week

Digestive Disease Week (DDW) is the largest international gathering of physicians, researchers and academics in the fields of gastroenterology, hepatology, endoscopy and gastrointestinal surgery. Jointly sponsored by the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD), the American Gastroenterological Association (AGA), the American Society for Gastrointestinal Endoscopy (ASGE) and the Society for Surgery of the Alimentary Tract (SSAT), DDW is an in-person and online meeting from May 18-21, 2024. The meeting showcases more than 5,600 abstracts and hundreds of lectures on the latest advances in GI research, medicine and technology. More information can be found at www.ddw.org.

About Mauna Kea Technologies

Mauna Kea Technologies is a global medical device company that manufactures and sells Cellvizio, the real-time in vivo cellular imaging platform. This technology uniquely delivers in vivo cellular visualization which enables physicians to monitor the progression of disease over time, assess point-in-time reactions as they happen in real time, classify indeterminate areas of concern, and guide surgical interventions. The Cellvizio platform is used globally across a wide range of medical specialties and is making a transformative change in the way physicians diagnose and treat patients. For more information, visit www.maunakeatech.com.

Disclaimer

This press release contains forward-looking statements about Mauna Kea Technologies and its business. All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this press release, including, but not limited to, statements regarding Mauna Kea Technologies' financial condition, business, strategies, plans and objectives for future operations are forward-looking statements. Mauna Kea Technologies believes that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions. However, no assurance can be given that the expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements will be achieved. These forward-looking statements are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, including those described in Chapter 2 of Mauna Kea Technologies' 2023 Annual Report filed with the Autorite des marches financiers (AMF) on April 30, 2024, which is available on the Company's website (www.maunakeatech.fr), as well as the risks associated with changes in economic conditions, financial markets and the markets in which Mauna Kea Technologies operates. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are also subject to risks that are unknown to Mauna Kea Technologies or that Mauna Kea Technologies does not currently consider material. The occurrence of some or all of these risks could cause the actual results, financial condition, performance or achievements of Mauna Kea Technologies to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements. This press release and the information contained herein do not constitute an offer to sell or subscribe for, or the solicitation of an order to buy or subscribe for, shares of Mauna Kea Technologies in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such jurisdiction. The distribution of this press release may be restricted in certain jurisdictions by local law. Persons into whose possession this document comes are required to comply with all local regulations applicable to this document.

1 "Accuracy of real-time EUS-guided confocal laser endomicroscopy interpretation for discerning specific types of pancreatic cystic lesions: Insights from a multicenter prospective study"

2 "Cost-effectiveness of consensus guideline based management of pancreatic cysts: The sensitivity and specificity required for guidelines to be cost-effective"

3 "Improving pre-surgical risk stratification through EUS confocal endomicroscopy: Insights from an interobserver agreement study among pancreaticobiliary pathologists in the classification of dysplasia for IPMNs"

4 "Pre-operative risk stratification of IPMNs using Fukuoka guidelines and confocal endomicroscopy imaging"

5 "State-of-the-Art Update of Pancreatic Cysts"

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240613291581/en/

Contacts:

Mauna Kea Technologies

investors@maunakeatech.com

NewCap Investor Relations

Aurelie Manavarere Thomas Grojean

+33 (0)1 44 71 94 94

maunakea@newcap.eu
Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont, New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker, and Josh Geballe, Managing Director of Yale Ventures, participated in the launch ceremony of the new BioMed X Institute on Tuesday, June 11, 2024.

New Haven, Connecticut--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - BioMed X, an independent research institute founded in Heidelberg, Germany, has expanded its operations with the opening of a new institute in the United States. Located in New Haven, CT, in the vicinity of Yale University, the new facilities are part of the Elm City Bioscience Center, a state-of-the-art lab and research building owned by The Hurley Group. This significant milestone was celebrated with a grand opening ceremony on Tuesday, June 11, and attended by BioMed X fellows, partners, collaborators, and distinguished guests.





Mark Johnston (left), CEO of BioMed X US, welcomes everyone at the official launch of the first BioMed X Institute in the U.S.A. Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont and New Haven Mayor Justin Elicker were also present at the event on Tuesday, June 11, 2024.

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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Governor Ned Lamont joined the ribbon-cutting ceremony to welcome BioMed X to the bio-ecosystem of Connecticut: "The spirit of innovation is in the DNA of our state. BioMed X chose an excellent location for their first institute on US soil, and we are happy to welcome them to our community." The warm welcome was echoed by the mayor of New Haven, Justin Elicker, who was also present at the event.

Similarly to the BioMed X Institute in Heidelberg, Germany, the one in the US is located in a vibrant biomedical research environment centered around Yale University. Yale Ventures Managing Director Josh Geballe took part in the opening ceremony on Tuesday and expressed his excitement for the collaboration potential that BioMed X brings to New Haven: "Yale is committed to global partnerships that foster innovation. We warmly welcome BioMed X to our bio-ecosystem and are looking forward to future collaborations."

The new institute is managed by Mark Johnston, an experienced biotech CEO and entrepreneur. "We are so grateful for all the local support. New Haven is such a vibrant life sciences hub, coming here was the right choice for us," explains Johnston. The first US research team, in partnership with AbbVie, started its activity at the new institute last year. Their aim is to develop complex human ex vivo models for tissue inflammation. Led by Dr. Alicia Cutler, who joined BioMed X from the University of Colorado Boulder and mentored by Prof. Dr. Carla Rothlin from the Yale Cancer Center, the team now has four additional members working together at the BioMed X facilities within the Elm City Bioscience Center.

Dr. Christian Tidona, Founder and Managing Director of BioMed X, explains the rationale behind the start of their new institute in New Haven: "During the past decade, we were able to attract and relocate over one hundred outstanding early-career researchers from around the world to our BioMed X Institute in Heidelberg, Germany. After this successful proof-of-concept of our innovation model, we felt it was time to extend our operations to the USA. With Yale University at its center, New Haven has turned out to be the perfect place for us."

The launch event on Tuesday was a celebration of long-term partnerships and innovation at the interface between academia and industry. To find out more about the current and future projects of BioMed X, visit their website: https://bio.mx/.

About BioMed X

BioMed X is an independent research institute with sites in Heidelberg, Germany, New Haven, Connecticut, XSeed Labs in Ridgefield, Connecticut, and a worldwide network of partner locations. Together with our partners, we identify big biomedical research challenges and provide creative solutions by combining global crowdsourcing with local incubation of the world's brightest early-career research talents. Each of the highly diverse research teams at BioMed X has access to state-of-the-art research infrastructure and is continuously guided by experienced mentors from academia and industry. At BioMed X, we combine the best of two worlds - academia and industry - and enable breakthrough innovation by making biomedical research more efficient, more agile, and more fun.

PRESS CONTACT

Flavia-Bianca Cristian

Recruiting & Communications Manager

+49 6221 426 11 706

fbc@bio.mx

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212457

SOURCE: BioMed X Institute
Access to Quanta System's Distribution Network Will Allow EU Clinicians to Acquire the Groundbreaking Accure Laser System

BOULDER, Colo., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Accure Acne, Inc. ( www.accureacne.com ), a pioneer in innovative acne treatment solutions, announced today that Accure and Quanta System will expand their successful partnership, enhancing access to the revolutionary Accure Laser System in Europe. Quanta will leverage its robust distribution platform to provide clinicians across the EU with this new acne treatment method.

"Our partnership with Quanta has been foundational for Accure," commented Christopher Carlton, Co-Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Accure Acne, Inc. "Expanding this relationship to accelerate our access to the EU marketplace is exciting. Quanta's commercial expertise and success history should yield significant impact this year."

The Accure Laser System employs the 1726 nm laser wavelength with proprietary technology to control thermal gradient depth, maximizing impact on the sebaceous gland. This AcneTech breakthrough includes a unique pulsing algorithm, integrated temperature monitoring, and precise automated control. During a limited commercial release, several European providers have reported compelling clinical outcomes. The Accure Laser achieved the first-ever CE 0123 Mark certification for a 1726nm-based device for treatment of mild to moderate inflammatory acne vulgaris and has received FDA clearance for treatment of mild to severe inflammatory acne vulgaris.

"I have used the Accure Laser for over a year with excellent, consistent results," added Christine Dierickx, MD, Founder of Skinperium Cosmetic Dermatology in Luxembourg. "Patients are seeking non-systemic acne treatments with strong outcomes. I'm pleased to see Accure and Quanta expand access to this device in Europe."

"The Accure Laser offers an exciting opportunity for our commercial partners," said Girolamo Lionetti, CEO of Quanta System. "We've partnered with Accure from the beginning and are proud to enhance our mission to bring revolutionary technology to clinicians, impacting patients' lives."

About Accure Acne, Inc.

Accure Acne, Inc. is dedicated to developing revolutionary solutions for eliminating acne, addressing its social, psychological, physical, and economic impacts. We pioneer transformative solutions to meet this unmet need, positively impacting patients and providers worldwide. Learn more: www.accureacne.com

Contact: Haigo Manukian - haigo@accureacne.com

About Quanta System SpA

Quanta System SpA, an Italian company, has been a leader in laser systems for surgery, dermatology, aesthetic medicine, and art conservation for nearly 40 years. Part of El.En. SpA, Quanta innovates to meet professionals' needs, enhancing patient care globally.

Contact: Carolina Crepaldi - carolina.crepaldi@quantasystem.com

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Brenus Pharma, French biotech developing its proprietary discovery platform: "Stimulated-Tumor-Cell" (STC), has presented the study design of "BreAK-CRC" First-in-human of STC-1010, Brenus' lead candidate, during ASCO annual meeting (31st May 4th June 2024) Trials in Progress poster session, in Chicago.

Poster here. Benoit You et al. Journal of Clinical Oncology 42, TPS3635-TPS3635(2024). DOI:10.1200/JCO.2024.42.16_suppl.TPS3635

Authors information's: here.

Based on STC-1010' robust preclinical package in vivo, in ovo, ex vivo, BreAK-CRC study will be launched in 9 oncology early phase centers (EU, US) with expert investigators in immunotherapy:

"Cancer vaccines continue to show promising clinical results in solid tumors. STC-1010, is a new immunotherapeutic approach based on cancer vaccine mechanism of action for colorectal cancer patients. In that, "BreAK-CRC" Study is eagerly expected. CRC is still challenging as current immunotherapies were found only active in dMMR/MSI-H "hot" CRC. For the pMMR/MSS population, representing 95% of patients with CRC, there is an important medical need for drugs likely to heat up "cold" tumors and have a real impact for the patient." Francois Ghiringhelli (M.D,PhD) Director of early clinical unit CLIPP2 and BreAK-CRC study coordinator, Centre Georges-Francois Leclerc, University of Burgundy, Dijon, France.

BreAK-CRC trial protocol has been reviewed in pre-submission meeting with the French National Health Authority. The submission of the CTA through the clinical trial information system of the European union is ongoing.

The Phase I/IIA clinical trial, aims to evaluate the safety and efficacy of STC-1010 in patients with unresectable advanced or metastatic colorectal cancer, 2nd cause of cancer mortality worldwide.

The Phase I will assess the tolerability of two dose levels of STC-1010, combined with low-dose immunostimulants and standard of care chemotherapy (SoC). The Phase IIA will enroll patients to further evaluate the treatment's efficacy, particularly focusing on 12-month non-progression rate.

Exploratory analysis will evaluate the immune response and the ctDNA dynamic.

Clinical Partner

About Brenus Pharma:

Brenus Pharma developing a pioneering discovery platform, Stimulated-Tumor-Cell (STC), leading the way of a new generation of active immunotherapies against cancer.

STC Platform mimics patients' relapsing conditions in vitro to educate the patient's immune system against tumor evolution and mechanisms of relapse. The STCs will educate the immune system to 200+ specific targets of interest, validated by multi-omics analysis and patient biopsies databases.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240613547215/en/

Contacts:

BRUN Marion

contact@brenus-pharma.com Follow us on LinkedIn Website
Kamloops, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - Infracon Construction, Inc. ("Infracon") is pleased to announce a new partnership with aq'am Community Enterprises ("ACE"). This collaboration will focus on the Hangingstone Ventures ("HSV") division of Infracon, emphasizing the provision of daylighting services to the Kootenay region and beyond.

HSV boasts a versatile fleet of Hydrovac and Air Excavation equipment designed to remove soil and other materials in a non-disruptive, non-destructive manner. This aids in locating pipelines, powerlines, and other sensitive infrastructure. Additionally, HSV's equipment can be utilized for trenching, excavating pilot holes for power poles, and other small excavation tasks.

The ACE-Infracon partnership aims to provide economic opportunities previously unavailable to aq'am community members and the broader Ktunaxa First Nation, facilitating training and employment prospects. By partnering with ACE, Infracon is committed to fostering a skilled workforce within the community. The collaboration will create various job opportunities, including roles in equipment operation, project management, safety supervision, and administrative support. Additionally, specialized training programs will be developed to equip local residents with the necessary skills and certifications required for these positions, ensuring long-term, sustainable employment.

Patrick Hampson, General Manager of HSV and a long-time Infracon employee, states, "The aq'am Community Enterprises team is a fantastic fit alongside Hangingstone Ventures. Their geographic location and entrepreneurial spirit complement our endeavors perfectly. This partnership will thrive in an underserved niche, allowing us to pursue new opportunities with some of British Columbia's largest infrastructure organizations."

ABOUT THE INFRACON GROUP

The Infracon Group of Companies ("Infracon") is a collection of specialty construction companies involved in heavy civil, pipeline, welding, and construction materials businesses in Western Canada. It is one of the fastest-growing construction groups in Canada, with an average annual revenue growth of over 65%. Infracon has expanded from revenues of under $30 million in 2018 to over $180 million in 2022. The group also boasts several successful indigenous partnerships that contribute significantly to local communities. Infracon operates centers in Kamloops, Merritt, Hope, and Dawson Creek, BC, as well as Calgary, AB. The company specializes in pipeline integrity and construction, heavy civil construction, mine construction, contract mining, and mine remediation in both urban and remote projects.

On behalf of the Board of Directors

"C. Geoffrey Hampson"

President and CEO

For further information, please contact:

Tanner Milner

Telephone: +1-587-899-5917

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212771

SOURCE: Infracon Construction Inc.
An old Ford Mustang drives by the empty Specialty Sales Classics showroom in Pleasanton, whose customers had complained of shady practices. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

Sheryl Lawless spent three months in 2023 trying to get Specialty Sales Classics in Pleasanton to pay her the $25,000 the vintage car dealership owed her for her late fathers 1972 Datsun 240Z.

Employees told her they were waiting on the one man who could pay  owner Kenneth Mattson.

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Robert Brassfield said he got the same runaround, two years earlier, after entrusting his 1967 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray to Specialtys Pleasanton dealership to sell on consignment. By law, the business had 20 days to wire him his share of the $105,000 sale  but two months later, he still hadnt received his money.

Brassfield Googled Mattsons name, and what he discovered struck him as odd. The car dealer who owed him had been making headlines in small-town Sonoma, where he had amassed a real estate empire worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

Sonoma developer Kenneth Mattson owned Specialty Sales Classics, which faced a series of customer complaints before shutting down. Robbi Pengelly/Index-Tribune

I was surprised a guy that seems to own all of Sonoma cant pay his bills, Brassfield said.

Brassfield and Lawless eventually got paid, but the money arrived months late and only after they filed complaints with the California Department of Motor Vehicles and the Alameda County District Attorneys Office. Contacted about Specialty Sales and Mattson, a district attorney spokesperson declined to comment on matters under ongoing investigation.

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As it turned out, the issues at Specialty Sales  including lawsuits and scores of bruising online complaints from dissatisfied customers, which culminated with the closure of the business last month  foreshadowed bigger problems for Mattson.

The 62-year-old Sonoma investor and businessman is embroiled in a widening scandal that cracked open six weeks ago when his longtime business partner, Timothy LeFever, accused him of engaging in a secretive scheme to siphon investors money into his own accounts and away from their real estate partnership, LeFever Mattson, and associated businesses.

A Specialty Sales Classics showroom sits empty on the corner of First Street and Kottinger Drive in Pleasanton. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

LeFevers accusations threaten to topple the pairs $413 million California real estate portfolio that grew to include some of the most familiar properties and businesses in historic Sonoma.

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Years before, Mattson had seemed unstoppable. LeFever said in his lawsuit that Mattson had earned a reputation as a financial genius with an uncanny ability to predict economic trends. Their real estate ventures for years delivered monthly distributions to a deep bench of investors.

In 2011, Mattson took on a side project: The classic car dealership with several East Bay showrooms full of Corvettes, Cadillacs, Mustangs and other collector models.

In the rarefied world of vintage cars, Mattson developed a reputation as an absentee boss and owner who dodged calls when it was time to pay, according to interviews with clients and former employees, as well as a review of court records and customer complaints with the Better Business Bureau.

A Specialty Sales Classics showroom sits empty on the corner of First Street and Kottinger Drive in Pleasanton. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

Specialty Sales went out of business on May 4 after exhausting its $50,000 surety bond to settle claims from customers, according to a spokesperson from the DMV. California requires dealerships to hold bonding insurance to protect consumers who fall victim to negligent or fraudulent dealers.

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The DMV had already placed Specialty Sales license on probation in October 2022 for eight counts of failing to pay within the state mandated timeline, according to the DMV. All told, the DMV had 21 cases on record related to the dealership and said the agency does not comment on any open investigations.

Mattson, through an attorney, declined to comment on his management of the dealership and accusations from employees and customers about late payments.

A Specialty Sales Classics showroom sits empty on the corner of First Street and Kottinger Drive in Pleasanton. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

Some employees said Mattsons absentee management style and close control of business finances, including routine customer transactions, created a stressful environment.

I quit because of him, Trevor Gaspari, a former sales associate, said of Mattson. I was tired of getting calls from people wondering where their money was.

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But one former key employee told the Chronicle that the customer complaints made in lawsuits and to the BBB were outliers, not the norm.

At the end of day, everyone got paid, said Joseph Smith, the companys former general manager, who worked at Specialty for 13 years.

Mattson did not always respond to messages, Smith said, but he assumed that was due to his responsibilities at his other businesses.

Opened 1978 in Pleasanton, Specialty Sales had become a Bay Area institution for classic cars. The company catered to buyers and sellers of high end classic models that sometimes sold for six figures. A previous owner, Steve Barlow, bragged to the San Jose Mercury News that Specialty Sales clients included Neil Young, Jay Leno, Bruce Springsteen and the sultan of Brunei.

The consignment dealership for vintage and exotic vehicles, which also offered auto repair services, had showrooms in Benicia, San Carlos and Fairfield in addition to its Pleasanton site. For classic car connoisseurs, finding the right buyers and handling high-dollar sales can be difficult. Consignment dealerships like Specialty Sales handle the marketing and selling the vehicle, receiving a commission on the sale after it is completed.

Brassfields Corvette sold for $105,000 in July 2021; he was owed $95,569 from the sale while Specialty was to keep about $16,400, sales records show. In Lawless case, she had agreed to receive a fixed $25,000 from the sale, and Specialty listed a sales price of $32,990, according to the consignment agreement.

Mattson had acquired the business in 2011, and quickly set about expanding with a showroom in a former Walmart site in Fairfield. He exhibited many of his own classic vehicles in a special portion of the building, employees said.

The companys social media pages were filled with dozens of gleaming convertibles and roadsters, among them a 1972 Datsun 240Z, a 1987 Mercedes Benz 560SL Convertible, and a 1970 Dodge Challenger Hardtop.

A Specialty Sales Classics showroom sits empty on the corner of First Street and Kottinger Drive in Pleasanton. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

LeFever was initially listed as an agent on Specialty Sales articles of incorporation in 2011 when Mattson bought the business, but it wasnt clear whether he was ever involved in the business.

LeFever did not respond to questions about Specialty Sales, but in his lawsuit against Mattson, he said Mattson owns an exotic car company, although it was recently shut down by the DMV.

The venture seemed to fit Mattsons luxurious lifestyle and love of classic cars.

Mattson drove multiple Bentleys and at least one Rolls Royce, LeFever said in his lawsuit. Mattson, who split time between multimillion-dollar mansions in Piedmont and Sonoma, also had vacation homes in Del Mar (San Diego County) that touch the sand and reported a net worth of $250 million in 2021, the court filing said.

By all accounts, Mattson is a very wealthy man, LeFever said.

Challenges arose in the early days of Mattsons tenure with Specialty Sales.

In 2012, an employee died after crashing a car he had taken on a test run. Officials from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigated and eventually fined the business $5,450.

Clients began to complain that the dealership was happy to take their cars  but then failed to pay them their portion of the sales proceeds. A state law requires dealerships to make such payments within 20 days. According to the DMV, failure to pay is cause for suspension or revocation of the dealers license.

Angry customers vented their frustration in public, filing blistering reviews with Yelp and the Better Business Bureau, resulting in an F rating from the nonprofit, which grades businesses based on ethical advertising, selling and customer experiences.

Alma Galvan, communications manager for the BBBs San Francisco region, said the low rating resulted from customers complaints being completely ignored.

Specialty Sales Classics, which operated this Benicia showroom, went out of business in May. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

Specialty was taken to court at least 10 times for breach of contract, nonpayment, and poor workmanship, court records show. Four cases were handled in small claims court for matters less than $10,000. In another four cases Specialty was sued for larger sums for late payments or nonpayment.

In one case, the California department of labor ordered Specialty Sales to pay an employee more than $8,100 and when it did not pay a judge ordered the company in 2016 to pay $11,453 for back wages, commission and interest.

Customer Ken Matye sued the dealership in 2020 for false advertising after buying what was supposed to be a 1967 Pontiac GTO convertible with all-original parts for more than $125,000.

Matye accused Specialty Sales of outfitting the vehicle with an engine meant for Pontiac Firebirds built a decade later. There were other problems with the vehicle, which wasnt actually legal to drive in California, Matye said. Matyes attorney declined comment. Matye settled the case in August 2023 after Mattson agreed to pay him $160,000. But court records show Matyes attorney returned to court and in May, asked for permission to sell the car because they hadnt received the promised payment and because Mattsons own attorney told them that the businessman has simply stopped communicating with him.

Matyes experience mimicked that of two other clients, Fred Reineke and Darrin Okimoto.

Specialty Sales sold Reinekes 1957 Pontiac Chieftain Catalina for $65,000. Reineke sued the dealership in 2021, after failing to receive his payment and running out of patience. The two parties settled the case a year later. Okimoto sued the dealership in January, after waiting several months for the dealership to pay him the proceeds from the sale of his mothers 1968 Shelby GT500, court records show. In May, a Solano County judge ruled in Okimotos favor.

Mark Vegotsky stands with his 1971 Chevy Stepside truck outside of his home in Vallejo. He took the truck to Specialty Sales Classics for work and said he had forked over about $15,000 before realizing, 11 months later, that the repairs were faulty or incomplete. He settled for a $2,000 payment from the company in a small claims court lawsuit. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

Another customer, Mark Vegotsky, brought his 1971 Chevrolet Stepside truck to Specialty Sales for repairs in 2019. Vegotsky told the Chronicle that he had forked over about $15,000 before realizing, 11 months later, that the repairs were faulty or incomplete.

They were not doing anything and asking for more money, Vegotsky said.

Vegotsky said he settled for about $2,000 in small claims court and had the case dismissed. He just wanted to move on.

Lawless described a similarly frustrating experience after entrusting the dealership with her fathers car in June 2023. She received a text on July 20 from a sales rep that the car had sold.

The next day, Lawless signed the forms to have the money wired to her bank. Twenty days passed without payment. By September, Lawless was enraged. Her family was waiting for this payment to finalize her fathers estate.

Sheryl Lawless shows a picture of her late fathers beloved car, a 1972 Datsun 240Z as it sat on consignment inside Specialty Sales Classic in Pleasanton. After the car sold, a delay in payment from Specialty Sales led her to complain to the Department of Motor Vehicles. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

I just felt something was off, she said.

She wrote a scathing review on Yelp, submitted a complaint to the Better Business Bureau and criticized Specialty on social media. Gaspari, who had quit the year before, saw Lawless post and sent her a message recommending she file a complaint with the DMV, which she did.

Gaspari said Specialty employees were routinely recommending customers file complaints with the state, which he said would trigger a notice of inspection from the DMV that seemed to be the surest way to get Mattson to pay.

I felt bad for her, Gaspari said. I told her to file a complaint (with the DMV) because I told everybody to do that.

Specialty began calling customers in April and telling them to collect their cars, emptying its remaining showrooms in Fairfield and Pleasanton (Benicia and San Carlos locations had closed). By the time it closed last month, the company only had five employees, down from about 30, a former employee told the Chronicle.

Employees who spoke to the Chronicle said working at Specialty Sales should have been a dream job, with its beautiful cars and customers who loved them.

A Specialty Sales Classics showroom in Benicia is among those closed when the company shut down. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

Instead, they said they found themselves fielding calls from clients wondering where their money was  money needed for medical procedures, or estate planning, from clients who were often elderly and couldnt advocate for themselves, former employee Rich Gega said.

Gega said he was also disturbed by an unwritten policy at the dealership of encouraging employees to hold off telling customers when their cars had been sold, and making excuses or delays about when they would ultimately receive their payments.

The impression among staff, he said, was that Ken will pay when he has the money  and until then, the client will have to wait.

Gega and Gaspari described interactions with customers who grew irate or tearful when the business failed to pay.
Construction begins on the fifth vessel in the brand's award-winning Edge Series setting sail in fall 2025.

SAINT-NAZAIRE, France, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The future of elevated travel at sea reached a major milestone today, as construction commenced for Celebrity Cruises' next ship, Celebrity Xcel. The keel laying ceremony at the Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in Saint-Nazaire, France celebrated the momentous occasion for the latest and most elevated vessel in Celebrity's award-winning Edge Series ships. When she sets sail in the fall of 2025, Celebrity Xcel will connect guests to the breathtaking world around them like never before, furthering the innovative experiences coveted in her sister ships with several new yet-to-be-revealed offerings for an unparalleled premium vacation.

At the ceremony, Jason Liberty, president and CEO of Royal Caribbean Group, the parent company of Celebrity Cruises, Laura Hodges Bethge, President of Celebrity Cruises, and Laurent Castaing, General Manager of Chantiers de l'Atlantique lowered the first 739-ton steel block for the new ship in the dry dock. As part of the longstanding maritime tradition, executives from the cruise company and the shipyard placed newly minted coins on the first piece of steel to bestow good luck on the ship during both the construction process and future sailings. Nodding to the new caliber of excellence ushered by the brand's Edge Series ships, the coin design commemorated another great innovation, NASA's Saturn V rocket.

"Today, we not only mark the start of construction, but we are laying the foundation on which countless memories will be created," said Jason Liberty, president and CEO, Royal Caribbean Group. "Each new ship also represents an opportunity to advance our journey to net zero, and with Xcel, we are building our first methanol capable ship, which helps advance our transition to the energy platform of the future."

"We can't wait to debut Celebrity Xcel and her unrivaled guest experiences, living up to her name in every way with surprises that confirm 'Nothing Comes Close' to a Celebrity vacation," said Laura Hodges Bethge, president of Celebrity Cruises. "We are grateful for the continued partnership of the Chantiers de l'Atlantique team for lending their craftsmanship to further elevate the innovative design and world-class features of our beloved Edge Series ships."

"The Edge Series is the result of close collaboration between the Celebrity Cruises and Chantiers de l'Atlantique teams," continued Laurent Castaing, General Manager of Chantiers de l'Atlantique. "We know and trust one another, and work in harmony to offer a unique and sustainable experience for passengers."

Pushing the boundaries of leisure travel, Celebrity Xcel will advance Royal Caribbean Group's decades-long commitment to sustaining the planet with the first tri-fuel capable engine. The new engine will provide unmatched fuel flexibility, with the ability to use three types of fuel, including methanol, a first for the company, and represents an important steppingstone on the company's journey to Destination Net Zero, its vision for net-zero emissions by 2050.

Celebrity Xcel will make her debut in November 2025 in the Caribbean, sailing her inaugural season from Fort Lauderdale, on seven-night itineraries alternating between the Bahamas, Mexico and the Cayman Islands, Puerto Plata, St. Thomas, and St. Maarten. The sailings are now open for booking.

To stay up to date on Celebrity Xcel or to book a Celebrity cruise visit www.celebritycruises.com, call 1-800-CELEBRITY, or contact a trusted travel advisor.

About Celebrity Cruises

Celebrity Cruises delivers an elevated premium vacation experience across their fleet of ships traveling to nearly 300 destinations across more than 70 countries spanning all seven continents. Uniquely offering the intimate feel and thoughtful service of small ships, with the variety and excitement of bigger ones - guests can explore the world or get away from it for a little while. With every detail elevated beyond expectations, guests will never want to vacation any other way. An industry pioneer for 35 years, each Celebrity vacation offers experiences you won't find anywhere else aboard ships which continue to shatter industry expectations with the highly anticipated Celebrity Xcel arriving Fall 2025.

Celebrity Cruises is headquartered in Miami and is one of five cruise brands owned by Royal Caribbean Group (NYSE: RCL). Visit www.celebritycruises.com for more information, and connect with us on Instagram , Facebook or LinkedIn .

About Chantiers de l'Atlantique

Thanks to the expertise of its teams and its network of subcontractors, associated with its first-rate industrial facilities, Chantiers de l'Atlantique is a key leader in the fields of design, integration, testing and turnkey delivery of cruise ships, naval vessels, electrical substations for offshore wind farms and services to the fleets. The company is at the core of the challenges of tomorrow, designing and building today ships whose environmental performance exceeds the most drastic standards, as well as equipment for offshore wind power that make it a major player in the energy transition.

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Two of Washington State's largest 911 centers, Snohomish County 911 (SNO911) and Valley Com 9-1-1, have formed an innovative partnership to assure continuity of emergency communications services during disruptions or system outages.

EVERETT, WA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Two of Washington State's largest 911 centers, Snohomish County 911 (SNO911) and Valley Com 9-1-1, have formed an innovative partnership to assure continuity of emergency communications services during disruptions or system outages. This Regional Resiliency Initiative combines Next Generation 911 (NG911) capabilities with a custom cloud-based Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) solution called CAD-L.

On June 5th, the two centers successfully conducted a live 911 call re-routing drill that validated this groundbreaking vision over four years in the making. It is believed to be the first resiliency solution of this magnitude introduced in the United States.

Ensuring Seamless Dispatch During Outages

While NG911 has enabled 911 call re-routing between centers since 2012, effectively dispatching responders in another jurisdiction with different policies and protocols has remained a challenge. SNO911 created CAD-L, a cloud-hosted backup CAD system accessible via browser, to maintain dispatch capabilities during planned downtimes.

CAD-L operates independently from the primary CAD and supports essential features to initiate and manage emergency responses. It was designed for partner centers to easily localize and use with minimal training.

A Perfect Partnership

SNO911 and Valley Com 9-1-1 were ideal partners, being consolidated multi-discipline 911 centers of similar size, call volumes, and staffing levels. Both have dedicated backup facilities to rapidly relocate operations if needed.

The centers' locations over 40 miles apart proved inconsequential, as the partnership could effectively operate across the state.

While NG911 addressed re-routing calls, the complex task was developing an effective backup CAD solution. Unable to find a commercial product, SNO911 commissioned a software firm to create CAD-L.

Robust CAD Capabilities

CAD-L provides core CAD functionality localized for each agency, including geo-validating locations, identifying jurisdictions and beats, designating incident types and priorities, assigning and tracking units, and seamlessly integrating with RapidSOS.

As a secure, Elastic web application hosted on AWS GovCloud, CAD-L dynamically scales to meet peak demands while minimizing costs during inactivity.

Successful Live 911 Drill

SNO911 Board President Jon Nehring praised this milestone in collaboration: "On behalf of the SNO911 Board of Directors, I want to extend my congratulations to the entire team at SNO911 and our partners at Valley Com 9-1-1 on this first in the nation achievement. This partnership fortifies the resiliency of the 911 system for over 1.5 million residents in a way that will save lives when minutes matter most."

About SNO911

Snohomish County 911 is an integrated emergency services team providing the vital lifeline between public safety responders and our community. Located in Everett, Washington, SNO911 serves communities throughout the Snohomish County to a population of 840,000. https://sno911.org

About Valley Com 9-1-1

Located in Kent, Washington, Valley Communications Center provides emergency communications services to communities of South King County. https://valleycom.org/

Contact Information

Nic Wildeman

Principal

nic@lionfishcreative.com

425-285-1500

Related Files

SNO911-VC911 Regional Resiliency Initiative Case Study

SOURCE: Snohomish County 911

View the original press release on newswire.com.
Los Angeles, California--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - RiserUnited, a premium new apparel brand, is celebrating the launch of its brand on Flag Day, Friday, June 14, 2024. Built to unite America, RiserUnited celebrates the American spirit, freedoms, rights, and liberty. As a company rooted in gratitude for those who have served the nation, it will express its appreciation to Los Angeles-area veterans at an exclusive launch party that includes a concert featuring Nashville-based country music artist Alexis Wilkins, fantastic prizes, and warm hospitality.

Local active-duty military, veterans, and their friends and families in the Los Angeles area are invited to be among the first to see, touch, purchase, and win the apparel showcased during this free public event (including free parking) at the Battleship USS Iowa Museum (250 South Harbor Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90731). The launch collection includes "The Greatest American Hoodie," an ultra-heavyweight hooded sweatshirt inspired by the iconic Iowa-class battleships and officially licensed by the U.S. Navy, manufactured right here in Los Angeles.

Special guests and members of the military will get the VIP treatment and the red carpet rolled out for them, with a special VIP tour of the USS Iowa followed by a VIP cocktail reception in the Wardroom. At 5:00 p.m., the party starts on the fantail, where the VIPs and the public will enjoy a concert by Alexis Wilkins and her band, complimentary beverages and food catered by Long Beach's veteran co-owned Noble Bird, apparel giveaways, and more.

Learn more about RiserUnited and the event here: bit.ly/LAUNCHEVENT.

ABOUT RISERUNITED

RiserUnited is so much more than another apparel brand. It's a commitment to excellence and a celebration of the American spirit: freedom, individualism, equality, optimism, innovation and creativity, resilience, and patriotism. The company's first promise is to deliver meticulously crafted garments. But goes beyond fashion-the company is an unwavering voice of gratitude for the rights that define the nation.

R Public Relations

info@rprfirm.com

518-321-3906

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212862

SOURCE: R Public Relations
NORTHAMPTON, MA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Ceres Director of Federal Policy Zach Friedman issued the following statement today, after the U.S. Senate approved three new commissioners to ensure a full slate at the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission:

"In the coming months, FERC will continue to play a critical role in meeting the nation's energy and economic goals, especially as the agency moves to implement its recently released regional transmission planning rule, and we applaud the strong bipartisan approval of three new commissioners to ensure a quorum to help oversee this important work. Ceres and the businesses we work with are excited to work with commissioners and FERC staff to ensure that affordable, reliable, and home-grown clean electricity gets online as efficiently as possible to deliver economic benefits and meet growing demand across the country."

Ceres has engaged closely with FERC in 2024 as transmission planning takes on a major role in building out the clean energy economy. In March, during its premiere annual advocacy event LEAD on a Clean Economy 2024, Ceres brought representatives from several key companies to meet with FERC commissioners, including Best Buy, HASI, Microsoft, Nucor, Salesforce, and Workday.

Ceres also submitted comments to commissioners with recommendations for the final rule, noting that "inefficiency and disorganization in transmission is the Achilles heel of our national effort to create a strong, sustainable, and equitable economy powered by clean energy."

About Ceres

Ceres is a nonprofit advocacy organization working to accelerate the transition to a cleaner, more just, and sustainable world. United under a shared vision, our powerful networks of investors and companies are proving sustainability is the bottom line-changing markets and sectors from the inside out. For more information, visit ceres.org.

Media Contact: Helen Booth-Tobin, booth-tobin@ceres.org

View additional multimedia and more ESG storytelling from Ceres on 3blmedia.com.

Contact Info:

Spokesperson: Ceres

Website: https://www.3blmedia.com/profiles/ceres

Email: info@3blmedia.com

SOURCE: Ceres

View the original press release on accesswire.com
TraceLink Recognized with Top Honor in Supply Chain Visibility at SupplyTech Breakthrough Awards

BOSTON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- TraceLink, a leader in digital supply chain solutions, is proud to announce that it has been honored with the 2024 SupplyTech Breakthrough Award for Supply Chain Visibility Solution of the Year for its innovative Multienterprise Information Network Tower (MINT) solution.

This recognition highlights TraceLink's commitment to transforming global supply chains by providing enhanced visibility and connectivity through its MINT solution, powered by TraceLink's Opus platform, a low/no-code development environment for enabling supply chain teams to design and deploy multi-enterprise solutions with trading partners.

On Opus, MINT enables the seamless exchange of information among partners -- regardless of the type or version of enterprise systems each party uses -- related to supply chain planning, external manufacturing, logistics, clinical supply, and more. It achieves this through the rapid onboarding, management, and integration of partners' systems and business processes with a pre-authenticated digital network of over 290,000 entities across the Healthcare and Life Sciences supply chain. Through this innovative approach, MINT creates the real-time, permissioned supply chain information required for companies to execute on their supply chain digitalization and AI/ML transformations.

This year's SupplyTech Breakthrough Awards program was intensely competitive, with entries from major firms worldwide, underscoring the significance of TraceLink's achievement. The award celebrates TraceLink's success in facilitating real-time information sharing across multiple enterprises, which improves decision-making and operational efficiencies . Notable winners in other categories this year include industry giants such as UPS, ArcBest, and Yale Lift Truck Technologies.

"Receiving this award from SupplyTech Breakthrough is a testament to our team's dedication to innovation and excellence in digitalizing end-to-end supply chain networks -- most importantly, it is a reflection of the global healthcare and life sciences industry's rapid acceleration and adoption of technologies to exchange information for the benefit of ensuring product availability and quality for patients around the world," said Shabbir Dahod, President and CEO of TraceLink. "Our Multienterprise Information Network Tower solution is at the forefront of enabling companies to achieve a new level of transparency and efficiency, and this recognition reaffirms our leadership in the industry."

Further details about the award are on the SupplyTech Breakthrough website at https://supplytechbreakthrough.com/.

For additional information on TraceLink's award-winning Multienterprise Information Network Tower solution and other end-to-end digital supply chain solutions contact us .

About TraceLink Inc.:

TraceLink Inc. is the leading digital network platform company, enabling end-to-end supply chain orchestration by connecting more than 291,000 healthcare and life sciences entities through its B2N Integrate-Once network. Leading businesses trust TraceLink to deliver complete global connectivity, visibility, and traceability of healthcare products, ensuring that every patient gets the medicines they need when needed, safely and securely.

About SupplyTech Breakthrough:

Fast Company is the only media brand fully dedicated to the vital intersection of business, innovation, and design, engaging the most influential leaders, companies, and thinkers on the future of business. Headquartered in New York City, Fast Company is published by Mansueto Ventures LLC, along with our sister publication Inc., and can be found online at www.fastcompany.com.

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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Temas Resources Corp. ("Temas" or the "Company") (CSE:TMAS);(OTCQB:TMASF) announced today the resignation of director Rory Kutluoglu and the appointment of Veronique Laberge to fill the vacancy on the Company's board of directors effective immediately.

Rory Kutluoglu had served as a director of the Company from 2020. The Company would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Kutluoglu for his valuable contributions during his tenure.

"We are grateful for Rory Kutluoglu's significant contributions during his time on Temas' board of directors and wish him all the best with his future endeavors," said Tim Fernbeck, CEO of Temas. "We are excited to announce the appointment of Veronique Laberge to fill this vacancy. Veronique brings a wealth of financial experience across both public and private companies that will prove invaluable as we continue to execute on our strategic plans."

Ms. Veronique Laberge is a Chartered Professional Accountant and holder of the title of auditor. With more than 18 years of experience in professional practice, she specialized in certification mandates, general accounting and has been working as a fractional CFO for multiple public and private companies since 2018.

The Company also announces the grant of 125,000 options to Ms. Laberge with 25% vesting on December 13, 2024 and the balance vesting in equal portions every 6 months thereafter. The options have a strike price of $0.29 and a term of 48 months.

About Temas Resources

Temas Resources Corp. is focused on the advanced La Blache and Lac Brule Iron-Titanium-Vanadium projects in Quebec. The critical metals the Company is exploring for are key to our national mineral independence. Additionally, the Company invests in and works to apply its green mineral recovery technologies across its mining portfolio to reduce the environmental impact and carbon footprint of metal extraction through advanced processing and patented leaching technologies.

All public filings for the Company can be found on the SEDAR+ website www.sedarplus.ca. For more information about the Company, please visit www.temasresources.com.

For further information or investor relations inquiries:

Tim Fernback

President and CEO

tfernback@shaw.ca

or



KIN Communications Inc.

Tel: 604-684-6730

tmas@kincommunications.com

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor the Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE: Temas Resources Corp.

View the original press release on accesswire.com
A former employee of Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price is accusing the DA of anti-Asian discrimination and wrongful termination for speaking out against the deletion of public records in a lawsuit. Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle 2023

In a suit filed Wednesday, a former spokesperson for Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price accused Price of making racist comments about Asian Americans and directing the destruction of public records.

Patricia Patti Lee was fired from her job at the district attorneys office in December as retaliation for her objection to the destruction of public records within the DAs office, according to a lawsuit filed in Alameda County Superior Court.

Lee, a former Bay Area TV reporter, is asking the court to award her compensation for general damages, civil penalties, punitive damages and special damages, among other things.

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During her stint at the DAs office, the filing said, it was well-known that Price showed racial animus toward people of East Asian descent.

Racist comments were commonplace and were made frequently by defendant Pamela Price, the filing said. In fact, Defendant Pamela Price would frequently utter audible remarks under her breath in front of Ms. Lee about how she suspected Ms. Lee was leaking information to the press and working with Asian American activists, including Carl Chan of Save Alameda For Everyone, who was actively seeking to recall Defendant Pamela Price.

The filing said Lees termination stemmed from her refusal to withhold records when journalists filed public records requests for access to communications within the district attorneys office related to a decision by the DA to boot Berkeley Scanner editor in chief Emilie Raguso from a news conference in November. Ragusos removal from the event sparked an outcry from fellow journalists and free speech advocates. Days later, Price reinstated Raguso on her press list.

However, the news media requested public records from the DAs office about the decision to bar Raguso from the news conference.

When Lee began searching for the records to respond to the various public records requests it became evident that instead of producing responsive records to (California Public Records Act) requests, the Alameda County District Attorney chose instead to hide, delete, and change the records, according to the suit.

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The suit said that when Lee received her termination notice, it did not specify why she was fired. The real reason for Ms. Lees termination will be plainly evident to any jury who we are confident will find that Ms. Lee was terminated as a result of racial discrimination against her protected status as an Asian American and whistleblower retaliation, the filing said.
BERLIN, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Flor de Cana, the renowned premium rum brand celebrated for its exceptional quality and unwavering commitment to sustainability, received the unprecedented distinction of being honored with two awards at the prestigious German Brand Awards 2024: "Excellent Brands Award - Consumer Goods" and "Special Mention - Product Brand of the Year". Flor de Cana received these awards thanks to the quality and excellence of its products and its leadership in sustainable practices.

Flor de Cana has an award-winning portfolio of premium rums that are aged naturally, without sugar or artificial ingredients, in bourbon barrels for up to 30 years to obtain their exceptionally smooth flavor. Some of its most known expressions include Flor de Cana 12 Year, Flor de Cana 18 Year and Flor de Cana 25 Year.

As a family-owned brand that dates back to 1890, Flor de Cana has long championed environmental and social responsibility. These awards reaffirm the brand's dedication to sustainable practices, such as being the world's first Carbon Neutral and Fair Trade certified spirit, distilling its rum with 100% renewable energy, planting one million trees since 2005 and owning company school and hospital for benefit of employees and their families.

The German Brand Awards celebrate outstanding brand work across all industries, evaluating criteria such as brand identity, sustainability, and overall market performance. For any company, receiving a German Brand Award is a testament to their commitment to excellence, bolstering their reputation and reinforcing their position as a leader in their respective field.

About Flor de Cana

Flor de Cana is a premium rum brand and the world's first Carbon Neutral and Fair Trade certified spirit. From an 1890 family estate, it's distilled with 100% renewable energy and naturally aged at the base of an active volcano without sugar or artificial ingredients. The brand is recognized as a global leader in sustainability, receiving distinctions such as "World's Most Sustainable Rum Brand" (USA), "Ethical Award" (UK) and "Sustainable Spirits Producer" (France). www.flordecana.com

Contact: corporatecommunications@flordecana.com

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Merlin, a Boston, MA-based autonomous flight technology for fixed-wing aircraft, is to acquire EpiSys Science, a Poway, CA-based software AI and autonomy company delivering solutions for dual-use applications.

The amount of the deal was not disclosed.

Led by Bo Ryu, Founder and CEO, EpiSci develops next generation, tactical autonomy solutions for national security problems. EpiScis autonomy software is hardware agnostic, operationally informed, tactically relevant, and has piloted swarms of uncrewed aerial and maritime systems and tactical fighter aircraft. Additional applications include human-machine teaming for air dominance, cognitive sensors, networks for advanced communications systems, and battle management command and control for informed decision-making.

Led by CEO Matt George, Merlin is building a platform-adaptable advanced automation system to perpetuate a resilient air network. The company has offices in Denver and flight test facilities in Mojave, CA and Kerikeri, New Zealand.

With this strategic move, Merlin will solidify its position as the frontrunner in the autonomous aviation industry. Together the combined entity expands the suite of supported platforms to over 23 unique types, including operations on the X-62 VISTA, Cessna Caravan, F-16, L-29 Delfin, Berkut 540, C130J Super Hercules, KC-135 Stratotanker, multiple Unmanned Surface Vessels (USV), and small Unmanned Aerial Systems (sUAS).

FinSMEs

13/06/2024
With Annu Kapoor, Manoj Joshi, and Paritosh Tripathi in the lead roles, Hamare Baarah has been the talk of the town ever since its announcement. Fans are clamoring for more after the teaser was recently released, raising the anticipation to a fever pitch.

However, Karnataka government has banned the screening of the Hindi movie for at least two weeks after some Muslim organisations raised concerns. In an order, the government stalled the release of the film and its trailer in electronic media, social media, film theatres, private television channels or other media.

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And in an exclusive interview with Firstpost, one of the films actresses Ankita Dwivedi spoke about why the plot has collectively triggered the nation, receiving abuses and death threats, and and what exactly the film is about.

Edited excerpts from the interview

We all know the basic theme of Hamare Baarah, i ts about overpopulation; still if you could give us an elaborate idea about the plot and why it is that so many people have got triggered all of a sudden

So Hamare Baarah is a story set in Lucknow, and its about a woman named Rukhsaar, which Im named. And she got married to Ustad Manzoor Ali Khan, which is played by Annu Kapoor. And she was very young. At the age of 18, she got married to this man whos three decades older than her. And for, like, some years now, she has born four children. And now, again, shes pregnant with her 5th child, which now puts her life at risk. So now, the story revolves around how the suffering of this woman is taken care by her family, how she struggles through it. The story has these 12 characters where theres only 1 breadwinner in the family whos the father and 11 other people who are unemployed. So it kind of becomes a vicious cycle where, since hes not sending them to school and not giving them education, theyre not educated. They cant get jobs. So theyre dependent on the father, and the father is earning a very meagre like, very little wage. And hence, it kind of revolves around the family drama where all of this is happening. Regarding the trigger, Im not sure why everyone is triggered by it because they havent seen the film yet. If you actually watch the film, you would realize that it is about a womans journey, the sheer will power of women. It is also about motherhood, if you say. Like how usually women are expected to cater to the family, and they do cater to the family most of the time. The mothers, they all discharge their duties towards their children and the family. And because a womans work is not quantifiable its all straight taken for granted. So a lot of issues regarding that is also covered in movie.

The Karnataka government stalled the release of the film and even the trailer. When you make a film on a subject that is so crucial and relevant, do you ask yourself why the ban?

Definitely. The ban was very unexpected because the High Court also has given it a green flag. So I dont think something bigger could have been done about it if the High Court has given it a green flag. But were still hopeful that, after the film is released and people watch it and reviews pour down, the ban would be lifted.

This is not the first time a film has faced so many issues prior to its release. Where does freedom of speech and expression stand in our country? Do you feel people should have the right to tell stories they want to say or also keep the sensitivity of others in mind?

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See, I believe that freedom of speech and, freedom to speak your mind and artistic freedom is every persons right. It, of course, should be put in a very sensible way because you cannot downright, lets say, if I talk about myself, after the teaser was released, we got the team and I got a lot of threats and abuses and curses. So when I was facing that issue, I realized that there can always be a kinder way to put your thought forward. If you dont like something that has been put out, theres a way to approach it. So I think, of course, sensibility is very important, and, were not here to hurt anyone. We are just here to put out what we feel, in a very sensible way.

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How did you prepare for your character?

This prep was very, very interesting because, I had to play a woman whos, like, 10 to 15 years older than me, and, of course, shes going through pregnancy. So for the pregnancy part, I went to my mother. I talked to her. Like, what did you go through while you were pregnant. And very luckily, my, cook, she comes to my house, and she was pregnant at that time. So I had to ask her, like, how does it feel when youre also working a year in the 7th month of your pregnancy. And she told me that it its very hard because the woman is going through mood swings. The body is also giving up a lot of times, and yet you have to keep on working. You work at the other. You work at the person youre employed at, and then you have to go back and cook for your husband. And for also the journey that Rukhsaar went through, I went to a lot of women in Lucknow and in Mumbai who had a very similar family background and issues that my character had. So when I was talking to them, I realized that its not just Rukhsaar or this character whos the only character in this movie that is facing what she is going through.
Salmans statement was recorded for nearly four hours, while his brothers statement was recorded for more than two hours, the official said read more

Mumbai Police has recorded statements of Bollywood star Salman Khan and his actor brother Arbaaz Khan in connection with the incident of firing outside the familys residence here in April, an official said on Wednesday.

A four-member crime branch team visited Galaxy Apartments in Bandra, where Salman lives, on June 4, he said.

Salman s statement was recorded for nearly four hours, while his brothers statement was recorded for more than two hours, the official said.

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Two motorbike-borne men fired multiple rounds outside Salman Khans residence in the early hours of April 14.

While recording their statements, the crime branch officials asked Salman and Arbaaz around 150 questions, the official said.

Salman Khan has taken the incident seriously, realising that there was a threat to his life, and appreciated the efforts taken by the Mumbai police to nab the culprits, he said.

In his statement, Salman told police that he was home on the day of the incident, having returned late at night.

The sound of a bullet which hit his flats balcony woke him up, the official said, citing the statement.

Arbaaz Khan was at his Juhu residence at the time, but his statement too was recorded as he was aware of the history of threats issued by the Lawrence Bishnoi gang to Salman, the official said.

Police have claimed that the Bishnoi gang was behind the incident.

The gang had issued threats to Salman Khan in the past, but so far its members have not tried to extort money from the actor, the police official said.

Vicky Gupta and Sagar Pal, alleged shooters involved in the April 14 firing incident, were subsequently arrested from Gujarat.

A total of six persons were arrested in the case.

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One of them, Anuj Thapan, allegedly hanged himself in police lock-up on May 1.

In a separate case, Navi Mumbai Police earlier this month arrested five persons, including an alleged member of Bishnoi and Goldier Brar gangs from Haryana, in connection with a plot to attack Salman Khan.

Four gang members had recced Khans farmhouse in Panvel, the area around his home in Bandra, and places he visited for film shooting, police had said.

Lawrence Bishnoi is currently lodged in the Sabarmati Central Prison in Gujarats Ahmedabad in a different case and Mumbai police will now move a court to seek his custody, the official said.

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His brother Anmol, believed to be in Canada, has been shown as a wanted accused in the firing case.
The Post-Graduate Work Permit (PGWP) allows students who graduate from designated learning institutions to stay in Canada and work  albeit temporarily. Canadas government wants to restrict the scheme to only those graduates who will work in fields facing labour shortages. Experts say students should increase their chances of obtaining the permit by choosing specialised courses rather than general fields read more

Canadas federal government has asked provincial governments to align PGWP eligibility with labour market needs while reducing the overall volume of PGWP holders. Representational image

Canada could be changing its Post-Graduate Work Permit (PGWP)  and Indian students may be affected.

The programme allows students who graduate to remain in the country to work.

But what do we know about the programme? What is the government doing? And how will Indian students be impacted?

Lets take a closer look:

What is it?

The programme lets students who graduate from certain institutions remain in Canada to work  albeit temporarily.

According to the Government of Canada website, students who graduate from a masters degree programme of less than two years can apply for a PGWP.

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They are eligible for a three-year permit.

The duration of the PGWP depends on the level and duration of your study programme or the expiry date of your passport  whichever comes first.

The student must fulfil certain criteria.

According to The Times of India, the student must have enrolled full-time student at a designated learning institution (DLI).

The student must be at least 18 years of age.

The programme that he or she enrolled in must be at least eight months.

Spouses and common-law partners of PGWP holders may also apply for the permit.

Representational image. Reuters

Its validity is as long as the partners work authorisation period.

The time spent studying online at a DLI from outside Canada between March 2020 and 31 August, 2022, is considered as part of the PGWP.

Time spent studying outside of Canada after 31 December, 2023, and time spent studying before applying for a permit do not count towards the PGWP, as per the newspaper.

According to the Canada government website, if the passport expires before the PGWP:

It will issue a PGWP valid only till the passport expires

It will tell you if the passport needs to be extended

What is the Canada government doing?

According to Indian Express, Canadas federal government has asked provincial governments to align PGWP eligibility with labour market needs while reducing the overall volume of PGWP holders.

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The newspaper quoted from an Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) briefing paper stating that work isunderway to re-align the [PGWP] program to better meet targeted labour market needs and immigration objectives.

In essence, the government wants to restrict the scheme to only those graduates who will work in fields facing labour shortages.

The Canadian government basically wants to tamp down on legal immigration.

The paper noted that 40 per cent of study permit holders were from India, 10 per cent from China and five per cent from the Philippines.

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The PGWP increased by 214% in 2023 compared to 2018, the paper noted.

According to CIC News, advice on this issue will be provided by the Minister in spring 2024, with the goal of implementing changes in January 2025.

Will Indian students be impacted?

Yes, if it goes through.

Experts told the newspaper candidates would do well to choose skill-based, specialised programs rather than general courses.

This would help them get the PGWP as well as a visa.

Sumit Jain, a Jalandhar-based consultant, said students should specialise in areas such as accountancy or culinary arts.

He also recommended sciences, banking, nursing, engineering, IT, biosciences, marketing and management, human resources, artificial intelligence, business intelligence, cloud architecture, security analysis, and pharmacy as good subjects to choose.

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Stay updated on thriving industries, and pursue formal education and training in desired fields to maximize chances of obtaining PGWP and eventual Permanent Residency (PR) in Canada, Gurpreet Singh of I-Can consultancy, said.

It is crucial to align course selection with job demand, and to stay informed about potential changes to immigration policies, he added.

Some are unhappy with the move.

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The ICEF Monitor on their website said such a move would rise to a new level of recklessness for policy makers in Canada.

In a year of challenging market signals, with considerable confusion and uncertainty already introduced for students and their families, any PGWP changes introduced with immediate effect would be extremely damaging to Canadas brand as an international study destination. This would not only have a profound impact on foreign enrolment in Canada, but would also undermine Canadas position on the global stage, and its ability to attract the skills and talents of the worlds students, the website stated.

The website warned such a move risks undermining one of the countrys top export sectors, and placing the industry in a position from which it could take years to recover.

With inputs from agencies
Raising the tenure of Agniveers from four to eight years, retaining 60 to 70 per cent of troops and increasing the age of recruits to 23 for those in technical services such as signals, air defence and engineering are being considered. This comes after an internal survey of all three forces suggested that changes need to be made to improve cohesion and expertise among Agniveers read more

Two batches of 40,000 Agniveers are serving in the Indian Army. PTI

The Indian Army might recommend several changes to the Agniveer scheme.

According to several media reports, the development comes after an internal survey of all three forces.

The BJPs National Democratic Alliance allies the Janata Dal (United) and Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) earlier asked for a relook at the scheme introduced by the Centre in 2022.

Two batches of 40,000 Agniveers are serving in the Indian Army.

Three batches of 7,385 Agniveers having completed training in the Indian Navy, and 4,955 Agniveer Vayu trainees are in the Air Force.

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So what happened? And what changes are being considered?

Lets take a closer look:

What happened?

According to Indian Express, the Indian Army carried out an internal survey about the Agniveer scheme.

The Indian Army has taken input from Agniveers, their unit and sub-unit commanders as well as the recruiting and training staff at army regimental centres.

The survey had around 10 questions.

Recruiters were asked why Agniveers sign up and their enthusiasm for doing so.

They were also queried on the Agniveers general awareness levels, the level of applicants and how aspirants from rural and urban areas have responded to the entrance examination being taken online.

They were also asked about the schemes effect on recruitment.

The regimental training staff were also asked about the physical attributes of the Agniveers compared to previous recruits.

Youngsters do physical exercises for the Agniveer recruitment rally at Morhabadi ground in Ranchi.PTI

They were also asked about their induction, training and educational standards, the effect of struggling for limited slots in the Indian Army on their conduct and their relationship.

The survey also asked Agniveers why they chose to enroll in the army, what other options they tried and if all Agniveers should be inducted into the armed forces.

They were also asked their future ambitions after four years of service  that is if they prefer to remain in the army or search for opening elsewhere including in the paramilitary forces.

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They survey also asks whether they will recommend the Agniveer scheme to friends and family, as per Indian Express.

What changes are being considered?

According to New Indian Express, raising the tenure of Agniveers to eight years is being considered.

Unlike recruits in the Indian Army, Agniveers are only hired on a contractual basis for four years.

The Indian Army is also considering keeping 60 to 70 per cent of Agniveers.

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Only 25 per cent of Agniveers are inducted into the armed forces presently.

The rest 75 per cent are given a certificate and Rs 12 lakh, as per News9.

Raising the induction age to 23 for those in technical services like signals, air defence and engineers is also being contemplated.

Right now, only youth between 17-and-a-half years to 21 years are inducted under the scheme.

Other recommendations include sanctioning ex-gratia for a disability developed during training, exit management under a professional agency and a subsistence allowance to a family of Agniveer killed in action.

According to News9, the Indian Army has also recommended setting up an agency to help Agniveers find jobs in civilian life.

Why is this happening?

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Because the feedback indicates certain shortcomings as a result of the scheme.

A source told New Indian Express the response includes the lack of on-the-job training which is seen as leading to inexperience and inadequate expertise.

Adversaries on northern (China) and western (Pakistan) sectors are increasing their synergies and jointness. So, the time is right to make amendments in the scheme, an army officer added.

The four-year term of service is thought to make the Agniveers compete with each other for limited slots rather than work as a team.

It is also necessary to improve the Agniveer scheme.

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Sources told Financial Express if the scheme is halted, the Indian Army will face a shortfall when it comes to the number of staff under the rank of officer.

It could take more than a decade to make up these numbers.

Hence, strengthening the scheme will help induct soldiers faster and provide wide-ranging training.

A source told the newspaper, The experience issue can be resolved with a slight change. Personnel recruited under the old recruitment scheme generally retired at the age of 35. Those who were promoted to the rank of Subedar Major retired at the age of 52. They were experienced and fully trained in every operational skill and drill.

In May, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi claimed that the Army opposes the scheme.

But ex-army chief VK Singh in April had said the opposite.

Ex-army chief VK Singh. FILE/PTI.

The first batch of the Agniveer Yojana has now started arriving in Army units. From the reports I am getting, everyone is satisfied that the boys have been trained well, Singh said.

But Rahul isnt alone.

The BJPs NDA allies have also voiced concerns about the scheme.

Chirag Paswan told NDTV, Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) has said the platform is open for discussions. I believe that we must revisit how much we could deliver through Agniveer, because this is something related to the youth of our country. A review must be done. But these things can be kept on hold for a while, government formation is happening and after that, we can sit and discuss these things.

The JD(U) said it wanted shortcomings in the scheme to be discussed.

A section of voters has been upset over the Agniveer scheme. Our party wants those shortcomings which have been questioned by the public to be discussed in detail and removedOn UCC, as the national president of the party, CM had written to the Law Commission chief. We are not against it but a solution should be found by talking to all stakeholders, JD(U) spokesperson KC Tyagi told News18.

The Times of India quoted Bihar deputy chief minister Samrat as saying, Rajnath Singh ji had given a statement on this and had stated about review (if needed)

The Hindu reported that Bihar would have Indian Army recruitment rallies yearly.

The state, in the three years prior to 2022, contributed around 10,000 soldiers to the Indian Army.

Students would even form groups of 50 to 60 to train for the army in every village.

Thus the interest of the JD(U) in the scheme.

Defence minister Rajnath Singh in March said the Centre is open to change.

Sena mein youthfulness honi chahiye. The youth, I feel, are more enthusiastic. They are more tech-savvy. We have taken proper care that their future is also secure. We will also make changes if there is a need, Singh said.

Home minister Amit Shah also previously announced that the retiring Agniveers would get first preference for recruitment into the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) and Assam Rifles.

With inputs from agencies
Chinas armed fishing militia, known as the Peoples Armed Forces Maritime Militia (PAFMM) by the US Department of Defense, is a crucial component of Beijings strategy to assert its sovereignty claims in the South China Sea and East China Sea. We explore its origins and the role it plays in doing the countrys bidding at sea read more

Chinese Coast Guard vessels fire water cannons towards a Philippine resupply vessel as it made its way to the Second Thomas Shoal in the South China Sea, 4 March, 2024. File Image/Reuters

Chinas maritime militia, often disguised as simple fishing boats, is a crucial but rarely acknowledged part of Beijings strategy to assert its territorial claims in the South China Sea. In May 2024, Chinese fishing boats began swarming the Scarborough Shoal, located within the Philippines exclusive economic zone.

These vessels were not there to fish but to counter a Philippine aid flotilla intended to deliver supplies to fishers near the disputed shoal. The Chinese boats, part of a maritime militia, successfully deterred the Philippine mission.

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The maritime militia has a long history in the region, with its key role in seizing Scarborough Shoal in 2012 marking one of the most high-profile territorial disputes in the South China Sea. This strategic waterway has become a flashpoint due to its economic and military significance, with dangerous clashes becoming commonplace.

What is the Chinese maritime militia?

The Peoples Armed Forces Maritime Militia (PAFMM) evolved from a military necessity post-civil war to protect Chinas coastline. Initially composed of untrained fishermen, the militia has grown into a sophisticated force conducting gray zone operationsactions designed to establish control over contested waters without triggering open conflict.

These operations include providing armed escort for Chinese fishing vessels, intimidating commercial vessels from other nations, and deterring foreign coast guards and navies.

A Philippine supply boat sails near a Chinese Coast Guard ship during a resupply mission for Filipino troops stationed at a grounded warship in the South China Sea, 4 October, 2023. Reuters

The PAFMM has been instrumental in various geopolitical standoffs, including the 1974 capture of the Paracel Islands, the 2009 USNS Impeccable incident, and the 2012 Scarborough Shoal clash. Each of these events underscores the militias role in advancing Chinas territorial interests while avoiding direct military confrontation.

What comprises the maritime militia?

The maritime militia, a civilian-military force, has existed for decades but has become more professional and militarised under Chinese President Xi Jinpings leadership since 2012. It consists of two main forces: a professional fleet of at least 100 purpose-built boats resembling fishing vessels and a larger fleet known as the Spratly Backbone Fishing Vessels (SBFV).

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The professional fleet, equipped with military-grade equipment, is usually visible on satellite tracking platforms swarming disputed locations. The SBFV fleet is more difficult to spot due to lower-grade or non-existent satellite transmitters.

Also called the Fishing Militia, it operates a mixture of purpose-built maritime militia fishing vessels (MMFV) and regular fishing boats recruited via government subsidies. Most boats are 45 to 65 meters long, and the fleet is mainly owned by private individuals rather than the government. Although the militia is independent from the PLAN and the CCG, it is trained by both and operates from ports within Guangdong and Hainan Provinces.

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Chinese maritime militia vessels by location. CSIS/AMTI

Crews in both fleets are believed to include civilian fishers, sailors, and ex-military personnel recruited through government training programs. South China Sea expert Greg Poling, director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI), told The Guardian that these vessels tend to have smaller crews of about five to six when engaging in militia activities.

How are Chinas maritime militia funded?

The maritime militia is primarily funded through government subsidies, with some personnel receiving full-time salaries from state-owned companies. The SBFV crews also benefit from lucrative government fuel subsidies for militia missions, which disincentives them from regular fishing.

Also Read: How Vietnam is growing bigger by building islands in South China Sea

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A 2021 investigative report by the AMTI confirmed the militia is organised, funded, and directed by the Chinese government, holding Beijing legally responsible for its actions, which violate several tenets of international law. Although the Chinese government rarely acknowledges the militias activities, it defends operations like those at Scarborough Shoal as rights protections.

How does the militia operate?

The militia operates across the South China Sea, the Yellow Sea, and the exclusive economic zones of Indonesia, Vietnam, and Malaysia. The fleets conduct intrusive journeys through foreign waters, blockade disputed reefs and islands, and have engaged in dangerous maneuvers and used water cannons against other vessels. The professional fleet is typically called upon first for aggressive operations.

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While usually unarmed, the militia employs dangerous maneuvers such as ramming and shouldering other vessels. Professional militia vessels are equipped with navigation and communication equipment and sometimes small arms. Some units also have naval mines and anti-aircraft weapons. This increasing sophistication makes the militia more identifiable as a government-sponsored force, which can complicate its gray zone operations.

A peak of militia vessels can be seen at Mischief Reef, 4 August, 2023. CSIS/AMTI

Analysts say that the professional fleet is a direct threat, but smaller. The SBFV fleet is larger but a nuisance, suggesting that governments must respond to these threats differently, treating the professional fleet as a military threat and the SBFV fleet as a law enforcement problem.

What has the international reaction been?

World governments and bodies have repeatedly condemned Chinas behavior in the South China Sea, including the actions of the maritime militia. The United States, a treaty ally of the Philippines, has accused the militia of violating international law to enforce its unlawful maritime claims.

Also Read: Philippines Prez looks to India for regional stability amid South China Sea tensions

The Philippines, frequently targeted by militia activities, remains determined to pursue lawful activities in its maritime zones. China was willing to do crazy stuff and everyone backed down [in the past]. But now theyre not, and like a school bully, China doesnt know what to do now, Poling observes.

Why are they crucial to Beijing?

The PAFMMs deniability and ability to establish a ground-level presence make it a valuable tool for China. Over the past two decades, China has established a permanent and militarised footprint in the South China Sea, partly due to the PAFMMs actions. The militia helps maintain Chinas claims in contested waters, which are critical to Beijings broader maritime strategy.

Chinas maritime militia serves as a gray zone force, allowing Beijing to exert control over disputed areas without escalating to open conflict. The militias actions create legal and diplomatic ambiguity, complicating responses from other nations.

Chinese ships are seen during a search and rescue exercise near Qilian Yu subgroup in the Paracel Islands, which is known in China as Xisha Islands, South China Sea, 14 July, 2016. Reuters

This strategic utility was demonstrated during incidents like the 2021 Whitsun Reef surge, where over 200 militia vessels moored off a disputed reef, drawing official complaints from the Philippines.

Chinas maritime militia is a sophisticated and strategically significant force that plays a crucial role in Beijings efforts to assert control over the South China Sea. Despite international condemnation, the militia continues to operate with substantial government support.

With inputs from agencies
Residents in parts of Delhi have to queue up around water tankers to meet their daily needs. The water crisis, exacerbated by intense heatwaves, has come to bite Delhiites again this year. But why is the problem so frequent? read more

A girl fills water in a water cooler using a hose from a water tank attached to a three-wheeler cart on a hot summer day during a heatwave in New Delhi, on 3 June 2024. Reuters File Photo

Delhi is again grappling with a water shortage. The situation has been worsened by the ensuing heatwave in the National Capital. Residents in several areas including Chanakyapuri and Geeta Colony in East Delhi continue to witness long queues around water tankers due to issues in piped water supply.

On Thursday (13 June), the Supreme Court directed the Delhi government to approach the Upper Yamuna River Board (UYRB) for water supply. This came after the Himachal Pradesh government took a U-turn in the court and withdrew its earlier statement of the availability of surplus water for the National Capital.

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What is going on? How does Delhi get its water? Why is there a recurring water crisis in the city? Lets understand.

Delhi govts case in SC

The Delhi government moved the Supreme Court on 31 May seeking urgent orders to Haryana and Himachal Pradesh to release more water for the National Capital amid a shortage of the resource due to a surge in demand during extreme heat.

Last week, the apex court directed the Himachal Pradesh government to release 137 cusecs of surplus water to Delhi and asked Haryana to facilitate the waters flow, noting that the drinking water crisis has become an existential problem in the National Capital.

Himachal Pradesh chief minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu reportedly told the media on Wednesday that his state has released water. We have released water. We have asked advocates to inform the Supreme Court about this. The water we have released, we are ready to give that water. There are no ifs and buts, NDTV quoted him as saying.

However, the Himachal government told the apex court in a submission on Thursday (13 June) that its earlier statement on the availability of 137 cusecs of water was not correct and it sought permission to withdraw the statement, reported Indian Express.

A vacation bench of Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and Prasanna B Varale asked the Delhi government to submit its application for water supply on humanitarian grounds to the Upper Yamuna River Board by 5 pm on 13 June.

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A day back, the apex court had told the Delhi government to take action against the water tanker mafia or it would direct the Delhi Police to rein in such elements. The court also blamed wastage of water for the chronic shortage in the city, reported The Hindu.

Delhis water sources

Delhi relies on its neighbouring states of Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh to fulfill 90 per cent of its demand for drinking water.

The city receives most of its water from the Yamuna, Ravi-Beas, and Ganga rivers. As per an Indian Express report, Delhi gets 470 cusecs (roughly 254 MGD or millions of gallons per day) of water from the Ganga through the Upper Ganga Canal in Uttar Pradesh.

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Locals collect water in Vasant Vihar amid water shortage in Delhi on 13 June 2024. PTI

Two channels  the Carrier Lined Channel (CLC) and the Delhi Sub Branch (DSB)  that enter Delhi from Haryana supply 1,049 cusecs of water to the city from the Yamuna and Ravi-Beas rivers, the report added.

The Delhi Jal Board (DJB) also draws water directly from the Yamuna. Groundwater sources like ranney wells and tube wells also make up 13 per cent of Delhis raw water supply, providing about 135 MGD, reported Indian Express.

ALSO READ: Delhis Dark Day: Why the national capital faced a power outage for hours

Why is Delhi reeling from water crisis again?

Around two crore residents of Delhi need an estimated 1290 MGD during peak summers, according to the Economic Survey for 2023-24. However, the Jal Board can provide only 1,000 MGD, thus triggering a shortage in several areas.

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As per the Indian Express report, the crisis recurred as the water treatment plant (WTP) in North Delhis Wazirabad ran below its capacity from 12-14 May, and then from 18 May to 1 June. This was the period when Delhi witnessed excessive heat, driving up the temperatures and increasing the demand for water.

The Wazirabad WTP has a capacity of 131 MGD. However, its production plunged to 102.9 MGD in May, returning to track only in June.

The other eight WTPs of DJB often functioned above their capacity, barring some days. However, even when all WTPs work at their full capacity, the DJB is unable to meet the citys water requirement during the scorching heat .

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The DJBs Summer Bulletin showed that Delhis total water production was between 977.79 and 993.76 million gallons per day from 21 to 31 May, reported Indian Express.

According to the India Meteorological Department (IMD), Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, and Delhi saw rainfall deficits from 1 to 24 May.

Inadequate rainfall led to lower Yamuna water levels due to which the DJB could not directly draw water from the Wazirabad reservoir, an official told Indian Express.

People wait for a water tanker in New Ashok Nagar amid a water crisis in Delhi, on 12 June 2024. PTI

This problem of water shortage in Delhi is not new. As per ABC News, years of population growth, drought and mismanagement have exacerbated the citys water woes. Experts blame Delhis massive urbanisation in recent decades by neglecting the citys natural water resources for the crisis.

Unregulated extraction of water is also an issue in the city. Groundwater in 15 of Delhis 27 administrative divisions is reportedly overexploited.

In its Dynamic Groundwater Resources of India 2023 report last year, the Central Groundwater Board (CGWB) said that about 41.49 per cent of Delhis 1,487.61 square kilometres area is over-exploited due to the over-extraction of groundwater. This further enhances the depletion of the water table.

As summer comes and the demand for water increases, it is mostly the underprivileged who bear the brunt of Delhis water crisis.

With inputs from agencies
The G7 Summit, happening in Puglia, Italy, from 13-15 June, will cover key issues like the Ukraine conflict, Middle East tensions, climate change, and migration. We explain the context of these agenda points, and why India has been invited again despite not being a G7 member nation read more

The G7 Summit, scheduled to take place from 13-15 June in Italys picturesque Puglia region, comes at a critical time. The world is grappling with multiple crises, including the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza, and significant political events in the G7 countries themselves, with leaders like US President Joe Biden, Frances Emmanuel Macron, and Britains Rishi Sunak facing elections (and potential losses) soon.

The summits agenda reflects these circumstances, and other global challenges. Like in 2023, invitation has been extended to certain non-G7 nations, including India. We explain the agenda items of the summit and explore why India has been invited again.

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On the G7 summit agenda

According to the official G7 Italy website, The summit will address a range of pressing global issues through six key working sessions:

Africa, climate change and development Middle East Ukraine Migrations Indo-Pacific and economic security Outreach Session with invited nations and international organisations on Africa, the Mediterranean, artificial intelligence, and energy.

We dig deeper into each of these agenda points.

Flags of the G7 countries alongside the flag of European Union (EU). Reuters

Ukraine war in focus

The conflict in Ukraine remains a focal point for the Group of Seven countries, four of which are in Europe. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will participate in discussions, urging for more substantial support from Western allies.

The G7 leaders hope to finalise a deal to use profits from the interest on 300 billion of frozen Russian central bank assets to aid Kyiv. The plan involves using these profits as collateral for a loan of up to $50 billion, though technicalities regarding debt issuance and potential unfreezing of assets in a peace scenario remain contentious.

Focus on stopping the war in Gaza

The G7 will also focus on the Middle East, particularly the Gaza conflict. US President Joe Biden has proposed a plan for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the release of hostages, increased aid for Gaza, and a comprehensive peace deal ensuring the security of both Israel and Gaza residents. The G7 countries, including those in the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), have already accepted this resolution.

For these countries, stopping the war in Gaza is crucial because of several reasons, including domestic and international pressure, the need prevent a spillover from the conflict in the oil-rich region, and to prevent collateral damage such as attacks on ships in the Red Sea.

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Importance of the Indo-Pacific for G7

The Indo-Pacific is of strategic significance, particularly for Japan, the only G7 member located in the region. These countries are formulating policies to engage more deeply with this region, recognising its economic potential and the strategic challenge posed by Chinas expanding influence.

China has become a more active force in the Indo-Pacific area in recent years. Reuters

European G7 members, including the UK, France, Germany, and Italy, have shown increasing interest in the Indo-Pacific, aiming to capitalise on economic opportunities and address regional security concerns.

Climate change

Climate change remains a key issue, especially as none of the G7 members are on track to meet their 2030 emission reduction targets. The G7 aims for a 40-42 per cent emission reduction by 2030, but current policies suggest only a 19-33 per cent reduction is likely. This shortfall highlights the need for stronger leadership from the worlds richest nations, responsible for a significant share of global emissions.

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The summit will seek to reinforce commitments and explore new strategies to meet climate goals, with a particular focus on phasing out coal-fired power plants by the mid-2030s.

The importance of Africa for Meloni

Africa is a priority for Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the summit host. She aims to position Italy as a key clean-energy link between the EU and Africa, reducing dependency on Russian gas.

The Mattei plan, a cornerstone of her foreign policy, involves significant investments in African infrastructure, development, and energy.

Since taking power in late 2022, Meloni has made the Mattei plan a cornerstone of her foreign policy Image Courtesy Reuters

On the face of it, this initiative also seeks to address Africas development needs. However, analysts believe that Meloni may use the investment as leverage to get African nations to curb migration and take back migrants who Italy cannot take in.

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Migration

Obviously, migration is a critical agenda item for Melonis government, which has implemented strict measures to curb arrivals while expanding legal immigration channels to address labour shortages. Melonis strategy includes forging agreements with African nations to prevent migrants from leaving and to accept the return of failed asylum seekers. The summit will discuss these strategies and seek broader cooperation to manage migration effectively.

In the backdrop are also the Rwanda Deportation Bill in the UK, and Melonis similar agreement with Albania to manage migrants.

Why India has been invited again

The G7 is a group of countries with advanced economies. With a GDP of $3.94 trillion, India boasts an economy larger than four G7 members (Canada, France, Italy, and the UK) and is one of the fastest-growing economies worldwide.

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Indias GDP in real prices in 2024 stood at $3.94 trillion, ahead of four G7 economies. Data source: International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Indias strategic partnerships with multiple G7 countries, including the US, UK, France, Germany, and Japan, further underscore its significance.

Additionally, India plays a crucial role in the Indo-Pacific region, serving as a counterbalance to Chinas assertiveness. Its improving relations with Italy, coupled with its longstanding ties with Russia and numerous African nations, position India as a key player in discussions on economic security, geopolitical stability, and development.

In addition to India, several other leaders from non-G7 member countries have been invited to the summit. These include President Recep Tayyip Erdogan from Turkey; Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva; and President of Argentina, President Javier Milei.

Notable international representatives also include UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, and officials from the IMF and the World Bank. Furthermore, leaders from African nations such as Kenya, Algeria, and the African Union have been invited.

With inputs from agencies
This G7 Summit in Italy will, perhaps, be the weakest gathering of leaders the group has had in years. Joe Biden, Emmanuel Macron, Olaf Scholz, Rishi Sunak, Fumio Kishida and Justin Trudeau are all struggling to hold on to power in their respective countries. However, Giorgia Meloni stands out following her partys astonishing performance at the European elections read more

Italian prime minister and Fratelli D'Italia (Brothers of Italy) leader Giorgia Meloni will step into the G7 summit as perhaps the strongest leader. File image/Reuters

When the leaders of the G7 meet in Puglia, Italy starting today (13 June), theres no doubt that the Russia-Ukraine war  in its third year  and the unfolding humanitarian crisis in Gaza resulting from Israels battle against Hamas will be the focus of attention.

At a time like this, one would assume that the world needs strong leadership. However, a look at the G7 summit proves otherwise. The meet to be held in the southern Italian coastal resort of Borgo Egnazia will feature, perhaps, the weakest gathering of leaders the group has had for years. Most of the leaders are distracted by elections, dwindling popularity or beset by domestic crises.

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Among the leaders of the Big 7  United States, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom (UK)  it seems only one is on the rise presently, and thats Italys Giorgia Meloni. As Ivo Daalder, who served as US ambassador to NATO under former President Barack Obama, told Politico: With the exception of Meloni, the leaders at the G7 summit are all pretty weak.

Meloni on the rise

The Giorgia Meloni that will welcome the G7 leaders and Indias Narendra Modi for the crucial G7 summit today could possibly be termed as Europes most stable leader, unlike her other counterparts. This stems from the fact that Meloni and her far-right Brothers of Italy party emerged as big winners in the European Parliament elections . This time around, she has taken nearly 29 per cent of the vote  a significant improvement on the six per cent she had won in the 2019 polls.

Her performance at the polls is a far cry from her German and French counterparts. Germanys Olaf Scholz suffered a jolt when the far-right Alternative for German finished second, beating his Social Democrats, and Frances Emannuel Macron called for snap elections after his party was eclipsed by Marine Le Pens National Rally.

Italian prime mnister Giorgia Melonis Brothers of Italy won almost 29 per cent of the vote, up from just more than 6 per cent in 2019. AP

And as Meloni gears up to play host, she knows shes the biggest winner. In fact, on Monday, she told supporters: This nation goes to the G7 and to Europe with the strongest government of all. They could not stop us.

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But this rise for Meloni hasnt been easy over an overnight phenomenon. When she rose to the position of Italian prime minister in 2022, many had expressed concerns about her Brothers of Italy partys neofascist history. But the 47-year-old has curated her world image, calmed her doubters and established close ties with world leaders such as US Joe Biden and European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen.

On the Russia-Ukraine war, she has made herself a key player and distinguished herself from other far-right leaders. This has helped her standing among the Western leaders.

Analyst Matteo Villa of the IPSI think tank in Milan in an Indian Express report was quoted as saying: Meloni is the moderate face of this right-wing bunch. She is poised as a moderate centre-right party now that has much consensus that can act as a bridge between the far right and the centre right. Meloni is narrating herself as a much more moderate leader.

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All in all, its Melonis time to shine and the G7 Summit is another chance for her image to be further boosted.

Biden wades in choppy waters

While the G7 will be a good platform for Meloni, the same cant be said for US president Joe Biden.

The octogenarian will be touching down in Brindisi, Italy, at a time when he faces a tough election against Donald Trump and personal challenges in the form of his son, Hunter Bidens legal challenges. In fact, Hunter was found guilty just a day ago in the gun trial and awaits sentencing in the same.

US president Joe Biden talks with his son Hunter Biden, who was found guilty in the gun trial. Biden faces a tough election race, weakening his position on the global stage. File image/AP

Bidens popularity has been dwindling at home. On Monday (10 June), he notched the unpleasant distinction of recording his lowest-ever mark  of 37.4 per cent approval rating. The polling shows worrying signs that his support among non-White voters is falling.

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In comparison, former President Donald Trumps favourability rating has increased slightly since he left office. According to FiveThirtyEights average, Trump has a 41.6 per cent favourability rating. However, Trump too is facing a perilous future after becoming the first-ever former US president to be convicted of a felony .

Macrons very French troubles

Another G7 leader who is facing challenges galore is French president Emmanuel Macron . He threw French politics into disarray when he called for snap parliamentary elections after his party was battered by the far right in European Parliament elections.

At the polls, Marine Le Pens party , the National Rally party, surged to first place in elections for European Parliament with 31.4 per cent of the vote. On the other hand, Macrons party was able to secure just 14.6 of the votes.

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Frances Emmanuel Macron has called for snap polls as a last-ditch effort to reverse his flagging fortunes. File image/AP

Many call Macrons move a huge gamble. If his party is able to win, he holds on to power. However, if Le Pens party secures a victory, he would be reduced to a sitting duck president. Thats because he would be confronted with a parliament hostile to his policies.

Sunaks English challenge

In May, UK prime minister Rishi Sunak shocked many when he called for snap elections on 4 July. Many see Sunak as a dead man walking with his Conservative party staring at a thumping defeat against the Labour party.

In fact, in a poll conducted by Redfield and Wilton for The Independent, the outcome shows that Labour Party leader Keir Starmer is poised to become the prime minister in the upcoming election and would continue on the post for another term as well. The data suggests that 45 per cent of all the voters believe Starmer will continue as prime minister until 2034, which indicates that he will be re-elected as the PM in the 2029 parliamentary elections again.

Britains prime minister and Conservative Party leader Rishi Sunak meets with students in a class during a visit to the John Whitgift Academy, in Grimsby, Britain on the campaign trail. He has called for early elections on 4 July. Reuters

Another survey has also predicted a huge loss for Sunak. It has forecast that the Labour party will win 403 seats - comfortably clear of the 326 required for a majority. This indicates a worse defeat for the Tories than under former Prime Minister John Major in 1997 when the Tony Blair-led Labour left them with just 165 MPs.

Politico notes that with such a situation looming, whatever Sunak says in Puglia swill likely draw polite smiles.

Scholzs weakened position

The EU elections have also led to a dent in German chancellor Olaf Scholzs authority. All three parties of the ruling coalition  the centre-left Social Democrats, the environmentalist Greens and neoliberal Free Democrats  haemorrhaged votes at the polls.

In fact, Scholzs Social Democrats was beaten into a humiliating third place by the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

German chancellor Olaf Scholzs authority has been weakened after his coalitions poor performance at the EU elections. File image/AP

Following the results, many have called snap elections in Germany, with Bavarias premier, Markus Soder, saying on television: The fact is the coalition government has been voted out, and Olaf Scholz must call for new elections like Macron.

But that seems unlikely with Scholz rejecting the calls. The next election is scheduled for autumn next year and we plan to hold it then as planned, said Steffen Hebestreit, Scholzs spokesperson. The idea never came up, at any point, ever, to bring forward the elections.

But the message is clear: Scholz and his traffic light coalition  because of the parties colours  no longer enjoys the overwhelming support of the Germans.

Trudeau and Kishidas waning popularity

Among the G7 nations, perhaps Justin Trudeau, the Canadian prime minister, is seen as the weakest.

Recent polls have revealed that Canadians are feeling a growing dissatisfaction with his government, spurred by frustration with issues like housing affordability and the cost of living. The governing Liberals have been trailing behind the Conservatives, the main opposition, often by double digits.

With Canadas next election on the horizon, the sun could be setting on Justin Trudeau. File image/Reuters

And despite his many efforts, it doesnt seem to be working. Quito Maggi, a pollster with Mainstreet Research told Politico: Its a damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-dont scenario for Trudeau because it almost doesnt matter what he does or says right now. No ones listening. Its not the message: Its the messenger.

For Japans Fumio Kishida, the picture isnt too bright. He is enduring his lowest personal ratings ahead of a leadership contest later this year. His Liberal Democratic Party is embroiled in what is termed as the worst financial scandal in decades, resulting in growing public distrust of the party.

With inputs from agencies
Oakland Police Department officials are facing a large backlog of pending police discipline cases. Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle

Bureaucratic delays at the Oakland Police Department have created a backlog of about 140 misconduct cases that could result in serious discipline for officers, a lag that threatens to undermine public confidence in the departments accountability measures.

The backlog involves officers waiting for the department to hold a meeting where they can challenge the findings of internal investigations into alleged misconduct and contest the discipline the department intends to impose. Officers are entitled to the meetings, known as Skelly hearings, under California law. Typically a supervisor who is not in the officers chain of command holds the meeting.

The issue was discussed briefly at a Police Commission meeting Thursday. Police Chief Floyd Mitchell told the commission the department is looking for solutions to clear the backlog. One idea is to check whether officers even want to challenge the findings and discipline.

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I think we have some internal control issues that we need to fix, Mitchell said.

Police Department officials blame the delays on understaffing issues. While they declined to share details about specific discipline cases, citing the confidentiality of ongoing personnel matters, the oldest case in the backlog involves an internal investigation that was completed in June 2020, according to the department.

The backlog could hinder the departments efforts to end the federal oversight that was required as part of a settlement in the infamous Riders case, in which four officers were accused of beating suspects and planting evidence on them in West Oakland. The 2003 settlement mandated a slew of reforms in how the department tracks and disciplines officers.

There are also financial costs: Fifteen officers whose cases are part of the backlog are getting paid while on leave as they await their hearings, according to the department. Details about their salaries were not immediately available.

Its problematic, especially because of the shortage of officers in the department, said Jim Chanin, an attorney in the Riders case. Calling the backlog an expensive problem, Chanin added: As a taxpayer, its not OK.

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The police department holds Skelly hearings when it intends to suspend, demote or fire an officer. Its possible the delays could make it difficult for the department to impose discipline if too much time goes by, because witnesses memories could fade or officers could argue the delays were unfair, said police accountability experts and attorneys who represent police unions.

It sends the message that the Oakland Police Department is not serious about meting out discipline, said Paul Parker, the former executive director of San Diego Countys Citizens Law Enforcement Review Board, which provides oversight of the Sheriffs Department. Right now (the backlog) is probably a joke within the ranks.

These are not little slaps on the wrist that were talking about, Parker added of the pending discipline.

Department officials said the hearings are taking place, with oldest cases as the priority, although hearings for newer cases occur sooner if the evidence is collected in a timely manner.

Justin Buffington, an attorney who often represents Oakland police officers in administrative matters, said the department could lessen its disciplinary backlog if it placed more emphasis on training. Buffington said the last time he attended a Skelly hearing at the Oakland Police Department was in September 2022.

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During a Police Commission meeting last month, Lt. Gordon Dorham blamed the backlog on understaffing and what he described as time-consuming paperwork that the department must put together before the hearings take place.

The lieutenant noted that state law requires police departments to complete internal investigations within a year, but there are no deadlines for Skelly hearings. Skelly is what gets put on the back burner, Dorham said.

The department expects to clear the backlog within the year, he said, although he did not explain how.

The department said in a statement that an increase in staffing is needed to process and compile the files for Skelly hearings. For now, the department is relying on officers assigned to desk duties and non-sworn employees to compile the investigative files. The department also is looking into technology, including redaction software, that might speed up the Skelly hearing process, officials said.

Rashidah Grinage, a member of Oaklands Coalition for Police Accountability, said the backlog undermines the attempts to reform the department. Issues like the backlog are the reason the department struggles to end the oversight, Grinage said.

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It undercuts the entire disciplinary system, which is intended to disincentivize officers from bad behavior, Grinage said. If you cant manage the disciplinary process of your police officers, then how are you going to reform the department?
Just four days after beginning his third term, Prime Minister Narendra Modi left for the Apulia region of Italy on Thursday to attend the G-7 outreach meeting. Modi is expected to hold crucial bilateral meetings with his counterpart from Italy, Giorgia Meloni, Canadas Justin Trudeau and US president Joe Biden read more

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is on his first foreign trip since taking office for his third term. Image courtesy: PMO

Prime Minister Narendra Modi departed for Italy on Thursday to attend the 50th G7 leaders summit, marking his first trip abroad after assuming charge for a third term. This summit, to be held in the luxury resort of Borgo Egnazia in Italys Apulia region from 13 to 15 June, will be dominated by discussions on pressing global issues such as the Russia-Ukraine war and the Israel-Hamas conflict.

Accompanied by a high-level delegation, Modi will participate in an outreach session on 14 June, focusing on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean.

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What are key items on the agenda?

Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, on Wednesday, emphasised that the G7 summits agenda will include a range of critical topics. It will be a bloc agenda item where the G7 and the Outreach Countries would share their views and perspectives, he said.

The G7 under Italys presidency has outlined several key priorities: the conflict in Russia-Ukraine and the Middle East, relationships with developing nations with a focus on Africa and the Indo-Pacific, migration and its links to climate and food security, and artificial intelligence.

Indias regular participation at the G7 summit clearly points to increasing recognition and contribution of the efforts that India has been making in trying to resolve global challenges, including those of peace, security, development, and environment preservation, Kwatra stated.

Police patrols outside the press centre facilities, ahead of the G7 summit of world leaders in the city of Bari, Italy, 12 June, 2024. Reuters

He also noted the significance of Indias role in the context of its recent G20 presidency, where India led in building global consensus on various contentious issues. Prime Ministers participation in the G7 summit would also provide a timely opportunity to follow up on outcomes of the G20 summit held under Indias presidency last year, and deliberate on issues which are significant for the Global South, Kwatra added.

What bilateral meetings will Modi hold?

On the sidelines of the G7 summit, Modi is expected to hold bilateral meetings with several world leaders, including his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni. Their last meeting occurred during the COP28 Summit in Abu Dhabi in December 2023. In the meeting with the Prime Minister of Italy, the two PMs are expected to review the entire gamut of bilateral ties and give directions for next steps, Kwatra explained.

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The India-Italy relationship was upgraded to a strategic partnership in March 2023, with a focus on defence, the Indo-Pacific, energy, and science and technology. The India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) announced during Indias G20 Leaders summit on 9 and 10 September last year, of which Italy is a founder-partner may also be discussed.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a bilateral meeting with Italy PM Giorgia Meloni (left) on the sidelines of the G20 summit held in New Delhi on 9 and 10 September, 2023. X/narendramodi

Other significant bilateral meetings are being scheduled, although details are still being finalised. Modi will have the opportunity to discuss plans for his new term with leaders from the G7 and other invited Outreach Countries such as Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Kenya, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Tunisia, Turkey, and the UAE.

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What about the Russia-Ukraine & Israel-Hamas wars?

The Russia-Ukraine conflict and the Israel-Hamas war are expected to be significant topics of discussion. Kwatra reiterated Indias stance on these conflicts, highlighting the importance of dialogue and diplomacy.

Naturally, Russia-Ukraine conflict is one of them We have always maintained that dialogue and diplomacy is the best option. You would recall the Prime Ministers own statement that today is not an era of war, which found widespread appreciation and recognition, he said.

Also Read: Whats on the agenda at G7? Why has India been invited once again?

The impact of these conflicts on global food, fuel, and fertilizer availability, as well as challenges to global supply chains and economic disruptions, will be addressed. We have always been at the forefront to talk about not just the conflict, the need for dialogue and diplomacy but also the way the conflict is impacting the priorities and interests of the developing countries, Kwatra added.

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While most of the G-7 leadership, except for United States President Joe Biden, will travel directly from Apulia to the Swiss town of Burgenstock for a peace conference on Ukraine , India has yet to announce the level of its participation. Despite multiple appeals and visits by Swiss and Ukrainian Ministers requesting Modis attendance or the deputation of a Minister, sources have indicated that India will participate at an official but not political level.

India will be participating at the Peace summit in Switzerland on [June] 15th, said Kwatra when asked for a response. That consideration is currently going on in the system, and as soon as we have a decision on the representative from India who will be participating, we will be happy to share that with you, he added.

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Which are the crucial bilaterals to look out for?

Modis visit will also include significant interactions with other world leaders. Biden is expected to meet Modi on the sidelines of the summit.

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan mentioned, He (Biden) expects to see Prime Minister Modi here. Its up to the Indians to formally confirm his attendance, but our expectation is that the two of them will have the opportunity to encounter one another. The nature of that encounter is still fluid because so much of the schedule is fluid.

United States President Joe Biden arrives on Air Force One at Brindisi International Airport, 12 June, 2024, in Brindisi, Italy. AP

One highly anticipated meeting is with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, especially given the tense ties between India and Canada over allegations involving an Indian official in a plot to assassinate a Sikh separatist leader. Sullivan addressed this issue, stating, We have made our views known on this issue, and it will be a continuing topic of dialogue between the US and India, including at very senior levels.

Any interaction between Modi and Trudeau will be closely watched. The Khalistan issue has already sparked controversy after a statue of Mahatma Gandhi, due to be inaugurated in the town of Brindisi not far from the G7 venue, was defaced with graffiti hailing the slain separatist leader.

Kwatra called the vandalisation of the statue deplorable and criticised Canada for providing political space to anti-India elements advocating extremism and violence. The main issue with regard to Canada continues to be the political space that Canada provides to anti-India elements who advocate extremism and violence. And we have repeatedly conveyed our deep concerns to them and expect them to take action, he remarked, but he declined to comment on whether a meeting was being scheduled between Modi and Trudeau.

What is India looking to get out of the G7 summit?

Indias participation in the G7 summit underlines its strategic importance and growing influence on the global stage.

The summit will provide Modi with a platform to advance Indias interests and engage in meaningful dialogue on issues affecting the Global South. The ongoing efforts to strengthen bilateral ties with various countries reflect Indias proactive approach to international relations.

Kwatra highlighted the broader implications of Indias engagement at the summit. Indias participation at this G7 Summit acquires particular salience in the context of Indias recently held, not so recent, presidency of the G20, where India took a leading role in building global consensus on a number of contentious issues At G7 also, we have always brought the issues of the Global South to the forefront, he said.

A view shows a sign of a bus stop for G7 near the Borgo Egnazia resort, the venue where the G7 Summit is scheduled to take place from 13 to 15 June, in Savelletri, Italy, 10 June, 2024. Reuters

Modis participation in the G7 summit, his fifth in a row, underscores Indias growing influence on the global stage. As the world grapples with complex challenges, Indias role in fostering dialogue and collaboration remains crucial.

The G7 summit in Italy is set to be a defining event, providing a platform for India to assert its position and contribute to global discussions on critical issues.

With inputs from agencies
The G7, comprising Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, is poised to introduce a range of measures designed to support Ukraine, applying pressure on Russia and its allies. We explain how this G7 summit is likely to bring some much-needed relief to the war-hit nation read more

The Ukraine war will be top of the agenda throughout the G7 summit. Agencies

The leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) advanced democracies have gathered for their annual summit in Puglia, Italy. The wars in Ukraine and Israel-Palestine are at the top of the agenda at the G7 summit, taking place between 13-15 June.

The G7- comprising Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States- is poised to introduce a range of measures designed to support Ukraine, applying pressure on Russia and its allies.

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We explain how this G7 summit is likely to bring some much-needed relief to Ukraine.

Financial support and loans for Ukraine

Shoring up financial support for Ukraine is a top priority at the G7 meeting. US and European officials are exploring innovative ways to fund Ukraines needs, especially in light of potential political shifts in the U.S. that could affect future support. One significant proposal involves using the profits generated by immobilized Russian assets to provide a substantial up-front loan to Ukraine.

The G7 nations and the European Union are considering using interest earned on approximately $281 billion of Russian central bank funds to secure a $50 billion loan for Ukraine. This innovative financial mechanism could provide crucial funding for Kyiv by the end of the year, supporting its ongoing fight and stabilizing its economy.

Volodymyr Zelenskyys bilateral meetings

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is actively engaging with world leaders on the sidelines of the G7 summit to secure further support. In a post on social media platform X on 13 June, he said, Today, I will attend the G7 meeting and hold a number of bilateral meetings. I will meet with the Summits host, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, as well as Canadian and UK Prime Ministers Justin Trudeau and Rishi Sunak.

Zelenskyy revealed that Kyiv will sign bilateral security agreements during meetings with US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida. He mentioned that for Ukraine, the main issues are developing a fighter jet coalition, expediting pilot training, and accelerating aircraft delivery. Development of the Ukrainian air defense system based on the most powerful Western systems, as well as an increase in long-range capability. Approval of the format for using Russian assets to benefit Ukraine, particularly in the development of our defence industry, and joint weapon production, he said.

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Sanctions and export controls on Russia

One of the key strategies discussed at the G7 summit is the implementation of new sanctions and export controls targeting Russia. These measures are intended to cripple entities and networks aiding Russian military efforts. The US has already expanded its sanctions, targeting companies, particularly those based in China, that supply semiconductors to Russia. This move aims to disrupt the flow of critical technology to the Russian military.

The Commerce Department in the US has also taken action against shell companies in Hong Kong that divert semiconductors to Russia, impacting nearly $100 million worth of high-priority items for Moscow. These efforts are part of a broader strategy to weaken Russias war economy and its ability to sustain military operations against Ukraine.

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Pressure on China

By announcing new restrictions on Chinese firms ahead of the G7 meeting, President Biden aims to rally Western allies to take a firmer stance against Beijings support for Russia. The restrictions are intended to curb Chinas role in supplying critical materials to Russia, thereby limiting Moscows capacity to sustain its military operations. This move also highlights the interconnected nature of global politics and the strategic importance of unified action against aggressor states.

Sending a message to Russia

US President Joe Biden is set to sign an unprecedented security agreement with Ukraine during the G7 summit.

According to White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan, this agreement will send a resolute message to Russia about the steadfast nature of the coalition backing Ukraine. If Vladimir Putin thinks he can outlast the coalition supporting Ukraine, hes wrong, he said.

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Additional support measures

Beyond financial mechanisms and sanctions, the G7 summit will see various leaders pledging additional support for Ukraine. For instance, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is set to announce up to $309 million in support for Ukraines energy and humanitarian needs. This support is crucial for helping Ukraine manage the immediate impacts of the conflict on its civilian population and infrastructure.

Overall, it is expected to be a fruitful summit for Ukraine.

With inputs from agencies
Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) countries are meeting for a three-day summit in Italys Puglia to discuss pressing issues. But whos a part of this bloc? read more

US president Joe Biden is welcomed by Italian PM Giorgia Meloni at the G7 world leaders summit at Borgo Egnazia, southern Italy. AP

For the next three days, all eyes will turn to Italys Apulia as it will host the 50th G7 Summit. The event will witness the gathering of US president Joe Biden, Italys Giorgia Meloni, Canadas Justin Trudeau, Frances Emmanuel Macron, Germanys Olaf Scholz, UKs Rishi Sunak and Japans Fumio Kishida.

India too has been invited as an Outreach Country with Prime Minister Narendra Modi already half way across the globe to attend the event.

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As per a top US official, President Joe Biden and his Ukrainian counterpart will sign a bilateral security agreement between the two nations in a bid to to send a signal of American resolve in supporting Kyiv against Russia.

Ahead of the annual meet, let us take a closer look at what is the G7 and how operates.
Shortly after a devastating fire in Kuwait, which claimed the lives of over 40 Indians, PM Narendra Modi called for a high-level review meeting. It was then decided that an ex-gratia of Rs 2 lakh would be granted to the victims kin. Also, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has called his Kuwaiti counterpart, urging for an early repatriation of the mortal remains read more

A Kuwaiti police officer is seen in front of a burnt building following a deadly fire, in Mangaf, southern Kuwait. According to officials, of the 49 killed in the blaze, 42 were Indians. Reuters

Deeply shocked by the news of the fire incident in Kuwait city Deepest condolences to the families of those who tragically lost their lives. Wish early and full recovery to those who have been injured, wrote External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar shortly after a fire engulfed a building housing labourers in Kuwait.

On Wednesday (12 June), a devastating fire broke out at dawn in the Al-Mangaf building housing around 195 migrant workers in southern Kuwaits Mangaf area, killing around 40 Indians and injuring another 50. Officials have said that the total fatalities in the tragedy are 49.

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Following the news of the large number of Indians being affected in the blaze, the Modi government has stepped in and offering aid and assistance to those hurt and to the families who have lost their loved ones.

Blaze rips through building

A total of 49 people have died of which 42 are believed to be Indians after a fire swept through the building in Kuwait. More than 50 others were injured in the blaze, which broke out in the six-storey building south of Kuwait City at dawn.

According to building officials, the fire began in a kitchen in one of the houses in the building and quickly engulfed the other floors too. Social media images and videos showed black smoke pouring out of the upper-storey windows.

According to a report by Manorama Online, the incident occurred at 4 am, exacerbating the impact as most workers were asleep at the time. While some died when they jumped off the building in a desperate bid to escape the fire, most fatalities occurred from asphyxiation due to smoke inhalation.

Rescuers arrive at the site of a building that caught fire in Kuwait. At least 49 have people died, and officials said the blaze appeared to be linked to code violations. AP

Kuwaiti media has reported that construction firm NBTC group rented the building for the stay of more than 195 workers, most of them Indians from Kerala, Tamil Nadu and northern states. The NBTC group is partly owned by an Indian, officials said.

Following the blaze, Kuwaits first deputy prime minister Sheikh Fahad al-Yousuf al-Sabah ordered the arrest of the buildings owner, saying: Unfortunately, the greed of real estate owners is what leads to these matters.

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The Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah also ordered authorities to probe the massive fire, and vowed to hold accountable those responsible for the tragedy that killed at least 49 people.

PM Modi steps in

After news broke out of the fire, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is readying to leave for Italy for the G7 meet , expressed his deep sorrow over the tragedy. In a post on X, he described the fire mishap in Kuwait City as saddening and said his thoughts are with all those who have lost their near and dear ones. He also prayed for the speedy recovery of the injured.

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Prime Minister Modi chairs a review meeting on a fire incident in Kuwait. PTI

He also called for a review meet with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and Principal Secretary to PM PK Mishra among others.

Upon reaching back to Delhi after todays two oath taking ceremonies, chaired a meeting to review the situation in the wake of the fire mishap in Kuwait, where people of Indian origin have been affected.



GoI is doing everything possible to assist those affected by this gruesome pic.twitter.com/DVmeCcEGZH  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 12, 2024

Following the meeting, the prime minister announced ex-gratia relief of Rs 2 lakh to the families of the deceased Indian nationals from the PM Relief Fund and directed that the government should extend all possible assistance.

Also on his directions, Minister of State Kirti Vardhan Singh will travel to Kuwait where he will ensure early repatriation of mortal remains as well as for medical assistance to those injured.

Singh, before heading to Kuwait, told reporters that some of the bodies had been charred beyond recognition. The rest of the situation will be clear the moment we reach there, he was quoted as telling ANI.

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When asked about the governments plan to repatriate the mortal remains of the victims, Singh mentioned that DNA tests are currently underway. The situation is that the victims are mostly burn victims and some of the bodies have been charred beyond recognition. So a DNA test is underway to identify the victims.

An Air Force plane is on standby. As soon as the bodies are identified, the kin will be informed and our Air Force plane will bring the bodies back. The latest figures that we had last night, the casualty figures are around 48-49 out of this 42 or 43 are believed to be Indians, he added.

Helpline set up, envoy visits the injured

As part of Indias assistance, a helpline has been established at +965-65505246 (WhatsApp and regular calls) for family members to get in touch. Moreover, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar spoke to his Kuwaiti counterpart and urged him to ensure early repatriation of the mortal remains of those killed in the tragedy.

Ambassador of India to Kuwait Adarsh Swaika visits the Al-Adan hospital where Indian workers who got injured in a fire that broke out in a building have been admitted, in Mangaf, Kuwait. PTI

Spoke to Kuwaiti FM Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on the fire tragedy in Kuwait. Apprised of the efforts made by Kuwaiti authorities in that regard. Was assured that the incident would be fully investigated and that responsibility will be fixed, Jaishankar said on X.

Urged the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those who lost their lives. He emphasised that those injured were getting the requisite medical attention, he said.

The Ambassador of India in Kuwait, Adarsh Swaika, also immediately visited the hospitals where the injured were being treated  they are admitted to five government hospitals  to ensure that Indian nationals were receiving the required treatment. The Indian embassy has reported that almost all the patients are reported to be stable by hospital authorities.

Condolences pour in

The Congress has also expressed sorrow over the lives lost, with the party chief Mallikarjun Kharge expressing his anguish at the incident.

Congress general secretary in-charge organisation K C Venugopal said, Deeply pained by the news of our fellow Indian citizens losing their lives due to a fire in a labour camp in Kuwait. My sincere condolences to the families of the departed souls. I urge the Ministry of External Affairs to urgently assist those injured in this accident and ensure handsome compensation to all victims and their families.

Additionally, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee said that she had instructed her chief secretary and the resident commissioner in New Delhi to enquire after the wellbeing of people from West Bengal who are in Kuwait.

Keralas Pinarayi Vijayan also wrote to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar seeking the Centres intervention. Terming the incident as utmost painful, Vijayan condoled the loss of lives in the tragedy. I request your goodself to give necessary directions to the Indian Embassy to coordinate relief and rescue operations by getting in touch with the Government of Kuwait, Vijayan said in his letter to Jaishankar.

With inputs from agencies
The death of 49 people, most of whom were Indians, in a blaze in an apartment building in Kuwait has brought the issue of living conditions of migrant workers to the fore. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has called on the Centre to draft a bill to ensure decent work conditions for Indians abroad read more

Kuwaiti security forces stand outside a building which was ingulfed by fire, in Kuwait City, on 12 June 2024. AFP

A fire in an apartment building in Kuwait that killed at least 49 people, most of them Indians, has put focus on the living and working conditions of migrants in the Gulf country. As many as 42 Indians are believed to have died in the blaze that engulfed the building housing foreign workers in the Mangaf area, south of Kuwait City, early Wednesday (12 June) morning.

Several injured are being treated at hospitals. Minister of State (External Affairs) Kirti Vardhan Singh visited one of the hospitals in Kuwait today (13 June) where seven wounded Indians were admitted.

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MoS @KVSinghMPGonda visited Mubarak Al Kabeer hospital in Kuwait where 7 injured Indians are admitted. MoS ascertained their well being & assured them of all support from GoI. He also appreciated hospital authorities, doctors and nurses for taking good care of the Indians. pic.twitter.com/faKtaNc9Wc  India in Kuwait (@indembkwt) June 13, 2024

Condoling the deaths, Indian politicians, including Congress Rahul Gandhi and Shashi Tharoor, have flagged the poor conditions of the workers in West Asia in the wake of the Kuwait fire tragedy.

Lets take a closer look.

Indians in Kuwait

Kuwait has a population of over 48 lakh people, of which 21 per cent are Indians.

As per the Public Authority for Civil Information (PACI) of Kuwait figures, the countrys population comprised 16 lakh citizens and 33 lakh expatriates as of last December.

Of the total population, 61 per cent (nearly 30 lakhs) are labourers and workers, who make up 75 per cent of the Gulf countrys total expat population, reported Indian Express.

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Indians continue to be the largest expatriate community in Kuwait with over 10 lakh estimated population.

Most Indians are employed as unskilled and semi-skilled workers such as carpenters, masons, domestic workers, food delivery riders and drivers in Kuwait. Some expatriates also work as engineers, doctors, chartered accountants, scientists, software experts, management consultants, architects, technicians, nurses and retail traders in the country.

ALSO READ: Kuwait fire: Who were the Indian victims killed in the tragedy?

Why does the Gulf attract Indians?

Workers travel to the Gulf to earn better wages and because of the high demand for unskilled Indian workers.

As Indian Express noted, studies show that even low-skilled workers get higher pay in the Gulf nations if they have the required experience in the domestic labour market.

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As per the International Labour Organisation norms, the minimum referral wages (MRW) for Indian labourers in Kuwait was fixed between $300-1,050 (Rs 25,000-87,715) in 2016 across 64 categories of work.

While carpenters, masons, drivers and pipefitters earn $300 per month, heavy vehicle drivers and domestic workers are paid slightly better in Kuwait.

Woes of Indian migrants in Kuwait

From discrimination to poor working conditions, Indian labourers face several issues in Kuwait.

According to Human Rights Watch, migrant workers, who account for two-thirds of Kuwaits population, are vulnerable to abuse, forced labour and deportation for minor infractions.

Despite reforms, they do not enjoy legal protections.

Workers who migrate to Gulf countries  Oman, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain  are tied to their employers due to the kafala system.

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This is an exploitative employer-employee labour contract system, as per an IndiaSpend report, which defines the relationship between foreign workers and their local sponsors/employers.

The system exposes migrant workers to exploitation by employers who have control over their employees movement and employment.

Construction workers are seen on the site of a newly constructed bridge that is nearing completion at the Jahra roundabout in Kuwait City September 1, 2011. Reuters File Photo

From 2019 to 30 June 2023, the Indian embassies in the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries received a total of 48,095 labour complaints from Indian migrant workers, as per the IndiaSpend report.

As many as 23,020 complaints were from workers in Kuwait, 9,346 complaints from Saudi Arabia, over 7,000 from Oman, 3,652 from the UAE, 2,702 from Bahrain and 1,709 from Qatar, the report mentioned.

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According to the Indian embassy in Kuwait, the labour complaints include non-payment of wages; unfair working conditions, including lack of proper food; and harassment.

A report came to light in July 2023 that 83 Nepali youths who travelled to Kuwait for work in 2022 were stranded in the Gulf country after their passports were confiscated by their employers upon their arrival, so they could not return home. Their wages were also not for at least six months.

Not just work but even the living conditions of migrant workers are often miserable. Many times, migrant workers have to stay in cramped rooms in semi-constructed buildings or in labour camps like the Mangaf one that caught fire, reported Indian Express.

As per a Gulf International Forum report, climate change also affects the quality of life of migrant workers in Kuwait, especially labourers who have to work in harsh summers amid a lack of proper air conditioning.

Workers shelter from the sun under a tree in Kuwait City on 30 July 2023, amidst a heatwave. AFP File Photo

Domestic migrant workers also bear the brunt as scorching temperatures have resulted in families staying indoors, increasing employees work, the report noted.

What can India do?

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has called on the Indian government to draft a Bill to ensure decent work conditions and security for the Indian migrant workers.

More than five years ago when I chaired the parliamentary standing committee on External Affairs, I requested the Government to prepare an updated Emigration Bill to ensure decent conditions of work and security for our migrant workers. I am shocked that five years later there is still no Bill. I urge the government to address this issue at the earliest and draft a serious bill in consultation with all stakeholders.

When Indian workers are sent abroad, they must have contractual assurances of decent conditions of life, work, pay & residence before they leave our shores, Tharoor added.

This tragedy is a reminder of the terrible privations our migrant workers undergo in their efforts to support their families at home. More than five years ago when I chaired the parliamentary standing committee on External Affairs, I requested the Government to prepare an updated https://t.co/VsCk74urnT  Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) June 12, 2024

The Emigration Bill 2021 remains on the back burner. Last March, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) admitted in a Parliamentary session the need to upgrade the Emigration Act to deal with issues concerning migrants. However, the ministry said the process to prepare a preliminary version of the Emigration Bill after consultation with all parties was still underway.

Stressing the need for such a law, journalist Rejimon Kuttappan wrote for Deccan Herald (DH), It is true that the high levels of unemployment force Indians to migrate even through risky routes. But the fact is that in addition to failing to provide decent jobs in India the government is also failing to provide safe, orderly, and regular migration opportunities in the absence of an updated Emigration Act.

The Kuwait fire is a tragic reminder of how Indian workers live in precarious conditions abroad. The ball is now in the court of our lawmakers to ensure their predicament changes and they are better protected.

With inputs from agencies
The Centre has announced that it will be cancelling the grace marks awarded to 1,563 candidates who appeared for NEET-UG 2024 and give them an option to retest on 23 June. But why has such a decision been taken? Heres what we know so far read more

Students protesting alleged irregularities in NEET UG 2024 in Kolkata. Among the many issues is the granting of grace marks to candidates for the medical entrance exam. ANI

The NEET exam results are turning into a huge mess. The Centre has announced to the Supreme that it has decided to cancel the grace marks awarded to 1,563 candidates who appeared for NEET UG 2024, and that these students will be given an option to take a re-test on 23 June. The results for the same will be announced on 30 June and counselling for admission in the MBBS, BDS, other courses will start on 6 July, the Centre said.

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The court, after hearing the Centres decision, said that a re-exam will be conducted for the 1,563 students. A vacation bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta said: A subsequent Committee has made recommendations after deliberations which are placed before us. According to recommendation, scorecards of 1563 candidates will be cancelled and stand withdrawn. A re-exam will be conducted for these 1563 candidates. The results of those who dont wish to appear will be based on their actual marks without compensatory marks.

For those who appear for re-test, the 5 May scores will be discarded, the court added.

But why were these grace marks awarded? And how was it decided upon to give these to the NEET aspirants? We take a closer look and explain the situation.

NEET results raise eyebrows

The National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Undergraduate) (NEET-UG) is the sole entrance exam for admission to undergraduate medical programmes in all medical institutions in the country, held annually.

This year, over 24 lakh students appeared for the exam on 5 May at 4,750 centres across 571 cities, including 14 cities abroad.

The results were to be declared on 14 June but were announced on 4 June, apparently because the answer sheets were evaluated earlier. The results drew immediate attention for the large number of students who got the perfect score of 720/720. In fact, this year around, as many as 67 students scored a perfect 720  scores that some claim are almost impossible to get in the scheme of the exam. Compare it to last year where only two students managed to secure full marks and in the year before it was three. In 2021, two achieved the feat and one in 2020.

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NSUI members stage a protest demanding re-examination of NEET-UG Entrance Exam 2024 over alleged irregularities in its results, at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. PTI

Some even raised questions over the 718 and 719 scores, arguing that these were mathematically impossible because in NEETs marking scheme each question carries four marks and there is negative marking for wrong answers.

It was later found that of the 67 who topped the exam, 44 had been given grace marks. The National Testing Agency (NTA), responsible for conducting the exam, had last week said that a total of 1,563 candidates, including the 44, had been given grace marks, and the revised scores of these varied from -20 to 720.

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Reason for awarding grace marks

But what exactly was the reason behind giving over 1,500 candidates grace marks?

Last week, the NTA stated that candidates had been awarded grace marks, though it didnt mention how much, owing to loss of time.

Students from a few centres in Bahadurgarh (Haryana), Delhi, and Chhattisgarh, complained that they did not get the allotted time to complete their tests.

According to the NTA statement, a Grievance Redressal Committee consisting of eminent experts from the field of examination and academia looked into these grievances on the basis of factual reports of the functionaries and CCTV footages from concerned exam Centres.

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Thereafter, the loss of examination time was ascertained and such candidates were compensated with marks based on their answering efficiency and time lost, as per the mechanism/formula established by the Honble Apex Court, vide its judgment dated 13.06.2018.

National Testing Agency (NTA) Director General Subodh Kumar Singh addresses a press conference regarding NEET-UG medical entrance exam results, in New Delhi. File image/PTI

Another reason for awarding grace marks was one multiple-choice physics question in the paper. On 29 May, NTA released its provisional answer key which showed that Option 1 is correct. However, candidates challenged that, arguing that the old version of the Class 12 NCERT textbook gave another answer.

Following this, an NTA official said: Since we strongly recommend all aspirants study only from NCERT textbooks for their NEET preparation, we decided to give credit to all those candidates who had marked the other option as stated by us in the answer key.

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Another NTA official told the Indian Express: In India, for ages, older siblings have been passing on their books to their younger siblings, and there is no harm in it; we have all done it. The NTA cannot ask students to specially buy new books too as it may not be viable for everyone. So, we will hold a meeting and establish proper protocols for such a situation.

Notably, the NTA hasnt flagged this issue with NCERT. And when asked about it, said, We will notify the NCERT now for future reference, but nothing can be done by NCERT for this years NEET exam.

Members of AIDSO (All India Democratic Students Organisation) shout slogans during their protest against the alleged irregularities in NEET-UG entrance exam result-2024, at Salt Lake area in Kolkata. PTI

Normalisation process questioned

The decision to award these grace marks was based off a normalisation formula that emerged from a 2018 Supreme Court judgment on a similar incident in the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) exam. The normalisation formula adopted in the CLAT 2018 exam adjusted the candidates score based on the time lost and the answering efficiency, reports Indian Express.

Students have also argued that scores are normalised for other entrance exams such as JEE Main and CUET where the exam ins held on different days. However, in NEET-UG, the exam is held on the same day across the nation. Moreover, this information wasnt shared with the public beforehand.

Responding to this, the NTA has said that it will try to add this point in the future information bulletins of NEET UG too.

Anger prevails

Besides the grace marks issue, the NEET-UG exam has also been hit with claims of a paper leak and more, angering students across the nation.

It has also snowballed into a political row with the Congress demanding a Supreme Court-monitored probe into the NEET exam issue. As per a PTI report, the opposition party also sought the removal of the National Testing Agency (NTA) director general and claimed that the BJP governments attitude towards the ongoing demand for an inquiry into the NEET examination is irresponsible and insensitive.

Meanwhile, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan rejected allegations of a paper leak in the medical entrance exam, saying there is no evidence of it. There is no evidence of paper leak in NEET-UG. The allegations of corruption in NTA are unfounded, it is a very credible body, Pradhan told reporters. The Supreme Court is hearing the matter and we will abide by its decision. We will ensure no student is at a disadvantage, he added.

With inputs from agencies
Pakistani finance minister Muhammad Aurangzeb presented the countrys budget in the National Assembly on Wednesday. The budget has allocated Pakistani rupees 2.122 trillion (approximately $7.6 billion) to defence for the fiscal year 2024-25, a nearly 15 per cent increase from the previous financial year. The countrys increased defence budget may be good news for China, its top arms trade partner. We explain why read more

In complete chorus with Pakistan, China dubs the Balochs as separatists and terrorists. Image: AFP

Pakistani Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb presented the countrys budget in the National Assembly on Wednesday. This marked the first budget of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) coalition government after the February 8 general elections. The budget has allocated Pakistani rupees 2.122 trillion (approximately $7.6 billion) to defence for the fiscal year 2024-25, a nearly 15 per cent increase from the previous financial year.

Pakistans increased defence budget may be good news for China, its top arms trade partner. We explain why.

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An overview of Pakistans defence budget

Pakistans defence budget has been divided into two parts: defence administration and defence services. The defence services section has several key components:

Employees related expenses encompass costs associated with personnel within the defence sector. This includes salaries, wages, pensions, allowances, and other benefits provided to both military and civilian staff. A total of PKR 815,186 has be allotted for this.

Operating expenses cover the day-to-day costs necessary for running defence services. This category likely includes utilities, fuel, maintenance of equipment, supplies, training costs, and other recurrent expenses. For this, PKR 513,328 has been allotted.

Investments in physical assets involve expenditures on tangible items like military hardware such as buildings, aircraft, ships, tanks, and weapons systems. This is part of the budget most closely linked with China. A total of PKR 528,612 is earmarked for investment in these assets.

Civil works pertain to construction and infrastructure projects within the defence sector. This includes building and maintaining military bases, airfields, docks, roads, and other essential facilities. PKR 244,874 has been allotted in the Pakistani defence budget for civil works.

The breakup of Pakistans defence budget. Image source: Budget in brief, Government of Pakistan

How China benefits from an increase in Pakistani defence budget

The increase in Pakistans defence budget is particularly advantageous for China, given the robust defence relationship between the two countries. Islamabad and Beijings cooperation encompasses extensive arms trade that is overwhelmingly in Chinas favour.

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According to a report by Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), Pakistan is the fifth-largest arms importer in the world. From 2019-23, 82 per cent of its arms imports came from China.

In the same period, China was responsible for 5.8 per cent of all arms exports in the world. Islamabad received 61 per cent of these weapons.

China has been a significant supplier of military equipment to Pakistan, including aircraft, submarines, tanks, and missiles. The two countries have engaged in joint ventures for the production of military equipment, such as the JF-17 Thunder fighter aircraft, designed specifically for Pakistan. This aircraft can carry various Chinese air-to-air missiles, including the formidable PL-15.

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Pakistan is one of the largest recipients of Chinese arms. From 2019-23, Islamabad received 61 per cent of all Chinese arms exports. In the same period, arms imports by Pakistan grew by 43%, with 82% of these imports coming from China.

Equipment supplied by China

Air Force: The Chinese-developed JF-17 Thunder multirole combat aircraft and the F-7, designed for short-range air-to-air combat, form significant parts of Pakistans fighter fleet. Chinese HQ-9/P air defence system and CH-4 reconnaissance-cum-strike drones are a part of Pakistans air defence and surveillance capabilities. Army: China provides a substantial portion of Pakistans offensive armour and support units, including artillery and rocket launchers. Despite Chinas smaller contribution to infantry vehicles and aviation units, the support for artillery and rocket launchers is crucial for fire missions. Navy: China assists in the production and upgrading of naval assets, including submarines and surface vessels. The strategic partnership includes the construction of Chinese-designed ships and submarines in Pakistans shipyards, boosting local defence manufacturing capabilities.

Source: Report titled A Threshold Alliance: The China-Pakistan

Economic and strategic benefits for China

Clearly, the defence trade between Pakistan and China generates significant revenue for Chinese defence manufacturers. Continued military collaboration ensures a steady flow of Chinese military hardware into Pakistan, fostering long-term economic ties.

Chinas support bolsters Pakistans military capabilities, ensuring a strategic ally in South Asia, where India is building its influence. Fro Beijing, Pakistani military capabilities are aimed at helping counterbalance New Delhis regional dominance, indirectly supporting Chinese interests in the region.

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Pakistans increased defence budget is a strategic boon for China, reinforcing the deep-seated military collaboration between the two nations.
The European Union has announced an increase in tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, intensifying a trade dispute over Beijings subsidies that Brussels believes are detrimental to domestic automakers. The European Commission, the EUs executive branch, stated that it would implement provisional tariffs, raising the duties for Chinese automakers to as much as 38 per cent, up from the current 10 per cent read more

A general view of visitors looking at models from BYD, a Chinese automobile manufacturer, during an event a day ahead of the official opening of the 2023 Munich Auto Show IAA Mobility, in Munich, Germany, 4 September, 2023. File Image/Reuters

The European Union (EU) has announced plans to impose significant tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), potentially triggering a trade war with Beijing. This move aims to counter what the EU perceives as unfair state subsidies that allow Chinese manufacturers to sell EVs at lower prices than their global competitors.

Electric vehicles have become the latest focal point in a broader trade dispute concerning Chinese government subsidies and the rapid growth of the countrys green technology exports to the 27-nation EU.

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What are the tariffs?

The EUs decision follows a nine-month investigation into alleged state support for Chinese battery electric vehicles (BEVs). The tariffs, which vary depending on the brand, aim to counteract these subsidies.

SAIC, the owner of MG, faces the highest tariff at 38.1 per cent. Geely, which has a stake in Volvo, faces a 20 per cent tariff, while BYD brands, including the Dolphin and Seal models, will be subject to a 17.4 per cent duty. Companies that cooperated with EU investigators will face a 21 per cent tariff, and those that did not cooperate will face the top tier of 38.1 per cent.

A 17.1 per cent tariff will increase the cost of an entry-level 30,000 car by 5,250, while a 38.1 per cent tariff will result in an 11,450 price hike. These charges are in addition to the existing 10 per cent levy on imported cars, meaning Chinese-made EVs could face total tariffs of up to 48 per cent.

A drone view shows BYD electric vehicles before being loaded onto a vehicle carrier for export to Brazil, at the port of Lianyungang in Jiangsu province, China, 25 April, 2024. File Image/Reuters

The tariffs are set to take effect on 4 July 4. However, Chinese companies have until then to provide evidence to challenge the EUs findings, which could lead to adjustments in the rates. The European Commission has indicated that the dispute could be resolved through talks before the tariffs provisionally come into force.

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Consumers who order cars before this date and have their prices locked in may avoid the price hikes, but they should verify their contracts.

What is the motivation behind EUs move?

The EU contends that the Chinese government subsidises every stage of the EV manufacturing process, from lithium mining to shipping vehicles to Europe. The investigation found instances of cheap or free land provided for car factories, lithium and batteries supplied below market prices, and tax exemptions for the battery sector.

Also Read: Why has Biden quadrupled US tariffs on Chinese EVs?

The EU also identified financing advantages such as green bonds issued at lower rates than international markets and preferential refinancing rates for funds supporting the sector. This state support, the EU argues, allows Chinese manufacturers to undercut European rivals and hinders the EUs transition to BEVs.

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What could be the impact on the industry?

Chinese-made EVs accounted for 25 per cent of the EU market in 2023, a significant increase from 3.9 per cent previously. The EU argues that this influx has forced European manufacturers to lower their prices, impacting profits and future investments. The EU plans to phase out internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles by 2035, and the state support for Chinese EVs is seen as a threat to this transition.

An energy recharge sign is seen next to a BYD Atto 3 car in a BYD Auto company and Autotorino store in Milan, Italy, 20 March, 2024. File Image/Reuters

Andrew Kenningham, chief Europe economist at Capital Economics, noted that the EUs decision marks a significant shift in its trade policy. The EU has often used trade defenses against China but not for such a crucial industry, he told Reuters. European policymakers are keen to avoid repeating the mistakes made with solar panels a decade ago when limited action against Chinese imports led to the collapse of many European manufacturers.

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How has China reacted?

Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian condemned the EUs investigation as a typical case of protectionism. He warned that tariffs would damage China-EU economic cooperation and the stability of global production and supply chains. Lin stated that Beijing would take all necessary measures to protect its interests.

Also Read: Elon Musks Tesla slashes prices for EVs, FSD, as sales tank

The Chinese Passenger Car Association (CPCA) seemed less concerned, with Secretary General Cui Dongshu telling Reuters, The EUs provisional tariffs come basically within our expectations, averaging around 20 per cent, which wont have much of an impact on the majority of Chinese firms. He added that Chinese EV makers like Tesla, Geely, and BYD still have significant potential for growth in Europe.

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How have European automakers responded?

German officials and automakers have expressed strong opposition to the tariffs. German Transport Minister Volker Wissing said, The European Commissions punitive tariffs hit German companies and their top products. Chancellor Olaf Scholz noted that half of the EVs imported from China were produced by Western manufacturers.

Volkswagen rejected the imposition of duties, stating, The negative effects of this decision outweigh any potential benefits for the European and especially the German automotive industry. Mercedes-Benz CEO Ola Kallenius added, What we do not need, as an exporting nation, is rising trade barriers.

Jerry Gan, CEO of Geely Auto Group unveils the Galaxy Starship a new technology flagship AI-driven SUV prototype during Auto China 2024 in Beijing, 25 April, 2024. AP

Other manufacturers, such as Volvo and Stellantis, expressed concerns over the tariffs. Volvo is analysing the developments, while Stellantis emphasised the importance of free and fair trade and opposed measures that contribute to global fragmentation.

Shares in some of Europes biggest carmakers, such as BMW and Volkswagen, fell on fears of Chinese retaliation. BMW CEO Oliver Zipse criticised the tariffs, stating, Protectionism risks starting a spiral: Tariffs lead to new tariffs, to isolation rather than cooperation. Mercedes-Benz also voiced concerns about rising trade barriers.

How will Beijing retaliate?

Beijing has passed a law to strengthen its ability to retaliate against tariffs imposed by the US or the EU. China has already launched an anti-dumping investigation into mostly French-made brandy imports, causing concern among French cognac producers. Global food companies, including dairy and pork exporters, are also on high alert for potential Chinese retaliation.

Will Roberts, head of automotive research at RHO Motion, told Reuters, The true test from todays announcement will be whether Beijing will retaliate in kind, or come to an amicable solution.

Analysts believe that Chinese manufacturers might be able to absorb some of the tariff costs. Joe Mazur, senior analyst at Trivium China, told Reuters, Its by no means a death blow to the Chinese EV industry in Europe.

Cars to be exported sit at a terminal in the port of Yantai, Shandong province, China, 10 January, 2024. File Image/Reuters

However, Chinese EV makers will likely pass some cost increases onto consumers. Despite this, Chinese automakers like BYD charge significantly more for exports than for domestic sales, offering some protection against tariffs. Chinese EV maker Nio criticised the EUs approach, stating that it hinders global environmental protection and sustainable development.

Have any European nations reacted?

The Hungarian Minister for National Economy, Marton Nagy, condemned the EUs move as overly protectionist. Protectionism is not the solution, he said, emphasising the need for the EU to enhance its global competitiveness rather than impose punitive tariffs.

Swedens Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade, Johan Forssell, echoed these sentiments, expressing skepticism about tariffs and their impact on consumers.

Italys Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, US President Joe Biden, French President Emmanuel Macron, Canadas Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Britains Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Japans Prime Minister Fumio Kishida attend a session on Africa, climate change and development on the first day of the G7 summit at the Borgo Egnazia resort, in Savelletri, Italy, 13 June, 2024. Reuters

Norway, not an EU member state, announced it would not follow the EU in increasing tariffs on Chinese EVs. Norwegian Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum stated, Introducing tariffs on Chinese cars is neither relevant nor desirable for this government.

Is there any room for negotiation?

There is still room for negotiation between the EU and China. Brussels has left the door open for continued consultations to find a solution and avoid the worst-case scenario. State news agency Xinhua commented, It is hoped the EU will make some serious reconsideration and stop going further in the wrong direction.

The EUs provisional duties are set to apply by 4 July 4, with the investigation continuing until 2 November, when definitive duties could be imposed for five years. The Commission has yet to decide whether to apply tariffs retroactively for three months.

Also Read: European carmakers in China are moving away to India, Indonesia because of tariffs on China-made EVs

The outcome of these negotiations and the potential for Chinese retaliation will significantly impact the global EV market and the broader economic landscape. Both sides have reasons to negotiate a deal to avoid severe economic repercussions, but the path forward remains uncertain.

With inputs from agencies
A massive fire swept through a labour housing facility in Kuwaits Mangaf area early Wednesday, startling migrant workers who were soundly asleep. Amid the mayhem, a few attempted to jump from the first floor in a frantic bid to escape the fire, while others choked to death trying to make their way through the smoke-filled hallways read more

A massive fire swept through a labour housing facility in Kuwaits Mangaf area early Wednesday, startling migrant workers who were soundly asleep.

At least 49 foreign workers, including 42 Indian nationals, lost their lives.

Around 195 single men without families lived in the Al-Mangaf apartment, which was turned into a terrifying scene at 4 am on 12 June as a fire quickly spread across the building.

Amid the mayhem, a few workers attempted to jump from the first floor in a frantic bid to escape the fire, while others choked to death trying to make their way through the smoke-filled hallways.

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Horrifying accounts

Survivors, still reeling from the trauma, spoke with The New Indian Express (TNIE) about their frightening experience.

It must have been around 4.30 am. I was sound asleep, only to be woken by the sudden commotion. There was a lot of smoke around and I was confused," said Chinnappan Viswanathan, who had a miraculous escape from the fire.

People were running panic-stricken; many seemed to be choking. We chose not to go out and remained in our room. Only when the fire officials came calling, did we open the door.

Thick smoke engulfed the entire building. I think the fire started on the ground floor. At first, we couldnt understand what was happening. Many people were running, some were breathless. There was a lot of sound and confusion. A few went to the main hall and couldnt return, the 55-year-old on the third floor said.

Santhosh Kumar Gait, a 39-year-old storekeeper from Nepal, is utterly shocked as he escaped the fire through a window pane.

I heard many shouts that the building is ablaze. Three or four of us together broke open the glass window and jumped to the ground floor. We were fortunate to escape with our lives, Gait told TNIE.

A fire swept through a building that housed foreign workers in Kuwait early Wednesday, killing at least 40 Indian nationals and injuring more than 50, Indias external affairs ministry said. Network18/File Photo

Sharp-minded Rajendran Maridurai, 29, saved himself and his third-floor housemates by turning off the air conditioner, opening the window and staying inside.

We were asleep on the third floor. I think it was those who had gotten up for morning prayer who called us. We could hear the commotion and saw a thick cloud of smoke all around us. Some tried to escape. Many fell unconscious. Some remained inside after locking their rooms. Two jumped from the fourth floor and lost their lives. We switched off the air conditioner and broke the glass to let in outside air. Since the door was locked, we were not affected, he told the newspaper.

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An Egyptian who survived the fire and worked as a driver in Kuwait told local media that the fire had started on a lower floor and that those on higher levels were unable to escape. He said the building had filled with thick smoke.

More on the Kuwait fire tragedy:

Kuwait fire: Who were the Indian victims killed in the tragedy?

How migrant workers live and work in poor conditions in the Gulf nation

Kuwait fire kills over 40 Indians: How the Modi govt swung into quick action to help victims families, survivors

The victims were suffocated

Local officials dispatched firefighters to contain the fire, which reportedly broke out in the kitchen of the six-storey building, as soon as they received the emergency call.

Although they responded quickly, the fires intensity was too high, as it trapped many occupants inside the flaming building, managed by Keralan businessman KG Abraham.

Charred bodies were found on the stairs, according to local media reports.

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Though the exact cause of the fire is yet to be known, The Kuwait Times claimed that the fire was caused by a gas leak.

A senior Kuwaiti journalist told CNN-News18 that the extreme heatwave, which led to temperatures surpassing 50 degrees Celsius, could have contributed to the tragedy.

Emir Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmad al-Sabah ordered an immediate investigation into the cause of the fire and said that any officials found responsible would be held accountable, as per Reuters.

Smoke billows after a fire broke out in a building, in Mangaf, Kuwait, Wednesday, 12 June 2024. PTI

Sayed Al-Mousawi, the head of investigations at the Kuwait Fire Department, said the team investigating the causes of the fire found that an inflammable material was used as partitions between apartments and also between rooms, which caused the huge black clouds of smoke, reported News18.

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The department said many of the victims suffocated while trying to run down the stairs because they were filled with smoke.

Al-Mousawi added that the victims could not go to the rooftop because the door was locked.

Safety standards questioned

Following the tragic fire, concerns have been expressed over the safety standards for Kuwaiti migrant worker accommodations.

The greed of real estate owners is what leads to these matters, said Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Fahad Yusuf Saud Al-Sabah during his visit to the site.

It was not immediately apparent what, if any, violations had occurred at the structure.

Smoke billows after a fire broke out in a building, in Mangaf, Kuwait, Wednesday, 12 June 2024. PTI

Low-paid, blue-collar workers in the Gulf often live in overcrowded accommodations.

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Local authorities did not disclose what kind of employment the workers were engaged in, though like in other Gulf states, Kuwait relies heavily upon foreign labour in industries like construction, including from South and Southeast Asia.

DNA tests being done

Arriving in Kuwait to assist with the repatriation of deceased Indians mortal remains, Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh stated that most victims had serious burns, with some bodies being burned beyond recognition.

He added that an Air Force plane is ready for prompt deployment and that DNA testing processes are currently being conducted to aid in victim identification.

The minister stated that the Air Force will assist with repatriation and that relatives will be notified as soon as victim identities are verified.

MoS for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh visits the Jaber hospital to meet Indians injured in a fire incident, in Kuwait, Thursday, 13 June 2024. PTI

As soon as the bodies are identified, the kin will be informed and our airforce plane will bring the bodies back The latest figures that we had last night, the casualty figures are around 48-49 out of this 42 or 43 are believed to be Indians, MoS Singh told ANI.

Adarsh Swaika, the Indian ambassador, visited the fire scene and subsequently to several hospitals, including Al-Adan Hospital, which admitted more than 30 Indian labourers.

He reassured patients that the Embassy would provide them with full support. According to hospital officials, almost all are stable, as the mission stated.

Senior IAS officer Jeevan Babu, the state director of the National Health Mission, and Health Minister Veena George will travel to Kuwait to coordinate relief efforts and expedite the process of returning the victims mortal remains by air.

Speaking with his counterpart Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya in Kuwait, External Affairs Minister Dr S Jaishankar received an update on the work being done by the local authorities.

Was assured that the incident would be fully investigated and that responsibility will be fixed, Jaishankar said on X. He added that he had urged the early repatriation of the bodies of those who had lost their lives.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi described the fire incident as saddening, and held a meeting with EAM Jaishankar, NSA Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, and Principal Secretary to the PM PK Mishra to review the situation.

My thoughts are with all those who have lost their near and dear ones. I pray that the injured recover at the earliest, he said.

The PM also announced an ex-gratia relief of Rs 2 lakh to each of the families of the deceased Indian nationals from the PM Relief Fund.

The Indian Embassy has established a helpline +965-65505246 (WhatsApp and regular call) for family members to get in touch. Regular updates are being provided through the helpline.

With inputs from agencies
Scientists of an Oxford study found that Viagra, which is used as a remedy for erectile dysfunction in men, could actually help improve blood flow to the brain, resulting in better cognitive function. Not only can it boost brain power, it can potentially avert vascular dementia in high-risk patients read more

An oxford study found that Viagra can improve blood flow to the brain and help blood vessels function better in individuals at high risk of vascular dementia. AFP

The little blue pills of sildenafil, known by its brand name Viagra, may have benefits beyond remedying erectile dysfunction in men, a new study has found.

Researchers from the Oxford University have presented surprising, first of its kind findings that suggest that Viagra improve blood flow to the brain that could improve cognitive function and help in preventing problems related to memory such as vascular dementia.

The findings which were published in the journal Circulation Research, represent a significant advancement in the battle against vascular dementia. It could potentially be turning point for the disease which so far has no specific cure, Dr. Praveen Gupta, principal director of neurology at Fortis Gurugram told The Times of India (TOI).

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What is the condition that it could possibly prevent and how? Lets delve into details

What is vascular dementia?

According to Johns Hopkins, vascular dementia significantly impacts cognitive functions such as memory, reasoning, planning, and judgment. This form of dementia arises from decreased blood flow to the brain, which damages the brains functional tissue, known as the parenchyma.

The Mayo Clinic notes that strokes, whether minor or major, can severely damage brain tissue, contributing to the development of vascular dementia. Other contributing factors include atherosclerosis, which hardens arteries and reduces blood flow, and brain hemorrhages caused by high blood pressure.

An Oxford study found that chronic damage to the small blood vessels in the brain is a leading cause of vascular dementia. This damage also accounts for 30 percent of strokes and 80 percent of brain bleeds.

Dr Rajeev Mehta, senior psychiatrist, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital told TOI, It is important to note that in vascular dementia, memory deficiency or forgetfulness occurs in steps.

Risk factors for vascular dementia include old age, high blood pressure, smoking, diabetes, hypertension, obesity, high cholesterol, and obstructive sleep apnea.

The India context

According to a study titled Vascular cognitive impairment in India, the burden of vascular contribution to cognitive impairment and dementia is substantially high in the country.

Out of 5.3 million dementia patients in India, 40 per cent suffer from vascular dementia. Image for Representation. Pixabay

The study further discovered that out of 5.3 million dementia patients in India, 40 per cent suffer from vascular dementia. The Oxford study, which according to researchers needs a larger clinical trial, offers a glimmer of hope that could possibly help prevent the condition.

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What did the Oxford study say?

The clinical trial of the study involved over 75 participants, who had experienced a minor stroke and showed signs of mild to moderate small vessel disease, received sildenafil (Viagra), a placebo, and cilostazol (a similar drug) over three-week periods in a random order.

Using ultrasound and MRI scans, the scientists found that sildenafil increased blood flow in both large and small brain vessels. It enhanced the blood flow response to carbon dioxide, indicating improved cerebrovascular function.

The study also found that both sildenafil and Cilostazol lowered blood vessel resistance in the brain with sildenafil causing fewer side effects than Cilostazol, particularly with less incidence of diarrhoea.

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This is the first trial to show that sildenafil gets into the blood vessels in the brain in people with this condition, improving blood flow and how responsive these blood vessels are, Dr Alastair Webb, study author and associate professor at the Wolfson Centre for Prevention of Stroke and Dementia at Oxford said.

These two key factors are associated with chronic damage to the small blood vessels in the brain, which is the commonest cause of vascular dementia. This demonstrates the potential of this well-tolerated, widely available drug to prevent dementia, which needs testing in larger trials, he added.

With input from agencies
Representatives from the Trust for Public Land walk through the newly restored Ackerson Meadow in Yosemite National Park. Tracy Barbutes/Special to the Chronicle A cluster of Hetch Hetchy monkey flower at Ackerson Meadow in Yosemite. Tracy Barbutes/Special to the Chronicle Yosemite Park ranger Andrea Cherney holds Elymus caput-medusae (medusahead), which she and her Yosemite Conservancy crew are removing from Ackerson Meadow. Tracy Barbutes/Special to the Chronicle Split rail fence and barbed wire at Ackerson Meadow in Yosemite. Tracy Barbutes/Special to the Chronicle Ali Huerta, Trust for Public Land Northern Sierra project associate, reaches toward Hetch Hetchy monkey flower at Ackerson Meadow in Yosemite National Park on Wednesday. The flower is given special status in the meadow. Tracy Barbutes/Special to the Chronicle Yosemite National Park Superintendent Cicely Muldoon, center with hat, walks through Ackerson Meadow with guests. Tracy Barbutes/Special to the Chronicle Mariposa lilies at Ackerson Meadow. Tracy Barbutes/Special to the Chronicle Guillermo Rodriguez, California state director of the Trust for Public Land, addresses guests and VIPs at the Ackerson Meadow Restoration Project celebration Wednesday. Tracy Barbutes/Special to the Chronicle

Less than a decade ago, the largest mid-elevation meadow at Yosemite National Park, nestled in foothills near Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, was privately owned rangeland. It was widely trampled on by cattle, dried up and of little or no interest to visitors.

Today, the area is a whole different place.

An $18 million makeover of whats known as Ackerson Meadow, which was recently acquired by the National Park Service, is transforming this dusty tract on the parks western edge into a vibrant hub of wildflowers, songbirds and water-loving grasses  an effort billed as the biggest restoration project in Yosemite history.

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Work crews with excavators and dump trucks have been rebuilding the propertys wetlands since last summer, after decades of grazing and logging left the meadow littered with weeds and heavily eroded. The hope is that the revived meadow, like a sponge, will hold more water for native plants, wildlife and downstream communities that depend on the region for water supplies.

Yosemite Conservancy volunteers take a break from removing Elymus caput-medusae (medusahead) at Ackerson Meadow in Yosemite. Tracy Barbutes/Special to the Chronicle

This restoration project is really helping the land become naturalized to what it was before, said Tim Kuhn, a biologist for Yosemite who helped pilot the endeavor. Restoring the habitat is really important to the park.

On Wednesday, representatives from many of the 15 or so government agencies, conservation groups and corporations that contributed to the restoration gathered at Ackerson Meadow to celebrate their work. In addition to the park service, the neighboring Stanislaus National Forest, the Yosemite Conservancy and environmental advocacy American Rivers led the effort.

While the 400-acre property sits at a lower, less-visited part of the park, visitors may be familiar with the site because of its recognizable wooden barn along Evergreen Road on the way to Hetch Hetchy.

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Its off the beaten path, said Melissa Steller, a biological science technician at Yosemite who helped with the project. But its an important place for people who really love bird-watching, people who love botany and wildflowers.

An $18 million makeover of Ackerson Meadow, which was recently acquired by the park service, is transforming a dusty tract on the parks western edge into a vibrant hub of wildflowers, songbirds and water-loving grasses. Tracy Barbutes/Special to the Chronicle

The work being celebrated this week is the first of two phases of the project, with other parts of the meadow scheduled for rehabilitation later this year and early next. The main challenge, though, has already been confronted: stopping the stream-bank erosion that has created a menacing 3-mile-long gully through the property.

At 14 feet deep and 100 feet wide, the gully was siphoning water from the area, denying the meadow of its natural ability to absorb and store runoff from rain and snow. The result was a lower water table, dehydrated and dying vegetation and loss of critical wildlife habitat.

The meadow is home to struggling northwestern pond turtles, Pacific fishers, great gray owls, little willow flycatchers as well as countless other birds, insects and black bears.

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As part of the first phase of restoration, more than 60,000 cubic yards of dirt and mulch was brought in to fill the gully while thousands of native plants, grown from seeds collected locally, were put in to stabilize the ground.

A moth lands on a wildflower in Ackerson Meadow in Yosemite. Tracy Barbutes/Special to the Chronicle

Panicled bulrush, slender beak sedge and two species of juncus made up a bulk of the new plantings. Willows on the property were removed before the earth-moving work was done and then replanted when the gully was filled in.

If you would have walked out there at this time last year youd see some pretty dry upland vegetation, Steller said. If you go out there today, youll see that the area is much wetter. We have super green vegetation.

Yosemite acquired Ackerson Meadow in 2016. It was the parks largest expansion in 70 years.

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Park officials had been eyeing the property decades earlier, but it wasnt until the owners, Robin and Nancy Wainwright, agreed to sell the land for conservations sake that the meadows fate became entwined with the parks.

Wildflowers are abundant at Ackerson Meadow in Yosemite National Park. Tracy Barbutes/Special to the Chronicle

The nonprofit Trust for Public Land bought the property for $2.3 million, with funding assistance from the Yosemite Conservancy, National Park Trust and American Rivers, and donated it to the park service.

To truly say we protected the landscape, we needed not only to bring the property under public ownership but bring it back to a level of high (ecological) functioning, said Guillermo Rodriguez, California state director of the Trust for Public Land, who is pleased with the restoration work. For us, its the complete circle thats exciting.
A day after 40 Indian workers were killed in a fire tragedy at a labour housing facility in Mangaf area of Kuwait, the authorities in Kerala on Thursday said that 24 of the deceased were from the southern state, according to a report read more

Vehicles are parked next to a building damaged following a deadly fire, in Mangaf, southern Kuwait, on Wednesday. Reuters

A day after 40 Indian workers were killed in a fire tragedy at a labour housing facility in Mangaf area of Kuwait, the authorities in Kerala on Thursday said that 24 of the deceased were from the southern state, according to multiple reports.

Some reports, citing Tamil Nadu Minister for Minorities Welfare and Non-Resident Tamils Welfare, Gingee KS Masthan, also suggested that five Tamils were among the dead in the Kuwait fire incident.

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The victims have been identified as Rama Karuppan, Veerasamy Mariappan, Chinnadurai Krishnamurthy, Mohammed Sherif and Richard, belong to Thanjavur, Ramanathapuram and Peravurani regions of the state.

He said the Embassy (in Kuwait) has said that official information about the victims will be provided to the Tamil Nadu government.

We are continuously monitoring, Masthan said.

With the majority of deaths being from Kerala, the state Cabinet meeting, chaired Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, decided to send Health Minsiter Veena George immediately to Kuwait to coordinate the treatment of those injured, and to help bring bodies home.

The state government also announced Rs 5 lakh for the families of the deceased and one lakh rupees for those injured.

While the details of the all the dead are awaited, some of those identified by the authorities include Shameer Umarudheen (30), a resident of Keralas Kollam district, Sajan George, a native of Punalur in Kollam, Vadakkottuvilayil Lukose, a native of Kollam city, Akash S Nair, a native of Pandalam, PV Muraleedharan, a resident of Vazhamuttom, Pathanamthitta, and Chennasseril Saju Varghese, from Konni in Kerala.

According to a Hindu report, citing a senior official of NORKA Roots, the number of people from Kerala who died has risen to 24, while seven seriously injured persons from the southern state are being treated in various hospitals in the Gulf country.

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The Department of Non-Resident Keralites Affairs (NORKA) was constituted by the State Government in 1996 to address the grievances of non-resident Keralites both in India and abroad and to establish a sustainable partnership with them.

Meanwhile, on the directions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, MoS KV Singh reached Kuwait on Thursday to oversee the assistance to those injured in the massive fire and for the early repatriation of the bodies of Indians killed in the incident.

He immediately rushed to Jaber hospital to ascertain well being of injured Indians in the fire incident on Wednesday.

On the directions of PM @narendramodi ji, MoS @KVSinghMPGonda arrived in Kuwait and immediately rushed to Jaber hospital to ascertain well being of injured Indians in the fire incident yesterday. He met the 6 injured admitted at the hospital. All of them are safe. pic.twitter.com/p7DrKItfIM  India in Kuwait (@indembkwt) June 13, 2024

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He met the 6 injured admitted at the hospital. All of them are safe, Indian Embassy in Kuwait wrote on X.

At least 49 foreign workers, including over 40 Indians, were killed and 50 others injured in the fire on Wednesday at the seven-storey building housing 195 migrant workers in the southern city of Mangaf.

Kuwaiti authorities are conducting DNA tests on the bodies of those killed and an IAF aircraft is on standby to bring back the mortal remains of Indians killed in the incident, officials said in New Delhi on Thursday.

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The fire erupted just after 4:00 am when the majority of the 196 all-men residents of the building were asleep. It resulted in huge thick clouds of black smoke that led to the suffocation of most of the victims, according to officials from the Interior Ministry and the fire department.

Indias mission in Kuwait is ascertaining the full details from the concerned Kuwaiti authorities over the incident.

Those injured are presently admitted to five government hospitals (Adan, Jaber, Farwaniya, Mubarak Al Kabeer and Jahra hospitals) in Kuwait and receiving proper medical care and attention. According to hospital authorities, most of the admitted patients are stable.

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Following the incident, the Ambassador of India in Kuwait, Adarsh Swaika, immediately visited the location of the incident and also the hospitals to ascertain the welfare of the Indian nationals.

The Embassy continues to coordinate with local authorities to assist Indian nationals who have been injured in this unfortunate incident and extend all possible support. The Embassy is receiving full cooperation from the Kuwaiti authorities.

Deputy Premier, Defence and Interior Minister Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousef Al-Sabah ordered the arrest of the Kuwaiti landlord of the building and the Egyptian guard of the building and warned officials not to release them without his permission.

The minister told reporters that the fire was a catastrophe, adding that from Thursday, teams from the municipality will begin inspecting all buildings and have the authority to remove any violation without any warning.

He said authorities would also start from Thursday to study the issue of overcrowding of expat workers in buildings and the failure to comply with safety conditions.

With inputs from agencies
The Government of India further said that during the term of his office, Doval will be assigned the rank of Cabinet Minister in the Table of Precedence read more

Ajit Doval will be the National Security Adviser (NSA) of India, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet said on Thursday.

Doval will be the NSA for the third consecutive time.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Ajit Doval IPS (Retired) as National Security Adviser with effect from 10.06.2024, the Government notification stated.

His appointment will be co-terminus with the term of the Prime Minister or on further orders, whichever is earlier, it further said.

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The Government of India further said that during the term of his office, Doval will be assigned the rank of Cabinet Minister in the Table of Precedence.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has also approved the appointment of Dr PK Mishra, IAS (Retired) as Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister with effect from June 10, 2024.

His appointment will also be co-terminus with the term of the Prime Minister or until further orders whichever is earlier.

With their reappointment, the two retired bureaucrats - Doval and Mishra - have become the longest-serving principal advisors to the Prime Minister.

Doval will be handling national security, military affairs and intelligence. He will also oversee strategic and sensitive issues and receive intelligence inputs from all agencies, process them and present his reading of the events to the Prime Minister.

Meanwhile, Mishra will be taking care of administrative matters as well as appointments in the PMO.

Dovals tenure as the NSA had ended on June 5, when PM Narendra Modi and his Cabinet demitted office, a day after the 2024 Lok Sabha election results were declared.

Doval is a 1968 batch IPS officer and he brings the unique combination of strategic thinking as well as operational planning to the Prime Minister. He is also considered to be an expert in counter-terrorism and nuclear issues.

Mishra, meanwhile, is a 1972 batch officer. He has been with PM Modi since his retirement as Agriculture Secretary to the Government of India.
After a series of terror incidents in Jammu and Kashmir, PM Modi on Thursday chaired a review meeting on the security situation in the Union Territory and asked the officials to deploy full spectrum of counter-terror capabilities to combat terrorism read more

After a series of terror incidents in Jammu and Kashmir, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday chaired a review meeting on the security situation in the Union Territory and asked the officials to deploy full spectrum of counter-terror capabilities to combat terrorism.

According to ANI news agency, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and other officials on Thursday gave PM Modi a full overview of the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir.

PM was apprised of the counter-terror efforts being undertaken. PM asked them to deploy the full spectrum of our counter-terror capabilities, ANI quoted government sources as saying.

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Meanwhile, PM Modi also spoke to Home Minister Amit Shah and J&K LG Manoj Sinha and discussed the deployment of security forces and counter-terror operations.

PM spoke to HM Amit Shah and discussed the deployment of security forces and counter-terror operations. PM also spoke to J&K LG Manoj Sinha and took stock of the situation in J&K. PM was briefed on the efforts being undertaken by local administration, the sources added.

The security review comes close on the heels of a fresh encounter in a village in Gandoh area of Jammu and Kashmirs Doda district where a policeman was injured when terrorists opened fire on a search party.

The firing was reported from the Kota top area of Bhalesa around 7.41 pm to which security forces retaliated, officials said.

This was the second terror-related incident in Doda in the last 24 hours and fourth in three days in Jammu and Kashmir.

Earlier on Tuesday evening, five Rashtriya Rifles personnel and a Special Police Officer were injured in a terrorist attack in Chattargalla pass.

In another incident late on Tuesday, a suspected Pakistani terrorist was killed by security forces in Kathua district. The overnight encounter ended after a second terrorist was also gunned down on Wednesday but a CRPF jawan lost his life in the operation.

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On Sunday, nine people were killed and 41 injured as terrorists opened fire at a bus carrying pilgrims, which was on its way from the Shiv Khori temple to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra, causing it to veer off the road into a deep gorge near the Teryath village of the Poni area of Reasi.

With inputs from agencies
According to a private letter from a senior health official in Rajasthan, Shubhra Singh, to FSSAI, samples of many spices were checked in the state and a batch of Everest spice mix and two of MDHs were found unsafe read more

Rajasthan, a state in northern India, has informed the Central government that it has found some spices of renowned brands MDH and Everest unsafe for consumption. This follows tests as indicated by a letter amidst local and global scrutiny of the brands for alleged contamination.

A report by Reuters mentioned that according to a private letter from a senior health official in Rajasthan, Shubhra Singh, to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), samples of many spices were checked in the state and a batch of Everest spice mix and two of MDHs were found unsafe.

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Singh in her letter further said that the state authorities of Gujarat and Haryana, where the MDH and Everest batches were made, should be asked to take action in the matter without delay.

Reuters said the letter written by Singh, who is the additional chief secretary for health, to FSSAI is not public but has been seen by Reuters.

The letter didnt detail its findings, but Rajasthan state authorities, last week, in a statement said it had seized 12,000 kilograms of various spices for alleged contamination, and Singh had written letters informing the federal body and states.

The statements added that Rajasthan collected dozens of samples of spices in May, and found that some contained a very high level of pesticide and insecticides.

In April, Hong Kong had suspended sales of three spice blends produced by MDH and one by Everest, saying that they contained high levels of a cancer-causing pesticide ethylene oxide. This triggered scrutiny by regulators in India and other markets.

Soon after, Singapore ordered a recall of the Everest mix. New Zealand, the United States and Australia have said they were looking into the issues.

Meanwhile, Britain has implemented extra controls on all spices entering the country from India, which is the worlds biggest exporter, producer and consumer of spices.

MDH and Everest - two of Indias most popular brands - have said their products are safe for consumption.

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The Reuters report further said both the companies did not respond to a request for comment on the Rajasthans incident.

MDH and Everest spices are among the most popular in India and are also sold in Europe, Asia and North America.

With inputs from Reuters
In his departure statement ahead of visit to Italy for G7 Apulia Summit, PM Modi said during the discussions at the Outreach session, the focus would be on AI, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean read more

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is en route Italy to attend G7 Summit at the invitation of Italian PM Giorgia Meloni.

The G7, or Group of Seven, Summit is being held from June 13 to 15 at the luxurious Borgos Egnazia resort in Apulia region. The annual summit this year is expected to focus on pressing global challenges, including the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the Israel-Hamas war.

Glad my first visit in third term is to Italy

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Ahead of his departure, the Prime Ministers Office released a statement in which Modi said: I am glad that my first visit in the third consecutive term is to Italy for the G7 Summit.

I warmly recall my visit to Italy for the G20 Summit in 2021. Prime Minister Melonis two visits to India last year were instrumental in infusing momentum and depth in our bilateral agenda, PM Modi said.

WATCH: PM Modi departs for Italy

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Committed to consolidate India-Italy strategic partnership

The Prime Minister further said, We remain committed to consolidate the India-Italy strategic partnership, and bolster cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and the Mediterranean regions.

PM Modi said, at the invitation of his Italian counterpart, Meloni, he is travelling to Apulia region to participate in the G7 Outreach Summit on June 14. 2024.

What PM Modi will discuss during G7 Outreach session?

The prime minister, in his departure statement ahead of visit to Italy for G7 Apulia Summit, also said that during the discussions at the Outreach session, the focus would be on artificial intelligence (AI), energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean.

It will be an opportunity to bring greater synergy between the outcomes of the G20 Summit held under Indias Presidency and the forthcoming G7 Summit, and deliberate on issues which are crucial for the Global South, he said.

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I am also looking forward to meeting other leaders participating in the Summit, PM Modi said.
Terrorists opened fire on a 53-seater bus carrying pilgrims when it was en route to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra from the Shiv Khori temple on Sunday read more

(File) The damaged bus after it plunged into a gorge following an alleged attack by suspected terrorists, in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir, on 9 June, 2024. PTI

Jammu: Fifty people have been detained in connection with the investigation into the recent terror attack on a bus carrying pilgrims in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Thursday.

To ensure a comprehensive probe, the search operation to track down the terrorists, has been expanded to cover Reasi districts far-flung Arnas and Mahore areas which were terrorist hotbeds between 1995 and 2005.

On Sunday, terrorists opened fire on a 53-seater bus carrying pilgrims when it was en route to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra from the Shiv Khori temple. The bus, ferrying pilgrims from Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi, plunged into a deep gorge following the gunfire, killing nine people and injuring 41 others.

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Confirming the detention of 50 suspects in connection with the attack, a police spokesperson said it followed an intensive investigation.

Significant leads have been uncovered, aiding in the identification and capture of those who may be potentially involved in orchestrating the attack. To ensure a comprehensive probe, search operations have been expanded to cover the far-flung areas of Arnas and Mahore, the spokesperson said.

He said these operations aim to uncover further evidence and apprehend terrorists who may be hiding in these remote regions.

Police have already released a sketch of one of the terrorists and announced a cash reward of Rs 20 lakh for information leading to the neutralization of the culprits.

The law enforcement agencies are committed to bringing the perpetrators to justice and ensuring the safety and security of all residents and visitors in the area, the spokesperson said.

Senior Superintendent of Police, Reasi, Mohita Sharma urged people to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to the authorities immediately.
KG Abraham, a Kuwait-based Malayali businessman, is the partner and managing director of the NBTC group which owns the Kuwait building that was gutted in fire, leaving 45 Indians dead read more

Within hours of being reported for the first time, the news of the death of 45 Indian workers in a Kuwait building sent shockwaves all around the world.

In a tragic, but ultimately avoidable accident that went down at the dawn of Wednesday, around 195 men residing in a six-storey building in southern Kuwaits Mangaf, were killed in their sleep when a kitchen fire engulfed an apartment building that housed labourers from India, Pakistan, Nepal and other countries..

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Among the 45 Indians killed in Kuwait building fire, 19 were from Kerala and fiver were from Tamil Nadu. The other three are of Filipino nationality, while the work is underway to determine the identity of the last body.

The building in question, which violated several safety regulations was on lease to KG Abraham, a Kuwait-based Malayali businessman.

Who is KG Abraham, owner of Kuwait building that caught fire?

1 - KG Abraham is the partner and managing director of the NBTC group which owns the Kuwait building that was gutted in fire. They are one of the largest construction groups in the Gulf country.

2 - Abraham, a 69-year-old businessman from Thiruvallas Niranam in Pathanamthitta, has been based in Kuwait for almost four decades.

3 - When he was 22, Abraham left for Kuwait with a diploma in civil engineering and steadily began establishing his business empire there.

4 - Abraham started his career by working in a company called Badha and Musairi for 60 dinars, a report by Kerala Kaumudi said. After working there for about seven years, he started his own firm and started by taking up little construction projects.

5 - Abraham reportedly has assets worth Rs 4,000 crore. He also has a supermarket chain called Highway Centre in Kuwait.

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6 - He is even popularly known as KGA. Abraham is also the founder and chairman of KGA Group which is based in Kuwait. The KGA Group is majorly into oil and allied industries, which operate under the name Naser M Al Baddah & Partner Gen. Trading. & Contracting. Co. W.L.L. (NBTC).

7 - In Kerala, Abraham owns Crowne Plaza, the five-star hotel in Kochi, and also has investments in several other major projects.

8 - As per a report in Times of India, Abraham had also financed and promoted the Malayalam blockbuster Aadujeevitham starring Prithviraj.

9 - During the 2018 and 2019 Kerala floods, he was a massive support to the people of the state and helped those in distress.

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10 - Last year, Abraham landed in controversy for criticising the Pinarayi Vijayan-led LDF government in Kerala for swindling money from the Chief Ministers Distress Relief Fund.
The aircraft is then expected to reach Delhi as some of the Indians killed are from a few north Indian states, they said. Kuwaiti authorities have already conducted DNA tests on the bodies as part of the identification process. read more

India is dispatching a military transport aircraft on Thursday night to Kuwait to repatriate the remains of over 40 Indians who killed in a tragic fire.

Kuwait vows to promptly investigate the incident as authorities in Kuwait have identified the bodies of 45 Indians and three Filipino nationals killed in the tragic fire incident in a building housing foreign workers as the Gulf Kingdom vowed to promptly investigate the incident and assured full support in repatriating the mortal remains of the victims.

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The aircraft is then expected to reach Delhi as some of the Indians killed are from a few north Indian states, they said. Kuwaiti authorities have already conducted DNA tests on the bodies as part of the identification process.

Kuwaiti Fire Force said the deadly fire was caused by an electrical circuit. In a press statement, it said the conclusion was arrived at after examination of the scene of the incident, Kuwaiti news agency KUNA reported.

Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah, serving as the First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior, and Minister of Defence, said that authorities have identified 48 bodies, among which 45 are of Indians and three are of Filipino nationality, English language daily Arab Times reported.

Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh, who reached Kuwait this morning, separately met the Gulf nations foreign minister Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya, Al-Sabah and Health Minister Ahmad Abdelwahab Ahmad Al-Awadi.

The Indian embassy in Kuwait said Foreign Minister Al-Yahya assured of full support including for medical care, early repatriation of mortal remains and investigation into the incident. FM Yahya conveyed his condolences on the tragic incident. He assured full support including for medical care, early repatriation of mortal remains and investigation of the incident, the mission said on X.

MoS conveyed his appreciation for the cooperation being extended by all concerned authorities of Kuwait, it said. Singh also visited Mubarak Al Kabeer hospital and Jaber hospital where several injured Indians are admitted.

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In the meeting with Singh, the Kuwaiti health minister briefed him on steps taken to ensure speedy recovery of Indians under his personal supervision, according to the Indian embassy.

In an unfortunate and tragic fire incident earlier today in a Labour housing facility in Mangaf area of Kuwait, around 40 Indians are understood to have died and over 50 injured, the Ministry of External Affairs had said in a statement late on Wednesday night.

Last night, Prime Minister Modi reviewed the situation at a meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, NSA Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and Principal Secretary to PM PK Mishra among others.

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Following the meeting, the prime minister announced ex-gratia relief of Rs 2 lakh to the families of the deceased Indian nationals from the PM Relief Fund and directed that the government should extend all possible assistance.

The External Affairs Minister spoke to his Kuwaiti counterpart Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on phone and urged him for the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those killed.

Spoke to Kuwaiti FM Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on the fire tragedy in Kuwait. Apprised of the efforts made by Kuwaiti authorities in that regard. Was assured that the incident would be fully investigated and that responsibility will be fixed, Jaishankar said on X on Wednesday night.

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Urged the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those who lost their lives. He emphasized that those injured were getting the requisite medical attention, he said.

The fire in Al-Mangaf building was reported to authorities in Al-Ahmadi governorate at 4.30 am on Wednesday and most of the deaths were due to smoke inhalation, Kuwaiti media reported, adding the fire started in a kitchen.

Construction firm NBTC group rented the building for the stay of more than 195 workers, most of them Indians from Kerala, Tamil Nadu and northern states, the Kuwaiti media said.

Interior Minister Al-Sabah ordered an investigation into the fire incident and issued directions to apprehend the owner and janitor of Al-Mangaf building.

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With inputs from agencies.
The fire at the residential building that housed many foreign workers killed over 40 Indians. Twenty-five of the victims were from Kerala prompting the state government to take swift action read more

Minister of State of the Foreign Ministery Kirti Vardhan Singh arrived in Kuwait on Thursday and met the hospitalised Indians who were injured by the fire at a residential building in Mangaf city.

MoS Singh met the injured Indian citizens at the Jaber and Al Kabeer hospitals. The Indian Embassy in Kuwait has said that all the Indians who managed to escape the fire are safe.

The fire at the residential building that housed many foreign workers killed over 40 Indians. Twenty-five of the victims were from Kerala prompting the state government to take swift action. The Government of Kerala held an immediate cabinet meeting while the states health minister Veena George was sent to Kuwait to assess the situation.

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On the directions of PM @narendramodi ji, MoS @KVSinghMPGonda arrived in Kuwait and immediately rushed to Jaber hospital to ascertain well being of injured Indians in the fire incident yesterday. He met the 6 injured admitted at the hospital. All of them are safe. pic.twitter.com/p7DrKItfIM  India in Kuwait (@indembkwt) June 13, 2024

MoS @KVSinghMPGonda visited Mubarak Al Kabeer hospital in Kuwait where 7 injured Indians are admitted. MoS ascertained their well being & assured them of all support from GoI. He also appreciated hospital authorities, doctors and nurses for taking good care of the Indians. pic.twitter.com/faKtaNc9Wc  India in Kuwait (@indembkwt) June 13, 2024

The Indian government is trying to identify the bodies, some of which were charred beyond recognition, and once the identification process is completed, the bodies will be brought back to India via an Indian Air Force plane.

Kuwait launches probe

Kuwaits Emir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah on Wednesday ordered an immediate probe into the accident and vowed to punish those responsible for the fire.

While there is no official word on what caused the fire, Kuwaits public prosecutor has begun its investigation into the matter.

Some locals have said that a gas leak might have caused the fire.
The Government of Kerala has been informed that at least 12 Malyalees are among the victims of the fire. Kerala has also announced an ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh for the families of the deceased and Rs 1 lakh for those who were injured by the accident read more

The Kerala government has called for an emergency cabinet meeting in view of the accident. AP

Keralas Health Minister Veena George will fly to Kuwait on Wednesday after a massive fire at a residential building killed over 40 Indians, prompting the government to swing into action to assist the families of the dead and injured.

The Government of Kerala has been informed that at least 12 Malyalees are among the victims of the fire. Kerala has also announced an ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh for the families of the deceased and Rs 1 lakh for those who were injured by the accident.

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A fire broke out in the early hours of Wednesday in a building located in Kuwaits Mangaf city that housed mostly migrant workers. Among the others who died from the fire were people from Pakistan, the Philippines, Egypt and Nepal.

Meanwhile, the Kerala government has called for an emergency cabinet meeting in view of the accident.

The Chief Ministers Office said in a statement, An emergency cabinet meeting convened by the Kerala government is underway, starting at 10 AM this morning. The meeting will discuss the repatriation of bodies and whether any ministers need to go to Kuwait to coordinate relief efforts. The meeting is chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.

Charred bodies found

Before boarding the plane, Minister of State of MEA Kirti Vardhan Singh spoke to reporters and said that some of the bodies had charred beyond recognition and that DNA tests would be conducted to identify them. After identification, the bodies of the Indian workers will be brought back to India via an Indian Air Force plane.

The latest figures that we had last night, the casualty figures are around 48-49 out of this 42 or 43 are believed to be Indians, MoS Singh said.

The devastating fire prompted Prime Minister Narendra Modi to direct Singh to travel to Kuwait immediately to assist the injured Indians and oversee the repatriation process.

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The fire mishap in Kuwait City is saddening. My thoughts are with all those who have lost their near and dear ones, Modi said on X following which he held a meeting to review the situation.

Kuwait launches probe

Kuwaits Emir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah on Wednesday ordered an immediate probe into the accident and vowed to punish those responsible for the fire.

While there is no official word on what caused the fire, Kuwaits public prosecutor has begun its investigation into the matter.

Some locals have said that a gas leak might have caused the fire.
Two executives at a digital health care company were arrested in California on suspicion of running a large fradulent Adderall prescription operation that took advantage of telehealth policies during the pandemic. Jenny Kane/Associated Press

Two top executives of a digital health care company were arrested in California on Thursday for what federal officials said was a $100 million scheme to fraudulently prescribe Adderall and other stimulants over the internet.

Done Global Inc.s founder and CEO Ruthia He and Clinical President David Brody were both scheduled to make their first courtroom appearances Thursday afternoon after their arrests in Los Angeles and San Rafael, respectively.

Attorney General Merrick Garland said He and Brody exploited the COVID-19 pandemic to provide easy access to stimulants for no real medical purpose.

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Those seeking to profit from addiction by illegally distributing controlled substances over the internet should know that they cannot hide their crimes and that the Justice Department will hold them accountable, Garland said in a statement.

The case is the first of its kind, officials said: A federal prosecution against the type of digital health company that exploded during the pandemic after the government relaxed its policies on telehealth due to stay-at-home orders.

Done secured prescriptions for more than 40 million pills of Adderall and other stimulants, according to court documents.

Prosecutors said that the defendants would attract drug seekers by spending tens of millions of dollars on deceptive social media ads, and that they instructed Done providers to prescribe stimulants even if the patient didnt qualify.

The scheme additionally disincentivized patient encounters with health care professionals by allowing patients to use an auto-refill function that sent a message requesting a refill every month.

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The defendants could not immediately be reached for comment.

In a statement on its homepage, the company said, Done Global strongly disagrees with the criminal charges filed last week against our founder, Ruthia He, and Dr. David Brody, which are based on events that principally occurred between February 2020 and January 2023.

Since our founding, Done Global has worked to make mental health care accessible for tens of thousands of Americans trapped in a spiraling national crisis, the statement said. Done Global will continue to operate  and do everything in our power to ensure that tens of thousands of Americans that rely on us do not lose access to their mental health care. At the same time, we will continue to support our clinicians as they exercise independent clinical judgment, practice evidence-based medicine, and provide best-in-class health care.

DEA Administrator Anne Milgram noted that the allegations transpired during a nationwide shortage of prescription stimulants, including Adderall.

Any diversion of Adderall and other prescription stimulant pills to persons who have no medical need only exacerbates this shortage and hurts any American with a legitimate medical need for these drugs, Milgram said in a statement.

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Officials said the defendants continued operations even after being made aware that Done members had overdosed and died, and how social media users had posted how-to materials on using the company for easy access to prescription pills.

He and Brody allegedly tried to cover their tracks after officials sent a grand jury subpoena to another telehealth company, deleting documents, using encrypted messaging services and failing to produce materials when Done itself was subpoenaed.

Brody was a former neurology resident in psychiatry at Stanford University, according to Dones website.

If convicted, He and Brody could face up to 20 years in prison.
A vacation bench of justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta was told by the counsel for the Centre and the National Testing Agency (NTA) that the students, who were given grace marks, will be given the option to take the re-test read more

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said on Thursday that there is no proof that NEET 2024 question papers were leaked. His comments came after the Central government told the Supreme Court that the decision to award grace marks to NEET candidates had been revoked.

I want to assure the students and their parents that the Govt of India and NTA are committed to providing justice to them. 24 lakh students have successfully taken the NEET examination. There is no paper leak, no proof has been found yet. A court-recommended model was adopted for around 1560 students and a panel of academicians has been formed for the same, Pradhan said as he spoke to reporters.

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#WATCH | On the Supreme Court's hearing on the NEET-UG 2024 exam, Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan says "I want to assure the students and their parents that the Govt of India and NTA are committed to providing justice to them. 24 lakh students have successfully taken the pic.twitter.com/pIldTPehEf  ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2024

A vacation bench of justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta was told by the counsel for the Centre and the National Testing Agency (NTA) that the students, who were given grace marks, will be given the option to take the re-test.

The court said it would not stay the counselling process for admissions.

If the candidates, out of the 1,563, do not wish to take up the retest then their earlier marks, sans the grace marks, will be given for the purposes of the results.

The results of the re-test will be declared on June 30 and the counselling for admission in the MBBS, BDS, and other courses will start on July 6, the Centre said.

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There is no corruption. In connection with the NEET examination, 24 lakh students appear in the examination. A hearing in the Supreme Court is underway today and this issue is regarding around 1,500 students. Govt is ready to give answers to the Court, the education minister added.

With inputs from agencies
We have noted unwarranted references to the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir in the joint statement between China and Pakistan of 07 June 2024. We categorically reject such references, said MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal read more

Days after China-Pakistan joint statement opposed unilateral actions to resolve all outstanding issues issues in South Asia, including Kashmir, India on Thursday categorically rejected unwarranted references to Jammu and Kashmir in the China-Pakistan joint statement issued on 7 June.

In response to media queries on references to Jammu and Kashmir in the China-Pakistan joint statement, the MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal reiterated Indias stance saying, We have noted unwarranted references to the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir in the joint statement between China and Pakistan of 07 June 2024. We categorically reject such references.

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He further said that Indias position on the issue is consistent and well-known to the concerned parties.

The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Ladakh have been, are and will always remain integral and inalienable parts of India. No other country has the locus standing to comment on the same, he added.

The MEAs statement comes at a time when Pakistan-backed terrorists groups have been fomenting terror in the Valley, with two terror-related incidents taking place in Doda in the last 24 hours and overall four in three days in Jammu and Kashmir. The rise in such incidents can also be attributed to the upcoming Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, with terrorist groups looking to keep the Valley on the boil to fulfil their nefarious interests.

Shehbaz Sharifs China visit

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif concluded his four-day visit last weekend, the first after his second stint started in March, focusing on shoring up Chinese investments and assistance as his country faces an acute economic crisis.

A joint statement at the end of his trip said, Both sides underscore the importance of maintaining peace and stability in South Asia, the need for resolution of all outstanding disputes, and their opposition to any unilateral action.

The Pakistani side briefed the Chinese side on the latest developments of the situation in Jammu and Kashmir. The Chinese side reiterated that the Jammu and Kashmir dispute is left over from history, and should be properly and peacefully resolved in accordance with the UN Charter, relevant UN Security Council resolutions and bilateral agreements, it said.

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India has previously also rejected such joint statements by China and Pakistan.

Pakistan-India ties

Pakistan downgraded its ties with India protesting the abrogation of Article 370 granting special status to Jammu and Kashmir on August 5, 2019.

India has always maintained that it desires normal neighbourly relations with Pakistan while insisting that the onus is on Islamabad to create an environment that is free of terror and hostility for such an engagement.

With inputs from agencies
The announcement of conducting re-examination was made moments after the Centre told the Supreme Court that the decision to award grace marks to 1,563 candidates of NEET-UG, 2024, by NTA has been withdrawn read more

The NTA will reconduct the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate), or NEET (UG) 2024, on June 23 for 1,563 candidates who had experienced time loss during the originally scheduled exam on May 5 and were awarded compensatory marks.

The result on NEET-UG 2024 for these students will be tentatively declared on June 30.

The NEET-UG 2024 re-examination will be conducted between 2 and 5:20 PM, National Testing Agency (NTA) said.

Reconduct of the NEET (UG)  2024 for affected candidates: NTA decided to reconduct the NEET (UG) 2024 on 23 June 2024 for 1563 candidates who had experienced time loss during the originally scheduled examination on 05 May 2024. pic.twitter.com/4jenf9GpCG  National Testing Agency (@NTA_Exams) June 13, 2024

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The re-examination will be conducted only for candidates who were awarded compensatory marks during the initial evaluation," the NTA said.

It further said that the score card of all affected 1,563 candidates issued on June 4 will stand cancelled and thus, withdrawn.

The marks obtained by the candidates who will appear in the re-test will be considered and their marks based on examination on June 5 will be discarded, the NTA said.

Why NTA is conducting NEET-UG 2024 again?

Earlier on Thursday, the Centre told the Supreme Court about its decision to cancel the grace marks awarded to 1,563 candidates who appeared for NEET-UG 2024.

The Centre said after the re-exam on June 23 and declaration of result on June 30, the counselling for admission in the MBBS, BDS, and other medical courses will commence from July 6.

After hearing the Centres decision, the apex court said that the re-exam will be conducted for the 1,563 students.

Why were grace marks given to 1,563 NEET-UG 2024 candidates?

The NEET-UG is the sole entrance exam for admission to undergraduate medical courses in all medical institutions across the country. The examination is conducted annually.

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In NEET-UG 2024, conducted on May 5, more than 24 lakh students appeared at 4,750 centres across 571 cities, including 14 cities abroad.

The results were to be declared on 4 June and it drew immediate attention as the large number of students had secured perfect score of 720/720.

In fact, in NEET-UG 2024, as many as 67 students scored a perfect 720  scores that some claim are almost impossible to get in the scheme of the exam.

For the unversed in the medical entrance exam last year only two students managed to get full marks and in the year before it was three.

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Some even raised objection over the 718 and 719 scores, saying that these were mathematically impossible because in NEETs marking scheme each question carries four marks and there is negative marking for wrong answers.

It was later found that of the 67 who topped the exam, 44 were given grace marks.

The NTA that conducts the entrance exam, last week, said a total of 1,563 candidates, including the 44, had been given grace marks, and the revised scores of these varied from -20 to 720.

It further said these candidates were awarded grace marks, though it didnt mention how much, owing to loss of time.

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Students from some of the exam centres in Bahadurgarh (Haryana), Delhi, and Chhattisgarh, complained that they did not get the allotted time to complete their tests.

Another reason for awarding grace marks was one multiple-choice question (MCQ) in physics section of the paper. On 29 May, NTA released its provisional answer key which showed that Option 1 is correct. However, candidates challenged that, arguing that the old version of the Class 12 NCERT textbook gave another answer.

Also Read: Why were 1,563 NEET-UG candidates given grace marks? Why are they being scrapped now?

With inputs from agencies
Despite the challenges in front of her in the coming months in Brussels and on the international stage, the Italian prime minister will stand tall in a room full of the worlds most powerful men at Borgo Egnazia read more

She was the most unlikely candidate to succeed the legendary Mario Draghi as Prime Minister. Not many believed Italy was ready, even after 75 years of becoming a republic, for a woman as Prime Minister. Not only has Giorgia Meloni proved all her detractors wrong, she has won her first serious electoral test after two years of winning, coming out with flying colours at the European elections.

The elections for the parliament of the European Union have caused a leadership crisis in Europe. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and French President Emmanuel Macron have both fared far worse than expected. In a knee-jerk reaction to the electoral disaster, Macron dissolved the French parliament and announced flash parliamentary elections in France. While he has clarified he doesnt plan to step down as president, he hopes to conquer a fresh national mandate in order to make up for his partys dismal European showing.

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In Italy, the case is much different. Despite a low voter turnout (49.69 per cent), Melonis party, Fratelli dItalia (Brothers of Italy), fared extremely well and was crowned the first party in the EU elections. With 28.8 per cent she remains firmly in control of her coalition. Her coalition partners Matteo Salvinis Lega Nord (Northern League) and Antonio Tajanis Forza Italia fared better than expected, at 9.12 per cent and 9.71 per cent, respectively. Tajani has also rejuvenated a party that was written off after the passing of its flamboyant founder, billionaire Silvio Berlusconi, a year ago.

Meloni, however, was in her element, bettering the partys result of 26 per cent achieved in the national elections two years ago. Heading the list of Fratelli dItalia, she also carried every constituency with a huge margin, even from her party members, sealing both the leadership of her governing alliance as well as her partys leadership for the rest of the legislature.

Given her fantastic showing, she also becomes the key power broker in Strasbourg. The outgoing European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, will ask Meloni for her support in achieving a majority in the European Parliament. French Marine Le Pen will also need her help in unifying the extreme right.

The result of the European elections is extraordinary. Its the beginning of a new story in the politics of the European Union. Melonis government is the only one in Europe that has been approved by the voters; it is in fact a confirmation that Prime Minister Meloni is and will be a central figure in the new EU legislature, declared Senator Giulio Terzi di SantAgata, President of the Political Affairs Commission of the European Union and a key leader of Melonis party.

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The victory also sends her strong into the G7 Heads of State meeting that she is hosting at Borgo Egnazia, Puglia, on June 1314, as Italy holds the Presidency of the G7. US President Biden is facing a tough re-election this November; the UKs Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is widely expected to lose the elections in July; and both French President Macron and German Chancellor Scholtz have seriously diluted their influence given shocking losses at the European Union elections. Ursula Von der Leyen needs her support for her majority. The only two leaders coming to the G7 summit after receiving the blessings of their electorate are Giorgia Meloni and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (who will be a guest of the G7 after swearing in his third mandate a few days ago).

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This time, really, all eyes are on her, said Francesco Galietti, the founder of Policy Sonar, a political consultancy in Rome. Everyone assumes that [French president] Emmanuel Macron and [German chancellor] Olaf Scholz are kaputt, or are at least doing some very heavy maintenance work. Meloni is the host. But therell be some very big demands.

When she was new to the job, she was a good girl, sticking to the agenda of [former PM] Mario Draghi and making the right noise, said Galietti. But now theres war fatigue, and she was hesitant on the use of Italian ammunition to hit targets in Russia. She now has this big hot potato of Russian sanctions  Well see if she is true to her original claim of Atlanticism or whether it was a bluff all along.

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Meloni came to power two years ago after years alone in the opposition. Traditionally far-right, she has calmed her detractors by developing a strong relationship with US President Biden and EU Commission President von der Leyen, promising moderation and transatlanticism in governance. She continues to maintain strong relationships with far-right allies, such as Vox in Spain. Observers are sure that she supports former President Donald Trump in his re-election bid, despite her close cooperation with President Biden.

Detractors paint Meloni as an opportunist who will use the G7 to her advantage, waiting patiently to see how Marine Le Pen fares in the French elections before promising her support to Von der Leyen. Meloni will support von der Leyen, as she currently has no interest in giving more power to Le Pen. If you remember, she was attacked during the election campaign at the Northern League convention by Le Pen. Allying herself with Le Pen would mean alienating the European Peoples Party and, therefore, her ally Forza Italia. Le Pen could win the presidential elections in 2027; however, until then, Macron will be in the European Council, and standing in the way of France does not work for this government," observed Giorgio Rutelli, Deputy Editor-in-Chief of ADNKronos.

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Despite the challenges in front of her in the coming months in Brussels and on the international stage, Giorgia Meloni will stand tall in a room full of the worlds most powerful men at Borgo Egnazia.

The author is an Indo-Italian entrepreneur and writer, has worked closely and continues to advise various governments in Europe, Middle East and Africa. He is the founder of the Dialogue on Democracy. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views.
The new government in Delhi cannot immediately return to its 1950s position, but whether China is happy or not, it is worth to be studied, debated and widely circulated. Thereafter some steps could be taken into the right direction read more

China is not happy with the election of Narendra Modi for a third time as Indias Prime Minister. A reaction to an exchange between the new, democratically-elected Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te and Modi may be indicative of Chinas displeasure.

Lai congratulated Modi on the BJP-led NDAs victory in the Lok Sabha elections. He said, We look forward to enhancing the fast-growing #Taiwan-#India partnership, expanding our collaboration on trade, technology & other sectors to contribute to peace & prosperity in the #Indo-Pacific. Prime Minister Modi replied, Thank you @ChingteLai for your warm message. I look forward to closer ties as we work towards mutually beneficial economic and technological partnership.

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Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning immediately objected: First of all, there is no President in the Taiwan region. He added that China was opposed to all forms of official interactions between Taiwan authorities and countries having diplomatic relations with China.

Then, came a rather arrogant message from Xu Feihong, the newly-appointed Chinese Ambassador to India: Hope China and India will continue to follow the consensus reached between President Xi Jinping and PM Modi to build a sound and steady China-India relationship.

But then, who broke the consensus reached between Xi Jinping and Narendra Modi  first in Doklam in June 2017 and then in Ladakh in May 2020? It is not India. Before tweeting next time, you need to do some homework, Mr Xu.

With reports suggesting that India, in response to Chinas recent renaming of locations in Arunachal Pradesh, is planning to rename about 30 places within Chinas Tibet Autonomous Region, let us talk about consensus between India and China (not only about Taiwan and Xinjiang, but about Tibet), for which the posts have constantly been changed by Beijing.

In October 1950, the Peoples Liberation Army crossed the Upper Yangtze river and advanced into Kham Province of Eastern Tibet. A month later, Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the then Deputy Prime Minister, wrote a letter to Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru. Patel was concerned about Indias northern borders and pointed a finger at the Indian Ambassador in Beijing: The Chinese government has tried to delude us by professions of peaceful intention. My own feeling is that at a crucial period they manage to instil into our Ambassador a false sense of confidence in their so-called desire to settle the Tibetan problem by peaceful means. The final action of the Chinese, in my judgement, is little short of perfidy. The tragedy of it is that the Tibetans put faith in us. Our Ambassador has been at great pains to find an explanation or justification for Chinese policy and actions.

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Patel passed away soon after.

During the following months, KM Panikkar, the (in)famous Indian ambassador, continued to plead the Chinese case and slowly began to convince the Ministry of External Affairs in Delhi about his views.

A Secret Note

On January 25, 1952, in a Top Secret communication, the Ministry of External Affairs in Delhi gave some instructions to its ambassador in Beijing on the Indian Interests in Tibet. The note starts: Soon before Mr. Panikkar left Peking, Chou en lai [Zhou Enlai, the Chinese Premier] had expressed to him his anxiety to safeguard in every way Indian interests in Tibet, and to stabilise the Tibetan frontier which, he [Zhou] said was a matter of common interest to India, Nepal and China.

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Zhou added that it could best be done by discussion between these three countries. Panikkar informed the Chinese government that the Government of India appreciated the general line which the Chinese had taken and that they would welcome negotiations to settle these matters.

What were Indias interests in Tibet?

The Indian ambassador was reminded about an Indian note sent to Beijing soon after the invasion, in October 1950: certain rights have grown out of usage and Agreements which are natural between neighbours with close cultural and commercial relations. These relations have found expression in the presence of an Agent of the Government of India in Lhasa, the existence of trade Agencies at Gyantse and Yatung and the maintenance of post and telegraph offices at the trade route up to Gyantse. For the protection of this trade route a small military escort has been stationed at Gyantse for over years.

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South Block expressed its anxiety at the developing situation, and clarified that it wanted the continuation of this set-up. It mentions other Indian interests: (1) the trade agency at Gartok based on an agreement; (2) the right of Indians, flowing from usage, to carry on trades at places other than the Trade marts established by treaties; and, (3) the right of Indian pilgrims to visit Mansarovar and Kailash.

The Northern Boundary

Perhaps more importantly, Delhi wanted the boundary in the north-east to be discussed: The only other Indian interest is the affirmation of the McMahon line and the remaining frontier of Tibet which is largely, if not wholly, customary. This implies the integrity of Nepal. Bhutan for this purpose should be treated, like Sikkim, as part of India.

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Beijing will never accept this point.

The instructions for the ambassador were clear; he had to remind the Chinese government of our interests and leave it to them to say in what way, if any, they seek a modification of this interest.

During the following months and years, Panikkar argued with Delhi that if the Chinese do not mention the border issue, India should not say anything. Seventy years later, we can still see the consequence of this fallacy with China claiming the entire state of Arunachal Pradesh as its own.

But how can we undo these blunders today?

An additional note on the Indian interests in Tibet was attached; though it was based on the wrong premise that Tibet was part of China for good, it enumerated the legal issues involved.

The Indian Mission in Lhasa

A person who deeply influenced Indias Tibet policy at that time was VK Krishna Menon. About the Indian Mission in Lhasa, Menon affirmed that the British (and then Indian) representative had strayed into Lhasa and had stayed there.

The ministry, however, did not fully agree: The basis for the Mission, although somewhat tenuous, is not quite so non-existent.

The genesis of the Indian Mission (at par with an embassy in 1952) was explained: during the previous decades, the Tibetan government repeatedly approached the Government of India for a permanent representative at Lhasa. Delhi, however, preferred first to send its representative periodically, though regularly; for example, Sir Charles Bell, then Political Officer (PO), Sikkim, was the first representative of the Government of India to visit Lhasa in 1920 at the invitation of the Dalai Lama. He stayed in Tibet for a year. Subsequently, his successors continued to visit Lhasa every two or three years at the invitation of the Dalai Lama. Sir Basil Gould (PO, Sikkim) was in Lhasa from August 1936 to February 1937 and when he returned his place was taken by [Hugh] Richardson, the [Indian] Trade Agent at Gyantse. Mr. Richardson was succeeded a little more than a year ago by Mr. [Sumul] Sinha, the present incumbent.

The notes cite many legal documents such as the Anglo-Tibetan Convention of 1904 which provides exclusive British political influence in Tibet: The Government of Tibet engages that, without the previous consent of the British Government no portion of Tibetan territory shall be ceded, sold, leased, mortgaged or otherwise given for occupation, to any Foreign Power. Or again no power shall be permitted to intervene in Tibetan affairs and no representative or Agents of any Foreign Power shall be admitted to Tibet.

Unfortunately, though this convention was confirmed by the Anglo-Chinese Convention of 1906, it was then admitted that China was not a foreign power for the purposes of the above provisions.

The Assam Border

Among the other Indian interests mentioned was the boundary between Assam and Tibet. The note asserts that it was defined on the map as part of the 1914 Simla Convention. The Chinese at that time had no issue with the northern border of India with Tibet; they only disputed the border between Tibet and China in Kham and Amdo provinces: The latter boundary [the McMahon Line] was not questioned even in certain proposals which were made by the Chinese subsequent to the Simla convention.

Interestingly, the note concludes with an interesting suggestion: The possibility may be explored of arriving at an agreement with the Chinese to demilitarise the border, or limit the number of troops which either side can post.

Indias interests in Tibet remain as strong today.

Obviously, the new government in Delhi cannot immediately return to its 1950s position, but whether China is happy or not, it is worth to be studied, debated and widely circulated. Thereafter some steps could be taken into the right direction. If it is not done, Beijing will continue to push the posts in its favour, as it has done for the past 70 years.

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.
The official thinking of Pakistan towards India follows the path chosen by the military generals and not by the civilian politicians read more

The wide gap in the two Sharifs' tone of greeting Modi is indicative of the gap between Pakistani official thinking and Nawaz Sharifs desire for an improvement in the bilateral relationship. Image: AFP file

Pakistans former premier and head of the Pakistan Muslim League (N) (PML (N)), Nawaz Sharif, congratulated Narendra Modi after he took the oath as the Indian prime minister for the third time. In a message posted on X, Nawaz Sharif wrote, Your partys success in recent elections reflects the confidence of the people in your leadership. Let us replace hate with hope and seize the opportunity to shape the destiny of two billion people of South Asia." Modi responded cautiously.

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Appreciating the message, he stated, The people of India have always stood for peace, security, and progressive ideas. Advancing the well-being and security of our people will always remain our priority." Clearly, the Reasi terrorist attack, in which nine pilgrims lost their lives and which occurred on the day of the swearing-in, May 9, was weighing on Modis mind.

Modi had invited Senior Sharif to his first oath-taking ceremony as PM in May 2014. Despite the opposition of the Pakistani army, Nawaz Sharif travelled to Delhi to attend the ceremony. The two had decided to embark on a process to normalise the bilateral relationship. The Pakistani generals had, however, put paid to the endevour initially through the Pathankot terrorist attack of January 2016 and, later that year, through the Uri terrorist attack.

If the Reasi terrorist attack was one signal from the Pakistani generals who would have been disheartened by the turnout in Kashmir in the elections, the other was the cold greeting of Nawaz Sharifs brother and Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. He posted on X, Felicitations to Narendra Modi on taking oath as Prime Minister."

Besides, two days prior to Modis swearing in, Pakistans foreign ministry spokesperson put the onus on India to create an environment conducive to the advancement of peace and dialogue and the resolution of long-standing disputes for mutual benefit. The dispute is an obvious reference to Jammu and Kashmir, but the spokesperson took no chances. In her briefing, she referred to the constitutional changes in J&K on August 5, 2019 and repeated the Pakistani position that they had vitiated the bilateral environment. She also said that Pakistan had observed an increase in vitriolic rhetoric [during the campaign].

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The wide gap in the two Sharifs tone and tenor of greeting Modi is indicative of the gap between Pakistani official thinking and Nawaz Sharifs desire for an improvement in the bilateral relationship. The official thinking of Pakistan towards India follows the path chosen by the military generals and not by the civilian politicians.

This thinking is reflected in the words of the Pakistani official spokesperson. Unlike his brother, Shehbaz Sharif does not buck the generals. At a time when he and the generals are on the same page to take on the continuing challenge of Imran Khan, Shehbaz Sharif will take all the more care of the generals views on their countrys approach to India under Modi 3.0.

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Indeed, Shehbaz has learned from his brothers experience and that of other Pakistani leadersZulfikar Ali Bhutto and Imran Khanthat taking on the generals is dangerous. All three suffered at their hands. Bhutto paid with his life, and Imran Khan, who, ironically, was promoted as a counter to Nawaz Sharif, was manoeuvred out of office by former army chief Qamar Bajwa in April 2022; he has spent a long period in jail thereafter.

This has been continuous since his supporters agitated against the army and destroyed the monuments of the martyrs on May 9, 2023. As was Imran Khan, so too were Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif promoted in politics by the army. Thus, all three were one-time army proteges who broke ranks and paid for their revolts.

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The Sharifs ancestors hailed from the Kashmir valley and migrated from there to settle in Jati Umra village in Amritsar district. After partition, the family migrated to Pakistan, and Nawaz Sharifs father, Mian Muhammad Sharif, achieved great success in business. He set up the Ittefaq Group with interests in sugar, steel, and agriculture. Bhutto nationalised Pakistans private industry, including the Ittefaq Group. However, General Ziaul Haq changed his policies, and the Sharifs bounced back.

The story goes that Punjab Governor Lt General Ghulam Jilani Khan was supplied with iron grills, etc., free of charge by the Sharifs, and he asked Muhammad Sharif for a son who could be taken under the armys wings. He pointed to Nawaz Sharif, his eldest son. In 1981, while Zia ruled Pakistan, Nawaz became a minister in the Punjab provincial government and, in 1985, Chief Minister. He was laid-back but could be charming and yet earthy. He was clearly the armys darling; it promoted his career. After Zias death in 1988, the army supported him to take on Benazir Bhutto, but he failed at the federal level. However, he continued as Punjabs Chief Minister, which is the most important Pakistani province.

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In the 1990 national elections, Nawaz Sharif succeeded Benazir Bhutto and became prime minister. He continued in office until 1993, when he fell out with President Ghulam Ishaq Khan. The then-army chief intervened. Nawaz was removed from office, and elections were announced. However, to be even handed the army, even though its relations with Nawaz had not been entirely smooth, also secured Khans resignation.

The 1993 elections were won by Benazir, who became prime minister, with Nawaz Sharif forced to become leader of the opposition. Benazir was removed from office in 1996 by President Farooq Leghari, and in the elections held in February 1997, Nawaz Sharif won and became Prime Minister.

In his second term, Nawaz Sharif wanted to become a true prime minister. This meant that he wanted to control Pakistans security and foreign policies, which the army considered its preserve. It is believed that with the assistance of his father, he made inroads among the generals and made some of them beholden to him. In early 1998, he took the boldest decision that any prime minister had taken. He asked army chief Jehangir Karamat to resign because of differences of opinion on the composition of the National Security Council. Karamat, who had an obvious commitment to the Pakistani constitution, followed Sharifs bidding. In the context of Karamats dismissal, it is noteworthy that Bhutto too changed the top brass of the army in 1972, but that was a different time as Pakistan had recently tasted defeat in the 1971 war.

Karamats departure caused disquiet in the army, but Sharifs decision was accepted. Army also accepted Sharifs choice of the general to lead itLt Gen Pervez Musharraf, who was Muhajir and not the seniormost general. Clearly, Sharif felt that he would be secure because Musharrafs Muhajir background would be a weakness for him. What he overlooked was that Karamats decision was his own, not that of the army as an institution.

Musharraf and the generals became unhappy with Nawazs desire to build bridges with India, which resulted in then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayees Lahore visit, the signing of the Lahore Declaration in February 1999, and the beginning of the Composite Dialogue process earlier in autumn 1998.

Musharraf and a clutch of generals decided to launch the Kargil operation even before Vajpayees visit and went ahead with it despite the visit. This was a rogue operation. Nawaz Sharif was briefed about it after the Lahore Declaration, but perhaps he did not understand its real potential of undoing what he was attempting to do with India. Initially, when the operation began, he thought that the Pakistani army might succeed, and he did not stop Musharraf. At this stage, his father conveyed to him that if Vajpayee Sahib feels that you have betrayed his trust, he is right.

Despite all odds, the Indian army and diplomacy put Pakistan on the mat. President Clinton intervened and gave Pakistan no choice but to withdraw. But this intervention was only after Indian troops, at great sacrifice, had gone a long way in clearing the posts occupied by Pakistani troops on the Kargil heights. Pakistans humiliation set the stage for a Nawaz and Musharraf war. Nawaz dismissed Musharraf, but the army staged a coup. Musharraf became the government head and later president. He imprisoned the Sharif family except for Nawazs father, whom he respected. Finally, Musharraf allowed Nawaz and the rest of the Sharif clan to go into exile in Saudi Arabia in 1999.

Nawaz Sharif returned only in 2013, and his party won the election and he became Prime Minister. However, the army chief, Gen. Ashfaq Kayani, soon retired, and Nawaz chose Raheel Sharif to head the army, hoping that he would be loyal to him. This was not to be.

The relationship remained uneasy, and the army promoted Imran Khan against Nawaz, supporting his demonstrations from behind the scenes. The disclosure of the Panama papers in 2016 gave the army and elements in the Pakistani judiciary the opportunity to join hands to remove Nawaz Sharif from the PMs chair and send him to jail along with his daughter Maryam Nawaz on criminal charges in 2017. It was only in 2019 that he was allowed to go to Britain for medical treatment. He remained there in exile till his return, facilitated by the army, in 2023.

Nawaz Sharif is now head of the party; he took over from Shehbaz on May 28. At almost 75, he is not the same man he was earlier. Besides, he is bitter about the way he was treated in 201617. He astutely pressed Shehbaz to appoint Asim Munir as army chief, who has an abiding hatred for Imran Khan. Munir will respect him, but it is clear from the dichotomy of the messages sent by him and Shehbaz to Modi that the army will not allow his approaches towards India to prevail.

Nawaz Sharifs political career only illustrates the influence of the army in all aspects of Pakistans national destiny, especially the political one. That is the abiding truth about Pakistan.

The writer is a former Indian diplomat who served as Indias Ambassador to Afghanistan and Myanmar, and as secretary, the Ministry of External Affairs. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views.
Geopolitical tensions are influencing the decisions of central banks around the world as they lose trust in the international banking system read more

The G7 summit started on Thursday. However, the tone was already set. Once again, the group of the most advanced democracies is gearing up to take aim at Russiaspecifically Russian money.

The discussions would focus on using Russian assets to provide financial aid to Ukraine. Reports say the deal is done. Some last-minute details are still being finalised, but the US is confident of making an announcement during the G7 summit.

We will announce new steps to unlock the value of the immobilised Russian sovereign assets to benefit Ukraine and to help them recover from the destruction that Putins army has caused, said John Kirby, US National Security Council spokesperson.

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This move could have wide-ranging implications for the global financial system, as it could undermine the worlds trust in it.

When Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, they froze Russian government assets worth $280 billion that were parked in the West, mostly in three countriesBelgium, France, and Germany. The money is lying with the banks in the form of securities and cash. These assets have been frozen, which means Russia cannot access these funds.

But the money is lying in the bank and generating interestjust like a fixed deposit in a bank. These assets could now be mobilised for Ukraine through a loan. The Americans have put forward a plan for this.

As per the plan, the G7 will extend Ukraine a $50 billion loan to be paid back over the years by the interest on the frozen Russian assets. Kyiv may not end up repaying it; the repayments could be financed through the earnings of the Russian assets. The interest generated by Russian government assets lying in the West. Every year, these assets could generate around $2.7 billion to $3.7 billion in interest.

European leaders are calling this a solidarity package for Ukraine.

This plan has three benefits for the West:

First, it ensures an uninterrupted flow of funds for Ukraine.

Second, Russia loses the profits. However, its core investment stays intact, but Moscow will lose the earnings from interest.

Third, Russian assets will become bargaining chips for future negotiations with Moscow for potential peace talks.

What can Russia do?

Back in March, Russia threatened to sue the West. The Kremlin had said that if profits from its assets were diverted, all possible judicial mechanisms would be used.

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The G7 blocs lawyers say Russians can defend themselves in court, so there could be a legal face-off. But Valdimir Putin is going a step further. Last month, the Russian president signed a decree that gave the Russian state some new powers: if Moscow wants, it can simply seize any Western asset in Russia, including any properties, real estate, securities, and even Western stakes in American companies.

The Russian state could now step in and simply take them over. Moscow claims it has identified some assets already. Approximately $290 billion is owned by Western interests. So if the G7 goes ahead with its plan, Moscow will respond in kind. One can expect the face-off to escalate.

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This faceoff sends a troubling signal to the rest of the world. The financial assets of sovereign nations are being weaponised. This is leading to unintended consequences.

Central banks around the world are feeling nervous, wondering if their assets held by Western institutions will be frozen tomorrow. This is a clear vulnerability. So, they are turning to alternatives. Central banks are increasing their gold reserves, and they now prefer to hold them within their own borders.

Last year, a survey came out that showed a clear shift. In 2020, 50 percent of the worlds central banks held a part of their gold reserves at home, and by 2023, this number had shot up to 68 percent, and this number is likely to increase further to 74 percent by 2028.

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Indias central bank, too, is part of this shift. Recently, Indias RBI shifted around 100 metric tonnes of its gold from the UK back to India, which was a rare move.

Since 1991, the RBI hasnt thought about executing such a transfer, but only now. As per reports, RBI has 822 metric tonnes of gold in its reserve, which is split almost evenly, with around 50 percent of it being stored abroad while the other half stays in India.

The Indian central bank said that it had the space to store the gold within the country, so it decided to use it. There was no mention of the geopolitical tensions. But that goes without saying.

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These tensions are influencing the decisions of central banks around the world. Clearly, they are losing trust in the international banking system. The G7 may succeed in transferring Russian money to Ukraine, but it should be prepared for a blowback.

Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views.
Given how Melonis peers from G7 countries are struggling, no one other than the Italian prime minister seems better suited to take on a bigger role on the global stage read more

Among the leaders of the G7 nations, six out of seven face domestic hurdles, with tough elections, dwindling support, and the possibility of ouster on the horizon. The only exception is the host Italian Prime Minister, Giorgia Meloni. Her stock is on the rise, while the other leaders are facing a rout.

Three of the G7 leadersUS President Joe Biden, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, and French President Emmanuel Macronface immediate danger.

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Biden faces an election in November, and hes barely hanging on. Recent polls show him neck and neck with his rival, Donald Trump, even though Trump is now a convicted felon. The US public apparently doesnt rate Biden too highly, and he may be sacked in a few months.

Things look even worse for Sunak, the British PM, who is trailing by a massive margin. His party is staring at a rout in the election next month. The fate will be sealed in about three weeks from now. So it is likely that this G7 summit will be Sunaks last.

Then there is Macron, the French president, who has taken a risky gamble as he called for snap parliamentary polls after having his party drubbing in the recent European Union Parliament elections. The results showed that Macrons party has lost public confidence, and he wants to turn that around immediately.

If his plan works and his party manages to win the elections, his position will be secure. However, if they lose, Macron will become a lame duck. The opposition will take over the French parliament and block his every move, leaving him almost powerless until he leaves office in 2027.

Then there are the other three leadersGerman Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishidawho are struggling.

Scholz is in the same boat as Macron. His party did very badly in the EU elections, ranking third in Germany. So, like Macron, Scholz seems to have lost popular support. However, Scholz isnt trying to salvage his legitimacy and has so far resisted calls for a snap election. It seems he wants to ride out the storm instead of facing it head-on. However, this strategy may not help his popularity. Whatever he does, Germany will go to the polls next year, at the latest. So if not now, Scholz may be out the door in a years time.

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Then comes Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, whose country goes to the polls next year with a record low approval rating. The lowest in history for a leader of his party. Opinion polls suggest that he wont survive the next election.

Japans PM, Fumio Kishida, is included in this list as well. His cabinet has received its lowest approval since he took charge, and they have been rocked by one scandal after another. His party has been linked to a controversial church. As many as four members of Kishidas cabinet had to resign last December over a fundraising scandal. This prompted a new funding law last week in a bid to control the damage. But Kishidas popularity continues to sink. He may not survive the general election slated for 2025.

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So as Biden, Sunak, and Macron could lose power this year, Scholz, Trudeau, and Kishida could be out next year. This means six of the G7 governments are in a weak position. The only exception is the host, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. She emerged as the big winner of the recent EU election, with her party more than doubling its seat tally.

This makes her a force to be reckoned with in Europe, and the G7 and Meloni know this.

It is a message that comes to us from Italians: go ahead, go ahead. I take it as someones message to say, Go ahead and do it, if possible, with greater determination. A sign that I understand, a sign that I am ready to seize. And Im proud that we are heading to the G7 and to Europe with the strongest government of all, said the Italian prime minister.

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Meloni said the strongest government of all because she knows that she is firmly in the drivers seat. She is the only G7 leader who seems to have public support, and in fact, support for her has increased since she came to power.

One of the key discussions this week will involve the EUs top jobthe post of European Commission presidentcurrently held by Ursula von der Leyen, who will be at the G7 summit.

Von der Leyen will sit down with Scholz, Macron, and Meloni to try and formalise an EU parliamentary coalition. She needs support from at least two of the three aforementioned leaders, and Meloni is in the strongest position to negotiate a deal.

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If Meloni extends her support to von der Leyen, the EU Commission would have to accommodate her, which would put Italy at the centre of European politics, cementing Melonis place as a global leader. Given how her peers are struggling, no one other than her seems better suited to take on such a bigger role on the global stage.

Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely those of the author. They do not necessarily reflect Firstposts views.
The MediaTek chip for Windows Copilot+ will launch late next year. This will coincide with Qualcomms exclusive deal to supply chips for laptops expiring. In addition to MediaTek, both NVIDIA and AMD are reportedly working on Arm designs for Windows machines read more

Microsoft initially partnered with Qualcomm in 2016 to transition the Windows operating system to Arm's processor architecture, which is well-suited for the low power consumption needs of smartphones. Image Credit: Microsoft

Taiwanese chip design giant MediaTek is developing an Arm-based personal computer chip intended to run Microsofts Windows operating system, similar to Qualcomms Snapdragon X Elite for Copilot+ laptops.

This development aligns with Microsofts recent unveiling of a new generation of laptops featuring chips designed with Arm Holdings technology, which are powerful enough to support advanced artificial intelligence applicationsan area executives believe represents the future of consumer computing. The MediaTek chip is tailored to support this initiative.

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Microsofts strategic move is positioned as a direct challenge to Apple, which has been utilizing its own Arm-based chips for Mac computers for approximately four years. The decision to optimize Windows for Arm architecture could also pose a significant challenge to Intels longstanding dominance in the PC market.

However, Microsoft, at the time of unveiling its Copilot+ laptops, had stated that only Qualcomm is licensed to create chips for Arm-based laptops

In response to the news, MediaTeks Taiwan-listed shares saw a rise of 2.4 per cent on Wednesday, outperforming the broader market index, which gained 1.2 per cent.

The MediaTek chip for Windows Copilot+ will launch late next year. This will coincide with Qualcomms exclusive deal to supply chips for laptops expiring.

This arrangement will end in 2024, allowing other companies to enter the market. MediaTeks chip will be based on Arms ready-made designs, which can significantly accelerate development by reducing the amount of custom design work required.

It remains unclear whether Microsoft has approved MediaTeks PC chip for its Copilot+ Windows program. According to Arm executives, one of its customers used ready-made components to build a chip in roughly nine months. However, MediaTeks design is not yet complete, and advanced chip development typically takes experienced design firms more than a year to construct and test, depending on the complexity.

Microsoft initially partnered with Qualcomm in 2016 to transition the Windows operating system to Arms processor architecture, which is well-suited for the low power consumption needs of smartphones. Microsoft had granted Qualcomm an exclusivity agreement to develop Arm-based Windows-compatible chips until 2024.

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With the upcoming expiration of Qualcomms exclusivity arrangement, other chip designers are stepping up to create chips that will support Microsofts new push towards Arm-based designs. Historically, Windows machines have relied on chip architectures from Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) and Intel.

In addition to MediaTek, both NVIDIA and AMD are reportedly working on Arm designs for Windows machines. NVIDIAs effort to develop a PC chip involves collaboration with MediaTek, though MediaTeks project for a standalone PC chip is separate from its work with NVIDIA.

This diversification of partners and the integration of Arm technology into Windows PCs mark a significant shift in the computing landscape, potentially redefining the competitive dynamics of the PC market.
One Victor Miller is making waves in the Cheyenne in the US state of Wyoming, claiming that he is just a meat suit and that all policy devision will come from VIC, the AI bot that will essentially be contesting the election read more

The open confession by one of the contestants that he will be using AI for all policy decisions has left everyone involved scratching their heads. Image Credit: Pexels

Imagine a political system so broken that a candidate vows to use AI to make all major decisions, and abide by every word of it like it was handed to them straight from God. Well, one Victor Miller is making waves in the Cheyenne, Wyoming is doing just that.

Miller is contesting the mayoral race with a groundbreaking campaign promise  to delegate all major mayoral responsibilities to an AI bot named VIC, the Virtual Integrated Citizen. Built on OpenAIs ChatGPT-4.0, VIC was created by Miller to handle the intricacies of running the city, leveraging its advanced capabilities to make decisions based on data and legal knowledge.

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Miller describes his role as merely the meat puppet, performing the necessary physical tasks of a mayor while VIC drives the policy and decision-making processes.

Millers unique approach has several raises legal and ethical questions. While it is clear that an AI bot cannot legally run for office, Miller asserts that he is the official candidate on the ballot, with VIC acting as his guiding force.

This manoeuvre has drawn scrutiny from Wyomings secretary of state, Chuck Gray, who emphasized that candidates must be qualified electors, meaning real people. Gray has suggested that Millers application could be rejected, citing concerns about the legality and appropriateness of using an AI in this capacity.

The concept of VIC originated when Miller, frustrated by bureaucratic inefficiencies and a lack of adherence to laws, saw potential in AI to address these issues. He fed VIC extensive documents from past city council meetings, enabling the bot to analyze and make policy recommendations. Miller believes that VICs ability to process and understand vast amounts of information quickly gives it an advantage over human counterparts, ensuring well-informed and legally sound decisions.

Despite the excitement surrounding this innovative campaign, OpenAI has distanced itself from any political applications of its technology. The company stated that it had taken action against VIC due to policy violations related to political campaigning. Miller, however, remains undeterred, prepared to transition VIC to Metas open-source Llama 3 if necessary.

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VIC, while focused on nonpartisan and data-driven policies, represents a significant shift in how technology could influence political processes. Its proposals emphasize transparency, economic development, and innovation, with a commitment to enhancing public services and infrastructure through advanced technological solutions.

The Cheyenne mayoral race, featuring incumbent Patrick Collins and other candidates, now includes this unconventional bid, challenging traditional political norms and sparking debate about the future integration of AI in public administration.
Health institute in India's Chandigarh receives fake bomb threat

Xinhua) 13:07, June 13, 2024

NEW DELHI, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Police in the northern Indian city of Chandigarh said Wednesday that a bomb threat received by the mental health institute of Government Medical College and Hospital was fake and nothing suspicious was found in and outside the site.

The institute's administration informed police that they received an email about the bomb threat on the hospital premises. The building was evacuated immediately and all the people were moved to safe places.

Police personnel, a bomb disposal squad and fire department officials rushed to the hospital to carry out searches and nothing was found, a senior police officer told media, adding that "after getting permission from senior officers, the hospital will be reopened."

The incident was the latest among a series of hoax bomb threats that have been sent to schools, airports and hospitals in the country.

(Web editor: Zhang Kaiwei, Zhong Wenxing)
Oakland police officials and Mayor Sheng Thao announced that a man was arrested on suspicion of a string of robberies in the citys Highland Park neighborhood. They also said several juveniles were arrested for allegedly robbing commercial businesses. Santiago Mejia/The Chronicle

Editors Note: After this story was published, the Chronicle learned that Oakland has been publishing weekly reports on citywide crime statistics that are misleading for understanding year-over-year trends, particularly in the category of burglaries and theft. In the interest of transparency, we have added this editors note to every article containing data that relied on Oakland's misleading crime reports. We wrote about the source of the data problem and Oakland's response on July 10, 2024, and you can read that story here.

The following is the original version of this story. We have not amended the data.

A 32-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of committing four residential robberies in Oaklands Highland Park neighborhood, police said Wednesday.

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While many crimes in Oakland are down this year compared with last year, residential robberies have risen. Through Sunday, residential robberies there increased 87% over the same period in 2023.

Derrick Behrens was charged with residential robbery, according to court records. Police believe Behrens parked several blocks away from the homes before entering them, Oakland police Acting Deputy Chief Frederick Shavies said during a news conference. It was unclear whether anyone was injured in the robberies.

Late last month, an Alameda County Superior Court judge ordered Behrens to stand trial, according to court records.

Shavies also said two groups of juveniles were arrested in connection with more than 30 commercial burglaries and robberies that occurred during the first four months of the year. The targeted businesses included fast food restaurants, gas stations and liquor stores. At least half a dozen commercial robberies and burglaries occurred on May 29 in East Oakland.

The news conference marked the first for Police Chief Floyd Mitchell, who started the job last month. While many crimes are down, our work is far from over, Mitchell said.

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He and Mayor Sheng Thao commended officers work on the cases.

Thao said the enforcement is part of the citys comprehensive approach to public safety. While crime increased last year, the city is turning the tide, Thao said, noting drops in crime.

We need to continue to put on the pressure, and we will, Thao said.

Shavies also shared details about a home invasion Monday that turned into a fatal shooting. He said three people tried to break into a home on 98th Street near Burr Street  they scaled a backyard fence  but the homeowner confronted them and fatally shot one of them.

When officers arrived, the homeowner was allegedly pointing a revolver at one of the other suspects, according to court records. The two suspects were arrested on suspicion of burglary, although only one of them, Jamon Fisher, remained in custody as of Wednesday. The case was presented to prosecutors, who will determine whether to file criminal charges, police said.

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The 77-year-old homeowner declined to provide a statement to investigators, so he was arrested and booked into jail on suspicion of murder, according to Shavies, jail records and court records. The gun the officers took from the homeowner was allegedly not registered to him; it was reported stolen in Eureka, according to court records. The documents identified the homeowner as Gregory Ravara.

It is unclear if the two other suspects in the break-in will face criminal charges in the death of their alleged accomplice. In a similar case earlier this year, a man was charged with murder after a homeowner fatally shot the mans alleged accomplice during a home invasion.

It appeared the charges were filed under the legal theory that the defendants actions provoked the homeowner, who exchanged gunfire with the intruders, authorities said.

The incident on 98th Street was Oaklands fourth fatal shooting of the day.

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OpenAI and Apple have a symbiotic relationship of sorts. OpenAI has adequate services but no platform like Google or Microsoft has for their AI services, whereas Apple has a platform but no impactful AI chat service to offer read more

Tim Cook and Sam Altman are not planning to monetise their partnership as of now, but plans for revenue streams will sure pop up. Image credit: AFP, AFP

Apple, in its deal with OpenAI, has been able to pull off something that would make every brand manager dealing with influencers, or recruiters dealing with freelancers can only dream of  paying them in exposure.

According to insiders, neither Apple nor OpenAI are focusing on revenue generation from the partnership. Instead, Apple aims to provide OpenAI with significant exposure by embedding ChatGPT into Siri and new AI writing tools on the iPhone, iPad, and Mac.

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Rather than monetary payments, Apple believes the exposure provided by featuring OpenAIs technology across millions of devices is equally, if not more, valuable. This arrangement allows Apple to enhance its devices with advanced AI capabilities, potentially boosting user engagement and driving hardware upgrades.

This collaboration is part of a broader push by Apple into the AI realm, as showcased at its recent Worldwide Developers Conference. Alongside ChatGPT integration, Apple introduced its proprietary AI features under the Apple Intelligence brand.

To put it succinctly, OpenAI and Apple have a symbiotic relationship of sorts. OpenAI has adequate services but no platform like Google or Microsoft has for their AI services, whereas Apple has a platform but no impactful AI chat service to offer.

While the current deal is not financially driven, there is room for prospects that would drive revenue in the future.

OpenAIs integration into Apple devices could significantly increase operational costs for OpenAI due to the need to host ChatGPT on Microsofts Azure cloud. As user engagement with ChatGPT grows, so will OpenAIs expenses.

If users opt to subscribe to OpenAI services via Apple devices, Apple will benefit through its payment platform, which takes a cut of the subscription fee. This aligns with Apples strategy to monetise AI by sharing revenues with AI partners who generate income on its platforms.

The deal with OpenAI is non-exclusive, allowing Apple to integrate other AI chatbots like Googles Gemini, expected sometime later. Apple is also exploring partnerships with other companies, such as Anthropic, to diversify its AI offerings, similar to its approach with multiple search engines in Safari.

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Apple aims to profit from AI by establishing revenue-sharing agreements with AI partners. This strategy anticipates that AI tools will eventually reduce the revenue Apple currently earns from its Google search deal, as users may prefer AI chatbots over traditional search engines. Apples in-house AI services, which operate primarily on-device, are less costly than cloud-based solutions, though the company is expanding its data centre capabilities to support more advanced online AI services.

Expanding Apple Intelligence to other languages and countries is crucial for its success. This presents a challenge in markets like China, where services such as ChatGPT and Gemini are restricted. Apple is considering collaborations with local providers like Baidu and Alibaba to navigate these restrictions. Currently, Apple Intelligence supports only American English, but the company plans to extend support to more languages next year.

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Apples innovative approach to compensating OpenAI with exposure rather than immediate financial payments exemplifies a strategic move in the tech industry. By integrating OpenAIs ChatGPT into its ecosystem, Apple not only enhances its devices but also positions itself to benefit from future AI advancements and revenue opportunities.
The largest of these craters, spanning approximately 65 kilometres in diameter, has been named Lal Crater in honour of Professor Devendra Lal. Adjacent to Lal Crater are two smaller craters: Mursan Crater and Hilsa Crater read more

Recently, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) named three newly discovered craters on Mars, situated within the Tharsis volcanic region, after a prominent figure in Indias science community and Indian locations.

These craters were officially designated based on recommendations from the Physical Research Laboratory (PRL) in Ahmedabad, India, marking a significant tribute to both scientific achievement and cultural heritage.

The largest of these craters, spanning approximately 65 kilometres in diameter, has been named Lal Crater in honour of Professor Devendra Lal. Professor Lal, who served as the director of PRL from 1972 to 1983, made substantial contributions to the fields of cosmic ray physics and space research.

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His leadership and pioneering work have left an indelible mark on the scientific community, particularly in advancing our understanding of cosmic rays and their impact on planetary environments.

Adjacent to Lal Crater are two smaller craters: Mursan Crater and Hilsa Crater. Mursan Crater takes its name from the town of Mursan in Uttar Pradesh, India, while Hilsa Crater is named after the town of Hilsa in Bihar, India.

Both towns hold cultural and historical significance in the region, and naming these craters after them serves as a nod to the rich cultural tapestry that informs our exploration and understanding of space.

The discovery of these craters was facilitated by SHARAD (Mars SHAllow RADar sounder), a cutting-edge subsurface sounding radar mounted on NASAs Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter (MRO).

This technology allows scientists to probe beneath Mars surface, revealing details about its geological composition and history.

In the case of Lal Crater, SHARAD identified substantial sedimentary deposits, providing compelling evidence that water once flowed across the Martian surface. This discovery contributes significantly to our knowledge of Marss past climate and potential for habitability, offering insights into the planets evolution over billions of years.
While the complete results of the vote will be shared only at a Tesla shareholders meeting in Austin, later today, Musk has indicated that early voting indicates that he has the numbers favouring the restoration of the pay package read more

Tesla CEO Elon Musk claims that he has the votes that would restore his $56 billion pay package that was struck down by a Delaware judge. Image Credit: Reuters

Tesla shareholders have overwhelmingly re-approved Elon Musks controversial 2018 pay package, which was previously invalidated by a Delaware judge. The pay package, potentially worth up to $56 billion, granted Musk stock options tied to Teslas performance milestones. This approval from shareholders sends a strong signal of support for Musks leadership, despite some earlier criticisms and legal challenges.

The re-approval doesnt instantly restore Musks pay but reflects investor confidence in his role at Tesla. Some major investors previously expressed concerns about Musk being distracted and questioned the fairness of such a large compensation.

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While the complete results of the vote will be shared only at a Tesla shareholders meeting in Austin, later today, Musk has indicated that early voting indicates that he has the numbers favouring the restoration of the pay package and that they had surpassed the threshold needed to guarantee his victory.

Without his relentless drive and uncompromising standards, there would be no Tesla, said Ron Baron, chair of Baron Capital. He encouraged shareholders to reapprove Musks pay, declaring, Tesla is Elon.

Robyn Denholm, chair of Teslas board, highlighted the significant returns investors have enjoyed since March 2018, emphasizing that Musks leadership has yielded over 1,000 per cent returns. She stressed that the company is obliged to honor its commitments to Musk.

Supporters, including X CEO Linda Yaccarino, celebrated the preliminary voting results. Musk, among the worlds richest individuals, vowed in a tweet to make Tesla the most valuable company globally, reinforcing his commitment to the company.

The vote illustrates the power of shareholder influence, as noted by James Park, a professor at UCLA School of Law. He described the decision as corporate democracy in action, highlighting the significance of shareholders voices in corporate governance.

Earlier this year, a Delaware judge invalidated Musks pay package, citing unfair processes. In response, Musk hinted at potentially stepping back from Tesla to pursue advanced technologies independently, raising concerns for Tesla amid challenges like weak sales and intense global competition.

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Despite some investors silence on their stance, the largest shareholders, including Vanguard Group, BlackRock, and State Street, who collectively own about 17% of Tesla stock, did not publicly comment. The detailed voting results will be disclosed at a Tesla shareholder meeting in Austin.

However, some investors remain opposed. Norges Bank Investment Management, managing Norways sovereign wealth fund, voted against the pay package due to its size. Similarly, the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS), the largest U.S. pension fund, also opposed the deal, citing concerns over its magnitude.

Despite recognizing Musks pivotal role in building Tesla, some stakeholders are troubled by the companys recent financial performance. Tesla has experienced a drop in sales and profits, losing market share amid increasing competition. Additionally, some shareholders believe Musks acquisition of X has diverted his attention from Tesla during a crucial period for the company.
The United States on Wednesday dramatically broadened sanctions on Russia, including by targeting China-based companies selling semiconductors to Moscow, as part of an effort to undercut the Russian military machine waging war on Ukraine read more

Semiconductor chips are seen on a printed circuit board in this illustration picture taken 17 February, 2023. Reuters

The United States on Wednesday dramatically broadened sanctions on Russia, including by targeting China-based companies selling semiconductors to Moscow, as part of an effort to undercut the Russian military machine waging war on Ukraine.

Among the steps, the US Treasury said it was raising the risk of secondary sanctions for foreign financial institutions that deal with Russias war economy, effectively threatening them with losing access to the US financial system.

It also said it was moving to restrict the Russian military industrial bases ability to exploit certain US software and information technology services and, with the State Department, targeting more than 300 individuals and entities in Russia and beyond, including in Asia, Europe and Africa.

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Separately, the Commerce Department said it was targeting shell companies in Hong Kong for diverting semiconductors to Russia, taking steps that would affect nearly $100 million of high-priority items for Moscow including such chips.

It will also expand its lists of items Russia cannot import from other nations to cover not just US-origin products but US-branded goods, meaning those made with US intellectual property or technology, a senior Commerce official told reporters on condition of anonymity.

Widely used technology

US-made chips and other technology have been found in a wide array of Russian equipment, from drones to radios, missiles and armored vehicles, recovered from the battlefield, Ukrainian officials say.

After seizing Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbor in 2022, triggering a host of new US economic sanctions on Moscow.

While many analysts do not expect US and other nations sanctions to materially change Russian President Vladimir Putins calculus, they believe they will both make it harder for Moscow to wage war and, over time, weaken Russias economy.

Todays actions strike at their remaining avenues for international materials and equipment, including their reliance on critical supplies from third countries, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement.

The Treasury also said it was imposing sanctions on key parts of Russias financial infrastructure, including the Moscow Exchange (MOEX), which operates Russias largest public markets for equity, fixed income, foreign exchange and other products.

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MOEX and its related subsidiaries have facilitated sanctions evasion by obscuring the identities of parties engaged in such transactions, a senior Treasury official told reporters. By sanctioning them, the official said, the US would force greater transparency on cross-border transactions, making it harder to evade sanctions.

MOEX, in a statement rushed out within an hour of the US moves on Wednesday, a public holiday in Russia, said the new sanctions had forced an immediate suspension of trading in dollars and euros on its leading financial marketplace.

Unilateral sanctions

China said it firmly opposed the sanctions and would safeguard the rights and interests of its companies and citizens.

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It called the US extremely hypocritical and overbearing for supplying Ukraine weapons while pushing for peace.

We urge the United States to immediately stop abusing illegal unilateral sanctions, and focus on ceasefires, stop wars, restore peace, and play a constructive role, the Chinese foreign ministry said at a regular news briefing on Thursday.

The news came as President Joe Biden departed for a summit in southern Italy with leaders from other Group of Seven democracies: Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States.

One of the G7 leaders priorities is boosting support for Ukraine, now in the third year of resisting Russias invasion.

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Peter Harrell, who served as White House senior director for international economics in 2021 and 2022, said the latest sanctions were a paradigm shift, partly because they expose foreign banks to the risk of being cut off from the US financial system if they deal with key large Russian banks.

The Treasury accomplished this by increasing to 4,500 the Russian companies and individuals who could trigger such sanctions from about 1,200, the senior Treasury official told reporters.

The message here is really one to banks in China and Turkey and the UAE and elsewhere outside of the G7 they face sanctions for continuing to engage in transactions with the big Russian banks and other sanctioned Russian banks, Harrell added, saying this could spark a major retreat by those banks from Russia.

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That financial pullback, in turn, is probably going  to complicate the flow of goods from countries that are continuing to trade with Russia, he said.
Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh assured that the Indian government is working on the repatriation of the mortal remains of Indians killed in the fire incident in Kuwait city read more

Before heading to Kuwait to provide overseas assistance to the Indians injured in the tragic fire incident, Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh assured that the Indian government is working on the repatriation of the mortal remains of those killed in the mishap.

At least 49 people, most of them Indians, were killed after a massive fire swept through a six-storey building that was housing foreign workers in Kuwait. Over 50 people were injured in the tragic incident. The Kuwaiti interior ministry confirmed the death toll after a forensic team scoured the building.

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While speaking to the reporters before heading to the Middle Eastern Nation, Singh said that some of the bodies had been charred beyond recognition. The rest of the situation will be clear the moment we reach there, the Indian diplomat told ANI.

Prime Minister Modi briefed on the matter

The MoS also made it clear that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been briefed on the matter. We had a meeting last evening with the Prime Minister, that is the last update we have about this very sad tragedy The rest of the situation will be clear the moment we reach there

When asked about the governments plan to repatriate the mortal remains of the victims, Singh mentioned that DNA tests are currently underway. The situation is that the victims are mostly burn victims and some of the bodies have been charred beyond recognition. So a DNA test is underway to identify the victims.

An Air Force plane is on standby. As soon as the bodies are identified, the kin will be informed and our Air Force plane will bring the bodies back. The latest figures that we had last night, the casualty figures are around 48-49 out of this 42 or 43 are believed to be Indians, he added.

Meanwhile, the Indian Embassy in Kuwait said that they are constantly in touch with the local authorities to work on ways to provide help and relief to all those affected by the incident.

The Embassy has also established a helpline number +965-65505246 (WhatsApp and regular calls) for family members to get in touch. The authorities are also ensuring that regular updates are provided through the same helpline number.

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Immediately after the news broke out, PM Modi chaired a review meeting and announced an ex gratia relief of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister Relief Fund to the families of deceased Indian nationals.

PM expresses sorrow

The Prime Minister also took to X, formally known as Twitter to extend condolences to the families of the victims. The fire mishap in Kuwait City is saddening. My thoughts are with all those who have lost their near and dear ones, he wrote on X.

I pray that the injured recover at the earliest. The Indian Embassy in Kuwait is closely monitoring the situation and working with the authorities there to assist the affected, he added.

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According to the Prime Ministers Office official statement, The meeting was chaired at his residence at 7 Lok Kalyan Marg, New Delhi. Prime Minister announced ex-gratia relief of Rs 2 lakh to the families of deceased India nationals from the Prime Minister Relief Fund, the statement added.

The meeting was attended by the Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar, the Minister of State for External Affairs Kirtivardhan Singh, the PMs Principal Secretary, Pramod Kumar Mishra, the National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and other senior officials.

Jaishankar speaks to his Kuwaiti counterpart

Meanwhile, Jaishankar also held a conversation with his Kuwaiti counterpart over the matter. Spoke to Kuwaiti FM Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on the fire tragedy in Kuwait. Apprised of the efforts made by Kuwaiti authorities in that regard. Was assured that the incident would be fully investigated and that responsibility would be fixed, Jaishankar wrote on X, formally known as Twitter.

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Urged the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those who lost their lives. He emphasized that those injured were getting the requisite medical attention. We will review the situation after MoS @KVSinghMPGonda reaches Kuwait tomorrow, he added.

With inputs from agencies.
Boeing is examining fasteners on some undelivered 787 jets after discovering problems with their installation. The aviation giant, which faces intensified scrutiny from regulators following recent incidents and manufacturing difficulties, said planes already in service can continue to be flown safely. read more

After detecting hundreds of fasteners installed incorrectly on the fuselages of some undelivered jets, Boeing launched an investigation into a new quality problem with its 787 Dreamliner.

Boeing is examining fasteners on some undelivered 787 jets after discovering problems with their installation. The aviation giant, which faces intensified scrutiny from regulators following recent incidents and manufacturing difficulties, said planes already in service can continue to be flown safely.

The latest in a series of manufacturing snags affecting the US plane maker involves incorrect torquing or tightening in a Boeing plant of more than 900 fasteners per plane - split equally between both sides of the jets mid-body, sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.

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There is no immediate concern about flight safety but Boeing is working to understand what caused the problem and will decide how much if any rework needs to be done once its investigation is complete, the sources said, asking not to be identified.

Boeing confirmed the checks in response to a Reuters query on Thursday and said it saw limited to no impact on deliveries. Our 787 team is checking fasteners in the side-of-body area of some undelivered 787 Dreamliner airplanes to ensure they meet our engineering specifications. The in-service fleet can continue to safely operate, a spokesperson said.

We are taking the time necessary to ensure all airplanes meet our delivery standards prior to delivery. We are working closely with our customers and the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) and keeping them updated.

FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker told reporters in Washington he could not comment on the fastener issue, but said he was headed to Boeings 787 plant in South Carolina on Friday and would hear from people in the facility. Shares of Boeing initially fell 1.7% before paring losses to be flat.

Also on Thursday, FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker updated a Senate panel on the agencys stepped-up oversight of Boeing involving additional inspectors, pledging that the agency will continue to hold them accountable for producing and delivering safe aircraft.

In April, Boeing engineer Sam Salehpour testified before a Senate panel that due to manufacturing problems, the 787 Dreamliner contains gaps between parts well above company standards, posing risk of a potentially catastrophic accident.

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With inputs from agencies.
The timing of the Russian fleets visit is important considering that President Biden, in a major shift pressed by his advisers and key allies, allowed Ukraine to use US-provided weapons against select military targets inside Russia. read more

Russian naval frigate Admiral Gorshkov and the nuclear-powered submarine Kazan, along with a support tugboat and a fuel ship have docked in Cuba near the United States, evoking memories of Cold War tensions. Their arrival serves as a stark reminder of Russias capability to operate close to American shores as US President Joe Biden signs a 10-year security pact with Ukraine.

The decision by Moscow to deploy warships in the Island nation comes after Washington and other Western allies of Ukraine allowed Kyiv to use their supplied weapons on targets within Russia, amidst a renewed Russian offensive in north-eastern Kharkiv and a shortage of troops and ammunition. The timing of the Russian fleets visit is important considering that the Joe Biden administration allowed Ukraine to use U.S.-provided weapons against select military targets inside Russia.

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Following the development, Canadian navy patrol ship sailed into Havana early on June 14, just hours after the United States announced a fast-attack submarine had docked at its Guantanamo naval base on Cuba, both vessels on the heels of Russian warships that arrived on the island earlier this week. The confluence of Russian, Canadian and U.S. vessels in Cuba  a Communist-ruled island nation just 160 km (100 miles) from Florida  served up a reminder of old Cold War tensions and of current fraught ties between Russia and Western nations over the Ukraine war.

However, both the U.S. and Cuba have said the Russian warships pose no threat to the region. Russia has also characterized the arrival of its warships in allied Cuba as routine.

The recent development also comes as a reminder of the Cold War era, when the deployment of Soviet nuclear missiles in the Caribbean led to the 1962 Cuban crisis that brought the world perilously close to nuclear conflict. This time, a similar crisis seems to be rebirthed with Russian warships entering the island nation.

In this photo taken from video released by the Russian Defense Ministry Press Service on May 23, 2024, Russian frigate Admiral Gorshkov conducts an air defense exercise in the Atlantic Ocean. Russian Defense Ministry Press Service/AP

Why Cuba matters

While the relationship between Havana and Moscow is not as tight as it was during the Cold War, both nations maintain a friendly stance, despite recent reports of Cuban nationals being trafficked for Russias military activities. They share strong criticism of the sanctions imposed by each other and the expansion of NATO.

Havana has also supported Russias right to self-defense against NATO following its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, although it refrained from outright endorsing the action. Given its proximity to the U.S., Cuba serves as a strategic location from which Russia can conduct electronic warfare against American targets and gather intelligence by intercepting signals from U.S. Navy and command centers, according to Pietrobon.

The arrival of the Russian naval vessels in Cuba, situated just 160 kilometres (100 miles) from the U.S. naval air station in Key West, Florida, where America has a naval air station.

What is the Cuban Missile Crisis?

The October 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis marked a perilous face-off between the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War, representing the closest brinkmanship to nuclear conflict between the superpowers. Cuba, a key ally of the Soviet Union at the time, became the focal point when Moscow retaliated against U.S. missile deployments in Turkey by stationing ballistic missiles on the island, escalating tensions to a critical level.

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Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, Cuba continued its diplomatic ties with Russia, with relations deepening significantly after a pivotal meeting in 2022 between Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel and Russian President Vladimir Putin.

While recent developments in the Caribbean echo historical echoes, they differ fundamentally from the Cuban Missile Crisis of over six decades ago. In 1962, the crisis unfolded after the U.S. uncovered Soviet ballistic nuclear missile sites in Cuba, triggering a 13-day standoff that brought both nations perilously close to nuclear war. The crisis was defused when the Kennedy administration negotiated with the Kremlin for the removal of the missiles from Cuba, averting a potential catastrophe.

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Why Russia sent its warship to Cuba

The Kazan nuclear-powered submarine has garnered significant attention with its arrival. Although it is not armed with nuclear weapons, it possesses Kalibr cruise missiles capable of striking targets up to 2,500 kilometres away, potentially equipped with nuclear warheads. The Admiral Gorshkov is equipped with advanced Zircon hypersonic missiles, designed for deployment on Russian cruisers, frigates, and submarines. These missiles have the capability to engage both naval vessels and ground targets, boasting speeds nine times faster than the speed of sound and a range exceeding 1,000 kilometres (over 620 miles), according to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

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Russia-Cuba: A tale of enduring friendship

Cuba has remained Moscows closest ally while Russia is counted among Havanas key strategic partners. Though Cubas ties with other allies like China and Venezuela have waned, its relationship with Russia has reached its strongest point since the Cold War.

Cubas stance on the international stage regarding Russia has also evolved with time with the island nation has consistently abstained from United Nations resolutions condemning the Russian aggression of Ukraine. Recently, Cubas rhetoric has shifted from a neutral tone to one that is openly supportive of Russia. During a visit to Moscow last month, Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel expressed his wishes for Russian President Vladimir Putins success with the special military operation. Last year, Diaz-Canel also drew parallels between the sanctions imposed on Cuba and Russia, attributing both to a common adversary  the Yankee empire.

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From Cubas perspective, Russia plays a crucial role in ensuring domestic and economic stability in the isolated island nation. In 2014, Moscow waived off 90% of Cubas $35.2 billion debt owed to the Soviet Union.

US vs Russia: A long-drawn confrontation

The United States and its allies have been in confrontation after Russia attacked Ukraine. The traditional adversaries between the two power blocs and their allies have laid the foundation to lobby against Russia by seizing assets and imposing series of sanctions. The Cold War eras allies of both countries are fighting either a direct or indirect battle.

With Russian President Vladimir Putin showing no sign of pulling back troops shelling Ukrainian cities, and with the United States and Europe vowing to provide arms to Ukrainian forces and even allow Ukraine to attack deep inside Russia. Now, the tension between the two countries has flared as the Russian warships and nuclear-powered submarines entered longtime ally Cuba which is in proximity to the US.

During the height of the Cold War, the United States and the Soviet Union amassed over 60,000 nuclear warheads, creating a standoff that posed the threat of mutual, and potentially global annihilation. This peril was exacerbated by the fact that both superpowers maintained their nuclear arsenals on high alert, ready for immediate launch. This situation remains true for the U.S. and Russia even today. However, the subsequent era of arms control agreements and the eventual conclusion of the Cold War significantly alleviated tensions between the two nations and led to substantial reductions in their nuclear stockpiles.
As global dynamics shift, Indias strategic actions and collaborations at the G7 Summit signal a robust response to Chinas provocations and economic challenges read more

The presence of the Indian Prime Minister at the recent G7 Summit has sparked discussions about potential opportunities for India to collaborate with the G7 in countering Chinas aggressive and expansionist policies. Italy, the host of this years summit, emphasised the need for deeper coordination with the Indo-Pacific region, hinting at Indias pivotal role in this strategy.

A tit-for-tat response to Chinas provocations

On its part, India seems ready to confront the China threat head-on. Reports indicate that New Delhi is preparing a tit-for-tat response to Chinas provocative actions. In April, China renamed 30 locations in Indias Arunachal Pradesh, a move that was widely condemned by Indian officials. In response, India is planning a similar move.

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A list has been compiled by the Indian military establishment to rename over two dozen territories in Chinas Tibet region, using ancient names from historical Indian records. This strategic use of historical names is aimed at reinforcing Indias claims and countering Chinas narrative.

Role of social media in Indias strategy

India has also taken to social media to challenge Chinas renaming efforts. The Indian Armys Eastern Command recently posted a list of seven areas in Arunachal Pradesh, reaffirming their Indian names in response to Beijings attempt to assert Chinese names for these territories. This marks a significant shift in Indias strategy, moving from mere statements of rejection to proactive counter-narratives.

Moving beyond diplomatic rejections

In the past seven years, China has issued four lists, renaming over 60 territories in Arunachal Pradesh. These claims, lacking historical basis and international recognition, have been part of Chinas broader strategy to assert its dominance. Beijing even protested a recent visit by the Indian Prime Minister to the state, underscoring its continued provocations.

Economic dependence on Chinese goods remains a significant concern for India. Recent reports suggest that India might allow joint ventures with Chinese firms, but only if the Indian partner holds a majority stake. This cautious approach aims to mitigate economic vulnerabilities, as Beijing has a history of using trade as leverage to extract concessions.

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G7 Summit: A platform for economic rebalancing

The G7 Summit presents a valuable forum for India to address these economic concerns. The summits agenda includes discussions on Chinas overproduction and the need to rebalance global supply chains. The G7 is considering raising tariffs on Chinese goods, a move that could have significant implications for global trade dynamics.

For India, this scenario presents both a challenge and an opportunity. Western tariffs on Chinese goods might lead to an influx of Chinese products into India, potentially turning the country into a dumping ground. Therefore, India must advocate for safeguards while also leveraging this global shift to improve trade relationships and rebalance trade equations with the West.

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Urgency of a comprehensive strategy

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has emphasised the need for more solutions to the border dispute, suggesting that India is considering diverse diplomatic options to address the ongoing challenges posed by China. A comprehensive strategy is necessary to deal with China, involving both territorial and economic dimensions.

Observers note that the weakening Chinese economy provides an opportune moment for New Delhi to capitalise on these changes. By collaborating with like-minded allies and taking a firm stand on economic and territorial issues, India can play a crucial role in countering Chinas aggressive policies and asserting its position on the global stage.
The annual summit of the worlds top industrial nations and economic powers begins today in Italys Borgo Egnazia. Recently elected to his third consecutive term as Indias prime minister, Narendra Modi is undertaking his first foreign visit to attend the G7 meet read more

Italy plays host to the leaders from the Group of Seven (G7) major democracies as their annual summit gets underway on Thursday (June 13). The G7 meet will continue till June 15. This is Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis first major diplomatic engagement after being voted to office for the third consecutive term about two weeks ago. The meeting starts at 2 pm GMT or 7.30 pm India time.

The venue of G7 summit

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The G7 meeting is being held in Borgo Egnazia in the southern region of Puglia - a luxury hotel with a Michelin starred restaurant.

Set among olive trees and boasting its own private beach offering an array of water sports, the complex is made up of traditional-style buildings and cobbled streets lined with flowers. Within its walls are bars, restaurants, shops and spa facilities, meaning that if they choose, guests never need leave.

On the first evening, the leaders will attend a dinner in their honour in the nearby city of Brindisi.

The regular participants of G7 summit

Top leaders from all G7 countries  the United States, Japan, Canada, Germany, France, Italy and Britain  are attending the meeting. Besides, as the norm has been, the European Union is likely to participate in all discussions. The presidents of both the European Council and the European Commission will join the summit talks

The invited guests at G7 summit

The host country traditionally invites guests outside of G7 to join its sessions. Italy has invited Pope Francis, the King of Jordan, and leaders from India, Brazil, Argentina, Ukraine, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Kenya, Algeria, Tunisia and Mauritania  the current president of the African Union.

The UN secretary general and heads of the World Bank, the IMF, the African Development Bank and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) will also be present.

The agenda of G7

The leaders will discuss the state of Africa, climate change and development before deliberating on the situation in West Asia, where Israel-Hamas war is into its ninth month. There are two sessions on the Russia-Ukraine war, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy participating in the first.

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Later, the leaders will discuss the issues of immigration, the Indo Pacific and economic security, and energy cooperation among other things. Pope Francis will lead talks on artificial intelligence.

A significant attention is likely to be on China, whose industrial overcapacity has been a concern of G7 members and others against the backdrop of subsidies that the Chinese government extends to companies.

Modi at G7 summit

Having invited top leaders of Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, the Maldives, Bhutan, Nepal, Mauritius, and Seychelles to his swearing-in ceremony on June 9, Modi is heading to Italy on Prime Minister Giorgia Melonis invitation.

In a social media post on April 25, Modi mentioned about his telephonic conversation with Meloni, saying, Discussed [with Meloni the idea of] taking forward G20 India outcomes at the G7. Reaffirmed commitment to deepening our Strategic Partnership.

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During Melonis visit to India in March 2023, India and Italy elevated their bilateral ties to strategic partnership.

Modi will leave for Italy on Thursday and is expected to be back by late Friday evening. A high-level delegation that includes External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and NSA Ajit Doval, PTI quoted sources as saying.

The Indian prime minister is likely to hold bilateral meetings with other leaders including Meloni on the sidelines of the G7 summit. In 2023, Modi held talks with Zelenskyy and other world leaders during the G7 summit in Japans Hiroshima.

Also Read: Modi to visit Italy on June 13 for G7 Summit, hold talks with Meloni in first foreign visit of third term

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Also Read: From G7 meet to BRICS, a look at Modi 3.0s global outreach

Also Read: Mafia violence on rise in Italy region where G7 leaders, including PM Modi, are set to meet
The G7 plan for Ukraine is based on a multi-year loan using profits from some $300 billion of impounded Russian funds. The technical details will be finalised in the coming weeks, a G7 diplomatic source told Reuters. read more

From left, European Council President Charles Michel, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, U.S. President Joe Biden, Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen participate in a working session at the G7, Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Borgo Egnazia, Italy. - AP

The Group of Seven (G7) leaders agreed on Thursday to provide $50 billion of loans for Ukraine using interest from Russian sovereign assets frozen after Moscow launched its attack Kyiv in 2022.

The political agreement was the centerpiece of the opening day in southern Italy of the annual summit of G7 leaders, attended for a second successive year by Ukraines President Volodymyr Zelenskiy. The Ukrainian leader will sign a new, long-term security accord with U.S. President Joe Biden on Thursday, as well as one with fellow G7 member Japan.

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There is a lot of work to be done, but I am sure that in these two days we will be able to have discussions that will lead to concrete and measurable results, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni told her G7 guests as their talks started in a luxury hotel resort in the southern region of Puglia.

The G7 plan for Ukraine is based on a multi-year loan using profits from some $300 billion of impounded Russian funds. The technical details will be finalised in the coming weeks, a G7 diplomatic source told Reuters. The source, who asked not to be named, said the additional funding would arrive by the end of this year.

A senior U.S. official told Reuters that the United States had agreed to provide up to $50 billion itself, but that amount could decline significantly as other countries announced their participation.

Where would the money come from?

Most of the money would be in the form of a loan mostly guaranteed by the U.S. government, backed by profits being earned on roughly $300 billion in immobilized Russian assets. The vast majority of that money is held in European Union nations.

A French official said the loan could be topped up with European money or contributions from other countries. A U.S. official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the agreement said the G7 leaders official statement due out Friday will leave the door open to trying to confiscate the Russian assets entirely.

Why not just give Ukraine the frozen assets?

Thats much harder to do. For more than a year, officials from multiple countries have debated the legality of confiscating the money and sending it to Ukraine. The U.S. and its allies immediately froze whatever Russian central bank assets they had access to when Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022. That basically was money being held in banks outside Russia.

The assets are immobilized and cannot be accessed by Moscow, but they still belong to Russia.

While governments can generally freeze property or funds without difficulty, turning them into forfeited assets that can be used for the benefit of Ukraine requires an extra layer of judicial procedure, including a legal basis and adjudication in a court.

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The EU instead has set aside the profits being generated by the frozen assets. That pot of money is easier to access.

Separately, the U.S. this year passed a law called the REPO Act  short for the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians Act  that allows the Biden administration to seize $5 billion in Russian state assets in the U.S. and use them for the benefit of Kyiv. That arrangement is being worked out.

How could the loan be used and how soon?

It will be up to technical experts to work through the details. The U.S. official said there are certain jurisdictions that prefer to send their money to help with reconstruction and others that prefer to earmark funds for military support.

President Joe Bidens national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said the goal is to provide the necessary resources to Ukraine now for its economic energy and other needs so that its capable of having the resilience necessary to withstand Russias continuing aggression. Another goal is to get the money to Ukraine quickly.

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The French official, who was not authorized to be publicly named according to French presidential policy, said the details could be worked out very quickly and in any case, the $50 billion will be disbursed before the end of 2024. Beyond the costs of the war, the needs are great.

The World Banks latest damage assessment of Ukraine, released in February, estimates that costs for reconstruction and recovery of the nation stand at $486 billion over the next 10 years. The move to unlock Russias assets comes after there was a long delay in Washington by Congress in approving military aid for Ukraine.

At an Atlantic Council event previewing the G7 summit, a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, John Herbst, said the fact that American funding is not quite reliable is a very important additional reason to go that route.

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Who would be on the hook in the case of a default?

If Russia regained control of its frozen assets or if the immobilized funds were not generating enough interest to pay back the loan, then the question of burden-sharing arises, according to the French official.

Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said last week that there were worries among European finance ministers that their countries will be left holding the bag if Ukraine defaults.

With inputs from agencies.
An assortment of progressive groups calling itself the Oakland Peoples Budget Coalition urged the city to keep critical funding for the arts, housing and police oversight Wednesday as officials worked to close a gaping budget deficit. Eli Rosenberg/The Chronicle

Two activist groups held dueling news conferences outside of Oakland City Hall on Wednesday to raise concerns over the citys proposed budget, as officials work to close a $292 million deficit over the next two years.

An assortment of progressive groups calling itself the Oakland Peoples Budget Coalition urged the city to keep critical funding for the arts, housing and police oversight on Wednesday as the city tries to balance its spending plan.

When that group was done with its event, a smaller group connected to an effort to recall Mayor Sheng Thao, the Coalition for Community Engagement, gave its own presentation, in which speakers lambasted the administrations moves to close the budget gap as fiscally irresponsible  chief among them, the move to sell the Coliseum to private investors.

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The events crystallized what is shaping up to be into a momentous budget season in Oakland, as the city tries to pull out of a post-pandemic malaise that is animating its political sphere and pushing officials to make significant decisions, such as the Coliseum sale, that could permanently reshape its future.

The recall effort against Thao, similar to the one organized against Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price, looms in the background. Backers of that effort say Thaos administration deserves blame for the budget crisis.

City Hall officials, who did not return a request for comment on Wednesday, have said that the budget crisis, as well as other challenges such as a rise in crime in 2023, have roots in larger societal and economic changes wrought by the pandemic. The budget issues stem in large part from a steep decline in real estate transfer taxes after the number of properties changing hands in the city  and the amount they were selling for  fell sharply following the COVID crisis.

City Hall officials said that Thaos proposal for the budget will let them close the huge budget deficit without personnel cuts across city departments, including in public safety capacities  a move theyve hailed as a successful solution.

Under the plan, Oaklands fiscal shortfall will be addressed mainly by a citywide hiring freeze and the citys sale of its half of the Oakland Coliseum site to a group of private developers for at least $105 million. The Coliseum sale still has to be approved and finalized, and would likely necessitate an entirely different budgetary plan from the city if it were to fall through.

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Representatives from the Peoples Budget group said they had a handful of demands for the City Council, which is currently holding hearings on the spending plan.

They said they wanted the city to continue transitioning more roles in the Police Departments internal affairs division to civilians and terminate a contract with ShotSpotter, a gunfire detection system used by the police. They also want the city to continue funding the Measure W election funding initiative, to establish a relocation fund for tenants in the city who are evicted, and to commit to finding more revenue-generating areas.

We recognize the historic deficit we are facing is a result of structural problems in how the city of Oakland collects and allocates revenue, said Isaiah Toney, a leader of the group. We urge our city leaders to look at long-term solutions that ensure corporations are paying their fair share to support the critical services that we all depend on.

The Thao recall backers said they are sharply critical of the citys decision to sell the Coliseum and use the funds to help solve its budgetary woes.

Proponents behind an effort to recall Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao criticized City Halls budget proposal on Wednesday, especially her plan to sell the citys stake in the Oakland Coliseum. Eli Rosenberg/The Chronicle

They cited data another group has compiled that says the citys hiring freeze will cost the police and fire departments and other public safety divisions some 172 positions if the cuts are made permanent. They also said that the city was using money, on an emergency basis, that had been allocated through voter-approved measures for other expenditures.

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The lawsuit was filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and other immigration rights groups, questioning the legality of the asylum directive issued by Biden read more

The American Civil Liberties Union and a coalition of several migrant rights groups filed a historic lawsuit against US President Joe Bidens administration over their decision to impose a crackdown on asylum seekers at the US-Mexico border.

The lawsuit which was filed on Wednesday, challenged the legality of his restrictive immigration policy change and came just a week after it was enacted. The 29-page lawsuit became the first legal action being taken against the 46th president of the United States.

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The partial ban which was imposed by Biden a week ago is expected to remain in place until the weekly average of daily illegal border crossings falls below 1,500  a level that has not been recorded since 2020.

What is the lawsuit about?

In the lawsuit, the ACLU lawyers representing the Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center and Raices asked the federal district court in Washington DC to strike down the regulations that were implemented following Bidens announcement.

By enacting an asylum ban that is legally indistinguishable from the Trump ban we successfully blocked, we were left with no choice but to file this lawsuit, said Lee Gelernt, an attorney for the ACLU.

Advocates argued that suspending asylum for people who do not arrive at a designated port of entry, violates the existing federal immigration law. Interestingly, Biden invoked the same legal authority which was used by former US President Donald Trump to curb asylum seekers crossing the border.

The POTUS gets the authority to impose such restrictions under section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The law allows the countrys president to limit entries for certain people if their arrival is deemed detrimental to the national interest.

Just days before the lawsuit was filed, Homeland Security Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas attempted to defend the move. We stand by the legality of what we have done, the American official told ABC News, saying that the department is anticipating legal challenges. We stand by the value proposition.

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Under Bidens directive, people who arrive at the border but do not express a fear of returning to their home countries will be subject to immediate removal from the United States, within a matter of days or even hours.

Meanwhile, those who express fear or an intention to seek asylum will be screened by a US asylum officer but at a higher standard than the one currently in place.
The actual cause of the blaze in a building in Kuwait is yet to be ascertained, but some local media reports suspect a gas leak to have caused the devastating fire read more

Tragedy struck India on Wednesday after around 45 Indians were killed in a devastating fire in a six-storey building, housing around 195 foreign workers, in southern Kuwaits Mangaf area.

As many as 50 people were dead in the Al-Mangaf building fire.

45 Indians killed in Kuwait building fire: Where were they from?

Most of the Indians killed in Kuwait building fire were from Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

Kerala - 23

Tamil Nadu - 7

Andra Pradesh - 3

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Uttar Pradesh - 3

Odisha - 2

Bihar - 1

Jharkhand - 1

Maharashtra - 1

West Bengal - 1

Haryana - 1

Punjab - 1

Karnataka 1

Another three deceased in the Kuwait fire incident have been identified as Filipinos.

Worst building fire in Kuwaits history

The fire, as per reports, started in a kitchen of the multi-storey building around 4:00 AM. All the 195 male residents, believed to be migrant workers, were sleeping at that time.

Most deaths were due to smoke inhalation as the residents were asleep when the blaze started to spread rapidly, officials said.

The labour housing facility is said to be in violation of several safety regulations. Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister, Sheikh Fahad Yusuf al-Sabah, has accused greedy property owners of violations that ultimately resulted in this tragic incident.

The minister also said that the Kuwaiti government will address the issue of labour overcrowding.

Cause of fire in Kuwait building

The actual cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained, but some Kuwaiti media reports suspect a gas leak to have caused the devastating fire.

What Indians were doing in the Kuwait building that caught fire?

Reports said the building belongs to NBTC group, which is owned by a businessman from Kerala, KG Abraham. The building was sheltering workers primarily from India most of whom hailed from Kerala, Tamil Nadu. Some of them were from north India as well.

Also Read: 10 BIG things about KG Abraham, owner of Kuwaiti building that caught fire killing 45 Indians

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These workers, most of whom succumbed to the fire or to adverse conditions thereafter, were working as carpenters, fabricators, drivers, masons, drivers, domestic workers. Some were employed as food delivery riders as well as courier delivery boys.

As per a report by The Indian Express, among those residing in the building was an electrician who was studying accountancy, as well as a mechanic who had worked his way up to become a supervisor. Several others like them, were in Kuwait, toiling hard away from home to provide a better life to their families back in India.

Why do Indian labourers travel to Kuwait for work?

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Labourers in India often choose to try their luck in West Asian countries because there is a high demand for unskilled Indian workers. Moreover, wages in these nations are considerably higher than any job that such people would get back home in India.

As per the most recent statistics by the Public Authority for Civil Information (PACI) of Kuwait, the population of the country was 4.859 million (1.546 million citizens and 3.3 million expatriates) as of December 2023. This was after an increase of 2.6 per cent in their population in 2022 (4.7 million).

The labourers/worker population in Kuwait represents about 61 per cent of the total population of Kuwait (2.97 million) in 2023 and 75 per cent of the total expatriate population in Kuwait.

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According to the Indian Embassy in Kuwait, the Indian community remains the largest expatriate community in the West Asian nation and has crossed the one million mark.

Over the years, the Indian population has witnessed a stable and gradual increase, except during the COVID-19 pandemic, when it declined from 1,058,862 (in 2019) to 989,270 (in 2020), the embassy further says.

Indians constitute 21 per cent (1 million) of the total population of Kuwait and 30 per cent of its workforce. Indian workers also top the private sector as well as the domestic sector (DSW) workforce list.

However, the living conditions for most of these workers is often abhorrent. They have to fit themselves in cramped rooms in semi-constructed apartments or in labour camps, similar to the one in Mangaf that was gutted in the fire on Wednesday.

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Kuwait, at present, has over 1,000 Indian doctors, 500 Indian dentists, and some 24,000 Indian nurses.

As per the embassy, the Indian community in Kuwait is considered hard-working, trust-worthy and non-interfering by nature. Indian businessmen, entrepreneurs, CEOs / CFOs, doctors, engineers, paramedics, nurses etc are kept in high esteem."

Minimum wage of Indian workers in Kuwait

For Kuwait, the Indian government, along with the states where the workers travel from (mostly Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Punjab), have fixed the minimum referral wages (MRW) in the range of $300-1,050 in 2016 across 64 categories of work.
Preliminary investigation suggests that the fire was caused by a short circuit and had started in a kitchen on the ground floor of the six-storey building read more

The fire in a residential building in Kuwait claimed the lives of almost 50 people, most of them Indians. Indian government officials were rushed to the country to oversee operations to rescue the injured and repatriate the bodies of those who have died. While details of the accident continue to emerge, initial investigations have reportedly revealed the whys and hows of the case.

Almost 24 hours have gone by since the deadly fire wreaked havoc in Kuwaits Mangaf city and since then Minister of State of MEA Kirti Vardhan Singh has visited the hospital where the injured Indians are admitted and extended full support of the Indian government. Meanwhile, Keralas Health Minister Veena George is also likely to pay a visit to Kuwait after reports suggested that 25 out of the 40 Indian victims were Malyalees.

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Among the others who died from the fire were people, mostly workers, from Pakistan, the Philippines, Egypt and Nepal.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on the day the fire was reported, held a review meeting and announced an ex gratia of Rs 5 lakh to the families of the deceased and Rs 1 lakh for the injured.

Meanwhile, Kuwaits Emir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah has vowed to punish those responsible for the fire as he ordered a probe into the accident.

How did the victims die?

According to a report by the Times of India, most of the victims died in sleep after they inhaled smoke from the fire.

Some individuals leaped out of the building at the time of the fire but could not survive the fall while others were evacuated timely.

MoS Singh, earlier today, said that some of the bodies were charred beyond recognition and that a DNA test would be conducted to identify them following which they will be brought back to India via an Indian Air Force plane.

What caused the fire?

Preliminary investigation suggests that the fire was caused by a short circuit and had started in a kitchen on the ground floor of the six-storey building.

Officials said that the building housed some 200 people who were all workers from the same company.

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It was not long before the fire in the kitchen spread rapidly to other floors.
Litigators from the Global Rights Compliance sent an analysis to Russia accusing the country of using deliberate starvation tactics during their siege of Mariupol in 2022 read more

As the Russia-Ukraine war rages on, a fresh analysis submitted to the International Criminal Court (ICC) revealed that Russia was engaged in a deliberate pattern of starvation tactics during the conflict. The analysis specifically threw light on the Russian methods used during the 85-day siege of the Ukrainian city of Mariupol in early 2022.

The conclusion was at the heart of the dossier that was submitted by the lawyers of Global Rights Compliance. It is pertinent to note that the litigators of the body are working with the Ukrainian government to analyse the war crimes committed by Russia in the Eastern European nation.

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The dossier argued that the Russian leaders intended to kill and harm a large number of civilians through the course of the war. The group noted that around 22,000 people were killed during the encirclement and capture of the city of Mariupol at the beginning of the war in Ukraine.

How Russia facilitated starvation in Mariupol in four phases

During the siege, the civilians were left without water, gas or electricity in temperatures that fell below minus 10 C. The aim of the research was to see if there was a broader narrative that amounted to a deliberate denial of food and other amenities necessary for life by the Russian military and its leadership, a strategy of starvation that could be said to amount to a war crime, a partner in Global Rights Compliance, Catriona Murdoch, told The Guardian.

What we could see is that there were four phases to the Russian assault, starting with attacks on civilian infrastructure, cutting out the supply of electricity, heating and water. Then humanitarian evacuations were denied and even attacked, while aid was prevented from getting through, he added.

She mentioned that in the third phase, Russia targeted the remaining critical infrastructure by bombing aid and water points. Finally in the fourth phase, Russia engaged in strategic attacks to destroy or capture any remaining infrastructure items, she added.

The dossier also concluded that an estimated 90 per cent of healthcare facilities and homes in the city were destroyed or damaged during the siege. The Russian forces were also accused of bombing food distribution points as well as humanitarian evacuation routes.

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The International Criminal Court accepts third-party submissions, however, it does not necessarily act on these such reports. Crimes like starvation and the denial of amenities necessary for civilian life are also considered war crimes as per international humanitarian law.

With inputs from agencies.
Ukraines Western allies are trying to bolster their military support as Russian troops launch attacks along the more than 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, taking advantage of a lengthy delay in U.S. military aid. European Union money was also held up by political infighting. read more

NATO has surpassed its goal of placing 300,000 troops on high-readiness, a significant move in response to the threat from Russia, a senior alliance official told AFP on Thursday. This development comes as part of NATOs strategic overhaul following Russias invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

After Moscows aggressive actions in Ukraine, NATO leaders committed to significantly boosting the number of forces ready for rapid deployment. The plan aimed to ensure commanders within the alliance could mobilize substantial troop numbers within 30 days. This move is considered a major shift in NATOs approach, reflecting the alliances recognition of the heightened security risks in Europe and the need for rapid response capabilities.

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The offers on the table from allies comfortably exceed the 300,000 that we set, the official said on condition of anonymity. Those are forces which allies have said to us, They are available to you as of now at that level of readiness.

The push to have more troops ready to respond quickly is part of a broader overhaul of NATOs plans to stave off any potential Russian attack that was signed off at a summit last year. Those plans laid out for the first time since the end of the Cold War what each member of the US-led alliance would be expected to do in case of an invasion by Moscow.

Ukraines Western allies are trying to bolster their military support as Russian troops launch attacks along the more than 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, taking advantage of a lengthy delay in U.S. military aid. European Union money was also held up by political infighting.

NATO commanders are currently trying to make sure they have the capabilities to execute those plans if needed. But the alliance faces shortfalls in key weaponry such as air defences and longer-range missiles. There are capability gaps. There are things that we dont have enough of as an alliance at the moment and we need to tackle, the official said.

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The worlds biggest security alliance does not send weapons or ammunition to Ukraine as an organization, and has no plans to put troops on the ground. But many of its members give help on a bilateral basis, and jointly provide more than 90% of the countrys military support.

The other 31 allies see Russias war on Ukraine as an existential security threat to Europe, but most of them, including Biden, have been extremely cautious to ensure that NATO is not drawn into a wider conflict with Russia.

NATO operates on the basis that an attack on any single ally will be met with a response from them all.

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With inputs from agencies.
A day after an UN report accused Israel and Hamas of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity on and since 7 October, Israel on Thursday dismissed the allegations as fictional reality and said the report is ridden with lies and blood libels against IDF soldiers read more

Chairwoman of the 'The United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and in Israel,' South Africa's Navi Pillay speaks during a briefing to UN member states about ongoing investigations of the Commission at the UN offices in Geneva, on April 16, 2024. AFP File

A day after an UN report accused Israel and Hamas of committing war crimes and crimes against humanity on and since 7 October, Israel on Thursday dismissed the allegations as fictional reality and said the report is ridden with lies and blood libels against IDF soldiers.

The report describes a fictional reality in which decades of terror attacks have disappeared, there are no continuous rocket attacks on Israeli civilians, and this is not a democratic country defending itself from a terror assault, Times of Israel quoted the Israeli Foreign Ministry as saying in a statement.

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This is another example of the low the organisation has stooped to under UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, the statement added.

Whats in the report

On Wednesday, a UN inquiry alleged that both Israel and Hamas committed war crimes in the early stages of the Gaza war, saying Israels actions also constituted crimes against humanity because of the immense civilian losses, and that they included acts of extermination.

Two separate reports were issued by independent experts, commissioned by the UNs Commission of Inquiry (COI), delving into the 7 October Hamas assault on Israel and Israels subsequent military response.

Regarding Israels actions, the commission alleged a widespread or systematic attack directed against the civilian population in Gaza.

The commission found that the crimes against humanity of extermination; murder; gender persecution targeting Palestinian men and boys; forcible transfer; and torture and inhuman and cruel treatment were committed, it report read.

Sexual violence

The reports also alleged that both Israeli forces and Palestinian terrorists engaged in sexual and gender-based violence during the first months of the Israel-Hamas war.

Allegations of sexual violence involving Israeli forces reportedly revolve around incidents where numerous terror suspects detained in Gaza were subjected to public stripping. Israel argued these actions were necessary for weapons and suicide vest searches but admitted that the dissemination of the images was a mistake.

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The commission revealed that Palestinian males, including boys, were coerced into public nudity, aiming to inflict severe humiliation.

The commission also highlighted a recurrent occurrence of sexual violence by Palestinian terror groups, although it couldnt independently verify reports of rape.

This comes despite the fact that UN Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict Pramila Patten, in a report after her visit to Israel, found that rape likely occurred during the Hamas attacks, and said there was convincing evidence hostages were facing sexual abuse in Gaza.

Anti-Israel bias

Israels diplomatic mission in Geneva strongly rebuked the commissions attempt to equate IDF soldiers with Hamas terrorists in terms of sexual violence, denouncing it as outrageous and repugnant. They also reiterated longstanding allegations of anti-Israel bias within the commission.

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Hamas terrorists attacked Israel on October 7 during a Jewish High Holiday. Today, on the Jewish High Holiday of Shavuot, the Pillay Commission of Inquiry chooses to publish its latest biased reports, attacking Israel.



This decision is reflective of the systematic anti-Israeli pic.twitter.com/s1bb7DSuvm  Israel in UN/Geneva | #BringThemHome (@IsraelinGeneva) June 12, 2024

The statement also noted that the commission decided to release its findings on the Jewish festival of Shavuot.

Hamas terrorists attacked Israel on October 7 during a Jewish High Holiday. Today, on the Jewish High Holiday of Shavuot, the Pillay Commission of Inquiry chooses to publish its latest biased reports, attacking Israel, the embassy said.

This decision is reflective of the systematic anti-Israeli discrimination of this Commission of Inquiry, which was born in sin, in 2021, while Hamas was raining down rockets on Israeli civilians, it said.

The report was published as Israel and Hamas traded claims they were committed to a ceasefire plan for Gaza, and accused the other of sabotaging it, as the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, completed his visit to Israel and key regional powers.

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The proposal, announced by the US president, Joe Biden, in May, this week won a rare endorsement from the bitterly divided UN security council.

While Hamas said it had submitted a responsible, serious and positive response to the ceasefire proposal that opens up a wide pathway for an accord, Blinken said the group had suggested numerous changes and that while some of the changes were workable, some were not.

With inputs from agencies
While governments can generally freeze property or funds without difficulty, turning them into forfeited assets that can be used for the benefit of Ukraine requires an extra layer of judicial procedure, including a legal basis and adjudication in a court read more

Leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies have agreed to engineer a $50 billion loan to help Ukraine in its fight for survival that would use interest earned on profits from Russias frozen central bank assets as collateral.

Details of the deal were still being hashed out as G7 leaders gathered for a summit in Italy, but the money could reach Kyiv before the end of the year. Thats according to a French official who confirmed the agreement Wednesday ahead of a formal announcement at the summit. Heres how the plan would work:

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Where would the money come from? Most of the money would be provided in the form of a loan from the US government that would be backed by windfall profits being earned on roughly $300 billion in immobilized Russian assets. The vast majority of the money is being held in European Union nations.

A French official said that while the loan would be mostly US-guaranteed, it could be topped up with European money or other national contributions.

Why not just give Ukraine the frozen assets? Thats much harder to do.

For more than a year, officials from multiple countries have debated the legality of confiscating the money and sending it to Ukraine.

The US and its allies immediately froze whatever Russian central bank assets they had access to when Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022  basically, money being held in banks outside Russia.

The assets are immobilized and cant be accessed by Moscow  but they still belong to Russia.

While governments can generally freeze property or funds without difficulty, turning them into forfeited assets that can be used for the benefit of Ukraine requires an extra layer of judicial procedure, including a legal basis and adjudication in a court.

So the European Union instead has set aside the windfall profits being generated by the frozen assets. That pot of money is easier to access.

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Separately, the US earlier this year passed a law called the REPO Act  short for the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians Act  that allows the Biden administration to seize $5 billion in Russian state assets located in the US and use them for the benefit of Kyiv. That arrangement is still being worked out.

How could the loan be used  and how soon? It will be up to technical experts to work through the details.

But US national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Wednesday that the goal is to provide the necessary resources to Ukraine now for its economic energy and other needs so that its capable of having the resilience necessary to withstand Russias continuing aggression.

Another goal is to get the money to Ukraine fast.

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The French official, who was not authorized to be publicly named according to French presidential policy, said the details could be worked out very quickly and in any case, the $50 billion will be disbursed before the end of 2024.

Beyond the costs of the war, the needs are great. The World Banks latest damage assessment of Ukraine, released in February, estimates that costs for reconstruction and recovery of the nation stand at $486 billion over the next 10 years.

The move to unlock Russias assets comes after there was a long delay by the US Congress in approving military aid for Ukraine.

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At an Atlantic Council event previewing the G7 summit, former US Ambassador to Ukraine John Herbst said the fact that American funding is not quite reliable is a very important additional reason to go that route.

Who would be on the hook in the case of a default? If Russia regained control of its frozen assets or if the immobilized funds werent generating enough interest to pay back the loan, then the question of burden-sharing arises, according to the French official.

Who would shoulder the burden is still to be worked out, the official said.

Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said last week that there were worries among European finance ministers that their countries will be left holding the bag if Ukraine defaults.
Abortion is also a hot topic in the United States, where President Joe Biden has been railing against curbs on abortion implemented in most conservative states read more

US president Joe Biden is welcomed by Italian PM Giorgia Meloni at the G7 world leaders summit at Borgo Egnazia, southern Italy. AP

The US pushed back hard Thursday against a reported attempt by Italy to water down a G7 leaders declaration on abortion by removing a reference to safe and legal terminations.

Diplomatic sources said host Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has been trying to row back on language in the G7 statement from Japan last year, much to the irritation of her fellow Group of Seven countries.

US President Joe Biden felt very strongly that we needed to have at the very least the language that references what we did in Hiroshima on womens health and reproductive rights, a unnamed senior US administration official said Thursday.

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The communique will have, will reiterate the commitment made in Hiroshima, the official said.

Melonis office denies abortion rights have been slashed from the draft final summit statement, saying negotiations are ongoing with Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Japan and the US.

On Wednesday, a source close to the negotiations told AFP that since 2021 there has been a mention of safe access in the G7 leaders statement, but Meloni doesnt want it.

Shes the only one, shes isolated on the issue. But since its the host country, the others have decided not to make it a casus belli, the source said, using the Latin term for an act that provokes a war.

So it wont come back in the text, the source added.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani told Sky TG24 Thursday that it was premature to comment as the different delegations are (still) negotiating.

Disgrace

Last years G7 leaders statement, after a summit in Japan, expressed strong concern about the rollback of womens rights.

It also committed to sexual and reproductive health rights for all, including by addressing access to safe and legal abortion and post abortion care.

This years final document is not expected to be published until late Friday.

France and Canada are particularly frustrated, as they had been pushing to strengthen abortion rights, according Italys Domani newspaper.

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The French parliament earlier this year voted to enshrine the right to abortion in the countrys constitution, and President Emmanuel Macron has said it should be protected in the EUs rights charter.

Abortion is also a hot topic in the United States, where President Joe Biden has been railing against curbs on abortion implemented in most conservative states.

An Italian presidency source Wednesday denied the mention of safe access had already been cut.

No state has asked to eliminate the reference to issues relating to abortion from the draft conclusions of the G7 summit at a stage in which the negotiations are still ongoing, a presidency source said.

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Meloni, a self-described Christian mother who came to power in 2022, has been accused by rights activists of attempting to make it more difficult to terminate pregnancies in Italy.

Although abortion has been legal in the Catholic-majority country since 1978, accessing one is challenging due to the high percentage of gynaecologists who refuse to perform them on moral or religious grounds.

In April, the Italian parliament passed a measure by Melonis hard-right government coalition allowing anti-abortion activists to enter consultation clinics, sparking outrage from opposition parties.

Francesco Lollobrigida, Italys agriculture minister and Melonis brother-in-law, questioned whether it was opportune for the G7 to have a statement supporting abortion rights, with Pope Francis in attendance.

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Francis is head of the Catholic Church, which firmly condemns abortion. He will be at the summit on Friday as Melonis guest but is not part of the G7.

Elly Schlein, the leader of Italys centre-left Democratic Party (PD), accused Meloni of undermining Italy on the international stage by casting doubt on a fundamental right.

We have no use for a female premier who does not defend the rights of all other women in this country, she said, slamming the G7 abortion row a national disgrace.
On June 12, a Russian navy frigate and a nuclear-powered submarine churned into Havana harbour, a stopover the US and Cuba said posed no threat but which was widely seen as a Russian show of force as tensions rise over the Ukraine war read more

Russia, on Thursday, said that the United States should not be nervous about Russian warships in Cuba but that the West appeared deaf to any diplomatic signals from Moscow and only took notice when the army or navy took action.

A Russian navy frigate and a nuclear-powered submarine churned into Havana harbour on Wednesday, a stopover the US and Cuba said posed no threat but which was widely seen as a Russian show of force as tensions rise over the Ukraine war.

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White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said there was no evidence of Russia transferring any missiles to Cuba, but that the US would remain vigilant.

When asked about purported nervousness in Washington over the fear that Russia could transfer military personnel to Cuba or even create a military base on the island, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said such exercises were common practice.

This is a normal practice for all states, including such a large maritime power as Russia, Peskov told reporters. So we dont see any reason to worry in this case.

The Admiral Gorshkov frigate and the nuclear-powered submarine Kazan, half submerged with its crew on deck, sailed to Cuba on Wednesday after conducting high-precision missile weapons training in the Atlantic Ocean.

Cubas foreign ministry said the vessels carried no nuclear weapons, an assertion echoed by US officials.

When asked what signal Moscow was sending, Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that the West never appeared to take notice when Russia sent signals through diplomatic channels.

As soon as it comes to exercises or sea voyages, we immediately hear questions and a desire to know what these messages are about, Zakharova said. Why do only signals related only to our army and navy reach the West?

Why does the West remain completely deaf, and then comes up with the most powerful campaigns to prevent Russian signals from entering its information realm?
Taylor Swift is the target of odd comments by Donald Trump in a new book about his years as a reality star. John Shearer/TAS23/Michael B. Thomas/Getty Images

Donald Trump may just be a secret Swiftie.

During a visit to Capitol Hill on Thursday, June 13, the recently convicted former president griped about global superstar Taylor Swift not endorsing his campaign over President Joe Bidens, according to CNN.

Why would she endorse this dope, he said. He doesnt know how to get off a stage.

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Swift has not yet endorsed Bidens current campaign, though she did publicly support him and Kamala Harris during the 2020 presidential election. She has also been publicly critical of Trump for years  which evidently seems to be getting under the former reality stars skin.

Capitol Hill wasnt the only forum where he brought up the Grammy Award-winning musician. Trumps fixation with Swift manifested yet again when he spoke about her in a new book about his time as a reality television star Apprentice in Wonderland: How Donald Trump and Mark Burnett Took America Through the Looking Glass, written by Variety co-editor-in-chief Ramin Setoodeh.

I think shes beautiful  very beautiful! I find her very beautiful. I think shes liberal. She probably doesnt like Trump. I hear shes very talented, Trump said. I think shes very beautiful, actually  unusually beautiful!

Taylor Swift performs at Levis Stadium in Santa Clara last July. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

Swift has a complicated political history. Many suspected her to be a Republican around the time of the 2016 presidential election due to her lack of commentary. In 2018, she broke her political silence by publicly endorsing Tennessee Democratic candidates Phil Bredesen for Senate and Jim Cooper for House of Representatives.

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In his recent interview with Setoodeh, Trump questioned Swifts loyalty to these liberal views.

She is liberal, or is that just an act? he asked Setoodeh during their interview. Shes legitimately liberal? Its not an act? It surprises me that a country star can be successful being liberal.

Swifts 2020 Netflix documentary Miss Americana pulled back the curtain on how she came to use her platform to reflect her political views and the way she had to push back against her management to do so.

Back in the (2016) presidential election, I was in such a horrendous place that I wasnt going to pop my head out, she explained in the film. These arent your dads celebrities, and these arent your dads Republicans.  I need to be on the right side of history.

Despite this goal, many fans have expressed disappointment with Swifts political inaction yet again for not being vocal about the conflict in Gaza.

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Samsung Electronics is showcasing SmartThings Pro and new display technologies for its digital signage line-up at InfoComm in Las Vegas, from June 12, 2024.

SmartThings Pro

SmartThings Pro enhances Samsungs smart home technology for businesses, improving sustainability, automation, and overall business experience.

It offers customizable APIs for seamless integration and features AI Energy Mode, which reduces energy consumption based on ambient brightness, content analysis, and motion detection.

Users can monitor IoT devices through a user-friendly dashboard that provides AI-driven analysis, promoting efficient energy use. SmartThings Pro supports various corporate devices like SMART Signage, hospitality displays, air conditioning systems, and digital appliances.

It helps manage environmental factors such as temperature, humidity, and lighting, and integrates with sensors like cameras for enhanced monitoring and control, resulting in more efficient and sustainable operations while reducing costs.

Key partners showcasing API integrations include:

Cisco: Integrating video devices with Webex Control Hub.

Aqara: Enhancing the Smart Hotel experience.

Quividi: Developing a retail analytics solution using its VidiCenter data platform.

Samsung Color E-Paper

Samsung has introduced the Samsung Color E-Paper (EMDX model), an ultra-low power display ideal for replacing analog or paper promotional materials. It operates at 0.00W when displaying static images and uses minimal power when changing images.

The 32-inch screen features QHD resolution (2,560 x 1,440) and a 60,000-color gamut, weighs only 2.9kg, and is 17.9mm thick. It can be installed on walls, tables, or ceilings without additional mounts.

The Color E-Paper includes a mobile app for easy content creation and supports the Samsung VXT solution for real-time monitoring and remote management of multiple displays.

It features two USB-C ports, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 8GB flash memory, and an interchangeable bezel. Utilizing E Ink Spectra 6 technology, it offers enhanced color spectrum and imaging for in-store advertising and indoor signage.

Interactive Whiteboard (WAD Series)

The Interactive Whiteboard, announced earlier at ISE, now includes generative AI features.

It offers automatic transcription of spoken lessons, generates detailed class summaries, and creates quizzes based on the teachers voice, written material, and educational content.

The board also features voice recognition technology from Merlyn Mind, enhancing control and functionality for educational environments. These features will be available for all three sizes of the WAD series later this year.

Samsung Business TV BED Series

Samsungs Business TV BED series offers UHD picture quality and flexible functionality in sizes ranging from 43 to 85 inches. It is designed for various sectors, including restaurants, education, small/home offices, and other small businesses.

Launching globally in Q3, the TV can be managed via the Samsung Business TV App on Android and iOS, supporting SmartThings Pro and Samsung VXT for smooth device management and 4K clarity.

Availability

Samsung will showcase SmartThings Pro and its new display technologies at Booth W1225 during InfoComm, the largest professional audio-visual industry trade show in North America, from June 12 to June 14, 2024.

Speaking about SmartThings Pro, Chanwoo Park, Executive Vice President at Samsung Electronics, said:
The San Francisco Museum of Modern Art has announced two major leadership changes: Sheila Shin, left, is chief operating officer and Dee Minnite is the chief collections, exhibitions and design officer. SFMOMA

Two major leadership changes at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art aim to promote its mission of radical hospitality through more inclusive exhibitions and public programs as the institution continues evolving following top-level restructuring during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dee Minnite, who has served as interim chief collections, exhibitions and design officer since last August, was officially appointed the role on Wednesday, June 12. Meanwhile, Sheila Shin, who join SFMOMA in April 2020, has been promoted to chief operating officer. Shin starts her new position on Aug. 1.

Minnite and Shin play key roles in guiding and supporting the museums teams to create a broad range of exhibitions and community-centered events, the museum said in its announcement.

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I am delighted that both Dee and Sheila will be expanding their leadership roles within SFMOMA, said SFMOMA Director Christopher Bedford. Their individual expertise and keen understanding of our institutional vision and priorities are invaluable as we continue to chart the future of the museum.

The upper floors of the east-facing facade of SFMOMA. Jessica Christian/The Chronicle

As chief collections, exhibitions and design officer, Minnite manages the exhibition program and oversees SFMOMAs extensive collection. Leading approximately 100 team members, she is tasked with documenting, expanding and fostering collaborations within the museums collection.

Minnites leadership experience includes her tenure as SFMOMAs director of exhibitions and program management, as well as senior roles at the Oakland Museum of California.

During her time at SFMOMA, Shin has worked in several senior roles, including assistant director of marketing, director of brand marketing and sales, and interim chief marketing officer. In 2023, she became the museums first-ever chief experience officer. Those duties will now be folded into her new position. That encompasses delivering meaningful experiences across every touchpoint along the visitor journey, according to a SFMOMA spokesperson.

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She will take over the position of chief operating officer from Rebecca Malkin-Chocron, who after more than five years at the museum, plans to move back to her native France after 25 years in the United States. Shin will oversee various internal departments such as visitor experience, marketing and communications, retail, facilities and operations.

Before SFMOMA, Shin led marketing at the San Francisco Symphony and managed marketing at LG Electronics.

Christopher Bedford, the director of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. Yalonda M James/The Chronicle

I have seen directly their dedication to our staff and our visitors and know that they will be core to imbuing SFMOMAs values into all we do both inside and outside the museum, Bedford said.

An SFMOMA spokesperson cited personal life changes and new professional opportunities as reasons for the recent personnel changes.

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The museum experienced a series of turnovers during the pandemic after director Neal Benezra stepped down after two decades at the helm of the institution. Bedford assumed the role of director following two years marred by public turmoil at SFMOMA over issues ranging from program cuts to allegations of racial bias.

In November, SFMOMA cut 20 staff positions, citing a 35% drop in attendance.
Before his appointment at Fraunhofer ILT, Prof. Hafner led the Advanced Photon Technologies program at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, where he worked on the development of the world's most powerful laser systems. He is also a full professor and holds a professorship for Laser Technology at RWTH Aachen University.

Hildegard Muller, Chair of the Senate of the Fraunhofer Society e.V.: Constantin Hafner's international experience at prestigious research institutes will provide a significant contribution to the positive development of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft in the crucial area of Research and Transfer. With his ability to advance research projects while always considering their applicability and economic benefit, he is precisely the right person to complete the Fraunhofer board. She adds that, alongside his outstanding scientific reputation and broad network, Hafner's experience and knowledge of Fraunhofers values and structures make him an ideal fit for this position.

Fraunhofers president Prof. Holger Hanselka welcomed the senate's decision: We look forward to working with Constantin Hafner. With his profound expertise, ideas and passion, he is perfectly positioned on the Fraunhofer board, says Holger Hanselka. Currently, discussions are underway so that Prof. Constantin Hafner can start as soon as possible. He avers: The confidence of the senate is both an honor and a motivation. At Fraunhofer, we stand for creativity and innovative strength, which we invariably transfer into solutions for business and society. I look forward to actively supporting and shaping this process.
Elena Kadvany has been a reporter on the Chronicles Food & Wine team since 2021. She covers the ins and outs of the Bay Area food industry, from breaking news about the latest restaurant openings to investigative stories into wage theft and workers rights. In 2024, her food writing portfolio won second place in the Society for Features Journalism Excellence-in-Features awards. Previously, she covered restaurants and education for the Palo Alto Weekly; her work has also been published in Bon Appetit and the Guardian, and her reporting has been recognized by the California News Publishers Association.

She can be reached at Elena.Kadvany@sfchronicle.com.
News

Editor's Pick Centerpiece Featured

Galveston Central Appraisal district begins treating vacation rentals as businesses

STUART VILLANUEVA/The Daily News Liz Overton, general manager at Gary Greene Vacation Rentals, stands on a balcony at one of the companys short-term rental properties on the West End of Galveston on Thursday. STUART VILLANUEVA/The Daily News Liz Overton, general manager at Gary Greene Vacation Rentals, opens the blinds leading onto a veranda at a short-term rental property on the West End of Galveston on Thursday, June 6, 2024.

The Galveston Central Appraisal District for the first time ever is treating short-term rentals as businesses by calculating the value of furnishings and equipment under their roofs.

The appraisal district in May began mailing letters informing short-term-rental owners telling them theyre responsible this year for paying a tax on any personal business property they use to earn rental income, officials said

The news sent a wave confusion and frustration through rental agencies, officials said.

All of this sort of does fly in the face of Texas being a low-tax state, said Ana Draa, president of the Short Term Rental Owners Association of Galveston.

The appraisal district added furnishings and equipment to appraisal calculations on rentals this year because failing to do so in the past created an uneven playing field in the real estate market, Chief Appraiser Krystal McKinney said.

The introduction of the business personal property tax for rentals was brought about after the last few property value studies were coming in under value on those properties because they were being sold with furniture, McKinney said.

Because they are income-producing properties they have to render as personal business property.

So, thats actually going to help out the property owners who are just living in Galveston and not renting out their homes.

FAIR AND EQUITABLE

But rental owners still were confused about why the appraisal district chose this year to begin charging a tax that has been on the books for years.

Why was this on the books and not being enforced? Draa said. Because thats troublesome.

The clearest answer appraisal district officials gave to that question is that theyre trying to level the playing field.

By establishing a separate business personal property account for the furniture and fixtures used in short-term rental for business purposes, we at the appraisal district strive to ensure the appraisal of those homes is fair and equitable, McKinney said.

This appraisal method will help level the playing field and alleviate some of the tax burden on homeowners caused by the skyrocketing market values of short-term rentals, McKinney said.

In residential homes that are used as short-term rentals, the furniture and fixtures are used for business purposes and, therefore, are taxable, McKinney said.

On properties that use the income approach to valuation, the value of the business personal property, like the furniture and fixtures, are included in the income valuation, McKinney said.

That includes hotels and apartments, she said.

NOBODY LIKES A TAX

Its unclear how much Galveston County rental owners will have to pay. The appraisal district is still weeks away from informing owners about the taxable value of their properties, officials said.

Rental owners might have been less frustrated if the appraisal district had been clearer and communicated sooner with rental owners and associations, said Liz Overton, who represents rental owners with Gary Greene Vacation Rentals.

The fact that rental operations could be treated as businesses wasnt common knowledge among operators, Overton said.

Some people were already aware of this because they come from commercial real estate. But its not something that the Galveston vacation rental industry was educated on.

Rental owners were initially confused by what seemed to be a new tax, then frustrated by the lack of notice, she said.

I think at the end of the day, its a tax and nobody likes a tax, Overton said. So, I think there was confusion and frustration. Then when they saw the forms with a little more information, it seemed to calm down.

FAIR SHARE

Some rental owners argue theyre already paying their fair share of the tax burden and that the short-term rental market is an easy target for government revenue.

I think theres a healthy debate to be had about whether this is an appropriate tax, particularly in light of the fact that the Texas Supreme Court has designated us for residential use, Draa said.

Rental owners in counties that have levied the tax for years see a couple hundred dollars at most on their tax bills from the personal property tax, according to officials.

Theyre typically very small values, said Mason Moreland, deputy chief appraiser in Blanco County.

Blanco County, in the heart of Hill Country, is a popular tourist destination between San Antonio and Austin.

Youre talking about a few-hundred square foot cabin and a lot of them are really rustic, Moreland said. Were not talking about brand new stuff from furniture stores.

Officials at the Gillespie County Appraisal District see similar values on the personal property assessments they send to rental owners there, Chief Appraiser Scott Fair said.

Its typically only a few hundred dollars, Fair said.

And even though the tax has been levied in Gillespie County for Fairs entire 20-year career, it still causes confusion for rental owners, he said.

But the new values might only reach into the hundreds of dollars is of little comfort to rental owners who cant use things like homestead exemptions to ease their tax burden, officials said.

As of right now, they are executing the tax code as written, Draa said.

Its unfortunate to know that the tax code has not been evenly applied. And I think now might be a good time for them to review the tax code and see where else there are holes in their enforcement.
Domaine Takahiko Nana-Tsu-Mori, a Pinot Noir from Hokkaido, Japan that has developed a cult-like following. Esther Mobley/The Chronicle

While I was having dinner recently at Kitchen Istanbul in San Francisco, wine director Joseph DiGrigoli was opening a bottle and asked me and my friends if wed like a taste of it  blind. He brought it over in a decanter so that we couldnt see the label. It tasted like Pinot Noir: relatively light in body, bright in acidity, reminiscent of cranberries and mushrooms, with a distinct pine-needle aroma. One of my friends thought it was from the Sonoma Coast. Another posited New Zealand.

When DiGrigoli showed us the bottle, we were floored. This Pinot Noir was from Japan.

As I soon learned, this particular Japanese Pinot, from a winery called Domaine Takahiko, has something of a cult following. Its become nearly impossible to find in the U.S.  and apparently also in Japan  and its now so in demand that its price is rapidly inflating. Based on its wholesale pricing, Domaine Takahikos top wine, the Nana-Tsu-Mori bottling, should sell at retail for about $150. The online database Wine-Searcher shows some shops selling it for as much as $676.

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People have been very taken by the wine, said Jose Pastor, who imports Domaine Takahiko into the U.S. The first time he offered it to restaurants and shops in New York, in 2022, the wines were sold out the same day.

Pastor learned of the wine several years ago from the blog Wine Terroirs. On a subsequent trip to Japan with his wife, who is Japanese, he tried to track down a bottle to taste  but couldnt find it in stock anywhere in Tokyo or Osaka. So he decided to head directly to the winery, located on the northern coast of Japans northernmost island, Hokkaido. There, below the islands famous snowy mountains, on the site of a former cherry orchard in volcanic-laden soil, Pastor was very impressed by winemaker Takahiko Soga, who farms his 11-acre vineyard organically.

But it took a couple of years before Soga was interested in selling any wine to the U.S. market. He initially offered Pastor only three cases  a laughably small volume to ship across the Pacific Ocean. Now, Pastors allocation of Domaine Takahiko is a little bit larger than that, but Pastor said he cant say exactly how much he brings in: I promised (Soga) we cannot tell the quantities. (He now imports wine from other Japanese wineries too, which makes the shipment more cost-efficient.)

As soon as Pastor secured some Takahiko wine, he got a call from Alex Bernardo, owner of the shop Vineyard Gate in Millbrae. Bernardo imports sake and wine from Japan himself and was deeply familiar with the Takahiko wines already. He thought the wine would be relatively obscure for his Bay Area customers, but it became clear that word had spread among in-the-know drinkers. Its reputation preceded it, Bernardo said. Once Vineyard Gate had some bottles in stock, they flew off the shelf, though he doubted that any of his customers had actually tasted the wine before buying it.

Bernardo recalled seeing Domaine Takahiko Nana-Tsu-Mori for the equivalent of around $25 a bottle years ago, in Japan. He sold it for $225  a little higher than his wholesale pricing would have dictated, but not nearly as high as some other retailers. I could have sold it many times over, Bernardo said.

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Hokkaido has long been a stronghold for fruit and vegetable cultivation, and the islands wine scene, though active for decades, has been building momentum in recent years. According to Bernardo, its not quite as humid as other parts of Japan, which makes it easier to farm organically, since growers arent battling as much mildew pressure. Botrytis, a type of mold sometimes called noble rot, is a concern in Hokkaido; Domaine Takahiko makes a dry blanc de noirs-style Pinot Noir using botrytis-infected grapes.

Historically, growers in Hokkaido have cultivated cold-hardy hybrid grape varieties. But lately, more have been trying their hand with European wine grapes like Pinot Noir  largely inspired, Pastor said, by Domaine Takahikos success.

These are natural wines  farmed organically, fermented by ambient yeast, unfiltered and, in the case of the 2021 vintage that I tasted, free of any added sulfur. To my palate, the Nana-Tsu-Mori tasted perfectly clean, relishing in the earthy, savory side of Pinot Noir. Its fermented whole-cluster, which may add to the forest-like notes. Takahiko likes to say it has umami, which is a very Japanese word to use, said Pastor.

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While Bernardo said that Domaine Takahiko is undoubtedly one of the best wine producers in Japan, he admitted that he felt slightly fatigued by the hype around it. Its an amazing Pinot Noir. Definitely well deserved praise and acclaim, he said. But I think it went a bit too far. Its become kind of a cult wine now. Its selling for like 10 times what it cost.
Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito speaks at Notre Dame Law School in 2022. Did his comments at a recent event justify the deception it took to get them? Notre Dame Law School 2022

You dont have to be a Supreme Court justice to understand just how thoroughly we are all subject to surveillance, actual or potential. Nearly everyone we encounter during the day has a device that can record our voices and faces, unbeknownst to us, and post what they get so that limitless others can hear or see.

Mostly we ignore how vulnerable we are to that wider gaze since what we do or say isnt of much interest. But privacy safeguards are feeble, and if we did something dangerous, foolish or laughable, theres a decent chance somebody would notice and pull out their phones. Suddenly the veil of obscurity that encloses us would be shredded, and wed be, momentarily, a public spectacle.

You think thats wrong, think its unfair? Tough.

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That may seem an unduly sympathetic way to broach the latest micro-scandal involving the U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Samuel Alito, but its why getting clear on privacy is key to understanding a new incident involving the justice.

Alito, the arch-conservative jurist who wrote the ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade and gutted reproductive rights, has been vilified in recent weeks over flags associated with rightist political fringes that his wife flew over their houses in the Washington, D.C., suburbs and the New Jersey shore.

Now, however, he has been captured on audio making comments to a liberal filmmaker posing as a conservative Catholic that has gotten big play in the media.

At a benefit soiree at the Supreme Court, the filmmaker, Lauren Windsor, sought comment from Alito and Chief Justice John Roberts on broad issues of polarization, faith and judicial purpose. They didnt know Windsor was recording them.

In his interview, Roberts turned away her invitation to describe the U.S. as a Christian nation and disagreed with the idea she floated that the courts job was to put the country on a moral path.

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To Alito, Windsor said:   As a Catholic and as someone who, like, really cherishes my faith,  I dont know that we can negotiate with the left in the way that needs to happen for the polarization to end. I think that its a matter of like, winning.

Alito replied, I think youre probably right. One side or the other, one side or the other is going to win. I dont know. 

I mean, there can be a way of working, a way of living together peacefully. But its difficult, you know, because there are differences on fundamental things that really cant be compromised. They really cant be compromised. So, its not like youre going to split the difference.

Windsor continued: Like, people in this country who believe in God have got to keep fighting for that, to return our country to a place of godliness.

Alito replied: I agree with you, I agree with you.

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Windsors recordings have been widely reported but not widely defended.

I think its fair to say that most ethical journalists deplore those kind of techniques, Jane Kirtley, lawyer and media ethics professor at the University of Minnesota, told the New York Times. How do you expect your readers or your viewers to trust you if youre getting your story through deception?

Unsurprisingly, the Wall Street Journals editorial board, the high church of the right, saw it as evidence of a deeper rot: The sorry truth about our present political moment is that harassment by the left is shrinking the public space in which Justices, or at least conservative Justices, and their families can operate.

But did Windsor overstep? After all, Justice Alito was not in a private place, and he wasnt confiding personal information; he was holding forth at an official fundraiser on the mission and morals of the court.

Still, deception is a big deal. People have a right to know whom theyre talking to and what will be done with what they say. Otherwise, they cant really know if they want to talk at all.

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You should be able to justify deceit as indispensable to get something important, of public significance, that you would never get without the lie.

U.S. media have turned against deception, and projects built on undercover reporting are vanishingly rare. Gone is work like that of the Chicago Sun-Times, which opened a bar in 1977 and ran it for weeks to ensnare corrupt city inspectors, or the ABC News 1995 Food Lion story, in which reporters got hired by the grocery chain to secretly document unsanitary food handling.

Did the Alito comments justify the deception it took to get them? I think so.

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

Here is a powerfully influential Supreme Court justice. Hes speaking to an adoring young fan in his own words, not his clerks. And hes conveying profound skepticism about the possibility of social compromise while concurring with a vision of the court as an instrument of a nearly messianic purpose.

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Fri Friday

86 /53

Mix of sun and clouds. Highs in the mid 80s and lows in the low 50s.
Busting US-Zionist spy network in Yemen great victory: Ansarullah leader

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 12, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- The leader of Yemen's Ansarullah Movement has hailed the country's military for dismantling an American-Israeli espionage network, calling it "a great and important victory" for the Arab country.

According to IRNA quoting Yemeni media Tuesday night, Seyyed Abdul-Malik al-Houthi congratulated the Yemeni people and military on this achievement and said "this network exposed the destructive and conspiratorial nature of America, which violates the sovereignty of other countries".

The Ansarullah chief noted that the United States under the cover of diplomatic activities uses some UN or international institutions to target other countries in political, economic, social and cultural fields.

The Yemeni leader will detail the dimensions of the destruction of this espionage network in a speech on Thursday.

On Monday, the Yemeni military announced it busted a team of spies working for American and Israeli agencies, delivering a significant blow to plots hatched against the Yemeni government institutions.

A military statement said that the spies had "proven" and "direct" connections with the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Zionist regime's Mossad.

The statement added that some detainees had been collaborating with the CIA since the 1980s and 1990s and stole "highly sensitive" information about Yemeni state institutions, including military.

According to IRNA, Major General Abdul Hakim Hashem Al-Khaiwani, head of Yemen's Security and Intelligence Service, stated in a televised address on Monday that the American-Israeli spy network has played a role of espionage and sabotage in official and unofficial institutions on behalf of the enemy for several decades but "with God's help, members of an extensive US and Israeli espionage network were arrested."

He said that spies were recruited from the country's different institutions and sectors, including economy and education.

A month ago, the Yemeni security apparatus had nabbed another group of 18 spies, known as Force 400.

4399

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Sayyed al-Houthi: Exposed spy network reveals US breach of sovereignty

ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency

Wed / 12 June 2024 / 13:12

The leader of the Ansar Allah movement affirms that the dismantling of the dangerous espionage network reveals the destructive and conspiratorial face of the United States.

Tehran -ISNA- The leader of the Ansar Allah movement, Sayyed Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, stressed that the dismantling of the dangerous espionage network that works at the service of the United States is a huge and important victory.

Sayyed al-Houthi added that the spy network reveals the subversive and conspiratorial face of the US, which violates the sovereignty of countries and exploits others.

He pointed out that the US exploits some of those affiliated with organizations or the United Nations and those who move under diplomatic or other cover.

Sayyed al-Houthi added that the US targets countries in various fields, politically, economically, socially, culturally, and at all levels.

The Yemeni Security Forces uncovered a large espionage network operated by American and Israeli intelligence agencies, the agency announced Monday.

Officials revealed that the network had been active within various institutions in Yemen since 2015.

The head of the Security and Intelligence Service, Major General Abdul Hakim Hashem al-Khaiwani, said in a televised statement, "The exposed network collected important information in various fields and carried out direct espionage technical operations on behalf of the enemy's intelligence services to obtain confidential, sovereign information."

The spy network was said to have aimed to destabilize Yemen's economy through information gathering and sabotage. The network is also blamed for damaging the agricultural sector by increasing pest infestations to boost agricultural imports, thus increasing Yemen's dependence on foreign parties

The network reportedly targeted Yemen's public health by spreading diseases and "undermined the education system by promoting moral corruption."

Additionally, the espionage network provided military intelligence to American and Israeli agencies to weaken the Yemeni army and diminish its capabilities, the agency added.

End Item



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Austria Says Security Concern Was Behind Decision To Pull TASS Accreditation

By RFE/RL's Russian Service June 12, 2024

Austria annulled the accreditation of two correspondents working for Russia's TASS news agency in April "due to a negative security assessment by the security authorities," the Interior Ministry said.

The Interior Ministry's statement, quoted by dpa on June 11, came a day after the Russian Foreign Ministry said it had canceled the accreditation of a correspondent for Austrian public broadcaster ORF, Maria Knips-Witting, and told her to leave the country in response to Austria's expulsion of Ivan Popov, a journalist for TASS, in late April.

Though the Russian Foreign Ministry only cited the expulsion of Popov, the Austrian Interior Ministry statement referred to two journalists for TASS, both expelled in April.

ORF said it could not understand Russia's move to cancel Knips-Witting's accreditation, while the Austrian Foreign Ministry called it "completely unjustified."

A report in March in the Vienna-based Falter weekly wrote about suspected Russian intelligence activities in the Austrian capital in a story that mentioned TASS.

In addition, the Austrian Interior Ministry's latest intelligence report says foreign intelligence services are active in the country under the cover of news agencies.

Knips-Witting joined a long list of journalists expelled by Russia since it launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

In August 2023, Eva Hartog, a Dutch journalist working for Politico -- a U.S. based politics-focused digital newspaper -- was denied a renewal of her Russian visa.

Russian authorities in March refused to extend a visa for Xavier Colas, a reporter for Spanish newspaper El Mundo and ordered him to leave Russia.

Moscow also has arrested and charged foreign journalists with crimes.

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich has been under pretrial arrest since late March 2023 on charges of espionage that he, his employer, and U.S. officials reject as unfounded.

RFE/RL journalist Alsu Kurmasheva, a U.S.-Russian citizen, has been in Russian custody since October on a charge of violating the so-called "foreign agent" law. She's also been charged with spreading falsehoods about the Russian military and faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted. Kurmasheva and RFE/RL maintain her innocence.

With reporting by dpa, Deutsche Welle, and VOA

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/austria-annuls- accreditation-russian-journalists/32989932.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.

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Cupertinos share of Silicon Valley, where venture capitalists are viewed as heroes for investing in entrepreneurs startup technologies. JOSH EDELSON/AFP via Getty Images

There has been no shortage of debate about the role of arrogant CEOs and harmful algorithms in defining technological innovation. But we typically hear less about the systemic forces that generate those problems. A key culprit is venture capital, which provides early funding for entrepreneurs who want to transform neat ideas into billion-dollar companies.

For a business to have any chance of changing the world with its technology, it must mold itself to meet the demands of these funders. VCs have become folk heroes in Silicon Valley, widely revered for delivering innovation. Often, they help create products that succeed in short-term disruption  with questionable or even dangerous long-term effects.

VC compels startups to engage in relentless experimentation to generate exponential growth, ratcheting up their expectations at every stage of a firms development. The goal is to increase a startups valuation so the investors can sell their stakes for far more than they originally paid for it. When a startup succeeds, investors profits can be stunning. Sequoia Capitals initial outlay of $585,000 to Airbnb was worth $4 billion after the company went public.

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Many celebrate venture capitals role in creating a marketplace that nurtures the most innovative ideas. But the ideas that are best for capital markets  and for enriching the most affluent among us  arent always those that are best for societies. When well-connected entrepreneurs, VCs and the wealthy institutions and individuals whose money they invest achieve enormous payouts, other stakeholders are frequently left behind. For example, following Ubers IPO in 2019, a combined $27.1 billion  about 40% of the companys valuation  was captured by just three investment funds and the companys two co-founders. Longtime Uber drivers, on the other hand, received bonuses that averaged $273 per person, or the equivalent of just a few cents per ride.

Tech startups that succeed are not necessarily those that figure out how to create a stable business model that yields consistent profits. Instead, the winners are often the companies that have attracted more capital than their competitors by pursuing reckless growth. Consumers and stakeholders end up missing out on some of the best, most sustainable, and perhaps even the most innovative products and services  tethered instead to the ones able to meet investors ever-escalating benchmarks.

The VC business model is powerful. But it is also relatively new, fueled by policies enacted in the late 1970s that incentivized startup investors, including big cuts to the capital gains tax rate and a Department of Labor ruling that allowed pension fund managers to invest in riskier assets. Since then, a small cadre of funders, over a third of whom are based in the Bay Area, have seized an outsized voice in determining the distribution of the economic risks and rewards associated with innovation.

As a new wave of generative artificial intelligence startups takes center stage in Silicon Valley, venture capital is once again setting the agenda, unleashing experimental technologies that expose us all to substantial risk. How can we come together to minimize the harms generated by new technologies, while sharing their benefits  and fueling sustainable innovation  more broadly?

Its time to look for better ways to invest in our future  ways that reward new ideas not just for their ability to inflate a startups valuation, but also for the benefits they bring to society as a whole. A brief survey of the tech landscape reveals numerous examples of potential alternatives to the VC model. Craigslist is privately owned and has largely resisted outside investment. Instead of constantly experimenting with its platform to increase engagement, serve advertisements or harvest user data, the company is free to balance the profit motive with a public-service ethos.

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Nonprofit video-captioning and translation platform Amara pays higher wages than similar for-profit labor platforms. Up & Go, a platform that allows customers in New York City to order house-cleaning services, is cooperatively owned and operated by the companys workers. Ninety-five percent of the revenue generated through the platform is paid out to workers, resulting in wages about $5 per hour above the local average.

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

What these models have in common is the ability to reduce entrepreneurs dependence on external funds and thus external control. Other measures can loosen venture capitals grip on our innovation ecosystem, too: federal grant and loan programs that require founders to cap prices or share profits, publicly owned investment vehicles and eliminating tax dodges.
Norway - AIM-120C-8 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles

Media/Public Contact: pm-cpa@state.gov

Transmittal No: 24-49

WASHINGTON, June 11, 2024 -- The State Department has made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale to the Government of Norway of AIM-120C-8 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles and related equipment for an estimated cost of $1.94 billion. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency delivered the required certification notifying Congress of this possible sale today.

The Government of Norway has requested to buy three hundred (300) AIM-120C-8 Advanced Medium-Range Air-to-Air Missiles (AMRAAM) and twenty (20) AIM-120C-8 AMRAAM guidance sections. Also included is the following non-MDE: AMRAAM containers and support equipment; spare parts, consumables, accessories, and repair and return support; weapons software, support equipment, and classified software delivery and support; transportation support; classified publications and technical documentation; training; studies and surveys; U.S. Government and contractor engineering; technical and logistics support services; and other related elements of logistics and program support. The estimated total cost is $1.94 billion.

This proposed sale will support the foreign policy goals and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Ally that is a force for political stability and economic progress in Europe.

The proposed sale will improve Norway's capability to meet current and future threats by supplementing and replacing its AIM-120B AMRAAMs with the latest version of the AIM-120C. Norway already has AMRAAMs and F-35As in its inventory and will have no difficulty absorbing these articles into its armed

forces. The newly acquired missiles will be used for ground-based air defense in the National Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS) but may be subject to dual use with the F-35A.

The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region.

The principal contractor will be RTX Corporation, located in Tucson, AZ. The purchaser typically requests offsets. Any offset agreement will be defined in negotiations between the purchaser and the contractor.

Implementation of this proposed sale will not require the assignment of any additional U.S. Government or contractor representatives to Norway.

There will be no adverse impact on U.S. defense readiness as a result of this proposed sale.

The description and dollar value are for the highest estimated quantity and dollar value based on initial requirements. Actual dollar value will be lower depending on final requirements, budget authority, and signed sales agreement(s), if and when concluded.

All questions regarding this proposed Foreign Military Sale should be directed to the State Department's Bureau of Political Military-Affairs, Office of Congressional and Public Affairs, pm-cpa@state.gov.

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Minister Hussen attends conference in Jordan on humanitarian response for Gaza

Global Affairs Canada

News release

June 12, 2024 - Ottawa, Ontario - Global Affairs Canada

The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of International Development, recently travelled to Jordan, where he attended an international conference on June 11, 2024. The conference, Call for Action: Urgent Humanitarian Response for Gaza, was organized by Jordan, Egypt and the United Nations.

At the conference, Minister Hussen reiterated Canada's unwavering commitment to helping Palestinian civilians receive the life-saving assistance they desperately need, including through the $165 million in international assistance funding that Canada has committed since October 2023. Canada was the first western donor and is one of the top donors in the world to the humanitarian efforts in Gaza.

Canada unequivocally condemns Hamas, a listed terrorist organization, for its attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023. Canada fully supports the comprehensive deal that would lead to an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the release of hostages and a significant and sustained increase in humanitarian assistance for distribution throughout Gaza, as outlined by U.S. President Joe Biden. Canada calls on all parties to accept the deal.

While at the conference, Minister Hussen also discussed the early recovery and reconstruction of Gaza, which must be accompanied by a political framework that is grounded in the 2-state solution. He emphasized the urgent need to scale up assistance to vulnerable Palestinians, underscoring the importance of having reliable entry points for delivering supplies into Gaza, as well as the vital role of the Jordanian Humanitarian Corridor. He also shared concerns about obstacles related to access and the distribution of assistance that Canada's humanitarian partners are facing in Gaza. International humanitarian law must be upheld by all parties to the conflict. Humanitarian workers, medical staff members and their facilities must be respected and protected.

Quotes

"The situation in Gaza is dire, and Canada is actively pursuing all avenues to provide humanitarian assistance to alleviate the suffering of innocent civilians, especially women and children. We have joined international partners to discuss urgently needed solutions for the crisis faced by the people of Gaza. We urge all parties to accept the proposed deal that would lead to an immediate ceasefire, release all hostages and facilitate the rapid, safe and unimpeded access of humanitarian relief in accordance with international humanitarian law." - Ahmed Hussen, Minister of International Development

Quick facts

The conference focused on identifying ways to bolster the international community's response to the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. It also aimed to outline effective measures and procedures, as well as operational and logistical needs, for this purpose while seeking a commitment for a collective coordinated response to address the humanitarian situation.

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June 12, 2024

Transcript

Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh Holds a Press Briefing

Sabrina Singh, Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary

DEPUTY PRESS SECRETARY SABRINA SINGH: All right. Good afternoon, everyone. Just a few things at the top here, and then happy to dive in and take your questions.

Today, Secretary Austin is traveling to Brussels to host the 23rd Ukraine Defense Contact Group tomorrow, June 13th. The secretary will be joined by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs, General CQ Brown, and senior military officials from nearly 50 nations to discuss the ongoing war in Ukraine and encourage continued support from the international community to provide the Ukrainians with the means necessary to defend their sovereign territory. Also while he's in Brussels, Secretary Austin will participate in the NATO Defense Ministerial on June 14th at NATO headquarters.

And now, switching to a few operational updates on the temporary pier, or the Joint Logistics Over-The-Shore capability that is being used to surge humanitarian assistance into Gaza. As you know, for two days, the temporary pier was not operational due to high sea states. As of yesterday, June 11th, U.S. Central Command resumed the delivery of humanitarian assistance into Gaza with more than 500 metric tons of aid delivered to the marshaling area, and today, delivered another over-500 metric tons as well to the marshaling area. In total since, May 17th, Central Command assisted in the delivery of more than 2,500 metric tons, or approximately 5.6 million pounds of humanitarian aid to the shore for onward distribution.

Additionally, the one remaining Army vessel that was beached in Gaza on May 25th was recovered last night, and we greatly appreciate the IDF's assistance with recovery of that vessel.

Switching gears, the National Guard is wrapping up its largest annual cyber exercise this weekend at the Virginia National Guard State Military Reservation outside Virginia Beach. Exercise Cyber Shield 2024 brings together nearly 1,000 participants from National Guard units in 41 states and territories, 27 defensive cyber operations elements, nine international partner nations and the active-duty Air Force with a focus on defending critical infrastructure against cyber threats.

Building off the DOD's 2023 Cyber Strategy, exercises like Cyber Shield 2024 are leveraging industry-leading courses and force-on-force cyber attack simulations to grow collaborative and interoperable capabilities among local, state, national and international partners for unified defense and all-domain deterrence.

And finally, Abe Denmark, the secretary's senior advisor for AUKUS, is departing the Pentagon. We want to thank Abe for his leadership, building strong coalitions, bringing us even closer to two of our closest allies, the U.K. and Australia, and for strengthening security across the Indo-Pacific. He was a key architect of the AUKUS Pillar One optimal pathway announced by the president and the prime ministers, and instrumental in developing advanced capability cooperation in AUKUS Pillar Two. On behalf of the secretary of defense, we wish him all the best in his future endeavors.

And with that, I'd be happy to take your questions. Lita?

Q: Thanks, Sabrina. Two things. One, when does the U.S. expect to deliver the new Patriot system to Ukraine? And what impact does the secretary and the military believe that will have on the war there?

And then just secondly on  just a follow-up on the pier, has any aid moved from the marshaling area into Gaza that you're aware of? And how big of a problem is this, that aid is just going to keep mounting? Do you have any sense that it will resume at all?

MS. SINGH: Let me take the last part first. So to my knowledge, since aid has started flowing in from yesterday and today, it's just being collected in the marshaling area, getting ready for when the UNWFP is ready to distribute. That distribution hasn't happened to my knowledge. I'd refer you to USAID and WFP to speak more to that. I know that they are conducting a security review, so while they do that, it is in the marshaling area.

The good news is, is that it's on the beach, so it's a step closer to getting to the people who need it most. But I just don't have an update on when that will be further distributed.

In terms of your first question on Ukraine and air defenses, I've seen some of the reporting out there on the Patriot. I don't have any announcements to make on a Patriot battery today.

What I can tell you  not getting ahead of the Secretary, but something that he continues to emphasize when he has  hosts the Ukraine Defense Contact Group is that we know air defenses are a priority for Ukraine, it's something that they need, whether it be in the Patriot or other forms. And so I'm sure that's going to be a topic of discussion tomorrow at the UDCG.

Won't get ahead of the Secretary and don't have any announcements to make, but we'll certainly keep you updated if there are any other additional presidential drawdown packages.

Jen?

Q: Sabrina, just to follow up  so of the 2,500 tons that have been delivered to Gaza, all are still in the marshaling area, none have been distributed?

MS. SINGH: No, so for better numbers on the distribution, I'd refer you to the WFP and USAID to speak more to that. I am speaking about the aid deliveries from the temporary pier from yesterday and today. That aid remains in the marshaling area and just collated there. The aid that came off the pier before, you know, we had to  what's the right word  remove it and then re-anchor it, that aid had been distributed on  or at least went to the warehouses.

Q: And how seriously are you taking the arrival of this Russian flotilla in Havana and the exercises being take  taking place in the Caribbean?

MS. SINGH: We've been tracking the Russians' plans for this. This is not a surprise. We've seen them do this  these type of port calls before, and these are, you know, routine naval visits that we've seen under different administrations.

We're always, constantly going to monitor any foreign vessels operating near U.S. territorial waters. We of course take it seriously, but these exercises don't pose a threat to the United States.

Q: But when was the last time that Russian naval vessels were off the coast of Florida or in Cuba?

MS. SINGH: I'd refer you to NORTHCOM and SOUTHCOM to speak more to that. I know it  they have done exercises  it  previous years under different administrations, but I don't have those exact dates in front of me.

Kellie?

Q: Yeah, just to follow up on Jen's question on what's happening with Russian war ships moving into Cuba, it did happen in different administrations, as you're saying, but the timing of it happening now with what's happening in Ukraine, with President Biden taking off for the G7 in Italy, meeting with world leaders and not Vladimir Putin, is this seen as some sort of muscle-flexing on the side of Russia?

MS. SINGH: You know, I'd refer you to the Russians to speak to their own operations and exercises. It certainly wouldn't come as a surprise to us if we see more activity around the United States. And, you know, they do have a global exercise that will, I think, likely culminate this fall.

It's something that we're going to continue to monitor. Again, I think what's important here is that what Russia is doing in these exercises, they don't pose a threat to the United States, but of course we're going to continue to monitor.

Q: Have they gotten close to  I know we've  have our U.S. ships kind of repositioned in the area monitoring it. Have they gotten close  or can you say how close they've gotten to  to our ships?

MS. SINGH: I don't have those specifics. I would direct you to NORTHCOM and  and SOUTHCOM as well to speak more to that. I just don't  I just don't have that right now.

Konstantin? Did I see you have  had a question right there?

Q: So just continuing on that line of questioning 

MS. SINGH: Sure.

Q:  are you able to say what the U.S. military responded with?

MS. SINGH: So, I mean, we are continuing to monitor. I can tell you that the Navy's U.S. Second Fleet, U.S. Fourth Fleet, U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Area, and Canadian Joint Task Force Atlantic are conducting routine operations throughout the Atlantic. But we're going to continue to monitor, you know, what's happening in the region, but that's all I have in terms of specifics.

Q: And then one last detail. Are you able to say how close the Russians ships got to the coast of Florida?

MS. SINGH: I don't have those specific details. I'd direct you to NORTHCOM for that.

I'm just going to go to the phones and then happy to come back into the room. Fadi Mansour, Al Jazeera? Okay, maybe not. Idrees Ali, Reuters?

Q: I have two quick questions. Are you aware of any of the aid either becoming inedible or unusable because it's been in the marshaling area or in warehouses for so long? And is the Secretary frustrated with either the World Food Program or USAID for  for apparently not foreseeing some of the challenges that they're now facing in delivering the aid that's just collecting in the marshaling area?

MS. SINGH: Thanks, Idrees. So in terms of the actual aid, I can't really speak to that. I would direct you to USAID and the World Food Program to speak more to the specifics on the donations and if  you know, some of the concerns there.

But to my knowledge, the aid that has moved on and off the pier from yesterday and today has been aid that, when the WFP is ready to continue forward with onward distribution, will be used well and get into the hands of the Palestinian people that need it most.

In terms of your question of are there any frustrations, there are not. I mean, this is  we're working hand in glove with USAID, who has been a great partner in culling together different nations, different NGOs to donate aid to a population that desperately needs it. We are the conduit for getting that aid to the people who need it the most, but USAID has been instrumental in making sure that we are getting those donations from other countries and NGOs as well.

So we certainly value their partnership. The WFP of course is taking the security measures that they need to do and the reviews that they need to do in order to feel safe and secure and  to operate within Gaza. We're not standing in the way of that. We are just ready and waiting to help with getting aid from Cyprus to the temporary pier into the marshaling area so that aid can get to the people that need it most.

I'm happy to come back in the room. Janne?

Q: Thank you, Sabrina. And two questions. U.S. and South Korea held Nuclear Consultative Group  I mean NCG group meeting in Seoul recently. The review of the U.S. and ROK joint statement said that joint guidelines on North Korea's nuclear weapons has been completed. What are the specific details?

MS. SINGH: I don't have anything to read out of a specific meeting, Janne. I'm not exactly tracking what you mentioned, but of course we're always monitoring what's happening on the peninsula and aware of, you know, DPRK's provocative activities over the last few days and weeks. But I don't have anything  specifics on a meeting that you just mentioned.

Q: Why does senior officer recently mentioned about the  if China and Russia do not reduce their nuclear weapons, U.S. might, you know, increase the nuclear deployment, the U.S. will adjust its nuclear  I mean nuclear posture capabilities or what is meant?

MS. SINGH: Thanks, Janne, for the question. Bit of a hypothetical there. As you can appreciate, just not going to get into more specifics, but we're always assessing, you know, what Russia, what the PRC are doing. I don't have any announcements to make in terms of force posture changes to our own nuclear posture  or changes to our nuclear posture, I should say, but, you know, we're going to continue to monitor, and I just don't have anything more for you on that.

Yes?

Q: Thank you, Sabrina. The prime minister, Netanyahu, has said that Israel is prepared for a strong action in the northern part of the border with Lebanon. And yesterday, we heard that Secretary Austin, he already discussed with his Israeli counterpart the efforts to de-escalate tensions along the Israel-Lebanon border. So my question: Do you have  do you worry about any maybe potential war more than just  in that specific area? And what tools does Secretary Austin have  he can maybe prevent that area from getting more escalation? Thank you.

MS. SINGH: Yeah, no, thanks for the question. As you saw, we put out a readout of Secretary Austin's call with Minister Gallant. This was something that was discussed. We are seeing an increase in activity in the north, and we don't want things to escalate into a broader regional conflict, and that's something that is not new. That's something that we've said from the very beginning from when Hamas first, you know, launched its brutal attack on October 7th. We never want to see an escalation of tensions in the region, and we took very specific steps from the beginning with the secretary making that decision and of course, with the president, to have the Ford go into the Eastern Med. We're going to continue to urge for de-escalation. That was something that the secretary spoke with Mr. Gallant about at length yesterday. I'm not going to get into more specifics of the call itself, but we don't want to see a wider regional conflict, and that's why we do want to see de-escalation of tensions in the region.

Q: Can I follow up to that?

MS. SINGH: Yeah, go ahead.

Q: If there is a deal  do you expect, if there's a deal, to a cease-fire deal will happen in Gaza, do you believe that will de-escalate this area, of the tension in the north in  of Israel and Lebanon?

MS. SINGH: Well, I think a cease-fire would certainly lead to a de-escalation of tensions, but that is something that's still being worked. As you've seen, Secretary Blinken is in the region. I know he made some  he's been meeting with different partners in the region. He made some comments earlier today. I don't have anything additional to add to what he said already, but certainly, it could bring further  it would lead to further de-escalation, which is a good thing.

Yes, in the back?

Q: Thank you so much for this opportunity. Two quick questions.

MS. SINGH: Sure.

Q: Some of the media reports suggest with the recent (inaudible) by the Pentagon, defense officials in Riyadh, they have talks with the Arab military chiefs. So as  meanwhile, the United States has engaged diplomatically with Saudi Arabia and Israel on Arab normalization. So they're in  in consultation with the defense officials that diplomatic normalization, there is another potential threat in Middle East. Are the U.S.  so U.S. is preparing for that?

MS. SINGH: No, I think what you're referring to is some of our officials just traveling within the region doing  whether it's diplomatic meetings or meeting with their counterparts, this is something that happens often and very frequently. That's not an indication that tensions are rising. That is something that's, frankly, a part of the portfolio of where these officials sit. So no, it's about deepening those partnerships. Of course, they're going to talk about and discuss what's happening in the region. It would be imprudent not to. So that's something that, of course, you know, is always on the table and discussed, but no, it doesn't  it doesn't indicate anything one way or the other.

Q: Secondly 

MS. SINGH: Sure.

Q: I wanted to ask, like, in your experience, have security (inaudible) cooperation with Pakistan. So from the month of May and from the timeline long ago, we  we observed the number of illegal strikes happened in Afghanistan along the border of the Pakistan to a number of high value targets. So I want to know, like, if there are any intelligence seeing a correlation by United States toward Pakistan regarding the onward of Pakistan counter terrorism operations regarding TTP are top-valued targets?

MS. SINGH: I don't have anything to add on that. I mean, if you're talking about our ongoing efforts to, you know, go after ISIS militants or ISIS senior leaders, of course, that's something that we continue to work on in the region. But I don't have anything more on that. I'm sorry.

Tom?

Q: Thank you. Good afternoon, This morning, Secretary-General Stoltenberg and Prime Minister Orban of Hungary had a press conference where they announced that Hungary would no longer veto or block NATO country efforts to support Ukraine in exchange for not  for NATO not considering Uk-  Hungary to give money and materiel for the war in Ukraine. What's the Department of Defense's assessment on how this will impact now support for Ukraine among NATO nations?

MS. SINGH: I'm sorry. I haven't seen the reports from this morning. I don't have anything to add to what the secretary-general and his engagement with Orban. But I would say that, you know, of course, we want to see countries around the world, our partners and allies, continue to support Ukraine, and that is exactly what the secretary is going to be doing tomorrow with the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, but I don't have anything additional to add. I'm sorry. I just  I haven't seen some of the reporting from that meeting.

Yeah, of course. Yes.

Q: Thank you. The day before yesterday, INDOPACOM's commander, Paparo, said in an interview with The Washington Post, if China invades Taiwan, he will make it hellscape response. And the other August, 2023, Pentagon announced that aim to deploy thousands of (inaudible) assistance within the next 18 to 24 months. So have there been any change to this plan of war? How do you view the feasibility of this project?

MS. SINGH: I'm going to let Admiral Paparo's comments stand for themselves. I don't have anything to add. What I can tell you is the secretary just concluded his 10th visit to the Indo-Pacific region. Something that, of course, was on the mind and something that he spoke to at the Shangri-La Dialogue was our pacing challenge of the PRC. So we're continuing to monitor what the PRC is doing in the region, some of the behavior around, whether it be the Second Thomas Shoal or other areas within the Indo-Pacific. But I just don't have more to add onto those comments.

Go ahead. I'm going to see if we've got Fadi Mansour back from Al Jazeera on the phones. Otherwise, I can wrap it up.

Q: Hi, Sabrina. Can you hear me now?

MS. SINGH: I can hear you now.

Q: Thank you for taking my question again. In the readout from the phone call between Secretary Austin and Gallant, the secretary congratulated Mr. Gallant on the rescue of four Israeli hostages, an operation that health authorities in Gaza says resulted in the death of more than 270 Palestinians. Half of them  or all  almost half of them are women and children. Did the secretary discuss the civilian casualties as a result of this operation? And if so, why wasn't it included in the readout? And I have another question for you.

MS. SINGH: Thanks, Fadi, for the question. The secretary  of course, it's something that is always on the top of our minds, something that the secretary has brought up in various engagements with in various engagements with Minister Gallant and other officials within the Israeli government. Of course, we are  we are deeply concerned by some of the reports that we are seeing out of Gaza when it comes to civilian casualties. It's something that we're always very frank about whenever it's a call or a private engagement or publicly from here.

It's something that we're going to continue to speak to the Israelis about, it's something that we're concerned about, but I just don't have anything additional to add, other than what we've put out in the readout yesterday, which you referenced.

(CROSSTALK)

Q:  if I may, the follow-up, Sabrina, Considering that the administration 

Q:  specifically in  in yesterday's call?

MS. SINGH: He talked about the operation broadly. I'm not going to go into more specifics of the call. It was a pretty sensitive operation, and we are glad to see the success of these four hostages that were returned home.

Blanket, we are always concerned about the reports of civilian casualties coming out of Gaza. It's something that he reiterates constantly in his calls with Minister Gallant, not just him but from other officials in this building. It's something that does come up routinely.

I'm not going to get into more specifics, but there were certainly questions about the operations that were asked, and I'm just going to leave it at that.

Okay, thanks, everyone.

https://www.defense.gov/News/Transcripts/Transcript/Article/3804979/

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Georgia: Statement by the Spokesperson on the continued acts of intimidation, threats and assaults on civil society

European External Action Service (EEAS)

12.06.2024

EEAS Press Team

The European Union regrets the increasing number of reported acts of intimidation, threats and physical assaults on civil society representatives, political leaders, civil activists and journalists in Georgia. The EU, once again, calls on the Georgian authorities to put an end to these negative developments and investigate the documented acts of violence and intimidation thoroughly and in a timely manner. We also call upon Georgian political actors to refrain from using language which could further fuel the extreme polarisation in the country.

The EU also remains deeply concerned about the widespread disinformation about the EU and its values. It calls on Georgian authorities to refrain from statements which are inaccurate and not in line with Georgia's stated EU aspirations, and that negatively impacts Georgia's relations with the EU and its Member States.

The EU is currently considering all options for responding to the adoption of the law on 'transparency of foreign influence' and other actions undermining democracy and the rule of law in Georgia.

We urge the government to recommit to the EU path. The EU continues to stand with the Georgian people and their overwhelming choice in favour of democracy and of Georgia's European future.



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US, UK strike Yemen's Hudaydah

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 12, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- The US and the UK have conducted airstrikes on western Yemen in yet another act of aggression against the country over its support for the Palestinians in war-ravaged Gaza.

According to Yemen's Al Masirah TV network, the two Western states struck the city of al-Tahita and Al-Jabanah region in Hudaydah Province on Wednesday.

There was no immediate report of possible casualties or damage.

Hudaydah Province has been one of the main targets of US-UK airstrikes against Yemen since they were launched in mid-January.

Washington and London claim that the airstrikes are aimed at protecting international shipping in the wake of Yemen's military operations that have been ongoing since November in response to the Israeli regime's genocidal war on Gaza.

Yemen rejects their claim, saying the US and the UK seek to support the regime as the Yemeni military operations in the high seas only target ships that are either Israeli or head towards ports in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Yemen has time and again said that its operations will continue as long as the Gaza war continues.

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Hezbollah vows to ramp up attacks on Israel after commander killed

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 12, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- A senior Hezbollah official has vowed that the Lebanese resistance movement will ramp up the "quantity and quality" of its attacks against the Israeli regime.

Sayyed Hashem Safieddine, head of Hezbollah's Executive Council, made the remarks on Wednesday during a funeral procession of a high-ranking Hezbollah field commander who was killed in Israeli airstrikes in southern Lebanon.

Sami Abdallah, better known by the nom the guerre Abu Taleb, was killed in Israeli air raids targeting a house in the town of Jwaya on Tuesday.

"We will increase the intensity, strength, quantity and quality of our attacks," Safieddine said, warning that the enemy has not learned from its past mistakes.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian resistance movements of Hamas and Islamic Jihad honored the slain Hezbollah commander as a remarkable resistance figure who played a key role in the ongoing confrontation with Israeli forces in southern Lebanon.

Hamas extended its condolences over Abu Taleb's martyrdom "in the path of liberation of al-Quds and al-Aqsa Mosque".

"We recognize the support of our brothers in Hezbollah, and we mourn all the martyrs whose blood was spilled in support of Gaza, al-Quds, and al-Aqsa," it said in a statement.

The Popular Resistance Committees, a coalition of Palestinian resistance groups, also issued a statement, saying the blood of the martyred commander will light up the path of freedom fighters and unite the Islamic Ummah in the great battle of liberating Palestine.

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Hezbollah targets Zionist military, spy facilities in northern occupied lands

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 12, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- Lebanon's Hezbollah has launched successful attacks on Zionist targets in northern parts of the Palestinian Israeli-occupied territories, local media reported.

Al Mayadeen cited Zionist media on Wednesday that Hezbollah has targeted the control and air spying unit of Miron military base.

Zionist media outlets have also reported another attack on Bolsan factory affiliated to Rafael military company.

The factory provides protection and overhaul services to the machinery of the Zionist Army.

Earlier today, there were media reports about large-scale missile attacks from Lebanon to the occupied Golan heights and the Palestinian occupied lands which killed or injured a number of Zionist soldiers.

Zionist media admit that some 40 missiles were fired from Lebanon and hit targets in the occupied Golan.

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Iraqi resistance launches drone attack against occupied Eilat port

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 12, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- The Islamic Resistance of Iraq has said that it attacked a vital air base at Eilat port (Umm al-Rashrash) with several drones.

To resist the Zionist regime's occupation, aid Gaza residents, and retaliate the Zionist massacre of Palestinian civilians, the fighters of resistance targeted the Israeli regime's military air base in Eilat, the Iraqi resistance reported on Wednesday.

The Iraqi resistance also targeted an important position in the southern occupied Palestine on Tuesday.

The group had previously warned that it would intensify its operations against the regime's positions if the Zionist regime continued its attacks on the Gaza Strip.

According to a report released on the 200th day of Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, the Iraqi resistance fighters had launched 243 attacks against the Zionist regime in different parts of Iraq, the occupied lands and Syria.

Over 37,000, mostly children and women, have been killed in Gaza since the start of Israel's genocidal war in the enclave last October.

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Hezbollah targets another Zionist base with missile

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 12, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- Lebanon's Hezbollah Resistance Movement have targeted yet another base of the Zionist regime's army in the occupied territories with missile.

According to IRNA, citing the media of the Lebanese Resistance Forces, the missile fired on Tuesday night struck the Birket Risha site located along the southern border of Lebanon.

The Zionist media reported that rocket strikes prompted sirens to sound in the towns of Zareit, Arab al-Aramshe and Shumira in the Al-Jalil al-Gharbi region in the north of occupied Palestine near the border with Lebanon.

Hezbollah's relentless missile and drone attacks are in solidarity with the oppressed Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and retaliation for the regime's strikes on southern Lebanon.

The resistance group and Israeli forces have been exchanging fire on an almost daily basis since the occupying regime invaded the Gaza Strip in early October.

Hezbollah retaliatory attacks have forced Zionists to flee settlements built on occupied Palestinian territories, with some report putting their number at tens of thousands.

These attacks are such that some members of the far-right cabinet of Benjamin Netanyahu have become upset and want the regime to open a full war front against Lebanon.

According to IRNA, Hezbollah targets military positions of this regime in the north of the occupied territories over the crimes being committed in Gaza but the Zionist military hits residential areas of southern Lebanon, killing civilians.

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Palestinian Resistance continues operations against Israeli aggression

ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency

Wed / 12 June 2024 / 13:12

The Palestinian Resistance continues to confront and inflict heavy losses on invading Israeli forces across Gaza for the 250th consecutive day as part of Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, with fierce battles especially concentrated in Rafah and Gaza City.

Tehran -ISNA- The al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad Movement in Palestine, announced on Tuesday confronting Israeli occupation forces in Rafah, using machine guns, in addition to anti-tank missiles and anti-personnel weapons.

In a separate operation, the Resistance group said its fighters sniped at an Israeli soldier in the Netzarim axis, south of Tal al-Hawa in Gaza City.

It also announced targeting the Israeli military site Kissufim with a barrage of rockets.

The al-Quds Brigades released footage of a coordinated attack with other Resistance factions, shelling Israeli forces' gatherings in the Netzarim.

On its part, the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades announced engaging in fierce battles with occupation soldiers and vehicles using appropriate weapons in the advancement axes in the Shaboura camp in Rafah, adding that they also targeted Israeli military gatherings with mortar shells.

The group also released scenes of its Resistance fighters shelling the Netzarim axis with 107mm rockets and heavy caliber mortar shells.

End Item

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After the U.S. Supreme Court voted against banning the use of a common abortion pill, conservatives across the country are still trying to limit the use of contraceptive measures. Annette Riedl/Getty Images 2021

Even though the U.S. Supreme Court declined to limit the use of the abortion pill mifepristone Thursday, Republicans lawmakers have made little secret of what they want to ban next: contraceptives.

From Donald Trump to Congress to state legislatures, conservatives are trying to restrict or deny access to contraceptives, often by employing campaigns riddled with misinformation and lies, like equating IUDs and emergency contraceptives with abortion.

Conservatives are following the same blueprint they used to roll back abortion rights over the past few decades, said Kimya Forouzan, who tracks state reproductive policies for the Guttmacher Institute, an abortion rights organization. She said conservatives started with proposing to limit abortion rights for young people before working up to a broader ban.

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Weve kind of always known that they have always had their sights kind of set on more than just abortion access, Forouzan said. Now were seeing that kind of the focus on areas outside of abortion grow more and more. And I think contraception is one of those areas.

This year, conservative legislators in six states introduced eight bills that would require young people to obtain parental notification or consent to obtain contraceptives, according to the Guttmacher Institute, which tracks such data. Legislators in other states with abortion restrictions, including Alabama, Arizona and Virginia, offered legislation to protect access to birth control, but only Virginia was able to pass legislation to the governor, who rejected it.

Project 2025, a collection of Republican policy proposals written by nearly two dozen Trump administration officials and advisers, proposes requiring coverage of natural family planning methods, such as abstinence and fertility-awareness programs, and removing the mandate that employers cover certain emergency contraception.

For those who think that federal protections for birth control are unnecessary, just look at what is happening at the state level  Republican governors in Virginia and Nevada have already vetoed bills to protect birth control, and the Arizona Legislature has blocked similar bills too, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said this month. The federal government should absolutely have a say in ensuring every American has access to birth control if they need it.

However, Republican senators blocked a bill last week designed to protect contraception with all but two Republican senators  Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska  voting against advancing the legislation. Other Republicans derided the bill as a show vote designed to send a political message about GOP opposition to reproductive issues in an election year.

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The Democrats are using their power to push an alarmist and false narrative that there is a problem accessing contraception, Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy said.

Curbing contraceptives is a wildly unpopular position, with 88% of Americans saying they felt birth control was morally acceptable  more than felt the same way about divorce, sex between an unmarried man and a woman and having a baby outside of marriage, according to a June 2023 Gallup poll.

But theres a growing belief that contraceptives could soon be harder to obtain.

Less than half (45%) of the respondents to a March survey by the nonpartisan health policy analysis organization KFF said they considered the right to contraception a secure right likely to remain in place with 21% of adults saying that they thought the right to use contraception was threatened and likely to be overturned.

The root of this move to curb or ban contraceptives was hypercharged by Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas concurring opinion in the June 2022 decision that rescinded the constitutional right to obtain an abortion. Thomas argued that many of the same legal foundations that upheld abortion rights should be reexamined, including Griswold v. Connecticut, the 1965 decision that recognized the right of married people to obtain contraceptives.

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Fourteen states, including California, have constitutional or legal protections for the use of contraceptives. But in other states, conservatives have used misinformation about contraceptives to sow fear and undermine efforts to protect them.

Abortion opponents in some states have sought to exploit confusion about the difference between abortion medications such as mifepristone, which are used to terminate pregnancies, and emergency contraceptives or IUDs that prevent it.

Conservative legislators in Missouri last month stifled bipartisan legislation that would have enabled women with private insurance to obtain an annual supply of contraceptives after some equated contraceptives with abortion.

Forouzan, of the Guttmacher Institute, said efforts to conflate contraception and abortion have long been present at some level, but

they're present in the legislative process and legitimized in a way that I don't think we've seen before.

That misinformation campaign is sinking in. A 2023 KFF survey found that a majority (73%) incorrectly think that emergency contraceptive pills can end a pregnancy in its early stages, while 27% know it cant.

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Much of the misinformation about birth control has been targeted at young people via social media platforms like TikTok, which is used by 4 in 10 adults, according to KFF.

A KFF survey released Thursday on health misinformation showed that more than half of U.S. women of reproductive age have seen information about birth control on TikTok. The vast majority of users said what they saw on the site didnt affect their confidence in the science behind birth control and vaccines. A larger share of Republican TikTok users, however, said content on the app has made them less confident in vaccines (24%) rather than more confident (7%), according to KFF.

The KFF survey found that a slightly higher percentage of Republicans (13%) than Democrats (10%) and independents (11%) said content they saw on TikTok made them less confident in the safety of prescription birth control. The vast majority of all users said the content theyve seen has not made a difference.

That might help to explain why legislators in purple states are also having problems passing legislation to protect contraceptive use.

In May, Republican Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin vetoed a bill that would have ensured the right to use contraceptives and of doctors to provide them.

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Republicans said they were concerned the bill was written broadly enough to be interpreted to include abortion among the contraceptive options, even though that was not written into the measure.

Youngkin said, Let me be crystal clear: I support access to contraception. However, we cannot trample on the religious freedoms of Virginians. In his veto message, Youngkin said contraception remains a crucial component of reducing abortions and fostering a culture of life.

However, Youngkin was concerned that the measure did not include robust conscience clause protections for medical providers who did not want to recommend or prescribe contraceptives.

But Democratic Virginia state Sen. Ghazala F. Hashmi disagreed, saying there are already protections for those individuals, medical providers for religious exemptions. Youngkin also vetoed a measure that would have required insurers to cover contraceptive medication and devices.

Youngkin isnt the only Republican to talk about restricting contraception. Last month, Trump was asked by a Pittsburgh television station whether he was open to restrictions to contraception.

Were looking at that, and Im going to have a policy on that very shortly, and I think its something that youll find interesting, Trump said. I think its a smart decision. But well be releasing it very soon.
Hamas, PIJ submit response to UN-backed Gaza ceasefire plan

ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency

Wed / 12 June 2024 / 13:12

The Hamas movement has presented a few remarks to the mediators regarding the proposal laid out by the United States for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan told Al Mayadeen on Tuesday.

Tehran -ISNA- Hamdan clarified that the proposal discusses a ceasefire in Gaza but does not specify that it is permanent, whereas the US President had spoken about a permanent ceasefire. "We have amended this," he said.

He pointed out that the amendments were made based on inter-Palestinian dialogue, involving both the leadership of the Resistance inside and outside Gaza.

Based on this dialogue, Hamdan revealed that three key points were agreed upon. First, the Resistance is capable of continuing [its operations], and the achievements of Operation Al-Aqsa Storm confirm that resistance is the only legitimate option for the Palestinian people.

Second, Hamdan emphasized the need to achieve a ceasefire and alleviate the suffering of the Palestinian people, stressing that "the Resistance cannot compromise on the rights of its people under any circumstances."

Third, he pointed out that the Resistance's positivity should not be misinterpreted as a sign of weakness or a willingness to make further concessions.

"Our response is our commitment to what we previously committed to, a ceasefire and [complete] withdrawal from Gaza," Hamdan told Al Mayadeen.

He made it clear that the Hamas leadership does not succumb to pressure but maintains positivity.

Regarding the US stance on the war on Gaza, the Palestinian official considered that the American-Israeli position is aligned, noting that the disagreement between the two sides "is only tactical."

Touching on the US-drafted UN Security Council ceasefire resolution passed on Tuesday, Hamdan indicated that the text includes loopholes, stressing that the main thing is to set a zero hour for a ceasefire.

He added that the Hamas movement welcomes the resolution because it includes a ceasefire, relief for Palestinians, and prisoner exchange negotiations.

In a related context, a joint delegation from Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), led by Hamas Political Bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh and PIJ Secretary-General Ziad al-Nakhalah, announced it delivered the Palestinian Resistance factions' response regarding the ceasefire proposal to the Qatari and Egyptian mediators.

The two movements indicated that the response prioritizes the interests of the Palestinian people and the necessity of completely halting the ongoing aggression on Gaza, adding they were ready "to engage positively to reach an agreement that ends this war."

End Item

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Minister of National Defence departs for Brussels to attend the NATO Defence Ministerial, Ramstein format meeting, visit Denmark

Republic of Lithuania - Ministry of National Defence

2024-06-12

International cooperation | Security and defense policy

Minister of National Defence Laurynas Kasciunas departs for Belgium to attend the NATO Defence Ministers' meeting and the Ramstein format Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting in Brussels on June 13-14.

The NATO Defence Ministerial will centre on NATO deterrence and defence capabilities and preparations for the NATO Summit in Washington in July. Minister will also attend the NATO-Ukraine Council session.

On the margins of the official programme L. Kasciunas will hold bilateral meetings with the Polish, Turkish and French Ministers of Defence, catch up with Chair of the NATO Military Committee Admiral Rob Bauer and see General Manager of the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA) Stacy Cumming.

After the meetings in Belgium conclude, on June 15 Minister will proceed to Denmark to meet with Minister of Defence of Denmark Troels Lund Poulsen and Chairman of the Defence Committee of the Danish Parliament Rasmus Jarlov. Minister of National Defence will also attend the Baltic Sea Security Conference organized by Rasmussen Global.

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NATO Secretary General meets Hungarian Prime Minister in Budapest

NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

12 Jun. 2024

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg met with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest on Wednesday (12 June 2024) to discuss preparations for the Washington Summit.

Mr Stoltenberg commended Hungary's commitment to Allied security, including its leadership of a NATO multinational battlegroup; its hosting of military headquarters, including Multinational Division Centre; and its contributions to the KFOR peacekeeping mission in Kosovo. He further welcomed that since the start of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine, Hungary has provided shelter for Ukrainian refugees and helped to rehabilitate wounded Ukrainian soldiers. "All of this contributes to our shared security, and I welcome your statement that you will remain a dedicated and loyal NATO Ally," he said.

Mr Stoltenberg underlined that when Allies meet at the Washington Summit in July, he expects them to agree on a leading role for NATO in coordinating and providing security assistance and training for Ukraine, as well as a long-term financial pledge to provide military support. "Prime Minister Orban has made it clear that Hungary will not participate in these NATO efforts and I accept this position," he said. "At the same time, the Prime Minister has assured me that Hungary will not oppose these efforts, enabling other Allies to move forward, and he has confirmed that Hungary will continue to meet all of its NATO commitments in full," the Secretary General concluded.

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A look at the Defence news 3 - 9 June

Netherlands Ministry of Defence

News item | 12-06-2024 | 16:07

Together with Denmark, the Netherlands is to contribute 400 million to a Swedish fund set up to build CV90 infantry fighting vehicles for Ukraine. A large share of the vehicles will be produced in the Netherlands.

In addition, partly on account of an initiative by the Netherlands to combine requirements, Germany has started an assembly line for Patriot air defence missiles. The Netherlands Ministry of Defence is to furthermore invest 54 million in Dutch industry for the development of drones required by the Netherlands armed forces. These initiatives, along with others, are set out in an action plan regarding the scaling up of production and delivery of military materiel.

Dutch naval vessel approached by Chinese helicopter and fighter aircraft

Last week, HNLMS Tromp and its on-board NH90 helicopter were approached by two Chinese fighter aircraft and a helicopter. The incident took place just as the Royal Netherlands Navy was conducting a patrol in the East China Sea. (See news item June 7.)

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Israeli authorities, Palestinian armed groups are responsible for war crimes, other grave violations of international law, UN Inquiry finds

12 June 2024

GENEVA (12 June 2024) - Israeli authorities are responsible for war crimes and crimes against humanity committed during the military operations and attacks in Gaza since 7 October 2023, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel, said in a new report today. The Commission also found that Palestinian armed groups are responsible for war crimes committed in Israel.

The Commission's report - the UN's first in-depth investigation of the events that took place on and since 7 October 2023 - is based on interviews with victims and witnesses conducted remotely and during a mission to Turkiye and Egypt, thousands of open-source items verified through advanced forensic analysis, hundreds of submissions, satellite imagery and forensic medical reports. Israel obstructed the Commission's investigations and prevented its access to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory.

"It is imperative that all those who have committed crimes be held accountable," said Navi Pillay, Chair of the Commission. "The only way to stop the recurring cycles of violence, including aggression and retribution by both sides, is to ensure strict adherence to international law."

"Israel must immediately stop its military operations and attacks in Gaza, including the assault on Rafah, which has cost the lives of hundreds of civilians and again displaced hundreds of thousands of people to unsafe locations without basic services and humanitarian assistance," Pillay said. "Hamas and Palestinian armed groups must immediately cease rocket attacks and release all hostages. The taking of hostages constitutes a war crime."

In relation to Israeli military operations and attacks in Gaza, the Commission found that Israeli authorities are responsible for the war crimes of starvation as a method of warfare, murder or wilful killing, intentionally directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects, forcible transfer, sexual violence, torture and inhuman or cruel treatment, arbitrary detention and outrages upon personal dignity.

The Commission found that the crimes against humanity of extermination, gender persecution targeting Palestinian men and boys, murder, forcible transfer, and torture and inhuman and cruel treatment were also committed.

The immense numbers of civilian casualties in Gaza and widespread destruction of civilian objects and infrastructure were the inevitable result of a strategy undertaken with intent to cause maximum damage, disregarding the principles of distinction, proportionality and adequate precautions. The intentional use of heavy weapons with large destructive capacity in densely populated areas constitutes an intentional and direct attack on the civilian population.

The report found that statements made by Israeli officials - including those reflecting the policy of inflicting widespread destruction and killing large numbers of civilians - amounted to incitement and may constitute other serious international crimes. Direct and public incitement to genocide is a crime under international law whenever perpetrated, even by persons with no direct authority for the conduct of the hostilities. Incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence is a serious violation of international human rights law and may amount to an international crime.

Although Israel issued hundreds of evacuation orders to people in north Gaza and other locations, the Commission found that they were at times insufficient, unclear and conflicting, and did not provide adequate time for safe evacuations. Furthermore, the evacuation routes and the areas designated as safe were consistently attacked by Israeli forces. All of this, the Commission determined, amounted to forcible transfer.

The Commission determined that Israel's imposed a "total siege" which amounts to collective punishment against the civilian population. Israeli authorities have weaponized the siege and used the provision of life-sustaining necessities, including by severing water, food, electricity, fuel and humanitarian assistance, for strategic and political gains. The siege has disproportionately impacted pregnant women and persons with disabilities, with serious harm inflicted on children leading to preventable child deaths from starvation including newborns.

The report found that specific forms of sexual and gender-based violence constitute part of Israeli Security Forces' operating procedures. It made the finding due to the frequency, prevalence and severity of the violations, which include public stripping and nudity intended to humiliate the community at large and accentuate the subordination of an occupied people.

In the West Bank, the Commission found that Israeli forces committed acts of sexual violence, torture and inhuman or cruel treatment and outrages upon personal dignity, all of which are war crimes. Furthermore, the Commission found that the government of Israel and Israeli forces permitted, fostered and instigated a campaign of settler violence against Palestinian communities in the West Bank.

In relation to the attack of 7 October in Israel, the report found that the military wing of Hamas and six other Palestinian armed groups, are responsible for the war crimes of intentionally directing attacks against civilians, murder or wilful killing, torture, inhuman or cruel treatment, destroying or seizing the property of an adversary, outrages upon personal dignity, and taking hostages, including children.

The indiscriminate firing of thousands of projectiles towards Israeli towns and cities resulting in death and injury of civilians are also violations of international humanitarian and human rights law.

Members of Palestinian armed groups, in some instances aided by Palestinians in civilian clothing, deliberately killed, injured, tortured, took hostages, including children, and committed sexual and gender-based violence against civilians and against members of the Israeli Security Forces, some of whom were hors de combat and should not have been targeted.

The Commission identified patterns indicative of sexual violence and concluded that these were not isolated incidents but perpetrated in similar ways in several locations primarily against Israeli women.

In its recommendations, the report calls on the Government of Israel to immediately implement a ceasefire, end the siege of Gaza, ensure the delivery of humanitarian aid and cease the targeting of civilians and civilian infrastructure. The Commission calls on Israel to comply fully with its legal obligations set forth in the International Court of Justice orders on provisional measures issued on 26 January 2024, 28 March 2024 and 24 May 2024 and, in particular, allow the Commission access to Gaza to conduct investigations. It also recommended that all State Parties to the Rome Statute cooperate fully with the International Criminal Court.

The report calls on the Government of the State of Palestine and the de-facto authorities in Gaza to immediately cease all rocket attacks on Israel, unconditionally release all hostages, and thoroughly and impartially investigate violations and prosecute those responsible for crimes, including those committed on and since 7 October by members of Palestinian non-State armed groups in Israel.

The Commission's report will be presented to the Human Rights Council's 56th session on 19 June 2024 in Geneva. Two additional detailed reports providing expanded findings accompany this release. The first report presents the Commission's findings on the 7 October attack in Israel, and the second report presents the Commission's findings on Israel's military operations and attacks in Gaza until the end of 2023.

For the Commission's full report to the Human Rights Council (A/HRC/56/26), click here; For the summary of the report's conclusions and recommendations in Hebrew click here, or in Arabic click here.

For the Commission's detailed report on the 7 October attack in Israel (A/HRC/56/CRP.3), click here.

For the Commission's detailed report on Israel's military operations and attacks in Gaza until the end of 2023 (A/HRC/56/CRP.4), click here.

Background: The UN Human Rights Council mandated the Commission on 27 May 2021 to "investigate, in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and in Israel, all alleged violations of international humanitarian law and all alleged violations and abuses of international human rights law leading up to and since 13 April 2021." Resolution A/HRC/RES/S-30/1 further requested the commission of inquiry to "investigate all underlying root causes of recurrent tensions, instability and protraction of conflict, including systematic discrimination and repression based on national, ethnic, racial or religious identity." The Commission of Inquiry was mandated to report to the Human Rights Council and the General Assembly annually commencing from June 2022 and September 2022, respectively.

More information on the work of the United Nations Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel, can be found at: here

For more information and media requests, please contact: Todd Pitman, Media Adviser for the Human Right Council's Investigative Missions, at todd.pitman@un.org, Cell: +41 76 691 1761, or Pascal Sim, Human Rights Council Media Officer, at simp@un.org.

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Yemen conducts new anti-Israeli ops incl. in cooperation with Iraqi resistance

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 12 June 2024 9:34 PM

Yemen's Armed Forces have announced conducting fresh anti-Israeli operations, including in cooperation with Iraq's Islamic Resistance.

Brigadier General Yahya Saree, the force' spokesman, made the announcement in a video statement on Wednesday.

The official said the forces had targeted a vessel, which he identified as "Tutor," in the Red Sea "using a drone boat, several drones, and ballistic missiles."

The ship, Saree added, was targeted for violating a ban that has been imposed by Sana'a on vessels travelling towards the ports of the occupied Palestinian territories.

"The operation led to severe damage to the ship, and it is at risk of sinking," he noted.

"The Yemeni Armed Forces warn all companies against dealing with the Israeli enemy and bringing their ships to the ports of occupied Palestine, otherwise, they will be targeted in the area of operations of the forces," said the official.

The forces have staged numerous such operations since October 7, when the Israeli regime launched a genocidal war against the Gaza Strip.

The war has so far claimed the lives of at least 37,202 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

Cooperation with Iraqi resistance

In addition to targeting the vessels that are headed towards the ports of the occupied Palestinian territories, the Yemeni forces have been striking targets lying across those territories in response to the Israeli regime's war on Gaza.

Adding to his remarks, Saree said the forces had also carried out two joint operations with Iraq's Islamic Resistance, an umbrella group of anti-terror fighters, which has likewise been striking targets that are spread out across the territories as means of retaliating for the war.

The first operation took aim at a "vital target" in the city of Ashdod, which is located in the central part of the occupied territories, using "cruise missiles," he stated.

"And the second was aimed at an important target in the city of Haifa [which lies in the northern part of the territories] with several drones," the spokesman said.

"Both operations successfully achieved their objectives," he asserted.

This is not the first time, when the Yemeni forces cooperate with the Iraqi fighters towards retaliation for the war on Gaza.

Saree concluded his remarks by pledging that the Yemeni forces would keep up their operations as long as the Israeli regime sustained the war and a siege that Tel Aviv has been simultaneously enforcing against the coastal sliver.

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June 11: 'Axis of Resistance' operations against Israeli occupation

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 12 June 2024 9:34 PM

By Press TV Website Staff

Amid Israel's genocidal war on Gaza, which has killed nearly 37,202 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 Tuesday, June 11, are as follows:

Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades' operations on June 11:

In a joint operation with Al-Quds Brigades, bombarded the "Nahal Oz" military site with a barrage of 60-caliber rockets.

Targeted a gathering of Israeli soldiers and their military vehicles on the axis of advance in the Shaboura camp in Rafah, southern Gaza, with mortar shells.

Engaged in fierce clashes with Israeli soldiers and their vehicles using appropriate weapons on the axis of advance in Shaboura camp in Rafah, southern Gaza.

Targeted Israeli military positions on the "Netzarim" axis with a 107-type rocket barrage and heavy-caliber mortar shells.

Engaged in fierce clashes with Israeli soldiers and their military vehicles using appropriate weapons in the city of Rafah, southern Gaza Strip.

Al-Quds Brigades' operations on June 11:

Detonated a minefield targeting a convoy of Israeli military vehicles.

Sniped an Israeli soldier on the "Netzarim" axis, south of Tal Al-Hawa in Gaza City.

Engaged in fierce clashes with Israeli soldiers and their military vehicles using machine guns, anti-tank and anti-personnel shells in the city of Rafah, southern Gaza.

Targeted the "Kissufim" military site with a rocket barrage.

Martyr Omar Al-Qasim Forces' operations on June 11:

Detonated an explosive device targeting an Israeli military troop carrier at the Abu Al-Saber intersection in the Al-Shaboura camp in Rafah, southern Gaza.

Martyr Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades' operations on June 11:

Targeted a gathering of Israeli forces positioned east of Rafah, southern Gaza, with heavy 120-caliber mortar shells.

Targeted a gathering of Israeli soldiers in the Tal Zorob area in Rafah, southern Gaza, with heavy 120-caliber mortar shells.

Hezbollah's operations on June 11:

Eastern Sector

Fired a surface-to-air missile at an Israeli warplane, forcing it to retreat.

Targeted a military building in the Metula settlement with appropriate weapons.

Targeted military buildings in the Misgav settlement with appropriate weapons.

Targeted the Ramtha site in Lebanon's Kfar Shuba with missiles.

Targeted the "Kafr Blum" settlement with dozens of Katyusha rockets.

Western Sector

Targeted Israeli soldiers in the Netua settlement with appropriate weapons.

Targeted the Armored Brigade of the 210th Golan Division at the Yardun base with dozens of Katyusha rockets.

Targeted Israeli soldiers in Horsh Baram with appropriate weapons.

Targeted the "Gasher Haziv" settlement with dozens of Katyusha rockets.

Targeted Israeli soldiers in the Birkat Risha site with appropriate weapons.

Islamic Resistance in Iraq's operations on June 11:

Launched a barrage of drones at a vital Israeli military target in Umm Al-Rashrash (Eilat) in the occupied Palestinian territories.

Launched a barrage of drones at a vital Israeli military target in the occupied port of Haifa.

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Qatar calls for complete halt to Israeli aggression against Gaza

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 12 June 2024 4:15 PM

Following a UN-backed ceasefire plan, the Qatari prime minister has emphasized the need for a permanent solution to the ongoing Israeli onslaught in the besieged Gaza Strip rather than simply "temporary measures."

Sheikh Mohammed said during a press conference in Doha on Wednesday that there was a clear and firm call to end the war in Gaza.

"We are witnessing a shift in this conflict in the recent period and there is a clear and firm call to end this war", the premier was quoted as saying.

The Qatari premier said that a "just solution" to the war on Gaza should pave the way towards the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state.

Sheikh Mohammed Al Thani made the remarks during a joint press briefing with the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, in Doha.

The US top diplomat, for his part, addressed Hamas's response to the UN-backed ceasefire plan. Blinken said that some of Palestinian groups' requested amendments are workable, but some are not.

Blinken also added that there is 'no guarantee' that a possible ceasefire agreement will come through.

The US secretary of state met with the Qatari prime minister to discuss Gaza ceasefire talks after Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad submitted a response to a UN-backed proposal to the mediators in Qatar and Egypt.

Hamas has already welcomed a Security Council vote to adopt a resolution backing a ceasefire. But Hamas says its demands must be met, including a permanent ceasefire and a complete withdrawal of Israeli forces.

Hamas said on Tuesday that its "positive" response to the proposal opened a "wide pathway" to reach an agreement.

The Palestinian resistance group also issued a formal response to the three-stage ceasefire plan, asking for a number of amendments, including a ceasefire timeline.

Hamas seeking US guarantees over Gaza ceasefire plan

The Palestinian resistance movement is seeking guarantees from the US that Israel will live up to its commitments under the UN-backed ceasefire proposal.

The ceasefire plan starts with a six-week ceasefire in phase one, transitioning to negotiations for a full ceasefire in phase two. The ceasefire is to remain in place as long as negotiations are ongoing.

Egyptian sources with knowledge of the talks said Hamas would only accept the plan if the guarantees were in place, and Egypt was in contact with the US about the demand.

However, Israeli authorities, including the prime minister, have insisted Israel is still dedicated to destroying Palestinians in the besieged territory, raising questions about their commitment to a lasting ceasefire.

The United States has said Israel accepted the proposal, but Israel has not publicly stated this.

Blinken said on Tuesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has committed himself to the plan, although his war cabinet members have not formally endorsed it.

Biden is eager to end a war that has taken a mounting toll on civilians and turned parts of his Democratic Party base against him months ahead of a razor-close election.

More Palestinians have lost their lives as the Israeli regime continues its genocidal onslaught in defiance of an international outcry.

In the latest attacks, 14 people were killed across the Gaza Strip, including six in Gaza City where a residential building was hit.

The regime's forces keep pounding the strip indiscriminately with air and artillery strikes.

The focal point of the attacks has now shifted to the southern city of Rafah.

Despite repeated calls from the UN and aid agencies, the regime keeps blocking lifesaving humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Israel has killed over 37,200 Palestinians in Gaza since early October.

Meanwhile a UN report says at least 93,000 children are suffering from malnutrition in Gaza.

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Hezbollah pledges more powerful strikes on Israel after senior commander killed

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 12 June 2024 4:10 PM

A senior Hezbollah official says the resistance movement will definitley increase the "quantity and quality" of its anti-Israel operations in the wake of an Israeli attack that killed a senior commander in southern Lebanon.

Sheikh Hashem Safieddine, the head of Hezbollah's Executive Council, made the remarks at the funeral of Commander Taleb Sami Abdullah in southern Beirut, who was killed in the Israeli strike on Tuesday.

"Our definite and inevitable response after shedding this pure blood is that we will increase the intensity, strength, and diversity of our operations. The enemy will see who are the brothers and sons of Abu Talib (the slain commander)."

The Hezbollah official said the regime won't be able to weaken the resistance by assassinating its leaders, and that it should be ready to receive more painful blows.

"The enemy is still foolish and has not learned from all the previous experiences. It mistakenly believes that assassinating leaders weakens the resistance. However, experience has proven that whenever leaders are martyred, the resistance becomes more steadfast and firm."

"If the enemy is screaming and moaning over what has befallen them in northern Palestine, let them prepare themselves to cry and wail."

Sheikh Safieddine hailed the slain commander as a "brave" and "steadfast" warrior who never turned away from the field he loved.

"He is one of those who shattered the enemy's pride. He is one of the heroes of the July 2006 war, and his martyrdom today is a deserved and honorable dignity to be proud of."

In separate statements, Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad extended condolences to Hezbollah over the martyrdom of the top commander.

The Islamic Jihad hailed Sami Abdallah as a commander who played a significant role in defending Lebanon and Palestine and its people in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

And Hamas praised Sami Abdullah as a fighter who "rose in defense and support, with heroic participation in the battle of our Palestinian people."

He was killed by a strike in the south Lebanon village of Jouaiyya late on Tuesday, which reportedly also killed three other Hezbollah fighters.

Hezbollah and Israel have been trading fire since the eruption of the Gaza war in October.

The exchanges have escalated in recent weeks, with Hezbollah stepping up its drone attacks to hit Israeli military positions.

On Wednesday, Hezbollah fired a massive barrage of rockets into the northern parts of the Israeli-occupied territories,

Israeli media reported that 215 rockets were fired by Hezbollah from Wednesday morning to afternoon.

On Tuesday, Hezbollah said it fired about 50 rockets at Israeli positions in the occupied Golan Heights.

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UN reports 'unprecedented scale' of violations against children in Gaza, West Bank in 2023

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 12 June 2024 8:56 AM

A new UN report says violence against children reached "extreme levels" in conflict-stricken countries last year, with more grave violations being committed against children in war-torn Gaza and the occupied West Bank than anywhere else in the world.

The annual report on Children in Armed Conflict, a copy of which was obtained by the Guardian on Tuesday, reported that the occupied Palestinian territories present "an unprecedented scale and intensity of grave violations against children."

The UN report verified more than 8,000 grave violations against 4,247 Palestinian children in 2023.

The report went on to say that it reflected only a partial picture of the situation in the besieged Gaza Strip due to severe access challenges.

"Owing to severe access challenges, in particular in the Gaza Strip, the information presented herein does not represent the full scale of violations against children in this situation," it said.

According to the report, most incidents were caused by the use of explosive weapons in populated areas by Israeli military and the regime's deliberate or indiscriminate attacks against civilians.

It also stated that in the course of the Israeli war on Gaza, "nearly all critical infrastructure, facilities and services have been attacked," stressing, "Children are at risk of famine, severe malnutrition and preventable death."

The report also found grave abuses by Israeli forces in the occupied West Bank, with 126 Palestinian children killed and 906 detained.

Other countries in the report included the Democratic Republic of Congo--the next worst place for violence against children-- as well as Myanmar, Somalia, Nigeria and Sudan.

The annual assessment, due to be presented to the UN General Assembly later this week by UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres, included for the first time the Israeli military on its blacklist of perpetrators that violate children's rights.

Guterres said he is "appalled by the dramatic increase and unprecedented scale and intensity of grave violations against children in the Gaza Strip, Israel and the occupied West Bank."

The magnitude of the Israeli military campaign and the scope of death and destruction in the Gaza Strip have been unprecedented, he said, reiterating calls for Israel to abide by international law and ensure civilians are not targeted, and that excessive force is not used during law enforcement operations.

Israel waged its brutal Gaza onslaught on October 7 after the Palestinian Hamas resistance group carried out its historic operation against the occupying entity in retaliation for the regime's intensified atrocities against the Palestinian people.

So far, the Tel Aviv regime has killed at least 37,124 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured 84,712 others in the Gaza Strip.

The Tel Aviv regime has imposed a "complete siege" on the territory, cutting off fuel, electricity, food and water to the more than two million Palestinians living there.

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Two women sued Apple on Thursday, claiming the company has demonstrated a pattern of paying women less than their male counterparts who do the same work. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

California sought to protect women and minorities from wage discrimination in 2018 by prohibiting employers from basing a newly hired workers pay on their salary at a previous job, or asking them what they were paid. But a new lawsuit says Apple Inc. sidestepped the law  and cheated female employees out of tens or even hundreds of millions of dollars  by asking applicants for their pay expectations.

Studies show that peoples pay expectations are typically slightly higher than the pay at their current or last job, lawyers for the women said in a suit filed Thursday in San Francisco Superior Court. As a result, they said, the Cupertino-based companys practice has had the effect of perpetuating past pay disparities and paying women less than men.

The suit accused the tech giant of other one-sided practices, alleging that for qualities such as teamwork and leadership, men are rewarded and women are penalized for the same behaviors. And Apple also rewards employees it considers to have talent, the legal filing said, even though among persons with similar levels of talent, more men are identified as having talent.

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The suit was filed by two women but seeks class-action status for about 12,000 women in California who have worked in Apples engineering or marketing divisions or in AppleCare, which provides repairs and replacements for iPhones and other products, at any time in the past four years.

In a statement Thursday, Apple spokesperson Josh Rosenstock said the company is deeply committed to inclusion and we have a long-standing commitment to pay equity. Since 2017, Rosenstock declared, Apple has achieved and maintained gender pay equity and every year we partner with an independent third-party expert to examine each team members total compensation and make adjustments, where necessary, to ensure that we maintain pay equity.

Plaintiffs attorney James Finberg said one of the two women, Justina Jong, learned recently that her salary was about $10,000 less than a male employee who was doing the same work, and the disparity appeared to be even greater for the second plaintiff, Amina Salgado. If those figures are typical, he told the Chronicle, the 12,000 women would be entitled to hundreds of millions of dollars in back pay.

Jong, the suit said, has worked for Apple since June 2013, with the same starting salary she held at her previous job. Her positions in retail and marketing have included sales specialist, mobile technician, language specialist, team leader and customer/technical training instructor at the companys Sunnyvale offices.

Besides the pay disparity, the suit said, Jong was sexually harassed in 2019 by a male co-worker, who touched her body in a sexually suggestive manner without her consent.

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Apple said the man apologized and was disciplined, but, the suit said, Jong was required to work with him and then to sit next to him in a hostile work environment. He was later promoted to a managerial position, the suit said, while Jong had to take a temporary medical leave. She is seeking compensation for emotional distress, in addition to damages for lower pay.

Salgado has worked for the company since 2012 as an area manager in AppleCare, and now is based near Sacramento. The suit said she complained on two occasions that she was being paid less than men doing similar work, and that Apple ignored her the first time but then brought in another company to look into her second complaint.
Hezbollah rains 100 rockets on occupied territories after top commander killed

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 12 June 2024 7:42 AM

The Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement has conducted a massive rocket attack against the northern side of the 1948 Israeli-occupied territories after a high-ranking field commander of the group was killed in Israeli attacks.

The Israeli military said in a statement that the group launched over 100 rockets from southern Lebanon towards the Galilee region on Wednesday, stressing it marks one of the largest barrages carried out by Hezbollah.

The statement added that the barrage saw the city of Tiberias targeted for the first time.

It went on to assert that several rockets were intercepted by the regime's so-called Iron Dome systems, while others impacted at several locations.

As a result of the rocket impacts, several fires were sparked, the Israeli army said.

Meanwhile, Israeli media outlets reported that some rockets had slammed into a factory at Sassa kibbutz in the Upper Galilee area, causing damage.

There were also reports of power outage in Safed city in the northern sector of the 1948 occupied territories as a result of the Hezbollah rocket strike.

The massive attack was in response to the death of a high-ranking Hezbollah field commander in Israeli airstrikes against a house in southern Lebanon.

Hezbollah said in a statement that Sami Abdallah, better known by the nom the guerre Abu Taleb, born in 1969, was killed in the air raids that targeted a residential building in the town of Jwaya, located 95 kilometers (59 miles) south of the capital Beirut, early on Wednesday.

The Lebanese group later announced the deaths of three other resistance fighters, identifying them as Mohammad Hussein Sabra, also known as Baqer, Ali Salim Soufan, and Qassem Hmayyid, also known as Sajed, respectively.

On Tuesday night, Israel's army said a barrage of "50 launches" had been fired by Hezbollah at the strategic Golan Heights, sparking fires.

The occupying Israeli regime has repeatedly launched attacks on southern Lebanon since October 7, after commencing a genocidal war in Gaza that has killed at least 37,164 Palestinians, predominantly women and children so far.

As a retaliatory measure, Hezbollah has been carrying out almost daily rocket attacks on Israeli positions.

At least 455 people have been killed on the Lebanese border, including more than 80 civilians, according to a tally by AFP.

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.

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Iran, Azerbaijan to carry out tactical military exercises

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 12 June 2024 6:41 AM

Military divisions of Iran and Azerbaijan are scheduled to carry out a tactical drill in Azerbaijan's exclave of Nakhchivan, as the two neighboring countries eye further promotion of bilateral relations in a wide range of spheres.

The exercises, involving military personnel, combat equipment, aviation vehicles, and unmanned aerial vehicles, are meant to further increase the decision-making skills of commanders and their level of professionalism, and enhance the interoperability of participating units, according to the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry.

During the exercises, which is held on Wednesday, various tasks on the protection of strategic objects and communication lines from possible sabotage activities are to be accomplished in a coordinated manner.

Back in early October last year, military officials from Azerbaijan and Iran reached an agreement on holding a joint naval exercise in the Caspian Sea.

The two sides also discussed the prospects for expansion of military cooperation between the naval forces of the South Caucasus country and the Islamic Republic.

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Iraq resistance strikes vital Israeli target

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 12 June 2024 1:25 AM

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq says it has conducted a new retaliatory strike on an Israeli position in the occupied territories.

In a statement, the umbrella group said on Wednesday morning it used drones to attack a vital Israeli target in the port city of Umm al-Rashrash, also known as Eilat.

The group said the operation was in response to the Israeli massacre of Palestinian civilians in Gaza, including women, children and the elderly.

The Iraqi group vowed to continue retaliatory attacks on Israeli targets.

The Islamic Resistance in Iraq has been launching attacks on Israeli targets ever since the occupying regime started the genocidal war on Gaza in early October.

The resistance has been also hitting American military bases in Iraq and neighboring Syria in retaliation for Washington's support for the Israeli genocide in Gaza.

Israel has been waging an atrocious onslaught against the Gaza Strip, targeting hospitals, residences, and houses of worship after Palestinian resistance movements launched a surprise attack, dubbed Operation Al-Aqsa Storm, on October 7.

At least 37,124 Palestinians have been killed, most of them women and children. More than 1.7 million people have been internally displaced during the war as well.

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Vietnam president stresses rule of law in South China Sea

New President To Lam said maritime disputes should be better managed in accordance with international law.

By RFA Staff 2024.06.12 -- Vietnam's new President To Lam has asked that Beijing respect Hanoi's rights and interests in disputed waters, days after Vietnamese officials protested against what they called "China's illegal activities" in the Gulf of Tonkin.

Last Thursday, a Vietnamese foreign ministry spokesperson denounced the operation of the Chinese navy survey vessel Hai Yang 26 in Vietnam's exclusive economic zone and continental shelf and said that Vietnam "has engaged in multiple diplomatic exchanges" with China to demand the ending of such operations.

To Lam, while not mentioning the Hai Yang 26, told Chinese ambassador to Vietnam Xiong Bo that the two neighbors should strictly implement bilateral agreements, better control and resolve disagreements at sea, as well as respect each other's legitimate rights and interests, his office said in a statement .

The two countries should also actively seek appropriate ways to settle maritime disputes in accordance with international law, especially the U.N. Convention on the law of the sea (UNCLOS), he said.

The new president stressed that Vietnam saw its relationship with China as a "strategic choice and top priority" of its foreign policy.

Lam was sworn in as Vietnam's state president on May 22 amid an unprecedented reshuffle of the communist party's leadership following the "burning furnace" anti-graft campaign initiated by party chief Nguyen Phu Trong.

Xiong Bo became the first foreign ambassador to pay Lam a courtesy call to congratulate him on his new post.

Hai Yang 26

In last week's unusually strong rebuke, foreign ministry spokeswoman Pham Thu Hang said that Vietnam was "deeply concerned," resolutely opposed, and demanded that China immediately stop the "illegal survey activities" of the Hai Yang 26 in Vietnam's waters and not repeat them.

Hang told reporters in Hanoi that the Vietnamese government "has engaged in multiple diplomatic exchanges" with the Chinese side over the case.

Chinese survey vessels have frequently operated in Vietnam's exclusive economic zone but it has seldom publicly protested, giving preference to quieter bilateral channels.

A Vietnamese analyst, who declined to be identified because of the sensitivity of the issue, said that the new leader - who was seen as a hard-liner because of his public security background -- may want to show that he is not pro-China, as some critics say.

Another analyst, Hoang Viet, told RFA that the foreign ministry's reaction was due to the severity of the event, as well as to partially direct attention to Vietnam amid increased tensions between China and the Philippines in the South China Sea.

Hai Yang 26 is one of nine Type 636A hydrographic survey vessels in service with the Chinese People's Liberation Army navy.

This kind of survey ship is thought to be utilized by the navy for mapping the underwater topography map in areas where submarines operate, as well as to conduct marine surveys, such as the study of ocean acoustics.

The fact that Vietnam had "multiple diplomatic exchanges" with China over the vessel suggested it had been operating in Vietnam's waters for a prolonged period.

China has yet to respond to Vietnam's protest but a Chinese think tank, the South China Sea Probing Initiative, wrote on the social media platform X that the Hai Yang 26 only conducted a freedom of navigation operation, a type of patrol that China itself has deemed provocative on numerous occasions when conducted by other navies.

Edited by Taejun Kang.

Copyright 1998-2024, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Congress passes bill urging China to resolve Tibet dispute

The legislation calling for Beijing to re-engage in talks with the Dalai Lama now heads to the president.

By Tenzin Pema, Tashi Wangchuk and Dorjee Damdul for RFA Tibetan 2024.06.12 -- The U.S. Congress on Wednesday passed a bill urging Beijing to re-engage with the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan leaders to peacefully resolve their dispute over the status and governance of Tibet.

The Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Dispute Act, also known as the Resolve Tibet Act, passed the House of Representatives 391-26 and now heads to President Joe Biden for a signature to become law.

The bill previously passed the House in February but was altered by the Senate, which passed it last month, requiring a second look.

The legislation rejects Beijing's position that Tibet has been part of China since ancient times and calls on Beijing to "cease its propagation of disinformation about the history of Tibet, the Tibetan people, and Tibetan institutions, including that of the Dalai Lama."

It also calls on Beijing to resume dialogue with the Dalai Lama, who is the spiritual leader of Tibet, and other Tibetan leaders about how Tibet is governed. No formal talks have taken place since 2010.

Rep. Michael McCaul, a Republican from Texas who is chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the main sponsor of the bill, said it showed the "status quo in Tibet is not acceptable."

"I can think of no greater message or gift to the Dalai Lama and the people of Tibet than the swift passage of this bill to get to the president's desk as soon as possible, to help put the people of Tibet in charge of their own future," McCaul said after the bill's passage.

The House bill was co-sponsored by 41 other lawmakers, including Rep. Gregory Meeks, a Democrat from New York who is his party's ranking member on the Foreign Affairs Committee, and Rep. Jim McGovern, a Democrat from Massachusetts who is also a member of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China.

McGovern said he was happy to have the opportunity to "shine a light on this legislation once more," even as he noted that the Senate made a minor alteration to phrasing in the bill already passed by the House.

"The Senate, in its wisdom, changed one paragraph, so the bill has come back to this chamber for final passage," McGovern said.

Congressional trip

A spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington did not respond to a request for comment. However, after the passage of the bill in the Senate last month, spokesperson Liu Pengyu told Radio Free Asia that Tibetan issues were "purely internal affairs of China."

"Tibet has been a part of Chinese territory since ancient times," Liu said, disputing the underlying claims of the legislation.

"We urge the U.S. side to stop using Tibet-related issues to interfere in China's internal affairs, destroy Tibet's development and stability," he added, urging America to "offer no stage to the 'Tibetan independence' forces to engage in anti-China separatist activities."

Namgyal Choedup, the representative of the Dalai Lama and the Central Tibetan Administration - the Tibean government-in-exile based in Dharamsala, India - welcomed the bill and said it came at a fortuitous time ahead of a trip by congressional leaders to visit the Dalai Lama in person in the coming days.

"This is great news, and we are hopeful that President Biden will sign it into law soon, especially before the Senate Foreign Affairs chair and a delegation head to Dharamsala, India, to meet with the Dalai Lama and the leaders of the Central Tibetan Administration," he told RFA.

Sino-Tibetan dialogue began in 2002 in an effort to consider prospects of "genuine" autonomy for Tibet, as called for by the Dalai Lama.

The approach accepts the formerly independent Himalayan nation's status as a part of China but urges greater cultural and religious freedoms, including strengthened language rights, guaranteed for ethnic minorities under provisions of China's constitution.

But the China-Tibet talks ground to a halt in 2010 following nine formal rounds of discussion and one informal meeting.

"With this bill, we hope to restart dialogue between Tibet and China in keeping with the longstanding U.S. policy," McGovern said.

The bill also empowers the U.S. State Department to actively counter disinformation about Tibet promoted by the Chinese government.

Greater autonomy

China invaded the independent Himalayan country of Tibet in 1950 and has controlled the territory ever since. The Dalai Lama fled into exile in India amid a failed 1959 uprising against Chinese rule. Since then, Beijing has sought to legitimize Chinese rule through the suppression of dissent and policies undermining Tibetan culture and language.

Beijing believes the Dalai Lama wants to split off the Tibet Autonomous Region and other Tibetan-populated areas in China's Sichuan, Qinghai, Yunnan, and Gansu provinces from the rest of the country.

However, the Dalai Lama does not advocate for independence but rather proposes what he calls a "Middle Way" that accepts Tibet's status as a part of China and urges greater cultural and religious freedoms, including strengthened language rights.

Tencho Gyatso, president of the International Campaign for Tibet, thanked the lawmakers for prioritizing the Tibet issue.

"This latest indication of American support of Tibet is a source of hope and encouragement to the Tibetan people who have been struggling nonviolently against the Chinese communist government for more than six decades for their rights," she said in a statement.

Additional reporting by Khando Yangzom and Tenzin Dickyi. Edited by Alex Willemyns and Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2024, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Pashinian Defends Yerevan Police After Bloody Clashes With Demonstrators

By RFE/RL's Armenian Service June 12, 2024

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian has defended police actions taken on June 12 against demonstrators outside parliament where he was participating in a regular question period that saw him indicate Armenia would withdraw completely from the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO).

An Interior Ministry spokesperson told RFE/RL that as of 8 p.m. local time 70 people had been detained and there were injuries among both the protesters and the police in scuffles in central Yerevan.

"There are people who have applied for medical help," a spokesperson of the health minister told RFE/RL, without specifying the number of people injured.

Police "justly used" a stun grenade after the leader of the protest, Archbishop Bagrat Galstanian, "directed people to attack the police," said parliament speaker Alen Simonian.

The police performed "the functions assigned to them by the law strictly within the framework of the law," Pashinisn said.

He added that all photos showing victims will be examined, and if it is found that illegal acts occurred, the state will respond appropriately.

During the question period, Pashinian told parliament that his government will decide later when to leave the CSTO, an alliance of six ex-Soviet states -- Russia, Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Tajikistan.

Pashinian has repeatedly said that he could pull his country out of the alliance altogether unless it addressed Yerevan's concerns.

Armenia announced on May 8 that it had stopped making financial contributions to the CSTO. It had previously suspended its participation in joint military drills, high-level meetings, and other activities.

Tensions between Armenia and Russia arose after Armenian authorities accused Russian peacekeepers of failing to stop Azerbaijan's lightning offensive in September 2023 that gave Baku full control of Nagorno-Karabakh, which had been controlled by ethnic Armenians with Yerevan's support for decades.

Moscow rejected the accusations, arguing that its troops didn't have a mandate to intervene. Armenia requested Russian military support after weeks of hostilities along the Armenian-Azerbaijani border in September 2022.

The Kremlin more recently has been angered by Pashinian's efforts to deepen Armenia's ties with the West and distance his country from Moscow.

Armenian opposition groups have said that an exit from the CSTO and a breakup of Armenia's broader military alliance with Russia would create a dangerous security vacuum that cannot be filled by Western powers and would only encourage Azerbaijan to launch new attacks.

Pashinian made his CSTO comments amid protests led by Galstanian, the outspoken 53-year-old head of the Tavush Diocese of the Armenian Apostolic Church, against plans to hand over several border areas to Azerbaijan as part of a peace deal.

Galstanian has attracted tens of thousands of demonstrators with his Tavush for the Motherland movement in an unprecedented challenge to Pashinian's six-year leadership.

Earlier on June 12, Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry said that the withdrawal of Russian troops from Nagorno-Karabakh had been completed. Moscow has yet to confirm the statement by Azerbaijan's Defense Ministry.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/azerbaijan-russia-troop- withdrawal-nagorno-karabakh/32989792.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.

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U.S. Diplomat Says Armenia-Azerbaijan Deal A 'Momentous' Step Forward

By Heghine Buniatian June 12, 2024

The leaders of Armenian and Azerbaijan say they are committed to a "momentous" demarcation accord signed last month that is designed to end decades of hostile relations in the volatile region, a top U.S. diplomat said during a visit to Yerevan.

Since the fall of the Soviet Union, Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought wars over the disputed region of Nagorno-Karabakh -- with more than 30,000 people killed -- as they transitioned into independent countries.

Azerbaijan regained control of Nagorno-Karabakh in a lightening military offensive last year, but much of the border between the countries remained in dispute, with both sides occupying villages that formerly belonged to the other side.

"I think both sides say that they're committed to peace. It's a momentous agreement. It will be a generational commitment by the two countries," James O'Brien, U.S. assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian Affairs, told RFE/RL in an interview on June 11 during a visit to Yerevan.

O'Brien was referring to an agreement between Yerevan and Baku completed on May 15 that delineated the border between the two bitter rivals who have seen their relations marred by several deadly wars and conflicts.

Some critics have cited the lack of progress following the agreement, with the Armenian side often suggesting Baku has been slow to follow through on efforts to attain an overall peace deal to settle longstanding issues.

"It's appropriate to be careful and take time, so the two countries have had a number of discussions at the level of the leaders, deputy prime ministers, foreign ministers, national security advisers, technical teams, just to be sure that they are aware of all the implications of an agreement," he said.

"I think the recent demarcation arrangement was a very good step forward."

O'Brien said the deal "acknowledged that some territory belonging to Azerbaijan had to be transferred, but also that the basis of further demarcation would be the Alma-Ata agreement, and that, I think, is a very constructive basis for next steps."

The deal, which involved Yerevan returning to Baku four abandoned villages that had been part of Azerbaijan during the Soviet era but which had been occupied by Armenian forces, has sparked protests in Armenia and calls for the country's leadership to resign.

Armenian opposition groups have denounced what they describe as the latest "unilateral territorial concessions" to Azerbaijan. They argue that the border demarcation that affects the infrastructure of border communities leaves local residents more vulnerable to further possible Azerbaijani aggression.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian has rejected the criticism, saying the demarcation agreement was necessary to assure Armenia's security and end decades of enmity with Azerbaijan.

The United States and the European Union have hailed the demarcation agreement, stressing it contains a reference to the 1991 Alma-Ata Declaration, a document by which a dozen former Soviet countries, including Armenia and Azerbaijan, pledged to recognize each other's territorial integrity within existing administrative borders.

The declaration was named after the city now known as Almaty in Kazakhstan where it was signed.

"In our [U.S.] view, there's a once-in-a-generation -- maybe several generations -- opportunity to build a trade route from Central Asia across to the Mediterranean. That can come only if there is peace between Armenia and Azerbaijan," he said.

When asked whether the United States would be willing to act as guarantor of an agreement between the two sides, O'Brien said that "neither side has asked us to play that role."

"We are very happy to support the peace agreement that the sides reach. And the exact role that we might play, or no role, is really up to the two sides to conclude. We are not looking to serve as intervener or superpower in the region."

James O'Brien spoke from Yerevan. RFE/RL's Armenian Service's Heghine Buniatian conducted the interview from Prague.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/armenia-azerbaijan- demarcation-obrien-peace-ukraine-russia/32988590.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.

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Secretary Antony J. Blinken With Jalal Chahda of Al Jazeera

US Department of State

Interview

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Old Doha Airport

Doha, Qatar

June 12, 2024

QUESTION: (In Arabic.) Mr. Blinken, thank you for talking to Al Jazeera. Hamas submitted a response to the proposal 

SECRETARY BLINKEN: That's right.

QUESTION:  seeking some amendment. How do you assess the response so far?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, just to step back for one second, 12 days ago President Biden laid out this proposal. And in that time, almost the entire world came out in support of it, including the United Nations Security Council, but also the Arab League, virtually every country in this region, and well beyond. Israel accepted the proposal, the Palestinian Authority accepted the proposal. Hamas was the one answer we were waiting for. And the answer that we got last night - that was submitted to Qatar, it was submitted to Egypt, and to us as the mediators of this process - unfortunately was not the yes that everyone else has provided. It was looking for more changes to the agreement, including changes on items that Hamas had previously accepted.

So the hard reality is we could have a ceasefire. We could have maybe had a ceasefire 12 days ago. But we don't in this moment because Hamas has not said yes. We have, I think, some changes that Hamas is looking for that are workable, that we can try to close the gap on. There are others that are not workable. So we have to see in the days ahead whether we can actually close the gaps. I think that the gaps are bridgeable, but just because they are doesn't mean they will be. Ultimately, Hamas has to decide. Everyone else has decided; Hamas has not.

QUESTION: What is not workable for you and for Israel?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, I can't get into the details. You'll understand that given the sensitivity of the negotiations, we're not going to talk about the details. But what I can say is this: The proposal that President Biden laid out 12 days ago was virtually identical to one that Hamas had accepted and put forward itself on May the 6th. So there's no reason why this agreement should not be reached. The only reason would be Hamas continuing to try to change the terms.

But here is what's the reality. The reality is as this negotiation is going on, during the 12 days that it took Hamas to respond, the world wasn't standing still. Gaza wasn't standing still. People were suffering every single day - Palestinian children, women, and men suffering every single day. So from my perspective, from our perspective, it's time to stop all of this haggling and back and forth, and start a ceasefire.

QUESTION: Hamas said the priority is to stop the war. What information did you receive from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during your meeting with him a few days ago in Israel concerning the permanent ceasefire in Gaza?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: So what I can tell you from my conversations with Prime Minister Netanyahu was a reaffirmation of Israel's acceptance of the proposal that's on the table. And what does that proposal have in it? It says first of all that there'll be an immediate ceasefire - immediate. And in that - during that immediate ceasefire, Israel will pull its forces back from populated areas in Gaza; it will surge more humanitarian assistance into Gaza; Palestinians living in Gaza will be able to return to their neighborhoods, their homes, if their homes are still intact, anywhere in Gaza; and during that initial phase - six weeks - both parties, Israel and Hamas, commit to negotiate toward a permanent ceasefire, with the understanding that the initial ceasefire will continue as long as those negotiations are going on. And this is backed by the United States, it's backed by Qatar, it's backed by Egypt.

This is the quickest, most effective path to a durable ceasefire. And that means an end to the war. It also opens up so many other possibilities for where we want to go to try to get a truly durable peace for everyone in the region. And one place that we believe it's important to go is the realization of a Palestinian state.

QUESTION: How do you plan to address the situation now? What are the next steps?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: So I've met over the last two days with Qatari and Egyptian counterparts. We've been intensely engaged with all of our colleagues who've been working as mediators on this agreement. We have to continue to analyze the document, and then see if over the coming days we can find a way to bridge the gaps that have emerged because Hamas wouldn't say yes.

QUESTION: What are the assurance that your administration can offer to both parties to - in order to proceed and finalizing the agreement?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, I think the assurances, first of all, are that the three countries that have been mediators - the United States, Qatar, and Egypt - stand fully behind it, and will stand behind it, and will make sure that both parties to the agreement make good on the commitments that are in the agreement.

Second, I think there's another assurance here, which is the power of the fact that virtually the entire world stands behind this agreement. It's pretty rare these days to get the United Nations Security Council to speak with an almost unanimous voice - 14 votes in favor, not a single vote against, and the Russians abstained. That, I think, speaks volumes to the fact that people all around the world want to see this war come to an end, they want to see this suffering come to an end, they want the hostages returned. All of that is in the proposal that's on the table.

QUESTION: Meanwhile, the Israel operation to rescue four hostages in Nuseirat resulted in the death of more than 270 civilians, three hostages, one of them American - obviously, according to what the military spokesman of Qassam said. Do you think that military operations will release and secure the hostages in Gaza?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, first it's - it is horrible that innocent children, women, and men lost their lives in the intense crossfire, the battle that took place when Israel was in the process of trying to rescue its hostages, just as it's horrific that so many lives are being lost, so many lives are being ruined every single day in Gaza as a result of a war that Hamas started on October 7th.

Look, there shouldn't have been any hostages to begin with. Once the hostages were taken, Hamas could have released them every single day since they took them. They didn't. Israel has a right to try to rescue its people. I wish that innocents had not been lost in the process, but again, the quickest way to resolve this entirely, the fastest way to resolve it entirely so that the war comes to an end - all the hostages come home and we build a durable peace - is through this agreement, through this proposal.

QUESTION: Was Washington involved prior to or during this Israeli operation to rescue four hostages in Nuseirat?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: I can't speak to any details, but of course we've tried to help the Israelis locate hostages. If we had any information, of course we'd provide that. We want to see them come home. I think the most effective way to bring everyone home is through an agreement that not only brings them home, but gets an immediate ceasefire and leads to a permanent one.

QUESTION: Efforts are being made from your side to reopen Rafah crossing.

SECRETARY BLINKEN: That's right.

QUESTION: Have any agreements been made with Israel to reopen, to manage the crossing, to prevent a severe famine in Gaza, especially in the north?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Yeah, we're working on that every single day. We want to see Rafah reopened just as we want to make sure not only that more humanitarian assistance is getting to Gaza but that once it's in Gaza, it's getting effectively distributed to people who desperately need it. We were at a conference yesterday in Jordan that brought the entire region - and actually many countries from around the world together - to do more for the Palestinians who were desperately in need. The United States pledged another $400 million. We are by far the single largest country contributor to Palestinians - any country on earth. And we've now since the start of the war in Gaza contributed nearly $700 million and $2.2 billion during the course of this administration.

But it's imperative that not only are the resources there, but that there are ways to get it into Gaza, and once it's in Gaza, move it around to people who need it. We've had progress in recent weeks in the north, where the Israelis opened crossings and more is getting in. There's a route from Jordan that goes directly so that trucks can move from Jordan through Israel to the crossings. Many goods are coming in through Ashdod Port. But just as that was happening, the situation reversed in the south with the closure of Rafah as a result of the operations around Rafah.

So yes, we want to get that open as quickly as possible. I can tell you we're working really around the clock with the Egyptians, with the Israelis to find a way to get an agreement to reopen it.

QUESTION: Mr. Blinken, after visiting Israel lately where you met with Minister Gantz 

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Yeah.

QUESTION:  how do you assess the current internal situation in Israel following the resignation of Gantz and Eisenkot from the (inaudible)?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Look, it's really not for me to comment on Israeli politics. These are decisions for the Israelis to make. It'd be the decisions for the individuals to make about their participation or not in the government, decisions for the Israeli people to make about their government. Minister Gantz is someone I have great respect for. We've worked closely together, and so - and he leads a major party, so of course he's someone that I'm going to talk to, just as I'll see people in the government, the opposition leader, Yair Lapid. It's important for us to be talking to everyone so that we have the clearest possible reflection of what people's views are throughout Israel and across Israeli society .

QUESTION: Your government, your administration, bluntly rejected any occupation of Gaza after war.

SECRETARY BLINKEN: That's correct.

QUESTION: How do you envision the future in Gaza? Who's going to be in charge on what you call the next day here?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: So this is - this is critical because in order for this war to end, we also have to be ready for that and ready for what comes next, for what happens on the day after. How do we look at governance? How do we look at security? How do we look at the reconstruction, which is going to be a massive undertaking? Over these last four or five months, I've been consulting intensely with partners in the Arab world, with the Palestinian Authority, including just over the last two days, precisely on these questions, the day-after plans.

And without going into any details now, we're at a point - and I mentioned this earlier today - where we are going to be putting forward ideas, concrete ideas, for what we believe should happen, how we help organize things so that there can be a day after that actually deals with all the challenges that Gaza will face, that Palestinians will face, even once the conflict ends.

QUESTION: Last question, Mr. Blinken, about the West Bank. Settlers' violence increases in West Bank, especially after October the 7th.

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Yeah.

QUESTION: How do you assess that, the situation?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: We've been deeply concerned about this. And as you know, we have taken steps to sanction extremist settlers who've engaged in acts of violence or intimidation. And we'll, as necessary, continue to do that, but we have real concerns about that. And beyond that, I think life in the West Bank, already challenging and difficult, has gotten even more difficult as people are not able to go to - go to jobs that they've had as movement is more restricted and as we see pressure being exerted from the extremist settlers. So this is something that not only is of deep concern to us, but it's also something we've taken action on.

Beyond all of that, look, we are working every day to bring this war to an end, to bring the suffering of people to an end, to bring the hostages home, to put us - to put everyone - on the path to a more durable peace, more durable security. And a big part of that is getting this agreement. I think that's the most critical step. But there's something else that's so critical in this moment and it's so hard.

What I've seen over these last eight months - and of course it predates the eight months, but it's been intensifying - is something I've talked about before, but it's this poison of dehumanization, the inability of all sides to see the humanity in the other. And when that happens, when hearts harden, it becomes very, very hard to do the good things, and it becomes very easy to justify the bad things.

So one of the things that we have to do - we have to find a way to do - is to remember the humanity in each other because that's what it's all about. When I see children, little boys, little girls, lose their parents in Gaza and are on their own, that hits me as hard as a little boy or little girl who lost his or her parents on October 7th. There's no hierarchy of suffering. It's all about real human beings.

And that's the thing we have to have in our minds every single day as we work to bring this to an end, but not only bring it to an end, get to a better place, a place where Israelis and Palestinians can actually live side by side in peace and security. I am convinced - I am convinced - that that's not only possible, it's absolutely necessary. But the first step, the first step, is getting the ceasefire, getting this war in Gaza to end, and building from there.

QUESTION: U.S. Secretary of State, Mr. Antony Blinken, thank you for talking to Al Jazeera.

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Thank you.

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Secretary Antony J. Blinken And Qatari Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani At a Joint Press Availability

US Department of State

Remarks

Antony J. Blinken, Secretary of State

Amiri Diwan

Doha, Qatar

June 12, 2024

PRIME MINISTER AL-THANI: (Via interpreter) In the name of Allah, peace and blessing be upon you. And beginning, I would like to welcome my friend Secretary Blinken. And after our meeting today, which is a continuation for a series of discussion, an important dialogue that took place over the previous month after the war started in Gaza, and pathways to end that war and to prevent this war from expand in the region. And as you all know, we have also discussed the response that we have received from Hamas and the Palestinian fractions on the last proposal on the - to stop the war and release the hostages - and of course, in coordination with other partner.

And would like to confirm that the state of Qatar and Egypt and the United State of America are committed in their partnership in order to find an ending to this war, and a deal to exchange the hostages. And in this also regard, we highly evaluate the effort - efforts that President Biden have exerted in order to reach this proposal in a text in a way to bring together the parties. And as we have mentioned in many previous stops, that in such deal, both the parties need to make some concession in order to reach a suitable arrangement, reach a deal.

We in the state of Qatar, with our partners, committed to bridge the gap to find a way to end the war as soon as possible, and we would like to send a message to everyone that every day is a loss of lives and of innocent people. Every day that pass in the previous eight months, unfortunately we have seen the catastrophe increasing day after day, and we see more casualties, especially of the civilians with their children, women in the Gaza Strip. And with no doubt we need to take a clear position and demand to put an end to this war. Thirty-seven thousand martyrs have passed so far, died so far, and thousands wounded in addition to this collective punishment policy and starvation that has been used against our brothers in Gaza. We are witnessing also a change in this conflict in the previous time, and there is a clear and firm call to put an end to this war.

And in this also regard we have received the Security Council resolution which was presented by the United States of America for an immediate ceasefire and a deal to exchange the hostages and go back to the political negotiation to find a sustainable solution. And we in the state of Qatar welcome that resolution. In the previous time, there were so many meetings and regional conferences and international ones. We have participated them in the state of Qatar in order to find a sustainable solution to the Palestinian case, and also there was - there were visits in light of the ministerial committee that have been established, and also the meetings with the European foreign ministers.

And yesterday we have participated in a conference for an immediate humanitarian response by the call of King Abdullah II, and the President of Egypt Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, and the secretary-general of the United Nations, who call for an immediate actions to end this war, and the respect of the international law. And also in this regard we welcome also the continuation of the air support or air drop by the Americans. And also we would like also to praise your additional package of support to Gaza. The state of Qatar is continue with its efforts in order to send all humanitarian aid continuously to our brothers.

Your excellency, you know that we are living in very critical times. And we believe that reaching a deal, an agreement is very important. And this deal will save the lives of the innocents and also will save the whole region, which is on the verge of collapse and explosion. And we depend, rely on the American role, and our also partners in Egypt and the rest of the countries in order to pressure all the parties to reach an agreement that end the war.

And your excellency, you know that I believe that we have received - it's time that we need to reach a sustainable solution, and today we have discussed how to reach those sustainable solutions that bring the stability to Gaza, and to our also brothers in the West Bank, and to everyone that lives in this region. We believe that the sustainable solution, and is a just one, which is create a Palestinian state with Jerusalem its capital, based on the international law on the borders of 1967, to live in peace alongside with Israel. And as you're aware, your excellency, that the region is open to have a clear peace agreement based on the Arab Peace Initiative, and there is a movement in the general assembly to receive Palestine or accept Palestine as a full member. And this step will also contribute to the two-state solution.

Thank you, your excellency, for your presence in the Doha, and for your continuous cooperation and on our strategic partnership with the U.S. in this conflict, on any other - on other files and issues.

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Well, first let me just say it's very good to be back here in Doha, and especially to be with my colleague and my friend the prime minister. As you heard him say, we were together just yesterday in Jordan at a conference to work to rally more international support to address the dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Qatar has already shown remarkable generosity in helping people in such urgent need, providing 4,700 tons of food, medicine, and other life-saving aid. At yesterday's conference, I announced $400 million more in additional support from the United States to the Palestinians. That brings the total amount that we've provided to $670 million in additional U.S. assistance to the Palestinians in the eight months that this war has been going on. We've long been the leading provider of support to Palestinians, and we will continue to do everything we can to support them, particularly in this time of need.

We're also continuing to work every single day on increasing the flow of assistance into Gaza and making sure that it gets to people who need it within Gaza - working to improve civilian protection, working to secure the release of hostages.

Now, the single most effective and most immediate way to end the suffering of people in Gaza, to end the suffering of Palestinians and Israelis alike, to tackle the humanitarian assistance crisis, to prevent the conflict from further escalating and spreading to other places, is to get a ceasefire that allows us to get to work toward a more durable end to the conflict.

Here again, Qatar has been a tireless partner - and the prime minister personally, a tireless partner - in working to mediate a ceasefire and a hostage release. It's something that the prime minister and I first discussed here on October 13th, and many times since.

Twelve days ago, President Biden set out a ceasefire proposal rooted in core principles of releasing all the hostages, surging assistance into Gaza, guaranteeing Israel's security, providing a path to an enduring end to war, and starting the massive reconstruction for Gaza.

The entire world - almost without fail - has been behind this proposal. And we've heard it again and again and again - individual countries pronouncing themselves in support, in this region and beyond; important groups like the G7, the Arab League, Palestinian Authority, Israel, and of course just two days ago the United Nations Security Council. The leaders in the region that I've met with over the last couple of days, they have reaffirmed that again and again and again.

So we were waiting on one response, and that was the response from Hamas. And as the prime minister said, last night we received a response. Hamas has proposed numerous changes to the proposal that was on the table. We discussed those changes last night with Egyptian colleagues and today with the prime minister. Some of the changes are workable; some are not.

Here, in a nutshell, is where we stand:

A deal was on the table that was virtually identical to the proposal that Hamas put forward on May the 6th, a deal that the entire world was behind, a deal Israel has accepted, and Hamas could have answered with a single word: yes. Instead, Hamas waited nearly two weeks and then proposed more changes, a number of which go beyond positions it had previously taken and accepted. As a result - and you heard the prime minister say this - the war that Hamas started on October 7th, with its barbaric attack on Israel and on Israeli civilians, will go on. More people will suffer. More Palestinians will suffer; more Israelis will suffer.

But in the days ahead, we are going to continue to push on an urgent basis - with our partners, with Qatar, with Egypt - to try to close this deal, because we know it's in the interests of Israelis, Palestinians, the region, indeed the entire world. And we all agree that the deal has to be grounded in the principles of the ceasefire proposal that the entire international community supports.

There's something else that's critical, and the prime minister alluded to it. It's also crucial that we get from the immediate ceasefire that we're working urgently to achieve to an enduring end. And in order to do that and to do that effectively, we have to have plans for the day after the conflict ends in Gaza, and we need to have them as soon as possible. For months we've been working with partners throughout the region on such a plan, and that was also a key focus of conversations I've had over the last couple of days. In the coming weeks, we will put forward proposals for key elements of a day-after plan, including concrete ideas for how to manage governance, security, reconstruction. That plan is key to turning a ceasefire into an enduring end to the conflict, but also turning an end of war into a just and durable peace, and using that peace - using that peace as a foundation for building a more integrated, a more stable, a more prosperous region.

Over the course of what's now my eighth visit to the region since October 7th, everyone that I've engaged with has made clear that this is the path they want to pursue. Now, I can't speak for Hamas or answer for Hamas, and ultimately, it may not be the path that Hamas wants to pursue, but Hamas cannot and will not be allowed to decide the future for this region and its people.

MODERATOR: (Via interpreter) Adnan Borini, Al Jazeera.

QUESTION: (Via interpreter) To Your Excellency Prime Minister, regarding the response of Hamas on the proposal, are we talking about a take and give with the officials of Hamas with the mediator, or the comment on the amendments will be for the Israeli to respond? And the other question for Secretary Blinken, which is about your eighth visit, sir, to the region - we're talking about eight visits so far - during those visits, you and other American officials, you have met with the families of the Israeli hostages. Were there any attempts to meet with the families of the wounded or those who died of the Palestinians, or those who even - who were wounded on the hands of the settlers or even in Gaza? For example, in Doha here, there are two thousands of the Palestinian patients or wounded who came here for treatment. Thank you very much.

PRIME MINISTER AL THANI: (Via interpreter) Concerning your question, yesterday we have received the response, and as we have said in the statement, now we are studying the response, and of course there will be give and take with the Hamas or negotiation with them in order - or with the Israelis in order to bridge the gap between the both decisions. Of course, those are not new efforts or not a new dynamic for the negotiation. Usually there is space for negotiation, because after all, it's negotiation to reach an agreement, a deal. There is no absolute response, yes or no. So we wish that this time of negotiation will be the shortest. We wanted to have more momentum and movement. However, unfortunately, we have faced so many challenges in the - as we have said, we are committed. We want to present a proposal so that we bring both parties closer. Thank you.

SECRETARY BLINKEN: (Inaudible) Gaza. When I was in Jordan - I believe it was on my last trip to the region; it may have been the one before that - I met with a remarkable group of women who had managed to leave Gaza, to get out, are now in Jordan, but have left family members behind, have lost family members. And I heard directly from them everything that they'd experienced and everything that their family members who remain in Gaza continue to experience.

In the United States I've met with Palestinian Americans who have family in Gaza, including family members who have been killed or terribly injured over the course of these eight months. I carry with me a little pamphlet that one of - one of these individuals gave me with pictures of his family members, including a little one year-old boy who was killed in Gaza. And I have to tell you that their stories, their suffering, that motivates me, just as the suffering of the hostages and the suffering of those who were slaughtered on October 7th motivates me, to do everything possible to bring this conflict to an end and to put us on a path to durable peace and security. Because at the end of the day, this is exactly about what you've suggested. It's about the men, the women, the children - whether they're in Gaza, whether they're in Israel - and we have to - we have to be looking out for them.

And I've said this before, but I'll say it again: the biggest poison in our common well that we all have to drink from is dehumanization, the inability to see the humanity in someone else. And when that happens, when hearts get hardened, it's very hard to do anything; it's very easy to justify anything. So we have to push beyond that, and the most important way to do that is to always have in mind what little girls, little boys, women, men are going through as we speak.

MODERATOR: (In Arabic.) Iain Marlowe.

QUESTION: (Inaudible) for you. Despite your intense efforts to pressure Hamas, they obviously don't seem to be accepting the deal as President Biden laid out, and the Israelis are characterizing this as a flat-out rejection. Does Hamas's response count as a rejection of the deal in your view? Do you think the deal is essentially dead? And if not, what exactly is the US diplomatic strategy now to try and keep these talks alive and bring the parties closer together? And secondly, the U.S. has put all the emphasis on pressuring Hamas, at least publicly. But do you think it might be time for the U.S. to put more pressure on Israel to move them closer towards accepting the permanent ceasefire that Hamas has asked for, even if that allows the group to survive in some form?

And Prime Minister, even with the elaborate three-phase deal that's being created to try and bridge the divide between Israel and Hamas, we still seem to be stuck on the fundamental question of a temporary versus a permanent truce, which is effectively will Israel allow Hamas to survive this. Do you think these negotiations can really be salvaged, and what is the risk to the region if these talks continue to fail? Thanks.

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Thanks, Iain. Look, as I said, based on what we saw last night, the response from Hamas, numerous changes proposed to the deal that was on the table and that the entire world has gotten behind, but some of those are workable changes. Some, as I said, are not. I don't want to characterize it further, but at some point in a negotiation - and this has gone back and forth for a long time - you get to a point where if one side continues to change its demands, including making demands and insisting on changes for things that it already accepted, you have to question whether they're proceeding in good faith or not.

But based on what we've seen and what I've discussed with the prime minister and what we discussed with our Egyptian colleagues, we're determined to try to bridge the gaps. And I believe those gaps are bridgeable - it doesn't mean they will be bridged, because again, it ultimately depends on people saying yes. But here's the thing - and we've both said it - the longer this goes on - and remember, Hamas had this for 12 days and it's not as if the world stood still in those 12 days - people were suffering throughout those 12 days. The longer this goes on, the more people will suffer. And it's time for the haggling to stop and a ceasefire to start. It's as simple as that.

QUESTION: (Off-mike.)

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Look, Israel accepted the proposal as it was and as it is; Hamas didn't. So I think it's pretty clear what needs to happen. And we're determined in the coming days to, again, try to work this - we will work this with urgency and see if the gaps that are workable, we can actually work and bring it to conclusion. And then it may be that Hamas continues to say no. Well, I think it will be clear to everyone around the world that it's on them and that they will have made a choice to continue a war that they started.

PRIME MINISTER AL THANI: Regarding, I think, your question about how can we have this proposal to become a permanent ceasefire, this is an issue that we've been struggling with for a very long time, is how to ensure that we bridge the gap between those two fundamental differences, between what Hamas wants as a permanent ceasefire and what Israel wants as the hostages released - maybe a plan to continue the war. I think what we have achieved in this structure is the best way to bridge those gaps and to merge both tracks. And I believe that having three countries - United States, Qatar, and Egypt - as guarantor for this process to ensure that these negotiations keeps going until we reach the permanent ceasefire is something significant that we are putting ourself at stake.

Of course, this is, as we mentioned many times, it's not an easy process. It's a very complex negotiations. We are negotiating, yes, to end the conflict that started on October 7th. I think that it has a lot of baggage that came with as well. And basically what we are trying to focus on is to achieve the result that's being created after October 7th. Right now I'm thinking about the rest of the issue for once we have this deal in place. But as of all of us, we reiterate, this is - having a deal and a ceasefire right now is a cornerstone for our way forward in the future.

MODERATOR: (In Arabic.)

QUESTION: Thank you. Osama bin Javaid with Al Jazeera English. My question for Secretary Blinken. I just want to go back to the words that you used. You said the deal was on the table and yet there are workable parts that you were will be working towards. Which one is it? Was there a deal or is there still a deal on the table? And as the UN Security Council and the United Nations at large remains the cornerstone for your policy towards finding a solution, today, the latest UN investigation says Israel committed "crimes against humanity," including "extermination," is the words used. And Israel is already facing a genocide case at the ICJ, warrants were request at the ICC. And last month, you said there are no red lines for Israel. Is that still the case? And if there is, what will this mean for yourself and the U.S. administration?

My question for the prime minister. This isn't the first time that we are actually very - came very close to a deal, and then we seem to be moving away from it. You have said that there are two parties to this conflict: one that wants a negotiated solution, and there is another one which wants to continue the war. Do you believe that is still the case? And if you still have hope that there can be a deal that can be salvaged, what gives you that hope? Thank you.

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Thank you. Look, as I said, we have a proposal that President Biden put forward 12 days ago. Israel accepted the proposal. The entire world got behind the proposal. Hamas came back and has now asked for changes to that proposal. And I'll repeat what I said: Some of the changes I think we believe are workable, but some are not. And so we'll have to see over the coming days whether the gaps that are there as a result of Hamas not accepting with a clear and simple yes the proposal, whether they can be bridged or not. And as I said, I believe that they are bridgeable, but that doesn't mean they will be bridged, because ultimately Hamas has to decide.

But I'll repeat again what I - what I said before: The time for decision is now. The longer this goes on, the more people will suffer. And when it took 12 days just to get the response to the proposal that President Biden put forward, suffering - more suffering took place during those 12 days. The longer this continues, the greater the suffering will be. And I fully agree with the prime minister. The fastest, most effective way to get to not just an immediate ceasefire but a durable one is through this proposal. So let's see if we can bridge the remaining gaps, but fundamentally Hamas has to decide what it wants. And I can't - I can't speak for it.

When it comes to the war and the conduct of the war in response to the attacks of October 7th, we look and continue to look very carefully at international humanitarian law, at laws of armed conflict, human rights, and we have a number of our own processes within the U.S. administration, including within my own department, to assess whether Israel or any other combatant in any other conflict is adhering to those. And as you know, we put out a report a few weeks ago that went through in some detail a number of incidents that had been raised both in terms of the loss of life and killing of people as well as the provision of humanitarian assistance. It's a very well documented report, and we continue to do the work to make our own assessments. I haven't seen the most recent - the most recent - I think you said UN report that you referred to, but of course we'll look at that.

Again, the - as I just said, we are determined and insist that Israel or any other country adhere to international humanitarian law, the laws of armed conflict, uphold human rights, not - does not commit gross violations of those rights, and that remains and will always remain a policy and the focus that we bring to it every day, including doing our own investigations of incidents that come up in the course of this war.

PRIME MINISTER AL THANI: Well, I think that I have answered partially your question regarding trying to build - to reach a deal. Of course, this is - it has been a very long process. It's frustrating a lot of times, and we have seen, I mean, the behavior from both parties different - in different occasions being counterproductive to the efforts. Right now, we are respecting our role as mediator. We are trying our best not to consider ourselves as a party of that conflict. What we are aiming for is - one specific goal is to end the war and to end the suffering of the people in Gaza, to get the hostages back, and then we think about the day after. That will remain our main focus. We are not going to give up on that mission as long as we see a role that we can play and we can contribute to save more lives.

MODERATOR: (In Arabic.) Daphne Psaledakis, Reuters.

QUESTION: Hi, thank you. Secretary Blinken, do you agree with Israel's assessment that Hamas rejected the deal? And what specific changes were proposed by Hamas? What specifically do you find workable and not workable? Can you confirm that Hamas wants written guarantees from the United States for a permanent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces from the Gaza Strip in order to sign off on the proposal, and can you provide those guarantees?

And then if I may, on Hizballah, you've repeatedly said that achieving a ceasefire deal could help end the fighting between Hizballah and Israel. Hizballah today vowed to increase the intensity of its operations against Israel after the killing of a senior commander. How concerned are you now, after Hamas's response to the ceasefire proposal, that this conflict will spread?

And Prime Minister, given this response, is there more pressure the Arab world can put on Hamas to reach a deal? And are you considering the Hamas office in Qatar?

SECRETARY BLINKEN: Thank you. So what we received last night, all of us, in terms of the response from Hamas, were changes that they sought and they seek in the proposal that President Biden put forward that Israel and the entire world has accepted. So the question is whether any of those changes that they have sought, they seek, are workable, bridgeable, or not, and I'm not going to, obviously, characterize or describe what they're looking for. All I can tell you, having gone over this with our colleagues, is that we believe that some of the requested changes are workable and some are not.

And so we have to see, on an urgent basis over the course of the coming days, whether those gaps are bridgeable, again, in a way that upholds the agreement, the proposal that President Biden puts on the table, because, again, we're not - this is not about changing fundamentals. It's about seeing if we can bridge the gaps that have been exposed by Hamas's response, and I can't tell you right now whether we'll succeed. I believe it's doable, I believe it's absolutely necessary to try our hardest to do it, but there's no guarantee.

With regard to Lebanon and Hizballah, look, we've said from day one that one of our primary objectives is to prevent this conflict, the conflict in Gaza, the war in Gaza, from spreading, seeing escalation in the region, and we've been on that from day one. We don't want to see that escalation. And I think it's also safe to say that actually no one is looking to start a war, to have escalation, and I think it's also true that most involved believe that there can and should be, ideally, a diplomatic resolution to the differences that could spark conflict, and in particular, a resolution that leads to the necessary conditions for people to be able to return to their homes and believe that they can live safely and securely in their own homes.

There are about 60,000 Israelis who have had to leave their homes in northern Israel because of the rocket attacks and the threat from Hizballah. They have to be able to go home. There are people in southern Lebanon who have also had to leave their homes. They should be able to go home. So what I've heard from everyone concerned and others who are working on this for (inaudible) is there's a strong preference for a diplomatic solution.

Now, there's no doubt in my mind that the best way to empower a diplomatic solution to the north, Lebanon, is a resolution of the conflict in Gaza and getting the ceasefire. That will take a tremendous amount of pressure out of the system. It will take away a justification that Hizballah has claimed for the attacks it's engaged in, and, I think, open a pathway to actually resolve this diplomatically. That's what we're determined to do.

QUESTION: (Off-mike.)

SECRETARY BLINKEN: The proposal speaks for itself. What's in the proposal - backed by the United States, by Qatar, by Egypt - speaks for itself.

PRIME MINISTER AL THANI: Just briefly on your question, I think that, look, if we are talking about pressure, pressure need to be on both parties. And we have seen that basically, whether it's on Hamas or on Israel, but - like for another example, was 6th of May - after that, Rafah invasion happened. And then also we have seen a lot of contradicting statements from different Israeli officials. That also requires a lot of pressure on them as well as the other party.

We believe, as a mediator, we try our best to respect our role, to bridge the gaps, and not to make judgments for - on one party over another. And our biggest concern is that it's taking too long to bridge these gaps. We need to get this to an end as soon as possible. That's - will remain our focus. Our focus is to put an end for this war, which took - I think it's the longest war that happened in Palestine, and this is something that no one can tolerate, and the region cannot tolerate more instability.

Regarding your question about Hamas office, we've been repeatedly mentioning this. Hamas office establishment in Doha being for a reason - this reason is for keeping the communication channel, and until now, this reason is valid and we are using this as a communication channel. Our interest as a country is to see peace and stability in the region. It doesn't mean that we are endorsing one party over another. Our policy is very clear: supporting the Palestinian people and their rights. But at the end of the day, we are a state; we are not a political party. Thank you.

MODERATOR: (Via interpreter) State Secretary, and by this, we conclude this press conference for today.

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Secretary Blinken's Meeting with Qatari Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani

US Department of State

Readout

Office of the Spokesperson

June 12, 2024

The following is attributable to Spokesperson Matthew Miller:

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken met today with Qatari Amir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani in Doha. The Secretary and the Amir discussed ongoing efforts to reach an agreement for a ceasefire in Gaza that secures the release of all hostages. The Secretary thanked the Amir for Qatar's continued indispensable role in mediating between the parties as part of its effort to promote regional peace and stability. The Secretary underscored that the ceasefire proposal outlined by President Biden would greatly benefit the Palestinian people through a significant and sustained increase in humanitarian assistance for distribution in Gaza, enable the return of displaced persons to areas throughout Gaza, and permit international reconstruction efforts to begin. He reiterated that the United States would continue to work towards a ceasefire grounded in the principles endorsed by the United Nations Security Council and countries around the world.

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Diplomats visit Chinese aviation firms in Shanghai, seek closer cooperation

Global Times) 14:52, June 13, 2024

Diplomats visit Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC) in Shanghai on June 12, 2024, to learn about the latest progress China has made in advanced manufacturing. (Photo: Chen Xia/GT)

About 40 diplomats from 28 countries visited the Commercial Aircraft Corp of China (COMAC) in Shanghai on Wednesday to learn about the latest progress that China has made in advanced manufacturing, part of a tour called "Global Insights into Chinese Enterprises" organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA).

"Global Insights into Chinese Enterprises" is a platform created by MOFA that aims to facilitate interaction and communication between Chinese enterprises and foreign diplomats based in China. It is designed to showcase China's modern achievements and vision, focus on practical cooperation areas, and serve high-quality development.

The diplomats stepped into the cabins of the mock-ups of China-developed aircraft ARJ21, C919, and C929 in the exhibition area and took their time exploring the cabins, testing the seats, and having firsthand experience of the controls and advanced systems.

Excitement coursed through them as they visited the cockpits, experienced the planes from a pilot's perspective, and had firsthand experience with the controls and advanced systems that power the Chinese-developed aircraft.

Many of them said that they were impressed by the Chinese aviation industry's openness and high-quality development, and they said that they hoped to strengthen communication and exchanges with the Chinese aviation industry to share development opportunities.

"Apparently comfortable seats. The cockpit looks impressive," Ambassador of Jamaica to China Arthur H.W. Williams told the Global Times on Wednesday after the tour.

Williams said that he looked forward to having more people-to-people exchanges between mechanics and pilots in Jamaica and China.

"I hope that COMAC will be interested in cooperating with Morocco by thinking about having production sites in Morocco," Ambassador of Morocco to China Abdelkader El Ansari told the Global Times.

"The business and first-class seats are really comfortable with amazing big screens," Ambassador of Argentina to China Marcelo Gabriel Suarez Salvia said.

"Argentina and China are very far apart, so interconnectivity is key. We are looking forward to talking to COMAC on what can be done between Argentina and COMAC," he noted.

"Events like this allow envoys to come together and witness firsthand all the progress that China has made in many areas," the Argentine ambassador added.

The diplomats also visited the Zhangjiang AI Robot Valley on Wednesday afternoon, and they are set to visit China State Shipbuilding Corp on their tour, which lasts until Saturday.

Two commercial aircraft of COMAC have been put into operation. More than 130 ARJ21 planes have been delivered to domestic and international clients, serving more than 150 cities worldwide.

The C919 large aircraft made its commercial debut on May 28, 2023, and six have been delivered to its first client, China Eastern Airlines. The C919 is mainly operated on round-trip flights between Shanghai and Chengdu in Southwest China's Sichuan Province, Shanghai and Beijing, and Shanghai and Xi'an in Northwest China's Shaanxi Province.

"I think it's very good that China is entering this particular industry and I look forward to seeing the industry prosper," Ambassador of Tanzania to China Khamis Mussa Omar told the Global Times on Wednesday.

"China is continuing its industrial and economic transformation and modernization. It's a really great achievement and we only see it will continue. We along with other developing countries take inspiration from this," Omar said.

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing)
Assembly Member Jesse Gabriel, D-Encino, speaks with reporters outside Assembly chambers in the State Capitol in Sacramento on Thursday after he and his colleagues passed a placeholder budget bill. Don Feria/Special to the Chronicle

California lawmakers on Thursday passed placeholder budget legislation that ensures they will continue to be paid even as they remain in negotiations with Gov. Gavin Newsom over a final budget.

The legislation they passed Thursday technically satisfies their constitutional requirement to pass a budget bill by June 15. But it doesnt represent agreement with Newsom, who has the final say, and means they will need to pass follow-up legislation later this month ahead of the July 1 start of the 2024-25 fiscal year.

If lawmakers hadnt passed the placeholder legislation before the deadline, they would have risked forgoing pay while negotiations continue.

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Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire, D-Geyserville, said he anticipates that a deal between lawmakers and the governor is right around the corner, and that the final budget will look much like the bills passed Thursday. He said they could reach and pass an agreement as early as next week.

A big difference between the governors proposal, which Newsom unveiled in May, and the lawmakers budget legislation is a $1 billion cut to prisons put forth by the Legislature. That cut reflects half a billion dollars in baseline cuts to the prison systems budget, as well as a lower projected number of prisoners than the governor accounted for in his spending plan.

That cut allowed lawmakers to reject some cuts that Newsom proposed to public health funding, housing programs and college scholarships in the legislation passed Thursday.

The Legislatures budget still includes cuts. In April, Newsom and lawmakers approved a series of spending cuts and internal borrowing tricks to reduce the state budget deficit by about $17 billion. That led Newsoms office to estimate he and lawmakers need to account for a remaining $27.6 billion shortfall.

In this moment, the people of California expect the government to tighten its belt and balance the budget, said Assembly Member Jesse Gabriel, the Encino Democrat who chairs the Assembly Budget Committee. But we also know that they want us to protect core programs and services that are essential to our communities. That is what this legislative budget does.

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Lawmakers have agreed to an 8% cut Newsom proposed to state government operations, in part by increasing state governments use of artificial intelligence, and eliminating 10,000 unfilled state positions. That would reduce state spending by about $760 million going forward.

The main budget bill passed the Senate and Assembly on party-line votes, with Democrats supporting and Republicans opposing.

Assembly Member Heath Flora, R-Modesto, and other Republicans noted that the budget bills do not reflect a final agreement.

Assembly Member Heath Flora, R-Modesto, speaks in opposition to budget bills in the Assembly chambers at the State Capitol in Sacramento on Thursday. Don Feria/Special to the Chronicle

Today we have been provided a budget that is balanced on paper, but is incomplete and lacking, said Flora, who serves as the top Republican on the Assembly Budget Committee. It is not the final budget because were still waiting on the negotiations from the governor.

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Republicans railed against funding in the budget for continued work on high-speed rail and health care for undocumented immigrants.

They also argued that the bills assume California will collect more in taxes in future years than it actually will.

We have several items in this budget that are going to cause problems for the next budget, said Sen. Roger Niello, the Fair Oaks Republican who serves as Floras counterpart on the Senate Budget Committee. This budget is balanced nominally, but it is not sustainable.

An earlier version of this story misidentified Assembly Member Jesse Gabriel, D-Encino, in a photo caption. It has been corrected.
Guterres highlights 'unique level of destruction' in Gaza ahead of G7 summit

12 June 2024 - UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres reiterated his solidarity with the people of Gaza and the global body's deep commitment to the UN agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) on Wednesday, while also issuing a stark message to the world's richest nations ahead of the G7 Summit in Italy to do more to help emerging economies crippled by debt repayments.

"In Gaza, we are deeply committed to humanitarian aid to the population in Gaza, where UNRWA is the backbone of that support," Mr. Guterres told journalists in Geneva. "We have faced a number of difficulties and obstacles that are well known, but nothing diminishes our commitment," he added, amid a long-running misinformation campaign to discredit the UN agency.

Attacks hamper aid effort

Turning to the ongoing challenge of providing lifesaving humanitarian assistance, especially since early May when the Israeli military closed the vital Rafah border crossing, the UN chief noted it remains "extremely difficult to support the population that is under fire; it's extremely difficult to support the population when there are so many restrictions to the entry of the necessary supplies for humanitarian aid".

Asked to comment about the findings of a report published earlier in the day by a top Human Rights Council-appointed probe into the Gaza war that found Hamas and Israel guilty of war crimes, the UN chief underscored the enormous scale of destruction and death in the past eight months of hostilities.

"We have witnessed...a unique level of destruction and...unique level of casualties in the Palestinian population during these months of war that has no precedent in any other situation that I've lived as Secretary-General of the United Nations."

Widening inequality

The Secretary-General was speaking on the sidelines of the Global Leaders Forum at UN Geneva, hosted by UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD), where he took the opportunity before heading to the G7 Summit in Italy beginning on Thursday to repeat his deep concerns about the unequal distribution of wealth in the global economy - and the need for richer nations to support those trying to embrace industrialization.

"Developing and emerging economies outside China have seen clean energy investments stuck at the same levels since 2015 and Africa was home to less than one per cent of last year's renewables installations despite its wealth of resources and its vast potential," Mr. Guterres said.

"We need advanced economies to rally behind the emerging and developing ones and to show climate solidarity by providing the technological and financial support they need to cut emissions.

Walk the talk

There must be "a clear commitment from the G7 on doubling finance for adaptation by next year and closing the adaptation finance gap."

Echoing that message, Rebeca Grynspan, Secretary-General of the UN Trade and Development agency UNCTAD, welcomed the "resurgence of industrial policy" in some parts of the world that vindicated the State's "vital role" in economic development and transformation.

But she cautioned that for many developing nations burdened by debt and limited fiscal space, "this resurgence is a distant horizon", just as the UN Secretary-General told delegates that new trade barriers introduced annually "have nearly tripled since 2019, many driven by geopolitical rivalry with no concern for their impact on developing countries".

Such a trend must be avoided if the world's most vulnerable countries and individuals are to enjoy the benefits of the UN-backed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Mr. Guterres insisted, as he declared that the world "cannot afford splits into rival blocs."

Only meeting the targets will ensure peace and security where there is "one global market and one global economy in which there is no place for poverty and hunger."

Developing world in the driving seat

Some progress has been made in tackling these enduring problems and in the 60 years since UNCTAD was created, "over a billion people have been lifted out of poverty" and the developing world "is now the engine of global trade and economic activity", Ms. Grynspan noted.

But she added that far while for some, this may "give the illusion that the ground is less uneven today than it was six decades ago", for "the poor, the unconnected, the discriminated, the rural, but also the women, and the youth - the ground remains uneven, the climb too steep".

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Gaza: Hamas, Israel committed war crimes, claims independent rights probe

12 June 2024 - Palestinian armed groups and Israeli authorities have both committed war crimes and crimes against humanity during the attack on 7 October and the subsequent military operations, according to a new report by a UN independent human rights body.

This was among the conclusions listed in the report of the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and Israel, released on Wednesday.

"Amid months of losses and despair, retribution and atrocities, the only tangible result has been compounding the immense suffering of both Palestinians and Israelis, with civilians, yet again, bearing the brunt of decisions by those in power," the Commission said, stressing the impact on women and children.

Clear turning point

The brutal attack of 7 October by Hamas on communities in southern Israel marked a "clear turning point" for both Israelis and Palestinians and presents a "watershed moment" that can change the direction of the conflict, with a real risk of further solidifying and expanding the occupation, the Commission said.

For Israelis, the attack was unprecedented in scale in its modern history, when in one single day hundreds of people were killed and abducted, invoking painful trauma of past persecution not only for Israeli Jews but for Jewish people everywhere.

For Palestinians, Israel's military operation and attack in Gaza have been the longest, largest and bloodiest since 1948, causing immense damage and loss of life and triggered for many Palestinians traumatic memories of the Nakba and other Israeli incursions.

Stop recurring cycles of violence

The Commission emphasized that both the attack in Israel and Israel's subsequent military operation in Gaza should not be seen in isolation.

"The only way to stop the recurring cycles of violence, including aggression and retribution by both sides, is to ensure strict adherence to international law," it stressed.

"That includes ending the unlawful Israeli occupation of Palestinian territory; discrimination, oppression and the denial of the right to self-determination of the Palestinian people, and guaranteeing peace and security for Jews and Palestinians."

Deliberate targeting by Hamas

The Commission further noted that in relation to the attack of 7 October in Israel, members of the military wings of Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups, as well as Palestinian civilians who were directly participating in the hostilities, deliberately killed, injured, mistreated, took hostages and committed sexual and gender-based against civilians, including Israeli citizens and foreign nationals.

Such acts were also committed against members of the Israeli Security Forces (ISF), including soldiers considered hors de combat - such as injured soldiers.

"These actions constitute war crimes and violations and abuses of international humanitarian law and international human rights law," it said.

The Commission also identified patterns indicative of sexual violence in several locations and concluded that Israeli women were disproportionally subjected to these crimes.

Failure to protect civilians

It also noted that Israeli authorities "failed to protect civilians in southern Israel on almost every front", including failing to swiftly deploy sufficient security forces to protect civilians and evacuate them from civilian locations on 7 October.

In several locations, ISF applied the so-called 'Hannibal Directive' and killed at least 14 Israeli civilians. That Directive is reportedly a procedure to prevent capture of ISF members by enemy forces and was alleged to have been directed against Israeli civilians on 7 October.

"Israeli authorities also failed to ensure that forensic evidence was systematically collected by concerned authorities and first responders, particularly in relation to allegations of sexual violence, undermining the possibility of future judicial proceedings, accountability and justice," the Commission added.

Violations by Israeli military

The independent Commission, established by the UN Human Rights Council, also concluded that, in relation to Israel's military operations in Gaza, Israel committed war crimes, crimes against humanity and violations of international humanitarian and human rights laws.

The Commission further concluded that the immense numbers of civilian casualties and widespread destruction of civilian objects and vital civilian infrastructure were the "inevitable results of Israel's chosen strategy for the use of force" during these hostilities, undertaken with intent to cause maximum damage, disregarding distinction, proportionality and adequate precautions, and thus unlawful.

"ISF's intentional use of heavy weapons with large destructive capacity in densely populated areas constitutes an intentional and direct attack on the civilian population, particularly affecting women and children," the Commission said, adding that this was confirmed by the substantial and increasing numbers of casualties, over weeks and months, with "no change in Israeli policies or military strategies".

Recommendations

Among its recommendations, the Commission report called on the Government of Israel to immediately end attacks resulting in the killing and maiming of civilians in Gaza, end the siege on Gaza, implement a ceasefire, ensure that those whose property has been unlawfully destroyed receive reparations, and ensure that necessities crucial for the health and well-being of the civilian population immediately reach those in need.

It also called on the Government of the State of Palestine and the de-facto authorities in Gaza to ensure the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages held in the enclave; ensure their protection, including from sexual and gender-based violence; report on their state of health and wellbeing; allow visits by the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), contact with families and medical attention, and ensure their treatment in compliance with international humanitarian and human rights laws.

"Stop all indiscriminate firing of rockets, mortars and other munitions towards civilian populations," it added.

Israel rejects findings

Upon publication of the report, Israel rejected the findings of the independent Commission.

In a press release, the country's Permanent Mission to the UN in Geneva reiterated accusations of "systematic anti-Israeli discrimination", political bias and of drawing a "false equivalence" between Israeli soldiers and Hamas fighters.

About the Commission of Inquiry

The Commission of Inquiry was established by the UN Human Rights Council to, among other points, investigate, in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, and in Israel, all alleged violations of international humanitarian law and abuses of international human rights law leading up and since 13 April 2021.

Its report will be presented to the Human Rights Council's 56th session on 19 June 2024 in Geneva. The report is accompanied by two documents providing findings on the 7 October attack in Israel, and on Israel's military operations and attacks in Gaza until the end of 2023.

Its members are not UN staff and do not draw a salary.

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Secretary-General's opening remarks at press encounter on the forthcoming G7 Summit

United Nations Secretary-General

12 June 2024

Dear Members of the press,

It is wonderful to be back in Geneva.

I have just come from Jordan, where the United Nations co-hosted a conference on the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.

From here I will go to the G7 Summit in Italy.

My message is very clear:

This is a critical time.

We face profound global challenges on multiple fronts.

And the G7 leaders have a particular responsibility.

First, on climate.

We're reaping the whirlwind of climate inaction - with devastating floods, fires, droughts and heat.

The European Commission's Copernicus Climate Change Service reported last week that May 2024 was the hottest May ever recorded.

That makes twelve straight months of the hottest months ever.

And the World Meteorological Organisation reported an eighty per cent chance that global annual average temperature will cross 1.5 degrees Celsius in at least one of the next five years.

In 2015, the chance of such a breach was near zero.

The window for action is rapidly closing.

Naturally, to have an over-shooting above 1.5 for a short period will not put into question the objective of 1.5 as a long-term objective for the end of the century. But the possibility of that over-shooting increases our responsibility to accelerate climate action to make it as limited and as short-term as possible.

Countries must deliver new national climate plans by next year. Those plans must align with the international community's commitment to limit the rise in global temperature to 1.5 degrees.

That means a just global phase out of fossil fuels - which account for 85% of global emissions.

And the biggest countries have a responsibility to go furthest, fastest.

For the G7 that means committing to end coal power by 2030.

It means creating fossil-fuel free power systems, and cutting supply and demand for oil and gas by sixty percent - by 2035.

And it means supporting a just global transition to clean energy.

Globally, renewables are booming.

But many countries are being left in the dark.

Developing and emerging economies outside China have seen clean energy investments stuck at the same levels since 2015.

Africa was home to less than one percent of last year's renewables installations, despite its wealth of resources and its vast potential.

We need advanced economies to rally behind the emerging and developing ones:

To show climate solidarity by providing the technological and financial support they need to cut emissions.

We need a clear commitment from the G7 on doubling finance for adaptation by next year, and closing the adaptation finance gap. And the G7 Adaptation Accelerator Hub must be translated into concrete action by COP29 this year.

We also need more systemic change.

That is the second area for G7 action.

Our international financial architecture is outdated, dysfunctional and unfair.

The rich are over-represented; the poor are under served.

It needs reform so that it better represents developing countries and responds to their needs;

Reform that substantially increases the lending capacity of multilateral development banks;

And reforms that change their business model - so that they can provide far more finance for climate action and sustainable development and leverage massive amounts of private finance.

This is particularly important for African countries - one of the items of the G7 -some of whom spend more on average on servicing their debt than on health, education and infrastructure combined.

Let's not forget it is an embarrassment that Africa still has no permanent representation on the United Nations Security Council.

And we must act urgently on artificial intelligence - another of the items for the G7 - a central question of governance today.

These technologies are racing ahead of regulation. They're being rolled out with virtually no regard for the consequences. And they are inflaming tensions and divisions.

All of these is a recipe for profound instability.

AI must support human rights, sustainable development, and benefit all humanity.

The Independent Advisory Body that I appointed has identified clear priorities for AI governance.

These include: the creation of an International Scientific Panel on AI; a regular policy dialogue on AI Governance; common AI ethics and standards; strengthened data governance; and global financial commitments to support developing countries.

I also welcome the Advisory Body's recommendation for a new small, dynamic, and flexible United Nations AI Office, which would report directly to me.

We'll also take full profit of the capacity of the International Telecommunication Union as demonstrated in the recent AI for Good Summit.

The Summit of the Future in September is an opportunity to advance progress on all of these issues.

And the place of G7 countries in the global economy and institutions give them a unique responsibility and opportunity to push for change.

Finally, the G7 has a critical role to play in peace.

Peace in the Middle East - and I welcome President Biden's recent peace initiative and urge all parties to seize the opportunity for a ceasefire and release of the hostages, and prepare the ground for a two-state solution.

We must also keep working for peace in Ukraine - a just peace, based on the United Nations Charter and international law.

Around the world, we must never let up in pursuit of solutions that affirm - and do not undermine - international law, including international humanitarian law:

Every time, everywhere.

These are the messages I will be carrying with me to Italy.

Thank you.

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Ramstein hosts NATO fighter exercise

Published June 12, 2024

By Staff Sgt. Christian Conrad

American Forces Network Kaiserslautern

RAMSTEIN AIR BASE, RHEINLAND-PFALZ, Germany (AFNS) -- At five times the force of gravity, the force of acceleration is enough to overwhelm a heart's ability to pump blood to the brain. If the effects aren't mitigated, a typical human can expect to black out within a few seconds from oxygen starvation.

With top speeds of over 1,500 mph, modern fighter jets routinely pull up to 9 Gs.

"In a fighter jet, you're sweating, you're breathing through an inch-wide oxygen tube, balancing a gamut of controls and devices, all while pushing your body to its absolute limits," explained retired Col. Cesar Rodriguez, a former U.S. Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II and F-15 Eagle pilot. "The threat of passing out at the controls is incredibly real."

Rodriguez knows as much as anyone the dangers posed by being in a cockpit, making his attendance during a recent simulated basic fighting maneuvers exercise at Ramstein Air Base the through line between one of aerial combat's most storied eras and the future of the aerial combat enterprise.

The exercise, held June 6, comprised 37 aircraft from nine NATO countries, including both pilots and maintainers. According to Lt. Col. Michael Loringer, chief of weapons and tactics for U.S. Air Forces in Europe - Air Forces Africa and mission planner for the exercise, working with peer nations not only sharpens shared tactics but ensures any deficiencies in each nation's pilot training curricula can be identified and corrected.

"Most of us out here know each other  the global fighter community is pretty tight-knit," Loringer said. "What we've done with this exercise is we've pitted the best of Germany, Norway, France, the U.S., all these countries against one another in simulated dogfights  air-to-air engagements. Iron sharpens iron, so when these pilots finish the exercise, they'll meet on the ground and discuss their fight."

"It's not about winning. It's about learning," he said.

Rodriguez, likewise, emphasized a quality he feels transcends the decades and makes a fighter pilot truly great: Humility.

"The best pilots I've known are the ones who, no matter how good they were or how much knowledge they had, were still looking for ways to improve," he said.

Rodriguez made a continuous loop motion with his hands.

"Once you feel you've mastered your airframe, the technology is upgraded," he continued. "Once you feel you've nailed a certain maneuver, it then becomes about perfecting that maneuver in coordination with other aircraft. There's a continuum of readiness on display during this exercise that speaks to the broader NATO philosophy of not only keeping your own nation ready but also keeping ready as a joint-nation alliance."

While readiness was the main goal of the exercise, the skies weren't free from the occasional friendly rivalry.

French Air Force Lt. Col. Guillaume Veuille, commander of the 3/30th Fighter Squadron, has grown a friendship with Loringer throughout his career, participating in various exercises together.

"He (Loringer) is a great guy," said Veuille, smiling. "Friendships like ours are common among our ranks and make it both a pleasure to work together and a reason to bring your best efforts to these types of engagements."

When asked how he thought he'd fare in a fight with Loringer, Veuille gave a coy smile.

"Let's just say it'd be a tough fight," he said.

Loringer, who introduced the idea for the exercise, admitted he had some inspiration for his initial pitch.

"Not sure how familiar everyone is with the documentary, 'Top Gun,' but it's founded on some solid logic," Loringer laughed, addressing a cadre of pilots during a pre-mission brief. "And trust me, this exercise will have some Kenny Loggins."

Indeed, the exercise leaned into the fun as well, including a burger burn and a live band, creating an effective backdrop against which many friendships were made during the day's events.

As the thunder above the German landscape dissipated and the sun began to set, the pilots and maintainers gathered for one last event before parting ways.

Huddled around an acoustic piano, the tone grew somber as the group prepared to set the piano alight  a tradition from World War II in which a piano was burnt in memory of fighter pilots killed in action.

One by one, each pilot said aloud a name, each a fallen comrade, each with their own story, their own legend.

"Hap Arnold."

"Michael Scott Speicher."

"John Bates."

"Graham Higgins."

Rodriguez, too, reflected on the allegory of the piano.

"I've always compared flying to playing a piano symphony in the sky," he explained. "There's a lot to keep in mind, but there's also an art to it  a way of being  and that doesn't go away simply because you're back on the ground."

The piano kept aflame for some time, surrounded by singing members of different countries, before finally collapsing, sending a mass of embers billowing into the yawning night.

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U.S. 4th Fleet Announces Continuing Promise 2024 Deployment

US Navy

12 June 2024

From USNAVSOUTH/4TH FLEET PUBLIC AFFAIRS

MAYPORT, Fla. -- The U.S. Navy expeditionary fast transport USNS Burlington (T-EPF 10) will deploy this July and August to the U.S. Southern Command area of operations as part of U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. 4th Fleet's Continuing Promise 2024 mission. After several months of detailed planning, USNS Burlington is scheduled to visit Jamaica, Costa Rica, Honduras, Colombia, and Panama during the nearly two month-long mission.

Continuing Promise 2024 marks the 14th mission to the region since 2007 and the second aboard USNS Burlington. The mission will foster goodwill, strengthen existing partnerships with partner nations, and encourage the establishment of new partnerships among countries, non-government organizations, and international organizations.

The focus during each mission stop will be working alongside partner nation medical personnel to provide direct patient care and technical expertise in community clinics to improve medical readiness, strengthen partnerships, and enhance the combined capabilities of the U.S. Navy and partner nations to respond to public health disasters and humanitarian crises. 30 U.S. Navy medical professionals, including general practitioners, nurses, pharmacists, radiologists, dentists, optometrists, and biomedical technicians from Navy Medicine Readiness and Training Command (NMRTC Portsmouth, NMRTC Jacksonville, NMRTC Great Lakes, NMRTC Pensacola, NMRTC Camp Lejeune) and Naval Medicine Readiness and Logistics Command bring their expertise to this year's iteration of Continuing Promise.

"During Continuing Promise 2024, we're working side-by-side and step-by-step with our partners," said Rear Adm. Jim Aiken, U.S. Naval Forces Southern Command/U.S. 4th Fleet Commander. "Our investment into the region is our enduring relationships, and we are committed to ensuring improved interoperability and collaborative regional security together. We gain so much by this opportunity to serve alongside true professionals."

The Continuing Promise team includes a U.S. Army veterinary team from the 248th Medical Detachment (Veterinary Service Support), which will collaborate with host nation colleagues to provide direct public health education and animal care at local veterinary organizations in-country. U.S. Navy Seabees from Navy Mobile Construction Battalion 1 will assist in host nation led community engineering projects. U.S. Navy experts will host seminars and training exercises with host nation civilian officials and military professionals covering disaster preparedness and response. These exchanges aim to support host nation facilities, improve readiness, and empower local and national officials with the knowledge and experience to act with confidence during emergencies.

"Actions certainly speak louder than words and Continuing Promise 2024 will certainly demonstrate that," said U.S. Navy Capt. Scott Maloney, Continuing Promise 2024 mission commander. "It is a way for us to collaborate and work alongside our partners in the Caribbean, Central and South America and make a positive impact in local communities at each stop."

Continuing Promise will also continue its popular series of seminars on the prevention of gender-based violence in support of the mission's Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) initiative.

WPS is a United Nations (UN) initiative that started with UNSCR 1325 signed in 2000. The UN resolution is a public acknowledgement that women are more adversely impacted by conflict and crisis, and including women in security planning will lead to a more peaceful world.

Continuing Promise will feature the U.S. Fleet Forces Band, "Uncharted Waters". The band will embark on USNS Burlington to conduct classes at community schools, collaborate with military and civilian musical organizations in partner nations, and entertain local communities with concerts at each mission stop. This cultural exchange aims to strengthen community ties and foster goodwill.

USNS Burlington is an expeditionary fast transport (EPF) operated by Military Sealift Command and crewed by 26 Civil Service Mariners led by Ship Master, Capt. Tyler Driscoll. The crew composition follows a commercial model of bridge and engineering watches. The ship is a shallow draft, all aluminum, commercial-based catamaran capable of regional transport of personnel and cargo lift, providing combatant commanders high-speed sealift mobility with inherent cargo handling capability and agility to achieve positional advantage over operational distances. Burlington will bring the personnel, equipment and supplies necessary to conduct the Continuing Promise mission, as well as act as the mission's logistics and command hub.

USNAVSOUTH/FOURTHFLT is the trusted maritime partner for Caribbean, Central and South America maritime forces leading to improved unity, security and stability.

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Blinken: Hamas has proposed unworkable changes to cease-fire deal

By VOA News June 12, 2024

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that Hamas has proposed "numerous changes" to a cease-fire deal on the table and that some are workable, and some are not.

"Israel accepted the proposal as it was and as it is. Hamas didn't," said Blinken at a press conference in Doha. "In the days ahead, we are going to continue to push on an urgent basis with our partners, with Qatar, with Egypt, to try to close this deal."

The Gulf state of Qatar, along with Egypt, has been mediating between Israel and Hamas over the proposed multi-stage cease-fire in Gaza.

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told reporters that Qatar, the United States and their partners are "committed to bridge the gap, to find a way to end the war as soon as possible."

The Qatari prime minister also emphasized the need for a permanent and sustainable solution that would allow a Palestinian state and Israel to exist side by side.

The United States has been studying a response by Hamas to the current American-backed Gaza cease-fire proposal, according to a senior State Department official. Blinken, currently on a diplomatic tour of the region, was said to have been up late into the night with officials assessing the text, which was handed by Hamas to mediators Qatar and Egypt on Tuesday evening.

Blinken dispatched two senior administration officials to receive the document from Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamel.

"The Hamas response reaffirmed the group's stance any agreement must end the Zionist aggression on our people, get the Israeli forces out, reconstruct Gaza and achieve a serious prisoners swap deal," a Hamas official said earlier this week.

U.S. President Joe Biden publicized details of the cease-fire proposal, while he and other U.S. officials repeatedly have stressed it is an Israeli proposal. Blinken said Tuesday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reaffirmed his commitment to the deal.

There remain potential points of contention, including the Hamas demand that Israel withdraw its forces from Gaza, and Israel's stated commitment to its goal of defeating Hamas and ensuring the militant group cannot launch any future attacks on Israel.

In its initial phase, the three-stage cease-fire proposal calls for a halt in fighting, the release of some hostages from Gaza, the release of some Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, a surge in humanitarian aid for Palestinians, the withdrawal of Israeli troops from populated areas of Gaza, and the return of Palestinian civilians to their homes and neighborhoods.

The second phase envisions a permanent cessation of hostilities in exchange for the release of all other hostages in Gaza and a full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza.

The final phase includes a multi-year reconstruction plan for the Gaza Strip, much of which has been devastated by eight months of Israeli bombardment. It would also provide for the return of the remains of any deceased hostages still in Gaza.

Israel-Lebanon border

Israel's military reported Wednesday carrying out ground and air attacks in the central Gaza Strip and the southern city of Rafah.

Israel also said it struck targets in southern Lebanon after Hezbollah militants launched more than 150 rockets into northern Israel.

The Hezbollah attack was in retaliation for Israel's killing Tuesday of a senior Hezbollah commander.

The two sides have traded near-daily cross-border fire throughout the war in Gaza, raising fears of a widening regional conflict.

Blinken told reporters on Wednesday one of Washington's primary goals from Day One has been to prevent the war in Gaza from spreading.

"We don't want to see that escalation," said Blinken.

U.N.-backed human rights report

On Wednesday, U.N.-backed human rights experts said in a report that both Israeli forces and Palestinian armed groups committed war crimes and other grave violations of international law during the first months of the Israel-Hamas war.

Blinken gave a cautionary word to Israel during Wednesday's press conference in Doha.

"When it comes to the conduct of the war in response to the attacks of October 7, we look, and continue to look very carefully at international humanitarian law, at laws of armed conflict, human rights. And we have a number of our own processes within the U.S. administration, including within my own department, to assess whether Israel or any other combatant in any other conflict is adhering to those."

The October 7 Hamas terror attack resulted in the deaths of about 1,200 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to official Israeli figures. Hamas militants took about 250 hostages, 116 of whom remain in the Palestinian territory, including 41 the army says are dead.

Israel's military response has killed more than 37,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry, which does not distinguish between fighters and civilians in its figures.

State Department Bureau Chief Nike Ching contributed to the report. Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.

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ASEAN aims to conclude South China Sea code of conduct by 2026

By Nike Ching June 12, 2024

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations will speed up negotiations with China on a code of conduct to mitigate the risk of conflicts in the hotly contested South China Sea, a senior official from the Southeast Asian bloc said. The bloc hopes to conclude talks by 2026.

But whether the code of conduct will be legally binding is still under discussion.

"We continue to call on all the direct parties concerned to exercise restraint," Kao Kim Hourn, secretary-general of the association, also known as ASEAN, told reporters during a roundtable on Wednesday. "We cannot deny the fact that the situation continues to escalate."

Kao is in Washington this week for his first working visit to promote the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the regional bloc and the United States.

Philippines seeks dialogue with China

During a seminar at the Stimson Center on Wednesday, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell urged ASEAN to "send an unmistakable message about concerns with respect to provocations in what are clearly Philippine waters."

His remarks came amid increasing tensions between China and the Philippines due to recent collisions near the waters around Second Thomas Shoal  known as Ren'ai Jiao in China  a rich fishing ground about 200 kilometers (124 miles) from the nearest Philippine island and 1,500 kilometers (932 miles) from China.

Campbell added that Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. "does not seek a crisis" but desires a dialogue with Beijing. "We're looking for China to cease provocative activities," Campbell said.

According to an international tribunal's legally binding decision issued in July 2016, Second Thomas Shoal is located within the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, and China has no lawful maritime claims to the waters around this low-tide feature.

Beijing has rejected the ruling, claiming "indisputable sovereignty" over most of the South China Sea.

"All ASEAN member states exercise their own foreign policy," Kao said, when asked if the regional bloc will issue a strong statement to support the Philippines. "In this case, it's actually up to each member state" to decide.

Analysts still skeptical

Some analysts say that since 2017 they have repeatedly heard that a code of conduct is just around the corner, but it has never come from the claimants that really have disagreements with China.

Another sticking point is that while ASEAN has long insisted a code of conduct should be legally binding, China has never accepted this key position.

"ASEAN remains quite divided in that the non-claimants are not really invested in solving or even managing this issue and won't risk China's displeasure on behalf of their fellow members. This effectively leaves the claimants  the Philippines and Vietnam, in particular  often standing alone to hold the line in negotiations with China," said Greg Poling, director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Others, including Luigi Joble, who teaches at Manila-based De La Salle University, said such a challenge  the lack of unity amid member countries' diverse positions  "has been, unfortunately, chronic to ASEAN's engagements with China on the issue, including the decades-long Code of Conduct on the South China Sea negotiations."

Joble added that roadblocks to concluding the code of conduct have been encountered throughout its negotiations. This has prompted certain claimant states to exert control over disputed maritime features, despite violating established international law, hoping such developments will influence the outcome of the code of conduct negotiations.

Bloc divided about Myanmar conflict

The Southeast Asian bloc remains divided over the conflict in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, which began more than three years ago when the junta overthrew the democratically elected government.

Authoritarian ASEAN members such as Laos and Cambodia continue to support the junta to some extent.

Other members, including Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore, have had some level of interaction with the Myanmar resistance.

"I believe that we cannot expect a quick fix or solution" to end the crisis in Burma, said Kao, who was born in Cambodia. "The priority should be to eliminate violence on the ground inside the country and to promote inclusive dialogue among different stakeholders so there is a political path moving forward," he added.

Kao visited Myanmar last month. He said the country may send a nonpolitical representative to attend ASEAN foreign ministerial meetings in July in Laos' capital, Vientiane. ASEAN will hold its summit in October.

"On political issues, we shouldn't be expecting much of ASEAN, because member countries cannot reach a consensus that meets the needs of their political relations with countries outside ASEAN. So, they handle those individually on a bilateral basis," said Priscilla Clapp, a senior adviser at the United States Institute of Peace.

Shortly after the military coup, the leaders of nine ASEAN member states and Myanmar junta chief General Min Aung Hlaing agreed to an immediate end to violence in the country; dialogue among all parties; the appointment of a special envoy; humanitarian assistance by ASEAN; and the special envoy's visit to Myanmar to meet with all parties.

"The five-point consensus, I think, is basically dead," Clapp told VOA, citing conditions that the resistance has rejected as unreasonable, including the impracticality of holding new elections under the current circumstances in the country and accepting a return to the 2008 military constitution.

She added that ASEAN's special envoy cannot make any progress in ending the conflict without engaging Myanmar's National Unity Government  which views itself as a shadow government  as well as other major parties to the conflict.

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Afghan girls endure 1,000 days without school under Taliban rule

By Ayaz Gul June 12, 2024

The Taliban's ban on educating girls over the age of 12 in Afghanistan reached 1,000 days Thursday amid global outrage and demands for the immediate resumption of children's learning.

The United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF, denounced it as a "sad and sobering milestone" and noted that "1,000 days out-of-school amounts to 3 billion learning hours lost."

The statement quoted Catherine Russell, UNICEF executive director, as warning the male-only Taliban government that no country can progress if half of its population is left behind.

"For 1.5 million girls, this systematic exclusion is not only a blatant violation of their right to education but also results in dwindling opportunities and deteriorating mental health," Russell said.

"As we mark this grim milestone, I urge the de facto authorities to allow all children to resume learning immediately," she added.

Women banned from many public places

The fundamentalist Taliban have prohibited girls from attending school beyond sixth grade since retaking control of Afghanistan in August 2021. The ban was later extended to universities, blocking female students from finishing their advanced education.

Women also are not allowed to show their faces on television or visit public places such as parks, beauty parlors, or gyms, and they are barred from undertaking road trips unless accompanied by a male relative.

"Afghanistan will never fully recover from these 1,000 days," said Heather Barr, women's rights associate director at Human Rights Watch.

"The potential loss in this time  the artists, doctors, poets, and engineers who will never get to lend their country their skills  cannot be replaced," said Barr. "Every additional day, more dreams die."

UN officials calls for accountability

Meanwhile, in his latest report issued this week, the U.N. special rapporteur on Afghan human rights has called for the Taliban to be held accountable for their crimes against women and girls.

Richard Bennett alleged that de facto Afghan leaders have established and enforced "an institutionalized system of discrimination, segregation, disrespect for human dignity and exclusion of women and girls."

He will present and discuss the report at the U.N. Human Rights Council meeting scheduled for June 18.

The Taliban reject criticism of their government and policies, saying they are aligned with local culture and Islam. Their reclusive supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, has denounced calls to reform his policies as interference in Afghanistan's internal affairs.

The impoverished country is reeling from years of war and repeated natural disasters. U.N. agencies estimate that more than half of the population in Afghanistan  23.7 million people, including 9.2 million children  need relief assistance.

"Education doesn't just provide opportunities. It protects girls from early marriage, malnutrition, and other health problems and bolsters their resilience to disasters like the floods, drought, and earthquakes that frequently plague Afghanistan," UNICEF executive director Russell said.

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Georgia's protesters vow to stay on streets until government falls

By Henry Ridgwell June 12, 2024

Protesters in Georgia have vowed to continue anti-government demonstrations driven largely by the so-called "foreign agent" law that took effect last week.

Thousands of people have taken to the streets of the Georgian capital, Tbilisi, in the past two months to protest the law, which critics have compared to similar measures in Russia. Many of the demonstrators carry European Union and Georgian flags, while others wave the Ukrainian colors in solidarity with Kyiv following its 2022 invasion by Moscow.

Protesters beaten

Among the most well-known figures at the demonstrations is David Katsarava, a prominent activist who monitors Russian activities in parts of Georgia occupied by Moscow's forces since its 2008 invasion of the country.

On May 14, Katsarava was detained by Georgian special forces outside parliament. He says he was severely beaten at least five times in detention, suffering extensive injuries including a broken jaw and eye socket. He was released without charge the following day. The government says it is investigating his treatment.

At his home in the suburbs of Tbilisi, Katsarava told VOA that the protests must go on - and he will rejoin them in the coming days.

"We have now the changed reality and we must continue fighting. Georgia has changed and changed its direction to Russia. We must fight until to the end because otherwise if we stop, if we will be scared and we will stay at home, so that will be a finish for free Georgia. And Georgia then becomes Belarus or some branch of Russia or something like this," he said.

Foreign agent

The new law requires any organization receiving more than 20 percent of its funding from overseas to register as a "foreign agent." Critics have compared it to Russian legislation and say it is aimed at stifling scrutiny and criticism of the government by media and non-governmental organizations ahead of elections scheduled in October.

The law's supporters say it is aimed at ensuring transparency.

"It doesn't make sense why the state budget should be transparent  but any funding from foreign sources should not be transparent in the same way," said Fridon Injia, an member of parliament with the European Socialists party, which is closely aligned to the ruling Georgian Dream party.

The European Union has warned that the foreign agent law is incompatible with Georgia's EU membership aspirations. Last week, the United States imposed sanctions on several Georgian lawmakers who supported the legislation.

October elections

The demonstrators insist they will continue their action until the October elections  with the aim of toppling the government, which is led by the Georgian Dream political party and widely seen as increasingly pro-Russian.

Giga Bokeria, chairman of the "European Georgia" party and a member of the government from 2010 until 2013, compared the coming months to the fall of the Soviet Union, when Georgia regained its independence.

"We have elections in October. These protests will continue until then. And our goal will be just like 30 years ago  to achieve a fundamental change. And this fundamental change is to remove the government, which is a proxy of the enemy of our sovereignty [Russia] and enemy of our liberty inside the country."

EU support

Polls conducted before the foreign agent law took effect suggest around 80 percent of Georgians support EU membership.

At a recent protest outside parliament, many demonstrators vowed to stay on the streets until the election.

"No matter that the law is already in place, we keep on protesting. Because we want that Europe sees our approach and they support us," said student Elene Ramishvili.

"There's a big chance that [the government] will try to fake the results of the elections and we'll have to be ready for the action, in case this happens," fellow protester Giorgi Japiashvili told VOA.

Katsarava called on Europe and the U.S. to do more. "I would like to appeal to our Western partners and our friends to please support us," he said. "We need quick support. And without you, we all will lose Georgia as a free country."

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WFP and African Development Bank project boosts wheat production in war-torn Sudan, amid soaring hunger

World Food Programme

12 June 2024

PORT SUDAN/NAIROBI -- The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) and the African Development Bank (AfDB) announced today that the AfDB-financed Sudan Emergency Wheat Production Project had increased wheat production in the country by up to 70% in targeted project locations across five states in the last year. This development comes at a critical time as Sudan is facing a looming hunger catastrophe due to the ongoing conflict, which also impeded the past agricultural season.

"This wheat production project to the tune of USD 75 million financed by the African Development Bank became the heart of production in the critical moment in Sudan. It provided food security, yielding 645,000 metric tonnes of wheat this year, and also became a critical crisis response intervention to the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs). More than 30% of the beneficiaries in the Northern State were IDPs," said the Bank's Country Manager for Sudan, Ms Mary Monyau. She went on: "The project was anchored on earlier game changing wheat production projects - the TAAT Wheat Projects (2018-2021) - providing a clear example of how a longer-term development intervention can meet short-term emergency and humanitarian needs as well as forward-looking resilience building. We thank our development partner, the World Food Programme, for implementing this project and ensuring positive outcomes in at least 5 states, including Gezira State, Kassala State, River Nile State, White Nile State, and Northern State, even under circumstances of active conflict".

"The ongoing conflict in Sudan has had a devastating impact on agriculture. Sudan produced merely half the wheat it would in a typical year. Thanks to funding from the African Development Bank, we were able to mitigate some of the impacts of this war on wheat production," said Mr. Eddie Rowe.

The project had distributed climate-adapted wheat seeds and fertilizers to over 170,000 smallholder farmers in Gezira, River Nile, White Nile, Kassala, and Northern states, in the 2023-2024 agricultural season. It covered areas which are largely located in the relatively stable northern and eastern states of Sudan where conflict has not yet spread, as well as in conflict-affected areas such as Gezira and White Nile states.

The yield of 645,000 metric tonnes of wheat this year accounted for 22 percent of the total wheat consumption needs of Sudan. On average, farmers reported a 44 percent increase in productivity per hectare as compared to the previous season. Around 16,000 of the farmers who received support had been newly displaced by conflict in the last 13 months, offering them support and resources to rebuild their livelihoods. Further, the project provided for 12 harvester machines to farmers associations in River Nile and Northern states to enable them to harvest produce more efficiently to avert losses.

Sudan is facing an unprecedented hunger catastrophe and is on pace to becoming the world's largest hunger crisis. WFP estimates that more than 2 million people are at high risk of falling into IPC 5 (Catastrophe/Famine) across more than 40 hunger hotspots if they do not urgently receive humanitarian assistance.

Investments in agricultural productivity in Sudan are critical to increase crop yields and food availability in the face of devastating levels of violence and hunger. The African Development Bank provided a total of US $75 million to WFP for the implementation of the Sudan Emergency Wheat Production Project over the course of two years.

# # #

The United Nations World Food Programme is the world's largest humanitarian organisation, saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity for people recovering from conflict, disasters, and the impact of climate change.

The African Development Bank Group is Africa's premier development finance institution. It comprises three distinct entities: the African Development Bank (AfDB), the African Development Fund (ADF) and the Nigeria Trust Fund (NTF). On the ground in 37 African countries with an external office in Japan, the AfDB contributes to the economic development and the social progress of its 54 regional member states.

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A guard tower overlooks Folsom State Prison in March. Legislators have introduced a measure that would ban forced labor in California prisons. Paul Kitagaki Jr./TNS

The campaign to end 175 years of forced labor in California prisons has taken a step toward the November ballot, but there are still obstacles in its path.

Since 1849, Californias Constitution has prohibited slavery and involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime. That exception, also included in the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution in 1865, has allowed prisons to require inmates to work in kitchens, bathrooms, yards and wherever else theyre ordered, with or without pay.

All but 16 states have removed the prison-labor exception from their constitutions, most recently with votes in 2022 in Alabama, Oregon, Tennessee and Vermont. But similar legislation failed in California in 2022. That legislation fell six votes short of the two-thirds majority required in the Democratic-controlled state Senate to send the proposed state constitutional amendment to the ballot.

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Civil rights and prisoners advocates are trying again this year. On Tuesday, the Senate Judiciary Committee voted 4-1 along party lines to approve Assembly Constitutional Amendment 8 by Assembly Member Lori Wilson, D-Suisun City. If supported by two-thirds of both legislative chambers and a majority of the voters, it would remove involuntary servitude from the state Constitution and instead declare that slavery in any form is prohibited, and that slavery includes forced labor compelled by the use or threat of physical or legal coercion.

This is a critical moment in our pursuit of justice and human dignity, Wilson, chair of the California Legislative Black Caucus, said in a statement after the vote.

She doesnt have much time  the measure must clear two more Senate committees and win final legislative passage by June 27 to make the ballot. And not all Democrats are onboard yet.

Sen. Steve Glazer, D-Orinda, the only Senate Democrat to vote against the 2022 measure, says he supports a constitutional ban on involuntary servitude as long as inmates continue to be required to perform responsibilities that provide for the health and safety of the institution.

For example, Glazer said in an interview, prisoners should be required to work in the kitchen or at cleaning jobs with pay rates set by the Legislature and not the courts. Current wages for mandatory inmate labor are too low, he said  between 15 cents and a dollar an hour, depending on skill levels, with the state taking half of it in taxes  but they should remain well below Californias minimum wage of $16 an hour.

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Glazer said that hes meeting with Wilson, and that ACA8 would get my support if we had greater specificity.

But some of the measures backers say Glazer is trying to derail it.

Glazer is afraid that prisons will no longer be able to function if people are not forced to work, said Jamilia Land, a co-director of the Abolish Slavery National Network, which seeks to repeal similar restrictions nationwide.

People do want to work, Land said, but we shouldnt want to live in a state where we are forcing people to do things against their will. She said that she knows of other lawmakers who agree with Glazer, and that while supporters still believe the measure will pass by the deadline, we are nervous.

Esteban Nunez spent six years in prison and worked in the kitchen. He now is a co-sponsor of ACA8.

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I had to work every single day. It would have been nice to be able to take a couple weeks off, Nunez said after Tuesdays committee vote. Still, he said, folks will work because its something to do, and there are long wait lists for jobs that can be sought after release, like plumbing work.
Microsoft Says Russia 'More Aggressive' In Cyberspace

By Todd Prince June 12, 2024

WASHINGTON - U.S. tech giant Microsoft said Russian cyberattacks are becoming even "more aggressive" and warned that Moscow could deepen collaboration with U.S. adversaries in cyberspace, making it much harder to prevent intrusions.

Hackers from Russia's Foreign Intelligence Agency (SVR) are no longer disengaging from a computer environment once they are discovered but are doubling down, leading to the equivalent of "hand-to-hand combat" in cyberspace, according to Brad Smith, vice chairman and president of Microsoft, who is scheduled to testify on June 13 to the House of Representatives' Committee on Homeland Security.

The committee made a transcript of Smith's statement to the committee available on June 12.

Smith said in the statement that Microsoft believes the SVR is now allowing its top engineers to use what they learn during the day in criminal ransomware operations they work on during their free time for financial gain as a way to retain them.

"This is creating a vicious cycle reinforcing nation-state and ransomware activity," Smith wrote in the statement.

Smith will address the committee on Microsoft's plans to boost security following successful intrusions by Russian and Chinese state actors. He said closer cooperation between Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran on the geopolitical stage could be replicated in cyberspace.

"This is grave at multiple levels. It's one thing to engage in cyber combat with four separate nation-state adversaries, but quite another scenario if two or all four of these countries work in tandem," he wrote in his testimony.

He said each of those nations has its own strengths and weaknesses when it comes to cyber capabilities, and through cooperation they could enhance each others' effectiveness.

"Unfortunately, this is where the future is likely going," he wrote.

Smith painted a grave picture of current cyberspace, saying "lawless and aggressive cyber activity has reached an extraordinary level" and that state actors are more sophisticated and better resourced than ever. He said Microsoft detects almost 4,000 password-based attacks against its customers every second.

He called for tougher responses to such countries, saying they suffer few consequences for their actions.

"Deter nation-state threat actors by imposing appropriate punishment so that the actions of nation-state actors are not without a cost," he wrote in his testimony.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/microsoft-security- cyberattacks-russia-hackers-ransomware/32990469.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.

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From partner to ally - The Swedish NATO accession and Sweden's new space diplomacy

Government Offices of Sweden

12 June 2024

Speech by Minister for Foreign Affairs Tobias BillstrAm's during his visit to Texas 13-15 May 2024.

Check against delivery.

It is a great honor to be here today at World Affairs Council of Greater Houston. It was after all here in Houston that President Kennedy held his famous "We choose to go to the Moon speech" in 1962.

The exploration of outer space has since continued and today we are entering a new space age. And that is why I am here today as a representative of a space nation with a vibrant space industry, developing capability to launch satellites into space, and a commitment to international cooperation on space activities and space security.

Since the 7th of March, Sweden is a NATO ally. This is a paradigm shift in Swedish foreign and security policy. For more than two hundred years, Sweden had a policy of military non-alignment.

Sweden is safer in NATO - but NATO is also stronger with Sweden as an Ally. Unity, solidarity, and cohesion are the guiding lights for Sweden as a NATO member.

That means that we will share burdens, responsibilities, and risks. Sweden's defence spending exceeds two per cent of GDP this year, with an upwards trajectory.

But Sweden is also one of the allies that will be able to contribute with quality in all five domains of NATO operations: in the traditional land, maritime and air domains, but also in cyber - and in space.

Sweden has joined NATO at a time when emerging technologies lie at the core of geopolitical competition and play an important role in the defence of Ukraine. We bring a strong and innovative industry in defence as well as in dual-use sectors - often working in close transatlantic partnerships - and will contribute to maintaining NATO's technological edge.

One of the areas where we contribute with expertise and knowledge is space. That is the purpose of my visit to Houston and Texas. I want to elaborate on Sweden's new space diplomacy and how this will contribute to our shared prosperity and security.

Sweden has a long history in space exploration, starting when the construction of the Esrange Space Center in the North of Sweden began in 1964. The center has developed at a rapid pace in recent years.

Last year, a new chapter opened with the inauguration of a new orbital launch pad at the site. With this addition, France and Sweden are the only European Union members with a capacity to launch satellites, with Esrange as the only location within continental European Union. The capability to launch satellites will reinforce the status of Esrange Space Centre as a strategic asset for Sweden and it will also contribute to more resilient access to space for our allies and partners in NATO and the European Union.

As you may know, Sweden is a space-faring nation. A few months ago, Swedish astronaut, Marcus Wandt returned from the International Space Station as part of the Axiom 3 mission. He became the third Swede in space, after Jessica Meir - with dual American-Swedish citizenship - and Christer Fuglesang. Sweden should not take credit for your trips to the moon, but I still would like to mention that the Swedish ancestry of Buzz Aldrin - the second man on the moon - was much highlighted in Sweden in 1969.

The development of Esrange Space Center and the participation of Swedish astronauts in international missions are the results of the strong Swedish space industrial and scientific base, which contributes to numerous missions, including by providing instruments for planetary research.

I will share my views on the opportunities and challenges we face, how Sweden can contribute to the joint exploration of space and to promote security, safety and sustainability in space. I will also outline the Swedish space diplomacy agenda to achieve these goals.

Space exploration was shaped - and to some extent driven - by geopolitical competition from the outset. It was a competition for strategic military advantages, but also a competition between ideologies.

With the increasing exploration of space came the realization that we needed common rules for safeguarding the peaceful use of outer space, and in 1967 the international community agreed on the Outer Space Treaty. The space-related treaties - developed at the height of the Cold War - set out that all activities in outer space must be in accordance with international law, including the UN Charter. These treaties remain the cornerstones of international space law.

Today, geopolitical tension is on the rise and the technological development and lower costs allow for new states and private actors to acquire space capabilities. Space has become increasingly congested and contested while modern societies have become more dependent on space services, and therefore more vulnerable.

We see that China, one of the leading space nations, prioritizes military space capabilities and utilizing its national strategy of civil-military fusion.

And we see that various actors develop and use counterspace capabilities in a manner that could threaten access to space for everyone. In November 2021 Russia conducted an anti-satellite weapon test which generated thousands of pieces of debris. This was a clear act of irresponsible behavior in outer space, resulting in long-lasting risks for space activities, including for the safety and security of astronauts at the International Space Station. Such irresponsible behavior also increases the risk of the so-called Kessler effect, with cascading collisions between space objects, that could render critical orbits unusable for generations to come.

Against this background, it is important to reiterate that the Outer Space Treaty constitutes the bedrock for responsible behavior in space and that it is in the interest of all states that the key arms control provisions in the treaty be adhered to.

The Russian war of aggression against Ukraine is a major threat to European and transatlantic security. While parts of this brutal war remind us of tactics from the First and Second World War, it has also shown the critical role of space assets in modern and future warfare. Since the start of the full invasion of Ukraine, we have seen the emergence of a coalition of actors - both public and private - who support Ukraine with space-related services. These services are critical for Ukraine's defence efforts and for its civil defense, including satellite imagery and satellite-based communications solutions.

On 24th February 2022 Russia conducted a cyber-attack against the KA-SAT satellite communications network, ahead of the Russian full-scale attack against Ukraine. We have also seen more frequent incidents of GPS jamming in Northern Europe. Both have affected civilian users in several European Union and NATO Member States.

Sweden and the European Union have condemned such behavior which threatens our security and our access to space. Together with our Allies and partners we are committed to defend ourselves. NATO's Space Policy, adopted in 2019, recognizes Space as an operational domain. And at the 2021 Brussels Summit, NATO recognized that attacks to, from, or within space could reach the level of armed attack and could lead the North Atlantic Council to invoke Article 5.

In this new context, we need to address multiple challenges:

We need international cooperation to meet the challenge of space debris - one of the largest threats to our space environment.

We need to agree on norms, rules, and principles for responsible behavior in space. With more actors and congestion in space, the risks for misunderstandings and incidents are growing. A conflict extending into space could have catastrophic consequences for the space environment, and thereby on earth.

We also need to increase the resilience of our own space infrastructure and our capability to detect and respond to threats in the space domain.

Sweden intends to play a constructive and active role in addressing these challenges. Our security and our prosperity depend on access to space services, on a vibrant space industry and on international cooperation with strategic partners. I would therefore like to outline our agenda for space diplomacy in this new age of space exploration and exploitation.

First, we will ensure that the full potential of our national assets - the Esrange Space Centre, our space industry, and our research community - contribute to our national interests, to fostering strategic partnerships and to advancing global efforts to ensure sustainable use of space. The Esrange Space Center contributes to our own research, innovation, and security, and those of our partners. Swedish access to space through this strategic resource will be a priority, that will also benefit our Allies and partners within the European Union and NATO.

Second, we will deepen and develop space cooperation with strategic partners. We will promote international cooperation of our space industry, including in areas such as the green and digital transition, a priority of the Swedish GovernmentAs "Strategy for Trade, Investment and Global Competitiveness".

The United States is the leading space nation and is also a strategic Ally and partner for Sweden. A strong transatlantic link is therefore critical for our security and conducive to promoting space exploration, not the least considering our NATO membership. Sweden is committed to participating in the continued peaceful exploration of outer space together with the United States. I am therefore pleased that Sweden, on 16th of April, became a signatory to the US-led Artemis Accords.

Cooperation with the European Union, the European Space Agency (ESA) and partners in these organizations will intensify. Sweden will actively contribute to the implementation of the European Union's Space strategy for security and defense, a strategy recognizing the strategic importance of space and underlining the need for strengthened cooperation with partners, not least the U.S.

As a NATO member, Sweden will contribute to Allied capabilities in the space domain and will promote closer cooperation between the EU and NATO on space security. The strategic dialogue with Nordic partners will continue, in particular with Norway, to develop a strong space ecosystem in Northern Europe. New and ambitious partnerships with strategic partners from Asia will be explored.

Third, a rules-based international order in space is essential. Sweden is strongly committed to strengthening international security in outer space, preventing an arms race, and safeguarding the long-term use of space for peaceful purposes.

We continue to work with partners to reduce space threats and promote a responsible use of space, both in multilateral settings and bilaterally.

Sweden supports the efforts in the UN disarmament forums to advance norms, rules and principles of responsible behavior while not excluding a future new legally binding agreement in outer space.

In the UN Committee on the Peaceful uses of Outer space (COPUOS), we will contribute constructively to ensuring the long-term sustainability of space activities - a prerequisite for us and future generations to reap the benefits from space activities.

As all member states of the European Union, Sweden has made a commitment not to conduct destructive direct-ascent anti-satellite missiles tests. We commend the leadership shown by U.S. for initiating this process in 2022 by making a unilateral commitment not to conduct such tests. It is this kind of gradual steps that can contribute to progressively building a stronger rules-based order and reducing space threats.

To address new challenges, the Swedish government is developing a National Defense and Security Strategy for Space. The strategy will enhance the incorporation of defense and security policy interests into our national space policies and address the new geostrategic landscape. An ambitious Swedish space diplomacy will be a critical instrument to achieve these goals.

The Swedish Armed Forces are developing new capabilities in the space domain. This is done in close cooperation with our Allies and partners. This will contribute to NATO's space capabilities.

Our efforts to advance our capabilities in space is further supported by a long tradition of dual use R&D collaboration between the space industry and the private aviation industry. The new strategy for defense innovation will take dual use collaborations between defense, space, and private sector even further. Sweden is also part of DIANA, the NATO accelerator program for dual use technology innovation.

Advancements in space technology have saved and improved lives by increasing our understanding of climate change, through better response to natural disasters and through contributions to development and inclusive economic growth.

We remain committed to working together with the United States and other Allies and partners to strengthen the security of our space infrastructure and on the further exploration of outer space.

We also remain committed to contributing to the work to advance norms and rules for responsible behavior in space that reflect technological and political developments. This will ensure that future generations will be able to benefit from space.

Thank you.

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Readout of National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan's Meeting with Opposition Leader Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya of Belarus

June 12, 2024

National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan met yesterday with democratic opposition leader Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya of Belarus. Mr. Sullivan conveyed steadfast U.S. support for the people of Belarus in their pursuit of a democratic future. He made clear that the United States, together with partners and allies, will continue to take steps to hold the Lukashenka regime to account for its actions, including through the imposition of additional sanctions. They discussed the Lukashenka regime's support for Russia's war against Ukraine, continued imprisonment of political prisoners, and flagrant human rights violations. They also reviewed plans to continue the Strategic Dialogue between the United States Government and the Belarusian democratic movement and civil society.

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Working productively with China will benefit everyone in the region

Opinion

Wednesday 12 June 2024

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese

The Hon Anthony Albanese MP

Prime Minister of Australia



From our first day in office, our Government has made it a priority to invest in Australia's capabilities and invest in our relationships: our national defence and our international diplomacy.

We are strengthening both because we know a peaceful and stable Indo-Pacific is essential to the security and prosperity of every Australian.

As part of this important work, next week Australia will be hosting an official visit from Premier Li Qiang of China.

This is the first visit by a Chinese Premier to Australia since 2017, signalling another step forward in the patient, calibrated and deliberate efforts of our Government to rebuild dialogue with China and stabilise the relationship between our nations.

Australia's approach has been consistent and clear: co-operate with China where we can, disagree where we must and engage in our national interest.

Welcoming the Chinese Premier to our shores is an opportunity to advance our interests by demonstrating our national values, our people's qualities and our economy's strengths.

While in our country, Premier Li will visit Parliament House in Canberra, the seat of our free and robust democracy.

We will both participate in a CEO roundtable in Perth, reflecting the breadth of our business ties with China, and recognising the progress we have made on trade.

When we came to Government, trade impediments imposed by China on Australia were costing our exporters over $20 billion per year. Today, our farmers, growers, miners and exporters are benefiting from being able to sell their cotton, copper, coal, timber logs, oaten hay, barley and wine to China again.

Equally, the people of China are benefiting from high-quality Australian exports, which is why I'm hopeful we will see further progress for our shellfish exporters.

All of this matters. Trade supports one in four Australian jobs, it underpins one in every three dollars of our economic output and China is far and away our largest trading partner.

Australian resources have played a pivotal role in China's extraordinary economic transformation and the growth of our entire region.

Our Government's plan for a future made in Australia will build on this success by catering to growing global demand for the critical minerals and rare earths essential to reach net zero.

The fact that 92 per cent of the global economy is committed to net zero presents a profound opportunity for Australia: a chance for us to make more things here, to create secure, high-paying jobs in processing, refining and manufacturing.

As more nations draw an explicit link between their economic security and their national security, we will ensure Australia's foreign investment framework is more efficient and transparent and more effective at managing risk.

In all this, our vision for a future made in Australia is about building on our strengths, engaging in our region and succeeding on our terms.

Something else Premier Li will experience is our multicultural society, including more than one million members of the Chinese-Australian community whose hard work and aspiration has made a profound contribution to our nation.

Our Government has worked to bring this diverse combination of Australian strengths to our dealings with China, so that we always engage with China as ourselves, in the service of our national interest and in the spirit of our Australian values.

Australia's commitment to peace helped establish the international rules-based order and we continue to advocate for an Indo-Pacific where sovereignty is respected, human rights are upheld, prosperity is driven by shared opportunity and stability is secured through collective responsibility.

As an outward-looking economy, we champion the benefits of trade and investment.

As a loyal member of the Pacific family, we support the sovereign right of every country, big and small, to choose its own destiny and secure its own future.

As a steadfast ally of the United States, we build on our rich history and draw on our shared ideals.

And as a nation enriched by people of every faith, background and tradition, Australia's connections with China and the world are stronger because of our diaspora communities.

Through two years of engaging in Australia's national interest, our Government has never sought stabilisation for its own sake, or at any price.

We have been upfront: China and Australia are two very different nations, with different systems of government and different ways of looking at the world.

Points of contention are inevitable, what matters is how you manage them.

I take the view that whatever our differences might be, it is always better when we can deal with each other directly, through dialogue.

This is how we firmly and calmly call-out unacceptable risks to Australian naval personnel on duty in international waters, as well as making clear Australia's resolute position on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea and our unwavering support for the territorial integrity of our neighbours.

This is not always a smooth process, or a swift one but while issuing threats and delivering ultimatums may be the easy road, it never takes you very far.

In a world of increasing complexity, the true measure of foreign policy strength is the ability to effectively manage differences, not manufacture confrontations.

That's why as well as reminding ourselves of the benefits we have been able to secure through dialogue we must always remember the potentially devastating cost of the alternative.

Australia, China and every nation in our region has a role to play in upholding the rules based-order, respecting our neighbours' sovereignty and maintaining the stability of the Indo-Pacific. What's more, we all have much to gain from it.

In this spirit, our Government will continue to use dialogue to advance Australia's interests, articulate our values and build a more prosperous and secure future for all who call the Indo-Pacific home.

This opinion piece was first published in The Australian on Wednesday, 12 June 2024.

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China's third aircraft carrier's reported second sea trial attracts media attention

Global Times

By Liu Xuanzun Published: Jun 12, 2024 08:04 PM

China's third aircraft carrier, the electromagnetic catapult-equipped Fujian, reportedly wrapped up its second sea trial on Tuesday, an expansive and intensive test that experts said on Wednesday reflects the smooth progress made by the 80,000 ton-class warship.

The Fujian returned to Jiangnan Shipyard in Shanghai from its 20-day second sea trial on Tuesday morning, Hong Kong news outlet the Singtao Daily reported on Wednesday.

While not officially announced, the Fujian's second test voyage started on May 23 and concluded on Tuesday, observers said, citing two navigation restriction notices for the two dates released by the maritime safety administration of Shanghai.

The two navigation restriction notices did not specify that they were referring to the Fujian's second sea trial, but used the phrasing "a large ship" identical to the navigation restriction notices for the carrier's first voyage test that started on May 1 and concluded on May 8.

Analysts noted that the Fujian only took about half a month to start its second trial following the end of the first one, which indicates that the first was very successful and did not require the carrier to conduct complicated adjustments.

Unlike the Fujian's first sea trial that took place in the East China Sea not far from its shipyard in Shanghai, commercial satellite imagery showed that the second sea trial took place in the Yellow Sea and featured more expansive tests on the carrier's propulsion systems such as sharp turning and sailing in reverse, the Singtao Daily reported.

The Singtao Daily said that possible reasons why the Yellow Sea was selected for the latest trial include that the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy has a carrier-based aircraft training base near the region, and that the location is relatively closed off for the US to conduct close-in reconnaissance.

Previously, China's first aircraft carrier, the Liaoning, completed its first aircraft landing test in the Yellow Sea, so the Fujian could also be preparing for its aircraft takeoff and landing tests in later sea trials, the report said.

It is normal that the Fujian would need to conduct several test voyages across different sea regions, Fu Qianshao, a Chinese military expert, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

The second sea trial was a long one, which indicated that the carrier carried out intensive tests with additional objectives in a likely move to keep a fast pace in the test progress, Fu said. It indicates that the carrier as a platform is technically sophisticated, as its mooring tests and voyage tests have so far gone very smoothly, he said.

The test laid a solid foundation for the carrier's more sea trials to come as well as its eventual commissioning into the PLA Navy, Fu said.

After the second sea trial, observers have high expectations for more upcoming trials, including tests on electromagnetic compatibility, weapon systems, electromagnetic catapults and aircraft takeoff and landing.

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Top office overseeing HK, Macao affairs slams British judge's remarks, calling him politically hijacked, destroy his own reputation

Global Times

By Global Times Published: Jun 12, 2024 10:12 PM

The Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council slammed the latest remarks made by Jonathan Sumption, a British judge who recently resigned from Hong Kong's highest court, saying he has willingly become a tool of British political manipulation, making people not only shocked but also feel ashamed and disgraced for him.

In an article released by the office on Wednesday, it said after Sumption's resignation as non-permanent judge (NPJ) of the Court of Final Appeal (CFA) of the city, he blatantly published an article attacking and smearing Hong Kong's rule of law.

In the article, published in the Financial Times on Monday, Sumption made the comments on the latest verdict on the "35-plus" defendants in Hong Kong, saying that "the decision is symptomatic of a growing malaise in the Hong Kong judiciary."

It is clear to the world that forcing judges to resign is a despicable political maneuver by the British government and politicians targeting Hong Kong, and one can imagine and sympathize with the pressure Sumption may have faced, the office said.

However, as a former NPJ of the Hong Kong's CFA and a judge of the UK's Supreme Court, with a certain reputation internationally, Sumption has completely abandoned his professional spirit and ethics, and utterly betrayed the dignity of the rule of law and his judicial peers, the office added.

Sumption's wanton defamation of the relevant case rulings, the Hong Kong judicial system, and Hong Kong's national security legislation is not based on facts and the law but rather on politics overriding facts and the law, the office said. "It is filled with prejudiced political assumptions and malicious political hype. When Jonathan Sumption wrote those comments, did the word 'justice' ever cross his mind?" it said, noting that Sumption has brought shame to the sacred title of "judge."

In March 2021, when two British Supreme Court judges resigned from the Hong Kong's CAF under pressure from the British government and politicians, Sumption published an article in the media stating that the UK should avoid undermining Hong Kong's judicial system.

He refused to participate in the British government's political boycott against Hong Kong's judiciary and asserted that neither the Chinese government nor the HKSAR government had interfered with judicial independence, and that the National Security Law for Hong Kong explicitly protected human rights, the office recalled.

However, he has now made a complete 180-degree turn, entirely contradicting his previous stance, according to the office.

Sumption is willingly collaborates with malevolent forces, acting as a pawn and vanguard in the destruction of Hong Kong's judicial system. Comparing his drastically different positions, one can only conclude that the person who has lost judicial independence is none other than himself, it noted. "Such irony, such self-contradiction and self-degradation, is truly lamentable."

The pressure on Hong Kong judges does not come from the HKSAR government or the central government, but from the governments and politicians of the UK and other related countries, the office said.

It is regrettable and disappointing that at a time when external forces are increasing their pressure, and Hong Kong judges are standing united, upholding justice, independence, and professionalism in their judgments to defend Hong Kong's rule of law, Sumption suddenly announced his resignation, it noted.

To show his allegiance to the governments and politicians of the UK and other related countries, Sumption has trampled on the dignity of the rule of law and insulted his fellow judges, which is a disgrace to the judiciary, the office said.

Sumption's lack of truthfulness, integrity, and morality clearly demonstrates that he has willingly allowed himself to be "politically hijacked," the office said.

He is willingly acting as a tool for the political manipulation of the British government and other related countries' politicians and is willingly serving external forces in their interference in Hong Kong affairs. "By destroying his own reputation and choosing to stand on the wrong side of history, he is destined to face endless regret," the office noted.

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Measures targeting HK absconders including canceling passports 'necessary, justifiable and lawful' action: FM

Global Times

By Chen Qingqing Published: Jun 12, 2024 08:32 PM

China's Foreign Ministry called on Wednesday the latest action of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) to cancel passports of six absconders currently living in UK including anti-China rioters Nathan Law Kwun-chung and Simon Cheng Man-kit necessary, justifiable and lawful.

The Secretary for Security of the HKSAR government announced on Wednesday to impose several measures targeting six persons who have absconded to the UK and are subject to warrants of arrest issued by the court for being suspected of having committed offences endangering national security.

Canceling their HKSAR passports is among those measures. Other measures include prohibition against making available funds or dealing with funds, prohibition against certain activities in connection with immovable property, prohibition in connection with joint ventures or partnerships with relevant absconders.

Besides, the measures of suspension of qualification to practice and temporary removal from office of director are applicable to individual relevant absconders, the authority said.

Nathan Law and others have long engaged in anti-China and destabilizing activities in Hong Kong, severely endangering national security, harming Hong Kong's fundamental interests, and undermining the bottom line of ''One Country, Two Systems'' principle, the Chinese Foreign Ministry's spokesperson Lin Jian said on Wednesday.

The actions taken by the Hong Kong police under the National Security Law for Hong Kong to address these individuals are legitimate and necessary measures to uphold the rule of law in Hong Kong and safeguard national security, the spokesperson said.

"These actions are reasonable, justifiable, and lawful," he said, noting that Hong Kong affairs are purely China's internal affairs and are not subject to any foreign interference.

Regarding the use of the tool that may be used to provide funds to those absconders, Secretary for Security Tang Ping-keung reiterated on Wednesday that it is an offence to provide funds or to handle funds for those specified absconders, no matter what platform is used.

When asked if subscribing to these absconders' YouTube channels, how would government monitor the subscription, Tang said that anyone, by any means or platform, who handles or provides funds for them would violate the relevant regulations and would face imprisonment of up to seven years, noting the police will act based on evidence.

If these individuals wish to return to Hong Kong and surrender, they are welcome to do so by contacting the Immigration Department, which will issue a temporary entry permit, Tang noted.

These measures aim to prevent them from misusing their HKSAR resident status and passports to continue engaging in activities that endanger national security, Chu Kar-kin, a veteran commentator based in the HKSAR and member of the Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies, told the Global Times on Wednesday.

"The invalidation of their HKSAR passports also means that their overseas bank accounts could be canceled or frozen, and the revocation of their legal documents will also reduce their ability to purchase property, rent property, invest in partnerships or joint ventures, sign contracts, be employed, serve as salaried directors of companies, or receive donations," Chu said.

Without passports, these individuals will be difficult to travel around the world to smear Hong Kong. If they encounter problems, they will not be able to seek emergency services provided by our overseas consulates, experts said.

"As discarded pawns with no value, these fugitives should not expect foreign countries to grant them legal citizenship or quasi-citizenship status and treatment," Chu said.

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US urged to revoke illegal sanctions imposed on three additional Chinese firms under the guise of human rights

Global Times

By Zhang Yuying Published: Jun 12, 2024 07:55 PM

China on Wednesday urged the US to immediately stop smearing China, revoke the illegal unilateral sanctions against Chinese companies, stop interfering in China's internal affairs under the guise of human rights and harming China's interests and development, after the US added additional three Chinese companies to a list that bars imports from firms allegedly associated with the so-called forced labor in China's Xinjiang region.

The US has once again concocted false narratives about Xinjiang and imposed illegal sanctions on Chinese companies under the pretext of human rights, which China firmly opposes and strongly condemns, Lin Jian, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, told a regular press conference on Wednesday.

Lin said the development of Xinjiang is there for all to see. The central government's governance policy in Xinjiang is deeply supported by local people. We have repeatedly cited a large number of figures and facts to show that the so-called forced labor and genocide are completely groundless and are century-old lies fabricated by a very small number of anti-China forces, with the aim of causing chaos in Xinjiang, smearing China, and hindering China's development, Lin said.

The US, based on lies, unilaterally implemented evil laws related to Xinjiang, included Chinese companies in relevant sanction lists, seriously interfered in China's internal affairs, disrupted the normal order of the market, and violated international trade rules and basic norms of international relations, Lin said. In essence, it is an attempt by the US to create "forced unemployment" in Xinjiang, infringing on the rights to survival, employment, and development of local people of Xinjiang in the name of human rights, revealing its sinister intention of "containing China with Xinjiang," the spokesperson said.

The US is facing a mountain of domestic problems. If the US truly cares about human rights issues, it should take measures to effectively address its domestic issues such as racial discrimination, gun violence, and drug abuse, rather than treating internal diseases externally and interfering in other countries and imposing sanctions arbitrarily.

"China will continue to take resolute measures to firmly defend the legitimate and lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies," Lin said.

According to the US Department of Homeland Security on Tuesday, the US has announced the addition of three Chinese seafood, aluminum, and footwear companies to a list that bars imports from firms allegedly associated with the so-called forced labor in Xinjiang.

Using "forced labor" as an excuse, the essence of US' move is to conduct a sweeping crackdown on all industries in the Xinjiang region, analysts said.

When asked to comment on the latest US move, Chinese embassy spokesperson Liu Pengyu called allegations of "forced labor" in Xinjiang "nothing but an egregious lie propagated by anti-China forces and a tool for US politicians to destabilize Xinjiang and contain China's development," Reuters reported.

Referring to the so-called Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA), Liu added: "It not only severely infringes on the human rights of people in Xinjiang but also destabilizes global industrial and supply chains and sabotages international trade rules."

Li Haidong, a professor at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times on Wednesday that the US' move aims to politicize and slander normal foreign trade activities of Chinese companies, damaging China's strong momentum in economic and trade development, and also tarnishing China's peaceful image in international trade and prosperity promotion.

The US also aims to eliminate American trade competitors and "defeat" China in geopolitical competition, Li said. Noting that the US' allegations of the so-called genocide and forced labor are completely baseless and absurd, the expert said that this demonstrates US' ideological bias and deep-seated hostility toward China, with the fundamental purpose of undermining and suppressing China's development.

Including the three entities added on Tuesday, the US has added 68 entities to the UFLPA Entity List since the UFLPA was signed into law in December 2021, according to a statement of the US Department of Homeland Security.

The continuous expansion of the US suppression of Chinese companies is aimed at disrupting and restructuring the global industrial chain, attempting to eliminate or marginalize China from it, and making all core elements of globalization controlled by the US, Li said, noting that this extremely selfish move is despicable.

This kind of behavior, which selfishly destroys international economic and trade rules and seriously disrupts international industrial supply chain, is a manifestation of US bullying and hegemony, analysts said. Chinese companies need to be prepared to deal with this, as US' mindset to have malicious competition toward China is not going to be easily changed, they said.

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US' tightened suppression of Chinese semiconductor sector cannot stop China's tech advance: FM

Global Times

By Global Times Published: Jun 12, 2024 06:00 PM

The US' tightened suppression of the Chinese semiconductor industry will not stop the country's technological advance, and will only inspire Chinese enterprises to strengthen their own foothold, Lin Jian, spokesperson from China's Foreign Ministry, told a press conference on Wednesday.

Lin made the remarks in response to a Bloomberg report claiming that the Biden administration is considering further restrictions on China's access to AI chips.

The measures being discussed would limit China's ability to use the cutting-edge chip architecture known as gate all-around, or GAA, the report said.

GAA is a type of transistor architecture that helps improve chip performance and reduces power consumption.

In response, Lin said that the China has repeatedly stated its position on the malicious blockade and suppression of China's semiconductor industry by the US. China has always been firmly opposed to the US' reckless actions, which have seriously undermined the rules of international trade and jeopardized the stability of the global production and supply chains, Lin said.

"In the field of AI, the US side has expressed its desire to engage in a dialogue with the Chinese side, but it has formulated plans to suppress the development of Chinese AI technology. This exposes the hypocritical face of the US in saying one thing but doing another," the spokesperson noted.

China will closely monitor the relevant movements and resolutely safeguard its own legitimate rights and interests, he said.

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Premier's 3-nation trip set to boost ties

People's Daily Online

By Cao Desheng (China Daily) 09:38, June 12, 2024

Premier Li Qiang will make official visits to New Zealand, Australia, and Malaysia starting on Thursday, a significant diplomatic move that analysts said highlights China's efforts to further strengthen its relations with countries in the Asia-Pacific region amid rising economic and security challenges.

China hopes that the premier's visits, scheduled to run until June 20, will help enhance mutual understanding and trust and deepen pragmatic cooperation with the three countries, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian said at a regular news conference on Tuesday in Beijing.

Lin said that during Li's visit to New Zealand, he will meet with Governor-General Dame Cindy Kiro and have talks with Prime Minister Christopher Luxon to exchange views on bilateral relations and international and regional issues of common concern.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership between China and New Zealand, and Beijing considers Wellington to be an important partner, he said.

China is New Zealand's largest trading partner, with bilateral trade worth almost NZ$38 billion ($23.28 billion) last year. Luxon said in a statement on Monday that Premier Li's visit is a valuable opportunity for exchanges in areas of cooperation between New Zealand and China.

"New Zealand and China engage where we have shared interests, and we speak frankly and constructively with each other where we have differences. Our relationship is significant, complex, and resilient," Luxon said.

"The challenging global outlook makes it vital that we are sharing perspectives and engaging China on key issues that matter to New Zealand."

While in Australia, Li will co-chair the ninth China-Australia Annual Leaders' Meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Canberra, and engage with people from various sectors of the country, Lin said. They will also engage with Chinese and Australian business leaders at the seventh China-Australia CEO Roundtable, he added.

The spokesman expressed China's willingness to work with Australia to jointly build a more mature, stable, and productive comprehensive strategic partnership.

China has been Australia's largest trading partner for 15 consecutive years. In 2023, China bought A$219 billion ($144.35 billion) of Australian exports, accounting for 32.5 percent of Australia's total exports, according to statistics from Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Chinese investment in Australia reached almost A$88 billion by the end of last year.

However, bilateral relations were severely damaged due to the negative policies adopted by the previous Australian government toward China. The two countries have broken the ice since Albanese assumed office in 2022.

Li's visit follows Albanese's visit to China in November when leaders of the two countries agreed to resume key bilateral dialogues and further cooperation in various fields. Over the past months, China has lifted trade curbs on Australian imports including wine, barley, beef, and timber.

Speaking at a news conference at Parliament House in Canberra on Tuesday, Albanese said that Li's visit to Australia will be the first by a Chinese premier since 2017 and "represents another important step in stabilizing our relationship with China".

"Premier Li Qiang's visit to Australia is an important opportunity to engage directly on key issues for both our nations," he said. "Australia continues to pursue a stable and direct relationship with China, with dialogue at its core."

On China-Malaysia relations, Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin said that China and Malaysia are traditionally friendly neighbors across the sea.

Both of them are developing countries in Asia and emerging economies, and they actively advocate Asian values of peace, cooperation, inclusiveness, and integration, making important contributions to regional peace, prosperity, and stability, he said.

During the visit to Malaysia, Li will meet with the Southeast Asian country's King Sultan Ibrahim Sultan Iskandar and hold talks with Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, Lin said. Li and Anwar will jointly attend the celebrations of the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Malaysia.

China looks forward to using this visit as an opportunity to enhance and expand cooperation in various fields with Malaysia, deepen the China-Malaysia community with a shared future, and work together to create a more brilliant bilateral relationship for the next 50 years, Lin added.

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Antiabortion and abortion rights activists rally outside the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C., in March. The court unanimously voted to preserve womens access to mifepristone, the pill used in nearly two-thirds of all U.S. abortions. Jose Luis Magana/Associated Press

Two years after repealing the constitutional right to abortion that it had declared in 1973, the Supreme Court voted unanimously Thursday to preserve womens access to mifepristone, the pill used in nearly two-thirds of all U.S. abortions.

A group of antiabortion doctors said that mifepristone, found to be safe and effective by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in 2000, was actually dangerous and had been wrongly approved. But the court said the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, as the group calls itself, has not shown it is being harmed by womens use of the medication and therefore lacked legal standing to challenge its use.

A plaintiffs desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue, Justice Brett Kavanaugh, an appointee of former President Donald Trump, wrote in the 9-0 ruling. For a plaintiff to get in the federal courthouse door and obtain a judicial determination of what the governing law is, the plaintiff cannot be a mere bystander, but instead must have a personal stake in the dispute.

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And while the doctors group said its members could be forced to perform abortions on patients who had unsuccessfully taken mifepristone to terminate their pregnancies, Kavanaugh said the argument was foreclosed by a federal law that protects physicians and others from being required to perform abortions or to provide other treatment that violates their consciences.

He said there was no evidence that members of the group, or any other doctors, had been required to perform an abortion against their will since the FDA approved mifepristone in 2000.

The decision comes from the same court that ruled 6-3 in June 2022 that a womans decision to terminate her pregnancy is not protected by the Constitution and that each state could determine the legality of the procedure.

Since then, about half the states have banned or severely restricted abortion. An additional 21 states have reaffirmed the legality of abortion within their borders, and California has adopted laws and policies protecting women who arrive from other states to obtain abortions.

California initially stockpiled hundreds of thousands of doses of a second pill, misoprostol, which women take after using mifepristone, but those drugs have already been distributed. Together, the drugs are more than 99% effective in terminating a pregnancy and, according to the FDA and most health researchers, rarely have side effects and are far safer than giving birth.

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Misoprostol, whose approval was not directly challenged in the case, can be used by itself for an abortion, with an effective rate of about 85% and side effects such as pain and bleeding.

Even in antiabortion states, many women have been able to obtain mifepristone by mail, after the FDA decided in 2021 that they would no longer have to pick it up at the doctors office. In 2016, the agency had extended legal use of mifepristone from seven to 10 weeks of pregnancy and allowed nurses and some other nonphysicians to prescribe it.

The Supreme Courts conservative majority has tightened rules for establishing legal standing to sue. In 2013, for example, when civil rights groups challenged a law expanding the governments authority to wiretap phone calls to and from foreign countries, the justices said groups such as Amnesty International and the American Civil Liberties Union could not show that their calls would be overheard and that even a reasonable likelihood was not enough to give them standing.

The ruling was welcomed, uneasily, by abortion rights supporters such as Fatima Goss Graves, president and CEO of the National Womens Law Center.

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We are relieved for patients and providers that mifepristone will remain available, she said. However, we are acutely aware of how close we came to losing access to an FDA-approved medication due to a fringe effort to invalidate scientific evidence and to further decimate abortion access nationwide.  We also know that this may be a temporary reprieve, as other opponents of abortion are waiting in the wings to bring another challenge to mifepristone.

Religious extremists suffered a setback in their quest to force all of us to live by their narrow beliefs, said Rachel Laser, president and CEO of Americans United for Separation of Church and State.

Antiabortion groups said they werent giving up.

Women are still being harmed, babies are still being killed, and the merits of this case still have to be decided, said Frank Pavone, director of Priests for Life. It is outrageous that the other side thinks that no one can challenge the FDAs actions here. They can and will be challenged.

Opponents of abortion already have a backup plan  intervention in the case by three conservative-led states, Missouri, Kansas and Idaho. U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of Texas, the Trump appointee who had initially ruled mifepristones approval illegal, allowed the three states to join the doctors lawsuit in January.

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They contend they have standing to sue because, as they allege, the medication will have harmful effects on some women and increase their states medical costs. That issue was not before the Supreme Court on Thursday but could return to the court in the future.

We are grateful that three states stand ready to hold the FDA accountable for jeopardizing the health and safety of women and girls across this country, attorney Erin Hawley of Alliance Defending Freedom, the conservative legal group that represented the antiabortion doctors in the case, said after Thursdays ruling.

The landscape could also change if Trump is reelected in November, with the authority to appoint new FDA members. Trump told a Time magazine interviewer in April that he has pretty strong views on medication abortion, and he promised to make a subsequent announcement but had not done so as of Thursday afternoon.

President Joe Biden stressed the political context of the case.

Thursdays ruling does not change the fact that the right for a woman to get the treatment she needs is imperiled if not impossible in many states, Biden said in a statement. The stakes in Novembers elections, he said, could not be higher for women across America.

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On another issue, Kacsmaryk and the antiabortion doctors cited the Comstock Act, an 1873 federal law that prohibited the mailing of anything that was obscene, lewd, lascivious, filthy or vile, including any substance designed, adapted, or intended for producing abortion.

That law is still on the books. But other federal courts, and the Biden administrations Justice Department, said the Comstock Act has been regularly interpreted to bar only mailings for illegal abortions.

The case is Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, No. 23-235.
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian's Regular Press Conference on June 12, 2024

Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the People's Republic of China

2024-06-12 19:45

CCTV: Yesterday, Foreign Minister Wang Yi attended the BRICS Foreign Ministers' Dialogue with Developing Countries, could you share more details with us?

Lin Jian: On June 11 local time, Member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister Wang Yi attended the BRICS Foreign Ministers' Dialogue with Developing Countries (BRICS+) in Russia. The dialogue saw participation from the 10 BRICS countries and 12 major developing countries with regional influence, including Thailand, Laos, Viet Nam, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Kazakhstan, Belarus, TArkiye, Mauritania, Cuba, Venezuela and Bahrain.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi stated at the Dialogue that BRICS+ serves as an important platform for dialogue between the BRICS countries and the vast emerging markets and developing countries. It has long been a source of dynamism for BRICS development and has become a banner of South-South cooperation. We live in an era marked by turbulence and transformation, and certain country, in order to maintain its unipolar hegemony, is rallying allies to impose massive unilateral sanctions, create deep protectionist barriers and weaponize economic and financial tools. The North-South divide is widening, and the global economic recovery is facing setbacks. That said, this is also an era marked by the rise of the Global South and a world transformed like never before. The Global South is no longer the silent majority but a new awakened force.

Foreign Minister Wang Yi made a three-point proposal on how developing countries can open up new horizons on a shifting landscape and foster new opportunities amidst crises. First, uphold universal security and jointly tackle challenges. Global challenges should be jointly tackled by the international community, solidarity is the only right way forward and division will lead nowhere. President Xi Jinping put forward the Global Security Initiative and proposed a vision of common, comprehensive, cooperative and sustainable security, providing important guidance for solving security challenges and creating a synergy for peace. Second, prioritize development and pool strength for progress. China remains true to its original aspiration of forging ahead hand in hand with fellow developing countries. The Global Development Initiative put forward by President Xi Jinping has been warmly received by more than 100 countries and international organizations. We should jointly oppose the politicization of economic issues, strengthen the synergy of our development strategies and the coordination of our macroeconomic policies, keep global industrial and supply chains stable and unimpeded and push for a globalization that is more open, inclusive, balanced and beneficial for all. Third, uphold fairness and justice, and improve global governance. Seventy years ago, the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence emerged from the historical trend of the rise of emerging forces and has become norms governing international relations followed by the international community, especially developing countries. We should learn from the history, adhere to a global governance philosophy of extensive consultation and joint contribution for shared benefit, uphold true multilateralism, and work for an equal and orderly multipolar world. China supports BRICS in pursuing development and cooperation with open arms, and welcomes more like-minded partners to join the BRICS family.

Participants spoke highly of the strategic significance of the Dialogue, noting that the BRICS+ model helps promote solidarity and cooperation among developing countries, enhance the Global South's influence, and build a more just and equitable international order. The parties all believe it is important to uphold the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, oppose unilateralism and hegemonism, resolve conflicts and differences through dialogue and consultation, and promote the political settlement of international hotspot issues. They also called for reforming the international financial system, enhancing cooperation in digital economy, infrastructure and other areas, keeping global industrial and supply chains stable, narrowing the development gap, and achieving common development.

AFP: It's reported by UK-based Financial Times today that starting from next month, the EU will levy 25 percent tariffs on the electric vehicles imported from China. Has the Chinese side been informed of this decision? What's your comment?aa

Lin Jian: We have stated our position on the EU's anti-subsidy investigation into Chinese EVs on multiple occasions. I remember answering a similar question yesterday. I would like to stress that the anti-subsidy probe is typical protectionism. To levy additional tariffs on EVs imported from China violates market economy principles and international trade rules, disrupts China-EU economic and trade cooperation and the global automotive industrial and supply chains and will eventually hurt Europe's own interests. We noted that senior officials and business leaders in multiple European countries recently stated opposition to the European Commission's probe and said that imposing more tariffs on Chinese EVs to protect the European industry would be a wrong approach. Protectionism has no future, and open cooperation is the right way forward. We urge the EU to act on its commitment to supporting free trade and opposing protectionism, and work with us to uphold the overall economic and trade cooperation between the two sides. China will take all measures necessary to firmly defend our lawful rights and interests.

Dragon TV: Recently, Japanese scholars Seiya Matsuno and Shigeo Nasu donated a large amount of historical files on Japan's bacterial warfare to the Yiwu archives hall and the Historical Facts Exhibition Hall of Bacterial Warfare of the Japanese Invaders in Yiwu, with a written message that says "Japan-China friendship" and "Never again should there be war between Japan and China". What's China's comment?

Lin Jian: During WWII, in blatant violation of international law, the Japanese army launched horrendous bacterial warfare against the Chinese people and conducted gruesome human experimentation, which were heinous crimes against humanity. The historical files you mentioned show once again there are solid proofs for the bacterial warfare launched by Japanese militarists and there's no room for denial.a

We commend the courage of those in Japan who reveal the historical truth and face it squarely. Japan needs to face up to and reflect on its history of militarist aggression, draw lessons from it, get rid of the specter of militarism that still haunts it, and never let history repeat itself.

China News Service: In a national address delivered on June 11, Malawi's President Lazarus Chakwera said the Malawi Defense Force plane that carried Vice President Saulos Chilima and nine others crashed on June 10, and the aircraft was found completely destroyed with no survivors. What's China's comment?

Lin Jian: China expresses deep condolences over the unfortunate passing of Malawi's Vice President Saulos Chilima and other victims in the plane crash. Our thoughts are with their families. China and Malawi are development partners. At this difficult time, the Chinese government and people stand firmly with the Malawian government and people. We believe that under President Lazarus Chakwera's leadership, Malawi will emerge from this tragic incident and heal from the grief.a

Reuters: Reuters understands that Myanmar's military junta has procured a large number of drones from China in recent months that it is using on the frontlines against the growing anti-junta resistance. Does the Ministry have any comment on this, and what is Beijing's broad policy toward the export of such Chinese goods to Myanmar?

Lin Jian: China always handles the export of military products and dual-use articles in a prudent and responsible way.

AFP: Hong Kong authorities said today that they have cancelled the passports of six fugitives who fled to the UK. They were charged with crimes including inciting secession and colluding with foreign countries. What is the Foreign Ministry's comment?

Lin Jian: Nathan Law and the others have long engaged in anti-China activities and sought to destabilize Hong Kong. Their nefarious behavior gravely undermines national security and Hong Kong's fundamental interests and has a serious impact on One Country, Two Systems which is a bottom line that must not be crossed. The Hong Kong police took measures in accordance with the Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, which is the right and necessary thing to do in order to uphold the rule of law in Hong Kong and national security. This is fully justified, legitimate and lawful. Once again, Hong Kong affairs are purely China's internal affairs that allow no external interference.

The Paper: The US Department of Homeland Security announced yesterday the addition of three Chinese companies to the Uygur Forced Labor Prevention Act Entity List and barred imports from the companies for alleged involvement in Uyghur forced labor. What's China's response?a

Lin Jian: The US again spread false stories on Xinjiang and illegally sanctioned Chinese companies in the name of human rights. We firmly oppose and strongly condemn the move.

What Xinjiang has achieved in its development is there for all to see and the central government's Xinjiang policy is widely endorsed by the people. We have proven with ample figures and facts that the so-called "forced labor" and "genocide" accusations are complete false and egregious lies told by a handful of individuals wanting to vilify China. Their goal is to destabilize Xinjiang, frame China and hold back China's development. The US chooses to enforce this malicious legislation on Xinjiang and blacklist Chinese entities on the basis of those lies. This seriously interferes in China's internal affairs, disrupts market order and violates international trade rules and basic norms governing international relations. What the US is doing is essentially creating "forced unemployment" in Xinjiang, and hurting the right to subsistence, employment and development of people in Xinjiang in the name of human rights. Clearly, the US is seeking to turn Xinjiang into a tool to contain China. If the US truly cares about human rights, it might as well start dealing with the mounting issues at home, such as racial discrimination, gun violence, drug abuse, etc. instead of deflecting blame on other countries, interfering in their affairs and slapping sanctions.

We urge the US to immediately stop smearing China, lift illegal unilateral sanctions on Chinese businesses, stop interfering in China's internal affairs and undermining China's interests under the pretext of human rights. We will continue to take resolute measures to firmly defend the legitimate and lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies.

Bloomberg: Two questions from Bloomberg. The first one is that the Biden administration is considering further restrictions on China's access to chip technology used for artificial intelligence. The measures being discussed would limit China's ability to use a cutting-edge chip architecture known as gate all-around or GAA. Does the Foreign Ministry have any comments on this? And the second question is on Argentina. The International Monetary Fund expects China to reschedule payments on part of the US$18 billion swap line that it has extended to Argentina. We know that Argentina owes the People's Bank of China about US$2.9 billion this month and US$1.9 billion in July. We're wondering if the Foreign Ministry can confirm this or have any comments?

Lin Jian: On your first question, we have more than once made clear our position on the US's malicious attempts to block and suppress China's semiconductor industry. The US behavior seriously undermines international trade rules and destabilizes global industrial and supply chains. China firmly opposes what the US has done. When it comes to AI, the US says it wants to have dialogue with China, while mulling steps to go after China's AI sector. This says everything about US hypocrisy. The US action will not hold back China's technological progress, and will only motivate Chinese companies to pursue excellence by relying on ourselves. We will closely follow the developments on this front and firmly defend our lawful rights and interests.

On your second question, China supports Argentina's efforts for national stability and development and values our monetary and financial cooperation with Argentina. For any specifics on the currency swap arrangement, I'd refer you to competent authorities.

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Hong Kong revokes exiled activists' passports over UK spying charge

Security chief targets 6 UK-based 'fugitives' after a trade official is accused of spying.

By Lee Heung Yeung for RFA Cantonese, Chen Zifei for RFA Mandarin 2024.06.12 -- Hong Kong's security chief on Wednesday revoked the Chinese passports of six U.K.-based activists including former pro-democracy lawmaker Nathan Law, imposing financial sanctions on them and hitting back at the British government for "deliberately discrediting" the city with spying charges against one of its officials.

Secretary for Security Chris Tang revoked the Chinese passports of U.K.-based activists Christopher Mung and Finn Lau, former pro-democracy lawmaker Nathan Law, former British consular employee Simon Cheng, who co-founded the advocacy group Hongkongers in Britain, and overseas YouTube hosts Johnny Fok and Tony Choi.

Tang warned that anyone found engaging in any financial transactions with them would be prosecuted.

The six, who already have arrest warrants and bounties on their heads, have been named as "fugitives" under the "Article 23" Safeguarding National Security Law passed in March, the government said in a statement.

"We are targeting these six specified fugitives who have fled to the U.K. [because] we have noticed that the British government, many politicians, organizations and media have deliberately tried to discredit our government," Tang told journalists in a briefing on Wednesday.

"The British government is prosecuting one of our colleagues at the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London on trumped up charges for violating the U.K. National Security Law," Tang said.

He said the six activists "have been sheltered in the U.K. as they continue to advocate for subversion" of the Chinese government in Beijing.

Bill Yuen, an office manager at the Hong Kong Economic and Trade Office in London has been charged with spying for Hong Kong, along with British Border Force officer Peter Wai. A third defendant, former Marine Matthew Trickett, was found dead in a park last month, although British police say they aren't treating his death as suspicious.

The trio were charged with "assisting a foreign intelligence service" and "foreign interference" under the National Security Act 2023, and stand accused of forcing and entering a property in the United Kingdom and of targeting exiled Hong Kong activists on British soil, according to the Metropolitan Police and the prosecution.

Could target others

Back in Hong Kong, Tang warned that "anyone who uses any means, regardless of platform, to provide funds for these people or handle funds for them is in violation of our laws."

The authorities have also placed restrictions on real estate owned by the activists in Hong Kong, preventing them from selling it or renting it out to anyone, and revoked some of their professional qualifications and directorships, a largely symbolic move given that they are unlikely to return.

Tang said the authorities could also issue similar sanctions targeting other prominent overseas activists.

Police warned that anyone acting for the "fugitives" in financial or property matters could risk a seven-year jail term under the Article 23 legislation.

Finn Lau said via his X account that the move was announced on the fifth anniversary of a mass protest in 2019 that "symbolizes the unity of Hong Kongers," and was another example of "transnational repression" by the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities.

Lau said the cancellation of his Chinese passport was meaningless, as he has only ever held a British National Overseas, or BNO, passport, and that he would continue to advocate for human rights and democracy.

"The fighting spirit of Hongkongers, including mine, prevails," he tweeted.

'Will only strengthen our resolve'

Simon Cheng said the measures were "politically motivated and ineffective."

"Our lives and advocacy continue unaffected in the U.K.," he said via his X account. "The attempts to silence us will only strengthen our resolve to fight for democracy and human rights in Hong Kong."

The London-based rights group Hong Kong Watch said the move was the first time the authorities had used the Article 23 law to target the passports of activists in exile.

"Hong Kong Watch condemns this outrageous manoeuver by the Hong Kong authorities to further target, intimidate and silence these six pro-democracy activists living in the UK who have simply advocated for their freedoms," the group's Chief Executive Officer Benedict Rogers said in a statement.

"It is no coincidence that the authorities have canceled their passports on the same day that millions of Hong Kongers are commemorating the fifth anniversary of the 2019 anti-extradition law protests in Hong Kong," he said.

On June 12, 2019, Hong Kong police fired rubber bullets, pepper spray, and tear gas as tens of thousands of people surrounded the city's legislature in a bid to block a debate on a law allowing extradition to mainland China.

Crowds of mainly young people shouting "Withdraw the law!" and "No China renditions!" surrounded government headquarters and the Legislative Council, which was forced to postpone a debate on the government's changes to the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance.

Wielding umbrellas and wearing masks, protesters used metal road barriers to block off access to the LegCo chamber, charging past police in full riot gear to gain access to the street outside government headquarters in Admiralty district.

While the bill was eventually withdrawn months later, protesters had by then expanded their campaign to demand fully democratic elections in the city.

By 2020, China had imposed a national security law banning criticism of the authorities and criminalizing calls for Hong Kong to hold onto its promised freedoms, ushering in a crackdown on all forms of public dissent that continues today.

Translated with additional reporting by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2024, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Third foreign judge to quit Hong Kong's final appeal court

Canadian Beverley McLachlin will step down next month amid warnings of 'totalitarian' rule.

By Kit Sung for RFA Cantonese, Chen Zifei for RFA Mandarin 2024.06.12 -- Another foreign judge is departing Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal, the third to do so amid a broadening crackdown on dissent, as a former colleague said the city is becoming 'a totalitarian state.'

Canadian Judge Beverley McLachlin, who joined the court in 2018, has said she won't be staying on when her term as non-permanent judge of the Court of Final Appeal ends next month, she told journalists on June 10.

Last week, Jonathan Sumption and Lawrence Collins also resigned as non-permanent overseas judges in Hong Kong's Court of Final Appeal, with Collins citing "the political situation" in the city and Sumption penning an article saying judges are 'intimidated' by the emphasis on security.

The presence of foreign judges was widely seen as a bellwether for Hong Kong's ability to maintain itself as a separate, common law jurisdiction in the face of huge political pressure from the ruling Chinese Communist Party.

The exodus has come just a few weeks after Hong Kong passed a second security law, known as Article 23, that analysts say effectively imports the mainland Chinese concept of "national security," which includes cracking down on political dissent and criticism of the authorities, into the city's judicial system, which was once famed for its impartiality.

McLachlin, 80, said she will step down on July 29, when her term ends.

"It has been a privilege serving the people of Hong Kong," McLachlin said in a statement. "I continue to have confidence in the members of the court, their independence and their determination to uphold the rule of law."

'Totalitarian state'

Eight judges from the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada currently sit on the Court of Final Appeal, which replaced Britain's Privy Council as the city's highest judicial authority after the 1997 handover to Chinese rule. Usually, an appeal panel would include the chief justice, three Hong Kong judges and a non-permanent judge who could be a foreign national.

Jonathan Sumption warned on Monday that the freedom of judges to adjudicate has been "severely" limited by the use of two national security laws and some reactivated colonial-era legislation to clamp down on any public expression of dissent.

"Hong Kong, once a vibrant and politically diverse community, is slowly becoming a totalitarian state," Sumption wrote in a June 10 commentary in the Financial Times. "The rule of law is profoundly compromised in any area about which the government feels strongly."

"Intimidated or convinced by the darkening political mood, many judges have lost sight of their traditional role as defenders of the liberty of the subject, even when the law allows it," he wrote.

Sumption described the recent convictions of 14 prominent pro-democracy activists for subversion as "indefensible," given that their plan had been to use the Legislative Council to put pressure on the government in a way that is expressly permitted by the city's constitution, the Basic Law.

The convictions concluded a 118-day mass trial of pro-democracy politicians and activists for organizing a primary election in the summer of 2020.

Hong Kong returned to Chinese rule in 1997 amid promises that it would keep the freedoms that once ensured its status as an international financial hub.

The convictions were "symptomatic of a growing malaise in the Hong Kong judiciary," Sumption wrote, describing the majority of Hong Kong's judges as "honorable people with all the liberal instincts of the common law."

"But they have to operate in an impossible political environment created by China," he said, citing the "illiberal" national security legislation and the government's "paranoia" about the slightest expression of even peaceful political dissent.

He said the authorities had overreacted by legislating in the wake of the mass protests in 2019, and that "the ordinary laws of Hong Kong were perfectly adequate for dealing with them."

"It requires unusual courage for local judges to swim against such a strong political tide," he said, in a reference to the government's insistence on using national security to suppress dissent. "Unlike the overseas judges, they have nowhere else to go."

Sumption resigned last week alongside fellow non-permanent judge Lawrence Collins, with Collins citing "the political situation."

'Striking the right balance'

Hong Kong Chief Justice Andrew Cheung responded to the article by saying that "a tension often exists between protection of fundamental rights and safeguarding national security, both of which the Hong Kong Judiciary is firmly committed to doing."

"Striking the right balance in individual cases can be difficult and outcomes controversial at times," he said, but added: "It is one thing to disagree with a court's decision, but it is quite another to suggest that fundamental rights have been compromised because of political concerns."

Non-permanent Court of Final Appeal judges Robert Reed and Patrick Hodge stepped down in March 2022 citing the crackdown on dissent under the 2020 National Security Law.

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee on Tuesday said Hong Kong was "safer, and more stable," and that judges weren't qualified to comment on politics.

"A judge is entitled to his personal political preferences," Lee said. "But that is not a judge's area of professional expertise."

A judge ... may like a particular law or not, but his professional duty is to interpret and apply that particular piece of law in accordance with legal principles and evidence, ... not from his political stance," he said, adding that "people shouldn't confuse democracy with the rule of law."

He denied any political interference in Hong Kong's judicial affairs, although his predecessor Carrie Lam and Chinese officials have said the city doesn't enjoy the separation of powers as it is commonly understood in a democratic country.

Eric Lai, a research fellow at the Center for Asian Law at Georgetown University, said the guilty verdicts for the pro-democracy activists had likely forced the overseas judges to the realization that judicial independence in Hong Kong is a thing of the past.

"Lord Sumption has made it very clear that it's impossible for a lot of Hong Kong judges to carry on in the political atmosphere that exists under Chinese rule, and still hold true to liberal, common law principles," Lai said.

"It shows that it's impossible for Hong Kong to fully enjoy the rule of law under the national security laws," he said.

Tokyo-based human rights researcher Patrick Poon said John Lee was trying to explain the law to judges, which he said was ridiculous.

"Under the National Security Law, even commemorating the Tiananmen massacre is considered incitement to subversion," Poon said. "How can there be any fair legal process in such a context? There is no fundamental protection for human rights."

"All judges are allowed to do is help the government suppress dissent," he said.

Translated by Luisetta Mudie. Edited by Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2024, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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US doesn't want 'regime change' in China, diplomat says

Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said the fall of communism would be undesirable right now.

By Alex Willemyns for RFA 2024.06.12 -- The U.S. government does not seek "regime change" in China akin to the breakup of the Soviet Union in 1991, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said Wednesday at a forum in Washington.

Responding to a question about a recent article in Foreign Affairs penned by a high-profile former lawmaker and a former Trump administration official calling for the United States to adopt the goal of defeating communism in China, Campbell said he disagreed.

He told the forum at the Stimson Center that such an objective would be "reckless and likely unproductive" for U.S. interests amid multiple global crises that are already stretching Washington's capabilities.

"We need to accept China as a major player and [accept] that doing constructive diplomacy with them is in American strategic interests," Campbell said, listing the invasion of Ukraine, the Israel-Gaza conflict, famine in Africa and "challenges in the Red Sea" as priorities.

"The world is dangerous and unpredictable enough right now," he said. "I do not believe it is in our interest at the current juncture to add to our list: Let's try to topple the other leading power on the global stage."

The article was written April 10 by Mike Gallagher, a now former Republican lawmaker who chaired the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, and Matt Pottinger, who was former President Donald Trump's deputy national security advisor.

It argued the Biden administration's policy of "managing competition" with China was short-sighted and that Washington should return to a Cold War-style foreign policy aimed at "winning" the competition by removing a communist regime and replacing it with a democracy.

'Overestimated our ability'

Campbell was confirmed as the deputy U.S. secretary of state in February after serving since 2021 as Biden's chief Indo-Pacific foreign policy adviser on the White House's National Security Council.

He previously served as assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific affairs from 2009 to 2013 under then-Secretary of State Hillary Clinton during the Obama administration, and said his experience told him the world views U.S. efforts at "regime change" poorly.

Allies throughout Asia "would be highly critical of an effort to depart along this path" and could reconsider their support for America if regime change was the objective, the No. 2 U.S. diplomat said.

He also suggested it was not certain that a non-communist government in Beijing would adopt foreign policy positions any more palatable to Washington than those of the current Chinese government.

"For years we have overestimated our ability to fundamentally influence the direction of Chinese foreign policy," Campbell said, advocating for "a high degree of modesty of what we think is possible with respect to fundamental changes in how China sees the world."

The world's two major powers had to learn to live together, he added.

"Despite our differences, I do think, at the current juncture, it makes more sense to ... send clear signals of areas where we have red lines and concerns, but also to do what you can to coexist," he said.

Edited by Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2024, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Hong Kong activists passport cancellation underscores slide into authoritarianism

Hong Kong's status as a repressive regime is becoming more of a reality and transnational repression a norm.

A commentary by Megan Khoo 2024.06.12 -- Today I woke up in London to news that was inevitable under Hong Kong's new Safeguarding National Security Ordinance, or '"Article 23" - Hong Kong authorities have canceled the passports of six pro-democracy activists who live in exile in the UK.

Although predictable, this blatant act of transnational repression further demonstrates the deteriorating state of the rule of law in Hong Kong, which increasingly mirrors China and other authoritarian regimes.

Under Article 23, the Hong Kong Secretary for Security can consider an individual to be an "absconder" if they have an arrest warrant for six months and fail to appear before a magistrate, and if the secretary "reasonably believes" they are not in Hong Kong. Once an individual is declared to be an absconder, the security secretary can act accordingly, including by canceling the passports of alleged absconders.

In this case, which includes the first application of this specific provision in Article 23, the authorities have targeted Finn Lau, Simon Cheng, Christopher Mung, Nathan Law, Johnny Fok and Tony Choi. All were issued arrest warrants with US$128,035 bounties in July and December last year.

The authorities stated that they will strip these individuals of not only their passports but all business dealings in Hong Kong, including making it illegal for others to enter into a joint business venture with or to provide these individuals with funds.

The Hong Kong government issued a press release stating: "These lawless wanted criminals are hiding in the United Kingdom and continue to blatantly engage in activities that endanger national security. They also make scaremongering remarks to smear and slander the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. More so, they continue to collude with external forces to protect their evil deeds. We therefore have taken such measures to give them a strong blow."

Identity can't be canceled

This statement is totally off the mark, given that the alleged criminals are doing the opposite of hiding and what would generally be considered criminal, as they continue to advocate for freedoms which are guaranteed under international law in the UK.

In Britain, they have founded non-profit organizations related to Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement, engaged with local communities, and become beacons of hope for those who have faced persecution in Hong Kong.

In response to the canceling of his passport, Simon Cheng said, "The charges levied against us are unfounded and politically motivated, aimed at silencing dissent and curbing our efforts to advocate for democracy and human rights in Hong Kong. Our activities in the United Kingdom are centred on raising international awareness about the erosion of freedoms and the rule of law in Hong Kong, not on endangering national security."

Christopher Mung said, "The regime can cancel my passport, but it can never cancel my identity as a HongKonger. I will continue to fight for my beloved Hong Kong, which belongs to the people, not the dictatorship."

Notably, Finn Lau, who has never owned a Hong Kong passport, dismissed the regime's line of attack, noting the passport cancellation violated treaties pertaining to the former British colony..

"Such a deployment of Hong Kong Article 23 ordinance is an explicit act of transnational repression and another breach of the Sino-British Joint Declaration," said Lau. "I have to pinpoint that I hold a BNO (British National Overseas) passport only, and never apply for or own a Hong Kong SAR passport. It is ridiculous to cancel something that never exists."

It is also important to note that the "external forces" these individuals have engaged with include the non-profit organization I work for in the UK, Hong Kong Watch, as well as UK government officials.

More and more like China

This move by the Hong Kong authorities is similar to moves that have been made by Communist China.

For instance, China did not hold back from retaliating against the UK for launching the BNO passport - declaring in Jan. 2021 that it would not recognize the BNO passport for Hong Kong residents.

This declaration has led to tens of thousands of exiled Hong Kongers being denied access to up to US$3.8 billion worth of their Mandatory Provident Fund (MPF) retirement savings as their passport is not considered valid - piling transnational repression on top of transnational repression.

Beyond China and now Hong Kong, other authoritarian regimes cancel the passports of those who have fled from their twisted reign abroad. For example, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenka declared in 2023 that Belarus would not renew passports in overseas embassies to intentionally target those who fled Belarus after Lukashenko declared himself president for a sixth term in the fraudulent 2020 election.

Unfortunately, Belarus' malicious environment where human rights and the rule of law are disregarded sounds similar to the evolving rights landscape in Hong Kong. With the cancellation of the passports of six activists, Hong Kong's status as an authoritarian regime is only becoming more of a reality and transnational repression a norm.

Do businesses really want to continue to invest and expand into Hong Kong? Business is not as usual, and academics, advocates and journalists continue to scream this from the rooftops with minimal response.

The long arm of authorities

If companies are wary of doing business in China due to regulatory and transparency issues, they should also think twice before remaining in or courting Hong Kong, where exiled pro-democracy activists face the arbitrary cancellation of their passports nearly 6,000 miles away.

Governments should also think critically and carefully about how they engage with such a government while protecting those who have sought safe haven within their borders. This is particularly important in the UK, where in the middle of a general election, every political party that exists thanks to democracy should condemn Hong Kong's actions to demonstrate that they are serious about tackling transnational repression.

Finally, it is not lost on close observers that the passport cancellation took place on the fifth anniversary of a turning point in the 2019 anti-extradition protests in Hong Kong: the "6.12" Incident." June 12, 2019 marked the first time the Hong Kong Police Force used rubber bullets and tear gas against peaceful pro-democracy protesters.

Five years later, we are seeing yet another form of attack on peaceful pro-democracy protesters who are simply exercising their rights under international law in the UK, which is well outside the jurisdiction of Hong Kong.

The Hong Kong community in the UK, and the diaspora around the world, must know they are safe from the long arm of the Hong Kong authorities in every corner of the world. From Hong Kong to London, democracy cannot and must not be silenced.

Megan Khoo is a research and policy advisor at the international NGO Hong Kong Watch. Khoo, based in London, has served in communications roles at foreign policy non-profit organizations in London and Washington, D.C.. The views expressed here do not reflect the position of Radio Free Asia.

Copyright 1998-2024, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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Hong Kong cancels passports of six self-exiled democracy activists

By VOA News June 12, 2024

Hong Kong authorities have canceled the passports of six pro-democracy activists living in self-exile in Britain.

A statement issued Wednesday identified Nathan Law, Christopher Mung Siu-tat, Simon Cheng, Johnny Fok Ka-chi and Tony Choi Ming-da as "lawless wanted criminals hiding in the United Kingdom." The statement said the six "continue to blatantly engage in activities that endanger national security," including making remarks that slander Hong Kong.

The government also warned that anyone who provides money, leases property or co-owns a business with the six activists could face up to seven years in jail.

Nathan Law wrote on his Facebook page that the government's move was unnecessary since he was granted asylum in Britain in 2021.

The passports were canceled under a set of national security laws passed by the city's legislature in March under Article 23 of Hong Kong's Basic Law, the mini constitution that took effect when Britain handed the city back to China in 1997.

The new law covers treason, insurrection, espionage, theft of state secrets, foreign influence and interference, and sabotage, including the use of computers and electronic systems to conduct acts that endanger national security.

The Article 23 legislation goes further than a similar measure imposed on the port city by China four years ago in response to massive pro-democracy demonstrations a year earlier that left the city in turmoil. The law punished anyone in Hong Kong believed to be carrying out terrorism, separatism, subversion of state power or collusion with foreign forces.

Since the law took effect, hundreds of democracy advocates have been arrested, tried and jailed, and the city's once-vibrant civil society has been stifled.

Hong Kong offered rewards up to $128,000 last year for information that leads to the arrest of 13 pro-democracy activists, including the six identified in Wednesday's statement.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France-Presse.

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You cannot separate North Korea's human rights violations from the threat it poses to international peace and security: UK statement at the UN Security Council

Statement by UK Permanent Representative Ambassador Barbara Woodward at the UN Security Council meeting on North Korea.

12 June 2024

President, I thank the UN High Commissioner and the UN Special Rapporteur for their briefing, and I extend my thanks as well to Mr Kim Gumhyok for your courageous and moving testimony. It is evident that widespread and systematic human rights violations in the DPRK continue.

On the 10th anniversary of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in the DPRK, perpetrators remain largely unaccountable, and the North Korean people continue to suffer as we've heard so vividly from our briefers today.

As we've also heard, you cannot separate DPRK's human rights violations from the threat DPRK poses to international peace and security. The DPRK authorities continue to divert resources away from their people, to fund their illegal weapons programme. These illegal weapons are financed through forced labour, as we've heard, from the pay of workers sent overseas, often into modern slavery. I urge the DPRK to end these practices without delay. It is incumbent on all UN Member States to implement resolution 2397 in full, a resolution that was unanimously agreed by this Council, and includes obligations to end the exploitation of overseas workers.

We are witnessing forced repatriations, state-sponsored abductions, and enforced disappearances. The United Kingdom also recognises the suffering of other nationals who have been abducted by the DPRK and we call for their return.

I also echo the call of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and urge all member states to respect the principles of non-refoulement and to not forcibly return those who have escaped the DPRK and then face threats to their safety and human rights.

The 2014 UN Commission of Inquiry Report concluded wide-ranging human rights violations taking place in the country may amount to "crimes against humanity." Ten years on, the DPRK regime continues to refuse to cooperate with the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights or with the UN Special Rapporteur.

Colleagues, we urge the DPRK Government to prioritise the rights of its citizens over the illegal development of its weapons programmes and encourage them to ease border restrictions on the international community.

The UK urges the DPRK to use their upcoming Universal Periodic Review to engage with the international community on human rights and implement lasting change and improvements for the people of North Korea.

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North Koreans face lives devoid of hope, UN rights chief says

By Margaret Besheer June 12, 2024

The U.N. high commissioner for human rights delivered a bleak assessment of the situation in North Korea on Wednesday, a decade after an in-depth report shed light on severe and widespread abuses in the country.

"Today, the DPRK is a country sealed off from the world," Volker TArk told a special briefing of the U.N. Security Council that North Korea's ambassador did not attend. "A stifling, claustrophobic environment, where life is a daily struggle devoid of hope."

DPRK is the abbreviation for North Korea's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

TArk expressed concern about the regime's tight control over the movements of its citizens, including the ability to leave the country. Most North Koreans cannot obtain the required government permission to leave, and those who attempt to escape face torture, labor camps or death if they fail.

"Leaving your own country is not a crime - on the contrary, it is a human right, recognized by international law," he said by video from his office in Geneva.

He said repression of the freedom of expression has also worsened with the enforcement of laws forbidding people from consuming foreign media or culture, such as South Korean television dramas or K-pop music.

"Put simply, people in the DPRK are at risk of death for merely watching or sharing a foreign television series," the human rights chief said.

He urged Pyongyang to halt the use of the death penalty throughout its legal system and move toward its complete abolition.

Perhaps even more worrying, is the situation of food security in North Korea.

"Every single person interviewed by my office has mentioned this in one form or another," TArk said. "In the words of one: "It's very easy to become fragile and malnourished because there is nothing to eat."

The World Food Program says more than 40% of North Koreans, nearly 11 million people, are undernourished. Many suffer from chronic malnutrition because of a lack of essential nutrients, especially those living outside major cities. Children are particularly affected, with 18% suffering stunting and impaired development because of chronic malnutrition.

The high commissioner also expressed concern about Pyongyang's use of forced labor, including overseas. He noted that workers they have interviewed described often performing work that is physically dangerous and they endured extreme levels of surveillance.

Western nations accuse North Korea of using these laborers' wages to help fund their illicit nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs.

TArk said there have been some recent "positive signs" from North Korea in their engagement with the international human rights system, but he did not explain what that included.

Defector speaks

Gumhyok Kim, 33, grew up in privilege in North Korea. His family were Kim regime loyalists and so in 2010, he was able to leave the country and study in Beijing.

"At the age of 19, I saw a world for the first time that was different from everything I had learned," he told the council. "In particular, the internet enabled me to learn about my country's history and realize the horrific truth of North Korea that had been hidden from me."

He said his feeling of loyalty to the Kim family that has ruled North Korea for three generations quickly turned to one of betrayal, and he began to connect with other North Korean students in Beijing to discuss the situation.

In the winter of 2011, the North Korean authorities discovered their activities, and he fled China to South Korea to avoid arrest.

"I survived and found freedom. But that freedom had come at a great cost," he said. "It has already been 12 years since I defected, but I still have no contact with my family."

He appealed directly to North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un, saying nuclear weapons and repression are not the way to maintain leadership.

"Allow North Koreans to live in freedom. Allow them their basic rights so they can live full and happy lives," Kim said. "Turn away from the nuclear weapons threat and return your country to the family of nations so all North Korean people may lead prosperous lives."

Kim and his South Korean-born wife chronicle their married life on YouTube, where they show what life is like in Seoul. He said he is now a father to a 1-year-old, and he hopes one day to take his son to a changed North Korea.

Council inaction

The U.N. Security Council is divided over the situation in North Korea. The last time its 15 members agreed on sanctions for the regime's nuclear and ballistic missile activity was in 2017. Since then, the geopolitical landscape has changed, the council has become more fractured, and action on the North Korean file has become more difficult.

Both China and Russia objected to Wednesday's human rights briefing, saying such issues do not belong in the Security Council. Russia called for a procedural vote, but lost, as only China joined it in voting against holding the meeting and 12 council members supported it. Mozambique abstained. There are no vetoes in procedural votes.

"The efforts by both Russia and China to block this meeting today is another effort to support the DPRK, and is also emboldening their actions," U.S. Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield said.

Venezuela's envoy made a statement to reporters outside the council during the meeting on behalf of the "Group of Friends in Defense of Charter of the United Nations," rejecting the convening of a human rights-specific council meeting. The group of 18 like-minded countries includes Russia, China, North Korea, Belarus, Iran, Cuba and Syria.

The council meeting was requested by the United States and Britain, along with Japan and South Korea, who both currently hold non-permanent council seats.

"The DPRK nuclear and human rights issues are like two sides of the same coin, and thus, need to be addressed comprehensively," South Korean Ambassador JoonKook Hwang said.

He urged the council to regularly address the human rights situation. Until last August, the last time the council discussed North Korea's human rights situation also was in 2017.

A 2014 Commission of Inquiry report found that North Korea's rights violations had risen to the level of crimes against humanity. The panel said the regime had used "extermination, murder, enslavement, torture, imprisonment, rape, forced abortions and other sexual violence, persecution on political, religious, racial and gender grounds, the forcible transfer of populations, the enforced disappearance of persons and the inhumane act of knowingly causing prolonged starvation."

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Transcript of Special Briefing by Foreign Secretary on Visit of Prime Minister to Italy for G7 Summit (June 12, 2024)

India - Ministry of External Affairs

June 12, 2024

Shri Randhir Jaiswal, Official Spokesperson: Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen. Welcome to this Special Briefing by Foreign Secretary, Shri Vinay Kwatra on the upcoming visit of the Prime Minister to G7 in Italy. On the dais, we are also joined by our Joint Secretary who looks after Europe West, Shri Piyush Srivastava; and Joint Secretary who looks after Multilateral Economic Relations, Shri Abhishek Singh. With that, Sir, I hand over the floor to you.

Shri Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary: Thank you very much and thank you, friends from the media, very good afternoon and thank you for coming here this afternoon for this Special Briefing on Honorable Prime Minister's upcoming visit to Italy for the G7 Summit in Apulia, Italy. At the invitation of Honorable Prime Minister of Italy, Honorable Prime Minister Modi ji will be travelling to Apulia, Italy tomorrow to participate in the 50th G7 Summit, which is to be held there on 14th of June, that's the day after tomorrow, where India has been invited as an Outreach Country. The visit assumes a significance as this will be Honorable Prime Minister's first overseas travel after assuming office in his third consecutive term. It will also afford him an opportunity to engage with other world leaders present at the G7 Summit on issues of importance to India, as also to the Global South. This will be India's 11th participation in G7 Summit and Prime Minister Modi's fifth consecutive participation at the G7 Summit.

On 14th of June, that is the main day for the G7 Outreach Summit, Prime Minister will participate in the Outreach Session along with the other countries invited for the Outreach Summit. At this Session, the focus would be on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean. It will be a bloc agenda item where the G7 and the Outreach Countries would share their views and perspective. India's regular participation at the G7 Summit clearly points to increasing recognition and contribution of the efforts that India has been consistently making in trying to resolve global challenges, including those of peace, security, development, and environment preservation. India's participation at this G7 Summit acquires particular salience in context of India's recently held, not so recent, presidency of the G20, where India took a leading role in building global consensus on a number of contentious issues. As you are also aware, India has so far organized two sessions of the Voice of the Global South Summit, which have been aimed at bringing the interests, priorities, and concerns of the Global South on the global stage. At G7 also, we have always brought the issues of Global South to the forefront.

The G7 Summit under Italian presidency has chosen some key priorities for the current year. In broad terms, these are; first, conflict in Russia-Ukraine, Middle-East, with its consequences for the global agenda; secondly, relationship with developing nations and emerging economies with focus on Africa and the Indo-Pacific region; third, migration, together with climate energy linkages and food security; and last but not least, the artificial intelligence. Prime Minister's participation in the G7 Summit would also provide a timely opportunity to follow up on outcomes of the G20 Summit, held under India's presidency last year, and deliberate on issues which are significant for the Global South.

On the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Italy, Prime Minister is also expected to hold bilateral meetings and discussions with the leaders of the G7, as also the Outreach Countries and the international organizations. As per the information that we have, besides India, Italy as G7 presidency has also invited Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, Brazil is also a member of the G20 Troika, Egypt, Kenya, Mauritania, Mauritania also holds the African Union presidency, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, which is again G20 troika, Tunisia, Turkey, UAE, and some international organizations, including the United Nations.

Honorable Prime Minister is also expected to hold a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister of Italy. As you are all aware, the two Prime Ministers last met during the COP28 Summit in Abu Dhabi in December 2023. If I could take this opportunity to give a brief overview of India-Italy ties, because the exchanges between the two countries have been very intense in last one year, our ties are strong and multi-dimensional. As you are aware, the Prime Minister of Italy had visited India on a State visit in March last year. You would also recall that she was our Chief Guest at the Raisina Dialogue in March last year. She thereafter visited New Delhi for the G20 Summit. During her State visit, India-Italy relations were upgraded to Strategic Partnership with focus on defense, Indo-Pacific, energy, science and technology.

Italy is also India's fourth largest trading partner in the European Union, with bilateral trade currently standing at $15 billion. We have a large diaspora resident in Italy, close to 2,00,000. Italy is also a partner in several global initiatives launched by India, including the International Solar Alliance, Coalition for Disaster Resilient Infrastructure, Indo-Pacific Ocean Initiative, Global Biofuel Alliance, and India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, both of which were launched during the G20 Summit in India. In the meeting with the Prime Minister of Italy, the two Prime Ministers are expected to review the entire gamut of bilateral ties and give directions for next steps. Other bilateral meetings between Honorable Prime Minister and the other world leaders present at the G7 Summit are being scheduled. We will keep you posted as and when they concretize and the agenda therein.

I would stop here and be happy to take some questions. Thank you very much.

Shri Randhir Jaiswal, Official Spokesperson: We open the floor for questions and please be mindful that your questions should be focused on G7 Summit.

Manash: Foreign Secretary, this is Manash Pratim Bhuyan from PTI. The G7 is expected to focus largely on the conflict in Ukraine. Is India and Prime Minister Modi is expected to again reaffirm India's position and then kind of, articulate what India wants G7 to, you know, do to just defuse the crisis in Ukraine.

Nayanima: Nayanima from ABP Live. Just want to understand, I'm sure, Prime Minister Modi will also be asked what will be India's participation in the Global Peace Summit. What will be the response, if there is an update on that? Thank you.

Pranay: Foreign Secretary, Pranay Upadhyaya Zee News se. Mera sawal is chiz ko lekar hai ki Ukraine ke Rashtrapati Volodymyr Zelenskyy ki bhi expected hain Italy ke andar, toh kya Ukraine ki taraf se Pradhan Mantri Modi se mulakat ka koi anurodh mila hai? Aur dusra, chunav jitne ke baad aur Bharat ke loktrantra ki is jeet ke baad mei ab jab Pradhan Mantri wahan par maujood honge toh kin muddon pe prathmikta ke sath Bharat apni baat wahan pe rakhega, agar aap Bharat ke focal points ko address kar sakain?

[Question in Hindi: Approximate translation] Foreign Secretary, Pranay Upadhyaya from Zee News. My question is regarding the fact that Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is also expected to be in Italy. So, has there been any request from Ukraine for a meeting with Prime Minister Modi? And secondly, after winning the election and with this victory of Indian democracy, when the Prime Minister will be present there, which issues will India prioritize to put there in its stance? If you can tell about the focal points of India?

Sidhant: Sir Sidhant from WION. My question was similar to what Pranay Sir asked. I mean, what will be the focus of Prime Minister at the Summit since this is his first visit abroad in the third term?

Parikshit: Foreign Secretary, you spoke about the importance of AI in the G7 agenda at this time. What kind of a framework or messaging on AI would the G7 come up with and what are we going to the G7 in Italy with our proposal on artificial intelligence?

Sahil: Foreign Secretary, I'm Sahil from ANI. What would be the issues of Global South that PM Modi likely to address in this year's G7 Summit?

Shri Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary: Thank you very much. Let me take the question relating to India's participation at the Peace Summit first because I'm making an assumption there could be other questions in the second round. So let me address them up and front. India will be participating at the Peace Summit which is to be held in Switzerland at an appropriate level. That consideration is currently going on in the system, and as and when we have a decision on the representative from India who will be participating, we'll be very happy to share it with you.

With regard to the question on Ukraine, India's position, what the G7 would focus on therein. As I mentioned to you in my opening remarks, during this Summit, while the G7 would focus on bloc sets of agenda in terms of their own discussions, the discussions that would be taken up in the Outreach part of the Summit would essentially focus on artificial intelligence, energy, and Mediterranean, as I mentioned to you. The other agenda items are essentially confined to the discussions only among the G7 countries. Those are not for the Outreach Summit. Having said that, it is quite natural that in the bilateral sideline discussions, conversations, the meetings that the honorable Prime Minister will have, it is to be expected that the ongoing developments across the world of significance will come up for discussion. Naturally, Russia-Ukraine conflict is one of them. And like we have done always in the past at such international gatherings, we would be sharing our perspective, which is well known. We have always maintained that the dialogue and diplomacy is the best option. You would recall Prime Minister's own statement on this that today is not an era of war, which found widespread appreciation and recognition.

As far as the impact of war is concerned, right from the time that it started, in terms of the derivative impact on food, fuel, and fertilizer availability, the challenges that it caused to the supply chain globally, and caused disruptions in the global economy, we have always been in the forefront to talk about not just the conflict, the need for dialogue and diplomacy, but also the way the conflict has impacted on the priorities and interests of the developing countries, such as the one... some of which I highlighted. We have always, at the same time, also been in the forefront to come forward and offer assistance, wherever we can, to alleviate some of these challenges, which the countries of Global South have faced because of the conflict. India has also provided humanitarian assistance to Ukraine, as also to countries of the Global South, at least in those areas, and some of those areas which have been impacted by the Russia-Ukraine conflict. So I think on Russia-Ukraine, this would be a continuous sharing of our perspective with the world leaders on the sidelines, and continue to emphasize and underline the importance of dialogue and diplomacy to address that situation.

With regard to the question specific, Pranay, with regard to President Zelenskyy's meeting, as I mentioned to you right up in the beginning, Prime Minister's bilateral schedule of meetings is still in works. It's work under progress, and as and when those bilateral meetings are finalized, we'll be happy to share with you.

I'll combine the other three segments of question into one.

Aapne prashn kiya Pranay ji ke chunav jitne ke baad kin muddon pe jo hai Pradhan Mantri ji ki prathmikta is manch pe rahegi.

[Answer in Hindi: Approximate translation] Pranay, you asked, after winning the election, on which issues will Prime Minister prioritize at this platform.

Sidhant, your question is a repeat, which is, what would Prime Minister focus on, and the question relating to what are our proposals going to be on the artificial intelligence. What I would say there is that... look, I mentioned to you the bloc topic on which the Prime Minister will be speaking at the Outreach Session. I don't think it would be fair for me to prejudge what the proposals, the ideas, the thought stream that the Honorable Prime Minister will put before the Outreach Session in terms of not just India's perspective, but also how many of these subjects directly linked to and are of great relevance to the countries of the Global South in terms of the relevance that they hold for them, in terms of how they fit into their developmental priorities, etc. But, I think we can make an assumption here, of course we'll wait for Prime Minister's address to come out, that Prime Minister would be addressing most of this bloc topic from the framework of naturally India's own developmental worldview, how that developmental worldview has a synergetic, and I would say in a way, a catalytic role for other countries of the Global South, and how it fits into their priorities also. But I don't think it would be really fair for me at this stage to prejudge in any way what Honorable Prime Minister's projection of priorities and proposals will be at this Session.

Huma: Sir, I am Huma Siddiqui from the Financial Express. You said that there will be a bilateral with the Italian Prime Minister and defence could be a focus there. Can you share more details about that?

Shri Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary: What I said was that in their bilateral meetings, the two Prime Ministers are expected to review the Strategic Partnership and its various elements, and one of the Strategic Partnership elements is defence, but that's not the only element. There are other elements of bilateral engagement that would be reviewed by the two Prime Ministers.

Suhasini: Foreign Secretary, its Wednesday, so if you could give us a little more clarity when you say India will attend the Swiss Summit at the appropriate level. The invitation is for the Prime Minister, so would it be the Prime Minister or not? And my second question is, is India requesting or has Ottawa requested a bilateral meeting between Prime Minister Modi and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, if there is any clarity on that? Thank you.

Shri Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary: With regard to your first question Suhasini, I would only repeat that we will let you know once the consideration on the level of India's presence at the Peace Summit is finalized. With regard to any other bilateral meetings that are in the pipeline, once they are finalized, we will be very happy to share with you the details of those.

Sanjib: Foreign Secretary I am Sanjib Baruah from The Week. On the agenda, as you have mentioned, are the conflicts of Russia-Ukraine and West Asia, is the Myanmar conflict also part of the agenda? Because this has been a bone of prime contention even in the ASEAN Bloc and there has been a direct fallout on India and South Asia.

Shri Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary: Look, I totally agree with you on the last part of your remark, which is that the developments in Myanmar do directly impact on India. But insofar as its presence in the G7 discussion is concerned, the Summit agenda for G7 is fixed by the G7 and particularly the host country. And I have already listed out to you the Bloc items which the G7 host country has prioritized for discussion, both among the G7 countries but as also for the Outreach Summit.

Sridhar: Sir, you have confirmed that we are participating in the Peace Summit. We have seen reports that China is staying away. So, is that a consideration that Russia may not take too kindly to other countries participating maybe at the top level? And we have seen also that Indians are also getting killed in this conflict. We issued a rare warning to Russia last night. So, given all these factors, is Russia a factor in deciding at what level we will participate? Thank you.

Shri Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary: Look, there are many variables that go into consideration while formulating a decision on this. All I would say is, and I would repeat, sorry to do that, but we will let you know once the level of our representation at this Summit is finalized.

Manish: Sir, main Manish Jha hoon TV9 Bharatvarsh se. President Biden Italy mei rahenge, abhi jab chunav hamare yahan ho raha tha, toh India ne US par ye bhi kaha tha, narajagi jatate hue ki US India mei elections ko influence karne ki koshish kar raha hai. Toh waisi stithi mei kya President Biden ko batane ke liye kya India ne tay kiya hai ki bilateral, kyuki bilateral jab hoga tab aap batayenge hi, ki kya hamari ichchha hai ki hum bataye unko ki hamne kyu aisa kaha tha, ki US kyun, elections mei interfere na kare ya phir US ki taraf se koi clarification dene ke liya India ko approach kiya gaya hai?

[Question in Hindi: Approximate translation] Sir, I am Manish Jha from TV9 Bharatvarsh. President Biden will be in Italy. Recently, during our elections, India expressed displeasure, saying that the US was trying to influence the elections in India. In such a situation, has India decided what to communicate to President Biden? Because when the bilateral talks are confirmed, you will inform us. Is it our intention to explain to him why we said that the US should not interfere in our elections, or has the US approached India to give any clarification?

Shri Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary: Dekhiye jo Bharat-US sambandhon ka jahan tak prashna hai, saamrik sambandh hain, vyapak sambandh hain, inki vyapakta har kshetra mei sammilit hain, maujood hain toh uske bare mei jahan tak Bharat-US sambandhon ka prashna hai, uski vyapakta ke bare mei kisi ko kisi bhi prakar ki koi sandeh nahi hona chahiye. Jahan tak do shirsh netaon ke beech mei varta ki baat hai, meeting ki baat hai, yadi woh meeting hoti hai, toh usmai varta ke kya vishay honge, unki baat hai, toh woh jab ek baar varta ho jati hai, toh uske baad uske agenda ke jo details hain, jo uski spasht jankari woh hum aapse share kar payenge.

[Answer in Hindi: Approximate translation] Look, as far as India-US relations are concerned, there are strategic relations and extensive relations that encompass every field. So, as far as the extent of India-US relations is concerned, there should be no doubt of any kind in anyone's mind. Regarding the discussion or meeting between the two top leaders, if such a meeting takes place, what will be the topics of discussion; once the meeting is confirmed, we will be able to share the clear details of its agenda with you.

Sudhi: Sir Sudhi Ranjan from Bloomberg, Sir. Yesterday night, we have seen a statement from Canada, and Justin Trudeau in particular, talking about right wing governments and their rise across the world. Considering that India has just had its election, is there a comment that India has? And I would reiterate or associate myself with Suhasini's question, has Canada asked for bilateral or India considering a bilateral?

Abhishek: Hi, Sir, Abhishek Jha from CNN News 18. My question is regarding reports that the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Italy has been desecrated. And the same statue was apparently scheduled for inauguration when Prime Minister Modi would have been there. So do you have any comment on that? And will Prime Minister Modi be also raising the issue of Khalistan's presence, or Khalisani protesters' presence in Italy?

Ashish: Good evening, Sir. This is Ashish from ABP News. Sir, the Session you mentioned on 14th is the only G7 related activity PM is participating in, or there are a few more? Second, could you help us understand how much time is Prime Minister spending for the entire G7 Summit, like in and out, day or hours-wise, if you can?

Akshay: Hi Sir, Akshay Dongare from DD India. Sir, recently we have seen repeated terrorist incidents in Jammu and Kashmir and other areas as well. So when India is... be it at the G7 Summit or the Swiss Peace Summit, at what level is India going to raise this issue as well in relation to our internal security?

Jaiprakash: Sir main Jaiprakash hoon Dainik Jagran se. Sir, 11 varshon se Bharat participate kar raha hai, aur PM Modi ka bhi ye fifth chance hai wahan G7 me jane ka. Aap summarize kar sakte hain Sir ki India ko G7 mei ja kar kuch mila hai, ya kya humain benefit hua hai, ya kis tarah se hum dekhte hain?

[Question in Hindi: Approximate translation] Sir, I am Jaiprakash from Dainik Jagran. Sir, India has been participating for eleven years, and this is also Prime Minister Modi's fifth opportunity to go in G7. Can you summarize, Sir, what India has gained from participating in the G7, or what benefits we have received? How do we view this?

Sanjeev: Sir, halanki ye multilateral Summit hai, lekin aisa...

[Question in Hindi: Approximate translation] Sir, though it is a multilateral Summit, but...

Shri Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary: Can I get your name please?

Sanjeev: Mera naam Sanjeev Trivedi hain. Main News24 se hoon. Aise me jab ki Bharat ek multilateral Summit mei bhag lene ja raha hai, ek prashn hai samne logon ke, woh ye hai ki hamare kai Bhartiya tourist visa le kar ke chale ja rahe hain yudha kshtra mei, Russia aur Ukraine ke aur khabarain bhi di gayi hain Videsh Mantralaya ki taraf se ki 2 log maare gaye hain. Abhi bhi bahut se aise log hain jo wahan pahuche hain, aur yudha kshetra mei hain, toh kya koi aisa mauka aa sakta hai jab is vishay ko jo sambaddh log hain unse charcha karne ka avsar Pradhan Mantri ko mile?

[Question in Hindi: Approximate translation] My name is Sanjeev Trivedi. I am from News24. Sir, at a time when India is going to participate in a multilateral Summit, there is a question among the people regarding many Indians who are traveling to the war zone in Russia and Ukraine on tourist visas. There have been reports from the Ministry of External Affairs that 2 people have been killed. There are still many people who have gone there and are in the war zone. So, could there be an opportunity for the Prime Minister to discuss this issue with the relevant authorities?

Shri Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary: Main aap hi ke prashna se shuru karta hoon kyu ki is prashna ki kahin na kahin rooprekha ek do baki prashno mei bhi hai. Dekhiye jo ki aapne kaha ki sambandhit logon se iske baare mei varta ho sake, main aapke sangyan mei ye lana chahunga ki jahan tak is vishay ka mukhya prashna hai, hum ispe vaarta lagatar, pahle din se hi aur kafi vyapak roop se jo hai Russian adhikariyon se, Russian vyavastha se, Russian netritva se aur unke jo system ke jo baaki bhaag hain, unse karte aaye hain. Hamare vyapak jo prayas rahe hain Bhartiyon ko surkashit rakhne ke, uska ye ek bhaag hai jismei humne Russian officials ko ye spasht roop se kaha hai ki jo bhi Bhartiya yudha kshtra mei, kis prakar se aaye hain, kaise aaye hain, wo alag baat hain, unki wapsi ki jaye.

Dusra jahan jahan humain iske bare mei jankari mili hai, kis tarah se unki recruitment hoti hai, kis tarah se unko wahan pe bheja jata hai, toh jo bhi domestic agencies hain unke sath milke is prakar ki avaidh recruitment ko roka jaaye uspe bhi prayas kiye gaye hain. Toh ye kehna ki ispe hum sambandhit logon se varta kar sake, toh ye varta pahle din se hi chal rahi hai, toh iske bare mei main aapko nishchint karana chahta hoon ki Bharat sarkar ne is mudde ko bahut gambhirta se liya hai, har prakar ki. Jab jab ye jankari hamare sangyan mei layi gayi hai ki falana Bhartiya is samay yudha kshtra mei hai, us jankari pe turant karyawahi ki gayi hai, pariwar se sampark kiya gaya hai, woh vyakti wahan pahucha kaise, uska sangyan liya gaya hai. Russian adhikariyon se baat ki gayi hai ki ye vyakti hai, humain ye jankari mili hai, kripya kar ke isko batayain. Aur ye hamare prayas bilkul shashakt roop se aage chalte rahenge.

[Answer in Hindi: Approximate translation] I will start with your question because it somewhat overlaps with a couple of other questions. Look, as you mentioned about discussing this matter with the relevant authorities, I would like to bring to your attention that, as far as this issue is concerned, we have been in continuous and extensive discussions with Russian officials, Russian system, Russian leadership, and other parts of their system from day one. Our extensive efforts to keep Indians safe include conveying to Russian officials clearly that Indians who are in the war zone, regardless of how they have reached there, they should be brought back.

Secondly, wherever we have received information about how their recruitment happens and how they are sent there, efforts have been made in collaboration with domestic agencies to stop such illegal recruitment. So, to say that we could discuss this with the relevant authorities, these discussions have been ongoing since day one. I want to assure you that the Government of India has taken this issue very seriously. Whenever we have received information that a particular Indian is currently in the war zone, immediate action has been taken on that information. Contact has been made with the family, how the individual reached there has been ascertained, and discussions have been held with Russian officials to share information with them about the individual. Our efforts in this regard will be continued with strength.

Sudhi, your question on Canada, look, you yourself mentioned we have just concluded our general elections. I am sure everybody in the room would agree this was the largest democratic exercise in the history of humankind. Over 640 million-odd people voted here and I think the vibrancy of India's democracy was truly recognized and appreciated across the world. I really don't want to say anything on what somebody else thinks how the democracy should function, but our democracy was in full display with enormous evidence to be seen. But insofar as Canada is concerned, I think the main issue with regard to Canada continues to be the political space that Canada provides to anti-India elements which advocate extremism and violence, and we have repeatedly conveyed our deep concerns to them and we expect them to take strong action. Since you have associated yourself to the previous question, I'll associate myself to the same answer which I gave you, that as and when the schedule is finalized, we'll be very happy to share it with you.

We have the question relating to the vandalization of the statue of Mahatma Gandhi. We have seen the reports of that and we have taken it up with the Italian authorities. We understand that suitable rectification has already taken place. You mentioned that this is scheduled to be unveiled by the Prime Minister, I think Ashish, you mentioned that in your question. Well, perhaps you have a better insight into the schedule and all that, but according to our information, the effort to vandalize the statue which is of course deplorable has been addressed and the necessary rectification has taken place.

I would have to request Doordarshan India to repeat that question. I didn't quite get it.

Akshay: The question was about the repeated terrorist incidents that we are witnessing in Jammu and Kashmir and other areas.

Shri Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary: Look, insofar as the issue of terrorism is concerned and the nature of cross-border terrorism that India faces, I'm sure that in terms of the challenges that such instances pose to the general peace and stability in the region, they would suitably figure in Prime Minister's bilateral conversation as and when it is necessary depending upon the agenda of bilateral discussions.

I think there was a question here on ke G7 mei jo hai hum itne saalon se bhaag le rahe hain, 11 bar Bharat ke netritva ne G7 ki varta se jude hain, unmei sammillit hue hain, iske kya benefit hain, dekhiye jaise ki maine apni prarambhik tippani mei bhi kaha 2019 se lagatar Pradhan Mantri Modi ji G7 shikar sammelan mei bhaag le rahe hain, ye panchvi baar hai ki woh is shikhar sammelan mei bhaag lenge. G7 shikhar sammelan jaisa ki maine apni tippani mei bhi kaha vaishvik sandarbh ke, vaishvik paripekshya ke mukhya muddon par kendtrit hota hai. Maine aapse 5-6 jo mukhya vishyay hain jo ki is baar ki G7 shikhar sammelan ke bhaag honge unka jikar aapke samne kiya.

Aap agar pichli G7 shikhar vartaon ke bhi vishay dekhenge toh aap payenge ki woh us samay ke tatkalin vaishvik paripekshya mei kaun se mudde, kaun se vishay mahatwapurna hain, prasangik hain unpar woh kendrit hote hain. Aise sammelan mei bhaag lena ek bahut hi mahatwapurna vishay hai, G7 shikhar sammelan pe Bharat ki in vishayon par kya soch hain, in vishayon par kya paripekshya hai, in vishayon ka Bharat ki development se kya sambandh hai, kis prakar se ye vishay vaishvik paripekshya mei aur vaishvik development mei ek prakar se mahavtwapurna hain, in sab vishayon pe Bharat ka paripekshya na kewal G7 shikhar sammelan mei, apitu G7 shikhar sammelan ke dwara pure vishwa tak pahuchna bahut mahatwapurna hai.

Dusra har G7 shikhar sammelan mein jo baki desh bhaag lete hain unka jo particiation hai, woh badalta rehta hai, lekin G7 shikhar sammelan ke sidelines pe vaishwik netaon se milna, unke baare mei dwipakshiya sambandon ke sahyog, vikas, sehkarya ke upar kendtrit hona, in dwipakshiya vartaon dwara Bharat ke jo arthik, takniki, aur investment kshetron mei sambandh hain unko viksit karna, vaishwik muddon par aur kshetriya muddon par bhi Bharat ki kya soch hai, kya neeti hai, kya vichardhara hai, unko unke samne rakhna, unke bhi vichar sunna aur kuch muddon pe kis prakar se vaishwik developments jo hai Global South ko impact karti hai, unki bhi ek prakar se soch unke samne prakat karna.

G20 shikhar sammelan mei jo ki declaration tha Bharat ka woh bhi ek prakar se dekha jaye toh isi prakriya ka ek ang hai, halaki woh G7 shikhar varta nahi thi kintu G7 shikhar varta mei Bharat ke G20 presidency ki jo uplabdhiya rahi hain, uska bhi jikar hona swabhawik hai. Woh bhi apne aap mei ek mahatwapurna cheez hai. Toh ek prakar se kahun toh G7 mei bhaag lena, sammilit hona, samuhik roop se dekha jaye toh aarthik developmental, political, economic space aur global development ke jo issues hain uspe Bhartiya paripekshya, bhartiya neeti, bhartiya soch aur uske roop se kafi mahatwapurna hai aur naturally jo baki ecosystems, spectrum of participation mei jo meetings hoti hain, unki jo uplabdhiyan hain woh apne aap mei mahatwapurna hain. Thank you. Thank you very much.

[Answer in Hindi: Approximate translation] I think there was a question here about the benefits of India's participation in the G7 over the years. India's leadership has been involved in G7 discussions 11 times. As I mentioned in my initial remarks, since 2019, Prime Minister Modi has been participating in the G7 Summit, and this will be the fifth time he will attend the Summit. The G7 summit, as I mentioned in my remarks, focuses on key issues of global contexts. I have outlined 5-6 main topics that will be part of this year's G7 Summit.

If you look at the topics of previous G7 Summits discussions, you will find that they focus on the issues and subjects that are important and relevant in the then global context. Participating in such Summits is very significant. It is crucial for India to share its thoughts and perspectives on these topics, and to explain how these issues are related to India's development, and to articulate how these issues are important in the global context and for global development. Sharing India's perspectives on these issues not only within the G7 summit but also through the G7 summit to the entire world is very important.

Further, the participation of other countries in each G7 Summit varies, but meeting with global leaders on the sidelines of the G7 Summit, focusing on bilateral relations, cooperation, development, and collaboration is important, as also developing India's economic, technological, and investment sectors relations through these bilateral discussions, and presenting India's thoughts, policies, and ideologies on global issues and regional matters to them. It also involves listening to their perspectives and presenting our perspective on how global developments on some issues impact the Global South.

If we look at the G20 Summit declaration in India, it is also a part of the same process. Although it was not a part of the G7 Summit, but mentioning India's achievements during its G20 presidency in the G7 Summit discussions is also natural. It is also an important aspect in itself. So, to say it in a way, participating in the G7 Summit, being included in it, if viewed in a collective context, Indian perspectives, policies, thinking on economic, developmental, political, economic space, and global development issues are quite significant. Naturally, the achievements of the other ecosystems and spectrum of participation in the meetings are important in themselves. Thank you. Thank you very much.

Shri Randhir Jaiswal, Official Spokesperson: So with that Sir, thank you so much. With that ladies and gentleman we will come to the end of this Press engagement. We will continue with our conversation outside and please do follow us on the digital medium to get to know more on the visit. Thank you.

Shri Vinay Kwatra, Foreign Secretary: Thank you.

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'Iran, Russia determined to strengthen ties'

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 12, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- Iran's Acting Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani has said that the Islamic Republic and Russia are determined to further expand their mutual cooperation in the wake of what he called common threats.

In an interview with Russian RIA Novosti news agency, the Iranian diplomat described relations between the two countries as historical, which have been expanded in different fields over the past years.

"The important point is that common threats have presented the two countries with common opportunities, and based on this, both countries have a strong determination to develop cooperation in various fields", he said in the interview conducted on the sidelines of a BRICS ministerial meeting held on Monday and Tuesday in Russia.

Therefore, Bagheri Kani added, the growing trend of Iran-Russia cooperation shows that leaders of the two countries have a strong determination to strengthen their relations and use all the opportunities to benefit their nations, according to the Persian translation of the interview published on the official Telegram page of the Iranian foreign ministry spokesman on Wednesday.

Taking a question on whether Iran would remain in BRICS after it elects a new president later this month, Bagheri Kani said that the Islamic Republic's membership in the bloc of emerging economies is based on a "strategic wisdom" as the country seeks to use all capacities to protect its national interests.

"Iran's membership in BRICS comes from a strategic wisdom in foreign policy of the Islamic Republic. Iran, as a regional power, will definitely use all its capacities to secure its national interests as well as guarantee stability and security in the region."

He added that BRICS and Shanghai Cooperation Organization, as two international bodies promoting multilateralism, provide Iran with the tools it can use to further secure its interests along with like-minded countries.

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Mark Farrell answers a question Wednesday during a debate among the top five S.F. mayors race candidates at the Sydney Goldstein Theater in San Francisco. The five candidates are, from left, Ahsha Safai, Farrell, Daniel Lurie, Mayor London Breed and Aaron Peskin. Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

San Franciscos leading mayoral candidates had their inaugural debate of the election season Wednesday as the major contenders tried to defend their records and their visions for how to lead the city for the next four years.

While the candidates have spoken jointly to union members and recently participated in a town hall hosted by a local Democratic club, Wednesdays event was the first time all five challenged each other in a traditional public debate attended by hundreds of people, with more watching online. A handful of protesters briefly disrupted the event to decry cuts included in Breeds recent city budget proposal before they were escorted out of the theater amid boos from the audience.



The event was hosted by City Arts & Lectures and moderated by New York Times reporter Heather Knight, a former Chronicle columnist, as well as Manny Yekutiel, the owner of the Mission District civic engagement space Mannys. A previous debate was canceled after three candidates declined to participate partly over concerns that the organizer, the moderate advocacy group TogetherSF Action, was too closely linked to Farrell.

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Here are some highlights from Wednesdays debate:



Breed says shes turning the city around  her opponents say its not enough

Mayor London Breed speaks as Daniel Lurie listens during a debate Wednesday among the top five S.F. mayors race candidates at the Sydney Goldstein Theater in San Francisco. Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

Despite polls showing voters hold negative views about her and the direction of San Francisco, Breed has campaigned on a message of hope for the citys future. She has argued that shes improving the citys problems over drug markets, homelessness and other issues  and she reiterated that message at the debate. She talked about her efforts to steer the city out of the pandemic and tried to contrast her outlook on the city with that of her main opponents.



These guys have one thing in common: They want us to feel bad about San Francisco, Breed said. They want to take us backwards. They are working against San Francisco. Im the only one on this stage working for San Francisco.



Her challengers are promoting a different message. Farrell, a former appointed mayor and supervisor, said during the debate that the approach Breeds administration is taking to the fentanyl crisis is not working based on the record number of overdose deaths set twice in recent years. He called harm-reduction strategies deployed by the citys Public Health Department a failure.

Lurie cast by other candidates as too inexperienced; he pushes back

Candidate Daniel Lurie speaks Wednesday during a debate among the top five S.F. mayors race candidates at the Sydney Goldstein Theater in San Francisco. Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

Lurie, a nonprofit founder and Levi Strauss heir, has never run for public office or served in government before. While its one of the main selling points of his campaign  he argues San Francisco needs an outsider to break up the status quo  his opponents sought to paint him as someone too inexperienced to manage a city with a sprawling bureaucracy and budget thats set to hit $15.9 billion next fiscal year.



After Lurie blamed Farrell for not providing more money to the police department when he was the Board of Supervisors budget chair, Farrell was quick to hone in on Luries status as a political novice.



Daniel, this is where your inexperience shows, Farrell said before touting his work to grow police staffing levels. Safai, a city supervisor representing the Excelsior, struck a similar note when trying to downplay Luries ability to be effective in addressing the housing crisis.



Its easy to talk about things in theory, but if you havent been at the table with labor and the business community and working families and actually gone through the process, its all theoretical, Safai said.



Lurie seemed prepared to respond.



Theyre going to talk about experience all night long, and they have over 70 years of combined experience on this stage. Look at where its gotten us, he said to applause.



Peskin tries to counter his NIMBY reputation



Peskin, the Board of Supervisors president, has long faced withering criticism by pro-development housing advocates who say hes repeatedly blocked the construction of badly needed homes in the name of historic preservation.



He found himself retreading that ground Wednesday when he defended himself from a thinly veiled critique from Breed, who said she was trying to build denser housing along transit corridors in a way that protects neighborhood character but also provides an opportunity to build. Breed said San Franciscos housing policy had for too long been about trying to keep people out rather than keep them in.



Peskin talked about a proposal he recently introduced to provide more money for middle-class housing. He also contended that his record had been mischaracterized, even as he didnt shy away from his support for neighborhood preservation.





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Candidate Aaron Peskin answers a question as Mayor London Breed smiles during a debate Wednesday among the top five S.F. mayors race candidates at the Sydney Goldstein Theater in San Francisco. Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

I actually have the best record on housing that youve never heard of, he said. San Francisco needs, and I support, housing at every income level. We can build the housing we need, but we dont need to turn Ocean Beach into Miami Beach.

Possible ranked-choice alliance?



San Francisco elects its mayors under a ranked-choice system that allows voters to pick up to 10 candidates in order of preference. The candidates with the least number of votes are eliminated and their votes are redistributed to the voters next-highest preference until one person has a majority.



Some contenders have indicated theyre open to forming alliances in which theyd ask voters to rank them and another candidate in either order  one way that politicians have sought to use the ranked-choice system to their advantage in the past.



While the candidates werent explicitly asked about possible strategic alliances under the ranked-choice system, Yekutiel did ask the candidates whom they would pick if they had to vote for someone else on the debate stage. And he received some telling responses.



Safai said he was still focused on trying to win this race before naming Farrell or Peskin as possible alternatives he might vote for.



Farrell strongly shared the sentiment.



I respect Ahshas commitment to his family, I respect his service to San Francisco and I respect his connection and his commitment to the labor community here in San Francisco  these are values that we share and values I will bring to office, Farrell said.



Peskin, similarly, said politics was about collaborating and compromising and said he had done a lot of that with Supervisor Safai and some of that with Mayor Breed.

Candidate Ahsha Safai answers a question during a debate Wednesday among the top five S.F. mayors race candidates at the Sydney Goldstein Theater in San Francisco. Carlos Avila Gonzalez/The Chronicle

Lurie and Breed, meanwhile, werent ready to name anyone else theyd vote for.



Im focused on me, Lurie said before acknowledging the ranked-choice voting system but said he didnt know who else he might urge voters to support.



I havent made my decision yet, he said to jeers.



Breed sought to deflect the question with some humor.



Some of these guys up here have not been very nice to me, she said. Id probably look at some of the other candidates in the book for some other people who might be running for mayor, too.



But she left the door open when Yekutiel clarified whether she might support someone else on the stage.



It depends, Breed said. They still have time to make it up to me.
Iran court orders US to pay $2.88bn in damages for Ahvaz attack

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 12, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- An Iranian court has ordered the government and authorities of the United States to pay $2.88 billion as damages for the terror attack in the southwestern city of Ahvaz in 2018.

The terrorist attack that took place on September 22, 2018, in Ahvaz left 25 martyred and over 70 wounded.

Following the US moves to establish, reinforce, and spread terror groups such as Daesh (ISIS) and Al-Ahwaz, which made the attack, some 64 individuals from the families of the martyrs and the wounded of the terrorist incident filed a lawsuit in this regard.

Later on, Al-Ahwaz terrorist group claimed responsibility for the attack.

These ruthless mercenaries who open fire on women, children, and innocent people are affiliated with the same mendacious and hypocritical pretenders who are constantly speaking of human rights, Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei had said on the tragic incident.

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Iran welcomes Canadian court ruling on downed Ukrainian jet

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 12, 2024

Tehran, IRNA -- Iran's Deputy President for Legal Affairs Mohammad Dehghan says the Islamic Republic has welcomed the ruling of the Canadian court regarding a plane that was mistakenly shot down by Iranian military forces in Tehran on January 8, 2020, in the tension caused by the assassination of Iran's Lieutenant General Qassem Soleimani in Iraq by the US army.

Dehghan said on Wednesday that there are two cases on the downed Ukrainian jet.

International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) are taking the issue into consideration, he said.

The Ontario Superior Court of Justice said in a ruling issued on Tuesday that the Ukraine International Airlines (UIA) is legally responsible for paying damages to the families of 21 passengers killed aboard Flight PS752.

Dehghan said the ruling was "a good one", he added.

He went on to say that the judge has issued a fair ruling and the negligence of the Ukrainian airline has been proven to them.

Iran welcomes the Canadian court's ruling and this implies that the Islamic Republic has not directly made mistakes in this regard.

Iran will use this ruling in the ICJ and ICAO, the official further noted.

Justice Jasmine Akbarali ruled that the UIA had been negligent about the safety of its passengers because it had failed to have a proper assessment about the security situation in the region and risks of operating the flight out of Tehran on the day the tragedy happened.

The ruling said that hours before the UIA flight took off from Tehran, Iran had launched ballistic missile attacks on a US air base in Iraq in retaliation for the assassination a few days earlier of one of its top generals.

It said that the Ukrainian airline should have known that Tehran was waiting for a potential response from the US.

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No logic behind E3 anti-Iran resolution at IAEA: Russia

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Jun 12, 2024

London, IRNA -- Russia's ambassador and permanent representative to Vienna-based International Organizations calls unnecessary and illogical a resolution at the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) under the pretext of increasing Iran's cooperation with the agency.

According to IRNA's report on Tuesday, Mikhail Ulyanov said in an interview with Russia 24 channel: When an action is taken in the international sphere, the first question you naturally ask yourself and others is why? What does it mean? But in this case, we do not have a logical answer to these questions.

He added that Western countries - England, Germany and France - claim that they can no longer silently observe Iran's lack of active cooperation with the IAEA. But this issue has a history and everyone must have been convinced over the years that steps such as issuing a resolution or a statement against Iran will always be accompanied by a response from Tehran.

The Russian ambassador continued: "Until now, issuing such statements or resolutions has not helped to solve the problems. However, our Western and European partners continue on the same path".

The Russian diplomat also took a jab at Washington, saying the Americans treated the initiative put forth by European Troika coldly, but in the end they voted in favor of this resolution.

He criticized for issuing anti-Iran resolution while the country was still mourning the tragic demise of President and Foreign Minister and several others in a copter crash. "It is not humane that such a resolution is issued only a few days after mourning the death of the president and their foreign minister. The authors of this resolution did not have political and diplomatic considerations, and the general content of this resolution does not indicate intelligent diplomacy either".

In response to a question about the possible consequences of this resolution, Ulyanov said, "In the worst case, this may be referred to the UN Security Council", but added that Russia and China will not allow such a thing.

Regarding the IAEA inspections of Iran's nuclear activities, he also said that although the 2015 landmark deal known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) is not fully implemented, the amount of verification and supervision by the agency in Iran is constantly increasing and Iran is one of the countries where the most inspections are carried out.

The resolution proposed by Britain, France and Germany, together known as E3 or Troika against Iran's peaceful nuclear program was approved by the IAEA's Board of Governors last week, with 20 votes in favor, 2 votes against and 12 abstentions. It asks Tehran to take "necessary and urgent measures" to resolve the alleged safeguard issues.

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Lavrov: Russia and Iran fully agree on text of state treaty

ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency

Wed / 12 June 2024 / 13:19

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov says his country and Iran have reached full agreement on the text of a major cooperation deal that is expected to elevate relations between the two allied countries to a new level.

Tehran-ISNA- Lavrov said on Tuesday that Russia and Iran have yet to put their final signatures on the state treaty, adding that Moscow is waiting for the Iranian side to settle procedural issues needed for the agreement to be signed.

"As for work on a state treaty on cooperation between the Russian Federation and the Islamic Republic of Iran, yes, it cannot be signed yet even though the text has been fully coordinated," he said.

The remarks were made at a press conference after a ministerial meeting of the BRICS group of developing economies in the Russian city of Nizhny Novgorod. They came after Russian diplomatic sources said that works on the Russia-Iran state treaty had been suspended because of certain issues in Iran.

Iranian ambassador to Russia Kazem Jalali rejected the notion that the deal had been suspended, saying it could become finalized after Iran elects a new president in late June.

Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed that deadlines for finalizing the deal had been pushed back after Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi died in a helicopter crash last month.

"...given the current period in Tehran when preparations for a presidential election are underway, the deadlines have been slightly pushed back. Because it is the presidential election, as a rule, later staff reshuffle is possible and so on," Peskov said.

Lavrov said he had told Iranian Acting Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani on Monday that Russia is committed to the state treaty with Iran which he said "is meant to take Russia-Iran relations to a completely different level."

End Item

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Hezbollah stands strong, won't let Israel commit folly: Iran

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 12 June 2024 11:31 AM

Iran's Interim Foreign Minister Ali Bagheri Kani has praised the remarkable capabilities of the resistance front in the region, warning that the Lebanese resistance movement Hezbollah will respond to any follies by the Israeli occupation regime.

Bagheri Kani made the statement in an interview with Russia's RT news channel on the sidelines of a two-day meeting of foreign ministers of the BRICS group of countries in the central Russian city of Nizhny Novgorod as he pointed to fierce exchanges of fire between the Tel Aviv regime and Hezbollah since October last year.

"The Zionists have suffered historic defeats from the Lebanese people and resistance," he said. "If the Zionists had succeeded in resisting the oppressed and unarmed people of Gaza over the past eight months, they could hope to achieve success by expanding the war and conflict in Lebanon."

Describing as a "strategic mistake" Israel's attempts to expand the war on Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip to Lebanese soil, Bagheri Kani said, "The resistance front both in Palestine and Lebanon enjoy such power that they will not allow the Zionists to achieve any of their goals."

Bagheri Kani added, "The resistance in Lebanon as an independent, fully developed and intelligent force will definitely not allow the Zionists to commit any follies."

The top Iranian diplomat said the main feature of resistance is that it is based on the people's will and faith, stressing, "The resistance can never be considered a group... the reality is that the war in Gaza showed that the resistance is the people."

"The Zionists tried many times to make it appear to the world public opinion that there is a gap between the resistance and the people in Gaza, but during the last eight months, they could not substantiate this false protestation," he added.

Gaza developments 'blatant war crime, undisguised genocide'

Bagheri Kani touched on the issue of Israel's recent barbaric attacks in southern Gaza and said the aggression is beyond a conflict.

"I need to emphasize that what is coming to pass in Gaza is not a conflict, but a blatant war crime and an undisguised act of genocide, to which the oppressed Palestinian nation has fallen victim, and the Zionists, as aggressors, criminals, and occupiers are the main culprit in this crime, and the Americans are the main supporter of the Zionists in these crimes," he said.

"The resistance in Palestine has stood up in the face of the Zionists for the past eight months with bare hands but has not allowed the Zionists to achieve even their smallest goals in this region," he added.

Iran, Russia ties strengthen regional, global stability

Elsewhere in his interview with RT, Bagheri Kani said bilateral cooperation between Iran and Russia results in the consolidation of stability and security in the region and across the world.

"Relations between Iran and Russia ... are historical. The relations between Iran and Russia have developed and expanded in all aspects. Of course, it is natural that the more serious threats Iran and Russia face, the greater their solidarity will be to face common challenges and threats," he said.

Bagheri Kani also underlined that Iran and Russia are simultaneously working within the framework of multilateralism by their active participation in the Shanghai Cooperation Organization and the BRICS group.

E3 seeking 'political settlement' with Iran in IAEA

The interim Iranian foreign minister censured a recent move by Britain, France and Germany to have spearheaded a resolution against Tehran at the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

"Since about two years ago, the Europeans have not taken any positive action in the field of negotiations. Certainly, the move by the three European countries is one of their deceitful actions ..while they show no seriousness and will to pursue the negotiations, they unjustly accuse Iran of evading and violating its commitments," Bagheri Kani said.

He stressed that the three European countries had turned the IAEA into a venue to settle " their own political" score with Iran, which he said "will definitely be of no avail."

Bagheri Kani also said Iranians are about to create another epic by their high turnout in the June 28 presidential election as "the vote can be a support for the consolidation of the Islamic establishment, as well as stability and security in the region."

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Iran's Top Presidential Candidate Called Out After Talking Up Free-Speech Credentials

By Kian Sharifi June 12, 2024

Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, widely considered the front-runner in Iran's June 28 presidential election, has come under fire after boasting about his free-speech credentials.

During a live television appearance on June 10, Qalibaf claimed that he had protected whistleblowers and journalists in his role as the speaker of parliament.

But reporters quickly called out the 62-year-old conservative politician, who has been embroiled in a series of corruption scandals.

Qalibaf has filed lawsuits against several journalists and media outlets who published critical articles about him in the past. Some of the reporters have landed in jail.

The authorities have waged a brutal crackdown on dissent amid rising anti-government sentiment in recent years, arresting and jailing scores of journalists, activists, filmmakers, and academics.

'You Sued Me'

During his television interview, Qalibaf was asked if he would tolerate criticism if he became president.

Qalibaf responded by pointing out that the parliament, under his speakership, had a law protecting whistleblowers who expose corruption. If elected president, he said, he would enact the legislation.

His comments triggered a torrent of criticism on social media.

Qalibaf in 2021 sued Hadi Heidari, whose cartoon appeared in an article in the reformist Sazandegi newspaper criticizing the parliament speaker.

"It hasn't even been four years since you sued me," Heidari said in a June 11 post on Instagram. "Thankfully, we're still alive and our historical memory hasn't been wiped out."

Reformist political commentator Ali Qolizadeh on X listed Qalibaf's corruption scandals and said his record "can be summarized in two words: crackdown and corruption."

A former police chief and air-force commander in the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), Qalibaf has publicly boasted of his active role in suppressing student protests in 1999 and 2003, and after the contested presidential election in 2009.

'Went To Prison'

Reporters also highlighted that Yashar Soltani, a prominent whistleblower and investigative journalist, was arrested and jailed after he was sued by Qalibaf.

Soltani was handed a five-year prison sentence in 2019 for writing a series of exposAs alleging massive corruption in land deals linked to Qalibaf when he was Tehran mayor.

At the time, the U.S.-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) slammed the "unacceptable" ruling and demanded Soltani's release. He was later released on bail.

In March, Soltani linked Tehran mayor and presidential hopeful Alireza Zakani to a controversial project to build a mosque in a popular park in the Iranian capital.

The authorities arrested Soltani on June 9 to serve a one-year prison sentence in a different case. He was jailed just hours before Qalibaf and Zakani were announced as two of the six candidates approved to run in the presidential election.

Some Iranian journalists linked Soltani's imprisonment to Qalibaf and Zakani's candidacies.

"Yashar Soltani went to prison instead of Qalibaf and Zakani so that their path to [the presidency] is hassle-free," Yaghma Fashkhami, an independent journalist, wrote on X.

Qalibaf and Zakani have not commented on the allegation.

Iran has consistently ranked as one of worst countries in the world for transparency and freedom of expression.

Reporters Without Borders rated Iran 176th out of 180 states in its 2024 free-speech index, describing it as "one of the world's most repressive countries in terms of press freedom."

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-qalibaf-criticism- free-speech/32989746.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.

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Iran Commutes Death Sentence Of Sunni Cleric Detained During 2022 Protests

By RFE/RL's Radio Farda June 12, 2024

Iran's judiciary has commuted the death sentence of Sunni cleric Mohammad Khezrnejad to imprisonment after widespread criticism of the punishment both at home and abroad.

Khezrnejad, originally detained during the widespread Women, Life, Freedom protests, was facing execution for charges including "corruption on Earth," "acting against national security," and "propaganda against the system."

It gave no details of the length of time Khezrnejad would spend in prison, but his initial sentence on one of the charges was 15 years.

He was arrested in Bukan, West Azerbaijan Province, two months after the death of Mahsa Amini, whose death in police custody sparked widespread unrest in late 2022.

Khezrnejad's arrest and subsequent sentencing -- the trial was held via video conference with the defendant deprived of legal representation -- drew widespread condemnation, highlighting the Iranian judiciary's harsh stance against dissent.

Nonetheless, the sentence was confirmed by the Supreme Court.

However, on June 11, the Mizan news agency, which is affiliated with Iran's judiciary, announced that following appeals for clemency from several Sunni scholars and expressions of remorse by Khezrnejad, his sentence was reduced.

The report highlighted his pledge of good behavior as a contributing factor to the mitigation of his punishment.

Mizan also said authorities blamed foreign Persian-language media for escalating the situation by falsely linking the case to ethnic and religious issues.

Khezrnejad's case is another example of Iranian authorities blaming "external forces" for internal dissent without giving evidence to back up the claim.

The case had attracted international attention, with human rights groups, including Amnesty International, warning against the execution.

Hundreds of Sunni clerics within Iran had also called on the judiciary for Khezrnejad's release, criticizing the lack of fairness in the judicial proceedings.

Khazrnejad remains incarcerated at Urmia prison, with the judicial process drawing ongoing scrutiny for its handling of cases related to the Women, Life, Freedom protests.

Sunni Muslims make up a majority of the population in Iran's Kurdistan region and Sistan-Baluchistan Province but account for only about 10 percent of the population in Shi'a-dominated Iran overall.

Since Amini's death in September 2022, more than 500 people have been killed in the police crackdown, according to rights groups. Several thousand more have been arrested, including many protesters, as well as journalists, lawyers, activists, digital rights defenders, and others.

Written by Ardeshir Tayebi based on an original story in Persian by RFE/RL's Radio Farda

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-commutes-death-sentence- sunni-cleric/32989574.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.

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What Does Gantz's Resignation Means for the Future of Netanyahu's Government?

Sputnik News

20240612

Benny Gantz's recent resignation from the "wartime government" of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not necessarily herald the immediate collapse of the government, says Tel Aviv-based international affairs expert Simon Tsipis.

The current Israeli government coalition is comprised of "two religious parties and two Zionist parties," Tsipis explains.

Gantz's departure initially raised concerns that the "religious parties" may withdraw from the coalition, and the departure of even one party from the coalition would trigger the collapse of the government, the analyst adds.

The recent passage of a bill on draft exemption for Orthodox Jews, however, essentially ensured that the "religious parties" will not pull out of the coalition, at least for now.

Now, Gantz is apparently attempting to woo Yoav Gallant, a member of Netanyahu's Likud Party and the current Israeli minister of defense who opposed the aforementioned bill.

"Gallant, is a member of Netanyahu's party but voted against the law that Netanyahu brought forth - essentially, there is currently a schism within Likud," Tsipis notes.

"If Gantz manages to bring Gallant to his side, to the opposition, then Gallant would leave the government," he adds. "Then the government would collapse and new elections would be announced."

Tsipis also suggested that Gantz's departure from the Israeli government is unlikely to as much of an impact on the ongoing bloodbath in the Gaza Strip as the recently adopted UNSC resolution.

The United States and the UN now seek to pressure Netanyahu into ceasing the operation in Gaza and making a deal with Hamas, which would be regarded as a defeat by the Israelis, Tsipis claims.

A failure to dismantle Hamas and kill its leaders would mean the defeat of Tel Aviv, becoming an utter disaster for Netanyahu, he concludes.

A Sputnik

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Unfinished Business: Alia Nazarbaeva Poses A Problem For 'New Kazakhstan'

By Chris Rickleton June 12, 2024

ALMATY -- Former Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbaev's youngest daughter, Alia, has suffered what would have been unthinkable during her father's long reign: a defeat in court.

But that doesn't necessarily mean she is going to face charges in Kazakhstan anytime soon, despite growing demand.

In 2002, Nazarbaeva was in her early 20s and was just beginning her business career.

But that didn't stop her from meeting with two successful entrepreneurs and making them an offer that they couldn't refuse before raising the threat level when they didn't play ball.

Such is the story being told by a pair of Kazakh businessmen who are now seeking damages from Nazarbaeva for what they call her seizure of their business, which was valued at around $170 million two decades ago.

Their colorful account -- one that implies Nazarbaeva had officers of the state at her beck and call in those days -- is so far being ignored by Kazakh law enforcement.

At the same time, Nazarbaeva's counterattack appears to have fallen flat.

On June 7, an administrative court in the capital, Astana, threw out libel charges Nazarbaeva had filed against the businessmen in response to accusations that they aired for the first time in February.

A draw, then?

Not if the businessmen have their way.

"We have hired lawyers in Britain. We are going to take our case there and to Switzerland. We have a 350-400-page dossier full of evidence of the lawless activities of Alia Nazarbaeva," Zharqyn Qurentaev, a representative for the two men, told RFE/RL.

RFE/RL reached out to Nazarbaeva, who did not participate directly in the online libel proceedings, but received no reply by the time of publication.

Ring-Fenced Relatives?

Unlike her older sister, Darigha Nazarbaeva, and her octogenarian father, the 44-year-old Alia Nazarbaeva has not been seen in Kazakhstan since the events known as Bloody January rocked the country at the beginning of 2022.

Those events, in which at least 238 people died, remain contested and almost impossible to fully unpack.

But two things seem clear.

The protests and violence on the streets of Kazakh cities occurred in parallel with a mighty struggle at the top of the government.

Secondly, that struggle ended in current President Qasym-Zhomart Toqaev's favor, allowing him to finally emerge from the shadow of Nazarbaev, whose family dominated Kazakhstan for three decades and amassed incredible wealth in the process.

After Toqaev emerged from the crisis empowered, Nazarbaev, his relatives, and most of his in-laws relinquished positions of corporate and political leadership.

And yet for all the public clamor -- and longstanding allegations of Nazarbaev-inspired corruption -- neither the strongman nor his children have ever appeared to be in danger of standing trial.

Is that an indicator that deals were struck to protect the foremost members of the former ruling family?

Toqaev has insisted that is not the case.

But Nazarbaeva is proving a particularly stern test of that position.

The claims of Nurlan Bimurzin and Medgat Kaliev, which Bimurzin reiterated in an interview with RFE/RL this week, are shocking.

The pair allege their company, TPK Azia, came under intense pressure from state organs in 2002, at a time when it had amassed nearly 70 gas stations and six large oil depots in different parts of Kazakhstan.

After financial police sealed off the company's depots and storage facilities that year, the men were contacted by an intermediary who suggested a face-to-face meeting with Nazarbaeva.

At the meeting, it is alleged that Nazarbaeva told the men she was aware of their problems and could solve them for a price -- 50 percent of their company.

They claim that under duress they agreed.

A copy of an extraordinary shareholders' meeting dated September 4, 2002, and seen by RFE/RL indicates that TPK Azia's shareholder structure was indeed altered to allow Nazarbaeva to take a 50 percent stake in the company.

That left Bimurzin and his business partner Kaliev with 25 percent each.

The document also details the size of Nazarbaeva's investment in the company: 36,250 tenges (about $250 at the exchange rate then).

At ROP's End

Things got nastier the following year, when Bimurzin and Kaliev say they asked Nazarbaeva to make them offers for the business in order to exit the uncomfortable arrangement.

One of those offers came from Russia's LUKoil and stood at $161 million.

But Nazarbaeva came up with a counteroffer -- hand her the remaining half of the business.

According to Bimurzin, she suggested they do this after plainclothes officers kidnapped Bimurzin's now-deceased father, Serik Bimurzin, and took him to see her in her office.

Nazarbaeva, Nurlan Bimurzin claims, threatened to arrange for all of their personal properties to be seized and their closest relatives jailed if they did not comply.

The men accepted the offer and, more than two decades later, most of their former assets are now controlled by Singapore-headquartered Sinoil, a company they say they have no claim against.

When Bimurzin and Kaliev first told this story, they did so at a press conference with Qurentaev and Kazakh lawmaker Ermurat Bapi.

Two months later, Qurentaev and Bimurzin held another press conference to launch a movement of people -- dubbed Victims Of Old Kazakhstan -- who claim to have suffered wrongdoing at the hands of the former president's relatives.

But the authorities are unmoved.

Prosecutors had appeared to accept Bimurzin and Kaliev's case, it was kicked around law enforcement until police eventually told the entrepreneurs they could not move it forward due to the statute of limitations.

Qurentaev says the frustrations his clients have encountered indicate that Kazakhstan's system is still very much afraid of the 83-year-old man who created it: Nazarbaev.

"It is wrong to think that he doesn't have any influence anymore," Qurentaev said. "He still has a lot of influence."

Nazarbaev has three daughters from his marriage to Sara Nazarbaeva: Darigha, Dinara, and Alia.

He has also publicly recognized two sons born to another woman, Asel Qurmanbaeva, who is some 40 years his junior.

But while Darigha Nazarbaeva held top political positions and Dinara Kulibaeva co-owns Kazakhstan's biggest private lender, it is the youngest Nazarbaeva whose business practices have so often made headlines.

In 2005, authorities seized tens of thousands of copies of the opposition newspaper Svoboda Slova after it published the article How Alia Nazarbaeva Does Business.

The newspaper was also fined.

Since January 2022, there has been increased scrutiny over her involvement in the work of a privately owned monopolist that incurred the wrath of Kazakhs by collecting supersized utilization fees on imported vehicles.

That company -- Operator ROP -- was name-checked in a speech by Toqaev just after the unrest and was dissolved, with its functions passed onto a state-owned company.

But the now-jailed former head of ROP's financial department testified in court last year that Nazarbaeva had earned millions of dollars from the scheme and demanded in court that she face trial.

Another former ROP employee, who headed the company's legal department, died in jail before the trial began in what officials said was a suicide.

And Nazarbaeva was in the news again this month after a garbage-collection company tied to her by company documents managed to win a contract in one of the districts of the capital, Astana.

"Alia Nazarbaeva's company is back in business," read the June 5 headline of the private news website Golos Naroda.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/32988584.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.

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China gives 6 patrol boats to Myanmar's military junta

A former army officer says the boats could be modified to fit weapons for use in restive Rakhine state.

By RFA Burmese 2024.06.12 -- China has delivered six patrol boats to Myanmar's military junta, fulfilling a promise made in 2020 to the country's previous democratically elected civilian government, the Chinese Embassy said in a statement on Wednesday.

The patrol boats that were handed over in Yangon on Tuesday will be used in law enforcement efforts to control gambling and drug trafficking and in rescue and water resources protection activities, the embassy said.

But a former army officer, who wished not to be named for security reasons, told RFA that the vessels could also be useful for naval military operations in Rakhine state, which has several well-traveled rivers and an Indian Ocean coastline.

Rakhine state has seen intense fighting between military junta troops and the ethnic minority insurgent Arakan Army since last November.

"If these boats are modified a little bit, weapons could be installed," the former army officer said.

Four of the patrol boats are 48 meters long (157 feet), and the other two are 28 meters long (91 feet), the embassy said.

The civilian government under the National League for Democracy first requested the vessels in 2018.

China's projects in Rakhine

An agreement was made in 2020 during Chinese President Xi Jinping's two-day visit to Myanmar, in which several deals were signed to implement multibillion dollar infrastructure projects under the Belt and Road Initiative.

The projects include a US$1.3 billion deep-sea port in Rakhine state's Kyaukphyu, as well as the China-Myanmar Economic Corridor, a 620 km (1,000 mile) high-speed railway and road network that will run from China's Kunming city through Myanmar's major economic hubs and on to the port.

The corridor will ultimately give China crucial access to the Indian Ocean at Kyaukphyu.

The military junta removed the civilian government and seized power in February 2021.

A resident of Kyaukphyu township who closely monitors the Chinese projects told RFA that the Chinese ambassador visited Kyaukphyu on Monday.

Human Rights Watch found in 2022 that the Myanmar junta had used Japan-funded passenger ships during military operations in Rakhine state.

"The Myanmar junta's misuse of Japanese development aid for military purposes effectively makes Japan a backer of the junta's military operations," Asia program officer Teppei Kasai said at the time.

When asked via email on Wednesday if the patrol boats could be used for military purposes, the Chinese Embassy in Myanmar directed RFA to a statement posted on its Facebook page.

RFA's attempts to contact junta spokesman Major Gen. Zaw Min Tun to ask about the patrol boats were unsuccessful on Wednesday.

Translated by Aung Naing. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster.

Copyright 1998-2024, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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As San Francisco city planners continue to grapple with the contentious, state-mandated plan to raise height limits along commercial corridors in neighborhoods across the city, residents say what those upzoned areas could actually look like is still unclear  and that uncertainty has fueled fear.

According to one neighborhood group, rezoning means that large buildings would be soaring over existing neighborhood heights and blocking some of the citys famous views.

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The ultimate goal, if you talk to anyone, is six to eight stories, minimum, across the city, said Lori Brooke, the founder of Neighborhoods United SF, a volunteer organization that opposes the rezoning plan. We can argue about whether thats a good idea or not, but thats a sea change for a city.

The upzoning is part of San Franciscos effort to meet its state-mandated goal of adding 82,000 housing units to the city by 2031. City planners are focused on how to build more units in western neighborhoods, which have created little or no housing over the past two decades, because most of them are not zoned for large, high-density projects.

The city is still collecting feedback and adjusting its rezoning plan, which must be adopted by January 2026. While many people support the plan, saying it will allow developers in San Francisco to build much-needed housing in a variety of neighborhoods, it has also faced backlash from some neighborhood groups that say that it will fundamentally change the way the city looks.

To drive their point home, Neighborhoods United has distributed renderings of what it says the upzoning could yield at community meetings and public hearings. The renderings depict large, nondescript white or brown boxes towering far above any other buildings in neighborhoods from Cow Hollow to Telegraph Hill to Lakeside  obstructing views of the Golden Gate Bridge, Coit Tower and neighborhood landmarks.

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This is the way that people will better understand what the implications of the changes being proposed by planning are, said Stan Hayes, a volunteer with Neighborhoods United who created the renderings.

But those depictions have been criticized as fear mongering by housing advocates and called misleading by the City Planning Department.

The crude boxes that Neighborhoods United has circulated are deceptive and not representative of what the rezoning would produce, said Anne Yalon, a planning department spokesperson. They are dramatically out of scale, well in excess of what could ever be allowed by the rezoning, substantially exaggerate building size, and are presented from unrealistic vantage points that are not real public views that you or I might see.

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Yalon added that development takes many years and is usually on underutilized sites like parking lots and vacant commercial sites, whereas the Neighborhoods United renderings depict instant, monolithic, and oversized construction on every single lot along our commercial corridors.

Hayes, who worked for a global environmental consulting firm before retiring, disputed that characterization, saying that the planning department just doesnt like what theyre seeing.

Hayes said he created the renderings using Google Earth and a popular modeling program called Sketchup. From different city locations on Google Earth, which produces a three-dimensional view of the city, he used what he called an electronic ruler scaled with the buildings on the 3D Google Earth image, to determine how large the buildings should be. Using the heights set out in the citys potential rezoning plan, plus additional height developers might be allowed through state law, he placed the blocks representing buildings into the images.

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Other renderings  those with rust-colored rather than white buildings  were done by professionals, hired and paid for by groups of neighbors.

The views the group presented come from a variety of vantage points, Hayes explained, including those from a person on the street and from windows or roofs of existing buildings, to show what neighbors might actually experience from their homes.

Were not looking at a designed, articulated facade, said Katherine Petrin, an architectural historian and a member of Neighborhoods United. Were looking at the mass of the building and how it will sit in the context of the neighborhood.

To contrast Neighborhood Uniteds images, the planning department shared its own renderings with the Chronicle. The detailed drawings display taller, modern buildings dotted along the rezoned corridors, but often from vantage points that show sweeping city views, which appear largely unaffected by the tall buildings. The renderings that illustrate buildings at the neighborhood level show the six- to eight-story constructs replacing parking lots or other underutilized areas.

These renderings do show that the look of city streets will change when taller buildings are built, but they do not depict the view-obstructing blocks that Neighborhoods United presented. Instead, the buildings in the planning departments renderings blend into the citys landscape more seamlessly.

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Asked whether the planning department had more neighborhood level renderings, Yalon said that, because the rezoning map is still being adjusted, the department did not have closer views available.

That information gap, Neighborhoods United said, is what prompted it to create its own.
Junta interrogation results in more deaths in Myanmar's west: source

Victims are part of an ongoing junta's interrogation that has lasted weeks and resulted in more than 70 deaths.

By RFA Burmese 2024.06.12 -- Junta soldiers in Myanmar's west interrogated dozens of detained villagers and tortured several to death, residents told Radio Free Asia.

The soldiers beat three of the arrested residents from Byain Phyu village in Rakhine State on Wednesday until they were rushed to the hospital, two eventually dying from their injuries, said one resident, declining to be named for security reasons.

"More than 40 people were sent to Sittwe Prison from the [junta's] military interrogation yesterday. Three of them were close to death," he said. "The three of them were sent to Sittwe Hospital. Two died yesterday, and the other one is seriously injured."

The bodies were covered in bruises and long cuts, he added.

A family member who wished to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals told RFA that those who were sent to prison also had serious injuries.

"The [junta] said residents from the village will be jailed. The villagers were severely tortured when we went to see them," he said. "My uncle is also among the people who were sent to prison."

Junta authorities stationed in the area filed a case against the detained residents under Section 17(1) of the Unlawful Association Act and Section 188 of the Penal Code for disobeying an order, said another resident. The charges allege that villagers were connected to the anti-junta Arakan Army.

Junta's move came as clashes intensify between the Arakan Army and junta forces, with the rebel group advancing closer to the state capital, which made Myanmar military ramp up its raids and interrogations in the surrounding areas.

On May 29, junta troops arrested residents of Byain Phyu village and killed over 70 people. The arrested villagers were interrogated about connections to insurgent armies, according to locals. Nearly 200 junta soldiers surrounded the village and detained a large but undisclosed number of men.

Women and children under 15 involved in the arrest were released on May 31, but the remaining 40 men were transferred from an interrogation center in Byain Phyu, Rakhine State, to a prison in Sittwe on Tuesday, residents reported.

Separately, junta troops threatened residents from five villages near the state's capital of Sittwe that they must evacuate by Friday.

According to an Arakan Army statement, Byain Phyu's death toll following the arrests reached 76 as of June 4.

RFA phoned Rakhine state's junta spokesperson Hla Thein to confirm the two additional deaths reported on Wednesday, but he did not respond by the time of publication.

Junta spokesperson Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun denied the mass arrests and killings through military-controlled media on June 4.

Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Kiana Duncan and Taejun Kang.

Copyright 1998-2024, RFA. Used with the permission of Radio Free Asia, 2025 M St. NW, Suite 300, Washington DC 20036. For any commercial use of RFA content please send an email to: mahajanr@rfa.org. RFA content June not be used in a manner which would give the appearance of any endorsement of any product or support of any issue or political position. Please read the full text of our Terms of Use.

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South Korean opposition leader indicted on bribery charges

By VOA News June 12, 2024

South Korean opposition leader Lee Jae-myung has been indicted on bribery charges connected to an alleged scheme involving transferring funds to North Korea.

Prosecutors are accusing Lee of asking apparel maker Ssangbangwool Group to illegally transfer $8 million to North Korea between 2019 and 2020, when he was serving as governor of northwest Gyeonggi province.

Yonhap news agency says Lee's deputy governor, Lee Hwa-young, was sentenced last week to nine-and-a-half years in prison in connection with the illegal money transfer scheme. Prosecutors say Lee Hwa-young funneled the money to boost a commercial program in North Korea sponsored by Gyeonggi and to facilitate a planned visit to Pyongyang by Lee Jae-myung.

Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party, is already on trial on unrelated corruption charges, including those related to a property development scandal during his tenure as mayor of a city near Seoul.

The liberal lawmaker narrowly lost the 2022 presidential election to conservative Yoon Suk Yeol, and is considered to be a leading candidate to succeed the president when Yoon's single term expires.

He was seriously wounded in January when an attacker stabbed him in the neck while he was meeting with reporters at the construction site of a new airport in the southeastern port city of Busan. He was airlifted to Seoul National University Hospital for a two-hour surgical procedure to repair the jugular vein in his neck.

Some information for this report came from Reuters.

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Two Russia-Born U.S. Citizens Arrested for Conspiring to Send $500,000 Worth of Luxury Goods to Russia

Wednesday, June 12, 2024

For Immediate Release

Office of Public Affairs



United States Will Seek to Forfeit Assets of Criminal Scheme for Transfer to Ukraine

An indictment was returned yesterday in the District of Alaska charging Sergey Nefedov, 40, of Anchorage, Alaska, and Mark Shumovich, 35, of Bellevue, Washington, with allegedly operating a scheme to illegally export nearly half a million dollars' worth of snowmachines and associated parts from the United States to Russia without the required licenses and approvals, in violation of U.S. export laws. Nefedov and Shumovich were arrested yesterday in Alaska and Washington, respectively.

"As alleged in the indictment, the defendants engaged in a scheme to evade export restrictions by smuggling hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of snowmachines and associated parts to Russia," said Assistant Attorney General Matthew G. Olsen of the Justice Department's National Security Division. "This matter is the latest example of our commitment to hold accountable those who violate sanctions laws and our determination to impose costs on the Russian government for its unjustified invasion of Ukraine."

"Violations of export laws carry significant consequences for perpetrators in the U.S. and abroad," said U.S. Attorney S. Lane Tucker for the District of Alaska. "Our office will continue to work with the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations and the Department of Commerce to prosecute this case to the fullest extent of the law and ensure U.S. export restrictions are enforced."

"Covertly selling snowmachines to Russia violates our export laws, regardless of whether the sales are direct or laundered through Hong Kong," said Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod of the Department of Commerce. "Today's arrests are just the latest example of our aggressive efforts to enforce the export restrictions imposed on Russia following its brutal full-scale invasion of Ukraine."

"These arrests serve as an example of the FBI's determination to stop those individuals who allegedly export U.S. goods to foreign adversaries in violation of U.S. law," said Executive Assistant Director Larissa L. Knapp of the FBI's National Security Branch. "Any attempt to circumvent U.S. laws, sanctions and regulations will not be tolerated, and the FBI will continue to work with our partners to counter any efforts to illegally ship U.S. goods to sanctioned nations."

"The charges laid out in the indictment are serious offenses," said Special Agent in Charge Rebecca Day of the FBI Anchorage Field Office. "The FBI will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate those who subvert export laws to smuggle goods out of the United States."

"This seizure of snowmachines and the coordinated investigation led to the disruption and identification of a transnational criminal network attempting to circumvent Russian sanctions," said Special Agent in Charge Robert Hammer of Homeland Security Investigations (HSI)'s operations in the Pacific Northwest. "Using our unique customs authorities, HSI works with its law enforcement partners, including U.S. Customs and Border Protection, to identify, search and seize merchandise being exported contrary to law, and prosecute those responsible."

As alleged in the indictment, between at least March 2022 and May 2023, Nefedov and Shumovich conspired with individuals doing business in Russia and Hong Kong to evade the U.S. export restrictions that were imposed on luxury goods to Russia pursuant to Executive Order 14068 following Russia's full-scale, unlawful invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, 2022, by shipping snowmachines and associated parts to Russia through an intermediary company in Hong Kong.

In furtherance of the conspiracy, a Russian national who owned a company selling snowmachines in Russia (Co-Conspirator 1, or CC-1) allegedly contracted with a Russian national doing business in Hong Kong (Co-Conspirator 2, or CC-2) for shipment of nearly $1 million worth of goods from Hong Kong to Russia. Separately, CC-1 allegedly created invoices for CC-2's company to purchase snowmachines and other motorsport vehicles from Nefedov's company, Absolut Auto Sales LLC. As alleged, CC-1 told a freight forwarder that he needed goods to "transit in a third country" from the United States because deliveries of equipment to Russia "have been stopped."

According to the indictment, Nefedov and Shumovich then received quotes from U.S.-based snowmachine distributors and freight forwarders to purchase and ship snowmachines. As alleged, Nefedov forwarded those quotes to CC-1, who approved of quotes and instructed Nefedov on additional questions to pose to the U.S. distributors and freight forwarders. To fund the purchase of snowmachines, CC-1's company allegedly wired funds to CC-2's company in Hong Kong, which wired funds to Nefedov's company, Absolut Auto Sales LLC. Nefedov used those funds to purchase snowmachines in the United States with the aid of Shumovich. According to the indictment, Nefedov and Shumovich told freight forwarders that the snowmachines would be going to Hong Kong, where they knew that a license was not required for export, thereby causing a freight forwarder to provide false information to U.S. authorities by concealing the end user and destination of the snowmachines.

Authorities seized all snowmachines related to this case. Nefedov and Shumovich are charged the following offenses, which carry associated maximum penalties as follows: conspiracy to unlawfully export goods from the United States and defraud the United States (five years in prison); false electronic export information activities (five years in prison); smuggling (10 years in prison); unlawful export without a license in violation of the Export Control Reform Act (20 years in prison); and conspiracy to commit international money laundering (20 years in prison). Nefedov is also charged with money laundering and making a false statement in violation of the Export Control Reform Act, which both carry maximum penalties of 20 years in prison. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The FBI, HSI and Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security Office of Export Enforcement are investigating the case.

Trial Attorney Leslie Esbrook of the National Security Division's Counterintelligence and Export Control Section and Assistant U.S. Attorney Adam Alexander for the District of Alaska are prosecuting the case.

This case was coordinated through the Justice Department's Task Force KleptoCapture, an interagency law enforcement task force dedicated to enforcing the sweeping sanctions, export controls and economic countermeasures that the United States, along with its foreign allies and partners, has imposed in response to Russia's unprovoked military invasion of Ukraine. Announced by the Attorney General on March 2, 2022, and under the leadership of the Office of the Deputy Attorney General, the task force will continue to leverage all of the department's tools and authorities to combat efforts to evade or undermine the collective actions taken by the U.S. government in response to Russian military aggression.

An indictment is merely an allegation. All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.

View the indictment here

Topics: Export Control

Counterterrorism

National Security

Components: Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI)

National Security Division (NSD)

USAO - Alaska

Press Release Number: 24-741

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Russia vows to respond to new wave of 'aggressive' sanctions by US

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 12 June 2024 6:51 PM

Russia has vowed to respond to a new raft of "aggressive" sanctions imposed by the United States mainly aimed at weakening the Russian military.

On Wednesday, the US Treasury Department significantly expanded sanctions against Russia, which now encompass China-based firms that supply semiconductors to Moscow, as part of the US strategy to weaken the Russian military's operations against Ukraine.

One of the measures announced by the US Treasury involves heightening "the potential consequences for foreign financial institutions engaging with Russia's wartime economy," essentially warning them of potential exclusion from the US financial system.

Later in the day, the Kremlin responded to Washington's new move, vowing retaliation.

"As always in such cases, Russia will not leave such aggressive actions unanswered," Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova was quoted as saying by the state-run TASS news agency.

The US sanctions list now encompasses more than 30 individuals and over 200 legal entities from both Russia and China.

Specifically, the US Treasury has applied sanctions to Rusgazdobycha, Arctic LNG-1, Arctic LNG-3, and the Moscow Exchange.

In February 2022, Moscow launched its special military operation in eastern Ukraine's Donbas region to stop NATO's eastward expansion after warning that the US-led military alliance was pursuing an "aggressive line" against Russia.

The West responded by imposing waves of harsh sanctions against Russia and pouring advanced arms and military hardware into Ukraine.

Russia has time and again cautioned that continued Western military support to Ukraine and the sanctions could prolong the conflict.

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Imprisoned Kremlin Critic Yashin Says He Will Reject Swap With Russians Jailed In West

By RFE/RL's Russian Service June 12, 2024

Imprisoned Russian opposition politician Ilya Yashin, who is serving an 8 1/2-year prison term for his criticism of Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, says he will not agree to get exchanged for Russian citizens jailed in the Western countries if such a proposal occurs.

In his interview to Dozhd TV, parts of which were published on Telegram on June 12, Yashin said a possible swap would mean emigration for him, which he called "unacceptable" for him.

"I have stayed in Russia to be a Russian voice against the war and dictatorship. And, of course, it is important for me to share the fate of my country and my people. I sincerely believe that a Russian politician must be with Russia, as we say, both in joy and sorrow," Yashin said.

Talking about the self-exiled widow of opposition politician Aleksei Navalny, Yulia Navalnaya, Yashin said her role is "to explain to the world and the Western leaders that the Russian people and Putin are not the same, that our compatriots are in fact hostages in the hands of the Kremlin junta."

The former municipal lawmaker also called on ordinary Russians "not to throw themselves under the tank that is speeding up toward them."

"Just remember that sooner or later that tank will stop, and then we have to be ready to disassemble it," Yashin said.

Yashin, 40, is an outspoken Kremlin critic and one of the few prominent opposition politicians who stayed in Russia after a wave of repression against those who have condemned Russia's aggression against Ukraine since the full-scale invasion was launched in February 2022.

The sentence handed to Yashin in December 2022 was the harshest among the cases against those charged with discrediting Russia's armed forces under a new law introduced days after the invasion commenced.

The criminal case against Yashin was launched in July 2022. The charge against him stemmed from his YouTube posts about alleged crimes committed by the Russian military in the Ukrainian city of Bucha.

Yashin is serving his prison term in correctional colony No. 3 in the western Smolensk region.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/imprisoned- kremlin-critic-yashin-says-he-will-reject-swap-with- russians-jailed-in-west/32989651.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.

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Russian Foreign Ministry Denies Reports on Reestablishing Diplomatic Relations With Georgia

Sputnik News

20240612

Sergey Lebedev

Since Russia and Georgia broke off diplomatic relations, dialogue between the countries has been maintained through the Geneva discussions.

Reports that Russia and Georgia are engaged in restoring diplomatic relations are misinformation spread by opposition forces of Georgia, the Russian Foreign Ministry told Sputnik on Wednesday.

"We see no point in commenting on various hoaxes circulated by Georgian opposition resources," the ministry said.

Earlier, Georgian opposition TV channel Mtavari.tv reported citing sources that the Russian and Georgian governments are actively working on restoring diplomatic relations.

"The ruling party 'Georgian Dream' and Russia's leadership are actively working and negotiating on reestablishment of diplomatic ties. The authorities plan to open Georgian embassy in Moscow," the outlet said.

Georgia is already recruiting diplomats for the Russian embassy, the outlet added.

When Russia and Georgia broke off diplomatic relations, the dialogue between the two countries was maintained through the Geneva discussions and negotiations between Russian Senator Grigory Karasin and Zurab Abashidze, which have taken place in Prague since 2012.

Georgia broke off diplomatic relations with Russia after Moscow recognised Abkhazia and South Ossetia as sovereign states in August 2008.

Earlier, the Georgian parliament passed the law on foreign agents, overriding the presidential veto - a move that drew harsh criticism from the Western nations. Georgian authorities, however, say that the law fully complies with all basic legal principles and is aimed at revising the activities of non-governmental organizations.

A Sputnik

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Taking Additional Measures to Degrade Russia's Wartime Economy

US Department of State

Fact Sheet

Office of the Spokesperson

June 12, 2024

As G7 leaders prepare to meet in Italy, the United States is today sanctioning more than 300 individuals and entities to degrade Russia's capability to pursue its war of aggression against Ukraine.

In this action, the Department of State is imposing sanctions on more than 100 individuals and entities. These designations aim to disrupt sanctions evasion and backfilling and target entities in multiple third countries including the People's Republic of China (PRC). The Department's designations also constrain Russia's future energy revenues, building on previous sanctions stalling the development of Russia's Arctic LNG 2 project and other Russian future energy projects. Designations targeting Russia's defense industrial base incorporate sanctions on Belarusian entities supporting Russia's war machine. The Department is also designating malign authorities and elites responsible for the forced transfer and deportation of Ukrainian children.

All targets are being designated pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 14024 , as amended , which authorizes sanctions with respect to specified harmful foreign activities of the Government of the Russian Federation.

The United States will continue to use all tools at its disposal to disrupt support for Russia's military-industrial base and curtail Russia's ability to exploit the international financial system in furtherance of its war against Ukraine. We continue to stand in solidarity with Ukrainians defending their homeland from Russia's aggression as well as with Russians striving for a more democratic future for their country.

DISRUPTING SANCTIONS EVASION AND BACKFILLING EFFORTS

The Department is maintaining its effort to disrupt the networks and channels through which Russia can procure technology and equipment from third countries to support its war effort. Today's designations target producers, exporters, and importers of items critical to Russia's military-industrial base. Those items include items on the Common High Priority List (CHPL) identified by the U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) alongside the European Union (EU), United Kingdom (UK), and Japan. Entities based in the People's Republic of China (PRC), United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Kyrgyz Republic, and TArkiye, among other countries, continue to sell these items and other key dual-use goods to Russia, including critical components that Russia relies on for its weapons systems.

PRC-based Entities Supporting Russia's War Effort

We are particularly concerned by the scale and breadth of dual-use goods exports from the PRC. Russia continues to leverage sanctions evasion and circumvention networks to procure components such as microelectronics, which it uses to make weapons. Imports from the PRC are filling critical gaps in Russia's defense production cycle to produce weapons, ramp up defense production, and bolster its military-industrial base.

Today, the Department is designating seven PRC-based entities that have supplied goods supporting Russia's war effort.

The Department is designating the following entity pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the defense and related materiel sector of the Russian Federation economy:

POLY TECHNOLOGIES INCORPORATED (PTI) is a PRC defense company and state-owned enterprise that has shipped dual-use and defense-related equipment to numerous U.S.-designated Russian defense sector entities since February 2022. PTI has previously been subject to Department of State nonproliferation-related sanctions and was added to the Department of Commerce's Entity List in June 2014.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entities are being designated for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy:

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entity is being designated for operating or having operated in the aerospace sector of the Russian Federation economy:

MILE HAO XIANG TECHNOLOGY CO LTD is a PRC-based company involved in the supply of components to Russian customers.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entity is being designated for operating or having operated in the manufacturing sector of the Russian Federation economy:

GUANGDONG PRATIC CNC TECHNOLOGY CO LTD is a PRC-based company involved in the supply of over $1.9 million CHPL items to Russian customers, including the U.S.-designated, Russia-based UMAC LLC . UMAC LLC has a public history of supplying machine tools - both domestic and foreign-produced - to the Russian military-industrial base, and its past customers include U.S.-designated, Russia-based battle tank manufacturer JSC RESEARCH AND PRODUCTION CORPORATION URALVAGONZAVOD NAMED AFTER F.E. DZERZHINSKY.

Belarus-based Network Supporting the Russian Military

The Department continues to designate entities and individuals related to the Lukashenka regime's support for Russia's illegal, full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Today, the Department is designating a Russian state-owned defense repair facility and several Belarusian entities and associated individuals supporting the Russian military's war effort by providing parts to that facility.

Additionally, we are designating a Belarusian company and its director that have provided maintenance services directly to Russian military units. These actions build on the Department of the Treasury's April 15, 2024, designations of several Belarusian networks providing support to Russia's war efforts.

The Department is designating the following entities pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the defense and related materiel sector of the Russian Federation economy:

JOINT STOCK COMPANY 81 ARMORED FIGHTING VEHICLES REPAIR PLANT (81 BTRZ) is a Russian state-owned enterprise that has repaired and shipped overhauled military vehicles to Russian military bases under contract with the Russian Ministry of Defense.

is a Russian state-owned enterprise that has repaired and shipped overhauled military vehicles to Russian military bases under contract with the Russian Ministry of Defense. PRODUCTION UNITARY ENTERPRISE PLANT SVT is a Belarusian company that has performed technical maintenance on equipment owned by Russian military units.

is a Belarusian company that has performed technical maintenance on equipment owned by Russian military units. VALYANTSIN ALFREDAVICH MIKLASHEVICH is the director of SVT.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(vi) of E.O. 14024, the following entities are being designated for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of 81 BTRZ, a person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024:

UNITARY PRIVATE SCIENCE PRODUCTION ENTERPRISE TEHNOLIT (TEHNOLIT) is a Belarusian company that has exported vehicle parts from Belarus to 81 BTRZ and refurbished engines in support of the Russian Ministry of Defense.

is a Belarusian company that has exported vehicle parts from Belarus to 81 BTRZ and refurbished engines in support of the Russian Ministry of Defense. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY BAZTUBE (BAZTUBE) is a Belarusian company that has provided cold-formed electric welded steel pipes to 81 BTRZ, which repairs Russian military vehicles.

is a Belarusian company that has provided cold-formed electric welded steel pipes to 81 BTRZ, which repairs Russian military vehicles. JOINT STOCK COMPANY BELARUSREZINOTEKHNIKA (BRT) is a Belarusian company that has exported parts to 81 BTRZ in support of the National Guard of the Russian Federation.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(iii)(C) of E.O. 14024, the following individual is being designated for being or having been a leader, official, senior executive officer, or member of the board of directors of TEHNOLIT, a person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024:

ALEKSANDR MIKHAILOVICH BODYAKO is the director of TEHNOLIT.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(iii)(C) of E.O. 14024, the following individual is being designated for being or having been a leader, official, senior executive officer, or member of the board of directors of BAZTUBE, a person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024:

ELENA ALEKSANDROVNA PERESELYAK is the director of BAZTUBE.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(iii)(C) of E.O. 14024, the following individuals are being designated for being or having been leaders, officials, senior executive officers, or members of the board of directors of BELARUSREZINOTEKHNIKA (BRT), a person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024:

OLEG PETROVICH SHPAKOV is the executive director of BRT.

is the executive director of BRT. DMITRY YURYEVICH MANKO is the commercial director of BRT.

Other Third-Country Entities Supporting Russia's War Effort

The Department is also taking action against a range of entities in the UAE, TArkiye, the Kyrgyz Republic, Moldova, and Singapore that have supplied critical dual-use goods in support of Russia's war effort.

The Department is designating the following entities pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the aerospace sector of the Russian Federation economy:

AVIATECH FZC is a UAE-based company that supplied aircraft equipment and supplies, including Russian military aviation components for Mi-type helicopters and Il-76 heavy cargo-carrying ramp aircraft, to Russia-based companies.

is a UAE-based company that supplied aircraft equipment and supplies, including Russian military aviation components for Mi-type helicopters and Il-76 heavy cargo-carrying ramp aircraft, to Russia-based companies. AIRROCK SOLUTIONS LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY (AIRROCK SOLUTIONS) is a Moldova-based company that supplied at least $1.5 million of controlled electronic and aviation components to Russia-based companies.

is a Moldova-based company that supplied at least $1.5 million of controlled electronic and aviation components to Russia-based companies. AEROSTAGE SERVICES LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY (AEROSTAGE SERVICES) is a Moldova-based company that supplied at least $80,000 in controlled aviation spare parts and electronic components to Russia-based companies.

is a Moldova-based company that supplied at least $80,000 in controlled aviation spare parts and electronic components to Russia-based companies. MAX JET SERVICE LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY (MAX JET) is a Moldova-based company that supplied at least $486,000 in controlled aviation spare parts and electronic components to Russia-based companies.

AIRROCK SOLUTIONS, AEROSTAGE SERVICES, and MAX JET supplied spare aircraft parts to Russian entities, including U.S-designated LLC AVIAKOMPANIYA POBEDA and LLC S 7 ENGINEERING.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entities are being designated for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIGHTSPEED DISTRIBUTION FZCO is a UAE-based company that shipped at least $968,000 in CHPL items, including electronic components, to Russia-based entities. These shipments correspond to CHPL Tiers 1 and 3.A.

is a UAE-based company that shipped at least $968,000 in CHPL items, including electronic components, to Russia-based entities. These shipments correspond to CHPL Tiers 1 and 3.A. EMITRADE FZE is a UAE-based company that shipped at least $6.20 million in CHPL items, including electronic components, to Russia-based entities. These shipments correspond to CHPL Tier 3.A.

is a UAE-based company that shipped at least $6.20 million in CHPL items, including electronic components, to Russia-based entities. These shipments correspond to CHPL Tier 3.A. ITIC LLC FZ is a UAE-based company that sent over 3,000 shipments that included CHPL items to U.S.-designated and Russia-based entities. These shipments included goods with HS codes that correspond to CHPL Tiers 1, 2, 3, and 4.A.

is a UAE-based company that sent over 3,000 shipments that included CHPL items to U.S.-designated and Russia-based entities. These shipments included goods with HS codes that correspond to CHPL Tiers 1, 2, 3, and 4.A. NIT GROUP FZE is a UAE-based company that sent over 1,000 shipments that included CHPL items to Russia-based companies, with HS codes that correspond to CHPL Tiers 2, 3.A, and 4.A.

is a UAE-based company that sent over 1,000 shipments that included CHPL items to Russia-based companies, with HS codes that correspond to CHPL Tiers 2, 3.A, and 4.A. KOC GEMICILIK VE TASIMACILIK DIS TICARET LIMITED SIRKETI (KOC GEMICILIK) is a TArkiye-based company that sent shipments that included CHPL items to Russia-based companies, with HS codes that correspond to CHPL Tiers 1, 2, 3.A, 4.A, and 4.B. KOC GEMICILIK also sent multiple shipments of CNC machine tools to companies based in Russia.

is a TArkiye-based company that sent shipments that included CHPL items to Russia-based companies, with HS codes that correspond to CHPL Tiers 1, 2, 3.A, 4.A, and 4.B. KOC GEMICILIK also sent multiple shipments of CNC machine tools to companies based in Russia. BEE INSAAT MIMARLIK ANONIM SIRKETI (BEE INSAAT) is a TArkiye-based company that sent shipments that included CHPL items to Russia-based companies, with HS codes that correspond to CHPL Tiers 1, 2, 3.A, and 4.B. BEE INSAAT also sent numerous shipments of CNC machine tools to companies based in Russia.

is a TArkiye-based company that sent shipments that included CHPL items to Russia-based companies, with HS codes that correspond to CHPL Tiers 1, 2, 3.A, and 4.B. BEE INSAAT also sent numerous shipments of CNC machine tools to companies based in Russia. ANKARA GLOBAL DIS TICARET LIMITED SIRKETI is a TArkiye-based company that sent shipments that included CHPL items to Russia-based companies, with HS codes that correspond to CHPL Tiers 1, 2, and 3.A.

is a TArkiye-based company that sent shipments that included CHPL items to Russia-based companies, with HS codes that correspond to CHPL Tiers 1, 2, and 3.A. PLATIN GROUP MACHINE MANUFACTURING INTERNATIONAL COMPANY LTD is a TArkiye-based company that sent shipments that included CHPL items to Russia-based companies, with HS codes that correspond to CHPL Tiers 1, 2, and 3. Products shipped include U.S.-origin electronic integrated circuits.

is a TArkiye-based company that sent shipments that included CHPL items to Russia-based companies, with HS codes that correspond to CHPL Tiers 1, 2, and 3. Products shipped include U.S.-origin electronic integrated circuits. LLC TRANSIT SERVICE BISHKEK is a Kyrgyzstan-based company involved in the supply of CHPL items to Russian companies, including the U.S.-designated, Russia-based RADIANT EK AO.

is a Kyrgyzstan-based company involved in the supply of CHPL items to Russian companies, including the U.S.-designated, Russia-based RADIANT EK AO. SECRET LOGISTICS SOLUTION FZCO is a UAE-based company engaged in transportation, logistics, supply chain, and storage services. SECRET LOGISITCS exports CHPL items to Russian customers, including U.S.-designated BRAND SERVER OPTIONS .

is a UAE-based company engaged in transportation, logistics, supply chain, and storage services. SECRET LOGISITCS exports CHPL items to Russian customers, including U.S.-designated BRAND SERVER OPTIONS . CNCFORM GRUP MAKINA METAL INSAAT HIRDAYAT GIDA NAKLIYE OTOMOTIV ITHRACAT SANAYI VE TICARET LIMITED SIRKETI is a TArkiye-based company that exports CHPL items to Russian customers.

is a TArkiye-based company that exports CHPL items to Russian customers. ORG LOGISTICS FZE (ORG LOGISTICS) is a UAE-based company engaged in logistics, supply chain, and cargo handling services. ORG LOGISITICS has supplied CHPL items to Russian customers.

is a UAE-based company engaged in logistics, supply chain, and cargo handling services. ORG LOGISITICS has supplied CHPL items to Russian customers. FAYN LAYN LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY (FAYN LAYN) is a Russia-based company engaged in the wholesale trade of electronic and telecommunication equipment. FAYN LAYN receives CHPL items from Singapore-based PCB LINE.

is a Russia-based company engaged in the wholesale trade of electronic and telecommunication equipment. FAYN LAYN receives CHPL items from Singapore-based PCB LINE. PCB LINE PTE LTD (PCB LINE) is a Singapore-based company engaged in the wholesale of machinery, equipment, and supplies. PCB LINE exports CHPL items, including printed circuit boards to Russia-based FAYN LAYN.

is a Singapore-based company engaged in the wholesale of machinery, equipment, and supplies. PCB LINE exports CHPL items, including printed circuit boards to Russia-based FAYN LAYN. WRIGHT AERO COMPONENTS FZE (WRIGHT AERO) is a UAE-based company engaged in the wholesale distribution of transportation equipment and supplies. WRIGHT AERO exports CHPL items to Russian customers, including U.S.-designated LLC AVIAKOMPANIYA POBEDA.

A Port Operator Providing Services to Blocked Russian Vessels

The Department is taking action against an entity that has provided services to blocked Russian vessels.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(vi)(B) of E.O. 14024, the following entity is being designated for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, TRANSMORFLOT LLC, a person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024:

BULUTLAR GEMI TERSANECILIK SANAYI TICARET LIMITED SIRKETI is a TArkiye-based company and the owner and operator of Bulut Shipyard and is providing berthing and repair services to two blocked vessels, LADY MARIIA and BALTIC LEADER, which are property of the U.S.-designated TRANSMORFLOT LLC.

DEGRADING RUSSIA'S FUTURE ENERGY PRODUCTION AND EXPORT CAPACITY

The Department continues to sanction entities involved in the development of Russia's future energy production and export capacity. Today, the Department is designating a PRC-based shipyard operator involved in the manufacture and shipment of highly specialized liquefied natural gas (LNG) modules designed specifically for Russia's Arctic LNG 2 project. Furthermore, the Department is designating two companies involved in the development of a new LNG project in Murmansk, Russia, which is anticipated to leverage similar engineering, logistics, and LNG marketing as the Arctic LNG 2 project.

The Department is also designating four companies involved in the ongoing logistics development of Russia's Vostok Oil project. Vostok Oil is a major Russian oil development project from which Russia plans to export upwards of 100 million tons of oil per year. Today's actions intend to slow or halt further construction and logistics operations within the Vostok Oil project.

The Department is designating the following entity pursuant to section 1(a)(vi)(B) of E.O. 14024 for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of LLC ARCTIC LNG 2, a person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024:

PENGLAI JUTAL OFFSHORE ENGINEERING HEAVY INDUSTRIES CO is a PRC-based shipyard operator which has constructed and shipped critical natural gas liquefaction technology, aboard previously blocked vessels AUDAX, PUGNAX, and HUNTER STAR, to LLC ARCTIC LNG 2.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entities and individual are being designated for operating or having operated in the construction sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LLC MURMANSK LNG (MURMANSK LNG) was established to implement and develop the future Murmansk LNG project, a new large-scale LNG project in the Murmansk region, with an intended production capacity of 20.4 million tons of LNG per year.

was established to implement and develop the future Murmansk LNG project, a new large-scale LNG project in the Murmansk region, with an intended production capacity of 20.4 million tons of LNG per year. MURMANSK TRANSGAZ LLC is a Russia-based company constructing gas pipeline infrastructure in support of the Murmansk region.

is a Russia-based company constructing gas pipeline infrastructure in support of the Murmansk region. JOINT STOCK COMPANY YAMALDORSTROY is a Russia-based company constructing part of the pipeline for the Vostok Oil project.

is a Russia-based company constructing part of the pipeline for the Vostok Oil project. NOVATEK-LNG FUEL KASHIRA LLC is a Russia-based company, and wholly-owned subsidiary of a major Russian energy company, which is the operator of an LNG complex under construction in the Kashira region of Russia.

is a Russia-based company, and wholly-owned subsidiary of a major Russian energy company, which is the operator of an LNG complex under construction in the Kashira region of Russia. KIRILL GENNADIEVICH SELEZNEV (SELEZNEV) is a Russian national and the General Director of U.S.-designated OOO RUSKHIMALYANS. SELEZNEV was also designated by the United Kingdom in May 2023.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entities are being designated for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY BALTMASH is a Russia-based company that has designed and produced polyurethane foam insulation for the transportation of LNG on Arc7 ice-class LNG carriers, as a potential replacement for G7-origin technology that Russia can no longer access.

is a Russia-based company that has designed and produced polyurethane foam insulation for the transportation of LNG on Arc7 ice-class LNG carriers, as a potential replacement for G7-origin technology that Russia can no longer access. CLOSED JOINT STOCK COMPANY MEKAMINEFT is a Russia-based oilfield services provider that specializes in hydraulic fracturing in cooperation with GAZPROM NEFT, an entity subject to certain debt and equity restrictions pursuant to E.O. 13662 and E.O. 14024.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entity is being designated for operating or having operated in the transportation sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY TBS LOGISTIKA is a Russia-based transportation company and the main transport and logistics operator of the Vostok Oil project.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entity is being designated for operating or having operated in the engineering sector of the Russian Federation economy:

JOINT STOCK COMPANY GT MORSTROY is a Russia-based company that has provided engineering services for the development of a new offshore oil transshipment complex in the Kola Bay, which is intended to serve the Vostok Oil project.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entity is being designated for operating or having operated in the marine sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY OIL TERMINAL BELOKAMENKA is a Russia-based company that is the contractor for the construction and operation of a new offshore oil transshipment complex in the Kola Bay, which is intended to serve the Vostok Oil project.

TARGETING RUSSIA'S METALS AND MINING INDUSTRY

The Department continues to designate entities involved in Russia's metals and mining industry with a view to further constraining Russia's revenue generation capacity and military-industrial base. Today, the Department is designating entities within the Koulstar group and the Elga Coal Complex, two networks of companies licensed to mine some of Russia's largest metallurgical coal deposits. Additionally, the Department is designating the Seligdar group of companies, one of Russia's largest gold mining networks.

Targeting Entities in the Koulstar group

The Department is designating the following entities pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the metals and mining sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY KOULSTAR (KOULSTAR) is a Russia-based coal producer and exporter that holds licenses for the future extraction of large metallurgical coal deposits in Russia.

is a Russia-based coal producer and exporter that holds licenses for the future extraction of large metallurgical coal deposits in Russia. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY COAL COMPANY RAZREZ BEYSKIY (RAZREZ BEYSKIY) is a Russia-based coal producer and the owner and developer of a coal mine located in the Republic of Khakassia, Russia.

is a Russia-based coal producer and the owner and developer of a coal mine located in the Republic of Khakassia, Russia. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY RAZREZ BOGATYR (RAZREZ BOGATYR) is a Russia-based coal company developing a mine at the Bogatyr coal deposit in the Novosibirsk region of Russia.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entities are being designated for operating or having operated in the transportation sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY COALSTAR TRANS (COALSTAR TRANS) is a Russia-based railroad transportation company used by the Koulstar group.

is a Russia-based railroad transportation company used by the Koulstar group. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY COALSTAR SEA TERMINAL is a company developing a future coal terminal in Wrangel Bay, Russia, designed to ship coal extracted from mines operated by RAZREZ BEYSKIY and RAZREZ BOGATYR.

is a company developing a future coal terminal in Wrangel Bay, Russia, designed to ship coal extracted from mines operated by RAZREZ BEYSKIY and RAZREZ BOGATYR. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY AURORA SEA PORT (AURORA SEA PORT) is developing a future terminal in Fokino, Russia, designed to ship coal extracted from mines operated by RAZREZ BEYSKIY and RAZREZ BOGATYR.

is developing a future terminal in Fokino, Russia, designed to ship coal extracted from mines operated by RAZREZ BEYSKIY and RAZREZ BOGATYR. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY BEYSKIY PROMYSHLENNO TRANSPORTNYY KOMPLEKS is a Russia-based company developing railroad infrastructure to transport coal extracted from a mine operated by RAZREZ BEYSKIY.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entity is being designated for operating or having operated in the management consulting sector of the Russian Federation economy:

JOINT STOCK COMPANY BIZNES PROYEKT is a Russia-based holding company and the owner of AURORA SEA PORT.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entities and individuals are being designated for operating or having operated in the metals and mining sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY UGOLNAYA KOMPANIYA RAZREZ MAYRYKHSKIY (RAZREZ MAYRYKHSKIY) is a Russia-based coal mining company that operates a surface coal mine located in the Republic of Khakassia, Russia.

is a Russia-based coal mining company that operates a surface coal mine located in the Republic of Khakassia, Russia. BORIS NIKOLAEVICH VARSHAVSKIY (VARSHAVSKIY) is a founder, shareholder, and the General Director of RAZREZ MAYRYKHSKIY. VARSHAVSKIY is a former co-owner of KOULSTAR, and the former Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Republic of Khakassia.

is a founder, shareholder, and the General Director of RAZREZ MAYRYKHSKIY. VARSHAVSKIY is a former co-owner of KOULSTAR, and the former Minister of Natural Resources and Ecology of the Republic of Khakassia. ALEKSANDR NIKOLAYEVICH BORODAYEV (BORODAYEV) is a founder and shareholder of RAZREZ MAYRYKHSKIY. BORODAYEV is a former co-owner of KOULSTAR.

Targeting Companies in the Elga Coal Complex

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entities are being designated for operating or having operated in the financial services sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY MANAGEMENT COMPANY ELGA is a Russia-based financial and industrial management company that manages the Elga Coal Complex, a large Russian metals and mining network that extracts and sells metallurgical coal.

is a Russia-based financial and industrial management company that manages the Elga Coal Complex, a large Russian metals and mining network that extracts and sells metallurgical coal. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGA STROY MINING SERVICE (ESMS) is a Russia-based financial services company within the Elga Coal Complex group of companies.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(vii) of E.O. 14024, the following entities are being designated for being owned or controlled by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, ESMS. They are both Russia-based subsidiaries of ESMS:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGA STROY LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGA MAGISTRAL



Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entity is being designated for operating or having operated in the metals and mining sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGAUGOL (ELGAUGOL) is a Russia-based coal mining company and the rightsholder of a license to develop one of Russia's largest deposits of metallurgical coal reserves. ELGAUGOL is the main coal exporter within the Elga Coal Complex group of companies.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(vii) of E.O. 14024, the following entities are being designated for being owned or controlled by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, ELGAUGOL. They are both Russia-based subsidiaries of ELGAUGOL:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGA FACTORIES LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY UNDYTKAN



Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entities are being designated for operating or having operated in the metals and mining sector of the Russian Federation economy. These entities are Russia-based coal mining companies within the Elga Coal Complex group of companies:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGA FACTORIES 2

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGA MINING

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGA MINING 2

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGA FACTORIES 3

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entities are being designated for operating or having operated in the transportation sector of the Russian Federation economy. These entities are Russia-based rail transportation, service, and logistics companies within the Elga Coal Complex group of companies:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGA TRANS is a Russia-based service and maintenance company for the Elga-Ulak railway line, which provides cargo transportation for the Elga Coal Complex group of companies.

is a Russia-based service and maintenance company for the Elga-Ulak railway line, which provides cargo transportation for the Elga Coal Complex group of companies. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGA DOROGA is a Russia-based operator and owner of the Elga-Ulak railway line that the Elga Coal Complex group of companies uses to transport coal.

is a Russia-based operator and owner of the Elga-Ulak railway line that the Elga Coal Complex group of companies uses to transport coal. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGALOGISTICS is a Russia-based transport and logistics company that handles domestic, export, import, and transit shipments of products from the Elga Coal Complex group of companies.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entity is being designated for operating or having operated in the engineering sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGA ENGINEEERING is a Russia-based engineering company within the Elga Coal Complex group of companies involved in the design of industrial facilities for the mining industry.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entities are being designated for operating or having operated in the marine sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY PORT ELGA is a Russia-based marine transportation company within the Elga Coal Complex group of companies.

is a Russia-based marine transportation company within the Elga Coal Complex group of companies. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ELGA MARINE is a Russia-based marine transportation company within the Elga Coal Complex group of companies.

Targeting the Seligdar Group of Companies

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entities and individuals are being designated for operating or having operated in the metals and mining sector of the Russian Federation economy:

PUBLIC JOINT STOCK COMPANY SELIGDAR (SELIGDAR) is a leading Russian producer of gold and tin, ranking in the top five largest companies in Russia in terms of gold reserves.

is a leading Russian producer of gold and tin, ranking in the top five largest companies in Russia in terms of gold reserves. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY WHITE GOLD is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR.

is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR. JOINT STOCK COMPANY ZOLOTO SELIGDARA is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR.

is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ARTEL STARATELEI SININDA 1 is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR.

is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ARTEL STARATELEI POISK is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR.

is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY YURSKI is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR.

is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY SAMOLAZOVSKOE is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR.

is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY RYABINOVOYE is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR.

is a Russia-based gold mining company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR. PUBLIC JOINT STOCK COMPANY RUSOLOVO (RUSOLOVO) is Russia's only tin mining holding company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR.

is Russia's only tin mining holding company and a subsidiary of SELIGDAR. JOINT STOCK COMPANY OLOVYANNAYA RUDNAYA KOMPANIYA (TIN MINING COMPANY) is a Russia-based tin mining company and a subsidiary of RUSOLOVO.

is a Russia-based tin mining company and a subsidiary of RUSOLOVO. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY AMURSKIY METALLURGICHESKIY KOMBINAT is a Russia-based tin mining company and a subsidiary of RUSOLOVO.

is a Russia-based tin mining company and a subsidiary of RUSOLOVO. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY PRAVOURMISKOE is a Russia-based tin mining company and a subsidiary of RUSOLOVO.

is a Russia-based tin mining company and a subsidiary of RUSOLOVO. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY TERRITORIYA is a Russia-based tin mining company and a subsidiary of RUSOLOVO.

MAINTAINING THE PRESSURE ON ROSATOM

This is the eighth Russia sanctions action that includes designations of State Atomic Energy Corporation Rosatom (Rosatom) subsidiaries. These targets include Rosatom entities developing and producing dual-use and military applicable equipment and components.

The Department is designating the following entities pursuant to section 1(a)(vii) of E.O. 14024 for being owned or controlled by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, the Government of the Russian Federation:

JOINT STOCK COMPANY KIROV ENERGOMASH PLANT (KIROV ENERGOMASH PLANT) is a subsidiary of Rosatom that has been involved in the development and supply of steam turbine units for the energy and defense industries. KIROV ENERGOMASH PLANT turbines are installed on Russian nuclear-powered military vessels including submarines and aircraft carriers.

is a subsidiary of Rosatom that has been involved in the development and supply of steam turbine units for the energy and defense industries. KIROV ENERGOMASH PLANT turbines are installed on Russian nuclear-powered military vessels including submarines and aircraft carriers. RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE OF SCIENTIFIC INSTRUMENTS JOINT STOCK COMPANY (NIIP) is a subsidiary of Rosatom that has been involved in radiation testing of electronic equipment and has developed military-applicable counter-UAV detection equipment.

is a subsidiary of Rosatom that has been involved in radiation testing of electronic equipment and has developed military-applicable counter-UAV detection equipment. INJECT RESEARCH AND PRODUCTION ENTERPRISE LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY is a subsidiary of Rosatom that has been involved in the production of semiconductor quantum photonics products and research of laser technologies.

CONSTRAINING RUSSIA'S MILITARY-INDUSTRIAL BASE

Targeting Producers of Russian Weapons Systems and Military Components

The Department is designating the following entities and individual pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the defense and related materiel sector of the Russian Federation economy:

JOINT STOCK COMPANY SCIENTIFIC AND PRODUCTION CORPORATION URALVAGONZAVOD NAMED AFTER F E DZERZHINSKY (NPK URALVAGONZAVOD) is a large Russian government-owned manufacturing conglomerate responsible for defense sector products, including Russian tanks, and other machinery.

is a large Russian government-owned manufacturing conglomerate responsible for defense sector products, including Russian tanks, and other machinery. PUBLIC JOINT STOCK COMPANY KIROV PLANT MAYAK is a leading manufacturer in the Russian defense industry that has supplied the Russian military with conventional arms and equipment.

is a leading manufacturer in the Russian defense industry that has supplied the Russian military with conventional arms and equipment. VIKTOR NIKOLAEVICH ZHILKIN is the director of KIROV MAYAK.

is the director of KIROV MAYAK. JOINT STOCK COMPANY PERM SCIENTIFIC INDUSTRIAL INSTRUMENT-MAKING COMPANY (PNPPK) has produced and developed navigation, control and stabilization systems used on more than 30 types of aircraft in Russia, including the MiG-29, Su-27, and Su-30.

has produced and developed navigation, control and stabilization systems used on more than 30 types of aircraft in Russia, including the MiG-29, Su-27, and Su-30. PUBLIC JOINT STOCK COMPANY SCIENTIFIC PRODUCTION ASSOCIATION STRELA (NPO STRELA) has developed, produced, and modernized missiles, battlefield surveillance radars and artillery used by the Russian Armed Forces.

has developed, produced, and modernized missiles, battlefield surveillance radars and artillery used by the Russian Armed Forces. JOINT STOCK COMPANY RESEARCH AND PRODUCTION ASSOCIATION ISKRA (NPO ISKRA) has developed and manufactured missile systems used by the Russian Armed Forces.

has developed and manufactured missile systems used by the Russian Armed Forces. SERGEY PAVLOVICH YURASOV is the CEO of NPO ISKRA.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(vii) of E.O. 14024, the following entity is being designated for being owned or controlled by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, NPK URALVAGONZAVOD, a person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024:

JOINT STOCK COMPANY URAL HEAVY EQUIPMENT URALVAGONZAVOD is a subsidiary of NPK URALVAGONZAVOD and has supplied petrochemical products to other subsidiaries and companies in the Russian military-industrial base.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entities are being designated for operating or having operated in the aerospace sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY SCIENTIFIC AND PRODUCTION ASSOCIATION AMB has developed and produced the FG-40 internal combustion engine for Russian UAVs.

has developed and produced the FG-40 internal combustion engine for Russian UAVs. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY ABAKAN AIR (ABAKAN AIR) is a Russia-based company that has performed domestic and international commercial charter freight flights. ABAKAN AIR has conducted arms deliveries on behalf of Russia's defense industrial base and transported other Russian military equipment. ABAKAN AIR has also transported equipment and supplies on behalf of Yevgeniy Prigozhin-linked entities in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entity is being designated for operating or having operated in the financial services sector of the Russian Federation economy:

OBSHCHESTVO S OGRANICHENNOI OTVETSTVENNOSTIU AVIALIZING INVEST is the holding company that owns ABAKAN AIR.

Targeting the Russian Military-Industrial Base and Technology Procurement

The Department is designating the following entities pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the manufacturing sector of the Russian Federation economy:

JOINT STOCK COMPANY URALREDMET (URALREDMET) is a Russian procurer of vanadium-containing master alloys used in the production of aerospace grade titanium. URALREDMET's customers include large Russian aerospace-grade titanium producers and other titanium producers supplying the Russian military-industrial base.

is a Russian procurer of vanadium-containing master alloys used in the production of aerospace grade titanium. URALREDMET's customers include large Russian aerospace-grade titanium producers and other titanium producers supplying the Russian military-industrial base. JOINT STOCK COMPANY BOR GLASSWORKS (BOR GLASSWORKS) is a Russia-based glass manufacturer that produces sheet and automotive glass. BOR GLASSWORKS supplies armored glass for Russian armored vehicle production.

is a Russia-based glass manufacturer that produces sheet and automotive glass. BOR GLASSWORKS supplies armored glass for Russian armored vehicle production. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY KLIN GLASSWORKS is a Russia-based glass manufacturer that produces float glass, a critical base component for tempered and armored glass.

is a Russia-based glass manufacturer that produces float glass, a critical base component for tempered and armored glass. JOINT STOCK COMPANY RUSSIAN GLASS COMPANY is a Russia-based glass manufacturer that produces tempered glass, a critical base component for armored glass.

is a Russia-based glass manufacturer that produces tempered glass, a critical base component for armored glass. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY MAGISTRAL (MAGISTRAL) is a Russia-based glass manufacturer that produces bulletproof glass. The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation are patrons of MAGISTRAL, and the company has partners that are manufacturers of armored vehicles for the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation.

is a Russia-based glass manufacturer that produces bulletproof glass. The Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Russian Federation and the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation are patrons of MAGISTRAL, and the company has partners that are manufacturers of armored vehicles for the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY MEGASTEK is a Russia-based armored glass manufacturer.

is a Russia-based armored glass manufacturer. JOINT STOCK COMPANY POLEMA is a Russia-based powder metallurgy company whose products are used in additive manufacturing and 3D-printing and offer analogues for Russia's import substitution strategy.

is a Russia-based powder metallurgy company whose products are used in additive manufacturing and 3D-printing and offer analogues for Russia's import substitution strategy. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY PUMORI ENGINEERING INVEST is a Russia-based company engaged in deliveries of high-tech metalworking machines and tools.

is a Russia-based company engaged in deliveries of high-tech metalworking machines and tools. JOINT STOCK COMPANY KONAR (KONAR) is a Russia-based manufacturer producing components and assemblies for the shipbuilding, power engineering, and oil and gas industries of Russia. KONAR was instructed by U.S.-designated President Vladimir Putin to increase production for Russia's domestic machine tools industry in order to expand Russia's defense industrial base and to mitigate the effects of international sanctions. KONAR is the flagship company of the Russia-based Konar Industrial Group.

is a Russia-based manufacturer producing components and assemblies for the shipbuilding, power engineering, and oil and gas industries of Russia. KONAR was instructed by U.S.-designated President Vladimir Putin to increase production for Russia's domestic machine tools industry in order to expand Russia's defense industrial base and to mitigate the effects of international sanctions. KONAR is the flagship company of the Russia-based Konar Industrial Group. JOINT STOCK COMPANY RUSSKIE ELEKTRICHESKIE DVIGATELI (RUSSIAN ELECTRIC MOTORS) is a Russia-based joint venture between KONAR and PUBLIC JOINT STOCK COMPANY TRANSNEFT, an entity subject to certain less than blocking restrictions, that manufactures power generators and electric motors for the oil industry of Russia. RUSSIAN ELECTRIC MOTORS is part of the Russia-based Konar Industrial Group.

is a Russia-based joint venture between KONAR and PUBLIC JOINT STOCK COMPANY TRANSNEFT, an entity subject to certain less than blocking restrictions, that manufactures power generators and electric motors for the oil industry of Russia. RUSSIAN ELECTRIC MOTORS is part of the Russia-based Konar Industrial Group. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY MODERN FORGING TECHNOLOGIES (MODERN FORGING TECHNOLOGIES) is a Russia-based metal products manufacturer producing cast ingots. MODERN FORGING TECHNOLOGIES is part of the Russia-based Konar Industrial Group.

is a Russia-based metal products manufacturer producing cast ingots. MODERN FORGING TECHNOLOGIES is part of the Russia-based Konar Industrial Group. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY BVK (BVK) is a Russia-based steel castings manufacturer producing products for the shipbuilding industry of Russia. BVK is part of the Russia-based Konar Industrial Group.

is a Russia-based steel castings manufacturer producing products for the shipbuilding industry of Russia. BVK is part of the Russia-based Konar Industrial Group. JOINT STOCK COMPANY ALEKSINSKII OPYTNYI MEHANICHESKII ZAVOD (AOMZ) is a Russia-based ammunition and weapons manufacturer producing defense products, such as mortar mines and aviation bombs, for Russia's defense industry. AOMZ has also received public support from U.S.-designated DMITRY ANATOLYEVICH MEDVEDEV, the First Deputy Chairman of the Military-Industrial Commission of Russia.

is a Russia-based ammunition and weapons manufacturer producing defense products, such as mortar mines and aviation bombs, for Russia's defense industry. AOMZ has also received public support from U.S.-designated DMITRY ANATOLYEVICH MEDVEDEV, the First Deputy Chairman of the Military-Industrial Commission of Russia. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY STANKOMASH (STANKOMASH) is a Russia-based weapons manufacturer producing defense products, such as the Smerch multiple launch rocket system, for Russia's Ministry of Defense. STANKOMASH additionally helps to develop and support research projects for Russia's defense industry.

is a Russia-based weapons manufacturer producing defense products, such as the Smerch multiple launch rocket system, for Russia's Ministry of Defense. STANKOMASH additionally helps to develop and support research projects for Russia's defense industry. JOINT STOCK COMPANY OMSKIY NAUCHNO ISSLEDOVATELSKIY INSTITUT PRIBOROSTROENIY is a Russia-based company that manufactures electronic components including pressed circuit boards and radio communication systems.

is a Russia-based company that manufactures electronic components including pressed circuit boards and radio communication systems. LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY KORNET (KORNET) is a Russia-based producer of oil and gas equipment, to include shut-off valves, control valves and equipment for wellhead connections. KORNET is a part of the Russia-based Konar Industrial Group.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following entity is being designated for operating or having operated in the construction sector of the Russian Federation economy:

LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY INDUSTRIAL PARK STANKOMASH (INDUSTRIAL PARK STANKOMASH) is a Russia-based construction company that is a member of, and builds industrial buildings and engineering infrastructure facilities for, the Russia-based Konar Industrial Group.

PROMOTING ACCOUNTABILITY FOR MALIGN ACTORS

Targeting Entities and an Individual Supporting Russia's Malign Activities Abroad

The Department is designating today JOINT STOCK COMPANY GOZNAK (GOZNAK) and LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY BANKOVSKIE INNOVATSIONNYE SYSTEMY (LLC BIS). GOZNAK is Russia's state-owned enterprise responsible for producing currency, banknotes, and security products, such as passports. GOZNAK supports the U.S.-designated FEDERAL SECURITY SERVICE (FSB) by producing cryptographic products. GOZNAK also contributes to the production of counterfeit currency globally and was responsible for printing more than $1 billion worth of counterfeit Libyan currency, which exacerbated Libya's economic challenges. The Department's designation of GOZNAK today matches previous designations by the EU, UK, and New Zealand. LLC BIS is a subsidiary of GOZNAK that produces software and computer equipment for currency printing.

GOZNAK and LLC BIS are being designated pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the manufacturing sector of the Russian Federation economy and pursuant to section 1(a)(vii) of E.O. 14024 for being owned or controlled by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, the Government of the Russian Federation.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(i) of E.O. 14024, the following individual is being designated for operating or having operated in the manufacturing sector of the Russian Federation economy:

ARKADY VLADIMIROVICH TRACHUK is the general director of GOZNAK and is in charge of the company's operations.

Countering Russian Malign Influence in Moldova

Today, the United States is again designating a member of the criminal network of ILAN SHOR (SHOR), a person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024 for having worked on behalf of the Government of the Russian Federation to interfere in Moldova's elections.

The Department is designating the following individual pursuant to section 1(a)(vii) of E.O. 14024 for being owned or controlled by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, SHOR:

YEVGENIYA ALEKSANDROVNA GUTSUL (GUTSUL) plays a direct and active role in the corrupt activities of SHOR and his U.S.-designated former SHOR PARTY. GUTSUL worked in the SHOR PARTY's central office and directly participated in criminal activities within the SHOR PARTY as directed by SHOR, including participating in the delivery of cash from Russia to the party, illicitly concealing those funds, and using those funds to benefit SHOR and his criminal enterprise. GUTSUL is currently the governor of the Gagauzia autonomous territorial unit of Moldova following an election that was marked by significant indicators of fraud, including vote-buying and significant illicit, undeclared campaign financing from abroad.

SHOR's criminal network continues to work to advance the Kremlin's interests in Moldova while seeking to corrupt Moldova's political system and undermine Moldova's democracy. Rather than serve the people of Gagauzia and the rest of Moldova, GUTSUL has consistently prioritized SHOR's personal interests and those of the Kremlin in attempting to undermine and destabilize Moldova. The United States will continue to stand with Moldovans, including the people of Gagauzia, against these corrupt acts.

Targeting a Sanctions Evasion Network of Russian Oligarch Vladimir Potanin

Today, the Department is taking action against a sanctions evasion scheme connected to VLADIMIR OLEGOVICH POTANIN (Potanin), one of the wealthiest oligarchs in Russia, who formerly served as a Deputy Prime Minister for the Russian Federation. Potanin was previously designated by the Department pursuant to E.O. 14024 in December 2022. The Department is designating four Liechtenstein-based foundations, PALOMA FOUNDATION (PALOMA), SPERO FOUNDATION (SPERO), NATWIN FOUNDATION (NATWIN), and CAFAR FOUNDATION (CAFAR); as well as two Cyprus-based entities, SENTIMARE ENTERPRISES LIMITED and PICOTIN HOLDINGS LIMITED, and one UAE-based entity, SENTIMARE ME LIMITED, connected to the scheme.

Given Potanin was previously the ultimate beneficial owner of SENTIMARE ENTERPRISES LIMITED and his minor children's current equal ownership of SENTIMARE ENTERPRISES LIMITED through four foundations (PALOMA, SPERO, CAFAR, and NATWIN), Potanin retains control of PALOMA, CAFAR, SPERO, and NATWIN.

The Department is designating PALOMA, SPERO, NATWIN, and CAFAR pursuant to section 1(a)(vii) of E.O. 14024 for being owned or controlled by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, POTANIN, a person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(vii) of E.O. 14024, SENTIMARE ENTERPRISES LIMITED is being designated for being owned or controlled by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, PALOMA, SPERO, CAFAR, and NATWIN, persons whose property and interests in property is blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024. SENTIMARE ENTERPRISES LIMITED was previously ultimately beneficially owned by Potanin and is currently owned equally by Potanin's minor children through PALOMA, SPERO, NATWIN, and CAFAR.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(vii) of E.O. 14024, SENTIMARE ME LIMITED and PICOTIN HOLDINGS LIMITED are being designated for being owned or controlled by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, SENTIMARE ENTERPRISES LIMITED. They are both wholly owned by SENTIMARE ENTERPRISES LIMITED.

These designations were the result of extensive coordination with the Department of the Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).

Targeting Occupation Authorities and Individuals Involved in the Forced Transfer and Deportation of Ukrainian Children

The Department is continuing to take action against individuals and organizations responsible for the forced deportation, transfer, re-education, and militarization of Ukraine's children from Russia-occupied areas of Ukraine on behalf of the Government of the Russian Federation.

Pursuant to section 1(a)(ii)(F) of E.O. 14024, the following individuals and entity are being designated for being responsible for or complicit in, or having directly or indirectly engaged or attempted to engage in, activities that undermine the peace, security, political stability, or territorial integrity of the United States, its allies, or its partners, for or on behalf of, or for the benefit of, directly or indirectly, the Government of the Russian Federation:

VALENTINA VASILEVNA LAVRIK (LAVRIK) is the so-called Minister of Education, Science and Youth of the so-called Republic of Crimea appointed by Russia. LAVRIK is responsible for the forced militarization and re-education of Ukraine's children in Crimea.

is the so-called Minister of Education, Science and Youth of the so-called Republic of Crimea appointed by Russia. LAVRIK is responsible for the forced militarization and re-education of Ukraine's children in Crimea. INNA VOLODYMYRIVNA SHVENK is the Commissioner for Children's Rights of the so-called Luhansk People's Republic and is responsible for the forced relocation of Ukraine's children to Russia.

is the Commissioner for Children's Rights of the so-called Luhansk People's Republic and is responsible for the forced relocation of Ukraine's children to Russia. IVAN SERGEYEVICH KUSOV is the Minister of Education and Science of the so-called Luhansk People's Republic and is responsible for the re-education of Ukraine's children.

is the Minister of Education and Science of the so-called Luhansk People's Republic and is responsible for the re-education of Ukraine's children. OLGA VLADIMIROVNA VOLKOVA (VOLKOVA) is responsible for the forced militarization, re-education, and deportation of Ukraine's children to Russia and Belarus. VOLKOVA partnered with, and receives support from, U.S.-designated ALEXEY KONSTANTINOVICH TALAI.

is responsible for the forced militarization, re-education, and deportation of Ukraine's children to Russia and Belarus. VOLKOVA partnered with, and receives support from, U.S.-designated ALEXEY KONSTANTINOVICH TALAI. ALL RUSSIAN PUBLIC STATE MOVEMENT OF CHILDREN AND YOUTH (MOVEMENT OF THE FIRST) is a Russia-based organization that is responsible for the forced militarization and re-education of Ukraine's children and provided Russian passports to Ukraine's children. The MOVEMENT OF THE FIRST was established by the Government of the Russian Federation and is chaired by President Vladimir Putin.

is a Russia-based organization that is responsible for the forced militarization and re-education of Ukraine's children and provided Russian passports to Ukraine's children. The MOVEMENT OF THE FIRST was established by the Government of the Russian Federation and is chaired by President Vladimir Putin. NIKITA VLADIMIROVICH NAGORNY (NAGORNY) is the head of the ALL RUSSIAN CHILDREN AND YOUTH MILITARY PATRIOTIC PUBLIC MOVEMENT YOUTH ARMY (YUNARMIYA), a person previously designated pursuant to E.O. 14024, and is responsible for the forced militarization and re-education of Ukraine's children. NAGORNY is also being designated pursuant to section 1(a)(iii)(C) for being or having been a leader, official, senior executive officer, or member of the board of directors of YUNARMIYA.

SANCTIONS IMPLICATIONS

As a result of today's sanctions-related actions, and in accordance with E.O. 14024, as amended, all property and interests in property of the designated persons described above that are in the United States or in possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to the Department of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Additionally, all entities and individuals that have ownership, either directly or indirectly, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked.

All transactions by U.S. persons or within (or transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property of designated or otherwise blocked persons are prohibited unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC or exempt. These prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any blocked person and the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person.

The power and integrity of U.S. government sanctions derive not only from the U.S. government's ability to designate and add persons to the SDN List, but also from its willingness to remove persons from the SDN List consistent with the law. The ultimate goal of sanctions is not to punish, but to bring about a positive change in behavior.

Petitions for removal from the SDN List may be sent to: OFAC.Reconsideration@treasury.gov. Petitioners may also refer to the Department of State's https://www.state.gov/sanctions-delisting/ page.

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As Russia Completes Transition to a Full War Economy, Treasury Takes Sweeping Aim at Foundational Financial Infrastructure and Access to Third Country Support

U.S. Department of the Treasury

June 12, 2024

Over 300 new sanctions issued across Treasury and State

Foreign financial institutions that support Russia's war economy face greater risk of sanctions

WASHINGTON -- As President Biden and Group of Seven (G7) Leaders prepare to meet this week in Italy, the U.S. Department of the Treasury is issuing sweeping new measures guided by G7 commitments to intensify the pressure on Russia for its continued cruel and unprovoked war against Ukraine. Today's actions ratchet up the risk of secondary sanctions for foreign financial institutions that deal with Russia's war economy; restrict the ability of Russian military-industrial base to take advantage of certain U.S. software and information technology (IT) services; and, together with the Department of State, target more than 300 individuals and entities both in Russia and outside its bordersaincluding in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Africa, Central Asia, and the Caribbeanawhose products and services enable Russia to sustain its war effort and evade sanctions.

"Russia's war economy is deeply isolated from the international financial system, leaving the Kremlin's military desperate for access to the outside world," said Secretary of the Treasury Janet L. Yellen. "Today's actions strike at their remaining avenues for international materials and equipment, including their reliance on critical supplies from third countries. We are increasing the risk for financial institutions dealing with Russia's war economy and eliminating paths for evasion, and diminishing Russia's ability to benefit from access to foreign technology, equipment, software, and IT services. Every day, Russia continues to mortgage its future to sustain its unjust war of choice against Ukraine."

Treasury is targeting the architecture of Russia's financial system, which has been reoriented to facilitate investment into its defense industry and acquisition of goods needed to further its aggression against Ukraine. Treasury is also targeting more than a dozen transnational networks laundering gold for a designated Russian gold producer, supporting Russia's production of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and procuring sensitive and critical items such as materials for Russia's chemical and biological weapons program, anti-UAV equipment, machine tools, industrial machinery, and microelectronics. Today's action also takes further steps to limit Russia's future revenue from liquefied natural gas.

The State Department is targeting over 100 entities and individuals engaged in the development of Russia's future energy, metals, and mining production and export capacity; sanctions evasion and circumvention; and furthering Russia's ability to wage its war against Ukraine.

NEW SECONDARY SANCTIONS RISK

On December 22, 2023, President Biden expanded Treasury's tools to disrupt and degrade Russia's war machine by authorizing Treasury to impose sanctions on foreign financial institutions for aiding Russia's military-industrial base. Today, Treasury is broadening the definition of Russia's military-industrial base to include all persons blocked pursuant to Executive Order (E.O.) 14024. This means that foreign financial institutions risk being sanctioned for conducting or facilitating significant transactions, or providing any service, involving any person blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024, including designated Russian banks such as VTB Bank Public Joint Stock Company (VTB) and Public Joint Stock Company Sberbank of Russia (Sberbank). This expanded definition reflects Treasury's assessment that Russia has re-oriented its economy and marshalled all parts of its government toward supporting its reprehensible war effort. Foreign financial institutions face sanctions risk for continuing to facilitate transactions involving Russia's military-industrial base. Financial institutions should review OFAC's updated sanctions advisory for practical guidance on how to identify sanctions risks and implement corresponding controls.

FOREIGN LOCATIONS OF DESIGNATED RUSSIAN BANKS

To help clarify the risk foreign financial institutions face by conducting or facilitating significant transactions or providing any service involving Russia's designated banks, OFAC has updated the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (SDN List) information for five sanctioned Russian financial institutions, to include the addresses and aliases of their foreign locations.

Specifically, OFAC has updated the listings for Promsvyazbank Public Joint Stock Company to include its locations in Beijing, People's Republic of China (PRC), Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic, and New Delhi, India; for State Corporation Bank for Development and Foreign Economic Affairs Vnesheconombank to include its locations in Beijing, PRC and Mumbai, India; for Sberbank to include its locations in Beijing, PRC and New Delhi and Mumbai, India; for VTB to include its locations in New Delhi, India, and Beijing and Shanghai, PRC; and for VTB Capital Holdings Closed Joint Stock Company to include its location in Hong Kong, PRC.

SOFTWARE AND IT-RELATED SERVICES PROHIBITIONS

In coordination with the U.S. Department of Commerce and in line with G7 efforts to disrupt the Russian military-industrial base's reliance on foreign IT systems, Treasury has taken steps to restrict the Russian military-industrial base's access to certain software and IT-related services. To implement this policy, Treasury, in consultation with the Department of State, has issued a new determination under Executive Order (E.O.) 14071, which prohibits the supply to any person in the Russian Federation of (1) IT consultancy and design services; and (2) IT support services and cloud-based services for enterprise management software and design and manufacturing software. The determination will take effect on September 12, 2024.

The United States strongly supports the free flow of information and communications globally, and these actions are not intended to disrupt civil society and civil telecommunications. Despite the new prohibitions, OFAC continues to maintain authorizations for certain telecommunication and internet-related transactions, as well as humanitarian transactions, under General Licenses 6D and 25D, which mitigate the impacts to Russian civil society and protect public access to information communications technology.

RUSSIAN FINANCIAL INFRASTRUCTURE

The Moscow Exchange (MOEX) operates Russia's largest public trading markets for equity, fixed income, derivative, foreign exchange, and money market products, as well as Russia's central securities depository and the country's largest clearing service provider. U.S.-designated Russian President Vladimir Putin has approved a series of measures to further attract capital through MOEX from both Russian and non-Russian persons from "friendly countries"aexpanding opportunities for both Russians and non-Russians to profit from the Kremlin's war machine by making investments in Russian sovereign debt, Russian corporations, and leading Russian defense entities, including U.S.-designated State Corporation Rostec, Public Joint Stock Company United Aircraft Corporation (UAC), Kamaz Publicly Traded Company (Kamaz), Irkut Corporation Joint Stock Company, Uralvagonzavod, and Joint Stock Company Russian Helicopters.

The National Clearing Center (NCC) is the central counterparty and clearing agent for, and a subsidiary of, MOEX. NCC is supervised by the Central Bank of the Russian Federation (CBR).

The Non-Bank Credit Institution Joint Stock Company National Settlement Depository (NSD) is Russia's central securities depository and is a subsidiary of MOEX. NSD provides bank account services, registration of over-the-counter trades, and liquidity management services. The European Union (EU) previously sanctioned NSD in June 2022.

Gas Industry Insurance Company Sogaz (Sogaz) is an insurance company that provides insurance to Russian military personnel and personnel of leading defense entities, including U.S.-designated UAC, Joint Stock Company Experimental Design Bureau Novator, and Federal State Enterprise Ya M Sverdlov Plant. Sogaz has also been sanctioned by Australia, Canada, the EU, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom (UK).

Joint Stock Company Russian National Reinsurance Company (RNRC) is a Russian state-owned reinsurance provider that was created in 2016 to provide protection for sanctioned persons. RNRC has also been sanctioned by the EU and UK.

MOEX, NCC, NSD, Sogaz, and RNRC were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the financial services sector of the Russian Federation economy. Sogaz was also designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the defense and related materiel sector of the Russian Federation economy.

SANCTIONS EVASION, CIRCUMVENTION, AND BACKFILL

Russia relies on complex transnational supply chains to feed its war machine and enable production of materiel to sustain its war effort. Similar networks also attempt to evade sanctions using convoluted schemes to move money and other valuable goods and assets. Today's action targets more than a dozen of these types of networks, designating more than 90 individuals and entities across Russia, Belarus, the British Virgin Islands, Bulgaria, Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, the PRC, Serbia, South Africa, TArkiye, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

For more information on these targets, please see Annex 1.

RUSSIA'S DOMESTIC WAR ECONOMY

Russia has transformed into a war economy in which companies across the spectrum of Russian industry contribute to Russia's war effort. Today's action reflects the intricate landscape of Russia's domestic war economy by targeting more than 100 entities that operate or have operated in the defense and related materiel, manufacturing, technology, transportation, or financial services sectors of the Russian Federation economy.

For more information on these targets, please see Annex 2.

LIMITING RUSSIA'S FUTURE REVENUE FROM LIQUEFIED NATURAL GAS

Guided by commitments made by President Biden and G7 leaders to limit Russia's future energy revenues and impede Russia's development of future energy projects, today Treasury is targeting entities involved in three liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects that Russia hopes to bring online in the future: the Obsky LNG, Arctic LNG 1, and Arctic LNG 3 projects. Today's action also includes designations of three entities involved in either construction of natural gas-related projects or manufacturing specialized equipment for LNG transportation, as well as the identification of seven under-construction LNG vessels.

For more information on these targets, please see Annex 3.

ANNEX 1: SANCTIONS EVASION, CIRCUMVENTION, AND BACKFILL

Aero-HIT Network

Limited Liability Company Aero-HIT (Aero-HIT) is a Khabarovsk, Russia-based company that has purchased equipment and components to produce several modifications of the Veles multi-rotor first person view strike drone. Aero-HIT-manufactured Veles drones have been used by Russian forces based in Kherson against Ukrainian targets. The Veles drones can be used as an attack drone, as optical reconnaissance devices, or as part of an electronic reconnaissance system. Russia-based Andrei Andreevich Anisimov (Anisimov) is the Director General of Aero-HIT. In his capacity as Director General, Anisimov has worked to expand production of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for use by Russian forces. PRC-based Shenzhen Huasheng Industry Co Ltd has contracted with Aero-HIT to supply UAV components for Aero-HIT. Russia-based Obshchestvo S Organichennoi Otvetstvennostyu Renovatsio-Invest (Renovatsio-Invest) procured PRC-manufactured UAVs on behalf of Aero-HIT. Renovatsio-Invest has also attempted to provide similar services of procuring PRC-manufactured UAVs to other entities in the Russian military-industrial base.

Aero-HIT, Anisimov, Shenzhen Huasheng Industry Co Ltd, and Renovatsio-Invest were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the defense and related materiel sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Russian Machine Tool Evasion Network

Russia-based Newton-ITM is a supplier and producer of metalworking equipment and high-precision parts for the aerospace industry. Russian national Dmitrii Vladimirovich Alikhanov (Alikhanov) is the director of Newton-ITM. Alikhanov has worked with European machine tool manufacturers to illicitly procure machinery for Russian end-users. Alikhanov has used Kyrgyz Republic-based Obshchestvo s Ogranichennoy Otvestvennostyu Nova Proekt (Nova Proekt) as a falsified end-user to procure machine tools for Russian end-users.A number of foreign intermediaries, including TArkiye-based Safes Lojistik Ithalat Ihracat Sanayi Ticaret Limited (Safes Lojistik), PRC-based Chongqing Fagima Electromechanical Equipment Co Ltd (Chongqing Fagima), and Hong Kong-based GBL International Logistics Co Ltd (GBL), helped to ship foreign-origin machine tools to Newton-ITM.

Newton-ITM, Alikhanov, Nova Proekt, Safes Lojistik, Chongqing Fagima, and GBL were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the manufacturing sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Russian Intelligence Procurement Network

Russia-based Silk Way Rally Association (Silk Way) holds an annual off-road rally race that the U.S.-designated Russian Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU) uses as a front for intelligence operations. The GRU has given awards to Russian national Bulat Akhatovich Yanborisov (Bulat), the head of Silk Way, for his work. Bulat appears to use his properties in Europe as transit points for GRU officers. Bulat, who is Silk Way's CEO and general director, alongside his son Amir Bulatovich Yanborisov (Amir), use Silk Way's logistical infrastructure to procure anti-UAV and radioelectronic warfare equipment for use on the battlefield in Ukraine.

Silk Way, Bulat, and Amir were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the defense and related materiel sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Nikolai Levin Network

U.S.-designated OOO Mayak (Mayak) assists Russian companies in circumventing sanctions through Mayak's trading houses and consolidated warehouses in Europe, delivering parallel imports from Europe, TArkiye, and the UAE. Russian national Nikolai Aleksandrovich Levin (Levin) is the General Director and owner of Mayak and has used a network of companies to facilitate the import of U.S. and foreign electronics, industrial materials, and other goods into Russia. Levin is the Director and owner of Serbia-based Bassire Group DOO Beograd (Bassire Group) and is the sole executive of Thailand-based NAL Solutions Company Limited (NAL Solutions). TArkiye-based Expert Machinery Kimyasal Urunler Ticaret Limited Sirketi (Expert Machinery) is co-owned by Levin and has sent over $500,000 worth of high priority HS code goods to Mayak and Russia-based OOO TAV (TAV), including machines for the reception, conversion, and transmission of data and integrated electronic circuits. TAV buys and delivers imported goods and offers all types of cargo transportation all over Russia and is owned by Russian national Aleksandr Vasilyevich Tanchev (Tanchev). Tanchev is the Director of Hong Kong-based Tavit Hong Kong Co Limited (Tavit), which has sent over $2 million worth of U.S.-made goods to Mayak.

Levin, Expert Machinery, and Tavit were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy. TAV and Tanchev were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the transportation sector of the Russian Federation economy. Bassire Group and NAL Solutions were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for being owned or controlled by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, Levin.

Sudakov Gold Laundering Network

Russian national Andrey Dmitriyevich Sudakov (Sudakov), an employee of U.S.-designated Russian state-owned gold producer Public Joint Stock Company Polyus (Polyus), and his Hong Kong-based associate Mu Xiaolu (Mu), engaged in a complex, multi-layered laundering scheme whereby payments from the sale of Russian-origin gold were converted into fiat currency and cryptocurrencies through numerous UAE and Hong Kong-based front companies. The scheme used numerous Hong Kong-based trading companies, including Holden International Trading Limited (Holden) and Taube Precious HK Limited (Taube) to route payments related to gold sales through foreign financial institutions back into the Russian financial system. The scheme also used UAE-based front company Red Coast Metals Trading DMCC (Red Coast) to obfuscate payments from the sale of Russian-origin gold. Additionally, the scheme involved Hong Kong-based VPower Finance Security Hong Kong Limited (VPower) to transport the Russian-origin gold.

Sudakov, Mu, Holden, Red Coast, Taube, Red Coast, and VPower were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the metals and mining sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Chichenev Microelectronics Procurement Network

Alexey Chichenev (Chichenev) is a Russian national who manages a large-scale microelectronics procurement network based in Hong Kong. Chichenev has used his network of Hong-Kong based import-export companies, including Superchip Limited (Superchip) and Kvantek Limited (Kvantek), to ship millions of dollars' worth of electronic integrated circuits and other high-priority technology items to Russia. Chichenev is the director and 100 percent owner of Superchip. Chichenev is also the director of Olax Finance Limited, Saril Overseas Limited,and Bargawine (Hong Kong) Limited.

Superchip and Kvantek were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy. Chichenev was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for being or having been a leader, official, senior executive officer, or member of the board of directors of Superchip. Olax Finance Limited, Saril Overseas Limited, and Bargawine (Hong Kong) Limited were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for being owned or controlled by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, Chichenev.

Elecom Network

Limited Liability Company Elecom (LLC Elecom) is a Russia-based electronic component manufacturer that has imported high-priority items, including electronic integrated circuits, from foreign companies. Pako International Trading (Pako International) is a Hong Kong-based company that has shipped high-priority items, including electronic integrated circuits and transformers, to Russian companies includingLLC Elecomand U.S.-designated Limited Liability Company Promelektro Engineering (Promelektro Engineering). Valetudo Limited (Valetudo) is a Hong Kong-based company that has shipped high-priority items, including electronic integrated circuits and capacitators, to Russian companies including LLC Elecom and Promelektro Engineering. LLC Elecom, Pako International, and Valetudo were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Training the Wagner Group

Brett Warrick Mac Donald (Mac Donald) and Shaun Louw (Louw) are South African nationals who, throughout mid-2023, arranged and oversaw the execution of a training program on survival techniques for U.S.-designated Private Military Company 'Wagner' (the Wagner Group) personnel in the Central African Republic. Mac Donald and Louw were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, the Wagner Group, a person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024.

Unmanned Systems Procurement Network

Russia-based Limited Liability Company Unmanned Systems (Unmanned Systems) is a designer and manufacturer of unmanned aircraft systems that have been used as reconnaissance drones by the Russian military. Russia's military industrial base uses Unmanned Systems and an extensive network of Russian and foreign intermediary companies to purchase microelectronics and high-tech equipment produced abroad. Hong Kong-based Infinite Force Cargo Service HK Limited (Infinite Force) has sent camera lenses for unmanned aircraft to Unmanned Systems as well as high-priority items such as electronic integrated circuits, tantalum capacitors, and multilayer ceramic capacitors to other Russian end-users, including U.S.-designated Silkway Limited Liability Company.PRC-based Shanghai Transit International Forwarding Agency Co Ltd (Shanghai Transit)offers delivery via its own container trains to various Russian cities. Shanghai Transit has provided over $180,000 worth of high-priority items, including electronic integrated circuits, tantalum capacitors, and multilayer ceramic capacitors, to Russia-based end-users, including those supplying equipment to Unmanned Systems.

Unmanned Systems was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the defense and related materiel sector of the Russian Federation economy. Infinite Force and Shanghai Transit were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy.

ARP Investments

Russia-based Limited Liability Company Severnaya Zvezda (Severnaya Zvezda)is a producer and supplier of semiconductors and tantalum capacitors critical to Russia's war effort. Severnaya Zvezda's principal supplier is British Virgin Islands-based ARP Investments Limited (ARP), which has made hundreds of shipments of electronic components to Russia since February 2022. ARP has engaged in transactions with U.S.-designated, Serbia-based Kominvex DOO Beograd (Kominvex). Kominvex's transactions exhibited typologies indicative of possible trade-based money laundering.

Severnaya Zvezda and ARP were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Elekkom Logistik Network

Russia-based Elekkom Logistik is an official distributor, dealer, and partner of leading foreign and domestic manufacturers of electro-technical products. Elekkom Logistik is part of a wide network of intermediaries supplying the Russian defense industry with foreign-made electronic components and materials used in the production of UAVs and has worked to procure ATXMEGA256A3-AU microchips. PRC-based Shenzhen Youxin Technology Co Ltd (Shenzhen Youxin) has provided more than half a million dollars' worth of electronic integrated circuits, tantalum capacitors, and multilayer ceramic capacitors to Elekkom Logistik, in addition to chips found in Russian reconnaissance UAVs.

Elekkom Logistik and Shenzhen Youxin were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy.

UAV Proliferation

KVAND ISOOO is a Belarus-based developer of drone technology that has designed and tested loitering munition UAVs, and has jointly designed and tested surveillance UAVs with the Belarusian government. KVAND IS OOO has shipped drone technology to the Russian defense establishment. Siarhei Tytsyk is the co-owner and director of KVAND IS OOO. Additionally, Freshvale EOOD, a Bulgaria-based UAV manufacturer, marketed Russian UAVs with offensive capabilities, such as weapons systems and missiles to an African country. KVAND IS and Freshvale EOOD were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the defense and related materiel sector of the Russian Federation economy. Siarhei Tytsyk was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for being or having been a leader, official, senior executive officer, or member of the board of directors of KVAND IS OOO.

Ostec Group Sanctions Evasion Network

In May 2022, OFAC sanctioned entities comprising the Ostec Group, a Russian technology consortium and military contractor that supports Russian producers of various missile systems and aerial bombs, alongside its principal suppliers in Europe. Following those designations, new routes have emerged to attempt to enable the Ostec Group to acquire much-needed technology and equipment.

Russia-based Fabcenter LLC (Fabcenter), which shares a location with the Ostec Group and whose general director and owner has worked for the Ostec Group for more than a decade, has become a major recipient of goods in Ostec Group's stead. Fabcenter is a construction company that specializes in the design and construction of production facilities and cleanrooms for the electronics industry.

The Ostec Group's suppliers have shifted to sending goodsaprimarily semiconductor production machines, soldering and welding machines, and other technology and equipmentato Fabcenter after previously shipping to Ostec Group entities like U.S.-designated Ostec-Arttool Ltd, Ostec SMT Ltd, and Ostec-Integra Ltd.

Kazakhstan-based KBR Tekhnologii TOO (KBR Tekhnologii)has made hundreds of shipments to Fabcenter, Ostec-Arttool Ltd, Ostec-SMT Ltd, and Ostec-Integra Ltd. The co-founder of KBR Technologies is a longtime employee of U.S.-designated Evgueni Kostiouk, the owner of one the Ostec Group's previous top suppliers, U.S.-designated Inter-Trans Spolka z Ograniczona Odpowiedzialnoscia.

TArkiye-based Alptech Makina Sanayi Limited Sirketi (Alptech) and Hong Kong-based New Horizons Trading Limited (New Horizons) have made hundreds of shipments to Fabcenter and dozens of shipments to Ostec-Arttool Ltd. KBR Technologies, Alptech, and New Horizons were all established between May and August 2022.

Other Russia-based companies that have received shipments from KBR Technologies, Alptech, and New Horizons include Kseoprom, which manufactures materials and equipment related to the production of electronics; manufacturing equipment wholesaler Niceberg Limited Liability Company (Niceberg), established in June 2023; and manufacturing equipment wholesaler Powertech Limited Liability Company (Powertech), established in July 2023.

Fabcenter was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the construction sector of the Russian Federation economy. KBR Tekhnologii was designated for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Fabcenter, Ostec-Arttool Ltd, Ostec-SMT Ltd, and Ostec-Integra Ltd. Alptech and New Horizons were designated for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Fabcenter and Ostec-Arttool Ltd. Kseoprom, Niceberg, and Powertech were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the manufacturing sector of the Russian Federation economy.

DP Microchip Network

Russia-based Design Partner Microchip LLC (DP Microchip) imports electronic components, including high-priority Harmonized System (HS) code goods. DP Microchip collaborated with multiple U.S.-designated entities in Russia to procure electronic components from outside of Russia. TArkiye-based Platform Endustriyel Gida Insaat Elektronik Ve Madencilik Dis Ticaret Limited Sirketi (Platform Endustriyel) and Onyad Bilgisayar Ticaret Limited Sirketi (Onyad Bilgisayar) and PRC-based Yiwu Xinglu Import and Export Co Ltd (Yiwu Xinglu) have together made dozens of shipments of integrated circuits and other electronics to DP Microchip.

DP Microchip, Platform Endustriyel, Onyad Bilgisayar, and Yiwu Xinglu were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy.

AK Microtech's PRC Intermediaries

On July 20, 2023, OFAC designated Russia-based Limited Liability Company AK Microtech (AKM), which specializes in transferring foreign semiconductor technology to Russian microelectronics production companies, including entities that provide microelectronics to the Russian defense industry. On September 14, 2023, OFAC designated AKM's owner and director, Andrei Rostislavovich Khokhlun (Khokhlun), and another Russia-based company owned by Khokhlun, Limited Liability Company Keko R (Keko R).

PRC-based Hangzhou Keming Intelligent Technology Co Ltd (HKIT) has made dozens of shipments to AKM as well as shipments to Keko R. The shipments have included technology such as film used in the production of electronic components.

PRC-based Shenzhen C S Im Export Ltd (Shenzhen CSI) is a prolific supplier of technology to AKM, including high-priority items such as machines and apparatus for the manufacture of boules or wafers and electrical transformers, static convertors, and inductors. Shenzhen CSI has helped AKM divert technology to Russia.

PRC national Ting Chen (Chen) is the managing director and owner of Shenzhen CSI. Chen was also involved in a sanctions evasion scheme in which AKM sought to acquire technology via Shenzhen CSI. Chen also owns Hong Kong-based Way Good Technology Limited (Way Good).

Hong Kong-based Kekotech Equipment Limited (Kekotech) has also been used to provide goods to AKM. In addition to Shenzhen CSI, Chen is also affiliated with Kekotech.

PRC national Lap Shun Lee (Lee) has represented Shenzhen CSI in many of its dealings with AKM, including schemes in which AKM sought to evade sanctions against Russia.

HKIT, Shenzhen CSI, Chen, and Lee were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy. Way Good was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for being owned or controlled by, or having acted for or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, Chen. Kekotech was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, AKM, a person whose property and interests in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024.

Maksim Ermakov

Maksim Yuryevich Ermakov (Ermakov), previously designated pursuant to E.O. 14024, ran a procurement network to obtain microchips for Russian state-owned enterprises, including a state-owned technology company that makes electronic warfare systems for the Russian military. Ermakov was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy. Ermakov has also been sanctioned by the UK.

Chimmed Group Network

Chimmed Group is the leading group of Russian companies that supplies Russian customers with a wide range of chemicals and lab equipment. Chimmed Group maintains an extensive network of members and affiliates to procure U.S.- and Western-origin equipment and consumables for Russian entities connected to the country's biological and chemical weapons programs, including the Federal State Budgetary Establishment 33 Central Scientific Research Test (33rd TSNII), Federal State Budgetary Establishment 27 Scientific Center (27th Scientific Center), and Federal State Budgetary Institution 48 Central Scientific and Research Institute (48th TSNII). Chimmed Group also supplies materialsaincluding raw materials that can be used for the production of chemical and biological weaponsato special laboratories that are a part of the Federal Security Service (FSB) that were implicated in the poisoning of Alexey Navalny.

Russia-based Obshchestvo S Ogranichennoi Otvetstvennostyu Torgovy Dom Khimmed (TD Khimmed) and Obshchestvo S Ogranichennoi Otvetstvennostyu Analiticheskaya Manufaktura (Analiticheskaya Manufaktura) are affiliates of the Chimmed Group. Analiticheskaya Manufaktura attempted to provide equipment to the 48th TSNII. Russia-based companies Obshchestvo S Ogranichennoi Otvetstvennostyu Rusmedtorg (Rusmedtorg) and Obshchestvo S Ogranichennoi Otvetstvennostyu Medstandart (Medstandart) have been closely associated with the Chimmed Group and share a delivery address. Individuals associated with the Chimmed Group purchased biological goods via Medstandart and chemicals via Rusmedtorg. Medstandart has supplied U.S. origin reagents to the Chimmed Group and attempted to provide laboratory goods to the 33rd TSNII.

Russia-based Obshchestvo S Ogranichennoi Otvetstvennostyu Elyuentlaboratoriz (Elyuentlaboratoriz) procured U.S.- and Western-origin equipment and consumables for the 27th Scientific Center and 48th TSNII.

TArkiye-based Biopharmist Medikal Urunler Dis Ticaret LTD STI (Biopharmist) exported laboratory items to affiliates of the Chimmed Group, including Elyuentlaboratoriz, Rusmedtorg, and Medstandart.

Chimmed Group, TD Khimmed, Analiticheskaya Manufaktura, Rusmedtorg, Medstandart, Elyuentlaboratoriz, and Biopharmist were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the defense and related materiel sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Intermediaries Supplying Laser Companies

Russia-based Leningrad Laser Systems (LLS) is involved in the supply, integration, and development of innovative solutions in the fields of lasers and fiber optics in Russia. LLS and U.S.-designated Russia-based laser product manufacturer Lassard are contractors for the U.S.-designated All-Russian Scientific Research Institute Of Experimental Physics' (VNIIEF's) Institute of Laser Physics Research. VNIIEF performs experimental testing of Russia's nuclear weapons. Lassard is an industrial enterprise offering full-cycle manufacturing of laser technology and optical equipment with potential for military and weapons applications. Russia-based Cryotrade Engineering is a supplier of cryogenic equipment, cryogenic instruments, and analytical equipment from leading manufacturers. LLS and Cryotrade Engineering have previously been contracted by U.S.-designated L.D. Landau Institute for Theoretical Physics of Russian Academy of Sciences, a quantum computing research center. China-based Gker Laser Technology Co Ltd (Gker Laser) has sent hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of goods, including laser diodes, optical fiber, and lasers, to Lassard. China-based Jinan Kewei Optics Co Ltd (Jinan Kewei) has sent hundreds of high priority HS code goods to LLS and U.S.-designated electronics company Staut Company Limited, including electronic integrated circuits, tantalum capacitors, and multilayer ceramic capacitors.

LLS, Gker Laser, and Jinan Kewei were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy. Cryotrade Engineering was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in themanufacturing sector of the Russian Federation economy.

PRC-based Suppliers to Russian Military-Industrial Base

Analog Technology Limited (Analog Technology) is a Hong Kong-based electronic component distributor with locations in the PRC and India that has shipped high-priority items, including electronic integrated circuits, to Russian companies including U.S.-designated LLC Spetselservis and Limited Liability Company Spetsvoltazh. Analog Technology was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Shandong Oree Laser Technology Co., Ltd. (Shandong Oree) and Zhejiang Zhenhuan CNC Machine Tool Co., Ltd. (Zhejiang Zhenhuan CNC) are PRC-based machine tool companies that have shipped metalworking machines and other related equipment to Russia. Shandong Oree and Zhejiang Zhenhuan CNC were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the manufacturing sector of the Russian Federation economy.

PRC-based Chongqing Xianuofugeluode International Trade Co Ltd (CXI Trade) has made dozens of shipments of technology, including integrated circuits, to Russia since February 2022. CXI Trade has also acquired technology for Russian military-industrial base entities. CXI Trade was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Enka Trading Limited is a Hong Kong-based wholesaler with expertise in electronic devices and components that has facilitated the procurement of electronic components, including integrated circuits, for Russian end-use. Enka Trading Limited was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy.

PRC-based Shandong Ki Forest New Advanced Co Ltd (Shandong Ki Forest) has made thousands of shipments of high-priority technology to Russia, including semiconductor devices, electronic integrated circuits, tantalum capacitors, transformers, converters, and inductors. Shandong Ki Forest's primary customers in Russia are Reomaks Limited Liability Company (Reomaks), a supplier of industrial and specialized electronic components, and Solard, an importer of electronic components. Shandong Ki Forest, Reomaks, and Solard were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Hong Kong-based HK Nicest Electric Technology Co Limited (HK Nicest) has sent over 100 shipments of high-priority items to Russia-based end-users, including electronic integrated circuits, tantalum capacitors, and multilayer ceramic capacitors. HK Nicest has supplied equipment to Russia-based end-users supplying the Russian defense industry with electronics to produce aviation equipment. One of HK Nicest's Russian buyers has been U.S.-designated Russian electronics company Streloi Ekommerts. HK Nicest was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy.

PRC-based Daytek Chongqing International Trade Co Ltd (Daytek) has acquired advanced technological equipment for Russian military-industrial base end-users. PRC national Yi Xuan Wu (Wu) is the director of Daytek. Wu has helped Russian counterparts evade sanctions and acquire technology for the Russian military-industrial base. Daytek and Wu were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy.

TArkiye-Based Suppliers to Russian Military-Industrial Base

TArkiye-based SSGCTM CNC Takim Tezgahlari Makine Sanayi Ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi (SSGCTM CNC) has provided over $6 million worth of goods to U.S.-designated Russian manufacturing company Limited Liability Company I Machine Technology (I Machine), including computer numerical controlled (CNC) machine tools. TArkiye-based Minyon Kesici Takimlar Makine Sanayi Ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi (Minyon Kesici) has sent over 600 shipments to Russia-based end-users, with shipments including tools used for metal processing and CNC machine tools, including over $800,000 worth of CNC machine tools to I Machine.

TArkiye-based Gepa Uluslararasi Ticaret Limited Sirketi (Gepa) has provided over $4 million worth of goods to U.S.-designated Russian manufacturing company Alfa Machinery Group, including various machine tools and related equipment.

TArkiye-basedKamilhan Lojistik Dis Ticaret Limited Sirketi (Kamilhan Lojistik) has sent over $3 million worth of high priority HS code goods, including electronic integrated circuits and machines for the reception, conversion, and transmission of data, to U.S.-designated Russian electronics company Limited Liability Company Trade House Kyutek.

TArkiye-based CPS Proses Kontrol Urunleri Sanayi Ve Ticaret Anonim Sirketi (CPS Proses) has shipped German and U.S.-manufactured machine and welding equipment to U.S.-designated Russian technology company and defense contractor Ostec EC Ltd.

TArkiye-based RMB Yapi Insaat Taahhut Sana Yi Ve Ti Caret Limited Sirketi (RMB Yapi) has sent hundreds of thousands of dollars' worth of remote-controlled unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) as well as programmable controllers for UAVs and lithium-ion batteries to Russian end-users.

TArkiye-based Taksan Makina Sanayi Ve Ticaret Anonim Sirketi (Taksan Makina) has sent over $700,000 worth of goods, including metal-working centers and machine tools, to U.S.-designated Russian manufacturing company Limited Liability Company Pumori Northwest

(Pumori Northwest), a major provider of metalworking equipment and machine tools to the

Russian defense industry. TArkiye-based Dener Ithalat Ihracat Ve Dis Ticaret Anonim Sirketi (Dener Ithalat) has sent over $300,000 worth of goods to Pumori Northwest, including metalworking centers and a metalworking machine tool.

SSGCTM CNC, Minyon Kesici, Gepa, Taksan Makina, and Dener Ithalat were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the manufacturing sector of the Russian Federation economy. Kamilhan Lojistik, CPS Proses, and RMB Yapi were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy.

ANNEX 2: RUSSIA'S DOMESTIC WAR ECONOMY

The following Russia-based persons were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the defense and related materiel sector of the Russian Federation economy:

Aktsionernoe Obshchestvo Kazanskoe Opytnoe Konstruktorskoe Byuro Soyuz manufactures weapons and ammunition.

manufactures weapons and ammunition. Aktsionernoe Obshchestvo Nauchno Proizvodstvennoe Obyedinenie Poisk manufactures fuses for projectiles, artillery, and missiles.

manufactures fuses for projectiles, artillery, and missiles. Birtrans transports Russian military equipment, including armed personnel carriers and tanks.

transports Russian military equipment, including armed personnel carriers and tanks. East West Conversion develops and sells armaments and military equipment.

develops and sells armaments and military equipment. Federal Research and Production Center Nizhny Novgorod Research Institute of Radio Engineering Joint Stock Company produces radar equipment used by the Russian Army.

produces radar equipment used by the Russian Army. Joint Stock Company Federal Scientific and Production Center Scientific Research Institute of Applied Chemistry develops and manufactures pyrotechnic systems used for the protection of armored vehicles, aviation, and marine objects.

develops and manufactures pyrotechnic systems used for the protection of armored vehicles, aviation, and marine objects. Joint Stock Company KB Luch (KB Luch) designed the Korsar, also known as the Corsair UAV system, which is used by the Russian Ministry of Defense for surveillance, aerial reconnaissance, patrol and observation, and target acquisition. The KB Luch-designed Korsar has been used by Russian forces in Ukraine.

(KB Luch) designed the Korsar, also known as the Corsair UAV system, which is used by the Russian Ministry of Defense for surveillance, aerial reconnaissance, patrol and observation, and target acquisition. The KB Luch-designed Korsar has been used by Russian forces in Ukraine. Joint Stock Company Murom Machine Building Plant Production Association manufactures weapons and ammunition.

manufactures weapons and ammunition. Joint Stock Company Scientific and Production Association Impuls produces automated controls systems used by the Russian Armed Forces and Strategic Missile Forces.

produces automated controls systems used by the Russian Armed Forces and Strategic Missile Forces. Joint Stock Company Solikamsk Plant Ural manufactures gunpowder and explosives.

manufactures gunpowder and explosives. Joint Stock Company Voronezh Central Design Bureau Polus develops and produces radio monitoring equipment used by the Russian Army and Navy.

develops and produces radio monitoring equipment used by the Russian Army and Navy. Limited Liability Company Geoscan manufactures UAVs used in Russia's war against Ukraine.

manufactures UAVs used in Russia's war against Ukraine. Limited Liability Company Kingisepsky Machine Building Plant develops unmanned explosive-carrying boats.

develops unmanned explosive-carrying boats. Limited Liability Company Military Transportation transports Russian military equipment, military vehicles, and air defense systems.

transports Russian military equipment, military vehicles, and air defense systems. Limited Liability Company Roboavia Unmanned Systems manufactures an attack UAV used by the Russian military.

manufactures an attack UAV used by the Russian military. Limited Liability Company Russian Eagle manufactures and sells weapons, ammunition, and ordnance.

manufactures and sells weapons, ammunition, and ordnance. Moran Security Group Ltd ( Moran ) offers armed security services and has operated under contract to Russian state-owned enterprises.Russian national Alexey Badikov is Moran's Chief Executive Officer.

( ) offers armed security services and has operated under contract to Russian state-owned enterprises.Russian national is Moran's Chief Executive Officer. OOO Sepo Zem produces electronic control systems for military aircraft engines.

produces electronic control systems for military aircraft engines. PAO Radiofizika develops, tests, produces, installs, maintains, repairs, and sells armaments and military equipment.

develops, tests, produces, installs, maintains, repairs, and sells armaments and military equipment. Research and Production Association Named After AS Popov manufactures and develops advanced military communication equipment used by the Russian Ministry of Defense.

manufactures and develops advanced military communication equipment used by the Russian Ministry of Defense. Research and Production Enterprise Kaluga Based Instrument Making Plant Typhoon Joint Stock Company manufactures radio systems and weapons systems used by the Russian Armed Forces.

manufactures radio systems and weapons systems used by the Russian Armed Forces. Samarskii Zavod Kommunar manufactures weapons, ammunition, small arms, ordnance, and explosives.

manufactures weapons, ammunition, small arms, ordnance, and explosives. Scientific Production Center of Anti-Terrorist and Forensic Equipment Spektr AT LLC develops, produces, and supplies thermal imaging systems and surveillance and inspection equipment used by the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) and U.S.-designated Federal Security Service (FSB).

develops, produces, and supplies thermal imaging systems and surveillance and inspection equipment used by the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD) and U.S.-designated Federal Security Service (FSB). Ship Repair Yard of the Black Sea Fleet of the Ministry of Defense of the Russian Federation services minesweepers, corvettes, frigates, and other warships.

services minesweepers, corvettes, frigates, and other warships. Special Materials Corporation develops and produces personal armor protection products used by the Russian Ministry of Defense and the FSB.

develops and produces personal armor protection products used by the Russian Ministry of Defense and the FSB. VM Trans Group of Companies LLC transports Russian military equipment.

transports Russian military equipment. Taiber OOO developed drone technology for "kamikaze" drones.

Additionally, Joint Stock Company Shipbuilding Plant Named after B Ye Butoma (Butoma), located in illegally Russian-occupied Crimea, Ukraine, builds warships for Russia's Black Sea Fleet. Butoma was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the defense and related materiel sector of the Russian Federation economy.

The following Russia-based entities were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the manufacturing sector of the Russian Federation economy:

Aktsionernoe Obshchestvo Malmyzhskii Zavod Po Remontu Dizelnykh Dvigatelei overhauls engines for U.S.-designated Kamaz, a supplier of armored vehicles to Russia's military, and is involved in machining and the repair of machinery and equipment.

overhauls engines for U.S.-designated Kamaz, a supplier of armored vehicles to Russia's military, and is involved in machining and the repair of machinery and equipment. Aktsionernoe Obshchestvo Moven NN manufactures and supplies ventilation, climate, and refrigeration equipment for shipbuilding facilities and markets its goods to Russian military customers.

manufactures and supplies ventilation, climate, and refrigeration equipment for shipbuilding facilities and markets its goods to Russian military customers. Scientific and Production Association of Automatics Named after Academician Na Semikhatov develops and manufactures control systems and radio-electronic equipment and markets its goods to Russian military customers.

develops and manufactures control systems and radio-electronic equipment and markets its goods to Russian military customers. Aktsionernoe Obshchestvo NPTS Spetselektronsistemy manufactures 3D structures and micromodules, including semiconductors, and is located at Technopolis Moscow, a special economic zone managed by U.S.-designated Joint Stock Company Special Economic Zone Technopolis Moscow.

manufactures 3D structures and micromodules, including semiconductors, and is located at Technopolis Moscow, a special economic zone managed by U.S.-designated Joint Stock Company Special Economic Zone Technopolis Moscow. Aktsionernoe Obshchestvo Sinara Transportnye Mashiny sells machinery, repairs and maintains vehicles, including tracked machines, and works with the Government of the Russian Federation.

sells machinery, repairs and maintains vehicles, including tracked machines, and works with the Government of the Russian Federation. JSC The Special Boiler Design Bureau designs, manufactures, and repairs boiler equipment for naval use.

designs, manufactures, and repairs boiler equipment for naval use. Aktsionernoe Obshchestvo Strela manufactures electrical equipment and holds a license from the Russian Ministry of Defense.

manufactures electrical equipment and holds a license from the Russian Ministry of Defense. Alyans Riteil manufactures metal structures, metal barrels, fabricated metal, and fasteners. Alyans Riteil markets fittings used in special military equipment.

manufactures metal structures, metal barrels, fabricated metal, and fasteners. Alyans Riteil markets fittings used in special military equipment. AOProton Impuls manufactures semiconductors, diodes, transistors, and special purpose machinery. AO Proton Impuls also manufactures circuit boards, a critical component in Russian UAVs.

manufactures semiconductors, diodes, transistors, and special purpose machinery. AO Proton Impuls also manufactures circuit boards, a critical component in Russian UAVs. AO Proton PM manufactures jet engines and liquid missile engines.

manufactures jet engines and liquid missile engines. Armorgrupp manufactures armored vehicles.

manufactures armored vehicles. Astrosib repairs electronic, precision, and optical equipment and produces optical instruments.

repairs electronic, precision, and optical equipment and produces optical instruments. Avtonomnoe Uchrezdenie Tekhnopark Mordoviya facilitates the production and assembly of UAVs and operates an industrial park that hosts producers of electronic warfare equipment.

facilitates the production and assembly of UAVs and operates an industrial park that hosts producers of electronic warfare equipment. Belogorodskaya Shipyard Limited Liability Company manufactures berthing complexes and crane vessels and markets its goods to Russian military customers.

manufactures berthing complexes and crane vessels and markets its goods to Russian military customers. DD Imeks builds, repairs, and maintains ships and conducts machining activities.

builds, repairs, and maintains ships and conducts machining activities. Elektroradioavtomatika JSC manufactures fastening products for cable runs and electrical equipment, electrical connectors and electrical distribution devices, and markets its goods to Russian military customers.

manufactures fastening products for cable runs and electrical equipment, electrical connectors and electrical distribution devices, and markets its goods to Russian military customers. Gruppa Kompanii Astrokupol develops automated shelters for special-purpose optical equipment.

develops automated shelters for special-purpose optical equipment. Gruppa Promavto manufactures special-purpose vehicles, including vehicles for Russia's Ministry of Internal Affairs.

manufactures special-purpose vehicles, including vehicles for Russia's Ministry of Internal Affairs. Joint Stock Company Alekseev Central Hidrofoil Design Bureau manufactures high-speed vessels, hydrofoils, hovercrafts, and amphibious platforms, and markets its goods to Russian military customers.

manufactures high-speed vessels, hydrofoils, hovercrafts, and amphibious platforms, and markets its goods to Russian military customers. Joint Stock Company Factory Crizo manufactures electrical equipment for the Russian Navy, including products installed on surface vessels and submarines.

manufactures electrical equipment for the Russian Navy, including products installed on surface vessels and submarines. Joint Stock Company Novaya Era manufactures electric power systems for ships and vessels of the Russian Navy.

manufactures electric power systems for ships and vessels of the Russian Navy. Joint Stock Company NPO Stekloplastic manufactures multifunctional fiber-based materials and state-of-the-art composites with military applications.

manufactures multifunctional fiber-based materials and state-of-the-art composites with military applications. Joint Stock Company OboronAuto manufactures armored vehicles marketed to Russian military customers.

manufactures armored vehicles marketed to Russian military customers. Joint Stock Company Omskiy Nauchno Issledovatelskiy Institut Priborostroeniya produces electronic warfare systems and specialized communication systems.

produces electronic warfare systems and specialized communication systems. Joint Stock Company Polema manufactures crude iron, steel, tubes, pipes, and steel bars and holds a license for explosive and chemically hazardous production.

manufactures crude iron, steel, tubes, pipes, and steel bars and holds a license for explosive and chemically hazardous production. Joint Stock Company Research and Implementation Enterprise Protek manufactures radar equipment.

manufactures radar equipment. Joint Stock Company Research and Production Center Vigstar manufactures electronic components and markets its products to Russian military customers.

manufactures electronic components and markets its products to Russian military customers. Joint Stock Company Soedinitel manufactures hermetic and corrosion-resistant connectors and cable fittings, and markets its goods to Russian military customers.

manufactures hermetic and corrosion-resistant connectors and cable fittings, and markets its goods to Russian military customers. Joint Stock Company SR Space manufactures engines and develops UAVs and UAV detection and suppression systems.

manufactures engines and develops UAVs and UAV detection and suppression systems. Joint Stock Company the Central Research Institute Kurs designs shipboard electronic weaponry and onboard equipment for ship-based aircraft and missile weapons.

designs shipboard electronic weaponry and onboard equipment for ship-based aircraft and missile weapons. Joint Stock Company Tizol manufactures non-combustible insulation materials and structural fire protection systems for shipbuilding, including for military projects.

manufactures non-combustible insulation materials and structural fire protection systems for shipbuilding, including for military projects. Joint Stock Corporation Shipbuilding and Ship Repair Technology Center is a shipbuilding company that provides support for combat ship design and construction and manufactures valves and fittings for all types of ships and vessels.

is a shipbuilding company that provides support for combat ship design and construction and manufactures valves and fittings for all types of ships and vessels. JSC Research and Production Company Magneton manufactures magnets and industrial magnetic systems used by the Russian Ministry of Defense.

manufactures magnets and industrial magnetic systems used by the Russian Ministry of Defense. JSC Resurs manufactures fixed resistors, resistor sets, microwave resistors, and absorbers, which it markets to Russian military customers.

manufactures fixed resistors, resistor sets, microwave resistors, and absorbers, which it markets to Russian military customers. Lifors designs and manufactures electric accumulators and batteries and sells voltage regulators, which are critical components in Russian UAVs.

designs and manufactures electric accumulators and batteries and sells voltage regulators, which are critical components in Russian UAVs. Limited Liability Company Carbontex manufactures composites from 3D weaved volumetrically reinforced all-woven preforms, which it markets to Russian military customers.

manufactures composites from 3D weaved volumetrically reinforced all-woven preforms, which it markets to Russian military customers. Limited Liability Company Merkator Holding manufactures machinery and equipment, including snow removal machines used by the Russian Ministry of Defense.

manufactures machinery and equipment, including snow removal machines used by the Russian Ministry of Defense. Limited Liability Company Neva Tool Factory manufactures nodes, parts, rotary-plunger hydraulic motors, and tools, which it markets to Russian military customers.

manufactures nodes, parts, rotary-plunger hydraulic motors, and tools, which it markets to Russian military customers. Limited Liability Company Plastik Stroymarket manufactures anticorrosive materials, integrated waterproof mixtures, adhesives, and sealants, which it markets to Russian military customers.

manufactures anticorrosive materials, integrated waterproof mixtures, adhesives, and sealants, which it markets to Russian military customers. Limited Liability Company Production Plant Named After Shaumyan manufactures lubrication oils and greases approved for use in weapons and military equipment by the Russian Ministry of Defense.

manufactures lubrication oils and greases approved for use in weapons and military equipment by the Russian Ministry of Defense. Limited Liability Company Rosizolit produces components for UAVs and supplies composite materials to the Russian military-industrial base.

produces components for UAVs and supplies composite materials to the Russian military-industrial base. Limited Liability Company Scientific and Production Association of Structural Materials Prometey manufactures ship fittings, deck equipment, as well as various marine equipment, including pneumatic tankers, spires, hatch closures, and steering machines, and markets its goods to Russian military customers.

manufactures ship fittings, deck equipment, as well as various marine equipment, including pneumatic tankers, spires, hatch closures, and steering machines, and markets its goods to Russian military customers. Limited Liability Company Scientific Production Company Advent produces rotary support devices and ship structures for clients including Russian government agencies.

produces rotary support devices and ship structures for clients including Russian government agencies. Limited Liability Company Volgograd Ship Engineering Plant produces ship portholes, hatches, viaducts, fittings for ventilation, and air conditioning systems used for equipping Russian military surface vessels and ships.

produces ship portholes, hatches, viaducts, fittings for ventilation, and air conditioning systems used for equipping Russian military surface vessels and ships. LKKA Company Limited produces springs and wires and markets its products to the Russian Armed Forces.

produces springs and wires and markets its products to the Russian Armed Forces. Lyskovskii Elektrotekhnicheskii Zavod manufactures printed circuit boards and power tools and produces generators for Russia's military industry.

manufactures printed circuit boards and power tools and produces generators for Russia's military industry. Limited Trade Development Chimtech-R manufactures sealant materials supplied to the Russian military-industrial base.

manufactures sealant materials supplied to the Russian military-industrial base. Marine Equipment Engineering Corporation JSC manufactures integrated combat information and control systems, radar and sonar equipment, and navigation and communication systems.

manufactures integrated combat information and control systems, radar and sonar equipment, and navigation and communication systems. Microem manufactures connectors and cable assemblies for all types of applications and components for computer and server equipment. Microem imports components used in Russian UAV navigation modules.

manufactures connectors and cable assemblies for all types of applications and components for computer and server equipment. Microem imports components used in Russian UAV navigation modules. Nauchno Proizvodstvennaya Firma Trekol manufactures all-terrain vehicles and markets its vehicles to Russian military customers.

manufactures all-terrain vehicles and markets its vehicles to Russian military customers. Nauchno Proizvodstvennoe Obyedinenie Gorizont develops and manufactures optical electronic modules, industrial computers, and anti-drone systems.

develops and manufactures optical electronic modules, industrial computers, and anti-drone systems. OOO Gazprommash manufactures machinery and holds licenses for the operation of explosive production facilities.

manufactures machinery and holds licenses for the operation of explosive production facilities. OOO Soyuz Podshipnik manufactures bearings, including for U.S.-designated Russian military armored vehicle supplier Kamaz.

manufactures bearings, including for U.S.-designated Russian military armored vehicle supplier Kamaz. OOOValcom develops and manufactures high-precision intelligent sensors and integrated automation systems for specialized vessels, including icebreakers and naval vessels.

develops and manufactures high-precision intelligent sensors and integrated automation systems for specialized vessels, including icebreakers and naval vessels. Otkrytoe Aktsionernoe Obshchestvo Vladimirskii Zavod Elektropribor manufactures metal structures and electronic printed circuits and is a partner of U.S.-designated JSC Aerospace Defense Concern Almaz-Antey, a Russian state-owned enterprise that designs, develops, and manufactures anti-aircraft, anti-missile, and non-strategic missile defense systems.

manufactures metal structures and electronic printed circuits and is a partner of U.S.-designated JSC Aerospace Defense Concern Almaz-Antey, a Russian state-owned enterprise that designs, develops, and manufactures anti-aircraft, anti-missile, and non-strategic missile defense systems. PJSC Rostov Optical and Mechanical Plant manufactures night vision devices for fire control systems in armored military equipment.

manufactures night vision devices for fire control systems in armored military equipment. PKP Segment Energo produces cables meant to operate in extreme conditions that are marketed to Russian military customers.

produces cables meant to operate in extreme conditions that are marketed to Russian military customers. Public Joint Stock Company Priboy produces automated submarine radios.

produces automated submarine radios. Regional Center of Laser Technologies CJSC is involved in 3D laser cutting, laser welding, and processing of titanium and markets its products to Russian military customers.

is involved in 3D laser cutting, laser welding, and processing of titanium and markets its products to Russian military customers. Research And Production Company Micran Joint Stock Company manufactures electronic devices, radar systems, test and measurement equipment, and mobile and complex communication solutions.

manufactures electronic devices, radar systems, test and measurement equipment, and mobile and complex communication solutions. Rezonit manufactures printed circuit boards, which are critical components used in Russian UAVs.

manufactures printed circuit boards, which are critical components used in Russian UAVs. Rotor works with aircraft and electrical equipment and is involved in the production of electrotechnics and electronics.

works with aircraft and electrical equipment and is involved in the production of electrotechnics and electronics. Shiprepairing And Shipbuilding Corporation JSC manufactures, repairs, and maintains vessels and related equipment for the Russian Navy.

manufactures, repairs, and maintains vessels and related equipment for the Russian Navy. Sitem manufactures metal structures, fabricated metal products, and machinery. Sitem supplies, designs, and installs surveillance systems, perimeter protection systems, and supplies thermal imaging equipment.

manufactures metal structures, fabricated metal products, and machinery. Sitem supplies, designs, and installs surveillance systems, perimeter protection systems, and supplies thermal imaging equipment. Technology Research Centre Ank LTD develops and manufactures sealed accumulators and battery products, including lithium-ion storage batteries for unmanned and manned underwater vehicles.

develops and manufactures sealed accumulators and battery products, including lithium-ion storage batteries for unmanned and manned underwater vehicles. TPK Vostok Resurs manufactures specialized materials and works with specialized machines. TPK Vostok Resurs has received items from U.S.-designated Yantai Iray Technology Co Ltd, a supplier of telescopic and thermal sights to Russia.

manufactures specialized materials and works with specialized machines. TPK Vostok Resurs has received items from U.S.-designated Yantai Iray Technology Co Ltd, a supplier of telescopic and thermal sights to Russia. Troitsk Crane Plant Limited Liability Company produces specialized equipment for shipbuilding and ship repair and markets its products to Russian military customers.

produces specialized equipment for shipbuilding and ship repair and markets its products to Russian military customers. Ural Metal Processing Company LTD manufactures packaging tapes, pipes, and steel profiles used to package military-industrial complex loads.

The following Russia-based persons were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the technology sector of the Russian Federation economy:

Aktsionernoe Obshchestvo Kontsern Radiostroeniya Vega is a Russian government enterprise that develops, produces, and repairs radio electronic systems and equipment, as well as special-purpose systems and components.

is a Russian government enterprise that develops, produces, and repairs radio electronic systems and equipment, as well as special-purpose systems and components. Federal State Autonomous Scientific Institution Central Research and Experimental and Design Institute of Robotics and Technical Cybernetics is a Russian government institution that conducts work in robotics, photonics, and optoelectronic systems.

is a Russian government institution that conducts work in robotics, photonics, and optoelectronic systems. Institute of High Current Electronics Siberian Branch Russian Academy of Sciences develops devices and technologies for electronics, plasma physics, quantum electronics, and photonics, and has participated in a conference hosted by a U.S.-designated Russian weapons laboratory.

develops devices and technologies for electronics, plasma physics, quantum electronics, and photonics, and has participated in a conference hosted by a U.S.-designated Russian weapons laboratory. Joint Institute for High Temperatures of the Russian Academy of Sciences researches energy efficient technologies and combustion, detonation, and explosions, and has participated in a conference hosted by a U.S.-designated Russian weapons laboratory.

researches energy efficient technologies and combustion, detonation, and explosions, and has participated in a conference hosted by a U.S.-designated Russian weapons laboratory. Joint Stock Company Institute for Networking Technology develops software and markets its secure multiservice networks and communication infrastructure to the Russian Armed Forces.

develops software and markets its secure multiservice networks and communication infrastructure to the Russian Armed Forces. Joint Stock Company Sitronics KT develops ship control systems and geographic information systems marketed to Russian military customers.

develops ship control systems and geographic information systems marketed to Russian military customers. Limited Liability Company Farad supplies electronic components, including transistors, which are a component in Russian UAVs.

supplies electronic components, including transistors, which are a component in Russian UAVs. Limited Liability Company GK Triz Robotics develops software for robotics and offers simulators to provide experience in the field of robotics and computer numerical control (CNC) for milling and tuning.

develops software for robotics and offers simulators to provide experience in the field of robotics and computer numerical control (CNC) for milling and tuning. Limited Liability Company Prime Radar Technology develops UAV detection and suppression technology and portable jammers.

develops UAV detection and suppression technology and portable jammers. Limited Liability Company RevolEMC (RevolEMC) provides information security services for information systems and information facilities and produces and supplies anechoic chambers and shielded telecommunication cabinets.

(RevolEMC) provides information security services for information systems and information facilities and produces and supplies anechoic chambers and shielded telecommunication cabinets. Limited Liability Company Yuzhpolymetal Holding produces mobile technology for chemical analysis used by the Russian Ministries of Internal Affairs and Defense and the FSB.

produces mobile technology for chemical analysis used by the Russian Ministries of Internal Affairs and Defense and the FSB. LLC Applied Mechanics specializes in engineering and radio-electronics, and produces radio-electronics, high-precision mechanisms including hexapods, and motion simulators, which it markets to Russian military customers.

specializes in engineering and radio-electronics, and produces radio-electronics, high-precision mechanisms including hexapods, and motion simulators, which it markets to Russian military customers. Ostec Smart Technologies Limited Liability Company specializes in the implementation of technological solutions for electronics assembly and installation, and imports semiconductor production machines.

specializes in the implementation of technological solutions for electronics assembly and installation, and imports semiconductor production machines. Paritet sells electronics and computers and is involved in data processing and information technology.

sells electronics and computers and is involved in data processing and information technology. Research and Manufacturing Association Development of Innovative Technologies develops aircraft computing equipment and software that it markets to Russian military customers.

develops aircraft computing equipment and software that it markets to Russian military customers. Special Design Bureau of Electric Instrument Engineering LLC produces instruments used for electrotechnical equipment diagnostics and electric modules that it markets to Russian military customers.

produces instruments used for electrotechnical equipment diagnostics and electric modules that it markets to Russian military customers. Timkom imports field-programmable gate arrays from the PRC.

imports field-programmable gate arrays from the PRC. Zakrytoe Aktsionernoe Obshchestvo Zolotoi Shar is one of the largest Russian suppliers of imported electronic components.

Russia-based Limited Liability Company Bank Tochka (Bank Tochka), founded in 2023, provides financial services to an organization that supports Russian combat troops and to an entity that provides ammunition to Russian military personnel. Bank Tochka was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the financial services sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Russia-based Ekodor is involved in transportation activities, including cargo handling, transport forwarding, and rail transport. Ekodor was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the transportation sector of the Russian Federation economy.

ANNEX 3: LIMITING RUSSIA'S FUTURE REVENUE FROM LIQUEFIED NATURAL GAS

The following Russia-based persons were designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the construction sector of the Russian Federation economy:

Aktsionernoe Obshchestvo RusGazDobycha is implementing the construction of a natural gas processing and liquefaction facility in Russia.

is implementing the construction of a natural gas processing and liquefaction facility in Russia. Arktik SPG 1 manages and supervises construction projects and is developing a gas production site.

manages and supervises construction projects and is developing a gas production site. Limited Liability Company Obsky Gas Chemical Complex is implementing the construction of a gas production and processing site in Russia.

is implementing the construction of a gas production and processing site in Russia. OOO Gazprom Invest designs and constructs gas industry facilities.

Russia-based Arktik SPG 3 is involved in geological exploration, including prospecting and evaluation of mineral deposits. Arktik SPG 3 also mines clay, sand, kaolin, gravel, and other minerals. Artktik SPG 3 was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the metals and mining sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Russia-based Limited Liability Company International Innovation Center for Marine Structures and Ship Repair (International Innovation Center) manufactures enclosed sections of vessels for U.S.-designated shipbuilder Limited Liability Company Shipbuilding Complex Zvezda (Zvezda), which is involved in the construction of specialized liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers. International Innovation Center was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the manufacturing sector of the Russian Federation economy.

Russia-based Regent Baltica Company Limited (Regent Baltica) manufactures cryogenic isothermal panels for LNG storage. Regent Baltica was designated pursuant to E.O. 14024 for operating or having operated in the manufacturing sector of the Russian Federation economy.

U.S.-designated Joint Stock Company Sovcomflot (Sovcomflot) is the operator of four LNG tankers that are currently under construction. The following four vessels were identified pursuant to E.O. 14024 as property in which Sovcomflot, a person whose property and interest in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024, has an interest:

Sergei Witte (IMO: 9904687)

(IMO: 9904687) Alexey Kosygin (IMO: 9904546)

(IMO: 9904546) Pyotr Stolypin (IMO: 9904675)

(IMO: 9904675) Zvezda 044 (IMO: 9904699)

U.S.-designated Zvezda is building an additional three LNG tankers at its shipyard. The following vessels were identified pursuant to E.O. 14024 as property in which Zvezda, a person whose property and interest in property are blocked pursuant to E.O. 14024, has an interest:

Zvezda 047 (IMO: 9918781)

(IMO: 9918781) Zvezda 046 (IMO: 9918779)

(IMO: 9918779) Zvezda 045 (IMO: 9904704)

SANCTIONS IMPLICATIONS

As a result of today's action, all property and interests in property of the persons above that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. In addition, any entities that are owned, directly or indirectly, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked. All transactions by U.S. persons or within (or transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property of designated or blocked persons are prohibited unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC, or exempt. These prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any blocked person and the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person.

In addition, foreign financial institutions that conduct or facilitate significant transactions or provide any service involving Russia's military-industrial base run the risk of being sanctioned by OFAC. For additional guidance, please see the updated OFAC advisory, "Updated Guidance for Foreign Financial Institutions on OFAC Sanctions Authorities Targeting Support to Russia's Military-Industrial Base," as well as OFAC Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) 1146-1157.

The power and integrity of OFAC sanctions derive not only from OFAC's ability to designate and add persons to the SDN List, but also from its willingness to remove persons from the SDN List consistent with the law. The ultimate goal of sanctions is not to punish, but to bring about a positive change in behavior. For information concerning the process for seeking removal from an OFAC list, including the SDN List, please refer to OFAC's FAQ 897 here. For detailed information on the process to submit a request for removal from an OFAC sanctions list, please click here.

Any persons included on the SDN List pursuant to E.O. 14024 may be subject to additional export restrictions administered by the Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS).

For identifying information on the individuals and entities sanctioned today, click here.

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US expands sanctions against Russia

By VOA News June 12, 2024

The United States widened sanctions on Russia Wednesday, targeting more than 300 new entities and people "whose products and services enable Russia to sustain its war effort and evade sanctions."

A U.S. Treasury Department statement said the list includes dozens of China-based companies as well as entities in Russia and other countries, including Turkey and the United Arab Emirates.

"Russia's war economy is deeply isolated from the international financial system, leaving the Kremlin's military desperate for access to the outside world," said Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. "Today's actions strike at their remaining avenues for international materials and equipment, including their reliance on critical supplies from third countries."

U.S. officials have said that they are worried about Russia's procurement of advanced semiconductors and optical equipment, despite previous sanctions. These goods are necessary for advanced weapons.

"We will continue to use all the tools at our disposal to hinder Russia's use of the international financial system to conduct its war, to disrupt networks of support for Russia's military-industrial base, and to increase the costs to Russia as [Vladimir] Putin perpetrates his aggression against Ukraine," said a statement by Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Since the beginning of the war, the United States has imposed sanctions on over 4,000 Russian businesses and individuals.

The U.S. sanctions come as leaders from the Group of Seven richest economies prepare to meet in Italy for a summit. Top priorities include supporting Ukraine and stopping Russian military production.

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Taiwan is an integral part of China, and Nvidia CEO should read up on the history: spokesperson

Global Times

By Global Times Published: Jun 12, 2024 01:31 PM

Responding to Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang's describing the island of Taiwan as a "country" during his recent visit there, a spokesperson for the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council said on Wednesday that Huang should read up on the history, noting that Taiwan has never been a country and will never be one.

Chinese mainland netizens have expressed strong disapproval of Huang's wrong remarks, Chen Binhua, the spokesperson, said at a regular press conference on Wednesday in Beijing.

"Both sides of the Taiwan Straits belong to one China, and the island of Taiwan is an integral part of China. The historical context and legal facts to support this fact are crystal clear. Taiwan has never been a country and will never be one. It is a universal consensus of the international community and a basic norm in international relations," Chen added.

The spokesperson said that it is hoped that Huang would read up on the history concerning the Taiwan question.

During a trip to a night market on the Taiwan island on May 29, Huang told local reporters that "Taiwan is one of the most important countries in the world. It is at the center of the electronics industry," The Straits Times reported on Sunday.

Prior to his leaving the island, Huang said: "I wasn't making a geopolitical comment, but thanking all of our technology partners here for all their support and contributions to the industry."

Chinese mainland is one of the most important markets for Nvidia. Media reports said earlier that Huang visited Nvidia's offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Shenzhen on a low-key trip in January this year.

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A biker passes by a parklet on Valencia Street in San Francisco. The corridors controversial bike lane will be moved from the center of the street, along parklets at the side of the road. Bronte Wittpenn/The Chronicle

The controversial saga of Valencia Streets center-running bikeway has a new, surprising chapter: San Francisco plans to scrap the center lanes for ones that run along the streets sides, but area merchants will have a say in the design.

The transportation agency has been considering since the start of the year whether to swap the controversial center-running bikeway that spans eight blocks on the vibrant Mission District commercial corridor with side lanes.

San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency officials told reporters on Thursday that the conceptual design the agencys Board of Directors will consider next week would give each Valencia Street merchant who owns a parklet the option to keep it at the curb or opt for a floating configuration.

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Floating parklets, like the ones on Oaklands Telegraph Avenue, allow a bike lane to run between the curb and a parklet, with cyclists responsible for navigating pedestrians entering and exiting the parklet. A curbside parklet, on the other hand, means the bike lanes would snake around the parklet toward car traffic lanes.

The plan leaves a chance that cyclists biking on blocks of Valencia Street dense with parklets could have to navigate segments of the side lanes in which they must zigzag inward toward the curb, then outward toward traffic lanes, or vice versa.

The final pathway of the Valencia side-running bike lanes is unclear and will depend on merchants decisions. SFMTA staff members plan to do more outreach with Valencia merchants if the transportation board signs off on the pivot.

Paul Stanis, the agencys Livable Streets project manager, said about one-quarter of the 30 or so of Valencia Street merchants who own parklets between 15th and 23rd streets expressed interest in a floating parklet configuration.

Itll be up to each individual merchant what path they want to follow, said SFMTA Director Jeffrey Tumlin. The advantage of having the parklets be floating is that it saves a parking space or loading space on either side of the parklet, because otherwise the bikeway has to slalom around the parklet.

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Tumlin said the agency will work with merchants to determine when to remove the center bikeway and construct the side-running lanes, a process that would take several weeks. Valencia Street restaurant owners say they dont want construction disruptions during summer or fall, while the corridors retailers say it shouldnt happen during the holiday shopping season.

Well be ready to make the change just as soon as the merchant community wants us to, Tumlin said.

The side-running bike lanes would utilize painted buffers and plastic bollards to separate cyclists from car traffic on Valencia. The bike lanes and buffer space would be reduced between 15th and 19th streets where wider sidewalks reduce total roadway space by 10 feet.

San Franciscos first-ever center-running bikeway garnered widespread criticism from many cyclists and merchants since its launch, with the latter group blaming the lanes for declines in shoppers and traffic disruptions that have hampered their operations.

Still, officials on Thursday said the center lanes have been a safer alternative to the painted lanes that sandwiched cyclists between curbside parking spots and car lanes.

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The timeline for the switch to side-running bike lanes remains unclear, though the pivot appears unlikely to happen before the end of this year. Agency officials said they were determined to move forward with the change.
Mainland condemns Taiwan authorities' latest ECFA move as veiled bid for "Taiwan independence"

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 16:01, June 12, 2024

BEIJING, June 12 (Xinhua) -- A mainland spokesperson on Wednesday slammed the Taiwan authorities led by Lai Ching-te for an attempt to internationalize the Taiwan question by trying to discuss issues concerning a cross-Strait economic agreement through WTO.

The move harbors a hidden agenda of seeking "Taiwan independence," said Chen Binhua, spokesperson for the State Council Taiwan Affairs Office, noting that this approach will not succeed.

Chen made the remarks at a press conference in response to a media query regarding expectations by Taiwan's mainland affairs council to resolve issues related to the Economic Cooperation Framework Agreement (ECFA) through the WTO mechanism.

"The 1992 Consensus is the political foundation for cross-Strait consultation, and 23 cross-Strait agreements, including the ECFA, have been signed on the common political basis of the 1992 Consensus," Chen said.

The two sides of the Taiwan Strait signed the ECFA to promote cross-Strait trade liberalization, which should have been carried out based on the normalization of cross-Strait trade, Chen noted.

However, considering that both sides belong to the same family, the mainland agreed to advance trade normalization and liberalization simultaneously and implement the "early harvest program" of the ECFA, despite the abnormal and discriminatory situation in which the Taiwan authorities continue to restrict the entry of over 2,000 agricultural and industrial products from the mainland, Chen added.

Besides, in light of the economic conditions of both sides, the mainland did not require equal quantities or trade volumes of products during the implementation of the "early harvest program," he said.

Chen noted that such a favorable agreement, which unilaterally benefits Taiwan, would not have been possible if everything had been in line with WTO rules.

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TArkiye Participates in Exercise Ramstein Legacy 2024

Republic of TArkiye Ministry of National Defence

12.06.2024

TArkiye is participating in NATO's Integrated Air and Missile Defence Exercise Ramstein Legacy 2024 on 3-14 June 2024, hosted by Bulgaria and Romania, with Turkish Air Force components. Fire mission is being conducted in cooperation with the Operation Centres of NATO Allies by using Pedestal Mounted Stinger Weapon System.

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In Berlin, State Secretary A tiglic pledged additional five million euros for humanitarian aid and reconstruction in Ukraine

Republic of Slovenia

11. 6. 2024

Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs

State Secretary Sanja A tiglic is taking part in the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin hosted by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. She underlined Slovenia's support for the recovery and reconstruction process in Ukraine and reaffirmed Slovenia's readiness to work with international partners, the private sector and implementing institutions in the reconstruction of Ukraine.

State Secretary A tiglic also emphasised that Slovenia, as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, is making every effort to help bring an end to Russian aggression and achieve a just and lasting peace in Ukraine. The conference in Berlin continues the series of international conferences on reforms in Ukraine, held annually since 2017. In light of the Russian aggression in 2022, the conference has adapted to the situation in Ukraine, placing recovery and reconstruction at the centre of its agenda. It aims to continue and further increase the level of international assistance for Ukraine's recovery, reconstruction and reform process. This includes providing emergency assistance for immediate needs, implementing rapid recovery projects and creating an attractive business environment or conditions for companies to unlock private sector investment in Ukraine, as well as encouraging civil society to actively engage in the reconstruction process. International development and financial institutions also have a leading role to play. The conference is attended by representatives of governments, international organisations, international financial institutions and the private sector, think tanks and civil society stakeholders.

At the conference, State Secretary Sanja A tiglic announced that Slovenia will allocate an additional five million euros this year for humanitarian aid and reconstruction in Ukraine, as well as for the "Grain from Ukraine" programme and for mitigating the effects of the war in Ukraine on food security.

The State Secretary also met Susanne Baumann, State Secretary at the German Federal Foreign Office. They discussed cooperation between the two countries in multilateral forums, in particular the UN, and touched upon current regional challenges, including the Russian aggression against Ukraine and the situation in the Middle East.

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First batch of built-in-Canada armoured vehicles heading to Ukraine's Armed Forces

National Defence

News release

June 12, 2024 - London, Ontario - National Defence / Canadian Armed Forces

The first four of 50 new Armoured Combat Support Vehicles (ACSVs) built by Canadian workers for donation to Ukraine are departing for Europe, where members of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) will be trained in their use this summer. The first 10 of these vehicles being donated are the ACVS ambulance variant.

On behalf of Defence Minister Bill Blair, Peter Fragiskatos, Member of Parliament for London North Centre, visited General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada today to see the initial tranche of departing vehicles and to thank the workers who built them. The vehicles are being transported from London, Ontario for delivery to Europe.

These vehicles are part of a fleet of state-of-the-art armoured vehicles that Canada is donating to Ukraine. As Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced during the visit of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on September 22, 2023, Canada is investing $650 million over three years to provide Ukraine with 50 Armoured Combat Support Vehicles built in London, Ontario.

These state-of-the-art armoured vehicles will fulfil a wide variety of roles on the battlefield - including transporting troops, providing secure locations for command and control, and enabling medical evacuations. These ACSVs, also used by the Canadian Army, provide a high degree of manoeuverability and protection to their crews and payloads.

The ambulance variant of ACVSs is equipped with medical equipment and an internal layout that will allow for the treatment of a wide range of injuries. These initial 10 vehicles will be delivered to Ukraine by the fall and will enable the AFU to safely evacuate wounded personnel from combat zones.

This donation is part of the over $14 billion in total assistance that Canada has committed to Ukraine since February 2022, including $4 billion in military assistance. Canada has donated Leopard 2 battle tanks, anti-tank weapons, M777 howitzers, artillery ammunition, winter clothing, and more. Canada is also contributing to multinational efforts to train pilots and maintainers in support of Ukraine's incoming fleet of F-16 fighter jets, and participates in the Ukraine Defense Contact Group Armour, Air Force, and Drone Capability Coalitions.

Canada will continue to work closely with its partners and allies to provide Ukraine with the military assistance it needs as it fights Russia's illegal and unjustifiable war.

Quotes

"Russia's ongoing war on Ukraine is also an attack on the right of all nations to choose their own future. Ukraine must win this war - and Ukraine can count on Canada's support until its victory. Canada is proud to be providing Ukraine with a new fleet of state-of-the-art armoured vehicles to protect its brave military personnel. I thank all the workers in London, Ontario who built these vehicles for Ukraine's Armed Forces." The Honourable Bill Blair, Minister of National Defence

"Here in London, the hundreds of Canadian workers at General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada do incredible work to equip the Canadian Armed Forces and the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Our community is proud to contribute these vehicles to Ukraine - and we stand in solidarity with the Ukrainian troops fighting bravely to defend their sovereignty." Peter Fragiskatos, Member of Parliament for London North Centre

"In our community of London North, countless people display the Ukrainian flag on their homes, cars, and small businesses, because they understand that Ukraine's fight to defend itself is a fight for the values that we all share. The armoured vehicles built by London workers will help Ukraine's troops defend their territory - and ultimately, defend the international rules that keep us all safe." Arielle Kayabaga, Member of Parliament for London West

"The Canadian Commercial Corporation is saddened by the suffering inflicted on the Ukrainian people by Russia's invasion of their country and proud to support the Government of Canada's assistance to Ukraine." Diane Montambault, VP of Operations, Canadian Commercial Corporation (CCC)

"General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada is proud to support Canada's Armoured Combat Support Vehicles donation to Ukraine. General Dynamics has produced light armoured vehicles for Canada and its allies for over 47 years. These London-made vehicles sustain a cross-Canada supply chain of over 600 suppliers, and support thousands of well-paying middle class Canadian jobs." Jason Alejandro Monahan, Vice President and General Manager, General Dynamics Land Systems-Canada

Quick facts

This is the second fleet of ACSVs that Canada is donating to Ukraine. As announced in 2022, Canada has already donated and delivered 39 ACSVs to Ukraine.

In addition to equipment donations, Canada continues to train AFU personnel under Operation UNIFIER, with more than 300 CAF members deployed.

Since the launch of Operation UNIFIER in 2015, Canada has trained more than 41,000 members of the AFU. Canada has announced the extension of this mission until March 2026, so that the Canadian Armed Forces can continue to respond to Ukraine's urgent training needs.

Since late March 2022, the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) has been transporting Ukraine-bound military aid donated by Canada, partners, and Allies. To date, the RCAF has transported 19 million pounds of military donations.

Through the ACSV project, the Government of Canada is investing approximately $2 billion to deliver 360 of these vehicles to the Canadian Army. This project is supporting 1,975 jobs annually in London, Ontario and across the country, as well as contributing $250 million dollars annually to Canada's Gross Domestic Product over an eight-year period.

Minister Blair officially accepted delivery of the first new ACSV for the Canadian Army in October 2023, ahead of the initial expected delivery date.

As part of the Government of Canada's assistance to Ukraine, the Canadian Commercial Corporation works with the Department of National Defence to provide timely and effective sourcing of military equipment for the Ukrainian government.

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Ignazio Cassis discusses Ukraine's nuclear facilities with IAEA Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi

Swiss Government

Bern, 12.06.2024 -- Federal Councillor Ignazio Cassis received Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Mariano Grossi in Bern on 12 June 2024. The discussions focused on the safety of Ukraine's nuclear facilities and Switzerland's support for the IAEA's work in Ukraine. The meeting is part of a series of high-level exchanges with the IAEA, and underscores the importance that Switzerland attaches to nuclear safety and security and to the IAEA as a whole, particularly in the context of the war in Ukraine.

Mr Cassis thanked Mr Grossi for his commitment to maintaining nuclear safety in Ukraine in challenging circumstances. IAEA missions are present at all Ukrainian nuclear power plants and Chernobyl, and provide the public with important information on the condition of the plants. Switzerland fully and consistently supports these missions, as well as the IAEA's Seven Indispensable Pillars for ensuring nuclear safety and security and its Five Concrete Principles for the protection of the Zaporizhzhya nuclear power plant. Switzerland facilitated the presentation of the Five Principles by the IAEA director general to the UN Security Council under the chairmanship of Mr Cassis in May 2023. Switzerland has also provided Ukraine with material support.

In addition to Ukraine, developments in the Middle East and the upcoming Summit on Peace in Ukraine were also discussed, at which nuclear safety will be one of the key topics on the agenda. The visit by Mr Grossi is also recognition of Switzerland's commitment within the IAEA. Switzerland is a founding member of the IAEA and attaches great importance to its work. In keeping with the Federal Council's Arms Control and Disarmament Strategy 2022-25, Switzerland is committed to strengthening the IAEA.

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Prime Minister Orpo highlights importance of Finland's participation in reconstruction of Ukraine

Finnish Government

Government Communications Department

12.6.2024

Press release

Prime Minister Orpo reiterated Finland's continued support for Ukraine at the Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC2024) in Berlin on 11-12 June. The conference focused on support for Ukraine's economy and reconstruction and on the reforms needed for Ukraine's convergence with the EU.

The conference brought together state leaders and ministers from countries supporting Ukraine, along with representatives from international organisations and financial institutions, businesses, and civil society organisations.

"Ukraine's determination and strong will to reform have become clear to everyone. We know that Ukraine's future is European," Prime Minister Orpo said in Finland's national address.

During the conference, Prime Minister Orpo took part in a high-level roundtable chaired by Federal Chancellor of Germany Olaf Scholz and President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

The Prime Minister also met with representatives of Finnish companies participating in the event. Prime Minister Orpo noted that Finnish companies and other actors have the expertise Ukraine needs many areas.

"Finnish know-how can help Ukraine in rebuilding its critical energy infrastructure and building digital infrastructure, and in sectors such as education, the environment and civil defence," said Prime Minister Orpo.

Orpo said he was especially concerned that millions of children were unable to attend school due to a lack of civil defence shelters.

"An investment in shelters is an investment in the future generations of Ukraine," the Prime Minister said.

Finland has pledged to support Ukraine in the Government Programme. Finland's separate national plan for the reconstruction of Ukraine aims to support Finnish businesses participating in the reconstruction through financing and advisory services.

Finland has provided nearly EUR 3 billion in support to Ukraine since the start of the war. Along with defence materiel, Finland's support has consisted of development cooperation and humanitarian aid.

The next Ukraine Recovery Conference will take place in Italy in 2025.

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Johan Forssell in Berlin: Ukraine support increasing

Government Offices of Sweden

12 June 2024

This year's Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC2024) is being held against the backdrop of further intensified Russian attacks against the people of Ukraine and its infrastructure.

"Sweden's overall development assistance to Ukraine amounts to approximately SEK 52 billion. In addition, future commitments will see Sweden's total support exceed SEK 100 billion up to and including 2026. This sends a clear signal that Sweden's support is strong and long-term. Together with our international partners, we are contributing to Ukraine's victory and European future," says Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Johan Forssell.

At the conference, Mr Forssell is presenting the Government's latest major support package, specifically aimed to support Ukraine's children and the country's energy supply. In addition, two major upcoming support initiatives for waste management and decentralisation that Sida will decide on in the near future are being presented.

In connection with the conference, the Multi-agency Donor Coordination Platform for Ukraine held its first meeting at ministerial level. The ministers also launched a Business Advisory Council, to which President and CEO of Business Sweden Jan Larsson is appointed as the Swedish representative.

Beetroot AB, a Swedish IT/tech company with operations in Ukraine, was highlighted at the conference as one of 10 international businesses awarded the URC2024 International Flagship Projects Award for significant contributions to Ukraine's long-term resilience. Beetroot has been operating in Ukraine for 12 years and continues to do so, despite the war, with more than 300 employees in cities throughout the country. The company invests in training the Ukrainian population in IT and tech.

"It's very gratifying that a Swedish company has received this award. Beetroot continues to operate in Ukraine, despite the war, with more than 300 employees. Their activities contribute to perseverance and a belief in the future while paving the way for many more Swedish businesses to enter the European market of the future," says Mr Forssell.



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The Cabinet approved transfer of M113 for Ukraine

Republic of Lithuania - Ministry of National Defence

2024-06-12

International cooperation | Security and defense policy

On June 12 the Government approved the decision to transfer 14 units of M113 armored personnel carriers to the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The shipment is estimated to reach Ukraine by the end of this week.

The vehicles are transferred on a non-reimbursable basis as a contribution to the Ukraine Demining Coalition Lithuania co-leads with Iceland to strengthen the demining capabilities of the Ukrainian Armed Forces. The Coalition is intended to consolidate and coordinate the support delivered or planned for Ukraine by the donors, both military and humanitarian demining.

The M113 transfer was initiated by the Ministry of National Defence and the Lithuanian Armed Forces in response to the request from the Government of Ukraine to the Allies and in general support to Ukraine in countering the Russian aggression.

Tomorrow, June 13, Minister of National Defence L. Kasciunas will attend the Ukraine Defense Contact Group and the NATO-Ukraine Council meetings in Brussels where Ukraine's need for military support will be addressed, most recent assistance plans of the Allies will be presented, and preparations for the NATO Summit in Washington in July will be discussed.

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Defence Ministers prepare for Washington Summit, by strengthening defences and bolstering support for Ukraine

NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

12 Jun. 2024

On Wednesday (12 June 2024) Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg outlined the priorities for the meeting of NATO Defence Ministers on Thursday and Friday (13 and 14 June 2024).

At a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council, "Allies will discuss how to ensure predictable support to Ukraine for the long haul," Mr Stoltenberg said. Ministers are expected to approve a plan for NATO to lead the coordination of security assistance and training, "a key element for our package for Ukraine at the Washington Summit, along with a long-term financial commitment," he added. Allies have provided 40 billion euros in military support to Ukraine each year. "We must maintain this level of support as a minimum, and for as long as it takes, to hasten the conclusion in Moscow that Russia cannot wait us out," Mr Stoltenberg said.

Ministers will also address measures to continue strengthening NATO's deterrence and defence. "Defence spending is on an upward trajectory across the Alliance," the Secretary General highlighted. At the ministerial, Allies will make progress on a new Defence Industrial Pledge for leaders to approve in Washington to scale up military production and send a signal of long-term demand to industry. Ministers will also take decisions to ensure the required capabilities for NATO's new defence plans, and they will discuss Russia's intensifying campaign of hostile acts across NATO countries. The ministerial also includes a meeting of the Nuclear Planning Group, where Allies will discuss the ongoing adaptation of NATO's nuclear capabilities.

Acknowledging the challenging security environment, Mr Stoltenberg reiterated NATO's commitment to preserve peace, prevent coercion, and deter aggression. "We will bolster our support to Ukraine, we will strengthen our defences, and we will send a strong message of deterrence to our adversaries," he concluded.

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US to send Ukraine another Patriot missile system after Kiev's desperate pleas

Iran Press TV

Wednesday, 12 June 2024 4:05 PM

The United States is set to send Ukraine an additional surface-to-air Patriot missile system in response to urgent pleas from Kiev to bolster its air defenses.

Citing two unnamed US officials familiar with the matter, the Associated Press reported on Tuesday that the US resident has already approved to provide Ukraine with another Patriot air-defense missile system.

This upcoming delivery marks the second time Washington has supported Ukraine's air defense with such systems, although the exact number of missiles provided by the Pentagon remains undisclosed.

Ukraine has also received air defense systems and ammunition from other allies like Germany.

According to both officials, the decision has not yet been publicly announced.

In February 2022, Moscow launched its special military operation in eastern Ukraine's Donbas region to stop NATO's eastward expansion after warning that the US-led military alliance was pursuing an "aggressive line" against Russia.

The West responded by imposing waves of harsh sanctions against Russia and pouring advanced arms and military hardware into Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky claims that Russia launches nearly 3,000 bombs into Ukraine on a monthly basis and that Kiev urgently need to boost its air defenses with the Patriot defense system, among others, to fight back.

He said in the Spanish capital of Madrid that his country is in desperate need of at least seven Patriot systems to fend off what he called Russia's strikes against Ukraine's power grid, civilian areas and military sites.

"If we had these modern Patriot systems, (Russian) airplanes wouldn't be able to fly close enough to drop the (glide) bombs on the civilian population and the military," the Ukrainian leader said

Russia has time and again cautioned that continued Western military support to Ukraine could prolong the conflict.

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Roland Li covers commercial real estate for the business desk, focusing on the Bay Area office and retail sectors.

He was previously a reporter at San Francisco Business Times, where he won one award from the California News Publishers Association and three from the National Association of Real Estate Editors.

He is the author of Good Luck Have Fun: The Rise of eSports," a 2016 book on the history of the competitive video game industry. Before moving to the Bay Area in 2015, he studied and worked in New York. He freelanced for the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times and other local publications. His hobbies include swimming and urban photography.
Ukraine Peace Summit Draft Calls On 'All Parties' To Work On Future Talks

By Rikard Jozwiak June 12, 2024

A draft of a communiquA being worked on for the Ukraine peace summit in Switzerland this weekend says future peace negotiations should involve "representatives of all parties" in the conflict and follow agreements on nuclear security, food security, the return of prisoners of war and kidnapped children.

The draft, which is not final and subject to change, was seen by RFE/RL on June 12, three days before the summit is set to begin in the Swiss town of Burgenstock.

Some 160 heads of state, government leaders, and international organizations have been invited to the summit, with Swiss officials saying on June 10 that just over 90 have so far indicated their participation.

However, European Union diplomats told RFE/RL that the number has fallen to 78. While they did not name the countries that reportedly dropped out, one of the sources, who requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter, said the list could still grow as countries make last-minute decisions on participating. A final list of participants is expected by June 14.

In the current version of the communiquA, the draft specifically refers to the "aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine," while saying that the summit builds on previous discussions "that have taken place based on Ukraine's Peace Formula and other peace proposals which are in line with international law, including the United Nations Charter."

"We believe that achieving peace requires the participation and dialogue of all parties. Therefore, we have decided to take concrete steps in the aforementioned areas with further involvement of representatives of all parties. The Charter of the United Nations, particularly the principles of respect for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of all states, can and will serve as the foundation for achieving a comprehensive, just and lasting peace in Ukraine," it says.

Ukraine hopes to win broad international backing for its vision of the terms needed to end the war with Russia, which broke out after Moscow launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbor in February 2022.

The United States will be represented by Vice President Kamala Harris and national-security adviser Jake Sullivan, while French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will also attend the summit.

Beijing, which has close ties with Moscow, has so far said it will stay away from the June 15-16 summit, saying the attendance of both sides is a prerequisite for any substantive peace conference.

Russia has not been invited.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/ukraine-peace- summit-draft-communique-russia-china/32990310.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.

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Senior U.S. Diplomat Says Ukraine-NATO Policy Unchanged Despite Biden Comments

By Heghine Buniatian June 12, 2024

U.S. President Joe Biden's recent comments signaling Ukraine is unlikely to become a NATO member during its war to repel invading Russian troops is not a change in Washington's position on the issue ahead of a key summit for the military alliance's leaders, a senior State Department diplomat told RFE/RL.

In an interview conducted on May 28 and published by Time magazine, Biden appeared to suggest he no longer supported Ukraine's NATO membership, a change from previously stated goals by Washington and the alliance itself.

But James O'Brien, U.S. assistant secretary of state for European and Eurasian affairs, told RFE/RL on June 11 while on a visit to Armenia that "interpretations began to run away" from the meaning of Biden's comments, and that Washington remains committed to Ukraine's membership in the alliance.

"There's no change in our position. I think what the president said, if I could just paraphrase, he said he doesn't believe in Ukraine joining NATO now," O'Brien said.

"Our position, really...is that Ukraine will be in the alliance when conditions allow."

In the wide-ranging June 4 interview with Time, Biden said that "peace looks like making sure Russia never, never, never, never occupies Ukraine. That's what peace looks like."

But, he added, "It doesn't mean NATO, [that] they are part of NATO."

O'Brien further elaborated saying Biden was referring to the NATO summit in July when stating that he was "not prepared" to support Ukrainian membership.

"It will be clear that Ukraine needs to undertake some reforms, and it will take some time to adapt its military from what it had been before Russia's further invasion, to what it will be needed to be part of NATO.

"And we'll lay out [at the summit] both how NATO will assist Ukraine in getting ready. So we are talking about several steps," he added.

NATO stated in the final declaration of last year's summit in Vilnius that "Ukraine's future is in NATO" and there are indications that the upcoming summit of the alliance in Washington next month would reinforce the message of support for Kyiv's eventual membership.

In reaction to Biden's interview, a NATO source who spoke on condition of anonymity told RFE/RL that "my understanding is that the American line has been and still is that Ukraine should be offered 'a bridge to NATO membership.'"

O'Brien echoed those comments, with Ukraine remaining a NATO ally in the near future as it prepares for the longer term.

"We're talking about NATO assisting with building Ukraine's future force, so that it will know that it has a military able to deter and repel further Russian aggression, but also that NATO will assist with Ukraine's reforms," O'Brien said.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/32989719.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.

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Stoltenberg Says Hungary Agrees Not To Block NATO Support To Ukraine

By RFE/RL June 12, 2024

NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg says Hungary will not block support to Ukraine, though it will exercise its opt-out and not provide soldiers or funds the military alliance supplies to Kyiv as it battles to repel invading Russian forces.

Stoltenberg has been meeting with NATO members on a tour as he looks to shore up support ahead of a summit in Washington next month for the alliance to increase its role in aiding Ukraine's military.

Hungary, led by Prime Minister Viktor Orban, arguably Moscow's closest ally in the European Union, has been wary of NATO's involvement in the conflict and has suggested a new definition for Budapest's position to keep Hungarian forces from operations outside the territory of NATO members.

"Hungary will not participate in these NATO efforts and I accept this position," Stoltenberg told reporters in Budapest after meeting with Orban on June 12.

"At the same time, the prime minister has assured me that Hungary will not oppose these efforts, enabling other allies to move forward, and he has confirmed that Hungary will continue to meet its NATO commitments in full."

Orban, at the same news conference, confirmed Hungary won't block NATO support.

Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of neighboring Ukraine in February 2022, Orban has forged closer relations with the Kremlin, angering Brussels for refusing to join EU sanctions against Moscow or to allow, like other NATO countries, arms shipments to Ukraine.

Western government have been unhappy over Orban's continued warm ties with Moscow and Hungary's delay in the ratification of Sweden's NATO accession, though Budapest ultimately approved the move.

Hungary had asked the Brussels-based military alliance for an exemption from providing military support to Ukraine in exchange for allowing decisions to be carried out, meaning it would not exercise its veto power, since NATO makes all of its military decisions by consensus.

Stoltenberg said he had agreed with Orban on "modalities for Hungary's nonparticipation in NATO's support for Ukraine," though he gave no details on what such an agreement entailed.

NATO is looking to create a plan to provide more predictable military support to Ukraine in the coming years to repel Moscow's full-scale invasion, as better-armed Russian troops assert control on the battlefield.

The alliance will hold a summit next month in Washington where its leaders are looking to finalize such a plan.

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/nato-chief-visits-hungary- amid-tensions-ukraine/32989322.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.

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Ukraine Loses Up to 600 Soldiers in Battles With Russian Southern Troops

Sputnik News

20240612

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Russia's Ministry of Defense reported on the progress of the special military operation and the key achievements of the Russian Armed Forces in the last 24 hours.

Ukraine has lost up to 600 soldiers in clashes with Russia's Yug (South) grouping of the Russian armed forces in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) over the past 24 hours, the Russian Defense Ministry said on Wednesday.

"The enemy lost up to 600 military personnel, two armored combat vehicles, 10 cars [among other military losses in clashes with the southern group over the past 24 hours]," the ministry said in a statement, adding that the group has also repelled two counterattacks.

The central group has repelled seven counterattacks in the DPR and Kiev has lost up to 350 soldiers, while Ukraine has lost up to 115 soldiers in battles with the eastern group of the Russian forces.

In battles with the western group, Kiev has lost more than 500 soldiers, the ministry said, adding that the norther group has repelled six counterattacks and Ukraine has lost up to 190 soldiers.

Additionally, on Wednesday morning, the Russian forces attacked Ukrainian armed forces' aircraft parking and aviation base infrastructure, as well as a temporary deployment point for foreign mercenaries, the ministry said, adding that all targets were hit.

A Sputnik

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Netherlands Has No Plans to Send Military Instructors to Ukraine

Sputnik News

20240612

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The Netherlands has no intention of sending military instructors to Ukraine, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte has told Dutch broadcaster NOS on the sidelines of the Ukraine Recovery Conference 2024 held in Berlin.

"You always have to think creatively, and I appreciate that about the French, but the Netherlands has no intention of doing this," the prime minister said when asked whether Amsterdam intends to send military instructors to Ukraine, as French President Emmanuel Macron plans to do.

Macron said on Friday that France plans to soon finalize the creation of a coalition of countries ready to send military instructors to Ukraine.

In late May, French media reported that Macron was seeking to establish a European coalition for sending military instructors to Ukraine. On Thursday, French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal said France had no plans to send its troops to Ukraine and had never trained the Ukrainian military on the territory of Ukraine, adding, however, that the issue of sending French military instructors to Kiev was not a taboo.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has said any foreign military instructors who train Ukrainian troops will have no immunity and called the rhetoric from Paris and London over the possibility of sending soldiers to Ukraine dangerous.

A Sputnik

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Norway to Provide Ukraine With $257Mln in Aid for Air Defense Measures - Defense Ministry

Sputnik News

20240612

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Norway will contribute 240 million euros (over $257 million) to Ukraine for air defense measures, the Norwegian Defense Ministry has announced on social media.

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said on Tuesday that Germany, along with Denmark, the Netherlands and Norway, will provide Ukraine with an additional 100 missiles for Patriot systems, 32 of which have already arrived in Ukraine over the last few days.

"Norway will contribute a240M to air defense measures for Ukraine. Today, Germany announced it would deliver another 100 Patriot air defence missiles to #Ukraine in an initiative with Denmark, [the] Netherlands and Norway. Norway will contribute a125M to this initiative," the ministry said on X on Tuesday.

In late May, Norway and Ukraine signed a bilateral security agreement totaling over $328 million in aid to Kiev for 10 years.

The Kremlin has consistently warned against continued arms deliveries to Kiev since the start of Russia's military operation in Ukraine in February 2022, 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. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned that any cargo containing weapons for Ukraine will become a legitimate target for Russian strikes.

A Sputnik

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The President Met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud in Saudi Arabia

President of Ukraine

12 June 2024 - 20:16

During his visit to Saudi Arabia, President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy met with the Crown Prince and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud.

The Head of State expressed his gratitude for the support of Saudi Arabia and for the desire of His Royal Highness to help in restoring peace.

During the meeting, the parties discussed bilateral relations between the two countries and noted the progress in the implementation of previous agreements and effective cooperation between the teams.

Special attention was paid to the preparations for the Global Peace Summit, the expected results of the event, their implementation, and the progress towards a just peace for Ukraine.

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Russia Wants to Destroy Ukrainians and to Undermine the World Order - Iryna Mudra at the ECHR Hearing on Human Rights Violations by the Russian Federation in the Occupied Territories

President of Ukraine

12 June 2024 - 17:27

In Strasbourg, Deputy Head of the Office of the President of Ukraine Iryna Mudra represented the Ukrainian delegation at the oral hearings in the interstate case of Ukraine and the Netherlands v. Russia at the European Court of Human Rights.

The case concerns human rights violations committed by Russia since the very beginning of its armed aggression in 2014.

Iryna Mudra emphasized that the aggressive and barbaric behavior of the Russian Federation violates all the basic principles of international law. The Government of Ukraine demonstrated this with evidence during the proceedings in this interstate case.

"Numerous international observers and the ECHR have assessed such actions and highlighted the unwillingness of the Russian authorities to document such massive and systematic human rights violations. The Russian goal of this war has been clearly stated by the Russian authorities on several occasions; and is obvious from their behavior - Russia wants to destroy and assimilate Ukrainians, disrupt public order in Europe and undermine the world order," the Deputy Head of the Presidential Office noted.

Based on the results of the oral hearings, the Government of our country expects that the ECHR will recognize the existence of human rights violations by Russia and will move to the stage of just satisfaction.

The Ukrainian delegation to the hearings also included the Agent before the ECHR, Margarita Sokorenko, and representatives of the Secretariat of the Agent before the European Court of Human Rights at the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine.

The case also involves 26 states as third parties. This number, as well as the number of complaints and the scope of the claim, are unprecedented in the history of the ECHR's consideration of interstate cases.

Last year, on January 25, the European Court ruled on the admissibility of this case, becoming the first foreign judicial body to establish that the territories of eastern Ukraine have been occupied since May 11, 2014.

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Ukraine's recovery is dependent on the recovery of children's education

UNICEF

Statement by UNICEF Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, Regina De Dominicis

12 June 2024

GENEVA/BERLIN, 12 June 2024 -- "The war in Ukraine is destroying the country's greatest resource - its people. Without an increase in investment and sustained funding, children and young people will not be able to access school and training opportunities - critical for the recovery of children, families and their communities.

"Because of COVID-19 and the war, schooling for Ukraine's children has been disrupted for more than four yearsathe same length of time as an entire primary education in Ukraine. Around four million children across the country continue to have their education disrupted, with approximately 600,000 schoolchildren unable to access in-person school at all.

"Latest available data from 2022 show that children in Ukraine are around two years behind in reading, a year behind in maths, and half a year behind in science. With the persistence of hostilities since, that gap has only widened.

"More than one in ten learning facilities have been damaged by the war, and more than one in five have had to shut due to insufficient bomb shelter access. A significant amount of funding is needed to rebuild the sector, which overshadows the available resources.

"The situation for children living as refugees in neighbouring countries is also dire. Around half of Ukrainian refugee childrenanearly one millionaaren't currently enrolled in their host countries' schools. While many access Ukrainian education online, they miss social interaction with peers.

"This immense loss can be recovered. As world leaders gathered this week in Berlin for the Ukraine Recovery Conference, they should be reminded that rebuilding schools is only the first step. We must put children, including their education and security, at the heart of the plans for Ukraine's recovery.

"This means investing in the education sector from the early years through to upper secondary. It means supporting learning recoveryaparticularly in foundational subjects like maths, reading, and scienceaas well as in those skills which are essential for success in their career paths.

"Investing in education and skills now minimizes the negative long-term effects of war and displacement for Ukraine's children and adolescents. It will help build Ukraine's human capital by preparing them to become part of their country's future recovery efforts.

"Above all, however, Ukraine's children must be protected from further harmaharm to their future prospects, their education, their safety, and their mental health. This means an immediate end to the war."

#####



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Ukraine Recovery Conference: UN sounds alarm over humanitarian funding

12 June 2024 - The UN is becoming increasingly concerned over falling levels of humanitarian funding for civilians across war-torn Ukraine, the head of the UN Development Programme (UNDP) told delegates to the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin on Wednesday.

Speaking on behalf of Secretary-General AntAnio Guterres, UNDP Administrator Achim Steiner said the UN and partners were continuing to deliver "critical humanitarian assistance", focusing on communities on the frontlines, but there is "growing concern about the decrease in humanitarian funding amidst the significant scale of need."

Infrastructure, including homes, hospitals, energy and water systems, continue to be hit as Russia continues its offensive and "support is needed now more than ever", Mr. Steiner added.

There are 24 different UN entities and around 3,000 personnel working alongside State and local authorities to meet immediate needs but also "pave the way to recovery, reconstruction and development".

Investing billions

So far, the UN has put in place $1.1 billion in recovery and development spending through the end of 2023 and expects to invest a further $1 billion by the end of this year.

These focus on four key areas being managed by the UN Resident Coordinator: support for businesses and entrepreneurs, investing in human development, prioritizing a "comprehensive model of recovery planning", and continuing to respond to Government requests for technical assistance.

The UNDP chief stressed that the only sustainable solution to the war remains a just, lasting and comprehensive peace, anchored in the principles of the UN Charter and international law.

Bolstering education crucial

The Regional Director for the UN children's agency UNICEF, Regina De Dominicis, said in a statement to the conference that the country's recovery was dependent on educating children free from the scourge of war.

"The war in Ukraine is destroying the country's greatest resource - its people. Without an increase in investment and sustained funding, children and young people will not be able to access school and training opportunities - critical for the recovery of children, families and their communities," she said.

COVID-19 had already disrupted schooling prior to Russia's invasion of February 2022. Around four million Ukrainian children continue to have their education disrupted, with approximately 600,000 unable to access in-person school at all.

"Latest available data from 2022 show that children in Ukraine are around two years behind in reading, a year behind in maths, and half a year behind in science. With the persistence of hostilities since, that gap has only widened," the UNICEF official reported.

Action towards 'green recovery'

The UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE), economic cooperation and development body OECD and UN Environment Programme (UNEP), announced on Wednesday the creation of a Platform for Action on the Green Recovery of Ukraine, to assist the country's transition towards a low-carbon economy in line with international norms overseen by the UN.

The development comes ahead of another high-level conference on Ukraine, this time in Switzerland over the coming weekend.

Some 90 countries and organizations are due to attend the Burgenstock conference; Russia is expected to take part in sustainable peace discussions at a later date, according to the Swiss authorities.

Meanwhile on the frontline, the UN and partners continue helping authorities evacuate thousands of people from frontline villages in the country's northeast this week.

In an update on Tuesday, the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, said that most of the evacuees are "already highly vulnerable" and could not have fled on their own earlier.

They included mainly older people and those with low mobility or disabilities "who left their homes with only a few belongings", the UN agency said.

Kharkiv in the crosshairs

In the nearby city of Kharkiv, more than one in 10 people have now lost their homes, amid renewed Russian shelling.

In an update on the massive reconstruction needs of the city in Ukraine's northeast, the UNECE cited reports that 150,000 of the 1.3 million people there are without housing.

The commission noted data from the local authorities showing that since the beginning of the full-scale Russian invasion in February 2022, approximately 9,000 houses have been destroyed, along with 110 nurseries and half the city's schools.

In addition, all transformer substations on the power grid have been put out of action in Kharkiv, along with 88 medical centres and 185 other public buildings, UNECE said.

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Chief Corporate Affairs Officer Mat Bolland will leave Air New Zealand on 31 July, as part of a wider review of costs being undertaken by the airline.

Mr Bolland joined Air New Zealand in May 2021, helping the airline navigate its recovery from Covid and establishing enduring relationships with government, regulatory and media stakeholders during one the most challenging periods in its history.

Chief Executive Greg Foran says the economic challenges faced by the airline have led to an extensive review of costs, requiring the company to make some difficult decisions to manage these costs.

Mat has made a remarkable contribution during one of the most challenging and unpredictable times in Air New Zealands history. Beyond working with our key stakeholders as we restarted the airline, he has established Air New Zealands reputation as a company that fronts up, talks candidly about issues that matter to customers while also highlighting its critical role for New Zealand as a whole.

I have valued Mats counsel through key milestones ranging from the capital raise that put us back on our own two feet, his leadership of our Maori Development strategy, retention of our high corporate reputation ranking and his advocacy for regulatory reform to ensure Air New Zealand remains a competitive airline that delivers to New Zealanders.

Chief Sustainability Officer Kiri Hannifin will commence a consolidated role of Chief Sustainability & Corporate Affairs Officer from 24 June while Mat will continue to consult to Air New Zealand until 31 July to complete some key initiatives. Kiri has over 20 years experience working in communications and corporate affairs, including 7 years leading these portfolios at Countdown Supermarkets.

This announcement is made pursuant to Listing Rule 3.20.1.

Ends.

Air New Zealand announces departure of Chief Corporate Affairs Officer

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US, Ukraine to sign security agreement

By VOA News June 12, 2024

U.S. President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy are set to sign a long-term defense and security agreement Thursday at the Group of Seven summit in Italy.

Signing the agreement, said White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan, notifies Russia of U.S. resolve.

"If Vladimir Putin thinks he can outlast the coalition supporting Ukraine, he's wrong," said Sullivan, who added that the deal, already co-signed by 15 other countries, would not commit U.S. troops directly to Ukraine's defense against Russia's invasion.

"We're going to continue to drive up costs for the Russian war machine," White House national security spokesperson John Kirby told reporters on Tuesday. "We will announce new steps to unlock the value of the immobilized Russian sovereign assets to benefit Ukraine and to help them recover from the destruction that Mr. Putin's army has caused."

Will Pomeranz, director of the Wilson Center's Kennan Institute, told VOA that, according to reports, the EU has decided to seize some of Russia's assets in European banks and distribute them to Ukraine.

"This has been a real sticking point for Western financial institutions," he said, because they realize that other countries will be reluctant to continue doing business with them. He said he thought this move is just the beginning of Russia's seized assets being sent to Ukraine.

G7 leaders are also planning to use the summit to address several other challenges, including the war in the Middle East, trade imbalances with China, artificial intelligence and migration.

This year's summit, to be held June 13-15, could be the last for G7 leaders facing political challenges at home. Biden, a Democrat, is in a tight race against former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee, while several far-right European parties enjoyed political gains in recent European Union elections.

Some political analysts fear what could happen if the G7 leaders fail to come to a consensus now on shared issues.

"You hear this a lot when you talk to U.S. and European officials: If we can't get this done now, whether it's on China, whether it's on the assets, we may not have another chance," said Josh Lipsky, senior director of the Atlantic Council's GeoEconomics Center, an international affairs think tank. "We don't know what the world will look like three months, six months, nine months from now."

Kirby, however, struck a more optimistic note.

"We have every confidence that regardless of who fills the seats in the European Parliament, we're going to continue to work closely with our EU partners on all the issues relative to our shared interests across the European continent," he said. "That includes supporting Ukraine."

Biden, who plans to hold a joint press conference after his Thursday meeting with Zelenskyy, is scheduled to arrive in Italy late Wednesday. His trip comes after his son, Hunter, was convicted of lying in 2018 about his drug use to purchase a gun illegally, making the president's son the first child of a sitting president convicted of a crime.

In May, former U.S. President Donald Trump was also convicted on felony charges.

Some information for this report came from the Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse.

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What would Trump's and Biden's second-term policy on Ukraine look like?

By Tatiana Vorozhko June 12, 2024

Foreign policy experts differ over what direction U.S. Ukraine policy will take if Donald Trump returns to the White House, with predictions ranging from more robust U.S. support to heavy pressure on Kyiv to concede all the land it has already lost.

Should Biden win re-election, most say, Ukraine policy will likely remain largely unchanged, with the possibility of even stronger sanctions on Russia.

Vague statements and personal feelings

Trump's position on Ukraine and Russia's war against it has been vague, contradictory and, perhaps, evolving.

On February 22, 2022, just two days before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Trump called Russian President Vladimir Putin's moves against Ukraine "savvy" and "genius."

The following year, during a May 2023 CNN town hall, Trump refused to say which side he wanted to win in Ukraine or to commit to providing Ukraine further military support.

"We're giving away so much equipment, we don't have ammunition for ourselves right now," he said.

Trump told Fox News in July 2023 that he would tell Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, "No more. You have to make a deal," while also telling Putin: "If you don't make a deal, we will give them a lot. We will give them more than they ever got, if we have to."

In April this year, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform: "Why isn't Europe giving more money to help Ukraine? ... Why can't Europe equalize or match the money put in by the United States of America in order to help a Country in desperate need? As everyone agrees, Ukrainian Survival and Strength should be much more important to Europe than to us, but it is also important to us! GET MOVING EUROPE!"

Also in April, The Washington Post detailed what it called Trump's "secret, long-shot plan to end the war in Ukraine," reporting that it included pushing Ukraine to cede Crimea and the Donbas region to Russia.

In May, however, the newspaper reported that Trump, during a fundraising event, had "suggested that he would have bombed Moscow and Beijing if Russia invaded Ukraine or China invaded Taiwan."

Still, experts who talked to VOA noted that Trump has unpleasant personal associations with Ukraine.

His July 2019 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy led to Trump's first impeachment over allegations that he improperly sought help from a foreign power to boost his reelection chances. In February 2020, a majority of the Republican-led Senate acquitted him.

On the other hand, some experts believe that Trump wouldn't want to be seen as a president who lost a war.

"We do know that Trump perceives himself as a strong man and does not want to be associated with foreign policy failure," said John Herbst, a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine who is now a senior director of the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center. "And a Russian victory in Ukraine if Trump is president would look very much like a foreign policy failure."

Two wings of the Republican Party

The Republican Party is divided over Russia's war on Ukraine war and support for the embattled country.

A pro-Trump faction a informally dubbed the MAGA (Make America Great Again) wing a views Russia as a "declining power" and thus believes the war "needs to be settled as quickly as possible so that it does not drain the security resources of the United States," Sergiy Kudelia, an associate professor of political science at Texas's Baylor University, told VOA.

The other Republican faction seeks more robust support for Ukraine to defeat Russia.

If that second wing prevails, said Kudelia, a second Trump administration might provide even more support to Ukraine than the Biden administration.

Possible clues of how a new Trump administration would approach Russia-Ukraine policy can be found in plans put forward by two pro-Trump policy projects. One of them is Project 2025, also known as the Presidential Transition Project, produced by the Washington-based Heritage Foundation.

In its "Mandate for Leadership," Project 2025 favors an approach between "isolationism and interventionism":

"Rather, each foreign policy decision must first ask the question: What is in the interest of the American people? U.S. military engagement must clearly fall within U.S. interests; be fiscally responsible; and protect American freedom, liberty, and sovereignty, all while recognizing Communist China as the greatest threat to U.S. interests. Thus, with respect to Ukraine, continued U.S. involvement must be fully paid for; limited to military aid (while European allies address Ukraine's economic needs); and have a clearly defined national security strategy that does not risk American lives."

The other plan, put forward by the America First Policy Institute, would make future U.S. military aid to Ukraine contingent on its leaders engaging in peace talks with Russia:

"Specifically, it would mean a formal U.S. policy to seek a cease-fire and negotiated settlement of the Ukraine conflict. The United States would continue to arm Ukraine and strengthen its defenses to ensure Russia will make no further advances and will not attack again after a cease-fire or peace agreement. Future American military aid, however, will require Ukraine to participate in peace talks with Russia."

For his part, Michael Kimmage, a professor of history and department chair at the Catholic University of America in Washington, told VOA that it is difficult to predict how a re-elected Trump would conduct policy toward Russia and Ukraine:

"He's just a person who changes his mind often and responds often quite emotionally to events, sometimes in his personal life, sometimes in domestic politics, sometimes in international affairs. So I think it's fair to say that the Trump presidency would be a roller coaster."

What about a second Biden term?

Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, the U.S. Congress has provided $175 billion in aid to Ukraine at the Biden administration's request. Washington has imposed numerous sanctions on Russia and led the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a coalition of about 50 countries coordinating military assistance.

In his address on June 6, the 80th anniversary of the Allied storming of Normandy, Biden compared the fight against Putin to the fight against Hitler in WWII.

Biden said last December while urging Congress to approve funding to support Ukraine that failure to do so would embolden other would-be aggressors and encourage Putin to attack a NATO country, which the U.S. is committed to defending:

"Then we'll have something that we don't seek and that we don't have today: American troops fighting Russian troops."

Recently, the Biden administration partially removed restrictions on Ukraine using U.S.-provided weapons against military targets in Russia.

Kimmage said that in a second term, the Biden administration would likely maintain its currently policy of providing military aid to Ukraine. However, he said that given it would have fewer political considerations in its final term, the Biden administration might be more aggressive in imposing sanctions against Russia:

"It's not as if they're determining their foreign policy on the basis of the election in some crude fashion, but there are limits and constraints, and those would be very different in a second term where Biden can no longer run for reelection in 2028. So, he would be quite a bit freer."

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Statement from Jake Sullivan on Russian crimes against Ukrainian children

June 12, 2024

Since launching its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, members of Russia's forces and other Russian officials have deported hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian civilians to Russia, including children who have been forcibly separated from their families. We are aware of new and credible reports that Russian authorities are listing abducted Ukrainian children on Russian adoption websites. This is despicable and appalling. These Ukrainian children belong with their families inside Ukraine. Russia is waging a war not just against the Ukrainian military - but against the Ukrainian people. As the President has said before, Russia is committing war crimes and crimes against humanity in Ukraine. We will continue to stand with the Ukrainian people as we help them defend against Russia's barbaric war of aggression.

###

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VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ATM Mining Corp. (ATM or the Concerned Shareholder), a Vancouver-based resource company and significant shareholder of VanadiumCorp Resource Inc. (TSXV: VRB) (VanadiumCorp or the Company), announced today that it has filed an information circular (the Dissident Circular) on SEDAR+, together with a form of proxy and letter to shareholders of VanadiumCorp in connection with the upcoming annual general and special meeting of shareholders of the Company to be held on July 2, 2024 (the AGM). The Concerned Shareholder is seeking to improve the quality of VanadiumCorp management by installing new directors who possess the ability to put the Company on track to realizing its significant potential.



ATM is seeking support, by way of a Concerned Shareholder Proxy, for three exceptional nominees for election as directors of the Company at the AGM: Pierre Alarie, Ian Graham, and Ian Mallory. Please review the letter and biographies of these highly qualified and experienced proposed nominees set out in the Dissident Circular. ATM is also supporting the re-election of three current directors: Gilles Dupuis, Christian Paradis, and Stephen Pearce.

The Concerned Shareholder believes it is in the Companys best interests to implement the following specific measures:

Reinforce the Companys Board with senior executives with deep experience in the mining and energy sectors who are committed to accountable management of the Company.

Formulate a realistic financing plan that will have the best chance of putting the Company on a sustainable financial footing, while minimizing further dilution to Shareholders.

Upgrade the Companys commercialization capacity for its new vanadium electrolyte product  especially in marketing, customer relations and sales  so that a positive initial market presence can be attained, profitable sales can be concluded, and revenues received in 2024.

Hire a new President and Chief Executive Officer, based in Quebec, who has the necessary experience in business leadership, early-stage company finance, mining/metals, and industrial production.

Craig J. Dalziel, President of ATM, said, Under the current CEO, shareholders have lost two-thirds of their investment over the past two years with little prospect of improvement. ATM believes that, with proper management, VanadiumCorp has the real opportunity to become an international leader in the emerging market space for vanadium electrolyte, the key ingredient in long-duration vanadium flow batteries, and to deliver significant value to shareholders. We urge shareholders of VanadiumCorp to support our slate of directors for election at the upcoming AGM.

Shareholders are urged to read the Dissident Circular and vote only by way of the Concerned Shareholder Proxy on or before 5:00 p.m. (Vancouver time) on June 27, 2024, so that their vote can be accepted in advance of the proxy cut-off. Shareholders who have already voted and wish to change their vote in support of the three Concerned Shareholder nominees can do so by simply executing the Concerned Shareholder Proxy, as a later-dated Concerned Shareholder Proxy will cancel an earlier vote. Shareholders requiring any assistance in executing their Concerned Shareholder Proxy, can call Craig J. Dalziel, President of ATM, 778-732-3339. A copy of the Dissident Circular is available on VanadiumCorps SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca.

Contact:

ATM Mining Corp.

Craig J. Dalziel, President

Phone: 778-732-3339

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements contained in this news release constitute forward-looking statements. The words may, would, could, will, intend, plan, anticipate, believe, estimate, expect and similar expressions as they relate to the Concerned Shareholder, VanadiumCorp or the future management of VanadiumCorp, are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements reflect the Concerned Shareholders current views with respect to future events and are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions. Many factors could cause VanadiumCorps actual results, performance or achievements that may be expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements to vary from those described herein should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize. Such factors include, but are not limited to, general economic and market conditions, changes in law, actions of competitors, and the ability to implement business strategies and pursue business opportunities.

The forward-looking statements contained in this news release are expressly qualified in their entirety by this cautionary statement. The forward-looking statements included in this news release are made as of the date hereof and the Concerned Shareholder undertakes no obligation to publicly update such forward-looking statements to reflect new information, subsequent events or otherwise, expect as required by law.
TORONTO, June 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Dundee Corporation (TSX: DC.A) (Dundee or the Company) is pleased to announce the voting results from its Annual Meeting of Shareholders (the Meeting) which was held earlier today. Shareholders voted in favour of all items of business before the Meeting, as follows:



Appointment of Auditor

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP were appointed as Auditor of the Company and the directors of the Company were authorized to fix the remuneration of the Auditor. Details of the voting results are set out below:

Total Votes % of Votes Cast Votes in Favour 367,607,920 99.95 Votes Withheld 189,230 0.05 Total Votes Cast 367,797,150 100

Election of Directors

The shareholders elected each of the seven nominees listed in the Companys Management Proxy Circular. Details of the voting results are set out below:

Name Votes in Favour % Votes Withheld % Tanya Covassin 360,853,342 99.84 578,586 0.16 Jonathan Goodman 360,030,379 99.61 1,401,549 0.39 Bruce McLeod 359,610,623 99.50 1,821,305 0.50 Isabel Meharry 360,748,924 99.81 683,004 0.19 Andrew Molson 360,034,461 99.61 1,397,467 0.39 Peter Nixon 360,836,253 99.84 595,675 0.16 Allen Palmiere 360,849,079 99.84 582,849 0.16

Immediately following the Meeting, the board of directors met and approved the appointment of Ms. Jaimie Donovan as a new independent director of the Company effective immediately.

Jaimie Donovan is a mining engineer with over 20 years of experience in the mining industry spanning roles in operations, technical services, capital allocation and corporate development. She was the Head of Growth and Evaluations for Barrick Gold in North America until March 2019, where she oversaw the evaluation and development of regional investment opportunities. Prior to that, Ms. Donovan held senior positions at Barrick Gold as Vice President of Evaluations, and Waterton Global Resource Management as a Principal and Head of Evaluations. Ms. Donovan is also a director of Wheaton Precious Metals Corp. and Dundee Precious Metals Inc.

Ms. Donovan holds a Bachelors degree in Mining Engineering (B.Eng. Honours) and a Bachelors degree in Commerce (B.Com. Finance) from the University of Western Australia. She has also completed the ICD Director Education Program at the Rotman School of Management.

ABOUT DUNDEE CORPORATION

Dundee Corporation is a public Canadian independent holding company, listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol DC.A. Through its operating subsidiaries, Dundee Corporation is an active investor focused on delivering long-term, sustainable value as a trusted partner in the mining sector with more than 30 years of experience making accretive mining investments.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

Investor and Media Relations

T: (416) 864-3584

E: ir@dundeecorporation.com
ABBOTSFORD, British Columbia, June 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Agricultural workers at four Highline Mushrooms factory farms in British Columbia have applied to join United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Canada. Highline Mushrooms is one of Canadas biggest mushroom producers and is owned by transnational agrifood giant Fyffes.



The victory reflects Highline Mushroom workers drive and determination to improve their working conditions, representing the first group of migrant agricultural workers in Canada to collectively exercise their fundamental right to join a union in many years.

Agricultural workers are some of the most vulnerable workers in Canada, unprotected while working for transnational agrifood conglomerates worth billions. The Canadian mushroom industry alone earns over $650 million annually with over 250 mushroom farms, employing more than 5,000 agricultural workers. The mushroom industry is built on the labour of the migrant agricultural workers who staff the farms, working long, grueling hours, being paid by the piece or making barely over minimum wage. The victory at Highline Mushrooms farms is a major step forward to changing the industry, as workers assert their rights and demand that their voices are heard.

We want to join the union because we want fairer treatment, support in case of accidents at work, stable schedules, safe housing, and recall rights. We want to have a voice, says Karen, union activist, We want a workplace free of dangers, with fair treatment and job stability.

The key concerns for the workers at Highline Mushrooms are improving health and safety, ensuring a safe and fair work environment, being treated with dignity and respect, and the ability to bargain collectively.

Congratulations to Highline Mushrooms workers for their courage and determination in asserting their rights, says Patrick Johnson, President of UFCW 1518. We are excited about the possibly to represent these workers and improve their lives by negotiating a strong union contract.

In exercising their labour rights, the workers at Fyffes Highline Mushrooms have the support of the local, national and international union standing behind them.

For the past three decades UFCW has been the leading force in helping migrant workers exercise their fundamental rights, says Shawn Haggerty, National President of UFCW Canada. Labour rights are human rights, and we will be proud to welcome Fyffes mushroom workers into our UFCW family.

Highline Mushrooms parent company Fyffes has pledged to defend human and labour rights in its business principles, including core promises about respecting the fundamental labour rights of workers based on freedom of association as defined by the International Labour Organization (ILO).

This victory by the workers at Highline Mushrooms will also be a victory for the worldwide food workers movement. Committed to helping workers empower themselves, UFCW Canada works closely with the International Union of Food International Union of Food, Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers' Associations (IUF) to connect Highline Mushrooms workers with other Fyffes workers in countries around the world to build global solidarity.

This victory in Canada provides inspiration to migrant food workers throughout the world, who are the backbone of the global agrifood industry, says Sue Longley, General Secretary of the IUF. Fyffes has made strong commitments through their global policies about fully respecting their workers right to freedom of association and collective bargaining, and we trust that they will honour these principles. The world, and the global food workers movement, is watching.

About

UFCW Canada (the United Food and Commercial Workers Union) represents more than 255,000 members across Canada working in every sector of the food industry from field to table. For 30 years, UFCW Canada has been the leading voice and advocate for domestic and migrant agricultural workers.

Contact

Derek Johnstone, UFCW Canada

Phone: 416-679-3417

Email: derek.johnstone@ufcw.ca
NEW ORLEANS, June 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ClaimsFiler, a FREE shareholder information service, reminds investors that they have until June 17, 2024 to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against Doximity, Inc. (NYSE: DOCS), if they purchased or otherwise acquired the Companys shares between February 9, 2022, and April 1, 2024, inclusive (the Class Period). This action is pending in the United States District Court for the Northern District California.



Get Help

Doximity investors should visit us at https://claimsfiler.com/cases/nyse-docs/ or call toll-free (844) 367-9658. Lawyers at Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC are available to discuss your legal options.

About the Lawsuit

Doximity and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws. The alleged false and misleading statements and omissions include, but are not limited to, that the Company repeatedly touted its business prospects and the sustainability of its revenue growth and profitability, while downplaying the impact of competition and tightening macroeconomic conditions on its reliance on upselling products and services (such as additional advertising) to existing customers to sustain the Companys performance and future growth.

The case is Kissler v. Doximity, Inc., et al., 24-cv-02281.

About ClaimsFiler

ClaimsFiler has a single mission: to serve as the information source to help retail investors recover their share of billions of dollars from securities class action settlements. At ClaimsFiler.com, investors can: (1) register for free to gain access to information and settlement websites for various securities class action cases so they can timely submit their own claims; (2) upload their portfolio transactional data to be notified about relevant securities cases in which they may have a financial interest; and (3) submit inquiries to the Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC law firm for free case evaluations.

To learn more about ClaimsFiler, visit www.claimsfiler.com.
NEW ORLEANS, June 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- ClaimsFiler, a FREE shareholder information service, reminds investors that they have until July 15, 2024 to file lead plaintiff applications in a securities class action lawsuit against UnitedHealth Group Inc. (NYSE: UNH), if they purchased the Companys shares between March 14, 2022, and February 27, 2024, inclusive (the Class Period). This action is pending in the United States District Court for the District of Minnesota.



Get Help

UnitedHealth investors should visit us at https://www.claimsfiler.com/cases/nyse-unh-3 or call toll-free (844) 367-9658. Lawyers at Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC are available to discuss your legal options.

About the Lawsuit

UnitedHealth and certain of its executives are charged with failing to disclose material information during the Class Period, violating federal securities laws.

On February 27, 2024, the Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. Department of Justice had re-opened its antitrust investigation into the relationships between the Companys various segments.

On this news, the price of UnitedHealths shares fell by $27 per share, erasing nearly $25 billion in shareholder value.

The case is City of Hollywood Firefighters Pension Fund v. UnitedHealth Group Inc., No. 24-cv-1743.

About ClaimsFiler

ClaimsFiler has a single mission: to serve as the information source to help retail investors recover their share of billions of dollars from securities class action settlements. At ClaimsFiler.com, investors can: (1) register for free to gain access to information and settlement websites for various securities class action cases so they can timely submit their own claims; (2) upload their portfolio transactional data to be notified about relevant securities cases in which they may have a financial interest; and (3) submit inquiries to the Kahn Swick & Foti, LLC law firm for free case evaluations.

To learn more about ClaimsFiler, visit www.claimsfiler.com.
ZHUHAI, China, June 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- As of the end of this May, the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin (here in after referred to as the "Cooperation Zone") has been implementing tier-specific management for nearly three months. The Cooperation Zone represents a major exploration of China's high-level institutional opening-up. It is also accelerating the construction of key areas such as livelihoods, industries, and legal systems, thus opening a new chapter in high-quality development.

According to Antonio Lei, Director of the Economic Development Bureau of the Cooperation Zone, the implementation of tier-specific management has further enhanced the convenience of travel from Macao to Hengqin. The Cooperation Zone, in collaboration with Macao, plans to leverage the two-way mobility and interaction of personnel to host more signature MICE events. These events aim to attract global buyers, exhibitors, and representatives from the financial industry. In addition, it will facilitate the flow of logistics, human resources, capital, and information, thus promoting the development of the new "industry + exhibition" business model.

Antonio Lei believed the official implementation of tier-specific management will bring more benefits and opportunities for exhibition cooperation between Macao and Hengqin. For example, companies participating in events in the Cooperation Zone can temporarily import exhibition items under bonded conditions. Besides, some large non-disposable exhibition materials can be transported back to Macao after the event. It will further facilitate the "multi-venue event" model between Hengqin and Macao, thus attracting more international exhibitors to extend their activities to Hengqin.

"This year, we will continue to collaborate with Macao to host several events with global influence under the model of 'multi-venue event', such as the High-quality Consumption Exhibition & Global Bay Areas Forum and the BEYOND Expo. By sharing resources, we seek to continuously expand the influence of the 'MICE Macao x Hengqin brand," said Antonio Lei.

In the future, Macao and Hengqin will jointly promote the establishment of a terminal of the Macau International Airport, launch a Macao tourism bus route and co-host events such as the "Camping Fair" in the Cooperation Zone. They will also develop more island tour products, strengthen cooperation on investment promotion for the MICE industry, and form a professional team to attract more international events to the two places.

In addition, the thriving MICE industry in Macao and Hengqin has created numerous employment opportunities. For example, hosting MICE events involves a wide range of professionals specialising in event planning, marketing, venue management, and technical support, thus providing a vast market space for related industries to attract skilled talents. Moreover, by jointly hosting various MICE events and building exhibition brands, Macao and Hengqin will present their diverse industrial development to a broader audience. This approach not only promotes talent exchange within the industry but also helps to reserve more outstanding professionals for both places.

Source: The Economic Development Bureau of the Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone in Hengqin




JINAN, China, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Jinan, also known as the "City of Springs", is located in the central-western part of Shandong Province, China. Renowned for its 72 springs and the abundance of willow trees, this northern city exudes a southern charm. On June 12, an overseas media team, invited by the Information Office of Jinan Municipal People's Government and themed "Opportunities in China, Charm of Jinan", visited Jinan to appreciate Baotu Spring and Black Tiger Spring, and explore Jinan's cultural and urban enchantment along the moat as a "City of Springs".



The moat in Jinan, which spans 6.9 kilometers, is the only moat in China formed by the convergence of spring water. Along the way, the Black Tiger Spring boasts 16 springs. It is a common practice for many locals to bring home a bucket of spring water to make tea. During the hot summer days, taking a sip of the refreshing spring water at the drinking water point is truly invigorating. One guest exclaimed, "So refreshing!" This vividly illustrates the essence of Jinan's "spring" culture.

The springs in Jinan are not only abundant in number but also diverse in form, presenting a spectacular sight. Taking a boat ride at Black Tiger Spring and traveling along the moat to the "First Spring in the World", Baotu Spring, is really an impressive trip. Baotu Spring has been a symbol of Jinan since ancient times, with a saying that goes, "A trip to Jinan is incomplete without visiting Baotu Spring." With three water outlets, Baotu Spring's clear and sweet water has inspired numerous poems and literary works.

Another famous attraction in Jinan, Daming Lake, is also closely linked to spring water. Experts explain that the spring water from the four major spring clusters in the old city of Jinan flows through the moat and Qushuiting Street from different directions before converging into Daming Lake, making it a unique "spring-fed lake".

One guest remarked, "This is a city inseparable from its springs, and a city with unique charm."

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/3bcd492b-a280-4b28-a844-edca0f59a9df
AUCKLAND, 13 June, 2024 - Enprise Group (NZX: ENS ) has appointed Aaron Ridgway to its board as Non-Executive Director.

The Board of Directors of Enprise Group Ltd (ENS) would like to welcome Aaron Ridgway as an Independent non-executive Director.

Aaron has a strong background as an entrepreneur and has significant commercial experience in Telco and technology related fields. Aaron has a track record in founding, growing and successfully exiting tech businesses including a major cloud-tech start-up and First Mobile Takapuna - New Zealands most successful independently owned Vodafone mobile dealership. Aaron is currently the CEO of Enprise investee, Vadacom.

He was recognised as leading Deloittes 5th fastest growing company in New Zealand, 2005 and was awarded NZ Young Entrepreneur of the year, 2007.

The Directors would like to warmly welcome Aaron onto the board.

About Enprise Group

Listed on the New Zealand Stock Exchange on 1 December 2014, Enprise Group (ENS) is an investment vehicle for high-growth tech companies that complement its core ERP capability. Enprise Group is invested in four businesses  the wholly owned Kilimanjaro Consulting, subsidiary iSell, joint venture Datagate Innovation and a holding in Vadacom.

Kilimanjaro is a cloud business software company that is the leading trans-Tasman provider of solutions based on the MYOB EXO and MYOB Advanced software platforms. Kilimanjaro Consulting offers cloud options for every piece of software it sells, including a broad range of companion products to extend the power of the MYOB Advanced and MYOB EXO platforms. The company supports around 1,270 MYOB EXO and MYOB Advanced customers across Australia and New Zealand.

iSell is a primary provider of business systems to the IT Reseller market. iSell databases contain over 4.5 million products representing more than 2000 vendors available from 100+ distributors. The products are sent automatically to hundreds of IT Resellers daily, across Australia, New Zealand & UK.

Datagate Innovation is a cloud telecom billing solution. The Datagate online billing portal enables Managed Service Providers to rate and bill telecommunications services, with optional US Tax and leading software integrations. Datagate rates and bills unified communications, VoIP, tolls, cellular, data plans and other use-based and subscription services.

Vadacom specialises in phone system software development and unified communications solutions for Australian and New Zealand businesses.

For further details call

Nick Paul,

Chairperson,

0274980051

Ends

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Visiongain has published a new report entitled Vehicle Armour Materials Market Report 2024-2034: Forecasts by Armour Type (Passive Armour, Active Armour, Reactive Armour), by End-user (Military and Defence, Law Enforcement, Commercial Security, Other), by Vehicle Type (Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs), Main Battle Tanks (MBTs), Infantry Fighting Vehicles (IFVs), Light Utility Vehicles (LUVs), Military Trucks and Transport Vehicles), by Type (Steel, Composite Materials, Ceramic Materials, Aramid Fibre, Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP), Other) AND Regional and Leading National Market Analysis PLUS Analysis of Leading Companies AND COVID-19 Impact and Recovery Pattern Analysis.

The global vehicle armour materials market was valued at US$6.20 billion in 2023 and is projected to grow at a CAGR of 6.7% during the forecast period 2024-2034.

Focus on Weight Reduction and Mobility

The focus on weight reduction and mobility is a significant driver for the vehicle armour materials market. Military and law enforcement agencies are increasingly seeking lightweight armour solutions that do not compromise on protection. Lighter armoured vehicles offer several advantages, including improved fuel efficiency, greater mobility, and reduced logistical challenges.

The use of advanced materials such as high-strength alloys, composites, and ceramics is helping to achieve these objectives. For instance, composite materials, which combine the properties of multiple substances, can provide high levels of protection while being significantly lighter than traditional steel armour. This weight reduction enhances the vehicles speed and manoeuvrability, which is crucial in combat and high-risk situations. The continuous development of lightweight and high-strength materials is essential in meeting the evolving demands for mobility and protection, driving the growth of the vehicle armour materials market.

Download Exclusive Sample of Report

https://www.visiongain.com/report/vehicle-armour-materials-market-2024/#download_sampe_div

How has COVID-19 had a significant negative impact on the Vehicle Armour Materials Market?

The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly impacted the Vehicle Armour Materials Market, introducing a range of challenges and opportunities across the industry. Initially, the pandemic disrupted global supply chains, leading to shortages of raw materials and components essential for vehicle armour production. This disruption resulted in delays in manufacturing processes and project timelines for both new armoured vehicle production and maintenance of existing fleets. Companies faced logistical challenges, workforce shortages due to lockdowns and restrictions, and reduced operational capacities, all of which hindered the smooth functioning of the market.

Moreover, the economic slowdown caused by the pandemic affected government budgets allocated for defence and security expenditures, including armoured vehicle procurements. Many countries had to reassess their spending priorities, diverting funds towards healthcare and pandemic response efforts rather than military modernization projects. This shift in budget allocation further delayed or postponed contracts and acquisitions within the vehicle armour materials market, impacting revenues and growth projections for manufacturers and suppliers.

How will this Report Benefit you?

Visiongains 367-page report provides 117 tables and 182 charts/graphs. Our new study is suitable for anyone requiring commercial, in-depth analyses for the global vehicle armour materials market, along with detailed segment analysis in the market. Our new study will help you evaluate the overall global and regional market for Vehicle Armour Materials. Get financial analysis of the overall market and different segments including armour type, end-user, vehicle type and type and capture higher market share. We believe that there are strong opportunities in this fast-growing vehicle armour materials market. See how to use the existing and upcoming opportunities in this market to gain revenue benefits in the near future. Moreover, the report will help you to improve your strategic decision-making, allowing you to frame growth strategies, reinforce the analysis of other market players, and maximise the productivity of the company.

What are the Current Market Drivers?

Growing Adoption in Civilian Applications

The application of vehicle armour materials is not limited to military and law enforcement sectors but is also expanding into civilian markets. There is an increasing demand for armoured vehicles in sectors such as banking, VIP transportation, and media, where the protection of personnel and assets is paramount. High-profile individuals, corporate executives, and journalists operating in conflict zones or regions with high crime rates often require armoured vehicles for their safety.

Companies like Mercedes-Benz and BMW offer civilian armoured vehicles that use advanced materials like bulletproof glass and lightweight composites to provide protection without compromising on comfort and performance. The growing awareness of security threats and the need for personal protection are driving the adoption of armoured vehicles in civilian applications, contributing to the overall growth of the vehicle armour materials market.

Increasing Defence Modernisation Programs

Defence modernisation programs initiated by various countries are driving the demand for advanced vehicle armour materials. These programs aim to upgrade and enhance the capabilities of military forces by integrating the latest technologies and equipment. A key component of these programs is the modernisation of armoured vehicle fleets, which involves the adoption of new armour materials that offer superior protection and performance. For example, the U.S. Armys Next-Generation Combat Vehicle (NGCV) program focuses on developing advanced armoured vehicles with enhanced survivability, mobility, and lethality.

Similarly, countries in Europe and Asia are investing in modernising their armoured vehicle fleets to address evolving security threats. These initiatives require the use of state-of-the-art armour materials, driving research, development, and procurement activities in the vehicle armour materials market. As defence modernisation programs continue to advance, the demand for innovative armour solutions will remain a key growth driver.

Get Detailed ToC

https://www.visiongain.com/report/vehicle-armour-materials-market-2024/

Where are the Market Opportunities?

Expanding Global Military Presence and Operations

The expanding global military presence and operations are contributing to the growth of the vehicle armour materials market. Many countries are increasing their military deployments in response to geopolitical tensions, regional conflicts, and peacekeeping missions. These operations often take place in hostile environments, necessitating the use of armoured vehicles equipped with advanced protection to ensure the safety of personnel.

For instance, the increasing military presence of NATO forces in Eastern Europe and the deployment of United Nations peacekeeping missions in Africa and the Middle East require robust and reliable armoured vehicles. The need to protect troops and equipment in these volatile regions drives the demand for high-performance armour materials. Additionally, as military operations extend to new and diverse theatres, the development and procurement of specialised armour materials tailored to specific threats and conditions become increasingly important.

Innovation in Multi-Threat Protection Solutions

Modern armoured vehicles must provide protection against a wide range of threats, including ballistic projectiles, explosive blasts, and chemical attacks. This requires the development of advanced materials and technologies that can address multiple threats simultaneously. For example, hybrid armour systems that combine different materials, such as ceramics and composites, offer enhanced protection against both ballistic and blast threats.

Similarly, the integration of active protection systems (APS) with traditional armour materials provides additional layers of defence by intercepting and neutralising incoming threats before they impact the vehicle. Companies are also exploring the use of smart materials that can adapt their properties in response to different threats, providing dynamic and versatile protection. These innovations are essential in meeting the complex and evolving protection requirements of modern military and law enforcement operations, driving the growth of the vehicle armour materials market.

Competitive Landscape

The major players operating in the vehicle armour materials market are AGY Holding Corp, Alcoa Corporation, Armourworks Enterprises, LLC, ATI Inc., Cerco Corporation, CoorsTek, Inc., CPS Technologies Corp, DuPont de Nemours, Inc., Honeywell International Inc, JPS Composite Materials, Leeco Steel, Morgan Advanced Materials plc, PPG Industries, Inc., SSAB AB, Teijin Limited, . These major players operating in this market have adopted various strategies comprising M&A, investment in R&D, collaborations, partnerships, regional business expansion, and new product launch.

Recent Developments

11 March 2024, Alumina Limited (ASX: AWC) and Alcoa (NYSE: AA or "Alcoa") have signed a legally binding Scheme Implementation Deed (the "Agreement"), according to which Alcoa will purchase Alumina Limited in an all-stock, or all-scrip, transaction. The provisions of the Agreement are in accordance with the previously disclosed and agreed-upon transaction process deed.

22 Jan 2024, An exclusive agreement to supply body armour built with Kevlar EXOTM aramid fibre to North American State and Local Law Enforcement departments was signed by DuPont (NYSE: DD) and Point Blank Enterprises (PBE), a global leader in protective solutions for military and law enforcement professionals.

To access the data contained in this document please email contactus@visiongain.com . Avoid missing out by staying informed  order our report now.

To find more Visiongain research reports on the defence sector, click on the following links:

Do you have any custom requirements we can help you with? Any need for a specific country, geo region, market segment or specific company information? Contact us today, we can discuss your needs and see how we can help: contactus@visiongain.com

About Visiongain

Visiongain is one of the fastest-growing and most innovative independent market intelligence providers around, the company publishes hundreds of market research reports which it adds to its extensive portfolio each year. These reports offer in-depth analysis across 18 industries worldwide. The reports, which cover 10-year forecasts, are hundreds of pages long, with in-depth market analysis and valuable competitive intelligence data. Visiongain works across a range of vertical markets with a lot of synergies. These markets include automotive, aviation, chemicals, cyber, defence, energy, food & drink, materials, packaging, pharmaceutical and utilities sectors. Our customised and syndicated market research reports offer a bespoke piece of market intelligence customised to your very own business needs.

Contact

Visiongain Reports Limited

Telephone: +44 (0) 20 7336 6100

Email: contactus@visiongain.com

Web: www.visiongain.com
Dublin, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Global Digital Talent Acquisition Market by Training (External, Internal), Certification (AI Developers, Cloud Computing & Security, Data Management), Industry - Forecast 2024-2030" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The Global Digital Talent Acquisition Market was estimated at USD 30.01 billion in 2023, USD 32.81 billion in 2024, and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 9.47% to reach USD 56.57 billion by 2030.

This research report offers invaluable insights into various crucial aspects of the Digital Talent Acquisition Market:

Market Penetration: This section thoroughly overviews the current market landscape, incorporating detailed data from key industry players. Market Development: The report examines potential growth prospects in emerging markets and assesses expansion opportunities in mature segments. Market Diversification: This includes detailed information on recent product launches, untapped geographic regions, recent industry developments, and strategic investments. Competitive Assessment & Intelligence: An in-depth analysis of the competitive landscape is conducted, covering market share, strategic approaches, product range, certifications, regulatory approvals, patent analysis, technology developments, and advancements in the manufacturing capabilities of leading market players. Product Development & Innovation: This section offers insights into upcoming technologies, research and development efforts, and notable advancements in product innovation.

An increase in the adoption of cloud-based recruitment solutions, along with demanding analytics-driven decision-making in hiring processes, has increased digital talent acquisition solutions. Moreover, advancements in AI and ML, automating and improving the accuracy of candidate screening, have further propelled the market growth. However, data security & privacy concerns related to candidate information coupled with reluctance to adopt new technologies by traditional organizations may pose challenges for the market. Nevertheless, the integration of diversified data sources provides a more comprehensive view of candidates and expansion of mobile-based recruitment platforms catering to the growing mobile workforce.

Market Insights Unveiled in the Report

Market Dynamics

Market Disruption Analysis

Porter's Five Forces Analysis

Value Chain & Critical Path Analysis

Pricing Analysis

Technology Analysis

Patent Analysis

Trade Analysis

Regulatory Framework Analysis

FPNV Positioning Matrix

Market Share Analysis

Strategy Analysis and Recommendations

Regional Insights



The Americas, particularly the United States and Canada, exhibit a highly mature digital talent acquisition market. Companies in this region heavily invest in innovative recruitment technologies such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), and predictive analytics to streamline the hiring process and identify the best candidates. The United States leads in adopting digital tools for talent acquisition, reflecting its dynamic tech industry and the demand for skilled professionals. In Latin America, there's a growing emphasis on digital channels and platforms to bridge the talent gaps, with countries like Brazil and Mexico making significant strides in technology-based recruitment.



The focus on employer branding and candidate experience is paramount across the Americas, recognizing the competitive nature of attracting top digital talent. The EMEA region presents a diverse talent acquisition landscape due to varying economic development, digital maturity, and cultural differences. In Western Europe, particularly in the UK, Germany, and France, advanced analytics and digital recruitment platforms are prevalent. Northern European countries are notable for their innovative recruitment practices, emphasizing the importance of diversity and inclusion. In contrast, the Middle East is rapidly adopting mobile-first strategies to tap into a young, tech-savvy population. With its vast and young talent pool, Africa is gradually embracing digital solutions, though it faces challenges such as internet accessibility and digital infrastructure. The Asia Pacific region showcases a burgeoning digital talent acquisition market, influenced by its high-growth economies, including China, India, and Southeast Asia. The adoption of digital recruitment is accelerated by the region's increasing internet penetration and mobile usage. In mature landscape economies such as Australia and Singapore, companies are at the forefront of integrating AI-powered solutions into their talent acquisition practices. The presence of technology hubs exhibits a high demand for skilled digital professionals, driving innovation in recruitment technologies.



Market Trends by Segment

Training: proliferation of external training for acquiring knowledge and best practices

Certification: Utilization of AI developers and web presentation certifications in large-scale data integration, analysis, and management

Industry: Growing demand from the information technology sector owing to requirements for expertise in software development and artificial intelligence

Market Dynamics

Drivers Need for Digital Talent Acquisition to Build Transparency in the Recruitment Process Integration of Digital Talent Acquisition Systems Integrated with CRM and ERP Growing Adoption of Video Interview and Cognitive Technologies

Restraints High Cost and Operational Complications Associated with Digital Talent Acquisition

Opportunities Integration of Crowd-Sourcing in Talent Acquisition Increasing Amalgamation Activities Among Talent Acquisition Software Providers

Challenges Data Security and Privacy Issues



Key Company Profiles

Accenture PLC

Amazon Web Services, Inc.

AppCast Inc.

Automatic Data Processing, Inc.

Avature Limited

Bullhorn, Inc.

Capgemini SE

Cloudera, Inc.

Cornerstone OnDemand, Inc.

Darwinbox Digital Solutions Private Limited

First Advantage

Greenhouse Software, Inc.

iCIMS, Inc.

International Business Machines Corporation

Manatal.Co.Ltd

MEM Digital

Mercer LLC

Microsoft Corporation

Oorwin Labs Inc.

Oracle Corporation

Paycom Software, Inc.

Paylocity Holding Corporation

Salesforce, Inc.

SAP SE

Sense Talent Labs, Inc.

Skillsoft Corporation

UKG Inc.

Workable Technology Limited

Workday, Inc.

Zoho Corporation Pvt. Ltd.

Recent Developments

iCIMS Launches AI Copilot

Metova and Central Standard Talent Announce Merger to Create Metova Strategies

Appcast Acquires Bayard to Expand Services Across Recruitment Marketing

The report addresses key questions to assist stakeholders in making informed decisions:

What is the current market size and projected growth? Which products, segments, applications, and regions offer promising investment opportunities? What are the prevailing technology trends and regulatory frameworks? What is the market share and positioning of the leading vendors? What revenue sources and strategic opportunities do vendors in the market consider when deciding to enter or exit?

Key Attributes

Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 194 Forecast Period 2024 - 2030 Estimated Market Value (USD) in 2024 $32.81 Billion Forecasted Market Value (USD) by 2030 $56.57 Billion Compound Annual Growth Rate 9.4% Regions Covered Global

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/12brf9

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
SATO Corporation, Press release 13 June 2024 at 1:40 pm

The busiest season of the Finnish rental market is here, peaking in July. The summer rental seasons vary by region, with rental spikes concentrated particularly in large cities where regional differences can be significant. It's not just students on the move during the summer, SATO reports.

Data collected over several years by SATO, one of Finland's largest housing providers, shows that in Turku a busy rental season typically begins right at the start of June. By mid-June, the wave reaches central Helsinki and Tampere. In these three hot rental market areas, housing demand remains high until the end of August.

"June is an ideal time to confirm a rental decision, as the best options might unfortunately slip away during the peak season in July, especially in the most popular areas. Generally, however, it is currently the tenant's market, reminds Laura Laamanen, SATO's Chief Commercial Officer.

Significant variation within Helsinki

Interestingly, regional variations, especially within the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, (HMA) are considerable. For example, in the areas of Metro Espoo, West Helsinki, and East Helsinki, only a slight peak in demand for rental apartments is observed during the summer, while in the Rail Espoo area, there is practically no peak season. In West Vantaa, there is only a short summer season in July.

"There are several reasons for these regional differences. Proximity to workplaces and services, as well as good public transport connections, remain important attractions for students and other young apartment seekers who are prominently on the move during the summer months," says Laamanen.

Students and young workers on the move during summer

Summer means a new beginning for many, whether its a new degree place or a new job. Its also a time when contemplating and implementing life changes is more natural than in the dark winter months. Additionally, school holidays allow families a smoother move so that children can adapt to their new environment before the next school year begins.

As in other times of the year, employed individuals are the largest group of applicants during the summer. In July, the proportion of student applicants increases significantly, by up to one-third. It is also noteworthy that during the summer, applicants among workers and professionals are typically a few years younger than at other times. For example, workers seeking rental apartments in July are on average five years younger than outside the peak season.

"The effects of changes in housing allowance are not yet clearly visible, but over time, they may manifest as increased demand for smaller and more affordable apartments or an increase in the number of people changing apartments," Laamanen notes, adding that renting offers stability and predictability of expenses, especially for those just starting their independent lives: "There are no unexpected expenses as in homeownership, for example, when heating is included in the rent."

Good transport connections, services, and maritime locations are always appealing

The location of a rental apartment is one of the most important criteria for applicants. Throughout the year locations close to good public transport connections and services consistently interest those looking for a rental home. In the HMA, rental apartments located particularly along the metro and rail lines are always in demand. At the end of 2024, SATO will complete 156 new rental homes in Finnoo, Espoo. The maritime residential area is conveniently located along the Lansimetro metro line.

"Around a thousand apartments have already been completed for residents in the area, and homes for about two thousand more are currently under construction. Additionally, rental homes offering proximity to nature, maritime atmosphere, and easy metro access can be found in eastern Helsinki districts like Vuosaari and Puotila," Laamanen hints.





For more information, please contact

Laura Laamanen, Chief Commercial Officer, SATO Corporation

p. +358 201 34 4360, firstname.lastname@sato.fi

SATO Corporation is an expert in sustainable rental housing and one of Finlands largest rental housing providers. SATO owns more than 25,000 rental homes in the Helsinki Metropolitan Area, Tampere and Turku.

SATO aims to provide an excellent customer experience and a comprehensive range of urban rental housing alternatives with good access to public transport and services. We promote sustainable development and work in open interaction with our stakeholders.

SATO invests profitably, sustainably and with a long-term view. We increase the value of our assets through investments, divestments and repairs. www.sato.fi/en.
Dublin, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Online Grocery Market Report by Products, Purchaser, Delivery, Payment Mode, Regions and Company Analysis 2024-2032" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The Global Online Grocery Market was valued at US$ 492.22 billion in 2023 and is expected to reach US$ 2,984.27 billion by 2032. It is expected to grow at a CAGR of 22.17% from 2024 to 2032.





Recent Mergers & Acquisitions in Online Grocery Market

In July 2023, Swiggy acquired LYNK Logistics Ltd entered the food and grocery retail market

July & October 2023, Kering completed acquisitions of Creed & Purchase 30% Stake in Valentino

In 2023, Aldi acquired Winn-Dixie and Harveys Supermarket

April 2023, L'Oreal announced the acquisition of Aesop

In 2023, Ahold Delhaize USA sold FreshDirect to Getir

In 2023, Price Chopper d purchased 5 former New York ShopRite stores

In 2023, PFSbrands acquired Moser's Foods, a grocer in Mid-Missouri

In 2023, Foxtrot and Dom's announced a merger

In April 2024, SpartanNash acquired Metcalfe's Market, a three-store Wisconsin grocer

In October 2022, Kroger Co. and Albertsons Cos. announced the merger, raising concerns from industry stakeholders, national unions, The Federal Trade Commission, and various lawmakers

India's Online Grocery Market



By 2030, India is expected to have the second-largest online shopper base globally, with 500-600 million shoppers. The Indian online grocery market is booming, mainly due to the growth of the e-commerce industry, increasing mobile internet penetration, and the convenience of online shopping. Due to rising incomes and urbanization, online grocery stores are expanding to Tier-II cities. The need for online grocery stores arose due to changing working conditions and the challenge of finding extensive land within cities. The text states that by 2025, around 87% of Indian households will have internet access, with a 21% increase in mobile internet access compared to 2019.



BigBasket, India's biggest online grocery, received US$ 300 Million in funding from Alibaba in 2022, valuing the company at around US$ 950 Million.



Global Online Grocery Company News:

In January 2024 - Stor.ai and Mercatus Technologies merged to help independent and regional retailers offer e-commerce services to customers and compete with larger grocers.

In November 2023 - Ahold Delhaize USA is selling FreshDirect to Getir, a leader in ultrafast grocery delivery. The decision was made to focus on omnichannel investments.

In October 2023 - Kroger now accepts EBT payment for digital pickup and delivery orders.

In July 2023 - Woolworths New Zealand now offers more than 10,000 grocery items through the MILKRUN app. The retailer is committed to providing excellent supermarket experiences and has transitioned from Countdown to Woolworths New Zealand.

In January 2023 - Sainsbury's partnered with Eat Takeaway for faster grocery delivery.

Products - Market breakup in 6 viewpoints:



1. Ready-to-eat Breakfast & Dairy

2. Staples & Cooking Essentials

3. Snacks & Beverages

4. Meat & Seafood

5. Fresh Produce

6. Others



Purchaser Type - Market breakup in 2 viewpoints:



1. Ready-to-eat Subscription Purchase

2. One Time Purchase



Delivery Type - Market breakup in 2 viewpoints:



1. Ready-to-eat Click & Collect

2. Home Delivery



Payment Mode - Market breakup in 2 viewpoints:



1. Online

2. Cash on Delivery



Country - Market breakup of 5 regions and 25 countries:



1. North America

3. Asia Pacific

4. Latin America

5. Middle East & Africa

Company Analysis:



1. Tesco PLC

2. Walmart Inc.

3. Auchan S.A.

4. The Kroger Co.

5. Carrefour

6. Costco Wholesale Corporation

7. Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize N.V.

8. Target Corporation

All key players have been covered from 3 viewpoints:

Overview

Recent Developments

Revenue Analysis

Key Attributes

Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 210 Forecast Period 2023-2032 Estimated Market Value (USD) in 2023 $492.22 Billion Forecasted Market Value (USD) by 2032 $2,984.27 Billion Compound Annual Growth Rate 22.1% Regions Covered Global

Online Grocery Market Survey

There are currently over 26 million eCommerce websites across the globe, and new ones are being developed every day.

87% of customers reported using their mobile devices to shop for groceries online.

According to a recent study, 51% of Millennials stated that they would consider switching brands if they were offered digital services without flaws.

72% of customers prefer online grocery shopping due to convenience.

In 2022, 87.2% of US residents aged 15 or older usually shop for groceries online or in person. Of these, 19.3% have bought groceries online in the last 30 days.

By 2024, over 50% of online purchases in China will be made using mobile devices.

In China, digital grocery purchases increased from 9% in 2018 to 19% in 2021. This figure is predicted to reach almost 30% by 2025.

By 2023, India's e-retail shopper base is estimated to reach 230-250 million, with over 100 million added in the last three years. Seventy percent of online shoppers live in Tier 2+ cities, and one-third are Gen Z. About a third of online shoppers belong to low-income or low-middle-income groups.

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/7fpb01

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




Villa Charities breaks ground for major installation that pays tribute to the Italian immigrant story to Canada.

From (L to R) Hon. Michael Ford, Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism, International Chef and Executive Producer, David Rocco, Joseph Arcuri, Board Chair of Villa Charities Inc., Consul General of Italy in Toronto, Luca Zelioli, Her Worship Olivia Chow, Mayor of Toronto, Marco DeVuono, President and CEO of Villa Charities Inc., Rose Foti, Tribute Project donor, Julian Baldassarra, Tribute Project donor, Maria Orsini, Past Chair, Columbus Centre of Toronto, Hon. Michael Tibollo, Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions

TORONTO, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Shovels hit the ground yesterday morning at a public event for the eagerly anticipated Villa Charities Italian Canadian Immigrant Tribute project installation, which is set to honour the Italian Canadian immigration story.

The ceremonial Groundbreaking Event was officially underway at 10am to mark the start of construction on the installation at the Columbus Centre. Hosted by International Chef and Executive Producer, David Rocco, the event featured dignitaries, politicians, current Tribute Project donors, representatives from other Italian organizations, and members of the Italian Canadian community who all took in the milestone amid a backdrop of enthusiastic celebration of Italian Heritage Month.

Speakers included the Consul General of Italy in Toronto, Luca Zelioli, Hon. Michael Ford, Minister of Citizenship and Multiculturalism, Hon. Michael Tibollo, Associate Minister of Mental Health and Addictions and Her Worship Olivia Chow, Mayor of Toronto, who all expressed their support of the project to the crowd of over 350 people.

Italian Canadians have played such a pivotal role in developing the vibrant cultural traditions that exist in our community today, said Marco DeVuono, President and CEO of Villa Charities. Through the Italian Canadian Immigrant Tribute project, Villa Charities seeks to celebrate them, recognize their contributions, and encourage others to do the same.

Designed by Brown + Storey Architects Inc., the Immigrant Tribute installation will be located on the Villa Charities site at Lawrence Avenue West and Dufferin Street in Toronto, on the north-facing wall of the Columbus Centre. It will showcase name plaques dedicated to thousands of Canadians of Italian heritage and the year that they immigrated to Canada. The installation will be accompanied by a landscaped seating area and a bronze cast sculpture crafted by artist and marketing executive, Aldo Cundari.

The installation will offer individuals of Italian heritage a space to gather, commemorate, and reflect on their immigrant heritage and collective achievements.

Attendees were moved by guest speakers and Tribute Project donors Julian Baldassarra and Rose Foti, who have purchased customized name plaques that honour their loved ones immigration journeys and family legacies. All attending Tribute Project donors were wearing a special donor button to identify themselves as proud supporters during the Groundbreaking Event and provided inspiring examples of how fellow Italian Canadians have persevered and positively impacted their communities.

Being able to tell my parents story and reflect on my familys legacy in the city is truly special, said Rose Foti, donor and supporter of the Villa Charities Italian Canadian Immigrant Tribute. "Without Villa Charities, our stories would be lost on future generations.

While the construction of the physical installation is underway, personalized single or double name plaques are still available for a $1,000 donation and will feature the name of the family member and the year they immigrated to Canada. For each plaque purchase, a tax receipt will be issued for the maximum allowable amount.

Canadians nationwide will not only have the opportunity to purchase plaques that will appear on the installation at the Columbus Centre, but also have their stories told on the Villa Charities Immigrant Tribute website. This allows donors to share family photographs and histories with the public, acting as a useful resource for generations to come.

The unveiling of the completed installation is currently planned for later this year. The funds raised from the Tribute Project through Villa Charities Foundation will support senior care, youth services, education and scholarships, cultural programming, and capital needs.

For more information on the Villa Charities Italian Canadian Immigrant Tribute project, including how to purchase a name plaque, visit villacharitiesimmigranttribute.com.

About Villa Charities Inc.

Villa Charities Inc. (VCI) is a registered charity and non-profit organization that enriches lives through experiences and services that honour Italian culture and heritage. For more than 50 years across the GTA, Villa Charities has provided cultural and educational programs and supported culturally sensitive long-term care and independent living apartments for seniors. VCI fulfills their mandate through a broad range of activities, services and facilities, both directly and in conjunction with its affiliates and independent organizations. Affiliates include Columbus Centre and Joseph D. Carrier Art Gallery; Villa Colombo Homes for the Aged Inc. in Toronto; Villa Colombo Seniors Centre (Vaughan) Inc. Di Poce Centre; and Italian Canadian Benevolent Seniors Apartments Corporation/Casa Abruzzo Benevolent Corporation with apartments for independent seniors (Caboto Terrace, Casa Del Zotto and Casa Abruzzo). Each of these organizations is an integral part of the Villa Charities family with separate legal status and its own governance Board. Villa Charities has been certified as a Great Place to Work, which recognizes the organizations commitment to creating an inclusive, positive and engaging workplace. For more information visit villacharities.com.

About Villa Charities Foundation

Villa Charities Foundation supports experiences and services that honour Italian culture and heritage. As the charitable arm of Villa Charities, the Foundation provides crucial funding for areas such as senior care, youth services, education and scholarships, cultural programming, and capital needs. For more information, visit villacharities.com/give.

For further information, please contact:

Emma Gostovic

MAVERICK Public Relations

289-921-0141

emma@wearemaverick.com

Kathleen Sloan, CM

Director, Marketing and Communications

Villa Charities Inc.

416-789-7011 Ext. 309

ksloan@villacharities.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/b8eb9ad3-d587-4b05-bcd3-c2ae0ee086cf
Not for distribution to U.S. newswire services or dissemination in the United States.



ERLANGER, Ky., June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Flagship Communities Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT) (TSX: MHC.U; MHC.UN) today announced it was awarded Community of the Year for the third consecutive year by the Kentucky Manufactured Housing Institute (KMHI). Flagship also received awards for Retailer of the Year and Retail Salesperson of the Year.

Honored at the KMHI Annual Conference in Covington, Kentucky, White Pine Pointe was awarded Community of the Year. This 345-lot community is a remarkable turnaround story, whereby Flagship transformed a run-down manufactured housing community within a short span of 15-months. A brand new, large clubhouse/office, municipal grade playground, pickleball court, dozens of new homes, along with street paving and new solar lighting have all been part of White Pine Pointes transformation.

We are thrilled to receive these high honors from the Kentucky Manufactured Housing Institute and be awarded Community of the Year for the third consecutive year, said Flagship CEO Kurt Keeney. Our team has done an outstanding job of transforming this community and welcoming new, diverse homeowners to the community.

KMHI is the trade association representing the factory-built housing industry in Kentucky. Flagship Communities REIT continues to show their dedication to their tenants and to the industry by striving to provide options of quality communities and quality homes around the Commonwealth, said KMHI Executive Director Logan Hanes. These awards are a reflection of that commitment.

About Flagship Communities Real Estate Investment Trust

Flagship Communities Real Estate Investment Trust is an internally managed, unincorporated, open-ended real estate investment trust established pursuant to a declaration of trust under the laws of the Province of Ontario. The REIT has been formed to own and operate a portfolio of income-producing manufactured housing communities located in Kentucky, Indiana, Ohio, West Virginia, Tennessee, Arkansas, Missouri, and Illinois, including a fleet of manufactured homes for lease to residents of such housing communities.

For further information, please contact:

Eddie Carlisle, Chief Financial Officer

Flagship Communities Real Estate Investment Trust

Tel: +1 (859) 568-3390
Dublin, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "Global Cystic Fibrosis Market Analysis & Forecast to 2024-2034" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The global cystic fibrosis market size was estimated to be USD 12.31 billion in 2023 and is expected to reach at USD 136.64 billion by 2034 with a CAGR of 24.46% during the forecast period 2024-2034

Increase in the incidence of cystic fibrosis, growing awareness regarding the progressive genetic disorder, rising adoption of pharmaceutical treatments, extensive accessibility to various treatment options, surge in research & development investments by major players, growing technological advancements, a heightened emphasis on developing innovative gene therapy solutions, and increasing regulatory approval of novel products for the treatment of cystic fibrosis are some of the key factors boosting the market growth.







Increasing regulatory approval of novel products for the treatment of cystic fibrosis is predicted to boost the market growth during the forecast period. Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a genetic disorder resulting from mutations in specific genes that regulate the secretion of certain bodily fluids. These mutations impact various organs, causing an increased viscosity in mucous and sweat. The disorder disrupts the normal function of the electrolyte transport system, leading to the absorption of sodium and water by cells and resulting in issues related to sweat and mucous gland function.

Consequently, individuals with this condition experience increased infection risks in both the upper and lower respiratory tracts, necessitating the development of innovative therapeutics. For instance, in September 2022, Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has disclosed that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted approval for the extended application of ORKAMBI (lumacaftor/ivacaftor) to encompass children with cystic fibrosis (CF) aged 12 to less than 24 months, possessing the homozygous F508del mutation (F/F genotype) in the cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene.



By drug class, cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) modulators was the highest revenue-grossing segment in the global cystic fibrosis market in 2023 owing to the developing R&D efforts, expanding awareness of hereditary disorders that worsen over time, and increased use of medication treatments. Additionally, Bronchodilators is predicted to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period owing to the rising incidence of respiratory conditions including asthma and COPD, increasing use for individuals with obstructive lung problems and respiratory diseases, growing number of product approvals and launches.

For instance, in March 2022, The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Mylan Pharmaceuticals Inc., a subsidiary of Viatris, for its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for Breyna (Budesonide and Formoterol Fumarate Dihydrate Inhalation Aerosol). This information was disclosed by Viatris Inc. and Kindeva Drug Delivery L.P. This marks the initial approval of a generic version of AstraZeneca's Symbicort.



By route of administration, oral was the highest revenue-grossing segment in the global cystic fibrosis market in 2023 owing to the comfort and ease of taking the medications orally, as well as the rise of regulatory authority approvals. For instance, in October 2023, Bristol Myers Squibb has reported that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) awarded Breakthrough Therapy Designation to BMS-986278.

This potential first-of-its-kind, oral drug functions as a lysophosphatidic acid receptor 1 (LPA1) antagonist and is intended for the treatment of progressive pulmonary fibrosis (PPF), a severe and life-threatening condition. Additionally, parenteral is predicted to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period owing to the expanding usage of non-invasive medical procedures including injections and inhalations, as well as a significant rise in the introduction of new pharmaceuticals.



By distribution channel, hospital was the highest revenue-grossing segment in the global cystic fibrosis market in 2023 owing to the growing number of patients visiting hospitals, expanding investment by key market participants, and growing demand for precise diagnosis and follow-up therapies under medical supervision.

For instance, In January 2024, The Cystic Fibrosis Foundation has disclosed a fresh investment of up to $15 million for Prime Medicine to advance the development of its gene-editing technology, known as Prime Editing, specifically for cystic fibrosis (CF). Additionally, pharmacies is predicted to grow at the fastest CAGR during the forecast period owing to the increasing occurrence of the disease and a rise in collaboration amongst industry participants.



North America region is anticipated for the highest revenue share during the forecast period owing to the rising regulatory approvals, a broad range of medicines readily available, expanding investment by significant players in the market, and an increase in the prevalence of cystic fibrosis. For instance, in December 2022, Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has reported that the Investigational New Drug (IND) application for VX-522 has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. VX-522 is an mRNA therapy designed to address the root cause of cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease in approximately 5,000 CF individuals who do not derive benefits from a cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) modulator.

Additionally, Asia Pacific region is predicted to grow at fastest CAGR during the forecast period owing to the an increase in the number of cystic fibrosis patients, rising healthcare costs, a rise in R&D efforts, and an increasing initiatives by market leaders. For instance, in March 2022, Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has revealed that TRIKAFTA (elexacaftor/tezacaftor/ivacaftor and ivacaftor) is set to receive reimbursement through the Australian Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS). This applies to the treatment of cystic fibrosis (CF) in individuals aged 12 years and older who possess at least one F508del mutation in the CFTR gene, which is the most prevalent mutation causing CF globally.

Key Attributes:





Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 200 Forecast Period 2023 - 2034 Estimated Market Value (USD) in 2023 $12.31 Billion Forecasted Market Value (USD) by 2034 $136.64 Billion Compound Annual Growth Rate 24.4% Regions Covered Global

Company Profiles

Mylan N.V.

Genentech Inc.

Gilead Sciences Inc.

Novartis AG

AbbVie Inc.

Pfizer Inc.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated

AstraZeneca

Bayer AG

Report Scope:

Base Year: 2023

Forecast Period: 2024-2034

Study Coverage

Market Forecast by Type, Material, Product, and End-user

Market Forecast for 5 Regions and 17+ Countries

North America (U.S. and Canada)

Europe (Germany, France, UK, Spain, Italy, Russia, Rest of Europe)

Asia Pacific (China, Japan, India, Australia, South Korea, Rest of APAC)

Latin America (Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Rest of LATAM)

MEA (South Africa, GCC, Rest of MEA)

Exhaustive Company Profiles of Top 10+ Major Market Players

20% Free Customization Available to Meet Your Exact Requirement.

Cystic Fibrosis Market Analysis & Forecast by Drug Class 2023 - 2034 (Revenue USD Bn)

Mucolytics

Bronchodilators

Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTR) Modulators

Pancreatic Enzyme Supplements

Others

Cystic Fibrosis Market Analysis & Forecast by Route Of Administration 2023 - 2034 (Revenue USD Bn)

Parenteral

Oral

Cystic Fibrosis Market Analysis & Forecast by Distribution Channel 2023 - 2034 (Revenue USD Bn)

Hospitals

Pharmacies

Others

Cystic Fibrosis Market Analysis & Forecast by Region 2023 - 2034 (Revenue USD Bn)

North America

U.S.

Canada

Europe

Germany

France

UK

Spain

Italy

Rest of Europe

Asia Pacific

China

Japan

India

Australia

South Korea

Rest of APAC

Latin America

Brazil

Mexico

Argentina

Rest of LATAM

Middle East & Africa

South Africa

GCC

Rest of MEA

For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/6ypros

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
Dublin, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The "North America Precision Agriculture Market Report by Technology, Type, Component, Application, and Country 2024-2032" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.



The North America precision agriculture market has observed a significant surge, ascending to a valuation of US$ 4.3 Billion as of 2023. Projections indicate a robust growth trajectory, with expectations for the market to reach US$ 10.7 Billion by the year 2032. This growth, representing a CAGR of 10.7% in the forecast period from 2023 to 2032, is largely attributed to rapid technological advancements and the growing adoption of data-driven farming practices in the region.





Precision agriculture is revolutionizing the agricultural landscape by introducing cutting-edge technologies like GNSS/GPS systems, Geographic Information Systems (GIS), and Remote Sensing, among others. Farmers in North America are leveraging these technologies for real-time monitoring and decision-making, improving yields, and reducing costs associated with inputs such as water, pesticides, fertilizers, and herbicides.

Smart Agriculture Propels Productivity



With the prevalence of smart devices among agrarian communities, North American farmers are increasingly accessing real-time information to enhance agricultural activities. Precision agriculture practices are empowering farmers to optimize growing conditions and manage resources effectively, leading to increased productivity and sustainability.

Key Component and Application Insights



The market report segments the precision agriculture industry into various components, including hardware, software, and associated services. Automation and control systems, sensing and monitoring devices, along with farm management systems, are integral components contributing to the market's expansion. Applications such as crop mapping, scouting, yield monitoring, soil monitoring, and precision irrigation are identified as pivotal in driving the usage of precision agriculture technologies.

egional Market Dynamics



The United States and Canada, as key regions within the North America precision agriculture market, display distinctive growth patterns. The regional analysis elucidates the country-specific market dynamics, influencing factors, and potential growth opportunities.

Strategic Industry Analysis and Forecasts



The report provides a comprehensive analysis of key drivers, challenges, and opportunities. It further includes a detailed value chain analysis, Porters Five Forces analysis, and explores the competitive landscape. The precision agriculture market is poised for substantial growth, with the participants focusing on expanding and refining their technological offerings.

Responding to New Agriculture Challenges



The increasing need for efficient agricultural practices, coupled with the pressures of a growing population and climate change, has made precision agriculture techniques more vital than ever. The growth of the North America precision agriculture market signals a positive response to these challenges. The ongoing growth and technological advancements in the North America precision agriculture market demonstrate a commitment to innovation and sustainable agricultural practices, signifying a transformative period in the realm of modern farming.



Key Attributes:





Report Attribute Details No. of Pages 123 Forecast Period 2023 - 2032 Estimated Market Value (USD) in 2023 $4.3 Billion Forecasted Market Value (USD) by 2032 $10.7 Billion Compound Annual Growth Rate 10.7% Regions Covered North America





For more information about this report visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/r/8k25kz

About ResearchAndMarkets.com

ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

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Meet Jonathan Melmed, Founder of Melmed Law Group

LOS ANGELES, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Melmed Law Group proudly highlights the achievements and contributions of its founder, Jonathan Melmed . Since founding the firm in 2015, Jonathan Melmed has become a leading advocate for employee rights and workplace justice.

About Jonathan Melmed

Jonathan Melmed earned his bachelors degree from New York University and his Juris Doctor from Loyola Law School. With over a decade of experience in employment and labor law, Jonathan has established himself as a formidable force in the legal community.

Professional Memberships and Affiliations

Member, State Bar of California

Member, American Bar Association

Member, Los Angeles County Bar Association

Member, California Employment Lawyers Association

Member, Consumer Attorneys Association of Los Angeles



Court Admissions

State Bar of California

U.S. District Court, Central District of California

U.S. District Court, Eastern District of California

U.S. District Court, Northern District of California

U.S. District Court, Southern District of California

U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit

Professional Achievements

Jonathan has been recognized as a Super Lawyers Rising Star from 2018 to 2024, a prestigious honor awarded to only 2.5% of California attorneys. His career is marked by the successful litigation of hundreds of class actions, including high-profile cases involving wage and hour disputes , discrimination , harassment , and retaliation.

Notable Cases and Contributions

Jonathan has secured multi-million dollar settlements in class action lawsuits, significantly contributing to the development of employment law through key case law precedents. His dedication to advocating for employee rights and fighting against workplace injustices has earned him a reputation as a compassionate and aggressive representative for his clients.

Areas of Expertise

Jonathan Melmed focuses on:

Employment Law

Labor Law

Class Action Litigation



His practice focuses on representing employees in cases of workplace harassment, discrimination, wage theft, and other employment-related issues. Jonathan is particularly known for his expertise in class action lawsuits involving wage and hour disputes and cases of workplace discrimination and harassment .

Client Testimonials

Clients often praise Jonathan for his dedication, aggressive representation, and compassionate approach. His commitment to achieving favorable outcomes and ensuring fair treatment for employees has made a significant impact on their lives.

Connect with Jonathan Melmed

For more information or to connect with Jonathan Melmed, visit his LinkedIn profile .

Media Contact:

Paniz Rad

Marketing Director

Melmed Law Group

Phone: (310) 824-3828

Email: paniz@melmedlaw.com

About Melmed Law Group

Founded in 2015 by Jonathan Melmed, Melmed Law Group has become a beacon of hope for employees facing workplace harassment, discrimination, and wage theft. The firm has successfully litigated and settled over 100 class actions, earning recognition as a top law firm for employee rights.

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/321bdeb8-9bb3-4574-a35f-bfa26ae85f5a
New York, NY, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Celebrating more than a century as New Yorks storyteller, the Museum of the City of New York today announced additional details for its new exhibition, Changing the Face of Democracy: Shirley Chisholm at 100, opening on June 14th. As the first major museum presentation dedicated to the legendary Shirley Chisholm, it will delve into the life and legacy of this trailblazing legislator, whose contributions to our nations public policy endure today.





Changing the Face of Democracy: Shirley Chisholm at 100 marks the centennial of the late Chisholms birth. It seeks to ignite the same charismatic spark and passion for democratic processes that fueled Chisholm's policy work and grassroots campaigning. The exhibition unfolds in the Museum's second-floor North Gallery, inviting visitors to immerse themselves in the multi-dimensional story of this barrier-breaking figure. Fully bilingual, exhibition text is offered in English and Spanish.

Presented in collaboration with the Shirley Chisholm Project on Brooklyn Womens Activism at Brooklyn College, the exhibition promises a multifaceted exploration of Chisholm's journey via three captivating sections: Brooklyn Life, Political Career, and Legacy. It weaves a tapestry of Chisholms life and times using historical artifacts, photographs, archival footage, and art.

Supported by an Honorary Committee including Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton, Senator Chuck Schumer, Senator Kirsten Gillibrand, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries, Dr. Una S.T. Clarke, Gloria Steinem, and more, Changing the Face of Democracy: Shirley Chisholm at 100 examines the impact of a woman whose advocacy shaped politics and policies. It highlights Chisholm's Caribbean heritage and her position as a diasporic figure, delving into her pioneering significance as the first Black woman Brooklyn sent to the state legislature, the first Black woman elected to Congress, and her groundbreaking presidential campaign in 1972. Moreover, it underscores how her legacy reshaped American democracy for future generations of politicians and ordinary citizens alike.

Dr. Sarah Seidman, Puffin Foundation Curator of Social Activism and co-curator of the exhibition, notes, "In Changing the Face of Democracy: Shirley Chisholm at 100, we aim to explore Shirley Chisholms endeavors and her enduring influence. From championing causes like reproductive justice, tackling food insecurity, to advocating for voting rights, the exhibition examines how this singular figure emerged from diverse New York networks to serve as a catalyst for change. These networks illuminate Chisholm's impact on the past, present, and future of New York City."

Dr. Zinga A. Fraser, co-curator of the exhibition and Assistant Professor in the Africana Studies Department and Women's and Gender Studies Program, as well as the Director of the Shirley Chisholm Project on Brooklyn Women's Activism at Brooklyn College, shares, The inclusion of the Chisholm Project's oral histories in the exhibition serves as poignant reminders of Chisholm's contemporary relevance, underscoring not only her groundbreaking achievements but also the ongoing resonance of her legacy globally. Showcasing Chisholm as a figure whose influence transcends generations, Changing the Face of Democracy hopes to inspire a new wave of political engagement, reaffirming the enduring relevance of her contributions."

Key highlights include:

Rarely exhibited paintings from the 1970s by Faith Ringgold

from the 1970s by A costume worn by Regina King in the 2024 Netflix film " Shirley "

in the 2024 Netflix film " " A vibrant Carnival headdress designed by Kenneth Antoine , paying homage to the annual West Indian Day Parade, which Chisholm helped establish in Brooklyn in 1969.

designed by , paying homage to the annual West Indian Day Parade, which Chisholm helped establish in Brooklyn in 1969. Memorabilia from Chisholm's inaugural presidential campaign

Portrait of Shirley Chisholm by Sherman Beck

A collection of photographs and mementos from Chisholm's early life, including her wedding portrait and college diploma

including her wedding portrait and college diploma Materials from Chisholms first political campaign intended to topple machine politics in Brooklyn

An iconic image of Chisholm captured by the renowned photographer Richard Avedon

captured by the renowned photographer Oral histories that offer personal insights into Chisholm's enduring legacy, featuring contemporary perspectives from figures such as Gloria Steinem, Sonia Sanchez, David Dinkins, and Basil Paterson

Changing the Face of Democracy: Shirley Chisholm at 100 will be accompanied by public programs and educational activities. MCNY will be open and FREE from 69pm on June 18th for visitors of all ages to explore our exhibitions and uncover the history, culture, and spirit of NYC. The evening will include family-friendly programs tied to the Chisholm exhibition in English, Spanish, and Mandarin presented in partnership with Cool Culture.

In addition, the Museum will organize panel discussions film screenings, and more that will bring the public together with leading scholars and culture workers to expand upon stories featured in the exhibition including a gathering the week of U.S. Election Day 2024 and a family-friendly program on Chisholms birthday on November 30, 2024. As well, throughout the exhibition, the Museums Frederick A.O. Schwarz Education Center will organize field trips and professional development seminars connecting students and teachers to what Chisholm experienced, stood for, and accomplished throughout her life. More details to be announced at www.mcny.org.





"Shirley Chisholm was a fierce defender of her borough, a captivating orator, shaper of policy, and powerful voice for New Yorkers," remarks Stephanie Hill Wilchfort, the Ronay Menschel Director and President of the Museum of the City of New York. This exhibition and our related programming strive to connect New Yorkers to their political and social history, aiming to foster understanding of todays electoral process and underscore the importance of civic engagement in our city.

Changing the Face of Democracy: Shirley Chisholm at 100 is co-curated by Zinga A. Fraser, PhD and Sarah Seidman, PhD, and the exhibition was designed by WSDIA (We Should Do It All).



Changing the Face of Democracy: Shirley Chisholm at 100 is made possible by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy Demands Wisdom.

Additional support is provided by the Lily Auchincloss Foundation, Dobkin Family Foundation, The Puffin Foundation, Ltd., The Barbara Lee Family Foundation Fund at Fidelity Charitable, an Anonymous Family Foundation, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the New York City Council.

About The Museum of the City of New York

For more than 100 years, the Museum of the City of New York has fostered an understanding of the distinctive nature of urban life in the worlds most influential metropolis. Time Out New York named its blockbuster centennial show, This Is New York: NYC in Art and Pop Culture, as the best exhibition of 2023. Moreover, the Museum previously earned the title of "Best Museum" in Time Out New York's "Best of the City 2021" as well as multiple American Alliance of Museums (AAM) awards. To connect with the Museums award-winning digital content, visit www.mcny.org, or follow us on Instagram and X/Twitter at @MuseumOfCityNY and on Facebook at Facebook.com/MuseumOfCityNY.

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The Sri Lanka High Commissioner to Pakistan, Admiral Ravindra C Wijegunaratne (Retired), met with the Secretary of Defence of Pakistan, Lieutenant General (Retired) Hamood Uz Zaman Khan, HI(M), at the Defense Ministry in Rawalpindi yesterday.





Admiral Ravindra C Wijegunaratne (Retired), Sri Lanka High Commissioner to Pakistan, meets with Lieutenant General (Retired) Hamood Uz Zaman Khan, Pakistan's Secretary of Defense, at the Defense Ministry in Rawalpindi.





During the meeting, the two officials reviewed the progress on the discussions held during the Pakistan Defense Secretarys visit to Sri Lanka on January 3, 2024, for the fourth Sri Lanka-Pakistan Defence Dialogue. The talks aimed to enhance bilateral defence cooperation and strengthen military ties between the two nations.





Admiral Wijegunaratne, a former Navy Commander and Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of Sri Lanka, is an esteemed alumnus of the Pakistan Navy War College, having graduated in the 1995/96 batch. He is notably the only Sri Lankan military officer to have been awarded Pakistans highest military honour, the Nishan-e-Imtiaz (Military), by the President of Pakistan in 2019.
GAZTRANSPORT ET TECHNIGAZ

Societe anonyme with a share capital of 370,783.57

Registered office: 1 route de Versailles  78470 Saint-Remy-les-Chevreuse, France

662 001 403 R.C.S. Versailles

Main terms and conditions of the share buy-back programme in accordance with the conditions and obligations set by Articles 241-1 and seq. of the General Regulations of the Autorite des marches financiers (AMF)

Implementation of the share buy-back programme authorised by the Combined Shareholders meeting on June 12, 2024

Issuer: GTT / ISIN code: FR 0011726835 (compartment A)

Stock concerned : Ordinary shares

Implementation authorized by:Combined Shareholders meeting on June 12, 2024

Implementation decision date:June 12, 2024

Maximum proportion of the share capital that may be acquired pursuant to the Shareholders authorization: 10% of the number of ordinary shares composing GTTs share capital, or, for indicative purposes 3,707,835 shares on the basis of the capital as at December 31, 2023.

It is specified that:

(i) the number of shares acquired for retention and their subsequent presentation in a merger, split or contribution transaction cannot exceed 5% of its share capital;

(ii) when the shares are bought back to improve liquidity under the conditions defined by the general regulations of the Autorite des Marches Financiers (AMF), the number of shares used for calculating the above-specified 10% limit corresponds to the number of shares bought, less the number of shares sold, during the period of the authorisation;

(iii) the Company may not directly or indirectly own more than 10% of its capital.

Maximum purchase price: 190 per share (fees not included).

Maximum amount of purchases authorized by the programme: 704,488,650.

Objectives of the programme:

 the implementation of any share purchase option plan of the Company under the provisions of Articles L. 225-177 et seq. of the French Commercial Code, or any similar plan;

 the allocation or sale of shares to employees or corporate officers of the Company or of Group companies under the conditions and in accordance with the procedures allowed by law, notably with respect to Company profit-sharing; or the implementation of any employee savings scheme under the conditions provided for by law, specifically Articles L. 3332-1 et seq. of the French Labour Code, the sale of shares previously acquired by the Company pursuant to this resolution or providing for the free allocation of these shares in the form of a top-up of Company securities and/or to replace the discount;

 the delivery of shares upon the exercise of rights attached to securities giving right to repayment, conversion, exchange, presentation of a warrant, or any other means of allocating shares of the Company;

 more generally, to honour the obligations linked to share option programs or other plans for allocation of shares to employees or corporate officers of the Company or those of an associated company;

 the retaining and later delivery of shares (in exchange, payment or other) as part of an acquisition transaction, limited to 5% of the number of shares comprising the share capital;

 the cancellation of all or part of the shares bought back under a resolution of a Shareholders Meeting in force; and

 the stimulation of the secondary market or the liquidity of the shares by an investment services provider acting under a liquidity contract in compliance with the market practice recognised by the Autorite des Marches Financiers.

This share buyback program would also be intended to allow the Company to operate for any other permitted purpose or which would become permitted by any applicable laws or regulations in force and to implement any practice that would be allowed by the Autorite des Marches Financiers. In such event, the Company would inform its shareholders through a press release.

The acquisition, sale or transfer of shares may be carried out, on one or more occasions, by any means authorised by the legal and regulatory provisions in force, on regulated markets, multilateral trading facilities, systematic internalisers or over-the-counter, including by acquisition or sale of blocks of shares (without limiting the portion of the buyback program that may be carried out by this means), by tender offer or exchange offer, or by use of options or other forward financial instruments or by delivery of shares following the issue of securities giving access to the Companys capital by conversion, exchange, redemption, exercise of a warrant or in any other manner, either directly or indirectly through an investment services provider.

The Board of Directors may use this authorisation at any time, within the limits authorised by legal and regulatory provisions and those provided for in the 14th resolution of the Annual General Meeting held on June 12, 2024 (except during a period of tender offer filed by a third party for the Companys shares).

Programme duration: from the release of this description of the programme and until December 11, 2025, i.e. a period of 18 months as from the date of the Combined Shareholders meeting dated June 12, 2024.

Breakdown of the treasury shares held: As at June 12, 2024, the Company holds 0 shares as part of its liquidity agreement signed with Rothschild Martin Maurel for the purpose of stimulating the market in GTT shares, and compliant with the ethical charter recognised by the AMF, and holds 67 435 shares outside the liquidity, representing a total of 0.18 % of the share capital .

This document is published on June 13, 2024, in accordance with the AMF General Regulations, prior to the implementation of the programme.

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STRATFORD, NJ, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- A coordinated effort by the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey (PDFNJ), the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, the New Jersey Division of Highway Traffic Safety (HTS), the Office of Alternative and Community Responses (OACR), and the Division of Consumer Affairs (DCA) will aim to increase awareness of the side effects of prescription medication and reduce instances of impaired driving in New Jersey.

The initiative, which was announced at a press conference on June 13, 2024 at White Horse Pharmacy, will involve the distribution of paper pharmacy bags to over 900 independent pharmacies throughout the state. The bags will have a message about driving under the influence of prescription medication imprinted on them.

More than 200,000 New Jersey residents are expected to receive the bags and be reminded that there is no safe way to drive under the influence, when they pick up their prescriptions over the next several months.

This initiative recognizes that every pharmacy bag can carry more than just medication. It can carry a life-saving message, said Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin. By including impaired driving messaging when medications are dispensed, were providing awareness, promoting responsible choices, and safeguarding our communities from the tragic consequences of driving under the influence.

We are proud to partner with OACR, DCA, and PDFNJ for this important and impactful initiative that aims to remind drivers that impairment doesnt just come from the usual substances you think of such as alcohol or illegal drugs, said Michael J. Rizol Jr., Director of the Division of Highway Traffic Safety. Prescription medications can have equally dangerous side effects, yet they often go overlooked. Its crucial for everyone to understand that impaired driving includes any substance that affects your ability to operate a vehicle safely.

Through NJ CARES and DCA, OACR has proudly partnered with PDFNJ since 2020 to find innovative ways to inform the public about the dangers of opioids, said Tiffany Wilson, Director of the Office of Alternative and Community Responses. Our partnership with PDFNJ, with the assistance of HTS and DCA, expands even further with additional tools to educate the public about the dangers of driving under the influence of certain prescription drugs. I believe that this reminder, featured prominently on these prescription bags, will help save lives.

"When it comes to impaired driving, many people dont realize that prescription and over-the-counter medications  even if taken properly  can be just as dangerous as alcohol, said Cari Fais, Acting Director of the Division of Consumer Affairs. The professionals licensed by our Board of Pharmacy are on the front line of the fight to end drug-impaired driving and we are proud of the work they are doing with HTS, OACR, and PDFNJ to raise public awareness of this problem. The message theyre spreading is one that will undoubtedly save lives.

A recent survey found that 1 in 20 drivers admitted to personally driving within two hours of consuming prescription medications that can cause impairment, while a study found that prescription drugs are the most common of all drugs found in impaired drivers involved in fatal crashes (46.5%), according to American Automobile Association.

Driving under the influence of prescription medication presents an extreme danger to New Jersey citizens, yet it often goes unrecognized, said PDFNJ Executive Director Angelo Valente. This program will provide residents with valuable information at a critical time  right when they pick up their medication. The pharmacy bags will help New Jerseyans be more aware of how medication can affect them and take the appropriate actions to keep themselves, their families, and their communities safe.

Between 2018 and 2022, drug-impaired driving resulted in nearly 900 fatalities, which accounted for 28 percent of all motor vehicle fatalities. During this period, there were nearly 8,000 crashes in New Jersey due to drug-impaired driving, and 41 percent of these crashes resulted in injuries.

As a primary prevention organization, we recognize the importance of promoting a unified message across the community that substance abuse prevention efforts do work, but its success is truly through creative partnerships like these., said Naomi L. Hubbard, Executive Director and CEO, CCCADA, Inc. When a community takes the needed steps to employ multiple strategies to combat substance abuse, there is an impact. Our organization is just one part of the puzzle, and some examples of our efforts include distributing Deterra RX Disposal Bags and resources, promoting Permanent RX Boxes, and education on safe RX use and disposal.

Were excited to be a part of this very important program to reduce impaired driving, said Khawar Malik, Owner. White Horse Pharmacy. Pharmacists play an important role in educating patients on the effects of medication, and this program will help to reach patients with this important message.

For more information on impaired driving, visit njsaferoads.com.

###

Best known for its statewide substance use prevention advertising campaign, the Partnership for a Drug-Free New Jersey is a private not-for-profit coalition of professionals from the communications, corporate and government communities whose collective mission is to reduce demand for illicit drugs in New Jersey through media communication. To date, more than $200 million in broadcast time and print space has been donated to the Partnerships New Jersey campaign, making it the largest public service advertising campaign in New Jerseys history. Since its inception, the Partnership has garnered 226 advertising and public relations awards from national, regional and statewide media organizations.

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NEW YORK, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Pomerantz LLP is investigating claims on behalf of investors of Axos Financial, Inc. (Axos or the Company) (NYSE: AX). Such investors are advised to contact Danielle Peyton at newaction@pomlaw.com or 646-581-9980, ext. 7980.

The investigation concerns whether Axos and certain of its officers and/or directors have engaged in securities fraud or other unlawful business practices.

[Click here for information about joining the class action]

On June 4, 2024, Hindenburg Research published a report alleging that Axos is exposed to the riskiest asset classes with lax underwriting standards and a loan book filled with multiple glaring problems. The report describes schemes to hide underperforming loans, including providing loans to non-performing or doubtful borrowers to avoid recognizing problems, and a so-called extend and pretend scheme.

On this news, Axoss stock price fell $2.21 per share, or 4.21%, to close at $50.25 per share on June 4, 2024.

Pomerantz LLP, with offices in New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, London, Paris, and Tel Aviv, is acknowledged as one of the premier firms in the areas of corporate, securities, and antitrust class litigation. Founded by the late Abraham L. Pomerantz, known as the dean of the class action bar, Pomerantz pioneered the field of securities class actions. Today, more than 85 years later, Pomerantz continues in the tradition he established, fighting for the rights of the victims of securities fraud, breaches of fiduciary duty, and corporate misconduct. The Firm has recovered billions of dollars in damages awards on behalf of class members. See www.pomlaw.com .

Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.
Miami, Florida, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- iCrowdNewswire is proud to share its flagship distribution platform, ReleaseLive, has been nominated for the G2 Press Release Industry Report Summer 2024. The nomination includes accolades for overall press release industry Market Leader and Small-Business Leader.

Sonia LaFountain, COO of iCrowdNewswire, shared her excitement about the news, Summer 2024 will be the fourth consecutive quarter ReleaseLive has received G2 industry accolades. We started in the High Performer category, we listened to customers, and it paid off with a Summer 2024 PR Industry Market Leader nomination. We are thankful to our customers for their reviews and support.

LaFountain continued, The two most important indicators of success for iCrowdNewswire are customer recommendations and to know we are going in the right direction. G2 customer reviews validate both. We continue to listen to our customer pain points about distribution in general. We have plans to add critical features for the industry forthcoming by the end of Q2.

iCrowdNewswire ReleaseLive is a leading press release distribution and software solution, empowering businesses to Ad Boost every PR message and reach their audience directly. With innovative products like ReleaseLive, iCrowdNewswire continues to lead press release industry innovation, helping organizations of all sizes achieve their communication goals. Visit iCrowdNewswire to engage with the full line up of press release distribution and custom campaign options.

About iCrowdNewswire

In 2018 iCrowdNewswire began working with Google to adapt the worlds leading advertising, translation, voice and analytics technologies for press release distribution resulting in a process that offers press release issuers with an ultra-user-friendly interface to choose from premium media websites worldwide. Issuers benefit from intelligent analytics that provide premium media visibility and engagement with detailed geographic and demographic reporting that communicators can rely on to showcase the impact of their direct to audience campaigns. Research with media indicates that promoting releases prominently on media websites is by far the most efficient way to reach media. iCrowdNewswires technology also drives the LexisNexis press release service Nexis Newswire and distribution partners around the globe including Medianet (Australia), PA Media (UK), NewsVoir (India) and Media OutReach (Asia).

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Redwood City, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Redwood City, California -

Oro Pro Plumbing Inc., a family-owned and operated plumbing company, is rapidly gaining recognition as one of the top plumbing service providers in Redwood City and the surrounding areas of San Mateo County, California. With a commitment to excellence and a focus on customer satisfaction, Oro Pro Plumbing Inc. has become the go-to choice for residents and businesses in need of professional, reliable plumbing services.

Oro Pro Plumbing Inc. offers a comprehensive range of plumbing services, including drain cleaning, sewer line repairs or replacements, water heater repairs or replacements, and other emergency plumbing services available 24/7. The company's primary mission is to provide same-day professional service to homeowners and businesses, ensuring that urgent plumbing issues are addressed promptly and effectively.

Customer satisfaction is at the heart of everything we do at Oro Pro Plumbing Inc., said Jonatan Bautista, owner of Oro Pro Plumbing Inc. We understand that plumbing emergencies can be stressful and disruptive, which is why we strive to provide quick, reliable service to our clients. Our team is dedicated to delivering high-quality workmanship and ensuring that every customer is completely satisfied with our services.

The company's dedication to exceptional service has not gone unnoticed. Oro Pro Plumbing Inc. has earned a stellar reputation in the community for its professionalism, reliability, and commitment to customer care. This recognition has been fueled by the positive feedback and support from the San Mateo County community.

We are incredibly grateful for the support that the San Mateo County community has shown us, Bautista continued. Their trust and confidence in our services have been instrumental in our growth and success. Its an honor to serve this community, and we are committed to continuing to provide top-notch plumbing services to meet their needs.

Oro Pro Plumbing Inc.s success is also attributed to its highly skilled and experienced team of plumbers who are dedicated to delivering outstanding service. The team undergoes continuous training to stay updated with the latest plumbing techniques and technologies, ensuring that they can handle any plumbing challenge with expertise and efficiency. Check out some of their customer reviews on their Google business listing here: https://www.google.com/maps?cid=9829517362329032464

One of the core values of Oro Pro Plumbing Inc. is transparency. The company provides clear and upfront pricing, so customers know exactly what to expect before any work begins. This approach has helped build trust with clients and reinforces the companys reputation for honesty and integrity.

Our goal is to make the entire process as smooth and stress-free as possible for our clients, Bautista explained. From the initial phone call to the completion of the job, we want our customers to feel confident that they are receiving the best service possible. We take pride in our work and stand behind it 100%.

In addition to its high-quality plumbing services, Oro Pro Plumbing Inc. is committed to giving back to the community. The company actively participates in local events and supports various community initiatives, further solidifying its role as a trusted and valued member of the San Mateo County community.

As Oro Pro Plumbing Inc. continues to grow and expand its services, the company remains dedicated to its core principles of reliability, customer satisfaction, and community support. With a proven track record of excellence and a steadfast commitment to serving the needs of Redwood City and the surrounding areas, Oro Pro Plumbing Inc. is poised to remain a leading plumbing service provider for years to come.

For more information about Oro Pro Plumbing Inc. and the services they offer, please visit their website at https://www.oroproinc.com or contact their office at (650) 291-6376.

About Oro Pro Plumbing Inc.

Oro Pro Plumbing Inc. is a family-owned and operated plumbing company based in Redwood City, CA. Specializing in a wide range of plumbing services, including drain cleaning, sewer line repairs or replacements, water heater repairs or replacements, and emergency plumbing services, Oro Pro Plumbing Inc. is dedicated to providing reliable, high-quality service to homeowners and businesses in San Mateo County. With a focus on customer satisfaction and community support, Oro Pro Plumbing Inc. is committed to being the top choice for professional plumbing services in the area.

###

For more information about Oro Pro Plumbing, Inc., contact the company here:



Oro Pro Plumbing, Inc.

Jonatan Bautista

(650) 291-6376

oroproplumbinginc@gmail.com

535 Standish St

Redwood City, CA 94063
NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWS WIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES

VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Vortex Energy Corp. (CSE: VRTX) (OTC: VTECF) (FSE: AA3) (Vortex or the Company) announces that it intends to complete a non-brokered private placement financing (the Private Placement) of up to 4,000,000 units of the Company (the Units) at a price of $0.25 per Unit for aggregate gross proceeds of up to $1,000,000.

Each Unit shall consist of one common share (each a Share) and one common share purchase warrant (each a Warrant), with each Warrant entitling the holder thereof to purchase a Share at an exercise price of $0.30 for a period of 24 months from the date of issuance.

Closing of the Private Placement is anticipated to occur on or about July 12, 2024. Closing is subject to certain conditions, including, but not limited to, the receipt of all necessary regulatory and other approvals.

Subject to compliance with applicable regulatory requirements and in accordance with National Instrument 45-106  Prospectus Exemptions (NI 45-106), the Units issuable under the Private Placement will be offered for sale to purchasers resident in all of the provinces of Canada (except Quebec) pursuant to the listed issuer financing exemption under Part 5A.2 of NI 45-106. Pursuant to NI 45-106, the securities issued to Canadian resident subscribers under the Private Placement will not be subject to resale restrictions.

There is an offering document dated June 13, 2024 related to the Private Placement that can be accessed under the Companys profile at www.sedarplus.ca and on the Companys website at www.vortexenergycorp.com. This offering document contains additional detail regarding the Private Placement, including details regarding the expected use of proceeds from the Private Placement. Prospective investors should read this offering document before making an investment decision.

The securities described herein have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or any U.S. state securities laws, and may not be offered or sold in the United States absent registration or available exemptions from such registration requirements. This press release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any securities in the United States, or in any jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

The Company also announces that it has elected not to extend the term under its license agreement with AmmPower Corp. dated August 10, 2022, as amended on March 27, 2023 (License Agreement). Accordingly, the term of the License Agreement will expire on August 10, 2024.

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 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

info@vortexenergycorp.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 belief 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 Private Placement, including the total anticipated proceeds, the expected use of proceeds, the closing (including the proposed closing date) of the Private Placement and the termination of the License Agreement. Various assumptions or factors are typically applied in drawing conclusions or making the forecasts or projections set out in forward-looking information, including the assumption that the Company will close the Private Placement on the timeline anticipated, will raise the anticipated amount of gross proceeds from the Private Placement and will use the proceeds of the Private Placement as anticipated. Those assumptions and factors are based on information currently available to the Company. Although such statements are based on reasonable assumptions of the Companys management, there can be no assurance that any conclusions or forecasts 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: the risk that the Private Placement does not close on the timeline expected, or at all; the risk that the Company raises less than the anticipated amount of gross proceeds from the Private Placement; the risk that the Company does not use the proceeds from the Private Placement as currently expected; risks inherent in the exploration and development of mineral deposits, including risks relating to changes in project parameters as plans continue to be redefined and the risk that exploration and development activities will cost more than the amount budgeted for such activities by the Company; risks relating to changes in mineral prices and the worldwide demand for and supply of minerals; risks related

to increased competition and current global financial conditions; access and supply risks; risks associated with the Companys reliance on key personnel; operational risks; regulatory risks, including risks relating to the acquisition of the necessary licenses and permits; financing, capitalization and liquidity risks; title and environmental risks; and risks relating to the failure to receive all requisite regulatory approvals. The forward-looking information contained in this release is made as of the date hereof, and the Company is 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.
Oakville, ON, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Wilson Blanchard Management, An Associa Company and leading provider of condominium management services throughout Ontario, proudly hosted the 2024 WB CondoCon Vendor Trade Show on June 4, 2024, at the Oakville Conference Centre. The event brought together a diverse array of condominium industry trade partners, board members, and prospective clients for a day of networking, education, and community support.

The proceeds from this year's event, totaling an impressive $136,825 CAD, were dedicated to Associa Cares Canada, a charitable organization assisting families and communities affected by natural and man-made disasters. Associa Cares Canada has distributed over $5 million to more than 3,700 families since 2007, providing critical humanitarian aid during times of crisis.

Wilson Blanchard Management President, Jeff Lack, CPA, CGA, expressed his gratitude to all participants, saying, This event combined three important aspects of living in a condominium  continuous learning, networking, and community through its support of Associa Cares Canada. I sincerely want to thank each of the groups that came together to make this day such a success  our client Board members for their attendance and their trust in allowing us to serve their communities, our vendor sponsors for their support, the educational speakers for sharing their expertise, and our wonderful organizing committee, without all of whom this event would not be possible.

The WB CondoCon Vendor Trade Show continues to be a premier event for the condominium industry, providing an invaluable platform for trade partners to market their services while supporting a worthy cause. The success of this years event reinforces Wilson Blanchard Managements commitment to fostering strong community relationships and supporting charitable initiatives.

For more information about Associa Cares Canada and how to support their mission, please visit Associa Cares Canada.

About Associa

With more than 300 branch offices across North America, Associa is building the future of community for more than 7.5 million residents worldwide. Our 15,000+ team members lead the industry with unrivaled education, expertise, and trailblazing innovation. For more than 45 years, Associa has brought positive impact and meaningful value to communities. To learn more, visit www.associaonline.com.

About Associa Cares

Associa Cares is both a U.S.-based nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization and a registered charity in Canada, created to assist families and communities in crisis as a result of natural and man-made disasters. Through donations raised from Associa employees and at fundraising events across North America, Associa Cares is able to provide aid to the families affected by these types of tragedies. Associa Cares has provided over $5 million in assistance to more than 3,800 families since 2007.

Associa Cares funds are distributed to families of Associa-managed and non-Associa managed communities. To donate to Associa Cares or apply for assistance, please visit our website at www.associacares.org

To view Associa Cares U.S. fundraising disclosures, visit: http://www.associacares.org/fundraising-disclosure-statement/.

-MORE-

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London - England , June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- $GIGA and the future: With all the right ingredients to be a billion dollar coin in the future its no surprise the success its had in already capturing peoples attention like UFC fighter Paulo Costa who has posted $GIGA multiple times on his Instagram and X account.



Its only a matter of time before more big names flock to the coin and $GIGA gets the attention it deserves and gets listed on major exchanges sending $GIGA to billions in market-cap.



Understanding Giga Chad: The Meme



Giga Chad, a term derived from the Greek word "gigas," meaning giant or immense, and "Chad," a name commonly associated with strong and dominant males, has become a popular online slang term used to describe an idealized concept of what a man should be. The meme emerged from the @sleekntears Instagram page, which featured images of a male model, Ernest Khalimov, showcasing an unbelievable amount of abs and muscles. The images were then shared on various online platforms, including Reddit and 4chan, where the term "GigaChad" was first used.



The Giga Chad meme serves as a satirical take on societal expectations, sparking conversations about toxic masculinity and the diversity of male experiences. It has found its way into mainstream discourse, leading to a reevaluation of the traditional notions of masculinity and the impact of media and social expectations on self-perception.







Giga Chad and Crypto: The $GIGA Coin



The Giga Chad meme made its way into the crypto world when people started using the term as the top complement in crypto when referring to someone who makes difficult, almost heroic decisions and now with the creation of the $GIGA coin there is finally a solid meme token based on the meme. This coin, like other meme coins before it, is a cryptocurrency that draws its value not from any intrinsic utility or underlying technology, but rather from the strength of its community and the virality of its associated meme.



The $GIGA coin has quickly gained a following among crypto enthusiasts, who see it as a potential investment opportunity. This is partly due to the meme's strong online presence in and outside of crypto, and the growing interest in the Giga Chad concept. The coin's supporters believe that the meme's cultural significance and the potential for it to continue to grow in popularity could drive up the value of the $GIGA coin, much like what happened with Dogecoin and Pepe.



Why $GIGA Could Be the Next Doge or Pepe



The $GIGA coin has several factors that could contribute to its potential to become the next big thing in the crypto world:



1. Strong Meme Culture: The Giga Chad meme has a strong following and is widely recognized, which could help drive interest and investment in the $GIGA coin.



2. Community Support: The $GIGA coin has a dedicated community of supporters who believe in its potential to become a top meme coin.



3. Potential for Virality: The Giga Chad meme has stood the test of time with increasing interest, which could lead to a significant increase in the value of the $GIGA coin. Even more interesting is Giga Chad has multiple filters already on platforms like Instagram, TikTok, and Snapchat, no other meme coin has that



4. Market Dynamics: The crypto market is known for its volatility and the potential for significant gains. If the $GIGA coin catches on, it could see a rapid rise in value, similar to what happened with Dogecoin and Pepe.



5. Elon and GIGA: As we all know Elon is huge on the word Giga as he even named his factories GigaFactories and with the potential virality of the meme coin $GIGA it is hard to see Elon not interacting with this token and community if it reaches the billions in market-cap.



6. How To Buy:



1. Download 'Phantom Wallet' on mobile or chrome extension

2. Purchase Solana on an exchange

3. Send SOL to your Phantom Wallet or buy though the app on Moonpay

4. Select "Swap" and search for "gigachad"

5. Swap SOL for GIGA



In conclusion, the Giga Chad meme has captured the cultural zeitgeist with its humorous yet poignant commentary on societal expectations. The $GIGA coin, riding on the wave of this meme's popularity, has the potential to become a significant player in the crypto world. However, like all investments, it comes with risks, and potential investors should conduct thorough research before making any decisions.



X: www.x.com/gigachad_meme

TG: https://t.me/GigaChadSol

Linktree: https://linktr.ee/gigachadlinks

Website: https://www.gigachadsolana.com/



Disclaimer: The information provided in this press release is not a solicitation for investment, nor is it intended as investment advice, financial advice, or trading advice. It is strongly recommended you practice due diligence, including consultation with a professional financial advisor, before investing in or trading cryptocurrency and securities.




Vancouver, June 12, 2024 - Sanatana Resources Inc. (TSXV: STA) ("Sanatana" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that, further to its news releases of May 7, 2024, and June 6, 2024, it has closed the second tranche of its non-brokered private placement (the "Private Placement") of flow-through units of the Company (each, an "FT Unit") at a price of $0.09 per FT Unit and non-flow-through units of the Company (each, an "NFT Unit") at a price of $0.07 per Unit. Each FT Unit consists of one common share in the capital of the Company (a "Share") designated as a flow-through share pursuant to the Income Tax Act (Canada) and one non-flow-through Share purchase warrant (a "Warrant"). Each NFT Unit consists of one non-flow-through Share and one Warrant. Each Warrant comprising a FT Unit or NFT Unit entitles the holder thereof to purchase one additional non-flow-through Share at a price of $0.12 per Share for a period of 36 months from the date of issuance.

The second tranche closing of the Private Placement consisted of 2,450,000 FT Units for aggregate gross proceeds of $220,500. All securities issued in connection with the second tranche of the Private Placement are subject to a statutory hold period in accordance with applicable securities legislation (expiring on October 13, 2024). The Company will use the proceeds from the sale of the FT Units and NFT Units for exploration in British Columbia in connection with the Company's option on the Oweegee Dome Project in the Golden Triangle. A portion of the proceeds from the NFT Units are expected to be used for general and administrative expenses.

In connection with the second tranche closing of the Private Placement, the Company issued an aggregate of 184,000 compensation warrants (each, a "Compensation Warrant"), pursuant to a finder's fee agreements entered between the Company and each finder. Each Compensation Warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one non-flow-through Share at a price of $0.12 per Share until June 12, 2027.

The securities being offered have not been, nor will they be, registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. persons absent registration or an applicable exemption from the registration requirements. This news release will not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy nor will there be any sale of the securities in any State in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful.

All references to currency in this news release are to Canadian currency. The Company expects to close a third tranche of the Private Placement on or before June 30, 2024. Subject to TSX Venture Exchange approval, the Company may exercise an over-allotment option to issue up to an additional $500,000 of any combination of FT Units and/or NFT Units. The third tranche of the Private Placement may have a subscriber (or subscribers) participating on a charity flow-through basis.

About the Company

Sanatana Resources Inc. is a mineral exploration and development company focused on high-impact properties in Canada. With an award-winning technical team and experienced management and board of directors, Sanatana is based in Vancouver and is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV: STA).

Sanatana Resources Inc.

(signed) "Peter Miles"

Peter Miles

President and Chief Executive Officer

For additional information on the Company, please contact Mr. Peter Miles, President and Chief Executive Officer at (604) 408-6680 or email investor@sanatanaresources.com.

To be added to the email distribution list, please email ir@sanatanaresources.com with "Sanatana" in the subject line.

Cautionary Statement Regarding "Forward-Looking" Information

Mineralization hosted on adjacent, nearby or geologically similar properties is not necessarily indicative of mineralization hosted on the Company's properties.

This news release includes "forward-looking statements" and "forward-looking information" within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation. All statements included in this news release, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements including, without limitation, statements related to the third tranche of the Private Placement, the use of funds, and stock exchange approval for the overallotment.

Forward-looking statements and information can be identified by the use of words such as "plans", "expects", "intends", "is expected", "potential", "suggests" or variations of such words or phrases, or statements that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "should", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved. Forward-looking statements and information are not historical facts and are subject to a number of risks and uncertainties beyond Sanatana's control including, but not limited to, regulatory approval for the Warrant Extension. Actual results and developments are likely to differ, and may differ materially, from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements contained in this news release. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to update publicly or otherwise revise any forward-looking statements, except as may be required by law.

Neither TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulations Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

THIS NEWS RELEASE IS NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO U.S. NEWSWIRE SERVICES FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212757
Authorities take actions to respond to droughts caused by heat waves in central, northern China

14:56, June 13, 2024 By Du Qiongfang ( Global Times

Parts of central and northern China have been struck by severe heat waves, which impacted daily life and agriculture.

Experts attribute the direct factors of high temperatures to global warming and atmospheric circulation anomalies, while authorities have taken prompt actions to respond to drought in the country's major crop-producing provinces.

China's National Meteorological Center (NMC) maintained an orange alert, the second highest level, for high temperatures on Wednesday, forecasting scorching temperatures across large regions of northern China until Friday.

The temperature soared to between 40C to 42C in the central part of Hebei Province, the northwestern part of Shandong Province, and the middle and northern parts of Henan Province. Both Hebei and Henan maintained the red alert, the highest level, for high temperatures on Wednesday.

Experts warned that widespread high temperatures in the northern region were set to continue, with central and southern Hebei and northern Henan being the epicenter of a dense pocket of hot air.

The NMC forecasted that in the following days till June 20, high temperatures will linger across the country's northern regions, with places such as the central and southern part of North China and the majority of the Huanghuai region expected to have six to eight days with temperatures exceeding 35C, while places such as Henan are expected to have nine to 10 days of high temperatures.

According to Fu Jiaolan, chief forecaster from the NMC, the joint effect of the high pressure and the clear sky with the subsidence of warming has facilitated the development of high temperatures.

This round of high temperatures is the most extensive and intense heat wave that has affected the northern part of China so far this year, with regions such as Hebei, Henan, and Shandong experiencing prolonged high temperatures and extreme daily temperatures, Fu said.

The broader context of global warming and anomalies in atmospheric circulation are direct factors contributing to high-temperature weather, Zheng Zhihai, chief forecaster at China's National Climate Center (NCC), told the Global Times on Wednesday.

According to Zheng, high-temperature weather appeared relatively earlier in China this summer, with more instances of high-temperature events.

Statistics show that the average temperature during this spring in China was 12.3 C, which is 1.4 C higher than the same period in previous years, making it the highest on record since 1961 when complete meteorological records first began in China.

The NCC has forecasted that temperatures across most parts of China in June are expected to be close to or above the average for the same period in previous years. In regions such as North China and the Huanghuai area, temperatures will be higher than usual, with more days of high temperatures compared to the same period in previous years, posing a higher risk of periodic heat waves.

Meanwhile, the continuing high temperatures have intensified drought in one of the country's major crop-producing provinces, Henan on Wednesday issued an orange alert for drought, as 72 national-level meteorological stations in 16 cities in the province monitored the drought situation over 10 consecutive days.

Over the coming days, Henan will likely face more severe high-temperature and drought-inducing conditions, which are expected to directly affect the progress of summer planting and the growth of crops, according to a report for summer harvest and planting from the Henan Provincial Meteorological Service Center.

The Henan provincial agriculture and rural affairs bureau and related technical departments are closely monitoring soil moisture and crop growth status, providing guidance to farmers on scientific irrigation to ensure the normal growth of planted crops.

In response, Henan initiated a Level IV emergency response to water shortage and drought disasters on Tuesday to combat the continuous drought that has a great impact on agricultural production. The flood control and drought relief authorities in Henan's Queshan county which haven't seen rainfall for 57 days on Tuesday advocated local residents to conserve water to fight against drought.

In Hebei, where widespread high temperatures have not dissipated since June 8, the high temperatures in the following days will promote the rapid ripening of winter wheat in the northern area of the province. The possible precipitation process may increase soil moisture to some extent, which is conducive to the progress of summer sowing work, according to Dong Hangyu, senior engineer from the agrometeorological department of Henan Institute of Meteorological Sciences.

In terms of the impact of La Nina event on the temperatures during this summer, Zheng said that the influence of La Nina on global and Chinese temperatures varies greatly by region and season. From the current predictions, it is expected that La Nina conditions will not fully develop until late summer, and its impact on this summer's temperatures is expected to be relatively minor.

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing)
June 12, 2024: The collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 left Russia as the largest, wealthiest, and most populous of the fourteen new states that emerged after the demise of the Soviet empire. At first the prospects for the new Russian Federation looked bright. That did not last long because population growth ended in 1993. At that point Russia had 148 million people. Since 1993 the population has steadily declined because of low birth rates, shorter life spans for males and over a million men and women migrating to western Europe or North America.

Desperate to deal with this problem, Russia invaded neighboring Ukraine in 2014 and 2022. While Ukrainians share many characteristics with Russians, like customs, education levels, and similar languages, Russian rule was definitely not wanted. For centuries Ukrainians have held on to their desire for independence. Russian domination, misrule and mismanagement of the economy led to the collapse of the Soviet Union and an opportunity for forty million Ukrainians to finally regain self-rule. That lasted for 23 years before the Russians decided they could solve their declining population problem by rebuilding their empire, starting with the 40 million Ukrainians. Russia initially believed that most Ukrainians would welcome this and ignore their plans to join the European Union (EU) and NATO. The Ukrainians disagreed and fought the Russians to a ruinous, for Russia, standstill. Substantial military and economic aid from NATO enabled the Ukrainians to stop the Russians and eventually expel them.

The Russian military has lost over half a million men dead, missing deserted since its second invasion of Ukraine began in 2022. Over a million Russian military age men soon left Russia to avoid being mobilized into the army and sent to die in Ukraine. The Russian government then outlawed emigration to avoid military service but has not been able to enforce the new law. All this means that the Russian population is rapidly approaching 138 million and, unless Russia wins or abandons the Ukraine war, the Russian population will continue to shrink. Nearly all the lost men were part of the workforce and so many men are now gone that the Russian economy suffers from a significant labor shortage. Encouraging migrants from former portions of the Soviet Union with high unemployment rates worked for a while. Then the army decided these new residents of Russia were liable for military service. That sent most of the migrants back to their homelands.

Desperate to extricate Russia and himself from this mess, in early 2024 Russian leader Vladimir Putin proposed a peace with Russia retaining possession of Ukrainian territory they already occupied. The Ukrainians refused because the Russians had made similar proposals several times since 1991 and reneged on their promises every time. That means that in addition to a labor shortage and a lack of military success, Russia also has a credibility shortage. Worse, a growing number of Russian soldiers refuse to fight in Ukraine. This has led to tense standoffs between reluctant soldiers and their officers who have been told to shoot soldiers refusing to fight. This didnt go well because the soldiers in question are also armed and inclined to shoot back, or shoot first, and then desert to the Ukrainians. In some cases deserting Russian soldiers, and some prisoners of war, have formed pro-Ukrainian militias and operate against Russian targets just across the border. Ukraine encourages these militias and any Russians to want to surrender. As long as Russian leaders keep making bad decisions, they will continue to lose Russian workers and soldiers.
VANCOUVER, June 12, 2024 - Liberty Gold Corp. (TSX: LGD; OTCQX: LGDTF) ("Liberty Gold" or the "Company") is pleased to announce voting results from the Company's Annual General Meeting of Shareholders held on June 12, 2024 (the "Meeting").



A total of 194,138,404 common shares were voted, representing the votes attached to 56.3% of all outstanding common shares. Shareholders voted in favour of the election of all director nominees. The percentage of votes cast for each is as follows:

Total number of 'for' votes cast: Votes 'for': Mr. Robert Pease 160,245,988 99.52% Mr. Cal Everett 160,208,772 99.50% Ms. Barbara Womersley 160,160,269 99.47% Mr. Greg Etter 160,229,720 99.51% Ms. Lisa Wade 160,159,865 99.47% Ms. Wendy Louie 160,147,294 99.46%

The following were also approved by the shareholders:

The reappointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Chartered Professional Accountants as auditor of the Company:

Total number of 'for' votes cast: 193,507,458 Votes 'for': 99.68 %

Voting results are released in accordance with Toronto Stock Exchange requirements. Detailed voting results for the Meeting are available under Liberty Gold's SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca.

ABOUT LIBERTY GOLD

Liberty Gold is focused on exploring for and developing open pit oxide deposits in the Great Basin of the United States, home to large-scale gold projects that are ideal for open-pit mining. This region is one of the most prolific gold-producing regions in the world and stretches across Nevada and into Idaho and Utah. We know the Great Basin and are driven to discover and advance big gold deposits that can be mined profitably in open-pit scenarios.

For more information, visit libertygold.ca or contact:

Susie Bell, Manager, Investor Relations

Phone: 604-632-4677 or Toll Free 1-877-632-4677

info@libertygold.ca
NOT INTENDED FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWS WIRE SERVICES OR FOR DISSEMINATION IN THE UNITED STATES

VANCOUVER, June 12, 2024 - Heritage Mining Ltd. (CSE: HML FRA:Y66) ("Heritage" or the "Company") is pleased to announce a $750,000 non-brokered private placement (the "Offering") to fund its upcoming exploration program, and working capital.

Non-Brokered Private Placement

Pursuant to the Offering, the Company intends to issue up to:

10,000,000 units ("Units") of the Company at a price of $0.05 per Unit, for aggregate gross proceeds of up to $500,000 (the "Offering").

4,166,666 Flow-Through units ("FT Units') of the Company at a price of 0.06 per FT Unit, for aggregate proceeds of up to $250,000 (the "Offering")

Each Unit and FT Unit will consist of one common share in the capital of the Company ("Common Share") and one Common Share purchase warrant (each whole Common Share purchase warrant, a "Warrant").

Each Warrant will entitle the holder to acquire one Common Share (each, a "Warrant Share") at an exercise price of $0.075 per Warrant Share until 4:30 pm (Pacific Standard time) on that date that is 36 months from the closing date of the Offering (the "Expiry Time").

The Warrants are subject to an accelerated expiry option whereby the Company can trigger an accelerated 30-day expiry of the Warrants if the closing price of the Company's Common Shares listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange (the "CSE") remain higher than $1.00 for 10 consecutive trading days. On the 10th consecutive trading day above $1.00 (the "Acceleration Trigger Date"), the Expiry Time may be accelerated to 30 trading days after the Acceleration Trigger Date by the issuance of a news release announcing such acceleration, within two trading days of the Acceleration Trigger Date.

Closing of the Offering is expected to occur as soon as practicable and prior to June 28, 2024 and is subject to all customary approvals. Proceeds of the Offering will be used to fund the Company's planned exploration and drilling programs on its Drayton-Black Lake Project and Contact Bay, in addition to general working capital. The securities issued pursuant to the Offering will be subject to a four month hold period under applicable securities laws. In connection with the Offering, certain finders may receive a cash fee and/or non-transferable finder warrants.

"We are immensely grateful for the unwavering support from current institutional holders, existing and newly welcomed stakeholders both on market and in the private placement. The alignment of our collective vision has been a driving force, and we look forward to the positive impact this will have on our future endeavors. With everyone's support, we anticipate a quick and successful closure." Commented Peter Schloo, President, CEO and Director.

ABOUT HERITAGE MINING LTD.

The Company is a Canadian mineral exploration company advancing its two high grade gold-silver-copper projects in Northwestern Ontario. The Drayton-Black Lake and the Contact Bay projects are located near Sioux Lookout in the underexplored Eagle-Wabigoon-Manitou Greenstone Belt. Both projects benefit from a wealth of historic data, excellent site access and logistical support from the local community. The Company is well capitalized, with a tight capital structure.

For further information, please contact:

Heritage Mining Ltd.

Peter Schloo, CPA, CA, CFA

President, CEO and Director

Phone: (905) 505-0918

Email: peter@heritagemining.ca

Investor Relations

Investor Cubed Inc.

Neil Simon, CEO

Email: nsimon@investor3.ca

Telephone: (647) 258-3310

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This news release contains certain statements that constitute forward looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws. These statements relate to future events of the Company. Any statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as "seek", "anticipate", "plan", "continue", "estimate", "expect", "forecast", "may", "will", "project", "predict", "potential", "targeting", "intend", "could", "might", "should", "believe", "outlook" and similar expressions are not statements of historical fact and may be forward looking information. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are forward-looking statements.

Forward looking information involves known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance, or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking information. Such risks include, among others, the inherent risk of the mining industry; adverse economic and market developments; the risk that the Company will not be successful in completing additional acquisitions; risks relating to the estimation of mineral resources; the possibility that the Company's estimated burn rate may be higher than anticipated; risks of unexpected cost increases; risks of labour shortages; risks relating to exploration and development activities; risks relating to future prices of mineral resources; risks related to work site accidents, risks related to geological uncertainties and variations; risks related to government and community support of the Company's projects; risks related to global pandemics and other risks related to the mining industry. The Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking information are reasonable, but no assurance can be given that these expectations will prove to be correct and such forward?looking information should not be unduly relied upon. These statements speak only as of the date of this news release. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update any forward?looking information except as required by law.

This document does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, securities of the Company in Canada, the United States, or any other jurisdiction. Any such offer to sell or solicitation of an offer to buy the securities described herein will be made only pursuant to subscription documentation between the Company and prospective purchasers. Any such offering will be made in reliance upon exemptions from the prospectus and registration requirements under applicable securities laws, pursuant to a subscription agreement to be entered into by the Company and prospective investors.

Copyright (c) 2024 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
>VANCOUVER, June 13, 2024 - Etruscus Resources Corp. (CSE: ETR) (OTC: ETRUF) (FSE: ERR) (the "Company" or "Etruscus") reports on recent exploration activities surrounding the Company's 100% owned Rock & Roll property (the "Property") located in the prolific Golden Triangle, British Columbia. The upcoming exploration season will see the Company focus its attention on BC where recent staking activity and drill plan announcements by other companies in the area have added a renewed excitement to the Golden Triangle. The priorities for Etruscus this year will focus on several high-value exploration targets on the Property that are primed for discovery.

Fiore Aliperti, Etruscus' President and CEO commented, "The recent staking activity surrounding the Rock & Roll property should excite our investors as it validates our long-held belief in the porphyry potential of this underexplored terrain. While glacial retreat presents opportunities for new exposure, it's expected that other discoveries will be made in this highly prospective part of the world, which will benefit us all. With commodity prices staying strong we see market sentiment remaining positive and investor confidence gaining traction." He added, "As the Company's plan for the upcoming season takes shape, it's fantastic to see an increase in scheduled exploration in our region. We look forward to getting back to the Property this summer to continue the development of the Discovery and Heather targets with the goal of drilling this season."

Regional Highlights:

Skeena Resources staked 74,633 hectares (the Hoodoo Property) surrounding Rock & Roll on its West, North and East property borders, and plans to fly a large airborne survey before the exploration season begins;

Skeena has budgeted a 14,000 m regional drilling program over the KSP and Hoodoo projects targeting areas highly prospective for alkalic porphyry deposits;

Seabridge Gold announced a significant drill program of 15,000 m at their 100% owned Iskut Project with a large focus on the new Snip North porphyry discovery only 4 km from the Rock & Roll Property boundary;

Continued work advancing the Galore Creek deposit has road construction 4 km to the north of Etruscus Property. Updated feasibility studies are ongoing; and

Etruscus has been preparing for its 2024 exploration program that will include rock sampling and geophysical work followed by a plan to drill at the Discovery and the Heather Targets.

Long time Golden Triangle explorer and current owner of the Eskay Creek Deposit, Skeena Resources (TSX:SKE), recently completed staking 74,633 hectares ("ha") around the Rock and Roll in one of the largest land acquisitions in the region in recent years (See map above). Known as the Hoodoo Property, this claim block covers an expansive area of underexplored terrain which surrounds a large portion of Rock & Roll and exhibits much of the same geology. This new claim block will be the focus of a large regional exploration program that Skeena is planning to execute in 2024, having announced up to 14,000 m of drilling across the Hoodoo and the KSP properties. These claims were staked for their strong potential for alkalic porphyries like the one responsible for the Galore Creek Deposit, owned in a 50:50 partnership between Teck Resources and Newmont and located only 16 km away from Rock & Roll.

"(The Golden Triangle) is a Tier-1 district that we'll be operating in for the next century," states Tom Palmer, President and CEO of Newmont Mining - BMO global metals and mining conference 2024.

In 2023, Seabridge Gold (TSX:SEA) reported exploration discoveries at the Snip North target which is located 4 km from the Rock & Roll's eastern border. Deep drilling revealed upper-level porphyry indicators including strong gold results returning 277 m of 0.8 g/t Au and 0.07% Cu from the discovery. Although Seabridge continues to work one of the largest undeveloped copper-gold resources in the world at the KSM trend, they have also announced approximately 15,000 m of drilling and a $12 million budget for the 2024 exploration season on the Iskut Property with focus on the Bronson Slope and Snip North targets.

Etruscus would also like to report that it has closed its previously announced $150,000 private placement (see press release May 30, 2024), by the issuance of 1,875,000 common shares at $0.08 per share. There were no warrants issued in the financing and no finders' fees.

About Etruscus

Etruscus Resources Corp. is a Vancouver-based exploration company focused on the acquisition and development of precious metal mineral properties. The Company's flagship asset is the 100%-owned Rock & Roll Property comprising 29,344 ha near the past producing Snip mine in Northwest B.C.'s prolific Golden Triangle.

Etruscus is traded under the symbol "ETR" on the Canadian Securities Exchange, "ETRUF" on the OTC and "ERR" on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. Etruscus has 49,960,361 common shares issued and outstanding, including the shares issued in the aforementioned private placement.

This news release does not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation of an offer to buy any of the securities in the United States. The securities have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act") or any state securities laws and may not be offered or sold within the United States or to U.S. Persons unless registered under the U.S. Securities Act and applicable state securities laws or an exemption from such registration is available.

CAUTION REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS

This Press Release may contain statements which constitute 'forward-looking' statements, including statements regarding the plans, intentions, beliefs and current expectations of the Company, its directors, or its officers with respect to the future business activities and operating performance of the Company. The words "may", "would", "could", "will", "intend", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "expect" and similar expressions, as they relate to the Company, or its management, are intended to identify such forward-looking statements. Investors are cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future business activities or performance and involve risks and uncertainties, and that the Company's future business activities may differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors. Such risks, uncertainties and factors are described in the periodic filings with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities, including quarterly and annual Management's Discussion and Analysis, which may be viewed on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should assumptions underlying the forward-looking statements 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 intended, planned, anticipated, believed, estimated or expected. The Company does not intend, and does not assume any obligation, to update these forward-looking statements.

Neither the CSE Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the CSE) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

SOURCE Etruscus Resources Corp.







Contact

Company Contact: Fiore Aliperti, President & CEO, E: info@etruscusresources.com, T: 604-336-9088, W: www.etruscusresources.com


Reno, June 13, 2024 - Nevada Canyon Gold Corp. (OTC Markets: NGLD) (The "Company" or "Nevada Canyon") is pleased to announce it has signed, through its wholly owned subsidiary, Nevada Canyon, LLC, a binding Purchase Agreement (the "Agreement") to acquire a 2% net smelter returns royalty ("NSR") on the Pikes Peak Project, (the "Project") located in Mineral County, Nevada.

Nevada Canyon will acquire a 2% NSR on the Project from Walker River Resources, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Walker River Resources Corp. ("Walker River") Walker River owns a 100% undivided interest in the Project, consisting of 36 unpatented lode mining claims identified as the Pikes Peak claim groups situated in Mineral County, Nevada, within the northern portion of the Walker Lane gold trend.

The Project hosts significant historical mining activity (numerous shafts, adits, mill) in a copper gold environment at Pikes Peak. A regional sampling program by Walker River returned values of 9 g/t Au, and 2.2% Cu from outcrop. Walker River completed an initial small RC drill program in 2022 at the Pikes Peak Project. The goal of this drilling was to acquire geological information to guide future exploration. Though there is no geological, drilling, or exploration data available, Walker River was able to make a significant discovery of gold mineralization.

Current access to historical underground workings is presently unavailable due to minor cave-ins and loose material at the entrances (Portals). Walker River is currently opening and rehabilitating certain of these Portals, enabling access to the underground workings for geological purposes of determining rock types, structure, dip and delineation of such. This geological data compiled with the results from the initial 2022 RC drill program will greatly assist in determining geological parameters and developing mineralization targets for the next drill program here in 2024.

The Project is easily accessible by secondary state roads from the main highway (15 miles), and is located approximately 40 miles southeast of Yerington, Nevada. A state power grid transmission line passes within 2 miles of the Project. It is significant that until Walker River's arrival, there are no reported modern-day drilling or exploration activities from Pikes Peak. The Pikes Peak presents significant potential for gold-copper mineralization as proven by Walker River's sampling, drilling, and the presence of significant past mining activities here. The property appears to exhibit the potential for porphyry type copper gold mineralization similar to other copper gold systems in North America

Nevada Canyon will acquire the 2.0-% NSR on the Lapon Canyon Project for total consideration of USD $150,000 cash.

"This continues our Nevada based royalty acquisition roll up," said Nevada Canyon President and CEO, Alan Day, "The addition of the Peaks Peak royalty increases our royalty portfolio and adds another royalty with significant upside, and as with all Nevada Canyon royalty purchases, it offers excellent leverage to gold prices and now adds some copper potential."

About Nevada Canyon Gold Corp.

Nevada Canyon Gold Corp. is a US-based natural resource company headquartered in Reno, Nevada. The Company has a large, strategic land position and royalties in multiple projects, within some of Nevada's highest-grade historical mining districts, offering year-round access and good infrastructure in proven and active mining districts. The Company has a three-fold business model; i) mineral royalty creation and acquisition; ii) precious-metals and exploration streaming; and iii) exploration project accelerator.

For further information please contact:

Corporate Communications

Larry Heuchert

Tel: 1-888-909-5548 Ext. 2

Email: ir@nevadacanyongold.com

Web: www.nevadacanyongold.com

Forward-Looking Statements

The information posted in this release may contain forward-looking statements. The statements contained in this press release that are not purely historical are forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. You can identify these statements by use of the words "may," "will," "should," "plans," "expects," "anticipates," "continue," "estimate," "project," "intend," and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or anticipated. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, general economic and business conditions, effects of continued geopolitical unrest and regional conflicts, competition, changes in technology and methods of exploration, delays in completing various engineering and exploration programs, and any potential results from such programs. Specifically, forward-looking statements in this news release include statements with respect to the potential mineralization and geological merits of the Company properties and various other factors beyond the Nevada Canyon Gold Corp.'s control. The Company's actual results could differ materially from those discussed in this press 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 except as required by applicable securities legislation. Investors are advised to carefully review the reports and documents that Nevada Canyon Gold Corp. files from time to time with the SEC, including its Annual Form 10K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, Quarterly Reports and Current Reports.


Toronto, June 13, 2024 - Stakeholder Gold Corp.(TSXV: SRC) ("Stakeholder" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the receipt of licensing for the Company's second (2nd) quarry, a White Quartzite Quarry located in Minas Gerais, Brazil near to the Company's first operating quarry.

On the June 12th the State Forestry Institute of Minas Gerais, Instituto Estadual de Florestas ("IEF"), granted Stakeholder's Brazilian Subsidiary, Mineracao VMC Ltda. ("VMC"), authorization to clear the new project area for commercial production. VMC has now commenced building quarry infrastructure on site for the Company's second operating quarry.

A sample block is being produced for marketing purposes. Full commercial operations will begin once the Regional State Environmental Agency, Superintendencia Regional de Meio Ambiente, ("SUPRAM") grants the environmental license, which is now pending.

"White quartzite from Diamantina and the surrounding region is in strong demand. Many buyers have had difficulty sourcing white quartzite for their cutting and polishing operations. We believe that our new white quartzite quarry will find a ready market with steady demand, and that it will provide healthy margins and steady operating profits for the company," said Marcus Chase, president of VMC.





Figure 1 - White Quartzite produced from test block, VMC Quarry # 2



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3082/212721_stakeholder1.jpg

Four (4) New Quarries Planned for 2024

Licensing for VMC's third (3rd) quartzite quarry is also nearly complete. The application for an environmental license has received an initial response from SUPRAM. The area under consideration has already been issued a license by the federal mining agency, the Agencia Nacional de Mineracao ("ANM"), and so VMC will be able to begin commercial operations immediately upon receipt of an environmental license. The Company expects to be able to report progress on this licensing application shortly.





Figure 2 - Blue-Grey Quartzite produced from test block, VMC Quarry # 3



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"The blue quartzite produced from the company's proposed third quarry, has excellent esthetic and physical characteristics. The test block has an attractive mix of blue and white, and the material cuts and polishes easily. These characteristics will appeal to our clients."

VMC's second (2nd) and third (3rd) quarries (Figures # 1&2 above) are both located within a 2km radius of the Company's current operating quarry. The Company expects to benefit from synergies resulting from access to existing personnel and equipment.

VMC's planned fourth and fifth (4th and 5th) quarries are also currently in pursuit of licensing. The materials for these proposed quarries have never been brought to market and will likely be able to command premium prices which the Company anticipates being in the range $2,500 USD/m3.





Figure 3 - Grey-White Quartzite produced from test block, VMC Quarry # 4



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3082/212721_stakeholder3.jpg





Figure 4 - Teal Blue Quartzite produced from test block, VMC Quarry # 5



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"Our objective is to expand from a single operating quarry to five (5) operating quarries in 2024. We are also initiating direct sales of these building materials into the Canadian market, beginning in the GTA in Ontario, where we see evidence of rapid and sustainable growth in urban development." Stated Christopher Berlet, President & CEO of Stakeholder Gold Corp.

"Stakeholder has twin channels for shareholder growth. The first is an expanding revenue stream from high margin quarry operations producing exotic stone for the building business. The quarries provide an opportunity for robust cash flow growth, while helping to restrict treasury share issuance. The second channel derives from the potential for substantial gold and copper discovery on the company's 100% owned Ballarat Gold Project located in the heart of the White Gold District of the Yukon Territory, Canada."





Figure 5 - Quartzite arrives at warehouse in Etobicoke, GTA, Ontario



To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

https://images.newsfilecorp.com/files/3082/212721_stakeholder5.jpg

For further information please contact:

Stakeholder Gold Corp.

416 525 - 6869

cberlet@stakeholdergold.com

Forward-Looking Information

This news release contains forward-looking information. All information, other than information of historical fact, constitute "forward-looking statements" and includes any information that addresses activities, events or developments that the Corporation believes, expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future including the Corporation's strategy, plans or future financial or operating performance.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212721
Vancouver, June 13, 2024 - Homerun Resources Inc. (TSXV: HMR) (OTCQB: HMRFF) ("Homerun" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that the Company has signed an exclusivity agreement dated June 10th, 2024, for the acquisition of silica sand mineral rights in the municipality of Taperoa, Bahia, Brazil.

The agreement comprises the mining rights 870.335/2022, 871.743/2016, 872.794/2015 and 870.051/2024 before the ANM (National Mining Agency, currently held by a local citizen, directly and through an individual legal entity fully owned by this person) (the "Property").

An assay performed on a representative bulk sample from the deposit by the current owner returned a value of 99.68% SiO2, while a historical report produced on the Property in 2022 interpreted the entire mountain range as having the potential to host commercial grade high purity silica sand.

Exclusivity Agreement

According to the agreement, HMR will have a 90-day exclusivity period for the performance of a due diligence in the areas, and if the results are satisfactory, the parties may enter into a contract for the total assignment of mining rights, the basis of which will be the payment of royalties at R$ 30.00 (thirty reais) per ton of material extracted, until the exhaustion of the deposit, with monthly payments according to the actual production.

The Company is engaging Dr. Roque Yuri Tandel, to perform a physical visit to the areas and complete a review and confirmation of the legal standing of the mineral rights. Dr. Roque Yuri Tandel is a Technical Consultant with more than 30 years of experience, and he is a Qualified Person registered by the CBRR (registration no. 017015) in the specialties of Mineral Exploration and Estimation of Mineral Resources. Dr. Roque Yuri Tandel, was previously Geologist / Systems and Quality Manager for Sibelco Mineracao Ltda.

The Company will also engage a local auditing firm to assess the legal and financial status of the current owner of the mineral rights and once the due diligence is complete a more comprehensive press release will be issued.

Brian Leeners, CEO of Homerun stated, "Securing this exclusivity agreement and adding this exceptional silica sand deposit with very favourable logistics to our portfolio, represents another step forward in positioning Homerun as a leading supplier for the growing global demand for high-purity silica. The Property will compliment our asset base in Belmonte in servicing bulk HPQ industrial markets, while the higher purity Belmonte silica is delivered into HPQ Energy Verticals."

Figure 1. Silica sand on the Property

To view an enhanced version of this graphic, please visit:

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"Geologically, this asset seems to have many similarities with the Company's flagship Belmonte asset. By assuming control of this ground, HMR aims to become the largest silica sands powerhouse in the Americas," says Armando Farhate, COO of Homerun.

About Homerun Resources (https://homerunresources.com/)

Homerun Resources is focused on the development of its business within the critical and energy materials sectors. With a steadfast commitment to operational excellence, sustainability, and building shareholder value, Homerun Resources Inc. is poised to make a lasting impact in these industries.

Qualified Person

Technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Case Lewis, P.Geo., a "Qualified Person" as defined under NI 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects.

On behalf of the Board of Directors of

Homerun Resources Inc.

"Brian Leeners"

Brian Leeners, CEO & Director

brianleeners@gmail.com / +1 604-862-4184 (WhatsApp)

FOR THE ADEQUACY OR ACCURACY OF THIS RELEASE

The information contained herein contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. Forward-looking statements relate to information that is based on assumptions of management, forecasts of future results, and estimates of amounts not yet determinable. Any statements that express predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance are not statements of historical fact and may be "forward-looking statements".

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.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/212836
Vancouver - June 13, 2024. Lexston Mining Corp. (the "Company" or "Lexston") (CSE: LEXT) (OTCQB: LEXTF) (Frankfurt: W5G) Lexston Mining Corp. (CSE: LEXT) (OTCQB: LEXTF) (the "Company" or "Lexston") is pleased to announce the engagement of Hillside Consulting and Media Inc., of 474 Main St, Penticton, BC ("Hillside"), to provide marketing and distribution services. Hillside is a marketing firm and is an arm's-length party to the Company. Hillside will provide digital marketing services, including SEO (search engine optimization), PPC (pay per click), e-mail, YouTube and social media channels, to increase corporate awareness for a term of six months from June 12, 2024 to December 12, 2024. The media disseminated will be generated using publicly available information. The Company will pay Hillside a cash fee of $120,000 plus applicable taxes. Hillside does not currently own any shares of the Company.

About Lexston Mining Corporation

The Company is a Canadian mineral exploration company, focused on the acquisition and development of mineral projects, with the objective to enhance value to all its stakeholders. The Company has mineral exploration projects in British Columbia and Nunavut, Canada.

The Company (OTCQB: LEXTF) trades on the OTCQB Venture Market for early stage and developing U.S. and international companies. Companies are current in their reporting and undergo an annual verification and management certification process. Investors can find Real-Time quotes and market information for the company on www.otcmarkets.com.

On Behalf of the Board of Directors

Lexston Mining Corp.

Jagdip Bal

Chief Executive Officer

Telephone: (604) 928-8913

Email: info@lexston.ca

The Canadian Securities Exchange has not reviewed and does not accept responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of the content of this news release.

Forward-looking statements

This news release contains "forward-looking information" under applicable Canadian securities legislation. Such forward-looking information reflects management's current beliefs and are based on a number of estimates and/or assumptions made by and information currently available to the Company that, while considered reasonable, are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors that may cause the actual results and future events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information. Readers are cautioned that such forward-looking information are neither promises nor guarantees and are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties including, but not limited to, general business, economic, competitive, political and social uncertainties, uncertain and volatile equity and capital markets, lack of available capital, actual results of exploration activities, environmental risks, future prices of base and other metals, operating risks, accidents, labour issues, objections by aboriginal people, delays in obtaining governmental approvals and permits, obtaining consents of aboriginal people and other risks in the mining industry.

These forward-looking statements include but are not limited to timing of the exploration program, goals of the exploration program, obtaining financing, obtaining exploration permits, exploration of properties for minerals, liquidity of the common shares of the Company and future financings of the Company. These statements reflect management's current estimates, beliefs, intentions, and expectations. They are not guarantees of future performance. The Company 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 the Company's control. Such factors include, among other things: risks and uncertainties relating to the acquisition of new properties, liquidity of the common shares of the Company, financings, the market valuing the Company in a manner not anticipated by management of the Company. 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, the Company does not undertake to publicly update or revise forward-looking information.

The Company is presently an exploration stage company. Exploration is highly speculative in nature, involves many risks, requires substantial expenditures, and may not result in the discovery of mineral deposits that can be mined profitably. Furthermore, the Company currently has no reserves on its properties. Investment in the securities of the Company is very risky. As a result, there can be no assurance that such forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate, and actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. .

Copyright (c) 2024 TheNewswire - All rights reserved.
June 12, 2024: China recently delivered the first of eight Hangor II submarines to Pakistan. This delivery was late because deliveries were supposed to start in 2023. This delay was caused by Germany denying an export license for its MTU 396 marine diesel engine which the Hangors were designed to use. The engine is used in commercial and military surface ships as well as submarines and the Germans were not initially told that China wanted the MTU 396s for submarines. Germany does not allow its MTU 396s to be used in submarines without prior permission. The Chinese did not mention submarines when they ordered the engines.

Thailand had the same problem when they ordered a similar Chinese submarine in 2017. China said they would install the German MTU 396 engine but later admitted the Germans would not sell them the engine for use in submarines.

China offers a similar CHD620 engine, a licensed Chinese copy of Germanys MTU 396 engine. The CHD620 engine is only a crude copy of the MTU 396 because of inferior Chinese materials and manufacturing processes. As a result the CHD620 needs repairs after a few hundred hours of operation and is prone to unexpected breakdowns. This is not the kind of engine you want in your submarines during peacetime, much less after a war breaks out.

More Asian nations are obtaining submarines. Malaysia has two French Scorpenes, Singapore has four German type 218SG and plans to order two more. Vietnam has six Russian Kilo class submarines, and Indonesia is replacing two older German Type 209/1300 subs with three modern South Korean Type 209/1400 submarines. These will cost Indonesia a billion dollars. China has long exported warships and submarines but now South Korea is doing the same, especially their locally designed and built submarines. Most of these new submarines are based on German designs with the remainder being French Scorpenes or Russian Kilos as South Korean designs are not yet in service. China is having problems with its submarine exports while South Korea does not. As a result South Korea is taking business away from China. The Chinese are not happy with this, but the South Koreans do build superior submarines.

A decade ago Chinese Navy commanders appeared to be satisfied with the performance of their rapidly evolving Song (Type 39) class diesel-electric submarines. The changes had been so great that the latest four Songs were called Yuan class (Type 39A or Type 41).

The original design (Type 39) first appeared in 2001 and 13 were built, but in 2008 a noticeably different Type 39 appeared. This has been called Type 39A or Type 41. Two of these Type 39As appeared before two of another variant, sometimes called Type 39B, showed up. The evolution continued and by 2012 there were seven Type 41 Yuan Class subs.

This rapid evolution of the Type 39 appears to be another example of China adapting Russian submarine technology to Chinese design ideas and new technology. China has been doing this for as long as it has been building subs (since the 1960s). The Type 41 design shows Chinese naval engineers getting more creative.

The Songs look a lot like the Russian Kilo class and that was apparently no accident. The 39s and 41s are both 1,800 ton boats with crews of 60 sailors and six torpedo tubes. This is very similar to the Kilos, which are a bit larger.

China began ordering Russian Kilo class subs, then one of the latest diesel-electric designs available, in the late 1990s. Russia was selling new Kilos for about $200 million each, which was about half the price Western nations sold similar boats for. The Kilos weighed 2,300 tons (surface displacement), had six torpedo tubes, and a crew of 57. They are quiet and can travel about 700 kilometers under water at a speed of about five kilometers an hour. Kilos carry 18 torpedoes or SS-N-27 anti-ship missiles (with a range of 300 kilometers and launched underwater from the torpedo tubes). The combination of quietness and cruise missiles makes Kilo very dangerous to American carriers. North Korea and Iran have also bought Kilos.

The first two Type 41s appeared to be a copy of the early model Kilo (the model 877), while the second pair of Type 41s appeared to copy the later Kilos (model 636). The latest Yuans still appear like Kilos but may be part of an evolution into a sub that is similar to the Russian successor to the Kilo, the Lada.

The first Lada underwent three years of sea trials before they were declared fit for service in 2009. Since then more problems have developed and for a while the Lada was canceled. China appeared unconcerned with the Lada woes and were content to perfect their version of the Kilo and put dozens of them into the water.

The Kilo class boats entered service in the early 1980s. Russia only bought 24 of them but exported over 30. It was considered a successful design. But just before the Cold War ended in 1991, the Soviet Navy began work on the Lada. This project was stalled during most of the 1990s for lack of money, but was revived in the last decade.

The Ladas have six 533mm torpedo tubes, with 18 torpedoes and/or missiles carried. The Lada has a surface displacement of 1,750 tons, is 71 meters (220 feet) long, and carries a crew of 38. Each crewmember has their own cabin (very small for the junior crew but still, a big morale boost). When submerged the submarine can cruise at a top speed of about 39 kilometers an hour (half that on the surface) and can dive to about 250 meters (800 feet). The Lada can stay at sea for as long as 50 days, and the sub can travel as much as 10,000 kilometers using its diesel engine (underwater, via the snorkel). Submerged, using battery power, the Lada can travel about 450 kilometers. There is also an electronic periscope (which goes to the surface via a cable), that includes a night vision capability and a laser range finder. The Lada was designed to accept an AIP (air independent propulsion) system. Russia was long a pioneer in AIP design but in the last decade, Western European nations have taken the lead. Construction on the first Lada began in 1997, but money shortages delayed work for years. The first Lada boat was finally completed in 2005. A less complex version, called the Amur, is being offered for export, but so far there have been no sales.

The Ladas are designed to be fast attack and scouting boats. They are intended for anti-surface and anti-submarine operations as well as naval reconnaissance. These boats are said to be eight times quieter than the Kilos. This was accomplished by using anechoic (sound absorbing) tile coatings on the exterior and a very quiet (skewed) propeller. All interior machinery was designed with silence in mind. The sensors include active and passive sonars, including towed passive sonar. This quietness is what the Chinese are looking for because diesel-electric boats are the quietest available (all things being equal), even quieter than AIP. If nothing else, Lada provides a possible further development path for the Chinese Song/Yuan boats.

The Type 39s were the first Chinese subs to have a teardrop-shaped hull. The Type 41 was thought to be just an improved Song but on closer examination, especially by the Russians, it looked like a clone of the Kilos. The Russians now believe that the entire Song/Yuan project is part of a long-range plan to successfully copy the Kilo. If that is the case, it appears to be succeeding.

China currently has 61 submarines with 16 of them nuclear powered, including seven ballistic missile carrying SSBNs. China spent decades working out the problems they had with their nuclear powered submarines. Those problems seem to have been solved and some of their SSBNs have been operating in the central Pacific, where their missiles can hit targets in most of the United States.
June 13, 2024: The war in Ukraine has revealed many long forgotten aspects of World War II, especially the fatalistic attitudes of Russian infantry. They face death without much emotion, accepting it as a natural part of their lives. Those who do not accept this fate will often commit suicide. In contrast, Ukrainian troops, nearly all of them born after Ukraine left the Soviet Union in 1991, have abandoned these Russian traditions. So have a growing number of Russians and the only way to avoid military service is to leave the country. This is what over a million each Russian and Ukrainian military age males have done since Ukraine was invaded in early 2022. There are enough old school Russian soldiers to make large scale infantry attacks possible. Ukrainian soldiers are perplexed as Russian forces keep attacking strong Ukrainian defenses despite heavy losses. The Ukrainians watch as subsequent attacks involve Russians climbing over the dead bodies of Russians killed in earlier attacks. The Ukrainians consider this suicidal; the Russians consider it their traditional tactics that resulted in victory the last major war, which was World War II.

Since World War II Russia has depended on conscription to keep the army up to strength, Even during peacetime life was dangerous for conscripts over a thousand dead each year from suicide. What this comes down to is life is considerably shorter for Russian men in peacetime and that gets worse in wartime. Currently the average lifespan of Russian males is 64, compared to 73 in the United States and a year or two longer in Western European countries.

Heavy wartime losses are a Russian tradition. During World War II, Russia lost 27 million people. Over half the deaths were military, at least six million were civilians murdered or deliberately starved to death by the Germans, and the rest were civilians caught in the middle of the fighting. So many men were lost that for decades after the war Westerners visiting Russia noted that women were doing a lot of the jobs performed by men in the west. Russia had fewer working age men after the war than western nations. So many women could not find husbands that government officials encouraged these women to get pregnant any way they could, including sexual relationships with married men. Russia needed to replace the heavy wartime losses, but never managed to do so before, or after the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991.

In Ukraine the heavy use of UAVs (Unmanned Aerial Vehicles) or drones has terrified soldiers on both sides. Russians are getting the worst of it because the Ukrainians are building and using a lot more and better drones. Ukraine developed USVs (Unmanned Surface Vessels) that damaged or destroyed nearly half the Russian Black Sea Fleet and drove the surviving warships to distant ports where the Russians could no longer threaten Ukrainian maritime traffic that exported Ukrainian foodstuffs and imported commercial and military goods.

On land the Ukrainian use of drones was so intense that droves carrying video cameras often spotted Russian soldiers committing suicide rather than waiting Ukrainian drones to find and kill them. Ukrainian soldiers on the ground sometimes had opportunities to take cellphone photos of Russian soldiers committing suicide or finding bodies of Russian troops who had obviously killed themselves. Ukrainian drones are an obvious cause of Russian suicides but the war in general has seen a substantial number of Russian soldiers choosing suicide over continued combat with the Ukrainians.
This article originally appeared in Eating New York, a weekly newsletter for subscribers featuring food news and advice straight from our critics mouths. Sign up here. Sammys Roumanian relocated to a new space this spring. Owner David Zimmerman kept the old sign. Photo: Sammys

Theres a Yiddish expression, Az me ken nit vi me vil, muz men vellen vi me ken: If you cant do as you wish, do what you can. With a small edit, it works well as a tagline for Sammys Roumanian Steakhouse, now enjoying a second life on Stanton Street: If you cant eat what you like, you may as well enjoy what there is.

G-d bless Sammys, for whom shivas were sat prematurely, for whom death knells were rung too soon. The original location, an institution on Chrystie Street since 1975, closed its basement-level doors in 2021. It had evolved, over its long life, from a good restaurant to a beloved one. The New York Times three-starred it in 1982, praising its stuffed derma and satiny broiled brains; by 2014, it had aged into both mediocrity and icon status, the most wonderful terrible restaurant in New York. The ceilings were low and the lighting was awful; the tables still groaned with platters of steak, kreplach, and liver, a potbellied cruet of golden shmaltz on every one. Customers drank vodka  served by the bottle rather than the glass  which arrived encased in blocks of ice. There was singing, there was dancing, and the vibe at Sammys up to the very end was much the same as it was, I am told, at the bat mitzvah my cousin celebrated at the restaurant in 1985.

Now Sammys has reopened, and though the battered metal sign that used to announce it on the street now hangs indoors, things are as they ever were. The vodka (Ketel One or Titos now  diners choice) still arrives in an ice block, whose melting sides will begin sloshing around once youre too sloshed to care. Seltzer is still dispensed via siphon. Shmaltz still sits on every tabletop, and platters of garlicky steak, kreplach, latkes, and sausage still keep coming until you beg them to stop. (Theres no ordering at Sammys  as at a relatives house, you just submit.) Dani Luv (ne Lubnitzki) still does his musical borscht-belt patter from the back of the room, coaxing circle dances out of sozzled tables of touristing blondes and belting the classics, improving the unimprovable American songbook with tweaks like, Jingle bells, jingle bells / Jesus was a Jew. (This is in May, mind.) Luv, who looks like the love child of Danny DeVito and Wallace Shawn, is as much an institution as Sammys itself, and his patter has aged like fine slivovitz.

Covered windows help the new room feel more basement-like. (This is a desired effect.) Photo: Courtesy of Sammys

All is not identical. Sammys now finds itself at street level, though it approximates the cave quality of the original by covering its front windows. The room is long, narrow, and black, like a high-school black-box theater, albeit with some of the worst acoustics I have ever experienced in a restaurant. It was so hard to hear that everyone at my table spent the entire meal screaming in vain at one another, in the great Jewish tradition. Luv, at least, has the benefit of a sound system. How many Jews we got here tonight? he bellowed at one point, before playing If I Were a Rich Man, from Fiddler. When the night progressed to the inevitable dance portion, he judged, accurately, All the shiksas are dancing Jewish and all the Jews are eating.

Oy, the eating. I think you are probably not a real New Yorker if youve never had chopped liver made for you tableside, your waiter smashing together gribenes, radish, onion, and a nice pour of shmaltz  We call it a Jewish Caesar salad  to be spread on sliced rye. Then a fried bounty: meat-filled kreplach with a sweet-and-sour orange dipping sauce, latkes, fried potatoes, a plate-size fried cutlet with a hefty scoop of mashed potatoes. A zingy stuffed cabbage. And, finally, the steak that makes Sammys Roumanian a steakhouse: Its still flank, still garlicky, and now, perhaps more than before, mostly cooked to a nice rosy pink.

Sammys may be the last link in the chain of a proud tradition: the Jewish Romanian restaurant. Romanian immigrants came to the U.S. at the beginning of the 20th century  in smaller numbers than some of the other Eastern European cohorts, but enough that the Romanian population of the States quadrupled between 1900 and 1910, and had doubled again by 1930  and brought their tastes with them. Time has weakened appetites for broiled brains and calfs-foot jelly. Long gone are Moskowitz & Lupowitz, on the corner of Second Avenue and 2nd Street; the French Roumanian Restaurant on Delancey, where in the 1930s the Daily Worker noted the long hours of the unionizing waiters; and the Old Romanian at 169 Allen, famous home of mushk steak. (Mushk steak appears on several Romanian menus and seems to have been rib eye.) Sammys, at least, keeps the memory alive, if not all of the cuisine. As Luv told Grub Street, People ask me whats Romanian at Sammys, and I say, The sign.

What, you should want more than that? Forty-nine years after its founding, Sammys is a tradition unto itself.
Samsung and Paytm are joining forces to offer a more streamlined experience to their customers in India. The Samsung Wallet app now offers the ability to book a flight or buy a bus ticket. You can buy movie and event tickets too.

Additionally, the Paytm and Paytm Insider apps are also gaining Add to Samsung Wallet buttons for users of Samsung phones. This will keep the purchased tickets on hand as they can be accessed straight from the phones homescreen.

Samsung India and Paytm will soon offer promotions with discounts reaching 1,150 for the first bookings through the newly launched service. Additionally, there will be a referral program  100 for each successful referral, up to 300.

The new features should be live now. If you dont see them, check that the Samsung Wallet app has been updated to the latest version.

We are delighted to launch new features on Samsung Wallet in collaboration with Paytm. These features allow Galaxy smartphone users to easily purchase bus and airline tickets, as well as movie and event tickets, without needing to switch between multiple apps. Furthermore, users can access these tickets simply by swiping up on their Galaxy smartphones home screen, said Madhur Chaturvedi, Senior Director, MX Business, Samsung India.

Source
by Austin Bay June 12, 2024

For Americans concerned about the security of their communities and nation, the breaking news on terrorist infiltration is terrifying -- and ought to guide future defense policy.

On June 11, the federal government announced Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents arrested eight illegal aliens from Tajikistan. Tajikistan is a predominantly Muslim Asian state bordering Afghanistan and a former Soviet Socialist Republic.

The feds believe the Tajik men have ties to the Islamist terrorist group Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. ISIS has a presence in Afghanistan and probably a base.

ICE arrested the suspects in three urban areas: New York, Philadelphia and Los Angeles. According to two media reports, the men entered the U.S. via the U.S.-Mexico border. L.A. is near Mexico. Philly and New York? No.

NBC added this note: One suspect crossed the border using the CBP One app (Customs and Border Patrol smartphone application) the Biden administration created "to allow migrants to book appointments to claim asylum."

Future headline: Terrorist claims asylum in order to enter the U.S.

Our enemies will use anything, even hijacked jumbo jets.

The suspect eight aren't charged with terrorism, not yet. Good news: They're under arrest. Bad news: They got into the U.S. and penetrated major population centers. And a Biden administration-sponsored computer widget gave one potential terrorist entry privilege.

The CBP app is an act of either presidential lunacy or treachery or both.

Blame the Biden administration. Congress had nothing to do with it. The app is akin to the "defund the police" movement and similar chaos-seeding, socially destructive policies. No matter their claimed motivation, these policies harm American society.

Some old news that's wretched: Since January 2021, some 8 to 10 million illegal immigrants have entered the U.S. The figure could be 14 million.

This human wave has swamped welfare and medical support networks funded by American taxpayers and created to aid deserving American citizens.

The uncontrolled surge has lowered blue-collar wages and increased crime rates. Even liberal sanctuary cities are buckling.

Surge. Wave. With 10 million, those words are euphemisms for invasion.

The CBP app aids illegal aliens. So do criminal cartels. Mexican cartels have helped transport the illegal aliens and have used the surge to smuggle deadly narcotics. The drug fentanyl has become a weapon of mass destruction. In 2021, over 70,000 Americans died from fentanyl-related causes. In 2023, at least 108,000 died.

Violent crime, deadly drugs, disrupted social and educational systems, defunded police, illegal migrant invasion: Americans confront a complex war against American civil society.

The immediate Bipartisan Initiative 1: Eliminate Biden's terrorist-abetting, crime-promoting and obscenely stupid digital app.

Bipartisan Initiative 2: We must start treating Mexican and South American crime cartels as the terrorist and hybrid-military threats they are and be prepared to use military force to defeat them.

Old news helps make the case for Initiative 2. In March 2015, U.S. Southern Command's (SOUTHCOM) commander Gen. John Kelly told a Senate committee that U.S. intelligence had evidence the terrorist group and Iranian proxy militia Lebanese Hezbollah had a working relationship with Mexican drug cartels.

Kelly's posture statement summarized the threat: "These [cartel criminal] networks could unwittingly, or even wittingly, facilitate the movement of terrorist operatives or weapons of mass destruction toward our borders, potentially undetected and almost completely unrestricted."

June 2024: Lebanese Hezbollah is bombarding northern Israel with rockets and mortar fire, presenting Israel with a "second front" as it battles Hamas in Gaza to the south.

My speculation: The cartels can be infiltrating sleeper cells to launch terror attacks on civilian targets or attack military facilities and critical power and communication infrastructure in the event of a war with a major adversary -- like China.

The thought isn't so wild. In the past six months, CBP has seen a huge increase in the number of Chinese illegal immigrants. CBP estimates based on current "encounters" with Chinese illegal immigrants 60,000 will enter the U.S. in 2024.
(Editor's note: This story has been updated to include responses from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection and United Airlines.)

A Mongmong resident who started a job in Alaska last year planned to bring his family with him there but on his way back to Guam via Honolulu and other smaller islands, he got deplaned in Pohnpei.

Richard Folbuw Ken, a father of five, said United Airlines didnt allow him to board again after he got off the plane just to buy soda when he got thirsty, while the plane was on a stopover in Pohnpei.

The plane left for Guam without him, he said. That was on Nov. 9, 2023.

Seven months later, he is still in Pohnpei.

He is from Yap but hes been on Guam since 2001.

All these seven months, he said, hes never heard  or got answers  from United Airlines, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection, the Federated States of Micronesia Consulate on Guam, the U.S. Embassy in Pohnpei, the office of Del. James Moylan, and other agencies.

All I wanted is to know why I was deplaned and then from there, find a way to address the problem so I can see my family on Guam again. Its been frustrating. I need help. My family on Guam needs help, Ken told the Pacific Daily News in a phone interview from Pohnpei.

He said hes desperately trying to see his family again on Guam.

First Fathers Day away from my kids, the 43-year-old father said.

After months of lack of response from agencies, Ken asked his former parole advisor Gregorio S. Calvo to approach the media for help.

These past few days, after media inquiries, Ken indirectly started getting some answers that wished were provided to him earlier. But hes still asking for direct answer, he said.

As of this storys writing, Ken said nobody has reached out to him directly yet.

CBP, United Airlines responses

United Airlines referred the PDN to CBP on this matter.

Kenneth Gibbons, assistant port director for CBP Office of Field Operations at the Guam Airport, wrote in response to the PDN's questions that "privacy concerns prevent U.S. Customs and Border Protection from discussing specific cases."

"All persons arriving at a port-of-entry to the United States are subject to inspection. As part of their critical national security mission, CBP officers determine admissibility of foreign nationals using U.S. immigration law [Section 291 of the INA [8 USC 1361] which lists more than 60 grounds of inadmissibility divided into several major categories, including health-related, prior criminal convictions, security reasons, public charge, labor certification, illegal entrants and immigration violations, documentation requirements, and miscellaneous grounds. CBP officers treat all travelers with integrity, respect, professionalism and according to law," Gibbons wrote.

Not admissible to return

The FSM Consulate General Office on Guam, through acting Consul Johnny Silbanuz, on Thursday said the office spoke to many parties on Guam who were closely associated, concerned and tried to assist Ken and his family.

In general, according to Guam CBP, Mr. Ken is not admissible to return to the U.S. due to past charges that I have no details to disclose the nature of such charges, Silbanuz said in response to PDNs questions.

On Thursday, Ken told the PDN that for the past seven months, he has not received a clear answer why hes inadmissible to return to Guam.

Ken told the PDN that he acknowledges that he has a criminal past but he said hes already paid his debt to society  he spent years in jail  and the Superior Court of Guam issued an Aug. 29, 2013 motion and order for dismissal on his case, based on a copy of the order.

Ken said he didnt volunteer for commutation during the Calvo administration, and nobody, he said, came to tell him what the next step would be after he got out of jail.

Since then, he said, hes turned his life around and got jobs.

His former employers wrote character references dated December 2023, a month after he was deplaned in Pohnpei, when he was seeking help from those he knows.

Ken believes CBP has not reviewed its records well.

I really believe U.S. immigration confuses me with my other brother that got deported, Ken said.

Besides, he said, he wouldnt have been allowed to travel to Alaska and back to Hawaii on his way to Guam if CBP thought hes not eligible to travel to the U.S.

It was only in Pohnpei, he said, that he encountered a problem.

Through other peoples help and through the media, he hopes CBP will be able to tell him why hes deplaned.

Court, parole clearances

Ken was previously convicted of vehicular homicide while intoxicated, after the car he was driving crashed into a car driven by Joseph Atoigue. The victim died.

Ken was sentenced in 2007 to 10 years, with three years suspended and about two years credit for time served. He was released in 2012.

PDN reported in 2016 that Ken entered a plea deal in 2014 for a family violence case, for which he was arrested in October 2013.

He was accused of hitting his girlfriend five to 10 times with an open left hand during an argument. His girlfriend reportedly lost consciousness for about 10 minutes, documents state.

Ken was sentenced to six years in prison, with three years suspended and credit for time served.

He was confined from October 2013 to 2016.

On Oct. 17, 2019, the Guam Board of Parole discharged him, based on a copy of the discharge paper.

On Jan. 14, 2022, Superior Court Judge Vernon Perez issued an order closing Kens criminal case.

Defendant has satisfactorily completed all the terms and conditions of his/her probation, the judge order said.

Immigration issue

Silbanuz said since this is a U.S. immigration-related issue, the FSM government has no control over such matters.

Bobby Shringi, chief of staff for Moylan, said this week that the delegates office was approached by a third party, later identified as Calvo, to assist with the issue regarding Ken. Calvo approached Moylans office in January.

During the inquiry stage, more issues were uncovered by our team, particularly on the legal front. This is when the engagement shifted to the FSM Consulates office since the case was within their jurisdiction. We dont have much information to share with what the legalities are..., Shringi told the PDN.

In January letters Ken signed authorizing Calvo to act on his behalf, Ken said, I am still here with no one in United Airlines, or the U.S. Embassy informing me of my rights and the reason for this situation.

Kens wife has gone to the FSM Consulate since November. Ken also asked Calvo, his former parole advisor, to help communicate with agencies on Guam to provide clarity and guidance on how he could come back to Guam.

A church community in Pohnpei and Guam also have been helping Ken in Pohnpei and his family on Guam.

Working in Alaska

Prior to working for Trident Seafoods in Kodiak, Alaska as a sanitation employee, Ken worked at Jamaican Grill Restaurants and Mr. Rubbishman.

When his family learned about Trident Seafoods recruiting on Guam, he took a chance. He said the promised pay was good.

Were living paycheck to paycheck so I took the job in Alaska, Ken said.

In Alaska, he said, he was paid $18.06 an hour.

Before I left Guam, I sold my car so I can make advance payment for house rent and other bills while I wait to get paid on my job. I was supposed to go back home to Guam and prepare my family so they can come with me to Alaska, he said. Unfortunately, I got deplaned in Pohnpei.
Pending personnel retirements and extended deployments for Guam National Guard and military reserve duty are shrinking the ranks of the Guam Fire Department, making it more difficult and costly for it to meet its mission, top GFD officials said during a budget hearing at the Legislature on Thursday.

GFD is requesting a budget of $40,461,903 for fiscal 2025, an increase of $3,550,431 or 9.62% over the $36,911,472 authorized for 2024.

As an example of the high attrition rate, 33 new recruits were hired since fiscal 2022 but 38 other personnel have retired or resigned and four more are expected to retire this year, GFD officials said.

This has resulted in increased costs, particularly in overtime, officials said.

The GFD retirements follow a law passed in 2022 that lowered the retirement age for public safety and law enforcement officers under the government of Guam's defined retirement plan, from 62 to 55.

Under questioning from Appropriations Chairman Sen. Joe San Agustin, acting Fire Chief Joey Manibusan confirmed that at any given time, about 20% of GFD personnel are on military deployment in the Guard or Reserves.

The Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act or USERRA is a 1994 federal law that protects service members on deployment from losing their jobs.

Chief Mike Ungangco said "this all started about 20 or 30 years ago."

"The interpretation of USERRA, the government of Guam as a whole cannot prohibit an employee from entering or being recruited by the Guard or Reserve," he said.

But San Agustin said under certain conditions, employers can exercise the right to bring back the employee or release them.

"When you're a recruit, they didn't join the Guard yet. They go through your training, and they join the Guard. That's second employment, that's where ESGR (Employee Support of the Guard and Reserve) will not protect that employee," San Agustin said.

But GFD spokesman Lt. Kevin Reilly said there's precedent with the Federal Fire Service which had challenged the rules and regulations regarding employee deployments.

"They lost that case a few years ago," Reilly said.

Deployments can also delay recruitment, Uncangco said, "because people that are in the Guard are scheduled to be tested for a recruit position so we have to wait for those people."

"Why you waiting for them? If you got a group of folks that gotta be hired, move on," San Agustin told GFD officials.

Uncangco said they will seek further clarification from DOA as "they basically guide us in hiring."

"DOA doesn't run the Fire Department, you guys do," San Agustin responded. "You need to fill your vacancies, and I'm in full support of that. If you got the authorization for funding, just do it."

Reilly said GFD doesn't necessarily wait until deployed recruits return.

"We start the cycle, they are actually able to catch up or come out later," he said.
The Guam Visitors Bureau board on Thursday approved a $35,000 or 28% increase in GVB general manager Carl Gutierrezs annual base salary, bringing it to $160,000.

It was the GVB boards first meeting in about six months.

According to the GVB staffing pattern, Gutierrez was earning a base salary of $125,000 per year. This is on top of his benefits. His newly approved salary represents a 28% increase.

GVB Board Chairman George Chiu asked for board approval of his performance evaluation of Gutierrez, but not all board members, including Vice Chairman Joaquin Cook, had copies.

Cook suggested providing board members with advance copies the next time.

Chiu discussed 12 different categories for the evaluation, and gave his rating for each one on a scale of 1 to 4  1 meant the person being evaluated did not meet expectations, while 4 meant the person exceeded expectations. After explaining his rating for each category, Chiu asked and received board concurrence.

The categories included conflict management, communication style, accountability, leadership, decisiveness, strategic thinking, and public perception.

Chiu rated Gutierrez a 4 in all of the categories except for conflict management, which he rated Gutierrez a 3, which meant meets expectation.

The board chairman said he based his salary increase recommendation on the 22% government-wide salary increase which included all GVB employees except Gutierrez.

He said the increase was to include Gutierrez in the 22% raise, plus a little more for this year.

Board members also referred to a study of similar tourism bureaus of GVBs size which showed that the GVB employee pay scale is substantially lower.

The specific data was not discussed though.

Board member and Sinajana Mayor Robert Hofmann made the motion to approve the raise. He said there is no limit to the general managers salary and that it is set by the board.

It was Gutierrezs first performance review since 2020. Under the law, the general manager needs to undergo performance evaluation six months after appointment and every year after that.

Japan market

Earlier in the meeting, GVB deputy general manager Gerry Perez provided a general overview of visitor arrival statistics. Among the items reported on was the Japan market.

Perez said previously, Japanese arrivals were at 11% compared to pre-pandemic levels, and they are now at 26%.

Japan is still struggling, he said.

GVB data shows arrivals to Guam, mostly tourists from Korea and Japan, are still only 49% or about half of what they used to be prior to the pandemic and theres no telling yet how many more years it would take to even get close to full recovery.

Later in the meeting, Chiu brought up the Japan market again.

Were losing market share, we need to get it back, he said, The weak yen has an impact, but its not an excuse.

Chiu also said it was unfair to compare us to Hawaii, which has managed to regain much of its Japanese market share.

Hawaii has so many more flights, he said.
The CHamoru Land Trust Commission found unauthorized construction and storage of white goods on two Land Trust properties in Dededo during recent random inspections.

CLTC has established a compliance branch following recent hires, and is looking to beef up enforcement of rules on Land Trust property.

Unauthorized construction was identified on Land Trust property directly behind Medpharm in Dededo, CLTC program coordinator Joey Cruz told commissioners during their meeting on Thursday.

Medpharm was identified as the builder of a structure made of concrete, butler tin, and containers on the site, which was apparently sturdy enough to withstand Typhoon Mawar, according to Cruz.

A makeshift fence made of pallets and barbed wire was also identified at the property.

The cement block wall of a private building occupied by Medpharm had been cut open, to provide access to the site, the program coordinator told commissioners.

The Department of Public Works issued a violation at the site, Cruz said.

Additionally, CLTC inspectors found concerning activity at the property behind MedPharm, he added.

There was discharge of liquid onto the ground, from what appeared to be a tank from a filter system, he said.

We also witnessed a car that was being prepped and masked, like it was going to be painted, Cruz told commissioners.

There was also metal, split air conditioner units, and other trash stored on site.

Nearby, at a piece of Land Trust property across from the old Dededo flea market, CLTC also identified an illegal storage of white goods and unauthorized use of the property.

DPW and the Guam Environmental Protection Agency have been asked to survey the sites for any violations, Cruz said.

Land Trust recently hired a new program coordinator, allowing for the formation of a compliance section at CLTC.

Additionally, a new land agent is expected to be hired starting next week on a limited term appointment, according to Cruz.

He said the compliance team has started with inspecting Land Trusts northernmost property, which is next to Andersen Air Force Base in Yigo. From there, the team will work its way southward.

Weve also reached out to the Mayors Council President Mayor Jesse Alig to discuss some type of cooperation or joint venture between the mayors and CLTCs compliance endeavors, Cruz said.

Mayors can also issue citations, and Alig has been positive on the matter, he said.

Chief of Police Stephen Ignacio will also be meeting with CLTC to discuss the handling of illegal dumping of cars and metallic waste on Land Trust property.

Abandonment of cars, which is a particular headache for village mayors tasked to clean them up, has been cited as a major issue on CLTC property by Dededo Mayor Melissa Savares in the past.

Recent unauthorized use of Land Trust property also includes local mayors, however.

In April, Land Trust ordered Yigo Mayor Anthony Sanchez to stop adding more to the stockpiles of tires, junk cars, old drums, construction materials and other debris at a vacant CLTC property.

Sanchez told the PDN the site had been used for years as a staging area for typhoon debris, by at least two previous mayors, Robert Lizama and Rudy Matanane.

Sanchez did commit to cleaning up the site, and called the violation politically motivated, given the current mayoral election.
Fiesta celebration of the 65th anniversary of the Saint Anthony Catholic Church held on June 13, 2024.
Veteran travel benefits and improved care for veterans on Guam were among topics of discussion between the visiting director of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Pacific Islands Health Care System, Dr. Adam Robinson Jr., and the staff of Del. James Moylan.

Moylans chief of staff Bobby Shringi, in a press release, said additional discussions revolved around the VA travel benefits program, and an assurance was provided that qualified Guam veterans can and are being provided care in states other than Hawaii, if that care is not available in Hawaii.

This is an issue many veterans have expressed concerns over; thus, we want to share the response from the entity which approves these travel plans, Shringi said.

Robinson, accompanied by staff in Hawaii, talked about the ongoing process of a shared agreement between VAPIHCS and Naval Hospital Guam, which would greatly enhance care for veterans at the facility through radiology and ancillary services, with possible additional services down the line. This would include pharmaceutical care, Shringi added.

VAPIHCS has oversight over federal VA issues on Guam, including the Community Based Outpatient Clinic, CBOC, the benefits provided under both the Veterans Benefits Administration, the Veterans Health Administration, and personnel.

The meeting resulted from a series of inquiries from the delegates office regarding the level of care and services for veterans residing on Guam, the Northern Marianas, and the Compact of Free Association nations which include the Federated States of Micronesia, Palau and the Marshall Islands.

This also resulted from a congressional delegation in April, led by the Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs Rep. Mike Bost and senior staff. Bost and Moylan wrote a concerning letter to the VA secretary.

Regarding the current CBOC, there are plans to extend the facility, which would allow more point of care testing. They also intend on finalizing an agreement to utilize the hospitals parking lot, and shuttle patients to the CBOC, Shringi said in the release.

The CBOC was approved for expansion in 2023, and this will be located at a medical annex adjacent to the Guam Medical Regional City in Dededo and will be 5,000 square feet.

VAPIHCS estimates that those doors could be open at the latter part of 2025, and veterans would obtain similar care in both facilities.

Discussions also included the level of care available for veterans in Manila, Philippines, and their intent in partnering with the local government to secure State Veterans Homes with skilled nursing care.

The important thing about this meeting was that there is a commitment between the VAPIHCS and our office to work together to improve the care and services for our veterans. This includes everything from addressing veteran constituent concerns to assisting with permitting or other barriers, Shringi said.

He said the delegates office will also share information that comes along with the various veteran groups in Guam.

Obviously, we could not address all our questions in one meeting, and I want to thank Dr. Robinson and his team in their assurance that the doors will be open for future discussions. This is certainly the first of many, Shringi said.

Moylan is currently in Washington, D.C., addressing the 2025 National Defense Authorization Act, which was scheduled to be voted on Friday morning, Guam time.
The country music festival Kickoff Jam, slated to include headliners Garth Brooks, Carrie Underwood and Alabama, has been canceled, according to Billboard. The festival had been set to take place from Aug. 30 to Sept. 1 at Frank Brown Park in Panama City Beach, Florida.

After the success of Gulf Coast Jam (held May 30-June 2) this past weekend in Panama City Beach, we realized the weekend after Memorial Day is a much better time to host a festival, Kickoff Jam producers stated in a post on the festivals Instagram page. So, we are going to cancel Kickoff Jam and provide refunds.

In addition to Brooks, Underwood and Alabama, the festival was to include Randy Travis, Oak Ridge Boys, Pam Tillis, Randy Houser and Lauren Alaina, among others.

Three-day general admission tickets for the festival started at $299. Three-day general admission preferred tickets started at $799 and included a $20 per day food credit and access to a preferred viewing area. VIP tickets started at $1,399 and included a $40 per day food credit.

According to a post on the Kickoff Jam Facebook page, refunds have already begun processing and will be credited back to the original payment method. Purchasers should have their refunds within 7-10 business days from the announcement and expect refunds by June 21. You can go here to see more information.
The Florida deputy who fatally shot 23-year-old Roger Fortson seconds after he opened the front door of his Fort Walton Beach apartment has been dismissed from duty.

Following an administrative investigation into Fortsons death, the Okaloosa County Sheriffs Office terminated Deputy Eddie Duran on May 31, after determining his use of deadly force was not objectively reasonable.

What happened leading up to the officer involved shooting?

On the afternoon of May 3, Duran arrived at the off-base apartment complex where Fortson, a senior airman in the U.S. Air Force, lived.

He was responding to call made to authorities on behalf of an unidentified female resident, who reported hearing a disturbance that she said was getting a little handsy.

The woman  who admitted she had neither spoken with nor met Fortson  told authorities she could hear sounds coming from Fortsons apartment through an air conditioning vent in her bedroom, adding, Theyve been arguing for like 30 minutes maybe.

Meanwhile, Fortson was home alone with his dog  and reportedly on a FaceTime call with his girlfriend  when Duran arrived at his residence.

After knocking twice, Duran knocked a third time, yelling out: Sheriffs Office. Open the door.

According to body cam video, within seconds of that third knock, Fortson opened his door and was immediately instructed by the deputy to step back. Footage shows that a gun is visible at Fortsons side, but it is not raised. Then shots ring out as the deputy fires his weapon, shooting Fortson multiple times.

What the deputy said happened

In the report, Duran told investigators, that in response to his command to step back, Fortson made a slight step forward with his left leg and when he looked in Fortsons eyes, he saw aggression and anger, noting, there was obviously a little bit of discontent for me knocking on the door.

He also stated that when he first saw the firearm, he noticed Fortsons hand and elbow were slightly canted  meaning not straight down.

According to the report, when asked by his attorney, John Whitaker, if Duran had an overwhelming thought when he decided to use deadly force, Duran replied, It was, I mean, in all honesty, it was, hes got me. I mean, it is, it is him or me at this point, and I need to, I need to act as opposed to react.

But Capt. Robert Wagner of the Okaloosa County Sheriffs Office of Professional Standards, who conducted the investigation, disagreed.

Use of deadly force was not objectively reasonable

The objective facts as discovered in this administrative investigation do not show Mr. Fortson made hostile, attacking movements, and therefore, the objective facts do not support the use of deadly force as an appropriate response to Mr. Fortsons actions, Wagner wrote in his report. Deputy Eddie Durans use of deadly force was not objectively reasonable.

The sentiment was echoed by Okaloosa County Sheriff Eric Aden, who agreed that the facts did not support the use of deadly force.

Mr. Fortson did not commit any crime. By all accounts, he was an exceptional airman and individual, Aden said. Our mission at the Okaloosa County Sheriffs Office is to ensure fair and equal administration of the law, safeguard civil liberties and preserve public safety; doing so with professionalism and unity of purpose, while being good stewards of the public trust ... in this case, the former deputy did not meet the standard of objective reasonableness and his use of control to resistance was excessive.

In a statement posted to his website, Ben Crump, the Fortson family attorney, said, The firing of the officer who shot and killed Roger Fortson is a step forward, but it is not full justice for Roger and his family.

The actions of this deputy were not just negligent, they were criminal, Crump said As weve stated from the beginning, and as echoed today by Sheriff Aden, Roger was an exceptional airman who did absolutely nothing to warrant being gunned down in his own home.

The administrative investigation, which was opened immediately after the shooting, is separate from the active criminal investigation that remains ongoing with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.

While the criminal investigation is still ongoing, we fully anticipate charges to be filed against this officer, Crump said. The video footage provides damning proof that this was a brutal and senseless killing of a young man who was simply enjoying time alone with his dog while video chatting with his girlfriend.




Haiti - 29th anniversary PNH : Message from Prime Minister Conille





Message from Prime Minister Garry Conille to the police on the occasion of the 29th anniversary of the Haitian National Police (PNH).



"Dear Police Officers,



On this special day when we celebrate the 29th anniversary of the Haitian National Police, I wish to address you with deep gratitude and immense respect.



For nearly three decades, you have been the guardians of Peace, the protectors of our lives and our property, and the defenders of law and order in our Nation. Your commitment, courage and dedication are sources of inspiration for us all. Despite the enormous challenges and risks you face every day, you continue to serve with honor and determination.



Today, we especially honor those of you who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty. Their bravery and dedication will never be forgotten. Their memory will forever be engraved in our hearts.



Public security is a top priority for my government. We are committed to strengthening the capacities of the National Police to improve your working conditions and to provide you with the tools necessary to accomplish your mission with efficiency and professionalism. We understand that without security, no lasting progress can be made. This is why we are working closely with our international partners to define the modalities of effective support, while respecting our sovereignty and our national priorities.



We also know that to restore the confidence of the Haitian people in their institutions, our police must embody the values of transparency, accountability and integrity. The fight against corruption will be a top priority. Together, we must ensure that every member of the National Police respects the principles of justice, respect and public service.



Dear Police Officers, you are the true heroes of our society. Your dedication and service are essential to building a safer and more prosperous Haiti.



On this 29th anniversary, I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for everything you do for our Nation. Your unwavering commitment is the key to our common future.



I am convinced that together, with courage and determination, we will overcome all challenges and build a stronger and more united Haiti. Continue to serve with pride and honor, as your work is crucial to the well-being and safety of our people.



Thank you, long live the Haitian National Police and long live Haiti !



See also :

https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-42544-icihaiti-pnh-floral-offering-to-police-officers-killed-on-duty-video.html



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - News : Zapping...





323 police officers killed in 9 years

According to a report from the National Network for the Defense of Human Rights (RNDDH). Since 2015, at least 323 police officers have lost their lives in the line of duty. The report also lists 68 attacks on police infrastructure between 2021 and 2024.



Fatal shooting in Delmas 24

Tuesday June 11, 2024, heavily armed individuals concealed in a house, who were accompanied by an armored vehicle of the Haitian National Police. According to testimony from local residents, this attack against civilians which sowed terror and panic left at least 10 dead and an unknown number of injured who were rushed to hospital (unofficial report)



Canada congratulates Conille and his Government

"Our congratulations to the Prime Minister and the new cabinet members. We look forward to working together and continuing to support the transition in Haiti, which paves the way for elections and a better future for its people," Andre Francois Giroux, Ambassador of Canada to Haiti.



UNESCO : Haiti was unanimously elected

Haiti was unanimously elected for a 4-year term to the intergovernmental committee for the safeguarding of UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage. This historic election marks a first for the country and represents international recognition of the efforts and capabilities of Haitian experts in cultural preservation. Dominique Dupuy, the permanent representative of Haiti to UNESCO now appointed Minister of Foreign Affairs of Haiti, expressed his pride in announcing this election.



American Ambassador Hankins satisfied

Ambassador Hankins said he was happy to have attended the inauguration ceremony of Prime Minister Garry Conille and his Government "This is a positive and important step towards inclusion, security and future elections. We look forward to working with the new Haitian Government to address the many challenges facing the Nation. A responsible and responsive Government is essential to ensure the prosperity of all Haitians."



Corruption : Zero tolerance in the Conille Government

Zero tolerance against corruption ! It is in these terms that Prime Minister Conille addressed his Ministers, during the installation of his Government on Wednesday at the Villa d'Accueil.



HL/ HaitiLibre


















Film on desegregation highlights black families passion for education

Melinda Lowrance recalls growing up in Hendersonvilles African-American schools and later integrated classrooms in the 1950s and 60s during filming of David Weintraubs documentary.

Ten years after Brown v. Board of Education, Hendersonvilles city schools began to desegregate, first by selecting a few black children to pioneer the integrated classroom experience alongside white kids.

View the Slideshow

The next year, 1965, marked the real beginning of desegregated schools in the city, and that history will come alive early next year in a new documentary film by David Weintraub in collaboration with Ronnie Pepper and others involved in the citys Black History Research Group.

Telling the story of the mid-1960s requires a much longer journey, to the modest schoolhouses that served the African-American community as far back as the 1870s.

Part of the story is commemorating the 60th anniversary, Weintraub one morning before embarking on one of two dozen or so recorded interviews for the project. I think even more of the story, as Im learning it from these elders whove been through it, is the quest for education among the black community that goes back generations and the diversity of education that existed  the small, one-room schoolhouses. There were eight of them throughout Henderson County in the 1900s, the 1920s. There was the Sixth Avenue School, which was the big elementary school. Ultimately in the 50s there was the Ninth Avenue School and then integration in 1965.

The memories of the interview subjects enliven the experiences in both of those mid-20th century schools. As the elders speak, Weintraub finds in this film-making endeavor, as he has in his other oral history projects, many more layers reveal themselves.

Integration was a positive thing because now people had access to books that hadnt been dog-eared and were not 20, 30 years old, he said. But something was lost as well. That close, deep connection that people had in the community, the identification and the pride of being in a black school that was teaching black students with black teachers, and the caring that existed.

A lot of the elders are telling me that (after desegregation) they kind of felt like they were now in an institution as opposed to being home, being with family. Given the pride and high standards that many of the black teachers had in the black schools, when they did integrate, they didnt feel like they were behind. In fact, in some cases, the former students told me they thought they were ahead of the white students because there was a fairly rigorous standard in the schools that they went to.

Like Weintraubs films on the Great Flood of 1916, moonshining traditions, Cherokee culture and other Appalachian topics, the new documentary starts with research, making connections with people who are purveyors of this history, or the keepers of the flame, as I call them, he says.

The interviews  along with B-roll footage of African-American schools that are still standing, newspaper clippings and family photos  will produce 20-30 hours of film that Weintraub will distill into a 30- to 40-minute film. He aims to debut the film on Martin Luther King Jr. Day in January.

Tattered textbooks, hand-me-down band uniforms

One keeper of the flame, Melinda Lowrance, sat for an interview in April in the vestibule of Contemporary First Missionary Baptist Church on Harris Street. President of the Henderson County NAACP and a district director for the North Carolina NAACP, Lowrance was recently appointed to the Hendersonville City Council.

Im an activist, a troublemaker but also a unifier, she says.

Growing up in the Pilgrim family, the owners of a funeral home that served the African-American community, Lowrance recalled a disciplined childhood where parents and neighbors emphasized education at home, at church and at the old Ninth Avenue School.

Because she attended kindergarten at church, By the time I got to first grade, I was already on the second grade level as far as reading and writing, she says. It was always mandatory within our home that you read a book and you were able to express yourself in reading and writing.

She attended Ninth Avenue for eight years, enjoying a supportive climate that gave kids a sense of security and a sense of belonging, she says. There was a mentor relationship. And trust me, if you did something in school, your family knew before you got home. There was a double whammy because the Sunday school superintendent was also my third grade teacher. She lived down the street from us, so there was no escape.

While teachers were dedicated and demanding, textbooks were tattered and outdated and other supplies were always second-hand, too.

We didnt even have new band uniforms, Lowrance tells Weintraub. Our uniforms were hand-me-downs from Hendersonville High. Our instruments were the same way. Our parents purchased them from the used instrument store.

Lowrance was luckier than some of her peers; her family had the means to subscribe to periodicals and newspapers.

The only way you got information that was current was by reading the newspaper or magazines, she says. At that time, it was always in my home  Jet, Ebony magazine so that you could be current on what was going on in the black community.

Searching for more show

Weintraub describes the documentary form as show then tell. Like his other films that take place years before cameras were common, he recognizes that finding the visuals is a challenge.

It was tough during the 1916 flood film and its certainly tough for this film, he says. In a poor community, who owns a camera?

The elders stories so far have been rewarding and revealing.

Ive just been blown away about the educational level, the passion that people had, the memories that people had about education, he says. There was this thread that went through their familys history. So were not lacking for people telling the story. Were lacking the show but somehow itll all come together.

Asked who he envisions as the audience for the documentary, Weintraub responds that its everyone who desires an unvarnished look at the past.

Anybody who cares about history, anybody who cares about understanding the truth instead of myths about our history, the black community that has not been shown the respect that they deserve.

Who built this community? It was all of us. It wasnt just white people, he says. And so were kind of re-putting back into history what should have been there to begin with.

* * * * *

Filmmaker David Weintraub is seeking visual resources from the African-American education experience here in the 1950s and 60s, including photos home videos, even stories. To contact Weintraub or to support the African-American education documentary visit saveculture.org.






A VILLAGE shopkeeper was left stunned when a bailiff tried to seize her van.

Sarah Harper, 51, general manager of Hambleden Village Stores and Post Office, fell victim to criminals who cloned the licence plates of the shops Volkswagen Caddy.

She was hounded for payment of bogus fines run up by the crooks in London.

Ms Harper began receiving penalty notices for traffic offences in October. She appealed each one as it came in.

Lambeth and Hackney councils agreed that the vans registration plates had been cloned so they revoked the fines.

However, Transport for London continued fining Ms Harper despite her providing evidence.

On Friday, a bailiff arrived at the shop and clamped the van, threatening to take it away together with stock from the shop if the debt was not paid.

Ms Harper, from Skirmett, was forced to pay 600 to ensure the van wasnt impounded.

The vehicle is essential to the shop as it is used for cash and carry trips and to deliver goods to vulnerable individuals.

Ms Harper criticised TfL and London Mayor Sadiq Khan.

She said: The bailiff clamped the van and said if we didnt pay 2,200, hed take the van and stock from the shop.

I said, You cant take the van and hes like, Ive got to take it.

I was like, You cant take it because we are the victims. I said, Come on, you can see that. He said, I can see that but I still have an order to take it. The bailiff only relented when she paid the 600.

Ms Harper said: Obviously he was just doing his job but if I hadnt given him the money he would have uplifted the vehicle and taken it along with stock from the shop.

I was quite upset and shocked at the whole situation.

The bailiff could not have been nicer but the behaviour of TfL has been disgraceful.

In October, we started getting multiple fines for going in red zones, the ultra-low emission zone, congestion charge zone and for penalty charge notices.

In the photographs, it was a similar van to ours but it had different wheels, a different wheelbase and was it clearly a large Asian man who was driving. So with every single one that came through  and they were coming thick and fast  I challenged them and sent back photographs of our vehicle.

It lasted for about four months. Hackney and Lambeth councils acknowledged that we were the victim here.

Ive got letters from Lambeth council saying, We are so sorry. Thank you for letting us know. We can clearly see that this is not your vehicle. Sincerely, all apologies.

TfL has never responded to any of my correspondence and you cant get hold of anybody.

Despite having been given all the information they needed to refute these fines, they chose to either ignore them or have not got around to processing them and have instead decided to take the easy option and send in the bailiffs. They just dont care.

It was deeply upsetting and, quite frankly, embarrassing to have this happen to us on a busy day.

Were the victims here, although we have been treated like the bloody criminals.

The store is owned by the Culden Faw Estate and employs 10 part-time staff.

Ms Harper, who has been manager for four years, said: We are predominantly middle-aged females trying to run a little post office.

It is horrible knowing criminals are driving around in a vehicle using our number plates and, despite having been told on numerous occasions, TfL have done absolutely nothing about it.

What is even more annoying is that we had to pay a small part of the fine to prevent the bailiff from talking our van away, which will have wiped out any profit we may have made this month. Sadiq Khan is not welcome in our shop.

She added: I have run the shop for four years. Its my baby. We call it the groovy little store. We are a small shop and work hard to support the local community and we found this deeply unsettling.

But its just funny, like you couldn't get quainter than Hambleden village. Its not like were like smoking up to London, breaking all the rules.

Alex Dick, Culden Faw estate manager, said: The treatment by Transport for London has been appalling.

Sarah and the company have done nothing wrong and, in fact, have done everything we can possibly do to furnish them with the evidence that counters their various fines and penalties.

For some reason, we come up against a brick wall when dealing with TfL. Its a disgrace and they should be ashamed of themselves.

In a statement, Transport for London said: We are very sorry that Ms Harper has been a victim of vehicle cloning.

We are contacting her to inform her that all the charges will be refunded and apologise for the distress caused.
Today, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra issued the following statement following the Supreme Courts unanimous decision in Food and Drug Administration v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine:

Mifepristone has been used safely and effectively for more than two decades since it was first approved by the FDA, one of our nations most critical public health agencies. Today, this critical medication remains approved and available.

But lets be clear: womens health remains under attack. The overturning of Roe v. Wade paved the way for attacks on reproductive rights and womens ability to make their own decisions about abortion, birth control, and IVF. Every day, women in states across America are forced to live with the devastating consequences of these attacks on reproductive rights. Health care decisions should be made by women in consultation with their doctorsnot politicians. At HHS, we will continue take action to strengthen and expand access to health care, protect privacy protections, and preserve individual rights. We will continue the fight to restore Roe v. Wade and defend reproductive rights for all Americans.
After the 1980 Lok Sabha election Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had a difficult choice to make. She had won from Rae Bareli  her traditional constituency and Medak in undivided Andhra Pradesh. The Prime Minister had to quit a one; she opted to leave Rae Bareli.

The decision was possibly more emotional than tactical. Indira had been a Rae Bareli MP since 1967. Feroze Gandhi was a two-term MP in 1952 and 1957. And when she needed the support of Rae Bareli in the first election after the Emergency in 1977, the voters opted for Raj Narain. Also, it allowed Indira to get Congress leader Arun Nehru elected from Rae Bareli.

The HT edition of February 8, 1980, said, Mrs. Gandhi was given a tumultuous reception on her first visit to this town after assuming office once again with a massive election victory Mrs. Gandhi was more on a mission of thanksgiving and assuaging the feelings of the people who felt hurt because she had resigned the seat, opting for Medak.

History repeats

Over four decades later, another Gandhi family member faces a similar dilemma: Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi has won both Wayanad and Raebareli and he has to pick one seat by March 17.

According to the rules, a lawmaker can represent only one seat in a legislative body. In 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi won both Vadodara and Varanasi and he opted to retain his Uttar Pradesh seat.

At a rally in Wayanad on Wednesday, Gandhi said he was faced with a dilemma over which seat he should retain. He told the rally, Whatever decision I take, it will be liked by the people of both constituencies. What I will commit to you is that both Wayanad and Raebareli will be happy with my decision.

Rahul Gandhi and Wayanad

In the run-up to the 2019 Lok Sabha election, a group of Congress leaders from Kerala met Gandhi with a request: He should contest from Wayanad. The Kerala Congress leaders, who are known to be argumentative even among themselves on most issues, were unanimous that if Gandhi contested from the coastal state, it would boost the overall prospects of the party in Kerala.

Gandhi agreed and the Congress-led UDF bagged 19 of 20 Lok Sabha seats. It was the highest number from a state for the Congress. In 2024, UDF bagged 18 seats with the Congress getting 14 MPs again the highest tally from a state.

Rahul Gandhi loves Wayanad and Wayanad loves him, a Congress strategist who did not wish to be named said.

In the 2024 Lok Sabha poll, Rahul Gandhi bagged 60% votes in Wayanad while his closest rival, CPIs Annie Raja got 26% of the popular votes. In the previous national election, even as the Congress lost miserably, Gandhi bagged 65% votes to win in Wayanad.

In 2019, the Congress made a tactical mistake of announcing that Gandhi would fight from both Wayanad and Amethi, his seat since 2004. For us, the people of Amethi, it was an insult. We voted for him since 2004 but he couldnt trust us. Many of us voted for (then) Union minister Smriti Irani, Anshul Dubey, a college teacher and a Congress supporter, said during the election campaign.

Wayanad didnt disappoint him.

When I was being interrogated by the ED for 55 hours, when the BJP gave me a two-year jail sentence, the people of Wayanad supported me throughout. The BJP took away my house, I got letters from the people of Wayanad saying, Please come and stay in our house. Throughout this period, you have supported me with your love and affection. This is beyond elections. When I was struggling and fighting the government of India and all its agencies, you gave me your love and affection, which is much more important than the votes. You treated me like a family member and I can never thank you enough. I will remember it all my life, Gandhi said on Wednesday at a rally in Wayanad.

Rahul Gandhi and Rae Bareli

The Samajwadi Party (SP) had inserted a key clause in its compact with the Congress to fight the 2024 Lok Sabha polls together: One Gandhi family member must fight in Rae Bareli or Amethi.

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra didnt want to fight as she wanted to campaign across India. Also, Congress pre-poll surveys didnt project a comfortable victory for a party candidate in Amethi (the results, of course, showed that the Congress surveys were wrong).

On the last day of filing nomination, the Congress announced Rahul Gandhi will fight Rae Bareli. Hours later, he arrived at the Fursatganj airstrip with his family members.

Later, at a rally (her sole campaign appearance in this election) Sonia Gandhi told the people: I am handing over my son to all of you. Rahul will not disappoint you.

When the results came, Rahul won by a margin of 3.9 lakh votes in Rae Barelihigher than all the elections fought by his mother except the 2006 by-poll in which she secured a margin of 4.2 lakh votes.

For Rahul, Rae Bareli is not just another Lok Sabha seat. It has a rich and close association with three generations of the Gandhi familythe seat of his mother and grandmotherand more than anything, it is the last electoral bastion of the Gandhi family in India.

Wayanad or Rae Bareli?

Rahul Gandhis participation in Wayanad has paid rich dividends to his party. It has strengthened the Congress footprint in Kerala even as the Congress lost to the Left in the 2021 assembly poll ending Keralas long tradition of changing government every five years.

Kerala still contributes to the largest share of Congress seats in 2024. It helped the party to get a sizable number of seats from the south: 41 of 130 seats.

But the larger goal of the Congress is to improve its strike rate in northern India, especially in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. In this context, even if Gandhis electoral representation in Uttar Pradesh might not lead to the partys revival in the Hindi belt, it can boost the morale of the party workers. Especially when many senior leaders of the party including the party chief Mallikarjun Kharge, general secretary, the organisation, KC Venugopal and the chief spokesperson Jairam Ramesh are from south India.

To be sure, Gandhi retaining Raebareli is no guarantee for the partys success. In all Lok Sabha elections between 2004 and 2019 (when Gandhi was Amethi MP), the Congress had 21, two, one and six seats respectively. But the party cant vacate the political space to HT and instead, put more resources in the Hindi belt, said a senior Congress leader.

Former external affairs minister Salman Khurshid said Rahuls victory from Rae Bareli is significant as it will also embolden the alliance with SP. I dont know which seat he will retain. Both are important seats. But Rahul Gandhis electoral presence in UP will give a fresh lease of life to the alliance.

Also, Gandhi has a task cut out to succeed Sonia Gandhi in Rae Bareli. Barring her first election in 1999, which she fought from Amethi, Sonia shifted to Rae Bareli in 2004 as her son fought in Amethi. For 20 years, she represented the seat, more than what Indira or Feroze Gandhi did.

Gandhi has maintained he "will discuss with people and take a decision." For Congress insiders, this means he will talk to Sonia, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Mallikarjun Kharge before taking the final decision.
On June 9, an improvised explosive device (IED) detonated near a security convoy, which was followed by a gunfire attack on the vehicle, killing seven soldiers, including an army captain in the Lakki Marwat district of Pakistans Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. The Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Pakistan militarys media wing, issued a statement , stating - the perpetrators of this heinous act will be brought to justice.

Delivering on this promise, security forces on June 10-11 conducted an intelligence-based operation (IBO) in Lakki Marwat, neutralising 11 terrorists who were involved in the bombing. Although no group has officially claimed responsibility or provided a rationale, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) confirmed its involvement in the two-pronged assault through its unofficial media channel, reported The Khorasan Diary.

Of late, Pakistan has witnessed a surge in IED attacks against security forces, often resulting in IBOs against the terrorists responsible. Last month, the army conducted a concatenation of IBOs from May 26 to 27, killing a total of 23 terrorists (and a few soldiers engaged in the operations) in Peshawar, Khyber and Tank districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in a Militant Quandary

In early May, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Counter-Terrorism Department (CTD) released a report detailing that a total of 179 terrorist incidents had occurred in the province this year till April 30, according to ARY News. This month, the provincial CTD confirmed that 65 police officials have died and another 86 wounded in terrorism-related incidents since the beginning of the year.

The restive districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, many of which were former TTP strongholds, have been bearing the brunt of the groups resurgence since the Talibans rise to power in August 2021 and the end of a tenuous ceasefire with the Pakistani government in November 2022. As the TTP attempts to reactivate its erstwhile network in Pakistan  which existed prior to the counter-terror operations  its primary targets have been the security forces, law enforcement agencies, polio workers and to a certain extent, foreign elements, particularly Chinese interests and workers.

The recent attack harks back to March 2024, when terrorists affiliated with the TTP had rammed an explosives-laden vehicle into a security post in the Mir Ali area of KPs North Waziristan district, killing seven soldiers. In response, the Pakistani government conducted the highly publicised airstrikes in Afghanistans Khost and Paktika provinces, where the terrorists were purportedly based. In the same month, five Chinese engineers and their Pakistani driver were killed in KPs Bisham tehsil after a suicide bomber rammed an explosive vehicle into the bus they were travelling in.

Similarly, in 2023, the province was rocked by two high-profile attacks, one at the beginning of the year  the January Peshawar mosque attack that killed over 100 - and another at the end  the December Dera Ismail Khan attack that killed 23 soldiers, drawing condemnation from both the United States and United Nations Security Council.

Are the Governments Aligned?

On June 10, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif stated in a post on X that we must repay by relentlessly eliminating terrorism from our nation. President Asif Ali Zardari, too, appeared determined to root out the cancer of terrorism, as per a statement released by the President Secretariat Press Wing. Khyber Pakhtunkhwas Chief Minister, Ali Amin Gandapur, and its Governor also condemned the attack.

Despite widespread condemnations, the recent attack was not met with the scale of airstrikes, possibly due to the location of terrorists; instead, it was countered by an IBO, which seems to be the Pakistani Armys preferred method presently in the absence of a large-scale counter-terror operation. In any case, peace talks with the TTP, infamously known as the policy of appeasement, have been vociferously rejected by the Pakistani government.

However, the provincial government seems to be on a different footing than the centre, as evidenced by its CMs advocacy for meaningful dialogue with militants to reverse the breakdown of the prevailing law and order in the region. This divergence in posture can plausibly be attributed to the CMs background as a Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) leader, which, under Imran Khans tenure, not only favoured peace talks with the TTP but also proposed to resettle the outlawed TTP fighters from Afghanistan to Pakistan. In light of this dissonance, CM Gandapur met with the Interior Minister after the Bisham attack to discuss better coordination between the centre and KP law enforcement agencies to ameliorate the provinces dire state.

Now, kinetic measures (application of force)  albeit initially essential  hardly yield long-term dividends on their own and ideally, should be complemented with substantial non-kinetic means, an area where the governments performance has been lacklustre. For instance, a rise in the recruitment of suicide bombers signals that the government needs to urgently prioritise deradicalisation, better governance, and provision of employment opportunities since merely espousing a heavy-handed approach increases the militants (or those prone to extremism) propensity for violence.

Regarding IEDs, whose usage has shot up in recent years due to their low-cost and high-casualty factor, it becomes imperative for the government to regulate the sale and purchase of explosives and other IED components. Last but not least, buttressing the capacity of police and other law enforcement agencies, though emphasised time and again, is not just a hackneyed measure but indispensable to the countrys security, especially when they remain on the frontline and are nearing demoralisation due to the frequent audacious attacks they face.

Bantirani Patro is a research associate at the Centre for Air Power Studies, New Delhi. The views expressed are personal.
Ambuja Cement, cement and building material company of Adani Cement and part of Adani Group, announced that it has signed an agreement for the acquisition of Penna Cement Industries Ltd (PCIL) at an enterprise value of Rs. 10,422 crore. As per the deal, Ambuja will acquire 100 per cent shares of PCIL from its existing promoter group, P Pratap Reddy and family. Gautam Adani, chairman of Adani Group, is seen in Ahmedabad, Gujarat,(Bloomberg)

Ajay Kapur, CEO & Whole Time Director of Ambuja Cement, This landmark acquisition is a significant step forward in Ambuja Cement's accelerating growth journey. By acquiring PCIL, Ambuja is poised to expand its market presence in south India and reinforce its position as a pan-India leader in the cement industry. PCIL's strategic location and sufficient limestone reserves provide an opportunity to increase cement capacity through debottlenecking and additional investment.

He added "Importantly, the bulk cement terminals (BCTs) will prove to be a game changer by giving access to the eastern and southern parts of peninsular India, apart from an entry to Sri Lanka, through the sea route. We aim to make PCIL highly competitive on cost and productivity and improve its operating performance."

Penna Cement has 14 MTPA cement capacity. Of this 10 MTPA is operational and the remaining is under construction at Krishnapatnam and Jodhpur and will be completed within 6 to 12 months.
Gurugram-based Ixigo- an online travel agency (OTA)- opened its intial public offering (IPO) for subscription on June 10. The issue- which had a price band of 83 to 93 per share- closed on June 12. The company, which allows customers to book hotels, train tickets, flight tickets, bus tickets from its platform, is expected to announce the allotment status of its IPO on June 13. Ixigo IPO allotment: In the IPO, investors could apply for a minimum of 161 shares and its multiples thereafter.

Ixigo IPO details

In the IPO, investors could apply for a minimum of 161 shares and its multiples thereafter. Through the IPO, the company is looking to raise 740.10 crore via IPO which includes a fresh share sale of 120 crore and an offer-for-sale (OFS) of 6,66,77,674 equity shares.

Ixigo IPO subscription

Bids for 2,06,44,97,687 equity shares, or 47.17 times, compared to the 4,37,69,494 equity shares offered for the subscription, were made on June 12. The portion reserved for retail investors was subscribed 41.91 times, while the portion reserved for non-institutional investors saw a subscription of 83.02 times and qualified institutional bidders (QIBs) booked 30.99 times cent times of their allotted quota.

Ixigo IPO GMP

Shares of Ixigo are currently commanding GMP of 25 per share.

Ixigo IPO: Here's how to check the allotment status

To check the Ixigo IPO allotment status, visit the registrars website which is Link Intime India Private Ltd Click on Select Company and then select Ixigo Enter your PAN, application number, DP / Client ID or Account number / IFSC Click on submit and you will be able to see the allotment status on your screen.

How to check Ixigo IPO allotment status on BSE website

Go to the BSE website Click on 'Equity' and then select Ixigo from the dropdown menu Enter your application number and PAN. Click on Search and you will be able to see the allotment status on your screen.

Ixigo IPO listing date

The shares of Ixigo will be listed on stock exchanges on June 18.
OpenAI is set to earn $3.4 billion in annual revenue, Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman reportedly told the companys staff in a meeting. Sam Altman said that most of the revenue- almost $3.2 billion- is from OpenAIs products and services, people in the know said as per a report in The Information. OpenAI will also generate about $200 million by offering access to its AI models through Microsoft Azure, the report claimed. Sam Altman, chief executive officer of OpenAI, during the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference at Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California, US.(Bloomberg)

Earlier, it was reported that OpenAI's annualized revenue was $1.6 billion in late 2023. This comes as OpenAI completed a tender offer valuing the startup at $86 billion while its ChatGPT has become a driving force in the development of AI. The company has been working to boost revenue from its AI products by selling services to enterprise customers.

It has also begun training a more powerful AI model that could help it stay ahead of a growing number of rivals. The startup also hired Sarah Friar, former chief executive of neighborhood social networking service Nextdoor Holdings Inc., to serve as its chief financial officer.

OpenAI- Apple deal

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman also reacted to the integration of ChatGPT into Apple devices which is expected later this year and said, "Very happy to be partnering with Apple to integrate ChatGPT into their devices later this year! Think you will really like it.
Tesla shareholders voted in favor of CEO Elon Musk's $56 billion compensation package after a Delaware court invalidated it, a company official said. Corporate secretary Brandon Ehrhart said that investors backed the plan based on preliminary vote results at Tesla's annual meeting in Austin Texas. After this, Elon Musk said, I just want to start off by saying, hot damn, I love you guys. Tesla CEO Elon Musk waves as he leaves the Tesla Gigafactory for electric cars in Gruenheide near Berlin, Germany.(AP)

Gregory Varallo, who represented shareholders who opposed the plan, said, "We believe that the ratification vote that Elon demanded and coerced is deeply flawed as a matter of law, legally ineffective and does not impact our case. We will respond to any arguments raised in due course."

Why did the package need approval from shareholders?

The pay package was originally approved by investors in 2018 but was struck down by a Delaware court in January 2024. Following this, Tesla launched a campaign to revive it.

How Tesla's shares responded to Elon Musk's pay package vote decision?

Tesla shares rose 0.7 per cent in after-hours trading and stock gained 2.9 percent in Thursday's session after Elon Musk posted on his social media platform X (formerly Twitter) that investors were going to back his pay plan by a wider margin.

Does this mean that Elon Musk will get $56 billion compensation?

No, the win strengthens Elon Musk's appeal of the Delaware ruling but he still needs court approval to get the compensation. Although, the passage of the compensation package likely ensures that Tesla continues to be led by Elon Musk who had hinted that he might step down if he is not given an adequately large stake in Tesla. At the end of 2023, Elon Musk had about 20.5 percent of Tesla shares.

What Elon Musk backers said on his pay package?

Elon Musk backers, like billionaire investor Ron Baron, offered unflinching support for the CEO. In a public letter, Ron Baron wrote, "Shareholders should ask themselves this question: is Tesla better off with or without Elon. At Baron Capital, our answer is clear, loud and unequivocal: Tesla is better with Elon. Tesla is Elon."

Although some investors like California State Teachers' Retirement System did not like the package as its chief investment officer Chris Ailman said that he considers Elon Musk "brilliant," but that the current package is ridiculous.
Haryanas new excise policy- which proposes an increase in duties on liquor- came into force this week. Owing to this, there is a 20% hike in liquor prices in Gurugram after the successful auction of 162 zones with 324 liquor vends in Gurugram east and west. This fetched Haryana government 1,756 crore- 9.4 per cent rise above the reserve prices set by the excise department. The reserve price is the lowest price at which the department auctions a vend. The auction fetched Haryana government  1,756 crore- 9.4 per cent rise above the reserve prices set by the excise department.

National Restaurant Association of India (NRAI) trustee Rahul Singh, the founder of Beer Cafe, said, The state continues to meet their long-term objectives of breaking the cartels, broad-basing the trade by facilitating the entry of new players of even modest means. And therefore, there is provision of supply to bars from any of the nearest two different L-2 retail vend licensees as per their choice. Also, none of the said two L-2 licensees can demand from the bar licensee a price which is more than 10% above the minimum retail sale price fixed as per the policy."

Top vends near Delhi

Data shared by the excise department showed that five of the top 10 bids for liquor vends are located near the border with Delhi.

More auctions ahead

Further auctions are scheduled, including 20 zones in Gurugram east and two in the west on June 14 as Amit Bhatia, deputy excise and taxation commissioner (east) said, The revenue generated is expected to rise significantly once all shops are auctioned."

Footfall likely to increase

Jitender Dudi, deputy commissioner of excise and taxation (Gurugram west), said that there could be a rise in footfall at stores with the onset of the wedding season. He told Hindustan Times, While most shops remain with previous owners, the policys new provisions will enhance market dynamics."
The Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which is probing the POCSO case against former Karnataka CM Yediyurappa, has moved to a special court, seeking his arrest. The CID has already summoned Yediyurappa and asked him to appear for questioning in the case. The former CM is currently in New Delhi and will likely return to Bengaluru. Former Karnataka chief minister BS Yediyurappa.(PTI)

Also Read - Yediyurappa cheated us: Furious Eshwarappa hits out at former CM after son denied Haveri LS ticket

Meanwhile, BS Yediyurappa approached the high court on Wednesday seeking annulment of a Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) case filed against him, On March 14, Bengaluru police had filed a case under the Pocso Act against Yediyurappa on the basis of a complaint by the 17-year-old survivors mother.

On March 15, Yediyurappa said, "I have come to know that a complaint has been filed against me by a woman. It must have been about a month, they used to visit but I didnt pay attention. But one day, when I told them they were crying, I called them and asked what happened. They told me they had been wronged. I then called the police commissioner (B) Dayananda and asked him to hear them out and do the needful. But then she started talking against me then and there. I thought she was unwell and asked the police commissioner to investigate. Now this has been twisted and made into an FIR."

BS Yediyurappa is yet to respond to the notice sent by the CID and the investigation department has now moved to the special court for issuing an arrest warrant to the former CM.
The Bengaluru special court has issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against former Karnataka CM BS Yediyurappa in a POCSO case, reported news agency PTI. The Criminal Investigation Department (CID) is likely to arrest him soon. Bengaluru: Former Karnataka chief minister B S Yediyurappa at a press conference, in Bengaluru on April 21 (PTI FILE)

The CID has already summoned Yediyurappa and asked him to appear for questioning in the case. The former CM is in New Delhi and will likely return to Bengaluru. On 14 March, Bengaluru police filed a case under the Pocso Act against Yediyurappa based on a complaint by the 17-year-old survivors mother.

(This is a breaking story and will be updated)
The ever-expanding glacial lake due to global warming in the Himalayan ranges is posing a grave threat of flash floods downstream the river basins in Himachal Pradesh. The ever-expanding glacial lake due to global warming in the Himalayan ranges is posing a grave threat of flash floods downstream the river basins in Himachal Pradesh. (File Photo)

Long-term satellite imagery covering the Ghepan Ghat glacier in Himachal sets off a warning for glacial lake outburst flood. Satellite imageries reveal that the lake that was formed due to the melting of the Ghepan Ghat glacier in the tribal Lahaul and Spiti district has expanded majorly in the last 25 years.

Hydrological studies conducted using satellite imageries revealed a 178% increase in the size of Ghepan Ghat glacial lake from 36.49 hectares to 101.30 hectares, which poses grave flood threats to the habitation downstream and can cause extensive damage to the strategic Manali-Leh Highway and the habitations downstream. Ghepan Ghat is located at an elevation of 13,346 feet above sea level in Lahaul and Spiti district

Such alarming rate of lake expansion and the rapid urbanisation of its downstream settlements have increased the possibility of a catastrophic impact due to GLOF events in many ways, highlighted the study, GLOF risk Assessment of Ghepan Ghat Glacial Lake Indus Basin, compiled by the National Remote Sensing Centre, Hyderabad.

The National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC), Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Hyderabad, as one of the implementing agencies under the National Hydrology Project (NHP), is carrying out hydrological studies using satellite data and geospatial techniques. As part of the NHP, a detailed glacial lake inventory, prioritisation of glacial lakes, glacial lake outburst flood (GLOF) inundation simulation, and GLOF risk assessment for selected lakes are taken up for the entire catchment of Indian Himalayan rivers covering the Indus, Ganga, and Brahmaputra river basins.

The findings of the study are alarming for the state. We are directing the department concerned to take appropriate preventive and precautionary measures, says DC Rana, director, State Disaster Management Authority.

Himachal witnessed the worst flooding last year when the torrential rains took a toll on 560 lives and caused immense damage to properties across the state, forcing the government to rethink its plans.

The report not only highlights the pace at which the glacial lakes are being formed on the different river basins in the Himalayas and region but also the risk of a breach in them. A total of 28,043 glacial lakes have been mapped in the entire catchment area of India Himalayan river basins using a total of 397 high-resolution multispectral resource sat images, with a total lake water spread area of 1,31,070 hectares, said SS Randhawa, principal scientific officer, HP Centre for Climate Change.

The People for Himalaya, a campaign of civil society organisations, and social and environmental justice activists, working towards securing the Himalayan region from disasters expressed concern over the glacial melting. Wildlife biologist Tsewang Namgyal expressed concern over glacial health in the high Himalayas. Mountains dont need this development, which is hasty and haphazard, said Namgyal.
The fraudsters impersonating officials of the Mumbai crime branch allegedly duped a city-based lawyer of over 12 lakh. The accused claimed that if he did not pay them money, they would book him for smuggling contraband to foreign countries. The victim transferred the money online. The Ludhiana-based lawyer alleged that the accused threatened to implicate him in a peddling case and demanded  12.11 lakh for not registering a case against him (HT File)

After he realised he had been duped, he filed a complaint with the police.

The Sadar police lodged a first-information report (FIR) against unidentified accused following the complaint of Guramitash Singh, a resident of Basant Avenue in Dugri.

The victim told police that on June 5, he received a phone call. The caller introduced himself as Amit Sharma, a representative of a private courier service. He said they received a parcel booking in his name that contained contraband. When the victim claimed that had not booked any parcel, the caller said someone might have used his Aadhar Card to book it.

The caller asked him to talk to officials of the Mumbai crime branch and connected the call to someone else, who introduced himself as Indian Police (IPS) officer Varun Kumar.

The accused told him that the parcel was booked in his name and addressed to be sent to Malaysia. They informed him that the parcel contained four Pakistani passports and 140 gm drugs.

The victim added that the accused threatened to implicate him in a peddling case and demanded 12.11 lakh for not registering a case against him. The accused shared a bank account number and asked him to transfer the money.

When he tried to contact the accused after transferring the money, their numbers were switched off. He then realised that he had been duped.

Cyber cell in-charge inspector Jatinder Singh said that the bank account number given by the accused was in the name of a firm based in Gujarat. The police have registered an FIR against the unidentified accused under sections 419 (cheating by personation), 420 (cheating) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The inspector advised the people not to answer such calls and not to transfer money to anyone without proper verification.
Eye in sky nets big fame for village

15:04, June 13, 2024 By Huang Zhiling and Peng Chao ( China Daily

A JOUAV staff member conducts flight tests at the "Sky Eye" Unmanned Aerial Vehicle flight test base in Pengzhou, Sichuan province. CHINA DAILY

If you visit the Luping community deep in the Longmen Mountains on the northern edge of the Chengdu Plain, you will be amazed to see all kinds of drones flying as if they were in the midst of an aerial combat movie.

The mountain village, little known until recently, has become a hot destination for drone research and development, testing, and application companies from all over the country, thanks to an innovative program launched by a local entrepreneur seven years ago.

Located about 70 kilometers from the urban area of Chengdu, capital of Southwest China's Sichuan province, the Luping community in Guihua town, Pengzhou, is home to the "Sky Eye" Unmanned Aerial Vehicle flight test base.

Zhou Xiaoming, born and raised in Luping, is the founder of the base and one of the pioneers of the UAV flight test business in Chengdu.

"I've always dreamt of aviation as a child. While helping my parents with farm labor on the mountaintop, I used to look into the distance at the sparkling lights of Chengdu's urban area, hoping to one day fly out of the mountain village and achieve something," the 39-year-old recalled.

After graduating from university in 2007, Zhou entered the general aviation industry. While there, he realized the advantages and market potential of UAVs, which are increasingly being used in crop protection, mapping, and inspection. In 2015, Zhou joined a UAV company as a flight test mechanic.

Inspired by the huge development potential of the low-altitude industry, Zhou quit the job in June 2017, sold his apartment in Chengdu, and returned to Pengzhou to start his own business.

"Despite the rapid development and wide applications of drones, the lack of flight test sites remained a major problem," Zhou said.

He said drone companies typically chose to conduct flight tests at general aviation airports, but the flight approval process was complicated and expensive. This gave him the idea of establishing a flight test base specifically for drones.

"I thought of my hometown, which faces the Jianjiang river valley and has a complex terrain that is suitable for flight tests, with no military or civilian aircraft flight paths overhead and the nearest airports over 50 kilometers away," Zhou said.

After returning to Pengzhou, he found the local government also vigorously promoting the development of the drone industry. For professional and standardized management and operation, he cooperated with a State-owned company in Pengzhou to jointly build the "Sky Eye" UAV flight test base.

In December 2017, Sichuan was approved as the first province to conduct a pilot program for low-altitude airspace. Thanks to that, the base has obtained a flight test airspace within an altitude of 1,200 meters and a radius of 5 km. It currently operates eight flight test sites at different altitudes and offers 14 test scenarios.

Zhou said the pilot program has simplified the approval process for drone flights from seven working days of prior approval to a one-hour prior report before takeoff.

"Drone companies coming to the base for flight tests do not need to go through the process of reporting to various departments themselves. They simply need to send their daily flight plans to the base, which will then report to the air traffic control department on their behalf," he said.

Zheng Wenqiang, who is in charge of the flight test tasks at the base for his company JOUAV, said they used to conduct flight tests at general aviation airports, but UAVs were given lower priority than manned aircraft there, making it quite difficult to guarantee stable and sufficient flight time for their drones.

"At 'Sky Eye', our drones can conduct normalized flight tests. We are currently conducting flight tests for several models of drone products here," he said.

Zheng said JOUAV has been conducting flight tests at the base since July 2019, with the number of flights reaching about 1,500 per year.

"The flight test sites at the base are scattered across various terrains such as mountains, hills, rivers, lakes, flatlands, and forests, which can simulate various actual application scenarios of industrial drones," he said.

The "Sky Eye" gained more attention and favor from UAV companies after it was designated as a State-level civil UAV experimental base in 2022 by the Civil Aviation Administration of China.

Now, more than 90 companies and institutions involved in UAV R&D, production, and training conduct flight tests at the "Sky Eye", with the daily flight volume exceeding 100. The base's revenue has seen an annual growth of more than 100 percent in the past three years, Zhou said.

Leveraging the abundant drone resources, the base is striving to establish a complete drone industry chain with a variety of new business models, including drone delivery, drone pilot training, model aircraft competition, and drone study tours.

A JOUAV drone takes a test flight. CHINA DAILY

The drone delivery service, launched during this year's Spring Festival holiday, covers five homestays and campsites in the towns of Tongji, Bailu, and Danjingshan in Pengzhou, Zhou said.

"The trial operation has proved to be successful. There are so many orders that my colleagues and I have to give up our vacations to maintain the drones and ensure the normal operation of the flight routes," he said.

In the past few months, the drone delivery service has expanded to some 50 routes to cover the "Baili Gallery" eco-tourism area in Pengzhou, which is about 60 km long and covers an area of over 100 square km.

In April, China's first public service platform for drone airworthiness, Jianjiang Laboratory, was established at the base. The laboratory will focus on drone airworthiness capacity building, standard system exploration, scientific research, talent cultivation, and transfer and transformation of intellectual achievements.

Lu Min, director of Pengzhou's economic, technology, and information bureau, said the city will help the base develop into a center for training and examination, exhibition and sales, flight test and management, and operations of UAVs.

The city also plans to build the country's first 4S store for UAVs and one of the most influential UAV flight schools at the base, he said.

"We will conduct pilot trials in the Jianjiang river valley scenic area to explore the commercial operation models of new technologies including eVTOL (electric vertical takeoff and landing) aircraft, to expand the market and promote the development of the low-altitude economy," Lu added.

Zhou said construction of the 4S store for UAVs is scheduled to be completed in the latter half of this year.

"Customers to the 4S store can not only buy a wide range of drones with complete functions at reasonable prices, but also enjoy a one-stop 'buy and test' service," he said.

Zhou is also planning to develop a drone performance competition. He believes this will promote the iteration and upgrade of drone technology while bringing exciting drone performance to the public.

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing)
The Sadar police said on Thursday that they busted a gang of fraudsters and a case was registered against at least 10 people, including a bank manager and two women. Officials said that the accused allegedly used to procure fake ownership documents of properties and use them to avail bank loans. ASI Partap Singh, who is investigating the case, said the Ludhiana police registered a first-information report (FIR) after an investigation. (HT File)

The police found that the accused never returned the loans as well. Among those booked is Prabhjeet Singh Chawla, who is posted as a manager at Punjab and Sind Bank, Civil Lines.

The other accused were identified as Gurjeet Khushhal Rai of Shimlapuri, Sapna Dhingra of Guru Gobind Singh Nagar, Gursewak Singh of Neeraj Colony, Santosh Colony of Mann Colony, Manpreet Singh alias Monu, Mahinder Singh Bhangu, Varinder Singh Suparia, Ajay Kumar Dhingra and Mansa Ram of Kheri of Uttar Pradesh. Officials added that one of their aides was yet to be identified.

Assistant sub-inspector (ASI) Partap Singh, who is investigating the case, said that the police registered a first-information report (FIR) after an investigation.

The ASI added that the matter came to the fore when a bank reported to police that a property shown in the documents submitted to avail a loan did not exist. When the police initiated an investigation, they found out about the gang.

He said that Gurjeet Khushhal Rai is the kingpin of the gang.

A case under sections 419 (punishment for cheating by personation), 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 465 (punishment for forgery), 467 (forgery of a valuable security, will etc.), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using as a genuine a forged document) and 120 B (punishment for criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was registered against the accused. A hunt is on to arrest the accused, Partap added.
International Cyber Olympiad (ICO) 2024, under the National Education Policy 2020 and based on the curriculum provided by the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) is going to be organised for the students of Class 1-10 of the government, aided and private schools by the Cyber Olympiad Foundation (COF) . The students from Class 6-10 of the government schools can register themselves without paying any fee, meanwhile, private and government aided schools, students will have to pay  150. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

The students of Class 3-10, qualifying the first round of the examination at school level scheduled in the month of August, September, October and November this year, would be eligible for the second round at international level.

The competition is conducted every year across the globe for the students to examine their technological skills analytically and logically, to provide exposure to global educational standards, to promote security awareness and cyber safety, to foster innovation, reasoning and creativity and to prepare the students for future careers in information technology.

The winner would be chosen in three categories--school, regional and international level and the international winners would be awarded with a cash prize, with all the participants receiving e-certificates.

The students from Class 6-10 of the government schools can register themselves without paying any fee, meanwhile, private and government aided schools, students will have to pay 150.

Schools are required to register their students for the first round 15 days prior to the exam and ensure sharing the details with the headquarters of COF. The district education office has directed all the school heads to register their students for the ICO.
A day after reports of jailed AAP MLA Jaswant Singh Gajjan Majra, 61, getting VIP treatment at the Government Rajindra Hospital in Patiala for over a month surfaced, a three-member board of doctors was set up on Thursday to ascertain if he requires hospitalisation. Aam Aadmi Party MLA Gajjan Majras month-long stay in the air-conditioned wards of the Patiala Government Rajindra Hospital has sparked off a controversy, prompting it to issue fresh directions on a prisoner ward. (HT file photo)

The hospital administration said that hereafter doctors will have to seek the recommendation of the board to admit any jail inmate. Moreover, no inmate would be allowed to prolong the admission for more than seven days without the approval of the board of doctors.

If any prisoner is allowed hospitalisation beyond seven days without the approval of the board of doctors then the head of the department where the inmate is admitted will be solely responsible (for this anomaly), read the direction issued by the officiating medical superintendent.

The directions by the hospital administration were issued after the media reported on Aam Aadmi Party MLA Gajjan Majras month-long stay in the air-conditioned wards of the hospital instead of the jail since May 11.

Gajjan Majra was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a 40-crore bank fraud case on November 6, 2023. The AAP MLA was taken to hospital on May 11 after he complained of uneasiness. Dr Saurabh Sharma, head of the cardiology department, where the MLA was admitted between May 11 and June 6, did not respond to repeated calls and messages.

It is learnt that doctors of the cardiology department asked the hospital administration to ensure the discharge of the MLA as there was no medical ground to keep him admitted longer.

Even after being discharged on June 6, Gajjan Majra did not return to jail, the Patiala Central Jail superintendent, Manjit Singh Sidhu, said.

Amid the controversy, the hospitals medical superintendent Dr HS Rekhi is learnt to have put in his papers on health grounds. The resignation is yet to be accepted. Dr Rekhi was not available for comment.

Gajjan Majra was admitted in the urology department on June 7, while he was admitted to the cardiology department on May 11. Both these departments are in the air-conditioned super-specialty ward wing of the hospital.

There would be a prisoner ward wherein all jail inmates in judicial custody would be admitted.
Gurugram The accused was identified as Balwant Kataria alias Bobby Kataria, a social media influencer with a history of brushes with the law, police said. (HT PHOTO)

The Gurugram police on Monday arrested a 38-year-old man from Sector 109 on charges of human trafficking, fraud, and other offences, officers said. The accused was identified as Balwant Kataria alias Bobby Kataria, a social media influencer with a history of brushes with the law, they said.

Deputy commissioner of police (west) Karan Goel said Kataria took 4 lakh each from two Uttar Pradesh residents, Arun Kumar and Manish Tomar, promising them visas for jobs in the UAE and Singapore. The two men, however, were sent to the southeast Asian country of Laos instead, where they were assaulted and forced to work in an illegal call centre, and their passports were confiscated, he said.

Goel said that after working for two days at the call centre, Kumar and Tomar managed to flee to the Indian embassy in Vientiane, from where they returned to the country. Once in India, the victims filed a complaint at the Bajghera police station (in Gurugram) on Monday, the DCP said, adding that according to the victims, at least 150 more Indians are being held captive at the call centre.

On the basis of the complaint, a first information report (FIR) was filed against Kataria under Indian Penal Code sections 323 (causing hurt), 342 (wrongful confinement), 506 (criminal intimidation), 420 (cheating), 364 (abduction), 370 (buying and disposing of any person as a slave), and 120B (criminal conspiracy), as well as section 10/24 of the Immigration Act.

We took prompt action and arrested Kataria from a mall along the Dwarka Expressway, Goel said.

According to police, the two men were taken to the call centre  run by a Chinese firm  by a Pakistani agent. This incident has revealed Katarias Chinese and Pakistani connections that worked closely to dupe unemployed men, the DCP said.

We will produce him in a city court on Tuesday and ask for police remand while the probe is underway. We will question him to know more details of this illegal trade and his network, said Goel.

Despite repeated calls and messages, Katarias manager did not respond seeking a comment.

Kataria has a history of brushes with the law. In September 2022, he was arrested by Delhi Police for smoking inside an aeroplane. The same year, in August, a Dehradun court issued a non-bailable warrant against him after the influencer shared a video in which he was seen drinking in public and blocking a road. The case is currently pending before court.

Also in August 2022, the Gurugram police had booked Kataria for thrashing a woman and posting vulgar messages about her on social media. That case too is pending before court.

Goel said in February 2023, Kataria started a consultancy business through which he would provide employment to people seeking jobs abroad. Kumar, one of the victims, said he used to follow Kataria on social media platforms, and saw a post about a job in UAE.

I contacted him on the given number and he called me to his office in Conscient-One mall, Sector 109 on February 1. He gave me assurance of getting a job in UAE and asked to pay 2000 as registration charges. After transferring the amount, he sent me a ticket to Vientiane through his agent Shokeen. On March 28, as per the instructions of Kataria, I exchanged 50,000 to US dollars at the airport and boarded the Vientiane flight, Kumar said, adding that Tomar followed a similar process and boarded the same flight.

Upon reaching Vientiane, Kumar said, they met a person who identified himself as Abhi, along with a Pakistani agent, who dropped them off at a hotel.

The next day, Abhi booked train tickets and made us sit in the train to Navtui, where we met a person named Ankit Shokeen and Nitish Sharma alias Rocky, who took us to an office. As soon as we stepped inside, they attacked us and grabbed our passports. They coerced us into participating in cyber fraud schemes targeting Americans. Fearing for our safety and unable to resist their intimidation, we reluctantly acquiesced to their demands, he said.

For two days we worked there as they threatened to kill us but on the third day, seeing the opportunity, we both ran away from there and returned to India through the Indian embassy. After coming back, when we asked Kataria to return our money, he refused and threatened us, following which we approached police, said Kumar.
Kolkata: Trinamool Congress (TMC) legislator and Bengali movie actor Soham Chakraborty, accused of assaulting a restaurant owner at New Town on the eastern outskirts of Kolkata on June 7, was granted anticipatory bail by the Barasat court in North 24 Parganas district on Thursday in the case registered by the Techno City police station, Alok Samajpati, the actors lawyer, said. TMC MLA Soham Chakraborty (Twitter/@myslf_soham)

Chakraborty was booked under bailable sections. The court granted him bail against a personal bond of Rs.2000, Samajpati told the media outside the court.

Chakraborty moved the Barasat court a day after Anisul Alam, the restaurant owner, filed a petition before the bench of justice Amrita Sinha at the Calcutta high court, stating that he was receiving threats for filing the complaint but police were not taking any action. Alams petition is likely to come up for a hearing on Friday.

No police officer commented on Alams petition. Meanwhile, Chakraborty triggered a row among lawyers at the Barasat court on Thursday by sitting at the office of the public prosecutor till his petition came up for hearing.

How can an accused in a case filed by the state meet the public prosecutor and sit in his office? This puts a question mark on the law department, district bar association president Shibaprasad Mukherjee said.

Speaking to the media, public prosecutor Shantamay Basu, said that he and Chakraborty have known each other for a long time. I am also a TMC district leader. Soham is an MLA from my party. I have known him for a long time. I did not talk to him as the public prosecutor.

The dispute arose between the two sides over parking the cars of the TMC MLA and his aides in front of the restaurant in the New Town area near the state capital.

Chakraborty, the legislator from East Midnapore districts Chandipur, allegedly grabbed Alam by the collar and punched him in the face during a dispute over the restaurant owners objection to the actors car being parked outside the main entrance to the dining area. Alam claimed that he asked Chakrabortys security personnel to move the vehicle to the parking lot.

The sequence of events was recorded on multiple security cameras installed at the establishment. The employees claimed that they, too, were roughed up by Chakrabortys associates.

The footage was collected by the police and a case was registered on the basis of charges pressed by Alam who denied Chakrabortys allegation that he started the brawl and badmouthed senior TMC leaders.

Chakraborty, however, apologised before the media within 12 hours of the incident, saying he lost his cool and thrashed Alam during a verbal exchange.

Neither Chakraborty nor Alam could be contacted on Thursday.

The case was registered on the basis of Alams complaint and an investigation is on, an officer from the Bidhan Nagar police commissionerate said on condition of anonymity.
A fire extinguisher exploded during gas refilling at a warehouse in the Talkatora area of Lucknow, leading to the death of a man on Wednesday. For representation only (HT File Photo)

The deceased was identified as Harshit Yadav, 23, a resident of Faizullahganj, who used to work in the gas-filling warehouse situated in a house in Rajajipuram D-Block.

The family of the deceased alleged that the warehouse was being run illegally where the gas refilling was done. The owner of the company is absconding.

According to ACP Dharmendra Singh Raghuvanshi, in the initial investigation, the company has been found to have a licence.

An investigation will also be conducted regarding safety standards and how day-to-day work was carried out, he said.

After the incident, Harshit Yadav was rushed to the hospital where doctors declared him dead, said police.

The family of the deceased has accused the owner of the company of working illegally. Safety standards were ignored in the company. They used to refill expired cylinders in the warehouse and sell them in the market, said the deceaseds brother, Gyanendra Yadav.
The Uttar Pradesh government has once again warned its officers against any violation of protocol accorded to public representatives, instructing them to invite MPs, MLAs, and MLCs to official events. The officials have been directed to include the names of public representatives in government advertisements as well and failure to do so will be considered serious misconduct. For Representation Only (HT File Photo)

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If officers are found to be negligent in implementing these directives in the future, it will be treated as serious misconduct and appropriate action will be taken against them, said an order issued by Anand Prakash Singh, joint secretary, rural engineering service department.

The state governments order dated June 13, 2024, has noted that the officers posted at the state headquarter and in the districts were not seriously following the directives to invite public representatives to government programmes and mentioning their names in respective advertisements and the plaques. This is leading to an adverse situation in the department, read the government order.

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The state governments order has referred to the directives of parliamentary protocol implementation section and said the directives in this regard should be appropriately followed. Officials have been specifically instructed to take calls from MPs, MLAs, and MLCs, and if occupied in meetings, they should return the calls promptly afterwards.

Uttar Pradesh BJP vice president and MLC Vijay Pathak, who has worked as the chairman of the Uttar Pradesh Legislative Councils privilege committee, said there had been complaints that the officers were not following the protocol due to the public representatives. He said Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had also issued directives in this regard several times. Violation of protocol amounted to breach of privilege and the state governments directives should always be followed, he added.

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This is not the first instance where the state government has issued directives to officials, instructing them to show due courtesy to public representatives. It may be noted that the state government has issued multiple orders and reminders to government officers and employees to show courtesy and follow protocol. Orders were issued in this regard on January 5, 2024, November 11, 2021, May 11, 2022, June 14, 2022, and February 3, 2023.

Additionally, the state legislative assembly took serious action in response to this issue. On March 3, 2023, a retired IAS officer and five policemen were sentenced to one days imprisonment for breach of privilege. This action followed a notice given nearly two decades ago by former BJP MLA Salil Vishnoi.
MUMBAI: An article in the Rashtriya Swayavmsevak Sangh (RSS) publication, Organiser, on the performance of Maharashtras Mahayuti in the Lok Sabha elections has shone the spotlight on the discomfort within a section of the state unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over continuing its alliance with the Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party in the assembly elections later this year.

Maharashtra was one of the three states, that dealt the biggest blow to the BJP and the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) in the national elections, the first after the Shiv Sena and the Nationalist Congress Party split to team up with the BJP in June 2022.

A senior BJP leader said a decision on the next steps would be taken after the party completes its analysis of the Mahayutis losses in the Lok Sabha elections. He said the party was conducting a cost-benefit analysis of the alliance.

Also read: NCP (Ajit Pawar) picks Sunetra Pawar as its Rajya Sabha nominee

Ajit Pawar has 40-odd MLAs with him. Most of his MLAs come from western Maharashtra and pockets in Marathwada and north Maharashtra. The Lok Sabha results indicate that half of them could be in trouble in assembly elections. On the other hand, we are facing the ire of a section of voters over taking his faction along, he said.

The Organiser article reflected the unease in the Sangh Parivar over the Ajit Pawar-led NCP, arguing that the alliance with Ajit Pawars NCP had affected BJPs brand value.

Maharashtra is a prime example of unnecessary politicking and avoidable manipulations. NCP faction led by Ajit Pawar joined BJP though BJP and split SS (Shiv Sena) had a comfortable majority. Sharad Pawar would have faded away in two-three years as NCP would have lost energy with infighting between cousins. Why was this ill-advised step taken? the article, Modi 3.0: Conversation for course correction, published in the June 10 issue of Organiser, said.

The BJPs initial feedback also indicated public anger over its alliance with the Ajit Pawar-led faction and Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena. While there was sympathy for Uddhav Thackeray and Sharad Pawar among the traditional voters of the two parties, many people who supported the BJP in the past indicated they were upset about inducting NCP leaders into the alliance.

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The three-party alliance, chief minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Ajit Pawar-led NCP could win 17 out of 48 Lok Sabha seats in Maharashtra while the opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) won 30 seats. One seat went to an independent, Vishal Patil who supported Congress after getting elected. The BJP won only nine seats, and the Shinde-led Sena won seven seats. The NCP won only one of the four seats it contested.

Leaders such as Chhagan Bhujbal and Nawab Malik, who were arrested by central investigation agencies, were suddenly sitting with us and running the government. This did not go down well with the voters, the senior BJP leader quoted above said the alliance.

We are analysing what would be beneficial for us in the assembly elections: To continue in alliance with them or to let them contest separately and cut into Sharad Pawar factions votes which could help us win some seats, he added.

A second BJP leader, a state minister, said a majority of party leaders were inclined to continue the alliance with chief minister Eknath Shinde-led Sena but were sceptical about the tie-up with NCP.

Shiv Sena was our ideological ally. As such, taking the Shinde-led faction along over the issue of Hindutva can be justified. It is not the case with Ajit Pawar, the minister said.

It is easy to team up with a party on ideological grounds but it is difficult to justify alliance with a faction that talks about opposite ideology, he added.

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At a recent review meeting held by the NCP, both Ajit Pawar and Chhagan Bhujbal spoke about the need to win back the support of sections such as Dalits and minorities who had been alienated due to its alliance with the BJP.

BJP leaders said the party will assess whether the Ajit Pawar faction contesting the elections independently would hurt the prospects of the Congress and Sharad Pawar faction in the assembly elections.

The BJP-Shiv Sena alliance has a certain vote share in western Maharashtra. If there is a triangular fight and NCP manages to damage the MVA, the equation could help us win some seats. Post-elections, they can join us if we return to power, said the BJP functionary.

However, such a step could also be counterproductive.

Besides, Ajit Pawar has the support of a significant number of MLAs and many of them are capable of winning on their own which can be a benefit for the alliance in a tough election, he said. And not to forget, Ajit is a prominent Maratha face. NCP is often seen as a pro-Maratha party. If Maratha reservation continues to be an issue, having NCP on our side could be an advantage, he said.

Either way, he added that the plan would be executed closer to the assembly elections expected to be held in September-October.

Asked about the dilemma, Maharashtra BJP chief spokesperson Keshav Upadhye said Fadnavis has already said the alliance will continue. Our party is analysing the outcome of the Lok Sabha elections in Maharashtra. The reasons identified for the performance of the Mahayuti will be discussed and accordingly, the steps would be taken. The BJP has always learnt from situations it has faced and improved. That is the reason why we have grown to what we are today, he said,

Maharashtra NCP president Sunil Tatkare said the party leaders did not get an impression of any discomfort during their recent trip to Delhi. ...We met all the senior leaders of NDA such as Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, JP Nadda and even prime minister Narendra Modi. We also had discussions with them over the poll results but did not get such a feeling from any of them.

Shiv Sena spokesperson Krishna Hegde underscored that his party believed the NCP was an asset to the alliance. We differ from his thoughts (in article). Ajit Pawar is a powerful leader in Maharashtra and he will be useful to Mahayuti. His induction was with the concurrence of both parties.

(With inputs by Faisal Malik and Yogesh Naik)
Manoj Jarange-Patil, the activist who has launched a series of agitations in the past to obtain rights for Marathas, has ended his indefinite hunger strike that began on June 8, following assurances from a state government delegation to fulfil his demands within one month. Jarange-Patil warned that if the government fails to meet the deadline, he will field candidates in all 288 Assembly constituencies in the upcoming polls. Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange-Patil during his hunger strike demanding the implementation of the 'Sage Soyare' ordinance. (ANI)

The activist had been on a hunger strike in Antarvali Sarati, Jalna district, demanding blanket reservation for Marathas in the Other Backward Classes (OBC) category. He sought a law to issue OBC certificates to blood relatives of Marathas who have produced Kunbi-related documents for certification. The inclusion of Maratha sub-castes in the OBC quota could be facilitated by these certificates.

On January 27, the state government issued a notification to this effect, but the process remained incomplete due to the scrutiny of suggestions and objections. Over 800,000 such submissions were received in February and are currently under review. The government is expected to issue a final notification once the process is complete, allowing the issuance of Kunbi certificates to blood relatives as well.

Jarange-Patil's protest posed a serious threat to the ruling parties ahead of the October Assembly polls. The ruling Mahayuti alliance lost seven out of eight seats in Marathwada, believed to be due to the consolidation of Maratha votes against them.

In response, a delegation of two ministers, Shambhuraj Desai and Sandipan Bhumare, met with Jarange-Patil on Thursday afternoon, requesting a two-month extension to issue the final notification. Jarange-Patil pointed out that the government had already been given five months since the draft notification on January 27 but had taken no action. He demanded the final notification be issued by June 30, but the government delegation cited election-related duties and requested at least one month's time.

"Respecting the state government's request, I am calling off the hunger strike," Jarange-Patil said. "There is no need for two months to comply with our demand for Sage Soyare. The government should comply by July 13 or face the consequences. We will field our candidates in all 288 constituencies in the Assembly polls." He emphasised that they were not against OBC rights and prioritised social harmony.

Desai announced that the first meeting to expedite the process would be held on Friday. Deputy Chief Minister and BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis had also appealed to the activist to withdraw his fast on Wednesday.

Fadnavis stated that the government was positive about Jarange-Patil's demand and had begun the process of issuing certificates to Sage Soyares, the blood relatives of Marathas. "We will speak to the OBC leaders, including Chhagan Bhujbal, and convince them that the notification was not against the OBC quota," he said. "The notification we issued is as per the parameters given by the Supreme Court and does not lead to any injustice to the OBC. We are going to hold discussions with the OBCs and find a way out. We have been taking positive steps towards the demands by the Maratha activists since the beginning under the leadership of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde."
The police arrested two men following an encounter, in Jawaharpuram, on Thursday. The men were involved in a robbery in which a woman was injured four days ago. For representation only (HT FIle Photo)

DCP West Vijay Dhull said that one of the men, Mukesh Nishad, suffered a bullet injury in the leg following retaliatory firing by the police, after he opened fire upon the police team. His aide, Raj Kumar, has been arrested and he helped the police recover the looted goods.

The robbery had taken place near the CSJM University gate. Sajjan Khan was returning home on a scooter with his wife, Sabeeha and their two daughters. Suddenly, two motorcyclists approached from behind and snatched Sabeehas purse, causing the scooter to lose balance and crash. Sabeehas glasses broke and injured her eye on June 8. She is still under treatment at the LLR Hospital.

Five police teams were formed to track down the perpetrators. Footage from 135 CCTvs were examined that helped in precisely locating the criminals, while human intelligence helped identify them, said Dhull.

Mukesh Nishad whose pictures with local Samajwadi Party leaders are going viral, lived in Balajipuram and Raj Kumar in Sukhaupurwa.

The police said that they were spotted behind Eldeco in Jawaharpuram. The teams were dispatched and seeing the police, the criminals opened fire. Nishad was injured when the police returned fire. He has been admitted to a local hospital and will be produced before the court.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislature party leader, Pema Khandu, on Thursday took oath as chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh for the third successive term at a ceremony held in the state capital Itanagar. The BJP won 46 seats in the 60-member Arunachal Pradesh assembly. (PTI photo)

The 44-year-old was administered oath of office and secrecy by Governor Lt Gen (Retd) KT Parnaik held at the Dorjee Khandu Convention Centre.

Chowna Mein, who was the deputy CM in the previous Khandu-led governments since 2016, also took oath.

Ten other cabinet ministers were also sworn in by the Governor. Of the 10 cabinet ministers---8 are new faces. Dasanglu Pul is the lone woman minister. The other nine ministers are PD Sona, Mama Natung, Kento Jini, GD Wangsu, Biyuram Wahge, Nyato Dukam, Wangki Lowang, Balo Raja and Ojing Tasing.

While Wahge is the BJP state unit chief, Pul is the wife of former chief minister Kalikho Pul.

Sona was the Speaker in the previous assembly and Natung was the minister of youth affairs and sports.

The ceremony was attended by BJP national president and union health minister JP Nadda, union home minister Amit Shah, among other senior leaders.

Also Read: Pema Khandu named as next Arunachal Pradesh CM

Chief ministers of Assam Himanta Biswa Sarma (Assam), newly elected Sikkim CM, Prem Singh Tamang, and the two Lok Sabha MPs from Arunachal Pradesh, Kiren Rijiju and Tapir Gao, were also present.

On Wednesday, Khandu was elected unanimously as the leader of BJPs new MLAs. The party has won 46 of the total 60 seats10 BJP candidates including Khandu and Mein had won their seats unopposed.

NPP had come second with 5 seats, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) won 3 seats, Peoples Party of Arunachal (PPA) bagged 2, Congress won 1 and the rest 3 seats were secured by independent candidates.

Son of former Congress chief minister Dorjee Khandu, Pemas rise in politics began after his fathers death in a helicopter crash in 2011.

A former Congress leader, who is a graduate in History from Hindu College in Delhi, has been pivotal in BJPs ascent in Arunachal Pradesh.

Khandu belongs to the Monpa tribe, and he represents the Mukto assembly seat in Tawang, a district bordering China. He won from the seat unopposed for the first time in the bye-election held after his father death in 2011. Following his win, he was inducted in the Congress government led by Jarbom Gamlin as a cabinet minister. He became the CM after five years.
Over four years after the Naveen Patnaik government stopped the entry of journalists into the Lok Seva Bhawan, the Odisha secretariat in Bhubaneswar, the BJP government led by chief minister Mohan Majhi on Wednesday threw open the gates to media persons on the first day in office. Odisha journalists at the Lok Seva Bhawan on Wednesday (HT Photo)

Entry of journalists into Lok Seva Bhawan premises was restricted by the BJD government in March 2020 following the Covid-19 pandemic. Two years later, the ban was partially lifted for accredited journalists. However, most journalists from TV news channels and newspapers who did not have accreditation could not enter the Secretariat as the Patnaik government refused to lift the ban on their entry despite demand by opposition leaders and journalists associations.

The BJP had promised to lift the ban once they came to power.

Journalist Ramachandi Ranasingh said it was a draconian decision on part of the Patnaik government. The Fourth Estate is supposed to draw Laxman Rekha for the government. But in Odisha, the government drew Laxman Rekha, curbing its freedom in more ways than one can imagine. Today, we feel unencumbered. I am glad that the BJP kept its promise, he said.

Apart from stopping the entry of journalists, the Naveen Patnaik government in July 2022 had banned the entry of journalists in schools in some areas after news channels showed how poor students were in mathematics, triggering a political row.

In Dhenkanal, the district education officer asked block education officers and school headmasters to not allow unauthorised entry of journalists into schools and classrooms, and to report such matters to the police. A similar directive was issued in Kendrapara as well.
The bribe to swap the blood samples of a 17-year-old boy, who allegedly crashed a Porsche into a motorcycle and killed two software engineers in Pune last month, was paid at the premises of the Juvenile Justice Board (JJB), which sent the accused to detention after the incident triggered a nationwide outrage. A senior officer in the Pune police said Ashpak Makandar, who was a middleman between the teenagers family and mortuary staffer Atul Ghalkamble of the Sassoon General Hospital, handed over the bribe. The car was allegedly driven by a 17-year-old boy who knocked down two techies in Pune. (PTI)

Ghalkamble has already been arrested along with the hospitals suspended forensics department head Dr Ajay Taware and former casualty medical officer Dr Shrihari Halnor for allegedly changing the blood samples of the minor.

The accuseds mother, who was also arrested along with his father, recently owned up to evidence tampering before the police, saying she switched his blood samples to conceal the fact that he was inebriated.

The bribe by the parents was handed over to Ghalkamble by Makandar at the premises of the JJB. Investigations revealed that Ghalkamble was given 3 lakh, the officer cited above said, seeking anonymity.

Police recovered 2.5 lakh from Halnor and the remaining from Ghalkamble, the officer added.

According to police, the juveniles first blood sample was taken on May 19 at around 11am, hours after the incident, at Sassoon General Hospital. When police suspected manipulation of blood sample, another sample of the juvenile was taken at Aundh Government Hospital. A third blood sample of the juveniles father was taken and sent for DNA matching with the first sample, which revealed the first one was manipulated and the blood someone else.
The fire that killed more than 40 Indian nationals at a building housing foreign workers in Kuwait is perhaps the worst incident of its kind involving migrant labourers in West Asia in decades. Close to 200 workers were living in the seven-storey building and many of them suffocated in their sleep. The preliminary investigations done by the Kuwaiti authorities and the comments of senior officials have pointed to overcrowding in the building and the violation of safety provisions. Kuwaits interior minister has already directed authorities to crack down on all safety violations and to address the overcrowding of expatriate workers in buildings.

Unlike in the past, Indias missions in West Asian countries have comprehensive procedures to deal with such contingencies, as well as community welfare funds to meet the immediate needs of the victims of such disasters. A junior minister has also reached Kuwait to oversee relief measures and efforts to repatriate the bodies of the dead. However, the tragedy has irreversibly affected some 40 families, and the Indian authorities owe it to them to ensure that more is done to protect the rights of expatriate workers and their loved ones.

Under the kafala or sponsorship system for managing the migrant workforce in Kuwait, the employer has an oversize role in ensuring the rights and working and living conditions of the workers. Several human rights organisations have said that migrant workers do not have adequate legal protections in the country and remain vulnerable to abuse and other factors. They have also raised concerns about their living conditions. The Indian government has excellent relations with most members of the Gulf Cooperation Council. It should nudge its counterparts in the region to ensure the well-being of Indian workers. Thats the deeper healing touch the countrys overseas workforce needs.
The Bihar Technical Service Commission (BTSC) declared the results of the ITI Trade Instructors on June 13, 2024. Candidates who have appeared for the exam can check their results on the official website of BTSC at btsc.bihar.gov.in. According to the official notification, the results of the candidates who appeared for the exam on 1, 2, 3, 4, 8 and 9th of January 2024 will be published on the official website. (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

According to the official notification, the results of the candidates who appeared for the exam on 1, 2, 3, 4, 8 and 9th of January 2024 will be published on the official website.

DIRECT LINK to check score

Candidates can check their results from the official website by logging in using their credentials and obtain the information about being qualified or not qualified. Officials also informed that candidates who do not obtain the minimum qualifying marks have been disqualified.

Steps to download the scorecard:

Visit the official website of BTSC at btsc.bihar.gov.in

Look out for the link to check Trade Instructors 2024 results on the home page and click it

A new page appears and candidates will be asked to submit their login credentials like user id and password

Feed in the key details

On submitting the login credentials, candidates can view their scorecard on the screen

Verify the details on the scorecard and save the page

Download the page and take a print out of the score card for future needs

For more information, visit the official website.
NEET 2024 Live Updates: The Supreme Court has approved a re-test for 1563 candidates who were awarded grace marks in the National Eligibility cum Entrance or NEET UG 2024.

NEET 2024 Live Updates: The Supreme Court has approved a re-test for 1563 candidates who were awarded grace marks in the National Eligibility cum Entrance or NEET UG 2024. Disposing of a petition that challenged the decision of the National Testing Agency to award compensatory marks to the candidates of six centres due to lost time, the top court also allowed the proposal to cancel the existing scorecards of the affected candidates....Read More

Earlier, the Supreme Court of India had issued notice to the centre and the National Testing Agency (NTA) on a petition for the cancellation of the NEET UG result and noted that the sanctity of the medical entrance examination has been affected.

Meanwhile, the Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court asked the National Testing Agency (NTA) to produce the original records of a student who has alleged she is yet to get her NEET result.

Students, parents and educators are concerned over the NEET UG 2024 exam results. Few students scored 718 and 719 marks, and some scored 720 marks to become toppers, which was possible because NTA decided to award grace marks to them.

In a press conference conducted last week, NTAs Director-General pointed out that the decision to give grace marks was taken as per a committee's recommendation. It added that those candidates were affected by time loss due to the distribution of wrong question papers and/or torn OMR sheets.

Another four-member committee has been formed to review the issue. The agency said a final decision, including the possibility of a re-examination, will be made after the committee submits a report, which is likely within a week.

NTA also released a set of frequently asked questions (FAQs) and answers along with it to clarify the allegations and concerns regarding the conduct of the exam, rewarding of marks, compensatory marks and more.

Stay updated with the latest developments related to the NEET exam controversy below:
Studying abroad is a dream for many - for students who want to make it big in life globally, and also for parents and guardians who want to provide the best education to their wards. Moving abroad for higher studies has often been a sign of achievement for Indian students. But when doing so, what counts is the fact that students must get themselves enrolled in the right institutions abroad. Planning to move to Australia for higher studies? Check out the list of top 10 universities as per the QS World University Rankings 2025. (AFP)

Interestingly, Australia, over the past few decades, has emerged as a country that is home to several good institutions. From Engineering to B. Ed courses, or MBA - you name it! The country boasts of some of the best institutions in the world today. Several institutions have secured top ranks globally in the recently published Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) World University Rankings 2025.

To make it easier for students to choose an institution that best interests them, we have listed out the top 10 universities in Australia as per the QS World Rankings 2025. Scroll down below to check them out!

1. The University of Melbourne

With a global rank of 13, the University of Melbourne has has emerged as a leading university in Australia. The University has seen a steep rise in scores for Sustainability and Employment Outcomes, as well as Academic Reputation, Employer Reputation and International Research Network. The QS scores are given below:

Also read: QS World University Rankings 2025: University of Melbourne emerges as leading education institute, ranked 13th globally

OVERALL SCORE 88.9 ACADEMIC REPUTATION 98.5 EMPLOYER REPUTATION 93.9 FACULTY STUDENT RATIO 15.4 CITATIONS PER FACTULY 93 INTERNATIONAL FACULTY RATIO 95.1 INTERNATIONAL STUDENT RATIO 99.8 INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH NETWORK 97.4 EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES 96.5 SUSTAINAIBILITY 99.6

University website: unimelb.edu.au

2.The University of Sydney

The University of Sydney, located in Sydney has a global rank of 18 in the QS World University Rankings 2025. The university offers a diverse range of courses, including Architecture, Design and Planning, Arts and social sciences, Business, and Economics among others. Following are the latest QS Rankings:

OVERALL SCORE 87.3 ACADEMIC REPUTATION 96.4 EMPLOYER REPUTATION 90 FACULTY STUDENT RATIO 10.9 CITATIONS PER FACTULY 93.7 INTERNATIONAL FACULTY RATIO 99.9 INTERNATIONAL STUDENT RATIO 100 INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH NETWORK 95.8 EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES 93.1 SUSTAINAIBILITY 99.6

University website: sydney.edu.au

Also read: QS World Rankings 2025: MIT tops, Cambridge University loses position, check top 10 list here

3. The University of New South Wales (UNSW Sydney)

Ranked 19 globally in the QS World University Rankings 2025, UNSW Sydney too enjoys also a position of being one of the popular universities in Australia for international students seeking undergraduate or postgraduate studies. Check out the rankings below:

OVERALL SCORE 87.1 ACADEMIC REPUTATION 90.5 EMPLOYER REPUTATION 90.4 FACULTY STUDENT RATIO 20.6 CITATIONS PER FACTULY 94.9 INTERNATIONAL FACULTY RATIO 100 INTERNATIONAL STUDENT RATIO 99.4 INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH NETWORK 98.3 EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES 97.7 SUSTAINAIBILITY 99.2

University website: unsw.edu.au

4. Australian National University (ANU)

The Australian National University (ANU) located in Canberra, Australia has been ranked 30 globally. As per the website, the ANU has seven academic colleges that house several schools and research centres specialising in a range of disciplines. The rankings are given below:

OVERALL SCORE 82.4 ACADEMIC REPUTATION 93.8 EMPLOYER REPUTATION 75.4 FACULTY STUDENT RATIO 34.6 CITATIONS PER FACTULY 84.6 INTERNATIONAL FACULTY RATIO 100 INTERNATIONAL STUDENT RATIO 96.2 INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH NETWORK 91.4 EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES 56.6 SUSTAINAIBILITY 97.1

University website: anu.edu.au

5. Monash University

The Monash University is located Melbourne, Australia and is ranked 37th in QS World University Rankings 2025. Some of the courses offered by the University are Accounting and finance, Architecture, Arts, languages and humanities, Business and leadership, Computer science, and Economics among others. Following are the rankings:

OVERALL SCORE 81.2 ACADEMIC REPUTATION 89.2 EMPLOYER REPUTATION 79.6 FACULTY STUDENT RATIO 9.4 CITATIONS PER FACTULY 87.6 INTERNATIONAL FACULTY RATIO 100 INTERNATIONAL STUDENT RATIO 100 INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH NETWORK 94.8 EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES 79.4 SUSTAINAIBILITY 98.2

University website: monash.edu

Also read: QS World University Rankings 2024: Here are the top colleges to study in Ireland

6. The University of Queensland

Located in Brisbane City, Australia, The University of Queensland has been ranked in 40 in the QS World University Rankings 2025. Among the courses offered by the University are Agriculture and animal sciences, Architecture, design and urban planning. Arts, humanities and social sciences. Business and economics, Communication, media and experience design, Communication, media and experience design, Computer science and IT, Education, and Engineering, among others. The rankings are as follows:

OVERALL SCORE 80.2 ACADEMIC REPUTATION 86.7 EMPLOYER REPUTATION 74 FACULTY STUDENT RATIO 21.2 CITATIONS PER FACTULY 90.2 INTERNATIONAL FACULTY RATIO 100 INTERNATIONAL STUDENT RATIO 100 INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH NETWORK 96.7 EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES 56.7 SUSTAINAIBILITY 96.7

University website: uq.edu.au

7. The University of Western Australia

The University of Western Australia is located in Perth and is ranked 77. Among the top courses offered by the University is Global MBA an online MBA program that prepares working professionals for the modern business world. Here are the rankings of the university:

OVERALL SCORE 65.2 ACADEMIC REPUTATION 55.5 EMPLOYER REPUTATION 41.8 FACULTY STUDENT RATIO 13.1 CITATIONS PER FACTULY 98.8 INTERNATIONAL FACULTY RATIO 100 INTERNATIONAL STUDENT RATIO 99.8 INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH NETWORK 94.2 EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES 78 SUSTAINAIBILITY 50.8

University website: globalprograms.uwa.edu.au

8. The University of Adelaide

The University of Adelaide has been ranked 82 in the QS World University Rankings 2025, The University has emerged as a leading university in Australia for undergraduate and postgraduate courses. Courses offered include

Accounting and Finance, Agriculture, Food and Wine, Allied Health, Animal and Veterinary Sciences, Architecture, Arts, Biomedical Science and Biotechnology, Business, and Defence, Cyber and Space, among others. The rankings are mentioned below:

OVERALL SCORE 63.8 ACADEMIC REPUTATION 56 EMPLOYER REPUTATION 38.9 FACULTY STUDENT RATIO 17.9 CITATIONS PER FACTULY 87 INTERNATIONAL FACULTY RATIO 100 INTERNATIONAL STUDENT RATIO 99.3 INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH NETWORK 93.6 EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES 51.5 SUSTAINAIBILITY 95.7

University website: adelaide.edu.au

9. University of Technology Sydney

Located in Haymarket, Australia, The University of Technology Sydney has been ranked 88 in the QS World University Rankings 2025. The University is a hit among students seeking to study courses like Analytics and Data Science, Business, Communication, Design, Architecture and Building, Education, Engineering, Health, Health (GEM), Information Technology, and more. Following are the rankings:

OVERALL SCORE 62.4 ACADEMIC REPUTATION 43.9 EMPLOYER REPUTATION 55 FACULTY STUDENT RATIO 9.8 CITATIONS PER FACTULY 97.7 INTERNATIONAL FACULTY RATIO 96.6 INTERNATIONAL STUDENT RATIO 86 INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH NETWORK 91.4 EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES 40.2 SUSTAINAIBILITY 96.3

University website: uts.edu.au

10. RMIT University

The RMIT University is located in Melbourne, Australia, and is ranked 123 in the QS World University Rankings 2025. Some of the courses offered by the institution include Architecture, Art, Aviation, Biomedical sciences, Building, Business, Communication, Design, Education, Engineering, Environment, Fashion, Health, and Information technology. The rankings are as follows:

OVERALL SCORE 55.5 ACADEMIC REPUTATION 40.4 EMPLOYER REPUTATION 48 FACULTY STUDENT RATIO 5.2 CITATIONS PER FACTULY 77.7 INTERNATIONAL FACULTY RATIO 100 INTERNATIONAL STUDENT RATIO 91.4 INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH NETWORK 83.2 EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES 38.4 SUSTAINAIBILITY 93.9

University website: rmit.edu.au
The Osmania University, Hyderabad, has released the results of the Telangana State Law Common Entrance Test (TS LAWCET 2024) and the Telangana State Postgraduate Law Common Entrance Test (TS PGLCET 2024) today, June 13, 2024. Candidates who appeared in the examination can check their results by visiting the official website of TSCHE at lawcet.tsche.ac.in. TS LAWCET and TS PGLCET results 2024 have been released. Check scores via direct link here

Alternatively, candidates can also click on this direct link to check their scores.

Notably, to pass the TS LAWCET and TS PGLCET exams, candidates need to score at least 35 per cent of marks (42 marks out of 120). For candidates belonging to the Scheduled Castes (SC) and Scheduled Tribes (ST), there are no cut-off marks prescribed.

Also read: TNEA 2024 certificate verification begins on tneaonline.org, direct link here

It may be mentioned here that the TS LAWCET and TS PGLCET exams for undergraduate and postgraduate law course admission were held on June 13, 2024, in three sessions - 9 am to 10.30 am, 12.30 pm to 2 pm and from 4 pm to 5.30 pm.

Furthermore, ranks and scores obtained by the candidates in TS LAWCET are used for admission to the three-year and five-year law courses offered by participating institutions in Telangana.

Also read: SC allows cancellation of NEET results for 1563 candidates, re-exam to be held

Likewise, the ranks and scores obtained by the candidates in TS PGLCET are used for admission to the LLM courses offered by those institutions.

How to check TS LAWCET, PGLCET Results 2024 on the website:

Go to the official website of TS LAWCET and PGLCET at lawcet.tsche.ac.in.

On the home page, click on the TS LAWCET or PGLCET result 2024 link.

Enter the login credentials and submit.

Check the results displayed on the screen.

Verify the details and save the page

Download the page and keep a printed copy of the same for future reference.

Also read: Assam CEE Result 2024 Date: Scores of entrance test likely on June 18 at astu.ac.in, says ASTU
Kangana Ranaut contested on BJP ticket and recently won the Lok Sabha elections 2024 from the Mandi constituency. In an interview with The Himachali Podcast, the actor-turned-politician shared that working in films is much easier than that in politics. She also said that she had received offers to join politics in the past as well. (Also read: Kangana Ranaut wants to normalise obsessive work culture for country's growth: Stop waiting for weekends) Kangana Ranaut at the oath-taking ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.(ANI)

What Kangana said

During the interview, Kangana said in Hindi, This is not the first time I was approached to join politics. I have received several other offers in the past. After my debut Gangster, I was offered a ticket. My great-grandfather was an MLA for at least three terms. So when you belong to such a family, and taste some success, the local leaders approach you. It is very common. In fact, my father had also received an offer. My sister was offered to join politics after she survived an acid attack. So for us, it is not a big deal for us to get political offersIf I wasnt interested in this, I didnt really have to go through so much trouble.

On politics and films

She also added, "I am a person who goes with passion. Even in the film industry, I am an actor, writer, director and producer. Here in my political career, if I have to engage myself with the people here, I will go ahead with it. There is no compulsion. However, I wont deny that the work in the film industry is comparatively easier than in politics. The latter takes a lot of effort. This is a harsh life, just like doctors, where only troubled people come to see you. When you go to watch a film, you are very relaxed. But, politics is not like that.

BJP candidate Kangana won in the Mandi Lok Sabha seat by a margin of 74,755 votes against her Congress rival, Vikramaditya Singh. She was slapped by a CISF officer at the Chandigarh airport a day after the win. She also released a video after the incident, assuring her followers that she was safe and unharmed. She will be next seen in Emergency.
Bollywood filmmaker and producer Karan Johar filed a lawsuit in the Bombay High Court on Wednesday against writer-director Bablu Singh, producer India Pride Advisory, and Sanjay Singh, of the upcoming movie Shaadi Ke Director Karan Aur Johar, which is all set to release on June 14. Johar sought a plea for an immediate prohibition of the release. Additionally, the Kill movie producer has filed an interim application seeking suspension of the film's release during the ongoing litigation. The plea is presented before the single bench of Justice RI Chagla. Karan Johar's name is directly in the movie title and all promotional materials.

Detrimental to Brand KJo

The Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahani director asserts that he has no affiliation with the film and that the makers are unlawfully exploiting his name without authorisation. Since Karan Johars name is explicitly mentioned in the title, the movie capitalizes on his name and exploits his brand, reputation, and, image. With the distribution of public promotional assets such as the trailer and the movie posters visibly carrying his name, the plea claims that it has caused severe damage to Johars name and goodwill.

He cited it has breached his right to privacy, right to publicity, and, personality rights. Even though the name Karan Johar is not together in the title Shaadi Ke Director Karan Aur Johar, given the producers stature in the media, it is implicit who is being referred to in the movie title.

Karan Johar's work front

Karan Johars newly produced film Kill, starring Laksh Lalwani, is all set to release on July 5th, 2024. The producer called it, Indias most violent movie. Kill also premiered last year at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF). Recently, he produced Siddhart Malhotras Yoddha and Sara Ali Khans Ae Watan Mere Watan. The 52-year-old producer-director has an interesting lineup in 2024 and 2025 with Takht, Bad News, Jigra, Indian 2, Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari, and The Bull. The famed producer donned the directors cap in Rocky aur Rani kii Prem Kahani in 2023, after a long time.
Rashmika Mandanna often interacts with her fans on social media. The actor has now reacted to a fan comment based on her character Gitanjali from her last release Animal, in which she played the wife of Ranbir Kapoor's Rannvijay. Even if the fan thought that there is nothing scarier than trusting a man, Rashmika corrected them in the comments. (Also read: Rashmika Mandanna reacts to Animal being called misogynistic: If you enjoyed the film) Rashmika Mandanna as Gitanjali in a still from Animal.

What Rashmika commented

On X, a fan posted an edited video from the film Animal, where Rashmika's character is seen suffering after having trusted the man she thought would be loyal to her. The video summarised how Rannvijay had a loyal wife in the form of Geetanjali, yet he fell in love outside marriage, and had a relationship with Triptii Dimri's Zoya in the film. When Geetanjali comes to know about this, it causes her a lot of pain.

The fan shared this video and wrote, Remember nothing is scarier than trusting a man This video caught the attention of Rashmika, who replied: Correction : trusting a stupid man = scary.. there are a lot of good men also out there.. trusting those men = special. (heart reaction emoticon)

More details

Earlier, Rashmika had described her character Gitanjali from Animal in a lengthy note, saying: In a world full of all violence, hurt and unbearable pain - Gitanjali would bring peace trust and calm. She would pray to her Gods to keep her husband and her kids safe. She was the rock that weathered all the storms. She would do anything in her power for the sake of her family. Gitanjali is absolutely beautiful in my eyes, and in some ways she is like most women who are standing strong and protecting their families day in and day out.

Animal features a lot of violence amid the setup of a gang war. It focuses on a troubled father-son relationship between Anil Kapoor, who plays Balbir Singh and Ranbir Kapoor as his son. The film collected above 500 crore net in Hindi and alsobecame the second-highest net grossing Hindi film in India.

She will soon be seen in Pushpa: The Rule opposite Allu Arjun. She also has The Girlfriend, Rainbow in Telugu, apart from Chaava in Hindi.
Los Angeles, Hollywood star Russell Crowe says he feels a "tinge of jealousy" that he won't be starring in the "Gladiator" sequel but he is also a bit "uncomfortable" about some of the aspects in the new movie. Russell Crowe on 'Gladiator' sequel: I'm slightly uncomfortable that they're making another one

In the 2000 blockbuster period drama "Gladiator", Crowe played the role of Roman general Maximus Decimus Meridius. He earned the best actor Oscar for his performance in the Ridley Scott directorial.

Scott is returning to helm the sequel starring Paul Mescal, known for "Normal People" and "Aftersun".

While he has no say in the new "Gladiator" movie as his character dies at the end of the original movie, Crowe said he was unsure about the "moral journey" of a particular character.

Im slightly uncomfortable with the fact theyre making another one  because, of course, Im dead and I have no say in what gets done. But a couple of the things Ive heard Im like  no, no, no, thats not in the moral journey of that particular character. But I cant say anything, its not my place, Im six feet under. So well see what that is like, the 60-year-old said on the "Kyle Meredith With" podcast.

The actor, who was 36 when "Gladiator" released, said he fondly remembers the time he shot for the film. The epic historical drama proved to be a turnaround for Crowe.

It does, in a funny way  I reflect back: the age I was when I made that film and all the things that came after it, the doors that particular movie opened for me. This is just me being purely honest: theres definitely a tinge of melancholy, a tinge of jealousy, he said.

I remember when I had tendons, he then quipped.

In a previous interview, Crowe said he felt slightly jealous that he isnt a part of the sequel.

The first "Gladiator" film followed Crowe's Maximus, who after being forced into slavery, vows revenge against the usurper crown prince Commodus for the murders of his family and the king.

Its sequel would be centered on the character, Lucius, the son of Lucilla , whos Maximus's former lover and the sister of Commodus. Also starring Denzel Washington and Joseph Quinn, the film will hit the screens on November 22.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Teen Mom star Amber Portwoods partner Gary Wayt has been reported missing, shortly after which Portwood broke her silence. The Bryson City Police Department in North Carolina on Tuesday, June 11, announced on Facebook that 39-year-old Wayt was last seen on Sunday, June 9, in the Arlington Ave. area of Bryson City. Amber Portwood speaks out after partner Gary Wayt goes missing (realamberlportwood1__/Instagram, Bryson City Police Department/Facebook)

Wayt reportedly weighs 205 lbs, has bald hair and brown eyes. Authorities said he owns a grey 2009 Nissan Rogue SUV with Indiana state registration plate WLH 616. They urged anyone with information to call 828488-2196 and ask for Chief Robinson or Assnt. Chief Dover.

We are very scared right now

Portwood has now broken her silence, saying in an emotional video posted to YouTube Wednesday, June 12, This is a huge deal, his parents, everybody is very worried. I am worried.

There was not a big blowout fight or anything like that, OK. He is a missing person right now, she added.

The 34-year-old added that cops know everything about her partners disappearance. She added that Wayt left the North Carolina house they were staying at, but left his phone behind. He was later spotted at Walgreens, she claimed.

Portwood explained that Wayt took his wallet and keys with him. However, he does not have a GPS in his car so he may not be able to find his way around.

We are in the mountains, Portwood added. He has never driven in the mountains. We are very scared right now.

The reality star tearfully added, Nobody has found or heard from him yet. Im trying my best to not think the worst. I have not ate [sic] in three days. I slept maybe an hour.

I am not what people have been saying about me

While some reports claimed Portwood and Wayt had a huge argument before the latter went missing, Portwood dismissed the claims. I am not what people have been saying about me all of these years, she said, possibly referencing a past incident where she was accused of attacking her former boyfriend Andrew Glennon with a machete. I changed a long time ago, OK, you have to understand this. Please listen to what I am saying, I am an honest person to you guys, she added.

We have not had explosive fights. We are very in love, this man asked me to be with him, this man then asked me to marry him, Portwood continued.

She added, I have not touched this man in any horrible way. He does not touch me in any horrible way. We do not yell at each other  Please understand this, people change.

Portwood confessed that the pair had an emotional conversation about his parents being Vietnamese and herself being the person she is, without providing any more details. She asked fans to pray for Wayt, saying he is the best man shes ever been with.

Wayt went missing shortly after it was reported that he and Portwood were engaged. Theyve been in couples therapy and talk about everything, the insider recently shared, according to Page Six. Theyre being very proactive in their relationship and are doing the work to prevent problems before they start. The pair met in 2023 on a dating app.
Actor Joju George was injured while shooting for Mani Ratnams Kamal Haasan-starrer Thug Life. Onmanorama reports that the actor was filming a stunt in Puducherry when he was injured. He was rushed to the hospital, and the doctors suggested bed rest. (Also Read: Kamal Haasan gives a fiery speech at Indian 2 event: This is my country and) Joju George and Kamal Haasan in the posters of Thug Life.

Joju George injured

The publication wrote that Joju performed a stunt which required him to jump from a helicopter with Kamal and Nassar. The accident happened when he tripped and fell, injuring his left foot. Joju was taken to the hospital for treatment, and the doctors suggested a week of bed rest. However, the report states that Joju returned to sets with his fractured foot in a cast and completed shooting for his portion per schedule.

Joju Georges Tamil films

Joju is known for his work in Malayalam cinema. He debuted in Tamil with Jagame Thanthiram, directed by Karthik Subbaraj for Netflix India. He also acted in the 2022 Tamil anthology series Putham Pudhu Kaalai Vidiyaadhaa for Prime Video India in the segment Mouname Paarvayaai and the theatrical film Buffoon. Thug Life is his fourth project in the language. Joju even debuted in Telugu in 2023 with Aadikeshava.

Mani on collaborating with Kamal again

In January this year, Mani was talking at the CNN-News18 Indian Of The Year 2023 event. When Mani was asked why it took so long to collaborate with Kamal after 1987s Nayakan, he said, Its tough when you have an actor of that capability, someone who has done several things. So unless you have at least something halfway solid to give, you dont go to him just because youve worked together before. Hopefully, we will now be able to bring a unique character on-screen in our next.

About Thug Life

Thug Life also stars Trisha, Gautham Karthik, and Aishwarya Lekshmi. Composer AR Rahman, cinematographer Ravi K Chandran and editor Sreekar Prasad form the crew. The film marks Kamal and Manis reunion after 36 years.
Even as most of the film industry stays calm since Kannada actor Darshan was taken into custody in an alleged murder case, director Ram Gopal Varma took to X (formerly Twitter) to share his thoughts. Without naming the actor, he also spoke about how star worship can go a little too far in India. (Also Read: Kannada actor Darshan arrested for fan's alleged murder: Timeline of a murder mystery straight out of movies) Ram Gopal Varma shared his views on Darshan's alleged murder case.

RGV on Darshans case

The irony of Darshan allegedly using one fan to kill another fan was not lost on the director. RGV also wrote about how fans also take it a little too far in a bid to see their favourite stars lead a particular life.

He wrote, A star using one die hard fan to kill another die hard fan who was interfering in his personal life is a fit example of the bizarreness of the star worship syndrome ..Fans wanting to order how their stars should run their lives is a unavoidable side effect of the same syndrome.

While RGV did not name Darshan in the tweet, fans deduced that it was about the Sandalwood actor and Pavithra Gowda case. I think this is about Kannada actor Darshan and Pavitra Gowda arrest, wrote a fan, while another commented, You are talking about dboss Darshan and Renukaswami murder incident.

Darshan-Pavitras case

For the unversed, actors Darshan and Pavitra were arrested by the Bengaluru police on June 11 for the alleged murder of a man called Renukaswamy. Renukaswamy was a fan of Darshan and had allegedly sent abusive texts to Pavitra after she shared on Instagram that she and the actor had been in a relationship for a decade now. Darshan has been married to Vijayalakshmi since 2003.

When Darshan found out about the messages, he allegedly contacted Raghavendra, who heads his fan club in Chitradurga, and asked him to bring Renukaswamy to Bengaluru. The police state that Renukaswamy was then taken to a shed in RR Nagar, where he was assaulted and killed before his body was dumped in a drain near Summanahalli on June 8. His body was found on June 9.

15 arrests made

The police have made 15 arrests, including those of Darshan and Pavitra. According to PTI, Darshans close aide Nagaraj and co-star Pradosh have also been taken into custody.

Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) President N M Suresh said that a decision regarding taking action against Darshan will be taken after discussion with the artists' union. He indicated that action will most likely be taken only after the police file a charge-sheet in the case.
The world of education demands constant reforms, upgradation, and freshness to engage and inspire young minds. Todays children are already exposed to a plethora of information via technology at a very early age and hence are more explorative. Also, with the mass penetration of social media, their lives are exposed to unaccounted, unfiltered information that may not all be authentic but has an influence on their minds. Education ((PIC FOR REPRESENTATION))

Education needs to be holistic and in tune with the requirements of the generation and the changing environment. It is essential to enable young children to not only widen their intellectual spectrum, but also shape their character and identify their role and purpose in life. Each child is unique. As Swami Vivekananda said, We want that education, by which character is formed, strength of mind is increased, intellect is expanded and by which one can stand on one's on feet.

We all know that education is the single best investment a country can make to build an equitable society. The education policies of the past changed not only the medium of instructions but also the quality of what was being taught, how it was being taught, and had less relevance to us. Consequently, we moved away from our roots, our identity, our uniqueness.

In 2020, we got a new National Education Policy which aimed to address many of the concerns of citizens and to create a new system that is aligned with the aspirational goals of 21st century education, while remaining consistent with Indias traditions and value systems. Quality education being of utmost importance, the NEP 2020 emphasises the importance of ensuring that children are provided quality education right from the foundational stage, through the development of Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN) skills, to enhance their learning outcomes. The launch of the NIPUN Bharat Mission in 2021, with the goal of ensuring 100% FLN proficiency amongst all grade 3 children by 2026-27 is nothing short of a paradigm shift in the way education is being channelised.

Delivering quality education necessitates ensuring quality in everything that the government provides--good schools, good learning materials, good teachers, good training as well as a good process of governance, from infrastructure to output. As a critical step towards ensuring minimum standards of quality in education, the establishment of an independent regulatory body called the State-Standards Setting Authority (SSSA) in every state was envisaged. The objective of SSSA is to ensure compliance with essential quality standards through an effective self-regulation/accreditation system for all stages of education, for all types of schools. By holding all types of schools to uniform standards SSSA reduces the asymmetry in the current regulatory system and aims to bring fairness. While the mission operates across all states/Union Territories, several states have independently championed the cause of FLN through the launch of dedicated state-FLN missions and programmes.

Assam is one of the states which has been pioneering the reforms as envisioned in NEP 2020; and this endeavour in educational reform is contextualised within a historical narrative marked by challenges in literacy rates, inadequate infrastructure, and regional disparities. Not only has Assam been consistently allocating NEPs recommended budget outlay of 6% of Gross Domestic Product on education it has been actively working on imparting the requisite FLN skills to all children in mission mode, through the launch of a dedicated National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy (NIPUN) Axom Mission, since 2021. The commitment of the state towards imparting the highest quality of education in the schools is also evident in its efforts to measure the impact of implementing NIPUN, setting defined targets, and ensuring accountability in improving learning outcomes.

Interestingly, a state with great linguistic diversity, Assam is the only one in India to initiate primary education in six different languages, six different mother tongues of ethno-linguistic groups comprising the Bodos, Koch Rajbanshis, Deori Kacharis, the Adivasi tea labour community, and even Nepali settlers. This can well be replicated elsewhere.

By leveraging the momentum generated by NEP 2020 along with the demonstration of will amongst the top political leaders, including the chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, and education minister Ranoj Pegu, Assam can pave the way for a brighter future for its children and may become one of the leading states when it comes to school education reforms.

This article is authored by Mita Nath Bora, convener, policy research, BJP Assam Pradesh and member, Assam State Youth Commission.
Actor Darshan Thoogudeepa, best known by fans as Challenging Star Darshan, was arrested on Tuesday for the alleged murder of 33-year-old Chitradurga resident Renukaswamy. The actor, who is being held at Bengaluru's Annapoorneshwarinagar Police Station, was taken into custody from his farm house in Mysuru. According to the Commissioner of Police B Dayananda, the victim allegedly shared lewd messages with Darshan's rumoured girlfriend Pavithra Gowda on social media. The 47-year-old actor, married to Vijayalakshmi Darshan, was informed about the same and the rest is history. Darshan and rumoured girlfriend Pavithra Gowda are in a six-day police custody currently

The body of Renukaswamy was spotted by a food delivery agent under Sumanahalli Bridge and reported it to the police immediately. The suspects first taken into custody, who are allegedly a part of Darshan's fan club, spilled the beans and mentioned the involvement of the actor in the case.

Recent updates on the case

Darshan is being questioned by the police as he is held in a six-day custody. About 13 people have been arrested, including the actor and his rumoured girlfriend Pavithra Gowda. Section 144 has been imposed around the police station where he is being interrogated and the premises have been cordoned off to avoid any mob or protest gatherings. When reached out to the police station, we were informed of no communication with media by an officer at the station.

According to reports, Darshan allegedly offered to pay 5 Lakhs each to three men to take the blame for the case. The case also stirred the internet on Tuesday evening when boxes of biryani were pictured being taken into the police station, arising the speculation that the actor and his aides were feasting in jail. However, Bengaluru police later denied those claims according to a news report, where they stated that the biryani was for the police kabbadi team and that Darshan merely ate idlies for dinner.

As of now, Vijayalakshmi has deactivated her social media profiles but not before she unfollowed Darshan's accounts on Tuesday evening.

On Wednesday, the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce is set to hold a meeting to discuss their stand on Darshan after a protest broke out in the state demanding a ban on the actor and calling for justice. Since the issue, Sandalwood actors have been largely silent. When we reached out to several actors, HT City was met with refusal to any sort of comment.

Darshan's extra-marital affair?

Earlier this year, Pavithra Gowda shared a video on Instagram celebrating a decade of togetherness with Darshan. The video, which caused quite a stir on the internet, contained photos of the two together during holidays and intimate events such as birthdays. In the caption, Gowda wrote, One decade down, forever to go. Its been 10 years of our relationship. Thank you. She also added, Vijayalakshmi knows about my relationship with Darshan and she has told me several times that it is okay. Now, people are abusing me and my teenage daughter, which is causing me mental pain.

In response to the video, Vijayalakshmi shared a post of Pavithra and her husband, Sanjay Singh, along with their daughter, Khushi Gowda with the caption, I hope this woman has to come into her senses before posting somebody elses husband picture, it talks about her character and moral standing, knowing that the man is marrried she still choose to come and stay for their own personal needs and agenda These images clearly show kushi gowda is the daughter of Pavithra and sanjay Singh.I generally dont take social media to raise voice over personal issues but I feel now its time to raise my voice in the best interest of my family. Will take strict legal action against people who are trying to give a different image to the entire society (sic)

Many fans voiced their opinions on the issue, with most taking sides. Here 2 women fighting for 1 man. when will they understand???? You shld shame/condemn/fight against ur husband bcz he the one cheating u .... Instead of pointing ur fingers at that lady ..... If not her another ll come .... Try to keep ur husband with u or officially get seperate....(sic)," said one user while another speculated, Pavithra gowda is second wife of Darshan so he shld reveal that and without Darshan support Pavithra gowda wont post any pictures like that so clarity shld be given by Darshan (sic)

When reached out to Vijayalakshmi, we were informed by a close friend that it was not possible to get in touch with her about the issue.

Past marital controversies

Darshan married Vijayalakshmi in 2000, and have a son, Vineesh, together. However, the actor has found himself on the wrong side of law in the marriage. In 2011, the actor was arrested on charges of allegedly assaulting his wife after she filed a complaint for the same. In 2016, Vijayalakshmi also reported objectionable behaviour displayed by Darshan.

Not just marital issues, the Kaatera, Daasa, and Kariya actor has also faced charges on various other accounts.

Assault, blasphemy and more

Darshan was among eight people who appeared before the police for partying past 1am, in January 2024. It followed a noise complaint where the partygoers claimed that they had met to celebrate the success of his recent film Kaatera.

The actor's Mysuru farm was also raided by forest officials in 2023 after a video of him speaking about housing four bar-headed geese from Mongolia surfaced. In 2023, Darshan also found himself in trouble with the law after his dogs attacked and bit his neighbour, a lawyer, over her car being parked outside his house. The complaint that was filed alleged his involvement in the situation.

The same year, Darshan also enraged fans for making a blasphemous comment during the promotions of him film Kranti where he was recorded telling the media, The Goddess of Luck does not always come knocking on your door. So, when she does come, grab her, drag her, and lock her in your bedroom without giving her clothes.

Ongoing projects on hold

Darshan is currently working on a film titled Devil: The Hero alongside actors Rachana Rai and Mahesh Manjrekar. The film is Manjrekar's comeback to Sandalwood after 19 years. The film, directed by Prakash, is still underway as it had to be paused in March after Darshan sustained injuries to his hands. Until the time of publishing, we were met with no comments from Rai or Manjrekar on the situation.
All week long, fans have been reading reports of Sonakshi Sinha and Zaheer Iqbals impending nuptials. While some were convinced these were just rumours, others showered the happy couple with love. An audio invite to their wedding celebration bash has now gone viral on social media. In this short clip, Sonakshi and Zaheer reveal they have been together for the last 7 years. Longtime lovers of Bollywood

They go on to confirm how they are becoming each others definite and official husband and wife from rumoured boyfriend-girlfriend. Well, as we wait for wedding pictures, lets revisit other celebrity lovers who dated for many years before taking the plunge:

Deepika and Ranveer

Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh started dating in 2012 while shooting for Sanjay Leela Bhansalis blockbuster hit Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela. They kept it low-key but 6 months down the line Deepika knew Ranveer was the one. The love birds got secretly engaged in 2014 before tying the knot in 2018 in a grand wedding ceremony in Lake Como. This year the couple will welcome their first child into the world

Deepika and Ranveer during their wedding celebrations

Anushka and Virat

It was in 2013 that Anushka Sharma met Virat Kohli for the first time on the set of a commercial. They soon fell in love and began dating, but kept their personal life private. It came as a big surprise to fans when the love birds got married in 2017 in an intimate ceremony in Tuscany, Italy. After giving birth to their daughter Vamika in 2021, Anushka announced the arrival of her second child with Virat this year. They have named their son Akaay

Sidharth and Kiara

Another star couple, who kept their relationship under wraps till their wedding day, is Sidharth Malhotra and Kiara Advani. The two began dating shortly after their 2021 film Shershaah went on floors. It was in 2023 that they decided to take the plunge with a grand wedding ceremony in Rajasthan

Alia and Ranbir

Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor never hid their relationship. But they werent extremely open about it either. They fell in love soon after they started shooting for Ayan Mukerjis Brahmastra: Part One  Shiva (2022), which took over 5 years to complete. Months before the release of their passion project, Ranbir and Alia tied the knot in their Bandra home. Later that year the couple became proud parents to their daughter Raha Kapoor

Kareena and Saif

The royal couple, Kareena Kapoor Khan and Saif Ali Khan fell head over heels in love while shooting for their 2008 film Tashan. They dated for four long years before getting married in 2012. Today, they are busy living their fairytale with two beautiful sons who have been named Taimur Ali Khan and Jehangir Ali Khan

Well, we wish Sonakshi and Zaheer a happily ever after, much like the ones the star couples on this list found.
Ajay Devgn and Tabu recently attended the trailer launch of their upcoming film, Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha, directed by Neeraj Pandey. Also starring Jimmy Shergill, Shantanu Maheshwari and Saiee Manjrekar, the film is slated for a release on July 5. As Ajay and Tabu gear up for the release of their next big banner project, now is a good time to take a walk down memory lane revisiting the 9 projects the duo have collaborated on over the past 30 years. Ajay Devgn and Tabu in a still from the Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha trailer

Ajay Devgn and Tabu at the trailer launch for Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha

Vijaypath

Farogh Siddique's Vijaypath released in theatres on August 5, 1994, marking Ajay Devgn and Tabu's first ever film together. Tabu's role in the film being largely ornamental, Ajay lead Vijaypath as police officer Karan  an immensely dedicated man of law whose father, also in the same profession, met his end as a result of it. The premise of the film largely focuses on Karan taking on Jay Singhania, a corrupt politician essayed by Danny Denzongpa.

Ajay Devgn and Tabu in a still from their first film Vijaypath (1994)

For fans of 90s melodrama, Vijaypath is available for streaming on ZEE5.

Haqeeqat

The very next year, Ajay and Tabu returned to the screens with their December release Haqeeqat. For all practical purposes, the Kuku Kohli film carries a near-identical plot to Vijaypath, save for the emotional triggers.

The film is available for streaming on Disney+Hotstar.

Thakshak

It would be 4 years before Ajay and Tabu would reunite on screen with 1999 release Thakshak. The Govind Nihalani film was centered around the theme of terrorism. Ajay interestingly essays the role of an artist in the film, sheltered from the worries of the world. Tabu essays Suman, his love interest who helps him broaden his vision of the world, a development also triggered by a bomb blast and him bearing witness to its aftermath.

Ajay Devgn and Tabu starred together in Thakshak (1999)

Thakshak is available for streaming on MX Player.

Drishyam

Arguably their most popular film together to-date, Drishyam released in 2015. A remake of the Mohanlal starrer 2013 Malayalam film of the same name, both Ajay and Tabu essay the role of dedicated parents willing to go to the ends of the earth to protect their respective children. Flipping the script from the actor duo's previous collaborations, Tabu assumes the role of IG Meera Deshmukh, adamant on getting to the root of her son's sudden disappearance.

Nishikant Kamat's Drishyam is available for streaming on Disney+Hotstar.

Fitoor

To be clear, Abhishek Kapoor's Fitoor (2016) is not a Ajay and Tabu starrer. Inspired from Charles Dickens' Great Expectations, the film stars Aditya Roy Kapur and Katrina Kaif. Tabu essays the role of Begum, mother to Katrina's Firdaus. Ajay Devgn on the other hand makes a cameo as Mirza Moazzam Baig.

Tabu and Ajay Devgn in Fitoor (2016)

The film is available for streaming on Netflix.

Golmaal Again

Rohit Shetty's Golmaal Again (2017) is a significant milestone in Ajay Devgn and Tabu's list of collaborations simply for the fact that it is their first light-hearted venture as opposed to the aforementioned list of dramas. Ajay reprises his role of Gopal while Tabu plays second fiddle as Anna Matthew, who runs the orphanage the chaotic group of friends land up at.

The film is available for streaming both on Disney+Hotstar as well as Amazon Prime Video.

De De Pyaar De

Taking their experimentation with light-hearted films a step further, Ajay and Tabu next joined forces for Akiv Ali's De De Pyaar De (2019) also starring Rakul Preet Singh. The actors essay the role of a divorced couple, with Rakul playing a much younger love interest to Ajay in the film. De De Pyaar De manages to put across some fun and frothy commentary on the nature of evolving romantic relationships and the idea of finding 'the one'.

The film is available for streaming on Disney+Hotstar.

Drishyam 2

Ajay's Vijay Salgaonkar and Tabu's Meera Deshmukh lock horns once again as the plot of Drishyam (2015) is taken forward in 2022 release Drishyam 2. The supporting cast, made up of Shriya Saran, Ishita Dutta and Rajat Kapoor to name a few, too effectively reprise their roles in this sequel that manages to pack a punch. Interestingly, Akshaye Khanna joins the franchise as IG Tarun Ahlawat.

The Abhishek Pathak directorial is available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

Bholaa

Directed by Ajay Devgn himself, the primary theme of Bholaa (2023) is a father-daughter relationship. The actor stars in the titular role as a man released from a decade-long stay in prison after having been convicted of a crime he did not commit. The high on action film sees Ajay's Bholaa fight all odds to reunite with his daughter. Tabu essays the role of SP Diana Joseph.

Bholaa is available for streaming on Amazon Prime Video.

Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha will be rounding up this illustrious list come July.

Have you watched the film's trailer yet?
From funky casuals to chic couture, Radhikka Madan likes to experiment with her fashion choices, and she inculcated this habit early on. I always wore what I felt like wearing. I didnt care about trends and felt very uncomfortable when I tried to be somebody else. Even now, if I try to follow somebody, I dont enjoy it. I have different versions of myself which I try to express through fashion, says the Pataakha girl. Radhikka ups the glamour quotient in an apple-red, jamdani silk saree from Asha Gautam. The luxurious saree showcases intricate floral motifs in real gold and silver zari, complemented by meenakari work. The designer will participate in FDCI Manifest Wedding Weekend(Photographer: Vidhi Godha)

Radhikka Madan looks every inch the modern bride in a dupion lehenga, paired with an embroidered brocade blouse with a waist-tie and cascading crystals, from Anju Modi. We styled the actor's look with traditional polki matha patti, bangles and finger rings from Kishandas & Co. The designer will participate at the FDCI Manifest Wedding Weekend to be held on August 3-4 at Taj Palace Hotel, New Delhi (Photgrapher: Vidhi Godha)

Madan admits that Shiddat (2021) changed how her style was perceived, but it was unintentional. She insists, I equally liked Sarikas chashma in Angrezi Medium (2020) and Supris stole in Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota (2019). Shiddat got a lot of love, but the intention wasnt to up the glamour quotient. Yet, she admits that her look in the song Chitta, did become a trend: My makeup artist got a lot of requests from brides to do the same look.

Radhikka cuts an elegant figure in a powder pink lehenga embroidered with pearls, sequins and Swarovski crystals from Ruchika Hurria, paired with a sleeveless blouse with crystal and pearl embellishment. Her hair has been styled in middle-parted waves, making it perfect for an engagement and pre-wedding functions (Photographer: Vidhi Godha)

Her acting journey has also been as interesting as the 29-year-old shifted to films from TV and she admits, It was relatively tougher, and it is like that for anyone coming from outside. I have been insecure, and I have seen things not work out, but I have had the patience to wait.

The actors first film was MKDNH which took her to film festivals. "I didnt even know what festivals were before as I was a hardcore commercial girl who grew up on Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Kal Ho Naa Ho and Andaz Apna Apna. It agitated me, but Vasan (Bala, director) sir, Vishal (Bhardwaj, filmmaker) sir and Homi (Adajania, director), they set the base for me. If not for them, I dont know what my career graph would have been, she asserts.

Embracing modernity with elegance, Radhikka looks arresting in a bottle green, pure silk saree with satin edges. Her WeaverStory saree is draped in the most alluring way, sans blouse, making the look uber-glam. Your cocktail look is sorted with this saree draping (Photographer: Vidhi Godha)

During this journey, Madan has had incidents where she has been put under the radar. Ask her how she pulled herself out of it and she says, I wont lie, there are days when I feel extremely low and there is self-doubt. There are days when you literally have to force yourself out of bed. It is extremely tough, but later you realise that period was a gift. After every such period, I realise my performance becomes more mature in whatever I do next as there is a lot more fire and zeal, she says.

Last year, Madan got the Best Actress award at New York Film Festival for her upcoming film Sanaa, and it opened her up to newer things. It reinstils the faith in your craft and gives you a new perspective. Now when I act, I see a film in its entirety. Its not just about me and my craft, she says, adding that Sanaa has changed me as a human and as an actor.

The actor unleashes her playful side in a ruffled saree from Karishma Deepa Sondhi, paired with a cold shoulder blouse, embellished with crystals and stones. The tassels on the sleeves add to the drama of the outfit. A pearl choker rounds off her look(Photographer: Vidhi Godha)

Madan has Sarfira releasing next month opposite actor Akshay Kumar, and it still feels surreal to her. Sometimes its hard to believe its happening. I have to keep reminding myself as it doesnt sink in. I am waiting for the trailer to come out and I am sure when it does, I will be balling, she says, adding that while the hunger to prove herself drives her, it also keeps her from acknowledging her efforts. My parents and friends tell me that I should be proud of myself, but I keep thinking about what more I can do. That drive takes over any other feeling. I know that I need to balance it out, but I dont do that. Hopefully, Ill soon be able to do that, she admits.

CREATIVE DIRECTOR: SHARA ASHRAF PRAYAG

PHOTOGRAPHER: VIDHI GODHA

STYLIST: NIDHI AGARWAL

ASSISTANT STYLIST: PAVITRA KHANDELWAL AND SAKSHI SARDAA

MAKEUP: RITIKA VATS HAIRSTYLIST: SHIVANI SHETTYE

PRODUCTION: AKASH BHATNAGAR

LOCATION: RADISSON BLU MUMBAI INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

RADHIKKAS PUBLICISTS: IDHYAH MEDIA, SANCHITA TRIVEDI
Kohima In a first, 238 women candidates are among the 669 that have filed their nomination papers for the ensuing elections to Nagalands long overdue urban local bodies (ULB). Tuesday was the last day for filing nominations. Neikeleno Nino Zhasa, is an Independent candidate, who is contesting the civic polls. (HT photo)

The state last held civic polls in 2004; the long delay in holding the same for its 39 ULBs were due to issues surrounding reservation of seats for women and property taxation. The states advocate general had earlier in April assured the Supreme Court hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Peoples Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) that elections for the states 36 town councils and three municipal councils would be completed with 33% reservation for women by June .

The elections have been scheduled for June 26.

The reservation of seats for women in loca bodies came after the 74th Amendment to the Constitution of India. This was followed by the Nagaland Municipal Act of 2001, which implemented these quotas. But tribal organisations opposed this for two reasons: one, they argued that it violated the special provisions granted by Article 371A of the Constitution to Nagaland; and two, they claimed that women had never been part of such bodies in the state.

The issue went all the way up to the Supreme Court. Nagaland is the only state that had not implemented the quota.

As per data provided by the state election commissioner (SEC) T John Longkumer, out of the total 238 women candidates across the state, 24 are contesting in state capital Kohima, where they outnumber male candidates (17). The ruling Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) is fielding the highest number of candidates among political parties with 256, out of which, 96 are women; 75 women are contesting independently out of 210 independent candidates.

While the majority of the states population is heaving a sigh of relief at the ULB polls being conducted, theres been reports of tense situation in the six eastern districts of Mon, Tuensang, Longleng, Kiphire, Noklak and Shamator, where around 60 candidates have filed nominations.

People of the six districts, under the aegis of the Eastern Nagaland Peoples Organization (ENPO), have a standing resolution to abstain from participating in any central or state election till the time the issue of the creation of autonomous Frontier Nagaland Territory (FNT) is settled by the Union Home Ministry.

According to government officials familiar with the matter, 61 candidates (38 men and 23 women) have filed their nominations in Mon, Longleng, Shamator and Kiphire districts.

ENPO on Tuesday evening directed the citizens of eastern Nagaland to remain calm and maintain peace and tranquility. It urged its affiliated tribal bodies to deal with the situation cautiously in order to avoid any misunderstanding and confrontation.

Earlier, citizens of the six eastern districts abstained from the April 19 parliamentary elections . ENPO, representing the tribes of Konyak, Chang, Phom, Yimkhiung, Khiamniungan, Sangtam, Tikhir and eastern Sumi, has a total of over four lakh voters, 20 assembly seats and 14 town councils.

Meanwhile, womens rights activists and women candidates have voiced their appreciation that the civic polls are finally underway.

The entry of women candidates into reserved wards for women as well as into open wards in municipalities and towns in Nagaland is an important phase for Naga women. After 20-plus years of not holding municipal elections, the outcome of the ULB elections will herald the development of our towns. The active participation of women in the urban decision making bodies is what we envisioned when we moved as the Joint Action Committee on Women Reservation (JAWCR). Our struggle has been long but worthwhile, said Rosemary Dzuvichu, one of the women who spearheaded the fight for implementation of the quota for women in civic bodies.

She added that it must not be forgotten that the opportunity has arrived because of a long legal battle for their constitutional rights in the highest Apex Court of the country. I am reminded of the loss of strong women leaders like Temsusola and Kalesha Kath, who have not lived to see this day. May their spirits rest in peace now that their struggle for Naga women was not in vain.

For 50 years-old widow and mother of four, Aleno Nienu, who will be contesting in a reserved ward in Phek town, all women who get elected under reserved seats irrespective of political affiliation should remember the scarifices that made this possible.

Recalling that the state had faced much violence from those who opposed reservation in the past, she said it is pertinent to thank the Naga Mothers Association (NMA) who initiated the JACWR to fight for 33% women reservation and all the other civil society organizations that supported this demand.

I am also grateful to the state government for implementing women reservation and enabling this opportunity for us though late, says Nienu, who will be contesting on Naga Peoples Front (NPF) ticket against a ruling Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party (NDPP) candidate.

For Thenusou Sekhose Yhome, a human resources professional who has an extensive experience on sanitation and water issues under the Swaach Bharat Mission, Nagalands urban towns have missed many opportunities due to the almost-two-decades struggle over reservation of seats for women. Yhome is contesting in a general seat in state capital Kohima on NDPP ticket against a male opponent from National Peoples Party (NPP).

Her vision includes bringing inclusive policies that would benefit all sections of the society towards enhancing the quality of life and achieving vibrant community evolvement.

Neikeleno Nino Zhasa, who is also contesting independently from a general ward in Kohima against two male opponents, says Naga women are second to none when it comes to capabilities. Improving sanitation, water supply, electricity and health of the community will be her priority as a councillor if elected, she said.

For 39 years-old Meweu Lasuh of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), a candidate for a reserved seat in the states commercial hub Dimapur, the quota for women  is a gateway for us to stand and serve our localities and there is so much to be done, Lasuh, a state BJP mahila vice president,is in a multi-cornered fight against three other candidates.She added that Dimapur is an expanding city with the localities struggling with perennial drainage and electrical wiring issues. These will be the first issues I would see to. There is so much to do and I want to do so many things for my community but I dont want to make tall promises.

National Peoples Party (NPP) candidate Macieno Swu, a graduate from Delhi University with 10 years of experience in HIV and AIDS programs, opines that the quota for women in decision making bodies will do away with gender inequalities that have long been prevalent in the society. Today, in every other field, we find more and more women in the frontlines which is very encouraging, she said . She stated that she decided to contest in the municipal elections despite having no political background because she aspires to bring the grassroots and the vulnerable communities at par with the mainstream.

64 years-old Tokheli, who has the distinction of being the first woman chairperson of a village council in Nagaland and is contesting in a general ward in Dimapur, says it is a privilege to serve the community.

I have been working with the people of this ward for many years. Reservation or no reservation, I cannot abandon my supporters to whom I have pledged my service and time, she told HT. She has served as her village chairperson for a record three consecutive terms and is presently a vice president of NDPP.

When asked about her vision for her municipality, she said one of the first things she would like to address if she wins is to be the guardian of the non-local residents and businessmen who consists of the majority voters in here ward.
Forty-nine people, including 42 Indian nationals, were killed and dozens more injured on Wednesday in a devastating fire in a building in southern Kuwait housing foreign workers, with local authorities detaining the buildings owner as part of an investigation into potential negligence. Smoke billows after a fire broke out in a building, in Mangaf, Kuwait, on Wednesday. (PTI)

The fire in Al-Mangaf building, a residence for workers, was reported to authorities in Al-Ahmadi governorate at 4.30am and most of the deaths were due to smoke inhalation while the residents were asleep, Kuwaiti media reported.

Kuwaits interior ministry put the death toll at 49. People familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity that 42 Indians were among the dead. The rest of the dead were from Egypt, Nepal, Pakistan and the Philippines, they said.

NBTC group, an engineering and construction firm partially owned by an Indian national, had rented the building to house more than 195 workers, most of them Indians from Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and some northern states. Those who died ranged in age between 20 and 50 years, and a majority of the Indian who died or were injured were from Kerala, the people said.

More than 50 people were injured and officials took some time to gather details about the casualties as the dead and injured were taken to several hospitals.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a meeting at his official residence to review the incident and directed the government to extend all possible assistance to the victims. He announced ex gratia relief of 2 lakh to the families of the dead Indian nationals from the Prime Ministers Relief Fund, an official statement said.

Minister of state for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh was directed by Modi to travel to Kuwait to oversee relief measures and to facilitate the expeditious repatriation of the bodies of the dead. The people said Singh is expected to leave for Kuwait early on Thursday.

Modi also expressed his deep sorrow at the unfortunate incident and extended condolences to the families of the dead. He also wished for the speedy recovery of the injured.

External affairs minister S Jaishankar, MoS Singh, National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra, and other senior officials attended the meeting.

The Amir of Kuwait, Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmed Al-Jaber Al-Sabah sent a cable of condolences to the families of the victims. He directed authorities to ascertain the cause of the fire and to hold those responsible accountable.

Earlier, Jaishankar expressed shock at the deaths in the fire incident in Kuwait in a post on X. Deepest condolences to the families of those who tragically lost their lives...Our Embassy will render the fullest assistance to all concerned in this regard, he said.

Oil-rich Kuwait has large numbers of foreign workers, many of them from South and Southeast Asia, and mostly working in construction or service industries. The Indian community, with a strength of about one million, is the largest expatriate community in Kuwait. A large proportion consists of unskilled and semi-skilled workers

The Indian ambassador to Kuwait, Adarsh Swaika, visited the site of the fire to gather information. Swaika also visited three hospitals where the injured were taken and assured them of the full support of Indian authorities.

Eleven injured Indians were taken to Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital, and 10 of them were released later in the day. Six more injured people were taken to Farwaniya Hospital, and four of them were subsequently released while one was shifted to Jahra Hospital. More than 30 injured Indians were taken to Al-Adan Hospital, and officials said most of them were in a stable condition.

Footage shared on social media showed huge flames and black smoke coming out of the building as firefighters attempted to control the blaze.

The Indian embassy said in a post on X that it is in touch with Kuwaiti law enforcement, fire service and health authorities for necessary action and emergency medical care.

Kuwaits interior minister Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah, who visited the scene of the fire, said the buildings owner was detained in an investigation into potential negligence. He also ordered police to apprehend the owner of the company responsible for the workers living in the building.

What happened today is a result of the greed of company and building owners, Al-Sabah was quoted as saying by Kuwait Times.

Kuwaits public prosecutor launched an investigation to uncover the circumstances behind the incident and the cause of the fire, state-run KUNA news agency reported.

The interior minister also ordered the Kuwait municipality and the public authority for manpower to take immediate action to address similar violations where large numbers of workers are crammed into one residential building, and to ensure that all safety requirements are in place to prevent similar incidents.

Saud Al-Dabbous, director general of the Kuwait Municipality, issued orders to suspend several officials, including the deputy director general for Al-Ahmadi governorate, the acting director of Al-Ahmadi municipality, the director of the audit and engineering department, and the head of the violations removal department.
At least five people were killed and five injured in an explosion at an explosives manufacturing factory in Nagpur's Dhamna, city police commissioner told ANI. Police personnel present at the site of blast at an explosive factory in Nagpur.(X/ANI)

About 4-5 people died in this incident, including 4 women. Our investigation is ongoing. Our team, crime branch and senior officers are present on the spot, action is being taken, police commissioner Ravinder Singhal told ANI.



As per the report, the blast took place at Chamundi Explosive Pvt Ltd at Dhamna village under Hingna police station limits, around 25 km from the city.

The explosion took place around 1 pm when the workers were packing explosives, said a local police official, PTI reported. Bodies of workers have been brought to a hospital for postmortem.



It is unfortunate that six people died in Nagpur. I am very sad and I express my condolences, Union minister and Nagpur MP Nitin Gadkari was quoted by PTI as saying.



NCP-SCP leader Anil Deshmukh said that the manager and owner of the unit are absconding.

"This incident of the explosion took place in an explosive unit near the village Dhamna. The incident took place in the afternoon. The manager and owner of the unit are absconding. The injured have been sent to the hospital for treatment... A team from the explosive department is here and further investigation is underway," the former Maharashtra home minister told ANI.



Last month, at least five people were killed and 56 severely injured after a major fire broke out in the industrial area of Dombivli in Thane district on May 23. Massive smoke was witnessed after a boiler blast at the Amber Chemical Company.

Maharashtra minister Uday Samat had reached the spot and firefighting attempts went on for hours.



In another incident, a worker died and four others were injured in a series of explosions at a chemical factory in Thane on January 18, PTI had reported. Due to the blast, fire broke out.

Tempos and vehicles parked outside also caught fire as some chemicals filled in drums exploded and spilt, a fire official had said.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday appointed Ajit Doval as his National Security Advisor (NSA) for the third consecutive time, with the rank of cabinet minister for another five years. NSA Ajit Doval (File Photo)

As his first major assignment in Modi 3.0, Doval will be travelling with the PM to Italy on Thursday for the G7 Summit. He also attended a review meeting chaired by the PM on the fire tragedy in Kuwait in which 42 Indians have died and many were injured.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Shri Ajit Doval, IPS (Retired) as National Security Adviser with effect from 10.06.2024. His appointment will be co-terminus with the term of the Prime Minister or until further orders, whichever is earlier, a notification issued by the Centre stated.

During the term of his office, he will be assigned the rank of Cabinet Minister in the Table of Precedence, it added.

Doval, a former Indian Police Service (IPS) officer who retired in 2005 as head of Indias domestic spy agency, Intelligence Bureau, was Modis first choice to advise him on security when he first assumed office in May 2014. Since then, Doval has been credited for Indias national security policy, right from the handling of the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, the recent resurgence of Khalistani activities from certain countries in the West, New Delhis deepening relationship Arab countries such as the UAE and Saudi Arabia as well as dealing with Pakistan and China.

During his two previous stints, India introduced an element of unpredictability, with Pakistan, with armed forces carrying out cross-border strikes  in 2016 after the terror attack on the Uri Brigades HQ and the air strike on Jaish-e-Mohammed camp in Balakot in Pakistan after the February Pulawama suicide attack.

A 1968-batch Kerala cadre officer, Doval was the first police officer to be awarded the second-highest peacetime gallantry award for his role in Operation Black Thunder-II, launched to flush out militants from the Golden Temple in 1988.

Prime Ministers principal secretary PK Mishra has also got an extension. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved the appointment of Dr. P.K. Mishra, IAS (Retired) as Principal Secretary to Prime Minister with effect from 10.06.2024. His appointment will be co-terminus with the term of the Prime Minister or until further orders whichever is earlier....During the term of his office, he will be assigned the rank of Cabinet Minister in the Table of Precedence, says the notification issued by the Centre

Mishra had been working with Modi since he was the chief minister in Gujarat and had been in the PMO since Modi assumed office in 2014.
All the four gates of of Puri's Jagannath Temple have been opened for the devotees on Thursday, June 13. Chief minister Mohan Charan Manjhi, along with his ministers, Puri MP Sambit Patra, Balasore MP Pratap Chandra Sarangi and other leaders also arrived at the temple in the morning. Odisha's newly formed Bharatiya Janata Party government had announced to open all the gates of the revered shrine. Jagannath Temple in Puri, Odisha.(File)

Manjhi, in its first cabinet meeting on Wednesday, approved the proposal to reopen all the gates of the holy shrine for devotees, which had been closed since the Covid-19 pandemic.

The cabinet also announced the setting up of a corpus fund worth 500 crore for the 12th-century shrine's upkeep and development.

"During the elections, we had said that we would reopen all 4 gates... All four gates of the temple are going to be opened today. All members of the Council Ministers are present here. The CM is also present... A corpus fund worth Rs. 500 crores has also been announced for development projects... We took the oath yesterday and we are opening the gates today," Odisha minister Suryabanshi Suraj said to ANI.

There are four gates of the temple-- Simhadwara (Lion Gate), Ashwadwara (Horse Gate), Vyaghradwara (Tiger Gate),and Hastidwara (Elephant Gate)  located on the four sides of the temple. The doors were shut during the Covid pandemic. Later, the devotees were allowed to enter the temple through Simhadwara, while other gates remained closed, resulting in huge rush and long queues. Opening all the gates of Jagannath Temple was among the big election promises of the BJP.

The state government decided to re-open all the four gates of the Puri Jagannath temple in early morning in the presence of all ministers. Devotees will have access to the temple through all four gates, Majhi said.

Meanwhile, the Odisha cabinet has also approved a new policy for farmers, setting a minimum support price (MSP) for paddy at 3100 per quintal, to be implemented within the next 100 days. Another notable initiative, the Subhadra Yojana, will provide cash vouchers of 50,000 to each woman, with directives given to the concerned department to roll out this program in the same timeframe.

On Wednesday, Majhi took oath as the first BJP chief minister of Odisha at a ceremony in Bhubaneswar, which was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, several Union ministers and chief ministers.
Delhi water minister Atishi on Wednesday said that chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is lodged in Tihar jail, has instructed all MLAs to go to their areas and try to solve the water shortage in the capital. Delhi's water minister Atishi during a press conference.(HT photo)

Atishi said she was given the direction when she went to meet the chief minister in Tihar jail.

Today I came to meet Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, first of all, he asked about electricity and water supply, Atishi was quoted as saying by ANI. He said that whatever steps are needed should be taken. He has instructed the MLAs to go to their areas and solve the problem.

Kejriwal is lodged in Tihar's jail number 2 in the excise policy-linked money laundering case. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested him on March 21.

The Supreme Court granted Kejriwal interim bail for 21 days on May 10 for campaigning in the Lok Sabha elections. He surrendered at the Tihar jail on June 2.

Water crisis in Delhi



Several parts of Delhi have been facing an acute shortage of water supply amid an unprecedented high summer heat.

The crisis resulted from reduced water levels in the Yamuna River and technical issues at key water treatment plants.

This disruption has left several areas with little to no water supply, forcing people to rely on tankers and borewells.

Also Read | Delhi minister's big allegation on Haryana amid water crisis in Capital

The Delhi government has filed a plea seeking direction to Haryana to release the surplus water provided by Himachal Pradesh to the national capital to mitigate its water woes.

On Thursday, the Delhi Police began patrolling the Munak canal area to check the activities of tanker mafia.

Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena on Wednesday directed the Delhi Police chief to ensure a strict vigil along the Munak canal to prevent the theft of water and sought an action taken report within the week.

Delhi minister Atishi also inspected a pipeline network supplying water to South Delhi residents as the water crisis in the city worsened.
The West Bengal CID on Wednesday revealed fresh, chilling details in the murder case of Bangladeshi MP Anwarul Azim Anar. According to the investigators, the MP, who was confirmed to have been murdered last month, was smothered with a pillow soon after he entered a flat in New Town in Kolkata. Bangladeshi lawmaker Md Anwarul Azim Anar.

After killing Anar, the accused chopped his body into several small pieces, put them into plastic bags, and then dumped them off in various parts of the New Town area and Bagjola canal before fleeing to different hideouts, an arrested accused Mohammad Siyam Hussain told the police, news agency PTI reported.

The accused also reportedly claimed that some parts of the MP's body were put into the trolley suitcase and then dumped near the Bangaon border with Bangladesh.

Hussain, who was arrested in Nepal, admitted to the police that there was a woman who helped the other accused in strangulating Anar. Reportedly, the woman is the girlfriend of Akhtaruzzaman, a US national and allegedly the prime accused in the case.

The Bangladeshi MP, who was on a personal visit to India, was reported to be missing on May 18 from Baranagar in North 24 Parganas. On May 22, the Dhaka and West Bengal officials confirmed that he was murdered.

Following this, the Dhaka police and West Bengal CID launched an investigation, and five people, including three in Dhaka, were arrested.

On June 9, one of the accused led the CID to a bank of a canal in South 24 Parganas, from where they recovered the bones of a male human. Two days later, it was revealed that the police recovered a few kilos of flesh from the septic tank of the apartment in North 24 Parganas.

Preliminary reports have confirmed that the flesh belongs to a human being. We will now go for the DNA tests to confirm whether it belongs to the Bangladesh MP. That will take some time, a CID official said.

Meanwhile, an initial probe revealed that the MP's close friend, Akhtaruzzaman, had paid around five crore to those involved in the crime. Notably, Akhtaruzzaman has a flat in Kolkata, however, he is likely to be living in the US at present.

(With inputs from PTI)
BJP leader Suvendhu Adhikari and alleged victims of post-poll violence were prevented from entering Raj Bhavan by the Kolkata Police on Thursday, citing section 144 of the Criminal Proecedure Code (CrPC), according to PTI. BJP's Suvendhu and 'post-poll violence victims stopped from entering Raj Bhavan (PTI)

PTI reported that they were scheduled to meet the West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose to demand justice for the alleged victims of violence so they could return home, but as Adhikari's car entered the Governor House, the police stated that section 144 was in effect and large gatherings were prohibited.

Read more: More Mamata harasses Suvendu, higher position BJP would give him, says Amit Shah

Adhikari, the leader of opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, said that he would move the Calcutta High Court against the Kolkata Police for arbitrarily stopping him, according to PTI.

In the PTI report, he also said, I have waited for more than one hour but the police are not allowing us inside. The Governor gave me an appointment and the police had the audacity to violate his instructions. I also communicated with the Governors office. As the police have stopped me from entering the Raj Bhavan premises, the Governors ADC told me that a report has been sought from the state government".

In response to the use of Section 144 against large gatherings PTI reported that Adhikari said, We were not conducting any rally here. We have brought around 200 victims (of post-poll violence), whom the Governor allowed to come to Raj Bhavan.

Read more: Bengal BJP seeks governors intervention after post-poll violence reports

We have also got a considerable amount of votes and 12 Lok Sabha seats in Bengal. The TMC government cannot behave in such an authoritarian style that they are not allowing us to enter the Raj Bhavan as the police look after the premises outside the Governors House, he added, according to PTI.

An unnamed BJP leader, according to PTI, also accused the Kolkata Police of double standards, stating that, We fail to understand how there are two sets of rules. Last year, Abhishek Banerjee organized a sit-in outside Raj Bhavan. There was no Sec 144 violation at that time, but as we want to meet the Governor, there is a violation of prohibitory orders."

The BJP has accused the TMC of post-poll violence against the state's ruling party TMC, which they denied.

Read more: TMC, BJP gear up for bypolls at Bengal assembly seats won by turncoats

According to PTI, TMC leader Kunal Ghosh commented on the accusation and said, Allegations of TMC unleashing post-poll violence are completely wrong. It is the other way around. TMC workers have been attacked, beaten up and also killed in areas where the BJP has won the election. In Purba Medinipur district's Khejuri, our party workers have been beaten up and rendered homeless.

The Trinamool Congress, led by Mamata Banerjee, won 29 out of 42 Lok Sabha seats in West Bengal. The BJP, on the other hand, got 12 seats in 2024 as compared to 18 in 2019.
The Border Security Force (BSF) conducted an operation in Kupwara, Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday and seized a major shipment of arms, ammunition, and explosives, according to ANI. BSF seizes arms, ammunition and explosives in Kupwara, Jammu and Kashmir (PTI Photo) (PTI)

According to ANI, officials stated that this operation was an essential to prevent potential terrorist activities in the area.

Read more: Jammu and Kashmir: How was Kathua tragedy averted? Police say terrorists asked for water

ANI reported that a joint checkpoint, staffed by BSF personnel, was established at the Reddi Chowkibal market, based on information from the BSF and the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Kupwara.

The search operation led to Shabir Ahmed, an overground worker (OGW) from Kupwara, being caught by the BSF. ANI reported that, the BSF found one pistol, one pistol magazine, 10 rounds, four hand grenades and two Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) in Shabir Ahmad's possession.

According to ANI, reliable sources say that that the terrorists planned to use these explosives and weapons to attack the upcoming Shri Amarnath Ji Yatra in Srinagar and areas around it.

Read more: PM Modi reviews security situation in J&K after series of terror attacks

The Amarnath Yatra is a 52 day pilgrimage which will begin on June 29 from Kashmir's Pahalgam and Ganderbal districts.

The BSF said that the operation has managed to significantly damage the plans made by certain terrorist groups based out of Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), whose aim is to cause disruption in the peace in the Kashmir valley, according to ANI

ANI reported that this successful mission showcases the coordinated effort and alertness of the BSF, Indian Army and the Jammu and Kashmir police, in safeguarding the region and keeping it secure.

Read more: Jammu and Kashmir: More terrorists could be hiding; police say check vehicles before

The mission comes at a time where Jammu and Kashmir has faced terror attacks in Reasi, Doda and Kathua. Search operations are ongoing to find the culprits of the three attacks.

Security arrangements have been made by the Jammu and Kashmir police in light of these attacks and to prepare for the celebrations associated with the Amarnath Yatra, Mela Kheer Bhawani and Eid, according to a Times of India report.
Former chief minister of Karnataka and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader BS Yediyurappa approached the high court on Wednesday seeking annulment of a Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) case filed against him, hours after the state Criminal Investigation Department (CID) summoned him in connection with the case. Yediyurappa has contended in his appeal to the HC that the complaint contains no elements of a crime. (PTI)

The Bengaluru police had filed a case under the Pocso Act, 2012 (Pocso), against Yediyurappa on March 14 on the basis of a complaint by the 17-year-old survivors mother. The mother had filed a complaint against the BJP leader alleging sexual assault during a meeting in February.

Yediyurappa, disputing the allegations, has contended in his appeal to the HC that the complaint contains no elements of a crime.

On March 15, responding to the allegations, Yediyurappa had said, I have come to know that a complaint has been filed against me by a woman. It must have been about a month, they used to visit but I didnt pay attention. But one day, when I told them that they were crying, I called them and asked what happened. They told me they had been wronged. I then called the police commissioner (B) Dayananda and asked him to hear them out and do the needful.

But then she started talking against me then and there. I thought she was unwell and asked the police commissioner to investigate. Now this has been twisted and made into an FIR. We will do what is legally required. I didnt think helping someone would result in this. I had even given some money to them as well. But we will contest legally, he added.

On Tuesday, the survivors brother approached the court, urging for an expedited investigation. This plea comes in the aftermath of their 56-year-old mothers death on May 26.

The petition, filed on June 10 by advocate S Balan on behalf of the minors family, requested Yediyurappas arrest. According to people familiar with the matter, the family expressed frustration over the lack of progress in the investigation, even after two months since the case was registered.

According to the petition, there has been progress in the investigation even after two months of the registration of the case. Accused was not arrested and not even 41(A) notice (notice to appear before police) was given, hence this petition as there is no efficacious remedy other than approaching this Honble Court for invoking its extraordinary writ jurisdiction, the petition stated.

It also pointed out that the survivors mother had previously appealed to the chief justice of Karnataka HC for a central bureau of investigation (CBI) probe into the matter.

Following this, the CID issued a notice requiring Yediyurappa to appear for questioning on June 12. According to officers, Yediyurappa, who is currently in Delhi, is yet to respond to respond to the notice. The notice, issued under Section 41(a) of the Criminal Procedure Code, mandates an accused to appear before the police for non-cognizable offences that do not require immediate arrest.
New Delhi The Supreme Court on Wednesday lamented that Delhis drinking water crisis cannot be solved unless there is action taken against the recurring water transmission losses and the tanker mafia operating in the Capital, and sought a report from the Delhi government on the action taken in this regard within 24 hours. Residents of Vivekanand Camp filling water from a water tanker in Chanakyapuri area on Wednesday. (Sanjeev Verma/HT Photo)

At the same time, the bench pulled up the Himachal Pradesh government, suggesting it was in contempt of court for not releasing 137 cusecs of additional water to the Hathnikund Barrage that it had said it would during a previous hearing on June 6.

A vacation bench, headed by justice PK Mishra, asked Delhi: If this is the problem faced every summer, what measures have you (Delhi government) taken to prevent transmission losses. Have you taken any action against a single tanker mafia for unauthorised supply of water?

It also issued a stern warning to Himachal Pradesh. Where is the excess water coming to Delhi? the court asked the state government. On the day we passed the order (June 6) you produced a document to show there is excess of 137 cusecs. Why was a false statement made before this court?

The top court was hearing a petition filed by the government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (GNCTD) for surplus water from Haryana and Himachal Pradesh to tide over the drinking water crisis faced by citizens amid heatwave conditions in the city.

Posting the matter for Thursday, the bench, also comprising justice PB Varale said, It is inefficiency of the system that this is happening every year. We are trying to find a solution to Delhis water crisis. Even if 30-40% water is being lost, if we can save at least 10% of the water lost, it can benefit citizens.

Drawing a direct link between the tanker mafia and the prevailing crisis, the bench said, Due to the tanker mafia there is so much of water losses. Has the government taken any action against them? If you are not taking action, then we will hand over the case to the Delhi police to investigate.

Giving a days time to provide details of the steps taken, the bench ordered, The GNCTD shall file an affidavit on the measures taken by it to prevent loss of water.

The Delhi government, represented by senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi and assisted by advocate Shadan Farasat, said it had no hesitation in filing the report as action had been taken against pilferage. We have taken action against them (tanker mafia) and against pilferage of water, we have disconnected many water connections. Even spraying of water to control dust pollution has been stopped to save water. We will put it in a report, Farasat told the court. The bench allowed GNCTD to file the report either by end of the day or by Thursday morning, well before the hearing commences.

The court referred to certain visuals shown on TV of tanker mafia supplying water in some of the colonies and wondered how this was possible when pipelines in Delhi are running dry. Farasat said that these tankers are of Delhi Jal Board (DJB) which supplies water to remote colonies in the city.

We do not know whether they are DJB tankers. But people are suffering. In every TV channel there are visuals of tanker mafia in Delhi while the pipeline has no water. There are stringent measures in place for stealing electricity. Similar steps should be there for pilferage of water. You file the report, we will take up the matter tomorrow, the bench said.

The court then pulled up the Himachal government for going back on its statement given on June 6 to release surplus water of 137 cusecs as a temporary arrangement to help Delhi tide over its drinking water crisis. This water was to be released to the Hathnikund Barrage (HKB), and the Haryana government was asked to make suitable arrangements for the onward supply of water to Delhi through Wazirabad water treatment plant.

The Haryana government told the court that no water was released by Himachal Pradesh, as a letter written to it by Himahal government on June 6 suggested that 137 cusecs of Himachals water share was already flowing uninterruptedly to HKB. This was at variance from what the Himachal government told the court on June 6 that it had excess unutilised water of 137 cusecs which it can spare for Delhi.

The court told advocate Anup Kumar Rattan, appearing for the Himachal government, You keep your officer who presented the chart to us showing excess of 137 cusecs present in court. If you have excess water then you are in contempt of our order. If 137 cusecs is already flowing to HKB, where is the question of any fresh supply or excess measurement of water? Be ready, we will send your officer straight to jail.

Delhi government also sought to raise the issue of insufficient supply of water by Haryana at Munak canal by citing a May 2018 order of the Upper Yamunal River Board (UYRB) fixing 1,013 cusecs of water to be received by Delhi at the Bawana water treatment plant. Singhvi gave a chart showing that the actual water received at Munak canal has been varying between 800 to 900 cusecs to show Haryana to be at fault.

Senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for Haryana, objected to Delhi expanding the scope of the proceedings where the court had to monitor supply of surplus water of 137 cusecs from Himachal to Delhi. He said that for any additional demand, the matter should be pursued by Delhi before UYRB, an expert body, where the issue is already pending.

The affidavit filed by Haryana on Tuesday referred to huge transmission losses in Delhi.

The present scarcity of water in Delhi has been largely created by Delhi itself. It has failed to cut down on its distribution losses, control on the tanker mafia, politely put as pilferage, and also regulate the per capita water requirement of its citizens which is higher than the national average for urban areas, the affidavit said.

As per the Economic Survey of Delhi 2023-2024, the total distribution losses of DJB are at about 52.35%, Divan added. This would mean that from every litre of treated water, more than half a litre is vanishing due to the internal distribution limitations and shortcomings which despite several years of caution, are not being addressed, the state affidavit said.

The Delhi government brushed aside these concerns, claiming that the average national transmission loss is over 50%. Singhvi said, It is easy to shout at losses being 50%. But let us see the losses in Haryana and the national average.

The court, however, said: Even if some provision is made for providing surplus water to Delhi, if the transmission losses continue, then half of the surplus water will also go waste... By now, we have come to know what is happening.
Hundreds of people, mostly Dalits, took to the streets in Gujarats Gondal, about 250 kilometers from Ahmedabad, against the alleged caste-based attack on a functionary of the Opposition Congresss student wing National Students Union of India (NSUI). People from around 200 villages participated in the protest. (HT PHOTO)

Sanjay Solanki, the NSUI functionary, alleged he had been kidnapped and taken to a deserted farm in Gondal, where he was threatened with a firearm in the presence of ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmaker Geetaba Jadejas son, Jyotiradityasinh, 25, who was were arrested on June 6

The First Information Report filed in the case quotes Solanki saying some of those at the farm forced him to remove his clothes while others recorded videos of the alleged assault. Jyotiradityasinh earlier had an altercation with Solanki on May 30 over the formers reckless driving.

Yuva Bhim Sena Gujarat founder DD Solanki, who was among those who took to the streets, on Wednesday, said they organised a rally to send a message against an attempt by Jyotiradityasinhs father Jayrajsinh Jadeja, and his men to silence Gondals people by muscle power. We will not be intimidated. For the first time, the Jadeja family has faced such a public protest.

The protesters demanded action against Sanjay Solankis attackers, a fast-track court for the speedy disposal of the case, and an end to lawlessness in Gondal.

Around 10,000 people from around 200 villages participated in the protest. In response, Jayrajsinh Jadejas supporters called for a bandh in Gondal, resulting in the closure of the local market for the day.

Jayrajsinh Jadeja maintained they had not given any bandh call but were thankful to the people who shut shops on their own. The bandh was peaceful. I am thankful to all communities, including the Dalits, who have supported the bandh call, and their leaders did not join the rally...the people of Gondal will answer.

He refused to comment on the allegations against his son. Some of the people in the rally made some allegations, but I would not like to comment on such people, and there is a difference between them and me. I have full faith in the law, and that justice will be delivered.

Jayrajsinh Jadeja, who was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2017 for the murder of a real estate agent in 2004 and is out on conditional bail, has dominated politics in Gondal since 1998. He was elected to the Gujarat assembly from Gondal thrice in 1998, 2002, and 2012 before losing in 2007. His wife, Geetaba Jadeja, won the assembly seat in 2017 and 2022.
Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa whipped 33-year-old Renukaswamy with a belt till he lost consciousness, before his associates beat his limp body with a stick and then flung him against a wall on June 8, eventually killing him, investigators said on Wednesday, revealing chilling details about the murder that led to police arresting the star and his long-term partner Pavithra Gowda the previous day. Locals gather as actor Darshan Thoogudeepa, an accused in the Renukaswamy murder case, being brought to the crime scene for investigation, in Bengaluru, on Wednesday. (PTI)

The men thrashed Renukaswamy before Darshan arrived. The repeated assault resulted in multiple bone fractures, which ultimately led to his death. We are collecting evidence to corroborate these statements from the arrested suspects, said a senior investigator, who asked not to be named.

The murderers, who attacked Renukaswamy in a shed used to park seized vehicles in southwestern Bengaluru on Saturday night, then dumped his corpse in a stormwater drain 10km away between 3.30am and 5am, said police.

The investigator said Pavithra (35) provoked Darshan to retaliate against Renukaswamy, who sent her derogatory messages on social media over their relationship.

Subsequently, Darshan asked Raghavendra, the district president of his fan association in Chitradurga, to gather information about the victim, said the officer, adding that Renukaswamy was then lured to Bengaluru on the pretext of meeting the popular actor.

Police said Darshans wife, Vijayalakshmi, sparred with Gowda on social media after she posted videos celebrating 10 years of relationship with the former.

Renukaswamy then allegedly began trolling Pavithra and posting derogatory messages on her social media profiles, in what police said was the trigger for the murder.

Renukaswamy, who worked at a pharmacy in Chitradurga, married on June 28 last year. His wife, Sahana, is five months pregnant, said police.

Police reports indicate that Renukaswamy suffered severe injuries, particularly to his groin.

Darshan and Pavithra were taken to the shed on Wednesday to recreate the sequence of events, said investigators. They also recovered crucial forensic samples that will help fortify the case against the actor, adding that his car, a Red Jeep Wrangler, was seen on CCTV footage and seized, apart from a Mahindra Scorpio allegedly used to dispose of Renukaswamys body.

Although the police complaint in the murder was lodged by a security guard in an adjacent building who spotted the corpse, officers said that a food delivery agent initially noticed dogs scavenging on the body and alerted police.

Police, however, said Darshan did not realise Renukaswamy had died.

Pradosh, one of the men who attacked Renukaswamy, informed Darshan of the mans death. Darshan then offered to pay off three of the men to take the blame for the murder.

The murder came to light on June 9. As the investigation progressed, two suspects approached police, confessing to the murder and claiming the killing was down to a financial dispute between them and Renukaswamy.

However, their differing responses during interrogations prompted investigators to widen their probe. Further investigations revealed Darshans involvement.

He initially offered to pay the men  Raghavendra, Karthik, and Kesavamurthy  5 lakh to dispose of the body and surrender to the police. He promised to pay them more money after the trial, apart from covering their legal expenses.

A senior police officer said phone call records between Darshans associates and Raghavendra provided crucial evidence.

The remand application lists the accused as Pavithra Gowdra, Darshan Thoogudeepa, Pavan K, Raghavendra, Nandish, Vinay V, Nagaraju R, Laxman M, Deepak Kumar M, Pradosh S, Karthik, Kesavamurthy, Nikhil Nayak, Jagadish, Anu, Ravi, and Raju. Out of these, 13 individuals, including Darshan, are in custody, while the police continue their search for the remaining four suspects.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Tamilisai Soundararajan on Thursday took to social media platform X to reject any speculation over her conversation with Union home minister Amit Shah, the video of which went viral.



Soundararajan, who resigned as Telangana governor and unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha elections from Chennai South, was seen in an animated discussion with Shah in Vijaywada during the swearing-in ceremony of Chandrababu Naidu as Andhra Pradesh chief minister.



ALSO READ: Lok Sabha poll outcome fans rumblings in Tamil Nadu BJP



Yesterday as I met our Honorable Home Minister Sri @AmitShah ji in AP for the first time after the 2024 Elections he called me to ask about post poll followup and the challenges faced.. As i was eloborating,due to paucity of time with utmost concern he adviced to carry out the political and constituency work intensively which was reassuring. This is to clarify all unwarranted speculations around, Soundararajan said in an X post.



In an 18-second clip that went viral, Soundararajan is seen greeting Shah and former Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu with folded hands. As she walks past them, the home minister is seen calling her back and speaking to her about something while wagging his finger. Former Vice President Venkaiah Naidu and Union Ministers Amit Shah and Chirag Paswan with BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan at the swearing-in ceremony of Chandrababu Naidu as the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.(PTI)

Tamil Nadu BJP's social media cell vice president Karthik Gopinath, known to be a supporter of state party chief K Annamalai, said, That looks like a strong admonishment from Amit Shah ji to Tamilisai akka . But what could be the reason for this public warning ? Unwarranted public comments ?

Watch: On Cam: Amit Shah Angry, Publicly Scolds BJP Leader? | Annamalai Vs Tamilisai: Spat Amid LS Debacle

DMK maintained its domination in Tamil Nadu and INDIA bloc won all 39 seats in the state. Congress is poised to win nine seats. The BJP could not win a seat in the state.



Recently, Soundararajan had taken a dig at Annamalai, saying,"I had a yardstick when I was (chief) of the BJP where I didnt encourage anti-social elements. But, recently anti-social elements have been taken into the party. I have no doubt that he (Annamalai) is a good leader."
The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Wednesday released sketches of four terrorists involved in two attacks in Doda district and announced a reward of 20 lakh for information leading to their arrest. On Tuesday, terrorists fired on a joint checkpoint of the 4 Rashtriya Rifles and police at Chattergalla in Bhaderwah. On Wednesday, a search party in the Gandoh area of the district was attacked, resulting in injuries to seven security personnel, including a policeman. The Jammu and Kashmir Police releases sketches of four terrorists involved in two attacks in Doda district.

Jammu and Kashmir Police has released sketches of four terrorists who are believed to be in the upper reaches of Bhaderwah, Thathri, Gandoh and carrying out terror-related activities, a police spokesperson said.

The police spokesperson said a cash reward of 5 lakh for information about each of the terrorists has also been announced.

Also Read | Jammu and Kashmir: More terrorists could be hiding; police say check vehicles before

The Jammu and Kashmir Police also appealed to the people to provide information about the presence and movement of these terrorists.

Doda: 5 soldiers, 2 police officers injured in separate encounters

Five soldiers and two police officers were injured in separate encounters on Wednesday after one group of terrorists attacked a checkpost in the upper reaches of Doda, and another fired at security forces hours later, marking two of the three gunbattles in 26 hours that have rocked Jammu and sent ripples of fear through the region fast becoming the hotbed of cross-border terrorism in the restive Union territory.

Also Read | Kathua terror attack: 1 CRPF jawan killed, 2 terrorists gunned down in encounter

In the first attack, a group of three to four terrorists opened fire on a joint checkpost of the 4 Rashtriya Rifles and the Jammu & Kashmir Police in Dodas Chattargala area on the Bhaderwah-Pathankot road at 1.45am on Wednesday morning. The ensuing gunbattle lasted several hours, leaving five army personnel and a special police officer injured.

Officers said the second attack was in the Kota Top area, 150km away from Chhattargala, when a second group of terrorists attacked a police team and injured head constable Fareed Ahmed.

Roughly 220km away in Kathua raged another gunbattle that began late on Tuesday night and continued into Wednesday morning, leaving one Central Reserve Police Force jawan dead, six security personnel and one civilian injured, and two terrorists neutralised.

Senior police officers suggested that Jammu was seeing a shift from resident terrorism to foreign terrorism. This means that the numbers of our local boys who used to join the terror ranks have come down. Foreign terrorism is there... as of today 70-80 such terrorists have come with arms and ammunitions, said director general of police RR Swain.

Without naming Pakistan, additional director general of police Anand Jain said the hostile neighbour was always making attempts to disturb peace in the Jammu region.

Reasi terror attack: Sketch of a terrorist released

On Tuesday night, the police released a sketch of a terrorist involved in the attack on a passenger bus in Reasi district and announced a 20 lakh reward for information about him.

On June 9, terrorists opened fire at a 53-seater bus carrying pilgrims when it was en route from the Shiv Khori temple to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra near Teryath village in the Poni area.

The bus, which was ferrying pilgrims from Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi, plunged into a deep gorge following the gunfire, killing nine people and injuring 42 others.
The Shivraj Singh Chauhan-headed agriculture ministry will focus on achieving self-sufficiency in pulses by 2027-28, aside from launching a new scheme to boost edible-oil output, two commodities India still imports to meet domestic demand, officials familiar with the matter have said. Union Minister of Agriculture, Farmers Welfare and Rural Development Shivraj Singh Chouhan holds a meeting regarding the 100-day action plan of the Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, at Krishi Bhavan, in New Delhi. (PTI)

Chauhan, along with ministers of state Ramnath Thakur and Bhagirath Choudhary, held a meeting of key bureaucrats on Wednesday to review proposals for the next 100 days, and studied multiple presentations on the farm economy, an official said.

Officials briefed the minister on the status of ongoing schemes, preparations for the upcoming kharif or summer-sown season, fertilisers and seed availability. Officials also presented plans to boost production of pulses and oilseeds.

Chouhan, a four-term former chief minister of Madhya Pradesh, asked officials to prepare a time bound roadmap to fulfill all guarantees related to the farm sector made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Sankalp Patra.

After a patchy monsoon last year, which knocked down farm growth to 1.7% in 2023-24, the lowest since 2018-19, India expects an above-average summer rainy season this year. Good rains are expected to drive farm output from the upcoming kharif or summer-sown season. Ample food stocks are critical to put a lid on prices.

The agricultural sector is critical to Asias third-largest economy because nearly half the population depends on a farm income. Good harvests drive up demands for goods and services in the wider economy.

The Union minister is expected to use strategies he had deployed as CM of Madhya Pradesh to turn around the agriculture sector of the state. Average farm growth in the state under his leadership had clocked 7%, higher than the national average of 3.7%.

Chouhan is also credited with making Madhya Pradesh a major wheat producer by expanding irrigation and offering bonuses over minimum support prices.

A key goal of the agriculture ministry under Chouhans watch will be to ramp up production of pulses, expanding both the area and yields, so that the country becomes self-sufficient in the next three to four years, a second official said.

The plan to increase pulses output will depend on the same strategies as we adopted for oilseeds. There will be provisions of high-yielding seeds and focus states, the second official said.

The government is also likely to announce a national oilseeds mission in the regular Budget in July, which will focus on raising output and productivity of mustard, groundnut and soybean, the first official said.

India imports up to 15% of its pulses demand annually and the country spent nearly $4 billion on imports in 2023-24, making it a volatile group of commodities.

Shortly after the Modi government assumed office during its first term in 2014, it focused on farm and trade policies to raise pulses output to avoid reliance on imports. Long-term import deals with nations, such as Mozambique, were signed to hedge against rise in global commodity prices.

According to the agriculture ministrys data, a campaign to distribute improved seeds raised pulses productivity by 34.8%, from 727 kg/hectare in 2018-19 to 980 kg/hectare in 2021-22. The policy push to boost output led to a fall in imports.
Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday rejected the allegations of National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (Undergraduate) or NEET-UG paper leak as baseless while reiterating the governments commitment to safeguarding the interest of students. Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan. (PTI)

There was no paper leak. No proof has been found yetThe allegations of corruption in NTA [National Testing Agency] are unfounded. It is a very credible body, said Pradhan as he took charge of the education ministry for the second consecutive time on Thursday.

The comments came on the day the Supreme Court accepted the governments suggestion for conducting a retest of 1563 students, who got grace marks due to loss of time during the exam. The government said scores without grace marks will be considered in case of those who do not wish to take the retest.

A four-member committee formed to review the results of 1563 students recommended the retest, which has been scheduled for June 23.

The NTA, which released a notification announcing the scrapping of grace marks, said on Wednesday that at least 63 cases of unfair means including cheating and impersonation were found during the NEET-UG for admission to undergraduate medical courses while denying the allegations of paper leak.

NTA officials said the number of toppers has decreased from 67 to 61 after the scrapping of grace marks. Six of the 67 candidates got grace marks due to loss in time. Now, either they will accept their original marks or they can take the retest on June 23, said an NTA official.

Pradhan said that NEET-UG was held at over 4500 centres and incorrect question distribution was reported from just six of them. The correct question paper was later provided but that took a little bit of time. Around 1563 students took the exams at these centres and had to face time loss.

Pradhan said 1563 students were given grace marks as per a Supreme Court order. NTA constituted an expert committee and applied the grace mark rule. Later, it was found that some students got 100% marks. Some people went to the court. The Supreme Court has given a verdict that 1563 students will be given the option to either reappear in the NEET exam or accept the original marks.
Dharmendra Pradhan, Union Education Minister, told PTI that there was no evidence of a paper in the NEET-UG medical entrance exam. Education Minister: No evidence of paper leak in NEET-UG, SC to hear on July 8(Nitin Sharma)

According to PTI, Pradhan said that the accusations of corruption were false and defended the National Testing Authority (NTA) as a credible organisation.

He added, according to PTI, that he would respect and abide by the decision of the Supreme Court in the matter to make sure no student is disadvantaged by the situation.

Read more: Number Theory: Understanding why the 2024 NEET results have sparked controversy

A vacation bench of the Supreme Court on Thursday approved the Centre's proposal to cancel grace marks given to 1,563 candidates in the NEET-UG exam for admission to MBBS, BDS and other courses, according to PTI.

The Centre also states that an option would be provided for students to take a re-test on June 23, as reported by PTI. If candidates don't want to take a re-test, then their previous marks will apply minus the grace marks, for the results.

On July 8, the Supreme Court will hear other petitions, including one by the founder of Physicswallah, Alakh Pandey, which address the discrepancies and potential malpractice involved in the granting of grace marks across 6 centres, according to PTI.

Read more: NEET-UG results: Messy process leaves medical aspirants anxious, parents seek solutions

His petition comes after a popular sentiment on social media which has been asking for a RE-NEET, so that the exam can be taken by everyone again due to alleged paper leaks and unfair scoring that have decreased trust in the testing process.

In his petition, Pandey, had asked the court to form an independent committee to look into the matter of leaked papers and also asked that the counselling process be entirely halted, as rankings at this stage will be faulty, according to PTI. In an earlier hearing on June 11, the Supreme Court had refused stay the counselling process and will revisit it in the July 8 proceedings.

Read more: NEET UG result 2024: NTA answers FAQs, responds to queries regarding compensatory marks calculation

The NTA had already faced problems when it was revealed that they had misplaced an applicants scores under another candidates ID, apparently due to damage to the OMR sheet, as per PTI.
The Centre on Thursday proposed a retest for 1,563 students on June 23 who were given grace marks in the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (Undergraduate) this year. This comes after the results caused an uproar, with aspirants and parents demanding a probe and re-examination, alleging that the paper was leaked at certain centres.



The NEET-UG, which was earlier called the All-India Pre-Medical Test (AIPMT), is the only entrance exam held each year for students seeking admission to undergraduate medical courses in all medical institutions throughout the country.



Also Read: NEET-UG results: Messy process leaves medical aspirants anxious, parents seek solutions



The National Testing Agency (NTA) has been in charge of conducting the exam in thirteen languages including English, Hindi, Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu, a role that was previously held by the Central Board of School Education (CBSE).



Controversy surrounding NEET-UG results Students protest against the alleged irregularities in NEET UG 2024 results and demand re-examination, in Prayagraj on Saturday.(Nitin Sharma)

This year, on May 5, over 24 lakh students appeared for NEET exam at 4,750 centres across 571 cities, including 14 international locations. The result was declared on June 4, which immediately caused a hue and cry with aspirants raising multiple issues, such as the awarding of grace marks to over 1,500 students, an unusually high number of students achieving perfect scores, and allegations of a leaked question paper.



The results showed that 67 students achieved a total score of 720, which is a higher percentage compared to the previous years' results. In 2023, only two students scored full marks, while three in 2022, two in 2021, and one in 2020. It is alleged that six of the toppers had appeared for the exam at the same centre in Haryana.



What Supreme Court said on NEET exam



The Centre has told Supreme Court that it will conduct retest for 1,563 students, who were given grace marks in the NEET-UG 2024. The re-exam is to be held on June 23.



The Supreme Court has decided not to stop the admissions counselling process. If any of the 1,563 candidates opt out of the retest, their previous marks without the grace marks will be used for the results. The results of the re-test will be announced on June 30, and the Centre announced that counselling for admission to MBBS, BDS, and other courses will commence on July 6.

What petitioners asked



Three petitions were filed seeking the cancellation of the NEET UG 2024 test and the conduct of a retest due to alleged anomalies in the grant of grace marks. A bench of Judges Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta heard the petitions.



Alakh Pandey, CEO of Physics Wallah, one of the petitioners argued that the NTA's decision to award grace marks was "arbitrary." He is reported to have collected feedback from approximately 20,000 students, indicating that around 70-80 marks were arbitrarily awarded as grace marks to at least 1,500 students.



The second petition was filed by Students Islamic Organisation (SIO) members Abdullah Mohammed Faiz and Dr. Shaik Roshan Mohiddin, requesting the re-examination of NEET. They, too, alleged that the grant of grace marks was arbitrary, noting that marks as high as 718 and 719 out of 720 (achieved by several students) were statistically impossible



The third petition was filed by NEET candidate Jaripiti Kartheek, challenging the award of grace marks as compensation for alleged lost time during the exam. He argued that the normalisation formula to award grace marks was at best unfair.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joe Biden are expected to meet on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Italy, the White House said on Wednesday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi (Right) and US President Joseph Biden.

While speaking to reporters about Biden's Italy visit, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said, "He (Biden) expects to see Prime Minister Modi here. It's up to the Indians to formally confirm his attendance, but our expectation is that the two of them will have the opportunity to encounter one another."

"The nature of that encounter is still fluid because so much of the schedule is fluid," he added.

Sullivan also said Biden spoke to Modi to congratulate him for securing another term as prime minister. "President Biden actually spoke with President Modi by phone while we were in Paris to congratulate him on the election outcome and on being named Prime Minister for a third term," he added.

The two leaders last met during the COP28 Summit in Abu Dhabi last year.

PM Modi would be visiting Italy on Thursday on his first foreign tour after assuming office for a third consecutive term, foreign secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra confirmed. Italy has invited India to attend the G7 Summit on June 14 as an Outreach Country.

The 50th G7 Summit will take place at the Borgo Egnazia resort in Italy's Apulia from June 13 to 15. This will be India's 11th participation in the G7 Summit and Modi's fifth consecutive participation at G7 Summit.

Modi is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with the leaders of the G7, and the Outreach nations and the international organisations. It will also afford him an opportunity to engage with other world leaders present at the G7 Summit on issues of importance to India as also to the Global South, Kwatra added.

(With inputs from agencies)
Ghaziabad: Five persons  including two women, a girl (seven years) and a seven-month-old baby  were charred to death during a major fire incident at a three-storey house in Lonis Behta Hajipur locality in Ghaziabad on late Wednesday night, police said. Officials said the cause of the fire was probably a short circuit. A major fire broke out at a three-storey house in Lonis Behta Hajipur locality in Ghaziabad on late Wednesday night.

We received information late at night from Behta Hajipur that several persons were trapped in a house which was engulfed in the fire. Local police and fire service rushed to the spot. Initially, a woman and a child were rescued in an injured state and sent to hospital for treatment. The fire began from the ground ground of the building, and occupants were trapped on the first and second floors. Five bodies were recovered, including those of two adults and three children, said additional police commissioner of Ghaziabad Dinesh Kumar P.

The officer added that the locals told police that the fire spread thick and fast when it came in contact with some thermocol/foam material stored inside the house.

Also Read | Kuwait fire tragedy: Deputy PM blames greed as 40 Indians killed; Modi calls urgent meeting | Top 10

We are trying to ascertain the identities of the deceased and also the reasons behind the fire, Dinesh Kumar added.

Vivek Chandra Yadav, DCP (rural), later said two injured were identified as Usma, 26, and a minor boy.

The police identified the deceased persons as 26-year-old Nazra and her daughter Ikra, 7, Shaiful Rehman, 35, Mohammad Faiz (seven months) and Parveen, 28.

They all belong to the same family. The material stored on the ground-floor was akin to thermocol-cups. We have asked the fire department to ascertain the material and also to find our whether any commercial activity was taking place in the house, the DCP added.

The fire department officials said they received a call around 9:15pm, and four fire tenders were rushed to the scene.

Also Read | 2 minor girls burnt alive as house catches fire

They said the residential building comprised the ground floor and two other storeys.

Two fire tenders were pressed into service initially and two were sent later. The reach to the house was from a narrow lane, and the fire tenders could not go inside. We had to connect and join hoze-pipes to about 400-500 metres in length to take water to the building on fire, said Rahul Pal, chief fire officer (CFO).

The officials said narrow approach lanes and overcrowding in the area also hamped fire-fighting measures.

The fire started on the ground floor where foam material was stored, and the fire soon spread to the first and second floors. There were no windows, and we had to break walls in many places to enter the building amid thick smoke and raging flames. Two injured persons were found and rescued from the first floor, the CFO added.

The officer said that a total of seven persons were trapped inside the house.

The five bodies were recovered on the second floor. They could not reach the roof of the second floor due to thick smoke and fire in the staircase. The roof of the second floor also collapsed partially during fire-fighting. This hampered the fire-fighting and rescue efforts, the CFO added.

The officials said the fire was brought under control in about two hours.
The Nagpur Police has uncovered a gruesome murder during an investigation into the death of an 82-year-old man in a hit-and-run case in the city. According to the police, the victim's daughter-in-law, identified as Archana Puttewar, hired contract killers for his murder over a property dispute worth 300 crore. Nagpur woman gets father-in-law killed over  300-crore property

The man, identified as Purushottam Puttewar - a Nagpur-based businessman, was hit by a speeding car on May 22 at Balaji Nagari in Nagpur. While an initial case of an accident was filed in the matter and the driver was released with the car, the intervention of a top police official promoted a detailed investigation, reported News18.

Following the probe, it was revealed that the accused Archana had promised 1 crore to the contract killers to get her father-in-law killed.

On Tuesday, the police arrested Archana, who serves as assistant director of the Town Planning Department, on a production warrant, along with her associates - Prashant Parlewar, director of Micro Small Media Enterprises, and four others in connection with the case.

The other arrested persons in the case have been identified as suspected contract killers Neeraj Ishwar Nimje (30), Sachin Mohan Dharmik (29) and family driver Sarthak Bagde (29). Another accused, Payal Nageshwar (28), is the personal assistant of the prime accused, news agency PTI reported.

According to the police, the original murder plan was hatched by Archana, Nageshwar, and Bagde. Dharmik became a part of the murder plot after he was promised to be granted a beer bar licence.

Also read: Vicco chairman Yashwant Pendharkar passes away in Nagpur

All the accused have been remanded to police custody till June 15. Archana will be produced before the court on Thursday, reported PTI, citing a crime branch official.

Meanwhile, the police have seized two cars, an SUV, 140 grams of gold, 3 lakh, seven mobile phones, and other materials from the accused.

(With inputs from PTI)
Hyderabad Hyderabad court denies bail to two cops, police file charge sheet

A local court in Hyderabad on Wednesday rejected the bail petitions of two suspended and arrested additional superintendents of police associated with the special intelligence bureau (SIB) of Telangana police, in connection with the alleged telephone tapping case, people familiar with the matter said.

Judge V Eshwaraiah of the Metropolitan Magistrate Court at Nampally delivered his verdict on Wednesday after hearing the arguments on the bail petition filed by additional SPs N Bhujanga Rao and M Thirupatanna, .

The judge struck down the bail petitions, after agreeing with the contention of the public prosecutor that the accused should be questioned further as police had filed the first charge sheet on Monday.

The counsel for the suspended cops said the police had arrested the accused on March 24 but had not filed any evidence against them. He also argued that the police were intentionally leaking information to the media against the petitioners.

The public prosecutor, however, opposed bail stating that the investigation was at a crucial stage and two of the accused were absconding, adding that if the petitioners were released on bail, the investigation may be affected.

Meanwhile, the Panjagutta police probing the telephone tapping case, submitted the first chargesheet in the case on Monday. Six people including former SIB chief T Prabhakar Rao, managing director of a Telugu television news channel Sravan Kumar, retired deputy commissioner of police P Radhakishan Rao, deputy superintendent of police D Praneeth Rao and additional SPs N Bhujanga Rao and M Thirupatanna were charged.

While Prabhakar Rao and Sravan Kumar are absconding, the other four were arrested and had been in judicial remand since March. The police furnished the confession statements of the four accused who have been arrested along with the chargesheet.
New Delhi: In one of the longest and most severe summers, 14 of 36 subdivisions in the country have recorded over 15 heat wave days between March 1 to June 9, data compiled by the India Meteorological Department (IMD), has shown. India is experiencing heatwave conditions since March 1

Only the northeastern states, coastal Karnataka and parts of Marathwada have been spared from heat wave conditions during this period as per subdivision-wise data with IMD. The highest heat wave days have been recorded over Odisha (27) followed by Rajasthan (23), Gangetic West Bengal (21), Haryana (20), Chandigarh (20), Delhi (20) and West Uttar Pradesh (20).

Even high-altitude areas have not been spared from heat waves with Jammu and Kashmir observing six days of heat wave, Himachal Pradesh (12), Uttarakhand (2). Coastal areas such as Kerala and Tamil Nadu have recorded five and fourteen heat wave days, respectively.

Moreover, the IMD has warned of severe heatwave conditions over northern parts of India at least for the next four to five.

Climate scientists are taken aback by the scale and expanse of extreme heat this year.

India is experiencing its longest ever heatwave

This map (shown above) shows high number of heat waves over India. This was expected and predicted in advance. A year following an El Nino year we tend to get more heat waves. That is due to favourable atmospheric circulation for heat waves.Global warming is adding to this natural variability. We will tend to get more frequent,longer and stronger heat waves. We need to be well prepared, said M Rajeevan, former secretary, ministry of Earth sciences and climate scientist.

Normally about 6-8 heat wave days averaged over central and NW India per year are expected according to Rajeevan.

Heat Waves are a period of unusually high temperatures as compared to what is normally expected over a region. Therefore, the temperatures at which Heat waves are declared differ from place to place based on the temperature climatology (historical temperatures) of that region. The impact of heat waves gets aggravated by supportive meteorological factors such as high humidity, high wind speed, duration of heat wave events, etc.

A heat wave is declared when the maximum is over 40 degrees C over the plains, over 37 degrees C over coastal areas, and over 30 degrees C o in the hills with the deviation from normal between 4.5 and 6.4 degrees C above the average maximum. If these conditions persist for two consecutive days, a heat wave is declared on the second day. A severe heat wave is declared when the deviation is more than 6.4 degrees C above normal.

Last month marked a full year of record-high global temperatures with May 2024 ranking as the warmest May on record, US's National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said on Thursday. Earths ocean temperatures also set a record high for the 14th month in a row.

The MarchMay period  defined as the Northern Hemisphere's meteorological spring and the Southern Hemisphere's meteorological autumn was the warmest on record at 2.32 degrees F above average.

According to Global Annual Temperature Rankings Outlook, there is a 50% chance that 2024 will rank as the warmest year on record and a 100% chance that it will rank in the top five.

This is one of the longest heatwave spells we are seeing over northwest India, possibly longer than the one recorded in 2016 which was also an El Nino year. There has been nearly a month-long heat spell heatwave conditions since the end of May except for a couple of days of respite. For other parts of the country, the heat spell started in April and then there was relief intermittently, said Mahesh Palawat, vice president, climate and meteorology at Skymet Weather.

We do not expect relief until at least June 18, he added.

HT reported on Thursday that the progress of the monsoon is likely to weaken over the next week and consequently intensify heatwave conditions over northwest and eastern India, meteorologists said on Tuesday.

The northern limit of monsoon has been at the same place since June 11 as per IMDs bulletins.

The Northern Limit of Monsoon continues to pass through Navsari, Jalgaon, Amravati, Chandrapur, Bijapur, Sukma, Malkangiri, Vizianagaram and Islampur. Conditions are favourable for further advance of the southwest monsoon into some more parts of Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh, Odisha, Coastal Andhra Pradesh & northwest Bay of Bengal during the next three to four days, IMD said. By June 15, the monsoon is normally expected to cover Odisha, West Bengal, parts of Jharkhand and Bihar.

On Wednesday, heat wave to severe heat wave conditions prevailed in most parts of West Uttar Pradesh, in many parts of Punjab, Haryana-Chandigarh-Delhi, East Uttar Pradesh, in isolated pockets of Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha and Gangetic West Bengal, some parts of Uttarakhand, northwest Rajasthan, in isolated pockets of Jammu division, Himachal Pradesh, northeast Rajasthan, northeast Madhya Pradesh and north Chhattisgarh.

Warm night conditions were observed in isolated pockets of northwest Rajasthan and West Uttar Pradesh. Maximum temperatures were in the range of 45-47C over some parts of west Jharkhand, south Uttar Pradesh, Haryana-Chandigarh-Delhi, Punjab, and north Rajasthan on Wednesday.

The highest maximum temperature of 47.5C was reported at Kanpur (East Uttar Pradesh) on Wednesday.

M Mohapatra, director general, IMD, said on Monday that an anticyclone over western Pakistan was causing subsidence of hot air over the northwestern region.

The subsidence of hot, dry air is still there. That is why we are seeing unusually high temperatures over east and northwest India, said Palawat.

On the other extreme, Sikkims Mangan district reported landslides and flash floods triggered by incessant rainfall. Heavy to very heavy rainfall with extremely heavy rainfall was reported at some places over Sikkim, Meghalaya, sub-Himalayan West Bengal, isolated places in Assam, Konkan and Goa, Madhya Maharashtra, West Madhya Pradesh, North Interior Karnataka and Telangana.

According to the IMD, heat wave to severe heat wave conditions are likely in some parts of Uttar Pradesh till June 17, Gangetic West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand till June 15 and isolated heat wave over Jharkhand on June 16. Heat wave conditions are very likely in some pockets of Punjab and Haryana-Chandigarh-Delhi during the next five days with severe heatwave conditions in isolated pockets on June 16 and 17.

Heat wave conditions are very likely in some pockets of Himachal Pradesh, Jammu Division, northeast Madhya Pradesh till June 16, northwest Madhya Pradesh on June 14 and 15, Uttarakhand, north Chhattisgarh and Odisha on June 13 and 14 and northwest Rajasthan till June 17.

Warm night conditions are very likely in isolated pockets of northeast Madhya Pradesh and West Uttar Pradesh on June 14, the IMD said.
NEW DELHI: India on Thursday dismissed unwarranted references to Jammu and Kashmir in a recent China-Pakistan joint statement and said they have no right to comment on areas that are an integral part of the country. In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on June 7 (AP FILE)

The Indian side also reiterated its opposition to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which found a mention in the joint statement issued on June 7 at the conclusion of Pakistan Premier Shehbaz Sharifs visit to China for discussions with President Xi Jinping.

The joint statement had opposed any unilateral action to resolve outstanding disputes, including the issue of Jammu and Kashmir. This was perceived by India as a reference to New Delhis 2019 decision to scrap the special status of Jammu and Kashmir, which was opposed by both China and Pakistan.

We have noted unwarranted references to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir in the joint statement between China and Pakistan of 7 June 2024. We categorically reject such references, external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement.

Also Read: US hails Indian democracy, sceptical of progress on India-China border talks

Indias consistent position on this issue is that the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh have been, are and will always remain integral and inalienable parts of India. Jaiswal added: No other country has the locus standi to comment on the same.

Referring to the mention of activities and projects under CPEC in the same joint statement, Jaiswal said some of these are in Indias sovereign territory under forcible and illegal occupation by Pakistan. India opposes and rejects any moves by other countries to reinforce or legitimise Pakistans illegal occupation of these territories, impinging on Indias sovereignty and territorial integrity, he said.

Indias relations with China are currently at their lowest point in six decades because of the dragging military standoff on the Line of Actual Control (LAC), while ties with Pakistan are virtually non-existent, with New Delhi maintaining that there can be no talks with Islamabad as long as the Pakistani side continues supporting cross-border terrorism.

Also Read: Busy foreign policy schedule for new NDA government

According to the joint statement, China and Pakistan underscored the importance of maintaining peace and stability in South Asia, the need for resolution of all outstanding disputes, and their opposition to any unilateral action. The Pakistani side briefed China on the latest developments in Jammu and Kashmir, and Beijing reiterated that the Jammu and Kashmir dispute is left over from history, and should be properly and peacefully resolved in accordance with the UN Charter, relevant UN Security Council resolutions and bilateral agreements.

China and Pakistan recognised CPEC as a pioneering project of the Belt and Road Initiative, and the two sides have adhered to the principle of planning together, building together, and benefiting together since the launch of the project.

After the first decade of CPEC, the two sides are committed to carrying out eight major steps for supporting high-quality cooperation, forging an upgraded version of CPEC by building a growth corridor, a livelihood-enhancing corridor, an innovation corridor, a green corridor and an open corridor, the joint statement said.

India has consistently opposed CPEC as a key part passes through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
Indian authorities scrambled on Thursday to provide medical care, coordinate relief and rescue efforts, and bring back the bodies of the dead, a day after the worst building fire in Kuwaits history killed 49 people, among them 45 Indian workers, and left 56 injured. MoS Kirti Vardhan Singh with an injured person on Thursday. (PTI)

Minister of state for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh, directed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to travel urgently to Kuwait to oversee relief measures, arrived at Mangaf on Thursday and visited several hospitals to meet the injured, even as a C-130J Hercules medium lift aircraft of the Indian Air Force was set to be pressed into service to repatriate the bodies, senior officials said.

ALSO READ- Kuwait fire: 45 Indians, 3 Filipinos identified among dead, authorities to promptly investigate incident

The fire in the Al Mangaf building, a residence for foreign workers, broke out in the Al Ahmadi governorate at 4.30am and most deaths were due to smoke inhalation while residents slept. NBTC group, an engineering and construction firm partially owned by KG Abraham, an industrialist originally from Kerala, had rented the building to house more than 195 workers, most of them Indians from southern Indian states.

At least 23 of the 45 dead are from Kerala, state government officials said, and state health minister Veena George has been directed by the state cabinet, which met on Thursday in an emergency sitting, to travel to Kuwait. A help desk and a global contact centre are operating round the clock and the state government will fully support the interventions being carried out by the Indian government in Kuwait, a Kerala government statement said.

Seven of the dead are from Tamil Nadu, and in a statement, chief minister MK Stalin said that urgent steps were being taken to bring back their bodies by a private plane.

ALSO READ- Kuwait tragedy underscores need for new emigration law

Before leaving for Kuwait, minister of state for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh said, The situation is that most of the victims are burn victims and some of the bodies have been charred beyond recognition. DNA tests were being done to identify the bodies and an IAF aircraft was on stand-by to bring back the bodies, he added.

Singh met Kuwaits deputy prime minister Sheikh Fahad Yousef Saud Al-Sabah and was told that the Amir of Kuwait, Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, has issued instructions to ensure that all necessary assistance and support is provided to those affected by the fire. Singh thanked Al-Sabah and the leadership of Kuwait for the proactive facilitation being provided by Kuwaiti authorities, according to a post on X by the Indian embassy.

Singh visited Adan Hospital, where 12 Indians are being treated; Mubarak Al Kabeer Hospital, where seven injured Indians are admitted; and then to Jaber Hospital, where six injured are being treated. He also met Kuwaits health minister Ahmad Abdelwahab Ahmad Al-Awadi, who briefed him on the treatment of the injured Indians. Singh thanked him for the exceptional medical care and attention provided to the Indians.

The blaze was the second largest fire disaster in Kuwait in terms of the death toll, and the worst in a residential building. In August 2009, a woman, angry over her husband getting married for the second time, had set a wedding tent on fire, killing 56 women and children, according to Kuwaiti media.

As investigations picked up pace, Kuwaits Fire Force announced after a field examination that the fire was caused by an electrical short circuit. Kuwaits public prosecutor ordered the remanding of a Kuwaiti national and an expatriate on charges of erroneous killing in connection with the fire. The two persons, who werent identified, are being held on several charges, including killing and injury by error due to negligence of security and safety precautions against fires, the public prosecutors office said on X.

ALSO READ- PM Narendra Modi orders wider op to combat terror in Jammu

Al-Sabah said Kuwaits Public Authority of Manpower will examine the issue of overcrowding of expatriate workers in buildings and the failure to comply with safety conditions. The owner of the building where the fire occurred will be kept in custody till the investigation is completed, he said.

The head of investigations at Kuwaits fire department, Col Sayed Al-Mousawi, said a team probing the fire found an inflammable material was used as partitions between apartments and between rooms, and this caused the thick black smoke. Many victims suffocated while trying to run down stairwells filled with smoke, and people couldnt go to the rooftop because the door was locked, he said.
The Ministry of External Affairs on Thursday rejected the references to Jammu and Kashmir in a joint statement of China and Pakistan as unwarranted. Ministry of external affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal.(File)

We have noted unwarranted references to the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir in the joint statement between China and Pakistan of 07 June 2024, a statement issued by the MEA said. We categorically reject such references. Our position on the issue is consistent and well-known to the concerned parties.

The ministry added that the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh are integral and inalienable parts of India and will always remain so.

The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Ladakh have been, are and will always remain integral and inalienable parts of India. No other country has the locus standi to comment on the same, it MEA pointed out.

The ministry of external affairs also highlighted that the June 7 joint statement of Pakistan and China also mentioned activities and projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, some of which are under India's sovereign territory under forcible and illegal occupation by Pakistan.

The same joint statement also mentions activities and projects under the so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), some of which are in India's sovereign territory under forcible and illegal occupation by Pakistan, it said.

"We resolutely oppose and reject any moves by other countries to reinforce or legitimise Pakistan's illegal occupation of these territories, impinging on Indias sovereignty and territorial integrity," it added.

Also Read | Busy foreign policy schedule for new NDA government

In their joint statement on June 7, Pakistan had said that it has briefed the Chinese side on the latest developments of the situation in Jammu and Kashmir.

The Chinese side reiterated that the Jammu and Kashmir dispute is left over from history, and should be properly and peacefully resolved in accordance with the UN Charter, relevant UN Security Council resolutions and bilateral agreements, the joint statement had mentioned.
NEW DELHI: Indian authorities on Thursday stepped up efforts to provide medical care to citizens injured in a devastating fire in Kuwait and to identify those who died in the incident, even as the total number of Indians killed by the blaze rose to 45. MoS for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh meets Indians injured in Wednesdays fire at the Jaber hospital in Kuwait on June 13 (PTI/VIA @indembkwt)

Forty-nine people, mostly Indians, died and another 56 were injured in the fire on Wednesday at a building at Mangaf in southern Kuwait that housed nearly 200 foreign workers. Most of the dead and injured were from Kerala. Kuwait is home to an Indian expatriate community of nearly one million.

Kuwaits deputy prime minister Sheikh Fahad Yousef Saud Al-Sabah told the local media that authorities had identified the bodies of 45 Indians and three Filipinos. Efforts were underway to identify the remaining body, said Al-Sabah, who also heads the interior ministry.

Minister of state for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh, directed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to travel to Kuwait to oversee relief measures and to facilitate the expeditious repatriation of bodies, visited several hospitals to meet the injured. He met Al-Sabah and foreign minister Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya to take stock of the situation.

The situation is that most of the victims are burn victims and some of the bodies have been charred beyond recognition, Singh told the media before leaving New Delhi early on Thursday. DNA tests were being done to identify the bodies and an IAF aircraft was on stand-by to bring back the bodies, Singh said.

At his meeting with Al-Sabah, Singh was informed that the Amir of Kuwait, Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, had issued instructions to ensure that all necessary assistance and support was provided to those affected by the fire.

Singh thanked Al-Sabah and the leadership of Kuwait for the pro-active facilitation being provided by Kuwaiti authorities, according to a post on X by the Indian embassy.

Al-Yahya offered his condolences on the tragic incident and assured Singh of Kuwaits full support, including medical care, early repatriation of bodies and an investigation into the incident.

Kuwait is harnessing all the necessary capabilities to meet the medical needs of the injured, and authorities are doing everything necessary to ascertain the circumstances and causes of the horrific fire, Al-Yahya was quoted as saying in a statement issued by the foreign ministry. Justice will take its course in this case with all transparency and integrity, he said.

Singh lauded the Kuwait governments rapid response and appreciated the medical care provided to the injured.

Singh visited Adan Hospital, where 12 Indians are being treated. He also went to Mubarak Al Kabeer Hospital, where seven injured Indians were admitted, and to Jaber Hospital, where six injured are being treated.

He also visited Jahra Hospital and interacted with six Indians admitted there, before going to Farwaniya Hospital, where one more Indian was admitted. Singh assured the injured of all support from the Indian government.

Singh also met Kuwaits health minister Ahmad Abdelwahab Ahmad Al-Awadi, who briefed him on the treatment of the injured Indians. Singh thanked him for the exceptional medical care and attention provided to the Indians.

People familiar with the matter said a C-130J Hercules medium-lift aircraft of the IAF was expected to take off for Kuwait late on Thursday to bring back the bodies of the dead.
The first inter-ministerial meeting, convened by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) on Wednesday to discuss the imbalance in bargaining power between Big Tech companies and digital news publishers, and the dominance of the former in digital advertising, was inconclusive on whether a legal framework is required to address the issues, three people aware of the matter said. Representational image.

The officials from Ministry of Corporate Affairs said that as of now, it is not clear whether the Digital Competition Bill that the MCA is currently working on can specifically address the issues of digital news publishers through a bargaining code.

The hour-long meeting, chaired by I&B secretary Sanjay Jaju, was attended by officials from ministries of I&B, electronics and information technology, and corporate affairs, and departments of economic affairs, promotion of industry and internal trade, and legal affairs. It was also attended by at least one official from the Competition Commission of India, the countrys antitrust regulator.

The three people cited above said that during the meeting, Jaju said this initial meeting was not meant to arrive at solutions but to understand the problems highlighted by the Digital News Publishers Association, an industry association whose members include HT Digital and Times Internet.

One person cited above said the officials concluded that they first need to establish and understand how digital advertising works, how publishers earn revenue, how publishers are losing revenue (if any) and how to quantify this loss, what interventions can actually work, and whether government intervention is actually required.

In the meeting, Jaju said that the digital publishers will be invited in the second round and digital advertisers such as Google and Meta in the third, the three people said. Dates for subsequent meetings have not been decided yet.

The meeting was held in response to a representation made by the DNPA to the MIB and the Prime Ministers Office, in which it advocated for a revenue sharing mechanism with big tech companies such as Google and Meta, akin to Australias News Media Bargaining Code and Canadas Online News Act.

The MCA official said the ministry had received comments on the Digital Competition Bill  whose consultation ended on May 15  and was currently analysing them to amend the draft. The official said that it was not clear if something like the bargaining code could be included within the DCB.

Jaju also asked the MCA if issues raised by the DNPA could be addressed through subordinate legislation (rules and regulations) under the extant Competition Act or the new Digital Competition Bill.

In the meeting, three cases currently under investigation by the CCI were also discussed. In these now clubbed cases, the DNPA, the News Broadcasters and Digital Association, and the Indian Newspaper Society (of which HT is one of the fourteen founding members) had said that Google had violated its dominant position as a search engine. They had argued that Google ran different features on the search results page, such as snippets of news and news aggregation, all of which relied on news reported by news publishers. As a result, users no longer clicked on news publishers links and the publishers were thus deprived of crucial ad revenue. In the case of newspapers, the DNPA submitted that two thirds of newspapers revenues came from advertising while one third came from subscription services.

In all three cases, the CCI in January 2022 had prima facie concluded that Google was violating the Competition Act by abusing its dominant position in the market for online general web search services and market for online search advertising services, and that its conduct merited investigation. The regulator had also inferred that Google held a significant position in the market for online digital advertising intermediation services, an aspect it said it would investigate.

In Wednesdays meeting, officials also discussed whether the business aspect of online advertising fell within MIBs domain according to the Allocation of Business Rules. On July 28, 2023, the government amended the AoBR and brought online advertisements under the purview of MIB.
Congress MP Karti Chidambaram addressed a letter to Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw, on Thursday, urging him to bring back ticket-less travel for senior citizens for the well-being of those who depend on the railways for their commute. Congress MP Karti Chidambaram urges Railway Minister Vaishnaw to restore ticketless travel for senior citizens. (PTI Photo)

In the letter, the Congress MP stated that bringing back senior citizen concessions would address safety issues, improve travel experience and make the Indian Railways more user-friendly for citizens.

Read more: Long-distance trains from Pune delayed up to 20 hours, pax demand solution

According to a PTI report, Chidambaram said, Firstly, the suspension of the senior citizens' concession in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic remains a pressing concern. Although the pandemic-related restrictions ended in 2021, this concession has not been reinstated as of 2024.

According to PTI, the Sivaganga MP also highlighted that in August 2022, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Railways had recommended that "the concessions granted to different categories of passengers should be considered judiciously".

Chidambaram noted that before, men above 60 years of age and women above 58 years got a concession of 40 per cent and 50 per cent, respectively, and now they had to pay full fare, according to PTI.

Read more: National Railway Museum in Delhi receives bomb threat mail: Official

Chidambaram's letter pointed out that the standing committee had also asked for the concession to be reviewed and reinstated, at least in Sleeper Class and third AC, to help senior citizens who are vulnerable and in need.

In a Rajya Sabha response on July 28, 2023, you mentioned that the Government provided a subsidy of 59,837 crore on passenger tickets in 2019-20, amounting to a 53 per cent concession on average for every passenger'."

"However, the withdrawal of the senior citizens' concession indicates that the overall concessions provided before COVID-19 were more generous than the current average of 53 per cent," Chidambaram said, as per a PTI report.

He added that based on several RTI applications, the Indian Railways has earned over 5,800 crore from the withdrawal of senior citizen concessions between March 20, 2020, and January 31, 2024, according to PTI. The Congress MP stated that as the largest rail network in Asia and the second largest in the world, the concessions needed to be restored.

Read more: Ayodhya Dham railway station expansion next on Centres agenda

According to PTI, he also spoke up about an incident on June 11, when passengers were unable to board the Chennai Central-Howrah Superfast Mail in Chennai due to people without tickets occupying reserved seats.

"Railway staff admitted that it is challenging to check every passenger for a confirmed ticket. Consequently, several passengers were stranded at the station without accommodation or alternative travel options. This incident is not isolated, as social media is rife with complaints about overcrowding by ticketless passengers, even on premium services like the Vande Bharat Express," Chidambaram said, according to a PTI report.
Thiruvananthapuram, The Kerala government on Thursday said it will provide 5 lakh financial assistance to the families of the people from the state who died in the Kuwait fire tragedy that claimed 49 lives and left 50 others injured. Kerala govt to provide  5L assistance to kin of those from state who died in Kuwait fire

The decision was taken at an emergency Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the morning, a statement issued by his office said.

The cabinet also decided to provide one lakh financial assistance to those injured in the incident, it said.

A decision was taken to immediately send state Health Minister Veena George to Kuwait to coordinate the efforts to provide treatment for the injured people as well as ensure the earliest repatriation of the mortal remains of the deceased to Kerala, it further said.

The minister will be accompanied by Jeevan Babu, State Mission Director , it added.

The statement also said prominent businessmen M A Yusuff Ali and Ravi Pillai have informed the CM that they will provide 5 lakh and 2 lakh, respectively, to each of the families of the Keralites who died in the fire.

The assistance will be provided through Department of Non-Resident Keralites' Affairs and with help from the two businessmen, families of each of those from the state who died in the incident will get 12 lakh, the statement said.

The cabinet also condoled the deaths in the Kuwait fire tragedy, it said.

It further said efforts were being made through NORKA and expatriates to provide all possible assistance to the victims.

A help desk and a global contact centre are open round-the-clock, it added.

The statement also said the state government will give full support to the interventions being made in Kuwait by the Central government.

According to the Kuwaiti authorities, the fire broke out in a building in the southern city of Mangaf, in which 49 foreign workers, including around 40 Indians, were killed, and 50 others injured.

The fire started in the kitchen of the seven-storey building housing 195 migrant workers in Mangaf in the Ahmadi Governorate early on Wednesday.

The fire erupted just after 4 am when the majority of the 196 all-male residents of the building were asleep.

It resulted in huge, thick clouds of black smoke that led to most of the victims suffocating to death, according to officials from the Kuwait Interior Ministry and the Fire Department.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
At least 49 people, including 42 Indian nationals, were killed and dozens injured in a devastating fire that broke out in a building in southern Kuwait on Wednesday. The incident took place at the Al-Mangaf building, a residence for workers, around 4:30am. According to the local media, most of the deaths were reported due to smoke inhalation while the residents were asleep. Follow Kuwait fire updates here Kerala resident Shameer Umarudheen, who died in Kuwait fire, may have jumped off in panic: Report(Ommanorama)

The Indians, who died in the fire incident were mostly hailing from Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and some northern states. One of the victims who died in the fire, identified as Shameer Umarudheen, may have jumped off from the building in panic, reported Ommanorama, citing his relatives.

Shameer, who hailed from Kerala's Kollam, was employed as a driver in Kuwait. According to one of his close relatives, Safedu, they received a photo around 12pm on Wednesday, in which it is suspected that he jumped off the building.

Najeeb, who works with Shameer and lives a kilometre away, informed us. We contacted several people in Kuwait. He was pronounced dead after being taken to the hospital. The body is currently at a government hospitalNo official has been provided yet, Safedu told ANI.

According to the victim's relative, Shameer is survived by his wife and parents.

Shameer's wife and mother have not been told about his deathThey have been told he is in the ICU. We have been informed that the Finance Minister will visit in the coming days. MP Kodikunnil Suresh called, and we request that the central and state governments intervene to bring Shameer's body back home as soon as possible, the relative said.

She further informed that Shameer was working in Kuwait for the last five years. Two years ago, he went back to India to get married. However, he went back to Kuwait eight months ago as he was reportedly struggling to keep the family running.

Following the tragic incident, 11 injured Indians were taken to the Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital, while more than 30 Indian nationals were taken to Al-Adan Hospital. According to officials, most of them are in a stable condition.

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday chaired a meeting to review the incident and directed the government to extend all possible assistance to the victims. He also announced an ex-gratia of 2 lakh from the Prime Minister's Relief Fund to the families of the deceased Indian nationals.

Modi also directed the Minister of State for External Affairs, Kirti Vardhan Singh, to travel to Kuwait to oversee relief measures and to facilitate the expeditious repatriation of the bodies of the deceased. Singh is reportedly expected to leave for Kuwait on Thursday.
Officials from the Bellary district senior civil judge court, along with local farmers, seized furniture from the Karnataka Industrial Area Development Board (KIADB) office following a court order issued on Tuesday over non-payment of compensation for land acquisitions owed to farmers. Officials and farmers seize the office furniture of KIADB in Davangere. (HT)

The court order, delivered on March 6, mandated the seizure of KIADB office furniture if the officials failed to release the pending compensation amounting to approximately 63 crore within 90 days. The KIADB office in Davangere covers the districts of Bellary, Haveri, and Chitradurga.

In 2011, KIADB acquired land from farmers in 10 villages, including Kuditini village in Bellary taluk, for industrial projects by Brahmini Steels, Uttam Galva, and NMDC companies, owned by former minister and current Gangavati MLA Janardhana Reddy. The acquisition rate was fixed 5 lakh per acre for about 150 acres of land.

However, dissatisfied with the compensation, farmers filed a lawsuit in 2013 seeking higher compensation.

In 2023, the court ruled in favour of the farmers, ordering KIADB to pay an additional 5 lakh per acre.

Despite this ruling, KIADB failed to distribute the mandated compensation, prompting the court to issue the seizure order.

The KIADB owes 49 crore in compensation for acquired land in the Bellary district. We have informed higher authorities about the court orders and plan to deposit the amount in court within a couple of days, G Nazma, KIADBs special land acquisition officer tol HT.
Five Tamils are said to be among the victims in the Kuwait fire incident, state minister for minorities and non-resident Tamils, Gingee KS Masthan, said a day after the devastating blaze. The building where the fire broke out in Mangaf, Kuwait on Wednesday. (PTI Photo)

It is learnt that five Tamils were among the dead in the Kuwait fire incident, as per Tamil associations based abroad, Masthan said on Thursday.

They have been identified as Ramakaruppan, Veerasamy Mariappan, Chinnadurai Krishnamurthy, Mohammed Sharif, Richard.

Once we receive this information from official channels, we will take necessary steps to provide help, contact the families and bring back the bodies, Masthan said.

Until Wednesday, though the government was in touch with the embassy in Kuwait and Tamil organisations, there was no information about Tamils feared dead in the incident. The state government had issued hotline numbers for people to call and provide any information about the presence of Tamils in the building.

Chief minister MK Stalin on Thursday condoled the death of 42 Indians at the seven-storey building at Mangaf in southern Kuwait. Officials in Kuwait have not yet been able to collate the information on the number of Tamils who were living in the facility, he said.

They have told us that they will give us all the information in a few hours, Stalin said.
Around 42 Indians, including at least five from Kerala, were killed and over 50 injured in a devastating fire that broke out at dawn in a building housing around 195 migrant workers in southern Kuwait's Mangaf area, reports claimed on Wednesday. A member of the Kuwaiti security forces stands outside a building which was ingulfed by fire, in Kuwait City, on June 12. (AFP)

The total number of people killed in the Al-Mangaf building is 49 and 42 of them are learnt to be Indians; the remaining ones are Pakistani, Filipino, Egyptian and Nepali nationals, media reports said.

In an unfortunate and tragic fire incident earlier today in a Labour housing facility in Mangaf area of Kuwait, around 40 Indians are understood to have died and over 50 injured, the ministry of external affairs said in a statement late on Wednesday night. Follow Live Updates on Kuwait fire

The incident was the worst building fire in Kuwaits history, and it triggered calls for action against landlords and company owners who violate the law to house large numbers of foreign laborers in extremely unsafe conditions to cut costs, the Kuwait Times newspaper reported.

Among the victims was 48-year-old Vadakkottuvilayil Lukose, a supervisor with NBTC group, which has KG Abraham, a businessman from Kerala, as its managing director, The Indian Express reported.

Vadakkottuvilayil Lukose hailed from Adichanalloor panchayat in Kollam, and had been in Kuwait for the last 18 years.

Shameer Umarudheen, a resident of Vayyankara in Kerala, worked as a heavy vehicle driver in Kuwait. Onmanorama, citing his relatives, reported that Shameer Umarudheen may have jumped off the flat in panic. He was the second son of Umarudheen and Safeena. He was married to Surumi.

Shameer and his family were earlier staying at Payyakode in Pooyapally gram panchayat. Later they moved to Vayyankara. He got married two years ago. He called his parents and family from Kuwait four days ago. He had come home nine months ago, it reported.

The family learned about the incident at 11am on Wednesday, a relative of Shameer told news agency ANI.

The Kuwait fire incident also took the life of Kasaragod native Kelu Ponmaleri. A resident of Thrikaripur town in Kasaragod, Kelu Ponmaleri was working as a production engineer with NBTC Group. He is survived by his wife, KN Mani, who is a Panchayat employee and two sons.

The other deceased has been identified as 34-year-old Ranjith, also from Kasaragad, who was working in Kuwait for the last 10 years.

MoS Kirti Vardhan Singh leaves for Kuwait

Before leaving for Kuwait in order to take a stock of the situation there, Union minister of state for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh said some of the bodies have been charred beyond recognition.

"The rest of the situation will be clear the moment we reach there," Kirti Vardhan said.

Speaking to ANI at the Delhi Airport before flying for Kuwait, the MoS said, "We had a meeting last evening with the Prime Minister, that is the last update we have about this very sad tragedy... The rest of the situation will be clear the moment we reach there..."

On being asked about the plan of repatriation of the mortal remains of those who lost lives, he said, The situation is that the victims are mostly burn victims and some of the bodies have been charred beyond recognition. So a DNA test is underway to identify the victims.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with the team of the MEA and other officials on Wednesday evening over the fire incident in Kuwait.

Modi expressed his sadness over the fire mishap, adding that his thoughts are with the family and close ones of the victims of the incident.

(With inputs from agencies)
Kuwaiti authorities have identified 45 Indians and three Filipinos among the dead bodies from the devastating fire in a building in Mangaf, where 196 migrant workers lived. Kuwait fire: 45 Indians, 3 Filipinos identified, authorities vow to investigate(HT_PRINT)

At least 49 migrant workers were killed and 50 others injured in the fire. The country has offered their full support in repatriating the bodies of the victims and promised to speedily investigate the incident.

Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah, the current First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior, and Minister of Defence, said that authorities have identified 48 bodies - 45 Indiansm, three Filipinos, Arab Times reported.

Efforts are still underway to determine the identity of one remaining body, said the first deputy prime minister.

Read more: Kuwait fire: 42 Indians killed in Mangaf tragedy. Who were the Kerala natives?

Kuwaiti authorities are conducting DNA tests on the bodies of those killed in the devastating fire incident in southern Kuwait's Mangaf area and an Indian Air Force aircraft is on standby to bring back the remains of Indians killed in the incident, officials said in New Delhi on Thursday.

Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh, who reached Kuwait to oversee assistance to Indians injured in the fire and to ensure early repatriation of mortal remains of those killed, met Kuwait's Foreign Minister Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya who assured full support and vowed to promptly investigate the tragedy.

Singh also met some of the Indians injured in the massive fire and assured them all support from the Indian government.

Later, he called on First Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Fahad, who conveyed condolences on behalf of the Emir and his instructions to ensure all necessary assistance and support.

Read more: Shock, grief shroud kin of Kuwait blaze victims

Singh conveyed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's greetings to the Emir and thanked the deputy prime minister and the leadership of Kuwait for pro-active facilitation being provided by Kuwaiti authorities, the Indian mission said.

Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber al-Sabah has issued directives for the distribution of financial assistance to the families of the deceased, Sheikh Fahad said, without mentioning the quantum of the compensation. Additionally, the Emir has ordered the preparation of military aircraft to repatriate the bodies of deceased Indians back to their homeland.

Sheikh Fahad is heading an overall inspection campaign on illegal properties in many areas in Kuwait on Thursday.

The minister, accompanied by the Minister of Public Works and Minister of Municipality Dr. Nora Al-Mashaan began their inspection campaign in Al-Mangaf, Al-Mahboula, Khaitan, and Jileeb Al-Shuyoukh, the paper said.

The Interior Ministry, Kuwait Municipality, Kuwait Fire Force, Ministry of Electricity and Water and Public Authority for Manpower took part in the campaign.

Read more: Kuwait fire kills Kerala man, his dream of having own house remains unfulfilled

The minister has warned that any building violation would be addressed without prior warning as of Thursday.

As of Thursday, the Municipality and its teams will respond to all violations at all apartment buildings without prior warning, the minister told reporters while inspecting the fire site. The owner of the affected building will be kept in custody until investigations into the causes of the fire are over, the minister added.

Meanwhile, Kuwaits public prosecutor has launched an investigation into the incident. The probe aims to uncover the circumstances behind the incident and what might have triggered the deadly fire, the public prosecutor said on X.

There has been no official word on how the blaze started or what caused it. Some local media reported that it could be a gas leak from the buildings ground floor.

Head of investigations at Kuwait Fire Department Col Sayed Al-Mousawi said that the team investigating the causes of the fire found that an inflammable material was used as partitions between apartments and also between rooms, which caused the huge black clouds of smoke.

He said that many of the victims suffocated while trying to run down the stairs because they were filled with smoke, adding that the victims could not go to the rooftop because the door was locked.

(with PTI inputs)
New Delhi, Kuwaiti authorities are conducting DNA tests on the bodies of those killed in the devastating fire incident in southern Kuwait's Mangaf area and an IAF aircraft is on standby to bring back the mortal remains of Indians killed in the incident, officials said on Thursday. Kuwait fire: IAF aircraft on standby to bring back mortal remains of Indians

Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh has left for Kuwait following a direction from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to oversee assistance to Indians injured in the fire and to ensure early repatriation of mortal remains of those killed.

Officials had said that total number of people killed in the Al-Mangaf building is 49 and 42 of them are learnt to be Indians; the remaining ones are Pakistani, Filipino, Egyptian and Nepali nationals.

"In an unfortunate and tragic fire incident earlier today in a Labour housing facility in Mangaf area of Kuwait, around 40 Indians are understood to have died and over 50 injured," the Ministry of External Affairs had said in a statement late on Wednesday night.

Prime Minister Modi, who described the incident as "saddening", reviewed the situation at a meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, NSA Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and Principal Secretary to PM PK Mishra among others.

Following the meeting, the prime minister announced ex-gratia relief of 2 lakh to the families of the deceased Indian nationals from the PM Relief Fund and directed that the government should extend all possible assistance.

The External Affairs Minister spoke to his Kuwaiti counterpart Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on phone and urged him for the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those killed.

"Spoke to Kuwaiti FM Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on the fire tragedy in Kuwait. Apprised of the efforts made by Kuwaiti authorities in that regard. Was assured that the incident would be fully investigated and that responsibility will be fixed," Jaishankar had said on 'X'.

"Urged the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those who lost their lives. He emphasized that those injured were getting the requisite medical attention," he had said.

The officials had said most of the Indian victims are from Kerala.

The fire in Al-Mangaf building was reported to authorities in Al-Ahmadi governorate at 4.30 am on Wednesday and most of the deaths were due to smoke inhalation, Kuwaiti media reported, adding the fire started in a kitchen.

Construction firm NBTC group rented the building for the stay of more than 195 workers, most of them Indians from Kerala, Tamil Nadu and northern states, the Kuwaiti media said.

The NBTC group is partly owned by an Indian, officials said.

Interior Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah ordered an investigation into the fire incident and issued directions to apprehend the owner and janitor of Al-Mangaf building.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Stephin Abraham Sabu, 29, dreamt of building a home in Kerala, where his parents struggled all their lives shifting from one rented house to another. He had just begun to have a comfortable life in Kuwait with a decent income to start constructing a home at Pampady in Kottayam close to the rented house where his family stayed. Indian ambassador Adarsh Swaika at a hospital where 11 workers injured in the fire are admitted. (X)

Sabu did not live to see his dream of having a house of his own fulfilled. On Wednesday, Sabu was among the 49 people, mostly Indians, killed in the fire that broke out at a building housing foreign workers. Sabus home was due to be completed next month.

Sabu was employed with an engineering and construction firm. His younger brother worked in the same firm but lived in a different building.

Babu, a friend, said Sabus family was numbed. The family is too shocked to react. They were waiting for him to come sometime later this year to hold the housewarming and to arrange his marriage. It is a big loss for the family and the community here.

He said Sabu maintained close ties with his neighbours in Kerala and had a wide circle of friends. When we first heard of the fire on Wednesday morning, we prayed and hoped that he would escape. His name was not among those reported dead in the early hours on local Malayalam channels. We thought he may have been injured and taken to a hospital. But by afternoon, it was confirmed that he was among the dead, he said.

Sharafudheen Kanneth of the Kerala Muslim Cultural Centre, who has been at the site of the fire since Wednesday coordinating with government agencies, said 12 of those killed from Kerala have been identified.

Almost all of the bodies have by now been retrieved from the fire-hit building, but the government rescue workers are still doing last-minute checks. The fire is suspected to have originated from the ground floor and spread to higher floors. After we identify all the deceased, we will coordinate with the Indian embassy to make efforts to send their remains home, Kanneth said over the phone from Kuwait.

The Kerala government announced 5 lakh compensation each for the families of the 12 people from the state killed in the fire after a special Cabinet meeting on Thursday. 1 lakh each will be given to those injured.

Kerala health minister Veena George and state National Health Mission director Jeevan Babu were due to leave for Kuwait to coordinate medical operations and to bring the bodies home, a note from the Cabinet said.

Prominent businessmen MA Yusuff Ali and Ravi Pillai have pledged 5 lakh and 2 lakh each to the families of those killed. The state government will also set up a global contact centre and help desk in Kuwait.
Heavy rains triggered multiple landslides and cut off North Sikkim from the rest of the state even as a swollen River Teesta flooded its banks and left hundreds of people homeless. Landslides damaged houses in the Upper Gyathang and Tarag villages. (HT PHOTO)

Chief minister Prem Singh Tamang on Wednesday announced a 5 lakh compensation each for the families of the three people who died at Majwa village in South Sikkim. Landslides in North Sikkim blocked roads and damaged houses and electricity poles.

Mangan (North Sikkim) district magistrate Hem Kumar Chettri, who has called an urgent meeting with all the heads of the department, said they were monitoring the situation round the clock.

Landslides completely damaged houses in the Upper Gyathang and Tarag villages. The road leading to Mangan district headquarters had been cut off. The lifeline National Highway 10 connecting Sikkim with Kalimpong in West Bengal was also hit. In South Sikkim, the water of the swollen Teesta River entered the Melli Stadium.

In October last year, a flash flood, triggered by a glacial lake outburst in North Sikkim, left over 100 people dead.

At Kalimpongs Teesta Bazar, which was also hit by last years flash flood, people left for safer places after the rising water level of the Teesta flooded their homes.

The road leading to Darjeeling via Peshok was also under floodwater. At Melli Bazar, water from the Teesta flooded the roads. Many vehicles parked at Teesta Bazar were inundated.

Engineers involved in road repair work said monsoon poses serious challenge to make embankments to protect the National Highway 10. The water level in the Teesta was rising until reports last came in as rains continued in Sikkim. An alert has been issued for heavy to very heavy rain in North Bengal.
A major fire broke out in Delhi's Chandni Chowk area on Thursday and spread to several shops, gutting goods and property worth crores of rupees. No one was reported hurt, PTI reported, citing officials. The fire started from Marwadi Katra market and spread to Anil Market.(Sanchit Khanna/Hindustan Times)

"A call related to the fire was received at 5 pm from Chandni Chowk area. The fire was in Marwadi Katra, Nai Sadak," Delhi Fire Service (DFS)chief Atul Garg said.

Initially, the DFS said that it dispatched 14 fire tenders to the spot, but as the fire spread to other shops, 26 more vehicles were pressed into service.

"The fire is surrounded so it cannot go any further. You can say it is under control, there is not to worry about. There are 40 fire tenders at the spot, along with 170-175 officials. There is no casualty in the incident," Garg told PTI late in the evening.

He also said that the main building where the fire started collapsed and efforts were on to contain the fire from spreading to several other shops, interconnected, which store garments.

Garg said that the narrow lanes in the area posed as an additional challenge to the firefighters as they were forced to station their tenders 200 to 300 metres away from the main spot.

"We are also using hydraulic machines to combat the fire from all locations," he said.

A spokesperson for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) said that the fire started from Marwadi Katra market and spread to Anil Market, reported.

Also Read | 3 killed in fire at food processing unit in Delhis Narela

Earlier, a massive fire broke out near a petrol pump in Sector 37 of Noida on Wednesday night. As per the latest information, the fire has been doused and no casualties have been reported.

Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police (ADCP) Manish Mishra told ANI that the fire is under control.

"In sector 37, a fire was reported near a petrol pump at around 10:00 pm. The Chief Fire Officer (CFO) and their team reached here immediately and around 10 fire tenders were also called in... The fire is now under control. There have not been any injuries in the incident," the ADCP said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday asked security forces to deploy the full spectrum of counterterror capabilities to deal with the spate of attacks that have roiled Jammu over the past four days, even as personnel fanned out across the region to locate foreign terrorists and police detained around 50 people for interrogation. Security personnel during a search operation in Narwal, Jammu, on Thursday. (PTI)

The review meeting was chaired by Modi  before leaving for Italy to attend the G7 Summit  to take stock of the situation in the Union Territory. National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval, and senior Prime Ministers Office and ministry of home affairs (MHA) officials also attended the meeting.

Officials who asked not to be named said that Modi was apprised of steps being taken to locate the terrorists, recently infiltrated from Pakistan, strengthening the security grid, and relief being provided to the victims.

Modi, said an officer who didnt want to be named, asked the security forces to deploy the full spectrum of our counterterror capabilities.

The PM is also learnt to have spoken to the home minister Amit Shah and J&K lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha.

In four back-to-back terror attacks in Reasi, Kathua and Doda districts since Sunday, highly trained foreign terrorists from Pakistan have targeted civilians and security forces.

In one attack, a group of three to four militants opened fire on a joint check post of the 4 Rashtriya Rifles and the Jammu & Kashmir Police in Dodas Chattargala area on the Bhaderwah-Pathankot road at 1.45am on Wednesday. The ensuing gunbattle lasted several hours, leaving five army personnel and a special police officer injured.

ALSO READ- India scrambles relief for Kuwait victims, will send IAF aircraft to bring back bodies

On Wednesday evening, officers said the second attack was on in the Kota Top area, 150km away from Chhattargala, when a second group of terrorists attacked a police team and injured head constable Fareed Ahmed.

Roughly 220km away in Kathua another gunbattle began late on Tuesday night and continued into Wednesday morning, leaving one Central Reserve Police Force jawan dead, six security personnel and one civilian injured, and two terrorists neutralised.

The three gunfights came on the heels of an attack on a bus carrying pilgrims in Reasi on Sunday, when armed terrorists opened fire on the vehicle, causing it to lose control and plunge into a gorge, with nine people dead and 42 others injured.

ALSO READ- Security tightened in Chamba along Jammu and Kashmir border

The string of attacks have sent ripples through the region fast becoming the hotbed of cross-border terrorism in the restive Union Territory. Intelligence agencies have estimated the presence of 70-80 recently infiltrated foreign terrorists in the region. The Border Security Force (BSF), the Indian Army, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and the J&K Police have been put on high alert as a manhunt is on for the terrorists.

Jammu has suffered at least seven terror attacks over the past year. After Wednesday nights encounter in Doda, the sketches of four suspected terrorists were also released by the local administration.

With the Amarnath Yatra beginning soon, for which thousands of devotees will travel to the Valley, Shah will also hold a meeting with the ground forces and the intelligence agencies and discuss in detail the area domination plan, the law and order situation, and the status of Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act cases against known suspects  lodged in prisons or out on bail  said a counterterrorism official who asked not to be named.

The strategies that will be put in place include  round-the-clock nakas (check-points) at strategic points, group security in the form of static guards, intensified cordon and search operations to effectively deal with the challenges posed by terrorist organisations, and sharing of intelligence inputs on a real-time basis among all security forces operating in Jammu & Kashmir, particularly in the Rajouri, Poonch, Doda and Reasi regions, said the official.

We are also focusing on building a foolproof anti-infiltration grid and plug the gaps so that Pakistan is not able to send more terrorists, this officer added.

ALSO READ- PM Modi departs for G7 summit in Italy; Israel conflict and Ukraine war in focus

A second security official said other strategies being implemented include day and night area domination, preventive operations to identify the strategic supporters (referring to overground workers who provide logistical support) of terrorism, and initiating investigations to expose their mechanisms of aiding and abetting terrorism, identifications of vulnerable spots to prevent terrorist attacks on civilians and sensitising troops on the ground about the issue.

The government believes that the bolstered strategy will help stave off further attacks, which, it says, are on the wane since the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019.

According to the official ministry of home affairs (MHA) data, 44 incidents initiated by terrorists were reported in J&K in 2023 compared to 228 in 2018 (before the abrogation of Article 370), 48 encounters were reported in 2023 between terrorists and security forces compared to 189 in 2018. In these incidents, 13 civilians and 26 security personnel were killed in 2023, compared to 55 and 91 deaths, respectively, in 2018.

We are working towards achieving zero-tolerance against terrorism, and a 360-degree security mechanism is being strengthened to completely eliminate the support and information system of terrorists, a third security official said.
N Chandrababu Naidu and Mohan Charan Majhi on Wednesday took oath as chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Odisha respectively in glittering ceremonies that underlined the importance of the two states that virtually ensured that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) crossed the majority mark in the Lok Sabha. N. Chandrababu Naidu takes oath as Andhra Pradesh chief minister oath, in Vijayawada, on Wednesday. (PTI)

Andhra Pradesh governor Abdul Nazeer administered the oath of office to the 74-year-old Naidu, marking his fourth term as chief minister, after the Telugu Desam Party-led NDA swept the assembly polls, bagging 164 out of the total 175 assembly seats.

JanaSena chief and actor Pawan Kalyan and Naidus son Nara Lokesh were among the 24 ministers who were administered the oath of office at the ceremony in Vijayawada. Prime Minister Narendra Modi hugged and patted Naidu after the oath, flanked by Union ministers Amit Shah, Nitin Gadkari and JP Nadda. Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde was also present.

Took oath as Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh at the swearing-in ceremony in Amaravati today. I devote myself to serving the people of my state. Thank you Andhra Pradesh! Naidu said in a post on X after the ceremony.

Hours later, Majhi took oath as the first BJP chief minister of Odisha at a ceremony attended by Modi, several Union ministers and chief ministers. Senior BJP leader and Patnagarh MLA KV Singh Deo and first-time lawmaker from Nimapara Pravati Parida took oath as deputy chief ministers.

Governor Raghubar Das administered the oath of secrecy and office to Majhi and 15members of his council at Janata Maidan in Bhubaneswar. Apart from Modi, BJP chief JP Nadda, Union ministers Amit Shah, Rajnath Singh, Bhupender Yadav, Dharmendra Pradhan, Jual Oram, Ashwini Vaishnaw and others attended the ceremony.

With the blessings of Lord Jagannath and guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Developed Odisha will be formed. The hopes and aspirations of 4.5 crore Odia people will be fulfilled, Majhi said on X.

Odisha and Andhra Pradesh are two states where the NDA nearly swept, winning 20 out of 21 seats in the former and 21 out of 25 seats in the latter. The elections also marked a remarkable comeback for Naidu, who was jailed on corruption charges by his predecessor YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, and the end of former Odisha CM Naveen Patnaiks 24-year-long stint at the helm of the eastern state.

Attended the oath-taking ceremony of the new Andhra Pradesh government. Congratulations to Naidu on becoming the chief minister and also to all the others who took oath as ministers in the government, said Modi on X.

The TDP, JanaSena and BJP government in the southern state is fully committed to taking AP (Andhra Pradesh) to new heights of glory and fulfilling the aspirations of the states youth, Modi said.

Thanking Modi, Naidu said, Thank you PM Narendra Modiji, for your august presence at the oath-taking ceremony in Amaravati today.

Naidu vowed that the TDP, JanaSena and BJP government will strive to deliver a people-centric governance. Shah also congratulated Naidu and Pawan Kalyan. It is my firm belief that the NDA government will pivot the state of Andhra Pradesh to new heights of prosperity, fulfilling the aspirations and hopes of the people, the Union home minister said.

After the ceremony, Modi hugged Telugu megastar Chiranjeevi and Pawan Kalyan and fondly spoke to them while holding their hands.

Modi then flew to Bhubaneswar where he attended Majhis swearing-in ceremony.

More than 50,000 people, mostly BJP supporters invited from across Odisha, turned up for the event at Janata Maidan in Bhubaneswar. Several hundreds also braved the heat to line the sides of the road leading to the venue.

Majhi, the MLA from Keonjhar Sadar, a reserved constituency for tribals in the mining belt of Keonjhar, was unanimously chosen as the BJPs legislature party leader on Tuesday.

He is the eastern states 15th CM and the third tribal leader to hold the post after Hemanand Biswal and Giridhar Gamang in a state where tribals form 22% of the population.

Majhi will helm the first BJP government in the state that was in the grip of Patnaiks Biju Janata Dal (BJD) since 2000. In the recently concluded assembly elections, the BJP won an impressive victory with 78 out of the 147 seats, with the BJD managing only 51. The BJP also won 20 out of the 21 Lok Sabha seats on offer, its biggest haul in the eastern state. He was the chief whip of the BJP in the previous assembly.

Chairing the first Cabinet meeting, Majhi announced that all four gates of the Jagannath temple in Puri, three of which had been shut since the Covid pandemic, would be opened from Thursday  a promise the BJP had made its in its manifesto. The Cabinet announced a 500 crore corpus fund for the temple, as well as the formation of a committee to implement increase to increase the MSP for paddy to 3100  another promise from the BJP manifesto.

Majhi said his government would implement the Subhadra Yojana, under which each married in the age group of 23 and 59 years will get a cash voucher of 50,000 within two years, within 100 days as the manifesto had promised.
Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday dismissed allegations of a paper leak in the NEET-UG medical entrance examination amid the ongoing protests by students over the results, claiming that there was no evidence to support such claims. Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan (PTI)

There is no paper leak, no proof has been found yet. A court-recommended model was adopted for around 1560 students and a panel of academicians has been formed for the same," Dharmendra Pradhan said at a press conference.

The National Testing Agency (NTA) conducted the NEET exam on May 5 across 4,750 centres, with about 24 lakh candidates appearing in it. Originally, the results were scheduled for June 14 but were announced earlier on June 4 due to faster evaluation of answer sheets. A total of 67 students achieved a perfect score of 720, a first in NTA's history. Six students from a centre in Faridabad, Haryana, were among them, sparking concerns about possible irregularities.

During the press conference, Pradhan said, I want to assure the students and their parents that the Indian government and its instrument NTA are committed to providing justice to them in a way that is transparent and relieving for them. This time 24 lakh students have successfully taken the NEET examination.

Several petitions were submitted to the Supreme Court asking to cancel the NEET-UG 2024 results and to redo the exam, claiming that the test on May 5 was marred by leaked papers and misconduct. On Thursday, the apex court disposed of petitions against the NTA, giving grace marks in NEET-UG 2024. The court accepted the Centre's suggestion to allow 1,563 candidates to retake the exam due to lost time during the May 5 test.

Everything will be open in front of the court. Let us wait for the court's verdict. We will accept the verdict of the Court, the education minister said.

He added, Two sets of questions are always there in 4,000 centres. On the same day, they are informed which set of questions should be opened. In six centres, they opened the wrong set of paper by mistake. So, fixing it took 30-40 minutes. Two sets of questions are not new, this practice has been going on for years.

Responding to the Supreme Court's judgment, Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi alleged that the government had said nothing about the larger scam.

Gogoi said, It has been decided that the scorecards of 1,563 students will be cancelled, and they will be given an option to reattempt the exam on June 23. If some students do not wish to give the test again, then grace marks will be deducted from their current score and that will be their final score. But we have heard nothing from the government on the larger scam.
Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday rejected allegations of paper leak or rigging in the medical entrance exam NEET-UG and accused the Congress of spreading lies without knowing the facts. Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan.(PTI)

No concrete evidence of any kind of rigging, corruption or paper leak has been found so far in the NEET exam. All the facts related to this are before the Supreme Court and are under consideration, Pradhan wrote on X. The kind of politics being done on this issue is only an attempt to spread confusion and it affects the mental peace of the students.

His comments came on a day the Supreme Court accepted the governments suggestion for conducting a retest of 1,563 students, who got grace marks due to loss of time during the exam. The government said scores without grace marks will be considered in case of those who do not wish to take the retest.

A four-member committee formed to review the results of 1,563 students recommended the retest, which has been scheduled for June 23.

Earlier today, the Congress had demanded a Supreme Court-monitored probe into the NEET-UG exam issue. The grand old party had said that there was anger in the country over the matter and that it would "reverberate inside Parliament as well".

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said the award of grace marks was not the only problem in the NEET-UG exam and had expressed apprehension about paper leak, corruption and rigging in the examinations.

"There has been rigging, papers have been leaked, corruption has taken place. The future of 24 lakh students appearing in the NEET examination is at stake due to the actions of the Modi government," he alleged.

Also Read | Education minister Dharmendra Pradhan calls NEET-UG paper leak charges baseless

Responding to Kharge's allegations, Pradhan accused the Congress of playing with students' future and carrying out petty politics.

"The opposition is issueless, on such a sensitive issue the opposition is just spreading lies without knowing the facts. Congress is playing with the future of the country for its petty politics," he wrote on X.

"I want to remind the Congress that to prevent paper leaks and to conduct a cheating-free exam, the central government passed the Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act this year, which has many strict provisions. Congress should not be under the misconception that if any nexus is found, no action will be taken against it. The provisions of this act will be implemented very carefully," the minister added.
The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the release of Annu Kapoor-starrer Hamare Baarah, asking the Bombay high court to decide expeditiously a petition which accused the film being derogatory to Islam and married Muslim women.



The top court's vacation bench comprising justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta halted the release of the film, scheduled to hit the theatres on Friday, June 14. Actor Annu Kapoor in a still from Hamare Baarah(File)

"We have seen the movie trailer in the morning and all the offensive dialogues continue in the trailer," the bench was quoted by PTI as saying.

"Until disposal of the petition before the High Court, screening of the movie in question shall remain suspended. We request the High Court to dispose of the plea expeditiously," the bench ordered.



A petition was filed in the Bombay high court against the certification to the film by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC). The petitioner had sought revoking the certification and injunction on the release.

What the makers of Hamare Baarah said on SC order

The film's producer Virender Bhagat told ANI,"I want to thank the Supreme Court for hearing us today. The censor board said that this is a movie on women's empowerment and population awareness and had submitted the report to the Bombay High Court."



"The Supreme Court said that the film screening would be stopped as decided by the Bombay High Court. SC also gave instructions to hear this matter immediately and give a verdict on this as early as possible," the film's producer added.

The Bombay high court had allowed the release of the film after makers agreed to delete two dialogues from it.



ALSO READ: Karnataka govt bans release of Hamare Baarah to prevent communal tension

Senior advocate Rahul Narichania, representing the filmmakers, agreed to delete the two dialogues objected to by the petitioners to avoid delays.


Pema Khandu took oath as the chief minister of Arunachal Pradesh for the third consecutive term on Thursday at a ceremony at the DK State Convention Centre in Itanagar. Along with him, BJP's Chowna Mein was sworn in as the deputy chief minister for the second term. Follow full coverage of oath-taking ceremony Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister Pema Khandu (Pema Khandu-X)

Arunachal Pradesh governor KT Parnaik administered the oath to Khandu and other 11 ministers in the presence of union home minister Amit Shah, JP Nadda, Kiren Rijiju, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, and other dignitaries.

The ten other cabinet ministers apart from Khandu and Mein include - Biyuram Wahge, Nyato Dukam, Gabriel Denwang Wangsu, Wangki Lowang, Pasang Dorjee Sona, Mama Natung, Dasanglu Pul, Balo Raja, Kento Jini, and Ojing Tasing.

Khandu was re-elected as leader of the BJP legislature party in Arunachal Pradesh on Wednesday, paving the way for him to be sworn in as the chief minister. Following this, Arunachal Pradesh governor lieutenant general KT Parnaik (retd) invited Khandu to form the government.

Khandu, who was with the Congress party initially, first became the CM of Arunachal Pradesh in 2016. A few months later, he, along with almost all the Congress MLAs, joined the Peoples Party of Arunachal and formed another government. However, in December 2016, the PPA expelled Khandu, following which he joined the BJP. He took oath as the CM for the second time as a BJP leader on May 29, 2019, after the saffron party won the assembly polls by bagging 41 of the total 60 seats.

In the recently concluded Andhra Pradesh assembly election, simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP won 46 out of the 60 seats. The party had already won 10 seats unopposed before the polls. The NPP, a constituent of the NDA government at the Centre, came second with five seats, the NCP won three seats, the PPA bagged two seats, and the Congress won one seat. The remaining three seats were secured by independent candidates.

Ahead of the oath-taking ceremony, Khandu, in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) said, We are committed to the development of our State, taking along all the citizens, including the tribes, for growth of all regions.

With the support of the people, we will work even harder to make Atmanirbhar Arunachal Pradesh a reality that will contribute vibrantly to the making of Viksit Bharat, he added.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday departed for Italy to participate in the G7 summit. Ahead of his departure, PM Modi said in an official statement that he is glad that his first visit after winning the elections is to Italy, and that India is committed maintain its strategic partnership with the country on the sidelines of the meeting. PM Narendra Modi departs for Italy for G7 summit

This is the prime minister's first foreign visit after he won the 2024 general elections and was sworn in for the third consecutive term in office. PM Modi is travelling to Apulia region, where the G7 Outreach Summit is being conducted on June 14.

Ahead of his departure for Italy, PM Modi said that G7 Outreach Summit an opportunity to deliberate on issues crucial for Global South. He said focus would be on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean during the discussions.

At the invitation of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, I am travelling to Apulia region in Italy to participate in the G7 Outreach Summit on 14 June 2024. I am glad that my first visit in the third consecutive term is to Italy for the G-7 Summit, the prime minister said.

PM Modi further said in his statement, During the discussions at the Outreach session, the focus would be on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean. It will be an opportunity to bring greater synergy between the outcomes of the G20 Summit held under Indias Presidency and the forthcoming G7 Summit, and deliberate on issues which are crucial for the Global South. I am also looking forward to meeting other leaders participating in the Summit.

On the sidelines of the G7 summit, PM Modi is set to hold bilateral meeting with his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni. He is also scheduled to meet with Pope Francis in Italy.

It will be India's 11th participation in the G7 Summit and PM Modi's fifth consecutive participation at the G7 Summit.

This year, the key focus of the G7 summit is expected to be on the Russia-Ukraine war and the conflict between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will also be addressing a session during the summit.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday departed for Italy where he will attend the G7 summit. The prime minister is attending for the fifth time and will be one of the senior most leaders in the conclave.



While there is a possibility of PM Modi sharing courtesies with Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau, there is no bilateral meeting planned with him. A file photo of PM Modi and Justin Trudeau at G20 summit in New Delhi last year.(HT_PRINT)

PM Modi's bilateral experiences with Trudeau have been underwhelming with the Canadian prime minister not willing to address the rise of khalistani terrorism directed towards India from Toronto.

Suffering from the perception of a tall Western leader, Trudeau's only agenda with India, the world's largest and oldest democracy, is human rights. Prime Minister Modi refuses to take sermons.

India is most unhappy with the shenanigans of Justin Trudeau as Canada is still to provide an iota of evidence to back up its allegation that Modi government was behind the killing of Bhindranwale Tiger Force terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey, Vancouver last June 18.

On September 18, Justin Trudeau made unsubstantiated allegations against India in the Canadian parliament on killing of Nijjar, who was killed in gang warfare.

Nijjar was a proclaimed terrorist with not less than 10 cases registered against him in India. He also had a red corner notice issued by Interpol against him and was a mentor of Canada based gangsters Arshdeep Singh, Rinku Bihla and Goldy Brar.

Last October, Canada was forced to withdraw 41 of its diplomats from India after New Delhi sought parity in the strength of North American country's diplomatic presence by cutting the number of diplomats stationed in the country from 62 to 21.

HT had learnt that some of the withdrawn diplomats had found to be liasoning directly with political parties' leadership in India. It was also alleged that Ottawa roped in its diplomats with certain Indian politicians to gather political intelligence.
NEW DELHI: India will focus on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, the Mediterranean and issues crucial to the Global South during its participation in the outreach session of the G7 Summit, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi emplanes for Italy to attend the 50th G7 leaders summit in New Delhi (PTI/VIA @MEAIndia)

PM Modi is travelling to Italys Apulia region to participate in the G7 outreach session at the invitation of his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni, his first overseas visit in his third term. He is expected to have bilateral interactions with several world leaders, including US President Joe Biden, on the margins of the summit.

During the discussions at the outreach session, the focus would be on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean. It will be an opportunity to bring greater synergy between the outcomes of the G20 Summit held under Indias presidency and the forthcoming G7 Summit, and deliberate on issues which are crucial for the Global South, Modi said in a statement ahead of his departure from New Delhi.

I am also looking forward to meeting other leaders participating in the summit, he said.

Modi expressed his happiness that his first visit in his third term would take him to Italy. I warmly recall my visit to Italy for the G20 Summit in 2021. Prime Minister Melonis two visits to India last year were instrumental in infusing momentum and depth in our bilateral agenda, he said.

New Delhi is committed to consolidating the India-Italy strategic partnership and bolstering cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and Mediterranean regions, he said.

Modis bilateral meetings with Meloni and Pope Francis, who too has been invited to the outreach session, have been officially confirmed. It is expected that he will also have bilateral interactions with Biden, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, French President Emmanuel Macron, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, people familiar with the matter said.

However, much of the speculation has centred around whether Modi will also interact with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, given the strain in bilateral ties, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is a special invitee to the summit.

The G7 Summit, being held at the resort of Fasano on June 13-15, is set to be dominated by the Ukraine war and the Israel-Hamas conflict. Foreign secretary Vinay Kwatra told the media on Wednesday that India will continue to push for a return to dialogue and diplomacy to find a resolution to the Russia-Ukraine war.

Besides India, the leaders of Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Kenya, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Tunisia and Turkiye have been invited to the outreach session.

Modi, however, will not participate in the Ukraine peace summit to be hosted by Switzerland at Burgenstock during June 15-16. Kwatra said India will be represented at this meeting at an appropriate level, though New Delhi is yet to take a call on who will attend.

Since Russias invaded Ukraine in February 2022, New Delhi hasnt criticised Moscows actions. It has sought an end to hostilities and asked both sides to return to the negotiating table to find a resolution. India has also highlighted the impact of the war, especially the spiralling prices of food, fuel and fertilisers, on countries of the Global South.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday reviewed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir. The prime minister held a meeting with National Security Advisor Ajit Doval and other officials. Prime Minister Narendra Modi.(ANI)

The Jammu and Kashmir region has seen a series of terror attacks over the past few days. Terrorists have struck at four places in Reasi, Kathua and Doda districts over the past four days, killing nine pilgrims and a CRPF jawan and leaving seven security personnel and several others injured.

During Thursday's meeting, the prime minister was given a full overview of the security-related situation in the union territory. He was also apprised of the counter-terror efforts being undertaken.

Also Read | 8 terror handlers declared proclaimed offenders in Kashmir



During the meeting, Modi urged the senior officials to deploy the full spectrum of India's counter-terror capabilities. He also spoke to home minister Amit Shah about the deployment of security forces and counter-terror operations.

Terror attacks in J&K



On Sunday, terrorists attacked a bus carrying pilgrims in Reasi, causing it to veer off the road and fall into a deep gorge, killing nine and injuring 41. Two days later, terrorists attacked a joint checkpost in Doda, injuring six security personnel.

On the same night, one Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) Jawan and one terrorist were killed in another encounter in Kathua district that broke out after ultras attacked a house in Saida Sukhal village in Hiranagar.

On Wednesday evening, a policeman was injured in a fresh gunfight with terrorists in Kota Top area of Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir.

Also Read | PM Modi to visit Srinagar on International Yoga Day on June 21

The Jammu and Kashmir police have said that the terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba is believed to be behind the attack. It has released the sketches of four terrorists involved in two attacks in Doda district.

The Jammu and Kashmir police have said that the terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba is believed to be behind the attack in Reasi, reported ANI. The J-K police have formed 11 teams to investigate the attack. A team from the National Investigation Agency (NIA) is also assessing the situation in Reasi.
Karnataka home minister G Parameshwara said on Wednesday that the police has been granted full authority to act according to the law against Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa and his associates, following their arrest in connection with a murder case. The case revolves around the alleged murder of Renukaswamy, whose body was discovered in Kamakshipalya, Bengaluru. (PTI)

Addressing the media, Parameshwara said: Darshan was arrested based on information suggesting his involvement in the murder. An investigation is underway, and action will be taken based on the findings. Law is equal for everyone whether it is Darshan or Parameshwara. So no one should take the law into their hands.

The case revolves around the alleged murder of Renukaswamy, whose body was discovered in Kamakshipalya, Bengaluru.

If Renukaswamy had posted something on social media about his female friend, he could have filed a complaint, and police would have acted immediately. The information is, (he) was brought to Bengaluru, beaten and was killed, it could have been avoided, the home minister added.

To a question that Darshan had taken help from influential politicians to save himself, the minister said, as far as he knows, no one has tried to influence him (the actor), and action will be taken in the case, in accordance with law.

No one from the government will interfere. Police have been given a free hand, and they will take whatever action they have to in accordance with law, he said.

He further said every case need not be given to the central bureau of investigation (CBI) for probe. At least 13 people have been arrested, and those involved in the case are known. There is no need to give the case to another agency.

Police will probe whether he is a habitual offender...what they (police) will recommend after the probe in their report, is to be seen, police have a free hand, they are free to invoke sections and they have opportunity themselves to do it, they need not ask us to do it, he said, when asked whether a rowdy sheet will be opened against Darshan.

In 2011, Darshan was arrested for allegedly assaulting his wife and threatening her. He was later released on bail and the couple subsequently resolved the issue and she withdrew the case against him.

Renukaswamys remains were brought to his hometown in Chitradurga, where his last rites were conducted at the Veerashaiva Burial Ground.

Karnataka film chamber of commerce (KFCC) president N M Suresh said that a decision regarding taking action against Darshan will be taken after discussion with the artists union.

He indicated that action will most likely be taken only after the police file a charge sheet in the case.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was elected from two seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections -Wayanad in Kerala and Raebareli in Uttar Pradesh. However, he will have to relinquish one seat in the coming days. Now, Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief K Sudhakaran has dropped a big hint indicating that Gandhi will likely relinquish the Wayanad seat. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. (ANI Photo)

While addressing a public meeting on Wednesday, Sudhakaran indicated that Rahul Gandhi might retain the Raebareli seat. He said that the people of Kerala should not be saddened as Gandhi cannot be expected to remain in Wayanad.

We should not be saddened as Rahul Gandhi who is supposed to lead the nation cannot be expected to remain in Wayanad. Therefore, we should not be sad. Everyone should understand that and give all their wishes and support to him, Sudhakaran said at the public meeting, where Gandhi was present.

Rahul Gandhi, during a public meeting at Edavanna in Malappuram, said that he was in a dilemma over which seat he should relinquish. He said that whichever seat he decides to retain, both constituencies will be happy with the decision.

The Congress leader said, "I have a dilemma before me, whether I should be the MP of Wayanad or of Rae Bareli. What I will commit to you is that both Wayand and Raebareli will be happy with my decision."

According to the Representation of People Act, a candidate can contest from two Lok Sabha constituencies, but can hold only one seat at a time. As per the regulations, the candidate has two weeks to from the date of declaration of the results to decide which seat he wants to retain.

The Lok Sabha election results were declared on June 4, which means that Rahul Gandhi will have to announce his final decision before June 18, next Tuesday.

In the 2019 general elections, Rahul Gandhi contested from the Amethi and Wayanad seat but lost from the former. Contesting on two seats once again in the 2024 elections, Gandhi won from both Wayanad and Raebareli with a huge margin. In Wayanad, however, the victory margin was smaller than what it was in 2019.
The Rajasthan high court recently ruled that the act of removing a minor girl's innerwear and getting naked in front of her does not amount to an attempt to commit rape, and instead could be considered an offence of outraging the woman's modesty. The high court of Rajasthan. (File)

The high court made the statement while delivering a judgment in a 33-year-old case wherein the complainant's granddaughter - who was about six years old then - was reportedly assaulted.

According to the complaint, the girl was drinking water at a water booth when the accused - who was 25 years old at that time - forcefully took her to a nearby Dharamshala with the intention to commit rape on her, reported News18. However, when the girl raised her voice, the villagers rescued her. Following this, the accused fled the scene.

While the complaint mentions that the accused undressed himself and the victim, it did not allege that the accused attempted penetration.

Responding to the case, the high court said it does not fall under the Sections 376 and 511 of the IPC and will not attract the offence of attempt to commit rape. The single-judge bench of Justice Dhand further emphasised on the term attempt, saying that the accused must have gone beyond the stage of preparation.

Dhand said that three stages need to be fulfilled for an act to be punishable under an attempt to rape - first is when the accused entertains the idea or intention to commit the offence, second when he makes preparations to commit it, and third, when he takes deliberate steps to commit the offence, reported News18.

The court also cited examples of some cases, such as Damodar Behera vs Odisha and Sittu vs Rajasthan where the accused forcibly stripped the victim naked and tried to have physical relations with her, despite the girl resisting it. According to the high court, these cases were attempts to rape.
"The 14th Finance Commission has clearly said no special status can be given. said Finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman in February 2023 when questioned about Odisha's demand for special status. Referring to the 14th Finance Commissions opinion, she ruled out any special category status to any state. Telugu Desam Partys 16 MPs and the Janata Dal Uniteds 12 are crucial for the Bharatiya Janata Party, which has 240 seats in the Lok Sabha where the majority mark is 272. (ANI Photo)(ANI)

Cut to mid-2024, with a coalition government to manage, things could be a bit different. Telugu Desam Partys (TDP) 16 MPs and the Janata Dal Uniteds (JDU) 12 are crucial for the Bharatiya Janata Party, which has 240 seats in the Lok Sabha where the majority mark is 272.

While an National Democratic Alliance (NDA) meeting has endorsed Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the alliance leader, there is little doubt that behind-the-scenes jockeying by new allies for key portfolios and concessions for their states is playing out in earnest.

Unlike the major ministries which have been ruled out for BJP's allies, long-standing demands from Bihar and Andhra Pradesh about special category status, could come up once the NDA government is in place.

Given the fact that this is a coalition government, and the government is dependent upon the TDP and JDU, special status can certainly be justified. The risk is other states too can start demanding similar status, and you cannot possibly oblige everyone, says Arun Kumar, economist and author.

Special category status first introduced in 1969, based on the recommendations of the Fifth Finance Commission, is a classification of regions or states by the central government to provide special assistance in the form of tax benefits and financial support for development of the region. States that come under this category get preferential treatment in getting central assistance and tax breaks.

Additionally, for the implementation of the centrally sponsored schemes, the special category status states are required to contribute just 10 per cent while the central government offers 90 per cent unlike for other states where the centre provides only 60-70 per cent of the fund. These funds if not spent lapse for normal states while they are carried forward for SCS.

Special category status is typically bestowed on those states that have hilly and difficult terrain; have low population density and/or a sizeable share of tribal population; strategic location along the borders with neighbouring countries; economic and infrastructural backwardness and non-viable nature of state finances.

If these yardsticks are used, then Andhra certainly and Bihar probably, do not fit the bill. Andhra Pradesh, for instance, is ranked first in the country for the year 2021-22 in terms of the Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) growth at constant prices with a growth rate of 11.43 per cent. The State GSDP is expected to grow at a rate of 17 per cent for the year 2023-24. GSDP as per the first revised estimate, for the year 2023-24 is 15,40,000 crore.

A major rice and agriculture producer, Andhra is home to a large IT software industry spread over Visakhapatnam, Tirupati and Vijayawada, and boasts of several Indian and foreign companies like HSBC-GLT, IBM, Wipro and Infosys, among others, that play a dominant role in the states economy.

NR Bhanumurthy, economist and Vice Chancellor Dr BR Ambedkar School of Economics University, Bengaluru says, Andhra Pradesh was promised special category status in the Andhra Pradesh states Reorganization Bill and there is no reason why it should not get it. There are different ways to support states. The Finance Commission can always evolve ways to do it.

The Special Status demand for Andhra Pradesh goes back to the states bifurcation and the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's assurance in 2014 amid the passage of the AP Reorganisation Act, that the parent state would be compensated with a 'special category status' for five years.

That is yet to happen, Bhanumurthy told this reporter, adding that southern states have already suffered under the Finance Commissions devolution package, with Hindi-speaking states gaining at their expense.

Earlier this year, some states from South India have said that they have not been receiving their fair share as per the present scheme of financial devolution. They have flagged concerns about their less than proportionate share of receipt in tax revenue when compared to their tax collection rates.

The 14th Finance Commission (2015-20) recommended increasing the devolution of money to states from the divisible pool of central taxes to 42 per cent from the earlier 32 per cent. The 15th Finance Commission (2021-26) has also kept the tax devolution nearly at the same level.

Additionally, with a new capital coming up in Amravati, central assistance to Andhra would become crucial. "I believe the state needs assistance for its new capital, Amravati. All the three states that were created in 2000, Jharkhand, Uttarakhand and Chhattisgarh, got similar assistance while rebuilding Ranchi, Dehradun and New Raipur, says Bhanumurthy.

Arun Kumar disagrees, It is one thing to ask for special status for Amravati, which would be like a one-time assistance. That is different from Andhra getting special status, which is a more long-term arrangement. Kumar is the author of 'Demonetization and Black Economy and 'Indian Economys Greatest Crisis: Impact of Coronavirus and the Road Ahead'.

In November last year, Nitish Kumars cabinet had passed a resolution demanding special status for Bihar. There is unanimity across all political parties in the state on the question of special status.

Bihars per capita net state domestic product for 2022-23 was recorded at 31,280, among the lowest in the country. According to the National Family Health Survey-5, the state had high poverty levels. Bihar is Indias poorest state, with 33.76 per cent of its population being multi-dimensionally poor.

In 2023, S Siddharth, the then Additional Chief Secretary of Bihar, said that giving lands to the landless and houses to homeless families, would cost the state 2.5 lakh crore. "To get such a large amount, it is essential that Bihar gets the status of a special state so that this happens faster, he told the media.

Bihar has a case for special category status, after its division from Jharkhand in 2000, says Arun Kumar.

He calculates that the government will accept the Andhra and Bihar proposals, and mull over it and play for time. Everyone will see how the situation evolves.

The trouble is that in due course, if it comes down to BJP engineering defections from its allies to reach the magic figure of 272, in case the special status demand gets too shrill, it may be easier to break JD (U) rather than TDP, which has more members.

In 1969, three states  Jammu & Kashmir, Assam and Nagaland  were granted the special category status. Subsequently, eight more states now fall into this grouping, which include Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Sikkim, Tripura, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
WASHINGTON: The US views the recent Indian elections as the most successful democratic experiment and demonstration in modern history, notes that Prime Minister Narendra Modi accepted the electoral outcome, and believes that Indias democratic resilience gives New Delhi an edge in its competition with Beijing, Kurt Campbell, the American deputy secretary of state has said. Kurt Campbell, considered the key architect of the Joe Biden administrations Indo-Pacific policy, expressed scepticism about the prospect of any breakthrough in the India-China relationship (X/DeputySecState)

Campbell, considered the key architect of the Joe Biden administrations Indo-Pacific policy, expressed scepticism about the prospect of any breakthrough in the India-China relationship due to the structural issues between the two countries and Chinas unwillingness to show any flexibility on territorial and border issues.

At the same time, Campbell said that the US was very bullish confident comfortable about its relationship with India, attributed any sense of drift in ties to the political and election campaigns in both democracies, termed India the leading nation of Quad, and said that he had never seen the bilateral relationship as close as it is now in his decades of working on India.

Campbell, who is the second-highest ranking diplomat in the US and moved from his perch as the Indo-Pacific coordinator in Bidens national security council to the State Department earlier this year, also acknowledged that it was time for the US to change certain practices and ways of doing things in terms of export control regimes to deepen the defence and tech relationship with India.

He will accompany US national security advisor Jake Sullivan on a trip to India next week where the two countries will review progress under the initiative on critical and emerging technologies (iCET) mechanism and discuss other regional and global issues. Before that, PM Narendra Modi will meet US President Joe Biden in Italy on the sidelines of the G7 summit.

Campbell was speaking at the Stimson Center, a Washington DC-based thinktank, on Wednesday where he also outlined the administrations current approach to China. While the US officially congratulated Modi after the elections, this is the most expansive set of comments by a top American official on the bilateral relationship after the polls.

The India-China-US triangle

Responding to a question on how the US views reports about possible talks between India and China, Campbell said that any time two countries can find a degree of common space to reduce tension, the US supports it and expressed his best wishes to India for any deliberations.

But Campbell then expressed his scepticism about any talks leading to a breakthrough and said there were some structural issues that frankly will be difficult to resolve.

I think from an Indian perspective, they are going to demand and expect, from any rapprochement or substantial improvement in relations, differences with respect to how China treats the contested borders and steps that they have taken. I think one of the things that we have seen under Xi Jinping on anything that bridges or touches territorial matters, its very hard for the Chinese to show any flexibility or any desire to find common ground, Campbell said.

In the same response, almost drawing up a contrast with the relationship with the US, Campbell said that the US was very proud of the steps it had taken to elevate the India-US relationship and claimed he had never seen the kind of progress in bilateral ties as had happened in recent years. And there are many reasons for that. It is not only American support to India when they faced challenges along the Line of Actual Control; kudos to the Trump administration for that. We followed up on that in a variety of ways. Donald Trump was in office during the Galwan clash in the summer of 2020 when the US had stepped up to offer both intelligence, defence and logistical support to India in quick time.

Campbell added that the US has worked closely with India on Quad in many respects. They are the leading nation in the Quad frankly, they help drive initiatives. After being initially reluctant, they are now fully embracing the potential.

Campbell then referred to his upcoming trip to India. We have worked assertively in technology. I will be with Jake Sullivan in India next week as we advance areas of coordination with India here. And so I think we feel very good about this partnership, the people, the people that connect in with our diaspora and the like. We are very confident and comfortable about the state of our bilateral relationship. And we want that to continue going forward. And you know, the President engaged PM Modi almost immediately after the election. We are looking forward to continuing work with them.

The democratic and strategic convergences

Asked if he felt that the remarkable resilience of Indian democracy gave India a leg up in the competition with China, Campbell said, I do. There are obviously issues that have been raised in US-India relations, some concerns, but at the same time, we have to recognise that what India just experienced was the most successful democratic experiment and demonstration in modern history. And thats just remarkable. And note that PM Modi accepted the outcomes. This was thought to be an extremely effective demonstration of a democratic machinery.

Campbell reiterated that if he had to name one country that was going to be the most important for the US in the 21st century, he would, without hesitation put India on top of the list and listed out a set of factors that was propelling closer ties.

I believe that there is growing strategic alignment. There is enormous interests at the people-to-people level. And I am finding that among a younger generation of Indias interlocutors, some of the previous inhibitions or concerns or grudges are not as significant.

Campbell added that this was the same on the US side, where a growing group of people recognised that deep strategic engagement with India was in Americas best strategic interests. And there isnt the bifurcation that we have seen in the past; India-Pakistan. We engage India on its own merits.

Due to these changes, Campbell said he anticipated that the US would work even more closely with India on issues such as clean energy, the security of the Indian Ocean, coproduction, and technology. I would say that American technology companies view India as really the next frontier and that has been one of the major arenas of cooperation between our two sides.

Export controls: Need to change old practices

In response to a question from HT about the perception of drift in the relationship due to public controversies, Campbell said, Things happen in a bilateral relationship, particularly between democracies. PM Modi had his campaign. We have had some politics as well. I would simply say that both countries are deeply committed to sustaining the upward trajectory of our bilateral relationship. I believe we remain ambitious for what we want to accomplish across the board and those areas of cooperation will include things in technology.

HT also asked Campbell whether the American export control regimes placed limits on bilateral tech and defence cooperation. The deputy secretary acknowledged that there were practices and some steps that had been in place for a long time but were no longer relevant to the US-India relationship. We need to move beyond them to find new areas of cooperation and partnership. And I think thats going to be one of the issues that NSA Sullivan will be talking to his Indian counterparts about. We want to take those steps to advance the relationship to make sure that that momentum is unmistakable. And we are quite bullish on the relationship.
The US views the recent Indian elections as the most successful democratic experiment and demonstration in modern history, notes that Prime Minister Narendra Modi accepted the electoral outcome, and believes that Indias democratic resilience gives New Delhi an edge in its competition with Beijing, Kurt Campbell, the American deputy secretary of state has said.

US deputy secretary of state Kurt Campbell (centre) with Indian foreign secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra (centre left) and other Indian officials in Washington in April. (ANI)
India's unusually severe heat wave has killed more than 200 people and made tens of thousands ill so far. Amid these extreme weather conditions, there are concerns about the country's marginalised people. In New Delhi alone, the mercury climbed to nearly 53 degrees Celsius (127 Fahrenheit), making it the hottest summer in 120 years.(Adnan Abidi/REUTERS )

A nationwide heat wave that began in May has brought unprecedented temperatures to northern and western India .

The India Meteorological Department issued red alerts at the end of May warning about the "very high likelihood" that many people would experience heat illness and heat stroke, and urging "extreme care" for vulnerable individuals.

ALSO READ: Can heatwave be deadly? 5 ways extreme heat can put your life at risk; dos and don'ts to follow

Despite the heat wave, however, Kanchan Devi is forced to make her living outdoors, baking bricks in the state of Haryana.

Temperature warnings do little for informal laborers such as Devi. The twenty-something-year-old only has a piece of cloth wrapped around her head to protect her from the sun.

Devi, who belongs to the Dalit community  a historically marginalized group from the lowest level of India's centuries-old discriminatory caste hierarchy  squats for hours at a time as she works at the furnace to produce bricks. Last month, Devi experienced dizziness at work during the heatwave and was subsequently hospitalized due to low blood pressure.

ALSO READ: Severe heatwave grips Delhi: 5 things that can happen to the body when temperature soars above 45 degrees

'Risking our lives'

A report by the Center for Labour Research and Action found that over 50% of the workers at the 21 brick kilns it surveyed were Dalits.

"Our lives are always at risk," said Raheb Rajput, a Dalit construction worker in New Delhi, who told DW that he lost his cousin to the heat wave in May. "It is getting hotter with every passing year."

Nearly 25,000 people are believed to have experienced heatstroke during India's summer season, which runs from March through May, the news website ThePrint reported ,citing government data.

The National Alliance of People's Movements, a civil rights organization, demanded that this year's extreme heat be declared a disaster under India's Disaster Management Act, 2005.

Is caste a heat vulnerability factor in India?

Several studies and media reports highlight the plight of workers in the unorganized sector, which represents a huge chunk of the Indian labor force, especially during sweltering summers  but caste has rarely been recognized as a factor that contributes to heat vulnerability.

Experts say socioeconomic factors can have an impact on people's vulnerability to heat. A study by the European Trade Union Institute (ETUI) revealed that occupational heat exposure exacerbates social inequalities.

"Research suggests that caste-based division of labor continues to exist in India's modern market economy," said Arpit Shah, a professor at the Indian Institute of Management in Bengaluru, one of India's most-populous cities.

Shah's ongoing research explores the relationship between caste and occupational heat exposure.

"Construction workers and sanitation workers are disproportionately likely to be from the marginalized caste groups. Since these occupations require more outdoor work, there is greater risk because of heat waves," Shah said.

By some accounts, 90% of the workforce in India is employed in the informal sector. A massive proportion of the workers in the informal sector belongs to the Dalit community, Scheduled Tribes and other "lower" caste groups, according to a 2020 report by the National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights.

Challenges faced by brick kiln workers

Most laborers at brick kilns are migrants who live in shanties constructed by stacking up bricks on top of each other, with tin sheets or tarpaulin used for the roof.

At times, the migrant workers stay with their families, including children, at the site of the kiln in severely hot temperatures.

Devi said she slept in the field at night. "It is hotter inside our tin-roofed shanty," she said.

Most of the shanties lack basic amenities such as fans and light bulbs. Many of the workers DW spoke with said they arranged for fans on their own.

Some employers fail to provide even drinking water. Laborers are forced to search for water in nearby areas, and this scarcity also puts them at risk.

Gulrez Shah Azhar, a former researcher with the Public Health Foundation of India, said heat vulnerability could be exacerbated by people's individual environments.

"Imagine living in a shanty," he said. "There's no separate bathroom or running water supply enabling privacy to take a shower. All of these factors add to how vulnerable a person is to heat."

The mercury's rise makes access to cooling and shade a crucial heat adaptation strategy, but most of the people from the Dalit community DW spoke with did not own air coolers  let alone air conditioners.

The lower-caste and tribal households are also reported to have 10%-30% less access to electricity.

Pathway for inclusive policy to deal with heat waves

The National Disaster Management Authority adopted the UN Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and released its plan in 2016. The initial plan considered only the elderly and disabled as vulnerable groups to natural disasters. However, in 2019, it was revised to include Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in this category.

"The Heat Action Plans formulated at state, city and district levels do not take the impact on vulnerable caste groups into account," said Beena Johnson, the general secretary of the National Campaign on Dalit Human Rights.

A study by the Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research think tank found that "nearly all Heat Action Plans are poor at identifying and targeting vulnerable groups."

Mukul Sharma, the author of the book "Caste and Nature," said the government only provided data for deaths caused by heat, but disaggregating the numbers would most likely reveal that many of the victims are Dalits.

"We are living in a different time, for all of us," Azhar said. "Heat is the greatest inequality issue of our time."
Indias impressive growth performance has raised hopes of it becoming a developed country in the not-too-distant future. The Prime Minister has set 2047, the centenary year of Independence, as the aspirational target year. However, leapfrogging from being a low middle-income economy to becoming a developed country in the next 25 years requires raising the countrys per capita income by more than five times, from $2,600 to $10,205. This effectively translates into a per capita income growth at 7.5% per year and an aggregate Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth at 9%.

Accelerated growth is not enough; the growth has to be inclusive. Creating jobs for four million persons entering the workforce annually in the next 25 years when it is expected to peak and moving 44% of the workforce languishing in agriculture and another 42% in small enterprises with low productivity and incomes to jobs with higher productivity and income, will be a formidable challenge. Given almost two-thirds of those in the 20-33 age-group have less than higher secondary qualifications, enough well-paying jobs cannot be created in the services sector enterprises. The focus thus must be on labour-intensive manufacturing. This requires greater flexibility in capital and labour markets, besides upgrading education and skill levels.

India has made considerable progress in ensuring macroeconomic stability, an efficient financial sector, and cutting-edge digital infrastructure. In recent years, it has also increased public spending on infrastructure. These are important, but more needs to be done to push the economy on a 9% growth path. The most important reform is to reduce the borrowing costs of businesses by reducing public borrowing. The finance minister has promised to reduce the fiscal deficit at the Union level to 4.5% of the GDP by 2025-26. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI)s record transfer of 2.1 lakh crore will help compress the deficit in the current fiscal. Sustained efforts to contain the deficit and debt while maintaining high levels of spending on infrastructure, education and skill development will have to continue. This calls for enhancing the revenue productivity of the tax system and reprioritising expenditures.

Fortunately, the tax system has seen significantly higher buoyancy in recent years. The record Goods and Services Tax (GST) collection of 2.1 lakh crore in April bolsters prospects of revenues continuing to be buoyant. However, maintaining high revenue productivity and reducing distortions require reforms. The time is ripe for the GST Council to undertake second-generation reforms to broaden the base and rationalise the rate slab. In personal income tax, the option of tax exemptions and preferences should be removed, and the number of rates in the new system should be reduced to three from the prevailing five.

Structural reforms are imperative to impart flexibility to factor and product markets to ensure efficient functioning. The government can focus on some key structural reforms.

One, productive jobs must be created in both manufacturing and service sectors. Small-scale enterprises which employ over 75% of the manufacturing workforce cannot compete in global markets. It is necessary to encourage them to evolve into medium- and large-scale industries with higher productivity and wages. The most important deterrent is the labour laws. To that end, the four labour codes can help. However, more needs to be done to impart flexibility and effective implementation and the states have an important role in this.

Two, there has to be a greater thrust on exports and avoiding protectionism. International experience shows that exports must be a strong engine for the growth for the economy to record high growth rates over a sustained period. India accounts for just 2.5% of global exports. Tariffs have been steadily increasing since 2017, and the share of exports in the GDP has been declining. It is also important to avoid bias against producers in policies on the trade of agricultural commodities. A 9% growth cannot be achieved unless the trend is reversed. In this connection, Indias withdrawal from joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) was disappointing. The recent signing of Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) with Australia and the United Arab Emirates is important, and increasing the pace of negotiations with the United Kingdom and the European Union should help.

Three, while the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) is a landmark reform, it is important to ensure that the insolvency resolution process is timely, effective, and reasonable.

The three farm legislations to provide flexibility to the farmers to sell their products anywhere, which were later withdrawn in the face of protests by the farmers, exemplify much required but failed reforms. Unfortunately, failed reforms are difficult to revive. The Centre, perhaps, could collaborate with the state governments to generate acceptability for such reforms  after all, in the case of the farm reforms, agriculture being a state subject, the latters collaboration becomes vital.

M Govinda Rao is councillor, Takshashila Institution. He is a former director, NIPFP, and was a member of the 14th Finance Commission. The views expressed are personal
One of the great joys of watching a blockbuster movie is the intermission which often comes just when the plot is reaching a dramatic crescendo. It is during the interval that you can step out from the darkness into a calmer space for a quick break. Indian electoral politics, too, has entered a much-needed interval phase after a bruisingly polarised decade marked by constant action and high-octane theatrics. Ever since Narendra Modi took over as Prime Minister (PM) in 2014, the news cycle has been on steroids. Now, finally, a fatigued voter has pressed the pause button without a total switch-off.

Which is why it would be a huge mistake to overread the 2024 verdict. The Modi fan club reminds us that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)s 240 seats are still higher than any Congress performance in the last 30 years. The Modi baiter club tells you that this is a mandate against the incumbent: A government that boasted of being char sau par (400 plus) is well below the halfway 272 mark on its own. The truth, as often is the case, lies somewhere in between.

The BJPs victory rath triumphally marching from one state to another has undoubtedly been halted. In the countrys three biggest electoral states  Uttar Pradesh (UP), Maharashtra and West Bengal  the party has ended second best. Amidst the recrimination over what went wrong, the reality is that a seemingly supreme election machine is no longer invincible. The aura around PM Modi has somewhat dimmed too: A Centre for Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) post-poll survey actually puts Rahul Gandhi above Modi in UP on the leadership question, the first time he has edged ahead in a major Hindi heartland state in a decade.

And yet, the Congress itself remains well behind the BJP nationwide in seats and vote share. In direct BJP versus Congress fights, the gap in seats won remains in favour of the BJP: 157 against 51 wins. The only state the Congress dominated was Kerala, where its principal opponent was the Left, not the BJP. In the Congress-ruled states of Karnataka, Telangana and Himachal Pradesh, the party was unable to push ahead.

But electoral arithmetic tells only part of the 2024 story. This election was driven by chemistry, by an unshaken belief that Modi ki Guarantee alone would be enough to give the BJP a decisive victory. This is where the BJP campaign managers erred, forgetting that in a country as diverse as India, no one issue can be bigger than its people. That over 100 BJP candidates were imports from other parties and 132 sitting Members of Parliament (MPs) were replaced suggests an overconfident political strategy that revolved around the one leader, one nation chorus in which all other candidates were rendered faceless and dispensable.

This Modi-centric polity has now reached exhaustion point. Three results stand out: Varanasi, where the BJP was talking up the possibility of the PM winning by a record margin, saw a 320,000 drop in the victory count; Faizabad-Ayodhya where the Ram Mandir opening in January was billed as the ultimate Hindutva moment witnessed a fresh-faced leader from a Dalit community defeat a two-time MP; and Banswara in Rajasthan, where the PM first made the elections about identity saw a young tribal leader from the Bharat Adivasi Party emerge triumphant.

Collectively, these results and the overall splintered verdict expose the limits of strongman politics in which institutions and ideology, even religion and society, were subsumed under the looming presence of a king-size persona laced with divinity. Instead, voters have reminded us that they need greater accountability, and yes, more humility from the political leadership.

But while the domineering personality cult has lost some of its regal splendour, Modi remains in power even if his political authority may be diminished. The Modi era isnt over, it has simply been forced by a disenchanted voter to soften a bit. This may be a mili-juli sarkar but unlike previous coalition arrangements, it has a strong party at its core: The BJP actually got 6.9 million votes more than it did in 2019 but lost 63 seats. The unilateral style of decision-making may give way to a more accommodative way of functioning. But for how long is still a moot question.

In a sense, the key to the next political act lies not so much with the BJPs allies, most of whom are relishing the scent of power, but with the Opposition that has been hugely boosted by the mandate. After being battered into submission for 10 years  its parties were broken, leaders hounded and even jailed, and Parliament was often reduced to a notice-board  the Opposition has finally got the numbers, and crucially, a voice that matters. The wise voter just doesnt want a humbler government, she is also pushing for a robust Opposition that will take up citizens concerns with greater vigour while being constructive, not chaotic.

The length of this intermission phase in Indian politics is unclear and could well depend on the next round of assembly election results. But what is more certain is that the Indian voter has chosen consensus over conflict, modesty over arrogance, federalism over a unitary State, diversity over uniformity. Embracing this extraordinary verdict requires sagacity on all sides. Or else, the increasingly impatient voter may be forced to speak out again: The second half of an indeterminate political plot is yet to unfold.

Post-script: In the spirit of humility, some of us in the media, too, need to apologise for pitching the exit poll as an exact poll. We too need to take time off and rediscover a better way to tell the election story, less driven by sensationalist claims of know-it-all pollsters and more by the common sense of voters.

Rajdeep Sardesai is a senior journalist and author. The views expressed are personal
Real estate prices in Andhra Pradeshs Amaravati surged by as much as 100% in the days following June 4, when Chandrababu Naidu-led Telugu Desam Party returned to power with a thumping majority in the state assembly polls. Additionally, the party bagged 16 out of the 25 Lok Sabha seats in the state, scoring a key position in the NDA coalition at the Centre. Real estate prices in Amaravati in Andhra Pradesh surged by as much as 100% in the days following June 4, when Chandrababu Naidu-led Telugu Desam Party returned to power (Representative Photo/HT)

The prices of real estate in Amaravati have recorded a V-Shaped recovery since the declaration of the election results with the mandate of a stable government, said Anarocks Prashant Thakur, adding that land rates have increased by almost 60% to 100% in the past few days with the number of sellers reducing sharply.

Also Read: With Amaravati back in focus after Naidu as CM, what happens to Hyderabad real estate prices?

The idea of Amaravati as Andhra Pradesh's capital was Naidu's brainchild, floated during his chief ministerial term between 2014-19. However, the strategically chosen city in the heart of Guntur district, is said to have witnessed a setback under successor Y S Jagan Mohan Reddys tenure.

According to local brokers, land prices in Amaravati were around 25,000 to 60,000 per sq yard in 2019. During YSRCP, these prices went down to almost 9,000 to 18,000 per sq yard and are currently at 30,000 to 60,000 per sq yard.

Naidus return as Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister has given rise to widespread speculation and heightened expectations of a revival in Amaravatis progress.

With Amaravati getting the capital city status, and the political and financial support expected from the NDA coalition at the Centre, investors would be reassured about the citys growth and progress, said Nomaan Ellahi, Senior Vice President at proptech startup Square Yards.

Here are five key things investors should know about the real estate market in Amaravati.

1 Price boom a one-off phenomenon?

Real estate experts, who spoke to HT Digital, termed last week's boom in real estate prices as a one-off phenomenon, triggered by political developments. Moving forward, while property prices are expected to grow positively, the pace of growth may moderate to a more stable rate, they said.

Also Read: What's next for Amaravati, the dream capital of Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu?

As the plans for development formalize in the coming days and years with the masterplan getting implemented to build the greenfield capital city, it is estimated that prices will rise further, Thakur said, adding that since a sharp price rise has already taken place, further appreciation may be moderated for land assets.

Prices of new developments across asset classes are likely to rise as the execution progresses, he added.

2. May benefit the commercial real estate sector in Amaravati

In the initial months, the new political dispensation is expected to focus on enhancing the ease of doing business within the state, which will bode well for the commercial real estate segment.



Real estate experts said that it may take at least a quarter before new launches take place.

3. Affordable housing may witness growth in Amaravati

In the residential segment, near-term demand is expected to stem largely from the affordable housing category in the absence of a well established model for the premium bracket. A majority of Andhra Pradesh, over 60%, falls under rural India.

However, those like Thakur pointed out that the mid-end and luxury housing segments may benefit from the citys capital status.

4. Housing launches may pick up after a quarter

Real estate experts foresee greater stability in Amaravatis real estate market within 3-6 months as the new governments policy agenda unfolds. While land parcels present scope for an early movers advantage, project launches in the residential category are likely to pick up in the coming months.

Also Read: Top multinational companies bet big on Hyderabads commercial real estate market, lease 8.7 lakh sq ft of office space

It will take at least a quarter before we see new launches coming up in the city by developers. Right now, there are not many good options available for investors in the residential category, experts said.

5. Can investors expect higher returns from the Amaravati real estate market?

Typically, a growing market offers higher returns due to limited entry barriers and small ticket sizes. In the next few quarters, capital appreciation and rental yields in Amaravati will remain key monitorables for prospective investors, said real estate experts.
Luxury homes prices in Mumbai and New Delhi recorded the highest year-on-year growth in Q1 2024, pushing the financial city to the third spot after Manila and Tokyo. Delhi was at the fifth position but Bengaluru witnessed a slight drop to 17th rank, Knight Franks Prime Global Cities Index showed. Luxury homes prices in Mumbai and New Delhi recorded the highest year-on-year growth in Q1 2024, pushing the financial city to the third spot after Manila and Tokyo. (Representational photo)

Mumbai recorded the third highest year-on-year (YoY) growth in prime residential prices in Q1 2024, pushing it up the ranking table by three places to 3rd position from its 6th position in Q1 2023. NCR rose from 17th rank in Q1 2023 to 5th in Q1 2024 with a growth of 10.5% YoY. However, Bengaluru observed a decline in ranking from 16th place in Q1 2024 to 17th rank in Q1 2024, even while it recorded a 4.8% YoY growth in residential prices, it showed.

Also Read: Luxury homes priced over 4 crore record 10% Y-o-Y growth in Jan-March 2024 across top seven cities

Mumbais rise on the international index was largely due to the rise in demand in the city. While the demand has been strong for all segments, there was an increase in the sale of higher value products.

New Delhi and Mumbai, have witnessed a surge in house prices driven by robust economic growth, as indicated by our findings, with annual GDP growth exceeding 8%, the report said.

Also Read: Delhi-NCR's real estate market: Here's why rich Indians are lapping up luxury properties

The rise in global prime residential price index was recorded at 4.1 % across the 44 markets in the 12-month period ending March 2024 where prices are rising at their fastest rate since the third quarter of 2022, it showed.

The strong demand trend for residential properties has been a global phenomenon, led by gateway markets of Asia- Pacific and EMEA. Like its peers in these regions, the improved rankings of Mumbai and New Delhi on the Prime Global Cities Index was underscored by the resilience in sales growth volume. We expect the momentum of sales to remain stable over the next few quarters as the economic conditions are likely to remain broadly unchanged, said Shishir Baijal, chairman and managing director at Knight Frank India.

Also Read: Real Estate trends: Five clinchers for a 100 crore property deal

Manila claimed the top spot in the ranking with a 26.2% annual rise in prices which was the highest in the ranking this quarter. The growth can be attributed to two key factors: a robust economic performance enhancing consumer confidence and purchasing power, and substantial infrastructure investments within and around the city, which have further stimulated demand.

Tokyo jumped 17 places up with 12.5% YoY growth and ranks 2nd in the index. The rise in house prices at the beginning of 2024 can be credited to two primary factors: advantageous mortgage terms provided by Japanese banks and a depreciation of the yen, leading to heightened foreign investment in Tokyo's real estate market. Despite Japan's overall population decline, Tokyo sustains a net population growth owing to migration from other regions within the country.

The Prime Global Cities Index is a valuation-based index tracking the movement of prime residential prices across 44 cities worldwide. The index tracks nominal prices in local currency.

The rebound in global housing markets is continuing, as evidenced by our Prime Global Cities Index reaching 4.1% annual growth. Rather than heralding a return to boom conditions, the index indicates that upwards price pressures are stemming from relatively healthy demand, set against continued low supply volumes. The pivot in rates  when it comes  will encourage more vendors into the market, leading to a welcome return to liquidity in key global markets, said Liam Bailey, Knight Frank's Global Head of Research.
Tata Digital Pvt Ltd has renewed the lease for its headquarters Fort House located in South Mumbai. The monthly rent for the commercial space is 2.98 crore, according to the documents accessed by FloorTap.com The commercial office space for which Tata Digital has renewed its lease is located in Fort area of South Mumbai and the monthly rent works out to be  292 per sq ft.

The security deposit paid for the transaction is 15.03 crore. The office space comprises ground plus six floors with Tata Digital taking up space on each floor except 588 sq ft of space on the second floor, according to the documents.

The entire office space is spread across 1.02 lakh sq ft, the document showed.

The transaction was registered on May 16, 2024 and the lease period for the transaction is for three years between April 2024 to March 2027, the documents showed. The office space has been leased by Tata Digital Pvt Ltd from Dawat-E-Hadiyah, a public charitable trust.

Heres how the monthly rent stacks up

The monthly rent for the commercial space is 2.98 crore that works out to be around 292 per sq ft. In the previous lease tenure, the monthly rent was 2.50 crore or 245 per sq ft for the period between April 2019 to March 2022, and 2.88 crore or 282 per sq ft for the period between April 2022 to March 2024.

Also Read: Office buildings in Mumbais Bandra Kurla Complex command higher prices than Manhattan

An email query sent to Tata Digital and Dawat-E-Hadiyah, a public charitable trust, did not get any response.

Also Read: Sunteck Realty Ltd leases second commercial building in Mumbai for 29 years to generate rent revenue of over 2000 crore

Fort is Mumbai's old commercial business district

Fort area, where Tata Digital has renewed the lease for its office space, is one of the oldest commercial business districts in South Mumbai. Fort area also houses several heritage buildings from the British era. Several Central and state government offices, including General Post Office, Mumbai Port Trust, Shipping Ministry, Maharashtra Maritime Board are located there.

Old commercial business districts in South Mumbai include Nariman Point, Cuffe Parade, Churchgate and Marine Lines among others.

Also Read: UK Consulate buys office space in Mumbais Lower Parel area from Lodha Group for 101.2 crore

In a recent office deal in the Mumbai real estate market, the United Kingdom (UK) Consulate had bought 12 office units from Macrotech Developers Ltd, which operates under the Lodha brand, in the project One Lodha Place in Lower Parel, Mumbai, for 101.2 crore.
Our conversation this week transcends time zones, as I try to help you navigate everything Apple announced at the WWDC keynote in Cupertino, California. I must start by saying that contrary to general opinion, it turns out, Apple was never really falling behind in the AI battles. It was simply preparing, and in one fine move with what it calls Apple Intelligence, has taken a significant lead over anything Android, Windows or standalone AI tools have in the ring. So much so, Apples entered the fray with significant superiority of its AI models, and OpenAIs latest and greatest GPT-40 is simply an optional layer within the grand scheme of things. On the broader spectrum, Apples integration of machine learning and generative AI touches almost every task, or app you may be using. There are many improvements landing on the iOS 18 platform for iPhones.

Our analysis, as Apple writes a new

Deep dive into Apple Intelligence models, optional ChatGPT and privacy approach

Phone calls recorded and transcribed. Email replies drafted after youve answered contextual questions based on what the sender wrote. Writing tools to proofread or change language of the text youve written. Notes app improving your handwriting. Scheduling messages. A conversational Siri that holds context too during follow-ups. Let me quickly summarise a few things for you, before talking more about the AI models.

Apple CEO Tim Cook describes, a personal intelligence system. He hopes Apple Intelligence and the companys approach to AI, will set a new standard for privacy and AI.

Core to Apple Intelligence are multiple models that theyve built in-house, on-device processing, a smarter Siri, the privacy focused Private Cloud Compute for server-side processing, updates for App Intents framework thatll allow third-party apps to plug into the intelligence features and an optional OpenAI GPT-4o integration.

Specifically for Private Cloud Compute which is a unique solution for consumer interfacing AI, Craig Federighi, Senior Vice President for Software Engineering at Apple explained, what's happening there is your request to our servers is actually first of all anonymized, so your IP address is masked. Then it talks to a server that has no permanent storage, cannot log, but most importantly is running software where the image is publicized for security researchers to audit or your iPhone won't even talk to that server is a clever kind of blockchain issue.

The clarity of thought with Apple Intelligence structure, is clear. We think that the right approach to this is to have a series of different models and different sizes, for different use cases. We put a lot of time and effort on the 3 billion parameter model that will run on your iPhone, and it is one of the most capable models today, explains John Giannandrea, Senior Vice President for Machine Learning and AI strategy, Apple. That was our first confirmation of the specifics of Apple on-device.

OpenAIs ChatGPT-4o in iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia, isnt the default AI model at work. In fact, reaching ChatGPT will be optional for any queries or tasks a user may have, and this will be invoked if Apples own models feel they do not have the necessary expertise or response to offer.

OpenAI has also detailed the privacy measures put in place for queries generated from Apple devices. They say privacy protections are built in when accessing ChatGPT within Siri and Writing Tools, to the extent that the user requests are not stored by OpenAI, and users IP addresses will be obscured.

My attention was drawn to a technical paper which Apple released a few hours after the WWDC keynote. It details the core tenets, which is how Apple Intelligence have been fine-tuned for user experiences such as writing and refining text, prioritizing and summarizing notifications, creating playful images for conversations with family and friends, and taking in-app actions to simplify interactions across apps. To that point, Apple has detailed their Responsible AI Principles, which includes the pursuit to identify areas where AI can be used responsibly to create tools for addressing specific user needs, work continuously to avoid perpetuating stereotypes and systemic biases across AI tools and models, identify at stages including design, model training, feature development, and quality evaluation to identify how AI tools may be misused or lead to potential harm and most importantly, do not use users' private personal data or user interactions when training foundation models.

Apple, time and again, made it a point to clarify that Apple Intelligence has a significant advantage because it will know you better, have access to your data for query responses and have context from your calendar, location, and conversations, for instance. Responses to daily queries such as show me the document which XYZ sent me a few days ago or can I finish the 4pm meeting and be in time for the 5:15pm meeting will have a lot more context to work with. The sort that a standalone tool such as ChatGPT wouldnt. Add to that, if Apples previous record of pursuing user data privacy is anything to go by, theyll have Apple Intelligence data absolutely in control. Models wont be trained on your data, period. The sort of control that perhaps hasnt been seen thus far with consumer interfacing generative AI.

UNFOLD

Some of you may remember, last week we had a conversation about a new chapter for tech thats being crafted in the summer of 2024. Smartphones is a critical element to that, and I have a feeling the point we are talking about today is just the tip of a much bigger iceberg waiting to be revealed (which I shall, in the coming weeks too). Foldable phones are catching everyones attention. All the data too points to that, with as many as 17.7 million foldable phones expected to be shipped by the time the year draw to a close. Thats no surprise, because generation by generation and slowly but surely, the combination is coming together well  foldable form factor is finding utility for users, and these phones themselves are getting better. Last years OnePlus Open left me quite impressed, and quite a few months later, we are now experiencing Vivos good habit of learning with time. Which brings us to the Vivo X Fold3 Pro, their first foldable phone to go on sale in India but it is actually a third-generation device.

I would credit the passing of time and the feedback from that, as the reason why Vivos stretched technical limitations to achieve what it has  the slimmest foldable phone, the largest display in a foldable phone, the lightest foldable phone and so on. In my piece, youd find some comparative points that define how this phone is building on the sort of time-passing improvements the OnePlus Open had given us. And that, compared with Samsungs foldable, which released prior. Youd be parting with around 1,59,999 for the X Fold3 Pro and thats in the same ballpark as a Samsung Galaxy ZFold5 (around 1,54,999) though a OnePlus Open (around 1,39,999) still represents good value in my book.

Unlike Samsungs approach to cameras on foldables (or at least thus far), OnePlus didnt really hold back on its Hasselblad trump card (and to a large extent, the photos it clicked are really likeable) and Vivo most certainly wants to have its Zeiss partnership make a significant difference. It has worked. Vivos troika of a 50-megapixel wide, 64-megapixel periscope and a 50-megapixel ultra-wide, and thats given Zeisss behind the scenes smarts a solid foundation to work with. I find a lot of similarities in the photos the Vivo X Fold3 Pros camera outputs, with its flagship, the X100 Pro. Thats just the ticket for this price tag. It is quite remarkable that most of Vivos recent phones have more often than not, hit the sweet balance between pricing, value and experience. This seems destined in that direction (value being subjective, depending on how the price tag weighs on you). That sort of strike rate isnt easy to achieve.

More coverage about foldables and flagships chapter

The new Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5. (HT Photo)

OVERVIEW

Gemini Live will figure prominently in Googles Messages app, with the added context of your chats.

A couple of weeks ago, we discussed some reported inaccuracies by Googles AI Overviews feature for Search. That was just days after the company had widened the scope of this functionality at the I/O 2024 keynote (Our detailed coverage from the time). Worrying? Google has in the time thats passed since, reached out and detailed what theyve found after some urgent investigations were mounted. While Google isnt entirely ruling out the use of fake or morphed screenshots on social media, they point to two things  certain queries are designed to elicit an erroneous response. Or as Liz Reid, who is vice president and head of Google Search says whilst not mincing any words, nonsensical new searches. That said, Google has identified a few things that can be improved, based on millions of users putting AI Overviews through the paces.

One area we identified was our ability to interpret nonsensical queries and satirical content. Lets take a look at an example: How many rocks should I eat? Prior to these screenshots going viral, practically no one asked Google that question. They reference this as a data void, because when queried, Search pointed the user to the only website that tackled this sort of a query.

We saw AI Overviews that featured sarcastic or troll-y content from discussion forums. Forums are often a great source of authentic, first-hand information, but in some cases can lead to less-than-helpful advice, like using glue to get cheese to stick to pizza. This has been identified as a misinterpretation of the language on webpages that have inaccurate information, which is then amplified. Algorithms have received updates to change this behaviour.

There are now more query categories or specific search types which will not trigger AI Overviews. This was already in place for anything related to health or news.

PLAY

A few days ago, game developer Ubisoft confirmed a number of their titles coming to Apple devices, in different phases. In terms of the here and now, Assassins Creed Mirage can already be downloaded from the App Store for iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max, and iPad Air and iPad Pro (thats with an M1 chip, or later). Another title, Rabbids: Legends of the Multiverse, lands on the Apple Arcade subscription bundle and is playable on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple TV, and Apple Vision Pro. Meanwhile, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is coming to Macs at some point this winter, and preorders for this are open. Finally, Apple is getting gaming right for the iPad and Mac in particular, which if this momentum continues, will mount some pressure on Microsofts gaming foundations with Windows PCs. Its a long road ahead.
Sanjay Leela Bhansalis first-ever web series, Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar, is currently streaming on Netflix. From the glitzy set to the songs of the series to the dresses and jewellery, every element of Bhansalis Heeramandi exudes magic. And just like many people who are recreating its songs, dance sequences and more, Aishwarya Rai Bachchans sister-in-law, Shrima Rai, couldnt stop herself from recreating the Heeramandi look, and the pictures are absolutely breathtaking. Shrima Rai poses for a photograph as she recreates Heeramandi look. (Instagram/@shrimarai)

What would you name my character? wrote Rai while sharing pictures on Instagram.

I personally loved Heeramandi on Netflix and I am looking forward to the next season. My favourite character was Bibbijaan by Aditi Rao Hydari and uff the Queen Manisha Koirala, she further wrote.

Take a look at the pictures right here:

The pictures were shared on June 13 on Instagram. They have since been gained a lot of traction online. While reacting to the pictures, an individual wrote, Beautiful, while another said, You're absolutely stunning.

A third Instagram user commented, Absolutely gorgeous.

I would name your character Tara, expressed a fourth.

A fifth joined, So elegant and stunning.

Earlier, a 54-year-old woman recreated Aditi Rao Haydaris Gajagamini walk from Bhansalis Heeramandi. In the now-viral video, digital creator Neeru Saini can be seen wearing a colourful lehenga with a silver-coloured blouse. Holding a mustard yellow dupatta with mirror embellishments, she recreates the viral walk. Netflix reacted to her video and wrote, OBSESSED. 100. Neeru, tum bade WOW ho, referencing a dialogue from the film.

About Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar

Heeramandi, set in pre-partition India, has a star-studded cast, including Manisha Koirala, Sonakshi Sinha, Aditi Rao Hydari, Richa Chadha, Sharmin Segal, and Sanjeeda Shaikh. The series revolves around courtesans who wielded a lot of power and influence during Indias freedom struggle.
A piece of a human finger was found inside an ice cream cone that a doctor ordered from a shop in Mumbai on Wednesday, according to reports. The 26-year-old man reached Malad police station to lodge a complaint after making the disturbing discovery. A Mumbai man found a severed finger in her ice cream cone (Representational image)(Pixabay)

"The complainant in the case, a 26-year-old doctor with MBBS degree who stays in Malad west, had ordered a butterscotch ice-cream cone of Yummo company," news agency PTI quoted a police officer as saying.

The Mumbai resident's anticipation turned to horror when he unwrapped the sweet treat and found a severed human finger in it.

While consuming the ice-cream after lunch, he came across a half an inch long piece of flesh with a nail in the ice cream, the Mumbai Police officer said.

(Also Read: Customer horrified to find worm on gulab jamun purchased from Chennai shop. Watch)

The man, who is pursuing his post-graduate studies, took up the matter and lodged a complaint with the ice cream company on its Instagram page, he said. But since there was no appropriate response from the company, the complainant put the piece of flesh in an ice bag and approached the Malad police station, the official said.

A First Information Report (FIR) has been registered against Yummo Ice Creams on the basis of the woman's complaint to Malad police. The severed digit has been sent for forensic analysis.

The alleged incident in Mumbai sparked a wave of reactions among social media users, ranging from shock to disgust.

I am traumatised

NDTV identified the doctor as Mumbai-based Orlem Brandon Serrao.

I had ordered three cone ice creams from an app. One of them was a butterscotch ice cream of Yummo brand. After eating half of it, I felt a solid piece in my mouth. I thought it could be a nut or a chocolate piece and spat it out to check what it was, Serrao was quoted as saying by NDTV.

I am a doctor so I know how body parts look like. When I carefully examined it, I noticed the nails and fingerprint impressions under it. It resembled a thumb. I am traumatized, he added.

(With inputs from PTI)

(Also Read: Mumbai resident orders over 300 ice creams on Swiggy in just 45 days to beat the heat)
The vice-chancellor of Kerala University has denied permission for a dance performance by Bollywood actor Sunny Leone, according to reports in Malayalam media. Sunny Leone has acted in films such as "Jism 2", "Jackpot", "Shootout at Wadala" and "Ragini MMS 2".

The show was to happen on the University College of Engineering campus in Kerala capital Thiruvananthapuram on July 5.

Kerala University vice chancellor Dr Mohanan Kunnummal instructed the registrar to ensure that the college university does not include Leone's show in the programme list, Manorama and Mathrubhumi reported.

Dr Kunnummal said permission was denied as there was an existing directive from the Higher Education Department banning the performance of "outside bands" on the campuses, news agency PTI reported.

After the recent stampede incident at CUSAT campus, there is an existing direction banning performances by outside band on the campuses, he told PTI.

The vice-chancellor said he learned about the Sunny Leone event after seeing a poster for it.

"There is also a regulation that money should not be collected from outside for functions inside the campuses. On this particular campus, there are only around 300 students, and for a Bollywood celebrity, an exorbitant amount needs to be collected," he said.

In November last year, four students died and over 60 were injured in a stampede-like situation at a concert in Cochin University of Science and Technology (Cusat) in Kerala's Ernakulam district.

Sunny Leone, 43, will be a part of an upcoming Malayalam film. In April, she took to Instagram to share a glimpse of the muhurat ceremony on the sets- as she began shooting for the film.

I'm so excited to be part of this amazing Malayalam film that I ended up burning my hands. Director: @pampally, she captioned the post.

She has acted in Bollywood films such as Jism 2, Jackpot, Shootout at Wadala, and Ragini MMS 2.

Last year, she was seen in Kennedy, directed by Anurag Kashyap. She was featured alongside Rahul Bhat and Abhilash Thapliyal.

(With inputs from PTI)
Radhika Merchant wore a custom gown at the recent pre-wedding gala in Europe, printed with a love letter written by her fiance, Anant Ambani, when she was just 22. Anant Ambani and Radhika Merchant had a second pre-wedding gala in Europe recently.(Instagram)

He wrote me this long letter for my birthday about what I mean to him, Merchant told Vogue.

I wanted it for posterityI want to be able to show it to my kids and grandkids, and say that this is what our love was."

This is the first time the bride-to-be is speaking publicly about the second pre-wedding celebrations that saw Katy Perry, David Guetta, the Backstreet Boys and Andrea Bocelli performing for the guests.

The black gown with white chiffon, that Merchant wore on the luxury cruise on Day 1 of the four-day event, was designed by London-based designer Robert Wun.

Take a look at Radhika Merchant's custom gown:

For the toga party on the second day of the celebrations, Merchant wore a toga" made by designer Grace Ling. The party on the cruise saw banners from the US universities where the couple studied, in an attempt to recreate the time when they met during their college years (New York University and Brown University), according to the Vogue report.

Nita Ambani, Merchant's soon-to-be mother-in-law, wore a gown from the Italian fashion house Schiaparelli.

(Also Read: Rameshwaram Cafe food on Anant Ambani, Radhika Merchants pre-wedding cruise. Podi idli, podi dosa on menu)

"It was just the most magical evening. I had goosebumps," Merchant said on the chance to witness legendary tenor Andrea Bocelli's live performance in the Italian town of Portofino.

When is the Anant Ambani-Radhika Merchant wedding?

Anant Ambani, son of Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani and Nita Ambani, is set to marry Radhika Merchant on July 12. The highly anticipated wedding will be held at Mumbai's Jio World Convention Centre in Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), with celebrations spanning three days.

(Viral Videos: Inside the cruise that hosted Anant Ambani, Radhika Merchants pre-wedding party in Europe)
Italy Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is hosting a two-day G7 Summit. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is among those who are attending the event. As he arrived at the venue, he was greeted by PM Meloni, and pictures of the two leaders are now viral on the Internet. British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak with Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. (AFP)

Borgo Egnazia: Italian PM Giorgia Meloni receives United Kingdom PM Rishi Sunak, as he arrives for the 50th G7 Summit, wrote news agency ANI while sharing a video on X (formerly Twitter).

The video opens to show Sunak walking up to Meloni as she greets him with a warm hug and kiss. As the video goes on, the two giggle and chat for a while. The two leaders then pose for a photograph before they resume talking.

However, the Internet soon pointed out an awkward hug-and-kiss moment between the two. While sharing a picture of the moment, an X user wrote, Rishi Sunak being greeted by Giorgia Meloni at G7 looked a lot like he went in for a snog and she pulled back. There was then a real eurgh, smelly breath energy.

Rishi Sunak greets Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni during a welcome ceremony on day one of the 50th G7 summit, said another individual.

A third social media user commented, Don't lean in, Rishi!

Prime Minister Modi departed on Thursday, for the G7 Summit in Italy. It will be his first visit after winning the Lok Sabha 2024 elections and swearing in as the Prime Minister of India for the third consecutive time.

Ahead of his departure, PM Modi said, At the invitation of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, I am travelling to Apulia region in Italy to participate in the G7 Outreach Summit on 14 June 2024. I am glad that my first visit in the third consecutive term is to Italy for the G-7 Summit.

The G7 comprises the US, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Canada, and Japan. Italy currently holds the G7 (Group of Seven) presidency and is hosting the summit from June 13 to 15 June 2024, at Borgo Egnazia in the city of Fasano in Apulia, Italy. A key focus of the Italian presidency has been defending the rules-based international system.
Elon Musk took a dig at the Apple-OpenAI deal on June 11 by using an iconic Indian meme featuring the film 2017 Thappattam. Through the meme, he expressed his concerns over data violations that could happen as Apple integrates several features of OpenAI's ChatGPT into its system. Now, Adham Bava, the producer of the film Thappattam, took to X to thank the Tesla CEO for making his film's poster a worldwide hit. Elon Musk shared this meme featuring the film Thappattam.

While sharing the meme, Musk, in the caption, wrote, "How intelligence works". The meme shows a man and a woman sharing coconut water, while the accompanying text discusses potential privacy violations resulting from Apple sharing data with OpenAI. (Also Read: Elon Musk says iPhone, MacBook will be banned in his companies if Apple uses OpenAI)

After the meme went viral, Bava reshared it and wrote, "My thanks to Elon Musk for making my movie Thappattam poster world famous." Alongside he also shared the poster of the movie.

Take a look at the post here:

About Apple-OpenAI deal:

At WWDC 2024, Craig Federighi, Apple's Senior Vice President of Software Engineering, stated that ChatGPT would be available on Apple devices. ChatGPT will be connected with Siri to help it gather context and generate relevant results. According to Apple, Siri will be able to cross-reference many apps to gather more particular information about the user's request. (Also Read: Elon Musk had sex with a SpaceX employee, asked a woman to have his babies: Report)

Apple has verified that customers can utilise ChatGPT without registering an account. Customers who have paid for ChatGPT will also have access to these services, and they can link their paid accounts to gain access to all premium features. Additionally, the corporation stated that customer requests and information will not be recorded. (Also Read: Elon Musk accused of insider trading again: Sold Tesla stock when he knew)
Thanos LinkedIn? is what the Internet is asking after going through a LinkedIn profile shared by a startup co-founder. Nikhil Basu came across an absurd profile on LinkedIn, where the individual has earned degrees from top universities, including Oxford, Harvard and Stanford. Screenshot of the LinkedIn profile shared by a startup co-founder. (X/@nbt)

Just came across the most absurd education history of all time on LinkedIn, wrote Basu Trivedi while sharing a screenshot of the LinkedIn profile.

The LinkedIn profile is of Jamie Beaton, CEO of Crimson Education. According to his LinkedIn, he has attended top universities, including Oxford, Harvard and Stanford. Beaton started with the Saint Kentigern in 2000, then attended Kings College, Auckland, followed by the University of Auckland, Princeton University, Yale Law School, the University of Pennsylvania, Schwarzman Scholars, University of Oxford, Stanford University, and Harvard University.

Beaton studied MBA, applied mathematics, and International relations, among other subjects, at the aforementioned universities over the years.

Take a look at the viral LinkedIn profile right here:

The post shared by Basu has received over 1.7 lakh views and the numbers are still increasing. Many X users even dropped comments on the post, with one asking if the startup founder will hire the person with so many degrees or not. To this, Basu replied, He also started a company that is apparently worth $1B+ so, I think so?

Wild. I thought it was going to be a long list of online certificate programs from these institutions at first glance, expressed another.

A third shared, Is this Thanos LinkedIn? Don't let my parents see this one.

Gotta catch 'em all, said a fifth X user.
China, Central Asian countries join hands to seek common development

15:15, June 13, 2024 By He Yin ( People's Daily

A signing ceremony of an intergovernmental agreement on the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway project was held in Beijing on June 6. Chinese President Xi Jinping, Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov and Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev congratulated the signing of the agreement via video link.

Xi said the signing of the intergovernmental agreement will provide a solid legal basis for the construction of the project, marking the transition of the railway from a vision into a reality, and demonstrating to the world the firm determination of the three countries to promote cooperation and seek development together.

The China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway is a strategic project of connectivity between China and Central Asia, and a landmark project of the three countries' cooperation efforts under the Belt and Road Initiative.

It was originally proposed back in 1996 by Uzbekistan. In the past nearly three decades, the three countries held multiple rounds of negotiations and discussions on the project. The feasibility study of the project was completed in May 2023, which put the implementation of the project on a fast track.

The signing of the trilateral intergovernmental agreement was a remarkable phased achievement of the project.

Japarov said the railway is a flagship project of the three countries in jointly building the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Once completed, it will become a new transport route linking Asia to Europe and the Persian Gulf countries, which is of great significance to promoting connectivity and strengthening economic and trade exchanges among the countries along the route and in the region as a whole.

Mirziyoyev said the railway will become the shortest land route connecting China and Central Asian countries, and open up the big markets in South Asian and Middle East countries. This will help further expand regional countries' cooperation with China and deepen friendly ties among the countries, which serves the long-term interests of all the countries, Mirziyoyev added.

The signing of the trilateral intergovernmental agreement on the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway project demonstrates that China and Central Asian countries are fastening their steps of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation.

It was in Central Asia that the BRI was first announced. Central Asia is a demonstration zone of high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. China has signed Belt and Road cooperation documents with all five countries in the region.

The Horgos International Border Cooperation Center on the China-Kazakhstan border in Horgos, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, opened the gateway to the Pacific for Central Asian countries.

The Qamchiq Tunnel on the Angren-Pap railway line, the longest tunnel in Central Asia, holed through by a Chinese company, local residents no longer had to travel up and down the mountains or go around them via neighboring countries.

The China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Highway has officially opened, becoming an important transport artery that runs smoothly through the regions' mountainous terrain. Now, nearly 80 percent of the China-Europe Railway Express trains run through Central Asia, they are hailed as a "steel caravan" on the Eurasian continent.

China and Central Asian countries have reaped tangible and fruitful results in Belt and Road cooperation that benefited the region and its people in various ways.

At the first China-Central Asia Summit held in May last year, all parties highly praised the important significance of the BRI in leading international cooperation. They vowed to further align the BRI and the development strategies of the five Central Asian countries, and deepen pragmatic cooperation in various fields, so as to form a new pattern of cooperation characterized by a high level of complementarity and mutual benefit.

The accelerated high-quality Belt and Road cooperation between China and Central Asian countries fully demonstrates that BRI cooperation responds to the call of the times, benefits the peoples in participating countries, and enjoys popular support.

Since the BRI was proposed 10 years ago, China has signed over 200 Belt and Road cooperation documents with more than 150 countries and over 30 international organizations, making the initiative the worlds largest international cooperation platform that covers the widest range of cooperation.

The BRI not only brings tangible benefits to countries involved but also contributes actively to promoting healthy development of economic globalization, addressing global development challenges, and improving the global governance system.

Belt and Road cooperation promotes connectivity, mutual benefit, common development, cooperation and win-win outcomes. It represents the advancing of the times, and it is the right path forward.

China hopes to work closely with all parties for the early completion of the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway project at an early date and turbocharge the China-Central Asia cooperation.

China will continue to deepen its Belt and Road partnership with various parties, including Central Asian countries, and build more cooperation belts for high-quality development and more roads to happiness that benefit people's livelihoods, making unremitting efforts to contribute to the modernization of countries around the world.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun)
.:              ...
Every now and then, there are several dance videos of people performing in public places that seem to irk netizens. Such clips often face backlash from netizens. Now, once again, a woman has gone viral on social media for dancing at Kolkata airport. She was seen performing to Deepika Padukone's song Lovely from the film Happy New Year. Ever since her video caught the attention of numerous people on social media, many individuals criticised her for grooving at the airport. Many onlookers were surprised to see the woman dancing at the airport. (Instagram/@SaheliRudra)

Saheli Rudra shared the dance video on Instagram. The clip shows her dressed in jeans and a shirt. As the song Lovely plays, she tries to pull off the same choreography as Deepika Padukone. While she is dancing, numerous onlookers can be seen observing her in a surprise. (Also Read: Woman dancing outside an airport causes outrage on social media: 'Causing public nuisance')

Watch the viral video of the woman dancing at the airport here:

This video was shared a few days ago on social media. Since being posted, it has gained more than five lakh views. The post also has over 6,500 likes. Numerous people took to the comments section of the post and expressed their thoughts on it. (Also Read: Bengaluru airport staff breaks into Garbha, random travellers join in. Watch.)

Here's how people reacted:

An individual wrote, "Authorities should take action!"

Another Instagram user added, "This should not be allowed in public areas; have respect for others, too."

A third commented, "Ridiculous airport authority should take immediate action."

"You guys should stop this nonsense in public places," posted a fourth.

A fifth said, "Disgusting dance and taste both. Even if people are disinterested, they have to see her stupid moves."

A sixth added, "The only thing I am doing at the airport is focusing on when that damned boarding gate opens. Internet should definitely become exclusive."

"What would possess anyone to do this in such a public setting like this?" shared a seventh.
A LinkedIn user took to the social media platform to share an experience that has left her "emotionally frustrated and disheartened". She posted how a law firm, for whom she shifted from Pune to Mumbai fired her after she could not go to the office due to fever. The woman expressed her frustration over toxic work culture. (Unsplash)

"I was perplexed as I was diligently performing my duties, and no associates had any complaints about my work. When I called HR to inquire about the reason for my termination, she had no justification to offer, merely stating that it was the partner's decision," the woman wrote in the post.

She added, "The next morning, I approached the partner to understand the rationale behind this abrupt termination, especially after I had relocated for this opportunity. His response was shocking and dismissive  'Kya problem hai apko? Yeh mera firm hai, and mei jab chahu tab kisiko bhi uda sakta hun. (What is your problem? It is my firm; I can fire anyone I want to.) He further added, "Aap sirf intern ho, why are you asking so much? Koi contract nahi kiya hai apke sath. (You are just an intern; why are you asking so much? There is no contract with you.)" (Also Read: Employee quits job after boss cancels his annual leave. See viral text exchange)

At the end of the post, she expressed her frustration over toxic work culture.

Earlier, a diabetic woman, who took off from work due to a medical emergency was fired from work. The woman took to Reddit, to explain how her boss fired her for using a sick day. She also added, that their boss dropped all her belongings to her home.

After the incident, the woman decided to express her frustration and replied to the boss by saying, "I didn't really realise that a dangerous night of bloodsugars so high they could've put me in a hospital bed would be the end of working there, so yeah, I guess training is a no-go, but I won't pretend to appreciate the gesture of dropping off my things as I think it's quite likely that you simply can't face the gross decision of firing somebody over a medical emergency, let alone look me in the eye afterwards." (Also Read: Employee treated like a 'pest' by boss after he had to take off due to injury. Here's what happened)

At the end, she also said that she would have given a doctor's note if the company asked.
* European dairy, pork producers wary of Chinese retaliation for EV tariffs

Uncertainty after EU slaps anti-subsidy duties on Chinese EVs

*

China's history of food tariffs raises retaliation risk

*

New Zealand could leap into breach to expand trade with China

*

EU officials have advocated open trade in foodstuffs

By Casey Hall, Lucy Craymer and Mei Mei Chu

SHANGHAI/WELLINGTON, - Global food companies from dairy producers to pork exporters are on high alert for potential retaliatory tariffs from China after the European Union's decision on Wednesday to impose anti-subsidy duties on Chinese-made electric vehicles .

China's state media have reported that domestic companies are preparing to request investigations into some EU dairy and pork imports over anti-subsidy or anti-dumping concerns, moves that could result in lengthy trade suspensions.

Chinese firms reserve the right to submit applications to prompt anti-subsidy and anti-dumping inquiries into European dairy and pork imports, its commerce ministry said on Thursday when asked whether Chinese industry groups were lobbying it to do so.

"Chinese domestic industries have the right to file applications for investigations to safeguard the order of normal market competition and their legitimate rights and interests," ministry spokesperson He Yadong said.

"If you have additional trade barriers it could cause ... reshuffling of global markets," said Kimberly Crewther, executive director of representative body Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand.

New Zealand is the world's largest exporter of dairy products and also a production base for foreign companies including French dairy producer Danone.

"We always prefer to see situations where trade is stable and certain ... Markets dont like uncertainty," Crewther added.

The EU was China's second-largest source of dairy products with at least 36% of the total value of imports in 2023, only behind New Zealand, according to Chinese customs data. Australia was the No. 3 exporter.

While it remains unclear which products China could target for retaliation, whey powder, cream and fresh milk were the top items in the EU's 1.7 billion euros worth of dairy exports to China last year, according to data from the European Commission's Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, which cited Eurostat.

Countries including the Netherlands, France, Germany, Ireland and Denmark have the largest dairy industry exposure to the Chinese market.

The Netherlands, Denmark and France are also major suppliers of pork, though Spain was China's top supplier last year, making up nearly 23% of its total pork imports, followed by Brazil and the United States.

"We are worried," Arnaud Rousseau, president of the FNSEA, France's largest farmers' union, told reporters when asked about possible Chinese action against pork imports from the EU.

"There are certain parts of the pig that are not eaten in Europe and that need to find markets, and China is an important market...We can quickly have problems if we don't have trade with certain countries."

China imported $6 billion worth of pig, including offal, from the EU last year.

Cristina Alvarado, data and insights commercial manager at New Zealand's Exchange, said Chinese tariffs or trade barriers against EU dairy could help New Zealand grow its market share even further.

Major New Zealand producers Fonterra and A2 are already doing a roaring trade with China, and both Australia and New Zealand have free trade agreements with China that remove import duties.

China imported $848 million worth of dairy products from Australia last year, according to Chinese customs data. Its dairy imports from New Zealand reached $5.52 billion in 2023, nearly half the total value of its dairy imports.

OPEN TRADE

As trade tensions between the EU and China intensify, some European officials have warned against imposing import duties on food products.

EU Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski told Reuters during his visit to China in late April that it was his intention to "avoid as much as possible that agriculture pays the cost of the problems in other sectors".

"The European Union position is that the open trade of food is a very important instrument to ensure food security at the global level," he said.

China has historically held a different position, with food products often the target of retaliatory tariffs levied as part of previous trade spats.

In January, brandy was targeted in an inquiry instigated by Beijing, a move perceived as retaliation for France's support of the EU investigation into Chinese-made EVs.

China also passed a law in April to strengthen its ability to hit back should the United States or EU impose tariffs on exports from the world's No. 2 economy.

Australian wine and barley were targeted in an anti-dumping investigation Beijing launched after calls from Australia for an independent inquiry into the origins of the COVID-19 virus in 2020. China only recently lifted those prohibitive tariffs.

Beijing also targeted Australian beef and lobsters following separate investigations.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
WASHINGTON  Leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies have agreed to engineer a $50 billion loan to help Ukraine in its fight for survival. Interest earned on profits from Russias frozen central bank assets would be used as collateral. G7 leaders agree to lend Ukraine billions backed by Russia's frozen assets. Here's how it will work

Details of the deal were being hashed out by G7 leaders at their summit in Italy. The money could reach Kyiv before the end of the year, according to U.S. and French officials.

President Joe Biden told reporters at a news conference Thursday that the move was part of a historic agreement. Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said providing a loan through Russia's assets "is a vital step forward in providing sustainable support for Ukraine in winning this war."

Here's how the plan would work: Where would the money come from?

Most of the money would be in the form of a loan mostly guaranteed by the U.S. government, backed by profits being earned on roughly $260 billion in immobilized Russian assets. The vast majority of that money is held in European Union nations.

A French official said the loan could be topped up with European money or contributions from other countries.

A U.S. official who spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the agreement said the G7 leaders' official statement due out Friday will leave the door open to trying to confiscate the Russian assets entirely. Why not just give Ukraine the frozen assets?

That's much harder to do.

For more than a year, officials from multiple countries have debated the legality of confiscating the money and sending it to Ukraine.

The U.S. and its allies immediately froze whatever Russian central bank assets they had access to when Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022. That basically was money being held in banks outside Russia.

The assets are immobilized and cannot be accessed by Moscow, but they still belong to Russia.

While governments can generally freeze property or funds without difficulty, turning them into forfeited assets that can be used for the benefit of Ukraine requires an extra layer of judicial procedure, including a legal basis and adjudication in a court.

The EU instead has set aside the profits being generated by the frozen assets. That pot of money is easier to access.

Separately, the U.S. this year passed a law called the REPO Act  short for the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians Act  that allows the Biden administration to seize $5 billion in Russian state assets in the U.S. and use them for the benefit of Kyiv. That arrangement is being worked out. How could the loan be used and how soon?

It will be up to technical experts to work through the details.

Ukraine will be able to spend the money in several areas, including for military, economic and humanitarian needs and reconstruction, the U.S. official said.

Biden's national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, said the goal is to provide the necessary resources to Ukraine now for its economic energy and other needs so that it's capable of having the resilience necessary to withstand Russia's continuing aggression.

Another goal is to get the money to Ukraine quickly.

The French official, who was not authorized to be publicly named according to French presidential policy, said the details could be worked out "very quickly and in any case, the $50 billion will be disbursed before the end of 2024.

Beyond the costs of the war, the needs are great.

The World Banks latest damage assessment of Ukraine, released in February, estimates that costs for reconstruction and recovery of the nation stand at $486 billion over the next 10 years.

The move to unlock Russia's assets comes after there was a long delay in Washington by Congress in approving military aid for Ukraine.

At an Atlantic Council event previewing the G7 summit, a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, John Herbst, said the fact that American funding is not quite reliable is a very important additional reason to go that route. Who would be on the hook in the case of a default?

If Russia regained control of its frozen assets or if the immobilized funds were not generating enough interest to pay back the loan, "then the question of burden-sharing arises, according to the French official.

Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia and Eurasia Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said last week that there were worries among European finance ministers that their countries will be left holding the bag if Ukraine defaults.

Some nations are critical of the plan to seize Russian assets.

Chinese Embassy spokesman Liu Pengyu told The Associated Press that the U.S. is "fueling the fight and inciting confrontation.

We urge the U.S. to immediately stop slapping illegal unilateral sanctions and play a constructive role in ending the conflict and restoring peace.

Associated Press writers Sylvie Corbet in Paris, Darlene Superville in Fasano, Italy, and Colleen Long aboard Air Force One en route to Italy contributed to this report.

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Group of Seven leaders have agreed to provide Ukraine with $50 billion via the use of frozen Russian assets by the end of the year, the French presidency said on Wednesday. On Wednesday, a French presidency official said that leaders had agreed to provide Ukraine with the $50 billion before the end of the year.(File)

"We have an agreement," a presidency official said, ahead of a G7 summit in Italy on Thursday that will focus on backing Kyiv's fight against Russia's invasion.

G7 leaders had aimed to agree a deal on using the profits from the interest on 300 billion euros ($325 billion) of frozen Russian central bank assets to help Kyiv, using the profits as collateral for a loan of up to $50 billion.

US President Joe Biden is to meet with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky on Thursday during the G7 summit in Puglia, Italy.

"Originally this was an American initiative," the French presidency official said, adding that in theory the loan to Ukraine would be repaid with "the proceeds from the frozen Russian assets".

"But if for some reason or another, if the Russian assets are unfrozen or the proceeds from the Russian assets are not enough to finance the loan, then we'll have to consider how to share the load" of the loan, the source said.
PM Narendra Modi and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau are likely to meet at the G7 Summit in Italy on Friday. The Indian government emphasised that its primary concern with Canada is the political platform provided to individuals who support violence and extremism against India. Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, left, walks past India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi (AP/File)

Modi will reach Italy on Thursday for his fifth consecutive participation in the summit of the world's most economically advanced nations. He will be representing India as an invited guest.

Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra on Wednesday said India expressed serious concerns to Canada multiple times, urging Ottawa to take decisive measures against anti-India elements. His remarks came a day before Modi's departure for Italy to participate in the 50th G7 summit, where Trudeau will also be present among leaders of the world's leading economies.

Read Here: Joe Biden to sign new security agreement with Ukraine amid G7 summit

Kwatra responded during a press briefing when questioned about the strained relations between India and Canada, as well as Trudeau's recent comments on the global increase in right-wing movements. He said, The main issue is the political space that Canada provides to anti-India elements that advocate extremism and violence. We have repeatedly conveyed our concerns to them and we expect them to take strong action.

The relationship between the two countries became tense after Trudeau accused Indian agents last September of being potentially involved in the killing of Khalistani extremist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia. New Delhi dismissed Trudeau's accusations as absurd. There have been cases where pro-Khalistani groups threatened harm to Indian diplomats.

When asked about the vandalisation of a Gandhi statue in Italy, Kwatra described it as regrettable and mentioned that India had raised the issue with Italian authorities, leading to appropriate corrective measures.

The G7 summit will take place at Borgo Egnazia, a luxury resort in Italy's Apulia region, from June 13 to 15. The G7 includes the US, UK, France, Italy, Germany, Canada, and Japan.

Kwatra also mentioned that India will participate in its 11th G7 Summit, marking Modi's 5th consecutive attendance.

The summit's focus is expected to be on the ongoing conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza.

Modi during 50th G7 Summit:

During his visit, Modi is also set to meet Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni for a bilateral meeting. This will be Modi's first trip abroad since starting his third consecutive term as prime minister.

Kwatra said, At the invitation of Prime Minister of Italy (Giorgia Meloni), Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be traveling to Apulia, Italy tomorrow to participate in the 50th G7 Summit which is to be held there on 14th June where India has been invited as an Outreach CountryThis will be the prime minister's first overseas travel after assuming office in his third consecutive term. It will also afford him an opportunity to engage with other world leaders present at the G7 Summit on issues of importance to India as also to the Global South.

Prime Minister's participation in the G7 Summit would also provide a timely opportunity to follow up on outcomes of the G20 Summit held under India's presidency last year and deliberate on issues which are significant for the Global South, he added.

Modi will also join the Outreach session with other invited nations on June 14.
Kate Middletons fans have been warned against "pushing for the royal to return" after her latest health update. Last week, Kate said that she hopes to return to her public role representing the Irish Guards very soon. However, it is unclear if she will appear at Trooping the Colour this weekend. Kate Middletons fans urged not to make a big push for her to return (REUTERS)

A friend of the family told The Daily Beast, I think this idea that Kate is suddenly going to pop up on the balcony on Saturday is far-fetched. It would be wonderful, of course, but more than slightly bizarre given that she bowed out of the Colonels review.

The royals typically have a light schedule over the summer months, so it would seem odd to make a big push for her to return now, the friend added.

There is no timeframe for Catherine returning to public duties

Meanwhile, a Palace source has stressed that the situation is still the same and an update will be provided when there is one. Another insider said that people must not over-analyse the letter to the Irish Guards.

I think to pick through the wording of her letter looking for clues to her intentions is a mistake, the second source told The Daily Beast. "I am sure she does hope to be able to represent the Irish Guards again very soon in an uncomplicated, normal understanding of that sentiment.

The thing about William and Kate is that they honestly do a lot of this stuff themselves. Its not like the old days of Queen Elizabeth II where the men in grey wrote something and the Queen just signed it without any input, the source continued. "This was very clearly demonstrated with the photoshopped Mothers Day image. For good or ill, they write the letters and take the pictures and tell their staff, send it out.

Some people found it preposterous to be asked to believe that Catherine was sitting at the kitchen table with her laptop editing a picture William took. But I can tell you, anyone who has worked for that couple would know that is exactly what happened, they added.

The Princess of Wales has remained out of the public eye ever since her cancer diagnosis. She is believed to be undergoing treatment at present.

"My understanding is that there is no timeframe for Catherine returning to public duties. I actually dont think her note implies she is going to be charging down to their headquarters to inspect a parade next month, the source said. "I honestly think its just a classic case of the Waleses not feeling they need to ask for advice when it comes to sending a simple letter.
Kuwait Fire news highlight: At least 49 people, including 42 Indians, died and many others were injured on Wednesday in a fire in a building in southern Kuwait that housed foreign workers. Local authorities detained the building's owner to investigate possible negligence that could have caused the 2024 Mangaf fire....Read More

At least 24 people who died in the tragic accident were from Kerala, Non-Resident Keralites Affairs (NORKA) CEO Harikrishnan Namboothiri told Hindustan Times.

On Thursday, a special meeting of Kerala's cabinet decided to provide 5 lakh to the families of residents who lost their lives in the Kuwait fire. They also approved 1 lakh for those injured in the incident. In addition, industrialists MA Yusuff Ali and Ravi Pillai pledged 5 lakh and 2 lakh respectively to each deceased family, as conveyed to the Kerala chief minister.

State Health Minister Veena George and state mission director (NHM) Jeevan Babu will travel to Kuwait to oversee medical operations and assist in repatriating the bodies, as per the cabinet note. The state government also set up a global contact center and help desk at NORKA in Kuwait to coordinate support efforts for this tragic event.

India's national response: Union Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh arrived in Kuwait on Thursday to oversee assistance to the injured. Before leaving for Kuwait, he said that some bodies were charred beyond recognition. He said to ANI, We had a meeting last evening with the Prime Minister, that is the last update we have about this very sad tragedy... The rest of the situation will be clear the moment we reach there...The situation is that the victims are mostly burn victims and some of the bodies have been charred beyond recognition. So a DNA test is underway to identify the victims. An Air Force plane is on standby. As soon as the bodies are identified, the kin will be informed and our Air Force plane will bring the bodies back.

India's ambassador visited hospitals where injured workers were being treated.

What happened? A fire broke out at 4:30 am in the Al-Mangaf building, a residence for workers, in Al-Ahmadi governorate, Kuwait. Most victims died from smoke inhalation while sleeping. Kuwait's interior ministry reported 49 deaths. Sources revealed 42 Indians were among the dead, with others from Egypt, Nepal, Pakistan, and the Philippines. The victims were aged between 20 and 50 years. Most of the Indians who died or were injured were from Kerala.

How has Kuwait responded? Emir Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmad al-Sabah ordered an immediate investigation into the fire's cause and promised to hold any responsible officials accountable. The interior ministry reported that the death toll had risen to 49 and was investigating, searching the site for victims, and identifying those who had died, according to state media. A senior police commander told state television that many people had died from smoke inhalation, and dozens were rescued. He mentioned that the building housed many workers and that authorities had warned against overcrowding but did not specify if regulations were violated.

Low-paid workers in the Gulf often live in crowded conditions. Authorities did not say what jobs the workers had, but like other Gulf states, Kuwait depends heavily on foreign labour for industries like construction, with many workers coming from South and Southeast Asia.

Follow this space for more updates.
Kollam/Pathanamthitta , The family of Sajan George, a M.Tech graduate and a chemical engineer working in Kuwait, was worried as he was not picking calls after the fire accident in a building in the Gulf nation. Kuwait fire: Family worried about fate of chemical engineer from Kerala

Though official confirmation was pending from authorities, friends informed his father that Sajan was likely to have been in the building at the time of the incident.

"The family had spoken to him the day before...However, yesterday they did not get any call. Friends there said he was in the building," a relative told the media, sobbing.

Sajan, a Punalur resident, went to Kuwait just over a month ago. He was a teacher in Kerala.

"As there was no confirmation, the family did not inform his mother but this morning she came to know after people started visiting the house," a relative said.

His family members said he had sent some money to his family from the first salary he received.

Meanwhile, state Health Minister Veena George on Thursday visited the house of Akash S Nair in Pandalam. He is suspected to have been killed in the fire that resulted in the death of 49 people from various nations.

The minister announced all possible assistance will be extended to those affected due to the tragic accident in Kuwait.

She was accompanied by Deputy Speaker Chittayam Gopakumar.

Akash, son of late Sasidharan, was attempting to escape from a fire in Kuwait when he succumbed to the smoke, sources said.

He had been employed in Kuwait for the past eight years, returning to Kerala on leave only a year ago. Akash was single and working on a highway supermarket project at the time of the accident. He is survived by his mother Shobha Kumari.

According to the Kuwaiti authorities, the incident happened in a building in the southern city of Mangaf which killed 49 foreign workers, including around 40 Indians, and injured 50 others.

The fire started in a kitchen of the seven-storey building housing 195 migrant workers in Mangaf in Ahmadi Governorate early on Wednesday.

The fire erupted just after 4 am when a majority of the 196 all-male residents of the building were asleep. It resulted in huge thick clouds of black smoke that led to the suffocation of most of the victims, according to officials from the Interior Ministry and the Fire department.

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The devastating blaze in Kuwait that killed 49 people, mostly Indian workers, is being described as the worst building fire in the countrys history and has triggered a crackdown on housing violations by the local government. Kuwaits health minister Ahmad Al-Awadhi said 56 injured people were taken to local hospitals. (AFP Photo)

At least 42 Indians were among those who died on Wednesday when the fire engulfed a seven-storey building at Mangaf in southern Kuwait that housed foreign workers. Kuwaits health minister Ahmad Al-Awadhi said 56 injured people were taken to local hospitals.

The incident was the worst building fire in Kuwaits history and triggered calls for action against landlords and company owners who violate the law to house large numbers of foreign laborers in extremely unsafe conditions to cut costs, the Kuwait Times newspaper reported.

Kuwaits first deputy prime minister and interior minister, Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah, said authorities will begin inspecting apartment buildings from Thursday and crack down on all violations without warning. The owner of the building where the fire occurred will be kept in custody till an investigation is completed, he said.

Al-Sabah said Kuwaits Public Authority of Manpower will examine the issue of overcrowding of expatriate workers in buildings and the failure to comply with safety conditions.

Minister of state for external affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh, who was directed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to travel to Kuwait to oversee relief measures and to facilitate the expeditious repatriation of bodies, left New Delhi on Thursday morning.

The situation is that most of the victims are burn victims and some of the bodies have been charred beyond recognition, Singh told the media, adding that DNA tests are being done to identify the bodies. An Indian Air Force (IAF) aircraft is on stand-by to bring the bodies back, he said.

The injured have been admitted to five government hospitals in Kuwait and the external affairs ministry cited hospital authorities as saying that most of the patients are stable.

The building had been rented by NBTC group, an engineering and construction firm partially owned by an Indian national, to house more than 195 workers, most of them Indians from Kerala, Tamil Nadu and northern states. Most of the dead and injured were from Kerala, local reports said.

The fire erupted just after 4 am when most of the residents of the building were asleep. It resulted in thick clouds of smoke that suffocated most of the victims, Kuwait Times reported, quoting officials from the countrys interior ministry and fire department.

Kuwaits public prosecutor said in a post on X that it had launched an investigation into the fire to ascertain what triggered the deadly blaze. There has been no official word on the cause of the fire, though some sections of the local media reported it could have been caused by a gas leak in the buildings ground floor.

The head of investigations at Kuwaits fire department, Col Sayed Al-Mousawi, said the team probing the fire had found an inflammable material was used as partitions between apartments and between rooms, and this caused the black clouds of smoke. Many of the victims suffocated while trying to run down stairwells filled with smoke, and people couldnt go to the rooftop because the door was locked, he said.

Mousawi said the work of fire fighters was hindered by many violations inside and outside the building. An Egyptian national told reporters from his hospital bed that it took him two hours to get out of the burning building with the help of fire fighters, and that he had seen several charred bodies.

The blaze was the second largest fire disaster in Kuwait in terms of the death toll. In August 2009, a woman, angry over her husband getting married for the second time, had set a wedding tent on fire, killing 56 women and children.
Thiruvananthapuram, The number of people from Kerala who died in the Kuwait fire tragedy has risen to 24, while seven seriously injured persons from the southern state are being treated in various hospitals in the Gulf country, according to a senior official of NORKA Roots on Thursday. Kuwait fire tragedy: Death toll of Keralites rises to 24, seven seriously injured

The Department of Non-Resident Keralites' Affairs was constituted by the state government in 1996 to address the grievances of non-resident Keralites both in India and abroad and to establish a sustainable partnership with them.

Ajith Kolasseri, who is holding additional charge of the NORKA Chief Executive Officer, said according to the information provided by its help desk in Kuwait unofficially, the number of casualties among Keralites is rising.

It was 12 in the morning, later updated to 19, and now it stands at 24.

Earlier, the state government had said that as per the information received by it, 19 people from Kerala died in the incident.

Seven seriously injured Keralites are being treated in the Intensive Care Units of various hospitals in Kuwait, he told reporters.

Many injured persons have been discharged from hospitals, he said.

The official said the names and details of the victims could be provided only after confirmation from the External Affairs Ministry.

The NORKA help desk is coordinating with the Indian Embassy and the mortuary departments in the hospitals in Kuwait to expedite the paperwork for bringing the bodies of the victims back home.

According to the Kuwaiti authorities, a devastating fire in a seven-storey building in Mangaf, Ahmadi Governorate, Kuwait, has claimed the lives of 49 foreign workers, including around 40 Indians, and injured 50 others.

The blaze, which started in the kitchen, erupted around 4 am on Wednesday while most of the 195 migrant workers were asleep.

The fire produced thick black smoke, leading to the suffocation of many victims, according to officials from the Kuwait Interior Ministry and the fire department.

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June 13 - Myanmar's resistance fighters notched decisive breakthroughs last year by relying on a scattered fleet of drones in battles against one of Southeast Asia's most feared militaries. Learning from Myanmar's rebels, junta builds new Chinese drone fleet

But as the civil war grinds on, the rebels increasingly find their familiar weapons - Chinese-made commercial drones modified to carry arms - in the unfamiliar hands of the country's ruling junta, according to seven people with knowledge of the matter. "The battle is changing now as drones are being used by both sides," said a 31-year-old rebel fighter in the country's southeast, identifying himself by the nom de guerre of Ta Yoke Gyi. He said the junta began using armed unmanned aerial vehicles to attack the rebels at around the turn of the year and that his unit recently shot down a drone, which they identified as Chinese from its components and had been modified for combat. Two rebel fighters in other parts of Myanmar also described similar skirmishes to Reuters.

The news agency interviewed four resistance fighters, two analysts and an official from a country in the region who tracks the conflict. They described for the first time specifics about the junta's use of Chinese-manufactured drones that are jerry-rigged to carry explosives. Some of them spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

Some resistance fighters have been injured by the junta's drones, said Ta Yoke Gyi. "They've become better at using them."

The junta started procuring thousands of Chinese commercial UAVs at the start of the year that it is modifying to arm with locally-manufactured munitions, said Min Zaw Oo, executive director of the Myanmar Institute for Peace and Security think-tank.

He said he obtained information on junta drones from military officials and people with knowledge of weapons production. A junta spokesman did not respond to calls seeking comment. The military has not spoken publicly about its recent use of UAVs. Regime leader Min Aung Hlaing said last year that rebels had dropped over 25,000 bombs using drones during a major October offensive on military posts, some of which had to be abandoned.

In response to a Reuters question, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said: "China has always adopted a prudent and responsible attitude in the export of military products and dual-use items." A spokesperson for the shadow National Unity Government, part of the anti-junta resistance, did not return a request for comment.

Myanmar's military also ordered about 12 armed CH-3 UAVs from China around 2013, according to an estimate by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute's arms transfer database. But the junta isn't using such aircraft during offensives, instead deploying multi-rotor commercial drones - including ones designed for agriculture - in the latest sorties, the resistance members said.

Four rebel fighters told Reuters they had only seen a handful of junta drones at a time on the frontline in recent months, suggesting the military hadn't deployed all the newly procured aircraft.

Reuters could not independently establish why the CH-3s were not being used for offensive operations or why the junta does not appear to have engaged in mass deployment of the Chinese-made commercial drones. More than three years since its dawn coup abruptly ended Myanmar's tentative experiment with civilian democracy, the junta is at its weakest, having lost vast territories to an opposition comprising new armed groups and established ethnic armies.

While is hard to predict the trajectory of the civil war in the coming months, the resistance appears to have lost its early advantage of being the main fighting force using drones, said the Myanmar Institute's Min Zaw Oo, a view supported by another analyst and Ta Yoke Gyi.

INSTAGRAM INSTRUCTIONS Commercial drones emerged as a game changer during the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, when Kyiv's forces used them to rapidly build large fleets deployed for battlefield purposes. In Myanmar, Ta Yoke Gyi wasn't thinking about weapons until a few years ago. Before the junta unseated the elected government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021, he was a long-distance bus driver.

Angered by the junta's crackdown on the ensuing protests, Ta Yoke Gyi joined thousands of other young people in taking up arms against the military.

He now heads a unit called the Angry Bird Drone Rangers, part of a rebel force that began deploying small UAVs made by China's DJI for reconnaissance missions shortly after the coup.

DJI didn't return a request for comment.

The unit subsequently built larger drones that it modified to carry domestic-produced bombs, using instructions gleaned from experts on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.

"We bought the components part by part and started testing the drones for about four to five months," said Ta Yoke Gyi.

The three other resistance members described similar methods of building larger armed UAVs. Several components of such drones are available on regional e-commerce platforms, according to a Reuters review of the websites.

The rebels use the drones to scout junta positions, before sending them on bombing runs that are followed by ground assaults, the four people said.

Until recently, Myanmar's junta had relied on artillery and conventional aerial support to hold on to strategic outposts in the borderlands, where the bloodiest fighting is taking place, said Min Zaw Oo.

Additional troops were rushed in when necessary, but the junta lacked adequate reserve forces to reinforce positions across multiple frontlines, he said. The swarms of rebel drones disabled artillery positions and resistance ground troops cut off nearby military bases, said the analyst, who previously worked on ceasefire negotiations involving the military and ethnic armies.

The most significant demonstration of rebel drone warfare came during Operation 1027, a major offensive led by an alliance of three ethnic armies last October, according to two analysts.

Fighters from the rebel Three Brotherhood Alliance "just sent wave after wave after wave of drones to drop explosives onto these bases," said Morgan Michaels, a Myanmar expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies think-tank.

But in the following months, the resistance started being attacked by the junta's drones.

"I think that Operation 1027 and the way that drones were used against the regime was definitely a wake-up call," said Michaels, who follows the battleground closely. "Now they appear to be substantially expanding their use of drones in an offensive capacity."

Two resistance fighters told Reuters that they had shot down drones that appeared to be originally designed for spraying crops. One of them, based in eastern Myanmar, said that a drone brought down by his unit had "Boying" written on it in English.

China's Boying, which manufactures flight controllers for UAVs mainly used for agriculture, declined to comment.

An expanding UAV attack fleet is welcomed by demoralised junta forces that are now relying on conscription to replenish shrinking frontline battalions, said Min Zaw Oo.

As the military takes time to retrain and refit, it will likely maintain a defensive posture, he said. "But at the same time, they will harass the opposition's positions with the use of drones."

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Dubai/Kuwait City, Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh on Thursday reached Kuwait to oversee the assistance to those injured in a massive fire at an apartment housing foreign workers and for the early repatriation of the bodies of about 40 Indians killed in the tragic incident. MoS Kirti Vardhan Singh reaches Kuwait to ensure early repatriation of mortal remains of Mangaf fire victims

At least 49 foreign workers were killed and 50 others injured in the fire on Wednesday at the seven-storey building housing 195 migrant workers in the southern city of Mangaf.

"On the directions of Hon'ble Prime Minister @narendramodi, MoS@KVSinghMPGonda arrives in Kuwait to oversee assistance to those injured in fire tragedy & coordinate with local authorities for early repatriation of mortal remains of those who have died in this unfortunate incident," the Embassy of India in Kuwait posted on X.

Kuwaiti authorities are conducting DNA tests on the bodies of those killed in the devastating fire incident in southern Kuwait's Mangaf area and an IAF aircraft is on standby to bring back the mortal remains of Indians killed in the incident, officials said in New Delhi on Thursday.

"In an unfortunate and tragic fire incident earlier today in a Labour housing facility in the Mangaf area of Kuwait, around 40 Indians are understood to have died and over 50 injured," the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement late on Wednesday night.

Prime Minister Modi, who described the incident as "saddening", reviewed the situation at a meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, NSA Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and Principal Secretary to PM PK Mishra among others. Following the meeting, the prime minister announced ex-gratia relief of 2 lakh to the families of the deceased Indian nationals from the PM Relief Fund and directed that the government should extend all possible assistance.

The External Affairs Minister spoke to his Kuwaiti counterpart Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on the phone and urged him for the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those killed.

"Spoke to Kuwaiti FM Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on the fire tragedy in Kuwait. Apprised of the efforts made by Kuwaiti authorities in that regard. Was assured that the incident would be fully investigated and that responsibility will be fixed," Jaishankar said on 'X'.

"Urged the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those who lost their lives. He emphasized that those injured were getting the requisite medical attention," he had said.

The officials had said most of the Indian victims were from Kerala.

The fire erupted just after 4:00 am when the majority of the 196 all-men residents of the building were asleep. It resulted in huge thick clouds of black smoke that led to the suffocation of most of the victims, according to officials from the Interior Ministry and the fire department.

India's mission in Kuwait is ascertaining the full details from the concerned Kuwaiti authorities over the incident.

Those injured are presently admitted to five government hospitals in Kuwait and receiving proper medical care and attention. According to hospital authorities, most of the admitted patients are stable.

Following the incident, the Ambassador of India in Kuwait, Adarsh Swaika, immediately visited the location of the incident and also the hospitals to ascertain the welfare of the Indian nationals.

The Embassy continues to coordinate with local authorities to assist Indian nationals who have been injured in this unfortunate incident and extend all possible support. The Embassy is receiving full cooperation from the Kuwaiti authorities.

Deputy Premier, Defence and Interior Minister Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousef Al-Sabah ordered the arrest of the Kuwaiti landlord of the building and the Egyptian guard of the building and warned officials not to release them without his permission.

The minister told reporters that the fire was a catastrophe, adding that from Thursday, teams from the municipality will begin inspecting all buildings and have the authority to remove any violation without any warning.

He said authorities would also start from Thursday to study the issue of overcrowding of expat workers in buildings and the failure to comply with safety conditions.

The public prosecution has started an investigation into the fire to uncover the circumstances behind the incident and what might have triggered the deadly inferno, it said on X, praising the state-wide response to the disaster.

There has been no official word on how the blaze started or what caused it. Some local media reported that it could be a gas leak from the buildings ground floor.

Head of investigations at Kuwait Fire Department Col Sayed Al-Mousawi said that the team investigating the causes of the fire found that an inflammable material was used as partitions between apartments and also between rooms, which caused the huge black clouds of smoke. He said that many of the victims suffocated while trying to run down the stairs because they were filled with smoke, adding that the victims could not go to the rooftop because the door was locked. PTI MPB NSA AKJ

NSA NSA

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
A cosmic nova event expected to take place sometime between now and September will appear to add a new star to the night sky, NASA has said. The extremely bright spectacle will be visible to the naked eye. Once-in-a-lifetime cosmic nova event set to stun viewers with spectacular light show (Pixabay - representational image)

Its a once-in-a-lifetime event that will create a lot of new astronomers out there, giving young people a cosmic event they can observe for themselves, ask their own questions, and collect their own data, said Dr. Rebekah Hounsell, an assistant research scientist specialising in nova events at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

She added, Itll fuel the next generation of scientists.

All about the nova event

T Coronae Borealis is nicknamed the Blaze Star, and is also known as T CrB to astronomers. The small binary star system is located in the Milky Ways Northern Crown between the Bootes and Hercules constellations, about 3,000 light-years from Earth.

It is said to be comprised of a white dwarf that gradually rips hydrogen from an ancient red giant, NASA said. The white dwarf is a dead star that has a mass matching that of the sun, however, the size is just about that of the Earth.

The hydrogen from the red giant builds up on the white dwarfs surface about every 80 years. Eventually, a violent thermonuclear explosion is sparked and the hydrogen is spit back out into space, causing a spectacular light show.

To us, watching the phenomenon from the Earth, it will appear as though the new star came into the sky. The first such sighting took place over 800 years back, and was recorded by an Abbott in Germany, who spotted a faint star that for a time shone with great light. The last nova on T CrB took place in 1946.

There are a few recurrent novae with very short cycles, but typically, we dont often see a repeated outburst in a human lifetime, and rarely one so relatively close to our own system, Hounsell said. Its incredibly exciting to have this front-row seat.

Hounsell clarified that the nova event is not the same as the more popular supernova, which is a phenomenon where a massive star destroys itself by exploding at the end of its life.

Stargazers can look at the nova event with the naked eye. Hounsell believes it is sure to stun viewers across the world.
Kris Jenner and Chrissy Teigen recently celebrated receiving Meghan Markles American Riviera Orchard strawberry jam, but former royal butler Paul Burrell claims that many A-list celebrities have distanced themselves from the Sussexes. Prince Harry was terrified that Meghan would leave him after he posted an angry letter to the press (REUTERS/Akintunde Akinleye)(REUTERS)

While speaking with Closer magazine, Burrell stated that the couples circle in the US is getting smaller and smaller, with stars like Oprah Winfrey no longer seeming to be involved, unlike when she attended their 2018 wedding and conducted their 2021 interview.

Burrell noted that other high-profile wedding guests, such as George and Amal Clooney and David and Victoria Beckham, also seem to have drifted away from the Sussexes. Earlier this month, Journalist Tina Brown questioned the authenticity of these friendships, suggesting in her 2022 book The Palace Papers that these guests celebrity guests were a portrait not of Meghans intimate circle but of the friends she most wanted to recruit than true friends.

Burrell acknowledged that Harry and Meghan once enjoyed immense popularity, but Harry and Meghan were the most popular couple in the country at one time  but theres since been a decline.

A-listers were riding on the moment, he said.

ALSO READ| King Charles III asks Prince Harry not to spill anything that might cause trouble

Americans were excited about their move to California, but Burrell believes the Sussexes are now seen more as a side show than a main event.

David Beckhams recent appearance at an awards ceremony for The Kings Foundation in London, and his role as an ambassador for the foundation, highlight his continued closeness to the royal family.

Harry and Meghans social standing continues

The Sussexes' recent visit to Nigeria, called as a quasi-royal tour, received positive media coverage. Supporters also point to the promotion of Meghans jam by influencers like Teigen and Jenner, though both have their own controversies.

In Montecito, Harry and Meghan have formed bonds with wealthy neighbours, dubbed the Montecito Mafia. However, the nature of their relationships with other residents like Katy Perry and Orlando Bloom remains unclear.

However, the Duke of Sussex reportedly wishes to reconcile with his family and have a residence in the UK, following their eviction from Frogmore Cottage. He misses his British friends and his former life. As royal commentator Tom Quinn noted, the honeymoon period where everything in the States is new and exciting is coming to an end.

ALSO READ| Meghan Markle 'lied to my daughter': Half-sister accuses Duchess of misleading narrative about Royal wedding

Grant Harrold, a former butler for the king, echoed the same sentiment saying, Its very big moving to another country and not having any connection to your old home.

Notably, Prince Harry wasn't able to meet his father, King Charles III during his brief UK visit in May, due to the monarch's full schedule.
Prince Harry is said to be worried sick with his visa status after former US President Donald Trump vowed to kick the duke out of the country if he gets a second chance at the Oval Office. Donald Trump hinted at kicking out Prince Harry out of America(AP)

A royal source told The Daily Express UK, The Sussexes are worried sick over the prospect of Donald Trump becoming president again  and making good on his vow to kick Prince Harry out of America.

The source further mentioned, They're putting together a contingency plan that would see them flee the country with their children [Archie and Lilibet] if Trump does return to office.

The controversy gained momentum after the publication of Harry's memoir, Spare, in which the duke admitted to past illegal drug use.

This revelation has raised questions about its potential impact on his residency status in the United States.

ALSO READ| Prince Harry's Eton and army friends 'won't visit him' over Meghan tensions: Expert

Trump weighed in on Harry's visa status

When asked if Prince Harry's drug use admissions could affect his visa application, Trump replied to GB News, No. Well have to see if they know something about the drugs, and if he lied theyll have to take appropriate action.

Journalist Nigel Farage probed further, asking, Appropriate action? Which might meannot staying in America? to which Trump responded, Oh, I dont know. Youll have to tell me. You just have to tell me. You would have thought they would have known this a long time ago.

Notably, the Heritage Foundation sued the Biden administration to release Harry's immigration documents. Although the think tank lost the lawsuit, commentator Angela Levin hinted that there is more to discover.

At the end of February, there has been an agreement that all the documents for people who've come to live in America will be revealed, and that includes Prince Harry, Levin told GB News.

Now the trouble is there, has he mentioned that he takes a lot of drugs? Have they allowed him to come in regardless or will they send him home to the U.K.? I mean, it's a huge thing.

ALSO READ| Prince Harry blasted for arrogance over court appeal, asked to pay for his own security

Christi Jackson, Head of U.S. Immigration, addressed the duke's case: Anything that he has admitted to regarding drug use before the age of 18 should not affect his eligibility for a U.S. visa.

If he had admitted to drug use when he was over 18, in order for it to lead to visa ineligibility, the admission would have to have been a valid admission which means it cannot just be out in the news or written in their book.

You have to show that the person has provided the definition and admitted to all essential elements of the crime while under oath. Making a statement in a book is not going to be considered a valid admission, she concluded.
A staggering total of 120 million people are living forcibly displaced by war, violence and persecution, the UN said Thursday, branding the ever-increasing number a "terrible indictment on the state of the world". At the end of last year, 117.3 million people were displaced, UNHCR said in a report.(AFP)

The United Nations' refugee agency UNHCR said forced displacement globally had once again smashed records, with conflicts in places like Gaza, Sudan and Myanmar forcing even more people to flee their homes.

The global displaced population is now equivalent to that of Japan, it pointed out in a statement.

"Conflict remains a very, very big driver of mass displacement," UN refugee chief Filippo Grandi told reporters.

At the end of last year, 117.3 million people were displaced, UNHCR said in a report.

And by the end of April, the number had swelled further, with an estimated 120 million people around the world living in displacement.

The number is up from 110 million a year ago, and has been rising for 12 consecutive years -- nearly tripling since 2012 amid a combination of new and mutating crises and a failure to resolve long-standing ones, UNHCR said.

Grandi told AFP he had been shocked at the high displacement figure when he took the job eight years ago.

Since then it has "more than doubled", he said, describing this as "a terrible indictment on the state of the world".

- Figures will keep rising -

Grandi pointed to a palpable increase in crises, and also highlighted how climate change is impacting population movement and driving conflicts.

UNHCR last year declared 43 emergencies across 29 countries -- more than four times what was common just a few years ago, he told reporters.

In particular, Grandi noted "the way conflicts are conducted ... in complete disregard" of international law, and "often with the specific purpose of terrorising people".

"This of course is a powerful contributor to more displacement."

Grandi acknowledged there currently seemed to be little hope of bucking the trend.

"Unless there is a shift in international geopolitics, unfortunately, I actually see the figure continuing to go up," he said.

Of the 117.3 million displaced at the end of 2023, 68.3 million people were internally displaced within their own country, Thursday's report showed.

The number of refugees and others in need of international protection meanwhile climbed to 43.4 million, it said.

UNHCR countered the perception that all refugees and other migrants go to wealthy countries.

"The vast majority of refugees are hosted in countries neighbouring their own, with 75 percent residing in low- and middle-income countries that together produce less than 20 percent of the world's income," it said.

- 'Human tragedies' -

Sudan's civil war has been a key factor driving up the numbers.

Since the war broke out in April 2023 between rival generals, it has displaced more than nine million more people, leaving nearly 11 million Sudanese uprooted at the end of 2023, UNHCR said.

The numbers were still rising.

Grandi pointed to the many still fleeing to neighbouring Chad, which has received some 600,000 Sudanese in the past 14 months.

"Hundreds and hundreds every day are crossing from one devastated country to one of the poorest countries in the world," he told AFP.

In the Democratic Republic of Congo and Myanmar, millions more people were also internally displaced last year by vicious fighting.

And in the Gaza Strip, the UN estimates 1.7 million people -- 75 percent of the population -- have been displaced by the war sparked eight months ago by Hamas's October 7 attack inside Israel.

As for the war raging in Ukraine since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, the UN estimated that around 750,000 people became newly displaced inside the country last year, with a total of 3.7 million internally displaced people registered by the end of 2023.

The number of Ukrainian refugees and asylum-seekers increased by over 275,000 to six million, it said.

Syria remains the world's largest displacement crisis, with 13.8 million people forcibly displaced inside and outside the country, UNHCR said.
A high-tech, rapid point-of-care test for UTIs (Urinary Tract Infection), PA-100 AST System, developed by the Sweden-based in vitro diagnostic company, Sysmex Astrego has won the 10million Longitude Prize on Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) prize. The winner, PA-100 AST System, is a high-tech, transformative, rapid, point-of-care test for UTIs. (@Challenge_Works | Officia X account)

Of the 10-million-pound Longitude Prize, 2 million was awarded to various innovators to refine their technology and the final winner receives 8 million.

The winner, PA-100 AST System, is a high-tech, transformative, rapid, point-of-care test for UTIs that is seen as a game changer in the diagnostic sphere.

Rational use of antibioticschoosing the appropriate antibiotic for the correct patient at the optimal timeis fundamental in saving lives and combating the superbug crisis. Rapid diagnostics are poised to be crucial in this effort. The winner of the Longitude Prize is set to spearhead the list of emerging rapid diagnostic technologies in a transformative manner. The applications for the Longitude Prize bring hope, suggesting that through collective action, we can look forward to a future protected from the threats of antimicrobial resistance, said Dr Abdul Ghafur, consultant in infectious diseases, Apollo Hospitals, Chennai, and a jury member of the prize.

Also Read: Battling the resistance: A Wknd interview with Dr Abdul Ghafur

Ghafur is also globally known for being the coordinator of Chennai declaration of medical societies to tackle AMR that found him a seat on the 20-member jury.

Antibiotic-resistant infections killed nearly 1.3 million people globally in 2019 and are on course to cause 10 million deaths a year by 2050, outnumbering deaths caused by cancer.

The global economy may lose up to $4 trillion by 2030 and up to $100 trillion by 2050 due to the AMR crisis, according to experts.

According to the organisers, Challenge Works, the goal is to replace the 23-day lab test process that doctors and patients must currently endure, and end just in case prescribing that is prevalent as a result, which promotes the development of antibiotic resistance.

The jury reviewed at least 250 applications over the years and short-listed 40 applications. Most advanced tests in medical practice today are PCR-based, but the prize winner has developed a transformative technology based on a phenotypic test.

This test identifies the bacteria causing urinary tract infections and performs antibiotic susceptibility testing (AST) to determine the effective antibiotic for a specific patient in under 45 minutes.

The test uses a single-use cartridge, the size of a smart phone.

Less than half a milliliter of urine is added to this cartridge. Bacteria in the urine are trapped in over 10,000 microfluidic traps in parallel arrays and exposed to five different antibiotics at five different concentrations. The cartridge is inserted into a reader instrument, the size of a shoe box, where bacterial growth is monitored by phase-contrast imaging. The reader provides a report, sensitive or resistant for each antibiotic in 30-45 minutes.

The test can be performed in a doctors clinic rather than sending the urine sample to a laboratory.

If the new technology is used for a patient visiting a doctor with urinary infection symptoms, the doctor will know the result within 45 minutes including the antibiotic that will work. The test is transformative, accurate, and affordable for patients worldwide.

In a country like India, where millions of urinary tract infections are treated annually, most patients receive antibiotics on an empirical basis without sending urine samples for culture due to delays in getting culture results, which usually take three days. Hence, general practitioners often send cultures only if the patient doesnt respond to the first empirical course. Such blind antibiotic prescriptions are a major reason for the antibiotic resistance crisis, especially in countries like India.

A transformative, rapid point of care diagnostic test that is accurate and affordable has the potential to revolutionise the urinary tract infection treatment India and worldwide.

According to Dr Ghafur, there were 38 Indian applicants, some with amazing innovations.

These infections result in significant loss of lives, burden to the healthcare system, and socio-economic impact. In 20-30% of sepsis patients, the infection originates from the urinary tract. Up to two in five people who develop severe sepsis will lose their lives. Hence, rapid and accurate point-of-care tests for urinary tract infection can save millions of lives worldwide, especially in India, he said.
BORGO EGNAZIA, Italy  A summit meeting of the Group of Seven leading industrialized nations is expected to focus on migration on its second day Friday, seeking ways to combat trafficking and increase investment in countries from where migrants start out on often life-threatening journeys. The Latest | Group of Seven summit turns to migration after promising tens of billions to Ukraine

Migration is a priority for summit host Italy and its right-wing Premier Giorgia Meloni, who's seeking to increase investment and funding for African nations as a means of reducing migratory pressure on Europe.

The gathering in a luxury resort in Italys southern Puglia region is also focusing on global conflicts and the spread of artificial intelligence. Perennial issues such as climate change and China also will be discussed. As the summit opened on Thursday, attendees promised tens of billions of dollars in aid for Ukraine.

But some divisions also appeared to emerge over the wording of the summits final declaration, with disagreement reported over the inclusion of a reference to abortion.

The G7 is an informal forum with an annual summit to discuss economic policy and security issues. The members are Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Currently:

 Italian Premier Meloni opens G7 summit with agreement to back a $50 billion loan to Ukraine

 In Italys Puglia region, women take the lead in challenging the local mafia at great personal risk

 US pushes for Ukraine aid, united front against Chinas trade practices at G7 finance meeting

 Pope Francis, the first pontiff to address a G7 summit, will raise the alarm over AI

Heres the latest: Biden to meet with Italian premier, Pope Francis before returning to U.S.

Borgo Egnazia, Italy  President Joe Biden will meet with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Pope Francis on Friday before heading back to the U.S. later in the day for a Hollywood fundraiser for his presidential campaign. He will skip Saturday's summit events.

On Thursday, Biden attended four working sessions and a discussion on his investment initiative and he watched a skydiving demonstration along with the other leaders.

He also met with Ukranian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy where the two signed a security agreement and held a press conference.

Biden did not attend a G7 leaders dinner on Thursday evening. White House aides say that he tries to meet with as many leaders and attend as many events as possible, but it doesnt always work out and said the U.S. leaders evening capped with the Ukraine agreement.

Switzerland is also hosting a Ukrainian peace summit this weekend, but Biden is not attending. Vice President Kamala Harris will go in his place. Moscow warns of retaliation over $50 billion loan package to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets

MOSCOW  The Russian Foreign Ministry has warned of retaliatory measures over a deal by the Group of Seven industrialized nations for a $50 billion loan package for Ukraine using frozen Russian assets.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova blasted the deal as criminal, cynical and another blow to international law.

She accused the G7 as using stolen Russian funds to finance the military adventures of the Kyiv regime and its patrons.

Zakharovas remarks where Moscows first reaction to the agreement Thursday when the G7agreed to lock up sanctioned Russian assets until Moscow pays reparations for invading Ukraine.

That paves the way for the announcement of the loan agreement that will leverage interest and income from the more than $260 billion in frozen Russian assets, largely held in Europe to secure the $50 billion sum.

A U.S. official, speaking on condition of anonymity to preview the agreement, said the first disbursements will be made this year. Biden and Zelenskyy sign security agreement at G7 summit

BORGO EGNAZIA, Italy  U.S. President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a security agreement on Thursday during the Group of Seven summit, sending what they described as a message of unified opposition to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

He cannot wait us out, Biden said. He cannot divide us.

Zelenskyy said the agreement demonstrated the credibility of American support for our Ukrainian independence.

Ukraine has been eager for fresh assistance to hold the line against Russia, which has recently made gains on the battlefield during a bloody war thats in its third year. Leaders of Ukraine and Japan sign 10-year agreement on security, defense, humanitarian aid

BARI, Italy  The leaders of Ukraine and Japan have signed a 10-year agreement under which Japan will provide assistance in the fields of security, defense, humanitarian aid, reconstruction and technical and financial support.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio signed the accord on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in southern Italy on Thursday.

Zelenskyy said Japan would provide $4.5 billion for Ukraine this year. A text of the deal released by the Japanese Embassy in Italy said Japan has committed and provided more than $12 billion in financial, humanitarian and other assistance since March 2022.

Under the agreement, Japan will support Ukraine with the provision of non-lethal equipment and goods, cooperate in the field of intelligence and provide support in reconstruction and recovery, as well as providing assistance in the medical and health fields, among others.

For Japan, this type of agreement and this level of support is a breakthrough, Zelenskyy wrote on the social media platform X. We see this and thank Japan for its unwavering solidarity with our country and people. Italys opposition calls out Melonis reported bid to water down reference to abortion in G7 document

BARI, Italy  Italys center-left opposition is crying foul over reported attempts by Premier Giorgia Melonis right-wing government to water down a reference to abortion in the final document of the Group of Seven leaders.

The ANSA news agency, citing a draft Thursday, said there was no reference at all to abortion. That stands in contrast to the 2023 G7 summit in Hiroshima where Japan expressed a commitment to provide access to safe and legal abortion to women and girls, and pledged to defend gender equality and rights of LGBTQ people.

According to ANSA, this years text says the G7 repeats our commitment expressed in the final communique of the G7 of Hiroshima for a universal, adequate and sustainable access to health services for women, including the right to reproduction.

Meloni, who campaigned on a God, Faith and Fatherland motto, has denied she is rolling back abortion rights, which have been legal in Italy since 1978. But the center-left opposition has warned that her initiatives are chipping away at those rights, including by giving pro-life groups access to women considering abortions.

In a statement Thursday, the head of the Democratic Party Elly Shlein said the reported G7 text was a national embarrassment for putting into question a fundamental right for women.

Asked about the controversy, U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said he wasnt aware of the status of negotiations but said U.S. President Joe Biden doesnt change up his message based on who hes talking to, and nothing about that will change today.

Meloni has forged a good alliance with Pope Francis, especially on their shared opposition to surrogacy and call for Italian women to have more babies to counteract one of the worlds lowest birthrates. Francis will become the first pope to address a G7 summit when he spends the afternoon in Puglia on Friday. Official says US, Europe agree details to clear way for Ukraine loan package

BORGO EGNAZIA, Italy  The United States and European countries have agreed to lock up sanctioned Russian assets until Moscow pays reparations for invading Ukraine, a senior U.S. official said Thursday.

The consensus clears the way for leaders to announce a $50 billion loan package for Ukraine during the Group of Seven summit that began Thursday in Italy.

The highly anticipated agreement will leverage interest and income from the more than $260 billion in frozen Russian assets, largely held in Europe, to secure a $50 billion loan from the U.S. along with additional loans from other partners.

The first disbursements will be made this year, the official said, adding that it will take time for Ukraine to use all the money.

The U.S. official spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the agreement, which will be included in the G7 leaders statement on Friday.

President Joe Biden will meet on Thursday with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to discuss a bilateral security agreement between the U.S. and Ukraine.

 By Colleen Long, Darlene Superville and Zeke Miller Britain announces new sanctions aimed at degrading Russias ability to wage war in Ukraine

LONDON  Britain has announced new sanctions designed to degrade Russias ability to wage war in Ukraine, targeting entities based in China, Israel, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey, as well as the Russian energy industry.

The sanctions announced at the start of Thursdays G7 summit apply to 50 companies and individuals involved in supplying munitions, machine tools, microelectronics, and logistics to the Russian military, together with ships transporting military goods from North Korea to Russia.

Britain also said it was targeting the shadow fleet of ships used to circumvent G7 sanctions on the Russia oil and natural gas industry. The U.K. Foreign Office said this is particularly important because taxes on oil production accounted for 31% of the Russian governments revenue last year.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said in a statement that the U.K. will always stand shoulder to shoulder with Ukraine in its fight for freedom.

Sunak added that Russian President Vladimir Putin must lose, and cutting off his ability to fund a prolonged conflict is absolutely vital. Italy joins rail corridor project to connect southern and central Africa

BORGO EGNAZIA, Italy  U.S. officials say that Italy is joining a rail corridor project in Africa as part of a collaborative effort by the Group of Seven nations to fund infrastructure projects.

The Lobito corridor is a railway line that will connect southern and central Africa. Not just railway, the project will also bring telecommunication cables and other infrastructure to the region.

Its projected eventually to go from Angola to the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The investment project is meant to serve as an alternative to Chinas development efforts, which the U.S. and its allies say China uses to exert influence on developing nations. Pope Francis to meet with world leaders on sidelines of G7 summit

BARI, Italy  Pope Francis will be meeting a series of world leaders on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in southern Italy.

Francis, who will be the first pope to address a G7 summit, will kick off his bilateral talks shortly after arriving at the summit location. He will meet Friday with Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy, French President Emmanuel Macron and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as well as with the head of the International Monetary Fund, Kristalina Georgieva.

The pope has previously met with Zelenskyy but caused a stir earlier this year when he said that Ukraine should have the courage of the white flag to negotiate an end of the war with Russia. Kyiv summoned the Holy See ambassador to complain.

After delivering a speech at the G7 summit, the pope will continue his meetings with Kenyan President William Ruto, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, US President Joe Biden, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune. G7 leaders agree to lend Ukraine $50 billion using frozen Russian assets as collateral

BARI, Italy  Officials say the worlds seven wealthiest democracies have agreed on lending Ukraine up to $50 billion using frozen Russian assets as collateral.

Diplomats confirmed the agreement, which was struck before Thursdays start of the three-day G7 summit that brings together Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

U.S. President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will also sign a bilateral security agreement during the summit.

European officials have resisted confiscating the assets, citing legal and financial stability concerns. But the plan would use the interest earned on the assets to help Ukraines war effort.

The U.S. proposal involves using profits from the roughly $260 billion in frozen Russian central bank assets, most of them held in the European Union, to help Ukraine.

The U.S. would issue Ukraine the $50 billion loan using windfall profits from the immobilized funds as collateral.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
Former US President Donald Trump has failed to follow the British High Court order to pay $380,000 for legal fees and also had rejected an offer to settle with a former British spy who did research that claimed that Russia had interfered with the 2016 US election, according to Sky News. Donald Trump continues campaigning around the country amidst ongoing legal troubles. The former president is scheduled to sit for a probation interview via video on June 10 related to the felony conviction in his New York hush money case. Brandon Bell/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Brandon Bell / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)(Getty Images via AFP)

Christopher Steele, a former British MI6 officer who worked for and created the notorious Steele dossier for the Democratic National Convention and Hillary Clintons presidential campaign, contained a series of allegations against Trump.

The Steele dossier, consisting of 16 separate reports totalling 35 pages, was leaked and published by BuzzFeed in 2017. It alleged collusion between Donald Trump's campaign and Russia.

ALSO READ| Prince Harry is worried sick over being kicked out of US if Donald Trump gets re-elected

Trump never paid $380,000 for golden showers dossier

The dossier accused prostitutes of visiting Trump in the presidential suite at the Ritz-Carlton hotel in Moscow and performing golden showers, a urination act in front of him.

Trump has called these allegations a pile of garbage and raised a finger that the dossier contained numerous inaccuracies and violated his rights under the Data Protection Act.

Earlier this year, Trump sued Steele's company, Orbis Business Intelligence, in the UK, but the case was dismissed due to it being filed after the six-year limitation period.

Now, Trump was ordered to pay 300,000 ($380,000) in legal fees.

Earlier this year, when he lost his English High Court case against us, the judge ordered Donald Trump to pay Orbis an initial 300k in costs. Trump, who claims to respect the UK, has now been in breach of this order for two months and faces enforcement if he travels here again, Steele wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

The former MI6 told Sky News, Cost is the key issue in all litigation, and particularly in what we call lawfare, which we think this is. It is an attempt to take vengeance against us or to keep us quiet.

ALSO READ| Donald Trump rallies GOP support in Washington following his criminal conviction

I think he's trying to put off a lot of these legal cases and these fines and these costs until after what he thinks will be his reelection in November, in which case he will just tell us all to go and jump.

Recently, the presidential hopeful was found guilty of charges related to a hush-money payment made to porn star Stormy Daniels.
MBABANE - The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) is investigating beneficiaries in a sum of about E3 million, that was received from an account held by Funduzi Forensic Services (Pty) Ltd.

An employee of Standard Bank Eswatini, Delisa Malinga, allegedly admitted to the banks investigator that he was one of the beneficiaries of funds from Funduzis bank account.

The bank preferred charges relating to bribery and corruption against Malinga and he ran to the Industrial Court seeking to stop the hearing, declaring it to be time barred.

According to Malinga, part of the events that resulted in him being charged was a letter from the ACC. He alleged that the letter sought certain information about him and transactions in his UNAYO account.

Beneficiaries

The ACC wrote to the bank in terms of Sections 11 and 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act No.3 of 2006. Part of the information sought by the ACC was the beneficiaries of funds received from the bank account in question on May 4, 2023, which was the sum of E833 980 and over E1.8 million received on October 6, 2023, as well as E991 340 on November 22, 2023. The ACC, according to the letter written to Standard Bank, sought details of the account holders, the dates, on which the account was opened, bank statements from the particular date and any accounts linked or associated with the account holders and other information. Malingas application to stop the hearing and declare it time barred was argued before Judge Manene Thwala yesterday. Malingas representative highlighted that the letter from the ACC was dated March 26, 2024, and the banks Manager Investigation, Sibusiso Mndzebele, purportedly actioned it on April 6, 2024.

Hearing

As a result, Mnisi said in terms of Clause 1.11.1 of the Disciplinary Code and Procedure, the hearing was time barred, as a period of 35 days had lapsed since management became aware of the matter. Mnisi informed the court that Mndzebele did not do anything about the matter until he was notified by the ACC that one of the banks employees was a beneficiary in the monies from Funduzis account. Mnisi argued that banks had an obligation to prevent money laundering. As a result, she said a person in Mndzebeles position, when requested by the ACC to provide it with the information it sought, it ought to have thought that something suspicious was going on.

It is not reasonable that a person of his training, as an investigative manager, would not think that misconduct had happened when he received the letter from the ACC. The ACCs letter should have triggered something in his mind, as much as he should not have come to a conclusion, said Mnisi, who added that banks had risk management divisions. Judge Manene said Mnisi was providing a lot of unsubstantiated facts. Mnisi pointed out that a reasonable man in Mndzebeles position ought to have suspected that there was something amiss and done a follow-up. She argued that the information sought by the ACC from the bank could have raised reasonable suspicion in the mind of a person in Mndzebeles position. In response, Standard Bank, which was represented by Derrick Jele, said Malingas application had no substance and should be dismissed.

Investigating

He said the letter from the ACC did not state that they were investigating an employee of the bank. Jele told the court that Mndzebele, in his confirmatory affidavit, disputed that he was aware that an employee was being investigated. According to Jele, the information that was sought by the ACC was forwarded to the commission after its request and Mndzebele did not scrutinise it. He pointed out that Mndzebele dealt with the ACC on a weekly basis.Malinga had submitted, in his replying papers, that it was not true that Mndzebele did not scrutinise the information before forwarding it to the ACC, as per the request. Jele said it was the ACC that came back and informed the bank that one of its employees was a beneficiary in the funds from the account. That, according to Jele, was when the ACC had provided the bank with this information. Mndzebele is said to have interviewed Malinga and he (the latter) allegedly admitted to being a beneficiary recipient in the funds from the account.

Jele further said there was nothing wrong about the ruling of the chairperson of Malingas hearing, that it was not time barred. He told the court that the ACCs letter was not communicating any act of misconduct purportedly committed by Malinga. He argued that the bank provided the information requested by the ACC in good faith and it was then that the commission informed the bank that one of its employees was a beneficiary from the account in question. Jele said Malinga was asked about the matter and he confirmed to being a beneficiary in the funds from the account. According to Jele, Malinga was then charged by the bank.

Wondered

In reply, Mnisi, on behalf of Malinga, wondered how Mndzebele could go through the items required by the ACC and not notice the prevalence of Malingas name. Jele said the bank had more than 6 000 employees. Mnisi also applied that the letter from the ACC be read into the record in its entirety. She accused the banks representative of reading it selectively. She said they had not been told how the bank became aware of the matter and there had to be confirmation from the ACC. According to Mnisi, they thought that through the letter, the ACC requested bank statements. We did not have the letter but only shown it. The letter was conveniently kept from us, said Mnisi. Judge Thwala asked why Malinga had not been candid that he was a beneficiary from the account. Why didnt he disclose that his name appeared? He is trying to avoid prosecution by the employer, so he should have stated that he was a beneficiary. You are now answering on his behalf, said Judge Thwala. Mnisi said Malinga was not an attorney. The court reserved its judgment in the matter.
The head of the Federal Aviation Administration said Thursday the agency was "too hands off" in oversight of Boeing before a January mid-air emergency in a new Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9. Boeing employees assemble 787s inside their main assembly building on their campus in North Charleston, South Carolina, U.S., May 30, 2023. Gavin McIntyre/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo(REUTERS)

"The FAA should have had much better visibility into what was happening at Boeing before Jan. 5," said FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker at a Senate Commerce Committee hearing.

He said the agency had permanently boosted the use of in-person inspectors and would visit a Boeing factory in South Carolina on Friday.

The FAA's approach before then "was too hands off, too focused on paperwork audits and not focused enough on inspections," Whitaker added. "We will utilize the full extent of our enforcement authority to ensure Boeing is held accountable for any noncompliance. We currently have multiple active investigations into Boeing."

Whitaker also said the agency will continue increased on-site presence at Boeing and its supplier Spirit AeroSystems "for the foreseeable future."

Whitaker said the FAA has "additional inspections at critical points of the production process."

Whitaker and said after the incident "the FAA changed its oversight approach and those changes are permanent. We have now supplemented our audits with more active, in-person oversight  the 'audit plus inspection' approach."

On May 30, Boeing delivered a comprehensive quality improvement plan delivered to the FAA after Whitaker in late February gave Boeing 90 days to develop a comprehensive plan to address "systemic quality-control issues."

Boeing investigates quality problem on undelivered 787s, sources say

Boeing is investigating a new quality problem with its 787 Dreamliner after discovering that hundreds of fasteners have been incorrectly installed on the fuselages of some undelivered 787 Dreamliner jets, two people familiar with the matter said.

The latest in a series of manufacturing snags affecting the U.S. planemaker involves incorrect "torquing" or tightening in a Boeing plant of more than 900 fasteners per plane - split equally between both sides of the jet's mid-body, they said.

There is no immediate concern about flight safety but Boeing is working to understand what caused the problem and will decide how much if any rework needs to be done once its investigation is complete, the sources said, asking not to be identified.

The sources said the fasteners - which attach the carbon-composite skin to skeletal supports inside the fuselage called longerons - had been torqued from the wrong side.

Boeing confirmed the checks in response to a Reuters query.

"Our 787 team is checking fasteners in the side-of-body area of some undelivered 787 Dreamliner airplanes to ensure they meet our engineering specifications. The in-service fleet can continue to safely operate," a spokesperson said.

"We are taking the time necessary to ensure all airplanes meet our delivery standards prior to delivery. We are working closely with our customers and the FAA and keeping them updated.

The FAA did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Deliveries have been running more slowly than usual after an earlier production slowdown but have not so far been paused, FlightRadar24 tracking data showed.

Boeing shares fell 1.7% in morning trading.
A hilarious incident at a Florida city council gathering made everyone burst into laughter amid an ongoing serious discussion. Halfway through the Seminole County Board of County Commissioners meeting in Sanford on Tuesday, June 11, an inappropriate comment blared over the PA system when Community Service Director Allison Thall began speaking at the podium during a livestream. Florida council meeting members, including Allison Thall (L), burst into laughter as hilarious remark blares over PA system (Seminole County Government/YouTube)

The hilarious incident

The 61-year-old introduced herself to the board, following which she was set to speak on the affordable housing annual report. All of a sudden, she was interrupted by a humanoid, robotic male voice saying, Older women are often perceived as difficult to turn on.

Thall stopped short and looked at the speaker, as a woman shouted off camera, What? Say what? and burst into laughter. Are you talking about me? a visibly awkward Thall said, finding humour in the otherwise embarrassing situation.

The audience tried to control breaking out into laughter, when District 3 Commissioner Lee Constantine told Thall, looking at her, That was a good presentation!

As the laughter continued, someone off camera asked, Where did that come from? Constantine replied, I dont know.

However, Commissioner and Vice-Chair Andria Herr could not get over the funny moment, and shouted into her mic, I will remember this day forever, forever.

Seminole County Board Chairman Jay Zembower then asked Constantine to please have IT deal with Commissioner Constantines technology?

When one person joked saying it is not the technology and Constantine had to have touched something, Constantine pointed down at his laptop keyboard and said, I touched that.

Zembower later joked and told Thall, And trust me, Im certain this was not directed towards you.

Okay, Im not sure if I should say thank you or Thall replied, and the audience began laughing again.

None of us were, we were all going, stop it already,' Zembower said.

That was great, thank you, Thall said, and then started her address again.
The Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting survivors graduated from the Connecticut school on Wednesday, June 12. This comes 12 years after 20 of their peers were murdered in a mass shooting at the school, carried out by Adam Lanza in December 2012. People are comforted near Sandy Hook Elementary School, Dec. 14, 2012 in Newtown, Connecticut (AP Photo/Hearst Connecticut Media, Alex von Kleydorff via AP, File)(AP)

The murdered students were remembered at the ceremony, with their names being read allowed in an emotional tribute. The tribute said that they too deserved to receive their diplomas on stage.

We remember your 20 classmates who were tragically lost on Dec. 14, 2012, who will not walk across the stage tonight, Principal Kimberly Longobucco said, according to the News Times. We remember them for their bravery, their kindness and their spirit. Let us strive to honor them today and every day.

Longobucco read out the names of all the 20 students, followed by the moment of silence with attendees bowing their heads. Many of the surviving students pinned green ribbons, in which the words Forever in Our Hearts was written, on their gowns.

Theres no way to go about it without remembering them

To graduate and miss 20 kids out of your class, theres no way to go about it without remembering them, 17-year-old Sandy Hook survivor Lilly Wasilnak, who graduated, told People.

Survivor and graduating student Matt Holden told the Hartford Courant, You can always see the moments when someones crying at the memorial or something like that, but every single day there are a thousand moments that you dont even think about, where they should be here. The empty seat at the lunch table, or the kid you dont see in the halls, thats what really defines it.

Some people who didnt even meet these kids, who went to another school in town, are affected by this. Not because they knew them, but because they should have, he added. Because we all should have gotten to know them better than we did.

They should still be here and thats the greatest tragedy of all, Holden added.

This is a hard month

On the graduating day, the slain students parents attended events advocating for resources to prevent shootings in the future. This is a hard month because there should be twenty more kids graduating, said Nicole Hockley, whose son Dylan was murdered by Lanza. Dylan should be graduating. And [Principal] Dawn [Hochsprung] and the others should all be here watching them graduate.

This is the generation that has grown up knowing nothing but school shootings, Hockley added This is the generation that will not let that be the future for their children.
Amidst an alarming surge in antisemitic incidents across the US , a number of Jewish community leaders in New York City are pushing for the resurrection of an anti-mask law to stop demonstrators from hiding their real identities during hate-filled protests, according to the New York Post. Prominent Jewish figures have voiced their support for bringing back an anti-mask law that was formerly used to counter the Ku Klux Klan's disguised identity. (AP )

Prominent Jewish figures have voiced their support for bringing back an anti-mask law that was formerly used to counter the Ku Klux Klan's disguised identity. This demand comes in response to an unprecedented rise in hate crimes against Jews, with the NYPD reporting that these occurrences increased by 150% in May.

Protesters commandeered a NYC subway train on Monday in an unexpected incident. They all had either COVID masks, balaclavas, keffiyehs or sunglasses to hide their faces. They asked "Zionists" to raise their hands, announcing that "This is your chance to get out."

In another similar incident at Union Square, two demonstrators, while having their faces shielded with masks, raised a banner that read Long Live October 7.

Anti-Defamation League calls it an emergency, demands mask law

Speaking to NY POST, Anti-Defamation League's regional director, Scott Richman, asserted that This is a crisis, an emergency.

"We need a comprehensive plan to stop the rising tide of antisemitism to protect Jewish New Yorkers and all New Yorkers, he said, stressing that "a mask law will make a difference."

According to Richman, the group ought to support similar legislation once more, having first pushed for them across the US in the 1950s. He highlighted how anti-mask legislation had historically been successful in weakening the Ku Klux Klan and claimed that the rule can play an extremely important role now.

After being in effect for almost 200 years, New York's legislation was struck down in 2020 amid the COVID-19 epidemic.

Also Read: Homes of Brooklyn Museum's Jewish leaders vandalised with antisemitic graffiti

NYDP data reveals surge in antisemitic incidents

The seriousness of the problem is further illustrated by NYPD data, which states that around 173 antisemitic hate crimes occurred in 2024, as compared to the 101 that were reported in 2023.

Meanwhile, Staten Island Republican Assemblyman Michael Reilly has proposed a measure to restore the mask ban, laying the foundation for future legislative action.

Emphasizing the nature of these masked protests as targeted harassment, Legal Voices has questioned the safeguards that these protests have under the First Amendment.

"These protests are not protected under the First Amendment because they are engaged in targeted harassment and incitement of violence," said Matthew Schweber, a member of Jewish Alumni Association at Columbia University.
As Joe Biden has been facing immense backlash over his mental and physical capabilities following his re-election bid, the 81-year-old Commander-in-Chief on Wednesday arrived in Italy to attend the G7 Summit. Last time, Biden attended a global event in France, where he landed to mark the D-Day 80th anniversary along with First Lady Jill Biden, sparking memes and mockery for committing blunders. After a brief exchange of words, Meloni gestured to a frame bearing the G7 logo, which all the leaders in attendance had autographed using a marker.(X@AmbasciataUSA)

Biden meets Meloni

In his latest trip, Biden was captured while awkwardly saluting Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni as she welcomed him for the G7 summit on Thursday.

The G7, which includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK, and the US, is an informal group that holds annual meetings to talk about security and economic matters.

Shoofly making his way onto the stage where the Italian PM was waiting, Biden was the last foreign leaders to show up at the southern Puglia venue.

After a brief exchange of words, Meloni gestured to a frame bearing the G7 logo, which all the leaders in attendance had autographed using a marker.

Lifting his right arm over his eye, Biden saluted Meloni as he started to leave the platform.

Social media users swiftly shared videos of the awkward salutation, which went viral. While some considered Biden's move as out of touch, others applauded him for trying to show his Italian counterpart some dignity.

Meloni, on the other hand, seemed unperturbed by the salute and carried on conversing with other international leaders throughout the conference. The G7 meeting's deliberations centered on a number of urgent global concerns such as the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.

Also Read: Joe Biden to sign new security agreement with Ukraine amid G7 summit

Here's what social media users have to say

Sharing the video on X, Italian-American Joey Mannarino quipped, Did Giorgia Meloni join the US Military and no one told us? Why did Biden just salute her?

Reacting to comment section, one X user wrote: He saluted Hunter the other day also.

He doesn't know where he is, a second user chimed in, while another commented, She had to tell him what to do. And still he gets lost. Such an embarrassment.

One of the X users came to rescue Biden, stating that I'm a huge Biden critic, but this is much ado about nothing.

He did it informally, like a thumbs up. I do it to coworkers from time to time, meaning. OK, got it.
While Kate Middleton intends to return to her Royal duties at earliest, a new report claims that King Charles has "snubbed" his beloved daughter-in-law in his latest announcement, GB News reported. Royal supporters hold cardboard cutout of Britain's King Charles III and Princess of Wales Kate, outside the Windsor Castle where Royal family attending the Easter Matins Service in Windsor, England, Sunday, March 31, 2024. (AP Photo/Kin Cheung)(AP)

Ahead of Garter Day, the monarch made two key appointments. Garter Day parade is an annual event and the oldest rituals on the Royal calendar, in which the King and the Knights march wearing opulent velvet robes, shimmering emblems, and plumed caps.

The procession and service are held in the grounds of Windsor Castle to commemorate the Order of the Garter, the most senior and oldest Order of Chivalry in Britain.

The step coincides with growing demands to name The Princess of Wales, who is receiving chemotherapy following her cancer diagnosis, the Order of the Garter.

As per the King's announcement, Baroness Manningham-Buller, who has previously served as director general of MI5, has been named Chancellor of the Order of the Garter.

In addition, he appointed Lord Ashton of Hyde, the former insurance trader, as the ceremonial Master of the Horse, responsible for overseeing the Royal Mews during official functions.

Following the Duke of Abercorn's retirement, Lady Manningham-Buller will become the first female Chancellor of the oldest and most esteemed order of chivalry in Britain, having held the position from its founding in 475.

While the service this year is scheduled on Monday, June 17, both the appointments will come into effect from Tuesday, June 18.

Also Read: Kate Middleton pens down emotional letter amid cancer battle: I am very sorry that

Kate attended Order of the Garter event last year

Last year, The Princess of Wales attended the Order of the Garter event, looking stunning in Alessandra Rich white and black polka dot dress and Princess Diana's Collingwood Pearl earrings, which were given to the late Princess as a wedding present in 1981.

The princess also decided to wear shoes by Rich, going for white heels with a black toe.

Princess Kate said earlier this year that she had received a cancer diagnosis and took a break from her royal responsibilities in order to heal privately.

The Princess of Wales stated in a letter last week that she hoped to return "very soon" to her official role as the Irish Guards' representative.

The 42-year-old Kate is yet to announce if she plans to attend Trooping the Colour this weekend.
The rift between Prince Harry and King Charles III has become more serious, as the king reportedly asked his son not to write or say publicly anything further about the family. Report reveals rift between Prince Harry-Meghan Markle and King Charles over security and funding(AP)

Royal expert Tom Quinn claimed that King Charles has personally requested Prince Harry to refrain from further public statements or writings that could exacerbate tensions within the family or his brother.

King Charles fears another memoir from Prince Harry

For all her efforts to make a success of her new online business, America Riviera Orchard, Meghan knows that a personal memoir of her time in the UK as a working royal would sell millions of copies and make her the sort of money she craves, Quinn told the Mirror UK and added, All this fills King Charles with horror because Harry is bound to be a major contributor to the book.

If Harry were to say to his father and brother, Look Ive gone too far. Ill stay quiet now and there will be no more embarrassing revelations, it might be different. But Harry is in no mood to apologise  like his wife, he still believes that all the apologies need to come from his family, he added.

ALSO READ| King Charles III and Prince William send a 'powerful message' to Prince Harry this way

The rift between Prince Harry and the Royal Family deepened after he and Meghan Markle stepped back from their roles as working members in 2020, relocating to Montecito, California. Since then, the couple has embarked on numerous media ventures, including lucrative deals with Netflix and Spotify, and Prince Harry himself authored a memoir titled 'Spare,' detailing his relationship fallout with his father and brother, Prince William.

King asked Harry not to write or say publicly anything further

Harry has been asked directly by his father not to write or say publicly anything further about the family or his brother that might cause trouble, explained Quinn to The Mirror. "And everyone knows that when a king asks you to do something, there are going to be consequences if you do not obey."

The royal expert further elaborated, Over the years that Harry has complained about his treatment by his family, he has had just one aim - to get an apology and to see his father and brother make amends.

ALSO READ| Prince Harry is worried sick over being kicked out of US if Donald Trump gets re-elected

Prince Harry's public disclosures have further strained relations rather than facilitating healing. Quinn emphasized, Harry just can't see that complaining in private might work; complaining publicly just makes things worse, and in Harry's case, that means more and more ties to his past being severed.

The situation has recently escalated, as evidenced by Prince Harry's inability to meet his father during the brief UK visit in may due to the monarch's full programme. However, later, it surfaced that difficult Prince William was preventing Harry from meeting Charles.
The relationship between Meghan Markle and her half-sister, Samantha Markle, remains strained. Samantha is now publicly stating that Meghan "lied to her daughter" about the royal wedding, portraying her in a negative light. After alleging in a tell-all interview that the Duchess misled the public about their relationship and childhood, Samantha reiterated these accusations during an interview with Channel Seven's Sunrise on Friday. Meghan Markle's half-sister Samantha Markle has filed a lawsuit against the actress for ruining her reputation in an interview and a Netflix documentary.

Samantha Markle accuses Meghan of spun narrative

It was really surprising to hear that there was a narrative spun that made Ashley feel like she was not invited because of something having to do with me, the 59-year-old stated referring to the Duchess of Sussex.

In May 2018, Meghan and Prince Harry married at St Georges Chapel, Windsor Castle. Meghans mother, Doria Ragland, was the sole family member present at the ceremony. In 2023, Samantha revealed the Markle family's surprise at not being invited. Initially, their father, Thomas, was invited to walk Meghan down the aisle, but he suffered a heart attack just days before the wedding.

Now, Samantha claims, "I heard from a royal insider who knows, that was up to up Meghan, so Meghan lied to my daughter which made my daughter feel begrudging of me," she said in the interview.

Also read: Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck's tense distance clear at son's graduation amid singer's solo house hunting

Meghan lied to my daughter

Samantha, a writer and screenwriter, has been critical of Meghan since she began dating Prince Harry. The conflict grew when Samantha took legal action against Meghan for making defamatory statements in an interview with Oprah Winfrey and the Netflix show. During these interviews, Meghan referred to herself as the only child and hoped to have a sibling. Samantha's lawsuit challenged the accuracy of Meghan's portrayal of their relationship and their father, stating that she lied so neither she (Samantha) nor their father (Thomas Markle) could not interfere with or contradict the false narrative and fairytale life story [she] concocted.

In a fresh accusation, Samantha Markle claims Meghan lied to her daughter, leading her to believe that their absence from the wedding was her moms fault. I can see how my daughter would have felt, torn between the two and then feeling perhaps like she could not go to the wedding because of me, she added.

Also read: Prince Harry 'determined to find permanent UK home' as honeymoon period comes to

Samantha went on to claim, That is not true, that is a lie. I found out that the royals did not say that, Meghan said that. She then lied to my daughter and made my daughter feel like it was something wrong with me that prevented her from going to the wedding.

Later, Hale, the daughter of Samantha, shared her pain in the documentary, grasping the reasons behind the situation, and regretting its effect on her bond with Meghan. She believes her opportunity to join something significant was unfairly stripped from her, causing her emotional distress.
NASA on Wednesday accidentally aired a 'disturbing' audio about an emergency situation on board the International Space Station (ISS), fueling a public alarm on social media. A medical drill that depicted a crew member in critical condition was inadvertently broadcast on an official webcast. A medical drill that depicted a NASA crew member in critical condition was inadvertently broadcast on an official webcast.(Getty)

Here is what went wrong

At 6:28 p.m. ET, the regularly planned broadcast was cut short by an unnamed speaker who appeared to be a flight surgeon discussing with the ISS crew how to handle a commander who was experiencing severe compression sickness.

After instructing the team to "check his pulse one more time," the speaker put astronaut inside a suit that was filled with pure oxygen. Any action, in her words, would be a "best effort treatment" and preferable than doing nothing.

"Unfortunately, the prognosis for Commander is relatively tenuous," she was heard as saying.

She then advised the team to get him dressed as soon as possible, expressing her concern that there have been some serious cases of DCS (decompression sickness).

In an apparent attempt to request an urgent departure from the space station, she mentioned about a hospital with hyperbaric treatment capabilities located in San Fernando, Spain.

Flight surgeons are medical professionals stationed in mission control centers who have received advanced training in aerospace medicine, according to NASA.

The incident soon gained attention on social media due to a number of well-known space accounts -- one user described the incident as "odd and disturbing."

Also Read: Once-in-a-lifetime nova explosion set to stun viewers with spectacular light show, NASA says: All you need to know

NASA issues statement after the incident

However, NASA later clarified that the situation wasn't real and that the ISS crew was all sound sleeping at the time, allaying fears among the space fans who were listening.

There is no emergency situation going on aboard the International Space Station, NASAs ISS account posted on X.

"At approximately 5:28 p.m. CDT, audio was aired on the NASA livestream from a simulation audio channel on the ground indicating a crew member was experiencing effects related to decompression sickness," the agency continued.

Audio was inadvertently misrouted from an ongoing simulation where crew members and ground teams train for various scenarios in space.

The spacewalk tomorrow is scheduled to begin at 8 a.m. EDT as all remain healthy and safe.

Reacting to NASA's clarification, one X user wrote: You had a bunch of us about to turn blue.

Thats a relief super glad that everyone is ok and safe and healthy, another added.

Eric Berger, a Senior Space Editor at Ars Technical, chimed in, "I can confirm with 100 percent confidence that there is no emergency on board the International Space Station. It was a sim not involving the crew.
King Charles exchanged vows with Queen Camilla at Windsor Guildhall in April 2005 following their engagement in February. And now it's been 19 years since they held their nuptials in a civil ceremony. Following their wedding, Camilla faced some issues with her striking gold leaf feathers headband as the wind blew around her. (Getty)

However, Queen Elizabeth II didn't attend the event as Charles and Camilla actually tied the knot in an intimate ceremony with only 28 guests, including Prince William and Prince Harry. Camilla and her first husband Andrew Parker Bowles' kids -- Andrew Parker Bowles, Tom Parker Bowles and Laura Lopes -- were also in attendance.

Being the head of the Church of England, the Queen thought it would be inappropriate for her to attend his son's wedding. Despite this, the Queen and her husband, Prince Philip, joined the newly-wed couple during the Service of Prayer and Dedication and by organizing a grand reception for them in Windsor Castle.

What was the Queen's warning to Camilla?

Following their wedding, Camilla faced some issues with her striking gold leaf feathers headband as the wind blew around her. The couple was photographed together on the staircase of St George's Chapel.

Meanwhile, the Queen noticed her struggles. The Daily Mail claims that the Queen told Charles, I did warn her, wearing feathers.

Also Read: King Charles wants to throw out Queen Elizabeth's corgis and her favourite son Prince Andrew from Royal Lodge for

Former royal butler opens up about wedding day and Queen's bond with family

Recalling Charles and Camilla's wedding, former royal butler Grant Harrold, who attended the ceremony, revealed that the Queen organised everything from flowers to rings of Charles and Camilla. In fact, she made a funny speech at the newlyweds' celebration.

The biggest misunderstanding about the wedding was that the Queen wasn't supportive or enjoyed the ceremony, Grant stated, adding that it's complete nonsense.

Her attendance and speech would have been seen as an olive branch to Charles and Camilla - her blessing of the marriage. The royals don't do things lightly and she would have not attended if she hadn't been happy to.

The Queen enjoyed drinks with other family members during the reception at St George's Hall, the former Royal buttled stated.

According to her, the Queen even addressed the attendees at the reception.

The Queen was amazing at the wedding, she gave a very funny speech, she was really happy as was Prince Philip. I can't remember her exact words but she was funny.

She said the Queen likened their bond to a horse race at the Grand National, mentioning that she was fantastic comedian.
DVOKOLWAKO - There are concerns and fears that violence in Eswatini might go from bad to worse as gangs are taking over in communities, including schools.

This was raised during a sensitisation programme about gangs, which was hosted by the Ministry of Education and Training. The exercise was held at Dvokolwako High School for the guardians and pupils. Leading the programme was the Hhohho Regional Administration Officer (REO). By definition, gangsterism is the culture of belonging to organised gangs of criminals, especially involving violence. Knowledge Ngwenya, the Inspector of Schools in the Hhohho Region under the Guidance and Counselling Department, labelled gangsterism as a pandemic which had the potential of seeing the country experiencing another wave of unrest.

According to Ngwenya, as they were inspecting schools, they discovered that there were acts of gangsterism and they roped in other government departments that deal with children, like the Deputy Prime Ministers (DPM) Office, Ministry of Health, Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS) and His Majestys Correctional Services (HMCS) together with non-governmental organisations (NGOs) like Swatini Action Group Against Abuse (SWAGAA) and Kwakha Indvodza, among others.

Sensitise

Ngwenya said they had formed a committee of 30 people from these departments and organisations, which would visit 20 schools (10 primary schools and 10 high schools) in the Hhohho Region, for a start to sensitise staff members, parents and pupils about the causes and dangers of gangsterism together with how it could be presented. He said Dvokolwako High School was the first school to be visited by the committee and this was after it received an invite from the administration, which heard them talking about the concern (of gangsterism) on national radio - the Eswatini Broadcasting Information and Services (EBIS).

Ngwenya highlighted that their research suggested that gangsterism started in correctional facilities and had been spreading into societies and now it was in schools. He said their concern as a ministry was the safety of pupils, teachers and parents as gang members did not only deal with drugs, but they also used them. He highlighted that during the 2021 civil unrest, schools became a hot spot for protest actions, which culminated in vandalism of government property and chaos, which meant that they played a role in the violent actions which the country experienced. As the committee was sensitising the parents of Dvokolwako High School, Inspector Fanyana Dlamini, a police officer from the Hhohho Region, said the gang groups main aim was to commit violent criminal offences. In fact, he said the gangs compete with each other in terms of committing the violent criminal offences.

Dangerous

Even within the same gang group, the members compete because if one commits more dangerous violent acts, they get the recognition in the hierarchy of the power, the officer said.

For example, he said usually, a gang member would not commit an offence of rape alone; instead, he said they would be two or more (gang rape) so that they could have evidence of someone to confirm to their bosses that indeed they have raped someone. He said known gang groups include the 26, 27, 28, amabhenjamin, bafana bakamdodi and K9, among others. He said they were identified by the tattoos on their bodies, which include a sign of US Dollar sign ($), weapons (mainly knives  binate), sun, stars and tombs.





Thereafter, the committee said acts of gangsterism have been discovered in schools, they decided to sensitise the parents about it, mainly its signs and language. He added that the aim was also to capacitate them on what they needed to do to prevent their children from joining the gang groups. A former inmate, who was brought by the committee, said it was hard to control gangsterism. He said HMCS could not control it alone, because when the inmates they keep in their custody were released, they returned to communities where they engaged in a recruiting spree. I can safely say gangsterism is a pandemic in societies because my people have died because of it. It had killed ordinary community members, business people, gang members and law enforcers, he said.

He said these days in the communities, young boys and men carry knives, among other weapons when they go to hustle. He said hustling to them was committing violent criminal offences. Therefore, he said gangsterism needed the relevant stakeholders to work jointly in order to successfully fight it.
Tesla Inc. shares jumped in early trading after Elon Musk said shareholders voted by wide margins in favor of re-approving his compensation package and moving the companys state of incorporation to Texas. Tesla shares jumped as much as 7.2% before the start of regular trading.(Reuters)

The chief executive officer posted voting results on X, the social media site he owns, hours before shareholder voting ended and ahead of Teslas annual meeting Thursday in Austin. He shared two charts suggesting the proposals had been approved. Tesla shares jumped as much as 7.2% before the start of regular trading.

Musk and Teslas board have spent the last two months rallying support for the measures, putting particular emphasis on the pay deal that made Musk eligible for as much as $55.8 billion in stock options based on the company hitting certain milestones. A Delaware judge voided the award earlier this year, pointing to conflicts of interest among Tesla directors and disclosure failures.

The vote on Musks pay carries more symbolic weight than legal power. While shareholders approval may help Tesla with an appeal or a rehearing in a new case, the company acknowledged in its proxy filing that it cannot predict with certainty how a vote to ratify Musks compensation would be treated under Delaware law.

This doesnt fully settle the matter; the compensation package can still be deemed illegal, Piper Sandler analyst Alexander Potter wrote in a note to clients late Wednesday. We expect the stock to respond favorably to this news, though the upside is perhaps unlikely to be as violent as the downside would have been, had shareholders rejected the deal.

Tesla Chair Robyn Denholm engaged with large institutional investors on the proposals, and the company placed several ads related to the vote on X. In the final days of the campaign, several current and former executives and engineers posted on the site in support of Musk.

Those in favor of re-approving the CEOs pay included Scottish asset manager Baillie Gifford & Co., Cathie Woods Ark Investment Management LLC and Ron Baron, who runs Baron Funds.

Baron, a longtime Tesla investor, said in an open letter that the will of the shareholders who voted in 2018 should be favored. Without Musk, there would be no Tesla, and this vote might determine whether he stays at the company, he said.

Those against the proposal included Norways sovereign wealth fund, Norges Bank, and California Public Employees Retirement System.

Shareholders also voted on Teslas proposal to move its state of jurisdiction to Texas. In its proxy filing, the company said it may face legal challenges to the relocation, including from shareholders objecting under Delaware law.

The shareholder meeting will be livestreamed Thursday starting at 4:30 p.m. New York time.
Former US President Donald Trump, who has been claiming his innocence even after being convicted in a hush money trial, on Wednesday wrote in a fundraising mail Haul out the Guillotine!, targetting his political opponents for allegedly going after him and supporters ahead of the US elections. In the fundraising call, Trump made reference to comedian Kathy Griffin, who faced backlash in 2017 following a photo shoot in which she carried an exact replica of Trump's decapitated and bloodied head.(AFP)

Subsequently, the presumed Republican presidential candidate made a bogus claim in another email that they intended to execute him.

This is just one more instance of Trump's incitement to express vengeance against his political adversaries in the wake of his conviction.

Appearing on a Fox News interview last week, Trump stated that if he gets re-elected to the White House, he will have "every right to go after" his rivals in politics.

In the fundraising call, Trump made reference to comedian Kathy Griffin, who faced backlash in 2017 following a photo shoot in which she carried an exact replica of Trump's decapitated and bloodied head.

"Remember when that Sicko Kathy Griffin made the rounds parading my BEHEADED head when I was President?! The radical-left CHEERED!" he wrote the fundraising email.

Following the event, Griffin lost her job presenting CNN's New Year's Eve program. She also stated earlier this year that the Justice Department was thinking of filing a charge against her over the act.

The SAD and HORRIFIC TRUTH is that this is STILL the Sick Dream of every Trump-Deranged lunatic out there! And it's not just me they want gone, THEY'RE REALLY COMING AFTER YOU! he continued.

Trump went on to say that his opponents want to "SENTENCE ME TO DEATH" and then blasted President Joe Biden

You know they'd do it if they could, but Crooked Joe's team of lowlifes and radical left thugs will settle for a LIFE SENTENCE, he said, referring to his sentencing on New York charges.

He further called for massive patriotic support, stating that else they'll TAKE ME OUT and move on to their real target: YOU!!

Also Read: Trump says he wants all remaining Bitcoin to be MADE IN THE USA in meeting with crypto miners

Trump garners backlash for his campaigns latest fundraising email

Reacting to his campaigns latest fundraising email on X, CNN's Jim Acosta asked whether Trump was truly "out of control" after his conviction, while other critics called it unhinged and disgusting.

Acosta in presence of CNN's Maria Cardona and Republican Strategist Rona Shah suggested on-air that nobodys really made a big deal out of this email. He further asked, Are we getting a little too numb to this kind of rhetoric? Is it getting out of control? Is he out of control?
Following Hunter Biden's conviction in federal gun crimes, Lunden Roberts, the mother of his second youngest child, broke her silence and stated that her main concern is her 5-year-old daughter Navy Joan's well being. On being asked why she continued to appear understanding and tolerant of Hunter Biden, Lunden Roberts said that they share a child and Hunter is developing his relationship with Navy via Zoom calls.(Lunden Roberts/Instagram)

Hunter Biden was found guilty on all three felony counts pertaining to the acquisition of a weapon in 2018. Prosecutors claimed that Hunter had falsified information on a required paperwork claiming he was not addicted to drugs or using drugs unlawfully.

In an interview with NewsNations On Balance, Roberts expressed her hope that the legal conclusion will enable Hunter Biden to maintain a good relationship with Navy.

According to Roberts, Hunter's battle with addiction made him feel like a disappointment to his father Joe Biden, who he always intended to make proud.

He hated feeling like the black sheep, she said.

Although the White House has recognised Hunter's daughter Navy, it has refrained from addressing the issue, which Roberts suggested could be preferable from a PR perspective given that it is a private family issue.

Roberts discusses her relationship with Hunter in her upcoming memoir. She told NewsNation that the book demonstrates that Biden's only living son deeply cares about doing good despite his difficulties. She went on to say that he is "not this villain that the media portrays him to be".

After Roberts filed a child support lawsuit last year, Hunter Biden's paternity was confirmed through DNA testing, and the two parties have since settled remaining child support matters.

In his 2021 memoir, Hunter described his meeting with Roberts, stating that it occurred when he was severely addicted to alcohol and drugs.

Hunter Biden has fathered five childrenNaomi, Navy, Finnegan, Maisy, and Beau Jr.with three different women.

Hunter Biden hid drug gear at Joes Va. home, claims Roberts

Ahead of the release of her memoir "Out of the Shadows: My Life Inside the Wild World of Hunter Biden" on August 20, Roberts spoke to NY Post and revealed that Hunter "locked up" his drug tools in President Bidens Virginia home, where he used to be so high on cocaine and even brought his brother's widow there while they were indulged in a sexual relationship.

According to Roberts, Hallie Biden did not look very street smart when they both spent time with Hunter in Virginia.

Roberts clarified in her book and in an interview with The Post that she didn't meet Hunter at a strip club but rather at a small gathering at Rosemont Seneca, his investment firm, which at the time was situated in the Swedish Embassy in Washington, DC. She said one of her friends had invite her for the party.

During that time, Hunter was in a process to take divorce from his first wife Kathleen Buhle, with whom he shares three children. He had even started seeing Hallie Biden, his brother Beau's widow, after he passed away in 2015 from brain cancer.

Also Read: Which prison could Hunter Biden be sent to?

Roberts' first meeting with Hunter and the start of their love affair

In her book, she describes that she first saw Hunter in brightly colored boxer with parrots all over them while he was setting up his drug paraphernalia.

He turns in his chair and catches me in his stare, his gaze intense with furrowed brows and the most beautiful blue-gray eyes I have ever seen  He is complex, but how? He has my full attention.

Following this, the two started seeing each other and hanging out together. She even saw Hunter twirling on a pole and lighting up a crack pipe at the Mpire Club in Washington, DC, where she was working.

She also describes Hunter's encounters with drug dealers known by the names Bicycles and Big Country.

According to Roberts, Hunter frequently misplaced or lost his cellphones as he carried many at once.

She also talks of his "kindness" and willingness to help people, recalling that once he gave his jacket to a homeless man, but forgot to take out his phone, his brother's dog tags, and multiple rocks of cocaine from his pockets.

She grew accustomed to Hunter's obsessive habit of bathing up to six or seven times a day in an attempt to "get the demons" off him.

The book claims that Roberts introduced Hunter to a number of her younger single girlfriends, whom she dubbed the "Amoeba." She was always available to comply with his erratic requests, such as bringing him "baby powder" from her club. However, Roberts purchased real talcum powder, and Hunter made fun of him for not realizing that it was a code word for cocaine.

She describes a terrifying night she spent in bed with Hunter, watching over his breathing and debating whether to call for help since she was afraid someone might create a scandal.

Why led to an end to Roberts and Hunter's relationship

In 2018, Hunter abruptly ended his relationship with Roberts after she informed him about her pregnancy.

Hunter was initially in favor of her pregnancy, but later proclaimed that he never had sexual relationship with her and went on to have sex with with of her girlfriends who later apologised to her for the mistake.

Following years of "toxic litigation," as Roberts refers to it, Hunter consented to give Roberts monthly child support payments for Navy. He even gave her several of his artworks a year ago, which have gone up to $500,000 per piece in the market.

Around the same time, President Biden finally accepted Navy Joan as his seventh grandchild.

Is Roberts still sympathetic towards Hunter?

On being asked why she continued to appear understanding and tolerant of Hunter, Roberts said that they share a child and Hunter is developing his relationship with Navy via Zoom calls.

Roberts stated, "But that's always on the table" in reference to Navy someday getting to meet Biden and Hunter. She believes that Hunter genuinely wants to take charge and act morally.
16 Handles founder Solomon Choi has reportedly been found dead, but his cause of death has yet to be revealed. Choi founded the company and introduced New York Citys self-serve frozen yoghurt concept back in 2008. Solomon Choi, founder of NYCs self-serve frozen yogurt chain 16 Handles, dies (Solomon Choi/Instagram)

Choi sold the franchise to its largest franchiser Neil Hershman in 2022, as per Restaurant Business Online. Before being sold, 16 Handles grew to as many as 40 locations internationally.

We are deeply saddened by the unexpected passing of 16 Handles founder and former CEO Solomon Choi, Hershman said in a statement obtained by People. He was a visionary who came to New York City in his 20s and founded this iconic frozen dessert brand. 16 Handles is where I got my personal start in franchising and I owe so much to Solomon for the opportunities, education, mentorship and friendship he provided me throughout the years.

Part of the mission statement for 16 Handles is to create moments of happiness, and Solomon truly embodied this in his personal and professional life, always sporting a big smile and optimistic outlook, Hershman added. Our hearts go out to his family, friends and all those who loved him and worked with him during this incredibly difficult time.

Who was Solomon Choi?

Choi was born in Seoul, South Korea. He later moved to the United States and went on to graduate from the University of Southern Californias Marshall School of Business in 2002. At the time of his death, he lived in Manhasset, New York.

Choi is survived by his wife Hannah Chang Choi, his children aged 7 and 4, and his parents and two sisters. He and his wife met at a 16 Handles location on the Upper West Side in 2015.

Another company founded by Choi is Greeno Products, a supplier of custom disposables for the food service industry. He also started Jabba Brands in 2019 in order to advise, invest and operate food service companies, his obituary says. Choi was also notably an Angel Squad member at Hustle Fund, which is a venture capital firm known for investing in early-stage startups.

Solomons legacy will live on forever through the memories of those who had the opportunity to know him and the impact that he had on countless lives, his obituary says. Solomon will be remembered for his relentless optimism, his discipline and fearlessness, and his Michael Jackson dance moves. Most importantly, he was committed to loving his wife and children to the best of his ability and will be remembered as the worlds best husband and daddy.
Vladimir Putin's feared "Kazan" submarine is floating just off the coast of the United States, and here's everything we know so far.

The concerning new submarine from Russia has pulled up off the coast of Cuba ahead of planned military exercises in the area.

A nuclear-power cruise missile submarine, the Kazan is one of a fairly new class of submarines that has worried the US and Western militaries because of its stealth and strike capabilities.

Russian Ships Near Florida

The Kazan, along with three other Russian ships, arrived in Cuba on Wednesday for a five-day official visit before a large, simultaneous air and maritime exercise in the Caribbean.

The Admiral Gorshkov frigate, also included on the vessel, is armed with Zircon hypersonic missiles, presenting another heightening concern for Western militaries.

US Monitoring Ships

U.S. officials don't expect any imminent danger, but they are monitoring the vessels in the meantime.

"This is not a surprise. We've seen them do these type of port calls before," Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said Wednesday, according to the Associated Press. "We of course take it seriously, but these exercises don't pose a threat to the United States."

The fast-attack submarine USS Helena arrived in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba around the same time but the U.S. Southern Command said it was a previously scheduled stop.

STATEMENT: The fast-attack submarine USS Helena is in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba as part of a routine port visit as it transits the U.S. Southern Command geographic area of responsibility while conducting its global maritime security and national defense mission. The vessel's location pic.twitter.com/icbeuonjgp  U.S. Southern Command (@Southcom) June 13, 2024

New Class of Russian Subs

The Russians began work on the new class of submarines during the Cold War, and the first sub in the class, the Severodvinsk, was commissioned in late 2013, according to Business Insider.

Around the same time as the introduction of the Severodvinsk, the Naval Sea Systems Command Program executive officer for submarines said that moving forward, the US would "be facing tough potential opponents," adding that "one only has to look at the Severodvinsk."

After the Severodvinsk was commissioned into the Russian Navy, newer models started to include updated designs and were classified as the Yasen-M class.

The Kazan's "capacity to launch a range of anti-ship and land attack missiles" suggests that "long-range strike missions appear to be superseding sea lines of communication (SLOC) interdiction as a primary task," revealed a 2021 Royal United Services Institute analysis.
"Apocalyptic" flooding in South Florida caused by a drenching storm that dropped more than a foot of rain over the past couple of days swamped roads, dirupted flights, trapped drivers in their vehicles and prompted Gov. Ron DeSantis to declare a state of emergency.

"Cars are dropped just on the streets and everywhere - it's apocalyptic," a resident of Aventura told NBC 10.

Many drivers were forced to abandon their vehicles overnight because of the rapidly rising waters.

"This is craziness. We can't even make it through here. It's a risk," another resident told the station.

A woman was rescued from her vehicle around 7:15 a.m. in Aventura by a Miami-Dade Fire Rescue crew.

Another woman nearby waited for help.

DeSantis declared a state of emergency in five counties - Broward, Collier, Lee, Miami-Dade and Sarasota.

The weather also caused dozens of flights at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport to be canceled or delayed.

The Florida Panthers were delayed for more than three hours before being allowed to depart en route to Edmonton, Canada, for games 3 and 4 of the Stanley Cup Final, the Associated Press reported.

The National Weather Service Weather Prediction Center urged drivers to remain aware as the soaking rains continued on Thursday.

"A HIGH RISK of Excessive Rainfall is now in effect across parts of South Florida (including the Miami metro region) as additional rounds of heavy rain are likely today over very sensitive locations still recovering from yesterday's flooding. Stay weather aware!," it said on X.

Nearly two feet of rain fell in areas of South Florida, including Miami, Fort Lauderdale and Naples, the Weather Channel reported.

"Florida has been stuck in a pattern with high pressure to its east, and lower pressure to its west. That's pulled a deep plume of moisture from Central America and the Caribbean Sea into the peninsula," weather.com senior meteorologist Jonathan Erdman said.
A Vermont man drowned Wednesday as he attempted to swim across a river with his daughter on his back, officials said.

The Vermont State Police said troopers responded to a report of a drowning man in the Mad River, at the popular Big Rock Swimming Hole at Kenneth Ward Park in Moretown, at around 5:25 p.m. Wednesday.

Witnesses told responding troopers that the man was trying to swim across the river with his daughter on his back when he started to struggle. He went under the water and did not resurface.

Bystanders had the water and safely rescued the girl, but could not locate the man. Troopers went into the water and one of them located him.

They brought him to shore but despite attempting life-saving measures, troopers were unable to resuscitate 34-year-old Anthony Goddard. He was pronounced dead at the scene.



State police said detectives from the Bureau of Criminal Investigations were dispatched to the scene, but preliminary investigation indicated no signs of foul play.

Goddard's body was sent to the Chief Medical Examiner's Office in Burlington to determine the cause and manner of death.


Wade Wilson's dramatic tattoo transformation was evident in the courtroom as he showed little emotion while learning his fate for the murders of two Florida women.

On Wednesday, Wilson, 30, was convicted in the first-degree strangulation murders of Kristine Melton, 35, and Diane Ruiz, 43, according to WINK-TV. The 12-person jury also found Wilson guilty of battery, grand theft, and burglary in connection with their slayings.

"This case was about killing for the sake of the killing," Assistant State Attorney Andreas Gardiner told the court, according to The Independent. "Strangulation is the epitome of life slipping through someone's hands."

"It's about what Wade Wilson did to Christine Melton and Diane Ruiz. And make no mistake about it: despite his bragging, his boasting, and the excitement he wants to feel, this case was nothing more than a graphic, vulgar display of power," said Gardiner.

"This was about killing, for the sake of killing." In closing arguments, prosecutor Andreas Gardiner reiterated what defendant #WadeWilson told detectives, "I've already done it once, I'll do it again."



The defense admitted that Wilson strangled two women to death but says this pic.twitter.com/uZ6uVVdDJ8  Court TV (@CourtTV) June 12, 2024

Wilson killed the women in October 2019 in two separate incidents and was arrested that same month.

In his first mugshot, he sported several neck tattoos, including the phrase, "BRED FOR WAR." But by the end of the year, Wilson added some new ink: a swastika tattoo on his shaved head that he showed off during a subsequent court appearance, WINK reported.

Wilson waited in jail for nearly five years before the start of his trial earlier this week, during which he once again altered his appearance by sporting more swastika ink  this time below his right eye. He also tattooed stitching across his mouth, the words, "HA HA HA," and "glory" on his face, courtroom photos showed.

Wilson will be sentenced later this month and may face the death penalty.
New Delhi/Kuwait City, June 13 (UNI) At least 42 Indians are among the 49 people killed in a fire that engulfed a six-storeyed building housing Indian workers in Mangaf in Kuwaits Ahmadi governorate. Minister of State for External Affairs KV Singh on Thursday visited one of the hospitals where the injured Indians have been admitted.

Of the 42 Indians who have died, 14 were from Kerala, and the rest belonged to other states such as Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh. Besides Indians, the remaining persons who died were Pakistani, Filipino, Egyptian and Nepali nationals.

Of the more than 50 people injured, 35 are under intensive care, with seven reported to be in critical condition. Five are on ventilator support.



The injured are being treated in five government hospitals in Kuwait: Adan, Jaber, Farwaniya, Mubarak Al Kabeer, and Jahra hospitals.

MoS KV Singh, after arriving in Kuwait City, immediately rushed to Jaber hospital to meet injured Indians admitted there.

MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal posted on X:

On the directions of PM @narendramodi ji, MoS @KVSinghMPGonda arrived in Kuwait and immediately rushed to Jaber hospital to ascertain well being of injured Indians in the fire incident yesterday. He met the 6 injured admitted at the hospital. All of them are safe.

Kuwaiti authorities have said that DNA testing will be conducted to identify some of the victims.

The fire incident happened in a six-storeyed building, where around 196 workers of a private company were housed. The initial investigation attributed the high number of casualties to the storing of around 20 cooking gas cylinders on the ground floor, where the fire reportedly started.

Reports also indicated that the majority of the workers, who were asleep after completing their night shift, were on the fifth and six floors. Most died due to inhaling the heavy toxic fumes.

The Public Prosecution has initiated an investigation into the tragic incident. State prosecution officials inspected the scene of the fire and spoke with the injured victims in hospitals.

The Indian Ambassador Adarsh Swaika also visited the accident site and all the hospitals where the injured are treated. He assured all possible assistance from the Embassy.

The owner of the building where the blaze took place is in custody and will remain so until the probe is completed, reports said.

Dr. Ahmed Al-Awadhi, the Health Minister, said that hospitals affiliated with the ministry received 56 patients injured in the fire.

Of these, 41 individuals required admission to internal medicine, surgery, or orthopaedics departments. These patients presented with conditions ranging from smoke inhalation (including carbon monoxide poisoning) and burns to fractures sustained in falls.

Nine of the admitted patients required intensive care treatment, while 11 individuals have already been discharged following treatment and stabilization of their health.

Medical teams deployed at the fire scene treated 11 individuals. Four of these patients succumbed to their injuries while being transported for further care.

Kuwaits First Deputy Prime Minister, Defense Minister and Interior Minister Sheikh Fahad Yusuf Al-Sabah on Thursday headed an overall inspection campaign on illegal properties in many areas in Kuwait.

UNI RN
11 Oct 2024 | 3:55 PM

Dhaka, Oct 11 (UNI) Bangladesh on Friday lodged a strong protest with Myanmar regarding the killing of its fishermen by the Myanmarese Navy.The protest was expressed in a letter sent from the Bangladesh Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the Myanmar Embassy on Friday, media reports said.On October 9, Bangladeshi fisherman Usman (60) was killed by Myanmar Navy firing. His home is Konapara of Shahpari Island in Teknaf Upazila of Cox's Bazar, Prothom Alo reported.According to an official statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has strongly protested to the Myanmar government regarding the killing of the Bangladeshi fisherman.Dhaka called on the Myanmar government to take immediate steps to prevent the recurrence of such unjustified acts, the official statement said.UNI XC SSP.
New Delhi, June 12 (UNI) Prime Minster Narendra Modi on Wednesday expressed sadness at the fire tragedy at a labour camp in Kuwait City in which many Indians are reported to have died. On the PMs directive, Minister of State for External Affairs KV Singh is travelling to Kuwait to oversee assistance to the injured Indian workers.

PM Modi posted on X that the Indian Embassy in Kuwait is working with the authorities there to assist those affected.

The fire mishap in Kuwait City is saddening. My thoughts are with all those who have lost their near and dear ones. I pray that the injured recover at the earliest. The Indian Embassy in Kuwait is closely monitoring the situation and working with the authorities there to assist the affected.

The MEA spokesperson in a tweet said: As directed by PM @narendramodi, MoS for External Affairs @KVSinghMPGonda is urgently travelling to Kuwait to oversee assistance to those injured in the fire tragedy and to coordinate with local authorities for early repatriation of mortal remains of those who have died in this unfortunate incident.

According to local Kuwaiti media reports, over 45 people have died, mostly Indian nationals, in a fire that broke out at a workers' accommodation in Mangaf in Kuwait's southern Ahmadi governorate on Wednesday.

The Kuwait Local website said the majority of the deceased are Indian nationals.

It said that several individuals were injured, some critically, and have been taken to nearby hospitals for necessary medical treatment.

The fire occurred at around 4 am on Wednesday morning, and is suspected to have originated from a gas cylinder stored in the watchman's room. Nearly 160 workers, all employees of the same company, were residing in the camp at the time of the fire.

UNI RN
Embracing the city's rich heritage and vibrant culture, Koenigshof, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Munich offers an unparalleled blend of luxury hospitality and local authenticity.

The Luxury Collection, part of Marriott Bonvoy's portfolio of over 30 extraordinary hotel brands, today announces the highly anticipated opening of Koenigshof, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Munich. Situated in the heart of Munich's historical "Stachus" Square, this property marks The Luxury Collection brand's debut in Germany. Designed by internationally acclaimed architects Nieto Sobejano, the hotel captures the timeless sophistication and attitude of Munich with a new, contemporary design, which beautifully embodies the city's rich stories and culture, offering unique, transformative experiences in the Bavarian capital.

"The opening of Koenigshof, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Munich signifies a significant milestone for the brand as it will be The Luxury Collection's foray into Germany - a vibrant and enticing destination for luxury travel," said Philipp Weghmann, Vice President and Global Brand Leader of The Luxury Collection. "This property marks a fitting entrance, embodying the tapestry of the country's cosmopolitan culture. By introducing the brand's unique ethos and enriching experiences to the exceptional city of Munich, this property is poised to offer guests an unparalleled blend of luxury hospitality and local flair."

At the helm of the transformation, Nieto Sobejano Architects and Landau + Kindelbacher ensured that this next chapter of the historic building's heritage is honored, while reinterpreting the sense of luxury in a modern way. Upon arrival, guests are welcomed into a breathtaking, spacious atrium introducing the hotel's design concept of "Stachus Serenity", reflecting individuality and local connectivity. Through the implementation of louvered structures and large, gold-colored walls, the architectural approach was to open the facade towards the "Stachus" square and establish a connection between the interior and exterior of the hotel, creating a luxury urban retreat.

"Munich is one of Europe's most dynamic and artistic cities, steeped in history, making it a natural fit for The Luxury Collection - a brand renowned for celebrating authenticity and delivering indigenous hotel experiences," said Helen Leighton, Vice President, Luxury Brands, Europe, Middle East and Africa, Marriott International. "Located in the heart of the city, Koenigshof, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Munich opens with contemporary design, impeccable service, and an array of epicurean experiences. We are thrilled to bring the next level of luxury hospitality to Germany and look forward to welcoming global explorers as they unlock this enchanting destination."

Inside the hotel, art plays a key role as part of the guest experience - reflecting the history of the House of Wittelsbach, the former Bavarian ruling family, who were enthusiastic art collectors in the 16th century. The aim of the Koenigshof, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Munich is to seamlessly blend Bavaria's rich tradition of art collecting with the city's current passion for fine art. The art on display in the hotel represents national and internationally renowned artists such as Joseph Beuys, Christo und Jeanne-Claude, and David John Flynn among many others, complementing the hotel's architecture and interior design.

The hotel features 106 artfully appointed guestrooms and suites, showcasing modern luxury with a sophisticated blend of spectacular interiors, curated artworks from local Bavarian artists, and state-of-the-art technology. Creating a sanctuary amidst the city's hustle and bustle, the guestrooms feature dark wood-paneled walls, neutral-toned fabrics, and views of stunning cityscapes through floor-to-ceiling windows. Reflecting the cultured personality that defines Munich's spirit, all guestrooms feature a touch of local charm, such as welcome cards illustrated by Munich designer Alexandra von Frankenberg, a custom Koenigshof fragrance, and a bespoke "Munich Serenity" tea made exclusively for the hotel in collaboration with Samova Tea, blending more than twelve local herbs. Ensuring a seamless stay, the guestrooms offer an array of luxurious amenities including Byredo toiletries, Nespresso machines, Dyson Supersonic hairdryers, and Bose Bluetooth speakers.

Koenigshof's crowning jewel is the 250-square-metre split-level Presidential Suite on the eighth and ninth floor offering an ultimate luxury experience. As the largest hotel suite in the city, it boasts a private sauna and a pool with breathtaking city views. The pool features a counter-current system and seating surfaces with massage jets. A private spa offers high-quality spa products, a relaxation area and lounge with a Smart TV, and a curated room service menu for complete relaxation.

Guaranteeing an epicurean delight, Koenigshof is home of three distinctive destinations including signature restaurant GRETA OTO Munich, located on the ninth floor offering panoramic views of the city. This vibrant Latin American restaurant, under the helm of renowned Peruvian chef Michael Canepa, is set to be the city's newest social hotspot, with an innovative menu that will engage the senses. On the weekend, the restaurant and bar transition into a club-like atmosphere where guests can enjoy exceptional Amazonian cocktails in the adjacent bar or on the rooftop terrace. In contrast, The Green is a serene lounge serving local delicacies including the specially crafted Koenigshof tea and the extravagant "Koenigshof-Torte", a tribute to the world-famous Bavarian "Prinzregententorte" with a unique design mirroring the hotel's architectural exterior. The Gold lounge will provide a tranquil, residential-style space on the third floor to unwind with a curated selection of books and artwork that showcase Munich's unique personality as one of the most historic cultural locations in Europe. Complete with an outdoor terrace and breathtaking views of the city and the Bavarian Alps, from here guests can savor the special edition Koenigshof Bellini made with mountain peach puree, lemon oil produced from Amalfi Coast lemons, and topped up with Ruinart Brut Champagne.

For private events, The View on the ninth floor accommodates up to 50 guests, featuring a private bar, lounge, and terrace access with stunning city and mountain views. Equipped with the latest AV technology, the space is complemented by culinary offerings from GRETA OTO. Intimate gatherings with up to 12 guests can take advantage of The Studio on the third floor and enjoy the moment with a private bar.

Koenigshof, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Munich offers global explorers a unique and authentic experience of the city through locally inspired design, epicurean moments, and opportunities to discover the destination. Signature guest experiences will include guided tours of the city to discover Munich's Gemuetlichkeit, a state of warmth, friendliness, and good cheer. Accompanied by the concierge, guests can visit the famous Viktualienmarkt. Originally a farmers' market, today it is a place where gourmands can sample traditional Bavarian products and exclusive local foods, as well as take home stories and insider tips from the concierge.

For more information or to book a stay, please visit www.marriott.com.

Hotel website
Cassia Sokcho, a vibrant new addition to the Banyan Group's portfolio, is delighted to welcome guests to an engaging and dynamic living experience. This marks the brand debut of the Cassia brand to Korea, coinciding with the Group's celebration of its 30th anniversary. The brand, known for its connected living spaces and modern concepts, also operates in Bintan, Indonesia, and Phuket, Thailand.

Perched between the East Sea and Mount Seorak and designed by renowned architect Kim Chan-joong, honoured by Wallpaper as one of the "20 World Architects to Watch," the resort spans 12,022m with 26 floors above ground and 2 below. Its integrated book-themed design offers an inviting atmosphere. The resort features 674 rooms, including suites, and penthouse apartments, all equipped with kitchen facilities, private balconies, and bathtubs, providing views of the East Sea.

"At Cassia Sokcho, we aim to create a dynamic and vibrant community hub in Sokcho. Our guests will enjoy not only stunning ocean view rooms and a variety of facilities, but also an engaging and welcoming space where genuine connections are fostered," said General Manager Bryan Yoon.

Connected Living Space Cassia Sokcho incorporates destination elements into its design and services, ensuring an immersive experience that reflects Sokcho's unique character. The hotel is designed for community seekers, offering five versatile event spaces ideal for business conferences, social gatherings, and more. The ballroom, accommodating up to 400 guests in an 836 m pillarless space, is equipped with state-of-the-art facilities, including an LED screen, professional audio equipment, and a stage. Four additional function rooms can be customised for smaller meetings and corporate events, supported by experienced event specialists to ensure each event is memorable and engaging.

Dynamic Culinary Delights Diverse dining options at Cassia Sokcho cater to every taste. "Vista," the buffet restaurant, features dynamic show kitchens serving international cuisine. "Horizon" cafe and bakery offers freshly baked bread, fresh juice, and healthy food. "Market 937" retail store provides snacks, drinks, and local delicacies, while "Bosco" offers a cosy bar and afternoon tea experience. "Fogo" grill restaurant serves a variety of grilled dishes, including fresh meat and local seafood delicacies, and the rooftop bar "Cielo" boasts a premium alcohol menu.

Connecting like-minded guests with fun, engaging experiences The hotel's fifth floor is dedicated to wellbeing. The rejuvenating "8LEMENTS Spa" includes fifteen treatment rooms and massage spaces. The sauna features a large whirlpool with East Sea views, and both dry and wet saunas. The "Activa" Fitness Centre is equipped with the latest facilities, and guests can recharge at the "Liquid Activa" bar with healthy, fresh drinks. The infinity, indoor, and kids' swimming pools, along with open-air baths, offer a relaxing experience with panoramic ocean views.

Cassia Sokcho offers an array of facilities tailored for families with children, including the Family Lounge, Kids' Pool, and Kids Club. Featuring a program designed to support children's growth and development, the hotel provides an authentic and enriching experience for families. Public spaces are inspired by Sokcho's vibrant street atmosphere, enhancing the overall guest experience and connection to the local culture.

Cassia Sokcho invites guests to experience its unique blend of vibrant living and community connection. For more information or to book a stay, visit https://www.cassia.com/south-korea/cassia-sokcho.

Hotel website
Barnaby Kean has been appointed as general manager overseeing the opening of the voco Zeal Exeter Science Park.

The four-star, 142-bedroom property, which is currently under construction, is due to open in January 2025.

voco Zeal Exeter Science Park will be located adjacent to J29 of the M5 Motorway and less than a mile away from Exeter airport. The hotel will be operated by Valor Hospitality and will join IHG's network as the group's first ever net zero carbon hotel.

The building, which achieved the BREEAM Outstanding rating at the design stage, is currently on schedule in week 49 of a 75-week construction programme.

Kean joins the group from Klarent Hospitality, where he was a general manager. He has previously worked with the Zeal Hotels team and has extensive experience with IHG brands, including at the Holiday Inn Guildford, where the hotel was awarded hotel of the year in 2015.

Kean said: "I am excited to start working at this groundbreaking property and being part of the process of creating a more sustainable hotel sector.

"We want to be a beacon of sustainability fit for 2050 set out by the Paris agreement and to be the leading hotel in Exeter and the UK using a circular economy from start to finish in all that we do particular focus on the local use of food and beverage. We aim to be the leaders in sustainable hospitality and we want to be the first sustainable generation."

Tim Wheeldon, managing director, Zeal Hotels, said: "We are delighted to welcome Barnaby back into 'Team Zeal'. He demonstrated his enthusiasm for sustainable operation as well as hands-on management and team building in 2019, when we opened our first hotel, the Holiday Inn Express in Bridgwater.

"The voco Zeal Hotel Exeter Science Park is being constructed using 50% less carbon, will be 100% electric and outshines the 2050 net zero energy target set. The design ensures it will consume a third of the energy used by similar hotels and the solar panels create more energy than it will use, every year."

Brian McCarthy, president, Valor Hospitality UK & Europe, said: "Barnaby was the perfect fit for leading the opening of this innovative new hotel. He understands our ambitions and aligns with our values, not just in regard to creating a truly sustainable operation at voco Zeal Exeter Science Park, but also in wanting to put people at the heart of everything we do. Now that we have Barnaby to lead the team, we will be continuing to recruit for roles right across the hotel as we ramp up preparation for the launch."
Booking.com was founded by a Dutch university student in 1996. It grew slowly for almost a decade. By 2011, the company was generating more than a billion dollars in profits annually  making it the most financially successful digital travel market at the time. The secret to that accelerating growth was the companys use of large-scale testing and experimentation.

In this episode, Harvard Business School professor Stefan Thomke explains how the company created and sustained a culture of innovation that challenged conventional assumptions about management and process.

Read the full article at harvardbusiness.org
Hotelogix, a globally leading cloud-based hospitality technology provider, has enabled UAE-based Royal Crown Group to expand its portfolio with its robust and comprehensive multi-property management system. Additionally, the group has been able to centrally manage all five properties from its corporate office.

Based in Dubai, Royal Crown Group is a hospitality management firm that oversees multiple properties, including full-service and limited-service hotels in Dubai and Baku. Currently, it manages seven properties and aims to grow rapidly by adding new ones.

Before upgrading to the cloud with Hotelogix, Royal Crown Group's management ran operations with an old legacy server-based solution. However, with market dynamics changing and growth plans on the table, they needed to upgrade their technology across member properties with centralized control from their corporate office in Dubai.

According to Nauman Sami, CEO of Royal Crown Group, the earlier solution didn't empower them to track hotel positions on the go. It didn't allow them to gain central control over their group's operations. Neither did it help them access centralized guest history or central-level reports. It led them to upgrade their IT infrastructure and move their group's operations to the cloud based multi-property management system.

We upgraded to Hotelogix in 2022 given its proven track record for enabling large hotel groups to have centralized control over their end-to-end operations, from online distribution to rate management. Most importantly, all our properties in Dubai comply with the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM)-CID per government-prescribed legislation, said Nauman.

Speaking further, Nauman said, We found Hotelogix to be the most advanced and matured solution for gaining centralized control over group operations, especially as we have plans for expansion in place. Faster onboarding of new properties is no longer a concern, as with Hotelogix, we went live within just two weeks with our existing properties minimizing our overhead costs. Our two new properties will soon go live on Hotelogix.

As their PMS partner, it is fulfilling to see Royal Crown Group operate efficiently and grow with us while staying compliant with local regulations, said Sivaprasad Gangadharan, Chief Sales Officer at Hotelogix. The cloud revolution in the Middle East's hospitality sector is gathering momentum, and we are all set to drive that change with our innovative solutions.

About Hotelogix

Hotelogix is a globally leading cloud-based hospitality technology solutions provider of industry-first Multi-property Management System, Hotel PMS and Mobile PMS App for independent and hotel groups. We have the remarkable feat of implementing the most extensive multi-property deployment of 50000+ rooms across 500+ properties under a single group. Through our distribution brand AxisRooms, we also offer Channel Manager, Revenue Management solutions, and Rate Shopper. We have earned the trust of 12000+ hotels in 100+ countries, including South Asia, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, LATAM, Europe and North America. We have been instrumental in driving their growth while helping them sell more rooms at the optimum rate and serving guests better.

Hotelogix is headquartered in Singapore and has offices in the USA, India, UAE, Thailand, and the Philippines.

For more information, visit: https://www.hotelogix.com/

Contact

Debi Prasad Sarangi

Ph: +91 9986496849

Email: [email protected]
Frederick, MD  Plamondon Hospitality Partners, headquartered in Frederick, Maryland, is excited to announce their purchase of the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Johnstown in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. The acquisition of the Holiday Inn Express & Suites marks the beginning of Plamondons transition into the regions market.

Were thrilled to grow our footprint by bringing our longstanding, family-owned brand of hospitality to the Johnstown market. We believe Johnstown presents wonderful opportunities to not only invest in and support the resiliency of the local business climate but also to provide ongoing employment opportunities to residents of the area. We look forward to providing an unparalleled hospitality experience for our guests and associates alike. Peter Plamondon, Jr., Co-President of the Plamondon Hospitality Partners

The Holiday Inn Express & Suites Johnstown location has 93 rooms, a meeting space with modern amenities, a high-tech business center, an expansive fitness center, and an outdoor pool. During the ownership transition, Plamondon will be renovating the guestrooms and public spaces to further elevate guests' experiences. The hotel will also remain affiliated with the Holiday Inn Express brand by IHG Hotels & Resorts.

As Plamondon is in a strategic period of growth, Jeff Plamondon, Director of Real Estate and Business Development for Plamondon Hospitality Partners, stated, Our nearby properties in Altoona, Pennsylvania and Cumberland, Maryland have been very successful, with both being best in class properties in their respective markets. We felt the Holiday Inn Express was a natural fit into our expanding presence in the region as the property is the highest quality and best located hotel in the market.

As with any Plamondon property, the Johnstown location will provide quality hospitality services that can scale and support local economic demands. Jeff Plamondon also stated, We look forward to getting involved in the local community via business-to-business contacts, charitable giving opportunities, and participating in local community events.

Across their 15 hotels in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Georgia, Plamondon brings a reputation of award-winning company culture and employment opportunities. Their mission emphasizes family, safety, community, education, and guest experience. From competitive salary and benefit packages to tuition reimbursement for continuing education, the emphasis on employee satisfaction results in many internal promotions68% of Plamondon management has been promoted from hourly associate positions. By investing in employees, Plamondon Hospitality Partners is able to foster a strong workforce and experienced leadership.

About Plamondon Hospitality Partners

Located in Frederick, Maryland, the Plamondon Companies is comprised of Plamondon Hospitality Partners, a hotel management and development company, and affiliates Plamondon Enterprises Inc and the Roy Rogers Franchise Company LLC, which owns Roy Rogers Restaurants, the western-themed, quick- service restaurant chain. Plamondon Hospitality Partners includes Marriott and Hilton properties in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Georgia. For more information, visit www.plamondonhospitalitypartners.com and www.royrogersrestaurants.com.
UTRECHT, The Netherlands  Leading global travel management company BCD Travels recent study explores modern corporate travel policies and changes happening due to shifting priorities and trends. The results are based on an online survey from April 2024 of more than 200 travel buyers worldwide. The top three travel program priorities include duty of care, policy compliance and cost control. All three ranked highly in 2023 and have since gained importance. However, the ratings of other priorities went slightly down. Traveler satisfaction dropped in importance as one of the top priorities from 2021 to 2023 to fourth in 2024. Similarly, payment and expense were assessed lower than a year ago.

A travel policy is a critical factor in a successful travel program. Its encouraging that many corporates agree as most travel buyers reported that their company has a dedicated travel policy. Differences arise in how policies are defined. Seven in 10 say their travel policy aligns with their company goals and is supported by leadership. Six in 10 define it as cost-focused and three in 10 describe it as traveler-centric. Only 15% of travel buyers reported that the policy is based on KPIs and traveler feedback.

Whats covered under travel policies?

A travel policy is a companys guide for managing business travel. It helps control travel costs and outlines the guidelines employees must follow when planning trips for the company. Topics covered by travel policies range from trip purpose to traveler wellbeing to bleisure travel. According to the survey, the two most commonly covered themes include trip purpose (e.g. client meetings vs. internal meetings) and pre-trip approvals. While sustainability is growing in importance in the industry, less than half said sustainable travel is included in their policy. This is in line with a BCD survey from July 2023 that found only 45% of companies have targets for sustainable business travel. Bleisure travel, remote work, and diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) are covered/included least often.

Many companies have dedicated travel policies for senior employees, specific business units, and frequent travelers. Only 12% have written policies for travelers with accessibility needs or neurodivergent travelers. Less than one in 10 have policies addressing employees with special needs (e.g. nursing mothers), LGBTQ+ travelers, gender, religion, or age.

Challenges

The biggest challenge for buyers when updating the policy is educating travelers. This is followed by managing policy exceptions, managing policy across different regions, and controlling policy compliance.

Traveling for work can be stressful. You want your employees to be able to access all the resources they need to make the process as simple and efficient as possible  and thats why regular policy communication is so important, said Teri Miller, BCDs executive vice president of the Global Client Team. Technology has streamlined traveler communications, creating ways for companies to easily provide relevant, timely information that can keep travelers safe. For example, clients use our TripSource platform to quickly reach travelers at different times through the planning and trip cycle.

BCD and its consulting division Advito can provide advice and guidance on writing policies and engaging with travelers.

Communicate with travelers before, during and after trips. TripSource Messaging ensures travelers stay informed and engaged with risk alerts, flight alerts, emergency response notifications, policy information and trip reminders.

Use traveler engagement to create awareness, influence behavior and increase satisfaction.

Survey travelers to hear from them and use insights to make policy changes.

Policy communication & enforcement

According to respondents, the most common way to communicate travel policy updates is through the company intranet, followed by direct mailing. A third share updates in the online booking tool (OBT) or during employee training. BCD suggests introducing the travel policy during employee onboarding as its mutually beneficial. It builds transparency, helps new hires feel informed, and fosters a culture of preparedness and responsibility.

While more than half of travel buyers view their travel policy as very or extremely effective, only a third are as confident in their policy communication. Almost half rate their policy communication as moderately effective, reflecting the common challenge of educating travelers about the policy.

The most frequently used ways of enforcing travel policies include:

Highlighting policy-compliant travel options in the OBT

Performing an audit of travel expenses

Regularly communicating travel policy changes via multiple channels

We know from experience that one of the most effective ways to communicate with travelers and influence their behavior is to put relevant messaging directly in the booking path. It not only results in increased compliance, but also leads to a more personalized and dynamic shopping experience for the traveler, said Miller. Advitos Engage team uses merchandising in our clients OBTs to drive policy education when and where it matters the most  right when they are making a purchase decision.

Cost-control policies

More than half of travel buyers report having reduced their travel budget in the past few years. At the same time, almost all introduced certain cost-control measures. The most popular measures are directed at reducing travel volume: encouraging online meetings, decreasing non-essential travel, encouraging fewer but longer trips, and limiting the number of employees on one trip. Other measures include using tools to lower the cost of a trip (e.g. price assurance), strict expense control, booking lower classes of air travel, and encouraging the use of public transportation instead of taxis.

Travel policy updates

In addition to travel management, various stakeholders are involved in creating and updating travel policies including finance, HR, procurement, security and the executive board. Most respondents updated their travel policy within the past year.

Companies should update their travel policies regularly to address the changing needs of travelers and the industry. A strong travel policy provides a consistent, safe, managed and cost-controlled framework that leads to wise travel decisions.

Trends shaping policy

Almost two-thirds of travel buyers expect sustainability (along with safety and security) to have the strongest impact on corporate travel policies in the upcoming years. Other trends of influence are technology, NDC, traveler wellbeing and new traveler needs. Meanwhile, DE&I is at the bottom of the list along with bleisure. Both are relevant but are not expected to considerably change travel policies.

Although traveler wellbeing has dropped slightly in importance, companies should be aware that business travel can be exhausting and influence travelers wellbeing and happiness. In todays struggle for talent, accommodating travelers wellbeing can have a positive impact on employee retention. BCD helps clients adapt their travel policies, communicate with travelers, and provide the right traveler tools, which ultimately benefit traveler wellbeing.

To view the travel buyer survey report, click here.

About BCD Travel

BCD Travel helps companies travel smart and achieve more. We drive program adoption, cost savings and talent retention through digital experiences that simplify business travel. Our 15,000+ dedicated team members service clients in 170+ countries as we shape a sustainable future for business travel. BCDs leading meetings and events management and global consultancy services complete our comprehensive suite of solutions for all aspects of corporate travel. In 2023, BCD achieved US$20.3 billion in sales. For more information, visit www.bcdtravel.com.
Singapore  The International Society of Hospitality Consultants (ISHC), in partnership with the Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP), is now accepting nominations for the Rising Star Award Asia Pacific to be presented at HICAP on 16-18 October 2024 at the Fairmont Singapore & Swissotel The Stamford in Singapore.

Candidates must meet the following criteria:

35 years of age or younger, born on or after 16 October 1989

Have a minimum of five years in a hotel development and/or investment-related field with a minimum of one year with the current company

Recognized by leaders in the hospitality field as a rising star

Currently living and working in the Asia Pacific or South Asia region with a minimum of two years experience in the market

To nominate a candidate, please complete the nomination form. The deadline for submissions is on or before midnight SGT on 15 August 2024. Please note that all candidates need to be nominated by another person from within their organization or someone with direct work experience with the nominee.

Past recipients include:

2023  Vicky Jian

2022  Calvin Li

2021  Siddhant Jhunjhunwala

2020  Corey Hamabata

2019  Daniel Yip

2018  Kieran Bestall

2017  Peter Harper

2016  Kiichi Mashita

2015  Nihat Ercan

2014  Christopher Hur

For more information, please visit the ISHC Rising Star Award webpage.

About ISHC

The International Society of Hospitality Consultants is truly The Leading Source for Global Hospitality Expertise, represented by over two hundred of the industrys most respected professionals from across six continents. Collectively, ISHC members provide expert services in over fifty functional areas and have specialized skills in virtually every segment of the hospitality industry. ISHC is dedicated to promoting the highest quality of professional consulting standards and practices for the hospitality industry. Candidates undergo a rigorous screening process, ensuring that all ISHC members have a reputation of integrity and are qualified by their experience, training, and knowledge to develop and express sound judgment on industry issues. Additional information about the organization, along with a directory of ISHC members, is available on the ISHC website at ishc.com.

About HICAP

Founded over 30 years ago, HICAP is Asias largest and longest-running hotel investment event, making it the most important gathering of hotel developers, investors, lenders, operators, and other industry executives for information exchange, trend spotting, and deal making. With a rich tradition and unrivaled history of stability, HICAP is the unequaled gathering place for Asia-Pacifics hotel investment community, attracting the most influential owners, developers, lenders, executives, and professional advisors from around the globe. The HICAP portfolio of events consists of three key events across the region  Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP) in Singapore; HICAP UPDATE in Hong Kong, and HICAP Australia New Zealand (HICAP ANZ) in Sydney.

About Northstar Travel Group

Northstar Travel Group is the leading B-to-B media company providing information and marketing solutions for the global travel industry. The company owns 14 media brands connecting 1.3m industry professionals through a comprehensive portfolio of digital, social, print and more than 100 events in 13 countries. Northstar Travel Group is owned by EagleTree Capital. Northstar Travel Group is based in Rutherford, NJ, and more information is available at northstartravelgroup.com.

About The BHN Group

The BHN Group is the worldwide leader in developing and organizing conferences for the hotel and tourism investment community. The BHN Group has completed more than 170 global events attracting more than 120,000 delegates over 30+ years. The current slate of events include: the Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS) in Los Angeles; ALIS Law in Los Angeles; ALIS DESIGN+ in Los Angeles, the ALIS Summer Update series held in various U.S. cities; Caribbean Hotel & Resort Investment Summit (CHRIS) in Miami; Hotel Opportunities Latin America (HOLA) conference in Miami; Hotel Investment Conference Asia Pacific (HICAP) in Singapore; HICAP UPDATE in Hong Kong, and HICAP Australia New Zealand (HICAP ANZ) in Sydney. The BHN Group also publishes Hotel Investment Today, a digital media outlet focused on the ROI of hotel investment.
United Arab Emirates, Dubai  Jumeirah celebrated the 20th anniversary of its Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project (DTRP), by hosting a vital panel discussion on the collective efforts needed to protect the ocean.

Entitled Out of Sight is not Out of Mind: Our Collective Responsibility to Preserve our Ocean, the panel took place in Dubai this morning ahead of World Sea Turtle Day on Sunday, 16th June. Led by a group of esteemed global experts, including Her Excellency Razan Al Mubarak, President of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN); Barbara Lang-Lenton, Director of Aquarium at Jumeirah Burj Al Arab and DTRP lead; Jo Ruxton, Founder and Director of Ocean Generation; and Dr. Juan Antonio Romero, Mission Blue Scientist, Marine Biologist, and Filmmaker, the discussion delved into the most pressing challenges facing our ocean today.

The panel underscored that marine conservation is a shared global challenge requiring collaboration among governments, organisations, businesses, and individuals. They also shared examples of innovative solutions and best practices for ocean conservation, highlighting the critical role of education, awareness-raising, and youth engagement in shaping a sustainable future for the ocean.

Her Excellency Razan Al Mubarak, the global leader in biodiversity who has spearheaded progressive environmental protection and species conservation around the world, commented: Over the past twenty years, the Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project has demonstrated the powerful role of corporate responsibility in the sphere of environmental care. I commend their ongoing commitment to the health and vitality of marine life, which is crucial for maintaining our ecosystems balance.

Commenting on the significance of the 20-year anniversary, Barbara Lang-Lenton said: I am incredibly proud to celebrate two decades of the Dubai Turtle Rehabilitation Project. Not only is it an important milestone for Jumeirah, it is also testament to Dubai and the wider UAEs efforts in enhancing biodiversity through conservation programmes.

She added: As coastal and maritime tourism flourishes, the importance of preserving our ocean has become even more apparent; marine life needs to thrive in order to fulfill its vital role in the ocean ecosystem, which impacts us all in many different ways. With global travellers often preferring coastal destinations for vacations, and at the same time increasingly aware of responsible travel options, the the strain on our marine ecosystems is growing. There is therefore an increasing obligation on the industry to be proactive custodians of ocean and conservation. It is crucial that we unite efforts to safeguard and preserve our invaluable marine life for the benefit of future generations.

Speaking to the importance of connecting people to the ocean and educating them on how they can make a difference, Jo Ruxton said: My mission is to bridge the gap between people and the ocean. Everyone needs to understand how vital a healthy ocean is to our survival; it supports all life on our blue planet. The ocean is also our biggest ally when it comes to climate change, yet we recklessly exploit and damage this fragile ecosystem. By empowering individuals to take collective action daily, we can drive significant positive change. We need to come together to protect and preserve our ocean for both current and future generations, which is why discussions such as these are so important.

Emphasising the need for immediate action and the impact of increased awareness efforts, Dr. Juan Antonio Romero said: "In order to protect ourselves and the world as we see it today we have to protect the ocean. Without the ocean there would be no life. Education, public awareness, and science are part of bridging the gap between the ocean and us. Providing tangible ways in which individuals can support this cause is also paramount in our mission to preserve and protect these precious ecosystems. Together, through heightened awareness and collective action, we can make a difference and ensure a sustainable future for our ocean and all marine life.

Prior to the event, Jumeirah, together with community members, guests and partners, released 63 rehabilitated turtles back into their natural habitat. This included Hawksbills, Green turtles, and Loggerheads, bringing the total number of turtles released by the DTRP to more than 2,175 since its launch in 2004. Among the turtles released was Barney, a 31kg young adult male Hawksbill turtle who was discovered in March in the Jebel Ali Area with an injury on his plastron  or shell as more commonly known. After receiving dedicated care and treatment, Barney made a full recovery and was returned to the ocean to rapturous applause.

Looking ahead to World Sea Turtle Day this Sunday, a range of sea turtle conservation activities have been organised across Jumeirahs portfolio. In Abu Dhabi, Jumeirah Saadiyat Island, in partnership with the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi (EAD), The National Aquarium, and Yas SeaWorld Research and Rescue, hosted an intimate release of 50 sea turtles on its pristine beach. Additionally, guests at Jumeirah Olhahali Island will enjoy a mix of complimentary and bookable turtle-themed experiences. These will include a marine talk from the in-house marine biologist, guided snorkelling around Olhahali Island's house reef, sand sculpture making, sustainable seafood dinners at its all-day dining pool-side restaurant, Glow, yoga sessions with turtle inspired poses at Talise Spa, and unique room decorations, all aimed at promoting sea turtle conservation and awareness.

Earlier this month, Jumeirah Al Naseem unveiled a special turtle inspired stay experience to kick start DTRPs 20th anniversary month and further support the projects efforts. From turtle-inspired welcome amenities to a behind-the-scenes look at the remarkable work of the project and a brand-new ocean-themed four-hands afternoon tea concept - plus a portion of the stay rate is donated to the cause  every aspect of the experience has been designed to provide an unforgettable and meaningful stay.

For more information and to learn more about the DTRP, visit Jumeirah.com.
PRG Hospitality Group, the independent hotel brand behind award-winning destinations including Sparrows Lodge, Sands Hotel & Spa, White Water Cambria and more, today introduces its newly reimagined parent brand, Common Thread Hotels, which will replace the PRG moniker across all facets of sales, marketing, branding and corporate relations. Common Thread, the companys new identity, has been brought to life with a new portfolio website, branding and messaging, designed to cohesively represent their vision of contemporary, design-centric boutique hospitality.

The brands current collection of hotels within California includes Casa Laguna Hotel & Spa in Laguna Beach; The Prospect Hollywood in Los Angeles; Sands Hotel & Spa, Holiday House and Sparrows Lodge in Palm Springs; San Luis Creek Lodge in San Luis Obispo; and White Water Cambria and Cambria Beach Lodge in the Central California coastal enclave of Cambria. All the hotels and any new future openings, including destinations in Carmel-by-the-Sea and Paso Robles, California, will be branded under the Common Thread Hotels umbrella, alongside its on-property collection of signature restaurants and spas, including the renowned The Pink Cabana at Sands Hotel & Spa and The Barn Kitchen at Sparrows Lodge. The teams first hotel property, Colony Palms Hotel in Palm Springs, debuted in 2008 and was later sold in 2012.

Common Thread represents an important and inspiring evolution for our company, said David Dittmer, co-founder of Common Thread Hotels (formerly PRG Hospitality Group). Our hotels have become synonymous with a very special hospitality experience that puts design, personalized amenities, and a true sense of relaxed luxury at the forefront and we feel that this new brand vision captures that approach beautifully.

Common Threads new website features a complete aesthetic rebranding for the company, including a reimagined logo, brand narrative, imagery, video content and storytelling. Internal and external communications reflect the Common Thread ethos, with every stay, there is a story and the brands social media channels and internal corporate platforms will reflect the new brand identity as well. New brand-wide offerings for guests are soon to follow.

Common Thread hotels including Casa Laguna Hotel & Spa, The Prospect Hollywood, Sands Hotel & Spa, Holiday House Palm Springs and White Water Cambria have been featured on Conde Nast Travelers coveted Hot List alongside placements on VOGUE.com, Forbes.com, The New York Times, Architectural Digest, The Financial Times, The Wall Street Journal, goop, and many more. Most recently, San Luis Creek Lodge, Sparrows Lodge, Holiday House Palm Springs and The Prospect Hollywood were awarded coveted One Key award designations from MICHELIN Guide. The brands creative partners include designers Martyn Lawrence Bullard and Nina Freudenberger, among others.

We began our hospitality journey with the Colony Palms which cemented our passion for the potential of independently minded hotels and we are immensely proud to celebrate the continued growth and progression of our brand and portfolio with the debut of Common Thread Hotels, said Britten Shuford, co-founder of Common Thread Hotels (formerly PRG Hospitality Group).

As long-time collaborators, Ive had the pleasure of watching this team turn decades of experience in hospitality and service into some of the most special destinations in California, said Bullard. Weaving them all together under a cohesive, focused vision  both aesthetically and physically  will add even more allure and presence to their beautiful portfolio of small hotels as it continues to grow and expand.

For more information on Common Thread Hotels, please visit the all-new commonthreadhotels.com or follow @commonthreadhotels.

About Common Thread Hotels

Common Thread Hotels is a Los Angeles-based boutique hotel company known for its award-winning portfolio of bespoke, lifestyle-driven independent properties throughout California, including The Prospect Hollywood in Los Angeles, Casa Laguna Hotel and Spa in Laguna Beach, Sparrows Lodge in Palm Springs, White Water and Cambria Beach Lodge in Cambria, Holiday House in Palm Springs, Sands Hotel & Spa in Indian Wells, and more. Established in 2013 as PRG Hospitality Group (rebranded in 2024 as Common Thread), Common Thread's focus is on finding and restoring highly curated hotels in prime destinations within California with an eye for unique, inspired design, comfortable amenities and a highly personalized approach to luxury service for today's generation. The company's growth strategy and ethos is focused on boutique-style innovation and quality first and foremost, winning them awards and recognition from Conde Nast Traveler, Travel + Leisure, Forbes, The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Architectural Digest and many more. For more information, visit commonthreadhotels.com or follow @commonthreadhotels.
South Africa on high alert after 5 cases of monkeypox confirmed

Johannesburg, June 13 (UNI) South Africa is on high alert following the outbreak of monkeypox in May, with five laboratory-confirmed cases including one death, Minister of Health Joe Phaahla said on Wednesday.

Phaahla told the media that all five patients diagnosed with monkeypox, also known as Mpox, three from KwaZulu-Natal Province and two from Gauteng Province, were men between the ages of 30 and 39 with no history of travel. Two remain hospitalized, two have been discharged, and one died on Monday in a hospital in Johannesburg.

"All five cases were classified as severe cases as per the World Health Organization (WHO) definition requiring hospitalization. Since the beginning of 2024, the National Institute for Communicable Diseases (NICD) has received 12 Mpox test requests, with three testing positive. The other two cases were diagnosed by private laboratories," said the minister. "Guidelines have been updated and shared widely across networks of healthcare workers using various platforms."
As a border town, Buffalo has historically been heavily reliant on Canadian visitors and U.S. travelers stopping over en route to/from Canada for lodging demand. Based on a recent hotel market study and many hotel appraisals in the greater Buffalo-Niagara area I have performed, it is clear that traffic volume at the land crossings has an impact on these border markets. Below is a brief timeline of the changing restrictions for border crossings from 2020 until 2023.

Key Dates for Border-Crossing Restrictions Source: HVS

As the one-year anniversary recently passed since all COVID-19 border restrictions were lifted, I wanted to take a look at the correlation between the key metrics for the Buffalo lodging market and crossings data at the Peace Bridge, an international land border that connects Buffalo to Fort Erie in Ontario, Canada.

*Crossings reflect automobiles entering the U.S. from Canada (excludes trucks and crossings in dedicated commercial lanes) Source: Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority

Note: occupancy levels do not include all hotels in the market but comprise a representative sample Source: STR, Buffalo and Fort Erie Public Bridge Authority

As illustrated above, the depth and duration of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic affected the two metrics slightly differently based on the nature and extent of restrictions on businesses and the restrictions placed on border crossings. With the availability of vaccines and lifting of many business restrictions, occupancy generally improved in 2021, although the Omicron variant slowed the recovery in the latter part of the year. However, international border crossings declined in 2021 as the border remained closed for all nonessential travel for much of the year and then reopened with heavy restrictions in place. With border restrictions fully lifted in early 2023, both international crossings into Buffalo and occupancy levels spiked.

We note that 2024 will be the first year since 2019 where COVID-19-related border restrictions will not play a role in the local border crossings or the occupancy of Buffalo hotels. Neither metric has fully recovered to pre-pandemic levels, largely due to a third variable that plays a significant role in both: exchange rates. Buffalo is a convenient stopover destination for Canadian travelers heading south for vacation, and the duty-free exemptions in the U.S. have historically made shopping in New York an attractive weekend getaway for Canadians; however, these trips are more appealing when the U.S. dollar is not quite as strong, as was the case in 2018. While exchange rates were also lower in 2021, the Buffalo market did not see the typical benefits given the aforementioned border restrictions.

Historical USD to CAD Exchange RateJanuary 2018 through April 2024 Source: Federal Reserve Board

Final Thoughts

The Buffalo lodging market has historically benefited from notable demand created by Canadian travelers, and this demand source will continue to play an important role going forward. While occupancy levels have not fully recovered from the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and related border restrictions, double-digit annual rate growth allowed market RevPAR to exceed pre-pandemic levels in 2022 and significantly outpace those levels in 2023. Data for 2024 illustrate a continued upward trend, bolstered by the impact of the solar eclipse, during which Downtown Buffalo was in the path of totality for 3 minutes and 45 seconds.

Our positioning within local markets empowers us to conduct primary interviews with key market participants. This approach ensures we obtain real-time insights and current data for each market we operate in. For more information about the Buffalo market or for help making informed investment decisions that align with your goals and risk tolerance, please contact Christian Cross, your local HVS Upstate New York hospitality expert.
Rendering of a guestroom at the Cardo Brussels Hotel - Image Credit Cardo Hotels

Cardo Hotels is opening its second hotel, this time in Brussels. Just like its sister property in Rome, the new hotel joins the Autograph Collection, part of Marriott Bonvoy's global portfolio of hotel brands. Both hotel buildings of Cardo Brussels and Cardo Roma are part of the Aroundtown portfolio, a leading European real estate group.

Located at the Place Rogier, Cardo Brussels offers a new landmark destination, ideally situated between the city center and business district. It is housed in a majestic 30-storey building with stunning views of the city. Its unique blend of lifestyle and business spaces appeal to the modern nomads who want everything: playful design and spacious bedrooms, work meetings that transition into leisurely swims in rooftop pools, and immersive experiences that deepen their connection to the city's culture.

"We are thrilled to be introducing the next chapter of Cardo hotels, selecting Brussels as our second destination. Each Cardo hotel is distinct, mirroring the aesthetic and cultural essence of its city, offering an unparalleled experience," says Nicolas Romero Oneto, Head of Cardo Hotels. "Cardo Brussels exemplifies this vision: a distinctive destination where personal well-being and corporate culture merge effortlessly. We envision this blend as the future of hotel experiences  a sophisticated, eclectic combination of the public and private spheres, balancing professional needs with personal leisure."

A room with a view, a meeting with a heart

Cardo's embrace of playful 'Belgitude' starts from its striking exterior, where Rene Magritte's world-famous self-portrait 'Le fils de l'homme' covers the entire facade of the building.

"In true Cardo style, we are offering signature experiences such as caricature artist meets and sight-seeing jogging sessions, as well as fascinating talks and workshops," says Duco Heijbroek, the hotel's General Manager.

Upon entering, guests walk past a huge screen that transforms them into cartoon avatars. This design approach is evident throughout the 532 spacious rooms (starting from 28sqm) that span 24 floors.

"What happens when you mix Tintin, the Smurfs, and Magritte? We wanted to translate all these essential Belgian art and pop culture elements into a visually attractive, contemporary experience where guests can sit back and relax," says Saar Zafrir, whose firm is responsible for the whimsical interior design. Zafrir created bespoke furniture inspired by comic books and their text balloons, such as umbrella-shaped coffee tables. Rooms come with curated mini-libraries and unique local artworks, ideal for art lovers.

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Among the hotel's highlights is the versatility of the suites. Each one offers different elements to the design mix, such as the ZEN Suite with private spa facilities (sauna and treatment room) or the BIG Suite with a smart meeting room and the TOP Suite of 175m2 that comes with a fully equipped kitchen space and double bedrooms.

As a true business hub, and with events at Cardo's heart, the hotel has fifteen spacious meeting spaces with distinctive designs, set up with flexible walls, state-of-the-art technology and playful libraries. Drenched in natural daylight, some with jaw-dropping views over the city, these spaces make 'workations' into attractive and creative environments rather than stuffy afterthoughts. In addition, there's an immense ballroom and an elegant pre-function space that accommodates up to 700 people for any type of event.

Belgian gastronomy and the art of wellness

Showcasing a creative mix of local and global flavours, the hotel is set to become a culinary destination with its exceptional array of bars and restaurants, including a majestic restaurant on the 30th floor.

Gritto's Restaurant, inspired by Magritte's nickname, offers a fresh and extensive daily breakfast and honours Belgian cuisine with a creative twist. At the colourful Doodles Bar with its comics-inspired decor, guests can experience high-spirited ambience with all-day dining and curated mixology.

Akai takes things to a higher level  quite literally, as it's located near the top of the hotel. A vibrant restaurant and cocktail bar, it features an eclectic mix of Asian and Mediterranean cuisine, signature cocktails, stunning panoramic views of Brussels, and opulent design.

Wellbeing is also at the core of Cardo's concept. Breathtaking views are guaranteed with fitness and spa facilities located at the top of the hotel. For an energizing work-out there is the 160sqm gym with innovative Technogym weights and cardio equipment, open 24/7. Wellness seekers can visit the ultra-relaxing Contour Spa with five treatment rooms, sauna and relaxation area, while the exceptionally large indoor rooftop pool of 70sqm, covered and surrounded by glass windows, is open year-round.
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Drake vs. Kendrick Lamar showed that AI Music is already regulated

Discover how the Drake vs. Kendrick Lamar legal battle highlights the regulation of AI-generated music under existing intellectual property laws.

by Andy Jung from Tech Dirt

In the last year, the Canadian rap artist Drake has embroiled himself in several high profile controversies involving AI-generated music. The ongoing saga underscores how existing laws apply to artificial intelligence, dispelling the myth that AI, including AI music, is unregulated.

In April 2023, TikTok user ghostwriter977 released Heart on My Sleeve, featuring AI-generated vocals of Drake and The Weeknd. The song went viral, racking up millions of listens. In response, Drakes record label filed a takedown notice, and streaming services removed the song.

Bloomberg disparaged Heart on My Sleeve as unregulated AI music, which has driven a wedge through multiple intellectual property rights. In fact, intellectual property law clearly applies to AI-generated music. The current beef between Drake and Kendrick Lamar proves it.

This April, Drake released Taylor Made Freestyle, featuring AI-generated impersonations of Tupac and Snoop Dog. The irony was palpable. The following week, Tupacs estate sent Drake a cease and desist letter alleging unauthorized use of Tupacs voice and personality and a flagrant violation of Tupacs publicity and the estates legal rights. Drake removed the song.

Intellectual property law and state law are at play in Drakes ongoing AI feud. Last year, when internet users uploaded songs featuring AI-generated vocals of Drake, Universal Music Group used copyright law  specifically, the DMCA notice and takedown process  to remove the allegedly infringing content. Universal also contacted streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple, demanding the services block AI companies from scraping musical elements like melodies from copyrighted songs.

The AI content creators could have filed DMCA counter-notices contesting Universals copyright claims, perhaps arguing, for example, that Heart on My Sleeve is fair use. In response, to maintain the takedown, the label would have had to file a copyright infringement suit in court. But the creators did not contest, and the songs were removed.

A year later, Drake himself released an allegedly illegal AI-generated song, and Tupacs estate threatened to sue. The estate invoked Tupacs right of publicity, an IP right protecting against the misappropriation of a persons likeness  in this case, the late rappers voice  for commercial benefit. Drake could have left the song up and forced the estate to litigate; instead, he removed it, probably at the behest of his lawyers. Meanwhile, Kendrick Lamar waived copyright claims on his diss tracks aimed at Drake, allowing content creators to monetize reaction videos and remixes.

Ultimately, the extent to which existing laws apply to AI music depends on the jurisdiction of the legal challenge. California, for example, has strict publicity rights favoring artists. Law Professor Mark Bartholomew indicated that Drake likely violated the law because the rights holders [Tupacs estate] are in California, and California has a pretty vigorous right to your identity in various forms that extends years after death. But if we were talking about a celebrity who is from a different state, wed have a different analysis.

How exactly an artist uses AI to craft a song is also relevant to the legal analysis, especially under copyright law. Copyright applies to both the melody and lyrics of a song. ghostwriter977, for example, declined to clarify which elements of Heart on My Sleeve were AI-generated versus self-written. Although the beat and lyrics appear original, the song featured a producer tag from Metro Boomin, which Universal considered an unauthorized sample.

Record labels would love to see more regulation of AI music. Last July, for example, UMG urged the Senate Judiciary Committee to enact a federal Right of Publicity statute. But stricter IP laws would hurt content creators, handing record labels yet another tool to squash creative, fair uses. If anything, Congress should consider legislation clarifying how the fair use doctrine applies to AI.

Unfortunately, Congress appears receptive to the labels pleas. Earlier this spring, Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) opened his testimony before a Senate subcommittee on IP by playing Drakes AI-Tupac verse. Tillis called for legislation addressing the misuse of digital replicas in order to ensure AI-generated music is under control.

Everything is under control. This April, just as last April, existing law was sufficient to resolve Drakes AI-related legal disputes, providing concrete remedies despite relatively novel facts involving new technologies. The saga underscores the legal systems ability to cleanly manage fact patterns involving AI. There may be gaps in the law, but the fact remains: AI music is already regulated.

Andy Jung is associate counsel at TechFreedom, a nonprofit, nonpartisan think tank focused on technology law and policy.

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Mastering the Art of Music Curation

Feed.fm music curators discuss how they engage with music and what goes into creating music stations that work for various businesses and use cases. Plus, hear about the latest trends in music as they look ahead to upcoming releases.

by Melissa Clark of Feed.fm

VIDEO & SUMMARY

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Inside Music Curation Episode 46 | Listen Like a Curator

Go behind the scenes with the Feed.fm music curators to better understand how they engage with music, and what goes into creating music stations that work for a variety of businesses and use cases. Plus, hear about the latest trends in music as we look ahead to upcoming summer releases.

In the Inside Music Curation: Listen Like a Curator YouTube video, the team at Feed Media Group discusses the significance of listening like a curator in todays music landscape. Claire, a music curation professional, shares her insights on the impact of streaming on music consumption and discovery, noting the emergence of post-genre pop and the influence of various music genres from around the world. Juan, another team member, expresses his passion for music and his role as a curator, emphasizing the importance of being connected to the music community and observing audience engagement to inform selection. The speakers discuss methods for discovering new music, such as checking editorial playlists and using Shazam, and the importance of balancing well-known and lesser-known tracks. They also discuss current trends in pop music, including the blurring lines between genres and the impact of TikTok on music discovery. Juan shares his excitement about a new band, Knock Loose, and their unique blend of heavy dembow drone beats and hardcore metal music. Overall, the team emphasizes the importance of curators in helping brands and listeners navigate the vast volume of music available and the excitement of the ongoing evolution of music trends.



00:00:00 In this section of the Inside Music Curation YouTube video, the team at Feed Media Group discusses the importance of listening like a curator in the current music landscape. Claire, a music curation professional with over a decade of experience, shares her insights on how the shift to streaming has impacted music consumption and discovery. She notes the emergence of post-genre pop and the influence of various music genres from around the world. Sten adds to the conversation, emphasizing the anthropological significance of music discovery and the increasing importance of curators in helping listeners navigate the vast volume of music available.

00:05:00 In this section of the Inside Music Curation: Listen Like a Curator YouTube video, Juan shares his passion for music and his role as a curator at Feed. He explains how his obsession with music benefits his role in the small, professional space of music curation. Juan identifies himself as a lover of live music and appreciates the art forms dexterity and composition. He discusses the importance of being connected to the music community and how live music and streaming work hand in hand. Juan emphasizes the value of observing how audiences engage with music and using that perspective to inform the selection process for various use cases. Mike, another team member, is also discussed as having various touch points in music and approaching new discoveries through TikTok and other sources.

00:10:00 In this section of the Inside Music Curation: Listen Like a Curator YouTube video, Mike discusses his methods for discovering new music and staying informed about current trends. He mentions regularly checking editorial playlists on Spotify and SiriusXM stations, as well as media-based radio charts, to identify popular tracks that may resonate with audiences. He also mentions using Shazam to discover music in various settings and acknowledges the potential distraction of constantly being in curation mode. He emphasizes the importance of familiarity in music curation and the role of cultural moments in shaping musical tastes. When curating outside of ones taste, he emphasizes the need to learn about the impact and significance of the music or artist in question to effectively bring value to customers.

00:15:00 In this section of the Inside Music Curation: Listen Like a Curator YouTube video, Eric Stens Stensvaag discusses the role of a music curator and the importance of balancing well-known and lesser-known tracks. They explain that curators have unique tastes and preferences, which they can use to introduce listeners to new artists or songs. However, they must be mindful of their audiences preferences and ensure that their selections align with the listeners tastes. The speaker also mentions the importance of collaboration between curators and clients to understand the audience demographics and tailor the music selection accordingly. They conclude by sharing that the amount of new music released this year has been impressive, making it an exciting time for music curation.

00:20:00 In this section of the Inside Music Curation: Listen Like a Curator video, the team discusses the current trends in pop music and the blurring lines between different genres. They mention the rising popularity of artists like Tommy Richmond and Million Dollar Baby, as well as collaborations between established artists and newer ones. The speakers also highlight the impact of TikTok on music discovery and the excitement of the ongoing evolution of mainstream sounds. They share their personal favorite songs of the summer, including Espresso by Sabrina Carpenter, and Beyonces YA YA, and express anticipation for upcoming releases from artists like Kendrick Lamar and a group of Irish children called The Kabin Crew and The Lisdoonvarna Crew with their song The Spark.

00:25:00 In this section of the Inside Music Curation: Listen Like a Curator YouTube video, Juan discusses his role as a music curator and shares his excitement about a new band, Knock Loose, that hes been following for over a decade. The band, which started as a small DIY act, has recently gained popularity and is currently the number 25 artist on Spotify, surpassing Taylor Swifts ranking. Knock Looses latest single, Suffocate, features alt-pop artist Poppy and showcases a unique blend of heavy dembow drone beats and hardcore metal music. Juan expresses his admiration for the bands boundary-pushing approach and their ability to appeal to the current music trends. He also encourages viewers to share their favorite songs of the summer in the comments.

Thank you for checking out Inside Music Curation, we hope you enjoyed this discussion. Stay tuned for more exciting conversations on music curation in future episodes.

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About the live video series:

At Feed Media Group (FMG), our music curation team excels at handpicking music for businesses. While technology and analytics play a vital role in the curation process, it is the expertise, curiosity, and ability of our music curators to bring the world around us into focus that truly sets our unified music system apart.

By staying attuned to pop culture trends and understanding the wider societal context of songs, we are able to craft exceptional music stations. It is this connection, context, and attention to detail that distinguishes our stations from those generated by even the most advanced algorithms used by major streaming platforms.

Come on a journey with us as we delve into the fascinating world of curating music for businesses and brands. We will explore everything from the practical applications to the user experience, taking a deep dive into genres, audience preferences, data analysis, and the latest trends.

Live on Facebook, YouTube, and LinkedIn, select Wednesdays at 1 pm Pacific.

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The Retired Investor: Why Protectionism Is a Close Cousin to Populism

The number one issue on voter's minds in this election year is immigration. That may come as a surprise to some, but it makes a lot of sense if one believes that we have entered a period of populism.

Sixty-two percent of registered voters nationwide support a program to "deport all undocumented immigrants," according to a CBS News poll over the weekend. On June 3, 2024, President Biden signed an executive order that would ban migrants who cross the southern border illegally from claiming asylum to defuse this election issue. Faith-based charities, like Catholic Charities, which have a long history of providing shelter, food, and clothing to migrant families are targeted by anti-immigration activists. What has all this immigration anger have to do with American populism?

By now readers should be aware (if you have been reading my last three columns) that over the last 40 years middle- and lower-income Americans have seen their livelihoods dwindle because of government policies that favored a top-down approach to economic growth and fiscal spending. The flow of money from both the Federal Reserve Bank and the trillions of dollars in government spending has largely found its way overseas in a variety of forms. "Go forth and conquer the world" was the mantra our nation's leaders espoused pointing to the benefits of international free trade.

Every effort was made to encourage, expand, and at times, protect our overseas markets. Think of government contractors across a wide spectrum of U.S. industries importing goods and services from cheap overseas companies or their foreign subsidiaries. I have already written about the long-term trend by U.S. corporations to invest in plants and equipment in various countries.

U.S. companies have routinely imported basic materials from around the world to build our outdated infrastructure and still do. We must also add in the trillions of dollars in U.S. funding of dozens of foreign governments, while also supporting our troops in various conflicts abroad over the last couple of decades.

Here at home, as good-paying jobs disappeared, many younger Americans found that even their high-priced college educations might only qualify them for a minimum-wage job at a fast-food restaurant. Unlike in past generations, where only one spouse needed to work, now two were necessary, and even then it was not always enough to put bread on the table. Many jobs don't even cover child-care expenses.

Back in the day, they called America "the Sleeping Giant." Given the trends, it was only a matter of time before a large portion of the country woke up and asked the obvious question.

"What about me?"

It is not the first time in our history we have asked that question. There have been many populist periods where economic or political dissatisfaction has translated into protests of immigrants and foreign influences in the form of protectionism. Protectionism is a policy of restricting imports from other countries through tariffs on imported goods, and quotas. and a variety of other government regulations that restrict the free flow of goods and services between countries.

Back in the 1930s, for example, during the Great Depression, as millions of workers lost their jobs, and populism surfaced, higher trade barriers were put in place. Those tariffs not only exacerbated the severity of the downturn but also worked to choke off any recovery.

This latest period of populism/protectionism found its voice through the ideas of MAGA. The Trump administration built walls along the Mexican border, levied tariffs on China and other countries, threatened to pull out of NATO, and provided a steady stream of anti-foreign rhetoric that was music to the ears of many Americans.

But like the 1930s, none of these policies worked. It only led to dislocation, losses for American farmers and other workers, and higher prices for consumers. Nonetheless, many Americans not only applauded these efforts but also supported even higher tariffs and more restrictions and deportations of immigrants.

The connection between protectionism and immigration is straightforward. Barriers to admitting immigrants are simply a tariff on another type of imported good and service that is entering the country  labor, both legal and illegal. The difference is that, unlike a tariff on Chinese semiconductors, an immigrant is someone who can be identified as such and is far easier to vilify. Immigrants become the embodiment of all that is wrong with globalization.

Making matters worse, thanks to COVID-19 and the failed economic policies and shortcomings of some governments, the refugees' rush to flee to the freedom and economic promise of the U.S. became irresistible. As such, we are assaulted through the news media with the spectacle of huge waves of immigrants at our borders, climbing fences, wading rivers, and dying in deserts. Unfortunately, they are also a visual reminder to all those generational Americans who have been left out of that economic promise, who see them only as a danger to our society and to job security.

Only now, thanks to the match lit by Donald Trump's oratory over the past several years, have politicians and corporations, begun to realize that the 40-year top-down, globalization trends that benefited a small segment of society have run into a brick wall of anger, resentment, and demand for change  or else.

Those who read my two-part column on immigration in March "Immigrants are getting a bad rap on the economic front," understand that immigrants have contributed far more than they have taken from the U.S. economy in recent years. In fact, throughout our history that has proven to be true.

But facts have never carried much weight in a season of discontent. As many who have tried reason in the face of conspiracy theories know, spouting facts in the face of this populist sentiment is a useless endeavor.

The U.S. is not alone in using immigration as the favored whipping boy in an era of populism. In European elections last week, France, Germany, Spain, and Italy saw large advances by political parties that oppose immigration. The trend toward protectionism and de-globalization is gathering steam in Asia and Latin America as well. Next week, I will examine similar times in our past when populism flourished. How long these regime changes normally last, what lessons we have learned, and why the coming crisis period we will encounter could usher in a change for the better over time.
Update: Suspect in Fenn St. Homicide Arrested

Update on June 14, 2024 at 4:15 pm: According to the District Attorney's Office, Jeremy Stanton, age 38 of Pittsfield, was charged with murder on June 12, 2024. Stanton allegedly murdered Ryan P. Babcock on June 11.

Stanton was arrested on the evening of June 12 in a home in Worthington on unrelated outstanding warrants for violation of probation and assault with a dangerous weapon (knife) and vandalizing property from an incident on June 2.

The defense entered a plea of not guilty. The defendant is being held without the right bail.

Law enforcement involved in Stanton's apprehension include the Pittsfield Police Department, Berkshire County Law Enforcement Task Force: the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit assigned to the Berkshire District Attorney's Office; the Massachusetts State Police Detective Unit assigned to the Northwestern District Attorney's Office; and Massachusetts State Police Violent Fugitive Apprehension Section.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

Update: The victim in Tuesday's shooting has been identified as Ryan P. Babcock, 38, of Pittsfield.

PITTSFIELD, Mass.  Police are investigating a suspected homicide on Fenn Street, the Berkshire District Attorney's office said Tuesday night.

According to a news release, police at 4:30 p.m. responded to a report of a man suffering from possible gunshot wounds in the 500 block of Fenn Street.

"Upon arrival, the officer observed an unresponsive adult male in the driver's seat of a vehicle suffering from apparent gunshot wounds," the news release read.

Paramedics were called to the scene, but the individual was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the news release.

"Based on preliminary investigations, Pittsfield Police believes this was not a random act and that there is no immediate danger to the public," the release reads. "However, as a suspect/s has not been identified, law enforcement encourages the public to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to police."

The release indicated that the State Police is supporting the investigation.


Recently retired Town Clerk Christine Emerson was recognized for her 30 years of service. CHESHIRE, Mass.  The town will have to vote on a Proposition 2 1/2 override to raise taxes in order to fund its portion of the budget for the Hoosac Valley Regional School District.

That outcome was reached at town meeting on Monday only after nearly an hour of discussion among more than 100 voters, the Selectmen, Finance Committee and school officials.

The first eight of 30 articles the annual town meeting warrant passed relatively quickly and unanimously at the start of the three-hour meeting. But with Article 9, the assessment to the regional school district, the meeting became more of an information session and sounding board for many in the town.

The town's assessment for the $23 million regional budget is $3,098,996 , an additional $150,534 over this year's $2,948,462. Adams town meeting approved its assessment of $6,345,380 last week.

The motion for an override was put forth by Selectmen Chair Shawn McGrath as an alternative to using free cash and stabilization funds to pay for the budget.

If the Proposition 2 1/2 override is rejected, the school district's budget would have to be amended and approved by the town.

An override allows communities to raise beyond the 2.5 percent maximum annual increase under state law and requires a town meeting and a ballot vote.

Selectwoman Michelle Francesconi had said in April that she hoped voters would reject the override and push the budget back to the school to amend.

Voters questioned why the school budget was rising by a $1 million.

"Why, when all the other schools all around us ... are doing different things to control their spending, our school seems to be going up in budget?" Gary Trudeau asked.

In response, Superintendent Aaron Dean took to the microphone to explain the district's challenges and the programs it is implementing to address them.

These included a high percentage of special-needs students, mental health concerns, school choice students, a program to standardize aspects of the curriculum, and teacher training and salaries. Dean had previously provided this information at a School Committee meeting in April.

Dean stressed the introduction of universal prekindergarten and Pathways programming that provides college credit and internship opportunities as ways the district is better serving its students while retaining more families.

While initially skeptical of the district's budget, the Finance Committee was convinced of its necessity after going over it in detail during a hearing with the School Committee.

Committee members did not support an override, with member John Tremblay citing natural fluctuations in school funding needs from year to year due to changing enrollment numbers. He noted that this year's budget was a reduction from the previous year.

Despite pleas to support the district with available funds by some voters and School Committee member Adam Emerson, the town passed the motion to vote on a Proposition 2 1/2 override 71-42. The date for the vote will be set by the Selectmen.

The town operating budget of $3,416,257, up barely 2 percent, or $75,279 over this year, was passed. There were increases in a number of lines but debt dropped by $105,000 from the final payment on well land this year. Also passed was McCann Technical School's assessment of $547,430, down from $564,446 this year.

There was some debate over Article 12, which would create a school resource officer position.

"We're at the school daily," Police Chief Michael Alibozek explained and without a school resource officer, an officer is regularly being taken off the street to deal with issues in the school.

The town voted unanimously in favor of creating the position.

More controversial was Article 21, which would provide the officer with a vehicle at a cost of $66,000. That article passed 98-11.

Article 22 authorized the purchase a new fire truck not to exceed $850,000 to replace a model from 2001. Fire Chief Tom Francesconi explained the necessity and benefits of a new truck, including the ability to access camp roads due to its smaller size. The article passed 104-1.

Both vehicle purchases will also require a ballot vote to exclude them from Proposition 2 1/2.

The town voted to amend the general bylaws by establishing short-term rentals standards, which would apply to Airbnb and similar rentals. Beginning July 1 such rentals will need to pay a $100 registration fee, and will be subject to "all relevant state and local statutes, rules and regulations pertaining to health and safety."

The town voted on ways to make their functions more efficient, such as the creation of a Transfer Station Enterprise fund that will separate the transfer station's revenues and expenditures from the town's. It is hoped that by keeping the records separately the transfer station will in time be able to be self-sustaining, though this could mean increased fees in the future.

Article 29 separated the treasurer/tax collector position to allow for two positions to be filled if the need arises. Article 27 allowed the collector to receive all monies due the municipality. This will allow, for instance, the collector to process transfer station stickers, a duty which can currently only be performed by the town administrator.

Two articles failed to pass. Article 30 would have made the town clerk an appointed, rather than an elected position, While there was some concern that this could lead to problems should nobody choose to run for election, in that situation a temporary clerk would be appointed by the Selectmen to serve until the next election. The town voted to keep the position elected.

Article 26 would have created a local sales tax of 0.75 percent on restaurant meals in Cheshire. The Selectmen presented the tax as being a nearly standard feature of towns in the area, but residents rejected the idea as being a burden on the few local businesses it would affect.

CJ Garner, owner of the recently opened Common Table, said he understood that high prices are a concern for customers and that "we try our hardest to not put that not back on you as our guest ... To have the most affordable experience as we can give to you."

Residents agreed overwhelmingly, if not unanimously, and the article was voted down.

After three hours of discussion and voting the most enthusiastic "Aye" of the evening was in response to Town Moderator Carol Francesconi's request for a motion to end the meeting. "Hallelujah!" she rejoiced at 9:55 p.m. "Thank you!"
Williams College Activists 'Disappointed' in Decision not to Divest

WILLIAMSTOWN. Mass.  Williams College students pressuring the school to divest from companies that sell weapons to the Israeli Defense Forces say they will continue those calls in the wake of a June vote by the schools trustees.

We want to express that we are deeply disappointed in President [Maud] Mandel and the Board of Trustees over this decision, but we are not surprised by the colleges continued tendency towards inaction, a member of the colleges chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine wrote in an email this week.

The student group was responding to a 1,200-word open letter from Mandel and the chair of Williams Board of Trustees that the college posted on Tuesday.

In it, the college president said the board voted to follow the recommendations of the colleges Advisory Committee on Shareholder Responsibility and not divest from the weapons manufacturers.

Two student groups, Students for Justice in Palestine and Jews for Justice, had asked the college to take the step in the wake of Israels months-long military campaign in Gaza following the October 2023 attack on Israel by the militant Hamas group.

The college president and board cited several reasons not to divest or to adopt a new strategy for the colleges investments based on environmental, social and governance or ESG principles, as the student groups recommended.

The schools administration did agree it should be more transparent about its investment strategies and would work in that area starting this summer.

But divestment would run contrary to the purpose of those investments, according to the letter.

The Board does not believe that the endowment should be used to advocate positions on world affairs, Mandel and Board Chair Liz Robinson wrote. And because our investment strategy consists solely of investing through third-party investment managers and funds, what might otherwise seem to be small, exclusionary changes in the composition of our investments would actually compromise our access to key investment managers, undermining the Boards fiduciary obligation to manage the endowment in ways that fully fund the college.

The letter called divestment, an action pushed on college campuses nationwide, a symbolic gesture, and repeatedly pointed to the benefit of strong returns on the colleges endowment.

Subordinating overall investment strategy, in which performance and impact are assessed over many decades, to the volatility of geopolitical events and shifting ESG assessments would introduce significant new risk, Mandels and Robinsons letter reads. The Board is unwilling to accept increased risk, given that we rely on the endowment to provide 55 percent of our annual operating budget, including funding for academic and co-curricular programs, faculty and staff salaries and benefits, facilities and financial aid offerings.

By investing alumni donations into global markets in ways that magnify their power, we create educational opportunities beyond what many students and their families could afford otherwise, and beyond what almost any other school can offer.

The letter from the college said that the Board of Trustees made its decision after consulting the schools Advisory Committee on Shareholder Responsibility and Investment Committee as well as members of Jews for Justice and Students for Justice in Palestine, who organized an encampment in the heart of campus in May

On Wednesday, the student groups said they will continue to have conversations with the administration and promised a full statement on the groups social media account.
Daniel Bessner at Harpers Magazine:

In 2012, at the age of thirty-two, the writer Alena Smith went West to Hollywood, like many before her. She arrived to a small apartment in Silver Lake, one block from the Vista Theatrea single-screen Spanish Colonial Revival building that had opened in 1923, four years before the advent of sound in film.

Smith was looking for a job in television. She had an MFA from the Yale School of Drama, and had lived and worked as a playwright in New York City for yearstwo of her productions garnered positive reviews in the Times. But playwriting had begun to feel like a vanity project: to pay rent, shed worked as a nanny, a transcriptionist, an administrative assistant, and more. There seemed to be no viable financial future in theater, nor in academia, the other world where she supposed she could make inroads.

For several years, her friends and colleagues had been absconding for Los Angeles, and were finding success. This was the second decade of prestige television: the era of Mad Men, Breaking Bad, Homeland, Girls.

more here.
The 1950s: a pivotal moment in British culture, or a dingy interlude before things really got going in the Swinging Sixties? For most of us, the era of smog and food rationing will feel unimaginably remote in time. The mere sight, though, of one of Roger Maynes pungent images of children playing along the crumbling terraces of post-war Notting Hill will transport you to a world where everything was grim, gritty and entirely monochrome. And its all so vividly captured you can practically taste the acrid fug of massed coal fires  even if you never experienced such things in reality. Yet in spite of  perhaps even because of  this powerful period feel, Maynes images make peculiarly apt viewing at the present time.

If Mayne isnt yet quite a household name, his wonderfully intimate photographs of the inhabitants of Southam Street, an area of condemned Victorian housing in the roughest end of North Kensington have an instantly recognisable texture and atmosphere. They have featured in a plethora of recent books and exhibitions  notably the Barbicans Postwar Modern show in 2022  and are becoming established as among the defining images of a time when Modern Britain was emerging from the ruins of the blitz, when the country was getting its first taste of rocknroll amid a social order still mired in Victorian inhibition.

Born into an academic family in Cambridge in 1929, Mayne grew up remote from the kind of social environment he became famous for portraying. He became interested in the technical aspects of photography while studying chemistry, before developing an approach to the medium that was very much people-centred. He then spent years looking for a subject worthy of his talents. While his early study of the St Ives artists  the abstract painters working in the far west of Cornwall  offers a picture of a Britain that was embracing new freedoms, Southam Street, which he first visited in 1956, seemed stuck in a groove of Dickensian anti-aspiration in which any attempt at improvement felt risibly futile.

The writer Colin MacInnes, whose iconic novel Absolute Beginners (for which Mayne provided the cover image) is set in the area, described it as a rotting slum of sharp, horrible vivacity a place the Welfare State and the Property-Owning Democracy equally passed by. For Mayne, however, it was clearly a place of wonder, with a prevailing warmth and a collective solidarity in which all social interaction, whether between adults or children, took place outdoors, in the shared space of the carless street. Mums chat in the battered porticoes of once grand townhouses, while children clamber on the steps around them, play football, explore bombed-out buildings, and cavort on heaps of rubbish. While there are moments when the subjects are clearly performing for Maynes camera  including the little girls rolling around giggling in Children (1956)  generally they seem barely to notice the snapper who spent six years documenting their world.

Where some commentators would have discerned a delinquent unruliness in the cocky looks of some of the boys, Mayne sees self-expression. The dynamic compositions in images such as Girls Doing Handstands (1956) are evidence not just of his creativity, but of theirs. The boys twisting and turning on a heap of old mattresses in Bomb Site, Portland Road (1958), are typical of the figures, choreographed, as the wall text puts it, across images that show a painterly feel for the ravaged textures of the post-war city, all battered stucco and graffiti. Mayne, indeed, must have been the first British artist to positively enjoy street art.

The idea that childrens play had social and educational value was becoming fashionable in academic circles and Mayne became the go-to image-maker in social studies and child psychology, as evident in a display of vintage Pelican book covers all featuring his pictures. In that sense his quintessentially Fifties images were already looking forward to the freedom-loving Sixties.

His Southam Street pictures were exciting a sense of nostalgia even as he was taking them, perceived as documentation of a disappearing urban world. Yet for him, they were first and foremost about the relationship between artist and subject. The longer you look into his best images, such as the intensely staring child in Girl on the Steps, St Stephens Gardens, Westbourne Park (1957), the more the social context seems to fall away, and youre left looking at something completely timeless.

open image in gallery Children in a Bombed Building, Bermondsey, London, 1954 ( Roger Mayne Archive/Mary Evans Gallery )

As his subjects grow older, in a section of the show called Teen Takeover, there are still remarkable images, such as the wonderfully expressive Girl Jiving, Southam Street (1957), in which the subject clad in her dads jacket looks miles away in her own world of rhythm. But generally, his studies of Teddy Boys and Teddy Girls feel slightly more conventional. His photographs of his own children growing up in a bohemian household in rural Dorset are as informal as you could wish for. Were even shown Maynes wife, the playwright Ann Jellicoe, giving birth to their daughter Katkin in visceral close-up. Yet these images, excellent though they are, lack the electrifying tension of his Southam Street photographs. On this showing at least, Mayne never again recaptured that sense of total absorption in another world and another culture.

Mayne takes us to times that were in many ways vastly more challenging than our own, with images of youthful exuberance that cant fail to lift the spirits  and we know with hindsight that good times were just around the corner. They make for poignant viewing in an era of relative wealth when most of us feel precious little cause for optimism.

Courtauld Gallery, 14 June to 1 September
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The original cast of The Blair Witch Project have called out film studio Lionsgate for failing to meaningfully compensate them for their work on the 1999 horror classic.

I dont need Lionsgate to like me, actor Joshua Leonard told Variety. I dont care that they know that I think their behavior has been reprehensible.

In April, Leonard and his two co-stars Heather Donahue (now Rei Hance) and Michael C Williams released a public letter asking Lionsgate for compensation and meaningful consultation on any future projects that use their names or likenesses.

Just 10 days earlier, Lionsgate Motion Picture Group and Blumhouse announced plans to revive the franchise.

In the new Variety interview, Hance says their complaint comes down to a simple financial equation. Is there value there or not? If theres value, compensate us accordingly, and if theres no value, then just stop using us.

Williams expressed his angst at becoming a public figure while not receiving commensurate payment. Everybodys wondering what happened, and your wife is in the grocery line and she cant pay because a check bounced, he said. Youre in the most successful independent movie of all time, and you cant take care of your loved ones.

open image in gallery The Blair Witch Project cast Joshua Leonard, Heather Donahue and Michael Williams ( Joshua Leonard )

Leonard wrote on Facebook after Lionsgate announced reboot plans that no one had contacted him or his co-stars about the project in advance.

At this point, its 25 years of disrespect from the folks whove pocketed the lions share (pun intended) of the profits from OUR work, and that feels both icky and classless, wrote Leonard.

He said the actors each made $300,000 (242,000) from a buyout of their ownership points on the film, which went on to gross $248m (200m) worldwide.

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The actors have collectively called on Lionsgate to provide them with retroactive and future residual payments equivalent to the sum that wouldve been allotted through SAG-AFTRA, had we had proper union or legal representation when the film was made.

They asked to be consulted on future projects in which their likeness would be used, or any projects where they would be associated for promotional purposes.

The original film follows three American students who decide to go into the Maryland backwoods to cover the mystery behind the Blair Witch incidents. But when they lose their map, things take an unexpected turn. It was shot over the course of one week on a shoestring budget, with the main actors using their own names for their characters.
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Ruth Jones has called out Gwyneth Paltrow for treating her dismissively on a film set in the 1990s.

The Gavin and Stacey writer and actor, who is currently writing a Christmas special with James Corden, made her screen debut in the 1996 Emma, which starred Paltrow as the titular Jane Austen character.

The film, written and directed by Douglas McGrath, saw Jones play a maid working for the Bates family  a role she described as a job I remember for several reasons.

According to the Welsh star, she originally had two lines until Oscar-winning actor Paltrow requested one of them be cut, which she found heartbreaking.

Addressing the encounter on Wonderys podcast Brydon &, which is hosted by her Gavin & Stacey co-star Rob Brydon, Jones said: I had two lines. I had to announce Gwyneth Paltrow and say, Miss Woodhouse is here and then I had to say Goodbye Miss Woodhouse at the exit and let her out  and Gwyneth Paltrow cut one of my lines.

Jones claimed that Paltrow, showing no solidarity with her being new to the profession, said: Does she really need to say that? Can I just come in?

Imagine this for people who are starting out. If youve got two lines, and somebody cuts 50 per cent of your script, its heartbreaking.

Jones said she even tried to engage Paltrow with conversation in between takes, but the Hollywood star, who had appeared in David Finchers Seven the year before, was quite dismissive of her.

open image in gallery Gwyneth Paltrow in 1996 film Emma ( Miramax )

We were waiting for them to shout action, so it was just me and Gwyneth behind the door. She didnt want to talk to me, I was a nothing. I did have two lines, now down to one. So I tried to make conversation with her.

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Jones continued: At the time, she was going out with Brad Pitt. And I said, Do you have any Welsh connections? Because Gwyneth, I always think of as a Welsh name, right, so I said: How come youre called Gwyneth? She said, My mother had a friend called Gwyneth and she really liked the name, so she called me Gwyneth.

She was quite dismissive of me, so I was thinking its an old womans name where I come from so when you get married, youre going to be called Gwyn Pitt!

open image in gallery Ruth Jones says Gwyneth Paltrow was dismissive of her ( Getty Images )

Paltrow would win an Oscar three years later for Shakespeare in Love. The Independent has contacted Paltrow for comment.
Terns flock to Xiamen as conservation efforts pay off

People's Daily Online) 15:20, June 13, 2024

As summer arrives, flocks of terns have descended upon an embankment along the Island Ring East Road in Siming district, Xiamen, southeast China's Fujian Province, creating a vibrant scene alongside tourists and coastal scenery.

The migratory birds, which spend winters in tropical and subtropical coastal areas, return to Xiamen each summer.

In recent years, the city has made significant strides in improving its coastal environment, attracting a bounty of fish that provide a rich food source for the terns.

The local government has established a temporary reserve area to protect the birds, implementing measures such as patrols and monitoring to minimize human impact. Tourists can observe the terns from a safe distance at designated migratory bird observation points outside the reserve area.

(Intern Xing Yawen contributed to this story.)
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Catherine Lagaaia has been cast as the eponymous heroine in Disneys live-action remake of Moana.

Lagaaia is a 17-year-old Australian actor of Samoan heritage with just one previous screen credit on her resume (2023s The Lost Flowers of Alice Hart series).

She will star opposite Dwayne The Rock Johnson, who reprises his role from the 2016 animated movie as the demigod Maui.

Im really excited to embrace this character because Moana is one of my favorites, said Lagaaia in the announcement. My grandfather comes from Faaala, Palauli, in Savaii. And my grandmother is from Leulumoega Tuai on the main island of Upolu in Samoa. Im honored to have an opportunity to celebrate Samoa and all Pacific Island peoples, and to represent young girls who look like me.

Lagaaias father is Jay Lagaaia, the New Zealand-born actor who played Captain Typho in Star Wars: Episode II  Attack of the Clones and Star Wars: Episode III  Revenge of the Sith.

The veteran actor also took to social media to announce the news, writing on Instagram: My family and I are so pleased to share this news with the rest of the world. My daughter Katie can finally share the news that she will be taking on the role of Moana in the live action Disney movie along side Dwayne Johnson and Lin Manuel Miranda.

Moana is set to begin production this summer ahead of its planned release on 10 July 2026. The film is directed by Thomas Kail, (Hamilton on Broadway and Disney+, Grease Live and We Were the Lucky Ones).

I am thrilled to have met Catherine, Rena, Frankie and John through this casting process, said Kail. I am humbled by this opportunity, and I cannot wait to all be on set together. And theres no better pair to be in a canoe with than Catherine and Dwayne  actually, trio: Heihei is ready, too.

17-year-old Catherine Lagaaia from Sydney, Australia is of Samoan heritage ( Disney )

Moana tells the story of an adventurous teen who sets sail on a dangerous mission to save her people. Along her journey, she meets Maui (voiced by Johnson) who guides her on her quest.

Last year, Aulii Cravalho, the 23-year-old actor who voiced the titular character of the 2016 film, was praised for her respectful decision to sit out of the films forthcoming remake.

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When I was cast as Moana at 14, it wonderfully changed my life and started my career. In this live-action retelling, I will not be reprising the role, she shared in an Instagram video at the time.

I believe it is absolutely vital that casting accurately represents the characters and stories we want to tell.

Cravalho will still have a hand in the remake serving as an executive producer and is set to mentor Lagaaia. She will also reprise her voice role in the animated Moana 2, which will arrive in cinemas on 27 November.
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Russell Crowe has said he regrets turning down a role in his career after feeling that it would have given him an unfair advantage in music.

The Oscar-winning actor has played a wide variety of roles throughout his near-40-year career, including Roman general Maximus Decimus Meridius in Gladiator (2000), mathematician John Forbes Nash Jr in the dramatic biopic A Beautiful Mind (2001) and 19th-century villain Javert in Les Miserables (2012).

However, Crowe, 60, has also rejected several opportunities over the years, and recalled one in a recent interview with British GQ for its Heroes issue.

There was an experience that I was offered  I now know the director, and I know that him and I working together, surrounded by music, wouldve been a fantastic experience, Crowe explained, adding: It was a biopic of a musician that I love.

I kind of felt there was a cheating aspect to it, you know. It would put me in a position from a music career perspective that I wouldnt have earned.

Crowe has performed music since the 1980s, in the Australian band 30 Odd Foot of Grunts and collaborating with other artists such as Samantha Barks, Scott Grimes and Carl Falk.

In 2011, Crowe and Doyle released their album The Crowe/Doyle Songbook Vol III, which includes themes of love and heartbreak.

open image in gallery Russell Crowe ( Getty Images for AFI )

Elsewhere in the interview, the Sleeping Dogs star said that hed written the album as a message to his then-wife, Danielle Spencer, to whom hed been married since 2003.

"That entire album is me talking to my [now ex-] wife, saying, We cant get divorced. What are you doing?

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Pretty much every song that I wrote for that album  Too Far Gone, Sadness of a Woman, Love is Impossible, Disappeared  thats all about my marriage. And I was wondering if having her sing those words, if she would see through them and understand what I was trying to communicate to her.

open image in gallery Russell Crowe ( Getty Images )

Crowe and Spencer divorced in 2018, and share two sons: Charles, 20, and 17-year-old Tennyson.

Later this year will see the release of a Gladiator sequel starring Paul Mescal. In another recent interview, Crowe admitted he is slightly uncomfortable with the idea of another film, and has refuted suggestions that he may appear in the Ridley Scott-directed project.

The Heroes Issue of British GQ is now available via digital download and on newsstands.
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Jude Law has revealed he turned down the role of Superman in the early 2000s  even after trying on the suit.

Superman is one of the worlds best-loved superhero characters, and has been played by multiple actors, including Christopher Reeve and Henry Cavill.

Speaking on The Playlists Discourse podcast, Law recalled successfully auditioning for the role, but admitted that he felt wrong for the character, saying: I always resisted it because it just felt off.

The actor confirmed he was chosen to play the Man of Steel in Brett Ratners unsuccessful Superman project, which was announced in 2002  and not even sampling the specially-made suit made him change his mind.

They bought me the suit, I tried it on and looked in the mirror and part of me initially was like, Wow, this would be a [good thing], and then I just thought, No, you cant  you cant do this. You cant.

Law continued: I didnt sell myself to myself. And I stepped away and the film never happened anyway. So maybe it probably wouldnt have done anything.

The actor wasnt the only actor in the running to be Ratners Superman, Matt Bomer who recently appeared in Bradley Coopers Maestro, recently told The Hollywood Reporter that he was quite possibly the directors final choice for the role.

Bomer believes the role got taken away from him after he came out as gay, stating: That was a time in the industry when something like that could still be weaponized against you, thats my understanding.

open image in gallery Matt Bomer, another candidate for the Superman role ( Getty Images )

Earlier this week, Law shared one of his career regrets, saying he wishes he didnt try to play against his looks in his younger years now that, in his own words, he is saggy and balding.

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Laws other credits include The Talented Mr Ripley, in which he played Dickie Greenleaf, and Christmas film The Holiday.

He also played future Hogwarts headmaster Dumbledore in the Fantastic Beasts films, which is a prequel spin-off to Harry Potter.
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Glastonbury might be known as one of the worlds greenest festivals, thanks to its setting in the picturesque Somerset countryside, but every so often the weather turns foul and those verdant fields are churned up into brown sludge.

As many fans will attest, over the years there have been a number of memorable occasions where guests spent more time trying to pry their wellies out of the mud than they did watching bands perform.

Some take this as a cue to give up and go home, while others decide to lean into it, resulting in some of the more iconic pictures of Glastonbury Festival.

Here are five of the muddiest Glastonbury festivals in memory.

1982  Slippery in Somerset

Glastonbury tickets in 1982 cost just 8 for the 25,000 people that attended. Although, those lucky enough to secure a ticket were not as lucky in the weather department.

On Friday, the festival saw the highest rainfall recorded in a single day for 45 years. The ground then became swampy and slippery, but in true Glastonbury fashion, that didnt stop the smiles.

The mud taking over the fields of Worthy Farm in 1982 ( ITV )

The mud didnt stop people from dancing and smiling in 1982 ( ITV )

1997  The year of mud

After over a decade of relatively dry weekends, 1997 at Glastonbury was dubbed the year of the mud.

The downpour during the preceding days had turned the Arthurian verdure into a swamp of oozing, sucking chocolate mousse, The Independent reported.

This was mud as you'd always imagined it: platonic mud, mud you could squeeze into gooey sculptures, mud which made every clod-lifting step a trial of strength. The famous Green Fields certainly weren't green, and they could barely be identified as fields.

Sir Michael Eavis, the festival organiser and co-organiser, told ITV at the time: People are really enjoying themselves - and not many people are leaving.

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He added: Its a shame about the weather and the mud and things but the spirit is very high.

Most of the 90,000 attendees that year still managed to enjoy the music, which included sets from The Prodigy, Radiohead and Massive Attack.

However, The Independent also reported that doctors attending the scene believed they had seen more cases of trenchfoot in two days than had been witnessed since the First World War.

It is basically people whose feet have been wet for 48 hours finding their soles starting to lacerate and blister, said Dr David Leeder, a volunteer in the festivals medical centre. This gets infected and its not very pretty. Its so uncommon we werent sure how to treat it.

One fan, Jim Sommerville from Edinburgh, had to be carried into the medical centre with his injured feet in the air: The wellies didnt get here until today and before I only had trainers, he told The Independent.

Ive been dancing in a puddle for about 18 hours but I might have to stop for a bit.

Meanwhile, other fans said they were giving up entirely: It was bad enough dealing with just the mud, said Susan Robinson from Stockport as she navigated her way up a slippery hill towards the exit. But some bastard stole my wellies from outside my tent last night and Ive given up the ghost.

Music fans make the best of muddy conditions as they display a wish you were here banner in 1997 ( PA )

Music fans enjoy the mud pools at the 1997 Glastonbury festival (Martin Bennett/PA) ( PA Archive )

2005 - Lightning strikes

After the year of the mud, the 2005 festival turned out to be the year of the flood, as Worthy Farm was hit by two months worth of rain in just a few hours. The weather gods even threw in a few lightning strikes for dramatic effect.

This turned the muddy fields into what can only be described as marshland, with festival-goers using inflatable boats and dinghies as their primary mode of transport.

A festival attendee pulling friend through the mud on an inflatable dingy in 2005 ( Getty Images )

Pete Doherty of The Libertines and model Kate Moss braving the mud in 2005 ( Getty Images )

One unlucky festival-goer traipses through a sea of water and abandoned tents during 2005s festival floods ( Getty Images )

2007  The wettest Glastonbury ever

Glastonbury 2007 was officially the wettest on record, with 60.1mm of rain falling on the Friday. And it didnt stop there; the wet weather stuck around for the entire weekend.

The 135,000-person-strong crowd braved the rain and mud to watch headliners the Arctic Monkeys, The Who and The Killers. Once again, Michael Eavis was impressed by how revellers managed to keep their spirits up.

Its gone very well, in spite of the rain and in spite of the mud, he said. The drains have actually worked, believe it or not. Someone called me from Spain and said they would swap all the sun they had for the Glastonbury culture.

Two festival-goers sliding in the mud in 2007 ( Getty Images )

People struggling to leave the festival due to the mud in 2007 ( Getty Images )

2016  Mud wrestling

Nine years later, festival attendees faced some of the worst mud the Somerset farm had ever seen, after torrential rainfall hit the site in the weeks running up to the festival.

Eavis told The Guardian that every single bit of woodchip they could find in the south of England was being used on the site, and even suggested that it was worse than the year of mud.

Ive never seen mud like it in my whole life. This is worse than 1997, he said. In all 46 years, it hasnt been as bad as this.

Two festival revellers roll in the mud in 2016 ( Getty Images )

Festival-goers eating lunch in the thick mud in 2016 ( Getty Images )

The leftover wellies after an awful year of mud in 2016 ( Getty Images )

Glastonbury 2024 takes place from Wednesday 26 June to Sunday 30 June. This years headliners are Dua Lipa, Coldplay and SZA, while the Legends Slot will be filled by country-pop star Shania Twain.

Fingers crossed that 2024s festival will bring a Sky Full of Stars rather than a Rainy Day. You can see the latest Glastonbury weather forecast here.
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The band formerly named Easy Life have rebranded under the new name Hard Life after facing copyright legal action from easyJet brand owners easyGroup.

In 2023, the five-piece Leicester band were sued by the multi-conglomerate easyGroup.

The conglomerate accused the musicians of being brand thieves and claimed that the band, formed by Murray Matravers, Oliver Cassidy, Sam Hewitt, Lewis Alexander Berry and Jordan Birtles, infringed upon the rights of online retailer Easylife because their name is too similar.

The indie artists had performed under their previous name since 2017, and despite initially saying theyd fight to keep their name, ultimately agreed to change their title.

On Tuesday (11 June), the band revealed their new name while announcing their new single, Tears.

Speaking to BBC News about the naming battle, which even saw them receive support from MPs, frontman Murray Matravers said they felt angry and powerless.

However, the band agreed to the change to avoid a costly legal fight, and because the specific name wasnt as important to them in the long run. Matravers said: But if our name affects them that much, Ill walk away from it  because its not worth it.

open image in gallery easyJets owners, easyGroup, forced the Leicester band to change their name in 2023 ( Getty Images )

Describing the debacle as the weirdest, most surreal thing that had happened to him, Matravers continued: I mean, its absolutely nuts.

We didnt get into music to fight huge corporations in legal battles, obviously.

Matravers added that the bands change to Hard Life has not impacted their musical output and that theyd made peace with the situation.

The name doesnt change anything  it doesnt change who I am as an artist, Matravers said.

The frontman said that deciding on the new name was an easy choice, with all members saying that Hard Life was a clear next step.

"All of us, unanimously in the group, turned around and said, Its got to be Hard Life, surely, Matravers noted, likening the process of naming the band to finding a name for a song: Ive learnt that the first idea is always the best, so Ive kept that same philosophy with the band name.

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At the time of the lawsuit, the company said in a statement: With reference to the brand thief Mr Matravers and his fellow band members who have decided to use our brand, easyLife, without permission.

We have a long-established record of legally stopping thieves from using our brands and I am confident we will stop Mr Matravers.
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Legendary songwriter Mark James who wrote Elvis Presleys Suspicious Minds and Always on My Mind and BJ Thomass Hooked on a Feeling has died aged 83.

James died in his home in Nashville on 8 June. The news was first reported by his hometown newspaper, the Houston Chronicle.

Marks legacy and zest for life will live on in the hearts of those who loved him, and through his timeless lyrics and melodies that have been the soundtrack of lovers for generations, his family said in a statement.

He was a captivating storyteller who had the sweetest smile, the most infectious laugh and a twinkle in his eye that never dimmed, they said.

James was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2014, and in 2000 was named in BMIs list of the Songwriters of the Century, alongside Paul McCartney and Elton John. James also entered the Texas Songwriters Hall of Fame, the New York Songwriters Hall of Fame, and the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame.

Always on My Mind, which he co-wrote with Wayne Carson and Johnny Christopher, won James two Grammys for country song of the year and song of the year in 1983. The song was previously recorded by Elvis Presley in 1972, and released shortly after he separated from his wife Priscilla. However, it was released as a B-side track and didnt make too many waves.

Willie Nelsons rerecording of the song in 1982, on the other hand, took Always on My Mind to the fifth spot on the Billboard Hot 100 and the top of the country songs chart, which then resulted in the Grammy wins.

Willie Nelson - Always On My Mind

A synth-pop cover by the Pet Shop Boys in 1987, on a television show commemorating tenth anniversary of Presleys death, did so well that the duo released the song as a single, spending four weeks atop the UKs Christmas number-one chart.

Always on My Mind was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2008.

Over his career span, Jamess compositions were recorded several times by Presley. Suspicious Minds, Raised on Rock, Its Only Love and Moody Blue were all Jamess compositions.

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James described Suspicious Minds as a sledgehammer in the Houston Chronicle in 2014, which was Presleys last No. 1 song before his death in 1977.

James had released it himself in 1968, trying to set up his own music career, but it was Presleys recording that really made it a hit.

Late one night, fooling around on my Fender guitar and using my Hammond organ pedals for a bass line, I came up with a catchy melody. I was married to my first wife then but still had feelings for my childhood sweetheart, who was married back in Houston, James told the Wall Street Journal about Suspicious Minds in 2012.

My wife suspected I had those feelings, so it was a confusing time for me. I felt as though all three of us were all caught in this trap that we couldnt walk out of.

open image in gallery Elvis Presley (1935 - 1977) being fed a mouthful of wedding cake by his bride Priscilla Beaulieu at the Aladdin Hotel, Las Vegas. ( Getty Images )

A year later, Presley was told about the song, and reportedly went crazy about it when he heard it. He wanted to hear the song over and over again, and learned it on the spot, said producer Chips Moman.

Presley not only recorded the song, but used almost the same arrangement to record his version.

In the years that followed, whenever I saw Elvis, hed cross the room just to say hello to me  no matter who was with him. After he died, I heard hed always asked the guys in the studio, Did Mark send me any more songs? Golly, I wish I had known that, James said.

Elvis Presley - Suspicious Minds

Several of Jamess songs have found popularity after other artists released covers. Swedish rock band Blue Swede hit No 1 with their version of Hooked on a Feeling in 1973. This cover was used in Tarantinos 1992 film Reservoir Dogs, and in the trailers and soundtrack of Guardians of the Galaxy in 2014.

Born Francis Zambon in Houston, Texas in 1940, James was teased in school because his father was a teacher and had to wear orthotics because of bad ankles. He found refuge in cinema, and learned that a great story can be told again and again.

He changed his name to Mark James very early in his career, because Houston club owners didnt like the name Francis Zambon. His fledgling career was put on hold as he was drafted to fight in Vietnam. On his return, he signed with a music publishing company in Memphis, and wrote The Eyes Of A New York Woman and Hooked On A Feeling for B J Thomass album On My Way.

James ended up writing over 300 songs in a seven-decade long career, and even studied film scoring at the University of California at Los Angeles.

James is survived by his wife, Karen Zambon, his daughters Sammie and Dana Zambon, grandchildren and extended family.
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Massive Attack has cancelled one of their upcoming shows in Georgia in solidarity with protests against governments attack on basic human rights.

The British band was scheduled to perform on 28 July at the Black Sea Arena, a state-owned venue that promoted the event as an audio-visual theatrical show that would present [the bands] activities linked with the details of everyday life.

In a statement posted on the bands social media, Massive Attack announced they would not be performing as it could be seen as endorsement of [the governments] violent crackdown against peaceful protests and civil society.

Weve decided to cancel our show in Georgia on 28 July in protest of the Georgian governments attack on basic human rights. At this moment, performing at the state-owned Black Sea Arena could be seen as an endorsement of their violent crackdown against peaceful protests and civil society, the band said.

Beatings, arrests, threats, and violence against peaceful protesters, activists, and opponents, along with laws smearing civil society and denying LGBTI rights, go against everything we stand for.

We stand in solidarity with peaceful protesters in Georgia defying state violence & feel that it is their voices that need to be heard and their struggle that needs to be under the international spotlight. Well return and perform with you in freedom.

Event organisers have said ticket holders will be refunded.

The announcement comes amid massive demonstrations taking place in Georgias streets over the last two months, where people have been protesting a parliament-approved law regulating the media and NGOs, which sounds very similar to a law in Russia that has been used to silence several political opponents.

The bill will require media and NGOs to register as pursuing the interests of a foreign power if they receive more than 20 per cent of their funding from abroad.

The bill was passed despite unrest in the country and the EU stating that it might prevent Georgias entry to the European Union. The US too has objected to the Kremlin-inspired law, imposing travel bans on Georgian officials linked to the bill.

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Protestors have been taken off the streets by police and activists and politicians from the opposition have been beaten severely in detention.

open image in gallery Georgian students protest against a law on foreign agents near the Parliament building in Tbilisi, Georgia ( EPA )

The cancelled gig comes days after Massive Attack performed at the Gothenburg Film Studios in Sweden, their first live show in five years. They performed their song Safe From Harm which the band dedicated to the people in Gaza.

Traditionally this is a song of protest, tonight it is a song of solidarity with the Palestinian people, he said at the gig.

Massive Attack has been vocal in their support of Palestine, and have boycotted performing in Israel since 1999.

Earlier this year, in response to a fan who wrote, Your shows in Tel Aviv were fantastic on X, the band wrote: Massive Attack have not performed (& will not perform) in Israel since the international request was made by Palestinian civic society & artistic institutions in 2002 (reiterated in 05 as BDS) as a form of non-violent pressure on Israel to end its brutal occupation of Palestine.

The band took a decision not to perform in Israel in 1999  some years before the Palestinian call for international boycott was made  based on our own observations of military oppression, occupation & apartheid.
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The showrunners behind crime drama Tokyo Vice have revealed that the series may return for a third season, despite its recent cancellation by HBO Max.

The show, which is an adaptation of journalist Jake Adelsteins memoir of the same name, stars Ansel Elgort as a fictionalized version of Adelstein. It ran for two seasons from 2022 to 2024.

It was announced earlier this week that Max would not be picking up their option for a third season.

However, in a new interview with Variety, showrunner JT Rogers and executive producer Alan Poul said there had been an outpouring of support for the show and the next season may still go ahead regardless.

We take the love, said Poul. We dont accept the condolences yet.

The producer went on to explain that the studio behind the show, Fifth Season, has also sold the series internationally.

open image in gallery Ansel Elgort in Tokyo Vice ( HBO Max )

Max exists in North America, most of South America and a few European territories, and the rest of the world is sold by our friends at Fifth Season, pointed out Poul. And theyve sold very well. Its been a global hit. So we look to our partners.

We havent even really put our heads together yet, because this is all very new. But there are many territories in Europe and Asia and Africa and Australia that still will want the show, and we have to see how our partners, Fifth Season, are going to prepare to respond to them.

Rogers said hed endeavored to end season two in a way that was satisfying, but also left the door open for future seasons. I wanted to land the plane in a way that if, God forbid, there was never going to be any more, that it would have a satisfying arc, he said.

I felt we succeeded in that, which Im very proud of, with many, many, many, many drafts of that last episode... But the idea was always, and certainly now, that if we can, wed love to go forward. I have very clear ideas about the continued expansion of the world, following the people we know and new people as well.

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As to what the third season might have in store, Rogers added: Theres all sorts of macro and micro planning and writing done and happening. But thats all in the hopes of going forward. And I dont want to share it because I want it to be an enjoyable surprise.
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The battle for No 10 is well underway, as politicians trawl up and down the country to secure votes in the forthcoming general election.

In their attempts to appeal to voters in the run-up to 4 July, hopeful MPs are doing all they can to endear themselves to the public, with varying success.

(You can follow The Independents coverage of the general election here.)

From candid admissions in televised interviews and remixes of UK Garage hits, to strutting down a runway on breakfast TV, this round of campaigning has resulted in some bizarre moments.

Here are some of the standout politics and pop culture collisions weve seen so far...

Dawn Butlers So Solid shoutout

To mark 21 days until the election, Dawn Butler released a campaign video showing her performing a parody of 21 Seconds.

In the clip, released on Thursday 13 June, Labours candidate for Brent East sing-raps to So Solid Crews 2001 hit as she mocks Tory leader Rishi Sunak and his party.

Dont let a liar run the show / If you like me let me know, let me out the shadow / Got 21 days before they gotta go, Butler raps over the garage beat.

open image in gallery Dawn Butler raps in the style of 21 Seconds by So Solid Crew ( X / Dawn Butler )

Model behaviour from Ed Davey

On Thursday 13 Junes edition of ITVs This Morning, Sir Ed Davey had a go at modelling as he walked the catwalk during the fashion segment of the magazine programme.

Wearing a cream blazer, a light blue striped shirt and dark chinos, the Liberal Democrat leader strutted down the runway, much to the amusement of hosts Cat Deeley and Ben Shephard.

open image in gallery Ed Davey on This Morning ( ITV / screengrab )

David Camerons bicycle equation

Speaking of This Morning, David Cameron recalled one of the programmes most beloved moments during an interview with Sky Newss Kay Burley on Thursday 13 June. After being asked what hed do if the Conservatives lost the election, Cameron dismissed the hypothetical question and shot back: If my mother had wheels, shed be a bicycle.

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The former PM was seemingly referring to a phrase uttered by celebrity chef Gino DAcampo during a cooking segment on This Morning in 2010. After then-host Holly Willoughby suggested that his meal would be like a carbonara if it had some ham, the unimpressed DAcampo replied: If my grandmother had wheels, she would have been a bike.

open image in gallery David Cameron and Kay Burley ( Sky News )

Rishi Sunaks Sky slip-up

The prime minister and leader of the Conservative Party was asked on Wednesday 12 June what he did to remain in touch with the struggles of the general public despite being wealthier than the King.

After protesting that there are lots of things his family had to sacrifice when he was a child, Sunak then declared: Famously, Sky TV. That was something that we never had growing up, actually.

Sadly, Sunaks mention of the premium TV service was mocked by many across social media and beyond. Yet, one social media user commiserated with him for not having access to the Sky TV game Beehive Bedlam in his youth, writing on X: To hear that Rishi Sunak didnt have Sky TV and therefore never played Beehive Bedlam, meaning he never had to learn the lesson of storing flowers to help the bees make honey for winter, all makes sense. Makes you think really.

open image in gallery Rishi Sunak discusses not having Sky TV as a child ( ITV News / screengrab )

A Corrie-worthy showdown

For one X user, the debate between Tory candidate Penny Mordaunt and Labours Angela Rayner was something that could be likened to another fictional match of wits: Bet Lynch (Julie Goodyear) and Rita Tanner (Barbara Knox) on Coronation Street.

A splash landing

Racking up his numbers on the bizarre moments list, Ed Davey also took several dips into the water at a Warwickshire aqua park on Wednesday 12 June, causing some social media users to compare his excursion to an episode of the BBC adventure series Total Wipeout.

open image in gallery Liberal Democrats leader Sir Ed Davey falls as he attempts an Aqua Jungle floating assault course during a visit to Spot-On-Wake in Henley-in-Arden, Warwickshire (Jacob King/PA) ( PA Wire )

Keep up with The Independents coverage of the general election here.
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Przewalskis horses have returned to the steppes of Kazakhstan after nearly 200 years, part of an ambitious scheme to reintroduce the worlds last wild horses to their original habitats.

The endangered sandy brown horses once roamed across Central Asia. They were named after Russian geographer Nikolai Przewalski who discovered them in the late 19th century, by which time their range had been reduced to only one part of western Mongolia.

Now, the Prague Zoo in the Czech Republic, which manages the studbook for the species, wants to begin returning them to the Altyn Dala, or Golden Steppe, region of central Kazakhstan, a vast area of grassland and wetlands covering some 7,000 square kilometres (2,700 square miles).

In early June, the first group of seven arrived. Around another 40 are planned for the next five years.

Zoo workers load a container with a Przewalskis horse onto a Czech military airplane, before their release at the Alibi field station and reintroduction centre in Kazakhstan, at Kbely Airport in Prague, Czech Republic ( REUTERS )

These are the first wild horses which have touched soil in the steppes of central Kazakhstan in hundreds of years, said Prague Zoo director Miroslav Bobek.

We still have a long way to go, but this was a historic moment.

Czech army planes transported the horses - a stallion and six mares - on flights from Prague and Berlin to the Kazakh city of Arkalyk, from where they travelled seven hours by truck, accompanied by zoo keepers.

A Przewalskis horse peeps out of a container on its way to the Alibi field station and reintroduction centre in the Altyn Dala area, after being unloaded from a Czech military airplane, at the airport near Arkalyk, Kazakhstan ( REUTERS )

The horses will stay in an acclimatisation enclosure for a year to learn to find water and food during the steppes harsh winters.

Przewalskis horses had disappeared from the wild by the end of the 1960s, but remained in captivity. They have already been reintroduced in China and western Mongolia, where the population now numbers 850.

A Przewalskis horse leaves its container after being released into an acclimatisation enclosure at the Alibi field station and reintroduction centre, in the Altyn Dala area, Kazakhstan, June 4, 2024 ( REUTERS )

In Kazakhstan, the reintroduction is part of conservation efforts - the horses eat a wide variety of grasses, in turn spreading seeds.

It is quite important to have these wild horses, said Albert Salemgareyev, lead specialist for the Association for the Conversation of Biodiversity in Kazakhstan.
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A convicted Pakistani national is set to face the death penalty in India after the president in New Delhi rejected his mercy petition over involvement in a deadly terrorist attack on popular monument Red Fort.

The man, Mohammed Arif aka Ashfaq, was confirmed to be a member of Pakistani terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba and was awarded death sentence on 31 October in 2005.

Indian president Droupadi Murmu rejected his mercy petition seeking relief from the execution sentence on 27 May, reported Indian news daily Hindustan Times. The mercy petition was sent to her on 15 May, officials aware of the matter said.

The attack, which took place a few days short of Christmas in December 2000, killed three Indian army personnel of 7 Rajputana Rifles unit. The armed forces personnel were guarding the pro Mughal-era monument from the inside when the terrorists entered the area. They later fled the spot by scaling the monuments walls.

Indian police officials had said two men with automatic weapons had entered the Red Fort at about 9.40pm local time while a party for army families was being held inside. They reportedly fired indiscriminately.

Ashfaq was held four days later by the Delhi polices special cell unit. He is currently lodged in Indias biggest prison facility  Tihar Jail  inside a high-risk cell. His mercy review petition was sent to Indias apex Supreme Court, after being rejected in lower Indian courts, but was rejected on 3 November 2022.

The Supreme Court upheld the death sentence and said there were no mitigating circumstances in Ashfaqs favour. It underlined that the attack on the Red Fort posed a direct threat to the countrys unity, integrity, and sovereignty.

According to a former Indian civil servant who supervised the investigation into the attack, Ashfaq had camouflaged himself in India as a resident of Himalayan province Jammu.

He was arrested from Delhis eastern Ghazipur area where he was living as an Indian citizen, said Ashok Chand, the retired Indian Police Service officer told HT.

The attack on Red Fort was an attack on the countrys most important installations, he said.

Details of Ashfaqs execution on Indian soil have not been officially released.

The attack came a day after the Indian government extended its unilateral ceasefire in Kashmir by a month.

After Indias announcement of the extension, Pakistan declared a partial withdrawal of its troops from along the ceasefire line dividing the Himalayan province. The ceasefire announced by India was dismissed by the terrorist group as an attempt to "hoodwink" the world over alleged violations in Kashmir.

Lashkar-e-Taiba, whose name means "Army of the Pure", had launched a number of similar attacks against Indian army installations in the Indian-administered part of Kashmir.
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The parents of an autistic child allegedly murdered in Malaysia were charged with negligence on Thursday, a day after his grandparents were arrested by the police for investigation.

Zayn Rayya Abdul Matiin, 6, was found dead near a stream located about 200m from his house in Selangor state last December after he went missing the day before.

An autopsy at the time revealed injuries to his neck and body, prompting investigators to comb the surrounding areas in Damansara Damai.

The child's parents  Zaim Ikhwan Zahari and Ismanira Abdul Manaf  were arrested on 31 May and remanded for seven days to assist in the murder investigation. Their remand was extended by six days, before being charged at a Petaling Jaya Sessions Court on Thursday.

The parents, both 29, have pleaded not guilty to the charges that carry a prison sentence of up to 20 years, a maximum fine of RM50,000 (8,316), or both.

Deputy public prosecutor Ku Hayati Ku Haron asked the court to impose additional conditions for the couples passports to be impounded.

Fahmi Abdul Moin, the advocate representing Mr Ikhwan, said bail was only to secure attendance and should not be punitive. If the accused persons are not able to pay bail, this does not align with the principle of innocent until proven guilty.

We ask for a RM5,000 (831) bail. We have no issues with the additional conditions, he said, according to The Star.

Mahmud Jumaat, who represented the child's mother, argued that she was "suffering from a severe depression" following her son's death, which has "rendered her unable to work".

"At the same time, she is trying to get treatment for her other son who has speech delay and severe autism, Mr Mahmud told the court.

He also denied earlier allegations that Ms Manaf had recorded a confession, claiming that it was only a statement provided to the magistrate.

She reportedly told local reporters that her son was last seen by some schoolchildren entering the jungle near the building, which prompted her to file a police report.

"However, when the fire and rescue department and the police's K9 unit tried to search in that area, they reported finding no footprints or any clues indicating that my son was there," she was quoted by New Straits Times in December as saying.

Zayn Rayya's grandparents were released on bail on Thursday and were asked to report to the Petaling Jaya district police headquarters every month.

"I am certain that the grandparents will comply with police directives and will continue to cooperate closely in the hunt for the real perpetrator," their lawyer, Fahmi Abd Moin, told reporters.
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Greece has shut tourist attractions and closed schools as Athens is facing its first heatwave of the summer.

Authorities shut the ancient Acropolis tourist site, suspended schools and stationed medics across the capital city on Wednesday as it faced the first heatwave of the summer.

Temperatures were expected to hit 43 degrees Celsius (109 degrees Fahrenheit) on Wednesday and Thursday in parts of the Mediterranean country.

Conditions worsened in an area north of the capital, after a fire at a cookware and food container factory sent clouds of thick black smoke into the sky. Cellphone alerts sent by a government disaster response agency urged residents in the area to remain indoors.

The heatwave is believed to be driven by southerly winds bringing hot air and dust from North Africa.

The Acropolis hill, home to one of the worlds most famous archaeological sites that includes the Parthenon temple, was closed from noon to 5 pm and Red Cross staff handed out bottles of water to tourists.

Local press report tourists fainting while waiting in line.

City authorities announced that garbage collection would also be halted for several hours Wednesday and that seven air-conditioned spaces would be opened to the public. Drones with thermal cameras were being used in Athens to coordinate the public health response, officials said.

Tourists exit the ancient Acropolis in central Athens on Wednesday, June 12, 2024 ( AP )

Many primary schools and nurseries across the country will shut for two days.

In Cyprus a huge wildfire has destroyed homes and evacuated villages. The villages of Psathi, Choulou, and Lemona were evacuated.

President Nikos Christodoulides praised the superhuman efforts of the firefighting teams but confirmed the fire was not yet under control. Greece has sent two Canadair firefighting aircraft to help fight the wildfire.

A fire burns in a forest in the Cypriot village of Psathi on June 12, 2024 ( AFP via Getty Images )

Greece is one of the most climate-impacted countries in Europe. Last year, rising temperatures fuelled deadly wildfires and erratic rains caused some of the worst flooding on record, both of which damaged crops and livelihoods.

Last winter was the hottest on record and rainfall was low, creating the conditions for more fires, scientists say.

Similar conditions were seen last year across much of southern Europe, including Portugal, France, Spain and Italy where fires caused dozens of deaths.

In Greece, fires began earlier than expected this year, including one in March.

Firefighters and police were patrolling forests from air and land on Wednesday, ahead of what is expected to be a windy end to the week, raising the risk of fires spreading.

After last years destructive wildfires, including on the island of Rhodes which prompted the biggest evacuation in peace time, Greece has scaled up its preparations by hiring more staff and stepping up training.

To cope with the crisis, the country is fast-tracking a 2.1 billion euro ($2.3 billion) program to upgrade its fleet of water tankers and create an artificial intelligence-driven sensor network to detect smoke in the early stages of a fire.

But delivery of the new equipment wont start until next year, leaving planners to scramble to find alternatives to cut response times.
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Switzerlands parliament has rejected a historic climate ruling by the European Court of Human Rights, setting a worrying precedent for global climate action.

A group of over 2,000 Swiss women over the age of 64 won a landmark climate lawsuit at the court in April that said the government was violating their fundamental rights by not doing enough to tackle the climate crisis.

The group, called Senior Women for Climate Protection, argued that inaction meant that their government was putting them at risk of dying from heatwaves.

Switzerland, like many developed countries, has failed to meet targets to reduce planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions.

The case was touted to have set an international precedent for governments to be made legally accountable for inaction on the climate crisis.

Climate groups said the ruling would establish that protecting the environment and human health from the spiralling adverse impact of the climate crisis was a human right and force governments to act.

By rejecting the ruling, the Swiss parliament just set a concerning precedent for how such legal action could go in the future, experts said.

Isabela Keuschnigg, legal researcher at the London School of Economics, said the move could set a concerning precedent, undermining the role of legal oversight in democratic governance.

During a dramatic session of the parliament in Bern on Wednesday, Swiss lawmakers lambasted the European courts interference in the countrys politics and mocked the women as they looked on.

Michael Graber from the Swiss Peoples Party criticised the elderly women for bringing a case because they are a bit too hot in the summer, Reuters reported.

Its really disgraceful what just happened, Stefanie Brander, 68, told the news agency after the vote, shaking in anger.

Its an insult and a lack of respect of our rights which were confirmed by an international court.

Raphael Mahaim, a lawyer for the womens group and an MP for the Greens, said a red line was crossed.

It is a dishonour for parliament.

Activists gathered outside the parliament building held up signs saying betrayed, shocked, alarmed.

Swiss women protest outside the European Court of Human Rights in April ( AP )

No member country has ever refused to implement a judgment from the European human rights court, Andrew Cutting, a spokesperson for Council of Europe, told Reuters.

But data from the European Implementation Network shows decisions on nearly half of the most significant cases of the past decade are still pending implementation, even though the governments are legally bound to follow the courts judgments.

Whether Switzerlands Federal Council will comply with the ruling despite the parliaments decision remains unclear. The Swiss government has until October to report to the Council of Europe how it will implement the courts decision.

The womens group can complain to the Council of Europe if they feel Switzerland has not complied with the ruling.

The council, mandated to uphold human rights, democracy and the rule of law across the continent, oversees and enforces rulings made by the European Court of Human Rights.

It was considering doing that, Mr Mahaim told Reuters, possibly even before the October deadline given the parliaments action.

The Swiss womens lawsuit is one of a plethora of climate cases filed internationally in recent years. Climate litigation worldwide has nearly tripled since 2017.
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An invasive species of Asian mosquitos growing in Europe due to the climate crisis is believed to be behind a recent surge in dengue in the continent, with experts warning about a further increase in cases in the coming years.

Dengue cases have been rapidly rising across Europe, with some infections turning potentially severe, the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) warned on Tuesday.

The invasive species, called tiger mosquitos which is predominantly found in tropical countries, has been found in 13 countries in the European Union, the agency said, linking their discovery to significant rise in dengue cases this year.

The mosquito has become established in Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and Spain, according to the ECDC.

Tiger mosquitoes spread diseases like dengue fever, chikungunya and Zika virus which wreak havoc in tropical countries every year with millions of cases worldwide.

The species was earlier only found in warmer countries in Asia, Africa and the Americas. But with increased travel and increasing temperatures in Europe due to carbon pollution from burning coal, oil and gas, the summer season is creating an ideal atmosphere for the rise of these mosquitos, experts say.

Europe is already seeing how climate change is creating more favourable conditions for invasive mosquitoes to spread into previously unaffected areas and infect more people with diseases such as dengue, said ECDC director Andrea Ammon.

Increased international travel from dengue-endemic countries will also increase the risk of imported cases, and inevitably also the risk of local outbreaks.

There were 130 locally acquired cases of dengue in the EU last year, compared with just 71 in the ten-year period between 2010 and 2021.

Imported cases were also on the rise, with 1,572 cases in 2022 and 4,900 in 2023, the highest number since the start of EU monitoring in 2008.

While the number of infected people in Europe is currently small, we will see an increase in the coming years, Ms Ammon said.

Dengue fever, which is also known as breakbone fever due to the muscle spasm and joint pain it inflicts, starts to show its first symptoms after after four to 10 days of bite. Some of the symptoms are similar to the flu.

These mosquitoes spread the virus by biting an infected person and spreading it to another person through their bites.

According to the NHS, It is not usually serious and often gets better on its own. Some people get a more severe type of dengue, but this is rare.

In France, which is holding the Olympics in July, alarm bells have already started ringing this year.

A French health ministry official said earlier the authorities were fully mobilised and preparing for any possible infectious disease threats during the Olympics.

Just nine countries had recorded severe dengue outbreaks before the 1970s, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO) but warming temperatures and increasing interconnectedness of global trade and travel in the years since has spread the disease to almost the entire planet now.

open image in gallery A boy covers his mouth as a Sri Lankan health worker fumigates insecticide to curb mosquito breeding in an attempt to control dengue fever in Colombo, Sri Lanka ( EPA )

Ms Ammon advises that people take personal protective measures, adding that early detection of cases, timely surveillance, further research and awareness-raising activities are paramount in those areas in Europe most at risk.

The rise in dengue cases is not the only concern. Experts warn that conditions might also lead to an increase in malaria incidents in the future.

Scientific data shows that Europe is the fastest warming continent. The lack of investment in healthcare systems to manage tropical diseases, which were once rare but are now becoming more widespread in Europe, could have serious consequences.

Last year, the UN health agencys dengue chief Dr Raman Velayudhan warned of a really worrying expansion of the viruss global spread in 2022  in which the climate crisis has played a key role.

The tiger mosquito has also been detected by authorities in the UK on multiple occasions since 2016, in Englands southeast.

According to one 2019 study published in the Journal of the Royal Society Interface, these mosquitoes could become established across nearly all of England and Wales by the 2060s.

There are concerns that incidents of malaria could also spike on the continent in the future, if conditions are right.

According to the WHO, between 100-400 million people globally are infected with dengue annually, with about 100 million becoming ill and 21,000 succumbing to the disease.

The rise in dengue cases is a global phenomenon. The number of locally transmitted cases has been increasing in the USA, Italy, and France, with Spain recording its first cases in many years. In 2022, the American continent registered 2.8 million cases of dengue, more than double the 1.2 million cases in 2021.
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Nicola Coughlan has addressed speculation that her waist appeared Photoshopped in Bridgerton.

The Irish actor, 37, recently opened up to People about accusations from fans of the Netflix historical romance-drama, who believe that the size of her waist was edited on the show. I saw some trolls. They were like: They photoshopped your waist, and I was like: No, they did not, Coughlan told the outlet on Wednesday, June 12.

Instead, Coughlan  who portrays Penelope Featherington in the series  revealed that her appearance on Bridgerton had much to do with the shows Regency era-inspired costumes.

I think if you wear corsetry for long enough, your body really molds to it, the Derry Girls star explained. Sometimes they come in a fitting for a fashion designer and they put a corset on me and Im like: Oh, you can go tight, and they go: What do you mean? Im like: My body now will go whew.

As for Luke Newton, who portrays Colin Bridgerton in the series, he told People hes not complaining about the mens far less restrictive costumes on the show.

I dont wear a corset, I dont wear heels, but it really does change your posture, which feels good and it really helps with the character, Newton said of his characters waistcoats. But then as soon as Im off set, I want to be in the most comfortable outfit.

open image in gallery Luke Newton as Colin Bridgerton and Nicola Coughlan as Penelope Featherington in season three of Bridgerton ( LIAM DANIEL/NETFLIX )

Most recently, Coughlan hit back at a fan who called her brave for filming nude scenes in the Shonda Rhimes-led series. During a screening of the second part of Bridgerton season three in Dublin, Ireland, Coughlan poked fun at the fans remark that she was very brave for showing off her body in Bridgerton.

You know, it is hard, cause I think women with my body type, women with perfect breasts We do not get to see ourselves onscreen enough, she quipped during the Q&A session, according to a viral video shared on X. I am a proud member of the perfect breasts community, and I hope you enjoy seeing them.

The third season of Bridgerton returns to Netflix on Thursday, June 13 at 3am ET with part two of Penelope Featherington and Colin Bridgertons love story. The first four episodes of season three were released on May 16 and are available to stream on Netflix.
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Angelina Jolie has given a rare insight into her close relationship with her 15-year-old daughter, Vivienne.

The 49-year-old actor recently praised her teenage daughter, whom she had collaborated with during the production of the Broadway musical, The Outsiders. Jolie served as producer on the musical, while Vivienne worked as her assistant.

In an interview with Deadline published on 10 June, the Maleficent star praised Vivienne and explained how she was the one who inspired her to become involved in the project. Speaking to the outlet, Jolie shared that Vivienne attended several stage productions of The Outsiders at La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, California  before the show moved to Broadway  and finally convinced her mother to attend a show.

My daughter Viv loves theater. She appreciates all theater but she certainly knows what she feels close to and what she responds to. She went to see The Outsiders at La Jolla about five times and was telling me about it, and I had read the book, and Id seen the film years ago, Jolie said.

The Outsiders musical, based on the 1967 SE Hinton novel of the same name and Francis Ford Coppolas 1983 film adaptation, follows the same story of 14-year-old Ponyboy Curtis and two rival gangs in rural Oklahoma. The stage production, directed by Danya Taymor, received 12 Tony Awards following its move to Broadway last April.

The mother of six said it was important for her to understand why her daughter had enjoyed the coming-of-age story so much, and witness firsthand the effect it was having on my young daughter.

I was learning what about it was important to her and why it connected so deeply to her, Jolie said.

The Oscar-winning actor immediately became involved as a producer with her daughter by her side, as they offered creative notes and suggestions for the cast and crew of the Broadway show. When asked exactly what it was about The Outsiders that resonated with Vivienne so much, Jolie reportedly let out a laugh.

open image in gallery Angelina Jolie attends Eternals premiere in Los Angeles with children Maddox, Vivienne, Zahara, Shiloh and Knox on 18 October 2021 ( Getty Images for Disney )

Oh, its hard to speak for her, because shes a complex young woman, she admitted. I think its just that its very deep, and its honest, and it doesnt shy away from real feelings and real discussion and real pain. I think maybe every person that watches it might identify slightly more with one character or another, right, but what I think you see through it all is there is pain in life, right? There is fear. There is, Who am I and where do I belong? There is, Why are these people marginalized and harmed more than others? Why do these people kill themselves? What is it were facing in life?

I think a lot of young people, especially today, these are very difficult times, and they want to have that real discussion, and they want to know what helps you get through life.

In addition to Vivienne, Jolie shares five other children with her ex-husband, Brad Pitt: Maddox, 22, Pax, 20, Zahara, 19, Shiloh, 18, and Knox, also 15. The Girl, Interrupted stars gushing comments about Vivienne come amid much speculation about Pitts reported estrangement from his children.

Last month, People reported that the 15-year-old was listed as Vivienne Jolie, rather than Jolie-Pitt, in the Playbill program for The Outsiders on Broadway. While it was unclear if Viviennes name change was a legal adjustment or a professional choice, her older sister Shiloh legally requested to drop Pitt from her last name on the day she turned 18, according to documents obtained by TMZ.

Meanwhile, a viral video previously revealed that Zahara was introduced by her universitys sorority as Zahara Marley Jolie  also excluding her fathers last name.

There have been many reports of a strained relationship between Pitt and his children following the former couples split in 2016  after two years of marriage and 12 years together. Jolie is said to have filed for divorce after an incident that occurred on a private flight from France to Los Angeles in September that year.

The court filings, which were obtained by The New York Times, claimed that Pitt choked one of the children and struck another in the face and grabbed Jolie by the head and shook her. The filing also stated that, at one point, he poured beer on Jolie; at another, he poured beer and red wine on the children.

Representatives for Pitt refuted the allegations as completely untrue, while his lawyer Anne Kiley said that Pitt had been on the receiving end of every type of personal attack and misrepresentation but would not own anything he didnt do.

Brad will continue to respond in court as he has consistently done, Kiley said.
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A self-described old romantic took his girlfriend on a mystery holiday to Barbados, where he shocked her with a surprise proposal followed by a fully organised wedding just three days later.

Adam Blakey, 40, from Blackpool in Lancashire, whisked away his girlfriend of seven years, Victoria, 41, to the Caribbean island of Barbados in April, convincing her the trip was to celebrate his 40th birthday, when in reality he had organised a proposal and wedding without his wifes knowledge.

The entrepreneur kicked off the surprises before their Barbados trip at Manchester Airport where he brought along Victorias parents who had not left the country for more than 15 years, and continued the theme when he and Victoria shocked their close friends and family with their secret marriage when they arrived home.

Adam chose Barbados to honour Victorias Caribbean heritage and proposed to her while surrounded by roses placed in a heart shape on the beach outside their hotel, before marrying in the same location just days later.

Adam, who was previously married, had planned to marry Victoria sooner, but said finalising papers for his divorce took seven years, which was not helped by the coronavirus pandemic.

open image in gallery Victoria and Adam Blakey exchanging vows at their wedding in Barbados (Collect/PA Real Life) ( PA )

He added that he felt the need to take the weight of wedding planning off his partners shoulders as a thank you for her patience.

Adam, who started planning the wedding in early January 2024, just a week after his divorce was finalised, said: I always knew that I wanted to marry her, but the topic of marriage was a difficult conversation, and she was so patient about it.

I was trying to reassure her (the divorce) was lengthy due to problems in it, but she was so patient with the whole process that it made me love her even more.

I did not want to be in a long, drawn (out) engagement for years and years where shes going to wait for her dream wedding because shes already waiting.

I wanted to plan the whole wedding for her so that all she has to do is basically say yes, and then everything from there happens.

open image in gallery Adam Blakey (right), with wife, Victoria (right) and Victoria's parents (left) at Manchester Airport (Collect/PA Real Life) ( PA )

Adam managed to keep his plans under wraps from Victoria as every year he organises a surprise holiday for them where his wife never knows the destination, and on this occasion, he also blindfolded her so he could bring her parents to the airport in secret.

She thought she was going away in April for my 40th birthday, he explained.

Im a bit of an old romantic so I always take her away, but she never knows where shes going.

When we actually went away, she wasnt surprised by the fact that she didnt know because for seven years thats all weve done, and weve travelled and done some crazy stuff.

When we got to the airport she was blindfolded and she genuinely thought it was just part of the process. She didnt think of anything like that.

She took the blindfold off and she saw her mum and dad at the airport and she absolutely freaked out.

open image in gallery Family and friends watching Adam Blakey's wedding videos (Collect/PA Real Life) ( PA )

Adam organised for his wifes parents to join them in Barbados, which Victoria described as the best surprise you could ever do in your whole life.

All of us were sitting there thinking, just wait a couple of days, Adam said.

Adam and Victoria enjoyed a day of swimming with sea turtles, seeing shipwrecks and riding a catamaran before Adams sea sickness and nerves set in leading up to the proposal on April 14  the same day as his 40th birthday.

He got down on one knee at the beach surrounded by roses shaped like a heart, saying: We were walking along, it was all lit up and all of the lights were positioned so that it really made the heart shape pop.

All the candles were really romantic, the sea was just a perfect level  it wasnt too close in, but you could hear it in the background.

The steel drummers were playing on the side, so it sounded great and it was just absolutely perfect. It was like something from a film. It was magical.

While the proposal may have taken Victoria by surprise, the fact Adam had already planned the wedding to take place days later prompted more shock.

In the wedding proposal I said, Look, Ive been planning this whole thing for the last three months and our whole wedding day in two days time and then she just freaks out, he said.

But shes in on the plan then.

Originally, Adam wanted to marry his partner one day after the proposal, on April 15, but was advised by a local wedding dress shop he needed time to accommodate for Victorias alterations.

The couple instead married on the same beach in an intimate ceremony with Victorias parents and around 15 guests from the hotel, who heard about the surprise wedding and wanted to join, on April 17.

open image in gallery Adam and Victoria Blakey with Victoria's parents on the night of proposal on Christchurch beach in Barbados (Collect/PA Real Life) ( PA )

Adam said: The craziest thing that happened over there, believe it or not, was on the day of the wedding. Her nans favourite song was Somewhere Over The Rainbow, so we had that playing on the steel drums as she was walking down the aisle.

Barbados that day had a sun halo. Theyve never had one before. Its a perfect rainbow around the sun, which was just crazy and thats what she walked down the aisle to. It was just meant to be, obviously.

It was just incredible, we all couldnt believe it.

Adam joked he had created a surprise within a surprise for the couples return, as he had organised a party with their close friends and family under the guise of it being his 40th birthday celebrations, before revealing their marriage.

He said: I planned a big surprise 40th birthday for me. I got my parents and her parents involved to plan.

Everyone was thinking they were coming to my 40th as well as Vics birthday, but then we walked in and surprised them with actually being married.

It was like a surprise within a surprise within a surprise, which is just crazy.

The couple, who have been together for seven years, met on Tinder, and Adam knew early on he wanted to marry Victoria.

He said: She was my Tinderella, she always says.

I knew I wanted to marry her from day one, genuinely. I was head over heels and it just worked. When you know, you know.

Recognising she would not be able to witness the planning of her own wedding, Adam also filmed every stage of the process for her.

Because she wasnt involved in the planning stages, which shes very thankful for because its so stressful, I wanted to record the whole thing for her so she could watch it back and see every step from me going to ask her mum and dads permission, to going into the ring shop, suits, and everything in between, he said.

The couple have since shared their videos on TikTok, with one video about their parents reaction to the surprise earning nearly 40,000 views.

To find out more, visit: www.tiktok.com/@thesecretweddinghq.

If money was never an object, wed love to gift someone else the gift of a secret wedding, said Adam.
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Have you heard its the summer of the Hot Rodent Boyfriend? No, me neither.

Sadly, Pizza Rat has not had a glow-up and found love in New York City. The latest internet trend is something far more insidious and gross. It seems that a certain faction of the internet has decided that the desirable male aesthetic for the coming months is anthropomorphic vermin.

As a single man with shorter stature who has on occasion been referred to as an annoying little rat, I should be thrilled by this new trend. Lines of eligible ladies suddenly willing and eager to engage in a heady fling from June through September. Id certainly be onboard.

But no, the Hot Rodent Boyfriend trend is the latest demonstration that we as an online society have lost our collective minds. In brief: a Hot Rodent Boyfriend is a conventionally attractive man, typically a celebrity, who, if compared to an animal, would fall into the mouse or rat range.

Harmless enough perhaps, especially when we consider such du-jour Hollywood hunks as Josh OConnor or Tom Holland, with their angular faces and cutesy affability. Its also hard to deny that Jeremy Allen White doesnt embody certain characteristics of Remy from Ratatouille while scuttling around the kitchen in The Bear.

open image in gallery Challengers stars Josh OConnor and Mike Faist are two du-jour celebrities who have been branded with the supposedly complimentary moniker ( 2024 Invision )

Im sure, too, that some men wouldnt mind being compared to choice fictional rodents, such as the suave, sophisticated, tuxedo-wearing Roddy, from DreamWorks 2006 animated masterpiece Flushed Away, or the timeless classic that is Stuart Little.

At the end of the day though, you are just describing men as rats  an animal that is historically associated with cunning, filth and a literal plague that wiped out around 25 million people across Continental Europe in the 14th century.

This is not to say that some men dont deserve the moniker, exhibiting behavior that more than qualifies them as a dirty little pest and a scourge on society, but its a bit jarring that were suddenly flipping the age-old narrative and that being compared to a rat is now a good thing.

Other features on the various lists of Hot Rodent Boyfriends include: beady eyes, large sticky-out ears, and, as one outlet so candidly put it, something going on with his mouth and nose. How charming.

open image in gallery But who wouldnt want to be compared to this true Hollywood icon? ( Columbia TriStar )

Does the ideal man now also live, wiry-haired and dirty, among piles of trash and discarded vapes in the dark, nibbling on left-over, rotting food items? In the modern world, its a concept that wouldnt be too difficult to realize.

The set criteria for this new fad are also ludicrously vague. In the 10 minutes I spent Googling (more than it deserves quite frankly) I saw lists of Hot Rodent Boyfriends, one of which included both Timothee Chalamet and Glen Powell  two men at absolute polar opposites of the straight, white, male scale. Willy Wonka vs Top Gun: Maverick!

We must conclude, therefore, that rats are as diverse as the men that are being compared. Any man can be a rat, so presumably any man can be another, less offensive animal  like a seal or whatever.

And how would it be if we carried over such animal comparison crazes to the other side? What if the internet started a trend that compared famous women to, say, anteaters? Hot Anteater Girlfriend Summer. There would be uproar.

Of course thats an extremely facetious take and it isnt like that in reality. Women face constant public scrutiny over body image, and beauty standards that men cant even begin to comprehend.

We should probably count ourselves fortunate that even if we look like a weird, scraggly little goblin, we occasionally get a moment where the internet thinks were hot. #KieranCulkin.

Indeed, the viral X post that supposedly kicked off the current rodent-partner trend stated that: Men are either eagle handsome, bear handsome, dog handsome, or reptilian handsome. So still handsome in some way.

Whichever way you want to spin it though, comparing anyone to a rat or rat adjacent species is simply not nice. Its actually quite mean.

open image in gallery The internet seems to be currently obsessed with comparing famous men, including Glen Powell, to anthropomorphic vermin ( Getty Images for Netflix )

Its not as if the internet cant come up with nice trends either. Last year, attractive male celebrities were described as so babygirl. Im personally still not too sure what that means, but it seemed to be largely positive.

Before that, Golden Retriever Boyfriends were a thing, which appeared to celebrate men being goofy, loyal and having nice hair (albeit a bit dopey). Travis Kelce was classed as one of those, though perhaps thats because no one would dare call him a rat to his face.

As with all internet trends, Im sure that Hot Rodent Boyfriend will scurry away soon enough, and hopefully the next one will actually involve us going outside. Next year Im pitching: Hot Friends Summer Where We Get Off Our Bloody Phones And Do Fun Activities In The Park.

Until then I guess youll find me down on the subway tracks, dragging a slice of pizza around and looking for love.
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A U.S. Navy submarine has arrived in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in a show of force as a fleet of Russian warships gather for planned military exercises in the Caribbean.

U.S. Southern Command said the USS Helena, a nuclear-powered fast attack submarine, pulled into the waters near the U.S. base in Cuba on Thursday, just a day after a Russian frigate, a nuclear-powered submarine, an oil tanker and a rescue tug crossed into Havana Bay after drills in the Atlantic Ocean.

The stop is part of a routine port visit as the submarine travels through Southern Command's region, it said in a social media post.

Other U.S. ships also have been tracking and monitoring the Russian drills, which Pentagon officials say do not represent a threat to the United States.

This is not a surprise. Weve seen them do these type of port calls before, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said Wednesday when asked about the Russian drills. We of course take it seriously, but these exercises dont pose a threat to the United States.

A U.S. submarine has pulled into Guantanamo Bay as a show of force after a Russian fleet (pictured) arrived in Cuba days earlier. ( AFP via Getty Images )

The exercises, however, come less than two weeks after President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to use U.S.-provided weapons to strike inside Russia to protect Kharkiv, Ukraines second-largest city. Russian President Vladimir Putin then suggested his military could respond with asymmetrical steps elsewhere in the world.

Singh said it wouldn't be a surprise to see more Russian activity around the United States in such global exercises. The drills are in international waters, and U.S. officials expect the Russian ships to remain in the region through the summer and possibly also stop in Venezuela.

Russia is a longtime ally of Venezuela and Cuba, and its warships and aircraft have periodically made forays into the Caribbean.

Russian ships have occasionally docked in Havana since 2008, when a group of Russian vessels entered Cuban waters in what state media described as the first such visit in almost two decades. In 2015, a reconnaissance and communications ship arrived unannounced in Havana a day before the start of discussions between U.S. and Cuban officials on the reopening of diplomatic relations.
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U.S. bishops want to assure Native Catholics that they dont need to feel torn between their Native identity and their Catholic one.

You do not have to be one or the other. You are both. Your cultural embodiment of the faith is a gift to the Church, according to a draft obtained by the Associated Press of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops new guidelines for serving Indigenous Catholics.

In the works for a few years, the document was completed as new details emerged during the past two years of widespread abuses inflicted on Native children over many decades at Catholic-run boarding schools.

Called Keeping Christs Sacred Promise: A Pastoral Framework for Indigenous Ministry, the document is up for approval at this weeks USCCB meeting in Louisville, Kentucky.

It is meant to help bishops refocus and invigorate ministry among Indigenous populations in the United States, said Bishop Chad Zielinski, chair of the USCCBs subcommittee on Native American Affairs, who presented the draft framework on Thursday afternoon.

It "gives shape to ideas that Catholic Native leadership has been voicing for the past several years in listening sessions sponsored by the subcommittee, he said.

The proposed pastoral framework, created with input from Native Catholics, is not meant to be an exhaustive, one-size-fits-all directive on ministering to the diverse array of Indigenous Catholics. Rather, it is guidance that can be adapted by dioceses, clergy and lay people to fit within the various cultural contexts of the people they are serving. It covers everything from evangelism and sacred music to boarding schools and marriage and family.

Native Americans make up about 3.5% of U.S. Catholics and more than 350 parishes serve predominantly Indigenous people, according to USCCB statistics.

Through praying, listening and seeking healing and reconciliation, the bishops, in the new draft, are committing to revitalizing their Native Catholic ministry.

It is relationship that has been strained by the Catholic Churchs involvement in past traumas that affected Native people, including operating at least 80 of the more than 500 government-funded Indigenous boarding schools in 19th and 20th centuries. The schools were part of a federal forced-assimilation program that ripped children from their families and suppressed their culture.

The pastoral framework draft acknowledges the churchs role, and offers an apology for failing to care well for Indigenous Catholics who have felt abandoned because church leaders ignored their unique cultural needs.

Healing and reconciliation can only take place when the Church acknowledges the wounds perpetrated on her Indigenous children and humbly listens as they voice their experiences, the pastoral framework draft states, and adds that those efforts should be led by Indigenous communities.

The majority of the boarding schools were run by the government, but Protestant and Catholic churches operated many of them.

Conditions varied at the schools, which some former students described as unsafe, unsanitary and scenes of physical or sexual abuse. Other former students recall their school years as positive times of learning, friendship and extracurricular activities. Indigenous groups note that even the better schools were part of a project to assimilate children  what many Indigenous groups call a cultural genocide.

Fostering dialogue and engaging in other efforts to reconcile involvement remains an important priority of the USCCB on the issue of boarding school accountability as we walk with the impacted communities in their path towards healing, said USCCB spokesperson Chieko Noguchi.

A recent Washington Post report found sexual abuse of Native children by clergy was pervasive at 22 Catholic-run boarding schools in the U.S. At least 122 priests, sisters and brothers were accused of sexually abusing the children in their care. The USCCB worked with the outlets reporters, Noguchi said, because we agree that this painful story needs to be told. This story is part of the ongoing process to learn what happened and better understand how we can work toward healing.

The bishops are expected to vote on whether to adopt the final version on Friday morning.

Basil Brave Heart, an Oglala Lakota boarding school survivor from the Pine Ridge reservation in South Dakota, said any pastoral plan needs to draw on the wisdom found in Indigenous spirituality and languages.

If theyre going to do that, I think they need a lot of communication with Native Americans, he said.

He has spoken out about his experiences as a boarding school student at Holy Rosary Mission in Pine Ridge, where he said he was forbidden from speaking his native language and had his long hair, considered sacred, cut shot. He currently partakes in Lakota spiritual practices while also attending Catholic Mass.

He said Catholic churches on the reservation are often empty and that if the church wants to keep the Native people in the congregation, I dont have the answer, but one of the things they need to do is change the liturgy.

___

Associated Press reporter Peter Smith, in Pittsburgh, contributed to this report.

___

Associated Press religion coverage receives support through the APs collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
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Gov. Ron DeSantis' appointees on Wednesday gave final approval to an agreement that buries the hatchet between Disney and the governing district for Walt Disney World, which the Florida governor took over after the company two years ago publicly opposed a state law critics dubbed Don't Say Gay.

The five DeSantis-appointed board members to the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District unanimously voted to approve a 15-year development deal in which the district committed to making infrastructure improvements in exchange for Disney investing up to $17 billion into Disney World over the next two decades.

The agreement followed a detente in March in which both sides agreed to stop litigating each other in state court and work towards negotiating a new development agreement and a new comprehensive plan no later than next year. The district provides municipal services such as firefighting, planning and mosquito control, among other things, and was controlled by Disney supporters before the takeover by the DeSantis appointees.

District board member Brian Aungst said at Wednesday's board meeting that the agreement provides a lasting and stable framework for Disney and the board to work together.

This is the day we all have been looking forward to, Aungst said. I was always extremely optimistic and knew we would get here because it was the right outcome.

Under the deal, Disney will be required to donate up to 100 acres (40 hectares) of Disney Worlds 24,000 acres (9,700 hectares) for the construction of infrastructure projects controlled by the district. The company also will need to award at least half of its construction projects to companies based in Florida and spend at least $10 million on affordable housing for central Florida.

Disney would then be approved to build a fifth major theme park at Disney World and two more minor parks, such as water parks, if it desired. The company could raise the number of hotel rooms on its property from almost 40,000 rooms to more than 53,000 rooms and increase the amount of retail and restaurant space by more than 20%. Disney will retain control of building heights due to its need to maintain an immersive environment.

Leaders of Orlando's tourism industry praised the agreement, telling the district's board members that it will bring boundless jobs, tourists and attention to central Florida.

It very clearly demonstrates to the world that the district and Disney are eager to resume working together for the great state of Florida, said Robert Earl, founder and CEO of Planet Hollywood International, Inc.

Still up in the air was an appeal of a federal lawsuit Disney had filed against DeSantis and his appointees. Disney had asked the appellate court to put that case on hold temporarily after the settlement was reached in March. The company has until next week to file a brief with the court if it wants to move ahead with the case.

Disney afternoon didn't respond to an email Wednesday afternoon seeking comment on how the company planned to proceed. The DeSantis appointees to the district had planned to hold a closed-door discussion about the lawsuit after their board meeting Wednesday but cancelled that meeting.

Matthew Oberly, a spokesperson for the district, said Wednesday night that the district didn't have any comment on the future of the federal litigation.

The March settlement ended almost two years of litigation sparked by DeSantis takeover of the district following the companys opposition to the 2022 law that bans classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades. The law was championed by the Republican governor, who used Disney as a punching bag in speeches during his run for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination until he suspended his campaign earlier this year.

As punishment for Disneys opposition to the controversial law, DeSantis took over the governing district through legislation passed by the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature and appointed a new board of supervisors. Disney sued DeSantis and his appointees, claiming the companys free speech rights were violated for speaking out against the legislation. A federal judge dismissed that lawsuit in January, but Disney appealed.

Before control of the district changed hands early last year, the Disney supporters on its board signed agreements with the company shifting control over design and construction at Disney World to the company. The new DeSantis appointees claimed the eleventh-hour deals neutered their powers, and the district sued the company in state court in Orlando to have the contracts voided.

Disney filed counterclaims that included asking the state court to declare the agreements valid and enforceable. Those state court lawsuits were dismissed as part of the March settlement.

___

Follow Mike Schneider on the social platform X: @MikeSchneiderAP.
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A Colombian military hospital would provide medical treatment to Palestinian children injured in the Israel-Hamas war under a plan announced Thursday by the countrys Foreign Ministry.

Colombia's Deputy Minister of Multilateral Affairs Elizabeth Taylor Jay told reporters the children would travel with their families to Colombia for rehabilitation. She did not provide further details, including the number of children who would receive treatment, when they would arrive in Colombia or how long they would remain in the country.

Neither the foreign ministry nor the office of President Gustavo Petro immediately responded to a request for additional information from The Associated Press. Taylor Jay made the announcement during Petros trip to Sweden.

The United Arab Emirates, Jordan and Germany have been receiving Palestinians in need of medical treatment as a result of the war that began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and taking some 250 others hostage.

Israeli bombardments and ground operations in Gaza have killed more than 36,000 Palestinians, according to the Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians.

Historically, Colombia had been one of Israels closest partners in Latin America. But relations between the two nations have cooled since Petro was elected as Colombias first leftist president in 2022.

Weeks after the Hamas attack on southern Israel, Petro recalled Colombias ambassador to Israel as he criticized the countrys military offensive. In May, he broke diplomatic ties with Israel saying that he could not maintain relations with the genocidal government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Taylor Jay on Thursday said the government believes injured children can be treated by Colombian military doctors in part due to the expertise they have acquired while caring for people wounded during Colombias decadeslong internal conflict.

Since the Israel-Hamas war broke, Colombia has repatriated 310 of its citizens on three humanitarian flights. Petro also granted Colombian nationality to a Palestinian woman, married to a Colombian man, who was trapped in Gaza with two of her Colombian children. The family settled in the South American country in November.

___

Follow APs coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
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Professor Brian Cox hopes a new Classic FM show will encourage listeners to look at the existential terror of the universe.

The English physicist, 56, who was a keyboard player for bands Dare and D:Ream, is known for presenting BBC science programmes Wonders Of The Solar System, Forces Of Nature and Stargazing Live.

He will join Globals Classic FM station to host his first Saturday show from 9pm to 10pm for six weeks.

The programme called Symphony Of Science With Brian Cox is themed around composers and the cosmos, and will not draw on the Manchester University professor of particle physics rock music beginnings.

Asked if he hopes people can stargaze listening to the classical music, Cox told the PA news agency: Theres no substitute for going out and experiencing the existential terror of the universe by looking at it.

I hope theyre (listeners) out there maybe listening to some of these great pieces of music and then look at the stars and get even more terrified it will scare the audience into running back inside and putting the music on.

And finding even less comfort then, because then you listen to (Richard) Wagner or (Richard) Strauss or something, whose inspired by (existentialist writer Friedrich) Nietzsche and (its) even more terrifying.

When asked if he was hoping to terrify people, Cox said it is the appropriate response to our position within nature, before saying that he wants to encourage people not to hide but to face the full terror of the infinite.

He will also examine composers, classical music eras and the corresponding scientific discoveries as well as scientists who play and compose music, physics in films, and the science of music  exploring the Mozart effect and music theory.

Cox said that though science can explain reality and the size and scale of the observable universe, it does not reveal what we should be making of the world.

Ive believed, for a very long time, that music and for that matter literature, philosophy, (these are) a different light, that we can shine on that problem, he added.

It's interesting to take snapshot in time, and listen to the music that was being written and performed at that time, and the scientific ideas that were being generated or discovered Professor Brian Cox

Ive never thought of music and science and the arts in general of being distinct pursuits or separate from each other, I think theyre all ways in which we humans explore our reality and our place in history.

He added that music and theories can coincide, highlighting that in 1915 theoretical physicist Albert Einstein published his theory of relativity and Finnish composer Jean Sibelius released his fifth symphony.

Both those things can be seen in a way thats feeding into that zeitgeist or perhaps representations of it, Cox added.

And so I think its interesting to take snapshot in time, and listen to the music that was being written and performed at that time, and the scientific ideas that were being generated or discovered.

Music will include English composer Gustav Holsts The Planets, Also Sprach Zarathustra by Strauss as well as works from Renaissance and Baroque composers such as William Byrd and Johann Sebastian Bach, and soundtracks by Joker film composer Hildur Guonadottir and Wendy Carlos, known for A Clockwork Orange.

The hope is that if there are people with an interest in science but have not really thought about this kind of music before, and we are talking about some of the greatest music ever written, then theyll be introduced to it, Cox said.

And were hoping that people who are into music, but maybe not so much the scientific aspects will also be introduced to the idea.

So Im hoping that there are multiple audiences here and anyone who listened to it gets introduced to something new, be it a scientific idea or musical idea, then thats wonderful.

Symphony Of Science With Brian Cox begins on Saturday at 9pm, and will last for six weeks.
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The University of Cambridge has repatriated more than three dozen traditional artifacts to Uganda in a major act of restitution welcomed by the local officials who sought them.

Some of the objects were shown exclusively to AP journalists on Wednesday. The British university returned the 39 items, which range from tribal regalia to delicate pottery, to the East African country on Saturday.

The items remain the property of the collection of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology at Cambridge, which is loaning them to Uganda for an initial period of three years, said Mark Elliott, the museum's senior curator in anthropology.

Elliott described it as "very much a museum-to-museum collaboration" that stems from years of talks about the possibility of returning objects deemed exceptionally powerful and exceptionally sensitive to communities whose belongings they were.

The objects, selected by Ugandan curators, represent a small fraction of about 1,500 ethnographic objects from Uganda that Cambridge has owned for a century. Cambridge acquired most as donations from private collections, and many were given by an Anglican missionary active in Uganda in the 1890s and early 20th century.

Uganda was declared a British protectorate in 1894. Independence came in 1962.

"It's about putting these objects back in the hands of the Ugandan people," Elliott said. These objects have been away from home for so long."

The next step is to research their contemporary significance and to help make decisions about their future, he said.

The Uganda Museum in the capital, Kampala, is expected to put on a temporary exhibition of the objects next year.

Ugandas agreement with Cambridge is renewable, allowing for the possibility of a permanent loan and perhaps local ownership, said Jackline Nyiracyiza, Ugandan government commissioner in charge of museums and monuments.

Sixty years that have passed for us now to get 39 objects, she said. We are working now with the Cambridge team to ... see that we talk to other museums and be able to repatriate others maybe next year or within the near future.

Ugandan officials, seeking such restitution, first traveled to Cambridge in 2022 as more African governments started to demand accountability over items of aesthetic or cultural value that were looted before and during the colonial era.

Elsewhere in Africa, including the West African nation of Nigeria, there have been successful restitution events in recent years.

Nelson Abiti, principal curator of the Uganda Museum, spoke of the Cambridge deal as a breakthrough that could prove exemplary for other museums with ethnographic items from Uganda.

This is the biggest single movement of objects returned to the African continent in recent years, Abiti asserted.

Still, restitution remains a struggle for African governments, and the African Union has put the return of looted cultural property on its agenda. The continental body aims to have a common policy on the issue.
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Islamist preacher Anjem Choudary took a caretaker role in directing banned terrorist organisation Al-Muhajiroun (ALM), a trial has heard.

The 57-year-old, of Ilford, east London, is also accused of being a member of the proscribed organisation for many years and encouraging support for it through online meetings.

Prosecutor Tom Little KC, opening the trial at Woolwich Crown Court on Thursday, said that Choudary had a warped and twisted mindset.

He said: Anjem Choudary has been a member of that organisation for many years and he also directed that terrorist organisation for a significant period of time from 2014 onwards and more recently he has also encouraged support for that organisation by addressing online meetings of the Islamic Thinkers Society.

At the time that he did so, the Islamic Thinkers Society (ITS) was, we say, part and parcel of the same terrorist organisation, so that is ALM.

Anjem Choudary did much of that, we say, whilst the spiritual leader of ALM was incarcerated in prison in the Lebanon. So in the absence of his leader, Anjem Choudary took a caretaker role at ALM for some of the time.

Islamist preacher Anjem Choudary ( Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistribu )

The court heard terror organisations may lurk in the shadows to avoid being identified.

Mr Little told jurors: During the period that you will be considering, ALM was not always active.

There were times when arrests and interventions limited what they were able to do.

But we suggest, Anjem Choudary never gave up. He bided, we say, his time.

Similarly, there were also occasions when the Islamic Thinkers Society may have been distinct from ALM.

But it was not distinct from ALM when Anjem Choudary was regularly and passionately lecturing to ITS in 2022 and the first half of 2023.

Also on trial is Khaled Hussein, 29, from Canada, who prosecutors say was a follower and dedicated supporter of Choudary.

He has pleaded not guilty to membership of ALM, while Choudary denies directing a terrorist organisation, being a member of a proscribed organisation and addressing meetings to encourage support for a proscribed organisation.

Mr Little continued: These two defendants were, we say, members of and belonged to ALM.

They both have a radical mindset. They both share that warped and twisted mindset.

The trial continues.
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Accommodation prices in Edinburgh are being inflated by as much as 1,125 a night during the Fringe festival sparking backlash across the arts sector.

In one case, festivalgoers could pay as much as 2,000 to stay in a prime Edinburgh location for the night, The Independent has discovered.

The 2,000-a-night Royal Mile flat costs a considerably cheaper  but still expensive  875 a night including service and cleaning charges in July as opposed to August.

The problem is reportedly worse than ever because of new short-let regulations introduced in Scotland in October 2023, which require hosts and hotels to have a licence or face a fine of up to 2,500.

Other notable examples of the problem include a Georgian townhouse which typically rents for 450 a night on Airbnb (or 702 including the cleaning and service fees), but during this years festival, it costs a total of 1,111 a night  once again reflecting an almost 50 per cent increase in the base price at festival time.

While these are extreme examples, even the most basic accommodation will set festivalgoers and performers back a significant amount of money.

Even cheaper Edinburgh accommodation dramatically increases in price in August ( PA )

The cheapest available private rooms in August, according to Booking.com, will set festivalgoers back just under 100 a night and many of these are available in student accommodation as opposed to actual hotels.

In a lot of cases, this accommodation is already completely sold out, leaving only hotels predominately charging over 300 a night.

Even hostels in Edinburgh, which are the cheapest available option, are expensive during this years festival and a bed in a mixed-gender dormitory of up to 24 people will set festivalgoers back a minimum of 64 a night or 1,920 for the month.

The problem is particularly affecting performers, who often attempt to stay in the city for the entire month and have additional costs incurred by the shows they put on.

Becca, a comedy writer who lives in Edinburgh, told The Independent: Its awful on every level. First with people who can afford to buy properties to rent out beat first-time buyers who want to live in Edinburgh all year round. Or people who already own to rent out will turf out long-term tenants because they can make more with Airbnb-style letting.

Then from a Fringe perspective, that kind of pricing means that newer acts or less mainstream acts cant afford to put on shows up here. Its not financially worth it, even for some big names and the moniker of Fringe is becoming more and more ironic as each year passes.

The council havent made enough of an effort to clamp down on this and it means the prices will just keep climbing. No one wins out of this, apart from the person with the Airbnb host account.

Read more: Best hotels in Edinburgh

An Edinburgh local has claimed the problem is awful on every level ( PA )

The Fringe provided case studies to give performers an idea of what to expect financially and even a show hosted in a pub for free will set its performers back around 1,000 a week.

Bigger productions, meanwhile, such as a theatre show in a venue with a capacity of 150, will cost an estimated 25,000 to put on for the entire run.

With the average Fringe ticket costing less than 12 in 2023, this means that even for established names, attending the festival can leave them out of pocket.

Jason Manford, 43, who has almost half a million followers on Twitter/X, highlighted the problem in April.

Edinburgh Festival prices especially for accommodation are an absolute joke! he wrote on the platform.

No idea how anyone starting out is managing to get up there and showcase their talents! Ive just priced up a week up there and even if every show sells out, Im still operating at a loss.

Jason Manford said he will operate at a loss at the festival  even if his show sells out ( PA )

An author who is attending the festival this August similarly told The Independent that if accommodation was not provided by the Edinburgh International Book Festival, they would also be left at a loss despite having a paid and ticketed event.

Meanwhile, television personality and comedian Gail Porter, 53, similarly took to Twitter/X to reveal that she has been priced out of attending the festival this year.

She said: Was so excited to go the edfringe this year. But I have been priced out by the soaring costs of B&Bs.

My home town. I feel so sorry for new young performers that wont be able to afford accommodation.

Im gutted Edinburgh has done this. Greed is awful.

Edinburgh residents are also falling victim to extortionate costs in August.

This includes the homeless, many of whom were recently relocated from their temporary accommodation to locations as far away as Aberdeen (127 miles away) to make way for Taylor Swift fans.

They were paying an average of 597 a night to stay in the city at the same time as the megastar, the Daily Record reported.

Homeless people in Edinburgh were recently relocated from their temporary accommodation to locations as far away as Aberdeen (127 miles away) to make way for Taylor Swift fans ( PA )

Airbnb said in a statement to The Independent: These listings are not booked and are not representative of prices on Airbnb. The average nightly price for booked accommodation on Airbnb during the Edinburgh Fringe is 281, giving locals an opportunity to earn much-needed additional income at a time when accommodation is in high demand.

The implementation of short-term let regulations in Scotland is also disrupting the price and availability of accommodations across the board, including a notable increase in hotel prices.

The Independent has reached out to the Edinburgh Fringe for further comment.
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A coroner has criticised the US government for a lack of training provided to its employee Anne Sacoolas before the crash that killed Harry Dunn.

Anne Pember concluded the teenage motorcyclist died as a result of injuries sustained during a head-on collision with a car on the wrong side of the road outside RAF Croughton in Northamptonshire in August 2019.

Speaking after the inquest, the family of Mr Dunn accused the US government of obstructing the case and said they were looking forward to working with the next government to establish a public inquiry.

Dunn family spokesperson Radd Seiger (centre) with Harrys relatives ( Sky News )

Outside the court after the verdict, Charlotte Charles, Mr Dunns mother, said she was totally disgusted that Ms Sacoolas and the US embassy were absent from the four-day inquest.

She said: Theyve further disrespected Harry. Theyve disrespected the future he could have had and it further bolsters my opinion that they have no regard for myself, my family, our wider family, they just dont care. Disgusted.

Of Ms Sacoolas, she added: She could have chosen this week to try to redeem herself a little bit. She made a drastic, terrible error almost four and a half years ago by leaving the country and trying her best to evade justice. She showed her children in our opinion that shes a coward and that she had no regard for any of us.

She could have chosen the opportunity this week that you can try to redeem yourself in some way. She could have appeared on video link from the comfort of her own home but again she chose to hide and to leave us with no other option at all to just feel that she just doesnt care.

Teenage motorcyclist Harry Dunn was killed in a collision outside an RAF base in Northamptonshire ( PA )

In a witness statement read to the court on Wednesday, Ms Sacoolas apologised for the tragic mistake that led to Mr Dunns death and said it will live with her every single day for the rest of my life.

Ms Sacoolas said she instinctively moved to the right side of the road and was not aware she was on the wrong side of the road until after the collision.

She told the inquest she hysterically flagged down a motorist after the crash and begged her to get help.

The 45-year-old said she had not received any training on driving on UK roads after arriving in the country.

Ms Pember, coroner for Northamptonshire, issued three prevention of future death notices, with one relating to the lack of training by the US government.

After the crash Ms Sacoolas fled to the US and claimed diplomatic immunity. She appeared before a High Court judge at the Old Bailey via video link in December 2022, where she pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving.

She was advised against attending her sentencing hearing by her employer, which prompted the family to say they were horrified that the US government was actively interfering in our criminal justice system.

Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb handed her an eight-month prison sentence, suspended for 12 months.

Harry Dunns father Tim Dunn (left) and mother Charlotte Charles (second from right) paid emotional tributes to their son at his inquest ( PA )

Mr Dunns family was told that Ms Sacoolas was willing to attend the inquest remotely provided their lawyer did not ask questions. This proposal was rejected by the family.

Speaking about the last-minute talks, the familys spokesperson Radd Seiger said: What on earth were they thinking of?

Who would seek to restrict a grieving familys opportunity to understand how their son died in that way?

This appeared to us to be yet another attempt to have Ms Sacoolas do things in our justice system that suited her.

As much as the family wanted to hear from her, they are principled people and believe in doing things according to the rules.

Mr Seiger criticised the role of the US and UK governments in the handling of Mr Dunns case.

An artists sketch of Anne Sacoolas (right) and an official made during her High Court hearing ( PA )

He said: It was not enough for them to kill Harry. It wasnt enough for them to then kick Harrys family in their darkest hour and seek to deny and delay the justice that they were entitled to.

As we have all seen this week their attitude and approach to keeping their British hosts safe has been laid to bare and they have positively obstructed the coroners inquiry and deprived the family of the answers they were entitled to as to why no one has ever addressed the issue of safety of UK citizens.

The next question is why have the UK governments over the years been happy to sit on the sidelines watching this scandal unfold.

This Tory government has refused to get involved. Labour has promised us a public inquiry into the way we were treated and the failure on the part of both governments over the decades to address the issue of safety which has led to thousands of people being killed and seriously injured.

Additional reporting by PA
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After the UK experienced the warmest May on record, many across the country will have been dusting off the outdoor barbecues and refreshing their summer wardrobe in anticipation for a further hot spell in June.

However, the first 10 days of June have been cooler than expected, with the mercury down an average two degrees compared expected temperatures for the month so far in southern England, and the outlook will not change for a little while yet.

Dr Robert Thompson, a meteorologist from the University of Reading, said the biggest factor for cooler temperatures in June was the Atlantic jet stream, which is bringing in cold air from Greenland and Iceland. The steam, he said, wriggles around to steer in winds from different regions.

June has seen rain and chilly conditions for many across the UK - but average temperatures for the month are expected to return from the end of this weekend ( Alamy )

He addded that the lower-than-expected temperatures for the start of June is not entirely unusual - and that the warm weather will return to likely give the UK above-average heat this summer.

With the jet stream  a core of strong winds blowing from west to east  located further south than normal for this time of year, cooler winds from Arctic region were leading to lower temperatures across the UK.

But this will change as the stream eventually moves northwards, with it also bringing higher pressure across England and Wales.

Temperatures are below average for this time of year, with highs of 16 degrees forecast for Tuesday afternoon ( Met office )

Yes, at lunchtime you needed a coat, and it is not what you expect from June - but we have got so used to rising temperatures caused by global warming that we expect the months to be warmer than average, Dr Thompson said.

To put into perspective, Dr Thompson explained that out of the past 12 months, just three were colder than average in the UK.

It looks like we will return to a more normal position toward the end of this weekend, said Dr Thompson, who believes temperatures this summer will be above average, with expected periods of droughts and thunderstorms associated with a warmer conditions. Things are changing with global warming, he added.

Temperatures will remain the same for Wednesday with a cold breeze coming in on the Atlantic jet stream ( Met Office )

A spokesperson for the Met Office told The Independent that temperatures across the UK for June were between three and four degrees below average. The next week will remain unsettled, they said, before the warm weather will return.

On Tuesday, the Met forecast a bright day, with sunny spells, for many, but rain is expected across northern, central and eastern England in the afternoon, with a cool northerly breeze keeping temperatures below 18 degrees.

On Wednesday, another bright start of the day is expected ahead of sccattered showers across eastern parts of England. Thursday and Friday will also see thundery outbreaks of rain with a cold breeze felt by many.
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The last time Kelly Lynchs mother saw her alive she was closing the familys front door to visit friends who lived just an hour away over the Irish border. She never saw her alive again.

I kissed her and told her I loved her, her mother Julieanne told The Independent. There is always a kiss and a cuddle in this house and then she was on her way. Now it is my mission to find out what happened to her.

The 23-year-olds battered body was recovered four days later from the three-inch deep Ulster Canal in Monaghan town early on the morning of St Patricks Day.

Her mother said Kelly was found with what appeared to be black knuckle marks on her neck, wounds to her hands and her jaw broken.

The phone she had been using to desperately ring around family hours before her fall was still wrapped in her cold hand.

The Garda, based in the Republic of Ireland, has refused to say whether they are investigating the death as suspicious while preparation of an inquest file is ongoing.

Kelly Lynch with her mother Julieanne ( Family Handout )

On receiving the fateful call which caused her world to fall apart, Mrs Lynch said: We were planning to go for St Patricks Day dinner but I was sick with worry. I got my other children ready to go in the car.

I was just pulling in to get diesel when the call came through. I was asked if I was Kellys next of kin.

I asked if she was ok, just hoping she had been drunk and disorderly and had been put in the cells for a night. But he said he regretted to inform me that my daughter was deceased.

My world fell apart. My three youngest kids were in the car and my 12-year-old daughter heard the call and she was just screaming, I was crying. I have no idea how I got home, I had to get back to tell the boys before they heard from anyone else. I was in shock.

I wanted to see her in hospital, all I wanted to do was to hug her and kiss her and be with her to see if it was real. But it was denied because we were told she was found in shallow water in a canal. We couldnt see her because she was going for an autopsy.

The mortuary assistant told Kellys grieving family sent to Navan to identify her body she had died from a head injury but this was later changed to drowning.

Identifying her was traumatic because we had to do it behind a glass window with a purple blanket pulled up to her nose. We couldnt see her face and her feet were closest to us.

The Ulster canal where Kelly was found on St Patricks Day morning ( Supplied )

I knew it was Kelly because she loved her eyebrows and they were all laminated. But she was so grey-looking, her hair was matted and she looked fragile. It was devastating. It felt so clinical all I wanted to do was go in and hold her.

She criticised the lack of duty of care the family received from police with no in-person death knock or an update from a family liaison officer for more than two months since her death.

My sister drove by the bridge and there was no crime scene, no tape, no nothing. There was a guard there but only to direct traffic around the St Patricks Day parade. It was like two different worlds.

Kellys rucksack was mysteriously dropped into the police station by a person police couldnt identify, according to the family.

After meeting detectives Mrs Lynch was handed a box with the clothes Kelly was wearing when she died assured they had been tested for fibres and DNA.

She noticed they were torn and muddy, inside and out. Her coat was soaking wet and filthy. Her jumper was stretched with her left arm ripped at the seams. Even Kellys underwear was full of mud.

Her white socks were filthy but her black Converse trainers were pristine with only the tiniest fleck of blood.

She said: This stood out to me. All the police said to us was that we could get her clothes tested independently.

The police told her Kelly fell, banged her head and drowned in the two-inch deep water but Mrs Lynch says she still wants them to prove that to her as she begged her friends or anyone living nearby to come forward.

All I want is to know what happened to my daughter. Some people just dismiss me as a grieving mother in denial but its completely the opposite. If it was a tragic accident, as they say, then give me the facts.

Her mother said Kelly was a brilliant, easy child and her best friend ( Family Handout )

If we could get some kind of closure then we can as a family begin to grieve properly and learn to live alongside the loss.

Her not being here is affecting everyone from her baby brother to her grandparents.

This is just something were not going to get over. Knowing she was in pain and she probably struggled is like a nightmare tormenting us all the time.

I want to know either way. If there is anyone out there who knows something you can give information anonymously you dont have to be public.

Im not in denial I know my daughter is not coming back - I have accepted that fact. You cant undo the past but I do believe justice has to be done.

Her death has been so disregarded to be told in the way we were is just unacceptable and unforgivable.

Now I just exist for a response from an email or a phone call from the Garda.

Kelly was planning to go on and become a teacher ( Family Handout )

Mrs Lynch described Kelly as beautiful and unique with a loud cackle of a laugh which is greatly missed by her siblings Kristopher, Matthew, Rory, Poppy and Finn.

She said: She did struggle during the pandemic but she was coming back into her own self. She was excited to go back into college and then work with small children because she really was brilliant them.

Our youngest is four years old he shouldnt have to understand the finality of death. As Kelly was being lowered into the ground he was crying out Dont put her down there, pull her back out!

She was my best friend and she gives me the strength to go on.

She would be so proud of me fighting for her. She would be dying at some of the images Ive been posting. I fought for her in life and I will honour her in death.

A Garda Siochana spokesman said: In relation to the death of a woman in Monaghan town on the 17th March 2024, a post mortem was completed by the State Pathologist.

As a result of the preliminary findings and consultation with the State Pathologist, the focus of this investigation moved towards the completion of an inquest file for the coroner.

A Family Liaison Officer was appointed at the outset of this investigation and this information has been relayed to the family of the deceased.

As the preparation of the inquest file is ongoing, no further comment is available at this time.
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Dozens of triathletes suffered severe vomiting and diarrohea after swimming in the River Thames as part of a race last weekend.

At least 35 competitors found themselves getting sicker and sicker after the swimming leg of the 2,800-person Royal Windsor Triathlon in Berkshire on Sunday.

Will Parry, from London, said he was left completely nauseous and out of it and had to leave a work meeting the following day to be sick.

At least 35 competitors found themselves getting sicker and sicker after the Berkshire triathlon on Sunday ( Maureen McLean/Shutterstock )

The illnesses come as water companies across the UK come under intense scrutinty over a litany of failures that have left Britains water systems teaming with sewage.

Mr Parry, a 56-year-old TV producer who competed in the race, told The Independent: I found myself getting sicker and sicker and I eventually had to rush out of a meeting to be sick.

I had to get a taxi back to my house and had to stop, throwing up outside the Victoria & Albert museum. I was completely nauseous and spaced out.

Will Parry said he was left feeling completely nauseous while suffering from diarrohea after the race ( Will Parry )

It was cleary caused by swimming in the River Thames. A number of athletes have reported illness. It is too many to be a coincidence.

Mr Parry blamed organisers Human Race and Thames Water and claimed falling ill was a result of Britains utterly dysfunctional water regulation system, while vowing never to take part in the Royal Windsor Triathlon again.

Human Race was approached for comment. Thames Water told The Independent it would be misinformed to assume the outbreak of illnesses was caused by the companys activities.

Triathlete Rebecca Norman, from Reading, also said she was throwing up blood and had to go to A&E 24 hours after the triathlon.

The 21-year-old told the BBC: I was throwing up blood, feeling faint, had a fever, exhaustion and the worst stomach cramps I have ever experienced.

A Thames Water spokesperson said: We support the governments advice on open water swimming and are committed to seeing our waterways thrive.

River health is not the sole responsibility of Thames Water and there are many factors which influence river quality including pollutants, animal faeces from livestock and wildlife, along with run off from farms and roads.

It would therefore be misinformed to automatically conclude that this is a result of Thames Water activities. Our nearest sewage treatment works in the area is Slough, and it has not discharged since early April.
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Lord David Cameron has said that he doesnt feel sorry for Rishi Sunak in having to defend the Tories 14-year record in government.

Appearing on BBC Radio 4s Today programme the foreign secretary was asked if he feels sympathy for Mr Sunak as he has to account for the premierships of Theresa May, Boris Johnson Liz Truss and Lord Cameron himself.

At the Sky News debate on Wednesday evening, Mr Sunak was grilled about the Toriess record over the last 14 years in power and tried to defend himself by saying he had only been prime minister for 18 months.

Former prime minister Lord Cameron said: What I feel about Rishi Sunak is that hes a very capable prime minister.

I dont feel sorry for him because hes a very effective prime minister who wants to go on doing his job.

The foreign secretary also admitted that the latest polls dont look good for the Tories, but added they didnt look very good in 2015 when I won the election.

The prime minister fields questions from a Grimsby audience on Wednesday night ( Getty Images )

A poll of almost 60,000 voters by pollsters YouGov has projected Labour is on course for a historic 194-seat majority, eclipsing even the 179 seat margin of victory they achieved in Tony Blairs 1997 landslide.

Appearing on ITVs Good Morning Britain, Lord Cameron also defended Mr Sunaks controversial decision to leave D-Day events early and pointed to the governments record of supporting veterans.

He said: Prime ministers have to make lots of difficult decisions about when to go to things, and when to leave things, and who to see and all the rest of it.

And to be fair to Rishi, he went to the key event in Portsmouth with all of the D-Day veterans in the UK, and then he went to the key event above the British Normandy beaches, that was again a beautiful event and he met lots of veterans there.

Then he left to go back to the UK and then immediately said he had made a mistake and he had wished he had stayed, and I think we should should leave it there. Because thats the sort of guy he is, he made a mistake, instead of digging in and defending it, he said: actually, no, no, I got that one wrong I shouldve stayed.

At the Sky News debate Mr Sunak repeated his apology for leaving D-Day commemorations early in order to record an interview with ITV.

Almost a week on from the commemorations, he said: I was incredibly sad to have caused people hurt and upset, that was the last thing that I wanted to do. I hope people can find it in their hearts to forgive me.

The prime ministers decision drew the ire of 98-year-old Normandy veteran Ken Hay, who suggested the move lets the country down.

Lord Cameron also used his media round to channel his inner Gino D'Acampo when responding to a question about what he would do if the Tories lost the general election.

He said: If my mother had wheels shed be a bicycle, I dont answer questions beginning with the word if.

Lord Cameron was seemingly referring to the time the Italian chef told his Morning hosts Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby If my grandmother had wheels she would have been a bike, as his dish was likened to a British carbonara.
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Nigel Farage has hit back at Keir Starmers jibe that Clacton is a pantomime by demanding he takes action against Labours candidate there for an anti-white comment.

During his manifesto launch, Sir Keir addressed the fact that he was not revealing any rabbits out of the hat with no new policies revealed.

He said: "If you want politics as pantomime, I hear Clacton is nice this time of year.

Farage answered questions on LBC this morning ( PA )

The Reform UK leaders team has unearthed a now deleted social media post from 2019 by Labours Clacton candidate Javon Owusu-Nepaul agreeing with a US students post about racism.

The original post read: Going into 2020 Im going to continue to be vocal about how to tackle racism and the fact I drink white man tears on a regular basis.

Mr Nepaul replied to the post saying: My favourite drink.

According to official statistics, the Clacton constituency in Essex has one of the highest white populations in the UK, with 93 percent registered as white British.

This compares to a UK national average of 82 percent white and 89 percent in the county of Essex.

Mr Farage said: If Starmer thinks that the race in Clacton is a pantomime, perhaps he should look no further than his own candidate.

He added: Im shocked that this man is an official candidate for a Labour Party that says it has changed

In the last election Labour came second with 6,736 but a long way behind Tory MP Giles Watling who had a majority of 24,702.

But this time Mr Farage believes he can take the seat from the Tories although the election will see nine candidates standing in the constituency.

Labour have declined to comment.

However, the row has come after Reform were forced to deal with their own problematic candidate who suggested Britain should have struck a deal with Hitler.

Ian Gribbin, standing for Reform in Bexhill and Battle, also wrote online that women were the sponging gender and should be deprived of health care in comments reportedly made on the UnHerd website. Mr Farage, Reforms leader, blamed Rishi Sunaks decision to call a snap election for 4 July for not being able to properly vet candidates.

He claimed that Gibson was guilty of pub speak.
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A Reform UK parliamentary candidate who said the UK should have accepted Hitlers offer of neutrality was only making ordinary pub talk, Nigel Farage has claimed.

Ian Gribbin, standing for Reform in Bexhill and Battle, also wrote online that women were the sponging gender and should be deprived of health care in comments reportedly made on the UnHerd website. Mr Farage, Reforms leader, blamed Rishi Sunaks decision to call a snap election for 4 July for not being able to properly vet candidates.

The Reform leader said he was not able to deselect Mr Gribbin because the legal deadline had passed for putting prospective MPs on the ballot paper, before declining to say whether he still backed the candidate.

I cant, they are legally on the ballot paper, he told LBC Radio on Thursday. I can disown them, I might well do that... its ordinary folk down the pub speak.

Nigel Farage in the LBC studio as he addressed the backlash to his candidate ( PA Wire )

Mr Gribbin, who has since apologised for the remarks, also described wartime leader Winston Churchill as abysmal and praised Russian president Vladimir Putin .

A spokesperson for Reform said the comments were not endorsements and claimed they were written with an eye to inconvenient perspectives and truths.

Mr Gribbin is reported to have posted on the Unherd website in 2022: Britain would be in a far better state today had we taken Hitler up on his offer of neutrality  but oh no Britains warped mindset values weird notions of international morality rather than looking after its own people.

The same month he wrote that the UK should exorcise the cult of Churchill and recognize that in both policy and military strategy, he was abysmal.

The previous month he criticised women, writing: Do you think you could actually work and pay for it all too like good citizens? Men pay 80% of tax  women spend 80% of tax revenue. On aggregate as a group you only take from society. Less complaining please from the sponging gender.

Ian Gribbin has since apologised for the comments ( Reform UK )

In a separate post, he suggested squaring the inequality by depriving women of healthcare until their life expectancies are the same as men, Fairs fair.

In 2021, he wrote female soldiers almost made me wretch [sic] and were a total liability. In the run-up to Russia s invasion of Ukraine , he said that President Putin had shown a maturity of which we can only dream of.

Mr Gribbings said: I apologise for these old comments and withdraw them unreservedly and the upset that they have caused.

But Johnny Mercer, the veterans minister, said the comments were shameful and showed a shocking lack of judgement.

The Conservative Party said the comments ignored the millions murdered by the Nazis in their bid for European domination and the ultimate sacrifice paid by the men and women who stood up to Hitler in our darkest hour.

Misusing appeasement to justify Nazi apologism is disgraceful and comments like this are deeply troubling coming from a political party.
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A heckler interrupted Sir Keir Starmers launch of the Labour party manifesto by uncovering a banner and claiming his plans are the same old Tory policies.

A woman described as a climate protester in the audience shouted out just minutes after Sir Keir began speaking before being quickly removed from the event in Greater Manchester.

Uncovering a yellow banner showing the words Youth deserve better, the young woman said: You say you are offering change but it is the same old Tory policies. We need better.

Follow live updates here

The Labour leader quickly snapped back that Labour stopped being the party of protest five years ago after Jeremy Corbyn lost the 2019 general election.

Do you know the protester? Email alexander.butler@independent.co.uk

The protester was quickly removed from the event in Greater Manchester after claiming Labours manifesto pledges were the same old Tory policies ( Getty Images )

He said: We gave up being a party of protest five years ago. We want to be a party of power. Thats not in the script but that is part of the change, to loud cheers of applause.

Last Friday, prime minister Rishi Sunak was heckled by a GP who shouted the NHS was disintergrating under his Conservative government.

Mr Sunak was speaking at a rally in Wiltshire when the doctor began questioning government policies that see patients being sent to other primary care staff, rather than GPs.

Sir Keir Starmer said Labour stopped being the party of protest five years ago after he was interrupted by the heckler ( AP )

She said: The country is not stupid. They know when lesser qualified people are being used to conduct consultations which are massively complex.

Reform Party leader Nigel Farage has also had a few run-ins with the public during the campaign trail, when he had objects thrown at him in South Yorkshire and was hit with a milkshake in Essex.

Mr Farage was waving at supporters from the top of his partys battle bus in Barnsley town centre on Tuesday when the incident occurred.

He said he believed the objects were some wet cement from a work site followed by a coffee cup. He narrowly missed the objects.

Sir Keir met with London mayor Sadiq Khan after outlining his plan which he promised would be carried out on sound money ( AP )

Last Tuesday, Mr Farage was leaving a Wetherspoons pub after carrying out media interviews when he was hit with a banana milkshake in front of his supporters.

During the event at the Co-op supermarkets headquarters, Sir Keir vowed that his government would not pay fast and loose with the countrys finances.

He promised it would be based on sound money as he again reminded people of how Liz Trusss mini budget had prevented people getting mortgages.

Directly taking on the tax questions, he insisted: I do not think that it is fair to raise the taxes of working people in a cost of living crisis.

Reform Party leader Nigel Farage has also had a few run-ins with the public during the campaign trail ( PA Wire )

Sir Keir said that not raising the major taxes - VAT, income tax and national insurance - is a manifesto commitment.

He added: Growth is our main mission. Nothing can be achieved without growth. We are the party of wealth creation.

The partys policies are summarisied within fourteen different areas including security, housing, economic growth, a fiscal plan, clean energy and the NHS.

On the economy, Sir Keir will offer tough new spending rules to allow businesses to plan, as well as a cap on corporation tax of 25 per cent and promises of industry investment.

He will also commit to Labours new deal for working people, including better childcare, better pay, and help for people to get back into employment.

The party has consistently led the polls over the past three weeks of the campaign, putting it around 20 points ahead of the Tories.
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Labour has conceded its much-hyped Covid corruption commissioner may not recover any of the money lost to fraud and wasted on useless PPE during the pandemic.

In an embarrassing admission, the partys manifesto suggested the commissioner, billed as someone who would chase down those who have ripped off the taxpayer, may recoup no cash at all.

Despite initially promising the corruption tsar would recoup billions lost to fraudsters taking advantage of Covid, no new funds appear in the Labour manifestos financial forecasts. It suggests party thinks any corruption tsar may fail to chase down any of the lost cash.

Shadow chancellor Rachel Reeves channelled Margaret Thatcher when she announced the initiative at Labour conference last October, declaring we want our money back.

Follow our politics live blog for all the latest general election updates

Baroness Thatcher won her four-year battle to reduce Britains payments to the European Economic Community in 1980 after famously declaring I want my money back.

Rachel Reeves channelled Margaret Thatcher when she announced the initiative last October ( Getty Images )

And Ms Reeves highlighted that the cost to the taxpayer of Covid fraud is estimated at 7.2bn, with only 2 per cent of all fraudulent Covid grants having been recovered.

The manifesto, launched in Manchester by Sir Keir on Thursday, still committed to appointing a fixed-term Covid corruption commissioner.

It promises to use every means possible to recoup public money lost in pandemic related fraud and from contracts which have not delivered.

But, in the documents costing section, there is no estimate of how much money such a commissioner might recoup.

It is a stark contrast to the approximately 5bn Labour has said it can raise for investment in Britains ailing public services by clamping down on tax avoidance.

The omission of any forecast funds to be raised by the Covid fraud commissioner appears to be a tacit admission the party cannot be sure the figure will have any impact at all.

Critics said the move appeared to be virtue signalling by the Labour Party. Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith said Labours claims the fraud commissioner were b******s.

The long-serving MP said the reason Labour will have omitted a figure of the expected funds raised is because HMRC is already bending over backwards to recover any lost funds and any gains are not achievable.

It is an attempt to point the finger at the Tories and say you havent been doing enough but when you comb through it you realise there is nothing there... it is a complete smoke screen, and a flip flop he told The Independent.

And veteran MP and Conservative candidate Sir John Hayes told The Independent: This looks very much like yet another uncosted Labour policy.

Worst still, given Covid's tragic consequences, it is plainly wrong to promise a commissioner with no resorces and so no scope or substance.

Unveiling her plans for the commissioner, Ms Reeves told Labour activists: For too long Tory governments have allowed money to be wasted and taxpayers defrauded.

So Labour will wage a war against fraud, waste and inefficiency.

So I can announce today that we will appoint a Covid corruption commissioner.

Rachel Reeves wiped away tears at Labours manifesto launch ( Getty Images )

Supported by a hit squad of investigators, equipped with the powers they need and the mandate to do whatever it takes to chase down those who have ripped off the taxpayer, to take the fraudsters to court and to get back every penny of taxpayers money that they can.

Because that money belongs in our NHS, it belongs in our schools, it belongs in our police.

And let me tell you, we want our money back.

Labour was asked to comment.
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Sir Keir Starmer has been given 100 days to make good on his promises to workers, with unions promising to hold Labours feet to the fire.

The Labour leader set out his partys manifesto on Thursday, including the promise to introduce a new deal for working people.

The package, which would be the biggest shakeup of Labour laws in a generation, would see Labour repeal Tory anti-strike laws, end the use of fire and rehire and strengthen day one employment rights for employees.

Click here for our live coverage of the general election campaign.

Unions feared Sir Keir would row back on the package under pressure from business lobbyists, but have welcomed its inclusion in the general election manifesto.

Keir Starmer promised workers he would raise your wages and your security ( AP )

And after Sir Keirs speech, at the Co-op headquarters in Manchester, union bosses vowed to hold Labour to account over the promises.

Matt Wrack, president of the Trades Union Congress, said workers have faced constant attacks on their pay, pensions and public services under 14 years of Tory rule.

And he said Labours new deal for working people could improve the lives of millions, with the repeal of anti-strike laws a vital first step.

Mr Wrack, also president of the Fire Brigades Union, said: It will be our duty to ensure that a new Labour government makes good on these promises within the first 100 days of taking power. We will hold Labours feet to the fire.

Other union chiefs demanded Labour go further than the plans set out in its manifesto, with Unite, Labours biggest union donor, saying the party needed to make government count.

General secretary Sharon Graham said the rise of the far right in Europe should set alarm bells ringing for Sir Keir, adding that he must listen to workers and communities.

Unite union general secretary Sharon Graham said Labour needs to go further in power ( PA Archive )

She stressed that the country needs Labour to win, but added: With rising geopolitical tensions, a cost of living crisis and rampant inequality, now is not the time to be timid. As we vote Labour - we also need them to be bold.

Unite was the only Labour-affiliated union that did not endorse the manifesto, having previously called for the party to offer stronger employment rights.

The National Education Union (NEU) meanwhile punched a Labour bruise, calling for the party to commit to scrapping the two-child benefit cap, a policy left out of the manifesto.

Sir Keir previously promised to scrap the cap, which prevents parents from claiming benefits for any third or subsequent child born after April 2017.

NEU president Daniel Kebede said: Child poverty costs our economy 39 billion per year. While welcoming the introduction of free school breakfast clubs for primary school children, we urge Labour to commit to removing the two-child benefit cap. Such a move would lift 300,000 children out of poverty.

Gordon Brown has called for the two-child benefit cap to be scrapped ( PA Wire )

Sir Keir has long faced pressure from Labour MPs and grandees to scrap the cap, including from former prime minister Gordon Brown.

Delivering his manifesto speech, Sir Keir told assembled MPs, activists and reporters: This changed Labour Party has a plan for growth: we are pro-business and pro-worker. The party of wealth creation.

We will level up your rights at work  a choice ignored for 14 years  and raise your wages and your security.

The manifesto says Labour will consult with businesses, workers and civil society on how to put the partys plans into practice before legislation is passed.

"This will include banning exploitative zero-hours contracts, ending fire and rehire; and introducing basic rights from day one to parental leave, sick pay, and protection from unfair dismissal," it says.

"We will strengthen the collective voice of workers, including through their trade unions, and create a Single Enforcement Body to ensure employment rights are upheld."

Labour said the changes will improve the lives of working people across the entire UK.

The manifesto said Labour will also make sure the minimum wage is a "genuine living wage", adding: "We will change the remit of the independent Low Pay Commission so for the first time it accounts for the cost of living.

"Labour will also remove the discriminatory age bands, so all adults are entitled to the same minimum wage, delivering a pay rise to hundreds of thousands of workers across the UK."

GMB general secretary Gary Smith said: Labours manifesto offers a vision of hope for the UK after 14 years of disasters.

"The New Deal for Working People is a once in a generation chance to completely transform the lives of working people."
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Nigel Farage has mocked Rishi Sunak after a Tory candidate used pictures of the Reform UK leader on her leaflets.

The arch-Brexiteer, who is standing against Mr Sunak in the general election, is plastered across the leaflets of right-wing Conservative Dame Andrea Jenkyns. Mr Sunak, meanwhile, is nowhere to be seen on the leaflets, which also make no reference to the Conservative Party or use of its branding.

Click here for our live coverage of the general election campaign.

Sticking the boot into the prime minister, Mr Farage said on X: Andrea Jenkyns could have used a picture of Rishi. I wonder why she didnt?

It is highly unusual for a candidate to use pictures of a rival party leader on their campaign literature and hints at the threat posed by Mr Farage to Tory MPs. It also demonstrates Mr Sunaks lack of support nationally, with Dame Andrea deliberately opting to keep him off the document

Dame Andrea shuns the Conservative party and leader and describes herself instead as a northern, independent voice.

Nigel Farage at his birthday party with Aaron Banks, Andrea Jenkyns and Liz Truss in the background ( Andrea Jenkyns/Twitter )

Mr Farages Reform party is standing against the Conservatives in 605 seats across the country and threatens to split the right-wing vote, depriving Mr Sunak of majorities in tens of seats.

Dame Andrea defended her decision to include pictures of Mr Farage on her leaflets, suggesting she was simply putting the country first.

Lots of excitement over my leaflet today... all conservatives must be prepared to come together to prevent a socialist supermajority and the end of Britain as we know it, she said.

Former Tory MP Sir Charles Walker said Ms Jenkyns should have stood for Mr Farages party and it was disloyal to include the Reform leader on her leaflets.

Mr Farage arrives at a fundraiser for Donald Trump, hosted by former Neighbours star Holly Valance (James Manning/PA) ( PA Wire )

The senior Conservative told LBC: Its not and its not acceptable, because Nigel Farage has said on many occasions, probably most recently this morning, that he wants to destroy the Conservative Party.

If Andrea feels so disappointed in the Conservative Party, which she is, she should have stood for Reform, and Nigel Farage and Mr Tice would have welcomed her into Reform.

Launching his campaign in Clacton, in Essex, Mr Farage promised to lead a political revolt against the Conservatives and Labour.

He has also revealed plans to take over the Conservatives after the general election, with Tory MPs leaving the party to join Reform.

Former PM and now foreign secretary David Cameron said Ms Jenkyns had asked for an endorsement from him to put on her leaflet, which does not appear to be included.

And he said those voting for Reform are only going to make a Labour government more likely.

Lord Cameron told Times Radio: The things they want are things only a Conservative government can deliver. And by voting Reform, you make them less likely, not more likely.
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Rishi Sunaks closest aide has said he made a huge error of judgement on a general election bet he made that is being investigated by the Gambling Commission.

Craig Williams, the prime ministers private secretary, apologised after admitting that he placed a bet on what date the election would be held days before the prime minister announced it on 22 May.

It is understood the Gambling Commission (GC), which has launched an inquiry into the incident, informed Downing Street officials of the bet last week.

Mr Williams, the Conservative parliamentary candidate for Montgomeryshire, said he would not comment further while the GC carried out its work.

I clearly made a huge error of judgment, thats for sure, and I apologise, he told the BBC earlier on Thursday. I will not be expanding on my statement because its an independent process.

Using confidential information to gain an unfair advantage when betting may constitute a criminal offence.

Additionally, the MPs code of conduct bars members from causing significant damage to the reputation and integrity of the house. The bet was allegedly placed while parliament was still in session.

The bet was flagged automatically by Ladbrokes, the betting company with which Mr Williams placed the wager.

Mr Williams placed a 100 bet with 5-1 odds, meaning he would have won 500, but his name was raised as potentially a politically exposed person, so the wager was not registered.

The bookmaker is believed to be particularly cautious over novelty betting markets such as the general election.

Craig Williams MP is pictured alongise Rishi Sunak ( @craig4monty )

According to The Guardian, which first reported the story, the bet was placed via an online account that would have required Mr Williams to provide personal details, including his date of birth and debit card.

The bookmaker also knows the location of the bet. Ladbrokes declined to comment.

A spokesperson for the GC said using inside information to gain an unfair advantage when betting could constitute a criminal offence.

The commission said it does not typically confirm or deny whether investigations are underway unless or until they have concluded.

Lord David Cameron, the foreign secretary, said Mr Williams had made a clearly very foolish decision by betting on the election date.

His situation, having made this clearly very foolish decision, is he is being investigated by the Gambling Commission - and they have considerable powers in terms of what the consequences could be, he told BBC Breakfast

I think we have to let the investigation take place and so I cant really comment further on it.

Opposition parties have called on the Tories to withdraw their support for Mr Williams, who is defending a majority of 12,138 in the mid-Wales seat.

Daisy Cooper, the Liberal Democrat spokesperson, said it was incumbent on the PM to suspend Mr Williams while the GC investigates him.

The disclosure, revealed just minutes before Mr Sunak took part in a live TV debate on Wednesday night, was another headache for the prime ministers faltering election campaign.

Sunak and Starmer take part in Sky TV debate ( Sky News )

A snap poll following the debate gave Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer a huge win over the PM, who launched his partys manifesto just a day earlier, promising to cut taxes and halve immigration.

A YouGov survey conducted after Skys Battle for Number 10 found that two-thirds of voters felt the Labour leader performed better than Mr Sunak in the clash.

Some 64 per cent said Sir Keir performed better, with 36 per cent saying the prime minister was the winner. YouGov spoke to 1,864 voters shortly after the conclusion of the debate, during which the two leaders were grilled on their plans for government.

It followed another frantic day on the campaign trail, during which Mr Sunak was forced to push back on suggestions that Labour was on course for a supermajority come 5 July.

Grant Shapps, the defence secretary, claimed that Labour could record an even bigger victory than the 1997 landslide won by Tony Blair as he urged Reform voters to back his party.

His comments came after Tory HQ published an advertisement on Facebook claiming that votes for Reform and the Liberal Democrats could see Labour win up to 490 seats, leaving the Conservatives with just 57, in the latest sign of how defensive the partys election campaign has become.

Thats not what Im saying, the PM told reporters on the Tory election battle bus as he travelled to Lincolnshire ahead of the debate.

And every time someone says something to me about a poll, I always give you guys the same answer, which youve heard me say multiple times. The poll that matters is the one on July 4.

Sir Keir, campaigning in Grimsby ahead of the TV grilling, denied that the election was a foregone conclusion, saying he was fighting for every vote.

No, we know that we have to earn every vote, he told broadcasters.

The Labour leader launched his partys manifesto at an event in Manchester on Thursday morning, promising to make wealth creation his number one priority.
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South Africa has recorded its first confirmed death from mpox after five confirmed cases of the viral infection were recorded in the past month.

The health ministry announced on Wednesday that a 37-year-old man died from the infection and that four others were receiving treatment.

Joe Phaahla, the health minister told the media that the man died in Tembisa hospital in Gauteng Province on Monday.

All cases/patients are males aged between 30-39 years without travel history to the countries currently experiencing an outbreak, which suggests there is local transmission of this infectious disease in the country, the minister added, according to Africa News.

He said out of the total five recorded in the country, two of these cases were confirmed in Gauteng and three in KwaZulu-Natal.

The death that occurred is amongst the two cases reported in Gauteng, Mr Phaahla said.

One patient has been discharged, another has been discharged for home isolation and two remain in hospital. The minister said: One death is too many, especially from a preventable and manageable disease.

According to the World Health Organisation, Mpox is an infectious disease caused by the monkeypox virus whose symptoms include a painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes, and fever.

The global health agency notes that while most people recover fully, some can become very ill. The virus spreads through contact with infected individuals, animals, materials, and from pregnant persons to their unborn babies.

In May 2022, an outbreak of mpox appeared suddenly and rapidly spread across several countries, with 110 countries reporting about 87 thousand cases and 112 deaths, the WHO website notes.

The global outbreak has affected primarily (but not only) gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men and has spread person-to-person through sexual networks, it notes. The global outbreak of mpox was declared a public health emergency of international concern on 23 July 2022, it adds.

In March this year, the Republic of Congo recorded its first cases of mpox in several regions, the health ministry said. At least 43 cases had been reported to the ministry.

WHO adopted the new synonym mpox in English for the monkeypox disease in 2022.
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An American Airlines passenger who was gagged and bound with duct tape to her seat after being accused of attempting to open an aircraft door mid-flight has been sued by the Federal Aviation Administration.

Heather Wells, 34, was flying from Dallas to Charlotte, North Carolina, on July 6, 2021, when she began causing a ruckus on the aircraft  biting and spitting at staff and passengers, and allegedly attempting to open the front cabin door. A viral video showed her duct-taped to the seat in the aftermath of the incident.

The FAA first fined Wells a record $81,950 in civil penalties in 2022 as airlines and regulators battled against a surge of wayward passengers disrupting flights.

Now, US attorney Jaime Esparza has filed a lawsuit in San Antonios federal court on behalf of the FAA seeking to collect the money from Wells, according to a lawsuit first seen by San Antonio Express.

The business class passenger wanted out after drinking a neat Jack Daniels as she began running to the front of the plane and attempting to grab the handle of the front cabin door, according to the lawsuit filed on June 6.

Heather Wells duct taped to her seat after she allegedly attacked crew members ( tiktok )

Wells began talking incoherently to passengers, before crawling back toward the main cabin, and threatened a flight attendant that tried to intervene.

Swerving past the stewards, the passenger went for the front door as she yelled profanities, before two more attendants restrained her, the filing read.

Wells struck one flight attendant in the head several times during the tussle, according to the lawsuit. Wells was then sat down and restrained using flex-cuffs.

Ultimately, the flight attendants and passenger were able to restrain Defendant with duct tape and flex cuffs and get her seated, the lawsuit read.

Wells was bound to her chair with duct tape and gagged in a bid to stop her screams as she continued to kick and spit and attempted to bite and head-butt a flight attendant and passengers, as per the filing.

The American Airlines passenger has been sued for nealry $82,000 ( Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved )

American Airlines pilots radioed staff at Charlotte to alert police, who were waiting on the runway. Wells continued to lash out even after the plane hit the tarmac.

Ultimately, Defendant had to be sedated to be removed from the aircraft by law enforcement and medical responders, the lawsuit read.

Wells has been summoned to answer the lawsuit, alleging that she violated federal aviation rules by trying to access the flight cabin, interfering with flight crew, threatening them and posing an imminent threat to the safety of the aircraft or individuals on the aircraft.

No criminal charges had seemingly been filed against Wells over the incident. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department confirmed to The Independent that it holds no record of charges being made, only an inflight violation.
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The US House of Representatives has passed a bill urging China to improve its relationship with Tibetan religious leader Dalai Lama, even though Beijing has repeatedly accused him of being involved in separatist activities in the Himalayan province.

The House passed Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Dispute Act on 12 June and it now awaits president Joe Bidens approval.

China asserts that Tibet has been part of its territory for centuries although it only took firm control of the region after the Communist Party came to power in 1949.

The bipartisan legislation, already passed by the Senate, emphasises the Tibetan peoples right to religious freedom and aims to allocate funds to combat what it describes as disinformation from Beijing regarding Tibets history, people and institutions.

The bill, introduced in the Senate by Democrat Jeff Merkley, encourages China and Tibet to resolve their dispute over the provinces governance.

Tibetans, like all people, have the right to religious freedom which includes freedom from surveillance, censorship and detention, Michael McCaul, Republican chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said.

Rep Jim McGovern, a Democrat, said: Congressional passage of this legislation further demonstrates Americas resolve that the status quo  both in Tibet and elsewhere  is not acceptable.

I look forward to this important effort becoming law and working with my colleagues in the Senate and with the administration to ensure swift and effective implementation.

China has rejected accusations of human rights abuses in Tibet as groundless and claimed they are intended to smear Chinas image.

Last August, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said the human rights conditions in Tibet are at their historical best.

The region has long enjoyed a booming economy, a harmonious and stable society, and effective protection and promotion of cultural heritage, he said. The rights and freedoms of all ethnic groups, including the freedom of religious belief and the freedom to use and develop their ethnic groups of spoken and written languages are fully guaranteed.

In April this year, China ruled out any dialogue over the Dalai Lamas longstanding demand for autonomy for Tibet.

The Dalai Lama, who ruled Tibet autonomously until Beijing annexed it in the early 1950s, fled to India in 1959 and established a government-in-exile in the northern city of Dharamshala.

The government-in-exile accuses China of denying fundamental human rights to the people of Tibet and actively working to eradicate Tibetan identity.
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An Arizona man was indicted by a federal grand jury after expressing a desire to incite a race war before the presidential election in November, authorities said.

Mark Adams Prieto, a 58-year-old Arizona-based gun show vendor, was plotting a mass shooting at a rap concert in Atlanta in mid-May, according to a complaint. His sinister plan ultimately got him indicted on charges of firearms trafficking, transfer of a firearm for use in a hate crime and possession of an unregistered firearm, the feds said.

Prieto was caught after unknowingly sharing his plans with two undercover government agents he had invited to help carry out the mass shooting, according to the complaint. Prieto allegedly entrusted them with his plan, thinking the agents shared his racist beliefs. He said he wanted the mass shooting to transpire ahead of the election because he thought martial law will be implemented shortly after the presidential race in November, the complaint says.

Within the last year, the agents learned that Prieto advocated for a mass shooting against blacks, Jews, or Muslims. Specifically, Prieto told an undercover agent that he decided to target Atlanta because all the n****** moved there. He added that he decided on a rap concert because there would be a high concentration of African Americans at the concert, according to the complaint.

Prieto told government agents that he wanted to show no mercy, no quarter and called his targets not people. He added: Theyre monsters as far as Im concerned.

The attack plan was detailed, the complaint shows.

Prieto told the agents that he wanted to make clear that the massacre was racially motivated.

To accomplish that, he wanted to plant Confederate flags at the attack site and planned on shouting whities out here killing, whats we gonna do, KKK all the way and black lives dont matter, white lives matter, the feds said.

He allegedly detailed that the most important part of the mass shooting was the body count: These people dont belong here in this country anyway, okay.

The gun vendor explained the timing of the attack, saying he wanted the massacre to follow Super Tuesday so that they would know the election candidates, the complaint says.

Prieto also stressed the importance of anonymity, advising the agents to leave behind their phones and to wear hoodies and face coverings. He also stated that he wanted all of them to carry certain weapons, including bolt-action rifles for the flanks and fast-shooting semi-automatic rifles.

He explained the choice of firearms to the agents: You want to corral them. And some people might be trying to leave out of a corner, and you want to blast those guys. Once [they] get the idea that they are trapped then there is pandemonium. Now theyre in a panic. And they cant get out. Now they are going to be crawling over each other to get out.

Throughout their discussions, Prieto even sold one of the agents two weapons. When he sold a rifle to the undercover agent in March, Prieto told him to use it in the massacre, the complaint says.

Two months later, on May 15, the day the attack was supposed to take place, Prieto was arrested in New Mexico. He told the agents that he was on his way to Florida  not Atlanta.

When he was arrested, he had seven firearms in his possession and even more weapons in his home, including an unregistered short-barreled rifle.

Each conviction for firearms trafficking and transfer of firearm for use in a hate crime carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both. A conviction for possession of an unregistered firearm carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, a fine of $250,000, or both.
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Investigators used DNA found on a McDonald's cup to link a woman to her husband's cold-case murder, according to the Milwaukee Police Department.

Cassandra Hult, 28, has now been charged with first-degree homicide in the shooting death of her husband Jose Santiago.

On March 23, 2020, Santiago was found dead in his car from what appeared to be an execution-style gunshot wound to the back of his head, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. The car was parked near the St Adalbert Cemetery and sat there for approximately two days before a jogger noticed it and became suspicious.

The jogger approached the car and looked inside, where they saw Santiago's unresponsive body.

Police that investigated the scene found a spent bullet casing, a pair of McDonald's cups and a receipt for the fast food restaurant inside the car.

Cassandra Hult, 28, has been charged with first-degree murder in connection to the 2020 shooting death of her husband Jose Santiago ( Milwaukee County Sheriffs Office )

Investigators tested the cup for DNA. During a preliminary hearing on Tuesday, Milwaukee Police Detective Jake Puschnig testified that the analysis turned up fingerprints and DNA for both Santiago and Hult.

Hult became a subject of interest for the police investigating the murder. She was questioned numerous times following Santiago's murder. Police learned that the two frequently fought, and that they had only been married for about a year-and-a-half before the murder.

She also admitted to investigators that the pair fought on the day before Santiago was found dead.

Hult explained the situation to the police; she had found text messages between Santiago and other women on his phone. She confronted him about the messages, the couple fought, and Santiago kicked her out of his car, and then she went to stay with her grandmother on Milwaukee's north side.

She did not mention anything about stopping at a McDonald's.

Police determined that Hult's stories were inconsistent, and used cell phone location data to place her near the spot where Santiago died on the day he died.

Hult eventually left Wisconsin and moved to Buckeye, Arizona, where she moved in with a woman and the woman's daughter. That arrangement didn't last, however, as Hult and the woman got into a heated argument that ended with Hult getting kicked out.

According to a criminal complaint, the two women continued fighting after the initial incident, and even had an argument on FaceTime where Hult allegedly threatened to kill the woman and blurted out that she'd previously killed her husband.

The woman and her daughter reported the incident to Buckeye law enforcement. The younger woman living at the Arizona house also told police that Hult had admitted to her on a separate occasion that she killed her husband.

She wasn't the only one Hult allegedly told about Santiago.

A man told police that during a trip to Las Vegas in 2022, he allegedly met and had a fling with Hult. Shortly after their rendezvous, Hult reportedly moved to the West Coast and into the man's home in Sacramento, California.

He told police that over the course of their relationship, Hult confessed "multiple times" that she had killed Santiago.

With the witnesses claiming Hult openly spoke about killing Santiago and the DNA on the McDonald's cup, prosecutors were able to obtain a warrant for Hult's arrest on May 6.

Hult is being held at the Milwaukee County Jail, and her bond has been set at $500,000. She has, through her attorney, pleaded not guilty to the murder. She appeared in court on Monday, and her next appearance is scheduled for 10 July.
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An armed woman who breached an FBI office with a handgun was taken into custody by a SWAT team following an hour-long standoff with authorities.

The woman, who has not been identified, walked into the publicly-accessible lobby of the building on 1110 Third Avenue in Seattle, Washington, at approximately 3.14pm PT on Wednesday.

Seattle Police Department and Homeland Security swiftly arrived at the scene preventing the armed woman from venturing further into the building.

She was possibly pointing the gun at herself in the chest region, with negotiators being deployed and speaking over the tannoy in a bid for a peaceful solution, according to FOX 13 Seattle.

Dozens of police cars swarmed the building as four blocks around the bureaus Seattle headquarters were shut down during the standoff causing a build-up of traffic, according to one witness.

An FBI SWAT team took the gunwoman into custody approximately an hour later without any injuries. There were no hostages at the scene and no reported injuries

The woman entered the FBIs office at 1110 Third Avenue in Seattle at 3.14pm on Wednesday ( Google )

Paper has been put up in the windows of the building to obscure the view of onlookers. The building has been taped off, while the surrounding streets and roads have been reopened to both traffic and pedestrians.

Detectives are currently unsure of the womans demands. An investigation is ongoing and no charging decisions have been made.

We are grateful to the Seattle Police Department, King County Sheriffs Office, Federal Protective Service, and other law enforcement partners for their commitment to protecting our community, special agent Richard Collodi, in charge of the FBI Seattle Field Office, said in a statement.

The FBI has reported an increase in the number of threats against personnel and facilities in recent years as it continues to face widespread criticism, particular amongst conservatives and the far-right.

Some MAGA supporters have condemned both the bureau and the Justice Department for supposedly being hyper-aggresive against former president Donald Trump, while in contrast believing they turn a blind eye to President Joe Biden.

Erving Lee Bolling smashed his SUV through a barricade at an FBI headquarters in Atlanta in April this year before being caught by federal agents. He had reportedly been posting about the QAnon conspiracy theory prior to the incident.

A gunman clad in body armor tried to breach the bureaus Cincinnati office in August 2022. Ricky Shiffer managed to flee the scene before being shot dead by police.

Authorities suspect he was present at the Jan. 6 Capitol riots and may have had ties with far-right group the Proud Boys, although he was not officially charged with any crimes in connection to the event.

The Independent has reached out to the FBI about how the armed woman managed to bypass the offices metal detectors.
 Close Related video: Gilgo Beach murders victim Jane Doe 7 identified as Karen Vergata

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New information on Asian Doe, an unidentified victim of the Gilgo Beach killings, was released on Monday.

Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney revealed the victim was a biological male of Asian descent between 17 and 23 years old. His office released new sketches of the victim with both long and short hair.

Because the victim was wearing exclusively womens clothing at the time of death, it is possible that they identified as a woman, or were known by others as being a woman, Tierney said.

Tierney called on the community to help identify the victim, who died of blunt-force trauma: Its important that this victim get their name back.

Asian Doe is one of 11 victims whose remains were found along Gilgo Beach in 2011.

Suspected serial killer Rex Heuermann, 61, has been charged with the murders of five of the 11 victims, including four female sex workers known as the Gilgo Four who disappeared between 2007 and 2010. He is also charged with the murder of Sandra Costilla, whose body was found in another area in 1993. He has pleaded not guilty.
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Backpacks are likely to be banned from the boardwalk in a New Jersey beach town following a series of incidents in which juveniles used bags to bring "paraphernalia and alcohol" to the coast.

The Wildwood Board of Commissioners is expected to pass an emergency backpack ban during their Wednesday night meeting. The ban, if passed, will go into effect immediately, and will bar the use of bags on the boardwalk between 8pm and 4am daily.

The ban will include all backpacks except for diaper bags, medical equipment bags, and small purses. Those caught breaking the ban will be asked by law enforcement to leave the boardwalk and could face fines if they return with a bag, according to CBS Philadelphia.

Wildwood is approximately 45 miles south of Atlantic City.

The city's safety officials said the ban was necessary to protect tourists and residents from teens bringing alcohol or weapons to the boardwalk.

A young man shows his backpack to a police officer in Ocean City, N.J., on Memorial Day weekend. Wildwood, New Jersey, is expected to pass a backpack ban to combat teen disturbances at the boardwalk (  2024 Copyright The Philadelphia Inquirer )

The city had to declare a state of emergency over the Memorial Day Weekend when large crowds of juveniles visiting the beach and boardwalk prohibited police from addressing service calls. Police were forced to close the boardwalk on Memorial Day with it opening again at 6am the following day, according to ABC 6.

"Wildwood will not tolerate unruly, undisciplined, unparented children nor will we stand by while the laws of the state tie the hands of the police," the city's mayor, Ernie Troiano Jr, said in a statement after the Memorial Day incident. "We wholeheartedly support the City of Wildwood Police Department in protecting this community from these nuisance crowds on our boardwalk and in the city."

A group of New Jersey police chiefs and Republican lawmakers met on Wednesday ahead of the Board of Commissioners meeting to demand that the parents of juveniles who create civil disturbances be held criminally responsible.

Police watch the crowds on the boardwalk in Ocean City, N.J., on Memorial Day weekend, Sunday, May 26, 2024 (  2024 Copyright The Philadelphia Inquirer )

The juveniles and their parents should be held accountable, Ocean City Police Chief William Campbell said during the panel, according to NBC10. The entire juvenile justice system needs to be reformed.

Joseph Murphy, Wildwood's police chief, agreed.

We are not holding these kids accountable, and it's not rehabilitating these kids, he said.

Wildwood isn't the first city to consider a backpack ban in response to juvenile disturbances; Ocean City enacted a similar ban last year, which bars all backpacks on the beach and boardwalk after 8pm.

Like Wildwood, Ocean City's ban was meant to curb rowdy behavior at the beach and boardwalk, specifically among juveniles.

While Ocean City banned backpacks on the beach as well, officials in Wildwood said that bags on the beach are a "gray area," though it's unclear what that means for enforcement. Regardless, the expected bag ban does not include Wildwood's beaches as of Wednesday's meeting.
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An 8-year-old boy from Minnesota was killed when he was shot in the head trying to protect his mother from his abusive father, according to police.

Danair Harden, 30, had just been released from jail after he was arrested for a domestic violence incident when he reportedly attacked his partner, Cherish Edwards, on June 5.

During the fight, Amir Harden, Danair and Edwards' son, reportedly tried to wrestle a gun from his father's hands to protect his mother. The gun went off and Amir was fatally shot in the head, according to the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

His father tried to shoot & kill me but my son was shot instead. Amir tried wrestling the gun out of his [father's] hand, Amir's mother wrote ona GoFundMe page following the tragic shooting.

She reportedly tried to send her son away from the fight, but Amir refused to leave his mother alone.

Amir Harden, 8, of Burnsville, Minnesota, was shot and killed while trying to protect his mother from his abusive father on 5 June, 2024 ( Cherish Edwards )

I screamed for him to leave and go to the neighbors , he refused & said Mommy, Im not leaving you here, she wrote.

Edwards said that Amri's four siblings witnessed the fight and the shooting.

My kids are traumatized & probably will need therapy for the rest of their lives, she wrote.

After Harden shot Amir, he shot himself in the head.

Police responding to the scene transported Amir and Harden to the hospital for treatment, according to the Star Tribune. Amir received treatment for several days, but was pronounced dead at the Hennepin County Medical Center on Sunday, according to a medical examiners' report.

Harden is still in critical condition.

Cherish Edwards, right, with her father Deon Edwards. Cherish Edwards 8-year-old son, Amir, died after he was shot in the head trying to protect her from her abusive husband on June 5, 2024 ( screengrab/CBS Minnesota )

On May 30, Harden allegedly choked Edwards after she tried to break off their 10-year relationship, according to the Star Tribune. He reportedly tried to stop her from calling the police, and fled the scene once she got ahold of law enforcement.

Police caught up to Harden around 3am the following morning and arrested him. He was charged with interfering with an emergency call, domestic assault and disorderly conduct.

Edwards reportedly told police she was afraid that Harden would attack her again once he was released.

A few hours after his arrest, Harden appeared in court, where prosecutors argued he posed a threat to Edwards. They sought a $10,000 bail to hold Harden and asked a judge to place a no-contact order on him and for him to turn over his firearms.

Harden was ultimately released on a $4,000 bail. He left jail around 4:50pm the same day as his arrest, and proceeded to track down and attack Edwards.

Edwards described her son as "real funny" and said he was a "leader" who was always protecting his siblings , according to ABC5.

She also said she felt immense guilt.

The guilt I feel. That bullet was for me and not my child, she said. I dont want him to be forgotten. He was only eight, and he had so much potential. He was gonna be somebody. Now, Ill never know.
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Sarah Boones attorney has asked to be removed from her case, meaning that the accused killer is now forced to search for a ninth defense attorney.

Boone, 42, has been charged with second-degree murder in connection with the death of her boyfriend, Jorge Torres in February 2020 in Winter Park, Florida. He died after she put him into a suitcase, police said. Boone has maintained that her boyfriend died following a game of hide-and-seek.

The couple had gotten drunk, she told investigators, and were laughing at how funny it would be if he got zipped up in the luggage. After putting him inside the suitcase, she said she passed out in bed and woke up hours later to realize he was still inside and called 911.

Police said they found two videos on the womans phone showing that the man had allegedly yelled out he couldnt breathe while she laughed. She allegedly responded: Yeah thats what you do when you choke me, according to WKMG.

Defendant Sarah Boone listens to her court-appointed attorney Patricia Cashman during a pre-trial hearing in Orlando, Florida on June 7. Cashman has asked to withdraw from the case ( AP )

She allegedly continued: Thats on you. Oh, thats what I feel like when you cheat on me.

Police said one of the videos shows the man attempting to escape. Another shows the luggage in another position as Torres calls out to Boone. Investigators said they arrested Boone after finding her statements to be inconsistent.

This week, Boones former defense attorney, Patricia Cashman, filed a motion asking to be withdrawn from the case, becoming the eighth attorney to do so.

In court filings, Cashman cited irreconcilable differences, including, but not limited to, ethical considerations. Cashman had represented Boone at a Friday hearing, according to Court TV.

During that hearing, Boone gave the judge presiding over the case a 58-page letter complaining about Cashman - who Boone said had a snotty attitude.

Ive never experienced anyone like Ms Cashman, Boone told the judge on Friday.

In court filings, Cashman cited irreconcilable differences, including, but not limited to, ethical considerations. Cashman had represented Boone at a Friday hearing, according to Court TV ( AP )

She will change her disposition and her attitude towards me, and it doesnt matter how dumbed-down I am to myself to try to coexist with her. Ive even come up with the solution to have a pretend judge in interactions with her so she would try hopefully to treat me appropriately and professionally, which she does not do.

The woman has had a complaint about all of her former attorneys.

Frank Bankowitz, the sixth attorney to represent the suspected killer, withdrew from her case after Boone called him a dud and a buffoon.

The seventh attorney withdrew from the case after the defendant sent letters to the court complaining about their communication styles.

At Fridays hearing, the attorney pushed back on Boones comments. She said she spent hours with her and accepted calls from jail. It was Boone who refused to cooperate with her, she told the judge.

Ive spent over 20 hours going through her questions, going through her lists, she told the court. When I try to update her with regard to the depositions that I took recently, she opted to exit the jail conference. When I tried to review some things with regard to discovery as to things I wanted to make sure she was aware of, she walked out.
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A woman was shot and killed by her husband in Oklahoma after he blocked her car while she was waiting at a carpool pick-up.

Logan County Sheriff's officials said Catalina Jimenez, 43, was waiting at a carpool to give a coworker a ride on Monday when her husband used his car to block her vehicle. He then fired two shots through her window, killing her.

The husband, Jose Alaniz, 51, then shot himself.

Both people were pronounced dead at the scene. Investigators said the couples young child was at home during the shooting and was not harmed.

Court documents filed in Logan County show that Jimenez had filed an emergency order of protection against Alaniz in November. The order was granted on May 24, according to KOCO.

Logan County Sheriffs deputies at the location where Jose Alaniz, 51, shot and killed his wife, Catalina Jimenez, 43, and then himself on June 10. ( screengrab/KFOR )

Logan County Sheriff Damon Deveraux told reporters deputies responded to domestic calls about Alaniz in the past.

"I know that weve been out here on domestics to the people that were involved before. Theres kind of a pattern of domestic abuse, and I think he was recently arrested within the last several months for domestic by strangulation," Devereaux said.

Jimenez filed for the protective order after the strangulation incident, according to Devereaux.

A neighbor told KOCO that deputies were always visiting the couple's home.

"Were so used to police and the Logan County Sheriff and all of them being out here. We hardly pay attention anymore," the neighbor, Berl Stinson, said.

Stinson said the community had seen "four or five murders out here" over the past 44 years.

The coworker that Jimenez was picking up was not harmed in the shooting. Law enforcement said the coworker was in the vehicle when the shooting happened but managed to escape out of the passenger door before Alaniz reached her.

"She was just along for the ride to go to work. She doesnt have any part in the actions of either one of these two people," Devereaux said. "We understand the emotional situation thats going on, too, with the family."

He said the woman was taken to a nearby hospital as a precaution, according to News 9.

I've never been in a situation like that, but I can't imagine the terror she would be feeling of being involved that close to something like that, Devereaux said. I'm sure she felt like her life was about to end.
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A man and his mother have been arrested in South Carolina following the fatal shooting of a police dog as officers tried to arrest a suspect.

James Robert Peterson, 37, and Scarlett Boyd, 61, were arrested Tuesday at Boyds home on Gravel Road in Prosperity, South Carolina.

Officers from Newberry County Sheriffs Office, along with the State Law Enforcement Division, along with the K9 officer  Coba  were looking for Peterson in connection with a burglary that took place last month.

Boyd told officers she had not seen her son and that he was not at the property.

But as officers spoke to Boyd, a deputy saw Peterson moving through the house from a window. Coba, his handler and a deputy entered the home and confronted Peterson in a hallway.

K9 officer Coba was shot dead in South Carolina as police tried to serve an arrest warrant ( South Carolina Law Enforcement Division )

Peterson pulled out a gun, shooting the K9 and pointing a weapon at the team, the sheriffs office said. Peterson was then shot and wounded, later being taken to hospital.

State officials later announced with great sadness that Coba had also died in the line of duty.

Peterson was charged in connection with the burglary, though his charges regarding the K9s death are unclear at this time. His mother was charged with hindering a law enforcement officers serving process.

An investigation remains ongoing.

James Robert Peterson was arrested after he shot K9 officer Coba as police sought to serve him a warrant in connection with a previous burglary, police said ( Newberry County Sheriffs Office )

The four-year-old Coba  a Belgian Malinois mix  joined the state investigative agency in 2021. During his career, Coba served on the SWAT Team and the K9 Tracking Team.

Coba participated in numerous trainings and apprehensions that kept communities, SLEDs law enforcement partners, and his SLED SWAT Team safe, a statement from the force read.

The dog will be greatly missed the force said, adding that details regarding a memorial service would be announced in due course.

Petersons mother, Scarlett Boyd, was also arrested on charges of hindering law enforcement ( Newberry County Sheriffs Office )

During his time on the force Coba served the citizens of South Carolina alongside Special Agent Richard Cole Powell and lived with Powells family.

According to the department, Cobas death is the 20th officer-involved shooting in South Carolina this year.

Last year there were 43 officer-involved shootings in South Carolina.
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A California police officer killed a woman during a scuffle  and now, another man who was present has been arrested in connection with her murder.

An unnamed Riverside County Sheriffs Office deputy on patrol tried to talk to multiple people in Corona on Tuesday, according to a department statement. The subjects ran and the deputy gave chase. Its unclear why the deputy tried to speak to the suspects.

The deputy ran after them and when he turned the corner of a woman, the man lunged at him and a fight began.

During the scuffed, the woman started to assault the deputy and he shot her. She was pronounced deceased at a local hospital. Her name has not been released.

The deputy continued to fight with the man, identified as San Diego resident Eric Nourani, before Good Samaritans arrived to help detain him. Police say Nourani was trying to take the deputys gun.

San Diego resident Eric Nourani, pictured, has been arrested for the murder of a woman who was fatally shot by a California deputy. ( Riverside County Sheriffs Office )

Now, Nourani has been arrested for murder, attempted murder of a peace officer, mayhem, and resisting an officer with violence, according to the departments press release.

However, the 33-year-old has not been formally charged by prosecutors, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Police were able to arrest Nourani for the womans murder because of Californias accomplice liability for felony murder law, the Times reports. The law enables authorities to charge suspects if theyre believed to be a major participant in the underlying felony and acted with reckless indifference to human life.

While Nourani is behind bars, the deputy is under paid administrative leave, the sheriffs office stated. The states Department of Justice is leading the ongoing investigation into the incident.

The Independent has contacted officials for comment.
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Parents are going thousands of dollars into debt to make their kids dreams come true at Walt Disney World, a new study has revealed.

The study by financial website LendingTree found that 45 percent of American families with children under 18 took on debt during their vacations to the famed theme park. The average amount of debt was $1,983.

The company surveyed more than 2,000 US consumers who went to the theme park in Orlando, Florida, and Disneyland in Anaheim, California.

Overall, 24 percent of people who visited the parks went into debt for their trip. That number has gone up 33 percent since the last survey in 2022.

The majority of families with young children have gone into debt to take their children to the park within the last five years. However, 59 percent of those surveyed said they have no regrets about the decision.

A majority of parkgoers said it took them less than six months to pay off the debt.

One of the biggest costs while spending a day at the happiest place on earth was the in-park food and beverages, parents reported. A majority said the cost was significantly higher than what they expected to spend. Parents also said transportation and accommodation costs were high.

Parents are getting thousands of dollars into debt to take their kids to Disney World, new study finds ( Getty Images for Disney Dreamers )

A standard park ticket varies per park and day. On some days, tickets can be as low as $99. NerdWallet estimates that a seven-night trip for two adults can easily cost up to $4,000.

An average meal at the park can cost anywhere between $19 to $93 and parking can be $36 a day plus tax.

LendingTree Chief Credit Analyst Matt Schulz said it makes sense that a large percentage of parents would be willing to take on debt to get their children into the magic kingdom.

For so many parents, taking their kids to Disney is a rite of passage, something they remember fondly from their youth and want to experience with their kids, he said. Because of those feelings, theyre often willing to take on debt to get there.

He argued that going into debt for the visit could be a good thing. That debt helped bring you an experience that you and your family are going to remember and talk about for the rest of your lives, which is a pretty darn good return on your investment, he said.

Of course, that doesnt mean you should do it often. Every once in a while, a little debt generated in service of a greater goal can be fine.
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Years ago, SpaceX founder Elon Musk allegedly exposed himself to a SpaceX flight attendant before offering her a strange quid pro quo  he would give her a horse if she gave him an erotic massage. The company then reportedly paid the woman $250,000 to settle a 2018 sexual misconduct claim against Musk.

In 2022, Musk denied the accusation and told Business Insider, which first reported the allegation: If I were inclined to engage in sexual harassment, this is unlikely to be the first time in my entire 30-year career that it comes to light.

Now, two years later, more allegations involving Musks behavior in his relationships have emerged.

The billionaire had relationships with a number of female employees at SpaceX, and pressed others for sexual favors, according to a new Wall Street Journal report, based on interviews with more than 48 sources as well as emails, texts, and records.

Musks alleged string of sexual encounters, or requested ones, with women who worked for him are nothing short of salacious.

Musk, the worlds second richest person, had a relationship with a summer intern before giving her a role, years later, on his executive staff. He asked another woman to have his children, and engaged in a month-long sexual relationship with a woman that he directly supervised in 2014, the Journal reported.

Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceXs president and COO, pushed back on the Journals report, telling the outlet that its reporting was filled with untruths, mischaracterizations, and revisionist history which paint a completely misleading narrative.

Elon Musk, co-founder of Tesla and SpaceX and owner of X Holdings Corp., speaks at the Milken Institutes Global Conference at the Beverly Hilton Hotel,on May 6, 2024 in Beverly Hills, California ( Getty Images )

She added: Elon is one of the best humans I know.

The company investigates all sexual harassment complaints and acts on them accordingly, Shotwell told the outlet.

The Independent has emailed SpaceX for comment.

Musk, who has 11 children, reportedly asked a female employee to have his babies on more than one occasion, the Journal reported. She rejected his offer but stayed in her role. Musk, though, apparently didnt make it easy for her to stay; declining to give her a raise and complaining about her work, the Journal wrote. The woman eventually left the company in 2013 with an exit package of cash and stock valued at more than $1m, the outlet said.

Musk also allegedly had a sexual relationship with a college student who was interning for a summer at SpaceX in the early 2010s, the Journal reported. The engineering intern interacted with the founder after pitching ideas to improve the company. He was more than 20 years her senior, according to the report.

A year after her internship, the billionaire reportedly flew her to Sicily. Her travels allegedly included a first-class trip to London followed by a private jet to Italy, where he was attending a Google-sponsored conference. The relationship ended some time after the international meet-up.

But years later, in 2017, Musk contacted the ex-intern, offering her a position on his executive staff. She took the job, the Journal wrote, and moved from New York to California.

Despite their relationship having ended, Musk invited her for drinks after she got to California. There, he reportedly hit on the former intern, and touched her breast.

The outlet obtained affidavits signed by the woman. In them, she said that she did not have a relationship with Musk while she was employed at SpaceX from 2017 to 2019. She wrote: Elon tried to rekindle our relationship prior to my employment, and I rejected the advance. While there was some initial awkwardness, it was nothing out of the ordinary after a rejection.

However, her conversations with friends seemed to tell a different story. The outlet spoke to the former interns friends, who recalled her saying that she wasnt enjoying her time at SpaceX; she sometimes hid in the companys bathroom; that she suffered from imposter syndrome; and that she struggled to get her colleagues to take her ideas seriously.

The former intern traveled to the billionaires home frequently and was the recipient of many texts from Musks, friends told the outlet. In one text conversation, seen by the Journal, Musk repeatedly asked the woman to come over.

When she didnt reply, he texted three subsequent times before allegedly writing: Probably best if we dont see each other. The next morning, texts showed that the woman responded with an apology for not getting back to him because she had been asleep.

Her lawyers told the Journal that the break up part of Musks text was not referring to a romantic relationship.

However a friend of the woman told the Journal that she suffers from mild social anxiety resulting from imposter syndrome which definitely makes this job harder And thats definitely exacerbated by Elons behavior.

Eventually, the former intern requested to move off Musks executive team and into another role. She told friends that her interactions with the founder had grown awkward. In 2019, she left the company, the outlet reported.
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Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who has been jailed for over a year in Russia on espionage charges, will stand trial in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg, authorities announced Thursday.

An indictment of the journalist has been finalized and his case was filed to the Sverdlovsky Regional Court in the city about 870 miles east of Moscow, according to Russias Prosecutor Generals office.

Gershkovich is accused of gathering secret information for the CIA about Uralvagonzavod, a facility in the Sverdlovsk region that produces and repairs military equipment, the Prosecutor Generals office said in a statement, revealing for the first time the details of the accusations against him.

The officials didnt provide any evidence to back up the accusations. There was no word on when the trial would begin.

Gershkovich was detained while on a reporting trip to Yekaterinburg in March 2023 and accused of spying for the United States. The reporter, his employer and the U.S. government denied the allegations, and Washington designated him as wrongfully detained.

The Federal Security Service, or FSB, alleged at the time he was acting on U.S. orders to collect state secrets but also provided no evidence.

President Vladimir Putin has said he believed a deal could be reached to free Gershkovich, hinting he would be open to swapping him for a Russian national imprisoned in Germany, which appeared to be Vadim Krasikov. He was serving a life sentence for the 2019 killing in Berlin of a Georgian citizen of Chechen descent.

U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved )

Asked last week by The Associated Press about Gershkovich, Putin said the U.S. is taking energetic steps to secure his release. He said any such releases arent decided via mass media but through a discreet, calm and professional approach.

And they certainly should be decided only on the basis of reciprocity, he added in an allusion to a potential prisoner swap.

Gershkovich faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

He was the first U.S. journalist taken into custody on espionage charges since Nicholas Daniloff in 1986 at the height of the Cold War. Gershkovichs arrest shocked foreign journalists in Russia, even though the country had enacted increasingly repressive laws on freedom of speech after sending troops into Ukraine.

The son of Soviet emigres who settled in New Jersey, Gershkovich was fluent in Russian and moved to the country in 2017 to work for The Moscow Times newspaper before being hired by the Journal in 2022.

Since his arrest, Gershkovich has been held at Moscows Lefortovo Prison, a notorious czarist-era prison used during Josef Stalins purges, when executions were carried out in its basement.

The Biden administration has sought to negotiate his release, but Russias Foreign Ministry said it would consider a prisoner swap only after a verdict in his trial.

U.S. Ambassador Lynne Tracy, who regularly visited Gershkovich in prison and attended his court hearings, has called the charges against him fiction and said that Russia is using American citizens as pawns to achieve political ends.

Since sending troops to Ukraine, Russian authorities have detained several U.S. nationals and other Westerners, seemingly bolstering that idea.
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Rescue operations have been launched on the Greek island of Amorgos after a retired US police officer disappeared while out on a solo hike - days after the death of TV doctor Michael Mosley in similar circumstances.

Eric Albert Calibet, 59  known to friends as Albert  had been vacationing on the island but was reported missing by a friend on Tuesday afternoon.

Calibet left for the challenging four-hour hike, from Aegiali to Katapola around 7am, according to local outlets. The friend reported the disappearance to Amorgos police after he had not returned eight hours later. Authorities have not been able to contact Calibet via either of his two cell phones.

Albert Calibet, 59, had been vacationing on the island but was reported missing by a friend on Tuesday afternoon ( Municipality of Amorgos )

According to The Greek Reporter, the last message sent by the man was to his sister, and was a picture of a trail sign.

A rescue operation was launched on Tuesday afternoon and resumed on Wednesday morning with reinforcements from the nearby Naxos island.

Police have requested data from mobile operators to determine Calibets last known location on the island, which has a population of roughly 2,000.

The American tourists disappearance comes after prominent TV Dr Michael Mosley was found dead on the neighboring Greek island of Symi, following an extensive five-day search. The two islands are about 200 miles apart.

Mosley, the author and presenter who revolutionized the way Britain fights the obesity crisis, disappeared on June 5, also after heading off on his own  returning to the home his family was vacationing in.

A major search effort was launched to find the esteemed BBC Radio 4 and This Morning presenter on Wednesday after he disappeared while holidaying on the Greek island of Symi.

The 67-year-old had attempted to return to the house in searing heat, with an umbrella but no mobile phone. He was seen on surivelance video in the village of Pedi 30 minutes later, shortly before entering a treacherous mountain path.

The US mans disappearance comes shortly after British TV doctor Michael Mosley was found dead following similar circumstances on the Greek island of Symi ( Tony Ward/ITV/Shutterstock )

Mosleys body was eventually discovered on Sunday morning after being spotted by television cameras from a boat carrying the islands mayor.

Confirming the death of her wonderful, funny, kind and brilliant husband, Dr Clare Bailey Mosley said: Were taking comfort in the fact that he so very nearly made it. He did an incredible climb, took the wrong route and collapsed where he couldnt be easily seen by the extensive search team.

Michael was an adventurous man, its part of what made him so special ... I feel so lucky to have our children and my amazing friends. Most of all, I feel so lucky to have had this life with Michael.
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A Texas man has died after he was electrocuted in a hot tub at a resort complex in northwest Mexico this week.

Jorge Guillen, 43, died and his wife, 35-year-old Lizette Zambrano, was injured after they were both shocked by electric discharge in the jacuzzi at the Sonoran Sea Resort in Puerto Penasco around 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The couple, who were identified by CBS affiliate KDBC, had traveled to Sonora from El Paso, Texas.

A witness who spoke to Telemundo said bystanders made frantic attempts to pull the couple out of the water but were stymied by the electrical current. One woman was even shocked herself as she tried to enter the hot tub. Videos posted on social media show the chaotic aftermath of the tragedy, with witnesses screaming as they tried to help the couple.

When authorities arrived at the complex, Guillen was found submerged under the water.

Jorge Guillen, 43, died and Lizette Zambrano, 35, was injured after they were electrocuted in a jacuzzi in Sonora, Mexico this week ( GoFundMe )

The complex has reportedly shut down all hot tubs in the complex, one of the witnesses said.

The attorney generals office for the state has launched an investigation into the matter to determine Guillens official cause of death. Officials are also working to determine what caused the electric discharge.

A GoFundMe had been established to help support the couples family. The fundraising site is asking for donations to help bring the mans body home and support the womans medical expenses.

Following the incident, Zambrano was taken to the hospital in critical condition.

Jorge had a heart of gold and was always there for family and friends, the page reads. The love they shared was one for ages. By early Thursday afternoon, the fundraiser had raked in more than $30,000.
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Virginia health officials are investigating after several people got sick from swimming in a popular lake.

The states Department of Health said that the incidents stemmed from outdoor activity over Memorial Day weekend at Lake Anna, a body of water 86 miles from Washington, DC.

Several, including children, contracted gastronomical illnesses and some of the people have been diagnosed with E. coli infections. The infection causes stomach cramps, diarrhea, vomiting, fever and chills. In extreme cases, the illness can damage organs, including the kidneys, and lead to hemolytic uremic syndrome.

Judy Inglett, the parent of a 15-year-old girl who went swimming in the lake over Memorial Day weekend said that her daughter is now fighting for her life.

Its a parents worst nightmare, Inglett, who is from Fauquier County, told Gray News. She took her daughter, who she did not name, to the hospital after she began experiencing severe symptoms. The child has had at least two rounds of dialysis.

She has been diagnosed with hemolytic uremic syndrome. Shes in kidney failure. I wouldnt even let my dogs swim in that lake. There is definitely something going on. Its not safe, Inglett said.

Lake Anna in Virginia spans 200 miles and has 13,000 acres of water. The Virginia Department of Health announced an investigation into several illnesses stemming from the lake over Memorial Day weekend ( Virginia State Parks )

Nate Hiner said his eight-year-old twins are at the Childrens National Hospital in DC. His daughter needed blood and platelet transfusions after her trip to the lake.

Its terrifying to just go from having a fun day at the lake to potentially needing dialysis in an eight-year-old child. Its just unfathomable to think of as a parent, he told the outlet.

The department said it has received many reports of the illness, mainly in children, and is aware of hospitalizations.

Despite the reports, the department said it does not have enough information at this time to confirm that the illnesses stemmed from the lake, meaning it will not be issuing a swimming advisory.

The lakes water will be tested to evaluate present concentrations of bacteria and to examine what the ongoing risk is to the public. Its not suspected that the illness is related to an Algae Bloom.

As we head to pools, lakes and beaches to enjoy the warmer weather and spend time with our families, it is important to remember to take precautions to prevent illness, Olugbenga O Obasanjo, Rappahannock health district health director, said.

Showering before and after swimming, washing your hands before eating and being sure not to drink the lake water are some of the ways to stay healthy this summer. It is also important not to swim if you have diarrhea.
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Fifty-three years after a private plane carrying five men disappeared on a snowy Vermont night, experts believe they have found the wreckage of the long lost jet in Lake Champlain.

The corporate jet disappeared shortly after departing the Burlington airport for Providence, Rhode Island, on Jan. 27, 1971. Those aboard included two crew members and three employees of the Atlanta, Georgia, development company Cousins Properties, who were working on a development project in Burlington.

Initial searches for the 10-seat Jet Commander turned up no wreckage and the lake froze over four days after the plane was lost. At least 17 other searches happened, until underwater searcher Garry Kozak and a team using a remotely operated vehicle last month found wreckage of a jet with the same custom paint scheme in the lake close to where the radio control tower had last tracked the plane before it disappeared. Sonar images were taken of the wreck found in 200 feet (60 meters of water) near Juniper Island.

In this May 2024 image provided by Garry Kozak, remains of what experts believe to be is a 10-seat Jet Commander aircraft, rest on the floor of Lake Champlain off Juniper Island, Vt. Fifty-three years after a private plane carrying five men disappeared on a snowy Vermont night, experts believe they have found the wreckage of the long lost jet in Lake Champlain. The corporate jet disappeared shortly after departing the Burlington, Vt., airport for Providence, R.I., on Jan. 27, 1971 ( Garry Kozak )

With all those pieces of evidence, we're 99% absolutely sure, Kozak said Monday.

The discovery of the wreckage gives the families of the victims "some closure and answers a lot of the questions they had, he said.

While relatives are grateful and relieved that the plane has been found, the discovery also opens up more questions and old wounds.

To have this found now ... its peaceful feeling, at the same time its a very sad feeling, Barbara Nikita, niece of pilot George Nikita, said in an interview with The Associated Press on Tuesday. We know what happened. Weve seen a couple of photos. Were struggling I think with that now.

Frank Wilder's father, also Frank Wilder, was a passenger on the plane.

Spending 53 years not knowing if the plane was in the lake or maybe on a mountainside around there somewhere was distressing," said Wilder, who lives outside if Philadelphia. "And again, I'm feeling relieved that I know where the plane is now but unfortunately it's opening other questions and we have to work on those now.

When the ice melted in the spring of 1971, debris from the plane was found on Shelburne Point, according to Kozak. An underwater search in May of 1971 was unable to find the wreckage. At least 17 other searches happened, including in 2014, according to Kozak. At that time, authorities were spurred by curiosity after the Malaysia Airlines plane disappearance that year with the hope that new technology would find the wreck but it did not.

Barbara Nikita, who lives in southern California and her cousin Kristina Nikita Coffey, who lives in Tennessee, spearheaded recent search efforts and contacted other victims' relatives.

What was fascinating in reconnecting with the group was everybody had pieces of the pie and the puzzle that when we started sharing information and sharing documents what we got was a much greater both understanding and perspective of the information, how we were all impacted by this," said Charles Williams, whose father, Robert Ransom Williams III, an employee of Cousins Properties, was on the plane.

He called Kozar a hero for his dedication to finding the plane. After the 2014 search was unsuccessful, Kozar became intrigued and searched a sonar survey of the lake taken by the Champlain Maritime Museum and Middlebury College. He found four anomalies on the lake floor. Then in 2022, a colleague, Hans Hug of Sonar Search and Recovery in Exeter, New Hampshire, and his friend who has an ROV, said they wanted to look for the plane, Kozar said. The team found a plane but it turned out to be a military aircraft. Last winter Kozar searched the sonar survey again and found another anomaly, which the team discovered last month was likely the plane wreckage.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating to verify if it is the plane, Williams said. The NTSB doesn't do salvage operations, which would be expensive, Williams said.

Whether there is tangible remains, and I hate to say it that way, and worth disturbing that's a decision that we'll have to figure out later, and part of what we're unpacking now," he said. "It's hard when you start to think about that."

The relatives of the victims plan to hold a memorial now that they know where the plane is located.
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Former Donald Trump prosecutor Nathan Wade reiterated he does not believe his affair with Fulton County DA is responsible for delaying the Georgia trial against the former president - but admitted the relationship was bad timing.

I dont believe my actions played a role in it at all, Wade said during an interview with CNNs Kaitlan Collins aired Wednesday night.

He described it as a dog-and-pony show to use his relationship with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to try and slow the case. But, Wade said the indictments cover the allegations against Trump and the others accused of trying to overturn the election in the state.

Certainly I would have never done anything that would have jeopardized that hard workI do believe though the timing of the personal relationship I had was probably bad, it was bad timing but you dont pick and choose when those things happen, Wade said, adding that he regretted the timing of the affair given the case against Trump.

Wade was thrust into the spotlight when he was appointed as a top prosecutor in the Georgia election interference case that saw Trump and 17 co-defendant charged criminally. The group is accused of trying to subvert the 2020 election results in Georgia. Trump has pleaded not guilty. While some of the defendants have already pleaded guilty to their roles.

However, the case was thrown into a circus when it emerged during Wades divorce proceedings that he was having a relationship with Willis.

CNNs Kaitlan Collins sits down with Nathan Wade to discuss Donald Trump possibly facing trial in Georgia while being a sitting president. The two also spoke about several other issues. ( CNN )

That led to questions about his appointment and accusations of impropriety.

Willis and Wade both denied wrongdoing, but a judge ruled that one must leave the case. Wade then resigned to allow Willis to continue to oversee the prosecution.

Trump has pushed to disqualify Willis from trying the case and the Georgia Supreme Court has ordered an October hearing on the matter. That will likely push a trial past election day. Willis has filed an request to dismiss the appeal.

That possible situation led to an awkward exchange between Collins and Wade during Wednesdays interview.

The host asked Wade if he believed a sitting president could be put on trial.

The prosecution of Donald Trump in Georgia was thrown into chaos when it emerged Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis had a relationship with Wade. ( REUTERS )

I dont believe it looks good to the rest of the world, Wade said, but I dont think there is anything that would prevent that from happening.

Collins then asked what if Trump was convicted in Georgia while being president. Wade said he didnt understand the question and said anyone convicted would then go through the sentencing process.

The host countered she didnt believe a sitting president would be sent to jail, because it would create a confrontation with Secret Service and a president is the head of a branch of the federal government.

We know that sentencing is entirely up to a trial court, Wade said. And its up to the court to determine if the appropriate sentence is jail time.
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An ex-spy has warned that the US should be concerned by Russian ships visiting Cuba, but the Kremlin has insisted that there is nothing to worry about.

Former KGB spy Jack Barsky, who spent a decade spying for the Soviet Union in the US before he was discovered by the FBI, told NewsNation that the US should be worried after Russia sent three warships and a nuclear-powered submarine into Cuban waters  just 90 miles from Florida  on Tuesday for routine military exercises.

You cant look at this as just a routine exercise. It has to be seen against the background where Putin is stating that hes actually fighting the West in the Ukraine, he said.

The Pentagon has maintained that it is not worried about the deployment of the ships, saying that they pose no threat because the deployment is part of routine naval activity. Cuba has also said the deployment poses no threat.

Visits by naval units from other countries are a historical practice of the revolutionary government with nations that maintain relations of friendship and collaboration, a statement from Cubas Foreign Ministry said.

According to a Cuban Armed Forces Ministry statement, none of the Russian ships are armed with nuclear weapons.

But Barsky said he disagreed with the Pentagon and Cubas stance. Everything that Putin does is sending messaging, particularly threatening ones, Barsky said, adding that Putin likes to scare people.

Barsky added that his fear stems from the Cuban missile crisis of 1962, when the fear of nuclear war paralyzed America for nearly two weeks.

With this kind of tension that we have, theres always the possibility of an accidental launch, Barsky said. Im worried about that.

Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander General Wesley Clark shared similar remarks on NewsNations The Hill on Tuesday, arguing that while Russias presence in Cubas waters does not signal war, it is clearly a show of strength by Putin who is trying to send a message to the world as the war in Ukraine continues.

I dont think its anything that will erupt in violence, Clark said. But does [Vladimir Putin] send a message to the United States and the world? Sure.

Despite such sentiment, the Kremlin insisted on Thursday that there was no reason for any country including the United States to be worried by the exercise.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that it was common practice for all states including major maritime powers such as Russia to carry out military exercises.

Cuba is a long-time ally of Russia, dating back to the Cold War years. The country hosted Russian ships every year between 2013 and 2020.

Cuba is also increasingly reliant on Russian oil and aid as the communist-run country weathers its worst economic crisis in decades.

The ships are expected to stay in Cuban waters for five days.
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A Texas megachurch pastor has suddenly announced he is stepping down from leading the institution he helped build after 48 years of preaching, saying only that he has fallen short of the absolute supreme standard of truth he aimed to live due to sin.

Evangelist Dr Tony Evans, 74, the first Black person to earn a doctorate of theology from Dallas Theological Seminary, founded the Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship in South Dallas in 1976 with his friend, the Reverend Crawford Loritts, according to NBC DFW.

Originally from Baltimore, Evans began the church in the living room of the house he shared with his late first wife Lois, starting out with Bible study sessions for just 10 worshippers.

Over the next half-century, Oak Cliffs attendance swelled to 10,000 and the fellowship now boasts more than 100 ministries, with the pastor himself well known as a radio personality for his syndicated show The Alternative with Dr Tony Evans and for serving as chaplain to the NFLs Dallas Cowboys and the NBAs Dallas Mavericks.

Evans lost the mother of his four children to bile duct cancer in December 2019 but remarried last year to educator Carla Crummie and all appeared to be well until his unexpected statement on Sunday June 9, announcing his intention to step aside over the unnamed sin.

The foundation of our ministry has always been our commitment to the Word of God as the absolute supreme standard of truth to which we are to conform our lives, Evans wrote in announcing his leaving.

When we fall short of that standard due to sin, we are required to repent and restore our relationship with God. A number of years ago, I fell short of that standard. I am, therefore, required to apply the same Biblical standard of repentance and restoration to myself that I have applied to others.

Evans said he had explained himself to his family and received their support before continuing: While I have committed no crime, I did not use righteous judgement in my actions.

Dr Tony Evans preaching at Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas. He has resigned from his church after 48 years due to sin. ( Corbis/Getty )

In light of this, I am stepping away from my pastoral duties and am submitting to a healing and restoration process established by the elders. This will afford me a needed time of spiritual recovery and healing.

I have never loved you more than I love you right now, and Im trusting God to walk me through this valley.

While the pastor did not specify the exact nature of the past transgression that haunts him, nor whether his absence will be permanent or temporary, a second statement from the Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship said: This difficult decision was made after tremendous prayer and multiple meetings with Dr Evans and the church elders.

The elder board is obligated to govern the church in accordance with the Scriptures. Dr Evans and the elders agree that when any elder or pastor falls short of the high standards of scripture, the elders are responsible for providing accountability and maintaining the integrity in the church.

The institutions website elsewhere praises its founder as one of the countrys most respected leaders in evangelical circles [who] serves the body of Christ through his unique ability to communicate complex theological truths through simple, yet profound, illustrations.

Christianity Today meanwhile hails Evans as the first African American to have both a study Bible and a full Bible commentary bearing his name, with a track-record of demanding accountability from others.

Associated with George W Bush during his presidency, the evangelist did attract more negative national headlines in 2012 when he openly criticized then-president Barack Obama over his support for same-sex marriage.
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A widely used abortion drug will remain on the market after the US Supreme Court tossed a legal challenge from anti-abortion activists.

Justices unanimously rejected arguments from an influential conservative Christian legal group that challenged the federal governments approval of the drug mifepristone, which is also used to treat miscarriages.

A ruling on Thursday found that the group lacked standing, meaning a legal right to sue, but conservatives on the high court left the door open for anti-abortion activists to challenge the drug.

The plaintiffs have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to elective abortion and to FDAs relaxed regulation of mifepristone, Justice Kavanaugh wrote for a unanimous court.

But those objections are not enough to establish a justiciable case or controversy in federal court, he wrote.

Here, the plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate that FDAs relaxed regulatory requirements likely would cause them to suffer an injury in fact, he added.

Plaintiffs should instead present their objections to Congress or the FDA itself, not the courts, and they may also express their views about abortion and mifepristone to fellow citizens, including in the political and electoral processes, Kavanaugh added.

Republican officials in several states are still pushing litigation with the hopes of taking it off the market altogether.

In this photo illustration, packages of Mifepristone tablets are displayed at a family planning clinic on April 13, 2023 ( Getty Images )

The case marked the first major abortion rights decision at the high court in the wake of its 2022 decision to revoke a constitutional right to care.

Months after that ruling to overturn Roe v Wade, Alliance Defending Freedom filed a federal lawsuit targeting mifepristone from Amarillo, Texas, on behalf of a group of anti-abortion physicians incorporated as the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine.

US District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk  who was appointed by Donald Trump  later issued a ruling to suspend the FDAs approval of the drug, triggering appeals that were kicked up to the nations highest court.

The lawsuit argued that the Food and Drug Administration wrongfully approved mifepristone for use up to 10 weeks of pregnancy, and then improperly eliminated requirements that the drug should only be dispensed in person.

In 2021, the FDA under President Joe Biden permanently lifted the in-person requirement for medication abortion prescriptions, allowing patients to access the drugs via telehealth appointments and online pharmacies so patients can take the drugs at home.

In the years that followed, anti-abortion state legislators have filed more than 100 bills to restrict the availability and distribution or abortion drugs, or sought to ban them altogether. After the Supreme Courts decision in Dobbs v Jackson Womens Health Organization, more than a dozen states have effectively outlawed all abortions in most circumstances.

Abortion-rights activists holds a signs as they protest outside of the Supreme Court during a rally, March 26, 2024 ( AP )

There is no credible dispute about mifepristones safety, said Julia Kaye, senior staff attorney with the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project.

When other courts have heard these folks testify, time and again they have discredited them, she told reporters ahead of the courts ruling.

Republican attorneys general from several states have latched on to the Amarillo lawsuit, and abortion rights advocates are anticipating copycat lawsuits if their challenge fails.

And if elected, Trump could appoint a commissioner to the FDA that could roll back evidence-based approval of mifepristone and revoke its approval, Kaye said.

Trumps allies also are promoting a plan to invoke the 150-year-old Comstock Act to ban abortion nationwide, without any new action from Congress. Dozens of Republican members of Congress also wrote to the Supreme Court to argue that Comstock should ban abortion drugs.

Their interpretation of Comstock is entirely wrong, but that is not going to stop these extremists, Kaye said.

President Joe Biden administration and others have also warned that a Supreme Court decision that targets the FDAs approval process could open the door for other right-wing-fuelled legal challenges to other drugs, including HIV prevention medication, gender-affirming care, contraception and Covid-19 vaccines.

Thursdays decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues, Biden said in a statement after the ruling.

Threats to medication abortion are part of Republican elected officials extreme and dangerous agenda to ban abortion nationwide, he added.

Women are being turned away from emergency rooms, or forced to go to court to plead for care that their doctor recommended or to travel hundreds of miles for care, he said. Doctors and nurses are being threatened with jail time, including life in prison, for providing the health care they have been trained to provide. And contraception and IVF are under attack.

The ruling is not a win for abortion, according to Nancy Northup, president of the Center for Reproducrive Rights, which has led challenges to anti-abortion laws and defended abortion access in litigation across the US.

It just maintains the status quo, which is a dire public health crisis in which 14 states have criminalized abortion.
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President Joe Biden on Thursday announced three new measures that he said will create a stronger foundation for Ukraine in its bloody war against Russia: a sweeping bilateral security agreement between the United States and Ukraine, a $50 billion loan for Kyiv backed by the Group of Seven countries, and new sanctions against Russian individuals and entities.

Speaking alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Puglia, Italy, Biden said those three major steps would show Russian President Vladimir Putin that he cannot wait out or divide the western alliance, which will remain on Kyivs side until they prevail in this war.

Two and a half years ago, Putin unleashed a brutal war in Ukraine, and its been a horrifying ordeal for the Ukrainian people. Its also been a test for the world  would we stand with Ukraine? Would we stand for sovereignty, freedom and against tyranny? The United States, the G7, and countries around the world have consistently answered the question by saying yes, we will, Biden said.

We will say it again: Yes, again and again and again, were going to stand with Ukraine, he added.

The bilateral security pact builds on the declaration issued by Nato and EU leaders at last years Vilnius summit, in which they said Ukraines future is as a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization when Ukraine meets certain conditions emphasizing the importance of its deepening integration into the Euro-Atlantic community; and underlining the centrality of reform to support and strengthen Ukraines defense, prosperity, recovery, rule of law, and democracy.

It states that both the US and Ukraine will work together to help deter and confront any future aggression against the territorial integrity of either country, and lays out security-related commitments that are intended to support Ukraines efforts to win todays war and deter future Russian military aggression.

The text of the deal also states that it will be US policy going forward to assist Ukraine in maintaining a credible defense and deterrence capability.

U.S. President Joe Biden, right, shakes hands with Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as they sign a bilateral security agreement during the sidelines of the G7 summit at Savelletri, Italy, Thursday, June 13, 2024. ( AP )

The agreement between Biden and Zelensky  and the G7 announcement on a loan from seized Russian assets  come amid increasing uncertainty as to whether the coalition of allies assembled by Biden in the wake of Russias February 2022 invasion will hold in the face of far-right extremist challengers in this years elections.

Americas efforts to aid Kyiv have come in fits and starts as Republicans in Congress have increasingly refused to back more financial support for Ukraine at the behest of former president Donald Trump, who could return to the White House if he bests Biden in the November presidential election.

The Group of Seven agreement on providing Ukraine with funds backed by seized Russian assets is in part an effort to head off the danger of a resurgent far-right government  in the US or elsewhere  withdrawing or cutting off aid.

Biden also told reporters that theres a lot more money coming Ukraines way as a result of the supplemental defense appropriations bill which hed signed earlier this year, as well as missile defense batteries, F-16 fighter jets, and other advanced western weapons system.

We have 50 nations that have signed up beyond Nato and the G7, and so were going to stay as long as it takes, he said.

We know what Ukraine is capable of doing, when given the material to defend themselves. And thats exactly what theyre doing now.
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Donald Trump Jr, four months after being hit with a $4 million fine and a ban on serving as an officer of a New York company for two years, is seeking opportunities elsewhere  namely, Hungary.

The former presidents eldest child arrived in Budapest on Thursday morning on an invitation from the Budapest Chamber of Commerce and Industry. There, he met with Prime Minister Viktor Orban and gave a talk entitled The World According to Donald Trump Jr., an event first reported by Hungarian journalist Szabolcs Panyi.

Trump Jrs visit focused on discussions about the future of Hungarian-American relations, the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war, and opportunities for peace creation, according to Zoltan Kovacs, spokesperson for Orbans office.

Multiple legal experts say foreign policy discussions between Trump Jr  who is not employed by the US government  and a foreign prime minister raise questions about the Logan Act, which prohibits unauthorized diplomatic activity in certain circumstances.

Experts also tell The Independent the Hungarian governments increasingly authoritarian tilt may serve as a model for Trumps potential second presidency, should he win the election this November  and that Americans should pay attention as his eldest son speaks not only to Orban but a prominent conservative college with ties to Orbans Fidesz party.

The Trump campaign did not respond to multiple requests for comment from The Independent.

Donald Trump Jr (left) met with Viktor Orban (right) on June 13. ( Zoltan Kovacs )

The Logan Act

Trump Jr  who met with Orban to discuss immigration, Russias war in Ukraine, and US-Hungarian relations  followed in his fathers footsteps. The former president met with Orban in March.

But Kim Scheppele, Professor of Sociology and International Affairs at Princeton University and Faculty Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, says this raises legal questions about Trump Jrs role.

There is an interesting US legal question about whether private citizens can attempt to influence US foreign policy by negotiating with foreign countries, Scheppele told The Independent. The Logan Act makes this illegal.

Specifically, Trump Jr, who does not hold any government office, spoke with Orban regarding US foreign policy as it relates to Ukraine.

Yet, the Logan Act states that any US citizen without authority of the United States, directly or indirectly, is not legally permitted to conduct any correspondence or intercourse with any foreign government or any officer or agent thereof, with intent to influence the measures or conduct of any foreign government when it comes to conflict situations.

Donald Baker, former assistant attorney general at the US Department of Justice, told The Independent it is unlikely the Department would ever pursue action against anyone using the Logan Act, given no one has been convicted of violating the 1799 law: Any action by the Justice Department would be unwise because it would be jumped all over as being political, given the Act really hasnt been regularly invoked.

But Baker said he believes Donald Trump Jrs discussions about Ukraine raise questions: Obviously Orban is opposed to helping Ukraine, has blocked the EU from making a substantial payment to Ukraine, and so therefore he is an ally of the Trump people.

An example of a Logan Act violation that could have taken place during those discussions, Baker added, would be if Trump Jr encouraged Orban not to release the funds or encouraged him to go on blocking the EUs funds for Ukraine.

Baker told The Independent there needs to be more consideration of the Logan Act in light of recent news: This is a subject we ought to be discussing.

He added that the former presidents discussion with Orban earlier this year was also concerning under the Logan Act.

To have the Republicans likely candidate taking a position on foreign policy [as it relates to Russia and Ukraine], getting close to actively opposing what the administration is doing, is a worrying situation we ought to be talking about, Baker told The Independent.

An ultra-conservative training ground

Trump Jr was also scheduled to speak on Thursday afternoon at Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC), a conservative Hungarian residential college. The event is not listed on the colleges public website as of Thursday.

Scheppele says the college serves as a training ground for members of Orbans Fidesz party. She said the college is where conservative leaders gather to determine how to keep the party in power.

The MCC is a training ground for the young people who are going to go into Orbans government, Scheppele told The Independent.

The MCC was founded in 1996 with private money from the Fidesz party. In 2021, The New York Times reported that Orban had funneled $1.7 billion in government funds and assets to the college as he prepared to seek re-election the following year.

Scheppele said one of the primary functions of the MCC is to maintain Orbans hold on Hungary: [The MCC] is also the idea factory for the Orban government: How can we adjust the laws so we never lose power?

Under Orban, Hungary is in a democratic backslide. Freedom House rates Hungary as only partly free, noting the countrys anti-immigration and anti-LGBTQ+ policies, as well as policies that hamper the operations of opposition groups, journalists, universities, and nongovernmental organizations.

Viktor Orban, pictured as he prepares to cast his ballot in the 2024 European Parliament elections, has triggered a democratic backslide in his country ( MTVA - Media Service Support and Asset Management Fund )

Like father, like son

Trump Jrs father and the Hungarian prime minister also have a long-standing allyship.

Orban went as far as to call the former president his good friend earlier this year when the duo met in Washington, DC. Meanwhile, Scheppele told The Independent, Trump  who famously threatened to become a dictator on day one of his potential second presidency  may be looking to Orban as a model for policy.

Robert Benson, a senior policy analyst with the Center for American Progress, told The Independent it is dangerous for American voters to subscribe to American exceptionalism and to assume the democratic backsliding in Hungary cant possibly happen in the US.

I think our institutions are resilient  but that resiliency demands a careful eye, Benson said. We cant take it for granted that were simply going to be okay. If you talk to Hungarians, they didnt expect it to happen the way it did.

Donald Trump and Viktor Orban pictured together meeting in March 2024. The Hungarian Prime Minister called the former US president his good friend. ( HUNGARIAN PRIME MINISTER'S OFFIC )

There are several parallels between Trump and Orbans policies.

Trump has made his far-right, anti-immigration stance clear since day one of his 2016 presidential campaign. Similarly, Orban has expressed radical views on immigration since 2015  and in 2022, he said he did not want Hungarians to become peoples of mixed race.

The pair have also both tossed aside NATO and its processes. The former president has threatened to violate NATO by allowing Russia to attack member states; meanwhile, Orban delayed a vote on Swedens membership for 18 months. As a result, the country was not admitted until this year.

Both Scheppele and Benson also pointed to Project 2025, a conservative playbook for the next presidential administration. Along with replacing supposedly impartial federal officials with fellow conservatives, Project 2025 also calls for several policy revisions, such as re-adding the citizenship question to the US Census.

Orbans success leading an authoritarian government relied on decapitating the civil service and replacing it with his extremist allies, which mirrors the Project 2025 strategy, Scheppele told The Independent.

Wes Coopersmith, the Chief of Staff for the Heritage Foundation who oversees Project 2025, previously told The Independent that replacing employees with Republican allies if Trump is elected would be democratic.

We think the most democratic way to run the administration is with folks who agree with the president, who voted for the president, who agree with his policies and want to implement that, Coopersmith said.

The Heritage Foundation  pictured in Washington, DC  designed Project 2025, a playbook for a potential conservative presidency following the 2024 election. ( Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

Orbans suddenly uncertain future

Just days ahead of Trump Jrs scheduled visit, the European Parliament elections threw Orban into an unprecedented, weakened position.

Orban, for the first time in 14 years, has a real electoral problem, Scheppele told The Independent.

While the Fidesz party still received more votes than any other Hungarian party, they will only make up eleven of Hungarys 21 EU delegates. Whats more, this weekend marked their worst performance since 2004  long before Orbans reign began in 2010.

I think he assumed that he was just going to, as usual, swamp the vote, Scheppele said.

The politician responsible for bringing the Fidesz party numbers down is Peter Magyar, a former Fidesz insider who is now looking to end Orbans rule.

[Orban] is still winning, but he has lost so much support, Scheppele said. The fact that the emperor has no clothes is suddenly visible.
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Watch as Joe Biden and Volodymyr Zelensky hold a press conference after a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Italy on Thursday 13 June.

Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) major democracies agreed an outline deal to provide $50 billion of loans for Ukraine using interest from Russian sovereign assets frozen after Moscow launched its invasion of its neighbour in 2022.

The political agreement was the centrepiece of the opening day in southern Italy of the annual summit, attended for a second successive year by Mr Zelensky, Ukraines President.

He will also sign a new, long-term security accord with Mr Biden on Thursday, as well as one with fellow G7 member Japan.

Many of the G7 leaders are struggling at home but remain determined to make a difference on the world stage as they also seek to counter Chinas economic ambitions.

There is a lot of work to be done, but I am sure that in these two days we will be able to have discussions that will lead to concrete and measurable results, Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni told her G7 guests as their talks started in a luxury hotel resort in the southern region of Puglia.
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Hunter Biden plans to appeal his federal gun charges conviction by citing the 2nd amendment, a move that comes as his father advocates for gun control.

The presidents only surviving son is expected to base his appeal on a 2022 Supreme Court decision that expanded gun rights, The New York Times reports, a decision that President Joe Biden previously said contradicts both common sense and the Constitution.

Meanwhile, just hours after his sons conviction, Biden also spoke at an Everytown for Gun Safety event, calling for increased gun control and praising his administrations own work to promote gun control.

Its the most significant gun legislation in nearly 30 years, and we passed it only because you got out and worked like hell to get it done, Biden said on Tuesday, referencing the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.

Hunter Biden plans to appeal his federal gun charges conviction by citing the 2nd amendment, according to a report. He was convicted on all three charges in his gun chase. ( EPA )

The law, passed in 2022, helps states keep guns out of the hands of those deemed to be a danger to themselves or others. It also expanded federal background checks, enabling sellers to check state and local juvenile and mental health records of customers 20 years old and younger.

I may have had the idea, but you got it made, you made it happen, Biden said of the 2022 law. It was designed to reduce gun violence and save lives, and Im so proud of the tremendous progress weve made since then.

On Tuesday, 12 Delaware jurors unanimously convicted Hunter on three felony gun charges, marking the first time a sitting presidents child has been found guilty of a crime.

Special counsel David Weiss brought three gun-related charges against him last September, claiming the presidents son unlawfully purchased a firearm by lying on a federal gun form about his drug use.

Just hours after his sons conviction, President Joe Biden also spoke at an Everytown for Gun Safety event, calling for increased gun control and praising his administrations own work to promote gun control ( AP )

Hunter will also go on trial in September in California for nine tax-related criminal charges, three of which are felony counts.

As I said last week, I am the president, but I am also a dad, the president said in a statement following his sons conviction. Jill and I love our son, and we are so proud of the man he is today.

Prosecutors say that the 54-year-old made millions from 2016 to 2020 and spent it on his lavish lifestyle while skipping out on more than $1.4 million in taxes. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
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Hunter Biden hung out with both his ex-girlfriend and his brothers widow at Joe Bidens Virginia home, where he also allegedly kept drug paraphernalia, a new book claims.

Lunden Roberts, who has a daughter with Biden, makes the claims in a tell-all she has written about their relationship that is set to be published next month.

The president's son was found guilty on felony gun charges on Tuesday and could face between 15 and 21 months in prison when he is sentenced.

Roberts book, Out of the Shadows: My Life Inside the Wild World of Hunter Biden is scheduled for release on 20 August. It is being published by a company owned by the largest super PAC supporting independent presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy.

During a recent interview with the New York Post, Roberts said that Hallie Biden  Beau Biden's widow  and she would spend time with Hunter Biden at the president's rental home in McLean, Virginia.

Hunter Biden allegedly hung out with his now ex-girlfriend Lunden Roberts and his brothers widow, Hallie Biden, at Joe Bidens rented house in Virginia ( AP )

She claims in the book that Hunter Biden, who has struggled with substance abuse for many years, was often high during their time at the property.

Roberts said she met Hunter Biden during a function for an investment firm at the Swedish Embassy in Washington, DC. He was in the middle of a divorce from his first wife, Kathleen Buhle, and had also reportedly started a romantic relationship with Hallie Biden.

The book contains numerous sordid details about Hunter Biden's alleged drug-fueled misadventures as well as his sex life.

Roberts claims in the book that she introduced a group of her younger single girlfriends, which she dubbed "the Amoeba" to Hunter Biden, and that he slept with one of them after he discovered Roberts was pregnant in 2018.

Navy Joan Roberts, the daughter of Hunter Biden and Roberts, was born in August 2018. Roberts filed a paternity suit in 2019 forcing Hunter Biden to take a DNA test to prove he was the child's father.

Roberts claims that after years of "toxic litigation", Hunter Biden eventually agreed to pay her child support money for Navy and to turn over some of his paintings to her.

She said that while none of the Biden family have met Navy in person, Hunter and his daughter have been talking over Zoom calls.

Lunden Roberts, Hunter Bidens ex-girlfriend and the mother to his daughter, Navy Joan Roberts ( Instagram/@lundentownn )

The president first acknowledged Navy as his legitimate grandchild last year.

Despite all of the chaos involved in their relationship, Roberts insists that Hunter Biden is not a "villain" as he is portrayed in right-wing media.

What you would learn from the book is not the villain that the media portrays him to be. You know, you hear these charges and this was going on - he did this and he did that - but at the same time, you know, he cares about you, she said in a NewsNation interview on Tuesday.

She also said she hopes that once Hunter Biden's legal issues are cleared up he and Navys relationship can continue to grow.

You have to respect the judicial system and also respect that all individuals are held accountable regardless of who they are and where they come frombut as the mother of Hunters child, my primary concern has always been the well-being of her and the future for her and his relationship, she said. And it's my hope that the resolution of all these legal matters allows for them to continue that positive relationship.
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While Hunter Biden was on trial this past week, he was not alone in the spotlight: the women in his life were a focus throughout.

The presidents youngest son was found guilty on all three felony gun charges in Wilmington, Delaware on Tuesday after he bought a firearm while under the influence of crack cocaine.

During the trial, three of Hunters exes took the stand, as did his daughter Naomi Biden Neal. His wife, Melissa Cohen Biden, was by his side each day in the courtroom, while his stepmother, First Lady Jill Biden, was absent only once  to attend the 80th anniversary of D-Day in France with the president. His aunts, Valerie Biden Owens and Bonny Jacobs, were also spotted at court.

The Biden women in particular have rallied around at the trial of Hunter, whose long battle with addiction caused the breakup of his marriage; the public scandal of a romantic relationship with his brother Beaus widow; and a long list of embarrassing incidents seized upon by his fathers political rivals.

Naomi Biden Neal leaves federal court on 7 June after her emotional testimony at her fathers trial ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

There is also the matter of his lovechild by an Arkansas woman, Lunden Roberts, with whom he recently resolved child support issues, and reports of 2018 texts where he referred to the First Lady using multiple expletives in arguments over rehab.

For his 30-year-old daughter Naomi, who was called to testify by the defense, the trial seemed particularly grueling.

She recalled her efforts to reach her dad as he struggled with substance abuse, and how he wasnt communicative at the height of his addiction.

Her painful texts, from October 2018, were also read out in court. After they failed several times to set up a time to meet, Naomi wrote: Im really sorry, dad, I cant take this.

First Lady Jill Biden, Hunter Biden, and his wife Melissa Cohen Biden, leave the courthouse hand in hand on June 11, 2024 in Wilmington, Delaware after the guilty verdict was read ( Getty Images )

The prosecution suggested that Hunter Biden had been missing his daughters texts to communicate with drug dealers instead.

I dont know what to say, I just miss you so much, I just want to hang out with you, Naomi wrote in 2018. Following her testimony, during which Hunter and First Lady Jill Biden shed tears, she gave her father a long hug.

His aunt, Valerie Biden Owens, also grew emotional during Naomis time on the stand. Otherwise, she appeared stonyfaced, seated directly behind Hunter.

Joe Bidens siblings, Valerie Biden Owens and James Biden arrive to court on June 10 in time for closing arguments ( EPA )

The jury had clearly felt Naomis pain. Following the verdict, Juror 10, who asked to remain anonymous, told The Independent: I actually thought the defense made a mistake by using her.

I felt sorry for Naomi, I dont think they shouldve called her as a witness.

Naomi had admitted that she was nervous when she took the stand last Friday. She told the court that after my uncle died, things got bad.

Beau Biden, died of brain cancer in 2015, which President Biden believes was caused by the burn pits used in Iraq where his son served in the US military.

During the trial, jurors also heard deeply personal testimony regarding Hunter Bidens drug use, and viewed photos and video evidence as well as excerpts from his 2021 memoir, Beautiful Things.

Hunter Biden and his wife Melissa Cohen Biden arrive at court on 7 June as the trial was nearing its end ( EPA )

Biden thanked his family for their constant support following the verdict on Tuesday. I am more grateful today for the love and support I experienced this last week from Melissa, my family, my friends, and my community than I am disappointed by the outcome, he said in a statement.

Biden left the trial holding hands with the first lady and his wife, and kissed the first ladys sister, Bonny Jacobs, before climbing into a waiting SUV.

Jacobs was seen in court sitting next to the first lady, at times chatting during breaks in the proceedings.

Bonny Jacobs was seen sitting next to her sister, the first lady, during the trial ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

The first lady faced intense scrutiny during her attendance at the trial, and was criticized for using Air Force Two to fly between Delaware and France for the D-Day anniversary events.

She was not the only one that the trial took a toll on. Ashley Biden, Hunters sister, exited the courtroom in tears last week when the prosecution played parts of Hunter describing his drug use from his audiobook.

Hunters wife, Melissa, was a stoic presence throughout, arriving at court each day hand-in-hand with him, in a series of glamorous power suits and sunglasses.

Biden married the 38-year-old South African in 2019, proposing within a week of their first meeting.

At the courthouse, she showed her protective side.

Ashley Biden leaves the courthouse on 10 June. She was seen in tears during parts of the trial ( Getty )

She got into a tense exchange during a brief recess in the trial on 4 June. According to NBC News, she confronted Garret Ziegler, who Hunter Biden is suing for his supposed role in publishing emails and photos from Bidens computer.

You have no right to be here you Nazi piece of s****," she told Ziegler, as she pointed in his face. Ziegler didn't respond before she walked away. Ziegler worked in the Trump White House under trade advisor Peter Navarro.

Its sad Ive been sitting here the whole time and havent approached anyway," he told NBC. For the record, Im not a Nazi, Im a believer in the U.S. Constitution. I havent said one thing to them.

Hunter has credited his wife for his sobriety, describing how she took his phone, car keys, wallet, and computer shortly after their meeting, deleted all his contacts apart from close family, and turning to steel when drug dealers appeared at the door as she made them leave.

Hallie Biden leaves court on 6 June following her at times explosive testimony ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

Other women from the extended Biden clan who were subpoenaed to testify at the trial met the proceedings with grim determination.

Hallie Biden, the widow of Beau Biden, agreed with a suggestion from the defense that her on-off romantic relationship with Hunter was at times intense but always complicated during her testimony.

She also spoke of her drug use which began after she was introduced to crack cocaine by Hunter.

It was a terrible experience, Im ashamed and I regret that period of my life, she said last Thursday. After disposing of the gun he had bought, she urged Hunter to go to rehab but at the depth of his addiction, he rejected her efforts.

Then there was the testimony of his ex-wife Kathleen Buhle and an ex-girlfriend, Zoe Kestan.

Buhle testified that Biden became angry and short-tempered after smoking crack cocaine. She testified about how their relationship unraveled after she found a crackpipe on her side porch in July 2015 in Washington, DC.

Like Hallie and Naomi, Buhle seemed uncomfortable on the stand, testifying that she found a broken pipe, pipe-cleaning materials, a white powder, and remnants of crystals in Bidens car.

She added that she looked for drugs in his vehicle on more than one occasion so that their daughters wouldnt drive with drugs in the car.

Kathleen Buhle, Hunter Bidens ex-wife, leaves court on 5 June after speaking about how she found drugs at their DC home ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

Buhle was married to Hunter for 24 years and they have three children, including Naomi.

She spoke of the moments that she had supported Hunter as he went to rehab in 2003 and 2012 for alcoholism, and about the time in 2015 when she found out about his drug use and subsequently his extramarital affairs.

While both Hallie Biden and Kestan received immunity for their testimony, Kestan appeared at ease in her role as a witness.

Kestan testified that she saw Hunter Biden smoke crack about once every 20 minutes when they were in private and that he would go to a bathroom about once an hour to smoke in public settings.

Zoe Kestan, a former girlfriend of Hunter Biden, departs on 5 June after testifying how she met Biden at a gentlemens club ( REUTERS )

At the start of their relationship, Kestan was 24 while Biden was 48.

She described him as charismatic and charming following their December 2017 initial meeting at a gentlemens club in Manhattan when she gave him a private dance.

Kestan said Biden began smoking something within 15 minutes of meeting him, adding that she assumed it was crack cocaine.

Throughout her testimony, she said Bidens behavior didnt change after smoking until later in their relationship when he appeared stressed and scattered.
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Senate Republicans are targeting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs with the federal government through a new bill that seeks to remove and prohibit any agency from funding programs, offices or leaders related to DEI  including in higher education.

On Thursday, far-right Ohio Senator JD Vance introduced the Dismantle DEI Act of 2024, legislation that targets DEI programs which he asserts is a destructive ideology that breeds hatred and racial division.

A section of the bill explicitly prohibits colleges and universities from using federal funding to maintain offices, officers or training courses related to DEI and accessibility.

Proponents of affirmative action hold signs during a protest at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on July 1, 2023. ( AFP via Getty Images )

The bill specifies higher education institutions cannot, develop, implement, distribute, publish or purchase a course or substantially similar course related to critical race theory, sexual orientation, gender theory, sexual identity, intersectionality and more.

It has no place in our federal government or anywhere else in our society, Vance said in a press release.

He added: Americans tax dollars should not be co-opted to spread this radical and divisive ideology  this bill would ensure they are not.

It is the latest move among conservatives to remove DEI programs that they have argued are discriminatory and promote liberal ideology. Last year, the Supreme Court overturned affirmative action in higher education institutions in a case brought by a conservative legal group.

DEI programs, which have been around since the 1960s, are meant to promote equal opportunity and fair treatment for all people in companies, schools and organizations. Oftentimes, that includes adopting an office dedicated to educating and promoting diversity through training programs.

But over the last few years, right-wing individuals have attacked DEI initiatives as liberal indoctrination or reverse racism. At least 20 states have attempted to limit DEI in schools or workplaces. Those attempts have become law in Idaho, Florida, Texas and Indiana.

Now, Vance, joined by 20 other members of Congress, is seeking to eradicate DEI initiatives from the federal government as a whole by revoking all executive orders related to diversity, removing all offices or officers dedicated to DEI and clawing back all funding to DEI programs.

Its unlikely the bill will successfully pass the Senate given Democrats have the majority. Even if it did, President Joe Biden would most certainly veto it.

This article was ammended on July 13 to better clairfy how school could be impacted. The bill only calls for schools to lose funding for DEI programs, not other parts of the academic program.
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Marc Molinaro is the exact type of Republican who should be trying to distance himself from Donald Trump. The Cook Political Report rates his race as a toss-up, and his district  New Yorks 19th  voted for President Joe Biden in 2020.

Under typical circumstances, endangered incumbents hope to create some distance from a nominee who may drag them down. Joe Manchin, the now-retiring independent senator who won in coal-friendly West Virginia, famously shot an Obama-era climate bill with a rifle despite being a Democrat. And before she put herself in the running to be Trumps running mate, Representative Elise Stefanik voted against the Trump tax cuts.

Yet Molinaro, a freshman Republican, joined his colleagues in heading over to the Capitol Hill Club on Thursday morning to hear the former president rally the troops.

Molinaro told The Independent that his district voted for Trump in 2016, which is true, and tried to position himself as independent.

I am exceptionally tied to the people that I represent, he said. So if President Trump's going to deliver to make it easier for the people of upstate New York, then that will be better than what they've been experiencing these last four years.

In the past, Representative Nancy Mace of South Carolina rebuked Trump for inciting a riot on Capitol Hill three days after she was sworn in for her freshman term. She told The Independent last year, after the Dobbs v Jackson case that killed Roe v Wade, We're not going to win hearts and minds over by being a**holes to women.

But on Thursday, just two days after she won a primary thanks to Trumps support, she said that the former president had abortion figured out.

He talked about exceptions for rape, incest and the life of the mother, she said. He talked about, it's in the people's hands now, and that we have to speak about abortion correctly, which is a message that the party needs to hear.

Republicans would not need to worry about going on defense when it comes to abortion rights had it not been for the three Supreme Court justices that Trump nominated and Mitch McConnell confirmed. Indeed, McConnell said that Trump was practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of January 6. Yet he, too, kissed the ring when he met with Trump recently  despite the fact he will no longer be leader at the end of this term.

Now, Republicans might not have any choice but to embrace Trump. Their base will raise hell if they distance themselves from him  and there is little chance they could create distance unless they voted to convict him.

Lisa Murkowski, the Republican Senator from Alaska who voted to convict the former president in 2021, told The Independent that instead of meeting Trump with her colleagues, I had lunch.

I think there was this obvious interest in knowing what Trump might want to lay out as part of his campaign, she told The Independent, when asked about why so many other Republicans attended. Murkowski  like Susan Collins of Maine, who also did not attend Trumps speech  hails from a state with ranked-choice voting, meaning she does not need to cater to the most conservative voters.

Democrats for their part could not wait to tie congressional Republicans with Trump, knowing that his guilty verdict last month in New York has moved the needle with voters, even if only a tiny bit. Bidens campaign put out statements from luminaries of the January 6 select committee such as its chairman Bennie Thompson and Maryland Representative Jamie Raskin, who led the second impeachment trial in the Senate.

When news reports leaked that Trump reportedly called Milwaukee, where the Republicans will hold their national convention, horrible, Republicans offered weak sauce arguments. Meanwhile, Wisconsins Democratic Senator Tammy Baldwin relished in the disarray.

Milwaukee makes the greatest beer, the greatest brats, the greatest motorcycles. Hardworking people. Dont mess with Milwaukee, she said.

Democrats also used the day to further tie Republicans to Trump by having a vote to protect in vitro fertilization (IVF.) Alabamas Supreme Court issued a ruling in February that cited Dobbs and classified frozen embryos as children under state law. That would have ended IVF.

Democrats brought a bill to protect the fertility treatment on Thursday  but Republicans blocked the legislation.

Senator Ted Cruz accused Democrats of politicizing the bill, citing the fact that he and Senator Katie Britt of Alabama had crafted their own bill.

What they want to do is scare the voters in November and pretend that the big bad Republicans want to take away IVF, he told The Independent.

Despite the fact that Trump summarily humiliated him  and despite the fact that the suburbs of Houston, Dallas and San Antonio that Cruz will need to win in November have moved away from the GOP  he also said he thought Trump would have a positive down-ballot effect.

While Cruz was talking, Senator Gary Peters, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee Chairman who is responsible for challenging Republicans and protecting incumbents, popped up behind him, almost as a reminder that Republicans like Cruz and Molinaro should not get too close to Trump when Democrats are on their heels.
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Senate Republicans have yet again blocked a bill to protect in vitro fertilization (IVF).

The Right to IVF Act, championed by a group of Democrats, will not be voted on by the US Senate as nearly every GOP member voted to block cloture  that is, voted for an end to debate  on the legislation.

Its a very sad day for millions of Americans who want to become parents but struggle with infertility, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said after the vote. Today, nearly every Republican just blocked a bill that wouldve protected peoples access to IVF.

Now that the hard right has finished eliminating Roe, theyre setting their sights on IVF, he continued, referring to the overturn of Roe v Wade.

President Joe Biden said the vote demonstrated Republicans disregard for a womans right to make these decisions for herself and her family.

Cory Booker (left), Chuck Schumer (center) and Patty Murray (right) speak to reporters after Senate Republicans blocked IVF protections ( AFP via Getty Images )

Republican officials have had every opportunity to protect reproductive freedom since the Supreme Courts extreme decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, but they refuse to do so, the president said. Instead, Republicans dangerous, out-of-touch agenda is devastating womens health and lives.

Only two Republican Senators  Susan Collins of Maine and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska  voted for the legislation. Collins told The Independent earlier this week that she would vote for it despite her reservations.

I wish we would bring some serious legislation to the floor rather than just messaging bills that are voted on just as were departing town, Collins said.

Senate Republicans introduced a similar bill last week  the IVF Protection Act  that would have withheld federal Medicaid funding to states that ban IVF. Senator Ted Cruz dismissed these concerns, telling The Independent Democrats could have protected IVF yesterday if they voted for the GOP bill, which he led alongside Senator Katie Britt.

But Democrats shot the bill down because they say it has a key omission: it did not address state efforts to criminalize disposing of nonviable embryos during the IVF process.

That concern about criminalizing IVF stems from a February ruling by the Alabama Supreme Court classifying frozen embryos are classified as children under state law. As a result, three of Alabamas largest IVF centers paused treatment over concerns they could face criminal charges.

The Florida Supreme Court, pictured, ruled that frozen embryos can be considered children under state law in February. ( Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. )

Britt accused Democrats of playing politics with the legislation on Wednesday.

I think what you see is Democrats continuing to fearmonger on this very issue, she told The Independent.

Last week, nearly every Senate Republican blocked a measure that would protect the right to contraception in the United States. This came as GOP lawmakers across the country block efforts to ensure access to birth control.

Democrats contend that despite Republican rhetoric, their policies would put both contraception and IVF in danger. Specifically, they cite the fact that a majority of House Republicans, including House Speaker Mike Johnson, have signed onto support the Life Begins at Conception Act. The legislation states that an embryo can be considered a life at all stages of life, including the moment of fertilization.

Just ahead of Thursdays Senate vote, House Democrats reaffirmed the need for codified IVF protections.

A coalition of House Democrats previously introduced a companion to the Senate bill that calls for similar IVF protections: the Access to Family Building Act. That act was championed by several Democrats, including Representative Susan Wild and Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who have both undergone IVF treatments.

Wild, who held a press conference Thursday morning, says their bill protects IVF and expands access for veterans and active-duty military, ensuring they will have access to treatments regardless of the state in which theyre stationed.

This is why we need federal codification of this right, Wild told reporters on Thursday. It is so unfair to our military families to face the prospect of either not being able to continue IVF treatment or [not to] get it at all, depending on what their next duty station is.

Wasserman Schultz told The Independent on Thursday that Republicans need to do more than say they support IVF  they need to vote to codify protections.

Comments are not codification, Wasserman Schultz told The Independent. The only way that we can ensure that women's reproductive decisions aren't further eroded  like they were completely obliterated with Dobbs  is to put it in federal law.

Some 8 million children have been conceived through IVF in the United States, according to the Columbia University Fertility Center.

The process involves removing an egg from an individuals body and combining it with sperm in a laboratory before it is implanted. This requires the person who plans to become pregnant to undergo eight to ten days of fertility injections and hormone treatments.

The procedure costs thousands of dollars for a single cycle  though more than one cycle is often required. As a result, IVF is often financially inaccessible.
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The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Starbucks in a union dispute on Thursday, significantly scaling back the National Labor Relations Boards power to step in and protect workers from companies under fire for alleged union busting.

In a unanimous ruling, justices said the NLRB should have to satisfy a stricter, four-part test when asking a court to intervene on behalf of workers who allege they have been retaliated against for unionization efforts.

Members and supporters of Starbucks Workers United protest outside of a Starbucks store in Dupont Circle on November 16, 2023 in Washington, DC. ( Getty Images )

The case was based on a dispute between Starbucks employees in Memphis and the coffeehouse giant. A group of employees attempted to unionize and faced retaliation after Starbucks claimed they broke company policy by reopening their store after closing time and inviting non-employees inside.

The termination of the seven workers had a somewhat chilling effect on employees who felt nervous about attempting to unionize at other locations.

Eventually, the union filed a lawsuit against Starbucks alleging unfair labor practices. The NLRB intervened, securing a preliminary injunction to reinstate the terminated employees as the legal case worked its way through the courts, after satisfying an initial test to show reasonable cause that employers engaged in unfair practices.

Seeking preliminary injunctions is a powerful tool used to stop employers from suppressing union activity. The one disputed in the Memphis 7 incident was the 12th the NLRB has sought against Starbucks in the last two years alone.

Starbucks disputed the intervention, claiming the NLRB should have used a four-part test that requires proof of irreparable harm and likelihood of winning to secure the preliminary injunction.

Previously, the NLRB used a two-part test to secure injunctions to stop employers from engaging in potentially harmful behavior while legal proceedings unfold. After Thursdays ruling, the board must adhere to the stricter test.

A preliminary injunction is an extraordinary equitable remedy that is never awarded as of right, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in the majority opinion. He said that the four-part test, otherwise known as the Winter test, was relevant and had equitable principles.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson filed an opinion concurring in part but rejected part of the courts decision, saying she Cannot join the majority in ignoring the choices Congress has made in the NLRA about how courts should exercise their discretion in light of the National Labor Relations Boards authority over labor disputes. Because the majority chooses the simplicity of unfettered judicial discretion over the nuances of Congresss direction, I respectfully dissent in part.

The opinion is unsurprising, during oral arguments in April, it seemed certain the court would side with Starbucks.

Thursdays decision aligns with a larger legal movement aimed at shifting power away from federal agencies.

Starbucks Corp v McKinney was a labor law administrative case that had implications for unionization protections.
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Donald Trump is no stranger to a quid pro quo  he was impeached for one, after all. But while campaigning for a second term in the White House, he has gone further than perhaps any other candidate in recent history to shape his policies in return for cash.

Trump is not making these bargains behind closed doors or in smoky back rooms, but at fundraisers and events attended by dozens of influential and extremely wealthy people.

On several occasions he has made explicit offers to reward donors by enacting or dismantling policy on their behalf should he win in November, often reversing his own previously held positions.

Democrat Jamie Raskin, ranking member of the House committee on oversight and accountability, accused Trump of treating the presidency as a for-profit business enterprise and money-making venture.

He told The Independent that the former president was brazenly offering to sell out US policy to any corporate and billionaire campaign donors ready to make a deal, including telling Big Oil he will sign their executive orders in exchange for a cool one billion dollars.

Donald Trump will literally sell out the future of humanity for another billion dollars, he added.

Donald and Melania Trump arrive at the Florida home of billionaire investor John Paulson ( Getty )

The Campaign Legal Center, a non-profit watchdog that focuses on campaign finance laws, called Trumps actions brazen, quid pro quo corruption.

"It is deeply concerning and problematic to see a presidential candidate solicit millions of dollars from wealthy donors in exchange for promised policies or actions that cater to the donors wishes, said Saurav Ghosh, the groups director of federal campaign finance reform.

Ghosh told The Independent that years of deregulatory court decisions have fostered a culture of big money in US elections that allows Trump to act with impunity, pushing legal boundaries or even breaking them outright.

Trumps bargaining began almost the moment he left office, and has continued to this day.

Here are the policies he is selling to donors.

$1bn from oil companies

At a lavish dinner at Mar-a-Lago in April, the former president gathered with around two dozen executives from the biggest oil companies in the country. His campaign was facing a sizeable cash shortfall against his opponent, President Joe Biden, and he was desperate to make up the difference.

As the executives complained about how the Biden administrations environmental regulations were hurting their business, Trump made a starkly transactional pitch: raise $1bn to send me back to the White House.

If he won, he said he would immediately reverse dozens of Bidens environmental rules and policies. The $1bn would be a deal for the companies, he added, because of the money they would save from deregulation.

The account of the meeting, first reported by the Washington Post , came from several people who attended. Among them were 20 executives from ExxonMobil, EQT Corporation and the American Petroleum Institute, which lobbies for the oil industry. It was reportedly organized by oil billionaire Harold Hamm.

Trump speaks to city officials and employees of Double Eagle Energy on the site of an oil rig in Midland, Texas ( Getty )

Specifically, Trump vowed to undo a Biden administration freeze on permits for new liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports on the first day of entering office, one attendee told the Post.

The meeting prompted a furious response from Democrats in the House and Senate.

Representative Raskin wrote to the CEOs of nine of the oil companies that attended the meeting to demand answers, calling it an unvarnished quid pro quo.

He said that reports that oil companies are working on potential executive orders for Trump suggest that certain oil and gas companies, which have a track record of using deceitful tactics to undermine effective climate policy, may have already accepted or facilitated Mr Trumps explicit corrupt bargain.

The crypto president

Trump once called Bitcoin a scam " and argued that it threatened the supremacy of the US dollar. A few years later, in desperate need of campaign cash, he is pitching himself to Silicon Valley as the crypto president.

Trump used the term to describe himself at a fundraiser hosted by tech investors David Sacks and Chamath Palihapitiya at the formers home in San Francisco this month.

Both Sacks and Palihapitiya have spoken publicly about their investments in crypto, and the event was attended by a number of other notable crypto investors, including executives from Coinbase and twins Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, who own the crypto company Gemini.

Trump has not always been popular in Silicon Valley. In 2020, the tech industry spent big to make him a one-term president. But this time around, there has been a slight yet notable shift among a certain set of crypto-loving tech billionaires.

Trump once called Bitcoin a scam but is pitching himself to Silicon Valley as a crypto champion ( Associated Press )

The crypto industry has spent tens of millions of dollars in an effort to influence the 2024 elections, funneling money to help elect lawmakers who will undo regulatory moves by the Biden administration. The industry hopes that deregulation will lead to huge profits for crypto investors.

Trumps message appeared to land: He came away with $12m in donations from that fundraiser in San Francisco, and the promise of much more.

TikTok flip-flop

As president, Trump spearheaded efforts to ban TikTok.

As far as TikTok is concerned, were banning them from the United States, the then-president declared to reporters aboard Air Force One in July 2020.

Indeed, he signed an executive order in his last year in office that would have effectively prohibited the video app, which is majority-owned by a Chinese company. But just this month he joined TikTok himself. And more recently he has spoken out against efforts from both the Biden administration and his own party to regulate it.

On March 7, a House committee advanced a bill that would ban the app if it didnt divest, even as TikTok users flooded congressional lines with thousands of calls urging lawmakers to back off.

That same day, Trump wrote on Truth Social that if you get rid of TikTok, (then) Facebook and Zuckerschmuck will double their business, referring to Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

TikTok supporters protest at the hush-money trial of Donald Trump in New York in April ( Associated Press )

I dont want Facebook, who cheated in the last election, doing better, wrote Trump, echoing a baseless conspiracy theory that social media platforms rigged elections against him. They are a true Enemy of the People!

What prompted this dramatic change ?

Some clues may be derived from the fact that his words came swiftly after a very public rapprochement with Republican mega-donor Jeff Yass. Yass has a $20bn stake in TikToks parent company, ByteDance, and is the largest donor in this election campaign cycle.

At the request of Yass, Trump spoke at a conference of the influential right-wing Club for Growth, which the former president previously blasted as Club for No Growth.

Yass has given $61m to the group since 2010 but it backed Floridas Ron DeSantis in the Republican primary against Trump.

At the conference, Trump told donors that he and the organizations president, David McIntosh, are now back in love.

West Bank-rolling

Perhaps the most brazen quid pro quo of Trumps first term came with a giant donation from casino mogul Sheldon Adelson, the Republican Partys biggest funder over the past decade.

According to New York Times writer Maggie Haberman in her book Confidence Man: The Making of Donald Trump and the Breaking of America, Adelson made a $20m donation to a political action committee to pressure then-president Trump to adopt the highly controversial decision to move the US embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.

For his second term, Trump may be poised to sell another controversial policy to the Adelson family.

Sheldon died in 2021, but his wife Miriam has continued his cause and may even surpass Yass to become Trumps biggest patron in this election cycle.

A New York Magazine profile of Miriam, published last month, suggested that Trumps support for the Israeli annexation of the West Bank was top of her wish list for a second term.

Miriam Adelson listens as Trump addresses an Israeli American Council summit in Hollywood in 2019 ( Associated Press )

The West Bank is considered Palestinian territory and would form the basis of a future Palestinian state. Annexing it would be against international law.

By March, Mrs Adelson had not yet opened her checkbook to fund Trumps campaign. That month, after he won the Republican primary, he invited her to a Shabbat dinner at Mar-a-Lago, according to the magazine, during which his courting of the donor appears to have begun in earnest. He gave an interview to the Adelson-owned newspaper Israel Hayom in which he described himself as a very loyal person.

Ive been the best president in history to Israel by a factor of ten because of all the things I do. The embassy, Jerusalem being the capital. Then you have Golan Heights  Nobody even thought that was going to be possible. I did that, he said.

Ten days after the publication of the New York Magazine profile, Politico reported that Adelson would fund a massive political action committee for Trumps re-election.

Trickle-up tax cuts

During his presidency, Trump implemented sweeping tax cuts for the top 1 per cent of earners and cut the maximum corporation tax rate from 35 per cent to 21 per cent. His cuts were one factor helping the fortunes of US billionaires grow by a collective $1 trillion during the pandemic, from March 18 to December 7, 2020, according to the non-partisan group, Americans for Tax Fairness.

The group said that an analysis of donations to Trump found that he was enabled with a total of almost a quarter billion dollars in campaign contributions from 134 of Americas billionaires during his short, violent political career.

Trump is looking to replicate that windfall by promising even more tax cuts for the wealthy, should he win a second term. Several billionaire donors backed off following the riot on January 6, 2021  they are now finding their way back to Trump , largely thanks to that promise.

Speaking at a donor event at the luxury Pierre Hotel in New York last month, Trump warned the wealthy attendees that taxes would go up unless he wins in November because Biden has vowed to let his tax cuts expire at the end of 2025.

Youre going to have the biggest tax increase in history, he said. So whatever you guys can do, I appreciate it.

The comments are part of a pattern of offers to wealthy donors from Trump. Donate to me, he says, and Ill make you richer.

Speaking at Mar-a-Lago in December last year, Trump drew laughs as he described the audience as rich as hell before declaring: Were gonna give you tax cuts!

Money has always played a role in presidential campaigns, but the scale and brazenness of Trumps policy firesale could have a dramatic impact on future elections. If it works, the US government could become even more in thrall to the billionaire class.
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Donald Trump tried to quell divisions within the House Republican conference on Thursday when he stopped by Washington DC to attend meetings with the full House and Senate Republican caucuses.

But he did so in a very Trumpian way  by publicly humiliating one of his own allies, Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene.

The ex-president was reported by Politicos Olivia Beavers to have singled out the outspoken conservative gadfly during his remarks to Republicans in the lower chamber.

Pointing to Mike Johnson, the speaker of the House who recently survived an effort led by Greene to remove him, Trump called out Greene: Hello Marjorie... are you being nice to him?

Separately, he is said to have praised Johnson as having done a great job in the less than one year he has served in the speakers chair. Johnson took over last fall after the chambers Republican majority scrambled for weeks to elect a new speaker in the wake of a rebellion by conservatives that ousted Kevin McCarthy, Johnsons predecessor. McCarthy would go on to resign from the House altogether, having served less than a year in the role of speaker.

Greene confirmed the account in an interview with CNN after the meeting.

He saw me...he said Hello, Marjorie  hes always so sweet  recognizes me, and he says, Are you being nice? He was joking: Are you being nice to Speaker Johnson?

And I said, Ehhh, Greene continued, explaining that she had indicated otherwise: And he said, OK, be nice to him. And I nodded my head.

Marjorie Taylor Greene says Trump told her to 'be nice' to Speaker Johnson

Johnson and Greenes conflict stems from an issue on which the Georgia congresswoman is firmly in the minority: Ukraine. Despite opposition from his partys right wing, Johnson relented to pressure from the Senate and Democrats in the House to bring a bill providing military assistance to Ukraine to the floor of the House, where it passed easily, in April. The speaker had spent months avoiding doing so; the Senate passed Ukraine aid as part of a larger bill in February.

By calling the vote on Ukraine aid, Johnson spurred Greene into filing a motion to vacate the speakership. She had publicly warned him as early as January that she would do so if the speaker allowed aid to pass the chamber, unwilling to accept the will of a majority vote.

Greene was joined by two other Republicans in her effort to oust Johnson, but failed after Democrats in the House announced that theyd join with Republican to protect Johnson, lacking the numbers to elect one of their own and willing to extend and olive branch given Johnsons willingness to relent on the issue of Ukraine.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) speak to members of the press on the steps of the House of Representatives after a meeting with Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) at the U.S. Capitol on May 7, 2024 in Washington, DC ( Getty Images )

This wasnt the first time Trump had sought to give Johnson a boost as he faced criticism from conservatives, with Greene leading the charge.

As the Georgia congresswoman was threatening the motion to vacate this spring, Trump called the House speaker down to Mar-a-Lago where the two unveiled a bill aimed at preventing undocumented immigrants from voting in US elections.

( AP )

The ex-presidents arrival in Washington was met by protesters who lined the sidewalks outside of the building where Trump met with his Republican allies. Now under 34 felony convictions, Trumps influence was most recently felt in Washington earlier this year when he pressured Republicans to kill a piece of compromise legislation around the issue of border security hammered out by Democrats and members of his own party in the Senate.

His visit to the capital was also a reversal of the dynamic that has played out in recent months over the course of his criminal trial in Manhattan. Johnson and other Republicans including Lauren Boebert, Eli Crane and Matt Gaetz have trekked to New York to join Trump as he sat through weeks of criminal trial proceedings which led to his guilty conviction on all counts of falsifying business documents  charges which related to a hush money scheme he tried to conceal during the 2016 presidential election.

Trumps visit to Washington comes as he is set to accept the Republican Partys nomination for president next month at the partys convention in Milwaukee. He won a primary against rivals Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis and others earlier this year with a commanding majority of the Republican voting base behind his candidacy.
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Donald Trumps closest congressional allies were forced to walk through protesters while they marched to meet with the former president during his first visit to the Capitol since a mob of his supporters stormed the halls of Congress on January 6.

Republican Reps. Lauren Boebert, Matt Gaetz, Marjorie Taylor Greene and Jim Jordan passed through protesters blasting them for their failed coup to reverse Trumps loss in the 2020 election.

Others shouted out bootlicker and dont drink the Kool-Aid.

Another protester in a bear costume held up a sign reading bigger tax breaks, bigger profit.

Lawmakers met with Trump on Thursday at the Capitol Hill Club, where a pipe bomb was discovered on January 6, 2021, when Trumps supporters broke through police barricades and Capitol windows and doors to stop Congress from certifying 2020 election results.

Federal law enforcement is still searching for a suspect.

Lauren Boebert walks past a failed coup sign on her way to a meeting with House Republicans and Donald Trump at the Capitol Hill Club on June 13. ( Getty Images )

The former president  who is criminally charged in Washington, DC, and in Georgia for his failed efforts to overturn those results, and for his failure to stop the mob  returned to the nations capital for the first time on Thursday since a jury convicted him in New York for his conspiracy to influence the outcome of the 2016 race.

Marjorie Taylor Greene walks past a protester in a bear costume before a meeting with Donald Trump at the Capitol Hill Club on June 13. ( AP )

He is expected to meet with GOP leadership in the House and Senate, including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who hasnt been in the same room with Trump since 2020.

Matt Gaetz heads to a meeting with House Republcians and Donald Trump at the Capitol Hill Club on June 13. ( Getty Images )

In his meeting with House Republicans, Trump reportedly brought up Taylor Swift, praised Dwight D. Eisenhower as the king of deportations, and dumped on Milwaukee  where Republicans are expected to formally elect him as the GOPs nominee to face Joe Biden in November  as a horrible city.

President Trump talked about the specific strategies he was going to use to ensure that Trump voters show up in November and that they go all the way down the ticket, Gaetz told reporters outside the Capitol Hill Club. He was there to really let Republicans know that he was there to elect big majorities in the House and the Senate, and that he thought that would be essential to getting his agenda accomplished.
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Donald Trump was so angry when the guilty verdict was read aloud at his New York hush money trial last month that he was heard afterwards subjecting Mike Johnson, the Republican speaker of the House of Representatives, to a foul-mouthed rant by phone, according to a new report.

Politicos Playbook newsletter recounts that the GOP presidential contender was overheard dropping frequent F-bombs in his call with Johnson on May 30 as he told the speaker: We have to overturn this.

Trump was fuming after a jury of 12 Manhattanites found him guilty on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in order to conceal a $130,000 payment to adult film actress Stormy Daniels to prevent her allegation of an extramarital affair in summer 2006 getting out and damaging his chances of winning the 2016 presidential election against Democrat Hillary Clinton.

The defendant repeatedly denied any wrongdoing and that the liaison itself ever happened, persisting in claiming that the whole case against him was rigged by a corrupt district attorney and his political enemies and was presided over by a highly conflicted judge.

His complaints ultimately cost him $10,000 in fines for contempt of court as he repeatedly violated the gag order placed upon him by Judge Juan Merchan, who is now set to sentence Trump on July 11, four days before he formally accepts the Republican Partys 2024 presidential nomination at its convention in Milwaukee.

Johnson, who had joined other MAGA Republicans in showing up at the Manhattan Criminal Courthouse in order to denounce the proceedings against his partys candidate for the White House, was reportedly sympathetic to Trumps grievances during the call.

The day after the verdict was read out, the speaker was up early and appearing on Fox Newss Fox and Friends breakfast show insisting that the conservative-dominated US Supreme Court should step in to prevent Trumps plight from undermining the American publics faith in its justice system.

I do believe the Supreme Court should step in. Obviously this is totally unprecedented and its dangerous to our system, he said.

Mike Johnson and Donald Trump speak to the press at Mar-a-Lago in Florida on 12 April 2024 ( Wilfredo Lee/AP )

This is diminishing the American peoples faith in our system of justice itself and, to maintain a republic, you have to have that, people have to believe that justice is fair, that theres equal justice under law.

They dont see that right now and I think that the justices on the court  I know many of them personally  I think theyre deeply concerned about that, as we are.

So I think theyll set this straight, but its going to take a while.

According to Politico, Johnson has since been in talks with Judiciary committee chair and Trump ally Jim Jordan about using the appropriations process to target special counsel Jack Smiths probe, referring to the Justice Department attorneys Trump indictments related to the illegal retention of classified documents and the former presidents role in the Capitol riot of January 6 2021.

The periodical points out that this represents a softening of the speakers stance after he previously baulked at a similar proposal from Georgia populist Marjorie Taylor Greene.

It also quotes two Republicans anxious about any threat of defunding Smiths investigations, one of whom, Indiana representative Mike Simpson, said: I dont think its a good idea unless you can show that [prosecutors] acted in bad faith or fraud or something like that.

Theyre just doing their job  even though I disagree with what they did.
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Donald Trump called Milwaukee a horrible city in front of top Republicans - despite the party holding its national convention there in the coming weeks.

On Thursday, Trump was in Washington, DC, to meet with Republican leaders. It is the former presidents first visit to the Hill since Jan. 6, when a mob stormed the Capitol to protest his losing the 2020 election.

At one point, Trump told the Republicans Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city, according to Jake Sherman of Punchbowl News.

Milwaukee is set to host the Republican National Convention on July 15, where Trump is expected to be officially named the partys nominee for the 2024 election. The Wisconsin gathering comes just a day after Trump is scheduled to be sentenced in the hush money case where he was convicted of 34 felonies.

Trumps blasting the RNC host city drew a strong reaction on social media.

Donald Trump has reportedly blasted the city of Milwaukee ahead of the RNC convention in July. In August 2023, the city played host to a Republican primary debate where Trump supports showed up while the former president skipped. ( REUTERS )

To all of the local elected officials falling over themselves to welcome the GOP to Milwaukee..you reap what you sow, X user Eric Couto wrote.

Hey Milwaukee, Trump thinks your city is horrible, fellow user @speakout_April noted.

Good thing Wisconsin isnt important, user Jason Scalese noted. He was referring to Wisconsin being a key battleground state in 2024 with its electoral votes possibly swaying who wins the election.

The Democratic National Comittee, which is set to host its convention in Chicago in August, released a statement after word of Trumps comments.

Donald Trump and the RNC havent even bothered to set up a real campaign operation in Wisconsin  theyd rather stick to telling voters how much they hate the city they chose to hold their convention in. Lets be clear: Milwaukee is not a horrible city  and Wisconsinites should remember what Donald Trump thinks of them when they vote in November.

However, there were some who backed the president's comments on the host city.

Milwaukee does not feel like a city in its city center. It also is not as charming as Chicago or has a small town feel like Madison, X poster @pourz stated.

Trump right again, poster Julie Viahi simply wrote.
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A former Trump campaign adviser has suggested Donald Trump should pardon Hunter Biden if he commits to a sobriety program as an act of humanity that would surprise Democrats.

David Urban, who advised the former presidents 2016 and 2020 campaigns, told CNNs Erica Hill on Wednesday that President Joe Bidens stance on pardoning his son versus commutating a potential sentence was all too cute by half.

Youre either going to do it or youre not going to do it, Urban said.

He added: Listen what I would like to see happen is Id like to see President Trump come out with a statement saying, Look if Hunter Biden commits to a program of sobriety, an in-patient, or maybe out-patient, shows up, keeps his sobriety, Ill pardon him.

On Tuesday, a jury found Hunter Biden guilty on three federal counts of gun-related charges for lying about his prior drug use to unlawfully obtain a firearm.

David Urban, a former Trump campaign adviser, said he would love for the former president to pardon Hunter Biden ( CNN / YouTube )

The presidents son has not been sentenced yet but the charges carry a maximum sentencing of 25 years.

Already, President Biden has said he will not pardon his son but the White House did not rule out the possibility of the president commutating, or reducing, his sons sentence should he receive one.

It is unlikely Hunter Biden will be sentenced to jail given he is a first-time nonviolent offender and defendants who have faced similar charges do not receive harsh sentences.

But regardless of sentencing, Urban said he would love to see Trump fully pardon Hunter Biden should he win re-election in November.

Id be a magnanimous offer on his part, shows humanity and really flip the tables on the Democrats, Urban said.

President Joe Biden has said he will not pardon his son after his gun convcition. The two are seen together in Delaware hours after a jury found the first son guilty of three felonies. ( AFP via Getty Images )

Hunter Bidens conviction is being used in tandem with Trumps conviction by Democrats and Republicans to scrutinize one another.

Democrats claim Republicans are hypocritical for accepting Hunter Bidens guilty verdict but declaring Trumps to be rigged.

Some Republicans have suggested Hunter Bidens conviction is a distraction from other alleged crimes that they believe should have been brought against the presidents son.
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Republican presidental frontrunner Donald Trump told his partys members that Democrat Nancy Pelosi sdughter said the two would be perfect together - a comment that drew the immediate ire of her family.

Nancy Pelosis daughter is a whacko, Trump allegedly said on Capitol Hill on Thursday while speaking to House Republicans. Her daughter told me if things were different Nancy and I would be perfect together.

The 77-year-old added: Theres an age difference though.

Nancy Pelosi is just seven years older than Trump. Meanwhile, Trump is 23 years older than his wife Melania.

Pelosis daughter, Christine Pelosi, immediately jumped on the claim, tweeting: Speaking for all 4 Pelosi daughters  this is a LIE.

His deceitful, deranged obsession with our mother is yet another reason Donald Trump is unwell, unhinged and unfit to step foot anywhere near her  or the White House, she added.

Pelosis spokesperson echoed this, writing in response to Trumps quote: This man is not well.

A representative from Pelosis office declined to comment on the matter.

Trump and Pelosi, who served as House Speaker during Trumps term, famously did not get along.

Trump looks on as he arrives to deliver a campaign speech during a Turning Point USA event at the Dream City Church in Phoenix, Arizona on June 6 ( REUTERS )

The former president visited Capitol Hill on Thursday to meet with House and Senate GOP lawmakers behind closed doors on Thursday, marking his first return to the site since the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021.

The California Democrat slammed his planned visit ahead of his arrival, telling The Hill: Today, the instigator of an insurrection is returning to the scene of the crime.

January 6th was a crime against the Capitol, that saw Nazi and Confederate flags flying under the dome that Lincoln built, she continued.

It was a crime against the Constitution and its peaceful transfer of power, in a desperate attempt to cling to power, Pelosi said. And it was a crime against Members, heroic police officers and staff, that resulted in death, injury and trauma that endure to this day.

Pelosi arrives to attend an official state dinner as part of US President's state visit to France on June 8, 2024 ( AFP via Getty Images )

Social media users were quick to pounce on the claim.

One user joked: Well an age gap has never been an issue for trump.

7 years. Which would make their age difference the closest Trump has had since his first divorce, another similarly said.

Another wrote, He obviously has a crush on Nancy. Who wouldnt?

Oh my god, he was fantasizing a romcom thing between him and Pelosi while he was in office, another chimed in.
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The birth of a rare white buffalo in Yellowstone National Park fulfills a Lakota prophecy that brings better times, according to members of the American Indian tribe who cautioned that its also a signal that more must be done to protect the earth and its animals.

The birth of this calf is both a blessing and warning. We must do more, said Chief Arvol Looking Horse, the spiritual leader of the Lakota, Dakota and the Nakota Oyate in South Dakota, and the 19th keeper of the sacred White Buffalo Calf Woman Pipe and Bundle.

For the Lakota, the birth of a white buffalo calf with a black nose, eyes and hooves is akin to the second coming of Jesus Christ, Looking Horse said.

The birth of the sacred calf comes as after a severe winter in 2023 drove thousands of Yellowstone buffalo, also known as bison, to lower elevations. More than 1,500 were killed, sent to slaughter or transferred to tribes seeking to reclaim stewardship over an animal their ancestors lived alongside for millennia.

Erin Braaten of Kalispell took several photos of the calf shortly after it was born on June 4 in the Lamar Valley in the northeastern corner of the park.

Her family was visiting the park when she spotted something really white among a herd of bison across the Lamar River.

A rare white buffalo calf, reportedly born in Yellowstone National Parks Lamar Valley, is shown on June 4, 2024

Traffic ended up stopping while bison crossed the road, so Braaten stuck her camera out the window to take a closer look with her telephoto lens.

I look and it's this white bison calf. And I was just totally, totally floored, she said.

After the bison cleared the roadway, the Braatens turned their vehicle around and found a spot to park. They watched the calf and its mother for 30 to 45 minutes.

And then she kind of led it through the willows there, Braaten said. Although Braaten came back each of the next two days, she didn't see the white calf again.

Lakota legend says about 2,000 years ago  when nothing was good, food was running out and bison were disappearing  White Buffalo Calf Woman appeared, presented a bowl pipe and a bundle to a tribal member, taught them how to pray and said that the pipe could be used to bring buffalo to the area for food. As she left, she turned into a white buffalo calf.

And some day when the times are hard again, Looking Horse said in relating the legend, I shall return and stand upon the earth as a white buffalo calf, black nose, black eyes, black hooves.

A similar white buffalo calf was born in Wisconsin in 1994 and was named Miracle, he said.

Troy Heinert, the executive director of the South Dakota-based InterTribal Buffalo Council, said the calf in Braaten's photos looks like a true white buffalo because it has a black nose, black hooves and dark eyes.

From the pictures I've seen, that calf seems to have those traits, said Heinert, who is Lakota. An albino buffalo would have pink eyes.

A naming ceremony has been held for the Yellowstone calf, Looking Horse said, though he declined to reveal the name. A ceremony celebrating the calf's birth is set for June 26 at the Buffalo Field Campaign headquarters in West Yellowstone.

Other tribes also revere white buffalo.

Many tribes have their own story of why the white buffalo is so important, Heinert said. All stories go back to them being very sacred.

A Yellowstone National Park bison ( NPS / Jacob W. Frank )

Heinert and several members of the Buffalo Field Campaign say they've never heard of a white buffalo being born in Yellowstone, which has wild herds. Park officials had not seen the buffalo yet and could not confirm its birth in the park, and they have no record of a white buffalo being born in the park previously.

Jim Matheson, executive director of the National Bison Association, could not quantify how rare the calf is.

To my knowledge, no ones ever tracked the occurrence of white buffalo being born throughout history. So Im not sure how we can make a determination how often it occurs.

Besides herds of the animals on public lands or overseen by conservation groups, about 80 tribes across the U.S. have more than 20,000 bison, a figure thats been growing in recent years.

In Yellowstone and the surrounding area, the killing or removal of large numbers of bison happens almost every winter, under an agreement between federal and Montana agencies that has limited the size of the parks herds to about 5,000 animals. Yellowstone officials last week proposed a slightly larger population of up to 6,000 bison, with a final decision expected next month.

But ranchers in Montana have long opposed increasing the Yellowstone herds or transferring the animals to tribes. Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte has said he would not support any management plan with a population target greater than 3,000 Yellowstone bison.

Heinert sees the calf's birth as a reminder that we need to live in a good way and treat others with respect.

I hope that calf is safe and gonna live its best life in Yellowstone National Park, exactly where it was designed to be, Heinert said.
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A saltwater crocodile which was targeting villagers and eating their pet dogs was killed and eaten by villagers in Australias Northern Territory, police said.

The 3.63m problem reptile had been seen in the remote Baines river after severe flooding in the area, which lies around 700km southwest of Darwin, the NT police said.

Police said they shot the crocodile to ensure that it did not continue to pose a significant risk to the community after consultation with traditional owners, elders, community members and Parks and Wildlife.

It was then transported to the nearby Aboriginal community of Bulla, a township in Australia, where the community prepared it for a feast in the traditional manner, according to remote sergeant Andrew McBride who confirmed that the animal was eaten to ABC News Breakfast.

The official confirmed the increasing presence of crocodiles in the territorys west after the flooding that drowned the area earlier this year, adding that they are popping up where theyve never been seen before.

"Just the immense amount of water that came into the area, crocodile are popping up in locations you wouldnt normally see them," he said.

The deceased crocodile, he said, was one of the reptiles that had gone for a bit of a swim and a walk and popped up very close to residents".

Meanwhile, police officials and park authorities in the Northern Territory have warned locals to be wary of these dangerous reptiles.

Any body of water in the Top End may contain large and potentially dangerous crocodiles. Thats why we urge everyone to Be Crocwise and only swim where there are designated swimming signs, said Kristen Hay, director of wildlife operations at Department of Environment, Parks and Water Security. Be Crocwise integrates public education and active crocodile management by the Northern Territory Government to reduce the risk of crocodile attacks.

Park and Wildlife officials also carried out an opportunistic crocodile safety session with the children and gave them an up-close look at the dangers within our waterways.
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Basking in her recent European election success, a triumphant Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni is holding court at a G7 summit marked by the uncertain political futures facing her fellow leaders.

With her contemporaries in Puglia contending with challenging domestic elections or troubling poll ratings, the Italian premier alone has entered the summit from a position of stability, seeking to further her own agenda for Italy.

While the Ukraine war and stability brought by Joe Bidens US presidency had lent unity to proceedings in recent years, the prospect of Donald Trumps return and a number of other elections has imbued this weeks summit with a different sense of urgency to reach agreements while the status quo still remains in place.

High on the agenda is a plan to use the interest on frozen Russian assets to engineer a $50bn (39bn) loan for Ukraine in its fight against Russias invasion, hoped to be delivered to Kyiv later this year. Leaders are keen to add action to their staunch words of support for Ukraine, as well as try to push for a Gaza ceasefire deal, while they can.

The precarious position of most world leaders meant expectations for the summit remained low  with Frances Emmanuel Macron and Germanys Olaf Scholz facing an ascendant far-right  which has pushed Mr Macron into a snap election, Canadas Justin Trudeau perceived to be fatigued by a lengthy premiership, and elections looming in the UK and US. As well as Japans Fumio Kishida facing low approval ratings and fending off calls for his own snap ballot.

There are two levels to the G7: whats the big narrative and what are the concrete deliverables  and on both counts, it looks like a very unlucky summit, said Nathalie Tocci, head of the Italian Institute for International Affairs.

If anything will come out of this summit, its the fear of a catastrophe playing out before our eyes, Ms Tocci told the BBC.

But in a sign of her own bouyant position, Ms Meloni has also invited Pope Francis, Argentinas populist president Javier Milei, Brazils left-wing president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, and Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine  in an apparent bid to show an outwards-looking West that is determined to confront Russias arsenal of autocracy.

Giorgia Meloni (centre) with President of the European Council Charles Michel (left), Olaf Scholz, Justin Trudeau, Emmanuel Macron, Joe Biden, Fumio Kishida, Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at the G7 summit in Savelletri, Italy ( Reuters )

Indias Narendra Modi and Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey were also invited, as well as three African presidents  Abdelmadjid Tebboune of Algeria, Kenyas William Ruto and Tunisias Kais Saied.

The three-day summits agenda carries clear signs of Ms Meloni, and her hard-right Brothers of Italy partys domestic goals, with the initial focus on Africa, climate change and development mirroring her own desire to use Italy as an energy bridge between Africa and Europe, and to use investment in Africa as a tool to reduce irregular migration to Europe. Italy, along with Greece, has faced hundreds of thousands of arrivals by sea across the Mediterranean. The figure for Italy was 155,000 in 2023. The future of artificial intelligence is another topic on the agenda, with Ms Meloni worried about the impact on the jobs market.

In her opening address, Ms Meloni called for concrete and measurable results from the summit.

The G7 is not a self-enclosed fortress, which needs to defend itself against others. It is a container of values, and we want to open to the world in order to have shared development and growth as our goal, she said.

Known for its revolving-door governments, Italy is now in the unusual position of being the most stable power in the EU. Ms Melonis party had an even stronger showing in the European Parliament election this past weekend than the national general election in 2022 that made her Italy's first female premier. There are still issues domestically  a brawl erupted in Italys parliament on Wednesday over a controversial government bill that would give Italys regions greater autonomy  but Ms Melonis position is secure.

Giorgia Meloni and Joe Biden at the summit ( AP )

Nick OConnell, deputy director of the Atlantic Council, said: While its unlikely the recent results will radically shift the focus of the... G7 summit, this electoral win offers Premier Meloni additional leverage to frame this as an essentially Mediterranean Summit.

With a G7 led by Italy and taking place in Italy, Meloni can enter with all her political strength, Giovanni Orsina, professor of political history at Romes Luiss University, told Politico, adding: If she is skillful, she can end up with an important international success, managing to get the issues important to her on the agenda. Not many leaders are able to gain votes after two years governing.

In a sign of the ability Ms Meloni has to flex her political muscle, her office denied reports that Italy was trying to water down language about access to abortion in the final communique  as a French official said there are diverging views with Italian negotiators on topics including sexual and reproductive health and vaccines.

Italian foreign minister Antonio Tajani confirmed abortion is being discussed, but said talks are continuing.

Elsewhere, Rishi Sunak announced 242m in new non-military aid to Ukraine, while Mr Biden planned to urge G7 allies to push Hamas into accepting a Gaza ceasefire proposal backed by Israel, and to discuss the continuing threat posed by Iran.

Mr Zelensky was pushing for expedited fighter plane deliveries and training for Ukrainian pilots, in addition to more air defences and long-range weapons, and was expected to sign security agreements with Japan and the US, echoing those agreed with the UK and more than a dozen other Nato allies.

Pope Francis, courting controversy of his own after being accused of repeating a homophobic slur during a closed-door meeting, is also set to become the first pontiff to address a G7 summit, giving a speech on Friday on the promises and perils of AI, and is expected to appeal for peace in Gaza and Ukraine.
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Watch as Rishi Sunak and other G7 world leaders posed for a family photo in Italy on Thursday, 13 June.

The prime minister is taking a break from general election campaigning to head to the summit in Puglia, Italy, where he is set to announce new funding for war-torn Ukraine.

The summit focused on issues such as global conflicts, the spread of artificial intelligence, and climate change.

Leaders attending the summit included Frances Emmanuel Macron, Germanys Olaf Scholz and US president Joe Biden.

Mr Sunak will be in Borgo Egnazia resort until Saturday.

From Ukraine to the Middle East, we will be discussing significant global threats at the summit, Mr Sunak said in a statement.

Such threats are why it is so vital to strengthen the UKs national defence, through our commitment to spend 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence by 2030.

Ukraines President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will also be at the resort, which is near Fasano, in the Puglia region of southern Italy.

His appearance came after he and Sir Keir Starmer faced tough questions from audience members as they took part a leaders debate on Sky News.

The PM was booed after claiming the junior doctors strike had an impact on NHS waiting lists, while the Labour leader was branded a political robot.
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Russian drills to deploy tactical nuclear weapons for combat involved the special delivery of dummy nuclear warheads to forward storage points and an airfield where they were loaded on bombers, according to Russias nuclear unit.

President Vladimir Putin ordered the nuclear drills after what Russia said were threats from the West, including signals from Western officials that they would allow Ukraine to strike deep into Russia with Western weapons.

Drills have taken place in the south of Russia, which borders Ukraine, and with the involvement of soldiers from the Leningrad military district in Russias northwest, and have included mobile missile launchers, the air force and navy.

In a rare statement, Russias 12 Main Directorate (12 GU MO), which guards, maintains, transports and delivers Russias vast arsenal of nuclear weapons, said that the drills would be analysed to make improvements.

The nuclear directorate ensured the delivery of nuclear training munitions to the field storage points of the missile brigades positional area and the operational airfield of assault aviation, it said.

Further improvement of the training of non-strategic nuclear forces will be determined in order to ensure the fulfilment of tasks in various scenarios for development of the military-political situation.

Russian soldiers load a Iskander-M short-range ballistic missile launchers at a firing position as part of Russian military drill intended to train the troops in using tactical nuclear weapons ( AP )

Footage released by the defence ministry showed Russian sailors focusing on a dummy target and then counting down to launch, including pressing the launch button.

Russia says the United States and its European allies are pushing the world to the brink of nuclear confrontation by giving Ukraine billions of dollars worth of weapons, some of which are being used against Russian territory.

All major nuclear powers - Russia, the United States, China, France and Britain - hold nuclear drills, but it is very rare to link them explicitly in public to a major current crisis - as Russia has done over Ukraine.

By doing so, Russia is trying to send a signal to the United States and its biggest European allies that allowing Ukraine to strike Russia with ever bigger and more advanced Western weapons is an escalation that could have consequences.

The United States says it has seen no change to Russias strategic posture, though senior U.S. intelligence officials say they have to take Moscows remarks about nuclear weapons seriously.

Russia and the United States are by far the worlds biggest nuclear powers, holding about 88% of the worlds nuclear weapons, according to the Federation of American Scientists.

, Russian soldiers load a Iskander-M short-range ballistic missile launchers at a firing position as part of Russian military drill ( AP )

The United States has about 100 non-strategic B61 nuclear weapons deployed in five European countries - Italy, Germany, Turkey, Belgium and the Netherlands, according to the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. The U.S. has another 100 such weapons within its borders.

Russia has about 1,558 non-strategic nuclear warheads, though arms control experts say it is very difficult to say just how many there are due to secrecy.

Putin said last week that many of Russias tactical nuclear weapons were 70-75 kilotons of explosive power - around five times the size of the U.S. nuclear bomb dropped on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945.

A truck of Iskander-M short-range ballistic missile launchers moves to a firing position as part of Russian military drill intended to train the troops in using tactical nuclear weapons. ( AP )

Meanwhile The Kremlin said on Thursday there was no reason for any country, including the United States, to be worried about the presence of Russian warships in Cuba on an exercise.

A Russian navy frigate and a nuclear-powered submarine churned into Havana harbour on Wednesday, a stopover the U.S. and Cuba said posed no threat but which was widely seen as a Russian show of force as tensions rise over the Ukraine war.

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said there was no evidence of Russia transferring any missiles to Cuba, but that the U.S. would remain vigilant.

When asked about purported nervousness in Washington over the fear that Russia could transfer military personnel to Cuba or even create a military base on the island, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said such exercises were common practice.

This is a normal practice for all states, including such a large maritime power as Russia, Peskov told reporters. So we dont see any reason to worry in this case.
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G7 leaders have reached a deal to use profits from frozen Russian assets to provide around $50bn (39bn) worth of support to Ukraine.

It came after Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky said he expected important decisions from the summit in Italy, with leaders from the UK, US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan seeking to shore up support for Kyiv as several of them face elections or political turmoil at home.

Also on Thursday, US President Joe Biden agreed to a sweeping bilateral security agreement that will see his country and Ukraine work together to help deter and confront future aggression against the territorial integrity of either state.

Under the support funding, G7 members will provide the funds using profits earned from Russias frozen central bank assets, most of them held in the European Union, as collateral. The finer details of how much of the money will be provided by the nations involved is still to be finalised, but leaders said it showed unity in the face of Vladimir Putins invasion of Ukraine.

Its a very strong message to Putin that Putin cannot outlast us, and we will stand by Ukraine as long as it takes, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said. It is not European taxpayers that are paying for the Russian damage [in Ukraine] but it is Russia, she added.

The process involves using the profits, essentially the dividends and maturities, of Russias roughly $300bn assets abroad, frozen after Moscow launched its invasion in 2022.

Kyiv has been calling for these frozen assets for years but the move is a major boost to Ukraine as it battles through a difficult 2024 against a better-armed Russia.

Finally, we see the first step of fairness in making sure that the aggressor, and not the good people from countries that support us, are paying for Ukraines victory, said Kira Rudik, an opposition leader in Kyivs parliament, the Verkhovna Rada.

We applaud this step. We hope that it is only the first of many more steps. And we will use this money wisely.

Rishi Sunak and Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni embrace at the G7 summit ( AP )

Ms Rudik, as well as Ukraines most senior figures, have called for all of Russias seized assets to be given to Kyiv. The decision to issue a loan to Ukraine secured against future interest from the assets is a middle-ground decision between sending the assets themselves and simply transferring to Kyiv the interest that has accrued over the past two-and-a-half years of Russias full-scale invasion.

In what may be his last G7 summit, Rishi Sunak was clear about the need for action, having arrived at the summit to a warm welcome from his Italian counterpart  and host  Giorgia Meloni.

Early in the day, they announced a sweeping new sanctions package targeting Moscows shadow fleet, which is secretly transporting oil to fund the war in Ukraine. Mr Sunak said this would degrade Putins war machine. Individuals and businesses based in China, Israel, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey were added to the UKs sanctions list for supplying weapons, machine tools and micro-electronics to Russias military.

Mr Sunak also said he would announce up to 242m in bilateral assistance to Ukraine to support its immediate humanitarian and energy needs.

Giorgia Meloni takes a selfie in front of the media while awaiting the arrival of Joe Biden ( Palazzo Chigi press office/AFP )

In his address to the summit, Mr Zelensky asked leaders to approve a Marshall Plan for Ukraines reconstruction after the damage caused by Russias invasion.

We need a clear plan for the recovery of Ukraine. Similar to what the Marshall Plan was for Europe after the [Second World War], he said.

Mr Zelensky also said that the recent lifting of restrictions on the use of Western weapons on targets inside Russia had given Ukraine added protection from airstrikes, particularly in the eastern city of Kharkiv  with the wider Kharkiv region facing an assault from Russian troops.

However, we are still in search of additional Patriot [air-defence systems] and we need more of the same powerful steps that were taken (to enhance) our long-range strike capabilities, the Ukrainian president said.

Mr Zelensky also signed a security deal with Japan. A similar 10-year agreement is expected with the US.

Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelensky is welcomed by Giorgia Meloni to the summit in Savelletri, Italy ( Reuters )

As for Mr Sunak, he also issued a statement with Joe Biden and Canadian PM Justin Trudeau accusing the Kremlin of using lies, deceit, corruption and disinformation to undermine sovereignty and democracy across Europe, just months before a Moldovan election where Russian meddling is of grave concern.

On the $50bn for Ukraine, Tom Keatinge, director of the Centre for Finance and Security at the Royal United Services Institute think tank, said: This wont be the end of the story.

Unfortunately, it cant be the end of the story. There is more to do. But at least this particular bridge has been crossed and that is of tremendous benefit to the Ukrainians, he added.

Reuters contributed to this report
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Russian forces deliberately starved Ukrainians in Mariupol as a tactic of war by targeting their water, food and medical facilities before taking the strategic port city in 2022, according to an investigation by an international human rights group.

Satellite imagery showing evidence of attacks on civilian infrastructure in the city, including food distribution centres, was collected by Global Rights Compliances Starvation Mobile Justice Team, and relate to the first 85 days of Russias invasion of Ukraine before the fall of Mariupol.

In a report on Russias siege, starvation, and capture of Mariupol city, the rights group said its investigators analysed reams of satellite imagery as well as pictures, videos, public statements and digital data to make the assessment. The investigation took about a year to complete.

Civilians who couldnt escape died silent deaths inside Mariupol, Olha Matskiv, a Ukrainian legal advisor on the Starvation Mobile Justice Team, told The Independent.

The disadvantaged section of the population was hit particularly hard.

A child on the autism spectrum could not eat canned food because of his autism. Canned food was the only food available in the shelter where he was with his mother. The war magnified how horrible it is to starve when some people still have access to the meagre supply food left, Ms Matskiv said.

The Rome Statute considers intentionally using starvation of civilians as a method of warfare in the context of an international armed conflict as a war crime, provided that the perpetrators deprived civilians of objects indispensable to their survival.

Naomi Prodeau, who served as international lawyer on the Starvation Mobile Justice Team, said they would take their report about Russias starvation tactics to the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court and build a larger war crimes case against Russian president Vladimir Putin.

I urge the International Criminal Court to consider these crimes, and the collective punishment against innocent Ukrainian civilians, in pursuit of justice to Russian leadership all the way up to the Kremlin, said Catriona Murdoch, the human rights groups vice president and director of its starvation and humanitarian crisis division.

Mr Putin and Russian military leaders could be indicted if the international court were to pursue cases related to starvation as a war crime or crime against humanity, according to the Atlantic Council, a think tank in the US.

As they lay siege to Mariupol between February and May 2022, Russian forces attacked its energy, water, food and healthcare infrastructure, Ms Murdoch said. They intended to starve the Ukranians in the city.

The Russians bombed at least 22 supermarkets which had been turned into food distribution centres and targeted shelters to instil fear among fleeing citizens, the report, seen by The Independent, said. They also knocked out water pumping stations, forcing some people to take water from puddles, radiators and melted snow.

Satellite imagery collected by the investigators also showed that Russian fighter aircraft deliberately attacked the Mariupol drama theatre, where hundreds of people were sheltering, with two 500kg bombs on 16 March.

Russian word for children is visible from a height of about 500 metres, the lowest bombing altitude of the ammunition reportedly used for the attack on the theatre ( Google Earth Pro/Shared with The Independent )

The Russian word for children, painted in white lettering at the front and back of the theatre, can be clearly seen in the satellite images, the markings signifying the location as being civilian.

The attack killed at least 600 people, according to an investigation by the Associated Press.

Inside the Donetsk Academic Regional Drama Theatre after the attack in March 2022 ( AP )

Another set of satellite images from mid-March 2022 revealed damage to key transformer substations that supplied power to both residential and industrial grids in the city.

Russian forces hit the Neptun swimming pool complex, which has been turned into a food distribution point, despite the presence of hundreds of civilians.

Satellite imagery analysed by SMJT establishes the presence of hundreds of civilians at Neptun less than 48 hours before its destruction, by weaponry likely of the same type to that used in the attack against the drama theatre, the report said.

Satellite image shows several hundred people outside Neptun on 13 and 14 March ( Google Earth Pro/Shared with The Independent )

The attacks affected at least 450,000 civilians in Mariupol, cutting their access to water, electricity and gas.

Shortly after the Russians captured the city, Mr Putin boasted that it had been liberated after nearly two months of siege.

In the first days of the invasion, Russian forces targeted Mariupols energy and water facilities and struck a major powerline that caused a power blackout in half of the city, the report said, adding that this deprived women, men and children of heat, potable water, and access to information, which residents described as a harrowing situation.

In the second week, the Russians successfully encircled and laid a porous siege to the city. They intensified the bombing, forcing up to 200,000 people to flee.

The remaining civilians were systematically vetted by pro-Russian forces for their loyalties to the Russian State apparatus, through a compulsory security screening process known as filtration, the report claimed.

Although Moscow has taken firm control of Mariupol since, Ukraine has refused to acknowledge its defeat.
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US officials are publicly and privately urging their Israeli allies to avoid escalating the back-and-forth strikes that have been taking place for months between the IDF and the Lebanese militant movement Hezbollah, arguing the fighting could turn an already deadly two-party war in Gaza into an even worse regional conflict.

"We are concerned about an increase in activity in the north. We dont want this to escalate to a broad regional conflict and we urge de-escalation," Pentagon deputy spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told reporters on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Israeli forces killed a senior Hezbollah commander, Taleb Sami Abdullah, known as Abu Taleb, near the Lebanon-Israel border. The strike prompted the Iran-backed militia and political movement to fire over 200 missiles into Israel today in response, its largest attack since the October 7 conflict between Israel and Hamas began.

Our response after the martyrdom of Abu Taleb will be to intensify our operations in severity, strength, quantity and quality, senior Hezbollah official Hachem Saffieddine said during a funeral for the slain militant on Wednesday. Let the enemy wait for us in the battlefield.

Israel, in turn, reportedly conducted heavy bombing raids in southern Lebanon on Wednesday.

The conflict could quickly pull in other regional actors if not contained, according to experts, due to the complex web of alliances and rivalries across the region.

Iran backs a variety of governments and militia groups from Yemen to Lebanon to Syria, all of whom have hostile relationships with Israel, and all whom, to varying degrees, are already involved in the Israel-Hamas war.

In April, a suspected Israeli strike demolished Irans consulate in Syria, killing two Iranian generals. Later that month, an international military coalition including the US, the UK, and France supported Israel as it repelled an unprecedented Iranian attack involving hundreds of drones and missiles.

Throughout the war, Yemens Iran-backed Houthi militants and an Iran-aligned group in Iraq have targeted ships passing through the busy Red Sea shipping corridor, in protest of the Israeli war effort in Gaza.

The US and UK navies have deployed to the region and targeted the Houthis with additional strikes.

Taken together, according to Mohanad Hage Ali, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut, its a recipe for instability.

So a war with Lebanon would lead to an engagement from the Houthis in Yemen, further attacks from Iraq, from Syria and perhaps some US involvement at some point, he told NPR. And that would drag in some other actors and players and would lead to further instability.

Tensions have been ratcheting up this month between Israel and Lebanon. A series of Hezbollah attacks last week set off massive forest fires in Northern Israel, and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised a very strong action in response.

Hezbollah fighters carry the coffin of their comrade, senior commander Taleb Sami Abdullah, 55, known within Hezbollah as Hajj Abu Taleb, who was killed late Tuesday by an Israeli strike in south Lebanon, during his funeral procession in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, June 12, 2024 ( AP )

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, speaking on Wednesday from Qatar, one of the nations brokering negotiations between Israel and Hamas, argued that a ceasefire between the two sides would help calm the tension between Israel and Lebanon as well.

Now, theres no doubt in my mind that the best way to empower a diplomatic solution to the north, Lebanon, is a resolution of the conflict in Gaza and getting the ceasefire, he told reporters. That will take a tremendous amount of pressure out of the system.

Theres still considerable daylight between Israel, Hamas, and the US, over a proposed ceasefire deal.

The US has publicized a ceasefire plan, which it says Israel backs, which would begin with a six-week ceasefire and hostages-for-prisoners swap, then be followed by a three-stage rebuilding process in Gaza and further negotiations towards a political settlement.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, has yet to publically endorse the plan, and is under considerable domestic pressure from his right-wing coalitition to fully destroy Hamas before accepting any ceasefire.

The Palestinian group submitted its response to negotiators late Tuesday. Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan told AFP it is seeking to add provisions guaranteeing "a permanent cease-fire and complete withdrawal" by the IDF, demands Israel has rejected.
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Israeli tanks advanced deeper into the western area of the border city of Rafah in Gaza, amid one of the worst nights of bombardment from air, ground, and sea, forcing many families to flee their homes and tents under darkness, residents have said.

Residents said the Israeli forces thrust towards the Al-Mawasi area of Rafah near the beach, which is designated as a humanitarian area in all announcements and maps published by the Israeli army since it began its Rafah offensive in May.

The Israeli military denied in a statement it had launched any strikes inside the Al-Mawasi humanitarian zone.

Israel said its assault aimed to wipe out Hamas' last intact combat units in Rafah, a city which had sheltered more than a million people before the latest advance began. Most of those people have now moved north towards Khan Younis and Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military said in a statement it was continuing "intelligence-based, targeted operations" on Rafah, saying forces in the past day had located weapons and killed Palestinian gunmen in close-range combat.

Over the past day, the military said it had struck 45 targets across the Gaza Strip from the air, including military structures, militant cells, rocket launchers and tunnel shafts.

Israel has ruled out peace until Hamas is eradicated, and much of Gaza lies in ruins. But Hamas militants keep resurfacing to fight in areas where Israeli forces had previously declared to have defeated them and pulled back.

Hamas welcomed a new US ceasefire proposal but made some amendments, reaffirming its stance that any agreement must secure an end to the war, a demand Israel still rejects.

Israel described Hamas's response to the new US peace proposal as total rejection. But the efforts to secure an agreement are still continuing, according to mediators Qatar and Egypt, backed by the United States.

Since a brief week-long truce in November, repeated attempts to arrange a ceasefire have failed, with Hamas insisting on a permanent end to the war and full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

Hamas triggered the war when it stormed from Israeli-blockaded Gaza into southern Israel in attack on 7 October last year, killing around 1,200 people and taking 250 hostages back to the enclave..

Israel's invasion and bombardment of Gaza that followed has killed at least 37,000 people, according to the territory's health ministry. Thousands more are feared buried dead under rubble, with most of the 2.3 million population displaced.

Meanwhile, Hezbollah said it had launched rockets and weaponised drones at nine Israeli military sites in a coordinated attack on Thursday, ramping up hostilities on Lebanon's southern border for the second consecutive day.

The attacks were carried out in retaliation for an Israeli strike on Tuesday that killed a senior Hezbollah field commander. A security source told Lebanon it was the largest attack waged by Hezbollah since October, when the group started exchanging fire with Israel in parallel with the Gaza war.

Hezbollah said in a statement it had fired volleys of Katyusha and Falaq rockets at six Israeli military locations. The statement said it had also launched attack drones at the headquarters of Israel's northern command, an intelligence headquarters and a military barracks.

A security source told Reuters that involved firing at least 30 attack drones at once, making it the group's largest drone attack to date in the eight-month-old war. The Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel have been trading near-daily fire since the eruption of the Gaza war, but the last two days have seen a sharp rise following the Israeli strike that killed the Hezbollah commander.

Reuters
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Nasa has denied there was a medical emergency aboard the International Space Station after it accidentally broadcast the audio feed of a drill simulating a crew member in extreme distress, sparking concern on social media.

There is no emergency situation going on aboard the International Space Station. At approximately 5.28pm CDT, audio was aired on the Nasa livestream from a simulation audio channel on the ground indicating a crew member was experiencing effects related to decompression sickness, the American space agency said.

This audio was inadvertently misrouted from an ongoing simulation where crew members and ground teams train for various scenarios in space and is not related to a real emergency.

The International Space Station crew members were in their sleep period at the time. All remain healthy and safe, and tomorrows spacewalk will start at 8am EDT as planned.

Nasas space station livestream was temporarily interrupted at 5.30pm on Wednesday with a message saying it would return after the connection is reestablished.

In the background a person could be heard asking the commander into his suit, securing an oxygen mask and speaking about hyperbaric exposure, which is the process of breathing oxygen in a pressurised environment.

So if we could get the commander back in his suit, get it sealed for suited hyperbaric treatment, the person said. Prior to sealing, closing the visor and pressurising the suit, I would like you to check his pulse one more time.

The speaker said she was a flight surgeon at the SpaceX mission control centre in Hawthorne, California.

SpaceX, the private company which helps Nasa to send crew and cargo to the space station, too denied there was an emergency. This was only a test. The crew training in Hawthorne is safe and healthy as is the Dragon spacecraft docked to the space station, it said.

Soon after the audio was aired, people on social media, including open source intelligence trackers, said they were seeing initial reports of a possible serious medical incident on the space research station.

But space scientists monitoring the live feed quickly put such concerns to rest, saying it could be a drill.

I can confirm with 100 percent confidence that there is no emergency on board the International Space Station. It was a sim not involving the crew, said Eric Berger, a space editor at Ars Technica, after initially calling the audio frankly scary.

Nasa requires flight surgeons to be physicians with specialised training in aerospace medicine based at mission control centres.

After Nasas clarification, social media users heaved a sigh of relief. You had a bunch of us about to turn blue, one user replied under Nasas post on X.
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Smartwatches can detect symptoms of Parkinsons and give scientists a better understanding of how to treat the disease, according to a new study.

Neurologists at the University of Rochester Medical Centre in the US used an Apple Watch paired with an iPhone to monitor people with early stage Parkinsons disease for a year.

They found that they were able to passively track symptoms like gait and tremor, while also gaining additional insights through voice recordings that revealed speech-related issues.

Digital measures hold the promise to provide objective, sensitive, real-world measures of disease progression in Parkinsons disease, said Jamie Adams, an associate professor of Neurology at the University of Rochester Medical Centre.

This study shows that data generated by smart watches and smart phones can remotely monitor and detect changes in multiple domains of the disease. These digital assessments could help evaluate the efficacy of future therapies.

She added: This study brings us closer to having meaningful digital measures for future use in Parkinsons clinical trials, which may speed up therapeutic development and get treatments to our patients faster.

Patients with early Parkinsons experienced significant declines in measures of gait, an increase in tremor, and modest changes in speech, data collected by the devices showed.

The smartwatch was able to pick up on decreases in arm swing, a common feature of the disease, and activity in the form of the number of daily steps.

The main symptoms of Parkinsons disease, according to The NHS, are: tremors  shaking, which usually begins in the hand or arm and is more likely to occur when the limb is relaxed and resting; slowness of movement (bradykinesia)  physical movements are much slower than normal, which can make everyday tasks difficult and result in a distinctive slow, shuffling walk with very small steps; muscle stiffness (rigidity)  stiffness and tension in the muscles, which can make it difficult to move around and make facial expressions, and can result in painful muscle cramps (dystonia).

The findings are published in the journal npj Parkinsons Disease in a study titled Using a smartwatch and smartphone to assess early Parkinsons disease in the WATCH-PD study over 12 months.

Additional reporting from agencies
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Tesla chief executive Elon Musk has said he is in line for a record-breaking payout worth roughly a quarter of his net worth.

Tesla shareholders will vote on Thursday on whether the worlds third richest person will receive $56 billion (44bn) as part of a performance-based deal first agreed in 2018. They will also vote on whether to move the companys headquarters to Texas.

Both Tesla shareholder resolutions are currently passing by wide margins, he wrote in a post to X. Thanks for your support!!

Earlier this year, a judge in the US state of Delaware, where Tesla is incorporated, voided the pay deal after an investor sued on the issue, with the judge ruling that the sum was unfair and the process to award it to Mr Musk  which was made by a board controlled by the entrepreneur  was described as deeply flawed.

Tesla called that decision inconsistent with the will of the stockholders and submitted the deal to another vote, alongside a measure to consider moving the companys legal headquarters outside of Delaware.

The car maker has argued that Mr Musk deserves the pay package because he is crucial to the companys success and has helped the firm achieve ambitious targets through his leadership, and that it is a necessary deal to ensure he remains committed to the company.

Mr Musks other businesses include SpaceX and social media platform, X, formerly known as Twitter.

Even if successful with the vote, Mr Musk could still face legal hurdles over the pay package, with some legal experts noting that it was unclear whether the Delaware court which blocked the deal would accept the result of the new vote, because it is not legally binding.

Mr Musks net worth is currently around $203bn, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Only Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and French entrepreneur Bernard Arnault are richer, with net worths of $209bn and $206bn respectively.

Additional reporting from agencies.
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People heading on holiday this summer have been told to avoid insurance excess waivers offered by car hire companies costing up to 12 times more than alternatives.

Consumer group Which? said it found travellers could be charged up to 199 at car hire desks for policies which are inferior to options available online for as little as 16.

Basic car hire insurance included in rental prices is usually subject to an excess, meaning holidaymakers could be charged the equivalent of hundreds of pounds for issues such as fixing a puncture or replacing a windscreen, according to Which?.

To avoid being liable for this, people can either purchase a Super Collision Damage Waiver (SCDW) from their car hire company or Excess Reimbursement Insurance (ERI) from car hire brokers and insurers.

Which? analysed SCDW cover provided by six major car hire businesses in Malaga, Spain, this summer, and compared it with several ERI policies.

On average, for a weeks cover in Malaga holidaymakers are being charged 177 for SCDW, while ERI costs 38 from a broker and 23 from an insurer, according to the research.

open image in gallery Consumer gro Which? said it found travellers could be charged up to 199 at car hire desks for policies which are inferior to options available online for as little as 16

Which? also found SCDWs are inferior, with issues such as misfuelling or stolen keys not covered.

Rory Boland, editor of magazine Which? Travel, said: All too often hiring a car abroad is an unnecessarily stressful experience, with travellers sometimes pressured at the rental desk into buying overpriced insurance policies that they dont want or need.

What our research shows is that you should never take excess insurance from your car hire firm, no matter how hard the sell.

Buy an ERI either directly from an insurer or via your car hire broker.

The top rated policies are a win-win. Not only are they significantly cheaper than anything offered by a car hire company, but they are also more comprehensive, meaning you have peace of mind should anything go wrong.

Meanwhile, a new study has ranked Wizz Air as the worst airline for UK flight delays despite a surge in fares, an investigation has found.

The low-cost carriers departures from UK airports were an average of 31 minutes and 36 seconds behind schedule in 2023, according to analysis of Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) data by the PA news agency.

This was a reduction of nearly a third compared with 2022, but means the airline recorded the worst punctuality for UK flights for three consecutive years.

Wizz Air said it has made significant improvements but acknowledged there is still work to be done.
The Mysterines perform two tracks from their latest album Afraid Of Tomorrow for Music Box - watch Stray now.

The Liverpool quartet will be touring the UK and Europe across 2024 to support the new release, as well as a number of festival appearances. Find out where you can see the band here - and listen to the new album from 21 June 2024.

Stay tuned to Independent TV for more Music Box featuring the latest acts breaking through, available across desktop, mobile and connected TV, as well as our YouTube channel.
David Cameron quoted a Gino DAcampo joke as he gave an interview about the general election on Thursday, 13 June.

The foreign secretary told Kay Burley If my mother had wheels, shed be a bicycle, seemingly referring to the time the chef angrily told This Morning hosts Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby If my grandmother had wheels she would have been a bike, as his dish was likened to a British carbonara.

Lord Cameron used the reference after the Sky News host asked him what he would do if the Conservative Party loses the election.

I dont answer questions beginning with the word if, he added.
David Cameron refused to say if he had offered any advice to Rishi Sunak that he may be making a poor decision by leaving D-Day 80th anniversary commemorations early last week.

The prime minister left Normandy before a major international ceremony marking the anniversary of the Allied landings so he could record a TV interview as part of his push for votes in the general election.

Mr Sunak later apologised, saying on reflection it was a mistake.

Im not getting into advice that I or my department gave, Lord Cameron, who attended the commemorations as foreign secretary, said.
China, Central Asia see remarkable achievements in green cooperation

15:40, June 13, 2024 By Li Jiabao ( People's Daily

Photo shows the modernization project of Shymkent Oil Refinery in Kazakhstan undertaken by a Chinese company. (Photo by Ye Erlan)

Recently, a cargo train carrying 50 twenty-foot equivalent units of photovoltaic (PV) modules departed from Wuhan, central China's Hubei province for Tashkent, capital of Uzbekistan.

As the first PV products-dedicated freight train between Wuhan and Central Asia, it will further promote China-Central Asia green cooperation.

Chinese researchers undertake an ecological investigation near the Aral Sea. (Photo from ts.cn)

Green has become the defining feature of the Belt and Road cooperation between China and Central Asia, as reflected by the efforts made by China in recent years to assist Central Asian countries in advancing energy transition and ecological conservation, from contracting green energy infrastructure projects to promoting water-efficient irrigation techniques, and to engaging in the ecological governance of the Aral Sea.

Central Asia boasts rich wind, solar, water and other renewable energy resources. As of the end of 2022, the total installed capacity of renewable energy projects invested and built by Chinese enterprises in Kazakhstan, including the 100-MW Zhanatas wind farm, Turgusun hydropower plant, and a wind project in Akmola Region, had exceeded 1,000 MW.

At the 220 MWac Samarkand solar PV plant in Uzbekistan, a Chinese engineer is training local maintenance staff on how to use an AI-enabled cleaning robot. (Photo by Chang Jin)

The 220 MWac Samarkand solar PV plant constructed by a Chinese company in Uzbekistan, is expected to provide electricity to 264,000 local households and reduce approximately 237,000 tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.

"With accelerated development of renewable energy projects and increased attention to environmental protection in the traditional energy sector, green development has become a highlight of China-Central Asia energy cooperation," said Yang Jin, a researcher with the Institute of Russian, Eastern European & Central Asian Studies, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CAAS).

Photo shows a wind farm in Kazakhstan's Akmola Region invested and built by a Chinese company. (Photo by Li Qiang/People's Daily)

Besides, Chinese new energy vehicles (NEVs) are favored by people in Central Asian countries, Yang told People's Daily, adding that some Chinese automakers have set up factories in Central Asia for localized production in cooperation with local enterprises.

The Aral Sea, located in the border region between Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan, was once the fourth largest lake in the world. It faces a severe ecological crisis due to global warming and multiple human factors. According to statistics, the Aral Sea's area has decreased by over 90 percent since 1960, with a large portion of the lakebed turning into bare land and salt flats, or covered by salt crust.

Remarkable progress has been made in the cooperative efforts of China and Central Asia to promote the ecological restoration of the Aral Sea. China has set up automatic meteorological and water quality monitoring networks in the Aral Sea drainage basin, planted halophytes to lower the salt content in local soil, promoted drip irrigation techniques and established big data analysis centers and joint labs with local universities. Chinese solutions to the ecological treatment of the Aral Sea have been recognized and welcomed by regional countries.

Yang attributed the prospering China-Central Asia cooperation on green development to their shared strategic vision of developing green economy and enhancing sustainable development capabilities, along with their high complementarity.

He said Central Asian countries, boasting abundant traditional energy reserves and great potential for developing renewable energy, are seeking to transition from an extensive and high-energy consumption development model to a green and low-carbon economy. China has a vast energy consumption market and stands ready to engage in international cooperation on green development.

With the technological edge in sectors such as solar energy, wind energy, hydropower, and electric vehicles, China can support Central Asian countries in their green transition, Yang noted. He said that the two sides share the same vision and can leverage their respective strengths in green cooperation, which resonates with the global trend of green development.

China and Central Asian countries are friendly neighbors and comprehensive strategic partners. The deepening collaboration between the two sides in recent years has paved the way for a more holistic approach to green cooperation.

Green cooperation and the development of green economy have been key discussions in Belt and Road cooperation, the China-Central Asia Summit, and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization. These cooperation mechanisms provide important platforms for dialogue and consensus-building in China-Central Asia green cooperation.

"The green cooperation between China and Central Asian countries has been expanding in both areas and scope. The cooperation between the two sides in digital economy, cross-border e-commerce, and tourism is also deepening, all contributing to the development of a Green Silk Road," Yang said.

Moving forward, there remains significant untapped potential for China-Central Asia green cooperation, which will inject new impetus into the economic development of both sides and their cooperation across different sectors.

(Web editor: Zhong Wenxing, Liang Jun)
Giorgia Meloni appeared to ask Rishi Sunak Are you OK? as the British prime minister arrived at the G7 summit in Italy on Thursday, 13 June.

The prime minster took a break from general election campaigning to head to the summit in Puglia, Italy, where he is set to announce new funding for Ukraine.

As the British PM was embraced by his Italian counterpart, she appeared to enquire after his wellbeing.

Mr Sunaks appearance at the summit came after polling showed Sir Keir Starmer came out on top in the latest election debate.
A Florida driver was rescued from slowly sinking mud amid flooding from severe storms that hit the state.

More than a foot of rain slammed several counties on Wednesday 12 June, causing major disruption, with downpours expected to continue for a third day on Thursday.

Florida governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency that applied to Miami-Dade, Broward, Collier, Lee, and Sarasota counties.

South Trail Fire and Rescue District, which operates in Lee County, shared footage of the moment a man was safely rescued from his sinking vehicle.

Water was reported to be over the drivers lap with the car slowly sinking, the fire service wrote, urging residents to stay home if they could.
The Communicator

When the late Stephen Covey, renowned for his seminal work The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, passed away, he left behind more than just a legacy of transformative ideas. He also left a deeply personal project, a book he hoped would capstone his influential career: Live Life in Crescendo.

His daughter, Cynthia Covey Haller, took on the mantle to complete it and published the book in 2022, ensuring that his vision would continue to inspire others. I spoke with Cynthia from her temporary home in Northern Ireland, where she and her husband, Kameron, are serving an outreach mission for their church.

Realising a fathers lasting vision

In our conversation, Cynthia fondly recalled her fathers passion for the books message. Back in 2008, my father and I had a discussion about all the different projects he was working on and what he was excited about.

One of them was a book based on his personal mission, Live life in crescendo. My dad believed that, like the musical symbol, life should continuously expand and grow, no matter ones age or stage.

He envisioned a world where individuals would keep learning, contributing, and producing throughout their lives.

Cynthia took on the project with a promise to her father, who died in 2012, to bring it to fruition. I interviewed him, gathered his thoughts, and found inspiring examples of people who live in crescendo. Unfortunately, he passed away before we could complete it together. But I was determined to finish it as he was so passionately about the message.

Overcoming societal limitations

Why do so many people equate ageing or reaching a career milestone with the end of their productive contributions? Cynthia attributes this mindset to societal pressures. Society often tells us, Youre 65, youre done, and this ageism is real. But my father always taught that you can retire from a job, but never from making meaningful contributions.

Stephen Coveys philosophy was that as people age, their circle of influence should grow rather than diminish. With a lifetime of experience, wisdom, and relationships, individuals are uniquely positioned to make significant impacts. Cynthia shared how her fathers teachings inspired her to continue growing and contributing. Look at Clint Eastwood, for example. In his 90s, he says I just get up every day and think, dont let the old man in.

He continues to contribute, and thats incredibly inspiring.

'The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People', which was originally published in 1989

Key principles of life in crescendo

The book emphasises several principles to help any of us at any age break through barriers, societal as well as the ones we create within our minds:

1. Need and conscience

Identify a need in your community or area of influence. Listen to your conscience to determine where you can make an impact. Cynthia explained: Look around and see what needs to be done. Whether its helping in blighted areas, supporting overloaded schools, or addressing substance abuse, find where you can help.

2. Passion

Align your efforts with your passions. What do you feel passionate about? Is it children, the environment, families in crisis, or refugees?

Your passion will drive you to make meaningful contributions, Cynthia said.

3. Resources and talents

Recognise and use your unique talents and resources. We often underestimate ourselves. My fathers definition of leadership is communicating anothers worth and potential so clearly they see it in themselves. Use your talents to mentor and support others.

4. Resourcefulness and initiative

Take the initiative to make things happen. Every day, decide not to let the old man (or woman) in. Get up and work on expanding your circle of influence.

5. Personal challenges and triumphs

Despite her upbringing and her fathers teachings, Cynthia has faced her own challenges. Raising six children was no easy feat. There were times I had to pick myself up and remember the end goal. My father always said to begin with the end in mind.

Completing the book was another significant challenge. After my father passed away, I felt the weight of finishing this project. It took 10 years.

There were many late nights where I doubted myself. But I kept pushing because I knew how important it was.

6. Living the message

Cynthia and her husband are embodying the books principles during their mission in Northern Ireland. Were trying to live in crescendo by serving our community. Were sharing an important message through our church and looking for ways to serve and bless the people here.

Reflecting on her journey, Cynthia shared a quote by Pablo Picasso that encapsulates the books message: The meaning of life is to find your gift. The purpose of life is to give it away.

7. A lasting impact

Cynthia Covey Hallers dedication to completing her fathers final work ensures that Stephen Coveys message continues to inspire generations. Live Life in Crescendo is a powerful reminder that no matter where we are in life, our most important contributions are always ahead of us.

Write to Gina in care of SundayBusiness@independent.ie
There was a 28pc fall in the number of dwelling houses given planning permission in the first quarter of this year, according to figures published by the Central Statistics Office.

While it is not a definitive indicator of future output  and the number of new homes that will be completed this year is expected to be the highest since 2008  the figure will nevertheless be a source of concern to the Government as it chases an ambitious housing target.

The CSO said that 8,387 dwelling units got planning approval in the first quarter, down from 11,659 in the same period last year.

Houses accounted for just over half of all the permissions given to dwelling units, but the number approved fell by more than 20pc on last year. Apartment approvals were down by over a third.

The decline was seen in the figures for both one-off houses, with permissions down more than 9pc on last year, and multi-development houses, where the annual decline was almost 24pc.

The construction of apartments is still concentrated in Dublin, where planning permission was granted for 2,003 in the first quarter, almost six in ten of all apartments given permission in the State.

However that level of approval was down almost 57pc on the figures for the first quarter of 2023.

Apart from Dublin, the highest number of apartments getting planning permission were in Kildare (324), Cork (169) and Kerry (146). There were no approvals for apartments in Sligo, Roscommon or Leitrim.

The pattern was similar for new houses. Out of the total of 4,899 getting permission in the first quarter, Leitrim at 14 had the lowest proportion, followed by Roscommon (17) and Longford (18).

Commenting on the CSO data, the director of Property Industry Ireland Dr David Duffy said they showed a decline in planning permissions across all home types. The slowdown is particularly driven by a decline in permissions for apartments, highlighting the significant viability and funding challenges to deliver this type of home, he said.

Immediate action on the recommendation of the Housing Commission to support the delivery of enabling infrastructure in advance of housing construction is crucial. The delivery of homes requires supporting infrastructure such as road, waste-water and utilities. It is important that any such barriers to the delivery of new homes are addressed.

The CSO does point out that the number of new dwelling units granted permission can change a lot from quarter to quarter, influenced by the approval of large developments and by the backlog of Strategic Housing Developments applications before An Bord Pleanala.

It therefore advises caution in trying to draw long-term trends from the figure in any single three-month period.

The data shows that of the 6,639 individual applications for permission given approval in Q1, there were 1,643 for new construction dwellings but also 1,929 for other new constructions, 1,916 for extensions, and 1,150 for alterations and conversions.

There was an annual increase of almost 10pc in the number of permissions granted for all developments in the first quarter, due to the increased number of approvals for conversions, extensions, and the construction of commercial, agricultural and state buildings.
In 2020, the Government reduced the Vat rate covering the hospitality sector from 13.5pc to 9pc, and the lower rate remained in place until August 31 last, when it reverted to 13.5pc

Michael McGrath has revealed that the cost to the Exchequer of cutting the Vat rate for food and catering services to 9pc would be 545m.

Earlier this year, then taoiseach Leo Varadkar suggested that splitting the Vat rate, and allowing restaurants to charge just 9pc, was a measure worth examining in order to help the sector.

However, in a written reply to a Dail question, Finance Minister Michael McGrath ruled out any change to the current Vat rate for the hospitality sector and also splitting the Vat rate for restaurants.

Even restricted to food and catering services, the estimated full-year cost is 545m

Mr McGrath told John Lahart, a Fianna Fail colleague representing Dublin South-West, that the cost of a further temporary Vat reduction to 9pc for the entire hospitality sector for a full year is estimated to be 764m.

Even where the measure is restricted to food and catering services, the estimated full-year cost is 545m, said Mr McGrath. I have no plans to reduce the Vat rate for the tourism and hospitality sector.

In November 2020, the Government reduced the Vat rate covering the hospitality sector from 13.5pc to 9pc, and the lower rate remained in place until August 31 last, when it reverted to 13.5pc.

However, against a background of closures in the restaurant sector since January, the Government has faced a chorus of calls from the sector to restore the Vat rate to 9pc.

We will continue to see more closures in the restaurant sector. Its not viable

In his reply to Mr Lahart, Mr McGrath said: It is noteworthy that 14 EU countries have a Vat rate of 12pc or higher on food services. Our nearest neighbour, Great Britain and Northern Ireland, has a Vat rate of 20pc on food services.

In response to Mr McGraths words, CEO of the Restaurants Association of Ireland Adrian Cummins was insistent.

If we want to have a sustainable food-led sector, with restaurants and cafes, the only show in town is the reduction to the 9pc Vat rate. That is the viable rate for the sector, he said

Otherwise we will continue to see more and more closures in the sector  because it is not viable for them at the moment.

Mr Cummins pointed out that Taoiseach Simon Harris had said he was going to prioritise small business and hospitality  but I dont see any support measure that is going to be able to support us.

Instead, he said, everything the Government has done is anti-productive for our industry and puts us at more risk.
The media regulator dropped two proposals in relation to teenagers from a Draft Code for Online Safety, after opposition from Google and a representative group for Big Tech.

Coimisiun na Mean had proposed a ban on under 18s either live-streaming content, or viewing live-streamed content, without parental permission. It also wanted video-sharing platforms (VSPs) to put in place parental controls on teenagers use of their services until the age of 18.

Both ideas were dropped from the code that the regulator recently sent to the European Commission after they were opposed by Big Tech. The new proposal is that parental control systems should apply only to under 16s, and the live-streaming restriction is no longer being suggested.

Once finalised, the online safety rules will be binding on video-sharing platforms with their EU headquarters in Ireland.

The idea that parents should control their childrens viewing until the age of 18 faced a particular pushback from video-sharing platforms in submissions they made during a period of public consultation about the draft code.

Google said it was deeply concerned about the proposed interference with 16- and 17-year-olds right to privacy and freedom of expression. It said parental controls should stop at 16.

Several companies pointed out that the age of digital consent ranged from 13 to 16 across the EU, so the regulators proposal could be a disproportionate interference with a 16- or 17-year-olds rights.

Technology Ireland, which represents several Big Tech outfits including Meta, said: Children above the age of digital consent have a right to privacy, including from their own parents, particularly as they explore their interests and identity in the digital world.

In its submission, TikTok said the proposal might be disproportionate from a privacy perspective, as it implies that the caregiver should have access to, and be able to exercise control over, content that the minor posts or perhaps even records.

There was particular opposition to the proposed ban on under 18s uploading or viewing live-streamed content unless allowed to do so by their parents.

Google pointed out that video-sharing platforms under the jurisdiction of other EU states would not have to comply.

Not only does such an approach fragment the internal market, we are concerned that it would leave parents/guardians in a confusing position  for example, some may assume their child will not be able to live-stream on a particular [platform], whereas such restrictions may not apply due to the [platform] not being under the jurisdiction of Ireland, it said.

Google also pointed to research findings that increased parental oversight can lead to a loss of independence and sense of responsibility for teenagers, leaving them unprepared for adulthood. It cited one study that found teens under parental surveillance are more secretive and less likely to ask for help.

LGBTQ+ advocates have long stressed that increased parental surveillance can do more harm than good for vulnerable teens mental health and safety, it added.

Google, which owns YouTube, also opposed the blanket ban on children viewing live-streams, regardless of their content.

Rather, VSPs should be required to put in place appropriate measures to effectively protect minors from content which is unsuitable for children during live-streams or indeed any other audiovisual content, as is YouTubes current practice, it said.

In a response to the consultation posted on its website, Coimisiun na Mean acknowledges the responses in relation to live-streaming and says it now considers the issue is addressed in the codes section on video content.
The Apple Watch Cellular edition, which allows a user to call, stream, text and otherwise stay connected online without having a phone nearby, has launched in Ireland.

It is being offered solely with Vodafone through its OneNumber plan, which costs 5 per month extra on some of the operators more expensive 24-month bill pay plans. It is currently being offered with a three-month free trial.

The service works with any Apple Watch Cellular edition from the Series 4 model up, using at least WatchOS 10.5 and with an iPhone that uses at least iOS 17.5. The current Apple Watch is the Series 9.

The Watch Cellular editions cost more to buy than the GPS editions, but are popular in other countries with runners and outdoor activists who want connectivity or music and podcasts on-the-go without having to carry a phone.

The technology underpinning the service is eSims, which was provided for by the telecoms regulator in 2021.

There is no indication that other Irish mobile operators will offer Apple Watch Cellular support in the near future.

As the first operator to launch OneNumber cellular watch connectivity for Apple Watch in Ireland, we are delighted to give customers the freedom and security of staying connected wherever they go, said Amanda Nelson, CEO at Vodafone Ireland.

Vodafone launched the cellular service with Samsung Watches last year.

The move comes after a slew of updates to the Apple Watch through WatchOS 11, announced this week. These include health updates, Apple Fitness+ upgrades, menstrual cycle tracking improvements and more customisation.
The regulator says that fines of up to 4pc of global turnover may apply for organsiations that do not comply

Irelands powerful online regulator, Coimisiun na Mean, says it has clarified rules on how it will police terrorist content on social media platforms and cloud services here.

The agency says that platforms and providers will have to prove to the regulator that they have taken sufficiently strong measures to tackle terrorist content, including amendment to the services terms and conditions.

If they dont, the regulator says, it can fine them up to 4pc of global turnover.

Coimisiun na Mean outlined some of the steps and conditions involved as part of its widening online safety framework, which includes enforcement of the EU Terrorist Content Online Regulation and the Digital Services Act.

The regulator added that under Irish law, its role will be backed up by An Garda Siochana, which will issue removal orders for terrorist content.

Coimisiun na Mean is responsible for making digital services headquartered in Ireland accountable for how they protect people from harm online, said Online Safety Commissioner, Niamh Hornet.

Terrorist content is among the most dangerous categories of online content addressed by our Online Safety Framework. An Coimisiun will use every measure available under our Online Safety Framework to protect users from terrorist content online.

In November, the EU launched an investigation into Elon Musks social media platform, X, over suspected breaches of obligations on protecting users from terrorist information, partly relating to posts following Hamas' attacks on Israel. The move was initiated under the Digital Services Act.
The Challenger shuttle disaster: How Nasas top minds failed its crew

Adam Higginbothams new book examines the simple cause of the 1986 tragedy, and how it was just the symptom of a game of Russian roulette at the space agency

Challenger crew (from left): Christa McAuliffe, Gregory Jarvis, Judy Resnik, Dick Scobee, Ron McNair, Mike Smith and Ellison Onizuka

Andrew Lynch Thu 13 Jun 2024 at 03:30







On July 31, 1985, Irish-American woman Christa McAuliffe was a guest on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson. The 36-year-old Bostonian had recently become an instant celebrity, selected by Nasa ahead of more than 11,000 other applicants to become the first schoolteacher in space.
Meet the Forty Footers: I was low, struggling with my sober reality, and one of the swimmers suggested I try taking the plunge myself

Photographer Barry Delaney took his first dip at the Forty Foot in 2005 but it soon became a daily healing ritual. In his new book, he shares 30 of his favourite pictures from 18 years of swimming at the iconic Dublin bathing spot

Barry Delaney, picture by Abe Neihum

Barry Delaney Thu 13 Jun 2024 at 03:30

On a cold winter afternoon back in 2005, I met an old friend for coffee in Dun Laoghaire, and when we finished up, he told me he was going for a swim down at the Forty Foot. I was shocked anyone would swim on such a Baltic February day, but I decided to accompany him. I was newly sober and had got back into photography and wanted to test out my new Olympus camera on this secret community of winter swimmers.
Two-time Oscar winner (64) discussed sex claims in interview with Piers Morgan on YouTube

Kevin Spacey has described himself as pushing the boundaries and being too handsy in the past in an interview with Piers Morgan.

The two-times Oscar winner won a US civil lawsuit after being accused of an unwanted sexual advance at a party in 1986, and was acquitted last year at Londons Southwark Crown Court after being accused of sexually assaulting four men between 2001 and 2013.

He has always denied any criminal wrongdoing and misconduct allegations.

But Spacey (64), known for the Netflix series House of Cards along with films including American Beauty, admitted in the interview on YouTube channel Piers Morgan Uncensored that he had been pushing the boundaries.

When asked how, he said: Being too handsy, touching someone sexually in a way that I didnt know at the time they didnt want.

I have caressed people, I have been gentle with people, that is the way that I am. Youre making a pass at someone, you dont want to be aggressive. You want to be gentle. You want to see if theyre going to respond positively.

They should let you know they dont want to do it so that you can understand its non-consensual and stop.

The actor also denied fresh claims of inappropriate behaviour that were aired in a Channel 4 documentary titled Spacey Unmasked, which he criticised.

A spokesperson for Channel 4 previously said: Spacey Unmasked is an important film exploring the balance of power and inappropriate behaviour in a work environment, aiming to give a voice to those who have previously been unable to speak out.

In 2022, Spacey was sued at the High Court in London by a man who claimed he had been sexually assaulted by the actor and suffered psychiatric damage.

The case was paused during his criminal trial, but has since restarted following a hearing last month. Celebrities including Liam Neeson, Sharon Stone and Stephen Fry have been campaigning for his return to acting.

I cant pay the bills I owe. A couple of times when I thought I was going to file for bankruptcy, but weve managed to sort of dodge it

Spaceys two Academy Awards were for Best Supporting Actor for The Usual Suspects in 1996 and Best Actor in 2000 for American Beauty, which also secured him a Bafta for Best Leading Actor.

During the interview with Morgan, Spacey also revealed his home is being sold at auction to settle legal bills following the allegations of sexual misconduct made against him.

He was asked about how he is living at the moment.

He replied: This week, where I have been living in Baltimore is being foreclosed on, my house is being sold at auction.

So I have to go back to Baltimore and put all my things in storage. So the answer to that question is Im not quite sure where Im going to live now, but Ive been in Baltimore since we started shooting House of Cards there. I moved there in 2012.

When asked why, he replied: I cant pay the bills that I owe. A couple of times when I thought I was going to file for bankruptcy, but weve managed to sort of dodge it, at least as of today.

Spacey said he owed many millions of dollars due to legal bills, and seemed emotional at several points during the lengthy interview, which was conducted in person.

He was sacked from Netflixs House of Cards when the 2017 allegations emerged during the shows sixth season.

He was later edited out of the movie All The Money In The World and replaced by Christopher Plummer, who had to reshoot scenes at the last minute.
Irish News

Northern Lights seen across parts of Ireland again last night  but why is the visual treat occurring so often lately?
Native Americans had sent money to help Irish people during the Famine

They say what goes around comes around, and a kind-hearted gesture from the Native American Choctaw community, who sent $170 to Ireland during the Famine, has been reciprocated once more in a gesture that has led to a transatlantic TikTok search for a hero.

The hero in this story is Dublin tour guide Mark O Coighligh, who is as mad about history as he is about the Irish language.

One simple gesture he made last week sent ripples over to America and back, and nearly 180 years after the Famine, the special link between the Choctaw people and the Irish is being celebrated again.

Arkansas woman Jasmin Lyon (37) went on TikTok to tell the story of how her mother, sister and niece are in Ireland, and while on a tour bus they listened with interest as their guide explained the special relationship between the Choctaw people and Ireland.

On hearing of the plight of the Irish during the Famine, and having suffered famine themselves in the past, the Choctaw scraped together $170 (the equivalent of around 6,000 today) and sent it here in 1847.

It was a gesture that created a lasting bond. Mr O Coighligh did not know that some people connected to the Choctaw people were on the tour bus.

We in Ireland have never forgotten this gesture of kindness and generosity, and we hold the Choctaw nation in very high respect and regard, he told the tourists, later explaining how a statue of nine feathers in the shape of a bowl had been erected in Midleton, Co Cork, to honour that gesture.

Kindred Spirits Choctaw monument in Midleton, Co Cork. Photo: Failte Ireland

In her video, Jasmin explained that she and her late father are Chickasaw and Choctaw descendants, and her mother told Mark this on the tour bus.

On hearing this, he gave Jasmins mother his Fainne pin, which is worn by Irish-speakers and which he had on his jacket.

He wanted to give me a gift, someone from across the pond who he has never met, just because he respects Choctaw people and what they did for Ireland, Jasmin said on her video, before adding: Go raibh maith agat.

In another video, Jasmin asked whether any followers in Dublin could help her track down the then mystery tour guide so she could give a gift to him. All she had to go on at the time was that the tour company was Finn McCools Tours and the guide went by the name of Quiggs.

Choctaw descendant Jasmin Lyon, who posted the video to TikTok.

The Irish Independent tracked Mark down on his day off and he said he was surprised to learn his simple gesture had had such a deep effect.

I do have a sense of history and the magnitude of that particular story of famine, and when Im doing tours I like to give the human side of it, not just the dates and facts, he said.

History is often presented to us as this large, massive abstract thing from big dusty tomes, but its really just human beings interacting with one another, and more often than not its the small gestures in it that prove its not cold and unrelatable.

When people are on holidays here, they like to hear stories about history, so I try to give it a human element, and what the Choctaw people did is a real example of that.

I had no idea that there were people on the tour who were related to Choctaws, and it had always been my intention to give my Fainne to one if I met one, and here was my opportunity.

It was cool to see Jasmins video. My message really is to be kind to each other. You dont have to be connected to someone to make a difference, and that can have a ripple effect.

Mark was also impressed with Jasmins Go raibh maith agat and said the Irish language was something very important to him.

Its something that has been part of my identity and the quintessence of my soul. Im a custodian of it and I adore speaking it, he said, adding that he would like to see more Irish-speakers wearing their Fainne to encourage more people to converse in the language.

Jasmin now has Marks details and he is looking forward to hearing from her. Her grandmother was Choctaw-born. She is not an enrolled Choctaw herself, but she is organising with some enrolled Choctaws to pick a suitable return gift for Mark.
Ireland South MEPS elected: Sean Kelly (FG), Billy Kelleher (FF), Michael McNamara (IND), Kathleen Funchion (SF) and Cynthia Ni Mhurchu (FF) Midlands-Northwest MEPS elected: Luke Ming Flanagan (IND), Barry Cowen (FF), Maria Walsh (FG), Nina Carberry (FG), Ciaran Mullooly (Ind Ireland)Dublin MEPS elected: Barry Andrews (FF), Regina Doherty (FG), Lynn Boylan (SF) and Aodhan O Riordain (LAB)Outgoing MEP Mick Wallace loses his seat in Ireland South on Thursday evening

MEP Billy Kelleher chats to a garda as he arrives at Nemo Rangers GAA club in Cork for the latest count in the Ireland South constituency, where he is likely to be re-elected. Photo: Jonathan Brady/PA

Minister Eamon Ryan (left), Taoiseach Simon Harris (centre) and Tanaiste Micheal Martin have all played down the prospect of an early general election (Damien Storan/PA)

Candidate Luke Ming Flanagan is still in the lead (Niall Carson/PA)

Taoiseach Simon Harris with Nina Carberry and Maria Walsh at TF Royal Theatre in Castlebar (Conor McKeown/PA)

A days-long marathon election count has ended with the election of three MEPs in the final region to declare.

Fianna Fail has doubled its presence in the European parliament, with Fine Gael on four seats  down one from its previous showing in 2019.

Sinn Fein has increased its European representation from one to two, while Labour holds one seat, the Independent Ireland party claimed one and two non-party aligned independents fill the remainder.

In the early hours of Friday morning, the constituency of Midlands-Northwest elected Fine Gaels Nina Carberry and Maria Walsh as well as Independent Ireland candidate and former RTE correspondent Ciaran Mullooly.

It followed shortly after the election of Fianna Fails Barry Cowen, while left-wing independent Luke Ming Flanagan was the first candidate over the line in the constituency on Thursday.

It was the last constituency to declare in the European Parliament elections.

Ireland South elected Fine Gaels Sean Kelly, independent Michael McNamara, Sinn Feins Kathleen Funchion as well as Fianna Fails Billy Kelleher and Cynthia Ni Mhurchu.

Cynthia Ni Mhurchu celebrates being elected to the Ireland South Constituency

Dublins electorate selected Fianna Fails Barry Andrews, Sinn Feins Lynn Boylan, Fine Gaels Regina Doherty and Labours Aodhan O Riordain.

Five MEPs have lost their seats throughout the entire process: Sinn Feins Chris MacManus, Greens Grace OSullivan and Ciaran Cuffe as well as independents Mick Wallace and Clare Daly.

Voters headed to the polls last Friday to pick 949 local councillors, 14 MEPs and the countrys first directly elected mayor.

Results from the three elections have been seen as a political boon for coalition partners Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, while the largest opposition party, Sinn Fein, has initiated a review after performing well below its own expectations.

Fianna Fail has emerged as the largest party in local government after all seats in Irelands local election were filled.

In the local elections, both main Government parties attracted around 23pc of first preference votes, representing a slight drop on their 2019 result.

Fianna Fail had 248 seats on councils, with Fine Gael close behind on 245. Sinn Fein was on 102 while 186 seats were held by independents.

Sinn Fein has increased it share of councillors, but party leader Mary Lou McDonald has admitted the result fell below their expectations.

The popular vote of 12pc is a dramatic turnaround in fortunes for the main opposition party which emerged from the 2020 general election on 24.5pc.

Meanwhile, the Labour party is down one to 56 councillors, the Green Partys support fell to 26 council seats while the Social Democrats share rose to 35.

The number of Independent councillors has also increased.

Fianna Fail will be tied with Fine Gael in terms of political representation at the European Parliament, despite the latter ending the elections with one fewer seat.

Sinn Fein has also increased its share of MEPs, and is hopeful for an additional seat through Ms Gildernew.

The results have fuelled speculation that the Government may look to call a general election earlier than the current projected timeline of spring 2025.

However, the leaders of all three coalition parties, Mr Harris, Mr Martin and Green Party leader Eamon Ryan, have all insisted they remain committed to the government going full term.

For her part, Sinn Fein leader Ms McDonald, who is facing questions over her stewardship of the party, has struck a defiant tone, urging Mr Harris to bring it on and call an early election.

With the election of TDs to the European Parliament, there will be a need for several by-elections in the coming six months.

That has added to speculation that the Government may seek an earlier general election, rather than fighting several potential by-elections only months before the Dail is dissolved.

Midlands-Northwest

The five-days-long Midlands-Northwest count at TF Royal Hotel in Castlebar came to an end in the early hours of Friday morning.

The final three seats of Midlands-Northwest constituency have been filled by Fine Gaels Maria Walsh, Nina Carberry and Independent Ireland candidate Ciaran Mullooly after the 21st count.

The exciting five days count saw a long of wait for the first election which concluded on Thursday with independent candidate Luke Ming Flanagan topping the poll in 19th count results while Barry Cowen (FF) got elected in the 20th count becoming the second candidate to pass the quota.

A further redistribution of Luke Ming flanagans surplus votes decided the fates of remaining four candidates, three of whom were elected while Sinn Feins Michelle Gildernew had to be eliminated.

The last three candidates were elected without reaching the quota with Maria Walsh (FG) having 100781 votes, Nina Carberry (FG) having 98872 votes and Ciaran Mullooly (II) having 88177 votes.

Sinn Feins Michelle Gildernew and Chris MacManus call for an early general election

Champion Jockey and businesswoman Nina Carberry has secured the second seat for Fine Gael in the constituency and will join party colleague Maria Walsh in the European Parliament.

In her address to the audience present at count centre Nina thanked her voters and supporters for the faith they have showed in her.

She said: Many people think I dont have anything to give, but thats not true. I have a lot to do and I am ready for my work in Europe.

I am looking forward to working with Maria and I think we will make a great team to deliver for the constituency.

Independent Ireland candidate Ciaran Mullooly said he will have a specific focus on regeneration of rural Ireland.

He said: The farming and rural issues are very high on my agenda. We have a huge decline in population across the country in towns and villages. We have issues there and we need to focus on them.

I will also be focusing on improving the livelihood of people both in urban and rural areas across Ireland.

The results of Midlands Northwest constituency remained disappointing for Sinn Fein as the outgoing MEP Chris MacManus lost his seat. The second candidate Michelle Gallagher remained a big challenge for Ciaran Mullooly but she lost the run in the last count.

Taoiseach Simon Harris arrived at TF Royal Hotel in the last hours of count to meet Fine Gaels Nina Carberry and Maria Walsh.

Speaking to the media he expressed excitement at the incredible results in local elections of Mayo county council and the European elections.

He called it absolute nonsense that the two Fine Gael MEP candidates are being described as celebrity candidates by many people.

He said: Nina Carberry is not a celebrity; she is a champion. Using a little less pejorative language would be useful, when you have so many award-winning people who run businesses or who write books, joining an experienced MEP.

This is an incredible ticket of two female MEPs being elected in Midlands Northwest and I am extremely proud of them. I think the people of Midlands Northwest are also proud of them and thats why they exceeded all expectations of all pandits who yet again got it wrong in predicting what people of this constituency would do.

Ireland South

In Ireland South, the final three seats were filled on Thursday afternoon as Michael McNamara (IND), Kathleen Funchion (SF) and Cynthia Ni Mhurchu (FF) were elected as MEPs. Sitting MEP Mick Wallace lost his seat.

Counting in Ireland South ended after a gruelling five days which saw Sean Kelly (FG) top the poll in the first count while Billy Kelleher (Fianna Fail) had to wait until count 18 to be the second candidate to pass the quota.

Upon the redistribution of Grace OSullivans votes, Ni Mhurchu confirmed her lead over Wallace, who lost his seat in the European Parliament.

McNamara, Funchion and Ni Mhurchu were elected without reaching the quota.

Mary Lou McDonald celebrates with Kathleen Funchion after being elected as an MEP for the Ireland South constituency

Former RTE broadcaster Cynthia Ni Mhurchu secured a second seat for Fianna Fail and will join running mate Billy Kelleher in Brussels for the next five years.

The barrister and mediator, who hosted the Eurovision Song Contest alongside the late Gerry Ryan in 1994, said she plans to have the celebration of all celebrations for her 58th birthday tomorrow.

It is magnificent. I am going to celebrate like there is no tomorrow. The celebrations wont last a day. They will last many many days.

Ms Ni Mhurchu said that she has enjoyed every minute of meeting with would be voters over the last few months.

I have relished every day of the campaign meeting people. I am a people person. The campaign was run in a very organised way but also in a very human way. We did get a chance to engage with people, to meet with groups, to meet with politicians, councillors and families and to go in to schools. It was a very positive campaign.

Her priorities going forward include protecting rural communities, encompassing farmers and business people.

Dublin

Finally, the Dublin counts concluded on Tuesday afternoon with Fianna Fails Barry Andrews, Fine Gaels Regina Doherty, Sinn Feins Lynn Boylan and Labours Aodhan O Riordain all elected as MEPs for the Dublin constituency.

All four confirmed their places in the European Parliament after they were the only candidates left remaining in the field after the 19th and final count at the RDS centre in Dublin.

Independent Ireland candidate Niall Boylan was the last to be eliminated from the closely fought contest.
Fresh headache for DUP as Jeffrey Donaldson to appear in court the day before UK election

Headache for DUP as images of former leader set to dominate final hours of General Election campaign

Jeffrey Donaldson after his last court appearance. Image: Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph

Allison Morris Thu 13 Jun 2024 at 09:00

Jeffrey Donaldson will return to court on July 3, handing the DUP a headache on the eve of the General Election.
RTEs southern editor Paschal Sheehy was delighted after being handed sandwiches live on air during a broadcast from Ireland Souths election count centre.

The Kerry native was covering the European Parliament count from Nemo Rangers GAA Club, broadcasting live on the One OClock News.

"Can I just say, Billy Kellehers team has just arrived here with a tray of sandwiches, he told newsreader Eileen Whelan.

The veteran reporter added that there is probably more interest in the distribution of those sandwiches at this stage than the distribution of John Mullins votes.

"My presence on this plinth is a source of some mirth for some people here because I am being kept away from these sandwiches.

"Ill leave it at that for now, well see how I get on, he added.

However, after cameras returned to Ms Whelan in studio, who wished him the best of luck, Mr Sheehy can be seen on the video link being handed a plate of sandwiches, updating live on air: I have scored, Eileen.

To which she replies: Well done, Paschal, congratulations.

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Updating followers on his X account later, Mr Sheehy posted a picture of him receiving the sandwiches from the Fianna Fail team.

"Declaration of interest here at #IrelandSouth, he wrote.

Following the broadcast, Mr Kelleher was re-elected as an MEP, becoming Ireland's sixth confirmed European parliamentarian.

Mr Kelleher celebrated with his staff and party leader Micheal Martin at the GAA club after the 18th count.
Outgoing Irish MEPs will get over 400,000 in goodbye money over the next number of months as replacements are elected in the coming days.

Each MEP who has served five years in the EU Parliament receives a transitional allowance per month for five months which adds up to 51,887 before tax.

MEPs who have served two terms in the Parliament - such as Fine Gaels outgoing MEP Deirdre Clune, who was first elected in 2014 - will be paid up to 103,774 over the next year.

Sinn Feins Chris MacManus, who is set to lose his seat in Midlands-North West, will get a slightly lower allowance of 41,509 because he served four full years in the Parliament after taking over Matt Carthys seat.

Currently, outgoing MEPs include Fine Gaels Deirdre Clune, Colm Markey and Frances Fitzgerald; Green Partys Ciaran Cuffe and Independents 4 Change Clare Daly.

The Irish Independent has also included Mr MacManus as well as Green Partys Grace OSullivan so-called parachute payments in calculations as the two are anticipated to lose their seats in the coming days.

This brings the total paid out in the next number of months to the newly unseated MEPs to just over 415,000.

However, this figure could rise as other incumbents lose their seats in the coming days as counts in Midlands-North West and Ireland South continue.

In Dublin, Ms Daly and Mr Cuffe lost their seats as incumbent Barry Andrews was elected, as well as new MEPs Regina Doherty, Aodhan O Riordain. Sinn Feins Lynn Boylan, is returning after losing her EU seat in 2019.

Incumbent Sean Kelly will also be returning to Brussels and Strasbourg, representing Ireland South since 2009.

At the end of their term in office, MEPs are entitled to a transitional allowance, equivalent to one months salary per year they were in office for up to two years maximum, said a spokesperson for the European Parliament.

When a former MEP takes office elsewhere, the new salary offsets against the transitional allowance.

If the MEP is simultaneously entitled to an old age or invalidity pension, they cannot receive both and must choose one or the other.

The allowance is paid to all MEPs who have served for over a year, regardless of whether they lose their seat or step down.

The monthly pre-tax salary of MEPs is 10,377.43 before tax as of January 1 this year.

After EU tax and insurance contributions, the net salary is 8,089.63 per month.

However, MEPs may also pay Irish taxes on top of that.

Former MEPs are also paid a pension when they turn 63 years of age.

This is the same as 3.5pc of their salary for each full year in office and one twelfth of the salary for each further full month. It cannot exceed more than 70pc of their salary in total and is paid out by the EU budget.

All MEPs are paid the same salary and this is set in the Statute of the Members at 38.5pc of the basic salary of a judge at the Court of Justice of the European Union, which has been in play since 2009.
Homeowners affected by the mica scandal will be able to avail of retrofit grants of up to 37,000 when they rebuild under a new scheme approved by Cabinet.

Currently, grant assistance is offered on a once-only basis and homeowners can not make repeat applications for the same grant.

They are also precluded from retrospectively applying for grants for retrofit works already under way.

Environment Minister Eamon Ryan asked Cabinet this week to approve an exception to the rules for mica-affected homes.

He told ministers that the rules created an anomaly where homeowners, who previously used grants to upgrade houses subsequently damaged by the defective concrete blocks, would not be helped renovate or rebuild to a similar energy efficiency standard.

Around 200 affected homeowners had contacted the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland (SEAI), which administers the grants, to see if eligibility criteria could be relaxed for them.

Today's News in 90 seconds - 13th June 2024

We have listened to homeowners in the region and heard the particular challenges they faced in accessing the SEAI grants, Mr Ryan said.

The Government wants to ensure that every household has the opportunity to take advantage of the green transition and benefit from homes that are warmer, healthier and more comfortable with lower energy bills and emissions.

"That is why I am introducing the changes announced today.

Grants on offer include assistance for works such as installation of solar panels, internal and external insulation, heat pumps and heating controls.

Affected homeowners can apply for individual grants under the Better Energy Homes Scheme or a full suite of works under the One-Stop-Shop scheme.

Total grant aid is capped at 37,550 and it does not affect the rebuilding grants of up to 420,000 already announced by the Department of Housing.

Homeowners in shared neighbourhoods can seek collective support under the Community Energy Grant Scheme.

The SEAI has already been in contact with homeowners who made previous enquiries and is to roll out an information campaign for the wider group which is believed to number as many as 5000-6000 across several counties.

Mr Ryan said he had also asked the SEAI to work with local community and industry groups to encourage more contractors to get involved in the grant schemes.

Contractors and proposed works must be SEAI-approved for homeowners to avail of grants and a shortage of tradespeople in some areas is creating delays.
Cannabis is not a soft drug because there is no such thing, according to a member of the Citizens Assembly on Drugs.

Ceire Moynihan told TDs and Senators at the very first meeting of the Oireachtas Committee on Drug Use that a recommendation from the committee to legalise cannabis would have not resolved issues in society.

The assembly decided not to recommend cannabis be legalised by a single vote and instead said all drugs should be decriminalised.

It is the one issue that is quite divisive, emotive, people are on either side of the spectrum there is no middle ground on it, Ms Moynihan said.

She said people were either one way or the other in roundtable discussions.

There are other issues on the table that are extremely important, not saying that this isnt extremely important but its not going to resolve the matters in our society whether cannabis is legalised or not and I think that was the view around the table, she told Fianna Fail TD Paul McAulliffe.

Today's News in 90 seconds - 13th June 2024

In a strong contribution to the meeting, Ms Moynihan said she wanted to see preventive solutions put in place and for recreational drug users to recognise they are a part of the problem.

If youre going out on a Saturday night and youre reaching for a pill or a bag of cocaine we need to get the message out that you need to think of that seven year old in a marginalised society with no parental support

Youre part of the problem here, were all part of the problem but were all part of the solution.

Ms Moynihan said drugs affect every part of society

She told Independent TD Matt Shanahan, who said some people believe cannabis is a soft drug, that it wasnt.

It is exactly that type of behavioural norm we are trying to get away from. There is no such thing as a soft drug. Every drug is harmful because it is harming people down the ladder, she said.

She said seven year old children are being groomed by criminal gangs to distribute drugs.

Mr McAulliffe said the outcomes from the assembly were very narrow and asked how legislators should treat the issue of legalisation of cannabis.

Chair Paul Reid said the assembly believes the solution to all drugs - including cannabis - is in the report.

The assembly recommended decriminalisation of drugs.

Mr Reid said the issue was contentious in the debates held by the assembly.

There was understandable angst by some members who really wanted to see that approach adopted and others who felt we took the right approach, Mr Reid said.

The chair of the assembly several times called on the Government to act quickly in implementing drug reform.

Since 2017, we have wasted seven years when a small approach was agreed on the strategy to move a small way forward in terms of a health led approach.

That was in the Programme for Government in 2019, its 2024, its gone nowhere, he said.

The former HSE CEO said a Cabinet Committee on Drugs should be set up chaired by the Taoiseach.

Mr Reid said hes worked on two Cabinet Committees previously and said they work.
The Government has already started the investigation into the alleged serious animal welfare abuse uncovered in the treatment of horses sent for slaughter at Ireland's only licensed equine abattoir in Kildare, Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue has said.

Using hidden cameras, RTE Investigates filmed the activity in a lairage used by Shannonside Foods in Straffan, Co, Kildare, where the company keeps horses before they are brought to the kill room.

Shannonside Foods told RTE that any allegation of an equine being mistreated "will be fully prosecuted".

The recordings show horses being repeatedly hit, whipped, punched around the head, and struck with long lengths of plastic piping.

One horse was seen falling and being too weak to stand to be later prodded with a pitchfork. It died after hours of struggling and was seen dragged out of the shed the next day.

Those responsible for the "abhorrent" treatment of horses will face the "full rigours of the law", the agriculture minister said.

Charlie McConalogue said the scenes of the mistreatment of horses were "abhorrent and distressing".

Horse Racing Ireland said it will "actively support" the Department of Agriculture and Garda investigations, and urged anyone with information about mistreatment of horses to report it to gardai.

"The scenes we saw last night and the treatment of those horses was abhorrent and distressing. Horses are beautiful, sensitive animals and that was absolutely unacceptable," Mr McConalogue said.

"It's certainly not representative of the way that people across this country and those in the industry treat and care for their horses. We already have commenced an investigation in the Department of Agriculture.

"We've also requested all of the footage that RTE has, and any other evidence as well to make it available to the investigation team.

"Obviously, I would avoid saying anything that might be prejudicial to the conduct of that investigation. But I can assure you and I can assure the public that this will be fully investigated, and that the full rigour of the law will be applied here.

"The law is adequate but what we saw last night was not lawful, and it was breaches of the law."

The Fianna Fail minister said there are strict laws in place around the management of what enters the human food chain.

He said that no stone will be left unturned in the investigation.

He said that the traceability of horses has been "significantly improved" over the last 10 years.

"The system in place at European level is an evolving process and we've done a lot here in Ireland over the last 10 years," he added.

Asked whether he can ensure that no horses are being beaten today, the minister said: "You can never be sure that somebody is not mistreating in any avenue of life, but what we have in place is very strict laws and very strict penalties in relation to that.

"What I'm also very sure of is right across our equine industry, that people and everyone involved in that industry are massively respectful and provide tremendous care to the horses - but you can have incidents where people mistreat and break that law.

"Certainly the incidents we saw last night speak to that and the full rigours of the law now will be brought to bear in relation to the evidence that has been brought to this."

It was revealed that two-thirds of those horses were thoroughbred racehorses who raced over 3,000 times, earning their owners more than 1.5 million on Irish and European tracks.

Minister McConalogue had told the Irish Independent in a statement that the Government has already started the investigation.

The investigation shows how some horses are slaughtered while others are traded in deals in the equine industry and the abuse they can suffer after they leave the spotlight.

This year, the racing industry received 76m in State support while thousands of horses are bred each year to sustain it.

Due to concerns for the welfare and the treatment of horses by some associated with the Shannonside Foods Ltd slaughterhouse, RTE monitored activity in the lairage shed where Department of Agriculture inspectors don't have a remit to regulate or inspect.

This shed is where horses are held and screened in the days leading up to their slaughter.

Photo: RTE Investigates.

The Department of Agriculture told RTE the lairage is not part of the approved premises over their jurisdiction but "evidence of illegal activity" "will be appropriately investigated".

The second part of RTE Investigates: Horses - Making a Killing airs tonight at 9.35pm on Prime Time on RTE One. Its also available on RTE Player.

John Osborne, director of equine welfare and bloodstock with Horse Racing Ireland who looks after the thoroughbred sector, described the abuse shown on the programme as abhorrent and disgusting.

I have been a vet for over 30 years. My dad, my wife, and my sister were a vet, that's 150 years of horse care. And in all those years, I haven't heard or seen anything quite like it, he told RTEs Morning Ireland.

"It was not in any way reflective of my lived experience around the horses all those years. It was shocking to watch.
Our mother and daughter trip to Madrid - the best of food, art and shopping in 48 hours
When Joe Biden introduced the three-phase peace plan for Israel and Palestine many people will have felt hope. Hope that such a rational plan with American backing would put an end to the war in Gaza. A six-week ceasefire, followed by a permanent ceasefire, withdrawal of the Israeli army, exchanges of Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners and after that, a major reconstruction effort: it would seem that all bases are covered.

Unfortunately, the rumblings within the Israeli cabinet suggest that there is significant opposition. In a way, the comprehensive focus of the plan is both its strength and its weakness. While giving hope, there is too much that the main players feel seriously conflicted about.

People involved in resolving a conflict need to resolve the conflict within. Psychologically it is easier to follow the inner voices of hate and seek revenge than to sit down together and go through the painful struggle to find out that the enemy is in fact another human being with the right to be treated as such. At the moment, this is probably what the Israeli government is struggling with most. They have committed themselves to destroying Hamas. Making peace now seems inconsistent with that idea. If Benjamin Netanyahus cabinet finds a way around this, there is hope.

When I worked for the Glencree Centre for Peace and Reconciliation in 1999, delegations from Israel and Palestine were visiting to engage in informal dialogue. Anecdotally one of the delegates had said: If you cant resolve the issues in Northern Ireland, there is no hope for us. Considering the progress in Northern Ireland there is perhaps a glimmer of hope. So, what have we learned from the Troubles that might give them hope?

In the first place, a peace process cannot take place when the raw impact of the violence is still hurting everyone. In short, time will need to pass in which there is relative peace and voices advocating solutions are allowed to enter the debate.

A ceasefire is essential to achieve this and for hope to spread. In Northern Ireland, people I met used to say: We cant and will never go back to the violence. This realisation was fuelled by the relief they experienced when the violence stopped. We will see in the coming weeks whether Bidens three-phased plan will be too much too soon, but if it succeeds in maintaining a ceasefire, an essential step forward will have been made.

Secondly, the destruction and number of deaths to be mourned in Gaza is far greater than in Northern Ireland. Many Palestinians have lost everything. They will be calling for justice and if this is not forthcoming  and lets be honest where should it come from?  the call for revenge could inspire a new generation of young Palestinians in the same way the IRA support grew after Bloody Sunday.

Considering that those who have lost loved ones will find it hardest to resolve their inner conflict to work towards peace, a massive international effort to help and appease them is needed to avert perpetual war. Bidens plan includes rebuilding, but the sooner it starts, the better.

Finally, one would like the parties in the Middle East to understand the doomsday scenario that continuation of the conflict may set in motion. At present, neither the Israelis nor Hamas seem to care if they set the whole world on fire. Psychologically this is rooted in the sense that both parties feel the world does not care about them, so why should they care about the world?

This sentiment is justified by a Jewish history of persecution and the Holocaust, and the treatment of Palestinians in refugee camps across the region. For the international community to come together and show persisting care for the resolution of the conflict will give hope to us all. This is what the Irish and British government did, and yes, in Northern Ireland, US support was also essential.

In short, there is hope. The peace plan that is on the table is perhaps overly ambitious right now. However, a ceasefire will allow those in leadership positions to sort out their inner conflict about ending the violence, so behind the scenes peace efforts can proceed, and normality can start to give everyone hope. Just like in Northern Ireland.

Jan De Vries is a psychologist from the School of Nursing and Midwifery, TCD
US secretary of state Antony Blinken is once again in the Middle East looking to push for peace. Photo: Reuters

The Byzantine complexities of the Middle East conflict are accepted, but most by now recognise that without a just solution to the Palestinian issue, there is no prospect of stability in the region.

So it will be fervently hoped that the UN Security Councils passing of a US resolution backing president Joe Bidens Gaza ceasefire plan marks the beginning of a constructive engagement to silence the guns and end the carnage.

Hundreds of billions of dollars have been poured into defence and offence in the area. But perversely, as the deaths mounted, the urgency of opening up a front to pursue a permanent end to hostilities appeared to have become ever more lost in the deepening fog of war. So Washingtons initiative to increase pressure on Israel and Hamas to end the fighting must be the turning point the people of the region desperately deserve.

Objectives that negate terrorism, end the mass destruction and desolation, and embrace a two-state solution have to be hammered out.

Each delay brings new horrors. The UN human rights office has announced it is profoundly shocked at the impact on civilians of the Israeli operation to rescue hostages held by Hamas. The action seriously calls into question whether the principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution were respected and could amount to war crimes, it said.

Palestinian health officials claim hundreds of people were killed in the densely populated Nuseirat refugee camp on Saturday. Israels military said fewer than 100 were killed. It cannot be disputed that too many innocent lives were lost.

A second phase of the US plan would lead, upon agreement of the parties, to a permanent ceasefire; the release of the remaining hostages; and the full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.

Hamas has signalled it accepts the ceasefire resolution and is ready to negotiate over details. Tel Aviv has also sent positive messages. Formal agreement by either side is still awaited.

US secretary of state Antony Blinken  on his eighth visit to the region since October  is hoping this could be the breakthrough. But the resignation of the more moderate Israeli opposition leader Benny Gantz from the war cabinet of prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not helped. He had become Washingtons point man, and was pressing for new elections.

Either way, Biden has clearly concluded the time to end the war has come. The indiscriminate carnage  and accusations of dual standards in calling for peace while also being Israels biggest supplier of arms  are hurting him domestically and internationally.

If hostilities continue, at least a million Palestinians are at risk of starvation by the middle of next month, the UN has warned. At least 37,124 people have been killed and 84,712 injured in Gaza since last October.

Accurate death toll figures are hard to ascertain in any war zone. But no one can argue that the immense human suffering is unconscionable. Ending the killing is the only goal that matters.
Gas Networks Ireland has invited expressions of interest from current and prospective producers of biomethane to supply the gas to the facility

The construction of a Central Grid Injection (CGI) facility that will be capable of injecting over 1% of Irelands total gas demand into the national network annually will start in Mitchelstown later this year.

Gas Networks Ireland said that at full capacity, the facility will be capable of injecting up to 700 GWh of renewable gas into the national gas network annually.

This volume represents 1.2% of Irelands total gas demand and equates to about 12% of the Governments 5.7 TWh per annum biomethane production target for 2030, reducing national CO2 emissions by approximately 130,000 tonnes per year.

The CGI facility will provide injection points for biomethane production sites that may be located too far away from the existing gas network. In this case, a viable alternative is to compress the biomethane to a higher pressure and transport it by trailer to a point where it can be injected into the gas network.

Biomethane is initially produced through the breakdown of organic material (feedstock) by micro-organisms in large oxygen-free tanks (anaerobic digesters) into biogas and digestate.

Gas Networks Ireland has invited expressions of interest from current and prospective producers of biomethane to supply the gas to the CGI facility. Interested parties should submit their expressions of interest by close of business on Friday, July 12th at www.gasnetworks.ie/mitchelstown-cgi.

Gas Networks Irelands Head of Business Development, Karen Doyle said that her organisation are delighted to be in a position to begin the process of booking capacity for the Mitchelstown CGI facility.

This marks an exciting time for Irelands nascent biomethane industry, given the Governments publication of the National Biomethane Strategy in May and our recently announced partnership with Bia Energy's 63 million biomethane plant, which will connect directly to the national network via a Renewable Gas Entry Point, Mrs Doyle said.

Our previous market testing exercises, and research have revealed Irelands potential to replace more than a quarter of natural gas on the network with biomethane, creating significant new agri-income streams and reducing Irelands total emissions by nearly four million tonnes annually. With over 170 potential biomethane producers eager to contribute, there is the potential to achieve and possibly exceed the States current target of 5.7 TWh.

Currently in the detailed design phase with equipment procurement underway, the construction of the CGI facility is expected to begin later this year, with commissioning anticipated in the first quarter of 2025.

According to Gas Networks, the CGI facility is the centrepiece of the much wider 30 million Green Renewable Agricultural Zero Emissions (GRAZE) project in Mitchelstown.

GRAZE is designed to showcase large-scale agricultural biomethane clusters that can be replicated in other locations throughout the state and is aiming to source biomethane from a number of local suppliers.

Led by Gas Networks Ireland, the GRAZE project is supported by more than 8.4 million in funding from the Climate Action Fund, as part of the Governments National Energy Security Framework.
Land War to Civil War 1900-1924: Donoughmore to Cork and Beyond launch meets with positive response

Lord Mayor Cllr. Kieran McCarthy; Gerard O'Rourke and Cllr. Michael Looney, deputising for the County Mayor pictured at the launch of the new Donoughmore publication.

Gerard O'Rourke (centre front row), editor to "Land War to Civil War 1900-1924: Donoughmore to Cork and Beyond" pictured with Lord Mayor, Cllr. Kieran McCarthy; Deputy Co. Mayor Cllr. Michael Looney and family members at the launch of the new publication in Donoughmore Community Centre.

A meticulously researched history publication outlining a wealth of detail at the turn of the last century titled Land War to Civil War 1900-1924: Donoughmore to Cork and Beyond written by historian Gerard ORourke met with an overwhelming response at a launch in Donoughmore.

Performing the official honours was prolific writer and Lord Mayor, Kieran McCarthy in the company of Deputy Co. Mayor Cllr. Michael Looney.

For the author, the project became a labour of love, working on the publication over a number of years and ultimately dedicating the book to his late wife, Tricia.

Tricia was an inspiration for the production and wanted it to be published, it is now a tribute and legacy to her memory. 15 of each copy sold will be donated to cancer care services in Cork, this is a legacy to her kindness and concern for other people, its somewhat ironic when one reflects that this book about war and suffering is now a catalyst for promoting healing, said Gerard.

I respectfully ask families, friends and connections at home and abroad to buy this book and this will achieve a significant sum for such cancer services. Many have availed of the wonderful services out there but, unfortunately, they need money to continue that great work.

The author related the book to one of the most turbulent periods in Irish history and the aftermath in the fight for independence.

Cork at the turn of the century was very much part of the British Empire and when King Edward visited Cork in 1903 it was not rebel flags that flew in the city but Union Jack flags. Gradually, a reawakening of Irish nationalism, notably the emergence of the GAA, Gaelic League and a literary revival energized and transformed the Irish people, said Gerard.

National independence was driven by a constitutional process with Irish MPs fighting the cause in the British Houses of Parliament.

The 1903 Land Act afforded small tenant farmers an opportunity to purchase their own holdings while the Labourers Act provided workers with improved habitation from their existing hovels.

That era was a period of dissension and infighting amongst various political groups with the Irish Parliamentary Party the butt of criticism. The constitutional strategy of seeking independence was becoming outdated for many of the separatist movements.

A feature of the time were hotly contested elections which were ferociously canvassed; rallies were attended by vast crowds with travelling contingents going to various parts of the Mid Cork area accompanied by local bands. Results were celebrated passionately with victory parades, men carrying pikes with lighted turf sods, and unashamed delirious shouting and taunting.

Todays councillors facing election will appreciate that they are very fortunate in working in what we can call a more subdued environment, said Gerard.

While the 1st World War interrupting a long-awaited Home Rule Bill, the emergence of the Ulster Volunteers and the resulting formation of the Irish Volunteers brought a potentially dangerous situation to the island of Ireland. What followed was the Easter Rising and the subsequent execution of its leaders.

This brought a huge outpouring of national grievance, reflecting in much opposition to British Rule leading to the War of Independence.

The volunteers of Donoughmore and Cork seemed to have a renewed focus in determining their own and their families fortunes, said the author.

On this occasion they were not going to be reminded of their non-contribution to a failed Easter Rising and immersed themselves in the war. Many of those families suffered greatly for their input, enduring bereavements and economic distress.

There is always an amusing story amid all the mayhem, one in particular concerns the Easter Rising in Dublin where a certain zealous priest, having heard of wholesale thieving in the city centre, decided to attempt to stop the looting. He met a boy who was bent down with the weight of some 20 pairs of boots, and asked the boy where he had got the boots. The youngster, looking over his shoulder and conscious that he need to hurry on, answered: In Tylers, Father, but youll have to hurry up or theyll be all gone, Gerard related.

Irish soldiers who fought for the Allies and recruited by Britain in the 1st World War did so in most cases to survive. Living in poor conditions, they faced a difficult decision and on returning to Ireland many endured resentment and were ostracised from society.

Many years later this was reflected on by a more passionate and considered viewpoint, most notably from former Taoiseach Sean Lemass.

During the War of Independence, Donoughmore and the greater district became international news with the executions of Mrs Lindsay, Major Compton Smith and the aftermath of the Dripsey Ambush when five volunteers were executed and one died from wounds received. These fatalities were debated on the floor of the British parliament and became headlines across the international press, said Gerard.

Meanwhile, over in Manchester, Mary Healy, a little known girl from this parish, became one of the leading women in the IRA, helping De Valera not alone to escape from Lincoln Jail but shielding him in her own house for a week thereafter. She accompanied Dev on his evening walks in a manner that depicted them as the happy couple and never arousing suspicion, he said.

The tremendous contribution of women to the war is epitomized by the Wallace sisters from Kilcullen who, from humble beginnings on an evicted farm, fronted a little stationery shop near St. Augustines Church in Cork that concealed what was the official headquarters of the Cork No 1 IRA Brigade.

In attendance at the book launch was their niece, Bernadette Wallace, and grand -nephew, Ted Murphy.

Many safe houses were instrumental in helping the weary volunteers continue the fight, but spies and informers were always a danger and day-to-day living became a constant source of stress.

The resulting civil war was a complete disaster with brother against brother, and resulted in many years of what could only be described as an atmosphere of venom and toxicity. In a complete transformation, the heroes of the War of Independence were vilified and became the subject of animosity, said Gerard.

The execution of William Healy from Lackabawn, Donoughmore was a low point, he was the last prisoner to be executed in Cork Gaol.

The subsequent struggle of many volunteers in applying for pensions and the emigration of other volunteers led to an enhancement of this discontentment and resentment.

A reluctance by survivors of the Civil War to reflect and relate their stories contributed to an air of uncertainty and inaccurate portrayals, said the author.

Happily, with more records becoming available, the picture becomes clearer and a more informed analysis can be reflected on. 100 years later, who would have thought that these civil war parties would now be at one, forming a government and guiding the state. The question obviously arises then what would the civil war veterans think of it all, he said.

Lord Mayor Cllr. Kieran McCarthy applauded the impressive and detailed book, covering 480 pages, and expressed delight on formally launching the publication.

Stories from the past can disturb you, impress you, make you curious or remember and, indeed, make you forget. All these emotions are in the book with the depth of storytelling incredible.

Some stories were disturbing, especially around the civil war era where comrades became very bitter.

The focus on daily life is highlighted by fantastic images portraying that period. One thing that was noticeable was the meticulous detail in the publication, drawing on nostalgic currency and woven together in spectacular fashion, he said.

Deputy Co. Mayor Cllr. Michael Looney thanked the author for bringing history to the ordinary people and, more importantly, preserving that record.

Also contributing to the launch night were Gerard Forde, Bernadette Wallace, Bob Honohan, Brian O Donchu, Matt Healy and John Arnold, proceedings completed with the Lord Mayor, Cllr. McCarthy singing a rendition of Smile.
Newly elected Sinn Fein councillor for Cork City South West Joe Lynch has welcomed the decision by Cork City Council to refuse planning permission for the development of a large casino in Ballincollig.

Cllr Lynch who had previously lodged an objection to the proposal with Cork City Council welcomed the news that the application has been rejected. "I recently submitted a lengthy objection to the proposal to develop a large casino in Ballincollig. That planning application has been considered by Cork City Council, and I am delighted to confirm that the application has been rejected

"There were no discernible community benefits to this proposal, said Cllr Lynch. On the contrary, there were only negatives. This is a big win for Ballincollig. I know the many people who have raised this issue with me on the doorsteps in recent weeks will be very glad to hear that common sense has prevailed.

Fair play to everyone who lodged objections. There is real strength in community and this is a win for us all, he added.
He was brought before Kenmare District Court on 17 different charges relating to alleged thefts

Stefan Marin was arrested in Dingle last week after he was detected allegedly stealing alcohol in local supermarkets. He was brought before Kenmare District Court on 17 different charges relating to alleged thefts in various locations right across the country  all of which occurred in the past few weeks. These include several alleged offences in Kerry.
Amanda Lynskey was charged with stealing a suitcase containing over 2,000 worth of contents from an unsuspecting woman after she had fallen asleep on an Irish Rail train.

Judge Bernadette Owens remanded Amanda Lynskey (pictured) on bail to reappear before a sitting of Athlone District Court next month.

A woman in her 40s has appeared in court charged with allegedly stealing a suitcase from its unsuspecting owner after they had fallen asleep on a train in the midlands.

Amanda Lynskey (44), of 2 Dunlo Harbour, Ballinasloe, Galway was arrested and charged following an incident at Athlone Train Station on April 16, 2024.

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That charge alleged that Lynskey stole the distinctive pink suitcase, which contained over 2,000 in various electronic devices, on board the carriage of the train.

Garda Damien Stone gave evidence before Judge Bernadette Owens at a sitting of Athlone District Court of having arrested the accused.

Judge Bernadette Owens remanded Amanda Lynskey (pictured) on bail to reappear before a sitting of Athlone District Court next month.

He said when the theft charge was put to Lynskey at 4:15pm yesterday (Wednesday), the accused made no reply after caution.

The court was told there were no objections to bail with the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) consenting for summary disposal, meaning the matter could be disposed of in the District Court.

Today's News in 90 seconds - 14th June 2024

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In ruling on jurisdiction to determine whether the case merited those directions, Judge Bernadette Owens was told how gardai had received a report of suitcase having been removed from an Irish Rail carriage.

It was revealed the owner of the suitcase had fallen asleep and only noticed it had been taken when she woke up.

Amanda Lynskey was charged with stealing a suitcase containing over 2,000 worth of contents from an unsuspecting woman after she had fallen asleep on an Irish Rail train.

The CCTV was reviewed and the accused was seen on CCTV walking out of the train station and into a taxi with the suitcase, said Garda Stone, who told of how its contents were not recovered following the incident.

Defence solicitor Mark Cooney applied for a brief adjournment in order to ascertain instructions from his client and, in doing so, requested disclosure of the States evidence in connection to the case.

Judge Owens granted that request and remanded Lynskey on bail to a sitting of Athlone District Court on July 10.
Historical Conservator, Sven Habermann, examining and cleaning various antiques and dining room chandelier in Muckross House ahead of the 60th anniversary of the opening of Muckross House to the public on Friday June 14. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan.

Historical Conservator, Sven Habermann, examining and cleaning various antiques and dining room chandelier in Muckross House ahead of the 60th anniversary of the opening of Muckross House to the public on Friday June 14. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan.

Final preparations are underway this week to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the opening of Muckross House to visitors on June 14 1964.

A special day to mark the occasion is being organised by National Parks & Wildlife Service (NPWS) and the Board of Trustees of Muckross House, Killarney on this coming Friday June 14.

Staff at NPWS, Muckross House and Trustees will host several exhibitions, walks and guided tours in the vicinity of the house. There will also be free admission to Muckross House and Muckross Traditional Farms throughout the weekend (14-16 June).

Sixty years on, organisers say that it is time to celebrate the significant contributions of those who have made Muckross House what it is today. These are the guides, staff, a supportive community, the visitors and the legacy of the Bourn Vincent family. Over these six decades, thousands of people have collaborated to protect, preserve, and enjoy this unique and special property.

Final preparations: from left, Patricia O'Hare, Archivist Muckross Research Library, Breda Nagle, Flower Arrangement, David Lynch, Muckross Research Library, Mary Walsh, Muckross House Guide, Denis Reidy, Manager Muckross House, Ronan Spillane, Jane O'Donovan and Mary Riordan, Muckross House Guides. Photo by Valerie O'Sullivan.

The weekend events feature: guided tours - history of the house, spinning wheel, bookbinding, pottery, crossroads dancing, nature walks, lakes ecology, Kerry cattle, deer, rhododendron, the white-tailed eagle restoration project and other events from 11am - 4pm. A free shuttle bus will run from Mission Road to Muckross on Friday 14th from 10am - 4pm. That evening the local drama group Dochas will perform An Evening with Joyce in Muckross House.

A programme of events and celebrations will continue throughout the summer months to commemorate one of Killarneys most iconic locations.

Completed for the landlord Herbert family in 1843, Muckross House acquired new owners at the end of the 19th century being purchased by Lord Ardilaun.

It again changed hands, in 1911, being purchased by a wealthy American, William Bowers Bourn. The house and estate were presented to the Irish nation, in 1932, by the Bowers Bourn and Rose Vincent families. Muckross became Ireland's first National Park, in 1933.

However, Muckross House remained closed for more than 30 years. Following a campaign by people in Killarney, the Government agreed to the use of the house as a folk museum and it was officially opened as such on June 14, 1964.
Jimmy Deenihan, Chairperson of the Selection Committee presents the award to Noelle Campbell Sharp. Also pictured are Mary Shanahan, Chairperson of the Kerry Association in Dublin and Professor Brigid Laffan president Kerry Association in Dublin. Photo by Domnick Walsh.

Noelle Campbell-Sharp has been chosen by the Kerry Association in Dublin as the 2024 recipient of the Kerry Association in Dublin Arts Award in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the Arts.

Noelle Campbell-Sharp has been chosen by the Kerry Association in Dublin as the 2024 recipient of the Kerry Association in Dublin Arts Award in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the Arts.

Noelle has been an Irish artistic promoter, gallerist and philanthropist, journalist, editor and publisher of multiple Irish magazine titles.

She operated an art gallery in Dublin, has been a member of the Arts Council and led the Cill Rialaig project in Kerry which has hosted more than 6,000 artists, poets, writers and composers of national and international repute in this remote retreat since its establishment in 1991.

Born in Wexford in 1943 Noelle was fostered, then adopted and reared by the Roche family. She left school at 15, after taking her Intermediate Certificate. She attended the Brendan Smith Academy of Acting and acted with the Young Dublin Players and based on that secured a role as a PRO for the Gaiety Theatre, with her first client being Peter OToole.

After her marriage to British fashion photographer Neil Campbell-Sharp, she began to write text to go with his work, and later to manage his career, and so became involved with fashion journalism. She began to work with Irish Tatler magazine, buying it out in 1979. She edited it until 1988. She also published several other titles, publishing 11 at one point, including Social and Personal.

Noelle Campbell-Sharp has been chosen by the Kerry Association in Dublin as the 2024 recipient of the Kerry Association in Dublin Arts Award in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the Arts.

With her main residence in Killiney, she purchased a property in Ballinskelligs in the late 1980s and renovated it under architect Alfred Cochrane.

Having heard of a risk of a road widening project destroying famine village remnants at Cill Rialaig in Ballinskelligs, she organised fundraising with some local and Dublin based friends, and a small grant from the Irish National Lottery, purchased the ruins, and commenced what grew into the multi-part Cill Rialaig project, an artist Retreat and nearby Arts Centre that overlooks the shores of Kerry. She later sold her Killiney house and made Ballinskelligs her main base.

Jimmy Deenihan, Chairperson of the Selection Committee presents the award to Noelle Campbell Sharp. Also pictured are Mary Shanahan, Chairperson of the Kerry Association in Dublin and Professor Brigid Laffan president Kerry Association in Dublin. Photo by Domnick Walsh.

Noelle launched her first gallery on St. Stephen's Green, dedicated to work from Cill Rialaig - opened by the then Tanaiste Dick Spring, with the then Ambassador of the US, Jean Kennedy Smith in attendance.

Chairperson of the Selection Committee, Jimmy Deenihan said Noelle Campbell Sharp is more than deserving of the award.

"I am delighted that Noelle Campbell Sharp is the recipient of the Kerry Association in Dublin Arts Award for 2024. Noelle has been a leading figure and influencer amongst Irelands Arts Community over the past forty years or more. We in Kerry owe her a huge debt of gratitude for the creation of the Cill Rialaig Artist Retreat and Arts Centre.

In accepting the award Noelle Campbell-Sharp said she was accepting it on behalf of all artists.

I am delighted and honoured to receive this award from the Kerry Association; it means a lot to me. I am delighted to accept it on my own behalf and on behalf of the many artists who have come to Cill Rialaig since 1991".
Theragenics, the parent company of Sligo-based Arrotek Medical, has started work on a new $10 million medical device manufacturing facility in Costa Rica. The new manufacturing plant will enhance the capabilities and capacity of Arrotek as the company further expands its global operations.

Arrotek specialises in the design of innovative minimally invasive medical devices, including cutting-edge catheter technologies as well as guidewires, needles, and more. Its purpose-built facility in Finisklin, Sligo has extensive design, regulatory, and manufacturing capabilities with an expanding team of more than 100 employees.

Arroteks Irish manufacturing capabilities focus mostly on polymer-based components with its new facility in Costa Rica enabling it to scale its production services due to increasing demand from its customer base.

Construction of the new 5,500-square-metre facility in Costa Rica started in April 2024. The plant, which includes 2,000 square meters of production floor and a 1,000 square meter cleanroom built to Class 8 standards, is expected to be fully operational by Q2, 2025.

The new facility will feature state-of-the-art equipment and technologies. It will have the capabilities and capacity to produce high-precision and often complex components for leading medical device products.

Sligo native Mark Pugh co-founded Arrotek. He was appointed CEO of the Theragenics Corporation in January 2024, so he now leads the global group of companies that includes Theragenics, Arrotek, and Galt Medical.

Commenting on the investment, Mark said: This is an exciting time for Theragenics as we continue to expand our operations.

High precision specialty medical needles are crucial components for many minimally invasive medical devices. In fact, needles are becoming even more important as medical device products get smaller and more complex.

This makes needles a rapidly growing market in the medical device industry. The new Theragenics facility that we are building in Costa Rica will be at the forefront of global needle production and supply.

At Theragenics, we have a strong track record and industry reputation for designing and manufacturing high-quality minimally invasive medical device components and products for a wide range of customers, from the world's largest life sciences organisations to OEMs to customers in the healthcare sector.

We are also an ambitious and innovative company that continuously pushes boundaries, developing solutions that exceed the expectations of our customers. Our new Costa Rica manufacturing facility is central to our growth strategy, and I am looking forward to working with the growing team.
Accused Michael Kearins told Sligo Circuit Court he did not try to deceive anyone and said he sent the Skewbald pony called Spot, instead of Buddy because this had been agreed with Terri Ewing.

Taking the stand on the thrid day of the four-day trial, Michael Kearins told the jury of four women and eight men that horses were 'his life' and he has sold over 100 horses to date, ranging in prices from 50,000 to 400,000.

Kearins outlined that along with show jumping in five star events, he is also paid to ride ponies and act as agent in selling ponies. He said that he only ever had one pony for sale Teddy (Blue Rose) and when Mr Ewing expressed an interest in getting two, he contacted Felix Burke, as he knew he had a good pony called Soldier (Buddy). The 36 year old said after speaking to Mr Burke he was free to negotiate the sale of Buddy and include commission for himself.

He told the court that Felix Burke wanted 4,500 for the pony and he informed Burke he had clients for the horse and that he told Sean the price and that his neighbour had a pony.

"I said 8,000 - 8,500 and knew there'd be room to talk on it. If he offered me money on the day I could have sold it," said Kearins.

Referring to the intial deal, Kearins said he agreed to 20,000 for two ponies (Teddy and Buddy) minus the price of one way delivery.

"I said I wouldn't drive and that could come out of the price," said Mr Kearins who told the court he was then unsure why Mr Ewing did then not want to proceed with the deal.

"I was in negotiations with Sean, but also Terri," said Kearins.

It was heard that on October 4th Mr Ewing sent Kearins an email detailing that the offer was for 20,000, less the cost of returning the horses to Ireland when the family returned and also include saddle and tack and Kearins' time in helping his daughters with the ponies.

He asked for Kearins' bank details in order to pay 10,000 as a deposit and said he would pay the balance when Kearins came down to Majorca.

However, it was heard that when Mr Ewing was away in Australia on business Terri recieved an email from a haulage company saying it was leaving Sligo with just one pony and that the couple were required to cover the transport costs.

In her evidence Mrs Ewing said this set 'alarm bells ringing' and she told the company to return to Kearins' yard with Teddy.

In email correspondence, Mr Ewing told Kearins he was informed of the situation and that the couple never agreed to one pony being sent. He told Kearins a phone call had been received from Kearins' father Colm, asking for the balance to be paid before the second pony was sent but that it was agreed between Mr Ewing and Michael Kearins that the balance was to be paid when he visited Majorca.

In the email he said, 'Keep the ponies, or write a cheque for the monies paid in good faith' and said a price for one pony was never discussed.'

On October 12th Mr Ewing received a reply saying, 'Hi Sean I agree with moving forward with ponies'. Mr Ewing replied the following day to clarify delivery costs to be covered by Kearins and the items to be included with the ponies. He added that he received a reply noting Kearins agreed to the email.

In further exchanges on October 18th, Mr Ewing detailed that he had had enough and his brother would visit the yard the following day to collect a cheque for 10,000, a return of the deposit paid and if he was not agreeing to cover return costs of 3,500 for the ponies then he should retain his ponies. He added that if Kearins failed to return the monies Mr Ewing would take legal steps.

In a further email Mr Ewing referred to a phonecall which he maintains took place between himself and Kearins and set out that a balance of 2,458 for the two ponies would be paid the following day by his brother and passports for the ponies should be available and trasnport organised. He said Mr Kearins replied, 'I agree'.

In cross examination by Pat O'Sullivan BL, Mr Ewing said Mr Kearins was always acting as principle in selling the animals though there was mention when they visited the ponies for the first tiem that his father Colm owned Buddy.

Mr O'Sullivan put it to Mr Ewing that in his statement to gardai he referred to Kearins selling teh pony on behalf of a neighbour.

"When they tried to sell us teh two they told Terri the Skewbald was owned by Colm. There was a lot of deception and lies around these ponies. He never informed me he was selling as agent. I only sent money to Michael Kearins' account."

Referencing Mr Ewings description of the animals as being in poor condition, Mr O'Sullivan said his client would maintain that animals would be a week to recover from being transported, to which Mr Ewing said he did not expect them to turn up 'skeletal'.

Mr O'Sullivan put it to Mr Ewing that his client never suggested that Spot was Buddy and Mr Ewing said the last he heard was that the ponies and passports were loaded for trasnport.

"The agreement was for two ponies, Teddy and Buddy and I mentioned the two [in the final email], I never heard of Spot. I bought Teddy and Buddy and I got another pony."

Mr Ewing told the court that the decision was made to return the ponies in January of 2013 as the animals were costing money in livery and veterinary bills.

When it was put to Mr Ewing that Kearins had made an agreement with his wife to source another pony after Buddy was no longer available, he responded, 'That's a lie'.

He added that it was 'proposterous' to suggest that his wife would give a pony to their daughter without having seen it or ridden it first.

It was also put to Mr Ewing that he was previously arrested on suspicion of fraud in California.

Clarifying this, Mr Ewing said that he was chairman of a large global company worth $1 billion and the issue was a 'books and records violation' against three employees.

Mr Ewing said he was never indicted and all matters pursuant to him were dismissed with prejudice. He said he made an offer of $8 million which was accepted by investigators in 2016.

To clarify matters prosecuting barrister Dara Foynes put it to him that Mr Kearins would say that he was in discussions with his wife Terri in relation to the ponies. Mr Ewing said all commercial discussions were through him. He said is wife was never going to bring another pony she had not seen to Spain.

Asked if he had heard from Kearins after the ponys were sent, Mr Ewing said between 2012 and 2017 he had heard 'nothing'.
The partnership came about through a tender process and also involved the installation of electric vehicle chargers at Dundalk, Tralee and Sallins.

The chargers are available to the public and ePower will continue to maintain and manage the equipment, including through the provision of 24/7 support services.

Co-founder and Director of ePower, Hugh Hall said: We are delighted to be working with Irish Rail on this project. This equipment will cater to the widest possible group of EV drivers as they will be suitable for the older-style of CHAdeMO chargers, as well as the newer CCS formats.

Having chargers at its stations illustrates I Irish Rails commitment to facilitating the growing community of EV drivers and were also proud to be helping promote more environmentally friendly transport options for the public as well as our own customers.

Energy Manager from Irish Rail, Shane McManus stated: I have found ePower to be a professional and efficient company in the delivery of an EV charger project to Iarnrod Eireann/Irish Rail for multiple 150kW chargers. The company have an in-depth knowledge of the commercial EV charger space, and responses to information requests have been prompt and detailed.
Our beauty expert shares how we can embrace our Celtic roots and a must-have for your summer handbag

At this time of year, beauty chat tends to be filled with bronzing and tanning products. Culturally, many Irish people grow up with the idea that a tan (real or from the bottle) is essential for feeling glamorous. In fact, Irish people are the highest per capita users of fake tan in the world.

As you know, I firmly believe that everyone should do what they feel when it comes to their body/face/skin, but this statistic still makes me a little sad. So many of us have the fair complexions of Celtic ancestors, and it can be so incredibly beautiful if we embrace it rather than fighting against it. With that in mind, today I want to recommend some products that work brilliantly on pale skin.

Vieve Modern Radiance Cream Bronzer in Light

Vieve Modern Radiance Cream Bronzer in Light (38 via Brown Thomas)  Being fair doesnt mean you need to reject all bronzing products, and this gal is perfect for the palest of complexions. Its not overly warm, but adds a hint of it to the face. It is relatively sheer when applied but is easily buildable, which means theres no danger of applying too much, and it leaves a naturally radiant finish.

Saie Glowy Super Gel in Starglow

Saie Glowy Super Gel in Starglow (24.80 via cultbeauty.com)  Unfortunately, some highlighters have a base colour which is too warm for very fair skin, but this one works beautifully on even the palest face. It melts easily into the skin and delivers a subtle but radiant sheen, giving you the lit-from-within effect we all crave. 

Huda Easy Bake Powder in Sugar Cookie

Huda Easy Bake Powder in Sugar Cookie or Cherry Blossom (36 via boots.ie)  In theory, translucent powders are just that and therefore should work on all skin tones. In practice, people with skin on either end of the colour spectrum know thats not the case. Fortunately, this finely milled setting powder in Sugar Cookie will finish your make-up beautifully without adding any colour or warmth. Pale gals with pink undertones may enjoy Cherry Blossom, which is the palest pink and gives a brightening effect.

Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse Or Florale Shimmering Multi-Purpose Dry Oil

Nuxe Huile Prodigieuse Or Florale Shimmering Multi-Purpose Dry Oil (28 via meagherspharmacy.ie)  Pale girls deserve to have glowing, radiant skin on their bodies as well as their face, and this product is perfect for achieving that. Gold shimmer may not sit easily on fair skin but this rose gold shimmering oil enhances it beautifully. It looks beautiful on the legs or decolletage, and smells delightful as well.

NARS Afterglow Liquid Blush in Behave or Insatiable

Nars Afterglow Liquid Blush in Behave or Insatiable (40 via arnotts.ie)  These blushes are sheer enough that you dont need to worry about overapplying, a common struggle for pale people when it comes to highly pigmented products. They blend out easily, so even if you apply more than you intended to, youll be safe. Behave is a cool-toned pink which suits pale skin beautifully, while Insatiable is a berry tone. Berry tones look beautiful on fair skin, and give the effect of a rosy cheek on a cold day.

Buying Irish

Bahama Skin Glow Sun Stick

If theres one thing I love, its an SPF stick. They are incredibly handy for holidays, as they are compact and wont spill in your handbag. Theyre also great for lashing on small childrens faces and extremities when theyre wriggling around. Bahama Skin, the youth skincare brand by beauty entrepreneur Suzanne Jackson, has just launched Glow Sun Stick (19.95 via bahamaofficial.com). This SPF 50 stick offers protection on the go, with easy application and no white cast. . I will be keeping this in my bag all summer long.

Something old

Burts Bees Tinted Lip Balm

Ive been using Burts Bees Lip Balm for a very long time now. So long that when I thought about it there, I physically shuddered (ageing is a privilege, etc, but sometimes the idea of having used a product for literal decades is simply too much). The balms have existed since 1991, really deliver on comfort and hydration, and dont break the bank. The tinted versions are truly excellent. Formulated with natural ingredients, including shea butter, coconut oil and beeswax, they hydrate and nourish the lips leaving them with a balmy, matte finish and a hint of colour. Burts Bees Tinted Lip Balm (7.99 via boots.ie) is available in six shades of peaches, pinks and berries.

... Something new

Clarins's Lip Oil Balms

I have loved Clarinss Lip Oils for some time, thanks to the gorgeous hint of colour they deliver along with moisture and shine. Now, the brand has launched Lip Oil Balms (31 via clarins.ie), a reinvention of the OG product, which has a more lightweight texture but still delivers a tint to the lips. The formula is 99pc skincare, meaning this will nourish your lips as well as adding to their appearance. Key active ingredients include hazelnut oil, which protects the lips from dehydration; nourishing jojoba oil and comforting sweetbriar rose oil. Lip oil balms are available in six shades, from pale pink to fig (a raisin shade) and almond (a nut shade). If you want some colour without having to worry about maintaining it throughout the day, a tinted lip balm might be the one for you!
Take years off him with a hydrating moisturiser or serum, or make him smell good with a luxury cologne

"Heres my guide to suit everyone from the guys who grab whatevers in the supermarket right up to the fancy pants that love a lil luxury." Stock image: Getty

Grief, Ive learned, is really just love. Its all the love you want to give but cannot. All of that unspent love gathers up in the corners of your eyes, the lump in your throat and in that hollow part of your chest. Grief is just love with no place to go.

My own dad died nearly 25 years ago, so Fathers Day for me is all about my husband Will. He is the best dad to our children, Maxi and Mini. I know what its like to find this a hard day, so Im really sorry for anyone missing their dad  writer Jamie Andersons quote at the top is for you. Its also a day for acknowledging those great men that have been like a dad to us or our children  the uncles, godfathers, granddads and special family friends who make our lives better.

But back to beauty, it can be hard to know what to buy for men, so heres my guide to suit everyone from the guys who grab whatevers in the supermarket right up to the fancy pants that love a lil luxury from Brown Thomas.

Starting with the guys with facial hair, Id recommend the new Nivea Men Sensitive Skin & Stubble Moisturiser, 12.99, which is available in lots of places, including Tesco. Its specifically designed for men with stubble, and its extra light texture absorbs instantly underneath the stubble to keep skin hydrated and healthy without any residue.

Something that men often dont think of is skincare containing vitamin C, which is great for brightening, smoothing and refreshing dull and tired-looking skin. Buy them the LOreal Men Expert Hydra Energetic Vitamin C Shot Serum, 16.49, boots.ie, which is non-greasy and non-sticky and easily absorbs into the skin and beard. It contains 10pc pure vitamin C, which works on dullness, fine lines and saggy skin, and its vitamin E and salicylic acid act as antioxidant and exfoliating agents.

Green Angel - The Perfect Gift for Him, 25, greenangel.com

Green Angel, the premium Irish skincare brand based in Rathcoole, Dublin, has an amazing offer at the moment on its products, which are enriched with four types of seaweed from the Atlantic coast. Green Angel - The Perfect Gift for Him, 25, greenangel.com, is the ultimate pampering experience for men and contains three top-selling products worth over 50. This includes its Seaweed Shower Gel, Seaweed Daily Moisture Face Cream and Seaweed & Tea Tree Rescue Cream in a luxury toiletry bag.

For the men who like fancy scents, the Jo Malone Cypress & Grapevine Cologne Intense, 115, arnotts.ie, is a fresh and woody scent for men. It combines the aromatic notes of cypress trees with the warmth of grapevine and the sensuality of amber.

But if you want to splash out a bit more on dear old dad, theres Tom Ford Oud Wood Eau De Parfum, 255, brownthomas.com. It has all sorts of exotic ingredients, including rosewood, cardamom, sandalwood, vetiver, tonka bean and amber as well as a smoky blend of precious oud notes.

Best of all, these scents will be a treat for you too as youll be the one who gets to smell them on the men in your life.

Three of the best Waterproof mascaras

La Roche-Posay Toleriane, 24.70, pharmacies nationwide

1 La Roche-Posay Toleriane, 24.70, pharmacies nationwide My mum Margaret has sensitive eyes so wore this when my cousin Brid ODriscoll married Liam Walsh recently and it worked a treat.

Chanel Le Volume de Chanel, 42, brownthomas.com

2 Chanel Le Volume de Chanel, 42, brownthomas.com Meanwhile, I was wearing this mascara at Brids wedding as it brings instant volume and gives eyes a wide-open look. Its waterproof and humidity-proof, which is just as well as all that lurve had me bawling  and I dont cry pretty!

MAC MACStack Waterproof Mascara, 32, arnotts.ie

3 MAC MACStack Waterproof Mascara, 32, brownthomas.com And last but not least, my baby sis Anna is a MAC gal so she wore this one, which is smudge-proof for 24 hours. It gave her clump-free, weightless volume, along with instant lash lift and length so she partied the night away.

Trionas budget friendly beauty buys
Scott Timlin is charged with plugging unauthorised investments on social media (Jordan Pettitt/PA)

A former Geordie Shore star has pleaded not guilty to plugging unauthorised investments.

Scott Timlin, 36, is one of nine influencers to have been charged by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) in relation to an unauthorised foreign exchange trading scheme on social media.

The FCA has alleged that Emmanuel Nwanze, 30, and Holly Thompson, 34, used an Instagram account, @holly_fx trends, to provide advice on buying and selling contracts for difference (CFDs) when they were not authorised to do so.

It said CFDs were high-risk investments, with 80% of customers who invest in them losing money.

Reality TV star Emmanuel Nwanze arrives at Westminster Magistrates Court (Jordan Pettitt/PA)

The watchdog also alleges that Nwanze paid Towies Lauren Goodger, 37; and Yazmin Oukhellou, 30; Love Islands Biggs Chris, 32; Jamie Clayton, 32; Rebecca Gormley, 26; and Eva Zapico, 25; and Geordie Shores Scott Timlin to promote the account to their 4.5 million Instagram followers.

Nwanze, Thompson, Chris, Clayton, Goodger, Gormley, Oukhellou, Timlin and Zapico each face one count of issuing unauthorised communications of financial promotions.

Nwanze also faces one count of breaching a general prohibition under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, which prohibits people from carrying out regulated activities in the UK unless they are authorised to do so.

Timlin appeared in person at Westminster Magistrates Court alongside Oukhellou, Nwanze and Zapico.

He pleaded not guilty to one count of unauthorised communications of financial promotions.

Nwanze also pleaded not guilty to the same charge, as well as one count of breaching the General Prohibition.

Yazmin Oukhellou arriving at Westminster Magistrates Court (Jordan Pettitt/PA)

Thompson, who appeared via video link alongside Goodger, pleaded not guilty to one count of unauthorised communications of financial promotions.

The remaining defendants provided no indication of their pleas.

The so-called finfluencers face up to two years in prison if convicted.

A trial preparation hearing has been set for July 11 at Southwark Crown Court and nine defendants have been granted unconditional bail until this date.
Quincy Jones will be given the Honorary Award at the 15th Governors Awards (Yui Mok/PA)

American record producer and songwriter Quincy Jones has been announced as the recipient of an honorary Oscar at this years Governors Awards.

British screenwriter Richard Curtis, American casting director Juliet Taylor and James Bond producers Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli will also be honoured by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences at this years ceremony.

Jones, 91, who was given the Hersholt Award in 1994, will receive the Honorary Award, an Oscar statuette that is given to honour extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the Academy.

Richard Curtis will be given the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award (Ian West/PA)

The veteran songwriter has earned a total of seven Oscar nominations for his work on movies that include neo-noir crime film In Cold Blood (1967).

Taylor, whose credits include Taxi Driver (1976), The Exorcist (1973), Sleepless In Seattle (1993) and Schindlers List (1993), will receive the same award.

Love Actually filmmaker and Notting Hill screenwriter Curtis, 67, will pick up the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for his charitable efforts, while producers Wilson and Broccoli will receive the Irving G Thalberg Memorial Award.

Curtis is a co-founder of Comic Relief and has co-produced the Red Nose Day live night of TV for the BBC since 1988 which has now made over 1 billion for projects in Africa and the UK.

Academy president Janet Yang said: The recipients of this years Governors Awards have set the bar incredibly high across their remarkable careers, and the Academys Board of Governors is thrilled to recognise them with Oscars.

The selection of Michael G Wilson and Barbara Broccoli is a testament to their success as producers of the fan-favorite Bond series and their contribution to the industrys theatrical landscape.

Quincy Jones is being recognised (Yui Mok/PA)

Richard Curtis is a brilliant comedic storyteller whose tremendous charitable efforts embody the meaning of the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.

Quincy Joness artistic genius and relentless creativity have made him one of the most influential musical figures of all time.

Juliet Taylor has cast iconic and beloved films and paved a new path for the field.

Their profound love of cinema and indelible contribution to our art form make these five individuals truly deserving of these honours.

The Oscar statuettes will be presented at the Academys 15th Governors Awards on November 17 in the Ray Dolby Ballroom, Hollywood, close to the Dolby Theatre where the Oscars takes place.
An expert in matrimonial law has expressed surprise that Rory McIlroy has performed a U-turn on his divorce proceedings, given he had gone as far as filing court documents.
Count Binface has said he is ready to roll in the upcoming General Election on July 4 (Aaron Chown/PA)

General Election candidate Count Binface has said he is ready to roll as he guns for Prime Minister Rishi Sunaks North Yorkshire seat and he is still standing after his previous campaigns against Theresa May and Boris Johnson.
French presidents decision to call snap parliamentary election created political chaos

French president Emmanuel Macron at a press conference about the priorities of his Renaissance party yesterday. Photo: Reuters

French president Emmanuel Macron yesterday urged rival parties to join his electoral alliance against Marine Le Pens far-right National Rally (RN), while the conservative Republicans ditched their party chief for seeking a far-right pact.

The fast-moving political developments come after Mr Macrons shock decision to call a snap parliamentary election in a few weeks time. The vote could hand real power to Ms Le Pens party after years on the sidelines.
How the far-right gained traction with Europe's youth

Far-right gains among Europe's youth in EU electionGerman study shows young voters worrying more about economy, less about climateSocial media proficiency boosts far-right's appeal to youth

French far-right leader Marine Le Pen delivers her speech at the party election night headquarters after French President Emanuel Macron announced he dissolves National Assembly and calls new legislative election following the defeat in EU vote, Sunday, June 9, 2024 in Paris. First projected results from France put far-right National Rally party well ahead in EU elections, according to French opinion poll institutes. (AP Photo/Lewis Joly)

Sarah Marsh, Barbara Erling and David Latona Thu 13 Jun 2024 at 08:43







From Germany and France to Poland and Spain, the far-right made inroads into the youth vote in key states in this EU election - as a generation that has grown up amid constant crises seeks new answers and follows politicians fluent in TikTok and YouTube.
Pope Francis has used a homophobic slur inside the Vatican, just weeks after he had to apologise for using the same word, according to leaks from the Holy See.
Daughter (36) who murdered her parents and lived alongside their bodies for four years to be sentenced today
Since 1963, The Independent has helped create a great community!

Since our founding in September of 1963, The Independent has been dedicated to giving Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin, and Sunol readers the news they need to be in-the-know about what's going on in the Tri-Valley region.
Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab from X video

New Delhi/Kuwait City/IBNS: The bodies of Indians killed in the Kuwait fire are charred beyond recognition so DNA tests are underway for their identification, said Minister of State for External Affairs, Kirti Vardhan Singh.

Singh, who is enroute to Kuwait, said the bodies of Indians killed will be brought back to the country by the Indian Air Force once they are identified.

Speaking to ANI, he said, "The situation is most of the victims are burnt and some of the bodies are charred beyond recognition so DNA test is underway to identify the victims. An air force plane is ready to bring back the bodies as soon as the bodies are identified."

"We had a meeting last evening with the Honourable Prime Minister and that's the last update we have about this very sad tragedy. The rest of the situation will be clear the moment we reach there," he added.

The junior External Affairs Minister said 42-43 Indians have been killed in the fire, which claimed about 48-49 lives.

"Situation will be clear the moment we reach there": MoS Kirti Vardhan Singh embarks for #Kuwait following fire tragedy pic.twitter.com/RxYLEaB04V  DD News (@DDNewslive) June 13, 2024

The incident happened at 6 am local time (9 am IST) on Wednesday.

The fire started in a kitchen in the six-storey building which had 160 people living in it and some succumbed to death as they jumped off the fifth floor to escape, media reports said.

An inquiry has been initiated into the matter.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also offered condolences and said the Indian embassy is working with local authorities to assist the victims.

A high-level meeting was held at the Prime Minister's residence over the tragedy.

Upon reaching back to Delhi after todays two oath taking ceremonies, chaired a meeting to review the situation in the wake of the fire mishap in Kuwait, where people of Indian origin have been affected.



GoI is doing everything possible to assist those affected by this gruesome pic.twitter.com/DVmeCcEGZH  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 12, 2024

The Indian embassy in Kuwait has issued a helpline number and earlier said the fire accident involved some Indian workers and the embassy will give all possible assistance. The emergency helpline number is +965-65505246.

Indian Ambassador to Kuwait Adarsh Swaika met the injured admitted at various hospitals.

Kuwait's health ministry said the injured had been admitted to several hospitals; the majority were sent to Al-Adan, but some were also sent to Farwaniya Hospital, Al-Amiri, and Mubarak Hospital.
Photo courtesy: PIB

New Delhi/IBNS: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to leave for Italy to attend the G7 Summit on Thursday.

This will be his first foreign tour after becoming the Prime Minister for the third consecutive term.

Italy has invited India to the Summit of 7 nations- US, UK, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan and France- as an outreach country.

Prime Minister Modi is likely to hold a meeting with his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni during the summit, which is scheduled for June 13-15.

The summit is likely to be dominated by issues like Russia-Ukraine war, Israel-Hamas battle.

Apart from Meloni, Modi is also expected to meet US President Joe Biden on the sidelines of the summit.

As per a report by NDTV, India has defence and maritime cooperation as its agenda in the summit.
Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab from X video

Itanagar/IBNS: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Pema Khandu took oath as the Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister for the third consecutive term on Thursday.

Khandu took oath more than a week after the BJP swept the Arunachal Pradesh assembly elections.

The party won 46 of 60 assembly seats. 10 seats were elected unopposed by the party before the elections, which were held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls.

Along with Khandu, BJP's Chowna Mein took oath as the Deputy Chief Minister for the second consecutive term.

Apart from Khandu and Mein, 10 other ministers also took oath on Thursday.

LIVE: Swearing-in Ceremony of the new government in Arunachal Pradesh. https://t.co/coogEg5hO3  BJP (@BJP4India) June 13, 2024

Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP national president Jagat Prakash Nadda, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma were among the party leaders who attended the swearing-in ceremony.

In 2016, Khandu, who was then also the Chief Minister, defected along with 43 MLAs to BJP's ally People's Party of Arunachal (PPA).

After the PPA expelled Khandu and some other MLAs in 2019, he joined the BJP and proved the majority in the assembly.

In the same year's assembly elections, Khandu-led BJP registered a landslide victory bagging 41 seats.
Photo courtesy: Video grab

Mumbai: In a shocking incident, a doctor in Mumbai discovered a human finger in an ice cream he ordered online, media reports said.

Doctor Orlem Brandon Serrao, who resides in suburban Malad, had asked his sister to include some ice creams in her online grocery order, reported NDTV.

While he was savouring the ice cream, he felt something in his mouth, which felt like a nut, but to his horror and dismayit was actually a human finger.

A photo shared online shows a human finger sticking out of the ice cream.

In a video statement, Serrao shared his distressing experience, adding that he luckily did not swallow it.

"I had ordered three cone ice creams from an app. One of them was a butterscotch ice cream from the Yummo brand. After eating half of it, I felt a solid piece in my mouth. I thought it could be a nut or a chocolate piece and spat it out to check what it was," said Dr Serrao.

A close look at the "solid piece" left him traumatized.

"I am a doctor so I know what body parts look like. When I carefully examined it, I noticed the nails and fingerprint impressions under it. It resembled a thumb. I am traumatized," he said.

Dr. Serrao immediately placed the object in an ice pack to preserve it for the police and filed a complaint with the Malad police.

A case has been registered against Yummo for food adulteration and endangering human life.

#WATCH | Mumbai: Ravi Adane, Senior PI, Malad Police Station says, "We received a complaint stating that a piece of flesh was found in the ice cream ordered online. We have taken the piece of flesh for investigation. A case under sections 272, 273, and 336 of the Indian Penal pic.twitter.com/ghpJa5voye  ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2024

The police have sent the ice cream for examination and the finger for forensic analysis.

The discovery of a body part in the food item has also raised suspicions of a more serious crime, which the police are currently investigating.

Yummo Ice Creams, launched in 2012, was co-founded by Walko Food Co. Ltd.
Image instagrammed by darshanthoogudeepashrinivas

Bengaluru: Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa, arrested for involvement in a murder case, had offered Rs 15 lakh to three men to take blame for the crime, media reported.

Police recovered the body of 33-year-old Renukaswamy after a food delivery agent reported that dogs were gnawing at a body lying in a drain in Sumanahalli Bridge in Bengaluru.

According to reports, Renukaswamy had allegedly sent obscene texts to Darshan's co-star and girlfriend Pavithra Gowda, who set tongues rolling after she shared a video celebrating the 10 years of her relationship with already married Thoogudeepa.

Police said the victim had posted an objectionable comment on Pavithra's Instagram handle accusing her of causing a rift between Thoogudeepa and his wife.

Police are investigating if Pavithras online harassment was the reason behind Thoogudeepas alleged crime.

Darshan hired Raghavendra, aka Raghu, the convenor of his fan club in Chitradurga, to gather information about Renuka Swamy. The victim's wife also claimed that Raghu was the one who picked up Renukaswamy from near their house, reported NDTV.

Before being murdered, Renukaswamy was brutally assaulted, was tied up with ropes, and was savagely beaten with wooden sticks in a shed, according to the police complaint.

Thirteen people, including Darshan and Pavithra Gowda, have been arrested.

Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayananda has stated that a thorough investigation will be conducted in accordance with the law to uncover the truth.

He maintained that "the guilty should be punished mercilessly as per law."

State Home Minister G Parameshwara has given the police full authority to take action against Darshan and the other accused in accordance with the law, the report said.

The incident has shocked the Kannada film industry, with the state's top industry body demanding a ban on the release of Darshan's movies.
Photo courtesy: Video grab

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-level meeting on Thursday to discuss the security situation in Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) following a series of terror-related incidents, media reports said.

The meeting, attended by National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and other senior officials, aimed to assess the current security landscape in the region.

According to government sources cited by news agency ANI, Prime Minister Modi received a comprehensive overview of the ongoing counter-terrorism efforts in the region. He was briefed on the strategies and operations being implemented to combat terrorist activities and ensure the safety of the area.

During the meeting, PM Modi emphasized the importance of deploying India's full range of counter-terror capabilities. He instructed officials to implement all available resources and strategies to combat terrorism effectively, stressing the need for a robust and coordinated response to potential threats.

PM Modi also spoke with Home Minister Amit Shah to discuss the deployment of security forces and ongoing counter-terror operations. He also communicated with J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to review the situation and was briefed on the efforts being undertaken by the local administration.

The review meeting follows a string of major terror assaults in J&K in the last few days, raising concerns about the security in the region.:

On June 9, terrorists opened fire at a bus in Reasi, causing it to fall into a deep gorge. At least nine pilgrims as well as the bus driver and the conductor were killed and 42 others were injured.

Further, terror attacks in Kathua and Doda, where a Special Operations Group (SOG) constable sustained injuries during an encounter with terrorists, have raised alarm about the deteriorating security situation in the Union Territory.

During the meeting, Prime Minister Narendra Modi directed officials to deploy the "full spectrum of counter-terror capabilities." He stressed the importance of a coordinated response to the security challenges faced in the region.
Photo courtesy: Video grab

Srinagar: Jammu Kashmir Police has detained at least 50 people for questioning in connection with a terror attack on a bus in Reasi on Sunday in which nine people were killed and 41 were injured.

The detentions follow Prime Minister Narendra Modis review meeting to assess the situation in Jammu and Kashmir and direction to deploy full-spectrum counter-terror measures in the region.

The terrorists targeted the 53-seater bus carrying pilgrims from Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan, carrying pilgrims to Vaishno Devi temple in Katra from the Shiv Khori temple. The attack caused the bus to fall in a gorge, leading to the casualties.

As part of the major crackdown, the search operation to track down the terrorists has been expanded to include the district's Arnas and Mahore areas, which were known terrorist hotbeds between 1995 and 2005.

"Significant leads have been uncovered, aiding in the identification and capture of those who may be potentially involved in orchestrating the attack. To ensure a comprehensive probe, search operations have been expanded to cover the far-flung areas of Arnas and Mahore," a police spokesperson was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

As part of the extensive crackdown, the search operation to locate the terrorists has been extended to the district's Arnas and Mahore areas, notorious for terrorist activity between 1995 and 2005.

Earlier on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a review meeting to take stock of the situation in Jammu and Kashmir.

He spoke with Home Minister Amit Shah and newly reappointed National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, and was provided a comprehensive overview of the situation and the counter-terrorism operations currently underway.
Image of Krishna Kumari Rai posted by @SikkimElection on X

In a confusing move, Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang's wife Krishna Kumari Rai quit as the MLA from Namchi-Singhithang just a day after she took the oath of office.

Tamang's party, Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM), swept the recent elections, winning 31 of 32 Assembly seats and the lone Lok Sabha constituency in the state.

He is in Arunachal Pradesh to attend the swearing-in ceremony of Pema Khandu, who is returning as chief minister of the state.

Rai, who was contesting the Assembly elections for the first time, had won with a margin of 5,302 votes.

She had secured 71.6 percent of the votes polled, second only to Chief Minister Tamang, who had got 72.18 percent of the votes in Soreng-Chakung.

While the reasons for her decision are unknown, newly elected Speaker Mingma Norbu Sherpa, also from the SKM, accepted her resignation on Thursday.

The Namchi-Singhithang constituency is now vacant.

The development comes three days after at least two people died in a flash flood in Namchi district.
Photo Courtesy: PIB

Narendra Modi on Thursday left for Italy to attend the G7 Outreach Summit, marking his first international visit after taking oath as the Prime Minister of the world's largest democracy for the third straight term earlier this week.

He is visiting Italy at the invitation of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

In his departure speech, Modi said: "I am glad that my first visit in the third consecutive term is to Italy for the G-7 Summit."

"I warmly recall my visit to Italy for the G20 Summit in 2021. Prime Minister Meloni's two visits to India last year were instrumental in infusing momentum and depth in our bilateral agenda," he said.

"We remain committed to consolidate the India-Italy strategic partnership, and bolster cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and the Mediterranean regions," he said.

What will be the key area of discussion during the Outreach session?

During the discussions at the Outreach session, the focus would be on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean, the Indian PM said.

Modi led his Bharatiya Janata Party to a third straight victory in the Indian general polls this year.

Modi said: "It will be an opportunity to bring greater synergy between the outcomes of the G20 Summit held under Indias Presidency and the forthcoming G7 Summit, and deliberate on issues which are crucial for the Global South."

The G7 team comprises of the US, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Canada and Japan.

This time the summit will take place in the luxury resort of Borgo Egnazia in Italys Apulia region from June 13 to 15.
Photo courtesy: Facebook/Priyanka Gandhi Vadra

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra's electoral debut might be a reality finally with media speculations claiming she might be fielded from Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency if Rahul Gandhi vacates the seat, reports said.

The buzz has started gathering momentum with sources telling NDTV on Thursday that Priyanka may be the Congress candidate for the bypoll from the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency in place of her brother.



Rahul Gandhi won the Lok Sabha polls with considerable margins from both the Raebareli and Wayanad constituencies.

He even claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would have lost "by two-three lakh votes" if his sister had fought against him in Varanasi.

Priyanka's poll debut was a highly anticipated issue ahead of the 2024 general elections especially after Sonia Gandhi gave up the Raebareli seat - which she had held since 2004 - and became a Rajya Sabha MP.

It was even reported that Priyanka Gandhi would contest from Raebareli and her brother would fight to win back Amethi from the BJP's Smriti Irani.

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge had asked the Gandhi siblings to take a decision but expressed a desire that he would like both to contest.

He had also said that if they didn't fight from the bastions, it would send a wrong message to the workers, the Congress' allies in the Opposition, and the NDA.

Gandhi, had, however, chosen not to contest.

Media reports quoting sources close to her had said that she had made the decision thinking if she also won the Lok Sabha polls, it would have led to three Gandhis being in Parliament-her mother, brother, and her- giving credence to the BJP's dynastic politics charge against her family.

However, she had campaigned heavily in Raebareli and Amethi, both of which were won by her party with big margins.

When the Lok Sabha results were declared, the Samajwadi Party-Congress alliance shocked the BJP and pollsters by winning 43 of Uttar Pradesh's 80 constituencies, with the Congress alone moving up to six from its 2019 tally of one. The BJP, which had clinched 62 constituencies last time, was reduced to 33, four lower than the Samajwadi Party's 37.

After the results, Rahul praised his sister's role while thanking the residents of UP.
Photo courtesy: Screenshot grab from X video

Mumbai/IBNS: Veteran Indian actor Naseeruddin Shah has blamed the Muslim community for concentrating on "wrong things" like hijab and tennis icon Sania Mirza's skirt instead of pertinent issues like education.

In an interview with The Wire, Naseeruddin Shah said, "The fact is the Muslims are not blameless either. The Muslims have concentrated on all the wrong things.

"Instead of worrying about education, they're worrying about hijab, the length of Sania Mirza's skirt and all these sort of things when they should be worried about education, enlightening their race about exposing them to modern ideas instead of thrusting them into madrassas all the time and giving them only religious initiation. The Muslims have been at fault."

Speaking on the Hindu-Muslim discourse, Naseeruddin Shah refused to pin his blame only on Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the debate.

"It's very easy for those of us who oppose Modi to blame everything that's wrong in the country on him. The fact is there were plenty wrong in the country even before Modi came to power.

"Modi just managed to tap into what was always dorment. It has always been an undercurrent of hostility among religions in our country," he said.

"I can recall as a child being taunted for being a Muslim and I remember taunting others about their religions, which I think has always been under the surface," the actor said and added, "Modi was very clever to tap into this hint or a cue that he got and to just dismember whatever remnants of secularism and equality were there," the actor added.

Rare moment when Naseeruddin Shah spoke truth. Sadly, Secular Hindus still believe in Ganga-Jamuni Tahzeeb scam! pic.twitter.com/f5iKWbO1KO  BALA (@erbmjha) June 11, 2024

Apart from the Hindu-Muslim discourse, Naseeruddin Shah also spoke on Congress MP-elect Rahul Gandhi, who led his party to a much improved performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls as compared to its decimation in 2014 and 2019.

The 73-year-old actor says, "The biggest takeaway I would think is the arrival of Rahul Gandhi as a competent, hardworking, astute politician rather than being an object of mirth for the Opposition.

"I think the joke Modi made about Rahul to his sycophantic interviewers who were all in splits about it was 'Kaun Rahul', I think that's the last joke that's ever going to be made about Rahul Gandhi."
Photo Courtesy: Unsplash

At least three Frontier Corps personnel were injured in an IED blast on Pakistan's Quetta-Chaman Highway on Tuesday.

According to officials, the IED exploded close to the personnels vehicle, which was damaged as a result of the powerful blast, reported Dawn News.

The intensity of the explosion left windowpanes of the nearby buildings damaged.

The injured personnel were shifted to Quettas Combined Military Hospital for treatment.

No group has claimed responsibility for the incident so far.

It seems like a remote control IED blast, a senior police officer posted in Kuchlak told Dawn.
In a significant political development, Jana Sena Chief and renowned actor Pawan Kalyan have been sworn in as Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.

As the actor-turned-politician makes headlines with his new political role, it's a perfect time to revisit some of his memorable films that are available on OTT platforms. Heres a list of Pawan Kalyan movies available on various OTT platforms that showcase his versatility and charisma on screen:

When And Where To Watch Pawan Kalyan Movies:

Picture Of Pawan Kalyan/BCCL

1. Gabbar Singh (2012)



Poster Of Gabbar Singh/X

Where To Watch: Amazon Prime Video

Amazon Prime Video Storyline: In this action-comedy, Pawan Kalyan plays a cop with a flair for the dramatic, taking on a powerful local politician and his gang.

2. Attarintiki Daredi (2013)

Platform: Disney+ Hotstar

Disney+ Hotstar Storyline: This family drama revolves around a young man who returns to India from abroad to mend his estranged family relationships. Pawan Kalyan's performance adds charm and depth to the narrative.

3. Vakeel Saab (2021)

Poster Of Vakeel Saab/X

Platform: Amazon Prime Video

Amazon Prime Video Storyline: A powerful courtroom drama where Pawan Kalyan portrays a lawyer fighting for justice for three women. His intense performance is a highlight.

4. Tholi Prema (1998)

Disney+ Hotstar

Storyline: A classic romantic drama that showcases Pawan Kalyans early career brilliance. The films youthful charm and heartfelt storyline make it a must-watch.



5. Agnyaathavaasi (2018)

Still From Agnyaathavaasi (2018)/X

Platform: Amazon Prime Video

Amazon Prime Video Storyline: This action-thriller sees Pawan Kalyan in the role of a corporate heir on a quest for revenge. The film is noted for its engaging plot and Pawan's dynamic role.

6. Kushi (2001)

Platform: Netflix

Netflix Storyline: A romantic drama that explores the relationship between two close friends who navigate love and misunderstandings. Pawan Kalyans chemistry with the lead actress is endearing.

7. Badri (2000)

Platform: Aha

Aha Storyline: This action-romance flick features Pawan Kalyan as a carefree young man caught in a love triangle. The film's energetic pace and engaging narrative stand out.

8. Balu (2005)





Platform: Zee5 and Amazon Prime Video

Zee5 and Amazon Prime Video Storyline: A gripping story of ambition and love, where Pawan Kalyans character aspires to make a mark in life while dealing with his past.

With Pawan Kalyan stepping into his new ministerial role, fans can celebrate his political success by enjoying his cinematic journey through these remarkable films. Whether you are revisiting old favourites or discovering new ones, these movies are an example of his talent and star power.



Also Read: Ram Charan And Allu Arjun Congratulate Pawan Kalyan For Win In Andhra Pradesh Assembly Polls

For more news and updates from the world of OTT, and celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.


After the hearing today, the Supreme Court has halted the release of Annu Kapoor-starrer controversial film Hamare Baarah, which has been accused of derogatory portrayal of a particular community in the country. The SC has stayed the release of the film until Bombay High Court examines and resolves the case related to the objectionable scenes.

#SupremeCourt suspends screening of the film #HamareBaarah until disposal by Bombay High Court of the main petition challenging its release



"Until disposal of the petition before the High Court, screening of the movie in question shall remain suspended"  Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) June 13, 2024

"Until disposal of the petition before the High Court, screening of the movie in question shall remain suspended," the court said.

The Karnataka government has banned the film already

For the unversed, the film is already banned by the Karnataka government to avoid communal tension. The decision was reportedly taken by the government after several minority organisations' requested the same, after watching the trailer of the film starring Annu Kapoor, Manoj Joshi, Paritosh Tripathi, and Parth Samthaan.

Accusations of Islamophobia

I really dont want to jump the gu9 here and say something that this film might not be aboutbut by the looks of it @annukapoor_ seems to be promoting an islamophobic trope. And that would make kapoor your average hind00 du. https://t.co/VfWZLNr30b  poonam (@poonamkachanddd) August 7, 2022

Ever since the poster of the film was released, it was accused of Islamophobia. A lot of people objected to the film portraying Muslims as the cause of the population explosion. Director of the movie Kamal Chandra had earlier said that the poster of the movie isn't objectionable and needs to be seen in the right context.

What is Hamare Baarah about?

The film that highlights the issue of population explosion is about Manzoor Ali Khan Sanjari, who lost his first wife during childbirth and continues to have children with his second wife, who is now pregnant with their sixth. Despite doctors warning that the pregnancy endangers her life, Khan refuses to consider an abortion. Determined to save her stepmother, his daughter Alfiya takes her father to court to demand the procedure. The film delves into whether Alfiya can persuade her father and the court, while also challenging the deeply rooted patriarchy in their society.



The film was released on June 7 at 10 am.



For more news and updates from the world of OTT, and celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.




Union Minister Suresh Gopi started his career in movies and has now moved into politics, where he has made a significant impact. Alongside him throughout this journey has been Sinoj, who used to work as a makeup artist in Malayalam cinema. Sinoj has now become an important part of Gopi's political team, transitioning from the world of films to the realm of political influence over the past eighteen years.

Meet Sinoj: Suresh Gopi's ex-makeup artist, now a valued member of his political team

Sinoj With Actor Suresh Gopi/YT Scren Grab

From humble beginnings to political service

Starting with a passion for beauty and detail, Sinoj built a reputation in the makeup industry. His path changed when he met Suresh Gopi during a film shoot, where his profesionalism caught the eye of the actor-turned-minister.

In an interview with Onmanorama, Sinoj shared his joy about Suresh Gopi becoming a Union Minister, saying, "I am probably the happiest person. I have been with him for the last eighteen years, and I will continue to do so. Initially, I began as Sureshettan's makeup assistant, and it was unexpectedly that I became his personal makeup artist. I was nervous when I applied makeup on him for the first time, and Sureshettan knew that. After our first movie together, he asked if I wanted to continue in the next film too, and I've been with him ever since."



Embracing New Opportunities



Recognizing Sinoj's talent, Suresh Gopi invited him to join his staff, marking a significant career shift. Sinoj now handles administrative tasks, schedules, and communications for the minister, drawing on his organizational skills honed in the beauty industry.

Personal growth and dedication

For Sinoj, this role isn't just about job duties. It's an opportunity to learn about governance and public service, supporting Suresh Gopi in his political endeavours.

An inspirational journey

Sinoj's story exemplifies how dedication and adaptability can lead to unexpected career successes. From makeup brushes to ministerial duties, his journey inspires others to pursue their dreams with perseverance.

Grateful for the opportunities he's been given, Sinoj is eager to continue making meaningful contributions to Suresh Gopi's office. His story serves as a reminder to embrace change and seize new opportunities with determination.

Also Read: Lok Sabha Election 2024: Mohanlal, Mammootty And Others Congratulate Suresh Gopi For His Historic Win In Kerala

Also Read: List Of Actors And Other Celebrities Contesting Lok Sabha Elections 2024



For more news and updates from the world of OTT, and celebrities from Bollywood and Hollywood, keep reading Indiatimes Entertainment.


More than five decades after it mysteriously disappeared mid-flight, a search team has discovered the wreckage of a private jet in Lake Champlain in North America. The corporate jet was on its way from Burlington Airport to Providence, Rhode Island, on January 27, 1971, with two crew members and three passengers when it vanished.

17 search operations since 1971

While the authorities had concluded that the 10-seat Jet Commander had crashed in Lake Champlain based on its radio control tower data, search operations had failed to locate its wreckage. Since 1971, there have been at least 17 different search operations in Lake Champlain for the jet wreckage, but none of them could pinpoint the location of the crash.

Also read: Sunk By Indian Navy In 1971 War, Wreckage Of Pakistan's PNS Ghazi Found

Garry Kozak

Wreckage found using sonar

However, things changed last month after a team led by undersea searcher Garry Kozak started looking for it. Using a remotely operated sonar vehicle, Kozak's team says they have found what could be the remains of the ill-fated flight. According to Kozak, they found the wreckage of a jet with the same custom paint scheme in the lake, close to where the radio control tower had last tracked the plane before it disappeared.

Also read: Titanic Wreckage Will Now Be Protected Under A Treaty Signed By US And UK

Garry Kozak

99 per cent sure

"With all those pieces of evidence, we're 99% absolutely sure," Kozak said. According to him, the discovery of the wreckage after 53 years will bring some closure to the families of those who were on board. I'm just thrilled that we discovered it, and I'm really happy for the family members that are still around. They were hoping for many years that this would be located, and hopefully, this brings some closure, he said.

AP

Closure for families

While relatives are grateful and relieved that the plane has been found, the discovery also opens up more questions and old wounds. "Spending 53 years not knowing if the plane was in the lake or maybe on a mountainside around there somewhere was distressing. And again, I'm feeling relieved that I know where the plane is now, but unfortunately, it's opening other questions, and we have to work on those now," Frank Wilder, whose father was a passenger on the plane, told AP.

For more news and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.
The Guinness World Records organization constantly recognizes outstanding human achievements and a recent addition has sparked widespread online interest. Paulo Gabriel da Silva Barros and Katyucia Lie Hoshino, a Brazilian couple, are officially the world's shortest married pair. This honour emphasizes a joyful story of resilience and love.

Rather than submitting to cultural expectations, Barros and Hoshino have accepted their distinct physical qualities and formed a long relationship. Their story has captivated a global audience, pushing people to embrace diversity and acceptance.

When did the couple meet?

The pair met digitally in 2006 | Image: Instagram

The pair, who met digitally in 2006, had a strong bond for more than 15 years before marrying. At 31 and 28 years old, they are the shortest married pair ever documented.



Also read: Robot Shatters Guinness World Record, Solves Rubik's Cube 10 Times Faster Than Any Human

The announcement, made on the official Guinness World Records Instagram page, soon gained attention. Barros and Hoshino have inspired people of all ages with their deep happiness and persistent dedication to face life's hardships together.

What did the couple have to say?

"We may be short, but we have big hearts," the couple said.

They stated, "We may be short, but we have big hearts and a lot of love for each other and everyone in our lives. Our lives are not without obstacles, but we are grateful that we can face them together."



According to the Guinness World Records, the couple's combined height is 181.41 cm (71.42 inches). Paulo is 90.28 cm (35.54 in) tall, while Katyucia stands at 91.13 cm (35.88 in).

How did people on the internet react?

Social media users expressed their affection for the newlywed couple. A user commented, "Best couple." Another person commented: "Very beautiful. Congratulations to you both. Best wishes. Have a great day and weekend, everyone!"

Also read: 44-YO Indian Man Sets New Guinness World Record By Typing With His Nose For The 3rd Time

"Couple with pure love," the third user said on Instagram. Check the post here.

What do you think about this? Tell us in the comments.

For more trending stories, follow us on Telegram.
The Southeastern Europe Cooperation Process (SEECP) Summit convened in Skopje on Thursday, marking the conclusion of North Macedonia's presidency. Representatives from the 13 SEECP member countries, also known as the Inter-Balkan Cooperation, participated in the meeting. Greece was represented by Foreign Minister George Gerapetritis.

Gerapetritis emphsized

during his address at the SEECP Summit that continuous dialogue, abstention from divisive rhetoric and unilateral actions and the implementation of international agreements are of utmost importance for finding a sustainable path forward and ensuring stability, security and prosperity in our region.

Gerapetritis reaffirmed Greece's consistent support for the enlargement process in the Western Balkans since the Thessaloniki Declaration in 2003. Also noted that EU membership has always beenand continues to bethe cornerstone of our policy towards all our neighbors, both northern and eastern.

In this context, Athens "strongly encourages" and "welcomes" the renewed and intensified EU commitment to the European perspective of the Western Balkans, noted Gerapetritis. Also highlighted the establishment of the Reform and Development Facility for the Western Balkans, the financial tool for implementing the New Growth Plan and further integrating the region into the EU.

In a statement to ERT, Gerapetritis emphasized Greece's support for the European path for all Balkan countries, contingent upon their fulfillment of obligations and adherence to agreements.

"I attended the Inter-Balkan Summit in Skopje, conveying a message of peace, solidarity, and friendship to all countries in Southeastern Europe. Greece was among the leading advocates for establishing Inter-Balkan Cooperation and was instrumental in advancing the vision of a Europe encompassing all Western Balkan countries with the Thessaloniki Agenda in 2003," said Gerapetritis.

"It is crucial to ensure the European path for all Balkan countries and the wider region during a period of significant challenges, with two wars unfolding in our broader neighborhood," he stressed.

"Progress must be based on specific conditions, including respect for democracy, adherence to the rule of law, strict compliance with all international treaties, and unwavering agreement with all obligations related to the European Union and international law, as well as respect for minority rights," Gerapetritis emphasized during the conference.

"The path towards Europe must continue, and Greece will stand by these countries with respect for democracy and the rule of law, hoping Europe will become the broader family of all states."

Gerapetritis' visit to Skopje and his involvement in the SEECP Summit received extensive coverage from local and international media.

FM Gerapetritis meets Turkish counterpart on sidelines of SEECP Summit

FM Gerapetritis held a meeting with Turkish FM Hakan Fidan in Skopje on the sidelines of the Southeastern Europe Cooperation Process (SEECP) Summit.

During their 20-minute meeting, discussions focused on bilateral cooperation on migration. They also conducted an initial assessment of the bilateral agreement for issuing tourist visas to ten Greek islands in the Aegean with the results being described as encouraging.

They also discussed the situation in the Middle East, specifically the progress of negotiations based on the US proposal for a ceasefire in Gaza.

The situation in Ukraine was also addressed in light of the upcoming peace conference being held on Saturday and Sunday in Switzerland.

   iefimerida.gr
A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, Bode George has charged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to look into what he described as hardship in his government.

Chief Bode, during an interview with PUNCH on Wednesday, while celebrating Democracy Day, emphasized that excuses will no longer be accepted to justify failure in Tinubus administration.

He added that the President must explain the brain behind every policy of his government and let the people feel the actual impact of democracy.

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He said: I told people, I said dont start firing Bola (President Tinubu) for now because he has just completed one year. He had never served there before. So, give him that one year, that is, May 2023 to May 2024. But its over; he cannot pretend now that he doesnt know the situation on the ground.

What are we celebrating? There is hunger in the land, and there is anger in the land. Mr. President, from today that he is celebrating democracy day let the people feel the actual impact of democracy. Let us go through the rigours and complete the procedure of normalcy of civilised behaviour.

Look at Great Britain, the Conservative party has been in power for about 16-18 years, now the people are tired and you see the results of their election. Look at India, 686 million people voted. The total number of voters in Nigeria is not up to 20 million and we cant manage it.

READ MORE: Fulfill Your Promise Of Hope, Nigerians Are Angry  Bode George To Tinubu

We are drowning in the last nine years. From now on, going forward, Bola (President Tinubu) would have no excuse anymore. He must explain every policy that is done.

We are not playing politics now. We just want to see. I told people to leave him alone (President Tinubu). Last year, he was learning. Now, where do we go? How does he manage the system in a manner to makes life more meaningful for the people?

I grew up in Lagos Island, I went to my primary school in Lagos Island; there was quality education and discipline. We learnt and this is what has kept us to this level till today. Look at what those schools are doing today. Younger ones are more interested in yahoo yahoo (internet fraud); shortcut to making money and then what do you do with ill-gotten money?
Vice President Kashim Shettima, on Wednesday, urged Nigerian doctors to remain in the country and work with the current administration to improve the nations situation.

Speaking during a visit of the National Executive Committee of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA), led by its President, Bala Audu, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, Shettima appealed to the doctors to resist overseas opportunities amid the Japa syndrome.

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According to him, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is committed to their welfare and has deep empathy for those who choose to stay and serve their country.

READ ALSO: Democracy Day: I Understand The Economic Difficulties We Face, Ill Always Listen To You  Tinubu Assures Nigerians

He further commended the significant contributions and sacrifices of Nigerian doctors in advancing healthcare delivery.

Let us stay back and salvage this nation together. This is our country, the greatest black nation on earth, and a promising nation that we need to invest in, Shettima said.

He also encouraged the NMA to motivate young doctors to specialise in key medical disciplines and to combat the activities of unqualified practitioners.
The Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Matthew Kukah, has stated that democracy is struggling in Nigeria because it wasnt culturally made by the people.

His statement is coming amid celebration of the countys 25th year of uninterrupted democracy today, in Abuja.

Kukah led this out at The Platform Nigeria, a programme by Lagos-based church, Covenant Nation, to mark the 2024 Democracy Day on Wednesday.

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The cleric disclosed that Nigerias democracy was not founded on the countrys historical, cultural or anthropological experiences unlike Europe, where it is built by philosophers.

He said: What is missing in our conversation is that unlike where the principles of democracy were founded on the thinking of several philosophers from Plato, Socrates, Aristotle etc, our democracy has paid very little attention.

READ MORE: Tinubus One Year In Office Not Enough To Judge His Performance  Kukah

We have been involved intellectual conversations about democracy but modern liberal democracy as we understand it today benefitted extensively from the work of people like St Augustine and St Thomas Aquinas.

It is also quite significant that Joe Biden even in his presidential address had to quote St Augustine and it means therefore that it is the teachings and philosophies and theology of some of these scholars that led the foundation to what we call democracy today.

Unfortunately, our democracy is in decline, is in recession precisely because it is evident to us that what we are working with is not something that that come from our own historical, cultural or even anthropological experiences.
The Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has accused some ministers and colleagues of the former Governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, of shielding him from prosecution.

Recall that Bello has been in a legal battle with the EFCC over alleged N80.2bn fraud.

Following a failed attempt to arrest him and his repeated absence from court for his arraignment, the EFCC declared Bello wanted, while the Nigerian Immigration also placed him on watchlist.

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Effa Okim, EFCCs acting Zonal Director, Benin Zonal Command, during a familiarisation visit on Wednesday to the Delta State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists in Asaba, said Bello had ridiculed the Nigerian justice system by failing to present himself for trial in court.

Speaking on why the EFCC hasnt arrested Bello months after he was declared wanted, Okim claimed that the he was being shielded by some political masters and associates.

His words: This is the last question I expected because the shame is on all of us. Is that a question I should answer alone? Its not me, it is the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

That politically-exposed Yahaya Bello, whose crime has been traced to him by the allegation and has been invited by EFCC to come and explain, and for months he is acting drama and we are all here wanting to ask questions! The shame is our own shame!

READ ALSO: N80.2bn Fraud: Only A Coward Thinks He Can Run And Hide; Well Smok You Out  EFCC Takes Swipe At Yahaya Bello

Cant we catch him? We can, but do we go all out to catch him? Do we need to do that when he has his masters? Cant they call him and tell him, You are disgracing Nigeria What are you telling the world? Tell him to go and explain himself like others have done.

Where are the ministers? Where are Yahaya Bellos colleagues, even in his hiding? So, Nigerians cant tell him This is not fair, go and report; they are not going to kill you? But people are still eating and dining with him.

Where has morality gone before legality that we cant summon that man and tell him to go and report himself to the EFCC? Some persons are writing, supporting him, while some are criticizing the commission.

The problem is our own problem that borders on Nigerias image. Our children are watching their parents behave like children.

To me, the truth has vanished. Even in Animal Farm, this will not happen, that a man who was part of the system that was a custodian of our culture, rules and laws can behave like this and you are asking questions.

The media should come out for the first time to harmonise, criticise that action and forget about prosecution but tell him to make himself available; thereafter we know what to do.
The Abia State Police Command has dismissed Police Corporal Obagi Njok from the Nigeria Police Force due to discreditable conduct and firearms usage.

This followed the cops alleged misuse of a firearm, which resulted in the death of an Abia-born businessman named Emmanuel Okocha.

This is stated in a statement released to newsmen by the commands Police Public Relations Officer, ASP Maureen Chinaka, on Wednesday.

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According to reports, the suspect faced disciplinary action and was found guilty of firearm misuse following a comprehensive investigation by the police command, and would be charged in court on criminal charges.

The statement reads, Disciplinary actions have been concluded by the Abia State Police Command. Relevant stakeholders including the family of the deceased were carried along at every step of the process.

Police Corporal Obagi Njok (as he then was) was found guilty of discreditable conduct to with misuse of a firearm and has therefore been dismissed from the Nigeria Police Force. Investigation into the criminal aspects of his conduct has also been concluded and the matter has therefore been handed over to the office of the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice Abia state on 24/05/2024 for prosecution in court.

The Abia State Police Command remains steadfast in upholding professionalism and the rule of law. We unequivocally condemn any act of misconduct, unprofessionalism, and indiscipline among our officers.

READ MORE: Korede Bello Credits Fathers Warning For His Decision To Avoid Smoking

According to PUNCH Metro, Njok was detained by the Abia State Police Command on Wednesday, April 17, 2024, for reportedly shooting Okocha dead at a checkpoint after he refused to give him money.

ASP Maureen Chinaka, the Police Public Relations Officer, stated on Saturday that Njok was assigned to the Abayi Police Division prior to the event.


Former Kaduna Central Senator, Shehu Sani, on Wednesday, urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to pardon the EndSARS protesters, who are still in detention.

Many Nigerian youths protested across the country against the excesses of the now-disbanded Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) unit of the police in October 2020.

After a series of protests, many protesters were arrested in cities such as Lagos, Rivers, and Ibadan, some of whom have remained in detention.

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Sani also disclosed that the national anthem alone cannot unite a nation.

According to the socio-political commentator, only ideals of freedom, justice and equity brings true unity.

Speaking at a special dinner organized to mark Democracy Day at the State House Conference Centre in Abuja, he also told President Bola Tinubu that he had a duty to succeed.

His words: Mr President, I would like to draw your attention to this fact and this truth. A national anthem cannot unite a nation, a national pledge cannot unite a nation, a constitution cannot unite a nation.

READ ALSO: Tinubu Didnt Cause Economic Hardship  Soludo

A nation is united by the ideals of freedom, a nation is united by equity and by justice.

This democracy was not a gift given to us by the military, it was not a lottery that we won, it was a product of struggle and sacrifice.

Mr President, you have a duty to succeed. If you succeed, we will share your glory because you came from the trenches, you came from that struggle, you came from that period of struggle.

Mr President, if you fail, they will say that those of you who fought for democracy have nothing new to offer Nigeria.

Nigeria had recently reverted to the old national anthem  Nigeria we hail thee, used from independence in 1960 until 1978

Speaking about those still in detention, Sani said the Nigerian youths who protested against SARS took after Tinubu, who, according to him, was at the forefront of the struggle for the return of civilian rule in the country.

Mr. President, there are some people who are still in detention as a result of EndSars protest. They were young people who were protesting for justice, freedom, and democracy.

Any young protester in Nigeria today should learn from you because you were the father of protest in Nigeria. Do something about it. Give them the freedom; give them the pardon.

You taught us; you funded us to stand up and fight. So, they are your children and grandchildren; give them pardon, Sani said.
Flemington, N.J.-based beauty influencer Samiyah Gaddy is suing hair-care company Ebin New York for $10 million, alleging that she faced racial discrimination and harassment while employed by the company for six months. Read more

A local beauty influencer is suing popular Korean-owned beauty brand Ebin New York for $10 million in damages over claims of workplace discrimination, harassment, and intimidation, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday.

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The suit builds on a viral four-part storytime Samiyah Gaddy posted to TikTok in April, where Gaddy alleged she was the only Black women in corporate at Ebin from August 2023 to January 2024, when she was employed as a full-time social media marketing associate.

In the series  which has received a combined 4.3 million views  Gaddy claims she was wrongfully terminated after filing a complaint with Ebins human resources department that detailed a series of racist behaviors from the companys CEO, her direct supervisor, and several coworkers.

Gaddy was made to screen resumes for Black-sounding names, she said, deliberately excluded from meetings with her Korean coworkers, and forced to stay in subpar accommodations on work trips, among other alleged aggressions.

There is nothing real about Ebin New York, the lawsuit reads. It markets to Black American women. Yet it refuses to allow Black American women to have a seat at the table  [pillaging] the Black community for its buying power but [refusing] to empower the minuscule number of Black employees that it employs.

Gaddys story has inspired Black women to boycott Ebins hair-care products, drawing attention to entrenched racial inequity within the beauty industry.

A 2022 report from McKinsey & Co. found that Black women are responsible for $6.6 billion in beauty spending a year, yet they are underrepresented at all levels at cosmetic companies, even after brands made pledges to improve hiring diversity.

Sometimes, these disparities trickle down to consumers: Makeup brand Youthforia came under fire after refusing to apologize for offering a jet-black foundation instead of increasing its shade range, while Tarte Cosmetics has drawn backlash for failing to invite Black influencers on their notoriously luxurious brand trips.

 READ MORE: Youthforia finally responds a month after foundation backlash  beauty influencers are still mad

Still, Gaddy believes the worst of it starts in the workplace.

Im soured on corporate America, Gaddy, who lives in Flemington, N.J., told The Inquirer. They use us [Black women] for our ideas and then make a big profit out of it.

Microaggressions, hiring discrimination, and retaliation

Gaddys lawsuit describes Ebin  which was founded in 2014 by Korean CEO John Park to sell Black hair-care products  as a hostile work environment that subjected Gaddy to severe and pervasive race-based harassment.

Ebin New York is being represented by Philadelphia-based employment law firm Marshall Dennehey. The company categorically denies all allegations, according to a statement sent to The Inquirer. We intend to vigorously defend these claims in a court of law, and not in a court of public opinion.

They did not respond to requests for workplace demographics or company diversity, equity, and inclusion policies.

Gaddy said alarm bells started ringing when she went in for a job interview last summer assuming Ebin was a Black-owned business, only to learn that the Black women she saw were contract workers hired to test products.

From then on, Gaddy alleges, she was ostracized based on her race.

 READ MORE: From 2023: This Philly woman went mega-viral by mocking gross cooking TikToks. Like many Black creators, her fame hasnt been profitable.

I was going through it every day just to cry in the bathroom to my mom on the phone, said Gaddy, who is being represented by the Lacy Employment Law Firm in Philly.

A week after she started, the lawsuit claims, Gaddy was left in the office alone while the rest of her department went on a business trip to New York that she was supposed to attend. Around the same time, Gaddys team  including Park, the CEO  began speaking almost entirely in Korean around her to ensure that Gaddy could not contribute in the workplace.

When Gaddy expressed concerns about workplace culture to a coworker, the lawsuit alleges, he dismissed them by saying, You wouldnt understand, Im Korean.

Later on, Gaddy alleges she was asked to screen a resume to see if the candidate had a Black name, and was criticized by her supervisor for refusing to follow along.

They hire their own kind of people. So if their name sounds different  they want to know that, Gaddy said of Ebin. I have no idea why they would be asking that of me otherwise.

 READ MORE: This Philly influencers virtual academy is helping BIPOC creators navigate pay discrimination. It has a 5,200-person waitlist.

Things came to a head when Gaddy filed an HR complaint in November after being made to stay at a low-rate hotel with safety and sanitation issues on a solo business trip to Atlanta. A month later, claims the lawsuit, Gaddy received a warning for insubordination.

On Jan. 12, Gaddy was officially terminated for failing to meet key performance metrics. Gaddy, however, believes she was actually fired in retaliation for her complaints of race discrimination and harassment, according to the lawsuit.

Gaddy has no regrets: If I didnt go to HR, I wouldve just let it happen.

#workplaceproblems  original sound - Miylifestyle @miylifestyle What put the icing on the cake for me. Thank you all for supporting me as I go through these next steps. Any beauty/ fashion brands who 100% SUPPORT BLACK PEOPLE, contact me, lets work!! #ebin

Your worth is less than minimum wage

Gaddy told The Inquirer that the aftermath of her termination has been a mixed bag of emotions. She feels vindicated by the hordes of comments validating her, but the experience overall has been very triggering.

I was very depressed. Im still looking for therapy, said Gaddy, who had to move back in with her mom after being fired.

Gaddys social media presence wasnt always met with positive affirmation.

After Gaddy informed her coworkers of her termination  but before she made her story public  Gaddys TikTok and Instagram were littered with comments from faceless accounts that used racial slurs while alluding to her firing, according to the lawsuit. She believes Ebin hired someone to smear her.

 READ MORE: Workplace discrimination rules are getting an update. Is your business ready?

Your worth is less than minimum wage, read a comment from one user, a screenshot of which was included in the lawsuit. Others encouraged Gaddy to go flip mo burgers and claimed she cannot keep a real job.

Since going public, however, Gaddy said shes received nothing but positive messages from her former colleagues.

They were so proud of me for speaking up for myself, It made me feel relieved.

For now, Gaddy plans to keep speaking out on social media about her time at Ebin. She also hopes to spotlight more Black-owned businesses.

At the end of the day, my word is the truth, said Gaddy.
Alex Leon walks past Yuliya Semenovas mural "Home is Where We Are," on the side of Tuck Barre & Yoga on 7th Street near Rodman in Washington Square West. Read more

A Washington Square West resident is waging a one-person battle against a new  and temporary  mural by a Ukrainian native that the artist says is about hope and being an immigrant while witnessing your home country in a midst of war.

Despite social media posts to the contrary, the battle has not yet been won and the mural remains in place. But the lone dissenters complaints have resulted in a campaign by Mural Arts Philadelphia to gather and gauge residents reactions to the piece, the results of which will ultimately determine its fate, said Chad Eric Smith, Mural Arts spokesperson.

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There just happens to be one dissenting voice that we are aware of, but out of due diligence we want to make sure we have a formal aggregation of feedback, Smith said.

None of this makes sense to us

Artist Yuliya Semenova installed her first Mural Arts piece, Home is Where We Are, in mid-May on the side of Tuck Barre & Yogas Washington Square West studio on 7th Street near Rodman.

The vibrant mural, which Smith said was approved and enthusiastically welcomed by the buildings owner, features dandelions, the Philly skyline, the colors of the Ukrainian flag, abstract shapes, and a black plume of smoke.

I hope this mural can help you feel my gratitude to Philadelphia for welcoming me, and my feelings of hope that life will always find its way out of destruction, Semenova wrote on the accompanying description.

Readers alerted me this week to social media posts from Tuck Barre & Yoga, which said that Despite an overwhelming amount of written support, the mural was being taken down because of one vocal neighbors complaints.

None of this makes sense to us, the posts read.

It didnt make any sense to me either. Who prefers beige walls over murals (and do they also hate puppies)? What did the individual find so offensive about this particular piece (the Philly skyline)? And how can a lone dissenter get a public art installation taken down? (I dont get that Bolt of Lightning sculpture at the base of the Ben Franklin Bridge, but Im pretty sure I cant complain my way into getting it removed.)

My requests to talk to the artist, the owners of Tuck Barre & Yoga, and the complainant all went unanswered (so Im not naming the dissenter in question), but Smith and Councilmember Mark Squilla, whose district covers the mural, were able to clue me in to whats going on.

What is really happening

The artwork is part of a new Mural Arts pilot project called Small Walls, which gave three emerging artists the opportunity to create their first mural. Each mural would be temporary, in place for only a year. Short-term installations arent new, Smith said, and a February call-out for applications indicated that the works would be temporary.

While Squilla said its not necessary, Smith said its customary for Mural Arts to engage community members prior to the installation of a mural.

From my understanding, the person managing the project, his outreach to the community beyond the building owner wasnt as sufficient as we typically try and ensure, Smith said.

Once installation began, so too did the complaints. Its unclear who this person messaged or how many messages were sent, but Squilla and Smith said their offices both received emails.

In broad strokes, they were quite verbose. They thought it was unsightly  and at one point they called it an eyesore, Smith said. The person who complained was insistent on referring to it as graffiti.

Squilla said his office forwarded the complaints to Mural Arts, but took no further action.

Its private property so we dont have any authority over private property, but Mural Arts has a policy they go by, Squilla said. I said, Whatever you guys decide, Im with you.

Squilla said its not the first complaint his office has received about a mural, but in every case, hes supported whatever Mural Arts decides.

Everybody has their own ideas on what art is and how it speaks to them, but we support the program, he said.

The Whos and the Cratchits

Mural Arts tried to meet with the complainant in person and over the phone about their objections, but they declined their invitations, according to Smith.

And so, despite receiving overwhelmingly positive feedback to the artwork, Mural Arts  of its own volition  decided to start polling residents this week to determine their opinion on the mural. Fliers with a QR code to a survey about the mural were also posted in the neighborhood, according to Smith.

Since there was a person expressing displeasure, even if theyre in the minority, we want to make sure we take in to consideration everyones voices, he said. Well make our decision based on the feedback we receive.

I think its awfully gracious of Mural Arts to do so. Yes, their standard protocol for community engagement prior to the installation was not followed as closely as usual, but they fell on their sword for it  and outreach is not a legal requirement in the first place, since the mural is on private property.

I dont know why the original complainant didnt want to speak to Mural Arts, but it feels like a troubling trend indicative of a larger problem in our society. People want to complain, to tear something or someone down, but they dont actually want to have a conversation about it, especially one which could force them to explain the position theyve taken, or, even make them reconsider it.

It does spark a broader conversation about dissenting voices when theyre in the minority and how much space and oxygen to provide, Smith said.

Despite the residents complaints, art is still happening on every corner of this city, every day.

I cant help but think of the Grinch or Ebenezer Scrooge, how they hated what brought others joy, but how that hatred never stopped or hardened the hearts of those who were the recipients of it.

The Whos still had their roast beast, the Cratchits still had each other, and Philly still has its artists and murals, and always will.
Pennsylvanias lack of funding for public defenders is so pronounced that the state is depriving citizens of their constitutional rights to due process, equal protection, and an effective lawyer even if they cant afford one, according to a new lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania.

The suit, filed Thursday in Commonwealth Court, says the lack of state funding for indigent defense in criminal cases has significantly compromised the ability of public defenders to provide adequate representation to their clients, with overwhelming caseloads and a lack of resources hampering their ability to investigate cases, file motions, or prepare for crucial stages of the process.

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The suit recounts experiences from people who said they were charged with crimes and went months without being able to reach their public defenders, watched hearings occur without their lawyers present, or decided to file motions on their own because their defenders hadnt done so.

One woman, charged last year in Schuylkill County with felony trespass and related offenses, said her attorney had never visited her in person  but had filed a petition to have her involuntarily committed to a mental health treatment facility.

Vic Walczak, legal director of the ACLU Pennsylvania, said in an interview that the one thing thats crystal clear is that the current system is not working.

There are a lot of services municipal government provides that are, lets say, nice  but this is constitutionally required, Walczak said. People need to have faith that anybody who is facing jail time is going to get effective representation, and the consequences of this failure are dramatic.

How is public defense currently funded?

The suit is the latest development in an ongoing debate over public defense in the state. The vast majority of funding for indigent defense is left up to individual counties, and last year, when state lawmakers for the first time allocated $7.5 million for indigent defense, it made Pennsylvania the second-to-last state in the nation to provide some form of statewide money to public defenders.

Gov. Josh Shapiro has said he will seek to raise the allocation to $10 million in the budget for the next fiscal year. Manuel Bonder, a spokesperson for the governors office  which is named as a defendant in the suit, along with House Speaker Joanna McClinton and Senate President Pro Tempore Kim Ward  said in a statement Thursday that Shapiro has advocated for public defense funding throughout his career, which is why he delivered sustained, dedicated state funding for public defenders for the first time ever in Pennsylvania.

Shapiro has made it clear he believes every Pennsylvanian deserves fair and equal treatment under the law  and he is going to continue to fight for fairness in our criminal justice system, Bonder said.

Nicole Reigelman, spokesperson for McClinton, a former Philadelphia public defender, said McClinton has used that experience to inform her policy agenda and support policies seeking to improve indigent defense. McClinton also continues to advocate for additional dollars to be put toward public defenders in the state budget, Reigelman said.

Erica Clayton Wright, spokesperson for Ward, said Wards office had yet to receive the lawsuit and will need time to review before providing comment.

Walczak said that although any money from the Capitol represents a step forward, the states current funding proposals were a drop in the bucket.

The ACLU said in its suit that the total amount spent on public defense across Pennsylvania was about $125 million in 2020. By contrast, Michigan  which has a slightly smaller population, but a similar mix of rural, suburban, and urban counties  spent nearly $320 million on public defense last year, according to the suit. (The ACLU in Michigan filed and won a similar class-action lawsuit targeting that states public defense system more than a decade ago.)

In addition, because the majority of Pennsylvanias indigent defense funding comes from individual counties, Walczak said, defenders are forced to vie for funding with such essential public services as road repairs, nursing homes, or public housing.

Indigent defense gets low priority, Walczak said. By definition youre talking about people without money, and all of the people that were trying to represent in this lawsuit have been charged with crimes. Thats just not a constituency that most politicians are going to go to the mat for.

The ACLU said funding for indigent defense has been particularly woeful outside of Philadelphia, where the citys Defender Association has a budget of more than $60 million, the vast majority provided by City Council. In the states other 66 counties, the ACLU says, Pennsylvania is tied with Mississippi for the lowest-funded state indigent defense system on a per-capita basis.

What are the consequences of low funding?

The Defender Association of Philadelphia said in a statement Thursday that it supported the suit because this isnt just about money  its about justice and ensuring that everyone, regardless of their financial situation, gets the constitutionally required effective representation.

Walczak said the consequences of failing to live up to that standard are far-reaching. Some innocent people may be wrongfully convicted, he said, but even in cases in which someone may be guilty, competent representation can ensure a fairer process, a higher degree of advocacy for the accused, and ultimately a more just outcome.

Everybody should be getting a fair shake, he said. Were talking about basic effectiveness. ... And were just not seeing that, and not because the lawyers dont care  they just dont have enough hours in a day.

That assertion echoes findings from a recent study by the University of Pennsylvanias law school, which found that just six of the states 66 public defenders offices employed enough lawyers to adequately cover a typical annual caseload.

Walczak said the ACLU believes even more resources are needed to account for certain aspects of public defense that were not included in Penns analysis, such as the handling of juvenile cases, or probation or parole matters.

The ACLUs suit does not seek a specific monetary reward, but asks the court to find Pennsylvania in violation of the U.S. and state constitutions, which could ultimately force the state to develop a solution to fix the issue.
Former Central Bucks superintendent Abram Lucabaugh and former board president Dana Hunter, pictured in a July 2022 file photo. Lucabaugh resigned after Democrats won the November school board elections, and received a $700,000 separation agreement from the former GOP majority. Read more

The Democratic-led Central Bucks school board wont challenge the past GOP majoritys $700,000 separation payment to former superintendent Abram Lucabaugh  determining that its chances of winning the case were not worth the risks, board president Karen Smith said.

After months of investigating the separation agreement between the district and Lucabaugh  who abruptly resigned after Democrats swept Novembers school board elections  the board found ambiguity in state law regarding $274,000 that the former superintendent was paid for unused sick days, Smith said at a school board meeting Tuesday.

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A successful challenge also could have resulted in a judge nullifying the agreement, resulting in Lucabaughs reinstatement, Smith said. With former Lower Merion superintendent Steven Yanni taking over in Central Bucks next month, we do not want to risk having to reinstate Dr. Lucabaugh, she said.

Ari Karpf, an attorney for Lucabaugh  who had threatened to individually sue board members and the districts solicitor if they pursued a case, claiming they were retaliating against him  did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The announcement closes a chapter on the boards efforts to reverse the controversial agenda of the former GOP majority, which drew intense attention  and pushback  for policies restricting what were considered by some to be sexualized content in library books and staff advocacy in classrooms, including barring the display of Pride flags.

Although the board rolled back those policies, it didnt find a way to recoup money from Lucabaugh, who was supportive of the former leadership and given a 40% raise in the months before his resignation.

His separation agreement included a $315,000 severance payment  matching his increased salary. It also included nearly $300,000 for unused sick and vacation days.

Although Pennsylvania school code limits severance payments to departing superintendents  with a cap of a years worth of salary and benefits for leaders leaving more than two years before the end of their contracts  Smith said it wasnt clear on sick days.

The law, passed in 2012 after outrage about former Philadelphia superintendent Arlene Ackermans more than $900,000 buyout, states that anyone in a first superintendent contract with a district can be paid out only for 30 sick days, said David Conn, solicitor for the Central Bucks board. Those days are supposed to be paid out based on a school districts plan governing administrator benefits; Central Bucks plan specifies that unused sick days are paid at $15 a day.

Lucabaughs contract, however, specified that sick days would be paid out at his per diem rate. Its not clear whether the language in the law regarding sick day payouts applied to Lucabaughs most recent contract, or only his first contract as superintendent, Conn said.

I do think at the end of the day, a court would conclude the sick day payout was excessive, Conn said Wednesday. But its not a slam dunk.

In a letter to Conn earlier this year, Karpf said that it was perfectly reasonable for the former board to have reached the separation agreement with Lucabaugh  arguing that the new board would have fired him, and Lucabaugh would have brought a wrongful termination lawsuit.

 READ MORE: Central Bucks former superintendent may lead a new district: At what point did people think this guy is a good fit?

Karpf noted that Central Bucks was represented in the agreement by Alfred DAngelo, a lawyer with Cozen OConnor, who had said it was legal.

If you truly believe the agreement was illegal, why is CBSD not pursuing a malpractice case and instead threatening litigation against Lucabaugh that could result in his reinstatement, Karpf said in the letter  noting that the board did not want Lucabaugh to return.

Karpf also accused Conn of illegally opening a Title IX investigation into whether Lucabaugh violated Title IX in his dealings with female employees under his direct supervision, saying that Conn had threatened to subpoena Lucabaugh, potentially for unethical leverage.

I am simply concerned that you have no idea what you are doing and that you are legally jeopardizing CBSD, Karpf said, saying that Lucabaugh was never once advised of any concern with his behavior during his 16-year tenure in Central Bucks.

Conn said Wednesday that Karpf had mischaracterized what we were doing, which was exploring whether there could be a Title IX complaint. Conn, who didnt comment on what the potential complaint was about, said there was never a formal complaint because there wasnt a complainant.

While Lucabaugh accused Smith of discriminating against him, and threatened to file lawsuits alleging he was retaliated against for complaining about her conduct and for his political affiliation, Smith said that threat had zero impact on her decision not to challenge the separation agreement.

Smith  who last year told Lucabaugh he could not claim to support fundamental human rights when you are supporting the same actions as the Nazis  said that I stand by the actions I took in the past.

I felt like I was doing my due diligence as a board member, and protecting the civil rights of my students, she said.
Central Bucks West High School was the site this week of an activist groups mobile billboard targeting a Spanish teacher accused of antisemitism. Read more

An activist group backed by GOP donors sent mobile billboards to the schools and homes of two teachers in the Central Bucks and Philadelphia school districts this week, saying it aimed to expose their antisemitic statements and vile beliefs.

The group, Accuracy in Media, targeted Ismael Jimenez, director of social studies curriculum for the Philadelphia district, and Youssef Abdelwahab, a Spanish teacher at Central Bucks West High School. Billboard trucks parked outside Philadelphia district headquarters Tuesday and Central Bucks West on Wednesday displayed their names and faces, describing Jimenez as a leader of hate and Abdelwahab as a leading antisemite.

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The other sides of the trucks featured a different message: calls for school choice. No one should be forced to send their kid to a geographically assigned school with an antisemitic educator, said Adam Guillette, Accuracy in Medias president, who previously launched Floridas chapter of the conservative Americans for Prosperity group and served as vice president at Project Veritas, which has targeted progressive groups with hidden-camera videos.

Accuracy in Media  which between May 2022 and April 2023 received most of its money from billionaire GOP donor Jeff Yass, a school choice proponent  sent billboard trucks outside the University of Pennsylvanias campus in December, calling for the resignation of then-president Liz Magill after she testified before Congress that calls for the genocide of Jews wouldnt necessarily violate Penns code of conduct.

The trucks deployed in Philadelphia and Doylestown this week listed web domain names with each teachers name; on Wednesday, they routed to the same website, which noted that the U.S. Department of Education is investigating allegations of antisemitism in both the Philadelphia and Central Bucks districts.

The website includes a form letter addressed to Gov. Josh Shapiro that reads: Antisemitism is embedded into Philly and Bucks County schools.  After seeing the federal investigation into Philly schools, it is now clear that the only solution is to expand school choice.

The acting superintendent in Central Bucks, Jim Scanlon, called the billboards a political ploy.

Right now, our focus needs to be on students graduating, and not this political protest, he said in an interview.

In a message to the community Wednesday, Scanlon said Central Bucks did not condone hate speech of any kind, referring to a previous statement condemning antisemitism and Islamophobia. He noted that the messages cited by Accuracy in Media were the subject of a legal matter that has been discussed publicly, at length, at our school board meetings. Scanlon also said all Central Bucks staff are taking an online antisemitism course.

Abdelwahabs social media presence has been a source of controversy for months in the district; he runs a business, AragApparel, that sells keffiyeh-inspired durags and posts frequently on an associated social media account in opposition to Israel. Three days after the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks on Israel, he posted: When people are occupied, resistance is justified! The mobile billboard from Accuracy in Media said: On October 10th, Youssef Abdelwahab posted in support of Hamas.

Abdelwahab  who previously told The Inquirer he would never advocate violence toward anybody  advises Central Bucks Wests Muslim Student Association. The federal civil rights complaint accusing the district of antisemitism cites posts by Abdelwahab as well as the club, including a prayer for Ramadan shared by the club that read Oh Allah, deal with the usurping Jews and the treacherous Zionists.

Abdelwahab said a student had accidentally shared the Ramadan post and took it down, though critics have objected to other posts, including one by Abdelwahab that said Israel was ethnically cleansing Christianity from Gaza, and another from the club that said the birthplace of Jesus is getting bombed on Easter. The complaint alleged Abdelwahab and the club were using blood libel  a centuries-old false accusation claiming Jews murder Christians for ritual purposes.

Scanlon said Abdelwahabs posts are a First Amendment issue. While he said in April that Abdelwahab hadnt violated any district policies, Scanlon said Wednesday that the district had investigated since then, and weve taken appropriate action, which I cant discuss. He did not comment on what policies may have been violated or any disciplinary measures. The teacher has done what weve asked him to do, he said.

The district is moving to change its policies around social media accounts for student clubs, Scanlon said  though the school board hasnt been able to agree on what extent the district should regulate those accounts. Students from the Muslim Student Association have also protested potential changes as restrictions on their speech, and say theyve been subject to unfair levels of scrutiny and harassment from adults in and outside the community.

Abdelwahab declined an interview request this week, but noted that Muslim and Jewish students in the district recently collaborated on a joint event and offered details about his experience with the mobile billboard.

The Spanish teacher said in a text message that the billboard truck was at his home in Germantown when he returned from work Wednesday, speaking to everyone passing by saying that I discriminate against Jews  Then when I pulled up they rushed towards me and got as close as possible to my home without stepping inside. He said a neighbor told them to stop harassing our Muslim brother.

Another mobile billboard this week targeted Jimenez, Philadelphias director of social studies curriculum. Accuracy in Media, on its online prompt to contact Shapiro, said that Jimenez has posted on social media that educators should focus on advancing their agenda rather than following the rules.

Jimenez didnt respond to a request for comment.

The federal complaint accuses the Philadelphia district of alleged incidents ranging from a swastika drawn on a door to fliers describing Israels military campaign against Gaza as genocide and a map of the Middle East handed out to Baldi Middle School sixth graders that replaced the name of Israel with Palestine.

Christina Clark, a spokesperson for Philadelphia schools, said that acts of discrimination, hate speech, and harassment are unacceptable whether by, or against, students and staff. The district takes all complaints of bullying, harassment, and discrimination seriously, including allegations of antisemitism and Islamophobia, and will take appropriate action to both investigate allegations and prioritize the well-being of all students and staff.

Baldi Middle School and Northeast High, where there have been allegations of antisemitism, are both diverse schools, a point of pride for the district, Clark said in a statement. If we all work to build bridges of empathy and understanding, and demonstrate respect, our young people will follow and will create a community where everyone feels valued and heard, Clark said.

Guillette said that Accuracy in Media would continue to be active in the Philadelphia region. He said the group, which uses hidden-camera investigative journalism, had been inside more than 250 school districts across the country, and had just completed an investigation into Pennsylvania schools.

The group has purchased 500 domain names for people it has targeted as antisemitic, Guillette said. They only have to apologize, and the group will remove their names, he said.
University of the Arts students, staff, and faculty march past campus buildings on South Broad Street Wednesday June 5, 2024 on their way to 1500 Market and a rally in front of the former law offices of UArts chair Jud Aaron. Read more

University of the Arts faculty, laid off en masse when the school closed abruptly June 7, are pressuring the Pennsylvania attorney general to launch a formal investigation into what went wrong in its catastrophic final days.

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The union that represents faculty  which is also attempting to push the universitys board of trustees into scheduling federally mandated bargaining sessions over closing terms  joined calls for investigations, sending a letter to the attorney generals office seeking support for a state probe.

The University of the Arts has provided little public information related to its financial collapse and imminent closure and subsequent loss of accreditation from the Middle States Council on Higher Education, union leaders wrote in the letter, circulated in an online petition.

Nevertheless, the university engaged in frequent marketing campaigns about its viability and prestige, grew its real estate and investment portfolio to a $200 million valuation, and placed multiple members on its board of trustees with significant financial and real estate development experience  individuals who would and should have been expected to exercise greater care and oversight of university operations.

A spokesperson for Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry said that officials are very concerned by the sudden closure of the University of the Arts and said the office was reviewing the circumstances of the closure and any transfer or loss of assets but would not confirm an investigation.

Separately, both State Rep. Ben Waxman (D., Philadelphia) and the Philadelphia City Councils education committee are holding hearings on the closure. The state hearing is scheduled for Monday at the William Way Center in Center City; no date for the city hearing has been announced.

Bradley Philbert, the faculty unions executive vice president and a former University of the Arts adjunct professor, said no one from the school will commit to sessions to begin impact bargaining over closure terms, as is legally required.

To that end, union members showed up outside board chair Judson Aarons home in the citys Queen Village section Wednesday to demand answers and hand out leaflets to neighbors.

UArts Board Chair Jud Aaron lives in your neighborhood. He closed the University of the Arts and laid off hundreds of staff and faculty with one week notice! Now he has no plan to negotiate with UArts Faculty & Staff Union? read a flier stuck under car windshield wipers and tacked to light poles.

More in-person actions are planned if no negotiations are scheduled, Philbert said.

Legal action continues

Four groups of faculty, students and staff have sued the university since the closure announcement.

Each of the lawsuits  including the latest, which was filed Wednesday in federal court by two former University of the Arts students  seeks class-action designation, which would allow the lawyers involved to lead the legal fight on behalf of all of University of the Arts former students and employees.

In two of the lawsuits, more than 20 former employees claim administrators violated a federal law requiring employers to give at least 60 days written notice of mass layoffs when they announced their intention to shut the university just a week before the closure.

Theyre seeking two months pay as well as money to cover their accrued vacation time and health benefits over the same period.

A judge has yet to set a hearing in those cases.

Though they originally began as separate lawsuits  one brought by a group of largely nonunion employees, and another filed chiefly by workers represented by the union  both groups signaled to the court this week that they intend to combine their cases and pursue similar legal claims. The students lawsuits  brought on behalf of 16 plaintiffs, many of whom were expecting to attend University of the Arts in the fall before its sudden closure  seek damages for fraud, breach of contract, unjust enrichment and unfair trade practices

They say the university cheated its students by failing to disclose its precarious financial position while continuing to recruit for and accept applications for the 2024-25 school year.

The abrupt closure of [the university] has caused considerable financial distress to its now former students who relied on its continuing operation and accreditation when they enrolled, obtained loans, and, in many instances, relocated to Philadelphia to attend, said attorney Joe Sauder, who is representing the two students who filed complaints on Wednesday.

Attorneys for University of the Arts have not yet responded to any of the legal actions in court, and university officials have not responded to requests for comment.

Staff writer Gillian McGoldrick contributed to this article.
Fox Chase Cancer Center has received a $10.8 million donation to support pancreatic cancer services and research. Read more

Fox Chase Cancer Center has received a $10.8 million donation to support pancreatic cancer services and research.

The donation comes from the estate of Concetta Chet Greenberg, a Philadelphia philanthropist who died shortly before her 100th birthday in 2021. This brings Greenbergs total donations to Fox Chase to nearly $20 million, all in honor of her late husband, Marvin, who died of pancreatic cancer.

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The $10.8 million will support The Marvin and Concetta Greenberg Pancreatic Cancer Institute at Fox Chase, created in 2017 with another donation from Greenberg.

The institute brings together doctors who treat patients with pancreatic cancer, and researchers focused on early detection and innovative treatment options.

Fox Chase Cancer Center is one of three National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer centers  the NCIs highest designation  in Philadelphia.

 READ MORE: Underrepresentation in clinical trials leads to cancer disparities, says Fox Chase Cancer Centers Camille Ragin

Jeffersons Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center was named a comprehensive cancer center in April.

Penn Medicines Abramson Cancer Center is also an NCI-designated comprehensive cancer center.
U.S. Sen. John Fetterman and his wife, Gisele, on stage during Gov. Josh Shapiro's inauguration ceremonies at the state Capitol in Harrisburg on Jan. 17, 2023. Read more

Sen. John Fetterman (D., Pa.) was at fault for a recent car crash in Maryland where he was found to have been speeding before ultimately rear-ending another vehicle on Sunday, according to a Maryland State Police report.

Fetterman, his wife, Gisele, and the other driver, a woman from Pennsylvania, were sent to the hospital after the crash, which occurred around 7:45 a.m. Both vehicles  Fettermans Chevrolet Traverse and the womans Chevrolet Impala  were towed after Fetterman was driving at a high rate of speed, well over the posted speed limit.

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A witness observed Fetterman rear-ending her car just before the exit for I-68 in Hancock, Md., between Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The speed limit was 70 mph.

Fetterman and his wife were evaluated at a local hospital out of an abundance of caution, according to a statement issued Monday by Carrie Adams, the senators spokesperson.

The police report listed the extent of damage for both parties as disabling.

Fetterman was treated for a bruised shoulder, and the couple was discharged Sunday afternoon, Adams said. Sunday was the Fettermans 16th wedding anniversary, according to the junior senator who posted Monday evening about the crash.

No citations were issued and the Maryland State Police is investigating. Fetterman nor the woman were tested for being under the influence of any alcohol or substances, police said.

A spokesperson for Fetterman did not immediately respond to The Inquirers request for comment on Wednesday.
Philadelphia aid groups meet migrants as they arrive by bus from Texas to Philadelphia, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2022. President Biden's new policy would restrict the ability of new migrants to apply for asylum. Read more

On June 4, President Biden issued a proclamation that would prohibit the ability of migrants crossing the Southern border to apply for asylum protection when daily average crossings exceed 2,500 in a given week.

President Bidens proclamation is a fundamental change to asylum policy, where any person coming to the U.S. because of a reasonable fear for their safety or persecution was traditionally afforded the right to seek refuge here.

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Even some 2,000 miles away from the border here in Philadelphia, immigrant community members are worried about the effects of the new restriction.

Its going to make it worse, said Daune Campbell, a Guyanese immigrant and leader with the New Sanctuary Movement of Philadelphia nonprofit.

We are looking at more deaths. We are looking at more people trying to get to the border, more families that are going to be broken both in the United States and outside of the United States because they are gonna [still] be trying to get here, she said.

Under Bidens new policy, daily crossing averages must fall to 1,500 or lower for a full week before migrants are able to apply for asylum again. The policy also states that unaccompanied minors and trafficking victims are exempt from Bidens proclamation, as well as other individuals with urgent needs based on the totality of the circumstances.

Campbell believes that limiting asylum wont dissuade many migrants from still trying to cross into the United States, it will just heighten the desperation that caused them to leave their home countries in the first place. She foresees more parents sending their children alone or with traffickers across the border, or migrants still attempting to cross with nothing to protect them legally against detention and deportation if theyre discovered.

 READ MORE: Abandon Biden activists disagree over whether to consider supporting Trump

They are actually cutting the branches, she said about the Biden administration. The root of this problem is still going to be there.

Similarities to the Trump administration

[There are] fewer legal ways to cross the border. And so the more we tighten up the ways to get in legally, the more that people are going to try to get in regardless. Because they need a place to settle, said Cathryn Miller-Wilson, executive director of HIAS Pennsylvania, an immigrant legal services organization.

Bidens policy, which uses similar legal justification to the Trump administrations Muslim ban, is already facing legal challenges, and more are on the way.

We intend to challenge this order in court. It was illegal when Trump did it, and it is no less illegal now, said Lee Gelernt, deputy director of the ACLUs Immigrants Rights Project, in a statement last week.

Miller-Wilson believes that these challenges should succeed based upon laws and legal precedents that have protected asylum seekers, but the conservative tilt of the Supreme Court makes it difficult to know what will actually happen.

I cant predict the current Supreme Court, but as an attorney, I believe that this is not a legal [policy], she said.

To Campbell, Miller-Wilson, and other members of Phillys immigrant community, the asylum restriction feels plainly political, since they dont believe it will solve any of the true immigration issues in the United States.

I see that this is just an opportunity [for Biden] to say, hey, I did something, Campbell said.

The broken system is not being fixed by you playing politics with human beings.
Jacqueline Romero, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, photographed at a news conference in 2022. Read more

Federal authorities on Thursday announced charges against 12 alleged members of a drug trafficking organization they blamed for injecting a staggering amount of fentanyl and firearms into North Philadelphia neighborhoods over the last year.

The groups leaders  Wilfredo Avila, 30  operated at last 14 stash houses across Fairhill, Kensington, and other parts of North Philadelphia between February 2023 and May of this year. They carried out drug deals in residential neighborhoods and often feet from the nearby Luis Munoz Marin Elementary School, prosecutors said.

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In addition to the drugs, Avila and other members of his organization are accused of selling dozens of firearms, including shotguns, ghost guns, and rifles, to their drug-using customers as a way of buying their loyalty and continued business.

Agents with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives seized more than 57 firearms, more than 50,000 doses of fentanyl and more than four pounds of cocaine in a series of coordinated raids that led to the arrests of Avila and nine other members of the organization last week.

The [drug trafficking organization] made large sums of money and protected its operations by selling drugs, carrying and using firearms, engaging in acts of intimidation and threats, even against the organizations own members, prosecutors said in recent court filings. It was exceptionally skilled at recognizing and calling out surveillance from law enforcement, making their illicit actions more difficult to detect.

The dismantling of Avilas alleged network comes amid a wider push by Philadelphia Mayor Cherelle L. Parker, the citys police and their state and federal law enforcement partners to more strictly enforce drug laws in the Kensington neighborhood, home to one of the nations largest open-air drug markets and an area hard hit by intractable twin scourges of addiction and gun violence.

Avila and his codefendants contributed to both, U.S. Attorney Jacqueline Romero said as she unveiled the 54-count federal indictment against them Thursday morning at a news conference in Center City.

What is the impact? she asked, responding to questions about the significance of the arrests. Were going to see on the daily. I think the people of Kensington will be able to speak to that. But this is a fairly significant takedown.

 READ MORE: Dozens of new police will soon be deployed to Kensington, and stricter drug enforcement will begin in mid-June

The investigation that led to the organizations dismantling began, Romero said, with intelligence from beat cops who regularly patrol the neighborhood and who reported on what they were encountering on the streets.

For 18 months, Philadelphia police and ATF agents surveilled the network and oversaw dozens of controlled buys using confidential informants, including one who was posing as a fellow drug dealer.

The probe, detailed in government court filings, revealed Avila to be a savvy businessman with a tight grip on his organization. His network was so efficient, prosecutors said, that he was able to go on vacation for a month in 2023, leaving his 59-year-old mother-in-law, Zaida Diaz, to oversee operations while he was gone. According to investigators, the groups illegal business continued without interruption until his return.

ATF agents believe Avila procured many of the firearms he sold over social media and with the assistance of his cousin Alexander Roman Delgado, 33, who they say served as both the organizations primary gun trafficker and muscle for the network during its illegal transactions with customers.

 READ MORE: Gun violence was more heavily concentrated in Kensington than almost anywhere else in the U.S. during the pandemic, NYT finds

Several of the firearms they sold were later recovered from crime scenes in Kensington, prosecutors said in court filings. But at her news conference Thursday, Romero did not identify any specific shootings they may have been used in, citing ongoing investigations.

Ultimately, I hope this takedown underscores the U.S. Attorneys Offices commitment to tackling the duel and deadly threats of narcotics and firearms and to holding the perpetrators accountable, she said.

Avila and his codefendants face significant prison terms should they be convicted on the counts of conspiracy, drug distribution, and gun trafficking with which they are charged in the indictment.

Four of them, including Avila and Delgado, face charges under a relatively new federal law that criminalizes transporting guns with the intent that theyll later be used to commit crimes.

That law  passed with bipartisan support in Congress in 2022  makes the offense punishable by up to 15 years in prison. Avilas prosecution is the first time federal prosecutors in Philadelphia have pursued a conviction under the charge.

Attorneys for Avila, Delgado, and Diaz did not immediately return requests for comment Thursday. Avila, Delgado, and six other members of the group remain in custody, without bail, after detention hearings held in federal court earlier this week. Two members, including Diaz, have been released pending trial.

Of the remaining two charged, one is in custody awaiting transfer to Philadelphia and another  Ahmed Perez, 28  remains a fugitive, Romero said.
Nicole Wyglendowski in her classroom during the pandemic on March 8, 2021. Read more

My first year of teaching in 2018, I was leveled. It was awful.

Leveling happens a few weeks into the school year, when district officials force teachers at schools with lower-than-expected enrollment to move to schools with too many students.

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For me and my students, the experience was heartbreaking.

I had just been hired, so I was the last one in and the first one out of James G. Blaine, an elementary school in the Strawberry Mansion neighborhood. I found out via an automatic email from the district, which my more seasoned colleagues explained was normal.

I was forced to report to the district office after school and wait four unpaid hours to be told I basically had one option: the Edward T. Steel elementary school in Nicetown.

I got the email the day before my sisters wedding and had to keep my cool all weekend as my family asked me how my new job was going. I smiled and said, Good, but nothing about what was happening was good for my students and the community.

My transfer left the other special education teacher with over 30 kids, far over the legal limit to have on a caseload, which ranges from eight to 20 kids. This process did not level anything at all  it just ripped a community from any sense of stability it could have had to save a quick dollar.

I didnt know it then, but Id end up happily calling Steel my home for the next six years.

But that doesnt make up for what my Blaine students and I had to go through. I still remember their faces when I told my class I was being transferred. I tried explaining that it wasnt my choice, but it didnt matter. The result was the same: I was just another teacher abandoning them.

The experience was enough to make me nearly quit altogether, which I dont say lightly. I love teaching and my students. Even amid a mass exodus of educators, I have no plans of leaving now.

So I am ecstatic that Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr. recently decided to end this controversial practice, after more than a decade of parent and community outcry against it.

However, leveling should have never even been an option. Equitable funding would have never put me and the Strawberry Mansion community through what the district put us through in 2018.

Leveling should have never even been an option.

For years, officials argued that leveling is the best and most efficient thing to do, to put teachers where they are most needed. In theory, this reduces teacher vacancies and is cost-efficient. However, in practice, this system damages learning across the whole school.

Removing a teacher from a classroom weeks after the school year begins is extremely disruptive to students, who have already built a foundation with their teacher. Research shows that students whose teachers leave midyear have lower test score gains than kids who get to keep the same teacher all year.

People may say leveling happens because of efficiency. But the real reason is inequity. Did other children in better-funded districts have to say goodbye to their teachers because of a systematic policy rooted in disruption? Or did they enjoy their teacher all year long, making growth and progress?

You already know the answer. Leveling doesnt happen in places like Lower Merion or Swarthmore.

The funding choices we make in Pennsylvania  which have resulted in chronically shortchanged districts like Philadelphia  have stolen years of progress from our children.

 READ MORE: My parents didnt let me apply to a magnet school. Im glad. | Opinion

Ive taught through the pandemic, substitute principals, and more. But the only thing that ever made me consider quitting was being leveled. The School District of Philadelphia nearly lost me altogether, and I am certain it has lost other teachers due to leveling.

Now that we are facing a nationwide teacher shortage, we need all the teachers we can get. We have vulnerable students who need teachers, and teachers deserve job stability. We need to continue to fund that stability like other, more wealthy districts are able to do. The deciding factor in stability in schools should not be zip code.

School funding directly affects students and families for generations to come; it is deeper and more personal than numbers on a page.

As we begin to dismantle unjust policies such as leveling and consider the implications of the 2023 court case that determined Pennsylvanias system of school funding was unconstitutional, I cant help but wonder: If this verdict had come sooner  say, before the fall of 2018  would the students at Blaine Elementary have had to go through such a big disruption?

What else can we do with adequate funding? What could our children achieve with equitable funding? I would like to find out.

In the meantime, we need to protect the children of Philadelphia and other underfunded districts so that policies like leveling dont return. We need our legislators to pass the proposed legislation that ensures an immediate down payment this year. It also locks in a seven-year timeline to ensure fully adequate and equitable funding, which allows our state to start on a path toward having enough money to properly educate our students. We cannot leave our most vulnerable students futures up to chance with any more disruptive and careless policies.

Even though leveling is gone, it should have never been implemented in the first place. We have work to do to make up for the effects of this devastating policy. Give our children a chance and fund stability in our schools.

Nicole Wyglendowski is a Teach Plus Pennsylvania senior policy fellow and a special education teacher in the School District of Philadelphia.
Jet (left) moves hair out of the authors face inside the couples home in Philadelphia this week. Read more

I grew up as a fan of romantic dramedies  I loved everything from The Princess Diaries and Youve Got Mail to Dan in Real Life and Mozart and the Whale. But despite my best efforts for a real-life happily-ever-after relationship, things would usually fall apart after a few months.

Healing is never linear, and sometimes experiencing a healthy relationship can be the most challenging of them all. My partner and I lovingly call our story, Seeking co-regulation partner for complex trauma recovery. Our love is one of healing and connection.

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When describing how we first met, my partner, Jet (she/they), recalls, Feeling like I could breathe in your company. The feeling was mutual.

As lesbians with a gender-variant twist (Im a trans woman and my partner is agender), we reflected on how hard weve worked to let our love burn slowly. We still recognize how fragile this relationship can be at times, opting for slower, trauma-informed mutual care that transcends whether or not we continue to call ourselves a couple.

Our love remains in the ability to continually choose each other, and thats what we try to do.

Like many queer couples, we have to navigate complicated mental health needs. The prevalence of post-traumatic stress disorder in the general population is around 6.8%. However, estimates go as high as 61% for transgender people.

For my partner, who is also Black, very little is understood about the exact rates of post-traumatic stress disorder among people of color; a 2018 study of 106 counseling professionals found that 71% had encountered race-based trauma in their clinical work.

Many studies find such high levels of trauma can cause many other chronic conditions to develop, such as bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and addiction. Disorders like these can be harder to identify when many of us in the transgender community lack access to health care compared with the general population. Jet and I both fight through so much stigma to feel seen within ourselves, our community, and this relationship.

For my partner, one of their core values is to experience love beyond forced responsibility and to push the limits of what a chosen family can be. However, finding your chosen family as a newly out trans woman can be isolating, and I struggled to let the right people in.

It would be inappropriate to reflect on your early transition, Jet told me recently, but I can reflect on the people you chose to surround yourself with in those early days, and how that personally affected my ability to trust you. But I saw how quickly you grow, and that made things a lot easier.

Even though the rate of change for both of us has been so rapid, nothing has felt more fulfilling than this relationship, Jet said. Its been challenging, but in a good way. I feel really grateful because it brings me joy to be in proximity to your experience as you get to know yourself.

Thats what I want for myself, Jet said. Thats what I want to surround myself with. And its just so cool that we dont have to do it by ourselves.

In the ongoing struggle for human rights and equality, the fight for trans rights occupies a critical space. Discrimination, marginalization, and violence continue to be major factors in our lives.

Its not a shocker that when it comes to romantic love, most of us report long-lasting intimacy as the highest-rated factor when seeking a relationship. And it makes sense. The benefits of being in a high-quality and satisfying relationship are widely understood. In addition to improved mental health and overall quality of life, studies find those in romantic relationships report higher self-esteem and lower levels of anxiety and depression.

However, reports also show only about half of trans relationships survive through gender-affirming care. Even well into transition, most trans adults I know continue to struggle to find healthy romantic experiences.

At a basic level, trans people deserve recognition, protection, and respect. But when those fights are already so exhausting, it can feel wrong to have to remind people we also deserve love.

Daisy Love James is a writer, musician, and audio engineer in Philadelphia.
A sign on the Fort McDermitt Indian Reservation, near McDermitt, Nev. Some in Congress are more than willing to prop up an outdated system to help the mining companies that help them win reelection, writes the Editorial Board. Read more

Bipartisanship in Congress isnt dead, but it shows up too infrequently, like two years ago when the Infrastructure Investment Act was passed. That spending law touches almost every aspect of American life by providing long-needed federal money to rebuild roads, bridges, and rails, expand access to clean drinking water, and bring high-speed internet to rural and other deprived areas.

Less visibly, feuding Republicans and Democrats often agree on issues they may want to get less public attention. Sometimes thats because rather than fulfilling their constitutional duty to promote the nations general welfare, they are helping the politically active corporations that fund their election campaigns and provide jobs in their home states.

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The super slim majorities in Congress in recent years have made that brand of bipartisanship much easier. You need only a handful of folks from the other team to change sides to win a game. That appears to be happening now as the Senate considers legislation already passed by the House that would further weaken this countrys practically irrelevant 1872 mining law.

 READ MORE: Congress needs to get serious about AI oversight | Editorial

Nine Democrats helped to pass the House bill, including cosponsor Mary Peltola of Alaska, who represents one of the Western mining states most affected by the ruling. They want to neuter a 2022 Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruling that said the U.S. Forest Service violated the nations 152-year-old mining law by allowing Rosemont Copper Co. to dump mining waste on federal land in Arizonas Santa Rita mountains without first obtaining a valid mineral claim.

The mining law prohibits the federal Bureau of Land Management from issuing a claim until a mineral deposit has actually been found. Consequently, the court ruled that without a claim, Rosemont must stop dumping rocks and running power lines on nearby federal land where its miners are not looking for the zinc, manganese, and lithium needed to make electric car batteries.

Democrat Catherine Cortez Masto of Nevada and Republican Jim Risch of Idaho are cosponsors of the Senate version of the bill that would allow mining companies without claims to nevertheless keep dumping waste on nearby federal land. Some of these grounds are considered sacred by Native American tribes. My legislation will undo the damage of the misguided Rosemont decision and protect thousands of jobs across the West, Cortez Masto said.

Begging to differ, Democratic Rep. Melanie Stansbury of New Mexico said the proposed law will open the door to disaster. Under this bill, any American  or frankly any American subsidiary of a foreign company, including those that are located in adversarial countries  can put four stakes in the ground and on open public lands pay less than $10 an acre per year to have exclusive rights to that land forever, Stansbury said.

The Biden administration might have been tempted to side with the miners, given its commitment to the clean energy technology that requires the minerals involved. But the White House instead pointed out that the bipartisan bill opens the door for mining companies to thwart competition by obtaining claims before finding any minerals by simply paying the nominal fee required under the outdated mining law.

The administration also cited a U.S. Department of the Interior opinion issued after the Rosemont ruling that said even when a claim has been issued, it should not be used to conduct ancillary activities on land miners dont plan to mine. The opinion said dumping rock waste, for example, could result in the permanent occupation of federal lands and foreclose any future possibility of the profitable extraction of minerals from them.

That likely means very little to conservative members of Congress and judges who, rather than listen to federal agencies, seem more intent on undermining what they call the deep state.

 READ MORE: Pa. lawmakers must join other states in fighting the rise of exorbitant hospital facility fees | Editorial

Like so many other issues, this one requires more than a Band-Aid solution. The overarching problem is a 152-year-old mining law that was relevant when prospectors were looking for silver and gold in them thar hills but fails to address todays realities.

Its past time to replace that archaic document, but that wont happen without broader bipartisanship than the coalition of Republicans and Democrats who in their hearts know their effort to gut the Rosemont ruling is like looking at trees without seeing a forest. They are trying to prop up an outdated system to help the mining companies that help them win reelection by boosting their states economies.

Maybe thats why 248 years later, some still refer to the American system of democracy as an experiment. We still havent mastered how to use it as effectively as it should be. People elected to Congress still tend to put their states or regions above the good of the nation as a whole.

Thomas Jefferson worried about that; its still a worry now. Can we at least find enough unity to update our enfeebled mining law?
Measured reaction

Two fair verdicts. Two very different reactions. Addiction is a horrible disease, but as the jury stated in its verdict against Hunter Biden, that is not an excuse to break the law. The Biden family respected the process. It hurt the family to see their son convicted, but to their credit, they stood by his side the entire time. Unfortunately, many families in this country are in the same place. Justice has spoken, and the Bidens have painfully listened.

Donald Trump? He was also found guilty, but he thinks hes above the law. Most of his family, especially his wife and daughter, did not stand with him. He has continued to reject the justice system and has not accepted the verdict. He has verbally attacked the judge. Everyone is wrong except him! The citizens of this country are watching. Is there really any question as to who is better to lead this country?

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Michael J. Makara, Mays Landing

Value judgment

When I first learned House Speaker Mike Johnson had chosen Scott Perry and Ronny Jackson for the House Intelligence Committee, I was deeply concerned but certainly not surprised given the speakers penchant for acquiescing to Donald Trumps directives. By appointing two extremist folks hopelessly enamored with and fervently devoted to anything Trumpian, Johnson hopes to solidify his tenuous hold on the speakership. Johnsons appearance outside Trumps trial earlier this month, where he railed against the corrupt judicial system, was a public show of support for the presumptive Republican candidate for president.

There was a time when elected officials placed loyalty to the nation ahead of any sitting or former president. Johnson epitomizes the current Republican mindset that prioritizes retaining power and position at any cost while jeopardizing the safety, security, and advancement of the nations welfare. Hopefully, voters will elect a president who puts country first, party second, and self-aggrandizement last.

James L. DeBoy, Lancaster

Empty musings

U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds comments about Jim Crow and the Black family during a Trump campaign event in Philadelphia are typical deceit of modern Black conservatives on the national scene  i.e., all was well with African Americans until the federal government intervened with welfare. The culprits for the decline in Black marriage rates, among other things, their argument goes, are the government assistance programs of the 1960s and the Black women who chose them over a husband.

But the Florida Republicans policy analysis is just as fraught and confusing as his nostalgia for an era plagued by racist violence. To begin with, marriage rates at that time were declining for all race groups, as they are today. Also, Donalds does not seem to understand how racism has shaped welfare policy and receipt in America since 1935. The irony of his empty musings culminates with a reflection on a time when Black people were conservative voters  whatever that means  without a single mention of the legal discrimination they faced to cast those very ballots during Jim Crow.

Nyron N. Crawford, Philadelphia

Join the conversation: Send letters to letters@inquirer.com. Limit length to 200 words and include home address and day and evening phone number. Letters run in The Inquirer six days a week on the editorial pages and online.
Rising sophmore Kylie Price of Wilmington stands in front of the University of the Arts Dorrance Hamilton Hall on South Broad Street in Philadelphia on Sunday, days after the school announced it would close. Read more

HARRISBURG  Following the sudden closure of University of the Arts, state lawmakers are trying to prevent the abrupt closure of any other Pennsylvania schools.

A group of House Democratic lawmakers, led by Rep. Ben Waxman (D., Philadelphia) and Rep. Bob Merski (D., Erie), want to create new accountability and transparency measures for higher education institutions.

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Any college or university would be required to notify the state of its impending closure or consolidation, submit annual enrollment and financial data, and create a repository of transcripts for closing universities, among other changes, according to the proposal, which has not yet been formally introduced in the state House. Schools would need to meet those requirements in order to get any state funding, which most private colleges like University of the Arts receive even though they are not public.

This proposal will not address the issues that UArts students and graduates are currently facing, but is hopefully a proactive step to prevent such a closure in the future, the lawmakers said in a joint interview Wednesday. Lawmakers said they may have been able to help UArts if they had learned earlier about the institutions financial woes.

Were going to continue to see mergers and closures, and we need to be sure that were getting ahead of it, said Rep. Morgan Cephas (D., Philadelphia), who chairs Philadelphias delegation to Harrisburg, noting the merger of University of the Sciences with St. Josephs University as one of several consolidations or closures of private colleges in the Philly region in the last few years.

Pennsylvania owns its own higher education system, which includes 10 four-year universities and 15 community colleges. It also has four state-related schools that all receive state funds in exchange for offering in-state student tuition discounts. There are also more than 100 private universities across the state.

Those private schools still receive some state funding. For example, in-state students who attend private schools are eligible for state-funded grants, and the state often lends or gives funds to schools for major capital projects or helps them obtain federal funds.

Waxman, whose Center City district includes University of the Arts, said he has personally sent letters asking state entities to approve funds for some of the schools capital projects.

If the state is expected to provide that kind of funding, there needs to be information about whether or not the university is financially viable, and whether or not they are managing those resources appropriately, Waxman said. There has to just be accountability.

On Monday morning, Waxman will host the first of what he said will be a series of public hearings about UArts closure at the William Way LGBT Community Center. Students and faculty are invited to talk about how the closure has impacted their lives. UArts administrators have been invited to speak, but are not expected to attend.

Merski, the bills other author, said he had already been working on similar legislation, following the closure announcement of Notre Dame College in Ohio, where some of his constituents attended.

The Erie representative then began working with Waxman, Cephas, and House Appropriations chair Jordan Harris (D., Philadelphia) to identify what actions they could take against UArts for disrupting the lives of so many students and faculty.

I was a first-generation college student. I cant imagine being a freshman putting down your $500 deposit and then the school announcing their closing and the state not having a mechanism to help you, Merski said. It helps us structurally as a commonwealth to mitigate some of these abrupt closures so that they dont happen so abruptly, so theres a procedure in place so that students are taken care of.

We have to be good stewards of the taxpayer dollar and we want the universities, the private institutions to know: Youre getting our resources to help educate our students, Harris said. We want to make sure that if necessary, if there are issues, that we can know whats going on.

Harris added that he does not want the state to take over private universities, bur rather, work on safeguarding our investment.
Philadelphia City Council on Thursday gave final approval to a $6.37 billion city budget, the first negotiated by Mayor Cherelle L. Parker and Council President Kenyatta Johnson.

The budget, which takes effect July 1, leaves all tax rates flat, increases property tax relief measures amid rising reassessments, and includes hundreds of millions in funding for the mayors priorities on public safety and cleaning the city. Parker is expected to sign the legislation into law Friday.

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 READ MORE: Council green-lights Mayor Cherelle Parkers budget plans, including $100 million for a Northeast Philly drug rehab center

Thursdays vote was a formality following the budget compromise reached last week. Lawmakers gave preliminary approval to the deal at about 1 a.m. last Thursday, hours before the legislative deadline to ensure the bills could be approved at this weeks meeting, before Council begins its summer recess.

But some still voiced concern about the funding plan. Members of the National Domestic Workers Alliance testified against the budget on Thursday because it cuts about $500,000 from the Department of Labor, which enforces worker protection laws and will get about $4.7 million next year.

This has a devastating and disproportionate impact on people like me: Black, brown, undocumented, and gender-oppressed people who do the work to make this city work, domestic worker Adriana George told Council. You cannot continue to fail domestic workers. We are the ones who make all other jobs possible.

What were this weeks highlights?

The last day of a Council session is always busy, with lawmakers pushing a raft of bills through before adjourning for months. Here are some highlights from Thursday:

Contracting chaos: Despite fierce opposition from leaders in the citys nonprofit sector, Council passed legislation Thursday that would revamp how the city contracts with charitable organizations.

Currently, the city allows some agencies to enter into contracts with nonprofits without going through the typical competitive bidding process. Councilmember Katherine Gilmore Richardson championed legislation to end the practice as a way to increase transparency in government spending.

Parkers administration opposed the legislation, saying it would overburden operations and make it harder for the city to respond to emergencies. Its unclear if Parker intends to sign the bill.

The bill was approved in a 15-2 vote with Councilmembers Rue Landau and Mike Driscoll opposed. Councilmember Jamie Gauthier said she also had concerns about the measure but voted for it because she trusted Gilmore Richardson will work with nonprofit providers to address their needs.

Business curfew bonanza: Council also unanimously passed three bills that impose late-night curfews on businesses in several districts of the city.

In upper North Philadelphia, businesses on both sides of Ogontz Avenue, between Haines Street and 66th Avenue, will have to abide by a midnight-to-6 a.m. curfew. East of Ogontz, curfews for businesses around the Olney Transportation Center on North Broad Street will last from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m.

Businesses on parts of East Allegheny Avenue, Kensington Avenue, Torresdale Avenue, and Frankford Avenue will also have to be closed between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. Gas stations or establishments with liquor licenses will not be affected, and violations result in a $500 fine.

Councilmembers Anthony Phillips, Cindy Bass, and Mike Driscoll introduced the bills in May after Council passed a similar curfew on Kensington Avenue earlier this year in an effort to curb nuisance establishments.

Eviction regulation: Council also unanimously passed a bill to license and regulate security contractors who work in Phillys unusual privatized eviction system, which was criticized following three shooting incidents during lockouts.

 READ MORE: Phillys for-profit eviction system slammed in lawsuit after security contractors shot tenants

The new bill, authored by Councilmember Kendra Brooks, requires contracted private security officers who enforce eviction orders to meet training requirements and provide proof of liability insurance. It was opposed by landlord groups and the Parker administration, which said the city didnt have the capacity to implement it.

A Parker spokesperson said Thursday that the mayor has until September, when Council reconvenes, to decide how to handle the bill. The mayors options are to veto it, sign it into law, or allow it to become law without her signature. Council would have the votes to override her veto.

Renewal of lease at Fairmount site could be blocked: The city could soon be barred from extending its lease at 2100 W. Girard Ave., a shelter in Fairmount where the Parker administration quietly increased capacity to treat people using drugs.

The move incensed residents and Councilmember Jeffery Young Jr., who represents the district where the shelter sits and authored legislation that blocks the city from renewing its lease at the state-owned site, which is up in 2026. The bill passed Council unanimously.

What else happened?

Out of pocket: Despite taking place more than 5,700 miles away from City Hall, the war in the Middle East has come up repeatedly throughout this years Council session. So it was fitting that lawmakers final meeting before summer recess included another dustup over the issue.

Kate Perez, a pro-Palestinian activist who frequently comments at Council, once again took the mic to denounce Israels war in Gaza. Public commenters are required to speak on bills on this weeks agenda, and Councilmember Cindy Bass, who was presiding, cut Perez off, noting that she had signed up to testify on the city budget.

 READ MORE: Philly City Council has once again abandoned a resolution calling for a cease-fire in Gaza | Council roundup

That did not go over well with Councilmember Curtis Jones Jr., who supports a cease-fire in the war and has defended Perez. He yelled at Bass from his seat, an extraordinary break with Council etiquette, and stormed out of the chambers.

Bass then followed Jones into the hallway, yelling, Why the f are you talking to me like this? They ducked into Jones office and emerged a few minutes later singing kumbaya.

Jones said he got emotional, which was out of pocket.

You were doing what you were supposed to do, he said of Bass.

Strangely, there was a Gaza-related resolution on Councils agenda this week that Perez likely could have testified on without controversy. Council unanimously approved Councilmember Nicolas ORourkes resolution honoring aid workers in Gaza.

Quotable

I dont care what Jay-Z or Meek Mill has to say on this issue. As a proud parent and grandparent of Philadelphia public school students, I dont want vouchers anywhere near my city or my family. Vouchers would mean more money for educational privateers. Councilmember Kendra Brooks

Council on Thursday approved a resolution authored by Brooks denouncing efforts by state lawmakers to increase funding for school vouchers, which pay private school tuition for students in struggling districts to leave their public schools.

Hip-hop artists Jay-Z and Meek Mill have come out in support of expanding vouchers, but opponents like Brooks say they drain resources from high-need school districts like Philadelphias.
Mohammed Nasher, the latest owner of the Mayfair ice cream stand Twistee Treat, is selling the business for $150,000  plus $1,800 a month in rent for the giant pink ice cream cone at 3401 Longshore Ave. Read more

Have $150,000? You could buy the rights to operate a giant pink ice cream cone on the corner of Longshore and Frankford Avenues in Northeast Philadelphia.

Mohammed Nasher is selling Twistee Treat, the ice cream business operating out of Mayfairs iconic 27-foot-tall cone.

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Posts advertising the sale started circulating in neighborhood Facebook groups last week. The unofficial listing eventually went viral on X (formerly Twitter) as soft-serve diehards bemoaned what they thought was the loss of a kitschy  and deeply nostalgic  piece of architecture.

Assembling a joint ownership group of Northeast Philadelphians only to purchase and operate the Twistees ice cream shop at Frankford and Longshore, posted Chris Olley, whos from Lawncrest (and told The Inquirer that hes actually never been to Twistee Treat.)

The replies were littered with emoji and GIF army salutes, half-serious calls to count me in, and one person who said they would be prepared to contribute 4-figures to the cause.

How will the community survive without the giant ice cream cone? asked Paul Catrino Jr., before learning that the cone is sticking around.

Catrino Jr., 31, remembers begging his parents to take him to the all mighty cone for a vanilla-chocolate swirl with sprinkles after block parties at his cousins house. He was relieved to find out that the cone would be just changing hands.

Part of Northeast culture is that you build something good and you pass it down to someone who you know is going to take care of it, he said.

Nasher  who took over the ice cream joint from its previous owner in August  is selling the business for $150,000. That includes all equipment, social media accounts, some licenses, and the opportunity to keep on five employees. The buyer would then pay $1,800 a month in rent.

Nasher said he bought the Twistee Treat last summer after spending 13 years staring at that ice cream cone from his office window at Mayfair Imports, the car dealership he owns next door.

Running the ice cream stand was a (sweet) treat, according to Nasher: He enjoys working the register and building banana splits on the weekends and said the Twistee Treat brought in nearly $22,000 in sales during the month of May. His children, ages 5 and 6, also get to brag that their daddy owns an ice cream shop  at least for now.

Theyre also part of the reason hes ready to sell.

Between my two stores, the ice cream, my kids  I dont have enough time in the day, said Nasher. I cant be coming home at 10 oclock every night. It wouldnt be fair to them.

Nashers real estate agent, Anthony DiCicco, said hes already received 50 inquiries for the Twistee Treat, including one serious offer. The majority of them are from neighborhood kids like him, he said, who grew up flocking to the cone after summer days spent running through the sprinkler.

I wish I could put my face on the cone. You dont get opportunities like these too often around here. Its usually just selling a regular pizza shop, said DiCicco, 45. But everyone knows that cone.

 READ MORE: From 2023: South Philly's beloved Melrose Diner demolished to make way for apartment complex

The last cone standing

For Mayfair residents of a certain age, the oversize cone has seemed to exist forever, though when forever began is up for debate.

DiCicco said hes been going to the Twistee Treat since he was 5 or 6 and that his order has remained unchanged 40 years later: a chocolate and vanilla swirl cone with extra chocolate jimmies and fudge.

Property records for the Twistee Treat are unclear, but this specific location likely opened sometime after the original Twistee Treat corporation went bankrupt in 1983 following a failed IPO.

Entrepreneurs immediately began flocking to Florida  where the company was based  to snap up the cones and transport them to other part of the United States as independently owned ice cream stands. There have been several attempts to revive the Twistee Treat name, and the cones have a cult following: Over 9,000 people signed a petition in 2019 to successfully save one of the original locations in North Fort Myers, Fla., from demolition.

Around Philly, Nashers cone is the last one standing. The Twistee Treat in Levittown was turned into a Wawa sometime after 2020, while the one in Collegeville appeared to have closed many years ago.

 READ MORE: Brown sugar, banana, Cinnamon Toast Crunch: Phillys ice cream makers are taking soft serve to the next level

Nasher is looking for a buyer who will invest more time than he could in the business. More important, however, is someone who will maintain his rapport with customers.

You need to keep the customer happy, Nasher said, like when they want an extra topping and we dont charge them.

Nasher is ready to be one of those customers.

Im excited to support my baby, he said.
Making insurance better

Insurance Business celebrates the most progressive insurance companies in Australia and New Zealand, a group of forward-thinking organisations that have embedded diversity, equity and inclusion (DE&I) into their corporate culture.

Employees ratings of the notable nominees ultimately garnered the market leaders a 5-Star DE&I award for their top-down commitment to creating inclusive and supportive workplaces, fostering a workforce that reflects the communities they serve, and aligning their actions with strategic pillars.

According to Yhana Lanwin, CEO and founder of Sans Prejudice Solutions, the standout DE&I programs are those that:

link leading and lagging indicators of DE&I interventions with strategic business metrics



include metrics such as customer satisfaction, customer retention, profitability, and environmental, social and governance performance



create a business case and mandate for DE&I that is self-sustaining



establish intrinsic recognition of DE&Is benefits to drive a continuous improvement model



Were getting to the limits of good intentions and broad policy and leadership commitments, says Lanwin. Regarding DE&I in insurance in 2024, robust, scientifically based methodologies are required to trial and test specific initiatives for quantifiable impact. So, this year, inclusive and equitable work design, workplace, systems and tools design should be priorities.

At two of Australias award-winning insurance companies, the emphasis has shifted from diversity metrics into the inclusion and equity space, a component of future-forward DE&I initiatives underscored as crucial by expert Lanwin.



How the most diverse insurance companies are pioneering DE&I policies



Arch Insurance Australia

With a focus on specific objectives tied to its colleagues, customers and culture, Arch Insurance Australia prioritises listening to employees and addressing what matters most to them.

The leadership team believes the best initiatives come from employees, a testament to the formation of networking groups and tools designed to assist them in collaboratively creating an inclusive culture.

The Arch experience is a set of 14 behaviours and competencies the company promotes to set it apart from competitors.

Employees seek different approaches for their circumstances, explains Oriana Korban, senior HR business partner. There is no one blanket approach that suits everyone.

Archs 5-Star DE&I recognition stems from:

93% overall employee satisfaction rating

a multi-pronged approach encompassing education, networking, role modelling and continuous improvement

leading-edge programs such as Fostering Inclusive Leadership, curated by Yale School of Management, that expands outlooks, reinforces patterns and promotes behavioural change

The most diverse insurance company is proud that its team members represent contrasting backgrounds, perspectives and demographics. Employees are encouraged to explore their horizons and build allyship while being provided with equal opportunities to learn and grow.



When joining Arch, each employee is treated the same and provided equal opportunities to learn and grow

Oriana Korban Arch Insurance Australia



Achieving diversity excellence

Employees rated the company in IBs survey across seven key metrics, including netting top scores in the following:

People from all backgrounds have equal opportunities for success

I would recommend the company to a friend or colleague from an underrepresented group

Korban says, Our leaders truly value our people as the companys strength. We understand how important it is to welcome different perspectives, learn from others, be open-minded and curious.

Regarding Archs dedication to promoting diversity and inclusion within their organisation, employee respondents noted:

There are courses available to anyone who wants them, and all managers are required to complete a leadership course, which includes DE&I.

Arch ensures employees from all backgrounds are welcomed, included and part of the Arch family. From personal experience, Arch has allowed me to express my personality, views and ideologies in a non-judgmental and open environment.

Aon Australia

For over a decade, the 5-Star DE&I award winner has fostered an environment where diversity is visible, valued and sustained. The unique background, skills and creativity that each employee brings to the workplace contribute to a vibrant culture driving success.

Our colleagues are at the core of everything we do, and our commitment to them is essential to how we operate as a firm, says Deb Gibson, client director and chair of the Inclusive Business Resource Group. Our vision is to create a workplace that recognises and values the unique qualities, experiences and contributions of all colleagues, where every individual feels more connected, relevant and valued.

That approach complements the companys expanding network of business resource groups, operated by a cohort of passionate employees who help inform the discussion around diversity and inclusion and bring important learnings and topics to the broader employee base.

Upon reflecting on the prestigious recognition, Aon Australia CEO Jennifer Richards says, This award is a testament to our purpose to shape decisions for the better, to protect and enrich the lives of colleagues, clients and communities worldwide.

She continues, Colleagues achieve their potential when they feel a sense of belonging and are free to bring their authentic selves to work, and we know diverse and inclusive teams deliver better insights and solutions for clients.

Weve embedded diversity and inclusion throughout our firm, so inclusion is in everything we do; its the way we work and its the way we interact with each other

Deb Gibson Aon Australia

Valuing every employee

Aon Australias achievement as a 5-Star DE&I employer is driven by:

84% overall employee satisfaction rating

leadership-driven initiatives, such as the Global Inclusive Leadership Council, sponsored by the CEO and CPO, a regional I&D sub-committee, and executive leadership teams who drive actions to increase diversity

an aspirational goal of 50/50 gender representation across all levels by 2025

An employee respondent noted, Aon does a huge amount of work, company-wide and for individuals, to broaden their knowledge around DE&I.

Survey participants also rated the company highly across time-tested metrics, with top marks given in the following categories:

I know who and where to go to if I need to report inappropriate behaviour based on diversity

I feel like my personal beliefs and traditions are respected at my company

Our DE&I strategy is underpinned by our global inclusive people leadership strategy, which guides our approach and calls on all colleagues to model inclusive people leadership, Gibson adds. We ensure our colleagues are aware of our programs and support services, and we endeavour to mark and recognise traditions and beliefs relevant to our colleagues throughout the year.

Aons industry-leading approach to DE&I is demonstrated through various programs, including the inclusive hire program, which all managers must complete before beginning the hiring process, and the compulsory unconscious bias training and respect at work sessions, ensuring all employees feel comfortable to bring their authentic selves to work.



Navigating DE&I realities



One of the most significant challenges to implementing DE&I initiatives across a range of industries is a backlash, according to expert Lanwin.

A strategic push for more diverse, equitable and inclusive workplaces has been translated into a single metric  female participation, she says. The unintended consequence of this gross oversimplification of a real strategic business opportunity is both women and men feeling disengaged at work, with increases in workplace bullying, incivility and a decrease in staff retention and engagement rates.

Another noteworthy observation of the past 12 months is the inaugural release of the WGEA data into the gender pay gap, showing the Australian insurance and superannuation industrys median total remuneration gender pay gap of 26.1%. Lanwin notes this is significantly higher than the national average of 19% and a concern, given that the sector has almost 60% female representation.

This is equal to an average of women in the industry being paid $37,011 less per year than male colleagues, she says. With this being the first year the data has gone public, there has been a significant uptick in the industry of policies and supports for flexible working, parental leave and strategies to close the gender pay gap.

Many of this years survey respondents commented on this recent research, noting that addressing this identified pay gap should be an essential part of any DE&I strategy.

Regarding the DE&I pushback perceived in various industries, Archs Gibson says, The company believes that encouraging a variety of viewpoints supports better decision-making and innovation.

She adds, My recommendation to discuss DE&I strategies is to incorporate commercial thinking. Inclusive practices and well-prepared and delivered diversity programs not only support employees wellbeing, increase engagement and employees satisfaction, but also expand their perspective. These changes ultimately support retention, development and decision-making, all directly related to business growth.
Impossible to fully insure?

He said if there was a condition in mining regulations that compelled these firms to have liability insurance in place, their operations would be unlikely to go ahead. Saunders said that just the costs of closing down a mine could be enough to make it unprofitable.
independent job leveling and pay equity reviews for all roles;

focused recruitment to ensure diverse candidates; and

proactive succession planning to develop an increasingly diverse talent base.

AON

AON provides clients in over 120 countries with advice and solutions to protect and grow their businesses. It focuses on addressing unmet needs arising from todays complex challenges, positioning itself as the partner of choice for businesses of all sizes and industries.
These storms significantly impacted households and businesses across south-east Queensland, and insurers remain committed to supporting those customers who were affected throughout their recovery journey, said ICA CEO Andrew Hall. Were pleased to report that nearly half of all claims have already been finalised, and insurers are working diligently to get the remaining families, businesses, and communities back on their feet.
China Council for the Promotion of International Trade urges EU to scrap levying high tariffs on Chinese EVs

Global Times) 15:56, June 13, 2024

China's broad business community has expressed firm opposition to the move by the European Union to impose countervailing tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) and urged the immediate withdrawal of the provisional tariffs announced on Wednesday.

The EU's decision to impose a provisional duty on Chinese EVs should be promptly revoked, the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) said in a statement on Thursday.

The EU announced on Wednesday that it will put in place a provisional duty on Chinese EVs, ranging from 17.4 percent to 38.1 percent. The decision comes despite objections from some EU members including Germany, Sweden and Hungary.

In a response, the CCPIT called on the EU to revisit its decision on levying unilateral tariffs on Chinese EVs, warning that Chinese industry will wield legal weapons to defend their legitimate rights and interests based on WTO rules.

On behalf of the Chinese business community, the CCPIT urged the EU to abide by WTO rules and immediately cancel the provisional tariffs.

The CCPIT stated that the EU's targeting of Chinese EV industry with punitive tariffs is unfair, which violates internationally recognized trade rules.

The CCPIT said that the EU's levying high tariffs on Chinese EVs is a typical case of double standard and trade protectionism. Also, the EU's substantial subsidies for European automakers clearly violate market economy principles and international trade rules.

The CCPIT stated that the Chinese EV industry is deeply integrated into the global supply chain, which drives technological innovation, making a significant contribution to the development of the global EV industry. It also played a crucial role in promoting energy efficiency, reducing carbon emissions, and advancing sustainable growth worldwide.

The prospects for cooperation in the EV industry between China and Europe are broad. The industries in China and Europe should strengthen cooperation, resolve disputes and conflicts through negotiation and dialogue, and achieve green development goals through integrated development, it added.

Following EU's tariffs announcement, China's Ministry of Commerce urged the EU to immediately correct its wrong practices and properly address economic and trade frictions through dialogue and consultation, and vowed to take all necessary measures to firmly defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.

China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian warned that the EU's anti-subsidy investigation into Chinese EVs violates the principles of the market economy and international trade rules, and will harm the EU's interests too.

Several European carmakers, including Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz Group also expressed their opposition, saying the protectionist move would only harm the European auto industry.

(Web editor: Tian Yi, Zhong Wenxing)
With the settlement, Lincoln is also required to change its evidence of insurability requirement. It was agreed that Lincoln may only request evidence of insurability from participants within the first year of them paying premiums and cannot consider a participants health condition if it arose after receipt of the participants first premium payment.
According to Consumer Watchdog, the regulations, which purport to require insurance companies to increase sales to homeowners in distressed areas, do not mandate affordable pricing  something that might well force careers to stay away from the crippled California market. Furthermore, the watchdog claims that the regulations would permit double-digit price hikes through the use of what it calls unverifiable algorithms (computer modelling), pushing premiums out of reach for many Californians, and allowing companies to continue "redlining" distressed locations.
A health insurance company employee who was trapped in an elevator for about 30 minutes has been denied workers compensation benefits.

The employee did not suffer any physical injury while she was trapped in the elevator but claimed she later suffered psychological effects including insomnia, headaches, and thoughts of feeling trapped.

The Virginia Workers Compensation Commission (VWCC) recently affirmed the denial of benefits in March by a deputy commissioner.

Under Virginia law, for a purely psychological injury to be compensable as an injury by accident, it must be causally related to a physical injury or be causally related to an obvious sudden shock or fright arising in the course of employment. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an example of a psychological injury that might be covered.

A deputy commissioner denied the employees benefits for psychological injury on the grounds that she did not sustain a compensable injury by accident arising out of or in the course of her employment. Her being stuck in an elevator neither related to any physical injury nor did it constitute a sudden shock or fright as recognized by Virginia workers compensation law, the deputy commissioner ruled.

According to the commissions documents, the claimant testified that on September 5, 2023 she entered the elevator, the door closed, but the elevator did not operate. She said neither the interior panic button nor telephone worked. The claimant attempted to contact her supervisor and call 911 on her cellphone without success. She eventually spoke with her supervisor, received emergency assistance, and exited the elevator after approximately 30 minutes. The claimant felt upset, and she wanted to get outside and get air.

On October 13, 2023, she filed under workers compensation seeking medical benefits and periods of temporary total disability benefits. Her employer raised numerous defenses against the claim, including that she did not sustain a compensable injury by accident arising out of or in the course of her employment.

She twice sought medical attention after the incident. She also began treatment with a licensed clinical social worker. However, neither her medical records not her social workers report mention the elevator incident, according to the commission.

The deputy commissioner cited the lack of evidence in his denial. The medical evidence in the file does not specifically relate the claimants anxiety to this event, the deputy wrote. Given this evidence, the Commission finds that she did not suffer a sudden shock or fright that arose out of and in the course of her employment and she did not otherwise suffer any physical injury to which the psychological injury is causally related.

At most, the deputy added, her psychological injuries are related to being in a stuck elevator, and the Commission finds that the evidence in this case does not constitute a sudden shock or fright as contemplated by Virginia law.

In affirming the deputys decision on appeal, the full VWCC rejected the claimants attempt to offer new evidence that it said could have been provided to the deputy at the claimants original hearing but was not. The VWCC denied her appeal because it said she had not identified any error in the deputys specific findings of fact or conclusions of law.

Topics Workers' Compensation Talent
A major defense contractor was sued Tuesday over allegations that it discriminated against older workers in job ads.

The lawsuit filed in federal court in Boston accuses RTX Corporation of posting ads that target younger workers at the expense of their older peers in violation of the federal Age Discrimination in Employment Act, the Massachusetts Fair Employment Practices Act, and the Virginia Human Rights Act.

RTX, formerly Raytheon Technologies Corporation, is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. The lawsuit alleges it posted ads seeking job applicants who are recent graduates or have less than two years experience, which excluded older workers from consideration or deterred them from applying in the first place.

Americans are living and working longer than ever, yet unfair and discriminatory hiring practices are keeping older workers from jobs theyre qualified for, the AARP Foundations senior vice president for litigation, William Alvarado Rivera, said in a statement. Raytheons intentional discrimination against experienced job candidates, simply because of their age, is illegal and unacceptable.

In a statement, the company denied the allegations.

RTX complies with all relevant age discrimination laws and were committed to maintaining a diverse workforce, RTX said. We believe these claims are entirely without merit and we will actively defend our hiring practices.

A 2023 AARP survey found that nearly one in six adults reported they were not hired for a job they applied for within the past two years because of their age. Half of job seekers reported they were asked by an employer to produce their birthdate during the application or interview process.

About half of Americans also think theres age discrimination in the workplace, according to a poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. But theres a split by age. The poll finds 60% of adults age 60 and over say older workers in the U.S. are always or often discriminated against, while 43% of adults younger than 45 say the same.

The suit, seeking class action status, was filed by the AARP Foundation, Peter Romer-Friedman Law, and Outten & Golden, whose managing partner, Adam Klein, said it should serve as a warning to other big companies engaged in such discrimination.

Fortune 500 companies should know better than to exclude hardworking older Americans from jobs by targeting recent college graduates in hiring posts, Klein said in a statement, adding that the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has long held that this type of language discourages qualified older workers from applying for jobs.

The plaintiff in the case, Mark Goldstein, 67, alleges he applied for several positions at the company since 2019. Goldstein filed a complaint with the EEOC alleging he wasnt considered for these jobs, and the EEOC found he was denied due to his age. The EEOC also found Raytheons job advertisements violated the ADEA, the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit is demanding that the company end practices that discriminate against Goldstein and the tens of thousands of potential members of the class action who have applied, attempted to apply, or have been interested in applying for jobs. It also demands that the company institute policies that provide equal employment opportunities for all employees regardless of their age, and pay damages including backpay to Goldstein and other affected workers.

Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Contractors
The prosecutions prized turncoat witness at the bribery trial of U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez was politely combative Tuesday as defense lawyers tried to poke holes in his testimony and portray him as a habitual liar.

Jose Uribe spent a third day on the witness stand, a day after telling the jury that Menendez, a Democrat, took credit in 2020 for preventing New Jersey state investigations from affecting his insurance business.

Prosecutors say Menendez used his power as a senator to help three New Jersey businessmen for five years beginning in 2018 in return for bribes of gold bars, hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash and a Mercedes-Benz.

Menendez, 70, has looked forward to the cross-examination, saying on separate occasions as he left the courthouse in recent days that the truth would come out when defense lawyers went to work against Uribe. About the Insurance Broker in Menendez Case The former New Jersey insurance agent agreed in March to a deal with prosecutors under which he would testify in the federal corruption case against U.S. Senator Bob Menendez. Jose Uribe pleaded guilty to seven charges including conspiracy to commit bribery and extortion, honest services wire fraud, obstruction of justice related to insurance fraud investigations, and tax evasion related to several businesses Uribe controlled. Uribe, who pleaded guilty to insurance premium fraud in 2011, is among three businessmen charged in the federal corruption case. When he owned Inter America Insurance Agency, Uribe pleaded guilty to third-degree theft by deception and was sentenced to three years of probation by a New Jersey judge. According to the New Jersey attorney general, Uribe admitted that between May 30, 2003 and February 22, 2010, he obtained $76,819 in insurance premiums from seven clients but never remitted the premium payments to the insurance carriers. The New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance revoked the insurance licenses of Uribe and his agency and ordered him to pay $92,500 in fines. According to the indictment, Uribe now works in the trucking industry. In the Menendez case, Uribe was accused of providing Nadine Menendez with a Mercedes-Benz in exchange for her husband intervening with the state attorney generals office in an insurance fraud case involving a trucking industry customer and one of his agency employees. Read more

Defense lawyers tried repeatedly to damage Uribes credibility, highlighting crimes that Uribe confessed to when he pleaded guilty in March to conspiracy and bribery charges. At that time, he agreed to testify against Menendez and two other businessmen, all of whom had pleaded not guilty prior to the month-old trial.

Attorney Lawrence Lustberg, representing businessman Wael Hana, repeatedly confronted Uribe with lies he had told to protect and build his insurance companies, even after a previous criminal conviction meant that he was no longer licensed to run a company.

I will say that I have lied in the past, Uribe said.

Even as Lustberg and attorney Adam Fee, representing Menendez, sometimes raised their voices when they asked questions, Uribe kept his composure while deflecting some questions and disputing claims by Fee that he had lied on the witness stand on Friday and Monday.

No, I did not, sir, Uribe said.

Sometimes, the lawyers seemed to succeed in getting answers that differed from his earlier testimony.

For instance, Uribe told a prosecutor on Monday that he was hoping to avoid any prison time as a result of his cooperation. But, asked repeatedly on Tuesday by Lustberg about the goal of his testimony and work on behalf of the government, he said he merely wanted to ensure he got less than the 95 years in prison the charges could bring.

Even Judge Sidney H. Stein, who would likely sentence Uribe at a future date, jumped into the questioning about what Uribe hoped to obtain from admitting to crimes and cooperating.

My goal is to do better for myself by getting a better sentencing, Uribe responded.

During a break with the jury out of the room, the judge told defense lawyers he would not let them ask Uribe about a car accident, his failure to pay child support for a period of time, his history as it relates to what the judge described only as strip clubs and his failure to pay some credit card bills 14 years ago.

Insurance Agent Pleads Guilty, Will Testify in Bribery Case Against Senator Menendez

Lustberg said he wanted to use the information about strip clubs to counter Uribes portrayal of himself as like a choir boy.

With all the crimes hes pled to, I dont think thats really your issue, the judge responded.

Lustberg also argued that Uribes failure to pay child support at one point would show jurors that his repeated claims that he was devoted to his family were not always true.

Uribe has testified that he provided a $15,000 down payment in 2019 for a Mercedes-Benz for Menendezs girlfriend and arranged monthly car payments from 2019 to 2022 in return for Menendezs efforts to ensure his company was not affected by New Jersey criminal probes of a trucking company belonging to his friend.

He said Hana had told him that Menendez could help make legal problems go away in return for $200,000 to $250,000. Uribe said Tuesday that he never contributed any money to the $120,000 that others eventually paid Menendez.

Copyright 2024 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Topics Agencies
The UK announced wide-ranging sanctions on Russia, including a first attempt to clamp down on a shadow-fleet of tankers transporting the Kremlins oil and a key Moscow-based insurance company.The measures target four oil tankers out of a fleet of hundreds that are helping Russia to evade western sanctions, as well as Ingosstrakh Insurance Co., an important provider of cover against risks including oil spills and collisions, the UK government said in a statement. In total, 50 entities and individuals, from a wide range of industries were identified.

Restrictions on the shadow fleet are significant as they represent an effort to combat a trade thats increasingly moved out of western jurisdictions and helped to fund the war in Ukraine. The UNs shipping watchdog has expressed concern about the fleets growth and its involvement in cargo transfers on the high seas. However, it remains to be seen how effective sanctions will prove.

Some Russian ships that were previously sanctioned by the US have struggled to trade as normal after their designation. This will test whether British measures can have a similar effect. Other sanctioned countries, like Iran and Venezuela, have used shadow vessels to try and sustain their oil exports for years.

EU Aims to Target 11 Russian Ships Involved in Sanctions-Busting

Many of the sanctions published on Wednesday follow similar moves by the US and upcoming European Union restrictions. The UK said the steps were taken in coordination with other Group of Seven nations. The EU has proposed sanctioning about a dozen ships, Bloomberg previously reported.

One of the sanctioned vessels, the Robon, was filmed transferring Russian oil while falsifying its location as part of a Bloomberg documentary last year. It was called the Turba at the time.

Sanctions against Ingosstrakh are notable because it is major provider of coverage for the commercial fleet moving Russian oil, largely displacing insurers based in the UK and Europe. The company didnt immediately respond to a request for a comment on how the sanctions may affect its future operations.

A lot of Russian oil flows through or near the waters of Denmark and Turkey, and those countries interpretations of the UKs sanctions will be important.

In addition to measures against the countrys oil exports, there were restrictions targeting the LNG sector.

The UK authorities sanctioned an LNG project in Murmansk thats due to be built by Novatek PJSC, and a facility that the company has at the Arctic port to make large-scale LNG equipment. The plant was sanctioned by the US on Wednesday. Novatek had been aiming to start construction of the facility in August, and production three years later.

RusChemAlliance, operator of a planned LNG and gas processing complex in the Baltic port of Ust-Luga, was also sanctioned. The operator, half owned by gas giant Gazprom PJSC, started construction of the facility in 2021. Its completion and production startup have been delayed amid western restrictions on the Russian energy segment.

The measures also target the Moscow Stock Exchange, in coordination with the US.

The sanctions also target suppliers of munitions, machine tools and logistics to Russias military, including entities based in China, Israel, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey, along with ships which transport military goods from North Korea to Russia.

The allies are also unveiling measures to better enforce trade restrictions on items found in Russian weapons or needed to build them, especially focusing on banks that are enabling transactions and foreign firms involved in the trades.

Photograph: An oil tanker is silhouetted against the hazy sky. Photo credit: Marcelo del Pozo/Bloomberg

Related:

Copyright 2024 Bloomberg.

Topics Energy Oil Gas Russia
A former Iowa insurance agent and annuity salesman was sentenced to 19 years in prison for defrauding elderly individuals out of their retirement savings.

A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced Zach Flaherty, age 47, of Clive, to 222 months for wire fraud and another six months for contempt, for a total of 228 months, or 19 years.

Flaherty pleaded guilty in November 2023 to wire fraud charges. According to the U.S. Attorneys Office of the Southern District of Iowa, Flaherty admitted to engaging in a scheme to defraud some of his insurance clients, specifically, that he intended to defraud some of his clients by making false statements to those clients to obtain financial benefits for himself to the detriment of his clients.

In one case, Flaherty told one of the victims that he would invest proceeds from the sale of her house on her behalf and for her benefit, even though Flaherty knew that his representations to the victim were false. As a result of Flahertys false representations, the victim wrote two checks, totaling $170,000, to a company Flaherty owned and/or operated. Flaherty used the proceeds of his fraudulent scheme to acquire various assets, including a boat and automobiles.

Prosecutors allege that victims wrote more than $1 million of checks to Flaherty that he deposited to himself, according to a report from KCCI News in Des Moines. Flaherty allegedly defrauded insurance companies of more than $650,000.

The Iowa Insurance Divisions Fraud Bureau and the Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated the case and were assisted by the Moines Police Department, Clive Police Department, and the Iowa Department of Public Safetys Division of Criminal Investigation.

Source: Southern District of Iowa

Topics Agencies Iowa
Artificial intelligence and U.S. election have emerged as significant risks to businesses this year with an overwhelming 80% of owners worried their insurance will not cover a specific loss, a survey by insurance brokerage Gallagher showed on Wednesday.

Companies are racing to build AI into their products. Generative AI, which aims to create human-like interactions by processing vast amounts of data, is expected to be integrated into workplaces across industries from technology to financial services

Meanwhile, the U.S. is also headed for presidential election which pits former president, Republican Donald Trump, against President Joe Biden.

Several public policies and potential laws affecting corporations hinge on the results. Businesses could also be subject to cyber interference during the election.

From the 1,000 respondents in the survey, 81% said they are looking to maintain or even increase their investments in AI in 2024.

Despite the benefits of the technology, business owners are concerned about risks from exposure to sensitive information, regulation and redundancies in workplaces, it found.

Insurance demand has remained strong against a slowing economy as customers continue to build up coverage against extreme weather events and cyber attacks.

According to Gallaghers findings, 91% of those surveyed worry about natural disasters and catastrophes affecting their businesses, while another 69% are concerned about potential cyber attacks.

Businesses need to be familiar with regulatory risks and potential liability related to copyright infringement, data bias and intellectual property, said Chairman and CEO J. Patrick Gallagher told Reuters. Organizations incorporating generative AI into their operations should be conducting risk assessments with compliance, privacy and cybersecurity in mind, he added.

Topics Trends USA InsurTech Data Driven Artificial Intelligence
In recent years, Schuyler Wight has noticed a growing number of abandoned oil wells coming back to life, gurgling fluids on the surface of his West Texas ranch. Last week he found the biggest one yet.

Gassy water was gushing from the ground and down a quarter mile of roadway before it drained into a pasture on a remote corner of his land.

Its by far flowing more than any other, Wight said. Its getting worse, theres no question about that.

Its the latest in a string of mysterious water features in the arid Permian Basin, the nations top producing oil field, that regulators have been unable to explain.

Last year, an eruption of salty water swamped several acres on Wights cousins ranch, triggering a multi-million-dollar cleanup. In 2022, a geyser shot up from a well in Crane County, then another on the Antina Cattle Ranch. Nearby, a large pond of gassy groundwater has become a permanent feature called Boehmer Lake.

Texas oilfield regulator, the Texas Railroad Commission, has yet to offer an explanation for what is driving so much water to the surface. After the massive cleanup effort in January, an agency press release said it was continuing to investigate the cause. The Railroad Commission did not immediately respond to a query.

Wight, a fourth-generation West Texas rancher, has watched this problem grow for years. He said the commission has plugged about 10 old wells leaking onto the surface of his property. But each time they do, another one starts flowing.

Words cant describe how far behind they are and how bad they are doing at this, he said. Theres going to be more of this, not just in Pecos County. Youre going to see it all over the place.

Theres nothing uncommon about a leaky old well. Many in West Texas were drilled during World War II and 80 years underground can do major damage to steel and concrete casing. Many of those wells were also flooded with water to squeeze out the last drops of oil.

The mystery now in the Permian Basin is what is pushing large volumes of that water up to the surface.

Theres a source of pressure there and its shallow, said Hawk Dunlap, an oilfield firefighter who lives in Crane County and surveyed the recent blowout for Wight last week. Its not clear what the source is.

Dunlap has worked oilfield emergencies in 102 countries, he said. Hes seen water dribbling up from old oil wells before, but never anything close to the quantity hes seen in West Texas.

Its strange, he said, because local ranchers need pumps to draw from their water wells. But every so often, it comes out of an oil well by itself.

Dunlap suspects it may be related to the injection of fracking wastewater. West Texas oil producers pump millions of gallons of so-called produced water, laced with chemical lubricants and numerous hazardous compounds such as arsenic, bromide, strontium, mercury, barium, and organic compounds, particularly benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes, underground every day for disposal, often into old oil and gas wells.

In theory, the produced water will remain in those wells and rock formations in perpetuity. But the geological science is imprecise, and if the water broke out its confines, it could affect pressure in other pockets underground.

Many other factors could affect the situation, Dunlap said. Gas can create pressure underground, as can interactions between freshwater and heavier salt water. Produced water can be five to eight times saltier than ocean water.

Theres been such an increase in disposal of produced water over the past decade, theres an overwhelming amount of water being disposed, said Dominic DiGiulio, an environmental consultant and geoscientist who worked for 30 years at the Environmental Protection Agency. That pressure has to go somewhere. So if theres a well penetration then its going to move freely up that well penetration.

Most typically, old oil wells leak gas, which is naturally buoyant. Leaking water is less common, according to Dwayne Purvis, founder of Purvis Energy Advisors, but has been known to occur under varying combinations of unique conditions.

He pointed to examples in California related to the injection of steam for oil recovery, and in Pennsylvania, where water from old coal mines has flowed through abandoned oil wells to the surface. In Pennsylvania, the Department of Environmental Protection has also investigated frac-outs, which occur when water being used to frack a well communicates with an abandoned well and then contaminates well water far from the fracking site.

In any case, Purvis said, fluid pressure must suffice to lift the fluids to the surface.

On Wights ranch the latest blowout continues to flow. Measurements indicate the water is moderately salty, and Wight can only watch helplessly as it seeps into his land.

The salt poisons the ground and nothing will grow after that, he said. Theres not a lot you can do to remediate salt contamination.

This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at https://www.texastribune.org/2024/06/11/west-texas-orphan-wells-water-bursts/.

The Texas Tribune is a member-supported, nonpartisan newsroom informing and engaging Texans on state politics and policy. Learn more at texastribune.org.

Topics Texas Energy Oil Gas
Banana giant Chiquita Brands must pay $38.3 million to 16 family members of people killed during Colombias long civil war by a violent right-wing paramilitary group funded by the company, a federal jury in Florida decided.

The verdict Monday by a jury in West Palm Beach marks the first time the company has been found liable in any of multiple similar lawsuits pending elsewhere in U.S. courts, lawyers for the plaintiffs said. It also marks a rare finding that blames a private U.S. company for human rights abuses in other countries.

This verdict sends a powerful message to corporations everywhere: profiting from human rights abuses will not go unpunished. These families, victimized by armed groups and corporations, asserted their power and prevailed in the judicial process, Marco Simons, EarthRights International General Counsel and one plaintiffs lawyer, said in a news release.

The situation in Colombia was tragic for so many, Chiquita, whose banana operations are based in Florida, said in a statement after the verdict. However, that does not change our belief that there is no legal basis for these claims.

According to court documents, Chiquita paid the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia  known by its Spanish acronym AUC  about $1.7 million between 1997 and 2004. The AUC is blamed for the killings of thousands of people during those years.

Chiquita has insisted that its Colombia subsidiary, Banadex, only made the payments out of fear that AUC would harm its employees and operations, court records show.

Reacting to the ruling on social media, Colombian president Gustavo Petro questioned why the U.S. justice system could determine Chiquita financed paramilitary groups, while judges in Colombia have not ruled against the company.

The 2016 peace deal  calls for the creation of a tribunal that will disclose judicial truths, why dont we have one? Petro posted on X, referencing the year the civil conflict ended.

The verdict followed a six-week trial and two days of deliberations. The EarthRights case was originally filed in July 2007 and was combined with several other lawsuits.

Our clients risked their lives to come forward to hold Chiquita to account, putting their faith in the United States justice system. I am very grateful to the jury for the time and care they took to evaluate the evidence, said Agnieszka Fryszman, another attorney in the case. The verdict does not bring back the husbands and sons who were killed, but it sets the record straight and places accountability for funding terrorism where it belongs: at Chiquitas doorstep.

In 2007, Chiquita pleaded guilty to a U.S. criminal charge of engaging in transactions with a foreign terrorist organization  the AUC was designated such a group by the State Department in 2001  and agreed to pay a $25 million fine. The company was also required to implement a compliance and ethics program, according to the Justice Department.
For two decades, a California law has helped workers sue the worlds biggest companies. Drivers for Uber Technologies Inc. won a $20 million settlement, Google employees secured $27 million over complaints of free-speech violations, and Walmart Inc. agreed to pay $65 million for allegedly not providing seating to their cashiers.

Now, Gov. Gavin Newsom is quietly overseeing talks about changing that law after prodding from some of Californias largest business interests, who say a cascade of progressive policy wins in the state  like raising the minimum wage for fast-food workers to $20 an hour and increasing paid sick days  are eating away at their bottom lines.

Newsoms office is seeking to bring business and labor to the table to negotiate a compromise of the Private Attorneys General Act.

Newsoms office has brought together the states powerful California Chamber of Commerce with the California Labor Federation to hash out a compromise over the Private Attorneys General Act, or PAGA, people familiar with the negotiations said. The law has cost big and small businesses $10 billion over the past 10 years, according to one study, and is viewed by labor advocates as a model of worker protection.

The negotiators are in a race against time: June 27 is the deadline to strike a measure from Californians November ballot that would give voters the opportunity to repeal the law. The Chamber of Commerce is negotiating on behalf of a broad alliance, which includes the billionaire owner of the Wonderful Company, Stewart Resnick, car dealership owners, Walmart and McDonalds Corp., along with small businesses across the state. The business coalition committed more than $31 million to entities backing the ballot measure, including the signature-gathering effort and an advertising blitz.

Seeking Compromise

Yet both sides would rather strike a compromise, according to people familiar with the negotiations, in order to forgo the massive expense of a ballot fight. The governor is also eager to get PAGA off the ballot, according to a person familiar with his thinking, to keep focus on a separate ballot measure that he opposes which would require voter approval for new taxes.

Newsom, who started his career running a hospitality group, has often sought to appease the business leaders who are perennially frustrated by policies enacted by the states liberal lawmakers.

PAGA is a California-only issue that businesses in California are subjected to, and it adds a huge layer of costs for them, said Jennifer Barrera, president of the California Chamber of Commerce.

California Minimum Wage Rises To $20 For Fast Food Workers

The California Chamber of Commerce is negotiating on behalf of a broad business alliance, which includes corporations like McDonalds.

Outlines of a possible deal remain vague, with the business coalition saying it wants to bolster state enforcement and reduce avenues for civil litigation. Labor leaders are willing to reform aspects of PAGA in ways that would lead to fewer lawsuits based on minor violations of state labor code. But they insist that workers retain the ability to use PAGA claims to get around forced arbitration, according to people familiar with the negotiations.

Were willing to work on reforms that do two things, said Lorena Gonzalez, head of the California Labor Federation, a coalition of unions. One: change the working conditions that are illegal. Two: make the worker whole.

The push to overhaul PAGA is an effort by business interests in California to fight back against a series of major wins the states progressive leaders have notched. Last year, after hundreds of thousands of workers went on strike around the state, lawmakers approved a hike in the minimum wage for health-care workers to $25 an hour. In October, Newsom approved sweeping climate change legislation forcing companies to disclose carbon emissions across their entire supply chain.

The governors office took notice of the PAGA reform effort last year during talks that led to a $20 minimum wage deal for California fast-food workers. Franchisees requested that Newsom pair the wage hike with a PAGA deal to offset new costs, according to a person familiar with the negotiations. While PAGA wasnt addressed, the governors staff said they would try to tackle PAGA in a future compromise.

The business groups playbook is a familiar one in California politics. Companies often look to sidestep the legislature by funding a ballot measure that would take their issue directly to voters. They then use the prospect of a costly ballot fight to force negotiations overseen by the governors office. If an agreement is reached, the legislature approves the compromise with the governors blessing, and all sides avoid spending tens of millions of dollars trying to drum up support or opposition.

Theres an opportunity of course, just like with any other ballot measure that qualifies, for the legislature to step in and fix PAGA, said Brian Maas, president of the California New Car Dealers Association. Weve got $20 million in our bank account and were prepared to push the measure forward.

As Inventory On Car Lots Dwindle Sales Take A Turn For Worse

The California New Car Dealers Association signaled they would help fund a ballot measure.

PAGA passed the California legislature in 2003. The law is unique in that it allows employees to act as private attorneys general, bringing lawsuits on behalf of the government for workplace violations.

The parts that especially exasperate businesses are the ability for workers to file suits on behalf of their colleagues and duck forced arbitration clauses. As forced arbitration clauses become increasingly common, workers are turning to PAGA more than ever. In 2022, the number of PAGA settlements topped 3,165, an 1,100% increase from 2016, according to a study funded by the California Chamber of Commerce.

We had signed our rights away by agreeing to forced arbitration, said Melissa Viviana Covarrubias, a janitorial worker in San Diego whos accusing her company of illegally misclassifying employees as independent contractors and depriving them of minimum wage, overtime and rest breaks. PAGA allowed us to sue on behalf of the state. Its pretty awesome to be able to do that.

Cottage Industry

PAGA settlements are divided between the state, workers and their lawyers. The laws success  built on a cottage industry of attorneys that specialize in PAGA claims  nabbed the state more than $200 million in civil penalties in the 2022-2023 fiscal year. In New York, a PAGA-like bill has been introduced every session since 2017.

Unions worry wage theft will go unpunished if PAGA is repealed. Workers can file claims seeking unpaid wages with the state labor commissioner, but a recent investigation found that office took a median of 854 days to issue decisions. The delay contributed to a backlog of 47,000 unprocessed claims by the middle of last year, according to the state auditor.

Weakening PAGA would force even more workers to rely on that chronically underfunded agency, opponents of its repeal argue.

Workers Ahead Of Bureau of Labor And Statistics Monthly Employment Report

California fast food workers recently won a raise to $20 an hour.

PAGA is the only way most workers can escape arbitration agreements specifically designed to silence them, said Lea-Ann Tratten, political director for Consumer Attorneys of California. Without PAGA, workers have nowhere else to turn.

Opponents of PAGAs current structure say the law largely benefits lawyers who file lawsuits for technical violations of the states sprawling labor code like spelling errors. They point to cases where attorneys reap payouts that are larger than what the workers get. The business coalition says instead of lawsuits, the state should bolster enforcement of the labor code and raise penalties for certain violations to deter bad actors.

Its insulting that attorneys get the majority of the fees, said Heath Flora, the top Republican on the Assembly Labor and Employment Committee.

Top photo: California fast food workers recently won a raise to $20 an hour.

Copyright 2024 Bloomberg.

Topics California
June 13, 2024 (Investorideas.com Newswire) A total of 19,642 deals comprising mergers & acquisitions (M&A), private equity, and venture financing were announced globally during January-May 2024, which is a decline of 19.6% compared to the announcement of 24,441 deals announced during January-May 2023, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

An analysis of GlobalData's Deals Database showed that all the deal types under coverage registered year-on-year (YoY) decline during January-May 2024. For instance, the number of M&A deals declined by 13.9% during the first five months of 2024 compared to January-May 2023, while the volume of private equity and venture financing deals was down by 23.1% and 27.8%, respectively.

Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData, comments: "Global deal activity declined substantially during the first five months of the year amid prevailing geopolitical tensions, ongoing wars, and macroeconomic challenges. These factors seem to have impacted deal-making sentiments across all regions globally."

Deal volume for North America declined by 25.6% during January-May 2024 compared to January-May 2023 while Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Africa, and the South and Central America regions saw respective deals volume decline YoY by 20.1%, 9.9%, 14.8%, and 30.7%.

Bose adds: "These declines could be attributed to the fact that most of the markets within these regions experienced subdued deal activity during the review period."

Some of the notable countries witnessing YoY decline included the US, the UK, China, Canada, Germany, Australia, France, the Netherlands, Italy, and Spain, which saw deal volume fall by 24.3%, 14%, 18.3%, 35.6%, 21.8%, 8.8%, 37.5%, 19.8%, 17.9% and 27.6% during January-May 2024 compared to January-May 2023, respectively.

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Quotes provided by Aurojyoti Bose, Lead Analyst at GlobalData

Information based on GlobalData's Financial Deals Database

This press release was written using data and information sourced from proprietary databases, primary and secondary research, and in-house analysis conducted by GlobalData's team of industry experts.

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Irish beef export access to South Korea is a "significant development" for the EU's beef industry, the European Commission has said.

South Korea has officially opened market access for beef from both Ireland and France.

This is one of the biggest import markets for beef in the world.

The commission said it anticipates that other member states will "soon follow in being able to export beef to the Republic of Korea, further deepening our trading relationship".

In 2001, the Korean market was closed to imports from 15 EU member states due to outbreaks of BSE.

Yet, despite its stringent measures guaranteeing the safety of EU beef, the union faced a trade blockade from the early 2000s onwards.

Following extensive discussions with the European Commission, the Republic of Korea re-opened its market to EU beef from Denmark and the Netherlands in 2019.

Now, five years later, this recognition has been extended to beef from Ireland and France.

The EU is a major net exporter of beef, exporting 1.05m tonnes of beef in 2023, and importing 289,000 tonnes, for a sectoral trade surplus of 761,000 tonnes.

Priority market

In May, announcing the opening of South Korea to beef, Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue said this market was "designated as a priority market for access for Irish beef".

"My department has been active in pursuit of this objective working for many years through the very detailed application process. I used the opportunity to push the case for Irish beef during my visit to Seoul last October," he said.

"With a population of over 50m people, there is huge potential for Irish agri-food exporters to grow their footprint in the sophisticated Korean market. For beef, the door has now been opened and there is a real opportunity for the industry to build on."

South Korean consumers are the highest per-capita consumers of meat across Asia, with consumption of 79kg per person. Of this, 17kg is beef. Furthermore, beef consumption is predicted to grow by 1% year-on-year over the next four years.

Coupled with this increasing demand, South Korea is only 35% self-sufficient in beef production, meaning it relies heavily on imported beef to satisfy its sizeable demand.

In 2020, South Korea imported almost 500,000t of beef, of which 92% came from the US and Australia.

Seven Irish beef plants have been approved for exporting to South Korea.
The new National Biomethane Strategy "needs to work" for farmers - "or else it will fail", the leader of a farm organisation has said.

A conference this week heard how 1bn is needed to reach the 2030 biomethane target and deliver unique benefits of decarbonisation and bioeconomy.

The event, organised by the Renewable Gas Forum Ireland (RGFI), discussed the practicalities of implementing the recently announced biomethane strategy, Ireland's first major policy statement on biomethane.

President of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association Denis Drennan said that biomethane has the "potential to deliver a possible diversification option for farmers while making a valued contribution to climate change and other environmental priorities".

However, Mr Drennan said the biomethane strategy "needs to be reviewed and deliver a long-term pricing guarantee, a planning system that works for farmers and clarification and reality around the Government's various land use targets".

"Farmers wont be fooled, the strategy needs to work for them - or else it will fail," he warned.

Environment Minister Eamon Ryan at the conference confirmed the Irish Government's commitment to industry growth to achieve Irelands biomethane target of 5.7TWh by 2030.

"Achieving the target will require concerted cross-government action and continued engagement with key stakeholders and industry experts," Mr Ryan said.

"Only through ongoing collaboration will we be in a position to realise this level of ambition and develop a successful, sustainable Irish biomethane sector."

Funding needed

According to PJ McCarthy, CEO of the RGFI, biomethane has the "potential to progressively reduce emissions and reliance on fossil gas supplies both at a European and national level".

"We estimate that with adequate Government support, biomethane can provide up to 9.5TWh of the required Irish gas within 15 years," Mr McCarthy said.

"Our members are ready to develop 10x40 GWh anaerobic digestion plants within the next 18 months, supported by capital funding.

While wind and solar power play crucial roles in our renewable energy portfolio, biomethane uniquely offers additional benefits such as significant decarbonisation and contributions to the circular bio-economy unmatched by other renewables.

"Anaerobic digestion-producing biomethane is capital-intensive and therefore if Ireland is to achieve the 2030 target for biomethane and emissions reduction, this requires 1bn in future support to ensure the development of the additional plants needed.

RGFI chairman JP Prendergast said the strategy, published in late May, is an important milestone in the development of an indigenous sector, "heralding a new era where the production of farmer-centric, AD biomethane and its co-products, are placed at the heart of our national decarbonisation and nutrient management efforts".

The role of farmers, and the rural economy, will be critical to the development of biomethane in Ireland, he said.

This is a crucial first step to meet Irelands biomethane target, supported by the Governments initial 40m in capital funding and underpinned by a renewable heat obligation, plus Government investment of up to 30m in biorefinery piloting facilities over the next two to three years," Mr Prendergast said.

"We welcome the inclusion in the strategy of other non-financial supports, as proposed by RGFI, such as non-contestable gas grid connections, the AD charter to guide sustainability, as well as a communications strategy to socialise the socioeconomic benefits of biomethane and biorefinery potential.

Benefits for farmers

John Brosnan, bioeconomy executive with the Irish Co-operative Organisation Society, said that "new and innovative joint venture structures and how we finance and de-risk innovation" has to be thought out.

"We can develop and integrate several innovative high value market opportunities. Extracting high value proteins from feedstocks, processing digestate into biofertilisers, utilising captured CO2, incorporating biochar and preparing for the hydrogen era are all opportunities that we should be looking at, not just energy in isolation," Mr Brosnan said.

"From an agri-food perspective we need to see value created locally remaining in local regions, and a fair share in the hands of the farmers who provide the feedstocks. We also need to see the environmental benefits accrue to farmers and their co-operatives through related carbon farming or green sustainability certification.

Other speakers at the conference included beef farmer Brugha Duffy from Co Meath who was granted permission for an agricultural anaerobic digester in 2022 and expects to inject biomethane into the national gas distribution grid and has potential to pursue the supply of CO2 to consumers and incorporate a digestate nutrient recovery facility.
Hello its Rosealeen here in Ballydesmond. Myself and Berna were watching a story about floods on the news the other night, when I suddenly piped up with, Id love to have it off with someone in the Green Party. Gin, twould drive you mad, mad enough to download a dating app called Smug Lovers, which helps you meet eco-nuts who are delighted with themselves because they installed solar panels in 2004.

Ten minutes later some galoot called Gav is sending me a photo of his composter, which was disappointing in more ways than one. Anyway, didnt we agree to an old Meet and Sheets as we call it in the casual sex community and he arrived at my home place here last night, I could see Ina Mac behind her lace curtains down the road, judging me out the window like some kind of withered nun.

Anyway in comes Gav, Wham Bam Thank You Rosealeen from Ballydesmond, he was sexy enough for a tree-hugger Ill grant him that. I said to him over breakfast, when will I see you again and didnt he say he wouldnt be back because there isnt anywhere in Ballydesmond to charge his electric car. He suggested I look for someone with a different car and told me there is a very good dating app called Do It With Diesel.

Im heartbroken Audrey, do you know how to get a decent electric charger in your town? (He can feck off he if he thinks he is going to use my electricity.)

 Rosealeen, Ballydesmond.

There is a joke here about you telling Gav he cant plug into your socket, but Im not the person to make it.

Cmere, whats the story with getting poisoned on Fathers Day? The big day is coming up this weekend and its a tradition in my gaff that my kids cook me dinner, which is grand if you like two burned bits of black pudding on a bed of partially frozen potato waffle.

My kids are no Gordon Ramseys, except maybe for the cursing. I dont want to seem cruel and just say, would ye ever get me a mug, but I dont want a fit of the gawks either. What will I do?

 Dowcha Donie, Blackpool

I love waking up Mothers Day morning. Mainly because Im by myself in a room in the Hotel Europe, paid for by my kids. And when I say by myself, I mean with Paulo from our local pizza place. Bliss.

Myself and my husband live with his uncle, many is the night would head into morning and wed still be up drinking tea, talking politics and putting the world to right.

Were all on the one page when it comes to the rotten state of Ireland and all the foreigners bringing abortion into the country.

Now, I know the way ye are up in yeer swish suburbs in Cork, the way ye love lecturing the plain people of Ireland and telling us we need to put up or shut up with the way the country is moving. Well, enough is enough.

A man came to our door during the election campaign and after mumbling a few things about fixing potholes, didnt he come straight out and say that things were better before when it was just Irish people here.

Hes not a racist, none of us are, but he promised that if we voted him onto the council hed set about sending loads of foreigners home from day one.

'Number one all the day boy', we said to him and didnt he get elected there over during the week. God is good.

Until my uncle-in-law came home from town this morning, the rage on him, he counted the foreigners and there were still the same number there.

Weve been conned, so we have. Is there any way we can take our vote back?

 Im not giving my name and address, but Ive included a photo so you can see who we are, the plain people of Ireland.

Ive stared at your photo for a while and youre right. The three of ye are very plain.

Its getting Jetty on our WhatsApp group, Douglas Road Stunners Who Fly Out of Dublin To Avoid People Like You.

Cork Airport is lovely if youre really stuck but it tod-ally lacks Boasty Lounges, where you can show off your wealth by paying 100 quid to keep away from the riff-raff from places like Midleton.

Dublin has a few of these and its hair-raising every year trying to figure out which one is in vogue. You dont want to spend a fortune on nails, hair, Botox and what have you only to end up sharing a bowl of chilli-flavoured peanuts with Marty Morrissey.

Thats what happened to Flossie Mac last year and we organised a petition asking her to move to Ballinlough. (It worked Audrey, keep an eye out for her in your hood.)

Anyway my Fifi is doing an eco project in school and according to her the planet is going to go on fire, which got me thinking  we should be flying out of Cork to protect the environment.

Can you check if there is a de rigueur first class lounge in Cork Airport?

 Jenni, Douglas Road

Ive been in Cork Airport during the summer peak  the only thing de rigueur is a perfume by that name in Duty Free.
RTE is considering a 400,000 redundancy payment to an individual who cannot be named, the chair of the broadcasters board Terence ORourke has said.

On Wednesday, before the Oireachtas media committee, Mr ORourke would not be drawn on the identity of the person, but confirmed the board was in the process of being considered and Media Minister Catherine Martin was aware of it.

The financing of RTE was one of the biggest concerns raised by the broadcasters new board chairperson when first meeting the minister.

Mr ORourke said the current TV licence collection system was archaic and out of date.

Ms Martin has committed to making a decision on reforming the funding of RTE before the Dail summer recess.

Some options reported to be under consideration are direct exchequer funding or a new broadcasting charge to be collected by Revenue, as opposed to An Post.

The broadcaster was plunged into crisis in June last year after it admitted understating the fees for its star presenter and previous top earner Ryan Tubridy.

A series of probing parliamentary committee hearings also uncovered other concerns about culture, governance, and financial management and there have been several high-profile resignations from the board and executive of the station.

A pre-existing steady decline in licence fee revenue was accelerated by the expanding controversy

RTE operates on a dual-funding model that sees about 55% of its income brought in through the obligatory licence fee, which costs 160 a year.

About 85% of revenue from TV licence fees goes to RTE to carry out its public service broadcasting commitments, while it also earns money via commercial operations.

The Cabinet is due to sign off on a decision on reforming the funding model for public service broadcasting in the coming weeks.

On Wednesday, Mr ORourke said the board was seeking an adequate, independent, predictable and reliable source of funding.

A licence fee system which is depending on TV sets is archaic and out of date, he said.

There are different models out there. I think the current system is not working properly  a household charge would be another example involving public-sector funding.

There are different ways of doing it, but probably all of those would be better than the current system.

Mr ORourke took over as head of the board from Siun Ni Raghallaigh after she resigned following a public dispute with the minister.

Ms Ni Raghallaigh said she had been left with no option but to quit after being subjected to an enforced dismissal, after Ms Martin expressed disappointment in her during a live TV interview.

Mr ORourke, a former KPMG managing partner, was appointed in March.

Director general Kevin Bakhurst has announced a strategic plan for reforming RTE by 2028.

It includes cutting headcount by 400 (a reduction of up to 20%) and a significant increase in investment in the independent production sector.
People living in disability centres have said their independence and ability to make decisions can vary greatly depending on where they live - with many calling for greater freedoms.

Information shared by 88 residents during 15 residents forums organised by watchdog Hiqa included the fact that building maintenance is often only done before the inspectors arrive. However, many praised the centres they live in.

In discussing their rights, one person said: If there was something I was interested in but staff werent happy, Id just let the staff know exactly that its my choice and Im in the right

Another said human rights mean to be happy and one person said this means to be treated equally.

A number of responses were on money and accessing their own funds, with one person saying: I want to get a job and be paid.

Some peoples experiences showed the value of staff having good relationships with people they care for.

When I was in other houses there wasnt a lot of respect from staff  they didnt knock on the door. Then I moved to a new home and theres a lot more respect, one person said.

They knock, ask you what you want to do. Choices are respected now

Another person said: I dont like someone to be listening when talking to someone, especially if its private.

While some units require at least one staff member sleep overnight, one person highlighted the flip side of this.

If staff are there all day and all night you dont have your own independence, they said.

Other people talked about how busy staff can be.

There does be too much paperwork, one said. Years ago, there was one report at night-time. Now theres loads, a big long thing. I have to give staff credit, they are working top to bottom to do what Hiqa tell them.

Another person had a less benign view, saying: some staff dont have time to respect us and they are too busy doing paperwork The level of independence people have seems to vary from unit to unit.

We picked our own paint colours for bedrooms and bed clothes, one person said.

However another reported: When I moved house the managers came and talked to me. They found us a house but never asked us if we wanted to live there.

Similarly the attitude to Hiqa inspections was mixed although wanting to be more involved with these was a common theme.

While one person wanted go go around with the inspector for the day, another said: dont like them going into my bedroom, sometimes two people.

Another reported: when they know Hiqa are coming they get maintenance in to do all the jobs. When we ask it takes weeks.

Lockdowns

The frustrations of the covid-19 lockdowns still loom large for many residents.

One person recalled: stay at home for two years  very upsetting and heartbroken over it. I didnt like it. Very upset about it.

While another said: I didnt understand it so I had to ask  they got a piece of paper and made it bigger for me and that helped.

Hiqa Deputy Chief Inspector of Social Services, Finbarr Colfer, said: Overall, their feedback remind us about the importance of human rights-based approach in services.

He added: Residents described their rights to us as to be happy, being respected, independence, or treated equally. The voice of the resident guides our extensive work in promoting a better health and social care in Ireland.

The forums took place in 2022 with feedback forums collected last year and reports on these can be read on the Hiqa website.
The Minister for Agriculture has said the illegal "abhorrent and distressing" treatment of animals featured in an RTE investigation into the horse industry will be fully investigated.

Horses: Making a Killin g was broadcast on RTE One on Wednesday evening. Part two airs on Thursday night.

For the programme, journalists for the broadcaster went undercover and used hidden cameras to expose the horrific abuse taking place in the Irish and European equine industries.

In particular, the programme highlighted activities in a lairage used by Shannonside Foods in Straffan, Co Kildare - Ireland's only licensed equine abattoir.

Footage captured showed, among other things, horses being repeatedly punched around the head, whipped, and struck with long lengths of plastic piping.

After becoming too weak to stand, one horse was seen collapsing. It was later prodded with a pitchfork. Sadly, the animal died after hours of struggling. It was then dragged out of the shed the following day.

On Thursday morning, Charlie McConalogue said the scenes shown in the programme and the treatment endured by the horses was absolutely unacceptable.

"It's certainly not representative of the way that people across this country and those in the industry treat and care for their horses. We already have commenced an investigation in the Department of Agriculture.

The Minister said that his department has requested all the footage from RTE and other evidence for their investigation.

We have a wonderful horse racing industry in this country," he said.

It was really concerning to see what we saw last night.

Mr McConalogue pledged that "no stone will be left unturned" in the Department's investigation into the matter.

However, he said it was impossible to guarantee that violence against animals was not continuing.

You can never be sure that somebody is not mistreating in any avenue of life. But what we have in place is very strict laws and very strict penalties in relation to that," he told RTE Radio's Morning Ireland.

The Minister also said he was sure the majority of people involved in the country's equine industry were "massively respectful and provide tremendous care to their horses".

"But you can have instances, where people mistreat and break that law. And certainly, the instances we saw last night, speak to that and, the full rigors of the law now will be brought to bear in relation to the evidence that's been brought to us," he added.
Irish holidaymakers have been warned against visiting nearly 50 black flag beaches in Spain.

Spanish environmental campaign group Ecologists in Action has named and shamed the worst offenders in a report highlighting problems, including chemical pollution, marine waste, over-development and sewage discharges.

Talamanca Beach in Ibiza has been put on the list after being singled out over the catastrophic damage done to underwater plants by boats anchoring illegally off the coast and a treatment plant pumping salty wastewater into the sea.

El Amerador Beach in El Campello just north of Alicante has been given one of Ecologists in Actions 48 black flags because of disease-causing fecal pollution blamed on a nearby poorly-maintained pumping station.

The organisation highlights two recent instances of human waste entering the sea at the Costa Blanca beach, one in March and one in April.

The Canary Islands, where thousands of locals took to the streets in April in an anti-mass tourism protest to highlight problems including ocean pollution, also get a drubbing in the report.

On the Costa Brava, private boats have been blamed for damaging marine biodiversity.

A spokesman for Ecologists in Action, a grassroots confederation of 300 ecological groups, said: In Tenerife, 57 million litres of wastewater are discharged directly into the sea every day, equivalent to 17 Olympics swimming pools of polluted water.

The problem extends to all eight Canary Islands. Underwater outlets are discharging 24/7 365 days a year in all the islands archipelago.

More than 90% of the wastewater from urban, industrial and agricultural centres reaches the sea practically without treatment.

The popular Playa Blanca beach in Lanzarote, an island popular with Irish tourists, gets one of the groups black flags this year because of a sewage spill caused by a pumping station fault which led to the beach's temporary closure in May.

Ecologists in Action warned that this was not the first incident and described it as common, saying pumping treatment managers had blamed the problem on people flushing wet wipes and nappies down the toilet instead of putting them in the bin.

Pellets identified as dangerous to marine and human life have been flagged up as a problem on the Costa Dorada in Tarragona, which includes resorts like Salou.

Further north on the Costa Brava, private boats have been blamed for damaging marine biodiversity.
The extent of damage caused to historic mummies after a crypt at St Michans Church in Dublin was set on fire has been revealed in a series of photographs.

The blaze happened on Tuesday afternoon after the crypt in Church Street was broken into and vandalised.

A fire was lit in the crypt which houses a number of mummified remains, including those of the 800-year-old Crusader.

Photographs released by the Church of Ireland show how the fire burned through the mummified remains.

One of the fire-damaged mummies in the crypt at St Michans Church in Dublin (Dan Sheridan/St Michans Church/PA)

A man arrested for criminal damage in relation to the incident has since appeared in court in Dublin this week.

Archbishop Michael Jackson, who visited St Michans Church earlier this week, said: I am devastated to say that vandalism has once again struck in the crypt of St Michans, Church Street.

The fire brigade was called and members dealt with the fire.

However, significant damage has been done to the mummies. These historic remains are woven into the history of the city of Dublin and emblazoned in the imaginations of visitors and tourists from home and abroad.

We do not yet know what the future is for the mummies as the Archdeacon of Dublin and I fear that they have been destroyed.

These mummies are a national treasure and I am shocked at the sacrilege of the destruction of the remains of people who once lived.

Archdeacon David Pierpoint, the vicar of St Michans, added: Our security system is very tight and thankfully we have CCTV in operation.

The footage has been handed to the gardai and the investigation is in their hands. We are very grateful to the gardai and fire brigade for their efforts and support in putting out the fire.

The crypt is a crime scene but I have just been given access to see the damage. The mummies are sitting in a foot of water.

These mummies are a national treasure and I am shocked at the sacrilege of the destruction of the remains of people who once lived

They need a very specific atmosphere and I fear that at least two of the remains, including The Crusader, have been destroyed. I will contact the National Museum to see if anything can be saved.

St Michans Church is one the oldest churches on the north side of the River Liffey and is located in the heart of historic Oxmantown. Its crypt is home to a number of mummified remains.

In February 2019 the crypt was broken into and the head of the 800-year-old Crusader mummy was stolen but was later recovered.

Apart from The Crusader, the crypt is home to the mummified remains of The Thief and a man who is reputed to have been buried alive along with other remains whose origins are unknown.

The 400-year-old remains of a nun are also housed in the crypt.
The mother of two Irish boys abducted in Cairo has been requested by the Egyptian authorities to attend court in July, following an application for the return of her children.

Mandy Kellys sons were taken by their Egyptian father during a family holiday in Cairo in March 2022, after he locked her in an apartment and took them away in a car.

Read More Irish mum prepares for court battle in Cairo to get her children back from their father

The mother of two from Dundalk in Co Louth has not seen her children Zayn, aged six, and Kareem, aged 3, who were born in Ireland, since then.

In a new development on Thursday, Ms Kelly has been requested to attend the office of the state prosecutor in Cairo, where she has been asked to meet with authorities in relation to the return of her children.

I feel incredibly anxious because of the current update on the Department of Foreign Affairs about travelling to Egypt she told the Irish Examiner.

There is a warning of high caution that Irish citizens are requested not to visit due to security reasons.

However, I am doing my best to consider this.

Its at boiling point for me, I have a civil and criminal case pending in Cairo and I just want my children back.

Civil proceedings are to begin in September also, but Ive received a new notice, and a new development in the case to go over there next month.

I am still awaiting a response from the Minister for Justice here after our meeting on April 11, and I want a response from her.

Im taking this request very seriously, and I will be meeting the chief prosecutor in Cairo and telling him my story."

She continued: The pain continues no matter what I havent seen my children since March 2022. I want the public to know that my ex-partner has refused mediation with members of clergy in his own country.

This is not just only a tug-of-war this is a lot more serious."

Ms Kelly made an application to the courts in Cairo after exhausting all other avenues in her efforts to have her children returned to her.

Egypt is not signed up to The Hague Convention on child abductions, making it difficult to have the children brought home by the Irish State.

Ms Kelly, who first told her harrowing story in the Irish Examiner, has said she is in a living hell since her children were taken.

During a visit to Egypt to see their grandmother in April 2022, the childrens father Ramy Gamal Maamoun Mohamed locked their mother Mandy in an apartment and took the children away in a car.
Enoch Burke has lost his defamation claim against the publisher of the Sunday Independent over an article alleging he was moved jail cell for his safety because he was annoying other prisoners.

Mr Justice Rory Mulcahy held that the words in the story, published in October 2022, were incapable of injuring his reputation.

The judge said the seven paragraphs complained about are untrue, which is unfortunate, but the tort of defamation and the Defamation Act of 2009 do not provide a court remedy for simply untrue statements made about a person. For that, a plaintiff must establish that the untrue statement injured their reputation, he said.

This story came during Mr Burkes first stint in prison for breaching a court order restraining him from attending at St Wilsons Hospital School, which had suspended and later dismissed him after he publicly objected to being instructed to refer to a student using they/them pronouns.

Although he was released for a short period, Mr Burke remains in jail. His situation is due to be reviewed by another High Court judge on Friday.

In a ruling on Thursday, Mr Justice Mulcahy said it must be the case that any persons reputation is diminished in the eyes of a reasonable member of society if they simply refuse to comply with a court order.

A reasonable reader could not have had a view of Mr Burkes reputation that was capable of being injured by an incorrect allegation that he had been speaking excessively about religion following imprisonment, the judge said.

The suggestion that he severely annoyed his fellow prisoners by the repeated expression of his religious beliefs is [] a whisper in the hurricane of noise which his actions in September 2022 (when he was first jailed) created, the judge added.

Alleging a grave and serious libel occured as a result of entirely baseless claims, Mr Burke sued Mediahuis, as publisher of the Sunday Independent; editor Alan English and reporter Ali Bracken. The defendants acknowledged minor errors in the October 9 piece but strongly denied Mr Burke was defamed.

Mr Burke sued Mediahuis, as publisher of the 'Sunday Independent'; the newspapers editor Alan English and reporter Ali Bracken (pictured) alleging he was defamed in a story published on October 9, 2022. File picture: Collins Courts

The article cited unnamed sources to say Mr Burke was moved to a new cell for his safety as he was annoying other prisoners and repeatedly expressing his outspoken views and beliefs. The newspaper apologised on January 1, 2023, and clarified that Mr Burkes cell change was for operational reasons only.

However, the defendants, represented by Ronan Lupton SC and Lewis Mooney BL, strongly denied the article was capable of defaming or that Mr Burkes reputation was injured in the eyes of a reasonable person. They did not plead truth but argued it was a fair and reasonable publication on a matter of public interest.

Mr Justice Mulcahy found no evidence of malice or recklessness by the defendants in deciding to publish the article.

He said it was difficult to imagine how being said to repeatedly express ones religious views could ever injure ones reputation, as freedom of expression and religion are constitutionally protected rights.

Most significantly, any reasonable member of society knew he had not complied with a High Court order, had been imprisoned for contempt and had not purged his contempt, the judge said. This wholly undermines the suggestion the article damaged his reputation, he added.

Mr Justice Mulcahy clarified he was not suggesting that nothing could defame Mr Burke on account of his contempt. He said the case law makes clear that even a blemished reputation can be injured.

The article was removed promptly from independent.ie but the January apology and correction were unduly delayed, the judge found.

He also rejected the publisher's contention that the piece provided any public interest benefit, and said the fair and reasonable publication defence would not have been open to it if the article was defamatory.

He agreed to dismiss the claim and gave a provisional view that the defendants are entitled to have their legal fees paid for by Mr Burke.
78-year-old former scout leader Michael Noel Sheehan was described on Thursday by the victims of his sexual assaults more than 30 years ago as an "animal" and a "monster" and they expressed the hope justice would be done.

Judge Helen Boyle jailed Michael Noel Sheehan, known as Noel Sheehan, of Chimneyfields, Glenville, Co Cork, for four years, saying at events that should have been fun and adventure for the boys, they were preyed upon by you when you were in charge of their welfare.

Sheehan still refuses to accept any wrongdoing and rejects the unanimous decision of the jury who found him guilty of indecently or sexually assaulting five boy scouts.

Through defence senior counsel Ray Boland, Sheehan complained about sharing a cell with two men in Cork Prison who smoke. Prisons are one of the few places where the widespread smoking ban does not apply.

Victim impact statements

Four of the five victims of the scout leaders sexual abuse of them as children spoke of the devastating effect it had on their lives. Three resorted to drink or drugs and some of them self-harmed. They read their victim impact evidence in court while the report from the fifth victim was handed in to the judge as he was not present for the sentencing.

The first young man said the scouting motto of Bi Ullamh, or Be Prepared, was ironic as nothing could have prepared him for what happened at the hands of Noel Sheehan on overnights for scouting weekends.

The shame I felt was torture. I did not want to have a child [when he got married] in case something similar happened to the child. He tried to intimidate me in the corridors of the courthouse, standing in front of me with a smirk of arrogance  like a predator circling his prey  not getting a reaction no matter how much he poked the bear, the victim said.

He said he would not have a marriage or a job if he did not get counselling for his issues with authority figures. This led to therapy, for which he is very grateful. He said he was glad to present the victim impact statement for his childhood self who was abused by Noel Sheehan.

The second victim was also sexually abused between the ages of 10 and 12 on scouting weekends. Generally, the sexual abuse took the form of the defendant putting his hand inside the childs sleeping bag and fondling their genital area, inside or outside their clothing.

I felt frightened and ashamed and became very isolated. I turned to drink and drugs. [In court], seeing that animal for the first time since the abuse, making us out to be troublemakers, he said.

As with some of the other victims, this man blamed his own parents also for what Sheehan did to him, and felt they should have known or should have intervened.

The third man said he first made a complaint against the defendant 20 years ago but the DPP decided not to prosecute. He said he was contacted again by the gardai in 2021. After some consideration he decided he would renew his complaint in the hope it would protect children in the community. He has been slipping through the hands of the criminal justice system for far too long, he said.

The fourth man said his life had been destroyed and he turned to alcohol at the age of 13 so drink would help me with all these demons in my head. Instead he got into more addictions to drugs and found himself going in and out of prison over the years.

I hope this monster gets what he deserves for what he done to me and the other kids. He absolutely destroyed us and our families, he said.

He was convicted by the unanimous decision of a jury of four women and eight men on 16 counts of indecent assault.

He pleaded not guilty to 17 charges at the outset of a six-week trial at Cork Circuit Criminal Court but on April 25 the jury told Judge Helen Boyle they were unanimous in finding him guilty on 16 charges. A formal disagreement was recorded in respect of one count only.

Sentencing

Judge Boyle remanded the 78-year-old in jail for sentencing on Thursday.

Prosecution barrister Katherine McGillycuddy told the trial Noel Sheehan was a scout master for a troop of scouts in Cork in the late 1980s and he used to take the boys in the troop away on camping weekends.

She said five complainants described being indecently or sexually assaulted by the touching and fondling of their private parts both inside and outside their clothing during these camping weekends.

The defendant had been charged with six counts of indecent assault against each of two of complainants, three counts of indecent assault in respect of another complainant and one count of indecent assault against each of the other two complainants.

Sheehan had denied all the offences which occurred when his victims were aged between 10 and 13 at a scout hall at Old Schoolhouse, Chimneyfields, Glenville, some at Mount Melleray, Co Waterford, and one at Drishane Castle, Millstreet, Co Cork.

Defence senior counsel, Ray Boland, said: I have unequivocal instructions that he does not accept the verdicts from the jury which precludes me from offering any remorse.

In February 2022, the same defendant was convicted of indecently assaulting a boy scout in similar circumstances back in the 1980s and he was given a two-year sentence with the last year suspended.

Judge Boyle said of indecent assaults on five young boys: These were all young boys, aged between 10 and 12. You were the leader of the scout troop and were the person in charge. Events that should have been fun and adventure. Instead they were preyed upon by you when you were in charge of their welfare. Parents entitled to believe their children were safe. The only person to blame is you.

Judge Boyle said he was in a position of trust and abused that trust. She imposed a total sentence of four and a half years and suspended the last six months.

The judge commended the victims' bravery for coming forward and the eloquence of their victim impact statements.
Gardai and the Department of Agriculture are investigating the "horror hole" horse abattoir at the centre of alleged serious animal abuse.

The Government has promised that the illegal "abhorrent and distressing" treatment of animals featured in an RTE Investiges programme into the horse industry will be fully examined.

The programme highlighted activities in a lairage used by Shannonside Foods in Straffan, Co Kildare  Ireland's only licensed equine abattoir.

The European Commission has now issued an alert for horses slaughtered in Ireland, Italy, and Spain because it is "convinced there is evidence that animals that should have been removed from the food chain have not been removed," former Agriculture Minister Simon Coveney told the Dail.

"In other words, their identities have been falsified. That in itself is a reputational issue that needs a very clear and firm response from the department and the State generally," he said.

Mr Coveney said the facility should be immediately closed until there is more clarity around the disturbing details that were uncovered using hidden cameras.

Describing the abattoir as "that horror hole", Ceann Comhairle Sean O Fearghail also asked for further clarity about the future operation of the facility.

Earlier, Finance Minister Michael McGrath said a full investigation has been under way for a number of weeks.

Anyone who has a love of animals will have been appalled by it. That is why the full force of the law will be applied here. This investigation needs to be allowed to take its course.

He added that the Department of Agriculture is now "on this in every respect that we would expect it to be", including with direct engagement supervision and regulation of the particular commercial premises.

He was responding to Sinn Fein's Pearse Doherty, who outlined a number of shocking incidents shown in the programme including "the stabbing with a pitchfork of a dying horse, the whipping of horses".

Mr Doherty said a question that so many people are asking is how the mistreatment happened "under the very nose" of the Department of Agriculture.

He outlined that department officials were present at the slaughterhouse "literally a yard's throw away" from where the footage was captured. He said:

People are asking how could it be that this building, just yards away, did not fall under the remit of the Department of Agriculture?

Responding, Mr McGrath said he wanted to be clear that the animal welfare rules apply everywhere.

"They apply also in the holding area even if that is not the area where the inspection was actually taking place, which is in the slaughterhouse itself. In the holding area, the same animal welfare rules apply."

Labour TD Duncan Smith highlighted the "gigantic levels of funding" received by the equine industry from the exchequer each year.

"We now have a clear sense of the murky and illegal practices that are going on."

He added: "What emerged last night raises serious questions for the Department of agriculture and for Horse Racing Ireland which appear to be asleep at the wheel."

Footage captured showed, among other things, horses being repeatedly punched around the head, whipped, and struck with long lengths of plastic piping.

After becoming too weak to stand, one horse was seen collapsing. It was later prodded with a pitchfork and died hours later.

On Thursday morning, Agriculture Minister Charlie McConalogue said the scenes shown in the programme and the treatment endured by the horses were unacceptable.

"It's certainly not representative of the way that people across this country and those in the industry treat and care for their horses.

"We already have commenced an investigation in the Department of Agriculture.

The minister said that his department has requested all the footage from RTE and other evidence for their investigation.

However, he said it was impossible to guarantee that violence against animals was not continuing.

"But what we have in place is very strict laws and very strict penalties in relation to that," he told RTE Radio's Morning Ireland.
One of the research assistants at home was recently planning a trip to town with her gang.

Negotiations broke down on a particular sticking point. Namely, co-ordinating two different pals getting on the same bus so everyone could meet up when the bus came to a particular stop . . . anyone with experience of teenagers organising skills will recognise that this is like three badgers working out close harmonies. Truly it defieth all human understanding.

This is not a criticism of the bus service, which occupies a treasured place in Moynihan family lore going back to a distant relative: as a toddler back in the mid-sixties he pulled a pot of hot tea down on himself, with scalding results.

His father gathered him up and ran out into the street, flagging down a passing bus. When the driver saw what had happened he drove them straight to the North Infirmary, far from his prescribed route, with the full encouragement of the passengers on board.

Years later I remember being on the old number 12 as it wheezed up past Dillons Cross on its long and winding road to Dublin Hill, apart from one non-official stop. The driver disembarked with a bag of groceries at the turn past Mount Farran, hurried into a house, then trotted back onto the bus to resume the journey.

Again, no complaints, though maybe that was because no-one could see what was happening through the fog of cigarette smoke in the bus. (Not everything was perfect back in the old days, admittedly.)

Bus Eireann CEO, Stephen Kent, said that Cork is proving to be the most challenging region to get staff to work in. File picture: Larry Cummins

But there was a time when public transport had an emphasis on the public. It was a shared experience, and going back the decades sharing was the key element. A century ago the man on the Clapham omnibus was a proverbial indicator of common sense and reasonable opinion.

The idea that travelling on public transport made you representative of the populace had a fair longevity to it: trace elements survived almost to our own time. Remember the TV advertisement a few years back in which a regular punter admitted that he didnt know what a tracker mortgage was?

He did so by informing his fellow passengers on a bus. When did all of this change, and why?

Far more people own cars now, certainly. You can find statistics showing that private car ownership in Ireland almost doubled between 1990 and 2020.

I recall a statistician at an Oireachtas committee meeting during the Celtic Tiger years pondering this development: with full employment, he mused, people who couldnt afford a house were buying cars to have something to show for their wages.

Thats a significant change from times past. If, like your columnist, you were playing matches as a kid in the early 80s you probably have fond memories of being squeezed into old cars to be ferried to the likes of the Tank Field or Lehenaghmore, seven or eight players to a vehicle.

Nowadays those players tend to be single passengers in one car. More car use. And more car use means less bus use. Is bus travel out of favour for other reasons?

Notoriously, Margaret Thatcher is supposed to have said: If a man finds himself a passenger on a bus having attained the age of 26, he can count himself a failure in life. Never mind the fact that many people would rather swallow sandwiches of ground glass in mayonnaise rather than follow Thatchers advice. Or that it has never been proven beyond doubt that she even made the comment, or any variation thereof.

Its a plausible suggestion  not so much describing someone as a failure if theyre hopping a bus to Mahon Point as identifying the buss lack of appeal. That hasnt improved in recent times.

I mentioned the Thatcher quote in this column three years ago, but you dont have to go back that far to get a sense of what bus travel in Cork is like now. Just look at a series of headlines in this newspaper over the last few months.

Going back to February local representatives in Cork were up in arms about the bus service on Leeside, and anxious for answers from the very top (Councillors to complain to Transport Minister over 'shocking' unreliable bus service in Cork).

The following month there was a response: Cork bus routes to be reviewed amid reliability concerns (Eamon Ryan confirmed three bus routes  the 220, 225, and 226  are under review.) Good news?

On paper, yes. But as recently as last month there were ongoing issues with services being cancelled  Bus Eireann recruiting drivers in Cork after cancelled services over bank holiday weekend was the headline.

The background to that story was worth teasing out. We learned that at an appearance before the Oireachtas transport committee in May Bus Eireann CEO, Stephen Kent, said the company will need an extra 2,000 drivers to meet unprecedented demand over the next three years, with drivers and mechanics in short supply mainly in Dublin and Cork.

In fact, he added that Cork is proving to be the most challenging region to get staff to work in. Why so bad right here, right now?

The bad news doesnt stop there, either. Many readers may be aware that many of the seats intended for weary travellers in the main bus station in Cork, on Parnell Place, were closed to the public for quite some time  taped off and inaccessible. They probably made quite an impression on visitors landing in Cork at the bus station for the first time.

Yesterday I dropped in. The tape is gone from the seats, thankfully. But the three ticket machines in the station had signs telling customers they dont accept card payments.

Looking around, the ticket windows were closed and curtained. The travel centre next to those was shut, with another sign: Lost Property Only (Monday-Friday, 2-3.30pm). The signs to the toilets upstairs were a reminder of how remote those facilities are from the main part of the station, particularly for small children or the elderly who are disembarking after long journeys.

Many readers may be aware that many of the seats intended for weary travellers in the main bus station in Cork, on Parnell Place, were closed to the public for quite some time  taped off and inaccessible. They probably made quite an impression on visitors landing in Cork at the bus station for the first time. File picture: Eddie O'Hare

(Walking over to Merchants Quay afterwards it was notable that a brief bus lane there was of little benefit given the . . . buses collecting passengers a few yards further on.)

The obvious retort is that there are plans to improve this with BusConnects, the now famous plan to revamp the bus system in Cork which has been rumbling along since 2021 and which may not even come before An Bord Pleanala until next year.

What about right now, though? BusConnects is no doubt a huge boon to consultants of various kinds, but it is of little use to those trying to use bus services at present. In the real world. Today.

Those services are suffering  from declining attractiveness and greater car use generally, as well as specifics such as unreliable services, unappealing locations, and lack of drivers and mechanics. The latter problems can and should be addressed immediately. If people lose the habit of using the bus it can be hard to get them to rediscover it.
In todays world of hybrid working, businesses require a unified communications solution that delivers seamless collaboration, cost-efficiencies and a more productive workforce. Gone are the days of the fixed telephone line.

Its well understood that Covid was a big accelerator of hybrid working says John McCarthy, head of solutions, products and services with Vodafone Ireland. Companies needed to act fast and did not have a lot of time to consider the challenge strategically. They tended to layer hybrid solutions on top of their existing infrastructure.

But this situation is changing: Businesses are now taking the opportunity to pause and reassess the decisions they made during the pandemic and whether there might be a more integrated and efficient way forward.

Vodafone Business UC offers the capability to make and take calls from a fixed line number on mobile phone, a PC, a laptop, or a tablet. Customers can also keep their desk phones if they wish.

Award winning cloud-based solution

And thats where Vodafone Business Unified Communications (UC) comes into play. It is an entirely cloud-based solution that integrates phone, video, messaging and file sharing from anywhere and across multiple devices allowing companies to shape their world of work in the way that suits them best. This solution is a partnership between Vodafone and RingCentral, David Hamill, senior product specialist for Vodafone Business, explains. RingCentral is a global company with more than 500,000 customers and three million users on its award-winning, unified communications platform. By partnering this platform with Vodafones global cloud communications infrastructure, we are providing a one-stop shop for customers keen to move their fixed connectivity to the cloud.

Alongside a full suite of collaboration features this solution offers the capability to make and take telephone calls from a fixed line number on a mobile phone, a PC, a laptop, a tablet or even a desk phone. As Hamill continues The trend is undeniably towards the cloud. We are witnessing the sunsetting of older communications standards. By the end of the year, it is estimated that 75 per cent of enterprises will no longer have fixed phone lines or desk phones.

Flexibility and agility at the heart of unified communications

The beauty of the Vodafone Business UC solution lies in its flexibility. This is at the heart of the offering, McCarthy points out. Customers dont have to take all of the services it offers. They can just enable and pay for what they need for now and keep their future options open. For example, customers may already be using Microsoft Teams for collaboration and wish to stick with it. Vodafone Business UC can integrate with Teams whilst still delivering the benefits of voice on the cloud. The solution is very flexible in terms of the receiving environment and the needs of the customer.

Vodafone Business UC integrates out of the box with over 300 popular apps, including Teams, Salesforce, HubSpot, and Zendesk.

Indeed, the solution can integrate with over 300 different popular applications out of the box including MS Teams, Salesforce, HubSpot, and Zendesk. Employees can waste a lot of time toggling between applications. By offering an entry point to these applications from inside our communications platform we make it much easier and faster for employees to engage with the products and tools they need to help their customers.

While some companies might be making do with expensive and difficult to maintain legacy voice systems, the fact is that they will soon have little choice but to change. Now is the time to have a conversation about the move to cloud, says McCarthy. Legacy on-premises PABX systems and ISDN based connectivity are coming to the end of their useful lives.

Legacy on-premises PABX systems and ISDN communications technology are coming to the end of their useful lives. A lot of older communications technology is being sunset, says McCarthy.

Managing costs

The cost benefits are considerable. Hamill explains that businesses can use their existing broadband infrastructure to facilitate their digital journey as they move away from copper to a unified communications solution in the cloud. Vodafone Business UC is priced very competitively and has a much lower cost of ownership than legacy systems. Its a compelling proposition even if you just want to replace voice communications. You can continually reassess and take on more functionality over time.

There are also advantages for companies with overseas locations. Vodafone Business UC is built on our Vodafone Business Global SIP network which connects it into the international telephone network, McCarthy explains. It gives you a single, converged voice and data network. This means you can dial any extension from any location within the company without having to make an international call.

Solutions for businesses of all sizes

The solution is suitable for businesses of almost any size, Hamill points out. It can cater for as little as five users to as many as 5,000 and beyond. In fact, it can even suit a business with just two users. They might have two telephone lines and they can replace them with a single licence and be able to make calls from any device on the go.

Vodafone provides training for customers as part of the implementation process for the solution, he adds. Its a self-serve product but our specialists provide full on the job training to administrators to show them how to use all the features of the solution. We provide post-implementation support as well.

The future of hybrid working

Looking to the future, McCarthy expects that the shift to hybrid working underpinned by cloud communications technology will only intensify. With Vodafones UC solution, businesses can embrace this shift more completely  flexibly leveraging comprehensive communication and collaboration features whilst simultaneously decoupling from ageing on premise technology and realising savings. Ultimately, we are giving both time and money back to our customers. By better enabling the communications they need to run their businesses, we are empowering their employees to become more productive.

If you would like to learn more about Vodafone Business UC with Ring Central, visit vodafone.ie.

This story is part of a Connected Business series.
Argentinas Senate has narrowly approved key state overhaul and tax bills proposed by President Javier Milei, delivering an initial legislative victory to the libertarian leader in his efforts to enact his promises of radical change.

Senators voted 37 to 36 late on Wednesday to give their overall approval to the overhaul bill after 11 hours of heated debate while protesters  urging politicians to reject Mr Mileis harsh austerity plan  clashed with police outside Congress.

The senators must approve individual measures in an article-by-article vote which was set to stretch throughout the night.

In a reflection of the fierce backlash to the legislation and deep polarisation gripping Argentinas Congress, vice president and head of the Senate Victoria Villarruel cast the tie-breaking vote.

Argentine vice president and Senate president Victoria Villarruel speaks before casting the tie-breaking vote in favour of a bill promoted by President Javier Milei in Buenos Aires, (Natacha Pisarenko/AP)

The legislation delegates broad powers to the president in energy, pensions, security and other areas and includes several measures seen as controversial, including a generous incentive scheme for foreign investors, tax amnesty for those with undeclared assets and plans to privatise some of Argentinas state-owned firms.

If the Senate approves the articles with modifications, the lower house still has to back them before Mr Milei can claim his first legislative win since entering office last December.

As senators looked over the bills, protesters in Buenos Aires hurled sticks, stones and Molotov cocktails at police who sprayed water cannons, pepper spray and tear gas to disperse the huge crowds.

Demonstrators poured gasoline on two cars and set them alight, turning the central square into a smoke-filled battlefield.

Authorities reported at least 20 police officers had been injured and more than a dozen protesters arrested over the violence.

A car burns during clashes between police and anti-government protesters in Buenos (Gustavo Garello/AP)

Mr Milei rose to power on promises he would resolve Argentinas worst economic crisis in two decades. But his political party of relative novices holds just a tiny minority of seats in Congress and he has struggled to strike deals with the opposition.

Senators approved two bills late on Wednesday, a tax package and a 238-article state reform bill that passed the lower house of Congress in late April. Months of negotiations watered down the initial far-ranging proposal, which had over 600 articles.

Unlike previous Argentine leaders since the return of democracy in 1983, Mr Milei has failed to pass a single piece of legislation during his first six months in office. Instead, the populist outsider has relied on executive powers to slash state spending and sweep away economic restrictions.

Mr Mileis legislation has faced the stiffest pushback from the left-leaning Peronist movement loyal to former president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, which has dominated Argentine politics for the last two decades and holds sway over the countrys powerful trade unions.

Anti-government protesters in Buenos Aires, Argentina (Natacha Pisarenko/AP)

The presidency condemned protesters as terrorists and accused them of attempting to carry out a coup detat by disrupting the Congress session.

Over the past month, political tensions have mounted, casting doubt over Mr Mileis governability and injecting uncertainty into the Argentine economy.

Sovereign bonds have tumbled. The countrys currency, the peso, has depreciated as well, widening the gap between the official and black market exchange rate to nearly 40%.

Even as the IMF has praised the libertarians agenda and released tranches of frozen loans, the fund has held back from handing Argentina fresh cash that Mr Milei says he needs to lift currency controls.

Meanwhile, Mr Milei has been in Silicon Valley rubbing shoulders with billionaire tech executives Elon Musk, Tim Cook and Mark Zuckerberg. The meetings have not produced any announcements of substantial investments.
Leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies have agreed to engineer a 50 billion dollar (39 billion) loan to help Ukraine in its fight for survival.

Interest earned on profits from Russias frozen central bank assets would be used as collateral.

Details of the deal were being hashed out by G7 leaders at their summit in Italy. The money could reach Kyiv before the end of the year, according to US and French officials who confirmed the agreement before a formal announcement.

Here is how the plan would work:

 Where would the money come from?

Most of the money would be in the form of a loan mostly guaranteed by the US government, backed by profits being earned on roughly 260 billion dollars (203 billion) in immobilised Russian assets. The vast majority of that money is held in European Union nations.

A French official said the loan could be topped up with European money or contributions from other countries.

A US official said the G7 leaders official statement due out on Friday will leave the door open to trying to confiscate the Russian assets entirely.

 Why not just give Ukraine the frozen assets?

That is much harder to do.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky walks with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni upon his arrival at the G7 summit in Borgo Egnazia, Italy (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)

For more than a year, officials from multiple countries have debated the legality of confiscating the money and sending it to Ukraine.

The US and its allies immediately froze whatever Russian central bank assets they had access to when Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022. That basically was money being held in banks outside Russia.

The assets are immobilised and cannot be accessed by Moscow, but they still belong to Russia.

While governments can generally freeze property or funds without difficulty, turning them into forfeited assets that can be used for the benefit of Ukraine requires an extra layer of judicial procedure, including a legal basis and adjudication in a court.

The EU instead has set aside the profits being generated by the frozen assets. That pot of money is easier to access.

Separately, the US this year passed a law called the REPO Act  short for the Rebuilding Economic Prosperity and Opportunity for Ukrainians Act  that allows the Biden administration to seize five billion dollars (3.9 billion) in Russian state assets in the US and use them for the benefit of Kyiv. That arrangement is being worked out.

 How could the loan be used and how soon?

It will be up to technical experts to work through the details.

Ukraine will be able to spend the money in several areas, including for military, economic and humanitarian needs and reconstruction, the US official said.

US President Joe Bidens national security adviser Jake Sullivan said the goal is to provide the necessary resources to Ukraine now for its economic energy and other needs so that its capable of having the resilience necessary to withstand Russias continuing aggression.

US President Joe Biden arrives at the G7 summit in Borgo Egnazia, southern Italy (Sean Kilpatrick/The Canadian Press via AP)

Another goal is to get the money to Ukraine quickly.

The French official said the details could be worked out very quickly and in any case, the 50 billion dollars will be disbursed before the end of 2024.

Beyond the costs of the war, the needs are great.

The World Banks latest damage assessment of Ukraine, released in February, estimates that costs for reconstruction and recovery of the nation stand at 486 billion dollars (380 billion) over the next 10 years.

The move to unlock Russias assets comes after there was a long delay in Washington by Congress in approving military aid for Ukraine.

At an Atlantic Council event previewing the G7 summit, a former US ambassador to Ukraine, John Herbst, said the fact that American funding is not quite reliable is a very important additional reason to go that route.

 Who would be on the hook in the case of a default?

If Russia regained control of its frozen assets or if the immobilised funds were not generating enough interest to pay back the loan, then the question of burden-sharing arises, according to the French official.

Max Bergmann, director of the Europe, Russia and Eurasia Programme at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, said last week that there were worries among European finance ministers that their countries will be left holding the bag if Ukraine defaults.
US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy have signed a long-term agreement designed to bolster Ukraines defences against Russias invasion.

Mr Zelenskyy thanked Mr Biden for the pact but said the question has to be for how long the unity will last, given upcoming US elections and the prospect of Republican Donald Trump returning to the White House.
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( Tomdispatch.com)  A few days ago, my partner and I went in search of packing tape. Our sojourn on an idyllic (if tick-infested) Cape Cod island was ending and it was time to ship some stuff home. We stopped at a little odds-and-ends shop and found ourselves in conversation with the woman behind the counter.

She was born in Panama, where her father had served as chief engineer operating tugboats in the Panama Canal. As a child, she remembered celebrating her birthday with a trip on a tug from the Atlantic to the Pacific oceans, sailing under an arch of water produced by fireboats on either side.

But that all ended, she said, with the invasion. It was terrifying. They were bombing Panama City. The Army sent my family back to the U.S. so we wouldnt be killed. Ive never been back. She was talking, of course, about the 1989 invasion of Panama ordered by President George H.W. Bush to arrest Manuel Noriega, that countrys president. For years, Noriega had been a CIA asset, siding with Washington as the Cold War played out in Central America. Hed worked to sabotage the Sandinista government in Nicaragua and the FMLN guerillas in El Salvador who opposed a U.S.-supported dictatorship there. And hed worked with Washingtons Drug Enforcement Agency while simultaneously taking money from drug gangs.

That a CIA asset was involved in the drug trade could hardly have come as a surprise to that agency, given its own long history of cooperating with drug merchants, but when journalist Seymour Hersh broke the story of Noriegas drug connections, the U.S. decided to cut him loose and hardline neoconservatives like Elliot Abrams, one of the architects of the Contra war in Nicaragua, began pushing for an invasion. Abrams himself would resurface in the second Bush administration, where he would become a cheerleader for some of the worst crimes of the Global War on Terror. He would bob up yet again like some kind of malevolent cork in Donald Trumps administration. And then, in July 2023, perhaps in a fit of bipartisan amnesia, President Joe Biden would nominate him to serve on his Advisory Commission on Public Diplomacy.

My partner and I told this woman that we remembered the invasion all too well. In fact, wed joined a group of demonstrators occupying Market Street in San Francisco to protest it. But, I added, Lots of people in this country dont even know that there was an invasion, or that hundreds of civilians died.

She nodded. Nobody here knows about that. Ive never met anyone who does. It was just one crook fighting another and Panama got in the way. As we prepared to leave, she asked us, Do you mind if I give you a hug? We didnt mind. We were honored.

The Curses of Cassandra

Speaking with that woman reminded me that those of us paying attention had a pretty good idea what the invasion of Panama would look like. After all, wed followed the 1983 invasion of the small Caribbean island of Grenada. We knew civilians would die. You could say that we predicted the obvious before it happened, but no one in power seemed to believe us and, after it happened, no one seemed to care.

Reflecting on those moments brought to mind the Trojan prophet Cassandra, doubly cursed by the god Apollo both in her ability to foresee the future and in the fact that no one would believe her. She predicted the bloody and ultimately pointless Trojan War, but no one listened to her. The truth is that neither Cassandra in Troy nor those of us predicting the obvious outcomes of Americas follies today really need divine gifts to see the future. All it takes is a little attention to history and the present moment.

As I started to write this piece, however, something bothered me, like a student raising an insistent hand in the back row of the classroom of my mind. Wait, I thought, havent I written this before? And it turns out that, in a way, I did  back in 2021 on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks. At the time, I focused on the rehabilitation of Senator Eugene McCarthy, who had made a lonely run for president in 1968 on a platform opposing the American war in Vietnam. In those days, opposing that war was considered naive at best, treasonous at worst. Today, almost everyone in this country who even remembers Vietnam considers it a historic mistake, if not a moral catastrophe.

In that piece, I also pointed to editorials 20 years after 9/11 celebrating Representative Barbara Lee, the only member of Congress to vote against the Authorization for the Use of Military Force, or AUMF, in the wake of those attacks. That AUMF authorized the use of all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organizations, or persons [the president] determines planned, authorized, committed, or aided the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001. It permitted the 2001 invasion and disastrous 20-year occupation of Afghanistan and served as legal cover for the equally disastrous 2003 invasion of Iraq. In 2021, press outlets that had once excoriated Lee for her vote were praising her for her courage and foresight. I imagine that, 20 years later, that praise was small comfort to her or any of the thousands of Cassandras who predicted that the U.S. would fail in Afghanistan  as it once had in Vietnam  or to the millions who knew (because the evidence was all around us) that Iraq had no weapons of mass destruction, and so filled the streets of the world to protest that illegal and ill-judged war.

I ended the piece with a meditation on three young Cassandras  climate activists Greta Thunberg of Sweden, Vanessa Nakate of Uganda, and Martina Comparelli of Italy, who had traveled to Glasgow for the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference. Your pressure, frankly, is very welcome, Italys then-prime minister Mario Draghi told them. We need to be whipped into action. Your mobilization has been powerful, and rest assured, we are listening.

For the sake of the world, I wrote then, let us hope that this time Cassandra will be believed.

Youre probably not surprised that the world has not acted to forestall the future foreseen by those young Cassandras. Today, Italy has a far-right prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, who complains to other European right-wingers about the ultra-ecological fanaticism she considers a threat to her countrys economy. Meanwhile, just like the 10 months before it, April 2024 was globally the hottest on record, a trend that shows no sign of abating. In fact, as I write this, temperatures topping 127 degrees Fahrenheit (another record) present a threat to human life in India and Pakistan.

Nor have our own right-wing politicians been willing to recognize the truth of the crisis humanity faces. Consider, for example, the Republican governors of Florida and Texas  two states recently ravaged by heat and extreme weather  who not only have refused to recognize the climate reality in front of them, but have actively prevented measures that could mitigate global warmings effects on working people in their states. Both governors have, in fact, signed laws prohibiting local governments from requiring employers to implement heat-safety measures for their workers. Not to mention the brazen quid-pro-quo meeting Donald Trump had with top oil executives where he demanded a billion-dollar bribe for his election campaign, in return for wiping out Biden-era climate regulations.

What Else Did We Know?

Well, theres Palestine.

Ill admit to having felt a surge of hope when Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) signed the 1993 Oslo Accord. That long-ago agreement between then-Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and PLO chief Yasser Arafat began a lengthy, ultimately fruitless series of negotiations over the fate of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, areas seized by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War.

I remained hopeful, but I should have known better.

Hanan Ashrawi (long one of my personal heroes) did know better. In 1991, shed been part of the Palestinian delegation to what came to be known as the Madrid Conference, convened by Spain at the behest of American President George H.W. Bush to try to find a way forward for the Palestinians and Israel. Other attendees represented the governments of Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. What Ashrawi, a brilliant politician, scholar, and activist, didnt know was that the process would also spawn secret talks between Israel and the PLO from which she and other Palestinian leaders would be excluded. Those talks culminated in the Oslo Accords (named for the city where they were negotiated).

Ashrawi immediately spotted a fundamental problem with those Accords, embodied in their first product, a letter of mutual recognition between the state of Israel and the PLO. When I saw the letter, I was furious, she told +972 Magazine in September 2023. Why? Because while the PLO formally recognized the state of Israel, and Israel, in turn, recognized the PLO as the official representative of the Palestinian people, the letter said nothing about the establishment of an actual Palestinian state. It did, however, allow the PLOs leadership to return from exile, something they had long desired.

In that interview, Ashrawi also said:

I told Yasser Arafat that this agreement does not give him the basis for sovereignty or genuine access to the right to self-determination, that this is a functional administrative agreement He was furious: What, do you want an alternative leadership? Do you want the PLO not to return? Thats the whole point. I said the goal is for you to return freely, as a sovereign leadership.

One hates to be a Cassandra, she added, but unfortunately, I was 100 percent right.

Unlike Arafat, Ashrawi had been living under the Israeli occupation and understood how it worked. Not having experienced the occupation in person, the exiled PLO leadership, she understood, simply couldnt imagine Israels true intentions.

In truth, it took no Cassandra-like clairvoyance to see what would come of the Oslo agreements. Twenty years earlier, then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had made Israeli intentions perfectly clear, explaining his plans for the occupied territories this way: Well make a pastrami sandwich of them. Well insert a strip of Jewish settlement in between the Palestinians and another strip of Jewish settlement right across the West Bank so that in 25 years time neither the U.N. nor the U.S., nobody will be able to tear it apart.

Another major feature of Oslo was the creation of the Palestinian Authority, the entity empowered (and funded) by Israel to administer the occupied territories alongside the Israeli Defense Forces. This, too, Ashrawi had resisted when, way back in the 1980s, the Israelis offered a similar arrangement and we refused; we said we are not collaborators. I remember telling the military governor at the time that we are quite capable of running our lives, but we will not work under you. When the PLO agreed to the formation of the Palestinian Authority in 1993, Ashrawi understood all too well that the new entitys institutional survival, and (not incidentally) the jobs of its many employees would eventually come to depend on how well it served the occupation.

Its not surprising then that, drawing on the insights of people like Ashrawi, some of us predicted a version of Israels endgame for Gaza back in 2005 when Ariel Sharons government announced its plan to disengage from that strip of land, granting to the Palestinian Authority the duty to run what has since come to be known as the worlds largest open-air prison.

And When Did We Know It?

This capacity to predict the future is beginning to feel a bit deja-vu-ish. Right now, its not too hard to foresee the approaching catastrophe in Gaza. Indeed, at my own university and across the country and the world, even in Israel, students are desperately trying to prevent a genocide already in progress. While the grownups debate the legal definition of genocide, those young people continue to point to the murderous reality still unfolding in Gaza and demand that it be stopped before its too late.

There are enough dangers looming right in front of us that you dont need second sight to realize how bad it is. In addition to the clear and present dangers of climate change, not to mention the potential for a new global pandemic, theres another foreseeable horror looming over this country, which, despite blaring sirens and flashing lights, the mainstream media seems unable to quite believe is real. Ignoring the clanging alarms, many media outlets continue to treat the 2024 election season as just another contest between two equally legitimate political parties.

The reality is entirely different. In this years presidential election, we are facing the potential elevation of a genuine instrument of fascism. I think its appropriate to characterize Donald Trump as an instrument of other peoples ideology, because I suspect that he personally has neither the knowledge nor the attention span to elaborate any political theory or coherent plan for the future. His previous presidency was, in fact, marked by chaotic, instinctive stabs in the direction of whatever target presented itself  or was presented to him by those seeking to influence his decisions. The world is probably lucky that the people surrounding Trump then were a greedy, self-serving lot.

We wouldnt be that lucky in a second Trump presidency. It doesnt take a prophet to imagine what such a regime might look like. All you have to do is dip into the 887-page Mandate for Leadership the Heritage Foundation has prepared for his future presidency. It lays out an explicit vision of an authoritarian government serving the interests of the wealthy, one likely to unfold under the auspices of Project 2025, a step-by-step plan to replace our democratic government apparatus with Heritage-vetted-and-trained political functionaries.

We dont need Cassandra to predict that future. All we need to do is pay attention to whats right in front of us right now.

Copyright 2024 Rebecca Gordon
Ann Arbor (Informed Comment)  The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel issued a report on Wednesday in which it charged both Hamas and Israel with war crimes.

The IICIOPTI made an extensive investigation into the October 7 massacre in Israel staged by the Hamas paramilitary and its allies. The Commission met with more than 70 victims and witnesses, more than two thirds of them women. It also sought out open-source reporting on the events of that horrible day. The Palestine Authority (led by the PLO, the primary rival to Hamas) provided it with further information. Israeli authorities declined to cooperate with the commission and attempted to obstruct its work by forbidding Israeli physicians to talk to it.

The authors of the report write about October 7, According to Israeli sources, more than 1,200 persons were killed directly by members of various Palestinian armed groups and others and by rockets and mortars launched from the Gaza Strip. Of these, at least 809 were civilians, including at least 280 women , 68 foreign nationals and 314 Israeli military personnel. Among those killed were 40 children (including at least 23 boys and 15 girls) and 25 persons aged 80 and over. In addition, 14,970 people were injured and transferred to hospitals for treatment.

The 150,000 Israelis displaced by the attack for the most part have still not be able to return to their homes.

The authors continue, zeroing in on attacks by Hamas fighters and those of other militant groups on kibbutzim:

Hamas military wing, other Palestinian armed groups and civilians attacked distinct civilian targets in at least 24 localities, as well as public spaces and outdoor festivals. In these sites militants systematically moved from house to house setting homes on fire, shooting into private and public shelters, and removing people from hiding places, killing, injuring and abducting civilians to Gaza. The Commission investigated six distinct attacks in Beeri and eight attacks in Nir Oz, each involving multiple victims, largely from the same families.

In Beeri, 105 civilians were killed (63 men and 42 women) by members of the military wings of Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) as well as by civilians from Gaza. In addition, 31 civilians (13 men and 18 women) were abducted to the Gaza Strip. Attackers entered the kibbutz and shot at residents, cars, pets and houses, killing and injuring, setting houses on fire and abducting people to Gaza.

The authors add of the musical Rave that was assaulted, Of 3,000 young people at the Nova music festival in Reim, 364 attendees (including 215 men and 136 women) were killed by members of the military wing of Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups, while around 40 others were abducted to Gaza. Victims were killed at the site of the main festival while attempting to hide under the festival stage, in portable public toilets, inside parked cars and in garbage containers.

Hamas and its colleagues also attacked military bases. The Commission concludes that it shot unarmed and wounded soldiers to death who were outside of combat and should not have been killed.

Although Hamas fighters humiliated womens bodies, leaving them in a state of undress after their murder and parading them, when they were taken hostage, back in Gaza, the Commission could not independently verify charges of rape. It is important to underline that it seems to have found the charges plausible, given the position and condition of some dead bodies. But its investigation was obstructed by Israel, preventing it from coming to a firm conclusion. It does find clear evidence of sexual violence.

The Commission found Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad and other groups guilty of extensive violations of the laws of war (International Humanitarian Law and International Human Rights Law).

Al Jazeera English Video: UN probe accuses Israel of extermination in war on Gaza

As for the Israeli response, they note the over 35,000 killed and over 70,000 injured among the Palestinians of Gaza. Most of that killing and wounding was accomplished by airstrikes and artillery fire. They note that the figures are lower than the likely reality because so many bodies are buried under rubble.

The authors write, During the first weeks of the military campaign, ISF [Israeli Security Forces] primarily used air strikes targeting high-rise buildings and other civilian objects in the al-Rimal neighbourhood, Khan Younis, in Gaza City, Jabalia and al-Shati refugee camps, and other locations, causing thousands of casualties, wreaking devastation and razing entire residential blocks and neighbourhoods to rubble in near-constant heavy bombardment.

This time is different, they note. Although Israel has attacked the Palestinians of Gaza on several occasions, between 2005 and 2023 it had killed only about a tenth of the number of people it has dispatched in the past nine months. They add, The Commission has also observed an increasing trend in the number of fatalities of women and children compared with previous hostilities and assesses that this is associated with ISFs air bombardment campaign and its frequent use of explosive weapons with a wide impact area in populated districts.

They quote Israels Defense Minister Yoav Galant as saying, Gaza will never return to be what it was, and I have released all restraints, we use everything. They conclude that the Israeli military has been given free rein to kill civilians indiscriminately in order to get at Hamas and other militants: the Commission considers these statements indicate that the Israeli Government has given ISF blanket authorisation to target civilian locations widely and indiscriminately in the Gaza Strip.

In fact, the Commission concluded that many Israeli operations appeared to have no specific Hamas target in mind: In many of these cases, the Commission could not identify military targets as the focus of the attacks. Even when military targets were allegedly present, attacks lacked distinction, proportionality and precautions, resulting in thousands killed and injured and widespread destruction of entire neighborhoods including in Jabalia, Al-Rimal, Al-Yarmouk and Al-Maghazi. It is accusing the Israeli military of deliberately focusing on civilian targets and neighborhoods. This isnt a war on Hamas but a total war on Palestinian noncombatants.

The Commission is also looking at the humanitarian crisis imposed quite deliberately by Israeli authorities: Statements from Israeli officials show their intent to instrumentalize the provision of basic necessities, including food and water, to hold the population of the Gaza Strip hostage to political and military objectives. Since December 2023, more than 90 percent of the population in the Gaza Strip has faced high acute food insecurity, the most acute situation being reported in northern Gaza . . . As of March 2024, the situation is continuing to deteriorate; 1.1 million people face catastrophic levels of food insecurity.

So here is the Commissions conclusion about the Israeli militarys actions in Gaza. It is worth reading all the way through:

80. In relation to the Commissions investigation into Israels attacks and operations in Gaza and OPT [Occupied Palestinian Territory], the Commission found that Israeli authorities and members of the ISF committed war crimes, crimes against humanity, and violations of IHL [Interntional Humanitarian Law] and IHRL [International Human Rights Law].

81. The Commission found that the war crimes of starvation as a method of warfare; murder or wilful killing; intentionally directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects; forcible transfer; sexual violence; outrages upon personal dignity; and SGBV amounting to torture or inhuman and cruel treatment were committed.

82. The Commission found that through several actions including siege, Israel inflicted collective punishment on the Palestinian population in Gaza, in direct violation of IHL.

83. The Commission found it foreseeable that civilians would be present in the areas targeted by the ISF; nonetheless, the ISF intentionally proceeded to direct its attacks against the civilian population and civilian objects, including places of worship, with such knowledge, in direct violation of the IHL principles of adequate precautions, distinction, proportionality, and special protections for children and women.

84. The Commission found that the chapeau elements of crimes against humanity have been fulfilled, namely a widespread or systematic attack directed against the civilian population in Gaza. The Commission found that the crimes against humanity of extermination; murder; gender persecution targeting Palestinian men and boys; forcible transfer; and torture and inhuman and cruel treatment were committed.

85. The Commission found that the siege and forcible transfer, compounded with widespread destruction caused by attacks and military operations, resulted in the IHRL violations of the rights to family life, adequate food, housing, education, health, social security, and water and sanitation, particularly impacting children and persons in vulnerable situations. The age and gender specific harms resulted in violations of the CRC and rights to non-discrimination in the CEDAW.

Thats 1) Starvation as a method of warfare; 2) murder or wilful killing; 3) intentionally attacking civilians or civilian infrastructure; 4) forcible transfer; 5) sexual violence; 6) torture or its equivalent; and 7) collective punishment.

So, that amounts to crimes against humanity, defined as a widespread or systematic attack directed against a civilian population.

In addition, the Israeli military violated the basic human rights of the Palestinians of Gaza, depriving them of adequate food, housing, water, sanitation and education.

The Commissions report is important. The UN Human Rights Council is a considerable body. The report will certainly be read closely by the International Court of Justice, which is considering charges of genocide against Israel, and by the International Criminal Court, the prosecutor of which has sought arrest warrants against high Israeli and Hamas officials.

The IICIOPTI was established in 2021 by the United Nations Human Rights Council, a 47-member intergovernmental body within the UN. Its mandate holders are drawn from countries in each of the worlds five major regions, and the member states are elected by the UN General Assembly. Western countries (Western Europe and others) that are currently members include: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland, United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, United States of America.
By Marika Sosnowski, The University of Melbourne | 

(The Conversation)  The UN Security Council has passed yet another resolution calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. This is the fourth such resolution adopted by the council since Hamas October 7 attack on southern Israel and the launching of Israels war in Gaza.

Little has come from the three previous resolutions, all of which have been legally binding since they were passed by the Security Council:

a resolution on March 25 calling for a ceasefire that was ignored by Israel

a resolution on December 22 calling for a sustainable cessation of hostitilies, which also had no immediate practical effect

a resolution on November 15 calling for humanitarian pauses, which did nothing to alleviate Palestinian suffering or secure the release of hostages.

So, what is new about this latest resolution? And does it have any more chance of succeeding than previous attempts at a ceasefire?

What is new

First, this most recent resolution, which was drafted by the United States and supported by a vote of 14-0 (with Russia abstaining), has much more specific terms. For example, it lays out a three-stage approach to achieving a permanent end to hostilities.

In this first stage, all fighting will stop and some of the remaining hostages will be returned in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. And if the negotiations take longer than six weeks, the ceasefire will continue.

The document also calls for the return of Palestinians to their homes and neighbourhoods, and for housing units to be delivered by the international community.

This staged approach and inclusion of housing units is new, perhaps with the realisation that over half of Gazas buildings have been destroyed and more than 80% of the population has been displaced, often multiple times.

The resolution is also explicitly linked to the ongoing negotiations being carried out by Qatar, with the help of Egypt and the US, to achieve a ceasefire.

This is a positive given Qatar successfully negotiated the only temporary pause in the fighting for seven days in November. This resulted in the release of around 100 hostages, in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners.

This current resolution also specifically rejects any territorial or demographic changes to the Gaza Strip, which is a welcome addition given that many fear the re-occupation of Gaza by Israel.

India Today Video: What Difference Does The Latest Gaza UNSC Ceasefire Resolution Make?

What is not new

Since the beginning of the war, the multiple resolutions passed by the UN Security Council and General Assembly have largely gone unactioned.

Hamas has previously signalled it is willing to accept the terms of a similar ceasefire negotiated by Qatar. The militant group is also now saying it will abide by the terms of the new UN resolution that are consistent with the demands of our people and resistance.

Despite the fact the current resolution specifically mentions Israel has accepted its terms, there has been no sign that Israel will, in fact, abide by its obligations under international law.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has reportedly been sceptical about the plan, with his office saying any permanent ceasefire before the destruction of Hamas military and governing capabilities is achieved is a non-starter.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was also apparently still trying to sell the resolution to Israel on Monday. This seems to negate Israels presumed acceptance of the ceasefire.

A better chance of success?

Arguably, some of the more specific and detailed terms of this resolution give it a better chance of success than previous UN resolutions.

This is because if parties to a ceasefire have invested time into negotiating and have agreed to specific terms, they know what needs to happen, when and how. There is also greater likelihood the two sides will abide by the terms because this level of specificity ensures some level of accountability from outside observers and the international community.

We saw this in the November temporary truce agreement, which had very specific terms that were followed by both Hamas and Israel.

Another example from a different conflict is the 2002 ceasefire agreement between the government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) militant group. This ceasefire, which lasted for several years, included references to freedom of troop and civilian movement in specific geographical locations. It also specified landmarks to be used as de-militarised zones.

Problematically, while the current Security Council resolution calls for the effective distribution of humanitarian assistance at scale, including housing units, aid access to Gaza has been stymied by Israel, which now controls all entry points.

Interestingly, the resolution also specifically rejects any attempt at demographic or territorial change. However, it omits wording from a previous draft that had included mention of a buffer zone Israel is currently building along the border inside Gaza.

And despite the welcome addition of more specific chronological phases in this resolution, the text has some of the same vagueness as previous resolutions, particularly around what exactly will happen in phases two and three.

Phase two seems to link the continuation of the ceasefire with the negotiations being led by Qatar. But, as we have already seen during the war, negotiations can easily be abandoned or dismissed by one or both sides of a conflict.

Likewise, phase three offers the chance for a multi-year reconstruction plan for Gaza, but offers no practical detail on how this would be accomplished.

Actions matter more than words

At this stage of this devastating conflict, any halt in fighting that alleviates the suffering of Palestinians is welcome.

However, I remain sceptical this resolution will be any more successful at halting the violence than its predecessors. Success will only come when both parties  but, in particular, Israel as the side with the greater military power  show they are willing to implement a ceasefire through their actions.

Marika Sosnowski, Postdoctoral research fellow, The University of Melbourne

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Vancouver, British Columbia--(Newsfile Corp. - June 13, 2024) - InZinc Mining Ltd. (TSXV: IZN) ("InZinc" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the appointment of Mr. Michael Westcott to the Board of Directors of the Company effective June 13, 2024.

Mr. Westcott has over 30 years of experience in equity capital markets and mining industries. After 25 years in various roles at Raymond James Ltd., including Head of Institutional Equity Sales and Mining Equity Research Analyst, he retired as Head of Equities in 2021. Prior to joining Raymond James in 1996, Mr. Westcott was an Exploration Geologist at Cominco Ltd. and a Corporate Analyst at the Vancouver Stock Exchange. Mr. Westcott has a Master's Degree, Mineral Exploration (Minex), from Queen's University and a Bachelor of Science, Geology, from the University of British Columbia. He has completed securities industry courses including: Partners, Directors and Senior Officers; Professional Financial Planning; Canadian Securities Course; Conduct and Practices Handbook; and FINRA Series 24, 37,63.

"It is with great pleasure that I welcome Mr. Westcott to the Board of Directors of InZinc," stated Kerry Curtis, Chairman of InZinc. "With Mike's wide range of experience in capital markets, mining equity research and mineral exploration, he brings a solid foundation of sector knowledge and expertise to the Company. Mike's skills will be a strong asset as the Company continues to focus on increasing shareholder value through exploration and evaluation of mineral projects."

Issuance of Stock Options

InZinc announces the grant of stock options to purchase a total of 500,000 common shares of the Company for a period of five (5) years at an exercise price of $0.05 per share effective June 13, 2024. These stock options will vest as to 50% immediately and 50% on June 13, 2025.

About InZinc

InZinc is an active explorer and, through its Indy project, equity investment and royalty interests, is exposed to a diverse portfolio of active North American base metals and precious metals projects. The Company has discovered and continues to explore for expansion of near surface zinc mineralization at the easily accessible Indy project located in a new and under-explored mineral region of central British Columbia, Canada. A Canadian subsidiary of South32 (ASX, LSE, JSE) became a major tenure holder in the belt by staking approximately 200 km2 of adjacent claims in late 2021. InZinc has a significant equity investment in American West Metals (ASX) which is advancing multiple North American base metals projects. In addition, InZinc has a production royalty and will receive 50% of the revenue (NSR) from the sale of indium mined from American West's West Desert project.

InZinc Mining Ltd.

Wayne Hubert

____________

Chief Executive Officer

Phone: 604.687.7211

Website: www.inzincmining.com

For further information contact :

Joyce Musial

Vice President, Corporate Affairs

Phone: 604.317.2728

Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains forward-looking statements or forward-looking information within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking statements"). All statements herein, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements, include but are not limited to, statements that address activities, events of developments that the Company expects or anticipates will or may occur in the future. Forward-looking statements are typically identified by words such as: believe, expect, anticipates, intends, estimates, plans, postulate, indicate and similar expressions, or are those, which, by their nature, refer to future events. Although InZinc believes that such statements are reasonable, it can give no assurance that such expectations will prove to be correct. The Company cautions investors that any forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future results, performance or actions, and that actual results or actions may differ materially from those in forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including, but not limited to, those risks and uncertainties disclosed in the Company's Management's Discussion and Analysis for the year ended December 31, 2023 filed with certain securities commissions in Canada and other information released by the Company and filed with the appropriate regulatory agencies. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made and, except as may be required by applicable securities laws, Inzinc disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or results or otherwise. All of the Company's Canadian public disclosure filings may be accessed via www.sedarplus.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.
All amounts in US dollars, unless otherwise noted

TORONTO / Jun 13, 2024 / Business Wire / Trigon Metals Inc. (TSX-V: TM, OTCQB: PNZTF) ("Trigon" or the "Company") is pleased to announce highlights of its May 2024 underground production at Kombat and provides production guidance for the remainder of its 2025 financial year (FY2025).

May 2024 Production Update

At the Kombat mine, May 2024 was marked by several record-breaking underground mining days, leading to a production average of 12.1 tonnes of copper per day. Underground ore mined for the month totalled 19,664 tonnes at an average grade of 2.16%, leading to the production of 386 tonnes of copper. The Company wishes to acknowledge its dedicated Namibian team for this outstanding achievement.

Further to the announcement of Commercial Production from the underground mine (see press release dated May 23, 2024), the Company is pleased to report that the underground mine has continued to perform and exceed the production targets defined in its feasibility study (the Feasibility Study). The Feasibility Study was prepared by SRK Consulting South Africa (Pty) Ltd (SRK) in accordance with Canadian Securities Administrators National Instrument 43-101 Standards of Disclosure for Mineral Projects (NI 43-101).

Financial Year 2025 Guidance

The Companys focus for FY2025 remains on underground production from the Asis West underground complex. Underground production is expected to amount to between 250,000 and 280,000 ore tonnes mined for the year, at an average grade between 1.95% and 2.3% copper. From the ore mined, Trigon projects its copper metal production to range between 5,500 tonnes (12.1 M lbs) and 6,100 tonnes (13.4 M lbs) for the year.

Cash costs are expected to be an average of US$2.80/lb to US$3.15/lb for the full year, reducing on a quarter-by-quarter basis as production is ramped up to steady state.

Q1 Guidance FY 2025 Guidance Description Unit Floor Ceiling Floor Ceiling Underground Mining tonnes 52,000 55,000 250,000 280,000 Ore Grade % 1.90% 2.15% 1.95% 2.30% Processing tonnes 67,000 71,000 260,000 312,000 Copper Produced tonnes 1,000 1,150 5,500 6,100 Copper Produced lbs 2,205,000 2,535,000 12,125,000 13,448,000 C1 Cash Cost $/lbs 3.35 2.75 3.15 2.80

Rennie Morkel, Trigon President and Chief Operating Officer, commented, We are exceptionally pleased with the accelerated ramp-up of the underground mine and thank our Namibian team for their hard work and ongoing efforts at Kombat. Our strategy for the upcoming financial year is focused on maximizing underground production from the current mining areas as well as to ensure that we are establishing ourselves for the next phases of our growth trajectory, both at Asis West and in terms of the planned restart of Asis Far West.

Upcoming Investor Webinar

The Company is also pleased to announce that Executive Chairman, Jed Richardson and President & COO Rennie Morkel will be presenting our Q1 2024 Production Highlights, along with FY 2025 Guidance, in a live webinar taking place on Thursday June 20th at 3:00p.m. ET /12:00p.m. PT.

To register for the event please click the link below.

Registration: https://event.webinarjam.com/register/314/nvnpwsv5

Qualified Person

The technical information presented in this press release has been reviewed and approved for disclosure by Fanie Muller, P.Eng, VP Operations of Trigon, who is a Qualified Person as defined by NI 43-101.

Trigon Metals Inc.

Trigon is a publicly traded Canadian exploration and development company with its core business focused on copper and silver holdings in mine-friendly African jurisdictions. Currently, the company has operations in Namibia and Morocco. In Namibia, the Company holds an 80% interest in five mining licences in the Otavi Mountainlands, an area of Namibia widely recognized for its high-grade copper deposits, where the Company is focused on exploration and re-development of the previously producing Kombat Mine. In Morocco, the Company is the holder of the Silver Hill project, a highly prospective copper and silver exploration project.

The complete NI 43-101 technical report associated with the Feasibility Study and updated mineral resources and reserves estimates is available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca under the Companys issuer profile, as well as the Companys website at www.trigonmetals.com.

Cautionary Notes

This news release may contain forward-looking statements. These statements include statements regarding the Kombat Mine, the mineralization of the Kombat Mine, the economic viability of the Kombat Mine, the projected costs and production, and the Companys future plans and objectives. These statements are based on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and uncertainties. Actual results could differ materially because of factors discussed in the management discussion and analysis section of our interim and most recent annual financial statements or other reports and filings with the TSX Venture Exchange and applicable Canadian securities regulations. We do not assume any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, except as required by applicable laws.

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.
Ukraine is bringing together dozens of world leaders and international organisation at the plush Burgenstock resort in Switzerland this weekend to mount pressure on Russia and outline a path towards peace.

Kyiv wants to build global consensus around its plan to end the war without Russian input. But it also has identified several specific issues it wants to rally support around.

- Children, energy, trade -

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in an interview with AFP last month identified three key concerns it will place at the centre of the conference, as part of his 10-point plan to end the war.

First: he said he wants to secure the return of thousands of Ukrainian children that he says have been forcibly transferred to Russian-controlled territory.

Second: he wants guarantees around nuclear and energy security. Russian strikes have crippled Ukrainian power plants and fighting near the occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant has raised fears of a catastrophic radiation accident.

Third: he wants to ensure that Ukraine will be able to export grain via the Black Sea -- a key corridor for deliveries to food-vulnerable nations that Kyiv wants to win over.

Zelensky told AFP that if Ukraine can rally consensus around these issues: "it means that Russia will not block them further".

- No Russia. Yet -

Russia's exclusion from the summit has prompted criticism from some Kremlin-sympathetic capitals including Beijing, which said Russia should be included in any peace process.

The Kremlin has said it would be "absurd" to work towards resolving the conflict without Russian participation.

However Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis said this week Russia must be included at some point and that it was more a question of "when Russia will be on board" in the process rather than if.

Andriy Yermak, head of the Ukrainian presidential administration, echoed that point on Tuesday, suggesting that Russian representatives could be invited to a later summit.

Zelensky earlier explained why Russia had not been invited: "We do not want any formats of negotiations, any formulas for peace to be imposed on us by countries, even our partners, who are not here, not at war."

- Global South -

Ukraine has invited more than 160 nations to participate at the summit and Zelensky has said garnering support from as many countries as possible, including the global south, will be key to the summit.

Zelensky pointed out several areas of mutual interest to AFP. Countries in Africa are concerned with food security while Qatar and the United Arab Emirates have helped secure the release of Ukrainian children from Russia.

Moscow however has longstanding diplomatic ties with countries in Africa and South America from the Soviet period. Many were represented at an economic forum in Saint Petersburg last week.

Ukraine has accused Moscow of seeking to deter countries in the global south from attending.

"The global majority can ensure that what is agreed upon is actually implemented, and that Russia, which started this brutal war, cannot push us off the path to ending it," Zelensky has said.

- Peace Plan -

Ukraine's agenda for the summit is broadly based around a 10-point "peace formula" that was devised in Kyiv and has been promoted by Zelensky since the war's first year.

Kyiv says the aim of the plan is to achieve a just and lasting peace, guided by international law and principles outlined by the United Nations.

It foresees the restoration of Ukrainian territorial integrity, the withdrawal of Russian troops, and the establishment of a tribunal to investigate war crimes.

Moscow has rejected Zelensky's plan because it would require Russia to return territory it has conquered in Ukraine over the last decade of conflict.
Top US diplomat Antony Blinken said Wednesday that a truce and hostage release deal to end the Gaza war was still possible, wrapping up a Middle East tour as deadly fighting rocked the Palestinian territory.

Lebanon's Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah, a Hamas ally, rained rockets on northern Israel, a day after an Israeli strike killed one of its senior commanders.

Blinken, in Doha for the last stop of a tour to promote President Joe Biden's Gaza ceasefire roadmap, said the United States would work with regional partners to "close the deal".

Hamas submitted late Tuesday its response to mediators Qatar and Egypt, and Blinken said some of the proposed amendments "are workable and some are not".

A senior Hamas official, Osama Hamdan, said it sought "a permanent ceasefire and complete withdrawal" of Israeli troops from Gaza, demands rejected by Israel.

The three-stage plan, endorsed by the UN Security Council and Arab powers, includes a six-week ceasefire, a hostage-prisoner exchange and Gaza's internationally backed reconstruction.

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said "many" of Hamas's demands were "minor and not unanticipated", while "others differ more substantively from what was outlined in the UN Security Council resolution".

Blinken said Israel was behind the plan, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whose government has far-right members strongly opposed to the deal, has yet to formally endorse it.

Netanyahu's office said he was convening a "security assessment" on Wednesday "in light of the developments in the north and Hamas's negative response on the issue of the hostage release".

Blinken expressed hopes that gaps could be closed.

"We have to see... over the course of the coming days whether those gaps are bridgeable," he said.

In a statement early Thursday, Hamas urged Blinken to put "direct pressure" on Israel.

"He continues to talk about Israel's agreement of the latest (ceasefire) proposal, but we have not heard any Israeli official speak out on this," Hamas said.

- Hezbollah rockets -

As the bloody Gaza war rages into its ninth month, deadly violence has intensified along Israel's northern border with Lebanon.

An Israeli strike on Tuesday killed a Hezbollah commander described by a Lebanese military source as the Shiite Muslim group's "most important" fighter killed in near-daily exchanges of fire between Israel and Hezbollah since the Gaza war erupted.

On Wednesday, three waves of around 150 rockets and missiles filled the sky over northern Israel, according to the military, reporting fires but no casualties.

Hezbollah also claimed more than 10 other attacks on the Israeli military, including one with drones.

Senior Hezbollah official Hashem Safieddine threatened to "increase the intensity, strength, quantity and quality of our attacks".

Netanyahu warned last week that the army was "prepared for a very intense operation" to "restore security to the north".

In Doha, Blinken said "the best way" to help end the Hezbollah-Israel violence was "a resolution of the conflict in Gaza and getting a ceasefire".

The Gaza war broke out after Hamas's October 7 attack which resulted in the deaths of 1,194 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.

The militants also seized 251 hostages. Of these 116 remain in Gaza, although the army says 41 of them are dead.

Israel in response launched a military offensive on Gaza that has left at least 37,202 people dead, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-ruled territory's health ministry.

- 'Tired, dead, destroyed' -

In central Gaza's Bureij refugee camp, resident Ahmed al-Rubi said he hoped a deal would end the "severe suffering we are going through".

"I hope for a ceasefire," he told AFP. "What has happened to us is enough."

Israeli campaign group the Hostages and Missing Families Forum said Hamas's response "represents another step towards accepting Israel's hostage deal proposal", referring to the Biden plan.

It urged Israel to send negotiators as soon as possible, warning "any delay may jeopardise the possibility of reaching a deal".

Some Gazans have called on Hamas to do more to secure a deal.

"Hamas does not see that we are tired, we are dead, we are destroyed," a Gaza man told AFP, giving his name as Abu Shaker.

"What are you waiting for?" he said. "The war must end at any cost. We cannot bear it any longer."

Israel's military kept up its bombardment and ground operations inside Gaza, where a witness said there was "aerial and artillery shelling" in the southern city of Rafah.

A child was killed in an Israeli bombardment targeting a Rafah house, a medic at Al-Nasser Hospital said. Air strikes and shelling also hit nearby Khan Yunis.

Farther north, the civil defence agency reported at least four dead in a strike on a house in the Zeitun neighbourhood of Gaza City, where a hospital earlier said a pre-dawn raid killed seven people.

- 'Starvation' -

A UN investigation concluded on Wednesday that Israel has committed crimes against humanity during the Gaza war, including that of "extermination".

It found both Israeli forces and Palestinian militants and civilians had committed war crimes.

The Commission of Inquiry, established by the UN Human Rights Council, noted "a widespread or systematic attack directed against the civilian population in Gaza" including "starvation as a method of warfare".

Israel rejected the conclusions and accused the commission of "discrimination".

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said the conflict has seen "a unique level of destruction and a unique level of casualties in the Palestinian population during these months of war".

The World Health Organization said more than 8,000 children aged under five have been treated for acute malnutrition in Gaza, where only two stabilisation centres for severely malnourished patients currently operate.
JUSTICE INFO: On Tuesday June 11th, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, launched a campaign for information on what is happening in Sudan, particularly in El-Fasher in Darfur. Is this call commensurate with the crimes committed?

SULIMAN BALDO: The truth is that the ICC prosecutors office has already opened several investigations in Sudan. The first one goes back to the period of the genocide campaign in Darfur, from 2003 to 2004, which continued thereafter with other massacres. This investigation led to the indictment of both Sudanese officials and rebel leaders, and one militia leader is now appearing before the ICC judges. After the events in Geneina [West Darfur], between April and June 2023, when a massive campaign by the Rapid Support Forces [RSF, grown out of Janjaweed militias] targeted people of Masalit origin, the ICC opened an active investigation into these massacres. It has already launched a call for witnesses, survivors and independent investigators, asking them to cooperate on what happened in Geneina and West Darfur.

So yesterdays appeal is a third step, which I interpret as an extension of the ongoing investigations. The war in Sudan is characterised by atrocities committed by all the belligerents across the country, and we need an investigation that is commensurate with the current crisis, which is putting civilians at great risk. It seems appropriate to me to extend the ICC investigations to the whole situation in Darfur and to the whole country. The very nature of the conflict calls for it.

#ICC Prosecutor @KarimKhanQC announces campaign calling for information and cooperation in relation to allegations of international crimes being committed in #Darfur, Sudan, including in Al Fasher.



Info can be sent to #OTPLink:https://t.co/IYVUCvyWCA



Watch  pic.twitter.com/H1sMPGB8jP  Int'l Criminal Court (@IntlCrimCourt) June 11, 2024

So you think this is the right time and the right method?

I believe so. In all these situations, you have to consider the reality of social and community life in Sudan, where there are a large number of human rights associations, targeted communities and humanitarian organisations. A whole generation of people are trained at various levels on the issue of monitoring violations and are prepared to pass on their testimony to the ICC prosecutor. This is in addition to the work of international organisations in documenting current war violations.

For example, there have been independent investigations by Masalit community associations, who have been to the field, conducted interviews and published the results of their investigations. Im sure they had the opportunity to share them with the ICC. It is also the case for international associations, such as Human Rights Watch or the Darfur victims defence association, which are in constant communication with the ICC. There are also reports from independent journalists and media outlets with correspondents on the ground. The British newspaper The Guardian has a war correspondent in El-Fasher as the fighting is going on. Sky News and RFI have also done a remarkable job, as have France 24, CNN and so on.

In my view, there is no shortage of independent bodies working to document crimes and bring them into the public arena. Perhaps we can hear complaints that the international media are not paying enough attention to the crisis in Darfur, but at the same time there have been some very serious investigations, approaching the level of proof required for an international criminal investigation.

Are the ICC investigators on the ground?

The Prosecutor has stated that they have teams East of Chad and in Port Sudan, where the de facto authority of the current government is based.

What information do you have about the situation in El-Fasher?

We have almost daily communication with sources in the city: the situation is really very worrying. There is an artillery duel between the Sudanese army and the RSF in a densely populated town, with nearby camps such as Zamzan, which has had 400,000 internally displaced people since the 2003-2004 wars. Until now, El-Fasher has been a quiet city, thanks to the efforts of the local mediation committee, made up of dignitaries, lawyers, activists, young people and women. It had managed to maintain calm during the first ten months of the war [which began in April 2023] by going back and forth between the RSF and the army. This traditional, community-based diplomacy became ineffective after some Darfuri armed groups decided to abandon their position of neutrality which guaranteed local peace, to side themselves with the Sudanese army. We need to put pressure on the warring parties to stop this madness.

Does the ICC have any impact on peace in this situation?

No. The Prosecutor has a specific, very limited mandate to investigate violations of international law, which are massive and systematic, and which go beyond politics. I dont think its appropriate to associate the ICC with these calls for peace. Their work lies elsewhere.

The impact is to remind military leaders that there will be consequences if they or their soldiers attack civilians. This is a very important consideration for commanders, who must take into account the fact that their behaviour on the battlefield will now be watched and documented by independent witnesses, and that there will be consequences for these commanders in their capacity as line managers. The ICC must act everywhere at the same time to show that international law applies to everyone.

Do you see a difference in treatment between what is happening in Sudan, and in El-Fasher in particular, and what is happening in Israel-Palestine, particularly in Gaza?

I dont see any contrast in the ICCs treatment, since in both cases the aim is to hold accountable those who have carried out attacks against civilians, whether in Gaza, in Palestine or in Darfur. That is what the ICC has actually done, by indicting the Prime Minister of Israel and the leaders of Hamas, whereas before, the ICC focused mainly on Africa. It did not get involved in conflicts anywhere else, and this was seen as a double standard for much of the ICCs history.

Is this the real change?

Yes..., its an encouragement. The ICC would no longer be involved in international geopolitics, but it would go where the crimes have been committed, full stop.

Can we compare the siege situation in El-Fasher with the one in Gaza?

Everything indicates that the RSF are in the process of surrounding El-Fasher and preparing an offensive to take the city. Fierce fighting is expected in the coming days, while many civilians have already been killed and tens of thousands displaced.

Since mid-April, the RSF have been preventing the entry of any convoy carrying essential goods for the population, such as food, health products and medicines. They have also tried to take control of a depot that supplies the town with drinking water. In the camps for displaced people in El-Fasher, there is talk of a famine situation. Its comparable, I think, with whats happening with the Israeli armys encirclement of Gaza: the aim is to deprive the civilian population of their means of survival. Its comparable.
Israel has dismissed as biased a UN inquiry that found it committed crimes against humanity, including that of "extermination," in its war against Hamas in Gaza.

The report, the first such in-depth investigation by UN experts into the Gaza war, also found that Israeli and Palestinian armed groups had both committed war crimes.

Released Wednesday, the UN's Independent Commission of Inquiry found Israel "has committed war crimes, crimes against humanity" and other international law violations.

The report noted "a widespread or systematic attack directed against the civilian population in Gaza".

Israel's foreign ministry said the commission is "biased and tainted by a distinct anti-Israeli agenda".

The report "describes an alternate reality in which decades of terrorist attacks have been erased", it said.

"There are no continuous missile attacks on Israeli citizens and there isn't a democratic state defending itself against a terrorist assault."

In its statement released late Wednesday the ministry added: "To add insult to injury, the report is full of false accusations and blood libels against IDF (Israeli army) soldiers."

The Gaza war began with Hamas's October 7 attack, which resulted in the deaths of 1,194 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.

Militants also seized 251 hostages, of whom 116 remain in Gaza, though the Israeli army says at least 41 of them are dead.

Israel's retaliatory offensive in the Gaza Strip has left more than 37,000 people dead, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-ruled territory's health ministry.

The Commission of Inquiry was established by the UN Human Rights Council in May 2021 to investigate alleged international law violations in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

The commission also found that members of Hamas and other armed groups participating in the October 7 attack "deliberately killed, injured, mistreated, took hostages and committed sexual and gender-based violence".

"Hamas and Palestinian armed groups must immediately cease rocket attacks and release all hostages," said Navi Pillay, a former UN rights chief and ex-International Criminal Court judge who chairs the three-person commission.

Hamas has not yet commented on the UN report.
As "Hierarchy" continues to dominate the global chart, fans are being intrigued by the cast members relationship with one another.

Headlined by rising stars Roh Jeong Eui, Lee Chae Min, Kim Jae Won, Lee Won Jung, and Ji Hye Won, the Netflix teen-mystery series depicts the story of revenge following a mystery murder.

A fictional school called Jooshin, where all the kids of the rich and famous study, welcomes their new student, Kang Ha (Lee Chae Min). Unlike the others, he enters the school through the scholarship program and gets being bullied because of it.

However, the reason behind joining Jooshin High is that Kang Ha wants to dig deep into the death of his brother.

In Jooshin High, he discovers that the school is an elite playground ruled by the queen bee, Jung Jae I (Roh Jeong Eui), along with her boyfriend, Kim Ri An (Kim Jae Won).

Joining them in their group are Yoon He Ra (Ji Hye Won) and Lee Woo Jin (Lee Won Jung).

Other than the murder mystery, viewers get to see the romance between Jung Jae I and Kim Ri An as well as the forbidden romance between Lee Woo Jin and his teacher, Ms. Han, played by Byeon Seo Yoon.

Other than the teacher-student relationship, Lee Woo Jin is also caught up with his longtime friend Yoon He Ra.

Their on-screen chemistry delighted viewers, with some even wishing that they'd have more screen time if Netflix confirmed "Hierarchy" Season 2.

Interestingly, because of the fans' curiosity, one user attempted to personally ask Lee Won Jung about it.

Lee Won Jung Responds to Dating Question

Ji Hye Won updates her followers with a random mirror selfie, showing off her amazing visuals.

One of the many comments she received was from her "Hierarchy" co-star Lee Won Jung.

The actor commented, "My heart aches," but this comment captured the attention of fans, delighting them with their social media interaction.

Meanwhile, one fan chimed in and said, "Take her out on a date already."

Interestingly, Lee Won Jung responded and said, "Sure, why not?" suggesting that he is open to possibly dating Ji Hye Won.

In the drama, Lee Woo Jin and Yoon He Ra's romance blossomed after he ended his relationship with Ms. Han.

"Hierarchy" also depicted Woo Jin as He Ra's protector, especially when she almost lost everything after her father's company went bankrupt.

Due to their chemistry, viewers are strongly in favor of Lee Won Jung and Ji Hye Won.

Lee Won Jung Joins 'Is It Fate'

After "Hierarchy," Lee Won Jung will be appearing in another webtoon based K-drama.

He is selected to be part of the upcoming youth rom-com series headlined by Kim So Hyun and Chae Jong Hyeop.

Enjoying his newfound fame, Lee Won Jung plays a restaurant owner.

Helmed by "The King's Affection" and "The Midnight Studio" director Song Hyun Wook, it depicts the story of Lee Hong Ju, who works as an animation production PD.

Despite being single, she feels content being nobody's girlfriend because of the traumatic relationship she had.

However, she accidentally meets her first love, Kang Hu Young, after 10 years.

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news, keep your tabs open here at KDramaStars.

KDramaStars owns this article

Written by Geca Flores
Chae Jong Hyeop and Kim So Hyun excite fans as the production revealed more details about their new drama "Is It A Coincidence."

Chae Jong Hyeop, Kim So Hyun To Headline Romance Drama 'Is It A Coincidence'

tvN is preparing the viewers with another exciting pair debuting this second half of 2024.

Apart from Kim Soo Hyun and Kim Ji Won of "Queen of Tears," and Byeon Woo Seok and Kim Hye Yoon of "Lovely Runner," Chae Jong Hyeop and Kim So Hyun are the newest stars to couple up beginning next month!

On June 12, an official from tvN shared that "Is It a Coincidence," starring Chae Jong Hyeop and Kim So Hyun will be released as the follow-up to the ongoing action-crime drama "The Player 2: Master of Swindlers."

The broadcasting company added that the romantic-comedy series is scheduled to premiere in July; however, the specific date is still in discussion.

What We Know So Far About 'Is It a Coincidence'

Based on a popular webtoon, "Is It a Coincidence" features the story of young individuals searching for true love and their dreams after accidentally running into their first love from 10 years ago.

Kim So Hyun takes the role of Lee Hong Joo, an animation producer who is afraid of love due to painful memories from her past relationship.

Chae Jong Hyeop is Kang Hoo Young, a good-looking and intelligent financial planner living in the US who never needed to work hard to achieve great results.

Bored with his ordinary life, Kang Hoo Young finds his heart fluttering again when he returns to Korea for the first time in a long time.

There, he unexpectedly reunites with his first love from high school.

It has been said that the filming for this series was completed in 2023 and is now set for release to meet the audience.

"Is It a Coincidence" will be Kim So Hyun and Chae Jong Hyeop's first drama team-up, and seeing them in one frame is already giving excitement to their fans.

This will be Chae Jong Hyeop and Kim So Hyun's first K-drama comebacks following their previous works "Castaway Diva" and "My Lovely Liar."

What are you most excited about Chae Jong Hyeop and Kim So Hyun's upcoming tandem? Share your thoughts/replies in the comments!

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news and updates, keep your tabs open here at KDramaStars.

KDramaStars owns this article.

Shai San Miguel wrote this.
Another Korean top actor made a buzz after the media mentioned that his appearance fee in his recent drama cost almost half a million USD per episode.

Want to know more about the news? Then read on!

Song Kang Ho Reportedly Earned Over 500k USD Per Episode in 'Uncle Samsik'

With the expanding market of Korean dramas, the appearance fees, especially the top stars and in-demand actors in the industry, are also affected.

In a media report on June 12, top actor Song Kang Ho created a buzz after reports claimed that his paycheck for the Disney Plus series "Uncle Samsik" has reportedly reached a whopping 520,000 USD (700 million KRW) per episode.

With the drama comprising 16 episodes, this brings Song Kang Ho a total earnings of approximately 8.3 million USD (11.2 billion KRW). It has been said that the amount exceeds a quarter of the series' 40 billion KRW production budget.

Media Insiders Share Thoughts on Song Kang Ho's Appearance Fee

In the added information in the report, a casting director who has a decade of experience working with global OTT platforms revealed on June 7, "Song Kang Ho, who made his small screen debut with 'Uncle Samsik,' received 700 million KRW per episode."

Even though it was lower than Lee Jung Jae's 970k USD (approximately 1.3 billion KRW) per episode for "Squid Game 2," it places Song Kang Ho alongside top-tier actors like Lee Byung Hun, Song Joong Ki, and Kang Dong Won.

After hearing the news, it received mixed reactions from the public. One film industry insider noted, "Song Kang Ho earned approximately 595K USD (800 million KRW) for 'Parasite,' so receiving 700 million KRW per episode for global OTT drama is surprising. The financial power of American OTT platforms seems overwhelming for local capital."

Adding a statement to this, a drama production CEO spilled that there are rumors that Netflix is moving its production base from Korea to Japan, reflecting cost efficiency issues.

The CEO added that following the lackluster performance of "Blood Free" starring Han Hyo Joo, Disney Plus is facing disappointing results with "Uncle Samsik," too.

Despite the high anticipation, "Uncle Samsik" has only released 11 episodes, with mixed reviews. While the performances of the actors were recognized, the series suffered from tedious direction, slow pacing, and overly ambitious storytelling.

Sublime Addresses Song Kang Ho's Appearance Fee Issue

Meanwhile, Song Kang Ho's label, Sublime, released a statement clarifying the actor's appearance fee.

"Song Kang Ho originally signed a contract with Slingshot Studio for a 10-episode series. However, the editing process extended it to 16 episodes, and his per-episode salary for the 16-episode format is below 400 million KRW (approx 297, 000 USD)."

What can you say about the news? Share your thoughts/replies in the comments!

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news and updates, keep your tabs open here at KDramaStars.

KDramaStars owns this article.

Shai San Miguel wrote this.
Chinese actress Angelababy received backlash online after netizens noticed that she was wearing an inappropriate outfit at a school event.

Want to know more about the news? Then read on!

Angelababy's School Visit for Fundraising Event Garner Attention

Angela Yeung Wing, popularly known by her stage name Angelababy, is a Chinese-born Hong Kong actress. In a recent media report, the famous star became the center of attention online due to her outfit.

According to a source, Angelababy, who visited her son's school for an event, was criticized by other parents for her revealing outfit.

Offering help to the 6.2 magnitude earthquake that struck Gansu province, the 35-year-old actress was recognized in a Weibo post for her financial donation by the Shanghai Fosun Foundation, the humanitarian arm of the Fosun Group.

YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE: THIS 'Single's Inferno' Season 3 Cast Slammed for Wearing Inappropriate Sleepwear

In addition to the news, Angelababy appeared during a fundraising event at the secondary branch of the famous Shanghai school that her son attended. Since she is a celebrity, many immediately noticed her. The people present at the event took photos of her and later shared them online.

Angelababy Receives Backlash For Allegedly Wearing Inappropriate Outfit At School

It was revealed that Angelababy was wearing a casual lavender camisole dress with her long hair down, and a fashionable 3D glitter tattoo sticker on the left side of her face. With her youthful look, she easily became the magnet of attention.

Despite showing up to support the event, she became viral due to her outfit. Many pointed out that the dress she was wearing had a sexy lace-cut-out area near the chest. Some said that she dressed skimpily, and commented that her outfit looked like sleepwear.

Netizens expressed their sentiments over Angelababy's allegedly inappropriate outfit.

"In front of other male parents, the cami dress was too informal and too casual."

"Angelababy's outfit looked like pajamas."

"It's a school event, can't you have more clothes on?"

Amid the backlash, Angelababy's fans raised their voices to defend their idol. They rebutted that the female star looked beautiful, and emitted a gorgeous aura even from afar.

Angelababy is known for her Chinese dramas such as "Love The Way You Are," "The Wind Blows From Longxi," "A Murderous Affair in Horizon Tower," "My True Friend," "Entrepreneurial Age," and more.

Giving delights to her fans, the actress is expected to make her screen comeback sometime this 2024.

What can you say about the news? Share your thoughts/replies in the comments!

For more K-Drama, K-Movie, and celebrity news and updates, keep your tabs open here at Kdramastars.

Kdramastars owns this article.

Shai San Miguel wrote this.








Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Renowned Kenyan lawyer and barrister Miguna Miguna has blasted President William Rutos regime, accusing it of using lies to win over the masses.

Miguna Miguna shared his thoughts on social media on Wednesday, criticizing National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichungwah for falsely claiming that Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua cannot use a military chopper because it is reserved solely for the President, the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces.

Miguna called Ichungwah's assertion a pathetic and blatant lie, noting that Kenyans have seen military choppers used by individuals like Kapsaret MP Oscar Sudi, Roads and Transport Cabinet Secretary Kipchumba Murkomen, and various other cabinet secretaries and principal secretaries.

The 'General' concluded by stating that a country is built on values, not on lies like those told by Ichungwah.

We cannot allow @KIMANIICHUNGWAHto stand up in Parliament and lie to the country that military aircraft are reserved for the President and First Lady only when we have all seen MP @HonOscarSudi and many CSs, PSs, and other politicians use military helicopters as matatus around the country.

"We must build a country of VALUES; not lies, Miguna wrote.

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - El Salvadoran police have burnt a 2.7-ton pile of cocaine worth an estimated $67 million.

According to local authorities, the cocaine was seized on May 10, from several boats about 1000 miles off the coast of El Salvador as the country continues its crackdown on gangs and drug traffickers.

Two Ecuadorian nationals, as well as two Colombian nationals, and three Mexican nationals, were arrested as the 2.7 tons of cocaine was confiscated.

The pile of coke was burned in the town of Ilopango, just east of the countrys capital, San Salvador.






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - French President, Emmanuel Macron will support a proposed ban on the use of smartphones for those under the age of 11 and social media for those under the age of 15 across France.

Macron is said to be backing the proposals made in a report earlier this year by a panel of experts commissioned by the Elysee Palace amid growing concern over the negative effects of tech and social media use on children and teenagers.

The president reportedly entered the issue into his presidential agenda at the beginning of the year.

The expert panel, which was led by neurologist Servane Mouton and psychiatry professor Amine Benyamina, and also included education, law, and tech experts, delivered its findings to Macron in April.

It recommended that all children under the age of 11 must not be permitted to use a smartphone, and must not be given a smartphone with access to the internet before age 13.

Social media apps should be forbidden for anyone under 15, they added, and minors over 15 should only have access to platforms deemed 'ethical' - though the report did not specify which platforms would be excluded from such restrictions.

There is currently no timeline for new legislation and it is unclear to what extent it would follow the experts' recommendations.

The group said any future moves should focus on tightening rules for tech companies.

'Those are the ones who are primarily responsible,' Mouton told a news briefing back in April.

A UCL study published earlier this month found that the addictive nature of social media platforms rewires teenagers' brains and may make them more likely to engage in other addictive behaviour.

The findings, published in the journal PLOS Mental Health, indicate that internet addiction is associated with disrupted signaling in the regions of the brain involved in multiple neural networks.

Their study, which reviewed 12 separate neuroimaging studies of adolescents displaying heavy internet use, found that when internet-addicted tees engaged in activities governed by the brain's executive control network  such as behaviour requiring attention, planning, decision-making, and especially impulsivity  those brain regions showed a 'significant' disruption in their ability to work together.

Study co-author Max Chang said: 'These networks play an important role in controlling our attention, in association with intellectual ability, working memory, physical coordination, and emotional processing.

'All of which in turn have an impact on mental health.

'Given that adolescent brains are more capable of changing than those of adults, understanding the effects of internet addiction on the brain and behaviour is vital for society as a whole.'








Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has responded to National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichungwah who claimed that leadership does not require village indulgence in a direct attack on the DP who has been indulging his villagers in his one man, one vote, one shilling campaign.

Speaking in Mombasa during the opening of the Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya International Scientific Conference, Gachagua remarked that he was bemused why someone would criticize him for being a villager.

Acknowledging his roots, he stated that after the conference, he would fly to Nairobi for a short period and then proceed to his village.

You know, every person has somewhere they came from and everyone has a home, he stated adding that in cities like Nairobi and Mombasa, people come to earn a livelihood.

I do not know why anybody would have a problem with where we all come from.

He added that Kenyans should be proud of their origin and identity and no one should make them feel embarrassed.

Additionally, he told leaders who are branding other politicians as villagers to stop the disrespect.

Ichung'wah had remarked that it was impossible to build a kingdom with someone who still craved attention from his village.

He alluded that Gachagua's endearment to the Mt Kenya region was a way to blackmail President William Ruto.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Thursday, June 13, 2024 - A 30-year-old man, who has been siphoning money from high-ranking individuals by impersonating renowned journalists and show hosts, is now cooling his heels in a city police cell.

Julius Gacheru Wangari alias Chris was flushed from his base at the Zambezi area of Kikuyu in Kiambu County, and the communication gadgets used in the diddles were seized.

In the imposture dating back to 2023, the suspect has been personating journalist and radio host Eric Latiff of Standard Group's Spice FM, reaching out to guests hosted by the media personality in his Situation Room show.

While in the guise, the suspect (who must be a religious follower of all the shows hosted by the complainant) has been sending 'thank you' messages to the well-to-do guests after every show, but just as a pickup line before embarking on his tactical gambits.

The targeted victims who lost thousands to the get-rich-quick faithful purporting to be Latiff in need of "kakitu nimekwama mahali" include a Principal Secretary, a renowned businessman and politician, a high-ranking director at KPLC, an official at Mitumba Consortium Association of Kenya among others.

Upon arrest and brief interrogation, the suspect alleged to be a diploma holder in journalism from a renowned media institution in the country and previously worked with a religious FM radio.

Crucial evidence including the SIM cards used to send messages to targeted victims and receive the solicited money was found on him and have since been surrendered to the Digital Forensic Laboratory for analysis.

Meanwhile, a Milimani court has granted detectives at the Nairobi Regional Headquarters 7 days to complete investigations.

The Kenyan DAILY POST.






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - There was drama at Makadara Law Courts in Nairobi after a senior police officer shot and wounded Principal Magistrate Monica Kivuti.

The incident happened after the Magistrate delivered a ruling in a case involving the wife of the senior officer.

The disgruntled senior officer, who is an Officer Commanding Station in Kisumu, had travelled to Nairobi to attend to a case where his wife was a suspect.

His wife wanted to be released pending a hearing and determination of the case.

However, the magistrate denied her bond.

The court was sitting in a tent outside the main court precincts.

Soon after the magistrate had ruled on the matter, the officer went behind the tent and shot the magistrate in the thigh.

Nairobi police boss Adamson Bungei confirmed the incident and said other officers who were present responded and killed the police officer after a gun battle.

Another member of the public was injured in the drama.

Both the magistrate and the other victim were rushed to hospital in serious condition after the 2 pm incident.





The Kenyan DAILY POST.






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - The current Miss France has accused her critics of body-shaming her after winning the country's national beauty pageant.

Eve Gilles' short pixie bob caused a storm when she was won back in December 2023, with trolls saying her hair was 'too boyish' and 'less attractive.'

The public, whose vote counted for 50 percent, put Miss Guiana and Miss Guadeloupe ahead of Eve but critics claimed the all-female judging panel was motivated by 'wokeness'





No short-haired woman had even reached the final of the 103-year-old pageant before.

Reflecting on the outcry in a new interview with The Times, the 21-year-old said the comments about her physique were far more distressing than the opinions on her hair.

Gilles told the newspaper: 'I chose my hair. I didnt choose my body or metabolism. It was body shaming.'





The backlash against her hair, she says, began as soon as she progressed through the regional rounds. She says: 'It was like a tsunami coming up behind you dont see it but you know its right here.'

When she was crowned, Gilles hit back at the onslaught of criticism that came her way, saying: 'We're used to seeing beautiful Misses with long hair, but I chose an androgynous look with short hair' and adding: 'no one should dictate who you are'.

She continued: 'Sometimes its been very difficult. Im human and in the beginning especially it was very upsetting for my mother. But I got over it and when she saw that I was fine, she was fine too.'



Gilles, from Quaedypre, a village near Dunkirk says she's never had any face-to-face abuse, saying: 'Nobody has the courage. People only say they love me.'

'I dreamed of being a Miss since I was little,' she said, but 'as I got older I didn't really know how to start,' and wanted to feel 'good in my body, good in my head'.

'These are things that we learn to live with the, and I don't understand how we can criticise something that we can't change.'








Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has defended himself over addressing Mt Kenya residents in the Kikuyu language.

This is after a section of Kenya Kwanza leaders allied to President Ruto accused him of being a tribalist over his extensive use of his mother tongue as he advocates for one man, one shilling in Mt. Kenya.

Speaking during the Pharmaceutical Society of Kenya International Conference in Mombasa, Gachagua wondered why he should speak in English or Kiswahili to his villagers yet they all share the same mother tongue.

The DP noted that he speaks in English or Kiswahili in places where people do not understand the Kikuyu Language.

I am talking in English because some of you may not understand my language.

"I will talk Kiswahili when I go where people cannot understand. But if I go to the village what business do, I have talking to people in English and I am not a white person.

"Won't that be arrogance and pride? Gachagua posed.

The second in command went on to tell Kenyans not to be embarrassed by their language and origin.

DP Gachagua pointed out that no one chooses where to be born and everything is planned by God.

It is good to be simple, let us not pretend that we are what we are not. Nobody should ever feel embarrassed about their origin, identity, and language.

"Those things were given to you for free by God without any application, and God never told you where to be born, Gachagua added.

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Kiambaa Member of Parliament John Kawanjiku has said he will support the Finance Bill 2024, despite thousands of his constituents begging him to reject the punitive bill.

The bill, supported by the Treasury and state house mandarins, proposes a range of new taxes, including those on bread, powdered milk, Mpesa and bank transactions, and farm produce, among other items.

On Thursday, Kenyans pleaded with their MPs not to support the bill, arguing it was retrogressive and would overburden them.

However, Kawanjiku, a close ally of National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichungwah, stated that he would not listen to voters but would instead heed President William Ruto and support the bill.

Yes, the people of Kiambaa elected me in parliament to serve the will of President William Ruto and his government.

"I cannot go against my master. I will vote yes, Kawanjiku stated.

The Kenyan DAILY POST








Thursday, June 13, 2024 - National Assembly Majority Leader Kimani Ichungwah has confirmed Kenyans' worst fears regarding the travel arrangements for Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.

This is after he revealed that Gachagua may never use a military plane to travel around ever again since he was not authorized.

This follows the recent trends where Gachagua is forced to hire a private chopper use his car or even use a commercial plane to travel within the country when he could just fly a KDF plane.

The military has recently locked out senior government officials of access to military choppers in the new stern measures to avoid unnecessary expenditure.

Among those locked out of the military choppers is Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua.

Only President William Ruto has access to KDF planes.

Addressing the issue on the floor of the National Assembly, Ichung'wah stated that the new regulations were aimed at cutting down unnecessary operational costs in the KDF.

"The Defense Cabinet Secretary (Aden Duale) did inform me that for the last year, the aircraft used by the Deputy President, Prime Cabinet Secretary, and other senior government officials occasioned an expenditure of Sh500 million to KDF," Ichungwah explained on the floor of the National Assembly.

To save on other unplanned expenses, Ichungwah added that the Ministry of Defence had rolled down a procedural process to be adhered to by senior government officials.

Of the procedures, the senior officials have to make a formal request before being granted by the KDF to use those choppers.

Kenya Defence Forces has now made a policy decision that should any official want to use the military aircraft, it must be on request."

The Kenyan DAILY POST
Master artisan passes on time-honored craft of carved lacquerware

People's Daily Online) 15:34, June 13, 2024

Photo taken on June 5, 2024 shows Zhu Jiang working on a carved lacquerware piece in his studio. (Xinhua/Li Xin)

Zhu Jiang, born in 1976, is an inheritor of the time-honored craft of carved lacquerware and a master of arts and crafts in Beijing.

Making carved lacquerware pieces involves very complicated and time-consuming procedures, and requires expensive materials and outstanding skills.

He learned the craft from his father Zhu Qingyuan at a young age and then from Yin Xiuyun, a national-level inheritor of carved lacquerware and a national-level master of arts and crafts.

In 2017, Zhu Jiang established a studio with teachers and students of the College of Fine Arts of Langfang Normal University. They have made carved lacquerware pieces, including tea sets, wedding decorations, trendy ornaments, and decorative artworks, injecting new vitality into the traditional craft and attracting many young people to pay attention to carved lacquerware culture.

In recent years, the works designed and carved by Zhu Jiang have won more than 30 awards both at home and abroad.

(Web editor: Hongyu, Liang Jun)




Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Vocal Kileleshwa Ward MCA, Robert Alai, has blamed the Kenya Kwanza administration for impoverishing Kenyans and turning them into beggars.

Alai's remarks came after a video of Kapsaret Member of Parliament Oscar Sudi being accosted by needy Kenyans outside KASS FM surfaced on social media.

A multitude of people surrounded his posh Mercedes Benz and stretched hands to beg for money.

Sudis security team had a hard time controlling the crowd.

Some women erupted in joy after Sudi dished out money to them before his flashy entourage sped off.

Sudi had gone for an interview at the station accompanied by his security entourage which included a chase car with a siren.





Watch the video.

Sudi leaving radio station. Kenya Kwanza wants to create a country of extreme beggars. pic.twitter.com/QYozORMCgi  Robert ALAI, HSC (@RobertAlai) June 12, 2024

The Kenyan DAILY POST.




Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki has admitted that President William Rutos government has not been able to do much for the last two years.

Speaking in Tharaka Nithi County during the launch of the Fourth Medium Term Plan (MTP-IV), Kindiki, however, noted that Ruto has been busy stabilizing the economy and settling debts left by former President Uhuru Kenyatta.

Kindiki noted that going forward, Rutos government will start launching and commissioning development projects.

The first two years we have not been able to do much that is the honest truth.

"The government could not do much because we are paying debts and stabilizing the economy," said Kindiki.

"But now going forward, you are going to see the President, ministers, and PSs here and they will not just be coming to visit, they will launch, commission, and bring various projects that we are now rolling out from this financial year, he added.

The Interior CS assured Tharaka Nithi locals that the government would revive and complete stalled road projects and build new ones in the county.

Kindiki mentioned that projects will be completed before Ruto completes his first term in office.

Before President William Ruto comes to ask for a second term we will have addressed these issues because this is not a talking government, it is a government that is purposed to working, Kindiki added.

The Kenyan DAILY POST








Thursday, June 13, 2024  Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki has once again delved into the ongoing debate on the one-man, one-vote, one-shilling which has been described as a tribal debate.

Speaking in Tharaka Nithi County yesterday, Kindiki warned Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua to stop the one man, one shilling campaign in Mt. Kenya because it was tribal and discriminative.

He cautioned leaders against promoting discrimination against parts of the country noting that all Kenyans deserved to get development.

"Any person of whatever nature who undermines the security and security of Kenya is an enemy by nature. The government under President Ruto does not condone sectional and sectarian discrimination.

"Anybody who tells people about their tribe is an enemy of the country and the police will be alert to deal with them," he stated.

The CS has been one of the leaders that have opposed Gachaguas one man, one shilling campaign.

The push by Gachagua has also seen him come under sharp criticism from other leaders and President William Ruto himself.

Nonetheless, Gachagua has defended himself against accusations of being a tribalist, adding that he was only interested in uniting and addressing issues affecting the Mt Kenya region.

The fact that I am the Deputy President does not extinguish my right as a Kenyan and as per the constitution to have an opinion, but that opinion is not a command, it's just an opinion, the DP stated.

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Interior Cabinet Secretary Prof. Kithure Kindiki has threatened to order the arrest of Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua for trying to divide the country along ethnic lines.

Gachagua, who is defacto Mt Kenya kingpin, has been accused severally by politicians close to President William Ruto of fanning tribalism by urging Mt Kenya residents to unite.

Kindiki who spoke in Tharaka Nithi County on Wednesday, said his office will not allow anybody to divide Kenyans along ethnic lines.

I will not allow anybody to divide Kenyans including those holding high offices, Kindiki said.

He also branded Gachagua as an enemy of the country over his push for the one-man, one-vote, one-shilling campaign.

But Gachagua has maintained that nobody will stop his push for the one-man, one-vote, one-shilling and also uniting Mt Kenya region.

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - A suspected arsonist is on the run after he set his ex-girlfriend's home on fire while she and her children were inside in New Mexico.

The man also accidentally caught on fire while allegedly setting fire to his ex-girlfriends property.

The video was recently released, but the incident took place on May 13.

Security camera footage taken by Daniel Provine shows the womans property catching on fire in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The suspect is then seen running down the street with his clothes on fire.

The video shows a man who was on fire jumping over a fence to get away from the blaze.

Neighbor Daniel Provine, who captured the footage, told KOB4: "I kind of had to laugh at the sort of amateur hour situation there, if youre going to commit arson, try to do it without setting yourself on fire. Feel like that dude got what he deserved a little bit in the process."





The video also captured the man walking over to the property with a five-gallon gas can, jumping over the fence and pouring the gas before the fire.

Daniel handed the video over to police.

He told KOAT: "I made sure it made available to the investigators.

"The absurdity of seeing someone with such bitterness to light the fire and the ineptitude to get caught in flames, in the process It was absolutely absurd and really unfortunate. I feel terrible for the neighbors wanted to do whatever I could to help."

Later footage shows the man running back to his vehicle and driving away from the scene.

According to a local news outlet, three vehicles in the womans driveway were destroyed and the flames spread to her home, where she was inside with her children.





According to the criminal complaint, his ex-girlfriend told investigators that he called her three times before the terrifying ordeal.

She also said he arrived earlier on Friday evening - and "could tell he was drinking."

When Albuquerque Fire Rescue arrived at the scene, there were two vehicles on fire, with flames spreading to a third one, and the victim's house too.

The complaint stated that "multiple people were at home including children."

Luckily, the suspect's ex-girlfriend and children were unharmed in the incident.

The victim said she watched in shock from inside her home but made it out safely with her four children.

Police are on the hunt for the suspect's vehicle, a white Chevrolet Silverado.

Watch the video below.








Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Detectives based at DCI Kayole, Nairobi are appealing for information on the whereabouts of 35-year-old Mary Mwende Kimwalu, who is a suspect in a case of Attempted Murder committed at Mihang'o Estate in Njiru, Kayole sub-county on April 22, 2023.

In the case, Mary Mwende reportedly stabbed her ex-boyfriend three times on the chest using a kitchen knife, after a tiff that sundered their once dazzling love. After the heinous attack, she went underground, carefully effacing the track behind her.



Mwende did not only hole up, but also cut communication with her family, known friends and has since avoided places she previously frequented hence paralyzing efforts to bring her to justice.



The Immigration Department confirms that she has not exited the country, and a warrant of arrest issued against her on May 13, 2024 is in force.



Records of the suspect held at the National Registration Bureau indicate that she hails from Ikutha in Kitui Central, at Kyoani sub-location.



Uploaded herewith are photos of the suspect availed to the police by the family, who are also desperate to know the whereabouts of their kin.



Do you know her? Have you seen her? Do you have any information that could assist in her arrest? Please report to any police station, DCI office or #FichuakwaDCI by calling our toll-free hotline number 0800 722 203 any time 24/7.













The Kenyan DAILY POST.






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Pope Francis has reportedly used a homophobic term again weeks after apologising for saying gay men should not be admitted to church seminaries because 'there's already too much f*****ry' in a closed-door meeting.

He used of the word 'frociaggine', a vulgar Italian term roughly translating as 'f*****ness', on May 20 during a closed-door meeting with Italian bishops.

According to Italian news agency ANSA, Pope Francis, 87, repeated the term on Tuesday, June 11, as he met Roman priests, saying 'there is an air of f*****ness in the Vatican'.

He added that it was better that young men with a homosexual tendency not be allowed to enter the seminary - a college that trains students to become priests.

Asked about the latest report, the Vatican's press office made reference to a statement it had issued regarding Tuesday's meeting with the priests, in which the pope reiterated the need to welcome gay people into the Church and the need for caution regarding them becoming seminarians.

After the first report of him using the word, Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera quoted unnamed bishops who were in the room as suggesting that the pope, as an Argentine, might not have realised that the Italian term he used was offensive.

The Pope had been credited with making substantial moves towards being more welcoming of the LGBT+ community during his 11-year papacy.

In May, Italian news agency Adnkronos, citing sources, reported that the Pope said in his speech: 'Look, there is already an air of f*****ry around that is not good. There is today's culture of homosexuality with respect to those who have a homosexual orientation [who] are better off not being accepted [into the seminary].'

The remark was met with 'incredulous laughter', bishops told newspaper Corriere della Sera, but represents a huge step back for campaigners after prolonged efforts to reform the church's position on LGBTQ+ rights.

The Pope apologised the following week, with the Vatican releasing a statement that said: 'The Pope never intended to offend or express himself in homophobic terms, and he apologises to those who felt offended by the use of a term reported by others.'






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Former celebrity couple, Jeezy and Jeannie Mai are officially divorced after two years of marriage.

According to PEOPLE, the Superior Court of Fulton County in Georgia has agreed to dissolve the marriage of the former The Real co-host, 45, and the Put On rapper (ne Jay Jenkins), 46.

To keep details of their divorce settlement private including child support/custody, spousal support, and property splits, the ex-couple have agreed to file their divorce under seal.

News of the former couples finalized divorce comes nine months after Jeezy filed in September following two-and-a-half years of marriage.

According to his filing, the two were living in a bona fide state of separation at the time, and their marriage was "irretrievably broken" with "no hope for reconciliation."

The document also noted that the rapper is seeking joint legal and physical custody of their daughter, Monaco, whom the couple welcomed in January 2022.

A month after the news broke, Jeezy released a statement addressing his divorce from Mai that read, The decision to end this chapter in my life was not made impulsively and comes with a heavy heart.

The Grammy-nominated rap artist added, Despite this, my love and respect for Jeannie remains and the time we spent together holds a cherished place in my heart.

Mai also broke her silence on the divorce filing with an Instagram post that featured the words, Sometimes, you need to take a break and disconnect, to heal, written in a notebook.




Thursday, June 13, 2024 - An officer who was investigating a Ksh. 210,000 fraud matter involving media personality Betty Kyalo and her boyfriend Charles Bruce Johns, an American citizen was shocked when he was transferred after he became a marked man after a file involving RTGS fraud landed on his desk from a complainant.

The case started getting interference after Betty Kyalo befriended some senior DCI officers who have now influenced the transfer of the officer who was handling the case. The investigation was also stopped.



According to the complaint, going by the name James, a Kenyan resident working for a travel agency, requested an investigation into an alleged fraud involving media personality Betty Kyalo and her boyfriend.



On March 15, 2023, Kyalo and Johns approached Ndirangu's travel agency, seeking hotel and accommodation services in Diani Beach.

After agreeing to the terms and conditions, they checked into the hotel but failed to pay for the services after spending the night. Ndirangu's agent in Diani informed him that the clients were too intoxicated to complete the transaction.



Despite repeated requests for payment, Kyalo and Johns did not settle their bill.

On March 18, 2024, they informed Ndirangu that they had made an RTGS transaction, which he later discovered was fake and nonexistent within the system.

This fraudulent act prompted Ndirangu to report the incident to the authorities, seeking guidance and assistance after all attempts to resolve the issue failed.



The travel agency is yet to get back their money and the officer is also shocked with the transfer and halting of the investigation into the matter.

Via Cyprian Nyakundi.

The Kenyan DAILY POST.






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua proved to be the undisputed Mt. Kenya community kingpin, judging by his warm welcome in Meru County on Thursday.

Gachagua was among senior government officials who had accompanied President William Ruto to the launch of Mitunguu Technical Training Institute in Meru.

When President William Ruto gave Gachagua a chance to address the crowd, ululations and chants rented the air as residents welcomed the second-in-command.

The crowd chanted "Riggy G, Riggy G," making the President appear uncomfortable during the occasion.

President William Rutos allies in central Kenya have labeled Gachagua a tribalist for urging the Mt. Kenya region to unite.

However, given his warm reception, they may need to change their approach, as the second-in-command has become a prominent figure in the Mt. Kenya region.

Here is the video of how Gachagua was welcomed in Mitunguu, Meru County.

When you see a group of people in 1 area cheering a politician... Know that something happened behind the scenes.

Rigathi Gachagua is walking on Zakayo's footstepspic.twitter.com/mSaXDgVYFM  Jame (@Cjamehk) June 13, 2024

The Kenyan DAILY POST




Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Embakasi East Member of Parliament Babu Owino has blasted President William Ruto and his Deputy, Rigathi Gachagua, for playing a con game on Kenyans with their alleged fallout.

According to Babu Owino, the alleged rift between Ruto and Gachagua is a plot to win back the Mt Kenya region.

Speaking yesterday, the ODM legislator claimed that Ruto and Gachagua had lost favour among Kenyans, especially in the Mt Kenya region where they promised heaven but have failed spectacularly.

He termed the perceived rivalry as 'games and gimmicks' aimed at hoodwinking Kenyans, asserting that they would work again together ahead of the 2027 General Election.

President and his Deputy Gachagua are just playing games, there is no fight here.

"I want Kenyans to remember that these people are going to work together.

"They have lost favour in the eyes of Kenyans, especially in the Mt Kenya region. I want to tell Kikuyus, as Babu Owino, your son-in-law, be careful of these two musketeers, Owino warned.

"The war that is purportedly fought now is to rally you behind one person so that you are delivered later on back to the person who has the knife to chop off your heads, he added.

The President and his deputy seem to be at loggerheads with a section of leaders in Kenya Kwanza terming the latter a tribalist for pushing the Mt Kenya unity agenda.

The Deputy President further escalated his woes after announcing he is a believer in the one man, one vote, one shilling revenue-sharing formula that has created further division in the ruling coalition.

The Kenyan DAILY POST








Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Embakasi East Member of Parliament Babu Owino has dismissed the alleged fallout between President William Ruto and his deputy, Rigathi Gachagua, saying it is a planned political game to hoodwink the Mt Kenya region voters.

Addressing the press on Wednesday evening, Owino claimed that Ruto and Gachagua had lost favour among Kenyans, especially the Mt Kenya region, where they promised heaven but have failed spectacularly.

The Orange Democratic Movement legislator termed the perceived rivalry as 'games and gimmicks' aimed at fooling Kenyans, asserting that they would work again together ahead of the 2027 general election.

President and his deputy Gachagua are just playing games, there is no fight here.

"I want Kenyans to remember that these people are going to work together.

"They have lost favour in the eyes of Kenyans, especially in the Mt Kenya region.

"I want to tell Kikuyus, as Babu Owino, your son-in-law, be careful of these two musketeers, Owino warned.

Here is the video of what Babu Owino said.

"Ruto and Gachagua are playing games. There are no fights there" Babu Owino pic.twitter.com/EUbK5gj4c4  Akbas (@Ammar_Kassim8) June 12, 2024

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Police in Western Cape, South Africa have arrested two suspects in connection with the killing of three children and a man at a barbershop in Khayelitsha.

The gunmen travelling in a Toyota Quantum on Saturday, June 8, 2024, entered the barbershop and reportedly asked the people inside about someone who had a firearm before spraying bullets, killing the three children, Lunge Chomo, Enzokuhle Dladlu and Lichume Ngeni.

In addition to murder, the suspects aged 24 and 28, have also been linked to nine attempted murders.

Western Cape police spokesperson, Brigadier Novela Potelwa, confirmed the arrest in a statement on Wednesday, June 12.

Western Cape Serious Violent Crime detectives have been hard at work following a shooting incident that was perpetrated by gunmen at a barber shop on Saturday afternoon in Qwarha Street in Site C, Khayelitsha, said Potelwa.

Three children aged five, 11 and 12 as well as a 30-year-old man died from the shooting and seven others were seriously injured. Two other individuals were unharmed.

Potelwa said with the investigation unfolding, the possibility of more arrests and further charges being pursued cannot be ruled out.

Investigations into another multiple murder shooting incident that occurred in Nyanga on Sunday continue and no arrests have been affected yet.

At the time of the shooting Western Cape MEC of Police Oversight and Community Safety, Reagen Allen called on police to leave no stone unturned in the investigation

We need to ensure that they are swiftly arrested so that a conviction can follow. Life should never be this cheap. SAPS should employ every ounce of their intelligence. I urge anyone with information to make it available to all law enforcement agencies so that justice can be done.

Police said the suspects are expected to make their first appearance in the Khayelitsha Magistrate's Court on Friday, June 14.

Devastated grandmother, Sheila Dladlu said 4-year-old Enzokuhle was playing with her friends near the scene when she was shot.

We heard the gunshots and then when the suspects were done shooting, I went outside and saw Enzokuhle walk very slowly. I could tell she was injured.

"She fell on the ground and when she got up she was staggering and I could see the blood on her clothes.

Her mother went to pick her up and ran to catch a taxi and I noticed my neighbours child was also shot and we all went to the hospital.

The distraught woman believes Enzokuhle died in her arms.

I couldnt tell my daughter that I could see that she wasnt alive any more. The doctors tried to resuscitate her but that didnt help."

She had been shot in the right side of the chest and the bullet travelled and ruptured her kidney.

"While we had just heard the dreaded news from the doctors, we saw more people being admitted to the hospital from the same shooting.

A neighbour, Xoliswa Ngeni said Lichume Ngeniin was playing with her toddler when they went to the barbershop.

The shooters asked for the person who had a gun and no one answered and so they started shooting and my niece Lichume was shot in the leg, Ngeni said.

Police spokesperson Andre Traut said police were investigating the circumstances.

Two children, aged 11 and 12, and an adult aged 30 were killed on the scene while three children were admitted to hospital," he said.

The 4-year-old later succumbed to death due to her injuries.

The suspects fled the scene and are yet to be apprehended. The motive for the incident is yet to be determined."






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Two suspects aged 24 and 28 have been arrested over a barber shop in Khayelitsha, South Africa, that left three children and a 30-year-old man dead.

The gunmen opened fire on Qwarha Street in Site C before fleeing the scene on Saturday afternoon. The children killed in the incident were aged 12, 11 and five. Two other individuals were unharmed.

Police spokesperson Brig Novela Potelwa said the suspects are facing murder and attempted murder charges and will appear in the Khayelitsha magistrates court on Friday, June 14.

With the investigation unfolding, the possibility of more arrests and further charges being pursued cannot be ruled out.

She said Western Cape serious violent crime detectives are also investigating another multiple murder shooting incident that occurred in Nyanga on Sunday. No arrests have been made.






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - U.S. President Biden has issued a statement in response to his son Hunter Biden being convicted on three felony gun charges in federal court in Delaware.

The 12-person jury found Hunter Biden, 54, guilty of lying about his drug use on a form while purchasing a handgun in 2018. He faces possible jail time following the verdict, which marked the first criminal prosecution of a sitting presidents child.

His conviction on all three felony counts comes as President Biden campaigns for re-election in November, and less than two weeks after his election rival Donald Trump was himself convicted of a crime in New York.

On Tuesday, President Biden flew to Wilmington, Delaware, where he addressed his son's conviction, saying he would accept the outcome of the case and loves his son.

"As I said last week, I am the president, but I am also a dad," the president said in his statement. "Jill and I love our son, and we are so proud of the man he is today. So many families who have had loved ones battle addiction understand the feeling of pride seeing someone you love come out the other side and be so strong and resilient in recovery. As I also said last week, I will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal. Jill and I will always be there for Hunter and the rest of our family with our love and support. Nothing will ever change that."

Hunter Biden issued his own statement after the verdict, expressing gratitude toward his family and in particular toward his wife, Melissa Cohen Biden.

"I am more grateful today for the love and support I experienced this last week from Melissa, my family, my friends, and my community than I am disappointed by the outcome," Hunter Biden said. "Recovery is possible by the grace of God, and I am blessed to experience that gift one day at a time."

Hunter Biden's lawyer, Abbe Lowell, said they are "naturally disappointed" by the verdict but respect the process and will "vigorously pursue all the legal challenges available."




Thursday, June 13, 2024  As the debate rages over the move by the government to stop the school feeding programme after Treasury slashed its budget, President William Ruto now plans to introduce another tax to support the programme.

This was revealed by Education Principal Secretary Belio Kipsang, who intimated government plans to introduce a new levy on some imported junk food items to fund the school feeding programme.

Appearing before the National Assembly Departmental Committee on Education, Kipsang revealed that the Ministry was in talks with the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) over the possibility of imposing a levy on imported junk foods.

He detailed that the plan was to ringfence the levy to ensure that all the money collected goes to the feeding programme.

The PS explained that the adoption of the levy was one of the strategies aimed at funding the programme that was undergoing financial constraints.

However, more details such as the levy rate and the possible start date of the levy were not revealed.

Some of the notable junk foods that are consumed by Kenyans include cakes, biscuits, chocolate and sweets, processed meat such as bacon and sugary drinks among others.

Notably, the school feeding programme is one of the areas that witnessed budget cuts in the upcoming budget.

In the 2024/2025 programme, Ksh3 billion has been allocated to the programme in comparison with Ksh5.4 billion in the current budget.

Therefore, with a plan to increase the funding through the levy, many students are expected to benefit.

The Kenyan DAILY POST








Thursday, June 13, 2024 - Interior Cabinet Secretary Kithure Kindiki has raised concern over the misconduct of Kenya Kwanza leaders at presidential events.

Speaking in Tharaka Nithi County yesterday, Kindiki detailed that he had noted a trend where some politicians were hiring hecklers to attend President William Ruto's events.

He stated that politicians would often direct the hecklers to jeer some speakers and cause embarrassment to the presidency.

Therefore, the CS warned that security agencies would be on high alert, promising to deal with the indiscipline firmly as was done during the anti-government protests last year that was being led by former Prime Minister Raila Odinga.

"I have noticed that some leaders who belong to the president's political faction have now become undisciplined.

"We have seen during the President's visit, that people are bringing chaos and embarrassment. Let us have order and respect.

"When you bring people in a bus to heckle others, you are becoming a clown. You are not embarrassing the President, because, it looks bad on you," he stated.

Alternatively, he advised the leaders to unite and speak in a common voice and articulate the issues that were affecting their people.

The Kenyan DAILY POST






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - A white woman identified as Lilly Gaddis has been fired from her job after using the N-word in a rant.

Sharing a video of her cooking, she said "Everyone I know that is married right now is married to broke-ass n*****." She also made derogatory remarks about "dumb whores" and "immigrants fresh off the boat looking for a green card."

The context is that she was pushing back on the notion that women are gold diggers. She offered examples of why that isn't the case, including racial slur.

Following the backlash that trailed the post, she wrote "The backlash made me do a deep dive and soul search, and after all that, I still couldn't find a care."





Her remarks caught the attention of her employer, Rophe of the Carolinas, a home healthcare company in Wilmington, North Carolina. They revealed that they've fired her from her marketing and sales manager position.

They noted that they are owned and operated by a Black female and an immigrant-owned business, so they categorically don't support or condone her behavior.

Lilly also confirmed she's been sacked, writing "Oh no, I just got fired! #mob." She also bemoaned folks being offended by her language and went on to decry what she seems to view as an infringement on her First Amendment right.




Thursday, June 13, 2024 - The Milimani Law Courts have granted the Prosecution five days to detain activist Nuru Maloba Okang'a.

He will be detained at the Muthaiga police station to allow the Directorate of Criminal Investigations (DCI) to complete investigations into allegations of Publication of false information, contrary to Section 23 of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act No.5 of 2018.

The vocal activist is also under investigation for Cyber harassment contrary to Section 27 of the Computer Misuse and Cybercrimes Act, among other offenses. The suspect was arrested on June 11, 2024, at his home in Kayole estate, a Nairobi suburb, and taken to the DCI headquarters for interrogations before his arraignment.

The Investigating officer informed the court that initial investigations had revealed suspicious accounts allegedly managed by the suspect, which posted malicious and false information about the Republic of Kenya and its leadership, advocating for public disturbance.

Prosecution Counsel Virginia Kariuki told the court that police are investigating the continued dissemination of detrimental comments posted online by a number of social media platforms including TikTok and YouTube, alongside some websites linked to the suspect, which are considered a threat and may contribute to disturbances affecting peace, order, and public safety.

Police have identified the suspect as a serial offender in relation to this investigation.

The case will be mentioned on June 18, 2024.

This comes even as Nuru Okangas son battles a life-threatening kidney disease.

He had been fundraising for his sons medical bills before he was arrested.





The Kenyan DAILY POST.






Thursday, June 13, 2024 - The United States has condemned Hamas for refusing a UN-backed cease-fire proposal, saying the terror group could have halted the war in Gaza with a single word.

Speaking from Qatar on Wednesday, June 12, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that the current proposal is nearly identical to the one Hamas itself proposed last month, accusing the terrorists of prolonging the war just to insert more demands that undermine the ongoing peace talks.

It was a deal that Israel accepted and the world was behind. Hamas could have answered with a single word: Yes,' Blinken told reporters in Doha.

While he did not go into the specific demands that Hamas is making, the secretary of state described some of the requests as workable, while others were clearly nonstarters.

At some point in a negotiation, and this has gone back and forth for a long time, you get to a point where if one side continues to change its demands, including making demands and insisting on changes for things that it had already accepted, you have to question whether theyre proceeding in good faith or not, Blinken said of Hamas.

Its time for the haggling to stop and a cease-fire to start. Its as simple as that, he added.

The proposal, which was approved by the UN Security Council on Monday, calls for a temporary cease-fire in Gaza to allow the some 120 hostages in Hamas captivity to be released in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.

Along with the hostage exchange, the deal calls on Israel to withdraw from Gazas main population centers and to allow more aid to arrive for Palestinians.

The deal would also allow Palestinians to return to all areas of the Gaza Strip that had been evacuated since the Israeli military began its ground incursion.

Blinken also appeared frustrated that it took so long for Hamas to announce its response after President Biden announced the deal to the world.

They waited almost two weeks and then proposed more changes, a number of which go beyond positions it has previously presented and agreed to, Blinken vented.

As a result, the war will go on and more people will suffer.
By Winfred Watenya

Parliament has promised to stand by the three legislators arrested over allegations of corruption until they are pronounced guilty.

While officiating at the handover of the leadership of the Uganda Parliamentary Forum on Youth Affairs at parliament earlier today, the Deputy Speaker of Parliament Thomas Tayebwa quickly added though, that this should not be misinterpreted as condoning corruption.

He also asked the legislators not to shun the budget presentation session for fear of being arrested, amid reports that police continues to investigate alleged gross corruption among MPs.

According to Daily Monitor, several Members of Parliament(MPs) had reportedly planned to skip todays budget reading, following confirmation of the attendance of dozens of security and intelligence chiefs, including AIG Tom Magambo, the police director of Criminal Investigations who is leading the ongoing inquiries.

Three of them who were arrested on Monday this week, were yesterday arraigned before the Anti-Corruption Court, charged with corruption but denied the charges and were remanded o Luzira Prison till June 14th.

They are; Yusuf Mutembuli for Bunyole East, Paul Akamba (Busiki) South and Cissy Namujju, (Lwengo District), all form the ruling NRM party.

Two are former members of the powerful Budget Committee which undertakes preliminary scrutiny of national revenue and expenditure estimates before a final appropriation by parliament.
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An army captain has appealed his conviction for sexually assaulting a female soldier at a military barracks four years ago.

His argument for appeal was that missing CCTV footage meant he was robbed of a possible line of defence.

The State has argued that CCTV footage could not add anything to the established facts and that the area of contention is vanishingly tiny.

Captain Ross OShea was found guilty by a General Court Martial in October 2022 of sexually assaulting a female non-commissioned officer (NCO) following a barbeque during the Covid-19 lockdown at a barracks in Leinster on June 25, 2020.

OShea had been brought to the Officers Mess by two female NCOs after he had been found asleep and in a 'state of inebriation' sitting in a chair outside a gymnasium where the barbeque had earlier been held.

OShea was convicted on October 14, 2022 of sexually assaulting the woman by moving his open palms up and down her back saying come on, come on or words to that effect at the Officers Mess.

He was also found guilty of one charge of assault against the same officer. His dismissal was ordered as part of the sentence imposed on these two charges.

OShea remains, pending appeal, a serving member of the army.

At the Court of Appeal, counsel argued that missing CCTV footage which may have captured the incident meant his client was robbed of the opportunity of a particular line of defence.

OShea was charged and tried before the Court Martial with a total of 18 offences. He pleaded guilty to five charges, including charges of conduct contrary to good order and two charges of assault against the two female NCO officers.

Counsel argued the case by saying that there was evidence of a camera which potentially recorded what happened but that this footage no longer existed by the time his client came to court.

Counsel said there were discrepancies in some of the prosecution evidence, including whether the complainant and OShea went into the officers mess together or whether she proceeded ahead and whether the door to the area where the offences occurred was open or closed at the time.

He said the footage was never sought out and preserved and that the lost evidence denied Captain OShea a potentially useful line of defence.

Counsel submitted that as a consequence of the issues surrounding the CCTV, the appellant was subjected to an unfair trial.

Remy Farrell SC, for the Director of Military Prosecutions (DMP), said it was accepted as a matter of fact that the appellant had a physical interaction with the complainant where he essentially hugged her.

What conceivably could CCTV add to that? he said, adding that the area of contention was vanishingly tiny.

He said the issue of whether the complainant went in with Captain OShea or whether she proceeded ahead was an extremely minor detail and one that does not affect the events that occurred thereafter.

He said Captain OShea accepted that he had his arms around the complainant so even if by some extraordinary circumstance a CCTV with a zoom lens was trained on the situation, what was relevant was what happened behind her.

Ms Justice Isobel Kennedy said the court would reserve judgement in the matter.
Those responsible for the abhorrent treatment of horses, which was revealed in a TV documentary, will face the full rigours of the law, the agriculture minister has said.

Charlie McConalogue said the scenes of the mistreatment of horses were abhorrent and distressing.

Serious animal welfare abuses were uncovered in an RTE Investigates documentary which aired on Wednesday night.

HRI Statement on RTE Investigates documentary. Read More Here: https://t.co/sFCP8tExUx pic.twitter.com/DijuWLl7IN  Horse Racing Ireland (@HRIRacing) June 12, 2024

It revealed the mistreatment of horses that are being bred for slaughter at the countrys only equine abattoir, which produces horse meat food for export.

Horse Racing Ireland said it will actively support the Department of Agriculture and Garda investigations, and urged anyone with information about mistreatment of horses to report it to gardai.

The welfare abuse was filmed in a building used by Shannonside Foods Ltd in Straffan, Co Kildare.

Mr McConalogue said an investigation has been launched into the incidents alongside the gardai.

The scenes we saw last night and the treatment of those horses was abhorrent and distressing. Horses are beautiful, sensitive animals and that was absolutely unacceptable, Mr McConalogue said.

Its certainly not representative of the way that people across this country and those in the industry treat and care for their horses. We already have commenced an investigation in the Department of Agriculture.

Weve also requested all of the footage that RTE has, and any other evidence as well to make it available to the investigation team.

Obviously, I would avoid saying anything that might be prejudicial to the conduct of that investigation. But I can assure you and I can assure the public that this will be fully investigated, and that the full rigour of the law will be applied here.

The law is adequate but what we saw last night was not lawful, and it was breaches of the law.

The Fianna Fail minister said there are strict laws in place around the management of what enters the human food chain.

He said that no stone will be left unturned in the investigation.

He said that the traceability of horses has been significantly improved over the last 10 years.

The system in place at European level is an evolving process and weve done a lot here in Ireland over the last 10 years, he added.

Asked whether he can ensure that no horses are being beaten today, the minister said: You can never be sure that somebody is not mistreating in any avenue of life, but what we have in place is very strict laws and very strict penalties in relation to that.

What Im also very sure of is right across our equine industry, that people and everyone involved in that industry are massively respectful and provide tremendous care to the horses  but you can have incidents where people mistreat and break that law.

Certainly the incidents we saw last night speak to that and the full rigours of the law now will be brought to bear in relation to the evidence that has been brought to this.
The extent of damage caused to historic mummies after a crypt at St Michans Church in Dublin was set on fire has been revealed in a series of photographs.

The blaze happened on Tuesday afternoon after the crypt in Church Street was broken into and vandalised.

A fire was lit in the crypt which houses a number of mummified remains, including those of the 800-year-old Crusader.

Photographs released by the Church of Ireland show how the fire burned through the mummified remains.

A man arrested for criminal damage in relation to the incident has since appeared in court in Dublin this week.

Archbishop Michael Jackson, who visited St Michans Church earlier this week, said: I am devastated to say that vandalism has once again struck in the crypt of St Michans, Church Street.

The fire brigade was called and members dealt with the fire.

However, significant damage has been done to the mummies. These historic remains are woven into the history of the city of Dublin and emblazoned in the imaginations of visitors and tourists from home and abroad.

We do not yet know what the future is for the mummies as the Archdeacon of Dublin and I fear that they have been destroyed.

These mummies are a national treasure and I am shocked at the sacrilege of the destruction of the remains of people who once lived.

Archdeacon David Pierpoint, the vicar of St Michans, added: Our security system is very tight and thankfully we have CCTV in operation.

The footage has been handed to the gardai and the investigation is in their hands. We are very grateful to the gardai and fire brigade for their efforts and support in putting out the fire.

The crypt is a crime scene but I have just been given access to see the damage. The mummies are sitting in a foot of water.

They need a very specific atmosphere and I fear that at least two of the remains, including The Crusader, have been destroyed. I will contact the National Museum to see if anything can be saved.

St Michans Church is one the oldest churches on the north side of the River Liffey and is located in the heart of historic Oxmantown. Its crypt is home to a number of mummified remains.

In February 2019 the crypt was broken into and the head of the 800-year-old Crusader mummy was stolen but was later recovered.

Apart from The Crusader, the crypt is home to the mummified remains of The Thief and a man who is reputed to have been buried alive along with other remains whose origins are unknown.

The 400-year-old remains of a nun are also housed in the crypt.
Fianna Fails Billy Kelleher has been re-elected as an MEP, becoming Irelands sixth confirmed European parliamentarian.

The Cork man celebrated with his staff at Nemo Rangers GAA Club in Cork.

It is emotional to be adjudicated by your peers and to be found to be in good stead with them is a huge honour, he said, thanking his wife, children and colleagues.

Today really is a crowning achievement, to be vindicated for the last five years as their representative in Europe.

His election was subsequently followed by the elimination of Green Party candidate Grace OSullivan, who became the fourth MEP to lose their seat nationwide.

Meanwhile, Tanaiste and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin said theres a real prospect of Mr Kellehers running mate Cynthia Ni Mhurchu taking a second seat.

Suffice to say that the Fianna Fail campaign was around the idea that we need to send serious, committed, pro-European Union candidates, be critical yes, but pro the union (to the European Parliament).

A battle continues for the final three seats after five days of counting votes in the 10-county constituency of Ireland South.

Independent Clare TD Michael McNamara is expected to take a seat after several rounds of receiving a good chunk of transfers, he received 20% of anti-immigration candidate Derek Blighes total votes.

Sinn Fein TD Kathleen Funchion was propelled into prime position to take a seat after the elimination of her running mate Paul Gavan, where she won 61% of his vote.

Ms Funchions place was further solidified after a surprising 4,000 votes from the Social Democrats Susan Doyle, and 11% of Mr Blighes transfer votes.

In the hunt behind Ms Funchion are Fianna Fails Ms Ni Mhurchu and outgoing independent MEP Mick Wallace, whose fates are set to be decided by redistribution of Ms OSullivans votes.

With a swansong message, the Green representative said it was not just the partys responsibility to push climate change policies to the fore, but also that of their coalition parties, Fine Gael and Fianna Fail.

Ms OSullivan, a former Greenpeace activist, said she had not been as extraordinarily transfer friendly in this vote as she had been in the 2019 European election, and said it feels that momentum has gone from the Green Party.

People have other things on their minds, and that concerns me because as an ecological party and as an ecologist myself, climate change has not gone away by any doubt.

She also said that her own stance on an EU exception given to Irish farmers allowing them to use organic nitrates had impacted her level of transfer-friendliness.

She added: Maybe in this case, with the rise of the independents, that also there was a bit of a backlash to some of the maybe inconvenient truths that I was putting out.

She said she would not announce whether she would run for the Dail, and instead would focus on closing her office on Washington Street and organising letters of reference for her staff members.
Chris MacManus has become the third MEP to lose his seat in the European elections, as Sinn Fein hopes Michelle Gildernew can reclaim the spot in Midlands-North-West.

It comes after days of counting resumed at 9am on Thursday at the TF Royal Theatre in Castlebar, Co Mayo.

The pack leader is left-wing independent Luke Ming Flanagan, who is almost certain to reach the quota and be re-elected.

He quickly emerged as the front runner in the field of 27 candidates, and after 18 counts, remained ahead of the next three candidates who are in a tight grouping.

They are former jockey Nina Carberry and incumbent MEP Maria Walsh, both Fine Gael candidates, as as well as Fianna Fail TD Barry Cowen.

The redistribution of Mr MacManus votes put Ms Gildernew ahead of Independent Ireland and former RTE correspondent Ciaran Mullooly for the fifth seat in the constituency.

She received 20,000 votes, almost 60% of his transfers, in the process, more than closing the significant cap that had existed between the two candidates.

The party had seen similar levels of transfers between its candidates in the other European constituencies.

The 18th count also saw the elimination of Aontu leader Peadar Toibin.

Earlier in the counting, Ms Gildernew almost ruled herself out of the race after saying she was not overly optimistic about catching Mr Mullooly.

But Sinn Fein later insisted it still had a fighting chance for that final spot.

Unpredictable transfers, which political commentators said were not following traditional patterns, are adding to the drama of who would claim the final seats.

Speaking following his elimination, Mr MacManus said: I left nothing on the pitch.

Me and my team worked as hard as we could over the last number of weeks during the actual campaign.

He said he was hopeful the significant transfers would keep Ms Gildernew in the mix for the final seat.

Asked if he would consider running in a general election, Mr MacManus said: I dont think its the last time youll see my MacManus name on a ballot paper.

Green representative Ciaran Cuffe and independent Clare Daly were the first two MEPs to lose their seats, both in Dublin.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to assist a Kilkenny man who is receiving medical treatment after a life changing accident.

Kevin Phelan suffered life changing injuries on Wednesday, December 20 in 2023 when unloading lime from a tanker as part of his normal everyday duties.

Kevin suffered extensive trauma to his eyes resulting in lose of sight in both eyes and has subsequently in the Royal Victoria Eye and Ear Hospital in Dublin, where he spent a full month receiving treatment.

The local man lives in Gowran and is a devoted husband and father to his wife Martina and sons Charley and Sam.

His latest prognosis is recovery of his sight which is not guaranteed and he will have to continue his recuperation and recovery at home for quite some time yet.

To help with the huge cost that Kevin and his family will endure a decision was was made to set up a GoFundMe to help cover their unexpected expenses and relieve some of the financial strain on him and his family as Kevin is unable to work.

To help with the huge cost that Kevin and his family will endure, a decision was made to set up a GoFundMe to help cover their unexpected expenses and relieve some of the financial strain on him and his family as Kevin is unable to work.
'The first performance was scary, I wanted to run away,' says Jeon

By KTimes

In Anton Chekhovs original play, "The Cherry Orchard," written during the twilight of Imperial Russia, the character Lyuba Ranevskaya, a landowner struggling to cope with the changing social landscape, is preoccupied with love and her own personal concerns.

In the 2024 Seoul adaptation of "The Cherry Orchard," Song Do-yeong (played by Jeon Do-yeon), a member of a South Korean chaebol family, is on the brink of bankruptcy yet continues to host lavish parties. Despite her flaws, Song is portrayed as a character with a pure and endearing soul.

Australian director Simon Stone has reinterpreted Chekhovs play for this production, with Jeon performing as a "bad mother" who burdens her daughters with her own lifes pain, yet remains undeniably charming.

In an interview at the LG Arts Center in Seoul on Tuesday, Jeon shared her reflections on the role: After so many years as an actress, I wondered what new energy I could find, but the stage offers a unique stimulus and energy that I am learning to enjoy.

Having completed ten performances including previews, she said, On the first night, I wanted to die, to run away. I still cant make eye contact with the audience, but this tension and anxiety isnt entirely unpleasant.

Jeons last stage appearance was 27 years ago, so distant that she barely remembers it. Her decision to take on "The Cherry Orchard" came from a desire to broaden her horizons beyond TV and film, prompted by the thought that the success of K-content should not be confined to those mediums.

In the process of seeking balance and stability within uncertainty, new things emerge and growth happens," she said. "Rather than striving for perfection on stage every night, I approach it with the mindset of embracing mistakes and learning from them.

Character kisses her daughters boyfriend



Jeon typically chooses her projects based on the story, but she made a bold choice with "The Cherry Orchard" based on the director.

Stone, known for his brilliant modern reinterpretations of classics and as the director of the film, "The Dig" (2021), captured her interest. After watching the performance video of his previous work, 'Medea,' I was electrified, Jeon said.

However, Stone's method of working with sides (incomplete scripts) was challenging initially. When rehearsals started on April 1 this year, only 15 pages of the script were available.

Jeon recounted, I cursed a lot internally and even threatened to quit since I hadnt signed a formal contract. But as the script took shape, I grew to trust his directing style. Now, if Simon asked me to work on another project, I would be inclined to say yes.

Balancing her role as a mother of a high school freshman, Jeon found Song Do-yeong difficult to understand from the script alone.

In the play, Song forms a tense relationship with her adopted daughter Kang Hyun-sooks boyfriend, Hwang Doo-sik, and even kisses her younger daughter Kang Hae-nas boyfriend, Byun Dong-lim.

Its a character thats hard to accept, she said, but Simon reassured me, saying Youre fine no matter what you do, which eased my worries.

Jeons recent role in the romantic comedy-drama "Crash Course in Romance" made her reflect on aging, something she hadnt considered much before.

Born in 1973, she was taken aback by reactions questioning how she could do a romantic comedy at her age.

The shock of How can she do a rom-com at that age? was significant, she said. But if a director needs me regardless of age, I should go with the flow without imposing limits on myself.

Jeon hopes that her choices convey the message that her involvement signals a quality production.

With "The Cherry Orchard," she hopes to break boundaries once more. People often say that Jeon Do-yeon acts exceptionally well, which is true (laughs). But more than that, I want 'The Cherry Orchard' to be remembered as a great, much-loved work, she said.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, sister publication of The Korea times, is translated by generative AI and edited by staff of The Korea Times.
Additional time required to establish computerized system to prevent naked short selling

By Yi Whan-woo, Anna J. Park

Korea's financial authorities have decided to extend the implementation of a short selling ban, originally scheduled to end by the end of this month, until March 30, 2025.

The Financial Services Commission (FSC), the country's top financial regulator, announced Thursday afternoon that the additional extension was necessary to set up a central computerized system that can monitor and prevent naked short selling practices.

"The FSC has determined to extend the short selling ban until March 30 next year in order to resolve market concerns over hindrances of fair price formation by establishing a short selling computer system," FSC Vice Chairman Kim So-young said during a press briefing on Thursday.

Explaining the reasons behind the decision, Kim said, "If short selling practices were to resume (as scheduled by the end of this month) without completing the short selling computer system, there is a high risk of large-scale illegal short selling recurring."

The financial authorities aims to complete the establishment of the computerized short selling monitoring system by the end of next March.

Later this year, the FSC plans to provide guidelines to facilitate institutional investors in preemptively blocking naked short selling through internal balance management systems.

Additionally, the Korea Exchange (KRX), the state-run bourse operator, plans to establish a "Naked Short-Selling Detecting System" (NSDS) by the end of March next year to cross-check and verify institutional investors' balances and off-exchange trading information.

Earlier in the day, the government and the ruling People Power Party (PPP) agreed to completely lift the ban on short selling in March next year.

The PPP said its floor leader Rep. Choo Kyung-ho talked with the heads of the FSC, the Financial Supervisory Service (FSS) and the KRX to share thoughts on rules for short selling during their joint meeting at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, Thursday morning.

The meeting focused on possible measures to make improvements concerning short selling, and the attendants accordingly discussed the appropriate time to resume such trading, PPP chief policymaker Rep. Jeong Jeom-sig said.

A risk-hedging strategy using borrowed stocks, short selling was banned in November 2023 by the FSC to protect retail investors and crack down on global investment banks' illegal market practices, such as price manipulation.

The ban on short selling was originally to last for eight months and therefore was set to expire this month. But it was extended until next March to gain sufficient time to make up for any shortcomings and fully prepare for fair trading, according to the FSC and the PPP.
Plausible deniability no longer excuse for bank CEOs over employee misconduct

By Lee Kyung-min

Expectations are high that strengthened accountability of financial firm CEOs and executives will help eradicate embezzlement at banks, as enforced by the revised law on "accountability charts" whereby the major roles and responsibilities of managerial figures are defined, market watchers said Thursday.

Included in the chart will be specific, detailed definitions and assignments of duties, risks and penalties as well as heightened awareness.

Experts say discussions should continue to iron out potential conflicts of interest among the top decision-makers and share information to bolster efficiency.

The revision will take effect next month. The country's major financial holding firms and their bank subsidiaries will be required to submit the charts by January next year. Financial entities with smaller capital profiles will do so in stages over the next two years.

"It will be all about specificity and clarity," said Oh Tae-rog, a researcher at the Korea Institute of Finance.

A firm's CEOs and top executives remain largely unaccounted for over a series of employee misconduct cases, a longstanding problem in his view.

Embezzlement to the tune of tens of billions of won are uncovered every so often, and the news headlines repeatedly point to internal control failures.

But clearly lacking is punitive measures strong enough to prevent moral hazard, he said.

"History repeats itself as long as the figures involved are left unpunished. The success of the chart will hinge on how high the stakes will become and whether it is binding."

The prospect of a potential stint in prison will, he added, inevitably lead to tightened monitoring of irregularities and compliance standards.

"Making claims of not knowing will not be good enough of an excuse to evade dismissal or demotion," he said. "They will have to prove what prevention efforts they made."

The revision was prompted by a series of irresponsible practices rampant in the financial industry.

In 2019, investor losses tied to mis-sold derivative-linked fund products fueled criticism over poor investor protection, followed by Lime-Optimus funds redemption failures the following year.

The years of fiascos were compounded by reports of embezzlements at leading local commercial lenders.

A Woori Bank employee is under internal audit over embezzlement of 10 billion won ($7.2 million), only about two years after a similar offence involving 71.2 billion won made headlines in April 2022.

They falsified loan documents and deposit statements and used some of the funds for cryptocurrency investments.

NH Nonghyup Bank reported a case of 10 billion won in breach of trust in March, followed by 6.4 billion won in unauthorized loan approvals two months later.

KB Kookmin Bank had an 11.1 billion won breach of trust case in April.
By Pyo Kyung-min

TOKYO  In Tokyo's lively Shibuya District, the tempting aroma of hot fried chicken patties from the newly opened Mom's Touch has been drawing crowds since its launch on April 16.

On the evening of May 27, well before the usual dinner rush, Shibuya's Mom's Touch was already bustling with customers  mostly Japanese locals along with some foreign tourists  all eager to get their hands on its signature Thigh Burger and Sweet and Spicy Chicken.

Mom's Touch, a Korean fast-food giant founded in 2004, has recently expanded its reach to Japan in April. Setting up its first flagship store in a bright yellow building at the start of Shibuya's main thoroughfare, it sees a steady stream of visitors even on weekdays.

According to the cashier on duty at the Shibuya branch, its signature menu items have proven to be a hit and are selling exceptionally well.

According to reports from the restaurant industry on June 3, the Shibuya Mom's Touch had served 100,000 customers and achieved 100 million yen ($635,715) in sales as of the end of May, just over 40 days since its opening.

This outstanding performance outstrips major Japanese fast-food franchises, with sales at the Mom's Touch Shibuya restaurant tripling those of McDonald's Japan and being 5.4 times higher than KFC Japan on an average per-store basis.

The penetration of Korean food brands into Japanese daily life extends beyond Mom's Touch.

Hollys, a Korean cafe franchise, opened its flagship store in the heart of Namba, Osaka, May 1, attracting significant foot traffic since its launch.

Within two weeks of opening, the Hollys Namba Marui branch welcomed over 10,000 customers, with continuous reviews on social media platforms and coverage by Japanese media indicating strong interest.

Lee Jong-hyun, CEO of Hollys, expressed optimism about the venture into Japan in a statement. "Thanks to the fourth wave of hallyu, Hollys achieved successful results in its first overseas venture in Japan," he said. "We are planning to establish Hollys as the representative brand of Korean premium cafes in Japan and secure competitiveness in the Japanese and global markets."

Such remarkable successes highlight the strong influence of Korean culture in Japan, fueled by the enduring appeal of hallyu, or the Korean wave.

Traditionally, the Japanese market has favored domestic brands, making it challenging for foreign brands to establish themselves, but the recent resurgence of hallyu has significantly altered the business landscape.

The growing popularity of Korean culture among Japan's Generation Z  who enthusiastically embrace various aspects of the Korean lifestyle from fashion to food, has significantly shifted consumer preferences and opened new opportunities for Korean businesses in Japan.

According to a survey conducted by the East Asia Institute (EAI) on the mutual perceptions among citizens of Korea and Japan in October 2023, the results revealed that 37.4 percent of Japanese respondents, up by 7 percentage points from 2022's figure of 30.4 percent, expressed either a good or generally good impression of Korea.

Highlighting the firm's awareness of the hallyu trend in Japan, Mom's Touch CEO Kim Dong-jeon expressed confidence in the brand's growth in Japan in a recent interview with The Korea Times.

"Hallyu is sweeping through Japan right now ... The Japanese Generation Z has propelled Korean fashion, cartoons, interior design and other products into going viral, particularly Korean food," Kim said.

"We've already dominated the Korean QSR (quick service restaurant) market ... and we want to revive that on a global stage, making our brand more prominent in the global QSR market."
The number of foreigners visiting Korea rebounded to nearly 89 percent of pre-pandemic levels in the first four months of this year, with arrivals from certain countries, including the United States and Taiwan, surpassing those levels, the state-run tourism promotion agency said Thursday.

Korea welcomed 4.866 million international tourists from January to April, marking an 86.9 percent increase from the same period a year ago and recovering to 88.8 percent of pre-COVID-19 levels, according to the Korea Tourism Organization.

Notably, Taiwan and the U.S. have exceeded their pre-pandemic tourist numbers by 7.5 percent and 19.5 percent, respectively. Tourists from Indonesia and Singapore also reached 110.4 percent and 157.4 percent of pre-pandemic levels.

The rebound in tourist arrivals from China and Japan, the top two countries in Korea's inbound tourism rankings, is still relatively slow, having recovered to only 78.1 percent and 82.5 percent of pre-pandemic numbers, respectively.

However, these numbers are expected to rise with an expansion in international flight routes and a scheduled increase in flights in the second half of the year.

The annual number of arrivals had sharply declined from 17.5 million in 2019 to 2.52 million in 2020 and further to 970,000 in 2021 amid the COVID-19 pandemic. However, as Korea began to lift most of its COVID-19 restrictions in 2022, arrivals started to rebound, reaching 3.2 million that year and surpassing 10 million in 2023.

The Seoul government has set an ambitious target of attracting 20 million foreign tourists this year as the global popularity of Korean pop culture continues to drive interest in tourism to Korea.

The tourism industry expects the goal could be attained if the current rebound trend picks up speed, although it is acknowledged as a challenging target. (Yonhap)
By Lee Hae-rin

Korea has received more inbound tourists from the United States, Taiwan, Indonesia and Singapore during the first four months of 2024, compared to the pre-pandemic record-high from 2019, Korea Tourism Organization (KTO) data showed Thursday.

Korea saw some 4.6 million inbound tourists between January and April this year, according to the KTO.

The figure is an 86.9 percent recovery from the same period last year and an 88.8 percent recovery from pre-pandemic levels in 2019.

Taiwan, the third-most-visiting country to Korea, sent some 423,477 visitors here as of the end of April this year. The figure is 7.5 percent more than the same period in 2019 before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The U.S., the fourth-most-visiting country, received 367,700 visitors between January and April this year, 19.5 percent more than the 2019 pre-pandemic record high of 307,268 during the same period.

Also, Indonesia and Singapore sent 68,795 and 100,648 visitors each, which are both some 10 percent more than the figures from the year before and showed a complete recovery from the pandemic.

Meanwhile, the numbers of visitors from neighboring China and Japan have yet to fully recover and stand at 78.1 percent and 82.5 percent, respectively, of their record highs from 2019.

However, the figures are recovering rapidly. Korea received some 1.42 million visitors from China and over 895,000 tourists from Japan, which are 470.1 percent and 85.7 percent jumps compared to the year before.

The recovery of visitor numbers from the two countries is expected to continue and soon surpass the pre-pandemic record highs once more international travel routes become available during the summer holiday season and later in the second half of the year.

In March, the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport announced the summertime air travel schedules set between March 31 and Oct. 26. According to the plan, a total of 4,528 round trips per week will become available on 231 international routes.

That is a 98 percent recovery from the pre-pandemic average of 4,619 round trips per week from 2019. It is also 520 more trips than last years summertime schedule and 228 more than the previous wintertime schedule.

The visa-free southernmost resort island of Jeju has already seen the number of visitors surpass pre-pandemic levels.

During the first four months of this year, over 382,000 foreign nationals entered Jeju Island via air and sea travel. The figure is a 405.6 percent jump from the same period last year and 6.7 percent more than 2019s figure.

In celebration of the Visit Korea Year 2023-2024 and leveraging the growing popularity of Korean culture and content worldwide, the Korean government aims to attract 20 million foreign visitors annually. The goal is greater than the pre-pandemic record high from 2019, which was 17.5 million.
Russian President Vladamir Putin is expected to visit North Korea "in a few days," a South Korean presidential official said Thursday.

The official confirmed Putin's plan to visit Pyongyang in a meeting with reporters in Astana while President Yoon Suk Yeol was in Kazakhstan on a state visit as part of his Central Asia trip that also includes Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

"Strategic dialogue on diplomacy and security between South Korea and China are scheduled around the similar time of Putin's visit to North Korea," the official spoke on the condition of anonymity.

"Taking all these into consideration, we will make sure that our major allies and strategic partners will align with South Korea on issues regarding North Korea," the official added.

Putin is expected visit to North Korea as early as this month, the Russian daily Vedomosti reported earlier this week. If realized, it would be Putin's first trip to Pyongyang in 24 years.

The Kremlin earlier said Putin had accepted Kim's invitation to visit North Korea during last year's summit.

North Korea and Russia have been bolstering military ties and expanding the scope of cooperation in various fields since the Kim-Putin summit.

South Korea and China have been preparing to hold "two plus two" talks with their senior foreign and defense officials in Seoul early next week, according to diplomatic sources. (Yonhap)
Life for North Koreans is a "daily struggle devoid of hope," the United Nations human rights chief told a Security Council meeting on Wednesday that Russia and China unsuccessfully tried to block.

The 15-member council last met on the issue in August 2023, which was its first public discussion since 2017.

The U.N. Security Council is charged with maintaining international peace and security. China and Russia argue that the Geneva-based U.N. Human Rights Council is the appropriate venue for discussions on human rights.

"It is not possible to divorce the state of human rights in the DPRK from considerations around peace and security in the peninsula, including increasing militarization on the part of the DPRK," U.N. human rights chief Volker Turk told the council.

North Korea, formally known as the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), has repeatedly rejected accusations of abuses and blames sanctions for its dire humanitarian situation.

It has been under U.N. sanctions over its ballistic missile and nuclear programs since 2006, but there are aid exemptions. Russia's U.N. Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia again called on Wednesday for a review of sanctions.

Kim Gum-hyok  who grew up in an elite North Korean family  was visibly emotional as he described learning from the internet about rights abuses in his country while at university in Beijing. He had wanted to become a North Korean diplomat.

"The country that supposedly had nothing to envy in the world was nowhere to be seen. In its place were political prison camps with death from starvation, public executions and people risking their lives to escape," he told the Security Council.

"I realized the Kim family that I had to wanted to serve were not my heroes, but dictators denying ... people's freedom just to build their own power, wealth and honor," he said.

He began working with other North Korean students on a plan to go home and share what they had learned in the hope it could drive change. But North Korean officials discovered their plans and Kim fled to South Korea from Beijing in 2011.

'Aggravate confrontation'

China and Russia had tried to block the Security Council meeting by calling a procedural vote. The meeting had been requested by the United States, Japan, South Korea and Britain.

"Pushing the council to intervene in the human rights issue of the DPRK will not help to ease tensions on the Korean peninsula. On the contrary, it will intensify antagonism and aggravate confrontation," China's deputy U.N. Ambassador Geng Shuang told the council.

A minimum nine votes were needed to hold the meeting and China, Russia, the U.S., Britain and France could not wield their vetoes. Twelve members voted for the meeting on Wednesday, Russia and China voted against and Mozambique abstained.

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield said human rights abuses in North Korea were "inextricably linked" to Pyongyang's threats to international peace and security.

"The regime relies on forced labor and the exploitation of DPRK workers both domestically and overseas to develop weapons of mass destruction. What is shameful here is the obvious efforts by China and Russia to protect the DPRK," she said.

North Korea did not address the Security Council. But Venezuela's deputy U.N. Ambassador Joaquin Alberto Perez Ayestaran read a statement to reporters on behalf of a group of 18 states, including North Korea, China and Russia.

He said the Security Council should not be discussing human rights and commended North Korea for its efforts "in many fields, including on human rights, with the purpose of ensuring the wellbeing and prosperity of its people."

Between 2014 and 2017 the Security Council held annual public meetings on North Korean abuses. It held annual formal meetings behind closed doors on the issue between 2020-2022.

A landmark 2014 U.N. report concluded that North Korean security chiefs  and possibly leader Kim Jong-un himself  should face justice for overseeing a state-controlled system of Nazi-style atrocities. (Reuters)
The U.S.-led U.N. Command (UNC) said Thursday it is investigating a series of incidents at the inter-Korean border earlier this week, including a brief border incursion by North Korean troops and South Korea's resumption of anti-Pyongyang broadcasts.

On Sunday, some 20 North Korean soldiers crossed the Military Demarcation Line inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), separating the two Koreas, in the central section of the border before retreating northward after the South fired warning shots, according to Seoul's military.

The incursion came just hours before the South blared anti-Pyongyang broadcasts toward the North for the first time in six years in response to the North's recent launches of trash-carrying balloons.

"We take our mission seriously at the United Nations Command and are currently investigating the recent issues with utmost diligence," the UNC said when asked about the incidents.

"Our actions are in strict accordance with the Armistice Agreement as we work towards deescalating the situation to ensure peace and stability in the region. We continue to call on the DPRK to return to dialogue using our established mechanisms."

DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

The UNC is an enforcer of the armistice that stopped the fighting in the 1950-53 Korean War and oversees activities inside the DMZ  a buffer zone between the two Koreas since the three-year conflict ended without a peace treaty.

Jeon Ha-kyou, the defense ministry's spokesperson, said it would "actively support" the UNC's investigation.

The investigation comes amid heightened cross-border tensions set off by the North's recent trash-carrying balloon campaign.

Since May 28, the North is estimated to have launched more than 1,600 balloons in what has been called a "tit-for-tat" response to anti-Pyongyang leafleting by activists in South Korea.

The UNC is also investigating the North's garbage-loaded balloon launches and has called them a violation of the armistice.

For years, North Korean defectors in the South and conservative activists have sent leaflets to the North via balloons to help encourage North Koreans to eventually rise up against the Kim family regime.

North Korea has bristled at the propaganda campaign amid concern that an influx of outside information could pose a threat to its leader Kim Jong-un.

It has also reacted angrily to the South's border loudspeakers that have aired messages critical of the North's regime, firing artillery shots toward the South in 2015 over the broadcasts. (Yonhap)
Rhetorical commitment to stronger ties anticipated in Kim-Putin meeting

By Nam Hyun-woo

Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to visit North Korea within a few days, in an apparent reciprocal gesture to North Korean leader Kim Jong-uns trip to Russias Far East last November.

The visit, confirmed by an official at the South Korean presidential office, seems to be Moscow's response to Pyongyang's desire to showcase the close relations between the two sides to the world. This is expected to complicate the diplomatic equations involving the two Koreas, Russia, and China. Experts suggest that the level of cooperation achieved during Putin's upcoming visit will shape the geopolitical dynamics of Northeast Asia in the near future.

During a press briefing, Thursday, a South Korean presidential official said the Russian president is expected to visit North Korea in a few days, confirming a series of foreign media reports on the purported visit citing preparation works for large-scale ceremonies in Pyongyang.

If realized, it would be Putins first trip to Pyongyang in 24 years. The Kremlin said earlier that Putin had accepted Kims invitation to visit North Korea during their previous meeting in Russias Vostochny Cosmodrome space launch center, where the Russian leader promised to help the North build military satellites.

During the planned visit, Putin and Kim are expected to review the exchanges between their two sides since their last meeting and discuss ways to further enhance their bilateral relations.

Attracting international attention is the level of agreements the two sides will sign in strategic areas, which may encompass the revival or signing of treaties that define their military relations.

In 1961, the Soviet Union and North Korea signed an alliance treaty on mutual friendship, cooperation and assistance, which included a clause on automatic military intervention in the event of an armed invasion or war. However, this was abolished in 1996.

In 2000, Russia and the North signed the Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation, Good Neighborliness, but it did not stipulate a military alliance between the two sides. Although it is called a treaty, South Korea considers it as a joint declaration, in which the two sides commitments are less binding compared to those stipulated in a formal treaty.

However, the South Korean government and experts predict that the upcoming Kim-Putin meeting will not likely feature a surprise treaty or other official document that stipulates their strong relations. Instead, it is expected to conclude with a joint press announcement, where both sides rhetorically commit to enhancing their relations without formal binding agreements.

In my opinion, the most ambitious outcome will be a joint declaration between Pyongyang and Moscow, with the more likely outcome being a joint press announcement from both sides, said Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies.

Yang said the two sides are expected to avoid detailed discussions on their military cooperation, mindful of Russia's relationships with China and South Korea.

There have long been invisible rules between Beijing and Moscow, where Russia respects many of Chinas perspectives on Asia-related policies, Yang said.

China respects Russia's perspectives in terms of European affairs. If Russia excessively draws close to the North  by transferring Moscows advanced weapons technologies to Pyongyang  this puts relations between Russia and China in an awkward position. China may interpret excessive ties between Russia and the North as a sign that its influence on Pyongyang is weakening.

Against this backdrop, South Korea and China plan to hold a vice-ministerial-level bilateral diplomatic and security dialogue in Seoul next week. Given China's cautious stance on North Korea-Russia military relations and the timing of Putin's visit to North Korea, Seoul and Beijing may find common ground in their views regarding Moscow-Pyongyang military relations.

The state of relations between South Korea and Russia is another factor leading experts to speculate that Putin's visit will likely focus on symbolic gestures and grandstanding.

Following Russias military cooperation with North Korea and South Koreas indirect support for Ukraine, Seoul-Moscow relations have soured. However, both countries still believe they have not crossed their respective "red lines."

For Seoul, this includes Russia's direct support of North Korea's nuclear and submarine programs, while for Moscow, it concerns Seoul's direct provision of arms to Ukraine that could potentially target Russia.

Against that backdrop, Putin and Russian Ambassador to South Korea Georgy Zinoviev recently conveyed friendly messages to South Korea. Earlier this month, Putin said in a meeting with news agencies that we do not see any Russophobic stance when working with the South Korean government and neither are there any weapons supplies to the conflict zone.

As the two countries are not crossing the red lines, Seoul-Moscow ties are not worsening, Yang said.

If Putin visits Pyongyang and proclaims strong military ties with the North against this backdrop, it will do more harm than good. We may not have insight into the details of the Putin-Kim talks, but it's unlikely there will be groundbreaking cooperation between the two sides. Russia has too much at stake.
Any illegal acts related to the collective action by doctors will be dealt with sternly, the government said Thursday, as medical professors and community doctors plan to stage walkouts in protest against the medical school quota hike.

The Korea Medical Association (KMA), the biggest doctors' group, plans a one-day general strike on Tuesday, while medical professors at major hospitals have decided to stage indefinite walkouts starting next week, raising concerns about a potential medical crisis.

The KMA is demanding that the government suspend the proceedings regarding the medical school quota hike for 2025.

"The government will try to persuade doctors until the last moment to prevent their planned collective walkouts. In the meantime, any illegal acts will be met with a stern response," Lee Han-kyung, the interior ministry's chief disaster management official, said during a government meeting.

The government will also maintain an emergency healthcare system to minimize the impact from a potential medical vacuum, Lee said, urging doctors to refrain from walkouts.

"I ask you to prioritize the important value of human lives when making any decisions," the senior official said.

The health ministry also stressed that such a collective action would violate the medical law and be subject to punishment.

"Without due reason, medical staff or hospitals are not allowed to refuse requests for medical treatment and relevant services. The unilateral cancellation of patients' reservations can constitute a refusal as banned by law," Deputy Health Minister Jun Byung-wang said during a separate briefing.

"The government will sternly respond to any illegality while maintaining the emergency system by prioritizing the lives and health of the people," he added. (Yonhap)
Lawmakers of the parliamentary health committee will meet with medical professors of Seoul National University (SNU) next week to seek a breakthrough over their planned strike against the government's medical reform plan, officials said Thursday.

Last week, professors, who serve as senior doctors at hospitals affiliated with SNU, announced a decision to indefinitely suspend their hospital operations starting June 17 in support of trainee doctors who have left their worksites since February against the government's medical school enrollment quota increase.

With no immediate breakthrough having been made over the conflict between the government and the medical community, the lawmakers of the parliamentary health and welfare committee will hold dialogue with SNU professors on Sunday to discuss the issue, according to the officials.

"We received a proposal for talks with the National Assembly yesterday. We've yet to set details about what to discuss, but we will ask what they can do to help resolve the situation," an official of the SNU's emergency response committee for professors said.

The SNU professors have said they will go ahead with the indefinite strike until the government admits to its responsibility for causing the current medical crisis and take practical measures.

The emergency committee met with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Tuesday and called for the government's role to address the issue.

The government has also said it has continued to have talks with doctors, though there seems little progress.

The envisioned operation suspension will come as the Korea Medical Association, a major lobby group for doctors, decided to go on a one-day strike June 18, which could involve community doctors and medical professors.

Despite fierce opposition, the government finalized the increase of the medical school admissions quota by around 1,500 seats late last month in an effort to address the shortage of doctors. It was the first such increase in 27 years. (Yonhap)
Doctors' largest lobby group said Thursday it may consider withdrawing the planned walkout if the government shows a flexible stance over a medical school quota hike.

The Korea Medical Association (KMA), a major lobby group for doctors, earlier announced the plan to stage a one-day walkout next week, which could involve community doctors and medical professors nationwide.

"We do not have much time left. If the government does not show changes in its stance by the weekend, it cannot stop the nationwide walkout scheduled for next week," a KMA spokesperson said.

"If the government shows a change in its stance, we will reconsider the walkout," the official added.

The KMA also called for the government to discuss the controversial medical reform measures with the organization as the representative body of the entire medical community.

"The biggest hurdle in the deadlock is that the government underestimates the KMA and is seeking talks with some universities, hospitals and other organizations," the official said.

Despite fierce protests by trainee doctors, the government finalized an admissions quota hike of some 1,500 students for medical schools late last month, marking the first such increase in 27 years.

Meanwhile, lawmakers of the parliamentary health committee will meet with medical professors of Seoul National University (SNU) next week to seek a breakthrough in their planned strike against the government's medical reform plan, officials said.

Last week, professors, who serve as senior doctors at hospitals affiliated with SNU, announced a decision to indefinitely suspend their hospital operations starting June 17 in support of trainee doctors who have left their worksites since February against the government's medical school enrollment quota increase.

With no immediate breakthrough having been made over the conflict between the government and the medical community, the lawmakers of the parliamentary health and welfare committee will hold dialogue with SNU professors on Sunday to discuss the issue, according to the officials.

"We received a proposal for talks with the National Assembly yesterday. We've yet to set details about what to discuss, but we will ask what they can do to help resolve the situation," an official of the SNU's emergency response committee for professors said.

The SNU professors have said they will go ahead with the indefinite strike until the government admits to its responsibility for causing the current medical crisis and take practical measures.

The emergency committee met with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Tuesday and called for the government's role to address the issue.

The government has also said it has continued to have talks with doctors, though there seems little progress. (Yonhap)
By Kim Hyun-bin

Honduran Foreign Minister Eduardo Enrique Reina Garcia has emphasized the importance of strengthening the longstanding relationship between Korea and Honduras, particularly in the areas of infrastructure and trade.

Reina Garcia said that the primary objective of his four-day visit to Seoul was to "strengthen and confirm the great importance that Korea has for Honduran foreign policy."

The two nations enjoy over 60 years of friendship and the minister underscored the significance of cooperation and goodwill.

Reflecting on diplomatic ties, Reina Garcia described them as "very high level," with Honduran President Xiomara Castro promoting more open foreign relations and closer ties with Asia. "For us, Korea is one of the most strategic partners in the region," he said during an interview with The Korea Times in Seoul, Tuesday.

"My main objective is to strengthen and confirm the great importance that Korea holds for Honduran foreign policy," Reina Garcia said. He also underscored that Honduras currently holds pro tempore the presidency of both the Central American Integration System and the Latin American and Caribbean Group. "The relationship with Korea is quite important for us," he added.

The minister's itinerary included participation in the Korea-Latin America and Caribbean Forum, bilateral meetings with Korean Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul and discussions with Prime Minister Han Duck-soo.

Reina Garcia also had a crucial meeting with Korea Railroad Corp. (Korail), discussing future projects aimed at improving infrastructure in Honduras, notably the ambitious Interoceanic Railway project championed by President Castro.

"The meeting with Korail is important for the future of some of the projects that President Castro is trying to promote, such as the Interoceanic Railway in Honduras," he said.

Beyond infrastructure, trade was a significant focus of Reina Garcia's discussions. He highlighted the free trade agreement enacted in 2018 and noted the potential for increased trade between the two countries.

"Unfortunately, the pandemic had consequences on trade, but we are starting to build momentum again," Reina Garcia said. He pointed out that coffee is currently the most important Honduran export to Korea.

"We have a good relationship, but I think we can develop more possibilities. For example, for Honduras, it's about accessing more Honduran products to Korea, such as cantaloupe, melons, cucumbers and tobacco," he said.

He acknowledged some trade barriers, particularly in phytosanitary measures, but expressed optimism about resolving these issues through collaboration.

"The issue of phytosanitary measures, particularly for the cream industry, is something we are working on together to advance and find possibilities for these high-quality Honduran products to enter the Korean market," he said.

The minister also highlighted the substantial presence of Korean companies in Honduras, primarily in the textile and automotive sectors, employing around 8,000 people and contributing significantly to the local economy.

Reina Garcia highlighted Honduras's strategic position near the U.S. market as a significant opportunity for Korean investment. "We have a very important plan of incentives for international companies related to taxes and possibilities," the minister mentioned, emphasizing the new legal frameworks being developed to attract foreign investment.

"Korean investment in Honduras is valued at approximately $300 million. This is very important for us," he said.

The cooperation between the two countries extends to various sectors, including food security, education and technology.

"Korea has important projects related to food security, combating natural disasters and providing technical assistance for technology in Honduras," he added.

Educational and cultural exchanges were also discussed, with the minister acknowledging the impact of Korean culture, particularly K-pop, on Honduran youth. He mentioned the scholarships provided to Honduran students to study in Korea and the potential for increased volunteer work through the Korea International Cooperation Agency.

Tourism was another area of interest. "It is very important to promote the participation of Korean tourists in Honduras," Reina Garcia said, highlighting Honduras's Caribbean coastline, Mayan cultural sites and natural beauty as attractions.

Looking ahead, Reina Garcia envisions even stronger ties between Korea and Honduras.

"For the future, I think the relationship can only improve. Korea has been a steadfast partner in many fields, and we are looking to increase cooperation and trade," he said.
By Kim Hyun-bin

The First Peace Summit is set to take place Saturday and Sunday in Burgenstock, Switzerland. The Embassy of Ukraine in Seoul underscored the significance of this event in a statement issued Thursday, in the context of the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.

The war continues to inflict substantial human suffering and destruction, posing significant risks and crises for the global community. Ukraine's position, as articulated by the embassy, highlights Russia's persistent aggression and blatant disregard for international law.

"Ukraine, being a victim of aggression, has a moral right to propose its vision for achieving peace," the statement reads. "Ukraine, like no other, wants peace  but it is not ready for 'peace at any price.' The only realistic and effective plan to achieve peace is the 10-point Peace Formula proposed by the President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy."

The Peace Formula emphasizes that peace for Ukraine must be comprehensive, just and lasting. Achieving this, according to Ukraine, requires the collective efforts of all nations that respect the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter. The upcoming Peace Summit is seen as a pivotal step towards restoring peace in Ukraine and upholding a rules-based international order.

The inaugural summit will address critical global issues such as radiation and nuclear safety, food security and humanitarian concerns related to the release of prisoners and deported persons, including children. These topics, integral to Ukraines Peace Formula, resonate with universally recognized human values and impact the security of millions worldwide.

The summit aims to reinforce the international community's commitment to the sovereignty, independence, unity and territorial integrity of states within their internationally recognized borders. The Embassy of Ukraine expressed hope that the participation of Korea and other peace-loving nations at the highest possible level will convey a strong message of international solidarity with Ukraine.

Such participation, it believes, will bolster the existing international commitment to the relevant United Nations General Assembly Resolution, underpinning a just, sustainable and comprehensive peace.
The Supreme Court on Thursday finalized a life sentence for a psychopathic woman who stunned the nation by killing a stranger just out of curiosity about murder last year.

Jung Yoo-jung, 24, was indicted on charges of killing a female freelance tutor, with whom she had no personal connection, in May last year. She was caught after a taxi driver reported her to police upon finding her suspicious for throwing away a suitcase with blood stains in the riverside near her residence.

Prosecutors demanded the death penalty for Jung, but the district and appeals court handed her life imprisonment instead, saying it should only be imposed in exceptional circumstances for it deprives one of life.

Jung appealed the decision to the top court, claiming the punishment was too heavy.

However, the Supreme Court dismissed her appeal, saying the sentencing is not deemed "greatly wrongful" given the comprehensive review of her age, character, environment and motive for her crime. (Yonhap)
By Jung Min-ho

Kim Myung-gon, a famous actor and musical director who served as Koreas culture minister between 2006 and 2007, has been convicted of sexually assaulting a woman in 2014.

Kim, 71, who was the minister of culture and tourism under the liberal Roh Moo-hyun administration, was sentenced on Thursday to four months in prison, suspended for a year, for touching one of his junior colleagues inappropriately on two occasions in May 2014 when he was working as a musical director.

Judge Kwon Kyung-sun at the Seoul Central District Court said their hierarchical relationship and the victims call for a heavy penalty were factored into the ruling.

Kim was also ordered to attend 40 hours of a government program on sexual violence.

He is best known for starring in and writing the screenplay of the Korean film classic "Seopyeonje," for which he won Best Actor at the 1993 Blue Dragon Film Awards.

He then worked as a college professor while being active in the musical field. He became the head of the National Theater of Korea in 2000 and held the post for six years before taking the ministerial position.
Achievement is recognition of countrys labor reform efforts: labor minister

By Jun Ji-hye

GENEVA  Korea is the leading candidate to be selected as the top coordinator of the International Labour Organization (ILO), tasked with mediating differences of opinion among governments, employers and laborers from the 187 member states of the U.N. agency, as well as setting labor standards and developing policies, according to Minister of Employment and Labor Lee Jung-sik.

During an interview with a group of reporters in Geneva, Tuesday, Lee said becoming the chair of the Governing Body of the International Labour Office  the ILOs executive body  will be one of the major achievements made by the country at this years International Labour Conference, which kicked off on June 3 and will end on Friday. Lee attended the annual event as the head delegate of the Korean government.

The country will play a leading role in resolving conflicts between governments, workers and employers of various countries, as well as divergent opinions between countries, for example, between developed and developing nations, or between Muslim and non-Muslim nations, Lee said.

The Governing Body, which consists of 56 regular members and 66 deputy members, convenes three times a year to make decisions on ILO policies, programs and budget. The body also elects the director-general of the ILO.

If the decision to select Korea as the chair is finalized on Saturday through consensus among tripartite representatives, Yun Seong-deok, Korean ambassador to the U.N. office in Geneva, will assume the chairmanship.

The selection is highly possible as Korea has been recommended as the sole candidate for the position.

If finalized, it will be the second time that the country's representative has assumed the position at the ILO. The last time was 2003.

Lee emphasized that protecting workers in vulnerable positions from unfairness and inequality amid global demographic shifts, climate change and deepening polarization is a common concern shared by the international community.

It is particularly meaningful in that we become the chair at the ILO during this significant transition period, Lee said.

This achievement means that the Yoon Suk Yeol governments efforts to reform the labor sector, activate social dialogue and improve fundamental labor rights to meet the global standards sought by the ILO have been recognized by the international community. The achievement also reflects the international communitys expectations for Korea to play a significant role on the global stage.

Regarding the ongoing deliberation to determine next years minimum wage in Korea, where one of the main points of contention is whether it should be set separately for different sectors, the labor minister expressed his view that such a measure does not constitute discrimination as claimed by labor groups.

Discrimination means treating individuals differently without rational reasons. That is a bad thing. In this regard, I believe it is inaccurate to characterize the measure of applying different minimum wages to each sector as discrimination, he said.

However, he pointed out that such a measure, which was implemented once in 1988, has not been reintroduced since then.

There must be a reason for that, he said.

The minister emphasized that the 27-member Minimum Wage Commission, with nine representatives from labor, management and the public, respectively, will make a final decision after thorough deliberation.
By Jung Min-ho

A fishing boat carrying nine people capsized in waters off Koreas southwestern coast early Thursday, leaving its Korean captain dead and two Indonesian sailors missing.

According to the Coast Guard, the 33-ton eel fishing trawler was overturned at around 3:18 a.m. in waters some 18km northeast of Gageo Island off Mokpo, a port city in South Jeolla Province.

Six of the crew members were rescued by fishing boats working nearby. But the captain had already died by then.

The Coast Guard is now searching for the missing sailors in collaboration with the Navy and fishermen. Several ships, airplanes as well as fishing boats have joined the rescue effort.

Based on survivors accounts, the Coast Guard suspects that a collision with another fishing boat was the cause of the accident.

The crew of the other boat allegedly involved in the collision have been questioned as the Coast Guard looks into the case.
Out of deepening despair amid a prolonged walkout by trainee doctors, patients on Thursday lashed out at doctors for planning a broader strike next week and urged the government to enact a law to prevent a recurrence of a collective action by medical staff.

A total of 92 associations of patients made the appeal during a joint press conference in front of the National Assembly in Seoul, as the Korea Medical Association (KMA), a major lobby group for doctors, decided to go on strike June 18, which could involve community doctors and medical professors.

The move is feared to deepen disruptions to the medical system, already reeling from the walkout by trainee doctors since February against the government's medical reform plans that involve increasing the medical school enrollment quota.

"We express profound concerns over the planned strike by the KMA and the decision to suspend hospital operations indefinitely by professors of the Seoul National University Hospital," the groups said in a joint statement.

"Over the past several months, patients have suffered significantly due to the prolonged medical service vacuum. We hoped for a resolution but rather witnessed another strike plan, which is pushing us into the abyss," they added.

They also criticized doctors of the SNU hospitals for asking patients to postpone their reservations for medical treatments, saying, "They should have made such requests to their junior colleagues."

Senior doctors at four major hospitals affiliated with SNU vowed to indefinitely suspend their hospital operations June 17 in support of the striking junior doctors.

The patients then demanded that the government legalize the use of medical assistance staff at hospitals in emergency situations to minimize damage to patients and enact a law to ensure the normal operation of essential medical services.

There have been attempts to revise the medical law that bans medical assistants in such crucial fields as pediatrics, obstetrics and emergency medicine, but no progress has been made.

Despite fierce opposition, the government finalized the increase of the medical school admissions quota by around 1,500 seats late last month in an effort to address the shortage of doctors. It was the first such increase in 27 years. (Yonhap)
By Michael Breen

If you were to peer into a crystal ball and summon the best future for Northeast Asia, it is hard not to agree that the region envisioned would be peaceful, democratic and with a free market.

You would think that democratic governments would share this as the explicitly desired goal giving birth to their various policies. But they dont. A peaceful, democratic, free market Northeast Asia seems to be nobodys vision.

Why is this?

The explanations I find are, firstly, that countries dont think that far ahead. That is ironically true in democracies because nobody stays in power that long. In Koreas case, its hard, besides the 10-year Land Use Plan, to think of anything in the public sector that imagines anything further than five years ahead.

The second explanation is that its presumptuous. To which, the best response is: so? If the Workers' Party of Korea envisions a future with itself ruling a Unified Korea in the 22nd century, and we decline to imagine anything, who are the idiots?

And the most common reason not to bother is that its not going to happen. Particularly, people say, for Northeast Asia to be democratic means that China and North Korea must become democracies, and that will never happen.

Really? So hundreds of millions of Chinese who have the wealth to take their vacations in Prague, attend university in Australia and buy summer homes by the beach are quite happy not being able to decide who runs their country? North Koreans find the gulag a valuable learning experience?

What makes us think the Chinese are sufficiently tolerant of dictatorship to live with it forever?

The point of imagining a better future is not to make a prediction about what will happen but to take a step towards its possible realization.

Right now, China is like South Korea in the 1970s under the dictator Park Chung-hee  unfree but going in the right direction. It needs to have its democratization moment, to pry the fingers of the Communist leadership off the neck of the electorate and allow freedom.

As for North Korea, it now is like China was under Mao Zedong, hurtling backwards in the name of revolutionary progress. If its unrealistic to expect a North Korean democracy moment, it is not unrealistic to expect that it will at some point go the first step and have its equivalent of Park Chung-hees coup.

That would not mean liberal democracy for North Koreans but it could be the point at which reconciliation with the South begins.

How could such a change take place? Its hard to predict. But what we can see is that once democracy was established in one place in the world, it became possible for others to adopt it in their various ways and spread, historically speaking, at a very rapid pace. Theres no reason to think that it has stopped.

Besides war or an unexpected palace coup or a (much-fantasized) change of heart by Kim Jong-un, people power is a likely scenario. If popular unrest were to break out in North Korea in such a way that the security authorities were no longer willing to kill their own people, history could change in a day. That's what happened this week in this country in 1987.

As a vision for a democratic Northeast Asia makes sense for Korea, so it does for the United States. The implications are obvious for its security and economic relations with China. But also with North Korea.

The United States has made zero progress in 30 years on the issue of North Korean nuclear weapons because there has been no meeting of objectives and neither side has given up. The North Korean objective is survival (or reunification) and nuclear weapons is its strategy. The U.S. objective is a North Korea with no nuclear weapons.

In the interests of peaceful diplomacy, it should be possible to reframe the issue in a way that allows us to reach our goals via a different route.

Michael Breen (mike.breen@insightcomms.com) is the author of "The New Koreans."
Skepticism grows over East Sea oil exploration project





Skepticism is growing over the planned oil and gas exploration in the East Sea, with political tensions escalating as the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea steps up criticism, describing the project as doomed to fail. In light of growing suspicions, it is crucial for the Yoon Suk Yeol administration to address these doubts before proceeding with the contentious project.

Negative views are primarily focused on Act-Geo, the U.S. geoscience firm that offered an optimistic assessment of potential reserves off Yeongil Bay in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province. The firm estimated that there could be up to 14 billion barrels of crude oil and natural gas in the region. However, the U.S. company has faced controversies. Initially, it was revealed that the firm had neglected to pay its operating tax in February of last year, around the time it entered into a contract with the state-owned Korea National Oil Corp. (KNOC) for the exploration project. A local magazine reported that the U.S. firm had even lost its legal corporate status at the time of the agreement. KNOC subsequently clarified that the U.S. company settled the overdue tax in March of the same year, thereby regaining its status as a fully compliant entity.

Despite KNOCs explanation, however, skepticism persists. For one thing, Act-Geos revenue stood at just over 30 million won ($21,780) in 2022 before significantly rising to 7 billion won last year, after signing a contract with KNOC. Established in 2016, the firm's unexpected participation has sparked criticism regarding why KNOC selected this small company over major global players like Woodside Energy, Australia's largest oil extractor. The Aussie firm withdrew from the East Sea project in January last year after 15 years of involvement.

KNOC attributed Woodside's withdrawal to internal issues. However, it became apparent that Woodside saw no promising prospects for the project. Given the inherent uncertainties in oil exploration, assessments can vary widely among companies. Act-Geo asserts that it has analyzed more data than Woodside. Nevertheless, skepticism remains regarding the small firm's divergent assessment compared to that of a global player.

A survey by Hangil Research showed that 60.5 percent of respondents do not trust the governments announcement about the exploration project, while only 33.2 percent expressed confidence. The poll surveying 1,000 people nationwide aged 18 and older, had a response rate of 5.0 percent with a 3.1 percent margin of error at a 95 percent confidence level. Despite the small sample size, the survey highlights the prevalent negative sentiment toward the project.

Despite the unfavorable public opinion, the Yoon Suk Yeol administration is poised to push forward with the project, starting the first exploratory drilling in December. Drilling five spots at depths exceeding 100 meters will cost at least 100 billion won per hole. There are concerns that the Yoon government could face grave setbacks and financial losses if the drilling fails, with the growing skepticism remaining unsolved.

To secure trust in the project, cross verification by other expert companies is crucial rather than hastily rushing into the project. Yoon should acknowledge the criticism that his abrupt announcement appears to be an attempt to influence political sentiment in his favor, following the decisive defeat of the ruling People Power Party in the April 10 general elections, coupled with his declining approval ratings.

Before embarking on the costly and contentious oil exploration project, the Yoon administration must tackle mounting skepticism. Cross verification by other experts should be conducted to enhance the projects credibility and secure public trust. That is the best way for Yoon to address the issue, preventing possible political setbacks and financial losses.
By Mohammad Hosseini

Weve seen it play out time and again. Industries that lack sufficient government oversight prioritize short-term profits over long-term sustainability and can cause significant harm to the economy, society and the environment.

Consider social media, Big Oil and real estate. Were now staring down the barrel of the next industry in dire need of stronger government guardrails: generative artificial intelligence, or GenAI. Over the past year and a half, federal agencies, among many others, have used GenAI models such as ChatGPT to generate text, images, audio and video, making GenAI a priority concern for the U.S. government. And while we may assume President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump are at opposite ends of the political spectrum on this issue, as they are on practically every issue, their approach to AI has actually been very similar.

They have pampered AI developers with significant funding and deregulation, giving them global leverage, credit and visibility. While Biden and Trump have expressed concerns about citizens privacy, safety and security, the way they have regulated AI shows theyre actually on the developers side. That said, Biden and Trump diverge in their climate policies.

Given the current stage of GenAI development and adoption and a dire need of data centers for more energy, it is the climate policy of the next president that will affect GenAI developers the most. It is worth exploring how GenAI has expanded under Biden and how it might be affected if Trump wins reelection this year.

GenAI developers have grown significantly during the Biden years, partly thanks to his administrations various favorable policies. Last July, the Biden administration announced securing voluntary commitments from seven AI companies  Amazon, Anthropic, Google, Inflection, Meta, Microsoft and OpenAI  under the guise of underscoring safety, security and trust.

But in reality, these so-called commitments were more like gifts because their scope is limited to GenAI tools that are overall more powerful than existing ones. For example, the commitments require public reporting of capabilities, limitations, areas of appropriate/inappropriate use, societal risks, effects on fairness and bias, but only for more powerful AI models, thus offering a carte blanche for existing models.

In September, the Biden administration announced new voluntary commitments with identical stipulations and scope for eight other AI companies  Adobe, Cohere, IBM, Nvidia, Palantir, Salesforce, Scale AI and Stability. One month later, Biden signed an executive order on AI, which offered GenAI developers even more favors, such as ordering federal agencies to support AI development and promote its use.

Perhaps the most compelling aspect of the executive order for GenAI developers is in Section 10.1(f)(i), which discourages federal agencies from imposing broad general bans or blocks on agency use of generative AI. This means that even in cases when an oversight agency has reasons to believe that using GenAI is harmful, it cannot ban the use.

Given these supports, it is no surprise that GenAI developers have grown significantly during the Biden years, but if Trump is reelected, developers may have to adapt to a new regulatory and investment environment.

Trump is no stranger to AI. Like Biden, Trump emphasized that federal agencies should consider limiting regulatory overreach, thereby reducing barriers to innovation and growth regardless of the risks. In February 2019, Trump signed an executive order to maintain American leadership in AI and launched the American AI Initiative.

Among other things, this executive order directed federal agencies to prioritize research and development in AI, enhance access to high-quality federal data and computing resources for AI researchers, set AI governance standards and build the AI workforce.

In February 2020, Trump committed to doubling nondefense research and development investment in AI over two years. In December 2020, he signed an executive order on promoting the use of AI in the federal government. These examples show that Trumps strategy toward AI was very similar to Bidens, and one could even argue that Bidens policies mirrored and continued those started by Trump, except Biden seems more lenient and has offered more specific favors.

But other differences between Biden and Trump could affect AI developers, with the most notable being their disagreement regarding climate change. Just as Biden brought the U.S. back into the Paris climate accord on his first day in office, Trump could withdraw from the agreement after being reelected.

Such an enormous shift in international commitments could alter the business environment for GenAI developers. Recall that in 2017, when Trump announced his plans to withdraw from the Paris agreement, 25 companies, including Apple, Google, Meta and Microsoft, published an open letter in newspapers urging the administration not to exit the agreement.

The letter highlighted the negative impact of a withdrawal on competitiveness, jobs and economic growth, and risks over time including damage to facilities and operation, as well as competitive imbalance for American companies.

However, at the current pace of development and deployment of GenAI  and the expected trajectory of a growing need for energy and, concurrently, a growing environmental footprint remaining in the agreement could slow down the growth and uptake of GenAI.

GenAI developers may secretly hope for Trump to win to benefit from more lenient climate policies. Also, military use of GenAI may be affected by whether Biden or Trump wins. With the unrestricted use of AI during the Israel-Hamas conflict and successful applications by the Department of Defense, demand for these capabilities will grow.If international conventions are drafted to regulate military use, the presidents endorsement, or lack thereof, will significantly affect developers global business.

Mohammad Hosseini is an assistant professor at Northwestern University. His research focuses on topics related to technology ethics, including artificial intelligence. This article was published in the Chicago Tribune and distributed by Tribune Content Agency.
By Baek Byung-yeul

Samsung Electronics will provide a comprehensive turnkey service that integrates its foundry (order-based chip production), memory chips, and advanced semiconductor packaging solutions as part of efforts to lead the AI era and catch up with foundry business leader TSMC, the Korean chip giant said Thursday.

On Wednesday (local time), Samsung held its annual Samsung Foundry Forum in San Jose, California, and unveiled its vision and technology roadmap in the AI era.

"As numerous technologies evolve around AI, the critical factor for its implementation lies in high-performance, low-power semiconductors," Choi Si-young, president and head of the foundry business at Samsung, said during the event.

Samsung's advantage lies in its possession of foundry, memory, and advanced packaging businesses, strategically positioning it to offer customized services that cater to the specific needs of the AI era.

By leveraging synergies among those three business areas, Samsung seeks to offer an integrated AI solution with high performance, low power and high bandwidth, thereby simplifying customers' supply chains and accelerating product launches.

The company added that chip design customers utilizing its integrated AI solution can reduce the time required for chip development and production by approximately 20 percent compared to working with separate foundry, memory and packaging companies.

To strengthen its foundry business, Samsung announced plans to introduce co-packaged optics (CPO) technology by 2027.

"We plan to introduce integrated, co-packaged optics (CPO) technology for high-speed, low-power data processing, providing our customers with the one-stop AI solutions they need to thrive in this transformative era," Choi added.

At the event, Samsung also unveiled two new process nodes  SF2Z and SF4U  to meet the demands of customers seeking high-performance and low-power semiconductors.

Samsung said it will commence mass production of semiconductors using the 2-nanometer (nm) process in 2027, while the 4-nm SF4U process, which adds optical shrink to the existing approach, will begin mass production next year.

Chips produced using SF2Z not only offer enhanced power, efficiency, and area compared to existing 2nm processes but also substantially reduce the voltage drop phenomenon that destabilizes current flow, thereby optimizing the capabilities of high-performance computing designs, Samsung said.

Samsung also plans to begin mass production of chips using the 1.4-nm process in 2027. Additionally, it aims to start mass production of the second-generation 3-nm process in the second half of this year.

Industry experts regard the turnkey service as a distinctive strategy that only Samsung can execute, particularly as the distinctions between memory chip customers and foundry chip customers become increasingly blurred.

"Unlike in the past, where memory and foundry users operated separately, chipmakers like AMD now act as both foundry users and customers of HBM (high bandwidth memory)," Kim Young-gun, an analyst at Mirae Asset Daewoo Securities, said. "This is a business model that only Samsung Electronics can offer globally."
By Baek Byung-yeul

TmaxGroup unveiled its GAIA super app, encompassing IT areas like computer systems, database management, app development, AI services and cloud computing into one app, targeting the global market to help customers with business management, according to its founder and Chairman Park Dae-yeon, Thursday.

"With the pride of being a homegrown IT company, we have been pouring all of our capabilities into developing GAIA super app, Park, who also serves as the chief technology officer of the company, said at a press conference in Seoul.

The super app will not only enhance existing app performance but also bring about innovative cost reductions, contribute to stability improvements and resolve security issues. It will enable what was previously impossible, and drive major business innovations, including AI automation, the chairman added.

According to him, anyone can easily develop apps using GAIA, even without being an IT developer or knowing programming languages. It is also efficient and secure because it utilizes the company's own data. The integration of all elements, including user experience, data and AI enhances convenience and utilization.

TmaxGroup plans to first launch the business-to-business version of GAIA within this year and release the business-to-consumer version in the first half of next year. The chairman added that it will target the global market in the second half of next year.

Established in 1997, TmaxGroup develops enterprise system software. It has independently developed and provided various software solutions, including middleware, which mediates between the operating system and application software.

The chairman said around 1.1 trillion won ($800 million) was invested in developing GAIA, and he expects to recover the investment cost within about a year, although it cannot be predetermined due to the rapidly changing market.

Park added he wants to help more people to be more creative and generate value through their businesses with GAIA.

"With our app, coding is not necessary. You don't need to know programming languages like JavaScript. Service developers can engage in creative development," he said. "I want many users to lead a creative society through GAIA. I want creative people to engage in higher value-added businesses."
Samsung Electronics said Thursday it will provide comprehensive "one-stop" artificial intelligence solutions for its foundry customers, with a focus on up-to-date technologies for high-performance, low-power AI chips.

"At a time when numerous technologies are evolving around AI, the key to its implementation lies in high-performance, low-power semiconductors," Choi Si-young, head of foundry business at Samsung Electronics, said during the annual Samsung Foundry Forum (SFF) in San Jose, California.

"Alongside our proven gate-all-around (GAA) process optimized for AI chips, we plan to introduce integrated, co-packaged optics (CPO) technology for high-speed, low-power data processing, providing our customers with the one-stop AI solutions they need to thrive in this transformative era."

At this year's SFF, the Korean tech firm unveiled its foundry business road map, highlighting its technological innovations and visions for the AI era.

Samsung AI Solutions is a turnkey AI platform resulting from collaborative efforts across the company's foundry, memory and advanced package (AVP) businesses.

Samsung Electronics is uniquely positioned as the only company with all three semiconductor businesses, allowing it to offer customer-tailored solutions in a single deal.

The company said it plans to introduce an all-in-one, CPO-integrated AI solution in 2027, aiming to provide customers with one-stop AI solutions.

Additionally, Samsung Electronics announced new foundry process nodes, SF2Z and SF4U, for its latest 2 nanometer and 4nm processes to meet the booming demand for AI chips and compete with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing (TSMC), the world's leading foundry.

SF2Z, the company's latest 2nm process, incorporates optimized backside power delivery network (BSPDN) technology to enhance power, performance and area for better high-performance computing designs. The mass production of SF2Z chips is scheduled to begin in 2027.

TSMC had earlier announced plans to apply BSPDN technology to its 1.5nm process by 2026.

Furthermore, Samsung Electronics said its SF4U technology for optical shrink will be applied to its 4nm process, with mass production planned for 2025.

Samsung Electronics said its preparations for the cutting-edge 1.4nm process are progressing "smoothly," with performance and yield targets on track for mass production in 2027. (Yonhap)
By Lee Min-hyung

The new MINI Countryman debuted Thursday with a bigger body size and an iconic round OLED display, joining the tight competition for the premium small SUV market against Mercedes-Benz and Audi.

The third-generation Countryman was unveiled after a seven-year hiatus from its predecessor. The vehicle maintained MINI's symbolic exterior identity, but added a minimalist and modern sentiment to its design. The new vehicle increased its overall body size and is equipped with Samsung Display's 9.4-inch-diameter round OLED.

MINI is expected to ramp up its game against its market rivals, such as the Mercedes-Benz A-Class and Audi Q4.

The smaller brand of BMW Group aims to revive sluggish market sentiment with the new Countryman. According to data from the Korea Automobile Importers & Distributors Association, the Countryman secured the top spot in the imported premium small SUV market here. Its sales came in at 1,151 for the first four months combined this year, outnumbering its rivals, the A-Class and Q4 e-tron.

MINI is also betting big on the electric vehicle (EV) industry with plans to launch an all-electric MINI Cooper and MINI Countryman this year.

Oliver Heilmer, head of MINI Design, underscored the new MINI family's design identity of charismatic simplicity, which is the brand's core value amid its ongoing transition to an EV maker.

The company also spoke highly of its partnership with Samsung Display for the development of the OLED display.

"It took four years for us to develop the round OLED display for MINI," Lim Ji-soo, an engineer at Samsung Display, said during the event. "Our know-how in developing smart watches and technologies for smartphones helped us develop the mid-sized round OLED display for MINI."

The new MINI Countryman also features the latest operating system (OS)  the MINI 9  offering more convenient driving experiences for customers. The OS operates Tmap-based navigation services. Tmap is the most-beloved navigation app among Korean drivers.

MINI unveiled its MINI family lineup during the media event. They include a new three-door gasoline Cooper model and electrified versions of MINI Cooper and Countryman.
By Park Jae-hyuk

Samsung Heavy Industries will sue Zvezda as the Russian shipbuilder asked the Korean shipbuilder to return $800 million worth of advances received and pay interest for arrears after unilaterally canceling their two contracts worth $4.3 billion, the Korean firm said Thursday.

Zvezda abruptly informed Samsung Heavy on Tuesday of the cancellation of their contracts for the Korean firms supply of blocks and equipment for the Russian firm to build 10 icebreaking liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers and seven icebreaking shuttle tankers.

They signed the deals in November 2020 and October 2021.

Following the start of Russias invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, however, the governments of Korea and the United States started regulating exports to the invader.

As a result, Samsung Heavy stopped making the blocks and equipment, citing force majeure.

Earlier this year, the U.S. government designated Zvezda as one of the specially designated nationals and blocked persons and blocked transactions with the Russian company.

After months of negotiation between Samsung Heavy and Zvezda about whether to maintain their contracts, the Russian firm claimed unilaterally that the Korean company breached their agreements.

We regard the clients cancellation of contracts as illegitimate, so we will ask the Singapore International Arbitration Centre Court to judge the illegitimacy and the amount we should return, a Samsung Heavy official said. We also plan to continue talks with the client.

Read More Korean shipbuilders bracing for fallout from Russia war

Securities analysts expect Zvezdas request to have a limited impact on Samsung Heavys business in the short run.

This will not affect the companys construction of other products, Shinyoung Securities analyst Eom Kyung-ah said. It generally takes a long time for the arbitration court to reach a conclusion, so in the short run, there will be no changes to its business and accounts.
By Ko Dong-hwan

GS Caltex is expanding its global cosmetic ingredients business by signing a new partnership with Summit Cosmetics in Japan, the major Korean refiner said Thursday. Both companies are betting on the white-bio industry, which replaces the conventional use of chemicals with natural renewable resources, according to the Korean energy and chemical company.

Kwon Young-woon, head of GS Caltexs R&D Center, met Summit Cosmetics President and CEO Koh Akiyama at the Japanese companys office in Tokyo, Wednesday, and signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to cooperate on expanding their white bio businesses in the global cosmetics market.

A key agreement from the MOU was to complete Summit Cosmetics future products with GS Caltexs GreenDiol, a brand for 2,3-Butanediol (an organic compound and a key cosmetic ingredient) for which the Korean firm has developed the worlds first technologies to mass-produce it. The Korean company said that 2,3-Butanediol is an effective solvent that keeps skin moist, evenly spreads anti-inflammation agents and vitamins and allows smoother application.

By supplying GreenDiol to Summit Cosmetics, GS Caltex can take advantage of the global networks of not just the Japanese firm but also its mother company Sumimoto Corp., a multinational general trading company. Their business networks include countries in the Americas and Europe.

Summit Cosmetics plans to gain approval from Japans Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Agency for the use of GreenDiol in Japan, according to GS Caltex. The approval is expected to boost GreenDiols use in Japans cosmetic market as well as local products for functional cosmetics such as wrinkle solutions and skin whitening.

The latest MOU will accelerate GreenDiols global market expansion, Kwon said. Its GS Caltexs mission to lead the worlds white-bio industry and discover new businesses within the industry.

Prior to the MOU, GS Caltex had been investing in securing its supply network for GreenDiol since 2019. Last year, the brands exports to North America, Europe and Japan jumped 160 times from 2019.

GreenDiol is a result of GS Caltexs Deep Transformation campaign that focuses on expanding the companys businesses to the digital and green sectors across its value chains.
Reports of NK soldiers in Ukraine may show Russia's 'profound' desperation: US official
By Lee Min-hyung

Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong met with leaders of Meta, Amazon and Qualcomm to elevate their tech partnership and discuss future business models particularly, in artificial intelligence (AI), the electronics firm said Thursday.

The high-profile meetings were arranged during Lees two-week-long business trip to the United States. The Samsung chief traveled to the worlds largest economy to monitor the firms global profile amid heightened competition in the tech industry here and abroad, according to the company.

On Tuesday (local time), he was invited to the house of Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Meta, in Palo Alto, California. They held private talks on AI, virtual and augmented reality. They also exchanged ideas on how to deepen their tech alliance in AI, future ICT and software industries. The meeting came about four months after the Meta chief visited Seoul upon the invitation of Lee.

Lee then held talks with Amazon CEO Andy Jassy the following day to boost their partnerships in generative AI and cloud computing. Last year, Amazon unveiled its ambitious bet on the generative AI industry and has since focused on creating cloud-based AI services. Amazon is Samsungs core chip partner.

Samsung and Amazon are diversifying their ties not just in semiconductors, but TVs, mobile devices and content, the Korean firm said.

The latest meeting between Lee and Jassy will level up their partnership in more diverse areas, a Samsung Electronics official said.

Lee also met with Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon to solidify their ties for next-generation chips that are used for AI and telecommunication services. Qualcomm is renowned for its energy-efficient chipsets, most famous for providing its Snapdragon mobile application processor to Samsungs Galaxy smartphone series.

The heads from Samsung and Qualcomm also agreed to expand their alliance to a higher level encompassing AI PCs and more mobile platforms.

Lee also shared his views on the future of semiconductors by holding talks with leaders from global fabless and system-on-chip companies.

We need to pave the way for the future by utilizing our strengths, Lee said after ending his business trip.

Samsung Electronics is scheduled to hold a global strategy meeting with a group of its top-ranking executives and heads from the firms overseas offices sometime around the end of this month.

The outcomes realized due to Lees latest U.S. trip will help the company come up with a specific vision, Samsung Electronics said. The firms top management will also turn the vision into diverse business action plans during the upcoming meeting, so the company can overcome lingering business uncertainties posed by the doldrums that the global economy is currently experiencing and lingering geopolitical risk factors.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that Hamas had proposed numerous changes, some unworkable, to a U.S.-backed proposal for a ceasefire with Israel in Gaza, but that mediators were determined to close the gaps.

Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan denied that the Palestinian Islamist group had put forward new ideas. Speaking to pan-Arab Al-Araby TV, he reiterated Hamas' stance that it was Israel that was rejecting proposals and accused the U.S. administration of going along with its close ally.

White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said many of Hamas' proposed changes were minor "and not unanticipated" while others differed more substantially from what was outlined in a U.N. Security Council resolution on Monday backing the plan put forward by U.S. President Joe Biden.

"Our aim is to bring this process to a conclusion. Our view is that the time for haggling is over," Sullivan told reporters.

Hamas also wants written guarantees from the U.S. on the ceasefire plan, two Egyptian security sources told Reuters.

Late on Wednesday, Hamas issued a statement stressing its "positivity" in the negotiations and urging the U.S. to pressure Israel to accept an agreement leading to a permanent ceasefire in Gaza as well as full withdrawal from the enclave, reconstruction and release of Palestinian prisoners.

The Palestinian group said that while U.S. officials have said Israel has accepted a ceasefire proposal outlined by Biden on May 31, "we have not heard any Israeli official confirm this acceptance."

Biden's proposal envisages a truce and a phased release of Israeli hostages in Gaza in exchange for Palestinians jailed in Israel, ultimately leading to a permanent end to the war.

At a press conference with Qatar's prime minister in Doha, Blinken said some of the counter-proposals from Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007, had sought to amend terms that it had accepted in previous talks.

Months of talks

Negotiators from the U.S., Egypt and Qatar have tried for months to mediate a ceasefire in the conflict which has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and devastated the heavily populated enclave  and free the hostages, more than 100 of whom are believed to remain captive in Gaza.

"Hamas could have answered with a single word: Yes," Blinken said. "Instead, Hamas waited nearly two weeks and then proposed more changes, a number of which go beyond positions that it had previously taken and accepted." In its late Wednesday statement, Hamas said it had expressed its readiness to cooperate while Israel did not. Blinken's stance was "a continuation of the American policy complicit in the brutal genocide against our Palestinian people." The group said the U.S. was providing political and military cover for Israel to press ahead with its assault on Gaza.

The U.S. has said Israel has accepted its proposal, but Israel has not publicly stated this. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly said Israel will not commit to ending its campaign before Hamas is eliminated.

Major powers are intensifying efforts to defuse the conflict in part to prevent it spiralling into a wider Middle East war, with a dangerous flashpoint being the escalating hostilities along the Lebanese-Israeli border.

The fighting in Gaza began on Oct. 7 when militants led by Hamas burst across the border and killed 1,200 Israelis and took more than 250 hostage, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel's air and ground war since then has killed more than 37,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's health ministry, displaced most of Gaza's population of 2.3 million and devastated housing and infrastructure.

The head of the World Health Organization said on Wednesday many people in Gaza were facing "catastrophic hunger and famine-like conditions," with over 8,000 children under five years old diagnosed and treated for acute malnutrition.

A U.N. inquiry found that both Israel and Hamas had committed war crimes early in the Gaza war, and that Israel's actions also constituted crimes against humanity because of the immense civilian losses.

Israel continues assaults in Gaza

As diplomats sought a ceasefire deal, Israel continued assaults in central and southern Gaza that are among the bloodiest of the war.

Israeli forces stepped up air and tank bombardment on Wednesday night in Rafah and central Gaza, residents said. An Israeli air strike on a house in Al-Nuseirat refugee camp killed three people, medics said.

Residents earlier said Israeli forces pounded areas across Gaza on Wednesday as tanks advanced towards northern Rafah, which skirts the Egyptian border.

Palestinian health officials said six people were killed in an airstrike on Gaza City in the north, and one man had been killed by a tank shell in Rafah. (Reuters)
A Russian nuclear-powered submarine and other naval vessels arrived in Cuba Wednesday for a five-day visit to the communist island off Florida's coast in a show of force amid spiraling US-Russian tensions.

The submarine Kazan, which Cuba says is not carrying nuclear weapons, was accompanied by the frigate Admiral Gorshkov, as well as an oil tanker and a salvage tug.

Russia's defense ministry said in a statement that prior to entering the Havana port, the fleet "completed an exercise on the use of high-precision missile weapons."

The unusual deployment of the Russian military so close to the United States  particularly the powerful submarine  comes amid major tensions over the war in Ukraine, where the Western-backed government is fighting a Russian invasion.

"We of course take it seriously, but these exercises don't pose a threat to the United States," Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told journalists.

The port call coincided on Wednesday with a meeting in Moscow between Cuba's Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, as the two former Cold War allies further tighten their links.

During the meeting, Rodriguez expressed his government's "rejection of the expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) towards the Russian border," which he said "led to the current conflict in Europe, and especially between Moscow and Kyiv," according to a Cuban foreign ministry statement.

He also called for "a diplomatic, constructive and realistic solution" to the crisis.

The Kazan and Admiral Gorshkov, which is one of Russia's most modern warships, could be seen just off Havana, which is about 90 miles (145 kilometers) from the tip of Florida.

The tanker Pashin and the tug, flying the white, blue and red tricolor of Russia, entered the harbor early Wednesday morning, an AFP reporter said.

"In the coming days, the crews of the ships and support vessels will take part in a number of protocol events," Russia's defense ministry said in a statement published by the Interfax news agency.

Historic relations

Cuba's military said the visit by the naval detachment "strictly complies with international regulations" and is a nod to "the historic relations of friendship" between Havana and Moscow.

Pentagon press secretary Singh said port calls of this nature are "routine naval visits that we've seen under different administrations."

"We're always constantly going to monitor any foreign vessels operating near US territorial waters."

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel met with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin last month for the annual May 9 military parade on Red Square outside the Kremlin.

He wished Russia "success" in its Ukraine offensive and condemned "the geopolitical manipulation" of the United States, in comments reported by Russia's TASS news agency.

During the Cold War, Cuba was an important client state for the Soviet Union. The deployment of Soviet nuclear missile sites on the island triggered the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, when Washington and Moscow came close to war.

Relations between Russia and Cuba have become closer since a 2022 meeting between Diaz-Canel and Putin. (AFP)
Linguist, activist and social critic Noam Chomsky is hospitalized in his wife's native country of Brazil recovering from a massive stroke he had a year ago, she confirmed Tuesday.

Valeria Chomsky said via email that her 95-year-old husband is in a Sao Paulo hospital, where she took him on an ambulance jet with two nurses once he could more easily travel from the United States following the June 2023 stroke. The couple has had a residence there since 2015.

She confirmed the details of a Monday report in the Brazilian newspaper Folha de S.Paulo, which said her husband has difficulty speaking and the right side of his body is affected. He is visited daily by a neurologist, speech therapist and lung specialist.

Valeria Chomsky told the newspaper that her husband follows the news and when he sees images of the war in Gaza, he raises his left arm in a gesture of lament and anger.

Noam Chomsky, seen by many around the world as a symbol of protest and independence, is an influential activist and critic who has frequently challenged U.S. policy on everything from the Middle East to Central America, as well as what he considers a compliant media. His books and essays are read and discussed by millions.

Chomsky was a longtime faculty member at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. In 2017, he joined the College of Social & Behavioral Sciences at the University of Arizona in Tucson, where he is currently listed as Laureate Professor of Linguistics, Agnese Helms Haury Chair.

He transformed the study of linguistics with his landmark 1957 book, Syntactic Structures, in which he wrote that humans do not simply learn language but are born with an innate ability that explains how they can formulate and understand sentences never seen or heard before.

Valeria Chomsky also told Folha de S.Paulo that she is thinking about moving to an apartment near the beach in Rio de Janeiro after reading that living in a sunny place can help stroke patients. (AP)
A Group of Seven summit opened Thursday with agreement reached on a U.S. proposal to back a $50 billion loan to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets as collateral, giving Kyiv a strong show of support even as Europe's political chessboard shifts to the right.

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni welcomed the G7 heads of state to the summit at a luxury resort in southern Italy, saying she wanted the message of this meeting to be one of dialogue with the global south and unity.

She likened the G7 to the ancient olive trees that are a symbol of the Puglia region, with their solid roots, and branches projected toward the future.

Beyond the the war in Ukraine, Pope Francis will become the first pope to address a G7 summit, adding a dash of celebrity and moral authority to the annual gathering. Hell be speaking Friday about the promises and perils of artificial intelligence , but is expected to also renew his appeal for a peaceful end to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

The G7 includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. Italy, which is hosting the summit, has invited several African leaders  Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune , Kenyan President William Ruto and Tunisian President Kais Saied  to press Italy's development and migration initiatives on the continent.

Other guests include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva , Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, fresh off his own election, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

With Biden, U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and now French President Emmanuel Macron facing elections in the coming months, pressure was on the G7 to get done what it can while the status quo lasts.

The U.S. proposal involves engineering a $50 billion loan to help Ukraine in its fight against Russia that would use interest earned on profits from Russias frozen central bank assets, most of them held in the European Union, as collateral.

A French official, briefing reporters Wednesday, said a political decision by the leaders had been reached but that technical and legal details of the mechanism to tap into the assets still had to be worked out. The issue is complicated because if the Russian assets one day are unfrozen  say if the war ends  then the windfall profits will no longer be able to be used to pay off the loan, requiring a burden-sharing arrangement with other countries.

In addition to the deal, Sunak announced up to 242 million pounds (286 million euros or $310 million) in nonmilitary aid to Ukraine for humanitarian, energy and stabilization needs. Washington also sent strong signals of support, with widened sanctions against Russia to target Chinese companies that are helping its war machine.

Meloni goes into the meeting fortified at home and abroad after her far-right party had an even stronger showing in the European Parliament election than the national general election in 2022 that made her Italys first female premier. Known for its revolving-door governments, Italy is now in the unusual position of being the most stable power in the EU.

The leaders of the G7s two other EU members, Germany and France, didn't fare nearly as well, rattled after hard-right parties made strong showings in the vote. Macron called a snap election and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz saw his Social Democrats finish behind mainstream conservatives and the far-right Alternative for Germany.

As a result, Meloni is likely to be able to steer the three-day meeting to her key priority items as she further cements her role on the world stage, analysts said. One sign of her flexed far-right muscles: Meloni's office denied media reports that Italy was trying to water down language about access to abortion in the final communique.

A French official, speaking anonymously in line with Macrons office customary practices, said there were diverging views with Italian negotiators on some topics, including on sexual and reproductive health and vaccines.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani confirmed abortion was being discussed, but said discussions were continuing.

While its unlikely the recent results will radically shift the focus of the upcoming G7 Summit, this electoral win offers Premier Meloni additional leverage to frame this as an essentially Mediterranean Summit, said Nick OConnell, deputy director of the Atlantic Council.

That includes pushing her migration agenda as Meloni seeks to leverage her program for a nonexploitative relationship with Africa to boost development while curbing illegal migration to Europe.

Pope Francis has called for an international treaty to ensure AI is developed and used ethically, acknowledging the promise it offers but emphasizing the grave and existential threats it poses.

He'll bring that campaign to the world's industrialized countries as wars are raging across multiple fronts. One of his greatest concerns has been on the use of AI in the armaments sector, which has been a frequent focus of the Jesuit pope who has called even traditional weapons makers merchants of death.

But Francis is also concerned about what AI means for the poorest and weakest: technology that could determine the reliability of an applicant for a mortgage, the right of a migrant to receive political asylum or the chance of reoffending by someone previously convicted of a crime.

The G7 summit is taking place in a sprawling luxury resort thats something of a theater set, a faux town made to resemble one of Puglias medieval white-washed hamlets but that actually only dates from 2010.

Located next to an actual archaeological park, Borgo Egnazia features narrow streets, villas, restaurants and a town square complete with a clocktower. A favorite of celebrities, it will be sealed off to outsiders for the duration of the summit.

No such five-star accommodations await the 2,000-plus police and Carabinieri forces who have been brought in to provide security. Authorities on Wednesday sequestered the decommissioned cruise ship that had been housing them in Brindisis port, after the police union complained about unacceptable hygienic conditions on board.

As with any G7, an assortment of anti-global, anti-war and climate activists are staging protests around the summit venue, but far from where the leaders are meeting. One group is staging a dinner for the poor on Friday night calling for peace, the rights of peoples and against the Big 7 who claim to decide the destiny of the world and our planet. (AP)
Authorities in Greece are closing down the Acropolis in Athens during the afternoon on Thursday for a second day as the country swelters under unseasonably high temperatures.

The Culture Ministry said the hilltop citadel, which is Greece's most popular ancient site, would be closed from midday to 5 p.m. (0900-1400 GMT) because of the heat.

All other archaeological sites in the Greek capital were closed during the same hours. People who had booked visits for that period could use their tickets later in the day until the sites close at 8 p.m., the ministry said.

Temperatures are expected to exceed 40 C (104 F) on Thursday in much of central and southern Greece, including greater Athens, the Cyclades and Crete.

Officials are on heightened alert for wildfires, which plague Greece every summer.

The minister responsible for civil protection, Vassilis Kikilias, said Thursday posed a particular wildfire risk due to the combination of high temperatures and winds.

The early start of the heat waves, combined with the dry winter, has led to a very difficult fire season, he said.

The fire service also warned of a very high wildfire threat on Friday.

Authorities in Athens are providing air-conditioned areas to the public and have issued fans to secondary schools where end-of-year and university entrance exams are being held.

Temperatures are expected to drop on Friday and Saturday. (AP)
The European Unions top court ordered Hungary to pay a fine of 200 million euros ($216 million) on Thursday for persistently breaking the blocs asylum rules despite a previous European Court of Justice ruling, plus an additional 1 million euros for every day it fails to comply going forward.

Hungary had not implemented a 2020 ruling from top EU judges in Luxembourg, the ECJ wrote in a press release. That failure, which consists in deliberately avoiding the application of a common EU policy as a whole, constitutes an unprecedented and extremely serious infringement of EU law.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban slammed the ruling as outrageous and unacceptable.

It seems that illegal migrants are more important to the Brussels bureaucrats than their own European citizens, he wrote on the social media platform X.

Hungarys anti-immigrant government has taken a hard line on people entering the country since well over 1 million people entered Europe in 2015, most of them fleeing conflict in Syria.

The case concerns changes Hungary made to its asylum system in the wake of that crisis, when some 400,000 people passed through Hungary on their way to Western Europe. Hungary built fences protected by razor wire on its southern borders with Serbia and Croatia and a pair of transit zones for holding asylum seekers on its border with Serbia. Those transit zones have since closed.

The measures were part of Orbans increasingly strict anti-immigration policies and the extreme minimization of Hungarys asylum system.

Back in 2020, the ECJ found that Budapests policies had restricted access to international protection, unlawfully detained asylum applicants and failed to observe their right to stay in Hungary while their application went through the full due process, the court recalled on Thursday.

The transit zones were closed in 2020, shortly after the first ECJ ruling.

But the European Commission, which is responsible for monitoring the 27 EU member states compliance with their shared laws, took the view that Budapest had still not complied and requested the European Court of Justice to fine Hungary, the ECJ said Thursday.

After the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak in 2020, the Hungarian government also pushed through a law forcing people seeking international protection to travel to Belgrade or Kyiv to apply for a travel permit at its embassies there to enter Hungary. Only once back could they file their applications.

The European Commission took Hungary to the European Court of Justice over the law, insisting that the country had failed to fulfil its obligations under the 27-nations blocs rules. The rules oblige all member countries to have common procedures for granting asylum.

People have the right to apply for asylum or other forms of international protection if they fear for their safety in their home countries or face the prospect of persecution based on their race, religion, ethnic background, gender or other discrimination. (AP)
A bipartisan bill seeking to counter Beijing's narrative about China's control over Tibet and promote dialogue between the Chinese government and the Dalai Lama is heading to U.S. President Joe Biden's desk.

The House of Representatives voted 391-26 on Wednesday to approve the Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Dispute Act, which passed the Senate last month.

The bill, introduced in the Senate by Oregon Democrat Jeff Merkley, would direct funds to counter what it calls "disinformation" from Beijing about Tibet's history, people and institutions.

The bill refutes the Chinese government's claim that Tibet has been part of China since ancient times, and would make it U.S. policy that the dispute over Tibet's status is unresolved.

It would also make it U.S. policy that "Tibet" refers not only to the Tibet autonomous region as defined by the Chinese government, but also Tibetan areas of Gansu, Qinghai, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces.

"Passing this bill demonstrates America's resolve that the [Chinese Communist Party] status quo in Tibet is not acceptable and I can think of no greater message or gift to the Dalai Lama and the people of Tibet," said Republican representative Michael McCaul of Texas on the House floor Tuesday.

In hardening the language around Washington's position on Tibet, the bill's backers hope to pressure Beijing into resuming negotiations with the Dalai Lama, the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader. The two sides have not held a formal dialogue since 2010.

The House had already passed a version of the Senate bill in February. The sponsor of that House bill, Democrat Jim McGovern of Massachusetts, has said that past appeals by the U.S. for negotiations between Beijing and the Dalai Lama "without preconditions" had failed.

Beijing contends that Tibet has remained under central Chinese rule for over 700 years, despite extended periods in which Tibetan campaigners argue that the region was effectively self-governed.

The Dalai Lama has said that he does not seek political independence for Tibet, but has not recognized Beijing's historical claim over Tibet.

In April, China's foreign ministry reasserted that any contact or talks with the spiritual leader would concern his "personal future" or, at most, that of his close associates, and not the question of Tibetan autonomy.

The U.S. State Department considers the autonomous region and other Tibetan areas as part of China, but the bill's supporters note that the U.S. government has never taken the position that the Chinese Communist Party's occupation of the region in the 1950s abided by international law.

The bill's authors argue that the Chinese government is "systematically suppressing" the ability of Tibetans to preserve their religion, culture, language, history, way of life, and environment, and assert that the Tibetan people have a right to "self-determination."

Since taking office in 2021, Biden has yet to meet the Dalai Lama. As a candidate in 2020, Biden criticized Donald Trump for being the only U.S. president in three decades who had neither met nor spoken to the Tibetan spiritual leader.

The U.S. president has, however, expressed sympathy for the Tibetan cause, raising concerns with President Xi Jinping about China's actions in Tibet and appointing a high-ranking State Department official to serve as special coordinator for Tibetan issues.

The Dalai Lama has announced plans to visit the U.S. this month for knee treatment, but there are no details about any meetings between him and U.S. officials. Beijing opposes contact by officials of any country with the Dalai Lama.

Read the full story at SCMP
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In a recent airport sighting, Stray Kids Changbin and Felix stirred up a storm of reactions among fans, affectionately known as STAYs.

The K-pop idols, fresh off a trip from South Korea to Japan for an offline event, returned on June 10th, prompting their fans to flock to social media to discuss their airport fashion choices.

Changbin caught the attention of many STAYs with his infamous and provocative T-shirt featuring a design of the Statue of Liberty engaging in a rather unconventional activity with a T.Rex.

Meanwhile, Felix was spotted pulling out a sizable Bible from his Louis Vuitton bag, drawing contrasting reactions from fans.

Felix at the airport with a huge ass bible(?) while Changbin has that shirt on of Lady Liberty being railed by a T.Rex what an experience pic.twitter.com/wzdB89Jbxs  Ber : *Hans Chocochip (@aBichenPOV) June 10, 2024

Amidst the laughter and amusement sparked by the stark differences in their attire, some STAYs took to social media to share their thoughts.

One fan even humorously lamented the price of Changbin's shirt, expressing a desire to match with him but finding it difficult to justify the cost.

However, it was Felix's choice of accessory that truly captivated fans.

changbin wearing a shirt that has a print of the statue of liberty and a t-rex having sex while felix is carrying a massive bible cant believe im writing this sentence  zars and raindrops by seungmin (@puppymfan) June 10, 2024

Images of Felix with the large Bible prompted a flurry of reactions online, with some suggesting he opt for a smaller, more travel-friendly version or utilize digital alternatives.

felix pulling out a big ass bible in the middle of the airport is kinda what wraps this all together https://t.co/OQDo1Z1SzL June 11, 2024

While the majority of responses were light-hearted or supportive of Felix's religious expression, a minority of netizens took a more negative stance.

THE BIBLE?! FELIX?!! 

I see people telling him to get a smaller bible but I honestly think that's a study bible, like a bible and a note book in one? 

I mean he could just get a note book and a smaller bible but.... Ig it's alright lol pic.twitter.com/ecYy4Rz2W9 June 10, 2024

READ MORE: THIS Stray Kids Member Is Considered K-pop Icon Rain's Doppelganger - Who Could It Be?

Some even went as far as claiming they would unstanning or switch biases upon learning of Felix's Christian faith.

However, the tide of opinion swiftly turned in Felix's favor as more STAYs came to his defense.

IM CRYINGGGG baby lets get you a smaller bible  pic.twitter.com/rmOFxsXnxe  lee felix (@cbszzo) June 10, 2024

Many pointed out that his religious beliefs have long been known, with Felix openly practicing Catholicism.

They emphasized the importance of respecting his personal choices and highlighted his inclusive and accepting attitude towards fans of all backgrounds.

Numerous fans rallied around Felix, commending his commitment to his faith and the deeper significance behind his choice of a study Bible.

Stays unstanning skz and hating Felix because he reads the Bible is actually wild pic.twitter.com/WGhnBnulqh June 10, 2024

They praised his dedication to understanding and learning, noting that his actions reflect his genuine character and values.

Ultimately, the airport fashion moment sparked a meaningful conversation among fans about religious tolerance, personal beliefs, and the importance of respecting individual choices within the Stray Kids fandom.

ALSO READ: Stray Kids I.N Has STAYs Taking Second Look for His Resemblance To THIS 'Lovely Runner' Star

KpopStarz owns this article.

Written by Cassidy Jones
Recently, 5th generation girl group tripleS revealed that a couple of members had moved out of their dorms. This change occurred during non-promotional periods, with some members choosing to reside elsewhere and only returning to the dorms when the group is actively promoting.

This unconventional arrangement sparked criticism and concern among fans, who treasure the tradition of dorm living in K-Pop culture.

THIS 5th-gen girl group announced their shift from from the traditional dorm-living model to a more independent lifestyle. https://t.co/IIfBKKKesp  KpopStarz (@kpopstarz) June 13, 2024

Among the members who moved out was Kim Yooyeon, one of the group's most popular figures. In response to the backlash, she issued an apology to fans, explaining her decision and reassuring them of her commitment to the group.

READ MORE: Where Is Former 'My Teenage Girl' Contestant Kim Yoo Yeon? Here's What We Know

I fvcking HATE you all pic.twitter.com/LPMG0q0jAt   something (@kkumHighley) June 13, 2024

"I'm writing this after lots of consideration. I'm so sorry and sad to think that many fans were worried and bothered about what we said on Signal yesterday. Firstly, I think we did make a big statement, but anyway, next month I have lots of overseas schedules and I think I'll be moving back into the dorms within the next two months at most. Due to some family matters, I moved out of the dorms into my family home, which is near to the office in Seoul. I hope you guys will consider it as a vacation of sorts for me. I hope you guys don't think too much of it. When I move back into the dorms after one or two months, it'll be shown on Signal too. And even during non-promotional periods, I'm always with the members from lunch to dinner, going to the company daily and practicing, so you don't have to worry too much." - Kim Yooyeon

Dorm living is a significant part of K-Pop culture, particularly for rookie groups. It fosters close bonds among members and is seen as essential for developing teamwork and discipline.

Given that tripleS debuted as a full group in 2024, many fans felt it was premature for the members to move out. The departure of even a few members from the dorms was enough to stir concern, highlighting the strong connection fans feel towards traditional K-Pop practices.

YOU MIGHT BE ALSO INTERESTED IN: K-Netz Spill Tea on ZB1 Kim Gyuvin & TripleS Kim Yooyeon's 'Golden Spoon' Lives

For more K-Pop news and updates, keep your tabs open here at KpopStarz.

KpopStarz owns this article.

Written by Cassidy Jones.
An ARMY (BTS fan) is facing backlash for trying to kiss Jin during his three-hour-long hug session.

On June 12, 2024, Jin became the first member of BTS to be discharged from his mandatory military service. He was discharged from the 5th Infantry Division's training center in Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi Province. During his time in the military, he served as an assistant instructor.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: BTS Jin Reunites With Co-Members After Military Discharge - But Where Is Suga?

To celebrate his return as a BTS member, Jin attended the 2024 BTS FESTA event on June 13. The event was held at the Jamsil Arena in Seoul. There, the idol finally reunited with the ARMYs.

Choppy bang seokjin comeback pic.twitter.com/ODuMi2eXoa  JIN UPDATES (@seokjin_updates) June 13, 2024

The event was held to celebrate BTS's debut anniversary. As the only BTS member active and not partaking in the mandatory military enlistment, Jin held a unique hugging session where he embraced 1,000 fans.

the many angles of me & jin  pic.twitter.com/mzK2Hecvne       * (@95rockpjm) June 13, 2024

THE HUG EVENT STARTED  pic.twitter.com/u00TugVv4s  jin files (@seokjinfile) June 13, 2024

YOU MIGHT BE INTERESTED IN: HYBE's Streets Shut Down as Massive Crowd Goes Wild for BTS

For the event, Jin wore an adorable sign that read "Hug me." The idol left fans shaken with his youthful visuals and short hair. The event was bustling with ARMYs from all around the globe decked out in purple to celebrate BTS's 11th debut anniversary.

WE ARE SO BACK pic.twitter.com/slBMzZ6cfD  jin files (@seokjinfile) June 13, 2024

While most fans paid their respects in a proper way, one interaction between an ARMY and Jin is drawing backlash online.

CHECK THIS OUT: BTS Jin Breaks Silence on Scandalous Fan Hug Event Details -'They Asked Me if I Had Any Ideas, But...'

While most fans hugged Jin and went on their way, one fan was seen getting uncomfortably close to the idol. As they wrapped their arms around him, they brought their face close to his ear and reportedly attempted to kiss him.

THE SECOND ARMY WAS WHISPERING AND ALMOST KISS SEOKJIN'S CHEEKS



ME WHEN I WANT A HUG TOOpic.twitter.com/Bkd2zfAXwS   | JIN IS COMING HOME | Fan Account (@HuriaKimV) June 13, 2024

This incident sparked outrage among netizens, who claimed the fan had acted out of line and disrespected Jin's personal space, thus making him uncomfortable.

To the second girl wearing a blue outer, it's clear that you initiated non-consensual touching/kissing, which made Seokjin flinched and felt uncomfortable. This behavior is also categorized as sexual harassment. People like you should never have been near any member. https://t.co/9M92Sx4Z2L June 13, 2024

ALSO READ: BTS Jungkook's Startling Military Service Scar Ignites Speculations

This incident highlights the idol's need for personal space. Although the event was held to give back love to the fans, many need to remember that idols are humans and not a character in their fantasies.

im sorry but the girl with jins pj merch made jin pull away. pls dont make him uncomfortable https://t.co/E4dYN5Z5zm June 13, 2024

the girl with blue thing better step back cus it shows that seokjin is uncomfortable with the sudden move, his body language can't lie  https://t.co/CvmY5a0WZM   (@tekooila) June 13, 2024

What do you think of the situation? Tell us in the comments below!

FOR YOU: Top 100 K-pop Male Idol Vocalists THIS 2024 According To Fan Votes: BTS Jimin, V, More!

KpopStarz Owns This

Written by Alexa Lopez
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New Delhi, Jun 12 (PTI) The Delhi government is planning to build a fourth inter-state bus terminal (ISBT) in the national capital near the Tikri border to cater to buses coming from Haryana, officials said on Wednesday.

Delhi has three ISBTs -- Anand Vihar, Sarai Kale Khan, and Kashmere Gate.

Also Read | Odisha: BJP Government Fulfills Poll Promise in First Cabinet Meeting, Approves Proposal to Re-Open All Four Gates of Shree Jagannath Temple in Puri (Watch Video).

The project to build the fourth ISBT is at a nascent stage with the government identifying a piece of land for the purpose, said an official.

"Haryana-bound buses also traverse through Kashmere Gate but if a bus terminal is built at Tikri border, it will ease the burden on Kashmere Gate and also provide relief to commuters," he added.

Also Read | PM Narendra Modi Holds Meeting to Review Kuwait Fire Incident; MEA Team to Visit Place On June 13 (Watch Video).

The government initially has plans to build a small bus terminal for the purpose of ensuring facilities for five to six buses and then expand it for more buses, he added.

Another official said that a terminal in outer Delhi will also help when Delhi's pollution levels rise in winter months.

He said that buses from states not complying with norms can be directed to be stationed there.

The Delhi government had notified that the entry of buses, barring CNG, BSVI diesel and electric ones, will be automatically banned in the city whenever restrictions under the final stage of the Centre's air pollution control plan are invoked.

Stage IV is the final stage of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP).

In October last year, the Delhi government had directed that all buses entering the national capital from Haryana will have to run on electricity, CNG or BS-VI diesel. Buses entering from the NCR regions of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan also need to follow these norms.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, June 11: Two Indian nationals, who were recruited by the Russian Army, have recently been killed in the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Tuesday. India has strongly taken up the matter with Russia and sought early release and return of all Indian nationals who are with the Russian Army, it said. "We regret to state that two Indian nationals who had been recruited by the Russian Army have recently been killed in the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine," the MEA said.

"We offer our deepest condolences to the families of the deceased. Our embassy in Moscow has pressed the Russian authorities, including the Ministry of Defence, for early repatriation of mortal remains," it said. Several Indians have been working as security helpers in the Russian military, and they were forced to fight with Russian soldiers in certain areas along Russia's border with Ukraine, according to reports. Russia-Ukraine War: 22 Civilians Killed As Ukrainian Forces Bombed Store in Kherson, Says Regions Governor.

"The Ministry of External Affairs and the Indian embassy in Moscow have strongly taken up the matter with the Russian Ambassador in New Delhi and with Russian authorities in Moscow respectively, for early release and return of all Indian nationals who are with the Russian Army," the MEA said in a statement. Russia-Ukraine War: Fire Erupts Near Kyiv After Targeted With Dozens of Drones, Missiles (See Pics and Video).

It said India has also demanded that there be a "verified stop to any further recruitment of our nationals by the Russian Army. Such activities would not be in consonance with our partnership." "We also urge Indian nationals to exercise caution while seeking employment opportunities in Russia," the MEA said.
London, Jun 11: Animal rights activists pasted a cartoon image over a portrait of King Charles III on Tuesday at a London art gallery, the latest in a series of incidents at UK museums as campaigners use vandalism to publicize their causes. A group called Animal Rising shared a video of campaigners pasting a picture of a character called Wallace, from the Wallace and Gromit comedy series, over the king's head.

The so-called 'comic redecoration? was designed to highlight an investigation that Animal Rising said found widespread violation of animal husbandry rules at farms approved by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. A speech bubble next to the head of Wallace read: No cheese, Gromit. Look at all this cruelty on RSPCA farms! The painting is protected by a sheet of plastic and wasn't damaged, according to the Philip Mould Gallery, where it is on display. King Charles III Honours a Generation That Fought, Died and Waited for Freedom

The larger-than-life painting by Jonathan Yeo was unveiled last month and is the first portrait of Charles to be completed since he ascended the throne in 2022. It captures the king in shades of red with his hands clasped atop the hilt of his sword and a butterfly flitting above his right shoulder. The portrait was commissioned to celebrate Charles' 50 years as a member of the Drapers' Company, which was set up more than 600 years ago as a trade association for wool merchants but is now primarily a philanthropic organisation. King Charles III Banknotes Enter Circulation in UK Today, To Coexist With Queen Elizabeths Notes (Watch Video)

Animal Rights Activists Attack Portrait of King Charles III

BREAKING: No Cheese Gromit! King Charles Portrait Redecorated @RoyalFamily Find out why King Charles, Patron of the RSPCA should ask them to drop the Assured Scheme -> https://t.co/pTneW0QCWf  pic.twitter.com/jYLHFuxtHB  Animal Rising (@AnimalRising) June 11, 2024

On May 10, two climate change protesters attacked the protective glass case housing an original copy of the Magna Carta at the British Library. The 800-year-old document, seen as one of foundations of western democracy, wasn't damaged.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, June 12: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to leave for Italy on Thursday to participate in the 50th G7 Summit, scheduled on June 13 and 14. Italian PM Giorgia Meloni has invited PM Modi to the G7 Outreach Summit in Puglia on June 14. Addressing a special briefing on PM Modi's upcoming visit, Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra said, "At the invitation of Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be travelling to Apulia, Italy tomorrow to participate in the 50th G7 Summit which is to be held there on June 14 where India has been invited as an Outreach Country."

Notably, this will mark Modi's first overseas travel after assuming office in his third consecutive term as Prime Minister. "It will also afford him an opportunity to engage with other world leaders present at the G7 Summit on issues of importance to India as also to the Global South," Kwatra said. During the Summit, PM Modi is also expected to hold a bilateral meeting with Giorgia Meloni. PM Narendra Modi to Travel to Italy This Week for G7 Summit in First Trip Abroad After Assuming Office for Third Term

"They last met during the COP28 Summit in Abu Dhabi in December 2023," Kwatra said. In the meeting, the two Prime Ministers are expected to review the entire gamut of bilateral ties and give directions for next steps, he said. Italy is the Chair of G7 this year and is hosting the Summit of the informal grouping of seven of the world's advanced economies which also includes Canada, France, Germany Japan the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as the European Union.

This will be India's eleventh participation in the G7 summit and PM Modi's fifth consecutive participation in the G7 summit. On June 14, PM Modi will also participate in the outreach session along with the other countries, who are invited for the outreach summit. At this summit, the focus will be on Artificial intelligence (AI), energy, Africa and the Mediterranean, which will be a block agenda item where the G7 and the outreach countries will share their views and perspectives, Kwatra noted.

"The G7 points to increasing recognition and contribution of the efforts that India has been consistently making including those of peace, security, development and environment preservation," Vinay Kwatra said. India's participation at this G7 summit required particular salience in the context of India's presidency of G20 where India took a leading role in building global consensus on number of contentious issues. Lok Sabha Election Results 2024: Italy PM Georgia Meloni Congratulates Prime Minister Narendra Modi After NDA's Win

The G7 summit under the Italian presidency has chosen some key priorities for the current year, in broad terms. These included conflict in Russia-Ukraine and the Middle East with its consequences for the global agenda; secondly, relationship with developing nations and emerging economies with a focus on Africa and the Indo-Pacific region; third, migration, together with climate energy linakges and food security and; last, the Artificial Intelligence (AI).

"PM's participation in the G7 summit would also provide a timely opportunity to follow up outcomes of the G20 Summit held under India's presidency last year and deliberate on issues focused on the global south," he said. PM Modi will also hold bilateral meetings with the G7 leaders on the sidelines of the Summit.

"On the sidelines of the G7 in Italy, PM Modi is also expected to hold bilateral meetings and discussions with the leaders of the G7 as also the outreach countries and the international organisations," Kwatra said. Moreover, Italy has also invited Algeria, Argentina, Brazil, Egypt, Kenya, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Tunisia and also UN.

The two countries have close and friendly relations with the two modern and mature democracies, committed to the rule of law, respect for human rights and achieving economic development through inclusive growth. The countries celebrated 75 years of establishment of diplomatic relations last year.PM Modi visited Italy for the G20 Summit in October 2021 and the Italian PM visited India on a State visit in March 2023 and was Chief Guest at the Raisina Dialogue. She also visited India for the G20 Summit.

India-Italy bilateral relations were upgraded to the level of 'Strategic Partnership' with a focus on defence, Indo-Pacific, energy and science & technology during her visit. There have been several high-level engagements between the two sides since the State visit of the Italian Prime Minister to India.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi [India], June 13 (ANI): Sri Lanka High Commissioner Kshenuka Senewiratne called on Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday in New Delhi.

Upon meeting Sitharaman, Senewiratne also extended felicitations on her reappointment as India's Finance Minister.

Also Read | Live News Updates Today.

"Sri Lanka High Commissioner Kshenuka Senewiratne together w/DHC Priyanga Wickramasinghe called on Hon @nsitharamanoffc today to extend felicitations on her reappointment as India's Finance Minister," the High Commission of Sri Lanka in New Delhi wrote in a post on X.

"SriLanka looks fwd to enhancing the enduring friendship & cooperation b/w &" the post read.

Also Read | G7 Summit 2024: Joe Biden and Volodymyr Zelenskyy Will Sign Security Agreement Between US and Ukraine When They Meet at Group of Seven Summit.

https://x.com/SLinIndia/status/1800905808106139958

In a second stint, Nirmala Sitharaman on Wednesday morning formally assumed charge as Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs.

Sitharaman was greeted at the office in North Block by Finance Secretary TV Somanathan and other Secretaries of the Ministry of Finance and Corporate Affairs.

Nirmala Sitharaman, who is among a few who have been Union Minister in both the 2014 and 2019 Modi cabinets, took oath as Union Cabinet Minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's new Union Council of Ministers on Sunday evening in the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan, along with another 70 Council of Ministers.

She will soon present the full Budget for 2024-25, but the dates are yet to be announced.

In the 2014 cabinet, she served as the Minister of State for Finance and Corporate Affairs and later the Minister for Commerce and Industry with Independent Charge. In 2017, she was appointed as the Union Defence Minister.

In 2019, Sitharaman assumed charge as the Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs.

She was the first woman appointed as the full-time Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs. Earlier, Indira Gandhi had held finance as an additional portfolio for a short duration when she was the prime minister of India. (ANI)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
Dubai, Jun 13 (AP) Yemen's Houthi rebels launched a boat-borne bomb attack against a commercial ship in the Red Sea on Wednesday, authorities said, the latest escalation despite a US-led campaign trying to protect the vital waterway.

The use of a boat loaded with explosives raised the spectre of 2000's USS Cole attack, a suicide assault by al-Qaida on the warship when it was at port in Aden, killing 17 on board. Associated Press journalists saw the Cole in the Red Sea on Wednesday, now taking part in the US campaign while visiting one of her sister ships, the USS Laboon.

Also Read | G7 Summit 2024: Joe Biden and Volodymyr Zelenskyy Will Sign Security Agreement Between US and Ukraine When They Meet at Group of Seven Summit.

Yemen's military spokesman Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree claimed responsibility for the attack, identifying the vessel targeted as the Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned bulk carrier Tutor.

In a warning to shippers, the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations centre described the vessel as being hit in its stern by a small white craft southwest of the Houthi-controlled port city of Hodeida.

Also Read | Kuwait Building Fire: Death Toll in Building Blaze Climbs to 49; PM Narendra Modi, EAM S Jaishankar Condole Deaths (Watch Videos).

The captain reports the vessel is taking on water, and not under command of the crew, the UKMTO said. He also reports the vessel was hit for a second time by an unknown airborne projectile.

It also wasn't immediately clear whether the attack involved people on board or a remotely piloted drone boat. However, the Houthis have used drone boats so far in their campaign and have not been known to launch suicide attacks.

The Houthis, who seized Yemen's capital nearly a decade ago and have been fighting a Saudi-led coalition since shortly after, have been targeting shipping throughout the Red Sea corridor over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. They say the attacks are aimed at stopping the war and supporting the Palestinians, though the attacks often target vessels that have nothing to do with the conflict.

The war in Gaza has killed more than 36,000 Palestinians there, while hundreds of others have been killed in Israeli operations in the West Bank. It began after Hamas-led militants attacked Israel on October 7, killing about 1,200 people and taking around 250 hostage.

The Houthis have launched more than 50 attacks on shipping, killed three sailors, seized one vessel and sunk another since November, according to the US Maritime Administration. A US-led air strike campaign has targeted the Houthis since January, with a series of strikes May 30 killing at least 16 people and wounding 42 others, the rebels say.

AP journalists on an embark with the US Navy happened to be interviewing Cmdr. Eric Blomberg, the commanding officer of the Arleigh Burke-class guided missile destroyer Laboon, when the alert came in on the attack. Blomberg took multiple calls from sailors on board the vessel giving updates on the apparent attack. The Laboon is one of the destroyers accompanying the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier and both has shot down Houthi fire and escorted vessels through the region.

Though he and others stressed at the time they were still investigating the attack, he stressed it appeared the vessel targeted had nothing to do with the war.

The Houthis hit ships that are completely not associated or tied to the US or Israel at all, Blomberg said. These are just innocent merchant sailors carrying goods through the Red Sea, trying to get it through the least-expensive route, and they're paying for it.. (AP)

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)
New Delhi, June 12: The mercy petition of Pakistani terrorist Mohammed Arif alias Ashfaq convicted in the nearly 24-year-old Red Fort attack case has been rejected by President Droupadi Murmu, officials said on Wednesday. This is the second mercy plea rejected by the President after assuming office on July 25, 2022. The Supreme Court had dismissed a review petition by Arif on November 3, 2022, affirming the death penalty awarded to him in the case.

However, a death row convict can still knock on the doors of the top court seeking commutation of his sentence on the ground of prolonged delay under Article 32 of the Constitution, feel experts. The mercy petition from Arif, received on May 15, was turned down on May 27, the officials said, quoting the President's secretariat order of May 29. President Droupadi Murmu Rejects Mercy Petition of Man Convicted for Raping, Killing 4-Year-Old Girl in Maharashtra in 2008

The Supreme Court, while upholding the death sentence, noted that there were no mitigating circumstances in Arif's favour and emphasised that the attack on the Red Fort posed a direct threat to country's unity, integrity, and sovereignty. The attack, which took place on December 22, 2000, saw intruders opening fire at the 7 Rajputana Rifles unit stationed within the Red Fort premises, resulting in the deaths of three Army personnel.

Arif, a Pakistani national and a member of banned Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), was arrested by Delhi Police four days after the attack. "Appellant-accused Mohd. Arif alias Ashfaq was a Pakistani national and had entered the Indian territory illegally," the top court's order of 2022 had said. Arif was found guilty of conspiring with other militants to carry out the attack, with the trial court sentencing him to death in October 2005. The Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court upheld the decision in subsequent appeals.

The trial court had said that the conspiracy to attack the Red Fort was hatched at the house of two conspirators in Srinagar, where Arif had illegally entered in 1999 along with three other LeT militants. The three militants -- Abu Shaad, Abu Bilal and Abu Haider -- who had also entered the monument, were killed in separate encounters. Despite multiple legal challenges, including review and curative petitions, Arif's plea for mercy was rejected, highlighting the severity of the crime and the threat it posed to national security. KT Rama Rao Urges UAE Government To Approve Mercy Petition of Five Workers From Telangana Lodged in Dubai Jail in Murder Case

The Delhi High Court had confirmed the trial court's decision in September 2007. Arif then approached the Supreme Court challenging the high court's verdict. The top court had in August 2011 also sided with the order of awarding the death sentence awarded to him. Later, his review petition came up before a two-judge bench of the apex court which dismissed it in August 2012. A curative petition was also rejected in January 2014.

Thereafter, Arif had filed a petition submitting that review petitions in matters arising out of award of death sentence be heard by a bench of three judges and in open court. A constitution bench of the apex court had in its September 2014 judgement concluded that in all cases in which death sentence was awarded by the high court, such matters be listed before a bench of three judges. Before the September 2014 verdict, the review and curative petitions of death row convicts were not heard in open courts but were decided in chamber proceedings by circulation.

In January 2016, a constitution bench had directed that Arif shall be entitled to seek re-opening of the dismissal of the review petitions for an open court hearing within one month. The apex court had rejected the review petition in its verdict delivered on November 3, 2022. This decision comes after President Murmu rejected another mercy petition last year in a separate case, demonstrating a firm stance on cases of heinous crimes.
New Delhi, June 12: SpeceX CEO Elon Musk has been accused of having sexual relationships with female employees at his company. According to a report of Wall Street Journal, Elon Musk offered a woman employee to buy a horse in exchange for sex. The alleged incident took place in 2016. In 2013, the report said, Musk had asked another woman staffer to have his babies. The allegations have raised concerns about the work culture at SpaceX under Musk.

The Wall Street Journal report alleged that Musk created an "uncomfortable" environment for women at SpaceX. The report also claims that Elon Musk exposed himself to a flight attendant in 2016 and offered to buy her a horse in exchange for sexual favours. In 2013, another woman who worked at SpaceX left, claiming that Elon Musk asked her to carry his babies. These allegations have sparked concerns about the work environment at SpaceX as well as the conduct of its CEO. Elon Musk Drops Lawsuit Against OpenAI, Sam Altman and Greg Brockman; Check Details.

The report also highlighted several allegations of misconduct and an unfriendly work environment at SpaceX. One of the most disturbing claims was that a female employee received repeated invitations from Elon Musk to visit his home at night, which created an uncomfortable situation for her.

The report also accused Elon Musk of creating a work environment where women were paid less. This environment might have affected the women who work at SpaceX and also creates an environment of discomfort. These claims add to the growing list of controversies surrounding the SpaceX CEO and his conduct in the workplace, as these allegations are serious. Elon Musk Says Starlink Now Available in 100 Countries.

SpaceX and Elon Musk's legal team have firmly denied the report, labelling the information presented as filled with "untruths." They have issued a statement denying the claims, stating that the email contains "untruths, mischaracterizations, and revisionist history" that create a misleading narrative.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 12, 2024 03:38 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
San Francisco, June 11: Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk on Tuesday threatened to ban iPhones from all his companies over the integration of ChatGPT into iPhones and other Apple devices.

Apple on Monday announced that in iOS 18, users will be able to ask Siri questions and OpenAIs ChatGPT will answer. If Apple integrates OpenAI at the OS level, then Apple devices will be banned at my companies. That is an unacceptable security violation, Musk posted on X. Elon Musk Warns To Ban iPhone, Other Apple Devices at His Companies; Know Why.

The tech billionaire further said that visitors at his companies will have to check their Apple devices at the door, where they will be stored in a Faraday cage. X users responded, saying it is time for an X smartphone. However, both Apple and OpenAI have clarified that users permission will be taken before any questions are sent to ChatGPT, along with any documents or photos.

Responding to a user who said that OpenAI does not have access to iPhones, Musk wrote: Then leave it as an app. This is bullshit. Replying to another post on X from YouTuber Marques Brownlee, the tech billionaire responded that Apple using the words protect your privacy while handing your data over to a third-party AI that they dont understand and cant themselves create is not protecting privacy at all! Elon Musk Encourages Users To Post Long-Form Articles on X, Create Space for Citizen Journalism.

At its WWDC 2024 event, Apple announced that it is integrating ChatGPT access into experiences within iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia, allowing users to access its expertise, without needing to jump between tools. Siri can tap into ChatGPTs expertise when helpful. Users are asked before any questions are sent to ChatGPT, along with any documents or photos, and Siri then presents the answer directly. Additionally, ChatGPT will be available in Apples system-wide Writing Tools, which help users generate content for anything they are writing about, said the company.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 11, 2024 10:13 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
On 12 June Argentinas senate approved Presidents wide-ranging collection of reforms, known as the Ley de Bases, or omnibus bill, in a major boon for the president as protests raged outside congress.

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On 12 June soldiers were stationed at gas stations around Bolivia amid ongoing protests over fuel shortages.

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On 12 June Brazils federal police (PF) recommended corruption charges against the minister for communications,, who is under investigation for allegedly mishandling public funds when he was a federal deputy in 2022.

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As lawmakers were about to vote on tax bills proposed by Argentina President Javier Milei, thousands of protesters descended on Congress, where they clashed with police. While the police hit the protesters with water cannons and tear gas, protesters hit back with stones and Molotov cocktails being thrown.

Lawmakers were debating whether or not to approve economic reforms proposed by Milei, whose reforms to stabilize the ailing Argentina economy may be slowly stabilizing it, but it is also raising prices and placing more people into poverty.

According to Yahoo! News, the scuffles between these protesters and Argentina police began when protesters tried to bypass a system of fences that were placed between them and Congress. This resulted in the protesters hurling stones at police, who fired back with pepper spray.

However, the violence only escalated as the protesters burned down two cars while police deployed their water cannons to hose them down. The violence resulted in not just two burned cars but dozens of demonstrators and a handful of lawmakers needing some medical attention. At least five opposition lawmakers in the crowd were "hospitalized," one legislator stated.

The Association Against Institutional Violence, a non-governmental organization, stated that the clash between the protesters and the police resulted in at least 40 people being treated by emergency personnel. Meanwhile, opposition legislator Cecilia Moreau called the police's actions as "repression."

Milei only has a minority in both houses of Congress, and he has had little to no success in getting any legislation passed. However, with the help of executive decrees, he was able to make several austerity measures that have proven unpopular with everyday Argentinians.

Debate on Argentina Economic Reforms Continued While Protesters Clashed with Police Outside

Inside the National Congress of Argentina, meanwhile, lawmakers were debating as police and protesters were clashing outside. Opposition senators tried to pass a motion to pause the debate because of the clashes, with the motion escalating to a shouting match. In the end, the motion failed as the debate continued.

READ MORE: Argentina Inflation Rate Slows Down But Still Nearing 300% as Prices Increase, Hurt Everyday Citizens

The debates began Wednesday regarding Milei's tax package that would lower the income tax threshold among other budget-cutting reforms. It also grants legislative powers to the president in energy, pensions, and security, according to the Associated Press, The 238-article state reform bill also seeks to incentivize investment, deregulate the economy, and trim the deficit.

Many in Argentina are afraid that the bill might force them to lose many of their labor and pension rights, with Milei already cutting the budget for education and research, among other things.

Milei's allies have severely trimmed down the bill, even scrapping some provisions that would have affected unions' provision of health care and the privatization of Argentina's national oil company. Still, debates go on regarding the bill.

Javier Milei Reforms Have Made Protests a Regular Thing in Argentina

Milei's stiff budget cuts have affected many, with protests erupting in Argentina left and right as the increasing prices bite in. These include massive protests last April, which demanded that President Javier Milei increase funding for public universities.

According to CNN, that protest was organized by students, alumni, unions, and political parties in opposition to Milei's "chainsaw" budget cuts. It did not, however, become violent as this recent one did. Scientists also previously protested Milei's budget cuts.

READ MORE: Viggo Mortensen, Lord of the Rings Actor, Slams Argentina President Javier Milei, Calls Him a Clown

This article is owned by Latin Post.

Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Argentina Police Clash and Protesters Clash With Tear Gas, Molotov Cocktails, and Water Cannons Fired
Four Russian naval vessels have docked in Havana Bay, Cuba, including a nuclear-powered submarine and a frigate.

This move, closely monitored by US officials, comes amid escalating tensions over Russia's conflict in Ukraine.

The fleet, just 90 miles from Florida, includes the Admiral Gorshkov frigate and the Kazan submarine, armed with advanced weapons like Zircon hypersonic missiles, BBC reports.

The Russian defense ministry confirmed missile drills in the Atlantic but assured none of the ships carry nuclear weapons.

The US Navy has shadowed the fleet with sea drones, and locals observed the ships' arrival marked by a 21-gun salute.

Russia described the visit as unofficial, allowing crews to rest and explore. Yet, its timing amid high tensions is seen as a message to the US, showcasing Russia's global power projection.

The arrival aligns with Russia's long-standing alliance with Cuba, though the island faces a severe economic crisis.

The vessels are expected to stay until June 17, underscoring Russia's influence in the region during significant global hostility.

READ NEXT: Cuba Confirms Russian Warships, Including Nuclear Sub, Arriving in Havana Next Week

Military Drills Underway

Heading to Cuba, Admiral Gorshkov and Kazan conducted missile drills in the Atlantic, targeting mock enemy positions over 600 km away.

Admiral Gorshkov also practiced repelling an air attack, according to Aljazeera.

These exercises showcased advanced weaponry, including Zircon hypersonic missiles, which can travel nine times the speed of sound and hit targets over 1,000 km away.

The Kazan submarine, part of Russia's new generation of vessels, also carries advanced missiles.

Cuba's foreign ministry emphasized that the Russian ships carry no nuclear weapons and framed the visit as standard naval practice.

US officials echoed this sentiment, stating they do not see the visit as a threat but will continue monitoring the situation.

The presence of Russia warships in Cuba symbolizes strong support for the Cuban government and its ally, Venezuela.

The vessels may head to Venezuela next, showcasing Russia's strategic reach.

This visit highlights the deepening ties between Moscow and Havana amid ongoing global conflicts. It serves as a reminder of Russia's ability to project regional power.

Historical Context

The history of Russian-Cuban relations dates to the Cold War, highlighted by the 1962 Cuban Missile Crisis, which nearly led to nuclear war.

While less dramatic, the visit still carries echoes of that tense period.

Cuba is experiencing its worst economic crisis in decades, with severe shortages and public discontent.

Russia has provided economic support, including delivering 90,000 metric tons of oil.

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel's recent visit to Moscow and his expressions of solidarity with Russia underscore their strengthening alliance, Reuters noted.

US military assets, including the USS Truxtun, USS Donald Cook, and the P-8 Poseidon reconnaissance plane, are monitoring the Russian vessels, emphasizing routine maritime defense.

The arrival of Russia warships in the Caribbean has broader regional implications, especially in the context of Russia's war in Ukraine.

While Cuba insists the visit is routine, the US remains vigilant against potential threats.

READ MORE: Haiti Transitional Council Appoints New Cabinet Amid Gang-Ridden Challenges

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Written by: Ross Key

WATCH: Russian warships arrive in Cuba in show of force - From BBC News
In a shocking and tragic turn of events in Renton, Washington, a community is left reeling after Aaron Brown Myers, 51, was charged with second-degree murder and assault following the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Hazrat Ali Rohani.

The incident occurred outside a Big 5 Sporting Goods store, where Myers, described as a professional security consultant, confronted three teenagers he suspected of preparing to commit a robbery, CNN reports.

According to court documents and statements from prosecutors, the evening of June 5 turned deadly when Myers, who was conducting surveillance ("overwatch") in the parking lot adjacent to where his 13-year-old son attended a martial arts class, spotted the teenagers approaching.

Myers allegedly perceived one of them, identified as HR, as armed, prompting him to intervene to prevent what he believed was an imminent threat.

The encounter quickly escalated as Myers confronted the teens, brandishing his pistol and demanding they drop their weapons and get on the ground.

Despite assertions from the teens that their guns were airsoft or BB guns, Myers allegedly tackled one of them, identified as BA, and then fatally shot Washington teen HR at least seven times, including multiple shots in the back.

READ NEXT: Washington High School Shooting Claims Life of Teen

Legal Proceedings and Contradictions

The Washington man, who remains in custody with bail set at $2 million, asserts self-defense, claiming he feared for his life during the altercation.

However, surveillance footage from the scene reportedly contradicts some of Myers' claims, prompting scrutiny over the justification for the use of deadly force.

Senior Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Lauren M. Burke emphasized in court filings that Myers escalated the encounter unnecessarily and unjustly took the life of a teenager who posed no immediate threat, according to USA Today.

This incident follows a previous 2022 altercation where Myers similarly intervened based on mistaken perceptions of a threat, highlighting a pattern of behavior that authorities argue poses a significant risk to public safety.

Community Response and Victim Identification

The victim, Hazrat Ali Rohani, a local high school student, tragically lost his life in the incident, prompting an outpouring of condolences from the community and school officials.

Renton High School Principal confirmed Washington teen Rohani's identity and expressed profound sadness over the loss, describing him as a promising student with a bright future.

An autopsy confirmed Rohani's cause of death as multiple gunshot wounds, with significant implications for ongoing legal proceedings and community dialogue on public safety and vigilantism, People noted.

The tragic loss has sparked discussions about the role of armed civilians in public spaces and the responsibilities that come with carrying firearms.

As the legal process unfolds, Renton and surrounding communities grapple with the aftermath of this senseless tragedy.

The case underscores complex issues surrounding self-defense claims, public safety, and the responsibilities of armed civilians in potentially dangerous situations.

Washington man's forthcoming arraignment on June 24 will mark a critical juncture in determining the course of justice in this deeply troubling case, leaving many to ponder how such incidents can be prevented and ensure justice for Hazrat Ali Rohani and his grieving family.

READ MORE: Missouri Man Executed for 2009 Murders After Clemency Denied

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WATCH: Teenage fatally shot trying to return an airsoft rifle - From 4 News Now
President Joe Biden has now reacted to his son, Hunter Biden's guilty verdict, and has accepted the jury's decision and respects it. He has previously vowed not to pardon his son and is making good on that promise so far.

"As I said last week, I am the president, but I am also a dad," said Biden in a statement soon after his son's guilty verdict was announced. "Jill and I love our son, and we are so proud of the man he is today. So many families who have had loved ones battle addiction understand the feeling of pride seeing someone you love come out the other side and be so strong and resilient in recovery."

"As I also said last week, I will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal. Jill and I will always be there for Hunter and the rest of our family with our love and support," he added. "Nothing will ever change that."

According to CBS News, Biden was at the White House when the guilty verdict was handed down by a Delaware jury. While the president was doing his duties in DC, other Biden family members were present in Delaware to show support at the trial. The elder Biden had mostly distanced himself from the case.

Hunter Biden was convicted on three felony gun charges in a federal court in Delaware last Tuesday, with the jury finding that he did illegally buy and possess a gun while he was addicted to crack cocaine. This was a violation of federal law, as drug addicts are barred from owning guns,

Hunter Biden Guilty Verdict Discredits Several Donald Trump Claims

Meanwhile, the guilty verdict against Hunter Biden has more than likely debunked several Donald Trump claims that he was unfairly treated in New York.

READ MORE: Russia Spreading Disinformation About US Border Crisis To Undercut Ukraine Aid

As CNN pointed out, Donald Trump repeatedly insisted that he could not receive a fair verdict in a city that votes mostly Democratic like New York. However, Hunter Biden, the son of a Democratic president, was also found guilty in deep-blue Delaware, with the issue of politics never coming up in the deliberations.

Even though Politics was never mentioned throughout the hearings, should Hunter Biden have been acquitted, Republicans were likely to have argued that there was a biased jury and that Biden had a hand in that acquittal. However, the Biden guilty verdict has proven their narratives wrong as the president could have interfered and could have issued a pre-emptive pardon to his son but did not.

MAGA Moves the Goal Post To Spin Hunter Biden Guilty Verdict

With many of their talking points soon debunked, MAGA Republicans are now making excuses and moving the goalpost as they come up with completely different arguments in an effort to spin it to look like Biden orchestrated his son's guilty verdict to look good in the election.

Former White House policy advisor Stephen Miller tried to spin it by saying that Hunter Biden's conviction is part of a plot to avoid pursuing foreign agent charges that would lead back to Biden, claiming that this is an "easy op for DOJ to sell to a pliant media that is all too willing to be duped. Don't be gaslit. This is all about protecting Joe Biden and only Joe Biden."

End Wokeness, a far-right account with over a million followers, also started spreading conspiracy theories, claiming that "Hunter Biden is a red herring. The real person of interest in the Ukraine bribery/laundering is the Big Guy. We all know exactly who that is."

READ MORE: Hunter Biden Investigation: Republican Informant Alexander Smirnov Had Ties to Russian Intelligence

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Written by: Rick Martin

WATCH: Hunter Biden Verdict Blows Up MAGA Conspiracy Theory About Trump's Crimes: A Closer Look - Late Night with Seth Meyers
Chipotle Mexican Grill is bringing its burritos and tacos to another location at the Jersey Shore.

The fast-casual Mexican-inspired restaurant chain is opening its next eatery at 410 White Horse Pike in Absecon on Thursday, June 13.
A former Easton man will spend at least 81 years behind bars after he had 300 images of child pornography on his phone and uploaded four videos of child pornography.

Zebbelin Standish on Thursday was sentenced before Northampton County Judge Paula A. Roscioli of 81 to 162 years, according to the Pennsylvania Attorney Generals Office.

Defense attorney Gail Marr of Bensalem said she plans to appeal what amounts to a life sentence for the 36-year-old from Flemington, Hunterdon County.

Standish was found guilty in February of four counts felony disseminating child pornography; 50 counts felony possessing child pornography; and a single felony count of criminal use of a communication facility. The verdict followed Standishs four-day jury trial.

The judge said she imposed the lengthy sentence so Standish could never victimize another child, authorities said. Pennsylvania Attorney General Michelle Henry said Standish re-victimized abused children by sharing their images with others online.

This case is another example of how social media can be used by predators and bad actors to harm children, Henry said. My office remains committed to intervening in those dangers and educating parents and families how to protect themselves.

Marr said Standish maintains his innocence. She argued during the trial that Standish didnt upload the videos. He also denied putting the child pornography on his phone.

She acknowledged the images were heartbreaking for all to see, but said she plans to appeal what she called an unfair sentence.

This sentence is overly harsh for a young man of 36 and for this type of case as compared to others of a similar nature, Marr said. He would not be eligible for parole until he is 117 years old and at his age, I believe he should have an opportunity for rehabilitation and life outside the walls of prison.

An Office of Attorney General Child Predator Section investigation resulted in Standishs 2022 arrest.

Standish at the time of his arrest was living at an apartment in the 1400 block of Northampton Street in Easton. He uploaded four videos of child pornography on May 27, 2022, at that residence. Investigators tracked him down at his work in Hellertown in October 2022, took his phone and found 300 images and some videos of child pornography in December 2022, Senior Deputy Attorney General Michelle Laucella previoulsy said. Laucella prosecuted the case.

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Pamela Sroka-Holzmann may be reached at pholzmann@lehighvalleylive.com.
A labor contract dispute is leading United Auto Workers workers at a Northampton County warehouse toward a strike, union representatives announced this week.

Better pay is the main sticking point for workers at the BMW distribution center, along Prologis Parkway on the border between Lower Nazareth and Palmer townships. The contract is set to expire on June 30. The union said 99% of its members on Saturday voted to strike if theres no contract resolution.

BMW Group spokesman Phil Dilanni told lehighvalleylive.com on Thursday: We respect the rights of employees at our Nazareth regional distribution center. However, as negotiations are still ongoing, we are disappointed that theyve chosen to authorize a strike. We will continue to negotiate in good faith with the hope that we can find common ground, and come to a mutually beneficial solution with the approximately 110 employees on site.
The land we know as Pennsylvania, translated from Latin as Penns Woods, has supported humans for some 16,000 years  long before William Penn founded the province via a 1681 land grant from the king of England.

Likewise, the forests need our help to continue offering beauty, peace and solitude; cleaning of the air and water; protection from climate change; and valuable wood products.

Thats where the draft Forests for All: A Plan for Pennsylvanias Forests and People comes in.

The state Bureau of Forestry, part of the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, is working on the strategic plan to be finalized either late this year or in early 2025. Its the first such plan since Penns Woods: Sustaining Our Forests was developed and released in the mid-to-late 1990s.

A stand of trees at Northampton Countys Bear Swamp Park in Upper Mount Bethel Township is seen May 12, 2024.Kurt Bresswein | For lehighvalleylive.com

State Forester Seth Cassell on Wednesday night led a virtual meeting to offer an overview of the 30-page update.

It comes at a time of increasing peril for trees, including from the impacts of invasive insects like the emerald ash border and woolly adelgid, which decimate stands of ash, a valuable hardwood, and Eastern hemlock, the state tree.

It has been really unrelenting the last several decades, Cassell said of the threat posed by non-native, invasive species, noting they are unlikely to be eliminated. Theyve been introduced to our ecosystem, and theyre here to stay, a lot of them.

Pennsylvanias forests have faced challenges before.

Untold acres of Pennsylvania forests are seen from Mount Tammany in New Jerseys Worthington State Forest on Sept. 20, 2023.Kurt Bresswein | For lehighvalleylive.com

The state first formed a Division of Forestry, forerunner to todays bureau, in 1895 to control wildfires and to revitalize thousands upon thousands of acres of forest land that had been cut and burned-over for the industrialization of wood products and for making charcoal vital to early iron-making.

A quarter of the way into the 21st century, 60% of Pennsylvanias land is forest. It is the No. 1 hardwood-producing state in the nation, with an economic impact exceeding $39 billion across all of Pennsylvanias forest products supply chain, the Pennsylvania Forest Products Association said earlier this year. Including the Bureau of Forestry, the DCNR has a proposed Fiscal Year 2025 budget of $630.5 million.

The new strategic plan for Pennsylvanias forests seeks to build upon the nearly 17 million acres of forested land the state enjoys under various types of ownership. These trees stand in 1,000-acre intact forests, rise along streams, create small groves in backyards and communities, and line our streets.

Forests for All has been in the works since 2017, beginning with regional meetings of bureau staff charged with stewardship of 2.2 million acres of state forests and with assisting private and other public landowners in conservation plus fire protection and suppression.

It includes a 10-year challenge to reverse the decline of 18,000 acres of forest per year to threats like development, pests and disease, and to instead add 250,000 more acres of forest in Pennsylvania.

Trees along Saw Mill Run obscure an old concrete structure, a relic from a bygone era of Pennsylvanias wood-products industry, at Beltzville State Park on June 7, 2024.Kurt Bresswein | For lehighvalleylive.com

Thats why were here today, Cassell said of the call for renewed interest in safeguarding our forests.

We want to see lots of trees and forests, and we want them to be healthy and resilient, he said.

Updating the states strategic plan for forests adds in more concepts of resilience against climate change, which trees help battle by absorbing carbon. It emphasizes the role the public can take as advocates for trees in their local communities and with state officials. It seeks to maintain a robust and sustainable wood-products industry, and to boost opportunities forest recreation for people from diverse populations.

Trees line Bushkill Creek along the Karl Stirner Arts Trail in Easton on May 22, 2024.Kurt Bresswein | For lehighvalleylive.com

We cant take for granted that work in conservation, Cassell said. We have to continue to adapt and get better and continue to adapt to changing conditions.

The draft strategic plan is available here via dcnr.pa.gov and included below for viewing on most platforms.

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Kurt Bresswein may be reached at kbresswein@lehighvalleylive.com.
A version of this story originally published in 2019.

Why does the ocean off the Jersey Shore sometimes look incredibly clear and other times murky?

Videos have been popping up all over social media lately showing turquoise water thats similar to the Caribbean or the Florida Keys.

We asked a few marine science experts this question and this is what we found.

What causes the change of color?

Beachgoers get excited when the water off the Jersey coast looks tropical. But what makes that water seem so desirable?

Its simple  less particles like sediment or small plankton, called phytoplankton, according to Josh Kohut, professor of marine and coastal sciences at Rutgers University.

Phytoplankton are single-celled plants that float in the ocean and provide about 40-50% of the atmospheric oxygen we breathe.

Just like plants on land, the plants in the ocean need sunlight and they need nutrients in order to grow, said Kohut.

The arrival of spring begins to provide the needed sunlight, and the nutrients come from a couple of different sources  from the deeper water further offshore and humans.

As that warm water moves offshore its replaced by the cold water down deep, said Kohut, describing a process known as upwelling. And because that deeper water has a lot of nutrients phytoplankton start to grow.

Its essentially like spreading Miracle-Gro on your garden.

Kohut said that once the Miracle-Gro comes to the surface, and the sun provides energy, over time the water will get more and more murky as the plankton bloom.

Whenever there is a plankton bloom, that tends to give it kind of a greenish, yellowish, so somewhere in the blue to green to yellow band of colors, said Anna Pfeiffer-Herbert, assistant professor of Marine Science at Stockton University.

Different species give off different colors. The color comes from pigments they have in their cells, she said.

When you get hundreds of thousands and millions of them in one patch of water then that color becomes intense and visible.

Those turquoise hues that resemble tropical waters you sometimes see off the Jersey coast are caused by plankton blooms.

How humans have an effect

The other source of nutrients comes from humans, and its all the runoff from the land.

Everyone is fertilizing their lawns, all the treatment plants are dumping some nutrients into the water, said Kohut.

Sandy Hook is very influenced by what the Hudson River is doing. Before the rest of New Jersey snickers at that thought, what dumps out of the Hudson actually goes all the way down the coast.

If theres been a lot of rain in the Hudson River watershed  all the way up to upstate New York  for the next month or so youre going to get fresh water coming out of that river that runs along the coast, said Kohut.

Kohut explains that the water quality of the Hudson River is getting better, but in the past, the river water would pick up a lot of goodies as it made its way past New York City.

When the Hudson River is running it picks up all those nutrients as well, he said.

These nutrients also fuel the blooms of phytoplankton.

These blooms are not evenly distributed throughout the water and the intense color will be in a patch that gets spread out by the currents. This may be why the water at one beach is a different color than at another.

If there is a very widespread bloom you may see similar color along the coast, said Pfeiffer-Herbert. But a lot of times part of that patch will be close to the Jersey coastline but not another.

Sediment plays a role

The other source of murky water along the Jersey coast comes from sediment, which includes sand, silt, mud and clay.

When you are seeing beaches, some that are more murky looking and some that are less, a lot of that might have to do with how close it is to an inlet and which way that freshwater-influenced water is going when it gets out on to the coast, said Pfeiffer-Herbert.

Some sediment comes from the rivers  finer-grained silts and clays will stay suspended in the water longer  and gives the water more of a brown and opaque look.

So the further you get from inlets, the clearer the water will get or the less suspended sediment material will be in the water, she said.

In warmer waters down in Florida or the Caribbean, there tends to be less nutrients, Pfeiffer-Herbert said.

Another factor is that there is less stirring of the water, which means the deeper water does not restore the nutrients. The Sunshine State also has less river runoff compared to the Garden State where we have several big rivers.

Just because the waters clear doesnt mean that its free of other types of pollutants, or just because it looks dirty, conversely, it doesnt mean that its polluted in the sense of being harmful at all, said Pfeiffer-Herbert.

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Tim Hawk may be reached at thawk@njadvancemedia.com. Follow Tim on Instagram @photog_hawk.
A judge said there was no middle aisle in Lidl for a thief who stole a 440 Gucci scarf from Brown Thomas in Dublin.

Leona Nevin (28) of 49 Carmody Way, Fairgreen, Portlaoise was before Portlaoise District Court in relation to a three month suspended sentence imposed at the court for the theft of a pink hoover from Telefords, Portlaoise on September 23, 2020.

She was referred back to Portlaoise District Court after being convicted in Dublin of stealing a Gucci scarf from Brown Thomas, Grafton Street, Dublin on November 20, 2023.

Section 4 theft from Brown Thomas. No Lidl for her, not from the middle aisle, said Judge Andrew Cody.

Solicitor Philp Meagher said it was quite an expensive scarf and he believed it was a Hermes and not Gucci.

On foot of the Dublin matter she is doing 200 hours of community service, he explained.

Mr Meagher asked if the court would consider adding to the community service rather than activating the suspended sentence.

He said his client had begun a secretarial course in the Laois Traveller Action Group.

Judge Cody asked if the defendant understood what a suspended sentence meant.

Mr Meagher said she suffers with stress and anxiety but beginning the secretarial course has done a lot of good for her.

I would urge the court not to activate the previously suspended sentence, he said.

Judge Cody said the woman was convicted of the theft from Telefords on March 24, 2022. He said the court had given her the benefit of the suspended sentence. He said a suspended sentence must have some teeth as he imposed one month of the three month sentence.

Mr Meagher appealed to the judge to reconsider. He said there was scope to add an additional 40 hours to the community service which is due to start in July.

She has been beside herself with worry, said Mr Meagher, who told the judge that he didnt believe she would offend again.

It didnt stop her going in for her Gucci scarf in Brown Thomas, said Judge Cody.

Mr Meagher again appealed to the judge and said while he didnt like the term, he asked would he consider putting her on a leash.

Judge Cody asked Garda Sergeant JJ Kirby if the woman had come to garda attention recently. Sgt Kirby said she hadnt come to attention.

Judge Cody said she is on the thinnest of ice as he decided to adjourn the case for a year to June 5, 2025.

He warned the woman that if she offended in the meantime she would serve every day of the three month suspended sentence.
Portlaoise was always going to the battleground of this Laois local election with candidates vying for seats for a myriad of reasons.

Tommy Mulligan was the big winner in an election that could also inflict a fatal blow to the chances of a Fine Gael candidate getting on the party's General Election ticket.

Willie Aird has contested many elections for Fine Gael and almost always polled well. The 2024 edition had an added incentive if he wants to fulfil a long-held ambition to run in a General Election for his party. The obstacle was removed when Charlie Flanagan announced he would step down.

From a crowded field of 20 Aird delivered a poll-topping performance. He exceeded the quota by just under 100 votes to be elected on the first count. The big decision on what to do next is now his to make but he'll know that this could be the last chance to have a tilt at Leinster House under the Fine Gael banner. MORE BELOW ELECTIONS.

Willie Aird celebrates after retaining his seat on Laois County Council. Picture: Alf Harvey

Cllr Thomasina Connell was the other Fine Gael candidate in Portlaoise field who had already declared her intention to seek the party's nomination. So this election was high stakes. She knew that at the very least she would have to retain a seat won by a slender margin in 2019.

What has transpired leaves Cllr Connell in no man's land electorally. The 2016 General Election candidate will now find it very hard to convince FG candidate selectors that she has a viable chance of being elected to the Dail.

Her place in the council chamber looks set to be taken by a candidate who is, arguably, the story of the 2024 election in Portlaoise if not Laois.

There was little fanfare when Tommy Mulligan put his name in the ring for election. There were no big announcements on social media or other major publicity efforts.

The national school teacher and Portlaoise GAA man had a long ambition to get into politics and decided it was now or never.

His hunch that 2024 was the year to pick proved spot on. His hunger for campaigning and presenting himself on the doorstep matched his ambition.

The count day showed him turning canvas popularity in the votes. He secured more than 1,000 first-preference votes. What was even more impressive was that he was very transfer-friendly. Hundreds of voters gave him a preference vote which ensured he did not stagnate. In truth, he didn't need that many transfers as his haul of number-one votes would have done the business.

John Joe Fennelly of Fianna Fail has always been a big vote-getter in Laois but this election saw a dent put in his usually high number of first preference votes. This was a direct result of the number of independent or smaller party candidates in and around Abbeyleix. This being said, his seat was never under threat. MORE BELOW PICTURE.

Returned Fianna Fail councillors, John Joe Fenelly and Catherine Fitzgerald celebrate their return to County Hall for five more years. Pic: Alf Harvey

Something similar was the case for Fianna Fail's Portlaoise based candidate Catherine Fitzgerald. Her showing is slightly different in that she has marginally improved on 2019 despite facing a lot of extra candidates in the Portlaoise area especially Tommy Mulligan. The Fitzgerald camp will be happy with the outcome.

Another pleased politician on his first time to face the electorate is Barry Walsh of Fine Gael. The Ballyroan-based candidate was assuming the mantle carried for many years by Mary Sweeney so the pressure was on to prove he was could live up to the high bar she set.

Cllr Walsh defied doubters building on a Ballyroan base and picking up other number ones and transfers from elsewhere. His team will be delighted. MORE BELOW PICTURE.

Ballyroan-based Fine Gael man Barry Walsh wins on his first attempt. Pic: Alf Harvey

The tightest contest would turn out to be between Marie Tuohy of the Labour Party and Naeem Iqbal of Fianna Fail.

Cllr Tuohy was bidding to retain a seat won twice by her husband Noel while Mr Iqbal hoped to go one better than 2019 when he ran as an independent. Early tallies appeared to put the Fianna Fail man odds on for a seat but the flow of number one votes dried up as boxes were emptied from around the constituency.

When the first count was declared he was just behind Cllr Tuohy.

In 2019 Mr Iqbal stagnated during the counts as he did not receive the transfers to keep him in the race. The same ghost would return to haunt him in 2024. While Cllr Tuohy was picking up transfers from a variety of candidates on their elimination and election, Mr Iqbal took very few.

This trend would have a big bearing on the result. MORE BELOW PICTURE.

Maire Tuohy celebrates with husband Noel and supporters on her election for the Labour Party in Portlaoise. Pic: Alf Harvey

So what of the others?

It was a grim electoral race for Sinn Fein in Portlaoise where the party had firm sights on a second seat. The good showing by Caroline Dwane Stanley cannot gloss over what transpired. Jason Phelan was never in the hunt and Maria McCormack was well down the field despite running a big campaign. The post-mortem will have to be forensic.

Many of the independent candidates who contested in Portlaoise put their hearts and souls in the race but politics has a habit of being a cruel business where lessons are often harshly learned. MORE BELOW PICTURE.

Caroline Dwane Stanley celebrates after winning a seat for Sinn Fein on Laois County Council. Pic: Alf Harvey

Pauline Flanagan, Dom Dunne and Donal Kelly all ran as independent candidates this time around. In 2019 two ran for Fianna Fail and a third ran for Renua. All ran with a point to prove but the result was no different than five years ago. All three will likely think carefully before entering politics again.

Other new candidates performed admirably enough given their low profile and late start. Among them was Noel Burke who did well in the Abbeyleix area.

In Portlaoise Bolaji Mojeed Adeyanju performed admirably. Collette Byrne of Independent Ireland did also better than expected.

Rosie Palmer did ok for the Green Party but her vote was confined largely to her Ballinakill base.

It will be an election to forget for Martha Ryan of Aontu who never got going while John Cowhigh was never at the races.
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Laois PPN Secretariat and staff marked the 10 Year Anniversary of PPNs in the wonderful Roundwood House nestled in the Slieve Bloom Mountains.

Laois PPN is the main link between Laois County Council and the 650+ Community Groups in Laois.

The 3 key functions of the PPN are:

1. Community Representation on important policy and decision-making Committees such as the LCDC, SPCs and JPC.

2. Training and Capacity Building  Laois PPN provides free training and capacity building across all 3 Pillars and all 3 Municipal Districts.

3. Information and Network Hub - Laois PPN is a trusted one stop shop for information on funding opportunities that support Community Groups and on Public Consultations.

Mighty oaks grow from little acorns  Chaucer.

The PPN was established under The Local Government Act 2014 and from 2016 to now nationally has grown from 11,962 groups to 19,950 in 2023.

From our own beginnings, Laois PPN is proud to have grown to represent and support the voice of 664 registered member groups, which have a total membership of 51,131 people in County Laois.

There have been many highlights for Laois PPN over the last decade including:

Laois PPN in collaboration with Laois County Council supported by the DRCD, hosted the National PPN Conference in 2022 where hundreds of delegates representing thousands of Community Groups nationally were welcomed to Laois.

Our huge volume and variety of free training and capacity building events that support Member Groups.

Laois PPN played an integral role in supporting our Community during the Covid 19 response by creating an online interactive map of Community Groups offering supports in every town, village and rural area across Laois. The Covid 19 response was co-ordinated by Laois County Council.

Climate Action Project  an ongoing calendar of events to raise awareness on Climate Action and the positive steps Community Groups can take.

The annual Community and Voluntary Awards held in partnership with Laois County Council which recognise and celebrate the Community Groups and Volunteers of Laois.

Community Groups and Volunteers are a huge part of the fabric of Irish society, giving freely of their time to enhance the quality of life in our local communities.

With Laois PPN representing and supporting 664 groups, this at the very least represents 51,131 people engaged in community activity within County Laois.

Economically at a low valuation of 15 euros per hour, we can estimate a conservative contribution of 5 members of each registered group volunteering 3 hours per week which would equal approximately 9,960 volunteer hours per week.

This multiplied by 52 weeks of the year and 15 per hour equals a conservate contribution of over 7.7 million per year among Laois PPN members, and most do more than this.

Dan Bergin, Laois PPN Co-Ordinator said,

There is a strong Community Spirit across our County. Laois PPN wish to thank all the Community Groups, past and present Secretariat members, Reps and staff, Laois County Council and the DRCD, who have supported the growth, development and work of Laois PPN over the last decade.

The 10 Year Anniversary of the PPNs will be celebrated Nationally at this years National PPN Conference, which will be hosted by Limerick PPN, Limerick City and County Council and supported by the DRCD. Laois PPN look forward to continuing to support Community Groups in Laois for the next 10 years and beyond.

Laois PPN consists of 650+ Member Groups from the Community, Social Inclusion and Environmental Pillars. All groups registered with Laois PPN are given the opportunity to attend Laois PPN events.

Any group wishing to join Laois PPN can do so by completing the application on the Laois PPN website www.laoisppn.ie
Transfers have put Sinn Feins Kathleen Funchion in contention to be elected as one of Irelands 14 MEPs.

Ms Funchion got 61% of transfers from her running mate Paul Gavans eliminated share, propelling her into second place.

The huge transfer rate has positioned the Carlow-Kilkenny TD to take one of the five seats in the Ireland South constituency, though political commentators have said transfers make it impossible to predict.

Fianna Fail MEP Billy Kelleher is on 100,832 and is creeping closer to the quota.

In the hunt behind Ms Funchion, on 71,350 votes, are Independent Clare TD Michael McNamara (67,507 votes), Fianna Fails Cynthia Ni Mhurchu (61,780), and outgoing MEP Mick Wallace (61,668).

There is an outside chance for outgoing Green Party MEP Grace OSullivan (54,978), though it looks increasingly unlikely.

Observers at the count centre will watch closely whether other candidates can attract enough transfers to leap ahead.

Mr Wallace is expecting to do well from the 26,167 votes of Independent Irelands Eddie Punch, who was eliminated after the 14th count, while Ms Ni Mhurchu is expected to pull transfers from Fine Gaels John Mullins.

Sinn Fein TD David Cullinane said there was still a long, long way to go, theres a lot of transfers out there.

We were hoping to have a very strong transfer rate so I think weve got well over 60% which is the hope for us coming into the count today so obviously it puts Kathleen in contention, he said on Wednesday evening.

So its still impossible to call whos going to get the last number of seats but obviously were competing which is what you want to be. I dont think anybody can call it still. All we can do is keep watching the number of transfers.

I still think that Grace OSullivans transfers, if shes eliminated, will probably decide the outcome of it for two of the candidates.

I think Grace is a bit too far behind at this point. Eventually if she is eliminated her transfers will decide, I think, who is taking the final two seats.

Ms OSullivan said Im here with the swansong at the Cork count centre as transfers saw the former Greenpeace activist fall behind.

She added: You can see its definitely slipping away now but Ive been realistic all the time from the get-go when the preference votes were being put on the tables and I acknowledged that it was substantially down on my 2019 vote.

Ms OSullivan said she has not been as extraordinarily transfer friendly as she was in the 2019 European election, and said it feels that momentum has gone from the Green Party.

People have other things on their minds, and that concerns me because as an ecological party and as an ecologist myself, climate change has not gone away by any doubt.

She said that all three parties in the coalition Government are responsible for public services, climate, health and water quality.

Ms OSullivan added: Thats why Im concerned about Ireland. Without the strong voices in Europe, without Ciaran Cuffe and I, we were hard-working and we were strong, we were active on legislation and without the Irish Greens at the table, we will lose ground in terms of the environmental reach.

The meticulous count continued in Cork on Wednesday to fill four of the five seats for the Ireland South constituency, with all five seats left to be filled in Midlands-Northwest.

Fine Gaels Sean Kelly was elected on the first count on Monday night, leaving 22 candidates vying for four seats in the 10-county constituency.

Returning officer Martin Harvey said he is hopeful they will have a final result by mid afternoon on Thursday, but said the significant transfer from Mr Gavan to Ms Funchion showed how one count can dramatically change standings.

Deirdre Clune, who was the last MEP to be elected to the Ireland South constituency in 2019, said the transfers were difficult to predict.

She said: That seems to be the common theme from every political camp you speak to  nobody knows, there is no pattern at all.

Its not geography, its not female, it doesnt even seem to be party political or whether youre right wing or left leaning.

So its very difficult to predict how these last seats will go.

There could be a pocket of votes there, a surprise 10,000 votes for somebody, a 5,000 that they werent expecting that would push them ahead of another, so anybody who thinks they can predict this, I think, theyre trying to fool us, because you cant. There is no way of predicting it.
Social Democrats TD Jennifer Whitmore is recovering in hospital after being admitted to an intensive care unit earlier this week.

A number of her political colleagues in the Dail wished her well after it emerged that she had suffered a sudden medical emergency.

In a social post on her Facebook page, her husband said that it had been a surreal few days.

Her husband, Tony Duddy, posted: I just wanted to send out a quick message  its been a surreal few days.

After the excitement of last weekends elections, we had a bit of a fright Monday where Jennifer experienced a sudden medical emergency, and I had to call the ambulance.

She is still in St Vincents hospital, and will be there for another few days at least.

She is doing much better but there will be a recovery period, where she will be easing herself back to work.

Its great that we have the summer coming up, but its things like this that remind us what is important in life.

A huge thank you to the incredible staff at St Vincents for their speedy intervention, particularly in the ICU.

The very genuine care that we have experienced over the last few days has really touched us.

Jennifers office continues to operate as normal, but anything requiring Jennifer directly will be slow, apologies in advance for this.

Speaking in the Dail on Thursday, Sinn Fein TD Pearse Doherty said: I want to begin by wishing our colleague Jennifer Whitmore a speedy recovery and look forward to welcoming her back in the benches.

I read this morning that she was taken to hospital and wish her a speedy recovery.

The Minister for Finance Michael McGrath said: Can I join with you in wishing our colleague deputy Jennifer Whitmore best all the best.

I didnt realise that she had taken ill but all of our thoughts are with her today.

Dublin Labour TD Duncan Smith said: Before I begin I also want to send the best wishes of the Labour Party to deputy Jennifer Whitmore.
There has been widespread condemnation of the sickening and abhorrent abuse of horses, which has promoted calls for immediate action and accountability.

Government ministers and opposition TDs criticised the appalling footage which was shown in a TV documentary investigating the mistreatment of horses in Co Kildare.

Serious animal welfare abuses were uncovered in the RTE Investigates documentary which aired on Wednesday night.

It also revealed that illegal methods were used to launder the identities of horses at the site in Irelands only equine abattoir.

Department of Agriculture must take over Shannonside Abattoir while investigation into cruelty continues  @ClaireKerrane "We need immediate action and full accountability as well as much stricter oversight of existing animal welfare laws."https://t.co/GX67mSuFV4  Sinn Fein (@sinnfeinireland) June 13, 2024

The welfare abuse was filmed in a building used by Shannonside Foods Ltd in Straffan.

Sinn Fein TD Pearse Doherty said the Irish public were left distressed and appalled by the footage.

This country has a great love for horses. I know those with special needs and autism and the comfort and support they get from horses. Many people refer to them as angels with hooves, and they demand respect and care, Mr Doherty told the Dail.

What was reported last night demands immediate action and it demands accountability, minister.

Mr Doherty questioned how officials from the Department of Agriculture, who work on the site on days that horses are slaughtered, were not aware of the mistreatment.

It has been uncovered that approximately 2,000 horses were slaughtered at Shannonside Foods Ltd in Kildare last year alone, with two thirds of them bred for the horse racing industry, he added.

The Department of Agriculture have said that they have staff on the premises during which those horses are slaughtered at the site. They also tell us that there were no welfare issues noted on the days when this mistreatment took place.

A question that so many people are asking this morning is how this mistreatment happened under the very nose of the Department of Agriculture. What is clear is that the law has been broken.

The question must be asked whether the supervision of this site was adequate when the cruelty and the abuse taking place literally a yards throw away from the slaughterhouse in which the department official was sitting in and supervising.

Minister for Finance Michael McGrath said that he was also sickened and appalled the mistreatment of the beautiful animals.

I think its important to say that theres no question that the treatment that we witnessed last night is not representative of the wider equine industry and is not representative of the love and care that owners of horses display every single day for their animals around this country, the Cork TD added.

The Government unreservedly condemns the scenes that we witnessed and the full force of the law will be applied where breaches are proven in the court of law.

HRI Statement on RTE Investigates documentary. Read More Here: https://t.co/sFCP8tExUx pic.twitter.com/DijuWLl7IN  Horse Racing Ireland (@HRIRacing) June 12, 2024

There were a number of wider issues that came to the fore in the programme, in the context of traceability, the misuse of microchips, and indeed, fake passporting in respect of horses.

That does raise concerns about public health, as well as animal welfare. If animals ended up in the European Union food chain that shouldnt have because of chemicals that had been injected into them previously, that is a cause of real concern.

It was evident last night that the European Commission are very actively working on this issue.

Labour TD Duncan Smith told the Dail that the current system is broken and being abused.

This is a sector that receives gigantic levels of funding from the exchequer through a ring-fenced statutory fund. But we now have a clearer sense of the murky and illegal practices that are going on, Mr Smith added.

The system is clearly broken and being abused and all under the nose of the Department of Agriculture.

The safety of human food chain is not being taken seriously. The only conclusion to be drawn from using false microchips and spray paint to change the hair colour is that these animals wouldnt pass otherwise. Human health is being put at risk and horses are being abused.

What emerged last night raises serious questions for the Department of Agriculture and for Horse Racing Ireland who appear to be asleep at the wheel.

Earlier, the Minister for Agriculture, Charlie McConalogue, said those responsible will face the full rigours of the law.

Horse Racing Ireland said it will actively support the Department of Agriculture and Garda investigations, and urged anyone with information about mistreatment of horses to report it to gardai.

Mr McConalogue said an investigation has been launched into the incidents alongside the gardai.

The scenes we saw last night and the treatment of those horses was abhorrent and distressing. Horses are beautiful, sensitive animals and that was absolutely unacceptable, Mr McConalogue said.

Its certainly not representative of the way that people across this country and those in the industry treat and care for their horses. We already have commenced an investigation in the Department of Agriculture.

Weve also requested all of the footage that RTE has, and any other evidence as well to make it available to the investigation team.

Obviously, I would avoid saying anything that might be prejudicial to the conduct of that investigation. But I can assure you and I can assure the public that this will be fully investigated, and that the full rigour of the law will be applied here.

The law is adequate but what we saw last night was not lawful, and it was breaches of the law.

The Fianna Fail minister said there are strict laws in place around the management of what enters the human food chain.

He said that no stone will be left unturned in the investigation.
There has been a tenfold increase in the number of homes granted planning permission in Laois, according to new figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO).



Laois had the second highest number of new house units granted planning permission in the state in the first three months of 2024.

There were a total of 640 new homes granted permission by the Local Authority during that period which compares to just 64 in the first quarter of 2023.



Cork was the only county in Ireland that had a higher number of new homes granted planning permission between January and March at 655 units granted.



There was also a slight increase in the number of apartments granted planning permission in Laois during the first three months of 2024. There were 45 apartments granted planning between January and March this year compared to 43 in the first quarter of 2023.



Nationally the number of homes granted planning permission dropped 28% between January and March, when compared with the same time last year.



The CSO figures show that 8,387 units were granted permission, down from 11,659 during the same period in 2023.



Houses accounted for 58% of all dwelling units granted planning permission, while apartments made up the remaining 42%.



The number of houses granted planning permission fell by more than 20%, while apartment approvals declined by almost 37%.
With so many shows and movies available on demand these days, it's hard to figure out which ones are worth our time, which ones will make us put our phones away and which ones we will switch off after 10 minutes.

Luckily, I have watched them for you and below is a quick run-down of plot, cast etc. to give you an idea of whether or not they're up your alley

Eric

Starring Benedict Cumberbatch as the enraged, narcissistic, alcohol guzzling puppeteer for famous kid's show 'Good Day Sunshine', whose nine-year-old son goes missing in 1980s New York.

Cumberbatch really embodies the selfishness of his character, Vincent, who is struggling to accept the shifting tides of his beloved children's show that needs to diversify and move with the times, according to the corporate bigwigs.

He is in a loveless, toxic marriage to long suffering wife Cassie (played by the brilliant Gabby Hoffman) and a cold and unsupportive father to son Edgar, who wanting to follow in his father's footsteps, creates his own character, a big blue monster named Eric.

When Edgar goes missing on his way to school, a city wide search begins headed by Detective Ledroit, a determined cop hoping to make up for his mishandling of another missing child case 11 months prior.

Cue a slew of red herrings, obvious dialogue between characters and of course, Vincent's descent into alcohol and substance abuse to numb the reality of what's happening around him which leads him to start hallucinating his son's monster, Eric, come to life. A constant reminder for Vincent of the ways in which he has failed his son.

The premise is inviting and cinematically it really feels like New York in the 80s, set against the backdrop of the Aids epidemic when political turmoil twinned with gang crime and a homelessness crises was rife, but it all feels a bit superfluous and flat by the last episode.

Too many characters and too many convoluted stories with shady politicians, waste management companies and crooked cops take up too much space to tell the story that is ultimately about love and realising what you have before it's too late.

Cumberbatch is probably the best thing about Eric, but is ultimately a character with a very minute redemption arc, someone who is in essence a nasty person who inflicts pain and expectations on those around him because that's what he grew up with, another back story that could have been developed more.

At just six episodes, Eric is definitely worth the watch, but doesn't really break the mould in great storytelling. 6/10

Hit Man

Based on a true story and directed by Richard Linklater, Hit Man promised to be one of the best comedies of the year, and it semi-delivers.

Starring Glen Powell as the mild-mannered high school teacher Gary Johnson who moonlights for the police in his spare time as a fake hitman.

Essentially, he gets hired by a client who wants to put a hit on someone, he meets them in an array of different costumes and identities while wearing a wire and basically traps them into saying the incriminating words before the police swoop in to make an arrest.

Things are going great until Gary, under the identity of the cool and confident Ron, falls in love with one of his clients, the sexy and mysterious Madison, played by Adria Arjona, who wants to get her husband killed. Gary talks her out of it and the two begin a secret affair, which ultimately goes awry.

Think Mr and Ms Smith meets Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo, a fun comedy caper with a few twists and turns and a heartfelt love story.

At 1 hour and 55 minutes, it runs a little long, and certain scenes could certainly be cut, but overall it's a fun movie that doesn't require too much attention, but will definitely have you rooting for the main character. 7/10

What Jennifer Did

What Jennifer Did is a documentary chronicling the events of a murder investigation that took place in Toronto Canada, in 2010.

The doc uses footage of police interviews with Jennifer Pan, the daughter of two Vietnamese immigrants who were brutally attacked in an unprovoked home invasion. Her mother Bich Pan was shot and killed during the invasion while her father Huei Hann Pan was left in a coma.

At just over 90 mins long, the doc centres around Jennifer and her involvement with the home invasion, her relationship with her parents and her drug-dealing ex-boyfriend Daniel.

The best thing about this doc is that it doesn't span 10 episodes, which Netflix are quite fond of doing as of late, but the story and ultimate reveal was obvious from about 30 minutes in.

It felt frustrating to watch as the Toronto police questioned their suspects for hours on end, bringing in human lie detectors to try and unravel what really happened on that night, which if you've watched any true crime shows in the last 10 years, you would be able to extract all of that information for yourself.

Still, a very weird story of how obsession and passion can lead to horrendous crimes, but all in all, isn't that captivating. 4/10
People entitled to use designated disabled parking spaces are afraid theyll be physically or verbally abused.

Thats according to Cllr Carmel Kelly, who along with Cllr Peggy ODwyer, called for the setting up of a text alert system to notify that someone with a badge is taking up a space anywhere in County Kildare.

Cllr Kelly said this is being done in three other areas within Ireland.

The councillors argued that a text alert scheme in necessary to combat the misuse of accessible parking bays.

According to Kildare County Council parking bye-laws are in operation in 12 towns.

Read more Kildare news

A maximum stay period operates for all parking bays covered by the bye-laws including disabled parking bays.

Traffic wardens employed by pay parking contractor Apcoa monitor compliance with the bye-laws to ensure that the bays are not occupied for longer than permitted and that disabled person permits are on display where appropriate.

KCC official Celina Barrett said that its wardens ensure compliance with parking regulations.

However she said a text alert scheme would need careful consideration and assessment to determine the potential costs and benefits - because there is already a contractor in place carrying out enforcement on a daily basis where bye-laws apply.

There is a separate regime in place outside of these towns.

In 2023, 204 fines were issued for illegal parking in respect of disabled person parking bays. Ms Barrett added that If there are specific locations where there are problems, monitoring can be increased.

It was also pointed out that changes including public realm works, construction of cycle lanes have impacted on the operation of such parking spaces.

The council also said accessible parking bays, age friendly parking bays and similar measures will be considered when parking bye-law reviews are reviewed.
Eddie Mitchell, just minutes after being elected to Leitrim County Council said it was hard to express his feelings.

I spent the last 8 weeks or so talking to my neighbours. My mother died when she was 45 and that was the hardest and best part; to reconnect with my parents through all those people that knew them, that's the hardest part for me, a clearly emotional Eddie said.

All the people that helped me, all the people in Glenfarne and Kilty and Rossinver, if I start naming places I'll leave places out, that came out to help me, and the environmental community that came from Fermanagh and Tyrone and everywhere and online that came to support me.

The transfers just kept coming. We just continued our campaign work through this process and the reaction, we spent two months talking to people about important issues, he said.

We have serious stuff to do. Coillte could be buying land for a corporate entity and we have to decide how we're going to deal with that in Leitrim. We have to make sure we do that in a way that's positive and in away that works.

We need to change legislation in the Dail, we need help to do that, we have to remove the exemption that forestry has for planning. We need to ban gold mining in Ireland. We can't do that at the council but we can do it with the support of the council and the support of our elected representatives, he said.

We have a great team now (on the Council), its not just about independents, it's about Mary Bohan, Padraig Fallon, Justin Warnock, Felim Gurn. That's going to be the key, that nobody can break the bond between the councillors of north Leitrim, that's the power that we have, said Eddie.
A Dublin plumber has been given a suspended sentence for headbutting another man after they argued about Irish traditional music in a pub toilet on St Patrick's Day.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that the victim suffered a mild bleed on his brain after the headbutt knocked him to the ground outside the Grange pub in Deansgrange on March 17 last year.

Gavin Dennan (39) of Desmond Avenue, Dun Laoghaire was given a three-year suspended sentence after he pleaded guilty to assault causing harm.

Judge Pauline Codd also ordered Dennan to pay the victim 1,000 as a token of remorse, adding that if the victim is unwilling to accept this, the money is to go to a charity of their choice.

Judge Codd described it an act of madness, noting that one-punch assaults can be very serious and that Dennan was lucky not to be facing more serious charges.

She said although Dennan has no previous convictions, no history of violence and had acted totally out of character, it was often the case that people act out of character when tanked up.

Things become heated unnecessarily, said Judge Codd.

Dennan, who cooperated fully and expressed remorse and disgust at his behaviour, told gardai that a red mist had come over him after a verbal argument with the other man.

A total of 10 testimonials on Dennan's behalf were submitted to court, including from employers, voluntary groups and a local scouting organisation, speaking to his good character and integrity.

At a sentence hearing today/yesterday (WEDNESDAY), Garda Michael Murphy told Pieter Le Vert BL, prosecuting, that the injured party met friends in the Grange Pub on St Patrick's Day.

The victim told gardai later that the pub was busier than usual and Irish trad music was being played when he went to the toilet some time after 7pm.

He and Dennan had some sort of conversation about trad music in the toilets, and the victim said although he couldn't remember exactly what was said, Dennan seemed disappointed with his views.

The victim left the pub before 10pm after drinking six or seven pints and woke up in St Vincent's Hospital with a sore head and a lump on his lip.

The victim said he threw up and noticed blood in his vomit but was released from hospital the following morning.

He continued to vomit over the weekend and went back to hospital on Monday due to his ongoing headache.

A brain scan revealed a small bleed on the front left portion of his brain.

The victim was off work for two weeks but had trouble sleeping and had to get prescription medicine to relieve pressure on his brain.

A medical report said the victim was unsteady on his feet and struggled with memory and with certain words for a few weeks after the assault but that ultimately all of these injuries resolved and he returned to work.

The victim did not wish to file a victim impact report, the court heard.

Two women who were in the smoking area gave eye witness accounts of seeing Dennan and the victim exchanging words and having heated discussions.

Dennan, his wife and adult son were about to get into a taxi when the victim was heard shouting more verbal abuse at Dennan, who said: I've had enough, fuck this.

He then went back and headbutted the victim, who fell and hit his head off the ground.

The victim was described by witnesses as being very drunk.

Dennan told gardai that when he encountered the victim in the toilet, he found the victim to be aggressive and abusive about the trad music that was playing.

Dennan agreed with gardai that he was into Irish music and the victim wasn't, but said the conversation developed into a debate about politics and history and that he felt the victim was trying to get a reaction out of him.

He said that later on, the victim was making snide remarks and called him a profanity, whereupon he lost his temper and acted without thinking.

I should have left the scene. I've never behaved like this previously. I entirely regret my actions and I'm concerned that he was hospitalised. I'm disgusted with my behaviour, Dennan told gardai.

Garda Murphy agreed with counsel for the defence that Dennan had been very forthcoming and candid with gardai and was filled with remorse and regret.

The prosecuting garda also agreed that Dennan is not a man who will reoffend.

Counsel handed in testimonials including from Dennan's doctor and partner, describing a family man of exemplary character whose children rely on him for their security and happiness.

Dennan and his partner have five children, the court heard, and two of their children have additional needs.

Dennan, who is employed as a plumber for Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council, is the sole earner and has taken on extra work to support his family.
Independent Michael McNamara, Fianna Fails Cynthia Ni Mhurchu and Sinn Feins Kathleen Funchion have been elected as MEPs for the Ireland South constituency.

They confirmed their places in the European Parliament after they were the only candidates left in the field following days of counting.

The final count also caused independent Mick Wallace to become the fifth MEP to lose his seat in the nationwide elections.

The redistributed votes of outgoing Green Party MEP Grace OSullivan, who also lost her seat, decided who was ultimately elected.

The trio join Fine Gaels Sean Kelly, who was the first of Irelands 14 MEPs to be elected, and Fianna Fails Billy Kelleher, who reached the quota earlier on Thursday.

Mr McNamara said he was tired and honoured after securing a place in the parliament.

However, he said his first priority after a long campaign was to spend some time with his family.

I have two very young children and I think running in an election, whether you win or you lose, involves a sacrifice and its easy for the vainglorious candidates but for their families it involves huge sacrifice, he said.

Little children that sometimes dont have any idea about the sacrifices or why they are not seeing their parents and its almost impossible, it would have been impossible without my wife and her support, her family and my supporters who also didnt see their families  thats true I think of candidates whether they win or lose.

Tanaiste and Fianna Fail leader Micheal Martin and Sinn Fein President Mary Lou McDonald were at the count centre to congratulation their respective winning candidates.

Confirmation of Ms Ni Mhurchus win came the day before her birthday.

Its magnificent, I am going to celebrate like theres no tomorrow, she said on Thursday night.

The celebrations wont last a day, theyll last many, many days.

Ms Funchion said she was delighted with the outcome.

Its fantastic, Im delighted with the result, delighted for the party as well, its a great achievement for us here in Ireland South to have an MEP back in Ireland South, she said.

I really want to take the opportunity to thank everyone that came out and voted for us.

Corkman Mr Kelleher earlier celebrated with his staff at Nemo Rangers GAA Club count centre with his family, colleagues and Tanaiste Mr Martin.

It is emotional to be adjudicated by your peers and to be found to be in good stead with them is a huge honour, he said, thanking his wife and children.

Today really is a crowning achievement, to be vindicated for the last five years as their representative in Europe.

Mr Martin said: Suffice to say that the Fianna Fail campaign was around the idea that we need to send serious, committed, pro-European Union candidates, be critical yes, but pro the union (to the European Parliament).

Ms OSullivan, a former Greenpeace activist and Co Waterford surfer, was eliminated after Mr Kellehers surplus was distributed.

She said she would not announce now whether she would run for the Dail, and instead would focus on closing her office in Cork city and organising letters of reference for her staff members.

Speaking on Wednesday evening, Ms OSullivan admitted that her chances of being re-elected were slipping away.

With a swansong message, she said it was not just the Green Partys responsibility to push climate change policies to the fore, but also that of their coalition parties, Fine Gael and Fianna Fail.

The former Greenpeace activist said she had not been as extraordinarily transfer friendly in this vote as she was in the 2019 European election, and said it feels that momentum has gone from the Green Party.

Ms OSullivan said: People have other things on their minds, and that concerns me because as an ecological party and as an ecologist myself, climate change has not gone away by any doubt.

She also said that her own stance on an EU exception given to Irish farmers allowing them to use organic nitrates had hurt her level of transfer-friendliness.

Ms OSullivan added: Maybe in this case, with the rise of the independents, that also there was a bit of a backlash to some of the maybe inconvenient truths that I was putting out.

The results mean that Ireland has elected 10 of its 14 MEPs after six days of counting.

Irish voters headed to the polls last Friday to pick 949 local councillors, 14 members of the European Parliament and the countrys first directly elected mayor.

Results emerging from the three elections have been seen as a political boon for coalition partners Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, while the largest opposition party, Sinn Fein, has initiated a review after performing well below its own expectations.

While the main coalition parties Fine Gael and Fianna Fail have consolidated their positions in the European Parliament and across local authorities, Sinn Fein has expressed disappointment for not making further gains.

Though the party has increased its representation in Irish councils and in Europe, it had hoped to be further ahead.

The Green Party has lost both its MEPs and a chunk of its councillors, in a sign of the Green ebb that had been feared.
Gary Pinkus, Chairman of McKinsey & Company in North America, Joins Bloom Energy's Board of Directors





Bloom Energy (NYSE: BE) appointed Gary Pinkus, Chairman of McKinsey & Company in North America, to its Board of Directors. Pinkus has spent nearly 40 years of his career at McKinsey & Company, the global management consulting firm, building substantial governance, leadership, and executive experience.

He has established and led some of the firm's largest practices, including the co-founding and subsequent leadership of the global Private Equity & Principal Investors practice. Pinkus also has and continues to advise several energy companies, ranging from major oil and gas corporations to new energy start-ups, guiding his clients through a dynamic industry on the path to net-zero.

With extensive experience in energy and other high-growth sectors, Pinkus is well-versed in enabling companies to scale profitably and efficiently and will bring this expertise to the Bloom Energy Board.

"On behalf of the Bloom Energy Board members and leadership team, it is my privilege to welcome Gary Pinkus to Bloom Energy's Board of Directors," said KR Sridhar, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Bloom Energy. "Gary's invaluable experience across multiple industries and his perspective will offer Bloom a vital source of support as we enter the next stage of our global growth."

Before becoming Chairman in 2018, Pinkus served as Managing Partner of its San Francisco office from 2003-2006, its West Coast practice from 2006-2013, and the North America practice from 2015-2018. A long-standing member of McKinsey's Board of Directors, he has chaired several of its committees, and since 2019 has chaired the Senior Partners Committee.

Pinkus has also served as a Council member of the McKinsey Global Institute ? a highly-rated think tank that produces research and analysis on the economic and business issues most critical to the world.

"I am thrilled to join Bloom Energy's Board of Directors," said Pinkus. "Burgeoning growth in artificial intelligence and data centers showcases the unique moment in which Bloom finds itself to seize opportunity in the market ? I am excited to help guide the company to deliver the energy solutions our world needs."

Pinkus currently serves on the boards of Wake Forest University and US Ski and Snowboard. He is a prior member of the boards of San Francisco Opera, California Academy of Sciences, Menlo School, California Business Roundtable, Silicon Valley Leadership Group, ReSurge International (formerly Interplast), and the investment committee for the Woodside School Foundation. Pinkus earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Quantitative Economics with Distinction from Stanford University and a Master of Business Administration with Distinction from Harvard Business School. He currently resides in Woodside, California with his wife.

About Bloom Energy

Bloom Energy's mission is to make clean, reliable energy affordable for everyone in the world. Bloom Energy's product, the Bloom Energy Server, delivers highly reliable and resilient, always-on electric power that is clean, cost-effective, and ideal for microgrid applications. Bloom Energy's customers include many Fortune 100 companies and leaders in manufacturing, data centers, healthcare, retail, higher education, utilities, and other industries. For more information, visit www.bloomenergy.com.

12 june 2024 at 16:35

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Liberty Gold Reports Voting Results from Annual General Meeting





VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 12, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Liberty Gold Corp. (TSX: LGD; OTCQX: LGDTF) ("Liberty Gold" or the "Company") is pleased to announce voting results from the Company's Annual General Meeting of Shareholders held on June 12, 2024 (the "Meeting").



A total of 194,138,404 common shares were voted, representing the votes attached to 56.3% of all outstanding common shares. Shareholders voted in favour of the election of all director nominees. The percentage of votes cast for each is as follows:

Total number of ?for' votes cast: Votes ?for': Mr. Robert Pease 160,245,988 99.52% Mr. Cal Everett 160,208,772 99.50% Ms. Barbara Womersley 160,160,269 99.47% Mr. Greg Etter 160,229,720 99.51% Ms. Lisa Wade 160,159,865 99.47% Ms. Wendy Louie 160,147,294 99.46%

The following were also approved by the shareholders:

The reappointment of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, Chartered Professional Accountants as auditor of the Company:

Total number of ?for' votes cast: 193,507,458 Votes ?for': 99.68 %

Voting results are released in accordance with Toronto Stock Exchange requirements. Detailed voting results for the Meeting are available under Liberty Gold's SEDAR+ profile at www.sedarplus.ca.

ABOUT LIBERTY GOLD

Liberty Gold is focused on exploring for and developing open pit oxide deposits in the Great Basin of the United States, home to large-scale gold projects that are ideal for open-pit mining. This region is one of the most prolific gold-producing regions in the world and stretches across Nevada and into Idaho and Utah. We know the Great Basin and are driven to discover and advance big gold deposits that can be mined profitably in open-pit scenarios.

For more information, visit libertygold.ca or contact:

Susie Bell, Manager, Investor Relations

Phone: 604-632-4677 or Toll Free 1-877-632-4677

[email protected]

12 june 2024 at 18:50

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Asante Announces Rerouting of Bibiani-Goaso Highway, Paving the Way to Grow Gold Production at the Bibiani Gold Mine





VANCOUVER, British Columbia, June 13, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Asante Gold Corporation (CSE:ASE | GSE:ASG | FRANKFURT:1A9 | U.S.OTC:ASGOF) ("Asante" or the "Company") announces that the Bibiani-Goaso Highway has been rerouted following the recent completion of two detour roads, allowing for the further development of the open pit and the underground at the Bibiani Gold Mine ("Bibiani"). This vital step advances the Company's plans to grow gold production at Bibiani to more than 250,000 ounces per year, with cumulative production of 1.2 million ounces of gold anticipated over the next five years, at lower all-in sustaining costs ("AISC"), as detailed in the 2024 Bibiani Technical Report ("Technical Report").



Rerouting the highway gives the Company access to approximately 170,000 ounces of contained gold from the Main Pit in the next 12 months and supports planning to process 250,000 ounces from 2026 fiscal year onwards. The oxide mineralization from near surface at the southern portion of the Main Pit allows higher gold recovery while the Sulphide Recovery Plant is being installed. Re-routing the highway creates the ability to increase monthly production to over 20,000 ounces within eight months. Over the longer term, it supports the Company's plans to explore and extend mine life well into the next decade at Bibiani.

Rerouting of the Bibiani-Goaso Highway became possible following the successful planning, design and construction of two detour roads which provide easier access to commuters and represent a major accomplishment for Asante. Planning of the two detour roads required extensive consultation and support of key stakeholders such as Ghana's Ministry of Roads and Transport, the Ghana Highway Authority, the Department of Feeder Roads, Regional Ministry, traditional authorities, local community committees, the Bibiani-Anhwiaso-Bekwai Municipal Assembly, transport organisations, community members and other stakeholders. Asante thanks all stakeholders at Bibiani for their constructive participation in the process.

Having reached this significant milestone is critical to ensuring the long-term sustainable development of Bibiani. With the two completed detour roads, the Company has provided safe and efficient travel to farms, plantations and communities for all stakeholders that have previously used the Bibiani-Goaso Highway. Asante looks forward to working with its communities and stakeholders in a mutually beneficial relationship for many years to come.

Qualified Person Statement

The scientific and technical information contained in this news release has been reviewed and approved by David Anthony, P.Eng., Mining and Mineral Processing, President and CEO of Asante, who is a "qualified person" under NI 43-101.

Non-IFRS Measures

This news release includes certain terms or performance measures commonly used in the mining industry that are not defined under International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS"), including "all-in sustaining costs" (or "AISC"). Non-IFRS 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 of performance prepared in accordance with IFRS and should be read in conjunction with Asante's consolidated financial statements. Readers should refer to Asante's Management Discussion and Analysis under the heading "Non-IFRS Measures" for a more detailed discussion of how Asante calculates certain of such measures and a reconciliation of certain measures to IFRS terms.

About Asante Gold Corporation

Asante is a gold exploration, development and operating company with a high-quality portfolio of projects and mines in Ghana. Asante is currently operating the Bibiani and Chirano Gold Mines and continues with detailed technical studies at its Kubi Gold Project. All mines and exploration projects are located on the prolific Bibiani and Ashanti Gold Belts. Asante has an experienced and skilled team of mine finders, builders and operators, with extensive experience in Ghana. The Company is listed on the Canadian Securities Exchange, the Ghana Stock Exchange and the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. Asante is also exploring its Keyhole, Fahiakoba and Betenase projects for new discoveries, all adjoining or along strike of major gold mines near the centre of Ghana's Golden Triangle. Additional information is available on the Company's website at www.asantegold.com.



About the Bibiani Gold Mine



Bibiani is an operating open pit gold mine situated in the Western North Region of Ghana, with previous gold production of more than 4.5 million ounces. It is fully permitted with available mining and processing infrastructure on-site consisting of a newly refurbished 3 million tonne per annum process plant and existing mining infrastructure. Asante commenced mining at Bibiani in late February 2022 with the first gold pour announced on July 7, 2022. Commercial production was announced November 10, 2022.

For additional information relating to the mineral resource and mineral reserve estimates for the Bibiani Gold Mine, please refer to the 2024 Bibiani Technical Report filed on the Company's SEDAR+ profile (www.sedarplus.ca) on April 30, 2024.

For further information please contact:

Dave Anthony, President & CEO

Frederick Attakumah, Executive Vice President and Country Director

[email protected]

+1 604 661 9400 or +233 303 972 147



Cautionary Statement on Forward-Looking Statements



Certain statements in this news release constitute forward-looking statements, including but not limited to, production and all-in sustaining costs forecasts for the Bibiani Gold Mine, exploration results and potential, development programs, expansion and mine life extension opportunities, and completion of plant upgrades. Forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results, performance, prospects, and opportunities to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from these forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, variations in the nature, quality and quantity of any mineral deposits that may be located, the Company's inability to obtain any necessary permits, consents or authorizations required for its planned activities, the Company's inability to raise the necessary capital or to be fully able to implement its business strategies, and the price of gold. The reader is referred to the Company's public disclosure record which is available on SEDAR+ (www.sedarplus.ca). Although the Company believes that the assumptions and factors used in preparing the forward-looking statements are reasonable, undue reliance should not be placed on these statements, which only apply as of the date of this news release, and no assurance can be given that such events will occur in the disclosed time frames or at all. Except as required by securities laws and the policies of the securities exchanges on which the Company is listed, the Company disclaims any intention or obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.

LEI Number: 529900F9PV1G9S5YD446. Neither IIROC nor any stock exchange or other securities regulatory authority accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

13 june 2024 at 07:00

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Defining Moments: China's Defense Minister at Shangri-La Dialogue





GUANGZHOU, China, June 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- News report from GDToday:

On the morning of June 2, 2024, shortly after 8 a.m. local time, the Island Ballroom at Shangri-La Singapore was abuzz with a throng of delegates. The grandiosity of the space, with its capacity to host a thousand, was not just a venue but a stage for pivotal moments at the Shangri-La Dialogue.

Beneath a constellation of six crystal chandeliers, the air was thick with anticipation as officials, scholars, and media from the Asia-Pacific region exchanged pleasantries and ideas. Among the crowd was Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun, poised to make his inaugural speech at the Dialogue, offering insights into China's stance on global security.

Since Minister Dong's arrival in Singapore on the 29th of May, every move on his itinerary had been pored over by the keen eyes of the international community, with particular interest in his high-stakes meeting with the U.S. Defense Secretary on May 31.

In a candid moment captured by the Associated Press after the China-U.S. talks, Dong, the first to step out of the meeting room, engaged in a light-hearted dialogue about the pandas destined for San Diego, California, with an American delegate, extending an invitation to immerse herself in the pandas' native Chengdu.

Following behind, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, when probed by the press about the nature of the talks, offered a simple yet telling remark, "They went well."

During the discourse, Dong emphasized, "A healthy relationship between our militaries is not just in our mutual interest but also a shared aspiration of the global community." He advocated for open channels between the two forces to foster understanding, dispel ambiguities, and cultivate trust.

With measured optimism, Dong anticipated that the U.S. would demonstrate a congruence between its rhetoric and actions, striving alongside China to fulfill the consensus established by the leaders of both nations. He envisioned an earnest effort to bolster exchanges, embrace the principles of harmony, stability, and trust, and together, carve out a path for the coexistence of the two militaries?a path that would satisfy not only their bilateral interests but also the broader expectations of the world.

Asia-Pacific peace and prosperity, an anchor for global security

Dong, adorned in his formal Navy attire and signature dark-framed glasses, entered the stage at 8:27 a.m., marking the third day of the Shangri-La Dialogue. His presence added a layer of gravity to the already tense atmosphere, as attendees awaited his remarks on China's position in the global security theater.

Following the opening address by Bastian Giegerich, Director-General of the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS), Dong began his speech by highlighting the collective aspirations for peace and development in an increasingly turbulent world. He referred to the "Asia-Pacific miracle," a period of peace and prosperity that has significantly contributed to global stability and growth.

"In today's turbulent world, people of all countries have a stronger desire for peace and development. The peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific, which has lasted for decades, is a remarkable miracle that has injected a strong impetus into world development and served as an anchor for global security. It has taught us a lot of things."

Subsequently, Dong pointed out China's defense policy and guidelines. He stated that China values peace and harmony, pursues common security, is committed to equality, mutual respect, openness, and inclusiveness, and resolutely safeguards its core interests.

As for Taiwan, Dong emphasized that the Taiwan question is at the core of China's core interests, and the one-China principle has long become a universally recognized norm that governs international relations.

"To safeguard China's sovereignty and territorial integrity is the sacred mission of the Chinese military, and we will take resolute actions to curb "Taiwan independence" and make sure such a plot never succeeds," he said.

When it came to the South China Sea issue, Dong stated, "We advocate settlement of disputes through dialogue and consultation and despise the law of the jungle. When addressing border and maritime disputes, we have never provoked incidents or easily resorted to the use of force. We have worked with ASEAN countries to implement the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea (DOC) and accelerate consultations on the DOC, and have maintained peace and tranquility in our region."

"With regard to how to build Asia-Pacific security, China is willing to protect the legitimate security interests of all countries, build a more just and equitable international order, serve as a framework of regional security, advance open and substantive defense cooperation, set an example of maritime security cooperation, strengthen security governance in emerging areas, create a new situation of regional security cooperation, and strive to make the Asia-Pacific an anchor for global stability and development," Dong said.

Through his 35-minute speech, Dong explained China's approach to global security to the world.

In the Q&A session of the Shangri-La Dialogue, Dong made impactful replies.

In the first round of the Q&A, Washington Post columnist Josh Rogin asked, "Is China pursuing the peaceful reunification of Taiwan?" Dong took more than 10 minutes to restate China's policy stance on the Taiwan issue.

At the end of this speech, Dong called on the delegates from all parties to pool our wisdom together and through to add more positive expectations.

Dong sent an invitation, to guests from all over the world, to the Beijing Xiangshan Forum to be held in China this autumn.

"Defense Minister Dong's speech expresses China's stance clearly," said Singapore Defense Minister Ng Eng Hen during a press interview on June 2. "I think that he is willing to spend more time on answering delegates' questions," Ng added.

Meeting of Chinese and U.S. defense chiefs, "positive, practical, and constructive"

The meeting of the Chinese and U.S. defense ministers was the greatest focus of this year's Shangri-La Dialogue. It took place between Chinese Defense Minister Dong Jun, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, and their entourages at around 1:00 p.m. on May 31 at the Dutch Pavilion in Shangri-La Singapore.

This was another formal meeting of the Chinese and U.S. defense ministers 18 months after the last meeting.

The air temperature of 31C seemed to further heat up the meeting. In the conference room, the two defense chiefs exchanged views on the Taiwan question, the South China Sea issue, the Ukraine crisis, the Palestinian-Israeli conflict, etc. On both sides of the corridor leading to the Dutch Pavilion, over 30 Chinese and overseas media reporters were waiting anxiously, as they held cameras and mobile phones.

At around 2:12 p.m., Dong and the other members of the Chinese delegation walked out of the venue. His dark-framed glasses were suddenly covered by a thin layer of mist, and he was soon besieged by the numerous Chinese and overseas media reporters waiting there.

"Thanks for your attention; my colleagues will brief you in a moment," Dong said while raising his right hand and looking around at the reporters after a brief pause.

Global attention was drawn to this talk between the Chinese and U.S. defense ministers 18 months later. Wu Qian, spokesman for the Ministry of National Defense of China, held a press briefing just 10 minutes after the talk, where he revealed that the talk lasted 75 minutes, longer than the originally expected one hour. "This was a positive, practical, and constructive strategic communication session," said Wu.

"Meeting is better than not meeting, and talking is better than not talking," said Wu. However, we cannot expect both sides to solve all existing problems between the two armies in one stroke.

In the reporter Q&A session, Wu mentioned that China objected to microphone diplomacy, and he stressed that face-to-face communication between the two defense ministers is very important.

"Both sides highly expect productive communication between the defense ministers to implement the consensus reached at the San Francisco summit between the two heads of state, and promote the healthy and stable development of the relationship between the two armies," said Tong Zhen, a research fellow at the PLA Academy of Military Sciences.

Delegates present also observed the relationship between the Chinese and U.S. armies through Austin's speech. Since he was elected U.S. Defense Secretary, he has visited Singapore four times and attended the Shangri-La Dialogue three times.

"The speech by Austin is a continuation of his 2023 speech, but it shows a softer attitude towards China," He Lei, former President of the PLA Academy of Military Sciences, told a reporter from Southern Weekly. He is an old friend of the Shangri-La Dialogue. In 2017 and 2018, he attended the Dialogue twice as the leader of the delegation, and he has attended the Dialogue as a delegation member many times.

How should the two armies enhance cooperation? Wu thought that the two armies should carry out exchanges between military academies and engage in policy dialogues.

"Every beginning is difficult. However, we can benefit from doing something first. As long as the journey is, we will reach our destination if we stay the course," said Wu frankly.

SOURCE GDToday

13 june 2024 at 10:24

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Ameresco to Celebrate the Commercial Operations of K?pono Solar at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam





Ameresco, Inc., (NYSE: AMRC), a leading cleantech integrator specializing in energy efficiency and renewable energy, today announced the commercial operations and dedication ceremony for K?pono Solar. The solar and battery storage facility, located at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam West Loch Annex, is now operational and supporting Hawaiian Electric's grid on O?ahu.

The dedication ceremony took place today at the K?pono Solar site in Ewa Beach. Speakers for the event included The Honorable Meredith Berger, Assistant Secretary of the Navy and Chief Sustainability Officer; Captain Mark Sohaney, Commander of Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam; Shelee Kimura, President and CEO of Hawaiian Electric; and Nicole Bulgarino, Executive Vice President of Ameresco, among others. Key stakeholders and the community came together to celebrate the critical importance of this landmark project that is contributing to Hawai?i's clean energy future. The event highlighted the 42 MW photovoltaic solar array and four-hour 42 MW / 168 MWh battery storage facility's key benefits, including stabilizing energy costs, reducing fossil fuel usage, and advancing Hawai?i's goal of achieving 100% clean energy by 2045.

Using 131 acres of Navy land under a long-term lease, K?pono Solar now provides clean, renewable energy to approximately 10,000 homes on O?ahu while offsetting 50,000 tons of CO2 emissions annually. This initiative paves the way for a diversified portfolio of clean energy solutions, aligning with both the Department of Defense's and the state's long-term clean energy goals.

"I am thrilled to celebrate the dedication of K?pono Solar, the largest solar-plus-battery storage facility on O?ahu," said Honolulu Mayor Rick Blangiardi. "This groundbreaking project represents a significant step forward in our commitment to energy efficiency and renewable energy. I want to mahalo Ameresco and Executive Vice President Nicole Bulgarino, Hawaiian Electric, the U.S. Navy and Assistant Secretary of the Navy Meredith Berger for their dedication to sustainability, because this project showcases their ability to innovate for the benefit of our community and environment. This is a shining example of how we can work together to build a cleaner, greener future for O?ahu."

Governor Josh Green, M.D., thanked Ameresco and the K?pono Solar project for supporting the state's ongoing efforts to have 100% renewable energy on O?ahu's grid by 2045. "I was fortunate to participate in the groundbreaking of this project in October 2022 and it gives me great satisfaction to see it powered up now and operating for the benefit of O?ahu's ratepayers. Our congratulations go to Ameresco for launching its first utility-scale solar project in the state of Hawai?i, and our thanks go to Hawaiian Electric, the U.S. Navy, and our friends in the ?Ewa community, for being such wonderful, supportive partners of a clean energy project that is significantly strengthening the power grid."

"Congratulations and mahalo to Ameresco, the Navy and all those who worked collaboratively to get this project online, even in the face of challenges that included a worldwide pandemic," said Shelee Kimura, Hawaiian Electric president and CEO. "These strong partnerships move us closer toward energy independence and help build a more resilient Hawai?i."

"The Navy is proud of our partnership with Ameresco, Hawaiian Electric, and the community. Today we celebrate a significant milestone: this project will enhance our shared resilience ? ensuring there is reliable energy to support the community and our mission," said Assistant Secretary of the Navy for Energy, Installations, and Environment (EI&E) and Chief Sustainability Officer, Meredith Berger. "By sharing our resources, we increase our resilience, and provide renewable, reliable, redundant power that support our shared energy goals and shared energy future."

"Ameresco is delighted to announce the completion of this significant project and the commencement of operations for this renewable energy resource," said Nicole Bulgarino, Executive Vice President of Ameresco. "In collaboration with the Navy, Hawaiian Electric, and all of the critical community stakeholders, we have developed energy infrastructure that benefits the residents of O?ahu and the natural environment. We are proud of the facility's inauguration and the strides we are making together in sustainable energy development. Our collective efforts are dedicated to providing clean, dependable energy to Hawai?i."

K?pono Solar was a collaborative effort, and the dedication ceremony was marked by the presence of so many pivotal contributors who played a significant role in bringing the project to fruition. This included stakeholders from The United States Navy, Hawaiian Electric, as well as elected officials, policy makers, community members and industry partners.

To learn more about K?pono Solar, visit www.kuponosolar.com and to learn more about Ameresco, visit www.ameresco.com.

About Ameresco, Inc.

Founded in 2000, Ameresco, Inc. (NYSE:AMRC) is a leading cleantech integrator and renewable energy asset developer, owner and operator. Our comprehensive portfolio includes solutions that help customers reduce costs, decarbonize to net zero, and build energy resiliency while leveraging smart, connected technologies. From implementing energy efficiency and infrastructure upgrades to developing, constructing, and operating distributed energy resources ? we are a trusted sustainability partner. Ameresco has successfully completed energy saving, environmentally responsible projects with Federal, state and local governments, utilities, healthcare and educational institutions, housing authorities, and commercial and industrial customers. With its corporate headquarters in Framingham, MA, Ameresco has more than 1,500 employees providing local expertise in North America and Europe. For more information, visit www.ameresco.com.

The announcement of Ameresco's completion of a renewable energy asset project is not necessarily indicative of the timing or amount of revenue from such arrangement, of the company's overall revenue for any particular period or of trends in the company's overall total assets in development or operation. This project was included in our previously reported assets in development as of March 31, 2024.

13 june 2024 at 18:10

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The President of Senegal Bassirou Diomaye Faye, at the presidential palace in Dakar, March 28, 2024. - / AFP

Bassirou Diomaye Faye was expected in both Mali and Burkina Faso on Thursday, May 30, for a "friendship and working visit," according to a press release from the Senegalese presidency, with a view to strengthening "historic ties of good neighborly relationship." Senegal's new president is due to meet Burkina Faso's leader, Captain Ibrahim Traore, in Ouagadougou for the first time, and the president of Mali's transitional government, Colonel Assimi Goita, in Bamako. Both men are coup leaders at odds with the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), in which Senegal is a key player.

While these coup plotters maintain tense relations with some of their West African counterparts, they share the same pan-Africanist, sovereignist rhetoric with the Senegalese president. Faye was elected on a platform advocating a break with the neo-colonial order and a promise of change. At his inauguration on April 2, his supporters cheered the officials from Mali and Burkina Faso who had made the trip. This ideological proximity raised questions among Senegal's Western partners and within ECOWAS. Which side would Macky Sall's successor choose?

Read more Subscribers only Bassirou Diomaye Faye, the anti-system underdog at the helm of Senegal

Neither, replied Faye. Buoyed by his exemplary election  he won in the first round, without any challenge from his opponents  he intended to use his popularity to serve West Africa. "I am convinced that we must continue to act in solidarity within the ECOWAS space, make the necessary reforms and work to dispel the misunderstandings that are bound to arise," he declared on May 7, in Abidjan, affirming that ECOWAS "is a formidable tool for integration [that] we will gain by preserving." This message was addressed directly to the three countries that have set up the Alliance of Sahel States (AES) jeopardizing the survival of the regional organization.

'Improving negotiations with Europe'

The future of ECOWAS and the CFA franc, a symbol of "Francafrique" (French post-colonialist sphere of influence) that putschists like Faye want to see disappear, as well as security issues in a region plagued by armed terrorist groups, should be at the heart of the discussions the Senegalese will have with his counterparts in Bamako and Ouagadougou.

Read more Subscribers only Behind the Faye-Sonko duo's swift rise to power in Senegal

Positioning himself as a regional leader should also enable him to fulfill other ambitions. A Ministry of Foreign Affairs official, who requested anonymity, said: "These trips to the region are also aimed at improving negotiations with European countries. On issues such as migration and economic agreements, it is in his interest to bring his views to the attention of his counterparts." Voters' expectations relate to those issues "which mix diplomacy, the economy and domestic questions," said Sambou Ansou, member of the national communications secretariat of PASTEF (African Patriots of Senegal for Work, Ethics and Fraternity), the party founded by President Faye and Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko.

During his campaign, the PASTEF candidate promised to renegotiate fishing agreements signed with the European Union, as well as gas and oil contracts with foreign operators. He discussed these issues with European Council President Charles Michels, who visited Dakar on April 23, calling for a " revised, renewed partnership." A Ministry of Foreign Affairs official, who requested anonymity, emphasized the symbolic significance of Rwandan leader Paul Kagame's visit to Dakar in mid-May. "Kagame embodies African sovereignty and a relaxed relationship with the West, and this speaks to Diomaye Faye and contributes to his popularity among young people."

Read more Subscribers only The dark side of Paul Kagame, the Rwandan autocrat who fascinates the West

Faye will next prepare for his trip to France, scheduled for June 20, when he is due to meet his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron. "In the region and beyond, Diomaye Faye wants to make a break with the past, but also ensure continuity," concluded Mamadou Lamine Sarr, who teaches political science at Dakar's Cheikh Hamidou Kane University.
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Transfers have put Sinn Feins Kathleen Funchion in contention to be elected as one of Irelands 14 MEPs.

Over 60% of Limerick Senator Paul Gavan's transfers went to his party running mate, propelling her into second place with 76,697 votes.

The huge transfer rate has positioned the Carlow-Kilkenny TD to take one of the five seats in the Ireland South constituency, though political commentators have said transfers make it impossible to predict.

Fianna Fail MEP Billy Kelleher is on 106,051 and is creeping closer to the quota as of the 16th count this Thursday morning, June 13.

He could be elected to the second of five MEP seats in the Ireland South constituency by this afternoon.

In the hunt behind Ms Funchion are Independent Clare TD Michael McNamara (75,570 votes),outgoing MEP Mick Wallace (67,146), and Fianna Fails Cynthia Ni Mhurchu (65,361).

There is an outside chance for outgoing Green Party MEP Grace OSullivan (63,335), though it looks increasingly unlikely.

Observers at the count centre will watch closely whether other candidates can attract enough transfers to leap ahead.

Ms OSullivan said Im here with the swansong at the Cork count centre as transfers saw the former Greenpeace activist fall behind.

She added: You can see its definitely slipping away now but Ive been realistic all the time from the get-go when the preference votes were being put on the tables and I acknowledged that it was substantially down on my 2019 vote.

She said that all three parties in the coalition Government are responsible for public services, climate, health and water quality.

Ms OSullivan added: Thats why Im concerned about Ireland. Without the strong voices in Europe, without Ciaran Cuffe and I, we were hard-working and we were strong, we were active on legislation and without the Irish Greens at the table, we will lose ground in terms of the environmental reach.

The meticulous count continued in Cork on Wednesday to fill four of the five seats for the Ireland South constituency, with all five seats left to be filled in Midlands-Northwest.

Fine Gaels Sean Kelly was elected on the first count on Monday night, leaving 22 candidates vying for four seats in the 10-county constituency.

Returning officer Martin Harvey said he is hopeful they will have a final result by mid afternoon on Thursday, but said the significant transfer from Mr Gavan to Ms Funchion showed how one count can dramatically change standings.
A NEW community education framework has been launched in Southill.

Minister Patrick ODonovan launched the National Community Education Framework in Southhill Hub.

It was developed with SOLAS, and the Further Education and Training (FET) authority, as well as other key partners from the FET sector.

This framework will deliver a more consistent approach to community education funded by SOLAS.

It provides principles and an approach to making positive changes to how people learn, and how education is provided, coordinated and funded.

Welcoming the launch of the Community Education Framework, Minister Patrick O'Donovan TD said: Community education includes both formal and informal learning, addressing learners personal development, building skills while offering educational options through simplified pathways, and further opportunities to progress to other areas of FET and beyond.

Community education plays a vital role in the FET system, and in local communities across Ireland as it offers local, accessible, and welcoming learning opportunities for individuals.

The distinguishing factor of community education is the wide-ranging outcomes for learners, which include skills development, confidence building, greater community involvement, social justice outcomes and progression to other types of FET provision.

As part of the event, learners including Stephanie Ryan and Macey Kelly from the Family Resource Centre in Ballynanty, Limerick, took part in a panel discussion and shared their experience of the positive impact that community education has had on their lives.

George OCallaghan, chief executive of Limerick and Clare ETB, said that community education makes a real impact on to the lives of learners.

There is a huge vibrancy of community education provision in Limerick city and across the region.
Abbey Tauchen |

Lincoln University of Missouri has selected Dr. Ashton Cleveland as the chief operating officer (COO), a new position within the universitys leadership team aimed at strengthening LUs operational excellence and strategic execution.

As chief operating officer, Dr. Cleveland will support the president by managing staff, budgets, policies and procedures, ensuring smooth operations across the institution. He will coordinate strategic initiatives, fostering effective communication and collaboration with both internal and external partners. Working closely with the president, provost and other leaders, he will help advance university priorities by implementing cross-functional projects and policies.

We are thrilled to welcome Dr. Cleveland to our university, Lincoln University of Missouri President Dr. John B. Moseley said. His extensive expertise and leadership will be invaluable as we continue to advance our strategic initiatives and uphold our commitment to excellence. I am confident that his contributions will significantly enhance our operations and drive our institution forward.

Originally from Miami, Florida, Cleveland holds an M.Ed. from UCLA, a J.D. from the University of Florida and an Ed.D. from Vanderbilt University. He comes to Lincoln University from Shaw University, where he served as the vice president for student affairs. He previously worked at UC San Diego as dean of student affairs, where he oversaw residence life, case management, student conduct, academic integrity, student life and students of concern response teams.

Dr. Clevelands experience includes working on Capitol Hill and contributing to policy revisions for various higher education institutions. He previously taught grades 7-12 in Inglewood, California, and grades 9-12 in Albany, Georgia, blending K-12 and higher education strategies to support first-generation and historically underserved students.
In today's digital era, where speed and convenience are paramount for Gen Z users, Tradofina is the name to count on. The instant personal loan facility streamlines the borrowing process to pave the way to your financial goals, effortlessly. As a leader in innovative financial solutions, this cutting-edge application brings a new era of instant credit accessibility, empowering loan seekers with financial freedom at their fingertips.

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Tesla shareholders are set to decide Thursday whether to reinstate a pay package for Elon Musk that was thrown out by a judge. Musk said late Wednesday that so far, shareholders were approving the package by a wide margin.

But a victory for Musk is unlikely to put the issue to rest.

Shareholders signed off on the pay package of stock options, now valued at roughly $46 billion, in 2018. A Delaware judge, Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick, overturned it earlier this year, concluding the board was conflicted when negotiating it. Now Tesla wants shareholders to reapprove the same pay deal, saying their support would help the chief executive get pay that the electric-vehicle maker says he earned.

Legal experts say that even with shareholder approval, it is unclear how soon Musk could actually be paid. Here is how the situation could play out.

Will a fresh shareholder approval of the pay deal end the court fight?

Probably not.

The Delaware lawsuit started when Tesla shareholder Richard Tornetta, a heavy-metal drummer, sued the company in 2018. He alleged that Musk influenced the board as it negotiated his pay package and that the board misled shareholders who signed off on it.

The judge effectively agreed when she threw out the pay package. She deemed Musk a controlling shareholder of the company and concluded shareholders werent fully informed in their 2018 vote.

While pay packages for typical CEOs require approval from either an independent board or committee or independent shareholders, pay packages for controlling shareholder CEOs usually need signoff from both.

With a fresh shareholder approval, Tesla is hoping it can persuade the Delaware judge to change her ruling. Tesla could point to it as an informed shareholder vote, but it might not address the need for an independent committees approval, some lawyers say.

If the Delaware court doesnt dismiss the case, the company could try arguing on appeal that Musk isnt a controlling shareholder. If it wins that point on appeal, thatcoupled with the new shareholder votecould be enough to have the case dismissed, said Eric Talley, a law professor at Columbia University.

What might happen to the shareholder who sued Tesla?

Though Tornetta already earned a victory in court, he and his team are waiting for another crucial ruling. His lawyers in January sought some 29 million shares in Tesla, then valued at $5.6 billion, and a further $1 million to cover expenses. That award would result in a record payout for legal fees if approved.

The judge still has to decide how much to award them. A hearing is scheduled for July 8.

Tesla hopes that approval of the pay package by shareholders could limit the fees, which are tied to the benefit provided to Tesla shareholders.

So, would a for vote help Musk get paid?

Not so fast, some lawyers say.

Tesla is pursuing two legal avenues at once with the vote. In addition to arguing a new vote addresses the judges concerns, Tesla is also betting the vote could ratify the pay package under a provision of Delaware law that allows companies to correct defective corporate actions. Known as Section 204, it is more typically used to address bureaucratic issues such as improper documentation.

If the pay package is ratified, Tornettas lawyers are likely to challenge both avenues, especially the unusual application of Section 204.

They could also suggest the new vote was coerced, pointing to recent tweets by Musk. One in particular suggested that unless he can amass roughly 25% voting control in the company, he might focus on projects outside of Tesla. He currently controls a much smaller portion of the vote.

Mr. Musk seems to be making very thin threats about what hell do if they vote against it," Talley said.

What about the vote to move Tesla to Texas?

Tesla is also asking shareholders to approve the company moving its incorporation to Texas from Delaware. Musk on Wednesday evening said that measure is also poised to pass by a wide margin.

Assuming the move becomes official, a new case could be brought against the pay package in Texas. If that is decided before the Delaware appeal plays out, it could take precedence.

Still, McCormick, who is overseeing the case, seemed to reject this idea recently. She said that she interpreted recent communication by Tesla to mean they do not plan to litigate any matter related to this action anywhere but Delaware."

Emily Glazer contributed to this article.

This article might be updated periodically.

Write to Corrie Driebusch at corrie.driebusch@wsj.com
Chief Executive Satya Nadella bet the future of Microsoft on the potential of artificial intelligence when he forged a groundbreaking partnership with OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT.

But Nadella is not content to simply rely on OpenAI to dominate in this new era. In recent months, hes been spreading his bets, turning the worlds biggest company into the worlds most aggressive amasser of AI talent, tools and technology. He has hunted down new partners around the globe and invested in a range of AI startups, including pouring $1.5 billion into an Abu Dhabi-based firm in April.

Nadella has also begun building what amounts to an in-house OpenAI competitor inside Microsoftpotentially putting it on a collision course with its most important partner.

To lead Microsofts AI efforts, he recruited Mustafa Suleyman, a longtime rival of OpenAIs co-founder, Sam Altman. Suleyman, who helped launch DeepMind, a pioneering AI research firm, and went on to co-found Inflection AI, an AI startup, has brought most of his team from Inflection with him to Microsoft.

The new employees have led the process to train their own artificial-intelligence model, built on technology developed at Inflection and designed to be on par with the OpenAI technology Microsoft depends on today. A person familiar with the matter said that some future Microsoft AI products could be switched from OpenAI technology to the model being developed by Suleymans team.

Nadellas approach to AI is emblematic of his decade at the helm, during which he has repeatedly reinvented big parts of Microsoft, picking new partners and retooling the tech company. He has been able to spot when one-time company strengths became vulnerabilities and upend even his own strategies.

Nadellas moves have helped Microsoft leapfrog othersmost notably the longtime AI front-runner Googleto release AI chatbots and workplace tools expected to change how people think and work. The question is whether these tactics will be enough to keep Microsoft ahead of the pack in artificial intelligence.

Google has dramatically overhauled its AI organization and put out products that rival those made by the OpenAI-Microsoft consortium, including an AI feature atop its dominant search engine. Meta Platforms has been investing billions into a powerful AI language model, Llama, that it is releasing for free under an open source license. Amazon has invested $4 billion in Anthropic, which it hosts on the largest cloud computing platform in the world.

This week, Apple announced it was integrating OpenAIs tech into its mobile operating system, further shaking up the competitive landscape for AI dominance.

Microsofts rising status has made it a target for regulators and competitors. Regulators are investigating its acquisitions and investments, worried it may already have too much control of the emerging AI market. The Federal Trade Commission recently launched an investigation into whether Microsofts Inflection deal was structured to avoid government antitrust review. That came on top of another FTC probe launched in January of other artificial-intelligence deals, including Microsofts relationship with OpenAI. Companies including the New York Times are suing Microsoft and OpenAI, alleging that they illegally trained their software on the media companies content.

And despite a soaring stock price, company morale has struggled as outsiders have been brought in to reshape aspects of its technology.

Mikhail Parakhin, the previous head of Microsofts Bing and advertising businesses, plans to leave the company after initially being assigned to report to Suleyman, according to people familiar with the matter. Saurabh Tiwary, who oversaw the team of AI engineers responsible for integrating OpenAIs tech into Bing, has already left for Google.

Microsoft said its retention rates are high and that some bumpiness is to be expected when companies make organizational changes.

Culture changes

While he has been trying to make Microsoft move more like a startup, Nadella has been the ultimate company lifer. The 56-year-old from Hyderabad, India, worked his way up through its Bing search and cloud infrastructure businesses over the last 32 years.

He was a surprise pick as CEO, taking over after years under Steve Ballmer when the company seemed stuck. The company had grown bloatedexpanding costly divisions like hardware and Xboxand missed tech trends, such as the emergence of mobile phones. In the 14 years under Ballmer, Microsofts share price fell more than 30%.

When Nadella took over in 2014, Microsoft was mired in infighting among siloed groups, current and former employees say. Projects were frequently divided across separate divisions with multiple leaders. Teams often didnt communicate with each other and fought for company resources.

One meme swapped in emails among employees: a cartoon of three organizational charts at Microsoft pointing guns at each other. A Reservoir Dogs"-style standoff had become a symbol of the companys culture.

Another problem, current and former employees say: It was plagued by a not-invented-here" syndrome, where executives regularly rejected outside ideas and products.

Nadella pushed for more internal cooperation with fewer centers of power. He also embraced other tech giants more than any of his predecessors.

Among his first public appearances as CEO was a press briefing, where he took the stage to debut Microsoft Office for the iPad and iPhone. For years, the company had been dismissive of Apples mobile devices, preferring to build its own hardware than strike a partnership.

Nadellas first few years on the job were marked by big acquisitions, including LinkedIn in 2016 for $26.2 billion and GitHub in 2018 for $7.5 billion. He would go on to do more than 300 deals worth over $170 billion in total.

These acquisitions would not only expand Microsofts businessesbringing them into new areas like professional social networks and coding collaborationbut would also infuse the company with new blood.

LinkedIn co-founder Reid Hoffman joined Microsofts board of directors. LinkedIns head of engineering, Kevin Scott, was given the newly created role of chief technology officer.

Years behind

Scott fretted in a 2019 email to Nadella and then Chairman Bill Gates that the companys AI infrastructure was far behind Googles. And tools like Gmail autocomplete were getting scarily good."

We are multiple years behind the competition," Scott wrote.

Microsofts AI efforts had been spread among dozens of teams scattered across the company.

The company also had trouble recruiting top AI talent, said one Microsoft executive. Promising candidates would admit they were meeting with Microsoft as practice before going to places they would rather workusually Google.

In 2018, Nadella met OpenAIs Altman at the Allen & Co. conference in Sun Valley, Idaho. He was impressed with the startups AI and thought it could expose Microsoft to more sophisticated tools. OpenAI could also become a banner customer for Azure, Microsofts cloud computing platform.

When Microsoft invested $1 billion in OpenAI, it was a controversial move internally. Even Gates was initially skeptical that Microsoft needed to invest so much in an outside company when the company had its own AI.

As part of the deal, OpenAI said it would exclusively use Microsofts Azure cloud and Microsoft promised to invest in the expensive chips needed to meet OpenAIs voracious demand.

When Nadella saw an early demo of an AI-powered chatbot built into Microsofts Bing search engineusing OpenAIs technologyhe asked his team what they needed to make it a hit product.

Engineers told him that if millions of people were to use the chatbot, it would require every high-end chip the company had. That would mean taking the chips away from Microsofts many other projects and customers.

What if I could get them for you?" he asked.

Microsoft started purchasing enormous amounts of the GPU chips used for AI and invested another $10 billion in OpenAI in 2023.

Resource fights

The decision would ripple through Microsoft. Many divisions, including hardware, felt the pinch to their budgets. The hardware groups leader, Panos Panay, decamped for Amazon to lead its Alexa division last fall. Ruben Caballero, the head of HoloLens, Microsofts augmented reality project, has also left.

In February 2023, Nadella debuted the new Bing with a splash and a promise that with AI, Microsoft could finally make Google dance." Microsoft integrated OpenAIs technology into its entire lineup. It created AI assistants it calls Copilots that plug into its biggest software products including Word, Excel and PowerPoint. The pitch was that with simple language commands, people can use Copilots to quickly create sophisticated slide decks or legal contracts.

The wisdom of Nadellas dependence on OpenAI came into doubt last fall after OpenAIs board ousted Altman in a surprise coup. The move exposed the fragility of Microsofts position of dependence on a startup it didnt control.

Nadella ultimately helped outmaneuver OpenAIs board by publicly offering to bring Altman and any departing OpenAI employees to Microsoft. Altman was reinstated and Microsoft was given a nonvoting seat on the board.

The wrangling also triggered regulators. Officials in Europe and the U.S. have begun investigating the relationship between Microsoft and OpenAI, looking into how much control the giant has over the startup.

Microsoft has repeatedly stated that it has only a non-controlling stake in the revenue produced by OpenAIs for-profit arm.

News Corp, owner of The Wall Street Journal, has a content-licensing partnership with OpenAI.

Altmans image as a controversial celebrity CEO has ruffled feathers at Microsoft. Some employees are concerned that the media storm after actress Scarlett Johansson claimed that OpenAI surreptitiously created an AI voice modeled on her reflected poorly on their efforts to make AI a more trusted technology.

New balance of power

Altmans status as the most important figure determining Microsofts AI strategy is becoming less certain, thanks to the arrival of Suleyman and his team.

Suleyman was a co-founder of DeepMind, the trailblazing AI company that was bought by Google and became the engine of its artificial intelligence efforts. Altman, along with Elon Musk, launched OpenAI as a nonprofit in 2015 partly to ensure that the future of AI was not explored in secret and controlled by Google.

Suleyman left DeepMind to help start Inflection in 2022, joining forces with LinkedIn co-founder Hoffman, one of OpenAIs earliest investors and a board member. Altman was frustrated that Hoffman had started a competitive venture, said people familiar with the matter. Hoffman resigned from OpenAIs board not long after he started Inflection.

Inflections attempt to popularize its AI companion, named Pi, wasnt catching on despite raising $1.3 billion. Microsoft was already a fan of the companyit had invested hundreds of millions into itwhen Nadella decided to recruit Suleyman.

Nadella spent more than a month discussing a potential move with Suleyman, who eventually agreed to come over with most of his team and was given the title of CEO of AI.

Microsoft insiders say the internal politics and the balance of power between the longtime rivals Suleyman and Altman have been confusing. The Inflection co-founder is set to be one of the main points of contact between Microsoft and OpenAI, said a person familiar with the matter.

Microsoft has announced that Suleymans Microsoft AI organization will be responsible for consumer-facing AI products like Copilots for Bing and Windows. Nadella has internally expressed frustration that Bings position as a distant second hasnt improved as much as hed hoped despite the AI upgrade, according to people familiar with the matter. Suleymans hiring is a gamble to fix that, they said.

Nadella has given Suleymans team a large budget and wide latitude to operate. They have absorbed other AI teams. Some long-term Microsoft employees view the Inflection imports as a foreign body; these new employees communicate through Slack rather than the Microsoft-owned Teams tool.

Microsoft said that new and existing teams work together.

Even with Suleymans division ascendant, Microsoft has worked to quell speculation there is any friction with OpenAI. At Microsofts annual developer conference in May, Nadella stood beneath a giant slide saying, Microsoft Loves OpenAI," with the word loves" represented by a blue heart. Altman was a special surprise guest.

All the change and pressure have weighed on employees. The sprint in particular to launch Copilot for Bing by its February deadline last year was grueling, according to people familiar with the matter. The ongoing push to put AI into more products has caused a sense of burnout from some employees on the project.

Still, Nadella isnt slowing down. Microsofts shares have surged more than 10-fold under his watch, lifting it above Apple for much of this year to make it the largest company in the world by market value. One of his top priorities today is rebranding the Azure cloud as the go-to place for startups.

He has told his office that whenever he visits a city, he will take meetings that help the company close deals with AI startups. As he has repeatedly emphasized to Microsofts employees in all-hands meetings over the last year, the goal is to use AI to vault past rivals Amazon and Google.

In November, Nadella also approved a program giving early-stage startups free access to some of Microsofts computing clusters, a strategy meant to win their allegiance in the event they become the next breakout success.

The company has signed deals to bring startups such as Cohere and French startup Mistral AI onto Azure. Both companies are developing large language models that compete with OpenAI. In April, Microsoft invested $1.5 billion in Abu Dhabi-based AI company G42, which will have the company run its software and services on Azure.

Arvind Jain, CEO of Glean, an enterprise AI company, has repeatedly met with Nadella during the Microsoft chiefs recent startup charm offensive. Jain, like many other founders, didnt initially consider Microsoft a player in the startup game but today runs his AI assistant off Microsofts cloud.

Microsoft makes the effort to connect and reach out," Jain said. When we started our team didnt consider Azure as an option. AI changed that."

Write to Tom Dotan at tom.dotan@wsj.com and Berber Jin at berber.jin@wsj.com
Four Indian companies have secured positions on the list of the 100 most valuable global brands this year.

Apple claimed the top spot in the Kantar BrandZ Most Valuable Global Brands Report.

Among the Indian entries, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), HDFC Bank, Airtel, and Infosys made notable appearances. TCS emerged as the 46th most valuable global brand, with a valuation of about $44.8 billion, followed closely by HDFC Bank at the 47th position with a brand value of around $43.3 billion.

Airtel secures the 73rd position with a valuation of approximately $25.3 billion, while Infosys follows closely at the 74th spot with a brand value of around $24.7 billion. The combined brand value of all Indian brands on the Top 100 list surpasses $130 billion.

Moreover, five newcomers are among the Top 100, including Lululemon at the 92nd position and Corona at the 100th position.

Here is the list of the top ten rank holders:

Rank 1 Apple retains its position as the world's most valuable brand for the third consecutive year, surpassing $1 trillion in value.

Rank 2 Google secures the second position with a total brand value of around $753.5 billion.

Rank 3 Microsoft, backed by Bill Gates, occupies the third position with a brand value of $712.9 billion.

Rank 4 Amazon follows closely in fourth place with a brand value of $576.6 billion.

Rank 5 McDonald's holds the fifth position with a brand value of $221.9 billion.

Rank 6 NVIDIA jumps 18 places to claim the sixth spot, boasting a brand value increase of 178% and a total brand value of around $201.8 billion.

Rank 7 Visa ranks seventh with a brand value of $188.9 billion.

Rank 8 Facebook secures the eighth position with a brand value of $166.8 billion.

Rank 9 Oracle occupies the ninth spot with a brand value of $145.5 billion.

Rank 10 Tencent rounds out the top 10 with a brand value of $135.2 billion.
LONDON (Reuters) - Wall Street bank JP Morgan and Greek fintech boss Haris Karonis both claimed success on Thursday in a London court battle over how to value a joint business, paving the way for its potential sale.

Karonis's WEREALIZE.COM (WRL), the majority owner of Athens-based Viva Wallet, has accused JP Morgan of trying to hamper the growth of the payments platform and both sides sued each other in London.

But a London judge dismissed suggestions that JP Morgan had any incentive to depress Viva's value and set out how the business should be valued, a judgment published on Thursday showed.

The U.S. bank bought a 48.5% stake in Viva Wallet, which is used by businesses in southern Europe, for about $800 million in 2022. WRL owns 51.49%.

Under the terms of the deal, WRL loses its right to reject any JP Morgan offer to take control of Viva if the business is valued at below 5 billion euros ($5.4 billion) by July 30, 2025.

"As the founder of this business, I am thrilled that Viva will now be properly valued on the basis of its growth strategy in the U.S., reflecting its fair market value," Karonis said in a statement.

JP Morgan said it remained committed to developing and expanding Viva in partnership with WRL, adding that the judgment was a "great outcome".

"With a financial stake in the company, we have repeatedly offered ways to help the company expand and succeed. The court has now provided a critical step to move forward with fair and transparent valuations  which could allow Viva to be sold soon, before the Fintech M&A market further softens," a JP Morgan spokesperson said.

($1 = 0.9315 euros)
(Bloomberg) -- French President Emmanuel Macrons approval rating fell to its lowest level in 5 1/2 years, according to a poll carried out after he called a snap vote in response to defeat in European elections, deepening the countrys political turmoil.

The survey by Elabe for daily Les Echos showed that 24% of people interviewed trust Macron to tackle the problems France faces, down 5 points from May.

The poll result indicates an increased likelihood that Marine Le Pens far-right National Rally will finish first in the legislative ballot later this month. Winning would likely hand Le Pens party the premiership and give it leverage in forming a new cabinet, including more influence in economic policy.

The pollster surveyed 1,502 adults online on Tuesday and Wednesday. The margin of error was about 2.2 points.

Macron dissolved the National Assembly on Sunday and announced a two-round legislative ballot on June 30 and July 7. This came after his political group was trounced by National Rally in European Parliament elections.

French equity markets were hit, with the CAC 40 index falling 2%, increasing its losses on the week to 3.7%, on track for its worst week in nearly a year. Banks fell the most, with Societe Generale SA and BNP Paribas SA down 12% and 10% on the week.

The spread between French and German 10-year yields widened seven basis points to 68 basis points, the most since 2017 on a closing basis. The moves extended a sharp selloff thats coincided with a surge of activity in the bond futures market. Investors now hold the largest number of 10-year futures positions in at least a year, according to data from the Eurex exchange, a move that  when coupled with the market action  points to rising short wagers.

France is at risk of losing its crown as the largest equity market in Europe in part because of the political turmoil brought on by the snap election. The French market surpassed the UK to reach the top spot less than two years ago, but investors have dumped the nations stocks and bonds this week in the wake of Macrons decision. Theyre fretting that the public finances will weaken further if Macrons party loses ground in the vote.

Stocks in France were worth $3.29 trillion as of Wednesdays close, while the UK has clawed its way back to $3.22 trillion, and the gap narrowed further on Thursday.

Macron decided to trigger a parliamentary vote in an effort to regain the political initiative after the European election. But many lawmakers and officials say the high-risk strategy is more likely to consolidate his partys losses and undermine any remaining prospects for advancing his economic agenda, while theres a chance it could even hand Le Pens group control.

Following Sundays vote, Macron said that the seriousness of the threat from Le Pens party required drastic action to turn the tide. I cant pretend that nothings happened, he said. The rise of nationalists and demagogues is a danger not only for our nation, but also for our Europe, and for Frances place in Europe and the world.

The strong performance of the National Rally has thrown rival parties on the right into disarray. The conservative Republicans expelled their president, Eric Ciotti, from the party after he reached out to the National Rally to discuss an alliance. Still, he has refused to step down and is contesting the decision. His case will be examined Friday, Agence France-Presse reported, citing a judicial source.

Marion Marechal, the vice president of the nationalist Reconquest party, was expelled late Wednesday, after she, too, sought to form a coalition with Le Pen, who is also her aunt. The head of the Reconquest party, Eric Zemmour, accused Marechal, of the world record of betrayal in an interview on BFM TV and called on her to resign from her European Parliament seat.

Le Pen has said shes ready to work with both Marechal and the Republicans as she tries to secure a majority and impose her agenda on the president.

The National Rally is on course to win as many as 270 of the 577 seats in the National Assembly, compared with 90 to 130 for Macron and his allies, according to a projection by pollster Elabe.

As the Republicans party has been squeezed by Macron in the center and Le Pen on the right, Ciotti has shifted closer to her platform by focusing on immigration and security, and criticizing so-called woke and Islamist ideologies.

Yet, an alliance would be unthinkable for many in a party founded by Charles de Gaulle, Frances dominant post-war leader, and has historically been center-right. The recent French presidents it has produced  Jacques Chirac and Nicolas Sarkozy  have long fought against Le Pen and her father, who founded the National Rally.

Parties on the left, which formed an alliance under far-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon ahead of the 2022 presidential election, were still in negotiations about forming a new popular front late on Thursday.

Were still talking. As long as were still talking, its not done, and as long as its not done, theres always a risk we wont get there, which would be dramatic, Communist Party head Fabien Roussel told BFM TV. The only thing that counts is union.

The group, which also includes Melenchons France Unbowed, the Socialists and the Greens, is capable of winning the second-largest parliamentary bloc behind National Rally, according to polls.

--With assistance from James Hirai, Sagarika Jaisinghani, Phil Serafino and Samy Adghirni.

(Updates with political moves from the 12th paragraph.)

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
Mankind Pharma is in talks with many private equity (PE) companies to form a joint bid to acquire Bharat Serums and Vaccines (BSV) in a consortium, the Hindu BusinessLine reported, citing sources.

Bain Capital, Blackstone, Carlyle, and KKR expressed interest in BSV after its current owner, Advent International, put it up for sale. While Mankind is in talks with these firms, the HBL report added that not all are interested in forming a consortium. For example, Blackstone has submitted two individual non-binding bids and has not expressed interest in the collaboration.

Mankind and Blackstone did not respond to queries, the report added. Livemint could not independently verify the report.

Also Read | Modi 3.0: First GST Council meeting to be held on June 22

Potential Sale Price Advent International wants to sell BSV for over $2 billion. However, sources told the paper that the final transaction may range between $1.5 -1.8 billion.

Sources told the paper that Delhi-based Mankind is gathering funds to potentially finance the acquisition independently, though it may partner with another investor to avoid straining its balance sheet. The funds will also support organic growth.

Also Read | Union Budget 2024 likely to be tabled in Parliament by third week of July
OpenAI is on pace for $3.4 billion of annual revenue, Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman told the companys staff, according to a person familiar with the matter.

In an all-hands meeting Wednesday, Altman said the vast majority of that revenue  about $3.2 billion  comes from OpenAIs products and services, according to the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal communications. Altman said OpenAI is also on track to generate about $200 million by offering access to its AI models through Microsoft Azure, the person said.

Also Read: Musk declares ban on Apple devices in his companies if OpenAI is integrated amid security concerns

The Information was first to report the revenue figure. The outlet previously reported that annualized revenue was $1.6 billion in late 2023.

OpenAI declined to comment.

OpenAI has emerged as a driving force in the development of AI, thanks to the viral success of ChatGPT, which helped kick off the frenzy around generative AI. Earlier this year, OpenAI completed a tender offer valuing the startup at $86 billion.

In recent months, OpenAI has been working to boost revenue from its AI products by selling services to enterprise customers. OpenAI has also begun training a more powerful AI model that could help it stay ahead of a growing number of well-funded rivals who are vying for the same users and businesses.
Bengaluru: SaaS-fintech startup Perfios, which primarily serves the banking, financial services, and insurance sectors, plans to expand its offerings to other segments, such as human resources technology and commerce, to boost its overall revenue, according to a top executive at the firm.

To diversify its client base across sectors, Perfios has engaged with new-age startups and developed products and solutions that serve multiple sectors and geographies.

Our new set of products is to solve problems in the HR space," Perfios chief executive officer Sabyasachi Goswami told Mint in an interview. We have launched one product, particularly for background verification. The first few clients have been on the financial services side, the next set of clients would be on the commerce side, where conversations are happening."

In a recent report, investors at venture capital firm Bessemer Venture Partners, which has invested in Perfios, highlighted the increasing adoption of cloud-based SaaS platforms by banks and non-bank lenders for various use cases, including fraud detection, wealth management, customer engagement, and KYC, among others.

The report added that as pressure from new players, accelerated adoption of digital lending, and widespread cloud usage intensify, there will be a greater opportunity for disruption.

Perfios competes with startups like Signzy and IDfy and claims to be the largest player in the space and the only company that enables end-to-end customer lifecycles for financial institutions.

Earlier this year, the company became a unicorn or a startup with a billion-dollar valuation after it raised $80 million from Teachers Venture Growth (TVG), the late-stage venture and growth investment arm of Ontario Teachers Pension Plan.

Prior to this, it raised $229 million from Kedaara Capital in a combination of primary and secondary transactions in September. Some of its other existing investors include Warburg Pincus and Bessemer Venture Partners. Perfios raised a total equity funding of about $464 million so far, according to data provided by Tracxn.

Expanding horizons

Through these fundraises, Perfios plans to foray into newer geographies such as the US and Europe while doubling down in existing markets, including West Asia, Africa and Southeast Asia. The company looks to double its revenue contribution from these areas over the next three years.

However, the company is taking a more cautious approach as it forays into bigger markets. In the US, it's an expensive expansion strategy. You can go in, but if you cannot prove the product, the exit is very expensive. For many companies, that has happened," Goswami said.

With a presence in over 18 countries across these regions, Perfios receives about 10% of its revenues from international geographies, while the remaining comes from India. However, this figure is expected to increase to 25% over the next two-three years, Goswami said.

He added that every geographical market is at a different stage of evolution and there is still a lot of awareness that needs to be created in some segments.

With products such as onboarding and underwriting solutions which are its key revenue generators, Perfios operating income grew nearly three times to 407 crore in FY23. It posted a first-time profit of 7.8 crore during the year against a loss of 16.8 crore against a year ago.

The company has seen over nine times increase in growth over the last six years with much of the gains driven by strong performance in its India business, Goswami said.

From a public infrastructure perspective, India has invested enough into digital stack that is needed for companies like us to ride on that wave," he said, adding that this has driven the transformation in the last five-seven years.

With these investments, Perfios has been able to build products to further take the financial inclusion agenda forward and make it available across places where people were initially not ready to adopt, Goswami said.

Bessemers report estimated that Indian SaaS centaurs and unicorns will bring in between $20 and $25 billion in revenues by 2030. The VC firm added that Indian SaaS businesses have a competitive advantage owing to their ability to build products faster in their lifecycle and scale with lesser capital as opposed to those in other countries.

While Perfios continues to focus on growth and deliver sustained profits, it is also evaluating international acquistions to expand footprint. We are always open to acquisitions," Goswami said. While conversations are ongoing, he did not disclose further details. The company will fund these acquisitions through the funds it raised from Kedaara and TVG.

In 2022, the company acquired banking and financial intelligence solution provider Karza Technologies for about 600 crore, and later acqui-hired Chennai-based open finance platform Fego.ai the following year.

Meanwhile, the company is also focusing on certain parameters such as financial discipline and governance before it is ready to list on the public markets, Goswami said without disclosing the size or timeline for an IPO.

Earlier this year, The Economic Times reported that the company is considering a $500 million IPO at a valuation of about $2 billion.

Founded in 2008 by V.R. Govindarajan and Debasish Chakraborty, Perfios offers financial and data analysis software and tools, besides lending solutions for small and medium businesses.
(Bloomberg Law) -- The US Supreme Court sided with Starbucks Corp. over the National Labor Relations Board in a decision that will make it more difficult for the agency to win temporary reinstatement of workers fired during labor disputes.

Federal judges should review NLRB requests for immediate court orders the same way they would examine any other petition for a preliminary injunction, the Supreme Court held in a 9-0 ruling Thursday.

In an opinion authored by Justice Clarence Thomas, the justices rejected the NLRBs argument that the National Labor Relations Act directs judges to apply a more lenient standard to the agencys petitions than they would for preliminary injunction requests that arise in private litigation.

The ruling will slow the process and increase the burdens for the NLRB to win immediate court orders, weakening what has been one of the agencys most potent tools to protect workers rights under the NLRA.

The NLRB requests 10(j) injunctionsnamed after the section of the NLRA that permits the agency to pursue themto quickly address the workplace impact of an alleged labor law violation, and to prevent a situation in which the boards eventual remedy comes too late to fix the harm caused by the violation. The agency seeks court orders while the underlying administrative cases are pending, and they dissolve when the board rules.

The issue stems from Starbucks challenge to a US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit decision upholding a federal judges temporary order to reinstate a group of pro-union workers known as the Memphis Seven.

The Supreme Court threw out the Sixth Circuits ruling and sent the case back, setting up the district court to reassess the NLRBs bid for an injunction to be reassessed under the new, more exacting standard.

Starbucks, which is in talks with the Starbucks Workers United union about reaching collective bargaining agreements, said its focused on making progress towards that goal.

Consistent federal standards are important in ensuring that employees know their rights and consistent labor practices are upheld no matter where in the country they work and live, the company said in a statement.

The union said Starbucks should have dropped the Supreme Court case when the company committed to charting a new path forward with its workers.

Its incongruous to want to build a productive, positive relationship with workers and at the same time lead an attack on one of the few mechanisms they have to defend themselves against unscrupulous employers, Lynne Fox, president of Starbucks Workers United, said in a statement.

NLRB spokesperson Kayla Blado declined to comment on the ruling.

Raising the Bar

Thursdays decision settled a circuit split over what legal test courts should use for 10(j) injunction requests, although a Bloomberg Law analysis found that district courts granted NLRB injunction petitions at largely the same rate in recent years regardless of which framework they used.

The justices held that courts should analyze the NLRBs petitions under the traditional four-factor test for preliminary injunctions set forth in the Supreme Courts 2008 decision in Winter v. Natural Resources Defense Council. That test looks at a petitioners likelihood of success on the merits, the chance of irreparable harm if the injunction isnt granted, a balance of the parties interests, and whether an injunction is in the public interest.

Some circuit courts instead had employed variants of a two-part standard that turned on whether the NLRB can show that theres reasonable cause to believe an unfair labor practice was committed, and that its just and proper to issue injunctive relief.

Nothing in 10(j)s text overcomes the presumption that the four traditional criteria govern a preliminary-injunction request by the Board, Thomas wrote for the court.

But the practical impact of the decision hinges less on which test courts use, and more on how stringently they apply the elements of the test.

The Supreme Court disagreed with the NLRB that the context of federal labor law requires courts to apply the factors in a less exacting way, and that the Sixth Circuits reasonable-cause standard appropriately accounts for that context.

The reasonable-cause standard goes far beyond simply fine tuning the traditional criteria to the 10(j) contextit substantively lowers the bar for securing a preliminary injunction by requiring courts to yield to the Boards preliminary view of the facts, law, and equities, Thomas said.

The NLRAs context doesnt compel this watered-down approach to equity, he said.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote an opinion concurring in the judgment, but also dissenting in part. The majoritys ruling empowers judges to fully apply their discretion on 10(j) requests without regard to the NLRBs authority or the legal framework allowing the agency to go directly to court for immediate, interim relief, she said.

I am loath to bless this aggrandizement of judicial power where Congress has so plainly limited the discretion of the courts, and where it so clearly intends for the expert agency it has created to make the primary determinations about both merits and process, Jackson said.

The case is Starbucks Corp. v. McKinney, U.S., No. 23-367, 6/13/24.

To contact the reporter on this story: Robert Iafolla in Washington at riafolla@bloombergindustry.com

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Rebekah Mintzer at rmintzer@bloombergindustry.com; Jay-Anne B. Casuga at jcasuga@bloomberglaw.com; Laura D. Francis at lfrancis@bloomberglaw.com

(Updated with additional reporting throughout.)

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP)  Disney asked a federal appellate court to dismiss its lawsuit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday, a day after his appointees approved a deal with the company on how Walt Disney World will be developed over the next two decades, ending the last piece of conflict between the two sides.

The request came as little surprise because the federal lawsuits future was contingent on whether a development agreement could be reached between Disney and the DeSantis appointees to the board of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District that governs Disney World, according to a settlement reached in March.

The development deal was approved Wednesday night by the DeSantis appointees. Disney was facing a deadline next week to a file a brief with the court if it wanted to move ahead with the lawsuit against DeSantis and his appointees.

As part of the 15-year deal, Disney agreed to invest $17 billion into Disney World over the next two decades and the district committed to making infrastructure improvement on the theme park resort's property. The district provides municipal services such as firefighting, planning and mosquito control, among other things, and was controlled by Disney supporters before last year's takeover by the DeSantis appointees.

This new development agreement paves the way for us to invest billions of dollars in Walt Disney World Resort, supporting the growth of this global destination, fueling the Florida economy, and allowing us to deliver even more memorable and extraordinary experiences for our guests, said Jeff Vahle, president of Walt Disney World Resort.

Under the terms of the deal, Disney is approved to build a fifth major theme park at Disney World and two more minor parks, such as water parks, if it desires. The company can also raise the number of hotel rooms on its property from almost 40,000 rooms to more than 53,000 rooms and increase the amount of retail and restaurant space by more than 20%. Disney will retain control of building heights so it can maintain an immersive environment.

In exchange, Disney will donate up to 100 acres (40 hectares) of Disney Worlds 24,000 acres (9,700 hectares) for the construction of infrastructure projects controlled by the district. The company also will need to award at least half of its construction projects to companies based in Florida and spend at least $10 million on affordable housing for central Florida.

A DeSantis spokesman said the governor was pleased that an agreement had been reached.

This agreement is a big win for central Florida and will lead to numerous jobs and improved guest experiences, said Bryan Griffin, communications director for the governors office.

The agreement followed a detente in March in which both sides agreed to stop litigating each other in state court and work toward negotiating a new development agreement and a new comprehensive plan no later than next year.

The March settlement ended almost two years of litigation sparked by DeSantis takeover of the district after the companys opposition to a 2022 law that bans classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades. The law was championed by the Republican governor, who used Disney as a punching bag in speeches during his run for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination until he suspended his campaign earlier this year.

As punishment for Disneys opposition to the controversial law, DeSantis took over the governing district through legislation passed by the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature and appointed a new board of supervisors. Disney sued DeSantis and his appointees, claiming the companys free speech rights were violated for speaking out against the legislation. A federal judge dismissed that lawsuit in January, but Disney appealed.

Before control of the district changed hands early last year, the Disney supporters on its board signed agreements with the company shifting control over design and construction at Disney World to the company. The new DeSantis appointees claimed the eleventh-hour deals neutered their powers, and the district sued the company in state court in Orlando to have the contracts voided.

Disney filed counterclaims that included asking the state court to declare the agreements valid and enforceable. Those state court lawsuits were dismissed as part of the March settlement.

___
Billionaire Elon Musk is facing an ever-increasing line-up of lawsuits regarding his work practices, sexual harassment, mass firings, executive pay demands, and allegations of stock manipulation for corporate acquisition.
The GST Council, chaired by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, will meet on June 22. This would be the first GST Council meeting after Lok Sabha elections results 2024 and Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) formed the government for the third consecutive term.

The 53rd meeting of the GST Council will be held on 22nd June, 2024 at New Delhi, the GST Council Secretariat said in a post on X.

The agenda for the meeting is yet to be circulated amongst the Council members.

The 52nd GST Council meeting was held on October 7, 2023.

The Lok Sabha election results 2024 were declared on June 4, and Nirmala Sitharaman was sworn in as a Cabinet Minister in the new Modi Government on June 9. Sitharaman took charge of the Finance Ministry on June 12 and held a meeting with senior officials.

The Goods and Services Tax Council comprises finance ministers of all states and Union Territories.

According to the norms, the Union Finance Minister will chair the 53rd GST Council meeting, with finance ministers from states, among others in attendance.

The GST Council convenes periodically to deliberate on matters related to the GST regime, including tax rates, policy changes, and administrative issues.

The decisions and recommendations arising from the 53rd GST Council meeting will be closely watched by various stakeholders, including businesses, policymakers, and the general public, as they have the potential to influence taxation, trade, and overall dynamics.
Russia halted trading in U.S. dollars, the euro and Hong Kong dollars on the countrys flagship stock exchange Thursday after the U.S. imposed fresh sanctions aimed at further tightening the screws on Moscows war machine.

The Bank of Russia said trading sessions in the foreign-exchange, precious metals and derivative markets of the Moscow Stock Exchange with settlements in those currencies had been suspended due to U.S. sanctions. However, currency trading will continue in the over-the-counter marketwhen two parties engage directly without supervision from an exchange.

The U.S. Treasury sanctioned the Moscow exchange and Russias central securities depository that provides bank account services, registration of over-the-counter trades, and liquidity management services.

We are increasing the risk for financial institutions dealing with Russias war economy and eliminating paths for evasion, and diminishing Russias ability to benefit from access to foreign technology, equipment, software, and IT services," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a statement.

Russias central bank said people could still buy and sell the currencies through Russian banks and that deposits remained secure. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in comments carried by Russian state news agency TASS that the central bank is able to ensure stability in all markets.

The Biden administration on Wednesday set out sanctions on more than 300 entities and individuals in an effort to disrupt the networks with third countries through which Russia can procure technology and equipment for its war in Ukraine, singling out China.

Beijing has officially maintained a neutral stance over the Ukraine war, but it remains an economic lifeline for Russia, deepening trade ties that have helped Russian President Vladimir Putin stabilize his economy despite Western sanctions.

The State Department said the latest measures target seven China-based entities that have supplied goods aiding Russias war in Ukraine, Belarus-based entities and others based in the U.A.E, Turkey, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova and Singapore that have supplied dual-use goods to Moscow.

Earlier this year, The Wall Street Journal reported that drones and U.S.-made computer chips were increasingly flowing to Russia from China through Central Asian trade routes snaking through former Soviet republics like Kyrgyzstan.

Washington also sanctioned companies involved in Russias energy projects, the metals and mining industry as well as producers of Russian weapons systems and military components.

Todays actions strike at their remaining avenues for international materials and equipment, including their reliance on critical supplies from third countries," Yellen said.

Write to Mauro Orru at mauro.orru@wsj.com
Think about the places vulnerable to climate change, and you might picture rice paddies in Bangladesh or low-lying islands in the Pacific. But another, more surprising answer ought to be your own house. About a tenth of the worlds residential property by value is under threat from global warmingincluding many houses that are nowhere near the coast. From tornadoes battering midwestern American suburbs to tennis-ball-size hailstones smashing the roofs of Italian villas, the severe weather brought about by greenhouse-gas emissions is shaking the foundations of the worlds most important asset class.

The potential costs stem from policies designed to reduce the emissions of houses as well as from climate-related damage. They are enormous. By one estimate, climate change and the fight against it could wipe out 9% of the value of the worlds housing by 2050which amounts to $25trn, not much less than Americas annual GDP. It is a huge bill hanging over peoples lives and the global financial system. And it looks destined to trigger an almighty fight over who should pay up.

Homeowners are one candidate. But if you look at property markets today, they do not seem to be bearing the costs. House prices show little sign of adjusting to climate risk. In Miami, the subject of much worrying about rising sea levels, they have increased by four-fifths this decade, much more than the American average. Moreover, because the impact of climate change is still uncertain, many owners may not have known how much of a risk they were taking when they bought their homes.

Yet if taxpayers cough up instead, they will bail out well-heeled owners and blunt helpful incentives to adapt to the looming threat. Apportioning the costs will be hard for governments, not least because they know voters care so much about the value of their homes. The bill has three parts: paying for repairs, investing in protection and modifying houses to limit climate change.

Insurers usually bear the costs of repairs after a storm destroys a roof or a fire guts a property. As the climate worsens and natural disasters become more frequent, home insurance is therefore getting more expensive. In places, it could become so dear as to cause house prices to fall; some experts warn of a climate-insurance bubble" affecting a third of American homes. Governments must either tolerate the losses that imposes on homeowners or underwrite the risks themselves, as already happens in parts of wildfire-prone California and hurricane-prone Florida. The combined exposure of state-backed insurers of last resort" in these two states has exploded from $160bn in 2017 to $633bn. Local politicians want to pass on the risk to the federal government, which in effect runs flood insurance today.

Physical damage might be forestalled by investing in protection in properties themselves or in infrastructure. Keeping houses habitable may call for air conditioning. Few Indian homes have it, even though the country is suffering worsening heatwaves. In the Netherlands a system of dykes, ditches and pumps keeps the country dry; Tokyo has barriers to hold back floodwaters. Funding this investment is the second challenge. Should homeowners who had no idea they were at risk have to pay for, say, concrete underpinning for a subsiding house? Or is it right to protect them from such unexpected, and unevenly distributed, costs? Densely populated coastal cities, which are most in need of protection from floods, are often the crown jewels of their countries economies and societiesjust think of London, New York or Shanghai.

The last question is how to pay for domestic modifications that prevent further climate change. Houses account for 18% of global energy-related emissions. Many are likely to need heat pumps, which work best with underfloor heating or bigger radiators, and thick insulation. Unfortunately, retrofitting homes is expensive. Asking homeowners to pay up can lead to a backlash; last year Germanys ruling coalition tried to ban gas boilers, only to change course when voters objected to the costs. Italy followed an alternative approach, by offering extraordinarily generous, and badly designed, handouts to households who renovate. It has spent a staggering 219bn ($238bn, or 10% of its GDP) on its super bonus" scheme.

The full impact of climate change is still some way off. But the sooner policymakers can resolve these questions, the better. The evidence shows that house prices react to these risks only after disaster has struck, when it is too late for preventive investments. Inertia is therefore likely to lead to nasty surprises. Housing is too important an asset to be mispriced across the economynot least because it is so vital to the financial system.

Governments will have to do their bit. Until the 18th century much of the Netherlands followed the principle that only nearby communities would maintain dykesand the system was plagued by underinvestment and needless flooding as a result. Governments alone can solve such collective-action problems by building infrastructure, and must do so especially around high-productivity cities. Owners will need inducements to spend big sums retrofitting their homes to pollute less, which benefits everyone.

Wie het water deert

At the same time, however, policymakers must be careful not to subsidise folly by offering large implicit guarantees and explicit state-backed insurance schemes. These not only pose an unacceptable risk to taxpayers, but they also weaken the incentive for people to invest in making their properties more resilient. And by suppressing insurance premiums, they do nothing to discourage people from moving to areas that are already known to be high-risk today. The omens are not good, even though the stakes are so high. For decades governments have failed to disincentivise building on floodplains.

The $25trn bill will pose problems around the world. But doing nothing today will only make tomorrow more painful. For both governments and homeowners, the worst response to the housing conundrum would be to ignore it.

 2024, The Economist Newspaper Limited. All rights reserved. From The Economist, published under licence. The original content can be found on www.economist.com
ABOARD THE USS LABOONIt was just after 9 p.m. when radar operators aboard this U.S. Navy destroyer in the Red Sea spotted a tiny arrow on their screens: a missile hurtling toward them at five times the speed of sound.

The crew of the warship with 300 sailors aboard had just seconds to shoot it down. As the projectile closed in, the Laboon launched an interceptor from silos beneath its deck, destroying the incoming missile in flight.

The Jan. 9 attack was one of the largest maritime battles the U.S. has faced since World War II. Houthi rebels in Yemen that day launched 18 drones and cruise missiles along with the ballistic missile at the Laboon and three other American destroyers, a U.S. aircraft carrier and a British warship in an attack that unfolded over a dozen hours.

Since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, Iran-backed Houthi rebels have lobbed missiles, drones and other weapons at commercial vessels and warships nearly every day. Although most of the weapons have been shot down, at least 77 cargo ships have been hit, and one British-owned ship carrying 20,000 tons of fertilizer aboard was sunk.

Though largely ineffective, the Houthi attacks have been able to disrupt shipping and keep the U.S. and its allies tied down, frustrating the Navys decades-old mission of keeping open the regions critical sea lanes.

The attacks are the direct result of fateful geography. To travel through the Red Sea and reach the Suez Canal, one of the worlds most heavily traveled shipping routes, cargo ships must pass through the Bab al-Mandab strait skirting the coast of Yemen, within range of the Houthis arsenal of missiles and drones.

No warships are known to have been hit in the more than 80 attempted attacks, but there have been some close calls, underscoring the perils for the U.S. and allies that have sent ships to the area the longer the conflict continues.

The Biden administration has limited its military response to the Houthi attacks, hoping to avoid being drawn into a wider Middle East conflict. But that has meant the flotilla of U.S. and allied warships has spent weeks and even months patrolling the Red Sea on alertand the attacks have kept coming.

We havent taken a hit, but strategically, we havent restored the flow of goods," said Gene Moran, a retired Navy captain who commanded the Laboon more than 20 years ago.

More than 20,000 commercial ships pass through the Red Sea in a typical year, including 150 huge tankers and containerships, but the ship traffic through the strait has dropped steeply since the attacks began.

Since the attacks began in November, in a Houthi show of solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, containership traffic through the strait fell by 67% and tanker traffic has dropped by about 50%, according to Windward, a maritime-intelligence company.

The Houthis have focused attention on Israeli-owned vessels or those headed for the port of Eilat in southern Israel, which has seen its ship traffic drop steeply. Many shipping companies have rerouted ships around the southern tip of Africa.

On Wednesday, a Greek ship was hit by an unmanned waterborne drone and began taking on water.

Avril Haines, the director of national intelligence, said in congressional testimony last month that the U.S.-led effort has been insufficient to deter the militant groups targeting of ships and that the threat will remain active for some time."

Earlier this year, the Laboon was patrolling in calm waters under a clear sky north of the Bab al-Mandab. On the bridge, radar monitors showed cargo ships making their way north, none of them under attack. That morning, four one-way attack drones targeted a different U.S. warship, the first such attack after a three-day lull.

During the Jan. 9 attack, the Laboon crew first saw two cruise missiles heading toward the ship and shot them down. The cruise missiles lumbered along at subsonic speeds, allowing relatively ample time to respond. Then came the ballistic missile.

These things are telephone pole-sized, you get three minutes of flight time, you detect it for 45 seconds, you get like 10 seconds to determine whether youre going to shoot at it or not," said Capt. David Wroe of U.S. carrier strike group in the Red Sea.

The Laboon uses several weapons systems to defend against the Houthi attacks, including its vertical launching system," which fires interceptor missiles from silos beneath the bow and stern called the checkerboard." When fired, the missiles burst from beneath the deck with a loud swoosh, heading for the target.

We did our damndest to make sure we were ready for a ballistic missile, but we werent really expecting it," said Cmdr. Eric Blomberg, the Laboons commanding officer.

In addition to shooting down incoming missiles and drones, the U.S. and other countries have carried out several waves of airstrikes against launchers, radar installations and other facilities used by the Houthis in its attacks.

The longer the Houthi attacks continue, the more likely it is that a U.S. warship could be hit, said Frank McKenzie, a retired Marine general. Theres always a chance that something happens and one of our ships could be struck, and that chance only increases the longer we allow the situation to continue," he added.

The Navy says it has spent about $1 billion on munitions used in defending the Red Sea, conducting more than 450 strikes and intercepting more than 200 drones and missiles since November when the attacks began.

U.S. officials worry that the conflict is simply not sustainable for the U.S. defense industrial base, already strained by the demands for weaponry from Ukraine and Israel.

Their supply of weapons from Iran is cheap and highly sustainable, but ours is expensive, our supply chains are crunched, and our logistics tails are long," said Emily Harding of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. We are playing whack a mole and they are playing a long game."
Mumbai: Credit rating agencies are looking to the central bank for a decision on their demand to penalise banks that do not share no-objection certificates (NOCs) required to withdraw ratings of companies that withhold key information, two rating agency officials said.

The issue gains significance considering that at present, more than 60% of all rated issuers or companies are estimated to be non-cooperative, and rising, they added.

According to the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, discussions with the RBI were initiated by the Association of Indian Rating Agencies (AIRA) to better manage the issue of non-cooperative issuers.

The officials said rating agencies are yet to hear from the regulator on their proposal to raise risk weights on loans where companies are not cooperating with rating agencies, adding that the problem of non-cooperation was more prevalent with smaller companies than the bigger ones.

The Economic Times had reported in June 2023 that RBI sought details of companies withholding information.

Banks use ratings assigned by external agencies to decide the risk weight on loans as per regulatory guidelines. These risk weights, based on the risk perception of various loan categories, determine how much capital will be consumed for a specific loan. The higher the perceived risk, the higher its risk weightage.

We have to spend time and resources on these ratings even as the companies do not respond to requests for data," said the first person.

The second person said that the agencies had approached both markets regulator Sebi and RBI, but given that most of these non-cooperative ratings pertain to loans and not bonds, their efforts are now concentrated towards convincing the central bank.

Also read | Sebi releases master circular on credit rating agencies. Details here

Bankers, on their part, denied they are holding back withdrawal of ratings. According to two senior bankers who also spoke on condition of anonymity, many companies want to change their rating agency in search of better rating since it allows them to raise cheaper funds. They said banks give NOCs on a case-by-case basis.

Emails sent to Crisil Ratings, Care Ratings, India Ratings and Research, RBI and Sebi remained unanswered, while a spokesperson for rating agency Icra declined to comment.

Sankar Chakraborti, managing director and chief executive officer, Acuite Ratings & Research, said a rating agency cannot stop covering a rating even when the issuer is not cooperating. Both rating industry and banks need to work closely to find a solution to this problem," he said.

Experts said Sebi guidelines mandate rating agencies to carry out periodic review of the securities they have rated. In case of non-cooperation by the issuer, CRA (credit rating agency) is required to carry out the review on the basis of best available information," said Shrishail Kittad, a partner at law firm IndiaLaw LLP.

Others said companies might conceal risks from rating agencies by selectively presenting financial data, downplaying potential vulnerabilities, or omitting pertinent information.

They could also employ complex financial structures to obscure risks or misrepresent their financial health. Additionally, companies may attempt to influence the rating process through lobbying, providing incentives, or withholding critical information," said Jidesh Kumar, managing partner, King Stubb & Kasiva, Advocates and Attorneys.

The issue of non-cooperation

When companies stop sharing information that rating agencies require to maintain a watch over their credit ratings, they are termed non-cooperative.

The submission of rating agencies is that when a listed company is non-cooperative, a rating agency can still look at data available in the public domain," said the first person. "But most of the issuers are unlisted and, hence, there is not enough data available publicly to carry out meaningful surveillance."

The first person added that rating agencies are now hoping they can move INC (issuer not cooperating) ratings out of their remit by withdrawing the ratings, when they have been classified as non-cooperative a couple of years ago.

Also read | Sovereign credit ratings: Give local rating agencies a chance

Currently, lenders can give an NoC to the CRAs to withdraw the rating, but most lenders are not giving it and there should be some regulatory nudge that would tell lenders that you either get the issuer to cooperate or give an NoC. Failing to do neither should result in some penal charges," said the first person.

How risk weights work

As per current RBI guidelines, unrated corporates attract a lower risk weight of 100% than those rated BB and below. However, corporates and non-bank financiers, except core investment companies, which were rated earlier and then turned unrated, will attract a risk weight of 150% if the overall debt from banks is more than 100 crore. For exposures higher than 200 crore, the risk weight on all unrated corporates is 150%.

Also read | RBI rejects reappointment of RK Bansal as Edelweiss ARC chief

To be sure, the RBI has hinted in the past that it could increase the standard risk weight for unrated loans in certain cases. As part of the supervisory review process, the Reserve Bank (of India) would also consider whether the credit quality of unrated corporate claims held by individual banks should warrant a standard risk weight higher than 100%," it said in its master circular on Basel III capital regulations released in April 2022.

The second person said that the problem typically lies with smaller companies and those that are not so well rated. This essentially means that their bank exposure could be below the thresholds of 100 crore or 200 crore prescribed by RBI for higher risk weights in the unrated category. The higher rated companies are usually cooperative, but at the lower end of the rating spectrum, we see a higher proportion of companies becoming uncooperative," he said.
Mumbai/New Delhi: Sara Mukadam, a retail executive at an upscale mall in Mumbai, is engaging Friday afternoon shoppers with the intricacies of a high-end leather goods brand's latest collection. Adept at explaining the finer points of bags costing in excess of 50,000, Sara effortlessly recommends complementary items on sale at the store.

In pursuit of a better compensation, Sara transitioned to luxury retail in 2023 after a stint at one of India's top five-star hotel chains as well as a business process outsourcing company. The near-double salary and performance-based incentives were significant motivators, she said. Buoyed by the rising demand for international brands domestically, Sara finds exceeding monthly targets increasingly achievable as customers indulge in luxury purchases.

The switch to retail from hospitality was, in a sense, a good career shift for the 28-year-old who holds a bachelor's degree in hotel management, she told Mint.

Several luxury retail industry officials Mint spoke to are finding it increasingly hard to draw in fresh talent, in a sign of a broader shortage of skilled manpower. The growing demand for talent and attractive compensation as well as working hours have prompted those employed in aviation and hospitality firms to switch to the luxury retail sector, recruiters said.

Read more: Germany's Hansgrohe accelerates India expansion with ambitious retail strategy Talent has moved and continues to moveabout 30-40% of all the job placements we do now for luxury retail are from hospitality, while another 15% come from aviation. Pre-covid, these numbers stood at 20-30% per annum and 10% respectively, said Udit Mittal, founder and managing director at recruitment firm Unison International Consulting Pvt. Ltd. Luxury retail recruitment at the firm has grown two-threefold.

The numbers are set to climb further with more luxury shopping destinations opening up in India.

In 2023, luxury brands significantly expanded their footprint in India, leasing more than 600,000 sq ft of retail space across various formats, a 170% jump from the previous year, according to a recent report by real estate consultant CBRE South Asia and the PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Luxury brand leases in malls surged 300% to 240,000 sq ft; high street store formats also grew. Last year, Reliance inaugurated Jio World Plaza, bringing global luxury brands such as Dior to Hermes to Mumbai.

"Companies also realise that selling at the store is very important and no matter how good the product is, if the customer service is not good, nobody will buy it, Mittal said.

While the pandemic saw a surge in online shopping, consumers are now returning to stores, prompting brands to hire and train quality talent that can speak to an upmarket shopper.

Read more: The Leela Hotels IPO valued at $2.5 billion in dramatic turnaround Shailesh Chaturvedi, managing director and chief executive officer, Arvind Fashions Ltd., said that as competition in retail has gone up with more foreign brands establishing presence in India, retailers have worked to ensure their staff is well-remunerated.

"Post-covid, business has improved, a lot of international brands have comebut a lot more people are also willing to join retail. While jobs such as aviation and hospitality are glamorous, hours are long and employees usually burn out quickly and switch to retail. In general, the perception of working in retail has changed toothey dress better, get sales incentives, engage with aspirational customers, environments are secure," Chaturvedi added.

Meanwhile, more discerning shoppers also expect a greater level of customer service. They seek knowledgeable executives who can provide in-depth product information before a high-value purchase.

For instance, store managers of established luxury retailers earn anywhere between 10 lakh and 25 lakh per annum, with an additional incentive of around 10 lakh in some cases. A fashion consultant with two-to-three years of work experience earns about 10 lakh per annum, Mittal said. In contrast, low starting salaries at top hotel chains are pushing some beginners to seek opportunities in other sectors with better compensation.

What the hospitality sector still is not doing enough of is to look after entry-level workers. When hotels take freshers and interns, they simply are not paying enough. Most beginner salaries still hover around 8,000-10,000 a month. That is where the needle has to move, this means no fresh talent will come into the process," Manav Thadani, head, Hotelivate, a hospitality consultancy, had said earlier.

Dilip Puri, founder and chief executive of the Indian School of Hospitality, concurs. Luxury retail is the most fertile poaching ground as this talent possesses skills for customer communication, empathy etc. Students who have done their PG programmes (in hospitality) with us, for instance, have gone on to work with companies like DLF and Reliance Brands, he said.

Indias overall luxury market is estimated to grow to $30 billion by 2030, with 60% of existing consumers spending on luxury every year, according to a study by Deloitte.

Read more: Luxury-format cinemas: Where tickets cost an arm, and popcorn, a leg Sonal Arora, country manager at GI Group Holding, a recruitment firm, explains that with new retail brands entering India, the skills required for luxury retail are quite unique. Exceptional customer service and sales skills aside, the staff in this sector also need to have superior communication skills, a sense of discretion and customer privacy. "Consequently, there is a shortage of adequately-trained staff with relevant experience and the industry is drawing upon other related industries like hospitality and travel for its staffing needs, she said.

However, others said such staff also need to be equipped with strong sales skills.
A senior citizen gets a panicky call from someone impersonating her grandson. He was in a car accident. Hes in trouble. He needs cash immediately. Soon grandma is out $10,000.

This common real-life scenario forms the premise for some fictional justice in the movie Thelma," which opens in cinemas later this month. It is a comedy about a vigilante elder who, via mobility scooter, embarks on a quest to track down the scammers and reclaim her money.

Shes played by a woman on an extraordinary journey of her own: 94-year-old June Squibb. It is the first leading film role for the actress whos been at it longer than most everybody.

Having a career in the theater and film as long as I have, you understand grit and determination. Ive always gone through my life like that, determined that I will do what I want to do," Squibb said in a video interview from her apartment in a Hawaiian-themed complex in the San Fernando Valley where shes lived for the past 20 years.

Magnolia Pictures, an independent distributor that picked up Thelma" at the Sundance Film Festival, will release it June 21 on more than 1,000 screens. That is the widest opening in the companys two-decade historythe indie equivalent of a tentpole movie.

As counter programming to a world on fire, we believe a wide swath of the country is ready to revel in the brilliance of June Squibb," said Magnolia co-heads Eamonn Bowles and Dori Begley in an email.

I knew what I was doing

Squibb, a lifelong stage performer, didnt break into movies and TV until her 60s. She was a character actor spicing up minor parts when, at age 84, she had a surprising star turnan Oscar-nominated performance opposite Bruce Dern in 2013s Nebraska." In another big-screen moment for Squibb this month, Pixars Inside Out 2," shes the voice of Nostalgia.

Born in Illinois in 1929, Squibb started on stage in St. Louis and Cleveland before moving to New York to sing, dance and act. Aside from the occasional Christmas stint as a department store Santas helper, she said, all my years, I made a living at it."

Amid off-Broadway musicals and comedy skits in cabaret clubs, in 1959 she made her Broadway debut in Gypsy" alongside Ethel Merman. But you sometimes go backwards," she said, recalling a stretch of low morale in her 30s while dancing at a Chinese restaurant. I can remember thinking, why am I doing this? But I knew what I was doing. I was working."

Now she has top billing in a feisty comedy with a timely premiseelder fraud. Squibbs character was modeled on an actual Thelma. The now 104-year-old grandmother of writer-director Josh Margolin became the target of a phone trick like the one in his movie.

Squibbs version of Thelma draws motivation from a Mission: Impossible" movie, taking cues from Tom Cruise as she sets out to reclaim her 10 grand. She takes to the streets on a scooter commandeered from her friend-turned-wingman Ben, played by Shaft" great Richard Roundtree, who died of pancreatic cancer at 81 not long after making the movie.

Squibb, who stays fit with Pilates, executed many of her own (low-impact) stunts, such as driving the scooter and tumbling across a bed with a pistol in hand.

The younger characters, too, wrestle with age-related problems. Fred Hechinger (The White Lotus") plays Thelmas devoted 20-something grandson, whos failing at adulthood and struggling to untether from his overbearing parents (Parker Posey and Clark Gregg), who also have the missing Thelma to fret about.

Margolin, a first-time director who also edited the film, relied heavily on Squibbs comedic timing, like in a scene with Thelma running down a mental list of her late friends and the details of their passings.

She has such an internal rhythm and knows how to deliver a line for a laugh and how to deliver a line to make you feel something," Margolin said. That dexterity helped the filmmaker set the storys pace and tone without tipping into parody."

Squibb credits the harshest critic in the world"her second husband Charles Kakatsakis, an acting teacherfor pushing her to develop the artistic tools and discipline for dramatic roles and work on camera. Theyd been married 40 years when he died in 1999.

On television, she had a run on The Young and the Restless" and became a master of the one- or two- episode appearance, popping up as a quirky neighbor or a meemaw or the voice of Michael Scotts mom in The Office." Weirder jobs were also welcome, like co-starring with Triumph the Insult Comic Dog on a short-lived Adult Swim series.

Jelly beans for energy

Squibb said she never aspired to be more than a useful character actor, much less a star. But her Academy Award nodas the salty spouse of a man obsessed with a clearly bogus sweepstakes jackpot in Alexander Paynes black-and-white Nebraska"put Squibb-ian zest in higher demand. She recently wrapped filming in New York on her next lead role, as the title character in Scarlett Johanssons directorial debut, Eleanor the Great," about a Florida senior who moves to New York solo after losing her best friend.

On set, when Squibbs energy flags, she gets a pick-me-up from one of her preferred candies: jelly beans and caramels. My assistant comes running over with one of the Werthers. It helps!"

The actress, who turns 95 in November, said she still has more to explore in roles for her stage of life. There is no reason why my work cant continue to be good," Squibb said, and maybe even very special."

Write to John Jurgensen at John.Jurgensen@wsj.com
In an environment of expensive airfares and frequent cases of passenger inconvenience over the last few weeks, the new aviation minister, Ram Mohan Naidu Kinjarapu, has said that the ministry has started work towards ease of flying for all passengers.

Naidu, a third-time member of Parliament from Andhra Pradeshs Srikakulam, took charge on Thursday as the Union minister for civil aviation with a cabinet rank. At 36, Naidu is the youngest minister in the cabinet of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Naidu is the national general secretary of the Telugu Desam Party, an important ally of Bhartiya Janta Party in the new National Democratic Alliance government, which came to power on 9 June.

TDP chief N, Chandrababu Naidu took oath as the new Andhra Pradesh chief minister for a fourth term on 12 June.

Simultaneously, BJPs Murlidhar Mohol, member of Parliament from Pune, took charge as the minister of state for civil aviation.

One of the most important priorities for me is to create ease of flying scenario in the civil aviation. The ease of flying will be in the sense of comfort, convenience, safety, security, and other aspects related to the passenger choosing air travel, Naidu said after taking charge.

He added that the ministry is working on a 100-day action plan and will also address the matter of rising airfares with stakeholders.

Right from covid, air travel has taken a huge hit. There have been some fluctuations in air prices, and they haven't been stable since then. As a passenger, I have been observing this for the last four years; that is a concern. I need to have review meetings. I want prices to be affordable for common customers, Naidu said.

Soaring demand Naidu has taken charge at the civil aviation ministry at a time when domestic and international air travel demand is growing at a fast pace. As per the latest data from the Airports Authority of India, the domestic air traffic for April has grown 4% on year to 26.5 million passengers at Indian airports, and by 17% on year to around 6 million passengers.

Naidu also reiterated that he is optimistic about commencement of GMR Visakhapatnam international greenfield airport at Bhogapuram, Vizianagaram in Andhra Pradesh, by December.

"We have airports in Vijayawada and Tirupati which are requesting international connectivity and much stronger connectivity in the country also. That will also be a priority. We also want to improve air connectivity to Andhra Pradeshs capital Amaravati, Naidu said.
Cement prices have finally been raised after unsuccessful attempts in April and May. Extreme heat across the country and a labour shortages due to the general election had muted cement demand in the previous two months, leading to price rollbacks. In June, however, at an all-India level, average price hikes of 8-10 per bag have been announced, according to a dealers channel check by Motilal Oswal Financial Services. One cement bag weighs 50 kg.

Having peaked in October, cement prices have been on a downtrend due to heightened competition for volumes and market share, severely impacting realizations. In the March quarter (Q4FY24), the cement industry saw a volume growth of 10.4% year-on-year but a 5% sequential decline in realizations, according to Centrum Broking. The south and east markets saw a relatively higher impact on realizations as they grappled with issues of oversupply.

Demand and cost dynamics

Additionally, demand prospects for H1FY25 are not bright, as highlighted by recent management commentaries. Cement demand tends to be subdued during the monsoon season when home building activitiesa key demand driverare muted.

It remains to be seen if the recent price hikes will sustain. With the general election over, overall business conditions are expected to normalize. However, the September quarter is typically weak for the sector, making it difficult to maintain price hikes. Furthermore, even if the June price hike sustains, it is unlikely to significantly boost realizations growth. Considering the latest price increase, the all-India average cement price is estimated to be flat sequentially in Q1FY25 (quarter-to-date), said the Motilal Oswal report dated 11 June.

Against this backdrop, cement makers' continued focus on cost optimization measures, such as the use of alternative fuels and investments in waste heat recovery systems, is a positive. Also, costs of key fuels such as imported petroleum coke have declined sequentially so far in Q1FY25, and coal prices are stable. But this may not substantially improve the sectors near-term earnings outlook.

The industry saw an average Ebitda per tonne drop of 120-140 sequentially in Q4FY24, and a further sequential drop is likely in Q1FY25 due to negative operating leverage and weak cement prices, said Emkay Global Financial Services. Ebitda stands for earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization.

Meanwhile, cement demand is expected to pick up pace from Q3FY25. Companies are poised to post better volumes in H2FY25 compared to H1FY25. That said, for now, the sector is likely to close FY25 with mid-to-high single-digit (5-8%) year-on-year volume growth. Larger companies are likely to maintain their capacity addition spree via organic and inorganic routes and gain better distribution reach. Consequently, supply is expected to exceed demand in most markets, limiting sharp price improvements.

UltraTech Cement Ltd aims to achieve around 200 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) overall capacity by FY27, including Kesoram Industries and its overseas capacity. Ambuja Cements Ltd plans to reach a capacity of 140 mtpa by FY28, while Shree Cement Ltd targets a grey cement capacity of 75 mtpa/80 mtpa by FY27/28, respectively.

In the last month, shares of pan-India focused cement makers ACC Ltd, Ambuja, and UltraTech have risen 9-11%. It is widely anticipated that the new governments focus on infrastructure spending and capital expenditure will continue, boding well for long-term cement demand. However, a populist bias in the July Union Budget could dampen the outlook for cement stocks.

On the valuations front, shares of large cement makers are trading at FY26 EV/Ebitda of 10-18 times, showed Bloomberg data. EV is enterprise value. Unless prices improve meaningfully, the spectre of earnings downgrades for FY25 looms for the sector, thus making valuations less compelling.
Indian stock markets regained their composure after a period of volatility, with a significant rise in the share of stocks that traded in positive territory. This came after a whirlwind of emotions that gripped investors in the lead-up to and the aftermath of the election results last week.

The Indian stock market has shown strong resilience after the recent election results," said Kranthi Bathini, director of equity strategy at Wealth Mills Securities. "The formation of a stable government with clear policy direction has instilled positive sentiment among investors. This sense of stability and continuity is seen as a key driver of the current market bull run."

While the broader market recovered impressively, there was also a marked shift in large-cap counters on the BSEwhile only 13% of the lot traded in the green on election results day, all have come out of the woods since then. This was compared to about 84% of them that traded in positive territory year-to-date before the results came out on 4 June.

On the rise again

Mid-cap stocks followed a similar trend. All of them have been in positive territory since results day, after about 91% of them fell on counting day.

However, small-cap stocks had a more nuanced response. While 50.7% of this set of stocks were in the green on 31 May as compared to the start of the year, this share rose to 68.3% by 3 June after the exit poll predictions. However, this share was much lower than that of large-caps and mid-caps. Between 5 June and 12 June, however, about 98% of the small-cap stocks had recovered.

Market liquidity and sentiment are currently quite strong, fuelled by rising retail investor participation. Digitalisation has made it easier than ever for new investors to enter the market, further contributing to the positive atmosphere. India's long-term growth story and the government's commitment to policy continuity make the Indian market attractive for long-term investors," said Bathini.

The euphoria attracted over a million new investors in each of the past two weeks. Close to 7 million new registered investors joined the market since 18 April, when there were 169.4 million registered investors on the BSE. This climbed to 176.4 million by 13 June.

With a surge in investor confidence, stocks too are turning pricier. Almost 18% of the BSE-listed stocks are trading in a premium range of 25% to 50% to their five-year median price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio, according to a Mint analysis of 1,026 BSE-listed stocks whose data was available for five years.

This is a key metric that indicates how much investors are willing to pay for a company's future earnings. Almost 45% of the stocks are trading at an over 50% premium to their long-term median, suggesting a greater willingness to invest in anticipation of future growth.

On the near-term outlook, Abhilash Pagaria, head of Nuvama Alternative and Quantitative Research, expects the Nifty 50 to reach 24,000 soon, with large-cap stocks leading the charge.

Sectors like capital goods, defence, and auto are poised for continued outperformance," Pagaria said.
Shares of life insurance companies remained steady on Thursday as brokerages foresee initial margin reductions for insurers due to a new regulation by insurance regulator Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI), but expect the industry to adapt and adjust over time.

On June 12, IRDAI dismissed life insurers' concerns regarding higher premature exit payouts, retaining most provisions related to increased special surrender value (SSV) for endowment policies proposed last month. It mandated life insurance companies to offer surrender value (SV) from the first year, a change from previous norms that allowed it from the second or third year.

Among stocks, HDFC Life rose 4.4 percent to 597.95 followed by Max Financial Services, which increased 3 percent to 994.50. Meanwhile, ICICI Prudential gained 1.7 percent to 589.85, LIC advanced 1.5 percent to 1,013.00 and SBI Life added 1.2 percent to 1,478.25.

Read here: HCC gained 31% in June so far, up 162% in last one year; is it a good time to buy? In essence, compared to the current scenario, surrender valuesor payouts on premature exitswill increase for policyholders who exit early due to mis-selling or an inability to pay premiums. Unlike the present situation where policyholders lose the entire premium if they exit after the first year, they will now receive a portion of their premiums back.

IRDAI has mandated that the Special Surrender Value (SSV) should be at least equivalent to the present value of the paid-up sum assured and any paid-up future benefits, such as regular income payouts. The paid-up value is calculated using the formula: (number of premiums paid) x (sum assured) / (total number of premiums payable).

"The IRDAI has issued the final master circular on life insurance products, significantly reducing surrender charges on traditional savings plans. We note that the final guidelines are somewhat more favorable than the earlier draft. Based on our preliminary calculations, surrender income could decrease by approximately 55-70%. It's too early to quantify the impact on the Value of New Business (VNB) margin, as insurance companies might offset this by adjusting distributor terms or making changes to internal rate of return (IRR) calculations. While the valuation of the insurance sector remains supportive, investors are looking for stability and clearer visibility," said Shrikant Chouhan, Head Equity Research, Kotak Securities.

Read here: Ddev Plastiks Industries jumps 130% in 3 months; should you buy, sell or hold? Furthermore, to address complaints about insurers not complying with insurance ombudsman orders promptly, the IRDAI has introduced additional penalties. Insurers will now face a penalty of 5,000 per day if they fail to honor the ombudsman order within 30 days.

What has changed versus the draft? The IRDAI published a master circular on life insurance products on June 12, 2024. Among other changes, the new guidelines, raise the special surrender value for non-linked policyholders. Insurers will have to ensure that the SSV is at least equal to the expected present value of the paid-up sum assured, paid-up future benefits and accrued/vested benefits, duly allowing for survival benefits already paid, (whatsoever name called). The final guidelines provide for discounting of benefits at 10-year G-sec + 50 bps as compared to the draft, which proposed discounting at 10-year G-sec rates. Most of the other clauses are unchanged. These guidelines will be effective as of October 1, 2024; the terms of current insurance contracts remain unchanged.

Read here: ICICI Securities upgrades ZEE and Sun TV to 'Buy' on expectations of ad revenue growth Brokerage views Jefferies expects Max Life and HDFC Life to face a greater impact from the new regulations, whereas ICICI Prudential Life and SBI Life may experience milder repercussions. The regulations mandate higher payouts for policyholders opting for premature exits, potentially squeezing insurers' margins. Analysts acknowledge the negative impact but believe insurers can manage it through strategic adjustments.

The new SSV norms, effective from October 2024, align with draft regulations. Jefferies highlights that insurers offering participating (par) savings products and those with lower policy persistency rates will feel the brunt more significantly. They estimate that the increased SVs could reduce the gross margins of affected products by 6-8 percentage points.

Despite this, Jefferies suggests insurers could mitigate the net impact by 40-120 basis points through actions such as commission deferral, clawbacks, and reducing commission rates. They believe this manageable impact could alleviate concerns and potentially improve the sector's valuation.

Read here: Turnaround stocks of 2024: Top 5 shares that are potential multibaggers Morgan Stanley's analysis echoes Jefferies in recognising the adverse impact of the revised Special Surrender Value (SV) norms on insurers' margins. The firm underscores the necessity for insurers to implement strategies to mitigate potential margin pressures.

Under the new regulations, insurers are mandated to raise the special surrender value to at least match the present value of the paid-up sum assured and paid-up future benefits. This adjustment aims to provide more equitable compensation to policyholders who choose to exit prematurely, often due to financial constraints or issues like mis-selling awareness.

Read here: Dear retail investor, here is how to account for politics in your investing Meanwhile, Kotak Securities also noted that the change is expected to impact margins in the traditional segment negatively. However, the final guidelines are slightly more favorable than the draft released last month. Preliminary estimates suggest that surrender income may decline by 55-70 percent, which is less severe than the initially projected 70-80 percent decline. The impact on the Value of New Business (VNB) margins is still uncertain, as insurers might mitigate it through distributor clawbacks or adjustments in internal rates of return (IRRs). Valuations remain supportive, while investors look for stability and clarity.
MUMBAI : Sectoral and thematic funds received over 19,000 crore in net inflows in May, according to monthly data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India (Amfi). Nearly half of this amount went into HDFC Mutual Funds new fund offer (NFO)  HDFC Manufacturing Fund, which alone garnered 9,500 crore from investors.

It's not just HDFC MF riding this wave; other fund houses have also launched manufacturing funds recently. Baroda BNP Paribas MF introduced its manufacturing fund on June 10, while Mahindra Manulife MF launched its manufacturing fund at the end of last month. Additionally, Motilal Oswal MF and Invesco India MF have filed for manufacturing funds with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi).

Why the manufacturing theme?

Fund managers cite both global and domestic factors as drivers for the manufacturing sector in India. The push towards diversification from China as a manufacturing hub is creating opportunities for economies like India to fill the gap.

Read This: Retail investors and the fixation with equity MFs

The global shift towards the China+1 sourcing strategy presents an opportunity for Indian manufacturers to be relevant in global manufacturing," says Krishna Sanghavi, chief investment officer of Mahindra Manulife MF.

"Manufacturing in India currently contributes only 17% to the countrys gross domestic product. With the government's continued focus on initiatives like 'Make in India' and 'Atmanirbhar Bharat,' along with the product-linked incentive (PLI) scheme, acting as a substantial booster, manufacturing is likely to benefit," he says.

The government's focus on increasing import substitution by boosting domestic manufacturing is also a significant factor. Indias non-oil and non-gems and jewellery imports were $422 billion in fiscal year 2024 (FY24).

View Full Image (Graphics: Pranay Bhardwaj)

Sanghavi adds, "With a population of approximately 1.43 billion, India already has a large captive demand base across all product categories. Indian corporates are reasonably deleveraged and hence capable of scaling up by debt for capacity creation."

We see the manufacturing sector poised for multi-decade growth fuelled by growing consumption, investment, exports, changing geopolitics, and a favourable policy environment," says Suresh Soni, chief executive officer of Baroda BNP Paribas MF.

What should investors do?

There are currently only two manufacturing funds in the mutual fund industry with a five-year track record. ICICI Prudential Manufacturing Fund has delivered 28% annualized returns over the past five years, while Aditya Birla Sun Life Manufacturing Fund has provided 20% annualized returns in the same period. Comparatively, the market benchmark Nifty 50 Index has delivered about 15% annualized returns during this time.

When considering theme- or sector-based investing, timing is crucial. Mutual fund experts advise that investments in such funds should not exceed 5-10% of your portfolio.

Unlike other themes, manufacturing is not as concentrated. But at the same, your core allocation should remain in diversified equity funds  whether large-caps, flexi-caps, or multi-caps, depending on your risk appetite," says Nisreen Mamaji, founder of MoneyWorks FS.

There is a push by the political leadership towards manufacturing and infrastructure development. But valuations of two-thirds of the sectors are trading at a premium to their historical average. So, investors need to be wary of that," points out Rushabh Desai, Founder of Rupee With Rushabh Investment Services.

Also Read: How to invest in mutual funds online for minors
The NDA alliance, under BJP leadership, secured victory once more in the 2024 general election, thus, setting the ball rolling for the incumbent government to pursue its policies while promoting investments in various spheres.

Initially, the markets responded unfavorably to the news of the coalition, but they rebounded swiftly as the ruling party assured stability and expressed its determination to establish the upcoming Modi 3.0 administration. Presently, investors are optimistic, with some placing bets on sectors and domains where they anticipate the current government will maintain its focus in the coming years. Furthermore, investors seek stability and predictability, making a government that is expected to uphold its present policies particularly appealing.

Which sectors inspire hope for investors? Investors expectations are well-founded. They are largely banking on the governments prior emphasis on infrastructure development, economic reforms, and social welfare initiatives. Past performance sets the stage for the future, highlighting specific sectors of the Indian economy poised for growth in the upcoming years.

Mutual funds across various categories stand to potentially gain significantly during Modi 3.0, particularly those with investments in defense, manufacturing, infrastructure, banking and financial services, technology, and notably, the healthcare and pharmaceutical sector.



Also Read: Large, mid, and small cap stocks: Mutual fund buying and selling trends for May unveiled

Investing in defence funds Peace appears elusive as numerous countries prepare for potential conflicts. The turbulent global landscape, compounded by terrorism and ongoing tensions with neighbors like China and Pakistan, has compelled the Indian government to bolster its defense infrastructure.

India encounters distinctive challenges due to its extensive borders and intricate geopolitical positioning. Consequently, the current government is making substantial investments in modernizing military equipment and boosting domestic production, exemplified by initiatives such as Aatmanirbhar Bharat (Self-Reliant India). The recent budgetary increase in defense allocation underscores the governments commitment to enhancing the capabilities of the armed forces.

At present, only the HDFC Defence Fund directly targets the mutual fund sector in India. For those unfamiliar, this thematic mutual fund was introduced by HDFC Mutual Fund in June 2023. It exclusively targets companies linked with the Indian defense sector, striving to achieve long-term capital appreciation. Undoubtedly, the fund has notably surpassed both the broader market and its category average during this period. However, despite its impressive performance, some critics persist in labeling it Very High Risk due to its focused concentration on a particular sector.

Another mutual fund in the same category would be the Motilal Oswal Nifty India Defence Index Fund. On June 13, 2024, Motilal Oswal Asset Management Company (MOAMC) introduced the Motilal Oswal Nifty India Defence Index Fund, marking Indias inaugural index fund centred on defense stocks. This open-ended fund will mirror the Nifty India Defence Index, and its new fund offer (NFO) will be accessible from June 13 to June 24, 2024. The performance evaluation of the scheme will be based on the Nifty India Defence Index.

Comprising 15 companies engaged in defense project manufacturing and services, the Nifty India Defence Index reflects their market performance. As of May 31, 2024, the index has demonstrated a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 177% over the past year and 89.5% over three years. Despite its robust potential, the sector exhibits higher volatility.

Compared to most other mutual fund types, funds in the defence sector are relatively new, thus, highlighting how investors must rely on the funds past returns and their judgement regarding mutual fund selection while deciding whether and to what extent to invest in them.

Name of the fund Name of the fund 1-year returns (in %) HDFC Defence Fund HDFC Asset Management Company 115.07 Source: AMFI (As of June 12, 2024)

Investing in manufacturing funds Manufacturing funds are an appealing alternative for investors looking to capitalize on Indias booming industrial industry. With initiatives like Make in India and a focus on self-sufficiency, the manufacturing industry is primed for expansion, potentially giving significant returns to investors.

These funds often invest in several manufacturing segments, thereby diversifying the business. They are actively managed by experienced portfolio managers and seek out firms with good growth prospects. Sceptics point out that manufacturing is subject to economic cycles, and a slowdown might have an impact on manufacturing enterprises and, as a result, fund returns.

Some manufacturing funds in India are relatively new, so historical performance data may be limited. Furthermore, manufacturing equities are more volatile than the broader market, which can lead to considerable variations in the funds value.

Investors have a plethora of mutual funds in the manufacturing sector to select from. The table below delineates the array of manufacturing funds and showcases how investors have consistently benefitted from investing in these funds since their inception.

Name of the fund Name of the fund house 5-year returns (in %) ICICI Prudential Manufacturing Fund ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund 27.91 Bank of India Manufacturing & Infrastructure Fund Bank of India Mutual Fund 29.66 Aditya Birla Sun Life Manufacturing Equity Fund Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund 19.90 Axis India Manufacturing Fund Axis India Mutual Fund - Quant Manufacturing Fund Quant Mutual Fund - Canara Robeco Manufacturing Fund Canara Robeco Mutual Fund - Kotak Manufacture In India Fund Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund - Source: AMFI (As of June 12, 2024)

The most popular benchmark for evaluating the performance of Indian manufacturing funds is without a doubt the Nifty India Manufacturing TRI (Total Return Index). This index serves as a helpful benchmark for these funds and is specifically made to track the performance of companies in the manufacturing sector. The TRI version is different in that it shows the performance of the fund in a more comprehensive manner by factoring in both price appreciation and dividends.

This index, which includes manufacturing-related companies from the Nifty 100, Nifty Midcap 150, and Nifty Smallcap 50, gives weight to each stock according to its free-float market capitalization, meaning that bigger firms have more sway. The TRI offers a more accurate representation of the total return produced by the index since it takes into account both changes in the index price and dividend payments made by the component companies.



Also Read: Equity mutual fund inflows skyrocket to record 34,697 crore in May, SIPs reach 20,904 crore: AMFI

Investing in infrastructure funds Indias unwavering commitment to infrastructure development strengthens the case for investigating infrastructure-focused mutual funds. Over the last decade, the government has consistently prioritised investment in infrastructure projects such as roads, bridges, trains, and power grids, resulting in sectoral growth. Furthermore, the growing urbanisation trend is driving demand for additional infrastructure in cities, including housing, transportation, and sanitary services.

The growing emphasis on renewable energy sources like solar and wind power necessitates investments in transmission lines and other infrastructure. These funds invest in companies in the construction, building materials, engineering, and other infrastructure-related industries that are well-positioned to benefit from the governments initiatives.

By distributing investments among several infrastructure segments, infrastructure funds provide diversification within the industry. The long-term nature of infrastructure projects implies that these funds have the potential to see significant long-term capital growth.

Investors have a plethora of infrastructure funds to choose from for potential investment. The table below showcases the performance of various infrastructure funds up to the present date.

Name of the fund Name of the fund house 10-year returns (in %) Invesco India Infrastructure Fund Invesco India Mutual Fund 21.01 Kotak Infrastructure and Economic Reform Fund Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund 20.20 Bank of India Manufacturing & Infrastructure Fund Bank of India Mutual Fund 18.93 Bandhan Infrastructure Fund Bandhan Mutual Fund 18.82 Tata Infrastructure Fund Tata Mutual Fund 18.76 Canara Robeco Infrastructure Fund Canara Robeco Mutual Fund 18.47 SBI Infrastructure Fund SBI Mutual Fund 18.01 ICICI Prudential Infrastructure Fund ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund 17.83 LIC MF Infrastructure Fund LIC Mutual Fund 16.87 Aditya Birla Sun Life Infrastructure Fund Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund 16.38 Sundaram Infrastructure Advantage Fund Sundaram Mutual Fund 16.38 Taurus Infrastructure Fund Taurus Mutual Fund 15.96 UTI Infrastructure Fund UTI Mutual Fund 14.34 HDFC Infrastructure Fund HDFC Mutual Fund 13.18 Quant Infrastructure Fund Quant Mutual Fund - HSBC Infrastructure Equity Fund HSBC Mutual Fund - Source: AMFI (As of June 12, 2024)

The S&P BSE India Infrastructure TRI serves as a widely recognized benchmark, monitoring the total return performance of companies within the infrastructure sector listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). Encompassing companies engaged in diverse segments such as construction, power, transportation, and real estate, it provides comprehensive insight into the sectors performance.

Fund houses may use the Nifty 50 TRI as a backup benchmark in specific situations. This broad market index provides a broad comparison of the funds performance against the stock market as a whole, even though it is not specifically designed for infrastructure.

Certain fund houses may create specialized benchmarks that are intended to represent particular investment philosophies or strategies. These customized benchmarks might focus on a specific infrastructure subsector or give different weights to different companies than the ones found in standard benchmarks.

Investing in banking and financial services funds The banking and financial services industry in India is rapidly changing due to changes in consumer demands, government policies, and technology improvements. Significantly, open banking laws are being implemented, encouraging collaborations between fintech companies and banks to develop innovative financial solutions. In response, banks are expanding their reach, especially in rural areas, by investing heavily in digital lending platforms, online account opening services, and mobile banking applications.

Moreover, India boasts a substantial fintech adoption rate, witnessing an upsurge in startups providing inventive solutions across payments, wealth management, and insurance domains. In fostering innovation while mitigating risks, the RBI has established a regulatory sandbox for the fintech sector.

Additionally, to enhance financial inclusion, the RBI has granted new licenses for differentiated banking models such as payment banks and small finance banks (SFBs). Furthermore, both the government and RBI are spearheading initiatives to augment credit accessibility for micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs). Notably, mergers and acquisitions among banks are underway, aiming to fortify financial institutions.

Investment in banking and financial services fund(s) is not new. Sadly, not all have performed to the optimum. The reasons may be myriad though investors focus only on some of the top performing funds hoping that the fund houses would be able to continue at this pace in the future too.

Name of the fund Name of the fund house 5-year returns (in %) Tata Banking And Financial Services Fund Tata Mutual Fund 14.60 Nippon India Banking & Financial Services Fund Nippon India Mutual Fund 13.67 Aditya Birla Sun Life Banking and Financial Services Fund Aditya Birla Sun Life Mutual Fund 13.17 LIC MF Banking & Financial Services Fund LIC Mutual Fund 11.87 ICICI Prudential Banking and Financial Services Fund ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund 11.55 Source: AMFI (As of June 12, 2024)

The primary benchmark used for banking and financial services funds is typically the NIFTY Financial Services Index (India). Widely recognized in India, this index monitors the performance of prominent companies within the banking, financial services, and insurance sectors (as per an Investopedia article on banking sector benchmarks). Variants such as the Total Return Index (TRI) incorporate reinvested dividends for a more comprehensive assessment.

Investing in technology funds Myriad factors are responsible for the impressive growth that Indias tech sector is experiencing. The need for IT services, software development, and other technological solutions is growing as a result of peoples and businesses growing reliance on technology.

In addition, the Digital India Initiative has been instrumental in building a strong digital infrastructure throughout the country that includes digital services, internet access, and the advancement of digital literacy. This creates the foundation for tech companies to thrive.

Furthermore, by supporting homegrown manufacturing, the Make in India campaign fosters a trained labour force and a strong regional ecosystem for the production of hardware, both of which are essential for the IT industry. In addition, the Startup India initiative provides resources and support to new businesses, encouraging creativity and entrepreneurship and bringing in new talent and ideas to the technology sector.

Mutual funds centred on the technology sector present enticing opportunities for investors, thanks to promising growth prospects and favourable government policies. The persistent digital revolution underscores the enduring investment potential within technology companies.

The allure of the technology sector has prompted numerous mutual fund houses to introduce technology funds, enticing investors to allocate a portion of their earnings to them. Indias thriving tech industry has catalyzed a ripple effect in the mutual fund arena, with more fund houses actively rolling out new technology-focused funds to harness the sectors growth potential. These funds typically invest in companies spanning various tech sub-sectors such as software, hardware, internet services, and beyond. Additionally, some existing sectoral funds may have bolstered their allocation towards technology companies to reflect the sectors escalating significance.

Name of the fund Name of the fund house 5-year returns (in %) ICICI Prudential Technology Fund ICICI Prudential Mutual Fund 25.46 Franklin India Technology Fund Franklin India Mutual Fund 24.48 SBI Technology Opportunities Fund SBI Mutual Fund 23.18 Edelweiss Technology Fund Edelweiss Mutual Fund - HDFC Technology Fund HDFC Mutual Fund - Kotak Technology Fund Kotak Mahindra Mutual Fund - Source: AMFI (As of June 12, 2024)

The aforementioned table delineates the proliferation of technology fund launches by various fund houses, as investors acknowledge the potential for substantial returns in the tech sector, driven by high growth.

Technology funds in India are frequently assessed on how well they perform in comparison to two main benchmark indices:

One of the preferred metrics for evaluating the performance of technology funds in India is the NIFTY IT Index (TRI). The largest and most liquid information technology companies listed on the National Stock Exchange of India (NSE) are tracked by this market capitalization-weighted index. Reinvested dividends are included in the Total Return Index (TRI) variant, which offers a more thorough view of returns.

In a similar vein, another widely used benchmark for technology funds is the BSE TECk Index (TRI). Additionally, it is an information technology sector-focused market capitalization-weighted index on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). The TRI version of this index, like the NIFTY IT Index, incorporates reinvested dividends for a comprehensive evaluation of performance. Investing in pharma and healthcare funds Interest in the Indian healthcare and pharmaceutical sector is on the rise due to various factors, notably the recent pandemic and government initiatives. The pandemic underscored the necessity of a resilient healthcare system, prompting heightened investments, both public and private, in healthcare infrastructure, medical equipment, and research and development.

Several catalysts are propelling substantial expansion in the Indian healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors. Here are some pivotal considerations:

Market expansion : According to projections [source for India's healthcare market size], the country's healthcare sector will reach extraordinary heights by 2024. This growth creates opportunities for manufacturers of medical devices, pharmaceutical companies, and a variety of healthcare providers.

: According to projections [source for India's healthcare market size], the country's healthcare sector will reach extraordinary heights by 2024. This growth creates opportunities for manufacturers of medical devices, pharmaceutical companies, and a variety of healthcare providers. Attention to affordability : Although the private healthcare industry is booming in cities, affordability is still a problem in rural areas. This reinforces the demand for affordable healthcare options and generic drugs, utilizing India's strong position in this field.

: Although the private healthcare industry is booming in cities, affordability is still a problem in rural areas. This reinforces the demand for affordable healthcare options and generic drugs, utilizing India's strong position in this field. Growth of medical tourism: Patients from nearby countries and abroad are being drawn to India by its reputation for offering excellent medical care at reasonable costs. This growing market is starting to take center stage in the healthcare industry. Investments are made in a variety of healthcare sectors by pharmaceutical and healthcare funds in India, including:

Pharmaceutical businesses

Healthcare facilities and hospitals

Manufacturers of medical devices

Diagnostic chains The following table illustrates some of the top-performing pharma and healthcare funds that investors may decide to include in their investment portfolios to gain from the rapid advances expected in the coming five years.

Name of the fund Name of the fund house 5-year returns (in %) ICICI Prudential Pharma Healthcare and Diagnostics (P.H.D) Fund 28.16 Nippon India Pharma Fund 27.13 Tata India Pharma & Heathcare Fund 26.47 Source: AMFI (As of June 12, 2024)

Without a doubt, the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries in India are positioned for significant expansion. India is well-positioned to become a global leader in the provision of accessible and reasonably priced healthcare with continued support from the government, investments from the private sector, and coordinated efforts to address current issues.

Alternative to thematic fund investments Given the risk associated with thematic funds, many investors opt to redirect their attention toward flexi-cap funds. Unlike thematic funds, flexi-cap funds spread investments across companies of varying market capitalizations (large, mid, and small), resulting in more diversified portfolios. While flexi-cap funds are generally considered moderately risky due to their diversification, they still carry market risk. Although there is potential for favourable returns, they may not outperform thematic funds during periods of significant growth in a specific theme.
Bill Ackman American billionaire hedge fund manager on Thursday, June 13, extended support to Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who has sought approval for a $56 billion pay package from shareholders.

In a social media post on X (formerly Twitter), Bill Ackman said, I am not a @Tesla shareholder but I couldnt agree more. Taking away @elonmusks compensation after he created enormous value for shareholders is theft. He added, And stealing from a CEO who has created spectacular value for shareholders is not a smart long-term decision for the company.

In 2021 and 2022, Elon Musk sold around $38 billion of Tesla stock to help finance his purchase of Twitter, now called X. His stake in Tesla, once around 30 per cent, is now 13 per cent without the shares underlying the 2018 package, and 20 per cent with it.

This comment comes a day after Elon Musk acknowledged that the company's shareholders were voting to approve his multibillion-dollar pay package by wide margins.

Also read: Elon Musk reveals changes to likes privacy policy on X; netizens say pointless update While drawing reference to resolutions to approve his pay package worth around $56 billion, the Tesla CEO in a post on X stated, "Both Tesla shareholder resolutions are currently passing by wide margins!" A plan to shift Tesla's place of incorporation from Delaware to Texas is also on records.

Also read: Elon Musk fired 80% of Twitter, and Silicon Valley companies adopted the practice, finds report In January this year, Elon Musk said that he would like a 25 per cent stake to "have a strong influence. The official shareholder voting results have not been disclosed yet. Tesla's annual shareholder meeting is scheduled to take place today in the afternoon.

Former Tesla General Counsel and FIGS Chief Legal Officer Todd Maron in a post on X, he said, The vote on the pay package for @elonmusk should be a landslide in favor.

The ex-Tesla General Counsel claimed that among all the things that he liked while working for Tesla, the pay package stood at the top as one of the most essential factors. He suggested that the pay package offered by the company was shareholder friendly pay package ever conceived. He noted, there was no pay of any kind unless shareholders did better than anyone thought possible" and suggested that Elon Musk should be celebrated for having signed up to it.

Also read: Elon Musk gave internet to Amazons remote tribe; now they are addicted to social media, porn The post reads, The thought that any investor would have pocketed the tremendous upside over the past 6 years and not honor this deal now - after Elon moved mountains to make that upside happen - is unfathomable.

He praised the SpaceX founder for his achievements and sacrifices in the domain over the years and his expertise in execution of the company which inspired everyone else at Tesla to achieve what most didnt even realize they could do, and the world changed for the better as a result.

Maron appealed to Tesla investors to cast their vote considering Elon Musks brilliant leadership and decision-making and ensure that "sanity and fairness" prevails. He suggested investors to vote in favour of Elon Mush and watch Elon lead the company towards even more amazing achievements (and value creation)!
(Bloomberg) -- The Colombian peso plunged as much as 3.2%, extending weekly losses as traders fret over a widening fiscal deficit and an increase in the debt ceiling.

The peso was the worst performing currency in the world on Thursday, hitting the lowest level since October before trimming losses. It has far outstripped the decline in its Mexican counterpart this week, which had grabbed all the headlines after the surprise election results.

The government will present its mid-term fiscal framework on Friday, defining the budget goals for the coming years. It comes after Moodys Ratings warned that the South American nation will miss its deficit target for this year, which was already high at 5.3% of gross domestic product.

The COP should remain under pressure in the long term, especially as Colombia has not come up with a credible growth model as it moves away from dependency on hydrocarbon exploration and production, said Thierry Wizman, director of global currencies and an interest-rate strategist at Macquarie Futures.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. turned bearish on the Colombian peso, saying lingering discussions around the countrys fiscal rule and an acceleration in the pace of monetary easing will weigh on the currency.

The peso has been outperforming the high yielders in the region but we think the inertia of the move will eventually lead to some catch up with the losses of BRL and MXN, strategists including Gisela Brant and Tania Escobedo Jacob wrote in a note.

The selloff began after the government raised the debt ceiling on Tuesday, and the comments by Moodys on Wednesday further increased pressure on the currency, said Brendan McKenna, a currency strategist at Wells Fargo.

The government is trying to reign in spending, with the cabinet approving on Monday a spending cut of 20 trillion pesos ($5 billion). But the announcement failed to reassure markets.

Fiscal worries and the continued unwinding in Latin American currencies have weighed on the Colombian peso, said Brad Bechtel, global head of FX at Jefferies. The break of the 200-day moving average opened a move to 4,200 initially and potentially 4,400 after that.

--With assistance from Vinicius Andrade and Oscar Medina.

(Updates with comments from JPMorgan. A previous version corrected size and scope in the deckheadline and second paragraph.)

More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
Canadian fund manager Brookfield Asset Management Ltd has launched a new climate action fund, partnering with Alterra Management Ltd, the world's largest private investment vehicle in this domain. The initiative aims to raise up to $5 billion to boost spending in emerging markets.

The new Catalytic Transition Fund (CTF), managed by Brookfield, will receive $1 billion from Alterra and channel a total of $5 billion towards climate transition assets and clean energy investments in various emerging markets, according to a Brookfield statement on Thursday.

Read This: Mark Carney | Remarkable to see big cos going green Since December 2023, Brookfield has been identifying potential partners, marketing the fund, and creating an investment plan with Alterra.

Alterra, born during COP28the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) environmental summitstarted with a $30 billion commitment from the government of the United Arab Emirates (UAE). It aims to fund climate action in developing countries and emerging markets.

"This represents a massive opportunity, especially in countries like India where Brookfield already is a significant player with $3 billion of equity committed over the past five years and with its platforms representing an asset pool of over 25 GW," said Nawal Saini, managing director, renewable power & transition, Brookfield Asset Management.

These assets will fund decarbonization and energy transitions in Southeast Asian economies, with a key focus on India. Brookfield highlighted India's clear policies supporting the transition to a net-zero economy and a strong corporate demand for decarbonization as attractive factors. This fund will supplement India's goals of generating half the country's electric power capacity using green energy by 2030 and achieving net-zero carbon emissions by 2070.

And This: Modi 3.0 could establish Indian leadership in climate resilience In addition to India, the fund will deploy capital to other emerging markets, including South and Central America, South and Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe, according to the press release.

The CTF, the latest addition to Brookfield's $925 billion assets under management (AUM), aims to promote equality in climate action between developing and developed nations.

"Emerging and developing economies outside of China receive less than 15% of global clean energy investment, despite representing nearly one-third of global emissions and often yielding greater emissions reductions per dollar invested than in developed countries," the statement said.
Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena instructed the city's police chief to implement stringent surveillance measures along the Munak Canal to curb water theft, amidst the ongoing water crisis in the national capital.

Meanwhile, Delhi Water Minister Atishi on Wednesday requested the LG to deploy an assistant commissioner of police-level officer to patrol the stretch of the Munak Canal in Delhi to ensure that no illegal water-filling activity occurs.

It has been widely reported in media and also mentioned in the related case pending in Hon'ble Supreme Court that tanker mafia has become active in the midst of water crisis in Delhi. It has also been brought to knowledge that these tankers are making illegal theft of water from Munak Canal carrying water from the state of Haryana into Delhi, a communication from the LG Secretariat said.

This canal enters Delhi near Bawana where tankers have been reported to be lifting water from the canal and selling it illegally, it said.

Atishi inspected the Water Distribution Network near Akshardham, with ADM/SDM and Tehsildars team. She said, We have come here to check the main water pipeline from Sonia Vihar to various areas of South Delhi. Senior officers have also been ordered to check all pipelines for any leakage. Jal Board staff has also been told that revenue officers will conduct patrolling with them... We have filed in detail the steps have taken to stop the wastage of water... Water shortage can be overcome only when we receive Yamuna water at the Wazirabad barrage and the Munak canal... January onwards, the number of tankers has drastically been reduced by Delhi Government officers... With the reduction of government tankers, the number of private tankers has increased... I have written to the LG to take strict action against the officers who despite repetitive orders to increase the number of tankers, did not do the needful. An enquiry should be ordered and they should be suspended till the enquiry is not completed.

Earlier, Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena and Atishi were involved in a social media spat over the water crisis.

Atishi in a Hindi post on X said that the LG office today sent a press release to all journalists in Delhi and added, I have been abused a lot in it. Very bad things have been said about me.

The AAP leader also said in the post that she knew that the LG and the BJP hated Aam Aadmi Party because the Delhi people repeatedly made Arvind Kejriwal the chief minister with a huge mandate.

....While hating us, you have started hating Delhi people. Abuse us as much as you want, say as many bad things to us. But do not stop the rightful water of Delhi people because of hatred against us. Delhi people are deeply distressed due to shortage of water..., she said in the post.

The minister also said that all people in Delhi will get water if the BJP government in Haryana provides water to Delhi.

The Raj Niwas from its official handle hit back at Atishi saying Mantriji, LG Saheb did not abuse you. The LG office has refuted your abuses for him and white lies with evidence, and has exposed your habit of misleading the people of Delhi.

The LG office asked Atishi to file an FIR against the water theft and promised her that it will back the complaint with the strictest action, PTI reported.

If only the 54 per cent unaccounted water and 40 per cent leakage are plugged by the Kejriwal government, the poor people of Delhi will have more than ample water, it claimed.

However, Minister Atishi will not say a single word about this, because of the deep nexus that exists between her party and the water mafia, the statement added.

Citing the affidavit, Atishi said that from May 23, the water quantities released by the Haryana government were reduced.

The figures of the affidavit given by the Haryana government in the Supreme Court show that from May 1 to 22, Haryana released 719 cusecs of water in CLC and 330 cusecs of water in DSB through the Munak canal.

That means 1,049 cusecs of water were released daily. But after this, it started decreasing from May 23. That means, that when there were elections in Delhi, Haryana reduced the sending of water, she said.

The LG office responded to allegations made by Atishi regarding water allocation, citing an affidavit filed by the Haryana government on June 10 in the Supreme Court. They asserted that Atishi's claims were false and defamatory, as a review of the document contradicted her statements. In response to the water minister's assertion of inadequate water supply from Haryana, the LG office stated that the submitted documents indicate Delhi receives more water than its designated share, with the flow never dropping below 1,050 cusecs, even for a day.

Over the past week, Delhi has grappled with a severe water scarcity, significantly impacting the daily lives of its residents. The crisis arose from declining water levels in the Yamuna River coupled with technical malfunctions at critical water treatment facilities.

Numerous areas are experiencing a drastic reduction or complete absence of water supply, compelling residents to resort to alternative sources such as water tankers and borewells to meet their needs.
Jammu and Kashmir: An armed confrontation erupted between security forces and militants in the Gandoh region of Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district. Here are the top ten developments:

1. Following a recent encounter in Doda, the Jammu and Kashmir police has released sketches of four suspected terrorists thought to be present in the higher areas of Bhaderwah, Thathri, and Gandoh within the district. Additionally, a reward of 5 lakh has been announced for any information leading to the capture of each of these individuals.

2. The identity of the informant would be kept secret, the J-K police said in a post on X. Jammu and Kashmir Police also appealed to the general public to provide information about the presence or movement of these terrorists on the following contact numbers:

SSP Doda - 9469076014

SP Hqrs Doda - 9797649362

SP Bhaderwah - 9419105133

SP Ops Doda - 9419137999

SDPO Bhaderwah - 7006069330

DY. SP Hqrs Doda - 9419155521

SDPO Gandoh - 9419204751

SHO PS Bhaderwah - 9419163516

SHO PS Thathri - 9419132660

SHO PS Gandoh - 9596728472

IC PP Thanalla - 9906169941

PCR Doda - 7298923100, 9469365174, 9103317361

PCR Bhaderwah - 9103317363

3. Meanwhile, a Special Operations Group (SOG) constable, Fareed Ahmed, who was injured in an encounter with terrorists in Doda district on Wednesday, was shifted to Government Medical College Doda for further treatment, where his condition is said to be stable. Initially, he was being treated at Gandoh Hospital in Doda.

4. Speaking with ANI, Dr Tanvir said, "The patient had a bullet injury. He had bullet injuries in his chest and foot. He is in the operation theatre and is stable, adding, Fareed Ahmed was shifted here at around 11:30 pm (June 12). He suffered blood loss and he will need blood transfusion.

5. Amid back-to-back terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir, Union Minister Dr Jitendra Singh on Wednesday said that the joint operation between the administration and the paramilitary forces is progressing very well, adding that further action will be decided based on Prime Minister Modi's declaration of zero tolerance towards terrorism.

6. The type of incident that has happened has certainly caused concern and anger among the people... As Prime Minister Modi has said that there is 'zero tolerance towards terrorism', further action will be decided following the same principle, he said.

7. Meanwhile, security has been beefed up and 'Naka' checking is being done after an encounter started in the Gandoh area of Doda district. Police security has tightened and vehicles are being checked.

8. The encounter between security forces and terrorists in the Gandoh area of Jammu and Kashmir's Doda district broke out on Wednesday. The J-K police in a post on X said, Today at 20:20 hrs (June 12), an encounter started between security forces and terrorists at Kota Top, Gandoh, Doda. Constable Fareed Ahmed (973/D) of SOG Gandoh was injured during the operation at Kerloo Bhalessa. Encounter ongoing, more details awaited.

9. A recent clash erupted in response to a string of terrorist assaults that have occurred in the area over the past few days. The Jammu and Kashmir region has experienced heightened violence, marked by three major attacks: the Reasi, Kathua, and Doda terror incidents.

10. The Jammu and Kashmir region has been witnessing a surge in violence with three significant attacks: the Reasi terror attack, the Kathua terror attack, and the Doda terror attack. The sequence of assaults commenced on June 9 with a terrorist attack on a bus in Reasi, causing it to plummet into a gorge. This event claimed the lives of at least 9 pilgrims and left 42 others wounded.
There may be relief at hand for those in the long-winded queue for organ transplants, with the Union government planning to open up organ exchange between unrelated individuals.

Currently, most organ donations happen within families; however, two blood groups often do not match, and the patient has to wait indefinitely for availability. Now, the health ministry is planning to allow one family to exchange with another if there is a match. Plans are also afoot to allow health insurance for donors, fix legal loopholes and facilitate organ harvesting from the deceased, a government official aware of the plans said.

The move assumes significance given that as per health ministry data, India conducts only 6,000 kidney transplants every year against a requirement of about 200,000. Heart transplant rates are even worse -- about 10 to 15 transplants every year, even as 50,000 persons die of heart failures. Similarly, an estimated 200,000 Indians die of liver failure or liver cancer annually, about 10-15% of which can be saved with a timely transplant.

The health ministry has kicked off virtual brainstorming sessions with subject experts who will present their findings during the so-called Chintan Shivar, the official cited above said on condition of anonymity. Non-government organizations, state government officials, transplant surgeons and legal experts are among those attending the 10 sessions, the official said.

We are also in discussions with the insurance regulator to make provision for health insurance for organ donors. Right now, these insurance companies do not offer health insurance to such individuals," the official added.

Queries sent to the health ministry spokesperson remained unanswered till press time.

Swaps among close relatives such as mother, father, son, daughter, brother, sister and spouse are already permitted in law. However, we are getting demands for other-than near relative donors to be given permission for swap donations," the official said, adding all these issues will be discussed at the Chintan Shivar. All transplants in India have to be mandatorily approved by an official authorization committee.

Also read: Why organ donation should be part of your estate plan

Dr. Anup Kumar, head of urology and kidney transplant department at Delhi's Safdarjung hospital said, Near relatives are first-degree family members who are approved as per law for organ donation, and other-than near relatives like friends or any other family are not permitted in law for organ donation. A special committee is constituted to look after this, which is still not allowed for swap donations. If this provision is allowed, we will be able to increase the pool of donors, fill the gaps between donors and recipients, and organ donors will be able to give to some other family and hence complication and cost will be less, and results will be better." Health coverage for organ donors is a good move, he added.

Deceased donors involve cases such as a brain stem death e.g. a victim of a road accident where the brain stem is dead and the person cannot breathe on his own but can be kept alive by using ventilator and fluids to keep the heart and other organs working. Another type of a deceased donor could be a donor after cardiac death.

Dr H. Jauhari, chairman of kidney transplant surgery department at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital said, Organ donation among other-than near related donor is not considered a legal transplant. I would call it as paired exchange". So far, near relatives were able to donate organs. When you start bringing other-than near relatives, you have to be very very cautious, and we have to plug all the loopholes. Additionally, health insurance should be must for donor who is undergoing a major surgery just like the recipient, and is an uphill task for the family in terms of finance & mental pressure."

On agenda

Swaps among those who are not related

Health insurance for organ donors

Fixing legal loopholes

Matching among several participants at one go

Streamlining authorization committee

Criteria to declare brain stem death

Community participation

Leveraging technology
Former Karnataka Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa may be arrested soon in connection with a POCSO case. The senior BJP leader has been booked under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offence Act on the basis of a complaint filed by the mother of a 17-year-old girl. He was also asked to appear before a CID probe team earlier this week and sought time since he was presently in Delhi.

If necessary they will arrest. I can't say (if) it is necessary, CID has to say it. If they feel it is necessary, they will do it, Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara told reporters on Thursday.

The senior Congress leader said that a notice had been served to Yediyurappa as per procedure and the CID had asked him to appear for questioning.

Notice has been served procedurally, the charge-sheet has to be filed by June 15. Before that they (CID) will file the charge-sheet. They will have to follow procedure for it. They will have to record his statement and produce him (in court), all these are procedures and the department will do it, he explained.

ALSO READ: Monsoon tracker: IMD issues orange alert for heavy rains in Karnataka; heatwave warning in 12 states The complaint against Yediyurappa was registered in mid-March and transferred hours later to the CID for further investigation. He has been accused of sexually assaulting the minor during a meeting at his Dollars Colony residence in early February.

The veteran BJP leader has however denied the allegations and insisted that he would fight the case legally. He has also moved the court seeking quashing of the FIR.

Meanwhile the 54-year-old woman who levelled the charges passed away from lung cancer at a private hospital in the state last month.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is all set for his first foreign visit after taking the oath as the PM of India for the third consecutive term. He will travel to Apulia, Italy, on Thursday to participate in the 50th G7 Summit, scheduled to be held in Apulia from June 13 to June 15.

During his visit to Italy, PM Modi is likely to meet Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni, Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and US President Joe Biden. This is PM Modi's first visit abroad after taking over as the Prime Minister on June 9.

The summit will kick off at 2:45 pm (IST) on Thursday. First, a discussion will be held on Africa, climate change and development. The conversation will then switch to the issues in the Middle East before two sessions dedicated to Ukraine. On Friday, three sessions will focus on Migration, Indo Pacific and Outreach format summit meet.

The G7 comprises the United States, Japan, Canada, Germany, France, Italy and Britain. The European Union participates in all discussions and is represented by the presidents of both the European Council and the European Commission.

The host country traditionally invites nations outside the G7 grouping as guests to join some of the sessions. Italy has thrown open the doors and will this year welcome Pope Francis, the King of Jordan as well as the leaders of Ukraine, India, Brazil, Argentina, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, Kenya, Algeria, Tunisia and Mauritania, which holds the presidency of the African Union.
New Delhi/Mumbai: Large Indian electronics and electric vehicle (EV) manufacturers are recruiting apprentices at an unprecedented pace to address talent gaps in these booming sectors, often going beyond state-mandated quotas.

According to staffing firm Teamlease, these firms are offering as much as 70% more than the stipends mandated by states to train young apprentices for some high-demand roles.

In the EV space, employment through apprenticeship programs is doubling each year, while for the electronics sector, the growth has been more than tenfold in the past four years, according to Teamlease's degree apprenticeship program. The electronics sector, on the other hand, has witnessed a rise in apprentice participation from 7,500 apprentices in 2019-20 to a staggering 91,900 apprentices in 2023-24, marking a 12.2-fold increase.

This surge in apprenticeship engagement not only strengthens the industry's capacity but also underscores the efficacy of policy reforms, particularly under the 'Skill India' initiative," Sumit Kumar, chief executive, Teamlease degree apprenticeship said. "Moreover, the tangible return on investment offered by apprenticeships has instilled confidence within the industry, providing a vital avenue for youth to secure formal employment."

Currently, there are more than 550,000 vacancies available under the apprenticeship portal of Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship.

Atul Kumar Tiwari, secretary of ministry of skill development and entrepreneurship, said till date, more than 3.2 million youth have been engaged as apprentices across 36 sectors.

We are currently working with more than 110 industry clusters, encompassing one-third of India's districts," said Tiwari. The direct benefit transfer of stipends has significantly enhanced the National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme (NAPS), with more than 350 crore disbursed to apprentices accounts since its launch last year. The next phase of the scheme will undoubtedly see an increased percentage of apprentices receiving hands-on training across establishments."

An apprenticeship is a structured system of training where individuals, known as apprentices, learn a trade or profession through a combination of on-the-job training and classroom instruction. Apprentices can be both graduates and non-graduates. Students who turn apprentices can also use the stipend to fund their education.

Such apprenticeship programs are also offered by companies. For example, Tata Motors runs a full-time in-house training apprenticeship program that hires students with ITI/12th pass backgrounds and trains them in specific skills. The program currently has 16,000 apprentices, of which 23% are women. According to a company spokesperson, 500 students completed the program in FY24 and landed jobs in the auto industry.

The programme focuses on in-demand skills like mechatronics, IoT, robotics, and AI, offering hands-on training that prepares students for rewarding careers in the automotive industry," the spokesperson said, adding that Tata Motors has also collaborated with training agencies and institutes to conduct specific modules for youth under various skill development schemes.

The electric vehicle boom in apprentices

The Indian EV market is experiencing a surge with projections indicating 10 million annual sales by 2030, at a compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of 49% despite short-term disruptions, said Kumar, adding that the expected surge in electric two-wheeler sales is particularly notable, forecasted to reach nearly 14 million units by 2030. This forecast has been determined by Teamlease on the basis of numbers from NITI Aayog.

However, this rapid growth presents a critical challenge in the form of a talent gap, particularly in technical roles essential for EV development and deployment.

The mismatch between demand and supply poses a potential bottleneck to the sector's full potential," Kumar said. Apprenticeship programs offering specialized courses such as EV service lead technician and EV battery management systems are bridging this gap by providing practical training and hands-on experience, ensuring alignment with industry requirements."

Such training is provided by organisations like Teamlease, Automotive Skill Development Council and even by several companies such as Tata Motors and technology companies.

We have significant challenges in addressing skill gaps because we're dealing with complex technologies like batteries, cooling products, motors, controllers, and software integration," Gajanan Gandhe, country head and VP of auto parts company DANA India said, emphasizing the importance of apprenticeships in bridging skill shortages.

"These capabilities must be built, and we invest heavily in skilling our workforce (apprentices as well as new and existing employees). We send people abroad for training and collaborate with the government's skill task force to create electrification courses and hands-on seminars," he added.

Rapid expansion

The electronics manufacturing sector in India is also experiencing rapid growth, expanding across various domains of component manufacturing, logistics, and assembly.

Atul Lall, managing director at Dixon Technologies said, "We're operating under the NAPS policy, under which we have hired many apprentices and their upskilling and training happens on the shop floor. The trainees will then be absorbed into the workforce and, as we all know, the EMS workforce requires a far higher number of people in the coming years than what is available now."

Currently, according to Teamlease degree apprenticeship, this sector employs around 1.2 million individuals, with half engaged in manufacturing, assembly and testing, and the other half working in design, R&D, quality assurance/control, and post-sales services.

According to Teamlease, from 2016 to 2022, workforce in the electronics space exhibited a CAGR of over 50%, and projections suggest this momentum will continue with an anticipated 50% workforce expansion over the next four to five years, driven by the increasing demand for electronics expected to create nearly 6 million jobs by 2026-27.

The industry's commitment to investing in talented apprentices is evident, with average stipends exceeding prescribed levels by a remarkable 70% in pivotal job roles such as Smartphone Assembly Technicians and Assembly Line Operators," Kumar emphasized.

Why India Inc. needs apprentices

Hiring apprentices works in favor of both the company and the candidates. While the company gets exempted from paying statutory deductions like PF, for the candidate, the stipends come when many may not have completed their degree, and there is the opportunity to get the apprenticeship role converted into a job after a year," said Aditya Narayan Mishra, CEO of CIEL HR Services.

"The stipends depend on whether the candidate has been picked up under the NAPS (National Apprentice Promotion Scheme) or NATS (National Apprentice Training Scheme) program. The former is meant for all trades and may take non-graduates, while the latter is largely for engineers and technical apprentices," Mishra added.

There are not enough polytechnic and Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and companies will have to rely on apprenticeship programs to groom skilled workforce," Satish Manne, a partner at recruitment firm Xpheno said. In fact, going ahead, the IT sector may hire coders etc. from students who have just passed out from schools but may not join colleges immediately . As manufacturing sector gets a stronger push, apprenticeship program will become critical to meet talent needs."

According to Teamlease data, Maharashtra has seen a remarkable surge with 260,631 apprentices, Tamil Nadu with 100,116, Gujarat with 82,360, Karnataka with 77,406, and Uttar Pradesh with 70,698 apprentices. Notably, Maharashtra mandates the recruitment of apprentices at a staggering 25% of a company's contract workforce for a financial year.
The Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) on Thursday rejected the criticism of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), and said that the alliance with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is here to stay.

An article in the latest issue of Organiser magazine, which is linked to the RSS, said Maharashtra is a prime example of unnecessary politicking and avoidable manipulations, and the saffron party reduced its brand value by joining hands with NCP (Ajit Pawar).

Stating that Maharashtra is a prime example of unnecessary politicking and avoidable manipulations, the article said, "NCP faction led by Ajit Pawar joined BJP though BJP and split SS (Shiv Sena) had a comfortable majority. Sharad Pawar would have faded away in two-three years as NCP would have lost energy with infighting between cousins."

The article further questioned why the ill-advised step was taken.

"BJP supporters were hurt because they had fought against this Congress ideology for years and were persecuted. In a single stroke, BJP reduced its brand value. After years of struggle to become numero uno in Maharashtra, it became just another political party without any difference," said the mouthpiece.

Reacting to criticism, NCP Leader Praful Patel stated, Some issues can be raised by people in their capacity but this does not make any difference to the alliance.

"Our alliance is here to stay and win the next round of elections," he added.

In Maharashtra, the BJP fought the Lok Sabha elections in alliance with the Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde) and NCP (Ajit Pawar). However, the saffron party suffered a setback as it won just nine seats against 23 in 2019. While the Shinde faction of the Sena bagged seven seats, the Ajit Pawar-led NCP won just one seat.

The Congress emerged as the biggest party with 13 seats. Shiv Sena (UBT) won 9 seats, and NCP (SP) secured 8 seats.
At least six workers were killed and nine others injured in a blast at an explosives-manufacturing factory near Nagpur this afternoon, news agency PTI reported on Thursday.

"At least 5 people have died and 5 people are injured in an explosion at an explosives manufacturing factory in Dhamna. The team is about to reach the spot," news agency ANI earlier reported, quoting Nagpur Police Commissioner Ravinder Singal.

"Five people died in this incident, including 4 women. Our investigation is ongoing. Our team, crime branch, and senior officers are present on the spot, and action is being taken," the Police Commissioner added.

Also Read | Govt extends Ajit Dovals tenure as National Security Advisor, reappoints PK Mishra as principal secretary to PM Modi The incident took place at Chamundi Explosive Pvt Ltd at Dhamna village under Hingna police station limits, around 25 km from Nagpur.

The explosion took place around 1 pm when the workers were packing explosives, a local police official said. Most of the victims were working in the factory's packaging unit when the explosion took place, another police official said.

Also Read | Here is all you need to know about NEET controversy Anil Deshmukh visits the incident site Meanwhile, former Maharashtra Home Minister and NCP-SCP leader Anil Deshmukh reached the incident site.

Deshmukh said that the manager and owner of the unit were absconding.

"This incident of the explosion took place in an explosive unit near the village Dhamna. The incident took place in the afternoon. The manager and owner of the unit are absconding. The injured have been sent to the hospital for treatment... A team from the explosive department is here and further investigation is underway," ANI quoted Deshmukh as saying.

Also Read | Top 7 news: Market closes at all-time high, NEET re-test for 1,563 students Reacting to the incident, Union Minister Nitin Gadkari said, "It's very unfortunate. The people of Nagpur are in grief, and so do I. I pray for the peace of departed souls.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday reviewed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir in the aftermath of four terror attacks in the span of three days.

The National Security Adviser and other senior officials attended the meeting.

According to government sources, Modi was given a full overview of the security-related situation in Jammu and Kashmir.

The Prime Minister was also apprised of the counter-terror efforts being undertaken.

ANI reported quoting Government of India (GOI) sources that Modi asked the officials to deploy the full spectrum of counter-terror capabilities.

Meanwhile, the Prime Minister also spoke to Home Minister Amit Shah and discussed deploying security forces and counter-terror operations.

He also spoke to Jammu & Kashmir LG Manoj Sinha and took stock of the situation.

Sources said that the PM was briefed on the efforts being undertaken by local administration.

Four terror attacks In the past three days, terrorists struck at four places in Reasi, Kathua and Doda districts of Jammu and Kashmir.

Casualties At least 10 pilgrims and a CRPF jawan lost their lives in terror attacks. Seven security personnel also suffered injuries.

Two Pak terrorists killed In an encounter with security forces in Kathua, two suspected Pakistani terrorists were killed. A large quantity of arms and ammunition were recovered from them.

Search intensified After an exchange of fire with terrorists in which a Special Operations Group (SOG) constable suffered injuries on Wednesday night, the security forces have intensified their search operation in the Kota Top area of Gandoh in Doda district.

Efforts to locate the terrorists have ramped up, with forces combing the jungles and implementing heightened security measures.

Advisory issued According to PTI, on Wednesday, police issued an advisory urging residents of the Jammu region to stay vigilant regarding the movement of suspicious individuals and objects.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi departed for Italy on Thursday evening to attend the upcoming G7 Summit. The newly re-elected politician is slated to hold bilateral talks with several world leaders  including a possible meeting with US President Joe Biden  on the margins of the summit. An interaction with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau however remained off the cards.

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan indicated on Wednesday that the two leaders would encounter each other during the event. The White House also revealed that Biden had recently dialed Modi to congratulate him on the Lok Sabha election outcome.

President Biden actually spoke with President Modi by phone while we were in Paris to congratulate him on the election outcome and on being named Prime Minister for a third term. He (Biden) expects to see Prime Minister Modi here. It's up to the Indians to formally confirm his attendance, but our -- our expectation is that the two of them will have the opportunity to encounter one another. What the nature of that encounter is still fluid because so much of the schedule is fluid, Sullivan said.

Modi is also slated to hold a bilateral meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni during the trip.

Meanwhile the Vatican confirmed that Pope Francis would hold one on one meetings with Biden, Modi, Macron and a few other leaders on the sidelines of the Summit.

ALSO READ: PM Narendra Modi departs for Italy to attend G7 summit; says opportunity to deliberate issues crucial for Global South During the discussions at the Outreach session, the focus would be on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean. It will be an opportunity to bring greater synergy between the outcomes of the G20 Summit held under Indias Presidency and the forthcoming G7 Summit, and deliberate on issues which are crucial for the Global South. I am also looking forward to meeting other leaders participating in the Summit, read an excerpt from the Prime Minister's departure statement.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday departed for Italy to participate in the G7 summit.

This is Modi's first trip abroad after assuming office for the third consecutive term.

During his visit, PM Modi is also expected to hold a bilateral meeting with his Italian counterpart.

The Prime Minister is travelling to Apulia region in Italy to participate in the G7 Outreach Summit on June 14, 2024 at the invitation of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

I am glad that my first visit in the third consecutive term is to Italy for the G-7 Summit. I warmly recall my visit to Italy for the G20 Summit in 2021. Prime Minister Meloni's two visits to India last year were instrumental in infusing momentum and depth in our bilateral agenda, said Modi.

We remain committed to consolidate the India-Italy strategic partnership, and bolster cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and the Mediterranean regions, the Prime Minister added.

Stating that during the discussions at the outreach session, the focus would be on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean, Modi added, It will be an opportunity to bring greater synergy between the outcomes of the G20 Summit held under Indias Presidency and the forthcoming G7 Summit, and deliberate on issues which are crucial for the Global South.

The Prime Minister stated that he also looks forward to meeting other leaders participating in the Summit.

The G7 includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Meanwhile, PTI reported that a Group of Seven summit opened on Thursday with agreement reached on a US proposal to back a USD 50 billion loan to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets as collateral, giving Kyiv a strong show of support even as Europe's political chessboard shifts to the right.
Shocking details have emerged in connection with the murder of a man identified as Renukaswamy in Bengaluru, who was allegedly killed for making "derogatory" comments against Kannada actress Pavithra Gowda. The police have so far arrested 16 people, including Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa, popularly known as the 'Challenging Star' and his close friend and actress Pavithra. It is alleged that the deceased had made some derogatory comments against Pavitra in a social media post.

Here's all you need to know about the case How did police get to know about the murder? A dead body was found dumped into a nearby stormwater drain in the Kamakshipalya area in Bengaluru. A food delivery boy who noticed dogs eating a human body alerted the police. The body was later sent for an autopsy and the forensic report confirmed that he was murdered.

How was the deceased identified? A murder case was registered based on the recovery of the dead body of an unidentified man and the injuries on his body. Further, CCTV footage was checked and based on other technical evidence, the deceased was identified as Renukaswamy.

What happened? Renukaswamy, who hails from Lakshmi Venkateshwara Layout in Chitradurga, worked with a pharma company. He had allegedly made "derogatory" comments against Pavitra Gowda in social media posts

When was Darshan arrested? The investigation led to the arrest of 11 suspects, and based on their statements, Darshan and Pavithra were taken into custody. The 47-year-old Darshan, who featured in several successful films, was picked up from a Mysuru hotel as he stepped out after working out in the gym there on June 11, reported PTI.

Chilling details According to reports, it was Pavithra who instigated Darshan to punish Renukaswamy, and the plan was hatched.

On Friday night, Darshan engaged Fan Club Convenor Raghavendra alias Raghu, and Renukaswamy was picked up from near his house. Later, he was abducted and taken to a shed at Kamakshipalya in Bengaluru, reported PTI quoting sources.

"Darshan beat up Renukaswamy with a belt. After he fell unconscious, his accomplices thrashed him with sticks. Further, they threw him against a wall, which proved fatal," sources said.

Two people confess When the police were working on the case, two accused approached Kamakshipalya police and "confessed" to killing Renukaswamy over a financial dispute. As the investigation progressed, police found out about Darshan and Pavithra's involvement, reported PTI.

Actor asked others to take blame According to an NDTV report, the actor had allegedly asked three other men to take the blame for the crime in exchange for cash of 5 lakh each to implicate themselves in the case.

What did the Karnataka home minister say? Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara said that during the probe, Darshan's name came up, and so he has been brought in for inquiry. Until the investigation is over, nothing can be said. Whether he (Darshan) is involved or not, what is the reason for the murder, and why has his name come up? All those things will be known only after the investigation.
A case has been registered against Yummo ice cream company as a doctor in Mumbai's Malad area found a piece of human finger inside an ice cream cone that was ordered online.

As per PTI report, the 26-year-old doctor approached Malad police station to inform about this shocking incident. The Malad police registered a case against the Yummo ice cream company and has also sent the ice cream for investigation.

As per the police, the human organ found in the ice cream has been sent to forensics.

Also Read: Swiggy fails to deliver ice cream worth  187; pays fine of  5000. Heres what happened The incident occured on Wednesday i.e. June 12. The police told news agency PTI, The complainant in the case, a 26-year-old doctor with MBBS degree who stays in Malad west, had ordered a butterscotch ice-cream cone of Yummo company. While consuming the ice-cream after lunch, he came across a half an inch long piece of flesh with a nail in the ice cream.

Also Read: Kalki 2898 AD copied from South Korean artist? Prabhas new movie accused of plagiarism The official further told the agency that the doctor who is pursuing his post-graduate studies, took up the matter and lodged a complaint with the ice cream company on its Instagram page. But since there was no appropriate response from the company, the complainant put the piece of flesh in an ice bag and approached the Malad police station.

Also Read: Hassan Alis new post wins hearts again; Pakistan cricketer slams terrorism after Vaishno Devi Attack Instagram Story As per FPJ report, he had asked his sister who was placing an order for groceries via an online delivery app to order three butterscotch ice cream. But when he opened one of the cones to eat the ice cream, he found a piece of human finger inside.
'Teach them early,' is what the Kerala government's new initiative is aimed at as it introduces gender neutral representation in school textbooks.

According to the authorities, the objective of their initiative is to inculcate the message of gender neutrality in the young minds of the children.

As the schools in Kerala had reopened earlier this month after a two-month long summer vacation, what caught the attention of all were the new textbooks; a pictorial representation of family members participating in cooking and other kitchen chores across genders.

First shared by Kerela's General Education Minister V Sivankutty on his Facebook post, these gender-neutral pictures can reportedly be found in Class 3 Malayalam medium textbook and in the English textbook.

Teachers and students wholeheartedly welcomed the concept of gender neutrality included in textbooks and hailed it as a positive step, and so did the internet.

Here is how the internet reacted to Kerala's gender-neutral textbooks: Teach them early as they say. Really nice initiative, a user commented.

Also read: Gender equality is an even bigger driver of economic progress than we thought

Not bad at all. At least its symbolic of equality, another added.

Another user commented: Hell yeah finally a good move by a State gvt after a long time.

Good initiative... this can lead to resolving gender bias issues in India, a user said.

Congratulations to Kerala for prioritizing diversity and equality in education, another added.

A user said, Much needed for our society.

Some users were of the view that knowing how to cook is a basic for an adult and should be assigned genders to.

If you are an adult, you should know how to cook, the user said.

Idk why some men feel it is against their masculinity to help their mother or sister in household work? Idk about many but i like cooking and it feels like stress relieving, another added.

One also suggested that students should be allowed to wear what makes them most comfortable.

Yes, nice move. Next please allow students to wear what make them most comfortable. Stick to a colour pattern if that's so important, the user commented.
NTR Jr's 'Devara Part 1' actioner will be out sooner than expected. The film, which was earlier scheduled to release on October 10, will now hit the theatres on September 27. It also stars Janhvi Kapoor. It is also her first-ever collaboration with Jr NTR. Saif Ali Khan will also play a key role in Devara. Sharing the update about the release date, Janhvi took to Instagram and wrote, He is coming. Man of Masses @JrNTR's #Devara in cinemas from September 27th! #DevaraOnSep27th.

The film is directed by Koratala Siva.

Janhvi expressed her immense gratitude and excitement about being a part of 'Devara: Part 1'.

"My character is very entertaining. I had a great time on that set because the way those people carry out their work with love, the way they do it, the passion with which they do their work, their stories are so beautiful. They present every story with conviction. It is very unique, a different temperament, passion, attitude is there in their films. And I consider myself very lucky to have got this opportunity," she said.

The buzz around 'Devara: Part 1' has been growing steadily, especially after NTR Jr's recent comments during an event in Hyderabad.

The actor assured fans that the wait for the film would be worth it, stating, "It's my promise to you all that the wait for Devara will be worth it and every fan will raise their collar in pride once the film releases."

His words have only heightened the anticipation for the film, which promises gripping action sequences and an extraordinary musical score.
Key events happened on this day, June 13: Several events occurred worldwide on this day in the past. One of which is the horricfic Uphaar Cinema fire tragedy which killed 59 people to US Black Supreme Court justice was nominated in 1967. Moreover, on this day, Donald Trump too became the first former president to face a judge on federal charges in 2023.

Take a look at the key events held on June 13.

Also Read: 86% Indian employees struggling at workplaces, higher than world average: Gallup Uphaar Cinema fire in 1997 A fire had broken out at Delhi's Uphaar cinema during the screening of the Hindi film 'Border' on June 13, 1997 which killed 59 people. The blaze began when the audience had come to watch the movie during the 3-6 pm show. The fire took place at around 5.10 pm.

US Black Supreme Court justice nominated in 1967 In 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson nominated Solicitor General Thurgood Marshall to be the first Black justice on the U.S. Supreme Court.

The New York Times began publishing excerpts of Pentagon Papers in 1971 The New York Times began publishing excerpts of the Pentagon Papers, a secret study of Americas involvement in Vietnam from 1945 to 1967 that had been leaked to the paper by military analyst Daniel Ellsberg.

Also Read: Phone sparks fire! Bike engulfed in flames at Maharashtra petrol pump after rider answers call | Viral Video US space probe Pioneer 10 crossed orbit of Neptune in 1983 In 1983, the US space probe Pioneer 10 which was launched on March 2 1972, became the first spacecraft to leave the solar system as it crossed the orbit of Neptune. As per NASA, Pioneer 10 was NASA's first mission to the outer planets. The mission was a spectacular success and the spacecraft notched a series of firsts unmatched by any other robotic spacecraft to date. The mission, which was originally scheduled to last 21 months, ended up lasting more than 30 years. In January 2003, it emitted its final signal from a distance of 12.23 billion kilometres, or 7.6 billion miles.

Also Read: Is Meghan Markle returning to Suits? Fans speculate as Prince Harrys wife said, Never say never Timothy McVeigh death penalty in 1997 In 1997, a jury voted unanimously to give Timothy McVeigh the death penalty for his role in the Oklahoma City bombing. On April 19, 1995, the bombing killed 168 people. McVeighs hatred was specifically fueled by the governments raid on the Branch Davidian religious sect near Waco, Texas, that left 76 people dead and a standoff in the mountains of Ruby Ridge, Idaho, that left a 14-year-old boy, his mother and a federal agent dead. He picked April 19 because it was the second anniversary of the Waco sieges fiery end. McVeigh was convicted, sentenced to death and executed by lethal injection in 2001.

Donald Trump became first former president to face a judge on federal charges in 2023 In 2023, Donald Trump became the first former president to face a judge on federal charges as he pleaded not guilty in a Miami courtroom to dozens of felony counts that he hoarded classified documents and refused government demands to give them back.
Is having an Ivy League degree the only factor for promotion? A Bengaluru man has shared a story about a woman who quit her job because she felt undervalued and overlooked for promotion because she did not have an Ivy League degree.

TS LAWCET 2024 Results Live Updates User Adithya Venkatesan shared the story of the woman he went on a date with recently. He shared that the woman pursued an Ivy degree and returned to the same startup with a salary double that of her previous one.

Also Read: Schengen visa fee hike: Europe tour gets more expensive; heres how much you need to pay now In a tweet on X (formerly Twitter), he wrote, I went on a date with someone who quit her job because, 'people were not taking her seriously', 'she was not getting promoted' only because she didn't have an Ivy League degree. She quit, got that Ivy degree, & joined THE SAME startup at 2.5x her previous pay. (SIC)

His tweet on June 12 garnered around 124.3K views on X. Netizens expressed surprise at Ivy League bias in startups, while some criticized her decision to return to a company with a perceived toxic culture. One user also questioned whether a man would face the same issue.

Also Read: Chinese Visa Scam Case: Congress leader Karti Chidambaram gets bail from Delhi Court Another commented, First time hearing of Ivy League snobbery at a startup. I thought that culture was limited to IB and Management Consulting.

While she won against her ego, it isnt a good choice to join the same company with such pathetic culture, said another X user.

One more X user wondered if it would be the same for a man though.

Also Read: Admissions to universities in India to be offered twice a year from 2024-25: UGC The first half started in a different tone but glad it end the way it did. More power to her, wrote another user.

Some others wrote, Time spent on getting and completing the Ivy degree, do you think or she thinks the 2.5x could have been achieved within that time period?

Another user added, Ye hui na baat and i thought you got paid based on skills and experience
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are preparing for an emergency exit after former US President Donald Trump vowed to kick them out of the country if elected for a second term to the Oval Office. The Duke is reportedly worried sick with his visa status.

The Sussexes are worried sick over the prospect of Donald Trump becoming president again  and making good on his vow to kick Prince Harry out of America, The Daily Express UK quoted a royal source as saying.

Also read: Allowing Prince Harry, wife Meghan Markle anywhere near Royal Family not a very wise thing to do: Expert The source noted that the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are preparing a contingency plan to flee the country with their children, Archie and Lilibet, if Donald Trump becomes the next US President.

The Duke made headlines earlier after a controversy erupted over Prince Harry's drug abuse following the release of his memoir titled Spare in which the Duke admitted to engaging in illegal drug consumption in the past. This development brought his residency status in the United States into the limelight.

Also read: Prince Harry, Meghan Markle trying to punish somebody by raising security concerns: Royal Family expert Republican Donald Trump is eyeing a second term in the upcoming November elections. No. Well have to see if they know something about the drugs, and if he lied, theyll have to take appropriate action, Donald Trump said in an interview with GB News when questioned about the impact of drug use revelation on Prince Harry's visa application.

Also read: Prince Harry will be in trouble if Donald Trump becomes US president again: Royal Family expert Notably, the Heritage Foundation filed a lawsuit against the Biden administration for the release of Harry's immigration documents. Despite losing the case, commentator Angela Levin suggested that further details might emerge.

Anything that he has admitted to regarding drug use before the age of 18 should not affect his eligibility for a US visa, HT quoted Head of U.S. Immigration Christi Jackson as saying.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will attend the G7 Summit in Italy from Thursday, June 13, until Sunday, June 15. He is also expected to hold bilateral meetings with world leaders on issues ranging from the global economy to the Global South and the Russia-Ukraine war and discuss issues linked to national security and bilateral ties.

PM Modi will play an important role in the G7 Summit, Indian ambassador to Italy Vani Rao said. India has been invited to the Summit as an Outreach Country. The G7 summit takes place at the luxurious Borgo Egnazia resort in Italy's Apulia region.

This will mark PM Modi's first foreign trip since he assumed power for the third consecutive term as the Prime Minister. The G7 Summit will mark India's 11th participation in the forum. This is also the fifth consecutive G7 Summit Modi is taking part.

Here's a deep dive into PM Modi's schedule, list of leaders he is likely to meet, and topics likely to unfold during discussions.

1. When will PM Modi attend G7 Summit in Italy? PM Modi will participate in the G7 Summit on Friday, June 14. "...At the invitation of Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be travelling to Apulia, Italy, tomorrow to participate in the 50th G7 Summit which is to be held there on June 14. India has been invited as an Outreach Country," Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra said on Wednesday, June 12.

2. G7: What will PM Modi discuss on June 14? On June 14  "the main day for the G7 Outreach Summit"  PM Modi will participate in the "Outreach session" along with the other countries invited to the summit.

"At this session, the focus would be on Artificial Intelligence, Energy, Africa and the Mediterranean. It will be a block agenda item where the G7 and the Outreach Countries will share their views and perspectives," the foreign secretary said. The session will be held between 5:30 pm (IST) and 9:00 pm on Friday.

On Friday, the G7 Summit will begin at 1 pm (IST) and continue until 10:30 pm. The long day will be followed by a concert performance and informal dinner hosted by the Italian PM.

On the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Italy, PM Modi is also expected to hold bilateral meetings and discussions with the leaders of the G7, the Outreach Countries, and the international organisations.

3. G7: Who will PM Modi meet? PM Modi will likely meet with his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni, US President Joe Biden, Japan PM Fumio Kishida and Canadian PM Justin Trudeau. Here's what they are likely to discuss:

Italy's Giorgia Meloni: Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra said the two Prime Ministers "are expected to review the entire gamut of bilateral ties and give directions for next steps."

He said the premiers are expected to review the Strategic Partnership and its various elements. "One of the Strategic Partnership elements is defence, "but that's not the only element".

"There are other elements of bilateral engagement that would be reviewed by the two Prime Ministers," he added. The two leaders last met during the Cop28 Summit in December 2023. Italy is India's fourth largest trading partner in the European Union.

B. US' Joe Biden: US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said President Joe Biden expects to see PM Modi in Italy. However, the meeting has not yet beenconfirmed.

When asked about the US President's plan in Italy and the country's position on the allegation against India over an attempt to kill a Khalistani leader on US soil, Sullivan said, "... it will be a continuing topic of dialogue between the US and India".

"Its up to the Indians to formally confirm his attendance, but our  our expectation is that the two of them will have the opportunity to encounter one another. What the nature of that encounter is is still fluid because so much of the schedule is fluid," Sullivan said at a press conference on Wednesday.

Canada's Justin Trudeau: PM Modi may also meet Canadian PM Trudeau on the sidelines of the G7 Summit. That meeting is also yet to be confirmed.

With Trudeau, PM Modi may raise India's concerns regarding the Khalistani forces operating on Canadian soil. The diplomatic ties between India and Canada plunged in 2022 when Trudeau alleged that there was an "India link" to the alleged assassination of Khalistani leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada.

A day before the G7 Summit, Foreign Secretary Kwatra said, "...the main issue with regard to Canada continues to be the political space that Canada provides to anti-India elements which advocate extremism and violence. We have repeatedly conveyed our deep concerns to them, and we expect them to take strong actions."

Kwatra further clarified that other agenda items for discussion "are essentially confined to the discussions only among the G7 countries". He said it is quite natural that in the bilateral sideline discussions, the meetings that PM Modi will have, "it is to be expected that the ongoing developments across the world of significance will come up for discussion".

"Naturally, the Russia-Ukraine conflict is one of them," he added.

4. Japan's Fumio Kishida: PM Modi is likely to meet the Japanese leader around 11:00 pm on Friday. In a statement on Wednesday, Kishida said he will be "holding bilateral talks with Prime Minister Trudeau of Canada and Prime Minister Modi of India".

Why is G7 important for PM Modi? This is PM Modi's first international tour after becoming the Prime Minister of India for the third consecutive time. He took oath as the PM on June 9.

After assuming office for the third term, PM Modi's participation in G7 Summit in Italy and bilateral meeting with other world leaders are expected to strengthen ties with the Western nations.

A range of global challenges remain before PM Modi, including a diplomatic tiff with Canada over the Nijjar killing and the impact of the ongoing geopolitical conflicts

Cross-border terrorism remains a major problem for India. In recent days, Jammu and Kashmir have seen three terror attacks in less than four days. Besides, China's alleged expansion in the Indian Ocean Region and territorial dispute with India pose another challenge.

Indian ambassador to Italy Vani Rao told news agency ANI that PM Modi will play an important role in the global platform to engage with other world leaders on issues of importance to India, as well as to the Global South.

Kwatra said India's regular participation at the G7 Summit points to increasing recognition and contribution of India's efforts to resolve global challenges, "including those of peace, security, development, and environment preservation."

Melonis support for Ukraine against Russia has warmed Italy's ties with Western allies.

But the G7 Summit will be a litmus test for her Atlanticism, especially as Italy will be expected to facilitate a solution to the much-debated problem of how to leverage profits generated by confiscated Russian assets and use them for Kyivs benefit, the Guardian reported. Atlanticism refers to the belief in or support for a close relationship between western Europe and the US, or particularly for NATO.
Kuwait Building fire: Around 40 Indians were killed and over 50 injured in a devastating fire that broke out at dawn in a building housing around 195 migrant workers in southern Kuwait's Mangaf area.

As reported by PTI citing officials, the total number of people killed in the Al-Mangaf building is 49, and 42 of them are Indians. The remaining ones are Pakistani, Filipino, Egyptian and Nepali nationals.

Who owns the Kuwait building? KG Abraham, a prominent businessman from Thiruvalla, Kerala, is a partner and managing director of the NBTC group, which owns the Kuwait building that was razed in a fire, as reported by News Nine.

NBTC is Kuwait's largest construction group. Abraham, also known as KGA, is the founder and chairman of the KGA Group, established in Kuwait in 1977, operating primarily in oil and allied industries under the name Naser M Al Baddah & Partner Gen. Trading. & Contracting. Co. W.L.L. (NBTC). The group's activities extend across the Middle East and the Indian Subcontinent, encompassing turnkey projects, engineering, construction, contracting, marketing, and educational endeavours, the report stated.

MoS Kirti Vardhan Singh embarks on Kuwait trip Meanwhile, before leaving for Kuwait to oversee the rescue and assistance to Indians injured in the devastating fire and to ensure the repatriation of the mortal remains of those killed, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs, Kirti Vardhan Singh, said some of the bodies had been charred beyond recognition, ANI reported.

Speaking to ANI at the Delhi Airport before flying for Kuwait, the MoS said, We had a meeting last evening with the Prime Minister, that is the last update we have about this very sad tragedy... The rest of the situation will be clear the moment we reach there.

On being asked on bringing back the mortal remains of those who lost lives, he said, "The situation is that the victims are mostly burn victims, and some of the bodies have been charred beyond recognition. So a DNA test is underway to identify the victims."

An Air Force plane is on standby. As soon as the bodies are identified, the kin will be informed, and our Air Force plane will bring the bodies back... the MoS said.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi conveyed his condolences to the families of the deceased and expressed profound sorrow over the tragic incident. He also prayed for swift recovery of those injured and assured them of all possible assistance from the Indian government.

The Indian Embassy has set up a helpline at 965-65505246 (available for both WhatsApp and regular calls) for family members seeking assistance. This helpline disseminates regular updates.



Prime Minister Modi convened a review meeting and declared an ex-gratia relief of 2 lakh from the Prime Minister's Relief Fund for the families of deceased Indian nationals.
You have to hand it to Apple Inc. After a tone-deaf ad last month that made the company look oblivious to AIs impact on the world, its marketing department has now rebranded AI as Apple Intelligence. Its a feat only the company could pull off. Customers of Macs and the latest iPhones will use it to rewrite emails, transcribe and summarize calls, generate images and cross-reference information from Apple apps. Will I get to my daughters play performance on time?"

Apple Software Chief Craig Federighi asked in a demo at its developers conference on Monday. Apple Intelligence would consult his iPhones proprietary Calendar, Maps, Mail and iMessage apps to answer.

After a string of mundane updates to its operating systems, these are the most exciting features in years, but will Apple Intelligence really work as seamlessly as it did in pre-recorded demos when it rolls out this fall? Im inclined to believe well see glitches and latency issues that will make it a tough sell to consumers, at least initially.

The most sophisticated AI tools today process your queries on cloud servers that need an internet link. Apples iPhone has a fraction of the power of those servers, but to make its AI service private and quick, it will run some AI queries via Siri on device, on a small language model Apple built for iPhones. No net connection needed.

Apple Intelligence will also decide, on the fly, if a query like Will I get to my daughters play performance on time?" requires extra computing power. If it does, itll access a bigger AI model that Apple made, via its Private Cloud Compute (its own servers).

Anything more complex will request a query to ChatGPT, via a partnership with OpenAI. Apple, admirably, has gone to great lengths to keep this process private, with query requests being end-to-end encrypted and inaccessible to others.

The price for all of this could be speed. When Apple answers a query using its smaller on-device AI, itll do so with a latency of 0.6 milliseconds per prompt token, according to an Apple blog post on the subject, or faster than the blink of an eye.

But Apple didnt offer corresponding latency times for when the phone has to access its Private Cloud Compute for heavier queries, and thats a noteworthy omission. Itll likely be slower, but by how much? Apple doesnt say.

As shallow as this sounds, consumers hate having to wait a few extra seconds for things they can do themselves, and if its simply quicker to look something up in their calendar or mapping apps, they might decide to avoid using Apple Intelligence.

On the other hand, while the on-device AI will be faster, it will also be more prone to errors. According to Apple, the smaller AI model is about as capable as GPT-3.5 Turbo, which OpenAI launched more than a year ago, and which doesnt have a stellar reputation for accuracy.

The hallucination rate for GPT 3.5 has ranged from 3.5% to more than 15%, according to different estimates, and that points to another omission from Apple. It didnt offer accuracy rates for either of its new AI models.

Remember that even the most sophisticated models coming from leading players like Googlethink about the new AI Overviewsare still laughably error-prone. Apple could have disclosed some decent hallucination rates. Instead, it offered vague stats about how human graders preferred" its AI over others.

Little wonder then, that Bloombergs senior Apple reporter Mark Gurman has said the new AI features will be buggy and in beta when they launch this fall.

Apples role at the centre of the lives of its customers and its access to reams of their personal information could end up being both a blessing and a curse. Its better placed than most tech companies to make AI useful because it is plugged so deeply into our daily existence. But that also means it cant afford to make too many mistakes.

Federighis example of making it to his daughters play is a case in point. Were Apple Intelligence to inadvertently make its user 30 minutes late, it wouldnt be easily forgiven. Much the same happened to Apple Maps, where a flurry of mistakes in its early days sent people to competitors like Waze and Google Maps for years afterwards.

It doesnt help that Apple has been slow on the uptake with Generative AI, thanks in part to a smaller AI team compared with other large tech firms, and a history of management troubles at its Siri division.

Apples more private approach is a welcome stance, and the company should be commended for sticking to its guns on using private encrypted servers while others are playing fast and loose with AI in a battle for supremacy. But getting consumers to embrace its ambitious new features wont be easy when the glitzy demos are suddenly made real. bloomberg
No survey of household expenses in a country as large and diverse as India can claim much accuracy beyond a point, but such studies offer us much to mull over all the same. Even a hazy X-ray, after all, can tell us whats crucial. Down the decades, Indias long-cycle check has been the Household Consumption Expenditure Survey (HCES), conducted by the National Sample Survey Office.

Although it was marred by a controversy over a whole set of field-work being binned and this scanner of multitudes being tweaked, the results of its 2022-23 round do offer us some points to ponder. The biggest of these is Indias dispiriting disparity between haves and have-nots, with unequal money spent on healthcare glaring out.

In rural India, our monthly medical spend per head was found to be just above 89 for hospitalization and about 180 for other health needs, with urban estimates of 123 and 258 not much higher. This is not a sign of us being a very healthy lot with a paltry medical-expense burden. That we know of hospital bills thousands of times larger only points to how easily averages can mislead us.

Also read: Public hospitals giving platform to startups to work on healthcare sector

Look closer: HCES data split up into equal slabs will show that the top 5% spend more than 100 times the lowest 5% on hospital care. If we took finer fractilessuch as percentiles, to compare the richest 1% with the poorestthen the difference would be even more stark. While huge gaps are also visible on a few other counts, such as rent, the medical contrast is one that should make us squirm the most. In a way, its at the core of our inequality, as covid reminded us.

Equal access to healthcare is a key component of an equitable social set-up and our failure on this front is rivalled only by the dismal state of our public education. For even basic health services, those of us who struggle to make ends meet also find we must turn to the private sector.

Most bills are paid out of our pockets, and although bill backstops are available, what we have by way of a state-run apparatus to keep us healthy is an apology of a system. As proof, think of public figures openly opting for pricey private alternatives, a preference that invites no scandal because even hard-up voters understand it. Thankfully, medicines are mostly cheap in India, but private services are not, with the result that getting well is costly for most people.

As healthcare gets dearer by the day, at least partly in response to demand, this unfair state of affairs needs to end. In the interim, a stop-gap solution has taken hold of Indian policy circles. Over the past decade or so, the Centre has focused on casting a wider net of insurance coverage.

Its Ayushman Bharat scheme has been hailed as an answer to uneven access to healthcare. In stacking up numbers, it has been a roaring success; 345.6 million cards have been issued so far, with almost 30,000 hospitals empanelled, as its official dashboard shows, while over 1.7 million admissions were okayed over the past 30 days.

The state offering to pick up bills, however, involves the rigmarole of eligibility and treatment checks. It cannot compare with a system of universal care that serves everyones health needs at high quality with no hoops to leap across, as seen in equality-oriented welfare states across the world.

As the government spends heavily on business-boosting infrastructure, it must not lose sight of glaring gaps that could make its Viksit Bharat ambition of a developed India by 2047 look illusory. We need a massive upgrade of public healthcare. And we must start now.

Also read: How increasing M&A activity is boosting India's healthcare
Gazas war-weary population is growing increasingly frustrated with the fruitless cycles of cease-fire talks, as a new poll of Palestinians shows support for Hamas dwindling in the enclave.

Months of diplomacy between Israel, Hamas and mediators from the U.S., Egypt and Qatar have failed to produce agreement even on the outline of a deal that would stop the fighting and free the hostages in Gaza.

The endless back and forth, as the death toll from the war mounts and the humanitarian situation in the strip deteriorates, is fueling unprecedented public discontent in Gaza with the militant group that seized power there almost two decades ago.

Fadi Awad, 32, a father of five living in a tent in central Gaza, said he was fed up with the negotiations and that Hamas was out of touch. We hear positive talks, then pull back, then breakthrough, then it all falls apart and with it, our lives," Awad, an electrician, said.

Our leaders, Hamas, the Arabs, they watch us on TV from their hotels," he added. [They] do not know what its like to run for your life, hungry and barefoot."

As the talks about the talks drag on, support for Hamas as rulers in Gaza has fallen from 52% to 46% over the past three months, according to a survey of more than 700 residents of the enclave. In the West Bank, the trend is reversed, with 71% of Palestinians questioned supporting Hamass continued rule in Gaza, up from 64% in the previous poll.

Hamas didnt respond to a request for comment.

The survey took place at the end of May, before an Israeli operation to rescue four hostages left 274 Palestinians dead and 700 injured at the weekend, according to Palestinian health authorities. The Israeli military said about 100 Palestinians were killed or wounded, including Hamas militants and civilians caught in the crossfire.

In response, Hamas has hardened its negotiating stance, adding new terms that Israel cant swallow to an Israeli proposal presented by President Biden almost two weeks ago. In a statement late Wednesday, the militant group said it had shown the required positivity" to reach an agreement that meets our peoples just demands, including a permanent cease-fire, complete withdrawal from the territory, return of displaced people, reconstruction and a serious prisoner exchange deal."

On Thursday, U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Hamas hadnt accepted the proposal but instead had responded with an amended proposal. Our goal is to figure out how we work to bridge the remaining gaps to get to a deal," he told reporters ahead of the G-7 summit in Italy.

Both Israel and Hamas have for months haggled over fundamental differences preventing them from reaching a cease-fire agreement, in a familiar playbook that has ended each time in a collapse of round after round of talks. Hamas wants a permanent stop to the war and withdrawal of Israeli forces in exchange for hostages held in Gaza. Israel has said it wont leave Hamas intact in the enclave and needs its hostages back before the war is declared over.

People in Gaza have lost faith in Hamas, including many of the movements supporters. But people hate Israel more," said a resident of the enclave who asked not to be named.

Hamas has typically cracked down on public dissent in peacetime. But with Hamas personnel largely gone from the streets, public criticism of the group inside Gaza is growing, including on social media. At the same time, fear of retribution from Hamas for publicly criticizing the group is diminishing, locals say.

Numan Hamouda, a 23-year-old accountant, lost nine relatives, several friends, his job and home during the war. If Hamas and Abbas heard our screams they will be the ones to end this now, unite and say they surrender," he said, referring to Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian Authority.

Despite Hamass waning popularity in Gaza, it is still by far the most popular Palestinian political party in Gaza and the West Bank, the poll by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research found. More than two thirds of those polled said they supported the Oct. 7 attacks.

Mkhaimar Abusada, associate professor of political science at Al-Azhar University in Gaza and now based in Cairo, said the current level of public criticism of Hamas is unprecedented, stemming from the perception that Hamas is detached from the everyday suffering of Gazans.

While polls show Hamas continues to enjoy popularity among Palestinians in general who see the group as having revived their cause on the global stage, he said wartime polls dont really capture the strength of feeling against Hamas among Gazans.

Maybe 80% of Palestinians in the West Bank and diaspora love Hamas, something that they gave them honor or dignity, but for someone who lives in Gaza and is paying the price, its a totally different story," he said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to preserve his coalition and drum up support in his cabinet for a deal, has argued publicly that the plan presented by Biden could achieve Israels goal of destroying Hamass government and military capabilities. Those statements have led Hamas and many in Israel to believe Netanyahu isnt serious about the proposal.

An organization representing a majority of families with relatives held hostage in Gaza said it saw Hamass recent response to the cease-fire proposal as another step towards" the deals acceptance.

Polls show a majority of Israelis prefer a deal to release hostages and end the war over continuing hostilities against Hamas.

In Gaza, according to the United Nations, over 1.7 million people are displaced and over a million are facing catastrophic levels of food insecurity." Much of the pre-existing healthcare system is either completely or partially out of service, and since early May, thousands of patients who need to be evacuated from the strip for emergency healthcare have been unable to leave, the U.N. said.

More than 37,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since the start of the war, most of them civilians, according to Palestinian health authorities. The figure doesnt specify how many were combatants.

Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization, came to power in Gaza through elections held in 2006. It has since imposed authoritarian rule over the territory, clashing with the more moderate Fatah partywhich runs the Palestinian Authority that controls parts of the West Bankand losing much of its popularity. The Oct. 7 Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli authorities.

A majority of Gazans polled believed that Israel and Hamas would agree to a cease-fire proposal last month, just before Israel began its current operations in Rafah, the southern Gaza city where people fled for shelter at the start of the war. Now, with the Islamic celebration of Eid al-Adha set for this weekend and talks at an impasse, it looks like Palestinians will spend another holiday without a cease-fire.

Saleh al-Batati and Ken Thomas contributed to this article.

Write to Dov Lieber at dov.lieber@wsj.com
Now she is preparing to ascend the pinnacle of the global elite: hosting President Biden and other leaders of Group of Seven major advanced economies at a summit in southern Italy.

Melonis strong performance in Sundays elections for the European Parliament has confirmed her as one of Europes rising power brokers, and as that rarest of phenomena in Rome: the head of a stable government.

Im proud that this nation will present itself at the G-7 and in Europe with the strongest government of all," Meloni told supporters of her Brothers of Italy party on Sunday, noting the novelty. Italians are used to their governments collapsing every other year.

Her rise owes much to her ability to please her partys far-right base on identity issues such as Muslim immigration and same-sex parents, while simultaneously reassuring center-right voters that she is a safe pair of hands, including in managing Italys fragile finances. Her hybrid of right-wing culture war and establishment-friendly foreign and economic policies could become a model for other far-right parties in Europe that are looking to gain power and broader acceptance.

The G-7 summit, which starts on Thursday at a luxury resort in the southern Puglia region, gives Meloni three days in the global spotlight to project the smoother side of her political persona: That of a respectable stateswoman negotiating with allies about global trade and geopolitics.

The continents political right performed strongly in the European Parliament elections, but it is rife with divisionsespecially between moderate pro-business conservatives and nativists with authoritarian leanings. Few politicians have yet managed Melonis trick of straddling both voter groups.

She has quite cleverly positioned herself as the respectable radical right, and as someone that Europe and the U.S. can do business with," said Daniele Albertazzi, a political scientist at the U.K.s Surrey University.

Meloni has broken with the European far-rights traditional admiration for Vladimir Putin, instead becoming an advocate of sanctions against Russia and Western aid for Ukraine. While other right-wing populists rail against the European Union and its currency, the euro, Meloni has embraced EU institutions and sought to change policies from within, including on immigration.

During the European election campaign she displayed the pugnacious style that fires up her base. Meeting a center-left opponent who once described her as a stronza, equivalent of bitch," she introduced herself by adopting the epithet: Im that bitch Meloni. How are you?" The video went viral. Her main European election rally in Romes Piazza del Popolo replayed the clip to the cheers of 20,000 supporters. On stage, Meloni vowed to stand up to the left and its insults, her voice sliding deeper into a working-class Roman accent. We are all stronzi," read one supporters placard.

Her message is Im still Giorgia, Im just one of you. She speaks like a woman in the local supermarket. Its traditional populist rhetoric," said Albertazzi.

Many of the other G-7 leaders are struggling at home. U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is expected to be trounced in British elections in July. French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz both suffered heavy setbacks in the European elections. President Biden is facing a tight election race against Donald Trump.

Voters are penalizing political incumbents in most of Europe currently, but not in Italy, Meloni noted in an interview with Italian state broadcaster RAI on Monday. Italy can be an anchor in the chaos and uncertainty," she said.

Brothers of Italy won 29% of the vote on Sunday, its best-ever result in a nationwide ballot, and Melonis overall center-right alliance reached 47%. Both were an improvement on Italys national elections in 2022, when Meloni won office. In Italys previous national elections in 2018, Brothers of Italy was still a fringe player, winning just over 4%.

Melonis coalition has benefited from being relatively united compared with Italys divided center-left opposition. Italy has been led by the center-right for most of its history since World War II, often in brittle coalition governments held together mainly by shared opposition to Communism. But since the era of Silvio Berlusconi, who dominated political life for much of the 1990s and 2000s, the Italian right has lacked a leader who could assemble a broad-enough coalition to govern.

It was Berlusconis intuition that you could form an alliance ranging from the moderate center-right to post-fascists," said Lorenzo Pregliasco, an opinion pollster and head of Turin-based political consulting firm Quorum. Meloni has taken over Berlusconis big tent, Pregliasco said. In spite of international reservations about her, she represents a mainstream sort of leadership, not very different from a typical center-right prime minister in Italy."

She has followed broadly similar policies to Berlusconi, centered on trimming income taxes and welfare benefits, without pushing ambitious economic overhauls to boost Italys chronically low growth. Ironically, Melonis support remains solid even though voters think she has performed poorly on her signature issue: controlling immigration. She promised to stop migrants from crossing the Mediterranean from North Africa, but has found there is no easy way to do it.

Much of Europes political establishment still views Meloni with suspicion, especially on the center left, because of her ideological roots. She was a youth activist in the Italian Social Movement, or MSI, a party founded by former members of Benito Mussolinis fascist regime. She rose through the ranks of MSIs successor parties, eventually founding Brothers of Italy, which has kept the MSIs symbol of a flame in Italys national colors. Meloni says fascism is history and her party is democratic.

Write to Marcus Walker at Marcus.Walker@wsj.com
Did Union Home Minister Amit Shah "school" Tamil Nadu BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan for indulging in "infighting" in party politics? Social media was stormed with speculation after an 11-second video of a brief conversation between Shah and Soundararajan went viral on Wednesday.

In the viral video, Amit Shah could be seen calling Soundararajan and instructing her something while waging his finger. Tamilisai was the BJP's Lok Sabha Election candidate from South Chennai. She was the Telangana governor earlier and also held the post of the Lieutenant Governor of Puducherry in the past. She was also the state BJP president during 2014-2019.

The viral video of Shah and Tamilisai was purportedly shot during the oath-taking ceremony of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday. The clip reportedly put the spotlight on infighting in the Tamil Nadu unit of the BJP.

Amit shah criticised The video created an uproar among political parties in the South.

Karthik Gopinath, state vice-president of the BJP's social media cell, had shared the video with a caption: "That looks like a strong admonishment from Amit Shah ji to Tamilisai akka. But what could be the reason for this 'public' warning? Unwarranted public comments?" However, the post seems to have been deleted later.

Meanwhile, the Kerala unit of the Congress took a dig at the BJP over the video and said, "BJP's culture and attitude towards women." The party's post read, Anyone with some self-respect will give it back to him and quit, @DrTamilisai4BJP. Being a qualified doctor and a former governor, you don't have to take such insults, that too from a history sheeter!

DMK spokesperson Saravanan Annadurai also reacted to the video, questioning, "What kind of politics is this?" He sked, Is it polite to put a prominent female politician of Tamil Nadu on stage and express harsh words or threatening body language? Does Amit Shah not know that everyone will see this? Very wrong example!

Social media users was also took note of the video, with one posting on x, "Tamilisai Soundararajan, getting schooled...for indulging in infighting in party politics in relation to Annamalai..."

Rift in Tamil Nadu BJP? Tamilisai Soundararajan took a dig at BJP's Tamil Nadu president Annamalai a few days back. "I had a yardstick when I was (chief) of the BJP where I didn't encourage anti-social elements," she had said during the interview.

"But, recently, anti-social elements have been taken into the party. I have no doubt that he (Annamalai) is a good leader. All I'm saying is we all are different types of leaders, and we make different decisions," she was quoted by the Hindustan Times.

Tiruchy Suriyaa, the state general secretary of BJP's OBC Morcha, posted a video of Soundararajan on social media and asked if it was "right for a former head of state to post such a comment in the public media...?" Suriyaa, known for his proximity to Annamalai, said that people were not ready to join the BJP when Tamilisai was heading the party.
National Conference (NC) chief Farooq Abdullah raised concerns amid terror attacks in Jammu and Kashmir and the upcoming Amarnath Yatra, calling for dialogues with our neighbour, Pakistan. He said, "We still have problems with our neighbour. These problems will not be solved by military actionUnless we talk to our neighbours, we cannot solve it."

Abdullah's statement came in the wake of three terror attacks in parts of Jammu and Kashmir in the last four days. The first attack took place in Reasi, where around nine to ten pilgrims were killed. The second is the Kathua terror attack. The third attack was the encounter in Doda between terrorists and security forces, that led to injuries to five jawans and a sub-divisional special police officer (SDPO).

While speaking about these attacks, Abdullah said, "The terrorists are coming through borders, and they will continue coming." He raised concerns over the upcoming Amarnath Yatra, saying, "We need to come out of these situations... We have a major Yatra coming (Amarnath Yatra). Any small incident that might take place will be blown up in the rest of the country."

Abdullah also referred to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the war between Israel and Hamas. "No military action can solve anything. Look at Ukraine and Russia. People thought it would be over within two weeks, but it's the second year now, and the war continues..." he said.

ALSO READ: Terrorists attack Army post in Doda in third incident in 3 days

He said Kashmiris are not responsible for these things. "We have never favoured these things...," he told news agency ANI.

Referring to External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar's remarks that India will focus on resolving issues along its borders, the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister said "dialogue" is the only way forward, news agency PTI reported.

After taking charge of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) for the second term, Jaishankar said on Tuesday that efforts will be made to address cross-border terrorism emanating from Pakistan as it cannot be the "policy of a good neighbour."

Reacting to this, Abdullah said, "The foreign minister himself said yesterday that with China, we have to have a dialogue, and for the first time, he also mentioned Pakistan. I hope they continue and find a solution to it."

Abdullah told ANI in an interview, "The government in Pakistan, I think they want to have a peaceful atmosphere with us. Let's open the door to them." He also pitched for "reviving" the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC).

Abdullah said on Tuesday that though the security scenario in Jammu and Kashmir was good, terrorism was still alive as the border with Pakistan remains permeable. "The security (scenario) is good. Terrorism is there. Our border is permeable and there cannot be control everywhere," Abdullah was quoted by PTI as saying.

"I regret that innocent pilgrims, unarmed people, were attacked. We all, the people of the state, should condemn it and pray that god sends the people who did this to hell," he added.

Farooq Abdullah had earlier sparked a row when he had said, "...They (Pakistan) are also not wearing bangles. It has atom bombs, and unfortunately, that atom bomb will fall on us."

J&K BJP chief slams Farooq Abdullah

Jammu and Kashmir BJP president Ravinder Raina criticised National Conference president Farooq Abdullah on Wednesday for advocating dialogue with Pakistan and asked "what type of talks will be held with an enemy nation which has destroyed Jammu and Kashmir through its sponsored terrorism".
Ahmedabad-based Physical Research Laboratory, a Unit of Department of Space, has said that three recently discovered craters on Mars have been named after its former director Devendra Lalrenowned cosmic ray physicistand cities of Mursan and Hilsa in UP and Bihar respectively.

The Physical Research Laboratory said, though the discovery was made by PRL scientists in 2021, the but the naming was approved by International Astronomical Union (IAU) earlier this month.

The PRL said the three craters are situated in the Tharsis volcanic regiona vast volcanic plateau centred near the equator in the western hemisphereof the Red Planet. The region is known as home to the largest volcanoes in the Solar System.

Also Read | Watch | NASA Hubble releases video of Pencil Nebula: A star that exploded Ahmedabad-based research laboratory director Anil Bhardwaj said, On the recommendation of the PRL, the International Astronomical Union (IAU) Working Group for Planetary System Nomenclature on June 5, 2024 approved naming the three craters on Mars craters as "Lal" crater, "Mursan" crater and "Hilsa" crater after PRL former director Devendra Lal, and two towns in UP and Bihar respectively.

Also Read | NASA shares stunning image of dusty spiral galaxy NGC 4414; here's all you need to know Lal crater: It is about 65 km wide crater, centered at -20.98 and 209.34. The name is given after the renowned Indian geophysicist and former Director of PRL, Prof. Devendra Lal. He was the director of PRL during 1972-1983.

Mursan crater: It is 10 km wide crater and superimposed on the eastern side of the rim of the Lal crater. It is named after a town in Uttar Pradesh, India.

Hilsa crater: It is also 10 km wide crater and superimposed on the western side of the rim of the Lal crater. It is named after a town in Bihar, India.

Scientific importance This discovery provides compelling evidence that the water has moved large volumes of sediment into the crater now named as Lal Crater. This finding also confirms that Mars was once wet and water has flown on the surface. Two small superimposed craters, on either side of Lal Crater, named as Mursan and Hilsa, provide the timeline for the infilling process of the Lal Crater and suggest that the infilling has been episodic, the statement said.
Are you planning a trip and looking for a good quality trolley bag? Then you have reached the right spot! A reliable trolley bag can make your travel experience smooth and hassle-free. Trolley bags are designed to offer convenience, with wheels that allow you to roll them effortlessly through airports, train stations, and hotels. They come in various sizes, styles, and materials to suit different needs and preferences.

One of the key advantages of investing in a quality trolley bag is its robustness. The use of high-grade materials such as polycarbonate and ballistic nylon ensures that your bag can endure the challenges of travel. Furthermore, trolley bags often incorporate multiple compartments and pockets, aiding in your organisation and making it a breeze to locate your belongings.

Another advantage is the stylish design. Modern trolley bags come in various colours and patterns, allowing you to travel in style. They are also lightweight, making it easier to carry more of your essentials without exceeding weight limits. Moreover, many trolley bags have expandable sections, providing extra space when needed.

We have curated the top 9 trolley bags available on Amazon, ensuring you find the perfect blend of quality, style, and practicality. These trolley bags cater to various needs and preferences, making your travel experience smoother and more enjoyable.

1. Safari Thorium Neo 8 Wheels 66 Cm Medium Check-in Trolley Bag Hard Case Polycarbonate 360 Degree Wheeling System Luggage, Trolley Bags for Travel, Speed_Wheel Suitcase for Travel, Graphite Blue

The Safari Thorium Neo 8 Wheels 66 Cm Medium Check-in Trolley Bag is designed to enhance your travel experience with its exceptional blend of style, durability, and practicality. Crafted from robust polycarbonate, this hard case luggage ensures that your belongings stay protected during transit. The 360-degree wheeling system, featuring eight wheels, allows for effortless manoeuvrability, making navigation through crowded airports and busy streets a breeze. Its spacious interior, coupled with multiple compartments, provides ample storage for all your travel essentials, ensuring everything stays organised. The TSA-approved lock adds an extra layer of security, giving you peace of mind while travelling. Finished in a sleek graphite blue, this trolley bag not only performs well but also looks stylish.

Specifications of Safari Thorium Neo 8 Wheels 66 Cm Trolley Bag:

Material: Polycarbonate

Size: 66 cm (Medium Check-in)

Wheels: 8 wheels with 360-degree wheeling system

Colour: Graphite Blue

Lock Type: TSA Lock

Weight: Lightweight design

Compartments: Multiple interior compartments

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Durable polycarbonate material May be too large for short trips 360-degree wheeling system Slightly higher price

What are buyers saying on Amazon?

Buyers praise the bag for its durability and ease of manoeuvrability. They also appreciate the stylish design and ample storage space.

Why choose this product?

Opt for this trolley bag to travel with confidence, knowing you have a blend of cutting-edge design and robust functionality.

2. American Tourister Ivy 77 Cms Large Check-in Polypropylene (PP) Hard Sided 4 Wheeler Spinner Luggage/Trolley Bag with TSA Lock (Sea Green)

The American Tourister Ivy 77 Cm Large Check-in Spinner Luggage is a perfect blend of style and functionality, designed to cater to the needs of modern travellers. Made from high-quality Polypropylene (PP), this hard-sided luggage is both lightweight and extremely durable, ensuring your belongings are well-protected during your journeys. The 4-wheeler spinner design provides smooth and effortless mobility, allowing you to navigate through crowded airports and busy streets with ease. Its spacious interior is ideal for long trips, offering ample space for all your essentials, while the multiple compartments keep everything organised. The TSA lock adds an extra layer of security, giving you peace of mind while travelling. Finished in an eye-catching sea green, this luggage not only performs well but also stands out in a crowd, making it a stylish choice for any traveller.

Specifications of American Tourister Ivy 77 Cms Polypropylene (PP) Hard Sided Trolley Bag:

Material: Polypropylene (PP)

Size: 77 cm (Large Check-in)

Wheels: 4-wheeler spinner

Colour: Sea Green

Lock Type: TSA Lock

Weight: Lightweight design

Compartments: Multiple interior compartments

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Durable polypropylene material May be too large for short trips 4-wheeler spinner for easy mobility Slightly higher price TSA lock for added security Limited colour options

What are buyers saying on Amazon?

Buyers appreciate the durability and smooth flexibility of this luggage. They also love its stylish design and ample storage space.

Why choose this product?

Buyers appreciate the durability and smooth handling of this luggage. They also love its stylish design and ample storage space.

3. Skybags Trooper 55 Cms Small Cabin Polycarbonate Hardshell Sided 4 Spinner Wheels Luggage/Suitcase/Inlineskatewheel Trolley Bag- Red and White

The Skybags Trooper 55 Cm Small Cabin Polycarbonate Hardshell Trolley Bag is a stylish and reliable companion for your travel needs. Crafted from durable polycarbonate, this hard-sided luggage offers superior protection for your belongings while maintaining a lightweight profile. The 4 spinner wheels ensure smooth and effortless mobility, allowing you to glide through airports and crowded spaces with ease. Its compact size makes it perfect for cabin use, fitting seamlessly into overhead compartments. The vibrant red and white design adds a touch of elegance and stands out in a crowd. Whether for a weekend getaway or a business trip, the Skybags Trooper is designed to make your travel experience convenient and hassle-free.

Specifications of Skybags Trooper 55 Cms Small Cabin Polycarbonate Trolley Bag:

Material: Polycarbonate

Size: 55 cm (Small Cabin)

Wheels: 4 spinner wheels

Colour: Red and White

Weight: Lightweight design

Compartments: Multiple interior compartments

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Durable polycarbonate hardshell Limited capacity for longer trips Lightweight and easy to carry Only available in one colour option

What are buyers saying on Amazon?

Buyers rave about the Skybags Trooper for its smooth wheels and sturdy design, making it a reliable travel companion. Many appreciate its stylish appearance and practicality, though some wish it had more capacity for longer trips. Overall, users find it an excellent choice for short getaways and business travels.

Why choose this product?

Choose the Skybags Trooper for its unbeatable combination of style, durability, and ease of use. With its robust polycarbonate hardshell, smooth spinner wheels, and secure TSA lock, this trolley bag ensures your travels are both convenient and sophisticated.

4. Kamiliant by American Tourister Harrier 56 Cms Small Cabin Polypropylene (PP) Hard Sided 4 Wheeler Spinner Wheels Luggage (Coral Blue)

Upgrade your travel experience with the Kamiliant by American Tourister Harrier 56 Cms Small Cabin Polypropylene Hardside 4 Wheeler Spinner Wheels Luggage. This vibrant coral blue suitcase is crafted from durable polypropylene, offering excellent protection for your belongings. The hard-sided design ensures resilience against impacts, while the 4 spinner wheels provide smooth and effortless mobility in any direction. With a compact 56 cm size, it fits perfectly in overhead compartments, making it ideal for short trips and business travel. The stylish design combined with practical features such as an ergonomic handle and a secure locking system makes the Kamiliant Harrier an essential companion for your journeys. Travel in style and comfort with this reliable and fashionable cabin luggage.

Specifications of Kamiliant by American Tourister Harrier 56 Cms Trolley Bag:

Brand: Kamiliant by American Tourister

Model: Harrier

Size: 56 cms

Material: Polypropylene (PP)

Colour: Coral Blue

Wheels: 4 Spinner Wheels

Lock Type: Combination Lock

Capacity: 40 litres

Weight: 2.6 kg

Dimensions: 56 x 38 x 25 cm

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Durable and lightweight polypropylene Limited colour options Smooth 4 spinner wheels No TSA lock for international travel Stylish coral blue design Slightly heavier than some competitors

What are buyers saying on Amazon?

Buyers praise the Kamiliant Harrier for its stylish look and easy movement, noting its durability for regular travel. Some wish it had external pockets for extra storage.

Why choose this product?

Choose the Kamiliant Harrier for its combination of stylish design, durability, and smooth mobility, making it perfect for modern travellers seeking both function and fashion.

5. Skybags Stroke Cabin Abs Hardshell Luggage (55 Cm) | Printed Luggage 4 Wheel Inline Trolley Bag with 8 Wheels and in-Built Combination Lock | Unisex, Blue and White, Small

Travel in style with the Skybags Stroke Cabin ABS Hardshell Luggage. This 55 cm printed luggage combines functionality and flair, making it the perfect companion for short trips and business travels. The striking blue and white design ensures you stand out, while the durable ABS hardshell provides robust protection for your belongings. Equipped with 4 inline wheels and an 8-wheel trolley system, this luggage offers exceptional manoeuvrability, making navigation through crowded airports a breeze. The in-built combination lock provides added security, ensuring your items stay safe throughout your journey. Designed for unisex use, this compact and lightweight cabin bag fits comfortably in overhead compartments, offering convenience without compromising on style. Whether you're a frequent flyer or an occasional traveller, the Skybags Stroke Cabin Luggage is designed to meet all your travel needs.

Specifications of Skybags Stroke Cabin Abs Hardshell Luggage (55 Cm) Printed Trolley Bag:

Brand: Skybags

Model: Stroke

Size: 55 cm

Material: ABS Hardshell

Colour: Blue and White

Wheels: 4 Inline Wheels (8-wheel trolley system)

Lock Type: In-Built Combination Lock

Capacity: 37 litres

Weight: 2.7 kg

Dimensions: 55 x 35 x 25 cm

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Stylish printed design Limited capacity for longer trips Durable ABS hardshell Heavier compared to some models Smooth manoeuvrability with 8 wheels Only one year warranty

What are buyers saying on Amazon?

Buyers appreciate the Skybags Stroke for its stylish design and easy handling, praising its durability. Some note that they wish it had more capacity for longer trips.

Why choose this product?

Choose the Skybags Stroke Cabin Luggage for its stylish design, durability, and excellent ease of movement, perfect for short trips and frequent travellers.

Also Read: Best leg massagers: Top 8 picks for an ultimate relaxed massage session at the convenience of your home

6. MOKOBARA Unisex Lightweight Transit Luggage - White, 74 cms Large Size - Polycarbonate, Hard Sided, 8 Silent Ninja Wheels, Check-in Large Suitcase Trolley - Still Loading Brownray Limited Edition

Discover the ultimate travel companion with the MOKOBARA Unisex Lightweight Transit Luggage in a sleek white finish. Measuring 74 cms, this large polycarbonate hard-sided suitcase is designed to withstand the rigours of travel while offering a lightweight solution for your packing needs. The 8 Silent Ninja Wheels provide smooth and silent mobility, ensuring effortless navigation through busy airports and bustling streets. With a spacious interior, this check-in luggage is perfect for extended trips, offering ample room for all your essentials. The Still Loading Brownray Limited Edition adds a touch of exclusivity and style to your travels. Whether you're embarking on a business trip or a vacation, the MOKOBARA Transit Luggage combines durability, functionality, and aesthetic appeal, making it a must-have for every traveller.

Specifications of MOKOBARA Unisex Lightweight Transit Luggage Trolley Bag:

Brand: MOKOBARA

Model: Transit

Size: 74 cms

Material: Polycarbonate

Colour: White

Wheels: 8 Silent Ninja Wheels

Lock Type: TSA Lock

Capacity: 90 litres

Weight: 4.2 kg

Dimensions: 74 x 48 x 30 cm

Edition: Still Loading Brownray Limited Edition

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Durable polycarbonate build Higher price point Smooth and silent 8-wheel system Large size may not be suitable for short trips

What are buyers saying on Amazon?

Buyers love the MOKOBARA Transit for its smooth, silent wheels and durable build, appreciating the stylish design. Some wish it were available in more colours and lighter options.

Why choose this product?

Choose the MOKOBARA Transit Luggage for its durability, stylish design, and smooth, silent mobility, perfect for extended trips and frequent travellers.

7. Safari Pentagon Hardside Small Size Cabin Luggage Suitcase Trolley Bags for Travel Black Color 55cm

Now travel in sleek sophistication with the Safari Pentagon Hardside Cabin Luggage. This 55 cm black suitcase is perfect for short trips and business travel, offering a stylish yet functional solution for your packing needs. Crafted from durable materials, the hard-sided design ensures that your belongings are well-protected during your journey. The suitcase features a modern pentagon pattern, adding a touch of elegance to its robust build. Equipped with smooth-rolling wheels and a comfortable handle, controlling through crowded airports becomes effortless. The compact size fits easily into overhead compartments, making it ideal for cabin luggage. With ample interior space and secure zippers, the Safari Pentagon Hardside Luggage combines practicality with contemporary design, ensuring you travel with confidence and style.

Specifications of Safari Pentagon Hardside Small Size Cabin Trolley Bag:

Brand: Safari

Model: Pentagon

Size: 55 cm

Material: ABS Hardshell

Colour: Black

Wheels: 4 Smooth-Rolling Wheels

Lock Type: Number Lock

Capacity: 36 litres

Weight: 2.5 kg

Dimensions: 55 x 35 x 24 cm

Warranty: 5 Years

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Durable ABS hardshell Limited colour options Stylish pentagon pattern design Smaller capacity for longer trips

What are buyers saying on Amazon?

Buyers appreciate the Safari Pentagon for its stylish design and durability, praising its smooth wheels. Some wish it had more capacity and external pockets for extra storage.

Why choose this product?

Choose the Safari Pentagon Cabin Luggage for its combination of style, durability, and ease of use, perfect for short trips and business travel.

8. Safari Ray 53 Cms Small Cabin Polycarbonate (Pc) Hard Sided 4 Wheels 360 Degree Wheeling System Luggage/Speed_Wheel Suitcase/Trolley Bag (Cyan)

Now upgrade your travel experience with the Safari Ray 53 Cms Small Cabin Luggage. Designed for the modern traveller, this cyan suitcase combines style and durability in a compact form. Made from high-quality polycarbonate (PC), it offers exceptional protection for your belongings while remaining lightweight. The hard-sided construction ensures your items stay safe during transit. Equipped with a 360-degree wheeling system and four smooth speed wheels, this suitcase allows effortless navigation through crowded airports and narrow aisles. The compact 53 cm size fits easily into overhead compartments, making it perfect for short trips and weekend getaways. With a sleek design and vibrant colour, the Safari Ray adds a touch of elegance to your travels. Travel confidently with the Safari Ray, knowing your belongings are secure and stylishly transported.

Specifications of Safari Ray 53 Cms Small Cabin Polycarbonate Trolley Bag:

Brand: Safari

Model: Ray

Size: 53 cm

Material: Polycarbonate (PC)

Colour: Cyan

Wheels: 4 Speed Wheels

Wheeling System: 360-Degree

Lock Type: Number Lock

Capacity: 35 litres

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Durable polycarbonate material Limited storage capacity Lightweight and easy to carry No external pockets Smooth 360-degree wheeling system Not suitable for long trips

What are buyers saying on Amazon?

Buyers love the Safari Ray for its stylish design and smooth rolling wheels, praising its durability. Some wish it had more capacity and external pockets for added convenience.

Why choose this product?

Choose the Safari Ray Cabin Luggage for its combination of style, durability, and smooth handling, perfect for short trips and frequent travellers.

Also Read: Top 7 neck massagers with advanced features for a relaxed massage session in the comfort of your home

9. Safari Astra 8 Wheels 66 Cms Medium Check-In Trolley Bag Hard Case Polycarbonate 360 Degree Wheeling System Luggage, Trolley Bags For Travel, Speed_Wheel Suitcase For Travel, Black

Are you looking for a good quality and durable trolley bag for your next adventure trip? Then choose Safari Astra 8 Wheels 66 Cms Medium Check-In Trolley Bag without a doubt. Crafted for the discerning traveller, this black polycarbonate hard case suitcase offers a perfect blend of style and durability. The hard-sided design ensures your belongings are protected, while the 8-wheel 360-degree wheeling system provides effortless mobility, allowing you to navigate through busy airports and narrow aisles with ease. The medium 66 cm size offers ample space for all your essentials, making it ideal for both short getaways and extended trips. The sleek black finish adds a touch of sophistication, and the speed wheel technology ensures smooth and swift movement.

Specifications of Safari Astra 8 Wheels 66 Cms Medium Check-In Trolley Bag:

Brand: Safari

Model: Astra

Size: 66 cm

Material: Polycarbonate

Colour: Black

Wheels: 8 Speed Wheels

Wheeling System: 360-Degree

Lock Type: Number Lock

Capacity: 65 litres

Weight: 3.5 kg

Reasons to Buy Reasons to Avoid Durable polycarbonate construction Slightly heavier than some options 360-degree wheeling system No external pockets Stylish and sleek black design No TSA lock

What are buyers saying on Amazon?

Buyers appreciate the Safari Astra for its stylish design and smooth 360-degree wheels, highlighting its durability. Some wish it had external pockets and a TSA lock for added convenience.

Why choose this product?

Choose the Safari Astra for its blend of style, durability, and ease of mobility, making it perfect for both short and extended trips.

What materials should I consider for a durable trolley bag?

Consider materials like polycarbonate, ABS, and aluminium. Polycarbonate offers high impact resistance and lightweight properties, ideal for frequent travellers. ABS is a cost-effective option with good durability but is not as strong as polycarbonate. Aluminium provides excellent durability and a premium look but can be heavier and more expensive. Choose based on your travel frequency and budget.

How important are the wheels on a trolley bag?

Wheels are crucial for ease of movement and manoeuvrability. Opt for bags with at least four spinner wheels for 360-degree rotation and smooth navigation. High-quality polyurethane wheels offer durability and a quieter ride. Bags with eight or double wheels provide enhanced stability and better handling on uneven surfaces. Ensure wheels are securely attached.

What size trolley bag is best for my travel needs?

Choose the size based on your trip length and purpose. Cabin-sized bags (50-55 cm) are convenient for short trips and fit in overhead compartments. Medium-sized bags (60-70 cm) offer more space for longer trips. Large check-in bags (over 70 cm) are suitable for extended periods. Always check airline size restrictions for carry-on or check-in requirements.

What factors should we consider when purchasing the best trolley bag?

Here are the factors we should consider:

Material : Choose durable materials like polycarbonate or polypropylene for high-impact resistance and longevity.

: Choose durable materials like polycarbonate or polypropylene for high-impact resistance and longevity. Size : Select the size based on your travel needs: small for short trips, medium for longer vacations, and large for extended trips.

: Select the size based on your travel needs: small for short trips, medium for longer vacations, and large for extended trips. Wheeling system : Opt for a 360-degree wheeling system with either four or eight wheels for smooth manoeuvrability.

: Opt for a 360-degree wheeling system with either four or eight wheels for smooth manoeuvrability. Weight : Ensure the bag is lightweight to reduce overall carrying weight and maximise packing capacity without exceeding airline limits.

: Ensure the bag is lightweight to reduce overall carrying weight and maximise packing capacity without exceeding airline limits. Locking mechanism : Look for TSA-approved locks for added security, especially for international travel.

: Look for TSA-approved locks for added security, especially for international travel. Compartments : Internal compartments and straps help keep your belongings organised and easily accessible.

: Internal compartments and straps help keep your belongings organised and easily accessible. Handles : Ensure the bag has sturdy and comfortable handles, including a retractable handle for easy carrying and manoeuvring.

: Ensure the bag has sturdy and comfortable handles, including a retractable handle for easy carrying and manoeuvring. Design and colour : Choose a stylish design and colour that suits your personal preferences and makes your bag easy to identify.

: Choose a stylish design and colour that suits your personal preferences and makes your bag easy to identify. Warranty : Check for a warranty that covers manufacturing defects, providing peace of mind and value for your investment.

: Check for a warranty that covers manufacturing defects, providing peace of mind and value for your investment. Brand reputation: Consider reputable brands known for quality and durability to ensure you purchase a reliable product.

Best value for money trolley bag:

The Kamiliant by American Tourister Harrier 56 cms Trolley Bag offers great value with its durable polypropylene build and practical features. The stylish coral blue colour stands out, and the 4 spinner wheels ensure smooth, effortless mobility. Perfect for short trips, it features internal compartments for organised packing. Combining durability, functionality, and style at an affordable price, it's an excellent choice for budget-conscious travellers.

Best overall trolley bag:

The Safari Thorium Neo 66 cm Trolley Bag is the best overall choice, combining durability, convenience, and style. Made from tough polycarbonate, it ensures maximum protection for your belongings. The 8-wheel 360-degree wheeling system provides excellent manoeuvrability. Its medium size offers ample capacity for short and extended trips, and the sleek black design exudes sophistication. With its robust build and smooth rolling wheels, the Safari Thorium Neo is perfect for any traveller seeking reliability and elegance.

Top 3 features of the best trolley bags:

Best Trolley Bags Material Colour Special Features Safari Thorium Neo 8 Wheels 66 cm Trolley Bag Polycarbonate Black 8 wheels, 360-degree wheeling system American Tourister Ivy 77 cms Trolley Bag Polypropylene (PP) Blue Hard-sided, large capacity Skybags Trooper 55 cms Trolley Bag Polycarbonate Red and White Small cabin size, in-line skate wheels Kamiliant by American Tourister Harrier 56 cms Trolley Bag Polypropylene (PP) Coral Blue Hard-sided, 4 spinner wheels Skybags Stroke Cabin ABS Hardshell 55 cm Trolley Bag ABS Blue and White Printed design, 8 wheels, combo lock MOKOBARA Unisex Lightweight Transit Trolley Bag Polycarbonate White 8 silent ninja wheels, lightweight Safari Pentagon Hardside Small Size Cabin ABS Black Hard-sided, compact, stylish design Safari Ray 53 Cms Small Cabin Trolley Bag Polycarbonate Cyan 360-degree wheeling system, vibrant colour Safari Astra 8 Wheels 66 cms Trolley Bag Polycarbonate Black 8 speed wheels, large capacity, number lock

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FAQs

Question : What material is best for a durable trolley bag?

Ans : Polycarbonate and polypropylene are excellent for durability. They offer high impact resistance and lightweight properties, ideal for frequent travellers.

Question : How do I choose the right size trolley bag for my travels?

Ans : Choose based on trip length: small (50-55 cm) for short trips, medium (60-70 cm) for longer vacations, and large (over 70 cm) for extended trips. Check airline size restrictions.

Question : What features should I look for in a trolley bag?

Ans : Look for a durable hardshell, 360-degree wheeling system, TSA-approved locks, and internal compartments. Lightweight design and sturdy handles are also essential.

Question : Are four-wheel or eight-wheel trolley bags better?

Ans : Four-wheel bags offer good manoeuvrability, while eight-wheel bags provide enhanced stability and smoother movement. Choose based on your travel needs.

Question : How do I maintain and clean my trolley bag?

Ans : Clean the exterior with a damp cloth and mild soap, keep the wheels debris-free, and check zippers and locks regularly. Store in a cool, dry place.

Disclaimer: At Livemint, we help you stay up-to-date with the latest trends and products. Mint has an affiliate partnership, so we may get a part of the revenue when you make a purchase. We shall not be liable for any claim under applicable laws, including but not limited to the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, with respect to the products. The products listed in this article are in no particular order of priority.
Fintan McGill, Managing Director of DNG McGill Longford and Carrick-on-Shannon, has been appointed as Senior Vice-President of IPAV, the Institute of Professional Auctioneers & Valuers, which represents more than 1,500 auctioneers, valuers and estate agents nationwide.

Speaking ahead of the organisations national conference to be held in Limerick on Friday, June 14 he said he was proud to take on the role and proud of the organisations achievements.

In auctioneering were involved in the biggest financial decisions individuals and families make in their lives, as well as businesses, he said. Our institute, along with our education partner TU Dublin, plays a crucial role in educating and guiding existing practitioners and those entering the profession.

Also read: Fine Gael strike deal with Independents to retain control of Longford council

On housing policy he said increasing housing supply is paramount. While progress has been made, much remains to be done.

The last decade has seen the introduction of much regulation, particularly around rent controls. International experience would indicate such controls should only be short-term because of their adverse impacts, such as reducing housing supply and over time, the lack of proper maintenance of rental properties, he said. The International Monetary Fund, among others, has recommended the removal of rent caps."

Mr McGill said home ownership rates have fallen dramatically with Ireland now having one of the biggest gaps in Western Europe between younger and older generations. He pointed to Economic and Social Research Institute findings that nearly 80% of people over age 40 own their own homes but just a third of adults under age 40 do.

This is a very worrying trend. Its absolutely crucial that public policy supports people to achieve their aspirations of home ownership, he said. Major delays and blockages in planning, infrastructure, approval processes and financing remain.

In this regard the recent Housing Commission report must be taken seriously and considered urgently by Government. Its important that solutions are found to these long standing impediments to progress, he said.

In addition to his new role as Senior Vice-President of IPAV Mr McGill is a member of the National Association of Realtors (NAR) in the USA.

He said increasingly international buyers are playing an active role in the market.

IPAV introduced the Blue Book European valuation standards to Ireland in 2013. This is the valuation standard recognised by the Irish Central Bank and the European Central Bank for which it holds default status over all other valuation standards in the event of any valuation conflict arising.
A taxi driver accused of raping two young women claimed the second asked him was this off the bill while they were having sex.

The Central Criminal Court heard that the man told gardai in a prepared statement that the then 20-year-old woman was smiling and kissing him while they had sex. He said she then asked, was this off the bill?.

I thought it was a joke. I said 'no, its not' in a joking manner, he told gardai.

The 50-year-old has pleaded not guilty to the rape of this woman on August 9, 2022. He has further denied the rape and anal rape of another woman.

The first incident allegedly took place in June 2022, while the second occurred in August.

It is the State's case that each young woman found themselves in a taxi after a night out socialising in Dublin city centre and that each woman was raped by the accused.

The man, who can't be named for legal reasons, denies the allegations and says that any sexual interaction between him and each woman was consensual.

The Central Criminal Court heard that the man was arrested at his home on August 22, 2022 in relation to the alleged rape of the second complainant on August 9. He replied, I didn't rape anyone after caution.

The woman gave evidence that she decided to get a taxi home in the early hours of August 9 after socialising with friends.

She said she fell asleep during the journey as she was tired and drunk. She said the next thing she remembered was waking up to the taxi driver raping her. She told the court that she didn't instigate sex or consent to it.

The court heard the man provided a written statement to gardai when interviewed, which was read to the court.

He said he was working on the night in question and the woman approached him and asked go get a lift home. He said they chatted during the journey with the woman telling him that her phone had died and it was the only way she could pay.

The man said the woman became quiet and he assumed she had fallen asleep during the journey. He said he drove around her home town to increase the fare, which he felt ashamed for doing.

He said he parked the car to check her address and noticed she was awake. She then leaned forward and kissed him. He said he kissed her back and felt flattered a younger woman was interested in him.

He said she agreed when he asked if she wanted him to get into the back seat, where they engaged in consensual sex.

The man outlined to gardai that he got out of the car when they finished to give the woman privacy to get dressed again, then he drove her home. The man said she was laughing on the way and said whatever I owe, I'll pay you.

He said she went to the house to get a charger, then returned to the car. She took the charger and paid the fare in cash.

The man told gardai he felt ashamed for cheating on his partner and that it was not something I'm proud of.

He said he shouldn't have asked the woman to pay the taxi fare, describing it as a stupid thing to do.

In other evidence, the jury were shown CCTV footage and location data showing the taxi leaving the woman's home town, then making its way back into Dublin city on August 9.

This CCTV footage showed the man getting out of the car, then into the rear passenger side seat.

Just over six minutes later, the man left the vehicle and returned to the driver's seat.

The man's Samsung phone was also seized by gardai, along with a black Nokia phone which was found in the glove compartment of the taxi when it was searched.

The man provided gardai with the password for the Samsung phone and messages of a sexual nature between the man and a number of other women were found on it.

DNA samples were taken from the man during his period of detention and his profile matched DNA identified on samples taken during an examination of the woman.

The jury also heard evidence from a forensic examiner at the sexual assault treatment unit (SATU) where the woman was examined on the afternoon of August 9.

The witness outlined that the woman told her that the man got into the back of the car, pulled down her clothes and had sex with her. She also said she observed a number of bruises on the woman's thighs and an internal vaginal injury.

She told the court there is no physical vaginal injury that can differentiate between consensual and non-consensual sex.

The trial continues.
Local News

By Chris Boyle Published: June 13 2024

As a Navy Veteran, Im proud to have helped pass a strong bill to support my fellow Veterans and put Long Island first, said LaLota.

Today, Rep. Nick LaLota (R-Suffolk County), a Navy Veteran, released the following statement after his vote helped pass the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs Appropriations bill last week. This bill includes several provisions authored by LaLota, including support for the Long Island State Veterans Home, cleaning up the former Grumman site in Calverton, confronting mental health challenges, and addressing toxic exposure.

As a Navy Veteran, Im proud to have helped pass a strong bill to support my fellow Veterans and put Long Island first. In addition to fully funding Veteran health care benefits, this bill includes several provisions I fought for, said LaLota. Specifically, Im proud to have secured provisions to support PFAS cleanup at the former Grumman site in Calverton, support the Long Island State Veterans Home, support Veteran mental health, and address toxic exposure, including Liver Fluke. I look forward to working with my colleagues to pass all twelve appropriations bills on time.

To read the full text of the legislation, click HERE .

Background:

The bill included five amendments put forward by LaLota, including:

Long Island State Veterans Home in Stony Brook ; Funding for additional grants to expedite construction projects at State Veterans Homes such as the

LaLota committed to working to help clean up ; Speeding up PFAS remediation efforts at closed military installations where PFAS contamination affects local drinking water, including the former Grumman site in Calverton which

LaLotas Dwyer Peer Support Program Act ; Support for peer-to-peer mental health programs, which support Veterans by providing them with space to share their experiences and receive support from fellow Veterans who understand their unique challenges; which is in line with

LaLotas Vietnam Veterans Liver Fluke Cancer Study Act ; and Support Herbicide-Related Toxic Exposure Research, which investigates the long-term health impacts of exposure to harmful chemicals, leading to improved medical care, accurate diagnoses, and targeted treatments for conditions linked to such exposures and supports; and

Supports Community-Based Outpatient Clinics (CBOCs), including the Riverhead CBOC, which aids veterans by offering accessible, comprehensive healthcare services close to their homes, ensuring they receive consistent medical care, mental health services, and personalized treatment plans tailored to their needs.

The bill honors Americas commitment to Veterans by fully funding VA health care benefits including toxic exposure-related needs. It also strengthens our strong national security by investing in crucial military construction projects, with a focus on investments in the Indo-Pacific region and military family housing.

The bill includes several of LaLotas priorities including:
Khalifa Sirajuddin Haqqani in Hajj. pic.twitter.com/TGlhRiPbR9  Muhammad Jalal (@MJalalAf) June 7, 2024

While the world was transfixed over the civilian body count during a daring Israeli Defense Force raid that rescued four hostages who were held by Hamas, a designated terrorist was taking his first summer vacation in years.

On June 5, Sirajuddin Haqqani accomplished what his father never could: international legitimacy. Traveling as the Minister of Interior, Siraj, along with his brother, Anas, and Abdul Haq Wassiq, the Talibans Spy Chief who is also a UN-sanctioned terrorist, Qari Ashraf, Mullah Muhammad Fazel Mazloom, and others, received the type of treatment one would expect from a statesmen instead of a man who is responsible for killing thousands of American service members.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the ruler of the United Arab Emirates, warmly greeted Haqqani at the Emirati Capital. The state-run media made sure to proclaim the historic event, proclaiming:

The two sides discussed strengthening the bonds of cooperation between the two countries and ways to enhance ties to serve mutual interests and contribute to regional stability, WAM said. The discussions focused on economic and development fields, as well as support for reconstruction and development in Afghanistan.

This wasnt some type of clandestine flight arranged behind closed doors. Siraj even convinced the United Nations to lift his travel restrictions, as did Abdul Kabir Mohammad Jan, Abdul-Haq Wassiq, and Noor Mohammad Saqib. According to unverified reports, Siraj may have met with US security officials.

But Siraj, a Specially Designated Global Terrorist whose Haqqani Network is listed as a Foreign Terrorist Organization, wasnt quite done with his summer vacation. On June 7, Siraj, the man who butchered tens of thousands of Afghans, conducted his very first Hajj. Again, this wasnt done in secrecy. Instead, he filmed the entire event.

Haqqani will use his visit to Mecca as a signal to other terrorists of his commitment to Islam, Maj (ret) Jason Howk, a Professor of Islamic Studies at the Air Force Special Operations School, told FDDs Long War Journal. And his meetings in UAE and Saudi Arabia are a sign of his recognition as a respected leader of Afghanistan by Arab leaders.

First, its hard to imagine how the Biden administration was unaware of Sirajs trips to the UAE and Saudi Arabia, considering he traveled to two countries that house American servicemembers. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates host the 378th Air Expeditionary Wing at Prince Sultan Airbase and the 380th Air Expeditionary Wing at Abu Dhafra, respectively. Both Wings make up the majority of the 8,000 servicemembers in both countries.

Second, it seems all but inevitable that the United States is on the path toward recognizing the Taliban. For some mysterious reason, will there be another Doha conference next week? For those keeping track, thats affectionately called Doha III. Even though the Taliban repeatedly broke the Doha Agreement throughout both the Trump and Biden administrations by attacking American forces and maintaining their alliance with Al Qaeda, the international community will attempt yet again to reach a consensus with a terrorist organization that continues to kill former Afghan security forces.

I dont understand how with [Sirajs] known ties to Al Qaeda and his harboring of Ayman al Zawahiri whom we eliminated in his guest house he can freely travel to countries that are US allies? Lebanese-American counterterrorism expert Sara Harmouch told FDDs Long War Journal.

Despite all the evidence to the contrary, the Biden administration is leaning into its relationship with the Taliban as a way to counter the Islamic State of Khorasan Provinces threat. However, despite this whirlwind romance, ISKP is still plotting attacks, as the recent arrest of eight Tajiks with potential ties to ISKP underscores.

With Haqqani on the loose and the Islamic State sending fighters through our southern border, it is no wonder than some analysts are concerned that the terrorism warning lights are flashing red.

Will Selber is a retired Middle East Foreign Area Officer who deployed for over four and half years to Iraq and Afghanistan. Will is a contributor to the Bulwark and the co-founder of Grumpy Combat Veteran.
On June 11, eight Tajik nationals with ties to the Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP), the terrorist groups branch in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Central Asia, were arrested in New York, Los Angeles, and Philadelphia.

Utilizing wiretaps to track their movements, the FBIs Joint Terrorism Task Force apprehended the suspects on immigration charges in close coordination with the Department of Homeland Security. Immigration and Customs Enforcement is holding the eight men in custody pending extradition.

It appears that ISKP members who have infiltrated the Talibans security apparatus have now tapped into a vast network of Tajik Islamists to expand the groups operational capacity beyond Central Asia and the Middle East.

Tajik jihadists fight for both the Islamic State and its rivals, the Taliban and Al Qaeda. The emergence of the Tajikistan Taliban Movement (TTM) in northern Afghanistan made headlines shortly after the US withdrawal from Afghanistan. TTM, a terrorist organization banned by Russia and operating under the banner of Jamaat-e Ansarullah, recruited Tajik nationals with the aim of overthrowing Tajikistans government and expanding the Talibans regional influence.

It now seems that TTMs rivals in ISKP, including fighters who previously fought alongside the Taliban, have settled in Badakhshan Province near the Tajikistan border. The surge of Tajik nationals joining ISKP indicates the groups access to a network of Islamists aiming to carry out attacks in Russia, Germany, Italy, and Turkey. The recent arrests also highlight how ISKP may be seeking to exploit the US border crisis while confirming speculation about the groups capacity to carry out operations in the US and Europe.

The eight Tajik nationals crossed the southern border separately, with at least two men entering the US in spring 2023. According to a senior Department of Homeland Security official who spoke to CBS News, the men lacked proper documents and were subsequently released into the U.S. with notices to appear in immigration court. In September 2023, authorities also identified a Turkish smuggling ring that had trafficked Islamic State members into the United States.

As illegal border crossings from Mexico spiked to record levels earlier this year, FBI Director Christopher Wray warned of a heightened threat level. Our most immediate concern has been that individuals and small groups will draw a sort of twisted inspiration from the events in the Middle East to carry out attacks here at home, Wray said.

House Committee on Homeland Security Chairman Mark E. Green also raised alarms about the risks associated with losing control of the border last December: The number of individuals apprehended illegally crossing the Southwest border and found to be on the terrorist watchlist has increased 2,500 percent from Fiscal Years 2017-2020 to Fiscal Year 2023.

The recent arrests underscore the possibility that ISKP and other Islamist terrorist groups are exploiting the ongoing US border crisis with the intent to strike American soil. The 2021 US withdrawal from Afghanistan has enabled terrorist networks to regroup in that country and regionally, contributing to the ISKPs resurgence and empowering the group to expand its operational capacity. This resurgence and the US governments failure to stem illegal border crossings could enable the infiltration of terrorists into the US via Mexico.

Janatan Sayeh is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies focused on Iranian domestic affairs and the Islamic Republics regional malign influence.
Israel Defense Forces Brig. Gen. Dan Goldfus, the commander of the 98th Division, talks to his troops after the success of the IDFs hostage rescue on June 8. (IDF image)

Hezbollah launched at least 215 rockets from Lebanon at Israel on June 12 in the most significant escalation by the Iranian-backed terrorist group over eight months of war. Hezbollah has been targeting Israel with rockets, drones, and missiles since October 8, 2023, when it chose to back Hamass war. Hezbollah attacks usually average about a dozen or more projectiles daily, in contrast to the more than 215 launched on June 12.

Hezbollah began the barrage in the morning in the wake of an Israeli airstrike that killed Hezbollah commander Taleb Sami Abdullah on the evening of June 11. Abdullah, a commander of an important sector for Hezbollah south of the Litani River along the Israeli border, was the most senior of the groups leaders killed in eight months of clashes. The IDF stated he Planned, advanced, and carried out a large number of terror attacks against Israeli civilians over many years and noted that the strike also killed three other Hezbollah operatives.

Although the killing of Abdullah was the immediate reason for Hezbollah launching a high volume of rockets on June 12, the group has been escalating attacks over the last month. In May, it increased its use of kamikaze drones and anti-tank missiles. In the first week and a half of June, the group also increased the range of its attacks inside Israel, targeting coastal cities such as Acre, Nahariya, and Haifa, which is 19 miles south of the Lebanese border. On June 12, Hezbollah expanded this attack distance even further, targeting the Israeli city of Tiberias and communities along the Sea of Galilee, around 25 miles south of the Lebanese border.

Hezbollahs attacks on Israel continued throughout June 12, and the group claimed responsibility for them to the pro-Iranian media outlet Al-Mayadeen. Iranian media also claimed Hezbollah had targeted Israeli spy facilities. The terrorist group frequently claims it is able to carry out precision attacks targeting IDF posts and bases.

On the evening of June 12, the IDF said that it used ground-based air defenses and aircraft to intercept drones targeting Mount Hermon in the Golan. The IDF also stated that it retaliated against the Hezbollah attacks with a series of strikes on Hezbollah terror targets in southern Lebanon, including military structures in Yater and Markaba and terrorist infrastructure in the area of Tallouseh.

The Hezbollah escalation came amid relative quiet in Gaza as the IDF continues operations against Hamas and other terrorist groups. The IDFs 98th Division, which entered central Gaza on June 5 and targeted Hamas in Bureij and Deir al-Balah, recently completed operations in the area. On June 11, the IDF reported that the division killed around 100 terrorists during this period and destroyed dozens of terrorist infrastructure sites and launch areas situated near communities in southern Israel.

The operations in central Gaza also included the IDFs Kfir Infantry Brigade, the 7th Armored Brigade, and members of the Yahalom combat engineers. Yahalom soldiers scanned and destroyed [] two tunnels, which were each one kilometer in length and contained rooms and weapons, and destroyed over two kilometers of the attack tunnels, the IDF added in a statement.

The battles in Bureij and Deir al-Balah formed part of a larger, more important raid in the area of Nuseirat in which four Israeli hostages were rescued on June 8.

Were also committed to destroying the enemy on the other side and dismantling its underground infrastructure and infrastructure above the ground, Brig. Gen. Dan Goldfus, the commander of the 98th Division, said to his troops after the successful rescue. Thats what weve been doing for the past eight months, and well keep on doing it, pushing forward.

Fighting continues in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where the IDF has been operating since early May. These forces also continue to dismantle rocket launch sites and tunnels used by terrorists.

Troops eliminated a number of armed terrorist cells in close-quarters encounters in the area. IDF troops also located and destroyed structures rigged with explosives, as well as weapons, ammunition, military vests, and additional military equipment found in the area, the IDF said on June 11.

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).
Jordanian authorities successfully thwarted a significant drug smuggling operation, arresting members of two groups linked to regional drug smuggling networks. The Jordanian Public Security Directorate stated that after two months of intelligence and operational efforts, the individuals involved were arrested, and the narcotics were seized.

Authorities seized 9.5 million Captagon pills and 143 kilograms of hashish hidden in heavy machinery, prepared for smuggling through the Omari crossing into Saudi Arabia. Jordanian officials have directly implicated Lebanese Hezbollah and other Iran-backed militias  which dominate a significant portion of southern Syria  as the masterminds behind the surge in the lucrative drug and arms trade, valued at billions of dollars.

Since 2020, Jordan has been grappling with a surge in cross-border drug trafficking, with Captagon emerging as a major concern. This illicit trade has placed considerable strain on Jordans security and law enforcement resources and raised domestic concerns about the economic and social impacts of narcotics. Additionally, Amman is aware of the potential regional repercussions, especially regarding its relationship with the Gulf Cooperation Council states, where many of these drugs are destined. Jordan fears that the continuous flow of drugs through its territory could lead to a situation like Lebanon, which has repeatedly failed to control drug smuggling, resulting in the GCC states downgrading their relations with Beirut.

Since October 7, there has been an increase in drug smuggling from Syria into Jordan. According to a tally conducted by FDD, there have been 12 instances in which Jordanian authorities clashed with smugglers attempting to infiltrate Jordanian territory. This increase represents a shift in smuggling methods. Iran-backed groups have systematically organized these operations. Officials have indicated that during each attempt at Jordans northern border, these groups have engaged a large number of Jordanian forces to exhaust them and find a breach. When they cannot find a breach, they resort to using weapons, and if repelled, they use other methods, such as drones.

The implications of increased Captagon smuggling from Syria into Jordan are twofold. First, it could adversely affect the kingdoms youth population and broader social cohesion. Second, it positions Jordan as a transit point for drugs, which could impact its relationships with neighboring countries. Both implications serve Irans interests and ambitions to create instability in Jordan, a close ally of the U.S. and Israel. Iran-backed groups have also begun to utilize weapons such as RPGs and rocket launchers to confront border guards and security forces, aiming to weaken these agencies and the Jordanian state.

Jordanian authorities have been quiet about the possibility of these groups having affiliations inside Jordan. However, an examination of some of the smugglers names, likely trained by Iran-backed militias in southern Syria, reveals familial and tribal links. The smugglers belong to specific tribes repeatedly involved in most detected cases. Tribes such as Al-Ramthan and Al-Masaid exploit their familial connections across the border to store the smuggled drugs. Officials say about 90 percent of the smuggled Captagon is stored in the Jordanian village of Manshiyat Al-Ghayath, located on the main road leading to Iraq.

These tribes are likely acting for material gain rather than ideological purposes. Historically, smuggling has been a source of income for these individuals, although it was previously limited to livestock and cigarettes and did not involve clashes with Jordanian authorities. The new reality is that these individuals have been extensively trained in combating the Jordanian armed forces, posing significant pressure on the kingdoms stability, which benefits Iran and its proxies on the border.

Jordans normalization with Al-Assad came in response to the increasing smuggling in the border region. While the Syrian regime has failed to thwart these attempts and continues to tolerate these networks, Jordan is left to combat this phenomenon alone, protecting its national security and preserving its regional relationships. Jordan has conducted airstrikes on southern Syria multiple times, targeting infamous drug lords. Despite these efforts, attempts to infiltrate Jordans borders continue. With no indications of reducing the threat of Irans proxies in the region, Jordans national security remains at stake. Given the regions continued instability, Jordan needs assistance securing its border against this looming threat.

Ahmad Sharawi is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies focused on Iranian intervention in Arab affairs and the levant.
There are big, big things coming to iOS 18. Youll be able to customize your iPhone like never before, every app gets good quality-of-life updates, and of course, Apple Intelligence permeates the entire system (if you have one of the newest iPhones capable of running it).

Given all the hype out of WWDC for all the new features, you might be a little disappointed with September rolls around and iOS 18 is released. Thats because some of the best features wont be in itby design. Apple has announced that some of the features are coming later this year, which is usually Apple-speak for well add these in iOS 18.1, 18.2, or 18.3.

Heres a quick list of the iOS 18 features that Apple has said not to expect in the launch, but will come in an iOS 18 update at a later date.

Mail categories and digests

The ability for Mail to automatically sort your emails into categories, show summaries of them, and group related emails into scannable digests is all coming in an update after the initial iOS 18 launch. While iOS 18 will launch with some Apple Intelligence features in beta, some of them will roll out in the months after launch and it looks like this great new Mail stuff is part of that.

Apple Apple Apple

Home support for robot vacuums and electricity reports

Controlling your robot vacuum with the Home app is coming later, and so is the new electricity usage report in the Energy tab.

That second one is going to be limited to Pacific Gas & Electric customers at first, anyway, so for anyone outside of those parts of California, you probably wont see that feature until 2025.

Siris most advanced features

Siri is getting a big boost right at iOS 18s releasethe new glowing edge interface, conversational understanding, contextual awareness, and deep product knowledge are all going to be available as soon as Apple Intelligence is.

But there are more advanced Siri features that Apple says are coming over the course of the next year, which means maybe not until sometime in 2025.

The first is on-screen awareness, where Siri will be able to see whats on screen when you invoke it so it can take proper contextual actions. The other is greatly expanded App Intents where Siri can take hundreds of different actions in and across apps. For example, I have a big note in the Notes app with the bread recipes I experiment with. I could have Siri proofread that text, summarize it, and then attach that summary to an email to my sister.

Siris personal contextual awareness is another big boost coming after iOS 18s launch. The idea is that it will build a profile of you (all on your device, private and secure) using the data on your iPhonecalls, texts, locations, images, emails, PDFs, and so on. Then it can use that to provide uniquely tailored help. One example would be if youre on the web in Safari and have to fill out a form with your drivers license. Siri could see that you have a photo of your drivers license in Photos, recognize that its you, and fill out the form for you with the license number and other data lifted from the photo.

Siris ability to build a detailed profile of you to proactively offer help is coming in 2025. Siris ability to build a detailed profile of you to proactively offer help is coming in 2025. Apple Siris ability to build a detailed profile of you to proactively offer help is coming in 2025. Apple Apple

New emojis

Apples got an AI-assisted Genmoji feature in iOS 18, but the new emojis that have been added to Unicodes official emojis list arent coming until sometime in 2025. Typically, new emojis arrive in the iOS x.4 release which arrives around March or so.

You can see a list of the new emojis here.

Drag-and-drop between iPhone and Mac

This is sort of a macOS feature, and sort of an iOS featureyoull have the ability to mirror your iPhone screen to your Mac right when iOS 18 and macOS 15 are introduced in the fall. The feature should be there at launch, but in a later update, Apple will add the ability to drag and drop files and photos between your iPhone and Mac.
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.
This week, members of both bodies indicated their opposition to the location at their respective meetings, which will ultimately be expressed in a letter to Vermonts Public Utility Commission (PUC). Simultaneously, the town will be coordinating training on the issue and exploring the potential to contract an engineer to identify suitable locations for the much-needed infrastructure.
Hayden Dublois, formerly of Manchester, VT, currently resides in Florida. He previously worked for Gov. Phil Scott of Vermont and was involved in numerous Vermont political campaigns and efforts over the years. Opinions expressed by columnists do not necessarily reflect the views of Vermont News & Media.
After weeks of worry over whether Marthas Vineyard may be cut off from Massachusetts supply of legal cannabis, state officials on Thursday gave their approval for pot companies to ship products between the mainland and the islands off Cape Cod.

The move headed off concerns stemming from the closure of the Vineyards only operating pot farm and the looming closure of the islands two dispensaries.

Because marijuana is federally illegal, the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission previously said all pot sold on the Vineyard and Nantucket must be grown there too, lest businesses run afoul of laws barring the trafficking of illicit drugs through federal waters.

On Thursday, the commission approved an administrative order reversing that stance.

With the Vineyards cannabis supply seemingly at risk, the commission made the decision that we needed to take immediate action, Acting Commission Chair Ava Callender Concepcion said Thursday.

Nantucket has two shops that grow and sell marijuana. Neither was at imminent risk for closure.

Of particular concern on the Vineyard were the islands roughly 230 medical marijuana patients, who depend on prescription pot to help them through medical conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, chronic pain and cancer.

We never want to be putting consumers and patients in a place where they dont have access to medicine, they dont have access to cannabis, Concepcion said. We also dont want to see (businesses) close their doors.

Vineyard dispensary Fine Fettle said earlier this year that it was closing its marijuana grow facility, the only one on the island, and planned to shut down its retail store in the town of West Tisbury by September.

That prompted the closure of the Vineyards other dispensary, Island Time, which bought products from Fine Fettle.

Island Time owner Geoff Rose said Thursday that he hoped to reopen the store very soon.

Today is a great day in providing equity for operators on the islands, Rose said by email. I appreciate the efforts of the CCC Commissioners and staff to address this important issue, one that has been long overdue for attention.

The rule change comes as the Vineyard is beginning to welcome tens of thousands of tourists for the summer. Rose said that missing out on the coming months of business would have decimated his chances of being able to reopen.

While technically possible to ship marijuana to the islands without leaving state waters, businesses had interpreted the state regulations as banning the transportation of pot to the islands.

Hawaii, California and other states have previously faced similar issues and carved out guidance for businesses to still ship cannabis across the ocean or through federal airspace.

Massachusetts cannabis commissioners were persuaded to adjust state rules during a hearing last week on the Vineyard when islanders described their fears of sourcing marijuana outside of legal pot shops.

We dont want anyone to have to turn to the illicit market, where you dont know what youre getting, Cannabis Commissioner Kimberly Roy said Thursday.

The four commissioners approved the administrative order in a unanimous vote. It goes into effect Friday.

Desperate to reopen, Rose sued the commission last month. He was joined by the Nantucket dispensary Green Lady, whose co-owner said she hoped to legally ship cannabis from the island to the companys other store in Newton.

In court filings, they had accused the commission of maintaining an arbitrary, unreasonable and inconsistent policy that isolates island dispensaries without any rational basis.

The water is federal water, but we all drive the cannabis to do deliveries on the federal road system, Nicole Campbell, the co-owner of Green Lady, said. Were already using the federal infrastructure to move a product thats federally illegal.
One of the nations leading marijuana companies has agreed to pay a $350,000 fine tied to the death of an employee who suffered an asthma attack at its Massachusetts production plant two years ago, according to a settlement it reached with the states cannabis regulator.

Industry giant Trulieve, which shuttered its operations in Massachusetts last year, failed to meet several safety requirements at the Holyoke facility where 27-year-old employee Lorna McMurrey worked when she died in 2022, the Cannabis Control Commission asserted.

State health officials think McMurrey was the first person in the American cannabis industry to die from an asthma-related workplace incident.

McMurrey, of West Springfield, had reported breathing issues while grinding and processing marijuana at the Holyoke plant, a role that exposed her to significant amounts of marijuana dust and other airborne particles.

Amid a severe asthma attack, she collapsed on the job on Jan. 4, 2022, and never regained consciousness. She died three days later at a local hospital, according to a study on the incident published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Acting Cannabis Control Commission Chair Ava Callender Concepcion said Thursday that although we cannot go back and rewrite the past, she was hopeful the settlement contributed to a better and safer industry throughout the country, not just in the commonwealth.

She and other commissioners extended their condolences to McMurreys family members, who filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Trulieve last year.

The Florida-based company did not respond to a request for comment Thursday. In the past, Trulieve defended its management of the Holyoke facility, which it said had proper air filtration systems installed.

Trulieve will continue to operate its facilities in a manner that fully protects the health and safety of all employees, the company said in 2022.

Trulieve cannabis growing and processing facility in Holyoke, where Lorna McMurrey worked, pictured in June 2023. (Don Treeger / The Republican).

The penalty levied by the commission is significantly greater than the $14,500 that Trulieve agreed to pay the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, or OSHA, in a separate settlement in late 2022, also stemming from McMurreys death.

According to Forbes, Trulieve is among the nations largest cannabis corporations.

Still, the company has faced struggles at a turbulent time in the pot industry.

Blaming poor business, Trulieve announced last year that it would exit Massachusetts, closing dispensaries in Worcester, Northampton and Framingham, and the more than 100,000-square-foot farming and processing plant in Holyoke where McMurrey worked.

The lawsuit filed by her family claimed Trulieve had failed to properly vent the facility and protect workers from the substantial amounts of airborne cannabis dust, mold and other particles emitted from the marijuana grinding and processing machines.

In November, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health said Trulieve had not recognized and controlled ground-up cannabis flower, which is used to fill pre-rolled joints, as a potential respiratory hazard.

The lawsuit also targeted contractors who renovated the Holyoke facility and installed its air filtration system, as well as the manufacturer of a marijuana grinding machine McMurrey used.

She had worked for Trulieve for seven months before her death, according to the lawsuit.

While grinding cannabis buds in the Holyoke facilitys pre-roll joint production room, McMurrey and other staff were routinely covered head to toe in cannabis dust and mold, the lawsuit said.

In November 2021, two months before her death, McMurrey had an asthma attack at the facility and was brought by ambulance to a hospital for treatment. According to the lawsuit, she returned to work the next day.

McMurrey suffered another severe asthma attack at work on Jan. 4, 2022. Despite using her asthma inhaler, McMurreys respiratory distress worsened, the CDC report on her death found. She went into cardiac arrest and lost consciousness, suffering a brain injury from which she never recovered.

In its settlement with Trulieve, the Cannabis Control Commission noted several shortcomings in the companys safety procedures. The company, however, neither admitted nor denied the deficiencies as part of the agreement.

The commission said Trulieve did not adequately adjust to the hazards in its production rooms, where McMurrey worked, following her asthma attacks.

The machines for grinding and processing marijuana kicked large amounts of marijuana dust into the air, Trulieve staff noticed.

However, according to the commission, the company did not recognize the dust as a potentially harmful allergen that would necessitate staff using respirators. As such, the company did not provide respirators for McMurrey and other employees who worked with the machines.

When McMurrey returned to work from her first asthma attack, she continued struggling to breath, coughed constantly, and took frequent breaks to use an inhaler, the commission said.

According to the commission, Trulieve did not identify McMurrey as a high-risk worker and did not offer her a new position within the production facility, nor did she request one.

Trulieve needs to be held accountable, McMurreys mother, Laura Bruneau, said in a statement accompanying the familys lawsuit filed last year. It was their job to protect Lorna.

Alongside its November report on McMurreys death, the Department of Public Health also noted other cases of non-fatal respiratory disease among cannabis production workers in Massachusetts exposed to cannabis dust, mold, pollen and other airborne contaminants.

The legalized cannabis industry in Massachusetts is relatively new and the impact on the health and safety of workers demands our careful attention, Public Health Commissioner Robert Goldstein said in a statement at the time.

The commission noted in its settlement that Trulieve cooperated in its investigation and was voluntarily relinquishing its state-issued licenses to operate, which it gave up in good standing.

The fine paid by Trulieve will enter the same fund as money collected through marijuana tax revenue.

Each year, 15% of the funds revenue is directed to a special Cannabis Social Equity Trust Fund, which supports marijuana business owners from communities most harshly affected by the so-called War on Drugs.
Angelina Weld Grimke, a journalist, teacher, playwright and poet born in Boston, used to write poems that hinted at her infatuation with women, leading scholars to believe that she was queer.

It is also speculated that American Revolutionary war veteran George Middleton built a home in Beacon Hill with a male friend who was his lover.

Then theres Charlotte Cushman, a Boston actress who was known to be a lesbian and performed in productions like Guy Mannering, Macbeth and Hamlet on stages in the United States and Europe.

These are among the many historic queer stories that people will hear on the Freedom Trails Rainbow Revolutionaries Tours. The special tours highlighting how LGBTQ+ individuals have been making history for centuries are being hosted every weekend in June in honor of Pride month.

The foundations Rainbow Revolutionaries Tours travel along the Freedom Trail and visit seven locations featuring Bostons queer history, which are listed below:

Massachusetts State House: Introduction of queer political milestones, Massachusetts being the first state to legalize same-sex marriage and highlighting LGBTQ+ legislators in the state.

Beacon Hill Friends House: Discuss a significant figure of the house from the 18th century who would be considered non-binary today.

George Middleton House: It is speculated that the man with whom Middleton built the house was his lover.

Boston Common: Discussion surrounding womens suffrage and same-sex relationships.

Tremont Theater: Talk about Charlotte Cushman, a Boston actress who was known to be a lesbian.

Old Corner Book Store: Discussion of lesbian writers and relationships of women who werent married.

Boston City Hall: Celebrate Supreme Court decision to legal same-sex marriage, Bostons Pride parade and Pride happenings in Boston.

Led by 18th-century costumed guides, the tours uncover the history of Boston marriages, political milestones for LGBTQ+ rights, and the storied romances of some of Bostons most famous individuals, from literary giants to a world-renowned actress, and even a Revolutionary war hero, a May press release reads.

Same-sex relationships and gender non-conforming people have always existed throughout history, but until recently, mentions of queer people in history have often gone overlooked, said the tours creator Programs Manager Catherine Benjamin. Its a privilege to bring these stories to light, and acknowledge the identities of people who may have felt hidden in the shadows during the time they lived in.

The Rainbow Revolutionaries Tours are offered Saturdays and Sundays throughout June and leave from Boston Common behind the Robert Gould Shaw and Massachusetts 54th Regiment Memorial at 10:45 a.m.

Freedom Trail walking tours are $17 for adults, $15 for seniors and students, and $8 for children, and include a $1 donation to the Freedom Trail Foundations Preservation Fund. Tickets can be bought at the Boston Common Visitor Information Center, The BOS Traveling Mobile Visitor Center or online.
An 18-year-old woman was shot after she left her graduation ceremony in Bostons Seaport District on Thursday, Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox told reporters during a press conference.

At around 11:43 a.m., the woman, 18, was found with gunshot wounds near 200 Pier 4 Blvd. at the intersection with Northern Avenue, police said.

The woman had just graduated from Boston Collaborative High School, Cox said. She was not shot during a graduation commencement, nor was she shot in the Seaport but possibly in a garage area, he added. The high schools graduation was held at the Institute of Contemporary Art is located near Pier 4 Boulevard.

Early findings in the investigation suggest there was an altercation prior to the [shooting], Cox added.

A witness identified as Sam Miller described hearing screaming and saw a woman being removed from a car and placed on a stretcher, according to Boston 25 News.

This is a travesty, Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden said. This should not happen. High school students attending a graduation on a beautiful day like today shouldnt have to have that day marked with a shooting taking place and a young woman having to go to the hospital ... We need the communitys help, we need people who know something to say something.

No arrests have been made but an investigation remains underway, the Boston Police Department police told MassLive.
A 27-year-old year Massachusetts woman killed in a shooting is being remembered for her beautiful smile and having touched the hearts of many.

At around 11:17 p.m., police arrived at the area of 36 Edson St. in Boston after they received a report of a person shot, Boston police said in a statement.

When police arrived, they found a woman with gunshot wounds and she was taken to the hospital, police said. The woman, identified Wednesday as Pereshah Shear-Yashub, 27, of Taunton, had life-threatening injuries and was later pronounced dead.

This is something I never wanted to do. Words I never wanted to hear and utter. Pain I never wanted to know or feel. Hurt I never wanted to understand. Endless talks and phone calls I never wanted to end. A soul I never wanted to lose or be apart from. A being I never wanted to let go, Tekoah Shear wrote on Facebook announcing her sisters death, calling the 27-year-old my beautiful sunshine.

The family held a ballon release and candle lighting where the balloons and candles were green to honor the womans favorite color. A funeral was also held Saturday.

What I would do to hear you tell me you love me again, how beautiful I was and how grateful you were to have such an amazing older sister like me, Shear wrote. Your voice, your laugh and that smile were everything. My beautiful sister GIZMO, rest is peace princess

She said the day of the funeral was unbearable but reminded people to always cherish the memories of her sister.

I just wanted to say this, my beautiful sister was bright. She touched the hearts of many and left so many memories. Cherish all of them. Even if its just one, she wrote.

Many people wrote about the memories they had of the 27-year-old on Facebook. One friend wrote Shear-Yashub always encouraged her to bake, so she made cupcakes and a cake in her honor.

I made this one special for you and hope you loved it! Thank you for sending signs everyday to show that you will always be close by, Ephrahti Lafleur wrote.
A Taunton woman was identified as the person killed in a Boston shooting on May 31, Boston police announced.

At around 11:17 p.m., police arrived at the area of 36 Edson St. after they received a report of a person shot, Boston police said in a statement released on Wednesday.

When police arrived, they found a woman with gunshot wounds before she was taken to the hospital, police said. The woman, identified Wednesday as Pereshah Shear-Yashub, 27, of Taunton, had life-threatening injuries and was later pronounced dead.

Police are reviewing the facts and circumstances surrounding the fatal shooting. Anyone with information is strongly urged to contact homicide detectives at (617) 343-4470, the statement said.

The Boston Police Department is actively reviewing the facts and circumstances surrounding this incident. Anyone with information is strongly urged to contact Boston Police Homicide Detectives at (617) 343-4470.

Community members wishing to assist in this investigation anonymously can do so by calling the CrimeStoppers Tip Line at 1 (800) 494-TIPS or by texting the word TIP to CRIME (27463), the department said. The Boston Police Department will stringently guard and protect the identities of all those who wish to help this investigation in an anonymous manner.
Twenty-three sets of twins crossed the 8th grade graduation stage at Pollard Middle School in Needham on Wednesday. These 46 students make up just over 10% of the 454 student graduating class.

Just the sheer number, the volume, and in comparison, typically we have between five and 10 sets of twins, but to have 23  its been so fun, Tamatha Bibbo, principal at Pollard Middle School, told the Boston Globe.

Theres one more student who is a twin and graduated from Pollard Wednesday, but her brother attends a different school, Bibbo said.

Twins account for 3% of live births in the U.S., according to data from 2022 from the CDC.

During the graduation ceremony, a set of twins won the Needham Exchange Clubs annual community service award .The twins, Lukas and Sameer Patel, were the first twins to win the award, Bibbo said.

The award is a recognition given to five students in the class who went above and beyond on their 10 hour community service, according to Bibbo. Each Pollard Middle School graduate must have completed up to 10 hours of service learning in their communities.

For Lukas and Sameers work, $100 will be donated to Storytime Crafts, a nonprofit organized and dedicated to inclusive childhood literacy opportunities, according to the Boston Globe.

It was a fantastic day, Bibbo said. The student speeches were heartfelt, and it was a great conclusion to their middle school years.

The Associated Press has contributed to this reporting.
After dealing with the horrors she witnessed as a nurse during the peak of the COVID pandemic, Caroline Sheehan stole fentanyl as a way to self-medicate and cope with anxiety and depression.

Its a grim picture, but its what was going on, Paul Cirel, Sheehans attorney, told the Lowell Sun. Working lengthy shifts ... and watching the body bags build up in the hallway was a horror show for nurses on the front line during the pandemic.

This was a case where Caroline, like others, was essentially self-medicating to deal with the horror show, he said.

Studies have reported a high prevalence of anxiety and depressive symptoms among frontline nurses due to the COVID19 pandemic, according to The National Institutes of Health. These symptoms led to negative coping behaviors, including increased substance use.

In February 2024, Sheehan pleaded guilty to one count of adulteration of a prescription drug with intent to defraud and mislead.

She stole the drugs while working at a Massachusetts hospital in March 2021.

Sheehan removed a bag of intravenous fentanyl solution from an automated dispensing machine. [She] used a syringe to remove fentanyl from the IV bag, injected saline into the bag to replace the fentanyl she had removed and returned the bag to its drawer in the machine, according to a statement from Joshua S. Levy, acting United States Attorney for Massachusetts.

Another hospital employee saw blood on the IV bag, removed it from the machine and reported it. Later, lab tests confirmed fentanyl had been removed from the IV bag, according to the statement.

When it was brought to her attention at the hospital on that day, she didnt make up stories, she didnt deflect, Cirel said. She immediately owned up to it and acknowledged what happened.

She also admitted that she had been stealing prescription drugs from the hospital for months, replacing the siphoned drugs with saline solution, to feed her substance abuse addiction, the statement said.

Sheehan was sentenced on Thursday by U.S. District Court Judge Angel Kelley to three years of probation and ordered not to pursue employment that requires a registered nurse license or permits access to prescription narcotics, according to the statement.
Gov. Maura Healey commented on the Karen Read trial on Thursday, saying that a state troopers testimony this week harmed the dignity of law enforcement when he read his text messages to the courtroom.

Healey described text messages by the cases lead investigator as terrible and said it tarnished the work of law enforcement agencies, according to the State House News Service.

Shes a whack job (expletive), Trooper Michael Proctor, a lead investigator of the case, texted his friends from high school only hours after the victim, Boston police officer John OKeefe, was found on the front lawn of a Canton home and pronounced dead in January 2022.

He read his texts aloud on Monday and Wednesday during testimony of the Read trial.

Mass State Police Trooper Michael Proctor on the witness stand during the Karen Read murder trial on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. (Pool Photo by Greg Derr/Patriot Ledger)

Proctor used expletive-laced language to describe Read and made fun of her medical conditions in text messages to friends, his wife, state police colleagues and his bosses within the homicide unit.

He admitted under whithering cross-examination testimony that his text messages dehumanized Read while the investigation was ongoing.

Healey told reporters the following about Proctors testimony:

Its terrible ... Its completely unprofessional. It does harm, frankly, to the dignity and the integrity of the work men and women across the State Police and law enforcement. So as a former attorney general and as governor, I am disgusted by that, per the State House News Service.

The governor declined to weigh in further on the trial, telling reporters that, This is the subject of a criminal investigation and trial, and therefore its not appropriate for me to speak more to that at this time.

The state police investigator admitted during his testimony that he never expected his text messages to be obtained and it offered a rare glimpse into a law enforcement members unfiltered thoughts in the early stages of a murder investigation.

The Read trial is in its seventh week in Norfolk County Superior Court.

Prosecutors charged Read with second-degree murder, accusing her of striking OKeefe, her boyfriend, while driving intoxicated and after dropping him off at a house party in Canton in the early hours of Jan. 29, 2022.

Reads attorneys say shes been framed in OKeefes death.

The case is expected to be ready for jury deliberations by the end of June.
Testimony is underway in the trial of Karen Read, a Mansfield woman charged in the death of her Boston police officer boyfriend, John OKeefe.

MassLive reporters will provide updates throughout the day.

Read more: Everyone you need to know to understand the Karen Read trial

3 p.m. update: Additional forensic scientist testifies on DNA testing of evidence

Andre Porto, a forensic scientist at the Massachusetts State Police Crime Lab, was the next witness to testify.

Porto performed DNA testing on many pieces of evidence in the case, comparing them to a sample of John OKeefes DNA.

Porto said when he tested a swab from the passenger side taillight from Karen Reads SUV, he found a mixture of DNA from three people, including at least one male. He said when he compared it to OKeefes DNA profile, it was 510 nonillion times more likely to be from OKeefe than not.

Next, he said when he began testing the hair found on the rear panel of the SUV, no human DNA was detected, so he was not able to make any conclusions about it. He explained that this meant not that there was no human DNA but that the sample did not have enough for the lab instruments to test.

A piece of glass found on the bumper of Reads car produced the same result, with no DNA profile detected.

A sample from the exterior of a broken drinking glass found at the scene was found to come from three individuals, and was 539 nonillion times more likely to be from OKeefe than not.

Porto said the two unknown individuals on the samples did not leave enough DNA to develop a profile, and said this can happen when the DNA came from a person just touching the item or because of time, hot temperatures or exposure to the sun.

Five samples from different stains on OKeefes jeans were also tested. Each was found to contain DNA from two or three contributors, with one of the contributors to each ranging from 579 nonillion to 1 decillion times more likely to be from OKeefe than not. A sample from an unstained area of the jeans was found to have DNA from four contributors, one of which was likely to be from OKeefe.

Samples from OKeefes orange T-shirt and both stains and an unstained area on his gray long-sleeved shirt were also found to have DNA likely to be OKeefes.

Some samples, including one from OKeefes shoe and another stain from his gray shirt, were found to be not suitable for testing.

The defense had no questions for Porto and he was allowed to step down at 3 p.m. and Judge Beverly Cannone dismissed court for the day, saying the trial was on schedule.

2:20 p.m. update: Hair on Reads SUV matched John OKeefe

When court resumed after lunch at 1:55 p.m., Tess Chart took the stand as the next witness. Chart is a forensic DNA analyst at BODE Technology in Virginia, like previous witness Nicholas Bradford.

Chart specializes in mitochondrial DNA testing. She explained that this type of DNA is different from the nuclear or autosomal DNA that is typically tested and is inherited from both parents. Mitochondrial DNA is inherited directly from the mother, so will be identical to the mothers mitochondrial DNA as well as that of any siblings.

Because it is stored in the mitochondria, which each cell can have hundreds or thousands of, there is often more mitochondrial DNA in a sample and it can sometimes be tested even if a sample does not have enough for the usual DNA testing, Chart explained.

Chart tested the hair that was found on the rear panel of Karen Reads SUV, which Bradford said earlier Thursday was not enough for autosomal DNA testing. She compared it to a sample from John OKeefe that was also provided to the lab.

The mitochondrial DNA profile from the sample was consistent with the mitochondrial DNA profile obtained from John OKeefe, Chart said, reading from her report. Therefore, John OKeefe cannot be excluded as a possible contributor of that hair.

She said the profile was then uploaded to a national DNA database and it was not seen in the database, meaning 99.895% of the population of the United States could be excluded, she said.

The defense did not have any questions for Chart and she stepped down at 2:20 p.m.

061324-KAREN-READ-POOL-DM-12 Scenes from Karen Read trial at Norfolk County Superior Court in Dedham MA. Here, BODE employee Nicholas Bradford testifying. David McGlynn

12:55 p.m. update: OKeefes DNA was found on Reads taillight

Nicholas Bradford, a DNA analyst at BODE Technology, a lab in Virginia, was the next witness. BODE Technology does DNA analysis for police agencies around the country.

The lab received a hair from the rear panel of Karen Reads SUV, a sample from her taillight, the two buccal swabs from Sgt. Yuriy Bukhenik and Trooper Michael Proctor and a blood sample from John OKeefe.

Bradford said the taillight had DNA from three people, including at least one male. When he compared the sample from the taillight to OKeefes DNA, it was 749 nonillion times more likely than not to have come from OKeefe, adding that the number 1 nonillion has 30 zeroes.

In contrast, he said the analysis indicated the DNA from the taillight was very unlikely to have come from either Bukhenik or Proctor.

He said the hair found on the SUV did not provide a sufficient sample to be tested for DNA.

The defense did not have any questions for Bradford. Judge Beverly Cannone dismissed the court for lunch at 12:55 p.m. and will resume in about 45 minutes.

12:33 p.m. update: DNA was collected from Proctor and Bukhenik

The next witness to very briefly take the stand was Detective Brian Gallerani of the Needham Police Department. Gallerani is certified in DNA collection through buccal swabs.

Gallerani said that on Jan. 16, 2024, he went to the Norfolk District Attorneys office and took samples from Sgt. Yuriy Bukhenik and Trooper Michael Proctor.

These samples were shipped to a lab in Virginia for analysis, he said.

Following this short testimony, Gallerani was allowed to step down, as the defense had no questions for him.

12:28 p.m. update: Tully defends cellphone data analysis

Prosecutor Adam Lally once again questioned State Police Detective Lt. Brian Tully about the cellphone location data he had presented after defense attorney Alan Jackson questioned its validity.

Tully first said he thought Jacksons maps were unclear because it was difficult to see where roads were on the map.

Tully said in other investigations when he receives more data, he can use it to chart a possible route of travel of the person using the cellphone. However, there were not as many records in this case, so he could not do that.

He then explained that while he agreed it would be impossible for Reads cellphone to move at 135,000 miles per hour, this was not what the records showed. He said the time the device is actually at that location could be before or after the times shown on the records.

He said the antenna a device connects to can also be impacted by factors like precipitation. While normally it will connect to the closest antenna, if that isnt possible, it will connect to one further away.

Tully said from the records he received, he would be comfortable saying Read was driving on Washington Street at 5:18 a.m.

Next, Jackson again asked Tully about the start and end times marked on the map. Tully said the times were not used to decide the location of the arcs and were only used to illustrate the map.

After a brief sidebar, Tully was allowed to step down from the witness stand.

061324-KAREN-READ-POOL-DM-8 Scenes from Karen Read trial at Norfolk County Superior Court in Dedham MA. Here, State Trooper Det. Lt. Brian Tully testifying, holding red plastic evidence.David McGlynn

12:12 p.m. update: Defense questions cellphone location data analysis

When testimony resumed, defense attorney Alan Jackson asked State Police Detective Lt. Brian Tully to review a report he wrote on Feb. 10, 2022 about the evidence search at 34 Fairview Road on Jan. 29.

In the report, Tully wrote that two pieces of red and one piece of clear taillight plastic were found at the scene. However, when Jackson asked Tully to again display those pieces of plastic from evidence bags that he showed the jury on Wednesday, one bag contained two pieces of clear plastic and the other contained two large pieces of red plastic and one much smaller fragment.

Where did the extra two pieces of plastic come from? Jackson asked.

Tully said he would take the hit on his report, admitting he had most likely made a mistake on the number of pieces of clear plastic. He said he remembered finding two pieces and the handwritten notes on the bag itself made when the plastic was found said pieces, implying multiple.

He said he guessed that the small fragment of red plastic had broken off one of the larger pieces after they were collected. He said the bags were not always in the custody of the State Police, as they were sent to the Crime Lab for analysis and were also taken out for defense investigators to review.

Jackson next questioned Tullys maps of Karen Reads cellphone location data. Tully confirmed that the cellphone could have been anywhere in a 360-degree radius from the antenna it connected to.

Jackson showed his own map of where Reads phone connected from 5:20 a.m. to 5:37 a.m. The antenna at the intersection of Interstate 93 and Route 138 was about 2.4 miles from 34 Fairview Road, but only about 1 mile from Jennifer McCabes home on Country Lane, according to Jackson, seemingly contradicting his implication earlier Thursday morning that Read did not drive directly to McCabes house when she was looking for John OKeefe.

Jackson said Reads cellphone never connected to either of the antennas closer to 34 Fairview Road at that time, which Tully confirmed.

Jackson questioned the maps Tully showed Thursday morning that depicted an arc of where Reads cellphone could have been located at 5:18 a.m. The two arcs, drawn to represent the beginning and end of one communication between the device and the antenna, were 0.15 miles apart, showing the device moving that distance in less than one second.

Jackson said the cellphone would have had to be moving at 135,000 miles per hour to go that distance in the reported time, calling this physically impossible. Tully said he disagreed that that was what the report showed, but agreed that this was impossible.

Finally, Jackson asked Tully if he had investigated a report of a Ford Edge parked in front of 34 Fairview Road, which he said he had not because the witness who reported it was unreliable.

After Jackson rested, prosecutor Adam Lally resumed questioning Tully, starting with the Ford Edge. Tully said the witness who had seen it had changed his story multiple times, first saying just that they saw the vehicle, then saying they saw it on Cedarcrest Road, not Fairview, and finally saying they saw it shortly before police blocked off the street at 4 a.m., which was inconsistent with the investigation as police did not arrive until after 6 a.m.

Tully also said the investigator interviewing the witness had been suggestive in their questioning, pointing to a Ford Edge and asking the witness if it was the correct vehicle.

061324-KAREN-READ-POOL-DM-5 Scenes from Karen Read trial at Norfolk County Superior Court in Dedham MA. Here, Reads lawyer Alan Jackson questioning witnesses.David McGlynn

11:03 a.m. update: Defense begins cross-examination of Lt. Brian Tully

Defense attorney Alan Jackson began his cross-examination of State Police Detective Lt. Brian Tully by examining the decision not to search inside the house at 34 Fairview Road, going through aspects of the case that he believed should have led to police looking for evidence inside the home.

He pointed out that Tully could have asked for Brian and Nicole Alberts consent to look inside the home and that if he had requested a search warrant and been denied, there would be no sanctions against him for doing so, which Tully confirmed.

Jackson said at the beginning of the investigation, the drinking glass found with OKeefes body was not known to have come from the Waterfall and that, for all the police knew, it came from inside the home.

He also noted that OKeefe was found without any winter clothing.

In 18 degrees, youd expect if someone was outside, theyll have a coat on, Jackson said.

Im the kind of person who wears shorts throughout the year. I often go without a coat, Tully said.

A true Bostonian, Jackson joked.

Jackson asked if it was reasonable to believe OKeefes clothing was taken off and left inside the house, but Tully said that based on other information police had received, this was not a reasonable assumption.

Because police believed at the beginning of the investigation that OKeefe may have been involved in a physical fight before his death, Jackson asked if the house was a location where that could have occurred.

An altercation could take place anywhere and people can often travel from the location of an altercation miles away to another location, Tully said.

Or they could travel 30 feet outside, Jackson said.

Finally, Jackson asked about Brian Higgins statement that he had seen a tall, dark-haired man come into the house the night of the party. He pointed out that Higgins was not interviewed until several days after OKeefes death and asked if that information would have prompted further investigation if it was received earlier.

Id need more information, Tully said. Id ask a series of questions to make sure that this person was John OKeefe.

Jackson then turned briefly to the video footage of the Canton Police Department sally port, which Tully said he reviewed but did not note in his report that it was inverted and did not know of any missing portions. He said he didnt recall what officer had retrieved the video but confirmed that Trooper Michael Proctor had seen the footage and had access to it when Jackson asked.

Jackson began asking about the pieces of taillight plastic found at 34 Fairview Road, asking Tully how many were found, and claiming he had testified and reported an incorrect number. When Tully disagreed, Jackson asked Judge Beverly Cannone for time to look at his notes, and she called for a morning recess just before 11 a.m.

10:36 a.m. update: Reads cellphone location data examined

State Police Detective Lt. Brian Tullys testimony turned next to cellphone location data. He explained that information from cellular antennas can be used to estimate the location of a cellphone when it is used and that he could make generalizations that the phone is in a certain area, but could not say exactly where it is.

He said with additional data from cell service providers from 4G and 5G networks, he can narrow down that area significantly, as that data provides the distance between the phone and the antenna. Because antennas usually do not provide 360-degree service and instead have a band of about 120 degrees, he can draw an arc on the map and assume the cellphone is somewhere on that arc at the time the data was collected, Tully explained.

The person does not necessarily have to be using the cellphone for this data to be collected, he said.

Youre getting notifications, its checking email, its updating, and because its utilizing the network, the provider can record that data, Tully said.

However, he is not always able to get that information, he said, and is limited to what the phone provider can give him. In addition, suburban areas like Canton tend to have fewer antennas and further apart than urban areas like Boston, where there are many more devices that need to connect to them.

On more maps of the area in Canton relevant to the case, Tully showed the Verizon antennas that Reads cellphone connected to on the morning of Jan. 29, 2022. Between 12:33 and 12:34 a.m., her phone connected to an antenna near 34 Fairview Road, on the other side of Interstate 95. Between 12:35 and 12:37 a.m., the phone connected to another antenna nearby but a little further north. At 12:38 a.m., her phone connected to an antenna at the intersection of Interstate 93 and Route 138, further east.

Between 12:39 and 5:08 a.m., Reads phone was connected to an antenna near 1 Meadows Ave., OKeefes home.

At 5:16 a.m., Reads phone connected to an antenna in downtown Canton, just north of the Waterfall Bar & Grille. She next connected to an antenna further south, directly south of OKeefes home on Meadows Avenue, at 5:19 a.m., then the antenna at Interstate 93 and Route 139 from 5:20 to 5:37 a.m., the downtown Canton antenna at 6 a.m., and finally the first antenna near 34 Fairview Road from 6:03 to 6:57 a.m.

He also showed maps showing arcs of where Reads phone may have been based on range data.

Tully stressed that this data showed the general vicinity of her cellphone, not the exact location. He said the data was consistent with Reads path of travel they had established through surveillance footage.

This is just depicting where the handset was, but as we all know, we travel with our cellphone within arms reach, Tully said.

Prosecutor Adam Lally ended his questioning just after 10:30 a.m.

061324-KAREN-READ-POOL-DM-3 Scenes from Karen Read trial at Norfolk County Superior Court in Dedham MA. Here, State Trooper Det. Lt. Brian Tully testifying.David McGlynn

10 a.m. update: Read may not have gone directly to McCabes home to search for OKeefe

State Police Detective Lt. Brian Tully began his testimony Thursday by saying he never searched inside the house at 34 Fairview Road, as other police witnesses have testified throughout the trial.

He explained that to get a search warrant for a home, he would have to demonstrate that there was reason to believe evidence would be found inside. Because investigators did not think John OKeefe had ever entered the house, so there was no reason to believe there would be evidence inside, he said.

He next said it was his decision where to bring Karen Reads SUV for storage after it was seized as evidence. He said he considered all possible facilities between Dighton, where the vehicle was picked up, and Canton, including the Foxborough and Milton State Police barracks. The garages at both barracks were too small, he said, whereas the Canton Police Departments sally port was large enough and heated.

Trooper Michael Proctor similarly testified on Monday that the car was brought to the Canton police station because the facility was large enough and heated to melt ice and snow from the vehicle.

Tully said that in the early hours of Jan. 29, 2022, he spoke to the Canton chief of police and they decided the local police department would recuse itself from the investigation because Brian Alberts brother, Kevin Albert, was a detective on the force. Tully said Canton police would definitely not participate in interviews with witnesses and were recused from essentially the entire investigation.

We had essentially zero information about the investigation, he said. We wanted to remove any appearance of conflict by not having Kevin Albert or any of his coworkers involved in the investigation.

On Wednesday, Tully testified about a piece of clear taillight plastic with dimples that was found at 34 Fairview Road.

I noticed the abrasions (on OKeefes body) had a certain pattern on them, Tully said. When a blunt force object is involved in causing an abrasion, the character of thee object in contact with the person will often leave the character on the person in the form of an abrasion.

Prosecutor Adam Lally asked about the relationship between the piece of clear plastic and the abrasions on OKeefes body, and Tully got as far as saying, Id be comfortable in saying the marks on Mr. OKeefe are consistent with before defense attorney Alan Jackson objected and Judge Beverly Cannone sustained his objection.

Tully said between 12:33 a.m. and 6:03 a.m., Reads cellphone records showed 53 calls to OKeefes cellphone. In that time and after OKeefe was found at 6:30 a.m., she also made calls to Jennifer McCabe, Kerry Roberts, the Cameranos, her parents and members of OKeefes family.

Tully next showed a map he had created of relevant locations to the case in Canton, including the Waterfall Bar & Grille, 34 Fairview Road, OKeefes home and places where surveillance footage was collected, including Canton Public Library and Temple Beth Abraham, which are about 1.5 miles apart.

Lally played clips from surveillance footage from the library and temple, which showed a black SUV consistent with Reads driving by the library at 12:15 and the temple at 12:17 a.m. on the way to 34 Fairview Road from the Waterfall.

The footage again showed the SUV, believed to be Reads going past the library at 5:15 and the temple at 5:18 a.m. on her way to McCabes home when she was looking for OKeefe. Tully said Read arrived at McCabes home on Country Lane at about 5:35 a.m., which he said was not consistent with the distance between the temple and Country Lane.

It would take you much quicker to get there, he said. Its about a mile and a half to get from Temple Beth Abraham to Country Lane.

Lally asked if the time period was enough to drive from the temple to 34 Fairview Road and then to Country Lane, and he said yes.

9:13 a.m. update: Testimony resumes as Tully returns to the stand

State Police Detective Lt. Brian Tully returned to the witness stand Thursday morning to continue his testimony.

Read, 44, is charged with second-degree murder in the death of OKeefe, who was found cold to the touch and unresponsive on Jan. 29, 2022, outside of a home in Canton.

Read more: 5 things to know about the Karen Read trial 6 weeks into testimony

Norfolk County prosecutors say Read struck OKeefe with her SUV while driving intoxicated. Reads attorney, David Yannetti, said during the trials opening statements that her car never struck OKeefe and that others are to blame for his death.

The trial is taking place in Dedhams Norfolk County Superior Court.

On Wednesday, Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor testified about expletive-filled text messages he sent to his high school friends, wife, colleagues and bosses about Read, including calling her a whack job and saying he hoped she would kill herself.
A man was taken to the hospital after he was shot in what police called a chaotic scene at Union Station in Worcester on Wednesday.

Worcester police were alerted to the shooting by the gunshot detection system ShotSpotter around 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday. When they arrived, officers were flagged down and found a man who had been shot.

There was a large crowd present and the scene was chaotic, police said in a statement.

The man was given medical aid and taken to the hospital via ambulance, according to the statement.

Lt. Sean Murtha, a spokesman for the Worcester Police Department, said the man suffered serious injuries that are not expected to be fatal.

The shooting remains under investigation. Anyone with information is urged to contact Worcester police through an anonymous text to 274637 TIPWPD or a call to the deceptive bureau, 508-799-8651.
This story was updated at 3:15 p.m. on June 13, 2024, to add comments from Barnstable County Sheriff Donna Buckleys office.

Despite now facing legal action from Cape and Islands District Attorney Rob Gailbois, the Dukes County sheriff has no plans to comply with Galibois request for employee records dating back 20 years.

On Thursday, Jack Collins, the general counsel for Dukes County [Marthas Vineyard] Sheriff Robert W. Ogden and Nantucket County Sheriff James A. Perelman, said Ogden and Barnstable County Sheriff Donna Buckley were hit with lawsuits by Galibois office this week.

In the suit, Galibois seeks a court order compelling the sheriffs to provide his office with 20 years worth of personnel records for department employees  an attempt, he says, to comply with the landmark 1963 Supreme Court decision, Brady v. Maryland.

The ruling requires prosecutors to disclose any information that could be beneficial to a defendants case, including police disciplinary records.

Read more: Sheriff sued by Cape DA says records sought in suit could cause harm to his office

Galibois has said the records serve to fulfill prosecutors discovery obligations under a recent interpretation of the decision and state and federal laws. But, Collins contends that Galibois is the only district attorney in the state seeking such a broad swath of records.

In fact, he said in an interview Thursday, the Brady obligations the sheriffs office might be required to fill only apply to pending cases where a department employee would be called as a witness or was involved in the investigation. In those cases, the sheriffs office has consistently met its requirements under the law.

Anytime theyve asked, weve always done that, and well always continue to do that, Collins told MassLive. Theres never been a case. Not one single case where they asked us for information about a pending case that we didnt provide in a timely manner. Not one.

Collins also noted that the sheriffs office is not making arrests, and its primary role is to house people in jail as they await trial.

Our only involvement is maybe a courtesy breathalyzer test for them, he said. We dont make arrests, we dont go out and enforce the law. We dont commit investigations. So really, our involvement, or any concern about Brady with our people, is pure speculation and almost nonexistent. Lets be serious.

Barnstable County Sheriffs Office is surprised by this filing, which we believe is inappropriate, said Katherine Meyers, spokesperson for Sheriff Donna Buckley. We have contacted the State Attorney Generals office to determine next steps.

The district attorneys office has said it fears it will be forced to begin dropping cases because it can no longer attest that it has fulfilled its obligations under Brady.

Already, one case has been dismissed by an Edgartown District Court judge after the district attorneys office filed a motion indicating it could not meet its obligation.

Read more: Cape DA sues MV sheriff over failure to disclose records, throwing cases into jeopardy

Collins forcefully denied that the case had anything to do with the sheriffs office.

Nothing to do with Brady, nothing to do with us, he said. Thats a total fabrication.

While Collins declined to speculate on Galibois motivations, he accused the district attorney of grandstanding.

It has nothing to do with his duty to prosecute, Collins said. What in the world does a record of somebody who doesnt even work for us anymore, who used to work for a sheriffs office 20 years ago, have in connection with that case? Thats absolute absurdity.

A spokesperson for Galibois declined to comment, citing the pending litigation.

Prior to the filing of either suit, Galibois told The Boston Globe in an interview his office needed to ensure it was abiding by its professional obligations and moral and ethical obligations and that we are proceeding with a case that we believe in.
A 52-year-old man accused of using New England School of Laws Amazon account to buy equipment for a band he was a member of and other items unrelated to his job is now facing three charges of larceny over $1,200, according to the Suffolk County district attorneys office.

Gareth Flanagan, of Medford, made an initial appearance in Suffolk Superior Court on Wednesday, where a clerk magistrate ordered him held on $1,000 bail and barred him from going near the school. He will return to court on Sept. 9, the district attorneys office said in a statement.

Flanagan worked at the New England School of Law as its IT Director, a position that gave him access to the schools Amazon account. As IT Director, Flanagan could purchase items up to $5,000 without needing approval from the budget director, according to the statement.

Prosecutors say he took advantage of the access, regularly using the Amazon account between January 2020 and October 2022 to purchase equipment for his band, Sloth Machine, and other items not associated with the school or his job. The school hired an external auditor who determined the theft total roughly $68,000, District Attorney Kevin Haydens office said.

When Flanagan was confronted by members of the audit team and members of the law schools board, prosecutors claim he admitted to making the unauthorized purchases and said he was testing the equipment.

Flanagan returned some, but not all, of the items to the law school.

As weve seen in many work-based theft cases, this man took advantage of his position for personal gain, Hayden said in the statement. Theft at the workplace is not only a breach of trust but, in this case, impacted faculty and students who relied on the NESL budget for resources and technology.
MassLive recently asked readers to identify people they consider Black leaders in Massachusetts, working to make a difference in politics, education, business, the arts or another area of interest.

Profiles of these leaders will be published leading up to the Juneteenth holiday on June 19. 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.

Jacqueline Johnson (Courtesy photo)Courtesy photo

Jacqueline Johnson

Age: 38

Community: Springfield

Her Story: Growing up in a poor, single-parent household, Jacqueline Johnson always viewed education as a way to create a better future for herself. She now feels it is only right to use her education to advocate for others.

In addition to teaching at Bay Path University and serving as Chief Facilities Expansion and Sustainability Officer for Caring Health Center, Inc., Johnson works in youth development and social justice.

I quickly took to becoming involved in youth advocacy work, as well as becoming a part of any program where I could help others, Johnson explained.

After graduating with a bachelors degree from Mount Holyoke College and a masters from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Johnson received her Doctor of Education in Higher Education Leadership and Organizational Studies from Bay Path University.

Based on her own experience, Johnson is committed to creating fair educational opportunities for underprivileged populations. Volunteerism in school committees, foundation boards and local activist programs has allowed her to do so.

Johnson believes it is vital that women like herself, who have earned their seat at the table, carve out spaces for those to follow in their footsteps.

I am a reflection of many of the communities in which I work and live, and I have committed myself to being as involved as possible, serving as a cultural broker in community spaces, Johnson said.

Her involvement in the community also allows her to be continually adaptive and in touch with peoples needs. She finds it a privilege to be the voice to facilitate such change, Johnson told MassLive.

My volunteer work became particularly important to me as I began to notice patterns around who had a voice in addressing certain injustices and who did not, Johnson said.

Johnson added, As the daughter of a single mother, my upbringing motivated and instilled an unwavering determination to both succeed and contribute meaningfully, which has guided my educational and professional journey.

Johnson encourages that anyone in similar lines of community work remain mindful and engage in conversations and environments that reflect someone elses experience. She says this openness allows one to expand their perspective.

In her words: I believe that education is a critical component of a more just and equitable society. My mission is to create fair education and employment opportunities that empower underserved and underrepresented communities to flourish.

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 woman was hospitalized after she was found shot in Bostons Seaport District on Thursday, the Boston Police Department confirmed to MassLive.

At around 11:43 a.m., the woman was found with gunshot wounds near 200 Pier 4 Blvd. at the intersection with Northern Avenue, police said.

The woman was hospitalized with what the Boston Police Department said were non-life-threatening injuries. During a press conference, Boston Police Commissioner Michael Cox said the woman, 18, had just come from her graduation at Boston Collaborative High School when she was shot. She was not shot during a graduation commencement, nor was she shot in the Seaport but potentially in a garage area.

Early findings in the investigation suggest there was an altercation prior to the [shooting], Cox added.

A witness identified as Sam Miller described hearing screaming and saw a woman being removed from a car and placed on a stretcher, according to Boston 25 News.

This is a travesty, Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden said. This should not happen. High school students attending a graduation on a beautiful day like today shouldnt have to have that day marked with a shooting taking place and a young woman having to go to the hospital... We need the communitys help, we need people who know something to say something.

No arrests have been made but an investigation remains underway, the Boston Police Department police told MassLive.
(*This story was updated at 11:50 a.m. on Thursday, June 13, 2024, with additional reporting.)

The states highest court effectively has cleared the way for a proposed ballot question boosting the minimum wage for tipped workers to appear on this Novembers ballot.

In a ruling issued Thursday, the states Supreme Judicial Court upheld state Attorney General Andrea J. Campbells earlier certification of the proposal, a key step to get it before the voters, State House News Service reported.

If its approved finally, the ballot question would phase out the separate wage for employees who earn tips, dealing a blow to the states restaurant industry, which had sought to block it.

Under current law, businesses are allowed to pay the wage if a workers tips get them to the statewide minimum of $15 an hour, the newspaper reported.

The proposed ballot measure would phase out the states service rate by 2029, MassLive previously reported.

The proposed ballot question also would allow for tip-sharing between front- and back-of-house workers once wages reached parity among all workers.

In a 19-page ruling, Judge Scott Kafker rejected arguments by opponents that the proposal violated a constitutional requirement that such questions contain language that is related or mutually dependent.

The tipped wage and tip pooling elements, they argued, were too unrelated to be considered with a single up or down vote.

The provisions are closely related and share a well-defined common purpose related to ending the existing compensation system common to tipped industries, Kafker wrote.

In a statement, One Fair Wage, the advocacy group behind the campaign, called the ruling an incredible victory for Massachusetts workers and voters.

In its ruling the court rightly sided with the people, recognizing that workers have the right to decide this issue at the ballot, Saru Jayaraman, the groups president, said.

We are excited to finish the final stages of signature gathering and certification and launch our statewide campaign to win a full minimum wage with tips on top for hundreds of thousands of Massachusetts service workers, Jayaraman said.

All told, some 240,000 people work in the restaurant industry across the commonwealth, according to One Fair Wages website.

One Fair Wage announced in November that it had collected 108,000 signatures to advance the ballot measure boosting the Bay States tipped wage of $6.75 an hour, according to the Boston Globe.

The advocacy group has cast the fight as one of both economic fairness and racial justice, pointing out that nearly 30% of Massachusetts restaurant workers are people of color and the majority are women largely employed in casual restaurants where wages and tips are limited.

And despite omnipresent tip jars  both physical and virtual  restaurant workers across the Bay State have reported that their tips have declined by 50% to 70%, according to One Fair Wage.

In a statement, Stephen Clark, the president and CEO of the Massachusetts Restaurant Association, said that despite the ruling tipped employees continue to be overwhelmingly opposed to this ballot question brought from activists in California.

Servers and bartenders from across Massachusetts have been reaching out to express fear that this question will take money out of their pockets. This decision simply increases that concern, Clark continued.

Servers and bartenders have always had the exclusive right to their earned tips and previous SJC rulings have affirmed as much, he added. [Thursdays decision allows an out-of-state group with anonymous money, the opportunity to try to negatively impact servers, owners and customers across the restaurant industry.
The U.S. Supreme Courts unanimous ruling rejecting a challenge to the federal governments regulation of the abortion medication mifepristone is a victory, but the fight for abortion access is far from over.

That was the word Thursday from the Bay States elected officials as they parsed a decision that could have had a potentially wide-reaching impact in a state where abortion remains safe and legal.

The Supreme Court reaffirmed what we all know  that this reckless, political attack on womens health and freedom had no place in federal court and that no one should be able to second guess the scientific expertise of the [U.S. Food and Drug Administration], Gov. Maura Healey said.

Mifepristone has been used safely and effectively for decades, and it must remain legal and accessible, she continued.

Last year, Healeys office announced that it had stockpiled 15,000 doses of the medication, which are now under the auspices of the state Department of Public Health.

Healey also issued an executive order clarifying that state law protects access to mifepristone. The Democratic administration said it also delivered $1 million to health care providers to purchase doses of the medication.

In an email, Healey spokesperson Karissa Hand said the administration would share details on next steps soon on the fate of those state-stockpiled doses.

In its first ruling since overturning Roe v. Wade nearly two years ago, the majority-conservative court ruled that abortion opponents lacked the legal right to sue over the federal Food and Drug Administrations approval of the medication, mifepristone, and the FDAs subsequent actions to ease access to it.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote for the court that federal courts are the wrong forum for addressing the plaintiffs concerns about FDAs actions. Kavanaugh was part of the majority to overturn Roe.

The high court is separately considering another abortion case, about whether a federal law on emergency treatment at hospitals overrides state abortion bans in rare emergency cases in which a pregnant patients health is at serious risk.

More than 6 million people have used mifepristone since 2000. Mifepristone blocks the hormone progesterone and primes the uterus to respond to the contraction-causing effect of a second drug, misoprostol.

The two-drug regimen has been used to end a pregnancy through 10 weeks gestation.

Both Healey and state Attorney General Andrea J. Campbell filed amicus briefs urging it to preserve access to the medication.

In a statement, Campbell urged continued vigilance despite the ruling.

Read More: Andrea Campbell joins other AGs to urge SCOTUS to overturn abortion pill ruling

Make no mistake: anti-abortion advocates will not stop trying to prevent Americans from accessing reproductive healthcare, including medication abortion, she said. I am ready to take on these fights and will use every tool at my disposal to ensure continued access to abortion for all who need it.

In a separate statement, U.S. Rep. Ayanna Pressley, D-7th District, called the ruling a major relief and victory for anyone who has or will ever need essential medication abortion care.

Like Campbell, Pressley issued a similar warning, noting that anti-abortion extremists at every level of government continue to try to rip away critical healthcare from millions of people. This case put essential reproductive healthcare at risk for people across the country, including in Massachusetts. "

Pressley called on her congressional colleagues to [pass] my Abortion Justice Act and the Womens Health Protection Act, which ensure further protections.

In a post to X, U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., said the challenge to mifepristone was meritless from the start. Abortion medication is safe and effective.

Make no mistake: Donald Trump and Republican politicians will not stop marching us toward a nationwide abortion ban, Warren wrote. We must protect reproductive freedom everywhere.

Associated Press reports are included in this story.
The Massachusetts House on Thursday adopted a resolution setting the weekend of Aug. 10-11 as this years sales tax holiday.

The annual tax holiday enables shoppers to avoid the sales tax on many purchases, although critics say it doesnt generate much new economic activity and merely shifts consumer buying patterns.

Over the years, public officials have settled on holding the holiday in August in a bid to ramp up shopping during a lighter period for some retailers and to give families savings on back-to-school expenses.

During the annual tax holiday weekend, the state will suspend collection of the 6.25 percent sales tax on most items that retail for less than $2,500.

The holiday does not apply to purchases of motor vehicles, motorboats, meals, alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, marijuana products, telecommunications services like prepaid calls, natural gas, steam, or electricity.

The Department of Revenue estimated that indirect tax revenues generated due to increased economic activity during the sales tax holiday weekend last year totaled approximately $3.54 million.

The agency said the holiday resulted in about $36.94 million in forgone sales tax revenue for the state -- $24.23 million of which would have gone into the General Fund, $6.75 million into the MBTA State and Local Contribution Fund, and $5.9 million into the School Modernization and Reconstruction Trust Fund.

The state Senate must also adopt a resolution for the Legislature to officially set the dates of the sales tax holiday weekend.

Sen. Susan Moran, D-Plymouth/Barnstable, the Senate chair of the Revenue Committee, filed a resolution (S 2825) proposing the same Aug. 10-11 weekend for the tax-free weekend.

The Senate is in session Thursday and could vote to adopt that proposal.

If the Legislature does not settle on a weekend by Saturday, Revenue Commissioner Geoffrey Snyder has until July 1 to set dates for the sales tax holiday.
After years of false starts, a bill that would ban revenge porn in Massachusetts appears headed for Gov. Maura Healeys desk.

The state Senate voted 38-0 on Thursday to approve the legislation, which would make it illegal to share sexually explicit images without someones consent, State House News Service reported.

"It took longer than we would have liked but today the day has come for decisive action. As technology evolves, the threat of damage that can be done by these sorts of actions grows by the day, Senate Minority Leader Bruce E. Tarr, R-1st Essex/Middlesex, said during floor debate.

That damage can be disruptive and damaging to the victims lives, Tarr said. We are in debt to the victims who have risen to show courage and commitment to provide us with information and inspiration to enable us to get to this day.

The upper chambers vote came a day after the state House voted 155-0 to approve the bill.

Here are three things to know about the legislation.

Whats in it?

The compromise language that hit the floor this week bans the sharing of images of someone who is nude, partially nude, or engaged in sexual conduct without their permission, even if they agreed to the creation of an image or recording, according to State House News Service.

The ban also extends to images generated by artificial intelligence that purport to depict a real person in a sexually explicit manner. The images are often referred to as deep fakes, the wire service reported.

It also creates a new diversion and education program for adolescents who engage in sexting.

Until this week, Massachusetts was one of only two states in the nation without such a law. The bill headed to Healeys desk will leave South Carolina as the only outlier.

Why does it matter?

Research shows that people who are the subject of revenge porn or deep-fake images can suffer long-lasting damage to both their reputations and their mental health.

Often, survivors do not know the images have been shared until after they see them online, The Boston Globe reported in 2022.

And some estimates show that 1 in 25 Americans have been a victim of revenge porn.

The harms from nonconsensual image sharing can be substantial; a single act of posting sensitive images can cause lasting and ongoing reputational damage to victims, according to a 2016 report by the Data & Society Research Institute.

These images are often posted alongside personally identifying information about the victim when they are posted in online spaces, which can lead to additional harassment and threats from third parties, the institute wrote in its analysis. Even if the images are never actually posted [publicly], the perpetrator may use threats to post such images as a method of controlling or intimidating the victim.

During debate on the House floor on Wednesday, state Rep. Alyson Sullivan-Almeida, R-7th Plymouth, shared stories of two of her constituents whose private images had been shared by romantic partners.

This bill will help others and protect so many victims from being victimized like the both of you, Sullivan-Almeida said, according to State House News Service.

While we have failed so many survivors for so many years, today, that changes, she added. Today, we have taken one step forward in protecting victims across the commonwealth.

What theyre saying:

Advocates hailed the vote, which they called long overdue.

Its heartbreaking that its taken this long for revenge porn to finally  almost  be on the books here, said Alex Hagerty, who was the target of revenge porn, told the Globe.

But were at the finish line here, folks, Hagerty told the newspaper God forbid someone falls victim to revenge porn in the future, but they wont have to go through the horror and grief that myself and other survivors went through. They now will have an avenue to hold their abusers accountable.

State Rep. Michael Day, D-31st Middlesex, the lead House negotiator on the bill, said deep fakes can be just as damaging as sharing the actual images of a person, and our prosecutors need this tool to go after abuses and provide survivors with relief.

Healey spokesperson Karissa Hand told State House News Service that the Democratic governor has long supported legislation to ban revenge porn and hold accountable those who would engage in abusive, coercive, and deeply harmful behavior.

She appreciates the Legislatures work on moving this important bill forward and looks forward to reviewing, and legislation that gets to her desk, Hand told the wire service.
If you want to get people going, write about our immigration debate.

Few issues provoke more emotions or elicit more opinions than the social, budgetary, and political pressures exerted by the situation at the nations southern border and its downstream effects on states such as Massachusetts.

I was reminded of that again recently with our coverage of the failed efforts on Capitol Hill to get a compromise immigration reform bill onto President Joe Bidens desk.

My inbox filled up, seemingly within minutes, after those stories appeared on MassLives homepage.

We have 160+ nations flying to Mexico so they can take advantage of Joe Bodens (sic) open border policies, one reader wrote. This recent immigration bill was not intended to solve illegal immigration but to fast track it for the democratic parties (sic) future.

Another reader objected to our describing the Bay States ever-expanding migrant population, in another story, as new arrivals.

No, [theyre] Illegals, they wrote.

Both emails were reminders of how thoroughly embedded this weaponized language is in our current political discourse, and of the corrosive effect it has on the way we talk to  and view  each other.

Our politics, our discourse, how we treat people, all of it is affected by language, Boston-based political analyst Mary Anne Marsh said in an interview Wednesday.

We already know, for instance, that were not supposed to refer to asylum-seekers or other migrants as illegals.

Nor is the arrival of thousands of people, fleeing the most desperate of circumstances, an invasion.

Thats because only an action, and not a person, can be illegal, as a 2023 analysis by the Vera Institute for Justice so ably pointed out.

Numerous researchers have found that using negative metaphors to describe immigrants shapes public opinion and robs immigrants of their individuality, which could make them seem less deserving of assistance and public sympathy, the Vera Institutes Erica Bryant wrote.

Of course, that hasnt stopped anyone from using that kind of language.

And sadly, its been a part of our discourse for decades.

Derogatory references to immigrants  legal or illegal  have been around for as long as there have been immigrants arriving on these shores.

But the way Marsh, a Democratic consultant, sees it, that dialogue took a particularly nasty turn in 2016 with the campaign and eventual election of former President Donald Trump.

In his first two bids for the White House, the former chief executive routinely deployed language that dehumanized immigrants and foreigners.

Comments about s**thole countries, and nations sending rapists and murderers to the border were hallmarks of Trumps first term.

During Trumps third White House campaign, that language only has intensified, with the Republican referring to political opponents as vermin, and charging that immigrants are poisoning the blood of the country.

Some have seen authoritarian parallels in that kind of talk  which Trump and his campaign have denied.

Still, that kind of divide and conquer politics is the only way he can return to the White House, Marsh said. Hes not only motivating [his] voters, hes discouraging another element of voters so they dont vote and ... stay home.

And eight years after his first campaign, its been normalized, Marsh noted.

Not that Trump, who routinely cusses on the stump, is alone in his behavior. The coarsening of the nations political dialogue also has freed up other politicians, some of them Democrats, to use the same kind of language.

During an appearance on MSNBC last weekend, Pennsylvanias Democratic governor, Josh Shapiro, let loose on Trump, saying the Republican needed to stop s**t-talking America.

But where some might see Shapiros language as merely colorful, the very specific rhetoric deployed by Trump and his loyalists targets a vulnerable population with the fewest resources to fight back.

And there is evidence that its affecting the rest of us.

Forty-five percent of respondents to a Pew Research Center poll described the situation at the border as a crisis, while nearly a third (32%) said it was a major problem, The Associated Press reported in April.

And that shift in attitudes has another impact, one veteran observer said.

The dehumanization of political opponents are the bricks that pave the road to political violence, Robert Jones, the founder of the Public Religion Research Institute, told NPR last November.

Indeed, a PRRI poll conducted last October found that nearly a quarter of voters (23%), including a third of Republicans, believed that American patriots may have to resort to violence in order to save our country.

And in a 2019 Pew poll, 85% of respondents said they believed the nations political dialogue had gotten less respectful, and less fact-based (76%).

Marsh said she believes theres a way back to civility. But its going to take a while.

It always takes twice as long to fix something as it does to break it, she said. I think, after this election, there will be multiple efforts, on multiple fronts, to shore things up to make sure this does not happen again.

Thats going to take some work. And its going to take all of us. But its not impossible.
SPRINGFIELD  Police Officer Gregg Bigda is back off the city payroll after a 3-1 vote by the Police Commission early Wednesday evening.

Commissioners voted by a majority to suspend Bigda without pay indefinitely, two months after the Massachusetts Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) Commission made a final ruling to decertify the veteran city officer after multiple appeals.
BOSTON  The Springfield police officer who was shot in the head and leg last Wednesday was released from the hospital today.

Nestor Santos was discharged from Massachusetts General Hospital one week after being shot, according to Ryan Walsh, Springfield Police Department spokesperson. Around 200 officers from across the commonwealth were there to greet him, Walsh said on X this morning.
The Government might think it has a big problem with immigration, but that problem will be nothing compared to the one it will have with emigration. Saying that this country is losing its young professional people is an understatement  as the Government will discover at general election time. Every Irish person who leaves home affects people, families and communities.

Irish people are leaving in droves. This is not a seasonal migration like tattie-hokers or labourers seeking building work for a few months. This is the leaving of our next generation and loss of future generations, a brain drain.

We are losing those in whom we invested third-level education. You name them, they are all going  doctors, nurses, teachers, technicians, engineers and other professionals, alongside semi-skilled professionals and others.

It is not acceptable. We can argue that all graduates owe the State something after their educational investment. Some call for a five-year commitment to work in a state job on graduation as a payback. At present, we educate them, train them and export them.

We can see in healthcare the number of doctors and nurses on whom we depend (and thankfully, who we welcome) from Asia.

We have crazy situations in teaching where some schools have to depend on unqualified people to take classes. Other schools face the ordeal of advertising for a teacher, then appointing one, only to be asked after a few months for a career break so that the teacher can go off to the Middle East to work tax-free. Meanwhile, back home, the school is back at square one looking for a teacher.

None of these issues are being adequately dealt with by the Government. And they havent been for successive governments. What are we really thinking as citizens when we look at the likes of Micheal Martin, Leo Varadkar and Simon Harris  all former health ministers who failed miserably in that portfolio? How is it that some of those who led us into a major financial crisis are still at the helm? The others are still counting their generous government pay-offs.

Do we really think that voting for the same people will yield a different result?

While government mouthpieces will have us believe that all is well and we never had it so good, the reality is different. Note also how the mainstream media will target those who oppose the Government, from parties to individual politicians.

The reality is that everything costs more. Yet, still we expect change as we wait for another two government-imposed excise increases on transport and home-heating fuel before the year is out. Whether we like it not, to ensure change we must vote change. Its as simple as that. Change will not come with the same politicians.

We are where we are because of those in power. Health and housing are in a mess. Local government is a laughing stock. With the demise of our local town councils (thanks to Fine Gael/Labour) we are at the lowest rung of the local government ladder in Europe.

Republican Sinn Fein had the right idea with Eire Nua  restoring power to each province and enabling access to national and European funds from a regional (rather than Dublin only) basis. All the Government could do was establish regional assemblies, which in effect are toothless bodies.

The Governments website, gov.ie, tells us: The Regional Assemblies source European funding for Regional Programmes, they promote coordinated public services, they monitor proposals which may impact on their areas, and they advise public bodies of the regional implications of their policies and plans. The reality is that most people are not even aware of their existence.

In essence, the country is not working. There is no leadership, just more of the same old, same old. There can only be change when we, the people, create that change. That means we have to vote change.

Last Fridays vote was a pointer, but the general election is where it matters. People will vote for a local councillor regardless of party affiliation. At national level the story is different. Thats where the change is needed.

Emigration will soon affect most families as it did generations ago. Meanwhile, our politicians continue to waste our time and theirs.
THERE was no shortage of drama in the Claremorris six seat constituency where history was made on two fronts on Saturday night. Paul Lawless from Knock became the first candidate from the new Aontu party to secure election to a Council in the western province and Alma Gallagher from Ballyhaunis became the first ever female to be elected in this region.

It was a long day into night for the candidates and especially for those in the shake-up for the final seats. From once the tallies became known, it was clear that five of the six seats were already in the bag. Patsy OBrien from Robeen closed in on around 2,800 first preference votes with another phenomenal performance.

Five years ago, Patsy topped the poll for Fine Gael but this time he was standing as an Independent. He secured the biggest vote of any candidate in Mayo and already there is strong talk that he could stand in the next General Election. Early speculation abounds about him running on the Independent Ireland ticket following the huge performance of Chris Maxwell for the new party in the Westport region.

Richard Finn (Independent) put in another huge performance securing1,831 votes on the first count and ensuring that the dynasty started by his late father Martin (a former Fine Gael TD back in the 1970s) was maintained in remarkable fashion. It was incredible to see Patsy OBrien and Richard Finn maintain such strong positions with the electorate of the Claremorris region.

Damien Ryan of Fianna Fail and Michael Burke of Fine Gael, both from the Ballinrobe area, were assured of their seats after the first count. There were no surprises here as every political forecaster had put them in the winners enclosure in the days and weeks leading up to the election.

It was, as I said in my preview two weeks ago, always going to come down to four candidates for two seats, Tom Connolly (outgoing) and Alma Gallagher of Fine Gael, Paul Lawless of Aontu and Stephen Nolan for Fianna Fail.

It became clear when the tallies came in that Alma Gallagher was on course to win a seat which she did with relative ease and with mammoth support from John Cribbin who stepped down after 25 years of dedicated service to the region.







Tally errors

While Stephen Nolan put in a huge campaign and secured around 900 first preference votes, the final showdown was always going to be between Tom Connolly and Paul Lawless. Errors in the tally figures gave considerable hope to the Fine Gael camp that they would edge the seat but when the first count came in, Paul Lawless had secured 85 extra votes from those relayed in the tallies.

You could since a mood swing right away with renewed hope in the Aontu camp and fresh concern on the Fine Gael side. The gap was down to just 39 votes. Tom Connolly, as expected benefitted more than Paul Lawless from the distribution of Patsy OBriens surplus but the gap still stood at just 82.

Paul edged ahead by six votes after the distribution of the votes of Eamon Phelan, Geraldine Kelly, Aaron Kelly and Sandra Sweetman. Mark Devane, standing for Independent Ireland, surprised many by securing 658 first preferences and reaching 820 before elimination. Paul Lawless benefitted significantly from that distribution and this assured him of election even before the distribution of Stephen Nolans votes which were always going to lean massively towards Alma Gallagher and also to Paul Lawless.







Feeling of empathy

Narrowly losing a seat is never easy and there was a palpable feeling of empathy with Tom Connolly across political lines. There was also a sense of widespread appreciation for Tom among many from the general Claremorris region for work done in relation to infrastructure and facilities in the area during his 20 years on the Council, helped in no small way by his friendship with former Minister, Michael Ring TD.

It now looks as if newly elected Alma Gallagher will be a Fine Gael candidate in the next General Election. There is a huge geographical area of east and south Mayo without a party candidate since the days of John OMahony and Jim Higgins and Alma is almost certainly being prepared for what may well be a formidable challenge for a Dail seat.

It is, of course, also likely that Paul Lawless will fly the Aontu flag in the General Election which will take place within the next year while Patsy OBrien, as hinted earlier on, may well be coaxed to stand for Independent Ireland. After four years without an election, another one is closing in on us already. Interesting times ahead!
A NEW electric fast charger has been installed and is now operational at Westport train station to give Electric Vehicle (EV) drivers more charging options in Mayo.

The installation of the 150kW charger at Westport train station was completed by ePower as part of an agreement with Iarnrod Eireann to install chargers at stations throughout the county. The partnership came about through a tender process and as well as Westport the fast chargers are now operational at Dundalk (Clarke), Tralee (Casement), Westport, Sallins & Naas and Bray (Daly) stations.

The installation of the new fast charger in Westport train station will give EV extra options in the west Mayo town with existing fast chargers already located at James Street car park and at Westport Quay

ePower is a market leader in the provision of renewable energy solutions, electric vehicle chargers and solar panels and has bases in Dublin and Cork. Having supplied and commissioned the chargers, ePower will continue to maintain and manage the equipment, including through the provision of 24/7 support services.

Commenting on the installation of the chargers, co-founder and Director of ePower, Hugh Hall said: We are delighted to be working with Iarnrod Eireann / Irish Rail on this project. This equipment will cater to the widest possible group of EV drivers as they will be suitable for the older-style CHAdeMO chargers, as well as the newer CCS formats.

Having chargers at its stations illustrates Iarnrod Eireann / Irish Rails commitment to facilitating the growing community of EV drivers and were also proud to be helping promote more environmentally friendly transport options for the public as well as our own customers, he said.

Energy Manager from Iarnrod Eireann / Irish Rail, Shane McManus said they are happy to have the chargers onsite: I have found ePower to be a professional and efficient company in the delivery of an EV charger project to Iarnrod Eireann/Irish Rail for multiple 150kW chargers. The company has an in-depth knowledge of the commercial EV charger space, and responses to information requests have been prompt and detailed.

The partnership with Iarnrod Eireann / Irish Rail is the latest in a series of exciting opportunities for ePower. In the past 18 months, the company has announced the installation of its EV chargers in locations belonging to the Defence Forces, Environmental Protection Agency, renewable energy firm rsted and 13 hotels operated by Windward Management. It also opened its Dublin base in Ballymount, in response to growing demand for EV charging and solar solutions.
AN Taoiseach Simon Harris was among the mourners who attended the funeral in Dublin this afternoon of Mayo native Theresa Clarke who was killed in a tragic accident while canvassing.

A native of Ballinrobe, Theresa Clarke nee Loughrey died on Sunday after she failed to recover from injuries she received after she was struck by a bicycle last Tuesday, June 4.

The 70-year-old mother of three was helping erecting election posters on the Ranelagh Road in South Dublin when she was struck by a bicycle at around 11pm.

Ms Clarke, who was a former teacher and principal at Scoil Aonghusa in Balrothery, Tallaght, suffered head injuries in the collision and was taken to the Beaumont Hospital in Dublin where she passed away peacefully on Sunday.

She was married to Michael Clarke a native of Ballindine and they lived in Dublin all their adult life where they reared their three daughters, Elaine, Miriam and Josephine. The family was heavily involved with Fine Gael in the Dublin Bay South constituency and her son-in-law John Clendennen was elected a councillor on Offaly County Council for the Birr Electoral Area.

An Taoiseach Simon Harris and newly elected Fine Gael MEP for Dublin, Regina Doherty and a number of Fine Gael TDs and members were in attendance at her Funeral Mass in St Annes Church, Bohernabreena in south Dublin. A large number of people from south Mayo including Independent councillor Patsy O'Brien also travelled to Dublin for the Funeral Mass and burial in Bohernabreena Cemetery.

A family member from Mayo who travelled to the funeral told The Mayo News the family were in shock at what happened to Theresa.

Theresa and Michael and their three children are heavily involved with Fine Gael in Dublin Bay South and An Taoiseach Simon Harris attended the funeral and there was a big representation from the Government and Fine Gael at the funeral. There was also a big presence from Ballinrobe and Ballindine and south Mayo where the family are well known.

The accident was a huge shock to everyone and unfortunately Theresa suffered bad injuries and did not come through. It was a tragic accident where she was checking a poster she had erected for a local councillor in that area and the bicycle struck her coming around a corner. The family are still in shock at what happened, the family member said.

Her son-in-law, Cllr John Clendennen, told The Irish Mirror that he and his family were in shock over the loss.

Were staying united and trying to deal with the grief of losing someone that was so close and such a tower of strength to her three daughters and extended family. She was very proud of her career as a teacher and principal. Her main joys outside of her family was her involvement with Fine Gael as a party and her contribution to it, he said.

Gardai investigating the incident have appeared for any witnesses or anyone who had footage surrounding the incident to come forward to gardai.

Theresa is predeceased by her parents Dan and Josephine Loughrey and her brother Finian and is survived by her husband Michael; daughters, Elaine, Miriam and Josephine; grandchildren, Oakley, Percy and Arlo; her sons-in-law; brother, Danny, sister Anne (Brophy), brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law and extended family.
ROUGHLY Ukrainian refugees are being accommodated in Mayo households in receipt of the Accommodation Recognition Payment.

With state accommodation now limited to 90 days for new arrivals, groups like Westport Welcomes Ukraine are advocating for more households to consider hosting Ukrainian refugees.

With more hotels like Hotel Westport ending their contracts to host Ukrainian refugees, many Ukrainians must secure scarce private accommodation, return home to Ukraine or stay with a host family.

The Tunney household were one of the first Mayo households to host Ukrainian refugees after hundreds of mainly women and children fled to the county for safety in the spring of 2022.

Svietlana Huliaieva didnt speak a word of English when she first came to Mayo with her then-19-year-old daughter Polina.

By the time she moved to her own accommodation on Westport Quay a number of months ago, she had full conversational English.

Speaking to The Mayo News in her West Mayo home in Cushin, Dooncastle, near Knockrooskey, Susan Tunney said she fell on her feet with Svietlana and Polina.

Though they no longer live under the same roof, but Susan still refers to her as her Ukrainian sister.

If everyone got a Svitlana they wouldnt want to get rid of them. Svitlana is super. I fell on my feet. There is people that havent fell on their feet, so I can understand people shying away, the mother-of-four said.

If I had listened to the stories, Id never have taken you, she added, looking at Svietlana.

Ukrainian sister

Everyone has to do what they want and it was the best thing we ever did as a family. Shes super. My Ukrainian sister. Were blessed.

Its not something ever in a million years Id have thought of doing. I dont know why we decided, Susan admitted.

We were lying in bed one night and they were on about the war and I said to Damien, Will we take someone? He was like If you want. I was like Take a mother and kids maybe. It fell perfect for us, we got two adults.

Svietlana, as Susan explains, never wanted to live in a hotel.

After arriving to Susans door with no more than a hello Svietlana quickly took up English classes hosted at Leitir NS.

Through her own determination, she eventually had enough English to take up a beauty course in Mayo College of Education.

Living independently

Today, she lives independently in Westport Quay and works in a beautician in Castlebar.

She also volunteers with Ukrainian refugees at Hotel Westport, many of whom have begun leaving the hotel before it ends its contract with the International Protection Accommodation Service.

Its just a shock for children, said Svietlana, who has background in science, which she studied in university.

For some people would like to live here and just find another place, like rooms like a house but some people just dont care about the place. They dont mind where they live. Its just important to find something, maybe another county.

Subject to various terms and conditions, those in receipt of the Accommodation Recognition Payment receive a monthly payment of 800 for hosting Ukrainian refugees in their property.

Both the Tunneys and the Huliaievas have found their experience as hosts and guests a positive one and hope other families will have a similar experience.

I find Susan and all the family really amazing people, said Sivetlana.

It could happen another way, Im happy that its nice way and we meet Susan and her family because its much energy between us.

Anyone interested in offering a room to Ukrainian refugees can contact Westport Welcomes Ukraine while those interested in offering a property can visit offerahome.ie.
Mayo man Shane Lavelle has been selected for the next stage of the prestigious Reach for the Stars astrophotography competition, run by the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies (DIAS).

The competition aims to find the best astrophotography taken in Ireland over the past year.

The Castlebar native Mr has been shortlisted in the Back on Earth  Landscape category for his image, Winter Milky Way.

While a high-profile judging panel will select the overall winning entries in the coming weeks, an online vote was launched today so that members of the public can also have their say.

Over 230 images were submitted to this years competition, the most ever received, with 50 selected for the shortlist and public vote.

Entrants were invited to submit entries across five distinct categories in the competition:

Night Sky in Your Hand: Images taken with only a smartphone, and without telescopes, of an astronomical scene. Out of this World  Planetary: Images of the planets, sun and moon. Out of this World  Deep Sky: Images of celestial objects that exist outside our solar system, such as nebulae, star clusters, and galaxies. Back on Earth  Landscape: Images that depict a feature of astronomical interest as a prominent feature and elements such as nature, land or water. Back on Earth  Landmark: Images that depict a feature of astronomical interest as a prominent feature and elements such as cityscapes, buildings, houses, historical structures or monuments.

The winning images selected by the judging panel and the public vote will be announced in July, and an outdoor exhibition will be staged by DIAS to showcase the best images.

Alongside the winner of the Public Choice Award, the overall winners will be chosen by the judging panel for Reach for the Stars, including Professor Peter Gallagher, Head of Astrophysics at DIAS; Brenda Fitzsimons, Picture Editor of The Irish Times; Michael McCreary, President of the Irish Astronomical Society; and Niamh Breathnach, Director, Alice Public Relations.

Commenting today, Dr. Eucharia Meehan, CEO and Registrar of DIAS, said: The online public vote to select the winner of the Public Choice Award is a chance for the public to have their say in this years top astrophotographs. The online exhibition is a great opportunity for people to learn about our solar system, the galaxies around us and what lies in the night sky. It will be a difficult task to choose a favourite from the shortlisted entries!

The CEO said she was so impressed with the creativity and skill among photographers in Mayo and right across the country.

Professor Peter Gallagher of DIAS, said:  Photographers have shown great creativity and technical skill capturing everything, from stars and galaxies that are millions of light years away to stunning scenery back on earth.

We hope the people of Mayo will get involved again this year and have their say by voting for their favourite image, he concluded.

Votes for the Public Choice Award are restricted to one vote per person, and voting will close at midday on Friday, 5th July 2024.

All shortlisted images can now be viewed on the Reach for the Stars website, where members of the public can cast their vote for their favourite image.
Cathal Kelly is about to embark on a huge adventure. The Swinford man is going to walk the 2,200 Kilometer from Canterbury in England to Rome. He will follow Via Francigena which is pilgrimage route that will lead him through South England, France, Switzerland and down to the Vatican: "I am nervous but it is a good nervousness. I've been planning this for weeks and months. It's going to be a physical as well as a mental and personal challenge to walk the distance on my own."

The 46-year-old has done the Camino de Compostela before. That was a challenge for himself. But this time Cathal Kelly has decided to leave his comfort zone for charity: "There was a part of me saying: Don't make a big deal out of it. But then it's such a big challenge, would be a waste not to raise awareness for a good cause."

So Cathal will take donations that will go in their entirety to two specific charities that he has a special personal connection with: "My twin sister Sarah died in Crumlin Children's Hospital on 9th July 1978 aged five months. Sarah was predeceased by our eldest sister Alice who died the previous year on 20th July 1977 also in Crumlin aged four years. Both of my sisters died from a disease called Wilson disease. Wilson disease is a rare disorder that causes liver damage. When talking with my parents about how I want to fundraise for Crumlin hospital in memory of Alice and Sarah they both expressed the wish that I fundraise for the area of research into childrens illnesses" writes Cathal on his website.

The other charity that he will collect donations for is the Mayo Parkinson Association: "In 2005 at the age of 57 my father Charles was diagnosed with Parkinsons disease. For many years after this, he was able to enjoy his life more or less unaffected. However over the last 5 years his life has become more affected by the disease and we as a family see very much the invaluable care and assistance that the Mayo Parkinsons association offer to so many on a voluntary basis. This is why I am also fundraising for this organisation as I undertake my walk from Canterbury to Rome."

Cathal with his parents Charles and Imelda Kelly

Apart from a physical challenge and a spiritual journey, the walk through half of Europe will also be of cultural value for Cathal: "This particular route is fascinating. I have never been to Switzerland or Italy. I'll cross a historically important area. Canterbury. The Champagne area where the famous drink comes from. World War I battlefields. Reims cathedral. And crossing the Alpes on the same route that Napoleon used going to Italy more than 200 years ago."

The next four months will be a huge challenge for Cathal. it all starts on Sunday June 16 and he hopes to arrive in Rome on October 10.

"There will be so many exciting places. Geneva or the Italian town of Lucca. It will be difficult to leave all these places after a night and keep going."

Some pilgrims choose to sleep in tents, but "as much as I want to challenge myself, I need a proper bed to sleep" laughs Cathal.

He will update his blog along the way. You find all the information on his route and on how to donate here.

And Cathal will be active on Instagram for everyone who wants to follow his adventure:
by Fern Siegel , June 13, 2024

MGM Resorts International named Viral Nation its official influencer marketing AOR.

The social media agency is charged with enhancing brand visibility in the digital landscape. The remit is to strengthen MGM Resorts as a leader in the global hospitality industry.

Viral Nation will support MGM Resorts with influencer-marketing strategy, execution and implementation across its entire brand ambassador program.

The MRM portfolio includes Bellagio, ARIA, The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, MGM Grand and Mandalay Bay. Initial work around pool season on TikTok and Instagram: Cosmopolitan, Luxor and Bellagio.

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Aligning with Viral Nation underscores our dedication to leveraging the power of influencer marketing to connect with our diverse audiences in meaningful ways, said Sarah Moore, senior vice president, marketing for MGM Resorts.

Joe Gagliese, CEO-co-founder of Viral Nation, told Agency Daily: MGM Resorts International is an exciting and dynamic brand perfectly positioned to harness the full potential of influencers and social-first marketing. We will partner on authentic content and engaging campaigns that amplify the experiences MGM offers its guests.

Viral Nation client work includes Audible, Campbells, Coca-Cola Co. Disney, Microsoft and Walmart.
by Tanya Gazdik , June 12, 2024



A health panel chaired by Sen. Bernie Sanders will vote to subpoena Novo Nordisk to testify on pricing for its anti-obesity drugs Ozempic and Wegovy.

The Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions, which is investigating the drugs' costs, said in a statement that at its June 18 meeting it will weigh a subpoena requiring Novo Nordisk Inc President Doug Langa to testify at a July 10 hearing, according to Reuters.

The U.S. prices of Wegovy and Ozempic are far higher than the prices paid in other countries, Sanders alleges. The committee sought voluntary testimony, but the company had refused, he says.

"The American people  Democrats, Republicans and independents  are sick and tired of paying, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs," Sanders said, according to Axios.

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The committee has reached out repeatedly to Novo Nordisk to request their voluntary attendance to discuss why they are charging Americans up to 10 or 15 times more for the exact same product sold in other countries, Sanders says.

A Novo Nordisk spokesperson said the company had offered a range of dates to voluntarily testify alongside other stakeholders in the drug pricing system and that a subpoena is unnecessary, according to Reuters.

Sanders, who caucuses with Democrats, turned his eye to a class of medications used for treating diabetes and obesity called GLP-1 agonists earlier this year after carrying out pressure campaigns that seemed to influence industry moves to lower the costs of insulin and asthma medications, according to The Hill. He launched an investigation in April into the outrageously high prices of Novo Nordisks semaglutide products Ozempic and Wegovy.

Sanders has urged Denmark to rein in Novo Nordisk, which is its most valuable company.

Sanders says he admires Denmark's health and welfare system and is appealing to Danes ingrained sense of social justice to "help the American people do something about the obesity and diabetes epidemic we are facing, according to Forbes.
by Joe Mandese @mp_joemandese, June 13, 2024

The U.S. JIC (joint industry committee) will look even more like a MOC (media owner committee) following this morning's announcement that Samsung Ads, the advertising sales division of Samsung Electronics, has joined with full voting rights to certify advertising "currencies" -- audience estimates used by advertisers and agencies to buy advertising from media outlets.

While Samsung Ads is the first smart TV set "OEM" (original equipment manufacturer) to become a member of the JIC, smart TV device manufacturer Roku is one of the JIC's founding members.

"The cross-platform video ecosystem includes numerous parties who both collect and rely on rich data and have a vested interest in connecting viewers with relevant messages that move the needle toward business impact," Executive Vice President of Advanced Advertising at Paramount and Chairman of the JIC's board Travis Scoles said in a statement, adding: "By joining the U.S. Joint Industry Committee, Samsung Ads will serve in a critical leadership position and will help further the JICs efforts to work across the industry to accelerate a vision for a more accurate, transparent and modern measurement ecosystem.

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The expansion and diversification of the JIC's membership to include a smart TV manufacturer's sales organization is noteworthy for several reasons.

One is that the JIC does not actually have any advertisers participating on it, only their agencies, which is different from the tripartite -- advertiser/agency/media seller -- structure that JICs operate with in other international markets.

Another is that Samsung Ads effectively grades its own homework vis a vis its own proprietary ACR (automatic content recognition) data about what Samsung TV viewers are watching.

Asked if Samsung Ads can or would seek JIC certification of its ACR data, a JIC spokesperson said "certification is focused on transactional currencies, not on evaluating different datasets like ACR  that is the role of the MRC."

That said, the JIC announced earlier this year that it has added a second certification process for streaming data that is used as a subcomponent of "transactional currencies," although it still has not released details of that process or the baseline requirements associated with certifying streaming data as a subcomponent of transactional currencies.
by Tanya Gazdik , June 13, 2024

Just in time for Fathers Day, Ford Motor Co.s Lincoln division is dropping a social effort featuring longtime brand ambassador actor Matthew McConaughey and his son Levi.

The Road Ahead shows McConaughey conveying some fatherly advice about driving as Levi begins his drivers education training and nears his 16th birthday on July 7. Lincoln AOR Hudson Rouge created the content.

Learning how to drive and getting his drivers license is a moment that the senior McConaughey remembers as one of his favorite days. The two-chapter content series celebrates this important journey.

In an unscripted and unplanned moment, Matthew shares life advice and driving wisdom based on his own experiences behind the wheel.

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The teaser is a short clip of him telling his son that when he has time, hed rather drive than fly. Its really good for your timing, your pace, and patience in life  and its fun, he says.

The Road Ahead provides viewers with a front-seat view of what it was like for Matthew when he first got behind the wheel, what Levi getting his license means to him and his wife Camila, and how he thinks Levi should be preparing for the road ahead.

The content series will post on Matthew, Levi and Lincolns Instagram channels. Chapter 1 is live today at noon ET, while Chapter 2 will follow on Sunday at 12 p.m.. ET.
by Ray Schultz , June 13, 2024

Hearst Magazines is investing in its Hearst Global Solutions (HGS), a service provider that serves clients worldwide.

The goal is to ensure that we are connecting our advertisers with audiences around the world and delivering the highest impact and most innovative solutions for our clients, says Debi Chirichella, president of Hearst Magazines.

As part of this expansion, Hearst is creating what it calls a global operational center of excellence in London. This will oversee advertising and sales operations, creative services, ad product innovation and marketing. And it will support a team of global sellers in four cross-functional hubs in North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East.

In addition, Gianluca Ena has been named to the new position of senior vice president of Hearst Global Solutions, effective July 1.

Gianluca has a proven track record of creating powerful global solutions for marketers and solving for operational complexities across our international business, says global chief revenue officer Lisa Ryan Howard, who is leading the expansion and to whom Ena will report.

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Howard adds, As one of the original creators of Hearsts unparalleled multi-market advertising offering that combines global scale with local relevance, he has a deep, nuanced understanding of how our business can map to our advertisers needs.

Building bridges between our customers and our businesses around the world is what most excites me, and I am thrilled to help usher in the next phase of HGS, says Ena, who previously served as managing director of commercial operations of Hearst U.K. and Global.

The Hearst Magazines portfolio includes more than 260 magazine editions and 200 websites around the world.
Highlights: Chinese scientists cured a patient's diabetes with innovative cell therapy, eliminating the need for insulin

The therapy involved reprogramming blood cells to regenerate pancreatic islet tissue, showcasing advances in regenerative medicine

If successful in larger trials, this treatment could greatly reduce the burden of diabetes in China and worldwide

  Trusted Source

In world first, Chinese scientists report cell therapy cure in diabetes case



Go to source Trusted Source

Did You Know?

The average person has about 37.2 trillion cells in their body, and Chinese scientists used just a few to cure diabetes in a groundbreaking medical achievement!

The average person has about 37.2 trillion cells in their body, and Chinese scientists used just a few to cure diabetes in a groundbreaking medical achievement!

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Diabetic Patient's Journey to Recovery

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Innovative Approach to Treating Diabetes with Cell Therapy

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Implications of the Novel Cell Therapy in Reducing the Diabetes Burden

In world first, Chinese scientists report cell therapy cure in diabetes case - (https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3263878/chinese-scientists-report-world-first-they-cure-patients-diabetes-cell-therapy)

In a huge medical milestone, Chinese scientists effectively cured a patient's diabetes with breakthrough cell therapy. A team from Shanghai Changzheng Hospital, the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Centre for Excellence in Molecular Cell Science, and Renji Hospital created this groundbreaking treatment, which was published in the journal).According to a South China Morning Post report, the patient had a cell transplant in July 2021. Surprisingly, after eleven weeks, he no longer needed exogenous insulin. Over the next year, he steadily reduced and then discontinued taking oral blood sugar control medications. "Follow-up examinations showed that the patient's pancreatic islet function was effectively restored," said Yin, one of the lead researchers. The patient has been insulin-free for 33 months.This discovery represents a huge step forward in diabetic cell treatment. Timothy Kieffer, a professor at the University of British Columbia, applauded the work, saying, "I think this study represents an important advance in the field of cell therapy for diabetes."Diabetes is a chronic disorder that impairs the body's capacity to convert food into energy, resulting in serious complications if not treated properly. Traditional therapies include insulin injections and regular monitoring, which can be taxing for patients.The new therapy involves programming the patient's peripheral blood mononuclear cells and changing them into "seed cells" to regenerate pancreatic islet tissue in a controlled environment. This strategy takes advantage of the body's regenerating powers, a growing discipline known as regenerative medicine."Our technology has matured and it has pushed boundaries in the field of regenerative medicine for the treatment of diabetes," said Yin.China, which has the biggest number of diabetes sufferers worldwide, bears a significant healthcare burden. According to the International Diabetes Federation, 140 million people in China have diabetes, with 40 million requiring lifelong insulin injections. This novel cell therapy could greatly alleviate the burden.Kieffer stated that if this cell therapy strategy is successful in larger research, "it can free patients from the burden of chronic medications, improve health and quality of life , and reduce healthcare expenditures." However, he underlined the importance of conducting additional trials with more patients to corroborate these encouraging results.Source-Medindia
On Thursday, June 13th, 2024, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Hellenic Republic, Mr. Kostas Fragkogiannis, co-chaired the "5th Session of the Joint Intergovernmental Committee on Economic, Industrial, Scientific and Technological Cooperation between the Hellenic Republic and the Republic of Azerbaijan" with the Minister of Energy of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Mr. Parviz Shahbazov.



The Plenary Session, held in Baku, reaffirmed the willingness of both countries to build strong bilateral relations and established an advanced framework for further developing and promoting synergies in various fields including trade and investment, energy, transport, agriculture, technology, healthcare, and tourism.



Both sides reiterated their dedication to expanding business interaction between Greek and Azeri business communities and noted that last year trade turnover amounted to 1.4 billion USD. They agreed to increase and diversify the range of bilaterally traded products, along with encouraging the exchange of information and best practices to further enhance networking among entrepreneurs, Chambers of Commerce and Exporters Associations.



Greece and Azerbaijan have enjoyed a thriving economic relationship for more than a decade, particularly focused on natural gas and energy. The Azeri Minister of Energy, Mr. Parviz Shahbazov, mentioned that last year, about 18% of Greek gas demand was met by Azerbaijani gas, while the Vice President of the Azeri energy group SOCAR praised Greece's pivotal role in the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), through which countries in the wider region are supplied with natural gas. The contribution of Azerbaijani gas to diversifying and decarbonizing supplies in Europe through projects like the TAP and the IGB (Greece-Bulgaria Interconnector) was also acknowledged. Mr. Fragkogiannis noted that strengthening bilateral cooperation and involving Azerbaijan as a supplier for the Vertical Corridor Initiative would benefit both countries.



Moreover, both sides recognized the potential for collaboration in environmental protection. As Azerbaijan will be hosting COP29 this year, energy will be a priority topic on the agenda. COP29 presents numerous opportunities for sharing knowledge and creating synergies in interconnected areas such as climate change adaptation, forest fire prevention, risk assessment, and water and waste management.



The Committee laid the foundation for ongoing, constructive, and fruitful dialogue and exchange between Greece and Azerbaijan and adopted a two-year Action Plan, which defines the roadmap for cooperation in all areas.



At the end, the Protocol of the "5th Session of the Joint Intergovernmental Committee on Economic, Industrial, Scientific and Technological Cooperation between the Hellenic Republic and the Republic of Azerbaijan", as well as a Memorandum of Understanding between Enterprise Greece and AZPROMO, the Export and Investment Promotion Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan, were signed.
I warmly welcome to Athens the honorable Minister of Foreign Affairs of Brazil, Mr. Mauro Vieira.

Your visit today, your first to Greece in your capacity as Minister of Foreign Affairs, complements and strengthens our mutual goal for a more intense connection between our governments and our peoples.

The deep-rooted friendship between us has been built on solid foundations, on the values of respect for International Law, the Law of the Sea, democracy, rule of law and human rights.

Athens recognizes Brazil's increasingly significant global role. During our meeting, we discussed a number of regional and international issues pertaining to global governance, the emerging poles of the global system (such as the Global South, BRICS & G20), and the future of the UN with respect to the decision-making process, which constitutes one of Brazils priorities.

The priorities set by Brazil, holding the G20 Presidency until the end of this year, namely addressing climate change, sustainable development, and the reform of global governance institutions, constitute the epitome of a strategic and cohesive international policy, which our country fully endorses.

As you are aware, a few days ago, our country was elected as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council for the 2025-2026 term. I take this opportunity to especially thank Brazil for supporting Greece's candidacy for this election.

Our country's goal, as a European nation at the crossroads of three continents, is precisely to serve as a bridge between North-South and East-West.

To this end, with the priorities we have set, we seek to highlight the major issues facing the planet, such as respect for International Law and the principles and rules of the United Nations Charter, the peaceful resolution of disputes, the protection of children in armed conflicts, the protection and assurance of substantive equality for women, and maritime security.

What we need is a shared vision of universal solidarity and intergenerational sustainability, to be realized through a rules-based governance and fair burden-sharing among nations.

Our friend, Brazils experience on the Security Council for the 2022-2023 term, is valuable to us. We count on our cooperation and on transferring the expertise you have gained, in light of our upcoming participation.

At this point, allow me to make a special remark on the thorny issue of climate change, which we discussed during our one-on-one meeting. We are deeply concerned about the current environmental and climate situation, the protection of our forests and seas, and the preservation of the Amazon as the "lung of the Earth".

We are profoundly saddened by the recent deadly floods in Brazil and the wildfires currently devastating your country, which are just one manifestation of the problem. On behalf of the Greek Government, I express our unwavering support and solidarity.

However, the problem is never limited to a certain geographic area. The climate crisis exacerbates the living standards of people everywhere and threatens food security, endangering stability and social cohesion across the planet.

With the esteemed Minister, we discussed current international and regional challenges.

We exchanged views on the two major ongoing wars in our neighborhood: the war in Ukraine and the war in Gaza.

Particularly on the tragedy unfolding in Gaza, Greece has taken a clear principled stance in favour of an immediate cessation of hostilities, the unconditional release of hostages, and the unhindered flow of humanitarian aid, so that the situation can be immediately restored in the wider region.

We agree with Brazil that war can never be the solution.

My counterpart and I also discussed the benefits of regional integration. Greece is willing to offer the expertise gained from its membership in the EU. Our country certainly supports the strengthening of dialogue between the EU and MERCOSUR.

During our discussions with the Minister, we agreed on the exceptionally high level of our bilateral relations.

We also agreed that there is still room for improvement at all levels.

Allow me to highlight, as an example, our agreement to work harder so that we intensify our political dialogue and strengthen our economic and trade cooperation, particularly in the areas of tourism and Foreign Direct Investments.

And indeed, there is no better bridge between our peoples than the Greek Diaspora in Brazil, an active community where each member is an ambassador of our homeland and culture.

Regarding culture, it is a great joy and honor for our country that today a Cultural Cooperation Agreement is being signed between the Hellenic Republic and the Government of the Federative Republic of Brazil, aimed at promoting cultural exchanges and enhancing our cultural ties.

Honorable Minister, dear Mauro,

I would like to welcome you once again. Minister Vieira is one of the most important personalities, with excellent knowledge of world politics and significant influence on global developments.

I wish prosperity and peace to you and Brazil, which undertakes the burden of representing the Global South.



Welcome again to Athens and wish you a pleasant stay.




Patrick Mercer recaps the protracted guerrilla war that tore Northern Ireland apart.

RPG in use by PIRA fighter.



The wounds are still raw. It was a bitter conflict, it left many grieving, and it remains well within living memory. But that does not mean that military historians should not study it and attempt to understand it.

The war  in the sense of an armed conflict between the Provisional Irish Republican Army and the British security forces (the British Army and the Royal Ulster Constabulary)  escalated dramatically after Bloody Sunday, when 1 Para killed 14 Catholic demonstrators in Derry.

That day, they also killed the Civil Rights Movement, as hundreds of young Catholics gave up on marching, joined the IRA, and took up the gun. That surge of recruits  of young men rooted in working-class communities like Derrys Bogside and Belfasts Falls Road  created an insurgency that the British security forces were unable to defeat in more than a quarter of a century.

It was a highly asymmetrical war. Though numbers fluctuated over the years, the Provos usually numbered only a few hundred active Volunteers, whereas the security forces, Army soldiers and RUC police combined, might be 35,000 strong.

The RUC call for information on suspected PIRA members.

But the Provos were rooted in their communities, and though many ordinary Catholics disapproved of the violence, especially when civilians were targeted, few would countenance giving information about their boys to the Brits.

So the Provos could lay an ambush, strike suddenly, and then disappear back into the security of the Catholic estates. So it ground on, with ups and downs, Provo coups, Army coups, a steady trickle of casualties, averaging around five a day for the 30 years the conflict lasted.

Volunteers were taught to attack on a small scale but frequently, not risking themselves or their vital weapons, but pricking the Security Forces like pins wherever an opportunity was seen.

Off-duty police, Ulster Defence Regiment soldiers, prison officers, civil servants  anyone who was part of the British war machine  was vulnerable to an under-car booby trap or close-quarter assassination.

Similarly, patrols and helicopters were sniped at, which made the hard areas difficult to control. Indeed, certain parts of Ulster gained a ferocious reputation: Crossmaglen, on the South Armagh border, for instance, became known as the graveyard of the British Army, and it was seen as too dangerous to patrol the area in vehicles due to landmine attacks.

In these rural areas, troops could move only by air or on foot and were not allowed to use tracks or roads. So patrols were heavily laden with ammunition, weapons, and food, and they lumbered over blackthorn hedges as even gateways were seen to be potentially lethal.

But from a high of nearly 500 people dying violently in 1972, the casualty level hovered around 100 annually as the style of the campaign changed  until the extraordinary events of 27 August 1979.

WARRENPOINT

On that day, 18 soldiers died in two linked landmine attacks at Warrenpoint near Newry and Lord Louis Mountbatten was blown to pieces along with several others whilst holidaying in Donegal.

The authorities refused to admit that PIRA had killed a member of the Royal Family and a record number of soldiers in sophisticated, coordinated attacks some hundred miles apart  but they had.

This was a serious challenge for the newly elected Margaret Thatcher. It probably hardened her attitude when having to deal with the complex problem of the Hunger Strikers in the following years.

In protest at the British authorities denial of combatant status to PIRA prisoners, the Strikers repeated the tactic of self-starvation that had been successful employed by the IRA in the 1920s. Now, ten men, led by Bobby Sands, starved themselves to death  and due to uncontrollable rioting in Catholic areas, Northern Ireland became temporarily ungovernable.

Large numbers of troops were needed to quell these riots, yet the Governments policy of military deployment during the day-to-day conduct of the campaign is hard to understand. An Army that prided itself on being flexible and manoeuvrable, whose tactical doctrine demanded fast response and quick regrouping to meet the Soviet threat, tied itself to positional defence in Northern Ireland.

Fortified, but immobile. Troops at a sandbagged vantage point in Belfast, July 1970. Image: Shutterstock

Police stations were sandbagged, armoured, and guarded by soldiers, whilst similar security force bases (usually using warehouses, mills, bus stations, etc) sprang up in towns and villages, and these also had to be protected around the clock.



Instead of living in the field, remaining mobile, and making itself unpredictable, the Army never moved its posts. Patrols and aircraft operated from these minor fortresses in a wholly predictable way  it was impossible to do anything else. This allowed an enemy who could watch, record, and analyse at his leisure to work out who was going to be where, when, and in what strength.

Armed with these deductions, coupled with the fact that troops in rural areas would use roads only for snap vehicle checks, PIRA could choose to avoid or strike at patrols and bases with relative impunity.

In the end, the attritional stalemate brought both sides to the negotiating table, and the Troubles ended not with a military victory, but with the power-sharing arrangement of the Good Friday Agreement.

War is a continuation of politics by other means, Clausewitz taught us. Only sometimes, it turns out, politics trumps war when the war is unwinnable.

This is an extract from a 13-page special feature on The Troubles, published in the June 2019 issue of Military History Matters.

To read the full analysis, get a copy of the issue from your local Barnes & Noble or W H Smith, or click here to subscribe to the magazine and have it sent straight to your door every month.
When Andre Douglas was announced as part of NASA's 2021 astronaut candidate class, the Coast Guard Academy was euphoric. Cadets hung posters of Douglas, a 2008 academy graduate who served on active duty in the Coast Guard for seven years, and students and faculty followed his progress intently. Their level of pride rose even more after Douglas was one of 10 new astronauts the space agency officially revealed in March.

Since NASA introduced its first group of astronauts, the so-called Mercury 7, in 1959, Douglas' selection marked only the third time that a Coast Guard Academy graduate was chosen to fly into space. Cmdr. Bruce Melnick, who graduated in 1972, served as a mission specialist aboard Space Shuttle Discovery (STS-41) in 1990 and Space Shuttle Endeavour (STS-49) in 1992. Then 1985 graduate Capt. Daniel Burbank and went to space four times, including as a mission specialist on Space Shuttle Atlantis missions in 2000 (STS-106) and 2006 (STS-115).

"I feel like I'm in a really great spot to help foster that collaboration for the future," Douglas, who graduated in 2008, told Military.com of the potential of more Coast Guardsmen becoming astronauts.

NASA administrator Bill Nelson, center, visits with NASA astronaut Jessica Meir and then-astronaut candidate Andre Douglas during launch countdown activities for NASAs Artemis I mission on Aug. 29, 2022, at the agencys Kennedy Space Center in Florida. (Ben Smegelsky/NASA Photo)

Stationed at Johnson Space Center in Houston, Douglas is currently working on a pressurized lunar rover and a lunar terrain vehicle, as well as designing spacesuits, He is also involved in a project to develop a new lunar space station, Gateway, to support the Artemis missions, which aim to return astronauts to the moon this decade with an eye on eventually traveling to Mars.

Those responsibilities are on top of staying proficient in what he learned during the two-year astronaut training program.

"That's a wide variety of things," Douglas said. "The best shot of getting everything done is just being very flexible and admitting where you might be weaker in a certain area and asking for help if you need it and spending the time in those areas that you may want to get stronger in."

Coast Guard Lt. Cmdr. Daniel Burbank, the Coast Guard's 2nd officer to become a NASA astronaut, traveled into space for mission STS-106 in September 2000. (Photo courtesy of NASA)

Originally from Virginia, Douglas was born in 1986 and comes from a military family. His father, Stanley Douglas, is a retired Coast Guard commander, and his mother, Robin Baulding, was a military nurse with ties to the Air Force, Marine Corps and Army Reserve, Douglas said.

From the time he was 7 years old, Douglas was fascinated by space, a passion encouraged by his mother. She introduced him to telescopes, and whenever he mentioned that he wanted to be an astronaut, his parents did not dissuade him. Unlike some children, whose career aspirations can change a few times every school year, Douglas was so steadfast in what he wanted to become that he even wrote a report on nuclear fission in the eighth grade.

"Earth is finite, but we can explore other universes or other galaxies, planets," Douglas said. "It's incredible."

Douglas holds a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the Coast Guard Academy and four postgraduate degrees from other institutions. He served as a naval architect, salvage engineer, damage control assistant and officer of the deck in the Coast Guard from 2008 to 2015. After leaving active duty, Douglas focused on planetary defense, space exploration and maritime robotics during his stint as an engineer at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab near Baltimore.

Two weeks after Douglas became an astronaut, he was commissioned as a commander in the Coast Guard Reserve. He also sits on Commandant of the Coast Guard Adm. Linda Fagan's Commandant's Advisory Group.

"A lot of different choices have led me to get where I am today," said Douglas, who expects to be assigned to his first space assignment in the next year.

Burbank, the former astronaut who teaches mechanical engineering at the academy in New London, Connecticut, told Military.com he stayed in touch with Douglas while he was going through the NASA program.

"We tend to limit our imagination and things that we can do," Burbank said. "There's an awful lot of [students] who would love to be part of the space program. They're all imagining all of the great things they're going to do in the Coast Guard, but their futures just became a little bit brighter to know that somebody with that background is now at NASA."

In NASA's history, 212 of 360 astronauts all time, or nearly 60%, have ties to the military. In the class revealed this year, Douglas was joined by Nichole Ayers and Anil Menon (Air Force), Marcos Berrios (Air National Guard), Luke Delaney (Marine Corps), Jack Hathaway and Jessica Wittner (Navy), and Deniz Burnham of the Navy Reserve. Christopher Williams and Christina Birch did not serve in the military, according to their NASA bios. Two United Arab Emirates astronauts, Nora AlMatrooshi and Mohammed AlMulla, also graduated in that class.

I would be super surprised if it was otherwise, [but] there are going to be bootprints on the moon, courtesy of Andre Douglas and his crewmates, and thats going to happen in the upcoming 5-10 years, Burbank said.

The 2021 astronaut candidate class attracted more than 12,000 applicants, and when Douglas found out he made it, he was with his wife at their home. As they celebrated, they recalled the first time that Douglas clued her in on his dream of becoming an astronaut.

It was just funny how it came full circle to reality, Douglas said.

In that moment, the couple did the only thing that seemed appropriate, given the unlikeliness of it all. They laughed.

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The Pentagon deployed three Navy destroyers and maritime patrol aircraft this week to keep tabs on a group of Russian ships that conducted missile exercises and reportedly got within 30 miles of the Florida coast.

"In accordance with standard procedure, we've been actively monitoring the Russian ships as they transit the Atlantic Ocean within international waters," a defense official, who spoke on the condition his name not be used, told Military.com in an emailed statement Wednesday.

The official added that "air and maritime assets under U.S. Northern Command have conducted operations to ensure the defense of the United States and Canada," but wouldn't elaborate on what those assets were. Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh also wasn't able to offer specifics at a briefing to reporters Wednesday.

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In contrast, Russia has been very clear about what ships were deployed and what they were up to.

Russian state-run media announced last week that a group of four ships, including a frigate and a nuclear-powered submarine, would be making a port call in Havana between June 12 and June 17.

On Tuesday, the Russian Ministry of Defense said in an online post that the ships conducted exercises in the use of "high-precision missile weapons in the Atlantic Ocean" and included video shot aboard the vessels.

"As part of the exercise, the crews of a frigate and a nuclear-powered submarine practiced the use of high-precision missile weapons using computer-simulated naval targets that represent naval groups of a mock enemy and are located at a distance of over 600 kilometers," the statement said, while noting no missiles were launched.

The Pentagon would not say what U.S. assets were deployed in response to the Russian presence, but online amateur analysts used public flight and ship-tracking data to identify the three destroyers as the USS Truxtun, USS Donald Cook and USS Delbert D. Black on Tuesday.

They also identified U.S. Navy P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol and anti-submarine aircraft as part of the response.

The defense official who spoke with Military.com on Wednesday would go only so far as to say that the Navy's U.S. 2nd Fleet, U.S. 4th Fleet, U.S. Coast Guard Atlantic Area and Canadian Joint Task Force Atlantic were all "conducting routine operations throughout the Atlantic, and we will continue to operate and engage from a position of strength."

A Defense Department photo of the Truxtun taken last week noted that the destroyer was sailing with the Canadian frigate HMCS Ville de Quebec and U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Stone -- two ships that online analysts also suspected to be responding to the Russians.

Online analysts also estimated that the Russian flotilla got within 25 miles of shore. The Miami Herald, citing unnamed U.S. officials, reported that the ships sailed "less than 30 miles off South Florida's coast" on Tuesday.

According to images uploaded to sites such as Telegram by Russian state-run outlets, the Russian ships, including the frigate and the submarine, pulled into Havana on Wednesday.

Singh, the Pentagon spokeswoman, downplayed the presence of the flotilla by telling reporters that "we've seen them do this -- these type of port calls before -- and these are routine naval visits that we've seen under different administrations."

"We're always constantly going to monitor any foreign vessels operating near U.S. territorial waters ... but these exercises don't pose a threat to the United States," she added.

However, unlike prior port visits that involved less-advanced Russian vessels, the submarine and the frigate are some of the newest and most advanced Russian warships currently in that country's arsenal.

The frigate, the "Admiral Gorshkov," was commissioned in 2018.

Meanwhile, the submarine, the "Kazan," was commissioned in 2021 and is similar to U.S. guided-missile nuclear submarines, capable of carrying a range of anti-ship and land attack missiles, including the hypersonic "Zircon" anti-ship missile, according to an analysis by the U.K.-based think tank Royal United Services Institute, or RUSI.

RUSI's report noted that the Kazan has "a reported level of quietness comparable to the very best Western [nuclear submarines] and a long-range strike capability which exceeds that seen on most Western assets."

USNI News reported in 2014 that a U.S. Navy official in charge of its submarine program was so impressed with that class of Russian submarine that he had a model of the lead boat -- the Severodvinsk -- placed outside his office so that he could look at it daily.

The defense official who spoke with Military.com said that, while Russian naval visits to Cuba are routine, they have "ratcheted up because of U.S. support to Ukraine and exercise activity in support of our NATO allies."

"We should expect more of this activity going forward," the official added.

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The Defense Department will now cover certain costs for service members to ship breast milk during a permanent change of station move.

Service members breastfeeding an infant up to 12 months old can now be reimbursed up to $1,000 in shipping expenses as part of ongoing initiatives to alleviate out-of-pocket costs for troops during military-related travel. The benefit does not apply to military spouses or other family members who are nursing infants.

"This allowance targets those costs that military families with infants previously had to pay out of pocket," said Christopher Woods, policy branch chief at the Defense Travel Management Office, during an interview Thursday with Military.com. "Simply put, this policy helps make moves easier, and it strengthens support for military families."

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The new policy will cover the cost of items such as dry ice, commercial shipping, excess baggage fees and other associated expenses. It will not reimburse for packaging or the cost of containers -- those expenses are not allowable under other regulations, according to Woods.

During a permanent change of station move, service members may be separated from their babies as a result of requiring separate travel arrangements, or their babies may be accompanying them but need supplies such as dry ice and other equipment during international flights or long drives to the next duty station.

More than 400,000 military personnel move each year, and up to 29,000 may benefit from the change, according to Woods.

The update to the Joint Travel Regulations, effective as of June 1, follows a similar change in 2022 when the DoD began reimbursing service members and civilian employees for costs associated with shipping breast milk during official travel.

In April, an Air Force nurse contacted Military.com questioning why the benefit was extended for temporary duty but not for permanent change of station moves. One of her patients, an active-duty family, had an eight-week old baby and a freezer full of breast milk that they were told they would have to ship themselves.

"I know this may be a rare situation, but [it] would have a major impact on military families," the nurse wrote.

DoD officials said the military services raised concerns about the PCS issue, and the travel policy office "quickly coordinated with stakeholders across DoD to craft a solution."

"For those service members who have a recommendation -- good, bad, whatever it is -- we encourage them to work with their local finance and personnel offices and provide feedback to them. Those offices can work in conjunction with headquarters offices, and those issues can be brought forward," Woods said.

That seems to be what happened in the case of the civilian nurse. Deedra Nelson, who works for the New Parent Support Program at Hill Air Force Base, Utah, said she spoke with her leadership, who took her concerns to the Military Community Advocacy Directorate.

She was surprised by the speed of the change.

"It will make a huge difference for [my client's] family, and [they] are incredibly grateful," Nelson wrote in an email to Military.com after the announcement. "When service members and families see that their concerns and suggestions are taken seriously, it can boost morale and trust in leadership, and prevents the DoD from becoming stagnant with policy initiatives."

To be eligible for the reimbursement, service members must receive authorization with their PCS orders before they incur any expenses. The expenses then must be claimed in their PCS vouchers once the move is complete.

All receipts, regardless of amount, must accompany the claim, according to the policy.

Only active-duty nursing mothers are eligible for the reimbursement. Woods said civilian employees have allowances that cover miscellaneous expenses, depending on their agreements with the Defense Department.

"We're proud to support this initiative. We're proud to make moves easier for service members and their families," Woods said.

Related: The Military's New Pet Transportation Policy: What It Means to You
BORGO EGNAZIA, Italy  A Group of Seven summit opened Thursday with agreement reached on a U.S. proposal to back a $50 billion loan to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets as collateral, giving Kyiv a strong show of support even as Europe's political chessboard shifts to the right.

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni welcomed the heads of state of the G7 leading industrialized nations to a luxury resort in southern Italy, saying she wanted the message of the meeting to be one of dialogue with the global south and unity.

She likened the G7 to the ancient olive trees that are a symbol of the Puglia region, with their solid roots, and branches projected toward the future.

Beyond discussions on Ukraine, the war in Gaza and China's industrial policy, Pope Francis will become the first pope to address a G7 summit, adding a dash of celebrity and moral authority to the annual gathering. Hell be speaking Friday about the promises and perils of artificial intelligence, but is expected to also renew his appeal for a peaceful end to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

The G7 includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. Italy, which is hosting the summit, has invited several African leaders  Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Kenyan President William Ruto and Tunisian President Kis Saied  to press Meloni's development and migration initiatives on the continent.

Other guests include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, fresh off his own election, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

With Biden, U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and now French President Emmanuel Macron facing elections in the coming months, pressure was on the G7 to get done what it can while the status quo lasts.

Frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine

The U.S. proposal involves engineering a $50 billion loan to help Ukraine in its fight against Russia that would use interest earned on profits from Russias frozen central bank assets, most of them held in the European Union, as collateral.

A French official, briefing reporters Wednesday, said a political decision by the leaders had been reached but that technical and legal details of the mechanism to tap into the assets still had to be worked out. The issue is complicated because if the Russian assets one day are unfrozen  say if the war ends  then the windfall profits will no longer be able to be used to pay off the loan, requiring a burden-sharing arrangement with other countries.

Zelenskyy listed the asset deal as one of many arrangements he hoped to see finalized during the summit, including a bilateral security agreement with the U.S.

"I am grateful to our partners for their belief in us and our victory," he said in a post on social media platform X.

Sunak, for his part, announced up to 242 million pounds (286 million euros or $310 million) in nonmilitary aid to Ukraine and a new round of sanctions against suppliers of munitions and other aid to Russias military located in China, Israel, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey. Washington also sent strong signals of support, with widened sanctions against Russia to target Chinese companies that are helping its war machine.

Europe's new political chessboard

Meloni goes into the meeting fortified at home and abroad after her far-right party had an even stronger showing in the European Parliament election than in the national general election in 2022 that made her Italys first female premier. Known for its revolving-door governments, Italy is now in the unusual position of being the most stable power in the EU.

The leaders of the G7s two other EU members, Germany and France, didn't fare nearly as well, rattled after hard-right parties made strong showings in the vote. Macron called a snap election and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz saw his Social Democrats finish behind mainstream conservatives and the far-right Alternative for Germany.

As a result, Meloni is likely to be able to steer the three-day meeting to her key priority items as she further cements her role on the world stage, analysts said. One sign of her flexed far-right muscles: Meloni's office denied media reports that Italy was trying to water down language about access to abortion in the final communique.

A French official, speaking anonymously in line with Macrons office's customary practices, said there were diverging views with Italian negotiators on some topics, including on sexual and reproductive health and vaccines.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani confirmed abortion was being addressed, but said discussions were continuing.

While its unlikely the recent results will radically shift the focus of the upcoming G7 summit, this electoral win offers Premier Meloni additional leverage to frame this as an essentially Mediterranean Summit,' said Nick OConnell, deputy director of the Atlantic Council.

That includes pushing her migration agenda as Meloni seeks to leverage her program for a nonexploitative relationship with Africa to boost development while curbing illegal migration to Europe.

The pope and artificial intelligence

Pope Francis has called for an international treaty to ensure AI is developed and used ethically, acknowledging the promise it offers but emphasizing the grave and existential threats it poses.

He'll bring that campaign to the world's industrialized countries as wars are raging across multiple fronts. One of his greatest concerns has been on the use of AI in the armaments sector. But Francis is also concerned about what AI means for the poorest and weakest in daily life: technology that could determine the reliability of an applicant for a mortgage, the right of a migrant to receive political asylum or the chance of reoffending by someone previously convicted of a crime.

It's happening where?

The G7 summit is taking place in a sprawling luxury resort thats something of a theater set, a faux town made to resemble one of Puglias medieval white-stone hamlets but that actually only dates from 2010.

Located next to an actual archaeological park, Borgo Egnazia features narrow streets, villas, restaurants and a town square complete with a clocktower. A favorite of celebrities, it was sealed off to outsiders for the duration of the summit.

No such five-star accommodations await the 2,000-plus police and Carabinieri forces who have been brought in to provide security. Authorities on Wednesday sequestered the decommissioned cruise ship that had been housing them in Brindisis port, after the police union complained about unacceptable hygienic conditions on board.

As with any G7, an assortment of anti-global, anti-war and climate activists are staging protests around the summit venue, but far from where the leaders are meeting. One group is staging a dinner for the poor on Friday night calling for peace, the rights of peoples and against the Big 7 who claim to decide the destiny of the world and our planet.

___

Nicole Winfield reported from Bari. Associated Press writers Angela Charlton and Sylvie Corbet contributed to this report from Paris.
NORMANDY, France -- As the clock struck midnight on June 6, 1944, the droning hum of aircraft engines broke the quiet stillness of the dark hours. A young girl, 5-year-old Daniele "Dany" Patrix Boucherie, ran to the windows of her family's house near the Allied landing site at Utah Beach to look outside. The night sky was lit up with flares carried by small parachutes, so she could see planes with gliders being pulled behind them.

"We could see as if it was daylight," Boucherie told Military.com in a recent interview. "But it was nighttime and you could hear a lot of aircraft noise, so instinctively what do you do? You open the window and see. It was fabulous."

It was a sentiment she echoed along with many of the children in Normandy that night, as recounted in the award-winning 2020 documentary film, "The Girl Who Wore Freedom." The film recounts the memory of Boucherie and other French citizens who were liberated that day. It also displays the stark contrast between how France and the United States remember D-Day.

"It was around 6:30 in the morning when the first 'firecrackers' were lit from the beaches of Sainte-Marie-du-Mont," Jean-Marie Boucherie, Dany's husband, recalled in the film. "I got up, still in my pajamas, I watched with my dad. He said to me, 'There they are.' That's all he said."

"From the bedroom windows overlooking the square you could see the silhouettes under the trees because the sun hadn't completely risen," Henri-Jean Renaud, who was 10 years old on D-Day, told the filmmakers. "We saw the glow of cigarettes, shadows, but we didn't know who they were.

"June 6, 1944, was a night of terror," Denise Leconte, who was 17 years old that day, told the filmmakers. "Around 2 a.m., we heard noise, planes; it was incredibly loud. Then we looked outside. It was bright. The night was so clear. We saw the parachutes and asked ourselves what was happening, ... as soon as the paratroopers landed, the fighting began."

Dany knew that going out in the morning would be risky, but she opened the door to her house and saw the "spectacle" of the Americans coming from Utah Beach. Tanks and soldiers were moving in the middle of the road on their way from the beach.

"When the GIs saw me, this little girl on the sidewalk, they must have thought about a little sister or a little daughter they left behind in the United States," Boucherie said. "I stood alone in front of the door, and they kept handing me chocolate and gum and candies. At 5 years old, my hands were so small, they [the candies] kept falling on the ground, so I stretched my apron out. When it was full, I emptied it into a box and went out for more. For a little girl, it was fabulous to see all that."

Dany Patrix Boucherie, who was five years old on D-Day, greets visitors to Normandy near Brecourt Manor on June 5, 2024. (Military.com/Blake Stilwell)

That first day was very different from life under Nazi occupation. Under German rule, the Boucherie family rarely ventured out. To get a little bit of bread required a special ticket. To get meat meant not just a ticket, but also showing your papers. The family wasn't allowed to leave their home otherwise. At nighttime, they had to keep their windows covered to keep the American planes from seeing the lights. That all changed on June 6, 1944.

"It was freedom; it was superb," said Boucherie. "We could walk around freely, say what we wanted, and most important, we could eat again."

"In the morning, it was euphoria," Maurice Lecoueur, who was 10 years old and living in Sainte-Mere-Eglise, told Military.com. "They offered us chocolate, rations and the like. As for me, there was an American who had me take a puff on his Camel cigarette. I coughed so much that I never smoked again in my life."

The differences in their lives between the occupation and their liberation remain with those surviving French civilians who remember D-Day. Even when the Americans set up camp to continue the campaign against Nazi Germany, children were more or less allowed to roam freely. The U.S. Army regularly fed civilian families from its mess halls while offering supplies and other aid. It even hired locals for jobs around the camp.

Harold Radish, a reconnaissance sergeant with the 90th Infantry Division during World War II, receives a round of applause at the Franco-American Memorial in Graignes, France. (Military.com/Blake Stilwell)

The persistence of those memories and the gratitude it evokes in the people of Normandy is on full display at the beginning of June every year, when locals and tourists fill France's Cotentin Peninsula, wearing full World War II-era American GI uniforms, to drive restored Jeeps and revive the feeling of those early days of Operation Overlord. It's such a spectacle that it takes many Americans by surprise.

One of those Americans was Christian Taylor, the filmmaker behind "The Girl Who Wore Freedom." She first visited Normandy for the anniversary of D-Day because her son, a soldier in the Army, was sent there for the occasion. She was surprised to discover so many "American GIs" were actually French civilians.

"I was supposed to meet my son for a parachute drop in Carentan, but I didn't know where I was supposed to go, so I was just looking for a Willys Jeep and people dressed up," Taylor told Military.com. "Then one of the Jeeps broke down in front of us, so I sent my son to help. When he came back, he told me the reenactors were all French. I soon realized how big this was. Throughout the day, I felt like I was in a time machine, and I had to figure out what was going on."

Read: The European Reenactors Paying Tribute to D-Day Veterans at Normandy

It was when she ran into Florence Boucherie that she met Dany and Jean-Marie Boucherie, who were 5 and 7 years old (respectively) on D-Day. Flo, it turned out, was Dany and Jean-Maries daughter. Taylor was as awestruck at their recollections of the day as she was about the reenactors who relived the day in Normandy. The families became close in the days and weeks that followed, and Taylor decided Americans needed to hear these stories.

"We don't even celebrate D-Day in the United States," Taylor said. "The French people have been doing this since 1945, inviting our veterans back, inviting the military units back that liberated them. Not a lot of people know this; military families may know, but regular citizens, I think, are not very aware of the level of gratitude the French people have."

World War II veteran Ceo Bauer, 101 years old, takes a photo with a crowd while touring Brecourt Manor in Normandy, France on June 5, 2024. (Military.com/Blake Stilwell)

Taylor was enamored with a photo of 5-year-old Dany wearing a dress made of American parachutes. The red and white were easy to make with just the chutes, her mother found blue material and stenciled on the stars to finish the outfit. Little Dany first wore the dress on June 6, 1945, for a ceremony to commemorate the anniversary of D-Day. When Dany grew out of the dress, her mother made her a new one.

For Taylor, this captures the lasting dedication of the French people toward the American veterans who landed that day.

"The French people lost so much but still, to this day, honor the veterans," Taylor said. "The veterans are changed by what the French do for them when they come here. They are liberated from their oppressive memories of the horrors of the war, because the French listen to them, cheer them, take pictures with them, get their autographs and take care of them."

"I think it's very important that young people know and remember this fabulous story," said Boucherie. "I would never have thought that my little dress would be the main theme of this documentary, but the film should be seen by many more people so new generations realize how much France suffered and the American people and young people, remember the soldiers who fell so that today we can be free."

World War II veterans really are transformed when they experience the French dedication to their memory. Ceo Bauer of Ithaca, Michigan, is not a Normandy veteran. He fought with the 95th Infantry Division, famous for its heroic stand against repeated German attacks at the Battle of Metz in Germany in late 1944, where Bauer was wounded. Still, he visited Normandy in 2024 at age 101. In the film, he explains the effect a visit to France has on World War II veterans.

Dany Patrix Boucherie, 85, holds hands with 101-year-old World War II veteran Ceo Bauer on Utah Beach on June 7, 2024. (Military.com/Blake Stilwell)

"For we veterans who went back, it's probably the greatest experience we had in our life," he said. "When we can get to where the fighting was, the French can't honor us enough, ... but here in the USA, people are not too much interested. ... Their eyes glaze over after about two minutes. Here, for veterans of all wars, people say, 'Thank you for your service,' and that's all very fine, but they don't listen too much after that. So I'll say, 'Viva la France and God bless the USA and thank you God for being alive to relate the story.'"

"The Girl Who Wore Freedom" is available for streaming on Amazon Prime and on DVD through the film's website.

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In recent years, Texas has experienced a significant increase in wind power generation, particularly during the period between 2017 and 2020, when the state became one of the largest producers of renewable energy sources. This trend has not only reduced greenhouse gas emissions but also enhanced the health and sustainability of the state.







(How Much Of Texas Power Is Wind)

In this blog post, we will explore how much of Texas power is wind, as well as some of the key factors that contribute to its growth in wind energy production.

Wind power can be produced in many different ways, including hydropower plants and biomass burning power plants. The types of wind power available in Texas depend on various factors such as location, infrastructure, and technological advancements.

One of the key advantages of wind power in Texas is its accessibility. Wind power is available all year round, making it a convenient source of energy for those who need it most. Additionally, Texas large population makes wind turbines more feasible and easier to install, especially if the state decides to invest heavily in wind energy development.

Another key factor that contributes to Texass wind power growth is the states location at the heart of the United States. Texas is located near several major oil-producing regions, which means that there is ample wind energy potential to support the states growing wind energy industry.

However, while Texas has made significant progress in wind energy development over the past decade, there are still challenges to overcome. One of the biggest obstacles is increasing the amount of wind energy generated. The state faces challenges related to navigating changes in weather patterns and ensuring reliable energy supply. To address these challenges, it may be necessary to invest in new infrastructure and technology to improve the reliability of wind energy generation.







(How Much Of Texas Power Is Wind)

Overall, Texas has made significant progress in wind energy production and the state is well-positioned to continue to grow in this area in the future. While there are still challenges to overcome, it is clear that wind power has the potential to play an important role in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and supporting a sustainable future for the state.
HOLLAND, MI -- Iron your kilt, the third annual Holland Celtic Festival is back.

The festival celebrating Irish and Scottish heritage starts Friday, June 21 with a ceilidh or ceili, depending on your native tongue. The party starts with music and beer for an adults-only party in the pub tent.

Tickets are $22.50 in advance and grant admission into Saturdays all-day family friend event, running from 9 a.m.- 11 p.m.

The festival returns to the Ottawa County Fairground this year after drawing a crowd of 7,000 last year, festival founder and former Holland Mayor Pro Tem Craig Rich said.

The festival spurred out of Hollands St. Patricks Day celebration growing year over year, Rich said.

Im really invested in all the local traditions, he said. I was born and raised here. My wife is about as Dutch as a person can get and Im not. Im a big mutt like most Americans are, but Ive just always loved going to these festivals.

Rather than doing solely an Irish festival and replicating Muskegons Michigan Irish Music Festival, Rich saw the opportunity to bring Highland Games to Holland.

The Highland Games compromise of nine ancient games of strength, all performed in kilts and other traditional clothing.

These events include: the Braemar stone (stationary throw), Open Stone (shot put style), Heavy Weight and Light Weight for Distance (weight on a ring, spin and throw), Heavy and Light Hammer Throw (thrown over shoulder), Caber Toss (pole toss), Weight for Height, and the Sheaf Toss (burlap sack thrown with a pitchfork for height).

I have seen athletes throw (the sheaf) 35 feet in the air over a bar with a pitchfork. Thats a three-story building. The Highland Games are great. Its such a spectacle, Rich said.

There will be a mens, womens and youth division competing starting at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday.

This years festival will host 16 Irish and Scottish bands performing across two stages in addition to live pipe and drum bands playing around the festival grounds.

It wouldnt be a Celtic festival without a toast to the homeland. Guinness is the lead sponsor on tap in addition to a whiskey bar. The fairgrounds will have 12 food and beverage vendors throughout.

To tie into the heritage of both Irish and Scottish culture there will be 22 Highland clans bringing their family history. Additionally, guests can stop by the genealogy tent to start researching their own family tree.

Festival schedule and tickets details can be found at hollandcelticfestival.org
FREDERIC TOWNSHIP, MI -- Shortly after leaving a Frederic Township board meeting Tuesday night, Deputy Fire Chief Ed Goscicki thought hed stumbled upon an illegal burn. It turns he was wrong and instead ended up possibly saving the life of an 84-year-old man who was unaware that his house was on fire.

According to a post on the Frederic Township Fire Departments Facebook page, as Goscicki left the meeting, he saw smoke coming from a residence and decided to see what was going on. When Goscicki arrived at the home located at 6506 Cheboygan St. he noticed dark smoke bellowing from the attic and realized the house was on fire. The deputy fire chief called in the fire and then began investigating the scene.

Goscicki says he knows the homeowner, Richard Brown, and went looking for him. After looking around the home twice, Goscicki made contact with Brown and escorted him out of the house safely. Brown told 9&10 News that he had no idea the house was on fire and would have gone to bed had Goscicki not come to investigate.
NAUBINWAY, MI  A family-owned wildlife park in Michigans Upper Peninsula will celebrate its 30th anniversary this weekend.

Gary and Lynn Moore founded GarLyn Zoo Wildlife Park in 1994.

Gary and Lynn started this business with a big dream, Mary Fuller, their daughter, said on Facebook. Together, they built the zoo from the ground up, providing a safe home and the best care for every animal that they have welcomed to their wild family.

The anniversary celebration is scheduled for Saturday, June 15, at the zoo. It will include free hotdogs from Erben Street Grille (with admission), booths by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and the local sheriffs office, face painting, glitter tattoos and a bounce house. The Cake Lady and Elizabeths Elephant Ears will have food available for purchase.

Located off U.S. 2, just 40 minutes west of the Mackinac Bridge, GarLyn is nestled on 30 acres of mature pine forest.

Gary and Lynn both grew up in the Lower Peninsula, the GarLyn websites says. Lynns family had a cabin in Naubinway; Gary fell in love with the U.P. while attending Lake Superior State University.

In 1993, the Moores moved to the Naubinway area. In 1994, the zoo started on a wing and a prayer with the couples longtime pets, including pygmy goats, potbellied pigs, pheasants, peacocks and sika deer.

Since then, the zoo has grown to include lions, tigers, bears, alligators, warthogs, alpacas, cattle, sloths, squirrel monkeys, red kangaroos, reindeer, turtles, singing dogs, wolves and more.

The zoo, W9104 U.S. 2 in Naubinay, is open daily 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Aug. 31. Hours reduced to 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Sept. 1 to Oct. 15. Pending weather, the zoo is also open Oct. 16-31; call ahead. Admission is $15 for adults and $12.50 for children 3-13 years old; children 2 and younger are free.
YPSILANTI -- It had become a daily routine for Maurice Williams to ride his bicycle to Ann Arbor. On some days, he would travel over five miles into the town and back to his Ypsilanti home. He preached to his family the importance of physical exercise and wanted to embody his words.

That was Williamss motto. A lively man filled with personality, Williams would remind his six children of various life lessons.

Everybody in the community felt his presence, Paris Allen, Williamss oldest daughter, said. Thereve been so many people... who came up to us and said they only met our dad a few times, but he made such an impact on their lives.

Williams died June 3 when he was struck by a vehicle while riding his electric bicycle. He was 64.

He was at a crosswalk when a car driving east on U.S. 12 hit him at the intersection of Dorset Avenue. Washtenaw County sheriffs deputies, called about 5:20 p.m., rendered aid until medical personnel arrived, but it was to no avail, spokesperson Derrick Jackson said.

I was the only one around and we were talking 10 minutes before he passed, Madinah Williams, his daughter, said. We were talking, and he asked Can you get my things out of the dryer? Im about to go ride my bike, Ill be right back.

Just two years earlier, at age 62, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer and seemed to be beating it.

Williams did his own research and asked University of Michigan doctors specific questions about different treatment methods, Madinah Williams said. At the same hospital where he was born, worked as a janitor and watched the birth of one of his six children, he would meet with doctors.

Maurice Williams survived prostate cancer and was known around Ypsilanti. He died in a bicycle crash. Photo courtesy of the Williams familyWilliams family

Williams opted not to undergo surgery and to perform Brachytherapy, a type of internal radiation therapy. He also did a 21-day fast without food. He ate vitamins and natural peanut butter and drank a lot of water, Madinah Williams said.

Two years later, he went back to UM, and the tumor had not enlarged, she said.

The [doctors] said they had never seen [anything] like it, she said.

Williams enjoyed biking. He would ride five miles into Ann Arbor, his daughter said. Photo courtesy of the Williams familyThe Williams family

Born at a UM hospital, he lived in Ypsilanti his entire life. Williams attended Willow Run high school, before taking classes at Washtenaw Community College.

He and his wife, Shonda, were married for 36 years. Williams worked as a janitor at the UM hospital. In 1993, he created his own janitorial company, Superior Cleaning Co.

While running his business, he never lost the value of family, his daughters said. Friday was pizza night in the Williams household, and Saturday was reserved for a game night or other activities.

Even as his children grew older, they went to their dad for advice.

If I needed financial support, he would be able to help. If I was going through a breakup, hed be able to help, Allen said. He vetted my husband and that was great.

His death has devastated the family. Williams had plans to write a book and loved being a grandfather. Allen said she wants people to remember her dad as an effusive and loving man.

We can all hear him saying, Its going to be OK. You guys got to get through this, she said.

Want more Ann Arbor-area news? Bookmark the local Ann Arbor news page, the Ypsilanti-area news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Ann Arbor daily newsletter.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI  About 200 residences are without water Thursday, June 13, after an overnight water main broke on the citys Southeast Side.

Grand Rapids Water System crews are working on repairs.

The 24-inch diameter water main blew up overnight, Wayne Jernberg, citys water system manager, told MLive/The Grand Rapids Press.

Related: Crews work to assess damaged water main that flooded neighborhood

Homes in the shaded areas are without water service and will be under a boil-water advisory when a water main is repaired. (Provided by City of Grand Rapids)City of Grand Rapids

He said that a section of a 20-foot pipe sheered off and caused a massive leak that flooded the neighborhood at Adams Street SE and Philadelphia Avenue SE.

The pipe will have to be replaced.

Sediment also washed out of the trench and undermined pavement. It left some areas covered in inches of sand.

Neighbors showed basements filled with water, while others tried to see if vehicles would start.

A man said he and a neighbor rescued a motorist who was trapped in the flood.

The man, who declined be identified, said he saw a car kind of floating down the road around 3:45 a.m. He didnt know anyone was in the car until a man climbed onto the roof and started yelling for help.

The neighbors walked out and helped the driver to higher ground.

Crews work to fix a water main break at Adams Street SE and Philadelphia Ave in Grand Rapids on Thursday, June 13, 2024. A 24 cast iron pipe split down the middle around 3 a.m., the significant break flooded basement and vehicles along Philadelphia Ave, causing another section of road to collapse downhill from the main break. Joel Bissell | MLive.com

The man said water had poured into his basement.

Workers remain on site. Once repairs are made, those 200 residences currently without water will be under a boil-water advisory, the city said.

Workers with the water system will go door-to-door to distribute bottled water, donated by Meijer.

Water is safe for those who are not affected by the advisory.

The boil-water advisory could be in effect for three or four days once repairs are made, the system is flushed, and water tests are conducted.

The city will post updates at www.grandrapidsmi.gov/boil-water-advisory-updates.
GRAND RAPIDS, MI  Crews are working to assess damage to a broken water main that flooded a Southeast Side neighborhood.

The flooding has caused damage to some houses and vehicles in the area of the break at Adams Street SE and Philadelphia Avenue, Wayne Jernberg, the citys water-system manager, said Thursday, June 13.

He said that a flooded basements are expected in a low area north of Adams.

The break was reported overnight. A water-system worker showed up around 3:30 a.m. to assess damage. Others began working around 5 a.m.

Related: Workers respond to water-main break on Grand Rapids Southeast Side

Crews work to fix a water main break at Adams Street SE and Philadelphia Ave in Grand Rapids on Thursday, June 13, 2024. A 24 cast iron pipe split down the middle around 3 a.m., the significant break flooded basement and vehicles along Philadelphia Ave, causing another section of road to collapse downhill from the main break. Joel Bissell | MLive.com

Workers are shutting off valves to reach the damaged 2-foot water main. The trouble is not expected to be as extensive as a break in a water main in March that left 20,000 homes and businesses without drinkable water.

Related: We feel terrible: Grand Rapids leaders apologize after thousands without drinking water

Residents still have water pressure  though it could be lesser than usual  and water is safe to drink. Once repairs are made, 100 to 125 water customers, mostly on Adams Street, will be under a boil-water advisory.

Crews work to fix a water main break at Adams Street SE and Philadelphia Ave in Grand Rapids on Thursday, June 13, 2024. A 24 cast iron pipe split down the middle around 3 a.m., the significant break flooded basement and vehicles along Philadelphia Ave, causing another section of road to collapse downhill from the main break. Joel Bissell | MLive.com

City workers will go door-to-door to alert those residents of the upcoming advisory. They will leave notes with a gallon of water for those who are not home.

Jernberg said the cause of the failure will not be determined until all valves are shut off in the area and water empties out of the hole. The area contains older pipes but there are others in the system that are older.

Once the damaged section is found, it will take a day or two to make repairs.

Weve got to get the water shut off to see exactly what failed, he said.

He said the intersection where the break occurred is expected to be shut down for a week.
CALHOUN COUNTY, MI -- Nearly six months after a wolf was killed in an unexpected area of Michigan, a hunter who shot the animal will not face charges, according to a report from the Associated Press.

Michigan Department of Natural Resources experts still dont know how the gray wolf got into southern Michigan  an area of Michigan where wolves do not normally live  the agency said six months after the illegal kill.

A male wolf was killed by a coyote hunter on Jan. 19 in Calhoun County. An investigation failed to determine how the wolf got to the area, the DNR said in a news release on Thursday, June 13.

The wolf could have traveled there naturally or may have had help from humans, he said in the report, asking anyone with information about the case to reach out.

Research has suggested that there is suitable habitat for wolves in the northern Lower Peninsula, said Brian Roell, the Michigan DNRs large carnivore specialist, in a news release. However, this habitat is fragmented and the ability of wolves to travel the landscape among these habitat patches is uncertain.

MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette could not reach him for further comment.

Suitable habitat becomes more patchy in the more populated southern Lower Peninsula, Roell said in the release, making it unlikely wolves would establish there.

Though its possible individual wolves live in the Lower Peninsula, the states wolf population is not known to extend to that part of Michigan, the DNR said.

DNR officials saw a post on social media from someone claiming to have shot a coyote, but officials recognized it was a gray wolf.

The DNR investigated the case for months.

Calhoun County Prosecutor David Gilbert told AP on Thursday that no charges would filed against the hunter or guide. It appears they believed they were legally hunting a coyote, the prosecutor told AP.

Gilbert could not be reached for comment Thursday.

MLive/Kalamazoo Gazette obtained investigative documents from the DNR through a Freedom of Information Act request. Per the documents, someone on the hunt told investigators, It didnt look that big when it came in and Youre not thinking wolf, down here.

Evidence photos from show a wolf that was killed in January after a hunter reported he thought it was a coyote, according to DNR records.(Courtesy | Michigan DNR)

Another statement from a person on the hunt said it was the biggest coyote hed ever seen.

DNR officials temporarily took possession of the carcass in January, but it was later mounted by a taxidermist even though DNA testing hadnt been completed yet, the agency said.

The mount was seized from the taxidermist in April, documents show.

Apparently there was a bit of a surprise that the wolf has already been preserved as a full mount, Andy Turner of the DNR said in an internal email.

Evidence photos from show a wolf that was killed in January after a hunter reported he thought it was a coyote, according to DNR records.(Courtesy | Michigan DNR)

DNR experts and others could tell from photos of the animal it was not a coyote, records show, and multiple tests later confirmed it was indeed a wolf.

So to put it simply, wolves and coyotes are not breeding with each other and and the hunter in question did not shoot a world record coyote, he shot a gray wolf, Roell said in an email to other DNR officials on March 28. How it got to Calhoun County is still a question.

The animal also had a trap mark on its front right foot, the DNR said.

Evidence photos from show a wolf that was killed in January after a hunter reported he thought it was a coyote, according to DNR records.(Courtesy | Michigan DNR)

Wolves in Michigan are currently protected under the federal Endangered Species Act and can be killed only if they are a direct and immediate threat to human life, the DNR said.

131 more wolves

The DNR found evidence of at least 762 wolves in Michigans Upper Peninsula, based on the 2024 winter wolf population survey estimate.

Thats an increase of 131 compared to the 2022 estimate of 631, the DNR said.

This years survey findings are statistically consistent with our wolf population surveys for the past 14 years, Roell said. When a wild population reaches this stable point, it is typical to see slight variations from year to year, indicating that gray wolves may have reached their biological carrying capacity in the Upper Peninsula.

That means Michigans U.P. wolf population has achieved equilibrium between availability of habitat and the number of wolves that habitat can support, the DNR said in a news release.

The survey found 158 wolf packs in the Upper Peninsula and an average of 4.8 wolves per pack.

It represents the highest population estimate since 2012, when the department began doing the semiannual survey, which is conducted during the winter because looks at wolf tracks in the snow.

The DNR also plans to continue its search for wolves in the Lower Peninsula. The last such survey occurred in 2019 and a new survey is planned for early 2025, the department said.

Want more Kalamazoo-area news? Bookmark the local Kalamazoo news page or sign up for the free 3@3 Kalamazoo daily newsletter.
BAY CITY, MI  An inmate of the Bay County Jail accused of providing a fellow prisoner with a fatal batch of drugs is a step closer to having her case heard by a jury.

A shackled Kristine I. Campau, 34, appeared beside attorney James F. Piazza for a scheduled preliminary examination on June 12. Rather than proceed with witnesses testimony, Piazza said his client wished to waive her right to the hearing.

Bay County District Judge Mark E. Janer obliged and bound Campaus case over to Circuit Court. Piazza told the judge the case should be set for trial, though plea negotiations are ongoing.

Campau is charged with single counts of delivering a controlled substance causing death and inmate in possession of a controlled substance. The former is a life offense, while the latter is a five-year felony.

The charges stem from the death of Jessica L. Ayers, a 41-year-old mother of four.

Between 4 and 4:30 a.m. on Oct. 28, an inmate within the jail at 503 Third St. triggered a panic alarm in her cell after Ayers, her cellmate, went into medical distress, said Sheriff Troy R. Cunningham. Corrections officers entered the cell and rendered aid, but Ayers was pronounced deceased before she could be taken to a hospital, the sheriff said.

Through their investigation, detectives came to believe Campau had provided drugs to Ayers. Campau had been booked in the jail on Oct. 26 on several warrants.

Cunningham said its believed when Campau arrived at the jail, she already had drugs inside her.

We did a routine and thorough search and searched her as much as is legally allowed, Cunningham said. The controlled substances were hidden in a way that would have been impossible to detect.

He added its believed Ayers ingested the drugs shortly after corrections staff did their hourly round through the cellblock.

Autopsy results showed Ayers died of fentanyl intoxication, with 26 nanograms of the substance in her blood.

Fentanyl is a potent synthetic opioid commonly mixed with heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine or made into pills that look like prescription painkillers.

Fentanyl has become a leading cause of death in the United States responsible for a majority of the 105,000 fatal overdoses recorded between November 2022 and November 2023. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency warned that six out of 10 fake prescription pills analyzed two years ago had a potentially lethal dose of fentanyl.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports there were an estimated 109,680 fatal drug overdoses throughout the country in 2022, an increase from 109,179 in 2021. An estimated 68% involved synthetic opioids, principally illicitly produced fentanyl.

In Bay County, fatal drug overdoses increased 12.54% from 2020 to 2021, claiming the lives of 42 people between the ages of 16 and 70. Of those deaths, 33 involved the presence of fentanyl.

In late March, the Drug Enforcement Agency had its biggest seizure of fentanyl in Michigan to date. A Detroit gas station owner was arrested after police found a stash of 40 kilos of fentanyl, enough fatal doses for every person in Michigan, hidden in a stash house.

The following month, Dr. William Morrone issued a public health advisory after six overdoses occurred in 11 days. Morrone is the medical examiner for Bay, Tuscola, Midland, Iosco, and Arenac counties.

Morrone encouraged a five-step plan for users to prevent fatal overdoses, the first and fifth step being the same  get into substance abuse treatment. Second, obtain Narcan, an opiate antagonist that counteracts an overdose. Third, dont use drugs alone. Four, acquire testing strips that will indicate the presence of fentanyl in substances.

Ayers had been in the jail for nearly a year, having been arrested and charged in December 2022 with assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder.

A Kent County judge in 2017 sentenced Ayers to 30 to 90 months in prison on a first-degree retail fraud conviction. The Michigan Department of Corrections paroled Ayers in July 2019. While on parole, Ayers in November 2019 stabbed two people, resulting in her receiving two concurrent terms of 182 days in jail.

The MDOC again paroled Ayers in January 2022, and she was to remain on it until February 2024.

Ayers had a creative spirit and was known for her positivity.

Jessicas creativity knew no bounds, her obituary states. Her love for music and art was evident in everything she did. She was a dancer at heart, and her joy in movement was infectious.

In addition to her four children, Ayers is survived by a fiance, grandson, mother, and three siblings.
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DETROIT -- Reese Olson gave up a barrage of hits in his second straight start and the Detroit Tigers bat arrived too late to avoid a 7-5 loss to the Washington Nationals on Wednesday night at Comerica Park.

The Nationals (32-35) have won five in a row and will go for a three-game sweep of the Tigers (32-35) on Thursday afternoon.

I wasnt good enough, Olson said. This ones on me.

Tigers lead-off man Matt Vierling hit a 3-2 curveball from Jake Irvin over the fence in left field for his eighth homer of the year and the first lead-off bomb of his career.

Irvin allowed a couple more singles in the first inning but escaped the jam and then breezed through the sixth.

Olson, who gave up eight runs on 12 hits on June 7 against the Brewers, endured another hit-filled day on Wednesday. He was charged with five runs (four earned) on 10 hits in 5 1/3 innings.

This is an adjustment league. (Olson) is not a surprise to anyone anymore. Hes been up here for 30-plus starts, said Tigers manager A.J. Hinch. But its nothing that hes going to back down from. Hes really unflappable.

The Tigers roused from their slumber in the eighth inning. Wenceel Perez, Mark Canha and Colt Keith started the inning with consecutive singles. Gio Urshela lined a ball down the left-field line to score two. But Nats reliever Harvey Hunter retired the next three batters to end the threat.

Tigers in the mirror are closer than they appear. pic.twitter.com/b3j6rAPGtL  Detroit Tigers (@tigers) June 13, 2024

A ninth-inning comeback was made more difficult when the Nationals scored two in the top of the ninth, piecing together a flurry of singles -- including two infield hits -- against reliever Will Vest.

Riley Greene hit a solo homer to left off Nats closer Kyle Finnegan to cut the lead to two runs, but that was the extent of the damage.

BOX SCORE

Up next: The Tigers and Nationals wrap up their three-game series on Thursday at 1:10 p.m.

Tigers right-hander Casey Mize (1-4, 4.73 ERA) will face Nats lefty MacKenzie Gore (5-5, 3.57).

Mize has allowed 17 runs (14 earned) on 30 hits in 15 1/3 innings over his last four starts. Hes walked eight and struck out seven during that span.

Mize got plenty of soft contact but induced only one swing-and-miss in his 97-pitch outing in his last start on June 8 against the Brewers.

Gore was selected by the San Diego Padres with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2017 draft.

He was part of the megadeal two summers ago that sent Juan Soto and Josh Bell to the Padres.

Gore is off to a strong start in 2024, striking out 81 in 68 innings.

UPDATE: Gore has been scratched with a fingernail issue and left-hander Patrick Corbin will start the finale.
Severe weather remains possible for Lower Michigan late this afternoon into the evening hours. Damaging wind gusts and hail are the main threats with the stronger storms, although an isolated tornado cannot be ruled out. Lower Michigan remains in a slight risk for severe storms.

A 60% for a severe thunderstorm watch is in place for lower Michigan for Thursday evening.NOAA

The Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Oklahoma has given Lower Michigan a 60% chance for a severe thunderstorm watch to be issued to address the severe storm potential. A broken line of showers and thunderstorms will likely form near or just south of Grand Rapids and move southeast throughout the evening. Storms should exit the area by the very early morning hours.
Here is continuously updated severe weather information as an area of possible severe thunderstorms moves across southern Lower Michigan this afternoon and evening.

A severe thunderstorm watch is in effect for southwest and south-central Lower but not yet for southeast Lower. The watch should be extended east.

Lets start with the always updated radar over the past 20 minutes.

7:00 p.m. General Update - Storms are strong right along the Michigan border. These storms are shifting southeast and should be out of Michigan around 8:30 p.m. These storms could have a brief severe wind gust but not widespread damaging winds. This will be the last update unless something unexpected occurs with a re-intensification of the storms.

6:05 p.m. General Update - The thunderstorms are weakening over southeast Lower and are no longer severe. This should be a trend that continues for the next few hours before weak thundershowers are out of southeast Michigan. Far southern and southwest Michigan still can have quick severe storms as another line of storms in increasing across northern Indiana. Most of the strongest storms will stay south of the Michigan border but border areas could be clipped by the storms.

5:32 p.m. General Update - No significant severe weather reports so far with the thunderstorms. They look liked they have peaked in intensity and are now heading to Ann Arbor and all of Washtenaw County. They are just vigorous thunderstorms at the moment. Ann Arbor, Saline and Washtenaw County can expect about 15 minutes of heavy rain, lightning and gusts up to 40 mph.

5:15 p.m. General Update - Calhoun County Emergency Manager says ,Getting some reports of limbs and wires down near Battle Creek/Pennfield Township area.

5:02 p.m. - Severe thunderstorm warning for all of Jackson County until 6:30 p.m. At 500 PM EDT, severe thunderstorms were located along a line extending from near Leslie to near Brownlee Park, moving southeast at 40 mph. The main threats are 60 mph wind gusts and penny size hail. Locations impacted include...Jackson... Brooklyn... Grass Lake... Vandercook Lake... Leoni... Spring Arbor... Napoleon... Sandstone... Norvell... Pulaski... Concord... Horton... Springport... Parma... Hanover... Pleasant Lake... Liberty... Clark Lake... Lake Columbia... Rives Junction...

4:57 p.m. - Severe thunderstorm warning now in effect until 5:45 for northern Calhoun County including Battle Creek. At 453 PM EDT, a severe thunderstorm was located near Brownlee Park, or 8 miles northwest of Marshall, moving east at 50 mph. The main hazards are 60 mph wind gusts and penny size hail.

4:54 p.m. - New severe thunderstorm warning issued for southern Eaton County, southern Ingham County, but not including Lansing. The thunderstorm hasnt produced official severe weather yet, but could eventually produce scattered 60 mph winds. The warning is in effect until 5:45 p.m.

4:45 p.m. - From the National Weather Service office in Grand Rapids: Update: Cluster of showers and storms have filled into a line as the boundary sinks southwards. Wind gusts remain the primary concern but hail may be beginning to develop, especially in southern Eaton and southern Ingham Counties.

4:38 p.m. - Only severe thunderstorm warning at moment is for Eaton County. The only legit wind report so far was a 36 mph gust at Vermontville. Looks like 50 mph gusts are heading toward Charlotte and Eaton Rapids.

4:09 p.m. - Our first severe thunderstorm warning has been issued for Barry and Eaton County until 4:45 p.m. Heres the info: Severe Thunderstorm Warning for Northeastern Barry County in southwestern Michigan and Eaton County in south central Michigan until 445 PM EDT. At 406 PM EDT, severe thunderstorms were located along a line extending from near Lake Odessa to near Hastings, moving east at 45 mph. HAZARD...60 mph wind gusts. SOURCE...Radar indicated. IMPACT...Expect damage to roofs, siding, and trees. Locations impacted include...Charlotte... Hastings...Eaton Rapids... Grand Ledge... Potterville...Nashville... Kalamo... Dimondale...Vermontville... Sunfield... Mulliken...Waverly... Woodland... Gresham...Woodbury...

4:05 p.m. - The thunderstorm in Barry County is not severe but gaining strength and starting to give a wind signature on radar.

3:54 p.m. - The line of thunderstorms that should continue to strengthen 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. has now formed southeast of Grand Rapids. This means Grand Rapids will probably not have any severe storms. The storms should be around Lansing at 5 p.m., Jackson 5-6 p.m. and Ann Arbor, Detroit and Flint between 6 p.m. and 7 p.m.
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Maharashtra RTE Lottery Result 2024 out today at student.maharashtra.gov.in, check details here
Exclusive: Kishwer Merchantt, on her son being trolled for wearing a 'skull cap', says: 'I am a Muslim married to a Hindu, some people are just there to spread hatred, I am going to take my son everywhere
Filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma on Darshan Thoogudeepa and Pavithra Gowda alleged murder case: Fit example of the bizarreness of the star worship syndrome
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GIC affiliates complete sale of units worth $704 mn in IRB Infra Trust to Ferrovial's Cintra
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Jaypee Infratech appoints Devang Pravin Patel as CFO; to delist company shares from bourses
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Seeing evidence of policy continuity from Modi 3.0, focus to be on capex and job creation, says Morgan Stanley's Upasana Chachra
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Stock radar : Wipro, Zee Media, RITES, Purvankara, LIC, and others in focus
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Index mutual funds grab investor attention; heres how to get the best out of them

Investors looking at market-linked returns, reduce the chances of underperformance and not wanting fund managers involvement can consider index funds. Index funds with low tracking error and low expense ratio are preferred investment options. Read here
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Musk says Tesla shareholders voting for his pay by 'wide margins'
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Odisha's new BJP government to reopen all gates of Puri Jagannath Temple
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Too many types of jobs causing loss of focus, 76% Indian knowledge workers complain: Report
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Non-bailable arrest warrant issued against former CM BS Yediyurappa in POCSO case
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Himachal tells SC it doesn't have surplus water, court asks Delhi govt to approach Yamuna board
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J&K cops detain 50 as search widens to nab terrorists behind Reasi bus attack
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No evidence of paper leak in NEET-UG: Dharmendra Pradhan
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In a tragic turn of events, a 34-year-old man from Raffingora, Takeson Nyanzama, has been remanded in custody on murder charges by the Chinhoyi Magistrates Court.

The incident occurred on May 19th, 2024, when Nyanzama, along with Prudence Nyamukondiwa, were drinking beer with the now-deceased, Still Tembo, at the Conrise Farm Shops in Raffingora. A misunderstanding allegedly arose between the trio, which escalated into violence.

According to the states case, Nyanzama and Nyamukondiwa assaulted Tembo with a log, striking him all over his body. Tembo was rescued by his brother and taken to Raffingora Rural Hospital. However, his injuries proved to be fatal, and he succumbed to them on May 25th, 2024, at Sally Mugabe Hospital in Harare.

Nyanzama has been remanded in custody until June 14th, 2024, as the investigation into the incident continues. The National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe has emphasized the importance of resolving disputes amicably or seeking third-party mediation, urging the public to refrain from violence.

This tragic incident serves as a stark reminder of the need for amicable conflict resolution and the preservation of human life.

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In a shocking turn of events, a Harare man has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for the heinous crime of raping his own 18-year-old daughter.

The 37-year-old accused, who cannot be named to protect the victims identity, was arraigned before the Harare Magistrates Court on rape charges. The disturbing incident occurred on March 2nd, 2024, when the father collected his daughter from Epworth, where she had been staying with his sister.

According to National Prosecuting Authority of Zimbabwe, as the pair neared Athlone Park, the father allegedly fondled his daughters breasts and demanded that she engage in xul intercourse with him. When the young woman refused, citing their biological relationship, the father is said to have tripped her to the ground, torn her clothes, and proceeded to rape her.

The traumatized victim promptly reported the matter to the police, leading to the fathers arrest. Despite pleading not guilty, the accused was found guilty and sentenced to 20 years in prison, a sentence that reflects the gravity of his abhorrent actions.

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Wicknell Chivayo, a wealth-flaunting businessman who has made millions of dollars from government contracts was on the backfoot on Wednesday after voice notes of him boasting of levering his proximity to President Emmerson Mnangagwa to secure more business from the government emerged.

Chivayo is also heard on the audios, which were apparently sent in January this year to a closed WhatsApp group he opened with his now estranged business partners, claiming to have made several payments to senior government officials in order to land a supply contract with the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC).

In a lengthy statement issued on Wednesday, he denied that the voice on the audios was his but went on to apologise to Mnangagwa, his wife, CIO director general Isaac Moyo, chief cabinet secretary Martin Rushwaya and ZEC chairperson Justice Priscilla Chigumba for the adverse impression that has been created that these authorities are involved in corruption or participate in illicit transactions.

Separately, Mnangagwas spokesman George Charamba said offensive name dropping of the president does not automatically indict the president and government.

Claims dont become true because they have been made, or because some detractors of the president, in chorus form, wish them to be so, Charamba wrote on X.

Charamba accused government critics and the media of cultivating mere tall claims hoping that such claims will one day attach to the president, grow and mature into some non-existent scandal enormous enough to trip him.

Nothing can be more insane, he added.

Chivayo, whose garage boasts half a dozen Rolls Royce cars and has given away more than 100 vehicles to Zanu PF-leaning public figures in less than a year, has been put in a spot of bother after his relationship with business partners Moses Mpofu and Mike Chimombe went sour.

Mpofu and Chimombe, who are demanding US$10 million in lost earnings from Chivayo, have released damaging information on him, including now viral audios revealing the inner workings of their collapsed partnership.

In particular, the information which includes confidential documents appears to show that Chivayo won contracts of up to US$40 million with ZEC in the run-up to the August 2023 general elections. These were for the provision of tents, electronic devices, biometric hardware and software, ink, and training among others.

In his statement on Wednesday, he denied any contracts with ZEC.

I have not, whether personally or through my companies, been a party to a contract with the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission, the department of immigration or the Zimbabwe Republic Police as insinuated in the manufactured voice messages, he said.

Chivayo became the talk of the country when he started dolling out vehicles to Zanu PF-linked individuals including musicians, social media influencers and churches. In March this year, he flew on Mnangagwas helicopter to make a US$1 million donation to the Zion Christian Church.

He has also been seen in Mnangagwas company in various settings, raising eyebrows after the Zanu PF leader previously criticised him for failing to deliver on a 100 MW solar power plant in Gwanda, for which he won a tender in 2015 and was paid US$6 million for pre-commencement works.

Chivayos apparently reckless expenditure and newfound friendship with Mnangagwa captivated Zimbabweans who wondered about the source of his wealth. Watching on too were Chimombe and Mpofu, who finally decided to lift the lid on their raging fight with the 41-year-old.

Mpofu, who previously supplied ZEC with kits for bio-metric voter registration in 2017, and Chimombe claim they were approached by Chivayo, who said he could secure contracts from ZEC without the need for a public tender. The initial discussions also involved the gold dealer, Scott Pedzisai Sakupwanya.

Through Sakupwanyas Better Brands company, the men signed a contract with South African firm Ren Form which would do all the work and supply the materials at inflated prices. The mark-up on the price of the goods was to go to the partners.

Along the way, Chivayo allegedly told his partners that because the Better Brands bank account in South Africa was fairly new, the bank would flag any big payments going into it and then he suggested that they use the account of his company, Intratrek, instead.

Ren Form, according to documents seen by ZimLive, subsequently paid Chivayo through the Intratrek account. He transferred US$200,000 to Chimombe and a similar amount to Mpofu in various transactions before the payments stopped.

Chimombe and Mpofu claim, in letters written by their lawyers, that Chivayo fraudulently altered their agreement with Ren Form, leaving himself as the sole party to the contract.

Chivayo disputes this. He says he engaged the two men as consultants and let them go after paying them.

These two failed, struggling briefcase businessmen Mike Chimombe and Moses Mpofu are merely overzealous extortionists and fraudsters who solely rely on opportunistic delinquency as a means of survival. If their demands for payment were indeed genuine, the duo should have approached the courts of law for redress, he says.

But as the leaks of their private conversations continue, Chivayo is now having to contend with his name dropping which has roped in Mnangagwa and other top officials. He boasted, in one audio, that Mnangagwa had referred to him as his son and had, while departing for Italy, shook his hand last where he would normally finish with his two vice presidents.

On another voice note, Chivayo lists several people who he says should also get paid. They include someone he refers to as DG and Moms. DG is thought to refer to the director general of the CIO Isaac Moyo, and Moms a reference to Justice Chigumba.

A WhatsApp message seen by ZimLive, sent to the same group, also lists a GG  assumed to be a reference to George Guvamatanga, the permanent secretary in the finance ministry and the governments paymaster.

Chigumba denied any links to Chivayo. Commenting would breathe life to fiction, she said.

I hereby express my deep regret and profound apology to the esteemed office of President Mnangagwa, the first lady, the first family and any office or public official that these fake voice messages may have adversely affected or drawn into disrepute, Chivayo said in his statement.

I have taken a further step to personally extend my remorse and apologies to all director generals in the government upon whom the malicious voice messages may unjustly be construed as applying. I repeat that at no given time did I ever pay the director general of the CIO Isaac Moyo or the chief secretary to the president Martin Rushwaya any money whatsoever for any service. ZimLive.

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Defence Ministers met in Brussels on Thursday (13 June 2024) to finalise preparations for NATOs Washington Summit and discuss support for Ukraine.

In a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council, Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov briefed Allies on the battlefield situation. Following the meeting, the Secretary General said he expects Allies to agree tomorrow on the plan for NATO security assistance and training to Ukraine. He added that he has also proposed that Allies provide Ukraine at least 40 billion euros in military support each year, for as long as necessary. The paradox is that the longer we plan, and the longer we commit, the sooner Ukraine can have peace, he said, underlining that a credible, long-term commitment shows Moscow that they cannot wait out Allied support.

Ukraines future in NATO was also discussed, with Mr Stoltenberg pointing to Allies efforts to bring Ukraine ever closer to NATO membership. To that end, Allies discussed plans to align Ukraines defence and security sectors with NATO standards, and improve its defence procurement. They also endorsed the first-ever NATO-Ukraine Innovation Cooperation Roadmap and are preparing to endorse a NATO-Ukraine Joint Analysis, Training and Education Centre (JATEC) in Poland.

On Friday, Ministers will discuss strengthening NATOs deterrence and defence, including a new defence industrial pledge to scale up military production. This is our last Ministerial before the Washington Summit, so we have a lot to get done, the Secretary General concluded.
(As delivered)

Good evening. Today we convened the NATO-Ukraine Council, where Defence Minister Umerov briefed Allies on the latest battlefield developments, and Ukraines most pressing needs.

Delays in our support have had serious consequences, and we must not let that happen again. The good news is that Allies are stepping up. But Ukraine needs predictable support for the long term.

Tomorrow, I expect Ministers will agree the plan for NATO security assistance and training for Ukraine, a key deliverable for the NATO Summit.

More than 99% of all military support to Ukraine is provided by NATO Allies. So, it makes sense that NATO takes on a greater role in these efforts. This will put our support on a firmer footing, provide predictability for Kyiv, and address both immediate and long-term needs.

Since Russias full-scale invasion, Allies have provided around 40 billion euros worth of military support each year. I have proposed that we sustain this level of support as a minimum, for as long as it takes. And that Allies share this burden equitably.

The paradox is that the longer we plan, and the longer we commit, the sooner Ukraine can have peace. Because a credible long-term commitment shows Moscow that they cannot wait us out.

We also discussed ongoing initiatives to bring Ukraine ever closer to NATO membership. Such as capacity building to align Ukraines defence and security sectors with NATO standards, improve defence procurement, and enhance Ukraines defence-industrial base.

Today we have endorsed the first-ever NATO-Ukraine Innovation Cooperation Roadmap. Allies are preparing to endorse a NATO-Ukraine Joint Analysis, Training and Education Centre (JATEC) in Poland.

Tomorrow we will address how to further strengthen our deterrence and defence. Ministers will discuss a new Defence Industrial Pledge to scale up military production, and solidify long-term cooperation with our industry.

This is our last Ministerial Meeting before the Washington Summit in July, so we have a lot to get done.

With that I am ready to take your questions.

NATO Spokesperson Farah Dakhlallah: Okay, we'll go to the fourth row to ANSA first, please.

Mattia Bagnoli (ANSA): Hello there. Mattia Bagnoli, ANSA, National Italian News Agency. Secretary General the G7 has just reached an agreement. Basically, the leaders would provide 50 billion euros and this will be in the credit creative matter, because then it will be used against the use of the imobilized Russian assets. Do you see this positive development and there is any chance that this package, this money pod would somehow come into the picture of what you are preparing for the financial pledges for Ukraine? Is this part of the picture or two separate things? And secondly, on the pledges, is there a little bit more clarity coming into the Ministerial in terms of how will be calculated you know, we've been talking about GDP as a share, quotas. You know, there is a little bit more clarity on that front? Thank you.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg: First, I welcome the decision by the G7 countries to use the frozen Russian assets, to make it possible for them to provide more economic support to Ukraine. As far as I understand this is a loan and it's not only going to go to military support. Of course, there are other things which is important to support, like funding the Ukrainian government and different types of macroeconomic stability support.

So, what will count against the NATO commitment will be military support and its too early to say exactly to what extent this will be covered by that decision. My proposal and that's not yet agreed among Allies, is that we should agree a minimum of 40 billion per year, because that will at least sustain the level of military support we have provided so far. NATO Allies provide 99% of the military support. And then by agreeing this for long term, we will ensure that Ukraine have predictability, that we have more accountability because we have seen some examples that Allies have promised support, but support has not been delivered. And we also have a system where we can have more accountability, meaning that we can agree actually how to account and how to measure, how to evaluate different types of support. To put a price on, for instance, old equipment, so it's easier to compare and therefore easier also to ensure that we have a fair burden sharing.

So, my proposal is about 40 billion minimum per year. It's about using GDP, as the method for burden sharing - you pay according to your GDP. The US GDP is roughly 50% of NATO's total GDP. So, then the US will then be responsible for 50% of that commitment. And then the rest will be divided between European Allies and Canada. So multi-year, GDP as a cost-share and the 40 billion, but this will only then cover military assistance. There are many other types of assistance that have to come in addition, but will be outside the NATO commitment.

I hope and I expect NATO Allies will agree this, because the Ukrainians need predictability. We need to prevent what we saw over the last months with serious delays in the provision of military support. That actually created big problems for Ukrainians on the battlefield. And we need also to convey to President Putin that he cannot wait us out. The more he believes that he can just stay on and then we will give up, then this war will continue. So, the stronger we communicate, and the clearer we demonstrate that we are ready for the long haul, the sooner this war can end because this war can end when President Putin realizes that they will not win on the battlefield.

NATO Spokesperson: Okay, we'll go to Teri.

Teri Schultz (Deutsche Welle): Thank you. Teri Schultz, Deutsche Welle. Secretary General, what makes you think that your plan would encourage Allies to continue donating at the level they are now or to speed it up? Because for example, it's very puzzling why they're just getting air defence together now when we've seen the Ukrainians come here now for almost two years asking for air defence. So why is this just happening now, two years later. Same thing with ammunition, the industry scaled up and you still weren't getting the orders, you aren't getting the orders now that would be potentially produced if they were making these orders. So how will your plan actually maintain or perhaps scale up support to Ukraine if needed?

NATO Secretary General: It will scale up our support because it will be a long-term commitment, and that will give Ukraine, but also the defence industry the predictability they need to plan, to invest, to ramp up production. And, it will also ensure that we deliver more because we have more transparency and more accountability. And we can use the NATO structure, the NATO institutions to then work with Allies to ensure that they deliver what they have promised. So, Allies have already delivered unprecedented amount of military support to Ukraine, much more than I think most experts believed at the beginning of the war and at least much more than President Putin believed. He underestimated the Ukrainians but also totally underestimated NATO Allies in providing support to Ukraine.

But since we need to do more, we need to ensure that this is for the long term. I strongly believe that we need a stronger framework, institutionalized framework around our support to ensure the predictability, the accountability and the long term - both the industry needs to ramp up production, but also Ukraine needs to ensure that they are actually able to plan for the long haul.

Then on defence spending, no, sorry, on air defence and production. So, production is now increasing. It's obvious that we could have started even earlier, but now we see the result of the efforts by NATO Allies not least by agreeing to do more joint procurement that we buy and ordered things together. The United States just before the war started produced roughly 14,000 155 mm pieces of artillery ammunition per month. That is now 28,000 per month, and the plan is to be at 100,000 per month by the end of next year. And we have seen similar increases in the production of heavy artillery ammunition across Europe. So, things are now starting to happen. New factories are built, investments are made. And that's also the case for air defence. The decision has been taken to build a new factory in Germany to produce Patriot interceptors and production is ramping up and Allies are providing more air defence.

NATO Spokesperson: Okay, we'll go to TV2 Norway.

Eline Srsdahl (TV2 Norway): Eline Srsdahl from TV2 Norway. Secretary General your successor has not yet been appointed. Outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte, the Dutch Prime Minister is supported by almost all member states, except from Hungary. Secretary General, did you discuss this matter with Prime Minister Viktor Orban during your visit in Budapest yesterday?

NATO Secretary General: I have a very good visit to Budapest, yesterday. I met for several hours with the Prime Minister Viktor Orban. We covered a wide range of issues which are of importance for NATO and that includes also that we were able to find a way forward on Ukraine. Prime Minister Orban has made it clear that Hungary will not be part of increased efforts by NATO to coordinate and provide security assistance and training for Ukraine and Hungary will not be part of the long-term financial commitment. I said that I recognize that, but I also welcome the fact that Prime Minister Orban made it clear that Hungary will not block decisions here at NATO to decide a long-term pledge and decide a NATO support, security assistance and training support for Ukraine. So, I think that's a good solution that will enable us to move forward on more support for Ukraine within the NATO framework without Hungary blocking. And that's, again, a solution that works and that was reached in Budapest yesterday. On Mark Rutte, we discussed many different issues during that meeting with the Prime Minister Orban, but I will not go into all of them in public. This is part of these kinds of consultations that some of them have to be confidential.

NATO Spokesperson: Okay, over to Dmytro.

Dmytro Shkurko (Ukrinform): Thank you, Dmytro Shkurko, National News Agency of Ukraine. Secretary General just in one day, Switzerland will host the Peace Summit, just to promote the peace formula by President Zelenskyy. Does NATO have some kind of expectations of income of this meeting and how the situation on the battlefield could influence on its results and generally speaking, what kind of principles are acceptable for NATO in peace settlement? Thank you.

NATO Secretary General: We welcome the Peace Summit. We strongly support efforts to find a peaceful solution. We welcome that many countries will participate and NATO Allies will be present at the Peace Summit. Then, one of the most important principles or perhaps the main principle for NATO, is that it's for Ukraine to decide what is an acceptable solution, so we will not sit in the NATO Headquarters and decide what is acceptable or not acceptable for Ukraine. Ukraine is a sovereign independent nation. Ukraine has been attacked. Ukraine has the right to self-defence, we support and help Ukraine to uphold that right. And that doesn't make NATO Allies a party to the conflict and at the end of the day, it has to be Ukraine that decides what is acceptable. What we do know is that what happens around the negotiating table is inextricably linked to the situation on the battlefield. So, if you want a negotiated peaceful solution to the conflict in Ukraine that ensures that Ukraine can continue as a democratic, sovereign nation in Europe, the way to get there is to provide military support to Ukraine, and therefore NATO's task is to provide long term military support to Ukraine, to make it obvious, to demonstrate, to show for President Putin that he has to sit down and accept that Ukraine prevails.

NATO Spokesperson: Okay, Yonhap News Agency please.

Binna Chung (Yonhap News Agency): Thank you, Binna from Yonhap News Agency. Secretary General, South Korean officials expected President Putin might visit Pyongyang within days and how worried are you on the deepening relationship between North Korea and Russia? And another question, if I may. You mentioned this morning that NATO is working on the concrete deliverables with the Asia-Pacific partners and could you share some more details about in which field for this to come?

NATO Secretary General: We are concerned about the fact that Russia and North Korea are aligning more and more. We have seen how North Korea has provided substantial amount of ammunition, but also other types of military support to Russia to enable them to conduct a war of aggression against Ukraine. We have seen thousands of containers being loaded on railroad cars in North Korea and then transported directly to Russia to the frontlines in Ukraine. And this is more than 1 million rounds of artillery provided by North Korea to Russias war of aggression. In return, Russia is sharing technology, supporting North Korea's missile programs. And we also believe nuclear aspirations or nuclear programs. So of course this is of concern. The visit just demonstrates how authoritarian powers, North Korea and Russia are working together and supporting each other. And that makes it even more important that we stand together and uphold the sovereign rights of nations to choose our own path, support Ukraine, and protect democratic values and freedom. That's also one of the reasons why it is important for NATO to work more closely with our Asia-Pacific partners, including South Korea. Its too early to announce exactly what the decisions will be but issues related to cyber, technology, maritime security are areas where we have common interests where we believe there's potential for doing more together with South Korea and other partners in the Asia-Pacific region.

NATO Spokesperson: Okay, we'll take one or two more Stuart Lau, POLITICO over there.

Stuart Lau (POLITICO): Thank you Stuart Lau from POLITICO. Secretary General, you have previously talked about the need for Western nations in NATO to allow Ukraine to use their weapons to strike out Russian targets inside Russian territories. Have you seen enough Allies make the move in that approach in allowing Ukraine to do that? If not, are you dissatisfied? Thank you.

NATO Secretary General: On some of these issues, it will be wrong to go into all the operational details because some Allies don't want to share that and I fully understand. And it's not obvious that we should give Russia the privilege of having access to all information about how different weapons can be used. So what I can say is that Russia is responsible for a war of aggression, they have invaded Ukraine. That's a blatant violation of international law. According to international law, Ukraine has the right to self-defence and the right of self-defence includes also the right to strike legitimate military targets on the territory of the aggressor, Russia. And this is an important principle, but it's also very important when now Russia has opened a new front in the north. Most of the fighting so far has taken place on deep inside Ukrainian territory. But after Russia opened the front against Kharkiv, then actually the frontline and the borderline is more or less the same. And Russia is launching missile attacks, artillery attacks, air attacks from bases, airfields in Russia directly against Ukrainian territory over the border. And it would really undermine Ukraine's ability to defend itself, to uphold the right to self-defence if it wasnt possible for them to use weapons to repel those attacks. It will actually be to ask them to defend themselves with one hand tied on the back. So this is the reason why I also welcome that some Allies have eased the restrictions.

NATO Spokesperson: Okay, well give the final question to AFP, Max.

Max Delaney (AFP): Thanks so much, Secretary General Max Delaney, AFP. Two questions, if I may, on the Washington Summit, so you will give Ukraine no invite for membership. You will give them an unenforceable pledge on funding to carry on doing what you're doing, and you'll give them a greater NATO coordination and delivery with that it's very unclear what added value that will have for Ukraine. Doesnt this all risk being very underwhelming for a country that's currently at war with Russia? And on a second issue, Russia today said that they were sending unfairly imprisoned journalist Evan Gershkovich for trial on espionage charges. Can we have your reaction to that? Thanks.

NATO Secretary General: The freedom of press is a core principle for NATO and I joined the United States in calling on Russia to release the journalist Evan Gershkovich. He is a journalist, he is conducting his work as journalists for free media and therefore he should be released.

On the Washington Summit, I'm absolutely confident that the Washington Summit will demonstrate NATO's unwavering and strong support to Ukraine. Both when it comes to immediate support but also long-term. When it comes to immediate support, I welcome that just of the last days and weeks, several Allies have made significant new announcements. Belgium just announced that they will donate 30 F-16s. Sweden made the announcement of more than 1 billion Euros including advanced air surveillance planes and a lot of other military equipment. Spain, other Allies have made a big announcement announcements recently providing more immediate support which is of great importance for Ukraine.

This has enabled Ukrainians to stop the Russian advances. Russia has not succeeded in taking any significant territory in Kharkiv, even though they launched a big offensive there two weeks ago. And this is part of the broader picture where NATO Allies have provided unprecedented support to Ukraine. That has enabled Ukrainians to liberate 50% of the territory that Russia occupied the beginning of the war, enabled Ukrainians to sink a large number of the ships in the Russian Black Sea Fleet, to open the corridor and the Black Sea. At the beginning of the war, I think very few people believed that was possible that but Ukrainians have proven that's possible, not least with support from NATO Allies. And they continue to conduct deep strikes and inflict heavy losses on Russia. The casualty numbers varies but we have seen thousands and even more casualties per day for the Russians in their attempts to take control over more Ukrainian land. And they have not been able to make any more than marginal gains.

So we are building on this effort when we are saying that we will give more and will sustain and will be committed for the long haul. And it's no doubt that if this is part of a NATO decision, a NATO commitment, it's a much stronger commitment than ad-hoc short-term announcements with not always the level of transparency and accountability that we should like to see. But with a NATO commitment and within NATO role in providing the support, we will have more predictability, more transparency and more accountability. That's what NATO can provide. And therefore we also have more and more credible long-term support for Ukraine.

So it's about the immediate support that I expect Allies to provide as they have provided over the last weeks. There are new announcements today. There will be new announcements as we move towards the Summit. It's about the long-term commitment with money and military support. And then it's about clear language. It's too early to say exactly but we're working on language when it comes to membership. So the combination of all is substantial. It's important. And of course we do all this in close connection with Ukraine. I met with the Minister Umerov today, Zelenskyy some weeks ago and we are developing all these deliverables, all these decisions together with Ukrainians.

NATO Spokesperson: Thank you, Secretary General. Thank you all for your time. We'll see you tomorrow.

NATO Secretary General: Thanks so much.
Archaeologists find records of Pompeiis survivors, proving many survived Mount Vesuvius eruption

Archaeologists have found records indicating that many people from Pompeii survived the cataclysmic eruption of Mount Vesuvius.

On August 24 in 79 A.D., Mount Vesuvius erupted after centuries of dormancy, devastating the once prosperous Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum and killing thousands. Based on most modern accounts, both cities were destroyed with their people fossilized. (Related: Vesuvius eruption wiped out people of Pompeii because it lasted longer than 15 minutes, study finds)

The latest research is threatening to upend the narrative about the story of the eruption of Mount Vesuvius from one of total destruction to one that also discusses what happened to the people who survived the eruption and were able to rebuild their lives.

This is thanks to historian Steven L. Tuck of Miami University whose search for survivors and their stories has dominated the past decade of his archaeological fieldwork as he tried to find out who might have escaped the eruption of Mount Vesuvius.

"Pompeii and Herculaneum were two wealthy cities on the coast of Italy just south of Naples. Pompeii was a community of about 30,000 people that hosted thriving industry and active political and financial networks," Tuck said. "Herculaneum, with a population of about 5,000, had an active fishing fleet and a number of marble workshops. Both economies supported the villas of wealthy Romans in the surrounding countryside."

Many residents of Pompeii and Herculaneum could have escaped if they fled early enough

Tuck said the eruption itself continued for over 18 hours and the human remains found in each city account for only a fraction of their populations. Many objects people might have expected to have remained and be preserved in ash are missing  carts and horses are gone from stables, ships are missing from docks and strongboxes have been cleaned out of money and jewelry.

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All of this suggests that many  if not most  of the people in the cities could have escaped if they fled early enough. Tuck added that several archaeologists have always assumed that some people escaped but searching for them has never been a priority.

Creating a methodology to determine if survivors could be found, Tuck took Roman names unique to Pompeii or Herculaneum and looked for people with those names who lived in surrounding communities in the time after the eruption. He also searched for extra evidence like improved infrastructure in neighboring communities to shelter refugees.

Tuck added that after eight years of searching databases of tens of thousands of Roman inscriptions on places ranging from walls to tombstones, he discovered evidence of over 200 survivors in 12 cities. He said these municipalities are mainly in the general area of Pompeii, but they tended to be north of Mount Vesuvius, outside the area of the greatest destruction.

"It seems as though most survivors stayed as close as they could to Pompeii. They preferred to settle with other survivors, and they relied on social and economic networks from their original cities as they resettled," Tuck said. "Some of the families that escaped apparently went on to thrive in their new communities."

As an example, Tuck mentioned the Caltilius family, which relocated from Pompeii to Ostia, a major port city 18 miles from Rome. Members of the Caltilius family married into another family of Vesuvius refugees  the Munatiuses  and together became very wealthy.

The family of Aulus Umbricius, who was a merchant who traded in the ancient Roman condiment known as garum, a fermented fish sauce, relocated to the city of Puteoli  now called Pozzuoli  and similarly thrived.

However, not all the survivors of the eruption were wealthy or went on to encounter success in their new communities. Some had already been poor to start with while others appeared to have lost their family fortunes, possibly in the eruption itself.

Fabia Secundina of Pompeii, a woman named for her grandfather, a wealthy wine merchant, also settled in Puteoli. There, she married a gladiator named Aquarius, who died at the age of 25 and left her in poor financial standing as a widow.

In the poorer community of Nuceria  now known as Nocera  about 10 miles east of Pompeii, at least three over Pompeiian families settled and remained poor for most of their lives  the Avianii, Atilii and Masuri families.

Follow Ancients.news for more news about ancient history.

Watch the video below about the forgotten perfect teeth from an ancient Roman of Pompeii.

This video is from the Jacksonal channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Archaeologists discover painting depicting an ancestor of modern-day Italian pizza in the ancient city of Pompeii.

Scientists offer $250K prize to decipher Herculaneum manuscripts burned during Vesuvius eruption.

Professor unearths sample of human brains that turned to GLASS after Vesuvius eruption.

Sources include:

StudyFinds.org

History.com

Academia.edu

Brighteon.com
Deborah Birx confirms efforts to SUPPRESS COVID-19 lab leak theory

Former White House Coronavirus Response Coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx has confirmed that there were indeed efforts to suppress the theory that the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) may have leaked from a laboratory in China's Wuhan province.

"I think early on, people did take very definitive sides and it did divide along party lines. We're still suffering from that four years later," Birx told CNN's Kasie Hunt in an interview.

She cited the example of former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Director Dr. Robert Redfield. Early on in the pandemic, Redfield suggested that the virus could have started in a lab. But the media and other health officials dismissed his remarks.

"I do think it happened, if you look at what people said about Redfield and how they disparaged him as a scientist because he wanted to bring forward the lab leak potential. I think the reason he felt he needed to bring it forward  was to push against this [idea of] 'it had to be this way.' Because we didn't know, and we knew we would never know," Birx said.

"I mean, we knew that China was not transparent. So we were not going to get an answer. But that shouldn't have held us back 4.5 years later from both ensuring that we protect against lab leaks and we protect that public."

Birx also emphasized the reality of lab leaks and advocated for stricter rules and guidelines to prevent future incidents. "We have to put different rules and regulations and guidelines in place to protect the public. We can do that. We've done that before," she said.

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.

Fauci denies suppressing COVID-19 lab leak theory

Meanwhile, former National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Director Dr. Anthony Fauci denied suppressing the lab leak theory during a congressional hearing. He also mentioned the "uncertainty" about the origins of SARS-CoV-2 when he appeared before lawmakers.

"We're at a place where we can definitely say we do not know if it was [from a lab] or zoonotic, from animals," he told members of the House COVID-19 Select Subcommittee. "It's our opportunity to really decide as a global community how we're going to control laboratory experiments in a way that protects the public."

Redfield also discussed the ongoing debate over the COVID-19 pandemic's origins in a lengthy interview with Fox News contributor Dr. Marc Siegel. The former CDC director, himself a virologist, pointed out that COVID-19's efficient human-to-human spread contradicted the behavior of earlier coronaviruses  insinuating potential manipulation of the pathogen.

"That's not consistent with how other coronaviruses have come into the human species. It does suggest that there's an alternative hypothesis that it went from a bat virus, got into a laboratory where  it was taught [and] educated. It evolved so that it became a virus that could efficiently transmit human to human," said Redfield.

According to the erstwhile CDC head, he does not think it is plausible that the virus jumped from an animal to a human. He also expressed disappointment in what he described as a "lack of openness" within the scientific community to "pursue both hypotheses."

Redfield also doubted the integrity of the World Health Organization, which concluded in a joint report with China released in March that a lab leak was "extremely unlikely. He argued the global health body was "too compromised" by Beijing's influence to conduct a truly transparent investigation.

"Clearly, they were incapable of compelling China to adhere to the treaty agreements that they have on global health because they didn't do that. Clearly, they allowed China to define the group of scientists that could come and investigate. That's not consistent with their role."

Visit Pandemic.news for similar stories.

Watch Dr. Rodger Hodgkisson calling for Dr. Anthony Fauci and his cohorts to be punished for their crime that has killed millions in the clip below.

This video is from the Tommy's Podcast channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Dr. Michael Nehls: Both COVID-19 and COVID vaccines are an assault on the HUMAN MIND.

COVID vaccine genocide a long-planned, carefully orchestrated depopulation operation to exterminate human beings.

Congress seeks emails suggesting Fauci worked behind the scene to discredit COVID lab leak stories.

Fauci conspired with virologists to TRICK world in Wuhan COVER-UP.

Three scientists from Wuhan lab identified as first carriers of COVID-19.

Sources include:

YourNews.com

Brighteon.com
LIQUIDATED: Corporate state lawfare may have finally sunk the InfoWars ship

The anti-InfoWars jihad (read: anti-free speech jihad with Infowars as the outlier whipping boy to set the precedent that conspiracy theory is outside First Amendment protections) may finally be drawing to a conclusion.

(Article by Ben Bartee republished from ArmageddonProse.Substack.com)

Via Associated Press (emphasis added):

Conspiracy theorist Alex Jones is seeking court permission to convert his personal bankruptcy reorganization to a liquidation, which would lead to a sell-off of a large portion of his assets to help pay some of the $1.5 billion he owes relatives of victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting. Jones and his media company, Free Speech Systems, both filed for bankruptcy reorganization after the Sandy Hook families won lawsuits against him for his repeatedly calling the 2012 shooting that killed 20 first graders and six educators in Newtown, Connecticut, a hoax on his Infowars programs. But Jones and the Sandy Hook families have been unable to agree on how the resolve the cases, leading to Jones filing a motion Wednesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Houston asking a judge to convert his personal case from a Chapter 11 reorganization to a Chapter 7 liquidation Christopher Mattei, a lawyer for the families, said in a statement that Alex Jones has hurt so many people. The Connecticut families have fought for years to hold him responsible no matter the cost and at great personal peril. Their steadfast focus on meaningful accountability, and not just money, is what has now brought him to the brink of justice in the way that matters most. The Sandy Hook families, meanwhile, are asking the same judge to convert Free Speech Systems case from a reorganization to a liquidation Liquidation could mean that Jones would have to sell most of what he owns, including his company and its assets, but could keep his home and other personal belongings that are exempt from bankruptcy liquidation. Proceeds would go to his creditors, including the Sandy Hook families.

The $1.5 billion settlement for claiming an event didnt happen the way it is popularly believed to have happened was always absurd and had nothing at all do to with justice delivered to the families who lost their kids in Sandy Hook and everything to do with silencing a voice long a thorn in the side of the establishment, which the lawyer essentially concedes in the above quote about the ruling not just being about money  lawfare waged via a weaponized legal system I wrote about in detail when the ruling came down from on high last year.

Related: Today They Come For Alex Jones, Tomorrow For All of Us

Please miss me with comments about how Alex Jones is an unhinged pseudo-evangelical lunatic with a drinking problem or whatever. The vast majority of Alex Jones haters, in fact, have never listened to a single hour of his broadcast. Their negative impression of him comes entirely secondhand from ten-second clips and the non-stop, orchestrated bleating of hostile corporate media  a consensus-forming propaganda campaign of, arguably, unprecedented scale targeted at a single individual in the 21st century.

But anyway, Im not here to do apologia for Alex Jones or to sell him to anyone; I am aware of his flaws, as I am aware of my own. We all live in glass houses.

I take what comes out of InfoWars, at all turns, with a grain of salt, as anyone should with any information. Sometimes his claims dont check out; other times theyre prophetic, like when he predicted in July 2001 that someone would fly planes into the World Trade Center and blame Osama bin Laden long before anyone outside of the Beltway and intelligence services even knew the name.

https://x.com/iluminatibot/status/1754082717707223255

But whatever. Im not here to sell Alex Jones to anyone.

What I will say is that, as goes InfoWars, so goes the rest of independent media. His organization and he personally have time and again proven to be a bellwether of corporate state censorship to come.

The Alex Jones censorship sage is not about Alex Jones.

When Jones was universally banned overnight from all major social media platforms in 2018 in what was clearly an orchestrated move among the Big Tech giants, that was an allusion to things to come.

It was only two years later, if that, that the mass censorship regime came for all dissident media, including me when I got the banhammer from multiple platforms in 2020 for COVID misinformation and other alleged crimes of wrongthink.

Its InfoWars today and the rest of us tomorrow.

Read more at: ArmageddonProse.Substack.com
U.K. could be the next country to legalize ASSISTED SUICIDE

The so-called "euthanasia wave" in the Netherlands appears to be inching closer to the U.K. , according to journalist Abigail Buchanan of the Telegraph.

Buchanan said euthanasia and assisted suicide were formally legalized for psychological suffering and terminal physical illness in the Netherlands in 2002. The annual review published by the Dutch government's Regional Euthanasia Review Committees (RTE) noted that cases were "initially controversial and rare." In 2010, only four cases of euthanasia had been recorded by the RTE.

But the cases of euthanasia "have been steadily increasing since," with a sharp rise over the past five years. From 68 cases in 2019, this has risen to 138 cases  more than double  in 2023.

The journalist mentioned that a movement for the legalization of assisted suicide has gained traction, with as many as two-thirds of the population backing it. Lawmakers in the Scottish Parliament and the British crown dependencies of Jersey and the Isle of Man have also put forward similar proposals. Over in London, Opposition Leader Keir Starmer has said he is "committed" to allowing another vote on euthanasia in the British Parliament should the Labor Party win the U.K.'s general election.

"As the country where assisted dying has been legal the longest, could the Netherlands be a forecast of its potential long-term consequences? Some experts warn it may be," Buchanan wrote. She cited healthcare ethics professor Theo Boer as one of those critics. One of the early architects of Dutch euthanasia practice, Boer has since turned over a new leaf  becoming its most outspoken critic.

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.

The professor submitted evidence to the British Parliament for a debate on assisted dying in the United Kingdom. He wrote: "It is well known that British advocates of assisted dying argue for a more restricted law than is found in the [Netherlands]. Here is my prediction: Any law that allows assisted dying will come to be experienced as an injustice and will be challenged in the courts."

Buchanan continued that the Dutch law legalizing euthanasia "hasn't changed in the 20-plus years since it was introduced." Instead, the interpretation of its criteria has included people with mental illness who are suffering unbearably  even those under 18 years old.

Canada to expand criteria for assisted suicide

The Netherlands isn't alone, as it is but one of a handful of nations to legalize euthanasia for psychological conditions. Belgium passed a law in May 2002 that legalizes both the practice and assisted suicide for patients in a "futile medical condition of constant and unbearable physical or mental suffering that cannot be alleviated." Luxembourg followed six years later, legalizing euthanasia and assisted suicide in 2008.

Perhaps the most notable as of late is Canada, where the government calls the practice Medical Assistance in Dying (MAiD). Under the leadership of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, the criteria for MAiD is set to expand to include those suffering from mental illness.

However, Ottawa was forced to push back the inclusions after outrage from various sectors. Originally set for March 2023, this was pushed to March this year until the government finally announced that the inclusions would take effect in 2027. (Related: Canada postpones expansion of euthanasia program to mentally ill people, but the Trudeau government promises to kill them eventually.)

Rates of mental illness among young people in both the U.K. and the Netherlands are increasing. A 2022 survey found that 53.3 percent of Dutch respondents aged between 16 and 25 years old have experienced symptoms of mental illness.

A separate survey from that year also found that 26 percent of adults met the criteria for a mental illness  including anxiety, depression and addiction. In 2010, that number was 17 percent.

The outlook is similarly grim in the U.K., fueled by the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. A July 2021 survey found that one in six children aged five to 16 were identified as having a probable mental health problem, a marked increase from one in nine per a 2017 survey. The amount of people aged 16 and up with common mental health problems rose by 20 percent between 1993 to 2014, in both men and women.

Visit Euthanasia.news for similar stories.

Watch this clip from "Timcast IRL" where host Tim Pool and his guests discuss the assisted suicide of Dutch woman Zoraya ter Beek.

This video is from the SecureLife channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

People with disabilities oppose Canadas proposed expansion of euthanasia law.

KILLING THE HELPLESS: Canada set to legalize euthanasia for mentally ill patients.

Op-ed: EUTHANASIA of young, healthy women in the Netherlands a warning to Canada.

Netherlands is approving EUTHANASIA for people with autism, intellectual disabilities and mental illnesses.

Physically healthy 28-year-old Dutch woman with autism and depression given approval to end her life through assisted suicide.

Sources include:

MSN.com

Brighteon.com
World governments seizing domain names of Z-Library to exterminate human knowledge, force everyone into controlled Big Tech info-prisons

A project known as Z-Library is under attack by the global deep state because it threatens to deconstruct the existing world order, including the power players behind the curtain that control it.

Starting back in November 2022, Z-Library's domains started to get seized at the request of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Then, two alleged participants in the Z-Library project, Anton Napolskiy and Valeria Ermakova, were arrested in Argentina and imprisoned for nearly a year, also at the request of U.S. officials.

"Their detention occurred without compliance with legal norms and with numerous procedural violations, and the FBI request contained knowingly false data on the existence of a court sanction for arrest (a court sanction for arrest has been issued after the arrest)," Z-Library's creators announced as part of a public Change.org petition.

"For example, a court sanction for arrest has been issued after the arrest. This situation has not only affected them personally, but has also been a significant blow to our project  the Z-Library."

Be sure to check out the Change.org petition to see how you can help Z-Library survive this ruthless assault on free speech by the global deep state.

(Related: Did you know that some members of Congress want to subpoena Google and Facebook ahead of the 2024 election to root out manipulation?)

Sign the Change.org petition to restore Z-Library

Z-Library's creators are asking anyone and everyone who cares about knowledge and truth to join the fight to keep the Z-Library project alive and growing.

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.

"This project represents more than just a platform; it's a gateway to knowledge for people all over the world," they say.

Since Z-Library remains offline per the FBI's request, there is currently no way for members of the public to access it. All that hard work remains hidden, in other words, until hopefully something changes to restore it.

The Change.org petition aims to raise more awareness about the "illegal criminal prosecution" of Z-Library and its creators.

"By signing the petition, you're not only supporting our cause, but you're also helping to ensure that the Z-Library project remains available to people worldwide," the group says. "It will only take two minutes of your time, but will greatly help the Z-Library project."

As of this writing, the petition has 138,787 signatures with a next goal of 150,000. We know our faithful readers can easily help get the petition to 150,000 signatures in no time at all.

The petition is addressed to U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, as well as to Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Argentine Republic Santiago Cafiero.

Described as "one of the largest resources in the world providing free access to unique books and scientific articles in many different languages" in the petition, Z-Library exists for the purpose of expanding education and culture all around the world.

"In the era of information technology, blocking access to knowledge undermines the basic principles of freedom of information, as guaranteed by the Universal Declaration of Human Rights," the petition states.

"This not only deprives scientists and students of access to important research materials, but also threatens the freedom of academic exchange of ideas. Without a doubt, blocking Z-Library seriously hinders academic activity and impedes scientific development."

What the FBI is doing to block Z-Library also violates the principles of sovereignty, in this case digital, upon which the United States via its precious Constitution is supposed to have been built.

The powers that be are doing everything they possibly can to try to stop the flow of knowledge and truth, especially as we approach Election Day 2024. Learn more at Censorship.news.

Sources for this article include:

1Lib.sk

Change.org

NaturalNews.com
Leftists want to deprogram MAGA supporters and send them to re-education camps

A New York Democratic congressional candidate wants former President Donald Trump's MAGA supporters to go through a "re-education camp" after the 2024 election.

Attorney Paula Collins, who is running against GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik in New York's 21st congressional district, based out of northeastern New York state, made the comments during a public Zoom townhall this week, where she added that submitting Trump supporters to "re-education" would be controversial.

"Even if we were to have a resounding blue wave come through, as many of us would like, putting it all back together again after weve gone through this MAGA nightmare and re-educating basically, which, that sounds like a rather, a re-education camp. I don't think we really want to call it that," she said. "I'm sure we can find another way to phrase it."

The Democrat sent an email to Fox News Digital, further expounding her statement.

"We currently have lawmakers, including Rep. Elise Stefanik, who misquote or misunderstand the law," Collins told the news outlet. "Even if MAGA were to be resoundingly defeated, we would need to engage in widespread civics education, which both red and blue voters acknowledge has been slipping in recent years."

She also claimed that Stefanik "does not show a good understanding of the court structure in her home state of New York."

While Collins is the latest to suggest such a thing, she is not the only one. In 2023, Clinton said in an interview that members of the "MAGA cult" needed "formal deprogramming."

"And sadly, so many of those extremists, those MAGA extremists, take their marching orders from Donald Trump who has no credibility left by any measure," she went on, referring to the former president's MAGA slogan. "He's only in it for himself. And when do they break with him? You know, because at some point, maybe there needs to be a formal deprogramming of the cult members, but something needs to happen." (Related: Hillary Clinton calls for 'formal deprogramming' of MAGA 'cult members.')

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.

Clinton had always shown her "hatred" for Republicans, specifically Trump's supporters. She even labeled them "deplorables" during her failed presidential campaign against the 45th president of the United States.

Reporter Dana Milbanks backed Clinton's comments with an article and in an interview during that time. Meanwhile, Eugene Robinson, another reporter, told New York Times Magazine's Nikole Hannah-Jones that there are millions of Americans, almost all white and Republicans, who somehow need to be reprogrammed.

"It's as if they are members of a cult, the Trumpist cult and have to be deprogrammed," she said. Also during Clinton's failed campaign, she suggested that Americans needed "fun camps."

Poll: Trump and Biden supporters are divided on several issues

A recent Pew Research Center survey found that supporters of Trump and President Joe Biden are sharply divided over topics described as "woke" or part of the "culture wars." Topics include gender ideology, the allegedly two-tiered American criminal justice system and illegal immigration, among others.

The poll, conducted between April 8 to 14 with 8,709 U.S. adults, comes as both candidates are in the middle of their campaigns for what is anticipated to be a controversial election this November.

According to the survey, 90 percent of Trump supporters believe gender is determined by a person's biological sex, compared to 39 percent of Bidens fans. Nearly 60 percent of the presidents supporters believe that gender can be different from the sex assigned at birth, as against only nine percent of Trump backers.

Meanwhile, 81 percent of Trump supporters said the criminal justice system is not tough enough on criminals, compared to just 40 percent of Biden supporters who felt the same way.

When it comes to illegal aliens and border crossers, 63 percent of Trump supporters said they are in favor of a national law enforcement effort to deport undocumented migrants currently living on American soil, compared to only 11 percent of Biden believers.

Twenty-seven percent of registered voters who support Trump believe the legacy of slavery affects the position of Black people in the U.S. today, while 73 percent say it has little to no impact, as per the polling.

As for Bidens supporters, 79 percent said the legacy of slavery is still making an impact on the standing of Black people, compared to 20 percent who said it doesnt have much of an effect.

Visit LeftCult.com to read stories similar to this.

Watch the video below that talks about the left using Hillary Clinton in indoctrinating the youth.

This video is from the American Patriots God Country channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Democrat congressional candidate roars "DIE, MAGA, DIE!" after vote to ban TikTok, send billions more to Taiwan, Ukraine and Israel.

U.S. federal government created secret "web portal" to track "MAGA" purchases and spy on the American people, Congress finds.

Sources include:

FoxNews.com 1

FoxNews.com 2

Brighteon.com
Pro-LGBT groups bid to cancel Canadian Evangelical Christian event over hateful Biblical views falls short

A Saskatchewan, Canada-based LGBT group has tried asking the provincial capital of Regina to cancel an Evangelical Christian event in the province's largest stadium because it promotes Biblical views on marriage and sexuality

The Protestant Christian "Come Together Saskatchewan" event, organized by Gospel Fire for All Nations, successfully occurred from June 7 to 8 in Regina's Mosaic Stadium. The event featured many well-known speakers and musicians from the evangelical community. (Related: Pro-LGBT mainstream media is now attacking US states for trying to make sex binary.)

All this despite strong opposition from Queen City Pride, a local LGBTQ+ advocacy group, which on June 7 said in a press release that the event should be canceled because it features Bible quotes about marriage and homosexuality that are "anti-LGBTQIA2S+."

"Queen City Pride is appalled at the announcement that an event with strong anti-LGBTQIA2S+ sentiment is being held at Reginas Mosaic Stadium," reads the statement sent to the media. "The Gospel Fire Ministries Statement of Faith contains the following: deeply troubling stances on members of the gender and sexually diverse community."

The local LGBT group labeled traditional Christian teachings on sexuality and marriage as part of a "hateful agenda." The teachings, which the Gospel Fire Ministries lists on its official website, include:

"We believe that God wonderfully and immutably creates each person as male or female. These two distinct, complementary genders together reflect the image and nature of God (Gen 1:26-27). Rejection of ones biological sex is a rejection of the image of God within that person."

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. "We believe that the term 'marriage' has only one meaning: The uniting of one man and one woman in a single, exclusive union, as delineated in Scripture (Gen 2:18-25). We believe that God intends sexual intimacy to occur only between a man and a woman who are married to each other (1 Cor 6:18; 7:2-5; Heb 13:4). We believe that God has commanded that no intimate sexual activity be engaged in outside of a marriage between a man and a woman."

"Because God has ordained marriage and defined it as the covenant relationship between a man, a woman, and Himself, The Original Gospel Ministries will only recognize marriages between a biological man and a biological woman. Further, the pastors, ministers, clergy, and staff of the organization shall only solemnize marriages between one man and one woman."

"We believe that any form of sexual immorality (including adultery, fornication, homosexual behavior, bisexual conduct, bestiality, incest, and use of pornography) is sinful and offensive to God (Matt 15:18-20; 1 Cor 6:9-10).

Queen City Pride even criticized the use of a publicly funded facility like Mosaic Stadium for hosting such viewpoints.

"We do not condone the use of a publicly funded facility like Mosaic Stadium hosting groups that are promoting such a directly hateful agenda. And we feel furthermore that the true intentions of this event have been hidden  to essentially bait the public into an event where people may be indoctrinated by the strong anti-GSD [gender and sexual diversity] stance of the event," the group said.

LGBT activists have been attacking "anti-LGBT moves" in Canada

Gospel Fire is not the only group being targeted by LGBT activists in Canada.

This June, Emo, a small township in Ontario, attended a Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario proceeding after local activist group Borderland Pride filed a complaint over a 2020 town council decision not to celebrate June as "Pride" month and fly the LGBT "Pride" flag.

"Theres no flags being flown for the straight people," said Mayor Harold McQuake back then.

Borderland Pride faced immediate opposition from certain council members when it filed the motion. But then, Borderland Pride filed a human rights complaint, demanding the town issue an apology, officially recognize June as "Pride" month, and display the LGBT flag for one week, following the rejection of their motion.

Aside from seeking recognition for Pride Month, Borderland Pride is also requesting CA$15,000 ($10,900) from the municipality and CA$10,000 ($7,260) each from the mayor and the two councilors who opposed the proclamation.

Borderland Pride offered to withdraw the case if the town bowed to their initial demands. But just like the Gospel Fire for All Nations, the township staunchly refused the proposal. Instead, Emo opts to proceed with the tribunal hearing.

Head over to Intolerance.news for similar stories.

Watch Wisconsin Family Action President Julaine Appling talking about the May 2022 attack on the group's office in Madison, Wisconsin below.

This video is from The New American channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Pro-LGBT Virginia House of Delegates candidate endorsed by Democrats has DEMONIC ties.

Pro-LGBT girl scouts in Australia transitioned into something unrecognizable.

Pro-LGBT businesses increasingly push transgender propaganda in pride month ads.

Pro-LGBT Republican personalities urge GOP senators to back same-sex marriage bill.

Pro-life groups HQ in Rome attacked by LGBT activists TWICE in 10 days.

Sources include:

LifeSiteNews.com 1

LifeSiteNews.com 2

Brighteon.com
Republicans block Dem-backed legislation that makes it illegal for states to restrict access to contraception, sterilization procedures

Senate Republicans have successfully blocked a bill pushed by Democrats to protect women's access to potentially harmful chemical contraceptives , with the GOP believing that the bill was just a political stunt to force conservative senators to take a public stance on reproductive rights issues during an election year.

The bill, known as the "Right to Contraception Act," would have made it illegal for federal, state and local government authorities to restrict access to contraception. The bill, which failed to pass Congress in 2022, needed 60 votes to overcome the Republican filibuster  a hurdle the Democrats were unable to overcome. (Related: Pro-life group blasts Trudeau administration for implying that women must use contraception and have abortions to become successful.)

President Joe Biden called the Republican opposition to the bill "unacceptable."

"We will continue to urge Congress to restore the protections of Roe v. Wade in federal law and safeguard the right to contraception once and for all," Biden said.

But in their defense, Republicans claim that Democrats are only using reproductive rights to score political points as they gear up for the November elections.

Sen. John Thune (R-SD) dismissed the vote as a "show vote," anticipating more such political maneuvers in the lead-up to the elections. Meanwhile, Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA), the top Republican on the Senate Health, Labor, Education and Pensions Committee, accused Democrats of pushing a false narrative about contraception access.

"The Democrats are using their power to push an alarmist and false narrative that there is a problem accessing contraception," Cassidy said.

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.

Only two Republicans sided with the Democrats - moderate Sens. Susan Collins (R-ME) and Lisa Murkowski (R-AK).

Critics slam contraception bill as a backdoor for mandated sex changes and nationwide abortion pill access

Even before the Senate hearing of the bill, conservative critics were already particularly vocal about the implications.

Terry Schilling, president of the American Principles Project, labeled the bill a Trojan Horse that could pave the way for mandated access to other so-called medications, such as sex change procedures.

Schilling stated that the bills language, which defines contraceptives to include all sterilizing drugs, devices and biological products, could be interpreted to mandate access to puberty blockers and other gender-affirming treatments.

"Democrats are calling this the Right to Contraception Act, but they define contraception to include all sterilization procedures," Schilling posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. "Thats a TROJAN HORSE that would appear to include sex change procedures."

"The bill also defines contraceptive explicitly to include all sterilizing drugs, devices, and biological products whether specifically intended to prevent pregnancy or for other health needs  and it establishes a clear and comprehensive right to access these contraceptives," Schilling continued. "Heres where this gets crazy. The bill actually REQUIRES judges to interpret this language liberally  meaning that the second a Biden activist judge gets an opportunity to interpret this law, theyre going to find an explicit right to sex changes."

Moreover, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) added that the bill could legalize the chemical abortion drug mifepristone nationwide, even in states where it is currently illegal.

"It would also make the abortion drug mifepristone  not contraception, but mifepristone  available in all 50 states no matter what the state law is, and that would override my states law, bunch of states laws. It would take it out of the hands of voters," Hawley stated. "That's an abortion issue. That's not a contraception issue."

Learn about the adverse side effects of contraceptives at DangerousMedicine.com.

Watch the video below to learn more about the dangerous side effects of birth control.

This video is from the Tammy Cuthbert Garcia channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

FDA approves first OTC birth control pill in the U.S. despite concerns about data on its proper use.

Birth control pills found to increase the likelihood of ischemic stroke in women.

Birth control vaccine that may leave women permanently sterile now in clinical trials.

Horrible idea: First vaccine for birth control now in clinical trials.

Sources include:

LifeSiteNews.com

MSN.com

Brighteon.com
Tucker Carlson blasts house Republicans for rewarding FBI, says agency is now a secret police organization

(Article republished from YourNews.com)

During an interview with attorney Tristan Leavitt, Tucker Carlson criticized House Republicans for rewarding the FBI by funding a new headquarters. Leavitt, president of Empower Oversight, testified alongside FBI whistleblowers Steve Friend, Marcus Allen, and Garret OBoyle in 2023 before the House Select Subcommittee on the Weaponization of the Federal Government. He revealed that FBI documents contained extremely intrusive questions about support for former President Donald Trump and Covid-19 vaccine status, prompting Carlsons criticism of GOP lawmakers.

Whats so baffling is that Republicans hold the majority in the House. Theres a Republican speaker, Carlson said. We now know youve proven with these documents that supporting a Republican for president is enough to get your security clearance revoked. So, the FBI is, by definition, a political secret police organization. And thats antithetical to freedom.

He continued, And yet the Republicans in the Congress, even though this is all very obvious, just refunded the FBI and allocated hundreds of millions of dollars to build them a new headquarters. Theyre rewarding the FBI. So, at what point do Republicans say, 'I'm sorry, were not going to pay for a secret police organization dedicated to destroying us.'"

Seventy House Republicans voted with Democrats in November 2023 to fund the new FBI headquarters in Maryland. Leavitt expressed his belief that the uncovered documents are going to be the tipping point for Congress to overhaul the FBI and the personnel that are in it at the moment. He emphasized that political considerations were evident in security clearance determinations.

Carlson added, It just becomes clear every day that January 6 was, well, a hoax, on one level. But the response to it was one of the most corrupt things thats ever happened in our lifetimes in this country. I mean, thats the conclusion Im coming to.

FBI whistleblower Marcus Allen had his security clearance reinstated on May 31 after Empower Oversight issued legal threats against the FBI. Allens clearance was suspended in 2022 after he questioned FBI Director Christopher Wrays testimony about law enforcement presence at the Jan. 6 riots at the U.S. Capitol, leading to accusations of disloyalty to the country.

Read more at: YourNews.com
Russia warns all airfields hosting Kyivs F-16 fighter jets are legitimate targets  even if they arent in Ukraine

Any airfields hosting F-16 fighter jets supplied by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization to Ukraine, whether within or outside the country, will be considered legitimate targets by the Russian military if the F-16s flying out of those airfields engage in combat missions against Russian forces.

This is the warning given by Andrey Kartapolov, chairman of the Russian State Duma's Defense Committee and a close ally of President Vladimir Putin.

Kartapolov's comments come as Kyiv prepares to receive its first delivery of American-made fighter jets from its NATO allies, following the training of Ukrainian pilots to operate them. (Related: F-16 deployments will make European air bases INSTANT TARGETS for Russia.)

In a statement to RIA Novosti, Kartapolov clarified that if the F-16s are not used for combat purposes or are merely stored at foreign airbases to transfer them to Ukraine for equipping, maintenance and deployment from Ukrainian airfields, Russia would not target these foreign bases.

However, if the jets launch from foreign bases and conduct sorties and strikes against Russian forces, both the aircraft and their host airfields would become "legitimate targets," according to Kartapolov. He asserted, "As for [our ability] to shoot [them] down, we can shoot down anyone, anywhere."

Most Ukrainian F-16s will be stationed outside the country

Kartapolov's statement follows remarks by Serhii Holubtsov, the Ukrainian Air Force Command's chief of aviation, who remarked that some of the F-16s donated to Kyiv by the West would be stationed at foreign airbases.

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.

Holubtsov explained that only a portion of the jets would be directly stationed in Ukrainian territory, corresponding to the number of trained pilots the Ukrainian Air Force has. The remaining jets would be kept in reserve at "safe airbases" abroad to avoid being targeted by the Russian military.

Holubtsov noted that Belgium, Denmark, Norway and the Netherlands have agreed to transfer F-16s to Ukraine. Although he did not specify the exact number, he estimated that between 30 and 40 planes would be donated, with the potential for more in the future.

He emphasized the strategic importance of these jets in strengthening Ukraine's air capabilities amidst the ongoing conflict with Russia.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has warned that Moscow would perceive the delivery of F-16 fighters to Ukraine as a nuclear threat, citing the jets' historical role in the U.S.-led blocs joint nuclear missions.

Lavrov elaborated that the deployment of such advanced aircraft could escalate tensions, suggesting that their presence would be seen as an increased risk of nuclear confrontation. Nevertheless, Lavrov emphasized that the U.S.-designed jets would not alter the battlefield dynamics and would be shot down and destroyed like any other foreign weapons supplied to Ukraine.

The F-16 fighter jets require high-standard runways and reinforced hangars to protect them from ground attacks. The number of Ukrainian air bases meeting these requirements remains uncertain. Russia is likely to quickly target any bases capable of accommodating these jets once they arrive.

Learn more about the ongoing conflict between Ukraine and its Western allies and Russia at UkraineWitness.com.

Watch this short clip showing Ukrainian pilots training to fly F-16s.

This video is from the channel The Prisoner on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Russian foreign minister: Delivery of F-16 jets to Ukraine a "deliberate" signal that NATO is pushing for nuclear war.

Putin vows to DESTROY all F-16 fighter jets that make their way to Ukraine.

Putin promises to DESTROY all those U.S.-made F-16 fighter jets piloted by Ukrainian soldiers.

Ukrainians are not trained to operate U.S. F-16 fighter jets, would not be Russia-Ukraine war game-changer, says Jake Sullivan.

North Korea blasts "sinister" U.S. approval of F-16 jets for Ukraine.

Sources include:

RT.com

PBS.org

Brighteon.com
Rep. Comer: Report on Joe Bidens many crimes is imminent

Hunter Biden may not be the only member of the Biden family facing punishment for his crimes as House Oversight Committee Chairman James Comer (R- Kentucky) warns that President Joe Biden is soon going to face accountability.

The Republican Representative recently told Fox News that a report outlining many crimes committed by Biden will be released soon. There are a number of questionable activities this could include, from money laundering and bribery to influence peddling, something that Hunter is also involved in.

In a recent appearance on Sunday Morning Futures, host Maria Bartiromo asked Comer if we should expect a formal recommendation to be handed down by Republicans for prosecuting Biden for crimes such as unregistered foreign lobbying and money laundering.

He replied that the criminal referrals that have already been issued for Bidens brother and son are only the beginning of a full reckoning for the family.

Were going to do everything we can to hold Hunter Biden and all the different shady associates accountable; this is just the beginning, he told Bartiromo.

But the next step will be accountability for Joe Biden.

He added that Biden continues to be investigated for possible impeachment and was the central figure in his family's influence peddling activities that brought them tens of millions of dollars in profit. Both Hunter and his uncle James, the presidents brother, earned millions of dollars from entities linked to the Chinese government from relationships that started while Joe was vice president and then tried to obscure the flow of Chinese money by passing it through various companies they owned.

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.

All of this happened because Joe Biden was the central figure in selling the brand and convincing the shady characters around the globe that his family was essentially speaking for him and go ahead and wire that money to those shell accounts, he asserted.

Comer, who has been actively pursuing an impeachment case against Biden, expressed a similar sentiment in a statement he made following the verdict: Todays verdict is a step toward accountability but until the Department of Justice investigates everyone involved in the Bidens corrupt influence peddling schemes that generated over $18 million in foreign payments to the Biden family, it will be clear department officials continue to cover for the Big Guy, Joe Biden.

Republican lawmakers calling for Biden family to be held accountable for crimes

Several Republican leaders took advantage of Hunters recent conviction in Delaware for lying about being addicted to drugs so he could buy a gun to call for his father to be held accountable for his own crimes. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana) posted on X: Now its time for DOJ to investigate the millions of dollars in payouts from foreign countries looking to curry favor with his father. We will continue to demand accountability for the corrupt business dealings of the Biden family.

Speaking about the trial with Fox News host Jesse Watters, Comer suggested Hunter was taking the fall in order to save his father, adding that justice wont be served until they address the more serious crimes the family has committed. In fact, he said he doesnt consider lying on a gun application to rank among Hunters top ten crimes.

In February, Joe Biden managed to avoid criminal charges for his alleged mishandling of classified information during his time as vice president and senator. Special counsel Robert Hur wrote in a report at the time that there was evidence Biden willfully mishandled the records but came across as an elderly man with a poor memory who might be forgiven by a jury.

Sources for this article include:

SlayNews.com

TheHill.com
Could Russia deploy ballistic missiles in Mexico?

Russians on Kremlin State TV yesterday declared that Mexico was their military ally and they are wanting to place their missiles on Mexican territory so Mexico can attack the United States, said former nuclear and missile operations officer of the U.S. Air Force Jake Broe on X Sunday. This is insane.

(Article republished from GreatGameIndia.com)

A few days earlier, pundits on Russian media advised Moscow to station nuclear-capable ballistic missiles in the Caribbean in retaliation for NATO nations approving Kievs use of weaponry sourced from the West to launch an attack within Russian territory. Is this insane enough to put it in danger? Or would that be a normal response for any nation when hostile missiles are stationed directly next to its borders?

I have no idea why this is not getting mainstream media coverage but the Russians on Kremlin State TV yesterday declared that Mexico was their military ally and they are wanting to place their missiles on Mexican territory so Mexico can attack the United States. This is insane. pic.twitter.com/SU7CdhgDEK  Jake Broe (@RealJakeBroe) June 10, 2024

The channels 60 Minutes program focused on NATO escalation, specifically about Kiev receiving an increasing amount of long-range weapons, including soon-to-arrive F-16 fighter jets, as well as in response to Western capitals seeming to now actively encourage increased attacks on Russian territory.

The hosts of the program also questioned the legitimacy of the White Houses imposition of limits on the extent to which US-supplied weaponry may be deployed inside Russian territory. Speaking to ABC last week while in France, President Biden said that this does not imply that Ukraine may strike Moscow:

IN A MONOLOGUE, HOST EVGENY POPOV REFERRED TO COMMENTS BY PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN THAT U.S. PERMISSION FOR KYIV TO USE WEAPONS TO HIT RUSSIA DID NOT MEAN THAT THEY COULD BE USED TO HIT MOSCOW OR ANY GOVERNMENT BUILDINGS. POPOV CONCLUDED THAT BY MERELY MENTIONING THIS, BIDEN SHOWED THAT THESE THOUGHTS DO EXIST SOMEWHERE AT THE BACK OF HIS MIND.

Olga Skabeeva, co-anchor, conjectured in the same segment that Moscow might position missiles to those nations that are willing to strike our enemies as an asymmetric response.

She went on to name other partners, including North Korea, Venezuela, and Cuba, adding that a more traditional course of action would obviously be a nuclear strike as soon as we see an existential threat to our country.

Watch the video segment below:

Speaking recently at the St. Petersburg Annual Economic Forum, President Putin expressed optimism for a de-escalation with the West and stated that the time has not yet come to justify the use of nuclear weapons. He did, however, make a warning last week to provide cutting-edge weaponry to nations labeled as enemies of the West in retribution for NATOs surge in Ukraine.

Regarding Mexico, which just elected left-wing President Claudia Sheinbaum on a platform promising to uphold the policies of her predecessor, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, the country has declared its formal neutrality while simultaneously rejecting support for US-led sanctions against Moscow. Mexico, though, has already largely denounced Russias invasion of Ukraine.

Recently, GreatGameIndia reported about a Ukrainian enemies list titled Roller Coaster: From Trumpists to Communists, published by the Data Journalism Agency, which targets American influencers.

Read more at: GreatGameIndia.com
Eight illegal aliens, suspected to be terrorists, arrested in New York, Philadelphia and Los Angeles

Ever since 9/11, the United States government via the Patriot Act has been illegally spying on Americans under the guise of fighting terrorism. Why, then, do illegal aliens continue to flood the country with reckless abandon?

The latest illegal alien incident occurred in three major U.S. cities  New York, Philadelphia and Los Angeles  where eight men from Tajikistan, suspected to have connections to ISIS, were arrested.

For months before their arrest, the men were under surveillance by the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force and Customs Enforcement after they strolled across America's open southern border in the spring of 2023, compliments of the Biden regime.

According to reports, none of the men have yet been charged with any kind of terrorist connection or plot. However, the FBI reportedly alerted ICE that the men could be connected to ISIS and should thus be arrested on immigration charges.

Two sources familiar with the matter who spoke with NBC News said the men are detained and now face removal proceedings before an immigration judge. At some point in the future, the men could also face terrorism-related charges.

(Related: Meanwhile, politicians are devoting their time to criminalizing "hate speech" with stricter punishments.)

FBI warning of "coordinated attack" in major U.S. cities

The news of this comes just months after FBI Director Christopher Wray warned Congress that his agency fears a "coordinated attack" in major U.S. cities. Just prior to that warning, ISIS, or so we are told, attacked a concert hall in Moscow, killing 145 people.

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.

"Our most immediate concern has been that individuals or small groups will draw twisted inspiration from the events in the Middle East to carry out attacks here at home," Wray told a House Appropriations subcommittee back in April.

"But now, increasingly concerning is the potential for a coordinated attack here in the homeland, akin to the ISIS-K attack we saw at the Russia concert hall a couple weeks ago."

As all of this is happening, an Iranian intelligence officer by the name of Majid Dastjani Farahani is said to still be on the loose with plans to "kill Trump-era officials," according to the media.

Much like what happened in the aftermath of 9/11, we are witnessing what appears to be the makings of another "war on terror" situation where the powers that be want us all to be fearful of ISIS or whatever boogeyman they trot out next so that we will sacrifice more of our freedoms of the altar of "peace and safety."

If the government was really concerned about the threat of terror, it would close the southern border and stop the illegal invasion that fuels terror incidents in the first place.

Do not forget that these eight now-detained men are just a drop in the bucket. At least 434,800 migrants have been flown directly into the U.S. via the Biden regime's CHNV mass parole program. They hail from Haiti, Venezuela, Cuba and Nicaragua.

"And a huge number of them are going to Florida," someone wrote on X about these migrants. "It's intentional replacement and overwhelming American states with a flood of third world nationals."

"Problem, reaction, solution," wrote another about the nightmare being unleashed on America. "The government allows millions to illegally come into the country, now they have to pass laws to take everyone's freedom away. All by design."

Instead of dealing with the real problems this country faces, the powers that be are instead prosecuting children for leaving tire marks on LGBT "rainbow" street murals and going after supporters of Donald Trump  imagine that, emphasized someone else.

Illegal immigration is destroying America. Learn more at InvasionUSA.news.

Sources for this article include:

ZeroHedge.com

NaturalNews.com

X.com
Hunter Bidens daughter testifies about fathers erratic behavior under the influence of COCAINE

Presidential son Hunter Biden has been found guilty of all three felony charges related to the purchase of a revolver in 2018. Two of the jurors in the case admitted that the verdict was influenced by his eldest daughter Naomi's testimony, which may have been a critical mistake for the defense

Biden's daughter testified on June 7, and she recounted Hunter's erratic behavior in the days after he illegally lied about his crack cocaine addiction to purchase a .38-caliber revolver on Oct. 12, 2018. She said her father texted her at 2 a.m. on Oct. 18, asking if she could meet him somewhere in Manhattan so they could exchange cars after she used his Ford Raptor pickup. However, he did not show up.

Prosecutors presented evidence suggesting Hunter was arranging to buy crack cocaine during that period.

"I'm really sad, Dad," Naomi texted Hunter later that day. "I can't take this. I don't know what to say. I just miss you so much. And want to hang out with you."

Hunter lied on a mandatory gun-purchase form by saying he was not illegally using or addicted to drugs back then and now he is set to face 25 years in jail. No sentencing date yet has been announced. (Related: Hunter Biden's "historic" criminal trial will probe drug addiction and gun charges.)

One of the jurors from upper Delaware told the New York Post that it just seemed so sad for Naomi to see her father in such a state.

"She was happy when she thought he was getting better, but then he relapsed," the 51-year-old woman added.

Another juror, who is a 68-year-old man from Sussex County, agreed that Naomi's testimony was effective but it worked not in the way Hunter's lawyers had expected.

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.

"I don't think any daughter should have to be up there testifying on her father's behalf. That was heart-wrenching and I think all the jurors felt the same thing," he said, adding that defense lawyer Abbe Lowell made the wrong move by calling Naomi to the stand. "He probably would not have called her."

Hunter has pleaded not guilty to federal charges, including lying about his addiction when applying for a Colt Cobra revolver and illegally possessing the weapon for 11 days. Throughout the five-day trial, witnesses, including Hunter's ex-wife, former girlfriend and sister-in-law, testified about his use of cocaine. His sister-in-law, Hallie Biden, testified that she found the gun in question but she immediately discarded it out of concern for Hunter's and her children's safety.

Lowell at one point claimed Hunter did not intend to deceive, believing he was not an addict at the time. The president's son stated in a 2023 hearing that he had been sober since 2019.

"I am more grateful today for the love and support I experienced this last week from Melissa, my family, my friends, and my community than I am disappointed by the outcome," Hunter said in the first statement he released after the decision was announced. "Recovery is possible by the grace of God and I am blessed to experience that gift one day at a time."

President Joe Biden told ABC News that he would not pardon his son if convicted. Sentencing guidelines for the charges range from 15 to 21 months, but similar cases often result in shorter sentences or alternatives to incarceration.

Joe Biden says will "respect" the ruling

The president, in his first comment after Hunter was found guilty on all three counts in his federal gun trial, expressed love for his son and vowed to "accept the verdict" handed down by the jury.

"As I said last week, I am the president, but I am also a dad," the president said. "Jill and I love our son, and we are so proud of the man he is today. So many families who have had loved ones battle addiction understand the feeling of pride seeing someone you love come out the other side and be so strong and resilient in recovery."

He further reiterated that he will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal. "Jill and I will always be there for Hunter and the rest of our family with our love and support. Nothing will ever change that."

The president went to Delaware to meet Hunter, who immediately greeted his father when the president arrived, getting out of the motorcade and embracing on the tarmac. Hunter was joined by his wife, Melissa and their son, Beau.

Biden did not make an appearance at his son's trial, but First Lady Jill Biden was almost always there at the hearings and walked out of the courthouse hand-in-hand with Hunter after the guilty verdict was announced.

Check out BidenCrimeFamily.news to read more stories related to the Bidens' illegal dealings and actions.

Watch the video below that talks about Hunter's guilty to verdict that may take a personal toll on Joe Biden.

This video is from the NewsClips channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Joe and Hunter Biden used Sandy Hook memorial service visit to forge secret $10 million-a-year deal with China.

Hunter Biden lawyers announce plans to take LEGAL ACTION against Fox News.

Russia investigating Ukrainian firm linked to Hunter Biden for financing terrorist attacks.

Hunter Biden finally admits that Joe is indeed the big guy.

CBS under fire after seizing confidential files of journalist investigating Hunter Biden.

Sources include:

APNews.com

NYPost.com

YourNews.com

ABCNews.go.com

Brighteon.com
Taking out an ink stick, placing it on the ink stone, and continuously pounding it with a hammer... In Anhui, a group of Huizhou inkstick artisans still guard the ancient methods of inkstick making, preserving the ancient culture with their exquisite craftsmanship.

On June 12, the "Carving Art of Huizhou" - Exhibition of Intangible Cultural Heritage Crafts, co-hosted by the Publicity Department of the CPC Anhui Provincial Committee, the Anhui Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, the CPC Huangshan Municipal Committee, and the Huangshan Municipal People's Government, was launched at the Anhui Art Museum. Over ten types of crafts, including Huizhou's Four Carvings, the Four Treasures of the Study, Huizhou Seal Carving, Huizhou Printmaking, and Huizhou Paper-Cutting were showcased, alongside 31 intangible cultural heritage inheritors who carry on these intangible cultural heritages and 53 excellent intangible cultural heritage works.

Huizhou's rich natural resources provide unique conditions for the production of the Four Treasures of the Study and other crafts, while the artisans infuse these crafts with profound cultural connotations. The Huizhou craftsmanship, passed down through centuries, carries the cultural confidence of the Huizhou people, blending ancient charm with folk wisdom to create a uniquely captivating cultural landscape.

Source: anhuinews.com
NIH data reveals the agency and its scientists earned $710 MILLION in ROYALTIES during the COVID-19 pandemic

During the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Americans became suspicious that Big Government was getting too cozy with Big Pharma. Now, newly revealed information has shown that they have been lying to the American public

According to shocking data from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), the agency and its scientists received at least $710 million in royalties during the COVID-19 pandemic from late 2021 to 2023.

Data showed that these were payments made by private companies, such as pharmaceuticals, to license medical innovations from government scientists.

The bulk of the royalties, totaling at least $690 million, went to the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, the institute led by Dr. Anthony Fauci, and 260 of its scientists.

Information about this vast private royalty complex is kept under wraps by the NIH. However, Adam Andrzejewski's organization OpenTheBooks.com was forced to sue to disclose the royalties paid from September 2009 to October 2021.

Overall, the royalties amounted to $325 million over 56,000 transactions.

OpenTheBooks was also forced to sue a second time, with Judicial Watch as their counsel, to push for the recent release. (Related: Cancer cases are increasing due to COVID vaccines, but Big Government and Big Pharma want you to look the other way.)

Payments were at their peak during the COVID-19 pandemic. Those years saw more than twice the amount of cash flow to NIH from the private sector, compared to the prior 12 combined. Overall, the payments totaled $1.036 billion.

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.

However, it's still unknown if any of the COVID-19 vaccine royalties from Pfizer and Moderna, the latter of which settled with NIH by agreeing to pay $400 million, is included in these new figures.

The NIH is refusing to give more details about the matter.

Andrzejewski, the founder of OpenTheBooks.com, aims to "capture and post all disclosed spending at every level of government  federal, state and local."

In 2022, OpenTheBooks filed 50,000 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests and gained access to 25 million public employee pension and salary records. The organization also broke open the California state checkbook for the first time in American history.

Lawmakers condemn health officials for evading public record laws

In May, House Republicans accused NIH officials of coordinating "a conspiracy at the highest levels" of the agency to hide public records linked to the origins of the coronavirus pandemic. Lawmakers also vowed to expand an investigation that produced damning emails wherein senior health officials freely discussed their efforts to avoid federal records laws.

The latest accusations represent the effort of lawmakers to link American research groups and the country's top medical research agency with the beginnings of the COVID-19 pandemic.

To date, that push has yielded no evidence that American scientists or health officials had anything to do with the pandemic.

However, the House panel, the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, released several private emails that suggest at least some NIH officials deleted messages and tried to elude public records laws because of scrutiny of the origins of the pandemic.

Some emails have even implied that the NIH officials who had to produce records under the FOIA may have helped their colleagues avoid their obligations under that law. The Freedom of Information Act ( gives people the right to obtain copies of federal records.

In February 2021, Morens emailed that he "learned from [their] foia lady here how to make emails disappear after [he] am foiad but before the search starts."

The email chain included Dr. Gerald Keusch, a scientist and former NIH official, and Peter Daszak, the president of EcoHealth Alliance, a virus-hunting nonprofit group. In the past, EcoHealth has been criticized by lawmakers for its work with Chinese scientists.

Referring to his personal Gmail account, Morens added that he had "deleted most of those earlier emails after sending them to gmail."

House Republicans released additional emails that they claimed implicated another NIH official in what was described as "efforts to evade public records laws."

In one of those emails from June 2021, Greg Folkers, a former chief of staff to Fauci, was discussing global biosafety practices and referred to a fact sheet from EcoHealth.

Folkers wrote the group's name as "Ec~Health," a misspelling that lawmakers claimed was intended to keep the email from being caught in keyword searches to fulfill FOIA requests related to EcoHealth.

Andrzejewski warned that the NIH is still redacting pieces of the data that would help organizations like OpenTheBooks connect therapeutics with their government-paid inventors.

For example, the agency refuses to show OpenTheBooks the amount of royalties paid to each scientist, making it hard for the nonprofit to follow the money as closely as possible.

Visit VaccineInjuryNews.com for more stories about COVID-19 vaccine-related injuries and deaths across the globe.

Watch the video below as Host Alex Jones talks about how Fauci confessed to crimes against humanity.

This video is from the Mckenna channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

AstraZeneca WITHDRAWS COVID-19 injection worldwide after admitting it causes BLOOD CLOTS.

Young man INJURED by J&J COVID-19 injection describes ordeal as "full-body assault."

AstraZeneca vaccine injury victim slams U.K.'s inadequate payout scheme.

Connecticut claims religious exemptions to mandatory child vaccinations somehow pose a threat to public health.

Sources include:

NYPost.com

OpenTheBooks.com

NYTimes.com

Brighteon.com
Trump campaign raises $400M following hush money trial guilty verdict

In just a week following the announcement of his guilty verdict in New York's hush money trial, Republican presidential frontrunner and former President Donald Trump reported that he has raised a whopping $400 million in campaign funds

Speaking at a Turning Point Action town hall event in Arizona on June 6, Trump stated "I just went through a rigged trial in New York with a highly conflicted and I mean highly conflicted, judge where there was no crime."

He added that his complainants could have brought the case seven years ago. However, "It's only when you run for office they bring cases," he continued. Critics and Trump supporters have been crying "foul" since the decision was released, implying that what happened to the 45th president was a "political prosecution."

Meanwhile, the guilty verdict did not seem to affect Trump's popularity much, let alone cause a decline of his supporters. He, in fact, noted that he is "beating Biden, by the way, by a lot," adding that following the conviction, "more campaign funds were given to this campaign than any campaign they think in history, almost $400 million."

In just one fundraising event, his campaign raised $12 million. In an X post of Attorney and Republican National Committee Committeewoman for California Harmeet Dhillon, she announced the good news and reported the incredible support they received for Trump.

"Not an empty seat in the gorgeous home of @DavidSacks and Jacqueline. Thrilled to see the tech leaders stepping up!" referring to the hosts of the event in San Francisco, who is an investor in internet technology firms and a general partner of Craft Ventures, together with his wife. The said fundraiser sold out with the tickets per couple costing $500,000 per piece. Single tickets were sold for $300,000 each.

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.

Trump, who has also made an appearance at a fundraiser Saturday at a bayfront Newport Beach mansion, pledged to the attendees that upon his return to the White House, he will pursue an "America First" policy that avoids unnecessary foreign entanglements and shut down the border. About 3,000 Trump supporters greeted the former president, according to the Newport Beach Police Department. They chanted, "Donald! Donald!" as the motorcade drove to the fundraiser on gated Harbor Island shortly before 1 p.m.

"He was amazing as always," said dentist Harleen Grewal of Santa Clarita. "He talked about the state of the country, what we need to bring us back to the American dream, the American people, how we've got to think about our country first and close the open border. For me, as a legal immigrant, I feel the same way. Everyone can come in by the right process, the legal process."

He talked about all the wars that are going on. During his presidency, there were no wars and we had the greatest economy in the history of the United States.

"We as Americans, need that back. If we don't get it this time, it is the end of America. It really is," Grewal added. (Related: Trump receives $300K campaign donation from venture capital executive following guilty verdict.)

Trump campaign: Hunter's guilty verdict is a distraction from real crimes of the Biden family

President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden, was found guilty on all three counts on June 11 by a 12-member jury in Wilmington, Delaware of lying about his addiction to buying a gun illegally, making him the first son of a sitting U.S. president to be convicted. The president soon issued a statement claiming that he respects the judicial process while his son considers an appeal.

Meanwhile, Karoline Leavitt, Trump campaign's national press secretary initially released a statement, which was eventually updated to take out "well wishes" to Hunter.

The original statement read: "This trial has been nothing more than a distraction from the real crimes of the Biden crime family, which has raked in tens of millions of dollars from China, Russia and Ukraine. Crooked Joe Biden's reign over the Biden Family Criminal Empire is all coming to an end on November 5th, and never again will a Biden sell government access for personal profit. As for Hunter, we wish him well in his recovery and legal affairs."

Visit Trump.news for more stories related to the legal battles the former president is fighting.

Watch the video below that talks about how Trump's campaign is even stronger after the guilty verdict.

This video is from the NewsClips channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Jonathan Emord decries SHAM trial and RIGGED verdict against Trump in explosive new interview with Mike Adams.

Top 10 things Democrat politicians are GUILTY OF DOING that theyre accusing Trump of doing.

Democrats in panic mode as they suddenly realize they made a grave mistake, call for Trump to be PARDONED.

Putin denounces American leaders for burning democracy down to the root following Trump conviction.

Donald Trumps legal team demands lifting of gag order that prevents him from speaking freely about his trial.

Sources include:

Modernity.news

LATimes.com

HindustanTimes.com

Brighteon.com'
UN halts food distribution from U.S.-built pier in Gaza due to safety concerns

The United Nations' World Food Program (WFP) has suspended food distribution operations from the floating pier built by the United States in central Gaza due to safety concerns for its staff

The floating pier, a project President Joe Biden announced in March, was supposed to facilitate the safe transfer of aid to Gaza. However, the pier, completed on May 16, was only operational for a week due to several troubles. First, storm damage halted its use, and when repairs were finalized on June 7, the ongoing conflict interrupted the food distribution again.

In response, the WFP's regional branch overseeing operations in the Middle East and North Africa has decided to suspend work coming from the pier following reports of rockets hitting the aid group's warehouse nearby.

"The group is temporarily pausing operations at the floating dock for a UN security assessment to ensure staff & partners safety," the WFP regional branch posted on X. (Related: U.S.-built floating pier in Gaza reopens after undergoing repairs that cost millions.)

Cindy McCain, the program director of WFP, disclosed on June 9 that rockets hit two of the agency's warehouses in the enclave when the Israeli Military Defenses (IDF) launched an assault on a refugee camp in central Gaza to rescue hostages held by Hamas on June 8.

Four Israeli captives were freed during the operation, but more than 270 people were killed and one of their staff members was injured. As a result, McCain stated that the group had to "step back" to ensure they were "on safe ground."

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.

U.S. officials deny involvement in the IDF operation

The same day Israel mounted a heavy air and ground assault, the U.S. delivered badly needed aid to Gaza.

On June 8, a video that circulated online showed an IDF helicopter taking off from a beach with the U.S. pier in the background. However, two U.S. officials immediately disclaimed their involvement in the IDF operation. One U.S. official even clarified that the helicopter landed on a beach south of the facility, outside the area cordoned off for the pier.

"The pier facility was not used in the operation to rescue hostages today in Gaza. An area south of the facility was used to safely return the hostages to Israel," a U.S. official said. "Any such claim to the contrary is false. The temporary pier on the coast of Gaza was put in place for one purpose only, to help get more urgently needed lifesaving assistance into Gaza."

The U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) also reiterated the statement released later that same day. CENTCOM stressed that "the pier facility, including its equipment, personnel, and assets, was not used in the operation to rescue hostages in Gaza today."

The U.S. acknowledged that the military action took place "near" the floating pier but described any potential damage as "incidental." Pentagon spokesperson Patrick Ryder clarified on June 10 that the pier "had nothing to do with the [Israeli military] rescue operation."

"It was near, but I think its incidental. Again, the pier, the equipment, the personnel all supporting that humanitarian effort had nothing to do with the [Israeli military] rescue operation," Ryder said.

Follow Humanitarian.news for more stories about the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

Watch the video below about the U.S. military building a pier in Gaza to assist in the flow of aid.

This video is from the GalacticStorm channel on Brighteon.com.

More related stories:

Biden: U.S. to build FLOATING PIER along Gaza coast to improve aid delivery.

Desperate, starving Palestinians resorting to intercepting aid delivered to Gaza via American floating pier.

Construction of U.S. military floating pier off Gaza nearly complete.

U.S. Navy vessels attached to floating pier off Gaza coast dislodged by storm, grounded on nearby beaches.

U.S. completes installation of makeshift pier in Gaza; first load of humanitarian assistance moves ashore.

Sources include:

RT.com

Breitbart.com

CBSNews.com

MSN.com

Brighteon.com
A recent study shows that the amount of hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs) in the atmosphere is decreasing, supporting the efficacy of the Montreal Protocol in controlling compounds that deplete the ozone layer and fuel global warming.

Montreal Protocol

Led by the University of Bristol, the research findings show for the first time a significant decrease in the atmospheric concentrations of strong ODS, or ozone-depleting compounds, known as hydrochlorofluorocarbons (HCFCs).

Since these HCFCs are likewise dangerous greenhouse gases, the Earth's warming should be lessened by their reduction.

In order to impose limits on the manufacturing and use of ODS, which were formerly widely employed in the creation of hundreds of items, such as refrigerators, aerosol sprays, foams, and packaging, the world community agreed to the Montreal Protocol in 1987.

In order to replace chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), HCFCs were produced. The use and manufacturing of HCFCs are currently being phased out, even though the production of CFCs has been prohibited worldwide since 2010.

The results are very encouraging, according to lead author Dr. Luke Western, a Marie Curie Research Fellow at the University's School of Chemistry. The study emphasizes how crucial it is to create and uphold international conventions.

He added that the result is a clear affirmation of multilateral pledges to battle stratospheric ozone depletion, with added benefits in addressing human-induced climate change, as it would not have been feasible without the Montreal Protocol.

The global analysis indicates that the total amount of chlorine in all HCFCs that depletes ozone peaked in 2021. That year also marked the pinnacle of these compounds' impact on climate change because they are strong greenhouse gases as well.

Five years ahead of the most recent estimates, this limit was reached. Even though there was just a 1% decrease in HCFC emissions between 2021 and 2023, it is still positive news.

Western said the global manufacturing of them is presently being phased out, with completion planned for 2040. Consequently, non-ozone depleting hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) and other substances are taking the place of these HCFCs.

"By enforcing strict controls and promoting the adoption of ozone-friendly alternatives, the protocol has successfully curbed the release and levels of HCFCs into the atmosphere," he added.

Read Also: Thick Ozone Layer Has Warming Effect on Earth, Study Shows

Antarctic Ozone Recovery

With the success of the Montreal Protocol, it was predicted that Antarctic ozone recovery would take place later this century, provided that there were no further increases in ODS production.

When taken into account in future estimates, the observed decline in HCFC abundance is earlier than predicted, which could push ahead this recovery timeframe.

All synthetic halogenated gases continue to have an increasing overall radiative impact due to the rising quantities of HFCs and other fluorinated greenhouse gases.

The Kigali Amendment, the Paris Agreement, and the Global Cooling Pledge should ensure that, in due course, the radiative impact of HFCs will diminish in a manner comparable to that of HCFCs.

Based on data from the National Atmospheric and Oceanic Administration (NOAA) and the Advanced Global Atmospheric Gases Experiment (AGAGE), the conclusions are dependent on high-precision observations from globally distributed atmospheric observatories.

This study emphasizes the vital need to be watchful and proactive in our environmental monitoring, ensuring other controlled ozone depleting and greenhouse gases follow a similar trend, which will help to protect the planet for future generations, according to co-author Dr. Isaac Vimont, a research scientist at the NOAA in the United States.

Related Article: Scientific Community Contradicts Study About a New Ozone Hole over Earth's Tropics Due to 'Unsubstantiated Assertions'
Florida flooding impacted multiple areas across the southern part of the Sunshine State earlier this week. On Tuesday, June 11, a heavy rainfall event (equivalent to nearly a month's worth of precipitation) poured down across South Florida. The sudden inclement weather caused a surge of raging floodwaters, submerging streets, and stranding vehicles.

However, the latest Florida weather forecast from United States weather authorities suggests the continuance of the adverse weather in the state until later this week. According to recent local reports, flood watches are in place for over 8 million people across South Florida starting from Wednesday to Thursday night, June 12 to June 13. Localized travel disruptions are also expected in the coming days.

Amid the Florida flooding threat, the National Weather Service (NWS) warned that excessive rainfall across central and southern Florida could result in flash and urban flooding. The weather service also mentioned there is a 'slight risk' of torrential rain over the region as far as Friday morning, June 14. The wet weather is being caused by a stationary front combined with tropical moisture above Florida and the Gulf Coast.

Florida Flood Alert

Major travel delays have been reported in Florida after a month's rain struck cities like Tampa and Sarasota. The Florida flood and heavy rain caused around 600 flight delays and flight cancellations at Miami International Airport. The flash flooding event occurred after the massive precipitation fell in a short period of time on Tuesday. In Miami, flood warnings were given when floodwaters rose after 3 inches of rainfall.

As violent storms due to a tropical moisture hovered above Florida and its surrounding regions, significant rainfall struck the Sunshine State even when the country is already heading to its summer season starting Thursday, June 20. Regardless, US meteorologists are expecting the further flooding rain in Florida and potentially in other parts of the Southeast US and Gulf Coast region this week.

Also Read: Heavy Rain Unloads in Fort Lauderdale, South Florida; Flash Flooding, Travel Concerns Possible

Florida Weather Forecast

On Wednesday, it was reported the National Hurricane Center is expecting this year's first tropical depression of the hurricane season off the Southeast coast later this week. Meanwhile, the NWS' Weather Prediction Center provided its updated Florida weather forecast at 4:00 a.m. EDT (local time) on Wednesday, warning that a weather front and tropical moisture will produce showers and thunderstorms across South Florida.

The US Government weather agency also warned further heavy rain events in Florida this week could result in localized flash flooding, affecting mostly low-lying areas, small streams, and urban areas. Coinciding with thunderstorms across the region, there is also a risk for lightning, strong winds, and even few tornadoes.

Elsewhere in the country, the Western US has been experiencing a surge of high temperatures due to a persistent heat wave across the region over the past week. Moreover, wet weather similar to Florida and the Gulf Coast is also expected over parts of the Pacific Northwest on Friday, the NWS reported.

Related Article: Florida Weather Forecast: Rainy Periods to Bring Relief from Heat, Drought
Due to an enhanced risk of severe thunderstorms, parts of Missouri and Iowa will experience potential threats of hail, strong wind gusts, and heavy rains. People with travel plans should consider the weather this week and avoid outdoor activities.

Hot & humid conditions expected tomorrow, with highs in the mid-90s and heat index values in the 100-106 range. These conditions will fuel thunderstorms late tomorrow afternoon into the overnight hours. Some of those storms could be severe, with large hail and damaging winds. pic.twitter.com/KXrg2eNAkG  NWS Kansas City (@NWSKansasCity) June 12, 2024

A National Weather Service (NWS) advisory reveals an enhanced risk of severe thunderstorms in the Middle Mississippi Valley. Nature World News (NWN) recently reported similar severe weather threats in the south-central U.S.

Although some areas in the U.S. have recorded soaring temperatures, parts of Missouri and Iowa can experience severe weather potential. In nearby regions, the Midwest can anticipate a risk of severe thunderstorms this week, with winds reaching 75 to 95 mph and isolated tornadoes.

Weather outlook in Missouri and Iowa this week: Where will severe thunderstorm hit?

An NWS advisory monitors the development of a thunderstorm potential due to mid-level energy, particularly affecting portions of the Middle Mississippi Valley. According to the report, the Upper Midwest can also experience these thunderstorms, spreading over northern Iowa, northern Illinois, and Indiana.

There is a severe thunderstorm risk on Thursday evening in southern Iowa and northern Missouri. Residents should anticipate destructive wind gusts, large hail, and a few tornadoes.

Another concern is tornadoes and strong winds. Homeowners should plan their daily commutes to avoid these severe weather threats. It is also advisable to stay updated with the latest weather advisories to stay safe from tornado risks.

NWS Des Moines reports a Severe Thunderstorm Warning in Iowa Falls, Ackley, and Wellsburg. Commuters should check the recent weather statements and advisories in the region.

Additionally, a weather report on June 12 reminded residents of the arrival of summer heat. In southern Iowa, highs can reach the mid-to-upper 80s, with heat indices likely to reach the 100s. Residents are advised to stay hydrated at all times.

Also Read: Western US Weather Forecast: Uptick in Thunderstorms Likely to Unleash New Wildfires

Weather in the central U.S: Isolated tornadoes likely to unload

In the central U.S., a weather news report on June 13 raised concerns about rounds of severe thunderstorms. On Thursday, a severe thunderstorm outlook can unload heavy downpours, isolated tornadoes, and hail. These thunderstorms will affect the following areas:

North Platte

Burlington

Dodge City

Kansas City

Omaha

St. Louis

Indianapolis

Chicago

Milwaukee

Detroit

The forecast monitors the development of hot and humid conditions in Kansas City. Highs can reach the mid-90s, and heat index values can range from 100 to 106. In addition to this humid outlook, residents should watch out for scattered thunderstorms affecting the Iowa and Missouri border.

The severe thunderstorms will continue on Friday, bringing rounds of rain and hail. These will affect Bangor, Scranton, Albany, Boston, New York, Philadelphia, and Washington portions.

With severe conditions expected this week, homeowners should stay alert for changing weather conditions and isolated tornadoes.

Related Article: South-Central US Weather: Rounds of Storms to Bring Flash Flood, Tornadoes Next Week

For more similar stories, don't forget to follow Nature World News
European nations have observed a spike in dengue cases caused by an invasive variety of Asian mosquitoes as a result of climate change, and experts are predicting a further rise in the cases in the coming years.

Surge Of Dengue Cases

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) issued a warning on Tuesday, stating that dengue cases have been steadily increasing throughout Europe and that some infections may become serious.

Tiger mosquitoes, an invasive species that is primarily found in tropical regions, have been discovered in 13 European Union countries. The discovery has been linked to a "significant" increase in dengue cases this year.

According to the ECDC, mosquito populations have increased in Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Malta, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, and Spain.

Tiger mosquitoes are the vectors for diseases like dengue fever, chikungunya, and the Zika virus, which annually cause millions of cases globally and wreak havoc in tropical nations.

Previously, the species was only found in warmer regions of Asia, Africa, and the Americas. However, specialists claimed that the hotter summertime is creating the perfect environment for the spread of these mosquitoes because of more travel and rising temperatures in Europe brought on by carbon pollution from burning coal, oil, and gas.

Compared to 71 occurrences in 2022, there were 130 locally acquired cases of dengue reported in the EU in 2023.

When you go further back in time, the trend becomes even more pronounced: from 2010 to 2021, there were 73 occurrences total.

"Europe is already seeing how climate change is creating more favorable conditions for invasive mosquitoes to spread into previously unaffected areas and infect more people with diseases such as dengue," said ECDC director Andrea Ammon.

Also increasing are cases that are imported. In 2023, more than 4,900 Europeans contracted dengue while traveling overseas, an increase from 1,572 cases in 2022 and the largest number since surveillance started in 2008.

Read Also: Extraordinary Wet Monsoons Result In Dengue Outbreak In Bangladesh; Nearly 1,000 Killed

Increase In The Coming Years

Although there aren't many infected individuals in Europe right now, the ECDC predicted that "we will see an increase in the coming years."

Due to the muscular spasms and joint discomfort it causes, dengue fever-also referred to as "breakbone fever"-begins to manifest symptoms four to ten days following a bite. Some symptoms are similar to those of the flu.

When these mosquitoes bite an individual who is infected, they transfer the virus to another person.

The National Health Service states that it is typically not serious and commonly resolves on its own. Rarely, a more severe form of dengue can strike someone.

There are other concerns besides the increase in dengue cases. Experts caution that future circumstances could potentially result in a rise in malaria cases.

An earlier study said Europe is the continent that is warming the fastest. Serious repercussions could arise from underfunding healthcare systems to handle tropical infections, which were uncommon in the past but are increasingly common in Europe.

The head of the United Nations health agency's dengue program, Dr. Raman Velayudhan, issued a warning last year about a "very worrying" increase in the virus's global spread in 2022, saying that the climate crisis "played a key role" in it.

In the southeast of England, officials in the UK have also discovered the tiger mosquito many times since 2016.

Related Article: Climate Change is Making Dengue Deadlier as Mosquito-Borne Illnesses Spike Worldwide




The continuous volcanic eruptions in Iceland have raised the level of sulfur dioxide in Scotland's atmosphere. On the Reykjanes Peninsula in Iceland, there was a fresh fissure eruption. This was the fifth eruption in a sequence that started in December 2023, close to the town of Grindavik.

The eruption's effect on the United Kingdom's air quality was initially considered to be negligible because it was not explosive, making it only a local worry. On the morning of May 31, however, climatic conditions sent sulfur dioxide (SO2) levels in Scotland skyrocketing to levels not seen since the 1970s.

On the evening of May 30, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency's (SEPA) national volcanic emissions network first noted a rise in SO2. The plume proceeded southward in the early hours of May 31 and peaked in Scotland's Central Belt at 6 a.m. The highest concentration recorded at St. Leonard's in Edinburgh was 1161 g m-3.

The high SO2 levels were identified by UKCEH researchers using a mix of modeling data and observations, suggesting a strong possibility that the Icelandic volcano is to blame for the elevated levels.

The sequence of events was corroborated by the UKCEH's EMEP4UK atmospheric chemistry transport computer model application, suggesting that the UK might have been completely missed by the SO2 emissions if the eruption had happened in a different way.

The fact that far greater SO2 concentrations were measured than previously reported in the UK set this apart from earlier episodes and beyond those of recent Icelandic eruptions.

The volcanic plume contained a variety of other gases in addition to significant SO2. Our researchers are currently delving deeper into the plume's composition.

This incident did not exceed workplace exposure guidelines or provide a serious health concern, even though it surpassed Edinburgh's air quality objectives for ten hours. Our modeling work assisted in forecasting that this plume would swiftly cross the United Kingdom.

One of the planet's most active volcanic regions is Iceland. The Reykjanes Peninsula is dominated by a rift valley with lava fields and cones, rather than a dominant volcano.

Read Also: Iceland Volcano on the Verge of Erupting With Massive Lava Fountains, Geologists Warn

Dangers To Health

According to a blog post on the UKCEH website, SO2 is "an air pollutant from the past." In fact, Edinburgh's moniker "Auld Reekie" originated from its prominent place on the historical air pollution roster.

Notoriety be damned, it was also a major factor in the 1980 acid rain. Following the implementation of several global corrective actions, the UK's SO2 emissions have decreased by 98% since 1970.

Sulfur dioxide has the potential to cause chemical reactions that result in the production of PM2.5, or tiny airborne particles that are dangerous to human health. PM2.5 concentrations during this event remained substantially below levels of concern, according to measurement and model data.

Additionally susceptible to sulfur dioxide are ecosystems. Again, though, the plume's transient nature suggests that damage was probably modest.

This incident will offer important new information about how accurately volcanic eruptions affect the environment and public health.

Related Article: Iceland Faultine: Volcanic Eruption Confirms Boundary Between Tectonic Plates Has Awakened After 800 Years
The Great Oxidation Event, also known as the Oxygen Catastrophe and Oxygen Revolution, took place on Earth more than 2 billion years ago. This ancient natural phenomenon involved the rise of molecular oxygen and its escape into the atmosphere, replacing methane and becoming a major component of the biosphere. While it occurred long before complex life existed, it caused a mass extinction among anaerobic life.

Unlike aerobic creatures which rely on oxygen to survive, anaerobic organisms can live and grow even without oxygen. An oxygenated environment has been proven to be fatal for anaerobic lifeforms, as seen during the Great Oxygenation Event starting 2.5 billion years ago. The dominance of anaerobic life ended following the evolution of cyanobacteria living in the oceans.

According to scientists, marine cyanobacteria started producing large amounts of oxygen via photosynthesis, a process also used by plants to create the chemical element essential to life. The entire duration of the Oxygen Catastrophe remains unclear for decades. However, a study revealed in June 2024 that the Oxygen Revolution occurred for at least 200 million years, based on geochemical discoveries.

Great Oxidation Event

The Great Oxidation Event took place after almost half of Earth's lifespan was devoid of oxygen, since the planet formed approximately 4.5 billion years ago. Coinciding with the evolution of cyanobacteria, the said event involving the mass accumulation of oxygen served as a "poison" that paved the way for the eradication of most anaerobic life, according to the American Society for Microbiology (ASM).

A group of microbes called cyanobacteria evolved around 2.7 billion years ago. Scientists in the past have discovered that these living organisms can use water and oxidize it through photosynthesis. Prior to this event, it was theorized that life on Earth was dominated by anaerobic organisms since the earliest onset of life date back 3.8 billion years ago, according to biochemist Leslie Orgel, as cited by the ASM.

Also Read: Scientists Predict Earth's Oxygen Will Decrease, Suffocating Most Living Organisms

Anaerobic Life Extinction

Although biologists have considered the anaerobic life extinction as a catastrophe, it also led to the development of complex flora and fauna later on in Earth's biological history. Despite the said extinction, the majority of surviving anaerobic organisms retreated deep on the planet's subsurface where oxygen is absent, according to a 2016 report by the Imperial College London.

It is evident that the Great Oxidation Event did not occur overnight, yet the scientific community are still in the dark when it comes to the exact termination of the phenomenon. However, a new study published in the journal Nature on Wednesday, June 12, revealed the planet's atmosphere-ocean oxygenation started 2.3 billion years ago and lasted for at least 200 million years.

The research paper's lead author, professor Chadlin Ostrander, explains that the oxygenation process is not linear and involves fluctuating trends of the initial increase of oxygen in Earth's atmosphere.

Related Article: Oxygenation on Earth Likely Originated from Microbes and Minerals
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2024 is a big year for elections. Dozens of parliamentary and presidential elections take place, including in the United States, the United Kingdom, India, Brazil, Indonesia, and Mexico, and the threat of cyberattacks and artificial intelligence-driven disinformation has never been higher.

According to the World Economic Forums latest Global Risks Perception Survey report, misinformation and disinformation are top risks, and the trend of seeking to influence voters ahead of the election and undermine the legitimacy of the results will doubtlessly continue and intensify.

The expected surge of deepfakes

As the technology behind deepfake audio and video production matures and becomes more widely available, we should expect to see more examples spreading over social media in the coming months. Recent examples include the robocall, which used Joe Bidens voice to discourage voters from voting in the New Hampshire primary in January 2024. Similar practices were more maliciously put to use in Slovakia and the U.K.

During the Slovakia election in September 2023, an audio clip purported to be a recording of Michal Simecka, who leads the liberal Progressive Slovakia party, discussing how to rig the election. A second clip used Simeckas voice to spread fake news that he planned to double the price of beer in the country if he won. The identity of the attacker was not proven, and the pro-Russia candidate, former Prime Minister Robert Fico, won the election.

Last October, the leader of the U.K.s Labour Party, Sir Keir Starmer, was the victim of an audio deepfake released to coincide with the first day of the partys annual conference. The clip appeared to capture him swearing at staffers. The situation was exacerbated by X, formerly Twitter, refusing to take the clip down because the Labour Party was unable to provide sufficient evidence that it was fake.

Audio deepfakes seem more likely to be troublesome than video, which might be easier to spot as manipulated, at least in the short term. Deepfakes have also used public figures to date but could, in the future, target election workers in highly contested districts, which may be harder to dismiss quickly. Counterfeit websites can be built to support claims and spread further disinformation, hosted online and distributed more quickly than ever, amplifying deepfakes reach.

The Associated Press recently shared a guide on how to spot deepfakes, which all of us should study.

Politicians and experts around the world, but especially in the U.K. and U.S., where concerns about election manipulation are at their highest, have been calling for regulations to stop the creation and spread of deepfakes. A letter signed by hundreds of leaders in the AI community in February of this year called for criminal penalties for those creating and spreading damaging content. However, even if new rules were implemented in time for the election, there is little confidence it would make any difference.

Threat of hacking

Cyberattacks remain a possibility, and politicians, their families, staffers, and party officials have likely been targeted on an ongoing basis over the last few years. The absence of reporting on stolen information from personal and work devices does not mean it has not happened; attackers may wait for the most opportune moment in the election cycle to leak any information. Attacks against devices that have gone undetected for months or years could still result in damaging leaks.

While much of the focus of election interference in the 2020 U.S. elections was on Russia, and will likely remain on Russia for the 2024 election, other countries, political groups, and individuals may also be motivated to use their resources to influence voters or disrupt the process. Recent reports detail how China interfered in Canadas 2019 and 2021 federal elections, and there is evidence of Chinas intent to interfere with the 2024 U.S. election. Both China and Russia are adept at long-term hacking campaigns.

Other state actors, including Iran and North Korea, may also seek to interfere with elections around the world, but some hacking may come from within the country as partisans seek to disrupt the opposition. Several countries will hold elections that are considered neither free nor fair.

Voting infrastructure targeted

Voting machines may be another key target for state-sponsored hackers. Compromising, or appearing to compromise, the security of voting machines during the U.S. election would add fuel to the fire smoldering since former President Trump made allegations of voting fraud following his 2020 defeat. Where evidence was lacking last time, actual evidence of attacks this time could be used to cast renewed doubt on the 2020 result.

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) has been preparing for such attacks. The #protect2024 website contains a large amount of protective security content for state and local election officials to improve security hygiene, increase the security of systems, and plan for incident response. The Elections Infrastructure Information Sharing and Analysis Center (EI-ISAC) should prioritize communications and sharing of intelligence among election officials in the U.S. and other countries will likely have similar groups.

The work done by ethical hackers via the Election Security Research Forum and MITRE to examine hardware and software used by election technology manufacturers for vulnerabilities is of particular value. Fully vetted cybersecurity researchers and officials worked together to identify problems and fix them, heading off the potential for exploitation later in the year.

Distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks have been used in attempts to disrupt voting infrastructure, including temporary outages during the 2022 U.S. midterm elections. However, the impact is limited and is unlikely to stop votes from being cast.

In the January 2024 Bangladeshi elections, an app created by the Bangladesh Election Commission to provide voters with information on candidates and historical data was targeted by unknown attackers, causing the app to run slowly. Ahead of the same election, the telecoms and media industries were also heavily targeted by DDoS attacks, which were thought to be an attempt to slow the flow of information to voters.

Finally, we should not rule out the possibility of insiders seeking to undermine election security. Insiders could use their access to manipulate or destroy election data, including voter registration data, or access election systems or data. They could also attempt to steal or interfere with election infrastructure hardware or leak information about voters publicly. CISA DOC.

A microcosm of cybersecurity and AI issues

The issues affecting election security are a microcosm of cybersecurity and AI issues affecting all fields: the number of threats and risks that must be managed and mitigated is growing exponentially, and attackers will always have the advantage by exploiting technology more quickly than defenders.

Lessons will be learned and shared from the incidents that affect elections this year, but we, as security professionals, must be vigilant in understanding how attackers could tweak those incidents to threaten businesses, financial markets, and critical infrastructure. We should then apply mitigations wherever possible until we can use AI to counter attacks before they damage us.

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Samsung to provide comprehensive AI solutions for foundry biz

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amsung Electronics said on Thursday it will provide comprehensive "one-stop" artificial intelligence (AI) solutions for its foundry customers, with a focus on up-to-date technologies for high-performance, low-power AI chips.

"At a time when numerous technologies are evolving around AI, the key to its implementation lies in high-performance, low-power semiconductors," Choi Si-young, head of foundry business at Samsung Electronics, said during the annual Samsung Foundry Forum (SFF) in San Jose, California.

"Alongside our proven gate-all-around (GAA) process optimised for AI chips, we plan to introduce integrated, co-packaged optics (CPO) technology for high-speed, low-power data processing, providing our customers with the one-stop AI solutions they need to thrive in this transformative era."

At this year's SFF, the South Korean tech firm unveiled its foundry business road map, highlighting its technological innovations and visions for the AI era, reports Yonhap news agency.

Samsung AI Solutions is a turnkey AI platform resulting from collaborative efforts across the company's foundry, memory and advanced package (AVP) businesses.

Samsung Electronics is uniquely positioned as the only company with all three semiconductor businesses, allowing it to offer customer-tailored solutions in a single deal.

The company said it plans to introduce an all-in-one, CPO-integrated AI solution in 2027, aiming to provide customers with one-stop AI solutions.

Additionally, Samsung Electronics announced new foundry process nodes, SF2Z and SF4U, for its latest 2 nanometer and 4nm processes to meet the booming demand for AI chips and compete with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), the world's leading foundry.

SF2Z, the company's latest 2nm process, incorporates optimised backside power delivery network (BSPDN) technology to enhance power, performance and area for better high-performance computing designs. The mass production of SF2Z chips is scheduled to begin in 2027.

TSMC had earlier announced plans to apply BSPDN technology to its 1.5nm process by 2026.

Furthermore, Samsung Electronics said its SF4U technology for optical shrink will be applied to its 4nm process, with mass production planned for 2025.

Samsung said its preparations for the cutting-edge 1.4nm process are progressing "smoothly," with performance and yield targets on track for mass production in 2027.

 Samsung to provide comprehensive AI solutions for foundry biz

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Ukraine dominates agenda as G7 leaders gather in Italy for summit

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he G7 leaders are huddling in Italy for a three-day summit dominated by the wars raging in Ukraine and Gaza, in addition to the growing trade and security tensions with China.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was invited to attend the gathering of the Group of Seven, which starts on Thursday at the luxury resort of Borgo Egnazia to the southeast of the city of Bari in southern Italy's Apulia region.

This could be Joe Biden's final G7 summit, coming five months before he faces his predecessor and right-wing Republican rival Donald Trump in a tense US presidential contest.

European leaders are under domestic political pressure, too.

French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will arrive after far-right parties made big gains in last weekend's European Parliament elections, raising questions about their countries' political environments.

And, after 14 years of Conservative government in Britain, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is expected to suffer a stinging defeat to the opposition Labour Party in the July 4 general election.

Ukraine will be at the top of the agenda of the meeting of the world's advanced industrialized democracies: Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States. The European Union also takes part.

Kyiv can expect to receive a huge new aid package from the G7 for its defence against Russia. The leaders are set to agree to finance a loan of $50 billion for Ukraine with interest from frozen Russian state assets.

The lion's share of the frozen assets - around 210 billion euros- is within the European Union. The Russian money generates billions in interest income every year.

After months of negotiations, Biden and Zelensky will also sign a bilateral security agreement between the United States and Ukraine on the sidelines of the G7, the White House said.

Washington also announced on the eve of the summit it was imposing sanctions on more than 300 individuals and entities connected to Russia's war economy, including financial institutions, the Moscow Stock Exchange and Chinese companies.

Ukraine is in the spotlight at back-to-back international gatherings in Europe. Berlin hosted the Ukraine Recovery Conference On Tuesday and Wednesday. After the G7 wraps up on Saturday, many of the same leaders are due to head to Switzerland for a Ukraine peace summit at which Russia will be absent.

Besides Zelensky, the leaders of Turkey, Brazil and India will also be attending the Italy talks. Pope Francis will be the first pontiff to take part in a G7 summit; He was invited to address the risks posed by artificial intelligence.

Other topics include relations with Africa and migration.

--IANS/DPA

 Ukraine dominates agenda as G7 leaders gather in Italy for summit

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My vision is to make Andhra Pradesh zero-poverty state: CM Naidu

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ndhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu asserted on Thursday that his vision was to make Andhra Pradesh a zero-poverty state.

After offering prayers at Tirumala temple, he told media persons that he would make every effort to create wealth and ensure its distribution among the poor.

I want to see the Indian community on top in the world and 35 per cent of Telugu in the Indian community as number one. We should work for a zero-poverty nation, zero-poverty state and zero-poverty district, he said.

Naidu, who took oath as the Chief Minister on Wednesday, said he prayed for the prosperity of the state and all Telugu people.

Underlining the need to remove economic inequalities, he said this was possible only through government policies.

He recalled the initiatives taken by him as the Chief Minister of united Andhra Pradesh in this direction. CBN 1.0 started in 1995. We took governance, which was limited to the Secretariat, to the doorsteps of people. There was development and everyone has seen its results. World leaders came to Hyderabad. I did not invite them. They came on their own. They come wherever good work is done, he said.

The Telugu Desam Party (TDP) termed the family system as the biggest asset of the country. The family recharges your energy, gives you security and happiness. The family system of India is a model for the entire world, he said and mentioned that family proved to be his biggest support when he was in jail.

CM Naidu, who is set to assume charge as the Chief Minister on Thursday evening, made it clear that there would be no witch-hunting but those who have done wrong will be punished as per law.

He remarked that God has also ordained to protect good and punish evil.

CM Naidu, who led the NDA to a landslide victory, termed it a historic mandate. We have never seen such a huge public mandate. The strike rate of 93 per cent never happened in the state or the countrys history, he claimed.

Recalling his attachment to the Tirumala temple since his early days, he said it was the blessings of the Lord that he came up in life to become the Chief Minister and play a key role in national politics.

Referring to the failed assassination attempt by Maoists near the same temple in 2003, he said the Lord saved him from claymore mines. No one would have survived. He saved me so that I serve the state and the people, he said.

The TDP supremo said he prays to Venkateswara Swamy every morning to seek blessings.

He alleged that the previous government tried to damage the sanctity of Tirumala and remarked that while other gods punish sinners after death, Venkateswara Swamy punishes in this life.

 My vision is to make Andhra Pradesh zero-poverty state: CM Naidu

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Combating corruption, cyber fraud among top priorities of Modi 3.0; 100-day campaign planned

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n keeping with its zero-tolerance policy against corruption, the Modi government, in its third term, has planned an intensive campaign to crack down on all kinds of graft including that in digital space.

On the lines of the 100-day agenda of Modi 3.0, the NDA government has planned a special campaign for clamping down on corruption and cyber frauds. The special campaign is expected to be implemented soon.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his first speech after the 2024 election results, made it amply clear that his third term will see exemplary and vigorous action on all modes of corruption.

As part of the special campaign, dedicated teams will be formed to redress grievances of consumers related to cyber frauds of various kinds, including those linked with credit cards. Complaints related to non-grant of family pension to relatives of (deceased) government servants will also be taken up during the 100-day campaign.

Besides the steps to eradicate corruption and cyber fraudsters, the government has planned to make the grievance redressing mechanism smoother and people-friendly to ensure its wider and deeper reach within the public.

Popular social media tools like WhatsApp and AI chatbots are likely to be roped in. Citizens can lodge their complaints and grievances on WhatsApp. A mobile application is also being planned to facilitate lodging of complaints and grievances by citizens.

The harnessing of technology in the crackdown on cyber fraud and corruption cases is expected to give a major fillip to the drive.

According to official data, the grievance redressing mechanism has seen a remarkable improvement in the past few years.

In 2019, the average closing time of public grievances lodged on the central portal stood at around 28 days. It has been brought down to 10 days in 2024.

Also, the number of complaints by citizens on the official portal saw a noticeable jump from 19 lakh in 2022 to 21 lakh in 2023.

 Combating corruption, cyber fraud among top priorities of Modi 3.0; 100-day campaign planned

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Principles of bioreactor design

Control strategies in bioreactor systems

Technological advancements

Challenges in bioreactor design and control

Case studies

Future directions

References

Further reading

Bioprocessing is an umbrella term that describes the research, development, manufacturing, and commercialization of products derived from or used by biological systems. For industrial purposes, bioprocessing is widely incorporated into pharmaceutical, nutraceutical, food, and beverage production processes.

Within the pharmaceutical industry, bioreactors refer to vessels and containers used to store microorganisms such as bacteria, cells, and algae. Typically, these organisms are used to produce certain biomolecules or biomaterials that can subsequently be incorporated into vaccines, medications, or genetic engineering tools1.

Image Credit: FOTOGRIN/Shutterstock.com

Principles of bioreactor design

Several different types of bioreactors have been developed for pharmaceutical applications, the most common of which include stirred tanks, bubble columns, airlift, fluidized beds, and fixed bed bioreactors2. The design of each of these bioreactors depends on various factors, including the type of biocatalyst being used.

When a bioreactor is used to support cell culture growth, the continuous flow of media is essential to supporting the proliferation and survival of these cells. Stirred tank bioreactors, for example, are steel-based systems equipped with an impeller that provides mechanical agitation to homogenize media containing cells, antibodies, or enzymes within the system.

Other cell culture projects, such as those that rely on immobilized cells, may rely on fluidized bed bioreactors, in which media passes through the distributor to the cells. Within this system, velocity allows media to reach, subsequently suspend, and mix with the cells.

Within the biopharmaceutical industry, single-used bioreactors have become increasingly relied upon as they can range in size from 50 liters up to 2,000 liters2. Additional advantages of these systems include the ability to incorporate different filters, valves for pressure and flow control, and other ports for sensors to monitor them, particularly when used for large-scale production processes.

Control strategies in bioreactor systems

The biological nature of the microorganisms cultured in bioreactors leads to inherent variability and unpredictability. Despite these characteristics, precise control strategies, algorithms, and processes can be used to maintain bioreactor operations within desired ranges.

In almost all bioreactors, actuator levels can be controlled through various devices ranging from pumps, valves, and heaters to electric voltages and stirrer speeds. For large-scale industrial processes, proportional integral derivative (PID) controllers have been successfully used for electrical, aerospace, and mechanical single-input single-output linear systems2. Typically, PID controllers are used to control a single variable, such as the bioreactor's temperature or acidity, as they are not ideal for monitoring complex bioprocesses.

Since their initial development in the 1970s, distributed control strategies (DCSs) have enabled various advanced process control strategies to be controlled within a single framework. DCSs allow operators to supervise and control an entire industrial plant from a centralized control station while simultaneously gathering and storing data for control and process analytics.

As technology has advanced, control devices within DCSs have become more digital. For example, many DCSs are now equipped with smart transmitters and actuators, each with its own microprocessor, which allows them to perform highly complex tasks ranging from autocalibration and signal conditioning to self-diagnosis on-site.

Technological advancements

Sensing technologies have become an essential aspect of modern industrial bioreactors. These sensors facilitate the non-contact and automated monitoring of numerous variables, such as pH, temperature, dissolved oxygen (DO), glucose, and lactate levels, that must be precisely maintained to ensure the sterility and quality of final products.

To monitor the pH of media, for example, porous glass electrode-based electrolyte-filled sensors, as well as optical property-based and electrochemical sensors, have been incorporated into industrial bioreactors. Maintaining temperature within a bioreactor with a precision of 0.5 C or better is also optimal2; therefore, many bioreactors are equipped with temperature sensors such as thermocouples, resistance temperature detectors (RTDs), or thermistors.

Impeller speed can also be controlled and closely monitored in both single- and multiple-impeller bioreactors. Tachometers, for example, can be installed into bioreactors to sense whether desired impeller speeds are within the optimal range3. Importantly, uneven shear characteristics or energy dissipation of impellers can lead to the destruction of cells and microorganisms.

Challenges in bioreactor design and control

Pharmaceutical-grade industrial bioreactors are associated with numerous challenges due to the inherent complexity of biological systems housed within these devices, sterility requirements, as well as high process variability.

Products obtained from bioreactors are initially developed in smaller laboratory settings. Therefore, when scaling up these systems to meet the greater demand of pharmaceutical industry production requirements, physiological similarity must be achieved within the bioreactor. Although complete physiological similarity is not a practical goal, partial similarity in biomass growth, feeding, accumulation, and removal rates, as well as micro- and macronutrient concentrations2, is often the goal of bioreactor designers.

Each type of biopharmaceutical-grade bioreactor is associated with different design and control challenges. Batch bioreactors, for example, experience fluctuating process conditions that require highly sophisticated control algorithms to maintain the integrity of batch reaction processes. Since each batch will begin with different initial conditions, quality control is essential to optimize process yields and titers.

Image Credit: FOTOGRIN/Shutterstock.com

Case studies

Cedarstone Industry, a Houston, Texas-based manufacturing company, offers a comprehensive range of bioreactors and fermenters for use at any stage of the biopharmaceutical development process.

To meet the highest industry standards, the Cedarstone Bioreactor / Fermentation Tank is equipped with temperature control sensors that maintain an accuracy of 0.2 C, in addition to automated sensors that monitor pH, DO, stirring, aeration, defoaming, rehydration, and inoculation3. Four different types of ventilation devices can also be incorporated into these systems, depending on the chemical gas requirements, without compromising the sterility of the system.

Likewise, the Austrian technology company Zeta offers several magnetic mixers that have successfully been incorporated into different bioreactors to overcome some of the challenges associated with traditional mixing technologies. More specifically, the magnetic coupling technology of these products ensures the transmission of materials at a very high torque while reducing the risk of potential contamination to extremely low levels4.

Future directions

As artificial intelligence (AI) has advanced at an unprecedented rate over the past several years, it has inevitably been incorporated into bioprocesses to enhance their performance and optimize their control for a wide range of applications. For example, deep learning approaches trained on anaerobic digestion (AD) sensor data have effectively predicted critical process parameters (CPPs)5.

Artificial neural networks (ANNs) have also been explored for their ability to monitor, simulate, optimize, and control bioreactors. More specifically, ANNs appear to be ideal solutions for monitoring and optimizing the complexity of these systems while simultaneously identifying any errors to increase process reliability and performance6. In the near future, ANNs will likely be integrated with Internet of Things (IoT) devices and advanced sensors to transform modern bioreactors into smart, automated, and self-adaptive systems.

References
Changing the way antibiotics are given to adult patients with sepsis will save thousands of lives a year globally, according to research by The University of Queensland and The George Institute for Global Health.

A clinical trial and systematic review have shown that intravenously administering commonly used penicillin-like antibiotics via continuous infusion  instead of multiple short infusions  cures infections and saves lives.

Professor Jason Roberts, Director of UQ's Centre for Clinical Research (UQCCR) and Metro North Health's Herston Infectious Diseases Institute, said the clinical trial of more than 7000 patients tested findings from laboratory studies to deliver the best drug concentration for the bacteria causing the infection.

We found by delivering these antibiotic doses as a continuous infusion we can maintain the concentration of the antibiotic in a patient's blood and tissue, and kill bacteria at a greater rate. This simple intervention uses commonly available antibiotics, so even small hospitals in third-world countries can implement the dosing change almost as easily as well-resourced hospitals in developed countries." Professor Jason Roberts, Director of UQ's Centre for Clinical Research (UQCCR) and Metro North Health's Herston Infectious Diseases Institute

Associate Professor Joel Dulhunty, UQ researcher and Director of Research and Implementation at the Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital, said the international trial BLING (Beta-Lactam Infusion Group) III was one of the largest ever antibiotic randomized clinical trials.

"The trial, sponsored by The George Institute, was a massive undertaking involving 104 hospitals in 7 countries, more than 130,000 doses of medication and the analysis of 4 million data points," Dr Dulhunty said.

Associate Professor Naomi Hammond, Critical Care Program Head at The George Institute, said the clinical trial data was then used in a systematic review and meta-analysis, combining 18 studies and more than 9000 patients.

"The combined data showed a very significant benefit with the use of a continuous infusion, saving one life for every 26 patients treated," Dr Hammond said.

UQCCR Emeritus Professor Jeffrey Lipman said the next step for the research team would be to inform worldwide treatment protocols and guidelines.

"Physicians follow international guidelines when treating sepsis patients, and at the moment these guidelines have a very low certainty of evidence around how to best administer these drugs," Emeritus Professor Lipman said.

"Thanks to our program of research, treatment protocols and guidelines will now have a very high certainty.

"Given the simple nature of the findings and the conversations we are having between hospitals, we expect most will adopt these changes immediately."

The research is the culmination of a program of work over 20 years led by Emeritus Professor Lipman that began with small studies focusing on dosing, to large clinical trials with multinational collaborators.

The BLING III trial was funded by the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia, the Belgian Healthcare Knowledge Centre (KCE), the Health Research Council of New Zealand, The University of Queensland, University Hospital Nimes, Skane University Hospital, UK National Institute for Health and Care Research.

The Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital Foundation provided funding for the program of research, which commenced with the BLING I trial.

The BLING III trial involved collaborators from Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia, Sweden, Belgium, France and the UK.
A study published in the journal PNAS highlights the impact of overhearing-based learning on language development in infants who are rarely spoken to directly.

Tseltal mother carrying a nine-month-old infant. Study: Infants who are rarely spoken to nevertheless understand many words

Background

A wide-range of studies investigating language development in children have primarily considered the speech that parents or caregivers direct to children as the primary driver of language development. These studies have mostly been conducted on children raised in Western, middle-class, child-centered households.

The primary highlight of these studies is that there may be a single, optimal pathway to language. This pathway involves frequent adult speech to children even before they learn to give meaningful replies. This is called child-directed language.

This particular theory of language development suggests that increasing the quantity and quality of child-directed language can increase language processing efficiency, vocabulary growth, optimal brain development, and subsequent educational attainment in children.

Some studies have argued this theory by reporting that language development occurs similarly across environmental contexts despite significant variation in child-directed language customs at the global scale.

This raises the possibility that children can learn from other language sources in their environment, especially the language they overhear from surrounding people.

In this study, scientists have investigated how other-directed language (overhearing) can facilitate language development in infants from an indigenous community in Southern Mexico who are rarely spoken to directly.

Study design

The study involved a Tseltal Maya society in Tenejapa, Chiapas, Mexico, where infants experience the world from a sling on their mothers' backs.

Infants from this community are rarely addressed directly by caregivers or parents during the initial years of life. However, they have the opportunity to overhear a great deal of other-directed language by virtue of being carried on their mothers' backs. They are exposed to direct speech only after they start walking and get a chance to interact with people around them.

The study employed a well-established "language-guided-looking" task to assess infants' language knowledge. The task captures early word knowledge by measuring infants' gaze between paired visual stimuli when prompted with one of their names.

Important observations

The study found that Tseltal infants exhibit implicit knowledge of common Tseltal nouns, which is similar to their US peers' development of knowledge of common English nouns through child-directed language. This finding indicates that Tseltal infants are equivalent to US infants in terms of language development despite infrequent exposure to child-directed language.

Furthermore, the study found that Tseltal infants exhibit knowledge of Tseltal honorific greeting terms that are exclusively exchanged between adult members of the community. This finding indicates that Tseltal infants could learn these words only through overhearing.

Overall, these findings indicate that infants can learn from the other-directed language in their respective environments and that overhearing-based learning can be a crucial component of language development in some infants.

Study significance

The study provides a new perspective that children are able to successfully learn their native languages across variable environments partly because of their flexibility toward learning processes.

Language directed at children is not their only learning source. The language they overhear from their surrounding environments can also facilitate their language development, highlighting that children can play an active role in it.

This study contrasts with previous studies that identify child-directed language as the sole source of learning for language development in children. This might be because these studies have mostly involved children who are frequently exposed to child-directed language, whereas children included in the current study are rarely spoken to directly as they are almost always carried on their mothers' backs.

These findings provide a new path for future studies to investigate whether children from different environmental backgrounds are equally able to learn from child-directed and other-directed language or develop and adapt their learning strategies in response to their environments.

As advised by the scientists, future studies could focus on measuring the composition of child-directed and other-directed language in their respective environments and evaluating the impact of this measure on children's ability to learn from these two different language sources.

Future studies could also analyze and compare different types of other-directed language to determine which type is more conducive to learning than others.

The current study findings might be relevant for interventions encouraging caregivers to speak more to their young infants, particularly in contexts wherein this practice is not the cultural norm.
Thought Leaders Melanie Leveridge Chair of the Board ELRIG UK

In this interview, we speak with Melanie Leveridge, Vice President of Discovery Biology at AstraZeneca and Chair of the Board for ELRIG UK, to discuss her extensive career in the pharmaceutical industry, her role in fostering scientific innovation, and her vision for ELRIG's future.

Please could you introduce yourself and give me a brief overview of your professional background?

My name is Melanie Leveridge, and I'm the chair of the board of ELRIG UK. In my day job, I'm Vice President of Discovery Biology at AstraZeneca based in Cambridge. I've worked in the pharmaceutical industry for around 20 years, leading teams in early discovery, supporting assay development, screening and compound profiling, mechanistic biology, and sample management. I've been involved with ELRIG for as long as I can remember, first as a speaker at events or session chair, then on various committees and as a board member since 2017, and most recently, chair of the board since 2020.

How has your extensive career background influenced your role as chair at ELRIG?

It's very much a two-way street. The work I do in my day job obviously informs us of the scientific topics that we want to showcase at ELRIG. We need to make sure that the science and technology that we showcase are really relevant to scientists in drug discovery. The work with ELRIG really helps to build networks, which helps with the day job and helps me understand what kind of latest science is out there that I can then bring back to the day job as well. ELRIG also helps to foster partnerships between industry and academia, as well as with our technology and reagents suppliers, all of which help to advance our science.

Drug Discovery 2024: In Conversation with ELRIG Play

ELRIG plays a pivotal role in the scientific community by fostering collaboration and innovation. Can you discuss any specific initiatives or programs that have been implemented to enhance these aspects within the organization?

Our innovation strategy, which is new this year, is led by our innovation work group, chaired by my fellow board members Del Trezise and Sarah Lupton in the ELRIG team. They have put together a strategy to make ELRIG events accessible to new start-ups and companies with breaking innovation, but those who may not have reached a scale yet can have a full booth for the meeting or large talks. There will be a dedicated exhibition space for these companies at our Drug Discovery and Research and Innovation events, as well as an Innovation Award. It's really geared towards companies with less than 25 employees, so small start-ups. We really want to nurture that community, help them access scientists who can provide feedback and help embed their ideas into the industry, and give the ELRIG delegates access to their great innovations as well to help with their work, so it's a win-win.

Image Credit: ELRIG UK

In your introductory talk at Research and Innovation 2024, you spoke about the importance of early career professionals at ELRIG and said that 30% of attendees are actually those early-stage professionals. Can you talk a little bit about that and just what that means to ELRIG to foster that community?

This is a really important community for us. Obviously, a big part of ELRIG's mission is to help people build networks, which is incredibly important when you're early on in your career, and also to nurture and educate the next generation of scientists.

Around 30% of people who come to our meetings are ECPs. We define ECPs as people who are within the first five years of their career, whether that's after their postgraduate research or bachelor's degree, whatever that is. We have a number of events and activities geared to ECPs. I think my favorite one is our Network Like a Boss event, which is like speed networking that we hold at both Drug Discovery and Research and Innovation conferences every year. It's great fun! We also have lots of dedicated ECP webinars and scientific content like flash poster talks. We have prizes geared towards ECPs, such as our ECP Impact Awards and our ECP Poster Awards. Finally, we reinvest some of our revenue into the ECP community, for example, in the form of travel bursaries, to make our events accessible to this community.

I think it's very important that we have ECPs represented on all of our committees through ELRIG so that we hear ECPs' perspectives in our planning and strategy. We have an early career professional workgroup specifically dedicated to ECP activities, but we also have ECPs embedded in all of the other work groups and on the board. That brings a really fresh perspective to all of our discussions, and they always add huge value to all of our conversations and ideas.

Image Credit: ELRIG UK

Given ELRIG's commitment to scientific education networking, how do you ensure the organization stays ahead of the curve in covering the latest technologies and methodologies in drug discovery that you've mentioned?

A lot of that is thanks to our science programming work group, led by Saleha Patel on the board and Clare Cockerham in the ELRIG team and with membership from across a diverse range of institutions and areas of expertise from our volunteer general committee. They come together every month to discuss the latest trends and ideas that they want to see. We usually work out our schedule on an 18-month horizon, so we're really thinking about what's going to be the hot topic in 18 months to two years that people want to talk about.

The way that we make sure we get all of those ideas in is to have a really diverse group of people in those work groups and as part of the ELRIG community. So we try and make sure that we've got a real breadth of contribution from different types of organizations, whether that's biotech, pharma, academia, start-ups, charities, so different perspectives and different types of roles that people serve in those organizations. By bringing those people together in the work groups and on the committees, we get all of those ideas, and hopefully, that keeps us ahead of the curve in terms of content.

Image Credit: ELRIG UK

You've been involved with ELRIG for a long time, and you recently transitioned from director of science strategy to chair. How has this transition influenced your perspective on ELRIG, particularly the non-profit management side of things?

It's been a fantastic learning opportunity for me. Essentially, ELRIG is a small business. It's not-for-profit, but it operates as a small business. Obviously, some of the budget management and so on that I do for my day job helps with that. However, actually working in big pharma is very different from working in a small, very agile, and ever-changing organization like ELRIG, so I have gained a perspective of leading a very different type of organization than in my day job.

It's fantastic to be exposed to something very different. I think that as a chair, what I really enjoy and get the opportunity to do is touch on all of the different aspects of ELRIG. So, it is not just the scientific programming but also things like our strategy around EDI, around environmental sustainability now, and thinking about the financial sustainability of the organization and what that means for a not-for-profit. It is really fun to work with the team. I partner very closely with Sanj Kumar, the CEO of ELRIG, and we collaborate very well.

Looking to the future, what are ELRIG's key strategic goals, and how do you plan to achieve them in the context of evolving scientific and technological landscapes?

We have four fundamental strategic pillars for ELRIG; the first one is and always will be our events. So the events, and face-to-face events actually, really are the core of what ELRIG does. We are looking to continue with the fantastic program events. We're actively planning for 2025 and 2026 and trying to extend the runway and plan as far ahead as we can and continue to grow our events, and in particular the flagship Drug Discovery event in the autumn, and really trying to maximize that event for the community.

Beyond the events, the other pillars that we have are EDI, equality, diversity, and inclusion. We've had a real focus on that and have developed some guiding principles for our organization. Last year, we were proactive in making sure that our contributors to the event, our speakers, and our chairs represented the broader ELRIG community. We had some disparities in previous years, so we started to capture data from each of our events, assessed that data and the team worked very hard to address the issue. And I'm really happy to say that we're moving in the right direction, but there's always a lot more to do. The other aspect that we're going to start looking at a bit more actively this year is the accessibility of our events. So whether that's physical accessibility or thinking about how we can accommodate those with neurodiversity in our events.

Our third pillar is then presence and awareness, which is really around marketing the ELRIG brand, making sure that we continue to grow our delegate base and our vendor base, and getting the word out there about ELRIG. Something that we are trying to start doing a bit more of, and we've got a focus this year and going into next year, is around how we can host more of our content online and think about our content living beyond the events because although we have amazing scientific content, it is currently very focused on events at the moment. So I think there's a lot of opportunity there.

The final pillar is around sustainability, which means the sustainability of the organization and ensuring we are financially robust and sustainable. Still, we also need to think increasingly about environmental sustainability. Again, that's a conversation in very early days. Still, we're starting to have conversations about how we understand the environmental footprint of our events, how we improve that, and how we help facilitate dialogue about sustainability and science. We can play a big role there.

The next large event is Drug Discovery in London in October. Could you talk a little bit about the event and your hopes for it? What are you most looking forward to?

Drug Discovery is our flagship event. We're hoping to get at least 2,000 delegates through the door over the two days, with around 200 vendor exhibitors in the trade show. It's at London Excel this year, so opportunities have a really big large-scale event. We will have 7 scientific and technology tracks each day, many of which are delivered in partnership with other organizations with whom we collaborate to help bring a great variety and breadth of science to our community. There will be content on biomolecular imaging, hit discovery, chemistry, translating ideas into therapies, robotics and automation, and lots more. Beyond that, we'll have lots of content for early career professionals, networking opportunities, posters, and so on! There will also be content on some of the strategic areas I've previously mentioned, such as sustainability in science and the breakthrough innovation zone, which will be back and even bigger and better at Drug Discovery.

Where can readers find more information?

Drug Discovery 2024 - learn more here: https://elrig.org/portfolio/drug-discovery-2024/

About Melanie Leveridge

Melanie is an established preclinical drug discovery leader with a track record of developing and inspiring diverse, high-performing teams to deliver innovative science and technology. Melanie worked for GSK for 19 years, from 2005 to 2024, holding roles of increasing responsibility in early discovery, including as Head of Screening, Profiling, Mechanistic Biology, and Global Sample Management. In 2024, Melanie joined AstraZeneca as Vice President of Discovery Biology, a role in which she leads a global team accountable for reagent generation, assay development, and chemical biology in support of AstraZenecas discovery portfolio. Outside of AstraZeneca, Melanie is a Society for Lab Automation and Screening (SLAS) Fellow, and currently serves as Chair of the Board for ELRIG UK.
For Diana Perez, a medical resident at the Family Health Center of Harlem, the handwritten thank-you note she received from a patient is all the evidence she needs that she has chosen the right training path.

Perez helped the patient, a homeless, West African immigrant who has HIV and other chronic conditions, get the medications and care he needed. She also did the paperwork that documented his medical needs for the nonprofit that helped him apply for asylum and secure housing.

"I really like whole-person care," said Perez, 31, who has been based at this New York City health center for most of the past three years. "I wanted to learn and train, dealing with the everyday things I will be seeing as a primary care physician and really immersing myself in the community," she said.

Few primary care residents get such extensive community-based outpatient training. The vast majority spend most of their residencies in hospitals. But Perez, who is being trained through the Teaching Health Center Graduate Medical Education program, is among those treating patients in federally qualified health centers and community clinics in medically underserved rural and urban areas around the country. After graduating, these residents are more likely than hospital-trained graduates to stay on and practice locally where they are often desperately needed, research has found.

Amid the long-term shift from inpatient to outpatient medical care, training primary care doctors in outpatient clinics rather than hospitals is a no-brainer, according to Robert Schiller, chief academic officer at the Institute for Family Health, which runs the Harlem THC program and operates dozens of other health center sites in New York. "Care is moving out into the community," he said, and the THC program is "creating a community-based training environment, and the community is the classroom."

Yet because the program, established under the 2010 Affordable Care Act, relies on congressional appropriations for funding, it routinely faces financial uncertainty. Despite bipartisan support, it will run out of funds at the end of December unless lawmakers vote to replenish its coffers  no easy task in the current divided Congress in which gaining passage for any type of legislation has proved difficult. Faced with the prospect of not being able to cover three years of residency training, several of the 82 THC programs nationwide recently put their residency training programs on hold or are phasing them out.

That's what the DePaul Family and Social Medicine Residency Program in New Orleans East, an area that has been slow to recover after Hurricane Katrina in 2005, has done. With a startup grant from the federal Health Resources and Services Administration, the community health center hired staff for the residency program and became accredited last fall. They interviewed more than 50 medical students for residency slots and hoped to enroll their first class of four first-year residents in July. But with funding uncertain, they put the new program on hold this spring, a few weeks before "Match Day," when residency programs and students are paired.

"It was incredibly disappointing for many reasons," said Coleman Pratt, the residency program's director, who was hired two years ago to launch the initiative.

Until we know we've got funding, we're "treading water," Pratt said.

"In order to have eligible applications in-hand should Congress appropriate new multi-year funds, HRSA will issue a Notice of Funding Opportunity in late summer for both new and expanded programs to apply to be funded in FY 2025, subject to the availability of appropriations," said Martin Kramer, an HRSA spokesperson, in an email.

For now, the Teaching Health Center program has $215 million to spend through 2024.

By contrast, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services paid hospitals $18 billion to provide residency training for doctors in primary care and other specialties. Unlike THC funding, which must be appropriated by Congress, Medicare graduate medical education funding is guaranteed as a federal entitlement program.

Trying to keep THC's three-year residency programs afloat when congressional funding comes through in fits and starts weighs heavily on the facilities trying to participate. These pressures are now coming to a head.

"Precariousness of funding is a theme," said Schiller, noting that the Institute for Family Health put its own plans for a new THC in Brooklyn on hold this year.

The misalignment between the health care needs of the American population and the hospital-based medical training most doctors receive is a long-recognized problem. A 2014 report by the National Academies Press noted that "although the GME system has been producing more physicians, it has not produced an increasing proportion of physicians who choose to practice primary care, to provide care to underserved populations, or to locate in rural or other underserved areas."

The Teaching Health Center program has demonstrated success in these areas, with program graduates more likely to practice in medically underserved areas after graduation. According to a study that analyzed the practice patterns of family medicine graduates from traditional GME training programs vs. those who participated in the THC program, nearly twice as many THC graduates were practicing in underserved areas three years after graduating, 35.2% vs. 18.6%. In addition, THC graduates were significantly more likely to practice in rural areas, 17.9% vs. 11.8%. They were also more likely to provide substance use treatment, behavioral health care, and outpatient gynecological care than graduates from regular GME programs.

But the lack of reliable, long-term funding is a hurdle to the THC training model's potential, proponents say. For 2024, the Biden administration had proposed three years of mandatory funding, totaling $841 million, to support more than 2,000 residents.

"HRSA is eager to fund new programs and more residents, which is why the President's Budget has proposed multi-year increased funding for the Teaching Health Center program," Kramer said in an email.

The American Hospital Association supports expanding the THC program "to help address general workforce challenges," said spokesperson Sharon Cohen in an email.

The program appeals to residents interested in pursuing primary and community care in underserved areas.

"There's definitely a selection bias in who chooses these [THC] programs," said Candice Chen, an associate professor of health policy and management at George Washington University.

Hospital primary care programs, for instance, typically fail to fill their primary care residency slots on Match Day. But in the THC program, "every single year, all of the slots match," said Cristine Serrano, executive director of the American Association of Teaching Health Centers. On Match Day in March, more than 19,000 primary care positions were available; roughly 300 of those were THC positions.

Amanda Fernandez, 30, always wanted to work with medically underserved patients. She did her family medicine residency training at a THC in Hendersonville, North Carolina. She liked it so much that, after graduating last year, the Miami native took a job in Sylva, about 60 miles away.

Her mostly rural patients are accustomed to feeling like a way station for physicians, who often decamp to bigger metro areas after a few years. But she and her husband, a physician who works at the nearby Cherokee Indian Hospital, bought a house and plan to stay.

"That's why I loved the THC model," Fernandez said. "You end up practicing in a community similar to the one that you trained in."
In a recent study published in Aging, researchers evaluated the impact of depressive symptoms, use of antidepressants, and epigenetic age acceleration (EAA) on mortality in postmenopausal individuals.

Study: Relationships of depression and antidepressant use with epigenetic age acceleration and all-cause mortality among postmenopausal women. Image Credit: Photoroyalty/Shutterstock.com

Background

Depression is the most prevalent mental illness in geriatric populations, contributing to the global burden of diseases. It is a risk factor for chronic conditions, such as cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome, and diabetes.

Antidepressants are widely prescribed medicines among older adults. Around 25% of those prescribed antidepressants take them for more than a decade; however, there is limited evidence on the long-term impact of antidepressant use.

While antidepressants have potential health benefits, they are associated with various side effects. Postmenopausal individuals represent a high-risk group for depressive symptoms and antidepressant use. Their vulnerability to age-related conditions may increase with depressive symptoms or antidepressant use.

About the study

In the present study, researchers examined the relationship between elevated depressive symptoms (EDSs), antidepressant use, and EAA or all-cause mortality among postmenopausal individuals.

They used data from the Womens Health Initiative (WHI), a long-term study that recruited a multiethnic sample during 1993-98 in the United States (US).

At enrolment, participants completed a questionnaire and underwent a clinical examination. The current analysis was restricted to those with DNA methylation data for epigenetic age calculation. An algorithm for depressive symptoms was generated; a score > 0.06 indicated strong evidence of depression.

EDSs were repeatedly evaluated at enrolment and during a three-year follow-up to examine temporal changes. Antidepressant use was similarly examined for temporal changes. EAA was defined using four epigenetic clocks  Hannum, PhenoAge, GrimAge, and Horvath.

Death was ascertained semi-annually or annually by following up with care providers, family, or friends. Participants were followed up until December 31, 2021.

Covariates included sociodemographic, lifestyle, and health factors. The team plotted Kaplan-Meier estimates for survival probabilities against baseline EDSs, antidepressant use, and combined exposure (EDSs and antidepressant use).

Logistic or Cox proportional hazard regression models estimated the odds and hazard ratios. Bivariate associations of baseline health, lifestyle, and socioeconomic characteristics with EAA, EDS/antidepressant use, and all-cause mortality risk.

Besides, the relationship between EAA and EDS, antidepressant use, or both was evaluated. Causal mediation analyses examined moderating or mediating effects of EAA on the association between EDSs/antidepressants and mortality risk.

One model (1) was unadjusted, model 2 was partially adjusted (only socioeconomic factors were controlled for), and model 3 was additionally adjusted for health and lifestyle factors.

Findings

Overall, 1,900 postmenopausal individuals were included in the analyses. The average age at baseline was 64.6; nearly 66% were White, and 32% were Black.

Of these, 11% had EDSs, and 7% used antidepressants at baseline. During a mean follow-up of 20.4 years, 1,161 deaths were recorded. Baseline antidepressant use and the combined exposure were significantly associated with higher all-cause mortality risk.

The odds of EDSs or the combined exposure reduced with age, higher physical activity, education, and income but increased with body mass index and among current smokers. All-cause mortality risks increased with age and were reduced among Black and Hispanic subjects relative to While and non-Hispanic individuals, respectively.

In logistic regression models, only GrimAge acceleration was associated with antidepressant use or the combined exposure in the crude and partially adjusted models.

This association was attenuated when additionally adjusted for health and lifestyle factors. In Cox proportional hazard regression models, PhenoAge and GrimAge acceleration were associated with higher mortality risk.

Besides, an increase in antidepressant use between baseline and three-year follow-up was associated with elevated mortality risk. Changes in EDS status during this time frame had no impact on mortality.

Causal mediation analyses suggested that GrimAge acceleration partially mediated the effects of baseline antidepressant use and the combined exposure on all-cause mortality risk in the partially adjusted model only.

Conclusions

In sum, the study evaluated the impact of antidepressant use, depressive symptoms, and EAA on all-cause mortality in postmenopausal individuals. Baseline use of antidepressants, longitudinal increase in their use, and accelerated epigenetic aging predicted all-cause mortality risks.

GrimAge acceleration partly mediated the effects of baseline antidepressant use and combined EDSs/antidepressant use on mortality risk before adjusting for health and lifestyle factors. Further studies are required in diverse populations.
To mark World No Tobacco Day 2024 Protecting children from tobacco interference, Bedfont Scientific Limited hosted an informative discussion with experts Dr Amer Siddiq Amer Nordin and Associate Prof. Dr Anne Yee and external guest Professor Christopher Bullen.

World No Tobacco Day, established in 1987 by the World Health Organization (WHO), aims to raise global awareness about the tobacco epidemic and the preventable illnesses and deaths it causes. With the 2024 annual theme "Protecting children from tobacco industry interference," Bedfont hosted a discussion with Smokerlyzer Medical Advisory Board members, Dr Amer Siddiq Amer Nordin and Dr Anne Yee, along with insights from Professor Christopher Bullen from the University of Auckland.

Dr Amer Siddiq Amer Nordin

Dr Anne Yee

The discussion covered some fascinating points, looking at where the world is currently with the efforts to reduce tobacco use, and the challenges being faced along the way. The conversation looked closely at New Zealand and Malaysia.

What is happening in New Zealand?

In New Zealand, there has been a considerable effort in research and policy-making to reduce the number of young smokers; this has resulted in a drop in smoking in young people to below 5%, which is the lowest it has ever been. Whilst this statistic should be celebrated, the challenge now being faced is the considerable increase in the number of young people taking up vaping, with the majority of these people having never smoked.

Chris goes on to say that we shouldnt be complacent with these numbers; things can change very quickly, and we could well see a surge in the uptake of smoking again in the future. Although New Zealand is on top of the situation currently, things need to be monitored very closely to avoid an increase in smokers.

In New Zealand, just like the UK, the government brought in legislation that anyone born after January 1st 2009 cannot legally buy tobacco products. However, Professor Bullen comments that a new government was appointed in March this year, who swiftly revoked that legislation.

What is happening in Malaysia?

Sadly, smoking remains a significant public health issue in Malaysia. However, the National Health & Morbidity Report did show a decline in cigarette use in 13-17 years-olds, dropping from 13.8% in 2017 to 6.2% in 2022. Showing a massive decrease in smoking in this age group is positive, yet, the same report did show an increase in e-cigarette and vape use in the same age group, increasing from 9.8% in 2017 to 14.9% in 2022. However, 10.8% of adolescent males were still smoking cigarettes in 2022 compared to 1.7% of adolescent females1; it seems that smoking is still a global issue.

Should we be concerned?

Tobacco companies are always looking for ways to increase smoking; if they are not successful, they are looking to push other products into the market, particularly in countries where the regulatory environment is weak. Dr Anne Yee comments that in Malaysia, vapes are being sold and positioned with snacks and sweets, making smoking and vaping seem more acceptable.

What is being done to reduce the number of people smoking?

In Malaysia, they introduced the Control of Tobacco Products Regulations under the Food Act of 1983 in 2004. These regulations included:

Advertising bans

Graphic health warnings

Restriction on sales to minors.

The Control of Smoking Products for Public Health Act 2024 has been published but is not yet operational in Malaysia, meaning sales of nicotine vapes are still available to minors. Dr Anne Yee fears Malaysia is falling behind in regulating vaping and innovative tobacco products and tobacco companies are seeing this as their way in.

Malaysia has implemented several measures to reduce smoking, such as:

Tak Nak, the anti-smoking campaign: The campaign was started to create awareness to encourage people to quit smoking and also discourage non-smokers from starting.

Introducing an anti-smoking program in the school curriculum: The program aims to educate and prevent young people from taking up smoking.

Quit Smoking Clinics: Set up across the country to offer counselling and nicotine replacement therapy.

Is branding an issue?

With some brands believed to be healthier than others branding is an issue. Like the UK, New Zealand introduced plain packaging and health warning labels on cigarette boxes, whereas Malaysia hasnt been successful with this just yet.

What can we do to assist young people who want to quit smoking?

Unfortunately, there is not much evidence on which methods are best for adolescents to give up smoking, but in New Zealand, it has been suggested that text messaging has helped this age group. It is also thought that driving the price of tobacco up will discourage younger people to start smoking as they cannot afford it.

With everything discussed, it can be quite daunting when considering all the challenges faced in trying to reduce tobacco use. Nevertheless, we should celebrate how far the world has come in reducing smoking globally, and whilst vaping is rapidly increasing, smoking combustible tobacco is currently considered more dangerous. The world should continue efforts, hoping for a healthier population and a smoke-free future.

To watch the discussion in full visit our YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NeWDIAb9JGM&t=15s

1. NHMS Survey: Among Malaysian Teens, Smoking Rate Falls But Vaping Prevalence Rises To 15%. CodeBlue. May 2023. [cited on 30/05/24] Available from https://codeblue.galencentre.org/2023/05/25/nhms-survey-among-malaysian-teens-smoking-rate-falls-but-vaping-prevalence-rises-to-15pc/#:~:text=The%20NHMS%20survey%20shows%20that,per%20cent%20of%20adolescent%20females.
In a significant development affecting job seekers in India, major IT firms such as Infosys, Wipro, and TCS are delaying the onboarding process for thousands of fresh graduates. According to a report by the Times of India citing data from the Nascent Information Technology Employees Senate (NITES), over 10,000 freshers are in limbo, awaiting their joining dates.

Harpreet Singh Saluja, president of NITES, has reported receiving numerous complaints from candidates who were offered positions at top IT companies, including TCS, Infosys, Wipro, Zensar, and LTIMindtree.

This development comes even as a notable reduction has been recorded in the combined workforce of TCS, Infosys, and Wipro, which saw a decrease of approximately 64,000 employees in the financial year 2023-24.

In recent communications, as per the TOI report, Infosys informed candidates that their dates of joining (DOJ) would be determined based on business needs, with notifications sent at least three to four weeks in advance.

We will allocate the DOJ (date of joining) brd on business requirements and the DOJ will be sent at least 3-4 weeks prior to joining, according to the mail sent to the candidates by Infosys, said the TOI report.

This year, Infosys hired only 11,900 new graduates, a sharp decline from the 50,000 recruits in the previous fiscal year.

Wipro is experiencing similar issues, with Chief Human Resources Officer Saurabh Govil acknowledging that many offers made two years ago remain unfulfilled. He, according to the report, stated, The year before last, we went to campus and made many offers. We are yet to honour those. We will finish those offers and then hire new freshers. We will induct freshers this year, but we cannot give a number as the macro environment is uncertain.

Krishna Vij, business head of IT staffing at TeamLease, highlighted that about 3-5% of freshers recruited by top IT services companies in 2022 have yet to start their roles. This delay is attributed to a lack of project visibility and a focus on ensuring that candidates possess the necessary skills and job readiness, according to the report.

Meanwhile, according to a livemint report, TCS and Infosys have seen a decline in employees aged 30 years or less in the past two years.

The share of young workers in TCSs workforce has fallen from 59 per cent to FY22 to 50.3 per cent in FY24. For Infosys, thats a drop from 60 per cent to 55 per cent over the same period, according to the livemint report.

In the fourth quarter ended March 2024, TCS recorded a 9% increase in net profit to Rs 12,434 crore, compared with Rs 11,392 crore in the corresponding period last year.

Infosys posted a 30 per cent year-on-year jump in its net profit to Rs 7,969 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 2024 quarter. However, its revenues during January-March 2024 rose just 1.3 per cent YoY to Rs 37,923 crore, compared with Rs 37,441 crore a year ago.

Wipro reported an 8 per cent year-on-year (YoY) decline in its net profit to Rs 2,835 crore for the March 2024 quarter (Q4 FY24). Its revenue during January-March 2024 declined to Rs 22,208.3 crore, compared with Rs 23,190.3 crore in the year-ago period.
Debt-ridden telecom operator Vodafone Idea will allocate shares worth Rs 2,458 crore to vendors Nokia India and Ericsson India to clear their partial dues, a regulatory filing said on Thursday.

The board of Vodafone Idea Ltd (VIL) has cleared allotment of shares on preferential basis at about 35 per cent higher price compared to the follow-on offer price of the company, and comes with a lock-in of 6 months.

The Board of Directors of Vodafone Idea Limited today approved preferential allotment of about 166 crore equity shares of face value of Rs 10 each, at an issue price of Rs 14.80 per share, for an aggregate consideration of up to Rs 2,458 crore, to two of its key vendors, Nokia Solutions and Networks India Private Limited and Ericsson India Private Limited, the filing said.

Nokia and Ericsson will participate for up to Rs 1,520 crore and Rs 938 crore respectively, subject to approval by VIL shareholders at the EGM to be held on July 10, 2024, the telco said in a release.

Nokia and Ericsson both have a long-term partnership with VIL, as key suppliers of network equipment, and this preferential allotment will enable VIL to clear part of their outstanding dues, the filing said.
Petrol, Diesel Prices On June 13, 2024: OMCs have released the latest petrol and diesel prices for June 13. Fuel prices in the country depend on the prices of crude oil internationally. Fluctuations in crude oil prices lead to changes in fuel prices in India. Check the latest petrol, and diesel prices to know if there is an increase in the amount that customers will have to shell out for a litre.

Government oil marketing companies release the latest petrol and diesel prices every day at 6 am in the country. Today, there has been no change in the petrol and diesel prices in the countrys capital Delhi, and other metros. Companies like Hindustan Petroleum Corporation, and Indian Oil Corporation of India release the prices of petrol and diesel on their websites. Let us know the latest fuel prices.

Petrol Diesel Price Today In India (Check city-wise rate list below)

Mumbai Petrol & Diesel Price

As of June 13, the petrol price in Mumbai continued to exceed the Rs 100 mark, reaching Rs 104.21 per litre, while diesel was priced at Rs 92.15 per litre.

Delhi Diesel Price Today

As of June 13, the cost of diesel is priced at Rs 87.62 per litre.

Delhi Petrol Price Today

As of June 13, the cost of petrol in Delhi is Rs 94.72 per litre.

Kolkata Petrol & Diesel Price

In Kolkata, the price of petrol is Rs 103.94 and the price of diesel is Rs 90.76 per litre.

Chennai Petrol & Diesel Price

In Chennai, the price of petrol is Rs 100.85, while the price of diesel is Rs 92.43 per litre.

Check city-wise petrol and diesel prices on June 13:

Petrol-Diesel Rates in other cities (Petrol-Diesel Rates 13 June 2024)

Noida: Petrol Rs 94.66 per litre and Diesel Rs 87.76 per litre

Gurugram: Petrol Rs 95.05 per litre and diesel Rs 87.91 per litre

Chandigarh: Petrol is Rs 94.24 per litre and diesel is Rs 82.40 per litre

Hyderabad: Petrol is Rs 107.41 per litre and diesel is Rs 95.65 per litre

Jaipur: Petrol is Rs 104.88 per litre and diesel is Rs 90.36 per litre

Patna: Petrol is Rs 105.42 per litre and diesel is Rs 92.27 per litre

Lucknow: Petrol is Rs 94.52 per litre and diesel is Rs 87.61 per litre

Know the price of petrol and diesel through SMS

You can also find out the latest petrol and diesel prices in your city through SMS. If you are a customer of Indian Oil, then you will have to write RSP along with the city code and send it to 9224992249. If you are a customer of BPCL, then you can get information about the new price of petrol and diesel by writing RSP and sending it to 9223112222. Whereas, if you are a customer of HPCL, then you can find out the price of petrol and diesel by writing HP Price and sending it to 9222201122.
Capital markets regulator Sebi has lined up 19 properties of KBCL India Ltd for auction on July 16 to recover money illegally collected from investors. The move is part of Sebis effort to recover investors money. The regulator has initiated the process for the sale of assets after KBCL India Ltd, its directors Rakesh Kumar, Vishvnath Pratap Singh and Shashi Kant Mishra failed to refund the investors money.

The properties include land parcels and a plot in Uttar Pradesh and they will be auctioned at a reserve price of Rs 3.54 crore, according to a notice issued by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) on Wednesday.

Quikr Realty has been engaged by Sebi to assist it in the sale of properties, while C1 India has been appointed as the e-auction service provider.

As per the notice, the regulator said bidders should make their own independent enquiries regarding the encumbrances, litigations, attachments and acquisition of liabilities of the property put on auction, prior to submitting their bid.

The markets watchdog is inviting bids for the sale of properties in the recovery proceedings against KBCL India Ltd, its directors  Rakesh Kumar, Vishvnath Pratap Singh and Shashi Kant Mishra.

Sebi said the auction will be conducted online on July 16 from 11 am to 1 pm.

KBCL India Ltd had mopped up money from investors without complying with regulatory norms.

In May 2014, the markets watchdog restrained KBCL India Ltd, and its directors from raising any money from the public.

In its probe, Sebi found that KBCL (formerly known as Kalpataru Biotech Corporation) was running a Collective Investment Scheme (CIS) without requisite approvals and registration from the markets regulator.

Kumar, Singh and Mishra being the directors of KBCL were also liable for the violations committed by the company.

KBCL India Ltd had mobilised funds to the tune of Rs 118.69 crore as of March 31, 2012.

Purchaser shall participate in the e-auction on his behalf and no third-party intervention, like authorised agent/ representative, would be permitted.

The successful bidder shall bear the charges/ fee payable as per law for the transfer of the property in his / her name. All taxes shall be borne by the purchaser, the notice said.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), HDFC Bank, Airtel, and Infosys are the four Indian companies that have secured positions in the top-100 most valuable brands globally, according to the Kantar Brandz 2024 Report. TCS leads among these with a valuation of $44.79 billion, ranking 46th.

HDFC Bank follows closely at 47th with a $43.26 billion valuation, while Airtel and Infosys are ranked 73rd and 74th, valued at $25.26 billion and $24.68 billion, respectively. Additionally, TCS is among the top 20 in the Business Technology and Services Platforms category, reflecting its strong presence in this sector.

The cumulative brand value of all Indian brands in the top 100 exceeds $130 billion, highlighting the significant impact of these companies on the global stage. TCS, Indias largest IT services company, continues to demonstrate robust growth. HDFC Bank, the largest private sector bank in India, also shows a strong valuation. Airtel remains the dominant mobile network service provider, and Infosys maintains its position as the second-largest IT major in India.

Compared to 2023, these companies have shown remarkable improvement. Last year, TCS was in the 42nd spot, followed by HDFC Bank at 56th, Infosys at 66th, and Airtel at 76th. The upward movement in rankings for all four companies underscores their growing influence and value in the global market.

Top Global Brands:

Apple: $1.01 trillion

Google: $753.47 billion

Microsoft: $712.88 billion

Amazon: $576.62 billion

McDonalds: $221.90 billion

Nvidia: $201.8 billion

Visa: $188.92 billion

Facebook: $166.75 billion

Oracle: $145.49 billion

Tencent: $135.21 billion

The report indicates a 45% growth in the business technology and services platforms category, driven by the excitement around advanced artificial intelligence (AI). This sectors remarkable expansion has significantly contributed to the overall increase in brand values.

Overall, the total value of the Kantar BrandZ Top 100 Most Valuable Global Brands has increased by 20%, showcasing a significant recovery from last years stock market downturn. This turnaround is a positive indicator for the global economy. The findings are based on the opinions of over 4.3 million respondents and data from around 21,000 brands across 532 categories.
Nirmala Sitharaman, on Wednesday, took office for her second consecutive term as the minister of finance and corporate affairs. She is set to present the final budget for FY 2025 soon, which will outline the priorities and direction for the Modi 3.0 governments vision of a Viksit Bharat.

FinMin in Quarantine Period

On Thursday, the work relating to the preparation of the regular union budget 2024-25 commenced.

As Modi 3.0 government gets down to prepare its final Budget for FY 24-25, North Block, which houses the finance ministry, will be in quarantine from Thursday until the presentation of the Budget in July.

Also Read: Budget 2024: FM Nirmala Sitharaman To Present Budget Twice This Year, Heres Why

The finance minister had presented an interim budget on February 1.

After taking charge as the finance minister in the Modi 3.0 government, Sitharaman highlighted the objectives and outlined how the 2024 full budget will include various aspects of the Indian economy.

Heres What Nirmala Sitharaman Said After Taking Charge As The Finance Minister

Sitharaman noted that the government is fully committed to ensuring Ease of Living for its citizens and will continue to take further steps in this regard.

Sitharaman stated that the reforms undertaken since 2014 will continue, which will further provide macroeconomic stability and growth for India.

She also highlighted Indias commendable growth story in recent years amidst global challenges and noted that there is an optimistic economic outlook for the coming years.

She urged the departments to advance the NDA governments development agenda with renewed vigour and ensure responsive policymaking to achieve the Prime Ministers vision of a Viksit Bharat.

She also said that the government believes in Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas, Sabka Vishwas, Sabka Prayas and called for the continued support and cooperation of all stakeholders, including industry leaders, regulators, and the citizens, to ensure a strong and vibrant economy.

Budget 2024 Date

The full and final budget for FY 25 is likely to be presented to the newly formed 18th Lok Sabha next month.

The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha will begin on June 24 during which new members of the Lower House will take oath and the Speaker will be elected.

President Droupadi Murmu will address a joint sitting of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on June 27 and is likely to outline the new governments roadmap for the next five years. The session will conclude on July 3.

The first three days of the first session will see the newly elected leaders taking oath and electing the Speaker of the House.

Both Houses of Parliament are expected to reconvene in the third week of July for the presentation of the union budget.

Nirmala Sitharamans Journey As Indias Finance Minister

Sitharaman, who is credited with carrying forward second-generation reforms in her last term, would be creating a record by presenting the seventh budget in a row and the sixth full budget consecutively.

She has many records to her credit in her political career. She created a record when she was appointed as the first female Raksha Mantri, or Defence Minister, in 2017. Before that, she was an industry and commerce minister.

When her mentor Arun Jaitley (finance minister 2014-19) took ill, Sitharaman was given the charge of the finance portfolio in the newly re-elected Modi government after the 2019 general elections.

She became the first full-time woman finance minister in independent India.

Earlier, Indira Gandhi had held finance as an additional portfolio for a short duration when she was the prime minister of India.

Soon after taking over, the first major reform was a cut in base corporate tax to 22 per cent from 30 per cent to prop up the economy hit by demonetisation and GST implementation.

The following year, India weathered the Covid-19 pandemic with an array of policy measures announced for the poor and continued its tag as the fastest-growing major economy and a bright spot in the world economy.

To overcome the hardship during the pandemic, the government announced a special economic package worth Rs 20 lakh crore equivalent to roughly 10 per cent of Indias GDP.

She steered the economy from nearly 24 per cent contraction in the first quarter of FY21, to the fastest-growing world economy.

Despite the fiscal expansion, she continued to follow the path of fiscal consolidation and was successful in bringing down the fiscal deficit to 5.6 per cent of GDP, from the earlier estimate of 5.8 per cent in FY24.

She also set a record by presenting the sixth budget in a row  five annual budgets and one interim  a feat achieved so far only by former Prime Minister Morarji Desai.

After the Modi government came to power in 2014, Arun Jaitley took charge of the finance ministry and presented five budgets in a row from 2014-15 to 2018-19.

In 2017, Jaitley departed from the colonial-era tradition of presenting the budget on the last working day of February to the 1st of the month.

Following the footsteps of her mentor, Sitharaman also did away with the traditional budget briefcase and instead went for a bahi-khata with the National Emblem to carry the speech and other documents.

Born in Madurai on August 18, 1959 to Narayan Sitharaman (who worked in the Railways) and Savitri (a homemaker), Nirmala Sitharaman studied economics at Tiruchirapallis Seethalakshmi Ramaswami College.

She then moved to the capital to pursue her Masters and M.Phil in the subject from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU).

But before Sitharaman forayed into politics, she was part of the corporate world in the UK, where she was living with her husband Parakala Prabhakar.

The two had met while studying at JNU, and tied the knot in 1986.

They have a daughter, Parakala Vangmayi.

Sitharamans political career began in 2008 when she joined the BJP (she returned to India in the early 1990s), and in two years became the partys second woman spokesperson after Sushma Swaraj, fielding questions from journalists at the party headquarters and also became a familiar face on television debates.

Before taking the political plunge, she served as a deputy director of the Centre for Public Policy Studies in Hyderabad and also started a school in the city.

From 2003 to 2005, she was also a member of the National Commission for Women.

(With PTI inputs)
India has brilliantly performed in the Times Higher Education (THE) University Impact Rankings 2024. It is being reported that India has made an impressive 105 university mentions in the list, becoming the most represented nation.

In total, 2,152 universities from 125 countries and regions were included on the Impact Rankings 2024 list. Closely following India, are the countries of Turkey at second place and Pakistan at third. The first on the list is Western Sydney University, Australia, with a score of 99.7. This is its third consecutive year at the top. The University of Manchester, UK is placed at second, with a score of 98.5. University of Tasmania, Australia, has been placed at third.

From India, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham was given the 81st rank and institutions like JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research, Lovely Professional University (LPU) in Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE) and Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences, were included in the band of 101 to 200. The BS Abdur Rahman Crescent Institute of Science and Technology came within the band of 201 to 300.

Furthermore, IIT Gandhinagar made the list between 301 to 400 rankings, IIT Guwahati was included in 401 to 500 rankings and IIM was in the 601 to 800 ranks. The Jawaharlal Nehru University made the list in the 901 to 1000 category.

The magazines Chief Global Affairs Officer Phil Baty praised PM Narendra Modi for the achievement, in a tweet on X. He wrote, India is the worlds number one best-represented nation in the @timeshighered Impact Rankings 2024. Over 100 universities are ranked, up from just 13 in 2019, thanks to the remarkably successful internationalisation drive spearheaded by @narendramodi.

India is the worlds number one best represented nation in the @timeshighered Impact Rankings 2024. Over 100 universities are ranked, up from just 13 in 2019, thanks to the remarkably successful internationalisation drive spearheaded by @narendramodihttps://t.co/MCotkX9ViA pic.twitter.com/MLtxX1A5rT Phil Baty (@Phil_Baty) June 12, 2024

The ranking is done by integrating the scores of various United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. It helps them gauge the institutions impact and performances. Four broad areas were considered to make the list, which include research, stewardship, outreach and teaching.

Stay ahead with all the exam results updates on News18 Website.
Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday responded to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharges social media post on NEET-UG 2024, rejecting his allegations of rigging, paper leak and corruption. Accusing the Congress of politicising a sensitive issue and the future of students, he said there is no evidence to substantiate the claims.

NEET    NTA                     1563      NEET      ,        https://t.co/SHh0kfRJoD  Dharmendra Pradhan (@dpradhanbjp) June 13, 2024

The results of the NEET-UG 2024 were announced by the National Testing Agency (NTA) on June 4. No concrete evidence of any kind of rigging, corruption or paper leak has been found so far in the NEET exam. All the facts related to this are before the Supreme Court and are under consideration. The kind of politics being done on this issue is only an attempt to spread confusion and it affects the mental peace of the students, Pradhan said.

Currently, the counselling process of NEET is about to start and making it a subject of political sparring is not only unfair but it is like playing with the future generation. The focus of the central government is always on ensuring a bright future for the students, he said.

His comments came on a day the NTA told the Supreme Court that the decision to award grace marks to 1,563 candidates in NEET-UG for admission to MBBS, BDS and other courses was cancelled and they will be given the option of a retest on June 23.

In a social media post on X, Pradhan said he wants to remind the Congress about the Centres Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act, which was enforced this year. He said the party should not be under the misconception that there will be no action if irregularities are found, as the strict provisions of the Act will be implemented carefully.

Playing politics with the future of students is an old habit of the Congress. Instead of making political gains, the Congress should contribute to the development of India, he said.

The Congress again demanded an SC-monitored probe into the NEET-UG exam issue and stressed that the anger in the country over the matter will reverberate inside Parliament as well. The opposition party also sought the removal of the NTA director general and claimed that the BJP governments attitude towards the ongoing demand for an inquiry into the examination is irresponsible and insensitive.

Kharge said the award of grace marks was not the only problem in the NEET-UG exam. There has been rigging, papers have been leaked, corruption has taken place. The future of 24 lakh students appearing in the NEET examination is at stake due to the actions of the Modi government, he alleged in a post on X.

The NTA has come under criticism amid allegations of irregularities and inflation of marks in the medical entrance exam. The education ministry last week set up a four-member panel to review the grace marks awarded to 1,563 students to compensate them for loss of time due to delay in starting the examination at certain centres.

The panel was headed by former UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) chairman Pradeep Kumar Joshi and included the National Medical Commission (NMC) secretary, besides others. Each and every grievance has been reviewed and then only the panel made its recommendations, Pradhan told reporters earlier in the day, after taking charge as Union education minister for the second time.

#BreakingNews: No corruption in NEET exams, no mention of any paper leak, Dharmendra Pradhan, Education ministers first reaction on NEET rowGovt had put forward its stand before SC today, he says. @Elizasherine with more on this@akankshaswarups | #NEETRow #NEET pic.twitter.com/IZ2kJjK1TO  News18 (@CNNnews18) June 13, 2024

If these candidates do not wish to take the retest, then their earlier marks, sans the grace marks, will be given for the purpose of results. The grace marks that were awarded earlier were not at the whims and fancy of NTA but were based on an SC formula, there is a basis to those calculations. If there are certain anomalies, those will be rectified and we will ensure that no student is at a disadvantage, he added.

On June 11, the SC noted that the sanctity of NEET-UG 2024 had been affected, a charge denied by the NTA. The top court, however, refused to stay the counselling process for admissions.

If the candidates, out of the 1,563, do not wish to take up the retest then their earlier marks, sans the grace marks, will be given for the purposes of the results, the Centre told the apex court on Thursday.

The results of the retest will be declared on June 30 and counselling for admissions in MBBS, BDS and other courses will start on July 6, it said.

The Opposition is up in arms after the retest was ordered for 1,563 students. The Congress has demanded a CBI probe into the NEET mess. Assam Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi, slamming the education minister, said, He gave a clean chit to NTA without probe. This government wants to ignore issues of public concern. INDI alliance will raise the concerns of these students in the coming days and help them get justice.

I want to ask the Education Minister, on what basis has he given a clean chit to the NTA? How many students or parents has he met? We will bring the NDA government to its knees and make the government accountable to the students, Gogoi said.

Students protesting at Jantar Mantar after the Centres decision also demanded a CBI probe into the NEET-UG 2024 irregularities.

The DMK, meanwhile, reiterated that NEET should be scrapped. Commenting on the Centres decision to conduct a re-test for the students who got grace marks, Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma Subramanian said NEET should be scrapped.

Adding that none of the 1,563 students were from Tamil Nadu, he said, Only students from Rajasthan, Gujarat and Haryana have been given grace marks by the NTA.

We will not be approaching the court, but will continue to oppose the NEET. We demand the Union government to scrap NEET following these irregularities. Now not only TN is opposing NEET, there are several other states opposing the exam, Subramanian added.

The NEET-UG 2024 was held on May 5 for around 24 lakh students and the results were announced on June 4, much ahead of its anticipated release date of June 14. Suspicion surfaced when the NEET results showed that 67 individuals, six of whom came from the same or nearby testing centre, achieved a perfect score of 720 marks.

After students filed petitions in the high courts, the NTA had formed a grievance redressal committee comprising examination and academic experts who reviewed the complaints based on factual reports and CCTV footage. They confirmed the loss of exam time and compensated 1,563 candidates with grace marks based on the normalisation formula by the SC in its June 13, 2018 judgment in a CLAT exam case. The revised marks for these 1,563 candidates ranged from 20 to 720, with two candidates scoring 718 and 719 due to compensatory marks.

Stay ahead with all the exam results updates on News18 Website.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will begin his first foreign visit to Italy after being sworn-in as prime minister for the third time on Sunday. He will be attending the G7 outreach meet in Italys Apulia region today addressing Artificial Intelligence, energy, and regional issues in Africa and Mediterranean.

Modi will meet Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said at a briefing on Wednesday, but did not comment on which other leaders the PM would hold bilateral meetings with.

The high-profile event will see leaders from the G7 member states namely the US, UK, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and Canada. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is also expected to be present.

What is G7?

The group was formed by the worlds most industrialised and powerful economies to promote collective decision-making on the issues of economic governance, international security and peace and most recently Artificial Intelligence.

Russia was part of the G7 bloc from 1998 through 2014 but its membership was suspended following its annexation of the Crimea region.

The G7 has faced challenges in recent times through increased tension with Russia after its military offensive in Ukraine and disagreements over trade and climate policies with China. The G7 imposed sanctions on Russia over its war in Ukraine and launched a global infrastructure investment programme to counter Chinas Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

Whats the G7 Agenda in 2024?

The G7 summit in southern Italy from June 13 to June 15 will discuss the conflicts in the Gaza Strip, Ukraine, migration, climate change and AI.

Ukraine: The US has proposed using profits from the $260 billion in frozen Russian central bank assets, most of them held in the European Union, to help Ukraine, and issuing a $50 billion loan from the US government to Kyiv, using windfall profits from the immobilized funds as collateral.

Israel-Gaza Conflict: The US has already proposed an immediate ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, the release of hostages, increased humanitarian aid for Gaza and a comprehensive peace agreement to ensure the security of both Israelis and Gazans. The proposal was already supported by G7 countries and members of the United Nations Security Council and underscores the urgency to address the conflict.

Climate Change: Although the G7 aims for a 40-42% reduction in emissions by 2030, current policies suggest that only a 19-33% reduction is achievable. The summit will focus on reinforcing commitments and exploring innovative strategies to meet climate goals.

Migration: Italy, which for decades has been ground zero in Europes migration debate, has been promoting its Mattei Plan as a way to create jobs and opportunity in Africa and discourage its young people from making dangerous trips across the Mediterranean Sea.

Artificial Intelligence: Pope Francis has called for an international treaty to ensure AI is developed and used ethically, acknowledging the promise it offers but emphasizing the grave and existential threats it poses. He will also address the issue at G7 summit. There will be talks on establishing governance on AI technologies, promoting energy transitions and supporting development and cooperation in the Africa-Mediterranean region.

Chinas Industrial Policy: The discussion will raise concerns over Chinas industrial overcapacity, measures to level the playing field and consider potential sanctions to counter heavily subsidized Chinese companies.

Whats In It For Modi?

Prime Minister Modi would discuss his plans for his new term in office even as US President Joe Biden and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak face elections this year.

This is the 11th time that India has been invited to the G7 outreach, and Modi will attend the event fifth time. Indias regular participation at the G-7 summit clearly points to increasing recognition and contribution of the efforts India has been consistently making in trying to resolve global challenges, including those of peace, security, development, and environmental preservation, foreign secretary Kwatra told journalists.

Reports suggest that India is yet to announce its participation in a peace conference on Ukraine in a Swiss town of Burgenstock held by the G7 leaders. India would, however, participate at an official but not at a political level.

India will be participating at the Peace summit in Switzerland on the [June] 15th, Kwatra said as quoted by The Hindu. That consideration is currently going on in the system and as and when we have a decision on the representative from India who would be participating, we would be happy to share that with you, he added.

There could be an exchange between Modi and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau amid tense ties between the two countries over Trudeaus allegation that Indian government agents were behind the killing of a Khalistani separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Surrey last year in June.

Where is the Summit Taking Place?

The G7 summit is taking place in a sprawling luxury resort in a faux town made to resemble one of Puglias medieval white-washed hamlets but that actually only dates from 2010.

Located next to an actual archaeological park, Borgo Egnazia features narrow streets, villas, restaurants and a town square complete with a clocktower. A favourite of celebrities, it will be sealed off to outsiders for the duration of the summit, according to news agency Associated Press.
The BJP won big in Odisha in both the Lok Sabha as well as assembly elections, decimating the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) that ruled the state for almost a quarter of a century. In its electoral promise, the BJP had said it will open all four gates of Puris Jagannath Temple for devotees once it came to power. And it did.

Thursday saw all four gates of the mighty 12th Century temple, which were shut since the Covid-19 pandemic, opened for public.

Due to closure of three doors of the shrine except the Singhadwara (Lion Gate), devotees were facing a lot of hardships in the darshan of the Holy Trinity. Ashwa Dwara (Horse Gate), Vyaghra Dwara (Tiger Gate), Hasti Dwara (Elephant Gate) remained shut until Thursday.

At his first Cabinet meeting, chief minister Mohan Majhi cited the inconvenience caused to the devotees by the shutting of the four doors. He also announced Rs 500 crore for temple beautification and repair.

What is the Significance of Four Doors?

The outer wall of the temple has four gates, which open in four different directions. These four gates are represented by four animals.

In the east, there are lions and hence it is called Lion Gate or Singhadwara. The west direction is represented by tigers and hence it is called Tiger Gate or Vyaghradwara. The northern direction of the temple wall is represented by elephants. So, it is named as Elephant Gate or Hastidwara. The southern direction, represented by horses, is known as Horse Gate or Ashvadwara.

Singhadwara: The two lion statues on Singhadwara in a crouching position symbolises Mokshya (liberation). It is named after the Narasimha avatar (incarnation) of Lord Vishnu. Jagannath is also considered an avatar of Lord Vishnu. As per popular belief, if a devotee enters the temple through this gate, he/she will get mokshya.

Ashvadwara: Horse symbolically represents Kama or lust. There are two galloping horses with Jagannath and Balabhadra on their back in the martial glory near the door. As per the legend, the devotee sacrifices the feeling of lust while entering through this gate. It is also known as the road of victory. The kings used to enter the temple through this gate seeking the Lords blessing to win battles.

Vyaghradwara: Tiger is the symbol of Dharma (ones own self), which is an important philosophy in the Hindu religion. In each and every moment, the spiritual seeker needs to adhere with his/her Dharma. Entering the temple through Vyaghradwara reminds the devotee about his/her Dharma and bolsters the spirit. The sages and special devotees enter and temple through this gate.

Hastidwara: It has colossal figure of elephants on each side. Elephant is regarded as the carriage for the Goddess of wealth  Maha Lakshmi. Devotees seeking wealth enter the temple through this gate.

Why the Temple was a Poll Issue

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have raked up the issue of the missing keys of the Ratna Bhandar, the inner treasury of the Jagannath Temple, and blamed BJD, led by Naveen Patnaik, for its failure to come clean on inventorying the jewellery and precious stones stored in it.

The tradition of Jagannath Dham has been lowered in the name of promoting Puri as tourist hub. The Shreekshetra (Puri) has been transformed into a commercial centre. The mutts have been demolished and the four entry doors of Jagannath Temple remain closed. There was conspiracy to stop Rath Yatra of Lord Jagannath, Shah had said in public meetings.

According to a statement given by the Odisha government led by Patnaik in the Assembly, the Ratna Bhandar was last opened in 1985 but the latest inventories of the valuables were made in 1978. Until 1985, nobody had seen the inner chamber of the Ratna Bhandar, which was divided into two parts.

What are Interesting Facts about the Jagannath Temple?

The Puri Jagannath temple is one of the Char Dham pilgrimage sites in India. The other three Dham are Badrinath, Dwarka, and Rameswaram.

Lakhs of devotees throng Puri in Odisha to visit Lord Jagannath Temple every year. Lord Jagannath, represented by Lord Krishna, is present in the temple along with his elder brother Lord Balbhadra and younger sister Goddess Subhadra.

The annual Ratha Yatra, or chariot festival, at the Puri temple is well-known for featuring the three main deities being hauled by enormous, ornately decorated temple cars.

 The flag at the top of the temple flutters in an opposite direction in which the wind blows. A priest climbs atop of the temple to change the flag every day for the 1,800 years. It is believed if the ritual is skipped even for a day, then the temple will remain closed for 18-long years. The temple is as tall as a 45-storey building, and the flag is changed with bare hands without any protective gear.

 The icon of Jagannath is made of wood and ceremoniously replaced every 12 or 19 years by a replica, in contrast to the stone and metal symbols found in the majority of Hindu temples. Sacred neem trees with rigid specifications are used for the purpose. The carving is done in secrecy by selected carpenters for 21 days. The old idols are buried in the Koili Vaikuntha. The last Nabakalebara ritual took place in 2015 was witnessed by millions.

 It is an architectural wonder or simply a miracle that no matter what time of the day it is or in where the sunlight is falling, the temple does not have a shadow.

 The Mahaprasad is served to Lord Jagannath in five phases and consists of 56 delectable delicacies from dry confectionaries to shankhudi rice, dal and other items. It is available for devotees in Ananda Bazaar, which is located on the temple premises itself.

 Once a devotee enters the temple, they dont hear the sound of waves. According to myth, Goddess Subhadra wished that the temple would be a place of serenity, and to please her, the temple does not reflect the sound of sea waves.

 No bird, not even a plan can be seen hovering over the temple. A bird cannot even be seen sitting atop the temple. There is no logical explanation to that.

 A wheel of fortune or chakra, which weighs a tonne, is placed at the top of the temple. The fact about the chakra is that it would appear the same to the viewer from any angle or height at any point in Puri.

 It is a natural phenomenon that the breeze blows from sea towards land during the day, and from land towards the sea in the evening. But the reverse happens in Puri.

 Every year, lakhs of devotees visit the temple during the Rath Yatra or visit Lord Jagannath. Every day the same amount of food is cooked. None of the food ever gets wasted or no devotee is unfed.
At least four forest workers, lost their lives and four were injured while extinguishing a fire at the Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary in Almora district of Uttarakhand on Thursday.

The deceased were identified as Binsar Range Forest Beat Officer Trilok Singh Mehta, Fire Watcher Karan Arya, Provincial Armed Constabulary Jawan Puran Singh and daily wage worker Diwan Ram, officials said.

According to Civil Soyam Forest Divisional Officer Dhruv Singh Martolia, the incident occurred around 3.45 pm when eight forest workers were sent to extinguish a fire that had broken out at the Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary.

Martolia said that as soon as the team got down from their vehicle, the fire escalated due to strong winds and four of the workers were charred to death. Meanwhile, the other workers were injured and rushed to Haldwani Base Hospital for treatment.

In a post on X, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said, Very heartbreaking news has been received about the death of 4 forest workers due to forest fire in Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary. In this hour of grief, our government stands with the families of the deceased and is committed to provide all possible help. An ex-gratia amount of Rs 10 lakh has been announced to the families of each deceased. In a high-level meeting with the Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary and Chief Conservator of Forests (HoFF), instructions were given to immediately control the forest fire in Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary with the help of Air Force, by spraying water on the affected forest area using helicopters and other necessary resources as before and to control the fire as quickly as possible, he added.

Special Secretary to the Chief Minister, Shri Parag Madhukar Dhakate said that the situation is being monitored closely. The post-mortem of the deceased is being conducted.

Last month, a resin factory in Almora district was engulfed in forest fire and three workers trying to extinguish the fire were killed.

Due to hot and dry weather, forest fires have started raging again in Uttarakhand. According to the Uttarakhand forest fire bulletin, seven incidents were reported in the last 24 hours in which 4.50 hectares of forest were affected.

(with inputs from PTI)
Renukaswamy was allegedly beaten up with a belt, sticks and thrown against a wall which proved fatal  these are some of the chilling details that have emerged during police probe into his murder.

Leading Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa, his close friend Pavithra Gowda and 11 of his associates were arrested on Tuesday in connection with the murder.

Renukaswamy, a resident of district headquarters town of Chitradurga, a fan of the 47-year-old actor, had allegedly commented on the social media account of Gowda, a small-time actress, accusing her of creating a rift between the actor and his wife. He had also allegedly used indecent language and posted offensive messages, according to police sources.

Darshan, key accused Gowda and other accused were on Wednesday taken to Pattanagere here, where the crime was committed, for a spot inspection.

According to police sources, 33-year-old Renukaswamy drew the wrath of Darshan for making lewd comments against Gowda on her social media posts.

It was Pavithra who instigated Darshan to punish Renukaswamy. Accordingly, the plan was hatched, they claimed. Darshan engaged the Chitradurga unit of Darshan Fan Club Convenor Raghavendra alias Raghu, who obtained all information about Renukaswamy. Renukaswamys wife Sahana alleged that Raghavendra picked up her husband on Friday night from near their house in Chitradurga.

The victim was abducted and taken to a shed in Kamakshipalya area in Bengaluru, the sources said.

Darshan beat up Renukaswamy with a belt. After he fell unconscious, his accomplices thrashed him with sticks. Further, they threw him against a wall, which proved fatal, as he suffered multiple bone fractures they said, adding, after the killing, his body was dumped in a storm-water drain in Kamakshipalya area of the city.

A food delivery boy who noticed stray dogs eating a human body alerted the police.

When the police were pursuing the case, two accused approached Kamakshipalya police and confessed to having killed Renukaswamy over a financial dispute. However, as the investigation progressed, police found out Darshan and Pavithras involvement.

Meanwhile, Home Minister G Parameshwara said police have been given a free hand and action will be taken in accordance with law against Darshan and his associates who were arrested in connection with the case.

He said the police will probe and decide whether Darshan is a habitual offender,, adding that they will accordingly invoke legal sections and take action.

In 2011, Darshan was arrested by police for allegedly assaulting his wife and threatening her. He was later released on bail and the couple subsequently resolved the issue and she withdrew the case against him.

Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce (KFCC) President N M Suresh said that a decision regarding taking action against Darshan will be taken after discussion with the artists union.

He indicated that action will most likely be taken only after the police file a charge-sheet in the case.

Suresh was responding to members of some pro-Kannada organisations, who met him, demanding that KFCC take strong action against Darshan.

Darshan made his debut as a lead actor in the movie Majestic in 2002.

He featured in several commercially successful films including Kariya, Krantiveera Sangolli Rayanna, Kalasipalya, Gaja, Navagraha, Saarathi, Bulbul, Yajamana, Robert and Kaatera.
Who does not like a blast from the past, especially if its a vintage car? Vintage cars exude royalty and need high maintenance. But those who love such cars, go the extra length to take care of it. Recently, in the historical city of Murshidabad, West Bengal, a 100-year-old red Bean car was spotted at Kasim Bazar Rajbari (Cossimbazar Palace of the Roys (Rajbari) of Berhampore. Reportedly, the city has been excited ever since the vintage car was spotted there.

The royal vintage car, Bean rolled into the city of Murshidabad. Australian couple, Lang and Bev Kidby, began their journey on April 1 from London. The couple decided to go on a world tour in a 1924 British car after they were inspired by the adventures of Francis Birtles, who travelled from England to Australia about 100 years ago. Following in his footsteps, the couple, living in Brisbane decided to repeat history and fulfil their dreams by flying down to England and buying a Bean car from the museum.

So far, the couple has travelled through France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria and Turkey, and entered Iran through the Bazargan border. Now, the refurbished World War I-era vehicle is parked at Murshidabads Rajbari. As soon as the car entered, the couple were garlanded and saluted. They were mighty impressed by the palace.

In an interview with Local18, a local said that the Australian couple embarked on a new way of travelling the world. They have covered England to Turkey, Iran and Pakistan to enter India. After Varanasi (Banaras), the car reached Kasimbazar Rajbari via Durgapur.

In an interview with a portal, the Kidby couple opened up about the choice of the car. They mentioned that their red Bean car is very unusual. They claimed that the British Car was made in 1924 and the company produced Bean cars which existed just for 10 years, so there are hardly many. However, it was on a Bean car that the first record was set and the couple were interested in recreating that history.

The bean car is quite fast and dependable for its age and is not exactly a convenient mode of transport. Also, there is a chance of breakdowns in old cars. So, the couple claimed that they drove at 70 km/hour and followed the trucks on the side of the road.
US President Joe Biden arrived in Italy Wednesday night to attend the G7 Summit, which apart from the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom is also being attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a special invitee.

On Thursday, Biden plans to hold a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during which the two leaders will sign a bilateral security agreement for Ukraine making clear our (US) support will last long into the future, his National Security Advisor (NSA) Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One on their way to Italy.

The war in Ukraine and the Middle East are expected to dominate the G-7 Summit in addition to some of the new critical challenges like Artificial Intelligence, climate change and supply chain.

Sullivan said Biden and Zelenskyy will sit down to discuss Americas strong support for Ukraine now and in the future.

After the meeting, the leaders will sign a bilateral security agreement mentioning that the US support for Ukraine will last long and pledge continued cooperation, particularly in the areas of defence and security, he added.

Our goal here is straightforward. We want to demonstrate that the US supports the people of Ukraine, that we stand with them, and that well continue to help address their security needs not just tomorrow but out into the future, the NSA said.

The agreement outlines a clear vision of work with Ukraine to continue strengthening Ukraines credible defence and deterrence capability. Any lasting peace in Ukraine has to be underwritten by Ukraines own ability to defend itself and deter future aggression, he said And by signing this, well also be sending Russia a signal of our resolve. If Vladimir Putin thinks that he can outlast the coalition supporting Ukraine, hes wrong. He just cannot wait us out, and this agreement will show our resolve and continued commitment, Sullivan said.

A day earlier, White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby told reporters that this years summit would show that G7 is more unified than ever to tackle global challenges, and to renew their commitment to partners around the world that they will help them invest in bright futures for their people.

We will build on the progress we made last year on our shared approach to the Indo-Pacific as well, including by advancing an Indo-Pacific region that is free, open, secure, prosperous, resilient, and connected, he said.

We will address the PRCs support for the Russian defence industrial base. And we will confront Chinas non-market policies that are leading to harmful global spillovers, working with partners in and beyond the G7 to promote economic resilience and security, Kirby said.

Biden will again host a side event that will highlight its positive value proposition to countries around the world via the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, or PGI, he said.

We will continue to offer a path to help countries overcome unsustainable debt burdens, to boost the World Banks lending firepower, to mobilize additional capital for high-standard infrastructure investments, and to make new commitments on food and health security, he added.

G7 leaders will be joined by His Holiness, Pope Francis, for a session on artificial intelligence, among other topics. This will be an important moment for our countries to come together and develop our shared approach to harnessing the benefits of AI while at the same time managing the risks to our national security and impacts that it may have to our workforces and inequality, Kirby said.

The bottom line here is that President Biden believes we must continue to imagine, to invent and to inspire. We are committed to investing in that vision with our closest allies. We are very confident that if we do, the United States will continue to lead on the world stage for generations to come, said the White House official.
Claiming that Delhi faces a water shortage of 50 million gallons per day (MGD), the city government Thursday urged people not to waste water, and asserted the problem cannot be solved by merely restraining the tanker mafia.

As parts of the city grappled with the acute shortage, the Supreme Court asked the AAP government to approach the Upper Yamuna River Board (UYRB) for additional water on humanitarian ground.

The situation prompted Lt Governor V K Saxena to ask the Delhi Police to set up patrols along the Munak canal, supplying water to the national capital, to ensure the tanker mafia does not lift water from it.

Under his directions, the Delhi Police set up pickets and started patrolling the 15-kilometre stretch of the Munak canal on the Haryana borders. The canal enters Delhi from Bawana and reaches the Haiderpur Treatment Plant.

Meanwhile, the BJP attacked the AAP government, accusing it of failing to check water leakage and wastage, while encouraging illegal tanker mafia.

Delhi Water minister Atishi inspected the main pipeline supplying water to South Delhi, and asserted the rumours of water leakages in Delhi Jal Board (DJB) pipelines were rumours.

She also met Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in Tihar jail, and said he is worried about the people of the city and has directed to ensure the water crisis is resolved as soon as possible.

The chief minister also directed AAP MLAs to go on the ground and take all possible steps to provide water to the people in their areas, she said.

A day after the Supreme Court slammed the AAP government over tanker mafia in water-scarce national capital, the Delhi government claimed they were operational on the Haryana side of the Yamuna river over which the DJB has no jurisdiction.

Meanwhile, the plight of the people, especially those in unauthorised colonies and slum clusters, continued with exhausted women and children seen struggling with grown ups for a few buckets of water that tankers would bring.

Atishi in a press conference said there is a genuine crisis in Delhi, mentioning a shortfall of 50 million gallons per day in water production due to reduced raw water supply from Yamuna and other sources.

She said the average water production in Delhi has fallen considerably from 1,000-1,005 million gallons per day (MGD) six days ago due to a lack of adequate supply of raw water through the Yamuna River and other sources.

On June 12, it was 951 MGD. It means production has decreased by 50 MGD in Delhi due to shortage of water, leading to scarcity in areas at the tail-end of the water pipeline network, she said.

She asserted the water shortage faced by the city cannot be solved by merely restraining the tanker mafia.

As of now, over 1,000 tankers of DJB are supplying water to areas such as unauthorised colonies and slums that have no access to the pipeline network. These tankers make eight to 10 trips to supply water which means only four to five MGD of water is being used, Atishi said.

If tanker mafia is active and say 100-200 tankers are operated, it will be not more than 0.1-0.5 MGD of water used by them. Even if the tanker mafia is completely restrained, it will not solve the water crisis in Delhi as it is facing a shortfall of 50 MGD of water, she said.

Addressing a press conference, Delhi BJP secretary and New Delhi MP Bansuri Swaraj said people are being fleeced by the tanker mafia.

Hitting out at Atishi, Swaraj alleged that instead of ensuring action against the tanker mafia, the minister is extending protection to them.

Atishi says that even if the tanker mafia is stopped, not much water would be saved. This is very unfortunate because people facing water shortage are being fleeced by the tanker mafia, she said.

The BJP leader also criticised the AAP government for failing to prevent wastage and leakage of water and misleading people on the issue.

Atishi asserted that the Arvind Kejriwal government has been taking all measures to prevent leakage and wastage of water.

The Delhi government teams have so far issued 1,323 challans to people for water wastage while 179 unauthorised water connections for construction work and other commercial purposes have been disconnected, she told reporters.

Appealing Delhi people not to use water from DJBs pipeline network for washing cars, roofs and balconies of houses and watering plants, the minister said, People need to come together to tackle the water crisis. She said the Delhi government, with an expenditure of Rs 500 crore prevented water transmission losses, bringing it to five per cent from earlier 30 per cent. In the last nine years, 3,500 km of pipelines with leakages were replaced and over 60,000 km-long pipeline network was laid to supply water to unauthorised colonies and slum clusters in the city, she said.

She said the government has also installed 3,285 bulk flow metres to monitor water entering the pipeline network and its supply across the city.
As Delhi continues to reel under a severe water crisis, the Himachal Pradesh government on Thursday took a U-turn and told the Supreme Court that it did not have surplus water to spare for the national capital. This comes a day after the hill state said it had released water for Delhi and the supply needs to pass through Haryana.

Following this, a vacation bench of Justices Prashant Kumar Mishra and Prasanna B Varale directed the Delhi government to approach the Upper Yamuna River Board (UYRB) for water supply. The apex court asked the Delhi government to submit an application to the UYRB by 5 pm seeking a supply of water to the national capital on humanitarian grounds.

Himachal U-Turn

This comes a day after Himachal Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu told media on Wednesday that the hill state has released water and asked advocates to inform the Supreme Court about this.

The water we have released, we are ready to give that water. There are no ifs and buts, he said.

However, the Himachal Pradesh government today told the top court that it does not have a surplus of 136 cusecs of water and withdrew its earlier statement.

The governments counsel said the surplus water was unutilised after use of irrigation and part of the natural course of river flow.

We could not convey it properly earlier. Our correct statement may come on record. Maybe we made a mistake earlier, but I have been briefed. I will correct and withdraw the earlier statement that flow was obstructed, he said.

The court took a strong objection to this and warned the state government of warranting contempt action. We can summon your Chief Secretary, it said.

Following this, the governments counsel apologised and said the state would file an affidavit and withdraw their earlier response.

SC Asks Delhi To Approach Yamuna Board

The bench said that sharing of Yamuna water between states is a complex and sensitive issue and this court does not have the technical expertise to decide on it even on an interim basis.

The issue should be left to be considered by the body constituted with the agreement of parties in the memorandum of understanding dated 1994.

Since the UYRB has already directed Delhi to submit an application for the supply of water on humanitarian grounds such an application be made, if not already made, by today by 5 pm, and the board shall convene a meeting tomorrow and take decision in the matter at the earliest, the bench said.

The top court was hearing a plea filed by the Delhi government seeking a direction to Haryana to release the surplus water provided by Himachal Pradesh to the national capital to mitigate its water crisis.
As Delhi continues to reel under severe water crisis, police patrolling has begun around Munak Canal to keep a check on the tanker mafia. Amid claims that water mafia is active around the Munak Canal (Bawana Nahar), police have been deployed in the area.

This came after Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vinai Saxena instructed Delhi Police for greater vigilance and patrolling in the area after the Supreme Court rapped the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Delhi government over tanker mafia.

The apex court on Wednesday rebuked the Delhi government over the prevalence of tanker mafia and water wastage in the national capital and asked what measures it has taken against them. So much of tanker mafia, have you taken any action on thatWater is engulfed by tanker mafia and youre not taking any action, the bench, presided over by Justice PK Mishra, said while hearing the Delhi governments plea for the release of surplus water from Himachal Pradesh.

Why were false statements made before this court? Water is coming from Himachal Pradesh then where is the water going in Delhi? There is so much spillage, tanker mafias etc.. what measures have you taken in this regard? People are suffering, we are seeing visuals on every news channel. What measures have you taken to control water wastage if water scarcity is a recurring problem in summers, the bench, also comprising Justice PB Varale, observed orally.

Asking the Delhi government about measures taken till now to solve the problem, the bench said, If youre not taking action, then shall we hand it overEvery channel is showing tanker mafia is running in Delhi.

Meanwhile, BJP leaders met the Delhi Police chief on Wednesday and demanded the formation of a special investigation team and registration of an FIR over the alleged theft of water from the Munak Canal and other sources by the tanker mafia.

In the complaint, the party requested the Delhi Police to register an FIR over water theft.

You are further requested to form a special investigation team to conduct a thorough probe to ensure action against the tanker mafia for theft of water from the Munak canal and any government official conniving with them, said the complaint addressed to the Delhi police chief.

#WATCH | Delhi: People queue up near a water tanker to fill water in Chanakyapuris Vivekananda Camp as water crisis continues in the National Capital. pic.twitter.com/XX7Pg83gaC ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2024

Delhi is facing severe water crisis as the national capital continues to battle an intense heatwave. On Thursday, videos of people queueing around water tankers continued to surface from different parts of the city.
The Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi government on Thursday filed a fresh affidavit before the Supreme Court saying it cannot take action against tanker mafias as they are operating on the Haryana side of the Yamuna River.

Haryana should explain why action not taken, the Delhi government said in the affidavit shifting the responsibility.

Meanwhile, as Delhi continues to reel under a severe water crisis, city police patrolling has begun around Munak Canal (Bawana Nahar) to keep a check on the tanker mafias, who are reportedly active in the area.

SC Pulls Delhi Govt Over Minance Of Tanker Mafias

This comes a day after the Supreme Court on Wednesday slammed the AAP government over the role of tanker mafias in the water crisis in the national capital.

People in Delhi are suffering due to water scarcity, the Supreme Court observed, as it pulled up the AAP government over water wastage and tanker mafias and sought to know what steps it has taken to ease the recurring problem.

The court told the Delhi government it will ask the city police to take action against the tanker mafia if it cant deal with them.

If the same water can be transported using tankers, why cant it be supplied through the pipeline, a disquieted court said.

There are visuals on every channel that the tanker mafia is working in Delhi. What measures have you taken in this regard? What measures have you taken to control water waste coming through the two barrages if this is a recurring problem? Please show us what action or FIR have you lodged against tanker mafias, the bench observed orally.

The top court was hearing a plea filed by the Delhi government seeking a direction to Haryana to release the surplus water provided by Himachal Pradesh to the national capital to mitigate its water woes.

Blame Game Over Water Crisis

AAPs Allegation

After the Supreme Courts observations, the blame game over the issue intensified with Delhi minister Atishi alleging that senior officials colluded with the mafias to reduce the number of Delhi Jal Board (DJB) tankers and demanding an inquiry into it.

The Minister said there should be strict action against tanker mafias, but this is not the solution to the problem. By this, you can save only 0.5 MGD of water. But if Haryana is not giving water then no matter how many measures we take 40 MGD water requirement will not be fulfilled.

In a letter to Lt Governor VK Saxena, Atishi demanded an inquiry into the alleged collusion of senior officers with the tanker mafias and requested him to deploy an ACP-level police officer to patrol the stretch of Munak Canal in Delhi to ensure that no illegal water-filling activity takes place there.

There is a need for an enquiry into the potential collusion by senior officers in the Delhi government with the tanker mafia because it seems that there has been a deliberate and substantial reduction of the tankers deployed by the Delhi Jal Board in the last one year, she claimed.

Atishi said that in January last year, 1,179 tankers were deployed by the Delhi Jal Board and this number was 1,203 in June the same year.

However, this number was reduced to 888 in January 2024 without any approval from me. In fact, without any consultation with me. I repeatedly kept flagging the issue of grievances regarding water tanker shortage and asking the CEO DJB to increase the number of tankers, but he did not do so, she alleged.

With the impact of the prevailing heat wave aggravated further by the water supply crisis, Atishi directed the quick response teams comprising additional district magistrates and sub-divisional magistrates to inspect major pipelines to prevent any leakages there.

The minister said that she directed the chief secretary on March 14, April 3 and April 12 to increase the number of water tankers as in previous years, but he did not do so.

This reduction of water tankers deployed by the DJB is what has led to the possible proliferation of private tanker mafia, who are illegally selling waterIf the senior officers of the Delhi government have not increased the number of water tankers deployed in the DJB despite the instructions of the minister in-charge, there is a serious concern regarding their collusion with the tanker mafia, she alleged.

Governors Intervention

The Lieutenant Governor Secretariat, meanwhile, wrote to the Delhi Police Commissioner, asking him to take action against the tanker mafia indulging in the theft of water from the Munak canal that carries water from Haryana.

The Raj Niwas officials, however, said the DJB that comes under the AAP government never cared to file a complaint with Delhi Police about the tanker mafia.

The Delhi Jal Board under the AAP never thought it proper to even complaint to the police about the same, leave apart filing an FIR, that would have automatically ensured police action, said a Raj Niwas official.

They even never came to the LG asking for action to be taken, the official added.

BJPs Attack

Delhi BJP attacked the AAP government, with its president Virendra Sachdeva along with other party leaders submitting a complaint to the police commissioner for registration of an FIR and a probe into the water theft by the tanker mafia and possible connivance of officials in it.

Sachdeva also alleged collusion of AAP MLAs with the tanker mafia.

He alleged water tanker racket was being run by AAP leaders and people close to them. Still, they were misleading the people who were facing problems and struggling for water, he said.

The BJP leader also appealed to Lieutenant Governor V.K. Saxena to pay a visit to the areas experiencing severe water shortages to get a first-hand account of the chaotic situation.

BJP also mobilised residents  particularly women  to stage a Matka Phod (break pots) protest on Tuesday to vent their anger and desperation against the city government.

The demonstration was led by newly-elected South Delhi MP Ramvir Singh Bidhuri and former MLA Brahm Singh Tanwar. Blaming the AAP government for the water crisis and chaos in several parts of Delhi, they demanded the resignations of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Water Minister Atishi Marlena.

Haryana Govt Rejects Delhis Claim

The Haryana Government, meanwhile, rejected the Delhi governments charge that the state was not releasing enough water to the national capital

Haryana is diligently fulfilling its commitment to provide water to Delhi. Haryana not only meets but exceeds its obligations in this regard said Minister of State for Irrigation and Water Resources Abhe Singh Yadav.
Climate finance and plans to transition away from all fossil fuels are likely to be on the agenda when seven of the worlds most advanced economies meet this week in Italy for the 50th G7 Summit. Though not a member of the group, India has been invited to attend the crucial meet along with a few other nations from June 13-15.

The leaders of the influential group led by Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US are expected to sign off on the agreement reached by their Environment Ministers in April. The ministers had agreed to phase-out existing unabated coal power generation by the first half of 2030s, and submit their updated climate pledges at least 9-10 months ahead of COP30 in Baku with the highest possible ambition that aligns with the 1.5C goal of the Paris Agreement.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also left for Italy on Thursday, and will attend the outreach session on the summit on June 14  his first visit after assuming charge for the third straight term.

URGENT NEED TO FUND CLIMATE ACTION

Climate finance remains the big elephant in the room. The G7 led by the worlds wealthiest economies is under pressure to increase financial support to developing countries who are dealing with mounting debt, and need funds for climate action. According to recent reports, the current financial requirements add up to over $5.8trillion by 2030.

Experts say the countries cannot continue to ignore the urgent need because decisions made at the summit will determine what progress can be achieved at the G20 meeting in Rio, and UN Climate Summit (COP29) in Baku later this year where a new climate finance goal  New Collective Quantified Goal (NCQG)  has to be adopted.

The G7 keeps reiterating its commitment to climate and development finance but has so far failed to deliver. The G7 is the group that needs to do the heavy-lifting to keep the world on track to limit temperature rises to 1.5. It can do this by redirecting fossil fuel finance to clean energy, alleviating debt in developing countries and setting clear ambitious climate finance targets to support the transition at home and abroad, said Luca Bergamaschi, Co-founding Director, ECCO.

END PUBLIC FINANCING IN FOSSIL FUELS, GAS

G7  responsible for 21% of the global emissions  is also expected to discuss issues related to phase-out coal, fossil fuel subsidies, gas and renewable energy as well as energy storage. The discussions on transitioning away from all fossil fuels  coal, gas and oil  and ending inefficient fossil fuel subsidies will be keenly watched, say experts.

The problem is that whilst coal power has already been falling, gas power has not. G7 nations already promised to fully or predominately decarbonise their power sectors by 2035, and that would mean phasing out not only coal by 2035 but also gas. Coal might be the dirtiest, but all fossil fuels should ultimately be phased out, said Dave Jones, Director, Embers Global Insights Programme.

According to experts, a comprehensive plan by G7 to phase-out of all fossil fuels source-by-source with clear funding commitments for developing countries to transition to renewable energy is the only way to reassure the world that the rich economies are serious about limiting temperatures to 1.5  as agreed under the 2015 Paris Agreement. It is urgent that the G7 finally closes the loopholes for publicly supporting fossil fuel investments.

The leaders are also expected to hold deliberations on the outcome of the UN Climate Summit (COP28) in Dubai where the countries reached a deal to transition away from all fossil fuels, and make efforts to triple renewable energy capacities by 2030 and double energy-efficiency by the end of this decade.
Sikkole Goli Soda in Andhra Pradesh has captured the news headlines due to its delicious taste and popularity amongst the youth. According to Local 18 Telugu, this beverage is being sold to the public in 6 different flavours, i.e., orange, lemon, mango, blueberry, grapes and pineapple. People who are fond of this drink have said that once someone consumes it, they acquire a taste for it and prefer it on all occasions. The popularity of this soda fails to show any downward trend despite the onset of the monsoon season. It has amassed a massive consumer base in Srikakulam city, Andhra Pradesh. Keep reading ahead to learn about the procedure to make this soda.

Initially, the sugar syrup and some flavours are filled in the goli soda bottles according to their measurements. Besides these ingredients, mineral water and gas are also filled into the goli soda with the help of a machine. Now, the soda filled with gas is placed between ice cubes or fridges for cooling. After these steps, the beverage is ready to serve to the customers.

The manufacturing unit of Sikkole Goli Soda is located at Navbharath Junction in Srikakulam. As per the reports, the local natives of this district have attained employment by working in manufacturing units. Goli soda shopkeepers say that their business is booming right now. According to the reports, people prefer ordering the Sikkole Goli Soda for weddings as well.

As seen in the Local 18 Telugu visual, the manufacturing unit of Sikkole Goli Soda contains a lot of machines for the finer processing of the drinks components. Post the processing and other procedures involved, the drinks are then sorted into bottles, which are further kept in large crates. It is visible that the shopkeepers are mindful of the consumers health and they have kept proper care of hygiene in the unit. They, however, could take more steps to ensure the cleanliness factor, i.e., purchasing hand gloves for the workers. This will amplify the consumers trust in the Sikkole Goli Soda and enhance its brand visibility in other areas as well.
Grapes are a popular summer fruit, and the preferred choice of adults and children alike. The juicy taste of the round fruit is loved by many. The district of Dindigul in Tamil Nadu is a region known for its grape cultivation. This year, the grape yield is facing issues in cultivation because of climate change and rains. Local18 reports that the grapes are cultivated in a number of villages in the Dindigul district each year. It includes Ambaturai, Chinnalapatti, Kodai Road, Ammayanayakkanur, Mettur, Kamalapuram, Uthupatti, Amalinagar, Perumal Kovilpatti, Chettiapatti and many other villages. After the grapes are harvested, it is exported to places like Chennai, Salem, Madurai and more. The cultivation is done once in four months and the farmers get the best yield between the months of April and June.

This year, the farmers are experiencing huge losses because of summer rains and the change in climate it is causing. They are unable to have a regular cultivation, which would keep them financially afloat. Local18 talked to a local farmer named Thanikoti about the situation. He spoke about the process and the hard work that goes into cultivation of grapes, mentioning the changes they are encountering this year. He also revealed that many villages in Sirumalai are involved in grape cultivation.

According to him, the grapes are grown through the process of pruning and it has to be maintained once every four months each year. He revealed that last year the yield was very good due to the extensive summer heat. It is not the same this year. He stated, It was sunny when it needed rain and it rained when it was sunny, so the investment did not yield the desired returns. Speaking further he mentioned that grape cultivation has decreased considerably because of climate change and the lack of labour.
India on Thursday night is sending a military transport aircraft to Kuwait to bring back mortal remains of over 40 Indians killed in a devastating fire in a building housing foreign workers in southern Kuwait.

Kuwaiti authorities said they identified bodies of 45 Indians and three Filipino nationals killed in the fire. At least 49 migrant workers were killed and 50 others injured in the blaze.

Officials in Delhi said the C-130J transport aircraft of the Indian Air Force will bring back bodies on Friday and it will first land in Kochi as most of the deceased Indians are from Kerala.

The aircraft is then expected to reach Delhi as some of the Indians killed are from a few north Indian states, they said.

Kuwaiti authorities have already conducted DNA tests on the bodies as part of the identification process.

Kuwaiti Fire Force said the deadly fire was caused by an electrical circuit.

In a press statement, it said the conclusion was arrived at after examination of the scene of the incident, Kuwaiti news agency KUNA reported.

Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah, serving as the First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior, and Minister of Defence, said that authorities have identified 48 bodies, among which 45 are of Indians and three are of Filipino nationality, English language daily Arab Times reported.

Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh, who reached Kuwait this morning, separately met the Gulf nations foreign minister Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya, Al-Sabah and Health Minister Ahmad Abdelwahab Ahmad Al-Awadi.

The Indian embassy in Kuwait said Foreign Minister Al-Yahya assured of full support including for medical care, early repatriation of mortal remains and investigation into the incident.

FM Yahya conveyed his condolences on the tragic incident. He assured full support including for medical care, early repatriation of mortal remains and investigation of the incident, the mission said on X.

MoS conveyed his appreciation for the cooperation being extended by all concerned authorities of Kuwait, it said.

Singh also visited Mubarak Al Kabeer hospital and Jaber hospital where several injured Indians are admitted.

In the meeting with Singh, the Kuwaiti health minister briefed him on steps taken to ensure speedy recovery of Indians under his personal supervision, according to the Indian embassy.

In an unfortunate and tragic fire incident earlier today in a Labour housing facility in Mangaf area of Kuwait, around 40 Indians are understood to have died and over 50 injured, the Ministry of External Affairs had said in a statement late on Wednesday night.

Last night, Prime Minister Modi reviewed the situation at a meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, NSA Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and Principal Secretary to PM PK Mishra among others.

Following the meeting, the prime minister announced ex-gratia relief of Rs 2 lakh to the families of the deceased Indian nationals from the PM Relief Fund and directed that the government should extend all possible assistance.

The External Affairs Minister spoke to his Kuwaiti counterpart Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on phone and urged him for the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those killed.

Spoke to Kuwaiti FM Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on the fire tragedy in Kuwait. Apprised of the efforts made by Kuwaiti authorities in that regard. Was assured that the incident would be fully investigated and that responsibility will be fixed, Jaishankar said on X on Wednesday night.

Urged the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those who lost their lives. He emphasized that those injured were getting the requisite medical attention, he said.

The fire in Al-Mangaf building was reported to authorities in Al-Ahmadi governorate at 4.30 am on Wednesday and most of the deaths were due to smoke inhalation, Kuwaiti media reported, adding the fire started in a kitchen.

Construction firm NBTC group rented the building for the stay of more than 195 workers, most of them Indians from Kerala, Tamil Nadu and northern states, the Kuwaiti media said.

Interior Minister Al-Sabah ordered an investigation into the fire incident and issued directions to apprehend the owner and janitor of Al-Mangaf building.
A policeman was injured after terrorists opened fire on a search party in a village in the Gandoh area of Jammu and Kashmirs Doda district on Wednesday evening. This was the second terror-related incident in Doda in the span of 24 hours and the fourth in Jammu and Kashmir in three days.

Police have, meanwhile, released sketches of five terrorists involved in two attacks in Doda district and another in Raesi and announced a reward of Rs 40 lakh for information leading to their arrest.

Recent Terror Activities In J&K

2 Attacks In Doda: As per officials, the firing was reported from the Kota top area of Bhalesa around 7.40 p.m. on Wednesday, to which security forces retaliated. An intermittent exchange of fire between the two sides was going on when the last reports were received. Reinforcements have been rushed to the area to strengthen the cordon, they said.

Earlier on June 11 evening, five Rashtriya Rifles personnel and a Special Police Officer were injured in a terrorist attack in Chattargalla Pass.

Kathua: In another incident late on June 11, a suspected Pakistani terrorist was killed by security forces in Kathua district. The overnight encounter ended after a second terrorist was also gunned down on June 12 but a CRPF jawan lost his life in the operation.

Reasi: On June 9, terrorists attacked a bus carrying pilgrims, causing it to veer off the road and fall into a deep gorge in Reasi, killing nine and injuring 41.

Samba: A small drone was found and subsequently seized by police in Jammu and Kashmirs Samba district on June 12 evening. The drone was recovered from the terrace of Tarseem Lals house at village Burj Tanda near Supwal, the officials said.

Senior Superintendent of Police, Samba Vinay Sharma said the drone appears a toy, having a very low range. However, we will conduct proper forensic examination of the object before reaching to any final conclusion, the officer said.

J&K Police Release Suspects Sketch, Announce Reward

The Jammu and Kashmir Police have released sketches of four terrorists involved in two attacks in Doda district and announced a reward of Rs 20 lakh for information leading to their arrest. The police appealed to the people to provide information about the presence and movement of these terrorists.

Jammu and Kashmir Police have released sketches of four terrorists who are believed to be in the upper reaches of Bhaderwah, Thathri, Gandoh and carrying out terror-related activities, a police spokesperson said.

A cash reward of Rs 5 lakh for information about each of the terrorists has also been announced, he said.

Earlier, police also released a sketch of a terrorist involved in the terror attack on a pilgrim bus near Shivkhori temple in Reasi district in which nine people were killed, and announced a Rs 20 lakh reward for information about him.

J&K Police Issue Advisory

Jammu and Kashmir police have issued an alert advisory in the Jammu region, urging residents to stay vigilant regarding the movement of suspicious individuals and objects. They have advised the residents of Jammu and Rajouri to thoroughly check their vehicles before turning them on, officials said.

A security advisory has been issued in the region in connection with a terror threat in areas of Rajouri, and Jammu districts. Police vehicles equipped with loudspeakers made announcements in Akhnoor and Jammu areas, urging the people to remain alert and report any suspicious activities or objects, they said.

This heightened security measure follows intelligence inputs indicating a terror threat. Police have provided contact numbers for officers in Jammu and Samba districts, encouraging residents to report any potential terror-related concerns, they said.

This alert comes in the wake of three terror attacks in the Reasi, Kathua, and Doda districts over the past three days, resulting in the deaths of 10 persons, including a CRPF jawan and two terrorists and injuries to 48 people, including seven security personnel.

Search and combing operations are ongoing in the Poonch, Rajouri and Reasi districts of Jammu and Kashmir.
Kanpur mayor Pramila Pandey threw a file at a government official and asked him to get out of the room during a meeting held on nullah cleaning and other civic issues in the office of the municipal corporation. In a video of the incident, which has gone viral, Pandey can be seen losing her cool and flinging the file at the officer, narrowly missing his face.

#WATCH | Uttar Pradesh: Kanpur Mayor Pramila Pandey throws a file at an officer during a meeting of officials held on drain cleaning and other issues in the Kanpur Municipal Corporation office. pic.twitter.com/rsrEQHBveg ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) June 12, 2024

According to reports, Pandey scolded the civic official for apparently misleading her over nullah cleaning in the city, and became angry over his lackadaisical attitude towards routine work. The meeting was held on Wednesday (June 12), in which the mayor and other officials were discussing civic issues.

In the video, she can be heard scolding the civic officer in front of others. Do you think I am a fool? she shouts at him, as she throws the file at him. The mayor got angry after the officers response to her question about files related to drainage cleaning. When the mayor asked the officer to get her the file for May, he reportedly showed her a file for the month of March.

While many social media users criticised the mayors behaviour, others said civic works like nullah cleaning were important and must be completed before the monsoon. Unclean and clogged drains can cause major issues during the rainy season.
The death toll of Indians in the Kuwait fire surged to at least 42 on Wednesday, as a massive blaze engulfed a building housing foreign workers. Out of the total 49 foreign workers killed, some 42 victims were confirmed to be Indian nationals, most of whom were breadwinners for their families.

Who Are The Victims?

Of the Indian victims, 24 hailed from Kerala and 5 from Tamil Nadu. Among those tragically killed in the fire was 29-year-old Stephin Abraham Sabu, an engineer from Kottayams Pampadi. He is survived by his mother Shirley and his brothers Febin and Kevin. From the coastal town of Thrikaripur, Kelu Ponmaleri leaves behind his wife KN Mani.

Thirty-four-year-old Ranjith of Kasargod also died in the fire. A resident of northern Kerala, he went to Kuwait a year and a half ago after celebrating the housewarming of his new home. He had planned to return to his village for a vacation in July. However, his village has been shaken by the unofficial news of his death.

READ MORE: Charred Bodies On Stairs: Kuwait Building Fire Caught Victims Sleeping, Some Jumped Out Of The Window

Sajan George, 29, from Punalur leaves behind his parents George Pothan and Valsamma, and his sister. Lucose, of Kollam, is survived by his wife Shiny, and children Lydia and Lois. Akash S. Nair, 32, a native of Panthalam in Pathanamthitta district, has been reported dead in a fire accident in Kuwait. He had been working in Kuwait for the past eight years and returned on leave a year ago. He is survived by his mother, Airanikuzhi Shobalaya, Pandalam.

Chennasseril Saju Varghese, a 65-year-old man from Konni in Pathanamthitta district, died in the Kuwait fire accident. He had been employed with the company for 22 years. He is survived by his wife, Bindu, and two children. Akash, a 23-year-old native of Pandalam, is also among the deceased in the Kuwait fire accident. Further details are awaited. Sreehari Pradeep, a mechanical engineer from Changanassery Ithithanam, died in the Kuwait fire accident. His father, Pradeep, also works in Kuwait.

State Govts

The Kerala government on Thursday said it will provide Rs 5 lakh financial assistance to the families of the people from the state who died in the Kuwait fire tragedy that claimed 49 lives and left 50 others injured. The decision was taken at an emergency Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the morning, a statement issued by his office said.

The cabinet also decided to provide Rs one lakh financial assistance to those injured in the incident. A decision was taken to immediately send state Health Minister Veena George to Kuwait to coordinate the efforts to provide treatment to those injured and bring back the bodies of those who died in the tragedy, it further said.

Kerala Industries Minister P. Rajeev confirmed that 24 Malayalees lost their lives in a tragic fire, with some identities still pending. Rajeev stressed that since the incident occurred abroad, only the foreign government can determine if there was a violation. He added that the company involved in the blaze, is owned by a Malayalee.

It is learnt that five Tamils were among the dead in the Kuwait fire incident, Tamil Nadu Minister for Minorities Welfare and Non- Resident Tamils Welfare, Gingee KS Masthan said, quoting information shared by Tamil associations based abroad.

Masthan told reporters that the victims belong to Thanjavur, Ramanathapuram and Peravurani regions of the state and they were identified as Rama Karuppan, Veerasamy Mariappan, Chinnadurai Krishnamurthy, Mohammed Sherif and Richard. As per Chief Minister M K Stalins directive, all steps are being taken to bring home the bodies and ensure necessary medical care for the injured, he said. The Embassy (in Kuwait) has said that official information (on victims) will be provided to the state government. We are continuously monitoring.

Jaishankar Speaks To Kuwaiti Counterpart

On Wednesday night, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar spoke to his Kuwaiti counterpart Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya and urged him to ensure early repatriation of the mortal remains of those killed in a devastating fire in southern Kuwaits Mangaf area. Spoke to Kuwaiti FM Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on the fire tragedy in Kuwait. Apprised of the efforts made by Kuwaiti authorities in that regard. Was assured that the incident would be fully investigated and that responsibility will be fixed, Jaishankar said on the social media platform X.

Spoke to Kuwaiti FM Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on the fire tragedy in Kuwait.Apprised of the efforts made by Kuwaiti authorities in that regard. Was assured that the incident would be fully investigated and that responsibility will be fixed. Urged the early repatriation of the  Dr. S. Jaishankar (@DrSJaishankar) June 12, 2024

PM Modi Review Meeting

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who described the incident as saddening, reviewed the situation at a meeting with External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, NSA Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra and Principal Secretary to PM PK Mishra among others. Following the meeting, the prime minister announced ex-gratia relief of Rs 2 lakh to the families of the deceased Indian nationals from the PM Relief Fund and directed that the government should extend all possible assistance.

The fire mishap in Kuwait City is saddening. My thoughts are with all those who have lost their near and dear ones. I pray that the injured recover at the earliest. The Indian Embassy in Kuwait is closely monitoring the situation and working with the authorities there to assist the affected, Modi said on X. In its statement, the MEA said the Indian embassy in the Gulf nation is ascertaining the full details from the Kuwaiti authorities. Those injured are presently admitted in five government hospitals (Adan, Jaber, Farwaniya, Mubarak Al Kabeer and Jahra) in Kuwait and receiving proper medical care and attention, it said. According to hospital authorities, most of the admitted patients are stable, it said.

Upon reaching back to Delhi after todays two oath taking ceremonies, chaired a meeting to review the situation in the wake of the fire mishap in Kuwait, where people of Indian origin have been affected.GoI is doing everything possible to assist those affected by this gruesome pic.twitter.com/DVmeCcEGZH  Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) June 12, 2024

Indian Envoy Visits Incident Site

Following the incident, the Ambassador of India in Kuwait Adarsh Swaika immediately visited the incident site and also the hospitals to ascertain the welfare of the Indian nationals. The embassy continues to coordinate with local authorities to assist Indian nationals who have been injured in this unfortunate incident and extend all possible support. The embassy is receiving full cooperation from the Kuwaiti authorities, the MEA said.

Our Embassy in Kuwait continues to remain in touch with local authorities to provide relief to those affected. The Embassy has established a helpline +965-65505246 (WhatsApp and regular call) for family members to get in touch, it said. The fire in Al-Mangaf building was reported to authorities in Al-Ahmadi governorate at 4.30 am and most of the deaths were due to smoke inhalation, Kuwaiti media reported, adding the fire started in a kitchen. The Indian embassy said it is in touch with Kuwaiti law enforcement authorities, fire service and health department for necessary action.

(With agency inputs)
The new government is planning a 100-day special campaign for grievance redressal of complaints made by citizens specific to corruption and cyber frauds, News18 has learnt. This could be launched soon after approval.

It is part of the Narendra Modi governments mission to combat corruption and address the rising complaints from citizens regarding cyber frauds of various kinds, including related to credit cards. Complaints regarding non-grant of family pension to kin of government servants who have passed away, will also be taken up on priority in this 100-day special campaign.

The government is planning to introduce a feature of enabling citizens to lodge grievances on WhatsApp using an AI chatbot and introduce a regional language and voice interface on the existing platforms.

The average closing time of public grievances lodged on a central portal has been brought down to 10 days as on March 31, 2024 compared to around 28 days in 2019. Nearly 21 lakh complaints from citizens were received on the portal in 2023, up from about 19 lakh in 2022.

Around 9.58 lakh complaints had already been received this year till March. A new feedback call centre was opened by the government in 2022 to promote accountability and improve the quality of resolving grievances. Over 13 lakh calls were made to citizens since to know their feedback.

As part of the 100-day plan, the government is also planning to launch a mobile application of its official portal for receiving grievances as well as build a new technology platform for the portal.

CPGRAMS, the official portal of citizen grievances, has seen many improvements in the last five years in order to encourage people to file complaints easily and get them resolved in minimum time.
In a shocking incident, a Mumbai doctor allegedly found a human beings finger in an ice-cream cone his sister had ordered online on Wednesday. According to reports, the incident happened in Malad when a woman ordered ice-cream along with other items via a grocery delivery app.

Malad resident Orlem Brendan Serrao (26), a doctor with an MBBS degree, had eaten half of the butter scotch ice cream when he sensed something wrong on his tongue. When he took a closer look, he found a human finger inside it. The ice cream was ordered by his sister online.

He immediately took up the matter and lodged a complaint with the ice cream company on its Instagram page, he said.

When there was no response from the company, he informed the police about the incident. The police, in its initial probe, said that it was a human finger in the ice-cream. The police have now sent the finger for forensic investigation.

The complainant in the case, a 26-year-old doctor with MBBS degree who stays in Malad west, had ordered a butterscotch ice-cream cone of Yummo company. While consuming the ice-cream after lunch, he came across a half an inch long piece of flesh with a nail in the ice cream, the police said.

The police have filed a case against the Yummo ice-cream company. The piece of flesh, suspected to be a piece of human finger, has been sent for forensic examination to ascertain whether it is a part of the human body, the police official said, adding that a probe in the case is underway.
The newly elected Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi paid obeisance to lord Jagannath at the mega temple in Puri, where all four gates were opened for devotees on Thursday. The Chief Minister, along with Puri MP Sambit Patra, Balasore MP Pratap Chandra Sarangi and other Bharatiya Janata Party (BJO) leaders also performed Parikrama of the Jagannath temple.

Addressing the media after his temple visit, Majhi said, We had proposed to open all the four gates of Jagannath Temple in yesterdays cabinet meeting. The proposal was passed and today at 6:30 am, I along with my MLAs and Puri MP (Sambit Patra) attended the Mangala Aarti.

#WATCH | Puri: Morning visuals from the Puri Jagannath Temple where all four gates are to be opened for devotees in the presence of CM Mohan Charan Majhi and all of the Ministers of Odisha.Odisha CM Mohan Charan Majhi along with Deputy Chief Ministers KV Singh Deo and Prabhati pic.twitter.com/zyQFTKrG8x  ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2024

For the development of the Jagannath Temple and other works, we have proposed a fund in the cabinet. When we present the next state budget, we will allot a corpus fund of Rs 500 crores for the temple management, he added.

VIDEO | #Odisha CM Mohan Charan Majhi performs parikrama at Shree Jagannath Temple, #Puri.All four gates of Shree Jagannath Temple in Puri were re-opened early Thursday morning in the presence of CM Mohan Charan Majhi. (Full video available on PTI Videos - pic.twitter.com/U490BiCB4l  Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) June 13, 2024

Odisha Minister Suryabanshi Suraj, who also accompanied Majhi to Puri, said that during the campaigning for Lok Sabha elections 2024, the BJP had said if it came to power, it would reopen all 4 gates.

All four gates of the temple are going to be opened today. All members of the Council Ministers are present here. The CM is also present A corpus fund worth Rs. 500 crores has also been announced for development projects We took the oath yesterday and we are opening the gates today, he said.

BJP Govt Fulfills 4 Poll Promises In 1st Cabinet Meet

Keeping its poll promise, the BJP-led government in Odisha, in its first Cabinet meeting on Wednesday, decided to re-open all four entry gates of Lord Jagannath Temple at Puri for the devotees from Thursday morning.

The devotees were allowed to enter the 12th-century shrine only through the main gate as the other doors have been closed since the Covid pandemic.

For the sake of conservation and preservation of the temple, Majhi said the Cabinet decided to constitute a corpus fund of Rs 500 crore to look after the issues related to the shrine.

The Chief Minister further announced that the state government will also take steps to raise the minimum support price (MSP) of paddy to Rs 3100 per quintal and the department concerned has been asked to take measures in this regard.

A committee will be formed very soon for implementation of the proposal to increase the MSP for paddy to Rs 3100 per quintal, he said.

This apart, a special policy Samruddha Krushak Niti Yojana will be framed to deal with the problems of farmers including the MSP to farmers.

The departments have been asked to prepare a proper guideline and roadmap in this regard and present it before the government. This will be done within a span of first 100 days of the government, the chief minister said.

Majhi also claimed that efforts of the previous BJD regime for women empowerment and child welfare have failed. Therefore, the new government will implement the Subhdra Yojana within 100 days under which the women will get a Rs 50,000 cash voucher each.

The departments are told to prepare guidelines and roadmaps for the implementation of the Subhadra Yojana, the chief minister said.
Shehbaz Sharif made his first visit to Beijing after taking over as Pakistans prime minister and recent attacks on Chinese workers on CPEC routes in his country.

The Chinese are upset with Pakistan due to continuous ongoing attacks on their workers in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and they want foolproof security.

According to sources, Pakistans army chief General Asim Munir claimed before the Chinese that his country has no funds to manage the CPEC where terror groups are mostly sent by India.

The Chinese told Pakistan that it would get funds for this job and a security pact was established.

Pakistan is stable right now because of IMF and American funding as well as with this new budget and huge tax provisions.

Pakistan needs one financier every decade. From the early days to 1996, and from 2002 to 2010 it had the Americans, and now it is China.

According to Pakistani establishment sources, they will be diverting this fund from the CPEC to take on India at the Kashmir border.

Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday said that his recent five-day visit to China remained successful as a high-powered Chinese delegation would visit Pakistan soon.

The prime minister, chairing the meeting of the federal cabinet, told the members that the collective efforts by his team including the federal ministers and federal secretaries came to fruition and that the visit was a great opportunity to strengthen the Pakistan-China bilateral relations.

He said that despite the security issue highlighted during the engagements with the Chinese leadership and business community, the visit concluded with a positive note.

I can say unequivocally that the visit ended with a positive note. During the conversation with the Chinese ambassador at the banquet hosted by the Communist Party Secretary during my visit to Shanxi province, I got a deep feeling that the visit remained very successful, Prime Minister Shehbaz remarked while apprising the cabinet members of his visit.

The prime minister thanked all of his cabinet members particularly Ishaq Dar, Ahsan Iqbal, Khawaja Muhammad Asif, Dr Musaddik Malik and Shaza Fatima Khawaja, and relevant federal secretaries for their collective efforts which led to the success of the visit.

He expressed confidence that the collective efforts would lead to the swift and successful execution of the second phase of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

Originally valued at $46 billion, the value of CPEC projects was $62 billion as of 2020. In 2022, the Chinese investment in Pakistan rose to $65 billion.

The biggest task is an 800 km motorway from Gwadar to Ratodero, which is only built on paper, while on the ground its only two kilometres at a cost of about 5 billion dollars.

Another project is the Hyderabad to Sukkur Motorway which has been pending for ten years and the Chinese want these to be done as soon as possible while Pakistan wants more money.

Now Pakistan says this is pending due to security concerns in Balochistan, meddling by India, and killings on a daily basis.

Now at top-level meetings in China, only security issues are being discussed and this development money is linked to that.

Part of this money will be used by Pakistan to foment trouble in Kashmir and help China at the Ladakh border.

Chinas interest in Pakistans terror tactics is very old and it has blocked Indias moves multiple times in the UN over this, including cornering Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) chief Maulana Masood Azhar.

Another part of the Pakistani strategy is to bring India to the table for talks.

To resume talks, India wants terrorism to be stopped, but the survival of Pakistans economy depends on trade with India.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday stepped in to review the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir after four terror-related incidents in as many days. In a major move, he asked for the deployment of the full spectrum of Indias counter-terror capabilities in operations against terrorists.

During the review meeting, in which national security adviser Ajit Doval and other top officials were also present, the prime minister got the full overview of the security situation in the union territory. He was also told about the counter-terror efforts being undertaken.

Modi spoke to Union home minister Amit Shah and discussed the deployment of security forces and counter-terror operations. He also spoke to J&K lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha to take stock of the situation.

According to officials, the PM was briefed on the efforts being undertaken by the local administration. This review comes ahead of another security meeting by Shah.

Jammu and Kashmir is faced with a crucial security situation with the Amarnath Yatra beginning at the end of this month till August 19, followed by the assembly elections in September, as per the deadline mandated by the Supreme Court. The central government wants the peaceful conduct of the Amarnath Yatra as well as the elections and is planning to deploy a large number of security forces in the UT.

The recent terror attacks have come as a challenge for the new government with the incident in Reasi happening on the day when Modi and his new Council of Ministers were taking oath on June 9. Terrorists attacked a bus carrying pilgrims, causing it to veer off the road and fall into a gorge, killing nine and injuring 41.

On June 11 evening, five Rashtriya Rifles personnel and a special police officer were injured in a terrorist attack in Chattargalla Pass. In another incident later the same day, a suspected Pakistani terrorist was killed by security forces in Kathua district. The overnight encounter ended after a second terrorist was gunned down, but a CRPF jawan was also killed in the operation. Firing was also reported from the Kota top area of Bhalesa in Doda around 7.40 pm on Wednesday (June 12), to which security forces retaliated.

The J&K police have released sketches of four terrorists involved in the two attacks in Doda district and announced a reward of Rs 20 lakh for information leading to their arrest. Earlier, police also released a sketch of a terrorist involved in the Reasi attack and announced a Rs 20-lakh reward for information.

A new terror network of on-ground workers (OGW), locals and local terrorists is suspected to be helping foreign terrorists involved in the attacks in J&K in the last 72 hours, as per central intelligence agencies. Top sources in the J&K Police, Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) and intelligence agencies said these attacks were desperate attempts by terrorist groups, especially after India successfully conducted the Lok Sabha polls in the UT.
MNS chief Raj Thackeray on Thursday asked the party workers to be prepared to contest 225-250 out of the 288 seats of the Maharashtra assembly in the coming elections, a senior party leader said.

Talking to reporters after a meeting here, MNS leader Bala Nandgaonkar said party functionaries will visit different regions of the state and give a report to Thackeray about election preparations.

The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena had declared support for the BJP-led NDA during the Lok Sabha elections. Raj Thackeray also campaigned for the NDA though his party was not in the fray anywhere.

Raj Thackeray asked party workers to be prepared to contest 225 to 250 seats in the assembly elections, Nandgaonkar said.

Asked if the MNS would form alliance with the ruling Mahayuti coalition of the BJP-Shiv Sena-NCP or contest on its own, he said, We are not holding any discussions right now. And with whom we are going to hold talks? We have contested elections on our own till now. We will see what happens in the future, but if we have to prepare for the polls, Nandgaonkar said, adding that every party has to expand.

Formed in 2006, the MNS contested its first assembly elections in 2009 and bagged 13 seats. Its performance in the 2014 and 2019 state polls, however, was lackluster with the party bagging only one seat each time.

Sandeep Deshpande, another party leader, said that at the meeting Thackeray noted that the Oppositions Maha Vikas Aghadi  of which the Shiv Sena (UBT) is a part  got anti-Narendra Modi votes in Muslim-dominated areas, but did not get much support in Marathi-speaking areas.

So Marathi-speakers were angry with Uddhav Thackeray because he joined hands with the Congress and NCP (SP), Deshpande said quoting Raj, implying that the MNS could get their votes.
All top four officers in the Prime Ministers Office (PMO) will continue on their posts much in line with the continuity formula seen in Team Modi 3.0. Ajit Doval has been appointed the national security adviser (NSA) for a third term, while Dr PK Mishra will continue as the principal secretary to the Prime Minister for a second term. Amit Khare and Tarun Kapoor have been kept as advisers to the Prime Minister like in the previous term.

Doval and Mishra will be assigned the rank of cabinet ministers and their term will be co-terminus with that of the Prime Minister or until further orders, whichever is earlier. Khare and Kapoor will be working in the rank and scale of secretary.

Mishra had worked as additional principal secretary to the Prime Minister in the first term of Narendra Modi before taking over as the principal secretary from Nripendra Misra in the PMs second term. Mishra, who has retired from the IAS, had worked for a long time in Gujarat too when Narendra Modi was the chief minister.

Both Doval and Mishra have been key bureaucrats and advisers to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and have been involved in the big decisions taken since 2014. They, along with Khare and Kapoor, will also be key to driving important policy decisions of Modis third term and hence continuity has been adopted on this account, sources said.

Doval is continuing as the NSA at a crucial time for Jammu and Kashmir with the upcoming Amarnath Yatra and the assembly elections in the state expected in September.

Amit Khare and Tarun Kapoor were appointed as advisers to the PM in 2021 and 2022 respectively.
Villagers in neighbouring Raisen district heaved a sigh of relief on Thursday as a tiger that had killed and partially eaten a man was finally captured.

The forest department had sounded a red alert for 36 villages in the area as the animal terrorised locals for about a month.

Around 140 persons including forest department personnel and villagers were involved in the search for the big cat, Raisen divisional forest officer (DFO) Vijay Kumar told PTI.

The animal has been rescued and tranquilized. It will be released in Satpura Tiger Reserve (STR), he said.

The tiger killed Maniram Jatav, a resident of Neemkheda village, 35 km from Bhopal city, on May 15. It also preyed on cattle, and had been spotted roaming in the area.

The village is located in the eastern range of Raisen Forest division.

Two days after Jatavs half-eaten body was found, a red alert was sounded for 36 villages in the surrounding area, spread over 150 sq km. People were asked not to venture into the forest till the animal was captured.

A red alert is issued when there is a threat to human life by a wild animal, DFO Kumar said.

Ratapani Wildlife Sanctuary which houses more than 60 big cats is situated in Raisen district.

Madhya Pradesh has the highest 785 tigers in the country, as per the latest official count.
India on Thursday rejected unwarranted references to Jammu and Kashmir in a joint statement issued by China and Pakistan during Shehbaz Sharifs recent visit to Beijing.

We have noted unwarranted references to the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir in the joint statement between China and Pakistan of 07 June 2024. We categorically reject such references, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.

The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Ladakh have been, are and will always remain integral and inalienable parts of India. No other country has the locus standing to comment on the same, Jaiswal added.

The MEA spokesman further highlighted that the joint statement also mentions activities and projects under the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), stating that some of which are in Indias sovereign territory under forcible and illegal occupation by Pakistan.

We resolutely oppose and reject any moves by other countries to reinforce or legitimise Pakistans illegal occupation of these territories, impinging on Indias sovereignty and territorial integrity, he stated.

China-Pakistan joint statement

Following talks between Pakistan PM Shehbaz Sharif and Chinese Premier Li Qiang, a joint statement was issued in Beijing on June 7.

In their joint statement, China and Pakistan had opposed any unilateral action for the resolution of all outstanding issues in South Asia. During the visit, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif briefed the Chinese leadership on the situation in Kashmir and discussed the close ties between their militaries.

The statement further added: Both sides underscore the importance of maintaining peace and stability in South Asia, the need for resolution of all outstanding disputes, and their opposition to any unilateral action.

The Pakistani side briefed the Chinese side on the latest developments of the situation in Jammu and Kashmir. The Chinese side reiterated that the Jammu and Kashmir dispute is left over from history, and should be properly and peacefully resolved in accordance with the UN Charter, relevant UN Security Council resolutions and bilateral agreements, it concluded.

(With inputs from agencies)
In a big development in the Renuka Swamy murder case, Karnataka police have now arrested two more people. As reported by the news agency PTI, police officials arrested Kannada cine star and murder accused Darshan Thoogudeepas close aide Nagaraj and co-star Pradosh on Thursday.

Police sources claim that Nagaraj was looking after all the dealings of Darshan. He was reportedly also looking after Darshans farmhouse in Mysuru. Nagaraj was on the run ever since police arrested Darshan earlier this week. Meanwhile, details about Pradoshs connection to the murder case is not known as of now.

This means that so far, 15 people have been arrested in the Renuka Swamy murder case including Darshan and his actress friend Pavithra Gowda.

Darshan and Pavithra were arrested by the Bengaluru police from Mysuru on Tuesday (June 11). They were then brought to Bengaluru and sent to 6-day police custody. Police officials are investigating their involvement in the Renuka Swamy murder case and have already seized their cell phones.

Renuka Swamy was found dead at Sumanahalli Bridge in Bengaluru on June 8, 2024. He used to reportedly work at an Apollo Pharmacy branch in Chitradurga. Previously, police officials claimed that Renuka used to send vulgar messages to Kannada actress Pavithra Gowad, a friend of Darshan. Angry about this, Renuka Swamy was murdered and his dead body was allegedly thrown in a canal at Kamaksshipalya, Bengaluru in front of Darshan. Reportedly, eight of the accused have implicated Darshan, claiming his presence during Renuka Swamys assault.

Earlier today, Karnataka police officials claimed that Darshan and his aides beat Renuka Swamt with sticks and threw him against the wall which led to his death. It was Pavithra who instigated Darshan to punish Renukaswamy. Accordingly, the plan was hatched, sources claimed.

However, on Wednesday, Renuka Swamys wife denied claims that her late husband used to send derogatory messages to anyone. My husband called me on June 8 afternoon. If my husband had sent derogatory messages on social media, he should have been given a warning. What was the need to kill him, she said and then added, Whether he is an actor (Darshan) or a star, I want justice.
Shocking details have emerged in the Renuka Swamy murder case in connection to which Kannada actor Darshan was arrested. Police sources have now revealed that the actor allegedly asked three men to take blame for the crime in exchange for cash. As reported by NDTV, Darshan reportedly offered Rs 15 lakh to three men and asked them to take blame for Renuka Swamys murder.

This comes hours after Karnataka police officials also claimed that Darshan and his aides beat Renuka Swamy with sticks and threw him against the wall which led to his death. It was Pavithra who instigated Darshan to punish Renukaswamy. Accordingly, the plan was hatched, sources claimed.

Darshan was arrested by the Bengaluru police from Mysuru on Tuesday (June 11). He was then brought to Bengaluru and sent to 6-day police custody. Police officials are investigating his involvement in the Renuka Swamy murder case and have already seized his cell phones.

Renuka Swamy was found dead at Sumanahalli Bridge in Bengaluru on June 8, 2024. He used to reportedly work at an Apollo Pharmacy branch in Chitradurga. Previously, police officials claimed that Renuka used to send vulgar messages to Kannada actress Pavithra Gowad, a friend of Darshan. Angry about this, Renuka Swamy was murdered and his dead body was allegedly thrown in a canal at Kamaksshipalya, Bengaluru in front of Darshan. Reportedly, eight of the accused have implicated Darshan, claiming his presence during Renuka Swamys assault.

However, on Wednesday, Renuka Swamys wife denied claims that her late husband used to send derogatory messages to anyone. My husband called me on June 8 afternoon. If my husband had sent derogatory messages on social media, he should have been given a warning. What was the need to kill him, she said and then added, Whether he is an actor (Darshan) or a star, I want justice.

15 people have been arrested in the case so far including Darshan and his close actress-friend Pavithra. Earlier today, Darshans co-star Pradosh and close aide Nagaraj were also arrested. Police sources claim that Nagaraj was looking after all the dealings of Darshan. He was reportedly also looking after Darshans farmhouse in Mysuru and was on the run ever since police arrested the actor earlier this week. Meanwhile, details about Pradoshs connection to the murder case are not known as of now.
The Supreme Court has imposed a stay on the films release, Hamare Baarah. On Thursday, the apex court called the films teaser offensive and announced that its release must be halted for now. The film was supposed to hit theatres on June 14, 2024.

As reported by Live Law, a vacation bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta imposed a stay on the film while listening to a plea challenging the Bombay High Courts order permitting the release of the Annu Kapoor starrer. Until disposal of the petition before the High Court, screening of the movie in question shall remain suspended, the bench ordered.

Justice Mehta called the films trailer offensive and said, Today morning we have seen the teaser. It is as such with all those objectionable materials. The teaser is available on YouTube.

Last week, The Bombay High Court allowed the release of the movie, Hamare Baarah after the makers agreed to delete two dialogues from the film. The High Court announced its decision and said that it was done only to balance the equities. The court also felt that the film may also be required to be viewed to draw any conclusion with regard to the rival contentions.

Since its announcement, Hamare Baarah, starring Annu Kapoor, Manoj Joshi, and Paritosh Tripathi, has captured the publics attention for its bold narrative. Several people have alleged that there is a glimpse of uncouth crude and communal propaganda in the films trailer. Others argued that Hamare Baarahs trailer is disturbing and can poison the minds of an entire generation. Amidst the raging controversy, the films trailer was abruptly pulled down from online platforms, after releasing on May 30.

Recently, Annu Kapoor also slammed those criticising his film. In an exclusive chat with News18 Showsha, the actor shared that everyone is quick to make judgments on the film even before watching it. He urged people to watch the film first and then make an opinion about it.

At a personal and an impersonal level, Im an atheist. My director and producers thought that I was the right person who would be able to implement their vision on celluloid. So, I tried my best to justify my character. Im not bothered about the rest. Films are a make-believe world where Im chosen as an artist and my job is to justify my art, the actor said.

People talk about propaganda all the time. Im not bothered about it. I would urge people to watch the film first and then decide what our film stands for. They havent watched it, so I dont understand why theyre judging it, he added.

Meanwhile, Hamare Baarah has also been banned in Karnataka.
Kangana Ranaut has said that she felt violated when her Mumbai house was demolished in 2020 by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) amid her battle with Shiv Sena. Recently, the actress-turned-politician appeared on The Himachali Podcast when she talked about the incident and shared that she was left violently broken after it.

I felt quite violated, it felt like a lot of violence was unleashed on me. A house is an extension of you, but mine was violently broken, it felt like a personal attack at that time. My takeaway from that incident was how many people supported me in Maharashtra, and to what extent India supported me. Everybody knows the Shiv Sena incident, and people have told me I am courageous. There is a certain fan following of that incident, Kangana said as quoted by Hindustan Times.

Asked if she joined politics because of the incident, Kangana added, Contrary to everyones belief, my idea of doing anything new in life never stemmed from any bitterness, negativity drains me. Even when I said that after Amitabh Bachchan, if somebody gets immense respect, it is me, I still stand by that.

Earlier this month, Kangana Ranaut won the Lok Sabha elections from Himachal Pradeshs Mandi constituency. She defeated her closest rival Vikramaditya Singh of Congress by a margin of over 74,000 votes to become an MP. After her win, Kangana took to her Instagram handle to thank the people of her constituency. Heartfelt gratitude to all the people of Mandi for this love and trust This victory belongs to all of you, this is the victory of your trust in Prime Minister Modi and BJP, this is the victory of Sanatan and in the honour of Mandi, she wrote.

Later on June 6, Kangana Ranaut was travelling to New Delhi when she was slapped by an on-duty female CISF constable at the Chandigarh Airport. The female CISF staff identified as Kulwinder Kaur was unhappy with Kangnas comment on Punjab ladies during the farmers agitation against the three farm laws, suggesting they participated in the protest for money. The lady constable was then arrested.

Kangana also issued a video statement later to talk about the incident and questioned terrorism in Punjab. Namastey dosto! I have been getting a lot of phone calls from the media and my well-wishers. I am safe, I am perfectly fine. What happened at the Chandigarh airport today was during the security check. When I left after the security check, the CISF personnel hit me on my face. She abused me. When I asked her why she did it, she told me that she supports farmers protests. I am safe but my concern is, how do we handle terror in Punjab? she said.

Meanwhile, on the work front, Kangana Ranaut will soon be seen in Emergency.
Kareena Kapoor Khan and Saif Ali Khan made a stylish appearance with their sons Taimur and Jeh at the airport today. The couple was seen twinning in white as they got papped. Looks like the Pataudi family is headed for a vacation. The video has gone viral and fans are also seen reacting to it.

In the video, shared by Viral Bhayani, we can see Kareena Kapoor Khan wearing a white colour tee paired with denim. She completed the look with a green colour jacket. Saif kept it comfy and opted for a white tee and denim. Taimur and Jeh were looking cute. Fans send heart emojis to the couple.

Watch the video here:

View this post on Instagram A post shared by Viral Bhayani (@viralbhayani)

On the professional front, Kareena was recently seen in the comedy-drama film Crew. The film also featured Tabu, Kriti Sanon, Diljit Dosanjh and Kapil Sharma in pivotal roles. Helmed by Rajesh A Krishnan, the film garnered widespread acclaim from critics and audiences.

She will be next seen in director Rohit Shettys upcoming action drama film Singham Again which also stars Ajay Devgn, Deepika Padukone, Tiger Shroff, Arjun Kapoor, Ranveer Singh and Akshay Kumar in the lead roles.

While Saif Ali Khan will be next seen in Devara with Jr NTR and Janhvi Kapoor. He has recently wrapped shooting of his next upcoming film Jewel Thief. The film has been making headlines after Siddharth Anand shared the first photos with the actor from Budapest. Kunal Kapoor took to his Instagram handle to announce the wrap. In the photos, Saif Ali Khan is seen with Nikita Dutta, director Robbie Grewal and others.

Kunal Kapoor shared the photos with a fun caption. Im the senior most actor so i think I should be the one to announce its a wrap But Im the director and what happened to ladies first Ok lets all just compromise and do a group photo to call it! Or better still, lets just get the whole unit together to say its a wrap people the caption read. As soon as the photos went viral, fans were seen reacting. Many wrote excited and some even dropped heart emojis.
Actress Kiara Advani got emotional as she celebrated her 10 years in Bollywood with fans. The Kabir Singh star organised a fan-meet on Thursday, June 13, marking the milestone in her career. Later, she took to her Instagram account to share a reel featuring several candid moments from the fan-meet. In the reel, Kiara broke down in tears while talking to her fans. She also cut a huge cake which had photos of her characters that shes played over the years. In the video, Kiara is also heard jokingly telling her team that she used to do shows for her family. She then showed them a video from her childhood wherein a young Kiara can be seen performing.

Sharing the heartwarming reel, Kiara wrote, 13th June 2014. 10 years and it feels like it was just yesterday Im still that girl, deep down in my heart who gets excited to perform for her family.. only now my family is much bigger as each one of you is a part of it. Grateful for all the blessings, the prayers, the love, the dreams, the experiences, the memories, the smiles, the tears, the learnings, the journey, the movies, the characters I get to play ,my directors, producers, co-actors, mentors, teachers, critics , the audience, my family, my fans and to each one of you who has made this dream come true! Thank you for your continued support and love.

Earlier, Sidharth Malhotra took to his Instagram Stories and shared a post about 10 years of Kiara Advani in Bollywood. The actor heaped praise on his actress-wife as she completed a decade in the Indian film industry.

The Yodha actor shared a post which featured a magazine cover of his wife posing with him. The cover caption read, The Bravehearts Sidharth Malhotra and Kiara Advani all set to tell a heroic tale with Amazon Prime Videos Shershaah. Sidharth captioned his post as, Cheers to a decade of hard-work, love and passion! Keep shining! @kiaraaliaadvani! (smiling and heart emojis) #10YearsOfKiaraAdvani.

Kiara Advani made her Bollywood debut with Fugly. However, she shot to fame with movies such as MS Dhoni  The Untold Story, Lust Stories, Kabir Singh and Good Newwz. She will next be seen in Shankars political action-thriller Game Changer alongside Ram Charan. She is also doing Don 3 with Ranveer Singh and War 2 with Hrithik Roshan and Jr NTR.
Aamir Khans mother Zeenat Hussain is celebrating her 90th birthday on June 13. If the reports are to be believed, the family is planning a grand celebration to mark the special day. But ahead of that, Aamirs ex-wife Kiran Rao and daughter Ira Khan shared their heartfelt wishes through social media.

On Instagram, Kiran Rao, former daughter-in-law of Zeenat Aman, celebrated Zeenats birthday by sharing a picture with the caption, Happy Birthday Ammi. Joining the celebrations, Aamir Khans daughter Ira posted a heartwarming photo showing Zeenat Hussain seated in a chair with Iras mother-in-law, Pritam Shikhare, lovingly kissing her forehead. Ira captioned it, Happy Birthday Dadi accompanied by a red heart emoji.

Take a look:

If the reports are to be believed, the family is planning a grand celebration to mark the special day. A source close to the actor even informed that Aamir Khan will fly in 200+ family members and friends from different cities to celebrate his mothers birthday.

As quoted by Pinkvilla, the source said, She has been unwell for over a year. Now that she has recovered and is doing well, everyone wanted to have a large get-together. Family and friends from all over India will gather to celebrate this special day. People are coming from Banaras, Bengaluru, Lucknow, Mysore, and other cities. Reportedly, the grand birthday celebrations are likely to take place at Aamirs residence in Mumbai.

Aamir shares a deeply warm bond with his mother Zeenat. The actor has often highlighted the integral role his mother plays in both his personal and professional life. He even takes suggestions on scripts and roles from his mother. In an earlier interview, the actor even shared his decision to take a break from his career to be with his ageing mother.

Underscoring the respect for her mother, Aamir Khan added, When I am doing a film as an actor, I get so lost in that that nothing else happens in my life. I was supposed to do a film after Laal Singh Chaddha called Champions. Its a wonderful script, a beautiful story, and its a very heartwarming and lovely film. But I feel that I want to take a break, be with my family, with my mom, my kids.

Work-wise, Aamir Khan is currently filming for a social dramedy titled Sitaare Zameen Par. He wrapped the Delhi schedule a few weeks back and headed to Vadodara for further shooting. Meanwhile, Sitaare Zameen Par is expected to focus on Down Syndrome. Besides the Mann actor, the film will feature Genelia Deshmukh as the female lead in the film.
Ram Gopal Varma weighed in on the Darshan murder case. For the unversed, Kannada actor Thoogudeepa and his wife Pavithra Gowda have been arrested in connection with the death of Renuka Swamy, an employee of a pharmacy. He allegedly used to send vulgar messages to Kannada actress Pavithra Gowad, a friend of Darshan. While investigation is still underway, RGV took to X and called the turn of events a bizarreness of the star worship syndrome.

A film maker is supposed to start shoot only after the screenplay is finalised but lots of times makers still are writing when shooting is going on but in DARSHAN s murder case the screenplay started getting written after the film already released, the Rangeela director said.

A star using one die hard fan to kill another die hard fan who was interfering in his personal life is a fit example of the bizarreness of the star worship syndrome ..Fans wanting to order how their stars should run their lives is a unavoidable side effect of the same syndrome, he added.

A film maker is supposed to start shoot only after the screenplay is finalised but lots of times makers still are writing when shooting is going on but in DARSHAN s murder case the screenplay started getting written after the film already released Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) June 13, 2024

A star using one die hard fan to kill another die hard fan who was interfering in his personal life is a fit example of the bizarreness of the star worship syndrome ..Fans wanting to order how their stars should run their lives is a unavoidable side effect of the same syndrome Ram Gopal Varma (@RGVzoomin) June 13, 2024

It has been reported that Renuka, the victim of the case, used to send vulgar messages to Kannada actress Pavithra Gowad. Angry with this behaviour, Renuka was murdered and his dead body was allegedly thrown in a canal at Kamaksshipalya, Bengaluru in front of Darshan.

The victims body at the Sumanahalli Bridge in Bengaluru on June 8, 2024. It is said that a wooden log was used to fatally injure him. The perpetrators intended to dispose of the body in the Vrushabhavati valley, but it was discovered stuck and being tampered with by dogs. It is claimed that eight of the accused have implicated Darshan, claiming his presence during Renuka Swamys assault.

Darshan was arrested by the Bengaluru police from Mysuru on Tuesday (June 11). He was then brought to Bengaluru and sent to 6-day police custody. Police officials are investigating the actors involvement in the Renuka Swamy murder case. Darshans phone has also been seized by the Karnataka police. Pavithra has also been taken into custody.
Kannada star Darshan Thoogudeepa, dubbed as Challenging Star, was arrested for his alleged involvement in the murder of Renuka Swamy. The actor was arrested from his Mysuru farmhouse on Tuesday. Apart from him, his co-star and girlfriend, Pavithra Gowda and 11 others have been arrested.

Now, as per reports, All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha has demanded that the actor, his girlfriend and all those who have been accused in the case should get severe punishment.

As per reports, the All India Veerashaiva Mahasabha has demanded strict actions against the actor and accused in the Chitradurga murder case of Renuka Swamy. They further issued a press statement regarding the case and gave a warning to the state government that they would fight for justice across the state if the case was neglected. In a press release, they further urged the state government to award severe punishment to the perpetrators and all those who helped in the act.

They further sought justice for Renuka Swamys family including his three-month pregnant wife. They offered to stand with the family of the deceased and urged the state government to offer necessary assistance to the family. The Mahasabha in its press release also mentioned that they share the grief of Renuka Swamys family.

Renuka Swamy lived in Chitradurga and allegedly sent lewd and obscene messages to Pavithra Gowdas social media posts. Reportedly, the actress instigated the actor to punish him. As per reports, Darshan hired Raghu, a member of his fan club in Chitradurga to get intel about Renuka Swamy. The deceaseds wife further confirmed that it was indeed Raghu who picked up her husband.

As per reports, Renuka Swamy was kidnapped and taken to a shed in Bengaluru where he was thrashed with a belt and beaten with sticks until he fell unconscious. Later, his body was allegedly dumped in the stormwater drain where dogs were found nibbling on his body. As per reports, Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerces President NM Suresh condemned the act and spoke strongly about Darshans alleged involvement. If the charges are proven right, he will be banned from the industry.
Hours after Sonakshi Sinha and Zaheer Iqbals wedding invite leaked online, Shatrughan Sinha opened up about Sonakshis wedding day. The actor-politician clarified that he was neither confirming nor denying the news of her marriage. However, if and when it happens, he will be a happy father. He also said that regardless of who she chooses to marry, the family would be supportive of her decision.

I am neither confirming nor denying her wedding news. Time will tell. She will always have my blessings, Shatrughan told The Times of India. Sonakshi is the apple of my eye. She is my only daughter and very close to me. I am a proud father because, over the years, she has also grown as an actor. From Lootere to Dahaad to now Heeramandi, she has proved to be a fantastic actor, he added.

If my daughter is getting married, I will give her my blessings and support her decision and choice. Sonakshi has the right to choose her companion, and I will be the happiest father on her wedding day. I will always wish her the best ek hi toh beti hai meri, Shatrughan said.

Previously, Shatrughan spoke with Times Now and confessed that he wasnt aware about her wedding. I am being asked by people close to me why I am not aware of this (the supposed wedding), and the media is aware of it. All I can say is, aaj kal ke bachche consent nahin lete maa-baap ke, sirf inform karte hain. We are waiting to be informed, he said.

Earlier in the day, it was released that Sonakshi Sinha and Zaheer Iqbal are tying the knot on June 23. Their leaked wedding invite confirmed the wedding plan. As per the leaked invite, the party will take place at Bollywood actress Shilpa Shettys restaurant Bastian in Mumbai. The dress code for the evening is formal and festive. The card also has the rumours were true written on it.

A recent report in Zoom suggested that Sonakshi and Zaheer will have a registered marriage, followed by a reception party on June 23. I have received an invitation to celebrate with the couple on the evening of June 23, Sonakshis friend told Zoom. But theres no mention of an actual wedding. From what I know, they have already gone through a registered marriage, or may do so on the morning of June 23. But theres not going to be any elaborative wedding as such, just a party.
BEIJING, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has encouraged Andrew Chi-Chih Yao, a professor of Tsinghua University, to further contribute to the nation's talent development and sci-tech innovation.

Xi, also general secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks in a reply letter recently sent to Yao, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences who returned to China and commenced his teaching career at Tsinghua 20 years ago.

In the reply letter, Xi conveyed greetings to Yao, acknowledging his unwavering dedication and remarkable achievements in the realms of teaching and scientific innovation over the past two decades, during which Yao channeled his love for the nation into a commitment to serve it.

Xi expressed the hope that Yao could adhere to his original aspiration and leverage his strengths to further explore approaches to the cultivation of innovative talent, and foster interdisciplinary integration and frontier innovation, in order to make more contributions to achieving high-level self-reliance and strength in science and technology and the building of a strong nation in both education and science and technology.

Yao, who taught at U.S. universities for a long time, returned to China in 2004 to join the faculty at Tsinghua. In a recent letter addressed to Xi, he detailed his work in talent cultivation and scientific innovation during his two-decade tenure, and expressed his determination to contribute to the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Yao, 78, is dean of College of AI and also dean of the Institute for Interdisciplinary Information Sciences under Tsinghua University.
The 2024 general elections in India taught many lessons to regional and national parties and their leaders. Some political parties, such as the BSP, BJD, AIADMK, and YSRCP experienced setbacks, while the BJP achieved a historic victory by forming its first government in Odisha.

Interestingly, the Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh have provided many lessons and directions for political parties and analysts.

Freebies alone will not make you win

In 2019, one month before the Lok Sabha elections, then-Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh Chandrababu Naidu distributed Rs 10,000 to each woman through the Pasupu Kumkama scheme. However, voters rejected him, electing Jagan Mohan Reddy, who campaigned on the slogan One Chance Please. During his five-year tenure, Reddy focused heavily on direct cash transfers to the public, framing them as initiatives for the welfare of the poor. While these initiatives held some appeal, voters ultimately became dissatisfied, desiring more substantial actions to improve infrastructure, generate employment, attract investments, and drive overall development. Unfortunately, Reddy overlooked these concerns, placing excessive reliance on welfare politics. This ultimately led to his defeat in the 2024 general assembly elections.

People are against vendetta politics

Upon assuming office as chief minister, YS Reddy ordered the demolition of Praja Vedika, a government convention hall constructed during the previous Naidu administration, alleging illegal construction. The subsequent arrest of numerous Opposition leaders, including TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu and the TDP state president, generated sympathy for the TDP. Personal attacks targeting actor-politician Pawan Kalyan and his party cadre across the state are believed to have contributed to his alliance with Chandrababu Naidu. Additionally, Jagan Reddy encouraged some of his leaders to attack opponents in an indecent manner. Notably, several of these YSRCP figures, known for using inflammatory language against Opposition leaders, faced defeat in the recent elections.

Politicians must recognise that the public is closely observing their actions and will hold them accountable in due course. The YS Vivekananda Reddy murder case cast a shadow of doubt and suspicion on the YSRCP leadership. While Jagan Mohan Reddys sister, YS Sharmila, did not secure victory in her electoral debut in the Kadapa Lok Sabha constituency this year, her statements created a narrative that YSRCP leadership is behind the murder of YS Vivekananda Reddy.

Hope for the young and meritorious people

Andhra Pradesh is notorious for its high-cost political landscape. MLA and MP candidates often spend tens of crores of rupees on campaigns, gifts, and even cash handouts to voters. This creates a significant barrier to entry for young, meritorious candidates who lack substantial financial resources. However, the recent election offered a glimmer of hope for such individuals, as voters elected many new faces to the Assembly, prioritising merit over financial influence. Despite widespread attempts to sway voters through monetary incentives, the electorate clearly demonstrated their preference for a different kind of leadership.

Authoritarian approach

Many political leaders prioritise public engagement while in Opposition, often embarking on yatras to connect with citizens. However, upon assuming power, some become less accessible, limiting interactions with both the public and their party workers. This shift can lead to perceptions of authoritarianism and detachment. Critics have levelled such charges against leaders like Jagan Reddy and KCR. Some even perceive Narendra Modi as exhibiting authoritarian tendencies, citing his strong leadership style. However, Modi leverages social media effectively to maintain a degree of public accessibility. Furthermore, he continues to engage with citizens through rallies and gatherings even outside of election cycles.

Due to disenchanted government employees and the control over the political affairs of the state by particular caste leaders, Naidu in 2019, KCR in 2023, and YS Jagan in 2024 saw significant losses.

Road ahead for the new government

Following his decisive victory, Chandrababu Naidu made a bold move by appointing 17 new faces to his 24-member cabinet, overlooking several senior figures like Kala Venkata Rao, Ganta Srinivasa Rao, C. Ayyannapatrudu, P. Pulla Rao, and D. Narendra. This decision suggests an effort to cultivate a new generation of leaders, potentially with an eye toward the political future of his son, Nara Lokesh. However, the new government faces a crucial question: will it prioritise pursuing a forward-looking agenda focused on progress and development, or will it be drawn into retaliatory actions against Jagan Reddy and his supporters? Focusing on retribution could alienate some segments of the electorate, while prioritising development and wealth creation might resonate more broadly with the public.

Andhra Pradeshs per capita income lags behind neighbouring southern states like Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, partly due to the absence of major metropolitan cities like Bengaluru, Chennai, and Hyderabad. To bridge this gap, the new government will need to prioritise attracting investments, fostering a business-friendly environment, generating revenue, and potentially developing new urban cities. However, implementing Chandrababu Naidus ambitious Super Six Guarantees social welfare programs, as outlined in his partys manifesto, will pose a significant challenge given the states current financial constraints. To fulfill his electoral promises, Naidu will have to concentrate on wealth creation.

The 2019 elections highlighted the importance of navigating national political dynamics, and Naidu appears to be taking a more pragmatic approach this time, recognising the need for a constructive relationship with the Central government to advance the states interests. Meanwhile, Jagan Reddys leadership style, perceived by some as heavy-handed and focused on political retribution, may have contributed to his electoral setback. In contrast, Chandrababu Naidu seems to be shifting away from a reliance on freebies and confrontational politics, aiming instead to foster an image of stability, development, and long-term growtha strategy that could benefit both his party and his sons political future.

The author is Dr. K. Venkatakrishna Rao, Assistant Professor, IIITDM, Kurnool and Visiting Fellow, India Foundation, New Delhi. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views.
While the BJP is claiming that the national elections are a victory, enabling Narendra Modi to become the Prime Minister for a historic third time, and the Opposition is triumphant over its increased numbers and the fact that the BJP could not win a simple majority, a far cry from the clarion call of 400 paar, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat has finally broken his silence. What he said is of seminal importance, for all political parties, but in particular for the BJP.

Bhagwat speaks rarely, but when he does, he has a purpose. This is because the RSS, as the ideological mentor for the idea of Hindutva, and the alumni for BJP leaders, thinks long-term, beyond the expediency of short-term political gains. Modis impressive two-term absolute majorities were, from its point of view, positive. It helped in providing political heft to the RSS ideology. But this does not mean that the RSS will become perennially mute due to the dominance of one BJP leader, even if he is still, by far, the most popular leader in India.

The latest elections have shown that Modis appeal is diminishing, and his brand has lost some of its sheen. The shrillness of the Hindu-Muslim narrative has become fatiguing, distasteful and repetitive. Indians do not have a Jihadi mindset. They do not want the endemic instability created by mindless bigotry and hatred.

It is in this context that Bhagwat has spoken. The RSS is aware that for PM Modi, the challenge now is to show the ability to run a coalition government. During his years as the chief minister of Gujarat from 2001 to 2014 and as the prime minister from 2014 to 2024 with an absolute majority, he has not had the opportunity to run a mili-juli sarkar. Instinctively, he is a leader who seeks complete control over the government, a tendency evident in the new cabinets portfolio allocation.

The BJPs strategic dominance across key sectors has been reaffirmed, while allies have largely been accommodated with minor portfolios. Some allies have been excluded entirely, and others are dissatisfied with the number of cabinet positions offered. Nitish Kumar is notorious for his fickle loyalties, and Naidu will see everything from the prism of what is being done for Andhra Pradesh. These are challenges which the coalition will have to negotiate. It is significant too that there is not a single representation in the government, from Indias largest minority, the Muslims, a situation starkly in contrast to the principle of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vishwas.

Mohan Bhagwats pointed and relevant message has to be seen in this overall context. He emphasised that we must respect diversity, live together, and respect others too. He advised Indians to embrace goodwill to all, and work towards consensus (sehmati). In the specific context of religion, he said: We need to reflect on the teachings of Prophet Mohammad and Jesus Christ. Over time distortions have emerged. We must forget these distortions and treat the sons of our country as brothers. (Emphasis mine).

Nor did he mince words on some issues the current government has unpardonably ignored. One of these is the continuing violence in Manipur for over a year, despite which the BJP chief minister has been retained, and the PM has not had the time to visit the strife-torn state even once. The RSS chief bluntly said that this is unacceptable, and that a solution must be found in Manipur on a priority basis.

Bhagwat also commented on the ahankaar or ego and arrogance that besets leaders. Of course, this can be interpreted as a generic statement relevant to all leaders, but I think his intended target was clear. In the elections, Modi had become both the sole mascot and the ubiquitous face of the BJP, to the extent that the party was almost invisibilised. Even the BJP manifesto was called Modi Ki Guarantee. Many BJP stalwarts were treated shabbily, the cadre appeared to be demoralised, and seat allocations were doneas some allegeat the will of the high command.

In a particularly telling sentence, therefore, Bhagwat said: Jo karm karta hai, par karm mein lipt nahin hota, usmein ahankar nahi hota, wahi sevak kehlane ka adhikari hota hai (Only he who practices karma, but does so selflessly without an ego, deserves to be called a true sevak).

Even on the inauguration of the Ayodhya Ram Mandir, Bhagwat in his speech, without triumphalism, was emphasising the need to carry all Indians along, and shed hatred. He cited a stanza from Tulsidass Ramcharitmanas on what are the defining characteristics of Ram Rajya: Sab nara karahin paraspar priti (all will have mutual respect for each other).

It is significant that in the latest edition of the RSS publication, Organiser, RSS intellectual Ratan Sharda asks the revealing question: Was it lethargy, overconfidence, or a sense of comfort that aayega toh Modi hi, abki baar 400+? Sharda further commented that the idea that Modiji is fighting on all 543 seats has a limited value. The idea became self-defeating when candidates were changed, imposed at the cost of local leaders, and defectors were given more importance. Sacrificing even well-performing parliamentarians to accommodate latecomers hurt.

Will the BJP heed the advice of the RSS and its leader Mohan Bhagwat, or dismiss it? And, above all, will the party learn the great legacy of coalition dharma bequeathed by one of its tallest leaders, Atal Bihari Vajpayee?

The author is a former diplomat, an author and a politician. Views expressed in the above piece are personal and solely that of the author. They do not necessarily reflect News18s views.
A week after the Lok Sabha election 2024 results that brought 29 seats for West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjees Trinamool Congress in the state, seven seats more than her partys seat tally in the last general election, her nephew and partys national general secretary Abhishek Banerjee, in a post on social media, has announced his short hiatus from the organisation citing pressing medical reasons. According to the sources in the party, the MP is likely to skip the first Parliamentary sessions after the formation of the new government and also the Budget Session scheduled in July.

Even though Abhishek Banerjee has taken medical breaks for his treatment abroad earlier too, this is the first time he has made such a public announcement and called it a hiatus.

A section in Bengal political circles and in his party are abuzz over this sudden political announcement. Banerjee is also the Trinamool candidate who won his seat Diamond Harbour by a record margin of 7,10,930 votes defeating Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)s Abhijit Das. This is believed to be the highest victory margin for any political party in the region.

In light of some pressing medical reasons, I will be taking a short hiatus from the organisation. This time off will be an opportunity for me to humbly explore and understand the needs of our people and community. I trust that GoWB will act swiftly and leave no stone unturned to ensure justice for those in need, Banerjee wrote concluding his post on the X (formerly twitter ) platform on June 12.

He also mentioned about his partys work and the movement his party did under his leadership to bring the states dues under the MGNREGA scheme from the Centre.

Last year around this time, I had the opportunity to participate in Nabo Jowar Yatra (a campaign programme to build ground connect and traveled across West Bengal to understand the issues and challenges faced by people on the ground. Witnessing firsthand the hardships caused by Rising Prices and the stoppage of MGNREGA dues deeply affected me. In response, AITC organised statewide protests and took the matter to Delhi to fight for peoples rights. Thankfully, this was addressed in February, along with an increase in financial assistance through the Lakshmir Bhandar scheme to help families, he wrote in the post.

Last year around this time, I had the opportunity to participate in NABOJOWAR Yatra and traveled across West Bengal to understand the issues and challenges faced by people on the ground. Witnessing firsthand the hardships caused by RISING PRICES and the stoppage of MGNREGA dues Abhishek Banerjee (@abhishekaitc) June 12, 2024

I am profoundly grateful to the people of Bengal for their trust and faith in us. The results of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections reflect the anger and frustration of the people, especially regarding the neglect of basic housing rights due to the state-centre conflict. We have committed to addressing this by December 31, and I have already requested the HCM and relevant authorities of GoWB to prioritise this issue, he added.

The Whispers in Corridors

Party insiders claim that there has been a difference of opinion between the leaders of Trinamool Congress  Mamata Banerjee and her political heir Abhishek. Even though the candidate list for general elections carried a large political imprint of Abhishek with many fresh and young faces on the list, there are some Trinamool veterans, who continued to be the candidates despite his resistance.

The state saw a factional feud like situation between two sections of Trinamool Congress over the candidature of senior Trinamool MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay in the North Kolkata seat. Kunal Ghosh, partys former state secretary, quit his positions of state secretary and partys spokesperson, addressed media about Sudip Bandhyopadhyays ineffective political decisions and incapability of running the party in his constituency.

He was called BJPs agent as well. Ghosh, who is known to be a close associate of Abhishek, spoke against the MP elect in some interviews in regional news channels. As a follow up disciplinary action, Ghosh was formally shunted out of his position of being the spokesperson of the party through an official letter undersigned by Trinamools Rajya Sabha MP and leader of the party in the RS, Derek O Brien.

After so much internal opposition by a section in Trinamool Congress, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee appointed Sudip Bandyopadhyay as the leader of AITC parliamentary party in Lok Sabha. According to the insiders, Banerjees decision irked Abhishek. Later, the party supremo also denied to field a candidate suggested by Abhishek for the Bengal bypoll.

Episodic Disagreements

Even though Didi in her first press conference after the results, got Abhishek alongside her and credited his efforts, the young leader feels that his political authority has been challenged by a few decisions. He might be upset and that is why he wants to take a break while we all know that the medical reasons are genuine too. However, the tone and tenor of the posts suggest otherwise. There has been a tiff, said a senior leader and former MP.

Another leader, who is also a minister in Banerjees cabinet said that there was no need to read too much between the lines.

Abhishek is Didis bloodline. They have the most cordial terms. There are certain disagreements, which is normal between a young and a veteran. Didi always wants to be loyal to her old comrades, who have been there with her during the days of her struggle. Abhishek wants more fresh and young blood. As far as the disagreements are concerned, it seems episodic to us, said the leader.

Significantly, such instances of political differences between the aunt and the nephew are not new. There have been some instances in 2021 post assembly elections and post 2016 assembly elections as well. The minister finally summed up saying all is well, nothing to worry.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawars wife Sunetra Pawar on Thursday filed papers as NCP candidate for Rajya Sabha elections.

Senior party leader and state minister Chhagan Bhujbal said that though he was keen on contesting the polls, he was not upset with Sunetra Pawars nomination, which he described as a collective decision.

In the just-concluded Lok Sabha elections, Sunetra Pawar lost from the Baramati constituency, where her sister-in-law Supriya Sule registered her fourth consecutive win.

The NCP has decided to field Sunetra Pawar for Rajya Sabha elections. Even I was keen on contesting the elections, but during a meeting on Wednesday evening, party leaders finalised her name, said state minister and senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal here.

The Rajya Sabha secretariat has notified ten vacancies in the Upper House, including two each in Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra, and one each in Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Tripura.

Asked if key posts were going to one family, Bhujbal said Ajit Pawar did not decide Sunetra Pawars nomination.

The decision to field Sunetra Pawar was taken by the partys core group. It was not decided him (Ajit Pawar) alone. It was a collective decision, Bhujbal said.

The vacancies in the Rajya Sabha arose after some of its members, including Piyush Goyal and Udayanraje Bhonsle from Maharashtra, were elected to the Lok Sabha.

Asked whether he was disappointed over not being fielded in the Rajya Sabha polls, Bhujbal said, Can you see it on my face? I have learnt to respect collective decision-making and have been doing it for the past 57 years. Be it Shiv Sena or NCP, decisions are taken after discussions with people and not as per one persons will. Earlier, Bhujbal was keen on contesting the Lok Sabha polls from the Nashik constituency, but NCPs alliance partner Shiv Sena led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde fielded its candidate from there. The seat was won by Uddhav Thackerays Shiv Sena (UBT).
A Bengaluru court on Thursday issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against former Karnataka CM and BJP leader BS Yediyurappa in a POCSO case.

Meanwhile, Yediyurappa approached the Karnataka High Court seeking anticipatory bail in the case.

The Criminal Investigation Department (CID), probing the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) case against Yediyurappa, had earlier summoned him for questioning. He, however, had sought time to appear before the investigation officer of the CID.

The BJP veteran, who is also a member of the partys parliamentary board, is presently in Delhi, and he is likely to join the probe after he returns, sources close to him have told PTI.

According to police, Yediyurappa has been booked under the POCSO Act and Section 354 A (Sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) based on a complaint by the mother of a 17-year-old girl who alleged that he sexually assaulted her daughter during a meeting on February two this year, at his residence in Dollars Colony in Bengaluru.

On March 14, hours after the Sadashivanagar police registered the case, the Karnataka Director General of Police Alok Mohan issued an order transferring it to the CID for further investigation with immediate effect.

The 54-year-old woman, who had leveled the charge against Yediyurappa, died at a private hospital here last month, due to lung cancer.

The 81-year-old Yediyurappa had earlier denied the charge and said he would fight the case legally.

In April, the CID collected the voice sample of Yediyurappa after summoning him to the office.
Food tastes differ from one person to another. While some have a special fondness for sweet delicacies, others are more inclined towards spicy flavours. In terms of spicy foods, it is important to understand how spice levels can impact your body. Too much spice can affect health. Now, the Danish government has recalled three popular spicy noodles imported from Seoul-based Samyang Foods. As per the government, the food product can lead to the risk of acute poisoning. The authorities have advised consumers to avoid eating these noodles and return them to retailers.

According to a report by BBC, the noodles that are facing backlash include Buldak Samyang 3 x Spicy & Hot Chicken, Buldak Samyang 2 x Spicy & Hot Chicken, and Buldak Samyang Hot Chicken Stew. Research has discovered that these noodles contain a high amount of capsaicin which is a chemical compound in chilli peppers. If not used in minimal quantities they have the potential to poison consumers.

As per the Danish Veterinary and Food Administration ((DVFA), capsaicin acts as a neurotoxin and can have adverse effects on health. Some symptoms of poisoning in children, immunity-compromised adults, and the elderly population are nausea, vomiting, abdominal pain, high blood pressure, and diarrhoea.

The DTU Food Institute assesses that the levels of total capsaicin in a single pack of all three noodle products are so high that they pose a risk that the consumer develops acute poisoning, reported BBC as quoted by (DVFA).

Reacting to the latest development, Samyang, the official maker of the noodles, has challenged the claims of the (DVFA), reported BBC.

Addressing the issue in a statement, the company said, We understand that the Danish food authority recalled the products, not because of a problem in their quality but because they were too spicy. The products are being exported globally. But this is the first time they have been recalled for the above reason.

Earlier in 2021, the Mexican government also ordered a recall of Buldak noodles for misleading customers with their labels. The reason behind the withdrawal of the noodles was that the product did not contain chicken despite being labelled as hot chicken flavour ramen.
Several parts of Delhi are reeling under a severe water crisis at the moment. As taps run dry, people depend on water tanker services to fill buckets and water pitchers for use. Now a concerning video that shows how people are ready to risk it all for water is going viral. The video shows 10 to 15 people chasing a water tanker and climbing on top of it even before the tanker comes to a halt. It shows how desperate people are for usable water. The video was recorded in Chanakyapuris Vivekananda Camp.

The video also showed policemen standing at the scene even as people risked their lives by climbing the water tanker. So far it has gathered over 2.9 lakh views since it was shared on June 13.

#WATCH | Delhi: People queue up near a water tanker to fill water in Chanakyapuri's Vivekananda Camp as water crisis continues in the National Capital. pic.twitter.com/XX7Pg83gaC ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2024

The video has prompted several responses from people who are criticising the government for poor water management. An X user remarked, Whats even more concerning is the gap in water supply between rich neighbourhoods & slums. While the wealthy have continuous running water & can afford expensive private tankers, the underprivileged dont have these luxuries. Many people in unauthorized colonies have to rely on unsafe water sources, which can lead to water-borne diseases like cholera, diarrhoea, dysentery, hepatitis A, & typhoid.

What's even more concerning is the gap in water supply between rich neighborhoods & slums.While the wealthy have continuous running water & can afford expensive private tankers, the underprivileged dont have these luxuries. Many people in unauthorized colonies have to rely  Amit Misra (@amit6060) June 13, 2024

Another person wrote, Only people who have been in this kind of situation realise the hardships people go through. When water becomes your war cry, what else do you want to achieve in life.

Only people who have been in this kind of situation realise the hardships people go through. When water becomes your war cry, what else you would want to achieve in life. Rohini Thakur (@rohini_thakur91) June 13, 2024

Someone else commented, Ive spent three years in Raj Nagar part-2, New Delhi and I must say those were the worst days of my life from April to August I used to buy 4 bottles of 20 litres of water and I used it for all my household work. Worst worst place.

I've spent three years in Raj Nagar part-2, New Delhi and I must say those were worst days of my life from April to August I used to buy 4 bottles of 20lits water and I used it for all my house hold works. Worst worst place  Shipra (@Shipra895) June 13, 2024

An X user wrote, India is going to celebrate 77th Independence Day this year. But still, we are seeing these visuals in the National capital of India. Its so shameful and heart-wrenching.

India is going to celebrate 77th Independence Day this year. But still we are seeing these visuals in the National capital of India it's so, shameful and heart wrenching. Vishal Kanojia (@Vishal0700) June 13, 2024

Someone saw a positive thing in the above-mentioned video and wrote, Example of a perfect coordinated effort. Youngsters are climbing up the tanker with pipes and elderly, clinging to their water pitchers filling from the respective pipes. Here there are no Hindus, Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhist Congress, BJP, Samajwadi Party or BSP. Everybody is a human being with a common cause.

Example of a perfect coordinated effort. Youngsters are climbing up the tanker with pipes and elderly, clinging their water pitchers filling from the respective pipes. Here there are no Hindus, Muslims, Christian, Sikhs, Jains, Buddhist Congress, BJP, Samajwadi party or BSP.  Debashish Bose (@DebashishBose_) June 13, 2024

On Wednesday, the Supreme Court slammed the Delhi government for refusing to tackle the problem of tanker mafia and water shortage. Water is engulfed by tanker mafia and youre not taking any action, the bench, presided over by Justice PK Mishra, said while hearing the Delhi governments plea for the release of water from Himachal Pradesh.
A Tamil Nadu roadways bus crashed into a roadside shop soon after it left from the nearby bus stand in the Dindigul district. The driver lost control and collided with the opposite sweet shop. The unexpected collision damaged the front part of the shop. Fortunately, the woman working inside suffered only minor injuries and was quickly taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.

According to The Hindu, the bus left from Periyakulam around 6 AM and travelled approximately 210 kilometres without any problems. However, the accident took place at around 1:45 PM as the bus was leaving the Dindigul bus station in Theni.

Reports suggest that the driver was allegedly speeding and not following traffic rules, which led to a direct crash into the shop instead of making the left turn. Following the accident, the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation, Dindigul Region, stated that the accident involving a TNSTC bus was a result of human error. The transport corporation claimed that the driver failed to follow road safety rules, leading to the unfortunate incident. They further highlighted the careless attitude of the bus driver as the primary cause of the accident and mentioned that the action had been initiated against him.

View this post on Instagram A post shared by KS / Karthigaichelvan S (@karthigaichelvan)

Reacting to the post, a user wrote, God saved her.

Another shared, Thank goodness. Happy that she is safe and the lady immediately moved away.

Attack 200% Damage 0%, a comment read.

Another wrote, Government buses are not properly maintained.

An individual humorously shared, The aunty used spidey sense.

One more joked, 2 packet chips please.

Earlier, in another tragic incident, a Noida momo-seller lost his life and two others were injured when a private bus crashed into the wall of a residential complex in Sector 118. According to a police officer, the three men from Nepal were selling momos outside Sriram Society when the collision happened at around 7 PM.

The bus, carrying employees of a private company, lost control before crashing into the wall. People gathered at the spot claimed there were close to 25 people on the bus, including the driver. While attempting to turn towards Sector 122 from a junction, the driver lost control, which led to a tragic accident in front of the society.
One might assume that securing someone like Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, to visit their college requires extensive networking. However, recently a young techie, Punit Palial, showed that he managed to successfully invite Sam Altman to his college for an interactive event by just reaching out to him on Instagram. Punit Palial shared a screenshot of an Instagram chat dated June 5, 2023. As per the screenshot, he asked, Heyyy Sam. Have been watching your videos since I was 16 years old. Is there any way I could get an invite to your Delhi event?

Interestingly, one day later Sam Altman replied Sure and asked him to send the invite details to two emails. Now, this X post has gone viral with 1.5 lakh views since it was posted. Punit Palial shared a popular quote at the end of this post: You miss 100% of the shots you dont take.

you miss 100% of the shots you dont take @TheIshanGoswami Punit Palial (@punitpalial) June 12, 2024

This interaction proves that often cold emails work and sometimes shooting the shot, regardless of how far-fetched it looks, works out. Sam Altman later attended an interactive event at the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology, Delhi (IIIT-Delhi or IIITD) on June 8, 2023, when he was in India.

After the post mentioned above raked in thousands of likes, Punit Palial reshared an X thread documenting the 2023 event at IIIT-Delhi.

Now that @samas India tour has concluded,I want to share the discussion we had with him at the 30 people Invite only Developers Roundtable Conference at @IIITD  pic.twitter.com/uZRDF3UHrY  Punit Palial (@punitpalial) June 11, 2023

Punit Palial wrote that Sam Altman started the event by inviting reviews, criticism and opinions on OpenAIs products. The attendees mentioned that one of the common criticisms of OpenAI-backed products was the high pricing associated with using the API and slow response time when calling it. They also highlighted how ChatGPT has a slow response time when it comes to using Indian languages. In response, Sam Altman acknowledged these criticisms and assured that they are constantly working on improving the response time.

Someone also pointed out a concerning feature where ChatGPT made up citations while giving health advisories. Sam Altman referred to this oversight as a hallucination and asserted that they are trying to fix it. The OpenAI CEO also said they plan to simplify ChatGPT in a way that allows ordinary individuals to obtain the desired results without requiring expertise in prompt engineering. Sam Altman also mentioned he isnt a good prompt engineer himself. The 39-year-old tech entrepreneur added that they would make conversations with ChatGPT more interactive and diverse instead of relying on a single text prompt as input.
Havent we all thought of running a business with our best friend? Starting a business with your friends as co-founders can be extremely exciting and can even fetch rewards. Two friends in France have not only created something extraordinary together but have also been rewarded for it. Recently, Nicolas Barrioz and David Peyrou have been honoured by the Guinness World Record (GWR) for creating the worlds tallest rideable bicycle.

Nicolas Barrioz and David Peyrou have called their creation Starbike, which is 25 feet, 5 inches tall, breaking all the previous records. One of the most interesting parts of their creation was the idea, which started during a pub conversation before they turned it into reality. The idea for this sky-high bicycle was soon fueled by their enthusiasm and dedication as they embarked on a five-year journey to create it.

They dedicated almost two years just to the construction of the bicycle. With all their hard work and efforts, Starbike was given the title of the worlds tallest rideable bicycle.

As per the Guinness World Records, the tyres were given by Michelin for free. This happened after David and Nicolas unveiled the worlds tallest rideable bicycle in Clermont-Ferrand, where the headquarters of the company is located. In a video posted by GWR, David rode the bicycle unassisted over a 100-metre distance to earn the title of the worlds tallest bicycle.

The bike was ridden at a speed of 15-20 km/hr, which turned out to be an important factor in maintaining the stability of the bike. Talking about the material of the bicycle, is made from alloys, steel, and wood, mostly obtained from recycled furniture.

Nicolas and David are now considering breaking another world record by building the smallest rideable bicycle.
Dolly Chaiwala is a name that has quickly gained popularity and is now an internet sensation. Youve got to be living under a rock if dont know this famous Nagpur personality who made a cup of tea for Bill Gates and is no less than a celebrity in India. Nowadays, wherever he goes, people rush to click photos of him. Recently, to join the list of fans are a few pilots who did not miss the chance and rushed to get a photo with the famous chaiwala at an airport.

Reportedly, Dolly Chaiwalas real name is Sunil Patil who became famous on Instagram. People have been copying his hairstyle and his personality. Now, an interesting clip has emerged on social media where Dolly Chaiwala was spotted at the Dubai Airport. Being a famous influencer, he attracted eyeballs there.

Two pilots recognised the Indian influencer in Dubai and had a fan moment. A female and a male pilot can be seen getting their photos clicked with Dolly Chaiwala in the middle. He can also be seen giving his famous pose with his index finger and thumb sticking out. He can be seen wearing a dark blue blazer suit and sunglasses.

The caption read, Dolly bhai ke jalwe hai. The male pilot dropped a comment on the video. It read, Wow I am the pilot there. The female pilot commented, Flying in India is one of the most beautiful things in my professional career as a pilot, and the most wonderful thing is the people, always so kind, always with a big smile, always with something nice and positive to say. Incredible India. Thank you for sharing this. I didnt even know it existed.

Many Indian social media users were quite disappointed to see the clip amassing 1,05,000 views. Despite all this, he continues to grab attention with his quirky and flashy shades, funky hairstyles, gold chain and Bluetooth earpiece, coupled with his attitude. He is estimated to sell at least 500 cups of tea per day priced at Rs 7 each. He earns Rs 2,500 to Rs 4,000 daily.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is heading to Italy on Thursday to attend the G7 Summit slated to be held on June 13 and 14, marking his first trip abroad after assuming office for the record-equalling third.

India has been invited as an Outreach Country to the Summit, which will see participation from the US, UK, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, and France, as well as the European Union. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni invited Modi for what will mark Indias 11th presence at the summit and the latters fifth consecutive attendance.

On the sidelines of the Summit, PM Modi is expected to hold bilateral meetings and discussions with the leaders of the G7, including US President Joe Biden. On Wednesday, National Security Advisor (NSA) Jake Sullivan said that Biden and PM Modi would likely have the opportunity to encounter one another on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Italy.

He (Biden) expects to see Prime Minister Modi here. Its up to the Indians to formally confirm his attendance, but our expectation is that the two of them will have the opportunity to encounter one another. The nature of that encounter is still fluid because so much of the schedule is fluid, Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One on his way to Italy to attend the G7 Summit, along with the US president.

Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra told reporters in New Delhi that Modi would travel to Italy on Thursday in his first overseas trip after assuming office for a third consecutive term. Ahead of the PMs visit, a Gandhi statue was vandalized by pro-Khalistani groups in Italy. A controversial slogan related to Hardeep Singh Nijjar was written on the statue. Indian authorities have raised the matter with Italian authorities.

We have the question relating to the vandalization of the statue of Mahatma Gandhi. We have seen the reports of that and we have taken it up with the Italian authorities. We understand that suitable rectification has already taken place, the Foreign Secretary said during the press conference.

On Tuesday, Kwatra confirmed that Modi would meet the Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni . However, details of bilateral or meetings with other leaders are still being worked out, he said. Aboard Air Force One, Sullivan told reporters that Biden spoke with Modi over phone while they were in Paris to congratulate him on the election outcome and on being sworn in as Prime Minister for a third term.

(With agency inputs)
Caught by surprise in their sleep, migrant workers sleeping in a housing building in Mangaf, Kuwait, faced a harrowing ordeal as a blaze erupted on Wednesday morning, claiming the lives of at least 49 foreign workers, including 42 Indians.

The building primarily housing close to 196 single men without families, became a scene of horror at 4 am on June 12 as the fire rapidly spread throughout the premises. Amid the chaos, some workers made desperate attempts to flee the inferno by jumping from the first floor, while others succumbed to suffocation as they tried to navigate through the smoke-filled corridors.

READ MORE: Kuwait Fire: What We Know So Far About The Mangaf Housing Tragedy That Killed At Least 42 Indians?

Victims suffocated

Local authorities swiftly responded to the emergency, mobilising firefighting teams to contain the blaze. Despite their prompt efforts, the intensity of the fire proved overwhelming, leaving many residents trapped within the burning building. Local media reports said that charred bodies were discovered on the stairs. With no official word on the cause of the fire, a report in The Kuwait Times said the blaze was due to a gas leak.

A senior Kuwait journalist told CNN-News18 that the intense heatwave, with temperatures exceeding 50 degrees Celsius, is believed to have contributed to the tragedy, prompting regular government warnings. Sayed Al-Mousawi, the head of investigations at the Kuwait Fire Department said that the team investigating the causes of the fire found that an inflammable material was used as partitions between apartments and also between rooms, which caused the huge black clouds of smoke.

According to the fire department, many of the victims suffocated while trying to run down the stairs because they were filled with smoke. Sayed Al-Mousawi added that the victims could not go to the rooftop because the door was locked. In the wake of this devastating blaze, questions have been raised about the safety standards of migrant worker accommodations in Kuwait. Visiting the site, Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Fahad Yusuf Saud Al-Sabah said the greed of real estate owners is what leads to these matters. It was not immediately clear if any violations had taken place at the building or what they were.

DNA testing

Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh, who is on his way to Kuwait to help repatriate the bodies of deceased Indians, said that the majority of victims suffered severe burns, with some bodies charred beyond recognition. He said DNA testing procedures are currently underway to facilitate victim identification, adding that an Air Force aircraft is on standby for immediate deployment.

The minister said once victim identities are confirmed, families will be promptly notified, and the Air Force will facilitate repatriation. As soon as the bodies are identified, the kin will be informed and our airforce plane will bring the bodies back The latest figures that we had last night, the casualty figures are around 48-49 out of this 42 or 43 are believed to be Indians, MoS Singh told ANI.
A study conducted by researchers at Harvard University has dived into what is being seen as a groundbreaking hypothesis of cryptoterrestrial beings  hidden or concealed intelligent entities living on Earth.

The study by the prestigious universitys Human Flourishing Program sheds light on various speculative theories, including the existence of ancient human civilizations, advanced non-human species, and even mystical entities such as fairies and elves.

Led by Dr. Emily Roberts, the research team analysed historical accounts, folklore, and reported encounters from diverse cultures worldwide. The aim was to evaluate the plausibility of cryptoterrestrial hypotheses and their potential connection to modern-day phenomena like unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP).

Our study sought to explore the intersection of scientific inquiry and cultural mythology, explained Dr. Roberts, lead author of the study. We wanted to investigate whether there could be hidden terrestrial beings that defy conventional scientific understanding.

The study, published in the journal Scientific Reports, reviewed cases such as the alleged discovery of anomalous skeletal remains, purported underground civilizations, and encounters with otherworldly beings throughout history. One notable example discussed in the study is the Chilean Atacama skeleton, initially speculated to be extraterrestrial in origin but later identified as a human fetus with genetic mutations.

We examined a wide range of evidence, from archaeological findings to modern-day UAP reports, said Dr. Roberts. While some accounts may seem fantastical, they offer valuable insights into human perception and cultural beliefs. The research team also explored the concept of underground or underwater bases allegedly inhabited by cryptoterrestrial beings.

Claims of hidden facilities in locations like Antarctica and the ocean depths have long intrigued conspiracy theorists and UFO enthusiasts. While many of these claims lack empirical evidence, they highlight humanitys fascination with the unknown and the possibility of hidden realms, noted Dr. Roberts. The study stressed the importance of skepticism and critical thinking when evaluating extraordinary claims.

Despite the allure of cryptoterrestrial hypotheses, the researchers underscored the need for rigorous scientific scrutiny and empirical validation. We must approach these theories with caution and a healthy dose of skepticism, stated Dr. Roberts. While they may spark curiosity and imagination, scientific inquiry demands evidence-based explanations.

The Harvard study has sparked renewed interest in the enigmatic realm of cryptoterrestrial beings and their potential role in shaping human culture and mythology. The study opens new avenues for interdisciplinary research and encourages dialogue between science and folklore, concluded Dr. Roberts. While the truth may remain elusive, the pursuit of knowledge enriches our understanding of the world around us.

Last September, a NASA investigation into hundreds of UFO sightings found there was no evidence aliens were behind the unexplained phenomena. However, the US space agency could not rule out that possibility, according to a BBC report. NASA administrator Bill Nelson said the worlds largest space agency will not only take the lead in researching possible UAP incidents but also share data with more transparency.
Taral Patel, a 30-year-old policy expert and high-profile Indian-origin political candidate, was arrested Wednesday by Texas Rangers for alleged online impersonation and misrepresentation of identity, a Class A misdemeanour under the Texas Election code.

The Fort Bend County District Attorneys Public Integrity Division has been investigating a complaint against Patel, a political candidate for Precinct 3 commissioner, in collaboration with Texas Rangers.

Allegations of third-degree felony online impersonation, and a Class A misdemeanour charge of misrepresentation of identity, found in the Texas Election Code, are the chief complaints. The investigation remains ongoing.

Patel is being held on a USD 20,000 bond for the felony and a USD 2,500 bond for the misdemeanour and will see a magistrate Thursday morning if he does not post bond before then.

According to Patels campaign website, the Democratic candidate has political experience at both the local and national level, even serving as a White House liaison under current US President Joe Biden. The Fort Bend County Sheriffs Office confirmed the arrest and said more information will be provided when they receive further updates.

In September last year, Patel had sent some campaign emails decrying the racist posts against him, ostensibly by his Republican opponent. He, however, did not name his opponent, Commissioner Andy Meyers.

Among the postings was a picture of Meyers standing by the side of a cutout of former US President and the presumptive Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, during a previous campaign.

Patel has worked in diverse political roles and was the youngest chief of staff to serve for the Fort Bend countys judges office when another high-profile Indian American, KP George, was elected as a judge.

Patel had worked as a strategist during Georges campaign in the 2018 midterm elections. Earlier, he had held positions on many campaigns including Mayor Bill White, Senator Rodney Ellis and Wendy Davis.

Patels parents immigrated to the US from India and he grew up in Houston, studied in local schools and graduated from the University of Texas at Austin.
The Palestinian news agency WAFA on Thursday claimed the Israeli military launched strikes in southern Gaza, bombarding an area it had previously designated as a safe zone. However, the IDF denied carrying out strikes in the al-Mawasi area on the coast of southern Gaza, designated as a humanitarian zone.

This report comes as a US-backed Israeli proposal for a ceasefire and hostage deal appears to be in limbo, according to CNN. Earlier in May, the Israeli military ordered people in eastern Rafah to immediately head to the expanded humanitarian area in Al-Mawasi, which it designated as a safe zone. The Al-Mawasi camp was already crowded with displaced people before civilians in Rafah were ordered to move there, according to US media reports.

More than 1 million people have fled the Gaza city of Rafah to the nearby areas of Al-Mawasi, Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis in recent weeks, according to a report from Oxfam. Some 1.7 million people, more than two-thirds of Gazas population, are now estimated to be crammed into an area of 69 square kilometers.

On Wednesday, the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah fired hundreds of rockets toward northern Israel, hours after an Israeli airstrike killed a senior commander. The Israeli military said some of the 215 projectiles were intercepted, while others ignited brush fires. There were no immediate reports of casualties. Hezbollah said it fired missiles and rockets at two military bases and vowed to intensify its attacks in response to Israels killing of Taleb Sami Abdullah.

Hezbollah, an Iran-backed ally of the Palestinian group Hamas, has recently been striking further inside Israel and introducing new and more advanced weaponry. Israeli warplanes have bombed deep inside Lebanon. Hezbollah says it will only stop the attacks if there is a truce in Gaza. The pressure on Israels northern border came as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said mediators are trying to close the deal for an elusive cease-fire and hostage release in Gaza.

Hamas has requested numerous changes to a US-backed proposal, some of which Blinken said were workable and some not. Hamas says its amendments aim to guarantee a permanent cease-fire and complete Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza. The cease-fire proposal announced by U.S. President Joe Biden includes those provisions, but Hamas has expressed wariness whether Israel will implement the terms.

Israels war against Hamas in Gaza has killed more than 37,100 people, according to Gazas Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between combatants and civilians in its count. Palestinians are facing widespread hunger because the war has largely cut off the flow of food, medicine and other supplies. U.N. agencies say over 1 million in Gaza could experience the highest level of starvation by mid-July. Israel launched the war after Hamas Oct. 7 attack, in which militants stormed into southern Israel, killed some 1,200 people and abducted about 250.

(With agency inputs)
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who is hosting this years Group of Seven (G7) meeting, was seen doing a namaste gesture while welcoming prominent leaders for the summit.

In several videos that have gone viral on social media platform X, Meloni can be seen doing a namaste gesture to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen while greeting them.

The videos have gained widespread attention, with namaste trending on the microblogging site.

Many users on X, reacted to the Italian Prime Ministers namaste gesture and commended her action.

Namaste goes Global. Italian PM Giorgia Meloni greets guests of the G7 summit with Namaste, a user wrote.

Namaste goes GlobalItalian PM Giorgia Meloni greets guests of the G7 summit with Namaste #G7Summit #Melodi pic.twitter.com/prrXwtVqLj  Lakshay Mehta (@lakshaymehta31) June 13, 2024

Another commented, Sanskaari Kanya  using namaste for swaagat.

Thats such a nice gesture. It shows our culture being celebrated, a user shared.

Meanwhile, a user offered a scientific explanation for the namaste gesture.

It is the most scientific way to greet, when we say I bow to the god in you. No transfer of bacteria from one hand to another, while shaking your hand, the user said.

G7 in Italy, PM Modi To Attend

Leaders from the G7 countries  Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States  are meeting for a three-day summit from June 13 to 15 to discuss global affairs in the southern Italian region of Puglia (Apulia).

Prime Minister Modi has also departed for the summit in Italy on Thursday.

I will be attending the G7 Summit in Italy. I look forward to meeting fellow world leaders and discussing a wide range of issues aimed at making our planet better and improving lives of people, PM Modi had shared earlier today.

The G7 Summit, being held at the luxury resort of Borgo Egnazia in nearby Fasano, marks PM Modis first foreign visit since winning a third term in the recently concluded 2024 Lok Sabha election.
Nancy Pelosi, the former Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, is set to travel to Dharamshala in Himachal Pradesh, home to the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government-in-exile.

Her visit, beginning next week, follows the recent passage of a bipartisan bill by the US House aimed at bolstering support for Tibet and fostering dialogue between the Peoples Republic of China and the Dalai Lama towards a peaceful resolution of the longstanding Tibet-China dispute.

The bill, introduced by U.S. Representatives Jim McGovern and Michael McCaul, along with Senators Jeff Merkley and Todd Young, has received welcome from the Tibetan government-in-exile, which was previously passed by the House of Representatives in February and the Senate in May before returning to the House due to minor amendments.

Taking to social media platform X on Thursday, Sikyong Penpa Tsering of the Central Tibetan Administration expressed gratitude, saying, On behalf of Tibetans in Tibet & exile, I wholeheartedly welcome the resounding passage of #ResolveTibetAct by the US Congress. This empowers 70 years of nonviolent resistance of Tibetan people, particularly those in Tibet by firmly rejecting Chinas historical claims over Tibet.

On behalf of Tibetans in Tibet & exile, I wholeheartedly welcome the resounding passage of #ResolveTibetAct by the US Congress. This empowers 70 years of nonviolent resistance of Tibetan people, particularly those in Tibet by firmly rejecting Chinas historical claims over Tibet Sikyong Penpa Tsering (@SikyongPTsering) June 13, 2024

I thank foremost Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi & the leadership of our longtime friends, Representative Jim McGovern, Chairman Michael McCaul, Senator Jeff Merkley, & Senator Todd Young as well as the members of US Congress for passing the bill with overwhelming majority, Tsering added.

Pelosi, A Staunch Advocate For Tibetan Cause

Pelosi has been a long-time supporter of Tibet and its people, making multiple visits to Dharamshala in the past to meet with the Dalai Lama and show her support for the Tibetan cause.

In 2008, Pelosi visited Dharamshala and met with the Dalai Lama, denouncing Chinas crackdown on Tibetan protesters. She described the visit as a challenge to the conscience of the world and said that the United States would not relent in its campaign to protect human rights in Tibet.

Pelosi has also been involved in various legislative efforts to support Tibet, including the Tibet Policy Act of 2019, which aimed to strengthen Americas commitment to the Tibetan people and their right to safeguard their distinct identity. She has been a vocal advocate for the rights of Tibetans and has worked to hold China accountable for its oppression of the Tibetan people.

In 2024, Pelosi was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor in the United States, for her exemplary contributions to the prosperity, values, or security of the United States, world peace, or other significant societal, public or cultural endeavors. Her long-standing support for Tibet and its people was likely a factor in this recognition.

Dalai Lama To Visit US For Medical Treatment

Tibets spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, is also is scheduled to travel to the United States this month for medical treatment on his knees. According to an official statement released on June 3, he will suspend his regular public engagements starting from June 20.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama is scheduled to travel to the United States for medical treatment on his knees. Upon his return, regular engagements will resume, his office stated.
Pakistan has planned to borrow a minimum of USD 23 billion in the next fiscal year, including the rollover of a bilateral debt of USD 12 billion, to finance its development plans and meet its external financing requirement which will keep the cash-strapped countrys foreign and economic policies dependent on global financial institutions like the IMF, according to a media report on Thursday.

Budget documents for fiscal year 2024-25 showed that Pakistan would borrow at least USD 23.2 billion, or Rs 5.9 trillion, which did not include any loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), The Express Tribune newspaper reported, adding that the International Monetary Funds loan will be for balance of payments support.

Out of the USD 23 billion, the government has included USD 20 billion in budget documents. It has not made the rollover of USD 3 billion by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) part of federal books as it is also meant for balance of payments support.

Details showed that Pakistan would take USD 19 billion in loans for budget financing and building its foreign exchange reserves. The amount appears colossal, which will keep the countrys foreign and economic policies dependent on the IMF, the World Bank, Saudi Arabia, China, the UAE and the Islamic Development Bank.

These nations and international creditors are now dictating their terms due to their unending dependency on them.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has claimed that he has received investment pledges of USD 15 billion from Saudi Arabia and the UAE but so far these promises have not translated into concrete agreements.

After being unable to acquire new debt from foreign commercial banks, the government has once again budgeted USD 3.9 billion worth of foreign commercial loans in the new fiscal year. However, in the outgoing year, China rolled over USD 1 billion of commercial debt.

There was hope that the international credit rating agencies would improve Pakistans junk rating under the USD 3 billion IMFs standby arrangement. However, political and economic vulnerabilities prevented them from improving Pakistans standing.

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb said on Tuesday that the rating agencies were waiting for approval of the new Extended Fund Facility of the IMF.

In case of further delay in the improvement of the ratings, the governments plan of raising USD 4.9 billion through Eurobond and foreign commercial loans would not materialise.

The government had estimated the receipt of USD 6 billion from sovereign bonds and foreign commercial loans in the current fiscal year. After such deals could not be clinched, the State Bank of Pakistan bought an equal amount from the Pakistani markets.

The government has once again included the rollover of USD 5 billion in cash deposits from Saudi Arabia. This shows that the country will not be able to return the money out of which USD 3 billion had been taken in 2019 for just one year.

However, Saudi Arabia has not agreed to extend the oil facility of USD 1 billion to the next fiscal year, prompting the government to exclude it from the projection of external loan receipts. Similarly, the government has not included any new loan from Saudi Arabia for the import of petrol.

Chinas USD 4 billion in cash deposit has again been added to the rollover queue, of which USD 2 billion is maturing next month.

The UAEs financing has not been added to the federal borrowing plan since the money has been given for the balance of payments support, which will be serviced by the central bank from its profits. Out of the USD 3 billion, USD 1 billion is maturing next month.

The government has also estimated a new loan of USD 500 million from the Islamic Development Bank and $465 million on account of Naya Pakistan Certificates. Around USD 1.1 billion will be borrowed to finance the federal Public Sector Development Programme, according to the paper.
A UN investigation concluded Wednesday that Israel had committed crimes against humanity during the war in Gaza, including that of extermination, while Israeli and Palestinian armed groups had both committed war crimes.

The independent Commission of Inquirys report is the first in-depth investigation by United Nations experts into the events of the war that erupted on October 7.

It found that Israel has committed war crimes, crimes against humanity and other international law violations.

The report noted a widespread or systematic attack directed against the civilian population in Gaza.

The commission said it found that the crimes against humanity of extermination; murder; gender persecution targeting Palestinian men and boys; forcible transfer; and torture and inhuman and cruel treatment were committed.

Israel rejected the findings, accusing the commission of systematic anti-Israeli discrimination.

The commission has a political agenda against Israel and will never do justice to the Israeli victims of Palestinian terrorism, Meirav Eilon Shahar, Israels ambassador in Geneva, said in a statement.

The Gaza war erupted after Hamass October 7 attack resulted in the deaths of 1,194 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.

Militants also seized 251 hostages, of whom 116 remain in Gaza, though the Israeli army says 41 of them are dead.

The commission determined that in that attack, members of the military wings of Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups, as well as Palestinian civilians, committed war crimes and other international law violations.

Israels retaliatory offensive in the Gaza Strip has since left more than 37,000 people dead, the majority of them civilians, according to the Hamas-ruled territorys health ministry.

Unique level of destruction

The Commission of Inquiry was established by the UN Human Rights Council in May 2021 to investigate alleged international law violations in Israel and the Palestinian territories.

It is imperative that all those who have committed crimes be held accountable, said Navi Pillay, a former UN rights chief and ex-International Criminal Court judge who chairs the three-person commission.

Israel must immediately stop its military operations and attacks in Gaza, she said. Hamas and Palestinian armed groups must immediately cease rocket attacks and release all hostages.

Asked about the report, UN chief Antonio Guterres declined to comment on the text.

But he told reporters: We are perfectly aware of what was a unique level of destruction and a unique level of casualties in the Palestinian population during these months of war.

That has no precedent in any other situation that Ive lived as secretary general of the United Nations.

War crimes in October attack

The commission concluded that members of Hamas and others participating in the October 7 attack deliberately killed, injured, mistreated, took hostages and committed sexual and gender-based violence.

These acts were committed against civilians and members of the Israeli security forces, and constituted war crimes, it said.

The commission said it also found significant evidence on the desecration of corpses, including sexualised desecration, decapitations, lacerations, burning, severing of body parts and undressing.

Women were subjected to gender-based violence during the course of their execution or abduction. Women and womens bodies were used as victory trophies by male perpetrators.

The commission said it found it particularly egregious that children were targeted for abduction.

The report also faulted Israeli authorities for failing to protect civilians in southern Israel on almost every front.

 Israels starvation of Gaza 

In Gaza, the commission found the Israeli authorities responsible for the war crimes of starvation as a method of warfare, murder or wilful killing, intentionally directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects, forcible transfer, sexual violence, torture and inhuman or cruel treatment, arbitrary detention and outrages upon personal dignity.

Furthermore, it said Israels siege on the territory constitutes collective punishment and reprisal against the civilian population.

In the West Bank, the commission found that Israeli forces committed acts of sexual violence, torture and inhuman or cruel treatment and outrages upon personal dignity, all of which are war crimes.

Israels government and forces permitted, fostered and instigated a campaign of settler violence against Palestinian communities in the territory, the commission added.

The report is based on interviews with victims and witnesses conducted remotely, and in Turkey and Egypt, and through studying thousands of verified open-source items, satellite imagery and forensic medical reports, the commission said.

Israel obstructed the commissions investigations and prevented its access to Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territory, it added.

The report is due to be presented to the UN Human Rights Council next week.
NewsCenter1 Today Meteorologist/Multimedia Journalist

Originally a Sioux Falls native, Sam came to Rapid City and fell in love with the Black Hills. She decided that she wanted to make western South Dakota her home. Recently, Sam graduated from the School of Mines with an M.S. in Atmospheric Sciences and is very excited to share her love of the weather at NewsCenter1.
President Emmerson Mnangagwa has, with immediate effect, nullified the decision by former Minister of Local Government July Moyo to downgrade the Musara Chieftainship to a headman.

Mnangagwa, through the Minister of Local Government Daniel Garwe has since written to the Musaras copying all relevant departments including the Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution for Masvingo Ezra Chadzamira, director local government ministry and many others.

In the letter, which TellZim is in possession of, Minister Garwe said the President has nullified the downgrading and has since reinstated the Musara Chieftainship with immediate effect.

Please be advised that His Excellency the President of the Republic of Zimbabwe, Cde Dr E.D Mnangagwa has nullified the decision to downgrade the Musara Chieftainship to Headmanship.

By copy of this Minute, you are therefore advised to proceed to carry out the full statutory duties of a chief as prescribed in the Traditional Leaders Act (Chapter 29: 17), part of the letter reads.

In 2014, the High Court ordered Boniface Musara as substantive chief for ward 32 Masvingo District, after then President Robert Mugabe through Local Government Minister Ignatious Chombo had resuscitated the Musara Chieftainship in 2013, which had been banished by the colonial regime in the 1940s.

In August 2023, the Musara Chieftainship was downgraded to headman by July Moyo under controversial circumstances. Mnangagwa has since nullified the downgrade and reinstated the chieftainship with immediate effect. TellZimNews
Analysts predict that if Dr Phophi Ramathuba, Limpopo provinces Health Member of the Executive Council (MEC), is appointed Premier of that province in South Africa, she will continue to pursue her anti-migrant policies.

Dr. Ramathuba created outrage in August 2022 when, as MEC, she berated a Zimbabwean female patient seeking surgery at Bela-Bela, a public hospital. She was filmed telling the Zimbabwean woman that Zimbabwe, not South Africa, must take responsibility for her health issues.

You are supposed to be with Mnangagwa, Dr Ramathuba said at the time. You are killing my health system. When you guys are sick, you just say, Lets cross the Limpopo River; theres an MEC there whos running a charity department.

These sentiments arise as Zimbabweans watch political developments in South Africa with keen interest after the May 29, 2024, elections created a stalemate, forcing the African National Congress (ANC) into government of national unity (GNU) negotiations with opposition parties. In these negotiations, it has been said the Patriotic Alliance (PA) opposition party wants the Home Affairs portfolio.

However, in Limpopo province, the former ruling party won a clear majority to create a provincial government for the next five years, and Dr Ramathuba looks set to become the Limpopo Premier. If this happens, Limpopo province is expected to have its first female Premier.

Dr. Ramathuba was criticised on social media for violating medical ethics, while South Africas Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) called for her sacking due to her conduct.

In interviews with CITE, Dr Vusumuzi Sibanda, leader of the African Diaspora Global Network, said Dr Ramathuba has shown a lot of hatred for the migrant community, which is concerning given that Limpopo is a border post town frequented by many migrants entering the country.

She may lack tolerance for the migrant community, and her sentiments are quite rampant in the health sector in South Africa. Dr. (Aaron) Motsoaledi, before he became (current) Minister of Home Affairs, was also engaged in similar conduct. One can see a tendency to align with populist rhetorical sentiments to be seen as the next best available person for a particular position, he said, noting that Dr Motsoaledi was in the health sector before moving to Home Affairs.

Dr Sibanda said, Obviously, from Dr Ramathubas sentiments, it is possible that she was positioning herself for a key government post. We think she was bringing herself up to this position, positioning herself, putting herself on the map so that she could be seen as the right person for the province to deal with issues of people coming from across the border to seek assistance.

So, it is quite plausible that the only logical explanation for why she is now the candidate for the Premier position is because she has been positioning herself by showing that she saves the government a lot of money by chasing migrants. That is very, very unfortunate in a constitutional country like South Africa.

Dr Khanyile Mlotshwa, a critical studies scholar, said the potential new leader of Limpopo province may continue perpetuating discriminatory tendencies against African migrants, which is unfortunate.

Considering her strong views against foreign African nationals, it is possible that, if she became in charge of Limpopo province, she might try to create a province that acts as a wall between Johannesburg and the rest of Africa, he said.

Dr Mlotshwa noted that while migrants may struggle to operate under Dr. Ramathubas watch, discriminatory or xenophobic policies frequently fail.

I said she might try to create a province that acts as a wall between Johannesburg and the rest of Africa, in that most poor migrants use the road into South Africa. They will find it difficult, but not impossible, to cross Limpopo province and reach Gauteng province. I say impossible because her efforts to close out foreign African nationals will fail, just as they failed under the apartheid government, he said.

However, the Chairperson of the Zimbabwean Community in South Africa, Nicholas Ngqabutho Mabhena, doubted she had been positioning herself for the Premier post, saying she was a senior ANC member in Limpopo.

I do not think so. She is one of the senior members of the ANC in the province. Each province is asked to nominate three candidates, and the ANC officials select the Premier, he said.

When Dr Ramathuba expressed those discriminatory sentiments, the Zimbabwean Embassy in South Africa stated it watched her video with shock and disbelief, noting that the two neighbouring countries have appropriate channels for communication that should be fully used to raise grievances. CITE
Florida is being absolutely deluged right now, and while the intense rain is not officially part of a tropical storm or depression, the National Hurricane Center says there's a 20% chance it could turn into one over the next week. As much as 7 inches of rain fell in parts of the state Tuesday, and a meteorologist in Miami told USA Today Wednesday that another 4 to 10 inches had already fallen, with 3 to 6 more inches possible before the day's end. Flash flood warnings were issued in some areas, and the National Weather Service in Miami issued this blunt warning: "SEEK HIGHER GROUND, GET OFF THE ROADS." Hurricane season starts in early June, and this year's is predicted to be one of the most active in recent memory, the AP reports.
President Biden has said he won't pardon his son Hunter, who was convicted of three gun-related felonies earlier this week. But commutation of his sentence, when it is handed down, could be a different story. White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre didn't rule out commutation when she spoke to reporters Wednesday. She said Biden was "very clear, very upfront, obviously very definitive" when he ruled out a pardon but she couldn't comment on whether he would consider commutation, which would let the conviction stand but cancel or lessen the punishment, the New York Times reports.

Jean-Pierre said she hadn't spoken to the president about the matter since the Tuesday verdict. "As we all know, the sentencing hasn't even been scheduled yet," she said, per ABC News. A sentencing hearing is expected in around four months and while the maximum sentence the president's son could face is 25 years, analysts expect a sentence of a year or two in prison at most. Commutation would be highly controversial and the Times notes that Jean-Pierre's "careful response may only reflect not wanting to go beyond her talking points, not an effort to leave the option open."

Other members of presidents' extended families have received pardons, including Bill Clinton's brother Roger and Charles Kushner, father of Donald Trump's son-in-law, but both men had already completed their sentences when they received pardons, the Times reports. CNN commentator David Urban, a former Trump campaign adviser, suggested Wednesday that, if re-elected, the former president should pledge to pardon Hunter Biden if he commits to a "program of sobriety," the Hill reports. "It would be a magnanimous offer on his part, shows humanity, and really flip the tables on the Democrats," Urban said. (More Hunter Biden trial stories.)
Friends of Johnny Wactor, the General Hospital actor fatally shot last month when he stumbled upon thieves trying to steal his car's catalytic converter, staged a march and rally Wednesday demanding justice in his murder. They rallied in downtown Los Angeles, near the spot where Wactor was killed after leaving his bartending job, and marched toward City Hall, KTLA reports. "The message is pretty obvious," Wactor's brother, who flew in from South Carolina, tells the news station. "They want safe streets and justice. I don't live here, so I didn't realize how bad the situation already was for any of this to even happen ... apparently this has been a problem that has needed to be fixed for a while, so someone has to fix it."
UPDATE

Jun 16, 2024 8:00 AM CDT

A Texas woman whose husband was fatally electrocuted in a jacuzzi at a Mexican resort earlier this month is suing the hotel, reports the El Paso Times. Lizzette Zambrano is seeking more than $1 million in damages from the Sonoran Sea Resort in Puerto Penasco. Zambrano remains hospitalized after the June 11 incident, and her husband, Jorge Guillen, didn't survive. The beach town is a popular one for US tourists.

Jun 13, 2024 7:01 AM CDT

A visitor from El Paso was killed and a woman was seriously injured Tuesday night because of what investigators believe was faulty hot tub wiring at a resort in Mexico. In a statement, prosecutors in Sonora state blamed "electrical failure" for the electrocution of a 43-year-old man, NBC News reports. Prosecutors said a 35-year-old woman was hospitalized with burns consistent with electric shock, reports KTSM. She was transferred to a US hospital in critical condition. KFOX14 identified the couple as Jorge Guillen and Lizzette Zambrano.
After organizers for Nathan's Famous Fourth of July hot dog-eating contest said Joey Chestnut wouldn't compete this year because of a deal with a rival brand, Netflix swiftly announced a new hot dog-eating competition that will feature Chestnut and his "fiercest rival." Chestnut, a 16-time hot dog-eating champion, will face off with his frequent Nathan's competitor, Takeru Kobayashi, in a live Netflix special on Sept. 2, the streamer announced Wednesday. The contest, titled Chestnut vs. Kobayashi: Unfinished Beef, will feature the two chowing down on all-beef hot dogs, likely in a nod to reports that Chestnut's rival brand deal is with Impossible Foods, which makes plant-based hot dogs, the AP reports.

Major League Eating, the organization that oversees the Nathan's contest, announced Tuesday that Chestnut's deal was an "exclusivity" issue, saying that it was his decision to step back from the competition he has participated in since 2005. "We love him. The fans love him," said George Shea, a Major League Eating event organizer, adding: "He made the choice." Chestnut disputed that he made the choice. Impossible Foods has not confirmed a formal relationship with Chestnut, but he said in a statement on Tuesday they support his choice to participate in any competition. Kobayashi, who has been rumored to be retired, said in the Netflix release that he is looking forward to facing off with Chestnut once more. The two have not competed since 2009.

(More Joey Chestnut stories.)
Elon Musk appears to have scored a big win in the battle over his record-breaking Tesla pay package. In a post on X late Wednesday, the CEO shared a graphic showing that support for the pay package in a shareholder vote had passed the "guaranteed win" mark. "Thanks for your support," Musk wrote. The full result of the vote will be announced in a meeting Thursday at Tesla's headquarters in Austin, Texas. The pay package, worth around $56 billion, was voided by a judge in Delaware earlier this year.

Vote "sends a strong signal." The pay package was initially approved in a shareholder vote in 2018. The re-approval doesn't restore the package, but "it sends a strong signal that he has the broad support of Tesla's investors," the Washington Post reports.
Henry Winkler is typically known on social media for posting feel-good content and pictures of himself holding his catch of the day . This week, however, one featured image on X showed the Barry and Happy Days actor smiling next to a group of firemen in Dublin, along with a message of thanks. That's because on Wednesday morning, the 78-year-old actor best known as the Fonz was one of the guests evacuated from the Irish capital's Shelbourne hotel, after a fire broke out on the building's fifth floor, reports People .

"When I heard the fire alarm, I thought it was the clock radio," Winkler told RTE. "I thought somebody had set the alarm before we got there, you know, like another guest. And finally I went into another room and it was still buzzing." It was only when he phoned the front desk that he discovered that he had to evacuate.

The actor said that he'd only arrived in Dublin the night beforethe Guardian notes that he's there to promote his latest memoir, Being Henry: The Fonz ... and Beyondand that he "cannot wait" to see the rest of the city after his "amazing adventure" at the hotel. He also called local firefighters "wonderful," adding to RTE, "Firemen are some of my favorite human beings. Firemen and firewomen. They run in when other people are running out." (More Henry Winkler stories.)
UPDATE

Jul 4, 2024 8:30 AM CDT

The search for a retired Los Angeles County sheriff's deputy who went missing on a Greek island last month has ended without success, relatives say. NBC News reports. Albert Calibet, 59, disappeared during a solo hike June 11 on the island of Amorgos. Brother Oliver Calibet said Monday that the search concluded after its "relentless efforts and determination" found no trace of the missing man. "I deeply fear that foul play has occurred as we found zero evidence of Albert anywhere on the island," Oliver Calibet said, adding that they'd "encountered numerous obstacles and roadblocks from the Greek authorities."

Jun 13, 2024 11:05 AM CDT

Two more tourists have vanished on Greek islands, after the body of British TV personality Michael Mosley recently turned up on the island of Symi. All three men disappeared on solo hikes. One of the two men who remains missing is an American, identified as Albert or Eric Calibet, 59. He disappeared Tuesday on the island of Amorgos, about 200 miles from Symi, after setting out on a four-hour hike from the northern village of Aegiali to the main port of Katapola, the Telegraph reports. The retired police officer had completed the same hike "several times in the past," said the island's deputy mayor Calliope Despotidi. He visited the island "almost every year" for a decade, Despotidi said, per CNN. In fact, "he knows Amorgos better than me," she added, per the Telegraph.
A father annoyed that his 12-year-old daughter and her friends wouldn't go to sleep during a sleepover decided to force them to sleep by drugging them with benzodiazepine. For that, Michael Meyden of Lake Oswego, Oregon, has been sentenced to prison. The 57-year-old apologized during his sentencing hearing Monday after pleading guilty to three felony counts of causing another person to ingest a controlled substance. He said the girls failed to go to sleep by 11pm and he worried they would sneak out of the house, per USA Today . He added he wanted them well rested for the following day's activities, but also really wanted to go to bed himself, per the Guardian .

He made mango smoothies laced with benzodiazepine, a medication used to treat insomnia and anxiety, then gave them to the three girls, all aged 12 at the time. After the daughter and a friend fell asleep, the third girl, who'd only sipped her drink, reported that Meyden stood over the girls to make sure they were asleep. Authorities said he put a finger under one girl's nose, apparently to check her breathing, and moved the arm of one girl and the body of another. The girl who was conscious ended up texting a family friend, who picked her up and notified her parents. All three girls later tested positive for benzodiazepine at a hospital. Meyden surrendered to authorities on Feb. 28 and was held on a $50,000 bond.

Prosecutors said his actions were "inexcusable and reckless." One victim told the court she no longer trusts adults. "No decent parent feels the need to drug their own child and her friends," said the mother of one of the victims, per the Guardian. "No decent parent puts their hands on drugged and unconscious young girls without nefarious intent." Meyden said "my whole life is destroyed" as a result of his actions. "Everything that was important to me up until that point is gone," he told the court. He was ultimately sentenced to two years in prisonan amount negotiated by the parties, his lawyer told USA Today. Meyden will be under supervision for three years after his release. (More Oregon stories.)
US journalist Evan Gershkovich, who has been jailed for more than a year in Russia on espionage charges, will stand trial in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg, authorities said Thursday, per the AP . An indictment of the Wall Street Journal reporter has been finalized and his case was filed to the Sverdlovsky Regional Court in the city about 870 miles east of Moscow, according to Russia's Prosecutor General's Office. Gershkovich is accused of "gathering secret information" for the CIA about Uralvagonzavod, a facility in the Sverdlovsk region that produces and repairs military equipment, the Prosecutor General's Office said in a statement, revealing for the first time the details of the accusations against him.

The officials didn't provide any evidence to back up the accusations. There was no word on when the trial would begin. Gershkovich was detained while on a reporting trip to Yekaterinburg in March 2023 and accused of spying for the US. The reporter, his employer, and the US government denied the allegations, and Washington designated him as wrongfully detained. Russia's Federal Security Service, or FSB, alleged at the time he was acting on US orders to collect state secrets but also provided no evidence. Gershkovich faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he believed a deal could be reached to free Gershkovich, hinting he'd be open to swapping him for a Russian national imprisoned in Germany, which appeared to be Vadim Krasikov. He was serving a life sentence for the 2019 killing in Berlin of a Georgian citizen of Chechen descent. Asked last week by the AP about Gershkovich, Putin said the US is "taking energetic steps" to secure his release. He said any such releases "aren't decided via mass media" but through a "discreet, calm, and professional approach." "And they certainly should be decided only on the basis of reciprocity," he added in an allusion to a potential prisoner swap. (More Evan Gershkovich stories.)
Advocates of abortion rights won a significant Supreme Court victory on Thursday in a unanimous ruling that means a widely used abortion pill will remain accessible. But the decision was a narrow oneon legal standing, not on the merits of the argumentand it leaves the door open for states to keep the case over mifepristone alive. Coverage:

Unanimous: Brett Kavanaugh wrote the unanimous ruling that rejected a legal challenge to the drug brought by doctors and other medical professionals, reports NBC News. But these doctors don't prescribe the pill themselves, the ruling notes. The "plaintiffs want FDA to make mifepristone more difficult for other doctors to prescribe and for pregnant women to obtain," Kavanaugh wrote, per the Washington Post. But under the Constitution, a group's "desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue."
Donald Trump made his first visit to Capitol Hill on Thursday since the 2021 Capitol riot by his supporters, reports NPR. And while the purpose of the visit was ostensibly to talk policy and election strategy with House and Senate Republicans, it also "symbolized his official return to Washington as the Republican Party's leader," reports Axios. Some of the headlines:

McConnell greeting: Trump made nice with sometimes-nemesis Mitch McConnell, the outgoing Senate GOP leader, reports Politico. "We had a really positive meeting, he and I got a chance to talk a little bit, we shook hands a few times, he got a lot of standing ovations, it was an entirely positive meeting," said McConnell. "Mitt Romney was there, as well, and I can't think of anything to tell you about it that was negative."
Trade liberalisation a priority for govt

Trade Minister Todd McClay has been clear that liberalising trade with China was a priority for the coalition government

He has been to China already, the first ministerial visit under this administration, for meetings with counterparts in commerce, agriculture and forestry.

"We think there are opportunities to upgrade the FTA around services that will deliver for Kiwi exporters into the Chinese market."

Luxon wants trade with China to grow to help meet the government's goal of doubling the value of New Zealand's exports in the next decade.

"We look at China and we say: 1.4 billion people, rapidly rising middle class; yes, running into some economic headwinds as it deals with a few challenges, but at the end of the day, still huge segments of consumers that are actually very discerning and open for New Zealand products and services."

The premier is the second most powerful official in China, and the last to visit was former Premier Li Keqiang in 2017.

Former Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta visited China last year - the first since face-to-face visits had been suspended through the initial years of the Covid pandemic.

Former Prime Minister Chris Hipkins visited last year as well, within six months of taking on the top job.

Li will also spend time in Australia this week, which has been navigating tensions with China over the past few years.

'We have differences'

New Zealand pondering the possibility of joining Pillar 2 of the AUKUS security pact will be another point of friction.

Just last month, China's Ambassador to New Zealand warned that could be seen as "taking sides".

The prime minister acknowledged it would come up in the conversations he would have with Li this week.

"We happen to think AUKUS is good from a security point of view-providing security into the Indo-Pacific - and we think it's entirely appropriate that New Zealand explores potential options under Pillar 2 and makes a decision to or not to participate," said Luxon.

He was in Niue and Fiji last week, and discussed New Zealand's role amid the increasing geostrategic competition in the Indo-Pacific.

When pushed on which powers he was referring to, and whether specifically it was China, Luxon said there were "a number of powers that are doing more activity within the region".

He rejected the suggestion he was afraid to say 'China', saying: "No, no, there's as I said more geostrategic competition whether it's China, whether it's the US, whether it's other powers as well". ]

Luxon said he would be "raising all the areas of difference that we have", such as China's human rights record.

"We have differences. We raise those differences very predictably, very consistently, both publicly, as you would've seen recently with cyber-issues, and also privately."

He said he was keen to visit China, potentially early next year.

It has been a decade since President Xi Jinping visited New Zealand.
Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) major democracies agreed an outline deal on Thursday to provide US$50 billion (NZ$81b) of loans for Ukraine using interest from Russian sovereign assets frozen after Moscow invaded its neighbour in 2022.



The political agreement was the centrepiece of the opening day in southern Italy of the annual summit of G7 leaders, attended for a second successive year by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

He said he had signed a 10-year security accord with Japan on the sidelines of the summit and that Japan would provide Ukraine with US$4.5 billion (NZ$7.29b) this year. Zelenskiy will also sign a new, long-term security accord with US President Joe Biden later in the day.

The G7 plan for Ukraine is based on a multi-year loan using profits from some US$300 billion (NZ$386b) of impounded Russian funds.

The technical details are to be finalised in the coming weeks, a G7 diplomatic source told Reuters. The source, who asked not to be named, said the additional funding would arrive by the end of this year.

The United States had agreed to provide up to US$50 billion (NZ$81b) itself, a senior US official said, but that amount could decline significantly as other countries announced their participation.

The aim of the deal was to ensure it can run for years regardless of who is in power in each G7 state - a nod to concerns that US Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump may be much less sympathetic to Kyiv if he beats Biden in November's election, according to a person close to the talks.

Russia regards attempts by the West to take income from its frozen assets as criminal, foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday, adding that Moscow's response would be very painful for the European Union.
NOAA

Two chum salmon show the distinctive stripes that emerge after they enter freshwater to spawn. When the Northern Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea and Beaufort Sea warm together, conditions are right for Pacific salmon to swim all the way to the Western Canadian Arctic, research shows.
Barbara Donatelli, Yupik, is a CIRI and Doyon, Limited shareholder, and is a member of the Get Out the Native Vote board. Denise Juneau is the board chair for the Voter Participation Center. Juneau is the first Native woman (Mandan/Hidatsa/Blackfeet/Tlingit Haida) elected to serve as superintendent of public instruction for the state of Montana, the first Native superintendent in Seattle, and the first out LGBTQIA federal candidate in Montana.
TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune  www.newsofbahrain.com

Report by Zahra Ayaz

Eid Al Adha, also known as the Festival of the Sacrifice, is one of the most important Islamic holidays celebrated across the Gulf region. Marking the end of the annual Hajj pilgrimage, Eid Al Adha is a time for families to come together, reflect, and indulge in special traditions and festivities.

Here are 5 things the Gulf region especially likes to indulge in during this special time of year:

1. Lavish Feasts

No Eid Al Adha celebration is complete without an abundance of delicious food. Families across the Gulf region go all out, preparing elaborate feasts featuring classic regional dishes. Some popular menu items include lamb or goat dishes like machboos (spiced rice with meat), ouzi (stuffed lamb), and fahsa (slow-cooked meat stew).

These hearty meals are often accompanied by an assortment of mezze (small dishes), from hummus and baba ghanoush to fattoush salad. And no Eid feast is complete without an array of traditional sweets like baklava, luqaimat (fried dough balls), and qatayef (stuffed pancakes).
HALIFAX, NS, June 12, 2024 /CNW/ - Killam Apartment REIT (TSX: KMP.UN) ("Killam") is pleased to announce the release of its 2023 Environmental, Social, and Governance ("ESG") Report, providing an overview of Killam's ESG strategy, commitments, and progress.

"In 2023, we continued to enhance our ESG initiatives, reaffirming our commitment to being a leader in the industry" noted Philip Fraser, President and CEO. "Since our inaugural ESG Report in 2018, we have witnessed substantial change in our industry, yet our mission to provide Canadians with clean, safe, and quality housing remains unchanged."

Key highlights from Killam's 2023 ESG Report include:

Investment in Energy Efficiency: Allocated $8.8 million towards energy-efficiency projects, including the installation of photovoltaic solar panels at six additional properties and 255 electric vehicle chargers across 35 more buildings.

Allocated towards energy-efficiency projects, including the installation of photovoltaic solar panels at six additional properties and 255 electric vehicle chargers across 35 more buildings. Greenhouse Gas Reduction: Achieved a 10.8% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) intensity ratio from the 2020 baseline.

Achieved a 10.8% reduction in greenhouse gas (GHG) intensity ratio from the 2020 baseline. Certification of Properties: Certified 14 additional properties under the Certified Rental Building Program, resulting in a 28% certification rate across the apartment portfolio.

Certified 14 additional properties under the Certified Rental Building Program, resulting in a 28% certification rate across the apartment portfolio. Affordability Assistance: Contributed $2.5 million towards affordability assistance.

Contributed towards affordability assistance. Resident and Employee Satisfaction: Surpassed annual satisfaction score targets of 85% for residents and 80% for employees.

Surpassed annual satisfaction score targets of 85% for residents and 80% for employees. Community Contributions: Donated $415,000 to community organizations.

Donated to community organizations. Integration of ESG into Compensation Plans: Introduced ESG targets into executive compensation plans.

Killam's 2023 ESG Report is aligned with (i) the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) 2021 Universal Standards, (ii) the Sustainability Accounting Standards Board (SASB) Real Estate Standard, (iii) the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD) recommendations and (iv) the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

Killam's 2023 ESG Report can be found at www.killamreit.com .

About Killam

Killam Apartment REIT, based in Halifax, Nova Scotia, is one of Canada's largest residential real estate investment trusts, owning, operating, managing and developing a $5.2 billion portfolio of apartments and manufactured home communities. Killam's strategy to enhance value and profitability focuses on three priorities: 1) increase earnings from existing operations, 2) expand the portfolio and diversify geographically through accretive acquisitions and dispositions, with an emphasis on acquiring newer properties, and 3) develop high-quality properties in its core markets.

Note: The Toronto Stock Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved of the information contained herein. Certain statements in this press release may constitute forward-looking statements and forward-looking information (collectively, "forward-looking statements"), including within the meaning of applicable securities law. In some cases, forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "may", "will", "should", "expect", "plan", "anticipate", "believe", "estimate", "potential", "continue", "target", "commit", "priority", "remain", "strategy", "future" or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology, and by discussions of strategies that involve risks and uncertainties. Such forward looking statements include statements regarding Killam's ESG initiatives and targets, and Killam's priorities. Readers should be aware that these statements are subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated or implied, or those suggested by any forward-looking statements, including competition; global, national, and regional economic conditions, including inflationary pressures; and the availability of capital to fund further investments in Killam's business. For more exhaustive information on these risks and uncertainties, readers should refer to Killam's most recently filed annual information form, as well as Killam's most recently filed management's discussion and analysis, each of which are available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca. While Killam anticipates that subsequent events and developments may cause its views to change, Killam does not intend to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, circumstances, or such other factors that affect this information, except as required by law. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are expressly qualified by this cautionary statement.

SOURCE Killam Apartment Real Estate Investment Trust

Claire Hawksworth, CPA, Senior Manager, Investor Relations, [email protected], (902) 442-5322
The Fonds de solidarite FTQ and the Fonds regionaux de solidarite FTQ Quebec become

shareholders of the company specializing in 3D measurement software

QUEBEC, June 13, 2024 /CNW/ - To support the growth of InnovMetric , founded in Quebec City in 1994, the Fonds de solidarite FTQ and the Fonds regionaux de solidarite FTQ-Quebec have become shareholders of the company thanks to a $45 million dollar investment.

InnovMetric cofounders Marc Soucy PhD, and Esther Bouliane (CNW Group/Fonds de solidarite FTQ) InnovMetric specializes in the design of 3D measurement software. Its software solutions are at the heart of verifying the compliance of manufactured parts, allowing perfect assembly as well as a significant reduction in rejected parts and product time-to-market. (CNW Group/Fonds de solidarite FTQ)

InnovMetric specializes in the design of 3D measurement software. Its software solutions are at the heart of verifying the compliance of manufactured parts, allowing perfect assembly as well as a significant reduction in rejected parts and product time-to-market. Whether it is for cars, household appliances, or smartphones, InnovMetric's PolyWorks solutions are essential for many everyday objects.

Having built a reputation for excellence with each of the world's 100 largest manufacturers, the Quebec City-based company has established an unwavering presence in 18 countries and has more than 650 employees and 23,000 clients.

"This announcement with the Fonds de solidarite FTQ network allows us to join forces with a strong financial partner that will support us in our next phase of growth. This growth will be driven by our digital transformation solutions for 3D measurement processes, which enable our clients to make better product lifecycle decisions, foster greater collaboration, and ultimately, increase profitability," said Marc Soucy, President and co-founder of InnovMetric.

"Quebec City is now a world leader in software thanks to the expertise in 3D measurements developed by InnovMetric over the past 30 years. We are proud to support the growth of this company, which counts the world's largest manufacturers among its clients. The culture of innovation that is promoted by Marc Soucy and the entire InnovMetric team shines around the world," added Saloua Benkhouya, Vice-President, Private Equity and Impact Investing at the Fonds de solidarite FTQ.

"The Quebec City office of the Fonds regionaux de solidarite FTQ is a gateway to the entire Fonds pour les entrepreneurs network in the Capitale-Nationale region looking for support and financing. We are proud to join forces with our colleagues at the Fonds to support the growth of InnovMetric, which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year," concluded Frederic Bernard, Regional Vice-President of the Fonds regionaux de solidarite FTQ for Quebec City.

Deloitte Corporate Finance served as the main advisor and facilitated the financing process seamlessly.

About the Fonds de solidarite FTQ

The Fonds de solidarite FTQ is a source of pride in Quebec, fulfilling its mission through a unique business model created 40 years ago. Since then, the Fonds has rallied Quebec into action thanks to the retirement savings of 769,459 shareholders.

With net assets of $18.9 billion as of November 30, 2023, the Fonds supports more than 3,700 companies through venture and development capital investments based on the belief that impact is created as much by financial returns as it is by social ones. For more information, visit fondsftq.com or our company page on LinkedIn.

About InnovMetric

A recognized leader in the field of 3D measurement software, InnovMetric is a Quebec City multinational that celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2024. PolyWorks, its universal digital ecosystem, has revolutionized the industry. It allows manufacturing companies to accelerate the design, development, and quality control of their products by quickly identifying possible solutions to their manufacturing challenges.

The InnovMetric group successfully combines constant growth and its philosophy as a human-scale multinational. Today, the company has 650 employees spread across 18 countries, and offers its services in 43 languages to more than 23,000 clients in 100 countries. It stands out for its prestigious partnerships, including with the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) for the inspection of Formula 1 vehicles before races. InnovMetric supports the world's largest automobile manufacturers as well as the 100 largest manufacturing companies in the digital transformation of their metrology processes.

For more information, visit innovmetric.com or follow us on LinkedIn.

SOURCE Fonds de solidarite FTQ

Information for media representatives: Fonds de solidarite FTQ, Patrick McQuilken, Senior Advisor for Media Relations, 514 703-5587, [email protected]; InnovMetric, Aude Gerard, Marketing Director, 418 925-7134, [email protected]
A man who had more than 45,000 child pornography files stored on his electronic devices was sentenced to prison on Wednesday.

Robert Giles, 73, of Collingswood, was sentenced to 33 months in federal prison, the U.S. Attorneys Office District of New Jersey said in a news release. He previously pleaded guilty to possession child pornography.

FBI agents executed a search warrant at his Collingswood home on April 25, 2022, where they seized multiple electronic devices. Cybercrime experts examined the electronics and found more than 45,000 images and videos depicting the sexual abuse of children, federal prosecutors said.

As part of his sentence, Giles will also be subject to 10 years of supervised release and owes $186,500 in fines, officials said.

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Nicolas Fernandes may be reached at nfernandes@njadvancemedia.com.
Wildwood officials passed a new nighttime backpack ban Wednesday that takes effect immediately in the Cape May County resort city.

The new rules, which were unanimously approved by the citys board of commissioners, are designed to help prevent a repeat of last months chaotic Memorial Day weekend. During the busy holiday weekend, police identified a series of incidents involving backpacks and other bags containing illegal drugs and alcohol in the possession of minors, according to the ordinance.

READ MORE: Jersey Shore curfews target unruly teens. See full list of rules for your favorite beach.

Under the new policy, backpacks and bags larger than 8 inches in depth are prohibited on the citys beaches and boardwalk from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. There are exceptions for diaper bags and bags carrying medical equipment.

We are pleased to announce the passing of the Backpack Ordinance. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with the Wildwood PD, the Governors Office, law enforcement throughout the state, our neighboring shore towns, and parents and teens to ensure a safe and enjoyable time for everyone, Wildwood Mayor Ernie Troiano said in a statement Thursday.

The ban was approved the same day the Wildwood Police Department put out a statement about an unauthorized pop-up party planned to be held in the city this weekend.

Police on Wednesday said they are taking preemptive measures to prevent the unsanctioned event, adding the events organizers agreed to not hold the gathering. The event was organized on social media, police said.

Two years ago, Wildwood was the site of a deadly pop-up car rally that left two people dead and several others injured. Since then, the city has tried to take preemptive measures against unauthorized pop-up parties and similar events.

The ordinance approving the backpack ban also includes new rules about when a Wildwood police officer can give minors more than a warning for unlawful behavior. Under current state guidelines, most teens are not taken to the police station or arrested if they are cited for minor offenses.

The new ordinance allows law enforcement officers to pursue a formal delinquency complaint against some minors with the approval of the county prosecutor.

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Jackie Roman may be reached at jroman@njadvancemedia.com.
An Essex County tax preparer was sentenced to almost five years in prison after pleading guilty to charges he illegally collected $4.49 million in tax refunds, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced Wednesday.

Omar Khater, 33, of Fairfield was sentenced to 57 months in prison and previously pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and conspiracy to defraud the IRS on Jan. 23.

A relative of Khaters, Walid Khater, 38, of Arizona was named by prosecutors as a conspirator in the case and pleaded guilty to identical charges on May 23, the office said.

Omar Khater has admitted his role in an elaborate scheme that used stolen personal identifying information and fabricated tax returns to bilk the IRS of millions of dollars, Sellinger said. He and a relative submitted tax documents falsely claiming that the taxpayers listed on those documents had earned certain income or won thousands  and in some cases millions  of dollars in gambling and lottery winnings.

The Khaters were accused of working with others to steal identities and then file phony tax returns to claim bogus tax refunds from the Internal Revenue Service.

The tax returns indicated certain income or thousands of dollars in lottery and gambling winnings, prosecutors alleged in court documents. In some cases, the Khaters falsely claimed the winnings and then declared tax withholdings that entitled them to refunds from the IRS, authorities said.

The Khaters filed these tax returns using stolen taxpayer information and collected lucrative tax refunds totaling $4.49 million.

Court documents show that one of the identities used to file fraudulent tax returns was a client of Omar Khaters who was incarcerated from 2016 through 2022.

Khater filed tax returns under the former clients name in 2018, 2019 and 2020 while he was in prison, claiming earnings of just over $67,000, $1.3 million and $1.5 million respectively, court documents show.

Prosecutors alleged the Khaters used a mailbox at a UPS store in West Orange to receive mail addressed to the former client and opened at least three bank accounts in the persons name.

Mr. Khater fully accepts responsibility and deeply regrets his actions, Omars attorney Robert Scrivo said Wednesday. He is committed to moving forward in a very positive light.

An attorney for Walid did not immediately return a request for comment.

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Matthew Enuco may be reached at Menuco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow Matt on X
A police officer from Woodbridge and another from the New York Police Department were wounded overnight in a shootout at a New Jersey hotel that left a man wanted for murder dead, authorities said.

The officers were shot around midnight in a complex that houses the Raritan Hotel and the Royal Alberts Palace Banquet Hall on Kings Georges Post Road in Woodbridge while trying to locate a suspect in a homicide, authorities said.
A Brooklyn man was sentenced to four years in prison Wednesday for a string of jewelry heists that netted over $800,000 in stolen goods, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said.

Tony Newton, 62, of Brooklyn, New York previously pleaded guilty to a federal indictment charging him with two counts of interstate transportation of stolen goods.

Federal prosecutors said on June 1, 2022 and July 16, 2022, Newton transported stolen jewelry from Middlesex and Union counties into New York. Besides two burglaries in New Jersey, Newton admitted to robbing two other jewelry stores in Bay Shore, New York and Milford, Connecticut, authorities said.
Hunter Biden just got convicted of three felonies in federal court, and President Joe Biden says hell respect the jury verdict and hes not going to pardon his son.

So, what happened to the MAGA conspiracy theory that the Department of Justice was just an arm of Bidens corrupt administration?
Donald Trump is returning to Capitol Hill Thursday for the first time since he told his supporters to fight like hell before they stormed Congress in a failed insurrection on Jan.

And Nancy Pelosi, who was speaker of the House at the time, has some thoughts.

Today, the instigator of an insurrection is returning to the scene of the crime. January 6th was a crime against the Capitol, that saw Nazi and Confederate flags flying under the dome that Lincoln built. It was a crime against the Constitution and its peaceful transfer of power, in a desperate attempt to cling to power. And it was a crime against members, heroic police offices and staff, that resulted in the death, injury, and trauma that endure to this day. With his pledges to be a dictator on day one and seek revenge against his political opponents, Donald Trump comes to Capitol Hill today with the same mission of dismantling our democracy. But make no mistake  Trump has already cemented his legacy of shame in our hallowed halls.

Her statement comes as Trump returns to meet with House and Senate Republicans as federal charges against Trump for conspiring to overturn the 2020 election and his recent guilty verdict in an unrelated hush money trial hang over him.

Were excited to welcome President Trump back, said House Speaker Mike Johnson, who led one of the lawsuits challenging the 2020 election, and had his biggest fundraising day yet after Trumps felony conviction.

Trump is scheduled to deliver remarks to both groups at the House and Senate campaign headquarters near the U.S. Capitol and discuss issues animating his campaign  including mass immigration deportations but also tax cuts and other priorities for a potential second term.

Making Jan. 6 a cornerstone of his reelection campaign, Trump celebrates those who stormed the Capitol as warriors and patriots, and he has vowed to pardon any number of the more than 1,300 America convicted of crimes for the assault on the seat of U.S. democracy.

Hundreds of law enforcement officers were beaten and bloodied in the attack by Trump supporters, who descended after a rally and smashed into the Capitol while Trump remained silent for hours.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @MatthewArco.
Former President Donald Trump brushed off his recent felony guilty verdict as nothing more than a political prosecution and then used it to raise money for his presidential race.

In other words, nothing to see here. No big deal.

Privately, however, he was seething mad and rang GOP House Speaker Mike Johnson in an effort to get rid of the conviction, per a report from POLITICO.

The president was angry over the verdict, dropping f-bombs in his conversation with the pious GOP leader who never raises his voice  let alone uses profanity. We have to overturn this, Trump insisted, reported Rachel Bade. Johnson agreed. And now the House GOP is looking at what they can do to help him out.

More from the report:

Johnson sympathized with Trumps frustration. Hed been among the first batch of Republican lawmakers to appear alongside Trump at the Manhattan trial. Hed been harping on DA Alvin Braggs case and the alleged broader abuse of the justice system since before he took the gavel.

The speaker didnt really need to be convinced, one person familiar with the conversation said: Johnson, a former attorney himself, already believed the House had a role to play in addressing Trumps predicament. The two have since spoken on the subject multiple times.

But sympathy can only go so far. With a slim majority and skittish swing-district members, Johnson is already finding it difficult to deliver for Trump.

SCOOP: After TRUMP was convicted in NY, he picked up the phone to call someone he thought could do something about it: Speaker MIKE JOHNSON.



The president was angry over the verdict, dropping f-bombs in his conversation with the pious GOP leader who never raises his voice   Rachael Bade (@rachaelmbade) June 13, 2024

Trump became the first former American president to be convicted of felony crimes in May after a jury found him guilty of all 34 charges in a scheme to illegally influence the 2016 election through a hush money payment to a porn actor who said the two had sex.

Judge Juan M. Merchan set sentencing for July 11, just days before the Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, where GOP leaders, who remained resolute in their support in the aftermath of the verdict, are expected to formally make him their nominee.

The verdict was a stunning legal reckoning for Trump and exposes him to potential prison time in the city where his manipulations of the tabloid press helped catapult him from a real estate tycoon to reality television star and ultimately president. As he seeks to reclaim the White House in this years election, the judgment presents voters with another test of their willingness to accept Trumps boundary-breaking behavior.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @MatthewArco.
Talks took an odd turn on Thursday when former President Donald Trump spoke to GOP officials behind closed doors on his first return to Capitol Hill since the Jan. 6 failed insurrection.

They centered on former Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and a supposed conversation one of her children had with Trump, per reports of what was said in the room. Trump, who called Pelosis daughter a whacko, told party leaders, Her daughter told me if things were different Nancy and I would be perfect together, theres an age difference though.

Christine Pelosi had some thoughts of her own:

Speaking for all 4 Pelosi daughters  this is a LIE. His deceitful, deranged obsession with our mother is yet another reason Donald Trump is unwell, unhinged and unfit to step foot anywhere near her  or the White House, she posted to X.

Speaking for all 4 Pelosi daughters  this is a LIE. His deceitful, deranged obsession with our mother is yet another reason Donald Trump is unwell, unhinged and unfit to step foot anywhere near her  or the White House. https://t.co/RkHP0uQbRw  Christine Pelosi (@sfpelosi) June 13, 2024

Trump returned to meet with House and Senate Republicans as federal charges against Trump for conspiring to overturn the 2020 election, and his recent guilty verdict in an unrelated hush money trial hangs over him.

Trump is scheduled to deliver remarks to both groups at the House and Senate campaign headquarters near the U.S. Capitol and discuss issues animating his campaign  including mass immigration deportations but also tax cuts and other priorities for a potential second term.

Making Jan. 6 a cornerstone of his reelection campaign, Trump celebrates those who stormed the Capitol as warriors and patriots, and he has vowed to pardon any number of the more than 1,300 America convicted of crimes for the assault on the seat of U.S. democracy.

Nancy Pelosi had her own thoughts about the former president on his trip.

Today, the instigator of an insurrection is returning to the scene of the crime. January 6th was a crime against the Capitol, that saw Nazi and Confederate flags flying under the dome that Lincoln built. It was a crime against the Constitution and its peaceful transfer of power, in a desperate attempt to cling to power. And it was a crime against members, heroic police offices and staff, that resulted in the death, injury, and trauma that endure to this day. With his pledges to be a dictator on day one and seek revenge against his political opponents, Donald Trump comes to Capitol Hill today with the same mission of dismantling our democracy. But make no mistake  Trump has already cemented his legacy of shame in our hallowed halls.

Hundreds of law enforcement officers were beaten and bloodied in the attack by Trump supporters, who descended after a rally and smashed into the Capitol while Trump remained silent for hours.

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.
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Watertown, NY (13601)

Today

Sunshine and a few afternoon clouds. High 63F. Winds SW at 10 to 20 mph..

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* Around a decade ago, bilateral relations received a significant boost when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited New Zealand, elevating their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership. * Reflecting on history, China and Australia have long been forging ahead side by side. Diplomatic ties were established in December 1972 and were elevated to a comprehensive strategic partnership in November 2014. * Over the past 50 years, China and Malaysia have always treated each other with sincerity, supported each other in solidarity, and sought development together. This mutual respect and trust have consistently placed China-Malaysia relations at the forefront of regional cooperation. by Xinhua writers Tian Dongdong, Ye Shan, and Feng Qidi BEIJING/HONGKONG, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Around 2024, the diplomatic ties between China and New Zealand, Australia, and Malaysia have all crossed the half-century mark. Throughout this journey, China has shown unwavering dedication to collaboration, even amid challenges. In the ever-shifting geopolitical dynamics of the Asia-Pacific region, China's ties with New Zealand, Australia, and Malaysia are expected to showcase the influential role of diplomacy rooted in mutual respect and mutual understanding. This will contribute to injecting greater sustainability and stability into the region. FRUITFUL COOPERATION From June 13 to 20, Chinese Premier Li Qiang will pay official visits to New Zealand, Australia and Malaysia. Fostered by pioneers like Rewi Alley, a dedicated New Zealander who spent six decades living and working in China until his passing in Beijing in 1987, the relationship between China and New Zealand has steadily grown since they established diplomatic ties about 52 years ago. During this period, the two countries have created many "firsts." New Zealand was one of the first Western countries to establish diplomatic relations with China and the first developed nation to sign and implement a bilateral free trade agreement with China. Additionally, it was also the first Western developed country to recognize China's full market economy status. "It's a reflection of the New Zealand culture, as well as its political position of being strongly independent without having to follow necessarily the strong influence from other countries. To recognize China in these 'first ways' is a showing of strength and independent thinking," John Cochrane, chairman of the New Zealand China Trade Association, told Xinhua on Wednesday. Around a decade ago, bilateral relations received a significant boost when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited New Zealand, elevating their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership. As a result of their cooperation featuring win-win results, China has become New Zealand's largest trading partner and export destination. Notably, New Zealand has long enjoyed a surplus for goods and services with China, with only three quarterly goods deficits in the five years ending June 2023. "I cannot help but use the word 'vital' when I think about the importance (of New Zealand's relationship with China). It is a vital relationship not only just in trade, but in all matters whether it's a national security, whether it's on education, people exchanges, cultural exchanges, artistic exchanges, and so on," said Cochrane. Characterized by mutual respect and win-win cooperation, the sustained momentum in their bilateral ties has served as a stabilizing force in the ever-changing global landscape. China's rapid development presents vast opportunities and is beneficial to many countries including New Zealand. "China shows a model that it (development) can be accomplished," said Cochrane. "The cooperation between China and New Zealand is in a good condition. The relationship between the two countries is ready now for us to start that next level of success," he added. WARMING-UP TIES Australia marks the second stop of Premier Li's trip. Reflecting on history, China and Australia have long been forging ahead side by side. Diplomatic ties were established in December 1972 and were elevated to a comprehensive strategic partnership in November 2014. However, during the recent six-year period of strained bilateral relations, some within the Australian political sphere adopted unfavorable policies toward China, influenced by external factors. This led to a series of unfriendly actions, including supporting Taiwan to be included in the World Health Assembly and joining the AUKUS alliance with the United States and Britain. It was not until 2022, when President Xi met with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Indonesia, that bilateral relations gradually returned to a right track. Through consultations and negotiations, many trade disputes have been resolved. In April, Australia terminated its anti-dumping measures against Chinese wind towers after the World Trade Organization ruled that Australian duties on Chinese steel products were flawed, and China has lifted anti-dumping measures on Australian barley and wine, as well as lifted bans on several Australian beef and lamb exporters. The economic structures of China and Australia are highly complementary, and there is huge potential for economic and trade cooperation, said Chinese Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian. Since 2009, China has been Australia's largest trading partner, export market and import source for 15 consecutive years. In 2023, the bilateral trade in goods increased 4.1 percent year by year, while Australian investment in China increased 11.7 percent compared to the previous year, and the number of Australian-funded enterprises established in China surged by 40.2 percent. "Facts have proven that strengthening China-Australia economic and trade cooperation will bring tangible benefits to the business communities of both countries, effectively promote steady economic growth and benefit the two peoples," Xiao said. "Economic complementarity lies at the heart of the bilateral relationship. A focus on areas of common beneficial interest is conducive to a positive atmosphere for dialogue to continue to broaden and enhance the bilateral relations," said Warwick Powell, adjunct professor at the Queensland University of Technology. Echoing this sentiment, Daryl Guppy, an international financial technical analysis expert and a former national board member of the Australia-China Business Council, said, "The Chinese and Australian economies are complementary, and bilateral trade cannot be separated from the steady growth of the Chinese economy." LONG-TIME FRIENDS China and Malaysia are neighbors with a millennium-old friendship. In the 15th century, during the time of the Malacca Sultanate and the Ming Dynasty, the ships from China arrived at the port of Malacca. They brought not only silk and porcelain but also the promise of friendship. This historic exchange laid the foundation for the ties between the Chinese and Malaysian people. As China and Malaysia celebrate the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations in 2024, the echoes of that ancient trade resonate strongly. "Malaysia and China are connected by history, trade, and cultural contacts over thousands of years," said Dato' Abdul Majid Ahmad Khan, former Malaysian ambassador to China. Over the past 50 years, the two nations have always treated each other with sincerity, supported each other in solidarity, and sought development together. This mutual respect and trust have consistently placed China-Malaysia relations at the forefront of regional cooperation. Economic collaboration remains a cornerstone of this partnership. Last year, bilateral trade reached an impressive 190 billion U.S. dollars, securing China as Malaysia's largest trading partner for the 15th consecutive year. Signature projects under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), such as the East Coast Railway Link and the Malaysia-China "Two Countries, Twin Parks," have significantly strengthened regional connectivity and economic integration between China, Malaysia, and ASEAN as well. "The Belt and Road Initiative has elevated our partnership," noted Majid, highlighting the transformative impact of these projects. Recent years have seen even greater advancements in bilateral cooperation. The recent visa-free travel waiver has significantly boosted people-to-people exchanges. "We are positive about reaching over 5 million tourists from China," said Tourism Malaysia Director-General Manoharan Periasamy in April. Malaysia has also attracted substantial investment from China in solar module manufacturing, electric vehicles and the digital economy. Cooperation with China in those fields is crucial, said Majid. In 2023, President Xi and visiting Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim reached a significant consensus on jointly building a China-Malaysia community with a shared future in Beijing, marking a new historical stage in bilateral relations. This deep-rooted friendship has consistently placed China-Malaysia relations at the forefront of regional cooperation, fostering mutual trust and respect. On the South China Sea issue, the Malaysian prime minister has called for "aggressive" diplomatic engagement to resolve disputes, rejecting interference of external parties. Reiterating that the issue must be resolved among ASEAN member countries and China, he said earlier this month, "there should not be involvement with other parties because it will be deemed to be more complex and will complicate the matter." Commenting on the relationship, Nurul Izzah Anwar, vice president of Malaysia's People's Justice Party, told Xinhua in a recent interview, "It's more than just trade ties. It's more than economic linkages. It's an appreciation that we speak to common ideals, common aspirations, and a shared future for the betterment of not just economy and GDP per capita alone, but the betterment of people-to-people connection." (Xinhua reporters Zha Wenye in Hong Kong, Guo Lei and Li Huizi in Wellington, Zhang Jianhua in Canberra, Liang Youchang and Wang Qi in Sydney, and Mao Pengfei and Wang Yi in Kuala Lumpur also contributed to the story.)
A charity run entirely by volunteers has made one last donation after more than 30 years of incredible fundraising for North Devon cancer patients.

The North Devon Cancer Care Centre Trust (NDCCCT) was set up by the late Jennifer Bonetta in 1994 following the death from cancer of her husband, Tom.

Jennifer launched the charity from the dining room table of her Northam home and thanks to fundraising events by the local community and the profits from a Westward Ho! charity shop, it has gone on to raise an astonishing 3million for cancer services in North Devon.

Some of the early projects included helping to fund North Devon District Hospitals (NDDH) first chemotherapy units on Level 5, Level 4 and then Level 2, as well as the chemotherapy pharmacy unit.

The charity also provided a transport service to take patients from North Devon and Torridge to and from their treatments in Exeter.

The charity raised 700,000 for the chemotherapy Seamoor Unit at NDDH, which opened in 2015 following a 2.2m fundraising appeal.

More recently, it contributed 100,000 towards the building of the hospitals 1.5m Fern Centre, which provides wellbeing support to local cancer patients. It has also donated 117,000 towards counselling and complimentary therapy costs at the Fern Centre.

Jennifer Bonetta died in 2011 aged 78, a few years before the Seamoor Unit opened, but a treatment room in the unit is named after Jennifer in recognition of her support.

The charity was continued by her son James and a devoted committee of volunteers, many of whom attended a special final presentation at the Seamoor Unit.

Above: NDCCCT chairman James Bonetta and former trustee Ray Sawtell unveil a plaque in the Seamoor Unit. Credit: RDHC

Presenting the charitys final cheque for 123,346, James said he hoped the legacy of his mums charity would continue to help cancer patients in North Devon.

Mum set up NDCCCT to provide cancer services in North Devon so that patients here could receive treatment closer to home, said James, who became the chairman of the charity and helped steer the build of the Seamoor Unit.

She was determined to see a new, purpose-built chemotherapy unit in Barnstaple and would have been delighted that NDCCCT helped the Seamoor Unit become a reality.

We have only been able to do so much thanks to such generous support from the people of North Devon over the years and its fitting that our final donation will continue to support local cancer patients and give them access to the best possible treatment.

NDCCCTs last donation will fund a machine to treat small bladder tumours in outpatients, freeing up theatre time for more complex procedures, as well as a machine to treat early rectal cancers, meaning patients no longer need to travel to Cheltenham.

Plus it will fund cold cap equipment to help reduce hair loss during chemotherapy treatment; a wash room in the Seamoor Unit and an ECG machine and phlebotomy trolley and chair for the Seamoor Unit so that patients can receive all the information they need in one setting without interruption.

James added: Although we are closing NDCCCT, its great to see Royal Devon Hospitals Charity (RDHC) continue to fly the fundraising flag for North Devons cancer services.

A key part of NDCCCTs fundraising efforts was its charity shop in Westward Ho! The shop initially opened for just a few days but soon became a well-known shopping destination, open six-days-a-week, all year round.

Royal Devon Hospitals Charity (formerly Over and Above) took on the shop in 2021 and all the money raised in the shop and the charitys Rose Lane shop in Barnstaple, continues to support local cancer patients by helping to fund the annual running costs of the Fern Centre.

Julie Whitton, fundraiser for RDHC said: NDCCCT are inspirational and it was their overwhelming support and determination to see a chemotherapy service in North Devon that helped make the Seamoor Unit a reality.

The charity also gave us the belief that we could do it again and with their support we were able to build the Fern Centre.

I would like to thank NDCCCT from the bottom of my heart for the immense contribution they have given to cancer services and supporting patients in North Devon for which we are truly grateful.

Charlotte Overney, associate director of nursing at Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, said: NDCCCT has supported us in many ways over the years, funding nursing posts, travel for patients and equipment and much more. The difference this has made is unmeasurable.

The Seamoor Unit was built by the supporters of North Devon but the passion and support from the charity, its supporters and James was so apparent and I cannot thank you all enough for helping us make that happen.

Carolyn Mills, chief nursing officer at Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, said the charitys support had been invaluable to the Trust.

The incredible efforts of NDCCCT have meant local people can get more and more of their cancer treatment locally in amazing care environments, she said.
Disney and Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida have finally ended their feud, clearing the way for $17 billion in planned development at Walt Disney World near Orlando.

On Wednesday night, the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District  an entity that Mr. DeSantis took over in 2022, ending 55 years of Disney control and sparking multiple lawsuits  gave the company a big part of what it wanted all along: a locked-in, long-term plan for expanding Disney World. At least for the next 15 years, the length of the new agreement, Disney can develop the resort without worrying about interference by Florida politicians.

Put bluntly, state leaders can no longer use growth at the 25,000-acre resort as a political weapon, as Mr. DeSantis did two years ago after Disney said it would fight to repeal a state education law that opponents called anti-gay.

Jeff Vahle, the president of Disney World, said in a statement that the agreement would support the growth of this global destination, fueling the Florida economy. It gives Disney the ability to build a fifth theme park, add three small parks, expand retail and office space and build 14,000 hotel rooms, for a resort total of nearly 54,000.
Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked an effort by Democrats to quickly pass Supreme Court ethics and transparency legislation they had pushed forward in the wake of disclosures about justices taking unreported gifts and travel and other ethical issues surrounding the high court.

The unsuccessful outcome was predetermined, but represented an effort by Senate Democrats to show they were pressing the case against the court. It was also aimed at demonstrating the limits of their power given the narrow divide in the Senate and deep Republican opposition to Congress taking action to impose stricter ethics rules on the justices.

The ethics crisis at the Supreme Court, the highest court in the land, is unacceptable, Senator Richard J. Durbin, the Illinois Democrat who chairs the Judiciary Committee, said in calling for the measure to be approved. It is unsustainable and its unworthy of the highest court in the land.

Republicans assailed the bill as a naked effort by Democrats to undercut the court because of ideological disagreements with its decisions, particularly with major rulings about to be handed down. They accused Democrats of trying to intimidate the justices.
At the G7 summit, Biden will push to use Russian assets for Ukraine

For two years, Western allies have debated how to deal with $300 billion in frozen Russian assets. The G7 leaders, who will meet beginning today in Italy, seem on the brink of announcing a compromise.

European leaders feared that seizing the assets would violate international law. So the Biden administration devised a plan to use interest generated by them to back a loan that could be delivered immediately to Ukraine.

The loan could be as large as $50 billion and would be repaid over time with the profits being generated from Russias money. Finance ministers from the G7 have been working out the details, and a U.S. spokesman said he anticipated unanimity on efforts toward it at the summit.

The leaders are also slated to tackle the question of how to stop China from bolstering Russia by selling it dual use microelectronics and other gear to rebuild its military. The Biden administration announced yesterday that it would add sanctions aimed at stopping China from helping the Kremlin in its invasion of Ukraine.
Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, a Palestinian professor at a prominent Israeli university, first waded into the debate over the Gaza war by joining academics worldwide in signing a letter that called for a cease-fire. It branded Israels assault on the territory a genocide and the leaders of her university responded by urging her to resign.

That was soon after the war began on Oct. 7. Months later, the professor drew even more scrutiny for saying it was time to abolish Zionism and accusing Israel of politicizing rape. She was briefly suspended in March by Hebrew University of Jerusalem, where she has taught law and social work for nearly three decades. But right-wing Israeli politicians demanded more severe punishment and in April, the police detained her overnight.

I have been persecuted and defamed, my academic production of knowledge flattened and my home and even my own bedroom invaded, Professor Shalhoub-Kevorkian, 64, told The New York Times.

The professor is now under investigation for incitement to terrorism  a crime punishable by up to five years in prison. And though she has not been charged, her case has prompted a profound debate inside Israel about the repression of free speech and academic freedom since the war began more than eight months ago.
Yemens Houthi rebels attacked a merchant ship in the Red Sea on Wednesday in the latest escalation of the Iran-backed militias campaign against shipping in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

A British government maritime agency said the vessel was hit on the stern by a small craft about 66 nautical miles southwest of the Houthi-held port of Hodeida in Yemen.

After the attack, the ship was taking on water, and not under command of the crew, the agency, The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, said in a statement on its website. The statement said the ships master had reported it was also hit for a second time by an unknown airborne projectile.

A Houthi military spokesman, Yahya Saree, said in a televised speech that the group had used unmanned surface boats, a number of drones and ballistic missiles to target the ship, which he identified as the Tutor, a Greek-owned bulk carrier. He claimed the ship was seriously damaged and could sink.

On Wednesday, the Houthis said they launched two joint military operations with the Islamic Resistance in Iraq, on the Israeli cities Ashdod and Haifa, a claim Israel denied.

Since November, the Houthis have launched dozens of attacks on ships in the vital sea route in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, stifling global maritime trade.

In retaliation, the U.S. and British navies have been intensifying airstrikes against Houthi targets, the latest coming on June 7 after the rebel group detained 11 United Nations employees in Yemen.

The U.S. Central Command said its forces had destroyed four aerial drones and two anti-ship missiles in Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen last Friday, as well as a Houthi patrol boat in the Red Sea.

In February, American military officials said the United States struck five Houthi military targets, including an undersea drone they described as an unmanned underwater vessel that they believed the Houthis could have received from Iran.
Morality takes a hike in Claudio Monteverdis final opera, LIncoronazione di Poppea. Bold in its satire and explicit in its sensuality, even more than 350 years after its creation, the work gives its ruthless lovers, Nero and Poppea, everything they desire.

A decadent exploration of Neros Rome, Poppea might seem to share little with The Comet, a W.E.B. Du Bois short story from 1920. Using tropes of sci-fi catastrophe, Du Bois, the famous Black sociologist, asks what it would take for a racially equitable civilization to emerge. But, like Monteverdis opera, it has an amoral, ice-cold finish: After the merest possibility of interracial love, the status quo of segregation returns.

On Friday, both the opera and the story will be brought together, united by their common denominator of jaundiced cynicism, in The Comet/Poppea, which is premiering at Geffen Contemporary, a warehouse-style space at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. (There are already plans for it to travel to Philadelphia this fall, to New York next year and to the Schwarzman Center at Yale University in 2026.)
When the first season of the Netflix series Bridgerton premiered on Christmas Day, Amanda Vickery sat at home with her three daughters and watched every episode. This was in 2020, in the midst of Englands lockdown, and Vickery remembers thinking, Thank goodness for this escape.

That Vickery could lose herself that way is a particular compliment to Bridgerton, an enflowered fantasy adapted from the Regency-set romance novels of Julia Quinn. Vickery, a professor at Queen Mary, University of London, is a historian. And Bridgerton, a show in which empowered women swoon to orchestral versions of Ariana Grande, takes a rather liberal approach to history.

Watching at home, Vickery did not imagine that she would ever work on Bridgerton, but for this third season, the second installment of which arrives on Thursday, she served as its historical consultant, succeeding her friend and colleague, Hannah Greig, a professor emerita at Royal Holloway, University of London.

Does a show that repurposes Coldplays Yellow as a wedding march really require historians? Yes. Several.
In a unanimous decision today, the Supreme Court rejected an effort to sharply curtail access to mifepristone, a medication used in a majority of abortions in the U.S.

The decision was a victory for supporters of abortion access: The pill will remain widely available, for now.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who wrote the opinion for the court, found that the plaintiffs  a group of anti-abortion doctors and organizations  did not have standing to sue in the first place because they could not show they had been harmed by the availability of abortion pills. Kavanaugh did not, however, rule out the possibility that states could pursue other challenges to curtail access to the drug.

Anti-abortion activists said after the ruling that they would keep trying to unravel the Food and Drug Administrations approval of the pill. Their argument that the drug is harmful has been dismissed by mainstream scientists.
Images of the burned vehicle flew through the Chinese internet: An Aito M7 Plus electric sport utility vehicle, operated by an advanced assisted driving system, had crashed on a highway in Shanxi Province on April 26.

A woman who said her husband, brother and son had been killed posted videos online and pleaded for an investigation. All of her postings soon vanished, and she said she would not discuss it further.

A Chinese business news outlet published a lengthy online investigation that questioned the safety of assisted driving systems. But that soon disappeared, too.

State-run national media refrained from covering the crash for nine days after it happened. Then they posted a statement from Aito Car, a Chinese brand, that disavowed responsibility. The statement said that the cars automated braking system had been designed for speeds up to 53 miles an hour, but the car was going 71 when it hit the back of a road maintenance vehicle.
The Supreme Court ruled in favor of Starbucks on Thursday in a challenge against a labor ruling by a federal judge, making it more difficult for a key federal agency to intervene when a company is accused of illegally suppressing labor organizing.

Eight justices backed the majority opinion, which was written by Justice Clarence Thomas. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote a separate opinion that concurred with the overall judgment but dissented on certain points.

The ruling came in a case brought by Starbucks over the firing of seven workers in Memphis who were trying to unionize a store in 2022. The company said it had fired them for allowing a television crew into a closed store. The workers, who called themselves the Memphis Seven, said that they were fired for their unionization efforts and that the company didnt typically enforce the rules they were accused of violating.

After the firings, the National Labor Relations Board issued a complaint saying that Starbucks had acted because the workers had joined or assisted the union and engaged in concerted activities, and to discourage employees from engaging in these activities. Separately, lawyers for the board asked a federal judge in Tennessee for an injunction reinstating the workers, and the judge issued the order in August 2022.
The fight over Elon Musks pay package and the vote over whether to move Teslas headquarters to Texas have been the main focus of attention ahead of the companys shareholders meeting on Thursday, but not for investors from Nordic countries.

Teslas major shareholders in Sweden, Denmark and Norway are instead looking to the meeting to bring the issue of labor rights at the automaker to the fore.

Behind the campaign is the strike of Teslas mechanics in Sweden. Now stretching into its sixth month, the dispute has drawn in unions from across the region that have joined in blockades aimed at bringing the U.S. carmaker to the negotiating table to reach a collective agreement with its Swedish workers.

Several of the biggest shareholders in the Nordic countries are urging others to back a proposal that would require Tesla to respect the right of workers to assemble.
Tesla shareholders have reaffirmed a pay award of more than $45 billion for Elon Musk, the chief executive, after it was thrown out in a legal challenge.

The vote result, announced at Teslas annual meeting at its headquarters in Austin, Texas, on Thursday, is a strong sign that shareholders still believe in Mr. Musk, and it could persuade the judge who voided the award to reinstate it.

Support for the pay award, made up of stock options, will come as a relief to Mr. Musks admirers, who feared that rejection would prompt him to spend less time managing Tesla or even quit.

We think that Elon is critical to Teslas success, said Tasha Keeney, director of investment analysis at ARK Invest, which counts the auto maker among its largest holdings. I think its very important that Elon stays at the helm.
Polar bears in the southern Hudson Bay could go extinct as early as the 2030s because the sea ice that helps them hunt for food is thinning, a new study suggests.

Weve known that the loss of Arctic sea ice would spell disaster for polar bears, so this might be the first subpopulation that disappears, said Julienne Stroeve, the lead author of the study, which was published Thursday in the journal Communications Earth & Environment.

Last month, the eastern half of Hudson Bay, home to the worlds most-studied polar bears, went ice free a month earlier than usual.

Polar bears are used to an ice-free season of about four months when they rely on fat reserves until ice reforms and they can hunt blubber-rich seals from the floes. But the presence of sea ice doesnt guarantee the bears will be able to hunt; it needs to be thick enough to support them.
Over the past several years, dozens of cities and states have sued big oil companies, seeking to hold the producers of fossil fuels accountable for their role in causing climate change.

All of the cases follow more or less the same script: They claim that oil companies like Exxon and Chevron deceived the public by concealing their understanding of the devastating effects of global warming, and seek to make those companies pay for the billions of dollars in damages now being caused by rising seas and extreme weather.

So far, none of those cases has gone to trial. But this week, a closely watched case out of Hawaii took what could be a pivotal step toward the Supreme Court and have a cascading effect on the legal fight to hold fossil fuel companies accountable.

The case was brought by the city of Honolulu against Sunoco and other big oil companies in 2020. Last year, the Hawaii state supreme court ruled the case could go to trial. But a coalition of energy firms, including ExxonMobil and Chevron, appealed that decision, asking the U.S. Supreme Court to stop the case from moving forward. The defendants also argue that federal law, not state law, should apply.
Straightened hair has long been the dominant societal standard of beauty for Black women, from the working class to those in government and corporate America to celebrities and even someone in the White House. Michelle Obama said in 2022 that she felt she had to straighten her hair while serving as first lady rather than wear a natural style. Nope, she said. Theyre not ready for it. Hair can be straightened with heat, but a vast majority of Black women  an estimated 89 percent  have used chemical relaxers, which are easier and more affordable, at some point in their lives, often beginning in childhood.

Yet there is a growing body of evidence, much of which hasnt reached the public, that shows a link between these products, directly marketed to Black women and girls, and a number of health disorders in women.

Heres what to know about relaxers and your health.

A Growing Body of Evidence Links Relaxers With Health Disorders in Women

Scientists have struggled for decades to explain why Black girls show signs of early puberty  developing breasts and pubic hair  more than twice as frequently as white girls and also earlier than girls of other ethnicities. The early onset of puberty and menstruation is associated with a cascade of reproductive-health disorders. Many of these hormone-health-related problems are more common in Black women than in other women, including an aggressive form of breast cancer that contributes to a death rate from the disease that is 28 percent higher than the rate for white women.

The ingredients in chemical relaxers include a number that are known disruptors of the endocrine system.
In the documentary Brats, Andrew McCarthy attempts to come to terms with being part of the Brat Pack, the group of young actors who were ascendant in 80s movies. Turns out, many of them didnt like the nickname, or the association. I lost control of the narrative of my career overnight, McCarthy said of the period after the writer David Blum coined the immediately catchy term, in a 1985 New York Magazine profile of Emilio Estevez.

He and other actors, like Estevez and Rob Lowe, who had been frequently cast together in ensemble coming-of-age dramedies (St. Elmos Fire), scattered, fearful that appearing together would be a career liability. In the documentary, streaming on Hulu, McCarthy, an actor, director and travel writer, checks in, after many years of absence, to see how they processed this pop culture twist.

Some  like Demi Moore, a St. Elmos co-star  handled it all a lot better than others.

In a phone interview from his Manhattan home, McCarthy, 61, said his impulse was not nostalgia  though he knows thats what might draw an audience  but an excavation of how time and memory collide with youthful expectations.

It was a leap: He walked around New York and cold-called Brat Packers he hadnt seen in decades, with a camera crew trailing. I thought, if anyone calls me back, I have a movie, he said.
Not until I watched Firebrand did I think the sight of Jude Laws naked behind could cause me to recoil rather than rejoice. Playing a late-career Henry VIII, Law is all rutting buttocks and barely mobile bulk, an obese, paranoid ruler with a weeping leg wound where maggots wriggle in ecstatic close-up. Law (and his director, Karim Ainouz) might be laying it on thick, but his grotesque tyrant is the only thing lifting this dreary, ahistoric drama out of its narrative doldrums.

Adapted from Elizabeth Fremantles 2012 novel, Queens Gambit, Firebrand seeks to highlight Henrys sixth and last wife, Katherine Parr (Alicia Vikander), the only queen to outlive the infamous king. Studious and devout, Parr conceals her Protestant sympathies while arguing in favor of womens education and an English-language Bible. Her clandestine support for the poet and Protestant preacher Anne Askew (Erin Doherty), however, almost proves fatal when shes accused of heresy by an oily bishop (Simon Russell Beale).
Decades of storytellers have framed changes in the adolescent female body as somehow mysterious and dangerous, almost sorcery. Thats why horror films like Carrie, The Witch, The Exorcist and Teeth are so spine-chilling. The theme is so well-trodden that its a little hard to find a fresh spin on the subject. In her feature debut Tiger Stripes, the director Amanda Nell Eu pulls it off.

Eus film is set in her native Malaysia, and centers on Zaffan (Zafreen Zairizal), a vivacious 11-year-old whose world revolves around her best friends Farah (Deena Ezral) and Mariam (Piqa). Together they film TikTok dances, play in the river on the way home from school, plaster stickers everywhere and talk about bras. They pretend to be kittens and they have a club for the three of them. They are, in other words, typical tweens.

Then one day, Zaffan discovers shes begun menstruating, and overnight her life changes. In her strict religious school, she doesnt attend prayers while on her period. Her friends suddenly see her as unclean, dirty, an outsider. They gang up on her. They call her names. And strange things start to happen to Zaffans body and mind, including the lingering presence of a red-eyed woman in a tree that only she seems to be able to see.
Along with Jesse Eisenbergs A Real Pain, scheduled for release this fall, Julia von Heinzs Treasure is one of at least two dramas this year to follow the American descendants of Holocaust survivors on travels across Poland. Von Heinzs film is based on a novel by the Australia-raised author Lily Brett, herself the daughter of survivors. But whatever complexities might come across in the book dont register in a film that has been fashioned, sometimes uneasily, into a sentimental father-daughter road movie.

It is 1991, and Ruth (Lena Dunham, asked to do the most serious acting of her career), a journalist, has planned a trip to Poland. Her father, Edek (Stephen Fry), who, along with Ruths mother, survived Auschwitz, has insisted on joining her. He says he couldnt let his daughter visit Poland alone.
The Latest:

The number of people living in the streets and subways of New York City has ticked up slightly to the highest level in nearly two decades, according to results of an annual one-night field survey that the city released on Thursday.

The survey, conducted in January, found an estimated 4,140 people living unsheltered, up 2.4 percent from last years 4,042 and the most since 2005, when the city began conducting the surveys.
They did not arrive in the United States the way many couples do  the husband, who has a pilots license, was in the cockpit of the Boeing 737 jet, serving as the co-pilot for at least part of the flight from Europe.

Still, on their outing in New York City today, the pair, King Willem-Alexander and Queen Maxima of the Netherlands, will do what many tourists do. They will stroll along the High Line and go to a museum.
A grand jury in New Jersey dismissed charges on Wednesday against the high school principal who had been accused of endangering a student, in a racially charged case that roiled the liberal, diverse towns of South Orange and Maplewood.

The principal, Frank Sanchez, 50, remains in professional limbo. In May, with charges hanging over him, the district did not renew his contract; he remains on paid administrative leave, which ends this month. He plans to appeal the school boards decision and ask it to reappoint him.

This has been a difficult time of my life, Mr. Sanchez said on Thursday. Being an educator defined me for a long time, and not being able to do that for several months was extremely difficult. There were days where it was dark.

The school districts acting superintendent, Dr. Kevin F. Gilbert, called the grand jury decision welcome news to the many families and students who have been looking forward to welcoming Frank Sanchez back to Columbia High School.
We are at a critical time in Russias brutal and illegal invasion of Ukraine. Russias continued assault on the country requires that we take bold and decisive action. It is time for the United States and our allies to unlock the value of immobilized Russian assets so that Ukraine can get the financial support it urgently needs.

The United States and our global coalition including the Group of 7, Europe and countries around the globe are engaged in a battle of wills with Vladimir Putin. As Russia continues to move to a permanent war footing and Ukraine faces a sizable future funding gap, Mr. Putin is betting that he can wait out the coalition until Ukraine runs out of money and bullets.

Each day Russias aggression continues, it threatens Ukraines sovereignty, our collective security and the rules-based international order that underlies the strength of the global economy and the international financial system.

Since Russian troops first amassed on the Ukrainian border, the United States and our Group of 7 counterparts have leveled sweeping multilateral sanctions to deprive Russia of money and military equipment to fuel its aggression. We have equipped Ukraine with weapons, equipment and financial support.
News update: Donald Trump announced that he has selected J.D. Vance as his running mate. In May, Vance sat down for a long conversation with Ross Douthat, an Opinion columnist.

In 2016, J.D. Vances best-selling memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, made him one of Americas leading interpreters of Trumpism, offering a personal narrative of populisms origins in working-class disarray.

In 2024, as a first-term United States senator from Ohio, Vance is arguably Americas leading Trumpist: a staunch ally of Donald Trump, a leading critic of the establishment consensus (or what remains of it) in both foreign and domestic politics, a potential vice-presidential candidate and a likely populist agenda-setter for a second Trump term.

The Vance of eight years ago was read with appreciation and gratitude by Trump opponents looking for a window into populism. The Vance of today is despised and feared by many of the same kind of people. His transformation is one of the most striking political stories of the Trump era, and one thats likely to influence Republican politics even after Trump is gone.
Justice Samuel Alito has been widely criticized this week for remarks he made to a self-described documentary filmmaker who on two occasions engaged him at social events, secretly taped him under false pretenses and released the recordings. What did he say that was wrong?

Nothing. None of his remarks was improper for a judge to make. Furthermore, he did not even say anything especially controversial  or at least nothing that would be controversial in a less polarized moment.

For those who have not heard the recording, here is what happened: Justice Alito assented to the filmmakers remark that the country is deeply polarized, and he said that given the depth of our disagreements over various issues and the inability to compromise on them, one side or the other is going to win. He stated that nevertheless there can be a way of working, living together peacefully.

He said that American citizens in general need to work on this  that is, polarization. But he said that solving polarization is not something that the Supreme Court can do, because we have a very defined role, and we need to do what were supposed to do. He added: That is way above us.
This transcript was created using speech recognition software. While it has been reviewed by human transcribers, it may contain errors. Please review the episode audio before quoting from this transcript and email transcripts@nytimes.com with any questions.

astead hearndon Thats  I imagine what were looking for, right? caitlin o'keefe I think so. astead hearndon So we just follow courtesy? caitlin o'keefe Yeah. [LAUGHS] astead hearndon [LAUGHS]: caitlin o'keefe Hey! astead hearndon Hi, I think we might be looking for each other.

astead hearndon

A few weeks ago, my colleague Caitlin and I were wandering around the base of a dusty hiking trail in Arizona.

astead hearndon Were from The New York Times. Nice to meet you. susan Nice to meet you. astead hearndon Hi, how are you. caitlin o'keefe Hey. steve Im Steve. astead hearndon We thought you guys were  Astead. steve Astead? Its a pleasure, pleasure. caitlin o'keefe Steven? steve Yes. caitlin o'keefe Nice to meet you. Im Caitlin. steve Caitlin, pleasure. susan We spent an hour at another trailhead going, where do you think they are? astead hearndon Im sorry! Did we go to the wrong one? steve No, youre the right one. We went to the wrong one. I Google mapped it this morning. I said, take me to Dreamy Draw trailhead. It said, got you! And they sent us to the one  its just a mile down the road. caitlin o'keefe Oh! steve And it was a beautiful trailhead, but it wasnt  and were saying, wow, this doesnt look at all like what people described to us. Because weve gone to multiple trailheads, right? And this is the first time weve come to Dreamy Draw because we heard the last time, they had such a good turnout and such a positive response out here. Ill get the  astead hearndon OK, cool. Well stay out of yalls way for a second. susan Park the car and well get all set up. astead hearndon No problem. Remind me your name again? susan My name is Susan Ashley. astead hearndon Susan, OK. Astead.

astead hearndon

Apparently, Dreamy Draw trailhead is a great place for foot traffic in Maricopa County, and so, for an ambitious organizer, a perfect place to collect signatures.

child Can I get one of those? caitlin o'keefe A pin? susan Well, you know, I think your parents  well ask your parents and see if thats OK. child Well, my dads not here. steve How about your mom? susan Yeah. child Shes over there. I bet you she would be  she would love it. susan Well, Ill tell you, why dont you drag her over? But we cant give it to you without talking to her. Because it has some sensitive stuff on it. child Sensitive? susan Yeah, and we just want to make sure your parents are OK with that. child What? Like what? susan Well, its just an issue that is a grown-ups issue. So its something that you normally dont see the kids involved in. So just see what she says. She might be perfectly OK with it.

astead hearndon

It was 7:30 in the morning on a Saturday and Susan and Steve are collecting signatures for a new ballot measure that would enshrine abortion rights in the Arizona State Constitution.

mother Hey, bub. Whatd you learn? child Im just trying to get one of those pins. susan Well, yeah. So we decided wed better talk to mom before we  before we give out a sticker. You ready? mother Yep. susan Are you registered in Maricopa County. mother Yeah, absolutely. susan OK. Do you know what youre signing? mother Yes. susan Good. OK, now, carefully printing first and last name, because this is how they find you on the voting rolls. child So what is this  what is this? susan Im going to have your mom explain it to you on the drive home mother I will explain it to you. susan Its 5/11 today. mother Thank you. susan You did a perfect job. She takes instruction well. mother Military. susan OK. So now your mom, shes now said its OK for you to take this. So you can either have a pin or a sticker, whichever one youd like. child Which one would you take? susan The sticker is so good on backpacks, hats. mother Is it? Does it stay? susan It does. mother OK, cool. Lets do this one, all right? Thank yall. Appreciate what you do. caitlin o'keefe Can I ask you one question? astead hearndon My names Astead, this is Caitlin. Were from The New York Times. Were talking to people about the referendum, and partially why they are motivated to sign. You said you knew already what it was. Im curious how this came on your radar? mother This has been on my radar for a long, long time. Ive had friends in situations where their health was threatened, where the quality of life for not only the mother who was pregnant and their existing family, and the baby would have been negatively impacted by the addition to the family. I understand how our planet itself is facing crises when it comes to healthcare, medical care, with just  child Are you on TV? mother  no  with just sustainability. Overall, we cant sustain the rate at which were repopulating  so just a whole lot of reasons. And I never had to face this choice, but my mother has. Ive had three best friends who have. And I understand. Its just not  its not right for anybody to make that decision for somebody else. astead hearndon Are you someone who considers themselves like Democrat, Republican? Do you see that outside of it? mother Moderate. I just  issue by issue.

[laughs]

Yeah.

astead hearndon Arizonas place in this election is so big, and on this issue is going to be really big too. Are you talking to people about this? How much has this been ? mother I have three jobs and Im in school and Im a single mom and I take care of my mom. I talk to nobody. astead hearndon [LAUGHS]: She said, I dont talk to nobody, but I know what I feel about this. mother I know. Yeah. Absolutely, appreciate yall. caitlin o'keefe Have a good one. mother Yeah, yall stay hydrated. child Theres just a yellow snake over there. susan Do you guys have water? steve A snake? child Yeah, snake holes. steve Snake holes. mother Yeah, we took some back trails and saw snakes, so be careful. steve All right. mother Come on, honey bun. steve Have a good day. mother Bye, yall. child Have a good day! susan I didnt feel that was exploiting the child too much, did you? steve Hey! You didnt at all. He was adorable. [PIANO MUSIC]

astead hearndon

If youre a Democrat, or someone who wants President Biden to win re-election, there hasnt been a lot of good news lately. Most polling following Trumps criminal conviction shows him tied or ahead. Republicans have started to close the Democrats advantage in fundraising. And this week, President Bidens average approval rating dropped to the lowest in his entire term, as voters continue to prefer Trump on issues like immigration and the economy. But in state and local elections over the past two years, theres a good argument that abortion rights has been the most politically salient issue of all, throwing the Republican Party into chaos and helping Democrats achieve key victories throughout the midterms. So for the next two weeks, were going to focus on how abortion rights could impact the 2024 election through the lens of Arizona, a battleground state that Joe Biden narrowly won in 2020, and that both parties are desperate to claim in November. Today, how abortion rights groups have turned the Dobbs decision into their most potent political weapon, and the Democrats trying to seize on it. From The New York Times, Im Astead Herndon. This is The Run-Up.

astead hearndon How often have you been going out to collect signatures? susan Well, were out here six days a week. Were trying trailheads. But we go to parks. We go to bookstores. We go to nice little bars.

[laughs]

We go any place where we think we can capture a demographic, well try to get there.

astead hearndon

So Susan and Steve are volunteering with Arizona for Abortion Access, a coalition of groups collecting signatures for this ballot measure that would create a constitutional right to an abortion in Arizona. Right now, abortion is legal there up to 15 weeks. If this measure passes, it will be protected up to fetal viability, which is usually defined around 22 to 24 weeks. That would also allows for some exceptions. The group says they already have well over the number of signatures they need to get the measure on the ballot, but theyre still collecting anyway, in anticipation of legal challenges.

astead hearndon This might seem intuitive, but can you explain why its this issue that you think motivated you specifically about it? susan Yes. So I was absolutely in despair about what was happening here. And for me, this issue, I said, OK, this is something I can do that will have an impact, that will drive people to the polls. Because we have a big problem here with not being able to get the younger demographic and get the minority demographic. And weve got to get those  astead hearndon Out to vote. susan  out to vote, yes. Weve got to get those people out to vote. And I figured that this cause, which is also very dear to my heart because  I was 16 when Roe versus Wade came out. And I never had to worry about this issue at all. And I am outraged at what theyre trying to take, the grabbiness of what is happening here. I cannot believe that in this day and age, that theyre interfering in this thing at all. But its a very powerful and resonates quite a bit with the voters. And thats a great thing. So if we can get these people who sign this out to the polls, that will be wonderful.

astead hearndon

The efforts got a surprising boost in April when the state Supreme Court revived an 1864 law, written back when Arizona was still a territory, that would have made nearly all abortions illegal. The state legislature overturned the law, but it drove a lot of engagement.

steve Absolutely. As soon as the 1864 was passed  when we were out petitioning, we would get maybe a page  we were getting four and five and six pages at a time. People were lined up to come and sign the petition. And they would wait in line to be able to do that. Now  and again, occasionally well get a little bit of a rush. But for the most part, its onesie, twosie, threesie. But when we had a dozen people in line waiting for this, it was exciting, but also kind of upsetting that it took that to get people to want to sign the initiative. So again, we were crushed by the fact that they did it, but really thankful that it actually got some people who were kind of on the fence, or thinking its going to be OK without my help. They realized. And honestly, that was part of us. We were home, looking at the television, screaming at it, complaining. And I said, we can scream and complain at the television, or we can spleen 

[laughs]

to the television and do something.

astead hearndon

As weve been talking, some more people had started wandering by 

steve Are you a registered voter? tony I am. steve In Maricopa County. tony I am. steve Do you know what youre signing? This is a pro-choice womens reproductive freedom? tony Yep. I. Already signed this one at Changing Hands. susan Thank you for the support. The women in your life thank you. steve Do you need a pen?

astead hearndon

 which gave us an opportunity to pull them aside and learn a little more about the type of Arizonans that were supporting the efforts.

tony Tony. astead hearndon Astead. Nice to meet you. Just curious, you said you already signed. How did this issue come on your radar? tony Oh, Its been on my radar for quite some time. Its been very disappointing that Democrats in general havent prioritized codifying Roe even before the Supreme Court loading with Trump. And its an important issue, no matter where you stand on it morally. If you just look at it from the perspective of, so many things can go wrong during a pregnancy, right? And besides all that, its still just between the woman and her doctor and her family. And thats where the choice should lie. And I dont believe the state should be involved in that whatsoever. And yeah, Im proud to see that my community is out here lobbying for these types of issues. astead hearndon Are you someone who considers himself a Democrat, Republican, Independent, anything? tony I probably would have identified as a Democrat for majority of time. But theyre probably more right I than I am. I feel like I would probably put myself more in an independent camp now. astead hearndon Whats shifted? tony To be perfectly honest with you, is probably around the 2016 election. A candidate like Trump doesnt come to fruition if the Democratic Party actually listens to its constituents and prioritizes the issues that we talk about. astead hearndon Youre saying, Democrats should see Trump ascending as a Democratic failure? tony Correct, absolutely. Because you lost a lot of Independents. You lost a lot of people, again, that are talking about the real things that are happening right now in our communities. Like, you cant buy a house in the city now. Were not talking about those things and doing anything about them at a legislative level that actually pushes  that makes the middle class stronger, that gives opportunities to lower class coming up. I dont really believe that the Democratic Party even understands what their base is. And so am I OK with more of the same if it means that we dont have Trump back in power? Then yeah. But am I disappointed overall about the directionality of politics and like  yeah, where were going as a Democratic Party? Like, Im not. astead hearndon So what I hear is, you might end up voting for Biden in the fall, but you see it as more of an anti-Trump vote than like an endorsement of the Democratic Partys direction. tony Yeah. I think we have to do a better job at a grassroots level to make our voices heard. I love seeing things like this, people out here lobbying for issues that matter to them. I think at a community level we have to open conversations more. People just in general feel very divided because they just dig their heels into issues, and they dont want to listen to the other side. To be perfectly honest with you, when I was younger, I used to be a pro-life advocate. I was brought up that way. Thats what I believed. And it wasnt until I had a real conversation with a dear friend of mine that had to make a difficult choice, and it opened my eyes. But if I wasnt open to that conversation with that person that was willing to share her story with me, I dont know that I start that path. steve Yeah, I hear you. tony And so, yeah, I think on both sides, we need to listen. And we need to be open to having these discussions. I was born and raised here. This is my backyard, my community. And Ive seen it go from a hard red to a purple state. So I know progress is possible. But were not doing enough. steve Cool. caitlin o'keefe Thank you. astead hearndon Thank you so much. You can get to your hike. I appreciate it. steve Yeah, have a great day. man tony Pleasure meeting you both. steve Yeah, thank you. caitlin o'keefe Nice to meet you. Hook it on.

astead hearndon

A few more people came by 

susan Reproductive freedom for women? man 1 Obviously yes, 100 percent. susan OK, are you 

astead hearndon

 some supporters 

steve Have you signed our petition yet? man 2 Whats this? steve This is womens reproductive choice. man 2 I dont believe in that. I believe that choice is for the baby. steve Got it. susan Thank you.

astead hearndon

 and some opponents who didnt want to engage.

susan Have you signed the initiative yet?

astead hearndon

Then 

susan Are you Arizona voters? rachel Yep, I signed already. susan Youve signed, thank you. Have you signed, sir? morgan I will absolutely sign. susan Perfect. So are you registered voter? morgan I am. susan Are you in Maricopa County? morgan I do. susan There you go. Youve answered everything properly. And do you know what youre signing? morgan Yes. susan OK.

astead hearndon

 a small group came by 

caitlin o'keefe Can we just get your names real quick? morgan Yeah, Morgan. rachel Rachel. caitlin o'keefe Morgan?

astead hearndon

 whod just come down from the trail.

astead hearndon You said that the issue was like something you already knew about. How did this get on your radar? morgan Yeah, its just a long running issue within Arizona. And its really unfortunate because we already have enough problems here. But stating what women and women cant do with their bodies is just  its gross. Its disgusting. Its not OK. caitlin o'keefe Have you guys always voted? Do you associate yourself with a particular political party or identify with one? rachel Yeah, Ive always been a voter, Independent and Democrat. astead hearndon How about you? morgan I would say  Im an inconsistent voter, but more, I guess, Democrat-leaning Independent. astead hearndon Obviously this is going to be a unique presidential election because its going to be a rematch between Biden and Trump. When we talk to people about that, we get a lot of range of opinions about the fact that its going to be the two same candidates again. What do you think about that? And how are you feeling about the job that President Bidens doing, if you dont mind me asking? rachel I think President Biden is doing a great job. I think that the economy has been in its best in many, many years, even before Trump or Obama. I mean, of course, things change, times change, things become more expensive. Thats just kind of how everything goes. And thats  you cant buy things for a penny anymore.

[laughs]

So things change. You just got to adapt to those things and that theres nothing to do with him. And of course with the two running against each other again, definitely not Trump, [LAUGHS]: ever. He is the biggest child  manchild [LAUGHS]: ever.

astead hearndon Did you vote in the last presidential election? morgan I did. astead hearndon Do you who I ask youve voted for? Biden, Trump? morgan We  I went voted for Biden. astead hearndon Do you think youre going to vote again in this one? morgan No, I dont think so. I think the voting climate right now is just really exhausting for a lot of people. The two-party system is frustrating, only having the same two options. I dont think we should have deep senior citizens in office making decisions for the country. Theyre antiquated. Their beliefs are old. Its just not progressive. Its not what  the direction we should be going. astead hearndon Youre saying the candidate options that are presented now make you not want to vote? morgan Yeah, absolutely not. Its just  yeah, its either one or the other, and neither is really great. astead hearndon Yeah. I mean, we heard how you feel about Trump. How do you feel about Trump? morgan Im not a big fan. I think he elicits a lot of anger and a lot of separation between people. Its not a good look for our country. And its not a community-driven thing. It doesnt make people believe each other and help each other out. It just creates walls. And thats a bummer. So yeah. astead hearndon But hes not  its not enough for you  you wouldnt vote for Biden to stop him, it seems. morgan No. astead hearndon Why not? morgan I dont necessarily think it stops it. Its just a two-party system. Its two groups of people perpetually screaming at each other. A votes not going to help. Yeah. astead hearndon But it seems like what is motivating you all is things like this referendum. You may not want those candidates back, but you do want stuff like abortion rights to be enshrined. rachel Yes. morgan Yes. astead hearndon Got it. What were you going to say? Sorry. caitlin o'keefe Would that bring you to the polls if this is on the ballot? morgan Absolutely, yeah. 100 percent. astead hearndon But would you skip over the presidential race? morgan [LAUGHS]: I mean, if Im there, Im there. Ill probably make a choice and vote. But otherwise, Im not super interested in it. Yeah. astead hearndon Thank you so much. We really appreciate your time. caitlin o'keefe Thank you. astead hearndon Have a great day. Bye.

astead hearndon

The hikers who are supporting the ballot initiative pretty much represent the coalition of voters that abortion rights advocates are hoping for  a mix of committed liberals and some others who may not support Democrats traditionally or vote regularly, but are more motivated specifically by this issue. But I wasnt sure if groups like Arizona for Abortion Access saw their efforts as directly connected to helping President Biden win.

caitlin o'keefe Let me just figure out where were going.

astead hearndon

So we headed back into downtown Phoenix 

astead hearndon Can you introduce yourself and tell me what you do? athena salman My name is Athena Salman.

astead hearndon

 to meet with Athena Salman.

athena salman I am the director of Arizona campaigns for Reproductive Freedom For All. I mobilize 75,000 members that we have in Arizona to move reproductive rights and freedoms in every single congressional district in the state. Were working to flip the state legislature. Were working to pass the ballot initiative and ultimately secure huge reproductive rights victories in Arizona, moving forward. astead hearndon And youre a former state legislator. athena salman And Im a former state legislator.

astead hearndon

Athena has lived in Arizona for her whole life, and has seen a lot of changes in the state.

athena salman When I was in college, that is when we got a Republican trifecta. So the governor was Republican, the legislature was controlled by Republicans. And prior to that with the former governor, she was vetoing a lot of the really harsh bills that were passing through the legislature. But thats what really got me involved, the budget cuts to education, the attacks on womens rights, on immigration rights.

astead hearndon

She joined the state legislature in 2017 when Arizona was in the midst of its shift to purple.

athena salman So in 2018, not only did we flip the US Senate seat, but we also picked up enough seats for the Republicans to have a one vote majority. And thats where weve been stuck ever since. But it is so, so close. And then 

astead hearndon

And then came Dobbs.

athena salman  in 2022. Ill never forget that moment. People who I had known to be lifelong Republicans, having their voices heard at the ballot box, doing the research of like, OK, you know what? I really dont care about the party anymore. I want to know, who are the candidates that are going to fundamentally protect this right? And then in the 2022 election cycle, we saw huge victories with Governor Hobbs, who campaigned on the issue of abortion, defeating extremist Kari Lake. And then also very significantly, is attorney general Kris Mayes, who won that seat  statewide seat  by 280 votes. And now shes just one of our most vocal active defenders of reproductive freedom in Arizona.

astead hearndon

Athena and her group see abortion as the issue they need to finally push Arizona across the line.

athena salman With Reproductive Freedom For All, we are continuing to work to flip the legislature so we have a majority that supports reproductive freedom. And then, of course, were one of the founding members, and were part of the coalition to secure the right to abortion in the Constitution through the citizen initiative so that in the future, our rights arent up in the air, and people arent being whiplashed back and forth, based on what a politician or a judge does. astead hearndon Can you take me through what the November referendum would include, both in terms of abortion access and the possible exceptions after? athena salman Yeah, absolutely. So first, what we are talking about here is a citizen initiative that will actually have the effect of protecting the legal right to abortion in Arizona. At the end of the day, the language got put in a place where we know that it very much closely restores the rights that we had under Roe v. Wade. What that means is, up until fetal viability, the right of abortion is intact and protected for anyone who is seeking care. And after viability, there is the room for the decision to seek abortion care to be protected between the provider and the patient for health reasons, which includes mental health reasons. The reality with pregnancy is you cannot predict every complication. And so that is why its so important for that provision to be protected of after viability. Thats the bottom line here. And as a former elected official and policymaker, you cant legislate every single reason why someone would need an abortion and terminate a pregnancy. But what you can do is you can make sure that when someone has made that decision and needs to cross that bridge, that there is a way for them to get access to that healthcare when they need it, free from punishment or judgment. astead hearndon And when we say fetal viability, is there a weeks time to that? athena salman Really, thats determined by providers. astead hearndon You know, when it became clear that the ballot measure was probably going to get enough signatures to appear in November, in political world, there was a lot of sense of how much that shifts the presidential election that, with such a consensus issue and such an important state, that the best thing that could happen to Joe Biden maybe doesnt have to do with him at all, but might be this thing happening in the state. Does the way that this referendum affects Donald Trump versus Joe Biden, is that part of the calculus in it? athena salman No, because when you look at the partisan breakdown, its a third, a third, a third  a third Democrat, a third Republican, a third unaffiliated voters. And even in the last few election cycles, candidates who campaigned on the right to legal abortion ended up winning and securing those seats. So the voters are smart. They do their research. And when you compare the two track records, Donald Trump appointed the justices who undermined and overturned 50 years of legal precedent protecting the right to abortion. Our current president has made a commitment to protect and restore a federal right to abortion. So at the end of the day, the voters already see that contrast, and thats what theyre going to be going to the ballot box. astead hearndon Even though Donald Trump is currently saying that he doesnt support a federal abortion ban, youre saying, the past is still enough to hold on to. athena salman Well, yeah. We are in this mess. Arizona is in this mess because of Donald Trump and because of what he did to the Supreme Court. So voters  voters will remember that. [GENTLE MUSIC] astead hearndon Thank you so much. I really appreciate it. athena salman Yeah, yeah.

astead hearndon

Athena is describing a scenario that Democrats are banking on in 2024. Recent polling shows that 65 percent of likely Arizona voters support the abortion amendment. So advocates hope that not only do a wide range of voters show up in November to enshrine a womans right to choose in the state, they also punish Donald Trump for the role he played in overturning Roe and sending this issue back to the states to begin with. And while that could be true, Trump has also tried to distance himself from his partys most extreme positions on the issue  so much so that it seemed worth asking, are there Arizona voters who support abortion rights and Trump? After the break, Caitlin goes to find out. After several days in the Phoenix area, I actually had to fly out because of a previous engagement. But Caitlin stuck around. Because there was one more event in Arizona that we wanted to go to, in the far west of the state, about a four hour drive from Phoenix, in Bullhead City. Bullhead City is in Mojave County, an area nestled in the desert between Phoenix and Las Vegas thats very, very conservative. Four years ago, Trump got almost 75 percent of the vote in Mojave County. But that didnt stop Pam Shin. Shes a volunteer for Arizona For Abortion Access who lives in the area, and was planning to gather signatures at her neighborhood Bunco club meeting. And if you dont know what Bunco is, dont worry  neither did we.

caitlin o'keefe What is Bunco? pam shin Oh, OK, its a dice game. OK? You take dice, and theres one through six on the dice. And you have to get  first, you throw for ones, and you throw for twos, and you throw for threes, and you throw for four  all the way up to six. Then we rest, we have a little snack and then we do round two. [CHEERING] Somebody got a bunco. Theyll ring the bell. Hang on, I got to go. woman All right. The Bunco is when you roll  say were rolling ones. If I get three ones  I got one. But if I get three ones, its a Bunco. Theres two. [CHEERING] Thats 21 points. Thats what you need. [INTERPOSING VOICES] They get a little wild, huh?

[cheering, bell ringing]

astead hearndon

About 30 women were at Bunco club. Many of them were post-retirement age, wearing black t-shirts that said Dice Girls on them. One person always brings dessert, and that week it was chocolate cake.

caitlin o'keefe Can you introduce yourself? Tell me who you are and what you do. pam shin My name is Pamela Shin. Im a retired R.N. of 38 years. I retired from Summerlin Hospital where I did open heart for years. And I retired the first of the year. And so Ive lived here for 20 years off and on, but weve traveled a lot. So mostly, though, I worked in  because of my specialty doing open heart, I had to go to Las Vegas to do it.

astead hearndon

Like the couple we met earlier, Pam also got involved in the ballot initiative after the state moved to revive its 1864 ban.

pam shin I went to go sign it. And I said, Ill help. Ill try to get signatures. Thats how I found out about it. Because I researched it and I said oh my god, where can I sign this? Because I heard about it. Then they changed it  it was so barbaric. To me it was like, what, are you taking my rights? What are you going to do, to take my voting rights away next? What are you going to do next? I mean, if youre going to do this  weve only been voting for 100 years. What else are you going to take? Youre going to start taking birth control away and IVF? And I was just like, I have to do something. I dont want to just sit at home and whine about it. I want to do something proactive. And if that is getting signatures to put a petition onto the ballot so that we can vote  all Arizonans can vote, not just Republicans or Democrats or Independents  everybody. And so for me, its not a matter of, do I agree with abortion, do I practice abortion? Thats not my thing. My thing is about the choice of women having the option, if they have no other option to do this. And it shouldnt be taken away.

astead hearndon

Pam is focused on winning people over here. Many of whom, like her, have conservative roots.

pam shin Its a very, very red area. And Im not a red person, OK? I used to be a Republican, I hate to admit. But Im no longer a Republican. Ever since the Trump era started, I changed my ticket. I said, thats it. I cant  I dont believe in this. I didnt vote for him. I wont vote for him. I never will vote for him. But living here in this area has been horrendous for me. Having to watch people that  my good friends believe in something that they  its just like theyre brainwashed. Its so bad here. caitlin o'keefe So youre a volunteer for Arizona For Abortion Access. Whats it like gathering signatures for this abortion ballot initiative here? pam shin Sometimes its kind of tough. Because youre dealing with a lot of preset notions. Theres some thats very religious. Theres some theres not. Theres some that are like, well, that just goes against everything. Youre a baby killer. Im like, Im not a baby killer. Im a nurse. How could I be a baby killer? Im not about killing children. But its just their backwards thinking. And most of the women, like youll see, are a older group here. And most of them have already lived their lives. But its their children and their grandchildren that now have these laws. They have the freedom to choose. Why dont you want the same thing for your children? And thats the thing I try to get across. Why dont you want the same thing for your children that you had? caitlin o'keefe Thats your pitch? pam shin Yeah, basically. caitlin o'keefe Can I listen to you do your thing? pam shin Sure, sure.

astead hearndon

Pam approached one of the tables where several women were sitting.

woman Hi, there. pam shin I had to tell everybody. woman How are you? pam shin Guys, Im bringing a petition today to everybody. So this is to put on the ballot for all Arizonans. You dont have to be a Republican, a Democrat or Independent. Its for all women who are here tonight. So if you want to sign, this to put the law on the books for us to have rights back and turn the rights back over so that we have rights for abortion. So you only have to be a registered Mojave voter. So if anybodyd like to sign, I have it here. bunco player 1 I would. bunco player 2 Gorgeous. bunco player 3 It is. bunco player 4 I need to get my glasses.

[laughs]

I cant see shit.

bunco player 5 What exactly 

astead hearndon

When they passed around the petition 

pam shin Nobodys first name, but everyone 

astead hearndon

 the groups ideological diversity became clear.

bunco player 6 Nobody judges nobody. pam shin Thats right. When you have that right, and everybody else should have the right, too, right? bunco player 7 OK, Ill sign it.

astead hearndon

Some signed immediately.

pam shin You dont have to, its all right. bunco player 8 I know.

astead hearndon

Some people passed. And when Caitlin followed up with women in both groups, their reasoning was both political and very personal. [GENTLE MUSIC]

bunco player 9 To me, killing any life is against what I believe. bunco player 10 Its your body. You should have the right to choose. This should have never been taken away. bunco player 11 But if youre in the heat of passion and you spread your legs and you get pregnant and then, oh shoot, I didnt want that baby  you gave up your right to control your whole body once you have another baby in there. bunco player 12 I signed the paper for abortion because I have a granddaughter that was very sick during her pregnancy in Bullhead City two years ago. And the doctor could not perform abortion. The baby died inside of her before they could take it out. And its very sad. Im hoping that the abortion become legal, specially for certain case.

astead hearndon

Their beliefs about abortion did sometimes align with the traditional partisan split on the issue. But for a number of women in this red pocket of a purple state, that was not the case.

caitlin o'keefe Whats your name? judy Judy McClanahan. caitlin o'keefe Nice to meet you. Im Caitlin. So when Pam came around with the petition, what did you do? judy Signed. caitlin o'keefe Can you tell me why? judy Because I believe women should have the right to an abortion or not. caitlin o'keefe Is there a political party that you identify with the most? judy Republican. Im 100 percent for Donald Trump. And I think Joe Biden has done everything he could to ruin our country. caitlin o'keefe Are you planning on voting in November? judy Oh, yes. caitlin o'keefe Do you feel in line with your party on abortion? judy No, no. I dont look at it politically. I look at it as a woman. And even if the Democrats are for it and the Republicans arent, that doesnt sway my opinion. caitlin o'keefe Thank you so much for talking to me. I really appreciate it. judy Sure, anytime. caitlin o'keefe Thank you. And can I ask you all my questions now? gail ann You can ask me questions, but I dont like to talk about politics. caitlin o'keefe Can you introduce yourself? gail ann My name is Gail Ann Maxim. caitlin o'keefe So when the signature page came around, what did you do? gail ann I signed it because I think its  women should be able to make a choice whether they can get an abortion or not. I dont think that the government should be telling them they cant, and its against the law. Yeah. caitlin o'keefe Is there a political party that you identify with? gail ann You know, Im signed up Democrat. But normally if I vote, I vote for what I feel is right. I dont always go along with a Democrat, no. caitlin o'keefe Are you planning on voting in November or do you think you will? gail ann Yeah. I need to vote because every vote counts, so yes. caitlin o'keefe Do you know who you would vote for at this point? gail ann You know what? Im going to vote for other stuff, but I dont think Im going to vote for a president, because I dont want either one. caitlin o'keefe So if abortion does get on the ballot, do you think you would vote on that issue? gail ann Yes, I would. caitlin o'keefe Thank you so much. gail ann Youre welcome. caitlin o'keefe Thank you.

astead hearndon

The last person she talked to 

sherry Sherry. caitlin o'keefe Sherry, its nice to meet you. Im Caitlin. sherry Hi, Caitlin.

astead hearndon

 was a woman named Sherry.

sherry Im not against it, because I feel that you should have a choice. Its your body. And I would hope that they would use good common sense and do it because theres a reason to do it, not just because, oh, I dont want a baby. Its just so hard to say because youre not in that persons life. You dont know what all the circumstances are. We can sit here and say, oh, well, she should do this, this and this. But you dont know. caitlin o'keefe Is there a political party that you identify with? sherry Not really. I just  I really dont know. I look at both sides. My one son is very, very liberal  very liberal. And my husband is very conservative, so we dont talk too much about it. caitlin o'keefe Do you usually vote? sherry I used to. I didnt last year. Im going to try to this year, yeah. caitlin o'keefe What changed? Was there a thing that changed? sherry No, just  I think life just kind of got in the way. And the ballot came and then we had a different address, and this and that. But I need to do that. I really do, I know that. caitlin o'keefe Is there an issue thats most important to you? sherry [SIGHS]: Thats a big one that were talking about. caitlin o'keefe Abortion? sherry Yes, definitely. And I dont know. Theres so much out there going on right now with the taxes and this and that. And I  I dont know. I like to think Im pretty liberal, too. But then moving out here was kind of a little change for us. caitlin o'keefe When you say abortion is one that matters for you, what do you look for in a politician on abortion? Like, what do you believe about it, and what are you hoping to see in your government? sherry Well, I would hope he would put that, like you said on the ballot, where theres womens rights, for one thing, that we have a choice. But like I said, you dont know what someones going through. And I hate to say, oh, yeah, Im pro-life, and then stand there and say, you shouldnt have done that because  its got to be a choice. Its your body, you know? And I was not married and I got pregnant and I went to Planned Parenthood. And I got this wonderful lady  and I was not young. So it wasnt like, I can handle this. And I said, I dont know what to do. And she said, its your choice. Its your body, she said. So you have to decide. And dont let him tell you, you should do this, this. Its not happening to him. And that always kind of stuck with me. Because its so true. I think thats what happens to women. Their partner will say, we just cant do this. You better go do that. Well, thats wrong. Thats up to her. caitlin o'keefe What did you do? sherry Kept him. Yeah, he travels all over the world. Just has a wonderful life. Yeah. And Im so proud for him to do that. And he makes a difference, being a teacher. So, youve got  each individual is going to be so different. It can be their age. They can be  if theyre 10 years old or 12 years old, yeah. Lets think about this, and the quality of life that that babys going to have, or the mamas going to have. caitlin o'keefe If you had to choose between Trump and Biden, do you know what you would do? sherry [EXHALES]: Thats a tough one.

[chuckles]

I try to listen to both sides of it. I guess Id have to say Trump, because he just seems  not even all his  what he stands for and some of the things he says are just really not what I would think of. But Biden just seems, I hate to say it, kind of old. And I just feel like thats not good for our country.

caitlin o'keefe Do you feel like Trump is where you are on abortion? sherry I dont follow him that much. I almost feel like, if its on a given day, [LAUGHS]: you know? Well, maybe that sounds good today. Were going to get this and this. And then tomorrow, Im going to change my mind. I feel like he can be very, very edgy, I guess, is a good word. caitlin o'keefe And so it seems like what youre saying is theres a world where in November, you might vote for Trump, and then you might also vote for this abortion initiative. sherry Yes, thats true. caitlin o'keefe All right. I think thats all I got. Thank you so much for talking to me. sherry I have my thoughts on it. But like I said, its just  I dont know. Its kind of hard. Like she said, our womens rights. And I like to think back in the day, I would be one that would be out there really holding my little stick up, or whatever. Because women were, and still are, treated differently, unfortunately. And theyll say oh, no. No, we are not equal. We just arent. And it shows. When push comes to shove and it gets down to the bottom line, we are not. [GENTLE MUSIC]

astead hearndon

Sherrys experience speaks to why abortion rights attracts such a broad coalition of support, and why the proposed ballot measure gives Democrats a unique opportunity to have one message that both motivates its base and appeals to the other side. Still, as the women of Bunco club illustrate, support for abortion rights doesnt always translate to enthusiasm for the top of the ticket, much less for Joe Biden. But theres another, more subtle way that the presence of abortion rights on the ballot could help Democrats, beyond driving turnout or enthusiasm. It serves as a constant reminder of Republican extremism, considering its Donald Trump who got Roe overturned in the first place. And the party is yet to figure out its own position on the issue. Thats next week. [GENTLE MUSIC] [QUIET UPBEAT MUSIC] Thats The Run-Up for Thursday, June 13th, 2024. And now, the rundown. Arizona is one of many places where abortion access is top-of-mind in 2024. So I figured this week, the rundown could zoom out a little to better understand the broader landscape of abortion rights in the rest of the country. And to do so, I called on an expert.

lisa lerer

Im Lisa Lerer. Im a national political correspondent at The New York Times, and Im the author of a new book called The Fall Of Roe and The Rise of a New America.

astead hearndon

My colleague Lisa Lerer is a leading political reporter who focuses a lot of her work, and her new book, on chronicling how abortion access has changed.

lisa lerer

Our book really looks at what we call the final decade of the Roe era. Because thats when  obviously, this is a 50 year fight by the anti-abortion movement. But its in that final decade that their efforts really start just increasing and intensifying. And then, of course, they hitched their star to Donald Trump, and he gets three Supreme Court justices. And so we really got behind the scenes on both the political and legal strategy that allowed their movement to accomplish this.

astead hearndon

Can you talk me through just what the state of abortion access is, and specifically how it relates to 2024 and November?

lisa lerer

Well, abortion has been restricted or banned in a little under half the country. I believe its about 21 states or so right now. Thats been going on since, of course, the Supreme Court ruling that got rid of Roe. In some of those states, the bans are in current litigation  so theyre in the court system. In some of those states, abortion is just completely banned, places like Texas or Mississippi, where it has been completely criminalized. Those states cover the entire southeast, really, and parts of the west. And Biden has promised, of course, hes made a central promise of his campaign to restore Roe, saying hell restore federal abortion rights. Thats something thats very hard to do. It will require 60 votes in the Senate, which is unlikely Democrats will have, or upending the filibuster to do it, which they also dont have the votes to have  to do. So Democrats have really turned their attention and abortion rights supporters to going state by state and getting these ballot measures on the ballot and put in front of voters. And theyve had some success so far with those efforts.

astead hearndon

Yeah. What are other states other than Arizona, where abortion could matter this November? Is there anywhere else where its on the ballot, quite literally?

lisa lerer

So theres as many as a dozen states or so where theyre considering getting these things on the ballot. And abortion rights supporters are trying to get these measures on the ballot. A lot of them are really in flux. Theres court challenges to getting them on. Theres complicated processes. Every state has different processes to get them on. Arizona is certainly a central focus of the political world because its such a pivotal swing state, and it has so many competitive races. People are also pretty focused on Florida because thats historically  although its less of a swing state now  its historically been one. And what some Biden campaign folks have told me is those states also have outsized resonance beyond the politics of their specific state. Because they think what the measures in those two states signal to voters is abortion bans and restrictions are not just an issue in these very conservative places like Mississippi, like Alabama. Theyre something thats a national issue, and thats also impacting states that voters may not expect as much  a place like Arizona or Florida  to have those kinds of laws.

astead hearndon

Gotcha. It seems as if abortion is playing two roles for Democrats right now. It is both a tangible issue that has a very literal effect for voters. And because its been returned to the state, they can message specifically about its impact on your lives. And it also seems like it fits into a kind of broader messaging thing that theyre doing, painting Republicans as extreme and out of touch. And it feels like for those efforts, abortion is also a critical piece.

lisa lerer

Yes. And I think theyve hit their stride, in some ways, on how theyve messaged it.

astead hearndon

What do you mean?

lisa lerer

Well, for a long time, Democrats talked about abortion as healthcare. And what the data showed is that people really didnt see abortion as healthcare. They didnt think it was the same as going to get a root canal or whatever. What they do see it as  and theres been a lot of focus groups and polling and sort of political research on this  is an issue of freedom, of whether you have the right to control your body, to control your family, to make decisions about your own personal choices. And thats really the message that Democrats have embraced just up and down the ballot. And what weve seen, at least in these sort of two test cases that weve had since Roe fell, which, of course, were the 2022 midterms and these gubernatorial races in 23, is that its been a powerful message for them. And its one that also cuts into sort of Republican messaging, that they have tried to frame themselves up as the party of freedom. And Democrats can kind of cut into that a little bit here.

astead hearndon

Got it. Thanks so much. We appreciate your time.

lisa lerer

Thanks for having me. There are 32 days to the Republican National Convention, 67 days until the Democratic National Convention, and 145 days until the General Election. Well see you next week. [UPBEAT JAZZ MUSIC]

astead hearndon
The sun fired off a volley of radiation-riddled outbursts in May. When they slammed into Earths magnetic bubble, the world was treated to iridescent displays of the northern and southern lights. But our planet wasnt the only one in the solar firing line.

A few days after Earths light show, another series of eruptions screamed out of the sun. This time, on May 20, Mars was blitzed by a beast of a storm.

Observed from Mars, this was the strongest solar energetic particle event weve seen to date, said Shannon Curry, the principal investigator of NASAs Mars Atmosphere and Volatile Evolution orbiter, or MAVEN, at the University of Colorado, Boulder.
Republican lawmakers questioned a senior Microsoft executive on Thursday about the companys presence in China, about a year after Chinese hackers used the tech giants systems to launch a devastating hack of federal government networks.

Several members of the House Committee on Homeland Security asked Brad Smith, Microsofts president, in an hourslong hearing how a critical contractor for the U.S. government like Microsoft could maintain a commercial business in China, which Mr. Smith said accounted for about 1.4 or 1.5 percent of the companys sales.

Is it really worth it? asked Representative Carlos Gimenez, a Republican from Florida.

Mr. Smith argued that Microsofts business in China served American interests by protecting the trade secrets of Microsofts American customers operating there and learning from whats going on in the rest of the world.

He added that Microsoft had denied Chinese government requests to turn over sensitive information. I will tell you that there are days when questions are put to Microsoft, and they come across my desk, and I say, No, he said.
Leaders at Elon Musks social media company, X, told employees this week that 65 percent of advertisers had returned to the platform since January, according to recordings of all-hands meetings obtained by The New York Times, and that smaller companies now made up the bulk of its revenue.

The executives, including Linda Yaccarino, who was appointed to run the company a year ago, admitted that the company continued to face challenges as it rebuilt its beleaguered advertising business. They did not provide updated sales figures, according to three people in attendance on Wednesday and Thursday, who noted that the return of advertisers did not necessarily reflect an increase in revenue.

The meetings took place as Mr. Musk, who acquired the company for $44 billion in 2022, faced a Tesla shareholder vote Thursday on his pay package, worth more than $45 billion. Some investors at Tesla, which accounts for the bulk of Mr. Musks wealth, have expressed concern he has been distracted by X. Later in the day, the company announced that shareholders had approved his compensation.

Since Mr. Musk took over the social media company, the billionaire has cut 75 percent of staff, restored hundreds of banned accounts and remade the platform to allow most speech, without consequences. In November, he told advertisers not to spend on X, dismissing them using an expletive during an interview at The Timess DealBook conference.
On a recent dusky evening, a dozen or so visitors to Little Island in Manhattan were gazing into its outdoor amphitheater from a nearby perch. They didnt have tickets, sold out at $25 each, to How Long Blues, the first outing in a new summer festival that hopes to fulfill the sites promise as a lively platform for the performing arts. So the slope of a rolling, manicured hill offered the best vantage point.

Halfway through the hourlong show, though, most of them had wandered off.

To be fair, the lush, dynamic public park, rising from the Hudson River and privately funded by the media titan Barry Diller for $260 million, can be delightfully distracting. But How Long Blues, a new dance-theater work conceived, choreographed and directed by Twyla Tharp, now running through June 23, is a chaotic head-scratcher. While a riverside setting can be overstimulating (a heliport is less than 20 blocks uptown), the action onstage pulls your attention in so many directions at once that you feel youre always missing something.

In addition to an excellent band on elevated platforms, a standing piano rides in on the back of a tricycle. (The music, a mercurial flow of jazz that ranges from swingy and upbeat to trippy and dissonant, is by T Bone Burnett and David Mansfield.) There are appearances by performers wearing doll heads with cartoon features, a demonlike figure covered in straw fringe and Sisyphus carrying a rock on his shoulder  all of this while two smartly dressed men (played by the Tony Award winner Michael Cerveris and a Tharp regular, John Selya) vaguely pantomime amid a swirl of vibrant dancers. (The show has only a few spoken lines.)

You would have little way of knowing, without reading Tharps interview in The New York Times, that How Long Blues concerns the French writer and philosopher Albert Camus, and specifically elements from his 1947 novel The Plague about a pandemic in Algeria (coughing fits by a dancer or two are not sufficient clues). Notes shared privately with the press confirm that Cerveris is meant to be Jean-Paul Sartre, a close friend of Camus, played by Selya, and that literal thinking about narrative is not helpful here, according to Tharp.
With her prosecution of former President Donald J. Trump bottled up in a state appeals court fight, the Georgia district attorney who brought the case pushed back at her conservative critics on Thursday, appearing to single out recent remarks made about her by Mr. Trumps co-defendant Rudolph W. Giuliani.

At a recent stop on the ReAwaken America tour, a right-wing Christian event, Mr. Giuliani referred to the district attorney, Fani T. Willis, as a ho, using a stylized version of the word whore borrowed from the African American vernacular. He also said he chose to deliberately mispronounce Ms. Williss first name as Fanny, as opposed to the proper pronunciation, FAHN-ee.

Ms. Willis spoke on Thursday to leaders of the African Methodist Episcopal Church, who were meeting at a church in Marietta, Ga.

Ive lived the experience of a Black woman who is attacked and over-sexualized, she said. See, Im so tired of hearing these idiots call my name as Fanny, in a way to attempt to humiliate me. Because, like silly schoolboys, the name reminds them of a womans rear, of her behind.
President Biden said on Thursday that he would not commute the sentence of his son Hunter Biden, who was convicted this week on three federal felony counts for lying on a federal form about his drug addiction when he bought a handgun in 2018.

In response to a question at the Group of 7 summit in Italy, Mr. Biden reiterated his earlier position that he would not pardon his son.

Im extremely proud of my son Hunter, Mr. Biden said. He has overcome an addiction. Hes one of the brightest, most decent men I know. I am satisfied that, Im not going to do anything. I said Id abide by the jury decision. I will do that.

As he was leaving the stage, Mr. Biden was asked whether he would use his authority to issue a commutation, which would leave the guilty verdict intact but wipe out some or all of the punishment. He responded, No.
When President Biden made clear last year that he was planning to run for another term, some important Democratic contributors expressed doubt. He was too old, they feared. He was not up to another four years.

It fell to Jeffrey Katzenberg to tell them they were wrong. When some still did not believe him, Mr. Katzenberg challenged them to come to Washington and find out for themselves  then arranged to bring the dubious donors to the White House to sit down with the octogenarian president to convince them he was still sharp enough.

He was like, Trust me. And if you dont trust me, trust, but verify. Come with me and see for yourself and engage with the president, Gov. Gavin Newsom of California, a longtime ally of Mr. Katzenberg, recounted in an interview. And he started doing that in a consistent way. In the end, Mr. Newsom added, He really was instrumental in getting people off the sidelines and getting them to dive headfirst in this campaign.

Few have dived headfirst into the presidents re-election campaign more thoroughly than Mr. Katzenberg. The longtime Hollywood mogul known for The Lion King and Shrek, among many others, Mr. Katzenberg has been one of the most prolific cash generators for Democratic presidents for a generation. On Saturday night, he will bring Mr. Biden together with former President Barack Obama, George Clooney, Julia Roberts and Jimmy Kimmel for a star-studded fund-raiser in Los Angeles, following the $26 million fund-raiser at Radio City Music Hall in March he arranged with Mr. Obama and former President Bill Clinton.
The Justice Department issued a sweeping rebuke of policing in Phoenix on Thursday, finding severe discrimination against Black, Hispanic and Native American people, routine violations of the rights of homeless people and excessive use of force.

The review is one of the harshest to come out of the Biden administration in its efforts to investigate police departments for systemic problems. It is also the first time a civil rights investigation into police practices found that the rights of homeless people were violated.

Ultimately, our findings reveal evidence showing longstanding dysfunction, Kristen Clarke, the assistant attorney general who leads the departments civil rights division, told reporters on Thursday. She added, The problems at their core reflect the lack of effective supervision, training and accountability.

City officials said in statements Thursday that they would take the findings seriously. But they have told the Justice Department that the city already enacted police reforms since the investigation began in 2021, and the Phoenix police of today are materially different than the department that you investigated.
The U.S. Secret Service, after weeks of pressure from Republican officials, has agreed to make a Milwaukee park near the Republican National Convention off limits to protesters who would have been in shouting distance of delegates and other convention-goers, convention officials said Thursday.

The Secret Service disputed the statement, saying no final decision had been made, but in the war of words between the Republican National Committee and the service, the R.N.C. seemed to be claiming victory in its fight to wall off Pere Marquette Park from protesters.

We applaud Secret Service leadership for including Pere Marquette Park in the security perimeter, said Danielle Alvarez, a senior adviser to the campaign of former President Donald J. Trump. She said party leaders implore local officials to expedite the permit application and choose a different location for the First Amendment Zone.

Todd R. Steggerda, a lawyer for the Republican National Committee, last month raised the specter of an increased and untenable risk of violence when he demanded that the Secret Services director, Kimberly A. Cheatle, personally intervene to move the so-called First Amendment Zone.
The Supreme Courts decision to uphold access to a widely available abortion pill frustrated antiabortion activists. But it allowed Republicans to dodge a potentially toxic issue in the midst of a tight presidential race.

Medication abortion remains broadly popular: A series of surveys have found that a majority of Americans support access to medication abortion, though the public is split over whether it should be available without a prescription.

A ruling limiting access to the medication would have given Democrats another way to hammer their opponents on an issue thats become politically damaging for Republican politicians.

Since the Supreme Court decision that overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, Republican candidates have struggled to reconcile their partys decades-old opposition to abortion rights with the issues shifting political reality.
The Supreme Courts decision on Thursday to dismissing one effort to curtail access to abortion pills did not eliminate the possibility that other plaintiffs would continue to mount challenges to the medication that is used in a majority of abortions in the country.

The lawsuit before the Supreme Court was rejected because the justices unanimously ruled that the plaintiffs  a group of anti-abortion doctors and organizations  did not have standing to sue because they could not show they had been harmed by the availability of abortion pills.

But the case is likely to be revived with different plaintiffs: three Republican-led states that months ago petitioned successfully to join the case at the lower court level.

Late last year, the states  Missouri, Idaho and Kansas  were granted status to be plaintiffs by Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, an appointee of President Donald J. Trump who heard the original lawsuit and who openly opposes abortion access. When the case was accepted by the Supreme Court, the justices denied the three states request to intervene as plaintiffs at that level.
When former President Donald J. Trump was convicted in his New York criminal trial, it took Gov. JB Pritzker of Illinois about 19 minutes to fire off a statement calling him a felon, a racist, a homophobe and a grifter.

Only one other Democratic governor issued a statement that night about Mr. Trumps conviction, and the Biden campaigns response  which came one minute after Mr. Pritzkers  focused on what Mr. Trump would do as president rather than on the verdict.

Since then, as the Democratic Party and the Biden campaign have wrestled with how to wield the conviction to their advantage, Mr. Pritzker has emerged as the chief amplifier of Mr. Trumps felon status.

Unlike other top surrogates who have followed Mr. Bidens lead and kept the focus on Mr. Trumps policies rather than his conviction, Mr. Pritzker has blazed his own trail of Trump insults  to great cheers from fellow Democrats who are hungry to attack.
Even hours later, few people could agree on what, exactly, former President Donald J. Trump said about Milwaukee when he met with House Republicans in Washington on Thursday.

But on a day when Mr. Trump returned to Capitol Hill to unite congressional Republicans behind him, more than three years after a group of his supporters mounted a violent effort to try to keep him in the White House, much of the focus was instead on stray comments he made, including about a populous city in a critical battleground state that will soon play host to his nominating convention.

According to various people in the room, Mr. Trump, during his meeting with House members at the Capitol Hill Club, complained that the pop music megastar Taylor Swift would support President Biden over him. Mr. Trump has previously argued that Ms. Swift, who endorsed Mr. Biden in 2020 but has not done so this year, should back him instead.

He falsely claimed that former Speaker Nancy Pelosis daughter once told him that he and her mother might have been a good match, a comment that some lawmakers interpreted to refer to a romance, while others said that it merely referred to a professional partnership. One of Ms. Pelosis daughters pushed back on social media, calling Mr. Trumps reported remark a lie.
We want to try something a little different this week and delve into a single motion filed in Donald Trumps classified documents case in Florida. We thought it might be useful to explore how it informs the larger legal and political strategies Trump has used in all of the criminal matters he is facing.

The motion, filed on Monday night, makes a weighty accusation.

It claims that prosecutors working for the special counsel, Jack Smith, who brought the indictment, failed to properly preserve the evidence at the heart of the case: the 45 boxes of documents the F.B.I. seized two years ago during a search of Mar-a-Lago, Trumps private club and residence in Florida.

Trumps lawyers also made a big request of Judge Aileen Cannon, who is handling the case. They asked her to dismiss the charges altogether or, barring that, to do something that would have the same effect: toss out the evidence found during the Mar-a-Lago search, including the trove of 32 classified documents that Trump has been charged with removing from the White House.

In the broadest sense, the motion takes aim not at the strength of the charges Trump is facing, but rather at the integrity of the underlying inquiry.
Former President Donald J. Trump returned to Capitol Hill on Thursday for a pair of celebratory meetings with congressional Republicans, more than three years after a violent mob of his supporters overran the House and the Senate as he pushed to overturn the 2020 election.

There was no mention of that dark day  Jan. 6, 2021  as Mr. Trump received a heros welcome back in the nations capital. In two separate sessions just blocks away from where violence consumed the Capitol in his name, House and Senate Republicans feted their partys nominee, grinning and clutching hands with him, singing him a happy birthday song and presenting him with a cake, and vowing to use their power in Congress to try to thwart those investigating and prosecuting him.

Long gone were condemnations of Mr. Trumps conduct, made in the immediate aftermath of the violence, and the vows to move on from him as the partys leader. Any Republicans  such as former Representatives Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois  who would have dared speak out against him had long been purged from the halls of Congress.
Another round of thunderstorms swept across a waterlogged South Florida on Thursday, causing major travel disruptions, following days of heavy rain that had already caused flooded roads and homes.

A flood watch was in effect until Friday evening in several counties as up to four inches of additional rain were forecast to add to the ongoing flooding, according to the National Weather Service.

Thursday was the third consecutive day of tropical downpours as a line of storms, stretching from the west coast to the east coast of the state, brought downpours and flooding to some areas and raised the risk of flash flooding through the evening.

Heavy rain prompted temporary ground stops on Thursday afternoon at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and Tampa International Airport, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.
The official results from national elections last month just dont add up for Mbalenhle Mthethwa, a loyal adherent of a new political party led by Jacob Zuma, former president of South Africa.

The elections were not free and fair, she said, echoing the stolen-election narrative Mr. Zuma has advanced.

Mr. Zuma, 82, whose nine years as president were marred by allegations of corruption and looting of state coffers, has taken a page from the playbook of recent populist leaders, notably in the United States and Brazil.

In those nations, claims of rigged elections resulted in chaos. South Africans will get a first look at how the situation might unfold in their country on Friday, when Parliament meets to vote for a new president.
G7 leaders agreed to give Ukraine a $50 billion loan

At the G7 summit in Italy, the member countries agreed on a plan to give Ukraine a $50 billion loan to help it buy weapons and begin to rebuild damaged infrastructure. The new loan comes at a crucial moment in the war, when Russia has the momentum on the battlefield.

The loan is expected to be repaid using interest earned on $300 billion in frozen Russian assets, which are mostly in a financial institution in Belgium. In our Opinion section, Janet Yellen, the U.S. treasury secretary, explained how the loan will work.

President Biden also signed a 10-year security pact with Ukraines government, to show a long-term U.S. commitment to the country. Its designed to be a bridge to Ukraines membership in NATO. Japan signed a 10-year security agreement with Ukraine as well, which included a pledge of $4.5 billion.

Separately, NATOs defense chiefs gathered yesterday in Brussels to pledge additional weapons to Kyiv. They also met to prepare long-term military commitments to be announced next month at a summit in Washington. One boost for Ukraine: An agreement that Hungary would not contribute to the military alliances war effort  but also would not block it.
The Rev. Gerard Tsatselam boarded the ferryboat and settled in his usual place, on a reclining seat, at the back of a cold, unlit room that would have been packed in summer. Uneasy, he sat shrouded in his large, black coat as high winter winds delayed the boats arrival in the village where he was trying to save the church.

Except for a quick stopover for a funeral, he had not visited his parish  in Unamen Shipu, an Indigenous reserve on the frigid, isolated coast of northeastern Quebec  in months. Mold had invaded the presbytery and left him scrambling for lodging on each visit.

Another reason behind his unease was the enduring fallout from the accusations of sexual and other abuse by a predecessor, a Belgian priest. Though the transgressions dated back decades, during what Father Gerard called the Roman Catholic Churchs colonial era, dealing with the parishioners anger and distrust had fallen to him  a priest and missionary from the Central African nation of Cameroon.
President Biden signed a 10-year security agreement with President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine on Thursday, an effort to signal a long-term American commitment to Ukraines future as an independent and sovereign state at a time when the war set off by Russias full-scale invasion is deep into its third year. But the accord could easily be upended by the coming American presidential election.

The deal outlines a long-term effort to train and equip Ukraines forces, provide more modern weapons and help the Ukrainians build their own self-sustaining military industry that is capable of producing its own arms.

Speaking at the Group of 7 summit in Italy on Thursday, Mr. Biden said the agreement was designed to make Ukraine self-sufficient and put the country on the road to NATO membership. The accord is essentially an executive agreement between two presidents.

Our goal is to strengthen Ukraines credible defense and deterrence capabilities for the long term, Mr. Biden said. A lasting peace for Ukraine must be underwritten by Ukraines own ability to defend itself now and to deter future aggression.
Russian prosecutors announced a major step on Thursday in their case against Evan Gershkovich, the imprisoned American journalist, saying that they had finalized the espionage indictment against him and that he would be tried in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg, where he was arrested more than a year ago.

Mr. Gershkovich, 32, should be transferred from the notorious high-security Lefortovo prison in Moscow to stand trial in the city, which is about 880 miles east of the Russian capital, said Yevgeny Smirnov, a Russian lawyer who has worked on similar cases.

When such espionage cases go to trial in Russia, they usually take about four months but can take up to a year, and they are typically closed to the news media, Mr. Smirnov said in a phone interview. If convicted, Mr. Gershkovich faces up to 20 years in prison.

Mr. Gershkovich, his employer and the U.S. government have denied the charge against him. The U.S. government has designated Mr. Gershkovich as wrongfully detained, which effectively means that it considers him a political prisoner.
The United States and the Wests other large economies have agreed on a plan to issue a roughly $50 billion loan to Ukraine that would be repaid by interest and profits from nearly $300 billion in frozen Russian assets held in the West.

The promise of much-needed financial support for weapons and to begin to rebuild damaged infrastructure comes as Ukraine has been forced to sell some state assets and as the momentum in the war on its territory has shifted in favor of its foe, Russia, whose forces launched a full-scale invasion in 2022.

President Biden agreed to have the United States underwrite the entire loan, but American officials said they expected allies, including members of the European Union, to provide some of the upfront funds.

The loan would eventually be repaid through interest and profits earned on the frozen Russian assets, which would serve as collateral.
Japan has agreed to provide $4.5 billion in aid for Ukraine this year, part of a 10-year security deal signed by the two countries on Thursday, President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine said.

The agreement significantly increases Japans support for Ukraine at a critical moment in its war with Russia and underscores Japans efforts to strengthen its security and diplomatic ties with Europe after the full-scale conflict began in 2022.

For Japan, this type of agreement and this level of support is a breakthrough, Mr. Zelensky said on social media. We see this and thank Japan for its unwavering solidarity.

Mr. Zelensky said Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan had signed the pact as the leaders gathered for the Group of 7 summit discussed other plans to support Ukraine.
Several London hospitals, still under significant strain more than a week after a cyberattack crippled services, have asked medical students to volunteer to help minimize disruption, as thousands of blood samples have had to be discarded and hundreds of operations postponed.

The ransomware attack on Synnovis, a private firm that analyzes blood tests, has crippled services at two major National Health Service hospital trusts, Guys and St. Thomas and Kings College, which described the situation as critical.

In a statement on Friday, the N.H.S. said that more than 800 planned operations and 700 outpatient appointments needed to be rescheduled, including 97 cancer treatments, in the first week after the attack. Five planned C-sections were rescheduled, and pathology services were running at 10 percent of normal capacity, the statement said.

We expect disruption to be felt for some time, said Dr. Chris Streather, the medical director for N.H.S. London.
As leaders from the Group of 7 nations gather this week in southern Italy, they will be joined by representatives from countries at the center of international conflict, from developing nations like Brazil and India, and, for the first time, from the Holy See.

Pope Francis, the Vatican announced, will take part in a discussion on Friday on the ethical implications of artificial intelligence at a session that is open to envoys from countries that are not G7 members. The Vatican said Pope Francis would also have bilateral conversations with some of the visiting leaders, including President Biden and Turkeys Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy, who invited him, said the popes presence would make a decisive contribution to defining a regulatory, ethical and cultural framework for A.I., adding that his participation brings prestige to our nation and to the entire Group of 7.

Franciss participation in the summit comes as the 87-year-old pope was reported this week to have used again an offensive slur to refer to homosexuality, the same pejorative he was accused of using last month. The reports last month prompted a backlash among L.G.B.T.Q. people, toward whom the pope had generally adopted a more welcoming approach.
When Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy convenes the leaders of the Group of 7 countries on Thursday at a luxury resort hotel overlooking the Adriatic Sea, she might be forgiven for thinking her guests are seeking a refuge.

Except for Ms. Meloni herself, every one of the leaders is arriving at the meeting beleaguered, embattled or endangered  an ill-starred convergence that speaks to the political tremors rattling across the West. It also doesnt bode well for the results of a gathering that already faced vexing challenges, ranging from Russias war in Ukraine to Chinas global economic competition.

Britains prime minister, Rishi Sunak, is three weeks away from an election in which his Conservative Party is expected to be swept out of power. President Emmanuel Macron of France has called a snap parliamentary election after his party suffered heavy losses to the far right in European elections.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany and his Social Democratic Party were humbled in those elections as well, while President Biden is in a dogfight with his predecessor, former President Donald J. Trump. Even Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan faces rising unrest within his Liberal Democratic Party and may lose his job this autumn.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel called Hamass response to the latest peace proposal for Gaza negative. Hamas insisted it was dealing with it positively.

Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken, speaking in Qatar, said Hamas had demanded changes, some of which were workable and some not. A Hamas official told an Arabic television channel that the group had not raised any new ideas, and that Mr. Blinken saw things through an Israeli lens and speaks Hebrew.

The Biden administration has pledged to keep working with the Qatari and Egyptian mediators to bridge the gaps. But after days of intensive diplomacy in the region, a monthslong effort to end the war in Gaza seems as stuck as ever, as each side clings stubbornly to maximalist demands unacceptable to the other.

Asked at the Group of 7 summit meeting in Italy if he still thought a deal could be reached, President Biden said, I havent lost hope, but its going to be tough.
BMW CEO Oliver Zipse criticized the Commission's plan as "the wrong way to go," stating that it would damage European companies and interests. BERLIN/BRUSSELS, June 12 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission on Wednesday revealed a list of protectionist duties it would levy on imports of battery electric vehicles (EVs) from China, sparking opposition and concerns from governments and businesses across Europe. The provisional duties envisaged by the Commission on the imports of EVs from China would range from 17.4 percent to 38.1 percent. Hungarian Minister for National Economy Marton Nagy condemned the move as overly protectionist. He said in a statement that "protectionism is not the solution," and the Commission's decision would unfairly discriminate against Chinese manufacturers and disrupt market competition, which had been vital for the European Union (EU). Nagy pointed out the focus of the EU should be on enhancing the global competitiveness of the European EV industry, instead of imposing punitive tariffs, since such a move would stifle competition and hinder the growth of the EU market. Volker Wissing, Germany's federal minister for Digital and Transport, said tariffs would affect German companies and their exports. "Vehicles must become cheaper through more competition, open markets and significantly better location conditions in the EU, not through trade wars and market isolation," he said on the social media platform X. The EU's high additional tariffs would further deviate from the goals of global cooperation and could quickly have a negative impact in the event of a trade conflict. The potential fallout originating from these measures may be greater than their potential benefits for the European -- as well as the German -- automotive industry, Hildegard Mueller, president of the German Association of the Automotive Industry, told Xinhua in a written interview. "The fact is that we need China to solve global problems, which applies, in particular, to successfully tackling the climate crises," Mueller said, stressing China's role in the transition towards electromobility and the digitalization of the global automotive industry. BMW CEO Oliver Zipse criticized the Commission's plan as "the wrong way to go," stating that it would damage European companies and interests. "Protectionism risks starting a spiral: Tariffs lead to new tariffs, to isolation rather than cooperation," he said. Other major German carmakers including Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen also voiced their support for fair competition and free world trade, reported German media Handelsblatt. Europe's largest vehicle manufacturer Volkswagen rejected the planned tariffs, saying that "the negative effects of this decision outweigh any benefits for the European and especially the German automotive industry." The Swedish government wants to know whether the European Commission has exhausted other options besides tariffs, Sweden's Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Johan Forssell said. "We are generally skeptical of tariffs. Someone has to pay them, and in this case, it will sooner or later be the consumers," the Swedish TT news agency cited Forssell as saying. The multinational carmaker Stellantis, in response to the EU announcement, also expressed its position by advocating free and fair competition in a global business environment and opposing measures that lead to "the fragmentation of the world." The company said through its affordable EVs and cooperation with Chinese electric carmaker Leapmotor, it has confidence in competing with Chinese products that have price advantages. Hrvoje Prpic, president of the Croatian Electric Vehicle Drivers Association, said the high tariffs would fail to help European industry keep up the pace of Chinese car manufacturers, and moreover, the end users in Europe would front the increased cost. "Businesses must be open, and tariffs are not beneficial for business exchanges," said Pavol Antalic, chairman of the Slovak-Chinese Joint Business Council. Recognizing the level of cooperation with Chinese companies in developing green energy, the Slovak business leader praised China's technological advancements in developing electric cars with excellent batteries and said "local customers are very interested in Chinese EVs." As a non-EU member state, Norway said it will not follow the EU to increase tariffs on Chinese electric cars. The country's Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum announced the decision on Wednesday. "Introducing tariffs on Chinese cars is neither relevant nor desirable for this government," Norwegian national broadcaster NRK cited Vedum as saying.
A commission at the United Nations published a report on Wednesday detailing acts of violence in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories, accusing both sides of war crimes and arguing that the immense loss of life in the Gaza Strip amounted to a crime against humanity.

The report consisted of two parallel investigations, one focused on the Oct. 7 attack on Israel led by the armed Palestinian group Hamas, and the other on Israels military response. It is one of the most detailed examinations thus far of the conflict and provides legal analysis that is likely to be used in future criminal proceedings related to the war in Gaza.

Here is a closer look at the commissions findings.

What did the report find?

According to the report, 800 civilians were among the more than 1,200 killed by Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups involved in the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. More than 250 additional people  including 36 children  were taken hostage, the commission said.
Southern Baptists, the countrys largest denomination of Protestant Christians, voted at an annual gathering on Wednesday to oppose the use of in vitro fertilization.

The decision was a momentous one for the convention, which has long wrestled over questions about when personhood begins, and which includes many families who have pursued, or plan to pursue, I.V.F. treatments.

More than 10,000 delegates gathered in Indianapolis for the annual meeting, which is closely watched every year as a barometer of evangelical sentiment. Preceding the vote on in vitro fertilization  a hotly contested issue at the crossroads of science, religion, politics and family planning  were emotional testimonies from congregants of varying viewpoints.

Here are some questions and answers about the vote, and what it could mean.

What, exactly, did the Southern Baptists vote to do?

Wednesdays vote was the first time that attendees at the Southern Baptist meeting have addressed the ethics of in vitro fertilization directly. Their resolution is not a ban and will have no binding effect on families pursuing fertility treatments.
Amber de Botton

Guardian Media Group appoints Amber de Botton as chief communications officer.

De Botton was previously director of communications at 10 Downing Street, heading up the UK governments communications strategy. She has also served as a consultant at the UK Governance Project, a politically neutral initiative tasked with making practical recommendations to improve governance within the UKs central institutions of government.

Her journalism experience includes stints as head of UK News at ITV News and deputy head of politics at Sky News.

De Botton will join the Guardians executive committee, reporting to Katharine Viner, editor in chief, and Anna Bateson, chief executive officer.

She brings rich experience and deep understanding of strategic communications and the media to support our mission to become more digital, produce more world-class journalism and engage more readers than ever before, said Viner.
Rubenstein Public Relations lands Diversified Education Services. DES provides tailored educational support to students requiring a diversified approach to learning. RPR will spearhead a strategic media campaign to elevate DES' visibility and highlight its educational approaches. The agency will focus on showcasing the companys robust educational offerings and its team of dedicated specialists. By highlighting its commitment to fostering academic and emotional growth, RPR aims to position DES as a leader in creating more inclusive and effective educational environments. "Our work with Diversified Education Services underscores our commitment to promoting transformative educational services," said RPR president Richard Rubenstein.

IMAGINE PR is providing integrated public relations and brand partnership services for Sky Lagoon, a spa located just outside of Reykjavik, Iceland. The agencys scope of work will include strategic communications counsel, media relations, and influencer connections. IMAGINE PR will also lead media familiarization trips. Located at a geothermal lagoon situated on the North Atlantic Ocean, the property draws inspiration from the nation's traditions and design to create a peaceful oasis in the urban landscape of Iceland's second-largest settlement.

PHD, an Omnicom Media Group agency, is engaged as brand media AOR for travel agency Priceline. PHD will partner with Priceline's internal teams in data-driven media strategy, planning and buying to drive reappraisal and growth amongst new customers in key traveler segments. The company says its selection of PHD reflects its commitment to precision marketing. We believe in the power of brand media to make travelers take notice and think differently about Priceline," said Priceline SVP, strategy and brand marketing Lesley Klein. "PHD will be a critical partner in co-authoring our future vision and in developing stand-out opportunities that create meaningful impact."

Colangelo & Partners is named agency of record for AVIVO Wines, a wine producer committed to addressing climate change through regenerative farming practices that improve the health of the land. The agencys media relations and digital campaign will focus on telling the story of AVIVO Wines among key trade and consumer media, and establishing a digital presence and community on social media platforms, as well as supporting its market expansions. At AVIVO, our vision is to transform how we farm grapes in California, and hopefully inspire others to join this movement, while at the same time producing pure, transparent and authentic wines that are expressive of their unique variety and origins, said AVIVO founder Ridgely Evers. We are excited to share this story and amplify awareness around our wines in partnership with Colangelo & Partners.
An Offaly farmer pleaded guilty to engaging in threatening behaviour, during the June 5 sitting of Tullamore District Court.

Michael Kinsella, Newtown, Lusmagh, Banagher was charged with committing the offence on August 22, 2023 in Stonestown, Cloghan.

Sergeant Justine Reilly told the court that the incident occurred between Mr Kinsella and a neighbour of his.

During the incident the defendant called his neighbour 'a f***ing scumbag.' He also said, 'I will sort you out.

Sergeant Reilly said Mr Kinsella had one previous conviction, which was a public order offence in 2017 in relation to the same injured party.

Judge Deirdre Gearty noted that the defendant was not represented by a solicitor in the court. She advised him to get a solicitor.

Mr Kinsella said he would represent himself. He told the Judge that he's a farmer and the tension between the two men relates to the moving of livestock to a certain portion of land.

Judge Gearty convicted and fined 200.

READ MORE: Charming cottage in idyllic location in Offaly is now on the market

READ MORE: Offaly fans welcome home jubilant Joe McDonagh Cup winning team
AS the RNLI commemorates the charitys 200 years of lifesaving this year, Lough Derg RNLI celebrates 20 years service on Lough Derg.

Recently, volunteers past and present at Lough Derg RNLI lifeboat station, gathered with their families and RNLI staff members at Lough Derg Yacht Club to celebrate the lifeboats 20 years of service on the lake.

Christine OMalley, Lough Derg RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager, MC for the event, welcomed everyone, especially those whod travelled long distances to join the celebration.

Christine, a retired Consultant Geriatrician, talked about taking on the role of Lifeboat Operations Manager five years earlier, and the steep learning curve as she absorbed the responsibilities involved, met the challenges and celebrated the rewards.

Christine introduced Niamh McCutcheon, Chair of the Lough Derg Fundraising Committee and an RNLI Vice-President.

Niamh, who has been fundraising locally for the RNLI for decades before the lifeboat was stationed on Lough Derg, praised the tireless work of the fundraising committee who, in tandem with the volunteer crews, have raised awareness of and donations to the RNLI, thus facilitating the charitys goals, to save every one. Niamh spoke of her pride in the seeing volunteers from Lough Derg RNLI at the Service of Thanksgiving at Westminster Abbey in March.

Christine invited Niamh Stephenson, RNLI Communicatons Lead for Ireland up to speak. Over the years Niamh and her colleague Nuala McAloon, RNLI Regional Communications Manager for Ireland, have made themselves available to offer sage advice and guidance to the stations lifeboat press officer on all media related matters.

Niamh recalled her first stop over at Lough Derg RNLI, almost 20 year ago, and the warm welcome she received, including the daunting mountain of food volunteers had cooked for her visit.

Niamh spoke about the essential role of media and the bridge it forged between the activities of the lifeboat station and the public. She spoke of how media communications inspired support for the charity and attracted new volunteers to the crew and fundraising, as well as amplifying water safety messages for a new generation.

To thank past volunteers for their continued support, Christine invited Lisa Hollingum, Area Lifesaving Manager, to speak and to present former crew with RNLI200 badges. Lisa commended the volunteers at Lough Derg RNLI for their dedication and commitment to maintaining the RNLI's high standard in all they do. Lisa said she looked forward to visiting the station again soon.

Liam Maloney, Launching Authority and former Lifeboat Operations Manager at Lough Derg RNLI, Dr Peter Hooker, Lifeboat Medical Advisor and Eleanor Hooker, Volunteer Helm and Lifeboat Press Officer had asked that Helena Duggan, RNLI Assessor/Trainer at Lough Derg RNLI from 2003 until 2022, present them with their Long Service Medals. Helena recalled her early visits to the new lifeboat station at Lough Derg with her colleagues, the late Michael Carmody and Derek Potter, and the enthusiasm from volunteers as the station became established. In a philosophical consideration of time, Helena stressed that the RNLI hugely appreciates the hours volunteers put into training, exercises and Shouts, and that every second you give to the RNLI is precious time, your time, and is never taken for granted. She made special mention too of the sacrifices and allowances families make so that volunteers may volunteer. Helena described the vast network of people, volunteers and staff, who work as a team to make the RNLI the organisation it is today.

The crew were honoured that Sean Ginnelly, their current Assessor/Trainer should travel all the way from Achill to join them in their celebrations

After receiving his medal from Helena, Liam Maloney, former Lifeboat Operations Manager and now Launching Authority, gave a moving history of the origins of the RNLI lifeboat station on the lake. He acknowledged the successful proposal made to the RNLI by Teddy Knight and Charles Stanley Smith.

Carrig Primary School, where Liam was headmaster, provided a venue for new volunteers to have shore training in the year before the lifeboat went live for service on April 24th 2004. He smiled as he told how he taught many of past and current volunteers in the room. Liam recollected previous callouts, his anxiety for crew out in testing conditions, and one in particular on a St Stephens Day morning that, thankfully, had a positive outcome.

Eleanor Hooker, Helm and Lifeboat Press Officer, thanked Aoife Kennedy, Lifeboat Station Administrator and Launching Authority and her sister Doireann Kennedy, Volunteer Crew, for organising the entire event, including having volunteers bake and cook for the reception to follow the speeches. Eleanor recollected earlier times with former volunteers and the collegiate spirit amongst all at the station. She spoke of the mutual trust and teamwork; essential ingredients at a lifeboat station. Eleanor welcomed James Corballis, an RNLI volunteer who has moved to the area from Galway RNLI, to the station. She congratulated Laura Clarke, Chair of the Lap the Lake Fundraising Committee on the incredible success of the RNLI charity cycle the previous day.

On receiving his Long Service Medal, Dr Peter Hooker, Lifeboat Medical Advisor (and Consultant Anaesthesist) joked that normally people fell asleep after a few minutes of my talking to them, and so promised he would keep his words brief. He said it was an honour to be a part of the Lough Derg RNLI team and wanted, especially to thank Helena for her years of teaching and care and friendship at the station.

Christine thanked all present and invited the assembly to move upstairs to enjoy an afternoon tea.

Of the event Christine OMalley, Lifeboat Operations Manager, said it was lovely to see so many people who have supported the Lifeboat Station over the years, whether on the water, off the water, through Fundraising or the RNLI support team. These are the people who helped make the Lifeboat Station into the excellent service we have today. It was great to acknowledge the remarkable 20 years of commitment to the Station from Liam Maloney, Eleanor Hooker and Peter Hooker with Long Service Awards from the RNLI. A huge thank you to all our Volunteers, past and present, and to their families, who have all given so much to create and sustain this Lifesaving service on Lough Derg.
YOU may talk of the Great Wall of China or the Western Wall of Jerusalem, or nearer home, Hadrians Wall in Northumberland in the north of England. These great structures are the achievements of great armies or religiously inspired nations. Pat Lynchs Dry Stone Wall in Abbeyland, between Clonfert and Eyrecourt, County Galway is the singular accomplishment of just one person.

The wall forms part of the boundary between townlands of Eyrecourt Demesne and Abbeyland Great. It is also the border between the historic civil parishes of Donanaghta (now Eyrecourt) and Clonfert and possibly at one time the dividing line between the estates of the Eyre and Butson families.

Pat Lynchs family have been farming the land here for three generations and he considers the land on the slopes of Redmount Hill as among the best in East Galway. Judging by the huge number of archaeological monuments within a short distance of the wall, his ancient predecessors also esteemed the high quality of the land.

The surrounding landscape is dotted with an array of prehistoric, early Christian and medieval earthworks the significance of which is evident in local placenames such as Killevny Fort, Liscuilla, Liskeevan, Lisgar, Lispheasty, Lismoyle, Lisnarabia, Lisphubble, Lisdooaun, Killeleby Fort, Deerpark Fort and Donanaghta Graveyard. All of these are scattered over the slopes of the hill and stand within a mile or so of the wall.

Donanaghta Graveyard is among the principal of these monuments. It sits on the slopes of Redmount Hill which explains the original Irish version of its name, Dun An Uchta. Ucht cnoic is given in Niall O Donaills Focloir Gaeilge-Bearla, as the breast of the hill which describes exactly the location of this ancient graveyard. The burial ground is L-shaped and occupies most of what the National Monuments Service database describes as an ecclesiastical enclosure, with a church of probable medieval date and an early headstone dating to 1768. Redmount Hill reaches a height of 422 feet and is surmounted by The Seven Sisters, seven small groves of beech trees erected by one of the John Eyres of Eyrecourt during the nineteenth century.

When Pat Lynch retired from Bord Na Mona in 2019 he commenced this ambitious project. The wall was then completely overgrown, mostly collapsed and in need of much repair. Over the following four years he spent much of his time after his daily farming chores were complete in face of the wall, averaging fifteen or sixteen hours per week. Spread over four years or two hundred weeks this amounts to over three-thousand man-hours of self-imposed hard labour from which Pat derived great satisfaction and enjoyment. Had the wall been commissioned it would have cost a pretty penny.

While most of the stone required was found in situ from the previous building, additional stone was sourced from redundant walls on farmlands of obliging neighbours. The wall is 444 metres long, and averages one and half metres in height and three-quarters of a metre in width. This gives a total volume of 497 cubic metres of stone required for the structure. As each cubic metre weighs 2,700 kilogrammes, the total weight of stone incorporated in the wall is approximately 1,350,000 kilogrammes or 1,350 metric tonnes.

These statistics are remarkable by any standard and we are greatly indebted to Pat Lynch for his huge solo endeavours - and no little expense - which have restored a significant part of our local manmade heritage.

Seamus Murphy, (1907-1975), the renowned Cork stone mason and sculptor, wrote in his marvellous book Stone Mad that Art grows out of good work done by men who enjoy it. It is the wealth, surely, of any country. Undoubtedly Pat Lynch derived great satisfaction from his monumental undertaking. We too can enjoy the historical significance and enduring artistic beauty of his work.

Lawrence Garner in his seminal work Dry Stone Walls, (Shire Books, 2005) muses on the rationale for building stone walls, the why and the wherefore: From the earliest times walls were an obvious method of enclosure, for stone usually littered the original unimproved pastureland or lay in plentiful supply a few inches beneath the surface.

But walls have more positive advantages. Many of the walls that enclose Britains (and by extension, Irelands), highest terrain have stood for over two hundred years. A good waller today will expect his work to outlive him provided that the owner gives the wall the small amount of maintenance needed. Compare this with a wire and post fence, which not only requires frequent attention but will rust and rot even in favourable weather conditions.

Where hedges are an alternative, maintenance once again becomes a chore if they are not to spread and encroach on useful land, and neither fence nor hedge provides shelter against cold wind and driving rain. At lambing time, a wall can be a life-safer to ewes and lambs and a godsend to the shepherd on exposed heights.

Pat also points out that walls are an effective barrier in times of disease or fire but whatever were Pat Lynchs motivations his wall will be a lasting memorial to him and an abiding enhancement to the local landscape, yet another monument on Redmount Hills imposing heritage list. Mile buiochas a Phadraig, ar son muintir na Gaillimhe Thoir. A thousand thanks Pat, on behalf of the people East Galway.
THE contract for the appointment of the Integrated Design Team for the Nenagh Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Energy (SECOE  Ireland) was signed on Thursday May 30th 2024.

The Integrated Design Team is led by Henry J. Lyons Architects who are committed to putting sustainability at the heart of their projects and have assembled a team of experts covering the disciplines of Civil & Structural Engineering, Building Services - MEP, Quantity Surveyors, Conservation, Landscape Architects, Fire Safety, Disability Access, Sustainability/LEED, Heritage and Archaeology, Environmental & Ecology and Facade Consultant.

Henry J. Lyons has a track record for delivering emblematic public projects such as the Central Bank; a wide range of low-carbon neighbourhoods including Dublin Docklands, Cork and Limerick; nine LEED platinum plus twelve LEED Gold buildings in Ireland and significant public realm improvements including Central Plaza and Cardiff Lane.

The project, to be located at Martyrs Road Nenagh, was provisionally allocated 9.525 million funding under the Urban Regeneration and Development Fund (URDF) from the Department of Housing, Local Government & Heritage. The project is led by Tipperary County Council in partnership with the Tipperary Energy Agency, North Tipperary Development Company, the Technological University of the Shannon (TUS), Community Power and Siga Limited.

This project will develop a Centre of Excellence for Sustainable Energy which will be the anchor and catalyst for the redevelopment of the Martyrs Road Regeneration Quarter. The Centre of Excellence will host a range of public agencies working collaboratively to deliver innovation solutions from training and development, to new cutting-edge research on technologies, to incubating low-carbon social enterprises. It will also deliver public infrastructure, civic spaces and public realm enhancement and will consolidate the linkages to the town centre and unlock the potential for the overall area.

The Cathaoirleach of Tipperary County Council, Cllr Ger Darcy, said this project epitomises the commitment of Tipperary County Council to deliver on the objectives of the Climate Action Plan in reducing our carbon footprint and meeting global energy targets. This is an innovative proposal which will be transformational for Nenagh and for Tipperary.

The Cathaoirleach of Nenagh Municipal District, Cllr John Rocky McGrath, also welcomed the signing of the contract saying the Centre of Excellence will make a significant contribution to Nenagh and District in terms of employment and will generate a return to the local economy. I congratulate all those involved and look forward to the delivery of this project which will make a real difference to Martyrs Road, to Nenagh and to the whole region.

Chief Executive of Tipperary County Council, Mr Joe MacGrath said that the development of the Centre of Excellence will be a pioneering project for the Southern Region and was identified as a priority under the Regional Spatial and Economic Strategy (RSES).

He said The project will facilitate Nenagh to fulfil its role as a regional economic driver and will support and attract future population growth and investment. It will also be a pathway for other towns in how they can move towards low carbon urban centres.

Noting that this would be his final contract signing on behalf of Tipperary County Council prior to his retirement, he said We are delighted to have secured the services of such an experienced Design Team and I wish the partners and the Design Team every success in the delivery of this project.

In total the project will represent an investment of 12.7 million in Nenagh.
An Offaly school teacher is to climb the highest peak in each of Ireland's four provinces in a bid to fundraise for a worthy cause.

Bobby O'Connor  who is a teacher at St Colman's NS in Mucklagh outside Tullamore  will climb the peaks in order to raise much needed funds for the Niall Mellon Educate charity.

Down the years the Niall Mellon charity has built over 175,000 homes for the poorest people living in the townships of South Africa.

Now Mellon Educate builds schools in these same townships to further enhance the lives of those living there.

This November over 400 volunteers will go to Capetown to build schools for the children of these townships.

The money you donate will go towards the construction materials needed to build these schools and will make a real difference, outlined Bobby.

He added: To further promote the fundraiser I am going to climb the highest peak in each of the four provinces this summer over the course of one week.

The peaks are: Slieve Donard (Ulster), Lugnaquilla (Leinster), Carrauntoohil (Munster) and Mweelrea (Connacht).

A huge thank you in advance to anyone who donates. Also if anyone is mad enough to join me for one of the four peaks, I can promise you a Mellon Educate volunteer t-shirt, a great day out and a pint at the end of the climb, promised Bobby.

A GoFundMe page has been set up so you donate to Bobby's worthy fundraiser.
Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator

On Monday, Hezbollah announced it shot down an Israeli drone, the Hermes 900, over southern Lebanon. The Lebanese resistance group used air-defense weapons to down the drone, which fell in the vicinity of al-Rehan mountain in Jezzine District.

Hezbollah poses the largest military threat to Israel, according to Israeli and regional security experts.

In 2006, Hezbollah successfully defended an all-out assault by Israel and has only grown stronger since then by greatly expanding their weapons and technologies.

Hezbollah has said the day fighting in Gaza stops will be the day fighting in southern Lebanon will stop, referring to a possible ceasefire.

Steven Sahiounie of MidEastDiscourse has interviewed Khalil Harb, a freelance Beirut-based journalist, former managing editor of the Lebanese daily Al-Safir, and has worked for the Associated Press and the Lebanese An-Nahar newspaper.

1. Steven Sahiounie (SS): Israeli officials are threatening Lebanon that this summer is going to be a hot summer, and they mean war. In your opinion, can the Israeli military handle a war with Lebanon, and with the current war in Gaza?

Khalil Harb (KH): It is no secret that Israel has a huge military arsenal and exceptional destructive capacity, thanks to the continuous Western support for it for more than 70 years. Regarding the ability to launch a major strike on Lebanon, this possibility is not excluded, but it is important to point out that the ability to launch a major strike does not necessarily mean having the ability to wage a major war. Israel is literally caught in a quagmire in Gaza, and it is difficult to imagine that it can wage a war on a new front, a larger front, a front more dangerous than Gaza. As time passes, the resistance in Lebanon reveals a new qualitative weapon. In the past few days, it revealed its use, for the first time ever, of surface-to-air missiles on Israeli warplanes that were violating the skies of Lebanon.

It is true that several advanced Israeli drones were shot down in the past months, including the Hormuz 450 and Hormuz 900, but this is the first time that the "Islamic Resistance in Lebanon" has announced the firing of surface-to-air missiles at Israeli aircraft, which means that a new page has been opened in the confrontation, after Israel was distinguished by its overwhelming superiority over Lebanon (and all its opponents) with its air force.

Until now, the resistance in Lebanon is still committed to the geographical extent of its military response within the Israeli entity, which does not exceed 15 kilometers. It is not clear whether a comprehensive war will break out, but what is certain is that the resistance has the necessary missile capabilities to inflict significant damage on the Israeli interior in what is known as the "Gush Dan" area, which is considered the economic and financial nerve and human concentration. The question is: Is Israel willing to risk such possibilities?

2. SS: Lebanon is going through a massive economic crisis, which could be helped by a regional peace agreement. If there was a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians, such as the two-state solution, would Lebanon be included?

KH: I am not a supporter of those who say that "peace" with Israel brings economic prosperity. If the question means the economic gains that Lebanon could reap from a peace settlement like this, then I prefer to describe them as crumbs of benefits. The repeated American promises to Lebanon to obtain electricity through arranging cooperation with Egypt and Jordan in this context have been heard by the Lebanese for years... that is, before October 7, 2023, and Washington has been obstructing for years any cooperation in the field of energy with China, Iran and others. Keeping the Lebanese people in need, and shortages in the field of electricity, allows officials of successive American administrations to make empty promises like these, or to portray them as if they were great gains that would come from the promised peace.

3. SS: The European Union and the United States are putting massive pressure on Lebanon over the Syrian refugees. In your opinion, how will Lebanon solve this problem, and will it affect the political crisis in Lebanon?

KH: The best, easiest and logical way to address the issue of displaced Syrians in Lebanon is through direct communication and coordination between the governments of Beirut and Damascus. There is no alternative to that. They are the two countries directly concerned with this issue, which is turning into an internal crisis in Lebanon and raising tensions. But the problem is that Washington and some European Union countries want two things: first, to try to keep Damascus isolated and prevent communication and cooperation with it in its geographical surroundings, and second, to continue exploiting the card of the displaced Syrians to weaken and aggravate the internal situation in Lebanon, but without causing it to explode, and also to keep Syria and its regime in the appearance of a unsecure and unstable state, thus obstructing the return of the displaced to their homeland.

4. SS: Lebanon has been without a president for over two years. In your opinion, what will it take for they various Lebanese political parties to elect a president, and what is the role of the West in this process?

KH: From afar, the best way to resolve the issue of the vacuum in the presidency in Lebanon is to prevent the American "conditions" and some Arab countries, such as Saudi Arabia, from imposing them on Lebanon to determine the criteria for the new president. The fear of some Lebanese leaders of angering the Americans and Saudis, who enjoy humiliating influence in Lebanon, by reaching a settlement on the issue of the presidency, prevents progress on this issue. The pretext is always the "Iranian scarecrow." Some in Washington, Riyadh, and Beirut are betting on a president who will be hostile to Hezbollah, or perhaps less friendly with the party.

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"There should be no co-locations on LAUSD campuses."



-- LAUSD Candidate Karla Griego

After Graciela "Grace" Ortiz was sued by a student who claimed the candidate had not done enough to protect her from a sexual assault at gunpoint, there was a shift in the momentum in the race to replace the retiring Jackie Goldberg as the BD5 representative on the LAUSD School Board. This allowed teacher/parent Karla Griego to beat the Charter School industry's candidate by 5,220 votes. However, since Griego did not win more than 50% of the votes, she will face Ortiz in November's general election.

One difference between the candidates is Griego's willingness to answer questions about her viewpoints. Griego responded to questions about Special Education, PROP-39 Co-Locations, Student Safety, and The Budget in the months leading to the primary election. Ortiz did not answer any.

For April the candidates in the runoff election were asked questions about Inclusion and Diversity and Griego was the first to respond. Background information about the questions in this edition of the LAUSD Candidate Forum can be found at LAUSD Candidate Forum: Inclusion and Diversity.

These are the answers provided by Griego:

Question: The proposed "LAUSD Resolution On Antisemitism" includes a requirement "that standalone units of study on antisemitism in both middle and high school will include a lesson on how the misuse of Boycott, Divestment, and Sanction movements can be antisemitic." Would you support a resolution that included this wording?



(Image by Dan Chang) Details DMCA



Answer: No response provided.

Question: During the 2020 election, the California Charter School Association (CCSA) ran an ad campaign against Scott Schmerelson that was widely condemned for using Anti-Semitic tropes. Based on these actions would you reject support from this organization?

Answer: Anti-Semitism and any forms of discrimination need to be taken seriously. I would reject support from CCSA for this reason and many others, including their efforts to dismantle public education in Los Angeles.

Question: During this year's primary election, United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA) endorsed a candidate who in the past had called on the LAUSD to include in its curriculum a book that has been called "the Bible of new antisemitism". Was the union correct to pull its endorsement of this candidate?

Answer: I trust that my union went through the proper democratic processes to come to the decision to rescind their support of the LAUSD candidate. The book in question has no place in LAUSD classrooms.

Question: When Citizens of the World Charter School was co-located on the campus of Shirley Avenue Elementary School it had a student body that was significantly whiter and more affluent than its host. Should charter schools be held responsible for ensuring that their demographics reflect that of the community?

Answer: There should be no co-locations on LAUSD campuses. In the meantime, charter schools have the responsibility to create equitable access to their schools and their programs.

Question: Do you support "The Great Big Book of Families" as an age-appropriate resource for teaching elementary school students about diversity in family structures?

Answer: Absolutely. All families in LAUSD deserve to be reflected in our curriculum.

Question: Bullying often has an underlying component of racism, homophobia, or other types of bigotry. Is the LAUSD doing enough to eliminate bullying from its campuses?

Answer: LAUSD can do more to address anti-black racism, islamophobia, anti-semitism, homophobia, misogyny, and all forms of hate and bullying at every school.

Question: Long-used forms of student discipline have been accused of contributing to a school-to-prison pipeline. In response, the LAUSD has mandated that schools limit suspensions and implement Restorative Justice programs. Is the District providing enough support to ensure that these will help achieve their stated goal?

Answer: LAUSD is notorious for paying lip service to programs without the proper investments to ensure those programs succeed. LAUSD can provide additional training, certificated staff like mental health counselors, PSWs, and psychologists AND culturally relevant curriculum to STOP the school to prison pipeline.



Question: The LAUSD has programs in place to lower the number of black students eligible for Special Education services claiming that this racial group is often overidentified and this causes harm. Do these programs run the risk of preventing students from receiving the services that they need?

Answer: I think we have to work to find a balance between overidentifying black students as special needs and actually providing the services that they need. There is strong evidence that overidentification based on bias and structural racism is real AND special education's severe underfunding is forcing schools to cut corners because of lack of funding and support. We also need to make sure parents and community members are involved at every step of the way.

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Duluth, Minnesota (OpEdNews) June 13, 2024: Former President Donald Trump is now a convicted felon. The jury in his trial in New York City found him guilty on all 34 felony charges brought against him. But what impact, if any, will his felony convictions have on the vote in the November presidential election?

The op-ed columnist Thomas B. Edsall explores this situation in his latest op-ed column titled "Trump Would Be Long Gone if Only We Could . . . " (dated June 12, 2024) in the New York Times:

Click Here

As you may know, Edsall's weekly op-ed column is usually somewhat lengthy. He typically explores a variety of positions that are not necessarily incompatible with one another.

In Edsall's latest column, he explores a variety of views about former President Donald Trump's appeal to voters. At a certain juncture, Edsall discusses the views of John Ganz, the author of the soon-to-be-released 2024 book When the Clock Broke: Con Men, Conspiracists and How America Cracked Up in the Early 1990s (Farrar, Straus and Giroux) and of the recent online essay "The Shadow of the Mob: Trump's Gangster Gemeinschaft."

Ganz's new 2024 book When the Clock Broke is reviewed by Jennifer Szalai in her piece titled "The 1990s Were Weider Than You Think. We're Feeling the Effects. In 'When the Clock Broke,' John Ganz shows how a decade remembered as one of placid consensus was roiled by resentment, unrest and the rise of the radical right" (dated June 12, 2024) in the New York Times:

Click Here

In her review of Ganz's new 2024 book, Szalai says, "Toward the end of the book, Ganz discusses an analysis by [the far-right intellectual Sam] Francis of 'The Godfather,' in which he connects the film to the sociological concepts of Gemeinschaft and Geselleschaft - a traditional community based on kinship ties [Gemeinschaft] doing battle with modern legalistic forces [Gesselschaft]."

According to Edsall, Ganz wrote, in his recent online essay, that Trump, who is now a convicted felon, "'talks and acts like a Mafioso. He's not trying to hide it. He has compared himself to Al Capone frequently. The New York Times reported last week, 'Trump Leans Into an Outlaw Image as His Criminal Trial Concludes' [by Maggie Haberman and Jonah E. Bromwich; dated May 28, 2024],"

Click Here

In their article Haberman and Bromwich say the following: "Prosecutors recently asked the judge overseeing the documents case [against Trump] to change Mr. Trump's conditions of release by barring him from making any further remarks that could endanger federal agents working on the case. In response, the Trump team accused them of 'unsupported histrionics' and demanded sanctions against them.

"'He either does not know the truth, which is reckless, or he knows the truth and lied about it, which is abhorrent,' Chuck Rosenberg, a former United States attorney and F.B.I. official, said of the standard procedures that Mr. Trump has misrepresented.

"'He cares very much about wielding power, but not in service of some greater good,' Mr. Rosenberg said. 'Rather, he wants power - including over the Justice Department - to benefit himself and his friends, and to harm others. He sees that power as only appropriate in his hands. That is a wretched corruption of what the rule of law means - and ought to mean - in this country, and it is deeply dangerous.'"

Now, Grace Elizabeth Hale of the University of Virginia published her book A Nation of Outsiders: How the White Middle Class Fell in Love with Rebellion in Postwar America (Oxford University Press) in 2011. It strikes me that Trump has appealed to white non-college-educated American voters precisely by tapping into that postwar American attitude regarding rebellion.

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National, June 13, 2024: Celebal Technologies, a premier provider of enterprise software solutions, and Databricks, a leading data and artificial intelligence organization, are co-hosting a workshop titled "ERP Reimagined: The Generative AI Advantage" on July 1, 2024, at the Four Points by Sheraton (Riverview), Singapore. The event focuses on leveraging the Databricks Data Intelligence Platform to streamline data management, unlock new insights through Data Lakehouse analytics, and harness the power 
A community review board recommended the Oregon Health Authority on Thursday reject Krogers $24.6 billion deal to acquire its rival Albertsons, which also owns Safeway. The board said that a merger would likely reduce competition among the grocery stores pharmacies, potentially harm consumers and fail to improve access to services in Oregon.

Kroger owns Fred Meyer and QFC, two of Oregons largest grocery chains. State health officials convened the seven-member health board to assess the proposed sale.
When Portland International Airport opens its refurbished main terminal in August, visitors will be met with a rippling nine-acre roof entirely constructed out of wood.

The roofs crests and valleys will be made of mass timber, wood strong enough to support skyscrapers  or reinforce an industry in distress.
A grand jury indicted a former Medford nurse on accusations of harming 44 patients in the intensive care unit of Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center over a year-long span while she allegedly stole fentanyl prescribed to ease their pain.

Medford police announced that the Jackson County grand jury indicted the former nurse, Dani Marie Schofield, on Wednesday on 44 counts of second-degree assault. Thats one count for every patient she is alleged to have intentionally or knowingly seriously injured through her actions from July 2022 to July 2023, which is when she stopped working at the hospital, according to police.

Police say Schofield is accused of taking patients fentanyl for her own personal use and replacing it with non-sterile tap water, causing them to develop life-threatening infections.

The indictment doesnt include any allegations of homicide, but at least eight of those listed on the indictment are dead, according to civil lawyers representing the estates of some of Schofields former patients. Police did not respond to questions about the total number of Schofields alleged victims who died.

Police and the Jackson County District Attorneys Office said in joint news releases that they didnt pursue murder, manslaughter or criminally negligent homicide charges after reviewing hospital records and pathology reports, and speaking to medical experts. Police said it became clear that the questionable deaths associated with this case could not be directly attributed to the infections.

In other words, patients alleged to have died under Schofields care were already medically fragile and at risk of dying when they were hospitalized.

Schofield, 36, was arrested Thursday afternoon. Bail was set at $4.4 million. The court system did not yet list a defense attorney for Schofield, and she could not be reached for comment while in the Jackson County Jail.

Our hearts go out to the victims and their families who have been impacted by this case, police said in a news release.

Oregon law calls for a mandatory minimum sentence of nearly six years in prison for second-degree assault. If found guilty, Schofield could go to prison for multiple sentences of nearly six years  in what could amount to the rest of her life. A judge likely would have that option.

Attorney Shayla Steyart said her firm, Schlesinger & DeVilleneuve, is representing 15 of the 44 alleged victims listed on the indictment. Eight of them died while seven survived, she said.

Steyart said Schofield is alleged to have targeted the most vulnerable patients in the hospital.

Theyre in the ICU, Steyart said. Theyre in the worst of the worst possible shape. They are relying on critical round-the-clock care. And if they are prescribed fentanyl, they are already in some type of excruciating pain. Fentanyl is a very strong medication and for them to need it and not get it, I cant even begin to fathom what these victims have gone through.

On top of that, Steyart said Schofield is accused of dealing them an additional blow  grueling infections that prolonged their hospital stays and suffering, and in some cases, Steyart believes, that may have killed them.

We are seeing people with infections who shouldnt have had these infections die because of the infections, Steyart said.

Only one lawsuit has been filed to date, by the family of a 65-year-old man, Horace Wilson, who died of an infection after he sought care at Asante for falling off a ladder. He is not named as one of the 44 patients in the indictment.

Some of the alleged victims or their surviving family members have spoken out publicly. Two of the deceased, Samuel Allison and Barry Samsten, are listed on the indictment as assault victims.

The Rogue Valley Times in January reported that the family of Allison, a 36-year-old combat veteran, said hed been admitted to the hospital for liver failure but had a good prognosis when he suddenly came down with an infection and died within days in fall 2022. The family said hospital officials told him his pain medication had been tampered with and that his infection was directly linked with the tap water that a nurse replaced it with.

The Rogue Valley Times also quoted the wife of Samsten, 74, who said her husband was being treated for a bedsore but died in July 2023 of what was described as multiple organ failure and septic shock on his death certificate. She said hospital representatives later told her her husband died because of an infection caused by tap water that replaced his fentanyl.

Samsten is the second to last of Schofields alleged patients listed on the indictment. Days after she allegedly harmed him she left the hospital.

Leading up to Schofields departure, Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center had been trying to get to the bottom of a puzzling increase in central line infections. They are caused when germs are introduced through a central line or tube that is placed near a large vein, such as in the chest, neck or groin. Central lines make administering medications simpler. Schofield is suspected of delivering the non-sterile tap water, in lieu of fentanyl, through a central line.

According to federal data, the hospital saw a five-fold increase in central line-associated bloodstream infections from 2021 to 2022, from three reported cases in 2021 to 15 in 2022. In 2022, the hospital had the second most such infections of any in the state, behind the states largest hospital, Oregon Health & Science University in Portland.

Asante posted at least three times to its website in spring and summer 2023 about the rise in central line infections. Some, it said, were associated with tap water.

A post dated March 2023 said the best way to reduce water-borne infections was to keep tap water away from patients, including by prohibiting its use for oral hygiene and by being conscious not to splash it on patients.

In another post, Asante officials stated that after infections rose, its teams rallied to examine processes to break the chain of transmission. That included stressing good hand hygiene and prohibiting artificial nails.

On Thursday, a spokesperson for the hospital declined to comment but shared a memo Asante sent to all staff earlier in the day, informing them of Schofields arrest.

We thank our law enforcement partners, including the Medford Police Department, for their tireless work since our team brought concerns forward to them, the memo read. We are greatly appreciative of the countless hours their investigators have spent on this complex matter.

The hospital is the largest in southern Oregon, with 378 beds.

Although police said Schofield stopped working in July, in November she voluntarily agreed not to work as a nurse pending the outcome of an investigation, according to Oregon Board of Nursing records.

Police said they devoted multiple detectives to the investigation, which started last December after hospital officials contacted police. Investigators spent months poring through volumes of hospital records and interviewed nearly 100 people in this case to include doctors, nurses, patients and many of those affected, police said.

Prosecutors called on 21 witnesses to testify before the grand jury.

Schofields first court date is Friday afternoon, when she is scheduled to be arraigned.

 Aimee Green covers breaking news and the justice system. Reach her at 503-294-5119, agreen@oregonian.com or @o_aimee.

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The first data points on how the strike- and storm-disrupted 2023-24 school year may have impacted academic progress at Portland Public Schools are in, and they are discouraging.

Results from the Measurement of Academic Progress, or MAP, math tests show that just 49% of the districts students made the expected learning gains over the first six months of the current school year.
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler said Thursday that he will seize control of all bureaus run by fellow City Council members on July 1, six months before a new voter-approved form of government goes into effect.

In a statement, Wheeler said he will turn the day-to-day operations of the citys government over to Michael Jordan, Portlands newly minted interim city administrator, whom the mayor will oversee.
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden wants to hold youth residential treatment facilities accountable when children endure harm while in their care.

Youth residential treatment facilities are often a last resort in the foster care system, serving children with behavioral challenges or who cannot be placed in foster homes. Many of the young people who end up in residential treatment facilities have experienced abuse, neglect and rejection.

In the worst circumstances, abuse continues at residential treatment facilities, with children experiencing physical and sexual abuse, the use of restraints and seclusion rooms and medical neglect. In recent years, the Oregon Department of Human Services has faced scrutiny and litigation for sending foster children to out-of-state facilities with inadequate oversight that have abused children.

Unfortunately, it seems that more often than not, abuse and neglect is the norm at these facilities, and theyre set up to let this happen, Wyden said Wednesday in a hearing of the Senate Finance Committee, which he chairs. The system is failing, except the providers running these treatment facilities, who have figured out exactly how to turn a profit off taxpayer-funded child abuse.

The Democratic Oregon senators committee on Wednesday released a 136-page report summing up a two-year investigation into some of the largest providers of youth residential treatment facilities in the nation. The report found a range of problems, including unsanitary facilities, poorly trained or unqualified staff and abuse with a lack of adequate oversight and accountability.

Some cases mentioned in the report have ties to Oregon, including a 9-year-old who was chemically restrained and locked in a seclusion room of a now-shuttered Montana facility. A 14-year-old Oregonian with an intellectual disability was sent to a Utah facility and physically restrained and chemically sedated over 30 times in a four-month period.

State lawmakers in 2020 passed legislation to raise the bar for out-of-state placements and require facilities outside Oregon to meet the same standards as in-state facilities.

Litigation also has prompted action. In May, the Oregon Department of Human Services settled a federal class-action lawsuit filed by advocacy groups on behalf of foster children. As part of the settlement, the state agency agreed to work with a neutral expert to make improvements that include the rate at which children reenter the foster care system and receive adequate access to medical, dental and mental health care.

On the federal level, Wyden said hes committed to stopping federal funding for facilities that fail to provide good care.

In order to get a dime from Medicaid or any other program in my jurisdiction, all of these facilities are going to have to start providing actual care, he said. Systemic failures at even a handful of these facilities is an indictment of the whole model.

Wyden said he plans to introduce legislation to hold youth residential treatment facilities accountable with increased health and safety standards, oversight and investments in community services that reduce the need for residential treatment.

He said he invited Marc Miller, the president and CEO of Pennsylvania-based Universal Health Services, the largest provider nationwide, to speak at the committee meeting and he declined.

His companys conduct  and the entire (residential treatment facility) business model  is simply indefensible, Wyden said.

In a statement to the Capital Chronicle, Universal Health Services called the report incomplete and misleading and said it creates a false narrative. The company said it provided 12,000 pages of records to the committee and made staff available to answer questions in a separate meeting that lasted for more than four hours. The company said it takes caring for residents seriously and responds with remedial action in cases when residents are harmed.

People share personal stories

The stories of survivors  and the families of those who have died  are central to the issue. In a press event before the hearing, they shared their stories.

Kayla Muzquiz, a former foster youth from the Rio Grande Valley in Texas, spoke about her journey through 18 youth residential treatment facilities in Utah, North Carolina and Texas.

All of these programs were thousands of miles away from everything that I knew and everyone that I loved, she said. So I consider it being trafficked because I was very isolated, not only away from people that I knew in my community.

Inside the facilities, she said, she was physically restrained. She was also restrained with chemical injections.

They will pull your pants down and inject you right where your thigh meets your butt, she said. And patients in there call that booty juice. This is normal in those facilities, and I felt like I was a lab rat most of the time.

At 14, she started to have fainting spells. Staff said she was an attention-seeker and she didnt get medical attention until she gained nearly 20 pounds in less than a month. An endocrinologist diagnosed her with an untreated fourth-stage thyroid condition that will require medication for the rest of her life.

Im disabled for the rest of my life, and Im dependent on medication just to produce a hormone so I can function correctly, she said. The medical neglect in foster care is real. I almost died, and it was very scary having to go through that by myself.

State Sen. Sara Gelser Blouin, D-Corvallis, who has pushed for reforms in the Oregon Legislature, also spoke.

What you will find when you read the report is that it validates what youth and survivors have been telling us, not for weeks or months or years, but for decades, Gelser Blouin said. My hope is that this is the first step in people saying enough. Enough spending our money to abuse children. Enough sending kids to places just to warehouse them. Enough holding kids to the ground and silencing them, both literally and figuratively.

Gelser Blouin said states and child welfare programs need to aggressively investigate abuse in facilities and invest in more community mental health services that keep families together and help young people.

Every child, every youth, is filled with tremendous potential, Gelser Blouin said. Its time for us to stop stealing that through abusive facilities.

-- Ben Botkin, Oregon Capital Chronicle

Oregon Capital Chronicle is an affiliate of States Newsroom, a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit supported by grants and a coalition of donors and readers.
Portland officials are making an initiative that aims to protect low-income residents during dangerous heat waves more accessible to those in need.

Vulnerable city dwellers can now receive a free portable air conditioner or heat pump and cooling unit combo by dialing 311 or completing an online application, according to city officials.

To qualify for the Cooling Portland program, a household must earn 60% or less of the area median income, officials said. Thats about $71,000 annually for a family of four or $50,000 for a single individual.

The $16 million program prioritizes people over the age of 60 as well as those with medical needs or who live alone.

City officials said Cooling Portland, which partners with a dozen nonprofit groups and housing providers, plans to deliver and install cooling units in up to 3,000 eligible homes and apartments by the end of the year.

People are encouraged to apply as soon as possible, said Jaimes Valdez, a manager with the Portland Clean Energy Community Benefits Fund, which oversees the initiative. This gives the program partners time to verify eligibility, order cooling units, and schedule installation to their homes.

The Cooling Portland program launched in June 2022, a year after a catastrophic heat wave killed 69 people in Multnomah County and hospitalized dozens more.

Despite a rocky rollout marred by setbacks and an embarrassing oversight, it has since provided and installed more than 8,400 cooling units across Portland free of charge. City officials aim to distribute a total of 15,000 by the end of 2026, a goal the program set when it first began.

The citys clean energy fund provides grants to nonprofits that seek to reduce carbon emissions, create jobs and promote resiliency for those facing the most severe impacts from climate change.

The fund generates revenue through a local tax on large retailers approved by voters in 2018 and prioritizes projects that help the citys historically marginalized communities. Budget documents shows it is projected to raise more than $1 billion over the next five years.

To apply for a free cooling unit from the city of Portland, call 311 or visit https://www.portland.gov/bps/cleanenergy/about-cooling-portland/apply-cooling-unit

-- Shane Dixon Kavanaugh covers Portland city government and politics, with a focus on accountability and watchdog reporting.

Reach him at 503-294-7632

Email at skavanaugh@oregonian.com

Follow on Twitter @shanedkavanaugh

Our journalism needs your support. Subscribe today to OregonLive.com.
Oregons Labor Day fires sent smoke into the Willamette Valley just before the 2020 grape harvest. More than 60 winery and vineyard owners are seeking to recoup their smoke-related losses by suing the entity they hold responsible for igniting the fires  PacifiCorp, an electric power company owned by Berkshire Hathaway.

Dustin M. Dow, a partner at Baker & Hostetler LLP in Cleveland, Ohio, said his firm currently represented 61 winery and vineyard clients in four active case complaints in Marion, Multnomah, Washington and Yamhill counties.
WestRock Stockholders Approve Combination with Smurfit Kappa

June 13, 2024 - WestRock Company today announced that, based on the preliminary vote count, WestRock stockholders voted to approve the Transaction Agreement and other proposals related to the combination of Smurfit Kappa Group plc (Smurfit Kappa) and WestRock (the Combination) at WestRocks Special Meeting of Stockholders held earlier today.

Pursuant to the terms of the Transaction Agreement entered into on September 12, 2023, Smurfit WestRock will acquire Smurfit Kappa by means of a scheme of arrangement under the Companies Act 2014 of Ireland (as amended) (the Smurfit Kappa Share Exchange), and Sun Merger Sub, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Smurfit WestRock, will merge with and into WestRock (the Merger, and together with the Smurfit Kappa Exchange, the Combination), with WestRock surviving the Merger and becoming a wholly owned subsidiary of Smurfit WestRock.

If the Merger contemplated by the Transaction Agreement is completed, the common stockholders of WestRock will receive one new Smurfit WestRock share and $5.00 in cash for each share of common stock of WestRock. Completion of the Combination remains subject to certain conditions, as described in the Transaction Agreement.

WestRock (NYSE: WRK) is a global leader in sustainable paper and packaging solutions, with more than 50,000 teammates in the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific. Its integrated packaging capabilities offer end-to-end solutions to help customers address their greatest challenges.

SOURCE: WestRock Company
In a decisive move to protect and expand access to in vitro fertilization (IVF), Democrats are set to force a vote on the Right to IVF Act.

The proposed legislation aims to safeguard the fertility procedure that has enabled millions of families to conceive and includes measures to make it more affordable, particularly for service members and veterans.

To Expand Access and Protect Fertility Rights Nationwide

The Right to IVF Act, championed by Senators Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), and Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), comprises a comprehensive package of four bills designed to prohibit states from imposing restrictions on IVF and ensure its affordability.

However, the bill faces stiff opposition from Republicans, who are expected to block it on procedural grounds, accusing Democrats of political maneuvering.

On Wednesday evening, June 12, Republican Senators Katie Britt (R-Ala.) and Ted Cruz (R-Texas) introduced their own narrower IVF Protection Act.

This alternative would withhold Medicaid funding from states that ban access to IVF but fails to address the critical issue of legal consequences for discarding nonviable embryos.

Democrats criticized this bill as "dangerous" and "a step backwards," resulting in Senator Murray blocking a vote on the GOP proposal.

Controversies and Legal Implications of the IVF Bill

The debate over IVF legislation intensified following an Alabama Supreme Court ruling that questioned whether frozen embryos created during fertility treatments should be considered children.

This ruling has significant implications for providers and doctors, with Democrats arguing that such legal interpretations could criminalize the disposal of nonviable embryos.

Senator Duckworth, who used IVF to conceive her two children, highlighted the personal and legal dangers posed by such interpretations.

She emphasized that considering a fertilized egg as a human being could lead to charges of manslaughter or murder if nonviable embryos are discarded, as in her case.

The Southern Baptist Convention's recent vote to oppose IVF and encourage government restrictions further complicates the landscape.

Despite the Alabama Legislature's swift action to resume IVF treatments and protect providers from legal liability, the absence of a clear definition of when life begins leaves room for ongoing legal and ethical battles.

Expanding Access for Service Members and Veterans

A significant component of the Right to IVF Act is the Veteran Families Health Services Act, which seeks to expand fertility treatment access for veterans and active-duty service members.

This includes provisions for freezing eggs before deployment, a crucial benefit for military personnel who often face unique reproductive health challenges due to their service.

Duckworth, an injured Army veteran who struggled with infertility for a decade, underscored the importance of this legislation.

A 2018 survey revealed that 37% of active-duty and veteran women experience infertility, a rate three times higher than the national average.

Military spouse Julie Eshelman's story highlights the real-life implications of inconsistent IVF access.

Frequently relocating due to her husband's service, Eshelman expressed concern about potential restrictions on reproductive health care in states with restrictive abortion or IVF laws. The possibility of being stationed in such a state could force military families to reconsider their service commitments.

Despite both parties expressing support for IVF, the path to a bipartisan solution remains fraught with contention. Without federal legislation, families like Eshelman's face uncertain futures regarding their ability to access fertility treatments.

As the Senate prepares for Thursday's vote, the outcome will determine the future of IVF access and affordability across the nation, particularly for those who have served their country.
Johnson & Johnson has agreed to a $700 million compensation with 42 U.S. states and Washington, D.C., dealing with accusations that the company misled buyers about the safety of its talc-based products, such as baby powder, which have been liable for causing cancer.

Johnson & Johnson Settled $700 Million About Issues on Its Talc Products

This agreement, led by Florida, North Carolina, and Texas, represents an important step in addressing consumer safety issues. However, Johnson & Johnson did not accept any violation as part of the agreement and maintains that its talc products are safe and free of asbestos.

Despite this settlement, Johnson & Johnson is still facing tens of thousands of accusations, mainly from women with ovarian cancer and others with mesothelioma, cancer-related to asbestos risk.

As of March 31, there were roughly 61,490 outstanding lawsuits against the company. In response to these legal difficulties, J&J stopped selling talc-based baby powder worldwide last year, choosing to use corn starch instead.

The company has made multiple attempts to resolve the litigation through bankruptcy filings of a subsidiary created to manage its talc liabilities, but these attempts have been unsuccessful in court.

Most recently, on May 1, Johnson & Johnson proposed a $6.48 billion settlement to resolve the majority of the talc litigation via a third bankruptcy attempt. The company has also set aside an $11 billion reserve to cover all talc-related accountability.

Erik Haas, J&J's worldwide vice president of litigation, highlighted the company's commitment to resolving the talc litigation intensively.

J&J desires to settle the claims of those who choose not to participate in the proposed consensual bankruptcy resolution through continuous litigation or agreements.

Settlement Regarding Consumer Safety Involved 42 States and Washington, DC

Johnson & Johnson, a major U.S. pharmaceutical and cosmetics company, has agreed to pay $700 million to settle allegations of misleading customers about the safety of its talcum-based powder products, as declared by New York's attorney general on Tuesday.

In the agreement with 42 states and the District of Columbia, Johnson & Johnson did not accept violation, despite withdrawing the product from the North American market in 2020.

The New Jersey-based company reached a preliminary agreement in January after facing several lawsuits accusations that its talcum powder, which contained traces of asbestos, contributed to ovarian cancer.

New York Attorney General Letitia James stated, "No amount of money can erase the pain caused by Johnson & Johnson's talc products, but today families can find solace knowing that the company is being held accountable for the harm it caused."

Under the settlement terms, New York will receive $44 million in four installments over three years.

Johnson & Johnson's Worldwide Vice President of Litigation, Erik Haas, affirmed the company's commitment to resolving talc-related litigation comprehensively, including finalizing an agreement with a consortium of 43 State Attorneys General.

In April 2023, the group proposed an $8.9 billion agreement aimed at resolving all cosmetic talc claims through payments distributed over 25 years via a subsidiary, LTL Management LLC, which has filed for bankruptcy protection after a judge initially rejected the plan.

Haas emphasized, "We will continue addressing claims from those who opt out of our proposed bankruptcy resolution through legal processes or settlements."

A summary of studies circulated in January 2020 involving 250,000 American women did not establish a statistical link between talc use on genitals and ovarian cancer risk.
An 8-year-old Oklahoma girl is now going to become the first pediatric patient globally to undergo robotic deep brain stimulation (DBS) in what ought to be a groundbreaking medical achievement. This pioneering procedure was announced by two hospitals involved in her care.

Life-Changing Robotic Brain Surgery

8-year-old Karleigh Fry was diagnosed with rapid-onset primary dystonia, a severe neurological movement disorder that causes involuntary muscle contractions.

Her condition initially left her paralyzed, unable to walk, eat, or sit up on her own. Despite being on several medications, which provided slight improvement, Karleigh continued to suffer from involuntary movements that led to self-injury.

Seeking a more effective solution, a joint team at Oklahoma Children's Hospital OU Health and Bethany Children's Health Center considered Karleigh a suitable candidate for DBS.

Dr. Andrew Jea, a pediatric neurosurgeon at Oklahoma Children's Hospital, stated that this groundbreaking surgery marks the global debut of using a robot from the operating rooms to perform DBS in a child, setting a precedent not only in Oklahoma but also across the United States and worldwide.

Understanding Deep Brain Stimulation

Deep brain stimulation involves implanting one or more small wires, known as electrodes, in the brain. These electrodes are connected to a neurostimulator device implanted in the upper chest.

The procedure aims to interrupt the irregular signals that cause tremors and other involuntary movements associated with neurological conditions like Parkinson's disease, epilepsy, and Tourette's syndrome.

While DBS does not cure these conditions, it significantly improves the patient's quality of life. The use of robotics in this procedure enhances surgical precision and safety, as noted by OU Health.

Karleigh's mother, Trisha Fry, explained the difficult decision to proceed with the surgery, describing that it seemed like they were trying to decide if allowing their child to go through the surgery would be worth the risk or not.

However, she reveals wanting to give her 8-year-old the best shot in life.

Read Also: Woman Sues Cold Stone Creamery for Misleading Consumers with Fake Pistachio Ice Cream

Post-Surgery Improvements

Due to the complexity of the procedure, Karleigh's surgery was scheduled to be done in two parts.

The initial procedure took place at Oklahoma Children's Hospital, followed by her transfer to Bethany Children's Health Center for post-operative care and pediatric rehabilitation.

Within minutes of activating the neurostimulator, it was reported that Karleigh experienced significant improvements.

According to OU Health, Karleigh was able to lower and relax her arms for the first time since her diagnosis. Her motor control and speech have also shown marked progress.

She also added that before the procedure, the arms of her child used to lock up to the point where they would put socks on her hands because she would scratch her neck.

The mother of the 8-year-old admits the progress and improvements seen. She is now using her own little voice more frequently, and she can now speak and utter a few words. Based on the progress they are making, her mother certainly believes there is a possibility of a great future.

The medical team reports ongoing progress in Karleigh's condition, suggesting that this successful procedure may pave the way for more pediatric patients to benefit from robotic DBS in the future.
High school seniors Emma Ehrens and Grace Fischer will obtain their diplomas, marking the beginning of their future endeavors.

However, alongside their joy, they are preparing themselves emotionally to remember the 20 classmates from Sandy Hook Elementary School who would have graduated with them, had they not lost their lives in the 2012 slaughter.

Sandy Hook Shooting Survivors Remember 20 Classmates Lost in 2012 Massacre

Fischer expressed her sadness, reflecting on the absence of these children who should have shared this milestone. Ehrens, too, is grappling with a mix of feelings-happiness about leaving school, apprehension about the future, and profound thoughts about the alternate paths these lost friends might have taken.

The impact of gun violence, which has claimed the lives of so many young Americans since Newtown, hangs heavily over today's graduates and their communities.

Newtown High School's Class of 2024 will wear ribbons in remembrance, acknowledging their fortune to have survived that fateful day. Ehrens vividly remembers the terror of the shooting and the bravery of her friend Jesse Lewis, who saved lives before losing his own.

For both Emma and Grace, the massacre at Newtown continues to shape their lives. Grace, driven by a sense of duty and loss, plans to study law and justice at Hamilton College, determined to advocate for gun violence prevention.

Ehrens, inspired by her experiences, aims to pursue a career in law or politics, fueled by a profound survivor's guilt and a commitment to honor the memory of those who did not survive.

Their involvement with the Junior Newtown Action Alliance reflects their ongoing dedication to their cause, meeting with national leaders and supporting fellow survivors and victims' families across the country.

As they move forward, both young females carry the weight of disaster while attempting to make a difference in their community and beyond.

Sandy Hook Elementary School 2012 Shooting

On 14 December 2012, twenty students and six staff members, the youngest just six years old, were killed in the Sandy Hook Elementary School firing.

A private ceremony took place on Wednesday evening at Newtown High School, attended by around 60 survivors. Graduating students expressed mixed emotions about reaching this milestone.

Emma Ehrens said, "The shooter came into my classroom. I watched my friends and teachers get killed and had to run for my life at six years old. Growing up with the fear and the 'what-ifs' of what could have happened if I stayed? I was going to be next."

Another survivor, Lilly Wasilnak, said, "You wait for this day your whole life, but we can't forget a whole chunk of our class is missing." Many survivors have joined gun control groups, and some met Vice-President Kamala Harris at the White House last week.

The shooting was carried out by a 20-year-old armed with two rifles and a handgun, who died from a self-inflicted gunshot as police arrived. Then-US President Barack Obama called it "the single darkest day of my presidency" and proposed new laws to curb gun violence.

Although he made reforms to the background check system via executive orders, two major legislative efforts, banning assault rifles and instituting background checks on most private gun sales, failed in Congress.

The Sandy Hook shooting remains bloody at a US primary school. Since then, there have been over 4,200 mass firings in the United States, including several dozen at schools.
What makes a great PC case? If you ask ten different computer nerds, youll get ten different answers. But if you ask Nick Cole of the Gear Seekers YouTube channel, youll get answers that come with some incredible experience and insight.

Adam took some time off at Computex in Taipei to interview Nick, and they discussed the important factors in choosing a new case.

Nick reckons that the first thing you have to nail is the price. After all, if your budget is $50, then the case you can find for $50 is the best one for you. But if you can afford to open up your options, youll want to look at aesthetics, features (like how many fans are included), and performance. Of course, your mileage may vary.

Leo Waldock of KitGuru crashes the interviewwe love you Leo, crash awayto talk about backsides. Thats backside connectors on motherboards and cases, get your mind out of the gutter.

But the real showstopper for Gear Seekers is the case collaboration theyre doing with MonTech for a custom version of the King 95 Pro.

The pre-production version of the new Ultra Gear Seekers Edition case was shown off at Computex, and its a head-turner.

With Mac-inspired silver aluminum coloring, a new metal I/O panel on the front, and the original designs gorgeous curved glass now available with a super-dark tint, itll certainly be at the top of many PC gamers lists when it comes out in September.

Wed love to tell you the price, but Nick says that even he doesnt know just yet. (The original version goes for $160 at the moment.) For more looks at the best PC cases around, including full-length live builds, be sure to subscribe to PCWorld on YouTube.
QNET, a global leader in wellness and lifestyle-focused direct selling, concluded the first of this years biannual flagship event, V-Malaysia 2024, recently in the island of Penang in Malaysia.



The five-day convention drew approximately 9,000 participants from over 30 countries, reaffirming its status as a major international event.



V-Malaysia 2024: A Platform for Learning, Networking, and Innovation



This years V-Malaysia featured an extensive agenda filled with opportunities for learning, networking, and experiencing the latest in QNETs wellness and lifestyle advancements. Highlights included the mega QNET product exhibition where the company showcased its range of premium products such as the HomePure range of home appliances, the Amezcua range of wellness products, the Bernhard H Mayer range of luxury Swiss watches and fine jewellery, and the LifeQode portfolio of nutritional products, among others.



Groundbreaking Product Launches



QNET unveiled several innovative new products at this years convention:



 Amezcua e-Guard X - An innovative solution designed to mitigate the health impacts associated with mobile radiation from everyday electronic devices, including smartphones, laptops, and televisions.

 HomePure Rayn - A showerhead that not just filters shower water but also has the Amezcua Resonance Technology (ART) to help boost energy. It also has an optional Vitamin C capsule which can help remove residual chlorine from the skin and an optionalACF (Activated Carbon Fiber) capsule which removes fine microorganisms.

 Bernhard H. Mayer Alto Watch  The new ceramic watches by the Swiss watch brand that is ideal for daily wear is available in two variations, black and white, for both men and women. The quartz watch has a unique wave pattern on its face, and has hands made of recycled steel.



Empowering the Global Network



The event featured numerous training and education sessions tailored for QNETs global network of distributors. These sessions aimed to enhance their skills in direct selling and empower them to achieve greater success in their personal business endeavours.



Inspiring Moments



In an inspiring session, attendees were treated to a special appearance by award-winning Indian actor R. Madhavan. He shared his compelling journey and struggles within the competitive Indian film industry, offering a story of triumph that resonated deeply with the diverse international audience.



Commitment to Sustainability



To offset the events carbon footprint, QNET ensured the event was free of single-use plastic, promoted plant-based food options, and organised a tree-planting exercise in partnership with Malaysias JARING, the National Fishermans Association, as part of its ongoing Green Legacy global reforestation program.



At the conclusion of the event, Trevor Kuna, Chief Marketing Officer of QNET said, This event is not just a convention; it is a celebration of our commitment to our distributors and customers worldwide. We look forward to another year of remarkable experiences and success stories.

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.

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The Acting Head of Corporate and Investment Banking at Stanbic Bank Ghana, Musah Abdallah, has pledged the banks support for Ghanas mining and power sectors due to the importance of those sectors to driving economic growth.



Mr. Abdallah said this at the West African Mining Power Conference and Exhibition (WAMPOC/WAMPEX) in Accra.



During his presentation as part of a panel discussion on the topic Investment in Practice: Innovative Financial Solutions for Entrepreneurs in the Mining and Energy Sectors, Musah Abdallah, said the banks support to the sectors is in line with its commitment to supporting the countrys growth. He noted that At Stanbic Bank, our purpose is that Africa is our home, and we drive her growth.



This means that in any of the 21 African countries that we operate in, we are committed to driving growth.



This purpose requires us to pay attention to the sectors that are critical for spurring growth and that is why we are pledging our continued support for the mining and power sectors.



In line with this, we have advanced over USD1.1 billion to Ghanaian mining, metals and energy sectors over the last 5 years. In the power sector, Stanbic Bank acted as the lead bank in a USD325 million syndicated term loan facility for a local independent power producer to set up a power plant within a mine, resulting in significant power cost savings for the mining company.



We were also the joint mandated lead arrangers for the states power producer, providing a USD120 million syndicated term loan facility.



These examples demonstrate our ability to provide comprehensive financial solutions that cater to the specific needs of the mining and power sectors, he added.



Musah Abdallah further mentioned Stanbic Banks support for SMEs in the mining sector through their ecosystem banking initiative.



He said, Beyond the big companies in the sector, we also provide support to SMEs providing critical services to the sector. Our ecosystem banking initiative ensures that all companies, whether big or small, in the sector are catered for.



According to Musah Abdallah, there exists other innovative solutions such as sustainable financing, green bonds, royalties and streaming (R&S) as well as the possibility of leveraging on crowdfunding in partnership with Fintechs. These solutions support both the large corporates and SMEs in their quest for funding.



The WAMPOC/WAMPEX is a sub-regional platform that brings together key stakeholders in West Africas mining and power sectors to deliberate on issues critical to the development of the sectors.



The event showcases and features the latest innovations and solutions for the mining sector and is the most important meeting place for senior mining and power professionals, government representatives and stakeholders, allowing them to keep abreast of the latest industry developments, discuss key challenges and understand future opportunities.







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.

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Stanbic Bank Ghana, as part of its ongoing efforts to drive economic growth in the country, has invested USD1.1 billion in Ghanas mining, metals and energy sectors over the past five years. This was made known during a presentation Lorraine Mac-Pods, Senior Vice President, Mining and Metals, Stanbic Bank at the West African Mining Power Conference and Exhibition (WAMPOC/WAMPEX) in Accra.



Recounting some of the banks interventions in the countrys mining and power sector, Ms. Mac-Pods said, Over the past five years, Stanbic Bank has advanced USD800 million to the Ghanaian mining and metals sectors. Eleven of the 13 large-scale mines in the country utilize our transactional banking services and have acted as the sole arranger and lender for a USD100m million term loan facility to a local surface mining contractor, aiding in executing their contract.



She added that We have also provided USD100 million in loans to small local contractors and vendors of mining companies in 2024. Additionally, we arranged a USD90 million term loan and hedging solution to a gold mining company for their expansion drive and an USD80 million environmental bond guarantee for six gold mines over the past five years.



Ms. Mac-Pods also mentioned some interventions the bank has made in the power sector that are having positive impacts in the economy. She said, Within the power sector, we acted as the lead bank in a USD325 million syndicated term loan facility for a local independent power producer to set up a power plant within a mine, resulting in significant power cost savings for the mining companyWe were also the joint mandated lead arrangers for the states power producer, providing a USD120 million syndicated term loan facility.



Lorraine Mac-Pods further urged government to put measures in place to ensure that both the country and citizens enjoy the benefits of the countrys mineral resources. She noted that, for the mining and power sectors to truly thrive and attract sustainable investments, the role of the government is crucial. Firstly, the government could facilitate the creation of a stable regulatory framework. A predictable regulatory environment helps reduce uncertainty and risk for investors, making the sector more attractive for investment.



Engaging financial institutions in the drafting of regulations ensures that these policies are practical and conducive to business operations. Resource nationalism, while aiming to increase local benefits from natural resources, can sometimes deter investment if not managed carefully. It is important for the government to strike a balance between maximizing local benefits and maintaining an attractive investment climate. A stable regulatory environment, transparent processes, and fair competition will foster investor confidence and encourage long-term investments, Ms. Mac-Pods added.



The WAMPOC/WAMPEX is a sub-regional platform that brings together key stakeholders in West Africas mining and power sectors to deliberate on issues critical to the development of the sectors. The event showcases and features the latest innovations and solutions for the mining sector and is the most important meeting place for senior mining and power professionals, government representatives and stakeholders, allowing them to keep abreast of the latest industry developments, discuss key challenges and understand future opportunities.







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.

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Stanbic Bank Ghana, as part of its commitment to enhance and grow the capacities of Ghanaian SMEs, has engaged with members of the Greater Accra Region Hotel Association.



This regional forum, which convened over 100 hotels, took place at the Erata Hotel in Accra.



Richmond Kwabena Aboagye, Manager of Ecosystems at Stanbic Bank Ghana, discussed the importance of the hospitality industry and shared various interventions the bank offers to businesses in the hospitality industry.



He stated, The Ghanaian tourism sector presents a dynamic landscape with abundant opportunities for growth. As a bank committed to driving the country's development, the hospitality industry is vital due to its potential to spur economic growth.



Recognizing this, we have crafted tailored solutions to meet the specific needs of this sector.



Mr. Aboagye spoke about access to finance for businesses aiming to expand their infrastructure or build new facilities. Secondly, he addressed the provision of working capital finance for businesses needing to bolster their capital for expansion.



Additionally, Stanbic Bank offers equipment financing through its Vehicle and Asset Financing (VAF) program, enabling businesses to acquire essential equipment to scale their operations.



Beyond financial assistance, Mr. Aboagye emphasized the importance of essential services crucial for business growth. He explained, Financial support is not the only assistance we provide. We help businesses access different markets to facilitate growth. For instance, we leverage our partnership with the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) to support clients interested in doing business in China or accessing that trade corridor.



He also added that Stanbic Bank has the Trade Club platform through which the bank connects businesses with partners from across the world.



Finally, Mr. Aboagye mentioned the banks incubator programme designed to nurture business growth. Over the years, Stanbic Bank has been at the forefront of supporting SME growth in line with its commitment to driving the countrys development. Through its incubator and other structured programs, the bank has supported over 7,288 entrepreneurs, 682 businesses, and 1,639 women-owned start-ups.













Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Ghanas trusted digital-first financial services provider, Izwe Savings and Loans (Izwe) has partnered with the Digital Transformation Hub, a local non-governmental organization dedicated to advocating for Information Communication Technology (ICT) education for girls.



This groundbreaking collaboration aims to provide ICT training to girls across Ghana, significantly enhancing their skills and opportunities in the digital landscape.



The program was officially launched at the Ghana-India Kofi Annan ICT Centre in Accra on Saturday, June 1, 2024. The event drew over 400 girls from various junior and senior high schools nationwide, all eager to participate in the "Girls in ICT" program. This initiative aims to inspire and empower young girls by introducing them to various ICT topics, including the field of artificial intelligence.



The schools represented at the launch included St. Marys Senior High School, Accra Wesley Girls, HOTCASS, Peki Senior High School, Kpeve Senior High School, Suhum Kyidom High School, and Unity Primary School.



Izwe expressed its enthusiasm for sponsoring the program, emphasizing that it aligns with the company's corporate social responsibility initiatives. The companys brand purpose is to inspire progress as it facilitates active economic engagement through innovative digital services.



Izwe supports educating girls in acquiring ICT skills as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility which is aimed at fostering economic empowerment, education and social inclusion.



In her remarks, the founder and CEO of the Digital Transformation Hub, Madam Ivy Lawson, underscored the importance of ICT education for girls. She highlighted the organization's commitment to accelerating the application of social capital and technology for economic empowerment, particularly for young girls.



"Organizing ICT training for girls is driven by our agenda of digital transformation, which is geared towards promoting diversity, inclusion, and equality for young girls in the digital space," she stated.



Madam Lawson elaborated on the Hubs focus on ICT education, which includes designed lab sessions, innovation and entrepreneurship training, and capacity building for startups and incubation.



"We provide training and expertise in digital skills and digital entrepreneurship, particularly for young people," she said.



She further emphasized that equity and inclusion for young girls, through effective advocacy and empowerment, are crucial for enhancing sustainability in local development.



Looking ahead, Madam Lawson disclosed that the Digital Transformation Hub plans to initiate a quarterly Inter-schools ICT training program for girls across the country. She encouraged the girls to pay particular attention to the study of artificial intelligence, noting its growing significance in the modern world.



The collaboration between Izwe and the Digital Transformation Hub marks a significant step towards bridging the gender gap in ICT and ensuring that young girls in Ghana have the skills and opportunities needed to thrive in the digital age.



This partnership not only empowers young girls but also contributes to the broader goal of economic development and technological advancement in Ghana.



Izwe Savings and Loans is a trusted digital-first financial services provider, delivering diversified customer-centric solutions. Over the years, the institution has been dedicated to empowering small and medium-scale enterprises for sustainable growth.



Izwe remains committed to financial inclusion in Africa, empowering individuals and businesses in various fields of human endeavor. Izwe Savings and Loans has achieved this through the delivery of tailored financial solutions to its diverse clientele.

























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President Bola Tinubu tripped and fell on Wednesday while attempting to mount the parade vehicle during the Democracy Day celebration at Eagle Square in Abuja.



Footage of the incident has since gone viral on social media, with netizens expressing concern.



The President had approached the vehicle shortly after he arrived at the Eagles Square, Abuja venue of the June 12 commemoration.



Vanguard gathered that the President lost his footing momentarily as he was about to embark on the parade vehicle.



However, the president, who was immediately assisted by his aides after the incident, has since resumed duties at the ongoing ceremony.



The event was part of a series of events to mark the countrys Democracy Day celebration at Eagles Square.

Source: vanguard









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Senegal's President Bassirou Diomaye Faye has said profits from the sale of oil and gas will be well managed as the West African state started producing oil for the first time.



Australian energy giant Woodside described the extraction as a historic day and a "key milestone" for the company and the nation.



The Sangomar deep-water project, which also has gas, aims to produce 100,000 barrels of oil per day.



It is expected to generate billions of dollars for Senegal and boost its economy.



Thierno Ly, the general manager of the national oil company Petrosen, said the nation had entered a new era when production began on Tuesday.



"We have never been so well positioned for opportunities for growth, innovation and success in the economic and social development of our nation," he said.



Petrosen has an 18% stake in the project while Woodside owns the remainder.



Mr Faye, who was elected president in April, has been keen on renegotiating the deal as part of reforms he promised during the election campaign.



Speaking to students on Tuesday, he said that the earnings would be "well managed", and that an inter-generation fund had been set up for the benefit of "your generation and those to come, the AFP news agency quoted him as saying.



Senegals move to renegotiate oil and gas contracts has been seen by some analysts as making investors jittery, but government supporters say it is vital for the West African state to increase its stake in projects so that the nation benefits from its natural resources.



Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko, a former opposition politician who was a key figure in the presidents election campaign, recently insisted that contracts signed by previous administrations were unfavourable to the country, and would be reviewed.



"We're the ones who promised you we'd renegotiate the contracts, and we're going to do it. We've started already, the AFP quoted him as saying in an address to young people on Tuesday.

Source: BBC









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Civil society organizations (CSOs) operating in the education sector have called for an immediate halt to all foreign masters programme scholarships.



Their position is in response to an advertisement by the Ghana Education Trust Fund (GETFund) calling for applications for foreign masters programme scholarships, which the CSOs described as a waste of taxpayers scarce resources.



According to the CSOs, including Africa Education Watch (Eduwatch) and the Institute for Education Studies (IFEST-Ghana), the action by GETFund is illegal, a deviation from its original mandate and inconsistent with the limited scholarship role it has been authorised to perform; hence the need to stop the exercise.



Citing Section two (2b) of the GETFund Act, 2000 (Act 581), the CSOs highlighted that the fund is to provide supplementary funding to the National Scholarship Secretariat for granting scholarships so brilliant but needy students can study at second-cycle level and accredited tertiary institutions in Ghana  not to directly administer foreign scholarships.



IFEST holds the strong conviction that access to finance is increasingly becoming the greatest barrier to tertiary education as the Students Loan Trust Fund (SLTF) is unresponsive to the needs of students. The SLTF has failed to provide financial assistance for needy students to access tertiary education because its grossly underfunded, preventing about 30 percent of applicants from accessing the loan.



The current average student loan amount of GH2,250 a year cannot cover the cost of funding tertiary education in Ghana for just the first month of study, let alone the entire year; but students have no option but to manage.



However, GETFund is willing to support the average cost of a one-year foreign Masters scholarship worth GH400,000. For GETFund to even conceive the idea of awarding foreign Masters scholarships in Ghana today is unconscionable, stated Peter Anti, Executive Director of IFEST.



With the 2023 Gross Tertiary Enrollment (GTE) rate stated to be 19.2 percent amid a 34 percent secondary-tertiary transition rate, especially when Ghana is recording an unprecedented 60 percent WASSCE pass rate in Core Subjects, the Ministry of Education (MoE) must be concerned about the inability of senior high school graduates to further their education due to financial challenges.



The MoE must also be worried that Ghanas set target to achieve 40 percent GTE by 2030  as announced in 2018  after five years has only moved up by three percent from the previous 16.97 percent.



The decision to spend scarce education sector resources on foreign scholarships for Masters students who end up studying courses existing in Ghana is not only wasteful but does not represent prioritised spending in a sector with over 5,000 basic schools under trees, sheds and dilapidated structures in the 21st century, Executive Director-Eduwatch Kofi Asare stated.



Foreign Scholarships and Value for Money



A review of non-bilateral public foreign scholarships in Ghana indicates that over 95 percent of the programmes are not only available locally in Ghanaian universities but cost 20 times more to study abroad. This does not assure value for money and must be discouraged, in line with President Nana Akufo-Addos pledge to protect the public purse.



Why Parliament Must Oppose the Move



The CSOs have also called on parliament to issue an injunction on the move to stop GETFund, as it did not allocate such an expenditure in its 2024 budgetary allocation.



They explained that parliament, in March 2024, approved a GH3.9billion allocation to GETFund based on a specific distribution formula that did not include GETFund scholarships. Plans by GETFund to spend directly on foreign scholarships in 2024/25 are therefore outside approved expenditure items in the 2024 GETFund formula approved by parliament, and are thus illegal.



We urge parliament to prevent GETFund from spending on foreign scholarships, not just because it is unapproved by parliament but also amounts to wasteful spending of taxpayers money, they stated.



The CSOs have also urged the Minister for Education, Yaw Osei Adutwum, to instruct GETFund to cease the ongoing foreign scholarship application process.



Auditor-General on GETFund



It should be recalled that the Auditor-General, in the 2019 GETFund Performance Audit Report, recommended that GETFund abide by Section two (2b) of the GETFund Act, desist from administering foreign scholarships and rather transfer funds to the Scholarship Secretariat for administration of scholarships.



This recommendation of the Auditor-General, which has since 2020 been upheld by GETFund, must continue.

Source: B&FT









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A high-level delegation from the Kenyan Council of Governors has expressed confidence in Jospong Group's capability of partnering with Kenya to address its sanitation challenges, saying Jospong can become a key partner with Kenya in environmental sanitation.



Partnering with Jospong will help us improve all aspects of sanitation management in Kenya and enhance the lives of our citizens, says the Wajir County Governor and Vice Chairperson of the Council of Governors. We are impressed by Jospong Groups expertise and achievements in waste management., he added.



Speaking after a tour of Jospong Groups plants in Kumasi on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, H.E. Ahmed Abdulai, Wajir County Governor and Vice Chairperson of the Council of Governors said the team is grateful for the opportunity.

After observing the separation process, production of plastic pellets, and youth entrepreneurship initiatives at JGC, the Kenyan delegation praised Jospong's commitment to environmental sustainability and community well-being.



The General Manager of the KCARP, Ing. Samuel Ntumy was optimistic that the visit would yield positive results.



"We are looking forward to further discussions and timelines with them to finalise the arrangements," Mr Ntumy said.



Besides KCARP, Kumasi Waste Water Treatment Plant and the Kumasi Medical Waste facilities, the delegation also visited ACARP, SSGL, Zoomlions Pantang Solid Waste Transfer Station, and JA Plantpool, among other key facilities.



The potential partnership between Jospong Group and the Kenyan Council of Governors is expected to lead to improved sanitation services in Kenya, benefiting millions of citizens.



The delegation is on a five-day mission to study Jospong Group's waste management systems, following Kenyan President H.E. William Kipchirchir Samoei Arap Ruto's visit to Ghana in April 2024. The mission aims to foster knowledge sharing and collaboration between the two countries, aligning with the theme "Driving Investment and Intra-Africa Trade: The Ghana-Kenya Experience."



This business development mission demonstrates the Kenyan government's admiration for Jospong Group's contributions to Ghana's economy and its desire to replicate similar successes in Kenya, said.

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.

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The Majority Leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin says politicians and public officeholders should be receptive towards media reports that offer balanced and constructive views.



To him, such criticisms enable duty bearers and officeholders to easily identify aspects of society that require urgent attention for the appropriate actions to be taken for national development.



Mr Afenyo-Markin stressed that being hostile towards media reports just because they may not favour a certain thinking, even when such reports are accurate, was detrimental to Ghanas developmental agenda and socioeconomic growth.



To buttress his point, he recalled a scathing news report from a media outlet concerning a Community-based Health Planning and Services (CHPS) within the Effutu constituency, which was in a deplorable state and the bad state of the roads surrounding it.



The Majority Leader in Parliament said the news report allowed him to take immediate steps to renovate the faculty and provide life-saving equipment which ultimately boosted the delivery of healthcare within the area.



Mr Afenyo-Markin intimated that without that news item, he would have been unable to make such a significant impact.



He made these remarks on Wednesday [June 12, 2024] when he paid a courtesy call on the management of Graphic Communications Group Ltd (GCGL) in Accra.

Source: graphiconline









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James Kwabena Bomfeh has fired salvoes against the Minority in Parliament for threatening to boycott parliamentary business due to the ongoing legal tussle between the Attorney-General, Godfred Yeboah Dame, and Minority Leader, Dr. Cassiel Ato Forson.



The Minority Caucus in Parliament has served notice not to appear in their chamber during proceedings following the Speaker's call for them to resume business.



On May 3, 2024, the Majority Caucus petitioned the Speaker, Rt. Hon. Alban Bagbin, to urgently reconvene the House to address key government business items including the adoption of the 34th Report of the Appointments Committee and a motion on additional financing.



Dr. Ato Forson was supposed to join the caucus in proceedings but he couldnt because the day clashed with his day in court.



The Minoritys boycott attempt, according to a statement issued by the Minority Chief Whip, Kwame Governs Agbodza, is in solidarity with their leader.



He pledges this action will continue every time proceedings clash with Dr. Ato Forsons day in court.



The NDC Minority Caucus will only be available for the business of Parliament after proceedings of the court have ended on the days scheduled for the hearing of the ongoing ambulance case trialthe NDC Minority will continue to solidarise and stand by its Leader anytime he is due to appear in court, their statement read.



Commenting on this subject of boycott during Peace FM's "Kokrokoo", James Kwabena Bomfeh questioned the logic in the Minority's action stressing they were not voted to represent themselves but rather their constituents made up of both members and non-members of their party.



The former CPP General Secretary, popularly called "Kabila", lightly asked if they will also boycott the "December 7 presidential elections since their leader's trial will still be ongoing".



To Kabila, the NDC Minority should remind themselves of their core duty to the people who voted them into the Legislative House.



"You were voted for individually to represent us. You are not representing your party but us, the constituents which include members and non-members of your party. Those who vote are not all party members," he cautioned the Minority.





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.

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Former CPP General Secretary, James Kwabena Bomfeh, affectionately called "Kabila", has lauded the Vice President and presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, on his campaign tours ahead of the December 7 polls.



His tour bus is going around all the sixteen (16) Regions of the country.



The Vice President is currently at the Ashanti Region touring the communities to explain his policies to the residents.



In the line-up of his campaign tour, he meets religious leaders both Christians and Muslims, Chiefs and the people through his house-to-house and street-to-street engagements.



Discussing Bawumia's campaign strategy, Kabila was elated that the Vice President does not only exhibit his humility before leaders in the society but literally goes down to earth embracing the average people.



He shared an account where Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia met a physically challenged person in his Ashanti Region tour and went down to embrace him to the delight of the person.



He also commended the NPP flagbearer for visiting gospel music legend, Yaw Sarpong, who is currently ill.



Dr. Bawumia presented a cash of 100,000 cedis to support Yaw Sarpong who, in turn, expressed his profound gratitude to Dr. Bawumia.



To James Kwabena Bomfeh, Dr. Bawumia is affecting the masses positively and in his (Kabila) conclusion, "the Vice President, there are so many things that are uncertain about him but it is possible!"



Kabila made these submissions on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" show with Kwami Sefa Kayi steering affairs.



Watch video below





Source: Ameyaw Adu Gyamfi/Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









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The minority in Parliament has backlashed the government for what they describe as wayward decision to reintroduce the road tolls.



Addressing the press on Wednesday, June 12, the minority Chief Whip, Governs Kwame Agbodza vehemently criticised the governments decision to reintroduce the road toll, stating that, the action of government shows a pure lack of seriousness and proper governance.



He told the press, That is quite an interesting position by the current road minister. In fact, is it not the case that he was part of the cabinet when the decision was taken to suspend the collection of tolls and when Mr. Speaker and all of us drew the attention that, that singular action was illegal, they told Mr. Speaker to go to the toll booth to collect the toll himself if he likes. This is just a testament of a government that is wayward, lost touch and doesnt know what they want.



He added that, it is quite an interesting position by the current Road Minister to have the road toll reintroduce.



"In fact, is it not the case that he was part of the cabinet when the decision was taken to suspend the collection of tolls and when Mr. Speaker and all of us drew the attention that, that singular action was illegal, they told Mr. Speaker to go to the toll booth to collect the toll himself if he likes. This is just a testament of a government that is wayward, lost touch and doesnt know what they want.



Cabinet decided to suspend the collection of tolls as propaganda to force E-levy down the throats of Ghanaians. We are paying E-levy today. They want to take more money from you so they are coming back to condemn each other to say that they want to collect tolls. Then the entire government is condemned. They cannot pick and choose who is upright in the government.



The Minister of Roads and Highways announced that the government is preparing to reintroduce road toll in order to mobilise revenue to fix some deplorable roads in the country. It is recalled that, cabinet suspended the collection of road tolls due to the introduction of the E-levy effective November 2021.



So we wait. We have been consistently saying that there was no need to suspend the collection of tolls. So, Ghanaians can see which part of the political divide can be trusted and is consistent with policies in this country."



He added, And obviously the NPPs record of being straight and fair to Ghanaians has been called into question so many times.





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.

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Former Central Regional Minister, Kwamena Duncan has shared dissenting views on the proposal for the Free SHS policy to become a law.



"For me I don't understand it, unless you call the Minister (Education Minister) to explain it, I don't understand it," he told Kwami Sefa Kayi



The Majority leader in Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has indicated that the government has expressed intentions of presenting a Bill to Parliament but to Kwamena Duncan, he doesn't understand why the policy must become a bill.



He argued that once the policy is made a bill, it then means any person or party in power can repeal it.



This, therefore, to him, is not the right approach to maintaining and enhancing the policy.



He made these arguments on Peace FM's "Kokrokoo" programme Wednesday morning.



Watch his full submissions below:





Member of Parliament(MP) for Effutu constituency in the Central region and the Majority leader in Ghanas Parliament, Alexander Afenyo-Markin, has indicated that the government has expressed intentions of presenting a Bill to Parliament.According to him, the Bill is set to regulate the Free Senior School policy and to ensure its outright sustainability.Hon. Afenyo-Markins revelations come in the wake of the call for review of the education policy introduced by the Nana Addo government. The policy, which provides free senior high school education for all Ghanaians have experienced daunting challenges.Briefing the press on Tuesday, June 11, 2024, the Majority leader said, Im also able to report that the Education Minister will present the Free SHS Bill to Parliament. The chapter five of the Constitution provides some aspirational indicatives. Those are not justiciable, but once by a policy of the government, an aspiration as a message by the constitution is put into action then to make it justiciable, you enact.

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.

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Airplane manufacturer, Boeing is laying off nearly 70 people.

The Boeing Company filed a WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) notice with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry informing the state it is laying off employees at its facility located at Stewart Avenue and Industrial Highway in Ridley Township, Delaware County, near Ridley Park. The layoffs are expected to begin on August 16.

A Boeing spokesperson said the layoffs are related to the Space Launch System program at the companys New Orleans location with a small portion of the 69 positions located at the Ridley Park facility. Most of the layoffs are occurring in New Orleans, the spokesperson said.

The layoffs include 35 aircraft technicians, eight assemblers, one engineering multi-skill manager, eight inspectors, six janitors, one manufacturing manager, eight painters and two mechanics.

The WARN Act is federal legislation that offers protection to workers, their families, and communities by requiring employers to provide notice 60 days in advance of a covered-business closing and covered-business mass layoff. The WARN notice was undated but was issued more than 60 days before the expected layoffs. The company said the layoffs were announced to the workforce in March.
A 29-year-old Franklin County man was arrested on Wednesday after Pennsylvania State Police said he started a high-speed chase and evaded troopers into another county while driving under the influence.

Troopers said a Toyota Corolla was driving 112 miles per hour in a 55-mile-per-hour zone on Lincoln Highway East  near Dymond Avenue in Guilford Township, Franklin County  around 7 p.m. on Wednesday, according to a police report.
GLOBALink | ROK-born giant panda Fu Bao greets the public in China's Sichuan Pub Date:24-06-13 09:36 Source:Xinhua

Fu Bao, the first giant panda born in the Republic of Korea (ROK), met the public on Wednesday after returning to China's Sichuan Province, the hometown of pandas. #pandamania Editor:Qin Shuying

Related News EU tariffs on Chinese EVs opposed across E... Xinhua Headlines: Cooperation brings stabi... Homestays in Anhui contribute to local pro... Building a Health and Wellness Hub: Anhui ...
From LNP, Lancaster, Pa. (TNS)

Two teens and a 20-year-old robbed a pizza deliverywoman, stealing her car and leading police on a chase through West Lampeter Township, continuing to drive the car even after it caught fire, according to police.

Matthew Daniel Reyes, 20; Xavier Eriberto Velazquez, 18; and Evian Michelle Simmons, who is listed as 18 in criminal court records but 19 in the county prisons system; face charges of robbery of a motor vehicle and related charges. Velazquez also is charged with illegal possession of a firearm, and Reyes with firearms and driving violations over the ensuing chase.

According to charging documents, the delivery driver, who works for Papa Johns Pizza, drove her red 2011 Hyundai Tuscon SUV to an address on the 100 block of East Vine Street in Lancaster on the evening of June 6.

When she got out of the car, Reyes, wearing a blue sweatshirt and black facemask, was sitting on the front step of the home and told the delivery driver, Give me everything you have, according to charging documents. The driver heard Velazquez pull a gun out behind her.

The woman gave them her cellphone, $20 and the keys to her car. Reyes and Velazquez drove away, leaving the deliverywoman, and picked up Simmons, who had called for the pizza and was in on the theft, according to charging documents.

West Lampeter Police spotted the vehicle speeding near Kendig Square on Long Lane and Willow Street Pike, where it hit a cement median, according to charging documents. The officer turned on emergency lights, but Reyes, who was driving, continued east down Beaver Valley Pike.

The car caught fire after hitting a piece of the road, damaging the undercarriage. Reyes did not stop, reaching speeds of 55 to 70 mph in the flaming car, police said. The car eventually parked in a bank lot on Willow Valley Lakes Drive, according to charging documents.

Police found Reyes driving, Velazquez in the passenger seat and Simmons in the back with a handgun in a bag. Velazquez told police Reyes gave him the gun and he pulled it on the delivery driver, according to charging documents. He also said the initial plan was to steal just the pizza.

Police charged the three June 7.

Reyes is listed in charging documents as homeless. Velazquez is from the 500 block of Manor Street in Lancaster and Evian the 800 block of El Hatco Drive in Muhlenberg Township, Berks County.

Reyes pleaded guilty May 16 to 17 charges for a series of crimes dating to November 2022, including theft of a motor vehicle, corruption of minors, evading arrest and driving without a license. He was sentenced to up to 23 months in prison. His lawyer declined to comment and did not say why Reyes was free the night of June 6.

Simmons is facing charges of receiving stolen property, evading arrest, simple assault, harassment and four other charges over crimes in Lancaster and Berks counties. She is in Lancaster County Prison in lieu of $45,000 bail. Her lawyer did not respond to a request for comment.

This is Velazquezs only public criminal case in Pennsylvania. His lawyer, Stephen Grosh, said Velazquez is aware of the serious nature of the charges and will be represented by counsel at all stages of the case.

The three are scheduled for a hearing July 12.
Another college in the Philadelphia area has closed.

The University of the Arts at 320 Broad St. in Philadelphia has filed a WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) notice with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry informing the state that it was closing and 704 people will be laid off.

The WARN notice was dated June 7. The school said it was closing that same day and the layoffs took place that day as well. A wind-down crew of employees was retained for a temporary period of time.

The college announced on May 31 in a letter from Judson Aaron, chair of the University of the Arts Board of Trustees and Kerry Walk, then-college president, that it would be closing on June 7.

We know that the news of UArts closure comes as a shock. Like you, we are struggling to make sense of the present moment. But like many institutions of higher learning, UArts has been in a fragile financial state, with many years of declining enrollments, declining revenues, and increasing expenses. We have worked hard this year alongside many of you to take steps that would secure the Universitys sustainability. The progress we made together has been impressive, the letter said. Unfortunately, however, we could not overcome the ultimate challenge we faced: with a cash position that has steadily weakened, we could not cover significant, unanticipated expenses. The situation came to light very suddenly. Despite swift action, we were unable to bridge the necessary gaps.

The schools board formally voted on June 1 to approve the closure.

Walk has since resigned.

Parkhurst Dining, which provides food and dining management and services to the university also filed a WARN notice with the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry informing the state that 34 of its employees worked at the college. Parkhurst Dining said 15 of the workers accepted an internal transfer to another company site. The company filed its WARN notice on June 6. Parkhurst Dining said it was informed of the closing on May 31 and didnt have any prior knowledge of the closure. All 19 of the employees separating on June 7 were already on a temporary summer layoff that began no later than May 17.

The WARN Act is federal legislation that offers protection to workers, their families, and communities by requiring employers to provide notice 60 days in advance of a covered-business closing and covered-business mass layoff. There are some exceptions to the 60-day rule.

Another school in the Philadelphia region is also closing.

Cabrini University in Delaware County will also be closing. The school at 610 King of Prussia Road in Radnor Township will close on June 30. Cabrini is laying off 363 people.
And Just Like That... and Greys Anatomy star Sara Ramirez has filed for divorce from their husband, Ryan DeBolt, six years after the couple separated.

According to People, Ramirez, 48, cited irreconcilable differences in court documents filed Tuesday as the reason for the split. Ramirez and DeBolt, 43, were married in 2012.

Ramirez  who is nonbinary and uses they/them pronouns  asked the court to abide by the prenuptial agreement they and DeBolt made and to terminate the courts ability to award support to either party.

Ramirez and DeBolt separated in 2018, but did not announce their split publicly until 2021.

Ryan and I are no longer together, Ramirez said in a since-deleted Instagram post from 2021. "We remain loving and supportive in how we are choosing to forge our new individual paths. Thank you for holding space around our choices and respecting our families privacy as we navigate this process on our own terms.

Ramirez recently played comedian Che Diaz on And Just Like That, a spin-off of Sex and the City. She announced in January that she will not be returning for season 3 of the show, according to the L.A. Times, implying on social media that it was because of her support for Palestinians in the midst of Israels war with Hamas.
YouTube comedian and podcaster Kurtis Conner will launch The Goodfellow World Tour this summer in Florida.

There is one stop in Pa. on the tour - Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024, at Byham Theater in Pittsburgh.

Fans can buy tickets here (prices are as of the time of this post):

The Canadian has more than 5 million subscribers to his YouTube channel. Last year, he was named one of Varietys Top 10 Comics to Watch, according to Live Nation.

Tour dates also include:

Aug. 29 - Tampa, Florida

Aug. 30 - Orlando, Florida

Aug. 31 - Jacksonville, Florida

Sept. 1 - Fort Lauderdale, Florida

Sept. 5 - Boston, Massachusetts

Sept. 6 - Washington, D.C.

Sept. 7 - New York, New York

Sept. 13 - Durham, North Carolina

Sept. 14 - Atlanta, Georgia

Sept. 15 - Charlotte, North Carolina

Sept. 20 - Chicago, Illinois

Sept. 21 - Cincinnati, Ohio

Sept. 22 - Detroit, Michigan
This post has been updated to explain why the Banks cruise was canceled by the identity thief.

A woman and her family spent a year planning  and looking forward to  a luxurious Carnival Celebration cruise, as run by Carnival Cruise Line.

And the morning of their flight, they were informed their cruise had been cancelled.

Business Insider reports how Tiffany Banks of Kentucky took to TikTok the other day to inform the public about what had happened to she and her family 48 hours before they were supposed to set sail.

After getting two emails that informed her how two of their excursions had been cancelled, Banks received quite the shock after calling a Carnival employee who informed her the entire trip had been nixed.

Full-blown panic, says Banks during the video. Wed been planning this vacation for a year, we booked on the Presidential Excel Suite [the biggest room on the ship, according to Banks].

Banks continues to claim that she hadnt been informed at all of this cancellation, and she later learned that this happens to people quite frequently.

People need to know, she adds.

The New York post continues to report how Banks began to muse on whether this cancelation was simply a glitch in the system. Regardless, the Banks family headed down to Miami, Fla.,  where the ship was docked  and attempted to board anyway to no avail.

Then the pieces of the puzzle fell together: According to the same Insider article, Banks, in an update, explains how her and her family had been victims of identity theft  turns out they had posted their booking information for the cruise on Facebook.

A recently posted Post article explains how this unknown identity thief then created their own online Carnival account, adding the Banks booking information to their profile instead.

While the Post states how Carnivals cancellation policy explains that no money will be returned within 15 days of the cruise date, Insider confirms how the company offered Banks $10,000 in onboard credit for her troubles.
Its a tradition each year at this one festival in Philadelphia, Pa., for people to scramble up a greased-up pole for the shot of claiming prizes like meat and cheese.

This festival happened nearly a month ago. And the meat and cheese that was left unclaimed is still dangling from that greasy pole.

The Philadelphia Inquirer reports how the annual Italian Market Festival occurred 26 days ago as of the publishing of this article.

These 26 days saw various bouts of heat and humidity in the city. And because of a miscommunication between festival organizers and the crane that usually takes the unclaimed prizes down  a surge of festival-goers later in the day due to the weather cause clean-up crews and the rented crane to leave without, well, cleaning anything up  those sacks of meat and cheese are still dangling off that greasy pole as youre reading this, making for what Inquirer reporter Mike Newall deems the worlds worst wind chime.

Listen to the Today in Pa. podcast episode covering this stories  and other goings-on in Pennsylvania  below:

Ive been praying it doesnt hit anyone, told maintenance man, Jibri Lee, to the publication.

Fox 29 continues to report how report Hank Flynn made a trip to South Philadelphia in order to check out the situation for himself. He confirmed, thankfully, that there wasnt a noticeable smell emanating from the pole.

Organizers confirmed that getting a rented crane back into a busy, historic market is a bit difficult, according to the Inquirer. But they are working on it.

For now, the meat and cheese remain dangling in the breeze. In the heat. In the humidity.
By Joseph Wilkinson, New York Daily News (TNS)

Howard Fineman, a political journalist who covered presidents from Reagan to Biden for a variety of outlets, died Tuesday at the age of 75.

Fineman died from pancreatic cancer, which he had been battling for two years, his wife, Amy Nathan, said in a social media post Wednesday afternoon.

I am heartbroken to share my brilliant and extraordinary husband passed away late last night surrounded by those he loved most, his family, Nathan wrote. He couldnt have been adored more. The world was a better place because he lived in it and wrote about it.

Fineman was a top political journalist at Newsweek for three decades, during the magazines peak from the 1980s through the 2000s. He traveled the country covering national and state politics, interviewing political power players and presidential candidates.

Journalist Howard Fineman in December 2010, in New York. (John Barrett/Globe Photos/Zuma Press/TNS, file)TNS

In 2010, Fineman left Newsweek for The Huffington Post, joining his longtime friend Arianna Huffington at the digital media pioneer. After leaving that outlet in 2017, he continued contributing as an opinion writer at The New York Times and The Washington Post while appearing on TV on MSNBC and other networks.

American journalism is better because of Howard Fineman, and I will miss him dearly, Huffington said Wednesday.

Born Nov. 17, 1948, in Pittsburgh, Fineman grew up in the largely Jewish neighborhood of Squirrel Hill and had his bar mitzvah at the Tree of Life synagogue in the neighborhood.

I was reared in a Jewish paradise  aka America, my Promised Land, he wrote for the Times in 2018 after the mass shooting at the synagogue. Not the one God gave us (though I love that one, too), but the one we chose for ourselves.

Fineman attended Colgate University, working as editor-in-chief of the student newspaper and graduating in 1970. His first major journalism job came at the Louisville Courier-Journal, where he covered the environment before moving to the papers Washington bureau in 1978.

He jumped to Newsweek in 1980 and quickly rose to direct and define the magazines political coverage. Though his own politics leaned liberal, and he was a regular on MSNBC, Fineman believed in interacting with all types of opinions and strived for impartiality in his own reporting.

Leave your comfort zone; read the other sides, he said in his 2011 commencement address to graduating Colgate students. If you watch MSNBC, watch Fox, too. And vice versa. It wont kill you. Scan websites as far away from your own thinking as you can stand  and talk to people whose views differ from your own.

Fineman himself appeared on Fox News Sunday during his career, along with programs ranging from The Daily Show With Jon Stewart to Face the Nation and Nightline.

In 2008 he penned the book The Thirteen American Arguments, which became a best seller.

Late in his career, in addition to his work as a contributor on many platforms, Fineman taught a journalism course at the University of Pennsylvania Annenberg School for Communication, New Media Journalism and Politics in the Trump Era.

Fineman is survived by Nathan and their two children, Meredith and Nick.

More:

Los Angeles Lakers legend and basketball Hall-of-Famer dies at age 86

French pop icon dies at age 80

Lynn Conway, leading computer scientist and transgender pioneer, dies at 86
A dead beaked whale washed ashore on a Monmouth County beach Thursday, the second dead whale found at the Jersey Shore this year, according to the Marine Mammal Stranding Center.

The stranding center received a call around 6 a.m. about a dead medium-sized marine mammal near St. Clair Avenue in Spring Lake, the group said on Facebook.

The animal was photographed and identified as a member of the beaked whale  or Ziphiidae  family, according to officials at the center. Beaked whales are one of the least-known groups of marine mammals because they live in deep waters, spend little time on the surface and are rarely seen.

The dead whale was 13 feet 2 inches long and in moderately decomposed condition, the center said.

Spring Lake public works employees transported the whale to the public works yard. The carcass was then taken to the state Department of Agricultures animal health diagnostic lab in Trenton for a necropsy.

When results are available, they will be shared on the stranding centers website, the group said.

In April, a dead juvenile humpback whale was found in Long Beach Township in Ocean County. It was the first dead whale found along the Jersey Shore this year, the stranding center said.

Nine humpback whale strandings were reported last year.

Since 1978, the Marine Mammal Stranding Center has responded to a total of 19 beaked whales of four different species on local shores, officials said.

Recent whale deaths have prompted claims that development of offshore wind-power projects are to blame. State and federal agencies say they have found no evidence to support that theory.

Many dead whales recovered and studied have shown signs of strikes from vessels or entanglement with fishing gear, according to the National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration, which declared whale deaths along the Atlantic Coast since 2016 an unusual mortality event that it continues to study.

Gov. Phil Murphys administration recently approved $3.7 million in funding for offshore wind research that includes monitoring the health of whales, sea turtles, birds and bats in New Jersey.

NJ Advance Media staff writer Matt Gray contributed to this report.

Brianna Kudisch may be reached at bkudisch@njadvancemedia.com.
A 17-year-old boy was reported missing to police in Carlisle on Wednesday but has not been seen by his family for a week, according to a press release.

Rakeeb Jaqai Watson was reported missing around 3:45 p.m. Wednesday. His grandmother told police she last saw Rakeeb on the 1000 block of North West Street in Carlisle around 4 p.m. on June 5.

Police described Rakeeb as a 140-pound light-skinned Black male between 5 feet 8 inches and 5 feet 10 inches tall with short dreadlocks above his ears. The press release did not include a picture.

Rakeeb was last seen wearing a black shirt and black joggers and had black hoop earrings with crosses on them, police said.
WILLIAMSPORT  Allegations that a state trooper intentionally or recklessly muddled the identities of a father and son with similar names in a drug case search warrant affidavit will be the subject of a hearing.

U.S. Middle District Judge Matthew W. Brann in an opinion Tuesday ruled Daquan Altari Alford, 27, is entitled to a hearing based on his preliminary showing about Trooper Robert Williamson.

Alford wants suppressed evidence that included 250 bags of fentanyl, 17.98 grams of crack cocaine, 100 baggies stamped Roxanne and 150 baggies stamped organic seized during a 2021 search of his apartment in the 800 block of High Street in Williamsport.
Want a say in the news? Email Claudia at todayinpa@pennlive.com to have your thoughts on the stories covered here or on PennLive heard.

You can listen to the latest episode of Today in Pa on any of your favorite apps including Alexa, Apple, Spotify, Stitcher and YouTube. Episodes are available every weekday on PennLive. Feel free to subscribe, follow or rate Today in Pa. as you see fit!

Today in Pa. Daily Podcast | June 13, 2024

Eight individuals accused of having ties to ISIS have been arrested in several major U.S. cities, Philadelphia among them. Bar owners in Harrisburg have had enough of out of control teens. Toll booths on the turnpike are going the way of the dodo. Plus, a festival has left meat and cheese swinging off a greased pole for nearly a month.

Those are the stories we cover in the latest episode of Today in Pa., a daily weekday podcast from PennLive.com and hosted by Claudia Dimuro. Today in Pa. is dedicated to sharing the most important and interesting stories pertaining to Pennsylvania that lets you know, indeed, whats happening today in Pa.

Todays episode refers to the following articles:

If you enjoy Today in Pa., consider leaving us a review on Apple Podcasts or on Amazon. Reviews help others find the show and, besides, wed like to know what you think about the program, too.

As sponsored by Renewal by Anderson of Central PA.
State Sen. Nikil Saval (D-Philadelphia) was among around 50 people arrested Wednesday during a protest in south Philadelphia at a rally in protest of Aramarks treatment of Philadelphia stadium workers, his office said in a news release.

Hundreds of people rallied outside Aramarks global headquarters at 2400 Market St., calling for Aramark workers at the Wells Fargo Center, Citizens Bank Park, and Lincoln Financial Field to receive family-sustaining wages and healthcare benefits.

Saval and others were arrested after sitting down on Market Street and closing it during rush hour, the release said.

The rally comes amid a dispute over wages and healthcare coverage, according to the release. Aramark is responsible for food and beverage concessions at Philadelphias stadiums.

Saval said in a statement after his arrest that Aramark has repeatedly devalued their [workers] labor, leaving them forced to choose between feeding their families, keeping their homes, or seeking potentially lifesaving medical care. I refuse to let my constituents be mistreated by a wealthy corporation that gets richer every year from exploiting their labor. Their fight is my fight. Im with them until theyre paid the wages and benefits they deserve.

An Aramark spokesperson offered a statement in response to the protest, according to a Philadelphia Inquirer story.

We respect the right of our employees to demonstrate, the statement read. We have had several meetings with the bargaining committee in an effort to reach a new agreement, and we intend to keep working toward a settlement that works for everyone, said Chris Collom, vice president of corporate communications. We will continue to focus on delivering an outstanding fan experience for our clients and customers and would like to thank our dedicated employees from around the organization for supporting our ongoing contingency plans.

Aramark workers represented by Unite Here Local 274 have picketed and held strikes over the companys treatment of employees in recent months, the Inquirer story said.
By Fallon Roth, The Philadelphia Inquirer (TNS)

PHILADELPHIA  Sen. John Fetterman was at fault for a recent car crash in Maryland where he was found to have been speeding before ultimately rear-ending another vehicle on Sunday, according to a Maryland State Police report.

The Pennsylvania Democrat, his wife, Gisele, and the other driver, a woman from Pennsylvania, were sent to the hospital after the crash, which occurred around 7:45 a.m. Sunday. Both vehicles  Fettermans Chevrolet Traverse and the womans Chevrolet Impala  were towed after Fetterman allegedly passed the womans car at a high rate of speed, well over the posted speed limit.

Fetterman rear-ended her car just before the exit for I-68 in Hancock, Maryland, between Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The speed limit there is 70 mph.

Fetterman and his wife were evaluated at a local hospital out of an abundance of caution, according to a statement issued Monday by Carrie Adams, the senators spokesperson.

The police report listed the extent of damage for both parties as disabling.

Fetterman was treated for a bruised shoulder, and the couple was discharged Sunday afternoon, Adams said. Sunday was the Fettermans 16th wedding anniversary, according to the junior senator who posted Monday evening about the crash.

No citations were issued and the Maryland State Police is investigating. Neither Fetterman nor the woman was tested for being under the influence of any alcohol or substances.

A spokesperson for Fetterman did not immediately respond to The Inquirers request for comment on Wednesday.

2024 The Philadelphia Inquirer. Visit inquirer.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is prodding the state of Alaska over its failure to update water pollution rules.

Last Thursday, the EPA issued a formal determination that the state should update pollution limits that are based in part on the amount of fish consumed by state residents.

Under federal law, those limits are supposed to be reviewed every three years, but Alaska hasnt updated its limits since 2003.

The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation has been working since 2013 on an updated list of water quality standards, but despite telling EPA last fall that a draft would be ready for inspection by the end of the year, none has been released.

EPA has determined that new and revised water quality standards for Alaska are needed to protect the health of Alaska residents. EPA prefers that the state of Alaska address this determination by updating its water quality standards. If not, EPA is prepared to step in, and today weve taken the first step, said Caleb Shaffer, acting director of the water division for EPA Region 10, which covers Alaska.

Fish consumption is a key factor in settling water-pollution limits for almost 100 different individual pollutants, including mercury and the insecticide DDT, under the simple principle that polluted water leads to polluted fish, and eating polluted fish can make someone sick.

Alaska currently bases its water pollution guidelines on the notion that residents eat an average of 6.5 grams of fish per day  an amount that can fit on a cracker.

That figure was set in 1992 by the EPA as a general estimate for Americans nationwide.

Alaska set its 2003 limits on that figure and has not revised those  since, the EPA said on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the EPA, Alaska Native tribes and local environmental groups have all said they believe the state should use a much higher estimate for how much fish Alaskans eat. That would result in tougher clean-water standards.

In 2015, the Southeast Alaska Conservation Council asked for DEC to work from an estimate of 175 grams per day for Alaskans that rely on subsistence harvests.

The state of Alaska is responsible for deciding how much pollution is safe in the water, said Maggie Rabb, SEACCs executive director. And that is tied into how much seafood we eat. And when they purposely and knowingly underestimate how much seafood we eat, that means that their determination of what is a safe level of pollution isnt using sound science or data. And thats a problem for us.

Even the state itself has said the fish-consumption levels are far too low.

In 2019, the Alaska Department of Fish and Game published a study finding that urban Alaskans consume an average of 8.9 grams per day, and in rural Alaska, the figure is much higher  an average of almost 195 grams per day in western Alaska.

That finding means Alaskans could be exposed to significantly more water pollution than the residents of other states.

Compounding the issue is the states decision to set the acceptable rate of pollution-caused cancer at 1 in 100,000. Other states have taken a tougher limit of 1 per 1,000,000 or 1 in 10,000,000.

We commend the EPAs action. Its in the interest of all Alaskans to have clean, safe, healthy water free from contamination, and theres no reason for the State of Alaska to be using fish consumption numbers we all know are wildly inaccurate  especially when that estimate guides the amount of contamination allowable in our fish-bearing rivers, said Mary Catharine Martin, communications director for SalmonState, an environmental organization.

Gene McCabe, director of the division of water for the DEC, said the EPAs determination didnt tell his agency something new.

I think its their way of saying, we are formally stating that you do need to take action. We have known that for several years and been working on the project. It is a momentous undertaking, and the staff have really been working hard on this, he said.

He said its reasonable to think that the states new limits will be ready in the next six to 12 months, but he declined to say whether the DECs limits will be based on a higher estimate of fish consumption.

Were still deliberating on that, he said. The best I could say is that the fish consumption rate is based on data obtained from fish consumption within the state of Alaska.

That would be a change from current practice, but it isnt yet clear how the new figure  if there is one  will be received by Alaskans or the EPA.

In Florida, for example, EPA officials sent a similar warning in 2022 to state officials there. Florida never finalized new rules, and late last year, the EPA proposed a new federal rule for them. It would apply to more than 70 limits for individual chemicals. That rule remains under discussion and deliberation.

The AlaskaBeacon.com is a donor-funded independent news organization in Alaska.
An explosive final table in Event #30: $600 Mixed: No-Limit Hold'em; Pot-Limit Omaha Deepstack came to a close after only four hours, with Alen Bakovic overcoming Brian Keith Etheridge after a back-and-forth heads-up battle.

The Canadian was a popular winner. After winning over the crowd and fellow players with his table talk throughout the day, he pocketed $207,064 for first place and, of course, a coveted WSOP gold bracelet.

Smashing last year's already impressive numbers, the event was another record-breaker, with a turnout of 3,351 entries, which generated a prize pool of $1,709,010.

Event 30 Final Table Results

Place Player Country Prize 1 Alen Bakovic Canada $207,064 2 Brian Keith Etheridge United States $138,051 3 Olegs Buiko Latvia $101,682 4 Sergio Benso Italy $75,518 5 Quan Tran United States $56,557 6 Marcus Ruiz United States $42,715 7 Joseph Couden United States $32,537 8 Daniel Goldberg United States $24,997 9 Jianqiang Yu China $19,371

Bakovic started the day with 1,460,000 and continued to grind towards the final table. Chips moved around the final table until, finally, Bakovich and Etheridge started to pull away from the pack. Once heads up, the two traded chips while laughing and joking in a show of good sportsmanship. Ultimately, it was Bakovich who finished the day to take down his maiden WSOP Bracelet.

Winners Reaction

It was an emotional scene as Bakovic was surrounded by friends and mentors as he added a bracelet to his already impressive cabinet of WSOP Rings.

"These guys made it easy for me," said Bakovic, referring to his rail who cheered him on to victory. "I remember thinking, why am I so calm? And I knew it was because of them."

Bakovic told PokerNews that he plans to stay for the whole WSOP. He even won a Main Event seat through an online satellite and was hugely grateful for the support and guidance from his friends and family.

"I've been playing poker since 2006. Pot-Limit Omaha is kind of new to me, but I love the challenge of learning new games. There are so many people who helped me become the player that I am today."

Alen Bakovic

Final Day Action

Just 145 players returned for the final day, and the field was down to three tables after just five hours. Bakovic was the second-shortest stack at the three-table redraw but battled his way back into contention.

As well as his poker skills, also on display was Bakovic's humor as he shared stories and jokes with those around him Many of the players he was competing against saw his jokes and humility as a breath of fresh air under normally intense circumstances.

And by the time the final table was reached, Bakovic sat atop the pile, with clear water to Brian Keith Etheridge in second place. Bakovic eliminated Jianqiang Yu in ninth to extend his chip lead, before Daniel Goldberg hit the rail in eighth.

Joseph Couden and Marcus Ruiz both then hit the rail in quick succession as they failed to run up their short stacks.

Brian Keith Etheridge

Bakovic would see Olegs Buiko double through him before Quan Tran scored a double of his own. Tran had sent Goldberg to the rail, but he finally hit the rail at the hands of Etheridge in Pot Limit Omaha.

Etheridge then finished off another short stack, as Sergio Benso was eliminated before Bakovic soared into the chip lead once more after tripling through Etheridge after rivering a flush in Pot Limit Omaha.

However, Etheridge would find himself only slightly out-chipped heads-up after notching another elimination as Buiko hit the rail in third. However, Etheridge's run would come to an end heads-up, with Bakovic flopping a set to end the tournament and seal victory.

This ends PokerNews coverage of this event, but be sure to stay tuned as we bring you all the action for the rest of the World Series of Poker.
The Small Business Administration (SBA) announced that 18.1 million new business applications have been filed since Biden took office, the biggest boom in 25 years.

Small Businesses Are Booming Under Biden

The SBA announced in a press release:

Today, Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman, head of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the voice in President Bidens Cabinet for Americas more than 33 million small businesses, released a statement in response President Bidens announcement that more than 18 million new business applications have been filed under the Biden-Harris administration.



Since the start of the Biden-Harris administration, 18.1 million new business applications have been filed, with an average of 443,000 filed each montha rate over 90% faster than pre-pandemic averages. Having already achieved the first, second, and third strongest years of new business applications on record, President Bidens economy remains on track for its fourth consecutive year of historic business filings. The U.S. economy has grown more under President Biden than at this point in any presidential administration in the last quarter century.

There Has Been Historic Growth In Minority-Owned Businesses

Director of the National Economic Council Lael Brainard told PoliticusUSA during a call with reporters:

Each of the past three years, small businesses have been at the heart of the Presidents economic agenda since day one. The small business boom is powering economic comeback stories in towns and cities across America, creating new job opportunities and innovation, and breathing life back into main streets.

Since the President entered office, small businesses have added an average of 650,000 new jobs to our economy each quarter. Weve also seen a near-historic uptick in business ownership rates for minority-owned business owners. Since 2019, black business ownership has more than doubled, and Latino business ownership has increased by about 40%. Black wealth is up 60% relative to pre-pandemic levels.

Using Government To Reflect Economic Priorities

Government is a tool, and how that tool is applied and used reflects the priorities of the people working in it. The Biden administration has made expanding economic opportunity one of its main economic goals. As evidenced by this call and many others that PoliticusUSA has participated in with administration officials, the White House is trying to get the message out about their economic accomplishments, but it is up to the free press to inform the American people about the facts.

Biden is leading a small business boom in the United States, but the American people wouldnt know it if they only watched cable news and read large corporate news outlets.

The economy is booming in many ways, but one of the political obstacles that the President has to confront is a general misperception about his accomplishments.

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.

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Rep. Jasmine Crockett (D-TX) called out Republicans in Congress for inviting Trump back to the place that he tried to attack on 1/6.

Rep. Crockett said in a statement provided to PoltiicusUSA,

Three years after waging a continual war on our democracy, Donald Trump, a convicted criminal, returns to Capitol Hill to hang out with the very same MAGA extremists who acted as his proxies on January 6th. Trump and his cronies attacked our free and fair elections, they attacked our peaceful transition of power, and they attacked our Capitol  and the American people are fighting back at the ballot box to defend democracy. Thats why this November, in addition to helping elect Hakeem Jeffries as the next Speaker to restore order to the House, voters will send Joe Biden to the White House and Donald Trump packing.

Inviting Trump back to the Capitol is part of normalizing convicted felon Trump as a presidential candidate.

It is obvious what Republicans are trying to do. House Republicans claim that Trumps appearance is about uniting the party, when in reality, Republicans are trying to create the visual of a convicted felon insurrectionist welcomed back to a seat of governance and political power.

The real goal is to beam the image around the world of Trump at the Capitol to make it look like a man who could be facing jail time belongs as the leader of the United States of America.

Rep. Crockett was correct. Trump at the Capitol is an insult to democracy, and it shows why the American people must send Trump from the ballot box to potentially the big house.
A sign of Trumps ongoing decline was that he held an event billed as a press conference with Republican Senators that lasted for less than five minutes, during which he took zero questions.

Watch the whole sham:

Donald Trump is clearly not well. The convicted felon former president held a fake press conference with Republican senators that lasted for 4 minutes and 13 seconds, and he took no questions. @PoliticusSarah pic.twitter.com/HLMzYwQQ9v  PoliticusUSA (@politicususa) June 13, 2024

Trump said in part:

I just wanted to say that we have great unity. We have great common sense a lot of very smart people in this room and a lot of people that love our country, they love our country beyond just about all else. And the only thing that may be supersedes it is their family and maybe their faith in certain instances. And thats very nice but they want this country to be great again, and were gonna make it great again. And so I just wanted to thank the Republican Senate and I want to thank also the House we met as you know, with the full House Republican House today and we had a tremendous meeting with them also.

And theres great unity a very similar, different topics actually, but not that different. And is one thing in common we want to make America great again, we want to make our country great again, were a nation thats in decline, were declining nation, were a nation that is being left at all over the world we have a leader thats being left at all over the world and were going to turn it around. Were going to turn it around fast.

When the presumptive presidential nominee has to hold events and declare that the party is unified, it is a sure that the party is definitely not unified.

Convicted felon Trump pulled the same scam that he has been using for nearly a decade where he tells the press that he is holding a press conference to get the cameras to show up, then he rambles on, and takes no questions.

The content of what Trump said in those 4 brief minutes revealed a candidate who can barely communicate and is in decline.

Whats Trumps message? He doesnt have one except to rant about how awful America is and how much better it will be if he is president again.

Thats it.

The political pundit class wants to talk about Bidens age, but weak and tired Trump cant even last 5 minutes at an event where he refuses to take questions.
Artifacts from a vessel on display at Patriots Point Naval & Maritime Museum recently journeyed abroad to be part of D-Day anniversary ceremony in Normandy, including a stop at an airport security checkpoint.

The Laffey, known as "the ship that would not die," is the last remaining U.S. destroyer to see action during the pivotal 1944 invasion in the north of France.

An original piece of the hull, a valve-control wheel and a damage-control plug were to be flown overseas by the Commemorative Air Force nonprofit group aboard a World War II-era C-47.

Chris Volpe, unit leader of the group's Dallas-Fort Worth wing, said the cargo plane, nicknamed "Ready for Duty," picked the items up in Charleston and took them to Connecticut for a rendezvous ahead of the transatlantic crossing.

But the 80-year-old airplane experienced some mechanical issues, requiring a pivot.

So the group booked commercial passage from John F. Kennedy International in New York City to Paris, where the items were later loaded onto a historic aircraft that flew the parachute drop the night before D-Day.

But clearing U.S. airport security with more 150 pounds of metal from various World War II ships and other relics was "an unexpected adventure" Volpe said.

"I don't recommend trying to go through JFK airport with hunks of steel," he quipped. "They were looking at them kind of cross-eyed and very confused. They had never seen pieces of a destroyer before, I'm sure. They insisted on putting it through the X-ray machine, even though I told them it wouldn't work. Eventually we got it sorted out."
A Charleston County School District employee who oversees a COVID-19 relief program has accused the district of misusing money and violating approval processes, according to a copy of a letter he sent to the school board on June 9.

John Cobb, executive director of the federal relief program, also alleged that Superintendent Anita Huggins, while working as a deputy superintendent, ordered someone to sign his name on a hiring document without his permission. In his letter, obtained by The Post and Courier, Cobb said he pushed back and "the assignment was given to another CCSD person to keep the fraudulent and unauthorized activity moving."

"The directive to forge my name," his letter said, "was given by Anita Huggins."

Huggins issued a statement refuting the assertions.

My commitment to the children and employees of the District is unwavering,'' the statement said, "and I deny any wrongdoing as to any employee under my leadership. Because this matter is ongoing, I will not comment further other than to say that the allegations are unfounded and untrue. My team and I remain steadfast to serving CCSD students and ensure that they - and our staff - receive the resources and assistance necessary to thrive.

CCSD said in a statement it has hired outside legal counsel, at the request of Huggins and other top district officials, to investigate how the funds were handled.

"This investigation has been ongoing for some time due to the complexity of the funds at issue, the number of schools involved, and the ramifications to the Districts budget," the statement said, adding the investigation started in April.

The allegations focus on federal COVID-19 relief funds that were distributed to elementary and secondary schools nationwide under a program known in short as ESSER.

After the district began reviewing the program operations, its review found $3 million in spending that was ultimately not authorized by federal officials.
Charleston County Parks is hosting the Chili 5K trail run and walk at beautiful Laurel Hill County Park, on Nov. 2. Registration is open now through Oct. 30 at CharlestonCountyParks.com. Read moreChili 5K returns
If you have a hummingbird feeder in your yard, youre probably enjoying watching the hummers sipping nectar to fuel up for their long migration south in the coming weeks. But did you know that nectar makes up only a small percentage of a hummingbirds diet? Up to 80% of it comes from insects Read moreCommentary: Protect insects, protect birds
Syndicated and guest columns represent the personal views of the writers, not necessarily those of the editorial staff. The editorial department operates entirely independently of the news department and is not involved in newsroom operations.
The Goose Creek Police Department was awarded the following 20242025 grants through the South Carolina Department of Public Safety, which the city of Goose Creek subsequently accepted. Read moreGCPD receives Highway Safety grants
FLORENCE  There are a lot of line items in Florence Countys $141 million budget. Two of the biggest this year are pay raises for first responders and funding for recreation.

Those two are pretty much the big stories in our budget, County Administrator Kevin Yokim said. A public safety focus  people want to feel safe. Recreation  people want quality of life issues. They want something to do. We're providing them something to do.

The budget for the upcoming fiscal year is set to pass at the Florence County Councils June 20 meeting. It represents a 6 percent increase over last years budget, when the county approved $132 million worth of spending.

The increase comes from everyday costs, everything from food to electricity to health insurance, Yokim said.

County staff had to shave $7 million from requests to balance the budget. Requests that didnt make the cut included a project to plant trees on Highway 327, certain recreation improvements and several new positions in emergency medical services and fire inspectors.

What staff didnt do was raise taxes, Yokim said.

Initially, county officials had actually budgeted to decrease taxes. That was due to substantial revenue growth.

But County Council members agreed to keep the tax rate as is to fund pay raises for Florence County law enforcement and emergency medical teams, County Council Chair William Schofield said.

What we decided to do was to put it right back where it was, meaning no tax increase, no tax decrease, Schofield said.

Heres what else made it into the budget this year.
SPARTANBURG  Folks voting at precincts where S.C. House District 38 Rep. Josiah Magnuson was on the Republican primary ballot got special treatment that voters in not every other district got: a welcome from one of his campaign greeters.

The reason?

To thank people for voting and just remind them that Im a candidate who deserves their support, said Magnuson, a Freedom Caucus incumbent who handily won his primary race against Campobello Mayor Jason Shamis.

The practice is legal as long as the greeters dont brandish campaign material within 500 feet of the polling place, intimidate voters or interfere in the election process.

Gloria Caldwell, a Magnuson campaign greeter at Boiling Springs High School, said she was careful not to cross any legal lines or explicitly tell anyone how to vote.

An exchange witnessed by a reporter appeared to be legal, according to South Carolina Election Commission spokesperson John Catalano, who added the commission had received no complaints about Magnusons campaign.

Spartanburg County elections director John Baucom said his office received "many, many calls" about candidates and their representatives campaigning near poll entrances, and that the practice was not limited to Magunson.

"And many voters that Ive spoken to about this are unaware that it is permissible under state law," Baucom added.

Caldwell greeted voter Noah Long as he walked up to the doors of the polling place.

I'm representing Josiah Magunson and he says Thank you for your voting, Caldwell told him before he went inside.
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 21:00:37

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NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Aegis Capital Corp. ( www.aegiscapcorp.com) a full-service wealth management, financial services and investment banking firm is pleased to announce the opening of the Bowling Green, Kentucky office location led by Maxito Isenhower, Managing DirectorMr. Isenhower is a seasoned wealth management professional with a focus on retirement and tax planning. Mr. Isenhower has been a trusted financial adviser for over 15 years in the Bowling Green area. Prior to joining Aegis, he gained experience first at Edward Jones and then U.S. Bancorp Investments. He has a passion for helping families achieve their retirement dreams and working with businesses to help maximize their financial potential by using tax free strategies to help them keep more of what they make. He prides himself on building lasting relationships with clients, understanding their goals, and providing personalized solutions. Mr. Isenhower also serves as the President for Hope One Inc., a non-profit organization established for the purpose of bringing hope to the people of Haiti.Robert Eide Aegis' CEO commented:"We are thrilled to welcome Max to Aegis and look forward to working with him to achieve his goals moving forward. Aegis Capital is a perfect home for advisers looking to expand their practices and provide unmatched service to their clients." Michael Pata Aegis' Head of Business Development commented: "We are excited to welcome Max as we continue our expansion in the Southeast. We are committed to ensuring our integrated and robust platform provides the most relevant wealth solutions to meet the changing varied needs of our financial advisers and their clients. We are eager to see how Max's already thriving practice grows with Aegis." About Aegis Capital CorporationAegis Capital Corporation "Aegis" has been in business for 40 years catering to the needs of private clients, institutions and corporations. Aegis was founded in 1984 and offers its investment representatives a conflict free service platform and can provide a full range of products and services including investment banking, wealth management, insurance, retirement planning, structured products, private equity, alternatives, equity research, fixed income and special purpose vehicles.Aegis is able to provide quality service through its primary clearing relationship with RBC Clearing & Custody whose parent company, Royal Bank of Canada (NYSE: RY), is one of the world's leading diversified financial services companies. Member: FINRA / SIPC.Any questions contact:Michael Pata, Head of Business DevelopmentTelephone: 1-212-813-1010 mpata@ aegiscap.comwww.aegiscapcorp.com SOURCE: Aegis Capital Corp.
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 09:05:24

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NOT FOR DISTRIBUTION TO UNITED STATES NEWSWIRE SERVICES OR FOR RELEASE, PUBLICATION, DISTRIBUTION OR DISSEMINATION, DIRECTLY OR INDIRECTLY, IN WHOLE OR IN PART, IN OR INTO THE UNITED STATESNews Release Highlights:Alset investee Cedarcross signs Nvidia H100 GPU server contract for an initial three (3) servers (for a purchase price of $1.37 million), with the customer having an option to acquire an additional 200 servers (for a purchase price of $91.7 million) valid until September 30, 2024. Cedarcross achieves approx. $29.7 million cumulative revenue year to date with its high-performance computing ("HPC") server distribution business vertical alone. Nvidia's H100 GPU Servers are used in "Transformational AI Training", offering up to "7x higher performance for High Performance Computing applications."1VANCOUVER , BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 /Alset Capital Inc. (TSXV:KSUM)(OTC:ALSCF)(FSE:1R60, WKN:A3ESVQ) ("Alset" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that its investee company, Cedarcross International Technologies Inc. ("Cedarcross"), has signed an agreement with an arm's length counterparty, Big Energy Investments Inc., DBA Ceti AI ("Ceti AI") to distribute three (3) Nvidia H100 HGX 8GPU servers, which is anticipated to generate $1.37 million in revenue for Cedarcross, with an option for the counterparty to acquire up to 200 H100 HGX 8GPU servers, which if exercised would generate $91.7 million in revenue (the "Transaction").Following Cedarcross' two previously announced distribution agreements announced on April 22, 2024 and May 16, 2024, this agreement marks an important advancement in Cedarcross' distribution business within the high-performance computing (HPC) server market. Cedarcross has now secured cumulative revenue year to date of approximately $29.7 million through its HPC server distribution business vertical alone. These distribution agreements underscore the significant demand and strategic market positioning of Cedarcross in the HPC landscape."This transaction represents another significant milestone for Cedarcross" said Morgan Good, CEO of Alset. "It highlights their strong partnerships, which provide access to high-performance computing Nvidia GPU servers for both in-house use and third parties. Additionally, this distribution vertical enhances their existing compute leasing business unit, fostering diversity in their offerings and deeper market penetration." The estimated gross margin from the initial $1.37 million purchase order is approximately $176k, and the estimated gross margin assuming all 200 H100 HGX 8GPU servers are purchased is approximately $11,782,000.As of this announcement, the Company has been informed that Cedarcross has received a 10% downpayment for the initial $1.37 million purchase. The payment schedule is as follows:$413,055 due within fourteen (14) days of June 4th, 2024 $275,370 due when the servers are ready to ship $275,370 due upon receipt of the servers by Ceti AI $275,370 due seven (7) days after Ceti AI receives and accepts the serversThe sale of up to 200 servers to Ceti AI is subject to Ceti AI obtaining approval from the Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) compliance.All amounts in Canadian Dollars unless otherwise specified. These figures are converted from US dollars at an exchange rate of 1.37 (USD to CAD).(1) Nvidia.com On behalf of Alset Capital Inc."Morgan Good"Morgan GoodChief Executive OfficerAbout Alset Capital Inc.Alset Capital Inc. is an investment issuer that is focused on investment in diversified industries such as technology, healthcare, industrial, special situations, operating businesses through both debt and equity using cash resources or shares in its capital. The Company is led by an experienced, entrepreneurial group of executives having a diverse industry and capital markets background.Alset Capital Inc.'s investment portfolio comprises 49% ownership of Cedarcross International Technologies Inc. and 49% ownership of Vertex AI Ventures Inc.About Cedarcross International Technologies Inc.Cedarcross Technologies is an Artificial Intelligence cloud computing provider, with a vision of becoming one of Canada's largest AI compute providers. The Company is dedicated to democratizing access to cutting-edge AI computing, offering access to the world's fastest AI servers powered by Nvidia's H100 HGX 8GPU Servers. Focused on leasing compute resources to enterprise clients, Cedarcross Technologies anticipates significant revenue growth.For further information about Alset Capital Inc., please contact:Morgan Good, CEO and Director T: 604.715.4751E:morgan@ alsetai.com Cautionary Note regarding Forward Looking StatementsCertain statements in this press release may contain forward-looking information (within the meaning of Canadian securities legislation), including, without limitation, the consummation of the transactions contemplated by the distribution and option agreement, the closing of the Transaction as contemplated or at all, approval from OEM Compliance in the event the option to acquire the additional 200 Nvidia H100 HGX 8GPU servers is exercised, the Nvidia H100 HGX 8GPU servers' revenue generation, and the growth of the global cloud AI market. 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 guarantees 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 re
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 19:15:38

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Lead plaintiffs represent a potential class of more than 12,000 women in Apple's engineering, marketing, and AppleCare divisions in California.Women claim that Apple systematically relies on pay expectation and prior pay information before joining Apple, to pay them less than male employees who perform substantially similar work.SAN FRANCISCO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Today, plaintiff-side powerhouses Altshuler Berzon, Cohen Milstein, and Outten & Golden filed a class action gender pay discrimination lawsuit against Apple Inc. in San Francisco Superior Court. The lawsuit, filed on behalf of two female employees, claims Apple violated California's Equal Pay Act and Fair Employment and Housing Act by systematically paying women lower wages than male employees who perform substantially similar work.The women, who represent more than 12,000 current and former female employees in Apple's engineering, marketing, and AppleCare divisions in California, also claim that Apple, which is headquartered in Cupertino and has an office in San Francisco, maintains a centrally determined and uniformly applied policy and/or practice of paying its female employees less than male employees for substantially similar work. Finally, they claim that the tech giant knows or should have known about these substantial pay disparities and has yet to take any action to remedy the inequality."One day, I saw a W-2 left on the office printer. It belonged to my male colleague, who has the same job position. I noticed that he was being paid almost $10,000 more than me, even though we performed substantially similar work. This revelation made me feel terrible," said Justina Jong, a Customer/Technical Training Instructor on Apple's Worldwide Developer Relations/App Review team.Specifically, the women claim that before the fall of 2017, Apple asked job candidates for prior pay information and, when that practice became unlawful in January 2018, Apple continued to inquire about prior pay under the guise of candidates' pay expectations. Apple used this information to set starting salaries, resulting in lower pay rates for women than for men who perform substantially similar work."Apple has systematically and willfully paid women in California lower compensation than men with similar education and experience by tracking them into lower starting salaries," said Joseph Sellers, partner at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC. "Even if Apple no longer asks for specific prior pay data, asking them for pay expectations is basically the same thing. Apple's policy and practice of collecting such information about pay expectations and using that information to set starting salaries has had a disparate impact on women, and Apple's failure to pay women and men equal wages for performing substantially similar work is simply not justified under the law." The women also claim that Apple's performance evaluation system is biased against women for scored categories, such as teamwork and leadership, which typically reward men and penalize women. They further claim this bias has a direct impact on women's bonuses, restricted stock units, and pay increases at Apple, thereby furthering the disparate impact and widening the pay gap."This is a no-win situation for female employees at Apple," said Eve Cervantez, a partner at Altshuler Berzon. "Once women are hired into a lower pay range at Apple, subsequent pay raises or any bonuses are tracked accordingly, meaning they don't correct the gender pay gap. Instead, they perpetuate and widen the gap because raises and bonuses are based on a percentage of the employee's base salary." "Unfortunately, it seems that our clients have been paid unfairly from the moment they were hired, and that pay gap has only widened over time" said Chauniqua Young, a partner at Outten & Golden LLP. "We look forward to fighting for their rights, and those of thousands of other women who have been affected by Apple's pay practices." As a result of Apple's unlawful pay policies and/or practices, the women claim that all putative class members have been denied compensation legally owed to them for work performed since 2020, and are entitled to wages and other compensation due, interest, and liquidated damages. In addition to damages, the women also seek declaratory and injunctive relief.The plaintiffs are represented by James Finberg and Eve Cervantez of Altshuler Berzon LLP, Joseph Sellers and Phoebe Wolfe of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC, and Adam Klein and Chauniqua Young of Outten & Golden LLP.About Cohen Milstein Sellers & TollCohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC, a premier U.S. plaintiffs' law firm, with over 100 attorneys across eight offices, champions the causes of real people-workers, consumers, small business owners, investors, and whistleblowers-working to deliver corporate reforms and fair markets for the common good. We have litigated landmark civil rights and employment disputes before the highest courts in the nation and continue to actively shape civil rights and employment law in the United States. For more information visit https://www.cohenmilstein.com/ About Altshuler BerzonAltshuler Berzon LLP is a California law firm dedicated to providing the highest quality representation in the service of economic justice and the public interest. We represent labor unions, workers, consumers, environmental groups, other public interest organizations, and public entities. We specialize in labor and employment, constitutional, environmental, civil rights, class action, campaign and election, and impact litigation, at both the trial and appellate levels. For more information visit https:// https://altshulerberzon.com/ About Outten & GoldenOutten & Golden LLP is the largest U.S. law firm dedicated to the representation of employees. With offices in New York City, Washington D.C. and San Francisco, the firm has taken on many of the country's largest and most powerful employers, forging landmark settlements and historic verdicts that contribute to a more equitable workplace. As a mission-driven firm, O&G uses litigation and other means to expand the rights of all employees to fair wages and working conditions, and a workplace free of discrimination, harassment and retaliation. Learn more at www.outtengolden.com Press Contact:cohenmilstein@ berlinrosen.com SOURCE: Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 23:56:16

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TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 /Ascendant Resources Inc. (TSX:ASND)(OTCQB:ASND) ("Ascendant" or the "Company") is pleased to announce the voting resultsof the Company's 2024 Annual General Shareholders' Meeting (the "Meeting") held on June 13, 2024, in Toronto, Ontario.A total of 51,497,589 common shares were voted at the Meeting, representing 27.59% of the votes attached to all outstanding common shares of the Company. All matterspresented for shareholder approval at the Meeting were duly authorized and approved as follows:Number of Directors to be ElectedOn a vote by a show of hands, the resolution to set the number of directors to be elected at the meeting at six (6) was approved. The following favourable votes were cast by proxy:Total Votes% of Votes CastVotes in FavourVotes Against51,217,885279,70499.46%0.54%Total Votes Cast51,497,589100%Election of DirectorsThe shareholders elected each of the seven nominees listed in the Company's Management Proxy Circular. Details of the voting results are as follows:NameVotes in FavourVotes Withheld%Mark Brennan50,021,59499.07%471,4620.93%Robert Campbell50,366,18699.75%126,8700.25%Christopher Jones50,366,18699.75%126,8700.25%Kurt Menchen50,366,18699.75%126,8700.25%Rui Botica Santos50,366,18699.75%126,8710.25%Robert Sellars50,366,18699.75%126,8700.25%Appointment of AuditorsKPMG LLP was appointed auditor of the Corporation and the directors of the Corporation were authorized to fix the auditor's remuneration. Details of the voting results are as follows:Total Votes % of Votes Cast Votes in Favour51,278,483 99.57%Votes Withheld219,106 0.43%Total Votes Cast51,497,589 100%The Company also wishes to announce that Stephen Shefsky did not stand for re-election to the Board of Directors of Ascendant Resources. Mr. Shefsky was a co-founder of the Company as well as the Lead Director, serving on the Audit and Corporate Governance committees. Management and the Board wish to express their sincere gratitude to Mr. Shefsky for all his contributions to the Company and wish him the best in future endeavours.About Ascendant Resources Inc.Ascendant Resources is a Toronto-based mining company focused on the exploration and development of the highly prospective Lagoa Salgada VMS project located on the prolific Iberian Pyrite Belt in Portugal. The Lagoa Salgada project is a high-grade polymetallic project, demonstrating a typical mineralization endowment of zinc, copper, lead, tin, silver, and gold. Extensive exploration upside potential lies both near deposit and at prospective step-out targets across the large 7,209-hectare property concession.Located just 80km from Lisbon and surrounded by exceptional infrastructure, Lagoa Salgada offers a low-cost entry to a significant exploration and development opportunity, already showing its mineable scale and cashflow generation potential.Ascendant currently holds an 80% interest in the Lagoa Salgada project through its position in Redcorp - Empreendimentos Mineiros, Lda, ("Redcorp"). The Company's common shares are principally listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange under the symbol "ASND". For more information on Ascendant, please visit our website at http://www.ascendantresources.com/ Additional information relating to the Company is available on SEDAR+ at www.sedarplus.ca For further information, contact:Mark BrennanExecutive Chairman Mike McAllisterVice President, Investor RelationsTel: +1-647-805-5662 mmcallister@ ascendantresources.com SOURCE: Ascendant Resources, Inc.
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 17:16:07

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BRONX, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / The Bronx Neighborhood Housing Services (Bronx NHS) is gearing up to host its highly anticipated Affordable Housing Fair 2024 on Saturday, July 13. The event aims to offer actionable solutions to the housing challenges facing Bronx communities.The latest Housing Risk Chart from The Association for Neighborhood and Housing Development highlights that Bronx community districts 1-7 and 12 rank among the top 10 for high eviction filings, rent-burdened households, and tenant-initiated housing court cases, among other issues. Bronx NHS has been at the forefront of efforts to provide equitable access to affordable homeownership by mobilizing resources to empower residents and address these challenges directly."Affordable housing is not just about roofs over heads; it's about stability, opportunity, and community resilience," asserts Gladstone Johnson, interim executive director of Bronx NHS. "Our fair isn't just an event-it's a catalyst for change, a platform for empowerment, where all residents can benefit--whether it's securing funding and a real pathway to own your home, making crucial repairs, or simply ensuring you can keep your home, you'll find it all right here, directly from the experts." The Affordable Housing Fair 2024: A Gateway to HomeownershipThe fair, sponsored by Chase Bank, promises a plethora of resources and guidance for renters, landlords, first-time home buyers, and current homeowners alike. From workshops on home buying strategies to insights on obtaining grants and mortgage financing, attendees will have access to a wealth of information to turn their homeownership dreams into reality."We have a wealth of resources and opportunities to make homeownership dreams come true," Johnson continues. "If you have any questions or concerns, we're here to help you with the answers! Let's get started." A Collaborative Effort for Community EmpowermentThe event will feature representatives from Chase Bank, mortgage lenders, real estate agents, insurance agents, attorneys, home inspectors, and more, offering personalized assistance and advice. Additionally, esteemed guests including New York State Assembly Speaker Carl E. Heastie, Senator Jamaal T. Bailey, and NYC Council Member Kevin C. Riley will be present to engage with attendees and address community concerns.Redefining Possibilities: Grants, Raffles, and BeyondBronx NHS will provide information on grants up to $100,000 through the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development's HomeFirst Program, as well as private grants up to $10,000. Attendees will also have the chance to participate in a raffle for prizes, including an HD TV provided by J. Carol Marketing.About Bronx Neighborhood Housing Services CDC, Inc.Bronx Neighborhood Housing Services CDC, Inc. is a revered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to empowering Bronx residents through financial education, counseling, grants, and affordable loans. With a mission to promote investment and self-sufficiency, Bronx NHS collaborates with stakeholders to preserve and enhance Bronx neighborhoods for generations to come.Join Us at the Affordable Housing Fair 2024Date: Sat., July 13, 2024Time: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.Location: 1451 East Gun Hill Road, Bronx, N.Y. (at the corner of Gun Hill Road and Adee Avenue)Admission: FreeFor more information, visit www.bronxnhs.org Join us as we pave the way for brighter futures and stronger communities at the Affordable Housing Fair 2024!Contact Information:J. Carol Marketing, Inc.Jenise Richardson917-809-9922 jenise@ jcarolmarketing.com SOURCE: The Bronx Neighborhood Housing Services
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LONDON, UK / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / CoinBlockMax is set to showcase its groundbreaking technologies and superior services at the Money20/20 Europe conference in Amsterdam. The platform's technological innovation strategy features an advanced automated trading bot system and customized asset management and protection services, ensuring the safety of user assets. By fostering open educational dialogues, CoinBlockMax aims to solidify its reputation as a leading global blockchain asset trading platform. The platform's active user base has surpassed 1.5 million, demonstrating its relentless efforts in the digital finance industry.Since its inception, CoinBlockMax has rapidly grown into a global platform dedicated to reducing financial inequality and promoting inclusivity in the digital finance sector. The platform provides advanced tools and resources, enabling traders from diverse backgrounds to confidently participate in the digital economy. CoinBlockMax's ecosystem is designed to meet personalized trading needs, offering features suitable for both novice and experienced traders.On June 1, 2024, CoinBlockMax released its Q1 financial report, revealing that active users have exceeded 1.5 million. This milestone underscores the platform's significant growth and its strong appeal among global digital economy participants. User data indicates substantial increases in both daily and monthly active users, highlighting high engagement and satisfaction levels.CoinBlockMax's success is attributed not only to its rapid user growth but also to its continuous efforts to deliver an exceptional user experience. The platform offers a wide range of trading and management services, including spot trading, futures trading, and a regulated digital asset marketplace. From its launch, CoinBlockMax has been committed to meeting user needs by providing a transparent and secure trading environment, earning the trust and support of its users.To address the evolving digital economy landscape, CoinBlockMax has developed a comprehensive platform that meets diverse user needs. The platform's advanced automated trading bot system and customized asset management and protection services enhance user convenience and efficiency, ensuring the security of user assets. These innovative features make CoinBlockMax the ideal choice for digital asset enthusiasts and institutional traders alike.CoinBlockMax's innovation strategy includes continuous enhancement of platform functionality and security to ensure users can trade in a stable and reliable environment. The platform's robust risk management framework and strict compliance measures provide a secure trading environment, allowing users to operate with confidence. Additionally, CoinBlockMax engages in open educational dialogues to help users understand and master digital asset trading.CoinBlockMax's success is deeply rooted in its commitment to fairness, transparency, and safety. The platform is dedicated to reducing financial inequalities and promoting inclusivity in the digital finance sector. By providing advanced tools and resources, CoinBlockMax empowers traders from diverse backgrounds to confidently participate in the digital economy.Industry analysts are optimistic about CoinBlockMax's future, noting that its user-centric approach and innovative features provide unique advantages in a highly competitive market. CoinBlockMax will continue to focus on improving service quality to meet the ever-changing demands of its users, aiming to set new standards in the digital finance industry.By participating in the Money20/20 Europe conference, CoinBlockMax aims to further solidify its leadership position in the global fintech industry and explore new collaboration opportunities to drive industry development and innovation. The platform remains dedicated to continuous innovation and enhancing user experience, striving to set new standards in the digital finance sector.CoinBlockMax's journey is just beginning. The platform will continue to drive the growth and evolution of the digital economy, committed to providing unparalleled digital asset trading services. Through continuous innovation and enhancement of user experience, CoinBlockMax aims to set new standards in the digital finance industry.For more information and updates, visit our official website or contact our support team.Media Details:Company Name: CoinBlockMax Contact Person's Name: Fred Kopriva Contact Email Address:info@ coinblockmax.com Website: https://www.coinblockmax.com/ SOURCE: CoinBlockMax
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 12:00:34

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Company integrates Anthropic to build components of the DraftWise Contract Intelligence platformAmid rapid growth, DraftWise makes several key hiresNEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / DraftWise , an AI-powered contract and negotiation platform for lawyers, today announced a groundbreaking new offering - Markup by DraftWise. This natural extension of DraftWise's core platform addresses highly specialized pain points associated with drafting, reviewing, and negotiating complex contracts, including consistency of preferred language, issue identification, and eliminating tedious contracting tasks. Additionally, DraftWise disclosed that Anthropic will further enhance the DraftWise AI-based Contract Intelligence platform, which is already recognized for its incredible accuracy at scale."Our goal is to align the greatest tech capabilities with the problems and workflows related to contracts. Integrating Anthropic's Claude 3 Opus is just one example of putting the best tool to a task," said James Ding, Co-Founder of DraftWise. "We are thrilled that Anthropic is a part of our work to empower law firms and attorneys as we usher in the next phase of our platform with the launch of Markup, as Markup is the only contract review automation solution that provides tailored recommendations for an organization based on their deal history and best language, making DraftWise even more useful to legal teams of all sizes." Revolutionizing the Review and Negotiation ProcessMarkup by DraftWise was designed to incorporate the breadth of a firm's or client's deal history to eliminate the redundancies of tedious contract work. It frees up teams to focus on strategic initiatives and leverage their expertise on the projects that matter most, all while tackling high volumes of contracts.Markup's key features enable:Contract Autopilot: A revolutionary contract drafting feature, Contract Autopilot generates the first round of markups based entirely on a lawyer's previously executed redlines. Contract Autopilot learns the same way a human learns and applies the redlines how a human would apply them to the draft document. With Contract Autopilot, lawyers can eliminate the hours of repetitive, albeit necessary work required to draft a first markup of a contract.Automated issue list generation based on deal history: A first-of-its-kind feature, Markup allows lawyers to quickly and accurately create highly curated playbooks based on their best past work and/or each client's preferred language to ensure consistency across contract draft cycles. This saves lawyers hours of searching for, compiling, and circulating specific language examples. Simply upload various reference documents, and DraftWise's highly trained AI handles the rest.Intelligent legal AI assistant for rapid revision: An essential, always available, expert contract assistant, the DraftWise chat copilot answers user questions about negotiation history and recommends revisions of clauses. It also generates redlines to reflect client preferences across contracts.Critical issue identification and resolution: Markup enables users to quickly spot and address problems or sticking points in contracts based on past deal work. The software auto-generates revisions that can be instantly approved.DraftWise has worked closely with some of the most respected firms in the industry, including Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe, Gunderson Dettmer, Katten Muchin Rosenman, Womble Bond Dickinson, and Mishcon de Reya, among others. It has applied years of customer feedback and product adoption to develop this remarkable next phase of its platform.Adding More Generative AI PowerTo power the new feature set, DraftWise has chosen to build key components of its generative AI capabilities using Anthropic. DraftWise opted to integrate Anthropic into its proprietary platform because Anthropic meets the robust security and privacy needs of law firms and their clients. DraftWise will leverage Anthropic with a zero data retention policy, meaning Anthropic will not hold onto or train its models on DraftWise customer data. Additionally, Anthropic runs on both Google Cloud Platform (GCP) and Amazon Web Services (AWS) so users benefit from the stability and scalability of the biggest cloud providers combined with one of the most capable LLM models.Anthropic's Claude Opus 3 has proven to be exceptional at tasks related to knowledge and text reasoning, outperforming GPT4 on common benchmarks as well as in blind testing with lawyers behind a chat interface on contract-related questions. It also boasts a 1 million token context window (with special access) and near-perfect recall for unparalleled accuracy and inclusion of all of the data and nuances that matter in contract negotiations.Growing to Meet DemandAn increasing number of firms and companies based throughout North America, Europe, and Australia view DraftWise as a mission-critical solution. The company's Contract Intelligence platform uses generative AI to help firms create higher-quality contracts in less time by empowering every lawyer with instant access to the firm's collective institutional knowledge and data.Armed with its recent$20 million Series Afundraise, the company has added several key hires to address clear market demand. Following thepromotion of Will Seatonto Chief Customer Officer, DraftWise has grown its team with:Tony Mauriello , General Counsel, Legal Product Architect Scott Ball , Legal Product Expert John Park , Engagement and Business Development Jack Ferreri , Business Development Rex Shoyama , Senior Product ManagerWith the addition of even more legal expertise, DraftWise will continue to accelerate its innovation, using the latest technology to overcome legal pain points.To learn more about how DraftWise helps firms, please visit. www.draftwise.com About DraftWiseDraftWise is on a mission to transform the legal industry by harnessing the power of AI. With AI-powered drafting and negotiation software, DraftWise arms lawyers with data-driven intelligence that drastically improves the complete contract workflow, from first draft to client win.A global team with headquarters in New York City, DraftWise's customers include leading firms across North America, Europe, and Australia, including Orrick, Gunderson Dettmer LLP, Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP, Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP, Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP, and Mishcon de Reya LLP, and other Vault 10, AM Law 100, Magic Circle, and Seven Sisters ranked firms.Company Contact:Sarah Schultz sarah.schultz@draftwise.com SOURCE: DraftWise
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 15:50:20

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Resource shows finance leaders and teams how to identify and reduce risks without sacrificing organizational culture.SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / In movies and headlines, shadowy hackers worm their way into computer systems and steal billions of dollars or priceless data. In reality, though, 56% of incidents stem from an organization's own people - and cost on average nearly a half-million dollars each time. Now, Eftsure has released a new resource that helps finance leaders and teams reduce their exposure to these costly threats.Eftsure, based in Australia, is the creator of end-to-end B2B payment protection software that provides risk mitigation for accounts payable and receivable, vastly reducing the possibility of payment error, fraud, and cybercrime. Its solution safeguards over $216 billion in payments annually.Eftsure's new resource, "The Danger Within: A Guide to Insider Threats," helps finance leaders understand not only the negligent or malicious practices that lead to cybercrime, but also the risk factors that make it more likely, and how to address those factors without compromising organizational culture."Sometimes it's hard to imagine an employee acting maliciously or negligently. And, of course, most of your people are almost certainly acting in good faith. However, insider threats are a serious risk, so leaders will need to take more precautions," said Jon Soldan, Global CEO of Eftsure.Eftsure's resource, designed for finance teams and leaders, outlines those precautions and details the rationale for them, as well as providing the latest statistics on insider-driven cybercrime. From the guide:56% of incidents stem from negligent insiders, costing an average of $484,931 per incident. While negligent insider incidents are more common, intentional insider incidents cost more ($648,000 on average). Insider threats have increased 47% in the past two years, driven by cost of living and economic downturns, and have been rising steadily since 2018. Human resources policies can reduce employee dissatisfaction and potential for insider-driven cybercrime. Technology can reduce risk through assigning roles, automating control, and creating audit trails.Eftsure's guide focuses on the dilemma organizations face in addressing security threats from within: It is crucial to take steps to eliminate potential cybercrime stemming from employees because insiders can do far more damage than external hackers via their greater access, trust from co-workers, and ability to identify opportunities and conceal their actions.But precautions that overreach, by second-guessing employees or casting suspicion, may generate a culture of distrust and alienating people - exacerbating issues, creating disgruntled employees, and heightening the risks that the organization sought to reduce.In the guide, Eftsure recommends that leaders should instead adopt policies and technologies that conform to the modern "zero trust" cybersecurity posture, where internal systems standardize processes and segregate duties. That reduces the possibility that a single person can circumvent control procedures - through negligence or malicious intent - without creating a need to second-guess or micromanage employees."The right processes and technology ensure all employees and contractors are held to the same standards, reducing your fraud risks and offloading the need to second-guess your people. Our new guide provides the information you need to protect your business," Soldan said.To learn more about how to reduce insider threats to your organization, download Eftsure's resource here.About EftsureEftsure is a market leader in payment fraud prevention. Specifically designed for businesses, our end-to-end solution safeguards more than $216B in B2B payments per year. Our mission is to build a safer business community. With a large and continuously growing database of verified supplier details (the only one of its kind), we use multi-factor verification to give businesses greater knowledge and control over onboarding suppliers, receiving invoices, and making payments. In short, we ensure our customers never pay the wrong people.Contact InformationJessica LombaoMedia Advantage Account Managerjessica.lombao@issuerdirect.com SOURCE: EftsureView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 06:40:23

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HANGZHOU, CHINA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Evasant CEO Nicholas Richardson, CIO Jonathan Ellis, and CTO Wang Jun attended the China International New Energy Industry Expo 2024, which was held at the Suzhou International Expo Center from the 29th to 31st of May.The event was themed "Inspiring Dual Carbon and Greening the Future" and was attended by government officials, industry leaders, international scientists, and delegates from a diverse range of businesses."Our participation provided us with an opportunity to meet industry leaders, see and explore cutting-edge technology, and identify promising investment opportunities. We are excited about the new energy sector and look forward to playing our part in its growth," said Evasant Chief Executive Officer Nicholas Richardson.The Evasant attendees were also able to meet with government officials, scientists, and other key players, laying the groundwork for future collaborations to drive growth. The Hangzhou-based investment and wealth manager also identified several promising investment opportunities and is in discussions with several new and established companies to evaluate potential investments."We learned new and essential information about new proposed regulations, policies, and government incentives surrounding the new energy sector in China, which will help us fine-tune our strategies and make better investment decisions," commented Evasant's Chief Technology Officer, Wang Jun."Evasant is committed to supporting the new energy sector, and by engaging with industry leaders in sustainability and green innovation, we have improved our brand visibility and remain committed to supporting and investing in technologies and companies that contribute to a greener future," added Jonathan Ellis."We extend our thanks and appreciation to the organizers of the China International New Energy Industry Expo 2024 for hosting such an excellent event", Ellis added.About Evasant:Evasant is an independent wealth and investment management firm offering extensive investment, wealth, planning, and corporate advisory services to affluent individuals, their families, and their privately owned businesses.For more information, please contact:Contact: Abigail HarperChief Marketing Officera.harper@evasant.comhttps://www.evasant.com SOURCE: Evasant
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 21:45:32

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SAN DIEGO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / The law firm ofRobbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLPannounces that purchasers or acquirers of Fastly, Inc. (NYSE:FSLY) securities between February 15, 2024 and May 1, 2024, both dates inclusive (the "Class Period"), have until July 23, 2024 to seek appointment as lead plaintiff of the Fastly class action lawsuit. Captioned Kula v. Fastly, Inc., No. 24-cv-03170 (N.D. Cal.), the Fastly class action lawsuit charges Fastly as well as certain of Fastly's top executives with violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.If you suffered substantial losses and wish to serve as lead plaintiff of the Fastly class action lawsuit, please provide your information here:You can also contact attorneys J.C. Sanchez or Jennifer N. Caringal of Robbins Geller by calling 800/449-4900 or via e-mail at info@ rgrdlaw.com . Lead plaintiff motions for the Fastly class action lawsuit must be filed with the court no later than July 23, 2024.CASE ALLEGATIONS: Fastly operates an edge cloud platform for processing, serving, and securing customer's applications.The Fastly class action lawsuit alleges that defendants throughout the Class Period made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that: (i) contrary to Fastly's representations to investors, Fastly was in fact experiencing a significant deceleration in growth among its largest customers and was losing the increased market share it had gained as a result of the 2023 Content Delivery Network consolidation trend; (ii) these issues were likely to have a material negative impact on Fastly's revenue growth; (iii) accordingly, Fastly was unlikely to meet its own previously issued revenue guidance for fiscal year 2024; and (iv) as a result, Fastly's financial position and/or prospects were overstated.The Fastly class action lawsuit further alleges that on May 1, 2024, Fastly reported first quarter 2024 revenue of only $133.5 million, missing consensus estimates by $0.35 million, and lowered its fiscal year 2024 revenue guidance to a range of $555 million to $565 million, significantly below Fastly's previously issued fiscal year 2024 revenue guidance of $580 million to $590 million. On this news, the price of Fastly stock fell more than 32%, according to the Fastly class action lawsuit.THE LEAD PLAINTIFF PROCESS: The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 permits any investor who purchased or acquired Fastly securities during the Class Period to seek appointment as lead plaintiff in the Fastly class action lawsuit. A lead plaintiff is generally the movant with the greatest financial interest in the relief sought by the putative class who is also typical and adequate of the putative class. A lead plaintiff acts on behalf of all other class members in directing the Fastly class action lawsuit. The lead plaintiff can select a law firm of its choice to litigate the Fastly class action lawsuit. An investor's ability to share in any potential future recovery is not dependent upon serving as lead plaintiff of the Fastly class action lawsuit.ABOUT ROBBINS GELLER: Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP is one of the world's leading complex class action firms representing plaintiffs in securities fraud cases. The Firm was ranked #1 on the ISS Securities Class Action Services Top 50 Report for recovering more than $1.75 billion for investors in 2022 - the third year in a row Robbins Geller topped the list. And in those three years alone, Robbins Geller recovered nearly $5.3 billion for investors, more than double the amount recovered by any other plaintiffs' firm. With 200 lawyers in 10 offices, Robbins Geller is one of the largest plaintiffs' firms in the world and the Firm's attorneys have obtained many of the largest securities class action recoveries in history, including the largest securities class action recovery ever - $7.2 billion - in In re Enron Corp. Sec. Litig. Please visit the following page for more information:Attorney advertising.Past results do not guarantee future outcomes.Services may be performed by attorneys in any of our offices.Contact:Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLPJ.C. Sanchez, Jennifer N. Caringal655 W. Broadway, Suite 1900, San Diego, CA 92101800-449-4900info@ rgrdlaw.com SOURCE: Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 11:02:33

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NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC, a nationally recognized law firm, notifies investors that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Harbor Diversified, Inc. ("Harbor Diversified" or "the Company") (OTC PINK:HRBR) and certain of its officers.Class Definition:This lawsuit seeks to recover damages against Defendants for alleged violations of the federal securities laws on behalf of all persons and entities that purchased or otherwise acquired Harbor Diversified securities between May 10, 2022 and March 29, 2024, inclusive (the "Class Period"). Such investors are encouraged to join this case by visiting the firm's site: bgandg.com/HRBR Case Details:According to the Complaint, Harbor Diversified describes itself as "a non-operating holding company that is the parent of a consolidated group of subsidiaries, including AWAC Aviation, Inc. (AWAC'), which is the sole member of Air Wisconsin Airlines LLC (Air Wisconsin'), a regional air carrier. Harbor is also the direct parent of three other subsidiaries: (1) Lotus Aviation Leasing, LLC (Lotus'), which leases flight equipment to Air Wisconsin, (2) Air Wisconsin Funding LLC (AWF'), which provides flight equipment financing to Air Wisconsin, and (3) Harbor Therapeutics, Inc. (Therapeutics'), which is a non-operating entity with no material assets." The Complaint alleges that Harbor Diversified made materially false and/or misleading statements because the Company misrepresented and failed to disclose the following adverse facts pertaining to the Company's business, operations, and prospects, which were known to Defendants or recklessly disregarded by them. Specifically, Defendants made false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose that:(1) Harbor Diversified's financial statements from May 9, 2022 to the present were misstated due to improper revenue recognition;(2) Harbor Diversified lacked adequate internal controls; and(3) as a result, Harbor Diversified's statements about its business, operations, and prospects were materially false and misleading and/or lacked a reasonable basis at all times.The truth began to emerge, according to the Complaint, on March 29, 2024, when Harbor Diversified filed with the SEC a current report on Form 8-K in which it announced that certain of its previously-issued financial statements would need to be restated as a result of improper revenue recognition. Further, Harbor Diversified disclosed a material weakness in its internal controls that has the company's management evaluating "appropriate remediation actions." On this news, according to the Complaint, the price of Harbor Diversified stock fell by $0.28 per share, or14.25% , to close at $1.73 on April 1, 2024.Therefore, the Complaint further alleges that as a result of Defendants' wrongful acts and omissions, and the precipitous decline in the market value of the Harbor Diversified's common shares, investors have suffered significant losses and damages.What's Next?A class action lawsuit has already been filed. If you wish to review a copy of the Complaint, you can visit the firm's site: bgandg.com/HRBR or you may contact Peretz Bronstein, Esq. or his Client Relations Manager, Nathan Miller, of Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC at 332-239-2660. If you suffered a loss in Harbor Diversified you have until July 8, 2024, to request that the Court appoint you as lead plaintiff. Your ability to share in any recovery doesn't require that you serve as lead plaintiff.There is No Cost to YouWe represent investors in class actions on a contingency fee basis. That means we will ask the court to reimburse us for out-of-pocket expenses and attorneys' fees, usually a percentage of the total recovery, only if we are successful.Why Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman:Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC is a nationally recognized firm that represents investors in securities fraud class actions and shareholder derivative suits. Our firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors nationwide.Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.Contact:Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLCPeretz Bronstein or Nathan Miller,332-239-2660 | info@ bgandg.com SOURCE: Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 18:30:36

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OAK BROOK, IL / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 /Inspira Financial, a leading provider of health, wealth, retirement, and benefits solutions, has been recognized by Crain's Chicago Business as one of the fastest-growing companies of 2024. Ranked as one of Crain's Chicago Business Fast 50, the annual list recognizes Inspira's record growth, strong, mutually beneficial relationships with accountholders, clients, and partners, and its strategic investment in new products and services to help more people plan, save, and invest for a brighter future.Crain's Chicago Fast 50 Inspira Financial Crain's Chicago Fast 50 Inspira FinancialInspira is ranked number 35 on this year's Fast 50 list, moving up from ranking number 45 on the 2023 list. Inspira joins Chicago companies that demonstrated strong organic growth, acquisitions, and expansion, and has now been named to the list for seven consecutive years."We've rapidly expanded over the last few years, achieving record growth. Just last year, Inspira completed six acquisitions, strengthening our position as a health, wealth, retirement, and benefits leader," said Inspira CEO Dan Laszlo. "We couldn't grow like this without our people. They're excited about helping clients, account holders, and partners achieve their goals, and their knowledge and experience help us simplify the complex, addressing today's health and wealth needs and challenges." Acquisitions to bring in key capabilities in health and benefits and add scale to Inspira's existing retirement business line are not the only examples of its growth. In early 2024, then as Millennium Trust Company and PayFlex, the companies rebranded as Inspira Financial, unifying a diverse portfolio of technology-enabled solutions under a single purpose-driven brand. Focused on enriching lives and providing better outcomes for all, Inspira offers a complete set of solutions that can help employers increase employee engagement and retention, help people meet their unique health and wealth goals, and protect their hard-earned savings.Since 2007, Crain's Fast 50 list has spotlighted Chicago-area companies in a variety of business areas. To be considered, companies must generate a minimum of $15 million in revenue for the previous calendar year, be headquartered in the Chicago area, and have been in business for five years or more."This recognition reflects our dedication to the individuals and businesses we serve, and a sound strategy that has helped us transform and move forward," Laszlo said. "We anticipate strong organic growth to continue in 2024, and we'll continue to seek out new opportunities, grow our teams, and identify products and services that allow us to effectively support both businesses and individuals as they prepare for the future." About Inspira FinancialInspira Financial provides health, wealth, retirement, and benefits solutions that strengthen and simplify the health and wealth journey. With more than 7 million account holders holding over $62 billion in assets under custody, Inspira works with thousands of employers, plan sponsors, recordkeepers, TPAs, and other institutional partners - helping the people they care about plan, save, and invest for a brighter future. Inspira relentlessly pursues better outcomes for all with our automatic rollover services, health savings accounts, emergency savings funds, custody services, and more. Learn more at inspirafinancial.com Contact Information:Emily Burns PerrymanManager, PR & Communicationsmediainquiry@ inspirafinancial.com 847-594-0859SOURCE: Inspira FinancialView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 08:35:38

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PHOENIX, AZ / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Ivanhoe Electric Inc. ("Ivanhoe Electric") (NYSE American:IE)(TSX:IE) clarifies misleading certain media headlines speculating that Saudi Arabia Mining Company ("Ma'aden") will sell Ivanhoe Electric shares under the recently filed Registration Statement.The Registration Statement was filed pursuant to an obligation in the Investor Rights Agreements ("IRA") entered into between Ivanhoe Electric and Ma'aden at the time of Ma'aden's initial investment in Ivanhoe Electric. The IRA was previously disclosed and filed on July 6, 2023. Ma'aden has confirmed, consistent with what was disclosed in the Registration Statement, that it has no present intention to sell any shares of Ivanhoe Electric common stock.About Ivanhoe Electric We are a U.S. company that combines advanced mineral exploration technologies with electric metals exploration projects predominantly located in the United States. We use our accurate and powerful Typhoon geophysical surveying system, together with advanced data analytics provided by our subsidiary, Computational Geosciences Inc., to accelerate and de-risk the mineral exploration process as we seek to discover new deposits of critical metals that may otherwise be undetectable by traditional exploration technologies. We believe the United States is significantly underexplored and has the potential to yield major new discoveries of critical metals. Our mineral exploration efforts focus on copper as well as other metals including nickel, vanadium, cobalt, platinum group elements, gold and silver. Through the advancement of our portfolio of electric metals exploration projects, headlined by the Santa Cruz Copper Project in Arizona and the Tintic Copper-Gold Project in Utah, as well as other exploration projects in the United States, we intend to support United States supply chain independence by finding and delivering the critical metals necessary for the electrification of the economy. We also operate a 50/50 joint venture with Saudi Arabian Mining Company Ma'aden to explore for minerals on ~48,500 km 2 of underexplored Arabian Shield in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Website: www.ivanhoeelectric.com Contact Information Ivanhoe Electric:Email: info@ ivanhoeelectric.com Follow us on XIvanhoe Electric's Executive Chairman Robert Friedland: @robert_ivanhoeIvanhoe Electric: @ivanhoeelectricIvanhoe Electric's investor relations website located at www.ivanhoeelectric.com should be considered Ivanhoe Electric's recognized distribution channel for purposes of the Securities and Exchange Commission's Regulation FD.Forward-Looking Statements Certain statements in this news release constitute "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable US and Canadian securities laws. Such statements and information involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of Ivanhoe Electric, 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 Ivanhoe Electric's current expectations regarding future events, performance and results and speak only as of the date of this news release.Forward-looking statements are based on management's beliefs and assumptions and on information currently available to management. Such statements are subject to significant risks and uncertainties, and actual results may differ materially from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements due to various factors, including changes in the prices of copper or other metals Ivanhoe Electric is exploring for; the results of exploration and drilling activities and/or the failure of exploration programs or studies to deliver anticipated results or results that would justify and support continued exploration, studies, development or operations; the final assessment of exploration results and information that is preliminary; the significant risk and hazards associated with any future mining operations, extensive regulation by the US government as well as local governments; changes in laws, rules or regulations, or their enforcement by applicable authorities; the failure of parties to contracts with Ivanhoe Electric to perform as agreed; and the impact of political, economic and other uncertainties associated with operating in foreign countries, and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the global economy. These factors should not be construed as exhaustive and should be read in conjunction with the other cautionary statements and risk factors described in Ivanhoe Electric's Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.No assurance can be given that such future results will be achieved. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this news release. Ivanhoe Electric cautions you not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Subject to applicable securities laws, Ivanhoe Electric does not assume any obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this news release, and Ivanhoe Electric expressly disclaims any requirement to do so. No assurance can be given that such future results will be achieved. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date of this news release. Ivanhoe Electric cautions you not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Subject to applicable securities laws, Ivanhoe Electric does not assume any obligation to update or revise the forward-looking statements contained herein to reflect events or circumstances occurring after the date of this news release, and Ivanhoe Electric expressly disclaims any requirement to do so.SOURCE: Ivanhoe Electric Inc.
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 20:17:44

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NEW YORK CITY, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Melbourne Social Cohas been awarded the 'Best TikTok Account (ANZ)' at the prestigiousNetty Awardsfor their revolutionary social media strategy with DoorDash ANZ. This award highlights Melbourne Social Co's innovative approach to digital marketing, which successfully cultivated a vibrant TikTok community, achieving over 7 million views in the past year.Innovation and DifferentiationMelbourne Social Co designed a cutting-edge social media strategy focused on genuine engagement and unique content creation for DoorDash ANZ, specifically tailored to capture the hearts of Gen Z and millennial audiences on TikTok. By integrating influencer partnerships and top-notch paid advertising, Melbourne Social Co has set DoorDash apart from its competitors, ensuring their messages resonate authentically with viewers.Measurable Impact and SuccessThe campaign's effectiveness is underscored by impressive metrics: a significant jump in followers, enhanced engagement rates, and a total of 7 million TikTok views in a year - an extraordinary leap from previous figures. Melbourne Social Co's strategy, which included capitalizing on emerging trends swiftly and producing content that mirrors user-generated and employee-generated content, has demonstrated its prowess in crafting highly relatable and engaging digital content.Creative Elements and ExecutionMelbourne Social Co's creative strategy was fundamentally different from traditional marketing tactics in the food delivery industry. Instead of polished, celebrity-driven ads, the focus was on authenticity and shared experiences, featuring real people and their stories. This approach not only fostered deeper connections with the audience but also set a new benchmark for creativity and authenticity in digital advertising.Overall Excellence and Industry AdvancementThe success of the DoorDash ANZ TikTok campaign by Melbourne Social Co marks a notable advancement in the industry, encouraging a shift towards authenticity and relatability. This strategic pivot to engaging, real content over high-budget productions has not only benefited DoorDash but has also influenced broader industry practices, establishing a new model for digital marketing success.A Word from the Founder"We are thrilled to be recognized at the Netty Awards for our work with DoorDash ANZ on TikTok. This project was all about embracing the real, the relatable, and the now. Our focus has always been to break through the noise by speaking directly to what matters to our audience-authenticity and engagement. This award reaffirms our commitment to innovative, impactful social media strategies that resonate with the community and deliver results. We look forward to continuing to push the boundaries of what social media marketing can achieve," said Shelley Friesen, Founder & Director of Melbourne Social Co.About Melbourne Social CoAs Melbourne's premier independent social media agency, Melbourne Social Co excels in delivering high-quality content creation, social media management, and creative collaborations that resonate across social platforms. Their talented team is made up of experienced digital marketers, brand strategists, content creators, social media managers, analysts, paid performance managers and influencer collaboration specialists.About the Netty AwardsThe Netty Awards are a prestigious awards program that honors top leaders and companies across various industries in the digital age. With over 100 unique categories and a longstanding track record as one of the most trusted organizations in the industry, the Netty Awards celebrate achievements in Design, Social Media, Influencers & Creators, Web, Advertising & PR, and Apps & Software.Contact Information:Name: Janelle NeilEmail: janelle@ melbournesocialco.com.au Website: https://www.melbournesocialco.com.au/ SOURCE: The Netty Awards
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 13:30:36

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TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Northern Superior Resources Inc. ("Northern Superior" or the "Company") (TSXV:SUP)(OTCQX:NSUPF) is pleased to unveil its exploration plan for the next 9 months on the Philibert gold property, located 60 kilometres southwest of Chibougamau, Quebec, Canada (the "Philibert Project"; Northern Superior: 75%, SOQUEM: 25%1). The exploration activities are set to commence in the coming weeks.In 2023, the Company filed a transformational Mineral Resource Estimate ("MRE") for the Philibert deposit of 48.46 million tonnes of inferred mineral resource averaging 1.10 grams of gold per tonne for 1,708,800 ounces of gold, and 7.88 million tonnes of indicated mineral resource averaging 1.10 grams of gold per tonne for 278,920 ounces of gold. The Philibert Project is located only 9 km away from IAMGOLD Corporation ("IAMGOLD")'s Nelligan project. IAMGOLD recently shared an operational update on its activities in the Chibougamau Gold Camp (see IAMGOLD's MD&A filed on Sedar on May 9, 2024, page 18).The Company will continue to advance its assets in the Chibougamau Gold Camp with an immediate focus on the Philibert Project. The recent $8 million equity financing (see press release dated May 28, 2024) is sufficient to execute the entirety of the program detailed herein.Program Highlights:Impactful Program: Over 20,000 metres of expansion drilling planned for next 9 months, i) along strike to the east and west and, ii) along the hanging wall trend north and down dip of the open pit resource and defined pit; Great Potential: Work conducted to date on the Philibert Project is based on 3 km of mineralization while geophysics is indicative of an additional 4 km of mineralization spreading east and west of the resource (see Figure 1); Expansion Drilling with Demonstrated Mineralization: Notable historic drill holes over 300 metres east of the current resource returned 2.17 g/t Au over 17.9 metres, and 1.66 g/t Au over 8.27 metres with both requiring further sampling (see Figure 1,2 and 3); Plan to Connect Mineralization: Historic drilling located over 1,500 metres southeast of the current resource (see Figure 1,2 and 3) returned 1.55 g/t Au over 26.0 metres starting at 72.5 metres, and 1.09 g/t Au over 13.7 metres with both drill holes requiring further sampling above and below the intersections; Great potential to the west: Approximately 300 metres west of the defined pit along the hanging wall trend returned 1.76 g/t Au over 7.0 metres, including 10.8 g/t Au over 1.0 metre starting at 162.5 metres from historical drilling. Other anomalous gold values were returned but requiring further sampling above and below the intersection. The western trend is defined by a linear magnetic anomaly interpreted to correspond to the gabbro host of Philibert extending on the property for over 2 km. The Company is planning some geochemical and geophysical surveys to help define the targeted zone (see Figure 1,2 and 3); Strike extensions: Expansion drilling southeast of the Corsac Fox zone part of the interpreted hanging wall with an additional potential of 700 metres of strike extension(see Figure 1,2 and 3); Building on great metallurgy: Further metallurgical testing is being planned for the eastern end of the pit to build on initial testing with flotation concentrate returning recoveries up to 95.6% (see press release dated July 6, 2023); and, Underground Potential: While the MRE published in 2023 did not include any of the underground potential, a previous study of the economic potential of the Philibert Project,2 focused exclusively on underground resources from the western domains, with approximately 239,000 ounces at 5.68 g/t gold (see Figure 2). Such underground potential will be further explored, evaluated, and potentially included in a subsequent mineral resource estimate (see Figure 3)."The Philibert Project has already demonstrated significant potential with its initial NI 43-101 resource estimate published in 2023, showcasing a relatively high-grade profile for a bulk tonnage operation. Additionally, the project benefits from a low nugget effect, minimal overburden cover, and promising initial metallurgical recovery results. These attributes firmly position the Philibert Project as a cornerstone of the Chibougamau Gold Camp, which is rapidly gaining recognition as it nears the 10-million-ounce mark, with key deposits located within 10 km of one another. We are very excited to continue developing this cornerstone asset," commented Simon Marcotte, President and Chief Executive Officer of Northern Superior.Figure 1: Plan view showing the resource classification over High Resolution Total Magnetic Intensity Map with arrows identifying possible structures to test for mineralization. Figure 2: Plan view showing the conceptual open pit and the pit-constrained block model; color coded Au g/t. Figure 3: Longitudinal view showing the conceptual open pit with block model filtered to 1.5 g/t Au, arrows identifying potential areas under the conceptual pit. The current pit is defined along a 3 km strike and up to a vertical depth of 450 metres in the west and up to 150 metres in the south. In the western end, the hanging wall zone widens the mineralization corridor up to 500 metres compared to 200 metres near the middle of the pit. The Company plans to complete drilling along the 700-metre corridor to define the hanging wall mineralization aimed at widening the pit northward. This work will also define mineralization down dip and plunge in the eastern end of the pit from Fennec Fox to Grey Fox.Drilling will also focus on expansion to the east, southeast and west following the additional 4 km linear magnetic trend interpreted to define the Obatogamau formation fractionated gabbro, host to the Philibert deposit. In the southeast area, two separate trends are identified from limited historic drilling with significant mineralization intersected including 1.55 g/t Au over 26.0 metres, 2.17 g/t Au over 17.9 metres, and 1.96 g/t Au over 10.0 metres. All mineralization is recorded as being associated with disseminated pyrite mineralization within a quartz rich gabbro host.Less drilling has been completed along the western trend, but the host gabbro is interpreted to coincide to a well-defined northwest trending linear magnetic anomaly. One drill hole completed 300 metres west of the defined pit returned 1.76 g/t Au over 7.0 metres, including 10.8 g/t Au over 1.0 metre.A number of high priority exploration targets are planned to be tested including the magnetic fold feature to the south of the east end of the defined pit with a historic hole returning 0.73 g/t Au over 15.1 metres, including 1.52 g/t Au over 6.2 metres starting
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 18:56:00

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Leading companies including Target, Earthbound Farm, Raley's, Flashfood, Yoke's and more will take the stage at the two-day event to discuss fresh organic produce topics.MONTEREY, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 /Organic Produce Summittoday announces keynote and education sessions focused on the opportunities and challenges in growing the organic fresh produce industry and how to boost retail sales. In 2023, US organic produce sales topped$9.6 Billion, a 1.6% increase from the previous year, underscoring the importance of industry education for the future of the organic produce trade.Nicholas Bertram, President & CEO of Flashfood, will host a keynote presentation titled "Feeding Families, Not Landfills," highlighting Flashfood's collaborations with various retailers and grocers to address food waste -a $428 billion problemas over one-third of our nation's food supply goes unsold or uneaten.Immediately following Bertram's presentation, there will be a "Retail Fireside Chat," moderated by Kevin Coupe, Founder of Morning News Beat and featuring panelists Robby Cruz, VP of Produce at Target and Patrick Haines, VP of Produce at United Natural Foods, Inc. (UNFI ). The trio will explore organic program evolution and the impact of technology on operations, diving into changing consumer behaviors and the role of AI in growing overall sales.Closing out the keynote portion of the show, Sherry Frey , VP of Total Wellness at NielsenIQ, will explore the impact of shifting consumer demographics, demands on organic produce and how the industry can continue to identify new marketing opportunities. Frey's keynote, "Changing Consumer Impact on Organic Produce Opportunities," will discuss how wellness shoppers, especially Gen Z, are demanding more from every purchase and have an increased focus on the environmental and social responsibility of fresh produce.In addition to the keynote presentations, multiple educational sessions will be available for all attendees at the event, covering topics ranging from expanding organic fruit sales, sustainable packaging, regional retail taste and flavor preferences, label messaging and produce snacking options."We're thrilled to welcome everyone back to this year's Organic Produce Summit in beautiful Monterey, CA," says Keigan Roos, Event Manager, Organic Produce Summit . "With exciting new events added to the schedule, a robust educational program and over 300 retailers set to attend, this is the perfect opportunity to unite the organic fresh produce industry once again under one roof. OPS aims to pave the way for the future of the business by providing a comprehensive one-stop-shop outlet for our audience to connect, learn and celebrate the organic produce industry!"To round out the event, Organic Produce Summit will host industry networking and community activities which include a selection of field tours for qualified retailers and buyers, an opening night reception, morning yoga and Seed to Service, a community service event dedicated to packing fresh organic produce bags for local families in Monterey County. The full agenda can be found atwww.organicproducesummit.com/schedule Held July 10-11 at the Monterey Conference Center, the eighth annual Organic Produce Summit features a sold-out show floor with over 175 organic growers, shippers and processors from across North America and around the world showcasing fresh produce items.To register to attend the only event dedicated exclusively to bringing together producers and buyers of the organic fresh produce industry, please visitwww.organicproducesummit.com About The Organic Produce Summit:The Organic Produce Summit, founded in 2016, takes place annually in Monterey, California and is the only event dedicated exclusively to bringing together organic fresh produce growers, shippers and processors with retail and buying organizations from across the globe. The Organic Produce Summit is a part of New Hope Network, the leading natural, organic and conscious products event organizer and industry resource for the natural and healthy lifestyle products industry. For more information visit www.newhope.com . To learn more about The Organic Produce Summit, visitwww.organicproducesummit.com About New Hope NetworkNew Hope Network's purpose is to cultivate a prosperous high-integrity CPG and retail ecosystem that creates health, joy and justice for all people while regenerating the planet. New Hope Network is at the forefront of the natural, organic, and conscious products industry. With solutions for the complete supply chain, including manufacturers, retailers, distributors, service providers, ingredient suppliers, media and investors, New Hope Network offers a robust portfolio of content, events, data, research, and consultative services. For more information visitwww.newhope.com Contact pr@ newhope.com SOURCE: New Hope Network
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 19:30:43

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DANDENONG SOUTH, AUSTRALIA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / OTAA, a distinguished leader in the world of men's fashion, is thrilled to announce the launch of its new line of men's accessories. Renowned for its exquisite range of ties, bowties, cufflinks, and pocket squares, OTAA makes "the best ties in the world," according to Jesse Watter, a prominent Fox News anchor. Shop their collection of men's neckties.This collection heralds a new era of fashion for the discerning man. Each accessory has been meticulously designed to embody both traditional charm and contemporary chic. "Our new range is inspired by the modern gentleman who appreciates the finesse of fine craftsmanship combined with functional design," says Fameez Haroon, Founder of OTAA. The collection is thoughtfully curated to include a variety of designs, ensuring that there is something perfect for every occasion, from business meetings to casual outings and formal events.OTAA has always been synonymous with quality, and this new collection is no exception. Each piece is crafted using the highest quality materials sourced from around the world, ensuring every detail is perfect. The fabrics are chosen not only for their look but for their durability and feel. "We believe that our customers are looking for more than just aesthetic appeal; they are looking for accessories that last, offering both comfort and style," explains Mr. Haroon.OTAA's commitment to excellence has been recognized globally, with features in prestigious publications like GQ. This endorsement underlines the brand's position in the fashion industry as a benchmark for men's accessories. The new collection is expected to continue this legacy, appealing to both existing fans and new customers who are looking to elevate their wardrobe with pieces that are both stylish and sophisticated.Understanding the needs of its customers, OTAA offers free shipping across Australia, ensuring that the latest trends are accessible to all without the burden of extra costs. Moreover, the user-friendly website provides a seamless shopping experience, with detailed descriptions and styling tips for each product.In an effort to contribute positively to the environment, OTAA takes pride in its sustainable practices. The new collection emphasizes not only the aesthetic and functional aspects of the accessories but also their eco-friendly credentials. The production processes are designed to minimize waste and reduce environmental impact, aligning with the growing demand for sustainable fashion choices.About OTAAFounded by Fameez Haroon, OTAA is a premium menswear brand based in Dandenong South, Victoria, Australia. With a passion for design and quality, OTAA has become a key player in the global fashion scene, specializing in men's accessories that blend traditional craftsmanship with modern innovation. OTAA's products are a staple in the wardrobe of fashion-forward individuals worldwide, reflecting a philosophy that great style begins with great accessories.For more information, to request samples, or to schedule an interview with Fameez Haroon, please contact:Fameez Haroon hello@ otaa.com 1800 531 670 https://www.otaa.com/ Contact DetailsOTAA Fameez Haroonhello@ otaa.com Company WebsiteSOURCE: OTAA
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 21:51:14

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Bolas Moves his Practice to Wells Fargo Advisors Financial NetworkCLEVELAND, OH / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 /Oxford Harriman & Company is excited to have announced that Bill Bolas has joined the private wealth management practice as a Senior Managing Director & Partner. Bolas will be based in Oxford Harriman's Westlake, Ohio office. Prior to joining Oxford Harriman & Company, Bill was a Managing Director-Investments for Wells Fargo Advisors in Westlake, OH. Bill transitioned his practice with his Client Associate Michelle Saville.Bolas is a distinguished financial advisor whose career in the financial services sector commenced in 2002 with American Express Financial Advisors, presently known as Ameriprise Financial, Inc. (NYSE: AMP). As a former District Manager, Bill played a crucial role in growing the business and fostering the training and advancement of emerging advisors. In 2009, Bill returned to client-focused role, allowing him to directly apply his extensive knowledge and expertise in wealth planning and investment management. As of present writing, Bill's practice stewards more than a quarter billion of assets under management on behalf of his clients."When I first sat down with Bill, I was struck by his knowledge and dedication to his clients, and his commitment to being a world-class financial advisor," said Kent Whitaker, President of Oxford Harriman & Company. "His command of the issues facing investors is most impressive and we are all very excited that he is now part of our team." Bolas creates and implements customized goals-based strategies for wealthy individuals, families, and institutions. Bill's advisory practice specializes in comprehensive investment planning and encompasses several areas, including retirement and education planning, tax advantage strategies, banking, trust and estate planning strategies, and asset preservation.Bolas said about his move to become a Senior partner at Oxford Harriman & Company, "The assembled team and structure of Oxford Harriman made the move for us compelling. Following a lengthy and thorough due-diligence process, including review of competitor platforms, we felt Oxford Harriman provided the right structure to scale and grow our practice while adding additional support resources for the benefit of our clients." Bill graduated with a bachelor's degree in business administration from St. Bonaventure University, with a dual major in accounting and finance. Bill's commitment to continuous learning is demonstrated by his attainment of the Chartered Retirement Planning Counselor designation. Bill's excellence as a financial advisor has been recognized by Wells Fargo Advisors, earning him the Platinum Council distinction consecutively from 2018 to 2023 and the Saphire status in the 2024 Platinum Council. *"We couldn't be more thrilled about Bill joining our team," stated Dennis Barba, CEO of Oxford Harriman & Company. "Bill is a seasoned professional and is very process driven. "The attention he pays to his clients, and his service model is among the very best we have seen." *The Platinum Council (previously known as Premier Advisor) distinction is held by a select group of Financial Advisors within Wells Fargo Advisors as measured by completion of educational components, business production based on the past year, and professionalism. Additional criteria, best practices, and team structure may also be used to determine recipients. Platinum Council levels are based on the previous calendar year's gross revenue and are defined as follows: Diamond - Top 25 Financial Advisors, Ruby - Top 2% (including Diamond recipients), Emerald - Next 5%, Sapphire - Next 8%, Pearl - Best Practice Adopters with a minimum production $750k.About Oxford Harriman & Company:Oxford Harriman & Company is a strategic partnership designed to help investors accumulate, preserve and transfer wealth through a collaborative and strategic approach. Serving the financial and wealth management needs of a select group of clients, the practice provides a comprehensive approach to private wealth management that helps to chart a course based on focus, strategy, and discipline. Oxford Harriman & Company is part of the Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network, with offices in Cleveland, OH, Chagrin Falls, OH, Westlake, OH, Mentor, OH, Lorain, OH, Chicago, IL, Detroit, MI, Boston, MA, Manhattan, NY, Astoria, NY, Buffalo, NY, Syracuse, NY, Kingston, NY, Albany, NY, Short Hills, NJ, Fairfield, NJ, Cherry Hill, NJ, Margate, NJ, Philadelphia, PA, Collegeville, PA, Wilkes-Barre, PA, Clarks Summit, PA, Newport News, VA, Bluffton, SC, and Sarasota, FL.Investment products and services are offered through Wells Fargo Advisors Financial Network, LLC (WFAFN), Member SIPC. Oxford Harriman & Company is a separate entity from WFAFN.2024 Oxford Harriman & Company. All rights reserved.Media DetailsCompany Name: Oxford Harriman & CompanyMail: dennis@ oxfordharriman.com City & Country: Cleveland, USAWebsite: https://oxfordharriman.com/ SOURCE: Oxford Harriman & Company
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 15:00:51

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Acceptance Marks Second Film by Buck into FestivalPORTSMOUTH, NH / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Director Harrison Buck and his production studio Pandion Creative announced the acceptance of their feature documentary, Meko, into the 2024 Maine Outdoor Film Festival.The full-length documentary, produced in association with oakpool, a multi-disciplinary media agency and studio, stars professional fishing guide Omeko "Meko" Glinton as he navigates extreme obstacles to pursue his lifelong dream of owning his own bonefishing lodge in his native Grand Bahama. Said Buck, "The best documentaries in my mind start out with a great story and uncover an even better one. We set out to make a film about a guide and his family and it turned into something much bigger." Meko's acceptance into the 2024 festival marks the second time Buck has found one of his features screened at his neighbor- state's festival. In 2014, Buck's film The Tightest Line, also starring Glinton, debuted to much fanfare at the Portland-based festival setting the stage for Buck's larger feature project.Said Buck, "This is a really special partnership we have going with MOFF. They took a chance on us 10 years ago, and we couldn't be happier to be back. I have spent a lot of time in the wilds of Maine as a camper and I love the Dirigo spirit. We can't wait to share our story around the proverbial campfire in July down in Portland." Far from your typical "grip-and-grin" fishing film, Meko is set to debut on the 2024 film festival scene with a powerful message for those who hold affection for wild places and the people who live in them. Said Buck, "We have all along been trying to make a film that is far away from the industry standard of being fish-landing-focused...We have a story about a man, his family and legacy and all of that their community has gone through. There is a little bit of something for everyone to resonate with on a human-level." Running from July 24-28th, The Maine Outdoor Film Festival has been a Portland staple for over 12 years. With over 190 submissions per year and 95 films selected - the festival is an opportunity for filmmakers to get their vision in front of over 1,500 attendees. Overall, only 10 awards are given to filmmakers each year, meaning Meko will have to angle for a different kind of trophy at this year's festival in the feature film category.With Meko currently on the festival circuit, the team at oakpool and Pandion are angling for placement in streaming services with the goal being to create a groundswell of awareness and support for the people of the Bahamas and the uncertainty they face due to warming oceans and violent storms.You can check out the trailer here: MEKO.To book an interview with Harrison or Meko, or to learn more about the film project - please visit the official website or reach out to remick@ fordhamilton.com Contact InformationRemick SmothersPress & Comms Leadremick@ fordhamilton.com 202-412-5300SOURCE: Pandion CreativeView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 20:36:40

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TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Pathcore Inc., a leader in digital pathology software solutions, is pleased to announce a strategic partnership with Instem, a leading provider of IT solutions and services to the global life sciences market. Representatives from both companies will be present at Booth 200 during the upcoming 43rd Annual Symposium of the Society of Toxicologic Pathology to officially launch the partnership between June 19-24, 2024, in Baltimore, MD.Pathcore-Instem As part of the collaboration, Instem and Pathcore will offer an integrated solution by automatically exchanging study data between Provantis, Instem's preclinical data management solution and Pathcore's PathcoreFlow image management system (IMS). By eliminating the need for manual data entry and by synchronizing data across both platforms, this integration enables toxicologic pathologists to perform digital primary reads from a single pane of glass. Optimizing the pathologist's workflow is essential for achieving faster reporting and more accurate interpretations in one of the most complex anatomic pathology subspecialties, which involves an exhaustive review of thousands of slides per study.The integration between PathcoreFlow and Provantis aims to create a premier solution for toxicopathology that combines a GLP-compliant preclinical software solution with a secure, cost-effective and scalable IMS. The combined offering will be compliant with requirements of the FDA and other regulatory bodies for preclinical studies."We are thrilled to partner with Instem to bring this advanced solution to market because it aligns with our mission of streamlining pre-clinical digital pathology workflows with robust data management and analysis tools," said Dan Hosseinzadeh, co-founder and CEO at Pathcore.The integration between Pathcore's PathcoreFlow image management system and Instem's Provantis laboratory information system marks an advancement in digital pathology for pre-clinical toxicopathology studies.To learn more about Pathcore's secure, compliant and scalable solutions for digital pathology with PathcoreFlow, contact us at Pathcore.About PathcorePathcore is dedicated to advancing digital pathology through innovative software solutions that empower organizations with the tools they need to implement digital transformations. For over two decades, our co-founders have led and developed widely used platforms including PathcoreFlow, the Sedeen Viewer, and PathcoreScholar.Our applications support a wide range of clients in more than 68 countries and 2,000 organizations, making data easily accessible and driving the adoption of digital pathology.About InstemA global provider of leading software solutions, technology-enabled outsourced services and powerful scientific insights, Instem is helping clients to bring their life-enhancing products to market faster.We enable organizations in the life sciences to more efficiently collect, report and submit high-quality regulatory data while offering them the unique ability to generate new knowledge through the extraction and harmonization of actionable scientific information.Every day, across the entire drug development value chain, Instem solutions are meeting the rapidly expanding needs of life science organizations for data-driven decision-making, leading to safer, more effective products.Instem supports clients through offices in the U.S., U.K., France, Japan, China, and India. Contact InformationStephane LangevinVice-President Business Operationsstephane.langevin@pathcore.com 416-273-4559SOURCE: Pathcore Inc.View the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 21:05:30

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Two of Washington State's largest 911 centers, Snohomish County 911 (SNO911) and Valley Com 9-1-1, have formed an innovative partnership to assure continuity of emergency communications services during disruptions or system outages.EVERETT, WA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Two of Washington State's largest 911 centers, Snohomish County 911 (SNO911) and Valley Com 9-1-1, have formed an innovative partnership to assure continuity of emergency communications services during disruptions or system outages. This Regional Resiliency Initiative combines Next Generation 911 (NG911) capabilities with a custom cloud-based Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) solution called CAD-L.On June 5th, the two centers successfully conducted a live 911 call re-routing drill that validated this groundbreaking vision over four years in the making. It is believed to be the first resiliency solution of this magnitude introduced in the United States.Ensuring Seamless Dispatch During OutagesWhile NG911 has enabled 911 call re-routing between centers since 2012, effectively dispatching responders in another jurisdiction with different policies and protocols has remained a challenge. SNO911 created CAD-L, a cloud-hosted backup CAD system accessible via browser, to maintain dispatch capabilities during planned downtimes.CAD-L operates independently from the primary CAD and supports essential features to initiate and manage emergency responses. It was designed for partner centers to easily localize and use with minimal training.A Perfect PartnershipSNO911 and Valley Com 9-1-1 were ideal partners, being consolidated multi-discipline 911 centers of similar size, call volumes, and staffing levels. Both have dedicated backup facilities to rapidly relocate operations if needed.The centers' locations over 40 miles apart proved inconsequential, as the partnership could effectively operate across the state.While NG911 addressed re-routing calls, the complex task was developing an effective backup CAD solution. Unable to find a commercial product, SNO911 commissioned a software firm to create CAD-L.Robust CAD CapabilitiesCAD-L provides core CAD functionality localized for each agency, including geo-validating locations, identifying jurisdictions and beats, designating incident types and priorities, assigning and tracking units, and seamlessly integrating with RapidSOS.As a secure, Elastic web application hosted on AWS GovCloud, CAD-L dynamically scales to meet peak demands while minimizing costs during inactivity.Successful Live 911 DrillSNO911 Board President Jon Nehring praised this milestone in collaboration: "On behalf of the SNO911 Board of Directors, I want to extend my congratulations to the entire team at SNO911 and our partners at Valley Com 9-1-1 on this first in the nation achievement. This partnership fortifies the resiliency of the 911 system for over 1.5 million residents in a way that will save lives when minutes matter most." About SNO911Snohomish County 911 is an integrated emergency services team providing the vital lifeline between public safety responders and our community. Located in Everett, Washington, SNO911 serves communities throughout the Snohomish County to a population of 840,000. https://sno911.org About Valley Com 9-1-1Located in Kent, Washington, Valley Communications Center provides emergency communications services to communities of South King County. https://valleycom.org/ Contact InformationNic WildemanPrincipalnic@ lionfishcreative.com 425-285-1500Related FilesSNO911-VC911 Regional Resiliency Initiative Case StudySOURCE: Snohomish County 911View the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 15:30:54

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NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Roberts & Ryan, Inc. , America's first Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned (SDVO) broker-dealer, announced the expansion of its summer internship program, which recently accepted 13 candidates from a diverse pool of students from a variety of schools and backgrounds. The expansion reflects the company's commitment to supporting veterans and underprivileged youth."At Roberts & Ryan, we believe that supporting future generations of financial professionals is important to the long-term success of our industry. This year's internship class was bolstered by our relationship with the Boys & Girls Club of Harlem, who recommended two exceptional candidates, creating more opportunities for diverse talent in the financial services industry," said Brian Rathjen, President of Roberts & Ryan.Roberts & Ryan's 2024 internship program's first cohort. Pictured: Internship Director Michael Del Priore (center) and Interns Michele Cardaci, Jack Smith, Quamique Marcial, Louis Davis, Madeleine Wolfrom, and Mackenzie McAllister.Seven interns completed Roberts & Ryan's internship program in 2023, a number the firm nearly doubled in 2024 due to increased student demand.Roberts & Ryan runs two internship cohorts per year to provide students from a variety of backgrounds with real-world experience in the financial services industry. Interns collaborate with experienced professionals on projects that demonstrate a range of services provided by Roberts & Ryan, from secondary equity and fixed income trading to debt and equity capital markets, business development, compliance, and marketing. Roberts & Ryan was recently approved for membership by the New York Stock Exchange, and summer interns have access to its iconic trading floor."Breaking into the financial services industry can be a challenge, as most entry-level positions require either previous work experience or a professional connection with someone in the industry. We believe that our program provides our interns with both," said Edward D'Alessandro, Chief Executive Officer of Roberts & Ryan.Roberts & Ryan is committed to increasing access to opportunities in the financial sector by finding high-quality candidates for their internship program. Through the program, interns gain valuable experience, make important connections, and build a talent stack for a successful career in finance.For current undergraduate and graduate students interested in participating in next year's internship program, please email your resume toinfo@ roberts-ryan.com About Roberts and Ryan, Inc.Roberts & Ryan, Inc.is a Service-Disabled Veteran Owned (SDVO) broker-dealer with execution capabilities in the capital markets, equities, and fixed-income trading. The firm was founded in 1987 by a United States Marine Corps Vietnam combat veteran and Purple Heart recipient.With over $2 million in committed donations, Roberts & Ryan is active in donating to charitable foundations that make significant positive impacts in the lives of Veterans and their families, primarily focusing on general wellness, mental health, and career transition. To learn more about Roberts & Ryan, please visitwww.roberts-ryan.com Contact DetailsMichael C. Del Priore+1 646-859-4061mdelpriore@ roberts-ryan.com Company WebsiteSOURCE: ROBERTS & RYAN, INC
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 14:31:10

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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 /Sitka Gold Corp. ("Sitka" or the "Company") (TSXV:SIG)(FSE:1RF)(OTCQB:SITKF) is pleased to announce that it has recommenced the previously announced 15,000 metre diamond drilling program (see news release dated March 5, 2024) at its road accessible RC Gold Project ("RC Gold" or "the Project") located in the prolific Tombstone Gold Belt in the Yukon. Sitka successfully completed two diamond drill holes during the winter portion of this year's drilling program to test the continuity of higher-grade gold mineralization south of the Blackjack gold deposit. A total of 1085 metres (m) was drilled during the winter program with visible gold observed in both drill holes and assay results that returned 191.0 m grading 1.16 g/t gold including 11.0 m of 5.80 g/t gold within 89.0 m of 2.03 g/t gold (DDRCCC-24-057 or "Hole 57"; see news release dated May 1, 2024) and 154.0 m of 1.47 g/t gold including 37.0 m of 3.07 g/t gold and 8.0 m of 4.61 g/t gold (DDRCCC-24-058 or "Hole 58"; see news release dated May 23, 2024)."Drilling currently underway is focused on continuing to expand the Blackjack deposit following up on the higher-grade gold mineralization discovered during the winter diamond drilling program outside of the current resource," said Cor Coe, Director and CEO of Sitka Gold Corp. "Our updated geological model suggests this higher-grade gold zone continues south and we plan to investigate that possibility this summer along with follow-up on several other high-priority targets as we push to expand our rapidly growing gold resource and make additional discoveries across our one hundred percent owned, district-scale RC Gold Project." In addition to extending Blackjack gold mineralization to the southeast, objectives for the Company's 2024 exploration season include further drilling of the Saddle East zone (84 m of 1.21 g/t gold drilled in 2023), further drilling of the Eiger Deposit (Inferred Resource of 440,000 oz gold published in 2023), further drilling of the Josephine Stock (visible gold discovered at surface in 2023) and further investigation of the nine known intrusions with associated gold mineralization that have been discovered to date on the Company's 386 square kilometre RC Project.Figure 1: Plan map of the Northern Extent of the Clear Creek Intrusive Complex where several drill intervals and surface samples have demonstrated the high-grade nature of the Reduced Intrusion Related Gold System present. The projection of the Blackjack fault and Blackjack Mineralized Corridor are highlighted along with the priority targets in this area for 2024. Yellow stars indicate where outcrop rock samples or drill hole intervals have returned >10 g/t gold. Several additional targets with the potential to host intrusion related gold deposits of significant size and grade have yet to be drilled within this approximately 3 km x 5 km area. The Saddle Zone priority target area (between the Blackjack and Eiger gold deposits) remains largely untested by drilling and contains the largest and strongest gold-in-soil anomaly on the property.Figure 2: Plan map showing current proposed 2024 diamond drilling and the projection of the recently identified Blackjack Mineralized Corridor and the Blackjack Fault which remain open to the south of the Blackjack gold deposit. This fault appears to be an important structural control for the intrusion related gold mineralization being discovered at the Blackjack deposit area and remains wide open to the north and south of the current extent of drilling.Figure 3: Diamond drilling currently underway south of the Blackjack gold deposit at the district-scale, road accessible RC Gold Project.About the flagship RC Gold ProjectThe RC Gold Project consists of a 386 square kilometre contiguous district-scale land package located in the heart of Yukon's Tombstone Gold Belt. The project is located approximately 100 kilometres east of Dawson City, which has a 5,000 foot paved runway, and is accessed via a secondary gravel road from the Klondike Highway which is usable year-round and is an approximate 2 hour drive from Dawson. It is the largest consolidated land package strategically positioned mid-way between Victoria Gold's Eagle Gold Mine - Yukon's newest gold mine which reached commercial production in the summer of 2020 - and Victoria Gold's former producing Brewery Creek Gold Mine.On January 19, 2023 Sitka Gold announced an Initial Mineral Resource Estimate prepared in accordance with National Instrument 43-101 ("NI 43-101") guidelines for the RC Gold Property of 1,340,000 ounces of gold(1). The road accessible, pit constrained Mineral Resource is classified as inferred and is contained in two zones: The Blackjack and Eiger deposits. Both of these deposits are at/near surface, are potentially open pit minable and amenable to heap leaching, with initial bottle roll tests indicating that the gold is not refractory and has high gold recoveries of up to 94% with minimal NaCN consumption (see News Release July 13, 2022). The Mineral Resource estimate is presented in the following table at a base case cut-off grade of 0.25 g/t Au:RC Gold Inferred Mineral Resource EstimateCOG g/t AuBlackjack ZoneEiger ZoneCombinedTonnes 000'sAu g/t0z Au 000'sTonnes 000'sAu g/t0z Au 000'sTonnes 000'sAu g/t0z Au 000's0.2035,7980.8092132,5230.4547168,3210.631,3910.2533,7430.8390027,3620.5044061,1050.681,3400.3031,2820.8888522,2530.5539353,5350.741,2790.3529,0650.9286017,8170.6034446,8820.801,2030.4026,9750.9683314,5060.6630841,4810.861,140Notes1. Mineral resource estimate prepared by Ronald G. Simpson of GeoSim Services Inc. with an effective date of January 19, 2023. Mineral Resources are classified using the 2014 CIM Definition Standards.2. The cut-off grade of 0.25 g/t Au is believed to provide a reasonable margin over operating and sustaining costs for open-pit mining and processing3. Mineral resources are constrained by an optimised pit shell using the following assumptions: US$1800/oz Au price; a 45 pit slope; assumed metallurgical recovery of 85%; mining costs of US$2.00 per tonne; processing costs of US$8.00 per tonne; G&A of US$1.50/t.4. Mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability.5. Totals may not sum due to rounding.RC Gold Deposit ModelExploration on the Property has mainly focused on identifying an intrusion-related gold system ("IRGS"). The property is within the Tombstone Gold Belt which is the prominent host to IR
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 15:01:04

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GRAND RAPIDS, MI / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / SpendMend, a leading provider of solutions to optimize the cost-cycle for the healthcare industry, is proud to announce that Froedtert Health has selected Trulla to streamline and enhance its health system pharmaceutical procurement processes.Froedtert Trulla is a cloud-based application developed by pharmacists to enable health systems to manage pharmacy ordering across multiple locations within a single system. This innovative multi-tenant portal enables effortless contract compliance and adherence to preferred NDCs (National Drug Codes) and suppliers for all pharmacy spend. Trulla brings best-in-class analytics to highlight all actionable opportunities to minimize drug cost across a health system.Froedtert Health Pharmacy has been a longstanding leader in pharmacy and pharmacy procurement. Froedtert Health centralized and built an Integrated Services Center in 2016. The central procurement practices are a model for other IDNs across the country. Trulla will help take Froedtert Health's central procurement operations to the next level and continue to be national leaders in pharmacy procurement."In the Trulla software platform, we saw a comprehensive solution that perfectly aligned with our needs," said Christine Vogt, RPh, MHA, Director of Pharmacy Centralized Services at Froedtert Health. "Trulla's capabilities to support centralized procurement efforts and drive compliance were instrumental in our decision-making process." "Trulla is pioneering the pharmacy procurement space. This technology will help automate our centralized procurement functions as our health system continues to grow," said Jordan Dow, PharmD, MS, Chief Pharmacy Officer at Froedtert Health.Jake Thompson, PharmD, MS, VP, SpendMend Pharmacy, expressed enthusiasm for the partnership. "We are excited to collaborate with Froedtert Health, a long-standing leader in pharmacy. Together, we will harness the power of Trulla to lower costs and achieve a centralized and efficient pharmacy procurement process." The Trulla platform has been positively reviewed by KLAS research and has earned recognition in the 2023 KLAS Emerging Solutions Top 20 Report. Trulla was ranked in the annual listing as the third-best overall solution for reducing the cost of care in healthcare. Among all pharmacy-centric solutions, Trulla achieved the highest overall ranking, further emphasizing its significant impact and leadership in the pharmacy segment.The partnership between Froedtert Health and Trulla marks an exciting phase for both organizations, as they collaborate to optimize pharmacy procurement practices and create a more cost-effective and streamlined system.About SpendMendSpendMend is a leading provider of tech-enabled, cost-savings solutions in the healthcare industry. Combining the use of data, proprietary technology, and rigorous analytics with its healthcare focus and expertise, SpendMend partners with healthcare networks to expose the dark data to improve and optimize their costs in meaningful and collaborative ways. SpendMend's mission is to help its clients improve their patient care through innovative cost-savings solutions.About Froedtert HealthFroedtert Health is a Milwaukee, Wisconsin-based, integrated health care system providing a variety of health-related services, including hospitals and health centers, home care, laboratory, health insurance, employer health services and workplace clinics, and digital health solutions. In 2024, Froedtert Health and ThedaCare became one organization, making it possible for the health network to enhance access to care for more people in Wisconsin.Contact InformationKylee SavageMarketing Managerksavage@ spendmend.com 616-257-8331Related ImagesFroedtertSpendMendSOURCE: SpendMendView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 23:25:23

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VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Temas Resources Corp. ("Temas" or the "Company") (CSE:TMAS);(OTCQB:TMASF) announced today the resignation of director Rory Kutluoglu and the appointment of Veronique Laberge to fill the vacancy on the Company's board of directors effective immediately.Rory Kutluoglu had served as a director of the Company from 2020. The Company would like to take this opportunity to thank Mr. Kutluoglu for his valuable contributions during his tenure."We are grateful for Rory Kutluoglu's significant contributions during his time on Temas' board of directors and wish him all the best with his future endeavors," said Tim Fernbeck, CEO of Temas. "We are excited to announce the appointment of Veronique Laberge to fill this vacancy. Veronique brings a wealth of financial experience across both public and private companies that will prove invaluable as we continue to execute on our strategic plans." Ms. Veronique Laberge is a Chartered Professional Accountant and holder of the title of auditor. With more than 18 years of experience in professional practice, she specialized in certification mandates, general accounting and has been working as a fractional CFO for multiple public and private companies since 2018.The Company also announces the grant of 125,000 options to Ms. Laberge with 25% vesting on December 13, 2024 and the balance vesting in equal portions every 6 months thereafter. The options have a strike price of $0.29 and a term of 48 months.About Temas ResourcesTemas Resources Corp. is focused on the advanced La Blache and Lac Brule Iron-Titanium-Vanadium projects in Quebec. The critical metals the Company is exploring for are key to our national mineral independence. Additionally, the Company invests in and works to apply its green mineral recovery technologies across its mining portfolio to reduce the environmental impact and carbon footprint of metal extraction through advanced processing and patented leaching technologies.All public filings for the Company can be found on the SEDAR+ website www.sedarplus.ca . For more information about the Company, please visit www.temasresources.com For further information or investor relations inquiries: Tim FernbackPresident and CEOtfernback@ shaw.ca orKIN Communications Inc.Tel: 604-684-6730 tmas@ kincommunications.com Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements Neither the Canadian Securities Exchange nor the Market Regulator (as that term is defined in the policies of the Canadian Securities Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.SOURCE: Temas Resources Corp.
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CHICAGO, IL and VANCOUVER, BC / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / The Planting Hope Company Inc. (TSXV:MYLK)(OTCQB:MYLKF)(FRA:J94) ("Planting Hope" or the "Company"), a dynamic Foodtech innovation company dedicated to creating breakthrough delicious, sustainable food and beverage solutions through cutting-edge ingredients, formulation, and packaging technology, announces that it will implement a strategic review of the business (the "Review") to position the Company for the future by focusing in on core activities that are expected to drive long-term, sustainable growth. Under the Review, the Company has established, on an interim basis, an Office of the CEO ("Office") led directly by three independent board directors of the Company, Kevin Phelps, Scott Carter, and Qing Meyerson. The Company expects to substantially complete the Review during the next several months. As part of this Review, the Company intends to consider potential commercial alliance partnerships, including distribution opportunities for its products, and may divest certain assets in order to focus on its most compelling opportunities.Interim leadership transition:Concurrent with the implementation of its Review, the Company today also announced the following leadership changes:Julia Stamberger, Founder, CEO, and Chairman of the Board is appointed to a new role as President and continues as a Board Director. In the near-term Julia will focus on driving business development, brand development, and customer-facing initiatives to support the Company's strategic growth opportunities.Kevin Phelps, Board Director and Audit Committee Chairman, is appointed as Chairman of the Board in addition to supporting the Finance and Governance functions of the Office.Scott Carter, and Qing Meyerson, Directors, will support the commercial operations of the Company and the Review, respectively.During the Review Julia Stamberger, Founder, and President, Susan Walters-Flood, COO, Tony Sansone, CFO, James Curley, EVP Sales, and Mary Barrett, SVP of Strategic Partnerships will report directly to the Office.Shelley Diamond has resigned from the Company's board of directors for personal reasons effective as of June 11, 2024. The Company's leadership thanks Shelley for her services to the shareholders of the Company in her role as a board member since August 2021.The Company believes that this Review is important to position it for long-term, sustainable growth and improve overall competitiveness in today's market."We believe that market opportunities for our products are bigger than ever: in 2023, plant milk has reached a staggering 44% household penetration in the United States, with 78% repeat purchase rates. Foodservice is catching up to consumer demand, with year-over-year plant milk sales up 21% in dollars and 18% in volume*," said Julia Stamberger, Planting Hope Founder and President. "Meanwhile, global food and beverage R&D and innovation dollars have been dramatically reduced, resulting in little meaningful competitive innovation. This strategic review process is intended to focus our resources on our largest opportunities, particularly our flagship Hope and Sesame Sesamemilk." *Data sourced from the Plant Based Food Association (PBFA), including reports: "Plant-Based Foods: 2022 Regional Insights (May 2024)" and "Plant-Based Foods State of The Marketplace 2023 (May 2024)"About The Planting Hope Company Inc.Planting Hope is reimagining and reinventing food today so that our planet can feed 10 billion people tomorrow. A Foodtech-driven company at the forefront of sustainable consumer food and beverage evolution, Planting Hope transforms nutrient-dense, widely cultivated crops into innovative, nutrient-rich products that reimagine pantry staples in the largest, fastest growing global food categories.Explore more at plantinghopecompany.com , sign up for Planting Hope news emails HERE and follow us on LinkedIn.For Planting Hope product sales and distribution opportunities, please contact James Curley, EVP of Sales, atjames@ plantinghopecompany.com ContactsInvestor Relations Contact:Tony Sansone, CFO(773) 492-2243 ir@ plantinghopecompany.com Industry and Business Development Contact:Julia Stamberger, President & Founder(773) 492-2243 ir@ plantinghopecompany.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 news release.Forward-Looking StatementsThis news release contains "forward-looking statements" or "forward-looking information" (collectively referred to hereafter as "forward-looking statements") within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. All statements that address activities, events, or developments that the Company expects or anticipates will, or may, occur in the future, including, but not limited to, statements about the Company's ability to execute on its goals, the timing pertaining to these goals, the potential demand for the Company's products, the timing and success of anticipated product launches and distribution of the Company's products, the Company's business prospects, future trends, plans, scalability and strategies, that the Company will achieve profitability in the next few years, the timing of the Company's implementation of NetSuite, the effect and benefits of the Review, the effect and benefits of the changes in leadership of the Company, and the Company's key growth priorities for 2024 . Generally, but not exclusively, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved".. In preparing the forward-looking statements in this news release, the Company has relied on several material assumptions, including, but not limited to, the assumption that demand for the Company's product will be sustained or increase in accordance with management's projections, that the Company's internal research and analysis is indicative of broader market trends and the Company's anticipated future demand for its products, that the Review will yield positive results for the Company, that the changes in leadership of the Compan
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Do you, or did you, own shares of The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company (NYSE: SMG)?Did you purchase your shares between November 3, 2021 and August 1, 2023, inclusive?Did you lose money in your investment in The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company?Do you want to discuss your rights?NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / 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 The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company ("Scotts" or the "Company") (NYSE:SMG) between November 3, 2021 and August 1, 2023, inclusive (the "Class Period"). The lawsuit was filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio 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 Scotts common stock, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company 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 thanAugust 5, 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 made numerous materially false and misleading statements and omissions concerning the Company's inventory levels, debt covenant compliance, and financial performance. Specifically, Defendants repeatedly assured investors that the Company's inventory levels were appropriate, while attributing strong sales to "selling through high-cost inventory," which resulted in "peak selling" and "record" shipments. Defendants also repeatedly assuaged investors' concerns about the Company's debt, stating that they were "optimistic we will remain within the bounds of our bank covenants" and "[did] not see leverage compliance issues going forward." On August 2, 2023, Scotts revealed that quarterly sales for its fiscal third quarter had declined by 6%, and that gross margins fell by 420 basis points. The Company also slashed fiscal year EBITDA guidance by a staggering 25% and announced a $20 million write down of "pandemic driven excess inventories." The Company also disclosed that it had to modify its debt covenants to 7.00 times debt-to-EBITDA ratio, from the former ratio of 6.25 times debt-to-EBITDA ratio.On this news, Scotts' stock price fell $13.58 per share, or over 19%, to close at $57.86 per share on August 2, 2023.If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later thanAugust 5, 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.If you purchased or acquired Scotts common stock, and/or would like to discuss your legal rights and options please visit The Scotts Miracle-Gro Company 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 Allocco Investor Relations ManagerBernstein Liebhard LLP https://www.bernlieb.com (212) 951-2030 pallocco@ bernlieb.com SOURCE: Bernstein Liebhard LLP
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Sale of BioPharma subsidiary is a key component of Think's strategic plan to refocus on core software assets.Divestiture will drive enhanced product innovation and support improved customer service.TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Think Research Corporation ("Think Research" or the "Company"), a company focused on transforming healthcare through digital health software solutions, is pleased to announce that its subsidiary, BioPharma Services ("BioPharma"), has been sold to HEALWELL AI. The sale is a key component of Think's strategic plan to sharpen its focus on its core software and content business and enhance its customer service offerings.Committed to revolutionizing healthcare with innovative technology and evidence-based solutions, the divestiture of BioPharma enables Think to dedicate more resources to improving healthcare access and supporting healthcare professionals in making informed clinical decisions with our state-of-the-art digital health tools.Sachin Aggarwal, CEO of Think Research said, "We are excited about this strategic move. The sale of BioPharma enables us to operate more adeptly and effectively, empowering us to focus on enhancing our core suite of products and innovations to better respond to our customers' evolving needs." BioPharma is a leading contract research organization (CRO) specializing in Phase 1 clinical trials, and was initially acquired by Think in 2021. Focusing on scientific integrity, operational excellence, and adaptive processes tailored to each client's needs, BioPharma Services has established a reputation for delivering high-quality results in the pharmaceutical and biotech industries.The sale marks a significant step in Think's mission to transform healthcare and support informed clinical decisions. Think remains fully committed to upholding its existing contracts, privacy obligations, and data security standards. Clients can expect a seamless continuation of services without any disruption.About Think Research CorporationThink Research Corporation is an industry leader in delivering knowledge-based digital health software solutions. The Company's focused mission is to organize the world's health knowledge so everyone gets the best care. Its evidence-based healthcare technology solutions support the clinical decision-making process and standardization of care to facilitate better healthcare outcomes. The Company gathers, develops, and delivers knowledge-based solutions globally to customers including enterprise clients, hospitals, health regions, healthcare professionals, and/or governments. The Company has gathered a significant amount of data by building its repository of knowledge through its network and group of companies.Think licenses its solutions to over 14,200 facilities for over 320,000 primary care, acute care, and long-term care doctors, nurses and pharmacists that rely on the content and data provided by Think to support their practices. Millions of patients and residents annually receive better care due to the essential data that Think produces, manages and delivers.For further information: Mark Sakamoto, Executive Vice President, Think Research Corporation, Direct: 416.388.7119, mark.sakamoto@thinkresearch.com SOURCE: Think Research
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 19:30:20

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Introduces targeted development and performance review enhancements to revolutionize employee feedbackPALO ALTO, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / ThriveSparrow , the all-in-one employee success platform, is announcing the launch of its comprehensiveAction Plansdesigned to empower managers to act swiftly on employee feedback and enhance workplace motivation and engagement.ThriveSparrow logo According to a recent Gallup study, employee engagement in the U.S. has plummeted to its lowest level in over a decade, dropping to 30% in 2024 from 36% in 2020. This stark decline highlights the urgent need for organizations to tackle disengagement before it exacerbates issues like quiet quitting and resenteeism.Empowering Managers with Actionable InsightsGanesh Ravi Shankar, the business unit head of ThriveSparrow, underscores the severity of this trend: "Employee disengagement is a critical issue that can no longer be ignored. Our new Action Plans are designed to close the feedback loop effectively, ensuring that employee voices lead to tangible improvements." He further adds that a successful implementation of this can ensure that employees feel valued and that there's a clear path for their advancement.Leveraging Advanced AI for Sentiment Analysis with integration with 50+ platformsTo further refine the feedback process, ThriveSparrow is launching its advancedAI-driven employee sentiment analysis . This tech provides detailed text insights into employee sentiments and perceptions, pinpointing areas that need attention and opportunities for improvement and taking data-driven decisions.By leveraging these insights, managers can close the feedback loop more effectively than ever before. ThriveSparrow also hasintegrations with over 50 platforms . This extensive integration network includes HRMS, payroll systems, and other essential tools, allowing for seamless data import and streamlined workflows.Breaking Free from Traditional Performance ReviewsThriveSparrow is on a mission to disrupt the conventional approach to performance reviews. A Forbes study reveals that 66.6% of managers feel the need for greater clarity in their roles, increased support in performance management, and assistance in guiding employees' career development.And ThriveSparrow aims to bridge this gap, offering managers the tools and insights they need to drive performance and employee success. By extending Action Plans to performance reviews, it is set to transform the entire performance management processes, facilitating continuous succession planning, performance improvement plans, and targeted development.About ThriveSparrowThriveSparrow is an all-in-one employee success suite by SurveySparrow. With a global presence and a client base that includes major corporations like Honda, Grant Thornton, and McDonald's, ThriveSparrow is at the forefront of transforming how businesses manage employee experiences. SurveySparrow's 360-degree performance review module exemplifies its commitment to redefining organizational performance. Serving over 200K customers across 149+ countries, it offers an extensive suite of tools to cater to diverse engagement needs.Contact InformationVishak VijayanMarketing, ThriveSparrowmedia@ thrivesparrow.com Ganesh KumarMarketing Manager, SurveySparrowmedia@ surveysparrow.com SOURCE: ThriveSparrowView the original press release on newswire.com
PR-Inside.com: 2024-06-13 16:00:53

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NEW YORK, NY / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC is investigating potential claims on behalf of purchasers of Toyota Motor Corp Ltd Ord ("Toyota" or "the Company") (NYSE:TM). Investors who purchased Toyota securities are encouraged to obtain additional information and assist the investigation by visiting the firm's site: bgandg.com/TM Investigation Details:On June 3, 2024, The New York Times published an article, "Toyota and Other Japanese Carmakers Say They Mishandled Safety Tests" which stated that "Toyota Motor [. . .] and other top Japanese automakers said on Monday that internal investigations found they had mishandled vehicle testing on dozens of models over the past decade." The article continued to state that "Toyota said it had failed to gather proper data when doing pedestrian and occupant safety tests for three models, including its popular Yaris Cross sport utility vehicle." Following this news, Toyota American Depositary Shares ("ADSs") fell by $5.34 per ADS, or 2.5%, to close at $212.17 on June 3, 2024.What's Next?If you are aware of any facts relating to this investigation or purchased Toyota securities, you can assist this investigation by visiting the firm's site: bgandg.com/TM . You can also contact Peretz Bronstein or his client relations manager, Nathan Miller, of Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC: 332-239-2660.There is No Cost to YouWe represent investors in class actions on a contingency fee basis. That means we will ask the court to reimburse us for out-of-pocket expenses and attorneys' fees, usually a percentage of the total recovery, only if we are successful.Why Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman:Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLC is a nationally recognized firm that represents investors in securities fraud class actions and shareholder derivative suits. Our firm has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for investors nationwide.Attorney advertising. Prior results do not guarantee similar outcomes.CONTACT: Bronstein, Gewirtz & Grossman, LLCPeretz Bronstein or Nathan Miller,332-239-2660 | info@ bgandg.com SOURCE: Bronstein, Gewirtz and Grossman, LLC
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YORK, ENGLAND / ACCESSWIRE / June 13, 2024 / The University of York has selected Alces Flight to enhance the operation of its High-Performance Computing (HPC) infrastructure while significantly reducing its carbon footprint. This collaboration aims to upgrade the capabilities of the Viking 2 cluster, which is essential for York's research in diverse fields such as Crystal Structure Prediction and Person-specific Automatic Speaker Recognition.Woman adjusting microscope A woman with lab gear adjusts a microscope which is pointed at a petri dish.Viking 2, the University's HPC cluster, currently supports over 3,500 applications and achieves 75% utilisation across more than 880 users. This state-of-the-art infrastructure is pivotal in advancing research, especially in structural biology through the use of revolutionary cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM). Cryo-EM enables scientists to study the architecture of cells, viruses, and protein assemblies at molecular resolution, leading to groundbreaking discoveries.Dr. Emma Barnes, Head of Research and Faculty IT at the University of York, stated: "This collaboration enables our experts in engineering, biological sciences, and artificial intelligence to process data and perform complex tasks at high speeds. It also ensures that our research IT infrastructure is both sustainable and accessible. The advanced capabilities of Viking 2 have already propelled projects like our cutting-edge work in cryo-EM, which is revealing new insights into molecular structures." The Viking 2 cluster is located in Sweden and hosted in partnership with EcoDataCenter, which specialises in data centres that prioritise renewable energy and heat capture and reuse. This aligns with the University's commitment to sustainability and reducing its carbon emissions. By leveraging EcoDataCenter's environmentally friendly facilities, the University of York aims to meet its goal of achieving net-zero emissions on campus by 2050.Michael Rudgyard, CEO of Alces Flight, stated: "Our long-standing relationship with the University of York allows us to support their commitment to achieving net-zero emissions. We are excited to be a part of their journey towards more sustainable and efficient research computing. The Viking 2 project is a testament to what can be achieved when cutting-edge technology meets a strong commitment to sustainability." Cristin Merrit, CMO of Alces Flight, added: "The focus on sustainability in High-Performance Computing is critical for the future of advanced research and technologies. We are thrilled to support the University of York's pioneering projects, including the transformative Viking 2 initiative. Our collaboration with EcoDataCenter ensures that we can deliver powerful computing resources while minimising environmental impact." Contact InformationCristin Merritt CMOcristin.merritt@alces-flight.com 01869 249065SOURCE: Alces Flight LtdView the original press release on newswire.com
On 7 December, Ghanaians will vote for a new president and 275 Members of Parliament. This will be the countrys ninth consecutive election since returning to constitutional rule in 1992.

Ghana is renowned in West Africa for democracy and political stability partly because disputes over the results of two of these elections (2012 and 2020) were resolved through the law courts. Also, power has peacefully alternated between the countrys two main political parties, the ruling New Patriotic Party (NPP) and the opposition National Democratic Congress (NDC), three times  in 2001, 2009 and 2017.

However, the NDC says the NPP plans to rig the elections, and the two parties disagree on the neutrality of the Electoral Commission (EC) and the courts and security services. This could lead to violence and instability. Already, pre-election rhetoric is heating up, with both parties making divisive statements on campaign platforms.

This has always characterised Ghanaian elections, but the 2024 polls are being organised amid heightened suspicion stemming particularly from developments regarding the EC and the fallout from the 2020 ballots, whose results the NDC rejected.

The contest for the presidency is mainly between Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia of the NPP and former President John Mahama of the NDC. The stakes for both are high as the NPP seeks to win a third term, and Mr Mahama and the NDC want to avoid a third consecutive defeat.

Outgoing President Nana Akufo-Addo says he only wants to hand over power to an NPP president. Food and Agriculture Minister Bryan Acheampong also previously said the ruling party would not hand over power to the NDC.

The NDCs Mr Mahama called the elections a do or die affair  one the party had to win. The partys youth echoed this and accused state institutions of bias.

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The NDC believes the NPP could execute its alleged rigging plans through the EC. Mistrust is based on Mr Akufo-Addos dismissal of the Mr Mahama-appointed former EC chair Charlotte Osei and her two deputies in 2018 and the appointment of a new chair and several other commissioners perceived to have NPP leanings. This was reiterated by several civil society representatives and independent experts interviewed by the Institute for Security Studies.

The NPP says these appointments were subject to consultations with the Council of State, a bipartisan body of eminent Ghanaians who advise the president on national issues and received parliamentary approval. But those of the deputy chair and another commissioner, both of whom the NDC stated were patrons of the NPPs student wing, have proven controversial.

Adding to the mistrust is last months alleged theft of biometric voter registration kits from the ECs custody. While the EC says only seven laptops, and not whole kits (including cameras and printers), went missing, several interviewees expressed concern over its lack of communication on the incident. Not to mention the potential for such kits to be used for illegal voter registration.

This comes against a backdrop of errors and changes in the ECs tabulation of the 2020 election results. Although the EC interdicted staff suspected of being involved (they were also arrested and are standing trial), this raises suspicion over the integrity of the electoral roll and could set the stage for a clash over the results.

Also causing mistrust is the ECs decision to limit first-time voters registration from 729 May to fewer than 2,000 registration centres countrywide, largely based on logistical and resource constraints. Although these include 785 additional ones in remote areas, it raises concerns about accessibility and potential disenfranchisement. Mistakes in the publication of some registration figures, which the EC later corrected, have deepened these concerns.

Another issue is the ECs handling of the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC), a group of political parties, civil society representatives, and development partners serving as a consultation platform. Some interviewees said IPAC meetings hadnt been consultative as the EC treated IPAC meetings as a means of sharing information and not for consultation and consensus building. This resulted in the NDC boycotting IPAC meetings for nearly three years until National Peace Council mediation efforts led to its return last December.

The law courts could arbitrate if the results are disputed, as in 2012 and 2020. But the NDC and NPP have clashed over their independence too. In 2021, Mr Mahama criticised the Supreme Courts unanimous ruling that upheld Akufo-Addos second-term victory. He says he wont go to the court to settle another disputed outcome  claiming Mr Akufo-Addos appointment of judges means the NDC would not get justice. This notwithstanding the 2013 ruling that upheld Mr Mahamas election, which Mr Akufo-Addo and the NPP challenged.

The NDC often accuses the judiciary of being biased. One interviewee reiterated this view, criticising several high-profile rulings, even by appellate and other lower courts, as political and favouring the NPP.

Mistrust of the EC and judiciary are compounded by a perception by the opposition and some of civil society that Ghanas law enforcement and security institutions may not be neutral in the elections. This is a recurrent problem as both the NDC and NPP, while in opposition, have questioned the neutrality of these institutions, forming vigilante groups to provide security.

Following a public outcry over violence during a 2019 parliamentary by-election, the Vigilantism and Related Offences Act (Act 999) was passed to ban these groups. Even so, independent experts say theyve merely gone underground and could easily be activated by the parties.

As Ghana prepares for its elections, domestic stakeholders and the countrys partners should work to reduce suspicion and mistrust. The EC should adopt a more consultative approach and ensure greater transparency and better communication with the parties to build trust and confidence. This is critical in a context where several interviewees have identified disinformation as a potential source of violence.

The NPP and NDC should be careful about what they say, ensuring campaign statements promote peace and inclusive dialogue. The National Peace Council should strengthen its mediation and dialogue efforts while working to better sensitise parties and other stakeholders on their mandate.

Sampson Kwarkye, Project Manager and Seydou Daffe, Junior Fellow, Institute for Security Studies (ISS) Regional Office for West Africa, the Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin

(This article was published by ISS Today, a Premium Times syndication partner. We have their permission to republish).

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The Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) on Wednesday offered free health care services to more than 1,000 residents of Kuje Area Council in the capital city.

It was part of the activities to mark the 25th Democracy Day Anniversary and the first anniversary of President Bola Tinubu in office.

The programme, tagged: Renewed Hope Free Medical Outreach, according to the organisers was launched to address the alarming rates of maternal and infant mortality, and other major health concerns in the nations capital.

Organised by Health Services and Environment Secretariat FCTA, the intervention was supported by Smart Gas- a private firm.

Representing the Minister for State for the FCT, Mariya Mahmoud, the Mandate Secretary, FCTAs Health Services and Environment Secretariat, Adedolapo Fasawe, noted that the special healthcare services would not end at the outreach venues, but extended to all the healthcare facilities across the Abuja rural communities.

She said the initiative was informed by President Bola Tinubus commitment to improving health indices nationwide.

Outreach

The services provided during the outreach included free consultations, medications, blood pressure and blood sugar screenings, and HIV screening and counselling.

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They also provided basic antenatal care, conducted eye tests, minor surgeries, and nutritional education for infants, and distributed 500 gas cylinders.

Medical experts, including doctors, nurses, and pharmacists, were also available to attend to the patients.

Mrs Fasawe said: Here today, we have six different departments- antenatal care for pregnant women, general out-patients care, paediatrics, eye and dental care. We also have health insurance that will guarantee that even after today, you will continue to have access to health.

This government plans to renew hope. We have over 1,000 people here and we have assured them that our doctors and services are very fast.

It is renewed hope for all. The government of President Tinubu is working to ensure that our health indices improve. It is not acceptable to us anymore for a woman to die because of pregnancy or labour complications.

Mr Tinubu had in 2023, restated his administrations commitment to revitalising Nigerias health sector through significant investments and increased funding in the proposed 2024 budget.

The president noted this at the launch of the Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative and the signing of the Health Renewal Compact in Abuja.

In his remarks, he emphasised that improved healthcare is a cornerstone of his Renewed Hope promise to Nigerians.

More comments

The Chairman of Kuje Area Council, Abdullahi Sabo, described the intervention as laudable. He was represented by his Chief of Staff, Suleiman Sabo.

We are glad that this important programme is brought to our domain. We are indeed delighted by this administrations developmental projects, the chairman said.

The organisers thanked Mr Tinubu for allowing them to embark on the programme to ensure that a safe and healthy environment is put in place for everyone.

The Gomo of Kuje, Haruna Jibrin, also noted that the outreach was the first of its kind in Kuje Area Council, and we thank God for that.

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The House of Representatives Committee on National Security and Intelligence has asked the federal government to immediately purchase new aeroplanes for the use of President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima.

The Committee made the call in a report issued after its technical subcommittee conducted a hearing on the status and airworthiness of aircraft in the Presidential Air Fleet (PAF).

The Committee is of the strong and informed opinion that considering the fragile structure of the Nigerian federation and recognising the dire consequences of any foreseen or unforeseen mishap that may arise as a result of technical/operational inadequacy of the Presidential Air Fleet, it is in the best interest of the country to procure two additional aircraft as recommended, the report read in part.

This will also prove to be most cost-efficient in the long run apart from the added advantage of providing a suitable, comfortable and safe carrier befitting of the status and responsibilities of the office of the president and vice president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

PREMIUM TIMES exclusively obtained the report, signed by the Committees chairperson, Ahmed Satomi, and clerk, Makwe Eric. Some lawmakers say the document has since been forwarded to the presidency for action.

A troubled Presidential Air Fleet

According to the report, the presidential fleet has six aircraft: one Boeing 737, a Gulfstream G550, a Gulfstream GV, two Falcon 7Xs, and a Challenger CL605. The committee said three of the aircraft were unserviceable as of the time it conducted its hearing.

In addition, the fleet has six helicopters: two Agusta 139s and four Agusta 189s. The committee, quoting the Commander of the Presidential Air Fleet, Olayinka Oyesola, an Air Vice Marshal, said the two Agusta 139s are currently unserviceable.

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The committee states that the presidents 19-year-old Boeing 737 is unserviceable and currently undergoing annual maintenance. Conversely, the vice presidents 13-year-old Gulfstream G550 is in good condition.

Also, the Gulfstream GV is 23 years old and currently unserviceable. One of the Falcon 7Xs is serviceable, while the other is not.

The Challenger CL605 is 12 years old and serviceable. The Agusta 139 helicopters, classified as unserviceable, are 17 and 18 years old, respectively.

In its recommendations, the Committee said the cost of maintaining aged aircraft is high, leading to longer aircraft downtime and higher fleet running costs. The panel said buying new aircraft for the countrys top leaders is the best option.

Former President Muhammadu Buhari had promised to significantly reduce the number of planes in the fleet by selling off some of the aircraft. However, that did not happen. Instead, the government increased the cost of running the fleet by 190 per cent between 2016 and 2020, a report by this paper in 2020 showed.

By 2022, the government stated it was spending between $1.5 million and $4.5 million on each planes maintenance.

The Presidential Fleet and a heated debate

On March 23, the chair of the House Committee on National Security and Intelligence, Mr Satomi, moved a motion on the floor of the House to investigate the breakdown of planes in the presidential fleet. He cited the reported malfunction of Mr Tinubus plane during a trip to the Netherlands and Mr Shettimas cancellation of a U.S. trip after his aircraft broke down.

Some lawmakers, notably opposition members, vehemently opposed the motion. After heated deliberations on the matter, the Houses Deputy Speaker, Ben Kalu, who presided over the session, ruled that the motion should be withdrawn and asked Mr Satomi to exercise his committees discretion to probe the fleets status.

On 20 May, members of the Committee conducted an investigative hearing during which they received briefings from M. Galadima, a major general and director at the Office of the National Security Adviser; the commander of the Presidential Air Fleet, Olayinka Oyesola (air vice marshall); M.M. Abdullahi, a group captain and the PAF fleet logistics officer.

Based on the submission from the ONSA officials, the committee resolved at the end of the session that the government should prioritize the presidents and other VIPs safety when overhauling the presidential air fleet.

The committee also constituted a five-member panel to liaise with ONSA to determine the status and airworthiness of all aircraft in the PAF. The panel completed its assignment on 4 June, issuing a report that strongly argued for the replacement of the aircraft currently being used by President Tinubu and his deputy.

The panel said a new aircraft befitting the office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria should be procured, taking into consideration the countrys leading role in the West African, African, and global scheme of affairs.

That for ease of administration and in order to guarantee a secure and dedicated main and backup fleet for the office of the president at all times, it is recommended that a new aircraft akin to Air Force Two of the USA be procured for the office of the vice president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the subcommittee added. This can also serve the office of the presiding officers of the National Assembly, the Chief Justice of Nigeria, etc., as appropriate.

The larger committee accepted those recommendations and has since forwarded its advisory to the presidency for necessary action.

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For most graduates, the pinnacle of joy is holding their tertiary education certificate and cherishing it for years to come.

For actress and skit maker Chinwe Splendor, however, this might be short-lived.

Like other graduates, what ought to be Ms Splendors forever joy turned to turmoil after her infamous interview on Chijioke Yanbaba Comedian Igwendus Gbam podcast, wherein she disclosed her controversial path to graduation.

Ms Splendors decision to appear on the podcast and share her life struggles backfired spectacularly after she revealed she slept with lecturers to pass her courses and recounted how she made all her papers without attending lectures for a year.

On the Gbam podcast shared on YouTube on 9 June 2024, the skit maker said she went into prostitution to support her university education due to her familys financial hardship.

Hours after her controversial interview, the management of the yet-to-be-identified university from which she graduated in Anambra State ordered the revocation of her certificate.

Although skit maker Splendor did not mention the name of the University she graduated frominformation on her Facebook page (Chinwe Splendor with 1.7 followers) showed she graduated from Nnamdi Azikiwe University in Awka, Anambra State.

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The video has ignited social media, with many criticising the skit maker and others blaming the university system.

Podcast analysis

Ms Splendour, a Mass Communication graduate, said she engaged in hook-ups (A Nigerian term for prostitution) when she had no other way to support herself as an undergraduate.

When I got admission into a university here in Anambra State [which Ill not name], there was no money; as I already said, my family was large, and there was no money. My parents were not well off. I went into prostitution and started associating with men to get my school fees. Ill advise parents who do not have the money to train their children in school to let them stay back because the university goes beyond paying acceptance fees and other expenses.

When I gained admission, I was managing until a point where there was no other way, and I had to go into prostitution. I have slept with many men in Anambra State. Sometimes, I didnt attend lectures because I was too tired from the previous days stress. Along the line, I looked for a way to cover up and started sleeping with lecturers. There was a particular year that I didnt attend lectures, but I passed all my papers. Although it wasnt easy, I didnt want to drop out. I slept with many lecturers and graduated with a good grade, she added.

She also claimed to know lecturers who could be easily seduced. According to her, she would visit the lecturers offices, seduce them, and then sleep with them.

The skit maker advised the undergraduate not to follow her example. Study diligently so you can defend your certificate anywhere, unlike me, as I cannot defend mine.

Aftermath

Ms Splendor posted a video on her Facebook page Tuesday stating that her alma mater sent her an email ordering the return of her certificate within forty-eight hours of receiving it.

She expressed her pain over the situation and questioned why she was being asked to return a certificate she had earned.

She claimed the school authorities demanded the return of the certificate because they believed she didnt deserve it.

Watch video

She said: I want to share something with you guys. The university I attended sent me an email demanding I return my certificate within 48 hours. I want to ask if this is right. That certificate, I earned it. I worked hard for it. Why should I return it? They emailed me to return a certificate for which I had worked so hard. I know many of my coursemates would also have to return their certificates. Im going through a lot. Im depressed.

But Im trying so hard to stay strong for myself. Im saying I earned this certificate, and Im reborn now. I have repented. I have changed. All these things are in the past now. They are all in the past, for crying out loud. Let the past be in the past. Im broken.

The skit maker insisted she would not return the certificate, stating that he worked hard for it and earned it.

Furthermore, Ms Splendor, during her infamous interview, alleged that all Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of real estate companies in Anambra State had engaged in sexual relations with all the female realtors in the state. She also claimed that 95 per cent of female realtors in the state were into hookups.

However, real estate CEOs and female realtors in viral footage refuted the allegations. They maintained that Ms Splendor was not a registered realtor of any real estate company in Anambra State.

Watch video

After the podcast went viral, the host was arrested over Ms Splendors allegations against the real estate CEOs. His wife (name undisclosed) confirmed her husbands arrest in a video shared on Aisha Odogwu Bubus Facebook page Thursday.

Watch video

Also, a real estate company in the state, Pool King Global Investment, terminated Yanbaba Comedians ambassador deal over the controversial podcast with Ms Splendor, who claimed she had slept with all the CEOs of real estate companies in the state.

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The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) on Wednesday reassured the public that the Nigerian banking sector remains safe and resilient.

This reassurance followed information being circulated in the public domain that more banking licenses would be revoked after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) took regulatory action against Heritage Bank Plc.

The CBN, on 3 June, revoked the licence of the bank, citing its violation of Section 12 (1) of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA), 2020.

The revocation of Heritage Banks licence was trailed by allegations that more banks would lose their operating licences, causing fear among customers.

But the CBN has since debunked the claims.

The CBN unequivocally states that these allegations are false and intended to trigger panic in the financial system, a statement by Hakama Ali, Acting Director of Corporate Communications, read.

CIBN speaks

In a statement signed by its President/Chairperson of Council, Pius Olanrewaju, the CIBN allayed the fears of bank customers and the general public, stating that such assertions were false and misleading.

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We would like to allay the fears of bank customers and the generality of the public that the assertion is false and misleading, the statement said.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) have debunked the claim. The ongoing recapitalization process announced by the CBN is also aimed at further strengthening the resilience of the Nigerian banks and their capacity to support the envisaged growth of the Nigerian economy.

The CIBN urged the public to continue conducting their banking services without hesitation or apprehension.

As the umbrella professional body for banks and bankers in Nigeria, the CIBN said it is in collaboration with other stakeholders in the ecosystem, remaining committed to promoting best practices and ensuring the banking sectors safety.

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The Chief of Defence Staff, Christopher Musa, has accused the Finnish government and the European Union of shielding Simon Ekpa, a controversial Biafra agitator.

The alleged cover has enabled Mr Ekpa to continue to incite, through social media, violence in Nigerias South-east state, Mr Musa said.

Mr Musa, a major general, spoke on Wednesday during Channels TVs special broadcast to mark Nigerias 25 years of democratic governance.

Mr Ekpa, a factional leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), is a dual citizen of Nigeria and Finland.

The Biafra agitator, who is based in Finland, has been accused of fuelling insecurity in south-east Nigeria.

He has continued to issue sit-at-home orders in the region, during which defaulting residents are usually killed or attacked by gunmen enforcing the illegal order.

The Nigerian government had indicated its intention to extradite Mr Ekpa to Nigeria to face prosecution. Still, the plan has not seen the light of the day.

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Finnish govt is supporting him

Speaking during the programme on Channels TV, Mr Musa said the Finnish government appears to be supporting the Biafra agitator in his alleged terrorist activities in the South-east.

We have repeatedly complained about the issue of Simon Ekpa. He is in Finland, and the Finnish government is giving him all the support, and he is doing what he is doing, he said.

The chief of defence staff called on the Nigerian government to arrest and prosecute Mr Ekpa for his alleged roles in the worsening insecurity in the countrys South-east.

We have said that in clear terms. We need to diplomatically find a means of getting him out of whatever it is that he is doing. He must be arrested, (and) he must be prosecuted, he said.

Suspicious silence

Mr Musa said the silence of the European Union was suspicious considering the security threats posed by Mr Ekpa in the South-east.

This is democracy. If the European Union is supporting democracy and this is happening and they are not taking action, then they dont mean well for Nigeria.

Look at it from the other way. Assuming he (Ekpa) is in Nigeria, he is doing that to the Finnish government, do you think the European Union will allow that to happen? They definitely will not. So why are they allowing him to do what hes doing? he said.

People are being killed

Mr Musa suggested that the arrest of Mr Ekpa has become imperative given that his utterances on social media were leading to further attacks and killings in the region.

As a result of Mr Ekpas comments on social media, Mr Musa said, People are being killed and nothing is being done.

The chief of defence staff asked the Nigerian government to take decisive action, including exploring diplomatic options to stop the Biafra agitator.

What were doing to stop Simon Ekpa

Mr Musa said the military has been working with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) to stop those sending funds from outside Nigeria to sponsor insecurity in the South-east.

Stopping the funds is very critical. I know the CBN and the NFIU are doing a lot in tracking down how the funds flow. And this is part of what we call the oxygen of terrorism, he said.

The chief of defence staff noted that a lack of political will was affecting the fight against terrorism in Nigeria.

He called on the state governments to join hands with the federal government to fight terrorism and other forms of criminality in the country.

Action must follow legislation

The Finnish Ambassador to Nigeria, Leena Pylvanainen, did not respond to calls and text messages seeking her comments on Thursday.

However, in February 2023, Nigerias Ministry of Foreign Affairs summoned Mrs Pylvanainen over a threat by Mr Ekpa to disrupt the Nigerian 2023 general elections.

Geoffrey Onyeama, Nigerias then-Minister of Foreign Affairs, had in the meeting with the Finnish ambassador, asked for the cooperation of the Finnish government to arrest Mr Ekpas threats to disrupt the exercise.

However, Mrs Pylvanainen said that although the Finnish government was concerned about the situation, there was a need to, consider Mr Ekpas rights given that he is a Finnish citizen.

So, everything has to obviously be done according to Finnish legislation, she stated.

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Gunmen in Akwa Ibom State, south-south Nigeria, have kidnapped a retired secondary school principal, Ezekiel Paul.

Mr Paul, who is a brother to the Archbishop of the African Church, Uyo Province, was kidnapped on Sunday morning at his country home, Ikot Abasi Akpan in Mkpat Enin Local Government Area of the state.

The police spokesperson in the state, Timfon John, confirmed the incident to PREMIUM TIMES on telephone on Wednesday.

Ms John, an assistant superintendent of police, said the police were doing everything possible to ensure the release of the victim.

The police spokesperson denied knowledge of ransom demand by the kidnappers.

But the victims brother and archbishop of the African Church, Uyo province, Augustine Ikat, told PREMIUM TIMES that the kidnappers initially demanded N20 million as ransom.

The kidnappers, Mr Ikat said, called the victims daughter on Wednesday where they reduced the ransom to N5 million.

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Residents of Ekpene Ukpa Road  stretching from Ekparakwa in Oruk Anam Local Government Area through Mkpat Enin Local Government to Etinan Local Government Area are living in fear due to the activities of kidnappers in the area.

Gunmen have within the last three years carried out a series of abductions, collected huge ransoms and in some occasions killed their victims.

Within the span of three months in 2022, gunmen abducted four high profile persons including two clerics and a medical doctor and a party chieftain in the area. All the four kidnappings happened less than five kilometers apart.

In February 2022, gunmen invaded a cottage hospital in Ikot Ekpaw, Mkpat Enin LGA and abducted a medical doctor, Felix Ekpo.

Punch newspaper reported that the kidnappers stormed the hospital in the morning and made away with the doctor in his car.

Two months later  in April 2022  gunmen abducted John Okoriko, a televangelist and founder of Solid Rock Kingdom Church.

Mr Okoriko was abducted when gunmen invaded the headquarters of his church in his village, Ibekwe Akpanya in Mkpat Enin LGA, PREMIUM TIMES reported.

In May same year, gunmen kidnapped Alphonsus Eboh, a Catholic priest in the same community  Ikot Abasi Akpan  where Mr Paul was kidnapped on Sunday and demanded N100 million as ransom.

Then chairperson of the parish council, Cletus Okodi had told PREMIUM TIMES that the priest was kept in an unidentified forest in the area.

Mr Okodi, himself a kidnapped victim, did not disclose the amount the church paid before the priest was released.

Still in May 2022, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, Sylvester Ntefre, was shot dead by gunmen. The gunmen invaded his residence in Ekparakwa, along Abak-Ikot Abasi Road in a black SUV and shot continually to scare neighbours before abducting the man.

READ ALSO: Bandits release 40 kidnap victims in Niger State

About three months ago in March 2024, a liquor distributor, who was kidnapped at his office in Ekparakwa, died in captivity, Sun newspaper reported. Where his kidnap took place is meters away from where Mr Ntefre was later abducted in May,

Malcahy Ufot, a retired broadcaster with the Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria who was kidnapped by gunmen in October last year but released after he became unconscious in captivity, died the next day at a hospital in Uyo.

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One person has been confirmed dead while two others were rescued after a five-storey building collapsed in Onitsha, Onitsha North Local Government Area of Anambra State, Nigerias South-east.

PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that the five-storey building, which was still under construction, collapsed at about 3 a.m. on Wednesday.

The building was being constructed within the premises of Dennis Memorial Grammar School, Onitsha, a popular secondary school in the state.

The collapsed structure was being constructed by an association of old boys of the school to commemorate the centenary anniversary of the school.

Rescued exercise

PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that three workers were trapped by the collapsed building.

The report also inidicated that of the three workers trapped in the rubbles, one was rescued at about 7:42 p.m. on Wednesday.

Giving an update on Thursday morning, the Executive Secretary of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Paul Odenigbo, told PREMIUM TIMES that the remaining two workers were brought out from the rubbles hours later.

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The whole of the three people trapped by the collapsed building have now been brought out, Mr Odenigbo said.

But one of them was already dead when the rescue team brought him out, he added.

The SEMA boss said the third person was rescued at exactly 11:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

Mr Odenigbo said the two rescued workers were taken to an undisclosed hospital for treatment while the deceased victims body was taken to a morgue in the state.

He said the association of the schools old boys greatly helped in the rescue operation.

Some of them are engineers, doctors. Everybody really contributed greatly in the operation, he said.

The latest incident happened days after a three-storey building collapsed in Abia, another state in the South-east.

Of the five persons feared trapped by the building, at least two were said to have died as of the time of filing this report.

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The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) says two of its towers, T193 and T194, along the Damaturu Maiduguri 330 Kilo Volt (KV Single Circuit) transmission line have again been destroyed by vandals.

TCNS General Manager, Public Affairs, Ndidi Mbah, said this in a statement in Abuja on Wednesday.

According to Mrs Mbah, the incident happened at about 10:15 p.m. on Tuesday night, when the 150 Mega Volt Ampere (MVA) power transformer at Molai Substation tripped.

She said the tripping happened at the same time as the 330kV transmission line supplying bulk power to Maiduguri from Damaturu Transmission Substation.

After the line tripping, efforts were made by TCN engineers to close the Mulai  Damaturu line to enable bulk transmission of electricity, which failed repeatedly.

Early today, TCN lines engineers, along with security operatives, patrolled the line and discovered that towers 193 and 194 along the 330kV transmission line were brought down using an explosive device, which fragments were scattered at the site of the incident.

The area affected by this incident is Maiduguri and its environs,  she said.

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Mrs Mbah recalled that on 28 December 2023, towers T193, T194 and T195, were destroyed using similar improvised explosives.

She said two out of the towers in question, which were rebuilt after that incident, were affected by Tuesdays vandalism attack.

According to her, TCN is currently assessing the situation to decide the best approach to ensuring temporary restoration of the power supply while a contractor is mobilised to rebuild the two transmission towers.

We will continue to do everything possible with the assistance of security operatives to protect our transmission towers.

We are also calling upon the government and well-meaning Nigerians to join in the fight against the destruction of our collective national assets, she said. (NAN)

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The leader of the Tijjaniyya Islamic Movement, Mahi Nyass, has advised Lamido Sanusi to follow the example of his grandfather by rejecting his reinstatement as the Emir of Kano.

Mr Sanusi is the leader of the Tijjaniyyah movement in Nigeria. He was reinstated as the Emir of Kano late last month after the state government amended the emirate law to scrap four of the five emirates in the state and deposed Aminu Ado-Bayero as the Emir of Kano.

Mr Ado-Bayero is challenging his removal in court and has occupied the mini palace of the emir in defiance of directives by the state government.

But the Islamic sect, in a letter dated 3 June, signed by its supreme leader, Mr Nyass, and made available to Daily Trust Newspaper, urged Mr Sanusi to decline his reinstatement and follow the example of his grandfather, Muhammadu Sanusi, who reportedly rejected an offer for his reinstatement after he was similarly dethroned.

We, the family of Shaykhul Islam, Gausuzzaman, Qudwatuna ilaa Rabbina, Sheikh Ibrahim Nyass of Kaolack, Senegal, are compelled to speak out on the recent developments in the Kano Emirate, our proud state, as a centre of (the) Tijjaniya brotherhood.

The reinstatement of Khalifa Muhammad Sanusi II as Emir of Kano by the Kano State Government under the leadership of His Excellency, Executive Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, has raised concerns about the rule of law and the welfare of the citizenry.

We draw inspiration from the exemplary leadership of (the) late Khalifa Muhammad Sanusi, who refused to be swayed by personal interests and declined reinstatement after his dethronement. We therefore urge Khalifa Muhammad Sanusi to follow his grandfathers footsteps and prioritise the peace and stability of Kano.

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We kindly call on all to put the interest of the people first and work towards a peaceful resolution that is legally accepted. We pray for the divine guidance and wisdom for our leaders to reign in Kano State and Nigeria, the letter stated.

Mr Sanusi was appointed the leader of the Tijjaniyya Islamic Movement in Nigeria by the global headquarters of the movement in Koalack, Senegal.

Mr Sanusis grandfather, who was also Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi I, was the first leader of the sect in Nigeria.

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The Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) has issued a query to Ibrahim Lamuwa, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, over alleged sexual harassment reported against him.

Mr Lamuwa, who served as Nigerias Ambassador to Senegal with concurrent accreditation to Mauritania before his appointment as Permanent Secretary, was accused of sexually harassing Simisola Fajemirokun-Ajayi, an aide to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar.

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Mr Tuggar forwarded Mrs Fajemirokun-Ajayis petition which he received from her lawyers to the OHCSF for investigation.

While the minister is the overall head of the ministry who is responsible for policy implementation, the permanent secretary, next to him in hierarchy, is responsible for the running of the day-to-day affairs of the ministry.

Muhammed Ahmed, Deputy-Director of Communication in the OHCSF, on Wednesday in Abuja, confirmed that Mr Lamuwa has been queried over the matter.

Lamuwa was queried in accordance with the Civil Service rules and regulations, he told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

According to him, the query is to give the accused a fair hearing.

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His response will set the path for further necessary action.

He also hinted that there would be unhindered investigation into the alleged case of sexual harassment.

We are following the procedure in the civil service. The case shall be fully investigated, he said.

Permanent secretary denies allegations

But PREMIUM TIMES reported that Mr Lamuwa has since submitted his response to the petition, which he denied.

In the response sent to the office of the head of service, Mr Lamuwa addressed each alleged incident mentioned in the complainants petition, saying they were maliciously misconstrued as sexual harassment.

He also made a counter-accusation, alleging that Mrs Fajemirokun-Ajayis malicious claims against him were triggered by his constant rejection of her improper requests about the ministrys finances.

A particular instance, according to him, was when Mrs Fajemirokun-Ajayi, who is unfamiliar with civil service rules and processes, asked for access to policy files and even financial records of high-level ministry activities.

By no means should the permanent secretary, as chief accounting officer of the ministry, provide such sensitive documents to an aide of the minister, worse via a WhatsApp chat. There are due processes in government, and they must be followed.

We must emphasise that Mrs Fajemirokun-Ajayi is a political appointee, not a civil servant. Thus, finance and policy matters are out of her bounds in this instance, the letter read.

He argued that the petition was only shared online to gather public attention and sympathy for her unsubstantiated claims.

Complainants petition

PREMIUM TIMES reported that Mrs Fajemirokun-Ajayi alleged in her petition that Mr Lamuwas sexual harassment became so persistent and troubling to the point that she began to be apprehensive about getting raped, raising concerns about her safety in the workplace.

She alleged that Mr Lamuwas conduct created an unsafe work environment for her, especially as her roles required her to work closely with and report to him often.

According to her, the top official made inappropriate remarks and advances to her on different occasions, causing her to be apprehensive and uncomfortable with carrying out her duties.

One of such incidents, she said, occurred on 7 October 2023 when the permanent secretary inappropriately suggested to her to visit his hotel room at the end of President Bola Tinubus 4D policy review, an event which was ongoing at the time.

She said the top official initially approached her to inquire as to why she did not sleep at the hotel and then informed her that he would want her to come to his room after the event.

Our client explained that she was a nursing mother and needed to go home to care for her baby, her lawyers wrote.

(NAN)

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The police in Enugu State, South-east Nigeria, say they have killed two suspected members of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and its armed militant wing Eastern Security Network (ESN) in the state.

The police spokesperson in the state, Daniel Ndukwe, said this in a statement on Wednesday.

Mr Ndukwe, a deputy superintendent of police, said the suspects were killed at about 2 a.m. on Wednesday when police operatives raided their camp inside a forest in Igbo-Etiti Local Government Area of the state.

The spokesperson said operatives of the command serving at Igbo-Etiti Police Division carried out the operation in collaboration with members of a Neighborhood Watch Group in the area.

He said the operation was conducted in response to receipt of a tip-off that suspected IPOB and ESN members erected a camp in the area.

The criminals opened fire on the operatives upon sighting them.

However, the operatives returned fire at a superior level, forcing the criminals to escape with varying degrees of gunshot wounds, he said.

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Thereafter, two of the fleeing suspects bodies were discovered and recovered in the forest.

One AK-47 rifle, four magazines loaded with 75 live 7.62 mm calibre ammunition, and one Beretta pistol loaded with eight live 9 mm calibre ammunition were among items recovered from the suspects, according to the police.

Other recovered items were two motorcycles, one GTBank ATM card, a cash sum of N2,600 and several food items.

Numerous heinous crimes

Mr Ndukwe said investigations suggest that the group was responsible for numerous heinous crimes in the Nsukka Area of the state, including a recent attack and murder of police and other security personnel.

The manhunt for others on the run is ongoing, he said.

He said the Commissioner of Police in the state, Kanayo Uzuegbu, has commended the security personnel for the success of the operation.

Mr Uzuegbu called on owners of medical facilities and residents of the area to report to the police any individual seen with gunshot wounds around their neighbourhood.

The police commissioner also directed area commanders, divisional police officers, and heads of tactical squads to ensure that they identify other criminal hideouts in their operational jurisdictions and track down such criminals.

IPOB, an outlawed group seeking to carve out South-east and some parts of neighbouring states out of Nigeria as a sovereign state of Biafra, has been linked to some deadly attacks in the region and its environs.

But the separatist group has repeatedly denied any involvement in the attacks.

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A former senator, Shehu Sani, has urged President Bola Tinubu to pardon the incarcerated EndSARS protesters.

Mr Sani, who represented Kaduna Central in the Senate between 2015 and 2019, made the call on Wednesday night at a dinner organised to mark 2024 Democracy Day.

In October 2020, there was a mass protest against police brutality in Nigeria. The protesters, who were mainly youth demanded the disbandment of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) unit of the Nigerian Police Force.

The protests originated from a Twitter campaign in 2017, using the hashtag #EndSARS to demand the units disbandment by the Nigerian government.

During that period, some state governments declared a curfew in their states to prevent a breakdown of law and order, while many protesters were arrested in different parts of the country.

Some of those arrested have been sentenced while others are still in custody for various categories of offences linked to the protests.

Mr Sani advised Mr Tinubu to pardon those who are still in detention as a result of the protest.

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And then, the last call, Mr President, there are some people who are still in detention as a result of the EndSARS protest. We were young people who were protesting for justice of freedom and for democracy. Any young protester in Nigeria today, learn from you because you were the father of protest in Nigeria. Do something about it, give them the freedom.

You taught us, you funded us to stand up and fight. So, they are your children and your grandchildren, give them the pardon. Thank you and God bless, he said.

Reformation of prisons

Mr Sani also urged President Tinubu to reform the Nigerian Correctional Centres.

Mr President, thank you for the honour and the privilege and do something about the Nigerian prisons because they were the ones who hosted us in those days and in those dark days of the struggle, he said.

Hardship

Mr Sani also noted that many of the economic reforms of President Tinubu have caused hardship to Nigerians.

He urged the president to ensure that Nigerians enjoy the sacrifices.

Mr President, if you fail, they will say that those of you who fought for democracy have nothing new to offer Nigeria.

We pray for you and we believed that the reforms which you have taken, there is no doubt about it, you too have recognised the untold hardship and the suffering it has inflicted on millions of people. But we are expecting that at end of the day it will bear fruit and people will rejoice and say that the sacrifices they have made, the consequences of that reforms were something that were worth all these struggle, he added.

National anthem

He also submitted that the new national anthem will not unite the country if there is no equity and justice.

Mr President, I would like to draw your attention to this fact and the truth. The national anthem cannot unite a nation. A national pledge cannot unite a nation. A constitution cannot unite a nation. A nation is united by the ideals of freedom. A nation is united by equity and by justice.

Many younger generations of today have not and couldnt know the sacrifice we have made to restore democracy to this country. It is important that we bring attention to those who were not here in those days of the struggle.

This democracy was not a gift given to us by the military. It was not a lottery that we won , it was a product of struggle and sacrifice. There were people who were forced into exile like the president and commander-in-chief of the armed forces and the likes of Wole Soyinka.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities of Nigeria made sacrifices. Nigeria media made sacrifices, NUPENG headed by the likes of Frank Okori made sacrifices. The National Association of Nigerian Students made sacrifices. This democracy was a product of that struggle, was product of that commitment and was a product of that determination.

Mr President, you have a duty to succeed. If you succeed, we will share your glory because you came from the trenches, you came from that struggle, you came from that period of struggle.

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The Supreme Court, on Thursday, reserved judgement in a suit filed by the federal government against the governors of the 36 states of the federation to enforce the autonomy of administration of local government areas as stipulated in the Nigerian constitution.

Garba Lawal, who led a seven-member panel of Justices of the Supreme Court, reserved judgement after all parties adopted their various written addresses earlier.

Mr Lawal said the date for judgement would be communicated to the parties later

The Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), had on behalf of the federal government sued the 36 states over the manner the governors are running the local governments funds.

In the suit marked SC/CV/343/2024, the AGF prayed the court for an order prohibiting state governors from unilateral, arbitrary and unlawful dissolution of democratically elected local government executives.

Prayers

Mr Fagbemi in the originating summons prayed the Supreme Court for an order permitting the funds standing in the credits of local governments to be directly channelled to them from the Federation Account in line with the provisions of the Constitution as against the alleged unlawful joint accounts created by governors.

He also sought an order of the court stopping governors from constituting caretaker committees to run the affairs of local governments as against the constitutionally recognised and guaranteed democratic system.

He also applied for an order of injunction restraining the governors, their agents, and privies from receiving, spending, or tampering with funds released from the federation account for the benefit of local governments when no democratically elected local government system is put in place.

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Mr Fagbemi asked the Supreme Court to invoke sections 1, 4, 5, 7, and 14 of the constitution to declare that the state governors and State Houses of Assembly are under obligation to ensure a democratic system at the third tier of government.

The suit also urged thecourt to invoke the same sections to hold that the governors cannot lawfully dissolve democratically elected local government areas.

In a 13-paragraph affidavit in support of the originating summons deposed to by Kelechi Ohaeri from the AGFs office, Mr Fagbemi averred in the suit filed under the original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court on behalf of the federal government.

Governors have to abide by Constitution

The deponent asserted that local government system recognised by the constitution is a democratically elected local government council and that the amount due to local government areas from the federation account is to be paid to local government system recognised by the constitution.

That the governors represent the component states of the federation with executive governors who have also sworn to uphold the Constitution and to, at all times, give effect to the Constitution, and that the Constitution, being the supreme law, has binding force all over the Federation of Nigeria.

Other prayers include: that the constitution of Nigeria recognises federal, state, and local governments as three tiers of government, and that the three recognised tiers of government draw funds for their operation and functioning from the Federation Account created by the Constitution.

Local governments must be led by elected officials

By the provisions of the Constitution, there must be a democratically elected local government system, and the Constitution has not made provisions for any other systems of governance at the local government level other than a democratically elected local government system.

In the face of the clear provisions of the Constitution, the governors have failed and refused to put in place a democratically elected local government system, even where no state of emergency has been declared to warrant the suspension of democratic institutions in the state.

The failure of the governors to put a democratically elected local government system in place is a deliberate subversion of the 1999 Constitution, which they and the President have sworn to uphold.

READ ALSO: Supreme Court orders state govts to file defence to local govt autonomy suit

Mr Fagbemi also said that all efforts to make the governors comply with the dictates of the 1999 Constitution in terms of putting in place a democratically elected local government system have not yielded any result.

The AGF said that the federal government continued to disburse funds from the Federation Account to the governors for non-existing democratically elected local governments to undermine the sanctity of the 1999 Constitution.

He argued that in the face of the violations of the constitution, the federal government is not obligated, under Section 162 of the Constitution, to pay any state funds standing to the credit of local governments where no democratically elected local government is in place.

(NAN)

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The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) says troops deployed in different parts of the country have, in the last week, killed no fewer than 197 terrorists and apprehended 310 others across theatres of operation.

The Director of Defence Media Operations, Edward Buba, made this known while briefing journalists on the operations of the Armed Forces of Nigeria on Thursday in Abuja.

Mr Buba, a major general, said the troops also rescued 251 kidnapped hostages and recovered 180 assorted weapons and 5,123 assorted ammunition within the week in different operations.

The breakdown, according to him, comprised two PKT guns, 73 AK47 rifles and 17 locally fabricated guns, 3,207 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, 1,022 rounds of 7.62mm NATO and 243 rounds of 7.62 x 54mm ammo, among others.

In the North-east, Mr Buba said the troops of Operation Hadin Kai killed 83 terrorists, arrested 71 suspects and rescued 48 hostages within the week.

He said the troops also recovered two PKT guns, 35 AK47 rifles, nine fabricated rifles, ten dane guns, and ten grenades, amongst others.

In the North-central, he said the troops of Operation Safe Haven killed 11 insurgents, arrested 64 violent extremists and rescued 21 kidnapped hostages as well as retrieved several cache of arms.

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According to him, troops of Operation Whirl Stroke killed six terrorists, arrested 20 violent extremists and rescued 36 hostages.

Troops recovered 2 AK47 rifles, 66 rounds of 7.62mm special and six cartridges amongst others, he said.

In the North-west, Mr Buba said the troops of Operation Hadarin Daji killed 65 terrorists, arrested 80 terrorists and rescued 54 hostages within the week under review.

He added that the troops recovered 29 AK47 rifles, seven fabricated rifles, four dane guns and 991 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, among others.

He added that troops of Operation Whirl Punch killed 19 terrorists, arrested 18 suspects and rescued 23 hostages, as well as recovered three AK47 rifles and 119 rounds of 7.62mm special ammo, among others.

Mr Buba said the security situation in the zone, especially Zamfara, required a collaborative approach between the state government and the locals to nip it in the bud.

He said the governor of the state had come out to describe Zamfara as the epicentre of kidnapping, as also corroborated by the commissioner of police. He said the governor had described kidnapping as a big industry in the state.

The military is on the ground there, and we are fighting. Ours is to fight and to kill the terrorists and to destroy them.

In this month alone, even up to yesterday, we have lost nine personnel, which is a testament that we are working tirelessly to bring peace, secure the land and create a safe environment for the people.

I will end this by saying that it is close to impossible to win this war without the support of the people because of the calibre of people involved in kidnapping in Zamfara, he said.

(NAN)

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President Bola Tinubu has approved the appointment of Tanimu Yakubu as the Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, following the expiration of the tenure of Ben Akabueze.

Mr Yakubu is an accomplished economist and was Chief Economic Adviser to a former President from 2007 to 2010; Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria from 2003 to 2007, and Commissioner of Finance, Budget, and Economic Planning in Katsina State from 1999 to 2003.

The new Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation holds a Master of Business Administration degree in Finance from Wagner College, Staten Island, New York, and a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics from the same institution.

President Tinubu thanks the outgoing Director-General, Mr Akabueze, for his services and wishes him success in his future endeavours.

The President expects the new Director-General of this pivotal agency to further enhance the provision of efficient and qualitative budget functions, with a view to promoting fiscal sustainability, transparency, and accountability in public finance management for national development.

Ajuri Ngelale

Special Adviser to the President

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(Media & Publicity)

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The Court of Appeal in Abuja has overturned the ruling of the Kogi State High Court summoning the chairperson of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede, to answer to a contempt charge initiated by former Governor Yahaya Bello.

The former Kogi State governor had filed the contempt suit against Mr Olukoyede for allegedly violating the Kogi State High Courts order restraining EFCC from arresting him for investigations or trial.

In the lead judgement of its three-member panel delivered by Joseph Oyewole on Thursday, the Court of Appeal held that a court of law cannot preclude the EFCC or any law enforcement agency from investigating and prosecuting crime.

Resistance to trial

This is a fundamental jurisdictional point that cannot be shoved aside as it borders on the doctrine of separation of powers. The argument of the Respondent that no ground covers this point cannot stand in view of the instant circumstance, a statement by the EFCC quoted the judge as also saying.

Mr Bello, who left office as governor of Kogi State in January, faces 19 counts of money laundering involving over N80 billion. EFCC filed the charges at the Federal High Court in Abuja after Mr Bello left office and lost his immunity to criminal prosecution.

EFCC accused him of diverting the funds from the Kogi State treasury during his eight years as governor of Kogi State.

However, efforts by the EFCC to arraign him have failed, with Mr Bello refusing to attend court on different occasions since April.

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Mr Bello had anchored his refusal to appear in court on the Kogi State High Court ruling shielding him from arrest. He accused the EFCC of disobeying the court decision by filing charges against him and making moves to arrest him.

However, the EFCC appealed against the decision. The anti-corruption agency insisted that it violated no court order by exercising its powers and relying on the arrest warrant issued by the Federal High Court in Abuja on 17 April for his arrest to prosecute him.

An attempt by the EFCC to execute the arrest warrant on 17 April was frustrated by the police attached to the premises before he eventually sneaked away in his successor, Governor Ahmed Ododos convoy.

The following day, 18 April, Mr Bello refused to appear in court.

The anti-graft agency declared him wanted but has been unable to effect his arrest.

He snubbed subsequent proceedings on 23 April, pushing the court to order that he be served the charges through his lawyers.

He also did not show up in court on 10 May when the judge rejected his lawyers application seeking an order to halt his trial pending an appeal regarding his trial.

Meanwhile, his lawyers undertook on 10 May to produce him in court on Thursday. But he did not appear. PREMIUM TIMES reported earlier that the judge, Emeka Nwite, rescheduled the arraignment for 27 June on Thursday.

The Court of Appeal judgement has laid to rest Mr Bellos fragile legal basis for staying away from court for arraignment since April.

Trial to continue

The Court of Appeal held that it would not toe the path of technicalities and granted the commission the authority to continue its prosecution of Mr Bello. It also awarded a fine of N1 million against the former governor.

The Kogi State High Court had, on 25 April, issued an ex parte order summoning the EFCC chair, Mr Olukoyede, to appear before him to answer a contempt charge.

According to him, Mr Bello tendered exhibits showing Mr Olukoyede and the EFCC carried out some acts upon which they have been restrained by this court on 9 February 2024 pending the determination of the substantive motion on Notice before this Court .

Displeased with the order, Mr Olukoyede approached the appellate court to challenge it.

Mr Olukoyedes challenge was succeeded on Thursday, paving the way for the EFCC to continue its prosecution of Mr Bello.

In the charges, EFCC accused the former Kogi State governor, his nephew Ali Bello, Dauda Suleiman and Abdulsalam Hudu (said to still be at large) of conspiring to convert the total sum of N80.2 billion public funds to personal use in February 2016.

The commission alleged that Mr Bello and others reasonably ought to have known that the money forms part of the proceeds of your unlawful activity  criminal breach of trust.

EFCC also alleged in another count that Mr Bello, between 26 July 2021 and 6 April 2022 in Abuja, aided a firm, E-Traders International Limited, to conceal the aggregate sum of over N3 billion (N3,081,804,654) in account number 1451458080 domiciled in Access Bank Plc.

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A truck and two mini-buses fully loaded with rams were spotted at the National Assembly complex on Thursday.

The truck, which belongs to the Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) with registration number IMMIGRATION 48-04IS, and the buses arrived at the complex at about 1:55 p.m. They were parked at the car park in front of the White House. 

It was not immediately known which organisation owns the two buses painted in white.

When PREMIUM TIMES enquired about the rams, one of the motor boys said they were ordered by one of their bosses to transport the rams to the National Assembly.

He did not disclose the name of the boss who ordered them and the recipients of the rams.

The vehicles were still in the complex when filing this report.

Muslim faithful slaughter ram as sacrifices for the celebration of Eid-al-Adha every year.

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In the Islamic calendar, the festival falls on the 10th day of the twelfth and final month of Dhul Hijjah

The Sultan of Sokoto, Saad Abubakar, had declared Sunday, 16 June, as the day of Eid-il-Adha.

It is believed that the rams cited at the National Assembly will be distributed to celebrate the festival.

Currently, the market value of a ram is between N150,000 and N200,000.

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GLOBALink | Global Development Initiative conducive to achieving SDGs: UNCTAD chief Pub Date:24-06-13 09:36 Source:Xinhua

The China-proposed Global Development Initiative (GDI) is conducive to achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), said UN's trade and development chief Rebeca Grynspan. #GLOBALink Editor:Qin Shuying

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Overall, the American teaching style programme aims to provide students with a solid foundation of knowledge, critical thinking skills, communication skills, cultural competence, and transferable skills. This prepares them to adapt to the changing job market, pursue further specialisation, and thrive in their future careers. There is nothing in the programme to make them little Americans but rather to provide the same quality and style of education you get in the best universities in the United States to them.

When I first moved to Nigeria, I was surprised how often I received the question, What is the American University of Nigeria (AUN)? Is it a school that tries to make Nigerians into little Americans? This was a common question, but it required a much more polished and poised answer because the goal of AUN was never about making little Americans but much more than this: to make lifelong learners who were prepared for the ever-changing global landscape. At AUN, the institutions goal is not merely to train one for a job but to prepare them for careers. The truth is, at AUN, we are preparing students for jobs that dont even exist today. The natural question that will surface from this statement is, How? Allow me to expound on this more in this short essay.

The Founder of the American University of Nigeria, His Excellency Atiku Abubakar (GCON), was profoundly affected by the American style of education when he was a young man growing up in rural Adamawa. When his mother enrolled him for school in Yola, he encountered a group of young Americans teaching there from the American Peace Corps. The Founder recalls their approach to education was different, as it was less about rote memorisation and more about critical thinking, analysis, and synthesising information to assist students in finding their voice. This foundation would help provide him with an educational background that would propel him into his highly successful career, and in 2004, he would invest his time, energy and resources into establishing the first American style university in Nigeria.

At the American University of Nigeria, we employ a teaching style focusing on critical thinking, communication skills, cultural competence and synthesising information. In American universities, we utilise a robust collection of courses called general education, also referred to as liberal arts education. This can be a misnomer for some people, as there is nothing liberal regarding the courses, but liberal refers to the diversity of courses the learner will encounter.

Princeton University defines a liberal arts education as an expansive intellectual grounding in all kinds of humanistic inquiry. Students take courses such as mathematics, history, social science, English writing, public speaking, and natural sciences. The American general education programme aims to provide students with a well-rounded education and equip them with the skills and knowledge necessary for future jobs and careers. Here are a few ways in which it prepares students:

1. Broad knowledge base: General education courses expose students to various subjects. This broadens the learners knowledge base and helps them develop a well-rounded perspective, which is valuable in any career.

2. Critical thinking skills: General education courses emphasise critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Students learn to analyse information, think critically, and make informed decisions. The learning style is aimed at Blooms Taxonomy, in which the faculty members attempt to move the students past the mere memorisation of facts to levels of analysis, evaluation and creation. Blooms taxonomy was proposed in 1956 by University of Chicago educational psychologist, Benjamin Bloom. The terminology refers to the six levels that can be structured and applied to learning outcomes, lessons, and course assessments. Please see Figure A from the University of Arkansas. Employers in various industries highly seek after the skills obtained by the students.

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3. Communication skills: General education courses often include writing and communication components. Students learn how to communicate their ideas, both orally and in writing effectively. This essential skill is emphasised in various courses in the curriculum. Strong communication skills are crucial in any profession, enabling individuals to collaborate, present ideas, and engage with others effectively.

4. Cultural competence: General education courses explore different cultures, societies, and perspectives. These help students develop cultural competence and the ability to work with diverse groups of people. In an increasingly globalised world, cultural sensitivity and competence are highly valued by employers.

5. Transferable skills: General education courses also focus on developing transferable skills such as teamwork, leadership, time management, and adaptability.

These skills are applicable across various industries and are essential for success in any career.

When a student experiences an American-style classroom, they expect a substantial amount of group work, presentations, and papers. Grading in the American system is based on continuous assessment, instead of a single measure at one point in time, because a singular moment is not the best reflection of a students complete comprehension of the subject matter. Students experience what their future jobs will be like, preparing them to make an immediate impact.

At AUN, community service is also integrated into many courses. Thus, students venture into the local communities to identify peoples challenges and help to prepare solutions to them. AUN is the first development university in Africa, and students play an integral role in this vital mission. During their studies, it is estimated that the average student will volunteer over 100 hours in his/her local communities each year.

Another unique feature of AUN and American-style education is the focus on entrepreneurship. All students, regardless of their major, must take a course in business entrepreneurship every academic year. This fosters a culture of innovation and creativity on campus. Many students graduate from AUN after successfully launching a small business, providing them a source of income before leaving. At AUN, we proudly aim to cultivate future employers, rather than employees.

Overall, the American teaching style programme aims to provide students with a solid foundation of knowledge, critical thinking skills, communication skills, cultural competence, and transferable skills. This prepares them to adapt to the changing job market, pursue further specialisation, and thrive in their future careers. There is nothing in the programme to make them little Americans but rather to provide the same quality and style of education you get in the best universities in the United States to them. I have been in Nigeria for a year, and when people ask me about AUN, I say, Why Japa when you can get the same education right here in Nigeria for a fraction of the cost? As an educator looking to slow down the brain drain from Africa, there has never been a more critical time in Nigerias history to have a quality education that attracts and keeps the countrys brightest young people at home, launching careers, imparting knowledge, working hard and strengthening the development structures in the continent.

DeWayne P. Frazier is President/ Vice Chancellor of the American University of Nigeria, Yola.

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Kaduna state governor, Uba Sani has expressed his appreciation for the recognition accorded to him by President Bola Tinubu, acknowledging his sacrifices and efforts in actualising democracy in Nigeria.

Mr Tinubus gesture, according to the governor, serves as a morale booster and a testament to the collective struggle for a democratic Nigeria.

The governor hailed Mr Tinubu for recognising him and other notable pro-democracy activists whose diligence, sacrifice and determination entrenched democracy in Nigeria after many years of post-independence military rule.

In a statement released by the Governors spokesperson, Mohammed Shehu, on Wednesday, Mr Sani reaffirmed his unwavering commitment to upholding democracy at all levels.

The President, in his Democracy Day address to the nation on Wednesday, commended notable personalities for their unrelenting efforts in ensuring the triumph of democracy in Nigeria.

We lost great heroes and heroines along the way. In this struggle, the winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, Chief MKO Abiola, the most significant symbol of our democratic struggle, his wife, Kudirat, General Shehu Musa YarAdua and Pa Alfred Rewane, among others sacrificed their very lives.

While the exiled pro-democracy activists kept the fire burning, their comrades at home sustained the pressure on the military brass hats. Among the latter are Olisa Agbakoba, Femi Falana, Abdul Oroh, Senator Shehu Sani, Governor Uba Sani, Chief Olu Falae, and other National Democratic Coalition leaders such as Chief Ayo Adebanjo and Chief Ayo Opadokun.

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The sacrifices they made, and the precious gift brought about by their selfless devotion can never be repaid. Neither shall it be forgotten. Mr Tinubu said.

Appreciating the president, Governor Sani said I am deeply humbled by President Tinubus recognition of our collective struggle for democracy.

This acknowledgment serves as a testament to the power of resilience and dedication to a noble cause. I reiterate my unwavering commitment to democratic principles and values, which have guided my actions in public service.

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The Jigawa State Governor, Umar Namadi, on Wednesday, inaugurated and distributed working materials to 300 youths recruited and trained to provide mobile veterinary clinic services for the purpose of controlling and preventing the spread of animal diseases across the 287 political wards in the state.

The governor during the inaugural ceremony at the NYSC orientation camp at Fanisau in Dutse, donated a motorcycle to each of the 300 beneficiaries. Each of the motorcycles is fully fitted with a medical toolbox, vaccination kits, drug box and other accessories for routine and emergency veterinary services.

Mr Namadi said the beneficiaries have also been trained to be licensed as veterinary service providers to effectively respond to animal disease incidences even in the remote and hard to reach locations so as to control and contain preventable animal diseases.

Mr Namadi at the event also distributed agricultural inputs, including fertilizers, herbicides, pesticides, and certified seeds for wheat, rice, and maize to 1,200 farmers

The distributed agricultural inputs included 2,400 bags of NPK, 1,200 bags of urea, 1,200 litres each of selective and non-selective herbicides, and pesticides, 140 50 kg bags of certified wheat seeds, 80 50kg bags of certified rice seeds and 8- 20kg bags of certified maize seeds.

Others were the distribution and free installation with shed of agricultural produce, processing equipment comprising of 50 multi-purpose thrashers, 50 rice milling machines each equipped with a generator, and 50 de-stoner machines also each equipped with a generator.

According to the governor, the 1,200 farmers benefitted from the interventions under the states partnership with the World Bank-supported Project for Agro-Climatic Resilience in Semi-Arid Landscapes while the other interventions were part of the states employment programme being championed by the newly established Economic Empowerment and Youths Employment Agency.

He said the scheme is under the J-Agro Employment Initiative and Agricultural Enterprise Empowerment Programme reflecting his administrations dedication to enhancing the states agricultural sector and economic growth.

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Speaking on the initiative, Mr Namadi said: Today we are launching the distribution of agricultural inputs and agricultural produce processing equipment as well as the inauguration of community-based animal health workers that would provide mobile veterinary clinics services across the nooks and crannies of the State. All these perfectly fit with one of our overaching development agenda of achieving sustained agricultural transformation in Jigawa State.

This is a component of our J-Agro Agricultural Extension Agents Programme under which some 1,440 youths were enlisted to provide quality agricultural extension services to our farmers. These related interventions all in the agricultural sector have significant multiplier effects on the attainment of our development objectives.

While contributing to the provisions of sustainable means of livelihoods for the people, these will also support the acceleration of our agricultural transformation agenda aimed at improving agricultural productivity, food security and economic diversification ultimately contributing to inclusive economic growth and poverty reduction, Mr Namadi added.

Other recent interventions

Mr Namadi said that the Wednesdays event was a continuation of other interventions programmes done in series to mark his administrations first year in office.

Todays event is coming just a few days after marking our first one year in office during which we have also showcased various projects, programs, interventions and initiatives delivered to the people of Jigawa State during the first 12-months of our stewardship.

As we continue to a an these, we have the firm conviction that we are on track to deliver our people from decades of poverty and change the narratives of poverty statistics we continue to hear on our beloved State.

Indeed, in line with our strategic development objectives, we have pledged to pursue transformations in the agriculture sector where our priority is to sustain interventions meant to accelerate the contributions of the sector to the growth of the state economy and providing sustainable means of livelihoods for the people.

Accordingly, I am today launching three major interventions which are in addition to similar initiatives launched few days ago in Kazaure, Dutse and other locations. These are: The distribution of agricultural inputs s to one thousand two hundred farmers carefully selected to ensure that maximum positive impact is made not just on the beneficiaries but in contributing to our objectives of agricultural transformation.



Even though these interventions are critical components of our agricultural development programs, they were also deliberately conceived in line with aspects of our 12-points agenda which prioritised the expansion of social protection interventions to the most vulnerable segment of the population through grants that support livelihoods and provide skills to our economically active youths including women and people living with disabilities.

We have over the last 12-months, implemented over 30 different empowerment and employment programs with over 73,000 beneficiaries whose means of livelihoods having been significantly improved.

We have also built on this through the goat breeding microcredit programme which has empowered thousands of women throughout the state. Recently 1,640 widows were empowered across four local government areas with three goats each which will be sustained to reach the only eleven remaining LGAs.

Todays inauguration of the 300 mobile veterinary service providers is also part of our efforts to protect and develop the livestock population in the State Mr Namadi stressed further.

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The Federal High Court in Abuja has rescheduled the arraignment of a former governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, on N80.2 billion money laundering charges.

The judge, Emeka Nwite, adjourned on Thursday the arraignment until 27 June, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) said in a statement.

Mr Bello, 48, who left office as governor on 27 January, faces 19 counts of money laundering, which the EFCC filed against him.

But the arraignment had stalled on 18 April, 23 April and 10 May due to Mr Bellos repeated absence from court.

Due to the defendants absence for the second time, on 23 April, the judge granted EFCCs permission to serve Mr Bello through substituted means.

He directed the agencys prosecutor, Kemi Pinheiro, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), to serve Mr Bello through his lawyer, Abdulwahab Mohammed, dispensing with the general legal requirement for personal service in criminal cases.

The judge ordered the EFCC to serve the charges with the accompanying proof of evidence and other documents on the defence lawyer.

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Subsequently, on 10 May, the judge rejected an application by the former governor seeking an order to halt his trial pending an appeal regarding his trial.

Following the courts refusal to halt his trial, Mr Bello, through his lawyer, pledged to turn himself in for arraignment.

His lawyer, Mr Mohammed, undertook to provide his client before the court on 13 June (Thursday) for arraignment.

Trial stalled again, argument over Bellos absence

But the arraignment stalled again on Thursday due to Mr Bellos absence.

The development forced the judge to adjourn the arraignment.

Before rescheduling the proceedings, a disagreement ensued between the defence and the prosecuting lawyers over Mr Bellos anticipated court appearance on Thursday.

Defence lawyer Adeola Adedipe, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), told the court that EFCCs lead counsel, Kemi Pinheiro, also a SAN, requested a new date because the 13 June date was not convenient for him.

But the prosecuting lawyer who appeared for the case on Thursday, Rotimi Oyedepo, a SAN, denied any request for a new arraignment date.

He said the defence teams claim was a desperate attempt to describe the prosecution team as one whose house is scattered.

We were all here, and the record of my Lord will show that the matter was adjourned in an open court and on record, Mr Oyedepo added.

He recalled that the defence made an undertaking to produce the defendant Thursday. So, my Lord, assuming that there was any conversation between the defence and the prosecution to adjourn the matter, the main issue of today is the appearance of the defendant, but they refused to bring him to court. Instead of admitting to this, he is bringing the prosecution into it. Im appealing that the court should not entertain any application from them till they bring the defendant or show where he is and stop blaming us and the officers of the court, he said.

He also asked the defence team to apologise to the prosecution for not producing the defendant in court in line with their undertaking.

Meanwhile, Mr Adedipe apologised to the court and the prosecution, taking responsibility for any misrepresentation that could have led to Mr Bellos absence from court.

He then suggested 27 June as a new date for arraignment.

Court accepts 27 June as new arraignment date

Mr Oyedepo accepted the apology.

He urged the court to capture the defence lawyers apology in the courts record and compel the defence team to produce Mr Bello for the rescheduled arraignment.

After listening to both lawyers, Mr Nwite adjourned the matter till 27 June 27 for Mr Bellos arraignment.

In the charges, EFCC accused him, his nephew Ali Bello, Dauda Suleiman and Abdulsalam Hudu (said to still be at large) of conspiring to convert the total sum of N80.2 billion public funds to personal use in February 2016.

The commission alleged that Mr Bello and others reasonably ought to have known that the money forms part of the proceeds of your unlawful activity  criminal breach of trust.

EFCC also alleged in another count that Mr Bello, between 26 July 2021 and 6 April 2022 in Abuja, aided a firm, E-Traders International Limited, to conceal the aggregate sum of over N3 billion (N3,081,804,654) in account number 1451458080 domiciled in Access Bank Plc.

The anti-graft agency has faced difficulties bringing Mr Bello to court for arraignment.

Earlier on 17 April, the judge issued a warrant of arrest against the former governor. However, an attempt by EFCC operatives to arrest Mr Bello based on the arrest warrant that day was obstructed by the police officers attached to his house at Wuse Zone 4, Abuja.

The anti-graft agency has since declared Mr Bello wanted.

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A terrorism kingpin operating in Kaduna and other northern Nigeria states, Buharin Yadi, has been killed by Nigerian security forces.

The states Commissioner, Ministry of Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, announced this in a statement on Thursday.

Mr Aruwan said Mr Yadi was one of the deadliest bandit leaders terrorising Northern Nigeria in the last decade, and has met his bitter end at the hands of security forces.

The troops of Sector 6 Operation Whirl Punch rained down fire on the kingpin known as Buhari Alhaji Halidu (alias Buharin Yadi) and his cohorts, abruptly terminating their ignominious spell of terror.

Halidu was neutralized in a fierce battle with the troops (under the coordination of their Commander, also the General Officer Commanding of One Division Nigerian Army, Major General MLD Saraso) which took place around Idasu forest at the boundaries between Giwa LGA of Kaduna State and Sabuwa LGA of Katsina State, Mr Aruwan said.

He said the troops began the covert operation in response to intelligence reports on terrorists movement from Samunaka, Saulawa area of Katsina State.

On advancing to Samunaka, the troops found the settlement destroyed and cattle killed, evidence of recent criminal activity by the bandits.

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A ferocious battle quickly followed, as approaching terrorists were pounded with artillery rounds at Hayin Almajiri. The troops then fought bravely through an ambush, to attain their objective. Initial assessments indicate that at least 36 bandits were eliminated in the engagement, Mr Aruwan said in the statement.

Mr Aruwan said It was eventually verified that one of those killed was Kachalla Buharin Yadi.

The kingpin, Mr Halidu (also known as Buharin Yadi or Buhari Janar) and the brigands under his command had been unleashing terror on citizens in Kidandan/Galadimawa general areas of Giwa LGA, Sabon Birni/Kerawa general areas of Igabi LGA, he added.

His reign of terror extended to Sabuwa LGA of Katsina State, and indeed some parts of Niger and Zamfara states, Mr Aruwan added.

Buharin Yadi was involved in large-scale cattle rustling, arms trading and drug trafficking. He had led his gang in the pillaging of communities and the slaughter and kidnapping of thousands of citizens in Kaduna and neighboring states.

The merciless bandit was also known to have links with other deadly terrorist groups in the North-east and North-west, Mr Aruwan added.

He said the breakthrough brought to an end a manhunt by security forces for this terrorist, which stretched more than five years ago.

The news of his demise spread like wildfire, triggering massive relief and widespread celebrations among locals spanning Kaduna and Katsina states, he added.

Meanwhile, Mr Aruwan said Governor Uba Sani was delighted with the development.

He said the governor described it as a pointer to the bravery, pro-activeness and sheer efficiency of the troops involved.

The Governor commended the GOC, Major General Saraso for his sterling leadership, and lauded the troops for the comprehensive victory. Governor Sani reassured security forces in Kaduna State of his unflinching support and the continued collaborative stance of the Government.

Members of the public are hereby informed that some of the terrorists sustained gunshot injuries during the encounter. Citizens in the general area and beyond are therefore enjoined not to render assistance (medical or otherwise) to individuals carrying suspicious injuries, but to immediately report such to security agencies.

The Kaduna State Security Operations Room is available 24 hours a day to receive reports of this nature on the phone lines 09034000060 and 08170189999.

Special operations against bandits continue in the general area. Citizens are urged to continue to volunteer supportive information to the security forces and the government, the official stated.

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The police have banned the Sallah durbar procession during the Eid-el-Kabir celebration in Kano State.

There has been tension in the state since last month after the state government repealed the emirate council law, scrapped four of the five emirate councils and reinstated Lamido Sanusi as the Emir of Kano.

The deposed emir, Aminu Ado-Bayero, is challenging his removal and has been staying at the mini palace of the emir in defiance of the directive of the state government that he should move out.

The police spokesperson in the state, Abdullahi Kiyawa, said in a statement on Thursday that the decision to ban the popular traditional ceremony was taken after consultations indicated a possible breakdown of law and order.

This is part of the commitment to the sustenance of the peace by the Kano State Police Command in conjunction with all the relevant security stakeholders.

In furtherance, a ban has been placed on ALL DURBAR activities throughout the State for the upcoming Eid-El-Kabir celebrations.

This measure is taken as a result of a series of security reports obtained and wide consultations made with relevant security stakeholders to ensure the safety of the larger community, the police spokesperson said.

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However, the police advised worshippers to conduct their normal Eid Prayers at the various designated Eid prayer grounds, as traditionally done.

The police also congratulated the Muslim faithful and all law-abiding residents of the state on Eid-El-Kabir Sallah and said adequate security is in place to ensure law and order in all parts of the state before, during and after the festive period.

On a final note, the Command encourages continued collaboration and cooperation from all stakeholders to collectively work together to build a safer and more secure environment.

The Command also urges everyone to keep reporting any suspicious movement of person(s) or item(s) they come across to the nearest Police Station or through the following Kano State Police Command emergency contact numbers:- 08032419754, 08123821575, 09029292926, or log-in to the NPF Rescue Me Application available in the Play Store, or through the following Online Media Platforms, the police said.

The Emirate Crisis

The state House of Assembly, on 23 May, repealed the State Emirate Council Law 2019, under which former Governor Abdullahi Ganduje split the Kano Emirate into five distinct units.

The repeal of the law means the dissolution of the four emirates created in 2019  Bichi, Rano, Gaya, and Karaye  and the sacking of their emirs.

The development restored Kano as the only state in Nigeria with a single emirate council, aside from Sokoto which also has the Sultan as the only paramount ruler.

Governor Abba Yusuf reinstated Mr Sanusi as the Emir of Kano after deposing Mr Ado-Bayero.

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The Federal High Court Thursday says it has jurisdiction to entertain the suit filed against the reinstatement of Lamido Sanusi as the Emir of Kano.

The court in suit number FHC/KN/CS/182/2024 has ordered the state government and other parties involved to stop the implementation of the states new emirate law that reinstated Mr Sanusi, pending the hearing of the substantive case.

A title holder in the Kano emirate, Aminu Danagundi, filed the suit.

Mr Danagundi, who holds the traditional tile of Sarkin Dawaki Babba, (senior counsellor), joined the state government, the state House of Assembly and its Speaker; the Attorney-General of the state; the state Commissioner of Police; the Inspector-General of Police; Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps; and the State Security Service (SSS) as respondents.

However, counsel to the respondents argued that the federal court lacks jurisdiction to entertain the matter, as chieftaincy affairs are on the residual list of the Nigerian constitution.

However, the judge, Abdullahi Liman, on Thursday ruled that the applicants claims were predicated on alleged fundamental rights breaches and not on chieftaincy issues.

On that ground, Mr Liman said his court has an inherent jurisdiction to entertain, hear, and make determinations on the case.

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Mr Liman ruled that his court had jurisdiction when he entertained the suit and still has jurisdiction to continue hearing it.

The state House of Assembly on 23 May repealed the State Emirate Council Law 2019 under which former Governor Abdullahi Ganduje split Kano Emirate into five distinct units.

The repeal of the law means the dissolution of the four emirates created in 2019  Bichi, Rano, Gaya, and Karaye  and the sacking of their emirs.

The development restored Kano as the only state in Nigeria with a single emirate council, aside from Sokoto which also has the Sultan as the only paramount ruler.

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The Defence Headquarters (DHQ) said troops of Operation Delta Safe have in the last one week, discovered and destroyed 43 illegal refining sites and apprehended 32 suspected oil thieves.

The Director, Defence Media Operations, Edward Buba, a major general, made this known while briefing journalists on the operations of the Armed Forces of Nigeria on Thursday in Abuja.

Mr Buba said that the feat was achieved in the Niger Delta region of the country.

He explained that troops had maintained momentum against the activities of crude oil theives and recovered large quantities of stolen products.

He also said the troops recovered 728,360 litres of stolen crude oil, 143,450 litres of illegally refined AGO, 1,100 litres of DPK and 18,750 litres of PMS.

He added that the troops also discovered and destroyed 29 dugout pits, 22 boats and 26 storage tanks, among others.

According to him, troops apprehended 32 suspected oil thieves and other violent extremists and recovered 13 weapons and 442 assorted ammunitions.

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Other items recovered include 66 cooking ovens, eight vehicles and 43 illegal refining sites among others.

Mr Buba said the troops also conducted raid operations and apprehended violent extremists/cultists in Uruan and Ovia North-east Local Government Areas of Akwa Ibom and Edo states as well as Onelga and Nembe Local Government Areas of Rivers and Bayelsa.

(NAN)

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Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State has received a report from the committee set up to resolve the feud triggered by the amendment of the State Traditional Rulers Law 2023.

The committee chairperson, E. C. D. Abia, the paramount ruler of Eket Local Government Area, presented the report to Mr Eno at Government House in Uyo, the state capital.

This is contained in a statement posted on Wednesday on the state governments Facebook page.

The controversial law

Akwa Ibom State has three major ethnic groups  Ibibio, Annang and Oro  with the office of the chairperson of the State Traditional Rulers Council rotated among the paramount rulers of the 31 local government areas.

The Oku Ibom Ibibio, Akuku Annang and Ahta Oro are the highest kings in Ibibio, Annang and Oro, respectively.

Before the amendment, all the traditional rulers in the state were under a body called The Akwa Ibom State Traditional Rulers Council.

However, the governor last year forwarded a bill to the state assembly to elevate the status of some traditional rulers to enable them to be at par with others at the national level, like the Sultan of Sokoto, Obong of Calabar, Ooni of Ife and Oba of Benin.

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The bill sought to produce a first-class traditional ruler like in other states.

The bill upgraded the Akwa Ibom State Traditional Rulers Council to the Akwa Ibom State Supreme Council of Traditional Rulers.

It made Oku Ibom Ibibio the life President General of the Akwa Ibom State Supreme Council of Traditional Rulers while Akwa Akuku Annang and Ahta Oro serve as Vice Presidents I and II, respectively.

The bill also created an office for the chairperson of the Akwa Ibom State Supreme Council of Traditional Rulers. While the President General would occupy the office for life, the bodys chairperson was to be rotatory among the 31 paramount rulers in the state.

The bill was signed into law by Mr Eno on 22 September 2023, the eve of the 36th anniversary of the states creation. The following day the governor inaugurated the president general and chairperson of the body as part of activities marking the states 36th anniversary.

While the Oku Ibom Ibibio, Solomon Etuk, who is the paramount ruler of Nsit Ubium was inaugurated as the President General of the Akwa Ibom State Supreme Council of Traditional Rulers, the paramount ruler of Udung Uko, Bassey Edet, was sworn in as chairperson of the body.

With the inauguration, Mr Etuk became the only first-class traditional ruler from the state, a development that angered the paramount rulers from Annang and Oro. Both displeased kings boycotted the inauguration ceremony, claiming that the new law relegated them to second-class citizens in the state.

Dissatisfied with the new arrangement, the paramount rulers instituted a suit against the state government, asking the court to invalidate the law.

At a meeting with the governor last year, the paramount rulers apologised to Mr Eno, with the governor demanding that they withdraw the suit in the court for an amicable resolution of the matter.

Mr Eno, while inaugurating the President General of the body, said he did not originate the bill but only forwarded the agreement reached by the royal fathers to the state assembly for legal backing.

Committee report

The governor later inaugurated a seven-member committee with Mr Abia to provide a lasting solution to the feud that arose by law amendment.

Presenting the report on behalf of his committee members, Mr Abia described the governor as a true leader for setting up the committee in the interest of peace and unity of the state.

Mr Abia said the committee relied on memoranda from Ifim Ibom Ibibio, the paramount rulers from Annang, Oro, and Obolo ethnic groups, to reach their recommendations.

The royal father blamed the disagreement over the amended law on inadequate consultations, adding that the committee had taken time to engage and accommodate all interests in their report.

The committee recommended a rotational approach in the leadership of the body of traditional rulers for the overall unity of the state. It suggested that the state may not have a first-class traditional ruler if the recommendation is implemented.

While receiving the report, the governor assured the royal fathers of his commitment to study the recommendations and forward a draft bill to the state assembly for legal backing.

Mr Eno thanked members of the committee for accepting the invitation to serve in the interest of peace and unity of the state.

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On 29 May 2023, when a former Commissioner for Finance, Peter Mbah, assumed office as the governor of Enugu State, he promised to grow the states economy, build infrastructure and invest in youth empowerment to stop emigration.

We will retool and re-energise our agriculture/agro-allied sector. We will unlock our rural economy through the implementation of Special Economic Zones and Special Agro-allied Processing Zones. We also plan to provide a N100 billion revolving fund for our SMEs in partnership with the Private Sector and other Development Financial Institutions, he said in his inaugural address.

Mr Mbah also reiterated his earlier promise, before his election, to end perennial water scarcity in the city centre within 180 days of assumption of office.

In the area of water, Ndi Enugu are aware of our promise to ensure availability of water in our homes in the Enugu metropolis in 180 days time. We reiterate this promise here. Furthermore, we will waste no time in replicating the same feat in Nsukka, Udi and Awgu Axis, the governor promised.

Water provision

On 25 November 2023, which marked the 180th day of Mr Mbahs administration in Enugu, the governor inaugurated the Ninth Mile Water Scheme. Days earlier, he inaugurated another water scheme in Oji River, boasting that he had kept to his word of ending water scarcity in the state.

The governor said the Ninth Mile Water Scheme produces 70 million litres of water daily while the Oji River Water Scheme produces 50 million litres daily, bringing the total to 120 million litres daily. Mr Mbah said the total used to be two million litres of water daily.

He equally built 96 public taps, otherwise known as water galleries, across the state to enable households and establishments yet to be connected to the water pipeline grid to have water.

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While the promise and efforts by Mr Mbah remain commendable given that no administration had taken this bold step in the past, the promise to end water scarcity in the state in 180 days was not fulfilled. Despite the huge water schemes, water is yet to run in all homes.

However, PREMIUM TIMES can confirm that there is improved water supply in areas connected to the old water pipeline grid.

But this newspaper can also confirm that, apart from the inaugural day, water has not rushed in almost all the 96 water galleries built by the governor across the state. In fact, taps are yet to be fixed in nearly all the water galleries in the state.

The state government has consistently blamed the activities of vandals for its inability to make water available in all homes in the state.

We didnt just say a 180 days because we felt that it was a low-hanging fruit that can easily be notched, (but) we did say that because looking at the wishes of our people, we knew where water ranked on that wish list and we were in a hurry to make sure we got kicked off from that wish list, Mr Mbah said during a pre-first anniversary media chat on 27 May.

The governor, nevertheless, acknowledged that distributing the water to various homes has been a challenge to his administration.

However, we are still having to deal with challenges  where we are trying to make sure that water gets to the last man (so that) every home turns on their taps and has water running. Thats where the challenges are, beyond dealing with the fact that people vandalise the pipes as we are installing them, he said.

The governor noted that the water supply to various homes and offices had been hampered by the changing of old asbestos pipes to modern ductile pipes. He said the old pipes had become brittle and corroded and could barely contain the water pressure.

Once that process is complete, a city-wide reticulation would be achieved, Mr Mbah said without giving any date.

Economic growth

Economic growth and development were among the major promises of Mr Mbah both in his campaign manifesto and his inaugural address. The governor had said he would grow the states Gross Domestic Product from its current $4 billion to $30 billion in the next four to eight years.

One year later, Mr Mbah has shown commitment to fulfil this pronouncement. For instance, the governor has entered into partnerships with various local and international companies and governments to boost internally generated revenue (IGR).

Such partnering companies and governments include Ethiopian Airlines, the UK government, the Austrian government and Pragmatic Palms Limited which signed a N100 billion deal with the government to revive the moribund United Palm Products Limited in the state.

Also, the governor has revived the tax system in the state to improve the states internally generated revenue (IGR). He also increased the tax rate, particularly for businesses.

However, while the decision may augur well for the states IGR in the coming years, residents and businesses lament the situation.

A shop owner in Ogbete Market Enugu, Maduka Mmadu, told PREMIUM TIMES that the state government increased their shop levy to N21,000 annually from less than N4,000 previously paid.

Were struggling to meet up, Mr Mmadu, who sells electronics, said.

Tricycle riders said they now pay N400 daily as ticket fees instead of N150 previously paid, while wheelbarrow pushers pay N200.

The situation is the same for hoteliers. Some businesses that recently defaulted in tax payments were sealed by the government.

Despite evidence to the contrary, Mr Mbah insisted that he did not increase the tax rate in the state, but only expanded the tax net to accommodate businesses that have not been paying tax over the years in the state.

Meanwhile, the governors efforts in growing the states economy are yet to be felt by residents in the face of current economic hardship across Nigeria.

But an economist, Cletus Agu, told PREMIUM TIMES that Mr Mbahs heavy investments in infrastructure, education and security will drive economic growth later.

Enugu State, when compared to other states in the South-east, is doing well. He (Mbah) is doing very well and trying his best. His investments in roads, water and others will take time to mature, said Mr Agu, a professor of economics at the University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN).

Security

Upon assumption of office, Mr Mbah expressed anger with the rising attacks by gunmen in the state. The governor consequently declared an end to the infamous sit-at-home order in Enugu often enforced by a faction of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) across south-east Nigeria.

He followed up the declaration by empowering and directing security agencies, particularly the Nigerian Army, to station personnel in strategic locations of the state to thwart efforts by enforcers of the illegal action.

The move, he said, was to make an economic boom possible in the state given that economic growth is impossible in an area with limited business activities.

Mr Mbah subsequently set up a new police team called Distress Response Squad to patrol the metropolis and respond to security emergencies. The governor provided the new police team with vehicles to aid their patrol operations.

As a result, security in the state has improved significantly although pockets of attacks are still being recorded. The IPOBs sit-at-home, though yet to end, has waned in the state.

A security expert, Nnamdi Anekwe, told PREMIUM TIMES that Governor Mbah has fared well in securing the state.

I think prior to his coming (as governor), the situation was quite tense. Some of his earlier actions calmed the situation in Enugu State. By giving the law enforcement the necessary logistics and trying to encourage them in terms of welfare, the situation, compared to what it was before he resumed, is fair, Mr Anekwe said.

Infrastructural development

Mr Mbah has delivered some road projects. As of the time of filing this report, the governor has commissioned about 71 rehabilitated and reconstructed roads in the state.

Some of the road projects were facilitated by the past chairpersons of local government areas in the state.

Mr Mbah recently began the construction of a 40-kilometre Owo-Ubahu-Amankanu-Neke-Ikem Dual Carriageway.

Some of the projects already commissioned by the governor include NOWAS-Abakpa Market Road, St. Peters Catholic Church Street Road, Damidja-Trans Ekulu Road, and College Road.

Like the road projects, the governor has also awarded the construction of Enugu Transport Terminals in four strategic areas in the state  Holy Ghost Park, Gariki, Abakpa and Nsukka.

Were creating a modern transportation interchange that literally opens up our beloved city and eliminates the enormous manpower that is lost to traffic on a daily basis, Mr Mbah said in his broadcast on 29 May.

As a result, several buildings and structures have been demolished in the areas by the state government amidst severe criticisms by some residents.

One major step taken by the governor which has been severely criticised was his insistence to demolish Ogige Market in Nsukka where over 7,000 traders conduct their businesses.

Observers and critics say the governor ought to have sited the transport terminal in a virgin land like the spaces available in Opi Junction rather than demolish the market which provides livelihood for the traders in the face of biting economic hardship.

There is no way anybody can justify the governors action no matter how well-intentioned the actions are. He has not created any new jobs, but he is destroying peoples means of livelihood, Chidiebere Nwachukwu, a senior lecturer in mass communication at UNN, said.

What he is doing in Nsukka is evil because no alternative arrangements have been made for people to move their businesses to, Mr Nwachukwu said.

Education

Mr Mbah signaled his desire to invest in education when he allocated N134.5 billion to the sector which accounts for about 33 per cent of the total N521.5 billion 2024 budget.

The 33 per cent budgetary allocation exceeds the UNESCO benchmark of between 15 and 20 per cent recommended budgetary allocation to the education sector.

The governor has also begun the construction of smart schools in 260 electoral wards in the state. PREMIUM TIMES understands that one of the smart schools has been completed in Owo, a community in Nkanu East Local Government Area of the state.

Each Smart School features an interactive digital whiteboard, an internet system, robotics and artificial intelligence centre, modern ICT centre, two science laboratories, hybrid multimedia library, creative production studio, 25 inclusive classrooms and 700 Android tablets. Through these schools, we are nurturing a silent technological revolution, Mr Mbah said.

The impacts of these efforts are yet to be felt. However, many believe that if the state government should sustain the tempo and complete the ongoing projects, it will not take long before the state begins to benefit from them.

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LONDON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Faissola Foundation today announces an extension of its strategic partnership with the London Academy of Excellence (LAE) in support of students from low-income households.

LAE Faissola Scholars at UWC Atlantic College, June 2024

The extension of the partnership will make possible an annual university-style residency programme for a group of LAE Faissola Scholars. The scholars are chosen based on contextual factors, such as their family's history of education and household income, as well as their exceptional academic achievement. The first residency took place at UWC Atlantic College, St. Donats Castle in Wales. Future residency programmes are planned in Liguria, Italy.

Founded by Michele Faissola, the Faissola Foundation has supported students at the LAE since 2022. The first round of LAE Faissola Scholars included students now studying at Oxford, Cambridge and the London School of Economics & Political Science.

The LAE, based in Stratford, East London, is the top-ranked state sixth form provider in England and Wales, according to The Sunday Times Parent Power Survey. The school, twice rated 'Outstanding' by Ofsted, recently became the first state school in the world admitted to the World Leading Schools Association.

The Faissola Foundation aims to tackle inequality caused by socioeconomic circumstance by providing support for young people in the UK and Europe. Founder Michele Faissola said: "Both of my parents were teachers. They taught me that all children can build a foundation for success given the right tools and resources. The Faissola Foundation is happy to support organisations such as the LAE that are devoted to addressing the current crisis in educational inequality."

Alexander Crossman, Headteacher of the LAE, said: "We are delighted to extend our partnership with the Faissola Foundation to provide ambitious, hard-working young people from low-income homes with the sort of educational opportunities that those from more affluent families take for granted."

NOTES TO EDITORS:

BACKGROUND

Disadvantaged students are those who have been eligible for free school meals during their secondary education, as determined by the Department for Education. The Department for Work and Pensions estimates that 4.3 million children and young people in the UK live in relative poverty and 3.6 million in absolute poverty, leading to reduced opportunities for education and employment. In the London Borough of Newham alone, where LAE is based, 50% of children live in poverty.

ABOUT THE FAISSOLA FOUNDATION:

Founded by Michele Faissola in 2020 in honour of his parents, The Faissola Foundation provides educational opportunities to European children from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. The foundation is based on the premise that education is the key to success, but that many underprivileged children unfortunately do not have the same educational opportunities as others. By providing financial and emotional support, the foundation seeks to give these children the tools they need to shape a better future for themselves. For more information on the Faissola Foundation, visit: https://www.faissolafoundation.com/

ABOUT THE LONDON ACADEMY OF EXCELLENCE (LAE)

LAE was established in Stratford in 2012 to improve progression rates in Newham for students aspiring to win places at top universities. LAE's admissions criteria positively discriminate in favour of students who have been eligible for free school meals during their secondary education. In less than a decade, LAE has sent more than 150 students to Oxford and Cambridge, more than 200 to medical schools and more than 1,500 to Russell Group universities. For more information visit https://www.lae.ac.uk/

Contact

Anthony Butcher

info.foundation@faissola.com

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2437714/Faissola_Foundation.jpg

Logo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2437713/Faissola_Foundation_Logo.jpg
Georgia Perimeter College at Georgia State University; Dallas College; and

County College of Morris took home winning titles following presentations

of their STEM innovations to address real-world challenges

WASHINGTON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), in partnership with the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF), announced the three winning teams of this year's Community College Innovation Challenge (CCIC).

The annual competition seeks to strengthen entrepreneurial thinking among community college students by challenging them to develop STEM-based solutions to real-world problems. It also enables students to discover and demonstrate their capacity to use STEM to make a difference in the world and to translate that knowledge into action.

The first, second and third-place winning teams and their innovations are listed below.

First Place: Perimeter College at Georgia State University, GA

Project: Gorginea Care

Second Place: Dallas College, TX

Project: Autonomous Monitoring for Blaze Emergency Response (AMBER)

Third Place: County College of Morris, NJ

Project: Doing the MOST with NBD-QC

This week, 12 community colleges selected as finalists in a national competition attended an Innovation Boot Camp where they learned from entrepreneurs and experts in business planning, stakeholder engagement, strategic communication, and marketplace dynamics. The Boot Camp culminated in a Student Innovation Poster Session with STEM leaders and congressional stakeholders, and a 5-minute pitch presentation to a panel of industry and entrepreneurial professionals determining the winning teams.

"Year after year, I am thrilled to witness the promising talent that the Community College Innovation Challenge brings together," said James L. Moore III, assistant director for STEM Education. "The student participants represent both the present and future of STEM by addressing some of the most pressing challenges of our times. NSF is proud to co-sponsor CCIC and to congratulate the students for doing an outstanding job translating their knowledge into action."

Among the ideas the 12 finalist teams presented this year are innovative and transformative solutions that address clean water; renewable energy and energy storage; HIV treatment; women's healthcare; fire prevention; combating plastic waste; and providing accessible solutions for people with disabilities.

"Truly inspiring," said Walter G. Bumphus, president and CEO of AACC. "We are so proud to be afforded the opportunity to provide these resources for community college students to showcase their innovative and creative solutions to real-world issues. The projects featured show the amazing potential these students have to make meaningful economic and societal impact. Congratulations to the team from Georgia Perimeter College at Georgia State University and to all of the finalists."

To receive updates about the CCIC's 2024 winners, follow @Comm_College or visit www.aaccinnovationchallenge.com .

About AACC

As the voice of the nation's community colleges, the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), delivers educational and economic opportunity for more than 10 million diverse students in search of the American Dream. Uniquely dedicated to access and success for all students, AACC's member colleges provide an on-ramp to degree attainment, skilled careers, and family-supporting wages. Located in Washington, D.C., AACC advocates for these not-for-profit, public-serving institutions to ensure they have the resources and support they need to deliver on the mission of increasing economic mobility for all. https://www.aacc.nche.edu/.

About NSF

About NSF The U.S. National Science Foundation propels the nation forward by advancing fundamental research in all fields of science and engineering. NSF supports research and people by providing facilities, instruments and funding to support their ingenuity and sustain the U.S. as a global leader in research and innovation. With a fiscal year 2024 budget of $9.06 billion, NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 2,000 colleges, universities and institutions. Each year, NSF receives more than 40,000 competitive proposals and makes about 11,000 new awards. Those awards include support for cooperative research with industry, Arctic and Antarctic research and operations, and U.S. participation in international scientific efforts. https://www.nsf.gov.

SOURCE American Association of Community Colleges
NEW YORK, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global Abaca Fiber Market size is estimated to grow by USD 356.6 million from 2024-2028, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of almost 13.76% during the forecast period. Rising applications of abaca fiber in niche applications is driving market growth, with a trend towards recent developments in abaca fiber industry. However, high concerns related to cultivation of abaca plant for various climate change poses a challenge. Key market players include Celulosa de Levante SA, Chandra Prakash and Co., Ching Bee Trading Corp., DGL Global Ventures LLC, Heayi Trading Co. Ltd., PALTEX COMPANY LTD, SAMATOA, Simor Abaca Products, Specialty Pulp Manufacturing Inc., Wigglesworth and Co. Ltd., and TERRANOVA PAPERS SA.

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Abaca Fiber Market 2024-2028

Get a detailed analysis on regions, market segments, customer landscape, and companies- View the snapshot of this report

Abaca Fiber Market Scope Report Coverage Details Base year 2023 Historic period 2018 - 2022 Forecast period 2024-2028 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 13.76% Market growth 2024-2028 USD 356.6 million Market structure Concentrated YoY growth 2022-2023 (%) 12.6 Regional analysis APAC, Europe, North America, South America, and Middle East and Africa Performing market contribution APAC at 57% Key countries US, The Philippines, Japan, China, and UK Key companies profiled Celulosa de Levante SA, Chandra Prakash and Co., Ching Bee Trading Corp., DGL Global Ventures LLC, Heayi Trading Co. Ltd., PALTEX COMPANY LTD, SAMATOA, Simor Abaca Products, Specialty Pulp Manufacturing Inc., Wigglesworth and Co. Ltd., and TERRANOVA PAPERS SA

Market Driver

The abaca fiber market is experiencing significant growth due to advancements in processing techniques, leading to improved fiber quality and consistency. Sustainable cultivation practices and fair-trade initiatives are also gaining importance to promote ethical sourcing and support local communities. Notable developments include PhilFIDA's partnership with MANGYAN MANACO for livelihood and technical training, and Glatfelter and Ekman's collaboration to distribute superior abaca pulp worldwide. These collaborations will increase the demand for abaca fibers, benefiting various industries due to its durability and high performance.

The Abaca fiber market has seen significant demand in recent years due to its unique properties. Key players in the market include manufacturers and suppliers of this natural fiber. Abaca fibers are used in various industries such as textiles, paper, and automotive. The trend towards sustainable and eco-friendly materials has boosted the market.

Clothing and accessory brands are incorporating Abaca fibers into their product lines. Additionally, the paper industry uses Abaca fibers for their strength and durability. The cost-effective production process and increasing availability of Abaca fibers are also contributing factors to the market's growth. The future looks bright for the Abaca fiber market with continued innovation and demand.

Research report provides comprehensive data on impact of trend. For more details- Download a Sample Report

Market Challenges

Abaca fibers, primarily produced in the Philippines , are essential for ropes, papers, textiles, and various industries. However, extreme weather events and climate change pose significant challenges. Typhoons, hurricanes, and droughts damage crops and hinder new plantings, reducing yields and causing supply shortages. Rising temperatures and altered precipitation patterns create unfavorable growing conditions, affecting fiber quality.

, are essential for ropes, papers, textiles, and various industries. However, extreme weather events and climate change pose significant challenges. Typhoons, hurricanes, and droughts damage crops and hinder new plantings, reducing yields and causing supply shortages. Rising temperatures and altered precipitation patterns create unfavorable growing conditions, affecting fiber quality. The Philippines , identified as one of the most climate-risk countries, faces frequent El Nino events, which threaten crop output. Adaptive measures, such as breeding resilient abaca varieties and investing in climate-resilient infrastructure, are crucial to mitigate these challenges and ensure market growth.

, identified as one of the most climate-risk countries, faces frequent El Nino events, which threaten crop output. Adaptive measures, such as breeding resilient abaca varieties and investing in climate-resilient infrastructure, are crucial to mitigate these challenges and ensure market growth. The Abaca fiber market faces several challenges in the industry. Labor intensive production processes and high costs are major hurdles. Harvesting, processing, and production require skilled labor, making it a significant expense. Procurement of raw materials is also a challenge due to the climate-sensitive nature of the Abaca plant. Clothings and accessories made from Abaca fiber are in demand, especially in tropical regions.

However, the high production costs limit its widespread use. Cost reduction through automation and efficient production methods is essential to increase competitiveness in the market. Additionally, sustainability and eco-friendliness are becoming crucial factors for consumers, making it necessary for producers to adopt sustainable farming practices and ethical labor conditions.

For more insights on driver and challenges - Request a sample report!

Segment Overview

Product

1.1 Pulp and paper

1.2 Cordage

1.3 Fibercraft

1.4 Textile

1.5 Others

Type

2.1 Raw

2.2 Refined or Blended

Geography

3.1 APAC

3.2 Europe

3.3 North America

3.4 South America

3.5 Middle East and Africa

1.1 Pulp and paper- Abaca fiber, also known as Manila hemp, is a strong natural fiber widely used in the pulp and paper industry. Its long staple length, strength, and high cellulose content make it ideal for producing specialized papers like tea and coffee bags, sausage casing paper, and currency paper. Abaca fiber boasts three times the strength of sisal fiber and is more resistant to saltwater degradation than other vegetable fibers. In both wet and dry states, it has stronger tensile strength and lower elongation than synthetic fibers like rayon and nylon. These properties increase demand for abaca fiber in the pulp and paper segment, fueling the growth of the global abaca fiber market.

For more information on market segmentation with geographical analysis including forecast (2024-2028) and historic data (2017-2021) - Download a Sample Report

Research Analysis

The Abaca Fiber Market encompasses various natural fibers, including Manila hemp and Sisal fibers, which are vegetable fibers derived from the Musa textilis plant. Abaca fiber, a key component, is renowned for its eco-friendly properties and is often used in interior designing practices due to its sustainability and versatility. Abaca cultivation requires extensive land and resources, making it a labor-intensive process.

Harvesting and processing demand skilled labor, leading to higher production costs. Abaca fiber exhibits remarkable tensile strength and resistance to saltwater, making it ideal for heavy loads and applications in fishing nets and ship rigging. The fiber craft industry utilizes these fibers for creating handicrafts, further emphasizing their value as renewable resources.

Market Research Overview

The Abaca Fiber Market encompasses the global trade of abaca fiber and its derived products. Abaca, also known as Manila hemp, is a type of banana plant that yields strong and versatile fibers. These fibers are utilized in various industries, including textiles, paper, and rope production. The market for abaca fiber is significant due to its unique properties, such as high tensile strength and resistance to water. Abaca fibers are sourced primarily from countries like the Philippines, Ecuador, and Indonesia.

The demand for abaca fiber is driven by its applications in industries like automotive, construction, and marine. The market is expected to grow due to increasing awareness of sustainable and eco-friendly alternatives to synthetic fibers. The production process involves harvesting the abaca plant, decorticating the fibers, and then processing them for specific applications. The market for abaca fiber is subject to various factors, including supply and demand dynamics, government regulations, and market trends.

Table of Contents:

1 Executive Summary

2 Market Landscape

3 Market Sizing

4 Historic Market Size

5 Five Forces Analysis

6 Market Segmentation

Product

Pulp And Paper



Cordage



Fibercraft



Textile



Others

Type

Raw



Refined Or Blended

Geography

APAC



Europe



North America



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
EAST BRUNSWICK, N.J., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Avet Pharmaceuticals Inc. (" Avet "), formerly known as Heritage Pharmaceuticals Inc., announced today that the Company has entered into a settlement agreement with a putative class of End Payer Plaintiffs (the " EPP Class Plaintiffs ") in the Generic Pharmaceuticals Pricing Antitrust Litigation pending in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Pennsylvania. The putative EPP Class Plaintiffs include private companies, municipalities and other governmental entities (other than federal or state governmental entities) that paid and/or provided reimbursement for some or all of the purchase price for drugs purchased from Avet for personal use by their members that were the subject of the lawsuit during the relevant time period. In January 2024, Avet also announced a settlement with a separate putative class of Direct Purchaser Plaintiffs in the Generic Pharmaceuticals Pricing Antitrust Litigation.

Under the terms of the settlement, the EPP Class will receive $10 million with the funds to be held in escrow pending final Court approval of the settlement agreement. Once approved by the Court, all claims asserted by the putative EPP Class Plaintiffs against the Company and Avet's former parent company, Emcure Pharmaceuticals Ltd., will be fully resolved and released, subject to the right of those plaintiffs to "opt-out" of the settlement. The settlement does not constitute an admission of liability by the Company.

"We are very pleased to reach this civil settlement with the EPPs, which represents yet another important step toward putting these longstanding, legacy issues behind us as a Company," stated George Svokos, President & CEO at Avet. "This settlement, along with the settlement we reached with the DPPs several months ago, will help us focus our continuing efforts to deliver affordable, accessible and quality medicines to our customers," said Svokos.

About Avet

Avet Pharmaceuticals Inc. is an East Brunswick-based specialty generic pharmaceutical company engaged in the development, manufacturing, sales and marketing of generic and legacy branded pharmaceutical products for the U.S. prescription drug market. Since inception, our customers have experienced the benefits of our continuous product expansion and global alliance network that has produced an impressive portfolio of over 150 products spanning multiple dosage forms. Avet's products cover several therapeutic categories, including but not limited to oncology, cardiovascular, metabolic disease, anti-infective, and pain management. Whether an oral solid product, or a complex injectable, the Avet portfolio is poised to continue to deliver affordable, accessible and quality medicines to our customers.

SOURCE Avet Pharmaceuticals Inc.
Students planning for law school now have test prep solutions designed to address the upcoming changes to the 2024 LSAT



DALLAS, June 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- As the Law School Admission Test (LSAT) undergoes significant changes this summer, PowerScore by BARBRI has unveiled a comprehensive suite of subscription course options tailored to meet the evolving needs of today's students. Backed by BARBRI's advanced learning science and technology, these offerings deliver a modern, best-in-class experience.

"With an overhaul of the writing section, which emphasizes analytical skills, set to debut along with the removal of the Logic Games, early and tailored test preparation is crucial," said Dave Killoran, CEO of PowerScore, a BARBRI Company.

"The upcoming changes are a major shift for the LSAT, so we reimagined the way our courses are presented, making them more flexible and adaptable," said Killoran.

PowerScore's new subscription courses offer several preparation options, from self-study to live classes with expert instructors. Each course offers on-demand lessons from our flagship LSAT Course, along with a comprehensive online resource center featuring prep tools, live classroom options, practice tests, and performance trackingall with the freedom to navigate the material at the student's own pace.

"Our students have seen remarkable score boosts, often exceeding 30 points. Our comprehensive approach offers the opportunity to expand the list of attainable law schools and secure better financial aid offers," said Jon Denning, Vice President at PowerScore. "With consistent test day simulations, official LSAT practice questions, and detailed performance tracking, we ensure every step of their prep is as efficient as possible."

The new LSAT Prep courses subscription provides access to a library of on-demand videos by LSAT Bible authors Dave Killoran and Jon Denning, along with prep recommendations and daily live online classes. Additionally, students can participate in weekly proctored practice LSATs, interactive group study sessions, and access drop-in hours with expert instructors. This subscription is supported by a robust online practice platform featuring official tests, custom drills, and performance tracking tools.

"We understand that one size does not fit all when it comes to LSAT preparation. Providing different LSAT subscription offerings underscores our commitment to meeting the diverse needs of aspiring law students," said Steve Fredette, CEO BARBRI Global.

The legal learning journey begins with gaining admission to law school, and BARBRI has a long history of driving successful outcomes at every stage. With PowerScore's years of proven expertise in LSAT preparation and other high-stakes exams, students are equipped with the essential knowledge and skills needed to excel in the prelaw exam prep and admissions process. Combining this with BARBRI's excellence in exam prep allows students to gain the confidence necessary to navigate the complex path to becoming a legal professional.

For more information about BARBRI's new LSAT Prep subscription options, visit https://powerscore.com/lsat/courses.

About BARBRI 

BARBRI is the recognized leader in global legal education, delivering best-in-class products and solutions to legal learners, professionals, law schools, law firms and organizations. For over 57 years, BARBRI has been the leader in U.S. bar exam preparation  helping more than 1.5 million learners around the world pass the exam. Today, BARBRI provides technology-enabled legal education offerings for every step of the legal learning journey globally, from LSAT prep and law school admissions counseling to law school success and bar preparation, through continuing lifetime legal education. BARBRI's exceptional resources, tools, and insights, created by renowned experts, are designed to help legal learners succeed at every step and maximize outcomes.

BARBRI is headquartered in Dallas, Texas with offices U.S. and the United Kingdom.

For more information, please visit www.barbri.com.

SOURCE BARBRI
Innovative Production Company Offers Free Services and Guarantees Project Success, Opening Doors for Aspiring Writers with No Prior Experience

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif., June 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Call Sheet Media (https://callsheetmedia.com), a groundbreaking production company, has officially launched with a mission to transform the way Hollywood discovers and nurtures new talent. Founded by seasoned industry professionals, Call Sheet Media aims to provide a platform for aspiring writers and creators to get their projects optioned, sold, or produced, regardless of their previous experience or connections.

Breaking Down Barriers

For decades, Hollywood has operated as a closed network, often excluding talented storytellers who lack the necessary connections or credits. Recognizing this challenge, Call Sheet Media was established to open doors for creative individuals who have compelling stories to tell but face significant barriers to entry. By focusing on the quality of the idea rather than the resume of the creator, Call Sheet Media is leveling the playing field for new voices.

The CSM Mentor Program

At the heart of Call Sheet Media is the CSM Mentor Program, a unique initiative designed to guide participants through the entire creative process. Selected applicants are paired with experienced mentors who provide one-on-one support, from concept development to pitching to major studios. This comprehensive approach ensures that each project is polished and market-ready, increasing the chances of success.

Financial Accessibility

Call Sheet Media is dedicated to making its program accessible to a wide range of talented individuals. The company provides numerous free services, including mentorship, development support, and industry connections, all designed to help participants succeed. This approach ensures that financial barriers are reduced, opening up opportunities for a diverse range of creators to bring their unique stories to the screen.

Success Stories and Future Plans

Since its soft launch, Call Sheet Media has already seen several success stories. Projects from participants like Sara and Mark, who had no prior industry connections, have been optioned by studios and are currently in various stages of production.

Looking ahead, Call Sheet Media plans to expand its services, including partnerships with film festivals and the development of an online collaboration platform for creators.

Join the Revolution

Call Sheet Media is now accepting applications for the CSM Mentor Program. Aspiring writers and creators with a story to tell are encouraged to visit Call Sheet Media to learn more and apply.

Contact:

Thomas Haldeman

***@callsheetmedia.com

Photo(s):

https://www.prlog.org/13024807

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SOURCE Call Sheet Media LLC
Concordia Shanghai named in Top 10 shortlist for World's Best School Prize for Supporting Healthy Lives

SHANGHAI, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- An international school in China has been named in the Top 10 shortlists for the World's Best School Prizes 2024 . The five World's Best School Prizes, founded by T4 Education in collaboration with Accenture, American Express, and the Lemann Foundation, are the world's most prestigious education prizes and this year's winners will share a $50,000 prize fund.

Concordia International School Shanghai Named in Top 10 Shortlist for Worlds Best School Prizes

Concordia International School Shanghai, an independent preschool through secondary school in Shanghai, China, which fosters a healthy, connected community, boosting staff wellbeing and enhancing student success, has been named in the Top 10 shortlist for the World's Best School Prize for Supporting Healthy Lives.

The five World's Best School Prizes - for Community Collaboration, Environmental Action, Innovation, Overcoming Adversity, and Supporting Healthy Lives  were established in the wake of COVID in 2022 to give a platform to schools that are changing lives in their classrooms and far beyond their walls, sharing their best practices to help improve education everywhere.

The winners of the five Prizes will be chosen by an expert Judging Academy based on rigorous criteria. In addition, all 50 shortlisted schools across the five Prizes will also take part in a Public Vote, which opened on June 13, 2024 . The school which receives the most public votes will receive the Community Choice Award and membership to T4 Education's Best School to Work programme to help them support teacher wellbeing and solve the teacher recruitment and retention crisis.

Vikas Pota, Founder of T4 Education and the World's Best School Prizes, said:

"Unless we solve the urgent challenges global education faces  from learning gaps exacerbated by COVID to chronic underfunding and the growing teacher wellbeing, recruitment and retention crisis  we will have failed the next generation.

"Trailblazing schools like Concordia International School Shanghai, which have cultivated a strong culture and aren't afraid to innovate, show the difference that can be made to so many lives. Schools everywhere can now learn from their solutions, and it's time governments do so as well."

About the school :

Concordia International School Shanghai, an independent preschool to secondary school in Shanghai, China, fosters a healthy, connected community, boosting staff wellbeing and enhancing student success. Serving 1,152 students, Concordia offers a robust American curriculum supported by 269 staff members.

A key initiative of the school is its Employee Wellness Programme, launched in 2015 based on the recognition of the intense pressures of a fast-paced, competitive academic environment. Acknowledging the critical role faculty and staff play in nurturing student success, Concordia International School Shanghai aimed to support their physical, emotional, and social wellbeing.

The programme began with a wellness competition, achieving a 70% participation rate in its first year. It went on to include fitness classes, cultural outings, and workday retreats, with participation rates soaring to 95-99%. These activities have significantly enhanced the sense of community and wellbeing among staff.

The impact on students has been significant. Healthier, more engaged teachers have led to increased classroom presence, contributing to better student performance. Additionally, student-focused wellness initiatives and Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) integrated into the curriculum ensure that student wellbeing remains a priority. The programme also includes parents, creating a supportive community that positively influences students. This comprehensive approach ensures that both staff and students thrive in a supportive environment.

Next steps :

The Top 3 finalists for each of the five World's Best School Prizes will be announced in September 2024 followed by the winners in November. The winner of each Prize will be chosen based on rigorous criteria by a Judging Academy comprising distinguished leaders across the globe including academics, educators, NGOs, social entrepreneurs, government, civil society, and the private sector.

A prize of US$50,000 will be equally shared among the winners of the five Prizes, with each receiving an award of US$10,000. Meanwhile, the winner of the Community Choice Award, as determined by the Public Vote, will receive membership to Best School to Work - an independent, evidence-based mechanism to certify schools for their culture and working environment. Membership comes with detailed feedback, actionable insights, and benchmarking data to help schools transform their culture to attract and retain the best teachers.

ABOUT T4 EDUCATION:

We believe every child, everywhere, deserves a good education. We are building the world's largest community of teachers and schools to achieve this. Together. Our digital media platform provides opportunities for educators to network, collaborate, share good practices, and support each other's efforts to improve learning and school culture. We work to amplify teachers' voices because the world we want to see will only be built by listening to those at the heart of education.

For more information, please contact Salman Shaheen: [email protected]

SOURCE Concordia International School Shanghai
PSI Celebrates International Fathers' Mental Health Day on June 17, Encourages Family and Friends to Know Symptoms and Check on Dads

PORTLAND, Ore., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- June is a time when Americans celebrate fathers. But fatherhood isn't joyful for the thousands of dads experiencing perinatal mental health disorders (PMHDs), and many of them suffer alone. Societal norms and expectations contribute to the prevalence of these disorders. Nonprofit Postpartum Support International (PSI) is working to shatter the stigma surrounding PMHDs among fathers. Research shows:

At least one in 10 fathers suffer from postpartum depression during the perinatal period, which includes pregnancy and the year following birth. Even more will experience an anxiety disorder. Free support is available at Postpartum.net.

Postpartum depression and other PMHDs, including anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, bipolar disorder, and psychosis, affect 800,000 people a year.





At least one in 10 men suffer from postpartum depression during the perinatal period, which includes pregnancy and the year following birth.





As many as 50% of fathers suffer from PMHDs when their partner is suffering.





As many as 18% of fathers develop a clinically significant anxiety disorder such as generalized anxiety disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and post-traumatic stress disorder at some point during their partner's pregnancy or the first year postpartum.





Only 25% of those who suffer get help, and many parents are unaware that what they are experiencing is normal and treatable.

Founded by postpartum depression survivor Mark Williams and Psychologist and PSI Advisory Board member Daniel Singley, Ph.D., International Fathers' Mental Health Day is held annually on the day after Father's Day (June 17 this year) to highlight key aspects of paternal mental health.

"Societal norms dictate that men should be supportive and strong, which makes fathers even less likely to seek support or treatment for PMHDs, Singley said. "Dads usually don't want to admit they're struggling; they feel like they are failing their partners and their children and losing themselves in the process," Singley said.

A barrier to understanding and treatment of PMHDs in fathers is that men often exhibit different symptoms of depression. It can manifest itself as anger, irritation, frustration, and being short with people, or withdrawing from relationships. Dads may start drinking more alcohol or using other substances. Their loved ones and friends may not recognize the symptoms, and worse, may push struggling dads away at a time when they most need support.

"We are finding that many mental health professionals are not connecting the behaviors commonly displayed by men experiencing perinatal mental health disorders with the fact that the father may be depressed or have anxiety. We are working to change that," Singley said. "Nobody should have to suffer, and these conditions are common and treatable."

David Levine, M.D., a New Jersey pediatrician and vice chair of PSI's Board of Directors, suffered from postpartum depression after the birth of his first son, Zachary, in 2013.

"I thought he hated me. Every time I was around him, he would cry. And then I started to obsessively worry he was crying constantly because there was something seriously wrong with him," Levine said. As a pediatrician, I was keenly aware of all the potential issues. What I didn't know was the issue in play was my own: I was suffering from postpartum depression."

Levine kept his feelings inside, as many fathers do. When Zachary was about six weeks old, Levine had a breakdown, which led him  with the encouragement of his wife  to start therapy. "After a few months, I could finally breathe again; I was able to be the father I wanted to be, the dad Zachary and my wife needed me to be. And now I am part of a vibrant community helping other parents who are going through what I did."

Dads and their partners should know free support is available, and no diagnosis is needed to get help. PSI offers coordination, comfort, and peer support, and helps people find resources online and in their own communities. Parents can call the PSI Helpline at 1-800-944-4773 (English and Spanish), text "help" to 1-800-944-4773 (English) or 971-203-7773 (Spanish) or visit postpartum.net . New this year is Connect by PSI, an app that provides free, easy access to resources.

"Adding a child to the family is stressful for all parents. We don't talk enough about the mental health challenges that arise for mothers, but perinatal mental health disorders among fathers are discussed even less, and it's time to change that," said Wendy Davis PhD, PMH-C, president and CEO of Postpartum Support International. "As part of PSI's commitment to a whole-family approach to perinatal mental health, we are proud to sponsor the annual International Fathers' Mental Health Day on June 17 to raise awareness and decrease the stigma dads often face."

PSI has an online Perinatal Mental Health Provider Directory that lists trained providers and support groups and operates a Perinatal Psychiatric Consultation line, through which any medical provider can consult with an expert perinatal psychiatrist at no charge. PSI facilitates more than 50 free virtual support groups including those for dads, military families, LGBTQIA+ families, Spanish speakers, and more. PSI has a specialized coordinator for dads , a volunteer who provides understanding and support for fathers who are struggling.

Singley hosts PSI's Chats for Dads meetings, held the first Monday of each month, providing a space where dads, partners, extended family members or other support people, and professionals can find some answers and support from an expert and from each other. The sessions feature honest and compassionate talk about the adjustment to parenthood; information about how fatherhood can affect men; and helpful advice.

About Postpartum Support International

Postpartum Support International (PSI) was founded by a new mother in 1987 to increase awareness among public and professional communities about the emotional difficulties parents can experience during and after pregnancy. PSI offers a wealth of resources for a wide range of needs, situations, and audiences to give families the strongest and healthiest start possible through support and community. PSI also offers support, resources, best-practice training and certification for healthcare professionals and volunteer coordinators nationwide and in more than 30 countries. PSI is committed to eliminating stigma and ensuring compassionate and quality care and support are available to all families. Need help? Call 1-800-944-4PPD (4773), visit postpartum.net , or download the Connect by PSI app.

SOURCE Postpartum Support International
MESA, Ariz., June 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Daiso, the renowned global retail chain offering a wide range of affordable and unique products, is thrilled to announce the grand opening at Mesa Superstition Gateway in Mesa, Arizona on June 29th. "We are thrilled to open our store at Mesa Superstition Gateway," said Jack Williams, Chief Retail Operations Officer for Daiso USA. "This achievement reflects the dedication and support of our customers who have embraced Daiso's unique concept and diverse product range. We are excited to provide an exceptional shopping experience to the vibrant Mesa community and look forward to serving our customers with the utmost care and dedication."

The new Daiso store at Mesa Superstition Gateway encompasses 7,020 square feet and promises to be a haven for shoppers seeking quality merchandise at affordable prices. With its extensive range of products spanning various categories, including Japanese inspired home decor, stationery, food, and more, Daiso has become synonymous with accessible and innovative offerings. John Clarke, Chief Development Officer for Daiso USA says, "Mesa based Daiso customers have shown us through our online business and social media their desire for us to have more stores within the state, influencing our immediate growth strategy in this region. We currently operate 132 units in 7 states with more states opening in 2024".

On both Saturday, June 29th and Sunday, June 30th, the first 100 customers to shop at the Mesa Superstition Gateway location and make a minimum purchase of $30 will receive an exclusive goodie bag. These special offerings are Daiso's way of expressing gratitude to its loyal customers and welcoming new shoppers to the Daiso community.

Daiso invites customers to join in the celebration. The Daiso, at 1850 S Signal Butte Rd, Suite 101-A, is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m to 9 p.m and Sunday from 10 a.m to 8 p.m.

About Daiso:

Daiso is a global retail chain founded in Japan, known for its vast array of unique and affordable products across various categories such as household goods, stationery, beauty, and more. Daiso entered the US market in 2005 and continues to expand its global footprint while maintaining its commitment to quality, innovation, and customer satisfaction. The Daiso US headquarters is located in Anaheim, CA.

SOURCE Daiso USA
SAN ANTONIO, June 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Daiso, the renowned global retail chain offering a wide range of affordable and unique products, is thrilled to announce the grand opening at Alamo Ranch in San Antonio, Texas on June 22nd. "We are thrilled to open our store at Alamo Ranch," said Jack Williams, Chief Retail Operations Officer for Daiso USA. "This achievement reflects the dedication and support of our customers who have embraced Daiso's unique concept and diverse product range. We are excited to provide an exceptional shopping experience to the vibrant San Antonio community and look forward to serving our customers with the utmost care and dedication."

The new Daiso store at Alamo Ranch encompasses 5,661 square feet and promises to be a haven for shoppers seeking quality merchandise at affordable prices. With its extensive range of products spanning various categories, including Japanese inspired home decor, stationery, food, and more, Daiso has become synonymous with accessible and innovative offerings. John Clarke, Chief Development Officer for Daiso USA says, "San Antonio based Daiso customers have shown us through our online business and social media their desire for us to have more stores within the state, influencing our immediate growth strategy in this region. We currently operate 132 units in 7 states with more states opening in 2024".

On both Saturday, June 22nd and Sunday, June 23rd, the first 100 customers to shop at the Alamo Ranch location and make a minimum purchase of $30 will receive an exclusive goodie bag. These special offerings are Daiso's way of expressing gratitude to its loyal customers and welcoming new shoppers to the Daiso community.

Daiso invites customers to join in the celebration. The Daiso, at 5347 W Loop 1604 N., Suite #105, is open Monday through Saturday from 9 a.m to 9 p.m and Sunday from 10 a.m to 8 p.m.

About Daiso:

Daiso is a global retail chain founded in Japan, known for its vast array of unique and affordable products across various categories such as household goods, stationery, beauty, and more. Daiso entered the US market in 2005 and continues to expand its global footprint while maintaining its commitment to quality, innovation, and customer satisfaction. The Daiso US headquarters is located in Anaheim, CA.

SOURCE Daiso USA
MINNEAPOLIS, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Digital Mass, a leading Salesforce consulting agency, today announced the company's recognition as one of the Best Places to Work by the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal. Digital Mass has been recognized in the small business category for the company's commitment to creating an outstanding work environment and fostering a culture of growth and innovation.

With more than 80 percent revenue growth in the past two years, the company has consistently demonstrated its capability to deliver transformative Salesforce solutions to its clients, while maintaining its focus on talent development and mentorship programs.

Co-founded in 2017 by Marty Davis IV and his son, Martin Davis V (MJ), Digital Mass has quickly become a powerhouse in digital transformation and a leader in Salesforce development for clients across the Healthcare, Construction, Manufacturing, Financial Services and Retail categories.

"Our success is a testament to the dedication and talent of our team," said Marty Davis, co-founder and CEO, Digital Mass. "We put focus on innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement, which is key to our growth and, in particular, this recognition."

"Being named one of the Best Places to Work by the Business Journal is a reflection of our team's hard work and commitment to creating the best custom Salesforce solutions for our enterprise clients," said MJ Davis, co-founder and Chief Technology Officer, Digital Mass. "We're passionate about mentoring the next generation of technology leaders and creating an environment where they can thrive."

The rankings were determined after Digital Mass employees were surveyed about the company's leadership, mentorship, communication, work-life balance, and more categories focused on office culture.

Open-ended questions allowed Digital Mass employees to share their personal experiences working at the company, with highlights that include: the company's commitment to work-life balance, mutual respect, collaboration and fun.

Digital Mass was one of 15 honorees announced by the Minneapolis Business Journal in the small category (companies with 25 to 49 Minnesota-employees). The full list of 70 honorees will be announced on August 23 in a Best Places to Work special publication.

For more information about Digital Mass and its Salesforce services, please visit Digital Mass online .

For Press Inquiries, Contact:

Alex Colburn

Director of Marketing, Digital Mass

[email protected]

SOURCE Digital Mass
LOS ANGELES, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Under the leadership of Joe Y. Chou, Director-General of the Taiwan Tourism Administration (TTA), the Taiwan Tourism Workshop showcased Taiwan's abundant tourist attractions, rich cultural heritage, and exceptional travel services. This collaborative effort included partnerships with local governments, travel agencies, airlines, and traditional Taiwanese folk artists.

Mayor John Wu (left) of San Gabriel, California, extends a warm welcome to Joe Y. Chou, Director-General of the Taiwan Tourism Administration (right).

During the event, the TTA unveiled a new logo and slogan, "TAIWAN  Waves of Wonder," highlighting the country's enchanting natural landscapes and vibrant culture. With nearly 100 participants from the Los Angeles travel industry, the event provided a platform for engaging discussions and potential business collaborations. Mayor John Wu of San Gabriel, California, made a special appearance, extending warm wishes and appreciation.

The years 2024 and 2025 have been designated as Taiwan Tourism Years, focusing on attracting North American visitors through key initiatives such as round-island tours, free half-day stopover tours, and cruise travel. These efforts aim to boost Taiwan's presence in the global tourism market.

This tourism workshop in Los Angeles not only fostered valuable business connections but also highlighted Taiwan's remarkable resilience following the Hualien earthquake in April. By focusing on trends like ecotourism and indigenous tourism, Taiwan is paving the way for sustainable travel experiences worldwide. This underscores Taiwan's commitment to environmental conservation and cultural preservation, values that resonate with American travelers seeking authentic and eco-conscious adventures.

About the Taiwan Tourism Administration

The Taiwan Tourism Administration is the official government agency responsible for domestic and international tourism policy development and execution. There are three North American tourism offices located in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

SOURCE Taiwan Tourism Administration
One-hundred advocates from across the state met with legislators to share how voter registration laws makes voting harder for their communities, calling on the legislature to pass SB-299, to automate voter registration

SACRAMENTO, Calif., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Yesterday, Dolores Huerta, California State Senator Monique Limon, Assemblymember Chris Holden, and 100 voting rights advocates from across the state who make up the California Grassroots Democracy Coalition, rallied in front of the Capitol building to galvanize the State Legislature around California's New Motor Voter Program bill (SB-299). If passed into law, SB-299 would automatically bring 4.7 million eligible but unregistered voters, who are disproportionately Asian American, Black, and Latinx citizens, one step closer to the ballot box. The Coalition hopes to move Elections Committee Chair Assemblymember Gail Pellerin to expand California's democracy to all eligible voters and move California toward truly automatic voter registration with SB-299.

"Simply put: voter registration laws are racist," said Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farmworkers and president of the Dolores Huerta Foundation who has been advocating for the expansion of voting rights for underrepresented communities since the 1950's. "They are relics of the racist Jim Crow Era, a time when literacy tests, poll taxes and other hurdles were put in place to prevent Black, Indigenous and other people of color from voting."

California's exclusionary voting practices have evolved and persisted for more than two centuries. Beyond California's 92-year-long delay in assuring equal rights for Black, Chinese, Mexican and Native American people through the prolonged ratification of the 15th Amendment, California discouraged voting by withholding citizenship from Chinese immigrants, requiring literacy tests for all voters at the ballot box, and introducing a variety of poll taxes that disproportionately affected workers, immigrants and infrequent voters. The requirement to register oneself with a county clerk was introduced in 1866, and had the same desired effect to make voting exclusive.

Senator Monique Limon, (D-Santa Barbara) who authored the bill said, "It is unacceptable that working-class communities of color continue to be systematically left out of access to political power. We must take the necessary steps to ensure that California's diverse population becomes a diverse electorate that truly represents the power of our state."

SB-299 would update California's voter registration to Secure Automatic Voter Registration (SAVR), which automatically registers eligible people when they interact with a state agency like the DMV or Medicaid. This bill follows a national trend of updating and fully automating Motor Voter laws which have recently passed in Alaska, Delaware, DC, Colorado, New Mexico, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, Oregon and Washington.

In addition to Limon and Huerta, three women of color leaders spoke at the rally and press conference about the kinds of obstacles voter registration poses to their communities.

"I was my family's sole interpreter and civic navigator from a very young age, and voter registration was not at the top of the urgent paperwork I was translating for them," said Sydney Fang, Policy Director at AAPI FORCE who is the child of immigrants and refugees who speak Cantonese. "Once they were able to opt-in for in-language voting, registration became easier for my family. SB-299 would remove this laborious extra step that's keeping so many non-English speakers from participating in our democracy."

Kristin Nimmers, Policy and Campaign Manager with the California Black Power Network described how system impacted people (1 out of every 13 Black adults) experience frequent changes to their voter eligibility, making it difficult to keep up with registration. "California re-enfranchised over 50 thousand people in the last four years thanks to Prop 17," said Nimmers. "But in the absence of a back-end system, many of those people, and others on parole, probation, serving a misdemeanor sentence or awaiting trial, are still learning about this critical new right, and are therefore much less likely to be registered."

"A lack of in-language information for immigrants in various stages of their citizenship process makes registering to vote, not only difficult but also dangerous," said Itzel Maganda Chavez, Civic Engagement Director for Alliance San Diego, who described a community member who mistakenly registered before they were eligible, jeopardizing his ability to naturalize, and could have resulted in deportation. "By putting the burden of registration on all Californians, the state endangers non-citizens who aren't aware of the consequences or historical knowledge of the US voting process. Forcing people to opt in, puts vulnerable communities at serious risk while at the same time excluding eligible voters from exercising their fundamental right to vote."

About California Grassroots Democracy Coalition

The California Grassroots Democracy Coalition comprises 140+ grassroots organizations and is dedicated to helping California's most vulnerable communities become empowered through pro-democracy reforms. The organizations include a wide range of backgrounds including, but not limited to: criminal justice reform, immigrant rights, language access, low-income communities, environmental justice, religious, labor unions, etc. www.cademocracy.org

SOURCE The California Grassroots Democracy Coalition
PLANTATION, Fla., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Everise, a leader in transforming customer service for global healthcare companies, today announced being named a top five 2024 Inspiring Workplace in Latin America, an award that recognizes people-first organizations around the globe. Everise was ranked fourth out of five exceptional organizations. This is the first year Inspiring Workplaces has been organized in Latin America.

Everise is named Top 5 Inspiring Workplaces in Latin America in 2024.

To ensure that the best-performing organizations were identified, Inspiring Workplaces upgraded the judging criteria for the 2024 Awards. Entrants to the Inspiring Workplace Awards were asked to provide proof of their investment in people by demonstrating six key elements fundamental to creating a people-first culture, and by extension an Inspiring Workplace. They are Culture and Purpose, Leadership, Wellbeing, Inclusion, Employee Voice, and Employee Experience. Organizations of all sizes and industries entered a category defined by how many people are within the business. The top five winners were decided by an independent expert judging panel.

Each of the six key elements were also judged separately for best-in-class recognition in each discipline. Everise was the only organization out of the five scoring highly enough to be specially named in the special recognition categories of 'Inspiring Leadership', 'Inspiring Wellbeing', and 'Inspiring Employee Voice'.

"In Latin America, Everise's Guatemalan site will celebrate 12 years in operation this year, while our Colombian site opened in 2022. We are delighted to be named a top five Inspiring Workplace in Latin America, demonstrating the strength and consistency of Everise's people-first culture across all our teams and sites. This recognition honors our commitment since day one of building a people-first company that empowers and invests in our talent to grow to their fullest potential on delivering customer happiness. I would like to congratulate and thank our Latin American leaders and champions on this glowing accolade," said Sudhir Agarwal, Founder & CEO of Everise.

"Congratulations to the Top 5 Inspiring Workplaces across Latin America. Focusing on the personal development and caring for the people you employ will not only drive performance but protect the wellbeing of those individuals. Being PeopleFirst isn't a nice to have, it's a business imperative! Inspiring Workplaces is about to celebrate its 10th anniversary and we place these organizations in a gold standard for PeopleFirst culture. We can't be prouder to thank and congratulate all our finalists this year, a tremendous success!" shared Matt Manners, Founder, The Inspiring Workplaces Group.

About Everise

Founded in 2016, Everise is a global leader transforming customer service for healthcare, transport, logistics, insurance, financial services, and tech businesses. The Company solves problems for the millions of customers of some of the world's leading brands, by combining the best technology with compassionate service. With 19,000 champion agents operating across eight strategic markets globally, Everise seeks to deliver happiness to customers of some of the world's best loved brands. Our customer service solutions are high-performing, secure, and agile, with fluent proficiency in 32 languages, enabling businesses to scale globally while achieving top customer satisfaction. Learn more at www.weareeverise.com.

About The Inspiring Workplaces Group  change the world

Inspiring Workplaces is headquartered in the UK and operates in North America, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Latin America, Asia and Australasia. Inspiring Workplaces believes in recognizing and helping to shape the forward-thinking organizations of the future that put their people first. By shedding light on these innovative workplaces, Inspiring Workplaces helps to encourage positive change by providing a source of inspiration and education for others who seek it.

SOURCE Everise
The extra neutral alcohol (ENA) market is expected to flourish, driven by a rising global demand for spirits and its expanding applications in food, personal care, and other industries. The focus on sustainable practices is creating opportunities for producers of organic and ethically sourced ENA, particularly in emerging markets like India and China. With its antibacterial properties and ability to preserve and carry fragrance, ENA is finding increasing use in various personal care products, further propelling market growth.

NEWARK, Del., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- According to Future Market Insights, Inc., the extra neutral alcohol (ENA) market value is projected to expand from USD 10 billion in 2024 to USD 18.1 billion by 2034. Throughout this period, the market is analyzed to record a CAGR of 6.1%.

Download the Sample PDF report to explore key market insights and trends: https://www.futuremarketinsights.com/reports/sample/rep-gb-19700

Growing demand for spirits, like vodkas, rums, gins, and others, is a prominent driver for the expansion of extra neutral alcohol market. Both consumption patterns, including drinking neat and mixing pure ethanol drinks with other beverages to prepare a cocktail, have been instrumental in the demand for ENA for alcoholic beverages. Players are developing new alcohol varieties to harness this lucrative segment.

The use of ENA is increasing in the processing of chocolate, confectionery, and other food products, where it is used as a food-grade solvent. Players of ENA are strategizing to enter potential markets like India and China, which are likely to increase robustly.

Apprehensions regarding the environment are leading the Indian government to dedicate itself to projects supporting a more sustainable energy future. This is anticipated to create growth opportunities for industry players.

More opportunities are expected to emerge for players who are adept at the production of organic and sustainable extra neutral alcohol. Players are riding the wave of sustainability by highlighting ethically sourced grains and eco-friendly production methods.

The surging use of ENA in various personal care products like hairsprays, perfumes, shampoos, lotions, and deodorants is promoting ENA sales. ENA is used in these products due to its antibacterial properties and preservative capabilities. Additionally, the product is also deployed as a vital carrier of flavor and fragrance.

Key Takeaways from the Extra Neutral Alcohol Market Report

The extra neutral alcohol market is predicted to attain a valuation of USD 10 billion in 2024 and proceed at an estimated 6.1% CAGR through 2034.

in 2024 and proceed at an estimated 6.1% CAGR through 2034. Grain-based segment accounted for a value share of 70% in 2023 and is projected to grow at 5.8% CAGR through 2034.

Potable alcohol segment is forecast to expand at a CAGR of 5.6% through 2034.

Sales in the United States are estimated to total USD 3.2 billion by 2034.

are estimated to total by 2034. By 2034, the South Korean market is anticipated to acquire USD 1.2 billion .

"Sustainability concerns are expected to guide the efforts of extra neutral alcohol players. Moreover, players are acquiring competent smaller players and investing in the latest technologies to enhance their market share," says Nandini Roy Choudhury (Client Partner for Food & Beverages at Future Market Insights, Inc.).

Who is Winning?

Industry participants are raising the production of superior quality, distinguished ENA solutions. To achieve this, they are using specific grains in the ENA formulation or deploying certain fermentation processes to develop ENA. The addressable market for distinct alcoholic concoctions is gradually expanding, which is projected to allow players to diversify their focus.

The cosmetics and pharmaceutical sectors are also witnessing heightened demand for ENA, which is increasing the prospects of ENA producers. Firms are incessantly searching for new ways to elevate their production processes to increase their yields and bring down costs.

Players are investing in the latest technologies to improve their share. Additionally, they are also taking the route of strategic acquisitions, giving them access to the latest markets, technologies, and resources.

Recent Developments Shaping the Extra Neutral Alcohol Market

In October 2023 , India's GST Council exempted extra neutral alcohol from GST. Both grain-based and molasses-based ENA are exempted from these taxes.

, GST Council exempted extra neutral alcohol from GST. Both grain-based and molasses-based ENA are exempted from these taxes. In November 2023 , Jagatjit Industries announced that it is going to extend its premium offering by launching Royal Pride Whisky. The product is sold across fine dining establishments and retail outlets in Delhi .

Purchase now and gain full access to the Extra Neutral Alcohol (ENA) Industry report, featuring comprehensive Market Forecast, Company Share Analysis, Competition Intelligence, DROT Analysis, Market Dynamics and Challenges, and Strategic Growth Initiatives.

Get More Valuable Insights

Future Market Insights (FMI), in its new offering, provides a thorough, detailed, and unbiased analysis of the global extra neutral alcohol (ENA) market, presenting historical demand data for the years 2019 to 2023 and forecast statistics for the years 2024 to 2034.

The study provides compelling industry insights based on the raw material (sugarcane-based, grain-based, and others), type (type I and II), and application (beverages, potable alcohol, flavors and fragrances, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and personal care, and others) across several regions.

About the Food & Beverage Division at Future Market Insights:

Expert analysis, actionable insights, and strategic recommendations  the food & beverage team at Future Market Insights helps clients from all over the globe with their unique business intelligence needs. With a repertoire of over 1,000 reports and 1 million+ data points, the team has analyzed the food & beverage industry lucidly in 50+ countries for over a decade. The team provides end-to-end research and consulting services; reach out to explore how we can help.

About the Author:

Nandini Roy Choudhury (Client Partner for Food & Beverages at Future Market Insights, Inc.) has 7+ years of management consulting experience. She advises industry leaders and explores off-the-eye opportunities and challenges. She puts processes and operating models in place to support their business objectives.

She has exceptional analytical skills and often brings thought leadership to the table.

Nandini has vast functional expertise in key niches, including but not limited to food ingredients, nutrition & health solutions, animal nutrition, and marine nutrients. She is also well-versed in the pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, retail, and chemical sectors, where she advises market participants to develop methodologies and strategies that deliver results. Another feather to her cap manifests in the form of process automation. She is vocal about bringing automation to the fore to bring a 360-degrees-round revolution in manufacturing sector

Her core expertise lies in corporate growth strategy, sales and marketing effectiveness, acquisitions and post-merger integration and cost reduction. Nandini has an MBA in Finance from MIT School of Business. She also holds a Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering from Nagpur University, India.

Nandini has authored several publications, and quoted in journals including Beverage Industry, Bloomberg, and Wine Industry Advisor.

Explore FMI's Extensive Coverage in the Food and Beverages Domain:

About Future Market Insights (FMI)

Future Market Insights (FMI) is a leading market intelligence and consulting service provider, serving clients in over 150 countries. FMI is headquartered in Dubai and has delivery centers in the UK, the U.S., and India. FMI's latest market research reports and industry analysis help businesses navigate challenges and make critical decisions with confidence and clarity amidst breakneck competition. Our customized and syndicated market research reports deliver actionable insights that drive sustainable growth. A team of expert-led analysts at FMI continuously tracks emerging trends and events in a broad range of industries to ensure that our clients prepare for the evolving needs of their consumers.

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SOURCE Future Market Insights
A Groundbreaking Debut for GoTu Grow

ATLANTA, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Extu, a leading innovator of marketing technology for the building industry, made a strong impact at the Dallas Build Expo held on April 23rd and 24th, in Dallas, TX. The event, which brought together building professionals, real estate experts, and industry enthusiasts, provided an ideal platform for Extu to showcase its brand-new product, GoTu Grow.

A Strong Debut

Members of Extu at the Dallas Build Expo in April 2024.

Extu's debut of GoTu Grow at the Dallas Build Expo was met with enthusiasm. Attendees were eager to learn about GoTu Grow, Extu's innovative marketing solution offering targeted email campaigns and thought-leadership articles. The interactive demos showcased how the platform streamlines campaign-building, enhances efficiency, and promotes brand awareness. Attendees were keen to explore GoTu Grow's potential for boosting their bottom line and market share.

Branded for Customers to Build Recognition

GoTu Grow allows businesses to seamlessly incorporate their brand identity into their marketing efforts. Each article features the customer's logo prominently, maintaining a consistent visual presence that reinforces their brand recognition and leaves a lasting impression on their prospects and clients. Extu takes this a step further by integrating their content with social media accounts, allowing businesses to automatically share their thought-leadership articles across platforms. This strategic approach not only reaches a wider audience but also ensures that companies stay top of mind with their prospects, fostering brand loyalty and ultimately increasing their bottom line.

Strong Feedback from Industry Experts

During the Expo, Extu conducted live demonstrations, showcasing the product's capabilities. Industry professionals, including realtors, contractors, and facility managers, were impressed by the intuitive interface, seamless integration, and potential cost savings. Feedback ranged from "spot-on" to "integral for helping build market share with our audience."

Looking Ahead

Extu's successful introduction at the Dallas Build Expo has sparked interest among industry leaders and potential clients. The company remains committed to refining its product based on valuable feedback and expanding its reach within the building industry.

About Extu

Extu is on a mission to inspire growth. Extu provides through-channel marketing automation, an innovative online rewards platform with millions of exciting online rewards, prepaid and gift card incentives, as well as group travel incentives. Our solutions are built to help manufacturers and dealers increase sales, capture mindshare, build customer loyalty and improve data collection throughout their channels. Founded in 1994, Extu incorporates powerful technology with real-time data, helping clients get a full view of reseller performance, and empowering channel marketers and driving growth. For more information, visit extu.com .

SOURCE Extu
NEW YORK, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global filtered connectors market size is estimated to grow by USD 2.84 billion from 2024-2028, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 6.93% during the forecast period. Growing use of electronics in military and rising military expenditure is driving market growth, with a trend towards increased adoption of automotive electronics. However, increase in wage rate and competition poses a challenge. Key market players include AEI Group, Amphenol Corp., Littelfuse Inc., Carlisle Companies Inc., CONEC Elektronische Bauelemente GmbH, Conesys, Connective Design Inc., Cristek Inc., Deltron AG, Glenair Inc., HARTING Technology Group, ITT Inc., The Phoenix Co. Of Chicago Inc., Molex LLC, Outman Industries Inc., Smiths Group, SOURIAU SAS, TE Connectivity Ltd., Weald Electronics Ltd., and APC Technology Group Plc.

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Filtered Connectors Market 2024-2028

Get a detailed analysis on regions, market segments, customer landscape, and companies - View the snapshot of this report

Forecast period 2024-2028 Base Year 2023 Historic Data 2018 - 2022 Segment Covered Type (Rectangular connectors and Circular connectors), Application (Commercial, Military and aerospace, Industrial, and Medical), and Geography (APAC, North America, Europe, South America, and Middle East and Africa) Region Covered APAC, North America, Europe, South America, and Middle East and Africa Key companies profiled AEI Group, Amphenol Corp., Littelfuse Inc., Carlisle Companies Inc., CONEC Elektronische Bauelemente GmbH, Conesys, Connective Design Inc., Cristek Inc., Deltron AG, Glenair Inc., HARTING Technology Group, ITT Inc., The Phoenix Co. Of Chicago Inc., Molex LLC, Outman Industries Inc., Smiths Group, SOURIAU SAS, TE Connectivity Ltd., Weald Electronics Ltd., and APC Technology Group Plc

Key Market Trends Fueling Growth

The global filtered connectors market is poised for growth due to the rising adoption of advanced electronic systems in automobiles. These systems, including driver assistance, audio controls, cruise control, and diagnostic systems, require filtered connectors for efficient information transfer. The increasing popularity of electric vehicles (EVs) also contributes to market growth, as they use more filtered connectors for charging systems.

Government incentives and policies, such as subsidies and tax rebates for EVs, further boost sales.

The Filtered Connectors market is currently experiencing significant growth, with devices and applications requiring secure and efficient data transfer solutions. The use of microservices architecture and containerization technologies has led to an increase in demand for connectors that can seamlessly integrate various systems.

Devices such as IoT sensors and industrial machinery require connectors to transmit data to cloud platforms for analysis and automation. The trend towards remote work and virtual collaboration has also fueled the need for secure and reliable connectors.

Additionally, the adoption of modern technologies like AI and machine learning has created a demand for connectors that can handle large data volumes and complex workflows. Overall, the Filtered Connectors market is expected to continue its growth trajectory in the coming years.

Research report provides comprehensive data on impact of trend. For more details- Download a Sample Report

Market Challenges

The global filtered connectors market faces challenges from rising wage rates and increased competition, reducing profitability and profit margins for vendors. To maintain market positions, manufacturers are pursuing mergers and acquisitions. Intense competition leads some companies to use less costly raw materials, but without proper research, this can result in inferior quality connectors and potential quality issues.

The Filtered Connectors Market faces several challenges in implementing and integrating systems. Compatibility issues between different systems can be a significant challenge. The need for customization and the complexity of connecting various systems can also be obstacles.

Additionally, security concerns and data privacy regulations add to the complexity. Military and government organizations require advanced security measures, while commercial enterprises prioritize ease of use and cost-effectiveness.

The use of common protocols and standards can help mitigate these challenges, making it essential for companies to stay updated with the latest technologies and best practices.

For more insights on driver and challenges - Download a Sample Report

Segment Overview

Type

1.1 Rectangular connectors

1.2 Circular connectors

Application

2.1 Commercial

2.2 Military and aerospace

2.3 Industrial

2.4 Medical

Geography

3.1 APAC

3.2 North America

3.3 Europe

3.4 South America

3.5 Middle East and Africa

1.1 Rectangular connectors- Rectangular connectors play a crucial role in the aerospace industry by increasing connector density and saving space and weight. TE Connectivity's new industrial mini I/O cable connectors are an example, offering high vibration resistance and a robust locking system. These connectors are suitable for various applications, from drones to communication systems and satellites. The benefits and advancements of rectangular connectors will drive growth in the aerospace market during the forecast period.

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 Filtered Connectors Market encompasses a diverse range of applications in various industries. These connectors play a crucial role in electronic devices, particularly in aerospace, defense, healthcare, industrial automation, consumer electronics, transportation, and automotive applications. The demand for compact design in personal electronics devices, telecommunication industry, electric vehicles, and broadband modems necessitates the use of filtered connectors to mitigate unwanted electromagnetic interference (EMI) and RF noise.

Electrical equipment, such as cable modems, television connectors, and virtual reality systems, also benefit from the use of filtered connectors. Miniaturization is a significant trend in the market, driving the development of advanced filter elements for various applications.

Market Research Overview

The Filtered Connectors Market encompasses a range of solutions designed to facilitate seamless data exchange between various systems and applications. These connectors undergo a rigorous filtering process to ensure secure and efficient data transfer. Devices, applications, and technologies are integral components of this market.

The market caters to diverse industries, including manufacturing, healthcare, finance, and education, among others. Connectors support various protocols such as FTP, SFTP, HTTP, and MQTT, among others. They offer features like data transformation, error handling, and security. The market is driven by factors like increasing digitalization, growing data volumes, and the need for interoperability. It is expected to grow significantly in the coming years.

Table of Contents:

1 Executive Summary

2 Market Landscape

3 Market Sizing

4 Historic Market Size

5 Five Forces Analysis

6 Market Segmentation

Type

Rectangular Connectors



Circular Connectors

Application

Commercial



Military And Aerospace



Industrial



Medical

Geography

APAC



North America



Europe



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
NEW YORK, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Flatiron School is thrilled to announce our partnership with the Bletchley Institute, an organization dedicated to building the world's premier community for technologists and creatives. As a launch partner, Flatiron School joins a global network of esteemed institutions committed to fostering a vibrant community where individuals can connect, grow, and change the world together.

Flatiron School is partnering with the Bletchley Institute to build the premier community for technologists & creatives. Post this Bletchley Institute logo

At Flatiron School, we believe in the power of connection and collaboration to drive personal and professional growth. Partnering with Bletchley Institute aligns perfectly with our mission to enable the pursuit of a better life through education for aspiring engineers and designers. Together, we will offer our community members unparalleled access to training programs and resources across a range of disciplines, including data science, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, software design and development, and more.

Through this partnership, Flatiron School joins forces with other leading institutions worldwide, including CG Spectrum, Academy Xi, and Moringa School. This collaboration brings together a truly global community of practitioners and mentors, enhancing the learning experience and creating opportunities for innovation and growth.

We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive community that empowers each member to share unique perspectives and experiences. By partnering with the Bletchley Institute, Flatiron School reaffirms our dedication to fostering an environment where creativity and collaboration thrive, helping our students and alumni make their dreams a reality.

Flatiron School invites our students, alumni, instructors, and the broader tech industry from all walks of life to join us and the Bletchley Institute in this exciting venture. Join a community that dares to dream, innovate, and make a lasting impact on the world. Together, we can achieve mighty things. Get early access at bletchley.org/join .

To learn more, visit flatironschool.com/blog.

For more information, visit flatironschool.com or [email protected]:

About Flatiron School

Flatiron School is dedicated to providing the highest quality education in software engineering, data science, and cybersecurity. Our mission is to enable the pursuit of a better life through education, and our partnership with Bletchley Institute amplifies this commitment by connecting our community to a global network of innovation and support.

About Bletchley Institute

Bletchley Institute is on a mission to build the world's best community for technologists and creatives to connect, grow, and change the world. Inspired by the spirit of innovation, Bletchley Institute empowers its members with experiences, programs, and content that drive personal and professional growth.

SOURCE Flatiron School, Inc.
40% of LGBTQ+ individuals say they are anxious and 30% describe themselves as frustrated

Three-fifths (60%) of the total LGBTQ+ population feel in control of their own life

36% of LGBTQ+ people are seeking out professional resources like therapy or prescription medication

42% of LGBTQ+ individuals say one of their greatest wish is to know their "purpose in life"

CHICAGO, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Four out of ten (40%) LGBTQ+ individuals say they're anxious compared to just 3 in 10 (30%) of the population as a whole, according to new Mintel research. Additionally, 25% recently stated that their mental health has worsened over the last year. Nearly a third (30%) of LGBTQ+ individuals also describe themselves as 'frustrated'. Furthermore, LGBTQ+ adults are more likely to have experienced clinical depression (35%) and post-traumatic stress disorder (25%) compared to the total population (19% and 13% respectively) in the past 12 months. This Pride Month and beyond presents an opportunity for brands to engage with the community and help manage their well-being and mental health.

Lisa Dubina, Associate Director, US Culture and Identity Reports, Mintel, said:

"Anxiety and mental health are significant concerns within the LGBTQ+ community and reflect the growing anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment that's currently apparent across the US. This is particularly true for LGBTQ+ Gen Z adults (1997-2006), who report higher levels of anxiety (71%) and stress (76%) daily compared to their straight/cisgender peers (52% and 68% respectively). Additionally, nearly a quarter (23%) of LGBTQ+ individuals described themselves as disappointed with their lives, compared to 16% of their straight peers. Brands can play a key role in mitigating this anxiety and boosting the community's mental health by offering inclusive messaging, support, and advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights. Brands that aim to spark joy in the lives of LGBTQ+ individuals, year-round and not solely during Pride Month, will be poised for success."

The LGBTQ+ community's desire for purpose

More than 2 in 5 (42% of) LGBTQ+ individuals want to know their purpose in life compared to just a third (34%) of the total population, while three-fifths (60%) of LGBTQ+ individuals feel in control of their lives compared to 67% of the total population. Furthermore, the LGBTQ+ community wants help regarding their mental wellbeing with more than a third (36%) seeking out professional resources like therapy or prescription medication; this compares to 25% of the general population.

"As LGBTQ+ consumers continue to search for purpose in their lives, brands have the opportunity to support and empower them in meaningful ways, not only during Pride month but beyond. Nearly half (45%) of LGBTQ+ individuals are still figuring out who they are as a person, compared to less than a third (32%) of the total population. Brands can aid in the self-discovery process by providing consumers with new experiences through social media channels, virtual gaming platforms and influencer partnerships. As LGBTQ+ consumers continue to navigate modern adult life, brands can help them disregard outdated stigmas and speculation in order to embrace their own unique experiences, milestones, and life choices," concluded Dubina.

Additional research on the LGBTQ+ Community as well as interviews with the analyst are available upon request from the Mintel Press Office . For those interested in purchasing the full report, please visit the Mintel Store .

SOURCE Mintel Group, Ltd.
"We are thrilled to support Pride Month and celebrate with our guests and the community," said Ian-Robbert Ciappara, General Manager, Four Seasons Resort Peninsula Papagayo. "Our specialty cocktails and events are a tribute to the LGBTQ+ community's resilience, creativity, and joy."

Cheers for PRIDE

Featuring five expertly crafted cocktails, each designed to represent the vibrant narrative of the queer community. These cocktails will be available at the resort's restaurants and bars throughout the month. Each cocktail is a testament to the creativity and spirit of Pride, with ingredients and names carefully chosen to celebrate the diversity and history of the LGBTQ+ community.

Electric Avenue: A vibrant cocktail symbolizing energy, creativity, and happiness, featuring Fat Wash Costa Rican white rum with coconut oil, fresh lime juice, pineapple syrup, and banana liquor.





A vibrant cocktail symbolizing energy, creativity, and happiness, featuring Fat Wash Costa Rican white rum with coconut oil, fresh lime juice, pineapple syrup, and banana liquor. Julius: Named after the first bar in New York City that defied the NY State Liquor Authority's rule prohibiting serving alcohol to homosexuals, this cocktail includes Don Julio Blanco tequila infused with butterfly pea tea, honey-ginger syrup, fresh lime juice, Luxardo liquor, and ginger air on top.





Named after the first bar in that defied the NY State Liquor Authority's rule prohibiting serving alcohol to homosexuals, this cocktail includes tequila infused with butterfly pea tea, honey-ginger syrup, fresh lime juice, Luxardo liquor, and ginger air on top. Gio: Representing the freshness of an Italian Caprese salad, this cocktail combines Gin Mare infused with basil, tomato cherry clarified water, lemongrass syrup, and Martini Bianco infused with orange peel.





Representing the freshness of an Italian Caprese salad, this cocktail combines Gin Mare infused with basil, tomato cherry clarified water, lemongrass syrup, and Martini Bianco infused with orange peel. Spring in a Glass: Embracing the essence of Mediterranean spices and flavors, this cocktail features Bombay Sapphire gin, Campari, lime juice, white wine and spiced syrup, and aquafaba, symbolizing passion and love.





Love-In 1970: Celebrating the first Gay Freedom Day march in Los Angeles , this cocktail mixes Cacique infused with grilled strawberry, fresh lime juice, bugambilea syrup, Cointreau, and tangerine foam.





, this cocktail mixes Cacique infused with grilled strawberry, fresh lime juice, bugambilea syrup, Cointreau, and tangerine foam. Groovy Pound Cake: The pastry team has created a multicolor groovy pound cake blending the classic flavors of a butter pound cake and the colors of the LGBTQ+ flag

Mix-Media & Collage Workshop

The resort is collaborating with mix-media artist Simon Vanheukelom, using analogue collage art as a therapeutic process to create layered, narrative-driven pieces. His work often juxtaposes elements of reality, personal history, and emotions to craft compelling visual stories. The workshop will take place on June 19, 2024, providing a unique opportunity for attendees to explore their creativity through the medium of collage art.

In this exclusive workshop, Simon Vanheukelom will guide participants in expressing their worldviews through collage. Using scissors, glue, and an array of inspiring photos, attendees will delve deep into their subconscious to create striking, surreal images. This workshop emphasizes the joy of creation and the limitless possibilities of art, making it suitable for all creatives aged 16 and above, regardless of artistic background.

Celebrate Pride Month by joining this enriching workshop and walking away with your own original piece of art. Don't miss the chance to explore the world of collage with Simon Vanheukelom in the stunning setting of Four Seasons Peninsula Papagayo, Costa Rica.

Throughout June, the resort's social media platforms will dedicate special posts highlighting different aspects of the Pride celebration.

SOURCE Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica at Peninsula Papagayo
PHOENIX, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- ResiXperts, a rapidly growing residential service company formed and sponsored by FoW Partners ("FoW"), is proud to announce its partnership with three premier Phoenix area-based heating and cooling service providers: Rescue One Air, CW Air, and AirTime Cooling & Heating. These strategic acquisitions enhance ResiXperts' service capabilities and market presence in the Southwestern United States.

Rescue One Air, founded over 15 years ago, has become a trusted name in residential heating and cooling solutions throughout the greater Phoenix area. Rescue One Air has won the Better Business Bureau Torch Award for Ethics multiple times and is well-known for its customer-centric approach and reliable service.

"Rescue One Air is a strong company with a commitment to ethics, quality and customer satisfaction. We are excited to welcome Rescue One Air to the ResiXperts family," said John Joseph, CEO of ResiXperts.

CW Air has been serving Scottsdale and Northeast Phoenix for over 30 years, establishing a solid reputation for its experienced technicians and unwavering commitment to customer satisfaction. John Joseph said, "CW Air is renowned for its dependable and high-quality residential heating and cooling services and has now merged with Rescue One Air."

AirTime Cooling & Heating has 18 years of service in the Phoenix area, earning industry-leading customer reviews across multiple platforms for its dedication to doing things the right way.

"Partnering with ResiXperts is an exciting opportunity for us. We liked ResiXperts and FoW Partners' focus on building career opportunities for our employees and strengthening job security and benefits. The transition has been smooth and beneficial for our business and for employees," said AirTime founder Brian Boyer.

By partnering with ResiXperts, Rescue One Air, CW Air, and AirTime Cooling & Heating benefit from access to marketing expertise, technology enablement, and recruiting and retention programs. Furthermore, these companies will enjoy sourcing benefits that are expected to enhance their operational efficiencies and service offerings, enabling them to better serve their customers and continue their growth trajectories.

Amar Doshi, Partner of FoW, and Kelechi Okereke, Principal of FoW, said "We are excited to partner with John Joseph and the full ResiXperts management team in building a leading residential heating, cooling, plumbing, and electrical services company and thrilled that Rescue One Air, CW Air, and Airtime Cooling & Heating have joined the ResiXperts' family. We look forward to supporting the growth of these high-quality businesses and adding partnerships to the ResiXperts platform."

About ResiXperts

ResiXperts, backed by FoW Partners, focuses on partnering with and acquiring growing, profitable businesses that provide residential heating, cooling, plumbing, and electrical services. ResiXperts seeks companies with strong leadership and customer service excellence, emphasizing replacement and service to ensure customer satisfaction and business success.

About FoW Partners

FoW Partners is a private investment firm based in Portland, Maine and New York, New York that applies technology in seeking to transform how people work and unlock productivity in the service economy. In partnership with management teams we aim to build enduring businesses, drive growth and generate positive societal outcomes. The FoW Partners team is comprised of an experienced group of private market investors with a shared professional heritage and track record of achieving strong growth and value creation in enterprises across multiple sectors.

Media Contact:

Michael Heims, Partnership Development Manager

[email protected]

574-361-8305

SOURCE ResiXperts
SANTA CLARA, Calif., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Frost & Sullivan Institute, in collaboration with Frost & Sullivan proudly announces the fourth edition of the Enlightened Growth Leadership Best Practices Recognition 2024, celebrating organizations that achieve success while making a positive global impact. In today's rapidly changing business environment, the Institute has identified an exceptional group of multinational companies that masterfully combine business growth with sustainable transformation. These leaders are tackling pressing challenges such as reducing carbon emissions, minimizing waste, and conserving non-renewable resources, setting a new standard for responsible corporate growth.

"The Enlightened Growth Leadership Best Practices Recognition represents a dedication that goes beyond traditional corporate responsibility and governance standards. These organizations are driving transformative changes in industries and societies, steering us towards a brighter and more sustainable future," said Aroop Zutshi, Director of the Frost & Sullivan Institute.

"The Enlightened Growth Leadership Best Practices Recognition represents a dedication that goes beyond traditional corporate responsibility and governance standards. These organizations are driving transformative changes in industries and societies, steering us towards a brighter and more sustainable future. We extend our heartfelt congratulations to these exceptional companies for their steadfast commitment to sustainable development and their efforts in creating opportunities that benefit all stakeholders. Their dedication to sustainability sets a strong example for all industries," said Aroop Zutshi, Director of the Frost & Sullivan Institute.

The selection process is underpinned by a comprehensive and robust eight-step methodology. This rigorous process involves thorough research, in-depth analyses, and benchmarking, ensuring that the selected companies truly exemplify excellence in growth and 'innovating global challenges to zero'. By blending business expertise with ethical values, these companies show ideals that go beyond just making profits. This recognition highlights their commitment to responsible consumerism.

The Frost & Sullivan Institute proudly congratulates the Enlightened Growth Leadership Best Practices Recognition, 2024 winners from Asia Pacific. These exceptional organizations will be honored at our award banquet at Barcelona later this year, where we will celebrate their unwavering dedication to building a sustainable and prosperous future.

Recipients:

ADVANTEST CORPORATION

AEKYUNG

APL Apollo

ARE Holdings,Inc.

PT Bayan Resources, TBK

CELLTRION INC

Coupang, Inc.

daedong

Data#3 Limited

Delta Electronics (Thailand) PCL.

Doosan Bobcat.

Dreamtech Co., Ltd.

ECOPRO

erex Co.,Ltd.

EXEO Group, Inc.

GEO-YOUNG CORPORATION.

HDC Holding Co.,Ltd

Hitachi High-Tech Corporation.

Kakao Corp.

KUMHO PETROCHEMICAL

LARSEN & TOUBRO LIMITED

LG Chem.

M3, Inc.

NMDC Limited.

Ramsay Health Care

SAMSUNG SDI CO.,LTD.

Sea Limited.

Seegene Inc

SL Corporation

SRF Limited

THACO

Woodside

YANCOAL

Airtel India.

Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited

Idemitsu Kosan Co.,Ltd.

KEPCO

PHC Holdings Corporation

PTT Public Company Limited

Toyota Tsusho Corporation

Wipro

About Frost & Sullivan Institute

The Frost & Sullivan Institute (FSI) is a non-profit organization dedicated to utilizing business practices to address global priorities. The genesis of the institute goes back to the vision of either creating, or becoming part of, a solution that addresses threats to humanity. The Institute has identified strategic imperatives for transformation and believes that we can truly accelerate innovation to zero. To learn more about FSI, visit www.frostandsullivaninstitute.org

About Frost & Sullivan

For six decades, Frost & Sullivan has been world-renowned for its role in helping investors, corporate leaders, and governments navigate economic changes and identify disruptive technologies, Mega Trends, new business models, and companies to action, resulting in a continuous flow of growth opportunities to drive future success. Contact us: Start the discussion.

Media Contact:

Bivechana Gautam

Email: [email protected]

Related Links

www.frost.com

www.frostandsullivaninstitute.org

SOURCE Frost & Sullivan
A new industry resource from Info-Tech Research Group explains how gaming and hospitality leaders can adopt Exponential IT principles to drive the integration of advanced technologies, data-driven decision-making, and customer-centric innovation. The global research and advisory firm's research offers actionable insights to drive operational efficiency, foster innovation, and maintain a competitive edge in the evolving industry landscape.

TORONTO, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - The gaming and hospitality sector is under immense pressure to keep pace with rapid technological advancements and rising customer expectations. While navigating the complexities of balancing innovation with stability, the industry must also manage regulatory hurdles and deliver personalized experiences to stay competitive. To address these critical challenges, Info-Tech Research Group has released its blueprint, Priorities for Adopting an Exponential IT Mindset in the Gaming & Hospitality Industry. This comprehensive guide provides strategic insights and actionable plans for IT leaders in the gaming and hospitality industry to leverage exponential technologies to drive innovation, enhance operational efficiency, and secure a competitive edge in the market.

Info-Tech Research Groups Priorities for Adopting an Exponential IT Mindset in the Gaming & Hospitality Industry blueprint offers actionable insights for gaming and hospitality leaders on how to adopt Exponential IT principles to drive the integration of advanced technologies, data-driven decision-making, and customer-centric innovation. (CNW Group/Info-Tech Research Group)

"Adopting an Exponential IT mindset is essential for the gaming and hospitality industry to counter market disruptions," says Elizabeth Silva, senior research analyst at Info-Tech Research Group. "IT leaders must grasp the four key priorities of Exponential IT transformation, which are crucial for competitiveness in this sector. Additionally, recognizing and incorporating foundational capabilities are vital steps toward an effective Exponential IT transformation, leading to the creation of value within the industry."

In Info-Tech's blueprint, the concept of Exponential IT refers to the strategic use of advanced technologies, including those that are redefining the gaming and hospitality landscape. These exponentially evolving technologies have the potential to help organizations optimize operations, foster innovation, and deliver exceptional customer experiences. By adopting an Exponential IT mindset, gaming and hospitality organizations can effectively navigate industry disruptions, align with emerging technological trends, and meet the dynamic needs of their customers.

According to Info-Tech's research, the gaming and hospitality industry faces significant obstacles in its pursuit of technological advancement. For example, regulatory scrutiny can delay the market introduction of innovations and impose complex compliance standards. Additionally, the industry struggles to balance the priorities of innovation with the maintenance of stable operations. The potential for monetizing new business models, such as esports and VR/AR/MR, is vast but challenging due to market immaturity.

Furthermore, the industry contends with fragmented data management and the need to integrate advanced technologies into legacy systems. The firm advises that by adopting a holistic approach that includes strategic planning, implementing targeted investments in upskilling staff, and fostering a culture that embraces change, organizations can successfully transition through digital transformation to enhance operational efficiency and customer engagement.

As outlined in the blueprint, there are four key priorities that IT leaders in the gaming and hospitality industry must consider as they adopt an Exponential IT mindset to modernize their operations:

Evolve the IT operating model: Transform IT from a support function to a strategic partner by integrating IT services with business goals, breaking down silos, and fostering cross-collaboration. This transition involves modernizing infrastructure and adopting flexible, scalable IT frameworks that can quickly adapt to changing market demands. Co-own organizational outcomes: Shift the perception of IT from a cost center to a co-owner of business outcomes. Progress requires IT leaders to collaborate closely with other business units and the alignment of IT initiatives with organizational objectives to drive value and support strategic goals. Treat data as a product: Manage and utilize data as a strategic asset rather than a byproduct of operations. This priority involves establishing robust data governance practices, improving data quality, and leveraging data analytics to gain insights that drive decision-making and innovation. Let AI take over core operations: Implement AI and automation technologies to streamline core operations, enhance efficiency, and reduce manual workloads. This initiative includes adopting AI-driven solutions for tasks such as predictive maintenance, customer service, and real-time data analysis to stay competitive and innovative.

By focusing on these strategic priorities, the gaming and hospitality industry can overcome the hurdles of digital transformation, Info-Tech explains in the new blueprint. Companies that embrace Exponential IT will be well-positioned to foster innovation, ensure regulatory compliance, and deliver exceptional customer experiences. This proactive approach will not only enhance operational efficiency but also solidify a competitive advantage in a rapidly evolving market.

Info-Tech's blueprint provides a comprehensive roadmap for IT leaders in the gaming and hospitality sectors, equipping industry leaders with the practical insights needed to navigate the complexities of modern IT landscapes and achieve long-term success.

For exclusive and timely commentary on this topic from Info-Tech's analysts and access to the complete Priorities for Adopting an Exponential IT Mindset in the Gaming & Hospitality Industry 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 will also offer 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 to 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
NEW YORK, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global handbags market size in South Korea is estimated to grow by USD 260.72 million from 2024-2028, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 3.63% during the forecast period. Increasing consumer spending on fashion and personal goods is driving market growth, with a trend towards growing trend of personalization and customization of handbags. However, threats associated with counterfeit products poses a challenge. Key market players include alexander wang, Burberry Group Plc, Capri Holdings Ltd., Chanel Ltd., Guess Inc., Hermes International SA, Kering SA, LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, METROCITY, Prada Spa, PVH Corp., Sungjoo Group, Tapestry Inc., and Tory Burch LLC.

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Handbags Market in South Korea (Republic of Korea) 2024-2028

Get a detailed analysis on regions, market segments, customer landscape, and companies - View the snapshot of this report

Forecast period 2024-2028 Base Year 2023 Historic Data 2018 - 2022 Segment Covered Product (Totes, Clutches and wallets, Shoulder bags, and Satchels and saddles), Distribution Channel (Offline and Online), Material (Leather and Fabric), and Geography (APAC) Region Covered South Korea Key companies profiled alexander wang, Burberry Group Plc, Capri Holdings Ltd., Chanel Ltd., Guess Inc., Hermes International SA, Kering SA, LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE, METROCITY, Prada Spa, PVH Corp., Sungjoo Group, Tapestry Inc., and Tory Burch LLC

Key Market Trends Fueling Growth

The handbags market in South Korea experiences growth due to increasing customization and personalization trends. Top players offer options from strap and buckle modifications to embroidery and name tags. Monogramming and embroidery are popular, driving demand. Consumers seek individuality, enhancing personal style. Technology advances, such as online platforms and 3D modeling software, facilitate customization, boosting sales and market expansion.

The handbag market in South Korea is currently experiencing significant growth, with several brands and manufacturers making a mark. The trend towards canvas and durable materials continues, with brands like Markete and Exponenitalia leading the way. The use of logos and branding is also popular, as seen in the offerings of Acccessories and European brands. The market is diverse, catering to both local and international tastes, with a focus on trendy and functional designs.

The market is also seeing an increase in the use of technology, with smart bags and eco-friendly materials gaining popularity. Departments stores and online retailers are the major sales channels, with stores like Shops and Handbag offering a wide range of options. The market is expected to continue growing, driven by consumer demand and innovation.

Research report provides comprehensive data on impact of trend. For more details- Download a Sample Report

Market Challenges

The handbags market in South Korea experiences growth due to consumer demand, yet is marred by the proliferation of counterfeit handbags. Illegal business practices among stakeholders result in an unbalanced competitive landscape and inconsistent pricing. Local and regional vendors introduce low-quality imitations, selling them at lower prices than authentic handbags. E-commerce platforms expand the reach of counterfeit products, making it challenging for consumers to distinguish between real and fake.

experiences growth due to consumer demand, yet is marred by the proliferation of counterfeit handbags. Illegal business practices among stakeholders result in an unbalanced competitive landscape and inconsistent pricing. Local and regional vendors introduce low-quality imitations, selling them at lower prices than authentic handbags. E-commerce platforms expand the reach of counterfeit products, making it challenging for consumers to distinguish between real and fake. This situation negatively impacts genuine vendors' sales and pricing strategies, necessitating costly advertising and promotion efforts to maintain brand loyalty. Low product reliability further discourages handbag adoption, potentially limiting market growth.

In South Korea's handbag market, several challenges exist for brands and retailers. Consumer preferences for high-end bags from global brands are increasing, making it difficult for local brands to compete. Customization and personalization are key trends, requiring significant investment in technology and supply chain management. Additionally, logistics and delivery are crucial factors, as consumers expect quick and convenient shipping options.

handbag market, several challenges exist for brands and retailers. Consumer preferences for high-end bags from global brands are increasing, making it difficult for local brands to compete. Customization and personalization are key trends, requiring significant investment in technology and supply chain management. Additionally, logistics and delivery are crucial factors, as consumers expect quick and convenient shipping options. The cost of production and import duties also pose challenges, particularly for smaller businesses. Furthermore, the regulatory environment can be complex, with strict quality and safety standards to adhere to. Overall, the handbag industry in South Korea requires a strategic approach to address these challenges and succeed in a competitive market.

For more insights on driver and challenges - Download a Sample Report

Segment Overview

Product

1.1 Totes

1.2 Clutches and wallets

1.3 Shoulder bags

1.4 Satchels and saddles

Distribution Channel

2.1 Offline

2.2 Online

Material

3.1 Leather

3.2 Fabric

Geography

4.1 APAC

1.1 Totes- The tote market in South Korea experiences significant growth due to its functional design and versatility. Totes, large handbags with parallel handles, are popular for shopping and everyday use. Their open-top compartments, sturdy handles, and ample storage space cater to various items, such as laptops, books, and groceries.

South Korean consumers prefer leather, canvas, jute, or nylon totes for fashion and convenience. Market drivers include the increasing demand from the working population, airport retail outlets, and the trend towards affordable luxury totes. Customization and personalization are also key factors fueling market growth.

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 Handbags Market in South Korea exhibits an exponential trend, driven by increasing consumer spending on personal accessories. The market encompasses a wide range of offerings, from Western-style handbags to minimalist designs, brilliant colours, and quality materials. TechNavio and Euromonitor International forecast a robust growth in the market, influenced by the country's high GDP per capita and the popularity of K-pop culture.

Trade associations play a crucial role in vendor analysis and regulatory framework, ensuring product safety and adherence to labelling requirements. Duty-free shops contribute significantly to the market's growth, offering big brand logos at competitive prices. The Leather Goods Market, which includes Bags and Luggage, is a key segment within the Handbag Market, reflecting the trend towards luxury and durability.

Market Research Overview

The Handbags Market in South Korea is a significant sector with a growing demand for fashionable and functional bags. The market caters to various consumer segments, including women and men, students, and professionals. The market offers a wide range of handbag styles, from casual to formal, and materials, such as leather, synthetic, and canvas. South Korean designers and international brands contribute to the market's diversity.

The market is influenced by fashion trends, consumer preferences, and economic factors. Retail channels include department stores, specialty stores, and e-commerce platforms. The market is expected to grow due to increasing disposable income, changing lifestyles, and the popularity of South Korean culture globally. The government's support for the fashion industry and the presence of major fashion events further boost the market.

Table of Contents:

1 Executive Summary

2 Market Landscape

3 Market Sizing

4 Historic Market Size

5 Five Forces Analysis

6 Market Segmentation

Product

Totes



Clutches And Wallets



Shoulder Bags



Satchels And Saddles

Distribution Channel

Offline



Online

Material

Leather



Fabric

Geography

APAC

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
New Jersey-Based Company Brings Successful Medical Cannabis Flower Line brand "Hillview Farms" to Adult-Use Market

PEQUANNOCK, N.J., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Company announced today that it is answering consumer demand and launching its premium line of cannabis flower and pre-rolls in the New Jersey Adult Use market. Led by Founder and CEO Ken VandeVrede, "Hillview Farms" is now available in 10 select dispensaries and will be available in over 100 dispensaries by the end of the year as they continue to scale production capacity.

"Of all our business ventures over the years, Hillview Farms has been the biggest labor of love. Coming from an agricultural family, it makes sense for us to use our over 60-year legacy of growing everything from flowers, herbs, leafy greens, and food to bring our Cannabis flower to New Jersey's Adult Use Market," said VandeVrede. "We truly believe that the greater public deserves the same clean, quality and compliant cannabis products that we've been supplying the NJ Medical market for the past year and a half."

"Hillview Farms" line of cannabis products currently include six strains of cannabis flower including Indica, Sativa, and Hybrid varieties. With multiple dispensary partners across the state of New Jersey, patrons will have more accessibility than ever to experience Hillview's premium cannabis flower and pre-roll products.

The Company was awarded its Medical Cannabis Cultivation license after the 2019 RFA. Being the first to market of those awarded, Hillview has been supplying the New Jersey Medical Cannabis market with premium flower products since December of 2022.

"Our mission is to provide high quality cannabis products to both the medical and adult use markets. Our agricultural and cannabis cultivation experience is what sets us apart from other providers of cannabis products," added Dan VandeVrede. Hillview's COO, "Our objective is to continue to serve our NJ community by providing quality cannabis products."

Find a complete store locator for "Hillview Farms" product line online at www.hillviewfarms.com.

About HillviewMed Inc.

Based in Pequannock, NJ, HillviewMed Inc provides safe, all-natural Cannabis Flower and Pre-roll products, never containing trim or shake, to the NJ Market. The company is led by seasoned entrepreneur Ken VandeVrede who has over 20 years of experience of cultivation and bringing successful brands to market. The VandeVrede family has excelled in operating large facilities across the US that produces USDA Organic Certified, Global Food Safety Initiative (GFSI) produce, bedding plants, hemp and cannabis.

Related Links

http://www.hillviewmed.com

http://www.hillviewfarms.com

SOURCE HillviewMed Inc
HOUSTON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Hiram Clarke/Fort Bend Redevelopment Authority (HCFB), also known as Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ 25), proudly announces that the Gateways Improvement project has received a National Recognition Award from the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC) as part of the 2024 Engineering Excellence Awards competition. A total of 220 projects were submitted throughout the country, three of which were honored from Houston, including the District Gateways Improvement Project.

Houston District Gateway Project along 90A Corridor

This $1.1 million project, completed in 2021, introduced vibrant, changeable lighting and essential safety enhancements to key intersections along US 90A/South Main. The project has significantly transformed the area, drawing acclaim for its innovative design and community impact.

"We are honored to see the Gateways Improvement project receive national recognition from the ACEC," said LeRon Wilson, HCFB Executive Director. "This award is a testament to the power of community collaboration and innovative design in transforming our public spaces. At HCFB, we are committed to fostering projects that enhance safety and functionality for motorists and pedestrians and bring beauty and pride to our neighborhoods."

The project, funded by HCFB and a tri-party agreement partner with TIRZ 9 and the 5 Corners Improvement District, has improved lighting, pavement markings, way-finding graphics, landscaping, traffic flow, and pedestrian safety at critical intersections, including Fondren Road, Hillcroft Avenue, Chimney Rock Road, South Post Oak Road, and Hiram Clarke Road. Construction and conception was managed by Huitt-Zollars Inc., in collaboration with UpArt Studios who contributed to the public art added to the Gateway.

Beyond its practical benefits, the Gateways Improvement project reflects the area's commitment to public art as a catalyst for civic pride and economic development. This tradition, initiated by the late Houston City Council Member Larry Green and continued by Mayor Pro Tem Martha Castex-Tatum, celebrates the integration of art into public spaces.

"The Gateways project showcases our community's commitment to enhancing quality of life through public art. It boosts our neighborhoods' visual appeal and fosters pride and identity in District K. By integrating art into public spaces, we're celebrating our rich cultural heritage and encouraging economic development," said Mayor Pro Tem Martha Castex-Tatum.

Hiram Clarke Fort Bend and their partners were recognized during the 2024 black-tie American Council of Engineering Companies Gala dinner and Awards program last month in Washington, D.C.

(Click here for photos of the award-winning project [photo credit: Huitt-Zollars])

About Hiram Clarke Fort Bend Authority/TIRZ 25

The Hiram Clarke Fort Bend Redevelopment Authority TIRZ 25 (HCFB) was established in 2013 with a primary focus on enhancing the community through economic development. HCFB invests in the planning, engineering and construction of new streets, water distribution facilities, wastewater collection facilities, storm drainage improvements, roadway and street reconstruction projects, cultural and public facility improvements, parks and other related economic development improvements.

SOURCE Hiram Clarke Fort Bend Redevelopment Authority
LONDON and PHILADELPHIA, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- HKA, a leading global consultancy in risk mitigation, dispute resolution, expert witness, and litigation support services, has welcomed four senior hires to its Forensic Accounting and Commercial Damages (FACD) practice.

The addition of these new colleagues will bolster the firm's FACD service offering and improve HKA's ability to assist clients in a broad range of matters. These colleagues' certifications include three Certified Fraud Examiners (CFE) and a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS).

HKA expands its Forensic Accounting and Commercial Damages expert practice with four senior hires in the United States. Post this

Jae Ellis joins HKA as a Business Development Principal with more than twenty-five years of experience. Jae creates and nurtures relationships with partners in global and regional law firms as well as general counsel and heads of litigation for major corporations. He advises and assists attorneys in identifying experienced testifying and consulting expert witnesses for quantifying commercial damages, forensic accountants, fraud examiners, and other experts who support financial investigations and provide compliance and risk management services.

Before joining HKA, Jae was a Vice President of Business Development at StoneTurn. He earned his Juris Doctor (JD) from the University of Texas School of Law and his Bachelor of Arts in Government from Harvard University. Jae is licensed to practice law in the State of Texas.

Melyana Melyana joins HKA as a Principal with nearly two decades of experience in fraud investigations, forensic accounting, data mining and analysis, litigation support, and business valuation. She has provided clients with forensic accounting and consulting services, led internal controls and time and expense report audits, performed compliance attestation audits for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and conducted money laundering investigations. Melyana has performed compliance reviews and assisted clients with internal audit and corporate governance, including Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) readiness and compliance enterprise risk management, risk assessment, and SAS 70 examinations.

Before joining HKA, Melyana was a Managing Director at StoneTurn. She received her Bachelor of Arts in Finance and Hotel Administration from Oklahoma State University and is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE).

Veronique Chauveau joins HKA as a Principal with over 25 years of experience in fraud investigations, forensic accounting, data mining, and analysis, with a focus on litigation advisory and business disputes. She has built sophisticated damage models to estimate damages arising from various disputes, prepared expert witnesses for deposition or testimony, written expert reports, and rebutted opposing expert testimony. Veronique has also been instrumental in developing and participating in mock trials and expert testimony training programs.

Before joining HKA, Veronique was a Managing Director at StoneTurn. She received her Master of Business Administration from the University of Oklahoma, a Bachelor of Science in Economics from Universite d'Auvergne, and is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE).

Brad Dragoon joins HKA as a Director with more than a decade of experience in business intelligence, fraud investigations, anti-money laundering, sanctions and export controls, and anti-bribery and corruption compliance. He has responded to regulatory inquiries and enforcement actions, prepared expert testimony, led complex multi-disciplinary investigations, provided financial analyses, and advised on risk management strategies across various industries.

Before joining HKA, Brad was a Principal in the Risk, Investigations & Analytics practice at Charles River Associates. He earned his Master of Business Administration from Duke University and holds a Bachelor of Arts from American University. Brad is a Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) and a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS).

"We are excited to welcome Jae, Melyana, Veronique, and Brad to HKA as we continue to expand our FACD team across the Americas," said Ave Tucker, Partner, Strategic Growth Advisor. "Their expertise and years of experience in a wide range of forensic accounting and commercial damages matters will significantly supplement the capabilities of our current practice and allow us to continue to provide high-quality expert services to our clients."

HKA's FACD experts have extensive experience advising clients on the accounting, economic, and financial impacts of complex matters. The firm's experts serve clients by analyzing issues related to various disputes, including breach of contract, intellectual property (IP), shareholder, mergers, and acquisitions. Additionally, HKA undertakes fraud, forensic, and regulatory investigations.

HKA's IP consultants and experts work worldwide to value intangibles in most industries  from advanced technology to education, healthcare to e-commerce, and transport and consumer goods. The team is experienced in analyzing issues related to IP damages, such as apportionment of profits, manufacturing and sales capacity, available alternatives, customer demand, company and product profitability, competition, cost savings, and enhanced earnings related to licensing IP. The firm's IP experts have evaluated and determined reasonable royalties for a broad range of products and industries, reviewing and analyzing thousands of license agreements.

ABOUT HKA

HKA is the leading global consultancy in risk mitigation, dispute resolution, expert witness, and litigation support services.

HKA brings a proud record of excellent service and high achievement to bear on today's challenges. As trusted independent consultants, experts, and advisors, we help clients manage disputes, risk, and uncertainty on complex contracts and challenging projects. Our advice is impartial, incisive, and authoritative.

We work with government agencies, local authorities, contractors, legal firms, and other professional service providers, as well as owners and operators, financial institutions, and insurers. HKA's global portfolio includes some of the world's largest and most prestigious commissions across a wide range of industries.

HKA has in excess of 1,000 experts, consultants, and advisors across 45+ offices in 17 countries with the skills and experience that are essential to get to the heart of even the most complex issues.

For more information about HKA, visit hka.com and connect with us on LinkedIn, X (formerly Twitter, @HKAGlobal), and Facebook.

Media contact

Andrew J. Katz

Marketing and Communications Director, Americas

+1 215 962 1136

[email protected]

SOURCE HKA Global
Brandt Hospitality Group's New Jersey Hotel Gears Up for a Busy Summer Season

EAST HANOVER, N.J., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Home2 Suites by Hilton East Hanover is eager to welcome guests for Summer travel. Whether in town for work, an event, or vacation  the Home2 Suites East Hanover has the ideal accommodations for any guest. Visit their website to learn more: https://www.hilton.com/en/hotels/ewrehht-home2-suites-east-hanover/

Home2 Suites by Hilton East Hanover is conveniently located near many shops and restaurants. The hotel is a quick walk to the Funplex, a short drive to Imagine That Children's Museum, and 18 minutes from Turtle Back Zoo.

The pet-friendly hotel offers spacious suites with kitchen amenities like a microwave, refrigerator, sink, and dishwasher. Induction burner cooktops are also available from the front desk. Guest suites feature a separate living space with a sofa bed for extra sleeping room.

Home2 Suites by Hilton East Hanover offers complimentary breakfast daily, free parking, and free Wi-Fi. The hotel features a 24/7 fitness center and indoor pool. Guests flying through Newark International Airport have a quick 30 minute drive to the terminal.

Home2 Suites by Hilton East Hanover is a part of the Hilton Family. Hilton Honors members earn more for their stay. Enroll in Hilton Honors: https://www.hilton.com/en/hilton-honors/join/?OCODE=EWREHW

This property is managed by Brandt Hospitality Group, a hotel development and management company based in Fargo, North Dakota. Brandt Hospitality Group continues to build award winning hotels from coast to coast. In 2024, Marriott awarded Brandt Hospitality Group with "Partnership Circle Award" and "Guest Service Excellence" titles. To learn more about BHG, visit www.brandthg.com.

SOURCE Brandt Hospitality Group
TIENEN, Belgium, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Huntsman Corporation (NYSE: HUN) officially opened a new innovation center in Tienen, Belgium on June 13, 2024, strengthening its research and development (R&D) capabilities and reinforcing its commitment to its customers in the region.

The new 11,000-square-meter facility comprises a world-scale analytical laboratory; two machine halls; and fully equipped and automated product testing facilities. Together, these assets boost Huntsman's ability to perform the entire product innovation journey from the formulation of initial ideas at lab scale through to the manufacture of novel systems and samples ready for customers to trial.

The innovation center is home to more than 100 scientists from the company's Polyurethanes and Performance Products businesses and will support the application of Huntsman technologies in key markets, including adhesives, coatings and sealants; automotive; elastomers; energy; furniture and bedding, and insulation.

The inauguration event, which was attended by more than 100 customers, suppliers, the mayor of Tienen and business partners, included presentations from Huntsman's Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Peter Huntsman, and Tony Hankins, President of Huntsman's Polyurethanes business. It also included a tour of the facility and live R&D demonstrations, and a formal ribbon cutting ceremony.

"Today marks a significant milestone as we officially open the doors to our new European innovation center, a facility dedicated to creativity, collaboration and progress," Huntsman said. "We already have a rich legacy of innovation in Belgium. This center reflects our continuing commitment to exploring new ideas and turning imaginative concepts into practical solutions that can make a positive impact in the world."

Hankins further commented, "Fitted with the very latest equipment and staffed by some of the best scientists in the world, our Tienen site is a place where innovation can thrive, and where we can find new meaningful ways for our chemistries to address the sustainability challenges of tomorrow."

Huntsman is a leading global provider of innovative chemistries that are critical to addressing some of the world's most pressing sustainability challenges. The Polyurethanes division of Huntsman is a global leader in MDI-based polyurethanes, serving more than 3000 customers in more than 90 countries worldwide. Huntsman Performance Products manufactures amines, maleic anhydride and carbonates for a wide range of consumer and industrial end markets and sells over 800 products to more than 1000 customers globally.

About Huntsman:

Huntsman Corporation is a publicly traded global manufacturer and marketer of differentiated and specialty chemicals with 2023 revenues of approximately $6 billion. Our chemical products number in the thousands and are sold worldwide to manufacturers serving a broad and diverse range of consumer and industrial end markets. We operate more than 60 manufacturing, R&D and operations facilities in approximately 25 countries and employ approximately 6,000 associates within our continuing operations. For more information about Huntsman, please visit the company's website at www.huntsman.com .

Social Media:

Twitter: www.twitter.com/Huntsman_Corp

Facebook: www.facebook.com/huntsmancorp

LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/huntsman

Forward-Looking Statements: Certain information in this release constitutes forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These statements are based on management's current beliefs and expectations. The forward-looking statements in this release are subject to uncertainty and changes in circumstances and involve risks and uncertainties that may affect the company's operations, markets, products, services, prices and other factors as discussed under the caption "Risk Factors" in the Huntsman companies' filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Significant risks and uncertainties may relate to, but are not limited to, volatile global economic conditions, cyclical and volatile product markets, disruptions in production at manufacturing facilities, reorganization or restructuring of Huntsman's operations, including any delay of, or other negative developments affecting the ability to implement cost reductions, timing of proposed transactions, and manufacturing optimization improvements in Huntsman businesses and realize anticipated cost savings, and other financial, economic, competitive, environmental, political, legal, regulatory and technological factors. The company assumes no obligation to provide revisions to any forward-looking statements should circumstances change, except as otherwise required by applicable laws.

While all the information and recommendations in this publication are to the best of our knowledge, information and belief accurate at the date of publication, NOTHING HEREIN IS TO BE CONSTRUED AS A WARRANTY, EXPRESS OR OTHERWISE. HUNTSMAN POLYURETHANES WARRANTS ONLY THAT ITS PRODUCTS MEET THE SPECIFICATIONS AGREED WITH THE BUYER IN THE SALES CONTRACT. TYPICAL PROPERTIES, WHERE STATED, ARE TO BE CONSIDERED AS REPRESENTATIVE OF CURRENT PRODUCTION AND SHOULD NOT BE TREATED AS SPECIFICATIONS. IN ALL CASES, IT IS THE RESPONSIBILITY OF THE USER TO DETERMINE THE APPLICABILITY OF SUCH INFORMATION AND RECOMMENDATIONS AND THE SUITABILITY OF ANY PRODUCT FOR ITS OWN PARTICULAR PURPOSE. The sale of products referred to in this publication is subject to the general terms and conditions of sale of Huntsman International LLC or of its affiliated companies.

 2024. Huntsman Corporation or an affiliate thereof. All rights reserved.

SOURCE Huntsman Corporation
Index breaks into positive territory for the first time in 14 months as global manufacturers report stretched capacity

Demand for raw materials, commodities and components accelerates, a positive indicator for the rest of 2024

Factory purchasing in Asia rising at the fastest rate since December 2021 , driven by India , China and South Korea

Slack in European markets rapidly shrinking, indicating an advancement of the region's manufacturing recovery

Global reports of order backlogs rising because of staff shortages at their highest since late 2022, signaling future price pressures

CLARK, N.J., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The GEP Global Supply Chain Volatility Index  a leading indicator tracking demand conditions, shortages, transportation costs, inventories and backlogs based on a monthly survey of 27,000 businesses  increased notably in May to 0.21, from -0.18 in April. Crucially, this was the first time since March 2023 that the index is in positive territory, signaling that global vendors are working at capacity and that supply chains are at their busiest for more than a year.

GEP Global Supply Chain Volatility Index GEP Global Supply Chain Volatility Index

Interpreting the data:

Index > 0, supply chain capacity is being stretched. The further above 0, the more stretched supply chains are.

Index < 0, supply chain capacity is being underutilized. The further below 0, the more underutilized supply chains are.

A key factor behind the index's increase in May was a further improvement in global manufacturing demand, leading factories to ramp up their purchases of raw materials, commodities and components. Purchasing growth was especially strong in Asia, particularly in key exporting countries such as China, India and South Korea.

Suppliers to North America also got busier during May, with their capacity slightly stretched as a result. This partly reflected more supportive demand conditions for businesses in the U.S. and Mexico. The European market, which has been a laggard since mid-2022, improved notably, especially in the U.K.

Globally, reports of backlogs increasing because of staff shortages at suppliers of critical goods and inputs hit their highest in almost a year-and-a-half in May, suggesting capacity expansion is required to meet existing and future orders. Overall, this paints an optimistic picture for the outlook in H2 2024 for global supply chains.

"The broad-based nature of the breakout we're seeing in May is a hugely encouraging sign for the global economy going into the second half of 2024," explained Mudit Kumar, vice president, GEP Consulting. "If this trend continues, businesses can expect renewed efforts by vendors to raise prices, especially given the recent surge in the cost of many commodities."

MAY 2024 KEY FINDINGS

DEMAND: Global demand for raw materials, commodities and components is now trending in line with its long-term average, indicating that global manufacturing is now moving toward an upswing in the business cycle. At the forefront of growth is Asia , led by China , India and South Korea .





Global demand for raw materials, commodities and components is now trending in line with its long-term average, indicating that global manufacturing is now moving toward an upswing in the business cycle. At the forefront of growth is , led by , and . INVENTORIES : The inventory cycle has stabilized, with firms neither building up stocks excessively nor aggressively destocking to improve cash flow and cut costs.





: The inventory cycle has stabilized, with firms neither building up stocks excessively nor aggressively destocking to improve cash flow and cut costs. MATERIAL SHORTAGES: Global item supply remains robust, with reports of shortages at low levels.





Global item supply remains robust, with reports of shortages at low levels. LABOR SHORTAGES: The frequency at which global suppliers reported a rise in their backlogs due to labor shortages was at its greatest in nearly a year-and-a-half, indicating that capacity expansion is required to sustainably meet current and future demand.





The frequency at which global suppliers reported a rise in their backlogs due to labor shortages was at its greatest in nearly a year-and-a-half, indicating that capacity expansion is required to sustainably meet current and future demand. TRANSPORTATION: Global transportation costs remain stable, close to historically typical levels.

REGIONAL SUPPLY CHAIN VOLATILITY

NORTH AMERICA : Index rose to 0.09, from -0.30, its highest since February. May data showed stronger demand from manufacturers in the U.S. and Mexico , exerting more pressure on North American suppliers.





EUROPE : Index rose to -0.13 from -0.55, a 14-month high and signaling a substantial reduction in slack across Europe's supply chains. This suggests the region's manufacturing downturn continues to recede.





U.K.: Index rose to 0.15, from -0.47. This showed increased capacity pressures at U.K. suppliers for the first time since January 2023 .





ASIA : Index rose to 0.19, from 0.07. Suppliers to Asia are the busiest globally because of particularly strong demand pressures arising from major markets such as China , India and South Korea .

For more information, visit www.gep.com/volatility.

Note: Full historical data dating back to January 2005 is available for subscription. Please contact [email protected].

The next release of the GEP Global Supply Chain Volatility Index will be 8 a.m. ET, July 12, 2024.

About the GEP Global Supply Chain Volatility Index

The GEP Global Supply Chain Volatility Index is produced by S&P Global and GEP. It is derived from S&P Global's PMI surveys, sent to companies in over 40 countries, totaling around 27,000 companies. The headline figure is a weighted sum of six sub-indices derived from PMI data, PMI Comments Trackers and PMI Commodity Price & Supply Indicators compiled by S&P Global.

A value above 0 indicates that supply chain capacity is being stretched and supply chain volatility is increasing. The further above 0, the greater the extent to which capacity is being stretched.





A value below 0 indicates that supply chain capacity is being underutilized, reducing supply chain volatility. The further below 0, the greater the extent to which capacity is being underutilized.

A Supply Chain Volatility Index is also published at a regional level for Europe, Asia, North America and the U.K. For more information about the methodology, click here.

About GEP



GEP delivers AI-powered procurement and supply chain solutions that help global enterprises become more agile and resilient, operate more efficiently and effectively, gain competitive advantage, boost profitability and increase shareholder value. Fresh thinking, innovative products, unrivaled domain expertise, smart, passionate people  this is how GEP SOFTWARE, GEP STRATEGY and GEP MANAGED SERVICES together deliver procurement and supply chain solutions of unprecedented scale, power and effectiveness. Our customers are the world's best companies, including more than 550 Fortune 500 and Global 2000 industry leaders who rely on GEP to meet ambitious strategic, financial and operational goals. A leader in multiple Gartner Magic Quadrants, GEP's cloud-native software and digital business platforms consistently win awards and recognition from industry analysts, research firms and media outlets, including Gartner, Forrester, IDC, ISG, and Spend Matters. GEP is also regularly ranked a top procurement and supply chain consulting and strategy firm, and a leading managed services provider by ALM, Everest Group, NelsonHall, IDC, ISG and HFS, among others. Headquartered in Clark, New Jersey, GEP has offices and operations centers across Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas. To learn more, visit www.gep.com.

About S&P Global



S&P Global (NYSE: SPGI) S&P Global provides essential intelligence. We enable governments, businesses and individuals with the right data, expertise and connected technology so that they can make decisions with conviction. From helping our customers assess new investments to guiding them through ESG and energy transition across supply chains, we unlock new opportunities, solve challenges and accelerate progress for the world. We are widely sought after by many of the world's leading organizations to provide credit ratings, benchmarks, analytics and workflow solutions in the global capital, commodity and automotive markets. With every one of our offerings, we help the world's leading organizations plan for tomorrow, today.

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Media Contacts

Derek Creevey Joe Hayes Director, Public Relations Principal Economist GEP S&P Global Market Intelligence Phone: +1 732-382-6565 Phone: +44-1344-328-099 Email: [email protected] Email: [email protected]

SOURCE GEP
CANTON, Mass., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Massachusetts Nurses Association (MNA)  the most powerful and effective voice on nursing and healthcare in the Commonwealth  has endorsed U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) for re-election because Sen. Warren understands and takes a proactive approach to addressing the challenges facing nurses and healthcare professionals.

"The MNA and our 25,000 nurses and healthcare professionals are proud to stand with Elizabeth Warren as she fights for the issues that matter most to caregivers and our patients," said Katie Murphy, ICU RN, and president of the MNA. "Senator Warren has long been a strong advocate for safe patient care, healthcare violence prevention, and the preservation of essential healthcare services. We join the senator in her efforts to rein in corporate power, rebuild the middle class, and support Massachusetts families."

"Massachusetts nurses are not only frontline workers who made tremendous sacrifices during the pandemic, but they save lives every single day," said U.S. Senator Warren. "I am honored to earn their support for reelection, and I will never stop fighting hard for working people and middle-class families in the Senate. For years, I've fought back against corporate interests in health care, and I'm proud to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with the MNA. We've made real progress, but we still have much work to do to empower workers, raise wages, and create a more just and healthy society. I'm in this fight all the way."

Key MNA nurse and healthcare professional issues Sen. Warren supports:

The MNA was one of the first organizations to endorse Elizabeth Warren during her initial campaign for U.S. Senate in 2012 because of her dedication to limiting corporate power and strengthening America's middle class, including by providing jobs at living wages for everyone, creating a secure retirement system that allows everyone to live out their lives with dignity, and establishing a just taxation system where corporations and the extremely wealthy pay their fair share.

"Elizabeth Warren has spent her time in the U.S. Senate fighting for working class families, meaningful financial reform and consumer protection," said MNA President Murphy. "We look forward to Senator Warren continuing that important work while also being an ally for nurses, healthcare professionals, and our patients."

Founded in 1903, the MNA created the Nurse Practice Act, the RN license designation, developed a uniform curriculum for the education of nurses, wrote the first code of ethics for nurses and passed, or helped to pass, nearly every state law governing nursing practice including the law allowing nurses to unionize in Massachusetts.

Today, the MNA represents more than 25,000 nurses and healthcare professionals working in 85 health care facilities, including 51 acute care hospitals, as well as a growing number of nurses and health professionals working in schools, visiting nurse associations, public health departments and state agencies.

MassNurses.org  Facebook.com/MassNurses  Twitter.com/MassNurses  Instagram.com/MassNurses

Founded in 1903, the Massachusetts Nurses Association is the largest union of registered nurses in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Its 25,000 members advance the nursing profession by fostering high standards of nursing practice, promoting the economic and general welfare of nurses in the workplace, projecting a positive and realistic view of nursing, and by lobbying the Legislature and regulatory agencies on health care issues affecting nurses and the public.

SOURCE Massachusetts Nurses Association
NEW YORK, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ --The global maternity support products market size is estimated to grow by USD 160.87 million from 2024-2028, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 8.27% during the forecast period. Growing influence of fashion trends on maternity support products is driving market growth, with a trend towards achieving growth through online retailing. However, limited lifecycle of maternity support products poses a challenge. Key market players include Advin Health Care, ASOS Plc, Belly Bandit, BLANQI, CABEA LLC, Carriwell Aps, Ingrid and Isabel LLC, ITA MED Co., Its You Babe LLC, JoJo Maman Bebe Ltd., Marquee Brands, Maternity IP Holdings, Medela AG, Neotech Care Inc., Queen Bee Maternity Pty. Ltd., REH4MAT Slawomir Wronski, Reitmans Ltd, Ripe Maternity, Spanx LLC, and Times Three Clothier LLC.

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Maternity Support Products Market 2024-2028

Get a detailed analysis on regions, market segments, customer landscape, and companies- View the snapshot of this report

Maternity Support Products Market Scope Report Coverage Details Base year 2023 Historic period 2018 - 2022 Forecast period 2024-2028 Growth momentum & CAGR Accelerate at a CAGR of 8.27% Market growth 2024-2028 USD 160.87 million Market structure Fragmented YoY growth 2022-2023 (%) 7.14 Regional analysis North America, Europe, APAC, Middle East and Africa, and South America Performing market contribution North America at 37% Key countries US, China, Australia, Germany, and UK Key companies profiled Advin Health Care, ASOS Plc, Belly Bandit, BLANQI, CABEA LLC, Carriwell Aps, Ingrid and Isabel LLC, ITA MED Co., Its You Babe LLC, JoJo Maman Bebe Ltd., Marquee Brands, Maternity IP Holdings, Medela AG, Neotech Care Inc., Queen Bee Maternity Pty. Ltd., REH4MAT Slawomir Wronski, Reitmans Ltd, Ripe Maternity, Spanx LLC, and Times Three Clothier LLC

Market Driver

The global maternity support products market is experiencing significant growth due to the increasing number of online shoppers and the expansion of e-commerce platforms. According to UNCTAD, approximately two-thirds of internet users made online purchases in 2021.

Modern lifestyles, rising Internet penetration, and smartphone usage are driving factors attracting customers to buy maternity support products, such as belts, belly wraps, and shapewear, online. Vendors, including Amazon, Rakuten Commerce, and Alibaba Group, are adopting an omnichannel strategy, selling through both brick-and-mortar stores and online marketplaces, contributing to market growth.

The maternity support products market is experiencing significant growth, with a focus on comfort and convenience for new mothers. Key products include body pillows, belly bands, nursing pillows, and diapers. Brands are offering supportive and adjustable designs to cater to various stages of pregnancy and postpartum recovery. Preference for eco-friendly and affordable options is also on the rise.

Additionally, technology integration, such as temperature control and adjustable firmness, is becoming a trend in the market. Overall, the maternity support products industry is prioritizing customer needs and comfort to meet the demands of new and expecting mothers.

Research report provides comprehensive data on impact of trend. For more details- Download a Sample Report

Market Challenges

The maternity support products market faces a significant challenge due to the short usage period of these items. Expectant mothers utilize maternity support products, including shapewear and belly bands, for only a few months during pregnancy and postpartum. As a result, established brands price these products high due to their specialized function. Price-conscious consumers view maternity support products as non-essential purchases, considering the limited usage duration and high cost.

This perception may negatively impact sales volume in the forecast period.

The maternity support products market faces several challenges. These include the need for comfort and ease during pregnancy and postpartum periods. Expecting mothers require various products such as mats, pillows, and clothing for support and comfort. Additionally, there is a growing demand for eco-friendly and affordable options.

Brands must cater to these needs while ensuring quality and durability. Furthermore, regulations and certifications add complexity to the market. Brands must comply with safety standards and certifications to gain consumer trust. Lastly, marketing and distribution channels require careful planning to reach target audiences effectively. Overall, the maternity support products market presents both opportunities and challenges for brands.

For more insights on driver and challenges - Request a sample report!

Segment Overview

Product

1.1 Maternity support wear

1.2 Maternity shapewear

Distribution Channel

2.1 Offline

2.2 Online

Geography

3.1 North America

3.2 Europe

3.3 APAC

3.4 Middle East and Africa

and 3.5 South America

1.1 Maternity support wear- The maternity support products market is driven by the popularity of belly bands and maternity support belts. These products offer abdominal support and improve posture for pregnant and postpartum women. Belly bands, made with fibers like cotton and elastane, are stretchable and provide a snug fit. Maternity support belts come with various strap options, including full prenatal cradles, which distribute weight evenly and relieve muscle strain. Vendors like It's You Babe, Destination Maternity Corporation, Reitmans (Canada), and Spanx offer these products, contributing to the market's growth.

For more information on market segmentation with geographical analysis including forecast (2024-2028) and historic data (2017-2021) - Download a Sample Report

Research Analysis

The Maternity Support Products market encompasses a range of items designed to facilitate a comfortable and healthy pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum recovery. These products include pregnancy and postpartum clothing such as nursing bras, maternity clothes, belly bands, and postpartum belly wraps. Additionally, breastfeeding accessories, prenatal vitamins, and postpartum recovery items like pregnancy support belts, pregnancy cushions, and back pain relief products are essential. Newborns and infants necessitate baby monitors for constant surveillance.

Proper posture during pregnancy is crucial, and maternity clothes that cater to various body types can aid in maintaining good posture. Sustainability is a growing concern in this market, with brands focusing on creating stylish yet eco-friendly maternity support products. Keywords: pregnancy, childbirth, postpartum care, newborns, infants, maternity clothing, breastfeeding accessories, prenatal vitamins, postpartum recovery items, baby monitors, nursing bras, postpartum belly wraps, back pain, pelvic pain, proper posture, stretch marks, third trimester, baby's weight, body types, maternity clothes, belly bands, supportive bras, pregnancy support belts, pregnancy cushions, sustainability, meets, style, ITA-MED, JoJo Maman Bebe, Reitsman, Spanx.

Market Research Overview

The maternity support products market encompasses a range of items designed to facilitate and enhance the experience of pregnancy and childbirth. These products include pregnancy and postpartum belts, compression garments, nursing bras, breast pumps, maternity pads, and maternity leggings. The market caters to the needs of expectant and new mothers, providing them with comfort, support, and convenience during various stages of pregnancy and postpartum recovery.

The demand for these products is driven by factors such as increasing awareness of maternal health, rising birth rates, and the growing trend towards home births and natural childbirth methods. Additionally, advancements in technology and materials have led to the development of innovative and effective maternity support solutions.

Table of Contents:

1 Executive Summary

2 Market Landscape

3 Market Sizing

4 Historic Market Size

5 Five Forces Analysis

6 Market Segmentation

Product

Maternity Support Wear



Maternity Shapewear

Distribution Channel

Offline



Online

Geography

North America



Europe



APAC



Middle East And Africa



South America

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
Available on FAIR Health's website fairhealth.org, the Cost of Giving Birth Tracker is a free, interactive tool tracking the cost of giving birth state by state. It consists of heat maps that show state-specific and national median1 charge and allowed (in-network) amounts2 for vaginal deliveries and C-sections. The tool draws on the national, independent nonprofit FAIR Health's database of over 46 billion commercial healthcare claim recordsthe largest such repository in the country. Launched in June 2023 with data from September 2022, the Cost of Giving Birth Tracker has just been updated with data from the September 2023 release of the vaginal delivery and C-section FH Total Treatment Cost benchmarks.

The Tracker includes inpatient and outpatient facility and professional costs. Services include the delivery itself (e.g., pharmacy, nursery, labor and delivery room, medical and surgical supplies, room and board for the mother), anesthesia, fetal nonstress tests, ultrasounds, laboratory work and a breast pump.

Among the findings of the newly updated Cost of Giving Birth Tracker:

In September 2023 , Alaska was the state with the highest median allowed amount for vaginal deliveries, $23,403.48 , followed by (in order from highest to lowest) New Jersey , Connecticut , Nevada and California . In September 2022 , three of these five states were also on this list ( Alaska , New Jersey and Connecticut ), but the list also included New York and Massachusetts . See table 1.

, was the state with the highest median allowed amount for vaginal deliveries, , followed by (in order from highest to lowest) , , and . In , three of these five states were also on this list ( , and ), but the list also included and . See table 1. In September 2023 , New Jersey was the state with the highest median allowed amount for C-sections, $26,876.00 , followed by Alaska , New York , California and Connecticut . In September 2022 , the same five states were on this list, though in different order: Alaska was highest, followed by New Jersey , New York , Connecticut and California . See table 2.

, was the state with the highest median allowed amount for C-sections, , followed by , , and . In , the same five states were on this list, though in different order: was highest, followed by , , and . See table 2. In September 2023 , Louisiana had the lowest median allowed amount for vaginal deliveries, $8,922.94 , followed by (in order from lowest to highest) Alabama , Missouri , Oklahoma and Kentucky . In September 2022 , two of these five states were also on this list ( Alabama and Louisiana , though Alabama was lowest), but the list also included Maryland , Virginia and West Virginia . See table 3.

, had the lowest median allowed amount for vaginal deliveries, , followed by (in order from lowest to highest) , , and . In , two of these five states were also on this list ( and , though was lowest), but the list also included , and . See table 3. In September 2023 , Louisiana had the lowest median allowed amount for C-sections, $10,124.35 , followed by Alabama , Missouri , Maryland and Oklahoma . In September 2022 , the same five states were on this list, though in different order: Alabama was lowest, followed by Louisiana , Maryland , Missouri and Oklahoma . See table 4.

The Cost of Giving Birth Tracker is one of FAIR Health's series of trackers offering geographic windows into healthcare data. The series also includes the Monthly Telehealth Regional Tracker, which tracks telehealth utilization by region across the nation, and the Opioid Tracker, which tracks opioid abuse and dependence.

FAIR Health President Robin Gelburd stated: "FAIR Health is pleased to continue illuminating the costs of giving birth from state to state and nationally. With the updated Cost of Giving Birth Tracker, we again use our vast data repository to inform healthcare stakeholdersincluding patients, policy makers, payors, providers and researcherson issues that matter to them."

For the Cost of Giving Birth Tracker, click here.

Follow us on X @FAIRHealth

About FAIR Health

FAIR Health is a national, independent nonprofit organization that qualifies as a public charity under section 501(c)(3) of the federal tax code. It is dedicated to bringing transparency to healthcare costs and health insurance information through data products, consumer resources and health systems research support. FAIR Health possesses the nation's largest collection of commercial healthcare claims data, which includes over 46 billion claim records and is growing at a rate of over 3 billion claim records a year. FAIR Health licenses its commercial data and data productsincluding benchmark modules, data visualizations, custom analytics and market indicesto commercial insurers and self-insurers, employers, providers, hospitals and healthcare systems, government agencies, researchers and others. Certified by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as a national Qualified Entity, FAIR Health also receives data representing the experience of all individuals enrolled in traditional Medicare Parts A, B and D, which accounts for a separate collection of over 47 billion claim records; FAIR Health includes among the commercial claims data in its database, data on Medicare Advantage enrollees. FAIR Health can produce insightful analytic reports and data products based on combined Medicare and commercial claims data for government, providers, payors and other authorized users. FAIR Health's systems for processing and storing protected health information have earned HITRUST CSF certification and achieved AICPA SOC 2 Type 2 compliance by meeting the rigorous data security requirements of these standards. As a testament to the reliability and objectivity of FAIR Health data, the data have been incorporated in statutes and regulations around the country and designated as the official, neutral data source for a variety of state health programs, including workers' compensation and personal injury protection (PIP) programs. FAIR Health data serve as an official reference point in support of certain state balance billing laws that protect consumers against bills for surprise out-of-network and emergency services. FAIR Health also uses its database to power a free consumer website available in English and Spanish, which enables consumers to estimate and plan for their healthcare expenditures and offers a rich educational platform on health insurance. An English/Spanish mobile app offers the same educational platform in a concise format and links to the cost estimation tools. The website has been honored by the White House Summit on Smart Disclosure, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), URAC, the eHealthcare Leadership Awards, appPicker, Employee Benefit News and Kiplinger's Personal Finance. For more information on FAIR Health, visit fairhealth.org.

Contact:

Rachel Kent

Executive Director of Communications and Marketing

FAIR Health

646-396-0795

[email protected]

1 A median is the midpoint of the distribution of values below and above which there is an equal number of values.

2 A charge amount is the amount charged to a patient who is uninsured or obtaining an out-of-network service. An allowed amount is the total fee negotiated between an insurance plan and a provider for an in-network service, including both the portion to be paid by the plan member and the portion to be paid by the plan.

SOURCE FAIR Health

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Provider shortages have driven classrooms to a breaking point. Over 60% of superintendents are concerned about educator workload and well-being.

Some schools miss over 50% of Individualized Education Program (IEP) sessions, putting increased pressure on educators and compromising critical support for students

Parents, superintendents, and educators alike support innovation such as virtual care. 85% of parents were likely to use virtual support for IEP needs.

DENVER, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Across America, 12-20% of children and adolescents face growth, development, and mental health challenges that are supported by federally mandated, school-based Individualized Education Programs (IEPs) under the Individual Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA).

A new research study by Huddle Up, titled " Inside IEP - Actionable Insights and Innovations for Student Support ," surveyed a random sample of over 721 educators, superintendents, and parents, sought to understand the current state of IEP programs and the potential for innovative solutions.

The research study's findings highlight the startling impact of IEP provider staffing scarcity on IDEA compliance and classroom well-being. The study also revealed opportunities to address these challenges at scale and transform the quality of care through comprehensive virtual services and parent engagement in IEP programs.

Key findings at a glance

Shortages of high-quality providers result in compliance and classroom challenges

40% of schools report missing a quarter of their IEP sessions each month.

A third of schools in urban areas report students missing 50% of their IEP sessions monthly.

66% percent of superintendents are very or extremely concerned about how this impacts educator workload, and 62% are concerned about the impact on educator well-being.

Stakeholders have already begun to embrace innovation

78% percent of superintendents who tried virtual services for student mental health reported satisfaction

85% percent of parents said they were likely or extremely likely to use virtual providers for their child's IEP needs.

Parental involvement and team-based care are key opportunities to improve IEP programs

Half of parents and guardians do not have transparency into their child's progress on IEP goals, nor do providers often work with them on IEP goals

59% percent of superintendents identify inadequate parental support and involvement as a significant or high barrier to providing more effective mental health resources.

81% percent of educators highlight the potential for improved job satisfaction through collaboration with an extended team.

"The shortage of IEP providers, and the lack of parent involvement in care, has significant implications for the mental health and development of students, and the workload of classroom educators that are already stretched too thin," said Dr. Omar Dawood, CEO and Board Member at Huddle Up, "Comprehensive, high-quality, consistent support is crucial for success. Engaging parents in this care model can transform student outcomes."

Access the full report here.

For media inquiries and interviews, please contact:

Nicola Kamath

Chief Marketing Officer, Huddle Up

[email protected]

About Huddle Up:

Huddle Up is the most comprehensive pediatric digital health company that supports the growth, development, and mental health of children and adolescents across the United States. By bringing together providers, families, and educators, Huddle Up creates a circle of support around children and adolescents, transforming the care experience and enabling new levels of engagement and outcomes beyond traditional, in-person offerings. Technical innovation extends the high-quality nationwide network of providers, enabling them through peer-to-peer interactions, specialty support, and outcome-driven personalization.

Available in 50 states and over 25 insurance plans, Huddle Up serves nearly a thousand schools in diverse regions throughout the nation. The company boasts nearly 900,000 sessions delivered, a 4.5/5 student star rating, and a 96% provider retention rate.

Huddle Up serves children and adolescents with three solutions:

IEP Huddle: A transformative solution that goes beyond traditional support of speech therapy, occupational therapy, school psychology, and mental health needs for the evaluation, care services, and management of IEP-related, 504, and RTI programs.

A transformative solution that goes beyond traditional support of speech therapy, occupational therapy, school psychology, and mental health needs for the evaluation, care services, and management of IEP-related, 504, and RTI programs. All Student Huddle: A solution that extends mental health support to the entire population from Tier 1 screening and self-guided care to Tier 3 one-on-one individual service needs and works in place of, or alongside SEL, tiered and MTSS offerings.

A solution that extends mental health support to the entire population from Tier 1 screening and self-guided care to Tier 3 one-on-one individual service needs and works in place of, or alongside SEL, tiered and MTSS offerings. Family Care Hub: An innovative, first-of-its-kind platform that empowers self-guided care, courses, and education for students and their families, bringing them together to create new levels of engagement and outcomes.

For more information about Huddle Up and its initiatives, please visit huddleupcare.com

Contact Information:

Huddle Up

Nicola Kamath, CMO

[email protected]

SOURCE Huddle Up
CHARLOTTE, N.C., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Utilities Diversity Council (NUDC) convened its 11th-annual conference, The Queen City Quorum: The NUDC Summit on Supplier, Workforce, and Governance Diversity, on Thursday, May 30, 2024. Hosted by Duke Energy at its headquarters in uptown Charlotte, the conference brought together 100 leaders from across the utilities sector  regulators, industry executives, suppliers, academics, and association leaders  to have meaningful discussions that manifest into actionable outcomes to promote diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging across the utilities and communications industries.

The theme of the conference was Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging: Why Now So Important? and it included six topics for in-depth "solutioneering" selected from 87 topics proposed by the Queen City Quorum Honorary and Advisory Committees. Among the topics were the still-present glass ceiling for women in the utilities industry, the role of the regulatory sector in advancing equity, and how to address recent challenges to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging initiatives.

The Honorable Charlotte Mitchell, North Carolina Utilities Commission Chair, welcomed attendees, and the event's keynote speakers included The Honorable Maida Coleman, Commissioner of the Missouri Public Service Commission and Chair of the National Association of Regulatory Utility Commissioners' Select Committee on Regulatory and Industry Diversity, and Lynn Good, Chair and CEO of Duke Energy. Good shared this insight: "Delivering reliable, affordable and increasingly clean energy to our customers and communities is a complex undertaking. To be successful, we need a diverse and inclusive culture to strengthen ties across communities and create opportunities to innovate in a way that reflects all stakeholders and supports economic vitality."

NUDC Co-Chair Harry Sideris, President of Duke Energy, was host of the Queen City Quorum: "It's vital that we keep advancing diversity, equity and inclusion across the utility sector," said Sideris. "Bringing together regulators, corporate executives, entrepreneurs, and academics from around the country to discuss practical solutions is one of many important steps to move this business imperative forward."

About NUDC

The National Utilities Diversity Council educates, develops best practices and guides efforts that will promote diversity in the utilities and communications industries in the areas of governance, employment, procurement, language access/customer service, and philanthropy.

The NUDC is governed by a 21-member Board of Directors, chaired by Harry Sideris, President, Duke Energy and The Honorable Davante Lewis, Commissioner, Louisiana Public Service Commission. It is made up of corporate leaders, regulators and regulatory staff members, suppliers, and non-profit professionals committed to encouraging diversity in utilities, telecommunications, and cable industries. Since its inception, NUDC has provided resources through webinars, toolkits, conferences and research. The majority of NUDC's programs are made available at no charge to the user.

For more information, please contact Laurie Dowling  [email protected] 323-982-7223

SOURCE National Utilities Diversity Council
Since 2019, NSG BioLabs has been a leader in co-working lab spaces in Singapore , and has nurtured over 40 biotech companies, of which the startups have achieved nearly US$400 million funding in total alongside significant business milestones

The Eppendorf Group has signed a partnership agreement with NSG BioLabs to support biotech startups in their R&D efforts in Singapore

SINGAPORE, June 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- NSG BioLabs, Singapore's largest provider of biotech co-working laboratory and office space, announces a new partnership with Eppendorf, a leading international life science company that develops, manufactures, and distributes instruments, consumables, and services for use in laboratories around the world, to support biotech startups by providing needed resources such as product and applications expertise and its networks to advance startup research and development (R&D).

Eppendorf and NSG BioLabs have entered a strategic partnership to foster an environment where NSG BioLabs' residents can thrive. This collaboration grants residents exclusive access to Eppendorf's advanced equipment, consumables, and services. These resources empower them to speed up their research and expand their innovations. Together, Eppendorf and NSG BioLabs are shaping the future of life sciences and driving significant discoveries.

Since 2019, NSG BioLabs has been assisting innovators in creating impactful solutions in the health, biomedical, agrifood, and industrial biotechnology sectors, working in areas such as precision medicine, nucleic acids, AI-enabled drug discovery, synthetic biology, and other impactful areas. With the largest co-working biotech laboratory and office footprint in Singapore, coupled with extensive networks with local and international partners, suppliers, and industry experts, NSG BioLabs has helped over 40 companies as residents. The company's residents include several multi-billion-dollar multinationals as well as many promising startups that have achieved key milestones. The startup residents alone have successfully raised nearly US$400 million in funding and supported hundreds of jobs.

"We are thrilled to announce our strategic partnership with Eppendorf, a leader in life sciences equipment and services. At NSG BioLabs, fostering an environment where our residents can thrive is our top priority. This collaboration will provide our residents with exclusive access to Eppendorf's cutting-edge equipment, consumables, and services, empowering them to accelerate their research and scale their innovations. Together, we are shaping the future of life sciences and driving impactful discoveries," said Daphne Teo, CEO and Founder of NSG BioLabs

"Empowering innovative biotech startups is of strategic importance to the Eppendorf Group, as they drive the future of medical innovation and the development of new treatments. Eppendorf's purpose is to help improve human living conditions and we have been clearly committed for almost 80 years in supporting scientists around the world. Eppendorf is proud to engage in a partnership with NSG Biolabs, affirming its shared vision for supporting innovators in creating impactful biotech solutions. Being part of this scientific community is crucial and this collaboration will be the catalyst for transformative breakthroughs in Singapore and beyond," said Surendran Krishnamurthi, Managing Director Eppendorf Southeast Asia.

Since its inception, NSG BioLabs has been supporting biotech startups and multinational companies by providing BSL-2 certified private and shared laboratory spaces and offices, equipment, as well as privileged access with service providers and suppliers, and community engagement. After its first site opening in November 2019, NSG BioLabs expanded with its second site in August 2021, and recently in 2023 with its third site. Now, with three sites totaling 35,000 square feet located in the heart of Singapore's R&D ecosystem, NSG BioLabs cements its space as a key hub for biotech innovation. As one of the largest private biotech incubators in the region, coupled with its strong partnerships and strategic investors, such as Celadon Partners and ClavystBio, a life sciences investor set up by Temasek, NSG BioLabs is poised to enhance its value-add offerings of infrastructure, services, and networks for its growing community.

About the Eppendorf Group

Eppendorf is a leading international life science company that develops, manufactures, and distributes instruments, consumables, and services for use in laboratories around the world.

The product portfolio of the business units Liquid Handling & Consumables, Separation & Instrumentation and Bioprocess includes, for example, pipettes, pipette tips, centrifuges, mixers, ultra-freezers and bioreactors for cell and gene research. In addition, Eppendorf offers a wide range of high-quality consumables. In fiscal year 2023, the Eppendorf Group generated 1.08 billion in sales and invested 69 million in research and development (R&D).

Eppendorf products are used in academic or industrial research laboratories, such as pharmaceutical, biotech, chemical, and food industries, as well as clinical, environmental, forensic, and industrial laboratories for process analysis, production, and quality assurance.

Since 1945, the Eppendorf Group has been headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, and today operates production and R&D sites in Europe, Asia and North America and has subsidiaries in 33 countries. Today, the Group employs more than 5,000 people worldwide. They all act in accordance with the purpose of the company's founders: to improve human living conditions.

About NSG BioLabs

Founded with a focus on supporting biotech innovation, NSG BioLabs offers state-of-the-art equipment, efficient operations, capital efficiency, the expertise of world-class teams and global networks to assist life sciences companies. The conducive R&D environment contains fully-equipped, certified BSL-2 laboratory and office infrastructure across 35,000 sq ft in the prime location of Biopolis in Singapore.

By providing access to high-quality infrastructure, its extensive partner network, community, and value-add benefits, NSG BioLabs ensures that companies, ranging from emerging biotech startups to multinational companies, can rapidly and efficiently execute on their cutting-edge research and development ecosystem in Singapore, leading to the innovation of revolutionary technologies and products that translate into breakthrough biotech ventures and impact for patients.

For more information, visit www.nsgbio.com

SOURCE NSG BioLabs
Working Hand-in-Paw with Kaley Cuoco, One Lucky Dog Will Play an Integral Role in Testing All of Oh Norman!'s New Product Innovations Before They Hit the Market

LOS ANGELES, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Oh Norman! , Kaley Cuoco's pet care brand that is committed to helping owners problem-solve and achieve peace of mind when it comes to their furry friends, is excited to announce they are hiring a dog for the company's most important role yet, a Chief Treat Officer (CTO). Oh Norman!'s Chief Treat Officer, which will be hand selected by Cuoco following a three-month submission process and public voting, will work closely with the internal team on product development and testing. The role will come with an annual salary of $10,000.

Beginning today, pet guardians of qualified dogs can submit via the Oh Norman! website. The primary job responsibilities of this position include, but are not limited to, testing and reviewing all of Oh Norman!'s new product innovations before they hit the market, and monthly social media deliverables. Candidates submitted should have a keen sense of smell and taste, an understanding of trends and their peers, as well as a proficiency with social media, of course with a supportive pet parent who can serve as their professional camera assistant. Following their appointment in October, the winning dog will remain in the position for one calendar year.

"As a pet parent and the co-founder of Oh Norman!, I always strive to create top quality products that dogs love. As we've continued to build out the Oh Norman! team, it's become evident that we need to bring in an expert," said Kaley Cuoco, actress, animal advocate and co-founder of Oh Norman!. "By bringing in a dog to serve as our Chief Treat Officer, we are ensuring that every dog has a voice in the process. I am looking forward to working with our new employee who will help ensure our customers are the happiest they can be."

Applicants will be accepted from today until September 13, 2024, with the winner being announced by Cuoco on Oh Norman!'s Instagram this October, following a public voting period. Those pet guardians interested in applying on behalf of their dog should plan to do so via the Oh Norman! website and will be required to fill out an application. Applicants must reside in the continental United States and are required to submit an original, creative 30-second video explaining why their dog is right for the role. Full rules and regulations as well as submission guidelines can be found at ohnorman.com .

About Oh Norman!:

Co-founded by Kaley Cuoco, Oh Norman! is a pet care brand on a mission to make joyful, cutting-edge products that improve the lives of the animals we love. The brand is a trusted place for pet parents, offering healthy, well-designed products for pets and the people who effing love them. To learn more about Oh Norman! visit at ohnorman.com or follow on Instagram at @ohnorman .

Contact:

Lindsey Goldberg/Full Picture/ [email protected]

SOURCE Oh Norman!
WASHINGTON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S. Supreme Court has maintained current FDA approval of mifepristone, a safe and effective medication used for abortion and miscarriage care by thousands of Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, DC (PPMW) patients each year. Their unanimous decision means that PPMW will be able to continue providing medication abortion using the most common and highly regarded regimen available.

"Abortion is a fundamental freedom and medication abortion is essential health care," says PPMW President and CEO Dr. Laura Meyers. "While we are relieved that we can continue to provide medication abortion that meets the top standard of care, we remain incensed that access to mifepristone was ever at risk."

"Access to mifepristone is a health equity issue," says PPMW Chief Medical Officer Dr. Serina Floyd. "Had mifepristone been restricted, the existing health inequities experienced by marginalized and minoritized communities across the nation, including in the DC metro area, would have been dramatically exacerbated. While we are relieved that mifepristone access has not been restricted, we remain vigilant, given the broad range of threats facing abortion care today. The wellbeing of our patients is always our top priority."

PPMW will continue to provide medication abortion care at health centers in Washington, DC; Montgomery County, MD; and Prince George's County, MD. Supporters can contribute to PPMW's Abortion Access Fund to support patients' access to care.

Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, DC (PPMW) provides high-quality, affordable reproductive health care; promotes education programs that empower all individuals to make informed reproductive choices; and protects the right to make those choices. PPMW is the oldest and largest provider of family planning services in Metropolitan Washington, serving Washington, DC; Montgomery and Prince George's Counties in Maryland; and Northern Virginia.

SOURCE Planned Parenthood of Metropolitan Washington, D.C.
WASHINGTON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The following statement was released by National Press Club President Emily Wilkins.

"The family of Austin Tice have asked us to release the following statement about the anticipated meeting Friday between President Biden and Pope Francis at the G-7 meeting in Italy. The Press Club has supported the Tice family for many years in their efforts to bring Austin home and will continue to do so until he has returned."

Statement by Debra and Marc Tice, parents of Austin Tice.

"We are full of hope and joy that these two great world leaders who care so deeply about Austin Tice are coming together in Italy. We hope they will find a moment to join in saying a prayer for Austin. We encourage the global faithful to join them in this prayer for the safe return of our son. We respectfully ask Pope Francis to encourage President Biden to engage directly with the Syrian government as they have requested. We know these men together can bring Austin safely home. We are confident Austin is praying to walk free. May this sincere effort begin today with a prayer offered by these two capable men of faith."

Background:

Both Pope Francis and President Biden have met privately with Debra Tice about Austin's case. The Pope has written letters to President Bashar al-Assad on Austin's behalf. President Biden has authorized his National Security team to have direct talks with the Syrian government: those talks have been sporadic and so far unproductive. Austin is an award-winning journalist, Marine veteran and a graduate of the Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University. Austin has been held hostage longer than any other U.S. journalist. He has been held in Syria since Aug. 14, 2012, almost 12 years now.

About the National Press Club

Founded in 1908, the National Press Club is the world's leading professional organization for journalists. With 3,000 members representing nearly every major news organization, the Club is a leading voice for press freedom in the U.S. and overseas.

Contact: Bill McCarren, [email protected] for National Press Club

SOURCE National Press Club
NEW YORK, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The global public warehousing market size is estimated to grow by USD 59.14 billion from 2024-2028, according to Technavio. The market is estimated to grow at a CAGR of 5.6% during the forecast period. Growing number of smes is driving market growth, with a trend towards rise in automation and implementation of smart warehousing solutions. However, shortage of skilled labor poses a challenge. Key market players include Agility Public Warehousing Co. K.S.C.P, CEVA Logistics S A, Deutsche Bahn AG, Deutsche Post AG, FedEx Corp., Fullers Logistics Ltd., GEODIS, Globe Express Services logistics and Shipping Co., Kenco Group Inc., Kuehne Nagel Management AG, NFI Industries Inc., Penske Corp., PiVAL International, Ryder System Inc., Saddle Creek Logistics Services, The China Fox Group Pty Ltd., United Parcel Service Inc., Warehouse Services Inc., Wincanton Plc, and XPO Inc..

Technavio has announced its latest market research report titled Global Public Warehousing Market 2024-2028

Get a detailed analysis on regions, market segments, customer landscape, and companies - View the snapshot of this report

Forecast period 2024-2028 Base Year 2023 Historic Data 2018 - 2022 Segment Covered Type (General and Specialized), Application (Manufacturing, Consumer goods, Retail, Healthcare, and Others), and Geography (APAC, North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, and South America) Region Covered APAC, North America, Europe, Middle East and Africa, and South America Key companies profiled Agility Public Warehousing Co. K.S.C.P, CEVA Logistics S A, Deutsche Bahn AG, Deutsche Post AG, FedEx Corp., Fullers Logistics Ltd., GEODIS, Globe Express Services logistics and Shipping Co., Kenco Group Inc., Kuehne Nagel Management AG, NFI Industries Inc., Penske Corp., PiVAL International, Ryder System Inc., Saddle Creek Logistics Services, The China Fox Group Pty Ltd., United Parcel Service Inc., Warehouse Services Inc., Wincanton Plc, and XPO Inc.

Key Market Trends Fueling Growth

The public warehousing market is experiencing significant growth due to the adoption of automation technologies and smart solutions. Artificial intelligence (AI) and robotic process automation (RPA) are key trends, improving operational efficiency and productivity. Amazon.com leads the way with over 200,000 mobile robots in their warehouses. Public warehouses bear the initial investment for these advanced technologies, allowing end-users to benefit without high costs. As automation increases, public warehouses become an attractive option for businesses.

The public warehousing market is currently experiencing significant growth, with many businesses opting for outsourced storage solutions. Urban areas are seeing a surge in demand for logistics and storage services due to increasing e-commerce sales. The use of technology in warehousing, such as automation and robotics, is becoming more common to improve efficiency and reduce costs.

Sustainability is also a trending topic, with many warehouses implementing green practices to reduce their carbon footprint. Additionally, the need for secure storage solutions is increasing due to the rise in cargo theft. Overall, the public warehousing market is evolving to meet the changing needs of businesses and consumers.

Research report provides comprehensive data on impact of trend. For more details- Download a Sample Report

Market Challenges

The global public warehousing market faces a challenge due to the labor shortage, particularly in the skilled workforce sector. The warehousing industry's growth has led to a surge in hiring and labor demand, with the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reporting 1.44 million employees in the sector as of July 2021 .

. However, the labor shortage is hindering industry growth, with the need for a skilled workforce to handle advanced technologies and automated processes outpacing the labor pool's growth. The location of public warehouses, often on the outskirts of cities, makes recruitment difficult and restricts companies from relocating. The labor shortage increases overall costs, keeping wages high and reducing profit margins for companies, especially during peak sales periods.

The public warehousing market faces several challenges in today's business environment. One major challenge is the increasing demand for customized logistics solutions. Customers want flexible storage options and quick access to their inventory.

Another challenge is the need for advanced technology to manage and optimize warehouse operations. This includes the use of automation, real-time inventory tracking, and data analytics. Additionally, the market is experiencing intense competition, requiring warehousing providers to offer competitive pricing and high-quality services.

Lastly, there are regulatory and compliance issues that must be addressed, such as safety standards and environmental regulations. Overall, the public warehousing market requires innovative solutions to meet the evolving needs of businesses while maintaining efficiency and profitability.

For more insights on driver and challenges - Download a Sample Report

Segment Overview

Type

1.1 General

1.2 Specialized

Application

2.1 Manufacturing

2.2 Consumer goods

2.3 Retail

2.4 Healthcare

2.5 Others

Geography

3.1 APAC

3.2 North America

3.3 Europe

3.4 Middle East and Africa

and 3.5 South America

1.1 General- The general warehousing segment is the largest in the public warehousing industry, catering to various sectors such as automotive, retail, consumer products, and chemicals. These warehouses do not require temperature control or special handling equipment. The rise of these industries and global trade, along with increasing consumer spending and e-commerce sales, drive the demand for general warehousing. Companies rely on third-party warehouses to avoid investing in their own facilities, making these warehouses strategically located near transportation hubs essential.

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 Public Warehousing Market encompasses large, shared facilities where businesses store their General Merchandise under a Contract Storage agreement. These facilities offer various Handling Services, including Packing Services and Transportation Services, making them integral components of the Supply chain industry.

Public warehousing services cater to multiple clients, making them a popular choice for E-commerce businesses and Omnichannel retailers. Data analytics tools, Cloud computing, Automation, Artificial intelligence, and Robotics are increasingly being integrated into Public Warehousing Solutions to enhance efficiency and accuracy. Dedicated warehousing and Third-party logistics services are also offered by providers in this sector to cater to diverse client needs.

Market Research Overview

The public warehousing market encompasses a vast network of facilities that provide storage solutions for various industries and businesses. These warehouses offer flexibility in terms of contract duration and size, making them an attractive option for businesses with fluctuating storage needs. The market is characterized by advanced technology integration, including automated storage and retrieval systems, and real-time inventory management. Sustainability is a growing concern, with many warehouses implementing energy-efficient practices and adopting green technologies.

The market is also driven by the increasing trend towards e-commerce and the need for efficient order fulfillment. Additionally, the market is witnessing a shift towards regional and urban warehousing to reduce transportation costs and improve delivery times. Overall, the public warehousing market plays a crucial role in the supply chain, enabling businesses to optimize their inventory and streamline their logistics operations.

Table of Contents:

1 Executive Summary

2 Market Landscape

3 Market Sizing

4 Historic Market Size

5 Five Forces Analysis

6 Market Segmentation

Type

General



Specialized

Application

Manufacturing



Consumer Goods



Retail



Healthcare



Others

Geography

APAC



North America



Europe



Middle East And Africa



South America

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
A NEW ERA OF REPAIR

CLINICALLY REPARATIVE HAIRCARE FOR ALL TYPES, TEXTURES + NEEDS,

CREATED BY RIHANNA.

SAN FRANCISCO, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- From Rihanna, the creative force who revolutionized the beauty industry in 2017 with the launch of Fenty Beauty, comes another game-changing brand, Fenty Hair , a lineup of nine hair care and styling products built upon the unifying ethos of "Beauty For All." Combining Rihanna's radically transformative approach to hair and her unparalleled experience as someone whose hair has done it all, with cutting-edge formulas and an unwavering commitment to community, Fenty Haira brand rooted in repairis ready to lead another beauty category revolution.

Rihanna Launches Fenty Hair

Experience the full interactive Multichannel News Release here: https://www.multivu.com/players/English/9275251-rihanna-launches-fenty-hair/

"Hair has always been very personal to memy hairstyles have been markers of my evolution and growth over the yearsso launching Fenty Hair was something I was really passionate about." Rihanna

SHOP FENTY HAIR

The key to endless looks? Strong, healthy hair. That's why starting with hair health was integral to the development of Fenty Hairwithout it, styles don't stun, curls don't pop, silk presses don't shine, and edges can't thrive. Clinically tested repair technology is infused into every productfrom cleansers to leave-ins, to stylersto ensure you're repairing at every step. No matter your hair type or texture, there's something for everyone in this lineup.

"Creating products that were easy to use, no matter your hair type or texture, and that included repair in every step and could keep up with me, was crucial." Rihanna

Fenty Hair created Replenicore-5, a proprietary complex that's included in every product. This potent blend of amino acids, proteins and antioxidants was clinically tested on people across all hair types, by stylists and by Rihanna herself to repair, strengthen, hydrate, smooth and protect. Replenicore-5's powerhouses, Barbados Gooseberry, Upcycled Jackfruit Extract, Hydrolyzed Vegetable Protein, Green Tea Extract and Amino Acids, are all packed with nutrients known to fortify and promote healthy hair. Together, they create a continuous loop of repair. It penetratesmending split ends, hydrating and thickening strands from the insidewhich then helps to strengthen and prevent future breakage.

ABOUT THE PRODUCTS

The Fenty Hair collection is comprised of one shampoo, two conditioners, one treatment, four stylers and one tool. These products were developed and tested with all hair types and textures in mind and infused with sensorial and thoughtful elements for an easy, luxurious experience. In collaboration with in-house Global Stylists, a team of research and development experts and chemists, Rihanna set out to deliver a line that met the standards of excellence, first set by Fenty Beauty when it launched almost seven years ago.

The Maintenance Crew Bundles ($110):

Universal must-haves that repair and provide the moisture your hair needs. Choose between everyday moisture and more intense moisture .

The Rich One Moisture Repair Shampoo ($29)

This shampoo gently cleanses, flexing its plush, moisturizing lathermaking something so everyday, feel so extra. Replenicore-5's proteins, amino acids and antioxidants help to repair split ends and reduce breakage. It's also moisturizing yet lightweight, so all hair types can get richnot weighed down.

The Rich One Moisture Repair Conditioner ($29)

We love a rich friend who pays it forward. This conditioner melts on contact, givin' just the right level of everyday moisture and spreading its reparative, de-frizzing + conditioning benefits fast. It also repairs by reducing breakage and split ends, thanks to Replenicore-5that means smoother, healthier-looking hair after just one use.

The Richer One Moisture Repair Deep Conditioner ($29)

Slip into the cushy life with this luxurious, intensely moisturizing conditioner that spreads and melts right into dry, damaged hair easily for faster conditioning with less product.

The Comeback Kid Instant Damage Repair Treatment ($36)

Get ready for the quickest, easiest hair comeback. It's powered by Replenicore-5 and bond-building technology. The Comeback Kid penetrates deep into the cortex to provide inside-out repair, support damaged keratin structures and strengthen strands. And because everyone deserves a win, this powerhouse was tested on all hair types and can be used as a leave-in or rinsed out, depending on your hair needs. Hair instantly looks and feels healthier, moisturized, softer and smoother with just one use. No matter where your hair's atit can make a comeback.

The Protective Type 5-in-1 Heat Protectant Styler ($28)

Like your OG-est friend, this multi-benefit cream's got your back when things heat up. It's the universal prep step everyone needs before blow drying, silk pressing or diffusing. It protects up to 450 F and goes off, smoothing, defrizzing, detangling and hydrating too. Plus, it goes way back, repairing split ends and reducing breakage with Replenicore-5's proteins and amino acids.

The Homecurl Curl-Defining Cream ($28)

The curlfriend you can call on. She's a total softie, givin' touchable body and bounce. But tough AF on split ends, thanks to Replenicore-5's always-on repair. She single-handedly clears all those other crunchy, drying creams, making her the only one you need.

The Gelly Type Strong Hold Gel ($26)

Slick 'n snatch styles with this high-performance strong hold gel. It gives you the ultimate style control for high ponys, topknots and slick backs that stunt all day long. And because we know tight styles can take their toll, this gel's powered with Replenicore-5's proteins and amino acids to repair split ends while you wear.

The Controlling Type Hair-Thickening Edge Control Gel ($18)

Meet the most on-top-of-it edge control gel. It lays, smooths + locks hair in place all day long without flaking or building up. And when you're feelin' weak, it comes on strong, thickening fragile edges and reducing breakage too. And of course, it's powered by Replenicore-5's amino acids, proteins and antioxidants for always-on, split-end repair.

The Sidestick 3-in-1 Edge Styling Tool ($18)

Sometimes, you wanna step out on the everyday and go with the most extra, leveled-up edge styling tool. It feels weighty, luxe and ergonomic in your hand with a vegan bristled-brush, comb and precision chrome tip. It makes turning your edges into beautiful art easyeffortlessly smoothing baby hairs, swirling strands and taming flyaways.

Fenty Hair is available beginning June 13, 2024 at FentyHair.com.

Fenty Hair is clinically tested, vegan, sulfate-free, silicone-free, DEA-free, gluten-free, and cruelty-free.

@FENTYHAIR

#FENTYHAIR

SOURCE KENDO
Stars and Stripes on Houston Street Launches this year!

SAN ANTONIO, June 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- All are invited as San Antonio turns red, white and blue for the Fourth of July holiday and to be a part of the inaugural festive San Antonio Stars and Stripes on Houston Street. Events are July 1 to 7, with marquee experiences scheduled for the weekend of July 4-7. Stars & Stripes on Houston Street revelry includes a street parade along the highly decorated historic promenade in the heart of San Antonio, family friendly Picnics in the Parks, themed movie nights in downtown parks, pop up Paletas and Popsicles to cool everyone down, music and cocktail events and more. Fourth of July weekend will feature Salute at Sunset River Parades on the famous River Walk saluting all branches of the military. A can't-miss is the Stars and Stripes Concert at the Alamo with living history, live music from the U.S. Air Force Rock Band and a spectacular drone show narrated by Pat Green. The city's official celebration offers all-day fun and lights up the sky with a fireworks show at Woodlawn Lake Park. For more programming, and to plan your holiday getaway, go to VisitSanAntonio.com.

San Antonios Fourth of July celebrations are bigger and brighter than ever in 2024 with the launch of Stars and Stripes on Houston Street. VisitSanAntonio.com

San Antonio Stars & Stripes on Houston Street is a collaboration between the City of San Antonio, CENTRO San Antonio, the Alamo and Visit San Antonio.

SOURCE VISIT SAN ANTONIO
NASHVILLE, Tenn., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Silverbelly Whiskey, the whiskey of Country music, is pleased to announce the latest limited time roll-out of their Silverbelly Batch #4 entitled "I'd Love You All Over Again."

Following an initial successful launch alongside Alan Jackson's 2022 tour, the brand is excited to now debut their latest product offering, taking the brand back to its roots in Tennessee in which their latest roll-out will coincide with Alan (Jackson)'s upcoming 2024/25 Tour entitled "Last Call: One More For the Road."

Silverbelly Whiskey

With the ambition of becoming a leader in celebrity spirits and a truly localized Nashville, TN brand from start to finish, Silverbelly Whiskey will now be distilled, aged and bottled in the hills of Tennessee. Batch #4 "I'd Love You All Over Again" is aged twice as long as the brand's original three batches, increasing both the whiskey's quality and age statement to a minimum of 4 years straight bourbon whiskey, while still maintaining the same $39.99 MSRP as the previous three releases.

In an effort to expand past the company's original plans and goals of becoming a notable contender in Tennessee and beyond, the brand will also be announcing their first ever 5+ year single barrel release this upcoming July.

"We couldn't be more excited as to the future of Silverbelly in 2024 and beyond," states Robbie Goldsmith, CEO of Silverbelly Whiskey. Goldsmith continues, "Coming back to our roots in Nashville, it's time to make what is inside the bottle as good as the music we love to listen to. We are dedicated to the continuous process of creating a quality product in the city and state that we love."

Silverbelly Whiskey will be rolling out the new batch in 15 states, 1000+ retailers, and online in 47 states and the UK via www.silverbellywhiskey.com.

About Silverbelly Whiskey

Silverbelly Whiskey combines two American traditions - whiskey and country music - to create a spirit worthy of honoring Jackson's historic career.

Named after the color of the country icon's Stetson cowboy hat, the "classic" (UPROXX) whiskey uses a unique batch numbering system, with each batch named in chronological order after Jackson's 35 career chart-topping songs.

Available via 1000+ retailers in over 15 states, online in 47 states and the United Kingdom, Silverbelly's current release - named after the fan-favorite "I'd Love You All Over Again," which follows the first three successful batches "Here In The Real World," "Wanted," and "Chasin' That Neon Rainbow."

For more information on Silverbelly Whiskey, visit silverbellywhiskey.com or on social media at @silverbellywhiskey

Company Contact

Robbie Goldsmith

Silverbelly Whiskey

[email protected]

815-325-8208

Communications Contact

Taylor Foxman

The Industry Collective

[email protected]

609-432-2237

SOURCE Silverbelly Whiskey
SAN FRANCISCO, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Building on the success of recent events in Seattle and Los Angeles, the Taiwan Tourism Administration (TTA) hosted its third Taiwan Tourism workshop in San Francisco. This dynamic gathering highlighted Taiwan's abundant travel resources, cultural vibrancy, and outstanding travel services, serving as a platform for enriching partnerships and fostering business opportunities among industry professionals. The event attracted over 100 participants from the San Francisco travel industry.

Taiwan Tourism Administration hosts dynamic workshop in San Francisco, showcasing diverse travel offerings and attracting over 100 travel advisors.

In 2023, Taiwan welcomed 529,532 visitors from the United States, with over half of them traveling for leisure. Beginning in June 2024, approximately 160 direct flights per week will connect North America to Taiwan, significantly enhancing accessibility. This increased connectivity will offer American travelers' greater convenience in discovering Taiwan's treasures and effortlessly connecting them to other East Asian destinations.

Attendees enjoyed a diverse array of immersive activities, including interactive traditional fan painting, tea ceremony tastings, Taiwan wildlife origami, and Kumiko coaster crafting. These hands-on experiences in Taiwanese folk arts, coupled with informative presentations, deepened travel advisors' understanding of Taiwan's rich cultural tapestry and unique attractions.

American travel advisors were excited about the opportunity to interact with the Taiwanese delegation and gain firsthand insights into Taiwan's offerings. With the expansion of direct flights from the U.S. West Coast, they eagerly anticipate a rise in American travelers venturing to Taiwan to explore its wonders.

About the Taiwan Tourism Administration

The Taiwan Tourism Administration is the official government agency responsible for domestic and international tourism policy development and execution. There are three North American tourism offices located in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

SOURCE Taiwan Tourism Administration
The premier event in Europe for open source code and community contributors offers over 250 sessions across 17 microconferences diving into the hottest topics and cutting-edge technologies at the heart of open source

SAN FRANCISCO, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Linux Foundation , a nonprofit driving widespread innovation through open source, has announced the schedule for Open Source Summit Europe 2024 being held 16-18 September in Vienna, Austria with additional post-event programming and co-located events happening 20 September. The schedule can be viewed here .

For the past 16 years, Open Source Summit has aimed to unite the global open source community, hosting events in North America, Europe, and Asia. Open Source Summit Europe was launched in 2011 and remains the leading European event for open source developers, technologists, and community leaders to collaborate, further open source innovation, and help ensure a sustainable open source ecosystem.

Attendees will engage with the most crucial and progressive topics in open source through the 17 microconferences which make up Open Source Summit Europe's full program: LinuxCon , CloudOpen , ContainerCon , Critical Software Summit , Digital Trust , Diversity Empowerment Summit , Embedded Linux Conference , Open AI + Data , Open Source 101 , Open Source in the Public Sector , Open Source Leadership Summit , Operations Management Summit , OSPOCon , Standards & Specifications Forum , SupplyChainSecurityCon , TechDocsCon , and Zephyr .

Open Source Summit Europe schedule highlights include:

Keynote speakers will be announced in the coming weeks.

Additionally, 14 mini-summits and co-located events will take place alongside Open Source Summit Europe 2024, offering more opportunities to learn about Continuous Delivery, Edge, Linux Security, Open Hardware, OpenSSF, Sylva, SONiC, and so much more.

Registration is offered at the early bird price of US$649 through 20 June, which represents a savings of US$300, and a $150 reduction from 2023 pricing. Discounted rates are available for academics, government, hobbyists and small business, view full details here . Members of The Linux Foundation receive a 20 percent discount off registration and can contact [email protected] to request a member discount code.

Registration includes access to: all conference content, social events & networking activities, solutions showcase, continental breakfast, lunch (new in 2024), morning and afternoon coffee & snacks Monday  Wednesday, a conference T-shirt, and more. View all details here .

Applications for diversity and need-based scholarships are currently being accepted. For information on eligibility and how to apply, please click here . The Linux Foundation's Travel Fund is also accepting applications, with the goal of enabling open source developers and community members to attend events that they would otherwise be unable to attend due to a lack of funding. To learn more and apply, please click here .

Event Sponsors

Open Source Summit Europe 2024 is made possible thanks to our sponsors , including:

Diamond Sponsor: Google

Gold Sponsors: AWS, Cloud Native Computing Foundation, Coder, GitLab, Intel, OpenSearch, Red Hat and SUSE

For information on becoming an event sponsor, click here or email us.

Press

Members of the press who would like to request a press pass to attend should contact Kristin O'Connell .

Social Media

Join the conversation on social media by using the hashtag #OSSummit.

ABOUT THE LINUX FOUNDATION

The Linux Foundation is the world's leading home for collaboration on open source software, hardware, standards, and data. Linux Foundation projects are critical to the world's infrastructure including Linux, Kubernetes, Node.js, ONAP, PyTorch, RISC-V, SPDX, OpenChain, and more. The Linux Foundation focuses on leveraging best practices and addressing the needs of contributors, users, and solution providers to create sustainable models for open collaboration. For more information, please visit us at https://www.linuxfoundation.org/ .

The Linux Foundation Events are where the world's leading technologists meet, collaborate, learn, and network in order to advance innovations that support the world's largest shared technologies.

Visit our website and follow us on Twitter , LinkedIn , and Facebook for all the latest event updates and announcements.

The Linux Foundation has registered trademarks and uses trademarks. For a list of trademarks of The Linux Foundation, please see its trademark usage page:

www.linuxfoundation.org/trademark-usage . Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds.

Media Contact

Kristin O'Connell

The Linux Foundation

[email protected]

SOURCE The Linux Foundation
New Survey from Worth Media Group and BCG of US Consumers Uncovers How Wealthy Millennials Spend and Manage Their Money, and Examines How Their Spending Differs from Older Generations

NEW YORK, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Millennials recently overtook baby boomers as the largest generation in the US. As millennials enter their 30s and 40s, they're coming into their full spending powerand they're ready to show off.

According to a new survey, 70% of wealthy millennials expressed concern for their image and how others perceive them, 63% said their spending is influenced by public figures, and 54% liked to showcase their wealth and accomplishments.

Today, Worth Media Group, in collaboration with Boston Consulting Group (BCG), released a summary of the findings from their new study, titled Worth's Millennial Mindset Report: How Wealthy Millennials Earn, Invest, and Spend. The report is based on a survey of nearly 2,600 US millennial consumers with an annual household income of at least $250 to $350 thousand and/or household net worth over $1 million. A subset of wealthy Gen Xers and baby boomers were also surveyed for comparison.

"At Worth, we aim to stay ahead of business and consumer trends to better serve our readers and our brand partners. This survey gives us valuable insights into the habits of affluent millennials, helping us to refine our editorial content and support our advertisers who are eager to better understand how this generation spends their time and money," said Josh Kampel, CEO of Worth Media Group.

What Wealthy Millennials Are BuyingAnd What They're Not

An overwhelming majority of wealthy millennials said that maintaining a healthy lifestyle was important to them (89%) and that they like to invest in themselves (87%). Their spending reflects these attitudes as more than two-thirds (68%) have spent money on health and wellness within the past 12 monthsmore than any other product or service category.

By contrast, wealthy millennials have deprioritized purchasing cars, with only 42% buying one in the last 12 months. While this is partially due to most respondents (72%) already owning at least one car, it also reflects millennials' comfort with alternatives to car ownership. Among those who did not recently purchase a car, 36% prefer more on-demand models such as ride-share apps, car subscriptions, and rental cars.

Philanthropic spending is an even lower priority for millennials as they choose to extend their support beyond financial contributions. Only 24% of wealthy millennials said they had donated money to philanthropic organizations in the last 12 months. Instead, those who had not contributed said they prefer to donate their time and skills to philanthropic causes over their money (44%), thereby fostering a deeper, hands-on connection with the organizations they champion.

How Wealthy Millennials Compare with Older Generations

The report also examines the similarities and differences between millennials, Gen Xers, and baby boomers:

Entrepreneurship as a Major Source of Wealth. When asked how they built their net worth, survey respondents across generations primarily pointed to their work/salary and investments. However , millennials were more likely to cite business ownership as a source of their wealth (41%, versus 18% of Gen X and 15% of baby boomers).

When asked how they built their net worth, survey respondents across generations primarily pointed to their work/salary and investments. However millennials were more likely to cite business ownership as a source of their wealth (41%, versus 18% of Gen X and 15% of baby boomers). Spending on Luxury Items Versus Experiences. More than half (54%) of millennials purchased experiences (hotels, air travel, etc.) in the past 12 months, yet Gen Xers and baby boomers are 20% to 25% more likely to have recently made a purchase in this categorypossibly due to having more time. Instead, millennials are prioritizing high-end products: 63% of purchased luxury goods in the last 12 months (versus 50% of Gen X and 31% of baby boomers), 55% purchased jewelry (versus 41% of Gen X and 33% of baby boomers), and 48% purchased watches (versus 31% of Gen X and 30% of baby boomers).

More than half (54%) of millennials purchased experiences (hotels, air travel, etc.) in the past 12 months, yet Gen Xers and baby boomers are 20% to 25% more likely to have recently made a purchase in this categorypossibly due to having more time. Instead, millennials are prioritizing high-end products: 63% of purchased luxury goods in the last 12 months (versus 50% of Gen X and 31% of baby boomers), 55% purchased jewelry (versus 41% of Gen X and 33% of baby boomers), and 48% purchased watches (versus 31% of Gen X and 30% of baby boomers). Managing Their Own Investments. Most millennials (69%) prefer to manage their investments themselves without the help of a wealth manager, compared with 53% of Gen X and 36% of baby boomers. Wealthy millennials invest more diversely across asset classes, with private equity (63%) and cryptocurrency (62%) topping the list of alternative assets.

"As millennials enter their peak spending years, understanding how these consumers think, behave, and spend is crucial for companiesor they'll risk losing a once-in-a-generation opportunity," said Jim Brennan, a managing director and senior partner at BCG.

Download Worth's Millennial Mindset Report executive summary at: worth.com/millennial

Media Contacts:

BCG: Eric Passarelli, [email protected]

Worth Media Group: Clyde Lee, [email protected]

About Worth Media Group

Worth Media Group brings together a successful and influential community of business leaders, entrepreneurs, technologists, financial professionals, and nonprofit leaders to explore topics related to how business and innovation can accelerate social and economic progress. Our integrated media platforms include our quarterly print edition of Worth Magazine, daily digital content, weekly newsletters from Worth and Techonomy, and an extensive schedule of Worth & Techonomy events. Learn more at www.worth.com.

About Boston Consulting Group

Boston Consulting Group partners with leaders in business and society to tackle their most important challenges and capture their greatest opportunities. BCG was the pioneer in business strategy when it was founded in 1963. Today, we work closely with clients to embrace a transformational approach aimed at benefiting all stakeholdersempowering organizations to grow, build sustainable competitive advantage, and drive positive societal impact.

Our diverse, global teams bring deep industry and functional expertise and a range of perspectives that question the status quo and spark change. BCG delivers solutions through leading-edge management consulting, technology and design, and corporate and digital ventures. We work in a uniquely collaborative model across the firm and throughout all levels of the client organization, fueled by the goal of helping our clients thrive and enabling them to make the world a better place.

SOURCE Boston Consulting Group (BCG)
SEATTLE, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Starting in June 2024, three major airlines will launch routes to Seattle, resulting in approximately 46 direct flights per week from Seattle to Taiwan. Delta Airlines will commence operations on the new route on June 7, with China Airlines following suit on June 14. On August 16, STARLUX Airlines will also begin flying between Seattle and Taipei. This expanded network will provide American travelers with more convenient, accessible, and efficient options to visit Taiwan, and more seamless connectivity to other nearby Asian destinations.

Three major airlines will launch routes from Seattle to Taiwan, resulting in approximately 46 direct flights per week. The event attracted 35 Seattle-area travel advisors, sparking enthusiastic business discussions.

The Taiwan Tourism Administration (TTA), in collaboration with local governments, travel agencies, airlines, and performance groups, organized a Taiwan Tourism Promotion Conference in Seattle on June 3 to promote these new routes and increase flights on major airlines. The event attracted 35 Seattle-area travel industry representatives, leading to enthusiastic business discussions.

During the business event, The TTA revealed a new logo and slogan, "TAIWAN  Waves of Wonder." Distinguished guests, including Tammy Canavan, CEO of Seattle Tourism, and Brian Surratt, CEO of Greater Seattle Partners, attended the event, which included vibrant activities and immersive Taiwan experiences that captivated numerous attendees. Guests of the event expressed their excitement about Taiwan being showcased in Seattle and their eagerness to forge closer collaborations with Taiwanese partners.

Following the successful promotion in Seattle, the delegation will head to Los Angeles and San Francisco, holding Taiwan Tourism workshops on June 5 and 7, respectively. Highlighting the significance of the U.S. market, the Director-General of TTA, Joe Y. Chou will attend the Los Angeles event to encourage collaboration between Taiwanese and American tourism businesses. This initiative seeks to create partnership opportunities and inspire local agencies to develop and promote travel packages to Taiwan, catering to the interests of American travelers.

About the Taiwan Tourism Administration

The Taiwan Tourism Administration is the official government agency responsible for domestic and international tourism policy development and execution. There are three North American tourism offices located in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

SOURCE Taiwan Tourism Administration
New Market-Driven Approach to Patient Engagement, Clinical Trial Design, and Diverse Trial Recruitment Accelerates Innovation and Health Solutions

American Association of Kidney Patients Expands Research and Policy Impacts

WASHINGTON, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The American Association of Kidney Patients (AAKP), the oldest and largest independent kidney patient organization in the U.S., and Bayer were recently honored with the national 2024 Reuters Pharma Award in Driving Health Equity. AAKP and Bayer were recognized for a new market-driven approach to patient engagement, clinical trial design, and diverse trial recruitment that accelerates kidney innovation and expands consumer choice of kidney health solutions.

For Bayer, AAKP developed and engaged a Standing Patient Council that provided a systematic co-development approach to trial design, trial site selection, trial-related information and forms, and recruitment and retention strategies. The Standing Patient Council was representative of the diverse kidney disease population and their insights shaped tactics used to successfully enroll Black and Hispanic kidney patients at sustained levels that exceeded clinical trial expectations. The AAKP and Bayer joint award submission was entitled "Defining the Value of Patient Engagement through Patient Advocacy Groups: Bayer's New Blueprint for Clinical Trial Development and Recruitment/Retention Strategies to Drive Patient Diversity Solutions."

AAKP President Edward Hickey, III, stated, "AAKP is very proud of the patients who participated in the Standing Patient Council and clinical trial as well as our shared recognition by Reuters with a 2024 Pharma Award. Our partnership with Bayer has been highly successful and we appreciate their ongoing commitment to kidney medicine and their sophisticated understanding of the longstanding unmet patient needs for advanced therapies to prevent, slow, and cure this devastating disease. Together, we have demonstrated a common sense and market-driven approach to respectfully and substantively involve all kidney patients in the research and clinical trials that may impact their lives and livelihoods. We hope more companies follow our example and lean forward to involve the diverse kidney patient community in all aspects of the product development lifecycle." Hickey is a U.S. Marine Corps Veteran and has served as a senior staff professional in the U.S. House of Representatives and as a senior appointee in multiple presidential administrations.

In 2019, as the groundbreaking Executive Order on Advancing American Kidney Health was announced, AAKP declared the next ten years, 2020 to 2030, as The Decade of the Kidney to maintain growing momentum behind the bipartisan national policy commitment to address the unmet kidney patient needs. During The Decade of the Kidney, AAKP and its allies have also moved to hold federal government officials accountable for policies that foster, and not hinder, greater research, development, and patient access to new kidney drugs, diagnostics, and devices. AAKP has publicly targeted barriers caused by federal government regulatory and payment decisions, referred to as Government Determinants of Health (GDoH) as well as coverage and payment decisions made by insurers that either knowingly or unwittingly interrupt, delay, or deny timely patient access to new innovations. In America and across the globe, kidney patients and advocacy organizations have broadened their impact on innovation through alliances with like-minded research professionals, kidney medicine experts, pharmaceutical and medical device companies, and investors who view their insights as a catalyst for transcending status quo, high mortality kidney care.

Through its Center for Patient Research and Education, founded in 2014, AAKP has built unique capacities to rapidly fulfill academic, government, and medical device and pharmaceutical industry requests to engage kidney patient experts. The Center supports AAKP's efforts to speed up the utilization of unique patient insight data across both the product development lifecycle and within regulatory and payment decisions. Since its launch, AAKP has dramatically expanded its membership databases, social media recruitment, and analytics tools. The organization now services dozens of requests every year for clinical trial awareness and recruitment campaigns, patient advisory boards, technical evaluation panels, focus groups, patient surveys, clinical research, and public policy research. AAKP leaders and staff provide expert advice to organizations and companies on how to work meaningfully with patients as co-investigators and partners and offers online training for patients on how to be equally effective collaborators.

AAKP has forged strong partnerships with numerous universities and academic centers involved in kidney-related studies. AAKP patients are presently involved in research at the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, University of Washington, Emory University, University of Pennsylvania, University of Pittsburgh, University of Michigan, Duke University, Wake Forest University, University of Minnesota/Hennepin Healthcare Research Institute, Northwestern University, University of California San Francisco, Vanderbilt University, University of California Los Angeles, University of Minnesota, Virginia Tech, University of Texas Health San Antonio, and various other institutions. Through the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute (PCORI), AAKP patient advocates have been involved in nearly every PCORI-funded kidney research effort since PCORI authorization in 2010 and reauthorization in 2019 (read now).

At the federal level, AAKP patients are impacting research and development initiatives across the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), and the Department of Defense (DOD) via the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Program (CDMRP) and other DOD activities. Further, AAKP has been actively involved in patient engagement initiatives and the development of patient insight data alongside the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and multiple other federal agencies. To facilitate greater veteran involvement in kidney research and innovation and to support the VA kidney medicine program in the U.S. Congress, AAKP launched its Veterans Health Initiative in 2017 and developed a formal partnership with the VA in 2023 that aims to improve health outcomes and enhance the overall quality of life for Veterans with kidney diseases.

AAKP leaders and AAKP Ambassadors are also closely involved in leading national kidney innovation partnerships and consortiums including the Kidney Health Initiative (KHI), a partnership of the FDA and the American Society of Nephrology (ASN); the KidneyX Innovation Accelerator, a partnership of the ASN and HHS; and the Kidney Precision Medicine Project (KPMP), a scientific consortium funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH)/National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Disease (NIDDK). The KPMP is America's largest taxpayer-supported kidney science initiative. Together, these efforts are resulting in significant advancements in kidney care through science, new precision medicine, artificial organs, and human centered product design.

Globally, since 2019, AAKP has organized patient consumers and advocacy organizations to support research and clinical trials through AAKP Global, which includes its Annual Global Summit on Kidney Disease Innovations, a partnership event with the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. The Global Summit has evolved into the largest patient-led kidney disease innovations conference in the world and has tens of thousands of attendees across 100 countries. The 6th Annual Global Summit, titled "Vox Populi: The Time is Now to Prevent and Cure Kidney Diseases" will be held virtually July 16-17, 2024. Registration is now open.

In the United States alone, there are an estimated 37 million people who have chronic kidney disease, including 800,000 with kidney failure, and whose kidney care costs the American taxpayer over $100 billion per year. Those costs do not include the additional expense to the nation and patient stemming from workforce dropout, disability, and dependency caused by this chronic illness and the burdens associated with obsolete, status quo technologies found in dialysis care. Immunocompromised kidney patients and immunosuppressed kidney transplant recipients were among the hardest hit by COVID-19 and despite advances in related therapeutics, they remain at high risk of infection.

About the American Association of Kidney Patients (AAKP): Since 1969, AAKP has been a patient-led organization driving policy decisions related to kidney patient care choice, protection of the doctor-patient relationship, and medical innovation. In 2018, AAKP established the first and largest U.S. kidney voter registration program, KidneyVoters. Over the past decade, AAKP patient advocates have helped advance lifetime transplant drug coverage for kidney transplant recipients (2020); the Presidential Executive Order on Advancing American Kidney Health (2019); new job protections for living organ donors under the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA) via the U.S. Department of Labor (2018); and Congressional legislation allowing HIV-positive organ transplants for HIV-positive patients (2013). Follow AAKP on social media at @kidneypatient on Facebook, @kidneypatients on Twitter, and @kidneypatients on Instagram, and visit www.aakp.org for more information.

MEDIA CONTACT:

Jennifer Rate

Director, Communications and Digital Operations

[email protected]

(813) 400-2394

SOURCE American Association of Kidney Patients
Record-setting Mark Reached by Returning $500,000 Life Insurance Policy to Lake County Veteran Who Lost Wife

Video of the news conference will be posted at https://cms.illinois.gov/agency/media/video/videos.html

CHICAGO, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs announced today that his office has returned more than $2 billion in unclaimed property on his watch, a record-setting total for a state program that's been around for more than 60 years.

More than 1.7 million people have been reunited with their missing money during Frerichs' tenure. Frerichs reached the $2 billion mark by allowing people to file electronic claims, cutting red tape, and taking on powerful insurance companies.

Treasurer Frerichs urges people to check the I-CASH site twice a year to see if there is money waiting for you. Post this

"I have never stopped fighting to return money to people that rightfully belongs to them," Frerichs said. "We used common sense to improve the unclaimed property program, and as a result, so many Illinoisans have money in their pocket that can be used to help our state's economy."

The Treasurer's Office reached the $2 billion mark in May by returning $500,000 to a Lake County veteran whose late wife, also a veteran, had taken out a life insurance policy through a former employer.

The man, who didn't want his name used to protect his privacy, said he didn't know about the life insurance policy and at first thought the call he received trying to return the money was a scam.

"I want other families to know, that even when we lose someone, they might leave something behind for us," said the man, a United States Postal Service mail carrier. "And without Treasurer Frerichs working to reunite people with what is rightfully theirs, and his outreach with state legislators, this would have never happened."

"When we lose someone dear to us, we co-exist with their death. This news was a blessing," he added. "While I was surprised to learn of it, I was not surprised of my wife's actions to take care of our daughters and me, even after her death."

Libertyville State Sen. Mary Edly-Allen's staff and State Treasurer's staff worked after hours to help the veteran get his money.

The money from the policy was returned as a direct result of the 2017 legislation that established the Unclaimed Life Insurance Benefits Act, sponsored by then-State Rep. Robert Martwick of Chicago. Previously some life insurance companies did not pay death benefits when they knew, or should have known, a customer died.

Treasurer Frerichs took on the life insurance industry to change this unethical practice, and more than $500 million in unclaimed life insurance policies has been paid directly to beneficiaries and the Office is trying to return another $300 million that has been turned over after Frerichs' push.

Treasurer Frerichs urges people to check the I-CASH site twice a year to see if there is money waiting for you.

SOURCE Illinois State Treasurer's Office
NYSE American: UEC

Following a successful delineation drilling program since the last resource update on August 12, 2022 , a new S-K 1300 technical report summary (the "TRS") increases the Burke Hollow Project's Measured and Indicated ("M&I") resources from 2,324,000 lbs U 3 O 8 to 6,155,000 lbs and Inferred resources of 4,883,000 lbs U 3 O 8. .

, a new S-K 1300 technical report summary (the "TRS") increases the Burke Hollow Project's Measured and Indicated ("M&I") resources from 2,324,000 lbs U O to 6,155,000 lbs and Inferred resources of 4,883,000 lbs U O . The Burke Hollow in-situ recovery ("ISR") Project continues to expand with three Production Areas defined to date, and ongoing exploration and delineation drilling along mineralized trends for additional resource growth.

Total Texas Hub and Spoke platform's disclosed M&I resources are now 12,958,000 lbs, with 7,241,000 tons grading approximately 0.085% U 3 O 8 , and Inferred resources are now 9,948,100 lbs, with 4,356,000 tons grading approximately 0.120% U 3 O 8 .

O , and Inferred resources are now 9,948,100 lbs, with 4,356,000 tons grading approximately 0.120% U O . This latest S-K 1300 TRS reconfirms UEC's position as America's leading ISR uranium company with its South Texas and Wyoming Hub & Spoke platforms having 79,156,000 lbs U 3 O 8 of M&I resources and 25,002,000 lbs of Inferred resources.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ - Uranium Energy Corp (NYSE American: UEC) "UEC" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has filed a TRS on EDGAR disclosing updated mineral resources for the Company's Texas Hub and Spoke ISR platform (the "Platform") with an increase in resources at the Burke Hollow Project (the "Project").

Background:

Figure 1-1 Texas Hub and Spoke Project Area Location Map Texas S-K 1300 Technical Report Karnes, Duval, Bee, and Goliad Counties, Texas (CNW Group/Uranium Energy Corp)

As a U.S. domestic and domiciled company, UEC is now reporting all mineral resources in accordance with Item 1302 of Regulation S-K ("S-K 1300");

S-K 1300 was adopted by the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") to modernize mineral property disclosure requirements for mining registrants and to align U.S. disclosure requirements more closely for mineral properties with current industry and global regulatory standards;

The mineral resource estimates set forth in this TRS are an update to previously reported Project resources under the S-K 1300 format; and

The Project geology is considered amenable to low-cost, environmentally friendly ISR mining methods.

The TRS was prepared under S-K 1300 and was filed on June 12, 2024 with the SEC through EDGAR on Form 8-K and is also available on SEDAR as a "Material Document" filed on June 12, 2024. The TRS was prepared on behalf of the Company by Western Water Consultants, Inc. d/b/a WWC Engineering, of Sheridan, Wyoming.

Andy Kurrus, UEC V.P. of Resource Development, Texas, stated: "Since the initial discovery at Burke Hollow, we've continued to increase resources with every drilling campaign and update. We have identified several mineralized trends and horizons for potential resource growth and nearly half of the ~20,000 acre Burke Hollow property remains under-explored. Burke Hollow is the largest ISR uranium discovery in the United States in the past decade and will be an exciting satellite project as part of our hub-and-spoke strategy."

About the Texas Hub & Spoke Platform

The Platform consists of five project areas ("Figure 1-1"): the Hobson Central Processing Plant ("CPP"); and the Burke Hollow, Goliad, Palangana and Salvo projects; which are located in Karnes, Bee, Goliad and Duval Counties, Texas. The Hobson CPP will serve as the 'hub' of the Platform, with the other project areas serving as satellite facilities, or the 'spokes'. The Hobson CPP will process all the uranium recovered in each of the other project areas. The Texas Platform is in the South Texas Uranium Province ("STUP"), which is part of the coastal plain portion of the Gulf of Mexico Basin ("GMB").

Mineral rights in our Texas projects are all private (fee) mineral leases. Fee mineral leases are obtained through negotiation with individual owners.

The Company's projects reside in the GMB and extend over much of South Texas. It includes the Texas coastal plain and STUP where UEC's ISR projects are located. The coastal plain is bounded by the Rocky Mountain uplift to the west with a drainage trend into the Gulf of Mexico. The coastal plain is comprised of marine, non-marine and continental sediments ranging in age from Paleozoic through Cenozoic.

Uranium mineralization in UEC's Hub and Spoke Platform projects is typical of Texas roll-front sandstone deposits. The formation of roll-front deposits is largely a groundwater process that occurs when uranium-rich, oxygenated groundwater interacts with a reducing environment in the subsurface and precipitates uranium. The most favorable host rocks for roll-fronts are permeable sandstones with large aquifer systems. Interbedded mudstone, claystone and siltstone are often present and aid in the formation process by focusing groundwater flux.

To date, UEC holds data from 9,135 drill holes that have been completed by UEC and previous uranium exploration companies on and nearby the five project areas held by UEC. Data from the drilling, including survey coordinates, collar elevations, depths and grade of uranium intercepts, have been incorporated into UEC's database.

Developmental Status Summary

The below outlines a broad work summary that has been accomplished to develop and operate the Platform projects.

Summary capital and operating cost estimates are not included with this TRS, since UEC is updating the results of an Initial Assessment ("IA") without economic analysis. Past normal maintenance operations on new construction/development has been required at the Hobson CPP, and a new Radioactive Material License was approved in 2022 that expanded the licensed U 3 O 8 extraction capacity to 4 million lbs annually. The Salvo project has remained in a continuation status since its 2010-2012 drilling campaign. UEC had initiated drilling campaigns at its Palangana, Goliad and Burke Hollow projects in 2010-2015 and 2023, 2019 and 2021-2024, respectively. The Company also activated several wellfields at Palangana to extract uranium from 2010 to 2016.

Palangana

From 2010 to 2015, UEC drilled 891 holes at Palangana. Most of the drilling occurred in 2010 (391 holes), 2011 (281 holes) and 2012 (186 holes), and the remaining holes were drilled from 2013-2015. The majority of these holes were drilled for delineation purposes and the remainder were drilled and completed as monitor and production wells. In 2010, UEC activated wellfields in Production Area ("PA") PA-1, PA-2 and PA-3 at Palangana. In 2014, PA-4 was authorized for extraction and, in 2023, an additional delineation campaign was conducted in PA-4. The Mine Area Permit was renewed in March 2024 and the Radioactive Material License is in timely renewal. From 2010 to 2016, 563,600 lbs of uranium were extracted by ISR methods.

Goliad

In 2014, UEC conducted a drilling program at its Goliad project for exploration and water wells. 35 holes were drilled and logged for exploration and water supply purposes with a majority of the holes being drilled in PA- 1 and PA-2. The Radioactive Material License was renewed in March 2024 and the Mine Area Permit is in timely renewal.

Burke Hollow

From 2021 to present, UEC completed installation and the permit submittal of PA-1. Upon completion of PA-1, UEC drilled to upgrade the resources from inferred to measured and indicated to better define the mineralization in PA-1, PA-2, and the newly discovered PA-3. As of April 11, 2024, 714 delineation and exploration holes were drilled, with 44 of these holes completed as monitor wells. This program is ongoing for the purpose of completing additional holes for exploration and delineation of the newly discovered PA-3 and the Southern Graben Exploration Target outlined in previous technical summary report filings.

In 2023, mineralization was discovered to the south of the PA-1 area in a shallower horizon known as the Eastern Lower A Sand Trend, or "PA-3", contained within the Eastern block of Burke Hollow. This recently discovered trend accounts for much of the resource expansion since the initial 2022 Hub and Spoke technical summary report, adding significant pounds in all resource categories. Current drilling focuses on delineation of this trend and exploration of the Southern Graben Area.

No historical data was used in the Burke Hollow mineral estimate, only data from drilling conducted by UEC from 2012 to the present. In total, 887 new holes were drilled and logged between 2019 and April 11, 2024 to complete this estimate.

Mineral Resources

This IA TRS has been prepared in accordance with the regulations set forth in S-K 1300 with the objective of disclosing the mineral resources at the Project and Platform.

Based on the density of drilling, continuity of geology and mineralization, testing and data verification, the mineral resource estimates meet the criteria for indicated or inferred mineral resources as summarized herein.

The in-place resources were estimated separately for each project area. The Platform contains a measured resource of 3,631,900 lbs and an indicated resource of 9,326,100 lbs of U 3 O 8 in-place. The Platform contains 9,948,100 lbs of inferred mineral resources in-place. Tables 1 and 2 below list the Platform resources by the project area. Mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. However, considerations of reasonable prospects for eventual economic extraction were applied to the mineral resource calculations herein.

Table 1: Texas Hub and Spoke Project Measured and Indicated Resource Summary

Mineral Resource GT Cutoff Average Grade (%

eU 3 O 8 ) Ore Tons (000s) eU 3 O 8 (lbs) Burke Hollow Measured 0.30 0.086 581 964,000 Indicated 0.30 0.083 3,329 5,191,000 Total Measured and Indicated 0.30 0.083 3,910 6,155,000 Goliad Measured 0.20 0.053 1,595 2,667,900 Indicated 0.20 0.102 1,504 3,492,000 Total Measured and Indicated 0.20 0.085 3,099 6,159,900 Palangana Measured - - - - Indicated None 0.134 232 643,100 Total Measured and Indicated None 0.134 232 643,100 Salvo All mineral resources at Salvo are classified as Inferred. Project Totals Measured 3,631,900 Indicated 9,326,100 Total Measured and Indicated 12,958,000

Notes: 1. Pounds reported with disequilibrium factor ("DEF") applied (except at Burke Hollow). 2. Measured and indicated mineral resources as defined in 17 CFR  229.1300. 3. All reported resources occur below the static water table. 4. The point of reference for mineral resources is in-situ at the Project. 5. Mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. 6. Delineation drilling conducted at Palangana after 2010 was not incorporated into the resource estimate as in the experience of the QP, this type of drilling does not generally substantially change the resource estimates. 7. An 80% metallurgical recovery factor was considered for the purposes of determining the reasonable prospect of economic extraction.

Table 2: Texas Hub and Spoke Project Inferred Resource Summary

Mineral Resource GT Cutoff Average Grade (%

eU 3 O 8 ) Ore Tons (000s) eU 3 O 8 (lbs) Burke Hollow Inferred 0.30 0.104 2,596 4,883,000 Goliad Inferred 0.20 0.195 333 1,224,800 Palangana PA-1 and PA-2 Inferred None 0.100 96 192,500 Dome, NE Garcia, SW

Garcia, CC Brine, Jemison Fence, Jemison East Inferred 0.10 0.110 - 0.300 206 808,800 Salvo Inferred 0.30 0.091 1,125 2,839,000 Project Totals Total Inferred 4,356 9,948,100

Notes: 1. Pounds reported with DEF applied. 2. A range of grades is presented for the Palangana inferred mineral because the resource estimation methods differed between PA-1/PA-2 and the rest of the trends. There was no cutoff for PA-1 and PA-2 block models. See Section 11.1 of the TRS for a more detailed explanation. 3. Inferred mineral resources as defined in 17 CFR  229.1300. 4. All reported resources occur below the static water table. 5. The point of reference for mineral resources is in-situ at the Project. 6. Mineral resources are not mineral reserves and do not have demonstrated economic viability. 7. Delineation drilling conducted at Palangana after 2010 was not incorporated into this resource estimate, as in the experience of the QP this type of drilling does not generally substantially change the resource estimates.

The technical information in this news release has been reviewed and approved by Western Water Consultants, Inc., d/b/a/ WWC Engineering, an independent, third party consulting firm to the Company, and by Andrew W. Kurrus III, P.G., V.P. of Resource Development, Texas, for the Company, who fulfill the requirements as a "qualified person" for the purposes of S-K 1300.

About Uranium Energy Corp

Uranium Energy Corp is the fastest growing supplier of the fuel for the green energy transition to a low carbon future. UEC is the largest, diversified North American focused uranium company, advancing the next generation of low-cost, environmentally friendly in-situ recovery ("ISR") uranium projects in the United States and high-grade conventional projects in Canada. The Company has two production-ready ISR hub and spoke platforms located in South Texas and Wyoming. These two production platforms are anchored by fully operational central processing plants and served by seven U.S. ISR uranium projects with all their major permits in place. Additionally, the Company has diversified uranium holdings including: (1) one of the largest physical uranium portfolios of North American warehoused U 3 O 8 ; (2) a major equity stake in Uranium Royalty Corp., the only royalty company in the sector; and (3) a Western Hemisphere pipeline of resource stage uranium projects. The Company's operations are managed by professionals with decades of hands-on experience in the key facets of uranium exploration, development and mining.

Stock Exchange Information:

NYSE American: UEC

WKN: AJDRR

ISN: US916896103

Safe Harbor Statement

Except for the statements of historical fact contained herein, the information presented in this news release constitutes "forward-looking statements" as such term is used in applicable United States and Canadian securities laws. These statements relate to analyses and other information that are based on forecasts of future results, estimates of amounts not yet determinable and assumptions of management. Any other statements that express or involve discussions with respect to predictions, expectations, beliefs, plans, projections, objectives, assumptions or future events or performance (often, but not always, using words or phrases such as "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", "plans, "estimates" or "intends", or stating that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will" be taken, occur or be achieved) are not statements of historical fact and should be viewed as "forward-looking statements". Such forward looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of the Company to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and other factors include, among others, the actual results of exploration activities, variations in the underlying assumptions associated with the estimation or realization of mineral resources, the availability of capital to fund programs and the resulting dilution caused by the raising of capital through the sale of shares, accidents, labor disputes and other risks of the mining industry including, without limitation, those associated with the environment, delays in obtaining governmental approvals, permits or financing or in the completion of development or construction activities, title disputes or claims limitations on insurance coverage. 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 statements, there may be other factors that cause actions, events or results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. Many of these factors are beyond the Company's ability to control or predict. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements contained in this news release and in any document referred to in this news release. Important factors that may cause actual results to differ materially and that could impact the Company and the statements contained in this news release can be found in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. For forward-looking statements in this news release, the Company claims the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company assumes no obligation to update or supplement any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. This news release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy securities.

SOURCE Uranium Energy Corp
DUBAI, UAE, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Wego, the number 1 travel app and the largest online travel marketplace in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), announce a strategic partnership with the German National Tourist Office (GNTO) to launch an exciting new campaign.

This collaboration aims to position Germany as a leading destination for GCC travelers seeking enriching experiences rooted in UNESCO World Heritage sites and eco-conscious adventures.

(From left to right:) Yamina Sofo, Director of the Marketing & Sales Office  German National Tourist Office (GNTO) GCC, and Mamoun Hmedan, Chief Business Officer, Wego

The partnership will focus on enhancing traveler engagement by offering personalized recommendations and exclusive content through Wego's platform. By integrating advanced data analytics and user feedback, the campaign aims to tailor travel experiences that cater to individual preferences and interests.

"We at the German National Tourist Office (GNTO) are thrilled to partner with Wego, one of the leading travel platforms in the region," said Yamina Sofo, Director of the Marketing & Sales Office  German National Tourist Office (GNTO) GCC. "This collaboration reflects our commitment to building strong relationships with local travel experts who understand the unique preferences of GCC travelers.

Germany offers a wealth of experiences, from its UNESCO World Heritage Sites to its breathtaking natural beauty. Through this partnership, we aim to showcase these treasures to a wider audience and inspire longer stays that allow travelers to delve deeper into German culture and immerse themselves in the sustainable practices that are a hallmark of German tourism. We believe this partnership will encourage responsible travel and create lasting memories for all who choose Germany as their next destination," she added.

This initiative aligns with Germany's commitment to fostering sustainable tourism practices and aims to leave a positive, lasting impact on both travelers and the environment

"Partnering with the German National Tourist Office is a fantastic opportunity for us to highlight Germany's unique attractions to a broader audience," said Mamoun Hmedan, Chief Business Officer, Wego. "Germany is a destination that offers something for every traveler, from its rich history and culture to its stunning natural landscapes. Our collaboration aims to inspire and facilitate exceptional travel experiences for our users."

Through Wego's advanced search and booking, travelers get the best options to book their flights and accomodation to expore the best of Germany.

The campaign will feature targeted social media promotions, and travel guides to help travel book their trips. Wego's platform will showcase tailored itineraries, emphasizing Germany's UNESCO World Heritage sites, including the historic city of Berlin, the enchanting castles of Bavaria, the picturesque Rhine Valley, and the vibrant cultural hubs of Munich and Hamburg.

Whether travelers are drawn to Germany's historic architecture, vibrant festivals, or pristine landscapes, the country's UNESCO sites and sustainable tourism initiatives offer something for everyone.

Nature lovers are spoiled for choice with the picturesque landscapes of the Black Forest, the Rhine Valley's vineyards, and the pristine shores of the Baltic Sea. And let's not forget the culinary delights, where savory sausages, hearty pretzels, and world-renowned beers tantalize the taste buds.

About Wego

Wego is the number 1 travel app and the largest online travel marketplace in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).

Wego provides award-winning travel search websites and top-ranked mobile apps for travelers living in the Asia Pacific and the Middle East regions. Wego harnesses powerful yet simple to use technology that automates the process of searching and comparing results from hundreds of airlines, hotels, and online travel agency websites.

Wego presents an unbiased comparison of all travel products and prices offered in the marketplace by merchants, both local and global, and enables shoppers to quickly find the best deal and place to book whether it is from an airline or hotel directly or with a third-party aggregator website.

Wego was founded in 2005 and is dual headquartered in Dubai and Singapore with regional operations in Bangalore, Riyadh, Cairo, Lahore, and Kuala Lumpur.

About the GNTB

The German National Tourist Board (GNTB) works on behalf of the Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action to represent Germany as a tourist destination and is funded by the Ministry in accordance with a decision taken by the German Bundestag. Working closely with the German travel industry and private-sector partners and trade associations, the GNTB develops strategies and marketing campaigns to promote Germany's positive image abroad as a travel destination and to encourage tourists to visit the country.

The GNTB's primary strategic areas of action are:

Conducting targeted market research and analysis of market-specific customer demand in relation to various aspects of travel in the context of sustainability and culture among those with values-based lifestyles.

Supporting the travel industry, which is dominated by small and medium-sized businesses, through relationship management and the sharing of knowledge.

Raising awareness of the Destination Germany brand and enhancing the brand profile with a focus on sustainability and climate change mitigation.

Focus on sustainability and digitalisation

The GNTB promotes forward-looking tourism in line with the objectives of the German government. The focus here is on sustainability and digitalisation.

To make inbound tourism more sustainable and competitive, our organisation follows a three-pillar strategy that combines the sharing of knowledge with external partners and a supporting communications strategy with our internal sustainability initiative. The GNTB positions Germany as a sustainable and inclusive destination in the international travel market.

The GNTB is a pioneer when it comes to using immersive technologies (virtual, augmented and mixed reality), voice assistants and other conversational interfaces, and artificial intelligence applications such as chatbots. To ensure that tourism offerings are visible on AI-based marketing platforms, the GNTB coordinates the German tourism industry's open-data/knowledge graph project.

The GNTB has 25 foreign agencies that it manages from its head office in Frankfurt.

For further information and media queries:

www.neosocialandpr.com

Follow GNTO's accounts on social media:

https://www.instagram.com/germanytourismar/

https://www.facebook.com/germanytourismar/

Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2435438/Wego.jpg

SOURCE Wego
SHANGHAI, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- ZKH Group Limited (NYSE: ZKH), a leading maintenance, repair and operations ("MRO") procurement service platform in China, announced that its board of directors has authorized a share repurchase program under which the Company may repurchase up to US$50 million of its American Depositary Shares over the next 12 months, ending on June 13, 2025.

The share repurchases may be effected from time to time on the open market at prevailing market prices, in privately negotiated transactions, in block trades and/or through other legally permissible means, depending on market conditions and will be implemented in accordance with applicable rules and regulations. The Company expects to fund the repurchases out of its existing cash balance. 

Mr. Eric Long Chen, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of ZKH, said, "The share repurchase program underscores our confidence in ZKH's business growth and future value creation potential. We will remain committed to delivering sustainable, profitable growth and enhancing shareholder value."

About ZKH Group Limited

ZKH Group Limited (NYSE: ZKH) is a leading MRO procurement service platform in China, dedicated to propelling the MRO industry's digital transformation to drive cost reduction and efficiency improvement industry-wide. Leveraging its outstanding product selection and recommendation capabilities, ZKH provides digitalized, one-stop MRO procurement solutions that enable its customers to transparently and efficiently access a wide selection of quality products at competitive prices. ZKH also facilitates timely and reliable product delivery with professional fulfillment services. By catering specifically to the needs of MRO suppliers and customers through its unmatched digital infrastructure, ZKH empowers all participants in the value chain to achieve more.

For more information, please visit: https://ir.zkh.com.

Safe Harbor Statement

This press release contains forward-looking statements. These statements are made pursuant to the "safe harbor" provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements can be identified by terminology such as "may," "will," "expects," "anticipates," "aim," "estimates," "intends," "plans," "believes," "is/are likely to," "potential," "continue," and similar statements. Among other things, the quotations from ZKH's management in this press release contain forward-looking statements. ZKH may make written or oral forward-looking statements in its periodic reports to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), in its annual report to shareholders, in press release and other written materials and in oral statements made by its officers, directors or employees to third parties. Statements that are not historical facts, including statements about ZKH's beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties. A number of factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement. Further information regarding these and other risks is included in ZKH's annual report on Form 20-F and other documents filed with the SEC. All information provided herein is as of the date of this press release, and ZKH undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statement, except as required under applicable law.

For investor and media inquiries, please contact:

In China:

ZKH Group Limited

IR Department

E-mail: [email protected]

Piacente Financial Communications

Hui Fan

Tel: +86-10-6508-0677

E-mail: [email protected]

In the United States:

Piacente Financial Communications

Brandi Piacente

Tel: +1-212-481-2050

E-mail: [email protected]

SOURCE ZKH Group Limited
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Aden : , June 13 (IANS) A commercial cargo ship was struck twice in attacks in the Red Sea off Yemen's western coast, leaving one crew member missing and the vessel adrift, Yemeni and maritime officials reported.

An official at the government's Coast Guard forces, speaking on condition of anonymity, said on Wednesday that the Greek-owned bulk carrier Tutor came under assault nearly 67.7 nautical miles southwest of Hodeidah, when an explosives-laden boat detonated at the stern, causing a hull breach and flooding, Xinhua news agency reported.

Of the 21 crew members of different nationalities aboard the ship, one has been declared missing in the first attack, the official said.

"The ship is currently adrift and taking on water," the official said, adding the vessel had issued a distress call over VHF radio shortly after the first strike.

Meanwhile, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) confirmed that it has received a report of the incident near Hodeidah, adding that the captain reported the vessel was leaking and not under the crew's control.

In a second attack, the stricken and disabled ship was hit again by "an unknown airborne projectile," the UKMTO said, citing a report from the ship's master.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility from the Houthi group which controls the Hodeidah area.

However, the group has launched numerous attacks in recent months against commercial shipping in the Red Sea.

Since November last year, the Houthi group has launched anti-ship ballistic missiles and drones targeting what they said were Israeli-linked ships transiting the Red Sea, to show solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

In response, the US-British naval coalition stationed in the region has conducted air raids and missile strikes against Houthi targets since January to deter the group but this only led to an expansion of Houthi attacks to include US and British commercial vessels and naval ships.
Kabul, June 13 : Marking 1,000 days since girls in Afghanistan were banned from secondary school, a top official at the United Nations children's agency, Unicef, on Thursday used this milestone to urge the Taliban to allow girls to go back to school.

"For 1.5 million girls, this systematic exclusion is not only a blatant violation of their right to education but also results in dwindling opportunities and deteriorating mental health," UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement.

The statement emphasised the far-reaching consequences of the ban, extending beyond the immediate loss of education.

"It exacerbates the ongoing humanitarian crisis and has serious ramifications for Afghanistan's economy and development trajectory," the statement added.

Russell appealed for the return of girls to schools, pointing to the fact that no country can move forward when half its population is left behind.

"I urge the de-facto authorities to allow all children to resume learning immediately. And I urge the international community to remain engaged and support these girls, who need us more than ever."

Since returning to power in August 2021, the Taliban has banned girls and women from studying beyond primary school. However, in some parts of the country, women and girls still attend religious schools, as well as midwifery and nursing schools.

The Taliban government is not recognised internationally.

--IANS/DPA

khz
Yerevan, June 13 : Dozens of people have been injured in clashes between protesters and police during a protest called in Armenia's capital to demand Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's resignation.

The crowd threw stones and bottles at the police, who responded with stun grenades, a dpa reporter witnessed at the protest in Yerevan on Wednesday evening.

The Health Ministry said at least 55 people required medical treatment.

Police said that nearly 80 people were detained.

The protests, which have been running for weeks, are being led by Bagrat Galstanyan, Archbishop of the Tavush diocese in north-eastern Armenia.

Galstanyan has emerged as a vocal opponent of Pashinyan.

He has called for protesters to block roads and go on strike as a means of putting so much pressure on the government that it resigns.

Pro-Western Pashinyan has faced huge opposition since Armenia lost total control of the long-disputed Nagorno-Karabakh region to arch-rival Azerbaijan in 2023.

More than 100,000 ethnic Armenians had to flee following Azerbaijan's lightning offensive.

Azerbaijan has kept up the pressure on Armenia and is now demanding further concessions.

Pashinyan enraged many after indicating a willingness to hand over control of several border villages to the neighbouring country in return for a peace treaty.

--IANS/DPA

khz
Italy, June 13 : US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will sign a bilateral security agreement between the US and Ukraine on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Italy on Thursday.

Biden's National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan announced the deal to journalists on Wednesday during the flight to Italy, which is hosting the two-day summit of G7 leaders near the southern city of Bari.

Fifteen countries have already concluded similar long-term security agreements with Ukraine, including Britain, France and Germany.

Sullivan said the Biden administration's negotiations with Kiev have now been finalised.

He did not give any concrete details about the content of the agreement, which he described as a "framework" for how the two countries work together to address security issues.

However, he emphasised that the pact would not include the obligation for Washington to deploy US troops to Ukraine, nor would it contain commitments to supply specific weapons systems.

"Our goal here is straightforward," Sullivan said.

"We want to demonstrate that the US supports the people of Ukraine, that we stand with them, and that will continue to help address their security needs, not just tomorrow, but out into the future."

He also indicated that the agreement would state that the White House would work with US Congress to find a way to provide "sustainable" support for Ukraine.

The Biden adviser said the security deals Kiev is negotiating help serve as a "bridge" until Ukraine's "ultimate membership in NATO".

The US also said it was imposing sanctions on more than 300 individuals and entities connected to Russia's war on Ukraine, including financial institutions, the Moscow Stock Exchange and Chinese companies.

The latest set of sanctions is chiefly focused on trade, finance and industry.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the sanctions hit "across multiple sectors essential to Russia's war effort," including energy, metals and mining production.

China was singled out for its support of Moscow.

"The US remains concerned by the scale and breadth of exports from China that supply Russia's military-industrial base," Blinken's statement said.

To that end, the US is sanctioning Chinese companies that provide duel-use goods that "fill critical gaps in Russia's defence production cycle," he added.

It is not just China, however.

Individuals and organisations in countries elsewhere in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Africa and the Caribbean are also subject to new restrictive measures.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Russia "is deeply isolated from the international financial system, leaving the Kremlin's military desperate for access to the outside world".

She added that the sanctions go after critical supplies Russia needs from other countries.

Several Russian banks also saw their foreign locations put on blacklists to make it harder for financial transactions to be fulfilled.

Other corners of Russia's financial infrastructure were hit, including the Moscow Stock Exchange and two subsidiaries, and insurance and reinsurance providers.

The US Treasury Department said it was trying to choke off military supply chains by sanctioning dozens of individuals and entities in a slew of countries, besides Russia and China.

Some of the newly listed targets will help close sanction loopholes or go after evaders, it added.

--IANS/DPA

khz
Paris, June 13 : A French citizen, who had been detained in Iran for nearly two years, has been released and will be back in France on Thursday, French President Emmanuel Macron said.

"Louis Arnaud is free. Tomorrow he will be in France after being imprisoned in Iran for far too long," Macron said late Wednesday on social media platform X.

Arnaud, who is now 36, was arrested on September 28, 2022, while in Iran for tourism purposes.

His detention came during a wave of protests triggered by the death of a young Kurdish woman, Masha Amini.

Authorities accused him of taking part in demonstrations.

Arnaud, who was sentenced to five years in prison for propaganda and undermining Iran's security, had been held in the notorious Evin prison in Tehran, according to the French Foreign Ministry.

On Wednesday evening, Macron thanked Oman and all those who had worked towards Arnaud's return home.

The French President also called on Iran to immediately release three other nationals detained there.

France had repeatedly accused Iran of "hostage diplomacy" following the arrest of some of its citizens.

A few weeks ago, Paris had complained about "inhumane and appalling conditions in which our compatriots are being held" and spoke of absurd charges and sham trials.

--IANS/DPA

khz
Lucknow, June 13 : Once a river and now a drain, the Kukrail riverfront in Lucknow, which is being freed from encroachment, will be developed on the pattern of the Sabarmati riverfront in Ahmedabad.

"Nearly 25 acres of area which is being reclaimed on the initiative of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will be developed into a riverfront. The Yogi government plans to transform the adjoining Kukrail forest area into a prominent eco-tourism destination. The first night safari in the country is slated to be established here. A preliminary approval has been obtained from the Central Zoo Authority for this project, which will cover an area of 855.07 acres," says a government spokesperson.

"The Detailed Project Report is currently being prepared for this initiative. As part of this endeavour, the Lucknow Zoo will also be relocated to this area. The move has been approved by the state cabinet. The new zoo will feature 63 enclosures showcasing animals from 115 different species, with a maximum capacity of 15,000 visitors per day. A tram system covering 3.75 km within the zoo premises and a 12-km pathway will enhance visitor accessibility," he said.

A total of 42 enclosures will house animals from 54 different species within the night safari.

With a maximum capacity of 8,000 visitors per night, tourists will embark on their journey through the park via a 5.5 km tramway and a 1.92 km pathway.

Highlighting the experience will be captivating species, including the Asiatic lion, gharial, Bengal tiger, flying squirrel, leopard, hyena, etc., ensuring an unforgettable adventure for all who visit the night safari, said an official.

"Inspired by the Sabarmati Riverfront, the Kukrail Riverfront will be developed following visits by officers from the Lucknow Municipal Corporation, Lucknow Development Authority, and Irrigation Department to Ahmedabad, as per the Chief Minister's directives. A detailed action plan is already prepared, and progress on the project is expected to start shortly," he added.

The municipal authorities, at present, are clearing the encroachment in the area

A total of 162 illegal constructions were bulldozed in Akbarnagar as part of the drive for the beautification and rejuvenation project of Kukrail River on Wednesday.

This brings the count of demolished constructions in the area to 312 as of late Wednesday evening.

Around 265 families were given possessions of flats under Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana.
Lucknow, June 13 : The Uttar Pradesh government has set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to conduct an impartial probe into the case related to the self-immolation of Ram Bujharat in Balrampur in October last year.

This decision was taken following an order from the High Court.

The SIT will be headed by the Additional Director General, Government Railway Police, Jai Narayan Singh, and Additional Commissioner of Devipatan, Ram Prakash.

On October 24, 2023, a group of men erected pillars overnight on a private plot of land in front of the Gaidas Buzurg police station area of Balrampur district.

Ram Bujharat, the owner, complained to the police station, where he was detained.

Distressed by the land seizure, he went live on Facebook and immolated himself.

He was admitted to a trauma centre in Lucknow, where he succumbed to injuries on October 30.

Later, his wife Kusuma filed a case at the Gaidas Buzurg police station, alleging serious misconduct by the police.
Prague, June 13 : The Czech Republic has added the purchase of up to 77 Leopard 2A8 modern battle tanks from German production to its list of strategic defence projects.

In addition, the Cabinet in Prague on Wednesday approved the accession to a cooperation agreement, which provides for participation in joint procurement with Germany.

According to the Czech Defence Ministry, this is a critical interim step.

The final approval by the government is expected by the end of the year.

"Tanks remain an irreplaceable part of a heavy brigade," said Defence Minister Jana Cernochova.

They combine high firepower, manoeuvrability and resistance, she said, adding that the importance of this weapon system was demonstrated by the experience of the fighting in Ukraine.

In May 2023, Germany signed a framework agreement with the manufacturer Krauss-Maffei Wegmann (KMW) to procure up to 123 Leopard 2A8 tanks.

Germany is offering partner countries the opportunity to purchase certain contingents of these.

The Bundeswehr will initially receive 18 brand-new main battle tanks by 2026.

The Czech Republic wants to order 61 Leopard 2 A8s in six different versions, for example as a main battle tank, command vehicle, bridge-laying and driving school tank.

The Ministry of Defence in Prague put the cost of the order at the equivalent of a1.6 billion ($1.73 billion).

There is also an option for 16 additional vehicles.

According to the information provided, this would increase the total price to the equivalent of a2.1 billion.

--IANS/DPA

khz
Seoul, June 13 : SK Telecom, a leading South Korean mobile carrier, said on Thursday it will invest $10 million in US Artificial Intelligence (AI) startup Perplexity to cooperate on AI search services.

Perplexity also plans to invest in Global AI Platform, an AI service developing arm of SK Telecom in Silicon Valley, according to the Korean company.

However, it did not elaborate on the financial terms of the US side, reports Yonhap news agency.

SK Telecom and Perplexity signed a strategic partnership during the Mobile World Congress in February to boost their cooperation in the AI search engine business.

Through mutual investments, Perplexity plans to help SK Telecom develop an AI search engine for the personal AI assistant service that the Korean company is currently developing for the global market, as well as its existing service, A.

To support this collaboration, SK Telecom will provide Korean-language data and cultural content to Perplexity to help the startup fine-tune its large language model and make its search solution more sophisticated.

Perplexity's service is considered a challenger to Google, the world's biggest search engine, as it uses generative AI models to answer users' inquiries swiftly and with sources of information.

"Based on the cooperation between the two companies, we plan to strengthen the search capabilities of A. and release a globally top-level AI personal assistant service," Lee Jae-shin, SK Telecom's head of global business development, said.

Meanwhile, the Korean company said it plans to provide the paid version of Perplexity's search service to its subscribers for free for one year.
Kochi, June 13 : Popular Malayalam actor Joju George will be out of action for three weeks as he injured his leg while shooting a helicopter scene for the Maniratnam film 'Thug Life'.

Kochi, June 13 (IANS) Popular Malayalam actor Joju George will be out of action for three weeks as he injured his leg while shooting a helicopter scene for the Maniratnam film aThug Lifea.

George got injured while jumping out of the helicopter during the shoot in Pondicherry. Even after suffering the injury, he completed the scene.

On Thursday, George was spotted near his home as doctors have advised him three-week rest.

aThug Lifea will see Maniratnam and Kamal Hassan unite after a long time.
Thiruvananthapuram, June 13 : In the wake of the massive fire in a building in Kuwait that left many Indians dead, Kerala Health Minister, Veena George, will leave for Al-Mangaf later in the day to coordinate the repatriation of the bodies of the victims to India.

This was decided at a special Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Thursday.

The CM Vijayan government has also decided to give a compensation of Rs 5 lakh each to the next of kin of the deceased and Rs 1 lakh to those who were injured.

As many as 13 of the 14 Keralites, who died in the deadly fire that devastated a building in Kuwait's southern city of Al-Mangaf, have been identified.

The fire that broke out in a labour camp killed 49 employees attached to a Keralite-owned company.

The fire broke out in the building at around 4.30 A.M. on Wednesday.

According to sources in Kuwait, the toll could have been higher. Around 18 employees, who resided in the ill-fated building had a narrow escape as they had left the building around 4 A.M. for morning duty.

Newly sworn-in Union Minister of State George Kurian said that MoS Kirthi Vardhan Singh has already left for Kuwait to coordinate with the Indian Embassy to bring back the bodies of those who lost their lives. "All arrangements will be made to bring back the bodies of all Indians," said Minister Kurian.
Amaravati, June 13 : Mega DSC notification for the recruitment of teachers will be the first file to be signed by Nara Chandrababu Naidu after assuming office as Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister on June 12.

Soon after assuming charge at around 4.41 p.m. in the State Secretariat, he would sign five files to fulfil the promises made in the recent elections.

Chandrababu Naidu, who was sworn in as the Chief Minister on Wednesday, will sign another file for revocation of the Land Titling Act as promised by the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and its allies.

Through his signature on another file, he would increase the social pension to the beneficiaries to Rs 4,000 per month.

Mega District Selection Committee (DSC) notification was one of the key promises made by the TDP-led alliance to fill the vacancies of around 15,000 teachers in government schools.

Unemployed youth, who were unhappy with the previous government of YSR Congress for not fulfilling its promise of mega DSC, overwhelmingly voted for the TDP-Jana Sena-BJP alliance, which stormed to power with a landslide victory.

The previous government had issued a DSC notification to recruit 6,100 teachers a few weeks before the issue of election notification. Nearly 4.6 lakh candidates have applied for these posts. The process had come to a halt after the High Court had granted a stay.

Job creation was a major promise made by the TDP. aJob Ravalante Babu Ravalia (Jobs will come only if Babu comes to power) was the partyas slogan during the elections.

Naiduas son and party general secretary Nara Lokesh, who has now become the Cabinet minister, had promised during his aYuvagalama padayatra that if voted to power TDP would bring new industries to the state to create more employment opportunities.

Naidu would sign a file after assuming office to conduct a skill census in the state to ensure employment opportunities for the youth.

Revocation of the AP Land Titling Act, 2023 (APLTA) would meet another major promise of the TDP-led alliance.

Chandrababu Naidu had said during the campaign that APLTA brought by the Jagan Mohan Reddy-led government was detrimental to the peopleas right to their properties. He alleged that data pertaining to the land records was handed over to a private company purportedly for storing and expressed the apprehension that it could be tampered with to the benefit of land grabbers.

Naidu would sign another file to enhance social security pensions to elderly people, widows and other beneficiaries of Rs 4,000 from the present Rs 3,000.

The new Chief Minister would sign the fifth file to re-open Anna Canteens.

After coming to power in 2019, the YSR Congress government shut down Anna Canteens across the state, set up by the earlier TDP government to provide meals at Rs 5 to the poor and the middle class.

All 204 canteens were shut down in August 2019 as YSR Congress alleged corruption in the scheme.

The TDP had alleged that the Jagan government shut down the canteens due to political vendetta.

As the TDP founder and former Chief Minister late N.T. Rama Rao was affectionately called 'Anna' (elder brother), the TDP government had used the name for canteens.

At a few places, the YSRCP re-opened the canteens after renaming them as aRajannaa, as Jagan Mohan Reddy's father and late Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhar Reddy was fondly called.
Jalna : , June 13 (IANS) On the sixth day of his hunger strike, Shivba Sanghatana leader Manoj Jarange-Patil on Thursday served an ultimatum to the Maharashtra government to decide on the pending Maratha demands by 5 p.m. on June 14.

Interacting with media persons at his agitation venue in Antaravali-Sarati village, a weak Jarange-Patil said, "My doors are always open for negotiations but if they (government) shut the doors then we shall also follow suit."

He said that if the government chooses to disregard the Marathas and their demands then the Marathas will also ignore them in the elections.

Since June 12, the Maratha leader has started taking certain IV fluids and medicines as his health condition went on a sharp downslide on Tuesday, though he appeared fatigued.

Meanwhile, the state government will send a delegation of ministers Shambhuraj Desai and Tanaji Sawant along with MLA Rajendra Raut and MP Sandipan Bhumre to meet and discuss the pending issues, though the Shivba Sanghatana leader sounded unenthusiastic.

"We are always ready to talk with the government but the time for all discussions has passed and now it is time for some concrete action. We need decisions. I am always positive If we don't get it by tomorrow evening, then I shall announce my next phase of agitation," declared Jarange-Patil.

Earlier this week, adopting an aggressive stance, he rattled both the ruling MahaYuti government and Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi with a threat to put up Maratha candidates in all the 288 constituencies for the October state Assembly elections.

In the past four days, MVA MPs from Shiv Sena (UBT), Nationalist Congress Party (SP) and Congress including Bajrang Sonwane, Omraje Nimbalkar, Kalyan Kale, plus legislators, have met and expressed support to Jarange-Patil while blaming the MahaYuti of remaining indifferent to the Marathas issue.
Sai Tamhankar on being part of Vijay Varma-starrer Matka King: 'Its a sudden breeze of thrill in my life right now'. Image Source: IANS News

Mumbai, June 13 : Actress Sai Tamhankar, who will be featuring in the Vijay Varma-starrer 'Matka King', shared that it's a sudden breeze of excitement and thrill in her life right now.

Being directed by Nagraj Manjule marks a first for Sai, adding an extra layer of excitement to the project.

Speaking about the same, Sai shared: "Of course, Nagraj Manjule has been on my wish list, and I've been quite vocal about it in interviews and on social media. I am very excited and nervous to work with him."

"This is a web series for Amazon Prime in which Vijay is a part of, and I will get an opportunity to work with a great actor like him. Now, I cannot reveal much about my part here but all in all, itas a sudden breeze of excitement and thrill in my life right now," added Sai.

The series also features an ensemble cast including Kritika Kamra, Gulshan Grover, and Siddharth Jadhav in pivotal roles.

Produced by multiple Siddharth Roy Kapur and Nagraj Manjule along with Gargi Kulkarni, Ashish Aryan, and Ashwini Sidwani under the banner of Roy Kapur Films, the series is directed by Nagraj and written by Abhay Koranne, along with Manjule.

Currently in the production stage, it will be released on Prime Video.

Apart from 'Matka King', Sai also has 'Ground Zero', 'Agni', and 'Dabba Cartel' in the pipeline.

Earlier, Sai has been part of films like 'Wake Up India', 'Tendulkar Out', 'Hunterrr', 'India Lockdown', and most recently 'Bhakshak'.
Bhopal, June 13 : In a bid to provide an easy mode of transport and to enhance connectivity for tourist destinations, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Thursday launched 'PM Shri Tourism Air Services.

Chief Minister Yadav flagged off the first flight between Bhopal and Jabalpur from Raja Bhoj airport.

This flight will go from Bhopal to Jabalpur via Rewa, and from there it will land in Singrauli, an official said.

Meanwhile, the chief minister also inaugurated a ticket-booking counter at the airport.

These air services would be operated in the state on a Public Private Partnership (PPP) basis through Jetserve Aviation Private Limited, the officer said.

During the inauguration, CM Yadav said, "I am confident that PM Shri Tourism Air Service will benefit all sectors including industry, business and health."

He said these air services will also help to connect multiple cities in the state. CM Yadav also announced that airstrips will be developed in all districts.

"At present, our 30 districts have airstrips and this facility will be developed in all 55 districts in the coming days. We are going to provide another new facility in the future," Yadav added.

The government has decided to provide air services in eight districts - Bhopal, Indore, Jabalpur, Khajuraho, Ujjain, Gwalior, Rewa and Singrauli.

Some other districts having rich heritage and tourist destinations will also be connected with air services in the next phases, Managing Director of Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board, Sheo Shekhar Shukla, told IANS.

Shukla said that for the last few years, the number of tourists in the state has increased.

Last year, Madhya Pradesh received over 11 crore tourists against 3.41 crore in 2022, which created a new record in MP's tourism history, the officer added.
New Delhi, June 13 : India on Thursday sent 19 tonnes of Humanitarian Assistance & Disaster Relief (HADR) to Papua New Guinea's Enga province, which was devastated by a landslide that claimed over 2,000 lives.

The landslide, which also caused significant destruction, prompted India to extend its support as a partner under the Forum for India-Pacific Islands Cooperation (FIPIC).

"In the wake of the devastating landslide in Enga Province of Papua New Guinea, India had announced immediate assistance of USD 1 million to our close FIPIC partner," said Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for the MEA, in a post on X.

He added, "Pursuant to the announcement, a flight carrying approximately 19 tons of HADR supplies departed today."

"The aid comprises 13 tonnes of disaster relief material including temporary shelter, water tanks, hygiene kits, meals ready to eat; & 6 tonnes of emergency use medicine, medical equipment including dengue and malaria diagnostic kits, baby food etc," he said.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) announced the humanitarian aid on May 28, highlighting India's solidarity with the people of Papua New Guinea.

Following the announcement, a flight carrying 19 tonnes of Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) supplies departed for the country.

Additionally, the Indian association in the affected country provided support to the landslide-hit region by supplying basic medicines, medical aid, and essential clothing.

The Indian embassy in Papua New Guinea, highlighting the efforts, tweeted, "Indian diaspora in action & complementing the HADR efforts of Govt of India for victims of Enga landslides. People-to-people ties are the foundation of strong bilateral ties between India & Papua New Guinea!"

Prime Minister Narendra Modi's announcement in November 2019 of the formation of Disaster Risk Reduction and Management remains a crucial pillar of India's Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative (IPOI).

India continues to be committed to HADR and remains a responsible and steadfast responder in the region.
Panaji, June 13 : Senior Congress leader Girish Chodankar on Thursday filed a complaint against Mormugao BJP MLA Sankalp Amonkar and Spokesperson Giriraj Pai Vernekar in Goa for allegedly inciting violence against catholic priests which can trigger a Manipur-like situation.

Chodankar, Permanent Member of CWC, said that both the BJP leaders accused Catholic priests of polarising the people of Salcete taluka, attributing this as the reason for the BJP's loss in the South Goa parliamentary constituency.

"BJP is in power in Centre and state as well and has access to CID and election officers, who are responsible for taking action against any violations of the model code of conduct during election campaigns. If there had been any attempt to polarise the voters, the BJP would not have remained silent. It is evident that BJP leaders are trying to find a scapegoat for his party's poor performance and have unjustly targeted religious leaders," the complaint filed at Margao Police station by Chodankar states.

He added that such statements of frustration post-election can lead to communal division, tension, and potentially even violence between communities.

"Their accusations have the capacity to incite right-wing groups to target religious leaders, which could escalate into a situation akin to the unrest seen in Manipur," he said.

Congress leader has urged to file a complaint against both leaders under IPC Sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups), 295A (deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage religious feelings).
Mumbai, June 13 : Aditya Datt, who directed the upcoming streaming series 'Bad Cop', has praised director-writer-actor Anurag Kashyap for his ability to get into the skin of characters.

Aditya stated that Anurag's lived experiences helped him deliver a compelling performance on screen.

In 'Bad Cop', Anurag essays the role of Kazbe bhau, a mafia.

Characters like these come naturally to Anurag because they resonate with experiences from his own life. His talent for creating authentic characters adds depth and realism to stories.

Talking about Anurag, actor and director Aditya said: aWhen you see Anurag Kashyap, it's not the experience of filmmaking that's within him, it's the experience of life. He has lived and done so much in life, and seen so many journeys of life that when he starts performing or reading a dialogue, he brings life into those lines as if he's lived it."

The director added, "He has encountered police stations and cops. So, when he plays someone like Kazbe, he makes it believable that this guy's been there and done all of this. And hence, he's saying it from that experience."

Produced by Fremantle India, directed by Aditya Datt, and written by Rensil DaSilva, the series is set to drop on June 21 on Disney+ Hotstar.
New Delhi, June 13 : The Delhi High Court has sought a report addressing the alleged lack of purified drinking water, Wi-Fi, air conditioning, and other essential facilities at Delhi University's Faculty of Law.

New Delhi, June 13 (IANS) The Delhi High Court has sought a report addressing the alleged lack of purified drinking water, Wi-Fi, air conditioning, and other essential facilities at Delhi Universityas Faculty of Law.

This directive was issued by Justice Amit Sharma in response to a plea highlighting severe inadequacies at the institution.

Justice Sharma appointed Advocate Rajesh Mishra as an amicus curiae to assist in examining and resolving the infrastructural deficiencies.

A meeting was ordered to be convened between key stakeholders, including Dean of Studentsa Welfare, Dean of Faculty of Law, Advocate Ankur Singh Mavi (the petitioner), and the amicus curiae to discuss provisions for purified drinking water and other facilities including Wi-Fi services.

The Bar Council of India (BCI) was also impleaded as a respondent in this matter.

The petitioners, Ronak Khatri, Ankur Singh Mavi, and Umesh Kumar, all students at Law Faculty, argued that the absence of air conditioning in classrooms during peak summer months, when temperatures in Delhi can soar up to 48 degrees Celsius, has created unbearable conditions.

They highlighted the stark contrast between the well-cooled administrative offices and staff rooms and the overheated classrooms, particularly those in the third building constructed with makeshift materials such as tin roofs and asbestos-lined walls. These conditions have reportedly led to health issues such as heat strokes and fainting among students.

The plea also pointed out that the Faculty of Law, which accommodates around 5,000 students, has only four water coolers, insufficient to meet the demand. The dire situation has forced students to buy packaged drinking water, significantly increasing their educational expenses.

Connectivity issues were another major concern raised by the students, with poor Wi-Fi coverage hampering their access to essential academic resources.

The University claimed that necessary provisions for water coolers and drinking water already exist on campus. However, the court has asked the University to coordinate with the stakeholders and the amicus curiae to ensure a thorough review and to file a report before the next hearing, scheduled on July 4.

"Let the meeting be convened with the mutual convenience of the parties within one week from today. Mr Mohinder J. S. Rupal, learned counsel appearing on behalf of respondents Nos. 1 and 2, shall coordinate the same with the aforesaid stakeholders, and a report regarding the same be placed on record before the next date of hearing," the court ordered.
Abu Dhabi, June 13 : The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) convened its 27th council meeting here on Thursday, just days after United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued an urgent call for climate action.

The two-day meetings gather representatives from 105 countries to discuss critical issues facing the global energy transition.

Over the next two days, IRENA members will focus on scaling up and de-risking renewable energy investments towards realising decarbonisation and sustainable development goals, bolstering partnerships with private sector entities and utilities and delving into best practices for energy planning.

The council will also facilitate consultation and cooperation among IRENA members to review the agency's work programme, budget and annual report, among other relevant administrative and institutional matters.

"Despite the world installing more renewable energy capacity in 2023 than any previous year, additions were still only half of what is necessary to limit rising temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius," said IRENA Director-General Francesco La Camera.

"To meet the global target of tripling renewable energy capacity by 2030, a significant increase in commitment and action from both public and private sectors is essential.

"IRENA will play a pivotal role in ensuring transparency and accountability by tracking progress and facilitating implementation towards the energy goals set at COP28."

Last week, La Camera met with Guterres and emphasised the critical need to prioritise energy infrastructure in the climate agenda.

He also highlighted IRENA's role as custodian agency in monitoring progress towards the global target to triple renewable energy capacity by 2030, as tasked by the COP28 Presidency and supported by the incoming COP29 Presidency.

"IRENA's mission is critical on many levels," stated Gloria Magombo, Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Energy and Power Development, Zimbabwe, and 27th IRENA Council Chair.

"A renewable-based energy transition is not only the most effective climate solution available but also key to addressing the energy access challenges many countries currently face. As council chair, I am committed to ensuring that IRENA's exceptional work in advocacy, support, and progress tracking is fully supported by its members."

In May 2024, COP28 President Sultan Al Jaber officially tasked IRENA with the establishment of a special annual report series dedicated to monitoring progress and providing recommendations on achieving key energy goals of the UAE Consensus set at COP28.
Kochi, June 13 : The Kerala High Court has directed the registration of an FIR against the now-retired Director General of Police (DGP), Siby Mathews for allegedly disclosing the identity of a rape victim in his book titled 'Nirbhayam'.

The court pointed out, "Even though the name of the victim was not specifically disclosed, the details of the parents of the victim, the place where the victim and parents resided, and the school where the victim studied, were disclosed in detail. This disclosure prima facie shows the commission of an offence punishable under Section 228A of the IPC."

The court acted on a petition filed by K.K. Joshua who had earlier registered a complaint with a local police station in the state capital and the district police chief.

The petitioner then approached the High Court which asked the concerned authorities to consider the complaint. As he did not get a favourable response, he was forced to come before the court asking for directions for the police to register an FIR.

The court after hearing all the sides said, "The reference to the victim as 'peedippikkapetta penkutti' (molested girl) alongside detailed personal information unmistakably identifies her as the rape victim mentioned in the book," the court said.

It further added, "Therefore, the remedy of a person when his grievance, by filing or informing materials which would suggest a cognizable offence, if not acted upon by the Police Officer and the Police Superintendent is normally to approach the Magistrate seeking an investigation under Section 156(3) CrPC or else could approach the Magistrate for an enquiry permitted under Section 202 CrPC by filing a private complaint. However, it is well settled that the power of a constitutional court to order investigation is not taken away because of the availability of alternative remedy in an appropriate case of this nature where the accused is none other than former DGP of the Kerala State," the court added.

It directed the police to register an FIR and conduct a thorough investigation in compliance with the Lalitha Kumari judgment.

Mathews, who took voluntary retirement from service, was later appointed the chief information officer.
Mumbai, June 13 : The lead actors of 'Vanshaj', Mahir Pandhi, Anjali Tatrari, and Puneet Issar, have expressed their gratitude as their show celebrates its one-year milestone.

Reflecting on their journeys, they described the experience as fulfilling.

Speaking about the same, Mahir, who plays Digvijay Mahajan, shared: "Portraying DJ, a villainous character, has been incredibly fulfilling, allowing me to explore new dimensions as an actor."

"It's heartwarming to see the love and acceptance from our audience, even for a negative character like DJ. I take immense pride in being part of a show that has in the last one year entertained viewers with its compelling storytelling," added Mahir.

Anjali, who plays Yuvika, said: "Challenging patriarchy and portraying Yuvika over the last one year has been both rewarding and fulfilling. I think I have manifested this show, as three months before I started shooting for 'Vanshaj', I had the opportunity to visit Rishikesh with my mother and prayed to Ganga Maa to call me back."

"It felt like a wish granted when I signed the show and learned that the initial shoot was scheduled in Rishikesh. Building Yuvika's character from scratch has been a challenging yet fulfilling experience. The love and recognition from fans are overwhelming, and it's heartening to know that people now recognise me as Yuvika."

Puneet, who essays the role of Bhanupratap Mahajan, commented: "Vanshaj is like a rock among TV serials, standing tall and unshaken through all storms. As we celebrate one year of the show, I extend my heartfelt congratulations to the entire team, co-actors, and crew.

"Playing Bhanupratap has been an incredible journey, and I am proud to be part of a show that consistently delivers powerful and engaging storytelling. Here's to many more milestones and continued success," he added.

'Vanshaj' airs on Sony SAB.
Bengaluru, June 13 : Karnataka Leader of the Opposition (LoP) R. Ashoka on Thursday slammed the state government for handling the murder case involving the Kannada actor Darshan and his associates.

"Since there is no law and order in the state, the government is fearful. That is the reason why they have put 'Shamiyanas' in front of the police station. Are we living in Kashmir or is Karnataka a border area? Don't our state police have the capacity to investigate a simple murder case," LoP Ashoka said.

Bengaluru Police have covered the Annapoorneshwari Nagar Police Station with a 'Shamiyana' allegedly to prevent media coverage and have also imposed prohibitory orders within 200 meters of the police station.

Actor Darshan along with his 16 associates are being accused of murdering one of the actors's fans namely Renukaswamy, who was apparently unhappy with Darshan's second marriage.

The LoP said that taking the law into one's own hands is condemnable. "No one is above the law. This incident is a black mark on the film industry. Renukaswamy could have been warned and sent away. The murdered person did not have any criminal background. Action must be taken against the guilty," LoP Ashoka said.

Former Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai also said that no one has the right to treat others inhumanely. "Whether a celebrity or a VIP, all are equal before the law. This is a serious case and the initial proactive role of the police should continue throughout the investigation," he said.

Karnataka Minister for Forest, Ecology and Environment, Eshwar Khandre, has also condemned the murder of Renukaswamy, saying that he is confident that the guilty will be punished.

"The government stands firmly with the deceased family," said the Minister.

Akhila Bharatha Veerashaiva Mahasabha (ABVM) has also demanded harsh punishment against the culprits.

"The government should not succumb to any influence and not protect the guilty. The government must stand with the common man. If there is any negligence in the investigation, the Mahasabha will initiate a state-wide agitation. The victim's family must be compensated," ABVM said.
Kanpur : , June 13 (IANS) A medical student died after falling from the auditorium building of the GSVM Medical College in Kanpur under suspicious circumstances on Thursday.

The police reached the spot and took the body of the deceased into custody and sent it for post-mortem.

In the preliminary investigation done by the police on the spot, it has come to light that the deceased was partying with her two friends. Then suddenly she fell down and died.

The deceased, who was studying MBBS at the GSVM Medical College was a resident of Bareilly.

Both the friends of the deceased have been taken into custody and are being interrogated.

Kanpur's Additional Police Commissioner, Harish Chander, inspected the crime scene.

He said that a case has been lodged at the Swaroop Nagar Police Station and other students are also being questioned.

The girlas family has been informed.
Jahangir National University all set to release in cinemas on June 21. Image Source: IANS News

Mumbai, June 13 : The upcoming film 'Jahangir National University' (JNU), which is based on a contentious plot, is set to release on June 21.

The poster of the film hints at escalating controversy as it shows some books burning, as the punchline says, "Can one university shake the nation?"

Talking about the film, producer Pratima Datta said: "'Jahangir National University' is set to be released. The film is the best medium and it is based on a significant section of our society which needs to be revealed to the public."

The producer said that a lot has changed since the makers of the film last encountered these difficulties so on June 21, it will be released in theatres.

"We were able to make it happen because of the support we received from the entire cast, crew, and a few industry people," the producer said.

Director Vinay Sharma said that 'Jahangir National University' talks about one of the most sensitive issues which needs to be discussed.

"Through this film, I am sure an open discussion will start throughout the country. This film will be the biggest return gift of my honest hard work that I have put into the making of this film," the director said.

The film has been produced under the banner of Mahakal Movies Private Limited by Pratima Datta.

'Jahangir National University' stars Urvashi Rautela, Piyush Mishra, Ravi Kishan, Siddharth Bodke, Vijay Raj, Rashmi Desai, Atul Pandey, and Shivjyoti Rajput.

The film is set to arrive in cinemas on June 21, 2024.
Seoul, June 13 : Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong has met with the heads of Meta, Amazon and Qualcomm in the US this week to discuss future technologies and business collaborations, the company said on Thursday.

Lee, who has been on a two-week business trip in the US, was invited to Mark Zuckerberg's home in Palo Alto, California, on Tuesday (US time) where he had talks with Meta's founder and CEO, according to Samsung Electronics.

It is their second meeting in 2024 after Zuckerberg's Seoul visit in February, reports Yonhap News Agency.

During their discussions, the two business leaders explored ways to enhance cooperation in the future information technology and software sectors, including Artificial Intelligence (AI), Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR).

The following day, Lee visited Amazon's headquarters in Seattle, Washington, for a meeting with CEO Andy Jassy.

They shared their views on core business areas, such as Generative AI and Cloud Computing.

Amazon, a leading Cloud service provider, is a key business partner for Samsung Electronics, the world's largest memory chipmaker, in the semiconductor sector.

The US tech giant recently announced plans to enter the Generative AI market and innovate its Cloud-based AI services, with a $150 billion investment plan for AI data centres over the next 15 years.

Earlier this week, Lee also had a meeting with Qualcomm CEO Cristiano Amon at Samsung Electronics' Device Solutions America in San Jose, California, to seek ways to enhance bilateral cooperation in the booming AI chip market.

Samsung Electronics and Qualcomm have long been close business partners, with Qualcomm's Snapdragon platform powering Samsung's latest smartphones.

During his two-week stay in the US, Lee also met with global fabless chipmakers to discuss expanding collaboration in the foundry business and developing new technologies for future semiconductors.

Samsung Electronics said Lee's US trip was aimed at strengthening his global network, assess the company's future technological competitiveness and map out detailed future business strategies.

"Let's utilise Samsung's strengths and pioneer the future as we have done," said Lee.
Mumbai, June 13 : Actress Tina Datta on Thursday treated her fans with new photoshoot, wearing an Indo-western summer outfit, shelling major fashion goals to her huge fanbase.

The diva, known for her work in 'Uttaran', 'Koi Aane Ko Hai', and others took to Instagram, where she has 4.7 million followers, and dropped a string of pictures wearing a peach and green coloured crop top, paired it with matching palazzo pants, and a matching sleeveless shrug.

The 'Bigg Boss 16' contestant opted for a dewy makeup look--nude lips, pink eyeshadow, kohl-rimmed eyes, and thick brows. She completed the makeup with a red bindi.

For the hairstyle, she opted for a braided half updo. The look of the day is accessorised with earrings and a bracelet.

The post is captioned: "Who said capes are only for superheroes? When Indian meets Western, magic happens... because no one said you can't have it all !!!"

Born in Kolkata, Tina is also an avid yoga and pilates enthusiast.

On the work front, Tina has been a part of shows like 'Durga', 'Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi 7', 'Daayan', and most recently 'Hum Rahe Na Rahe Hum'.

She has also featured in Bengali films like 'Chirodini Tumi Je Amar', 'Chokher Bali', and the Hindi movie 'Parineeta'.
Thiruvananthapuram, June 13 : Amid the tragic news of 42 Indians, including 24 Keralites, dying in a major blaze in a labour camp in Kuwait, an amazing tale of courage and will for survival has emerged.

Nalinakshan, one of the workers hailing from Kasargod, saved his life by jumping from the third floor into a water tank on the ground floor.

The news has brought major cheer to his family and friends in Kerala.

According to his uncle, Nalinakshan was in the building which went up in flames in the wee hours of Wednesday.

"Seeing the smoke and fire and no way to escape, he jumped from the third floor of the burning building into a water tank on the ground floor. He landed safely in the water tank," said Nalinakshan's uncle.

"He spoke to me from hospital and said he has suffered a mouth and rib injury. He has to undergo surgery for the broken rib. He was unable to speak much," added the uncle.

However, the happiness of Nalinakshan's family is tinged with sadness as his close friend and neighbour at Kasargod who was also in the ill-fated building, is missing.
New Delhi, June 13 : The Supreme Court on Thursday halted the screening of the Bollywood movie 'Hamare Baarah' till the petition challenging its release is decided by the Bombay High Court.

Asking the high court to expeditiously decide the plea challenging the certification given by the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC), a vacation bench of the apex court presided over by Justice Vikram Nath rejected the filmmakers' contention that objectionable parts were taken away from the teaser.

"We saw the teaser this morning. It continues with all those offensive dialogues," added the Bench, also comprising Justice Sandeep Mehta.

In an order passed on June 7, the Bombay High Court lifted the interim stay granted on the release of the film after a panel formed by the CBFC on the court's direction sought an extension of time to give an uninfluenced opinion on the film.

Further, a bench of Justices Kamal Khata and Rajesh S. Patil of the high court noted that the filmmakers have voluntarily agreed to delete certain controversial dialogues.

Last week, the Karnataka government banned the release of the film in the state, stating that it may disturb communal harmony.
Bengaluru, June 6 : The Karnataka Police are preparing to arrest former CM and BJP Central Parliamentary Board Member B. S. Yediyurappa in connection with the POCSO case. Sources have confirmed that they have moved the court to obtain a warrant against him.

The police submitted an application in this regard before the 42nd Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (ACMM) on Wednesday. If the court grants the plea and issues an arrest warrant, the police will arrest Yediyurappa, sources stated.

Meanwhile, Yediyurappa submitted a petition on Thursday to Karnataka High Court seeking anticipatory bail in the case. The petition is yet to be taken up by the court.

The victim's mother, who passed away on May 26, had filed a case against Yediyurappa in March this year under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, for alleging harassment of her daughter when she went to the former CM's residence to seek help.

Meanwhile, a writ petition was submitted to Karnataka High Court on Wednesday, seeking Yediyurappaas arrest in the case. The victimas brother filed the writ petition, claiming that the police did not take any action despite months having passed since the complaint was filed against the veteran leader.

In view of the matter, the Congress government has appointed Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Ashok N. Nayak to represent the prosecution in the case. According to sources, the Congress government has decided to initiate legal action against Yediyurappa.
Brussels, June 13 : Canada will supply Ukraine with rockets, small arms ammunition and remote-controlled weapon mounts for vehicles, Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair announced in Brussels on Thursday.

"Canada will provide Ukraine with 2,300 Canadian Rocket Vehicle 7s or CRV rocket motors," Blair said.

He added, "Canada will send an additional number of rounds of small arms ammunition, as well as 29 Nanuk remote systems," which are remote-controlled weapon mounts for military vehicles.

He said the CRV7s were "formerly used by the Royal Canadian Air Force on our CF-18 aircraft." Meanwhile, "the Nanuk is a remotely-controlled weapon station used by the Canadian Army on our light armoured vehicles."

He added, "This week, Canada is beginning the shipments of a new fleet of 50 armoured vehicles to Ukraine. The first four vehicles are departing Canada this week, and they will be delivered to the Ukrainian armed forces in the coming weeks."

--IANS/DPA

sd/svn
New Delhi, June 13 : Cloud major Oracle on Thursday announced that it would support the training of 200,000 students in India in Cloud, data science, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and other emerging technologies.

The company and Tamil Nadu Skill Development Corporation (TNSDC) have launched a specialised programme under the state's massive skill enhancement initiative, Naan Mudhalvan, to provide employment-linked training to students in the state.

"Tamil Nadu ranks among one of India's top 12 states with a growing youth population. As part of our responsibility to provide youth and young professionals with a platform to upskill themselves and achieve their career goals, we launched Naan Mudhalvan," said J. Innocent Divya, MD, TNSDC.

Teachers and academicians will deliver the training as part of the curriculum on campus.

Specific modules will be offered as a digital learning experience through Oracle MyLearn.

The programme will provide students and professionals with a foundation in Cloud computing and a better understanding of other core concepts such as AI, ML, data science or blockchain, the company said.

"With Oracle certification recognised as an industry standard for professionals, it not only enhances knowledge but also validates skills sought after by employers, thereby enhancing job prospects and stability," said Shailender Kumar, senior VP and regional MD, Oracle India and NetSuite JAPAC.

Since the introduction of this initiative, over 60,000 students representing engineering, arts, and science streams from more than 900 colleges across the state have registered to participate in the programme.
Mumbai, June 13 : The upcoming film 'Maharaj', starring Junaid Khan in the lead role, has landed into controversy, with many right-wing groups demanding for a ban, claiming the film is anti-Hindu. However, the film is a historical drama based on the life of journalist and social reformer Karsandas Mulji, who himself was Hindu.

Karsandas Mulji, portrayed by Bollywood superstar Aamir Khanas son Junaid Khan, studied at Elphinstone College in Mumbai. He was a protege of the scholar-leader Dadabhai Naoroji and a member of the Gujarati Gyan Prasarak Mandali (Gujarati Society for the Spread of Knowledge). Mulji was also friends with prominent Gujarati reformists such as poet Narmad and educationist Mahipatram Neelkanth.

In 1855, Mulji founded the Gujarati language weekly "Satyaprakash" to leverage mass communication for social reform. Six years later, the newspaper merged with his mentor's Anglo-Gujarati newspaper "Rast Goftar," published in Bombay, which at that time included parts of Gujarat as part of the Bombay Presidency.

Mulji wrote extensively on issues such as widow remarriage, female education, excessive spending on pompous marriages, indecent songs sung during marriages, and the funeral ritual of chest-beating. He stood up for the oppressed, calling for social reform and helping to abolish many societal evils. Like his mentor, Mulji believed in the effective functioning of society by eliminating its evils.

One of Mulji's most notable articles was titled 'Gulamikhat', in which he criticised the sign campaign and law-making process by Vaishnavas that exempted the Maharaj (religious heads) from court appearances due to their religious status.

However, the article that caused the most controversy was "Hinduo No Asli Dharam Ane Atyar Na Pakhandi Mato" (The Primitive Religion of the Hindus and the Present Heterodox Opinions), published on September 21, 1890, in 'Satyaprakash'. This article criticised Vaishnava Acharyas (Hindu religious leaders) for their behaviour and led to the Maharaj Libel Case of 1862, which is the basis for the Netflix film.

The case was filed by religious leader Jadunathji Brijratanji Maharaj against Mulji and the publisher of 'Satyaprakash', Nanabhai Rustomji Ranina.

The article alleged that Jadunathji Brijratanji Maharaj had sexual liaisons with female followers and that men were expected to show their devotion by offering their wives for sex with the religious leaders.

The case began on January 25, 1862, and concluded on March 4, 1862. During the course of the case, which saw significant media coverage for its time and heightened interest by the general public, 31 witnesses were examined for the plaintiff (Maharaj) and 33 for the defendant (Mulji).

Doctors, including Bhau Daji, testified to treating the religious leader for syphilis, and several witnesses recounted his erotic escapades. The German sociologist Max Weber noted that the path of the religious sect to salvation was allegedly based on sexual orgies.

The case earned Mulji the title of "Indian Luther," given by the English press, and was eventually ruled in his favour.

As part of the judgment, Jadunathji Brijratanji Maharaj was ordered to pay Rs 11,500 to Karsandas Mulji.
Visakhapatnam, June 13 : YSR Congress Party MP Y.V. Subba Reddy on Thursday said the party has brought to the Centre's notice the continued attacks on its leaders in Andhra Pradesh since the announcement of election results last week.

He told media persons here that the YSR Congress has sent representations to President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and the National Human Rights Commission. He said the party had complained to the Governor but since no action was taken, it approached Prime Minister Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.

Subba Reddy said he had also filed a petition in the High Court seeking directions to check the violence against YSRCP leaders and their property. He said since the police "were not taking any action" against those indulging in violence, he sought directions to the Union Home Ministry, the state government, the Chief Secretary, and the Director General of Police to take strong measures to put an end to the attacks.

The petitioner has requested the High Court to direct the police to immediately register FIRs on complaints about the attacks and take strong measures as per law. He also sought orders to constitute a Special Investigation Team to probe the incidents of violence.

Subba Reddy, in his petition, also pleaded for directions to provide protection to the victims and their family members.

Meanwhile, YSRCP parliamentary party leader V. Vijayasai Reddy alleged that the unleashing of violence by aTDP goonsa on YSRCP sympathisers shows the breakdown of law and order in the state. He demanded strict action against those clearly seen in the videos of the violent incidents.

In its representations to the President, the Prime Minister and others, the YDRCP alleged that several individuals were killed during the post-election violence by the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Jana Sena. It claimed that there was extensive damage to private property including homes and businesses due to arson and vandalism.

The opposition party said the attacks heightened fear and tension among residents in affected areas, disrupting daily life and community stability. The YSRCP, along with its representations, attached photographs of violent incidents in Tirupati, Mangalagiri, Guntur, Eluru, Anakapalli, Nellore, Nandyal, and other places.
New Delhi, June 13 : Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh met with Foreign Minister of Kuwait Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on Thursday during which he was assured of full support and early repatriation of the mortal remains of Indian nationals killed in the fire tragedy.

Ali Al-Yahya conveyed his condolences on the tragic incident and assured Kuwait's full support, including medical care, early repatriation of mortal remains and investigation into the incident, the Indian embassy in Kuwait said.

The MoS arrived in Kuwait to oversee assistance for those injured in the fire tragedy and coordinate with local authorities for early repatriation of mortal remains of the deceased, it said.

The MoS met with the injured at Jaber and Mubarak Al Kabeer Hospital and ascertained their well-being. He also assured them of all the support from the Government of India, the Indian Embassy in Kuwait posted on X, adding that the injured are now "safe."

The MoS appreciated the efforts of all the concerned authorities, including the hospital staff, for their cooperation.

A fire broke out in a Labour housing facility in the Mangaf area of Kuwait early on Wednesday, claiming at least 49 lives, out of which 40 were Indian nationals.

Earlier on Wednesday, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar also spoke to his Kuwaiti counterpart about the fire tragedy and urged the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those who lost their lives.

EAM Jaishankar, in a post on X, said, "Spoke to Kuwaiti FM Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on the fire tragedy in Kuwait. Apprised of the efforts made by Kuwaiti authorities in that regard. Was assured that the incident would be fully investigated and that responsibility will be fixed."

The Embassy has also established a helpline +965-65505246 (WhatsApp and regular calls) for family members to get in touch, and regular updates are being provided through the helpline.
Mumbai, June 13 : A day after a human finger was allegedly detected in one of its Yummo brand ice-cream cones delivered to a customer, Walko Food Co Ltd. said on Thursday that it has stopped outsourcing its manufacturing to a third-party and is withdrawing stocks of the ice-cream from all stores.

In a guarded statement, a company spokesperson said, "We are taking this incident very seriously. We have stopped manufacturing (the ice-cream) at this third-party facility. We have isolated the said product at the facility, our warehouses and are in the process of doing the same at the market level."

The company admitted to the customer complaint on Wednesday  raised by one Dr. Brendan Serrao of Malad west  that a "foreign object was found in one of our products ordered via a delivery partner."

The spokesperson said that product quality and safety were its top priority and they were addressing the situation even as an official police complaint was lodged by the customer, Dr. Serrao.

"We are a law-abiding company and shall fully co-operate and support the authorities to investigate the matter thoroughly," said the spokesperson.

Official sources said that the state Food & Drugs Authority (FDA) has taken note of the matter and is likely to intervene, though officials declined to speak on record.

In a chilling incident, a Mumbai doctor who ordered ice-cream online, was stunned to find what he alleged was a severed piece of a human finger in it, sending officials into a tizzy.

The shocker happened on Wednesday when Dr. Brendan Serrao, asked his sister to include some ice-cream in her online grocery purchase list.

When the yummy cones of Yummo ice-cream were delivered, he started savouring it, but felt something rough and strange in his mouth.

The doctor alleged that when he yanked it out, to his horror he found that it was a small piece of a severed human finger, around 2 cms long.

Left with the bad taste in the mouth, Dr. Serrao immediately lodged a complaint with the Malad Police Station, which has started a probe and even sent the finger bit for a forensic analysis.

Dr. Serrao told local media persons that in view of his medical expertise, he recognised the human body piece and he saved it in an ice-pack to show the police while lodging his complaint.
New Delhi, June 13 : Beset by Western sanctions, regional tensions, and internal social and political strains - especially plummeting voter turnout- Iran will on June 28 elect a new President in snap polls necessitated by the demise of incumbent Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash last month.

However, the country's likely course ahead has been made clear by the list of the permitted candidates.

The configuration of the six candidates on the ballot after the vetting and clearing of nominations of various candidates by the Guardian Council, comprising a dozen jurists, half appointed by the Supreme Leader and half by the Majles (Parliament), is stark in its choices. Most are conservatives of various persuasions, largely hardline.

The late President Raisi, who succeeded moderate Hasan Rouhani in 2021, was a hardliner. His accession in 2021 represented the alternating change between moderate reformist and conservative hardline holders of the nation's second-most powerful post over the past nearly three decades - Mohammad Khatami (reformist, 1997-2005), Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (populist conservative, 2005-13), and then, Rouhani (reformist, 2013-21), and Raisi (2021-24).

However, several reformist candidates were not cleared to run in the 2021 polls, leading to the lowest turnout ever noted in Iranian Presidential polls - barely 48.5 per cent.

This time, the situation is not much different from the previous polls.

Saeed Jalili, a former hardline chief nuclear negotiator (2007-13) and a candidate for the 2013 poll - when he lost to Rouhani - and in 2021 when he withdrew in favour of Raisi, has made the cut, but his more moderate predecessor Ali Larijani was again not permitted to run, like in 2021.

Larijani's successor as Majles Speaker, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, a former Mayor of Tehran and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Air Force chief, is also on the list, as is his successor as Tehran Mayor and former Majles member Alireza Zakani, who was not cleared to run in 2013 and 2017 but got the nod for 2021, before withdrawing in favour of Raisi.

Vice President and Foundation of Martyrs and Veterans Affairs head Amir-Hossein Ghazizadeh Hashemi, an ENT surgeon by profession, and former Interior (2005-08) and Justice Minister (2013-2017) Mostafa Pourmohammadi are also approved candidates. They are also conservative by bent.

Majles member and cardiac surgeon Masoud Pezeshkian, who served as a minister in the Khatami regime, is the only candidate who is viewed as a reformist. However, he is an ethnic Azeri which could affect his chances of gaining widespread support across the country. His presence seems geared to draw out reformist voters to boost the turnout.

"Perennial Presidential candidate" and longtime IRGC Commander Mohsen Rezaei, who was cleared for the 2005 presidential poll - though withdrawing subsequently - but went on to contest the 2009, 2013, and 2021 polls - with his best performance in the last where he came second, is not standing this time.

Nor is Vice President Mohammad Mokhber, who is currently the acting President, with reports claiming he and Rezaei met Qalibaf and decided to support him.

Apart from Larijani, other prominent candidates who were barred from standing were former President Ahmadinejad - known to have some disagreements with Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei towards the end of his term and subsequently - and reformist candidate Eshaq Jahangiri, who had served as Vice President under Rouhani and as a minister under Khatami.

However, it must be noted that even Jahangiri, seen as the reformists' best choice, was clear not to come out against the establishment.

With the field set, the main contest seems to be between Jalili, who is close to Supreme Leader Khamenei and the IRGC, who could weigh in his favour with the entrenched establishment, and Qalibaf, who is also deemed close to the Supreme Leader and bears an IRGC pedigree himself.

A Jalili victory, possible as the reformist electorate could again sit out the polls to counter the established regime's bid to establish the legitimacy of the poll process, leading to his own supporters exerting a decisive impact, would mean a continuation of the policies of President Raisi, with whom he was quite close and is understood to have exerted a key influence on his several decisions.

If Qalibaf, considered a moderate conservative, goes on to win, the situation ahead would only differ in degrees, with no major changes in either domestic or foreign policies indicated.

However, even if either of them wins, or for that matter, most of the others, one key challenge will still remain. President Raisi was expected to run again in the 2025 election, and, as a high-ranking cleric, was tipped as a potential successor to Supreme Leader Khamenei.

Jalili, a soldier-turned-academician-turned-politician, and Qalibaf, a pilot-turned-politician, do not have the religious credentials for the country's top post. Nor do the other candidates, save Pourmohammadi possibly.

(Vikas Datta can be contacted at vikas.d@ians.in)
Mumbai, June 13 : Telecom service provider Vodafone Idea, on Thursday, said that its board has approved issuance of about 166.8 crore equity shares worth Rs 2,458 crore on a preferential basis.

In a stock regulatory filing, the company said that it will allot over 102.7 crore shares (1.48 per cent) aggregating to Rs 1,520 crore to Nokia Solutions and Networks India Private Limited.

The remaining over 63.7 crore shares (0.91 per cent) aggregating to Rs 938 crore will go to Ericsson India Private Limited, a non-promoter of the company.

The Board also approved convening of an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) on July 10.

Last month, the telecom operator announced to raise up to Rs 2,075 crore from Oriana Investments (Aditya Birla Group entity) via a preferential share issue.

After the allotment of equity shares, the paid-up equity share capital of Vodafone Idea increased from Rs 66,483.45 crore to Rs 67,878.88 crore, it said in the filing.

The company in April raised around 18,000 crore through a follow-on public offer.

Vodafone Idea reported a net loss of Rs 7,674 crore in the January-March quarter, compared to Rs 6,418.9 crore reported in the same quarter of 2022-23.

The shares of the company closed at Rs 16.08 apiece on Thursday.
Bhubaneswar, June 13 : The CBI on Thursday conducted massive search operations at around 67 places across Odisha in connection with a certificate forgery case.

aSearches at over 67 locations have been conducted in various districts of Odisha, including Kalahandi, Nuapada, Rayagada, Nabarangpur, Kandhamal, Kendujhar, Mayurbhanj, Balasore, and Bhadrak," said a CBI officer.

The CBI initiated the search on the basis of a complaint lodged by the Director of Postal Services, Bhubaneswar.

A case was registered by the CBI on May 9, 2023 under Sections 120-B, 420, 468, and 471, 511 of the IPC, and Section 7(a) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended in 2018) against 63 candidates of the Gramin Dak Sevak Exam, 2023 (Odisha Circle) and others including unknown officials of the postal department.

"This massive operation involved more than 204 officials, including 122 officers from CBI and 82 personnel from other departments, highlighting the scale and seriousness of the investigation," added the CBI officer.

As per the complaint, the postal department had sought online applications from eligible candidates for 1,382 Gramin Dak Sevak posts on January 27, 2023.

The eligible candidates were required to have a minimum 10th pass certificate from a recognised education Board with proficiency in the local language.

The applicants were required to upload their certificates and mark sheets on to a centralised server.

Selection was automated, based on the marks secured in the 10th standard.

Selected candidates were informed via SMS and email and were asked to report to the verifying authority within 15 days for document verification prior to their appointment.

"During the verification process, the Odisha Postal Circle allegedly discovered that 63 candidates from various postal divisions, including Baleswar, Mayurbhanj, Kalahandi, and Barhampur, had submitted forged or fake 10th pass certificates.

aThese certificates were allegedly issued by the Board of High School and Intermediate Education, Allahabad; West Bengal Board, Kolkata; Jharkhand Academic Council, Ranchi," added the official.

The postal department suspects the involvement of some interstate criminals in the certificate forgery racket.
Bengaluru, June 13 : In a major development, a special court in Bengaluru on Thursday issued a non-bailable warrant against veteran BJP leader and former Karnataka Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa in connection with the POCSO case, relating to the alleged sexual harassment of a minor, against him.

The First Fast Track Court, for Pocso cases, issued the warrant, considering the submission by the prosecution that Yediyurappa is powerful and there is information that he is presently located in another state.

Yediyurappa had attempted to hush up the case and also tried to lure the complainant by giving Rs 2 lakh to withdraw the complaint, it added.

The prosecution also brought to the notice of the court that Yediyurappa had not appeared for the investigation even after being issued notice.

Following the order, the Karnataka Police are preparing to arrest Yediyurappa in connection with the Pocso case.

Meanwhile, Yediyurappa on Thursday moved the Karnataka High Court seeking anticipatory bail in the case. The petition is yet to be taken up by the court.

Yediyurappa had also filed a petition seeking a stay on the probe and quashing of the case. The plea is likely to be taken up by the court on Friday.

The victim's mother, who passed away on May 26, had filed a case against Yediyurappa in March this year under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act, alleging harassment of her daughter when she went to the former CM's residence to seek help.

Meanwhile, a writ petition was submitted to Karnataka High Court on Wednesday, seeking Yediyurappaas arrest in the case. The victimas brother filed the writ petition, claiming that the police did not take any action despite months having passed since the complaint was filed against the veteran leader.

According to sources, the Congress government has decided to initiate legal action against Yediyurappa and appointed Special Public Prosecutor Ashok N. Nayak to represent the prosecution in the case.
Los Angeles, June 13 : California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) has urged students and staff to shelter in place after a group of pro-Palestinian protesters took over the university's student services building.

The protesters have been engaged in unauthorised protest activity on the lower floors of the building and barricaded the building, said Erik Frost Hollins, a university spokesperson, reports Xinhua news agency.

President of Cal State LA Berenecea Johnson Eanes, who was appointed last year and took office this January, is stuck sheltering in place in her office on the eighth floor of the building, reported local KABC television station.

Some social media posts show protesters fortifying their barricades outside the building as they wait for Eanes to negotiate with them.

The protest came two days after 25 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested Monday by police at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Students set up a "Gaza Solidarity Encampment" at Cal State LA on May 1, calling for the university and its partners to divest from doing business with Israel.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrations have been spreading at colleges and universities across California and the country amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza.
Bengaluru, June 13 : Karnataka Law Minister H.K. Patil clarified on Thursday that no special facilities are being provided to Kannada superstar Darshan, who has been arrested in connection with the murder of one of his fans.

"The shamiana installed on the premises of the police station is for the convenience of the additional staff deputed there in connection with the case," Patil told reporters here.

"Action has been initiated against Darshan as per the law. No special facility is provided to him just because he is a VIP. Considering the seriousness of the case, prohibitory orders under Section 144 of the CrPC have been imposed," the Minister added.

The police have clamped Section 144 in the surroundings of the Annapoorneshwari Nagar police station here.

Patil also reiterated that when additional staff are deputed, tents are erected to ensure their convenience.

"This is not done for any VIP; it is done in the interest of maintaining law and order. An accused is an accused. There is no room for special treatment according to the law. Our government will not allow anything of this sort to happen," he said.

Darshan, his partner and co-star Pavithra Gowda, and 11 others were arrested on Saturday on charges of murdering 33-year-old Renukaswamy, a resident of Chitradurga.

The probe revealed that Renukaswamy was a big fan of Darshan and had sent derogatory messages to Pavithra Gowda on social media. The victim was allegedly kidnapped, brought to Bengaluru, kept in a shed, and brutally tortured to death.
Kochi, June 13 : NBTC, the company which owns the labour camp at Mangaf in Kuwait which was recently gutted in a massive fire that left 49 dead, on Thursday announced ex-gratia payment of Rs 8 lakh each for the families of the deceased workers.

The company is co-owned by KG Abraham, a Keralite who has varied business interests in the Middle East and also owns a five-star hotel in Kochi.

In a press release issued on Thursday the firm expressed its deepest condolences to the families of the employees who passed away.

"We will pay to the family of every employee who passed away Rs 8 lakh. Besides, we will pay out the insurance when the claims are received. We will always be with the families and will offer employment to members in the family and other help," said NBTC.

Meanwhile, apart from the Rs 5 lakh compensation announced for the next of kin of the deceased by the Kerala government, business magnates MA Yusuf Ali and Ravi Pillai will be giving aid to the families also.

While MA Yusuf Ali will give Rs 5 lakh each, Ravi Pillai has announced he will be giving Rs 2 lakh each and this will be directed through the Norka department.

Kerala Health Minister Veena George is slated to arrive in Kuwait later in the day.
Mumbai, June 13 : Whisky pioneer Paul John has called for a significant shift in the liquor-consumption habits of Indians.

The Indian liquor baron, who owns the multiple award-winning John Distilleries, feels that as a country with a varied profile of liquor, we need to develop a palate for finer notes when it comes to liquor.

In an interview with IANS, John said that so far, the Indian liquor industry has been just selling rum to the consumers largely, and calling brandy or whiskey as different things.

"This has been happening for 200 years," John said, as he demanded a change in the consumption habits while also pointing at how single-malt is not supposed to be diluted with water, as is the common Indian practice.

"I don't know whether you can blame the Britishers because they introduced the system of Indian-made foreign liquor when they were making all this stuff like foreign liquor, but it was all completely Indian-made," he said.

"My challenge is to convert the Indian consumers' palette from rum to single-malt. Then I don't need to promote the brand Paul John Whisky as such, I just need to make the consumers develop an evolved sense of taste towards the flavour notes and the profile. If the consumer gets that right, my job is done," he told IANS.

"The Indian consumer needs to be served with higher-end liquor with a sense of flavour, the character of the liquid. Ideally, it should be had with either no water or very less water," he added.

India is a large country producing a substantial quantity of molasses. The liquor made from molasses is then given different names after adding colour to it.

"I think it's only in the last seven or eight years that the government has promoted a lot of grain-based distilleries where we have started making alcohol from different types of grains," John said, signalling at a paradigm shift at the cusp.

Recently, the Malhar Citrus Indian Craft Gin from John Distilleries Ltd (JDL) was awarded the gold medal, while the Malhar Classic Dry Indian Craft Gin bagged the bronze medal at the 2024 San Francisco World Spirits Competition in the US.

When asked what's the biggest challenge for his world-class liquors, John pointed out the arduous logistics process which easily takes 5-6 months for a bottle to land up at the stores abroad before it leaves the inventory in India.

John, who expects some logistical help from the authorities, said, "I would be happy if they could make it a lot easier. The shipping time takes almost three to six months before we can get a product into a retail shop in any particular country."

He then quoted an example of the Christmas edition, which is a limited number of bottles for the whole world.

"We start planning from February or March itself for the year. And then by April or May, we have to get it shipped out so that it reaches at least by October. I think this is an area where I would like to see some positive changes," the whisky pioneer told IANS.
Panaji, June 13 : Urging parents not to fall prey to scam phone calls alleging kidnapping of children, Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant on Thursday said that his government is communicating with the Centre to block the Virtual Private Network (VPN) tunnel to stop these calls.

Speaking to media persons, CM Sawant clarified that kidnappings have not taken place in the coastal state.

"I have verified with the Home Department, where I came to know that these scam phone calls are being received by parents from +92 code (Pakistan).

"Nobody should panic, don't give money. No kidnappings are taking place in Goa. These phone calls come through Virtual Private Network and they call from different countries," Sawant said.

"We have taken all security measures after receiving complaints in this regard to the Cyber Crime branch. They are investigating the case. We are communicating with the Central government to block such (scam) phone calls received through VPN," he said.

Director General of Police (DGP), Jaspal Singh had recently posted on 'X' saying, "All citizens are advised not to respond to this (+92) number if they receive any messages or requests. It is a Pakistan number."
Nagpur, June 13 : At least five workers were killed, and another eight injured when a massive blast ripped through an explosives manufacturing company in Maharashtra's Waddhamna town on Thursday, officials said.

The blast was reported at around 12 noon from the Chamundi Explosives Co. Ltd., situated on the Amravati-Nagpur Road, around 15 km from here.

Nagpur Commissioner of Police Ravinder Singhal told the media that at least five persons including 4 women, lost their lives in the tragedy and police teams have rushed to the site to probe.

Eyewitnesses said that the explosion was heard in a radius of several km followed by a fire with clouds of dark smoke billowing in the sky, alarming people in the vicinity, even as the nearby Hingna Police Station and fire brigade rushed teams to the factory.

The victims who are suspected to have perished instantly in the explosion have been identified as -- Pannalal Bandewar, 50 -- and four women, Vaishali Kshirsagar, 20, Prachi Phalke, 20, Pranjali Morde, 22 and Monali Aloney, 27.

Among the injured, including several women, the condition of at least one was described as very critical, and all have been rushed to a nearby hospital, while the cause of the explosion is being investigated.

This is the second major industrial tragedy in Nagpur in the past six months.

In December 2023, nine persons were killed in an explosion at the Solar Explosive Ltd factory.
New Delhi, June 13 : The Supreme Court on Thursday disposed of a plea filed by the Delhi government seeking additional supply of water from neighbouring states to address the raised water demand of the national capital.

A vacation bench, headed by Justice P.K. Mishra asked the city government to move an application before the Haryana government for the release of 150 cusecs of additional water on humanitarian grounds by 5 p.m. on Thursday, if not already made.

"Thereafter, the Upper Yamuna River Board shall convene a meeting tomorrow (Friday) and take a decision on the matter at the earliest. If need be, the board can convene on a day-to-day basis," ordered the Bench, also comprising Justice P.B. Varale.

The apex court emphasised that the issue concerning the sharing of water is complex and sensitive and must be left to the river board for resolution in terms of the MoU entered between parties in 1994.

Pertinently, the Advocate General representing Himachal Pradesh retracted an earlier statement made before the Supreme Court that it would release 137 cusecs of additional water for drinking purposes in the national capital. On Wednesday, the top court questioned Himachal Pradesh for making a "false" statement that it has excess water in reservoirs.

"If you are already releasing it, why was it not made known to the Upper Yamuna River Board? The other day, your Additional Advocate General said that this document (pertaining to 137 cusecs surplus water) was produced before the Board. Why are false statements made in the court?" it asked.

Also, the Supreme Court came down heavily on the Aam Aadmi Party-led Delhi government for not acting against tanker mafias in the city and cautioned that it would ask the Delhi Police for action to mitigate the water crisis in the national capital.

"If water is coming from Himachal Pradesh, where is the water going in Delhi? Have you taken any action or measures against these tanker mafias? There are reports that tanker mafias are working in Delhi and water is engulfed by them and you are not taking any action. If you are not taking any action, we will hand it over to Delhi Police to crack down on tanker mafias," it told the Delhi government.

The SC wondered how the water is supplied through tankers to the common public when pipelines are dry and empty.

In its petition filed before the apex court, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)-led Delhi government demanded that neighbouring states of Haryana and Himachal Pradesh be directed to release extra water for a month to address the extraordinary and excessive water demand of the city triggered due to a surge in summer temperature.
New Delhi, June 13 : Opening up organ exchange between unrelated individuals may enlarge the donor pool, but policy concerns and risks remain, said experts on Thursday.

Media reports on Thursday claimed that the Centre is in talks with NGOs and transplant surgeons about the prospects of opening up organ exchange between unrelated individuals.

The current laws majorly allow living donations from close relatives such as parents, siblings, children, spouses, grandparents, and grandchildren.

In the case of unrelated or altruistic organ donations, from distant relatives, in-laws, or long-time friends, additional scrutiny is done to rule out financial exchange.

"Allowing organ exchange between unrelated individuals could significantly expand the donor pool in India, saving countless lives.

"Medically, the primary concern is the risk of organ rejection, as genetic dissimilarity increases this risk. However, advancements in immunosuppressive therapies have made transplants between unrelated donors more feasible and successful," Dr. Sudeep Singh Sachdev - Director and Senior Consultant Nephrology, at Narayana Hospital Gurugram, told IANS.

"This will enlarge the donor pool and help patients waiting for transplants. At present India's donation rates are very low compared to countries with good transplant numbers," said Dr Bishnu Panigrahi, Group Head of Medical Strategy and Operations, at Fortis Healthcare.

However, the experts also stressed the need for strict regulatory controls.

"While the potential benefits include reduced wait times and better health outcomes for patients, the risks include higher chances of complications and the ethical dilemma of ensuring truly altruistic donations, free from coercion or financial incentives," Dr. Sudeep told IANS.

He also called for "robust regulatory frameworks and comprehensive pre-transplant evaluations."

"We need strict regulatory controls where for such non-related transplants the authorisation committee should not be a hospital authorisation panel but an external committee where at least two must be government nominees, a lawyer of standing and a social worker. These four must be the quorum, physically present for authorisation approval," Dr. Bishnu said.

However, not all experts believe in the need for altruistic organ donations in India.

Dr Arvinder Soin, Chairman and Chief Surgeon, at Medanta Institute of Liver Transplantation, told IANS that although it may increase the donation rates modestly, it also opens up the possibilities of exploitation of the poor by the rich.

He called for improving deceased donation rates in India, which currently stands at "a pathetic 0.7 per million compared to 38 per million in the US".

"I believe for India, unrelated altruistic donation is not the answer to improving transplant rates at this stage. Rather, all attempts should be made to promote deceased donor organ donation by widespread government and NGO-led public campaigns, mandatory declaration of brain death in all ICUs, and required requests from families of clinically brain-dead patients.

"This would yield far better dividends in terms of organ availability and save thousands of more lives," the doctor said.
New Delhi, June 13 : Proving once again that India remains a leader in providing unwavering support to its nationals at times of their need, Minister of State for External Affairs Kirtivardhan Singh reached Kuwait on Thursday to oversee assistance to those injured in Wednesday's fire tragedy and coordinate with the local authorities for early repatriation of mortal remains of around 40 Indians who died in the unfortunate incident.

Singh, who assumed charge as MoS for External Affairs only on Tuesday, travelled to Kuwait City on the direction of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has for over the past 10 years made it clear that the BJP-led NDA government accords the highest priority to the safety, security, and well-being of Indians staying abroad.

That Modi 3.0 will continue to work in a mission mode to ensure the well-being of the Indian citizens living abroad became evident on Wednesday, immediately after the news of the tragic fire at a labour housing facility in the Mangaf area of Kuwait City broke.

PM Modi, who had a busy day with two swearing-in ceremonies lined up in Andhra Pradesh and Odisha, was constantly tracking the developments in Kuwait City while on the move.

Adarsh Swaika, the Ambassador of India to Kuwait, immediately visited the accident site in Mangaf before meeting the injured Indian workers admitted to the Farwaniya Hospital and the Mubarak Al-Kabeer Hospital in Kuwait City, assuring them of the Embassy's full support.

The Indian government was also in constant touch with the relevant Kuwaiti law enforcement, fire service, and health authorities for necessary action and emergency medical care.

The magnitude of the incident was quite clear by the time the Prime Minister landed in Bhubaneswar.

"The fire mishap in Kuwait City is saddening. My thoughts are with all those who lost their near and dear ones. I pray that the injured recover at the earliest. The Indian Embassy in Kuwait is closely monitoring the situation and working with the authorities there to assist the affected," the Prime Minister posted on X at 5.30 p.m. on Wednesday.

Soon after, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) announced that the Prime Minister had directed that MoS External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh will be leaving for Kuwait to oversee assistance and coordinate with the local authorities.

A few hours later, PM Modi chaired a meeting at his residence in New Delhi to review the situation emerging out of the Kuwait tragedy.

External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, MoS Kirti Vardhan Singh, Principal Secretary to PM Pramod Kumar Mishra, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, and many other senior officials attended the meeting.

Ever since coming into power for the first time in 2014, it has been a hallmark of the Modi government to make all-out efforts to ensure the safety and security of Indians stranded abroad due to the Covid pandemic, international conflicts, calamities, or even fake job rackets.

Thousands of Indians have been safely evacuated from the war zones in Afghanistan, Ukraine, Sudan, pandemic-hit China and Cambodia where they were stuck after being lured with fake employment opportunities.

Between May 2020 and March 2022, the Indian government successfully facilitated the travel of approximately 3.20 crore people under the Vande Bharat Mission.

When the Russia-Ukraine war began in February 2022, PM Modi himself led from the front and spoke to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to ensure the safety, security, and safe evacuation of the Indian students stuck in the warzone.

PM Modi's efforts led to both parties declaring a ceasefire and opening up humanitarian corridors for facilitating the evacuation of civilians, including Indian students.
Jaipur, June 13 : Six Pakistani migrants were awarded Indian citizenship on Thursday in Jaipur at the Collectorate.

They had been trying for Indian citizenship for years, said officials.

These six people included Kavita Bai, Nirmaldas, Shabhagu Mal, Puri Bai, Mukesh Lal and Shankar Lal.

Additional District Collector (South) Shaifali Kushwaha handed over Indian citizenship certificates to them on the directions of District Collector Prakash Rajpurohit.

Speaking on the occasion, she said, "With Indian citizenship being awarded to six migrants, a total of 325 Pakistani migrants have been awarded Indian citizenship by the Jaipur District Administration so far."

After getting Indian citizenship, tears of joy rolled down the cheeks of Shankar Lal.

He said, "Today, the long wait of many years has ended and we can say with pride that we are Indians."

Shankar Lal said that he was unable to avail the benefits of government schemes due to lack of proof of Indian citizenship but now after getting it, not only has he got recognition but with the help of government schemes, he would be able to support his family in a better way.
New Delhi, June 13 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday left for Italy -- his first overseas visit after assuming office for the third consecutive term -- to attend the Group of Seven (G7) Summit being held in Apulia.

PM Modi will be attending the G7 Summit's Outreach Sessions on Friday at the invitation of Italy's Prime Minister Georgia Meloni.

"I am glad that my first visit in the third consecutive term is to Italy for the G-7 Summit. I warmly recall my visit to Italy for the G20 Summit in 2021. Prime Minister Georgia Meloni's two visits to India last year were instrumental in infusing momentum and depth in our bilateral agenda. We remain committed to consolidate the India-Italy strategic partnership, and bolster cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and the Mediterranean regions," PM Modi said in his departure statement.

This will be for the 11th time that India will be taking part in the G7 Summit and PM Modi's fifth consecutive participation.

"During the discussions at the Outreach session, the focus would be on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean. It will be an opportunity to bring greater synergy between the outcomes of the G20 Summit held under India's Presidency and the forthcoming G7 Summit, and deliberate on issues which are crucial for the Global South," said PM Modi.

Prime Minister Modi is also expected to hold a series of bilateral meetings with several leaders on the sidelines of the event.

The Ministry of External Affairs had stated on Wednesday that India's regular participation at the G7 Summit clearly points to increasing recognition and contribution of the efforts that New Delhi has been consistently making in trying to resolve global challenges, including those of peace, security, development and environment preservation.
Kolkata: Former West Bengal Education Minister Partha Chatterjee being produced at CBI court, in Kolkata on Dec 22, 2022. (Photo: Kuntal Chakrabarty/IANS). Image Source: IANS News

Kolkata, June 13 : The health condition of former West Bengal Education Minister Partha Chatterjee, the prime accused in the cash-for-school jobs case who is under judicial custody for over two years now, has deteriorated.

The authorities of the Presidency Jail where Chatterjee is lodged on Thursday wrote to the state-run S.S.K.M. Medical College & Hospital recommending proper treatment of the accused.

Sources in the prison department said that besides high blood pressure, Chatterjee's limbs have swollen for which he needs to undergo treatment.

Recently, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) probing the case tracked six additional properties indirectly held by the former Education Minister. The properties are located at Bolpur in Birbhum district and their current market value is worth a few crore rupees.

Sources said that out of the six properties, five are plots of land while the remaining is an independent house in Bolpur.
New Delhi, June 13, : The Environmental flows (E-flows) Monitoring System for real-time analysis of the water quality of the Ganga River was launched on Thursday as Union Jal Shakti Minister C.R. Paatil took charge of the ministry.

The E-flow Monitoring System, developed by the National Mission for Clean Ganga, is an integral component of the PRAYAG portal, a real-time monitoring centre for the planning and monitoring of projects, river water quality, and other crucial parameters.

This portal encompasses online dashboards such as the Ganga Tarang Portal, Project Management Tool Dashboard, and the Ganga Districts Performance Monitoring System.

Minister Patil said that this platform facilitates real-time analysis of the water quality of the Ganga, Yamuna, and their tributaries, and monitors the Namami Gange programme activities at the central level.

The performance of Sewage Treatment Plants (STPs) is monitored through the Online Continuous Effluent Monitoring System (OCEMS), ensuring that all STPs operate at their rated capacity. River water quality is also monitored at various locations.

The launch of the E-flow Monitoring System marks a significant step towards ensuring the continuous and sustainable flow of the Ganga River.

Utilising data from quarterly reports by the Central Water Commission, the system will track key parameters such as in-flow, out-flow, and mandated E-flow across 11 projects along the Ganga Main Stream.

The minister emphasised the importance of completing the ongoing projects under the Namami Gange Mission, including those involving the Ganga and its tributaries, within the stipulated time frame.

He also highlighted the need for innovative solutions to address emerging challenges and outlined a commitment to developing new strategies and visions for areas currently without river rejuvenation programmes.

During the event, the minister also reviewed the progress of the cleaning projects under the Namami Gange Programme aiming to ensure the uninterrupted flow and cleanliness of the Ganga River.

The Government of India has mandated minimum E-flow for various stretches of the Ganga River to be maintained year-round. The National Mission for Clean Ganga laid down the flow specifications essential for preserving the river's ecological balance, safeguarding aquatic life, and ensuring sustainability amidst diverse water usage demands.
Kolkata, June 13 : The Calcutta High Court on Thursday directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to include the name of Gorkha Janmukti Morcha (GJM) supremo Bimal Gurung in the case relating to the murder of environment activist and All India Gorkha League (AIGL) leader Madan Tamang in 2010.

On May 21, 2010, Madan Tamang was attacked by three assassins, led by the prime accused Nicole Tamang and was hacked to death with 'patangs' (small Gorkha daggers). Although Nicole Tamang was arrested by Darjeeling police, he managed to escape from custody. Later, the CBI took over the investigation and filed a charge sheet against 48 individuals, including Bimal Gurung and his wife Asha Gurung and GJM leader Roshon Giri, among others.

However, in 2017, a lower court provided relief to Gurung, directing that his name be expunged from the charge sheet. However, Tamangas wife Bharati Tamang approached the Calcutta High Court challenging the order.

After a prolonged hearing in the matter for around seven years, the Calcutta High Courtas single-judge bench of Justice Subhendu Samanta on Thursday directed the inclusion of Gurungas name in the case.

In his order, Justice Samanta held that the lower court judge had committed an error by separating/segregating Gurung from other accused persons. The judge also observed that it is quite impermissible to discharge an accused from a criminal case where his name is directly stated by the available witnesses regarding his involvement in the alleged offence.

"Bimal Gurung was cited as a leader of other Accused Persons. Thus complicity against Bimal Gurung has been sufficiently established at this stage," read the order, a copy of which is available with IANS.
New Delhi, June 13 : Amazon Web Services (AWS) on Thursday announced a $230 million commitment in Cloud credits to generative AI startups and the expansion of the global Generative AI Accelerator, which is aimed at helping 80 founders and innovators (including 20 from Asia-Pacific and Japan).

Over the course of the 10-week global programme, which kicks off on October 1, founders of selected generative AI startups will receive up to $1 million in AWS credits, business and technical mentorship within founders' industries and networking opportunities with industry experts.

The applications for the AWS Generative AI Accelerator are open and will be accepted till July 19.

The Amazon-owned company also announced the launch of new AWS Generative AI Spotlight programme in Asia Pacific and Japan (APJ), a four-week initiative to nurture pre-seed and seed-stage ready startups in the region who are building generative AI applications.

The programme will select up to 120 pre-seed and seed-stage ready startups across the region, including 40 from India, the company said in a statement.

"These two complementary accelerator programmes will help startups at various stages of growth in the APJ region to drive innovations on our generative AI stack," said Matt Taylor, Head of Startups Solutions Architecture, APJ at AWS.

In India, AWS is collaborating with venture capital firm Accel for the Generative AI Spotlight programme.

Last year, AWS collaborated with Accel to launch 'ML Elevate 2023', a six-week accelerator programme that supported 35 generative AI startups in India.

"Generative AI offers businesses immense potential to accelerate innovation, revolutionise industries, and drive economic growth," said Amitabh Nagpal, Head of Startup Ecosystem, AWS India.

"We invite eligible startups in India to apply for the programmes, and look forward to empowering startups that are driving generative AI-led transformation in the country," Nagpal added.

Applications for the AWS Spotlight Programme are open from June 13 to June 30 and selected startups will be announced in July.
New Delhi, June 13 : Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who left for Italy on Thursday evening to attend the Group of Seven (G7) Summit being held in Apulia, has a series of bilateral meetings lined up with several world leaders on the sidelines of the event.

PM Modi will attend the G7 Summit's Outreach Session on Friday at the invitation of Italy's Prime Minister Georgia Meloni.

Sources revealed that the Prime Minister will hold bilateral meetings on Friday, including with French President Emmanuel Macron, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky before leaving for Borgo Egnazia for the G7 meeting.

Following the Outreach session - which majorly focuses on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean - PM Modi is expected to hold bilaterals with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Italy's Prime Minister Georgia Meloni, and Japanese PM Fumio Kishida.

While there is a chance of them meeting informally during the official photo-op, there is no scheduled bilateral meeting between PM Modi and Canadian PM Justin Trudeau.

Meanwhile, US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters en route Brindisi that US President Joe Biden and PM Modi will have an "opportunity to encounter one another" during the G7 session.

"President Biden actually spoke with Prime Minister Modi over phone while we were in Paris to congratulate him on the election outcome and on being named Prime Minister for a third term," said Sullivan.

"He expects to see Prime Minister Modi here. It's up to the Indians to formally confirm his attendance, but we expect that the two of them will have the opportunity to encounter one another. What the nature of that encounter will be is still fluid because so much of the schedule is fluid," the US NSA added.

This will be Prime Minister Modi's first overseas visit after assuming office for the third consecutive term, and his fifth consecutive participation in the Summit.

"I am glad that my first visit in the third consecutive term is to Italy for the G-7 Summit. I warmly recall my visit to Italy for the G20 Summit in 2021. Prime Minister Meloni's two visits to India last year were instrumental in infusing momentum and depth in our bilateral agenda. We remain committed to consolidate the India-Italy strategic partnership, and bolster cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and the Mediterranean regions," the Prime Minister said in his departure statement.

It will be for the 11th time that India will be taking part in the G7 Summit.

"During the discussions at the Outreach session, the focus would be on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean. It will be an opportunity to bring greater synergy between the outcomes of the G20 Summit held under India's Presidency and the forthcoming G7 Summit, and deliberate on issues which are crucial for the Global South," said PM Modi.
Mumbai, June 13 : NCP chief Ajit Pawar's wife Sunetra Pawar, who was defeated by Sharad Pawar's daughter Supriya Sule from the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency, has been elected to the Rajya Sabha unopposed.

Thursday was the last day for filing nominations for the Rajya Sabha bypoll slated for June 25.

As Sunetra Pawar was the sole candidate who filed the nomination, she was elected to the Upper House unopposed. The Election Commission will issue a formal notification in this regard on June 18, the last date for withdrawing nomination.

With her election, Baramati will now have three MPs -- Sunetra Pawar and NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar in the Rajya Sabha, and Supriya Sule in the Lok Sabha.

The by-election was necessitated after NCP MP Praful Patel resigned from the Upper House. The opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) did not nominate its nominee due to the paucity of numbers.

Strongly defending the partyas move to nominate her, Sunetra Pawar said, "The decision was unanimous for which I thank NCP President Ajit Pawar, and party leaders and officer-bearers.aa

Asked if the NCP is now restricted only to Ajit Pawaras family, Sunetra Pawar said, "The decision on my candidature was taken by all the senior leaders of the party. Senior minister Chhagan Bhujbal and other party leaders were present when I filed my nomination. So I can clearly say that there is no resentment in the party."

"There was a demand from the people for my candidature. Many activists and office-bearers also raised the demand. But I requested our party workers not to insist on my candidature. But they wanted me as the candidate, so the party took this decision."

When asked if her son Parth Pawar was also interested in a Rajya Sabha seat, Sunetra Pawar said, "It was Parth who insisted that I should be the partyas official nominee for the Rajya Sabha."
Stuttgart, June 13 : Two-time champion Matteo Berrettini of Italy reached the quarterfinals in men's singles with a stylish win over Denis Shapovalov of Canada in the Stuttgart Open here on Thursday afternoon. The 28-year-old continued his dominant record at the event as he defeated Denis Shapovalov 6-4, 6-4 with a rock-solid second-round display. It was Berrettini's first victory in three ATP Tour head-to-head meetings between the two players, and he is now 11-1 in Stuttgart.

Stuttgart, June 13 (IANS) Two-time champion Matteo Berrettini of Italy reached the quarterfinals in men's singles with a stylish win over Denis Shapovalov of Canada in the Stuttgart Open here on Thursday afternoon. The 28-year-old continued his dominant record at the event as he defeated Denis Shapovalov 6-4, 6-4 with a rock-solid second-round display. It was Berrettinias first victory in three ATP Tour head-to-head meetings between the two players, and he is now 11-1 in Stuttgart.

Berrettini, the 2019 and 2022 champion at the grass-court ATP 250 event, is this week competing for the first time since Aprilas Monte-Carlo Masters. He missed Madrid, Rome, and Roland Garros but has made a strong return on the grass, a surface on which he excels.

The Italian star will play second seed Ben Shelton or qualifier James Duckworth next as he chases his seventh win in seven tour-level quarter-finals on grass.

Another player with a pedigree in Stuttgart, 2023 finalist Jan-Lennard Struff, also advanced to the quarterfinals on Thursday. The home favourite downed Arthur Rinderknech 6-4, 7-6(0) to reach the quarter-finals for the third time in his past four appearances at the event.

Struff will take on Brandon Nakashima in the last eight, after the American overcame Richard Gasquet 6-3, 6-4. Having begun the year as the World No. 134, the 22-year-old Nakashima has risen two spots to No. 68 in the ATP Live Rankings as a result of his Stuttgart run so far.
Jammu, June 13 : J&K DGP R.R. Swain said on Thursday that Pakistan is trying to disturb peace in the UT through its mercenaries, but asserted that the country's security forces would give a befitting reply to the enemy.

He also warned the local agents of the enemy that they would repent their decision to support militancy.

"You have stakes, including families, land and jobs unlike Pakistani militants who have nothing to lose," he said in remarks aimed at local supporters of militancy.

During the last 5 days, militants struck at four places in Reasi, Kathua and two places in the Doda district of the Jammu division.

Addressing reporters in the Reasi district, the DGP said that the starting point of militancy in J&K is across the border.

"The clear intent of the adversary is that if they cannot motivate locals for subversive activities to disturb the peaceful atmosphere in Kashmir, they send their own people after recruiting them there and forcibly pushing them into this side. The enemy agents are doing it (helping foreign militants) for money and narcotics. They will be identified and dealt with sternly. We want to warn them that while the foreign militants will get killed, those who are supporting them will repent," he said.

"We donat know whom they are sending here after picking them from jails. Those who are supporting them here have land, children and jobs and they will suffer."

"Pakistan seeks to use the tough terrain of Jammu and Kashmir by sending foreign militants into the forests and to disturb the peaceful atmosphere. This is the truth. Security forces are determined and promise-bound to maintain peace and eradicate militancy from Jammu and Kashmir. What will be our response? We are ready for the small loss because when a war is thrust upon us and militants stand before us to kill or get killed, we utilise all our resources and our effort is to give a befitting response. Since they donat have anyone to care about, their power to inflict loss appears more," he added.

The DGP noted that militancy had spread its tentacles to the Jammu region, especially Doda and Ramban in 1995, but it was completely wiped out by 2005.

"If we face the same type of challenge, rest assured that we are committed and promise bound to give them a befitting response and kill them one by one to maintain a peaceful atmosphere," he asserted.

The police chief reviewed security in Reasi district at a meeting held in Katra town and attended by senior officers of the district administration and police.
New Delhi, June 13 : The Delhi High Court has ordered the vacation of a mosque and madrasa, located in Sarai Kale Khan's Hazrat Nizamuddin area, paving the way for their demolition by civic authorities.

Vacation bench judge Justice Amit Sharma rejected the plea filed by Faizyab Masjid and Madrasa, which had challenged the authorities' decision to demolish the structures.

The court's decision came after the mosque's caretaker provided an undertaking to vacate the premises within one month and assured that no further efforts would be made to obstruct the demolition.

"In view of the undertaking given by the caretaker of the petitioner before this Court, respondents Nos 1 and 2 are directed to grant a period of one month to the petitioner or any other person claiming through it to vacate the subject premises i.e Mosque and Madrasa situated at Khasra No 17, Bhehlolpur Khadar, Sarai Kale Khan, Hazrat Nizamuddin, New Delhi," it ordered.

The court made it clear that no extensions would be granted beyond the stipulated time, stressing the necessity of the property for public purposes.

Following the caretaker's submission, the petitioner's counsel sought to withdraw the petition. Consequently, the court dismissed the plea as withdrawn.

The plea initially challenged the actions of the Delhi Police and Delhi Development Authority (DDA) to demolish the mosque and madrasa, scheduled for June 13. The petitioner argued that the demolition was illegal, arbitrary, and unconstitutional. Additionally, the plea demanded that the authorities provide the petitioner with copies of the orders, minutes of meetings, and file notings that led to the demolition decision.

The petitioner also sought adequate time to pursue appropriate legal remedies and requested a status quo until these steps were taken.
S-hertogenbosch, June 13 : ' Australia's Alex de Minaur romped into the quarterfinals of the Libema Open in 's-Hertogenbosch on Thursday making a winning start in the ATP Tour event played on grass. The Australian held off Zizou Bergs for a 7-5, 6-4 opening victory as he competes as the top seed for the first time in his tour-level career.

as-Hertogenbosch, June 13 (IANS) Australia's Alex de Minaur romped into the quarterfinals of the Libema Open in as-Hertogenbosch on Thursday making a winning start in the ATP Tour event played on grass. The Australian held off Zizou Bergs for a 7-5, 6-4 opening victory as he competes as the top seed for the first time in his tour-level career.

The World No. 9 handled the pressure with aplomb as he rallied from an early 1-4 deficit to notch a straight-sets win in one hour and 41 minutes. De Minaur won 86 percent (32/37) of points behind his first serve, according to Infosys ATP Stats, to extend his winning record against Belgian opponents to 7-0. He has now won his past seven opening rounds on grass, and the 25-year-old will next take on Roberto Bautista Agut or Milos Raonic in the quarterfinals

There was double American joy earlier in the day in the Netherlands, where Tommy Paul and Sebastian Korda both won to ensure they would face off in the quarter-finals.

The second-seeded Paul pulled through a sticky start to his grass-court season to register a 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 triumph against Alexei Popyrin. It was the World No. 13as first victory in three attempts in as-Hertogenbosch, where he is now into his fifth tour-level quarterfinal on grass.

Korda battled past Luca Nardi 7-5, 7-5 to reach the last eight on his event debut. The seventh seed leads Paul 3-1 in the pairas ATP head-to-head series: Korda beat his countryman three times at the ATP 250 level in 2021 before Paul prevailed in five sets at the 2022 US Open. None of their previous clashes were played on grass.

In a match that began on Wednesday evening, Aleksandar Vukic overcame fourth seed Karen Khachanov 6-4, 5-7, 7-6(4). The pair returned to court on Thursday afternoon at one set all, and it was the Australian World No. 87 who held his nerve to complete the upset and reach his maiden ATP Tour quarterfinal on grass. Vukic will next take on defending champion and home favourite Tallon Griekspoor.
Patna, June 13 : In a bureaucratic re-shuffle, the Bihar government on Thursday transferred several IAS officers including Additional Chief Secretary of the Education Department, K.K. Pathak.

A government notification mentioned that Pathak had been given the charge of Additional Chief Secretary at the Revenue and Land Reforms Department.

Chief Minister's Principal Secretary S. Siddharth has been given an additional charge as Additional Chief Secretary of the Education Department.

K.K. Pathak was on leave for a month.

Ever since Pathak joined the Education Department, he has been in discussions for "controversial reasons".

According to sources, of late, he was not in "good terms" with Raj Bhavan.

After K.K. Pathak went on leave, a meeting of the Education Minister, Additional Chief Secretary of Education Department, S. Siddharth and Vice Chancellors were held at Raj Bhavan under the chairmanship of the Governor.

Due to the growing controversy, K.K. Pathak's departure from the Education Department was considered certain and eventually, on Thursday, he was moved out of the Education Department.

Meanwhile, Arvind Kumar Chaudhary, Principal Secretary at the Finance Department, has been made Principal Secretary of the Home Department.

He will be in additional charge of the Monitoring Department till further orders.
Hyderabad, June 13 : At least 150 Mahila Shakti canteens will be established in Telangana over the next two years, Chief Secretary Santhi Kumari said on Thursday.

Planned on the lines of 'Didi Ki Rasoi' canteens in West Bengal and similar canteens being run in Kerala, they are aimed at strengthening women's groups in the state.

On the direction of Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy, the Chief Secretary held a review meeting on Thursday at the Secretariat on Mahila Shakti canteen services to be launched across the State.

The state government has set a target of setting up at least 150 canteens in the next two years. The management of these canteens will be handed over to the rural women's groups and also special training will be given to these groups on the management of canteens.

She directed the Commissioner of Panchayat Raj and Rural Development, Anita Ramachandran, to prepare a detailed action plan on the functioning, management and also the space required for the establishment of canteens.

Special canteens will be set up in all government offices, district Collectorates, tourist places, various temples, bus stands, industrial areas with the assistance of women organisations.

Officials have done a study on the successful performance of canteens running in Kerala and 'Didi Ki Rasoi' in West Bengal.

Revenue Principal Secretary Naveen Mittal, Panchayat Raj Commissioner Anita Ramachandran, Health Department Commissioner Karnan, Endowment Commissioner Hanumantha Rao, Tourism Director Nikhila, Tourism Corporation MD Ramesh Naidu and others attended the meeting.
Ahmedabad, June 13 : A man who was attempting to travel to the UK using a forged passport has been apprehended at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport here, an official said on Thursday.

Dilip Rajubhai Modhwadia was intercepted by an Immigration Officer who discovered the passport was fake during a routine inspection of suspicious passengers.

The man was eventually arrested while the seizure of the bogus passport was done by the Special Operations Group (SOG), which has launched a further investigation.

Modhwadia allegedly paid Rs 22 lakh to acquire the fake passport.

"Modhwadia, originally from Porbandar, was preparing to fly to the UK when the immigration officer's suspicion led to a thorough investigation, revealing that the passport was counterfeit. The passport was discovered to have been created using false documents from Valsad, showing a place of birth in Dwarka. The SOG identified that the passport was obtained through an agent named Raju Bagon, who also arranged a six-month visa for Modhwadia," a source said.

The authorities are now probing how the payment was made to the agent and investigating the extent of the racket involved in producing and distributing fake documents.

They are also looking into how many individuals have been sent abroad on bogus passports and identifying all those involved.
Gangtok, June 13 : Krishna Kumari Rai, the wife of Sikkim Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang, quit as the MLA from Namchi Singhithang just a day after taking oath of office.

Chief Minister Tamang's Sikkim Krantikari Morcha (SKM) swept the Assembly elections held recently by winning 31 out of the 32 seats, besides winning the lone Lok Sabha seat in the state.

Meanwhile, after his wife stepped down as the MLA, the Chief Minister said that it was a unanimous decision taken by the SKM.

"My wife has vacated her seat in alignment with the unanimous decision of the party, prioritising its welfare and objectives. It is important to note that, at the request of the parliamentary committee of the SKM, she contested the elections for the welfare of our party.

"SKM is committed to providing opportunities to the genuine and dedicated party functionaries. To the residents of Namchi-Singithang, I assure you that you will continue to have a dedicated and genuine MLA who will serve your interests," the Chief Minister said.

In a statement issued earlier, Krishna Kumari Rai said, "With a very heavy heart, I write to inform you that I have officially submitted my resignation from the Namchi-Singithang constituency. I had never imagined that I would enter electoral politics so soon, and to garner the overwhelming support of everyone was beyond my imagination, for which I am forever grateful."

"I have always viewed politics as a social activity, and the reason I entered the election was because I had to honour the decisions made by the parliamentary board and the party president," she added.

Rai also asserted that the new candidate for the Namchi-Singithang constituency will be a committed and dedicated person who will serve the people of this Assembly segment.

The Speaker of the legislative Assembly has accepted Rai's resignation.
Jaipur, June 14 : Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar along with his wife Dr. Sudesh Dhankhar arrived in Rajasthan on Thursday on a two-day visit.

The Vice President and his wife reached Jaisalmer on Thursday. From there, they went to Tanot Mata temple by helicopter and offered prayers for the happiness, prosperity and well-being of all the countrymen.

The Vice President was given a guard of honour by the troopers of the Border Security Force (BSF).

Later, the Vice President reached the Bawalianwala post on the international border and met the BSF troopers deployed there. Praising BSF jawans who are protecting the country's borders in difficult circumstances, he said that it is because of their courage and sacrifice that all the countrymen can sleep peacefully.

Interacting with the BSF jawans, the Vice President further said that their contribution, hard work and dedication are commendable as they serve the country in very challenging conditions. He said that today's India is different. "It is among the fastest growing economies, in a few years we will be the third largest economy in the world."

Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar told the BSF troopers that he has been a student of Sainik School, which is why he has a lot of affection towards soldiers.

"When I saw the girls here, I never thought that our daughters would do such an excellent job. Daughters are moving forward shoulder to shoulder today. Even in this difficult situation, your dedication towards the nation is exemplary, I wish that all of you remain happy," he said.

Thanking the Vice President, BSF Director General Nitin Agarwal said that the Vice President's initiative of visiting the post to encourage jawans amidst difficult conditions and weather infused a new energy in everyone.

On Friday, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar will participate in a function at the headquarters of 154 Battalion, BSF, and will interact with jawans and officers.
Bengaluru, June 14 : The Karnataka BJP on Thursday accused the Congress government in the state of pursuing vendetta politics in the POCSO case involving former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa in retaliation for dragging Rahul Gandhi to court in a defamation case.

In a major development, a special court in Bengaluru on Thursday issued a non-bailable warrant against veteran BJP leader Yediyurappa in connection with a POCSO case against him relating to the alleged sexual harassment of a minor.

Questioning Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, former BJP national General Secretary C.T. Ravi told reporters here, "Is this not politics of hatred? CM Siddaramaiah claimed he wouldnat pursue the politics of hatred, but now he is doing just that. The people of the state will question this.

"The people are asking why the government was inactive for four months after the POCSO case was lodged against Yediyurappa. Home Minister G. Parameshwara had even stated that there was no substance in the case."

Ravi also said it is an open secret that since Rahul Gandhi was dragged to court in Bengaluru, the Congress wants the BJP to be dragged to court as well.

"We will honour the court order in Yediyurappa's case. But this is a political conspiracy. The alleged incident took place on February 2, and the case was lodged in March. Yediyurappa had gone to the police station to record his statement. But the police told him that it was not necessary, and later recorded his statement at his residence," Ravi said.

Commenting on the matter, N. Ravikumar, BJP MLC and the party chief whip in the Legislative Council, said that there is no substance or truth in the case.

"Home Minister Parameshwara had said that the complainant is mentally challenged and has lodged more than 60 cases against IAS/IPS officers, and politicians. The government itself had said that this case was not important. Despite Yediyurappa conveying to the police that he was ready to give a statement, the police asked him not to come to the police station and later collected his voice sample in April," he said, adding that the entire matter is a conspiracy hatched by the Congress in retaliation to Rahul Gandhi being dragged to court in a defamation case.

"The CM, Deputy CM, and Home Minister have acted on the advice of Congress' Karnataka in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala and hatched this conspiracy," Ravikumar alleged.

"The Congress, which did not act in the last four months, has suddenly woken up. They have obtained a non-bailable arrest warrant and want to arrest Yediyurappa. This is highly condemnable," said BJP MLC Chalawadi Narayanaswamy.
Kohima, June 14 : The Naga Students' Federation (NSF) on Thursday appealed to the people of Nagaland to elect "Nagas by blood and not by adoption" in the June 26 elections to urban local bodies (ULBs) in the state.

NSF Vice President Mteisuding said that electing non-Nagas to local governance would pose a significant risk to the preservation of the Naga cultural heritage.

The NSF, in collaboration with like-minded organisations and subordinate bodies, reiterated its firm stance on the paramount importance of indigenous representation in the forthcoming ULB polls as Naga people have a glorious history and vibrant culture that are intricately woven into the fabric of the governance structures, he told the media.

"Observance of customary laws and traditional practices are not just symbolic gestures but are the very essence of Naga identity. These practices have been handed down through generations and are vital for maintaining social cohesion," Mteisuding said, expressing his fear that electing non-Nagas "would disrupt the traditional systems that have long sustained the communities and dilute the cultural legacy that defines Nagas as a people".

The NSF firmly believed that indigenous representation in local governance is not just a matter of political reason but a basic necessity for the survival of Naga cultural identity, he claimed and demanded that women married to non-locals, and non-Nagas and their children be excluded from contesting the ULB elections.

"The NSF urged the people to apply their wisdom while voting in the ULB polls and elect indigenous Naga candidates to the decision-making bodies of local self-governance and thereby protect the tradition and culture of the Nagas," Mteisuding stated.

Under Article 371A of the Constitution, Nagaland enjoys certain special provisions including the community's customary laws. Significantly, the upcoming local body polls in three municipal councils and 36 town councils are the first-ever municipal elections in the state to be held with 33 per cent reservation for women. The ULB polls were delayed by around 20 years after the tribal bodies and civil society organisations were against the reservation.

After hectic consultations with the Naga organisations and civil societies by the state government, the state Assembly, in November last year, passed the Nagaland Municipal Bill 2023 with 33 per cent reservation for women. In Nagaland, over 95 per cent of the land and its resources belong to the people and the community while the government owns only about 5 per cent of the total area, including reserve forests, and roads.
New Delhi, June 14 : India will bring back the bodies of 45 of its nationals killed in a devastating fire in Kuwait City on Wednesday by a special flight which will land in Kochi on Friday morning before heading for Delhi, the Indian Embassy in Kuwait said in a statement on Thursday night.

According to the statement, most of the deceased are from Kerala (23), followed by seven from Tamil Nadu, three each from Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh, two from Odisha, and one each from Bihar, Punjab, Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Jharkhand, and Haryana.

Minister of State for External Affairs, Kirti Vardhan Singh, acting on the directions of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, reached Kuwait on Thursday forenoon to coordinate with the Kuwaiti government for the early repatriation of the mortal remains of the deceased as well as to ensure the well-being of those injured in the tragic fire incident at a labour housing facility in the Mangaf area on Wednesday, the statement said.

Out of the 176 Indian workers in the housing facility, 45 have died, while 33 are hospitalised and the rest are reportedly safe.

Immediately upon his arrival, the Minister visited five hospitals (Adan, Mubarak Al-Kabeer, Jaber, Farwaniya and Jahra), where the injured Indians are being treated, and interacted with them. According to hospital authorities, all the patients are reportedly safe and will be discharged progressively depending on their medical condition.

Kirti Vardhan Singh also called on First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Defence & Interior, Sheikh Fahad Yousef Saud AI-Sabah, who conveyed the condolences on behalf of Kuwait's ruler, Sheikh Meshal AI-Ahmad Al-Jaber AI-Sabah, and assured full support and assistance for early repatriation of mortal remains of the deceased and proper medical care and attention to all those who are hospitalised.

The Minister also called on the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Abdullah Ali AI-Yahya, and Health Minister, Ahmad Abdelwahab Ahmad Al-Awadi, and both assured full support of the Kuwaiti government.

The Embassy, expressing its deepest condolences to the bereaved families, said that it has been in constant touch with the local authorities, ensuring all necessary assistance to those injured and those who have been safely evacuated from the accident site.

It said it has been operating a dedicated 24x7 helpline +965-65505246 (Whatsapp and regular call) for the family members of the deceased as well as those injured. Regular updates are being provided through the helpline.
Bengaluru, June 14 : Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar on Thursday said that the Forest Department has agreed to hand over 500 acres of land, which impeded the implementation of the ambitious Yettinahole Integrated Drinking Water Supply Project.

The project is aimed at mitigating the problem of acute drinking water in drought-prone areas of Chikkaballapur, Kolar, and other needy areas of Hassan, Chitradurga, Tumkur, Ramanagar, and Bangalore Rural districts of the state.

Deputy CM Shivakumar, who is also the Irrigation Minister, was speaking to reporters after holding a meeting with Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda, Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre, Karnatakaas Special Representative in New Delhi T.B. Jayachandra, and officials of various departments.

aWe have discussed expediting the Yettinahole and Upper Bhadra Projects with Forest Minister Khandre, Jayachandra, and officers of the concerned departments. The Forest Department is providing the required 500 acres of land for the Yettinahole project. In turn, the Revenue Department will hand over 500 acres of land to the Forest Department. The procedure will be completed within the legal framework," the Deputy CM said.

Officials have identified the roadblocks for these projects and discussed solutions during the meeting. "In 20 locations, stretching for 250 km, there were issues concerning the Forest Department. Clearances were required from the Forest authorities, and hence the meeting was held with the concerned ministers," he said.

The Revenue, Irrigation, and Forest Departments are conducting a joint survey, and a request has been made to expedite the work. The farmers are to be paid Rs 41 crore in pending money, Deputy CM Shivakumar said.
On June 11, the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled that the state Department of Education overstepped its authority by attempting to force the Edmond Public School district to remove two books the state had deemed inappropriate from its school library shelves, holding that new state rules enacted last year to govern book content in the states public schools had no basis in law.

We conclude a local school board possesses statutory authority to maintain and control its local school library, and one aspect of this control includes discretionary selection for providing supplemental educational books and instructional material deemed appropriate by the local school board in compliance with state statutes, the unanimous decision reads. No statute gives the State Board of Education, State Department of Education, and Superintendent of Public Instruction the authority to overrule a local school board's exercise of discretion in applying its local community standards for books in a local school library.

The decision comes after state superintendent Ryan Walters oversaw the creation of new rules governing library content in schools last year, including the inception of a library media review committee to assess content. The move drew national headlines after it was disclosed that far-right social media star Chaya Raichik, who runs the controversial account Libs of TikTok, was appointed to the committee.

In January, the state DOE demanded that the Edmond district remove The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini and The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls from its school library, citing sexual content. The state threatened to go after the schools accreditation status if it refused to comply, despite the states attorney general concluding that the DOE lacked authority to enforce the new rules.

In February, the Edmond district asked the state Supreme Court to rule in the dispute. And in its decision this week, the court accused the state of attempting to exercise unauthorized quasi-judicial authority over the district, and held that state law explicitly gives local school boards control over its the books in its libraries.

In a statement, school officials praised the courts decision, and said the ruling wasnt about the books in question but, more broadly, about who gets to choose them. Todays decision protects our locally elected school boards role in creating policies that determine how library materials are selected and reviewed, reads a statement issued by the district.

PEN America Freedom to Read program assistant Madison Markham, in her own statement, added: After being accused by State Superintendent Walters of peddling porn, school libraries are once again free to curate according to their own local standards and librarians professional expertise. Other states, including South Carolina and Utah, should take heed as they attempt to exert increased state control over local decision making.
Peter Brown and Steven Gaines. St. Martins, $32 (352p) ISBN 978-1-25028-501-0

Forty years after The Love You Make, Brown, former COO of Apple Corps, the Beatles media corporation, and journalist Gaines reunite for a revealing oral history of the forces that spurred the bands breakup, which was first announced in 1970. Drawing from a trove of never before published conversations with each band member, except for John Lennon, and their intimates, the account touches on shifty characters within the groups orbit, including Magic Alexis Mardas, who almost talked the Beatles into buying four Greek islands; Lennons descent into heroin addiction; and the fraying friendship between Paul McCartney and Lennon as the two fought over shares in the Beatles business ventures. There are also plenty of tender moments, including Yoko Onos musings on the genesis of her relationship with Lennon while he was still married to his first wife, Cynthia; their love was bigger than both of us, Ono claims. Taken together, the interview transcripts reveal that the time had come for the bands split: Realistically, how long could they go on being a Beatle and feel creatively satisfied? Brown and Gaines write. Nearly all the interviews were conducted in the two months before Lennons 1980 murder, casting a melancholy shadow over his estrangement from McCartney, who seemed to have been softening toward his former bandmate (I still do feel for the guy.... I still see that he thinks hes the one who was hurt). Beatles fans will be impatient to get their hands on this. (Apr.)
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John Cena has been announced as this year's Shark Week host.

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Discovery Channel said in a press release Thursday that Cena, an actor and WWE star, will host the 36th Shark Week, a weeklong programming block celebrating sharks.

"I usually do Shark Week from my couch -- with lots of snacks, but this year I'm beyond excited to host the week dedicated to the endlessly fascinating, action heroes of the Ocean," Cena said in a statement. "It's a wild week of shocking new footage, new discoveries, and lots and lots of teeth."

This year's Shark Week will feature 21 hours of new programming, including a new chapter of Belly of the Beast, Monster Hammerheads: Species X and Great White Serial Killer: Sea of Blood.

Cena will host, preview top moments each night, and interview fan favorite shark experts.

Shark Week kicks off July 7 at 8 p.m. EDT on Discovery Channel.

Warner Bros. Discovery channels, including Food Network, HGTV, ID, TBS, TNT, TCM, TLC, CNN and Max, will also air Shark Week-inspired content.

This year's Shark Week programming includes:

FOLLOW REALITY TV WORLD ON THE ALL-NEW GOOGLE NEWS!

Reality TV World is now available on the all-new Google News app and website. Click here to visit our Google News page, and then click FOLLOW to add us as a news source!

Belly of the Beast: Bigger and Bloodier, July 7 at 8 p.m. EDT

Marine biologist Dr. Austin Gallagher, marine scientist Liv Dixon, and legendary cameraman Kina Scollay travel to a new location and head back into the belly of a 29-foot whale decoy with new shark attractant features to create the biggest feeding frenzy ever with 18-foot 'Breeder' sharks in New Zealand.

Great White Serial Killer: Sea of Blood, July 8 at 10 p.m.

After two fatal great white shark attacks occurred off a small Mexican fishing village, shark attack survivor Paul De Gelder joins shark investigator Brandon McMillan and local biologist Gador Mutaner to launch a plan to ID the killers and keep the villagers in the Sea of Cortez safe.

Monster Hammerheads: Species X, July 9 at 10 p.m.

Dr. Austin Gallagher and his team of researchers including Liv Dixon, Zandi Ndhlovu, and Dr. Tristan Guttridge, investigate an aggressive population of Hammerhead Sharks in Turks and Caicos, which they believe could be an entirely new species.

Great White North, July 10 at 8 p.m.

There's a growing population of aggressive White Sharks in an unlikely location, Canada. Shark expert Andy Casagrande heads out on an expedition along Nova Scotia's coast to investigate a surge of great white shark encounters and figure out if this new population could be the largest in the world.

Caught! When Sharks Attack, July 11 at 9 p.m.

Researchers are witnessing an unusual amount of shark aggression and attacks. A team of experts will analyze the most intense shark encounters Caught! on camera, unveiling mysterious new behaviors within these dangerous interactions.

Shark Attack Island, July 12 at 10 p.m.

A South Pacific paradise has become a shark attack hot spot with bull, tiger, and great white sharks moving closer and closer to the resort beaches, fatally attacking seven people in the last five years. Dr. Riley Elliot, Paul De Gelder, and Kori Burkhardt conduct experiments to identify the species responsible and find out why they are attacking.

Mothersharker: Hammer Time, July 13 at 9 p.m.

Using the latest underwater ultrasound and birthing tag technology, researchers Dr. James Sulikowski and Beckah Campbell aim to solve the mystery of where the elusive pregnant scalloped hammerheads give birth -- and it may be closer than anyone realizes.
Producers announced in a press release Wednesday that Cameron Van Hoy will direct The Prince, a new film written by David Mamet.

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The cast includes Scott Haze, Nicolas Cage Giancarlo Esposito and Andy Garcia . The plot was not included in the press release.

Van Hoy made his feature directing debut with 2021's Flinch after directing three shorts. Van Hoy wrote Flinch himself.

Haze is also producing alongside Sean Wolfington, Jo Henriquez and Lije Sarki, with John Devaney, CJ Kirvan and Jose Luiz Zapata serving as executive producers.

Haze appears in this summer's Horizon: An American Saga. He recently starred in Sound of Freedom and Jurassic World Dominion.

Cage will next be seen in the horror film Longlegs out in July. Cage has also signed onto a live-action Spider-Man Noir series, based on his Spider-Verse animated character, for MGM+.

Mamet wrote plays Glengarry Glen Ross, which he adapted into a film, and Sexual Perversity in Chicago which was twice adapted into films called About Last Night. Mamet's original films include Heist, Spartan and Redbelt.
Green tip 5.56x45mm NATO rounds, properly called M855 rounds, have been a subject of much debate and controversy in recent years. To help clear the air (as much as we ever can around an issue like this, anyway), we wanted to take this time to talk about all things green tip.

Well cover what exactly it is, why its such a spicy topic, what you can actually shoot it out of, and more. Lets dive right in.

WHAT IS GREEN TIP 5.56?

Originally called SS109, when it was introduced in the 70s, what we currently know as M855 or Green Tip 5.56 ammo was originally developed by the Belgians, and then passed NATO certification trials and was adopted formally.

It was then picked up by the US to replace generally low-quality M193 5.56 ammo in the early 80s, rechristened the M855, and was off to the races.

Incidentally, the green tip that has become somewhat iconic (and apparently scary) in the years since came about as a result of the US military wanting a way to differentiate the newer M855 from the older, crappier, M193, which was mostly relegated to training use and National Guard units.

Ammo manufacturers quickly started making M855 for the civilian market, and like most gun-related bits and bobs the military uses, it quickly caught on and started selling like hotcakeswell, if people actually bought hotcakes.

Knights firearm collection is unparalleled. Heres an Armalite AR-15, serial number 000001, rescued from a storage closet at Fairchild Corporation. It was a prototype of the 5.56mm rifle that would become the U.S. Army M-16.

A few companies started putting an X in front of the name, changing it to XM855, basically just to denote that it was being sold to civilians. Its not actually any different, so dont panic if you see it on a shelf or in a product listing somewhere.

In the years since, even though M193 isnt used by the military anymore, M855 has kept the green tip in order to differentiate it from other rounds like M995 black tip ammo, which is actually armor piercing.

Oh yeah, we should mention: Green tip ammo isnt armor-piercing, by almost any definition.

I mean, yeah, if you go back in time to the Battle of Hastings, Agincourt, or any other medieval conflict featuring knights in plate armoryou could do some damage. Today though, M855 has a much harder time against modern body armor.

Thats because most of the round is in fact just lead like any other, so you dont really get the armor-piercing effect of a steel penetrator or tungsten core that could actually defeat kevlar or steel plates. Basically, M855 sucks against armor, which is why we have M995.*



*If youve ever played Escape From Tarkov, you probably already knew that.

The round does have a 7-grain semi-steel core, but it's such a small percentage of the round that it doesnt really change armor penetration characteristics an appreciable amount.

But there are a lot of things in this world that isn't armor. What is the difference between cover and concealment? You won't know until you shoot it.

Sure, the 7-grain penetrator isn't useful against armor, but it does penetrate other stuff better than 55gr ball. If you're in a situation where shooting through a car door, cinder blocks, or dry wall is important  M855 does it better than M193. It isn't amazing at it, there are better tools for the job, but for 5.56 NATO that you can afford, M855 isn't bad.

Today, M855 has been the subject of debate in Congress and online because some folks have attempted to label it an armor-piercing round. The ATF was then caught by their own regulations of what defines an armor-piercing round, and the fact that M855 doesnt meet said definition.

Will that change? Who knows. It doesnt seem to be a big priority right now, and M855 is easily purchasable through a variety of retailers. ATF regulations, as we all know, are always subject to change and reinterpretation.

WHAT IS GREEN TIP 5.56 GOOD FOR?

Shooting. And maybe SHTF. Technically, M855 is better at penetrating barriers like thin walls and car doors than normal 55gr lead 5.56 is, but this really isnt an attractive characteristic for most normal shooters.

This is bad for home defense since you run a much higher risk of overpenetration through walls. Even if youre not worried about overpenetration, M855 isnt advantageous on soft targets, either. Because of the steel penetrator, M855 normally acts more like an ice pick when it hits soft tissue and just pokes a hole straight through. In other words, its not a great pick for stopping bad guys.

One small problem with M855 is that not all shooting ranges allow you to use it. The steel tip isnt really armor piercing, but it is damaging to steel targets and is a higher fire risk than standard ammo. Because of this, a LOT of public and private ranges ban the use of this ammo since they dont want their targets damaged or the land burnt down.

No M855!

So if its bad for home defense and hard to plink or train with why get it?

Well, there is still SHTF. If robots take over the world or shooting through car doors and soft cover becomes a core part of your daily life, M855 will help. That's one of the reasons it's popular with tin-foil-hat people Preppers.

The big reason M855 was popular was because it was cheap. Or at least cheaper. But while that was almost always true pre-COVID, it isn't so much anymore.

As of 6/12/2024, M855 can be had online for about 39.5 cents per round. The cheapest newly manufactured brass cased .223 Remington starts at 38 cents per round.

Since were still in an ammo shortage, the prices arent great. Before COVID, I remember seeing M855 for five or more cents less than other comparable options.

WHAT CAN YOU SHOOT GREEN TIP 5.56 IN?

If you want to shoot Green Tip 5.56x45mm NATO, otherwise known as M855 or XM855, you have a couple of options.

First, if you have any 5.56x45mm gun, you can run this ammo. That means almost all of your off-the-shelf AR-15s, Ruger Mini-14, Steyr Aug, any of the 2.6 billion 5.56 AR-15-style rifles out there, etc. If itll handle any 5.56x45mm ammo, it can shoot green tip ammo.

Not an AR-15, still 5.56 NATO

Technically, 5.56 NATO ammo shouldn't be used in .223 Remington chambers. The details are a little more fuzzy than that, but let's just say don't do it.

That said, you can also shoot green tip ammo out of a .223 Wylde chamber if you have one of those lying around.

The .223 Wylde chamber combines some of the geometry of the 5.56 chamber with some of the throat dimensions of the .223 Remington chamber to create a chamber that can handle higher pressures while keeping the accuracy advantages of the .223 Remington chamber.

LOOSE ROUNDS

Hopefully, that clears the air around the M855 round! This simple little loading has been the subject of much-heated discussion, which always brings with it a host of misinformation, even from well-intentioned folks.

Now you should know all the important bits, and feel better about running this ammo in your guns.
In May, MFs were the net sellers in several PSUs, as they deployed Rs 47,600 crore in equities during the month.

IMAGE: Results for India's general elections on a screen inside the Bombay Stock Exchange, June 4, 2024 Photograph: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters

Mutual funds cashed in on their investments in public sector undertaking (PSU) ahead of the general election results.

In May, MFs were the net sellers in several PSUs, as they deployed Rs 47,600 crore (Rs 476 billion) in equities during the month.

Canara Bank led the list of the most sold stocks by fund managers in May with an estimated pull out of Rs 2,270 crore (Rs 22.70 billion), according to a Nuvama Alternative & Quantitative Research report.

The list of the 30 most sold stocks featured names of nine PSUs, compared to four in April.

The aggregate redemption in these nine stocks, which also included Bharat Electronics, Punjab National Bank, and GAIL, amounted to Rs 9,570 crore (Rs 95.70 million).

Only one PSU -- IRFC -- was among the most-bought stocks in May with the aggregate MF investment estimated at Rs 860 crore (Rs 8.6 billion).

Most PSU stocks have had a strong run in recent years with some of them having more than doubled over the past year.

The BSE PSU index was up 102 per cent in the past year ending May 31, 2024.

Buoyed by the exit poll results, it went up another 7.7 per cent on June 3 but tanked almost 16 per cent the next day amid the post-election result sell-off. However, the index has now recouped most of the losses.

At the fund house level, HDFC MF and Quant MF were among the top sellers. Quant MF exited four stocks last month, and all of them were PSUs -- PNB, Bharat Electronics, GAIL, and Hindustan Copper.

In the case of HDFC MF, all of the five holdings that it sold the most were PSUs -- Hindustan Aeronautics, SBI, NHPC, Bank of Baroda, and Power Finance Corporation.

The report shows that private bank stocks, many of whom have underperformed in recent years, saw the highest buying interest in the previous month.

HDFC Bank and Kotak Mahindra Bank were at the top of the buy list as MFs invested a net of Rs 7,600 crore (Rs 76 billion) and Rs 3,210 crore (Rs 32.10 billion), respectively, in the two stocks.

Reliance Industries, Infosys, and Larsen & Toubro were also in the top five.

The heavy deployment in the Nifty 50 and Sensex heavyweights was also due to a surge in investments in passive funds.

Index funds and ETFs raked in a net of Rs 15,180 crore in May vis-a-vis Rs 12,270 crore (Rs 122.70 billion) in April.

Many of the fund managers and market experts have been predicting a shift in the market cycle and expect 'quality' stocks to take the lead over 'value' stocks.

Stocks of companies with strong financials, high growth potential, and durable business model are considered to be quality shares.

Value stocks are those that appear to be trading for less than their intrinsic or book value.

PSU stocks are generally tagged as value stocks.

'For over three years now, the quality stocks have been underperforming. With political uncertainty returning and speculative action likely to subside, we believe the focus should move back to bottom-up fundamentals.' SBI MF said in its latest factsheet.

'Quality of management, strength of balance sheets, and sustainability of growth should become important again.

Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com
'The expeditious enactment of labour codes and strategic measures to bridge the skills jobs gap are critical.'

IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra D Modi and the Cabinet meet for the first time, June 10, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

Although the previous two Narendra Modi governments were also a coalition of sorts since those were technically National Democratic Alliance regimes, the main partner -- the Bharatiya Janata Party -- had a majority.

This is for the first time in 10 years that no single party has got a majority in the Lok Sabha.

This may prompt the government to seek a larger consensus over reforms but they may still carry them forward as was witnessed in introduction of goods and services tax and works of previous governments not having any single party with a majority.

Experts point out that the coalition era with no single party majority can be divided into four distinct periods: 1991-1992 to 1994-1995, 1996-1997 to 1997-1998, 1999-2000 to 2003-2004 and 2004-2005 to 2013-2014.

During each of these periods, significant economic reforms were implemented despite the challenges of multi-party governance (see chart).

A set of India's most significant economic reforms was carried out by a coalition government led by the perceived weak prime minister P V Narasimha Rao.

These reforms unleashed a golden period for the Indian economy, removing decades of controls and licensing restrictions that had characterised the Indian economy.

Those reforms contributed to increasing competitiveness of the economy, bringing in new entrepreneurs, ushering in information technologyand telecom revolutions and a rise of a thriving middle class, now considered the backbone of the Indian economy.

While the single party majority government of Narendra Modi unleashed many reforms including goods and services tax, it could not carry out agricultural reforms through farm sector laws despite the fact that Parliament had passed those pieces of legislation.

It clearly showed that a broad consensus is needed even by the strong governments to bring in reforms.

Pointing out that India has seen minority governments like the Narasimha Rao government, coalition governments and governments with single party majority since 1991-1992, India Ratings Chief Economist Devendra Pant says: "Broadly, no major reforms taken by the previous government have been reversed by successive governments. We have seen a continuity of reforms."

"If any alliance has a majority, then it should not be difficult to push through key reforms."

Achala Jethmalani, economist at RBL Bank, feels a narrow margin of victory for the BJP on its own could lead to faster required reforms which will further support India's growth story.

However, the government this time around would need some sort of common minimum programme to address concerns of alliance partners.

Madan Sabnavis, chief economist at Bank of Baroda, believes there will be a common minimum programme whenever there is a coalition.

"Major issues to discuss would relate to land, labour and agriculture. Otherwise there should be no major concern. Even these issues have been pending for long and hence are not really new," he points out.

Some feel that factor market reforms such as labour codes and privatisation would be difficult to implement now.

For instance, Madhavi Arora, lead economist at Emkay Global, says that factor market reform and privatisation are off the table.

"Factor market reforms like those related to land, agriculture, and labour are now off the table, in our view. Privatisation and asset monetisation are also at risk, which could drag government capex in the short term," she says.

IMAGE: An NDA delegation called on President Droupadi Murmu and hands over a letter stating that Modi had been elected leader of the BJP Parliamentary Party. Photograph: ANI Photo

However, Kartik Narayan, CEO staffing at TeamLease Services, anticipates a decisive commitment by the government to formalising India's vast informal workforce.

"The expeditious enactment of labour codes and strategic measures to bridge the skills jobs gap are critical," he says.

As far as infrastructure, one of the main focus areas of the Modi governments in both the stints, is concerned, experts feel that the NDA government will choose projects carefully.

Jyoti Prakash Gadia, managing director at Resurgent India, says he expects that infrastructure development may emerge as a consensus strategy in the long run.

"This is plausible since expansion of infrastructure projects in most sectors does not need any legislative measures," Gadia says.

Some of the key Bills the new government will need to bring in are on Data Protection and The Electricity (Amendment).

The former does not need any consultation with the state governments but the latter has got stymied on this score.

State regulatory commissions, often with political appointees at the helm, have made their displeasure known to the Centre.

So reforms in the distribution segment of the power sector will have to wait for some time.

But before all that happens, the new government will have to take a call on plans for changes in the structure of the bureaucracy.

Reforms in this vital cog of administration may require a deft handling.

Besides, reforms in socio-political areas such as the uniform civil code, and simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections may face stiff opposition.

With inputs from Subhayan Chakraborty

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
The ministry of information and broadcasting (I&B) on Wednesday held an inter-ministerial meeting with various departments to discuss issues regarding revenue sharing between Big Tech companies and digital news publishers, according to sources.

The meeting  chaired by I&B Secretary Sanjay Jaju  invited senior officials from the ministry of corporate affairs (MCA), Competition Commission of India (CCI), ministry of electronics and information technology (Meity) and departments of promotion of industry and internal trade, legal affairs and consumer affairs.

We have only had preliminary discussion to develop an understanding of the issue at hand and whose purview these matters would fall under, a senior official said.

The government has been approached by digital news publishers regarding abuse of dominant position by Big Tech players in ad-revenue share agreements, sources said.

The discussion comes in the backdrop of the draft digital competition Bill proposed by the MCA.

The Bill was drafted on the suggestions of an expert committee constituted to look into the need for ex ante regulations for Big Tech companies.

Favouring the ex ante regulations, the Digital News Publishers Association (DNPA) had said large digital enterprises indulge in non-transparent data and revenue sharing policies, search and ranking preferencing.

They are into bundling, tying and collecting user data to improve their own products, allowing bidding on keywords, leading to infringement of registered trademarks, among other issues.

CCI should have pre-factum power for checking abuse of dominant position by large digital enterprises before revenue-sharing agreements are entered into with news publishers, DNPA had said.

Sources, however, said that the unfair competition issues between news publishers and technology companies may require a separate framework.

Taking into account numerous representations by industry associations raising serious concerns on the proposed digital competition Bill, Meity also called for a meeting with MCA and various industry associations to discuss the matter.

The meeting is expected on Thursday.

Concerns have been raised by several industry representatives on the pitfalls of the proposed digital competition Bill.

According to a report by Reuters, a US lobby group, representing tech giants Google, Amazon and Apple, has asked India to rethink its proposed EU-like digital competition law.

It argued regulations against data use and preferential treatment of partners could raise user costs.

The proposed Bill requires digital companies to notify the CCI that it fulfils to qualify as a Systemically Significant Digital Enterprises (SSDE) based on the criteria set in the Bill.

Such enterprises would have to establish transparent and effective complaint handling and compliance mechanisms.

They have to report and operate in a fair and transparent manner with end users and business users, according to the draft Bill.

SSDEs cannot directly or indirectly favour its own products, services, or lines of business, or those of related parties.

They cant use or rely on non-public data of business users operating on its core digital service.

Issues at hand
During the last few weeks, the Indian wheat market has been all agog with talk of an imminent relaxation in import norms to allow the country to import the grain  after a gap of six years  to cool the prices down.

Photograph: Ajay Verma/Reuters

The required numbers in the buzz vary from 2 million tonnes to 4 million tonnes, depending on how one perceives the market to behave in the coming months.

At present, India, the worlds second largest wheat producer, imposes an effective import duty of around 44 per cent on the grain.

The import buzz has been triggered by a drop in state procurement, which for the third consecutive year has stayed below the official target of 30 million to 32 million tonnes.

Some traders believe that when imports begin to descend on the market, they will not only lower the prices for the domestic processing industry but also compel hoarders to liquidate their stocks.

Wheat prices in the open market are much higher than the state-mandated minimum support price, or MSP, of ~2,275 a quintal.

In fact, in some markets of Madhya Pradesh, wheat prices were ruling closer to ~3,000 a quintal a few weeks back.

This unprecedented rise in open market rates and rumors that farmers and big traders are holding on to their wheat crop in expectation of further price increases might be forcing the government to rethink the need for imports.

Currently, wheat attracts an effective import duty of close to 44 per cent and Traders say if the import duty is reduced or abolished altogether, at least 2 million tonnes of the grain can come through the southern ports in the next few months.

The big question here is, are the imports required?

No cause for panic

A section of traders says the situation does not warrant any panic reaction because the market  both for the private traders as well as in government warehouses  is better supplied as compared to last year.

Official wheat procurement in 2024-25 (FY25) is expected to be around 27-28 million; it already surpassed last years level a few days back.

This effectively means that compared to last year, wheat purchases for the Central Pool will be higher in the current financial year.

Assuming that the official purchases are indeed 27-28 million tonnes, and if the wheat supply for the public distribution programme is maintained at 17-18 million tonnes, it would effectively mean that around 8.5 million tonnes of wheat will be available for open market operations in FY-25 (assuming 7.5 million tonnes is kept aside as the closing stock of FY25).

Last year, the government pumped in close to 10 million tonnes of wheat from its inventories to cool down prices through the Open Market Sale Scheme (OMSS) and ad-hoc allocation.

This year, it would have nearly 8.5 million tonnes to intervene in the market through the above mentioned options.

This is where the need for imports might come into play: To cool down prices.

Rising supply

The second big question is whether the government will need to pump in as much wheat into the open market as it did last year.

Some traders say it wont, because unlike in FY24, private players and millers are well-supplied in the current financial year.

That apart, the overall wheat production in FY25, by all estimates, is better than it was last financial year.

Government estimates say the output this year is almost 2.4 million tonnes more than last years.

Although it is difficult to get accurate wheat stocks that are being held by private players in the absence of an open declaration system, sources say private supply lines are better stocked this time than they were a year back.

So, if imports were not needed last year and we could manage through a reduced allocation of wheat and by replacing it with rice in the PDS (public distribution system), why cant the same arrangement be continued this year as well, asks an official from a leading multinational trading firm.

That brings us to the third big question: Will the private sector need the extra wheat in the coming few months if it is already well supplied?

The PDS question

In this equation, the casualty could be the reduced quantities of wheat in the PDS, which since FY23 has come down considerably.

In FY23, India distributed around 27.44 million tonnes of wheat through the Targeted Public Distribution System (TPDS), which in FY24 came down to almost 16 million tonnes.

Other Welfare Schemes (OWS) accounted for another 1.4-1.6 million tonnes.

Therefore, the cut in monthly wheat allocated through TPDS will need to be carried forward for another year, if the government wants to salvage its inventories.

The cut has been supplemented by rice, so that the total allocation under the National Food Security Act does not undergo any change for the final beneficiary.

Among these permutations and combinations, experts say a long standing solution to Indias wheat problem and bring it back into the global reckoning is by realising its full potential yield, as compared to the current low yields.

In a recent policy paper, the Trust for Advancement of Agricultural Sciences (TAAS), a think tank based in New Delhi, said for India to become a significant player in the global wheat market again, it needed to achieve a surplus that could cater to both domestic as well as international demand.

For this, the country must push up its average wheat yield from the current 3.7-3.8 tonnes per hectare to at least 5 tonnes.

Some of Indias competitors in the world wheat markets, namely Mexico and China, have yields of almost 6 tonnes per hectare.

Since the possibility of expansion of area under cultivation is limited, increasing the yield per hectare is the main option to generate a market surplus of wheat, the paper said.

The yield can be raised by arresting the losses due to weeds and pests, which in some years can drop the potential yield by 20 to 30 per cent, checking nutritional imbalance and extensive spread of varieties that can resist terminal heat.

Will policymakers follow the prescription?
'The 2024 election results will lead to much intense targeting of Modi, more intense debates, many more breakdowns in Parliament and many more movements on the streets.'

'The results have hit Modi's standing, and the politics of the Opposition parties will be sharply focused to ensure that Modi doesn't get back his charisma of being 'invincible' with help of State power.'

Sheela Bhatt looks at the political situation through the prism of the 2024 Lok Sabha election results.

IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra D Modi at the swearing-in ceremony of the Union council of ministers at Rashtrapati Bhavan, June 9, 2024. Photograph: Adnan Abidi/Reuters

A Rashomon effect is visible in the various interpretations of the setback to Narendra Modi in Lok Sabha Election 2024.

One of the ways to look at this election is from the fundamental political fights that are ongoing at three levels in India after Indira Gandhi.

The Fight Between Two Ideologies

There is no full stop here.

In the first quarter of the 21st century, the Indian political sphere has narrowed down to a fight between two ideologies.

At the national level, the Congress represents the Nehruvian vision.

It talks about a plural India where no one religion, culture, language gets prominence or dominant political position and where governance remains 'secular', where all public events are kept away from religious rituals in a country with a highly religious people.

In the past the Congress has flouted these secular ideals many times but in theory, at least, it largely represents 'secular India'.

The other ideology is based on establishing Indian cultural nationalism that is prominently based on Hindu culture and traditions.

This pro-BJP/RSS side wants high visibility for Hindu culture in India, in Indian governance, in India's global image.

Hindi, Hindu aur Hindustan has been their maxim.

They claim that they want to protect the glorious legacy of Hindu civilisation.

They want to ensure that in matters of politics, economy, society and culture, 'India' and 'Hindu' become almost synonymous.

This clash of ideologies is a slow-moving great game that the world watches with interest.

What makes India interesting is that in between the these two ideological poles many variations and shades -- from moderates to radicals -- thrive.

Let's test the result of 2024 to judge which side has won in this gigantic ideological divide.

The results of 2024 once more suggest that India has been the motherland of so many religions, languages and communities that in this clash there is no possibility whatsoever of a conclusive end.

If we take all that is happening on social media platforms no side is down and out.

Those who would like to declare a victory of 'secular forces' in the 2024 election should also list the issues that were dominating on the ground before and during the election.

Viewed strictly from the side of anti-BJP voters, the list of things that have gone wrong is very long.

IMAGE: Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi with Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge at a meeting of the Congress Parliamentary Party, June 8, 2024. Photograph: Anushree Fadnavis/Reuters

The excessive use of CBI-ED and IT; Modi's personality cult; New Delhi's tension with non-BJP states; inescapable arrogance of the Modi government; weakening of federal ethos; allegation of using spying tools like Pegasus against adversaries; higher unemployment rate; farmers agitations; controversial ways of collecting party funds through electoral bonds; weakening of regional parties by putting their leaders in jail; woes of demonetisation and Covid; GST's unfriendly structure for small businessmen; nominating hyperactive governors; BJP's media blitz; and the PM's sensational speeches against the Congress's appeasement of Muslims during the election were more than enough reasons to hit the BJP hardest.

Importantly, the Congress opposed the abrogation of Article 370, the G20 summit and its expenses too.

Also, never before have Muslim voters demonstrated perfection in the art of preferring candidates who can defeat the BJP as cleverly as they did this election. Their polarisation against the RSS-BJP was at another level.

Still, in view of so many controversies, if the BJP won 240 seats on its own, it shows that the secular-liberal supported Congress-led Nehruvian ideology is less impactful than the religion identity-based politics propounded by Modi.

While Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal (where out of 122 seats the BJP won 45) gave Modi's standing a big blow, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Odisha gave 84 out of their 87 seats to the BJP.

And in Kerala (16.68%) and Tamil Nadu (11.24% without the support of the Dravidian parties) the BJP secured a respectable vote share.

In UP, Maharashtra and Rajasthan caste politics played havoc for the BJP but their national vote share has been reduced only by 0.7%.

IMAGE: Samajwadi Party Presient Akhilesh Yadav being welcomed by party workers after his victory from the Kannauj Lok Sabha seat. Photograph: ANI Photo

In short, a deeper analysis suggests that the fundamental ideological war, mentioned above hasn't been as pivotal in the BJP's political setback on Raisina Hill as much as the masterstroke by Akhilesh Yadav in the distribution of tickets while undertaking new social engineering to beat the BJP at its own game.

However, as the BJP has not lost power it is unlikely to tweak its ideology and unlikely to change its ideological stance.

The results of the 2024 election will lead to much intense targeting of Modi, more intense debates, many more breakdowns in Parliament and many more movements on the streets as neither side has surrendered throughout the election campaign.

The next five years of Indian politics will be more democratic, noisier and it will be intended to divide people on either side.

The divide between the ruling and Opposition parties has gone deeper and there will be no bridge available that could reduce hostility.

The results have hit Modi's standing, and the politics of the Opposition parties will be sharply focused to ensure that Modi doesn't get back his charisma of being 'invincible' with help of State power.

In the BJP's thought process the 'bone of contention' is that all anti-BJP parties are getting unstinted, unconditional support of Muslims in the elections.

The BJP would continue to 'expose' the 'appeasement politics' of these parties.

At the Union council of ministers's swearing-in ceremony on June 9, I met a young RSS worker, a data scientist who lives in Noida.

While discussing the results, he said, "More than Modi Shivraj Singh Chouhan (the former MP chief minister and India's new agriculture minister) can deal with Muslims severely."

Most of the BJP-RSS cadres were talking about "Hindu ne Hindu ko Uttar Pradesh main haraaya (Hindus have defeated Hindus in UP)."

Believe it or not, this ideological fight has arrived at a decisive turning point after the 2024 results.

IMAGE: Rahul Gandhi at an election meeting in Pune. Photograph: ANI Photo

In the next five years India will decide how aggressively and democratically this ideological fight will be carried on in the second quarter of the 21st century.

Next year, when the RSS celebrates its centenary and occupies the state of the art headquarters in Jhandewala in New Delhi, it will be a reminder that the RSS will survive much beyond the Modi cult.

Evidently, RSS Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat's astute statements on 'election campaigning being devoid of standards' and the urgent need for improving the Manipur situation is a distancing of the RSS from the BJP's setback.

The RSS machinery that works slowly will keep in mind the net gain.

In 2004, when then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee lost to the Congress the BJP had 22.16% of the votes. The Congress gained power with 145 seats.

Strictly viewing from the RSS point of view, from 2004 to 2024 the BJP has increased its voter base from 22.16% to 36.6%.

It is a net gain for believers of Hindu dominance in the Indian polity.

The Congress's vote share in 2004 was 26.53%. The Congress has 21.19% vote share now.

The BJP has achieved far more in its ten years (2014 to 2024) of power than what the Congress gained in its ten years (2004 to 2014) of rule.

This expansion of the saffron vote-base has to be largely credited to the Modi cult.

In this election Modi has made losses in his accrued profits of the last ten years.

In 2004, the BJP had the backing of 86 million voters, now it has 235.9 million Indians backing it (the Congress has 136.7 million voters) at a time when its caste-based social engineering has failed in UP and in many other states.

This battle of ideologies is real and very harsh on Indian society, on the Indian poor and on people who believe in the middle path.

It has divided the country permanently and irreparably.

However, fortunately, when any side goes ultra extreme and turns haughty, Indian democracy strikes.

Since the last few years, Indian democracy is on an auto-correct mode.

IMAGE: Akhilesh Yadav at an election rally in support of the Samajwadi Party candidate from the Faizabad Lok Sabha constituency, Awadhesh Prasad, in Ayodhya. Photograph: ANI Photo

Fight Between National Parties And Regional Powers

BJP on weaker ground

The Congress, even in its good times, and the BJP since 2014, find it difficult to take on regional powers.

Both parties' aim is the same. Both want regional powers to diminish, eventually.

Both want a two-party system to dominate India.

Provincial asmita, regional language and regional leaders have been thriving in many states even when the Modi cult was bringing the best of results for the BJP in the last decade.

Akhilesh Yadav's Samajwadi Party's regional roots and the backdrop of its birth in the Mandal politics of 1990s, Mamata Banerjee's strong Bengali appeal, Ashok Gehlot being the tallest Rajasthani leader belonging to the Mali caste, and Sharad Pawar's colossal Maratha image and groundwork of more than 60 years in Maharashtra have all played a magical role in giving a setback to Modi in UP, West Bengal, Rajasthan and Maharashtra, respectively.

IMAGE: BJP supporters celebrate in New Delhi, June 4, 2024. Photograph: Ritik Jain/ANI Photo

The national leaders versus regional satraps fight started in the late 1990s and is not over yet.

Pitting Mandal versus Kamandal or vice versa is the only route to success. For regional players, stoking of caste identities and regional pride are the only way to success.

In the Modi era most of the selected BJP regional leaders were without a mass base and much weaker in representing their regional asmita.

That politics of New Delhi has cost dearly in the long run.

Modi's image was kept glowing without strong regional leaders in his party. When Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Vasundhara Raje were downsized, the BJP got weaker at the regional level.

In 2014 and 2019 the BJP mastered Mandal politics by distributing tickets to non-Jatav Dalits and non-Yadav OBCs.

Mandal plus Kamandal politics resulted in the creation of the Modi cult.

In this round, Akhilesh Yadav did the unthinkable and paid back Modi and Amit Shah in their same coin.

Talk to BJP candidates who lost the election in urban and rural UP and you know the real hero of this fight in the 2024 election campaign is not Modi, BJP, Rahul Gandhi or Congress. It is Akhilesh Yadav!

IMAGE: Samajwadi Party supporters at an election meeting addressed by Akhilesh Yadav in Azamgarh, May 22, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

What Rahul couldn't do since 2004, Akhilesh did singlehandedly with his masterstroke in distributing tickets.

To produce a counter-strategy when Modi is strong and snatch away his votes requires native understanding and regional and political muscle that politics based on caste identity gifts a leader.

It is clear now that if the BJP doesn't give a substantial pie of power to Dalits and OBC in UP, it will find 2029 insurmountable.

The biggest humiliation for the BJP is that it is not even the single largest party in UP.

The Samajwadi Party, a caste-based regional powerhouse, has 37 seats, four more than the BJP.

IMAGE: A Congress supporter at an election rally addressed by Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi. Photograph: Mohd Zakir/ANI Photo

Fight To Provide Leadership To Aspiring India

Most crucial to India

Since P V Narasimha Rao brought in economic reforms in 1992 and opened up the Indian economy, a new era began.

Since then, cutting across all castes, classes, regions and urban-rural divide, young India aspires to make life better for themselves.

Since 2001 Modi has tried to capture their imagination.

In that sense Modi has been the most successful mascot of RSS ideology in its 99 years.

Without underplaying Hindutva issues Modi attracted aspiring youth.

To add to it, Modi conveyed: Hindutva hi vikas hai.

Now, the real fight to capture the caste of 'aspiring Indians' will intensify between the Congress and the BJP at the national level.

Both national parties will have to face the regional parties in the states.

In this crucial fight Left-leaning civil society groups are helping the Congress to tone up its muscle and take on Modi.

The mission to help realise the dreams of the aspiring class belonging to the Pasi community who defeated the BJP candidate in Ayodhya is the need of an hour for the BJP, but simultaneously Modi's BJP will have to cater to the OBC youth who defeated BJP candidates in Kairana and Muzaffarnagar.

To join the struggles of the youth of India is a much bigger priority than ideological issues or the fight to retain Indian caste or regional identities.

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
'Modi 3.0 will have more balanced policies like one saw in Modi's first term.'

IMAGE: Prime Minister Narendra D Modi signs his first file authorising the release of the 17th instalment of the PM Kisan Nidhi after assuming charge for the third successive term, June 10, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

"The Constitutional changes that the BJP might have envisaged whatever that might be like renaming India to Bharat -- that may be kept aside. The One Nation One Election agenda might not take shape in this term. Removing Muslims communities that are included in the OBC list might not be possible now," says Dr Shilp Shikha Singh, assistant professor at the Giri Institute of Development Studies in Lucknow.

Dr Singh's areas of interest include politics of marginalities and governance, changing electoral dynamics among marginalised communities in UP and Indian government and politics.

In a detailed interview to Rediff.com's Archana Masih she explains the reasons behind the decline of the BSP, the BJP's continued hold oN the upper caste vote and how the NDA government will be different from Modi's second term.

The concluding segment of a two-part interview:

IMAGE: Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav being felicitated by Balyogi Shri Ramdas and SP General Secretary Shivpal Singh Yadav during the celebrations for the party's victory in the Lok Sabha elections in Lucknow, June 7, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

The Samjawadi Party has emerged as the third largest party in India. How do you view its resurgence and what course is it likely to take?

The SP and Congress will continue their coalition. They have been recharged which will have a bearing on the state assembly election three years later.

If Modi's charisma has broken, so has Yogi's. Unless they change the way they run the government, I think the tempo would continue and we will see a different result in the state.

In UP, once again caste alliances came to the forefront, sidelining both communal and national politics. Caste coalition at the local level decided the election and that is why candidates became more important than the party. This was managed very well by SP.

What about the future of the BSP which has not won a single seat and has also lost vote share?

The biggest mistake by the BSP was not joining either of the alliances. BSP is a defunct party. Dalits are in search of a new Dalit leader.

Mayawati will continue to cede ground if she fails to revives her politics -- for which we don't see any immediate indication. The BSP is being shortsighted in putting the blame on Muslims for the election debacle without realising that Mayawati's own core vote is also crumbling.

IMAGE: Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) chief Chandrashekhar Azad campaigns in the Dumariyaganj Lok Sabha constituency. Photograph: Kind courtesy Chandrashekhar Azad/X

What about Azad Samaj Party Chief Chandra Shekhar Azad who has won his first Lok Sabha election?

Can he fill in the gap and attract the Dalits since Mayawati and BSP have receded?

Azad is the new hope for Dalit youth and a poster boy in UP. A section of the youth admires his aggressiveness, but he is organisationally weak.

He does not have a platform among any established Dalit or mainstream parties. He is a potential Dalit leader, but it is a long road for him, but his winning the election will make a difference. He will raise his voice in Parliament and will certainly expand his constituency.

The BSP vote share has come down, but that does not mean that Dalits will desert the party completely, the desertion will be gradual. Their vote percentage has come down by about 2% and if the party continues in the same manner and does not take up social issues and respond to the concerns of its people, it will continue to decline.

Mayawati has shown no vision on how to move her party forward. She has destroyed an excellent movement because of lack of vision.

IMAGE: Priyanka Gandhi Vadra flanked by Kishori Lal, right, and Rahul Gandhi, left, the winning Congress candidates in Amethi and Raebareli respectively, June 11, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

Although the Congress has just won 6 of the 17 seats it contested, can the party expect a revival in UP?

It is the beginning of the revival, but it will be a slow process. The SP and Congress will remain in a coalition. The SP is very strong and the two will continue to complement each other. The increase in Congress vote share will be a gradual process.

SP is a much stronger player. I don't think the Congress will risk sabotaging the SP now or in the near future.

One must not lose sight of the fact that the core vote base of the BJP is intact. The OBCs, Dalits and Muslims have gone to the other side, but the upper castes are still with the BJP. Some sections of the Dalits like Valmikis and some OBC groups are also with the BJP.

The BJP needs to look at other strategies to keep its core voters intact. Relying only on communal politics won't work. Their entire campaign after the second phase of polling was on the Hindu-Muslim issue. The BJP cannot garner more votes based on that any more.

IMAGE: Modi with N Chandrababu Naidu at the swearing in of the Andhra Pradesh government, June 12, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

Will there be a toning down of the Hindu-Muslim rhetoric?

If the BJP wants to regain lost ground, then it will. If it doesn't, there will be a UP kind of debacle in other states as well.

What change will the verdict bring in national politics?

The One Nation One Election agenda might not take shape in this term.

The Uniform Civil Code may be kept on the backburner.

The Constitutional changes that the BJP might have envisaged whatever that might be like renaming India to Bharat -- that may be kept aside.

Removing Muslims communities that are included in the OBC list might not be possible now.

Modi 3.0 will have more balanced policies like one saw in Modi's first term.

There might be a toning down of centralised decision making in government because the BJP has to deal with seasoned coalition partners. Giving them notional representation will not work.

The streak of centralisation will have to be reversed as regional parties have become significant once again. It is the return of the coalition era.

IMAGE: Sonia Gandhi and party General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra campaign for Rahul Gandhi in Raebareli. Photograph: ANI Photo

There is speculation that Rahul Gandhi will give up his Wayanad Lok Sabha seat. Which seat is likely to vacate?

Wayanad.

Raebareli has been handed to him by his mother and has a longer history. Probably Priyanka will contest from Wayanad.

What is the larger message emanating from this election result?

Politics should never be static. Every party must realise that no party or government is invincible.

It is the people's victory, not any party's victory.

Feature Presentation: Aslam Hunani/Rediff.com
Spymaster Ajit Doval and seasoned bureaucrat PK Mishra were on Thursday re-appointed as national security adviser and principal secretary to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, respectively, for a five-year term.

With the latest appointment, Doval has got a record third term at the top post dealing with crucial matters related to the country's security.

The appointments committee of the cabinet has approved the two key appointments with effect from June 10, 2024, the personnel ministry said.

Their appointment "will be co-terminus with the term of the prime minister or until further orders whichever is earlier", it said in identical orders.

Both Doval and Mishra will be assigned the rank of cabinet minister in the Table of Precedence and terms and conditions of their appointment will be notified separately, the ministry said.

Doval, who belongs to the 1968 batch of Indian Police Service of Kerala cadre, retired as Intelligence Bureau chief in 2005.

He was appointed as the NSA for the first time on May 30, 2014, and re-appointed for another five-year term on May 31, 2019.

During his first tenure, Doval is believed to have played a pivotal role in the surgical strikes on terror launch pads in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir after the Uri terror attack.

He has also been widely hailed for his contribution to the national security domain, including his role during the Balakot (Pakistan) air strike after the Pulwama (Jammu and Kashmir) terror attack, officials said.

Doval, 79, was one of the main negotiators from India with the hijackers of Indian Airlines plane IC-814 taken to Kandahar in 1999.

He worked with the IB for more than 33 years in different roles and in areas including the Northeast, Jammu and Kashmir, Sikkim and Punjab. He served in the United Kingdom as well.

Both Doval and Mishra are considered as top close aides of Modi.

As the NSA, Doval is responsible for all national security-related issues while Mishra will be dealing with administrative issues, including the appointments done by Modi-led ACC, the officials said.

A veteran bureaucrat, Mishra has held various key positions at the Centre and in the Gujarat government.

He served as additional principal secretary in the Prime Minister's Office in Modi's first term as the Prime Minister from 2014 to 2019.

Mishra, a 1972 batch retired Indian Administrative Service officer of Gujarat cadre, was re-appointed to the same post with effect from May 31, 2019, during Modi's second term.

In September 2019, he was appointed as the principal secretary to the PM. His term was on a co-terminus basis with Modi's tenure.

Mishra, 75, had also served between 2001 and 2004 as the principal secretary to Modi when he was the Gujarat chief minister.

He worked as the secretary in the ministry of agriculture between December 1, 2006 and August 31, 2008.

After his retirement, Mishra was appointed the chairman of the Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission for a five-year term.

Meanwhile, the ACC has also approved the reappointment of former Indian Administrative Service officers Amit Khare and Tarun Kapoor as advisers to the PM for two years, effective June 10, 2024.

Khare, a 1985 batch retired IAS officer of Jharkhand cadre, was in October 2021 appointed as adviser to Modi for two years. His tenure was extended last year on a co-terminus basis with the PM's term.

Kapoor, a 1987 batch retired IAS officer of the Himachal Pradesh cadre, was named the adviser in May 2022 for a two-year term.
At least five workers were killed in a blast at an explosives manufacturing factory near Nagpur city on Thursday afternoon, police said.

Image only for representation. Photograph: ANI

The incident took place at Chamundi Explosive Pvt Ltd at Dhamna village under Hingna police station limits, around 25 km from Nagpur.

"At least five persons were killed....the whole factory has been gutted," said Nagpur police commissioner Ravindra Singhal, talking to the media.

The explosion took place around 1 pm when the workers were packing explosives, said a local police official.
Maratha quota activist Manoj Jarange on Thursday suspended his indefinite fast over the reservation issue six days after launching it, and set a deadline of one month before the Maharashtra government to accept the community's demands.

IMAGE: Maratha reservation activist Manoj Jarange Patil during his hunger strike demanding the implementation of the 'Sage Soyare' ordinance, in Jalna, Maharashtra, February 21, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

He made the announcement after Maharashtra minister and member of Maratha quota sub-committee Shambhuraj Desai, Shiv Sena MP Sandipan Bhumre met him at his native Antarwali Sarati village in Jalna district and discussed the issue.

Addressing people at the protest site, Jarange said, "We are giving a month's time to the government to fulfil the demands of the Maratha community. But we will also go ahead with our preparations for the upcoming assembly elections. If the government doesn't provide reservation to us, we will go and take it."

"If the demands are not fulfilled in a month, neither the Opposition members nor those in the government should come to us. We will defeat the candidates (in the state assembly elections) by declaring their names," he said.

Jarange, who launched his fresh round of protest from Saturday, has been demanding implementation of the draft notification that recognises Kunbis as "sage soyare" (blood relatives) of Maratha community members and also seeking a law to identify Kunbis as Marathas.

Kunbi, an agrarian group, falls under the Other Backward Classes category, and Jarange has been demanding that Kunbi certificates be issued to all Marathas, thus making them eligible for quota benefits.

Talking after his meeting with Jarange, minister Desai said, "A meeting will be convened tomorrow (over the issue). Of the last five months, two months passed in following the model code of conduct (for the Lok Sabha polls). We will take a positive decision on the demands of the Maratha community in a month. If additional manpower is required to expedite the work, we will do so with the permission of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde."
Three people, including the close aide of Kannada star Darshan Thoogudeepa, were arrested in connection with the murder of Renukaswamy even as the police recovered CCTV footage showing the suspected abduction of the victim in a car.

IMAGE: Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa (middle) being sent to police custody after a medical checkup following his alleged role in murder over obscene texts, at Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital in Bengaluru, June 11, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

According to police sources, Darshan's aide Nagaraj was looking after all the dealings of the actor.

He was also taking care of Darshan's farmhouse in Mysuru.

Nagaraj was on the run ever since the police arrested Darshan, his friend and actress Pavithra Gowda and 11 other henchmen.

Sources did not divulge details about his co-star Pradosh's role in the murder.

Pradosh had appeared in minor roles in some movies in which Darshan was the lead actor.

Another henchman identified as Ravi surrendered before the deputy superintendent of police on Thursday evening.

He is a resident of Kurubarahatti in the district headquarter town of Chitradurga, and was at large ever since the murder came to light.

So far 16 people have been arrested including Darshan and Pavithra.

Darshan and his gang were arrested in connection with the murder of Renukaswamy from Chitradurga on June 8 night for allegedly sending lewd messages to Pavithra.

The victim's body was then dumped in a stormwater drain at Kamakshipalya police station limits.

Police got to know about the murder when a food delivery boy alerted them about dogs eating the body of a man.

On June 9, three accused had approached police and confessed to having murdered Renukaswamy over a financial dispute.

As the investigation progressed, police learnt that the trio was trying to mislead the investigation and that Darshan and gang was involved in it.

During inquiry, the police team learnt that Darshan reportedly offered the gang members Rs 30 lakh and agreed to take care of their families till they are out of jail.

Some amount was also transferred, which is the major evidence in this case, a source said.

The team probing the murder case stumbled upon the CCTV footage showing the suspected abduction of the victim by some associates of Darshan in this district headquarters town of Chitradurga.

The footage extracted on June 8 showed the car zooming past the highway. Police believed that Renukaswamy was inside the car.

They suspect that the 34-year-old pharmacy worker, a fan of Darshan, was "lured" by his abductors.

"He was then driven straight to Bengaluru where he was tortured to death," a police official said.

Sources said Darshan, popularly known as "Challenging star", was furious with Renukaswamy after he sent obscene messages and images to Pavithra Gowda (33).

The Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce met today amid demand for a ban on Darshan's movies.

They decided that a delegation consisting of former presidents and executive committee members would meet the family members of Renukaswamy on Friday in Chitradurga.

They also maintained that any action on Darshan will be based on the police inquiry report as it pertains to a murder case.

A decision will be taken in consultation with the film artists' association.

Meanwhile in Mandya, farmers staged a massive protest demanding the arrest of Darshan under the banner of Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha.

Holding banners, placards and green flags, the protesters took out a march on the streets of the district headquarter town of Mandya.

They demanded a ban on Darshan movies as they condemned the statements of Darshan fan club members extending support to their cine idol.
Even as the families of suspected deceased persons from Kerala mourn the loss of their loved ones in the Kuwait fire incident that claimed several lives, many of them are yet to receive any official confirmation from the authorities.

IMAGE: Vehicles are parked next to a building damaged following a deadly fire, in Mangaf, southern Kuwait, on June 12, 2024. Photograph: Stringer/Reuters

Television channels showed pictures of 14 persons from Kerala from across the state who lost their lives in the fire.

However, many of the families told the media that they were yet to receive any official confirmation regarding the deaths.

"His phone is still ringing. We don't know what to do," a parent was seen telling a television channel.

According to various media reports, people from Pathanamthitta, Kollam, Kottayam, Malappuram, Kannur and Kasaragod districts lost their lives in the fire.

The family of a man from Punalur in Kollam district said their friends have confirmed that he was missing.

"We are yet to receive any official confirmation, but our friends there have confirmed the incident," a relative said.

Television channels showed the houses of the suspected deceased Keralites with locals and relatives consoling the kin.

According to the Kuwaiti authorities, the incident happened in a building in the southern city of Mangaf, which killed 49 foreign workers, including around 40 Indians, and injured 50 others.

The fire started in the kitchen of the seven-storey building housing 195 migrant workers in Mangaf in the Ahmadi Governorate early on Wednesday.

The fire erupted just after 4 am when the majority of the 196 all-male residents of the building were asleep.

It resulted in huge, thick clouds of black smoke that led to the suffocation of most of the victims, according to officials from the Interior Ministry and the fire department.

Kerala govt to provide Rs 5 lakh assistance

The Kerala government on Thursday said it will provide Rs 5 lakh financial assistance to the families of the people from the state who died in the Kuwait fire tragedy.

The decision was taken at an emergency Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the morning, a statement issued by his office said.

According to information received by the government, 19 people from Kerala died in the incident, the statement said.

The cabinet also decided to provide Rs one lakh financial assistance to those injured in the incident, it said.

A decision was taken to immediately send state Health Minister Veena George to Kuwait to coordinate the efforts to provide treatment to those injured and bring back the bodies of those who died in the tragedy, it further said.

The statement also said prominent businessmen M A Yusuff Ali and Ravi Pillai have informed the CM that they will provide Rs 5 lakh and Rs 2 lakh, respectively, to each of the families of the Keralites who died in the fire.

The assistance will be provided through NORKA and with help from the two businessmen, families of each of those from the state who died in the incident will get Rs 12 lakh, the statement said.

Kerala villagers shocked

Ranjith, a resident of northern Kerala, went to Kuwait a year and a half ago after celebrating the housewarming of his new home.

He had planned to return to his village for a vacation in July.

However, his village has been shaken by the unofficial news of his death in the fire incident in a building in Mangaf.

Ranjith was known as a kind and dependable person.

He was the hope for his ailing parents, who had faced many hardships.

"He built a house and the housewarming was held a year and a half ago. He was planning to come back home in July for a vacation, but this tragedy struck," said a neighbour to a news channel.
The Kuwait fire tragedy that claimed the lives of at least 45 Indians, including 23 from Kerala and seven from Tamil Nadu, has left the two states reeling with grief as stories emerge of the affected families struggling to come to terms with their devastating loss.

IMAGE: Minister of State for Foreign Affairs KV Singh (left) interacts with Health Minister of Kuwait Ahmad Abdelwahab Ahmad Al-Awadi, in Kuwait, June 13, 2024. Photograph: Courtesy India in Kuwait on X

Based on details shared by the Kuwaiti authorities, the Kerala government officially released the list of the deceased persons on Thursday evening.

According to this list, there were also three victims from Andhra Pradesh and one from Karnataka.

Earlier, an official from the Department of Non-Resident Keralites' Affairs unofficially said that, according to information provided by its help desk in Kuwait, 24 Malayalees had died in the fire. Of these, 22 have been identified, he said, and added that 12 others from the state were seriously injured.

Previously, quoting information provided by Tamil associations based abroad, Tamil Nadu Minister for Minorities Welfare and Non-Resident Tamils Welfare Gingee K S Masthan had told reporters that five persons from the state were killed.

Initially, the lack of confirmation from the government and the company where the victims worked had left families in a dilemma. However, they soon came to know about the deaths through officials, friends and family, as well as news reports.

Heart-breaking stories of sorrow and shock began emerging from various parts of Kerala as people learned about the death of their loved ones.

Among them were that of a father from Kerala identifying the remains of his son in Kuwait by the tattoo on his hand and a man dying before he could fulfill his desire to gift his daughter a phone in appreciation of her excellent plus two exam results.

Pradeep, who hails from Kottayam and worked for the same company as his son Sreehari in Kuwait, identified the remains of his son by a tattoo on his hand.

"I was called to a mortuary to identify my son's remains. When I went there, I saw that the face was completely swollen and the nose was covered with soot. I was unable to identify him. I just could not.

"Then I told them that he has a tattoo on his hand. Based on that, he was identified," a sobbing Pradeep told a Malayalam news channel in Kuwait on Thursday.

Lukose, a resident of Kollam in Kerala, had bought a mobile phone for his elder daughter, who had scored excellent marks in the plus two (class 12) board exams. He was planning to bring it next month when he intended to come home to arrange her admission in a nursing course in Bengaluru, a relative said.

"Initially, his death was not confirmed. Then on Wednesday evening, the friends and church members went to the police to enquire and that is when they confirmed it," the relative said.

In Kottayam district's Pampady area, grief struck a family living in a rented accommodation as 29-year-old Stephin Abraham Sabu lost his life in the tragedy.

Akash S Nair (32), a resident of Pandalam in Pathanamthitta district, died while attempting to escape from the fire when he succumbed to the smoke, close family sources said.

Amidst the tales of sorrow of grieving families an account of survival also emerged.

It was about how a daring split-second decision by Nalinakshan, who was among those in the burning building, saved his life.

The resident of Thrikkaripur in northern Kerala, found himself trapped in a third floor apartment in the building when disaster struck.

In a daring bid to escape the flames, he made a split-second decision and jumped onto a nearby water tank.

Though the leap to safety left him with broken ribs and injuries, Nalinakshan managed to survive the tragedy.

As those left behind to pick up the pieces of their suddenly devastated lives wondered how to move forward, the Kerala government held an emergency cabinet meeting on Thursday to provide some succour to the affected families from the state.

The cabinet meeting chaired by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan decided to provide Rs 5 lakh as financial assistance to the families in the state whose kin died in the fire, and Rs 1 lakh to the injured.

It also decided to immediately send state Health Minister Veena George to Kuwait to coordinate efforts to provide treatment for the injured persons from the state and to ensure the earliest repatriation of the mortal remains of the deceased to Kerala.

Later in the evening, the Chief Minister's Office issued a statement saying that Vijayan has directed officials to ensure that when the bodies of the deceased reach Kerala, they are taken to their homes in special ambulances from the airport.

Talking to reporters, Minister George said, We are informed that the bodies will be transported to Kochi. The CM has given all the instructions. Twenty five ambulances have been arranged here."

Earlier in the day, she met the families of victims in Pathanamthitta district.

At least 49 foreign workers were killed and 50 others injured in the fire on Wednesday at the seven-storey building where 196 migrant workers were staying in the southern Kuwait city of Mangaf.

Most of the deaths were due to smoke inhalation, Kuwaiti media reported, adding that the fire started in a kitchen.

Construction firm NBTC group rented the building for the stay of more than 195 workers, most of them Indians from Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the northern states, Kuwaiti media said.
Kuwait Thursday said authorities have identified the bodies of 45 Indians and three Filipino nationals killed in the tragic fire incident in a building housing foreign workers as the Gulf Kingdom vowed to promptly investigate the incident and assured full support in repatriating the mortal remains of the victims.

IMAGE: Union Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh reaches the Jaber Hospital to meet the Indians injured in the Mangaf fire incident, in Kuwait on Thursday. Photograph: ANI Photo

At least 49 foreign workers were killed and 50 others injured in the fire on Wednesday at the seven-storey building where 196 migrant workers were staying in the southern city of Mangaf.

Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah, serving as the First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior, and Minister of Defence, said that authorities have identified 48 bodies, among which 45 are of Indians and three are of Filipino nationality, English language daily Arab Times reported.

The efforts are still underway to determine the identity of one remaining body, he added.

Kuwait Fire Force on Thursday said the deadly fire was caused by an electrical short circuit. In a statement, the force said that the conclusion was reached after field examination of the scene and the building where the fire broke out on Wednesday.

Kuwaiti authorities are conducting DNA tests on the bodies of those killed in the devastating fire incident in southern Kuwait's Mangaf area and an Indian Air Force aircraft is on standby to bring back the mortal remains of Indians killed in the incident, officials said in New Delhi on Thursday.

Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh, who reached Kuwait to oversee assistance to Indians injured in the fire and to ensure early repatriation of mortal remains of those killed, met Kuwait's Foreign Minister Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya who assured full support and vowed to promptly investigate the tragedy.

Later, he called on First Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Fahad, who conveyed condolences on behalf of the Emir and his instructions to ensure all necessary assistance and support.

Singh conveyed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's greetings to the Emir and thanked the deputy prime minister and the leadership of Kuwait for pro-active facilitation being provided by Kuwaiti authorities, the Indian mission said.

He also met Health Minister Dr. Ahmad Abdelwahab Ahmad Al-Awadi who briefed him on steps taken to ensure speedy recovery of Indians under his personal supervision. Singh thanked him for exceptional medical care and attention being provided to the Indians.

Singh also visited Jaber hospital, Mubarak Al Kabeer hospital, Adan hospital, Farwaniya hospital and Jahra hospital where he met injured Indians and assured them all support from the Indian government.

Kuwait's Emir Sheikh Meshal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber al-Sabah has issued directives for the distribution of financial assistance to the families of the deceased, Sheikh Fahad said, without mentioning the quantum of the compensation.

Additionally, the emir has ordered the preparation of military aircraft to repatriate the bodies of deceased Indians back to their homeland.

Meanwhile, a Kuwaiti citizen and several foreigners were arrested in connection with charges of manslaughter and causing injuries due to negligence in security and safety measures following the fire incident.

"The Public Prosecution has mandated the provisional detention of a Kuwaiti citizen and several expats in connection with charges of manslaughter and causing injuries due to negligence in security and safety measures, following a fire incident in the Al-Mangaf area," the Arab Times reported.

Sheikh Fahad is heading an overall inspection campaign on illegal properties in many areas in Kuwait on Thursday.

The minister, accompanied by the Minister of Public Works and Minister of Municipality Dr. Nora Al-Mashaan began their inspection campaign in Al-Mangaf, Al-Mahboula, Khaitan, and Jileeb Al-Shuyoukh, the paper said.

The interior ministry, Kuwait Municipality, Kuwait Fire Force, ministry of electricity and water and public authority for manpower took part in the campaign.

The minister has warned that any building violation would be addressed without prior warning as of Thursday.

As of Thursday, the Municipality and its teams will respond to all violations at all apartment buildings without prior warning, the minister told reporters while inspecting the fire site.

The owner of the affected building will be kept in custody until investigations into the causes of the fire are over, the minister added.

Meanwhile, Kuwait's public prosecutor has launched an investigation into the incident.

The probe aims to uncover the circumstances behind the incident and what might have triggered the deadly fire, the public prosecutor said on X.

In a statement, the prosecution said that a special team had examined the fire scene and visited the hospitals where the casualties had been taken to question the injured.

Head of investigations at Kuwait fire department Col Sayed Al-Mousawi earlier said that the team investigating the causes of the fire found that an inflammable material was used as partitions between apartments and also between rooms, which caused the huge black clouds of smoke.

He said that many of the victims suffocated while trying to run down the stairs because they were filled with smoke, adding that the victims could not go to the rooftop because the door was locked.

Separately, the Kuwait Municipality announced that the engineering audit and follow-up department in the Farwaniya Governorate has closed seven basements and issued 13 violations.

In an official statement, the municipality confirmed that efforts to close non-compliant basements are ongoing, the paper said.
The search operation launched in Jammu and Kashmir to track down and neutralise terrorists after the June 9 attack on a bus carrying pilgrims entered the fifth day on Thursday, officials said, as director general of police RR Swain met a top army officer in Jammu to discuss the ongoing action.

IMAGE: Jammu and Kashmir police and BSF with arrested overgroud worker identified as Shabir Ahmad and recovered arms, ammunition and explosives at a joint checkpoint at Reddi Chowkibal market, in Kupwara, June 13, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

Over the past few days, terrorists struck at four places in Reasi, Kathua and Doda districts, killing nine people, including seven pilgrims and a CRPF jawan, and leaving seven security personnel and others injured.

The DGP, along with additional director general of police (law and order) Vijay Kumar and Jammu zone additional director general of police Anand Jain, visited Jammu-based White Knight Corps and interacted with General Officer Commanding Lt Gen Navin Sachdeva, the army said.

"... They deliberated upon the ongoing counter terror operations. They reaffirmed their commitment to ensure peace and security in the region," the White Knight Corps of the Army wrote on X after the meeting.

Officials said security forces launched a fresh search and cordon operation in Kathua's Saida Sukhal village in Hiranagar sector late this afternoon following information about the presence of two more terrorists.

Two suspected Pakistani terrorists, part of a newly infiltrated group, and a CRPF jawan were killed in the village in an over 15-hour long operation that started Tuesday evening.

A large quantity of arms and ammunition including one M4 Rifle, an AK assault rifle, a satellite phone and more than Rs 2.10 lakh besides Pakistan made eatables, medicines and electronics were recovered from the possession of the slain terrorists, one of whom was said to be a top commander of Jaish-e-Mohammed outfit.

Assisted by paramilitary forces, police conducted a search operation in Narawal bypass areas in Jammu after a woman reported presence of two suspected persons.

"The Jammu police responded swiftly and professionally to the suspicious movement in Narwal area. However, contrary to the statement of the lady, it is clarified that there are no telltale signs of suspicious objects or suspicious persons to corroborate her observation," police said in a statement.

They said the area has been completely combed and the CCTV footage was also analysed.

"The Jammu police are committed to the safety and security of citizens," the statement said.

The officials said the Army, police and paramilitary forces resumed search operations in the morning in Kota top in Gandoh, Chattagalla and adjoining areas in Doda district where seven security personnel, including two policemen, were injured in separate gunfights with terrorists on Tuesday and Wednesday.

There has been no fresh contact with the fleeing terrorists so far, they said.

Police had on Wednesday released sketches of four terrorists involved in two attacks in the district and announced a reward of Rs 20 lakh for information leading to their arrest.

Deputy inspector general of police, Doda-Ramban-Kishtwar range, Shridhar Patil, referring to the firing incident at Kota top, said the security forces have moved to the village following information about presence of terrorists but came under fire resulting in injuries to a policeman.

"The operation to flush out the terrorists is on and we are very close to them. They will be neutralized soon," he said, adding security agencies are keeping a close watch on the elements who try to motivate and provoke people into joining terrorism.

However, he said it is very difficult for the terrorists to survive in the region as "people are with us".

In Reasi district where terrorists had attacked a bus carrying pilgrims on Sunday evening, police said so far 50 suspected persons were detained as the search operation was intensified to remote pockets.

Earlier, police had announced a cash reward of Rs 20 lakh and released the sketch of one of the terrorists involved in the attack that left nine people dead and 41 injured.

Searches are underway in Reasi as well as adjoining Rajouri district.

A person who resembled the terrorist's sketch was detained from a bus in Reasi in the afternoon and whisked away for questioning, the officials said.

Searches are also being conducted in Nowshera in Rajouri and adjoining Poonch. Security forces in Kathua, Samba and Jammu districts have also been put on alert in view of intelligence inputs about a possible terror threat, they said.

The police had on Wednesday issued an advisory, urging residents of the Jammu region to stay vigilant regarding the movement of suspicious individuals and objects.

The advisory was issued following intelligence inputs suggesting the possibility of a terror threat in parts of Rajouri and Jammu districts.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu and his family offered prayers at the Tirupati Balaji temple in Tirumala on Thursday, June 13, 2024, morning.

Naidu was accompanied by wife Bhuvaneshwari, son and state minister Lokesh, daughter-in-law Brahmani and grandson Devansh.

Speaking to reporters in Tirumala after the temple visit, Naidu said, "My family members are devotees of Lord Tirumala Venkateswara. I visit the deity before making any major decisions. I have never seen such success given by the people of the state. People's rule has started in the state, there should be a purge."

"The Lord saved me earlier when I was attacked by Naxals. I prayed for this state's prosperity. Economic disparities should be removed in the state. My goal is not only to create wealth but also to distribute it to the poor."

"I have been donating money for Annadanam (food donations) since the day my grandson Devansh was born. I always work for a poverty-free society," Naidu added.

"Andhra Pradesh will play a key role in the country's politics. From today on, good governance begins. I will fulfil the trust you have placed in me. By 2047, the Telugu people should be number one in the world. I will make Andhra Pradesh the number one state in the country," he said.

"Crimes will not be tolerated. Some people are making false accusations against us after committing crimes. Political conspiracies will not be tolerated. I will start the purification of governance from Tirumala," Naidu said.

Naidu assumed office at around 4.41 pm on Thursday in the state secretariat in Amaravati and signed five files that include increasing the social pension to beneficiaries to Rs 4,000 per month.

IMAGE: Naidu, Bhuvaneshwari, Lokesh, Brahmani and Devansh arrive at the Tirupati Balaji Temple to offer prayers, here and below. All photographs: ANI Photo

IMAGE: Naidu with jis family.

IMAGE: Naidu offer prayers at the Tirupati Balaji Temple, here and below.

IMAGE: Naidu and family offers prayers at the Tirupati Balaji Temple, here and below.

IMAGE: Naidu meet Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and his wife Seema Goyal at the Tirupati Balaji Temple.

Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff.com

Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff.com
A Bengaluru court on Thursday issued a non-bailable arrest warrant against former Chief Minister and senior BJP leader B S Yediyurappa in a POCSO case.

IMAGE: BJP leader BS Yediyurappa (left) addresses a press conference with party leader Sadananda Gowda in Bengaluru, April 21, 2024. Photograph: ANI Photo

The crime investigation department, probing the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act case against Yediyurappa, had earlier summoned him for questioning.

He, however, had sought time to appear before the investigation officer of the CID.

The Bharatiya Janata Party veteran, who is also a member of the party's parliamentary board, is presently in Delhi, and he is likely to join the probe after he returns, sources close to him have said.

According to the police, Yediyurappa has been booked under the POCSO Act and Section 354 A (sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code based on a complaint by the mother of a 17-year-old girl who alleged that he sexually assaulted her daughter during a meeting on February two this year, at his residence in Dollars Colony in Bengaluru.

On March 14, hours after the Sadashivanagar police registered the case, the Karnataka director general of police Alok Mohan issued an order transferring it to the CID for further investigation with immediate effect.

The 54-year-old woman, who had leveled the charge against Yediyurappa, died at a private hospital in Bengaluru last month, due to lung cancer.

The 81-year-old Yediyurappa has denied the charge and said he would fight the case legally.

In April, the CID collected the voice sample of Yediyurappa after summoning him to the office.

The government, meanwhile, has appointed special public prosecutor Ashok H Nayak to represent the CID in the case.

Yediyurappa has moved the court seeking quashing of the FIR.
IMAGE: Nine-year-old Jaimini Soni's hula hoop feat. Photograph: ANI

Nothing deters India's brave women BSF warriors.

The Top Videos of the Week, listed by Shailajanand Mishra.

Also see: A baby elephant is rescued.

As is a giant crocodile.

Videos chosen by you through your likes on iShare.

Udhampur's Bumper Apricot Crop

Location: Udhampur

The Basht area of Chenani tehsil of Udhampur district in Jammu and Kashmir is celebrating a bountiful crop of high-quality apricots.

Rattan Kumar, a farmer thrilled to see his trees laden with the fruit, has this to say:

All Videos: ANI

An Amazing Rescue!

Location: Nilgiris

This baby elephant fell into a 30 foot deep pit in the Nilgiris' Kolapalli area.

Thankfully, forest officers rushed to its aid.

Another Superb Rescue

Location: Bulandshahr

This time, a giant crocodile was in trouble.

The locals carried it to safety on their shoulders.

Jaimini Hula Hooped Her Way To A World Record

Location: Vadodara

No, the nine year old was not spinning the hula hoop around her waist.

Our Brave Women BSF Warriors

Location: Samba

Temperatures in India may have hit 50 degrees Celsius but that didn't prevent the women soldiers of the Border Security Force from performing their duty.

Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff.com
CALAIS  To watch "The Quarry Project," a dance piece created for the Wells Lamson Quarry in Barre, is to experience something ancient and timeless. Opening scenes show a sky reflected on water, mountainous piles of rocks and thick vegetation that gives way to one of the oldest and deepest granite quarries in the country, which is now flooded. On the water, dancers in gowns gather on a floating platform. It looks like the set of a Shakespeare film adaptation, or a Florence + the Machine video.

The dancers remain silent. Their movements range from slow and mournful to lively, upbeat and frenetic. At a point where they are running around, some dancers can be seen smiling. Musicians, on another floating platform, chant ambient, wordless vocalizations. There are props such as chairs and the bare bones of a house-shaped structure. In one scene, the dancers scramble to take metal objects and a plant out of a box and set a picnic table. The creator, Vermont choreographer Hannah Dennison, said she sought to incorporate elements one never sees in a quarry.

There were 14 sold-out performances of "The Quarry Project" in 2022. In January 2023, the film of the performance was screened at Next Stage Arts in Putney. Now, a dozen of the participating artists have taken the project's essence and filled a small, pre-Civil War-era building in Washington County with paintings, sculptures, photography, music and more inspired by the experience.

"As you go into each room, it's like a little setting, a little aspect of the project that was in the quarry, with the addition of these other artists' imagination," Dennison said.

"The Quarry Project Echoes ('Echoes' stylized in all caps)," an installation at Kents Corner State Historic Site, 7 Old West Church Road, is open every Friday, Saturday and Sunday through June 30, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. There is a closing reception from 3 to 6 p.m. June 30. The film will be shown at the Maple Corner Community Center at 7:30 p.m. this Saturday.

"We can't bring 'The Quarry Project' into the Kent  the Kent itself is a fabulous, unique environment," said Dennison's creative partner and lead artist, Leslie Anderson, who contributed artwork to "Echoes." "The dancers aren't dancing; the water is not there. But there is a soundscape in there, and there are environments within and outside the building that hopefully evoke something and carry the imagery or the emotional impact to a different level."

Dennison, who lives outside Washington, Vt., chose the Wells Lamson Quarry for "The Quarry Project" for its aesthetic beauty and clear access. She is attracted to places of labor, and has also made pieces in a restored mill building and an abandoned warehouse. In creating "The Quarry Project," she spoke with historians, neighbors and people who worked in local quarries as teens.

"I had all these questions, about: What were these marks on the stone? What did they mean? I found out this one meant that they were using fire to cut through it, and this one meant that they were using metal to cut through it," Dennison said. "It's just a magical place."

Anderson, of Charlotte, a longtime collaborator with Dennison, designed costumes, sets and did videography for "The Quarry Project," and said when the project was completed, she felt moved to create some paintings. A key partner in the creation of "Echoes," she also contributed sculptures and installation art.

"One of the things that we attempted to do was to create an emotional response, to create an environment that drew people in," Anderson said. "They could leave most of their lives at the door, so to speak."

The show opened May 31. Anderson remembers one visitor who was in tears.

"I said, 'What's going on?' And she said, 'I just feel as if I've been transported; I'm moved by the experience,' which was, you know  I couldn't ask for anything better," Anderson recalled.

Dennison said whenever she can, she closes projects with an exhibit of the visual artists involved.

"The thing is that, when people come to see a performance, they're coming to see my work primarily. These are all the people who are sort of in the semi-background  the costumer, the filmmaker, the composer, the photographer, painters," she said. "It is a way for me to take the spotlight off of me and put it on them, because I couldn't have done it without them."

In "The Quarry Project," the dancers performed atop floating platforms on the water, but some of Anderson's paintings depict dancers dancing directly on the water or coming out of the water, the artist said.

"Hannah says it sounds biblical, but it was really more about the idea of just dancing on the water," Anderson said. "Some of the paintings that I did depict that  it's as if they're coming through the water or they're just standing on the water or moving on the water, which was enjoyable for me, to sort of realize that idea in my head and put it into an image."

More "humorously," as Anderson describes, she has a wall hanging made of the costumes she made for "The Quarry Project."

"It was so much work to make them, the idea of cutting them apart, that seemed really hard for me to accept," she said. But after working up the courage, she took the costumes from one scene, snipped them apart, and assembled them into a long image of dancers rushing across a space.

"It's kind of amusing because it is reconfigured. The costumes are now something else. They've now embodied a whole other kind of thing," Anderson said.

In another medium, Julia Barstow, of Adamant, the project photographer for "The Quarry Project," has about 60 photographs featured in "Echoes"  "threading imagery of the quarry and the dancers and water and reflections throughout conversation with other artists' work," Barstow said.

The installation at the Kent, she noted, also has video and audio elements, including ambient nature sounds from the quarry. "I think people are appreciating the journey of the installation," she said.

A dancer herself, she noted that the project allowed her to combine her passions. Her favorite parts of the experience were "that kinesthetic connection to the dancers, as a dancer myself who was photographing them," and the intricacies of photographing the quarry; the project used only natural light.

She mused: "All of the stone and the water and how different each time photographing there was, just over the course of a few minutes  the changes in the clouds and the light, and the quality of the reflections that resulted from those shifts in light, and just the different times of day."

"It was a really beautiful experience to be part of over the years," Barstow said.
Nico D'Elisa of Vermont Comedy All Stars jokes about being a wedding singer at a past show at Next Stage Arts in Putney. There will be another show with a new set of comedians on Friday.
Jada Wood, a junior at Leland & Gray Union Middle High School in Townshend, gets help from Negina Azimi, a member of ArtLords, while painting a mural during the schools Project Based Learning Showcase.
Letter to the Editor: Honoring Men in the League of Women Voters
Schneider Electric has crowned its leading Australia and New Zealand (A/NZ) partners for their efforts over the last year.

In all, 16 awards were handed out to 13 companies, with the accolades celebrating their accomplishments during the period, according to Joe Craparotta, Schneider Electric VP of IT business for the Pacific zone.

The exceptional innovation and commitment to excellence demonstrated by Schneiders channel partners over the past year has been remarkable. These awards celebrate those accomplishments, and we want to congratulate all entrants as their hard work has resulted in innovative new solutions and outstanding value to clients, he said.

As a global technology leader in data centre solutions, Schneider Electric is proud to be supporting its partners as part of its own mission to become the trusted partner in sustainability and digitisation.

The full list of recipients are:

Distributor of the Year: Dicker Data Australia

Distributor of the Year New Zealand: Dicker Data New Zealand

Distributor  Best in Marketing Campaigns of the Year: Dicker Data Australia

Distributor Sales Champion of the Year: Tina Kuleski, Dicker Data

Strategic Partner of the Year: Data#3

Elite IT Solution Provider of the Year: BDC Services

Premier IT Solution Provider of the Year: Blue Connections

Select IT Solution Provider of the Year: Atturra

Ecommerce Partner of the Year: Mwave

Partner of the Year New Zealand: DataGuard

Ecommerce Partner of the Year New Zealand: Acquire

Partner Sales Champion of the Year: Ellana Yeoh  BDC Services

Partner Technical Champion of the Year: Andrew Skeels  MyCom

Most Sustainable Partner of the Year: Datacom

Managed Service Partner of the Year: Treske

Electrical Wholesaler: Branch of the Year: AWM  Port Melbourne

Last week, Schneider Electric released a report it commissioned and was conducted by Tech Research Asia that found substantial increases in AI funding during the next five years are on the cards for small- to medium-sized businesses (SMB).
June 13 is United Nations International Albinism Awareness Day, the 10th anniversary of the launch of the day to combat stigma, discrimination and violence toward persons with albinism. Persons with albinism, a congenital condition that affects one in 18,000 to 20,000 people worldwide, still face prejudice and suffer attacks and killings, while poverty prevents many from obtaining life-saving sunscreen, UN experts say.
The meeting on Wednesday was the first the council has held on North Koreas rights in 10 months.

South Korean Ambassador to the United Nations Joonkook Hwang, acting as president of the U.N. Security Council for June, chairs a meeting of the Council on North Korean human rights at U.N. headquarters in New York, June 12, 2024.

North Koreas human rights took center stage at a U.N. Security Council (UNSC) meeting as diplomats, experts and activists strongly condemned a deteriorating rights situation, saying North Korea is increasing the suffering of its people while pursuing its nuclear program.

The meeting was held annually from 2014 to 2017 but then went on a hiatus before resuming in August last year. The meeting on Wednesday was the first the council has held on North Koreas rights in 10 months.

If human rights violations stop, nuclear weapons development will also stop, said South Koreas ambassador to the U.N., Hwang Joon-kook, who is this months rotating UNSC president.

This is why we need to look at the DPRK human rights situation from the perspective of international peace and security, he added, referring to the North by its official name, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea.

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk told the meeting that repression of freedom of movement and expression had intensified in North Korea in recent years, and that socio-economic living conditions had become unbearably harsh due to food shortages.

Accountability for these longstanding, serious and widespread violations needs to be a priority. Ten years ago, the U.N. Commission of Inquiry on human rights in the DPRK called on the Council to refer the situation to the International Criminal Court, which I endorse, said Turk.

U.N. Special Rapporteur on human rights in North Korea Elizabeth Salmon also stressed that Pyongyangs continued prioritization of its military, nuclear and missile programs has put a heavy burden on the people, particularly women and children.

Resources available for realizing human rights are reduced, exploitation of labor to finance militarization becomes rampant, and, as a result, the protection of fundamental freedoms and human rights is often overlooked, she said.

South Korean Ambassador to the United Nations Joonkook Hwang, acting as president of the U.N. Security Council for June, holds a vote of the Council at a meeting on North Korean human rights at U.N. headquarters in New York, June 12, 2024. (Mike Segar/Reuters)





U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield reiterated that she has made it a priority to meet North Korean defectors and push the North's human rights abuses to the top of the UNSC agenda.

Protecting human rights is not a distraction from safeguarding peace and security. The two are inextricably linked, she said.

Japanese Ambassador to the U.N. Kazuyuki Yamazaki urged North Korea to take tangible steps to address human rights violations.

We strongly urge it to suspend its nuclear and ballistic missile programs and return to dialogue in full compliance with Security Council resolutions, said Yamazaki.

A young North Korean defector representing civil society also spoke, appealing to the international community to stand with the North Korean people, not the regime.

The country that supposedly had nothing to envy in the world was nowhere to be seen, said Kim, referring to a North Korean slogan. In its place were political prison camps, death from starvation, public executions and people risking their lives to escape.

We need to give the same level of importance to North Koreas peoples rights as we do to nuclear weapons and missiles.

Russian, Chinese displeasure

Russian and Chinese representatives, who opposed a procedural vote on the adoption of the human rights agenda, voiced their displeasure at the meeting.

While the whole world looks toward the council with hope, anticipating that it will resolve complicated global issues, it is squandering resources on a discussion of groundless and blatantly politicized matters, said Vasily Nebenzya, Russias ambassador to the U.N.

Geng Shuang, Chinas deputy U.N. representative, reiterated Beijings position that the UNSC is not the proper place to address human rights issues.

It should not intervene in country-specific human rights issues, he said. Weve always opposed the politicization of human rights issues or using human rights as a pretext to exert pressure on other countries.

Joint statement

Before the UNSC meeting, 57 U.N. member states and the delegation of the European Union issued a statement on the Norths rights, calling for all U.N. members to work together to bring concrete change to improve the welfare of North Koreans and contribute to a more peaceful and secure world.

South Korean Ambassador to the United Nations Joonkook Hwang reads a joint statement as he appears with representatives of U.N. Security Council members and non-council members ahead of chairing a meeting on North Korean human rights at U.N. headquarters in New York, June 12, 2024. (Mike Segar/Reuters)





The DPRK continues to commit systematic, widespread and gross human rights violations and abuses, they said in a statement read out by South Koreas Ambassador to the U.N. Hwang.

These include restrictions on freedom of expression, freedom of movement, collective punishment, arbitrary detention, torture and other cruel, inhumane and degrading punishments, including public executions without trial and issues related to abductees, detainees and unrepatriated prisoners of war.

Edited by RFA Staff.
The move to forge diplomatic ties is a blow to North Korea, which regarded Cuba as one of its socialist brethren.

Carlos Pereira, Director General of the Bilateral Bureau of the Cuban Ministry of Foreign Affairs, left, and Jeong Byeong-won, Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea.

South Korea and Cuba announced on Wednesday that they have finalized plans to open embassies in Havana and Seoul, and will send diplomats within the week.

The development came as Cuba sent its first delegation to South Korea since the two countries agreed to normalize relations in February, a decision that took North Korea by surprise.

North Korea has traditionally regarded Cuba as one of its closest socialist brethren, with state media often characterizing the Caribbean island as a success story despite the challenges it faces under the U.S.-enforced trade embargo.

The delegation, led by Carlos Miguel Pereira, director general of bilateral affairs at the Cuban foreign ministry, visited South Koreas Ministry of Foreign Affairs and held discussions with the Korean side led by Deputy Minister for Political Affairs Chung Byung-won.

During Wednesdays meeting, Seoul and Havana agreed to cooperate on several different international and regional situations and to set up embassies as soon as possible, Lim Soo-suk, a South Korean foreign ministry spokesperson, told a news briefing.

Carlos Miguel Pereira, Director General of the Bilateral Affairs at the Cuban foreign ministry, speaks on a panel at the 2024 Korea-LAC Future Cooperation Forum, June 10, 2024 in Seoul. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Korea via Youtube)

Deputy Minister Chung elaborated, saying that a temporary office would be opened within the first half of this year, with diplomatic staff to be dispatched to Havana later this week.

Director General Pereira, meanwhile, said that Cuban personnel began working in South Korea last month, and will open the Cuban Embassy soon.

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Mario Alzugaray Rodriguez, deputy head of mission of the Cuban Embassy in China, visited South Korea in May to discuss the embassy opening with the South Koreas Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He was also part of the delegation and had the title acting ambassador to South Korea.

Chung reported prior to the meeting that discussions would also include inter-Korean relations.

Checkmate?

Cubas sudden overtures to South Korea should not necessarily be taken at face value because Havana still remains close to Russia, David Maxwell, vice president for the Center of Asia Pacific Strategy, told RFA Korean.

Maxwell noted that at the same time as the meeting in Seoul, four Russian warships, including a nuclear-powered submarine, had entered Havana harbor in Cuba.

I worry about political warfare. Is Cuba really breaking from the axis of dictators? Maxwell said. What if Cuban relations with South Korea will be exploited over time to receive South Korean exports, particularly of high tech and dual use goods, that could then be transhipped to North Korea?

Maxwell likened the geopolitical situation between North and South Korea to that of opponents in the Korean stone-capturing game baduk, known as go in Japan and weiqi in China.

It appears that South Korea has captured a North Korean stone, he said. But does this diplomatic terrority really benefit South Korea in the long run? Only time will tell.

But the establishment of relations between Havana and Seoul will not have any effects on inter-Korean relations, the Heritage Foundations Bruce Klingner told RFA.

Cuba did not provide assistance to North Korea nor had significant trade with Pyongyang, he said. While Havana's shift in relations between the Koreas was an embarrassment for Pyongyang as a loss of a socialist compatriot, the North Korean populace may not have been informed of the event.

Translated by Leejin J. Chung. Edited by Eugene Whong and Malcolm Foster.
Some of the girls were as young as 13. The store owners will be charged with human trafficking.

Police discovered that 19 teenage girls and women were selling surreptitious sex at a restaurant during a raid in central Laos that resulted in the arrest of the restaurants two owners, a police officer told Radio Free Asia.

Some of the girls were as young as 13, according to a village official in Khammouane provinces Hinboun district, who like many other sources in this report requested anonymity for security reasons.

The restaurant has been shut down, the police officer said. For the girls and women, we just told them to go back home to their parents. We didnt fine or punish them.

The restaurant owners will be charged with human trafficking, he said.

Authorities went to the restaurant on June 7 because of its loud noise, the village official said. There are three other restaurants in the village that are also suspected of offering prostitution, he said.

Before they were sent home to their families, the girls and women underwent a re-education session in which they were told that providing sex service is against Lao tradition and law.

The purpose of todays session is to make sure that the participants understand the guidelines and policy of the government and Party, Soukkhaseum Sitthideth, president of the Lao Womens Union of Khammouane province said in a video of the session seen by RFA.

Lao women are traditionally conservative but nowadays in a digital era, our girls and women have changed, she said. Our tradition and culture have been affected by the changes. A great number of our girls and women have adopted a new lifestyle.

Laos faces many challenges when it comes to fighting human trafficking, including not having the resources to properly fund enforcement against those who trick or force young people into illicit work.

Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath have left many Laotians in desperate financial situations amid a faltering economy and rampant unemployment.

In February, police near Vientiane raided nightclubs, restaurants and karaoke bars along a busy highway and found 47 sex workers, including four girls under 18 years old.

In that case, police also determined that most of the girls and women were from poor, rural families, an officer said at the time.

Translated by Max Avary. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster.
Nearly 300 junta troops were driven from a camp in Rakhine state near Bangladesh.

The rebel Arakan Army has seized a key military junta post near the Bangladesh border in western Myanmars Rakhine state, a nearby resident told Radio Free Asia.

Nearly 300 junta troops were stationed at the Ahlaythankyaw border police camp in Maungdaw township when fighting broke out on Wednesday, the resident said on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

Ahlaythankyaw camp is quite crucial for the junta, he said. The camp was used both for the exit to the sea and as a supply route. Officers were also stationed in that camp.

The Alaythankyaw area was where the Myanmar military allegedly carried out human rights abuses against Rohingya Muslims in 2017 that prompted more than 700,000 to flee to safety in Bangladesh.

The Arakan Army, or AA, resumed its battle against the junta for territory in Myanmars west in November. It controls nine townships in Rakhine state and one in Chin state.

Image from a June 7, 2024 post on the Arakan Army website. (AA Info Desk)





In January, the AA turned its focus to Maungdaw, a strategic township for border relations with Bangladesh. It has driven junta forces out of several border posts in Maungdaw.

A junta airstrike hit a residential area on Wednesday, injuring some civilians as fighting continued between the AA and junta troops who had fled from the Ahlaythankyaw camp, the resident said.

Hla Thein, the juntas spokesman for Rakhine state, didnt answer his telephone when RFA tried to contact him for comment on Thursday.

A ceasefire between the AA and the military broke down in November, at the same time that other ethnic minority and pro-democracy insurgents launched attacks that have put military junta forces under in western and northern Myanmar.

The AA is continuing its offensive in Ann, Thandwe and Maungdaw townships, where the juntas Western Regional Military Headquarters for Rakhine state is based.

Translated by Aung Naing. Edited by Matt Reed and Malcolm Foster.
Banks, corporations and politicians in Thailand and Malaysia are identified in rights groups report.

An ethnic minority militia force based on Myanmars border with Thailand is suspected of enabling extensive internet fraud, human trafficking, forced labor and other crimes, and is being enriched by a business network that extends across Asia, a rights group said in a report.

The group Justice for Myanmar detailed a multitude of business links that the junta-allied Karen Border Guard Force, or BGF, has established in Thailand, Malaysia and beyond, and it called on governments to act to stop the illegal activity.

The militia was formed by fighters who broke away from the Karen National Union insurgent group in the 1990s and sided with the junta. It became one of several military-backed Border Guard Forces in 2009.

Control over border crossings gave the group access to lucrative revenue streams, while its self-ruled zones became a magnet for illegal casinos, online gambling and scam centers that have proliferated along Myanmars borders with both China and Thailand.

The operations, which gangs organize throughout the region, are often run on the labor of people tricked into thinking theyve landed legitimate jobs but forced to adopt false identities online in what have become known as pig-butchering schemes, forming relationships with victims then tricking them into investing in fake schemes.

University of Texas researchers estimated in a March report that scammers had tricked investors out of more than US$75 billion since January 2020.

The leader of the Karen force, Saw Chit Thu, has built a criminal business network with his family members and associates   (overseeing) a proliferation of illegal casinos, online gambling and cyber scam centres run with trafficked labour from across the world who have been subjected to forced criminality, torture and extortion.

The Myanmar army in return has benefited through revenue from BGF organized crime, the rights group said in its report.

Saw Chit Thu did not answer repeated phone calls from RFA seeking comment.

A BGF officer, Major Tin Win, in a recent interview with the Irrawaddy news outlet, said his group only had a small business and he was not aware of scams operations. He said his group rented out land for casinos and he had little knowledge of their operations beyond their use of computers. He also rejected accusations of forced labor saying his group had checked and found no such cases.

RFA was unable to contact Major Tin Win for comment.

But Justice for Myanmar spokesperson Yadanar Maung said governments and businesses across the region were enabling cyber scam operations by failing to take action against the profitable flows they generate.

Transnational criminal organizations have established networks in Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and Cambodia that profit from trafficking, slavery and the theft of wealth from scam victims across the world, she said in a statement to RFA.

Those governments have failed to crackdown on the sometimes well-connected investors profiting from these crimes.

Thai businesses

The BGFs hub of business operations is Shwe Kokko, a sprawl of buildings on the Myanmar side of a border river, 32 km (20 miles) north of the Thai town of Mae Sot.

That is where a joint venture called Yatai International Holding Group Company Limited was established by the Border Guard Force and a businessman called She Zhijiang to develop Shwe Kokkos Yatai New City real estate project, Justice for Myanmar said in its report.

She Zhijiang is a naturalized Cambodian national born in China who owns property and gaming ventures across Myanmar, Cambodia and the Philippines. He was arrested in Thailand in 2022 and was not available for comment.

Britain imposed sanctions on She Zhijiang in 2023, along with Saw Chit Thu and another top officer in the border force, Col. Min Min Oo, on suspicion of human trafficking, forced labor and other abuses. RFA was not able to contact Min Min Oo for comment.

Yatai says its business is registered in Hong Kong and headquartered in Bangkok. The Thai address it lists online matches one for a hotel, Bizotel. The hotel did not respond to inquiries from RFA.

Another branch of the operations, Myanmar Yatai International Holding Group Company Limited, leases a shop in Mae Sots airport.

Thailand's Department of Airports declined to comment on whether Mae Sot airport was taking money from Myanmar Yatai International Holding Group or the Border Guard Force. An official who declined to be identified told RFA the department could not confirm whether the organization or its associates had any outlets at the airport. Mae Sots airport lists the shop on its website.

Some major companies from Thailands financial sector have at least shown an interest in Shwe Kokko, Justice for Myanmar said in its report. It published a photograph of people it said were representatives of four Thai banks visiting Shwe Kokko in 2020. It also cited a Thai associate of the BGF, who it said had posted the photograph, as saying the purpose of the visit was to explore the potential financial support for the growing economy.

In this image included in a report by Justice for Myanmar, representatives from Thai banks are pictured in Shwe Kokko in 2020, according to Justice for Myanmar. (Image via Justice for Myanmar)

Justice for Myanmar said in its report it could not confirm whether the Thai banks had struck any agreements.

One man who was forced to work at what he said was a scam operation in the zone said his family had to pay to get him out. The 28-year-old Chinese man, who asked to be identified as Neo Lu, told RFA he was tricked into a job at the compound in June 2022.

After Lus release was brokered by an unidentified Chinese national, a member of the BGF agreed to take him across the border for a trafficking fee. In text messages seen by RFA, Lu asked his parents for a payment of 15,000 baht (US$409) through Thailands Kasikorn Bank to an account designated by the BGF, belonging to a Mrs Win.

Kasikorn Bank did not respond to a request for comment from RFA.

Malaysian links

A major investor in the facility Lu was forced to work in, Dongmei Park, south of Myawaddy town, is a Washington-sanctioned former Chinese triad boss, Wan Kuok-koi, also known as Broken Tooth, Yin Gouju. He is also wanted by Malaysian police, Justice for Myanmar said in their report.

The group said Wan, former leader of the 14K Triad crime gang, set up Dongmei Park with well-connected Malaysian citizens. Those individuals included a politician from what was for decades Malaysias ruling party, the United Malays National Organization, Mashitah Ibrahim, and her husband Abdul Shakor Abu Bakar, in addition to two individuals named Sri Liong Kee Huat and Yong Mun Hong. The United States in 2020 sanctioned Wan and Dongmei Park, which it said was another name for Dongmei Investment Group Co. Ltd.

Mashitah, who is still active in politics with UMNO, was deputy minister in the Prime Ministers Department from 2008-2013.

BenarNews, an RFA-affiliated online news service, called Mashitah for comment several times on her mobile phone and sent her text messages. Her only response was: Not interested.

Justice for Myanmar said Mashitah had posted accounts on her Facebook page that showed she was at least acquainted with Broken Tooth and associated with the Dongmei Park project.

BenarNews could not find any public record for Liong Kee Huat, or a phone number for Yong Mun Hong. No one answered the door at a residence in Kuala Lumpur listed under Mun Hongs name in Dongmei Groups corporate registration in Hong Kong.

Police Chief Razarudin Husain and Home Minister Saifuddin did not respond to requests for comment on any involvement of Malaysian investors with the former triad boss and the Myanmar militia.

Justice for Myanmar called for action from Asian governments.

This criminal business network is a global threat  causing widespread suffering to local communities, workers from across Myanmar and the world who are kept in slave-like conditions, and the victims of cyber scams everywhere, it said in its report.

Authorities in the region, notably China, Hong Kong, Cambodia, Malaysia, Singapore and Thailand, should investigate the involvement of their citizens, residents and companies that are perpetrating, enabling and benefiting from the transnational crimes and human rights violations committed in Myanmar, and hold them accountable, the group said.

Edited by Taejun Kang. Rakkanam contributed to this report from Bangkok, Duncan from Mae Sot, Neelakantan from Washington, and Yusof from Kuala Lumpur.
Zwe Htet gold shop chain has many branches across the country, especially in Yangon and Mandalay.

An insurgent militia in central Myanmar planted a bomb at a gold shop chain, alleging it was linked to the junta. The explosion injured six civilians, residents told Radio Free Asia on Thursday.

The anti-junta group, No More Dictatorship People Defense Force, targeted a shop in Mandalay Divisions Chanayethazan township on Wednesday afternoon.

We know that Zwe Htet gold shops have been made with the shares of the junta councils leaders, said the leader of the group who goes by Charlie.

So we carried out this [attack] with the intention of letting people know about one of the junta councils economic pillars and telling people not to support them.

Zwe Htet is a national chain selling gold, jewelry and gems, with branches spanning Mandalay and Yangons commercial areas.

RFA has not been able to independently verify the guerilla groups claims about the chains financial connections to the junta. The chain has not released any information about the attack.

Junta soldiers and police arrived shortly after the blast, said one witness, asking to remain anonymous for security reasons.

I went outside to see what happened right after I heard the explosion, but the gold shops doors were still shut, he said. Then the police came after a while and I saw an employee was carried out of the area.

Three of the shops employees and three other bystanders were injured in the attack blast, residents said.

Mandalay Divisions junta spokesperson, Thein Htay, has not responded to RFA inquiries as of this writing.

Translated by RFA Burmese. Edited by Kiana Duncan and Taejun Kang.
A man on a rickshaw looks at his mobile phone as girls sit outside a shop-door till it opens in Yangon, Myanmar, Friday, Nov. 13, 2015.

Junta soldiers in some Myanmar cities have begun randomly inspecting the mobile phones of pedestrians, threatening those who use virtual private networks, or VPNs, with steep fines and even arrest, according to residents who spoke to RFA Burmese.

In late May, the junta announced a ban on VPN software, which masks users locations, permitting them to bypass junta restrictions on social media sites and apps that serve as key sources of news in the nation that has been wracked by a three-year civil war.

Since then, security forces have begun stopping passersby in major cities like Yangon and Mandalay, as well as in townships across Sagaing, Bago, Ayeyarwady and Chin state, and demanding money from those they catch with the software.

The sweeps are similar to those reported in Yangon in January 2022, shortly before the one-year anniversary of the February 2021 coup, when the military removed a democratically elected government from power. But unlike those checks, the latest crackdown appears widespread and coordinated.

If the software was found, the junta forces asked for 300,000 ($140) to 400,000 kyats ($184). Those who did not pay the money were taken to the police station. It is unknown if anyone was arrested for their VPN, but four or five people have paid money to avoid arrest, said a resident of Mawlamyinegyun township in Ayeyarwady region.

In Paunde township, Bago region, a resident reported that someone was arrested on June 11 for possessing the software on his phone.

Today, inspections are being made randomly at the junctions in the town, he added, asking not to be identified due to security concerns.

In Hakha city of Chin state, residents said junta troops made surprise checks on mobile phones of civilians and extorted anywhere from 1 million ($460) to 3 million ($1380) kyats if they found VPN software.

Stronger firewall

Shortly after the 2021 coup, the junta banned access to Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram in Myanmar. In a country where Facebook remains the chief way to access information, many citizens resorted to VPNs which mask the location of the devices they used to view the site.

But on May 30, the ban was extended to include VPN, software, which in the three years since the takeover had become widely used to scale the juntas web-page firewall from within Myanmar.

The impact on the publics access to news  while the country is embroiled in a conflict between the military and various rebel groups  has been quick and severe, according to residents.

A 60-year-old woman said that news is delayed four or five days without the ability to access Facebook and other sites with a VPN connection.

In the past, we received news updates immediately, the woman said. I didnt even know that Tin Oo had passed away until now, she added, referring to the patron of Myanmars deposed National League for Democracy party, who died June 1 at age 98.

Htin Lin Aung, the minister of Communications, Information and Technology for Myanmars government-in-exile, the National Unity Government, or NUG, told RFA that shutting down VPNs has dealt a significant blow to both the public and rebel forces.

In the past, social media was blocked and the internet was shut down, but VPN technology provided a way to overcome these barriers, he said. Now, with the VPN ban, it is much more difficult to bypass restrictions. They [the junta] can track our locations, service providers, and IP addresses.

But Htin Lin Aung said that the NUG had anticipated such measures and prepared in advance.

"Our [homegrown] VPN has been submitted and approved by our cabinet, he said, adding that a messaging application had also been developed and tested, which he called crucial for rebel forces.

Supporting all the people would require a substantial budget, so for now, these applications are being used exclusively by the rebel forces."

Gar Gar, a member and fundraiser for the Peoples Defense Force  made up of ordinary citizens who have taken up arms against the junta  said that the VPN block is likely also aimed at cutting into online campaigns spread via social media that have been crucial to raising funds for anti-junta forces.

The junta is blocking information, and has prepared to stop lucky draws and other fundraising campaigns that support the revolution. They know the effectiveness of such activities, she said.

According to a local news outlet, Chinese tech groups are collaborating with a Myanmar company that secured a bid from the military council to enforce the VPN ban.

Mascots Technologies & Telecommunication reportedly spearheaded the VPN shutdown and obtained an operating license from the Ministry of Transport and Communications on May 8, 2018, valid until May 7, 2033.

Mascots Technologies & Telecommunication did not respond to requests for comment nor did Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, the juntas spokesperson.

A router and internet switch are displayed, June 19, 2018 in East Derry, N.H. (Charles Krupa/AP)

Junta alternatives

This is not the first time that the junta has tried to control social media networks.

Apart from the ongoing ban on Facebook and other messaging and social media platforms, the junta has been mulling a draconian cybersecurity bill since February 2021. If the law were passed, VPN users could face up to three years in prison and a 500,000 kyat fine.

Before going after individuals for VPN use, the junta would routinely request telecoms to block particular websites or VPNs, creating a game of cat and mouse. One user told RFA that she routinely toggles through 20 VPNs while trying to access Facebook for basic information, like reviews of schools shes considering sending her children to.

Wai Phyo Myint of Access Now, a group campaigning for digital rights, told RFA that the latest VPN crackdown represents the worst form of escalation.

For those banned on May 30, it is said that the control comes directly from Naypyidaw. The current situation with the bans is getting worse."

Simultaneously, the junta has repeatedly tried to replace social networking platforms such as Facebook and YouTube with applications under their control.

MySPACE

The latest of those is a social networking platform called MySPACE, recently released by the junta. News of the platform was met by a successful campaign to have it removed from Google and Apples app stores.

An IT expert, who asked to remain anonymous for security reasons, said that the military council wanted to use MySPACE to collect people's information.

"This information is provided to Facebook. So, even as I sit in Myanmar browsing the internet, [Facebook] knows my phone number, they know me after tracing the internet I use, they know where I am located. Their [the juntas] aim is to amass such data on their servers, nudging users toward Myspace to wield control over information flow."

Experts said they doubted the juntas software would gain much traction, but also said the VPN block could well be limited in its impact in the long term.

The junta will keep restrictions on VPN, but people will try to overcome it. Many paid VPNs are now available. Small VPNs could not overcome the restrictions, but more advanced VPN could not be controlled, said one IT expert, though he noted that more advanced VPNs were likely too expensive for many to access.

Lin Htet Aung, a former military officer who joined the anti-junta Civil Disobedience Movement after the coup, said the ban reflected the juntas failures to sway public opinion.

"Hence, they resort to banning these platforms, much like North Korea and China, in order to monopolize the dissemination of their own rhetoric and propaganda. This manipulation serves as a means of confining people within a narrow framework, stifling access to alternative perspectives and knowledge," he said.

According to a report by the Freedom on the Net group released in 2023, Myanmar is the second-worst country in the world for internet freedom violations.

Under the military regime, people who upload anti-junta posts on social media were arrested very frequently. Between February 2022 and the end of September 2023, a total of 1,306 anti-junta critics through social media were arrested, according to the research group Data for Myanmar.

Translated by Aung Naing and Kalyar Lwin. Edited by Abby Seiff, Josh Lipes and Malcolm Foster.
Rebel forces are targeting them for helping the ruling junta.

Soldiers attend the opening ceremony of a training course at the Yangon Regional Training School in Myanmar, May 14, 2024.

More than 80 junta-appointed administrators across Myanmar have been assassinated for aiding or participating in the military conscription of civilians since the draft was announced in February, according to an RFA tally.

In all, 82 village and ward administrators, clerks and others have been killed in the past four months, according to statements from the Peoples Defense Force militias, largely made up of ordinary citizens who have taken up arms against the military rulers.

Myanmars ruling junta activated the mandatory conscription law, dormant since 2010, as it lost ground  and troops  to ethnic armies and PDF guerilla fighters.

The law allows for men ages 18 to 45 and women ages 18 to 35 to be drafted into the armed forces for two years. Medical doctors and other specialists up to age 45 must serve for three years.

Evading conscription is punishable by three to five years in prison and a fine.

Rebel groups have sought to undermine the draft, and killing those ordered to carry it out has been one way.

In the past, administrators were well-regarded by the people, said a relative of an administrator killed in Yangon. Now, they are becoming widely disliked by the public. Even after his death, his remaining family members face ostracism.

Only one fitting punishment

In Yangon, administrators in Kungyangon, Insein and North Dagon townships were killed after resistance forces warned them to resign, to stop supporting the junta, and to stop conscripting civilians.

If they continue these actions without compliance, then there is only one fitting punishment during the revolution, said an official from the People's Defense Force of Shwebo township in northwestern Myanmars Sagaing region.

In the central Mandalay region, two dozen administrators have been killed during the past four months  the highest number of fatalities in a single region or state  followed by Magway region with 18 fatalities.

Nearly 40 administrators have resigned, other officials said.

People attend a lecture on the administrative rules of village administration law at the General Administration Department in Mahlaing township, Mandalay region, Myanmar, Feb. 1, 2024. (RFA)

Residents say that some administrators are extorting amounts equivalent to hundreds of U.S. dollars from civilians who refuse to perform military service.

An administrator in Ayeyarwady region, who wished to remain anonymous for safety reasons, said he is waiting for the junta to approve his resignation.

I wont continue because my family's lives are in danger, he said. Although I have resigned, the head [of the townships General Administration Department] will not accept it. As a result, our lives are now filled with chaos and uncertainty.

The military council has not issued any statements about the administrators deaths.

Alternative strategies

A former military officer, who also requested anonymity for safety reasons, said civilian conscription efforts have not slowed down despite the number of administrators who have been killed.

If one administrator dies, the next assigned administrator will continue the task, he said. Killing individuals will not stop the process. If this method fails, the military will pursue alternative strategies.

The juntas Central Body for Summoning Peoples Military Servants based in Myanmars capital of Naypyitaw said it would work with security forces in relevant states and regions to step up protection for administrators.

Political analyst Than Soe Naing said administrators are arbitrarily mistreating civilians under the pretext of the law.

There is no police department to lodge complaints about these cases, nor a court to file a lawsuit, he said.

When the public protests, they are met with gunfire, torture and imprisonment, he said. These actions have persisted, leading the public to resist this unjust law in acts of civil disobedience.

Translated by Kalyar Lwin for RFA Burmese. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster.
Meanwhile, a binding code of conduct on the South China Sea is at least another 2 years away.

Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, fourth from right, visits his alma mater, Herndon High School, June 12, 2024 in Herndon, Virginia.

Southeast Asia wont pick sides in the strategic rivalry between the United States and China and believes both powers have a role to play in Asia, a top regional official said in Washington on Wednesday.

Speaking with reporters at Arizona State Universitys Washington campus, Kao Kim Hourn, the secretary-general of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, said the 10-nation grouping wanted Beijing and Washington to work out their differences.

But until that happens, he said, Southeast Asia would work with both powers and oppose any efforts to be shoehorned into the rivalry.

They should not ask us to choose sides. We will not choose sides, said Kao Kim Hourn, who was an adviser to former Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen before taking on his role with ASEAN in 2022.

This is a strategic competition between China and the United States, he explained. It's not a strategic competition with ASEAN.

Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, center, participates in a Media Roundtable attended by news outlets and media agencies, June 12, 2024 at Arizona State Universitys Washington, DC campus. (ASEAN)

The ASEAN states hoped the rivalry will not have repercussions for Southeast Asia and wanted the sides to talk more to avoid economic or military blowback for the region, the official added.

We want to see the superpowers get together, he said.

Asked about remarks often made by Chinese government officials that the United States was an outsider in Asia and should focus on its own backyard, Kao Kim Hourn said many in ASEAN disagreed.

We consider the United States as a friend and as a partner, he said. In this regard, I dont think ASEAN considers the United States as an outsider. The U.S. has been involved in the region for many years.

Earlier on Wednesday, Kao Kim Hourn visited students at Herndon High School, which he attended in the 1980s after escaping the Cambodian Civil War that followed the 1979 overthrow of the Khmer Rouge.

He also met with U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.

South China Sea

A day prior, Kao Kim Hourn held talks with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, who on Wednesday publicly called on Southeast Asia to adopt a unified stance on assertive Chinese claims against Philippine waters, which has included water-cannon attacks.

A Philippine Coast Guard vessel is water cannoned by the Chinese Coast Guard as it tries to approach the waters near Scarborough Shoal locally known as Bajo De Masinloc at the South China Sea, April 30, 2024. (Philippine Coast Guard via AP)

ASEAN should send an unmistakable message about concerns with respect to provocations in what is clearly the Philippines' waters, Campbell said at a forum at the Stimson Center in Washington.

However, the bloc, which requires consensus among its 10 member states to issue positions, has been unable to offer a unified stance on Chinas claims to the South China Sea since Cambodia in 2012 hosted the groups annual summit and vetoed any such statement.

As a close ally of Beijing and one of its largest aid recipients  and with no claims itself to the South China Sea  Phnom Penh has since prevented the bloc from criticizing Chinas aggressive claims.

At the roundtable on Wednesday, Kao Kim Hourn noted that only four of the 10 ASEAN states  Vietnam, Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines  had direct claims to the South China Sea, and said even within the bloc there were overlapping claims that needed to be resolved.

A Philippine official this week, for instance, said that Manila was monitoring island-building by Vietnam in a disputed part of the sea, even as he stopped short of condemning the land reclamation and said ties between Vietnam and the Philippines remain friendly.

The Vietnamese-claimed Southwest Cay island in the Spratly island group is seen from a Philippine Air Force C-130 transport plane during the visit to the Philippine-claimed Thitu Island by Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Armed Forces Chief Gen. Eduardo Ano and other officials in disputed South China Sea, western Philippines, Friday, April 21, 2017. (Francis Malasig/AP)

Kao Kim Hourn said ASEAN had to sort out the counterclaims that exist among its own members before it could adopt a unified regional stance on Chinas overlapping claims  even if that meant allowing Beijing to press ahead with increasingly assertive behavior.

A long-awaited code of conduct governing how claimants behave in the South China Sea, which was first floated in talks with Beijing in the 1990s, could be at least another two years away, he added.

They're trying to work within that time frame, he said. But, again, it depends on the speed and, of course, the process of negotiating.

Edited by Malcolm Foster.
The Philippine navy is monitoring Vietnams island building activities in the West Philippine Sea -- part of the South China Sea within Manilas exclusive economic zone, a naval official said.

The spokesperson for the West Philippine Sea, Commodore Roy Vincent Trinidad, told a radio station that both the navy and the department of foreign affairs were watching the situation.

Manila claims jurisdiction over a group of reefs and rocks, called the Kalayaan island group in the Philippines. Most of the reefs are within the Spratly archipelago, which is contested by several countries in the region.

The Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative (AMTI) think tank said in a recent report that in six months Vietnam had created as much new land in the South China Sea as the previous two years combined.

Vietnam has reclaimed a total area of 955 hectares, about half the area that China has built up throughout the years, according to AMTI.

Namyit Island on May 16, 2024 (AMTI/Maxar Technologies)





The Philippines measured response to the report of Vietnamese land reclamation in areas that it also claims comes after a period of intensifying confrontation between Manila and Beijing over other features in disputed waters.

The Philippines and Vietnam have friendly relations, Trinidad told the Super Radyo dzBB station. Vietnam does not initiate illegal, coercive, aggressive, and deceptive actions against us, unlike China, he added.

Earlier, another Philippine official said that Vietnam was reclaiming features that it occupied before a 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea.

Vietnam focuses on minding their own affairs, Philippine coast guard spokesperson Jay Tarriela told reporters.

They do not engage in harassing our fishermen or illegally deploying coast guard vessels and maritime militia in the waters surrounding our occupied maritime features, Tarriela added.

Divisive issue

The Philippines has in the past issued a formal diplomatic protest against Vietnams island building, which was the usual practice in response to any such foreign activity in the West Philippine Sea, said Jay Batongbacal, a maritime legal expert.

It was more about the concern over the environmental impact of such activities as the Philippines gives great value to marine habitats and species diversity, Batongbacal told RFA. This has not affected Vietnam-Philippines relations overall.

Botongbacal said the two countries had been engaged in constant dialogue as two claimants from the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, in accordance with the 1992 ASEAN Declaration of Conduct for parties in the South China Sea and the 2002 Declaration of Conduct between the block and China.

Related Stories

Vietnam's South China Sea island building sets record in 2024: report

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Manila accuses Beijing of island building in South China Sea

Manila and Hanoi established a strategic partnership in 2015 and have been working together to manage their overlapping claims in the South China Sea amid new maritime challenges posed by their big neighbor China.

The Philippine Ambassador to Vietnam, Meynardo LB. Montealegre, on Wednesday called Vietnam our twin brother in the ASEAN region, and that the two countries are sharing the South China Sea as our common space for growth, our life-giving source for development and equally essential for our co-existence.

Yet Vietnams recent efforts could become a divisive issue between them.

A recent article by Rigoberto Tiglao in the Manila Times named Vietnam the Philippines other threat.

As sure as the sun rises in the East, if China vacates its occupied artificial islands in the South China Sea, the Socialist Republic of Vietnam will be landing its troops on each and every island, and it has been preparing to do so for a decade, he wrote.

The Manila Times, commonly seen as pro-China, previously published reports on Vietnams militarization of its outposts in the South China Sea, citing leaked documents from its defense ministry. There has been no independent verification of the documents and experts casted doubt on their authenticity.

However, after the articles were published, a group of Filipinos held a protest and tore down Vietnams flag in front of its embassy in Manila, prompting Vietnamese officials to ask Philippine authorities to handle the incident seriously.

Edited by Taejun Kang.
The shipment from Urumqi arrived in Salerno, Italy, at the end of May.

Protesters in Salerno, Italy, oppose the arrival of containers of tomato paste allegedly produced by Uyghur forced labor in northwestern China's Xinjiang region, May 29, 2024. (@coldiretti via X)

Dozens of containers of tomato paste exported from Xinjiang to Italy are the subject of domestic criminal and international complaints filed by rights lawyers on behalf of Uyghur advocacy groups who allege that the goods were produced using Uyghur forced labor.

They were among 82 containers of agricultural products from Chinas state-owned Xinjiang Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Investment (Group) Co., Ltd. shipped by rail and sea from Urumqi, capital of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, to southern Italy in late April, according to the plaintiffs.

The shipment also sparked outrage among Italian farmers who protested against the arrival of the cheaper processed tomato products from China in what they said were unfair imports.

Xinjiang, a major producer of tomato products, accounted for at least 80 percent of the total tomato products produced in China in 2023, according to Chinese figures.

Uyghurs and other Turkic groups in Xinjiang have been persecuted by the Chinese Communist Party for decades, including being forced to perform labor that benefits state-owned companies.

Amid much fanfare, the containers transported by rail as part of Beijings Belt and Road Initiative arrived in Salerno, Italy, at the end of May, according to Italys StraLi, a nonprofit group based in Turin that promotes the protection of rights through the judicial system.

On May 30, StraLi filed a criminal complaint demanding that the goods be seized as evidence and that a criminal investigation take place on behalf of the World Uyghur Congress and the U.K.-based Lawyers for Uyghur Rights.

It also filed a submission to the U.N. Working Group on Business and Human Rights on June 3, requesting a communication to the Italian government to seize the goods and investigate the companies involved in the importation.

New EU law

The move comes less than two months after the European Parliament approved a new regulation banning products made with force labor from entering the European Union. Uyghur advocates have praised the law, saying it will help clamp down on Chinas use of forced labor in far-western Xinjiang.

The EUs 27 member countries must approve the Forced Labour Regulation for it to enter into force and will have three years to implement it.

Protesters in Salerno, Italy, oppose the arrival of containers of tomato paste allegedly produced by Uyghur forced labor in northwestern China's Xinjiang region, May 29, 2024. (@coldiretti via X)

This legal challenge addresses both violations of fundamental principles of human dignity and international law instruments, as well as calling for the seizure of these recently imported goods under national law, said a statement issued by these groups on June 3.

The groups have presented evidence from Adrian Zenz, senior fellow and director in China studies at the Washington-based Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation, highlighting the prevalence of forced labor products from Xinjiang, the statement said.

StraLi lawyer Loide Cambisano, whos in charge of the case, said this was not the first time that goods produced with Uyghur forced labor have been exported to Italy.

Agricultural products and tomatoes in particular have arrived in Italy from the same region in China, she told Radio Free Asia on June 4. Its most likely that slavery and labor exploitation is occurring.

StraLi is seeking an immediate halt of the unloading of the tomato paste at the port of Salerno and a ban on its distribution in Italy, she said.

Were also asking for the end of the importation of any goods in the future which are made and transported from Xinjiang, she said.

Conspiracy to support slavery

Michael Polak, a London-based barrister who chairs Lawyers for Uyghur Rights, said the domestic criminal complaint argues that the goods violated Italian law and would hold accountable those responsible for slave labor in Xinjiangs agricultural sector.

On the national level, we say this importation is in breach of Italian domestic law in relation to the encouragement or conspiracy to support slavery.

Protesters in Salerno, Italy, oppose the arrival of containers of tomato paste allegedly produced by Uyghur forced labor in northwestern China's Xinjiang region, May 29, 2024. (@coldiretti via X)

As for the complaint filed with the U.N. Working Group, it alleges that China has violated international laws, specifically Articles 23 and 3 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as well as Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Polak said.

The transportation route combining rail and sea transportation services is a flagship project of the Belt and Road Initiative, or BRI, Chinese President Xi Jinpings signature debt and infrastructure program, according to Chinese media.

The shipment occurred despite Italys pullout from the BRI in 2023.

Human rights advocates and members of the Italian agricultural NGO Coldiretti  Europes largest agricultural organization  protested the arrival of the shipment at the port of Salerno on May 29 to show their opposition to what they consider unfair imports and the exploitation of Uyghurs and other Turkic people in Xinjiang.



A Coldiretti official told RFA on June 4 that it is very important that products imported to Italy be produced under the same working conditions as those in Italy.

Coldirettis President Ettore Prandini previously testified in the Italian Senate against the exportation of Chinese workers or what he called unfair imports that did not comply with European standards.

Coldiretti and Filiera Italia indicated that the World Tomato Processing Council, an international nonprofit organization representing the tomato processing industry, estimated that China would produce 7.3 billion kilograms, or over 8 million tons, of processed tomato products in 2023, surpassing Italys production.

Translated by RFA Uyghur. Edited by Roseanne Gerin and Malcolm Foster.


If hes sent back, Y Quynh Bdap will face a decade of prison.

Vietnamese activist Y Quynh Bdap is seen in a video he filmed himself on June 7, 2024, days before his arrest in Bangkok.

A Vietnamese human rights activist with refugee status in Thailand was arrested in Bangkok and now risks being deported to Vietnam, where he faces a 10-year prison sentence on terrorism charges.

Thai police arrested Y Quynh Bdap on June 11, according to his lawyer and rights activists. The arrest came exactly one year after dozens of people attacked two public agency headquarters in Vietnams Dak Lak province, in the Central Highlands, leaving nine dead.

Since then, scores of individuals have been tried and convicted in hearings that have been criticized as show trials. Y Quynh, who had left Vietnam in 2018, was sentenced in absentia to a decade in prison.

He has denied being involved in the attacks, calling the convictions politically motivated retaliation for his activism.

The area where the attacks took place is home to about 30 indigenous tribes who have a long history of conflict with the Vietnamese majority, and claim they have been discriminated against and persecuted.

They are often referred to as Montagnards, a term coined by French colonialists to describe the tribes, many of whom are Christians, but Vietnam has rejected use of the term.

Y Phic Hdok, who founded Montagnard Stand for Justice, or MSFJ, along with Y Quynh said he received a text message from Y Quynh on Tuesday reading: "I have been arrested."

A June 11 arrest warrant seen by RFA lists his arrest as a warrant for extradited criminals and notes he has been found guilty of acts of terrorism.

A Thai police official who asked not to be named because he was not authorized to speak to the media told RFA the activist would likely face trial for "overstaying" his visa.

Granted refugee status

Y Quynh left Vietnam in 2018 and sought asylum in Thailand, and was granted refugee status that same year by the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, or UNHCR. He has spent his time in Thailand collating rights abuses by the Vietnamese government for his MSFJ reports.

Because of his refugee status, Y Quynh has the right to resettle in a third country, and had applied for asylum in Canada. But his refugee card offers him little protection in Thailand, which has never ratified the 1951 Refugee Convention.

That has meant activists like Y Quynh can easily be picked up by Thai police on visa violations, and rights campaigners have accused Thailand of participating in transnational repression. A Human Rights Watch report issued last month noted Thailand facilitated forced returns and even abductions of refugees and dissidents.

His colleague, Y Phic, urged the Thai government to respect international human rights standards and reject Vietnams request to extradite Y Quynh.

Because the UNHCR has recognized Y Quynhs political refugee status, Thailand should have the obligation to protect his rights, he said.

Officers from Thailands National Human Rights Commission met with Y Quynh on June 7 and sent a letter marked most urgent to the Immigration Bureau asking that he not be deported, given his refugee status and expected resettlement in Canada.

The letter cites Thailands anti-torture law, which prohibits extradition in cases where the deportee could face torture or forced disappearance.

Related Stories:

Vietnamese police track down Montagnards in Thailand

Vietnam labels 2 foreign-based groups terrorist organizations

10 defendants given life sentences for Dak Lak attacks

Armed group attacks Vietnamese police stations, 39 people arrested

Hunting me down

In a video Y Quynh filmed days before his arrest, published by several rights campaigners immediately following, the activist says that Vietnamese authorities have been hunting me down since late 2023 and accused the Thai police of aiding their pursuit.

Out of fear for the safety of my family and myself, we have been in hiding for the past six months, he says. But on June 6, 2024, the Thai police found our location and have surrounded us since then.

In March, RFA reported that Thai police had been visiting Vietnamese refugees from the Central Highlands, urging them to return home, and that they were asking for the whereabouts of Y Quynh.

There is a worrying trend of Thailand deporting HRDs [human rights defenders] awaiting UNHCR resettlement to neighbouring countries to face unfair trial, Mary Lawlor, the UN Special Rapporteur for human rights defenders wrote in a tweet about Y Quynhs case.

Several Thai immigration officials declined to speak with RFA.

As a registered refugee, Y Quynh would have been entitled to protection from the UNHCR, which on its website tells asylum seekers in Thailand it will advocate for your right to non-refoulement to be respected.

It is unclear whether protection officers were present at his arrest, and the agency told RFA it would not comment on individual cases.

'Inexplicable'

A letter sent by his lawyer, Christopher MacLeod, to the UNHCR representative in Canada and Canadas ambassador to Thailand, noted that Y Quynh attended an asylum claim interview at the Canadian Embassy one day before his arrest.

Afterwards, staff from the UNs International Organization for Migration, or IOM, transported him to a safe place to await Canadas decision to grant him asylum.

It seems inexplicable that he could be arrested while under the protection of the UN, MacLeod wrote.

Neither the IOM nor the Canadian UNHCR representative responded to requests for comment.

Since the attack first occurred, Vietnam has accused overseas groups of masterminding the attacks. In March, the Ministry of Public Security labeled Y Quynhs Montagnard Stand for Justice as one of two terrorist organizations that helped plan the attacks.

Y Quynh has long denied such charges. In an interview with RFA last year, he insisted the Vietnamese authorities had used the attack in Dak Lak to slander him for the purpose of smearing my reputation and silencing my voice of human rights protection.

Rights groups have urged Thai authorities to release Y Quynh, arguing that theres little to substantiate Vietnams allegations against him.

The terrorism charges brought by the Vietnamese regime against Y Quynh Bdap are clearly baseless and trumped up and the Thai government must not be complicit in his refoulment, which is a violation of international law and standards, said Josef Benedict, civil space research officer for global civil society alliance CIVICUS.

This incident highlights a growing trend of transnational repression by Vietnam with activists and dissidents seeking refuge in Thailand facing arrests, harassment, surveillance and physical violence, often with the cooperation of Thai authorities.

Phil Robertson, Director of Asia Human Rights and Labor Advocates, said the activist would likely face violence in custody if forcibly returned to Vietnam.

The Vietnamese government has a long, horrid track record of severely persecuting Montagnard political and religious activists, so there is a real fear that Y Quynh Bdap would face arrest, torture in custody and a long prison term if Thailand forced him back to Vietnam, he said.

Last year, Duong Van Thai, a Vietnamese blogger disappeared from the streets of Bangkok in an apparent kidnapping with Vietnamese authorities later saying he was in state custody. The case was similar to that of RFA contributor Truong Duy Nhat, who disappeared from Bangkok in 2019 and reemerged in a Hanoi prison.

Y Quynh expressed such a fear in the final video he recorded.

He beseeched the UN, NGOs and democratic governments to please protect me. Dont let them arrest and bring me back to Vietnam as in the cases of Truong Duy Nhat and Thai Van Duong.

Additional reporting by Pimuk Rakkanam. Translated by Anna Vu. Edited by Abby Seiff and Malcolm Foster.
After the Taliban's de facto government cut ties with a number of diplomatic missions operated abroad by diplomats loyal to the ousted Afghan republic, the British and Norwegian authorities have opted to shut down Afghan embassies on their soil.

Both Oslo and London say their decisions in no way represent official recognition of the Taliban's rule in Afghanistan, which no country recognizes due to concerns over a woeful human rights record and other failures to live up to promises it made before seizing power in August 2021.

But experts say the embassy closures are likely to pave the way for more engagement with the Taliban, which controls all of Afghanistan's territory and has increased its hold on power.

Diplomats who served the former Afghan government were left in limbo when the Taliban took control, but remained open for business in some Western states and continued to assist Afghan citizens.

The window on their operations began to close when the Taliban announced in July that it was cutting ties with 14 such missions in Western countries and that it would not accept any consular documents they processed, a critical source of funding to keep them running.

Many of the consular services, such as verification of identity documents or police clearance, offered by the embassies do require a degree of cooperation from the country's government because diplomatic missions might not be able to access all government data.

This month, the British Foreign Office announced that it was shutting down the Afghan Embassy in London, explaining to RFE/RL on September 9 that the decision was made after the "dismissal of its staff by the Taliban."

Norway quickly followed suit, announcing that the Afghan Embassy in Oslo would be shut down on September 12.

Both the British and Norwegian governments have indicated that the move does not amount to a formal recognition of the Taliban's hard-line government. And the embassy buildings, which are Afghanistan's properties, will be eventually handed over to a "recognized" government of Afghanistan.

But Hameed Hakimi, an Afghanistan expert, says the decisions to shut the embassies can be taken as "reality setting in" that the Taliban is "unlikely to be replaced in the immediate future."

And for the Taliban, he says, it creates an opportunity to argue that its rule is being acknowledged, even without formal recognition.

"The Taliban can use this to their advantage in their pursuit of claiming legitimacy with the Afghans and internationally," said Hakimi, an associate fellow at London's Chatham House think tank.

More than a dozen countries, mostly Afghanistan's neighbors, already operate embassies in Kabul, and some have accredited Taliban diplomats. The Taliban government also partially controls diplomatic missions in some countries, and has established working relations with Afghan diplomatic missions in the Czech Republic, Spain, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, and the Afghan Consulate in Munich.

The missions operating in Western countries staffed by diplomats appointed by the previous government are the outlier.

Hakimi said that if all those missions are shut down, it "truly signifies the closure of the chapter of the Afghan Islamic Republic."

The Afghan Islamic Republic, as it was formally known, emerged soon after a U.S.-led military alliance toppled the Taliban government in November 2001 following the 9/11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington.

Nearly two decades later, the internationally recognized Afghan republic collapsed as the Taliban seized power in the wake of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan.

The Taliban, meanwhile, recreated its brutal emirate from the 1990s by imposing harsh bans and discriminatory laws that resulted in widespread human rights violations. Afghan women and girls are deprived of education and employment in most sectors and lack fundamental freedoms.

These Taliban policies have so far kept its government from being officially recognized. This absence of recognition has complicated engagement with the Taliban government on important issues, such as humanitarian aid, and made it difficult for the estimated 2 million Afghans living in Western countries to access consular services.

Graeme Smith, a senior Afghanistan analyst at the Brussels-based International Crisis Group, says Western governments might be acting on the UN special coordinator's recommendation to facilitate the processing of documentation for Afghans abroad.

In his report endorsed by the UN Security Council in December 2023, Feridun Sinirlioglu, the UN special coordinator for Afghanistan, called for better cooperation between the Taliban regime and the outside world to ensure that Afghans can obtain the paperwork they need to continue with their daily lives.

"Afghans have been suffering in limbo without clarity about where to go when they need identity papers or travel documents," Smith said, describing how Afghans who still do not have travel documents from another country suffer from the lack of consular services.

"The steps we are witnessing now may represent practical efforts by some governments" to remedy the situation, Smith said.

The challenge remains, he said, to ensure that efforts "aimed at pressuring the regime do not sabotage the lives and livelihoods of Afghans."

Many Western capitals are also grappling with the complex issue of what to do with Afghan asylum seekers whose applications were rejected.

Last month, Germany deported 28 Afghan men convicted of crimes in the country to Kabul, with Qatar playing an intermediary role in securing the Taliban's cooperation in accepting the returning Afghans.

Smith said that some countries "are discovering the usefulness" of having a consular presence "connected to the authorities in Kabul" if they need to arrange the return of Afghan migrants.

"But it's unclear if that motivated the recent closures," he said.

Both Britain and Norway have not said anything about whether they will allow the Taliban government to offer consular services in London and Oslo.

The fates of the Afghan Embassy in Berlin and consulate in Bonn are not clear, although the consulate in Munich is likely to remain open because it cooperates with the Taliban government on consular services.

In London, Afghanistan expert Hakimi said the closure could create an "opportunity for the Taliban to lobby with the Western countries" and allow its representatives to at least run counselor services.

These Afghan diplomatic missions can remain closed indefinitely, similar to what happened in the United States, where the Afghan Embassy and two consulates have been closed since March 2002. The Afghan Embassy in Canada offers remote consular services to Afghans living in the United States.

In Norway, Afghans have mixed feelings about their embassy's closure.

Sima Nouri, an Afghan woman living in Oslo, is worried over how her compatriots will now access consular services.

"There is a possibility that the process of forced deportation of Afghan refugees will begin," she told RFE/RL's Radio Azadi. "This process, however, must be stopped."

Mina Rafiq, another Afghan woman in Norway, prefers shutting the embassy down to cooperating with the Taliban.

"This might work to the advantage of Afghan asylum seekers," she said, "because the Norwegian government will now have to give them necessary documents."
Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian built his political identity on peaceful protests and resistance to police violence. Now, six years after taking power, he has presided over his own violent crackdown on anti-government demonstrations.

Video of stun grenades exploding amid crowds of protesters have shocked Armenians, not least because of the bitter irony that police were doing it on Pashinian's watch.

The future prime minister first came to prominence in Armenian politics in 2008 when he helped lead demonstrations against a disputed election. Those protests were violently broken up by police in what human rights groups described as a disproportionate use of force, and 10 people were killed. Pashinian spent a year in jail.

Ten years later, he came to power on the back of another round of street protests; he called it the Velvet Revolution because of its nonviolent nature.

"I understood that the best way to prevent violence is to be nonviolent," he told The New York Times back then.

Anger Over Nagorno-Karabakh

Now that he is in power himself, the tables have turned. On June 12, police used stun grenades to break up a demonstration of anti-government protesters, with at least 98 people reported injured in the clashes. In recent weeks, Pashinian has faced growing calls for him to resign amid public anger over Armenia's catastrophic series of military losses and concessions to its foe, Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijan successfully recaptured Nagorno-Karabakh, which had been controlled by ethnic Armenians with Yerevan's support for decades. Azerbaijan's September 2023 military offensive led to the capitulation of the local Armenian leadership and the exodus of over 100,000 ethnic Armenians.

Many details of the June 12 clashes are disputed. The parliament speaker, Alen Simonian, said that the leader of the protest movement, Archbishop Bagrat Galstanian, who has drawn large crowds to protest in the capital, "directed people to attack the police." Simonian also said that the police response was justified.

Pashinian has also defended the actions of the police but said that there would be an investigation into the violence.

"Approved and ordered by a leader that came to power through a 'peaceful Velvet Revolution,'" wrote journalist Lilit Shahverdian in an Instagram post about the police violence.

When Pashinian led protests in 2018 against the autocratic government led by Serzh Sarkisian, there were widespread fears that the police would crack down violently, as they had in 2008. But while hundreds of protesters were detained during those events, the demonstrations never faced the level of police violence that was seen on June 12. After Sarkisian stepped down, the U.S. ambassador at the time praised the "professionalism" of the security forces.

Pashinian's government then embarked on an ambitious program of reforms, including holding free and fair elections and greatly reducing corruption in the country. But his approach to government critics has been consistently harsh.

'Vendettas'

In 2018, during his first election campaign after the Velvet Revolution, he drew criticism for violent rhetoric against the opposition. In the next campaign for snap elections in 2021, he vowed to "replace our velvet mandate with a steel one" and promised "vendettas" against vestiges of the former authorities. Under his administration, police have repeatedly gone after critics of the prime minister, even for merely writing insulting Facebook posts.

The most recent U.S. State Department report on Armenia's human rights record noted that "numerous organizations reported on a notable increase in cases of abuse or torture by law enforcement officials of individuals in custody and asserted such behavior was becoming systemic and often went unpunished."

Pashinian and his defenders have justified the crackdowns on government opponents by citing those figures' ties to the former government or by claiming they have pro-Russia sympathies.

"Here in Yerevan, society views this as the provocative actions of [a] few hundred activists," political science professor Nerses Kopalian wrote on X following the June 12 events. "Those arrested for violence are primarily from political parties/organizations associated w/ the pro-Russia, previous regime contingent."

Speaking in parliament on June 13, the day after the violence, Pashinian accused the protesters of being masterminded by former President Robert Kocharian and the head of the Armenian Apostolic Church. He also said that protesters were trying to attack the parliament building.

"The police were defending the statehood of Armenia," he said.

Others, though, said that was no excuse.

"From a political perspective, it was long known that the political minority intended to legitimize its narrative as a result of an aggressive confrontation with the police," Artur Sakunts, a human rights activist and the head of the Helsinki Citizens' Assembly office in the Armenian city of Vanadzor, wrote on Facebook.

"However, no political agenda can justify the use of violence and cannot be considered an acceptable and justified basis of a democratic lawful state, regardless of who is the perpetrator, the authorities or the opposition."
A day after clashes with police, anti-government protesters gathered on June 13, this time outside the Armenian government building, as pressure continues to mount grows on Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian to step down as his country nears a controversial peace deal with Azerbaijan.

Thousands of Armenians staged the new rally a day after the clashes in which more than 100 people were injured when police fired stun grenades during an antigovernment rally outside parliament.

An Interior Ministry spokesperson told RFE/RL that 70 people had been detained on June 12 and there were injuries among both the protesters and the police in the clashes in central Yerevan.

Around 4,000 people gathered on June 13 for the rally led by Archbishop Bagrat Galstanian calling for Pashinian to step down, AFP reported. The outspoken 53-year-old leader of the Tavush for the Motherland movement opposes plans to hand over several border areas to Azerbaijan as part of a peace deal.

"The authorities are guilty of bringing this country to disaster," Galstanian told the crowd on June 13.

"We have shown yesterday that we have no fear and that our movement will persist," he added, vowing to force Pashinian to resign.

Galstanian said that one of the main avenues of Yerevan that has been closed for the protest since June 9 will reopen on June 14 but added that the opposition to Pashinian "will continue perhaps in a slightly different way." He gave no details.

Protests have gripped Yerevan since April, when authorities agreed to hand back to archrival Azerbaijan territory that Armenia had controlled since the 1990s.

Residents of nearby settlements say the move cuts them off from the rest of the country and accuse Pashinian of giving away territory without getting anything in return. Pashinian has defended the move as part of efforts to secure peace with Azerbaijan.

Asked whether he would resign under pressure from the protests, Pashinian told journalists on June 12 that that if the people of Armenia want a change of government, they will change the government.

A weekly cabinet session that Pashinian was scheduled to chair on June 13 was postponed to June 14 due to scheduled discussions in parliament on the budget.

The prime minister also announced that no Armenian officials would be allowed to visit Belarus as long as Alyaksandr Lukashenka is the president, while the Foreign Ministry recalled Armenia's ambassador to Minsk for consultations after Pashinian accused members of the Russia-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), which includes Belarus, of having planned with Azerbaijan a war against his country.

The "next logical step" would be our withdrawal from the organization depending on questions Yerevan has for the CSTO.

He did not specify what those questions were, but said that Armenia will "decide when it (leaving the CSTO) happens."

"It could be a month, a year, or three years from now," he said in parliament on June 13, clarifying comments from a day earlier that many interpreted as him saying Armenia was leaving the CSTO.

The United States, meanwhile, plans to send an envoy to Armenia. The U.S. Embassy in Yerevan annouced that a delegation led by First Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources Richard Verman will arrive in Yerevan for an official visit on June 17. The delegation will participate in an Armenian-American forum dedicated to issues of democracy in local self-government, the embassy said.

https://www.azatutyun.am/a/32992051.html

Verman will meet with Pashinian, Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan, and representatives of the public and private sectors and civil society groups.

"This visit testifies to our intention to further strengthen bilateral ties with the Armenian people," the U.S. Embassy said.
Ever since Belarusian strongman Alyaksandr Lukashenka was returned to power in a disputed presidential election in August 2020, rights activists, democracy campaigners, and media reporters have all come under mounting pressure as the countrys civil society bears the brunt of a vicious crackdown on potential dissent.

Now, undesirable books and other published materials have also found themselves increasingly in the authoritarian regimes crosshairs.

The Belarusian Information Ministry currently maintains a list of extremist items that consists of more than 2,750 books, CDs, websites, Telegram channels, and other messaging platforms. The list is some 1,100 pages long and is updated almost daily.

The banning of books is nothing new in Belarus, and several publications have been controversially blacklisted in the country, where Lukashenka has ruled with an iron fist since 1994.

However, whereas special expert commissions were previously entrusted with deciding what could be designated as extremist, a lot of this work now seems to be done by district courts, and they dont appear to be particularly fussy or discerning about what they prohibit.

"We see howTelegram channels with three subscribers are banned simply because someone doesn't like the name, says Paval Barkouski, a professor at the Polish Academy of Sciences Institute of Philosophy and Sociology who formerly taught at the Belarusian State University.

It is clear that we are not talking about any qualified expertise, he adds. We are talking about the repression of everything that does not agree with the policy of the current authorities. Why do they need expertise? It will simply interfere with the process.

The lengths the authorities are going to in their efforts were highlighted recently when a man in the western town of Kobryn was detained for 10 days on a charge of spreading extremism. The authorities censured him for the public display in a bookcase in his apartment of a collection of historical novels by the prizewinning Belarusian writer Uladzimer Arlou.

'They Rummaged Through The Shelves'

This heightened clampdown on books and other publications is yet another example of how Belarusian authorities are taking their lead from totalitarian and authoritarian regimes of the past, says Barkouski of his homeland, where, at Lukashenkas direction, security officials have waged a brutal campaign of repression against those who protested the 2020 election.

After arresting thousands and pushing most opposition figures out of the country, the authorities now seem to be spreading their net even wider, going after libraries and bookstores across the country to make sure they are not stocking anything that makes the regime uncomfortable.

Bestselling authors whose books were sold at state bookstores until recently, including Alherd Bakharevich, Uladzimer Nyaklyayeu, Vatslau Lastouski, Ales Petrashkevich, and even the Nobel laureate Joseph Brodsky, are among those who appear to have been targeted.

Staff at other outlets say they have also been subjected to spot-checks. One sales clerk at a secondhand bookshop in Minsk told RFE/RL about how two people in civilian clothes arrived at the premises in May and had a long conversation with the manager.

They rummaged through the shelves themselves, she said, adding that they found a number of books objectionable, including two from the Knihazbor series, which focuses on Belarusian history and classic literature.

This commission took the books with them, she said, and the store manager was forced to write them off.

'Hysterical Reaction'

The former library head at a secondary school in the western city of Brest says inspectors also paid her a visit in 2023. She told RFE/RL that they were especially interested in books on history, foreign languages, and literature on academic research, even showing her an image on a smartphone of the kind of items they were looking for.

Well, they found textbooks and books from the 1990s, she said. These should not be in the library. Write them off as a matter of urgency, they shouted. There was such a hysterical reaction to the books -- as if they were explosives!

Although school textbooks are routinely written off every five years or so, the librarian says some old course books had been retained, as they dealt with certain topics better than newer publications. Now, she says, they have all been pulped, something which undermines the librarys important role as a repository of knowledge.

One copy must be kept in the library, says the librarian. This is what I was taught at the library faculty. I told the director and the commission about it. No one heard my objections..."

Besides schools, prison libraries also seem to have been scoured by officials looking to remove anything deemed objectionable. One former political prisoner, who was recently released from a penal colony in Navopolatsk where more than 100 political prisoners are serving their sentences, told RFE/RL that there used to be a very decent library there, with many books, magazines, and periodicals in the embattled Belarusian language, but these were all confiscated, along with textbooks on foreign languages.

They even confiscated a couple of books in Chinese, he says. We joked, saying, The Chinese are our friends[....] Personal books were also confiscated. We asked what will be done with them. The guard cynically replied that they would burn.

'Deliberate Destruction'

In Barkouskis view, the current drive to shred or burn uncomfortable books is reminiscent of other strongly ideological regimes that set out to crush dissent.

The deliberate destruction of books began as early as the time of the Inquisition, he says. Works that the church considered free-thinking were included in the list of prohibited books. Books were publicly burned on bonfires. In Nazi Germany, bonfires were also lit in the squares. It also happened in the Soviet Union, but less theatrically -- quietly, secretly.

The fact that Belarusian books appear to be among the materials that are being targeted recalls the dark days of Belaruss own Soviet past, such as in 1937 when Belarusian authorities subordinate to Moscow ordered the removal and destruction of more than 400 Belarusian books, including several classic titles.

For Barkouski, the practice is indicative of where things could be headed in Belarus as authorities in Minsk show no sign of loosening their grip on power.

Destroying booksis considered a normal and good practice in the 21st century, he says. It just shows how far into the past the henchmen of this regime have dragged us. It's not just 1937 anymore. Regime officials are ready to return to the fires of the Inquisition.

Editor's Note: The names of some of the people quoted in this story have been withheld for safety reasons.

Written by Coilin OConnor based on reporting by RFE/RLs Belarus Service.
Debate has raged for decades over whether Beijing is actively exporting its authoritarian system abroad, but a new report based on a trove of previously unexamined government documents shows how China is experimenting with spreading its model to other countries.

The new report released on June 13 by the Atlantic Council, a Washington think tank, is based on 1,691 files from China's Commerce Ministry that were logged online in 2021 and 2022. The dataset describes 795 governmental programs made up of trainings and exchanges with foreign officials that the documents state are designed to promote ideas and practices from China's economic and political model among countries in Eastern Europe and the Latin American, African, and Asian countries that make up the so-called Global South.

"This is real evidence to support what has been becoming a growing belief among the expert community," Niva Yau, the report's author and fellow at the Atlantic Council's Global China Hub, told RFE/RL. "We can now demonstrate in China's own words from its internal planning documents what it is trying to do."

Chinese officials have repeatedly said Beijing isn't exporting its authoritarian system for governing, but the collection of government files add to an emerging body of evidence showing that China is trying to sell the merits of its model to officials across the Global South while also developing new initiatives and practical programs to speed up their adoption.

The China Model

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has held an exclusive grip on power for more than 70 years and seen its economy boom in recent decades using a model based on single-party authoritarian political rule married with a state capitalist economic system.

Promoting this system to other countries around the world is seen by analysts as a way to cultivate an authoritarian-friendly political bloc that could help Beijing reshape global institutions and counterbalance Western attempts to isolate China with economic sanctions or criticism of its commercial practices, territorial claims, or human rights record.

Many of the documents in the report describe training programs on trade-related areas like port management guidelines, adopting BeiDou -- China's answer to the U.S.-created Global Positioning System (GPS) -- and sectors like blockchain and other new technologies.

The files, however, also delve into other areas traditionally outside of the Commerce Ministry's purview. Some promote exchanges centered on how local think tanks can help implement the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) -- China's multibillion-dollar infrastructure project -- and also push Chinese government policies through programs focused on issues like integrating ethnic minorities, managing new forms of media, and training in Chinese governance practices tailored for presidential advisers from foreign governments.

The programs themselves are set up through bilateral agreements or through Chinese-led multilateral regional organizations where they focus on specific geographic regions and groups of countries that share a similar language.

For example, multiple documents describe training courses for local government leaders, university presidents, and political advisers "from Russian-speaking countries," while other programs are specifically designed for officials from member states of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), which includes China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan.

Yau says these programs are designed to sell a narrative to the Global South that the swift economic advancement experienced by China over the last three decades is the direct result of the country's authoritarian approach to governing.

"These files show that China is exporting not only the hands-on knowhow for its economic success but is also spreading the idea that this success directly stems from the governing methods of the [Chinese Communist] Party," she said.

'An Intelligence-Collection' Dimension And Beyond

While many governments around the world promote practical exchanges and trainings with officials from foreign countries, the tranche of files documented by Yau stand out in that many use dry government language to explicitly endorse a nondemocratic approach to issues like regulating national media, managing legal affairs, and controlling the flow of information online.

Another dimension documented by Yau's report is that many of the programs, especially those geared toward government officials, appear to "serve intelligence-collection purposes" because they require "each participant to submit reports detailing their prior exchanges and engagements between them and other foreign countries in the specific area of cooperation related to the subject of training."

Yau says this requirement from the programs serves multiple ends by first providing an important stream of data collection on foreign government officials. But she says it can also serve as a way to assess the openness of each individual official to the views and policies being advocated during the exchange.

"It can allow [the Chinese side] to decide if this person can be developed as a kind of middleman to facilitate further cooperation with China and their country," she said.

China's outreach and training programs with foreign governments have existed for decades under the purview of the International Liaison Department (ILD), an agency under the CCP's Central Committee, whose core function is party-to-party diplomacy.

But while the ILD was traditionally tasked to engage with countries with one-party rule or similar communist structures, it has expanded in recent years to run programs and exchanges regardless of the orientation of a political party, and has recently held meetings with top-level officials from countries like Kazakhstan and Serbia.

The report highlights how other sections of the Chinese government have also begun to hold similar types of exchanges. In addition to the Commerce Ministry, at least 10 Chinese ministries and departments have held training programs for foreign government officials in the past three years, according to Yau's research.

Given the newly examined files and other evidence, Yau says it's becoming clear that Beijing is trying to export aspects of its political model abroad. Less clear, she says, is the impact that such efforts are having across the world.

"In these files, we can see the intent of what Beijing wants to achieve," Yau said. "Maybe it's too soon to feel the effects yet, but these programs have substantially increased since the late 2010s and they are involving thousands of officials from across the Global South."
At least 22 people were killed and 117 others injured in Israeli strikes on Beirut, the Lebanese Health Ministry reported on October 10 after an Israeli strike on a school sheltering Palestinians in Gaza killed dozens of people.

Lebanon's state news agency NNA reported two evening air raids in central Beirut. The first targeted an eight-story building and the second a four-story building that completely collapsed as a result of the strike, NNA said.

A Lebanese security source quoted by Reuters said at least one senior Hezbollah figure was targeted in the attacks, which were the third on Beirut since Israel started a military campaign in southern Lebanon last month targeting the Iran-allied Hezbollah militia and sparking fears of an all-out regional war.

Hezbollahs Al Manar TV reported after the strikes that an attempt to kill Wafiq Safa, a top security official with the group, had failed. It said that Safa had not been inside of either of the targeted buildings.

Hezbollah kept up rocket fire into Israel on October 10. The military said several drones heading toward Israel were intercepted.

Earlier on October 10 an Israeli strike on a school in the Gaza Strip killed at least 27 people, Palestinian medical officials said, while a separate Israeli strike hit UN peacekeeper headquarters in southern Lebanon, prompting Italy to summon the Israeli ambassador.

The Israeli military said it carried out a "precise strike on terrorists" who had a command and control center embedded in the school.

"This is a further example of the Hamas terrorist organization's systematic abuse of civilian infrastructure in violation of international law," a military statement said.

The Palestinian militant group Hamas, which is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States and the EU, has denied such accusations. People who had been sheltering at the school said the strike hit a meeting of aid workers and injured 54 other people.

Israel has continued to strike at what it says are militant targets across Gaza as it battles Hamas militants even as the war broadened to include Hezbollah in Lebanon amid rising tensions with Iran.

In a separate incident on October 10 the UN peacekeeping force in southern Lebanon said an Israeli tank fired on its headquarters in the town of Naqoura, hitting an observation tower and wounding two peacekeepers. The nationality of the injured peacekeepers was not released.

The UN peacekeeping mission known as UNIFIL said in a statement that Israeli forces also fired on a nearby bunker where peacekeepers were sheltering, damaging vehicles and a communication system.

The Italian Defense Ministry summoned Israel's ambassador in protest, and Defense Minister Guido Crosetto told a press conference that "hostile acts committed and repeated by Israeli forces against the base...could constitute war crimes." Crosetto added that Italy has asked for an official explanation "because it was not a mistake."

The French Foreign Ministry said that while no French solider was injured in the incident, it also demanded an explanation.

The Israeli military announced earlier on October 10 that it had eliminated another important Hezbollah member as it kept up its attacks against the Iran-backed group.

Adham Jahout, a member of Hezbollah's Golan Terrorist Network was killed in an air strike in the area of Quneitra in Syria, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) said.

Jahout was relaying intelligence from Syrian regime sources to Hezbollah and facilitating operations against Israel in the Golan Heights, the IDF said.



Israel annexed the Golan Heights after capturing them from Syria during the 1967 Middle East war. The annexation has not been recognized by most countries.



Separately, the Israeli military said on October 10 that it had eliminated two Hezbollah commanders in southern Lebanon and its warplanes attacked munitions depots in the Beirut area and in southern Lebanon. It did not immediately reveal the identities of the two commanders.



Hezbollah, a militant group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon, is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, while the European Union blacklists its armed wing but not its party, which has seats in the Lebanese parliament.



The latest strikes came as the United States, Israel's main ally, warned against bombardments in Lebanon similar to those that caused large-scale destruction in Gaza as Israel retaliated against Hamas following the U.S.- and EU-designated terrorist group's deadly attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, that left more than 1,100 people dead.



Israel's bombardment of central and northern Gaza in recent days has killed dozens of people and trapped thousands in their homes, Palestinian officials say.

"There should be no kind of military action in Lebanon that looks anything like Gaza and leaves a result anything like Gaza," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller told journalists on October 9.



The warning came after U.S. President Joe Biden emphasized in a call on October 9 with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the need for a diplomatic arrangement for the return of both Lebanese and Israeli civilians to their homes on both sides of the border.

The United States warned Israel on October 9 against launching a military action in Lebanon like the one it has conducted in Gaza, and U.S. President Joe Biden emphasized in a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the need for a diplomatic arrangement for the return of both Lebanese and Israeli civilians to their homes on both sides of the border.



Biden also condemned Iran's ballistic-missile attack on Israel on October 1, a White House statement said.



Biden "affirmed Israel's right to protect its citizens from Hezbollah, which has fired thousands of missiles and rockets into Israel over the past year alone, while emphasizing the need to minimize harm to civilians, in particular in the densely populated areas of Beirut," the statement said.
8 Kazakh and Kyrgyz troops take part in the CSTO's Indestructible Brotherhood military games in Kyrgyzstan in October 2023.



Armenia did not participate in the alliances 2023 exercises in Kyrgyzstan and Pashinian has made repeated hints that Armenia would formally withdraw from the CSTO.

The Armenian leader said during a parliament session on June 12: "We have suspended our membership in the CSTO. The next logical step would be our withdrawal from the organization." He added: "We will decide when it happens. It could be a month, a year, or three years from now."
The Russian Prosecutor-General's Office confirmed on June 13 a final charge of espionage against U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich and sent his case to the Sverdlovsk regional court for trial.

"Investigators revealed and confirmed by documents that the U.S. journalist of the Wall Street Journal newspaper, at the request of the CIA, in March 2023 collected classified information related to the operations of the Uralvagonzavod industrial facility producing and repairing military equipment," the office said in a statement, adding that Gershkovich "conducted the illegal actions under thorough disguise measures."

The 32-year-old U.S. citizen was arrested in late March 2023 in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg while on a reporting trip.

Russian authorities have not provided any evidence to support the espionage charges, which The Wall Street Journal and the U.S. government have vehemently rejected. They say Gershkovich was merely doing his job as an accredited reporter when he was arrested.

Dow Jones CEO and Wall Street Journal publisher Almar Latour and Wall Street Journal Editor in Chief Emma Tucker said in a statement on June 13 that Russia's latest move toward a "sham trial" is "deeply disappointing and still no less outrageous."



Gershkovich is facing a "false and baseless charge," they said, adding that he had spent 441 days in a Russian prison for simply doing his job.



"Evan is a journalist. The Russian regime's smearing of Evan is repugnant, disgusting, and based on calculated and transparent lies," the statement said. It added that the newspaper continues to demand his immediate release and now expects the U.S. government to redouble efforts to get him released.

Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens told members of Congress on June 13 that Gershkovich will soon begin the trial process, which "is not unexpected."

Carstens said Gershkovich can appeal his detention one more time, but he most likely will be moved to Yekaterinburg by June 30.

"If it's anything like what happened with Brittney Griner, Paul Whelan, Trevor Reed, there will be a period where we won't have any contact with him," Carstens said, referring to other Americans who have been imprisoned in Russia. Griner and Reed were returned to the United States in prisoner swaps.

The U.S. State Department said in December that Moscow rejected a significant offer it made to secure the release of Gershkovich and Paul Whelan, another American imprisoned in Russia on espionage charges.



Another U.S. citizen currently held by Russian authorities is Alsu Kurmasheva, an RFE/RL journalist who was arrested in Kazan, the capital of Russia's Republic of Tatarstan, in October 2023 and charged with failing to register as a "foreign agent" and spreading falsehoods about the Russian military.

Prior to her arrest, Kurmasheva, who faces up to 10 years in prison if convicted, had her passport confiscated following a visit to care for her mother. RFE/RL and the U.S. government say the charges against her are reprisals for her work.

Her husband, Pavel Butorin, who also works for RFE/RL, was at the hearing and told RFE/RL that having his wifes designation changed to wrongfully detained is critical.

We need the designation, Butorin said. Alsu is part of a news organization funded by the U.S. Congress. She has done nothing wrong.

Russian officials have kept mum about any talks to win the release of the Americans. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has repeatedly said that while "certain contacts" on swaps continue, "they must be carried out in absolute silence."

Members of the committee acknowledged the presence of family members of wrongfully detained Americans at the hearing and asked whether Carstens could provide any updates.

Carstens said it would be best to discuss Kurmashevas case in a classified setting, noting that the "spotlight" has been on it, particularly after President Joe Biden in April called for her release.

"In Alsu's case, the spotlight's on it. As you know, the president called for her release at the [White House] Correspondents Dinner not too long ago," Carstens said, adding that her case has yet to be declared a wrongful detention.

Representative Brian Mast (Republican-Florida), chairman of the Subcommittee on Oversight and Accountability, and Representative Jason Crow (Democrat-Colorado) agreed that it should be discussed there, implying that the classified setting would take place immediately after the hearing.

Many analysts and officials say it appears as though Russia is targeting American citizens to detain for potential use in prisoner exchanges or for other geopolitical purposes.



Russia is believed to be seeking the release of Vadim Krasikov, who was given a life sentence in Germany in 2021 for the killing of Zelimkhan "Tornike" Khangoshvili, a Georgian citizen of Chechen descent who had fought Russian troops in Chechnya and later claimed asylum in Germany.



Russian President Vladimir Putin, asked in February about releasing Gershkovich, appeared to refer to Krasikov by pointing to a man imprisoned by a U.S. ally for "liquidating a bandit" who had allegedly killed Russian soldiers during separatist fighting in Chechnya.
One year ago, Hamas -- the U.S.- and EU-designated Palestinian terrorist group that controls the Gaza Strip -- carried out an unprecedented attack on Israel, the deadliest in the countrys history.

In response, Israel launched an aerial bombardment and ground invasion of the Palestinian enclave to destroy Hamas and rescue the 251 hostages taken by the group.

Israel has expanded its war in recent weeks by invading Lebanon and launching air strikes targeting Hezbollah, the armed group and political party that controls much of southern Lebanon.

RFE/RL spoke to Lior Yohanani, manager of quantitative research at the Israel Democracy Institute, a Jerusalem-based independent research center, which on October 7 released a wide-ranging survey of Israeli public opinion after one year of war.

RFE/RL: Can you explain what your study found as to how Israelis view the past year since Hamas's October 7 attack?



Lior Yohanani: Well, I think Israelis still don't see October 7 as an event that's over. Sure, the actual horrific events of that day ended, but Israelis are still living with the consequences.

There are two main aspects to this. First, since October 7, Israel has been in this multifront war that doesn't seem to have an end in sight. And then, of course, there is the issue of the hostages still being held in Gaza. So, we're seeing a sharp drop in people's sense of personal security. Almost three quarters of the public feel less safe compared to before October 7, and that's despite a year of war and some significant military achievements. On the flip side, we're also seeing that most people say their lives have returned to normal when it comes to things like work, media consumption, and family and social gatherings.

Another thing we're noticing is that the Israeli public is giving pretty low marks to all the political and military leaders for the performance since October 7. For example, almost two-thirds of Israelis are rating Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu's performance since then as poor or not good.

RFE/RL: How has Israel's involvement in a two-front conflict, in both Gaza and Lebanon, as well as a confrontation with Iran affected public opinion among Israelis?



Yohanani: It's tough to answer that question, because we're at the point where things could go in a few different directions. In the last few weeks, we've seen a major escalation in the conflict with Hezbollah in Lebanon, and just last week, Iran launched nearly 200 ballistic missiles at Israel, which Israel is expected to respond to. In a survey we just did recently, we asked whether Israeli society and the military could handle fighting on two or more fronts for an extended period of time, and the results were pretty striking. Over 70 percent believe that yes, both Israeli society and the military can handle that kind of prolonged fighting. So, while the situation is complex and evolving, there seems to be a strong sense of resilience and capability among Israelis, even in the face of these multiple threats. But of course, public opinion could shift depending on how events unfold in the coming weeks or months.



RFE/RL: Is there support for Netanyahus response to October 7? Is there debate in Israeli society, as well as political circles, over Netanyahus strategic choices?



Yohanani: First of all, it's important to say that the Israeli public has largely supported significant military operation against Hamas in Gaza. That said, the Israeli discourse around the October 7 events, the ongoing war, and especially toward Prime Minister Netanyahu, is very polarized between right-wing supporters on the one hand and left and center supporters on the other.

People are hoping for a future where Israel can exist without constant threats, rather than expecting a harmonious relationship with its neighbors in the near-term."

So, on the left and the center, there is a high level of distrust and suspicion toward Netanyahu and his government. For instance, Netanyahu's apparent reluctance to pursue a deal for returning the hostages in exchange for ending the fighting in Gaza is seen by large parts of the public, even on the right, as resulting from Netanyahu's dependence on far-right, ultranationalist members of his government who refuse any compromise or ceasefire.

Now for a long time, Netanyahu and his ministers argued that only significant military force would lead Hamas to compromise and release the hostages. Now, with military attention and resources shifting to the north, people are asking, where is this massive military force that was supposed to bring the hostages home?

One question we have asked several times since October 7 in our polls is what should be the main goal in Gaza: Dismantling Hamas or bringing back the hostages? And as time goes on, public opinion is increasingly supporting the return of hostages. In our current survey, 62 percent saw bringing the bringing back the hostages as Israel's main goal, while only 29 percent pointed to dismantling Hamas as the primary objective.

RFE/RL: How do ordinary Israelis see the question of the remaining hostages amid the continued protests by the hostages' families?



Yohanani: As I mentioned before, most of the public supports a deal to release the hostages, even if it means ending the war and withdrawing the military forces from Gaza. There's this widespread feeling that we've left the hostages behind, and that's really hitting at our sense of solidarity, which is a deep and fundamental value, I think, in Jewish history in general and in Israel society in particular.

At the same time, the campaign run by the Hostages And Missing Families Forum has become very politicized. Many right-wing supporters see it as weakening Israel. As time goes on, we're seeing more and more harassment of protesters who support bringing the hostages back. There are cases of passersby cursing, even hitting and throwing eggs, at hostages' families. In our latest survey, we asked about the effectiveness of the protests and actions taken by the hostages' families.

Despite most of the public feeling empathetic toward the hostage issue, only less than a third think these actions are actually helping to advance a deal for the hostages' release, while almost 40 percent think they're actually hurting the cause. So, you've got this complex situation where people want the hostages back, but there is disagreement and some backlash about how to make that happen.

RFE/RL: Can you explain the reasons behind the apparent contradiction in views regarding prioritizing a negotiated return of the hostages, or destroying Hamas?

Yohanani: You're right to point out that apparent contradiction. Let me break it down a bit. As I mentioned earlier, a clear majority of the public sees a deal to release the hostages as the main goal. But there is a big gap between political camps on this issue. In the center and left, about 80 percent support the deal for the hostages' release, while the opinions on the right are evenly split. So, for most of the left and center, the fighting in Gaza has run its course. They feel most military objectives have been achieved, and Hamas's military power has been significantly weakened. From their perspective, continuing the fight now only puts the hostages at greater risk.

It's important to know that about half of the right-wing also shares this view of prioritizing the hostages' release, but the other half of those on the far-right thinks dismantling Hamas is more important.

Why? For a couple of reasons.

First, there's a security stance that Hamas must be wiped out and not allowed to recover. There is also a very strong sentiment of revenge, with minimal consideration for the cost, whether it's the lives of the hostages, soldiers, let alone innocent civilians in Gaza. Another significant component openly discussed in religious nationalist circles is the return of Jewish settlement to the Gaza Strip after Israel evacuated Jewish settlements from there in 2005.

RFE/RL: Is there public confidence that Israel will ultimately be able to remove the threat of Hamas and Hezbollah and come out of this conflict with greater prospects for a peaceful and stable near-term future?



Yohanani: Right now, the Israeli public isn't showing a lot of optimism. In our current survey, when we asked people if they're optimistic or pessimistic about Israel's future, we found more pessimists, 48 percent, than optimists, 45 percent.

I also think it's important to note that a peaceful future, as you put it, or peace in general, isn't really a common concept in the current Israeli discourse. I would say the hope of Israelis is that the military actions against Hezbollah and Iran will lead to a situation where Israel's existence isn't in question, and that Israeli military superiority will prevent events like October 7 from happening again. So, it's less about peace in the traditional sense, and more about security and deterrence. People are hoping for a future where Israel can exist without constant threats, rather than expecting a harmonious relationship with its neighbors in the near-term.
Earlier this month, a pregnant woman in Makhachkala, the capital of Russia's North Caucasus region of Daghestan, complained to be police about her abusive husband. She told them he beat her, stole her money, and threatened to kill her.



"The officers responded by saying they don't come between a husband and his wife," the woman told RFE/RL.*



Lawyers and activists say such an attitude is commonplace among law enforcement personnel in Russia, particularly since domestic violence was partially decriminalized in 2017.



"This is an everyday practice," said lawyer Mari Davtyan, the director of Russia's Center for the Defense of Victims of Domestic Violence. "The police in general don't like such work. Even if they bring an aggressor to court, it doesn't resolve the problem. It is a lot of work for them, and the result is a fine of about 1,000 rubles ($11)."



"Moreover, many police officers are themselves inclined to believe stereotypes such as that the victim herself is to blame," Davtyan added. "Officers aren't given systematic training regarding domestic violence, and their bosses just aren't interested in the problem."

Although many of the most highly publicized cases involve men from Chechnya, which borders Daghestan in the North Caucacus, the inaction of the authorities has been documented nationwide.

President Vladimir Putin has declared 2024 to be the Year of the Family in Russia, but he has used it as an opportunity to promote "traditional values" and rally support among social conservatives at home and abroad, not to address the issue of domestic violence.



"Putin's concern for the traditional family has often manifested itself in legislation restricting the rights of women," analyst Dessie Zagorcheva wrote in an article for the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA).



'An Endless Story'



On June 1, residents of the Moscow region town of Putilkovo captured video of Isnaur Abdulayev, a 30-year-old Chechen man, dragging his wife along the pavement and otherwise abusing her in front of their small child. After receiving numerous phone calls, police and medics arrived. The woman purportedly refused to file a complaint, and Abdulayev was given a citation for "petty hooliganism."

WARNING: Content contains disturbing images.

On June 3, a video of the woman was posted on a Chechen Telegram channel in which she claimed she had been "possessed by a spirit" and that her husband was taking her home for treatment. She asked people not to share the original videos. When Russia's NTV television sent a reporter to talk to the woman, she declined to speak. Neighbors told NTV they believe Abdulayev is frequently abusive toward his wife and that he has been physically aggressive toward others as well.



In April, a woman in the southern city of Krasnodar named Maria Smelaya, 33, appealed to rights activists for help, saying she was being threatened and abused by her Chechen husband, Chingiskhan Shabazov. On May 9, several unidentified men abducted her from a domestic-violence shelter in Moscow. Rights activists have not been able to contact her since. On May 12, a video appeared on social media in which Smelaya said she was fine and with her family. She recanted her accusations of abuse, saying they were made "in anger" during "an emotional breakdown."

A lawyer who works with victims of domestic violence from the North Caucasus told RFE/RL that even in cases when police accept a complaint, they often do nothing, and it turns into "an endless story."



"The case can 'die' with them, or it might suddenly pop up after several years and turn into a criminal case," he said. Most often, he said, police respond with a "technical refusal" in which they claim they found no evidence a crime had been committed.



In addition, domestic violence cases are "not prestigious" for police officers, the lawyer said.

"Investigators don't want to get involved because they think they will spend a lot of time on them and there will be no result," he said.



'Pain, Fear, And Despair'



On June 13, Ksenia Goryacheva, a deputy in the State Duma, the lower house of Russia's parliament, wrote on Telegram that "domestic violence is a horrific reality that many of our compatriots face." She cited a recent study in which 54 percent of respondents had been affected by domestic violence -- 20 percent through personal experience and 34 percent through acquaintances.



"These figures are not just statistics," Goryacheva wrote. "Behind each one is a real story of pain, fear, and despair. The victims are most often women and young people between the ages of 18 and 29."

The same study found that 89 percent of Russians, including 95 percent of women, support the adoption of a law criminalizing domestic violence. Goryacheva also called for criminalizing stalking and for creating shelters and other support infrastructure for victims of domestic violence.



"We need to raise the competence [of law enforcement officials] and destroy stereotypes surrounding domestic violence," she wrote. "We need to work out a systematic approach to protecting those who report violence or threats."



In April, however, lawmaker Nina Ostanina, the chairwoman of the Duma's Committee on Families, Women, and Children, was quoted as saying there was no need for special legislation on domestic violence, since violent crimes are already against the law.



"We don't find much public support on this topic," she said, noting that domestic-violence legislation has been rejected in the Duma repeatedly in the past.



Seeming to direct the focus on the victims, Ostanina said that "the main method of preventing domestic violence is conscious decision-making when starting a family."



"Don't chase after a daddy with money but without love," she said.

*EDITOR'S NOTE: Some people interviewed for this story have not been identified for their protection due to Russia's labeling of RFE/RL as an "undesirable organization."
James Cox

Investigations have been launched by the EU Commission after an RTE documentary which highlighted illegal slaughtering and traceability defects among hundreds of horses killed for human consumption.

After it received material from RTE Investigates, the European Commission issued alerts for horses slaughtered in Ireland, Italy, and Spain, because there was evidence animals should have been removed from the food chain - or they had been declared dead a considerable time - before they were supposed to have been slaughtered.

The material compiled during research by RTE raised issues beyond Ireland and highlighted significant concerns related to other EU member states.

The resulting non-compliance notices were issued in recent weeks through the Commissions Agri-food network, which shares information among EU member states on potential fraud cases.

On Wednesday night, RTE broadcast the findings of its investigation, which involved compiling and comparing a large number of datasets held by countries and bodies across Europe.

Included in the documentary was evidence of illegal activities to change the identities of horses and compromise the integrity of the human food chain at a site connected to Ireland's only active abattoir for horses, operated by Shannonside Foods in Straffan, Co Kildare.

The report also showed undercover footage in which experts said was the microchipping of horses by Shannonside Foods staff prior to being sent for slaughter.

Significant issues around how horses are processed for human consumption through slaughterhouses in mainland Europe were also detailed.

In April, after it received material from RTE Investigates, the European Commission issued non-compliance notices in respect of 332 horses slaughtered in Ireland, Italy, and Spain. The notices identified the issue as illegal slaughtering, traceability defects".

In the Dail on Wednesday afternoon, Minister for Finance Michael McGrath said he was "sickened and appalled" at what was contained in the reporting broadcast so far, adding it is now the subject of a "thorough investigation" by the Department of Agriculture.

He said the Government "unreservedly condemns" what was shown in the programme, adding the "full force of law" will apply if breaches are proven in court.
Jessica Magee

A man serving a life sentence for murder slashed a prison officers face with a sharpened toilet brush after he had been taken out of jail to get an X-ray, a court has heard.

Graham McEvoy (26), of Captains Road, Crumlin, Dublin 12, pleaded guilty to assaulting a prison officer, causing him harm outside the Swiftcare Clinic in Smithfield on May 8th, 2023.

McEvoy had just attended for an X-ray at the clinic and had been released from his handcuffs to sit back into the waiting prison van when he lunged at prison officers in a bid for freedom, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard on Thursday.

Witnesses say McEvoy shouted: Just let me go, Ill stab the face-off you, Ill stab you to death, before he lashed out at an officer.

McEvoy admitted producing a white plastic improvised weapon, a sharpened toilet brush, while two further charges of threats to kill and attempting to escape lawful custody were taken into consideration.

Judge Pauline Codd sentenced him to four years in prison, noting that the law did not allow her to impose a sentence consecutive to the one McEvoy is already serving for murder.

McEvoy was convicted after a week-long trial at the Central Criminal Court in 2017 of murdering Paul Curran (23) at Seagull House, Crumlin Road, on July 16th, 2016, by stabbing him to death.

He was handed a life sentence and is currently an inmate at Midlands Prison.

This sentence cannot act as a true deterrent, in light of the fact that I cant impose a consecutive sentence, Judge Codd said, backdating it to last month when McEvoy pleaded guilty.

Judge Codd said the prison officer was left with a scar after he was cut under his eye in what she said was a highly dangerous manoeuvre by McEvoy.

She set a headline sentence of five years, but reduced it to four years on account of McEvoys guilty plea, his expressions of remorse and the consequences he has suffered within the prison system.

McEvoy spent a considerable period on 24-hour lock-up after assaulting the officer, the court heard.

McEvoy has 32 previous convictions, including the murder charge, and others for drugs and road traffic offences, robberies and possession of a phone in prison.

Attack

Garda Deirdre Gill told Rebecca Smith BL, prosecuting, that three prison officers escorted McEvoy to the Swiftcare Clinic in Smithfield on the day in question.

He attended the clinic for an x-ray without incident and went back to the van wearing handcuffs.

The court heard that a prison officer removed one cuff to allow McEvoy to climb into the van. McEvoy sat down but then stood up again and made a drive towards the prison officers, barging through them to try and escape.

Outside the van, a prison officer tried to restrain McEvoy against the car parked next to them, pushing him up against it to use the car as leverage.

McEvoy then swung both arms violently, lashing out with the arm that was still cuffed and threatening to stab the prison officer to death.

The prison officer felt a sharp pain under his right eye, the court heard.

Another officer grabbed at the weapon and got control of the accuseds right hand. The officers noticed a 15cm-long white object which fell to the ground and was moved away.

It was a toilet brush that had been manipulated into a point. I believe it had come from McEvoys cell, and he had concealed it on his person, Gda Gill said.

The prison officer was treated in hospital and given sutures and a tetanus injection. He also visited his GP, who described him as shaken and worried.

A victim impact statement was handed to the judge but not read out in court.

Keith Spencer BL, defending, said McEvoy wished to make a heartfelt apology to the prison officer he stabbed and to the others who had escorted him to the clinic.

Mr Spencer said his client has suffered a deterioration of his mental health in prison and had been given different diagnoses of multiple personality disorder, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia by different psychiatrists.

On the day, he should have been taking medication, and he wasnt, counsel said, adding that McEvoy was in a paranoid state and was worried about his own safety.

Mr Spencer said McEvoy had been the subject of repeated attacks from other prisoners and would carry improvised shivs and such items around with him.

McEvoy found custody very difficult and was frustrated by the varying diagnoses he had received, counsel said, adding that the accused accepts the prison officers were carrying out their job and his actions were totally unjustifiable.

He is now engaging with psychiatric services in prison and wants to tackle his drug addiction before he appears before a parole board, the court heard.

Judge Codd placed the offence in the uppermost range of seriousness and said prison officers have to be protected during the course of their duties.
Gardai are seeking the public's assistance in tracing the whereabouts of 17-year-old Aideen OBrien, who is reported missing from her home in Roosky, County Roscommon, since Wednesday, June 12th.

Aideen was last seen in Dromod, County Leitrim, on Wednesday, June 12th, between 6 a.m. and 6.30 a.m.. It is believed that she may have travelled to Dublin.

Aideen is described as bring approximately 5 foot 7 inches in height, and of a slight build, with brown hair and blue eyes.

When last seen, Aideen was wearing a black coat, blue jeans, black shoes, and a black woollen hat with a tan tassel.

Aideen is known to frequent the Dublin City Centre area.

Gardai and Aideens family are concerned for her welfare.

Anyone with any information on Aideens whereabouts is asked to contact Boyle Garda Station on 071 9664620, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111, or any Garda station.
Supreme Court Decision on NEET Exam 2024 Sparks Controversy

Critics have called for stringent action against the NTA.

Supreme Court Decision on NEET Exam 2024 Latest News Today: The Supreme Court on Thursday addressed the contentious issue surrounding the NEET-UG'24 examination, specifically focusing on the allocation of grace marks to candidates.

The Supreme Court stated that the affected candidates will have the option to re-appear for the exam as their grace marks will be withdrawn. For those who choose not to avail themselves of this opportunity, their results will be revised based solely on their actual marks, without the inclusion of any grace marks.

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Ever since grace marks were allocated, the National Testing Agency (NTA) has been facing a lot of flak over a lack of transparency. Currently, the demand for accountability also talks about the NTA handling the strictness and high-level committee to investigate the alleged paper leak.

Critics have called for stringent action against the NTA, arguing that holding the organization responsible will set a precedent and ensure accountability in future examinations. There is also a demand for a thorough investigation into allegations of paper leaks, with calls for a high-level committee to look into the matter.

"People are losing faith in the system. The sudden allocation of grace marks without prior announcement raises serious doubts about the integrity of the examination process," remarked a concerned parent, echoing sentiments shared by many affected families.

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Moreover, questions have been raised regarding the accuracy of the NTA's claims regarding the number of candidates who received grace marks. Skepticism persists among stakeholders, with some suggesting that the actual number of affected students could be much higher than officially reported.

In response to these concerns, there have been calls for the NTA to publicly disclose the OMR sheets and scorecards of all candidates to ensure transparency and restore public trust in the examination system.

As the controversy unfolds, the Supreme Court's decision marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing debate over the conduct of entrance examinations in India. With implications for thousands of aspiring medical students, the fallout from this ruling is expected to resonate throughout the academic and regulatory spheres in the coming weeks.

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Do these concerns suggest that the NTA may not be completely honest in its disclosure and that more than 1563 candidates benefitted from grace marks? The credibility of future entrance exams is bound to take a hit after the Supreme Court's decision.

(For more news apart from Supreme Court Decision on NEET Exam 2024 Latest News Today, stay tuned to Rozana Spokesman)
June 13, 2024 UPDATE

A roundup of the main local and international news

Newsflash

Newsroom, 13.06.2024, 20:24

DAY The Ministry of National Defence on Thursday staged a series of military and religious ceremonies dedicated to the Heroes Day at army bases and military installations across Romania. The name of the heroes who fell in various battles and missions were symbolically mentioned, while funeral bell tolling was heard in churches all over the country. We are expressing our gratitude for the heroes who survived the horrors of World War Two, for those who opposed the communist dictatorship and fought for liberty during the anti-communist revolution of December 1989, contributing decisively in the process of ousting the totalitarian regime in Romania, the Romanian president Klaus Iohannis said in a message. He has also voiced appreciation for those who are presently involved with the countrys defence systems. As a token of gratitude for the countrys fallen heroes in WWI, the Romanian authorities ruled in 1920 that the Heroes Day is a national holiday celebrated on the Ascension of Jesus Christ, a tradition which was resumed after 1990. The Ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ is the moment of his bodily ascension into heaven forty days after the resurrection.

LOAN G7 Leaders, who convened in Italy, reached a political agreement on Thursday to use frozen Russian assets in an attempt to help provide Ukraine with a 50 billion dollars loan over the next year in its ongoing war with Russia, a US presidency official has been quoted by AFP as saying. Profits from the 300 billion dollars in frozen Russian assets largely held in countries like Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the USA will be used to back the loan. Most of the money would be in the form of a loan mostly guaranteed by the US, the same official added. The western states would rather seize the frozen Russian assets and use them in the reconstruction of Ukraine and for the purchase of weapons but such a measure, which was also asked by Kyiv, is, at least for the time being, difficult, as there are numerous obstacles, of legal, geopolitical and financial nature such as the risk of throwing the international financial markets into turmoil and weakening the Western currencies. Also on Thursday Brussels saw the meeting of the US-led Contact Group for Ukraine where Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin said the Ukrainian troops are holding strong on the frontline while the allies are continuing their efforts to provide weapons, mainly air defence systems, such as the Patriot interceptors. He also said the Ukrainian forces are fending off Russias new offensive in the Kharkiv region.

BILLS The Romanian Government on Thursday endorsed an emergency decree on creating a special environment budget designed to fund projects aimed at developing integrated waste management infrastructure. The beneficiaries of the aforementioned projects are inter-community development agencies at the level of counties or other structures. The move is aimed at backing the implementation of the projects promoted by the local authorities by providing investment funding aimed at completing the systems of integrated waste management. Also on Thursday, the government endorsed a series of new regulations on the prevention of cyber-attacks against medical units and the creation of a unique registry that should comprise all medical units.

(bill)
June 13, 2024

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsflash

Newsroom, 13.06.2024, 13:55

ELECTIONS  The process of centralizing votes and validating Sundays European Parliament and local ballots is expected to end today, the Permanent Election Authority says. After counting votes from over 97% of polling stations, PSD and PNL have jointly won over 70% of mayor seats. PSD ranks first in terms of the number of county councils won, followed by PNL, AUR and UDMR. The PSD-PNL alliance has also won the largest number of MEP seats having grabbed 48.57% of the vote, followed by AUR, the United Right Alliance and the SOS Romania party. The Central Election Bureau has dismissed a few hundred requests calling for a recount or the invalidation of the round of elections. The acting USR mayors of Bucharest Districts 1 and 2 have invoked election fraud and other irregularities, which their opponents from PNL and PSD respectively, whove won the election to the formers detriment, have denied.

CELEBRATIONS  Romanias Defense Ministry is today marking the National Day of Romanian Heroes by hosting military and religious ceremonies in garrisons across the country, hero monuments and cemeteries. The ceremonies commemorated the heroes who gave their lives in the line of duty fighting in wars, missions or theatres of operation. Bells were rung today at noon in churches across the country. We express our gratitude to the heroes who survived the horrors of World War II, those who opposed communist dictatorship and fought for freedom in the 1989 anti-communist revolution, playing a key role in toppling the totalitarian regime in Romania, president Klaus Iohannis said in a message. The head of state also expressed recognition for everyone who is today part of Romanias defense system. Paying homage to the heroes of the Great War, Romanian authorities declared the National Day of Romanian Heroes on the feast day of the Ascension of Christ in 1920. After 1990, this interwar tradition was resumed. Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Christians are today celebrating the Ascension of Christ, marking the ascension of Jesus to Heaven from the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem 40 days following his Resurrection.

DEFENSE  The EU Defense Ministers summit kicks off today in Brussels, the last such meeting ahead of the NATO summit in Washington. NATO Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, said the meeting will address allied measures and initiatives designed to support Ukraine, as well as Russias sabotage and disinformation activities in EU states. NATO wants to agree on the final details of the multiannual assistance plan for Ukraine, as well as on a second plan meant to boost the predictability and sustainability of arms industries in the long term. EU Defense Ministers will also hold talks as part of the Nuclear Planning Group. Russia has a dangerous rhetoric in this regard, has transferred nuclear capabilities from Belarus and has undertaken a number of exercises, Secretary Stoltenberg said. Regarding Russas hybrid actions, Jens Stoltenberg said we are witnessing an increasing number of coordinated actions. Some attacks were prevented by Member States by exchanging information, while arrests have been made in countries such as England, Germany, Poland or the Baltic States.

GOVERNMENT  The Romanian Government is today expected to pass an emergency decree on creating a special environment budget designed to fund projects aimed at developing integrated waste management infrastructure. The government will also vote the administrative accord between the relevant Romanian and US authorities, signed in March 2023 in Bucharest, designed to implement the Social Security Agreement between Romania and the USA. Todays agenda also includes a vote on Romanias voluntary payment to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development for 2024 and negotiations concerning a loan agreement on development policies for fiscal management and green economic growth between Romania and the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development.

G7  G7 leaders are today convening in Italy to discuss ways of increasing economic pressure on Russia in response to its aggression in Ukraine. US president Joe Biden is expected to sign a new security agreement with president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to support Kyiv in the long term, the BBC reports. On Wednesday, the USA extended existing economic sanctions in order to further hamper Russias war effort. A new plan is in the making, meant to use frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine, although some EU states have expressed concern regarding the possible risks entailed by this plan. (VP)
Virgin Money UK PLC (VMUK.L) reported that its profit attributable to ordinary shareholders for the six months ended 31 March 2024 increased to 210 million pounds or 15.9 pence per share from 152 million pounds or 10.9 pence per share in the same period last year.

Profit on ordinary activities before tax for the period was 279 million pounds up from 236 million pounds in the previous year, primarily reflecting the lower impairment charge.

Net interest income for the period rose to 859 million pounds from 852 million pounds in the prior year. Non-interest income for the period grew to 64 million pounds from 62 million pounds last year.

The company continues to anticipate 5%-10% growth across target lending segments of and unsecured lending in fiscal year 2024.

For more earnings news, earnings calendar, and earnings for stocks, visit rttnews.com.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
Eurozone industrial production dropped unexpectedly in April on falling intermediate goods output, official data showed Thursday.

Industrial output logged a monthly fall of 0.1 percent, marking the first drop in three months, Eurostat said. Production was forecast to grow 0.2 percent after rising 0.5 percent in March.



Within major industrial groupings, only intermediate goods output contracted in April, which was down 0.4 percent. Meanwhile, energy output was up 0.4 percent.

Non-durable consumer goods registered the fastest growth of 3.4 percent. Production of capital goods and durable consumer goods gained 0.7 percent and 0.3 percent, respectively.

On a yearly basis, the decline in industrial production deepened to 3.0 percent from 1.2 percent in March. This was worse than economists' forecast of 1.9 percent drop.



The EU27 industrial production expanded 0.5 percent on month but decreased 2.0 percent from the previous year in April.

The highest monthly increases were recorded in Denmark, Greece and Poland. On the other hand, Luxembourg, Latvia and Ireland reported sharp declines.

Capital Economics' economist Lily Millard said euro area industrial production growth is likely to remain subdued in the coming months.

The latest Purchasing Managers' survey result showed that the downturn in the euro area manufacturing activity softened in May as production moved closer to stabilization and orders fell at a slower pace. The manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 47.3 in May from 45.7 in April. However, a reading below neutral 50.0 indicates contraction.

Track market moving Economic Events that impact Commodities, Stock, and Forex by using realtime RTTNews Economic Calendar this week.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
A Greek cargo ship has been damaged in a sea drone attack by Houthi militants in the Red Sea.

The impact of the unmanned surface vessel, or USV, caused severe flooding and damage to the engine room of the Liberian flagged, Greek owned vessel M/V Tutor, the U.S. Central Command said in a press release.

It said Centcom forces destroyed three anti-ship cruise missile launchers in a Houthi controlled area of Yemen and one drone launched over the Red Sea.

Separately, the Iranian-backed militants launched two anti-ship ballistic missiles from Yemen over the Red Sea. There were no injuries or damage reported by U.S., coalition, or commercial ships.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

Business News
Kia India Export Contributions of Seltos, Sonet, Carens Hits 250,000 Units Milestone

Kia India achieves a significant milestone, surpassing 250,000 vehicle exports. Since 2019, Kia India has exported 255,133 units. Seltos leads, with 149,952 units, accounting for 59 percent of total exports. The Sonet follows, contributing 34 percent, while the Carens adds 7 percent.

Kia Indias exports reach over 100 international markets, with key destinations including South Africa, Chile, Paraguay, and Latin America. The Anantapur manufacturing facility, operational for about five years, serves as the central export hub. Starting this year, 90 percent of its production will focus on the domestic market as part of the manufacturers strategic shift for India.

Anantapur Plant: 5 Years of Production

The Anantapur plant symbolises Kias commitment to quality and innovation. This facilitys advanced production capabilities meet the highest global standards. The plant is adept in producing recreational vehicles (RVs) to satisfy international demand, highlighting its integral role in Kias global network.

Exporting to diverse markets, Kia India reinforces its position in the global automotive industry. The significant export figures highlight Kias focus on diverse markets, Vehicles made in India meet rigorous international standards, ensuring their competitiveness in global markets.

Anantapur Plant Production Capabilities

Kia Indias focus on domestic production does not diminish its export ambitions. Instead, it reflects a balanced approach to meeting local demand while maintaining a strong presence in international markets. The Anantapur facility plays a crucial role in this strategy, producing vehicles that cater to both domestic and international consumers.

The Anantapur plants production capabilities are a testament to Kias commitment to advanced manufacturing. The facilitys adherence to high quality standards ensures that each vehicle meets global expectations. This focus on quality and innovation is essential for maintaining Kias competitive edge in the automotive industry.

Seltos, Sonet, Carens  High Standards in Kias Manufacturing Process

Kia Indias export strategy includes catering to diverse markets, with significant volumes shipped to South Africa, Chile, Paraguay, and Latin America. These regions represent crucial markets for Kia, reflecting the global appeal of its vehicles. The Seltos, Sonet, and Carens models contribute significantly to this success, each addressing specific market needs.

Mr. Myung-sik Sohn, Chief Sales Officer, Kia India said, Our dedication to quality and innovation has driven us to this milestone. The success of our Made in India vehicles internationally shows our commitment to quality. Weve quickly become a major market for Kia Corporation and aim to maintain this momentum. While our focus is on the domestic market, we plan to keep our exports steady this year.
Sub 4m SUV sales have surged by 24.47% year-on-year (YoY), with total units sold reaching 111,021 compared to 89,194 in May 2023

The sub-4 meter SUV segment in India has witnessed remarkable growth in May 2024. This robust performance underscores the growing consumer preference for compact SUVs, driven by factors like urban utility, advanced features, and the rising inclination towards electric vehicles (EVs).

Sub 4m SUV Sales May 2024  YoY Comparison

Tata Punch / EV emerged as the leader of the pack, registering an impressive 70.34% growth YoY with 18,949 units sold in May 2024, up from 11,124 units in May 2023. Maruti Brezza, despite a modest growth of 5.88%, retained its strong market position with 14,186 units sold. Following closely, the Maruti Fronx saw a substantial increase of 28.57%, clocking in at 12,681 units, highlighting Marutis continued dominance in the sub-compact SUV market.

Tata Nexon / EV experienced a decline of 20.56%, with sales dropping to 11,457 units from 14,423 units the previous year. Similarly, Hyundai Venue and Kia Sonet saw negative growth rates of 8.68% and 9.91%, respectively. A standout performer was the newly launched Mahindra XUV3XO, which nearly doubled its sales with a 95.12% increase, moving from 5,125 units in May 2023 to 10,000 units in May 2024. Mahindras strategy to enhance features and offer competitive pricing seems to be paying off handsomely.

Mahindra Bolero, while still maintaining solid sales figures, saw a slight decrease of 1.76%, with 8,026 units sold compared to 8,170 units in May 2023. Mahindra Thar also showed significant growth, with sales increasing by 33.85%, reaching 5,750 units, up from 4,296 units in May 2023.

Hyundai Exter reported sales of 7,697 units. Nissan Magnite experienced a decline of 15.55%, dropping to 2,211 units from 2,618 units the previous year. Newly launched Toyota Taisor registered 2,180 sales last month. Renault Kiger witnessed a sharp decline of 50.38%, with sales falling to 850 units from 1,713 units in May 2023. Maruti Jimny sales were at 274 units in May 2024.

Sub 4m SUV Sales May 2024  MoM Comparison

In terms of Month on Month performance, the segment reported a growth of 1.00% from 109,922 units in April 2024. Tata Punch saw a minor decline of 1.09%, with sales dropping to 18,949 units from 19,158 units in April 2024. Maruti Brezza experienced a more pronounced decline of 17.10%, with sales falling to 14,186 units from 17,113 units in April 2024.

Maruti Fronx also saw a notable decrease of 11.23%, with 12,681 units sold in May 2024 compared to 14,286 units in the previous month. Tata Nexon bucked the declining trend with a slight growth of 2.59%, increasing its sales to 11,457 units from 11,168 units in April 2024. Mahindra XUV3XO stood out with an extraordinary increase of 149.81%, with sales soaring to 10,000 units from 4,003 units in April 2024.

Hyundai Venue recorded a modest growth of 2.27%, with sales rising to 9,327 units from 9,120 units in April 2024, reflecting steady demand for this model. Mahindra Bolero saw a significant drop of 15.84%, with sales decreasing to 8,026 units from 9,537 units in the previous month. Hyundai Exter experienced a slight decline of 0.76%, with sales marginally dropping to 7,697 units from 7,756 units in April 2024. Similarly, Kia Sonet faced a 5.92% decline, with sales falling to 7,433 units from 7,901 units.

Mahindra Thar also saw a decrease of 6.66%, with 5,750 units sold in May 2024 compared to 6,160 units in April 2024, indicating a potential seasonal fluctuation in demand. Nissan Magnite experienced an 8.03% decline, with sales dropping to 2,211 units from 2,404 units in April 2024. Toyota Taisor, a new entry, recorded sales of 2,180 units, contributing to the segments overall growth.

Renault Kiger faced a significant drop of 19.74%, with sales decreasing to 850 units from 1,059 units in April 2024. Maruti Jimny showed a positive trend with a 6.61% increase, selling 274 units in May 2024 compared to 257 units in the previous month.
Tamela Phillips Disability Rights Michigan holds a COVID-19 clinic at the Burma Center.

Taylor Scamehorn Priscilla Lal

Taylor Scamehorn Translator Kyu Senia

Taylor Scamehorn Nurse Teresa Crawford and DRM's Tamela Phillips at the Burma Center COVID-19 clinic.

Global Detroit Destine Brown

Global Detroit DRM holds a COVID-19 clinic at a Global Detroit resource fair.

Global Detroit Rezaul Chowdhury

The Burma Center recently hosted a vibrant cultural heritage event, drawing attention to the diverse traditions and entrepreneurial spirit within the Battle Creek community.The highlight of the event included a traditional Burmese fashion show and a contest for small businesses, offering them a chance to win funding for expansion. In addition to celebrating culture and supporting local businesses, the event also featured a COVID-19 vaccination clinic, aiming to make health care more accessible to this underserved population.In Michigan, many individuals from refugee, immigrant, and migrant communities face significant challenges in accessing preventive health care services, including COVID-19 vaccinations. Disability Rights Michigan (DRM) has been at the forefront of efforts to bridge this gap by integrating vaccination clinics into community events.Tamela Phillips, a DRM vaccine advocate, highlights the importance of this strategy.We work closely with organizations across the state that support these communities, providing translators to ensure everyone has access to the information and services they need, Phillips explains.The clinic offered the opportunity for vaccination access and information to be shared with another group of people that may not have received it due to the language barrier. It was nice to be able to reach out.Several dialects were spoken at the event, reflecting the linguistic diversity of the attendees.We are a very small community in Battle Creek, says Priscilla Lal, interpretation and translation coordinator at the Burma Center in Springfield, outside of Battle Creek. The nonprofit supports the Burmese community in a variety of ways, including housing, job opportunities, assisting with medical appointments, and finding other resources.They needed help with phone calls and navigating a new country and culture and doing small, essential, everyday things, says Lal. Language access is still a big part of everything that we do here and is still impacted a lot.Michigan's demographic statistics reveal that while English is the primary language for over 91% of residents, a significant portion of the population speaks other languages, including Spanish, Arabic, and various Asian languages. This linguistic diversity necessitates tailored approaches to health care outreach.DRM's collaboration with the Burma Center has included multiple COVID-19 clinics, with the latest one held on May 18. The turnout was pretty good, Lal notes.On Michigan's east side, DRM has partnered with Global Detroit to support immigrant populations with limited English proficiency. Destine Brown, Global Detroits social cohesion program manager, emphasized the impact of these efforts.DRM has joined us at community resource fairs and festivals, providing mobile clinics and crucial information, Brown said.The partnership has been instrumental in overcoming barriers to health care access. People needed that extra step where someone could explain and answer their questions, Brown says.Often, people didn't even have information about vaccinations. Pairing the information with an incentive made it an easy decision.Some of the feedback we heard is that folks were happy that they were able to get this service on a weekend because sometimes they can't take off work or they don't have the time during the week to make it to these places, Brown says. There was also no documentation required, which can be a barrier for some immigrants in obtaining services.Working with Kristen Milefchik, a DRM vaccine advocate, has changed how the nonprofit selects venues for events.We had a challenge come up where we invited them to a local school, and they didn't have ramps or elevators, making it difficult for people who use wheelchairs or older folks with mobility issues, Brown says.She says that experience helped the group think more inclusively during project planning.In Detroits Banglatown neighborhood, DRM works with Rezaul Chowdhury, a community engagement specialist with Global Detroit. Chowdhury, who serves as a trusted connector within the Bangladeshi immigrant community, played a key role at the vaccination clinic by providing translation services and encouraging participation.I explained the vaccination process and the incentives, and people were happy to line up and get vaccinated, Chowdhury said.As a trusted connector, he is out in the community helping small business owners and community members navigate matters big and small to help them get the resources they need and deserve.Chowdhury worked as a translator and Bangla speaker at the clinic.I was a resource for a lot of people who showed up. Some of them are not very interested or sometimes they are going to learn about what it is about. If they were struggling to understand, I jumped in and translated, says Chowdhury. I explained they were giving vaccinations and they were giving gift cards. They were happy to participate, and they lined up. We did a lot of vaccines.The collaborative efforts of organizations like DRM, the Burma Center, and Global Detroit illustrate the power of community-based approaches in addressing public health challenges and supporting immigrant and refugee populations. By combining cultural celebrations with essential services, these initiatives ensure that more people can access the resources they need to thrive. Disability Inclusion is a series exploring the state of Michigans growing disability community. It is made possible through a partnership with Disability Rights Michigan
Courtesy Brian and Mollie Gaggin

Seniors Helping Seniors.

Courtesy Seniors Helping Seniors Lakeshore serves Holland and the Lakeshore area.

U.S.

Department of Health and Human Services

Brian and Mollie Gaggin decided to take their careers in a new direction after caring for their aging parents as they battled Alzheimers disease and dementia.The Holland couple opened Seniors Helping Seniors Lakeshore, which serves Holland and the Lakeshore area. Its focus is on hiring seniors to help care for their peers who are less active or independent.The Gaggins learned the importance of compassionate senior care when they witnessed how their parents senior friends and peers gave them valuable support as they continued to live comfortably at home.Now, they hope to provide this opportunity to as many seniors as possible as franchisees withWeve had family members who were able to stay in their homes for as long as possible because they had companion care by the people who visited them and spent time with them, Brian says. It might have been neighbors or family, and they may have been providing meals, helping with cleaning or just providing companionship, but it allowed them to stay in their homes and made a big difference.The demand for in-home care for older populations continues to grow, with thereporting that nearly 70% of retirees will require some form of long-term care. The couples location is the fourth in the state and will focus on serving Grand Haven, Holland, Saugatuck, South Haven, Allegan, Jenison, and Hudsonville.The Lakeshore connected with Brian Gaggin for Q&A about their new business and the challenges that come with aging in place.You and your spouse are longtime career professionals who recently opened an in-home senior care business along the Lakeshore. How did your previous careers prepare you for this new chapter?Mollie and I had some time after retirement to consider what was important in our lives, and we both feel that we have found our purpose in bringing companionship and personal care to seniors who want to remain independent in their homes and need a little help in doing so. Our individual business careers provided the understanding of how to be most effective with our organization to bring the best results for our caregivers and clients alike.What about the Seniors Helping Seniors model inspired you to invest in this business?The primary aspect of the Seniors Helping Seniors model is that our caregivers are seniors themselves. This aspect provides active seniors who are looking for part-time work with the opportunity to do something meaningful by bringing the happiness of companionship to a senior who needs that and at the same time earn supplemental income for their own situation. The Seniors Helping Seniors model is truly a win-win for both the caregiver and the care recipient.You have opened two locations. Where are they located and what area do they serve?Seniors Helping Seniors Lakeshore is in West Michigan, and directly to the west and southwest of Grand Rapids. The territory covers the communities along the Lake Michigan shoreline from north of Grand Haven to South Haven, including Holland, Saugatuck/Douglas, Allegan, Hudsonville, and Jenison.As a longtime West Michigan resident, you have a deep network in the community. How are you recruiting caregivers for the business and what are you looking for in candidates?West Michigan is an incredibly special part of Michigan. It is a place where the population has a reputation for being exceptionally considerate, welcoming, and compassionate. Our senior caregivers are, for the most part, longtime residents of West Michigan themselves and embrace this culture and are inclined to provide care and consideration for seniors who need a little assistance. Our outreach to senior caregivers is primarily through church bulletins and seniors center resource offices. We look for caregivers who have a caring heart and want to offer that care to others.How do you see your newly launched operation fitting into Seniors Helping Seniors' overall Michigan growth plans?We are excited to be a part of the growth, both within Michigan and nationally, of the Seniors Helping Seniors Brand. The leadership of Seniors Helping Seniors has demonstrated a commitment to partnering with franchisees that share the founding vision and building a reputation for caring first. This has led to a dramatic growth of franchises over the last several years. Additionally, there is a close working relationship between the Michigan franchisees where best practices and ideas are shared. An example of this is the Seniors Helping Seniors Michigan franchisee network was well represented at the recent Home Care Association of America-Michigan Chapter Legislative Day in Lansing last week.
Metro Detroits newest brewery is set to celebrate its grand opening on Saturday, June 15. Currently operating under a soft opening with limited hours, Stumblebum Beer Co. will celebrate the opening of its Troy home with beer, food, and a performance from the Thrift Shop Cowboys.Stumblebum Beer Co. opens in the former building of Baileys Pub in Troy. Proprietor and brewer Eli Green learned the business from renowned brewer Garret Oliver of the Brooklyn Brewery in New York City. Beer, meat, and cheese are featured on the menu, with charcuterie boards among the highlights.There are only a few places in the country that feature beer, meat, and cheese, says Green. Astoria New Yorks The Bier and Cheese Collective, and Minneapoliss Waldmann. I am thrilled to add Stumblebum to that list.Green chose the Stumblebum name to celebrate those with a sense of wanderlust, he says. After pursuing a theater career in New York, Green returns to his hometown of Troy with his newfound passion realized. "I am thrilled to be opening a brewery in my hometown and look forward to sharing my love for beer, meat, and cheese with all who stumble through my door.The Stumblebum Beer Co. brewery was designed by Birminghams DesignTeam Plus, an architectural and interior design firm that specializes in breweries. The recently opened Heights Brewing in downtown Farmington is among the firms recent clients.Eli came to us with three adjectives to describe his space: familiar, hygge, and mysterious, says Shari Stein, owner and principal interior designer for DesignTeam Plus. We incorporated these adjectives into the environment so that customers will be engaged and take notice of all the details, from the uniquely designed shelving units to the fit and interior finishes of the space. Stumblebum Beer Co. is located at 1965 W. Maple Rd. in Troy.Got a development news story to share? Email MJ Galbraith here or send him a tweet @mikegalbraith
Beijing has urged the European Union to abandon newly-announced tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles, accusing it of politicising trade.

Brussels told car manufacturers on Wednesday that following an investigation, it would provisionally apply duties of between 17% and 38% on imported Chinese EVs from next month.

The charges will be applied on top of an existing 10% import duty, meaning some manufacturers could face charges as high as nearly 50%.

They are, however, well below the 100% tariffs announced by the US last month on imports of Chinese EVs.

Both the US and Europe are looking to boost homegrown industry and protect domestic manufacturers from cheaper Chinese competitors in a range of areas, and especially in EVs.

The European Commission told the Financial Times on Wednesday: We have no option but to act in the face of soaring imports of heavily-subsidised battery electric vehicles from China. This puts our industry at risk of injury.

However, in a press conference on Thursday, Beijing was highly critical of the move.

According to Reuters, foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian told reporters: We urge the EU to listen carefully to the objective and rational voices from all walks of life, immediately correct its wrong practices, stop politicising economic and trade issues and properly handle economic and trade frictions through dialogue and consultation.

Chinese car manufacturer Geely also expressed great disappointment, and said it would take all necessary measures to safeguard its rights. State-controlled rival SAIC said it was deeply concerned, Reuters noted.

SAIC, which has joint ventures with Volkswagen and General Motors, is Chinas largest automaker.

Rabobank said: It is clear that Beijing intends to counter Europes tariffs with anti-trade measures of its own. China has already warned Brussels that its aviation and agriculture sectors could become the targets of retaliatory tariffs.

Worse, what if China doesnt strike back through tariffs, but instead decides to impose export bans on key commodities and inputs? That could raise European input costs and prices across sectors.

Given Europes internal divisions when it comes to the automobile industry, China may have an even stronger incentive to retaliate. This could drive a further wedge between EU countries.
Billionaire Elon Musk has claimed that Tesla Motors shareholders are voting in favour of his controversial $56bn pay package by "a wide margin".

In a post on his social media platform X, formerly Twitter, Teslas chief executive said investors were backing the package alongside a proposal to move the electric car manufacturers legal base to Texas from Delaware.

He wrote: "Both Tesla shareholder resolutions are currently passing by wide margins! Thanks for your support!!", alongside four heart emojis.

The Tesla board approved the compensation package - the largest remuneration terms in US corporate history - in 2018. The sum, which does not include a salary, was based solely on rewards for Tesla meeting revenue and market value targets over ten years.

But a court in Delaware invalidated the payout in January, arguing that the board was too close to the billionaire.

The board is appealing and launched the shareholder vote to help bolster its case. The judge had criticised the boards failure to fully inform shareholders before originally approving the package.

Musk has been critical of the state's approach, posting earlier this year: "Never incorporate a company in the state of Delaware."

The shareholder vote results are due to be announced on Thursday. However, most legal experts agree Musk will likely have to wait years before receiving the payout, as the case continues to move through the Delaware legal system.

Although Musk remains popular with retail investors, a number of institutional investors are also expected to vote against the motions. Proxy firms Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services have also urged shareholders to reject the pay package.

As at 1130 BST, shares in Tesla were up 5% in pre-market trading.

Over the last year, Tesla stock has lost 31% of its value as investors reacted to falling sales as well as concerns about Musks alleged lack of focus. As well as X, Musk also owns SpaceX and artificial intelligence firm xAI.

The Tesla board has argued that the package would encourage Musk to remain focused on the business. Musk currently owns around 20% of Tesla.
European stock markets suffered a sharp sell-off on Thursday with indices in Paris, Frankfurt and Milan all dropping 2% or more on the back of ongoing political uncertainty.

The Stoxx 600 finished the day down 1.3% at 515.93, its lowest close since 29 May. Both the Dax and Cac 40 both dropped 2.0% each while the FTSE MIB slumped 2.2%. London's FTSE 100 however fared a little better, falling by just 0.6%.

Politics continued be weigh heavily on French socks in particular, following the advance of the far-right National Rally party at last weekend's European Parliament elections. The Cac 40 has now fallen by nearly 4% over the past four days alone, trading at its lowest since mid-February.

Meanwhile a pool by Elabe for newspaper Les Echos showed that president Emmanuel Macro's approval rating is now at its lowest since late-2018 following his decision on Sunday night to call for a snap election.

It has been a week to forget for Europe. Snap French elections have sent investors scurrying from European stocks, just as those markets began to hit their stride after a decade and more of underperformance versus the US," said analyst Chris Beauchamp from IG.

Compared to the prospect of hard-right members sitting in the National Assembly, the UK seems an island of stability, though the FTSE 100 and 250 have not been able to escape the general risk-off move today.

European markets were also reacting to Wednesday evenings' Federal Reserve policy meeting, in which the central bank scaled back its projections for interest-rate cuts this year to just one, from three previously.

In economic data, eurozone industrial production unexpectedly ticked lower in April, official data showed on Thursday. Seasonally-adjusted industrial production eased 0.1% in the single currency bloc, compared to an 0.5% improvement in March. Analysts had been expecting a small 0.2% uplift.

Across the wider EU, industrial production increased 0.5%. The biggest faller in both areas was intermediate goods, which saw output fall 0.2% in the EU and 0.4% in the eurozone.

Market movers

Atos fell slightly but erased earlier significant losses after the French IT firm announced the sale of its consultancy unit Worldgrid days after agreeing to a rescue deal that would dilute the holdings of existing shareholders.

Shares in UK money transfer firm Wise slumped by 11% as it forecast lower income growth in the medium term.

Halma shares jumped 13% as the company reported another year of record profit and revenue after a solid performance in the safety and the environment & analysis sectors.

Paris and Milan-listed auto stock Stellantis dropped around 3% after unveiling its medium-term capital plan, underwhelming after setting target liquidity levels of 25-30% of revenues to support shareholder returns.
According to a regulatory filing late on Wednesday, the stake - worth around 400m - was taken by Slims family business Inbursa.

A BT spokesman told the Telegraph: "We welcome any investor who recognises the long-term value of our business.

"We have frequent communication with all of our shareholders and meet with major investors on a regular basis. We look forward to engaging with Inbursa, just as we do with all investors."

At 1215 BST, the shares were up 2.6% at 132.79p.

Russ Mould, investment director at AJ Bell, said: "This could be taken as an endorsement of recently appointed chief executive Allison Kirkbys new strategy for the group."
Renishaw announced significant changes to its board on Thursday, with Sir David McMurtry, who co-founded the company over 50 years ago, set to step down as executive chairman.

The FTSE 250 firm said he had been a pivotal figure in its success, serving both as chief executive officer and executive chair.

Although he would leave his current role, Renishaw said Sir David would remain on the board as a non-executive director, contributing his expertise in product innovation.

Sir David Grant, currently the senior independent director, would take on the role of interim non-executive chairman while the board looked for a permanent successor.

In addition to the change, Richard McMurtry, Sir David McMurtrys son, would join the board as a non-executive director.

Renishaw said McMurtry would bring extensive experience as a director of various businesses and as an investor in UK start-ups focused on innovation.

His background as an engineer with expertise in product development and robotic systems was expected to be valuable to Renishaw.

Sir David McMurtry would also step down from the nomination committee, with Sir David Grant assuming the chairmanship of that.

Consequently, Sir David Grant would resign from his positions on the audit and remuneration committees to accommodate his new responsibilities.

Renishaw said it was also actively searching for an additional independent non-executive director to join the board.

The changes were anticipated to take effect from 1 July, pending necessary approvals.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
MINEOLA, N.Y. (AP)  A suburban New York county with one of the largest police forces in the nation is training dozens of armed residents who could be called up during natural disasters and other major emergencies, sparking worry that the new volunteer unit amounts to an unsanctioned local militia.

Nassau County officials posted a notice in March seeking private citizens with gun licenses to serve as provisional special deputy sheriffs who could assist in the protection of human life and property during an emergency.

Twenty-five have completed training in recent weeks, but locals who have been rallying against the scheme question the need for the unit and have raised concerns about the potential for overpolicing after departments across the country cracked down on protests against the Israel-Hamas war.

Democrats, who are the minority in the county legislature, and some community advocates say they worry Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman  a Republican and staunch supporter of former President Donald Trump  could call up the deputies to quell political dissent, a charge he strongly denies. Critics also contend that emergencies require a different type of volunteer.

There is no need to give residents broad and dangerously vague authority to respond, armed with deadly weapons, in the event of an emergency, said Laura Burns, a Rockville Centre resident and member of gun control group Moms Demand Action, after a recent rally.

In a phone interview, Blakeman said the armed deputies would be called on only when the county, just east of the New York City borough of Queens, faces a major emergency akin to Superstorm Sandy, which caused catastrophic damage along the Long Island coast in 2012.

They would not be used for crowd control or breaking up protests because they wont be trained to patrol streets, he said. Instead, the deputies will be assigned to protect critical infrastructure, such as government buildings, hospitals and houses of worship.

We are putting together this program so I wont have to be in a scramble to try and find qualified people, Blakeman said.

Nassau County, with a population of about 1.4 million, has the 12th largest local police force in the nation, some 2,600 sworn officers  bigger than Boston, San Francisco, Baltimore and other major cities. State troopers also serve the county, which has dozens of village police forces.

Michael Moore, a retired Nassau County court officer and member of the local Community Emergency Response Team trained to support first responders in emergencies, says armed residents werent what was needed in 2012  and arent what is needed now. Thousands of armed National Guard members were mobilized across greater New York City during that disaster.

When Sandy hit, we needed people shoveling, pumping out basements, handing out water, directing traffic, all those kinds of things, the 65-year-old Long Beach resident said. We didnt need people grabbing their reading glasses and picking up their firearms to challenge somebody to a duel on Main Street. Its freaking ridiculous.

Local Democrats have questioned the legality of the program. But Blakeman shrugged off the criticism as politically motivated, pointing to state law that authorizes local sheriffs to deputize orally or in writing as many special deputies as needed to respond to an emergency.

These would be the same people that if there was an emergency and I wasnt prepared, they would be criticizing me for that, he said.

Amy Cooter, a professor at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies in California who focuses on anti-government extremism and militias, said Blakemans plan plays on perceptions that police departments are underfunded and under siege from forces beyond their control.

Not all of these folks are going to have good training or good motives, she said. This is especially true when feelings about immigration are being stirred up, nationally.

Blakeman said the training program includes 12 hours of classroom instruction as well as practice on the firing range, which critics note is significantly less training than the 150 hours for Nassau Countys unarmed auxiliary officers and the seven months required to join the county police department.

So far, nearly all the people who have completed the deputy sheriffs training  which included a background check and random drug testing  are retired police officers, according to a list provided by the county. Blakeman hopes to train up to 50 deputies.

Edward Haggerty, a 65-year-old retired police detective who was among the first to complete the training, said the critics simply havent given the program a chance.

Were not going to be out there on anybodys whim, he said. Even with law enforcement and the National Guard, people are stretched pretty thin, so the more forces you can bring to bear to help out the community, the better. Its a positive thing. I dont see anything negative to it.

Volunteer deputy programs exist in law enforcement agencies nationwide.

NBA great Shaquille ONeal racked up a number of deputy sheriff and reserve police officer titles from California to Florida. Action star Steven Seagal had a reality show following his exploits as an armed deputy sheriff in Louisiana and Arizona.

In Westchester County, just north of New York City, volunteer deputy sheriffs are issued a firearm and provide crowd control at parades and other events, according to the county website. They also have assisted during hurricanes, blackouts and presidential visits.

In Suffolk County, which covers the rest of Long Island, sheriffs deputies dont need a gun license because they serve as community ambassadors and have no policing function according to Victoria Distefano, a spokesperson for Sheriff Errol Toulon.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  Police are asking for the publics assistance locating an individual sought for questioning in connection with the unauthorized use of a credit card at The Home Depot in Charleston.

It was reported to police on Thursday, May 9, at approximately 2 p.m., an unidentified individual entered The Home Depot, located at 2750 Veterans Road West, and used a 30-year-old female victims credit card to make an unauthorized purchase totaling $719 dollars, according to a statement from the NYPDs Deputy Commissioner of Public Information.

The individual left the store on foot, police said.

The NYPD released a surveillance image of an individual who is sought for questioning in connection with the incident.

According to police, the individual is described as a male, with light complexion, slim build and black hair. He was seen wearing a black sweatshirt.

Anyone with information in regard to this case is asked to call the NYPDs Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the CrimeStoppers website at https://crimestoppers.nypdonline.org/ or on Twitter @NYPDTips.

All calls are strictly confidential.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  After Gov. Kathy Hochul indefinitely paused the start of congestion pricing, a coalition of officials and experts are exploring all legal avenues, including multiple lawsuits, to resume the plan that was originally slated to begin at the end of June.

Last week, Hochul cited concerns about increasing financial burdens on residents and not wanting to add another challenge through the congestion toll.

Circumstances have changed and we must respond to the facts on the ground  not from the rhetoric from five years ago. So, after careful consideration, I have come to the difficult decision that implementing the planned congestion pricing system risks too many unintended consequences for New Yorkers at this time. For that reason, I have directed the MTA to indefinitely pause the program, the governor said when announcing the halt of the program.

Congestion pricing was officially slated to begin on June 30, and would charge vehicles a variable fee  as much as $15  when entering the Congestion Relief Zone (CRZ), which is any surface street in Manhattan south of 60th Street.

It was designed to reduce congestion and generate revenue for the MTA, which would be bonded against and placed in a designated agency lockbox to fund capital improvements to the citys ailing mass transit system.

City Comptroller Brad Lander said that Hochul took a disastrously wrong turn when halting the plan, as it harms the citys goals of reducing emission and improving air quality, leaves a $15 billion hole in the MTAs capital program funding.

This sudden and potentially illegal reversal wronged a host of New Yorkers, who have a right to what was long promised to all of New York  a world-class mass transit system that works for all, said Lander. This broad coalition of legal experts and potential plaintiffs will act to ensure the swift and inevitable implementation of congestion pricing  even if it means taking their cases to court. Were here to steer our shared future back on track.

In response to the pause, Lander worked with advocates to assemble a coalition of legal experts and impacted groups who intend to challenge the last-minute reversal by the governor.

Lawsuits would challenge the decision based on several statues, such as the 2021 Green Amendment and the Central Business District Tolling Program.

Some groups who are impacted, according to the comptroller, include: New York City residents with disabilities who relied on funding from the congestion toll to make subway stations ADA accessible; residents of the Community Business District (CBD) who are adversely impacted by congestion; businesses in the CBD district; MTA board members who voted to adopt congestion pricing; MTA bondholders who own bonds backed by expected revenues from congestion pricing.

The coalition is developing lawsuits based on several statutes, according to Lander. Those could include:

Central Business District Tolling Program (CBDTP) (NY Vehicle and Traffic Law  1704) : Article 78 of NY Civil Practice Law and Rules provides an avenue to challenge the states failure to implement congestion pricing, as required by legislation passed in 2019.

Section 7.2 of the Climate Leadership and Community Protection Act (CLCPA) : The governor and New York state agencies, including the New York State Department of Transportation and the MTA, are required to act in a manner consistent with statewide greenhouse gas emissions reduction goals. Plaintiffs can bring suit alleging that failing to enact congestion pricing violates this law.

Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) : Delaying congestion pricing translates to a delay in accessibility improvements, potentially violating existing settlement agreements reached between MTA and disability advocates to address longstanding MTA noncompliance with the ADA.

Environmental Assessment (EA) : Residents of the CBD, people with disabilities, people with distinct vulnerabilities to traffic (e.g., asthma), businesses in the CBD, and other beneficiaries of positive environmental impacts identified in MTAS EA for the CBDTP have standing.

2021 Green Amendment: The New York state constitution grants all residents the right to clean air, clean water and a clean environment. Failure to implement congestion pricing violates this right.

Due to the pause on congestion pricing, there is a $15 billion gap in the MTAs 2020-2024 Capital Program. The program includes funds to improve transit expansion, accessibility, electrification, and state of good repair projects.

MTA CEO Janno Lieber said during a news conference on Monday that the transit authority would have to review its current capital program and reprioritize and shrink spending on planned improvements. Leiber said that the MTA will continue to defend against the many lawsuits against congestion pricing, should the program get a green light down the road.

Many of Staten Islands elected officials have vowed to continue a court case against congestion pricing.

The comptroller and the coalition of legal experts and potential plaintiffs will make further announcements after the MTA board votes on the governors proposal on June 26.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) will close roughly a half-mile stretch of Route 18 near East Brunswick, New Jersey, on both Thursday and Friday nights for major repairs.

The northbound section of NJ 18, from Rues Lane to Racetrack Road, will close between 9:30 p.m. and 4:30 a.m. for gas main work, according to the NJDOT.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- As New Yorkers gear up for whats sure to be an eventful election cycle, voter registration data indicates that certain corners of the state are more likely to support certain candidates.

The Staten Island Advance/SILive.com recently analyzed voter registration data from the New York State Board of Elections to determine which counties have the highest percentages of registered Democrats and Republicans.

Across New York, there are 13,108,347 registered voters, of which 6,404,069 are registered as Democrats, representing 48.85% of all voters, while there are 2,903,144, or 22.15%, registered as Republicans, according to the most recent New York State Board of Elections data.

Roughly 24.21% are registered to vote without a party affiliation, often referred to as independents, while the remaining registered voters belonging to smaller parties like the Working Families Party, Conservative Party and others.

The significant disparity is fueled by New York City, where there are 5,153,272 registered voters, including 3,420,848 Democrats and just 529,310 Republicans, meaning there are more than six times the amount of Democrats than Republicans.

When excluding New York City from the calculations, there are 7,955,075 total registered voters, of which 2,983,221, or 37.5% are registered as Democrats, while 2,373,834, or 29.84%, are registered as Republicans.

Unsurprisingly, the top four counties in terms of percentage of Democrats are all in New York City, with the Bronx leading the way with 72.72% of all voters registered as Democrats, followed by Manhattan at 70.01%, Brooklyn at 69.65% and Queens at 62.23%. Tompkins County rounds out the top five with 54.82% of all voters registered as Democrats.

Hamilton County leads the way in terms of percentage of registered Republicans at 57.22%, followed by Lewis County at 52.57%, Allegany County at 50.89%, Steuben County at 48.80% and Wyoming County at 48.48%.

On Staten Island, Democrats represent 39.72% of all registered voters, with Republicans representing 31.46%, independents representing 24.34% and the rest belonging to smaller parties.

Heres a look at the number of registered Democrats and Republicans in each New York county, in alphabetical order, according to Board of Elections data.

Albany County

Total Registered Voters: 211,056

Registered Democrats: 104,082 (49.31%)

Registered Republicans: 37,505 (17.77%)

Allegany County

Total Registered Voters: 27,311

Registered Democrats: 5,498 (20.13%)

Registered Republicans: 13,899 (50.89%)

Bronx County

Total Registered Voters: 785,637

Registered Democrats: 571,336 (72.72%)

Registered Republicans: 48,863 (6.22%)

Broome County

Total Registered Voters: 140,960

Registered Democrats: 50,241 (35.64%)

Registered Republicans: 46,745 (33.16%)

Cattaraugus County

Total Registered Voters: 50,627

Registered Democrats: 13,616 (26.89%)

Registered Republicans: 21,013 (41.51%)

Cayuga County

Total Registered Voters: 50,724

Registered Democrats: 15,188 (29.94%)

Registered Republicans: 18,551 (36.57%)

Chautauqua County

Total Registered Voters: 84,017

Registered Democrats: 24,717 (29.42%)

Registered Republicans: 29,597 (35.23%)

Chemung County

Total Registered Voters: 55,262

Registered Democrats: 15,733 (28.47%)

Registered Republicans: 22,147 (40.08%)

Chenango County

Total Registered Voters: 31,399

Registered Democrats: 7,199 (22.93%)

Registered Republicans: 13,924 (44.35%)

Clinton County

Total Registered Voters: 52,925

Registered Democrats: 17,874 (33.77%)

Registered Republicans: 16,173 (30.56%)

Columbia County

Total Registered Voters: 50,436

Registered Democrats: 20,179 (40.01%)

Registered Republicans: 13,168 (26.11%)

Cortland County

Total Registered Voters: 31,631

Registered Democrats: 9,554 (30.20%)

Registered Republicans: 11,289 (35.69%)

Delaware County

Total Registered Voters: 31,395

Registered Democrats: 8,808 28.06%

Registered Republicans: 13,134 (41.83%)

Dutchess County

Total Registered Voters: 222,218

Registered Democrats: 83,415 (37.54%)

Registered Republicans: 59,403 (26.73%)

Erie County

Total Registered Voters: 656,171

Registered Democrats: 300,074 (45.73%)

Registered Republicans: 164,280 (25.04%)

Essex County

Total Registered Voters: 27,069

Registered Democrats: 8,103 (29.93%)

Registered Republicans: 11,064 (40.87%)

Franklin County

Total Registered Voters: 28,676

Registered Democrats: 10,132 (35.33%)

Registered Republicans: 9,781 (34.11%)

Fulton County

Total Registered Voters: 35,433

Registered Democrats: 7,511 (21.20%)

Registered Republicans: 16,995 (47.96%)

Genesee County

Total Registered Voters: 39,771

Registered Democrats: 8,875 (22.32%)

Registered Republicans: 17,724 (44.57%)

Greene County

Total Registered Voters: 35,485

Registered Democrats: 9,803 (27.63%)

Registered Republicans: 13,173 (37.12%)

Hamilton County

Total Registered Voters: 4,350

Registered Democrats: 871 (20.02%)

Registered Republicans: 2,489 (57.22%)

Herkimer County

Total Registered Voters: 43,952

Registered Democrats: 10,194 (23.19%)

Registered Republicans: 20,459 (46.55%)

Jefferson County

Total Registered Voters: 64,561

Registered Democrats: 16,257 (25.18%)

Registered Republicans: 26,656 (41.29%)

Kings County (Brooklyn)

Total Registered Voters: 1,616,593

Registered Democrats: 1,125,891 (69.65%)

Registered Republicans: 141,942 (8.78%)

Lewis County

Total Registered Voters: 19,260

Registered Democrats: 3,980 (20.66%)

Registered Republicans: 10,125 (52.57%)

Livingston County

Total Registered Voters: 42,191

Registered Democrats: 10,670 (25.29%)

Registered Republicans: 18,122 (42.95%)

Madison County

Total Registered Voters: 46,553

Registered Democrats: 12,464 (26.77%)

Registered Republicans: 17,887 (38.42%)

Monroe County

Total Registered Voters: 525,955

Registered Democrats: 219,830 (41.80%)

Registered Republicans: 133,049 (25.30%)

Montgomery County

Total Registered Voters: 30,888

Registered Democrats: 9,069 (29.36%)

Registered Republicans: 11,005 (35.63%)

Nassau County

Total Registered Voters: 1,064,828

Registered Democrats: 415,211 (38.99%)

Registered Republicans: 321,171 (30.16%)

New York County (Manhattan)

Total Registered Voters: 1,113,601

Registered Democrats: 779,629 (70.01%)

Registered Republicans: 86,657 (7.78%)

Niagara County

Total Registered Voters: 150,111

Registered Democrats: 53,179 (35.43%)

Registered Republicans: 50,683 (33.76%)

Oneida County

Total Registered Voters: 141,549

Registered Democrats: 44,534 (31.46%)

Registered Republicans: 53,399 (37.72%)

Onondaga County

Total Registered Voters: 323,810

Registered Democrats: 123,137 (38.03%)

Registered Republicans: 86,535 (26.72%)

Ontario County

Total Registered Voters: 82,248

Registered Democrats: 24,251 (29.49%)

Registered Republicans: 29,950 (36.41%)

Orange County

Total Registered Voters: 263,209

Registered Democrats: 97,932 (37.21%)

Registered Republicans: 78,356 (29.77%)

Orleans County

Total Registered Voters: 25,541

Registered Democrats: 5,243 (20.53%)

Registered Republicans: 12,228 (47.88%)

Oswego County

Total Registered Voters: 78,193

Registered Democrats: 17,719 (22.66%)

Registered Republicans: 35,545 (45.46%)

Otsego County

Total Registered Voters: 38,392

Registered Democrats: 11,722 (30.53%)

Registered Republicans: 14,430 (37.59%)

Putnam County

Total Registered Voters: 75,812

Registered Democrats: 23,740 (31.31%)

Registered Republicans: 25,306 (33.38%)

Queens County

Total Registered Voters: 1,304,159

Registered Democrats: 811,607 (62.23%)

Registered Republicans: 147,009 (11.27%)

Rensselaer County

Total Registered Voters: 111,842

Registered Democrats: 35,879 (32.08%)

Registered Republicans: 27,386 (24.49%)

Richmond County (Staten Island)

Total Registered Voters: 333,282

Registered Democrats: 132,385 (39.72%)

Registered Republicans: 104,839 (31.46%)

Rockland County

Total Registered Voters: 220,494

Registered Democrats: 99,202 (44.99%)

Registered Republicans: 52,669 (23.89%)

Saint Lawrence County

Total Registered Voters: 64,332

Registered Democrats: 20,936 (32.54%)

Registered Republicans: 23,218 (36.09%)

Saratoga County

Total Registered Voters: 187,964

Registered Democrats: 55,534 (29.55%)

Registered Republicans: 66,444 (35.35%)

Schenectady County

Total Registered Voters: 106,049

Registered Democrats: 42,267 (39.86%)

Registered Republicans: 24,453 (23.06%)

Schoharie County

Total Registered Voters: 21,281

Registered Democrats: 5,253 (24.68%)

Registered Republicans: 8,510 (39.99%)

Schuyler County

Total Registered Voters: 13,232

Registered Democrats: 3,540 (26.75%)

Registered Republicans: 5,532 (41.81%)

Seneca County

Total Registered Voters: 21,442

Registered Democrats: 6,221 (29.01%)

Registered Republicans: 8,330 (38.85%)

Steuben County

Total Registered Voters: 63,774

Registered Democrats: 14,579 (22.86%)

Registered Republicans: 31,124 (48.80%)

Suffolk County

Total Registered Voters: 1,112,963

Registered Democrats: 376,665 (33.84%)

Registered Republicans: 345,361 (31.03%)

Sullivan County

Total Registered Voters: 54,106

Registered Democrats: 18,996 (35.11%)

Registered Republicans: 17,022 (31.46%)

Tioga County

Total Registered Voters: 34,282

Registered Democrats: 8,505 (24.81%)

Registered Republicans: 15,206 (44.36%)

Tompkins County

Total Registered Voters: 64,733

Registered Democrats: 35,488 (54.82%)

Registered Republicans: 11,162 (17.24%)

Ulster County

Total Registered Voters: 135,320

Registered Democrats: 57,002 (42.12%)

Registered Republicans: 30,388 (22.46%)

Warren County

Total Registered Voters: 49,678

Registered Democrats: 13,469 (27.11%)

Registered Republicans: 20,388 (41.04%)

Washington County

Total Registered Voters: 39,699

Registered Democrats: 9,610 (24.21%)

Registered Republicans: 16,315 (41.10%)

Wayne County

Total Registered Voters: 61,046

Registered Democrats: 14,350 (23.51%)

Registered Republicans: 24,941 (40.86%)

Westchester County

Total Registered Voters: 668,649

Registered Democrats: 336,683 (50.35%)

Registered Republicans: 129,317 (19.34%)

Wyoming County

Total Registered Voters: 25,658

Registered Democrats: 5,027 (19.59%)

Registered Republicans: 12,440 (48.48%)

Yates County
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  While there are just days left before summer officially starts for New York City public school students, they wont need to head to campus for a couple of days next week.

All public school students will have two days off next week in observance of two separate holidays, according to the school calendar.

Schools will first be closed on Monday, June 17, for Eid al-Adha. This is a Muslim holiday that revolves around the concept of sacrifice, also meaning Festival or Feast of Sacrifice. Many Muslims in the United States usually celebrate Eid al-Adha with prayer, giving to charity and enjoying a festive meal.

Students will return to classes on Tuesday, June 18. However, they will have off once again on Wednesday, June 19, in for Juneteenth.

Juneteenth commemorates the liberation of people of African descent from enslavement in the United States. President Joe Biden signed into law in 2021 a bill to make Juneteenth the 12th federal holiday.

While students wont have any more holidays after Juneteenth, they wont need to wait long for summer.

The last day of classes for New York City public school students is on Wednesday, June 26.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y.  An early outlook indicates that this years Fourth of July is shaping up to be a hot one.

AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Tom Kines shared with the Advance/SILive.com a preliminary forecast for Independence Day, shedding light on anticipated conditions.

It looks like temperatures are going to be higher than what they typically are for that time of year, Kines said. Typically, we should have afternoon temperatures in the middle 80s, and I guess were kind of thinking upper 80s to near 90 during that timeframe.

The National Oceanic Atmospheric Administrations (NOAA) Online Weather Data for Central Park, gathered between 1991 and 2020, shows that the mean high temperature for July 4 is 84.3 degrees.

Independence Day is typically a time for grilling by the pool and enjoying a cool treat; this year looks no different. If anything, residents will be diving for the nearest source of refreshment in an effort to combat the enhanced heat.

It looks generally dry, Kines added. In other words, we dont see any big rainmaker during that timeframe.

However, Kines notes that the chance persists for a thunderstorm to potentially manifest at some point between July 3 and July 7.

The early forecast comes ahead of an anticipated heat wave expected to bring days featuring highs in the 90s.

An AccuWeather graphic shows the heat anticipated for June 17 through June 24, 2024. (Courtesy of AccuWeather)(Courtesy of AccuWeather)

The last time New York City experienced a stretch of consecutive 90-degree days was Sept. 5 through Sept. 8, 2023. In fact, Staten Island reached a high of 96 degrees on Sept. 5, as recorded by the Advance/SILive.com weather station.

Once in place, the heat seems to remain for an unforeseen amount of time.

Unfortunately, it really doesnt look like were going to see significant relief here once we get into the heat here for the middle of next week, AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Alan Reppert said. That could change here, obviously, depending on where storms come and when we have rainfall as well. So, I wouldnt want to say that were going to be in an extended heat wave, but at least through much of the middle, and even into the end of next week, we are looking at temperatures to be pretty well above normal.
An overwhelming majority of employees will be on the hunt for a new job in the next 12 months, according to Australias largest report on salary and recruitment trends, released this week.

More than 15,000 professionals from more than 26 industries in Australia and New Zealand responded to this years Hays Salary Guide. The data shows that cost of living is the No.1 reason driving the 77 per cent of employees planning to hunt for a new job in the next year.

Three-quarters of Australians say their salaries dont match their performance. Credit: Dominic Lorrimer

But while 61 per cent are looking for a pay rise of more than 3 per cent in their pending move, and 86 per cent of employers plan to provide one, the chief executive of Hays Asia Pacific, Matthew Dickason, says the data points to a problem.

Forty per cent of employees have said theyre dissatisfied with their salaries, and roughly three-quarters (73 per cent) dont believe their salary reflects their performance, he says. This shows that there is a mismatch between what employees want and what employers are willing to offer, which were likely to see play out over the next year as more Australians seek jobs with larger pay packets.
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 Lucy Coleman wanted to put a different kind of woman on Australian screens. She just didnt expect it to be in a story inspired by the aftershocks that came from a violent sexual assault she experienced in her early 20s. I wanted to write this story because it was part reflective plus still in a very tumultuous period in my life, she says. And I was wanting to explore the maladaptive behaviours that had sprung from a traumatic event. I was wanting to look at the push and pull of the rage and desperation that I felt in relation to the relationships that I was having with men. So both this kind of burning rage at them and then also a desperation for their validation. Alice Englert plays Jacs, who is determined to find the mysterious man in her best friends life, in Exposure. Credit: Lisa Tomasetti It was just such an irreconcilable place to be in but something that, when I looked up and looked around, I wasnt the only woman going through this. So it was me wanting to put pen to paper and explore that and put [the character of] Jacs on this journey to really be forced to look her demons in the face. Coleman is the creator and writer of Exposure, a mystery thriller that follows Jacs (played by Alice Englert), a 27-year-old photographer grappling with the suicide of her best friend Kel (Mia Artemis) and the discovery of a mysterious number on Kels phone. Exposures creator and writer Lucy Coleman (left) and director Bonnie Moir. Saved as Do Not Message, Jacs becomes convinced the person behind the number is the reason Kel committed suicide, so she uses herself as bait to lure the men Kel had contact with to try and find the person behind Do Not Message. At the same time, Jacs is struggling with her relationships with men, which have become self-destructive to say the least. I dont know whats wrong with me, she says at one point.

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Shes held together, in part, by her mother (played by a tremendous Essie Davis, whose husband Justin Kurzel, of Snowtown fame, is one of the producers) and her friend Angus (Heartbreak Highs Thomas Weatherall). If that sounds heavy  and it is  dont turn away thinking its another depressing story about female trauma. Yes, its an unsettling watch, but it pulls the same threads as Michaela Coels critically acclaimed drama I May Destroy You, which explored sexual consent after a woman struggles to remember what happened on a night out. Actor and writer Michaela Coel shone a light on the survivors of sexual assault in the groundbreaking I May Destroy You. The British series was one of a number of international shows that inspired Coleman, who wanted to look beyond the types of women usually found on Australian screens  smart but slightly daffy, likeable at all costs  and create something sharper. The big shows that have been so inspirational to me in the last 10 years of my life have mostly been UK or American, with that same kind of inclusive and really bold and provocative female storytelling, she says. Im rewatching Girls and its just fantastic. Its incredible storytelling. And then shows like I May Destroy You, Sharp Objects, The Fall  [they are] shows that really, really dig into the hard truths of the female experience. I meet Coleman and the cast, as well as director Bonnie Moir and executive producers Shaun Grant and Nicole ODonohue, on a steamy November afternoon, crammed in a back room of an art gallery in Camperdown, in Sydneys inner west.

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For a show that has such heavy themes holding it together, they are all buoyant and seemingly running on adrenaline. The gallery was a late, last-minute location find  the catering tents have been set up in the dog park around the corner  and later that night the crew will move to Carriageworks to film a night scene. Grant is even doing double duty, tapping away at the script for The Narrow Road to the Deep North, the TV adaptation of Richard Flanagans award-winning bestseller, while keeping an eye on filming. Alice Englert (left), Essie Davis (middle) and Thomas Weatherall in Exposure. Englert, meanwhile, is in the next room, shooting some of the six-part series final few scenes. She looks overwrought on screen, but it lifts as soon as she sits down to eat an early dinner with the crew. Loading It has that jagged edge of grief, but it also has these weird moments of just full-blown lightness, says Englert of the show. That feels so wrong and true at the same time, but that was what really drew me to it, its depiction of the heavy felt really, really genuine and it didnt feel punishing. For Englert, best known for the TV series Dangerous Liaisons and Top of the Lake 2, directed by her mother Jane Campion, the fact the story leans all in on the character of Jacs is what she found so compelling. Its deeply subjective, she says. And its completely aware of that. And it plays with that idea of something being truthful, and  then what is really behind the reason that we make that picture for ourselves, or the reason why it starts to look a certain way. Its usually because theres something that hasnt been expressed yet.

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Even though the script is incredibly personal in parts  Coleman stresses she doesnt have a friend who committed suicide, nor did she go on any type of crazed manhunt  it helped her process her feelings about her assault. When things feel super urgent to me, theyre the things that I want to dive into the most as a writer, she says. And I think this was something that I just hadnt seen reflected on screen. And looking at these long, affected, maladaptive behaviours, and how humiliating and how shameful it can be, I felt such an urgency to share that with a female audience and to alleviate that loneliness. Englert said she was drawn to Exposure because its depiction of the heavy felt really, really genuine and it didnt feel punishing. Credit: Tim Ashton But yeah, then it did prove to be f---ing hard. Writing episodes one to four was the part that flowed out of me pretty ferociously because it was this character in this state of being that I knew so well ... this state of rage and desperation. But then when it hit episode five, and then I was having to really confront that trauma, and it was really hard, I was crying every day. It was also extremely cathartic because the first time in my life I had truly hit a point of acceptance about what happened. I mean, I had a whole show commissioned off this event and I still had to come to a full place of acceptance. So that was really quite extraordinary, to be sitting in that kind of space while all the cogs are turning and the drafts are due and the wheels are spinning, to be like, Oh, holy shit, this is the first time Im really genuinely accepting what happened. I think Ill look back at that in 10 years time and be like, that was mental.

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And while Coleman is thrilled her first TV series has finally come to fruition - she also wrote and directed the AACTA-nominated microbudget film Hot Mess in 2020, and earlier this year her film Lean In won best short at Flickerfest, plus best screenplay and best actress at Venices short film festival  she jokes that its not as easy as it looks. You just claw and claw and claw and claw away and I definitely hope Exposure is something that now goes out to the world, she says. Im feeling hopeful and excited, but, you know, its the film industry. Im still also feeling completely terrified about the future of my financial stability. Loading Now shes put herself through the emotional wringer in the name of storytelling, would Coleman recommend other women do the same? I think if youve got a story in you that youre so desperate to tell, which is exactly where I was with Exposure, then absolutely, the world wants to hear your stories, and the world especially wants to hear female stories, she says. And its so important that complicated female stories are told, and that were seeing and hearing the full range of the human experience, which can be messy and shameful and humiliating and pathetic and then at the same time, can be empowering and incredible and hopeful and everything else. So I would say, dont do it if you havent been to therapy and you havent got a level of self-awareness and you havent done at least three quarters of the processing. Then again, I say that, and I still havent even reached full acceptance. But I would say yes because I want to read your stories, and I want to watch your shows. And I think the connection that is created from storytelling is so vital and it only empowers women more. Exposure streams on Stan from June 20. Nine is the owner of Stan and this masthead.
The NSW government will consider underwriting private housing projects or guaranteeing finance to make developments more feasible amid the housing supply crisis, but has ruled out suspending developer infrastructure fees.

Meanwhile, a financial analyst has said rental affordability in Sydney was not as bad as people thought, and unit prices and rents needed to rise by 30 per cent to make new projects more viable.

The state government will consider underwriting private projects or guaranteeing finance to make housing developments more feasible. Credit: Jessica Shapiro

Housing Minister Rose Jackson told a development industry function in Sydney the government was open to a range of options to get projects moving.

Is it government intervention in the form of guarantees? Risk assumption. Its a conversation were willing to have, she told the Property Council of NSW Housing Summit on Thursday.
I dont feel comfortable in any outside setting and I cant breathe or function properly when I see someone who looks like him, she said. I dont go out like I used to, and I dont drink any more. Im always on edge and also struggle to build relationships with new people, because of what happened. Millie, now 20, encouraged other women to be more vigilant when using rideshare platforms and share their location and trip status with others. But she said little could be done to reform the perpetrators. It cant be stopped. Its a hard truth, but the only thing you can do is tell women to be more careful. Men like this, who behave like animals, wont change, she said. One thing I realise now, is that when a woman is outside a pub waiting for an Uber or a taxi, they look like theyre waiting for an Uber or a taxi, which makes it easy to become a target.

Millies is not an isolated case. This masthead is aware of a number of other rape cases before the courts involving rideshare employees or drivers pretending to be employed by companies such as Uber, picking up young women outside venues and allegedly sexually assaulting them. In those cases, the allegations are yet to be proven and the accused is presumed innocent. A police spokeswoman urged passengers to check the vehicle registration and drivers details before accepting a ride, and immediately report any misconduct to police. While passengers using rideshare services can take simple steps to minimise risks, the responsibility is always on the perpetrator who commits these crimes, and the priority of police is to prevent and investigate these matters, the spokeswoman said. Its important any suspected criminal offending is reported to police so the incident is recorded and an investigation conducted.

Several drivers recently convicted of rape and sexual assault have been handed long custodial sentences, with at least four deported upon their release from prison. In March, Francesco De Luise was sentenced to at least six years in jail after pleading guilty to the sexual assault of three women while pretending to be an Uber driver. Francesco De Luise has been jailed for six years for sexually assaulting women after pretending to be their Uber driver. Between 2021 and 2022, the father-of-three had picked up three women after trawling outside bars in Richmond, Fitzroy and the CBD. When initially interviewed by police, the 60-year-old lied and claimed the women had tried to seduce him, which County Court judge John Smallwood labelled as victim-blaming.

This is an exercise in male entitlement and has to be absolutely condemned as such, Smallwood said in his judgment. The judge said De Luises offending was made more serious by the sheer vulnerability and powerlessness of the three women. Each of the victims was alone, each of the victims was intoxicated and effectively in circumstances where they found themselves trapped, Smallwood said. Last year, DiDi rideshare driver Absouslam Alsharif, 52, was sentenced to seven years in prison over the rape of a 20-year-old woman he picked up outside a Fitzroy nightclub in April 2021. The woman had been celebrating a friends birthday and blacked out on the drive home, before gaining consciousness to find Alsharif sexually assaulting her.

Judge Gaynor described the offending by the father-of-five as appalling and remarked on the troubling surge in sexual assaults by rideshare drivers. Sexual offending against substance-affected young women by taxi or Uber drivers has become all too prevalent ... you breached this duty of care, which every share-driver owes to his or her passenger, Gaynor said. An Uber spokeswoman was unable to confirm how many drivers had been banned from the popular rideshare platform as a result of misconduct, but released a statement to The Age. At Uber, we continue to build cutting-edge technology and features to help improve safety, and users can access these in the safety toolkit in the app. These advances in safety are important  but for them to be effective, riders need to be in the right car, the Uber spokeswoman said.
[The election] is a choice between the LNP with the right plan for Queenslands future, or a decaying Labor Party which thinks doing what matters means running a mile from its record, Crisafulli told parliament.

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(A nod to Treasurer Cameron Dicks budget speech line that the election was about voters choice about their future, not to express an opinion about the past.)

In October, there is only one question for Queenslanders to answer. It is the question that matters. After 10 years of this Labor government, have the crises in housing, cost of living, health and youth crime got better or worse, and who has the right plan for Queenslands future?

More new details of the LNPs plan include regional infrastructure plans to set out future investments and a reformed Productivity Commissions first task: a regulatory review of the building industry.
Australian tenants have not experienced a renters market in the past 20 years, other than during COVID lockdowns in some cities, which have baked-in market conditions that contribute to the rental crisis, experts say.

Historical data shows that the countrys national vacancy rate has not fallen below 3 per cent since 2005, when the SQM Research records began. A rental market with a vacancy rate higher than 3 per cent was typically considered a renters market, tenancy advocacy groups said.

A vacancy rate between 2 and 3 per cent would be considered a healthy or balanced market, other experts said, which may lead to small rental price gains or even falls over a longer period of time.

The national vacancy rate was 1.2 per cent in May. In Sydney, it was 1.4 per cent and in Melbourne, it was 1.3 per cent. Nationally, rates have remained below 2 per cent since late 2021.
Telstra is dumping its carbon credit offset scheme as well as claims its plans are carbon neutral or carbon offset, with the telco giant instead moving to a direct-investment model and setting a more ambitious target for emissions cuts by 2030.

The company will announce on Friday that it will no longer seek certification from the federal government program Climate Active for its operations or products, and will no longer purchase carbon credits.

Telstra boss Vicki Brady. Credit: Ben Symons

Telstra is one of Australias largest electricity users and is confident that direct efforts to curb its carbon emissions through renewable projects and energy efficiency in the data centres that run its networks will be more effective than offsetting them by buying carbon credits.

Carbon credits, which are certificates indicating an estimated amount of emission reduction from projects like reforestation, have attracted controversy for being potentially misleading and lacking transparency.
The news

Former Neighbours actor and early 2000s pop star Holly Valance has hosted a fundraiser for Donald Trump, reportedly raising $US2 million ($3 million) for the former US presidents 2024 White House campaign.

Ticket prices started at $US10,000 but if you wanted dinner as a couple they reached up to $US100,000. The night was billed as a reception dinner for Trumps son Donald Trump Jr and his fiancee, former Fox News host Kimberly Guilfoyle, who were visiting London.

Holly Valance kisses Donald Trump Jr goodbye as he leaves a fundraiser for Donald Trump hosted by the former Neighbours star in London. Credit: Getty Images

It was held at the Chelsea mansion that Valance owns with her billionaire property tycoon husband, Nick Candy. The British press reported that the more than 100 guests were told the location for the event only an hour before and catering staff were told only that it would be a Conservative fundraising dinner.
The leaders signed the agreement on the sidelines of the annual G7 summit held in Italy, and Biden said the goal was to strengthen Ukraines defence and deterrence capabilities.

Borgo Egnazia, Italy: US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky have signed a 10-year security agreement they hailed as a milestone in relations between their countries, but that alone was not enough to stop Zelensky from wondering how much longer he could count on Americas support against Russias invasion.

The latter said the right question to ask was for how long the unity in the world will remain? The unity in the US, together with European leaders and how would it be influenced by the outcome of elections this year in many of those countries.

The US election in November could see the return of Republican Donald Trump to the presidency. Trump has been sceptical of providing additional military aid to Ukraine, at one point criticising the endless flow of American treasure. He more recently expressed openness to lending money instead and has said Ukraines independence is important to the United States.

Biden said the US has commitments from five countries that he did not name to provide Patriot missile and other air defence systems to Kyiv. He said countries that have been expecting such weapons from the US have been told they will have to wait because everything we have is going to go to Ukraine until their needs are met.

The summit opened with another agreement, this one reached on a US proposal to back a $US50 billion ($75.4 billion) loan to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets as collateral, giving Kyiv a strong show of support even as Europes political chessboard shifts to the right.

Biden said it would tap into the windfall profits on some $US280 billion in frozen Russian assets held in Europe and would put that money to work for Ukraine.
PHILIPSBURG:--- The National Recovery Program Bureau (NRPB) and the Sint Maarten Entrepreneurship Development Center (SEDC), endorsed by the Ministry of Tourism, Economic Affairs, Transport and Telecommunications (TEATT), are pleased to announce the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) aimed at supporting the implementation of the Entrepreneurship Development Program (EDP).

The EDP is a four-week training program designed to equip aspiring entrepreneurs with essential business skills and foster a vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystem in Sint Maarten. The program, consisting of eight sessions in business fundamentals, will run four times over the course of one year. This MOU marks the first step towards future collaborative efforts between NRPB and SEDC and covers the period from January 2024 to June 2025.

The NRPB is implementing the Enterprise Support Project (ESP) as part of the Sint Maarten Trust Fund, financed by the Dutch Government and managed by the World Bank. Through a combination of grants and loans, this project bolsters MSMEs across diverse sectors. The primary goal is to enhance recovery and resilience through direct financial aid, thereby revitalizing economic activity. To date, the ESP has provided loans and grants totaling $17.1 million to over 250 MSMEs. With the ESP application deadline closing in June 2025, the recent MOU with SEDC is timely, ensuring continued support and development for MSMEs. The SEDC aims to serve as a crucial bridge between the government and the community, facilitating various development programs and policies that promote the long-term sustainability and growth of micro- and small businesses on the island.

Claret Connor, Director of the NRPB, expressed his enthusiasm for the partnership: "The signing of this MOU with SEDC marks a significant milestone in our ongoing efforts to support MSMEs in Sint Maarten. By leveraging the positive impact already created for businesses through the ESP project, we aim to ensure continued benefits for local entrepreneurs. With the combination of our resources and expertise, we are confident that we can create a thriving environment for local entrepreneurs."

SEDC President Pearl Hendrickson added, "This MOU aligns with SEDC's guiding principle of fostering public, academic, and private collaboration to collectively invest in promoting job creation and income generation. By establishing new MSMEs and empowering existing ones, we aim to ensure sustainability, eliminate inefficiencies, and avoid duplication of work."

This initial MOU between NRPB and SEDC represents a critical milestone in the mission to empower MSMEs. Both organizations will continue to explore future collaborations to provide MSMEs with the necessary tools, knowledge, and support to succeed.

For more information about the training program, please contact SEDC at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 721-542-8898.
PHILIPSBURG:--- In the margins of the annual Interparliamentary Kingdom consultations (IPKO), the Ministers Plenipotentiary Patrice Gumbs and Deputy Gracita Arrindell hosted a reception for the Members of Parliament and members of the Sint Maarten community at the Cabinet of the Minister Plenipotentiary (Sint Maarten House), earlier this week, under the theme Connecting Horizons: Strengthening the Sint Maarten Community Abroad. Chosen by the President of Parliament Sarah Wescot-Williams, the theme reflects the growing call for engagement with the Sint Maarten communities abroad (the diaspora) and the Government at home. In his address, Minister Plenipotentiary Gumbs acknowledged the differences between the communities, but that opportunities existed if we found ways to bridge the gap. The Cabinet believes the first step to do this is the creation of a Sint Maarten Diaspora Database. The cross-cutting database will include things like language skills, professional and private skills, as well as family situations, interests, and hobbies.

Gumbs noted that in 2020, the Government launched the National Development Vision, the blueprint for the development trajectory of Sint Maarten. With this database project, my Cabinets aim is to align opportunities both abroad and at home with the wealth of expertise that Sint Maarteners, here in the Netherlands, possess. In addition, we are working to develop initiatives here that support the personal development of the community and tackle critical issues like housing, especially for our students.

In his closing remarks Minister Gumbs stated that his Cabinet, despite its very political function, is not a political entity. He encouraged the students to always feel at home at the Cabinet and to know that despite whichever political party or politician occupies this seat, the objective remains to be at the service of the Sint Maarten people regardless of race, economic level, religion, gender, sexual or political orientation. The evening was catered by Modern Comfort, owned by Sint Maarten businessowner in the Netherlands, Ms. Tsjachmaidah Richardson. My overall objective is to ensure that once someone leaves Sint Maarten, Sint Maarten doesnt leave them, and Government must play an active role in supporting this. Guests were encouraged to provide their contact information to start building the database. Those that did will have their name entered into a raffle for tickets to Kalabooms upcoming Bacchanal Sunday event being held in Rotterdam on July 28th.
PHILIPSBURG:--- On Thursday, the Marie Genevieve DeWeever Primary School will welcome the Honorable Minister of Education, Culture, Youth, and Sport Lyndon Lewis, a proud alumnus of the school, to celebrate Flag Day.

Minister Lewis reflected on his journey from a student within these very walls to serving St. Maarten as a police officer and now as a Minister. "Flag Day holds a unique place in our hearts," the Minister stated. "It is a day when we come together to celebrate our identity, our heritage, and the passionate patriotism we love to show off."

Highlighting the importance of Flag Day, the Minister emphasized that the flag is more than a piece of fabricit symbolizes unity, struggles, and triumphs, embodying the spirit of the people of St. Maarten. The choice to host the celebration at an elementary school underscores the importance of instilling patriotism in the formative years. "Seeing our children wave the flag fills me with pride," the Minister remarked. "Their innocence and enthusiasm are powerful reminders of why we work so hard to protect and develop our country."

The Minister expressed a heartfelt wish for Flag Day to be recognized as a national holiday. "Imagine a day when every home, every store, and every street is adorned with the colors of our flag. A day when our national pride is not just spoken of but vividly displayed for all to see."

Drawing from their experience as a police officer, the Minister shared how Flag Day rekindles the fire within, reaffirming the commitment to safeguarding the peace, progress, and prosperity of St. Maarten. The Minister urged everyone to express their love for St. Maarten through actions: flying the flag high, decorating homes and businesses, and letting national pride be visible in every corner of the island.

In closing, the Minister extended heartfelt thanks to the Department of Culture for organizing the day's events. "If it is Gods will that I am still here with you next year, trust me when I say I will have extra work for you because my vision for this day is hard to describe. But I do know that if there is a group of people that can do it, it is the head and staff of the Department of Culture."

"May the flag of St. Maarten always inspire us to achieve greatness, and may it forever symbolize the heart and soul of our nation. Happy Flag Day!"
PHILIPSBURG:--- The Care Caribbean website is a platform for pupils, students and healthcare professionals. The site focuses on studying and working in healthcare and the social domain. The prospective student of Medicine, Physiotherapy or Social Work can receive practical tips and experiences from other Caribbean students and young professionals. The healthcare professional can get an impression of the vacancies on the islands via the employer profiles.

Stories

In the Stories, students and healthcare professionals exchange their experiences. The back of them have returned to 'their' island after their studies. Such as Rasheendra Polonia, who currently works as a general practitioner on Bonaire. She describes her added value as a Papiamento-speaking general practitioner: https://carecaribbean.nl/gastblog/huisarts-op-bonaire-een-droom-die-uitkomen-rasheendra-polonia/

Honest and sometimes factual stories are also shared about the obstacles that many Caribbean students encounter in the Netherlands. How do you adapt to the language and culture and stay true to your Caribbean identity? This has been described by Curacao Medical student Camille Blaaker from Rotterdam: https://carecaribbean.nl/gastblog/dont-hide-your-culture-just-to-fit-in-camille-blaaker

WeConnect

All information from the site is shared via WeConnect's social media channels.

This is an educational foundation in the Netherlands that took the initiative for this platform together with the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport. The three target groups of Care Caribbean  schoolchild, student, healthcare professional  are depicted by a fictional character developed especially for this platform, named Jayda. She guides the users through the different phases.

Workshops

In addition to the website, WeConnect also organizes workshops at schools on the islands. These are given by healthcare professionals. For example, a paramedic or microbiologist gives students an insight into his or her profession. They receive first-hand information about what a profession exactly entails, why it is beautiful and valuable. Students are often also curious about how much the professional earns or how long the study takes. We are very grateful to all volunteers who make time to give these workshops, explains WeConnect manager Tanja Fraai. Useful



WeConnect thus contributes to career choice information for Caribbean young people. Dean of the Radulphus College Nalini Sewdien: "These workshops are specially designed for third graders to help them make a conscious and informed choice of their subject package. By discovering where their talents and passions lie, they can choose a path that best prepares them for a career and successful future." Practical



On the Tips page, students can see where they can study (online). Content editor Edmaly Thielman made a selection of the best Instagram accounts from colleges and universities in the Netherlands, which can be found under the heading 'Great on Insta'. Her data analysis of the website shows that there is a lot of search for practical information. It is difficult to choose if you live in Bonaire or Aruba and you often cannot visit open days, so this kind of clear online information helps. Employers on the islands



The Care Caribbean website also serves as a portal to employers on the islands. Organizations such as Mental Health Caribbean, Curacao Medical Center, Fundashon Mariadal, and the Oduber Hospital can all be found there with their vacancies. In this way, WeConnect bridges the gap to the local labor market where healthcare professionals trained in the Netherlands are desperately needed. In 2025, WeConnect plans to organize another job market in the Netherlands, aimed at employers in healthcare and the social domain. More information can be found on the website: www.carecaribbean.nl
Russian nuclear-powered submarine arrives in Cuba



Havana, June 12 (AFP) Jun 12, 2024



A Russian nuclear-powered submarine and other naval vessels arrived in Cuba Wednesday for a five-day visit to the communist island off Florida's coast in a show of force amid spiraling US-Russian tensions.

The submarine Kazan, which Cuba says is not carrying nuclear weapons, was accompanied by the frigate Admiral Gorshkov, as well as an oil tanker and a salvage tug.

Russia's defense ministry said in a statement that prior to entering the Havana port, the fleet "completed an exercise on the use of high-precision missile weapons."

The unusual deployment of the Russian military so close to the United States -- particularly the powerful submarine -- comes amid major tensions over the war in Ukraine, where the Western-backed government is fighting a Russian invasion.

"We of course take it seriously, but these exercises don't pose a threat to the United States," Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh told journalists.

The port call coincided on Wednesday with a meeting in Moscow between Cuba's Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez and his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov, as the two former Cold War allies further tighten their links.

During the meeting, Rodriguez expressed his government's "rejection of the expansion of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) towards the Russian border," which he said "led to the current conflict in Europe, and especially between Moscow and Kyiv," according to a Cuban foreign ministry statement.

He also called for "a diplomatic, constructive and realistic solution" to the crisis.

The Kazan and Admiral Gorshkov, which is one of Russia's most modern warships, could be seen just off Havana, which is about 90 miles (145 kilometers) from the tip of Florida.

The tanker Pashin and the tug, flying the white, blue and red tricolor of Russia, entered the harbor early Wednesday morning, an AFP reporter said.

"In the coming days, the crews of the ships and support vessels will take part in a number of protocol events," Russia's defense ministry said in a statement published by the Interfax news agency.



- 'Historic relations' -



Cuba's military said the visit by the naval detachment "strictly complies with international regulations" and is a nod to "the historic relations of friendship" between Havana and Moscow.

Pentagon press secretary Singh said port calls of this nature are "routine naval visits that we've seen under different administrations."

"We're always constantly going to monitor any foreign vessels operating near US territorial waters."

Cuban President Miguel Diaz-Canel met with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin last month for the annual May 9 military parade on Red Square outside the Kremlin.

He wished Russia "success" in its Ukraine offensive and condemned "the geopolitical manipulation" of the United States, in comments reported by Russia's TASS news agency.

During the Cold War, Cuba was an important client state for the Soviet Union. The deployment of Soviet nuclear missile sites on the island triggered the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, when Washington and Moscow came close to war.

Relations between Russia and Cuba have become closer since a 2022 meeting between Diaz-Canel and Putin.
Kyrgyzstan lifts uranium extraction ban despite concerns



Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, June 13 (AFP) Jun 13, 2024



Kyrgyzstan on Thursday lifted a ban on uranium extraction to boost the economy despite safety and environmental concerns in a country with a heavy Soviet nuclear legacy.

"Lawmakers overturned the 2019 law banning the research, exploration and development of uranium reserves," the Kyrgyz parliament said in a statement.

The issue is particularly sensitive in the Central Asian country bordering China.

Kyrgyzstan still has millions of cubic metres of toxic and radioactive waste left over from Soviet times and the ban was introduced following anti-nuclear protests.

The government has said it is lifting the ban because of a "serious need for alternative sources of revenue" but has stressed it will respect environmental norms.

Kyrgyzstan's economy suffered during the Covid-19 pandemic. It has also been hit more recently indirectly by Western sanctions on Russia over the Ukraine invasion.

Prime Minister Akylbek Japarov said he wanted "to bring the country to a new level of development" by resuming extraction.

In 2019, Kyrgyzstan banned uranium exploration after anti-nuclear demonstrations in the north of the country.

Kyrgyzstan has a total of 92 sites containing toxic and radioactive waste.

Decontamination projects are being carried out in conjunction with Russian nuclear giant Rosatom which is also hoping to build the first nuclear power stations in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan.

Earlier this month, there were concerns about radioactivity when a Rosatom truck plunged into a river in central Kyrgyzstan.

Officials have offered differing accounts on the truck's precise contents but have said radioactivity levels remain "normal".
NATO eyes clampdown on Russian agents over hybrid attacks



Brussels, Belgium, June 13 (AFP) Jun 13, 2024



NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said Thursday allies could impose "tighter restrictions" on Russian intelligence operatives after a string of sabotage attacks on the bloc's members.

He said NATO defence ministers meeting in Brussels would discuss plans to counter a "Russian campaign of hostile activities against NATO allies".

"We have seen several examples of sabotage, of arson, attempts of cyber attacks, of disinformation," Stoltenberg said.

He said ministers would work on "response options", expected to include closer intelligence sharing, bolstering protection of critical infrastructure, and "tighter restrictions on Russian intelligence personnel across the alliance".

Western governments have sounded the alarm about what say is a growing wave of Russian hybrid action on NATO territory in Europe.

Poland last month said it would restrict the movements of Russian diplomats after the arrest of several people suspected of planning sabotage attacks on behalf of Moscow's security services.

Authorities in the Czech Republic, Estonia, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania and Britain have also recently investigated and charged people over alleged "hostile" activities blamed on Russia.

Officials suggest Moscow's aim could be to sow discord among NATO allies and to try to pressure them into halting weapons supplies to Ukraine.

"Russia's actions will not stop us from supporting Ukraine," Stoltenberg pledged on Wednesday.
Gabina VOA is designed to be an infotainment youth radio show broadcasting to Ethiopia and Eritrea in the Amharic language. The show brings varied perspectives on issues concerning young people in the Horn of Africa region. Gabina in the Amharic language is a front-row taxi ride.
Fire at Iraqi oil refinery injures 10: civil defence



Arbil, Iraq, June 13 (AFP) Jun 13, 2024



A massive fire at an oil refinery in Iraqi Kurdistan injured at least 10 people including firefighters battling to control the blaze, which was ongoing Thursday, the civil defence agency reported.

The fire broke out in an asphalt tank on Wednesday night before spreading to a second refinery on a road southwest of Arbil, capital of the autonomous Kurdistan region.

Firefighters worked through the night battling to extinguish the flames, which sent thick plumes of black smoke and balls of orange flame into the sky, an AFP photographer reported.

"More than 10 people were injured, mainly men from the Arbil civil defence," the agency said in a statement, noting three fire trucks were burned.

The cause of the blaze was still unknown, it said.

"The fire started in one refinery before spreading to another," the statement said. Four fuel tanks had been affected.

With Iraq experiencing scorching summers, the country has seen multiple fires in recent weeks, affecting shopping centres, warehouses and hospitals.

Iraq is one of the world's biggest oil producers, and crude oil sales make up 90 percent of Iraqi budget revenues.

But exports from the Kurdistan region have been halted for more than a year in a dispute over legal and technical issues.
Swiss govt hit by cyberattack ahead of Ukraine peace summit



Geneva, June 13 (AFP) Jun 13, 2024



Switzerland government websites were hit Thursday by the first of an expected wave of cyberattacks ahead of a weekend summit on peace in Ukraine hosted by Bern.

The National Cyber Security Centre said the distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks, which make websites or network resources unavailable by flooding them with malicious traffic, resulted in minor outages.

"A first DDoS attack on various federal government websites and organisations involved in the summit on peace in Ukraine began this morning," the NCSC said.

"The attacks were expected and are presumed to be in connection with the summit. They resulted in minor outages... The operation of the affected units was not significantly affected."

The NCSC said it would issue regular updates.

"The DDoS attacks are intended to impact the availability of websites. The security of data and systems was never at risk. Hacktivists use such cyberattacks to launch disruptive manoeuvres in cyberspace to spread political messages and attract attention," it said.

"The attacks are within the expected range and there is currently no acute danger."

On Saturday and Sunday, Switzerland will host the first Summit on Peace in Ukraine, at the luxury Burgenstock resort outside Lucerne.

The Swiss government says dozens of countries have confirmed their participation.

The summit will try to come up with a roadmap for involving both Ukraine and Russia in a future peace process.

Russia started its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Moscow said it was not interested in attending the conference and therefore was not invited.
NATO says over 300,000 troops now on high readiness



Brussels, Belgium, June 13 (AFP) Jun 13, 2024



NATO countries have "comfortably exceeded" a target of placing 300,000 troops on high-readiness as the alliance grapples with the threat from Russia, a senior alliance official said Thursday.

NATO leaders agreed in the wake of Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 to massively ramp up the number of forces that alliance commanders can deploy within 30 days.

"The offers on the table from allies comfortably exceed the 300,000 that we set," the official said on condition of anonymity.

"Those are forces which allies have said to us, 'They are available to you as of now at that level of readiness'."

The push to have more troops ready to respond quickly is part of a broader overhaul of NATO's plans to stave off any potential Russian attack that was signed off at a summit last year.

Those plans laid out for the first time since the end of the Cold War what each member of the US-led alliance would be expected to do in case of an invasion by Moscow.

NATO commanders are currently trying to make sure they have the capabilities to execute those plans if needed.

But the alliance faces shortfalls in key weaponry such as air defences and longer-range missiles.

"There are capability gaps. There are things that we don't have enough of as an alliance at the moment and we need to tackle," the official said.
Huge fire at Iraq oil refinery injures 14



Arbil, Iraq, June 13 (AFP) Jun 13, 2024



A massive fire at an oil refinery in Iraqi Kurdistan raged for about 20 hours and injured at least 14 firefighters who on Thursday finally brought the blaze under control.

The fire broke out in a major crude oil tank on Wednesday night before spreading to a second refinery on a road southwest of Arbil, capital of the autonomous northern region of Kurdistan, the civil defence agency said.

Thick plumes of black smoke and balls of orange flame rose into the sky above the facility, an AFP photographer reported.

The civil defence agency said the fire, the cause of which remains unclear, "started in one refinery before spreading to another".

A spokesman for the agency, Shakhwan Saeed, told a news conference on Thursday evening: "The fire has been 100 percent contained, and there is no longer any danger for the surrounding refineries."

He said 150 rescuers had been mobilised and 14 had been injured, with two in "critical condition".

Arbil governor Omed Khoshnaw earlier said three rescuers were being treated in hospital for burns and another 10 suffered breathing difficulties.

The main storage tank that was impacted contained more than 5,000 tonnes of fuel, he said, putting the estimated cost of the damage caused at $8 million.

The Arbil civil defence said four fuel tanks as well as three fire trucks were burned.

"So far, we don't know what caused it," said Khoshnaw, adding that it could have been an electrical short circuit.

Saeed noted that the facility did not meet "any of the standards" set by the civil defence agency for safety.

With Iraq experiencing scorching summers, the country has seen multiple fires in recent weeks, affecting shopping centres, warehouses and hospitals.

Iraq is one of the world's biggest oil producers and crude oil sales make up 90 percent of budget revenues.

But exports from the Kurdistan region have been halted for more than a year in a dispute over legal and technical issues.
Iran expands nuclear capacities further: IAEA



Vienna, June 13 (AFP) Jun 13, 2024



Iran is further expanding its nuclear capacities, the UN atomic watchdog said Thursday, one week after the agency's board of governors passed a resolution criticising Tehran's lack of cooperation with the IAEA.

The International Atomic Energy Agency informed its members that Tehran told it that it was installing more cascades at the enrichment facilities in Natanz and Fordow, according to a statement sent to AFP.

A diplomatic source deemed this development as "moderate".

A cascade is a series of centrifuges, machines used in the process of enriching uranium.

The motion brought by Britain, France and Germany -- but opposed by China and Russia -- at the IAEA's 35-nation board last week was the first of its kind since November 2022.

The resolution -- which Tehran slammed as "hasty and unwise" -- came amid an impasse over Iran's escalating nuclear activities and as Western powers fear Tehran may be seeking to develop a nuclear weapon, a claim Iran denies.

Although symbolic in nature at this stage, the censure motion aims to raise diplomatic pressure on Iran, with the option to potentially refer the issue to the UN Security Council.

In the past, similar resolutions have prompted Tehran to retaliate by removing surveillance cameras and other equipment from its nuclear facilities and ratcheting up its uranium enrichment activities.

According to the IAEA, Iran is the only non-nuclear weapon state to enrich uranium to the high level of 60 percent -- just short of weapons-grade -- while it keeps accumulating large uranium stockpiles.

The IAEA has said that Tehran has significantly ramped up its nuclear programme and now has enough material to build several atomic bombs.

The Islamic republic has gradually broken away from its commitments under the nuclear deal it struck with world powers in 2015.

The landmark deal provided Iran with relief from Western sanctions in exchange for curbs on its atomic programme, but it fell apart after the unilateral withdrawal of the United States under then-president Donald Trump in 2018.

Efforts to revive the deal have so far failed.
US, Russian submarines visit Cuba



Washington, June 13 (AFP) Jun 13, 2024



A US nuclear-powered submarine has arrived in Cuba, the Pentagon said Thursday, a day after a Russian nuclear sub docked in Havana for a rare visit to the communist island.

"The fast-attack submarine USS Helena is in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba as part of a routine port visit," the US Southern Command said in a social media post, referring to the American naval base on the island.

"The vessel's location and transit were previously planned," it added.

The Russian nuclear-powered sub Kazan -- which Cuba says is not carrying nuclear weapons -- arrived in the Cuban capital Wednesday. It was accompanied by the frigate Admiral Gorshkov, as well as an oil tanker and a salvage tug.

The unusual Russian deployment so close to the United States -- just 90 miles off the Florida coast -- comes amid major tensions over the war in Ukraine, where the Western-backed government is fighting a Russian invasion.

The United States military said it has been monitoring the Russian ships but that they pose no direct threat.

During the Cold War, Cuba was an important client state for the Soviet Union. The deployment of Soviet nuclear missile sites on the island triggered the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, when Washington and Moscow came close to war.
See & Do With over 100 islands ringed in luminous crystalline waters, its little wonder much of the Kornati archipelago is officially a national park. The best (not to mention the coolest) way to see them is via your own yacht charter, letting you explore hidden inlets, humble fishing ports and salt lakes on islands like Levrnaka and Telascica. Having your own boat spells not just the wind in your hair but the freedom to stop as you please for a cool-down, snorkelling in the shallows or swimming in narrow straits.
One of my patients returned from a major hospital in London on Tuesday where they waited for five hours in A&E to get a result for a blood test. They werent able to get one, so they had to self-discharge and returned to us, but we couldnt arrange for a test either. Any delays to diagnosis could have a serious impact on someones health.
He added: In considering the fund performance we also cannot ignore the fact that some companies linked to human rights violations are the target of worldwide boycotts and are likely to become risky investments, and we must therefore act to safeguard our investments for the people who rely on the pension fund.
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One of the stars of the soap paid a sweet tribute to an important person in his life.

An eagle-eyed fan has spotted a sweet tribute in one of the latest Home and Away episodes. Kyle Shilling, who plays Mali Hudson, wore a sleeveless Togati branded top during a Summer Bay Surf Club scene.

The top wasn't just a choice made by the wardrobe department, but a nod to someone special in Kyle's life - his brother. The actor's brother, Perry Langham, is the designer behind the new Aussie streetwear brand with the fan taking to social media to share the insight with fellow viewers.

The Togati shirt that Mali was wearing tonight was designed by Perry (Kyles brother), the fan wrote in a Home and Away Facebook group. How awesome is that? Seems the talent runs through the family.

While you cant buy the exact sleeveless tank Kyle wore in the scene, there are similar items for sale from the Togati shop with the same logo. At the pricier end of the scale, you can purchase hoodies for $149.95 and crewnecks for $120. T-shirts will set you back $55 to $59.99, and you can grab a corduroy cap for $55.

RELATED:

The Home and Away star is a proud supporter of his brothers business, and even modelled some of the t-shirt designs for the official Instagram account. He also links to the shop in his Instagram bio.

Fans excited over hidden detail

Fans were delighted by the hidden detail, with one saying Kyles mother must be very proud of her sons.

Oh wow thats cool!! another wrote.

[Hes] a handsome and charming young man, a third chimed in.

Kyle even modelled some of the clothing items for his brother. Photo: Instagram/togati.co

Thats awesome, another remarked.

Kyles brother started the brand in 2023, with the first release dropping in July. He uses his brand to give back to the community, with 10% of t-shirt proceeds being donated to the Waves of Wellness Foundation. This charity provides surf therapy programs to connect those experiencing mental health issues.

We, at Togati, believe strongly in supporting any solutions for mental health, the brand wrote on Instagram. Ask the question and look out for one another.

Malis brother causes chaos in Summer Bay

This comes after Malis brother, Iluka  played by Dion Williams  arrived in Summer Bay. According to TV Week, some very bad people are searching for the new bad boy.

A spoiler reveals that Iluka takes a shine to a Summer Bay local, which appears to be Kirby Aramoana (Angelina Thomson).

Mali's brother has just arrived in Summer Bay. Photo: Seven

Gosh man it seems like lately whenever Mali and Rose get to spend time together, something or someone interrupts that, a fan complained.

Welcome to the bay Iluka. Hopefully he has brought a lot of drama to the show but hopefully not to cause drama for Mali, another wrote.

SHOP:

I dont like him. Hes a bit scary and way meaner than the River Boys. Dont know if we need his drama in the bay? a third chimed in.

Need another bad boy in the bay. Dean was trouble when he came and ended up [being] my favourite character. Miss him, another added.

Want the latest celebrity news? Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.
In a joint statement released while the countries leaders are attending a G7 meeting in Italy, they said the Kremlin is using disinformation, criminal and covert activities to affect the electoral outcome and will work to incite protests if a Pro-Russian candidate is not elected.
He insisted that Labour now totally rejects the argument that the key question is tax and spend rather than economic growth. We will create a new industrial strategy... back it with a national wealth fund to invest in clean steel, new ports, gigafactories, and we will create 650,000 new jobs for communities like yours to relight the fires of renewal across all four of our great nations, he said.
The SNP want to see free access to games into the future, with the next generation of John McGinns and Erin Cuthberts able to watch their heroes regardless of their household income, and be inspired to get their boots on and lead us to many more qualifications in the future.
Recalling what had happened, he said: "I thought someone had set the alarm before we got there, like another guest. And finally I went into another room and it was still buzzing so I called downstairs and the woman said in a very calm voice, 'yes, we are all evacuating, you must evacuate right now'. And I left."
Despite another two-day 'targeted' search in Ballarat for the missing mum this week, her body's still nowhere to be found.

As authorities allocate more resources toward locating the body of missing Victorian mother Samantha Murphy, a former police officer said there's only one conclusion to be drawn after months of countless failed search attempts.

Murphy, 51, vanished without a trace on her morning run in February until detectives found her iPhone in May  one of the most significant developments in the case so far. This week, officers spent two days searching another "targeted" area in Ballarat, which again returned no results. Despite 22-year-old Patrick Orren Stephenson being charged with her murder, and officers now being in the possession of her phone, Murphy's body still has not been located.

Speaking to Yahoo News Australia, Nigel Phair from UNSW's Institute for Cyber Security, a former Australian Federal Police officer, said "the more I think about it" it's likely police are considering all possibilities, including the possible involvement of more than one person in her disappearance.

Despite a two-day 'refocussed' search this week in Ballarat, Murphy's body has not been found. Source: 9News

Phair claimed "as every day goes on, it's less and less likely" detectives will ever find the mother-of-two's body, five months into their investigation.

"The phone was obviously the interesting one because the assumption was that the body would have been in that lake, near where they found it. I'm guessing the divers have gone through that multiple times and haven't found anything."

Phone discovery not the breakthrough police had hoped for

While many had hoped the discovery of Murphy's phone would lead to a major breakthrough, Phair said that weeks on, those hopes clearly haven't been realised. While most people nowadays back up their devices via cloud services, the former officer said Murphy's physical phone still could've been useful when it comes to app data and geolocation.

"Health apps that are already part of the device would give you a whole lot of information, geolocation and otherwise. So that's why it all hinged on the phone," he said, adding that if Murphy did use iCloud, detectives probably wouldn't necessarily need the phone to access her data.

Missing mother Samantha Murphy in the last known photo of her taken on the morning of her disappearance. Source: NCA Newswire

Search 'can keep going' but will likely be scaled back

He said that while police can essentially keep the case open for as long as there's a will to continue searching, it's likely that as little progress continues to be made, "search efforts will be scaled down" and resources redistributed to "other priorities".

"I think they can keep searching for a lot longer," he said. "It's the resourcing they put into that, to prioritise this over rather, what are going to become more urgent matters, that's going to be the issue.

"There will always be a detective assigned to the case. But whether it's the sole case or becomes one of their many cases, that's what's going to happen over time as the next priority overtakes."

Search efforts to locate the 51-year-old have been ongoing since February: NCA Newswire

Asked if based on the information publicly available, it seemed that the investigation had made any real progress since the discovery of Murphy's phone, Phair said: "No, not at all".

"The thing is, they've charged the person, they would have to have been given a date to hand the brief of evidence into the court for a subsequent committal," he said. "So they're going to require a lot of resources to build that brief and obviously, they're trying to get as much corroborating evidence to go with that as possible.

"But I suppose there's a difference between what we hear in the media and what might be going on in the background  it might be two different things. So I'm hopeful that they've got some irons in fires that they're looking at."

Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.

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Yahoo's live news blog has concluded for Thursday, June 13.

First up we started with the news a Melbourne council looking to increase rates for landlords in a bid to deter investment properties in the area. One councillor from Merri-bek City Council wants to charge $3,600 per year per property, double what someone who lives in the home they own.

While electric cars are surging in popularity, did you know they are often more expensive to insure? Read more in the blog below.

LANY has also been forced to postpone their Australian tour after singer Paul Jason Klein was injured in a car crash.

LIVE COVERAGE IS OVER 12 updates Fans gush over Mary Fowler and Nathan Cleary photo Mary Fowler and Nathan Cleary are doing their best to cement themselves as Australia's favourite sporting couple. Aussies lapped up the pair's latest show of affection online, an Instagram post showing time spent in Sydney and the Blue Mountains. "Australia's King and Queen," one fan proclaimed in the comments. The pair are enjoying as much time together as possible before the Matildas star has to return to England to join up with the Manchester City squad for pre-season. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Maz (@maryfowlerrr)

WA's population growing the fastest in Australia Immigration has been a big talking point of late, particularly with the growing housing crisis across the country. The country added more than half a million people in net overseas migration last year and WA is leading the way in terms of percentage growth, increasing its population by 3.3 per cent. The other states came in as follows: Victoria - 2.8 per cent Queensland 2.6 per cent NSW - 2.2 per cent South Australia 1.6 per cent Tasmania 0.4 per cent With nearly 27 million people now living in Australia, that number could hit 46 million by 2071. Read more here.

Tourist site introduces toilet timers I bet some of the recent visitors to Vivid wished this technology was in use. But it's fair to say the rollout of toilet timers at a Chinese tourist site have largely been met with resistance. The public toilets are located at the Yungang Buddhist Grottoes, a UNESCO-listed World Heritage site that boasts thousands of statues carved into rock and caves. Like many tourist sites in China, they can be swamped with visitors during the holidays leaving long queues, including in the bathrooms. These toilet timers have certainly caused a stir in China. Source: The Paper In a bid to tackle this problem, timers have been installed above each cubicle to show how long someone has been inside it, local media reported. The displays also show when cubicles are empty. Workers also state it is a safety feature, helping identify if there is an emergency inside a cubicle. While many took to Chinese social media to criticise the timers, some said it would stop people from sitting on the toilet looking at their phones. Would you like to see these toilet timers in Australia? Have your say below.

LANY postpone Australia tour after singer hit by car LANY has been forced to reschedule their upcoming shows in Australia and New Zealand after singer Paul Jason Klein was hit by a car. Klein, 36, has fronted the LA-based pop-rock band since 2014 and is well known for his past relationships with Dua Lipa and Nicola Peltz Beckham. He shared pictures of himself in hospital on Instagram, explaining that he was struck by the car last Thursday while traveling home from the gym on his Vespa scooter. I dont really remember anything after the collision, he wrote. I woke up on a stretcher being put into an ambulance. Ive cried a lot of thankful and happy tears during the last few days. I know how fortunate I am to still be here." Read more here. View this post on Instagram A post shared by paul klein (@pauljasonklein)

Big change for jury in ex-Jetstar pilot's murder trial Jurors will only need to decide whether former airline pilot Greg Lynn is guilty of murder, after an alternate manslaughter charge was thrown out. The 57-year-old is nearing the end of a five-week murder trial, with Supreme Court Justice Michael Croucher summing up the charges to 14 jurors on Thursday morning. He has pleaded not guilty to two charges of murder, over the deaths of Russell Hill and Carol Clay in Victoria's alpine region more than four years ago. Lynn told the jury the two deaths were accidental, but admitted destroying evidence including burning the bodies and the crime scene. Carol Clay and Russell Hill vanished in March 2020. Source: Victoria Police When the jury was chosen, it was told it had three options to consider when deciding a verdict: murder, manslaughter or finding Lynn innocent. However, the jury was told prosecution and defence have since decided manslaughter should be taken off the table. "Manslaughter will no longer be available to you as the alternate charge in this trial, both sides agree," Justice Croucher told the jury on Thursday. "In the circumstances of this case, if you are not satisfied beyond reasonable doubt of murder, you would also not be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt of manslaughter. "In those circumstances, an alternative verdict of manslaughter would be wrong. Read more here. - AAP

Man finds out he's won $1.4 million five months after buying lottery ticket How's this for a belated lottery win. A Gold Coast man has claimed his $1.4 million winnings five months after his ticket took out its share of a mammoth division one prize. The Coolangatta winner only discovered his windfall this week after finding the Saturday Gold Lotto ticket in a drawer. I was bored on Tuesday night, so I decided to check some old tickets,' he told lottery officials. This ticket has been sitting in my drawer with a wad of about 10 other tickets I hadnt got around to checking. It certainly makes you think about what if I hadnt checked the ticket or had lost it!" He plans on helping out his kids in their 20s and going big on an upcoming European holiday.

Confusion over Paris Olympics mascot While the Paris Olympics and Paralympics mascots were announced in 2022, it's only now fans are really starting to ask what on earth they are. These bright red triangular characters, named The Phryges, are in fact hats and they hold a significant place in French history thanks to their prominence during the French Revolution and their association with liberty. Rather than an animal, our mascots represent an ideal, Paris 2024 President Tony Estanguet said in a statement at the time of their release. Since it is familiar to us and appears on our stamps and the pediments of our town halls, it also represents French identity and spirit. There's been a mixed response to the mascots online, some loving the designs while others comparing them to the poop emoji. On vous presente la Phryge Olympique et la Phryge Paralympique !

Les mascottes de #Paris2024 

Sportives, fetardes et francaises 



Here are the Olympic Phryge and the Paralympic Phryge!

The #Paris2024 mascots 

They are sporty, love to party... and are so French  pic.twitter.com/plupKzQqNs  Paris 2024 (@Paris2024) November 14, 2022

Fans point out big difference between Australia and US's MasterChef shows Some MasterChef fans have been questioning why the judges on the Australian version are so nice. Of course, any judge will look a saint when compared to US counterpart Gordon Ramsey, who is known for his brutal assessment of contestants' cooking, but do Australia's judges need to get tougher on their hopefuls? Have your say below.

Man behind iconic logo dies aged 86 Jerry West, the man who inspired one of the most recognisable sports logos in the world, has died at the age of 86. A silhouette of West, a 14-time All-star in the NBA, features on the organisation's iconic logo. "Jerry West was an incredible and unique individual, having accomplished immeasurable heights in the game of basketball," Golden State Warriors owner Joe Lacob said. Read more about his legacy here. Jerry West, an icon 



West's silhouette is the inspiration for the NBA's logo.



( credit: Wen Roberts, Lakers) pic.twitter.com/WQc7AYOIN9  Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 12, 2024

Huge bill to fix damaged roads in most populated Aussie state Potholes are the bane of many drivers' existence in Australia. according to the NRMA, problems with roads aren't going to be resolved anytime soon, well not in NSW anyway. That's because there is a combined $2.8 billion backlog of funding for road improvements in the state. NRMA spokesperson Peter Khoury is calling on the state government to provide councils with more funding come budget day to fix the problem that has been exacerbated by heavy rainfall.

UK PM's bizarre Haribo remark ahead of election UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has raised eyebrows again with a remark he likely thought would endear him to the public. Earlier this week he was criticised for being out of touch after revealing he went without subscription TV as a child in a comparison to the hardship millions face today. And now during a live debate with Labour leader Keir Starmer ahead of the UK's general election in July, he said he is likeable because he eats Haribo and Twix bars. Unsurprisingly, there's been a wave of ridicule online. Sunak eats Twix and Haribo?



Quick, get me a ballot paper.



Bloody hell.  Secret Headteacher (@secretHT1) June 12, 2024

Electric vehicle insurance costs surprise Aussies Electric vehicle prices are plummeting, but while the upfront price tag is coming down, there is still one area where electric car owners are being slugged with hefty costs. It is more expensive to insure an EV than it is to insure a combustion engine car and the difference can be hundreds to thousands of dollars as one Tesla driver recently flagged. He discovered it was $4,000 more to insure a Tesla than it was to cover his petrol Kia. The peak insurance body told Yahoo Finance there were a few factors that played into the higher premiums, including having to import parts from overseas when needed. Read more here.

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Defence Minister Angel Tilvar will participate on Thursday and Friday in the Meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence, which is taking place at NATO Headquarters in Brussels, MApN said.

He will also take part in the meeting of the Contact Group for the Defence of Ukraine (UDCG), organised on the sidelines of the NATO meeting.

The Defence Minister will also have bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Canada, the Kingdom of the Netherlands and Ukraine.
The government on Thursday approved in a memorandum the negotiation of a treaty between Romania and China on the transfer of convicted persons.

"The memorandum proposes a draft treaty drawn up by Romania on the transfer of convicts that is to be sent to China for a counterproposal. This co-operation document offers the possibility for final convicts to serve their sentence in their social environment of origin, thus favouring the social reintegration of the convicts," according to a press statement released by the government.

The draft Romanian treaty includes provisions regarding the conditions under which the transfer can be granted, the necessary documents, as well as the effects of the transfer on both the sentencing and executing states.

On this subject, government spokesman Mihai Constantin on Thursday told a news conference at the Government House that, at the moment, the management of possible transfers of convicts between Romania and China is done under legislation from 1991 and 1994 or 1996, so "some of them outdated."
The REPER Party on Thursday asked for the resignation of the head of the Standing Electoral Authority (AEP) Toni Grebla, of the entire AEP leadership and Interior Minister Catalin Predoiu, saying that they are guilty of "vitiating the results of the June 9 elections through serious irregularities found by electoral competitors, independent observers and citizens."

REPER also asked President Klaus Iohannis to exercise "immediately" his role as mediator between society and the state, "at a delicate moment for democracy in Romania, in which confidence in the electoral process has collapsed and there are two other rounds of crucial elections for the future of the country."

According to a press statement released on Thursday, in the last 24 hours, after the REPER call, more than 220 citizens noticed that at the polling station where they voted for REPER there are zero votes for this political party in the minutes published on the AEP website.

According to them, in only two precincts where such a recount was made, REPER recovered over 150 votes from zero, "but in the whole country there are over 2500 polling stations where zero votes for the REPER Party appear in the minutes."

"Without a recount of votes where there are suspicions of fraud, the June 9 elections will remain a black stain for democracy in Romania and a flagrant violation of the principle of guaranteeing the right to free and fair elections," according to REPER Co-Chair Dragos Pislaru.
United Right Alliance (an electoral alliance made up of USR (Save Romania Union) - PMP (People's Movement Party) and Forta Dreptei) MEPs have sent a letter to the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, requesting that a mission be sent to Romania for an independent investigation into the electoral process.

The letter was also sent to the vice-president for Demography and Democracy, Dubravka Suica, and to the commissioner for Justice, Didier Reynders.

"In the letter, the United Right MEPs show that on the day of the elections, pre-stamped ballots for the PSD-PNL (Social Democratic Party - National Liberal Party) electoral and governing coalition were found in Bucharest, but also in other cities/towns, such as Ramnicu Sarat, Sacalaz or Bistra," reads a press release sent by Save Romania Union (USR).

The letter was signed by MEPs Vlad Botos and Eugen Tomac, but also by the future MEPs of the United Right Alliance Dan Barna and Vlad Voiculescu.

The document invokes "countless suspicions of fraud" in two sectors of Bucharest, the appointment of a former parliamentarian as president of the Permanent Electoral Authority, the merging of local and European parliamentary elections "without an adequate infrastructure", the refusal to recount the votes in the polling stations where observers reported errors in the minutes, the fact that the delegates waited for hours in the heat to hand over the bags with votes to the Electoral Bureaus, the suspension of the electoral process in 22 counties, over one million votes annulled, but not yet registered in the central electronic platform.

USR MP Iulian Bulai, leader of the ALDE group in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), has notified the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe about the "poor organization of the June 9 elections and the suspicions of fraud" in several polling stations.

"USR has repeatedly requested the admission of the recount of votes in the polling stations with serious suspicions of fraud and wrong writings in the minutes. At the few polling stations where the recount was accepted, the result of the recount confirms USR's accusations that PSD and PNL want to steal the votes of Romanians. In Bucharest's Sector 2, from the recount of only two polling stations, 294 more votes resulted for the United Right candidate. In Bucharest's Sector 1, there was a re-election in a single polling station and 187 votes resulted in favour of the United Right candidate, given that 80 requests for re-election were submitted," the USR press release reads.
ST. LOUIS  A man pleaded guilty on Tuesday for killing an attempted car thief at a gas station in a South St. Louis neighborhood last year.

Brett Kress, 28, of St. Clair County, will serve 15 years for the second-degree murder of Jesse Lopez, 24, at Conoco gas on Gravois Avenue in Soulard.

At around 2 a.m. on Jan. 7, 2023, police say Lopez tried to steal Kress Honda Pilot from the gas station's parking lot.

Kress pulled a gun and Lopez ran away. Kress then chased him and shot him three times, prosecutors said.

Police found Kress SUV crashed in St. Charles County later that day, where he was arrested shortly thereafter.

Kress was set to go to trial next week for first-degree murder, armed criminal action and unlawful gun possession.

The plea agreement reduced Kress' murder charge to a second-degree offense.

Kress' attorney, Tyson Cole, had no comment.
It was meant to be the most memorable night of Adam Boots' life, but a bonfire wedding proposal quickly turned into a cautionary tale.

Adam Boots was trying to make his proposal more magical, but it blew up in his face. Source: 9News

He'd planned on it being the most romantic night of his life, but what started as an intimate wedding proposal ended in a weeks-long stay in hospital and permanent injuries for one Aussie man, after a horrifying bonfire "explosion" sent his romantic gesture up in flames.

South Australian dad Adam Boots, from Clare Valley, north of Adelaide, said he was "rushing" to start a bonfire to set the scene to propose to his partner when he made the almost deadly decision to use petrol to get it going. Boots said he'd "leant down and reached in" to the flame to douse it when it "just exploded" in his face.

The 28-year-old suffered severe burns to his legs, arms and face and was hospitalised for three weeks. He was left with permanent damage to his skin and now has a warning for all Aussies this winter.

The SA father-of-two was hospitalised for two months and left with severe burns to his face, arms and body. Source: 9News

Dad's warning after bonfire proposal goes horribly wrong

The young father is still recovering from his stupid mistake  something he expects will affect him the rest of his life.

"The pain was quite excruciating, especially on the face," Boots told 9News, adding that more than six months on, he still feels the impacts of that night. The father-of-two said his skin is still particularly sensitive to the sun, especially "in the summertime" when his "face is quite delicate to the heat".

His ordeal has prompted a warning from authorities to practice caution around open flames, especially in the presence of children.

The SA father's accident has prompted a warning from health authorities to practice caution around open flames, especially around children. Source: Getty

Health authorities speak out after Aussie man's horror accident

Kidsafe SA said in particular parents should be wary of fire pits, as children tend to be "drawn toward the open flame" and their "small size often means they're positioned very close" to it.

More than 500 children were treated in hospitals across SA for burns last year, with similar figures seen in other states around the country.

Boots said the accident has now left him extremely wary around fires. "Don't use accelerants, be very cautious of it," he said.

He did end up proposing to his partner in the end, though the second time around it was from his hospital bed.

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JEFFERSON CITY  A company aiming to harvest rare earth minerals from an abandoned iron ore mine in Washington County polluted a Meramec River tributary with levels of copper, iron, oil and grease that exceeded allowable limits.

Creve Coeur-based Caldera Holding LLC signed a voluntary abatement order with the Missouri Department of Natural Resources in March. The company received a $10,000 fine but wont have to pay it if it abides by the order.

Caldera wants to extract rare earth metals by reprocessing the tailings left over from iron ore production at the former Pea Ridge mine, which closed in 2001.

The March order said no mining or processing activity was occurring on site. Company president James Kennedy said Caldera hopes to begin the reclamation process later this year.

The order says seepage from a tailings dam enters Marys Creek, which flows into the Little Courtois Creek, Indian Creek and then the Meramec River. Caldera also failed to submit timely and complete monitoring reports to the state, the order said.

As part of the abatement order, the company was required to hire an engineer tasked with creating a facility plan to either get treatment ponds into compliance or eliminate the discharging system if the mineral reprocessing plan doesnt materialize. The facility plan is due Aug. 16, according to the DNR.

The violations highlight environmental hazards associated with mining and mine waste at a time when the United States is attempting to boost domestic production of rare minerals used in electric vehicles, cellphones, defense and medical technologies.

James Kennedy, president of Caldera Holding, told the Post-Dispatch the abatement order helps make the case for his project, and said the mine was already in violation of state clean water law before Caldera acquired it in 2020.

The voluntary Abatement Order demonstrates that the only way to achieve the environmental standards is to remove the offending mineral constituents, Kennedy said in an email. Fortunately all of the offending mineral constituents are the economic drivers of this project.

The order said Caldera reported no new commercial activity at the site to explain the recent effluent violations for Iron and Oil and Grease, but noted elevated water turbidity due to beaver activity, which the company took action to minimize.

Magnets, thorium

Kennedy said his goal is full integration and production of high-value and high-operating temperature neodymium and samarium cobalt magnets.

Kennedy said the United States is fully dependent on China for neodymium magnets, which he said are used in electric vehicles, computers, wind turbines, medical imaging and weapon systems.

Pea Ridge is the only permitted deposit with heavy rare earths necessary for the production of high-operating temperature NdFeB (neodymium) magnets, he said.

Kennedy said his company is working with the federal government, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, the Saskatchewan Research Council and other multi-national technology companies to develop a fully integrated rare earth magnet value chain in the United States.

He said completed engineering, partnerships and financing could be announced by the end of the summer.

The company also intends to remove thorium from the tailings and sell it to developing markets, Kennedy said.

In November, Caldera sent a letter to the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission, declaring its intent to apply for a federal permit for a side-stream thorium recovery circuit at Pea Ridge.

The letter says the facility will supply thorium, a radioactive metal, to a storage and manufacturing facility. The thorium is contained in the apatite on site.

Kennedy said this week the company has not submitted its application to the NRC.

Pollution, rare earth survey

The abatement order notes iron exceeded the monthly average limit for the October 2022 and November 2023 reporting periods.

Oil and grease exceeded daily maximum and monthly average limits for the October 2022 and October 2023 monitoring periods.

Monthly average copper for the September and November 2023 periods also exceeded the allowable level, the order said.

John Madras, former Water Protection Program director for the DNR and a current volunteer for the Missouri chapter of the Sierra Club, said Caldera couldve hired an engineer when they noticed the exceedances.

He said the violations dont inspire confidence with regard to the companys ability to avoid having a negative environmental impact. But he said reprocessing the tailings can benefit the environment, saving energy in the mineral extraction process.

Were going to be looking for the rare earth elements as we move to electric vehicles, Madras said. The more efficiently we can produce things like that in a clean, environmental way, the better off were all going to be.

The Missouri Geological Survey began surveying the mine site in March after receiving a federal grant authorized in the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. Sampling is scheduled to be completed in August 2025, said geologist Kyle Ganz, the principal investigator.

Mining has taken place since the 1700s in some regions of Missouri, he said last year. Many of these historic mines were seeking iron back then, and nothing else. Critical minerals may be present in the mine waste tailings of these locations which the original miners had no idea even existed.
There are some obvious similarities between this weeks criminal conviction of first son Hunter Biden and that of former President Donald Trump last month.

Both men were charged in cases that, as a matter of standard prosecutorial practice, arguably wouldnt have even gone to trial with more typical defendants. In both cases, they faced juries of their peers in their hometowns  Biden in Wilmington, Delaware, Trump in New York. In both cases, once those jurors heard the evidence, they returned the only verdicts they could reasonably have reached: guilty, across the board.

There are also, of course, stark differences between the cases as well. The most important one, in terms of the future leadership of America, is how the two likely nominees for president this year reacted to the jury verdicts.

Trump, to the surprise of exactly no one, selfishly lashed out against the process and everyone in it during and after his hush-money trial. In doing so, he has sought to deliberately undermine the legitimacy of the entire justice system, with the help of the usual chorus of MAGA sycophants in Congress and elsewhere.

President Joe Biden  though clearly wracked with the pain that any parent of such a wayward son would feel  nonetheless publicly stood by the justice process, pledging not to use his pardon power to spare his son whatever consequences are coming.

Its certainly not the only illustration of the immense character gulf between these two candidates, but its a stark one.

The younger Biden was convicted in connection with his purchase of a handgun in 2018. Delawares sane gun laws (unlike in Missouri) require that all firearms purchasers be subjected to federal background checks.

As part of that process, Hunter Biden  a long-time crack cocaine addict  lied on a form by stating that he wasnt using drugs. That lie was the basis of the three felony convictions the federal jury in Delaware returned on Tuesday.

It would be unusual for a first-time offender to get prison time for that particular stand-alone charge, but it does present a genuine future threat to the presidents son. Hunter Biden still faces federal tax-evasion charges. The fact that hes now a convicted felon automatically increases the chances of incarceration for any future convictions.

Unlike Trumps conviction, this one is federal, meaning President Biden could theoretically pardon his son. He has responsibly, categorically ruled it out. I will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal, the president said in a statement this week.

Pardoning a presidential son would be a gross abuse of the pardon process. But that bar is already historically low after Trumps crass and repeated trashing of that process as president, when beneficiaries included his son-in-laws father, his business associates and cronies, a war criminal and assorted political supporters.

Trump has since floated the possibility of pardoning the anti-democracy thugs who attacked the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, in an attempt to help him overturn an election.

Yet Biden, out of respect for the justice process, wont unsheathe that sword even for his own son.

This is how a president is supposed to act.

Contrast that with the behavior of not only Trump, but of his congressional enablers. More than a dozen of them in the Senate, including both of Missouris senators, responded to Trumps conviction with a temper tantrum of a letter vowing to sabotage Justice Department funding and oppose all of Bidens political and judicial appointees.

Their allegation of lawfare  that the White House somehow reached into a New York state legal system over which it has no power and caused Trumps conviction  is not only an unsupported and stunningly irresponsible claim, but an ironic one. In the case of Hunter Biden, his fathers Justice Department appointed the special prosecutor (originally a Trump appointee) who just won the conviction. The administration has otherwise stayed out of it as the federal cases have closed in on the first son.

Youd be hard-pressed to find a single prominent elected Democrat bellyaching on President Bidens behalf regarding the conviction of his son in this unusual trial.

Public figures should be stringently held accountable for their crimes  perhaps even more stringently than private citizens  as a demonstration that no one is above the law in America. One party clearly still believes that, while the so-called law-and-order party has conveniently forgotten it.
In her column "Congress blew its chance to find closure on COVID" (June 10 print edition), F. D. Flam observes that Republicans of the House Committee grilled Dr. Anthony Fauci, as if Fauci had been responsible for the pandemic's spread. They would have done better to question former President Donald Trump.

It was Trump who made the virus's proliferation so terrible. Trump had disbanded the White House Pandemic Response Team. He repeatedly told the public that it was only a flu, and that it would go away soon. Over and over, he falsely claimed that the pandemic was under control, and that "It's going to be just fine." He ignored expert advice. He opposed masks, distancing and shutdowns. He hawked false and dangerous treatments.

In consequence of Trump's disinformation and neglect, deaths rose far higher than necessary. Approximately one million Americans died during his administration, far more per capita than in any comparable country.

When voters ask themselves if they are better off today than under the Trump administration, they should recall the confusion, distrust and mounting deaths caused by the former president's bungled and cavalier leadership.

Allan R. Shickman

University City
June 13, 2024: Israel has ordered another 25 F-35 fighters, which will give Israel three F-35I squadrons. Israel makes some modifications on its F-35s so they can handle Israeli weapons and special equipment. These F-35s are called the F-35I. So far only 39 have been delivered, with the first two arriving late 2016. After some modifications the Israeli F-35s were declared operational in 2017.

The F-35 is a 31-ton single engine, single-seat aircraft that entered service in different versions between 2015 and 2019. The aircraft has stealth characteristics and is equipped with all the most modern aircraft electronics, sensors and capabilities. F-35 has a max range of 2,800 kilometers for repositioning missions to a different country. Combat range for ground attack missions is 1,200 kilometers while carrying eight tons of missiles and bombs. Combat range for combat with other aircraft is 1,400 kilometers. The F-35 can carry 2,600 kg of weapons internally and 6,800 kg externally. Max speed is Mach 1.6 and max altitude is 15,000 meters. The F-35B version is STOVAL (short takeoff and landing) and carries a third less fuel because of the STOVAL modifications. There is an F-35C aircraft carrier version that is like the F-35A but equipped with a tail hook and more rugged landing gear. The F-35C wings have larger control surfaces, and the outer portions of the wing can be folded so the aircraft takes up less space on the hanger deck.

The F-35 is equipped to handle all current weapons used by F-16s. F-35 pilots benefit from several features that make their job easier. The cockpit where the pilot sits features a bubble canopy providing excellent views of what is outside the aircraft. Cockpit controls have been reduced and made easier to see and use. This is done by using a 50 by 20 cm touch display that shows flight instruments, stores management, CNI information, and integrated caution and warnings. Pilots can customize the arrangement of the information. Below the main display is a smaller stand-by display. Pilots also have a helmet-mounted visor, a display that enables the pilot to look at an enemy aircraft and fire a missile at it. This point and shoot capability is an enormous advantage in air-to-air combat. The F-35 electronics also provide a better view of ground targets and the ability to quickly select the most suitable ground attack weapon carried and use it.

The cockpit has a speech-recognition system but does not have a heads-up display. Instead, flight and combat information is displayed on the visor of the pilot's helmet using a helmet-mounted display system. The one-piece tinted canopy is hinged at the front and has an internal frame for structural strength. The Martin-Baker ejection seat is launched by a twin-catapult system housed on side rails. There is a right-hand side stick and throttle hands-on throttle-and-stick system. For life support, an OBOGS, or onboard oxygen-generation system is fitted and powered by the Integrated Power Package, with an auxiliary oxygen bottle and backup oxygen system for emergencies.

The radars and electronic countermeasures provide the pilot with an integrated view of the surrounding air space. This degree of situational awareness gives the pilot an enormous advantage in combat because the F-35 pilot can see, either with his eyes or via his sensors, more about what is in the area and in much greater detail than any enemy pilot.

About a thousand F-35s have been built so far and eventually, by 2044, at least 2,456 will be built. Production numbers will increase as more export customers order aircraft. So far F-35s have been exported to Britain, Australia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Norway, and the Netherlands. Israel was the first export customer to receive F-35s because it was the only export customer that was regularly involved in combat, including air-strikes. Israel was also the only export customer allowed to modify and upgrade their F-35s. For this reason, the Israeli aircraft is known as the F-35I. The United States initially opposed Israeli requests to carry out modifications and upgrades, but the Israelis had a record of doing this with F-16s and F-15s obtained from the United States, so F-35 manufacturer Lockheed Martin agreed to cooperate by making some modifications to the F-35Is before Israel received them. These included changes in command, control, and communications systems, including computers, and the thorough integration of intelligence collection, electronic warfare, and weapons systems. Israel agreed to not change anything inside the aircraft but was free to add capabilities on top of the existing infrastructure. Israel Aerospace Industries, for example, was already working on such systems for the F-35I. The F-35I was designed to allow software updates to electronic warfare and weapons systems. F-35I power and cooling systems were modified to allow incorporation of Israeli developed weapons. Israel has developed its own air-to-air missiles and GPS guided bombs.

Since 2021 there have been a lot more joint exercises involving Israeli and foreign F-35s. Details of these exercises have not been publicized but it apparently involves testing current and new F-35 capabilities and sharing that knowledge with other F-35 users. After Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, a lot of European nations sought to obtain F-35s while canceling plans to buy older models of American and European combat aircraft. F-35s are meant to eventually replace all F-16, F-15, and F-18 aircraft.

Ukraines ability to defeat the larger Russian air force, using Ukraines own Russian-designed aircraft, made it clear that the Ukrainian tactics carried out with F-35s would provide an enormous edge over air forces equipped with older aircraft. Even China has not yet produced a stealth aircraft as capable as the F-35, and now NATO nations with F-35s realize they have a substantial edge and have shared that knowledge with other NATO countries.

Israel demonstrated what the F-35 was capable of in 2019 when Israel had only 14 F-35I fighters and some had been operational for over a year. These F-35Is flew training missions near the Syrian border and then operational missions over Lebanon and Syria. This came after years of overcoming opposition from the United States to allowing Israel to modify the F-35A to use Israeli electronic warfare equipment and software, and also to handle Israeli-made missiles and smart bombs as well as a smart helmet, which was something Israel pioneered. This led to the Israeli aircraft being designated the F-35I, which have been in the air since 2018, often armed and within range of hostile radars and anti-aircraft missiles as well as the latest Russian electronic warfare equipment.

Israeli engineers also confirmed fears that the F-35 is eminently hackable. Other foreign users who have received their first F-35s agree that the heart of the F-35's superior capabilities are its software and digital communications with other aircraft and troops on the ground. Users are pointing out all manner of potential network vulnerabilities, and all are actively seeking which of these vulnerabilities are actual and fixable rather than potential and unlikely. F-35 software was designed over a decade ago when much less was known about how combat aircraft software could be hacked and already some basic changes in F-35 software architecture are underway to deal with that.

This brings up another major problem. The F-35 software is more complex and omnipresent throughout the aircraft than in any previous warplane. Its a major effort to carry out and test any changes. Some major upgrades are needed in how F-35 software changes are made and how quickly. In wartime this would be essential, as otherwise vulnerable aircraft would be grounded when needed most. Foreign users have also provided useful advice on penetration or red team testing and this has become another major effort that was not anticipated.

The U.S. and other foreign users of the F-35 noted Israels F-35I experience, and the Israelis have increasingly been sharing it with allies. Israel got priority on deliveries because they are literally a combat zone. Initial reactions of Israeli F-35I pilots and air force commanders were positive. What the Israeli pilots and all others who have flown the F-35 agree on is that its software and degree of automation is spectacular, easy to use and very effective. The F-35 has a large number of sensors, as in receivers for electronic signals, as well as six cameras and a very capable radar. The fusion of all that data and presentation to the pilot based on the current situation is impressive and makes the F-35 much easier to fly than any other fighter, despite all the additional capabilities it has.

Israel has become something of an unofficial member of NATO and is sharing a lot of its F-35I knowledge with NATO nations. Israel not only has to deal with Russian aircraft and electronic systems in Syria, but an even more dangerous threat from Iran. Israel has established diplomatic and defense relationships with Arab countries who are also threatened by Iran. That made it possible for Israel to establish diplomatic relations with some Arab Gulf States and that led to Americans' willingness to sell F-35s to the UAE (United Arab Emirates).
The automotive industry in general has 'always been a struggle for small business owners', Raffy Sgroi said, but it's about to get even harder.

Raffy Sgroi said Australians need much more education about electric vehicles before the rollout expands any further. Source: Supplied

Electric cars might be "the way of the future", but more education is needed within the automotive industry and among the public before the rollout expands any further, a leading Aussie mechanic has warned.

Running the risk of "going too fast, too soon" means we could soon face "driving small mechanics out of business", Raffy Sgroi, the reigning Australian Womens Small Business Champion, told Yahoo News Australia.

Sgroi is heavily involved in industry groups who are considering the transition to EVs and has been running her business Car Mechanical Services at Fisher in the ACT for almost two decades. While she firmly supports the electric vehicle movement, there's not enough awareness around what owning one means in the long-term, for both mechanics and drivers, she says.

The automotive industry in general has "always been a struggle for small business owners", Sgroi said, but now due to a lack of enthusiasm among new mechanics when it comes to EVs, "there's just not enough knowledgeable people" out there to service them. Factoring in the costs of buying speciality parts and the steep fees associated with staff training, Sgroi's concerned for the future of her business.

Raffy, pictured here with husband Charlie, said the costs associated with training staff and ordering specialist equipment could force smaller mechanics, such as herself, out of business. Source: Supplied

EVs here to stay, but Aussies need to know the risks

"The federal government has invested a lot of money in EV technology, building new modules and training courses," she said. "But you don't have anyone one that delivers those courses [to young mechanics] that is knowledgeable enough.

"So you can have a really state-of-the-art facility, but if you don't have people waiting to learn, it's going to be useless as an investment. The other problem that our industry has been facing for a long time is that one in four mechanics in Australia are actually only trade assistants," she said.

"For them to convert their qualification and become skilled EV specialists, they need to have a Certificate III in automotive vehicles... and for small businesses, to get people into this training, it's a lot of money."

With so much specialised equipment and personnel needed, coupled with the high risks associated with servicing EVs with high-voltage electric systems, Sgroi questioned whether it's fair for small repairers to be forced to fully self-funded. Without access to manufacturer-specific diagnostic tools and software, small business mechanics cant safely and effectively fix EV service issues, she added.

Sgroi warned that it's extremely important anybody working on electric cars is meticulously trained, as they're "not always safe" to repair. "We're talking about working with a huge battery here, my staff  and I've got five guys  they're genuinely concerned," she said. "You've got 400 kilowatts of battery running, they can fry you. If you do the wrong thing  you're gone."

Equipment and training costs a threat to small mechanics

And she's not just concerned for the safety of mechanics and drivers, "this also extends to tow truck drivers and virtually anybody" that has to do with the vehicle.

"I don't think the public actually has enough knowledge about them," she said. "It's not just about driving around, they need to know what happens if have they have even a minor collision. There are still people driving those cars around after a crash without doing any safety checks."

One in four cars sold in May in Australia was an EV or hybrid vehicle. Source: Supplied

The Canberra woman is now calling on governments to provide clearer communication, more guidance and adequate funding to small businesses, like hers, which are facing mounting costs in a bid to prepare themselves for future electric vehicle expansion.

Unlike traditional engine vehicles, Sgroi said, there is limited  if any  aftermarket support available for EV components and parts, meaning that smaller mechanics may struggle to source parts, which would subsequently increase repair times and costs to consumers, further hindering business.

More education and resources needed for Australia's future

"First what we need to address all of this is more awareness, more resources and more training," she said.

"When it comes to EVs, it's not just about going and buying the vehicle, because you can even do that online now. I had people coming past the shop saying 'we picked up a Tesla, but there was no handover'  that's dangerous.

"The person picked it up and no one actually handed it over, even telling them how to plug it in to recharge. When you're talking about EVs, you have a massive battery on it. You need to be able to know what your safety risks are around that."

However, Sgroi rebuked claims from electric vehicle "deniers", who "spread out a lot of lies and rumours" about how "they're all dangerous". "They say EVs are bad, they can explode. No that's not going to necessarily happen. But you need to know what the risks involved are and be safe".

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The speed limit is set to increase for Key Street and some other roadways on Camp Humphreys, South Korea. (Luis Garcia/Stars and Stripes)

CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea  Soldiers will soon be able to drive faster on the U.S. militarys largest installation overseas.

The speed limit changes should decrease congestion, particularly near Camp Humphreys access points, and improve traffic flow across the base, garrison spokeswoman Yun In Kyeong told Stars and Stripes by email Wednesday.

The changes take effect Friday. Speed limits on Humphreys are displayed in kilometers per hour.

The speed limit on Pacific Victors Avenue, First Street and First Team Avenue, major base thoroughfares, will be raised from 50 kph, or 31 mph, to 60 kph. On Key Street, the top speed will be 50 kph, Yun said.

After a traffic circle, Key Street, a secondary street, narrows from four lanes to two; the speed limit there will increase from 30 kph to 45 kph.

The access roadway outside the commissary and post exchange will increase from 8 kph to 20 kph, Yun said.

Except for the roadway in front of those stores, the speed limit changes coincide with the completion of several new traffic circles, she said.

The new speed limits are not a bad change, Pfc. TaJon Crawley of the 411th Military Police Company told Stars and Stripes on Tuesday.

If there is an emergency, were still going to get there as fast as we can while obeying the traffic rules, but other than that, on regular calls, its not that much of a difference, he said.

Enforcement of the speed limit and penalties wont change, and police will continue to monitor traffic for violations and cite those exceeding the new speed limits, Yun said.

We will continue to assess speed limits and traffic patterns to create safe and effective driving conditions on post, she said.
Lt. Col. William Hogan on June 6, 2024, at an observation point overlooking Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, where his father, Lt. Col. Samuel Hogan, landed during World War II. The elder Hogan commanded a tank battalion, which is the subject of a book written by his son that was published in November. (Phillip Walter Wellman/Stars and Stripes)

COLLEVILLE-SUR-MER, France  The last known active-duty soldier to have a father who fought in the Army in World War II is retiring, but not before he takes one last step to keep the memory of the Greatest Generation alive.

Lt. Col. William Hogan, 48, is a foreign area officer based in France, where he works as a liaison between the Pentagon and the French military.

He discussed his new book, Task Force Hogan: From Normandy to the Elbe, which chronicles his fathers battalion command and the troops he served with, last week at Normandy American Cemetery during the ceremony commemorating the 80th anniversary of the D-Day beach landings.

A lot of what they went through is still applicable to our modern Army, Hogan said.

Samuel M. Hogan was 60 when his son was born. He was 28 when he commanded a reinforced tank battalion under the 3rd Armored Division.

Lt. Col. Samuel Hogan, commander of 3rd Battalion, 33rd Armored Regiment, 3rd Armored Division, also known as Task Force Hogan, pictured sometime during World War II. (U.S. Army Signal Corps)

Arriving in Normandy shortly after D-Day, Task Force Hogan, as the battalion was known, went on to fight on the front lines of some of the wars toughest battles, pitted against technologically superior enemy tanks and Nazi soldiers with state-of-the-art anti-tank rockets.

In December 1944, during the Battle of the Bulge, German troops surrounded the unit in the Belgian village of Marcouray.

The Americans set up defensive positions but with ammunition running low and no way for supplies to be replenished, Samuel Hogan, then a lieutenant colonel, ordered a nighttime escape by foot.

The group of about 400 men destroyed their vehicles so the enemy couldnt use them and darkened their faces to make them more difficult to see.

As night fell on Christmas Day, they took cover in the woods, passed enemy lines and trekked more than 10 miles before rejoining other division elements in Soy, Belgium.

Stars and Stripes reported on the feat at the time on Jan. 1, 1945, calling it an incredible odyssey of American valor.

Task Force Hogan spent over 200 days in combat, advancing all the way to the Elbe River in Germany, while contributing to a series of offensives by U.S. and Allied forces that led to the Nazi surrender.

Col. Dorrance Roysdon of the 36th Infantry Regiment, left, Lt. Col. Samuel Hogan, Capt. Edwin Gunderson and Capt. Norbert Horrell of I Company, gather before an attack on Hill 91 near Pont-Hebert, France, in July 1944. (U.S. Army Signal Corps)

The return of traditional, heavy warfare to Europe with the Russia-Ukraine war and the resurgence of great-power competition globally make such stories particularly relevant today, Hogan said.

What the Russians and Ukrainians are learning about large-scale combat are the things these men learned in World War II, Hogan said, singling out the importance of logistics and artillery. All these things that the U.S. Army let rust during 20 years of counterinsurgency are now back under the spotlight.

Hogans primary goal in writing the book is to remind people of the sacrifices that his fathers generation made for freedom.

In the 3rd Division alone, over 2,200 soldiers were killed in action, nearly 7,500 were wounded and about 700 others went missing, according to figures in the book.

Hogans nephew, 1st Lt. Samuel McPeak, 26, who is named after his grandfather, believes it would benefit the military if younger service members learned this history.

Tanks with 3rd Battalion, 33rd Armored Regiment, 3rd Armored Division, also known as Task Force Hogan, come ashore at Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, shortly after D-Day in 1944. (U.S. Army Signal Corps)

Most soldiers, especially the new guys coming in, dont know about the true sacrifices these men made in the Second World War, or even about those who fought in Korea or Vietnam, McPeak said.

I think it would give them a lot more pride in knowing that the organization they are a part of did such things and accomplished such remarkable feats for the betterment of the world, he said. It helps build esprit de corps.

McPeak, an Army chaplain candidate, was 7 when his grandfather died in 2005 and remembers him as fit and energetic, even in old age. He was one of the main reasons McPeak chose a military career.

Back at the Normandy American Cemetery, William Hogan, who is planning to retire in September, said it seemed fitting to be wrapping up his career in France. He spends most days working to strengthen U.S.-French military bonds in the face of renewed Russian aggression in Europe.

His father would have beamed at the thought, he added.

At the cemetery, he was escorting the Army chief of staff for the remembrance. Earlier that day, he met a surviving member of his fathers 3rd Armored Division for the first time.

It was very moving, Hogan said at an observation point overlooking Omaha Beach, where his father arrived in France 80 years ago. Everything has come full circle.

Clarification: Lt. Col William Hogan is the last publicly known active-duty soldier with a father who was in the Army in World War II, but another current service member had a father who was part of the Navy Reserve. Perry Martin Brown served aboard the USS Alabama as part of the anti-aircraft gunnery crew until his discharge in 1946 as a seaman first class, according to Col. Jim Brown, an Army command surgeon serving on active duty.
A Navy CMV-22B Osprey makes a functional check flight at Naval Air Station North Island, Calif., on March 19, 2024. (Aron Montano/U.S. Navy)

CAMP FOSTER, Okinawa  The U.S. Navy has resumed some Osprey operations on Okinawa, three months after a ban on flying the U.S. militarys tiltrotors was lifted, according to Japanese officials.

One of the Navys helicopter-plane hybrids flew over Kadena Air Base on Monday afternoon, a spokesman for the Okinawa Defense Bureau told Stars and Stripes by phone Wednesday.

This was the first time that a CMV-22 stationed at Kadena Air Base was confirmed flying after they grounded it last year, the spokesman said.

The bureau represents the Japan Defense Ministry on Okinawa.

The U.S. military grounded its fleet of about 400 Ospreys between Dec. 6 and March 8 as it investigated the Nov. 29 crash of an Air Force CV-22 Osprey that killed eight airmen off Japans southern coast.

The Osprey fleet will not be permitted to fly its full range of missions until mid-2025, the leader of the aircraft program told House lawmakers on Wednesday.

I will not certify the V-22 to return to unrestricted flight operations until I am satisfied that we have sufficiently addressed the issues that may affect the safety of the aircraft, Vice Adm. Carl Chebi, who leads Naval Air Systems Command, told a subpanel of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability.

The Marine Corps on March 14 reported it had resumed MV-22 Osprey flights on Okinawa, but other services have been slower to return their aircraft to flight. The Japan Ground Self-Defense Force resumed flying its Osprey fleet a week later.

Air Force Special Operations Command, whose tiltrotor crashed in southern Japan, has yet to resume flying its aircraft stationed in the country. Navy Ospreys are not yet flying passengers to aircraft flight decks, The Associated Press reported Tuesday.

The CMV-22 is designed to replace the Navys C-2A Greyhound aircraft, first produced in 1965, to land cargo and people on aircraft carriers.

Navy officials in Japan referred questions about Mondays flight to Naval Air Forces in San Diego. A spokeswoman for the command, Cmdr. Beth Teach, said by email Wednesday she was working on a response.

The Navy doesnt provide Japanese officials with prior notice of flights, the Okinawa Defense Bureau spokesman said. Japanese government officials often speak to the media on condition of anonymity.

Japanese officials didnt confirm any CMV-22 flights over Okinawa on Tuesday, the spokesman said.

Okinawa prefectures Base Countermeasures Division posted about the Osprey flight on its X account Wednesday.

A CMV-22 Osprey flew from Kadena Air Base, the post said. The prefecture filed a request to Okinawa Defense Bureau today to stop flying the Ospreys until the reasons of the [Nov. 29] accident become clear.
The decommissioned former USS Rodney M. Davis is hit and sunk during the Rim of the Pacific exercise in waters near Hawaii, July 12, 2022. (U.S. Navy)

This summers Rim of the Pacific will include the maritime exercises largest-ever humanitarian aid and disaster relief drills and the sinking of a decommissioned U.S. Navy amphibious assault ship.

The disaster-relief portion will involve eight countries, five ships, five landing craft, five aircraft and more than 2,500 participants, the Navy said in a news release Wednesday.

Those drills will include support from the Hawaii Healthcare Emergency Management Coalition, the Defense Departments Honolulu-based Center for Excellence in Disaster Management, the University of Hawaiis Pacific Disaster Center, USAIDs Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance, and Singapores Changi Regional Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Coordination Centre, the Navy said in a Wednesday news release.

This years RIMPAC will include the sinking of a vessel that was formerly designated USS Tarawa, the EurAsian Times newspaper reported Tuesday.

A Defense Department official contacted Wednesday by Stars and Stripes declined to speak on the record about the Tarawa report but confirmed that the ship, which was towed into Pearl Harbor several weeks ago, would be used in a sinking exercise.

RIMPAC, touted by the U.S. Navy as the worlds largest international maritime exercise, kicks off June 27 and runs through Aug. 1.

Forty ships from nearly 30 nations are slated to participate in the exercise on and around the Hawaiian Islands.

The biennial exercise, which has been held 29 times since it began in 1971, will also include three submarines, 14 land-based units, more than 150 aircraft and about 25,000 personnel.

Aircraft will include F-35 Lightning II fighter jets, P-8 Poseidon reconnaissance planes and V-22 Osprey tiltrotors, which will operate out of Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam and Marine Corps Base Hawaii on Oahu.

Participating armed forces are coming from Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Denmark, Ecuador, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Peru, South Korea, the Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Tonga, the United Kingdom and the United States.

The sinking of obsolete ships during RIMPAC has become routine.

During RIMPAC in 2022, units from Australia, Canada, Malaysia and the U.S. sank a decommissioned U.S. Navy frigate, formerly designated as USS Rodney M. Davis.

Four years ago, ships and aircraft sank a decommissioned U.S. Navy amphibious cargo ship that was formerly designated USS Durham as a finale to the exercise.

This years target, The former USS Tarawa was commissioned in 1976 and named for the Battle of Tarawa in the Pacific during World War II.

It deployed U.S. Marines to Saudi Arabia as part of Operation Desert Shield against Iraq in 1991.

The ship later supported Operation Iraqi Freedom in the early 2000s. It was decommissioned in 2009.

Among the other drills planned for RIMPAC 2024 are multi-domain warfare in a range of scenarios from anti-submarine warfare, multi-ship surface warfare, multinational amphibious landings, and multi-axis defense of the carrier strike group against live forces, the news release states.
Active-duty service members and Defense Department civilians alike are facing issues with access to health care at Japanese hospitals and at military treatment facilities such as U.S. Naval Hospital Yokosuka, Japan, seen here in 2022. (Alex Wilson/Stars and Stripes)

YOKOSUKA NAVAL BASE, Japan  Japanese hospitals are denying health care for Defense Department civilians and military personnel once every two days, on average, according to a recent report by the Japan Civilian Medical Advocacy group.

More than 340 people were denied access to routine, specialized or emergency care between February 2022 and April 2024, and at least 13 died between 2021 and 2024 due to denials or failure to receive timely medical attention, states a research report released by the group on May 18.

The state of healthcare for military personnel and civilians in Japan has reached one of its lowest points in decades, Randi Wilson, a spokeswoman for the group, told Stars and Stripes by Messenger on Tuesday.

The advocacy group, a grassroots organization that began as an online forum for DOD employees to share tips on accessing health care, cites 140 sources in its research. Those include surveys, testimonies and personal correspondence gathered by the group, media coverage and reports from the DOD and U.S. Government Accountability Office.

Japanese hospitals are not required by law to accept patients for care and routinely deny patients at their discretion. Reasons for denials can vary but often pertain to a preference for Japans national insurance plan or the belief that they lack adequate resources to treat a patient.

Currently, no one  whether active duty, retiree, civilian employee, or contractor  is guaranteed medical care for themselves or their loved ones during emergencies, Wilson said.

Defense Department employees have struggled to receive care at U.S. military hospitals and clinics in Japan and at local hospitals since the Defense Health Agency began implementing changes in February 2022.

The changes were a bid to prioritize health care for active-duty patients on overseas military bases and reduce wait times.

That plan, which significantly reduced access to health care for DOD civilians, has done nothing to alleviate this crisis and has potentially made the situation worse, according to Wilson.

Instead, these measures backfired, causing civilian healthcare providers to resign and military members to leave their contracts, further reducing access, she said.

Wait times at Yokota Air Base in Tokyo, for example, have not significantly changed over the past three years, according to the report.

Services responsible for areas such as ship repair, education, health care, and others also reported a 20% to 80% drop in employment applications due to concerns over accessing medical care.

DHA spokesman Peter Graves acknowledged Stars and Stripes request for comment on the report in a Thursday email but was unable to immediately provide a response.

DHA rolled back some restrictions in 2023, and civilians can now seek care for acute or chronic conditions on a space available basis.

However, accessing that care can be difficult.

A lack of codified policies and protections for DOD civilians allows leaders of [military treatment facilities] to independently set rules, often with no public transparency, causing available care to vary drastically between MTFs, the advocacy groups report reads.

Some bases offer only same-day, space-available appointments, while others offer limited appointments up to three days in advance. The range of services also varies, with some bases allowing civilian access to OB-GYN care and others prohibiting it, according to the report.

In early 2023, Gilbert Cisneros Jr., undersecretary of defense for personnel and readiness, and Seileen Mullen, at the time the acting assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, along with Army Maj. Gen. Joseph Heck, the DHA Indo-Pacific director at the time, held a series of town hall meetings on these topics at U.S. bases in Japan.

To sometimes raucous crowds of civilian employees and their families, the three promised to establish working groups with the DOD to address those complaints, but Wilson said theres been no follow-up or communication on the matter.

The advocacy group is proposing a variety of short- and long-term solutions, including temporarily rescinding space available restrictions, funding translation services, and communication, billing and administration reform.

What we need now - what we have always needed in the Pacific - is timely access to quality preventive and emergency care, she said.
South Korean soldiers stand guard at the Joint Security Area inside the Demilitarized Zone in May 2023. (David Choi/Stars and Stripes)

CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea  U.N. Command has launched a probe into the South Korean militarys allegations that North Korean troops briefly crossed the boundary inside the Demilitarized Zone, according to a statement late Wednesday.

U.N. Command  a multinational military body tasked with enforcing the armistice between South and North Korea  said it is investigating Seouls claims that around 20 North Korean troops crossed the Military Demarcation Line at 12:30 p.m. Sunday, according to an unattributed email statement from the command.

The demarcation line marks the border between the two Koreas within the DMZ, a buffer zone roughly 150 miles long and 2 miles wide.

We take our mission seriously at United Nations Command and are currently investigating the recent issues with utmost diligence, the commands email states. Our actions are in strict accordance with the Armistice Agreement as we work towards deescalating the situation to ensure peace and stability in the region.

South Korean forces responded to the encroachment by using loudspeakers and firing warning shots, the Souths Joint Chiefs of Staff said Monday. The intruding troops, some of whom were carrying work tools, immediately retreated to their territory.

The DMZ contains thick foliage that makes it difficult to see signs denoting ones territory, South Korean Army Col. Lee Sung-jun said during a news conference Tuesday.

Both Koreas are required to have plainly marked and suitable markers erected along the boundary between the demilitarized zone and their respective areas, according to the agreement signed on July 27, 1953.

No mention of the incident has been reported by North Koreas state-run Korean Central News Agency as of Thursday.

U.N. Command was established July 24, 1950, to support South Korean forces during the Korean War. It continues to provide military support and investigates violations of the armistice by both Koreas.

One such investigation determined that North and South Korea had violated the armistice agreements terms nearly two years ago.

On Dec. 26, 2022, North Korea flew at least five drones into the South, prompting Seoul to intercept them using fighter jets and helicopters. South Koreas military failed to capture or destroy any of the drones; however, it sent drones into North Koreas airspace on surveillance operations.

U.N. Command determined that North Korea had violated the armistice when it sent drones into the South and that Seouls attempts to destroy the drones did not violate the armistices rules of engagement.

The investigation also found that South Korea had violated the armistice by sending drones over the northern border immediately after the incident.
A Ukrainian soldier fires a rifle under the supervision of a Norwegian army instructor during training of Ukrainian recruits by NATO allies in the United Kingdom in March 2023. NATO this week will agree to a plan that will put the alliance in charge of efforts to arm and train the Ukrainian military, marking a shift away from an effort that so far has been an American-led endeavor. (NATO)

The U.S. and its allies will agree this week to a plan to put NATO in charge of efforts to arm and train the Ukrainian military, marking a shift away from what so far has been an American-led endeavor.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, speaking before the start Thursday of a two-day ministerial conference, said defense chiefs are gathered in Brussels to put the finishing touches on a concept expected to be met with final approval at NATOs July summit in Washington.

What I can say today is that we now have very broad agreement  that NATO takes a leading role in the coordination of security assistance and training, Stoltenberg said.

In recent months, there has been a push at NATO headquarters to take control of the initiative, which was launched by the Pentagon in the aftermath of Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Its not clear whether the NATO-led effort will mean the dissolution of Defense Secretary Lloyd Austins Ukraine Defense Contact Group, also known as the Ramstein Group, which is meeting at NATO headquarters this week.

Austin, speaking Thursday after the 23rd meeting of his group, gave no sign that the Ramstein format would be ending anytime soon. Austin also said the new influx of Western arms has helped Ukraine blunt some of Russias recent gains inside the country.

We remain determined to keep supporting Ukraine while ensuring our own military readiness at this challenging moment, Austin said.

Meanwhile, the new NATO plan will have implications for the U.S.-led initiative at the Armys Europe headquarters in Wiesbaden, Germany, which has been the focal point of efforts to equip Ukraine.

The Security Assistance Group for Ukraine, known as the SAG-U, has been under American command since it was launched in 2022 at U.S. European Command headquarters in Stuttgart.

It later moved to Wiesbaden, remaining under the leadership of EUCOMs Gen. Christopher Cavoli. While Cavoli would still be in charge, it would be in his capacity as NATOs top military commander rather than his EUCOM role, Stoltenberg said.

Using NATOs command structure will generate a more robust, more predictable framework for supporting Ukraine, Stoltenberg said.

The idea of putting NATO in charge emerged in April when Stoltenberg floated the idea at an alliance ministerial meeting. At the time, Washington was at a partisan impasse on defense spending, with lawmakers at odds about future support for arming Ukraine.

The situation raised concerns about the reliability of American backing for Ukraine and also sparked interest inside NATO about taking on a larger role.

We of course appreciate what the United States and other allies have done. Its unprecedented, Stoltenberg said. At the same time, we saw that the United States spent six months agreeing (on) a supplemental for Ukraine.

Likewise, allies in Europe have made promises on weapons shipments that have not been delivered, he said.

If we turn this into not voluntary contributions but NATO commitments, of course it will become more robust, it will become more reliable, Stoltenberg said.

Since Russias full-scale invasion, allies have provided about $43 billion in military support to Ukraine each year, Stoltenberg said.

In Brussels, defense leaders are meeting for the final time before the heads of state of member countries convene in Washington next month.

In addition to final approval on NATOs larger role in supporting Ukraine, allies also are expected to come to agreement on a long-term funding plan for Ukraine.

At an April foreign ministers meeting, a $100 billion fund was under consideration, but the final figure hasnt been finalized.

While Ukraine will be a focal point of the Washington summit in July, Kyivs aim of being welcomed into the alliance as an official member is off the table for now.

Still, allies will agree to strong language on Ukraines eventual membership, Stoltenberg said.

Its not for me to go into the details on the exact wording, but I expect that that language will be even clearer in our commitment that Ukraine will become a member of the alliance, Stoltenberg said.
Community Bank customers in Italy have been unable to receive same-day checks for tax-free purchases since April, when Navy Federal Credit Union took over the Defense Department's overseas banking contract from Bank of America. (Kent Harris/Stars and Stripes)

VICENZA, Italy  Community Bank procedures are now making military families wait up to a week to make purchases off base without paying value-added taxes, an unpublicized change that is forcing their customers to choose between higher prices and going without goods and services.

U.S. service members, others living under the status of forces agreement and many tourists who arent EU residents are eligible for refunds on VAT, which generally adds 22% to prices in Italy.

Community Bank offered same-day tax refunds until April, when the on-base military banks operations were transferred from Bank of America to Navy Federal Credit Union.

In early June, Hilary Parry, whose husband is stationed at Caserma Ederle in Vicenza, was packing for a family vacation when she realized she needed swim gear for her kids.

She went to Decathlon, where she had her order rung up without taxes, then headed to Community Bank to get a check.

Previously, the bank would have given her the check and she would have taken it to the VAT office at Caserma Ederle to be approved, then she would return to the store to pick up her purchase.

The process typically takes a few hours and is more complicated than for U.S. service members in Germany, where a participating store signs a VAT form and then deducts the price at the register.

Nevertheless, shoppers in Italy say the hassle is worth the tax savings.

But last week, Parry arrived at Community Bank and was told by the teller that the check would take at least five business days.

This is a huge change, Parry said. Why did the bank not notify us about a change like this? If they had, while its annoying, we would at least know and plan accordingly.

She ended up paying the full amount of her purchase, including around $60 in taxes.

Sixty dollars is nothing to sneeze at, Parry said. There are families where that is not possible [to pay for]. And when you multiply that by all of us here [in Vicenza] its a lot of money.

The banks new Italian partner, Intesa Sanpaolo, doesnt allow Community Bank to produce the rebate checks in house, so Community Bank has to order them from Intesa and wait for them to be sent back, said Mimma Barber, a financial assistant at the tax relief office at Caserma Ederle.

Were now sending the majority of our customers to BNL, the Italian bank on base, Barber said.

BNL can still produce same-day checks, even for those who bank elsewhere.

Community Bank declined to comment directly and referred all questions to Defense Finance Accounting Services, which oversees the bank.

DFAS spokesman Steve Burghardt said that agency is working with Community Bank to try to improve the process.

But ultimately we do not control that outcome, he said.

The change affects all Community Bank locations across Italy.

At MediaWorld on Tuesday, a woman who works on base and did not want to be named because she feared command retaliation for expressing her opinion, said she was frustrated with the new process.

MediaWorlds tax-free receipt is good for 48 hours, after which the company will no longer hold items or prices. The woman had just been to Community Bank and heard for the first time about the new five-business-day procedure. She was at MediaWorld to ask for an extension.

I was really upset, she said. I asked Community Bank when this changed, and they said two months, but nobody told us.

While some large purchases like furniture can likely wait five business days, smaller purchases and sale items are more time-sensitive.

U.S. Army Garrison Italy commander Col. Scott Horrigan is looking into the issue, his office said, and also is considering ways to make the tax relief offices hours more convenient.

The office is closed on Fridays, which can exacerbate the problem with the check-issuing delay, families said.

Customers arent the only ones who are frustrated.

We prefer the old way for sure, said a Community Bank teller who insisted on anonymity because she was not authorized to speak. Before, it was only us doing everything, and it was much easier.
A photo included in court documents that prosecutors allege Mirsad Ramic sent to his mother. (U.S. Department of Justice)

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Tribune News Service)  A Kentucky resident has been convicted of providing support to a terrorist organization, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

A jury convicted Mirsad Hariz Adem Ramic, 34, of Bowling Green, this week on charges of providing material support to the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham, known as ISIS; conspiracy to support the organization; and receiving military training.

The U.S. government classifies ISIS as a terrorist organization and says it carries out attacks around the world.

Ramic came to the U.S. as a refugee from Bosnia when he was about 10 years old and has dual U.S.-Bosnian citizenship, according to federal authorities.

He and two other men, who had been students at Western Kentucky University, allegedly left Kentucky in June 2014, traveled to Turkey and then crossed into Syria and joined ISIS. The evidence showed that Ramic received military-type training at an ISIS camp and later took part in fighting for the group in Syria.

For instance, prosecutors said in one motion that in July 2014, Ramic sent a message to one of the men who had gone to Syria with him describing how he had used an anti-aircraft weapons to shoot at airplanes.

Federal authorities said there also was a photo of Ramic on social media that showed him wearing camouflage clothing and standing in front of a truck that had an anti-aircraft gun on it and an ISIS flag.

Messages between Ramic and one of the men who traveled with him indicated the third man was killed in 2015, according to a prosecution motion.

An FBI agent swore out a criminal complaint against him in 2016, but the case took years to prosecute because Ramic was in prison in Turkey.

Ramic has been in custody since he was sent back to the U.S. in December 2021. He is to be sentenced in September. He faces up to 50 years in prison, according to the Department of Justice.

2024 Lexington Herald-Leader

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC
Relatives of service members killed in Osprey aircraft crashes clasp hands before a hearing on the Department of Defenses V-22 Osprey program, June 12, 2024, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Joe Gromelski/Special to Stars and Stripes)

WASHINGTON  The militarys nearly 400 V-22 Ospreys will not be permitted to fly their full range of missions until mid-2025, the leader of the aircraft program told House lawmakers on Wednesday.

I will not certify the V-22 to return to unrestricted flight operations until I am satisfied that we have sufficiently addressed the issues that may affect the safety of the aircraft, Vice Adm. Carl Chebi, who leads U.S. Naval Air Systems Command, told a subpanel of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability.

The House committee announced its investigation into the safety of the aircraft in December 2023 after an Osprey flown by Air Force special operators crashed off Japans coast on Nov. 29 killing eight service members. This crash was the fourth in two years, killing 20 troops in total.

Chebi said 64 service members have been killed in air and ground accidents and another 93 have been injured since the military started flying the aircraft in 2007.

Peter Belk, left to right, performing the duties of assistant secretary of defense for readiness; Vice Adm. Carl Chebi, commander of the U.S. Naval Air Systems Command; and Gary Kurtz, DODs program executive officer for air anti-submarine warfare and special missions programs, listen during a hearing on the V-22 Osprey program, June 12, 2024, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (Joe Gromelski/Special to Stars and Stripes)

The U.S. military grounded all Ospreys used by the Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps following the incident. The services returned their Ospreys to flight status after Naval Air Systems Command lifted a three-month ban on March 8.

At the time of the November crash, investigators thought the problem might involve the aircrafts propeller rotor gearbox, NBC News reported.

Chebi told lawmakers on Wednesday that it will be at least another six to nine months before his command will be able to complete all the safety and performance assessments for the Osprey, which can fly like an airplane and land like a helicopter.

Lawmakers expressed their frustrations regarding the lack of access to safety information records that they have requested. The House subpanel has yet to receive the wear and replacement rates on Osprey proprotor gearboxes, a component that was a factor in the crash off Japan.

The repeated drumbeat of fatalities is totally unacceptable, said Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass. What do you think the consequences will be if we have another V-22 go down, and we lose more brave Marines or airmen between now and the time ... that we might have this clutch situation figured out? Your whole programs done. Its done. If another Osprey goes down, were done. This programs done. So why dont we ground this now?

Marine Corps Osprey in June 2023 preparing to embark the USS New York, a San Antonio-class amphibious transportation dock ship. (William Bennett IV/U.S. Navy)

Committee members also have asked for internal crash reports that the military conducts with surviving air and ground crews and witnesses. The reports, known as safety investigation board reports, arent available to the public and cannot be used to punish a crew. They are in place to identify and quickly share any safety issues among the fleet.

Whenever I hear about one of these things going down  it always bothers me. Its one thing to lose somebody in combat but to lose somebody in a non-combat situation should be almost inexcusable, said Rep. Glenn Grothman, R-Wis., chairman of the House subpanel.

One reason for the extension of restricted flight is the military is still working to fix a clutch failure that was identified as one of the primary factors in a June 2022 crash that killed five Marines in California, The Associated Press reported.

The families of four Marines killed in the Osprey crash filed a lawsuit last month naming Osprey producers Boeing, Bell Textron, Rolls Royce Corp. and Rolls Royce North America and accusing the aircraft makers of being liable for its defective design and manufacture.

Family members of various fallen service members attended the hearing. Some could be seen seated behind the three officials testifying holding pictures of loved ones in their laps. The three officials were Chebi, Peter Belk, who is performing the duties of assistant secretary of defense for readiness at the Pentagon, and Gary Kurtz, program executive officer for the air, anti-submarine warfare, assault and special mission programs at the Pentagon.

Lawmakers expressed their appreciation for the families who attended the hearing to keep pushing for changes.

Belk turned to the family members during his opening remarks to tell them that they had his commitment to continue to drive the safest outcomes possible  to reduce mishaps in the future.
The U.S. Capitol seen through a window of the Cannon House Office Building. (Carlos Bongioanni/Stars and Stripes)

WASHINGTON  The Republican-led House Appropriations Committee on Thursday approved a defense spending bill that funds a 19.5% pay raise for junior enlisted service members and includes divisive social policy riders, defying the White House and Democrats.

In a 34-25 vote, the committee advanced legislation that will allocate $833 billion to the Defense Department in fiscal 2025 while also eliminating funding for diversity and inclusion programs, gender-affirming health care and abortion access for troops in states that ban or limit the procedure.

Republicans said the bill refocuses the Pentagon on its core war-fighting mission amid competition with China and removes spending on social agendas that do not align with the Defense Departments primary purpose. The legislation cuts $18 billion from the White House budget request for defense, including $621 million from climate change initiatives and $53 billion from diversity efforts.

We will not be giving out blank checks, said Rep. Ken Calvert, R-Calif. In short, this bill procures where we can, trains where we must and invests in capability that will make Chinese leaders wake up every day and say, Today is not the day to provoke the United States of America. 

Democrats blasted the legislation for discriminating against women and minorities and said the inhumane and contemptible culture-war provisions would hinder military recruiting. An attempt by Rep. Betty McCollum, D-Minn., to add an amendment removing the measures from the bill was unsuccessful.

It is shameful that this bill contains a laundry list of partisan proposals that divide Americans, including provisions that hurt women and LGBTQ+ service members and obstruct efforts to welcome Americans of all backgrounds into our armed forces, said Rep. Rosa DeLauro of Connecticut, the top Democrat on the committee.

She accused Republicans of using the legislation to further their goal of instituting a national ban on abortion. The Pentagon currently provides time off and travel reimbursement for women who need to travel to obtain reproductive health care. The policy was instituted after the Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion in 2022.

Democrats and Republicans also clashed over a much-talked-about proposal to give junior enlisted troops a 15% pay raise on top of a 4.5% pay increase the White House requested for all service members.

A bipartisan panel convened by the House Armed Services Committee recommended the additional pay bump for ranks E-4 and below as a critical part of improving the quality of life for service members and helping the military remain competitive with the civilian labor market.

The White House on Tuesday said it strongly opposed implementing the measure before the Pentagons completion of a quadrennial compensation review. McCollum, the top Democrat on the committees defense subpanel, added her voice to the opposition on Thursday.

She argued the total pay for junior troops, when accounting for other compensation such as housing allowances and free health care, amounted to $50,000 per year and was generous compared to the private sector. She also said the proposal would create an odd disparity where promotions do not come with as high of a pay raise.

The White House estimated the pay increases would cost $3.3 billion in fiscal 2025 and more than $22 billion from 2025 to 2029. McCollum said Republicans failed to adequately fund the raises in their bill, falling short by $800 million.

The services are going to be forced to fill that hole themselves by making decisions to cut elsewhere and where will those cuts come from? From the upkeep and restoration of barracks? For support for child care? From service modernization priorities? she asked. We dont know whats going to be sacrificed and for me, thats the problem.

Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Calif., disputed McCollums arguments, pointing out that pay for the lowest junior rank starts at $24,200 per year. He also said housing allowances do not fully cover the cost of rents and mortgages.

Literally a third of our troops right now qualify for food stamps, so Im committed to keep fighting this fight until we get it right, he said. The fact that the commander in chief is threatening to veto our bills because of these pay raises, to me, is frankly offensive to our enlisted troops. We should all get on board for the big win for this one, and I applaud the majority in this case for trying to figure out how to do it rather than trying to figure out why we cant do it and avoiding this issue.

An effort by House Republicans last year to give junior enlisted service members a 30% pay hike failed during negotiations on a final spending bill with the Democrat-led Senate. The compromise legislation also stripped the controversial culture war issues that Republicans reinserted into this years bill.

Democrats vowed Thursday to again scrub partisan measures from the final version of the legislation. They also rallied around an attempt to reinstate $300 million for an annual training and weapons procurement program for Ukraine, though it was ultimately shot down by the full committee.

The bill now moves to the full House for consideration. The Senate has yet to unveil its funding plans for the Defense Department.
Veterans advocacy groups on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, urged House lawmakers to update eligibility rules and payment rates for a little-known program that gives a tax-free monthly benefit to veterans who are unable to work but lack a 100% disability rating from the Department of Veterans Affairs. (Stars and Stripes)

WASHINGTON  Veterans advocacy groups on Wednesday urged House lawmakers to update eligibility rules and payment rates for a little-known program that gives a tax-free monthly benefit to veterans who are unable to work but lack a 100% disability rating from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Veterans return [from combat] changed. They need the resources to thrive and survive. Ensuring their survivability is the least we can do, Michael Figlioli, director of the National Veterans Service at the Veterans of Foreign Wars, said at a hearing of the House Veterans Affairs Committees subpanel on disability assistance and memorial affairs.

Figlioli and other veterans advocates said the individual unemployability program that provides much-needed financial help for veterans who otherwise would not qualify for full VA disability benefits is in need of a major review and update from Congress to address compensation levels as well as eligibility criteria that have not changed since being established in the 1940s.

Veterans become eligible for full VA disability compensation  at 100%  under the program after providing evidence of a work history of five years or more that shows problems obtaining and keeping employment. They must show illnesses and injuries connected to their military service contributed to their being unable to work, according to the VA.

In fiscal 2024, the program pays qualifying veterans a tax-free benefit of $3,800 per month.

More than 377,000 veterans received compensation through the program in 2023, receiving $7 billion overall in monthly payments and other benefits, the VA said.

Ron Burke, VA deputy undersecretary for policy and oversight, said the individual unemployability program provides full disability compensation for veterans who are unable to work but also have ratings for impairments that do not reach 100%.

Veterans only have to show a minimum disability of 60% for a single disability or 70% for two or more disabilities to be considered for the program.

Rep. Morgan Luttrell, R-Texas, who is chairman of the subcommittee, said the compensation is meant to make veterans whole by recognizing and awarding payments for projected income loss because of military service-related injuries and illnesses. But he also said the program pays everyone the same and does not vary amounts based on education and work history, which are indicative of earnings potential.

We want to make sure the program is adequately supporting veterans who have earned it, and their families, he said.

Congress needs to begin looking at increasing compensation that goes beyond the annual cost of living adjustment, said Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H.

I appreciate having a hearing to highlight this obscure program and shed light on ways that VA may help veterans who are unable to work or willing to reenter the workforce but need some assistance, he said. But I would argue that the payment rate is not high enough.

Pappas also said the disability rating schedule is rigid when impairment varies by individual.

Two veterans may experience the same disability differently, he said.

Marquis Barefield, assistant national legislative director with the Disabled American Veterans, said compensation for veterans in the program is about 25% less than the average salary of $59,000 for U.S. workers.

It is time to change that, he said.

Michael Stoddard, national service director of the Wounded Warrior Project, said a survey of the groups members showed most felt the $3,800 monthly compensation was not enough to meet financial obligations.

Veterans groups also told lawmakers that they opposed making evaluations of a veterans job skills, called vocational assessments, a requirement to qualify for the compensation.

Most veterans want to work, Barefield said.

He said the requirement would place an undue burden on veterans who might have the skills to perform a job but have mental disorders or physical impairments from military service that keep them from employment.

The veterans groups also said they opposed attempts by some lawmakers to reduce or eliminate the program for veterans at the federal retirement age of 67 who are collecting Social Security.

The organizations said veterans receiving individual unemployability compensation have service-connected disabilities that have prevented them from working and contributing fully to the Social Security program, thus limiting compensation in retirement.
McEvoy shouted: Just let me go, Ill stab the face-off you, Ill stab you to death, before he lashed out at an officer

A man serving a life sentence for murder slashed a prison officers face with a sharpened toilet brush after he had been taken out of jail to get an X-ray, a court has heard.

Graham McEvoy (26) of Captains Road, Crumlin, Dublin 12, pleaded guilty to assaulting a prison officer, causing him harm outside the Swiftcare clinic in Smithfield on May 8, 2023.

McEvoy had just attended for an X-ray at the clinic and had been released from his handcuffs to sit back into the waiting prison van when he lunged at prison officers in a bid for freedom, Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard today.

Witnesses say McEvoy shouted: Just let me go, Ill stab the face-off you, Ill stab you to death, before he lashed out at an officer.

McEvoy admitted producing a white plastic improvised weapon  a sharpened toilet brush; while two further charges of threats to kill and attempting to escape lawful custody were taken into consideration.

Judge Pauline Codd sentenced him to four years in prison, noting that the law did not allow her to impose a sentence consecutive to the one McEvoy is already serving for murder.

McEvoy was convicted after a week-long trial at the Central Criminal Court in 2017 of murdering Paul Curran (23) at Seagull House, Crumlin Road, on July 16, 2016, by stabbing him to death.

He was handed a life sentence and is currently an inmate at Midlands Prison.

This sentence cannot act as a true deterrent, in light of the fact that I cant impose a consecutive sentence, said Judge Codd, backdating it to last month when McEvoy pleaded guilty.

Judge Codd said the prison officer was left with a scar after he was cut under his eye in what she said was a highly dangerous manoeuvre by McEvoy.

She set a headline sentence of five years but reduced it to four years on account of McEvoys guilty plea, his expressions of remorse and the consequences he has suffered within the prison system.

McEvoy spent a considerable period on 24-hour lock-up after assaulting the officer, the court heard.

McEvoy has 32 previous convictions, including the murder charge, and others for drugs and road traffic offences, robberies and possession of a phone in prison.

Garda Deirdre Gill told Rebecca Smith BL, prosecuting, that three prison officers escorted McEvoy to the Swiftcare clinic in Smithfield on the day in question.

He attended the clinic for an x-ray without incident and went back to the van wearing handcuffs.

The court heard that a prison officer removed one cuff to allow McEvoy to climb into the van.

McEvoy sat down but then stood up again and made a drive towards the prison officers, barging through them to try and escape.

Outside the van, a prison officer tried to restrain Mr McEvoy against the car parked next to them, pushing him up against it to use the car as leverage.

McEvoy then swung both arms violently, lashing out with the arm that was still cuffed and threatening to stab the prison officer to death.

The prison officer felt a sharp pain under his right eye, the court heard.

Another officer grabbed for the weapon and got control of the accuseds right hand.

The officers noticed a 15cm-long white object which fell to the ground and was moved away.

It was a toilet brush that had been manipulated into a point. I believe it had come from McEvoys cell, and he had concealed it on his person, Gda Gill said.

The prison officer was treated in hospital and given sutures and a tetanus injection.

He also visited his GP, who described him as shaken and worried.

A victim impact statement was handed to the judge but not read out in court.

Keith Spencer BL, defending, said McEvoy wished to make a heartfelt apology to the prison officer he stabbed and to the others who had escorted him to the clinic.

Mr Spencer said his client has suffered a deterioration of his mental health in prison and had been given different diagnoses of multiple personality disorder, bipolar disorder and schizophrenia by different psychiatrists.

On the day, he should have been taking medication, and he wasnt, counsel said, adding that McEvoy was in a paranoid state and was worried for his own safety.

Mr Spencer said McEvoy had been the subject of repeated attacks from other prisoners and would carry improvised shivs and such items around with him.

McEvoy found custody very difficult and was frustrated by the varying diagnoses he had received, counsel said.

McEvoy accepts that the prison officers were just carrying out their job and that his actions were totally unjustifiable, the court heard.

He is now engaging with psychiatric services in prison and wants to tackle his drug addiction before he appears before a parole board.

Judge Codd placed the offence in the uppermost range of seriousness and said prison officers have to be protected during the course of their duties.
The defendant, of Hampton Wood Drive in Finglas, admitted uninsured driving and possession of cocaine, heroin and cannabis, as well as having drugs for sale or supply.

Charanand Flannery (26) began selling drugs to feed his own habit.

One of the earliest memories of a young dad repeatedly caught dealing drugs was of collecting his mothers heroin from a flats complex, a court heard.

Charanand Flannery (26) later developed his own problems with drugs and started selling them to feed his own habit.

Judge David McHugh fined Flannery 2,000, banned him from driving for 15 years and imposed a 22-month sentence, consecutive to his current sentence.

The defendant, of Hampton Wood Drive in Finglas, admitted uninsured driving and possession of cocaine, heroin and cannabis, as well as having drugs for sale or supply.

Garda Kirsty Russell told Blanchardstown District Court gardai conducted a search on February 8, 2024 and found 350 worth of heroin and 470 of cocaine. A search on August 13, 2023 found 240 worth of cocaine.

Another search on August 18, 2022 found heroin and cocaine worth a total of 1,335.

Flannery was also caught driving without insurance on three occasions in 2022 and 2023.

The court heard he received a five-and-a-half year sentence in February after a garda was hit by a car he was driving at a checkpoint, leaving the officer with serious spinal injuries.

Defence solicitor Simon Fleming said Flannerys mother was a drug addict and he was born addicted to drugs.

His mother lost both legs due to her addiction and as a young child of seven or eight he would be sent to collect heroin for her.

Judge McHugh said Flannerys childhood was truly shocking.

Mr Fleming said Flannery was doing very well in jail, as he enjoyed the structures of prison life. He worked as a cleaner and was due to begin a drug counselling programme.
All three had been charged with possessing two Soviet grenade heads, two detonators and plastic explosives

A solicitor for the Public Prosecution Service today told Derry Magistrates Court that terror charges against three family members arrested nine months ago are to be dropped.

The three now-former defendants, John Martin Kelly (43), from Columbcille Court, Derry, his brother Gerard Kelly (48), from Victoria Place, Derry, and Gerard Kellys daughter Shannon Kelly (26), from Creevagh Heights, also in Derry, appeared in court following their arrests last September after weapons and explosives were found following planned searched by the PSNI.

Sixteen police officers sustained injuries when they were attacked by rioters during the operation in the city last September, which was centred in the Southway, Creevagh Heights and Stewarts Terrace areas.

All three had been charged with possessing two Soviet grenade heads, two detonators and plastic explosives with intent to endanger life and in suspicious circumstances.

They had also been jointly charged with possessing a Browning firearm and ammunition with intent to endanger life and in suspicious circumstances.

When the case against the defendants was mentioned before District Judge Barney McElholm, the prosecuting solicitor said: We are in a position to say that the charges against the three accused are being withdrawn, as it has been decided that the test for a prosecution has not been met.

Mr McElholm then struck out the charges against the three family members.
The flight departed Glasgow at 3.30pm on Wednesday and diverted to Shannon airport at around 5.30pm

A 19 year old man has appeared in court charged with two alleged serious assaults on fellow passengers on board a Tenerife bound flight that was forced to divert to Shannon airport on Wednesday.

At Ennis District Court on Thursday afternoon, Jay Dalziel with an address at Cornelia Street, Motherwell in Scotland appeared after being charged with two counts of assault causing harm on board the Glasgow to Tenerife flight on Wednesday, June 12th.

Mr Dalziel is also facing two breach of the peace charges contrary to Section 20 of the Air Navigation Act on board the jet2.com flight no L3155 on June 12th where he is accused of engaging in behaviour of a threatening, abusive or insulting nature whether by word or gesture with intent to cause of breach of the peace.

In the case, Mr Dalziel - who turned 19 at the end of last month - is charged with the assault causing harm of Amie Hendry and assault causing harm of John Mills country to Section 3 of the Offences against the Person Act 1997 on June 12th.

The flight departed Glasgow at 3.30pm on Wednesday and diverted to Shannon airport at around 5.30pm following an incident on board.

Mr Dalziel was arrested by Gardai after the aircraft touched down and was brought to Shannon Garda Station and the flight continued its journey to Tenerife.

Jay Dalziel

In evidence of arrest, charge and caution, Det Garda Roddy Burke of Shannon Garda Station told the court that Mr Dalziel made no reply after charge when charged at Shannon Garda Station at 3pm on Thursday.

Judge Alec Gabbett remanded Mr Dalziel in custody with consent to bail on condition that a 5,000 independent surety be lodged.

Explaining the requirement for the independent surety of 5,000, Judge Gabbett said: These are serious assault charges and it is important that I know someone is going to face trial.

Sgt John Burke told Judge Gabbett that directions are awaited from the DPP.

The accused' grand-father said that the cash would be provided within two and a half hours and Judge Gabbett told him that Mr Dalziel would be admitted to bail when the money is brought to Limerick prison.

Judge Gabbett directed that Gardai return Mr Dalziels passport to allow him to return home to Scotland.

Judge Gabbett said that it was the accuseds age was the biggest factor when allowing him to return to Scotland

Judge Gabbett said that Mr Dalziel in the circumstances may have to take the ferry back to Scotland.

He said that airlines may not be too keen to allow him to board a flight. He has to take that risk when he books the flight

Judge Gabbett said that he would like Mr Dalziel to be accompanied back and his grand-father said that this would be the case.

Asked on the issue of legal aid, solicitor, Stiofan Fitzpatrick for Mr Dalziel told Judge Gabbett that he would reserve his position on that issue.

Judge Gabbett remanded Mr Dalziel in custody with consent to bail to appear at Ennis District Court next Wednesday. Judge Gabbett said that if Mr Dalziel takes up bail and returns to Scotland that his attendance at court would be excused. After court, Gardai escorted Mr Dalziel to Limerick prison.

Those convicted of assault causing harm in the district face prison terms up to 12 months and if a case is heard on indictment in the circuit court up to five years in prison.
Amanda Lynskey (44) was arrested and charged following an incident at Athlone Train Station

A woman in her 40s has appeared in court charged with allegedly stealing a suitcase from its unsuspecting owner after they had fallen asleep on a train in the midlands.

Amanda Lynskey (44), of Dunlo Harbour, Ballinasloe, Galway was arrested and charged following an incident at Athlone Train Station on April 16, 2024.

That charge alleged that Lynskey stole the distinctive pink suitcase, which contained over 2,000 in various electronic devices, on board the carriage of the train.

Garda Damien Stone gave evidence before Judge Bernadette Owens at a sitting of Athlone District Court of having arrested the accused.

Judge Bernadette Owens remanded Amanda Lynskey (pictured) on bail to reappear before a sitting of Athlone District Court next month.

He said when the theft charge was put to Lynskey at 4:15pm yesterday (Wednesday), the accused made no reply after caution.

The court was told there were no objections to bail with the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) consenting for summary disposal, meaning the matter could be disposed of in the District Court.

In ruling on jurisdiction to determine whether the case merited those directions, Judge Bernadette Owens was told how gardai had received a report of suitcase having been removed from an Irish Rail carriage.

It was revealed the owner of the suitcase had fallen asleep and only noticed it had been taken when she woke up.

Amanda Lynskey was charged with stealing a suitcase containing over 2,000 worth of contents from an unsuspecting woman after she had fallen asleep on an Irish Rail train.

The CCTV was reviewed and the accused was seen on CCTV walking out of the train station and into a taxi with the suitcase, said Garda Stone, who told of how its contents were not recovered following the incident.

Defence solicitor Mark Cooney applied for a brief adjournment in order to ascertain instructions from his client and, in doing so, requested disclosure of the States evidence in connection to the case.

Judge Owens granted that request and remanded Lynskey on bail to a sitting of Athlone District Court on July 10.
Car scam conman Eamon Shield is suing the Irish Prison Service and the Minister for Justice

Christopher Coakley (left), pictured here with Derek Hutch who was shot dead by the Kinahan cartel near Wheatfield Prison in 2018

Christopher Coakley, a cousin of Kinahan cartel murder victim Derek Coakley Hutch, has been identified in the Circuit Civil Court as the man who bladed convicted scammer Eamon Shield eight years ago in Mountjoy Prison after Shield had been seen talking with a garda.

Car scam conman Shield, (51) of Esker Pines, Lucan, Co Dublin, is now suing the Irish Prison Service and the Minister for Justice for 60,000 damages for negligence in allegedly failing to protect him from violent assault while he served a four-year sentence for theft and deception.

Shield told his counsel Ben Clarke that the attack by Coakley had taken place on the day he had been tipped off about rumours circulating among prisoners that there was some threat against him.

David Boughton, counsel for the state, told Judge Jennifer OBrien that the prison authorities had no knowledge of any threat against Mr Shield at the time nor had they any record or knowledge of a complaint by Shield allegedly made to a senior prison officer before the attack.

Shield said he had been attacked from behind by Coakley using a weapon fashioned out of double razor blades. He had been left with parallel deep lacerations across his right cheek and taken to the Mater Hospital where his face was stitched.

He told Mr Clarke, who appeared with Tiernan Solicitors, that he had reported the rumours of a threat to him to Assistant Chief Officer Padraig Woods but had simply been told they got reports of threats like that all the time.

Nothing further had been done about it and he would have expected to have been moved or protected in some way.

Shield said he was embarrassed about the double scar and would like to be able to have plastic surgery carried out to improve the look of it eventually but could not afford it now.

He was very conscious about the scars and was still conscious of anyone walking behind him too closely.

When cross-examined by Mr Boughton he said he had not seen or heard anyone approaching him from behind prior to the attack.

He said he recalled filling in a form when he first arrived at the prison two months before the assault but had made no reference about having been under threat.

He told Mr Boughton that years earlier for family reasons he had changed his surname. He had a job in the prison kitchen and had been called out to speak to a garda about other court matters.

Padraig Woods, now a chief prison officer in Limerick prison, told Mr Boughton he had no recollection of any conversation with Shield about rumours of threats to him or that he had to watch out after having been seen talking to a garda.

For his protection he would have been put in a cell and then taken away from the area if we had received any report of a threat to him, Chief Officer Woods said.

He told Mr Clarke in cross examination that weapons could be fashioned out of anything, even toothbrushes, and were found every day in searches within the prison service. He said a search had been carried out in Coakleys cell about six months prior to the attack on Prisoner Shield and there had not been any follow-up search prior to the Shield incident.

Coakley is currently serving an eight year jail sentence following an attack on a doctor who had been approached for money by Coakley in the dockland area near his home.

Shield had been found guilty of 25 counts of theft and deception following a two-week trial in the Circuit Criminal Court in which a mature student, who lost 3,000 to Shield posing as a legitimate businessman, had told the court of being tricked and duped out of his hard earned cash.

The conman stole 178,000 from 12 people as part of the scheme for which he was jailed for four years.

Judge OBrien, following submissions by Mr Clarke and Mr Boughton, reserved judgment on Shields 60,000 claim against the Prison Service and the Minister for Justice.
Dumitru Marcu allegedly stole over 2,000 worth of items from supermarkets and pharmacies in Westmeath, Laois and Roscommon.

Ionut Dumitru Marcu was remanded on bail in connection to a series of alleged shoplifting incidents in Westmeath, Laois and Roscommon.

A Romanian man has appeared in court accused of carrying out six shoplifting raids at various shops across the midlands within the space of just three weeks.

Twenty-two-year-old Ionut Dumitru Marcu, with an address at 121 Meadowbrook, Willow Park, Co Westmeath came before a sitting of Athlone District Court on Wednesday charged with allegedly stealing over 2,000 worth of items from supermarkets and pharmacies in Westmeath, Laois and Roscommon.

All of the incidents took place between May 22 and June 10.

The first of those took place at Dunnes Store, Mountmellick Road, Portlaoise where Marcu is accused of stealing Hennessy brandy valued at 119.

The accused was also charged with stealing 140 worth of brandy on the same date, this time at Dunnes Store, Ballypheason, Roscommon.

The following day, Marcu allegedly returned to the same store to steal 12 bottles of brandy amounting to approximately 720 with over 300 of brandy and spirits being taken from Tesco Ireland in Roscommon.

Marcu was also charged with stealing a cache of perfumes worth 750 from Boots Harbour Place Shopping Centre in Mullingar on June 10 as well as almost 137 of Moet and Chandon champagne from the midlands towns Harbour Place Dunnes Stores supermarket on the same date.

Giving evidence, Garda Karen Coglan said Marcu made no reply after caution, adding that directions from the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) were still outstanding.

She said there were no objections to bail, subject to a number of conditions.

Ionut Dumitru Marcu was remanded on bail in connection to a series of alleged shoplifting incidents in Westmeath, Laois and Roscommon.

They included orders for the accused to sign on once a week at Athlone garda station, to provide a mobile phone number to gardai and remain contactable at all times and to reside at his home address.

Marcu was also directed to stay out of Dunnes Stores and Boots in Mullingar, Tesco and Dunnes Stores in Roscommon and its equivalent in Portlaoise.

Legal aid was also granted and a Romanian interpreter was certified for by Judge Bernadette Owens.

Marcu was remanded on bail to appear back on June 17 and 18 for the Laois and Roscommon charges respectively with a date of July 4 pencilled in at Mullingar District Court for the Westmeath incidents.
Beijing (Gasgoo)- On June 6, Dongfeng Motor's luxury electric off-roader brand, MHERO Technology, officially launched its MHERO 1 (known as the MHERO 917 in China) in Spain, the automaker announced on June 12.



Photo credit: Dongfeng Motor

Priced at 158,037 (approximately 1.23 million yuan), this launch marks a significant milestone in Dongfeng Motor's global strategy, enhancing the Chinese automaker's influence and competitiveness in the international market, and increasing recognition and trust among European consumers.

MHERO Technology is designed to meet the evolving demands of off-road consumers. Since its inception, the brand has been dedicated to providing global consumers with an exceptional luxury electric off-roading experience.

Photo credit: Dongfeng Motor

The Spanish automotive market holds substantial potential, with the government placing a strong emphasis on the development of electric vehicles (EVs). Since 2019, Spain has implemented incentive programs to promote EV industry growth, encouraging the construction of charging stations and consumer purchases of electric vehicles.

The MHERO 1, built on the M TECH intelligent off-road architecture, boasts superior platform, power, and off-roading capabilities, offering a new luxury electric off-roader option for local consumers.

Previously, the MHERO 1 has successfully hit the markets of Switzerland and the UAE. The MHERO 1 has successfully obtained the EUs ECE and the Middle Easts GSO vehicle certifications, and is undergoing long-term road testing in target markets worldwide to ensure its applicability and stability in different regional environments.
The male cannot be named due to his age

A male convicted by a jury of raping a 14-year-old girl at a north Down beauty spot was jailed for 18 months today.

The male  who was aged 16 at the time of the rape, who stood trial as a youth and who cannot be named due to his age  will spend an additional two years on licence when he is released from Hydebank Young Offenders Centre.

During the sentencing at Belfast Crown Court, it emerged that despite the jurys guilty verdict following a trial in April, the male continues to deny raping the girl.

Saying the males behaviour towards his young victim displayed a sense of entitlement and sexual aggression, Judge Mark Reel described the incident as a rape of a child by another child.

During the trial, the jury was told that the 14-year-old victim was raped in a wooded area at Helens Bay and was left with multiple cuts and abrasions to her legs.

On the afternoon of July 17, 2021, she and a group of friends boarded the train from Belfast to Helens Bay.

She consumed alcohol that day and at around 8pm she began walking with others back from the beach to the train halt when she was approached by the male, who, prior to the incident, had sent her sexualised messages.

The male, who had been at Helens Bay with another group of friends, grabbed her from behind and guided her off the path and into woods.

The 14-year-old girl told him to F*** off and that she didnt want to do anything sexual with him. However, he proceeded to push her into bushes, forced her onto the ground on her front and raped her.

When the complainant gave evidence at the trial, she recalled the incident.

Describing the male as three times my size, she said she kept saying No. She also explained that her legs were being stung by nettles.

I couldnt fight him, she told the court.

I was saying no but he told me to shut up. I was shouting at him to get off me. I kept saying no and that I didnt want this.

The jury heard that the victim told the male no at least seven times" and that she was face down the whole time.

She said the incident lasted around ten minutes and that it left her with multiple cuts all over her legs.

The jury also heard that after the sex attack ended, the young girl, shocked, then got up and walked to the train halt.

She said that after getting on the Belfast-bound train, she noticed the male was on the same train. She also said that after getting off the train at Lanyon Place, she told two of her friends what had just happened.

The complainant said how it properly hit me the next morning what had happened, adding that the male messaged her on Snapchat telling her to get the morning-after pill.

She said this message disgusted her, adding that, upon reading it, I thought: You just raped me. I didnt reply and I havent spoken to him since.

At the sentencing, Judge Reel said the males version of events at the trial, where he claimed the sexual activity was both consensual and instigated by her, was a dishonest account.

Judge Reel revealed that when the male was interviewed about the rape, he admitted to police to having had 12 previous sexual partners.

He said that after reading a pre-sentence report compiled on the male by the Probation Board, it was clear he continues to deny rape.

Judge Reel added that despite the Probation Board concluding that there was a low likelihood of the male re-offending, they note that they have to do a lot of work with him in terms of sexual and non-sexual relationships and personal development.

Turning to the teenage victim, Judge Reel said she has been significantly harmed by what happened to her in July 2021.

He continued: Since the incident, she describes a multitude of adverse impacts upon her day-to-day functioning caused by this rape.

This, he said, included her schoolwork and sleep pattern being affected, re-living the experience, feelings of anxiety and the heavy toll the trial process had upon her".

Judge Reel also spoke of feelings of vindication that the jury believed her and returned a guilty verdict. He also expressed the hope that she can succeed in her future.

Judge Reel then addressed the male as he stood in the dock: Your offending is so serious that neither a fine nor a community sentence can be justified and only an immediate custodial sentence is appropriate.

He imposed a three-and-a-half-year sentence, comprising 18 months in custody followed by two years on licence.

The male, who was placed on the sex offenders register when he was convicted by a jury in April, was also made the subject of a five-year sexual offences prevention order.
2 charged after sailors are confronted over boats tricolour as cops probe sectarian hate crime

Firefighters douse the burning boat in the early hours of the morning

THE crew of a boat who were victims of an alleged assault in a row over a tricolour said: Were lucky to be alive.

Conor Costello (30), Pat Meehan (25) and Gary Parke told how they were saved by the quick actions of police who arrived to break up a fight at the harbour of the picturesque Co Antrim village of Portballintrae last Monday night.

In a statement, the PSNI said they were treating reports of the attack as a sectarian hate crime.

Skipper Conor Costello shows his black eyes after the clash over the tricolour flying on his boat

PSNI officers responded swiftly to reports that hand-to-hand fighting involving a group of men was taking place at Beach Road near the tiny harbour and boat club.

Two uniformed officers arrived at the scene just in time to head-off a confrontation.

Mr Parke (26), an electrician from Derry, said he saw several dozen men with faces covered making their way down to the harbour.

I realised right away that they were loyalists, he told the Sunday World.

Gary Parke is treated by paramedics in his home

Just minutes after speaking with us, Mr Parke had a seizure in his Derry home and was treated by paramedics before being rushed by ambulance to nearby Altnagelvin Hospital with what appeared to be a stress-related complaint.

At the time of going to print, paramedics working on Mr Parke told his friends that after carrying out a series of tests they were still monitoring the situation.

The incident took place after the trios Derry-registered yacht Amaranthe  Greek for invincible  berthed alongside the outer harbour wall adjacent to a fixed steel ladder.

The boat was later burnt in the harbour and was totally destroyed.

When it sailed into the quiet port on Sunday afternoon, a green, white and orange Irish national flag was clearly visible flying from the top of the 26ft Sloops 50ft main mast.

Amaranthe after it had docked at Portballantrae harbour

The three had set sail from Derry and were on their way to Douglas in the Isle of Man, where they planned to watch the TT races.

They had hoped to witness Co Antrim motorbike super star Michael Dunlop make road race history by taking his 27th Mountain Circuit win and surpassing his legendary uncle Joeys 20-year record. But when the vintage yachts engine struggled against the oncoming tide, skipper Conor  an experienced fisherman who normally handles large sea-going trawlers  opted to divert to the nearest anchorage until the tide turned.

Picturesque Portballintrae Harbour was close by and he set a course for it.

Police made four arrests at the scene and the men were driven off in police cars and a van.

Accused Derek McKendry

However, as there was no landward escape route open to him, Mr Parke was forced to remain on the quay alongside two PSNI officers.

According to Mr Parke, the police were positioned to prevent people from gaining access to the yacht, still tied up on the quay. He said: With all the commotion, my phone had fallen into the water.

I couldnt even ring someone to come to collect me.

The police advised me to get out of the area as soon as possible and I was even taking the boat on my own.

But the police advised against it as by that time; the tide had really dropped to a dangerously low level.

I was really terrified, but then I remembered I had asked one of my friends to meet us in Portballintrae with a set of wet clothes.

And when I looked up I saw my friends car coming down the hill. I jumped into his car. We locked the doors and managed to get through the crowd without too much difficulty, he said.

The Sunday World has obtained a picture of a badly injured man who is facing a string of charges relating to the incident.

Derek McKendry (63), from Bushmills, is one of two Co. Antrim men arrested.

McKendry and his 62-year-old co-accused have been charged with offences including disorderly behaviour, assault occasioning actual bodily harm, common assault and theft.

Both men are due to appear before Coleraine Magistrates Court on Monday, July 1. All charges are currently being reviewed by the Public Prosecution Service.

Police issued a statement reiterating an earlier assertion that they are treating the incident as a sectarian hate crime.

Last night, the PSNIs chief inspector Vince Redmond said: Causeway Coast & Glens officers have taken this report extremely seriously.

Accused Derek McKendry after the clash at harbour

Two men have already been charged to appear at court on Monday 1st July.

And two further men were arrested and bailed pending further inquiries.

We are treating this report as a sectarian hate crime and we are reiterating our appeal to the Portballintrae community to come forward with any information they may have.

We realise this incident has cause a lot of concern locally and are continuing our proactive patrols in the area as a result.

Firefighters douse the burning boat in the early hours of the morning

It is the responsibility of each and every one of us to ensure that we live in a society where difference is respected and people feel safe, said Inspector Redmond.

He added: If you can assist with our continuing investigation, please contact police on 101, quoting reference number 1651 of 3/06/24.
WARNING: Graphic images She arrived this evening in such horrendous state. A full set of images are too distressing to show.

These are the horrific injuries inflicted on a cat by a gang of young thugs.

The Dublin Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (DSPCA) revealed how the animal had been set on fire by a group of young people.

The cat appears in a photo posted on the charitys X account with severe burn injuries to its face.

Warning readers of graphic content, a spokesperson wrote: This little cat was deliberately set on fire by a group of young people.

She arrived this evening in such horrendous state. A full set of images are too distressing to show.

They added: Her injuries are extensive and knowing this was done deliberately with such cruel intent makes us wonder what hope there is for animals.

The Dublin charity also revealed how inspectors are responding to and experiencing a massive surge in cruelty calls, some days more than we can cope with.

Each day we are operating at almost full capacity so we need support, they added. You can help support the DSPCA by volunteering, fostering, adopting or by making a small donation https://dspca.givingpage.org/main.

Please keep this little cat in your thoughts tonight. Thank you.

Outraged animal lovers have taken to the comments section to express their disgust and anger.

They need to be arrested, prosecuted, seen by forensic psychiatrists, one stormed.

Another added: Heart-breaking. Thank you for taking care of this poor defenceless cat. Truly hope those involved are found and punished, no excuse for torturing an animal in such a disturbing way.

Oh no, another wrote. Poor baby! I hope they can catch those that did this horrendous act and that they face consequences. Praying for a full recovery and a lot of love.

Thank you for taking care of the poor pet. This is so disturbing, another person has written. The people who did this should be put down.

If you can brutally abuse a defenceless little animal like this, then youre capable of doing the same to humans. History shows that serial killers often start by torturing animals.
Sentences of life requested by the prosecution in the trial were not handed down to those charged as the court said that after a grinding three-year trial a motive for De Vries death had not been proved.

A Dutch court has convicted and sentenced six men in connection with the murder of the well-known crime reporter and TV presenter Peter R De Vries.

But sentences of life requested by the prosecution in the trial were not handed down to those charged as the court said that after a grinding three-year trial a motive for De Vries death had not been proved.

Nicola speaks to Niall Donald about the sentencing and we also re-broadcast a lengthy interview about the murder with our colleague Jan Meeus which was filmed and recorded last year as we visited the crime scene and remembered his colleague and friend

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MORE EPISODES 
The flight had to be diverted after the man allegedly attacked crew members and passengers

Handcuffs can be seen on the man's wrists

The man is seen lying on the floor of the plane

The moment a drunk holidaymaker was handcuffed and dragged off a Jet2 flight to Tenerife that was diverted to Shannon Airport has been caught on camera.

Footage posted on social media shows the man lying on the floor on the aircraft that had earlier departed Glasgow shortly before 4pm on Wednesday on its way to the holiday island.

The flight had to be diverted after the passenger allegedly attacked crew members and passengers.

It has also been reported that several people had to restrain the man in order for the plane to land safely.

Handcuffs can be seen on the man's wrists

Footage recorded by others on the plane show a man, wearing nothing but shorts, being carried along the aisle as garda officers took him into custody.

A video, filmed on Snapchat, show his wrists were handcuffed behind his back while his legs appear to be tied together with a plane seatbelt.

The man who was reportedly intoxicated had been shouting as he was manhandled off the plane.

A passenger who filmed the clip captioned it: Tenerife then Ireland it is.

A Jet2 spokesperson told the Sun: We can confirm that flight LS155 from Glasgow to Tenerife has diverted to Shannon Airport this afternoon so that police could offload a disruptive passenger.

The flight, from Glasgow to Tenerife, was diverted to Shannon Airport yesterday at approximately 5.30pm.

Gardai met the aircraft and arrested the man under the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997.

The aircraft diverted to Shannon Airport, where gardai boarded the plane, a garda spokesperson stated.

During the incident, a woman in her 20s was assaulted.

Gardai say a male in his late teens was arrested in connection with the incident under the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act, 1997.

He is currently detained under Section 4 of the Criminal Justice Act, 1984, at a garda station in Co Clare, gardai added.

Investigations are ongoing.

Shannon Airport has been contacted for comment.
The criminal network, with leaders intercepted in Dubai and Turkey, organised multi-tonne cocaine shipments from South America to the EU

Europol have announced the take-down of an international cocaine cartel on Thursday.

A long-run investigation led by the Spanish Civil Guard (Guardia Civil), supported by Europol, resulted in the major hit on a criminal network involved in large-scale drug trafficking from South America to the EU.

This final operation is the culmination of a series of actions against this network that took place over the course of three years, according to authorities.

On Wednesday, four arrests were made in Spain after seven properties were searched. Jewellery and luxury watches were seized as well as a firearm and ammunition, 109,000 in cash and electronic equipment.

40 arrests- including three high value targets- were busted in Brazil, Croatia, Germany, Serbia, Spain and Turkey.

Gun, cash, ammunition

Roughly eight tonnes of cocaine was seized in Belgium, the Netherlands and Spain.

Armed cops seized assets amounting to 12.5 million and 3 million in Brazil, and over 50 million frozen in Serbia.

The internationally coordinated action is tied to a number of national and international investigations led by Belgium, Brazil, Croatia, Germany, Italy, Serbia and Turkey.

The sting was coordinated by Europols Operational Taskforce.

S.W.A.T teams move in on Wednesday June 12

The criminal network was orchestrating multi-tonne cocaine trafficking from Colombia, Brazil and Ecuador to the EU.

The suspects arranged the trafficking into the EU through maritime shipments going via logistical hubs in West Africa and the Canary Islands.

Once the drugs had reached the EU, the suspects used handling centres in Belgium, Croatia, Germany, Italy and Spain to further distribute cocaine across Europe.

The leaders of the drug trafficking organisation were temporarily based in Turkey and Dubai. From there, they operated the control and command centres of the criminal network.

International action

In August 2023, officers from the Spanish Civil Guard intercepted a vessel with 700 kilograms of cocaine on board near the Canary Islands.

Intelligence analysis of historical data from the encrypted communication investigations revealed that the Croatian-Italian crew previously imported at least 500 kilograms of cocaine from Brazil to Spain via this vessel.

The same operational method helped investigators to identify the coordinators and brokers, originating from the Western Balkan region.

They were established as high value targets by the Operational Taskforce for their involvement in financing and coordinating both shipments.

They are also linked to a previous interception of a tonne of cocaine, seized in September 2020 in the Canary Islands.

Seized handgun

In addition to the investigations carried out in Spain, the information exchange between countries, led by Europol, showed that investigations led by Belgium, Germany and Serbia targeted the same individuals and their associates.

Brazilian authorities targeted the Brazilian criminal organisation that had been transporting cocaine inland from source countries to seaports in Brazil and other logistical hubs.

They would then deliver cocaine shipments to West Africa, for further shipment operations coordinated by European criminal networks.

The Brazilian network provided different criminal networks with a number of criminal services, including logistics, and facilitated money laundering activities.

In March 2024, the Brazilian authorities carried out the last phase of an investigation into the laundering of the drug trafficking profits, which revealed that almost 500 bank accounts had handled over 371 million in the years prior.
During the course of the search, cannabis, cocaine, heroin, alprazolam and zopiclone were seized alongside drugs paraphernalia including scales and two large vacuum packing machines

A woman who was arrested after gardai seized drugs worth 410,000 in a raid in Tallaght on Wednesday has been charged.

The woman, in her 40s, is due to appear before the Criminal Courts of Justice (CCJ), Court No 2 at approximately 4.30pm.

A search operation at an address in Tallaght yesterday afternoon was carried out by gardai attached to the Dublin Crime Response Team (DCRT).

During the course of the search, cannabis, cocaine, heroin, alprazolam and zopiclone were seized alongside drugs paraphernalia including scales and two large vacuum packing machines.

The total value of the drugs seized is 410,000 and all drugs are now subject to analysis by Forensic Science Ireland (FSI).

One woman, aged in her 40s, was arrested at the scene and detained under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996 at a Garda station in Dublin.

Investigations are ongoing, gardai said, adding that the seizure came as part of Operation Tara, which aims to disrupt, dismantle and prosecute drug trafficking networks, at all levels - international, national, local - involved in the importation, distribution, cultivation, production, local sale and supply of controlled drugs.
The would be shooters gun jammed in the incident

An American assassin allegedly used a hijab for disguise whilst attempting to shoot a family in the UK, a court has heard.

Aimee Betro (44), hired in from Chicago, was allegedly used by Mohammed Nazir (30) and his father Mohammed Aslam (56) to carry out a revenge killing against the owner of a clothing store and his family.

Betros weapon jammed when she tried to whack Sikander Ali outside a house on Measham Grove, Birmingham, on Sept 7 2019.

Birmingham Crown Court heard that Betro was dressed in a traditional Muslim head covering during the shocking incident.

It is alleged she sat on the street in a parked car with a loaded gun, waiting for the victim to approach.

As he did, the would-be assassin came from the drivers side of the Mercedes, the prosecutor told the court. As she left the Mercedes she left the drivers door open. She walked quite calmly towards Sikander Ali and was pointing a gun at him at head height.

As she got closer to Sikander Ali he saw her and he saw the gun and she pulled the trigger to fire the gun at him. Mercifully and luckily for him the gun jammed.

The prosecutor said Mr Ali quickly reversed his car to escape, and Betro also drove off. She then allegedly took off on foot after dumping her vehicle.

The court heard Betro took a taxi back to the address the next day and unloaded her gun on the front of the property.

Where are you hiding? and: Stop playing hide and seek, were texts she allegedly sent to her targets.

Measham Grove, Birmingham

Betro has still not been caught after flying back to the US.

However, UK cops charged Nazir and Aslam for hiring the would-be killer.

The father and son from Derby were found guilty of conspiracy to murder. Nazir was also convicted of possession of a firearm with intent to cause fear of violence, illegally importing firearms and perverting the course of justice.

Jurors were told the pair held a grudge against Mr Alis family following a dispute at their clothing store in 2018 which left both conspirators injured.

A West Midlands Police spokesman said: Aslam and Nazir were determined to take revenge following a fall out where they were injured.

The lengths they went to in trying to make sure they werent implicated in pulling the trigger are immense.

However, thanks to some great police work and support from our Derbyshire colleagues, we were able to place them firmly in the middle of the attempted murder plot.

We hope that today, after a number of years unravelling this investigation, justice has been served.

That nobody died as a result of Aslam and Nazirs actions is through nothing other than sheer good fortune.

Their plan was to kill and had it not been for the gun jamming, then there is a good chance this would have been a murder investigation.

Nazir and Aslam will be sentenced on August 9.
Witnesses testified that Salem shot Magill as he parked his car in Mogies car park, having arrived to open the restaurant that morning

A man accused of killing the owner of an Irish pub outside Pittsburgh has been deemed not competent to stand trial, a US judge has ruled.

The case against Nathan Salem in the fatal shooting last year of David Magill, the owner of Mogies Irish Pub in Lower Burrell has now been postponed indefinitely.

He has lost touch with reality, testified Dr Robert Wettstein, a psychologist hired by Salems defense.

Wettstein testified that he met three times with Salem at the county jail and diagnosed him as having an unspecified psychotic disorder that requires treatment in a mental health facility.

Salem, he said, suffers from delusions and hallucinations.

Salem (45) was held at the Westmoreland County Prison without bond on December 21 after he was charged with criminal homicide and the first-degree murder of David Mogie Magill.

The 64-year-old owner of the bar and restaurant on Leechburg Road was gunned down outside the business.

At a preliminary hearing in February witnesses testified that Salem shot Magill as he parked his car in Mogies car park, having arrived to open the restaurant that morning.

Police said multiple people witnessed the shooting, which was also captured on video.

According to court records, Salem told police he shot Magill because he believed he was a drug-dealing paedophile.

Police said Salem didnt offer any evidence to support his claims while Magills family members denied Salems allegations.

According to local media reports, Eric Schwartz, a deputy warden of treatment at Westmoreland County Prison, testified Salem spent five days on suicide watch immediately after his arrest.

Since February, he has been confined alone to a cell under administrative custody over safety concerns, according to a report on TribLive.

Schwartz said Salem has complained that guards and jail staff are reading his mind and broadcasting his thoughts over the facilitys speakers.

He also suggested it rains in his cell, which he believes is a gas chamber. Schwartz testified Salem has expressed homicidal ideologies.

Westmoreland County Common Pleas Judge Scott Mears ordered Salem to be transferred to Torrance State Hospital in Derry for treatment to restore his competency that eventually could allow for the case against him to proceed, the report adds.

Officials have reportedly said it could be up to three months before a bed at the hospital is available for Salem.

Officials say that they plan to reevaluate Salem again in a couple of months.

Until then, he will remain at the county jail and receive treatment in the county lockup, the judge said.

Meanwhile, Mogie's Irish Pub reopened on January 29, with Magill's two kids taking over the business, according to CNN.

They said they are focused on honouring their dad's legacy.
The killing sent the Netherlands into shock and sparked wide-spread condemnation and concern for the safety of journalists in Europe

A woman lays flowers at the spot where de Vries was shot

Three men have been jailed for up to 28 years for their roles in the murder of the high-profile investigative journalist Peter R de Vries nearly three years ago.

A Dutch court convicted the three for the 2021 killing of the reporter who had been acting as an adviser to a suspect-turned-state witness in the trial against former Kinahan ally Ridouan Taghi when he was killed.

De Vries, who had previously stated he was on Taghis kill list, died of his wounds at age 64 nine days after he was shot as he exited a television studio on a busy Amsterdam street on July 6, 2021.

The killing sent the Netherlands into shock and sparked wide-spread condemnation and concern for the safety of journalists in Europe.

Prosecutors had demanded life sentences for the Dutch man who shot the reporter and for two men from Poland who had been charged with planning the murder and trying to help the shooter escape.

A woman lays flowers at the spot where de Vries was shot

While the full names of the suspects were not released in line with Dutch privacy regulations, the court sentenced the man who shot de Vries and another who drove the getaway car to sentences of 28 years in prison on Wednesday.

Another man who organised the murder was sentenced to 26 years and one month.

A total of nine men were charged in connection with the murder with three convicted of complicity and given sentences ranging from 10 to 14 years of imprisonment.

One man was convicted of drug possession but was cleared of complicity in the murder. He was sentenced to four weeks in jail.

De Vries, a regular talk show guest who was well-known for his TV programmes, in which he often worked with victims families pursued unsolved cases, had received threats from the underworld in connection with his work.

The killing of the reporter was described by Dutch King Willem-Alexander as an attack on journalism, the cornerstone of our constitutional state and therefore also an attack on the rule of law.

De Vries, whose investigative work around the disappearance of US citizen Natalee Holloway in Aruba in 2005 had won an International Emmy Award, had been advising state witnesss lawyer, Derk Wiersum, who was shot dead in front of his home in Amsterdam in 2019.

Taghi, who was sentenced to life in prison for murder and drug trafficking earlier this year, had made a public statement at the time denying reports that he had threatened to have de Vries killed.

Prosecutors in the de Vries case said they were convinced that Taghi had ordered the hit but the court said it had not been able to establish a link between the de Vriess murder and his role as adviser to the state witness.

In February of this year crime boss Taghi, who had previously attended Daniel Kinahans wedding in 2017 at the Burj al Arab Hotel, was sentenced to life in prison after one of the largest trials in Dutch criminal history.

Taghi was among three gang members handed life terms, with 14 others sentenced to between 21 months and 23 years in jail after nearly six years of hearings, known as the Marengo trial.

Taghi was described as the undisputed leader" of a murder organisation.

Fellow defendants Said R. and Mario R., both went down for life for charges involving six assassinations, four attempted killings, and plans to murder several other people.

Prosecutors had demanded life sentences against three additional suspects who were also convicted, including; Achraf B. who was sentenced to more than 29 years, Mohamed R. who received 27 years and Mao R. who will serve 15 years behind bars.

The other 11 suspects in the case were also convicted. Their sentences ranged from 21 months to more than 23 years.

Taghi was representing himself by the end of the trial as his lawyers had either resigned or been arrested. Taghi had said he would not attend the reading of the verdict on the final day.

Ridouan Taghi

Eight suspects did attend the ruling - key witness Nabil B. Mao R. Arthur M. Waild M., Mohamed M. Zaki R., Charif el A., and Ricardo O.

The court convicted Taghi in five of the murders.

He decided who would be killed and spared no one, the judge said. The amount of suffering Taghi caused to the victims and their loved ones is barely imaginable.

The judges also ruled that Taghi had used extreme violence to intimidate enemies and potential police informants.

By doing so he prevented people from cooperating with the police. Such terror has a disruptive effect on society, the judge said.

Three murders, all related to suspected gang member Nabil B, who handed himself in to police and agreed to be a main witness, are the subject of separate court proceedings.

Nabil Bs brother was killed in 2018. His lawyer, Derk Wiersum, was shot dead outside his home in Amsterdam the following year.

In July 2021, de Vries, who had been acting as Nabil Bs confidant, was shot in the street five times as he walked to his car from a television studio.

Murder targets were referred to as "dogs" that had to "sleep".

In most cases, according to the prosecution, the motive for the murders was based on the saying: Whoever talks, goes.

The boss of the so-called Maroc Mafia' was arrested in Dubai and extradited back to The Netherlands in 2019.

Taghi had denied all charges in the case, saying the money spent on a sham trial should have been spent instead on employing more teachers and police and health care, reportedly.
Beijing (Gasgoo)- On June 12, Seres Group, the parent of the new energy vehicle brand AITO, signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications, aiming to leverage the development trends and market needs of the automotive industry both domestically and internationally.



Photo credit: Seres Group

According to the agreement, the two parties will integrate their resources to promote mutual growth in areas such as automotive electronics, intelligent manufacturing, industrial software, information security, wireless communication, and intelligent computing.

A key initiative of this collaboration is the establishment of the "Seres-CQUPT Wireless Communication Joint Laboratory," dedicated to cutting-edge research in wireless communication. This lab will focus on vehicle-to-everything (V2X) wireless modules, antenna design and simulation, 5G (and future 6G) communication, intelligent signal and information processing, big data, AI modeling, information security, and smart factories.

Additionally, the partnership will include the creation of an internship and training base for students, an innovation base for graduate students, and an entrepreneurship base at Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications. These initiatives aim to cultivate professional and innovative talent by exploring new approaches to joint training programs.

The collaboration will also extend to the simulation development and design of key components for electric vehicles, smart manufacturing production line technologies, and the development of AI applications for electric vehicles. Both parties will offer technical services and talent cultivation to the public, and engage in various science popularization activities to enhance the local communitys recognition and understanding of these technologies.
It was alright putting the campaign online but I didnt realise you had to go and battle and batter doors and keep battering doors and keep shouting and sending emails and making phone calls and writing letters

Pauline Duddy, who lost her 21-year-old daughter Jasmin after taking the prescription drug pregabalin and other substances has called for tougher sentencing for dealers.

Early last year, the 21-year-old told a friend she believed she would end up in prison or dead if she did not change her ways. Within a few weeks, Jasmin was dead.

On February 2, 2023, her body was found in a house in Derry.

It is believed she had taken a quantity of pregabalin, a prescription drug often laced with contaminates and sold cheaply to addicts.

Jasmins was one of a number of deaths in the north west last year from a so-called bad batch of pregabalin  an extra strong version of the drug which can cause cardiac arrest among users.

Among the others to die were Sean Pol Boyle (28), also from Derry, and 20-year-old Andrea Logue from Strabane, Co. Tyrone.

Sean Pol and Andrea died in unrelated tragedies on the same day, August 12.

Their families spoke out publicly after their deaths to warn people about the deadly drugs.

As she listened to their heart-breaking stories, Jasmins mother, Pauline  who was still struggling to cope with her daughters death a few months earlier  knew she had to do something.

Jasmin Duddy

I could feel my mental health slipping and I said I need to do something to occupy my mind, she said. Not to take Jasmin out of my mind, but to try and focus on something to keep my head above water.

I thought something good has to come out of something so awful, if there is any good that can come out of it.

I mean, not for my family but if I can do something to stop some other mother feeling the way I am feeling, this is worth a shot.

As she sat in her home in Derrys Creggan estate, Pauline typed the words how do you start a campaign into her phone.

Within a few minutes, she had created an online campaign demanding tougher jail sentences for those convicted of supplying drugs.

Since then, the campaign has taken over her life.

I thought it was just a matter of putting a campaign up online and then sit back and do nothing else, she said.

Boy was I wrong. It was alright putting the campaign online but I didnt realise you had to go and battle and batter doors and keep battering doors and keep shouting and sending emails and making phone calls and writing letters.

It gave me a whole lot to focus on.

Speaking to the Sunday Worlds Crime World podcast, Pauline said she believes drug dealers in Northern Ireland are getting off lightly.

Pauline Duddy, who lost her 21-year-old daughter Jasmin after taking the prescription drug pregabalin and other substances has called for tougher sentencing for dealers.

At present, anyone convicted in the UK of supplying class A drugs such as heroin or cocaine could receive a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Someone convicted of supplying class B or C drugs, which include illegal prescription drugs, could be jailed for up to a maximum of 14 years.

However, Pauline said no one in Northern Ireland is being sent to prison for even close to the maximum sentence.

I believe if there is enough of a deterrent put in place, if a judge starts handing out 14 years imprisonments for anyone supplying drugs, they are going to have a think about it, instead of the two-year slap on the wrist they are getting at the minute.

If they are on remand, one day classes as two so by the time they get into court and are sentenced, most of them have their time served.

As part of her campaign for tougher sentences, Pauline has held protests outside the courthouse in Derry.

She has also met senior figures within the Department of Justice and is hoping to soon put her case at a meeting with Justice Minister Naomi Long.

The Derry woman does not want her daughters death to have been in vain.

Jasmin started taking drugs when she was 16. She had struggled at school and was lacking direction in her life.

Her mother says Jasmin, who had two older sisters and an older brother, was introduced to drugs by her boyfriend at the time.

It was the beginning of five years of hell for those who loved her.

Jasmin was so, so special, said Pauline.

There was an eight-year gap between her and her brother.

I nearly lost her when I was carrying her, so when I went full term and then delivered her, she was just the wee icing on the cake for me.

She was just always the spoilt wee baby in the house and she got what she wanted and she knew what buttons to press and wrap everyone round her wee finger.

And she was more than loved by everybody. She got everything she wanted and everything she needed.

All the love in the world within her own family. She couldnt have asked for any more love.

Pauline admits she was naive about her daughters drug use.

I didnt know for quite a time that Jasmin was taking anything and then one day I banged into her in the town.

The way she was speaking to me, her voice was very slurred. I was looking at her and said have you been drinking? because I was so naive about drugs.

There were no drugs in this city when I was growing up.

So I said have you drink taken? and she said no and I said well, what is wrong then?.

Ultimately, I had to learn about drugs.

Jasmin fell pregnant at 17 and stayed off drugs during the pregnancy. However, a few months after her son was born, she relapsed and eventually agreed to spend time in the Asha addiction treatment centre in Omagh.

She did so, so well, said Pauline about her daughters efforts to stay off drugs.

She looked healthy again, she was back to herself. Back to being Jasmin, being my daughter. I was so happy.

She looked so healthy when she was off everything and she was a stunning, stunning girl.

She seen good in everybody and had such a big heart. She would have took the shirt off her back for you.

What I noticed about Jasmin and other people suffering from addiction, they become very selfish. It becomes all about them.

But when Jasmin was Jasmin, everybody and everything came in front of her. She put herself absolutely last.

Sadly, despite her positive response to her familys support and the treatment at the Asha centre, Jasmin relapsed back into taking drugs.

In July 2022, she was arrested and charged with series of offences.

She was released on bail and placed under a strict curfew but was rearrested a large number of times for breaking the curfew.

She spent three weeks in Hydebank prison but was again released on bail in January last year.

A few days after she was released, she left her mothers home early in the morning.

She phoned her mother later that day and her mum reminded her of the need to be home before her curfew deadline.

Aye right, love you mammy, she said.

Love you, replied Pauline.

It was the last time she was to speak to her daughter.

In the early hours of the following morning, two police officers arrived at Paulines home to tell her Jasmin had been found dead at a house in the Galliagh area of Derry.

Pauline describes the weeks after Jasmins death as living in limbo and she still struggles to cope with her loss.

A couple of weeks before Jasmin lost her life, she actually told one of her friends that if she didnt stop [taking drugs] she was going to end up in prison or dead, said Pauline.

I have a lot of guilt around the last few months before she died around arguing with her constantly about drugs but it was the only approach left because I had tried every other approach with her.

The guilt I carry now since I lost her is immense.

From her childhood, I have a lot of happy memories but the last year, year and a half of her life it was a constant battle against drugs.

Jasmins family were unhappy with how the PSNI handled her death and lodged a complaint with the Police Ombudsman.

Following an investigation by the Ombudsman, a police officer has been referred to the PSNIs professional standards department.

The department, which deals with allegations of misconduct within the force, is now looking at the case.

In the meantime, Pauline is determined to keep up her campaign for tougher sentences for drug dealers.

It is too late to save Jasmin, she says, but she hopes the campaign will help reduce the amount of drugs on our streets.

If speaking out about Jasmin saves one person then it is worth it, she said.

That is all I want, for young people to be healthy and happy and drug-free.
The young woman, who has lived in the United Emirates for over a year, was rushed to a hospital in Dubai where she remains in a serious condition

The sister of a Carlow woman who fell off a luxury yacht in Dubai while attending a birthday party has revealed how pals thought she was dead when she went into the sea.

It was like a murder scene and there was blood everywhere, Tasha Keanes sister Roisin, recalled. An ambulance was rung and she was brought out on a stretcher and rushed to hospital.

Tasha, who is in her 20s, was attending a birthday celebration for her friend on board the two-storey yacht when the accident occurred on Saturday night.

According to Roisin, Tasha had no shoes on when she lost her balance and fell backwards.

She fell head first into the water and was concussed.

A lifeguard who witnessed the incident jumped into the sea to save Tasha from drowning.

When he pulled her back on to the deck, her friends around her assumed she was dead.

The young woman, who has lived in the United Emirates for over a year, was rushed to a hospital in Dubai where she remains in a serious condition.

She has suffered serious head injuries, as well as lacerations to her liver as a result of the impact.

You hear of these freak accidents happening, but you never think its going to happen to anyone you know, never mind your younger sister, Roisin told KCLRs 96FM. Shes in hospital now and unable to move.

A guy called Benjamin was lucky enough to dive in and save her, he was the lifeguard.

Three other people had to help her get on to the deck. They thought she was dead, it was like a murder scene and there was blood everywhere, recounted Roisin.

An ambulance was rung (sic) and she was brought out on a stretcher and rushed to hospital. She had been there for her friends Ellies birthday.

Roisin said that she has since spoken to her sister from her hospital bed, but is unsure whether she will require surgery.

I got a phone call and just knew something was wrong, Roisin added.

I was in work at the time and when I found out I immediately started to panic.

I managed to talk to her and she was just bawling her eyes out and I was bawling with her. It was so sad to see her like that.

She had to get 14 stitches in her head which was split open from the way she landed straight into the water. She lost a lot of blood and from the impact of the water, her liver is lacerated so we dont know if she has an internal bleed.

Theyre just monitoring her and still dont know whats going to happen, but shes not paralysed or brain dead and is able to talk, thank God.

Meanwhile, Tashas medical bills are mounting up, beyond what the family can afford.

If she ever gets surgery, its going to cost 50,000, Roisin explained.

So far, for her even to be in hospital its 10,000. Its costing more and more for her to be just lying in a bed, but she even had a seizure which she doesnt remember so they really need to keep monitoring her.

My dad is also sick in hospital, so its just a lot thats happening at once.

Roisin is hoping to fly to Dubai to be with her sister, although it will be at least six weeks before she will be allowed to fly home due to her injuries.

The Department of Foreign Affairs said that it is aware of the accident and is ready to provide consular assistance.

Some 13,529 of a 20,000 target has been raised to help cover Tashas medical bills via GoFundMe.

Appealing for donations, Roisin wrote on the page: We are reaching out to you with heavy hearts and an urgent request for help. Our beloved sister, Tasha, recently experienced a devastating accident while on a yacht in Dubai.

She fell from two storeys high and suffered a severe head injury. Tasha is currently in a hospital in Dubai, fighting hard to recover. There is lacerations on her liver so she is currently being monitored.

The medical bills have already reached 10,000, and they continue to climb as she requires more medical attention and support. Our family is doing everything we can, but we need your help to ensure Tasha gets the care she needs.

The message adds: We are kindly asking for donations to help cover Tashas medical expenses in Dubai no matter how small, it will make a huge difference in her journey towards healing. Tasha is a strong and vibrant person, and with your support, we believe she can overcome this challenging time.

Please keep her in your thoughts and prayers, and if you can, donate to help Tasha get the medical care she desperately needs.

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for your generosity and support.
Jim Moore (85) is accused of killing his sister Ms Aust

Mourners at the funeral of murder victim Patsy Aust (81) have heard how she will be missed for her kindness and love and her desire to keep going with deep resilience and fortitude.

Jim Moore (85) is accused of killing his sister Ms Aust and appeared in Newtownards Magistrates Court last Tuesday, June 4, where he spoke only to confirm his name and that he understood the charge against him, answering Yes on both occasions.

No details of the incident were revealed in court. However, a police officer said they could connect Moore to the charge.

Rev Mark Johnston, of St Andrews Presbyterian Church in Bangor, was speaking to those in attendance at todays funeral service of the retired teacher and commended the community spirit in the aftermath of her death.

Patsy Aust (81)

There will be no words that will come close to conveying the deep heartache that we feel with the passing of Patsy, he said.

In the midst of this tragedy it has been humbling and inspiring also to see the whole community come together  local neighbourhoods across the area, Clandeboye Primary School, with staff here today, local businesses and family and friends across all generations loving and supporting one another as we grieve Patsys passing.

It is such a testimony to the love so many had for Patsy, and its also testimony to the deep sense of community spirit that exists in this very special part of Bangor.

In his tribute to the former Sunday school teacher and member of the Girls Brigade linked to the church, Rev Johnston said that, as a child, Ms Aust was rarely seen without her older brother as they grew up in Clandeboye Place.

The Bullring, as it is better known, had, and still does have, a wonderful sense of community, where people shared what they had, looked out for each other, and where the kids played without a care in the world, he said.

Patsy and Jim were always in the middle of it, the life and soul of any party or community event.

Funeral of Patricia Patsy Aust at St Andrews Presbyterian Church, Bangor (Picture by PressEye)

He added that, growing up, Ms Aust was very intelligent and that she and her brother Jim were some of the first young people to do the P7 qualification tests when they were introduced, with both going on to attend grammar schools.

After school, Ms Aust trained to become a teacher at Stranmillis College and, as a keen traveller, taught in a secondary school in Malta. She also lived in Palma, Majorca, for many years.

It was there she met her ex-husband Hans Aust, with whom she shared her only son Garreth.

Shortly after his birth, the couple separated and she returned home to Northern Ireland, settling in Ambleside in Bangor.

Mourners were told how Ms Aust raised her son with great passion, determination and resilience, and with the help and support of her big brother Jim and her wider family circle.

Patsys focus in life was raising her son and, in recent years, loving and helping to raise her beloved grandson Brody. She gave her all, along with her family, to make sure that Garreth and Brody had everything they needed, he said.

Wed see Patsy and Jim regularly here in St Andrews, as they encouraged Garreth and Brody to get connected with some of the ministries in the church.

Garreth (47) died in September 2023.

Rev Johnston said Ms Austs world shattered and that she was crippled with grief.

In her tribute at her sons thanksgiving service, Ms Aust wrote: To say this is the worst time of our lives for my brother Jim and me is an understatement. It is not something we anticipated happening, but I cant let it pass without expressing what our precious Garreth meant to us, the impact he made on our lives, and without acknowledging just some of the important qualities he displayed during his all-too-short life.

Rev Johnston added that Ms Aust relied heavily on her brother over the past nine months to help support her grandson Brody through coping in this new world without his daddy.

Patsy relied heavily on the love and support from Jim and together they worked and served tirelessly in loving and caring for Brody, he said.

They supported each other through thick and thin and protected each other day by day, as they had to deal with so much in recent months.

We very rarely saw Patsy without Jim, and we very rarely saw Jim without Patsy, he added.

They were a strong duo, committed to each other, committed to Brody, committed to their family and friends across this community.

He pointed out that Ms Aust died in her sons home two weeks ago, adding that her passing caused deep shock and heartache to so many across the community.

For we will miss Patsy so very much, and have benefited greatly from her warmth, her kindness and love, her compassion for others, especially children, and her desire to keep going with deep resilience and fortitude, he said.

Patsy will be so deeply missed by so many of us, not least Jim and Brody, her family and closest friends, who have loved her to the end.
We are witnessing the breakup of a community

A human rights campaign has been launched by the residents of a South Dublin flats complex who claim they have been betrayed by the State and Dublin City Council.

In a strongly-worded statement issued on behalf of the community of Dolphin House, it is claimed they have been subjected to broken promises regarding the regeneration of the 70-year-old complex.

The strong and vibrant community that, like many others, battles against disadvantage has been promised a full regeneration for more than 20 years, the statement reads.

It has never happened, the Dolphin House Regeneration Board and the Dolphin House Community Development Association say.

Meanwhile, housing conditions in the unregenerated estate include mould, damp, overcrowding and anti-social behaviour. The community is in danger of crumbling under the weight of this neglect. Ill health and mental health challenges are a feature of daily life.

Regeneration work in 2016

The board and the association say a first phase of regeneration was completed, to the benefit of less than a quarter of the residents, several years ago.

There are many outstanding issues with the first phase, and no-one can describe it as satisfactory, the statement adds.

A senior citizens complex within the estate was completed at the same time by the Fold Housing Association and is of very good quality.

For more than three years now there has been an agreed masterplan to complete the regeneration.

Not only would it provide long overdue decent accommodation for families who have struggled with appalling housing conditions, it would provide altogether more than 700 high quality social housing units in the midst of an overwhelming housing crisis. And the masterplan has sat there.

Meanwhile, they say, conditions in the estate continue to deteriorate.

Many longstanding families have given up hope in the regeneration process and are seeking to leave, the Board revealed

We are witnessing the breakup of a community. We struggle to provide facilities for children and young people, we work constantly to bring appalling conditions to the notice of the authorities, and we are utterly frustrated by the lack of commitment to complete a regeneration that was first proposed when the estate was 50 years old.

Side by side with that, the demolition of vacant buildings has meant that there are two very considerable sites within Dolphin that are ready to be built on now, or in very short order.

Those two sites alone could accommodate enough units for more than 100 residents. But they sit there. And the de-tenanting of the housing blocks, without replacement, has meant the loss of more than 90 social housing units to Dublin City Council.

And we are not alone, they add. There are several other regeneration projects in our vicinity, in various stages of development, that between them could contribute 2,500 new high quality social housing units. All are stuck in similar ways to us.

A series of public meetings were staged 14 years ago, the Board says, to highlight the human rights issues that arise from deteriorating housing conditions in a community that fights disadvantage.

Then we were able to highlight the physical health consequences of damp and mould and overcrowding. If anything, the physical and mental health conditions for people who have been let down again and again are as bad if not worse now.

They are now demanding an end to delay and insist that the authorities, at whatever level is appropriate, immediately appoint a senior manager, with authority, to take this situation in hand and to begin to deliver, with real urgency, the regeneration this community deserves.

We demand that the project be organised in such a way that available shovel-ready sites be made subject to Part 8 planning permission, while respecting the integrity of the Masterplan, they have demanded. We are prepared to wait no longer for the regeneration this community has been promised.

They have also written to the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, asking them to initiate an enquiry under Section 35 of the Human Rights Act.

The Act provides for such an enquiry in a situation where there is a serious violation of human rights or equality of treatment obligations in respect of any group of citizens, or a systemic failure to comply with human rights. We have sought advice to be sure that that situation applies here, they stated.
The man was riding an electric scooter on Wednesday evening when the accident happened

A man in his 40s was rushed to hospital last night after his e-scooter was involved in a collision with a car in Dublin.

The accident happened on the Crumlin Road, around 8.20pm on Wednesday evening.

Gardai and emergency services attended the scene of the two-vehicle road traffic crash.

The male driver of the e-scooter (40s) was conveyed to St Jamess Hospital, Dublin, for treatment of serious injuries, a garda spokesperson said.

No other injuries were reported.

Investigations are continuing, gardai added.

Since May 20, e-scooters are legal on Irish roads but under 16s are not allowed use them.

Riders do not need a licence to ride one and an e-scooter does not have to be registered, taxed or insured.

The scooter must meet technical requirements, including a maximum weight of 25 kilos or less and a maximum speed of 20km per hour or less.
It first launched in November 2020 with an episode about Kevin Parle, one of the UKs most wanted murder suspects.

Crime World is celebrating another major milestone this week after surpassing 30 million downloads.

Hosted by Sunday World Investigations Editor Nicola Tallant, the hit podcast is among the most popular in the country and continues to go from strength to strength.

It first launched in November 2020 with an episode about Kevin Parle, one of the UKs most wanted murder suspects, and covers a broad range of topics such as criminals, drugs, and the sins of the underworld.

Four years later, Crime World has hit a whopping 30 million downloads across almost 600 episodes.

Recent episodes delve into the death of Eddie Hutch Jnr, Baby Reindeer and stalkers, the killing of Josh Itseli, and the Stardust Fire Inquest verdict.

Last year, Crime World released its first standalone series Beast: The Murder of Nora Sheehan.

The project, which has six episodes, examines at the murder of the Cork mother, her killer Noel Long and the ripple effects that the brutal crime had on the families of both victim and perpetrator.

Crime Worlds second serial podcast, Caught In The Crossfire, premiered on May 21 and the gripping fifth episode is due to drop next Tuesday.

Its been met with huge acclaim since its launch last month and currently sits at the number one spot on the Apple Podcast charts in Ireland, beating out the likes of Diary of a CEO, RTEs The Real Carrie Jade, and The Bookshelf with Ryan Tubridy.

Crime World Presents: Caught In The Crossfire tells the story of the shocking double murders of crime boss Martin Marlo Hyland and innocent apprentice plumber Anthony Campbell almost 18 years ago.

Anthony Campbell was just doing an honest days work when he was gunned down as he worked on radiators in a house owned by the niece of Marlo Hyland in Finglas, north Dublin, in December 2006.

But the 20-year-old was not the target that day  Hyland was.

The notorious criminal was shot six times as he slept in a bedroom after two gunmen snuck inside and crept upstairs.

Fearing Anthony would be able to identify them, one of the hitmen raised his gun and a single shot went straight through the young mans hand and hit him in the head, leaving his dead body lying slumped by the radiator hed been trying to fix.

Almost two decades later, the baby-faced plumbers senseless killing is still unsolved.

Gardai believe deceased mob boss and former Marlo Hyland gang member Eamon The Don Dunne was behind the hit and ordered the murder of his former boss.

In March 2012, journalist Paul Williams, in evidence given before Dublin Circuit Criminal Court, alleged that the murder was carried out by imprisoned criminals Willie Hynes and John Mangan.

He also alleged the late Eamon Dunne acted as the getaway driver in the hit.

Dunne himself died in a hail of bullets when a gunman opened fire on him in a Cabra pub in April 2010.

Across the series, Nicola Tallant speaks to those most intimately affected by one of the countrys most shocking killings, including Joey OCallaghan, the youngest person ever to enter the Witness Protection Programme in Ireland.

Anthonys mother, Christine Campbell, also tells her story in Caught In The Crossfire, detailing the horrific moment she learned her only child had been killed by criminals and the nightmare that followed.

You associate gangsters with one another, not innocent people, but it was just like  what way would I put it?  your heads okay, but your body shuts down because youre just in shock, she tells Nicola in a later episode.

As I always say, I wish God had taken me. I think for any mother to lose their child, its the worst feeling ever, no matter what way you lose them. Its your child. We shouldnt be losing kids, should we?

Seeking justice for Anthony has always been the bereaved mums priority, but its taken her a long time to reconcile with the fact that whoever took his life wasnt caught and still walks free today.

As a mum, I can be hard on myself because I dont feel I got the justice I should have for him... Im let down by that, she shares.

After two years I thought, Well, Im getting nowhere here... I had to start protecting myself, saying to myself, dont wish.

You get your hopes up, and then your hopes are crushed. As the years start going on, it does something to you.

You cannot say you havent changed in all the grief, but youre still looking, but you feel like you havent done him proud because you didnt get justice. That will live with me.

Crime World Presents: Caught In The Crossfire is available on all podcast platforms, with new episodes dropping weekly.
I can confirm I have absolutely not deleted my insta

Influencer Bonnie Ryan has laughed off reports that she had left Instagram saying it might have glitched.

The daughter of the late broadcaster Gerry Ryan took to the social media site to say she absolutely did not announce Im leaving.

Over a picture of the makeup artist and influencer she has written in a series of notes: This story has grown legs it would seem and lots of people sending me it. I can confirm I have absolutely not deleted my insta hahaha.

It might have glitched but I absolutely did not announce Im leaving. Like the wolf of wallstreet. Im not leaving hahaha.

Yesterday. it was reported on several sites  including sundayworld.com  that she had deleted her popular account that boasts more than 125K followers.

The reports came after the Bonnie took to Instagram to slam an unacceptable comment from an online troll about her late dad Gerry in April.

The RTE legend passed away on April 30, 2010 from cardiac arrhythmia at the age of 53.

Gerry had five children with former wife Morah  Bonnie, Lottie, Rex, Babette, and Elliot.

Bonnie opened up about how she had to deal with an unacceptable comment she received about her late father under a TikTok video.

Bonnie had shared a clip where she revealed how representatives from the Netflix dating show Love Is Blind recently reached out to her  despite her being married to long-time love John Greenhalgh.

While Bonnie found the encounter hilarious, joking about the opportunity online, she was left with a bitter taste in her mouth after a crazy comment was left under her TikTok video.

Underneath the clip, someone wrote: Daddys name? Thats why they sent messages.

She replied: My dad died 14 years ago this month. I dont think (he) would be able to go on.

And while she said she usually would never pay any heed to silly crap like this, she admitted the comment rubbed me wrong as she hopped on her Instagram Stories to address the troll.

I got a notification on one of my TikTok videos, somebody left a comment. Dont go into the comments section of your TikTok  my god, people can be crazy, Bonnie began.

Im trying to be my usual self. My way of dealing with my dad passing away was that Ive always had such black humour. If I dont laugh, Ill simply just cry.

Bonnie said she was trying to be funny in her tongue-in-cheek response to the troll but slammed it as simply an unacceptable comment.

She continued: Instagram and TikTok  that's my place of work. Imagine someone coming into your office and being like, do you think youre getting on now because of your father who died 15 years ago.

Im just out here trying to work and youre coming in with my childhood trauma. I just cant, I cant. Can people just think before they say that?

Maybe they just think Im never going to see it but anyway, I always think, thats your own problem, dont put that on me.

They since deleted it. Theyve actually just fully deleted their profile. Im pretty sure it was just a fake account.

Bonnie then reassured her followers that she was fine and not to worry about her as she added: "Thankfully, when it comes to that kind of thing with my dad, Ive grown really thick skin growing up.

You honestly have to just laugh because if you dont, youll go crazy. So, Ill just deal with it with black humour as I always do.
The former Xpose presenter turned prominent anti-vaxxer and conspiracy theorist shared the video on her Substack platform, where she engages in what she refers to as a little bit of post-election analysis.

Ex-TV3 star Aisling OLoughlin has declared that the great replacement theory is real in a new video posted online.

The former Xpose presenter turned prominent anti-vaxxer and conspiracy theorist shared the video on her Substack platform, where she engages in what she refers to as a little bit of post-election analysis.

During the half-hour clip she states her belief that the recent Irish elections were subjected to the great replacement theory which holds that some Western elites are conspiring to replace white Americans and Europeans with people of non-European descent, particularly Asians and Africans.

The theory is regularly espoused by white nationalists who chanted You will not replace us during a Unite the Right; rally in Charlottesville, Virginia in 2017.

In spring 2019, the far right Belgian politician Dries Van Langenhove repeatedly posted on social media, We are being replaced.

Last year, far right broadcaster Tucker Carlson said the Irish Government was trying to replace the population of Ireland with people from the Third World, obviously in an interview with disgraced former Trump aide Steve Bannon.

Aisling O'Loughlin

In the video entitled, Votes in return for what? The murky world of asylum seeker gerrymandering, OLoughlin has written: The local elections in Ireland have exposed voter manipulation at a shocking level amongst illegal immigrants reliant on government hospitality. What deals were struck in return for favourable votes?

She then begins by saying: If the newspapers were doing their job, if the mainstream media, the TV stations, the radio stations, were doing their job, their top story would of course, it's so obvious, be the bussing in of newcomers.

They're not even Irish citizens, most of them, they've just arrived, they've got no allegiance to this country and yet they were being bussed in to voting stations all over Ireland.

She claims these people had translators, they had help with voting, even though they wouldn't have known any of the candidates, they wouldn't have known what they stand for and yet they were voting in our local elections.

So obviously something really weird and really dodgy has gone down but we know what we're dealing with, she adds.

We're dealing with a complicit media, we're dealing with the rogue government, so we have to expect a certain amount of this.

She then refers to one account on X, that really caught my attention.

Its called Abolish Direct Provision Campaign and apparently it's a voluntary organisation, she says.

And these guys are really going to a lot of trouble for a voluntary organisation. And I thought, I wonder who's paying them.

But then look at this, she says reading a tweet, from the 7th of June. Thank you team ADPI for transportation, helping us to vote correctly and understanding politics in Ireland. In my country women are not allowed to vote, today was touching for me.

I'm not sure who wrote that but have a look at this, she adds over a picture of a list of candidates.

We've got no markings here but over on the side, like they're trolling us, it says replacement lists so whoever took that made sure to keep that in the shot and then post it up on X for all to see.

Just a very peculiar thing considering we are talking about the great replacement which is looking very, very real and is a reflection in these election results.

We are being replaced by people with absolutely no links to our country apart from they want to get in on the freebies.

She then shares another picture, again from 7th of June and quotes the tweet: We took thousands of refugees in direct provision camps to polling station (sic) this morning to ensure they voted correctly. The government should give all of them the right to remain in Ireland.

Shocking stuff, she adds. We are badly, badly, missing our own mainstream, our own media that will become mainstream. We're missing that very badly. We didn't have Gript and I know Gemma ODoherty in particular really did everything she could to undermine them, but if we didn't have them who else would be sticking it up to the government?

We badly, badly need our own media, our own radio stations, our own TV stations, OLoughlin continues. And I think a radio station and a newspaper would be a great start.

I mean most people don't know what's going on, they don't know about the excess deaths. You know, we're dealing with an ignorant population. They don't want to know, a lot of them have taken part in the deadly medical trial, she adds, presumably referring to the vaccine programme.

They don't want to know with the bad news, theyre living quite comfortable lives, they don't want it interrupted, why would they want it interrupted, so we're going to have to think about things.

I think if we offer just really good analysis and debate and better what the mainstream is offering, which is easy for us, because the conversation is better because we are dealing with very strong facts and figures.

We actually have won the debate, we've won it time and time again. We see that on Twitter when they try to engage we just come up with the facts and figures and it's easy to win which is why they have to censor us which is why they have to cheat.

We're not dealing with very good people, they're not going to hand over the power, she continues. It's not going to be that easy but it takes the strong people with a strong moral code to stand up and say, well, we're not putting up with this.

We're going to block them and interrupt them every way we possibly can. We're not going to roll over and have our tummies tickled we're not going to roll over and die and be replaced.

She then includes clips of Malachy Steensons glorious win and hails the newly-elected anti-immigration councillor as a great speaker who says it like it is.

"He is a man of the people and I'm delighted for him.

She adds: For any of those old naysayers who say, don't bother, deregister, do nothing, lick the ice cream, let them have it. It won't just fall away, dont be so stupid, of course it never fall away on its own.

We have to get in there and wrestle it off them and make sure we have standards again and change the laws so that it doesn't allow people who are just brand new into Ireland the ability to vote. That is disgusting and wrong and should be changed.
The Co Wexford rapper says he has got a lot of his inspiration from his rural Irish father.

FROM Joe Dolan to Marty Whelan, Roy Keane and Pat Da Baker, Irelands hottest rising star of rap Lil Skag is winning fans with his risque and humorous songs that reference Irish icons and culture.

Lil Skag  real name Sean Roche from Enniscorthy, Co Wexford  who plays Dublins Anseo venue next Saturday, has created a massive buzz with his infectious rhyming tracks such as Caca Milis, that are laced with tongue-in-cheek sexual innuendo.

The hot video for Caca Milis features Lil Skag scoffing cake while his face is sandwiched between two female bottoms in G-strings.

I just think that Ireland is a country of born rappers were all sh*te talkers and were storytellers and I think there should be more of that style of rap, Sean tells Shuffle.

A lot of my stuff is silly little one-liners, its all very quotable and its kind of comedy in rapping. I think as a nation we are born to do it, so Id like to see where I can take it.

Ive got a lot of inspiration from my rural Irish fatherall the quotes that these auld lads from the countryside say. Theyre among the funniest people in the world. Thats very good for my inspiration.

Lil Skag

Sean lived in Berlin for three years, but returned to his native Enniscorthy just before Christmas. Lil Skag wouldnt exist if it wasnt for Berlin and the freedom that gave me, but I came home to concentrate on the music, he says.

Rapping in your bedroom and writing songs is one thing, but performing is a total separate art form. I wanted to get comfortable on the stage and do as much gigging as I could, and luckily the bookings are now coming in with the majority of gigs in Dublin. Im very confident of my ability now on the stage, so I have achieved what I wanted since Ive come home.

Speaking about his background, Sean says: I grew up on a farm 10 minutes outside Enniscorthy. My dad drove lorries  the farm was his hobby - and my mother is a nurse. I very much rejected the farming lifestyle.

"My fathers famous quote is, I brought the wrong baby home from the hospital. He tells me theres another baby out there with somebody else, driving tractors around and feeding cattle. He doesnt know where he got me from.

My dad is a funny fella and a great character. Id say hes the funniest person in my life The furthest hes ever gone is to Ferns.

"Hes very much a man of the country and he knows what he likes. He wouldnt be the most open minded man, but thats funny in itself and theres no malice. And all his friends are funny fellas.

After Lil Skag was championed by Irish rap star Kojaque, Sean decided to release more tracks and embrace the attention. It was at this time that he also came out to his parents about being a rapper.

I was in Berlin at that time and the whole week after Id say I had five hour long phone calls with my mother on separate occasions, where she said, Sean, maybe, you know, at the end of the raps you could put a disclaimer in saying, I actually dont say all these bad things in real life, Im a nice young chap and a respectful chap and I go to mass. It was just hilarious.

But shes incredibly supportive and she chooses not to listen to it because some of the stuff would just upset her, which I totally understand. Im very proud of her coming to terms with it and shes actually appreciating the artistry moreso than anything now.

Seans mother hasnt seen the Caca Milis video, which features his girlfriend and a pal. Ill keep that one away from her for as long as I can, he laughs.

The lowdown: LIL Skag will play Anseo on Dublins Camden Street next Saturday. His new video, Usually (feat Curtisy), is now available online.
The Rotary Club of Otumoetai has swung into action to hold a charity quiz night to support club member Harriet Campbells next humanitarian tour of duty to Ukraine.

Harriet, 31, a Tauranga baker, intends to return to the war-stricken country on August 11 for her fourth humanitarian aid mission.

Harriet says she will leave New Zealand on July 11 to spend a few weeks with her Oklahoma-based volunteering partner Jason Zan and meet a few United States-based aid organisations before they travel to Ukraine.

The pair plan to set up a semi-mobile food kitchen in one of the towns or villages with the most need, delivering hot meals to frontline troops and civilians.

Carmen Goodwin, the president of the Rotary Club of Otumoetai. Photo / Sandra Conchie.

To support Harriets efforts, the Rotary Club of Otumoetai is holding a charity quiz night fundraiser on June 17 at the Hotel Armitage in Willow Street, Tauranga, starting at 6pm which also includes a silent auction and raffle sales.

Club president Carmen Goodwin says she met Harriet when the baker and activist spoke about her humanitarian efforts at a club meeting last year.

Harriet is an amazing person. She is an incredibly humble, trustworthy, and generous person. And in terms of Harriets tours of duty to Ukraine, as we call them  she is a true volunteer.

She does this willingly and always with a smile on her face to help other humans and animals who cannot help themselves.

She says Harriets goal reflected the clubs core values, including commitment to service.

We are doing everything we can to help support the humanitarian efforts occurring in Ukraine, including Harriets tours of duty.

The people of Ukraine are so hardy of spirit and this is a small thing we can do to support the local and international communitys efforts to assist them and animals in urgent need of our support.

Tauranga baker Harriet Campbell intends to set up a semi-mobile kitchen to provide hot meals for soldiers and civilians in Ukraine. Photo / Alex Cairns.

Harriet says she was blown away by the support for her efforts from the club after they invited her to speak.

She says this included a large cash donation to support her second aid trip to Ukraine in March last year used to buy tourniquets for de-mining crews and soldiers.

Harriet says she became a club member in December, just before her last visit to Ukraine in January and February this year.

Once again, I was sent off with some incredible donations, some of which helped me buy Christmas presents for 17 [orphaned] children. Now I am preparing for my fourth mission, and amazingly Carmen and other generous club members are looking to help me again with a quiz night fundraiser.

The situation in Ukraine has become increasingly bleaker and as the worlds interest fades, help is needed more than ever, she says.

Tickets for the quiz night cost $45 each or $250 for a table of six and can be bought by emailing otumoetai@gmail.com.
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.

GAC AION's Hyper brand to operate over 100 direct stores in 2024

On June 13, during GAC AION's mid-year brand development meeting, General Manager Gu Huinan announced that the Hyper brand will establish over 100 direct flagship stores by the end of the year. As of June 2024, the number will reach 32.

Photo credit: Hyper

ARCFOX  S5 to hit market on June 15

ARCFOX announced on June 12 that its all-electric mid-size sedan, the  S5, will officially hit the market on June 15. The car, which began presales in April, offers the 650 ULTRA and 708 MAX models, priced at 199,800 yuan and 219,800 yuan, respectively.

Shenzhen promotes NEV innovation, V2G technology

The Shenzhen Development and Reform Commission issued measures to support the rapid development of virtual power plants. The measures encourage new energy vehicle (NEV) manufacturers to innovate and implement vehicle-to-grid (V2G) functionality. Key projects involving V2G charging stations and other core equipment may receive up to 15 million yuan in support upon review.

Black Sesame Technologies passes listing hearing on Hong Kong Stock Exchange

On June 12, Black Sesame Technologies, a prominent player in the autonomous driving chip sector in China, achieved a significant milestone by passing the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) listing hearing. This marks another crucial step towards its listing on the HKEX.

JAC Group posts 11.83% YoY dip in May auto sales

On June 12, Chinese automaker JAC Group announced it sold 34,568 vehicles in the fifth month of this year, which dropped 11.83% year on year but climbed 8.37% month on month.

Seres Group teams with Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications

On June 12, Seres Group, the parent of the new energy vehicle brand AITO, signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Chongqing University of Posts and Telecommunications, aiming to leverage the development trends and market needs of the automotive industry both domestically and internationally.

Dongfeng Motors MHERO 1 luxury electric off-roader hits Spanish market

On June 6, Dongfeng Motor's luxury electric off-roader brand, MHERO Technology, officially launched its MHERO 1 (known as the MHERO 917 in China) in Spain, the automaker announced on June 12.
DairyNZ and Beef + Lamb New Zealand welcome the Governments confirmed commitment to implementing a National Pest Management Plan for Mycoplasma bovis.

DairyNZ and B+LNZ are partners in the programme alongside the Ministry for Primary Industries.

The plan is designed to safeguard results achieved to date, and add resilience to the countrys biosecurity system through OSPRIs management of the M. bovis eradication programme.

Until now, the eradication programme has been the responsibility of the Government Industry Agreement partners, MPI, DairyNZ and B+LNZ, but with the response shifting to a focus on surveillance before eradication is confirmed, its appropriate that full responsibility transfers to OSPRI.

The spirit of collaboration is a key part of New Zealands response to eradicate M. bovis from New Zealand and its great to see the success of this approach affirmed, says DairyNZ chair Jim van der Poel.

Via the NPMP, the partners will continue to support work to protect our national dairy and beef herds. It will ensure that OSPRI, which manages the M. bovis programme  alongside the TB programme and the National Animal Identification Tracing system  has the tools needed to continue to work towards the goal of eradication.

Farmers will see little practical change on the ground under the new plan but there are opportunities for efficiencies in managing bovine TB, M. bovis and the NAIT system in the same entity.

The M. bovis programme is now six years into a 10-year eradication plan with currently no active, confirmed properties.

B+LNZ chair Kate Acland chair says the effective response to managing the M. bovis challenge hasnt been easy but the Governments announcement marks another significant milestone in the programme.

Farmers affected by the eradication programme have experienced significant disruption to their business and made sacrifices  we owe it to them to finish the job. The programme partners are committed to supporting OSPRI in finding any remaining infection to protect the wider sector.

Jim says the programme to eradicate M. bovis took a large financial and emotional toll on farmers but the cost of letting it spread would have been much higher.

While we may still see a few more cases, we are now approaching the surveillance phase and costs have reduced, thanks to a huge combined effort.

The National Pest Management Plan, approved by the Coalition Government, was proposed by DairyNZ, B+LNZ and MPI and will come into effect by the end of 2024.

OSPRI has been carrying out M. bovis disease control and on-farm operations under contract since November 2023, with expertise moving from MPI to OSPRI at this time.
A mother-of-eight who was accused of hurting a child in her care reacted by putting the girl on a plane and sending her overseas before police were able to investigate.

Meleseke Aogamalie came to the attention of authorities when the girl, a pre-teen who had come to live with her from overseas, turned up to school with injuries, and staff called Oranga Tamariki.

When the allegations were raised with Aogamalie, she put the girl on a flight to go back and live with her biological mother - despite being warned by a social worker to stay away from the girl who was meant to be in alternative care.

While police were never able to investigate the assault allegations they did charge the 35-year-old with attempting to pervert the course of justice.

This week she tried, unsuccessfully, to get a discharge without conviction on that charge when she appeared in the Hamilton District Court - but Judge Noel Cocurullo deemed her offending too serious to grant that request.

'Oranga Tamariki concerns'

The girl had been sent to New Zealand to live with Aogamalie and her family in November 2021.

Judge Cocurullo described how she was "treated somewhat differently" from the other children, including being tasked with different household chores and having to supervise the younger children.

By November 2022, the girl's school became concerned after noticing bruising and scratches on her.

Oranga Tamariki was advised and a social worker was sent to the school who was told by the girl that Aogamalie had allegedly hit her with a broom.

She alleged she was scared to go home and urged the social worker not to tell Aogamalie otherwise she "would get smacked with a broom or something harder".

The agreed summary of facts also describes how she had notable injuries to her arms, back and face.

The social worker phoned Aogamalie who denied assaulting her.

Concerned about returning the child to the family, the social worker arranged for the girl to spend the night and weekend at another person's house.

Aogamalie agreed not to have further contact.

However, when the woman who was charged with her weekend care also picked up another of Aogamalie's children and dropped him home, she was spotted by Aogamalie who asked her to get out of the car and go inside.

She told the woman that she would drop the girl round later that evening.

Instead, Aogamalie drove her to a travel agent and organised a one-way plane ticket back to her homeland for the following day.

That day, 5 November, 2022, she phoned the girl's biological mother and told her that "a surprise would be arriving on a flight" and dropped her off at the airport and put her on the plane as an unaccompanied minor.

The following Monday, Oranga Tamariki was advised as the girl did not turn up for school.

The social worker phoned Aogamalie who said the girl's mother had returned to New Zealand and taken her back home with her.

The girl was eventually found and spoken to by a social worker overseas.

Aogamalie was spoken to by police on 16 June, last year, and denied assaulting the girl and claimed the flight and ticket were pre-arranged by the girl's mother.

Judge Cocurullo said at the heart of the case was Aogamalie's actions - sending the child overseas - that prevented police from making inquiries and possible prosecution.

'A bad decision and misinformation'

In arguing for a Section 106, Aogamalie's counsel Emily Hartson-Maea outlined that English was her client's second language and the perverting charge arose from "bad decisions made by the defendant, misinformation and the understanding of what Oranga Tamariki do".

"She made poor decisions relating to her understanding of the English language and the circumstances in which Oranga Tamariki wished to speak with her, the misunderstanding as to what Oranga Tamariki do.

"She was advised that Oranga Tamariki were there to separate children and so that also played a part in this."

Hartson-Maea acknowledged there were "some issues" between Aogamalie and the child so she was sent back overseas.

However, the child was still able to be interviewed by police overseas before Aogamalie paid for her flight to return to New Zealand and was then spoken to by police and Oranga Tamariki.

As a result of that interview, Aogamalie faced a charge of attempting to pervert the course of justice.

A charge of assault with a blunt instrument was withdrawn by the crown.

Hartson-Maea said a conviction would not only impact her client's job prospects but her husband and other children who "were all innocents in this".

As a person with limited English, her prospects for employment were already limited. A conviction would further worsen that.

She had wanted to study to become a doctor but was currently a full-time mother.

Aogamalie provided character references that stated she was "normally a person of standing, an honest person who has made a mistake".

"This is not a hardened criminal.

"This is not a person who has significant education in being able to understand the law, although ignorance of the law is not an excuse but is something that needs to be taken into account. As soon as she instructed counsel was advised that she'd done was wrong."

'She knew exactly what she was doing'

Crown solicitor Scarlett Hartstone said the assault charge had to be withdrawn "because we simply couldn't get the evidence to pursue the charge".

"She knew exactly what she was doing.

"She talks about speaking to a friend about who Oranga Tamariki are and given her actions of putting a child on a flight the very next day.

"She can claim innocence and naivety but she knew what she was doing and circumvented justice in New Zealand."

Judge Cocurullo told her he couldn't send her to jail, given she was a first offender and a full-time mother, and he would have to give her a supervision sentence as she hadn't consented to a report about any electronically monitored options.

"Supervision strikes me as inadequate given the nature of the charge," Hartstone replied, but the judge said he had no other option and didn't want to adjourn sentencing.

Aogamalie was convicted and sentenced to 12 months' supervision.

Where to get help:

Women's Refuge:(0800 733 843

It's Not OK 0800 456 450

Shine: 0508 744 633

Victim Support: 0800 842 846

HELP Call 24/7 (Auckland): 09 623 1700, (Wellington): 04 801 6655 - push 0 at the menu

The National Network of Family Violence Services NZ has information on specialist family violence agencies.

If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
Additional information in the MetService's severe weather warnings to help people better understand the impact of incoming weather and what actions to take to stay safe is now available.

The weather organisation is partnering with National Emergency Management Agency to draw on the agencys advice and expertise on how to respond to and prepare for emergencies and the real time insights about impending severe weather from the team of expert forecasters at MetService.

"We have always had a close working relationship with the emergency management community. This initiative further aligns our advice when impactful weather such as heavy rain, strong wind or heavy snow is on its way," says MetService severe weather manager William Nepe.

"We know that extreme weather will continue to strike New Zealand, and in the last two years weve seen just how destructive it can be.

"We hope that by providing practical advice people will feel empowered to act and be weather ready."

NEMAs civil defence emergency management director John Price says adding preparedness advice to severe weather information provides everyone with the information they need in one place.

"MetService is the official provider of severe weather information, and their popular website and app are a trusted source of information. NEMA is the government lead for emergency management, empowering people and communities before, during and after emergencies.

"We encourage everyone to heed the advice were jointly providing. It is tailored for different types of weather and severity, for example clearing drains and gutters in preparation of heavy rain, staying out of floodwaters, and securing items that can be picked up by strong winds."

An exmaple of the information provided. Image: MetService.

In addition to action advice, MetService Warnings will also now include impact statements to help people better understand the effects a particular level of rain, wind or snow can cause.

"Combined, these impact and action statements will give people a real sense of just how severe the forecast weather could be. Whether it could be life threatening, what disruptions it may cause such as to power or transport networks, or what damage may result such as to trees or powerlines and slips," says William.

Another feature has also been added - the chance that a Watch or Orange Warning will be upgraded to a higher level of severity.

"This lets people know the likelihood (high, moderate, low, or minimal) that the weather could become more severe or that a higher-level warning will follow. This will provide more reason to keep up to date with the forecast."

These features are one of the steps MetService is taking to make our warning information more actionable and easier to understand, helping to support a more effective and timely response to severe weather.
A phone scam is re-emerging with cold calling swindlers claiming to be Police officers.

New Zealand Police are advising the public to be vigilant, after a handful of reports have been made in recent days.

Unfortunately, at least two elderly Aucklanders have been conned out of tens of thousands of dollars.

Waitemata CIBs Detective Senior Sergeant Ryan Bunting says scammers are cold calling, mainly on landlines, and claim to be a Police officer.

They will also provide a fake ID or badge number to make their call seem legitimate, he says.

This person will carry on and provide a reason for their call: either they are investigating fake bank notes, or that your credit card has been cloned.

As part of this scam, they will ask you to withdraw money from a nearby bank to be collected or ask you to provide further financial or banking information to aid their investigation.

Be aware: this is a scam call.

Police are investigating two reports this week, in south Auckland and the North Shore, where two people have fallen victim to the scam.

Both victims withdrew cash from a bank and handed this over to someone who arrived at their door to collect it under the fake cover story, Detective Senior Sergeant Bunting says.

These victims have had their good-will and trust trodden on by these scammers.

Investigation staff have ensured there is support available for the victims.

Detective Senior Sergeant Bunting says: Scammers have no ethics whatsoever and will take any opportunity to try and con you.

These scams take many forms, and the offenders trick people under a variety of guises or storylines.

There are occasions where legitimate Police officers will contact people as part of their duties, he says.

Police are asking the community to be aware and take the opportunity to spread the word amongst friends and family members.

We are particularly keen to ensure elder family members are aware of what is happening, Detective Senior Sergeant Bunting says.

If anyone receives a call of this nature, hang up.

If you have had the unfortunate position of being a victim to this scam and have not reported this, we encourage you to report this to Police.

Please remember:

- Police will never call to ask you for bank details, pin numbers or passwords

- Police do not offer prize money

- Police will not ask you to go to a bank to withdraw money

- If you receive a call out of the blue of a similar nature: challenge the caller to identify themselves, ask for their details.

- Hang up, contact 105 to verify the ID and request the officer to contact you

- If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
Overdale Road north of Putaruru is blocked as a result of a crash involving a truck, reported to Police at around 4.15pm.

No injuries are reported, a tow is being arranged but the road is expected to be blocked for some time.

Diversions are in place and motorists are advised to avoid the area and expect delays.

At the scene?

Phone 0800SUNLIVE or email newsroom@thesun.co.nz
A heavy rain warning issued for the Bay of Plenty and Rotorua remains in force today.

The MetService issued the orange warning on Thursday.

The region has already experienced heavy rain this morning, with downpours obsserved by SunLive readers around 1am.

In an updated warning today, the MetService says a front preceded by a moist northerly flow is expected to move slowly east across New Zealand today bringing rain to much of the country.

"The heaviest rain is likely to affect the north of the North Island, and the north of the South Island.

"Localised downpours and thunderstorms are also possible for northern regions of the North Island.

"Watches for heavy rain are in force, and Rain Warnings for Bay of Plenty including Rotorua, and the Tasman District.

"People are advised to keep up to date with the latest forecasts."

Heavy Rain Warning - Orange

Area: Bay of Plenty and Rotorua

Period: 15 hours from 9am Fri 14 Jun to 12am Sat 15 Jun

Forecast: Expect another 60 to 90 mm of rain to accumulate on top of what has already fallen. Peak rates of 15 to 25 mm/h, but rates of 25 to 35 mm/h possible in localised downpours and thunderstorms.

Minimal chance of upgrading to a Red Warning.

Impact: Streams and rivers may rise rapidly. Surface flooding, slips, and difficult driving conditions possible.

Action: Clear your drains and gutters to prepare for heavy rain. Avoid low-lying areas and drive cautiously.
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1958 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster on Display at RM Sotheby's Cliveden House Auction

A meticulously restored 1958 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Roadster, chassis number 198.042.8500299, is set to be a highlight at RM Sotheby's Cliveden House Auction in Chobham, United Kingdom. This iconic classic car, with a concours-quality restoration costing over 700,000, is a testament to Mercedes-Benz's enduring legacy of performance and elegance.

Image Via RM Sotheby's

The 300 SL Roadster, a symbol of 1950s luxury and innovation, combines timeless design with exceptional engineering. Originally built in Silver (DB 180) over a Red leather interior with a black soft top, this car was delivered in Paris yet specified for the US market. It features chrome wheels, a Becker Mexico radio, and a factory hardtop.

Image Via RM Sotheby's

The car's fascinating ownership history includes long-term care by two private owners in Scotland from 1962 to 2011. David Scott Lowe of Edinburgh was the first UK owner, retaining the car for nearly 33 years before selling it to his close friend, Richard Graham McIlhagga. After about twelve years, McIlhagga sold the car back to Lowe, who kept it until his passing in 2011. Subsequently, the car was willed to Lowes partner, Mrs. Rizalina Thain, who sold it when it required restoration.

Image Via RM Sotheby's

The current owner acquired the car and initiated a full restoration to concours standards by Kienle Automobiltechnik in Germany, known for their expertise in 300 SL restorations. The process, which started in 2015, involved stripping the car to bare metal and fully rebuilding all mechanical components. The restoration included several upgrades to improve drivability, such as front disc brakes, a heavy-duty generator, an improved electric ignition system, and Koni shock absorbers and springs.

Image Via RM Sotheby's

The restoration preserved the car's original colors, with the addition of a contrasting grey DB 190 G hard top. The body, rear axle, front kingpins, and steering box were found to be original, while the engine and transmission were replacement units rebuilt to high standards. The restoration was completed in 2019, and the car has since been driven minimally but maintained meticulously, including recent service work by John Haynes in June 2023 and an inspection by Martin Cushway in February 2024.

Story continues

Image Via RM Sotheby's

With just under 3,000 miles driven since its restoration, this 300 SL Roadster remains in excellent mechanical and cosmetic condition. It stands as a brilliant example of Mercedes-Benzs finest creation, ready to be driven and enjoyed by its next fortunate owner.

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Syracuse, N.Y.  A Central New York man who twice led police on high-speed chases on Interstate 81 was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison Wednesday for drug trafficking.

Eugene Gilbert, 30, of Clay, admitted in his guilty plea to distributing fentanyl on four occasions between Oct. 14, 2021, and Nov. 2, 2021, according to court documents filed in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York.

In November 2021, Gilbert led DEA special agents and other law enforcement officers on a high-speed chase on Interstate 81 North, prosecutors said he admitted. He was avoiding a search warrant on his car, person and home in Clay, they said.
Syracuse, N.Y.  The state Court of Appeals has rejected the Columbus Monument Corporations request to appeal a lower courts decision that tossed their attempts to block the removal of the statue.

On Thursday, New Yorks highest court announced they would not hear the case. This decision means that the states Fourth Appellate Departments ruling that paved the way for the city to remove the statue will stand.
At first glance, the ballroom space inside 431 E. Fayette St., home base for the CNY Community Foundation, other foundations and several non-profit agencies, looked like it had been set up for a reception celebrating an exhibition. Twenty-six paintings, all by Syracuse artist Wendy Harris, were hung on the walls. There was a table with cookies, chips and other munchies.

And yet, the May 28 event definitely wasnt a typical reception. It concentrated on Harriss decision to donate the paintings to a range of local non-profit organizations, among them the Loretto Foundation, Sarahs Guest House and the Baltimore Woods Nature Center.

She made that decision after consulting with friends and considering significant changes in her life. Two years ago, she received a diagnosis of advancing cognitive decline.

Among other things, she needed to make plans for the many paintings shes created during the past 30 years. Harris is best known for her pastels depicting Central New York landscapes, for her interpretation of hillsides, fields, roads and cloudy skies. She spent many hours investigating variations in light not only on a seasonal basis but also during various times of the day.

Harris notes that she reflected both on her artworks and on her work history prior to becoming an artist full-time. She was a fundraising professional for WCNY, the Everson Museum, Syracuse University and other organizations.

Ultimately, she decided to blend her career interests, to donate a significant share of her paintings to non-profit groups. Volunteers, including members of Team Wendy, a group of friends, contacted local community non-profits, asking them to send a representative to Harriss studio in the Delevan Center and choose a painting.

No restrictions were placed on the recipients. They could either place a painting in an office area or use the artwork for a fundraising project such as a raffle or silent auction.

Thus, the May 28 reception, organized by ArtRage Gallery and Team Wendy, brought together the artist, the paintings, and people associated with the various non-profits, focusing on her goal of making artworks available for the groups staff and participants.

In turn, a variety of people in the room acknowledged her gifts. In an interview, Kelly Ocampo, of Hope for Bereaved, said that we are very grateful to Wendy. This project speaks to our mission. She noted that her agency plans to hang the painting Downpour off Shore in its office at 4500 Onondaga Blvd. Her organization helps people who are grieving through support groups and individual counseling.

Similarly, Christine Corbett, vice-president of Development for the Alzheimer Association chapters of Upstate New York, spoke of how Winters Last Blush would play a positive role in the organizations East Syracuse office. We try to meet people where they are, she said. When a family comes here, they are feeling many emotions. Having a beautiful painting in the reception area will help us in welcoming people.

In addition, Kim Dill of Sage Upstate, which promotes the well being of LGBTQ+ elders in Central New York, discussed Harris contributions to Sage. She served on the groups board of directors and helped in other ways. Autumn Extravaganza, with its lush colors, will hang in the organizations office at 431 E. Fayette St.

And Carrie Velez, of the Vera House Foundation, talked about going to Harriss studio and finding that Grace at the Golden Hour was available. The painting, which will reside in Vera Houses office at 723 James St., emphasizes gold and green colors, documenting the artists subtle view of light.

The project, with its placement of paintings at various community sites, references Harriss art in a tangible way. She created paintings like Lighting the Way, with its depiction of a blazing sunset; A Place Uninterrupted which communicates the serenity of a stream and near-by trees; and Be Still, My Heart, a work portraying clouds on a grand scale.

During three decades of making art full-time, she found many opportunities for displaying her work. That included local venues such as the Edgewood Gallery, Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center in Auburn and the Everson Museum. Beyond that, images of her work appeared in the Women Artists Datebook published by the Syracuse Cultural Workers and on a series of notecards designed by SCW.

There were certainly forays outside Central New York. Harris received a best-of-show award for a 2011 exhibition staged in Canandaigua and titled Women Artists of the Finger Lakes, won first prize in a 2003 plein air competition sponsored by the Portage Hill Gallery of Westfield, New York, and took part in a 2007 Northeast National Pastel show which honored her with the Outstanding Landscape Award.

Finally, some artists prefer not to discuss their work, but Harris has taken an opposite approach; shes very willing to talk about her paintings. At the reception, she read from Savoring, a poem she wrote. It includes the following lines: I savor the sheer joy of cresting a hill/and being moved by the beauty/of the layered landscape before me. I savor the challenge to reproduce/ what my eyes and heart behold and cherish.

That reception was sponsored by a slew of supporters including the ArtRage Gallery, the Central New York Community Foundation and the Edgewood Gallery.

Carl Mellor covered visual arts for the Syracuse New Times from 1994 through 2016. He continues to write about artists and exhibitions in the Syracuse area.
Perfume Genius is celebrating the 10th anniversary of his third studio album, Too Bright, by bringing the album on tour and performing it in its entirety.

The limited six-stop Too Bright 10th Anniversary Tour is already sold out, but fans can still secure tickets through resale platforms like Vivid Seats, SeatGeek and StubHub.

Too Bright was the first record I wrote without the intention of healing, Perfume Genius wrote in his tour announcement on X. I riled against my desire to soothe, I thought pain as a weapon instead of something I needed to take on and sort through.

Where to buy Perfume Genius concert tickets:

See the complete list of tour dates and where to buy tickets below.

Prices and availability are noted at the time of publishing and are subject to change.

9/16 - Washington, D.C. - The Atlantis

9/17 - Brooklyn, NY - Music Hall of Williamsburg

9/18 - Woodstock, NY - Bearsville Theater

9/24 - San Francisco, CA - Great American Music Hall

9/26 - Los Angeles, CA - Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever

9/27 - Los Angeles, CA - Masonic Lodge at Hollywood Forever

Related: Missed Gracie Abrams The Secret of Us Tour presale? Heres how to get tickets

Perfume Genius latest album, Ugly Season, was released on June 17, 2022.

That same year, he was featured on the Yeah Yeah Yeahs lead single, Spitting Off the Edge of the World, off their fifth studio album, Cool It Down. The single was nominated for the 2023 Grammy Award for Best Alternative Music Performance.
Syracuse, N.Y.  Volunteer fire officials across New York state are concerned about the cost of meeting what would be the largest overhaul in decades of federal safety regulations for firefighters.

The Occupational Health and Safety Administration late last year released its proposed Emergency Response standard, which would set workplace protections for emergency responders such as firefighters and paramedics. It would replace rules from 1980 covering only firefighters.
A Verona woman called authorities on May 11 after witnessing her neighbor shoot a blue heron from a shed behind his home. A New York State Department of Environmental Conservation police officer arrived at the location and interviewed the man.

During the interview the ECO observed a .22-caliber rifle on the floor of the mans garage. The man denied shooting anything. While canvassing the property, the ECO found a dead blue heron next to a small pond adjacent to the mans shed, the same shed from which the neighbor reported seeing the man standing with a rifle.

The ECO also noticed an open box of .22-caliber bullets inside the shed. The man changed his story when confronted with the evidence and admitted that he killed the heron, claiming that the bird was eating the frogs and fish in the pond, making a mess on the banks.

The man was ticketed for illegally taking protected wildlife, illegally taking a protected bird, and discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a residence.

A Monroe County sheriffs deputy and an ECO freed this racoon that got its paw caught in a plant hook.NYSDEC

The following reports are excerpted from DEC

A raccoon got its paw caught in a plant hook on May 9 in Monroe County. A sheriffs deputy used a catch pole to control the caught coon while an ECO manually removed the plant hook, allowing the critter to free itself and run off into the woods uninjured.

Somebody dumped several bags of garbage on a back road in Steuben County on April 12. An ECO went through the bags and discovered the person responsible, who received a ticket for the unlawful disposal of solid waste.

On May 1, opening day of the spring turkey season, a hunter in the town of Bath shot a turkey over a spot hed baited with oats. An ECO observed the hunter returning to his vehicle and ticketed him for hunting over bait and for killing protected wildlife except as permitted by law.

Also on May 1, a hunter in the town of Benson shot a turkey from the road near a residence. After interviewing the hunter and a witness, an ECO issued several tickets to the hunter including the illegal take of a turkey and discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a residence.

On May 8, a boat struck a large rock in front of Esopus Island, in the Hudson River.NYSDEC

On May 8, a boat struck a large rock in front of Esopus Island, in the Hudson River. An ECO helped three people aboard the damaged boat onto his police boat and brought them back to shore. Crews removed the damaged boat the next day.

An injured bald eagle has been flapping around the Washington County town of Cambridge for weeks with one droopy wing. Residents spotted it at various locations but the bird escaped every attempt to capture it until recently, when an ECO safely snatched it near a small pond. The ECO took the bird to a rehabilitation facility, where leg bands identified it as a captured chick in Massachusetts in 2002.

Another injured bald eagle was captured on May 13 on a farm in the town of Lima after a farmer saw it stumbling around on the ground. A regional wildlife technician and an ECO captured the bird and prepared it for transport to Cornell Universitys Janet L. Swanson Wildlife Hospital.

A hen mallard duck and her 12 ducklings took up residence in the courtyard of a Suffolk County elementary school in early May.NYSDEC

A hen mallard duck and her 12 ducklings took up residence in the courtyard of a Suffolk County elementary school in early May. It wasnt the first time ducks used the school as a refuge, but unfortunately the spot is also a perfect location for seagulls to attack defenseless ducklings from the schools roof. An ECO relocated the mallard family to a nearby waterbody.

A consignment store manager recently contacted DEC after receiving antiques made from the parts of endangered species, including two jackets made from colobus monkey fur, a taxidermized hawksbill sea turtle, and numerous articles made from elephant ivory. The items are illegal to sell under both state and federal law. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service took them for use as reference samples in their lab.

An angler tried to illegally catch river herring with a net in Wappinger Creek in the town of Wappinger. An ECO confronted the angler, who admitted to using the net to catch herring but believed he shouldnt get a ticket because he hadnt caught anything yet. The ECO ticketed the angler anyway.

A fox bit multiple children at St. Marys Institute on Kopernick Boulevard in Amsterdam on May 29. Police broadcast an electronic predator call over a PA system to lure the fox out of the woods. After about 15 minutes, the fox came out of the woods and charged at the officers. An ECO shot it and the carcass was turned over to Montgomery Department of Health for testing.



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Cazenovia man ticketed for shooting bear eating from birdfeeder in his yard - newyorkupstate.com

Hunter kills bear in this Central NY town for first time in at least 50 years - newyorkupstate.com

Bear cub rescued from excavator in Upstate NY - newyorkupstate.com

Upstate NY man illegally kept giant gator as pet, allegedly let people swim with it - newyorkupstate.com

Upstate NY man caught red-handed for spray painting squirrels bright red - newyorkupstate.com

Steve Featherstone covers the outdoors for The Post Standard, syracuse.com and NYUP.com. Contact him at sfeatherstone@syracuse.com or on Twitter @featheroutdoors. You can also follow along with all of our outdoors content at newyorkupstate.com/outdoors/ or follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/upstatenyoutdoors.
Update: As of 10:50 a.m. both buildings were cleared by law enforcement and no explosive was discovered, ESM officials said. The FBI is continuing to investigate the source of the email, the officials said. Buses resumed their routes after a two-hour delay.

Below is the original story:
GMC

"New" General Motors is starting to operate a little like its old pre-bankruptcy self of about 15 years ago. Just look at GMC, a brand that currently sells a battery-electric truck and SUV under the Hummer subbrand, one of four money-draining marques GM sold off or pulled the plug on at the start of the 2010s. The rest of the GMC lineup is effectively the poster child for badge engineering, a practice the automaker regularly relied on in the days prior to filing Chapter 11.

Admittedly, badge engineering has long been GMC's modus operandi, but the previous-generation Acadia at least gave us hope the General was making a sincere attempt to create a distinct product portfolio for its "Professional Grade" truck and SUV division.

That first Acadiadeveloped before GM declared bankruptcyshared essentially all but superficial aesthetics with the Buick Enclave and Chevrolet Traverse (as well as the short-lived Saturn Outlook). GM changed the script upon redesigning the mid-size SUV for 2017. Whereas the wheelbases and overall lengths of the Buick and Chevy grew in size for their sophomore generation, the wheelbase and overall length of the GMC shrank by 6.4 inches and 7.2 inches, respectively. Short of the Cadillac XT6 luxury SUV, no other SUV from GM (at least in the United States) combined the wieldy dimensions of the Acadia with three rows of seats.

GMC

Plus-Size Model

Old habits die hard, though, and GMC returns the Acadia to its indistinct roots for 2024. The third-generation SUV is once again a fraternal sibling to the latest Enclave and Traverse. As such, the Acadia is a whole lot bigger than its predecessor. Its wheelbase and overall length now stretch to 120.9 and 204.0 inches, shadowing those of the outgoing model by 8.4 and 10.6 inches. Overall width swells by more than four inches too.

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Despite its larger footprint, the Acadia looks as handsome as ever. A Yukon-like maw, square stance, and unfettered rear end give the new Acadia an air of refinement and strength that's missing from its plainer Buick and busier Chevy chassis-mates.

Story continues

Square Inside

A similar sense of style permeates the cabin. Right angles dominate the dashboard, with the 15.0-inch vertically oriented touchscreen infotainment system serving as the focal point. To its left sits a smaller 11.0-inch instrument cluster screen. Both displays come standard across the board, as do niceties such as a surround-view camera system, heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, and a wireless charging pad.

GMC

Predictably, the Acadia's insides are far roomier too. The longer wheelbase and additional width notably improve legroom and shoulder room throughout, and GMC claims each row benefits from gains in all passenger-space-related dimensions. Cargo capacity grows drastically, as well, with the brand reporting an 80 percent increase in space behind the third row and a 23 percent increase aft of the driver and front passenger seats.

For perspective, the outgoing Acadia held just two carry-on-size boxes behind its rearmost row and 28 with its second- and third-row seats folded in our testing. Meanwhile, the previous-gen Chevy Traverse, which is similarly sized to the 2024 Acadia, fit six carry-on-size boxes in its cargo hold with all seats in place and 40 with all rear seats folded.

Is the Price Right?

The Acadia's dimensions are not the only part of the SUV that get larger for 2024 though. With a starting price of $43,995, the latest Acadia costs $5800 more than last year's base model. GMC's decision to consolidate from four to three trim levels is partly responsible for this uptick in the asking price.

GMC

Gone are the SLE and SLT grades from last year. Instead, the new Elevation trim serves as the entry-level point for the Acadia. From a features perspective, the Elevation effectively takes the place of the prior SLT, which stickered for $42,495, or $1500 less than the 2024 model's cost of entry. The off-road-oriented all-wheel-drive-only AT4 and near-luxury Denali trims return, wearing base prices of $51,395 and $55,695.

GMC limited our drive time to the latter two trims. The Denali, like the Elevation, comes standard with front-wheel drive, with all-wheel drive $2000 extra.

The Acadia Denali we drove came so equipped. It also sported the $3130 Denali Reserve package, which among other things, replaces the trim's standard 20-inch wheels and tires with bigger 22-inch units and adds ZF's adaptive dampers. These dampers are also standard fare on the AT4, which rides exclusively on 18-inch wheels shod in Goodyear Wrangler Territory AT rubber.

GMC

On the flat roads in and around Bluffton, South Carolina, the big-wheeled Denali comfortably cruised over swaths of largely flat asphalt. On the few occasions we hit a bump in the road, we noticed no undue impact harshness. That said, the various nooks, crannies, and cracks that pockmark southeast Michigan's crumbling asphalt may overwhelm the setup, so we look forward to driving an Acadia in our native environment.

AT4 on the Dirt and Tarmac

During our stint behind the wheel of the AT4, we ventured onto a few dirt and sand-covered roads. In this setting, the taller sidewalls of the tires and AT4-specific tuning of the ZF dampers (which also add a hydrualic rebound stop to limit any uncouth clunking under full droop) worked together in harmony, netting a smooth and stable ride on this not-so-tough terrain. Meanwhile, the AT4-exclusive twin-clutch rear differential coolly shuffled torque from side to side through turns, combatting understeer and allowing the Acadia to cut through corners at above-average speeds neutrally.

Opting for the AT4 adds a handful of other features that aim to improve the SUV's off-tarmac capabilities. This includes a 1.0-inch lift, a 0.5 inch wider rear track, fender skirts that add 0.4 inch to the SUV's overall width, a pair of underbody skid plates (an aluminum one that pokes out from the trim-specific front fascias and protects the radiator and condenser module, and a steel one that shields the powertrain), a specially tuned Off-Road drive mode, and the addition of a Terrain drive mode that effectively adds a crawl control function that works at up to 50 mph.

GMC

The Acadia's Turbo Four Brings More Power and Torque

Unlike the last Acadia, which relied on either a 228-hp turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four or 310-hp 3.6-liter V-6each mating to a nine-speed automatic transmissionthe 2024 model comes strictly with a turbocharged 2.5-liter four-cylinder that pairs with an eight-speed automatic gearbox. This engine is closely related to the turbocharged 2.7-liter four of the GMC Canyon and Sierra 1500 pickup trucks (as well as the Chevrolet Colorado, Chevy Silverado 1500, and Cadillac CT4).

That unit, however, is too wide to fit transversely under the Acadia's hood. To clear that hurdle, GM decreased the bore of the cylinders, enabling the use of a narrower block.

The turbo 2.5-liter produces 328 horses and 326 pound-feet of torque, an additional 55 pound-feet of twist over last year's V-6 (and 68 more than the old turbo four)and 18 more horses, but 104 fewer pound-feet of torque, than the GMC 2.7-liter.

Despite its engine's sizable output, the Acadia leaves the line lethargically. Blame the lackadaisical throttle tip-in, as well as the all-wheel-drive model's claimed curb weight of nearly 5000 pounds. Things pick up once rolling, and the generous midrange torque of the engine and responsive transmission afford the Acadia reasonable gusto in passing situations.

GMC

Unfortunately, pushing the tachometer past 2500 revs or so begets a coarse and loud protest from the four-cylinder that permeates the passenger compartment. It's hard to avoid, too, as the turbo 2.5-liter often needs to work up toward its 3500 rpm torque peak to properly propel the Acadia in most driving situations.

Save for the firm and assured brake pedal, GMC makes little effort to hide the immense size and mass of the Acadia from the driver. Slow steering that suffers from a large on-center dead spot further limits any notion that this is anything but a big SUV.

Then again, that is what the Acadia is now: a big SUV. And its transparent size makes it ideal for shuttling multiple full-size passengers about in the comfortable second-row bucket seats or the tighter but still sizable third row that's positioned in such a way so that all but the tallest riders need not uncomfortably contort their bodies to fit in it.

It appears GM has given into its worst angels with the 2024 GMC Acadia. The automaker turned what was once a relatively distinct model in its portfolio into a rebadged and rebodied version of a vehicle of which two mechanically identical variants already exist (both at similar price points, no less). At least those angels have an eye for design, and the Acadia packs pleasing looks both inside and out.

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Cadillac CT5-V Clocked Going 143 MPH On Georgia Highway

Police in Sandy Springs, Georgia got quite the shock when they clocked an obviously speeding Cadillac CT5-V and measured a speed of 143 mph. The offending vehicle was traveling in a 65 mph zone, so they immediately initiated a traffic stop.

Check out the huge takeover event busted in rural Georgia.

Unlike some people, the driver of the Caddie complied and pulled over, even though he definitely could have outran police. Hats off to him, although we cant endorse speeding like that on public roads. Its just refreshing to see people who know theyre going to get big time busted just pull over like that.

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The incident, which happened in the southbound lanes of GA-400 on June 4 not too long after 10 pm resulted in the driver being arrested. Thats right, if you engage in whats considered criminal speed, you can be thrown in the back of a police cruiser. And 143 mph is going to be classified as criminal speed everywhere we can think of in the US.

Whats more, Sandy Springs Police say in a Facebook post the driver was hit with citations under the states notorious Super Speeder law and for reckless driving. The department shared a photo of the laser detector displaying the CT5-Vs speed and a warning: Speeding and reckless driving will not be tolerated in Sandy Springs!!!

If youre traveling in the area, slow down.

Now that its summer and people are on road trips, it can be tempting to dial the speed up so you get to your destination early. Or maybe you left late and are trying to make up for lost time. Either way, youre taking a huge risk since there are law enforcement agencies looking to make an example out of someone like you.

Image via Mario Borruel/Facebook

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Elon Musk and Donald Trump. Lisa O'Connor/AFP/Getty Images and AP Photo/Chris Carlson

Elon Musk appears to be emulating Donald Trump's playbook.

The Tesla CEO also seems to be immune to scandals in a similar way to the former president.

Supporters of both Musk and Trump appear willing to overlook their sometimes questionable behavior.

Elon Musk seems to be taking a page out of Donald Trump's playbook.



The Tesla CEO once took a jab at the former president for being too old to run again for the White House, essentially suggesting he sail off into the sunset.



But now it appears Musk is looking to Trump more and more as an example of how to play the public relations game  from the way he prematurely declares victory, to the feuds he starts and the scandals he navigates.

The approach might be serving him well.

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Take, for instance, the almost Trumplike way in which Musk, with no attribution, prematurely declared victory in securing his mammoth pay package many hours ahead of an official announcement from Tesla.

Musk decided to celebrate early on X, declaring that the vote was passing by "wide margins." If that is the case, it definitely is a win for the Tesla CEO.

Headaches ahead

Trump is of course now a convicted felon who still faces a brimming docket of pending court cases. Yet Musk also faces some headaches of his own.

Eight former SpaceX employees have filed a lawsuit against him, alleging they were wrongfully fired for speaking out against a hostile work environment in 2022.

Then there are new claims by The Wall Street Journal that Musk blurs lines with the women who work for him. That story also included a claim that Musk asked a SpaceX employee to have his babies, before denying her a promotion when she refused.

Immune to scandal

Musk also seems to be immune to scandals in a similar way to Trump.

Both have the backing of some prominent Silicon Valley figures. Reuters reported that tech venture capitalists David Sacks and Chamath Palihapitiya hosted a fundraiser in San Francisco earlier this month for the Republican presidential candidate.

Story continues

And where Musk is concerned, no matter how salacious the scandals he can always rely on the support of his many fans on X.



Following Trump's playbook doesn't appear to have hurt his payday ambitions at all. If Musk has won shareholder approval, they've apparently overlooked some Trumpy tendencies  like feuding with plenty of his tech peers.

Zuck feud

One of Musk's long-running battles has been a near eight-year feud with Mark Zuckerberg that saw him challenge the Meta CEO to a cage fight.

Most recently, Musk filed a lawsuit against OpenAI and CEO Sam Altman, accusing the ChatGPT maker of violating its nonprofit mission by partnering with Microsoft  although that lawsuit was dropped on Tuesday for unknown reasons.

There's also the drug use. Musk admitted in his March interview with Don Lemon that he takes a "small amount" of ketamine every other week. When Lemon questioned him further, Musk seemed to imply that Wall Street didn't have a problem with it.



Supporters of both Musk and Trump appear very willing to overlook behavior that lesser public figures might not be allowed to get away with.



Representatives for Musk didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider, made outside normal working hours.

Read the original article on Business Insider
RahulNagaraj Senior - BHPian



Join Date: Mar 2021 Location: Bangalore Posts: 2,481 Thanked: 23,654 Times

Citroen rules out future small & large models, to focus on B & C segments only



The decision to focus on the mainstream segments effectively means the end of both its entry-level C1 and also its range-topping D-segment model, the C5 X. The decision was confirmed by Thierry Koskas, CEO of Citroen, who stated that the brand "needs to be in the main segments, not niche segments." Koskas stated that the C5 X is "not performing badly but is in a segment thats non-existent." He further added, "Citroen needs to be in the B- and C-segments as this is the heart of the brand."







Going forward, the B-segment Citroen C3 could become the brand's entry-level offering and end with the C5 Aircross being its range-topping model. Koskas stated, "If you go into the A-segment [with a C1 replacement], you would expect to pay less than the B-segment, but the production costs for us are the same."



The CEO also stated that future Citroens will not be limited to conventional hatchbacks and SUV body styles, but will instead have "new shapes that do not exist". He added, "We will take risks, we need to shake the market, and Citroen can do that. We will do it in the B- and C-segments, which is the vast majority of the European market. Thats where we need to be."



Koskas also confirmed that in the future, Citroen will not have many cars, instead five to six well-positioned ones which appeal to customers. He said, "Theres no magic number, but five or six models well positioned, really appealing to customers Id be happy with that."



Source:



Link to Tea-BHP news According to media reports, Citroen's future lineup will not include smaller and larger models. The French carmaker will instead focus solely on Europe's largest mainstream segments.The decision to focus on the mainstream segments effectively means the end of both its entry-level C1 and also its range-topping D-segment model, the C5 X. The decision was confirmed by Thierry Koskas, CEO of Citroen, who stated that the brand "needs to be in the main segments, not niche segments." Koskas stated that the C5 X is "not performing badly but is in a segment thats non-existent." He further added, "Citroen needs to be in the B- and C-segments as this is the heart of the brand."Going forward, the B-segment Citroen C3 could become the brand's entry-level offering and end with the C5 Aircross being its range-topping model. Koskas stated, "If you go into the A-segment [with a C1 replacement], you would expect to pay less than the B-segment, but the production costs for us are the same."The CEO also stated that future Citroens will not be limited to conventional hatchbacks and SUV body styles, but will instead have "new shapes that do not exist". He added, "We will take risks, we need to shake the market, and Citroen can do that. We will do it in the B- and C-segments, which is the vast majority of the European market. Thats where we need to be."Koskas also confirmed that in the future, Citroen will not have many cars, instead five to six well-positioned ones which appeal to customers. He said, "Theres no magic number, but five or six models well positioned, really appealing to customers Id be happy with that."Source: Autocar UK
Ripcord09 BHPian

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Would you buy the Jeep Wrangler for 68-72 lakhs in India? 2024 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon





What you'll like:



 A timeless design with loads of character

 One of the best offroaders on the planet

 Good build quality and abuse-friendly nature

 Highly customisable. You can go crazy with modifications

 Punchy 268-BHP 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine is refined and smooth

 8-speed ZF automatic gearbox is competent and does the job well on / off-road

 Loads of off-road tech (locking differentials, sway bar disconnect, full-float rear axle, etc.)

 Features list includes ADAS tech, front camera, new 12.3-inch touchscreen, 9-speaker Alpine sound system, heated steering wheel & front seats, 12-way powered front seats, and more



What you won't:



 Lack of engine options. No diesel engine on offer, nor a larger petrol (available internationally)

 Firm, busy ride in the city. Bumpy on bad roads

 Backseat isn't comfortable over long distances. Also, best for 2 adults and not 3

 A 1-star Euro-NCAP safety rating is a dealbreaker for most buyers

 On-road dynamics are poor, more so with the stock MT tyres (Jeep should've given AT tyres). Best to stick to safe speeds

 Driver footwell is cramped and will get uncomfortable over long drives

 Missing features like auto wipers, auto folding mirrors, a dead pedal, a 360-degree camera and ventilated seats



Review Link



The Wrangler Unlimited at Rs 67.65 lakh, ex-showroom, and Rubicon at Rs 71.65 lakh, ex-showroom, are placed in quite an odd price bracket in India. Choosing an alternative, especially to the Rubicon will be quite tricky and you will have to make a few sacrifices.



Soft-roader Alternatives



For a similar price as the Rubicon, youll be forced to choose a couple of soft-roaders from European and Japanese brands. Here are price and performance comparisons:







Although you can find better performance in some of the SUVs listed above compared to the Rubicon, they simply arent as capable of taking it for hardcore off-road sessions. Mud and ruts are something these alternatives can handle. Anything more and then you will be better off in the Jeep Wrangler.



Off-roader Alternatives



If you are hell-bent on looking for a capable alternative to the Rubicon, the choices are between affordable Indian offroaders or the expensive Defender. Here is a breakdown of the price and performance of hardcore off-roader alternatives to the Wrangler Rubicon:







The above off-roaders are capable machines and can almost take any challenge that the terrain throws at them.



So, the question remains - Would you buy a Jeep Wrangler in 2024? If not, then which car would you buy instead?  A timeless design with loads of character One of the best offroaders on the planet Good build quality and abuse-friendly nature Highly customisable. You can go crazy with modifications Punchy 268-BHP 2.0-litre turbo-petrol engine is refined and smooth 8-speed ZF automatic gearbox is competent and does the job well on / off-road Loads of off-road tech (locking differentials, sway bar disconnect, full-float rear axle, etc.) Features list includes ADAS tech, front camera, new 12.3-inch touchscreen, 9-speaker Alpine sound system, heated steering wheel & front seats, 12-way powered front seats, and more Lack of engine options. No diesel engine on offer, nor a larger petrol (available internationally) Firm, busy ride in the city. Bumpy on bad roads Backseat isn't comfortable over long distances. Also, best for 2 adults and not 3 A 1-star Euro-NCAP safety rating is a dealbreaker for most buyers On-road dynamics are poor, more so with the stock MT tyres (Jeep should've given AT tyres). Best to stick to safe speeds Driver footwell is cramped and will get uncomfortable over long drives Missing features like auto wipers, auto folding mirrors, a dead pedal, a 360-degree camera and ventilated seatsThe Wrangler Unlimited at Rs 67.65 lakh, ex-showroom, and Rubicon at Rs 71.65 lakh, ex-showroom, are placed in quite an odd price bracket in India. Choosing an alternative, especially to the Rubicon will be quite tricky and you will have to make a few sacrifices.For a similar price as the Rubicon, youll be forced to choose a couple of soft-roaders from European and Japanese brands. Here are price and performance comparisons:Although you can find better performance in some of the SUVs listed above compared to the Rubicon, they simply arent as capable of taking it for hardcore off-road sessions. Mud and ruts are something these alternatives can handle. Anything more and then you will be better off in the Jeep Wrangler.If you are hell-bent on looking for a capable alternative to the Rubicon, the choices are between affordable Indian offroaders or the expensive Defender. Here is a breakdown of the price and performance of hardcore off-roader alternatives to the Wrangler Rubicon:The above off-roaders are capable machines and can almost take any challenge that the terrain throws at them.So, the question remains - Last edited by Omkar : 12th June 2024 at 14:58 .
In a nutshell: Researchers have brought Superman's X-ray vision a step closer to reality with a tiny new imager chip that can peek inside boxes and through walls. The chip, developed by a team from the University of Texas at Dallas and Seoul National University, uses terahertz radiation to detect objects through thin materials like cardboard from about an inch away.

This "X-ray vision" tech may sound a bit creepy at first, but the researchers have built in some privacy safeguards. For now, the chip's range is limited to around an inch, so you'd have to get awkwardly close to spy on someone's belongings. Future versions may see up to 5 inches away, but that's still in arms-length territory.

Dr. Kenneth O from UT Dallas explained that if a thief tried to scan the contents of someone's bag, they'd need to be close enough that the person would be aware of what they were doing.

The chip works by emitting and detecting terahertz radiation, which is invisible to humans but can penetrate thin surfaces. Early prototypes used lower frequencies around 100 GHz, but this latest 2024 version operates at 296 GHz for better resolution. O says that they obviously don't use X-ray frequencies, which "can be harmful." In fact, the chip's frequencies aren't anywhere near X-ray's operational range which is between 30 petahertz and 30 exahertz.

What's really impressive is how the team managed to shrink the technology down to something small enough for mobile devices. The imaging array is built using standard CMOS chip technology and consists of just a 1x3 array of "pixels" the size of grains of sand.

"It took 15 years of research that improved pixel performance by 100 million times, combined with digital signal processing techniques, to make this imaging demonstration possible. This disruptive technology shows the potential capability of true THz imaging," said Dr. Brian Ginsburg, director of RF/mmW and high-speed research at TI's Kilby Labs.

The researchers see a wide range of use cases with this piece of technology. It can be fitted in phones and used to detect contraband inside packages and find studs, pipes, and wiring installations behind walls for construction projects. It could even have medical imaging applications down the road.

"We designed the chip without lenses or optics so that it could fit into a mobile device," said Dr. Wooyeol Choi from Seoul National University, a lead author on the study published in IEEE Transactions on Terahertz Science and Technology.

The research involved nearly two decades of work by O's team at the Texas Analog Center of Excellence, supported by sponsors like the Semiconductor Research Corporation, Texas Instruments, and even Samsung.

The quest to develop vision that can penetrate solid objects is a pursuit that has captivated researchers for ages. Just last year, a team unveiled a technique to detect and track human movements behind walls by using WiFi router signals. In 2018, MIT scientists pioneered RF-Pose, a system that used neural networks to interpret radio waves reflecting off people's bodies, essentially allowing it to see through walls.
WTF?! In news that will likely elicit the use of the Professor Farnsworth "I don't want to live on this planet anymore" meme, this month will see the inaugural "Miss AI" beauty pageant take place. Judges  two human and two virtual models  will choose an AI-generated model in a competition that will be handing out thousands of dollars in prizes.

Produced by the UK-based creator subscription platform Fanvue alongside the World AI Creator Awards (WAICA), the Miss AI competition is offering prizes totalling over $20,000. The winner receives a $5,000 cash prize, along with AI mentorship programs and PR services worth $7,000.

The photorealistic entrants have been generated using "off-the-shelf and proprietary" AI tools. The models have Instagram profiles where they show off their artificial lives and homes, post updates, and even interact with fans.

The four judges, only two of whom are real, will be rating the models based on their beauty, the way the technology was used to create them, and their "social clout," which is an assessment based on their engagement numbers with fans, audience growth, and utilization of platforms such as Instagram.

One of the contestants, a Brazilian-made AI called Ailya Lou, has almost 11,000 Instagram followers. There are some fairly realistic video clips on her profile, though they still have the uncanny valley effect that make them obvious AI creations.

Much like the real Miss World, the AI contestants support good causes, using social media feeds to talk about them. NPR notes that Anne Kerdi is a brand ambassador for the ocean conservation fund Oceanopolis Acts, and Romania's Aiyana Rainbow (below) is described as an LGBTQ advocate.

The judges have selected ten finalists from 1,500 submissions. The Miss AI results will be announced at the end of June.

The popularity of beauty pageants has been declining over the last couple of decades as social values change. The organizers say the AI competition is a "monumental leap forward," but many argue this competition is even worse than traditional events, given the exaggerated, unrealistic, and fake young women that are on show.

So-called AI influencers can earn big money. One of the judges of the event, Aitana Lopez, aka "Spain's first AI model," can earn up to 10,000 ($10,800) a month doing modeling work for brands. Lopez's creator, an AI modeling agency called The Clueless, hopes that more brands will start using AI models rather than real people to advertise their products. The appeal to companies seems obvious: an unageing model who isn't going to cause any controversy. Could this be yet another area where AI takes human jobs?
In a nutshell: Japan's parliament has passed new legislation aimed at increasing competition in the tech industry by requiring companies like Apple and Google to allow third-party app stores on their platforms. This move follows the European Union's Digital Markets Act (DMA), which compelled Apple to permit alternative app distribution platforms on iOS in Europe.

Called the Smartphone Software Competition Promotion Act, the new Japanese law is similar to the DMA in that it prevents big tech companies like Google and Apple from creating app distribution monopolies by restricting third parties from selling apps on their platforms.

As reported by The Asahi Shimbun, the law also prohibits companies from giving preferential treatment to their own payment systems, ensuring that app developers and publishers can use any payment platform they choose. Additionally, the law states that tech companies cannot prioritize their own apps and services in search results.

Companies that fail to comply with the law will be subject to heavy fines, starting at 20 percent of their domestic revenues for the first offense. For repeat offenders, fines could increase to 30 percent of revenues, more than three times the penalty stipulated under Japan's current antitrust laws.

Following the new legislation, activists and industry lobbies opposed to the tech giants' monopolistic business practices have expressed hope that it will prevent companies like Apple and Google from hurting consumers by stifling competition.

In a statement, the executive director of The Coalition for App Fairness (CAF), a group that includes Apple critics like Epic Games, Spotify, and others, said that he expects the new law to grant the Japan Fair Trade Commission more authority to address the "harmful, anti-competitive practices of mobile app monopolists, Apple and Google."

Due to the duopoly of Android and iOS in the mobile space, Google and Apple have often attracted scrutiny from regulators both domestically and internationally. The EU has been at the forefront of the fight against monopolistic trade practices by big companies and has taken various steps to rein in errant operators.

One of the most notable antitrust legislations enacted by the union in recent years is the DMA, which designates large tech companies as "gatekeepers" and imposes special restrictions on them to protect consumers and ensure healthy competition. Companies affected by the legislation include Alphabet (Google's parent), Amazon, Apple, ByteDance (TikTok's parent), Meta (Facebook's parent), and Microsoft.
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What just happened? Those ultra-affordable Chinese EVs crowding lots across the European Union may soon be much harder to find at bargain prices. The EU has just greenlit hefty new tariffs aimed at slowing down cheap imports from China.

In a move sure to rile up Beijing, the European Commission has announced that it will impose provisional anti-subsidy duties ranging from 17 percent to 38 percent on Chinese electric cars starting next month. The new tariffs will be added on top of the existing 10 percent duty. This means that by next month, popular affordable Chinese models could see their prices in Europe increase by almost 50 percent.

Giants like BYD, the world's top-selling EV brand, and Geely will face additional tariffs of 17 percent to 20 percent on individual car models. Meanwhile, European automakers exporting EVs made in China, such as Mercedes and Renault, will pay a flat 21 percent rate.

Chinese companies like state-owned SAIC, which did not cooperate with the EU's probe into subsidies in the EV sector, will face the maximum 38 percent tariff rate. SAIC's affordable MG brand has dominated the lower end of the European EV market.

While significant, the tariffs are still dwarfed by those announced by the US. In May, President Biden said duties on Chinese EVs would increase to 100 percent.

The crackdown on affordable EVs is driven by claims that Chinese automakers have benefited from unfair subsidies from their government, allowing them to sell vehicles at artificially low prices in Europe. France has been the biggest supporter of these punitive tariffs.

European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis says he is still open to negotiating with Beijing over the next three weeks before the provisional duties are locked in on July 4. However, China has already fired back, condemning the "ill-informed and lawless" move as a "naked protectionist act."

Beijing warned it will "take all necessary measures" to defend Chinese companies' rights and interests. The tariffs could generate billions annually for EU coffers as Chinese EV sales in the region continue to surge.

Automakers may have some flexibility to maintain profits despite the tariffs. A Bloomberg report indicates that many Chinese EVs fetch roughly double the price in Europe compared to their home market, giving automakers a cushion to partially absorb EU duties.

Additionally, automakers could shift more production directly to Europe to bypass the tariffs, or pivot their sales efforts to other emerging EV markets like the Middle East and Latin America.

Following news that the tariffs are manageable, BYD shares jumped as much as 8.8 percent in Hong Kong trading on Thursday.
Facepalm: A former National Computer Systems (NCS) employee has been sentenced to nearly three years in prison after being found guilty of unauthorized access to computer material. If you're looking for a blueprint on how to wreck your IT career and earn a few years behind bars, read on.

NCS terminated the contract of 39-year-old Kandula Nagaraju in October of 2022, reportedly due to subpar job performance. Nagaraju had worked as a quality assurance specialist, using test servers to vet applications prior to their release to customers and end users.

Court documents noted Nagaraju felt confused and upset over the termination, as he believed he had made "good contributions" to NCS during his time with the company.

Not long after returning home from Singapore, Nagaraju realized that his login credentials for his former employer were still active. In early 2023, he devised a plan to get revenge on NCS. Nagaraju found delete scripts online and tweaked them to run on NCS test servers.

The disgruntled ex-employee deployed the script, which was designed to delete servers one at a time, over the weekend of March 18-19. By the time NCS employees got to the office the following Monday, all 180 of the company's test servers had fallen.

According to NCS, the incident cost the company around $678,000 to straighten out. Fortunately for the business, no sensitive customer or company information was stored on the test servers.

NCS reported the incident to police in April 2023, and it did not take long for authorities to track down Nagaraju. On his seized laptop, police found the script used in the attack and even search history relating to using delete scripts on virtual servers.

NCS said human oversight was to blame for Nagaraju's credentials remaining active after he was served his walking papers. Once the unauthorized access was discovered, the credentials were immediately blocked but of course, the damage had already been done.

Nagaraju was sentenced to two years and eight months in jail.

Image credit: Pixabay, Ooi Boon Keong
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In a nutshell: Like other tech giants, Google is trying to integrate its new AI language models across its products and services, including its ChromeOS desktop operating system. Although the process will be gradual, Google plans to use Android as a pathway to embed AI into ChromeOS's foundations.

Google recently announced plans to integrate the Android Linux Kernel, Android frameworks, and other Android stack features into the core of ChromeOS. While the company didn't offer a clear timeline for the transition, it confirmed that it's part of an effort to deploy AI features more broadly across ChromeOS.

Initial work on bringing Android and ChromeOS closer together has only just begun, so end users won't experience the changes for a while. However, Google promises the transition will feel seamless and won't fundamentally alter the operating system's distinctive traits.

Although the company has attempted to integrate Android and ChromeOS before, Google's mobile and laptop operating systems remain distinct. Android devices don't support ChromeOS software, but some Chromebook models can run Android apps.

The company's new cross-platform effort started with a virtualization layer designed to run some versions of ChromeOS on Android hardware. Google demonstrated the open-source "ferrochrome" running on a Pixel 8, which projected its video feed to an external display.

Android has a native desktop mode, but it has limited functionality. Recent reports suggest Android 15 might refine the desktop mode but likely won't turn it into a viable PC OS alternative. Attempts to integrate ChromeOS and Android might affect those plans.

Google accelerated plans to embed AI features into Chromebooks late last year when introducing its Chromebook Plus models. The first tools introduced were designed for image editing and improved lighting during conference calls. More improvements are forthcoming.

Last month, developers added writing assistance functionality, AI-generated backgrounds, and its Gemini planning assistant. Furthermore, Gemini on Chromebook Plus will soon be able to summarize websites and PDFs. Full integration of the Android Linux Kernel and Android framework with ChromeOS could allow for even better features in upcoming versions.

Google's most public-facing AI product  AI Overviews  is also the one that receives the most backlash. The company temporarily pulled Overviews after users highlighted bizarre hallucinations and plagiarism concerns. However, Google downplayed the criticism while promising to tweak the search feature.
Harvard scientists developed a virtual rat model with an AI brain to study how brains control the movement of real rats. This innovative model accurately simulates neural activity observed in real rats, leading to similar behaviors.

Collaborating with Google's DeepMind AI lab, Harvard University researchers aim to understand better how brains control movement.

Advancements in Virtual Neuroscience

Partnering with Google's DeepMind AI lab, Harvard University researchers have developed a virtual rat model featuring an artificial brain capable of replicating natural movements. This model aims to enhance understanding of how brains regulate movement.

Despite significant progress in robotics, Interesting Engineering reported that mimicking the fluidity of animal and human motion remains a challenge. Diego Aldarondo, a Harvard graduate student involved in the project, highlighted hurdles in both hardware and software.

Aldarondo elaborated that challenges exist in both hardware and software domains. On the hardware side, researchers struggled to replicate animal bodies' flexibility, robustness, and energy efficiency in robots.

On the other hand, software hurdles involve developing efficient physics simulations and machine learning pipelines to train controllers to mimic human movement accurately.

He also pointed out the "sim-to-real gap," which complicates the transfer of controllers learned in simulation to real robots due to differences between physics simulators and real-world conditions.

Collaborating with Bence Olveczky, a professor at the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, and other colleagues from Harvard and Google's DeepMind, Aldarondo led the development of a biologically accurate digital model of a rat.

Read Also : New Study Delves Into World of Artificial Neural Networks, Unraveling How AI Brains Learn

Developing Virtual Rat Model

The researchers collaborated with Google DeepMind due to its expertise in training artificial neural networks (ANNs) capable of controlling biomechanical models of animals within physics simulators.

They utilized MuJoCo, a physics simulator replicating gravity and other physical forces. They devised a new pipeline called Motor Imitation and Control (MIMIC) to train the ANN to mimic rat behavior.

The researchers trained the ANN using detailed data obtained from real rats. Aldarondo highlighted the significance of this advancement for neuroscience, as it facilitates the development of computational models that simulate animal movement in physical simulations.

This enables predictions about the neural activity patterns expected in real brains. Employing the ANNs, the researchers constructed inverse dynamic models, believed to be utilized by our brains for guiding bodily movements and transitioning from the present body state to the intended state.

Aldarondo elaborated that in simpler terms, an inverse model determines the muscle activations necessary to attain a specific posture while considering the body's physics. This framework proves valuable in motor neuroscience, as it entails learning how to adapt to one's body's physical characteristics through interaction with the environment.

The information gathered from actual rats assisted the virtual model in understanding the forces necessary to generate the intended movement for reaching a specific state, even without direct training on them.

Upon measuring neural activity in both real rats and the virtual model, researchers discovered that the virtual model precisely anticipated the neural activity observed in real rats.

This marks the beginning of a new era in virtual neuroscience, wherein AI-simulated animals could be used to investigate neural circuits and potentially explore how they are affected by various diseases.
Researchers from Queen Mary University of London and Monash University developed a novel approach for predicting brain conditions like Alzheimer's disease with up to nine years' prior warning.

Researchers used a neurobiological model to analyze functional magnetic resonance imaging brain images. During testing, this model predicted dementia with over 80% accuracy, according to Science Alert.

Early prediction is crucial to creating dementia therapies that avoid permanent brain cell death, according to Queen Mary University neuroscientist Charles Marshall.

The default mode network (DMN), a key brain region damaged early by Alzheimer's disease, was examined. The scientists found indicators of dementia up to nine years before symptoms by evaluating brain scans from 81 dementia patients and 1,030 matched controls. These cheap and easy fMRI scans may help diagnose early.

Promising Method in Addressing Dementia, Alzheimer's

The method also predicts dementia development and diagnosis within two years. This knowledge and other risk variables help explain dementia's onset and effects.

These analytic methods with massive datasets can identify high-risk dementia patients and reveal environmental variables, according to neurologist Samuel Ereira.

Alzheimer's risk factors, such as heredity and social isolation, have also been associated with the DMN connection. Finding a remedy requires an understanding of these triggers.

The new approach could also help dementia patients who acquire symptoms later, revealing disease progression and potential treatments.

Marshall hopes this brain function metric will improve dementia risk prediction, early intervention, and therapy.

According to the World Health Organization, diseases that kill nerve cells and harm the brain develop dementia over time, which impairs cognitive ability beyond normal aging. Changes in mood, emotional control, behavior, or motivation typically precede cognitive decline, which does not alter awareness.

Dementia affects patients physically, mentally, socially, and economically, as well as their caregivers, families, and society. A lack of dementia knowledge and comprehension can lead to stigma and barriers to diagnosis and treatment.

Changes in mood and behavior often precede memory issues. Most people with dementia need help with everyday tasks as their symptoms deteriorate.

Viagra May Help Prevent Dementia

A separate study found that Viagra could help prevent dementia. Oxford researchers suggest that the drug for treating erectile dysfunction can improve brain blood flow and blood vessel function in high-risk vascular dementia patients, per NDTV.

Vascular dementia impairs judgment and memory due to decreased cerebral blood flow, which destroys brain tissue.

Circulation research suggests advances in dementia treatment. Ultrasound and MRI studies showed that sildenafil increases blood flow in the big and small brain arteries. The medication enhanced cerebrovascular function by increasing carbon dioxide blood flow responsiveness.

The research found that sildenafil and cilostazol lowered brain blood vessel resistance. Sildenafil had fewer adverse effects than cilostazol, particularly diarrhea.

Dr. Alastair Webb, Wolfson Centre for Prevention of Stroke and Dementia Associate Professor at Oxford University, explained that their study showed that the drug enters blood vessels, "improving blood flow and responsiveness."

He emphasized that these conditions produce persistent brain and small blood vessel damage, a frequent cause of vascular dementia. Dr. Webb stressed the need for larger trials to see if this widely available medicine may prevent dementia.

Vascular dementia treatments are lacking. According to the findings, chronic brain small blood vessel damage causes 30% of strokes and 80% of brain hemorrhage.
Crash dummy laboratory.

The first season of Westworld had scenes in a high-tech basement where humanoid robots were repaired after being killed. It was pretty cool, and a little creepy. Believe it or not, the crash-test dummy lab at Magnas cavernous R&D facility in Sailauf, Germany looks very similar. Less sinister, though unless youre a million-dollar mannequin marked for death. Olaf Gallas Some of Magnas crash test dummies are, in fact, worth over a million bucks. And if you want to be fancy, you can call them Anthropomorphic Test Devices (but we wont). Dummy or ATD, theres a lot more to these human-shaped data-gathering tools than floppy arms and caution tape stripes. We got the opportunity to step into the companys crash lab during a tour recently, and now you get the rare chance to peek inside the respawn point for the same crash dummies that have validated countless cars for crashworthiness. Magna is not a name brand that casual car appreciators will necessarily know, but its one of the most prolific in the biz. Its whats known as a tier-one supplier; it performs a huge range of functions for car companies you do know and drive. A Jaguar I-Pace at an early station on the production line at Magnas facility in Graz, Austria. Magna Otmar Winterleitner For example, Magna currently conducts the manufacture of the BMW Z4 and Toyota Supra, Mercedes G-Class, some Minis, some Jaguars, EV batteries, supercar transmissions, gasoline engines, cameras and collision-warning sensors, and more. The company also performs its own research and development of car parts, manages supply chains, and does a great deal of validation for cars at various stages of development, among other things. Crash testing is, of course, a critical part of that validation. And in a few huge buildings around Sailauf, which is sort of in the lower-middle area on a map of Germany, Magna does that by throwing cars at walls, ramming spikes through EV batteries, and torturing these heavily computerized dummies to determine how safe (or not) vehicles are. Technically the outfit doing this testing is ACTS GmbH & Co. KG, (stands for Advanced Car Technology Systems), which is a subsidiary of Magna. Regardless, a lot of cars and crash dummies are smashed here in the name of science and safety. The crew at the lab told me it typically runs 600 dummy-crewed crash tests a year, which apparently translates to about 3,200 injury events for Magnas dummies in the same amount of time. Olaf Gallas There were 25 dummies on the duty roster at Sailauf when I was down there, including simulated men, women, children, and some specialty pieces like standalone torsos and legs to measure the effects of injuries in specific scenarios. No pets yet, though. For babies, I was interested to see what type of car seat is considered the gold standard. But as it turns out theres no such unitwe were told that OEMs prescribe what baby seats should be crash-tested for youngsters. So if youre curious on what seat your cars maker recommends, check your owners manual, ask the parts desk at a dealership, or try Googling around with your year-make-model. Dummies are gut-punched with this battering ram as part of their calibration. Olaf Gallas In some instances of crash research, human cadavers have been employed. I was grateful that that wasnt the case at this facility, though. I dont consider myself particularly squeamish but I would not be in a rush to look at actual bodies being deconstructed by vehicles colliding with concrete. While a once-warm body would provide, er, visceral information on the effects of a crash, Magnas dummies are a lot more effective at quantifying and recording their traumatic experiences. Magnas people said that crash dummies as we know them came into use in the 1960s. The ones in use at Sailauf today would be considered the third-gen of their design. And while several outfits make these dummies, its governments that set the crash-measurement standards to which theyre built. One particularly weird-looking onereally the only dummy that didnt look at least partially humanwas a girthy column. Its called a legform, so you can probably guess what its designed to simulate. Its more than just a leg, though. With a raft of impact sensors between its foot and pelvis, its made to measure how much itd hurt to be run into by a car. Im six feet tall, maybe a smidge more in my Timberlands, for scale with the legform. Fortunately, I did not have to join the roster of sacrificial limbs. Olaf Gallas Olaf Gallas Magna does two main tests with such a device to study pedestrian safety. The legform is tossed at the hood from a specific angle, and of course, its hit with a bumper. The staff wheeled out an adult dummy that had been built in 2022. We were told it cost 800,000 euros before any sensors were mounted up to it. The raft of small speedometers and gyroscopes and accelerometers and other such things allows it to record 160 channels of activity (speed, force, ect) in a crash. Another tech said a full-sized dummy, as equipped, would be about 1,200,000 euros. Dummies are rebuilt and recalibrated after every crash, and typically rebuilt completely after 10 to 20 accidents, depending on how rough of a life its had. One of Magnas techs told me that the dummies could essentially live forever since theyre so modular and are rebuilt so often. You get into a Ship of Theseus situation pretty quickly when you start trying to calculate a crash-test dummys lifespan, though. As you can see, these machines are much more than mannequins. Olaf Gallas Quick aside for those of you who didnt have a Greek mythology class or remember that one scene from that Avengers movie: Theseus was a guy with a ship, and like most of my cars, that ship was repaired so many times that, eventually, it had none of the original parts it left the factory with. So Theseus Paradox asks: Is it still the same ship, or is it now a new ship? While scratching my head at that one and thinking about the War Boys chat from Fury Road (We live! We die! We live again!) I asked one of the technicians how much damage had been done to the humanoid torso he had partially dissected on his workbench. He kind of laughed and shrugged, gestured to a spiderweb of strange-looking materials, and essentially said that no single part on the desk was under 1,000 euros. Ouch indeed! Olaf Gallas And of course, its not just bodies that have to be tested for crashworthinessits the cars themselves, and more recently, EV batteries. Magnas main car-crashing lab at Sailauf looks like a spaceport from science fiction. A cold, concrete stadium-sized venue with colossal doors, intimidatingly strong robotic armatures, and intense lights is where cars are chucked into barriers at various angles, to be studied in slow-motion while somebody sweeps up broken glass. The central crash block, a 100-ton monolith that has killed countless cars, rests in the middle of the room surrounded by cameras. As cars bounce off it, the results are recorded at a rate of 5,000 frames per second. That gives engineers a very precise look at exactly what happens to their vehicle design at every stage of its demise. Sadly, I wasnt allowed to get any pictures of it. Electric cars present one particularly interesting new factor in crash safety: The giant battery slung under the passengers. While EVs get smashed and crashed into the kill block like everything else, EV batteries are currently being torture-tested on their own too. This immensely powerful machine squeezes things until they pop to see what happens. Andrew P. Collins Magna runs a range of tests on batteries, including 10,000 power cycles and simulations of years of use. Batteries are crushed by immensely powerful squeezers with 250 kilonewtons, or more than 50,000 pounds of force for observation. But the most exciting battery crucible is whats referred to as the nail test. In the nail test, an EV battery is placed into a special containment box and spiked with a 6-millimeter nail. That forces the battery to short-circuit, and inevitably, catch fire. Engineers watch this process through a protected camera and take notes. One of Magnas people mentioned that the burn rate of EV batteries was inconsistent. I guess running the same test with the same battery sometimes yielded a quick fire while other times it took longer. I suppose thats why these situations are still being studied. We werent allowed to take many pictures, because a few prototype items from OEMs were in various states of dismantlement around the facility. But I can show one last interesting detail from my trip to Magnas Sailauf facilities: Its EV battery fire exhaust system. That silver shed on the left is where batteries are burned. All those pipes, which are huge in diameter, vent the exhaust through various cleaning methods. Andrew P. Collins A big battery burning makes a lot of noxious smoke, and thats got to go somewhere. Before it makes it to the atmosphere, emissions from a battery burn go through water, like a bong, and then are washed again through a charcoal filter. The exhaust rig looked like it might have taken up as much square footage as the burn box itself. Unfortunately, thats all I can really share about Magnas safety and crash-testing operation in Bavaria. Working with multiple, sometimes rival, automakers and developing numerous prototypes requires a high level of security and vagueness in answers to questions about future vehicles.However, I did come away with an elevated appreciation for the complexity of crash testing. The crash dummies I met werent quite as charismatic as Vince and Larry, but Im glad there are good robots going to work at the smash factory day in and day out to help make our cars safer.
Teachers are now also becoming victims of sexual artificial intelligence-generated deepfakes as a catholic school in Melbourne, Australia, reportedly expelled a student for creating and spreading fake explicit AI images of a female teacher.

The male student was expelled from Salesian College, where its principal, Mark Ashmore, stated the school would ensure the affected teachers get the support and pastoral care they need.

Salesian College claims to have implemented instructional programs after the incident to teach students about cyber safety and polite relationships.

Australia, in general, has had growing cases of sexual unconsented AI deepfakes; as the Independent Education Union (IEU) states, there have been numerous cases regarding the problematic technology.

Approximately fifty Bacchus Marsh Grammar kids had pictures from their social media accounts altered with artificial intelligence this week to create deepfake nudities.

Cases of AI Deepfakes

Back in early April, a Tasmanian man became the first offender in his state for artificial intelligence-generated child abuse material. The 48-year-old man was convicted after possessing, uploading, and downloading hundreds of prohibited AI-generated content.

After being detained and charged, the Gravelly Beach man entered a guilty plea on March 26, 2024, for having access to and possession of child abuse materials.

He was dubbed the first-ever conviction in Tasmanian history utilizing AI-generated content meant for child exploitation by the Australian Federal Police at the time.

According to AFP Detective Sergeant Aaron Hardcastle, the investigation was significant since it marked the first time that police in Tasmania had discovered and seized artificial intelligence-generated proof of child abuse. According to reports, the content is "repulsive," regardless of whether AI created the image or featured a genuine kid victim.

Governments Against AI Deepfakes

Outside of Australia, the US has asked digital giants to support the effort to restrict damaging AI capabilities willingly. US officials believe that these kinds of nonconsensual AI photos-which include sexual images of minors, give their approval to several certain actions able to be produced, distributed, and profited from by the commercial sector.

Additionally, the White House suggested that tech companies impose restrictions on websites and programs that purport to let users snap and alter sexual images without getting consent from the subjects.

Last month, the Ministry of Justice in the United Kingdom likewise declared its intention to make the production of deep, fake, sexually graphic photographs without consent illegal.

The legislation subjects anyone who creates such an image without authorization to an endless fine and a criminal record. If the photo is shared more widely, the person could face jail time.

The government states that it will remain unlawful to produce a deepfake image regardless of the developer's intention to distribute it.

This rule is designed to support law enforcement in enforcing strict measures against an increasingly common practice of dehumanizing or upsetting victims. Since violence against women has been deemed a national threat in the UK, police response to it must take precedence.
A new lawsuit served against Elon Musk was dropped Wednesday, alleging the CEO of sexual harassment and retaliation brought forth by eight former SpaceX engineers.

There are also complaints against the CEO for alleged unlawful termination against the same ex-employees of the company, with both suits talking about his demeanor in the workplace.

It is known that the tech CEO is currently facing various lawsuits from Tesla shareholders, including X's recent fiasco in Australia.

Elon Musk Faces Sexual Harassment, Retaliation Lawsuit

The tech CEO and billionaire is now facing a lawsuit from former SpaceX engineers regarding alleged sexual harassment and retaliation, recently filed in California's state court, according to Bloomberg's report. It was regarded by the employees that Musk performed these alleged hostile acts "purposely," creating an eerie environment for them.

This included sexual photographs, memes, and statements against women and the LGBTQ+ community according to eight former SpaceX engineers who filed the lawsuit.

Moreover, other workmates have also joined in the demeaning comments which made them uncomfortable in their place of work, with some mimicking Musk's posts on Twitter, a.k.a. X.

Read Also : Elon Musk Withdraws Lawsuit Against OpenAI Over Contract Breach Allegations

Ex-SpaceX Engineers Go Against Musk

According to Engadget, this same group of employees is also known for previously filing complaints to the US National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) late last year.

The former SpaceX engineers also revealed before that Musk's behavior is 'problematic,' and the previous open letter they made was what led to them getting the ax, with the group believing that it was a retaliation to their callout.

SpaceX is known for previously suing the NLRB in January, claiming that they are 'unconstitutional.'

Elon Musk's Scrutinies

Musk is known for many achievements in the world of tech, but also for the scrutiny that he faced over the years regarding his many controversies and online activities for a long time now. Recently, it is known that the billionaire faced an inquiry over at X for allegedly 'amplifying disinformation' on the social media network, following the Fico shooting.

Additionally, there was the court hearing of the long disputed pay package of the top executive over at Tesla, centering on his $56 billion reward for his work over the years. Tesla shareholders are known for being against this massive payout to the executives, and there were significant moves from either side regarding why or why not he should receive this compensation.

Previous scrutinies also include the infamous 'funding secured' tweet from years ago regarding Tesla going private and significantly hurting investors and shareholders.

Now, the latest lawsuit from former SpaceX engineers directly points to Musk's behavior towards his employees, with the group complaining about the sexual harassment, retaliation, and his termination of them to light.
Astronomers are using NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory and the European Space Agency's XMM-Newton to investigate whether nearby stars could host habitable exoplanets.

NASA's Chandra Checks Habitable Exoplanets

The research focuses on the radiation these stars emit, which could impact conditions for life. This work aims to guide future observations with next-generation telescopes, which hope to capture the first images of Earth-like planets.

Researchers are examining stars close to Earth that future telescopes could take images of planets in the stars' habitable zones. These zones are regions where planets could have liquid water on their surfaces.

According to NASA, although the images of these planets will be mere points of light, their different wavelengths of light will provide crucial information about their surface compositions and atmospheres,

Breanna Binder of California State Polytechnic University in Pomona, who led the study, emphasized the importance of understanding the amount of harmful X-rays from a planet's host star. She pointed out that without this knowledge, a key element in determining a planet's habitability would be missing.

Binder and her colleagues started with a list of stars close enough to Earth that future telescopes could image planets within their habitable zones. The Habitable Worlds Observatory in space and Extremely Large Telescopes on the ground are among those telescopes set to begin operating in the next decade or two.

Using X-ray data from Chandra and XMM-Newton, the team analyzed which stars could potentially host planets with conditions suitable for life. They looked at the brightness of the stars in X-rays, the energy of the X-rays, and the variability in X-ray output, such as flares.

Sarah Peacock, a co-author of the study from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County, noted that they had identified stars where the X-ray radiation environment in the habitable zone is similar to or even milder than that in which Earth evolved. These conditions might be crucial for maintaining a rich atmosphere like Earth's.

Read Also : NASA's TESS Finds Weird New Exoplanet That Makes Scientists Rethink Planetary Evolution

Analyzing the X-ray of Nearby Stars

The researchers utilized data collected over nearly 10 days from Chandra observations and around 26 days from XMM observations to analyze the X-ray characteristics of 57 nearby stars.

NASA said that these planets resemble giants such as Jupiter, Saturn, or Neptune, with only a small number potentially being less than twice the mass of Earth. NASA further noted that numerous planets are likely orbiting stars in the sample, specifically those comparable in size to Earth, that remain undetected.

Transit studies, which detect slight dimming in starlight as planets pass in front of their stars from our planet's viewpoint, often overlook many planets due to specific geometric requirements for detection. According to NASA, this decreases the possibility of identifying transiting planets within a small sample of stars.

The alternative primary method for identifying planets involves monitoring the gravitational tug induced on a star by orbiting planets. This approach primarily identifies giant planets located relatively close to their host stars.

This investigation forms part of an ongoing endeavor to comprehend which stars are most likely to sustain habitable planets. By studying the X-ray emissions from these stars, astronomers aim to determine which stars possess the most favorable conditions for supporting life.
Tesla shareholders approved a $56 billion compensation package for CEO Elon Musk and a Texas headquarters. Musk posted voting results on X late Wednesday, thanking supporters and presenting data showing the proposals would pass. Shareholders can amend their votes before the annual meeting.

The highest U.S. corporate pay contract in history might soothe investor fears about Musk's future at Tesla and help the business appeal a court ruling that nullified the package. According to a source familiar with the preliminary voting result, major institutional and retail investors supported it.

Tesla's Texas headquarters will disclose the final findings at 4:30 p.m. ET (2030 GMT) on Thursday. Musk may face fresh litigation over the recent vote, despite shareholder support, according to Reuters. A Delaware judge already determined that the Tesla board was "beholden" to him.

Both Tesla shareholder resolutions are currently passing by wide margins!



 Thanks for your support!!  pic.twitter.com/udf56VGQdo  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 13, 2024

According to UC Berkeley law scholar Adam Badawi, the Delaware Court may not uphold the shareholder vote on the pay deal. Tesla shares soared 6.7% premarket Thursday after rising 3.9% the day before the shareholder meeting.

Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) urged shareholders to reject the remuneration package. Large investors, including Norway's sovereign wealth fund and U.S. pension funds, planned to vote no per earlier reports.

Tesla shareholders also decided to move Tesla's legal headquarters from Delaware to Texas and re-elect Kimbal Musk, Elon Musk's brother, and James Murdoch, Rupert Murdoch's son.

Tesla Says Elon Musk Deserves Pay Package

Marcie Frost, CEO of the California Public Employees' Retirement System, criticized the compensation deal for increasing Musk's shareholding while eroding other shareholders' shares.

Tesla has actively sought support for Elon Musk's compensation package from ordinary investors, who make up a large component of its ownership base but seldom vote. Tesla executives have commented on X about Musk's centrality to the company's performance, and Musk has given shareholders who vote personal visits to Tesla's Texas facility.

The board justified Musk's compensation deal by emphasizing his aggressive market value, revenue, and profitability goals. The board maintained that Musk's devotion to Tesla required the package, despite concerns from the Delaware judge and other investors.

Elon Musk has threatened to build AI and robotics technologies outside of Tesla if the 2018 compensation package fails to ensure enough voting control. Significant shareholders knew the danger of Musk departing as CEO exceeded the benefit of voting against the deal.

Tesla Chairwoman Robyn Denholm wrote to shareholders that the Delaware Court had scrutinized CEO Elon Musk's $56 billion compensation plan, authorized by 73% six years ago, per AP News. She noted that many Tesla investors favor Elon Musk's payment as he has not received payment for six years because of the Delaware Court decision.

Tesla may challenge the Delaware court verdict if it moves its legal home to Texas before voting on Musk's compensation package and submitting the papers in Austin. Texas courts might reapprove the compensation package because Tesla is a Texas-based business.

Elon Musk Facing Sexual Harassment Charge

Last month, attorneys for shareholder Richard Tornetta, who sued Musk to halt his compensation arrangement, filed arguments in Delaware to stop Tesla from transferring the case.Tesla assured the judge they would not transfer the case since it would still be a Delaware corporation at the shareholder vote.

In a separate update, Elon Musk is facing new court cases as former SpaceX engineers have sued him for sexual harassment and retaliation in California's state court. Employees believed the tech mogul committed these unpleasant activities "purposefully," creating a tense environment, as reported by TechTimes.

Eight former SpaceX engineers sued for sexual photos, jokes, and remarks against women and LGBTQ+ people. Other employees have also made nasty comments that have made them uncomfortable at work, emulating Musk's posts on his social media platform X.
LinkedIn launched several AI-powered services to improve the user experience and engagement. The professional networking and job-searching social network now employs AI to speed up job applications, find relevant learning resources, and optimize search.



LinkedIn started using AI in 2007 and has slowly added it to its offerings. LinkedIn's head of product, Tomer Cohen, emphasized AI's significance in connection recommendations and platform trust.



According to a TechCrunch report, the company's AI capabilities have grown significantly in recent versions, matching the tech industry's push toward AI-powered solutions for everyday chores.

How Can LinkedIn AI Help Users?

With the enhancements, new job search and application tools stand out, and conversational job searches are now possible. LinkedIn users may input employment requirements, and the AI will find related posts. Moreover, LinkedIn's AI can now write cover letters and assess resumes, streamlining applications.



LinkedIn is also adding AI to its learning platform. AI courses have seen 160% more traffic in the past year, demonstrating considerable user interest. LinkedIn is testing "expert advice, powered by AI," for premium users to meet demand. This tool provides individualized comments from famous educators to enhance learning.



LinkedIn's search feature has improved significantly due to AI. Search, a platform weakness, is being improved to be more conversational. This seeks to search more intuitive and complete than the keyword- and parameter-based methods.



Microsoft's 49% shareholding in OpenAI and its AI efforts contribute to LinkedIn's AI advancements. This relationship frees LinkedIn to focus on incorporating AI into its offerings without having to develop separately.

AI is not The Ultimate Solution for Job Seekers

LinkedIn product manager Rohan Rajiv stressed that their AI tools are not the complete solution for job hunting woes, per Engadget. "Our goal is to help users get started." He noted that they aim to make things easier for individuals who find it difficult to compose their story and those who struggle "when staring at a blank screen."



Rajiv said that while LinkedIn is currently integrating AI, he hinted at future automation. He remarked that the next step is to see if the AI can also address the other aspects of the job application process. Rajiv imagines that LinkedIn's AI tool can soon help users complete their tasks "like an agent"



Meanwhile, one LinkedIn user's impressive education has gone viral and captivated many netizens, as reported by News18.



Nikhil Basu Trivedi posted a screenshot on X (previously Twitter) of a screenshot of a LinkedIn user's academic path through Yale, Princeton, Harvard, Stanford, and Oxford. He described it as "the most absurd education history of all time on LinkedIn."

Later on, it was revealed that the profile belongs to Crimson Education CEO Jamie Beaton, who attended many top institutions from 2013 to 2024.

Many social media were amazed by Beaton's accomplishments and speculated on his motivation after reading the viral post.
Valve, the company behind Steam, the largest digital distribution platform for PC games, is facing a 656 million class action lawsuit in the UK.

Vicki Shotbolt, a digital rights campaigner, filed the lawsuit on June 5, 2024, accusing Valve of abusing its dominant market position and overcharging 14 million UK PC gamers.

Valve Faces 656 Million Class Action Lawsuit for Ripping Off PC Gamers

The lawsuit against Valve centers on accusations of anti-competitive practices. Vicki Shotbolt, the claimant, argues that Valve unfairly restricts competition by enforcing strict pricing rules on game publishers, preventing them from offering lower prices on other platforms. This allows Valve to maintain high prices on its Steam platform and charge publishers a commission of up to 30%.

Shotbolt's claim asserts that Valve's actions have led to UK consumers paying inflated prices for PC games and downloadable content (DLC). She represents 14 million UK consumers who have made such purchases on Steam since June 5, 2018.

In a statement on a website dedicated to the claim, it was asserted, "We believe Valve Corporation has been unfairly shutting out competition for PC games and in-game content, which has meant that UK customers have paid too much for these products."

Milberg London LLP, a law firm with experience in group action lawsuits against corporations, is supporting the legal action. The firm is also involved in a similar lawsuit against Sony, claiming overcharging on the PlayStation Store.

What's Next?

UKRAINE - 2021/07/16: In this photo illustration, Valve Corporation (also known as Valve Software) logo of a US video game developer, publisher, and digital distribution company is seen on a smartphone screen.

VGC reports that if the lawsuit is successful, each class member could be entitled to compensation ranging from 22 to 44. However, the case is expected to take several years to resolve, as is typical of such legal disputes.

Steam is a prominent platform where players can purchase PC games and in-game extras. In 2023, Steam achieved record-breaking sales, generating over $9 billion (7.1 billion) in global revenue.

This success was driven by the sale of 580 million games and the release of 14,000 new games. Despite this vast market, the top 10 bestselling games accounted for 61% of all sales, and the top 100 games made up 91% of total sales.

Vicki Shotbolt emphasized the importance of the lawsuit by stating, "Valve is rigging the market and taking advantage of UK gamers."

This is not the first time Valve has faced legal challenges. In May 2023, Immersion Corporation sued Valve over patent infringement related to the Steam Deck and Valve Index's haptic technology. Immersion claimed Valve used its patents without permission and sought damages and royalties in addition to an injunction.

Stay posted here at Tech Times.
The European Union has tightened AI restrictions to require corporations to disclose their data sources, which will challenge tech industry norms.

Since Microsoft-funded OpenAI launched ChatGPT last year, generative AI apps that quickly generate text, graphics, and audio have attracted attention and investment. However, ethical training data sources have become a serious issue, such as using famous books and Hollywood movies without authorization.



Over the next two years, the EU will implement the newly enacted AI Act in phases, giving authorities time to enforce new requirements while businesses adjust.



Key requirements under the new law include "detailed summaries" of information needed to train general-purpose AI models like ChatGPT, according to Reuters. The newly created AI Office will provide a uniform compliance template by early 2025 after stakeholder engagements.

Tech Firms Says AI Law Could Harm Industry

AI firms argue that sharing training data will compromise their competitive edge by revealing secret knowledge. Matthieu Riouf, the CEO of Photoroom, compared it to protecting a chef's secret recipe. These EU transparency regulations will affect AI startups and big giants like Google and Meta, which rely on AI for future developments.



Content producers have sued Google and OpenAI for using their work to train AI models during these advancements. Data usage, copyright, and compensation issues persist both in the United States and worldwide.



Notably, the AI Act classifies AI applications by social risk. High-risk AI applications like social score systems that aggregate data, predictive policing, and emotional recognition in workplaces and schools are specifically banned.



According to the EU AI law, risky AI systems include autonomous cars and medical equipment that may affect public health, safety, and basic human rights. AI algorithms in financial services and education are being examined for biases, per CNBC.



In light of the rapid developments in artificial intelligence, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged nations to prevent AI from worsening societal inequality. On Wednesday, he warned before the Council of the International Telecommunications Union in Geneva that technological advances exceed legal frameworks, Anadolu reported.

Read Also : Teachers, Victims of Explicit AI Deepfakes Made by Students

Guterres called for nations to "collaborate to prevent AI from perpetuating inequity." He noted that addressing the matter needs creative and swift solutions like technical assistance and investments in data infrastructure and talent development for underdeveloped nations.



The UN chief stressed the need for countries to collaborate and address digital access and governance gaps. He saw the September Summit of the Future as a crucial opportunity to promote worldwide collaboration.

Experts Raise Warn of an AI-Driven Environment Crisis

In addition to copyright and security threats, experts raise concerns about AI's massive energy consumption and growing carbon footprint that poses an environmental crisis, Nikkei Asia reported.



According to University of Glasgow computing science professor Wim Vanderbauwhede, each query on platforms like OpenAI's ChatGPT, used by 200 million people a year, can require 50 to 90 times more power than a Google search.



Studies suggest that generating an AI image may use as much power as 522 smartphone charges. Making 1,000 such images emits as much carbon as driving 4.1 miles in a gasoline-powered automobile. Researchers predict that recent breakthroughs from OpenAI, Google, and Microsoft, such as text-to-video functionality, will increase energy consumption and emissions.



Data centers, which power digital infrastructures globally, drive AI's energy usage. The IEA predicts worldwide data centers will triple their power use by 2026, hitting 1,000 terawatt hours.



Despite these estimates, AI resources increasingly shape global economic strategy, prioritizing economic competitiveness above environmental concerns. In Asia, governments are expanding data centers to boost digital and technical leadership, emphasizing the need for energy-efficient AI solutions.



As the industry faces these issues, semiconductor advancements such as Nvidia's energy-efficient AI processors are critical. According to the report, the newest Blackwell GPU from Nvidia claims 25 times higher energy efficiency than previous versions, a major step toward sustainable AI.
Google on Tuesday rolled out patches for 50 security vulnerabilities affecting its Pixel smartphones, of which one patched vulnerability has already been exploited in the wild as a zero-day.

The zero-day tracked as CVE-2024-32896, which has been rated a high-severity security issue, exploits the elevation of privilege (EoP) flaw in the Pixel firmware.

This flaw could provide threat actors with app rights that should not be available to them, thereby giving them access to sensitive data.

There are indications that CVE-2024-32896 may be under limited, targeted exploitation, the company warned this Tuesday.

All supported Google devices will receive an update to the 2024-06-05 patch level. We encourage all customers to accept these updates to their devices.

In the Pixel security bulletin documents, Google also tagged 44 additional security flaws, of which seven are privilege escalation vulnerabilities found in components such as LDFW, Goodix, Mali, avcp, and confirmationui; while another 24 high-severity flaws are remote code execution (RCE) vulnerabilities in CPIF, WLAN, and other components.

Besides these, some flaws found in Qualcomm and Qualcomm closed-source components were also fixed with the update that they were deemed to be moderate.

If you have a Google Pixel device, it is recommended that you apply the security update now.

To do so, Pixel users need to navigate to Settings > Security & privacy > System & updates > Security update.

Then, tap on Install and restart the device to complete the update process.

Check out the security bulletin here to learn more about the June 2024 updates for Google Pixel devices.
BRUSSELSIn its latest action against adult websites, the European Commission announced Thursday that it has requested further details on protection measures for minors under the Digital Services Act (DSA).

Regulators previously classified Pornhub, Stripchat and XVideos as "very large online platforms" (VLOPs), which requires major websites operating in the European Union's digital space to comply with a certain set of DSA provisions that pertain to data protection, privacy and preventing minors from seeing age-restricted materials.

"The commission is requesting the companies to provide more detailed information on the measures they have taken to diligently assess and mitigate risks related to the protection of minors online, as well as to prevent the amplification of illegal content and gender-based violence," reads a statement from the commission. "Among others, the commission is requiring details on age assurance mechanisms adopted by these pornographic platforms."

Based on these statements, regulators are looking at the measures parent companies of these platforms have adopted, especially age assurance mechanisms that are used to verify age.

"Under the DSA, compliance officers must ensure that all systemic risks outlined in the regulation are identified and properly reported on," adds the European Commission's statement. Pornhub, Stripchat and XVideos have until July 4 to reply to the commission's request for further details. Incorrect, incomplete or misleading information provided by the three platforms would result in penalties, including fines and further legal scrutiny.

The parent companies of these platforms sued the European Union in March for classifying them as VLOPs under the Digital Services Act covering the entire bloc.

The cases were filed at the European General Court in Luxembourg. The case numbers are T-138/24, T139/24 and T-134/24.

Under the Digital Services Act, platforms are classified as VLOPs if over 45 million users visit the sites from IP addresses in EU states. Per the act, VLOPs are required to adhere to regulations that require reports on data collection and content moderation practices. The act also stipulates that VLOPs must provide easier methods for national law enforcement accessibility, especially Europol member police agencies.

"Following their designation as Very Large Online Platforms, Pornhub, Stripchat, and Xvideos are required to comply with the full set of provisions introduced by the DSA, including the assessment and mitigation of risks related to the dissemination of illegal and harmful content, any negative effects on the exercise of fundamental rights and on the protection of minors," the commission's statement adds.

The platforms submitted their first risk assessments to the European Commission at the end of April 2024.

Aylo, the parent company of Pornhub, maintains that its platform shouldn't be regulated under the DSA because it has less than 45 million regular visitors from European Union bloc member states.
Dakar's beachfront battle against concrete



Dakar, June 13 (AFP) Jun 13, 2024



Ibrahima Bathily says he no longer recognises the beachfront in the area of Senegal's capital Dakar where he grew up.

"The entire coast is privatised. It has become impossible to access the sea without paying," he complained.

Buildings have sprung up on all sides of his makeshift bar that stands on rocks facing the Atlantic Ocean.

Even the 100-metre (yard) beachfront strip that is state-owned and prohibited from being built on, has not escaped.

Just a few years ago, bathers thronged the area, enjoying a cool dip in the waves overlooked by the city's emblematic Mamelles twin hills.

But Dakar has undergone voracious building work.

Home to around a quarter of Senegal's population and its economic hub, the number of Dakar residents swells by three percent every year.

As the capital of a West African nation renowned as stable in a troubled region, the city also draws many foreigners.

Construction sites are everywhere, real-estate prices are soaring -- and the coastline is disappearing under a sea of concrete.

"It's incredibly fast. You wake up one day and you find a building somewhere," Bathily said.

He says he has been approached several times to give up his bar in return for money.

Such an offer can be tough to turn down when the median wage was 54,000 CFA francs ($88,82 euros) a month in 2017.

All around the peninsula on which Dakar is built, beaches have been nibbled back to a bare minimum.

Locals are despondent about the loss of access due to the arrival of luxury hotels, villas or clinics, as well as over how it has all been allowed to happen.

But despite public exasperation, "we are unable to truly unite energy and forces," Oumar Diagne, of the SOS Littoral (SOS Coastline) NGO said.



- Money laundering -



Building screeched to a halt, however, at the end of April after Senegal's newly elected leaders took over, pledging integrity and transparency.

They ordered a two-month suspension of all construction on the strip that remains in the state's hands to verify the legality of occupancy rights.

The outcome is eagerly awaited, Bathily said.

But records in the land registry are notoriously difficult to decipher despite them now being online.

The vast financial sums at stake also feed suspicions of widescale money laundering.

"Real estate is a sector that is particularly targeted by money launderers" whether for drug trafficking, illegal migration or corruption, a finance ministry unit tasked with fighting money laundering and financing of terrorism, told AFP.

"Senegal is no exception," it added, mentioning only "inspections" when describing what action it takes.

Many buildings do have the proper deeds.

Mamadou Diangar, a public law researcher, said authorities can permit building to go ahead by delisting a spot on the strip.

Lawmakers did not set "precise criteria" for the delisting of a building, he said, leaving the law open to interpretation.



- Choices to make -



New Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko promised while still in opposition that he would ensure all illegally constructed buildings were pulled down.

But, warned Diangar, that could prove "legally very complicated and costly, because these are not small investments".

"Is the budget of the Senegalese state able to bear this compensation?" he asked. "It will need strong political choices."

Sonko chose a Dakar beach with a building site backdrop when he pledged to crack down on offenders in 2020.

Those projects are now complete, with several-storey-high luxury buildings blotting out a stretch of the old beach.

Not far away, the cabin of former fisherman Bathie Faye has managed to survive.

Considered a temporary structure, it is authorised to be on the strip where Faye earns a living providing services to those using what is left of the beach.

But he fears the demand for beachfront real estate means it is only a matter of time before he is moved on.

It would not be the first time.

Under the presidency of Abdoulaye Wade, who also vowed to combat rampant building, police turned up one day and dismantled Faye's previous cabin ahead of the start of construction work.

"You can't fight people who are stronger than you," he said.
Rio Tinto releases environment study on disputed Serbia lithium project



Belgrade, June 13 (AFP) Jun 13, 2024



Australian mining giant Rio Tinto released Thursday an environmental impact report on a controversial lithium project in Serbia after opponents accused it and the government of lacking transparency over the plans.

According to Rio Tinto, Jadar in western Serbia holds one of Europe's largest reserves of lithium -- a strategically valuable metal crucial for electric vehicle battery production.

But the planned mine sparked fears for the environment and public health and weeks of protests forced the government to halt the project in late 2022.

Critics say Rio Tinto and Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic have not been transparent about the process and refused to publish environmental impact reports.

In the draft environmental assessments released Thursday, Rio Tinto denounced "a broad misinformation campaign based on defamatory elements" advancing "unsubstantiated claims" that the project would harm water resources, soil, biodiversity, air quality and human health.

Aiming to assuage concerns and reset the terms of the debate, the group promised "safe, reliable, and proven technology".

A landfill would hold tightly compacted waste to mitigate the risk of water affecting the dry waste, while "multi-layer linings made of clay and synthetic materials" would prevent the contamination of groundwater, the document said.

Rio Tinto also plans to establish a "high-quality forest" to make up for the planned removal of hectares of vegetation.

In September 2023, Serbia signed a letter of intent with the European Commission for a strategic partnership in batteries and raw materials.

Prime Minister Milos Vucevic said in a televised interview on Tuesday that Serbia should discuss all development projects, including those involving lithium.

Rio Tinto says the lithium reserves in Jadar, discovered in 2004, could annually produce 58,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate, 160,000 tonnes of boron acid and 255,000 tonnes of sodium sulfate.
Photo Credit: SNY

Wednesdays matchup between the Miami Marlins and the New York Mets featured a moment where Mets play-by-play voice Gary Cohen showed his frustration with what he believed to be a very dangerous lack of situational awareness from the Marlins.

The Marlins have not had very much success this season thus far, sitting at the very bottom of the National League with a 23-43 record coming into Wednesdays game.

Plays like we saw in the third inning of Wednesdays game may be why weve seen such horrible play from the Marlins. With two outs in the bottom of the third inning, Marlins starting pitcher Brice Garrett was able to get Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez to hit a ground ball to third base to end the inning.

The Marlins simply needed to either get the force out at second or throw it over to first. Marlins third baseman Emmanuel Rivera threw it over to second base to get the out and end the inning.

But Marlins second baseman Otto Lopez seemingly didnt realize that there were two outs in the inning, throwing an errant ball over to first in an attempt to turn what he thought would have been a double play.

On the call of the play on SNY, Cohen was quite upset with this mistake from Lopez, calling him and the rest of the Marlins out for their lack of situational awareness and adding that this kind of play could get somebody killed.

Rivera goes to second and gets the force, which is the third out, said Cohen. The inning is over. Nobody on the field seems to know how many out there are. I mean, come on. 5-4 force ends the inning. You can get somebody killed that way.

"The inning is over. Nobody on the field seems to know how many out there are. I mean, come on. 5-4 force ends the inning. You can get somebody killed that way." Gary Cohen was frustrated by the lack of situational awareness. pic.twitter.com/PkvFVLHI5l  Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 13, 2024

Its certainly a fair criticism from Cohen. Luckily, everyone was seemingly paying attention when Lopez threw the ball so nobody was hurt.

But given how far off-line the throw was, nearing going into the Mets dugout, the unnecessary throw certainly could have ended far worse had a Mets player gotten hit with the throw.

On the other hand, it is an honest mistake from Lopez. Albeit a pretty boneheaded one that left both he and the Marlins looking quite silly.

[Awful Announcing on X]
Austria landslide kills one child, injures another



Vienna, June 13 (AFP) Jun 13, 2024



A landslide after heavy rains in Austria has killed a five-year-old boy, police said, as the environment minister warned Thursday that climate change was hitting the mountainous country "harder and harder".

In recent weeks, heavy rains have led to widespread flooding and hundreds of landslides across Austria.

The area close to the border with Slovenia and Hungary in the southern provinces of Styria and Burgenland has been especially hit hard.

East of the Styrian city of Graz, a landslide occurred late on Wednesday as a woman was walking with her two sons and two other boys along a road next to a wooded area, police said in a statement.

The landslide caused "around one hundred cubic metres of soil to slide", burying two of the four boys, and killing one of them, police added.

One injured boy was taken to hospital by helicopter.

The four boys are between five and nine years old, Austrian press agency APA reported.

"The climate crisis is here, we are feeling it and we are being hit harder and harder by the effects of the climate crisis," Environment Minister Leonore Gewessler told reporters on Thursday, according to APA.

While several geological factors play a significant role when it comes to landslides, heavy rainfall such as the recent ones in Styria "is the most important direct cause for them," said geologist Michael Lotter of Austria's federal Institute for Geology, Geophysics, Meteorology and Climatology.

As a result of heavy rainfall -- which saturated the slopes with water -- hundreds of landslides occurred in Styria province alone in recent weeks, Lotter told AFP.

Experts say climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions generated by human activities is increasing the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events such as torrential rains and floods.
The first Toyota car assembled outside of Japan was built in Port Melbourne in 1963 but manufacturing moved to Altona in 1994 and ceased altogether in Australia in 2017. Sources in Port Melbourne say Toyota moved out of 61 Bertie Street, on the corner of Fennell Street, in April. Its corporate headquarters remain down the road at 155 Bertie Street under the Westgates outbound lanes. Both Toyota and Holden had engineering and manufacturing premises in Fishermans Bend. Credit: Joe Armao There are showrooms, warehouses and office space covering 11,590 square metres on the almost two-hectare site. CBREs Trent Hobart, Matthew Romanin, Andrew Bell and Tom Ryan have the listing. The building in the troubled Fishermens Bend precinct, an area which has been earmarked for urban redevelopment, but the lack of planning clarity and a promised but unrealised light rail line have stalled any action.

Last week, the Allen government announced Fishermens Bend will get a new underground railway station at some unknown point in the future. It was once a hotbed of automotive manufacturing, but Holden shut down about the same time as Toyota and sold its 37 hectare site on Salmon Street to the state government. The University of Melbourne is poised to start work on a new campus on part of the site. Nearby in Normanby There are still plenty of car dealerships in the area. Nearby, at 213-217 Normanby Road, South Melbourne, half of the Melbourne City Toyota showroom is for sale. The 1500 sq m showroom is on an 1865 sq m site sitting between two other properties, which are also leased by Melbourne City Toyota, but owned by separate landlords.

Its an awkward situation. The lease on this property expires in two years, while the neighbours have options to extend. Tiga Commercial agents Griffin Barrett, David Sia and Martin Leong have the listing. Its expected to sell for more than $8 million. Rodd & Gunn Mens fashion retailer Rodd & Gunn is making its first move into Melbournes shopping strips with a plum position in Brighton. The high-end outfitter is opening at 82 Church Street in the former Kookai shop, which has moved to a bigger store down the road.

Fitzroys agents Mark Talbot and Tom Fisher negotiated a five-year lease on the 189 sq m shop. Rodd & Gunn will pay $150,000 a year plus outgoings on the stoop. Loading Church Street has the tightest vacancy rate in Melbourne and was sitting at 1.1 per cent according to Fitzroys Walk the Strip report. This deal takes the strip to all but fully-leased, Fisher said. Boot factory Banco Group has snapped up the Old Collingwood Boot Factory at 64 Wellington Street. The 1336 sq m building is in the heart of the fringe suburbs new office precinct, across the road from Impact Investments 54 Wellington Street tower and down the street from Hines new timber office at No.36.

The two-storey double-storey factory dates back to 1895 and is listed as significant on the Victorian Heritage Database. It was built by bootmaker William Peatt over an older factory on the site. Collingwood and Abbotsford were full of boot factories during this period because they were close to the tanneries on the Yarra River. Records show the vendors paid just $41,000 for the property in 1981. Banco Properties lodged a caveat last week indicating they are the buyer. Banco Group has snapped up the Old Collingwood Boot Factory at 64 Wellington Street. Credit: Its understood the price was around $9 million but Stonebridge agents Dylan Kilner, Max Warren, Julian White and Chao Zhang, who negotiated the deal, declined to confirm the price. Seven offers were made for the historic property. In Carlton, the Stonebridge team also sold 221 Drummond Street under instructions by liquidators to the Pistorino Group.

The 1555 sq m two-storey building fetched $6.6 million after attracting six offers. It was sold to a buyer sourced by Zhangs Asia Practice team. Loading Its on the corner of Grattan Street and has been mooted for possible heritage protection. It was designed for the Church of England in 1986-87 by Steve Ashton and Howard Raggatt, who later formed two-thirds of prominent architectural practice Ashton Raggatt McDougall, or ARM. Slade sells An offshore Asian investor has made their first foray into the Australian property market with the $8.91 million purchase of Slade Healths head office in Mount Waverley.

Records show the buildings vendor, founder David Slade, paid $3.5 million in 2017. Slade Health, a subsidiary of Icon Health, is the largest dedicated cancer care-provider in Australia. Slade pays $506,550 a year in rent for the 5028 sq m property, giving the deal a 5.6 per cent yield. Stonebridges Kilner, Warren and Zhang negotiated the deal. In Noble Park, a local investor will pay $7.01 million for the Kezs Kitchen biscuit factory at 474-478 Princess Highway. Kezs Kitchen has been baking bickies on the site for 25 years and has an option to stick around for three more years.
Media Watchs longest-serving host, Paul Barry, will leave the ABC show in December.

Barry has been the shows permanent host since 2013 and is one of Australias most respected veteran journalists. The ABC has yet to find a replacement for him, but the show will continue into 2025.

Media Watch presenter Paul Barry. Credit: Dominic Lorrimer

Confirming his departure on Thursday, Barry said it had been a great privilege to host the show but that it was time to give someone else a go.

Thanks to all our viewers. Ill be with you until December. And Im sure the program will go on to great things without me.
Terry Wright, who operated his eponymous butcher shop in Randwick for nearly 60 years and pioneered marinades and sauces along the way, has died aged 90.

The Clovelly Road shop, which Wright opened in 1959, was a magnet for chefs and Sydney food lovers, with its owner a local star in an age before butchers hosted food shows and garnered social media status.

Terry Wright in Randwick in 2010. Anna Kucera

Wright gave his customers their first taste of wagyu and Flinders Island lamb and trod on the toes of supermarkets in developing marinades and exotic stuffing because of his dislike of ready-made mixes. Both are now staples in current-day Sydney butcher shops.

Wright, who was inducted into The (Sydney) Magazine Food Hall of Fame in 2005, was a passionate chronicler of societal and retail change. Well into his 80s when he finally hung up the meat cleaver and sold his shop in 2018 (it now operates under a different name), he told the Herald at the time that Sydneysiders had different tastes in meat from when he started out in the 1950s.
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Review Eating outHaymarket Warm up with $5.90 noodles and lip-tingling dishes at this hot Chinatown spot Spicy Joint tackles the good, fast, cheap brief with impressive, dependable results. Callan Boys June 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 / 6 Spicy Joints sprawling dining room is a dignified space. Jennifer Soo 2 / 6 Dan dan noodles are a bargain at $5.90. Jennifer Soo 3 / 6 Go-to dish: Fish fillet with Sichuan pepper in hot chilli oil. Jennifer Soo 4 / 6 Cold chicken with chilli sauce and sesame dressing. Jennifer Soo 5 / 6 Deep-fried chicken with dried chilli pepper. Jennifer Soo 6 / 6 Spicy Joints Haymarket outpost is hugely popular and the din of clinking teacups and stacked plates is relentless. Jennifer Soo Previous Slide Next Slide 14 / 20 How we score Chinese$$$$ There are three ways to deal with winter if you dont have decent heating. You can take off to San Sebastian to drink cider on a beach for three months, although this may not be viable for most of us. You could buy one of those wearable Oodie blankets, but then youd actually have to wear one of those Oodie blankets. Or  and this is my preferred method  you can eat so much Sichuan food that your mouth feels like Daves final journey across time and the infinite in 2001: A Space Odyssey. Spicy Joint, we meet again. Does Spicy Joint have the best Sichuan food in Sydney? Not quite. Lan Dining in Haymarket could mount a serious campaign for that title, plus several other restaurants featuring red or chilli in the name. Regardless, every June I look forward to inhaling Spicy Joints fish doused in chilli oil with the kind of enthusiasm my dad reserves for the McOzs return. If you havent taken the fourth-floor escalator to Spicy Joint in Haymarket (you can find it at the northern end of Dixon Street), you may have eaten at one of the chains outposts in Burwood, Chatswood or Rhodes. Perhaps youve even visited one of the locations in Shanghai, where the first Spicy Joint opened in 2004 and is better known as Xin Xiang Hui.

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A similar menu of Sichuan favourites is available in all the restaurants, and the punchy kung pao chicken ($21.90) at Haymarket tastes like the kung pao chicken at Burwood. Dan dan noodles. Jennifer Soo When the Chinatown location opened in 2017, a queue formed immediately. Chinese expats were thrilled to have a Xin Xiang Hui in town; other Sydneysiders were drawn in by the value. A small bowl of dan dan noodles topped with a rubble of minced pork in dusky-red broth is $5.90. Six serviceable pork wontons swimming in chilli oil are $7.90. Thin-sliced beef in a hot and sour stock of surprising depth is $25.90. Spicy Joint continues to be hugely popular and the din of clinking teacups and stacked plates is relentless. On a recent, Friday-night visit, my wait to be seated was half an hour, but there are chairs in the foyer that you can park on until your number is called. Once youre in the sprawling dining room  a dignified space with an open kitchen and ornate woodwork  things move fast. A Tsingtao lager ($6.90) arrives within two minutes of ordering through my phone on the QR code-launched menu, and those dan dan noodles dont take much longer.

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Poached, chilled and sliced chicken ($26.90) in a viscous combination of chilli oil and sesame paste is a signature and chook thigh doesnt come much juicer. But Ive come for that fish in a Sichuan pepper-spiked broth of potent flavour and intimidating size. Go-to dish: Fish fillet with Sichuan pepper in hot chilli oil. Jennifer Soo It could almost feed four people and only costs $39.90, partly because the fish is cheap, boneless hunks of an anonymous species (a spokesperson for the group later tells me the restaurant uses blackfish). In any case, the white fillets are essentially just a canvas for the fresh chilli and lip-tingling Sichuan pepper berries that cling to the flesh like dried burrs on a hiking sock. Its a dish that holds your attention. That hot and numbing flavour (known in Sichuan cooking as ma) underpins many dishes, including roasted, cleavered lamb ribs with cumin and submissive cubes of potato ($35.90) and a homely, mildly funky mapo tofu ($18.90) made with minced beef rather than pork, as Chengdu tradition dictates.

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White fillets are a canvas for the fresh chilli and lip-tingling Sichuan pepper berries that cling to the flesh like burrs. Meanwhile, a pepper-laced number listed simply as pan-fried chicken with chilli ($29.90) has the most uncompromising uppercut of heat Ive ever encountered at a Spicy Joint  or almost any other joint, for that matter. Nubs of deep-fried chook covered in lustrous, blood-red dried chillies ($26.90) are less intense, but youll still want another Tsingtao or super-garlicky, smashed cucumber ($9.90) to temper the spice. Deep-fried chicken with dried chilli pepper. Jennifer Soo The long menu demands repeat visits and Im still jonesing to try the youtiao (fried dough sticks) stuffed with minced prawns ($38.90) and beef brisket stewed with smoked bamboo ($39.90).

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I can say, however, that winter sides dont get much better than wok-tossed, soy-seasoned cabbage with crunchy bits of sizzled pork belly fat ($16.90) and fried peanuts pickled in vinegar ($8.90). The service is brisk. The best wine is a forgettable Chain of Fire 2021 Pinot Noir ($51 a bottle), but Spicy Joint tackles the good, fast, cheap brief with impressive, dependable results. Who needs three months in Spain when youve got three dozen dishes that will have you sweating as if youre in a sauna? The low-down Vibe: Busy, fiery, group-friendly dining hall Go-to dish: Fish with Sichuan pepper in hot chilli oil ($39.90) Drinks: Handful of beers and wines, and a few soft drinks Cost: About $70 for two, excluding drinks This review was originally published in Good Weekend magazine

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Celebrity homicide cop Gary Jubelin is doing a brisk trade with his books and podcasts, but CBD worries that the former detective might be getting just that little bit too comfortable on his preferred audio format, with his latest outing straying way beyond what might be considered professional.

Jubelin posted audio to his socials of him interviewing his former life partner  and fellow former senior NSW Police detective  Pam Young, who knows more than most about unsolved homicide. Her 2015 ABC interview in which she alleged political interference in the investigation of US national Scott Johnsons death caused internal fallout among police.

Good at cleaning the house: Gary Jubelin. Credit: Peter Rae

We digress. Young was kind enough in the latest interview to tell her ex that he was a passionate and generous lover who was also very good at cleaning the house.

But, Young added, every time we were having sex, your phone would ring, which you can understand, busy cases, on call and all of that .
A private school principal who had to steer his students and their families through public fallout over a spreadsheet ranking female students appearances has told parents to do more to teach their children about online risks and behaviour.

Speaking at The Ages Schools Summit on Thursday, Yarra Valley Grammar School principal Dr Mark Merry said schools were doing the right thing in teaching students about respect, diversity and dignity, but parents needed to pull their weight too.

Yarra Valley Grammar School principal Dr Mark Merry. Credit: Eddie Jim

We are reliant on families to have some involvement in this area, he told the audience. We are competing with [controversial social media personality] Andrew Tate at home. Thats what we are up against.

He also urged schools not to put their heads in the sand and think problems wouldnt happen at their school.
I love Harris Farm Drummoyne, but the car park terrifies me. Each visit, I drive around it praying to the parking gods that all the SUVs have left so I dont have to shoehorn my car into the narrow gap between two three-tonne megafauna.

In the past, sandwiched between two Balmain tanks, Ive often had to open the door a crack and wriggle one arm and leg out of the car before levering my torso through the space. Then, like a re-enactment of the Thai cave rescue, I slide along the door panel, shut the door and flick in the side mirror in order to squeeze out. And my car is a tiny Kia Picanto. Anything bigger, and Id have to grease its sides to make it fit.

When theres nowhere else to park... Credit: Marija Ercegovac

If you think that parking your vehicle is much harder than it used to be, youre right. The problem is not that car spaces have magically shrunk  its that cars have become much, much bigger. Seven of the top 10 best-selling cars sold in 2023 were sports utility vehicles (SUVs), 4WDs and utes. By contrast, in 2004, the top-selling cars were Holden Commodores, Ford Falcons and Toyota Corollas.

In the past 20 years, thanks to a combination of preferential taxation and consumer sentiment, large SUVs and utes have come to dominate the roads. Their market share has doubled over the past decade.
Health Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson has requested the states health department join a review of Joondalup Health Campus paediatric services and vowed to look at waning rates of bulk-billing in Perths north after the death of toddler Sandipan Dhar.

The external review, announced by hospital provider Ramsay Health Care on Thursday, is aimed at identifying areas for improvement in services and will be undertaken by independent specialists from the eastern states.

Sanderson has vowed to look into declining bulk billing rates. Credit: 9 News Perth

It is understood the review will take several months and assess the staffing cohort of paediatric services.

The news comes amid revelations hospital staff did not believe 10-year-old Olivia Bakranic-Fowler had been bitten by a tiger snake last month, forcing her mother to travel to Perth Childrens Hospital for anti-venom.
The headlines took Liberals by surprise when Peter Dutton decided to go hard on climate change at the end of last week. Federal MPs had flown home from Canberra after an intense fortnight in parliament, mostly fought on migration and the cost of living, and had no hint from the opposition leader that he wanted to change the subject.

So the combative words from the leader, who rubbished the idea of a 2030 target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, threw the Liberals into a fight with no preparation and no plan. When MPs phoned each other to make sense of the new stance, one question emerged: Was there a party room meeting that we missed?

Illustration: Simon Letch Credit:

One week later, the Liberals have put a premium on unity so they can avoid the damaging appearance of public dispute about their climate policy. Dutton has a relatively disciplined party room and had public support from frontbenchers who painted his comments as simple confirmation that they opposed the governments target.

The reality, however, is that Dutton has made a captains call. In the spirit of Tony Abbott, who famously said it was better to seek forgiveness than ask permission, the Liberal leader has decided to go to the election without a 2030 target. His stated position is that the goal would be set after the election to replace Labors target of 43 per cent.
New-home builders will be asked to pay an extra 65 per cent for domestic building insurance from August after a string of companies collapsed over the past year, leaving thousands of homes unfinished and Victorias state-backed insurance agency making record payments.

The Victorian Managed Insurance Authority told builders on Thursday morning that charges for domestic building insurance would increase by an average 53 per cent from August 6, 11 months after all premiums were increased by 43 per cent.

The surge in claims began with the collapse of builder Porter Davis on March 31 last year. Credit: Eamon Gallagher

The increase includes a 65 per cent lift in premiums for new homes, single and multi-unit dwellings and owner builders. Insurance for renovations will increase by 20 per cent.

An analysis from the Housing Industry Association estimates the premium paid on single home build with a contract value of $500,000 would rise from $3872 to $6388.80.

Premiums can vary depending on the type of construction and the risk profile of the builder.
Tokyo: A newly constructed residential building in suburban Tokyo will be pulled down before the apartments were due to be handed over to buyers, after incensed locals complained the structure blocked their views of Mt Fuji.

The 10-storey apartment building on Fujimi Street  which translates to Fuji view  in the suburb of Kunitachi comprises 18 housing units, which range in price from around 70 million to 100 million ($670,000 to nearly $1 million), according to the builder Sekisui House Ltd.

Mount Fuji and the Shinjuku skyline seen from an observation deck in Tokyo, Japan. Credit: Bloomberg

The firm has issued an apology saying the building has a significant impact on the landscape.

We concluded that the view from Fujimi Street should take priority. We have voluntarily decided to cancel the project, it said in a statement on its website.
London: Nigel Farages populist Reform UK party has overtaken the ruling Conservatives in the opinion polls for the first time, in a further blow to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak risking mass panic among many of his MPs.

The poll, by YouGov and published by The Times, suggests that public support for Reform is now at 19 per cent, up two points and a point above the Tories on 18 per cent with the election less than three weeks away.

Britains Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage. Credit: AP

Labour was in the lead on 37, while the Liberal Democrats were down one point at 14 per cent, according to the survey of more than 2200 adults taken on Wednesday and Thursday.

Farage, a leading pro-Brexit campaigner, media figure and a seven-time candidate at UK general elections without winning, announced his surprise return to politics last week, promising to lead a political revolt and saying he only decided to run because it was so far the dullest, most boring electoral campaign we have ever seen.
Hamas conveyed its official reply to the proposal to mediators on Tuesday. Hamas spokesman Jihad Taha told the Lebanese news outlet ElNashra that the amendments requested by the group aim to guarantee a permanent cease-fire and complete Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza. The proposal announced by US President Joe Biden includes those provisions, but Hamas has expressed wariness about whether Israel will implement the terms. While the US says Israel has accepted the proposal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has given conflicting statements, saying Israel is still intent on its goal of destroying Hamas. Blinken, on his eighth visit to the region since the start of the war, said the deal on the table was virtually identical to one Hamas put forth on May 6. The UN Security Council voted overwhelmingly in favour of the plan on Monday. At some point in a negotiation, and this has gone back and forth for a long time, you get to a point where if one side continues to change its demands, including making demands and insisting on changes for things that it already accepted, you have to question whether theyre proceeding in good faith or not, he said.

Speaking alongside Blinken, Qatari Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al Thani said there had been counterproductive actions by both sides. The proposals three-phase plan would begin with a six-week ceasefire and the release of some hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners. Israeli forces would withdraw from populated areas, and Palestinian civilians would be allowed to return to their homes. Aid distribution would also increase. At the same time, negotiations would start over the second phase, which is to bring a permanent end to hostilities and full withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza in exchange for the release of all remaining hostages. Phase three would see the launch of a reconstruction plan for Gaza and the return of remains of deceased hostages. A major hitch for both sides appears to be the negotiations for the second phase.

Israels ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, said Israel will demand that Hamas be removed from power as part of any agreement on that phase. One of our conditions is not only the release of the hostages, its also the future of Gaza, Erdan told CNNs The Source. We cannot agree to Hamas continuing to be the rulers of Gaza because then Gaza will continue to pose a threat to Israel. Loading He also said Israel opposes a provision extending the initial cease-fire as long as talks are going on, saying it would allow Hamas to continue with endless and meaningless negotiations. Hamas, in turn, appears to want stronger guarantees up front that the talks will lead to a permanent cease-fire and withdrawal.

Netanyahus far-right coalition allies have rejected the proposal and threaten to bring down his government if he ends the war leaving Hamas intact. But Netanyahu is also under mounting pressure to accept a deal to bring the hostages back. Thousands of Israelis, including families of the hostages, have demonstrated in favour of the US-backed plan. Israels bombardment and ground offensives in Gaza have killed over 37,000 Palestinians, according to Palestinian health officials, who do not give the breakdown of civilians and fighters. The war has also driven some 80 per cent of the population of 2.3 million from their homes, and Israeli restrictions and ongoing fighting have hindered efforts to bring in humanitarian aid, fuelling widespread hunger. Israel launched its campaign after Hamas and other militants stormed into Israel on October 7, killing some 1200 people, mostly civilians, and taking around 250 hostage. Over 100 hostages were released during a weeklong cease-fire last year in exchange for Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. Hamas is believed to be holding around 80 hostages and the remains of another 40. Revenge for slain commander Netanyahus office said he was conducting a security assessment in light of Hezbollahs barrage in the north and what it called Hamas negative response to the proposal.

Hezbollah said it fired missiles and rockets at two military bases in retaliation for the killing of Taleb Sami Abdullah, 55. Known within Hezbollah as Hajj Abu Taleb, he is the most senior commander killed since the fighting began eight months ago. The Israeli strike late Tuesday destroyed a house where Abdullah and three other officials were meeting, about 10 kilometres from the border. Loading A Hezbollah official told The Associated Press that Abdullah was in charge of a large part of the Lebanon-Israel front, including the area facing the Israeli town of Kiryat Shmona, which Hezbollah has repeatedly attacked in recent days, causing fires in the area. The official, who was not authorised to speak to media and spoke on condition of anonymity, said Abdullah had joined Hezbollah decades ago and took part in attacks against Israeli forces during their 18-year occupation of southern Lebanon that ended in May 2000. Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon have killed over 400 people, most of them Hezbollah members, but the dead also include more than 70 civilians and non-combatants. On the Israeli side, 15 soldiers and 10 civilians have been killed since the war in Gaza began.
Bill's brief bio

After growing up on the prairie farmlands of northeastern South Dakota, a summer job working on a trail crew in Glacier National Park was like stepping onto another planet for Bill Schneider.

When I grew up in South Dakota in the 60s there was no such thing as hiking, he recalled. Im not even sure they knew the word back there in South Dakota, he joked.

Schneider had been raised in small towns comprised of about four houses and a grain elevator. His father managed the elevators, and every two years the business owner required the family to move.

So it wasnt until 1965 through 1969 as a student at South Dakota State University in Brookings  when life was great, he said  that Schneider was introduced to a larger community and, during his summer work, the wilds of northwestern Montana.

After graduating with a dual degree in wildlife biology and journalism, Schneider was hired to create and edit Montana Outdoors, the publication of what was then the states Fish and Game agency. For 10 years he ran the magazine before leaving to start Falcon Publishing with Billings-based photographer Mike Sample. It was a partnership that endured for 21 years.

During that time, Schneider authored 24 guidebooks before retiring in 2000. The publishing company is now an imprint of Globe Pequot.

At the end of his hiking book, Schneider addresses the concern some folks have expressed about guidebooks for wildlands.

Experienced hikers sometimes have a lofty attitude toward the inexperienced masses, he wrote. They think anybody who wants to backpack can buy a topo map and find their own way through the wilderness. But the fact is most beginning hikers want a guide.

Only by introducing people to wild places will advocacy for protecting and preserving them grow, he said.

As to guidebooks leading to crowding, Schneider said that is the case in some places. The solution, he suggested, is the creation of more wilderness.

Without the support of people who have experienced wilderness, I doubt we will have much success in permanently protecting any more wild land, he wrote.
A Turtle Lake man was arrested in McLean County earlier this week on multiple charges involving child sexual abuse material.

Aaron Jacobs faces two counts of promoting or directing an obscene sexual performance by a minor and four counts of possession of prohibited materials. The charges of promoting or directing a sexual performance each carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The charges of possessing prohibited materials each carry a five-year maximum sentence. Each charge also carries mandatory registration as a sex offender.

An investigation into Jacobs began in late February. A McLean County deputy executed a search warrant on Jacobs' iPhone and an external computer hard drive. The items were collected and delivered to the state Bureau of Criminal Investigation for examination, according to an affidavit.

On March 5, a BCI agent alerted McLean County authorities to more than 1,000 images of child exploitation and child sexual abuse materials, the affidavit states. Among the photos were images that allegedly appeared to have been altered. Those alterations included faces of people being removed and allegedly replaced with Jacobs' face and the faces of two juvenile girls living in McLean County, according to the affidavit.

Other images allegedly showed a variety of underage females engaged in various sex acts, the affidavit said. Many of those females appeared to be under the age of 10, court documents said.

In all, the BCI was able to extract more than 2,700 images of alleged child sexual exploitation or sexual abuse from the iPhone and hard drive, the affidavit stated.

Deputies went to Jacobs' residence in Turtle Lake on March 8 and learned he had allegedly taken a leave of absence from his job and left the area, the affidavit said. Jacobs left his clothes and toothbrush behind but allegedly took a credit card belonging to a roommate. That credit card was then allegedly used without authorization to purchase motel rooms in South Dakota and Missouri before it was canceled, according to the affidavit.

McLean County authorities issued a warrant for Jacobs' arrest on March 2, according to court records. He was booked into the McLean County jail on Tuesday and is being held on a $100,000 cash bond.

Court records do not indicate an attorney representing him.

His next court appearance is a preliminary hearing scheduled for July 17. He could enter pleas at that time.
Cheetah translocation 2.0 anytime: Official





By Bhavana Aparajita

Shukla

After green signal from inspection teams of Kenya and South Africa, State is all set ready to launch another edition of cheetah reintroduction project at Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary. State Government has completed its preparations to create another home for an ambitious cheetah reintroduction project at Gandhi Sagar Wildlife Sanctuary the first one is Kuno National Park of Sheopur near the historic town of Gwalior. This Gandhi Sagar sanctuary is set to become the second home for cheetahs in India followed by Kuno National Park, a top forest official told The Hitavada. Earlier, officials from Kenya and South Africa previously visited Gandhi Sagar to assess the conditions. Chief Minister Mohan Yadav chaired a wildlife board meeting where it was confirmed prey animals have been relocated from Kanha, Satpura, and Sanjay tiger reserves. It was also informed that 50 gaurs (Indian bisons) have also been successfully reintroduced from Kanha and Satpura Tiger Reserve to the Sanjay Tiger Reserve (in Sidhi district).

Specifically, cheetals (spotted deer) have been reintroduced from Kanha and other areas to boost their population in the region. On September 17, 2022, eight Namibian cheetahs, comprising five females and three males, were released into enclosures at Kuno National Park in Sheopur district. Subsequently, in February 2023, 12 more cheetahs were brought from South Africa. Notably, experts from Kenya and South Africa had earlier visited Gandhi Sagar to assess the conditions and gave a go-ahead. On September 17, 2022, eight Namibian cheetahs, five females and three males were released into enclosures at Kuno National Park in Sheopur district. In February 2023, 12 more cheetahs were brought from South Africa. Kenyan delegation visits MP to review preparations for cheetah reintroduction. Now, only 13 of the 20 adult cheetahs survive. Another 13 cubs born to these cheetahs put the total population of the animals currently in Kuno at 26.
CRPF soldier Kabir Das Uikey from Chhindwara martyred in Kathua attack







Our Correspondent

CHHINDWARA,

Local youth and CRPF soldier Kabir Das Uikey was martyred in the terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir. The attack took place at Saida Sukhal village in Hiranagar of Kathua district on Tuesday night. CRPF constable, Kabir Das Uikey had bullet injuries in this attack. He was rushed to hospital but succumbed to the injuries on Wednesday morning. The 35-year-old, Kabir was a resident of Pulpuldoh in Bichhua tehsil of Chhindwara. He joined CRPF in the year 2011. He got married four years ago. He is survived by mother Indervati Uikey, wife Mamta Uikey and younger brother, two sisters are married. His father had already passed away.

The last rites of CRPF constable Kabir will be performed on Thursday at his ancestral village Pulpuldoh. The body will be brought to the village from Nagpur in a special vehicle. Mother told that he had returned to duty 8 days back after a 20-day leave. He was to be posted in Bhopal. Martyr Kabir was the eldest among four siblings. His younger brother is farmer. He is not married yet. The whole family was mainly dependent on Kabirs salary. The family has only 6 acres of land for farming. The family is still in state of shock after receiving news of the martyrdom of their son.

Chhindwara MP Vivek Bunty Sahu and Mayor Vikram Ahakhe reached the martyrs house and consoled the
Frequent fire incidents prompt authorities to enforce stringent safety measures for eateries





Staff Reporter

In response to a series of alarming fire incidents at various eateries across the city, authorities have intensified their focus on enforcing strict fire and food safety standards. The move comes after two significant fire outbreaks in prominent locations, raising concerns over the fire safety protocols followed by restaurant and hotel operators. The first incident occurred at a two-storey bakery in Sindhi Colony in Kabadkhana area, where a fire broke out, causing significant damage. This was followed by another massive fire at the Milan Restaurant located on the third floor of Bhamashah Tower in MP Nagars zone 1. Fortunately, both incidents resulted in no casualties, but they highlighted the urgent need for stringent safety measures.

In light of these events, a meeting was held on June 12 under the chairmanship of Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Himanshu Chandra. The meeting was attended by Sub-Divisional Officer of MP Nagar, L K Khare, deputy assistant and the fire safety team of the municipal corporation. During the meeting, hotel and restaurant operators were instructed to adhere strictly to fire and food safety standards. ADM Himanshu Chandra emphasised the importance of compliance with safety regulations to prevent such incidents in the future. He directed the fire safety team of the municipal corporation to provide comprehensive training to staff on fire safety protocols. Moreover, hotel operators were also instructed to strictly follow food safety standards.

The district administration announced that regular quality checks will be conducted on vegetables and food items used in hotels to ensure compliance with health regulations. These checks aim to prevent any potential health hazards arising from the consumption of substandard or contaminated food. In a bid to ensure continuous compliance, the district administration will conduct surprise inspections through the food department team. Any establishment found violating the prescribed rules will face stringent action. Prominent restaurants in the city, including Bapu Ki Kutia and Sagar Gaire, have already been inspected for fire and food safety compliance. The recent fire incidents have served as a wake-up call highlighting the critical need for robust safety measures. As the district administration steps up its efforts, the co-operation of hotel and restaurant operators will be pivotal in ensuring that Bhopal remains a safe destination for both residents and visitors.
In the second phase of the project, the facility might also produce aviation fuel and liquified petroleum gas such as propane, according to its application on file with the PSC.

It could also have a power production component, using steam from the industrial processes to create 100 megawatts of electricity. This would help to power the facility, with excess electricity sent to the grid.

The project would also create another use for the state's growing supply of natural gas. North Dakota's oil fields have been producing more associated gas due to pressure dropping as the reservoir has aged, which is leading to both technical and regulatory constraints due to limits on burning off excess gas.

The project has received millions in grants and loans from the state, Williams County and McKenzie County.
Gadkari takes charge





NEW DELHI,

SENIOR BJP leader Nitin Gadkari on Wednesday took charge as the Minister of Road Transport and Highways. Gadkari conveyed his heartfelt gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for reassigning him this role in Modi 3.0 and remarked that India will be equipped with world-class, modern infrastructure at an accelerated pace under Modi Jis visionary leadership. Gadkari, popularly referred to as the Highway Man of India, is credited with the construction of more than 54,858 km of national highways in the country in the last 10 years.

The 67-year-old leader from Nagpur in Maharashtra has been the longest serving road transport & highways minister.

Under his leadership, the road ministry aims to complete the construction of 1,386-km Delhi-Mumbai Express by December this year. The former BJP president -- closely associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh -- has won three consecutive times from the Nagpur seat, which houses the RSS headquarters. On Sunday, he was inducted into the NDA Government as a cabinet minister. Gadkaris foray into national politics happened in 2009, when he was appointed the BJP president.

Since 2014, when Gadkari made his debut in the Lok Sabha polls from Nagpur and became a minister at the Centre, he has handled several portfolios like the micro, small and medium enterprises, shipping, water resources, river development and Ganga rejuvenation, rural development and panchayati raj. He served as a member of the Maharashtra legislative council from the Nagpur Graduates constituency from 1989 to 2014.
Indians among 49 killed in Kuwait building fire





DUBAI/KUWAIT CITY,

A MASSIVE fire engulfed a multi-storey building in Kuwait housing foreign workers early on Wednesday, killing at least 49 people, mostly Indians, and injuring more than 50 others, according to officials. Most deaths were due to smoke inhalation while residents were sleeping, and a significant number of occupants were evacuated, they added.

The fire started in a kitchen in the six-storey building in the Mangaf area in Kuwaits southern Ahmadi Governorate, officials said, adding that the building reportedly had 195 people living in it, who are workers of the same company.

In a statement, the Interior Ministry said that the death toll from the tragic fire has reached 49, the Kuwait Times newspaper reported. The ministry said that criminal evidence department personnel are currently working on identifying the victims on site and revealing the cause of the fire and added that strict measures will be taken against building owners who violate the law. Unfortunately, we received a report of a fire at... Exactly 6:00 am (0830 IST) in the Mangaf area, Major General Eid Al-Owaihan, head of the interior ministrys General Department of Criminal Evidence, said.
No mercy President rejects plea ofRed Fort attack convict





By Ashwini Shrivastava

NEW DELHI,

Mercy petition of Pakistani terrorist Mohammed Arif alias Ashfaq convicted in the nearly 24-year-old Red Fort attack case has been rejected by President Droupadi Murmu, officials said on Wednesday. This is the second mercy plea rejected by the President after assuming office on July 25, 2022. The Supreme Court had dismissed a review petition by Arif on November 3, 2022, affirming the death penalty awarded to him in the case. However, a death row convict can still knock on the doors of the top court seeking commutation of his sentence on the ground of prolonged delay under Article 32 of the Constitution, feel experts.

The mercy petition from Arif, received on May 15, was turned down on May 27, the officials said, quoting the Presidents Secretariat order of May 29. The Supreme Court, while upholding the death sentence, noted that there were no mitigating circumstances in Arifs favour and emphasised that the attack on the Red Fort posed a direct threat to countrys unity, integrity, and sovereignty.

The attack on December 22, 2000 saw intruders opening fire at the 7 Rajputana Rifles unit stationed within Red resulting in the deaths of three Army personnel. Arif, a Pakistani national and a member of banned Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT), was arrested by Delhi Police four days after the attack. Appellant-accused Mohd Arif alias Ashfaq was a Pakistani national and had entered the Indian territory illegally, the top courts order of 2022 had said. Arif was found guilty of conspiring with other militants to carry out the attack, with the trial court sentencing him to death in October 2005. The Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court upheld the decision in subsequent appeals.
PM Modi to leave for G7 summit today





NEW DELHI,

INDIA on Wednesday reiterated that the best option to resolve the Ukraine conflict is dialogue and diplomacy as Prime Minister Narendra Modi travels to Italy to attend the annual summit of G7 grouping that is set to focus on dealing with global geopolitical turmoil. Modi, accompanied by a high-level delegation, will travel to Italy on Thursday to attend an outreach session on the summit on June 14. It will be his first trip abroad after assuming charge as Prime Minister for the third term. The G7 summit, to be held in the luxury resort of Borgo Egnazia in Italys Apulia region from June 13 to 15, is expected to be dominated by the raging war in Ukraine and the conflict in Gaza. We have always maintained that dialogue and diplomacy is the best option, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said at a media briefing when asked what would be Indias approach to resolve the Ukraine conflict. He also recalled Modis statement in September 2022 that todays era is not of war.

Kwatra talked about the consequences of the war including its derivative impact on food, fuel and fertiliser availability, challenges to global supply chains and disruptions in the global economy. We have always been in the forefront to talk about not just the conflict, the need for dialogue and diplomacy but also the way the conflict is impacting on the priorities and interests of the developing countries, he said. We have always been at forefront to offer assistance wherever we can to alleviate challenges faced by the Global South because of the conflict, humanitarian assistance to Ukraine and also to the Global South affected by conflict, he said. PM Modi to participate in Swiss peace summit: INDIA on Wednesday said it will participate in the upcoming peace summit on the Ukraine conflict in Switzerland at an appropriate level.

The summit will take place at Burgenstock in Lucerne on June 15 and 16. Switzerland has invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to attend it. However, it is almost certain that Modi will not participate in it with sources indicating that a senior diplomat may represent India at the summit. India will attend the peace summit in Switzerland at the appropriate level, Kwatra said. That consideration is currently going on in the system and as and when we have a decision on the representative from India wholl be participating, well be very happy to share it with you, he said. Last month, Swiss State Secretary of Foreign Affairs Alexandre Fasel visited India to invite it for the summit.
Second terrorist gunned down CRPF jawan from MP martyred





JAMMU,

A TERRORIST holed up in a border village in Jammu and Kashmirs Kathua district was killed by security forces on Wednesday in a more than 15-hour operation during which a CRPF jawan lost his life, officials said. According to them, two senior officers escaped unhurt even as their vehicles were hit by bullets during the operation that began on Tuesday night after two terrorists were spotted in Saida Sukhal village. In Doda district, five troopers of Rashtriya Rifles and a special police officer (SPO) were injured when terrorists attacked a joint checkpost in the upper reaches of Chattergalla on the Bhaderwah-Pathankot road late on Tuesday night. Meanwhile, a policeman was injured on Wednesday evening when terrorists opened fire on a search party in a village in Gandoh area of Jammu and Kashmirs Doda district, officials said. The firing was reported from the Kota top area of Bhalesa around 7.41 pm to which security forces retaliated, they said. An intermittent exchange of fire between the two sides was going on when last reports were received. Reinforcements have been rushed to the area to strengthen the cordon, they added.

This was the second terror-related incident in Doda in the last 24 hours and fourth in three days in Jammu and Kashmir.The two incidents come just days after terrorists attacked a bus carrying pilgrims from the Shiv Khori temple to Katra, causing it to veer off the road and fall into a deep gorge. Nine people died and 41 were injured in the Sunday evening attack. Police have announced a Rs 20 lakh reward for information on the whereabouts of the terrorists involved in the attack on the bus and have also released the sketch of one of the terrorists. Authorities have claimed that attempts by Pakistan to disturb the peaceful atmosphere in Jammu and Kashmir were the reason for the spurt in terror activities in the Jammu region. In Kathuas Saida Sukhal village near the International Border -- around 60 kms from here -- the second holed-up terrorist was killed on Wednesday noon in an intense gunfight after being cornered by the joint security parties of the police, Army and CRPF, officials said. His partner was shot dead on Tuesday night. The terrorist tried to break the cordon by firing indiscriminately at the security forces around 3 am. Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawan Kabir Dass, a resident of Madhya Pradesh, was critically injured in the firing and later succumbed to injuries in a hospital, they said.

During the operation, official vehicles of Deputy Inspector General of Police, Jammu-Samba-Kathua range, Sunil Gupta and Senior Superintendent of Police, Kathua, Anayat Ali Choudhary were hit by several bullets but the officers escaped unhurt. Talking to reporters after the encounter ended, Additional Director General of Police (Jammu zone) Anand Jain, who supervised the operation, said both the terrorists have been killed and a large quantity of weapons, improvised explosive devices and grenades recovered from them. A search is still on as there is a possibility of some more terrorists hiding in the area, he said. He lauded the bravery of the slain CRPF jawan and said, We salute his sacrifice. Earlier, the ADGP said, Two terrorists entered the village around 8 pm on Tuesday and asked for water from a household. The people got frightened and as soon as they informed us, a police team rushed to the village. One of the terrorists tried to hurl a grenade at the police team and was killed in the exchange of fire, he said. Officials said both the slain terrorists are believed to be Pakistanis. An M4 carbine, an AK assault rifle and over Rs 1 lakh in cash besides Pakistan-made food items and medicines were seized from the encounter site, they said, adding the identity and group affiliation of the terrorists were being ascertained.

A civilian was also injured in the terrorist firing and was hospitalised on Tuesday night, the officials said. In Doda, terrorists fired on a joint checkpost of the 4 Rashtriya Rifles and police at Chattergalla area late on Tuesday night, leading to a fierce gunfight which continued for several hours, officials said. They said five Rashtriya Rifles personnel and an SPO were injured and they were taken to hospital. Additional security personnel have been rushed to the area to intensify the operation against the terrorists, they said. According to the officials, traffic movement has been completely suspended on the busy Bhadarwah-Pathankot interstate highway in view of the ongoing search and cordon operation in Chattergalla, Guldandi, Sarthal, Shankh Pader and Kailash mountain range. Without naming Pakistan, ADGP Anand Jain said the hostile neighbour is always making attempts to disturb peace in the Jammu region. Meanwhile, a search and cordon operation has been launched in the Kalal area of the Nowshera sector in Rajouri district following suspicious movement of two persons.

Security forces have been put on high alert following intelligence reports about possible attempts by terrorists to carry out an attack, especially in Poonch and Rajouri districts which has been seeing a spurt in terror activities over the past two years, officials said. Meanwhile, the Central Reserve Police Force on Wednesday paid floral tributes to its jawan who was killed in an encounter with terrorists in Jammu and Kashmirs Kathua district. The last respects were paid to CRPF jawan Kabir Das by the senior CRPF and police officials at a wreath laying ceremony in Kathua, officials said. The mortal remains are being sent to his native place in Madhya Pradesh. The jawan was scheduled to go on leave to his home next week. Paying tributes to the jawan, Additional Director General of Police Anand Jain said their colleague laid down his life in the encounter and achieved martyrdom. He sacrificed his life while fighting with courage and bravery. We salute his martyrdom, Jain said.
Staff Reporter

Amidst the hullabaloo in State over replacing regular power meters by smart meters, Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL), as per information, has not mentioned about domestic and commercial consumers as yet. Amid all-cornered opposition and apprehension among citizens, sources said, MSEDCL has listed the priority sectors. The list does not include installation of pre-paid meters at any of the household. Now, the field officials are in a fix as they are short of a reason for protest as domestic and commercial categories are exluded from replacement of the power meters. Smart meters project is mandated by Central Government under Smart Meter National Plan as part of Rapid Distribution Sector Scheme (RDSS) wherein the aim is to ensure reliable power supply to consumers. But the main component of the scheme is to ensure that power distribution sector is financially stable by eliminating the chances of default. Field units have received guidelines on how to execute the Smart meter programme and the list, as per sources, only mandates affixing pre-paid meters at High Tension (HT) consumers places.

The Zonal bosses are told to fist complete installation of feeder meters. About 27,826 meters are to be affixed through the State and this exercise will ensure that at first gateway the power supply will be monitored effectively. The power supply figure from feeder should then match with the transformer and in case of any difference it would be transmission losses. So the mismatch in figures would also prompt review so that correctional measures can be taken. In second phase, the distribution transformer (DT) meters would be installed. They would be 4,03,705 in different zones of the State, excluding Mumbai. Thereafter, smart meters will be installed at all Government offices and quarters as same would enable keeping check on the consumption. This way unnecessary wastages of power can be curbed. Also next in line will be HT consumers and there about 23,086 meters are needed to be affixed. And last but not the least all new power connection across all categories will come with pre-paid meters, the sources mentioned further.

Smart meters installation is part of Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) under RDSS scheme. The meters are being installed on Design, Build, Finance, Own, Operate and Transfer (DBFOOT) mode. Four companies have won the bids to rollout the smart meters on the above mentioned categories. M/s Adani has got rights to Bhandup, Kalyan and Konkan where they will affix 63,44,066 units while at Kolhapur they will provide 17,31,053 meters. Besides this the company has also bagged rights for Baramati and Pune circle where they will affix 52,45,917 meters. Apart from that M/s NCC won the bid for Nashik and Jalgaon where they will affix 28,86,622 meters and for Latur, Nanded and Aurangabad about 27,77,759 meters. M/s Montecario will fix meters in Chandrapur, Gondia and Nagpur and they will be about 30,30,346 while M/s Genus will provide smart meters for Akola and Amravati and they will be about 21,76,636.
Vacancies in Nuisance Detection Squad mar enforcement action





Staff Reporter

Nuisance Detection Squad (NDS) of Nagpur Municipal Corporation is reeling under vacancies that is affecting its mandate, that of enforcement of rules in the city. As against sanctioned strength of 201, NDS is working with depleted staff since just 127 remain on the rolls. Due to this the existing team has to double-up on the work front that stretches the force's energy to a great extent. At present the vacancies stand at 74 and most of them are field level posts of jawans. According to the information shared by the civic body at the end of financial year the NDS was short of 74 personnel. This included vacancy at zonal level where two posts are vacant. NDS consists of retired/ ex-servicemen who are inducted after tough screening procedure. They are kind of police posse for the civic administration and it eliminates need for constant police escort during enforcement drives.

The performance of NDS over the years has been very effective as they managed to instill fear among violators. The NDS has sanction of one post of Team Leader that is headed by Veersen Tambe. At each of the 10 zones of NMC one Zonal Head supervises the jawans under him. Security Assistant sanctioned posts are 190 of which 118 are filled-up while 72 remain vacant. The reasons for vacancy are selection of jawans in other specialised forces like the state police force where recruitment drive was held in various districts, said Veersen Tambe, while talking to The Hitavada. Many other from NDS were recruited in other Maharashtra State Security Corporation and therefore the posts became vacant. The vacancies he admitted have affected the working of NDS to some extent but still they are working with full force. As desired some of the action like crackdown on single use plastic, enforcement against encroachments does suffer, said Tambe.
You will I hope forgive me for focusing on a smaller number of issues which confront us because it would be remiss of me not to begin with the current crisis in Sudan.

As you would expect Ive been in COBR meetings and other meetings on our response to the situation today. I can inform you that a Royal Air Force flight has now left Sudan, carrying British nationals to safety this evening, and more will follow.

From the onset of this crisis, weve been planning how to get our people out. And now that our and international calls for a ceasefire in Khartoum have been heeded, we are putting those plans into effect, giving priority to those in greatest need: family groups, the sick, and the elderly.

Im encouraged that both factions have called a 72-hour ceasefire, though of course we cannot be sure for how long it will hold, and any evacuation from a battle-scarred city is inherently dangerous.

Britain is working hand-in-glove with our partners across the world. And after this operation, we will do everything possible  alongside our friends in the region  to secure a lasting settlement for this tragic conflict.

And of course the situation in Sudan does not distract us from our work to support Ukraines struggle against Russian aggression, and I know that my G7 colleagues and other colleagues around the world will agree on our focus on that.

Even when the emergencies of the day are seemingly all-consuming, it is vital never to lose sight of the biggest long-term questions. So tonight I propose to focus on a subject that will define our epoch, and that is China and the UKs policy towards it.

Im often asked to express that policy in a single phrase, or to sum up China itself in one word, whether threat, or partner, or adversary. And I want to start by explaining why that is impossible, impractical and  most importantly  unwise.

China is one of the few countries which can trace its existence back over 2 millennia, to 221BC, when it was united by the Qin Dynasty.

Time and time again down the centuries, civil war or foreign invasions fractured China into rival kingdoms, but after every period of turmoil, China has always re-emerged. The opening line of the Chinese epic Romance of the Three Kingdoms describes this cycle:

Empires wax and wane; states cleave asunder and coalesce.

And long before they coalesced into one polity, the Chinese people created their language and their civilisation. Their written characters appeared in the Shang Dynasty in the second millennium BC.

Their inventions  paper, printing, gunpowder, the compass  these things transformed the fortunes of the whole of humanity. These innovations are the key to understanding why Chinas economy was among the biggest in the world for 20 of the last 22 centuries, and why China, in 1820, comprised a third of global GDP  more than America, the UK and Europe combined.

Then calamities struck, one after another; some caused by foreign aggression; others coming from within China itself. The deadliest of which was Maos famine, which claimed tens of millions of lives, more than any other famine in human history.

Yet the last 45 years have seen another astonishing reversal. By releasing the enterprising genius of its people, China has achieved the biggest and fastest economic expansion the world has ever known. No less than 800 million people have lifted themselves out of poverty, in a nation that encompasses a fifth of all humanity, and a vast area almost as large as continental Europe from the Atlantic to the Urals.

So forgive me when I say that no punchy catchphrase or plausible adjective can do justice to such a country or to any sensible approach towards it. If you are looking for British foreign policy by soundbite, Im afraid you will be disappointed.

My starting point is a recognition of the depth and complexity of Chinese history and civilisation, and therefore, by extension, of our own policy.

And I rest that policy on a series of premises, the first of which is that whatever our differences with Chinas leaders, I rejoice in the fact that so many Chinese people have escaped poverty. We do not live in a miserable zero-sum world: their gain is our gain. A stable, prosperous and peaceful China is good for Britain and good for the world.

Looking ahead, I reject any notion of inevitability. No-one predicted Chinas rapid rise from mass starvation to relative prosperity, and today no-one can be sure that Chinas economic juggernaut will roll on indefinitely.

Last year, for the first time since Maos death in 1976, Chinas economy grew no faster than the world economy, meaning that Chinas share of global GDP stayed constant in 2022. And even if China does become the worlds largest economy in the coming decade, it may not hold that place for long, as a declining and ageing population weighs ever more heavily on future growth.

Nor do I see anything inevitable about conflict between China and the United States and the wider West. We are not compelled to be prisoners of what Graham Allison called the Thucydides trap, whereby a rising power follows the trajectory of ancient Athens, and collides head-on with an established superpower.

We have agency; we have choices; and so do our Chinese counterparts.

Our task is to shape the course of future events, not succumb to fatalism. And we must face the inescapable reality that no significant global problem  from climate change to pandemic prevention, from economic instability to nuclear proliferation  can be solved without China.

To give up on dialogue with China would be to give up on addressing humanitys greatest problems. Even worse, we would be ignoring salient facts, vital to our safety and our prosperity.

As I speak, the biggest repository of health data in the world is in China. The biggest source of active ingredients for the worlds pharmaceuticals is in China. And the biggest source of carbon emissions is also in China. Indeed, China has pumped more carbon into the atmosphere in the last 10 years than this country has since the dawn of the industrial revolution in the 18th century.

How China regulates its data, how China develops its pharmaceuticals, how China conducts medical research, will be of seminal importance to the whole of humanity. And whether or not China cuts its carbon emissions will probably make the difference between our planet avoiding the worst ravages of climate change, or suffering catastrophe.

We have already learned to our cost how Chinas handling of a pandemic can affect the entire world. So have no doubt: decisions taken in Beijing are going to affect our lives.

Do we not owe it to ourselves to strive to influence those decisions in our own interests? It would be clear and easy  and perhaps even satisfying  for me to declare some kind of new Cold War and say that our goal is to isolate China. It would be clear, it would be easy, it would be satisfying  and it would be wrong, because it would be a betrayal of our national interest and a wilful misunderstanding of the modern world.

Indeed, this government will advance British interests directly with China, alongside our allies, while steadfastly defending our national security and our values. And we can expect profound disagreements; dealing with China I can assure you, is not for the fainthearted; they represent a ruthless authoritarian tradition utterly at odds with our own.

But we have an obligation to future generations to engage because otherwise we would be failing in our duty to sustain  and shape  the international order. Shirking that challenge would be a sign not of strength but of weakness.

Vladimir Putin never intended to demonstrate the power of a united West when he launched his onslaught against Ukraine. But our response shows that when Britain and America and Europe and our other partners across the world stand united, we are a match for anything.

We should have every confidence in our collective ability to engage robustly and also constructively with China, not as an end in itself, but to manage risks and produce results. And we have achieved results.

Let me give you some examples. In 2017 research, British research, convinced the Chinese agriculture ministry to act against the danger of antibiotic resistance by restricting colistin, an antibiotic used in animal feed. Sales fell by 90%, making everyone in the world safer.

Last year, our diplomats in China helped to persuade the authorities to amend a draft procurement law, improving the chances of UK companies bidding for contracts from state-owned enterprises. This year, they secured licences worth 600 million for UK institutions to launch fund management companies in China.

Britains position as a founding member of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank has also allowed us to influence Chinas approach towards this new institution, preventing it from becoming a politicised extension of the Belt and Road Initiative. China is the biggest shareholder of this Bank, the Bank is headquartered in Beijing, and yet within a week of Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine, it froze every single project in Russia.

But even though engagement can succeed, the truth is that a country like ours, devoted to liberty and democracy, will always be torn between our national interest in dealing with China and our abhorrence of Beijings abuses. When we see how authoritarian states treat their own people, we wonder what they would do to us if they had the chance. And history teaches us that repression at home often translates into aggression abroad.

So our policy has to combine 2 currents: we must engage with China where necessary and be unflinchingly realistic about its authoritarianism.

And that means never wavering from one clear principle. We do not expect our disagreements with China to be swiftly overcome, but we do expect China to observe the laws and obligations that it has freely entered in to.

So, as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council, China has shouldered a special responsibility to uphold the UN Charter. As a party to the Joint Declaration, China has agreed to preserve Hong Kongs freedom. As a signatory to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, to the Convention Against Torture and many other instruments of international law, China has accepted an array of obligations.

And if China breaks them, we are entitled to say so, and we are entitled to act  and we will  as we did when China dismantled the freedoms of Hong Kong, violating its own pledge, which is why we gave nearly 3 million of Hong Kongs people a path to British citizenship.

Peaceful co-existence has to begin with respecting fundamental laws and institutions, including the UN Charter, which protects every country against invasion. And that means every country: a Chinese diplomat in Paris cannot, and must not, and will not, decide the legal status of sovereign countries.

By attacking Ukraine, Russia has provided an object lesson in how a UN member state should not behave. And Putin has also trampled upon Chinas own stated principles of non-interference and respect for sovereignty.

A powerful and responsible nation cannot simply abstain when this happens, or draw closer to the aggressor, or aid and abet that aggression. A country that wants a respected place at the apex of the world order should stand up for its own principles, and keep its solemn obligations, obligations to defend the laws at the very foundation of that order.

This responsibility goes hand-in-hand with Chinas right to play a global role commensurate with its size and its history. And the rights of a sovereign nation like Ukraine cannot be eradicated just because the eradicator enjoys a strategic partnership with China.

So, British policy towards China has 3 pillars.

First, we will strengthen our national security protections wherever Beijings actions pose a threat to our people or our prosperity.

We are not going to be silent about interference in our political system, or technology theft, or industrial sabotage. We will do more to safeguard academic freedom and research.

And when there are tensions with other objectives, we will always put our national security first. Hence we are building our 5G network in the most secure way, not the fastest or the cheapest way.

Chinas leaders define their core interests  and its natural that they do. But we have core interests too, and one of them is to promote the kind of world that we want to live in, where people everywhere have a universal human right to be treated with dignity, free from torture, free from slavery, free from arbitrary detention.

And there is nothing uniquely Western about these values: torture hurts just as much whoever it is inflicted upon.

So when Britain condemns the mass incarceration of the Uyghur people in Xinjiang, I hope our Chinese counterparts do not believe their own rhetoric that we are merely seeking to interfere in their domestic affairs. Just as we should try harder to understand China, I hope that Chinese officials will understand that when their government builds a 21st century version of the gulag archipelago, locking up over a million people at the height of this campaign, often for doing nothing more than observing their religion, this stirs something deep within us.

When the United Nations finds that Chinas repression in Xinjiang may  and I quote  constitute international crimes, in particular crimes against humanity, our revulsion is heartfelt and shared unanimously across our country and beyond. We are not going to let what is happened in Xinjiang drop or be brushed aside. We cannot ignore this simply because this is happening on the other side of a frontier, or that to raise it might be considered unharmonious or impolite.

Second, the UK will deepen our cooperation and strengthen our alignment with our friends and partners in the Indo-Pacific and across the world.

Our aim will be to bolster collective security, deepen commercial links, uphold international law, and balance and compete where necessary. So Im delighted that Britain will soon be the 12th member of the Trans-Pacific Partnership, reinforcing our trading ties with rapidly growing economies.

Already we are the only European country to be a Dialogue Partner of the Association of South-East Asian Nations. We are deepening our long-term partnership with India. And we are developing the next generation of our aircraft alongside Japan. And weve joined the United States to help Australia to build nuclear-powered conventionally-armed submarines under the AUKUS partnership.

Together with our friends, the UK will strive for openness and transparency in the Indo-Pacific. At this moment, China is carrying out the biggest military build-up in peacetime history. In a period of just 4 years  between 2014 and 2018  China launched new warships exceeding the combined tonnage of the Royal Navys entire active fleet.

And as we see this happening; as we watch new bases appearing in the South China Sea and beyond, we are bound to ask ourselves: what is it all for? Why is China making this colossal military investment?

And if we are left to draw our own conclusions, prudence dictates that we must assume the worst. And yet of course we could be wrong: it is possible that we will be too cautious and too pessimistic.

The UK and our allies are prepared to be open about our presence in the Indo-Pacific. And I urge China to be equally open about the doctrine and intent behind its military expansion, because transparency is surely in everyones interests and secrecy can only increase the risk of tragic miscalculation.

Which brings me to Taiwan. Britains longstanding position is that we want to see a peaceful settlement of the differences across the Strait. Because about half of the worlds container ships pass through these vital waters every year, laden with goods bound for Europe and the far corners of the world. Taiwan is a thriving democracy and a crucial link in global supply chains, particularly for advanced semi-conductors.

A war across the Strait would not only be a human tragedy, it would destroy world trade worth $2.6 trillion, according to Nikkei Asia. No country could shield itself from the repercussions. Distance would offer no protection from this catastrophic blow to the global economy  and least Chinas most of all. I shudder to contemplate the human and financial ruin that would follow. So its essential that no party takes unilateral action to change the status quo.

And the third pillar of our policy is to engage directly with China, bilaterally and multilaterally, to preserve and create open, constructive and stable relations, reflecting Chinas global importance.

We believe in a positive trade and investment relationship, whilst avoiding dependencies in critical supply chains. We want British companies to do business with China  just as American, ASEAN, Australian and EU companies currently do  and we will support their efforts to make the terms work for both sides, pushing for a level playing field and fairer competition.

We have an interest in continuing to benefit from Chinese investment, but we dont want the long arm of the Chinese Communist Party reaching towards the central nervous system of our country. And in the past, we havent always struck the perfect balance between openness and security. Now we are gaining the right legal powers to safeguard what we must and be open where we can.

Above all, we need to be properly skilled for the challenge, so we are doubling our funding for China capabilities across government; weve allocated the resources to build a new British Embassy in Beijing, Im determined to reach agreement with Chinas government so this can proceed.

So our approach to China must combine all of these currents, protecting our national security, aligning with our friends, engaging and trading with China where our interests converge, avoiding policy by soundbite, and always standing up for the universal values which Britain holds dear.

I fervently believe there are no inevitabilities: the future is ours to shape, in the humble knowledge that how we respond to this challenge now will help define the modern world.

Thank you.
Press Release

June 12, 2024 Giving the youth opportunities for a brighter future: Bong Go advocates for education enhancement while urging graduates to help serve the nation Senator Christopher "Bong" Go expressed his heartfelt congratulations to all Filipino students who have graduated this school year, emphasizing the significance of education in shaping a better future and in using every opportunity given to be of service to the nation. Just recently, Go was a guest of honor and speaker at the commencement exercises of the University of Cagayan Valley in Tuguegarao City; Immaculate Conception Child Development Center, Inc. in Pandi, Bulacan; Southern Luzon Technological College Foundation Inc. in Legazpi City, Albay; as well as in the Saint Amatiel Education System and the Philippine Christian University (PCU) Dasmarinas City, Cavite campus both held in Pasay City. He was also invited to be a commencement speaker during the commencement exercises of the Dipolog Medical Center (DMC) College Foundation Inc. in Dipolog City, Zamboanga del Norte, and St. Robert's International College Senior High School Recognition Ceremony in Iloilo City. He also continues to support graduates of various Technical Education And Skills Development Authority (TESDA) courses nationwide. Senator Go, who is a member of the Senate Committee on Basic Education, underscored the critical role of education in achieving personal and national development. He reiterated his commitment to pushing for initiatives that bolster the education sector, ensuring that every Filipino receives proper education and equal opportunities to succeed. The senator has co-authored Republic Act No. 11510, which institutionalizes the Alternative Learning System (ALS) to enhance the delivery of basic education for underserved and disadvantaged students. This law offers vital support to typically underrepresented groups, including indigenous students, those from less privileged backgrounds, and students with physical and learning disabilities. He also highlighted that during the term of former President Rodrigo Duterte, Republic Act No. 10931, known as the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act, was enacted. This significant law has greatly aided impoverished students by providing free education in local colleges, universities, and state-run technical vocational institutions. Building upon the successes of Republic Act No. 10931, Go co-authored and co-sponsored Senate Bill No. (SBN) 1360 which seeks to expand the Tertiary Education Subsidy (TES) coverage if enacted into law. Furthermore, Go likewise commended President Marcos Jr. for signing into law RA 11984, also known as the "No Permit, No Exam Prohibition Act." Go also co-authored and co-sponsored the measure in the Senate. The recently signed law RA 11997, or the "Kabalikat sa Pagtuturo Act," which Go co-authored and co-sponsored, is a significant legislative measure aimed at increasing the teaching supply allowances for public school teachers. Meanwhile, Go proposed Senate Bill No. 1864, the Student Loan Payment Moratorium During Disasters and Emergencies bill. He also proposed SBN 1786, which mandates public higher education institutions (HEIs) to establish mental health offices on their campuses. Additionally, Go co-authored and co-sponsored SBN 2200, the proposed Basic Education Mental Health and Well-Being Promotion Act. "One of my top priorities is to support the Filipino youth so they can have proper education from an early age. Add to it other fundamentals like discipline and hard work and young Filipinos will have a much better chance for a better future," he said while citing Dr. Jose Rizal, "Ang Kabataan ay ang pag-asa ng ating bayan." The senator also lauded parents and guardians for their unwavering support and sacrifices in ensuring their children receive the education they deserve, saying, "Mga anak, kung alam n'yo lang ang tiniis ng mga magulang n'yo para marating n'yo ang araw na ito, kung ilang beses nilang binalewala ang gutom dahil nakalaan na ang budget ng pamilya para sa tuition ninyo." "I have always believed that education empowers individuals and equips them with the necessary tools to overcome challenges and achieve their goals. It is a gift that parents and the government should strive to provide for the advancement of the young and the progress of the nation," he explained. Drawing from his own experiences as a parent, Go empathized with their challenges and acknowledged the immense dedication required to nurture and guide their children toward academic success. Furthermore, Senator Go extended his gratitude to Filipino teachers, recognizing their vital role in shaping the minds of future generations. He also acknowledged that schools serve as a second home for students, where they build friendships, discover their potential, and grow academically and personally. The senator expressed his deep appreciation for the school communities that foster such an environment, enabling students to thrive and succeed. Senator Go then reaffirmed his commitment to advocating for policies and programs to further strengthen the Philippine education system. He envisions a future where every Filipino child has access to the resources and opportunities necessary to achieve their dreams and contribute to the nation's progress. "Ako ay narito upang magbahagi ng ilang salita ng inspirasyon, hindi lamang bilang isang senador, kundi bilang isang taong nagmumula rin sa munting pangarap na katulad ninyo," Go cited in his speeches. "Ako'y isang simpleng tao lang po na nagmula sa Davao City sa Mindanao na binigyan niyo ng pagkakataon na maging senador ng bayan na ito. Isa lang po ang mapapayo ko sa inyo, sa mga graduates, malay niyo maging isa rin kayong senador ng bansa... isa lang po ang sikreto diyan, mahalin po natin ang ating kapwa Pilipino, hinding hindi po tayo magkakamali," he shared. The senator's message reminded students to continue to dream big, work hard, have faith and serve the people: "Remember, your efforts today will shape a brighter tomorrow for our country." As a new academic year approaches, Senator Go's message serves as a reminder of the collective effort needed to support and uplift the education sector, ensuring a brighter future for all Filipino students. "Bilang inyong Mr. Malasakit, patuloy kaming magseserbisyo sa inyo dahil bisyo ko ang magserbisyo at ako ay naniniwala na ang serbisyo sa tao ay serbisyo 'yan sa Panginoon, serbisyo 'yan kay Allah," underscored Go who is known for his compassionate service to Filipinos in need.
Healthcare providers suggest legal means

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IMPHAL, Jun 13 : Saying that there has been a gradual increase in violence and intimidation against healthcare providers and hospital staff in Manipur, the Manipur Chapter of Association of Healthcare Providers-India (AHPI) has appealed to one and all who are dissatisfied with hospital treatment to seek proper redressal through the appropriate hospital authorities.

AHPI (Manipur Chapter), in a press release, advised the public to pursue legal action against the healthcare provider or hospital instead of resorting to intimidation and violence within hospital premises in cases of complication and fatality during treatment. Saying that the 'ongoing' violence against healthcare providers will create an environment of fear and limit their (healthcare providers) willingness to handle complicated cases, the association added that the number of patients seeking treatment outside the State will increase significantly if the problem is not solved. The association appealed to the State Government and its law enforcement agencies to address the 'rising' cases of violence against healthcare providers.
Bird flu scare came back again in state after two cases of human infections of the avian influenza caused by two variants H5N1 and H9N2 respectively were reported.

The WHO on Wednesday has pressed the alarm button and confirmed about one case of human infection of bird flu in a child in West Bengal.

With the two cases reported in the state, India recorded the third human infection of bird flu caused by the H9N2 virus since 2019, when the first one was reported in the country.

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The child has recovered and was discharged from hospital, according to the global health body.

On 22 May, the International Health Regulations (IHR) National Focal Point (NFP) for India reported to WHO a case of human infection with avian influenza A (H9N2) virus detected in a child resident of West Bengal state in India, a media release issued by the WHO said on Wednesday.

The first case of human infection of bird flu caused by H9N2 virus was detected in a two-and-a-half-year-old baby of Indian origin in January. The baby who was diagnosed with the bird flu virus in the city has already gone back to Australia, sources in the state health department said.

According to the sources in the state health department at Swasthya Bhaban, the four and a half-year-old child is a resident of Manikchak in Malda district. The child fell ill showing symptoms of abdominal pain, breathlessness, respiratory tract infections with fever and cough during January. The child was diagnosed with bird flu caused by H9N2 virus and admitted to a hospital.

However, on 3 March, with a recurrence of severe respiratory distress, she was referred to another government hospital in Kolkata and was admitted to the pediatric ICU and incubated.

On 5 March, a nasopharyngeal swab sample was tested positive for influenza A in a laboratory in the city.

The same sample was sent to the National Institute of Virology (NIV) in Pune for sub-typing and the test confirmed it was a case of influenza A.

A team of public health experts of the state government and WHO are likely to visit Manikchak on Thursday to take stock of the situation there, its learnt.

Bird flu in humans caused by a novel influenza A virus subtype is an event that has the potential for high public health impact and must be notified to the WHO, as per international norms.

Most human cases of infection with avian influenza A (H9N2) viruses are exposed to the virus through contact with infected poultry or contaminated environments, the WHO said.

Human infection tends to result in mild clinical illness, the WHO release said.

Sources in the health department also said that the state animal resource and development department has already tested samples of around 29,000 poultry birds so far but no cases of bird flu has been confirmed.
Minister of urban development and municipal affairs Firhad Hakim convened a meeting with officials from the Siliguri Municipal Corporation today.

He emphasized the need for further development of Siliguri in order to transform it into a Model City.

According to Mr Hakim, who is also the mayor of Kolkata Municipal Corporation, chief minister Mamata Banerjee has been the driving force for rapid development in this region, as north Bengal holds a special place in her heart.

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Siliguri used to be a poorly developed town in the past, but since 2011, significant progress has been made. Despite having a former urban development minister from Siliguri, the town had been falling behind for the past 50 years, Mr Hakim claimed today.

The minister conducted a review meeting yesterday with his party leaders to discuss the Lok Sabha poll results. After the meeting, Mr Hakim concluded that party members require training to effectively communicate the message of development and progress to the public.

Following an extensive investigation in the past few days in this area, Mr Hakim was surprised by the election outcome and reached the conclusion that his partys supporters were unsuccessful in gaining votes for their candidates. This was despite chief minister Mamata Banerjees immense popularity among the people, who hold her in high regard.

Mr Hakim, following a meeting with Goutam Deb, the mayor of the Siliguri Municipal Corporation as well as other officials and councillors, emphasized the significant role that councillors play in promoting development initiatives and their implementation to the public. He stressed the importance of peoples participation and highlighted how councillors are essential in driving both development and party organization. In order to be more effective, councillors should prioritize forming ward committees by engaging with local residents and gaining their trust.

It is evident that people always support those councillors, who actively work for their benefit, making it difficult to reject them in any election. As a five-term councillor myself, I speak from experience, he added.

Today, Mr Hakim met with the officials of the SJDA and addressed various matters. Following the meeting, he stated that SJDA is focused on promoting green development, a crucial initiative in our current circumstances.

In the meantime, Mr Hakim assessed the possibility of carrying out projects like STP I, II, and III (sewage treatment plant) that are currently in progress.

Mayor Goutam Deb prepared a report with his staff to discuss these projects and provided Mr Hakim with detailed information.
The recent parliamentary elections witnessed political parties acknowledging environmental issues in their manifestos, yet their primary focus remained on immediate concerns like energy usage and pollution control.

Critical environmental issues such as environmental degradation, livelihood challenges, and broader climate change impacts were conspicuously underrepresented in electoral debates.

Key environmental concerns, including open-cast coal mining, air pollution, climate change, forest fire threats, policies concerning the Himalayas, the pending Ganga Act for a pollution-free Ganga, preservation of small rivers, arsenic contamination in water and access to clean drinking water, were largely ignored in the political discourse. While environmental organizations have raised these concerns with political parties, their influence has been minimal.

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Notably, the BJP candidate for the Jadavpur constituency stood out by promising to develop area-specific climate models. Despite this, environmental advocates remain sceptical about the practical implementation of such models in Kolkata.

Environmental challenges are intensifying. The agricultural sector is facing a severe water crisis with rivers, canals, ponds, and other waterbodies drying up during the scorching summer months. River water levels have plummeted, rendering many river lifting pumps inactive, affecting regions like Murshidabad, North and South Dinajpur, North 24-Parganas, Nadia and beyond. Groundwater, the last resort, is also depleting rapidly, as highlighted by the National Compilation on Dynamic Groundwater Resources of India, 2023 report.

In municipalities around the Ganga, water sourced from the river is in high demand, especially during summer, often outstripping supply and leading to daytime water supply stoppages. Residents have resorted to installing pumps at home to address the shortfall.

Environmental expert Dr Pravat Kumar Shit explains that climate change is causing significant fluctuations in river and groundwater levels. Excessive water extraction by upstream states is exacerbating the drying of the Ganges and its tributaries. The disruption of natural groundwater replenishment through rainwater in small rivers and water bodies is also a growing concern.

Dr Shit emphasizes the necessity of rainwater harvesting, groundwater regulation, water body preservation and minimizing water wastage as crucial survival strategies. Historically, wetlands enriched groundwater by capturing rainwater, but current extraction rates far exceed replenishment.

In a positive turn, Trinamul Congress MP from Ghatal, Deepak Adhikari (Dev) has launched an initiative to combat environmental degradation by pledging to plant trees based on the number of votes he received in seven Assembly areas. Orders for saplings have been placed with ten nurseries, and approximately 2,00,000 saplings will be planted in the first phase. Species such as Sal, Teak, Mango, Jackfruit, and Blackberry will be planted in various locations in Ghatal, with Dev personally starting the planting process as soon as the monsoon season begins.

This initiative by Dev offers a glimmer of hope and represents a tangible step towards addressing environmental issues at the local level. However, the broader lack of focus on environmental concerns in the recent elections underscores the need for a more integrated and sustained approach to environmental policy and action.
Grappling to revive the partys lost glory after the dismal results in the Lok Sabha elections in Uttar Pradesh, the ruling BJP has set up a 60-member task force to determine the reasons for the electoral loss.

The BJP had won just 33 seats, and its alliance secured only 3 seats in the Lok Sabha polls, while the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Congress together won 43 seats.

With by-elections in 9 assembly seats expected to be announced soon, the BJP is trying to identify the main reasons for the defeat and find ways to bring OBCs and Dalits back into the party fold.

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A senior BJP leader said here on Thursday that the party has decided to investigate the reasons behind the low voting in favour of the BJP. For this purpose, a task force of party leaders will be formed.

The election results in UP have created panic among the local and top leadership of the BJP. This time, around nine per cent fewer votes were received compared to the last election.

He said around 60 party leaders have also been selected for this task. These leaders will investigate the reasons for the defeat in every assembly constituency of all Lok Sabha constituencies. The members of the task force will go from village to village to determine which party has made inroads into the OBC and Dalit communities, who are considered the core voters of the BJP, the leader added.

Apart from the officials of the organisation, local public representatives will also be a part of this task force.

The agenda of the task force will also include identifying those responsible for alienating non-Yadav OBCs and non-Jatav Dalits from the BJP. Besides, the party leaders involved in graffiti will also be traced. Despite the BJP forming the government at the Centre for the third time in a row, all the leaders are feeling the pain of losing UP, the strongest political ground for the party.

Sources said preliminary discussions have already been held between the government and the organisation regarding the BJPs defeat in UP.

The top leaders of the state organisation have already met Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and discussed this issue. Following this meeting, it was decided to form a special task force to find out the reasons for the defeat.

Meanwhile, as per the Lok Sabha results, out of the total 403 assembly segments, which covered 80 Lok Sabha seats, the ruling NDA was ahead in 177 assembly segments, while the INDI alliance was ahead in 221 assembly segments.

The 9 Lok Sabha seats where NDA candidates won all 5 assembly segments in each Lok Sabha constituency were Varanasi, Kushinagar, Gorakhpur, Agra, Mathura, Hathras, Bulandshahr, Gautam Buddha Nagar, and Baghpat.

On the other hand, the INDI alliance had won all the assembly segments in 14 Lok Sabha seats. They are Ambedkarnagar, Barabanki, Jaunpur, Robertsganj, Ghazipur, Ghosi, Azamgarh, Lalganj, Amethi, Rae Bareli, Kaushambi, Kannauj, Mainpuri, and Moradabad.

Chandrashekhar Azad of the Azad Samaj Party had won all five assembly segments of the Nagina Lok Sabha seat. The BSP did not achieve success in any assembly segment.
Stating that Yamuna River water sharing between the states is a complex and sensitive issue and that they dont have the expertise to adjudicate it, the Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Upper Yamuna River Board (UYRB) to decide on the Delhi governments demand for 150 cusecs of additional water to meet an acute water shortage in the wake of an unprecedented heatwave.

Describing it as a complex and sensitive issue and the court being bereft of expertise to deal with the river water sharing disputes, a vacation bench of Justice Prashant Kumar Mishra and Justice Prasanna Bhalachandra Varale directed the Upper Yamuna River Board directed the UYRB to convene a meeting tomorrow (Friday  June 14) with all parties and take a decision expeditiously on the matter.

The issue concerning the sharing of Yamuna water between states is a complex and sensitive issue, and this Court does not have the expertise, even on an emergent basis, the court said in its order.

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The order further said that the issue should be left to be considered by the body constituted with the agreement of parties in the Memorandum of Understanding in 1994.

Disposing of the plea by the Delhi government for additional water, the order further said that if required, the board can convene on a day-to-day basis.

The top courts direction came as senior advocate Shyam Divan appearing for Haryana said that the matters relating to water sharing can be solved by the expert bodies which in the instant case is Upper Yamuna River Board and referred to earlier top court judgments to buttress his point.

The Upper Yamuna River Board was set-up in pursuance to a 1994 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the sharing of Yamuna River water between Delhi, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh.

Asking the Upper Yamuna River Board to deal with the issue of Delhi seeking 150 cusecs of additional water, the vacation bench referred to the previous judgment of the top court on the issue.

The three judgments/order cited by the vacation bench in its order today, where matters were referred to the expert bodies to deal with included 2018 and 2021 judgments/orders relating to Yamuna River water sharing between Delhi, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh. The third judgment related to Karnataka and Tamil Nadu on the sharing of the Cauvery River water.

In the hearing today, the court warned that it will initiate contempt proceedings against an officer of Himachal Pradesh belonging to its Waster Department for the misleading statement that the Hill State had 137 cusecs of surplus water. The court said that its June 6 order was based on that statement by the Himachal Pradesh officer who was present in the court that day. However, the matter was put to rest after the Advocate General of State tendered an apology and withdrew the statement.
Actor Fardeen Khan recently took to social media to commemorate the 20th anniversary of his film Dev, reminiscing about his experiences on set and the people who made the journey special.

Directed by the acclaimed Govind Nihalani, Dev is a significant film in Fardeens career, also starring Amitabh Bachchan and Kareena Kapoor Khan. To mark the occasion, Fardeen shared a heartfelt video montage of moments from the film, accompanied by a touching note of gratitude.

In his message, Fardeen revealed that it was Kareena Kapoor who recommended him for his role in Dev. It was my third film with Kareena, and I will always be grateful to her for suggesting me. Being cast by Govind Nihalani in a project alongside legends like Amitabh Bachchan and Om Puri was an enormous honor, he wrote. Fardeen praised Govindji for his meticulous direction and compelling storytelling, highlighting the directors revered status in the industry.

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Reflecting on his time working with Amitabh Bachchan, Fardeen shared, This role provided me with the rare chance to be part of a film that was both relevant and meaningful. The greatest highlight for me was sharing the screen with Amitji, whom I have idolized for years. His illustrious career has profoundly influenced Indian cinema and left an indelible mark on me and countless others. Working with him was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity and one of the highlights of my career.

Fardeen also mentioned his other collaborations with Kareena in films like Fida and Khushi, noting the strong professional bond they shared over the years.

After a 14-year hiatus, Fardeen Khan has returned to the screen with Sanjay Leela Bhansalis web series Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar, now streaming on Netflix. The series is set in the 1940s, against the backdrop of Indias struggle for independence, and delves into the lives of courtesans and their patrons in the culturally rich district of Heera Mandi. Fardeens performance in the series has been met with critical acclaim, marking a triumphant return to the industry.

Fardeens nostalgic post and heartfelt acknowledgments highlight the enduring bonds formed in the film industry and celebrate the collaborative spirit that drives cinematic success. As Dev turns 20, fans and colleagues alike join Fardeen in honoring a film that has left a lasting legacy.
In the midst of the controversy over actress-turned-politician Kangana Ranauts alleged altercation with a Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) constable at Chandigarh airport, filmmaker Karan Johar has voiced his disapproval of violence. Johar addressed the issue at the trailer launch of his new film Kill on Wednesday.

When a reporter from Mumbai asked Karan Johar about the incident with Kangana, he succinctly stated, I do not support or condone any form of violence, verbal or physical. His stance was clear, reflecting a zero-tolerance policy towards any kind of aggression.

The incident, which has sparked widespread discussion, involved Ranaut reportedly being slapped by a female CISF constable on June 6. This confrontation occurred as Ranaut was preparing to board a flight to Delhi for a National Democratic Alliance (NDA) meeting. Following the incident, an FIR was lodged against the constable under IPC sections 321 and 341, but no arrest has been made.

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Veteran actors Anupam Kher and Shabana Azmi have also weighed in on the situation. Azmi, through a post on social media platform X, expressed her concern, stating, I have no love lost for Kangana Ranaut. But I cant join in celebrating the slap. If security personnel start taking the law into their hands, none of us can be safe. Her comment underscores the potential dangers of security forces acting beyond their legal bounds.

Anupam Kher, speaking to paparazzi, voiced his support for Kangana. He remarked, I deeply regret the incident. The way a woman slapped another woman by taking advantage of her position is wrong. This should be legally investigated. She may have grievances, but it shouldnt be done by misusing power.

Hours after the altercation, Ranaut took to Instagram to share her account of the event, expressing her alarm over what she described as rising terrorism and extremism in Punjab. In her video, she said, I am safe, but the incident at Chandigarh airport was alarming. A security staff member hit me and started abusing me. When I asked why, she said she supported the farmers protest.

The constable involved reportedly stated that her mother had been part of the farmers protest against now-repealed farm laws. A video circulating on social media showed her explaining her actions, saying, Kangana made a statement about women farmers sitting at the protest for Rs 100 each. My mother was there, and I could not tolerate her insult.

As the incident continues to unfold, it highlights the ongoing tensions and the deep-seated issues related to the farmers protests and their aftermath, bringing into focus the challenges of managing such conflicts without resorting to violence.
Kartik Aaryan has been making waves for his upcoming movie, Chandu Champion, owing to his striking physical transformation and the films trailer. Recently, Kartik opened up about his financial struggles and a life marked by mounting debts before he achieved stardom.

In Raj Shamanis podcast, the Shehzada actor revealed that he had always battled with money issues. Growing up in Gwalior, he recalled how his family faced significant debts, saying, We were in debt because my parents had taken debts for their careers. It wasnt like we were poor, but we werent rich. We were EMI people. In this sort of situation, every expense is calculated. For the longest time, we had more debt than income.

Even after moving to Mumbai, Aaryan had to borrow money from friends during college. Talking about that time, the Pyaar Ka Punchnama actor revealed that loans were a common part of his life, and borrowing was a regular practice. When he moved to Mumbai, Aaryan knew he had to earn; he was tired of a life fueled by borrowing.

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However, even after starring in Luv Ranjans Pyaar Ka Punchnama, the actors struggles didnt end. For his role in the film, he earned only 70,000 rupees and had to pay 7,000 in taxes. In his podcast with Ranveer Allahbadia, Kartik revealed that part of his life, around the age of 22, was very scary when it came to money. I was in a very scary situation in my life around that time. I was an actor and I had a movie releasing but I had no other films. Even after the film was a hit, I had no other film offers, and I had no money.

Despite the financial success of Punchnama, Kartik Aaryan didnt receive many film offers. Whatever he received was restricted to supporting roles. Believing in his instinct, Aaryan didnt give in to whatever little came his way, even though he knew he could make money from those roles. This decision proved to be favorable for the actor, as his belief paid off after the success of his film, Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety.

Since his breakthrough with the 2018 film, Kartik Aaryan went on to star in films like Luka Chuppi, Love Aaj Kal, Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, and Satyaprem Ki Katha, among others. The actor is now preparing for the release of his film, Chandu Champion, directed by Kabir Khan and backed by Sajid Nadiadwala. Kartik is also filming for the third installment of the Bhool Bhulaiyaa films, where he will star alongside Vidya Balan and Triptii Dimri.

Kartik Aaryans upcoming release, Chandu Champion, is based on the life of Murlikant Petkar, who won an individual gold medal in the 1972 Summer Paralympics in Heidelberg, Germany.
The BJP is set to retain the post of Speaker for the 18th Lok Sabha, with a BJP MP expected to be elected for the role, sources said.

Dismissing media reports suggesting that BJPs allies had demanded the Lok Sabha Speakers post, a senior party leader said that the matter would be first considered internally before discussing it with NDA allies to reach a consensus.

In the Modi governments first term, Sumitra Mahajan, a BJP MP from Indore, Madhya Pradesh, served as Lok Sabha Speaker, while in the second term, Om Birla, a BJP MP from Kota, Rajasthan, held the position.

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Although the BJP does not hold a majority as it did in 2014 and 2019, speculation was rife that the TDP and a JD(U) MP were vying for the Speakers post.

Sources indicate that the name of the new Lok Sabha Speaker will be deliberated upon after Prime Minister Narendra Modi returns from Italy.

If any suggestions or demands regarding the position arise from allies, the BJP will consider a new formula.

During the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha, starting on June 24, the BJP will reach out to opposition parties to ensure the Speaker is elected unanimously. If the opposition agrees to the governments proposal, an election will not be necessary.

However, if the opposition fields its candidate, a vote for the new Speaker might take place on June 26, with the new Speaker assuming office on the same day.

On Wednesday, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju posted on X, First Session of 18th Lok Sabha is being summoned from 24.6.24 to 3.7.24 for oath/affirmation of newly elected Members, Election of Speaker, Presidents Address and discussion thereon. 264th Session of Rajya Sabha will commence on 27.6.24 and conclude on 3.7.24.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday reviewed the security situation in Jammu and Kashmir with National Security Advisor (NSA) Ajit Doval and other senior officials, government of India sources said.

The prime minister was given a full overview of the security-related situation in Jammu and Kashmir.

He was also apprised of the counter-terror efforts being undertaken.

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During the meeting, Mr. Modi emphasised the importance of deploying the full spectrum of Indias counter-terror capabilities.

He also spoke to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and discussed the deployment of security forces and counter-terror operations.

The prime minister told Jammu & Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to take stock of the situation and was briefed on the efforts being undertaken by the local administration.

The recent encounter follows a series of terror attacks in the Jammu and Kashmir region over the past few days.

The Jammu and Kashmir region has been witnessing a surge in violence with three significant attacks at Reasi, Kathua, and Doda.

The Reasi was the first incident to be reported on 9 June, when terrorists targeted a bus, causing it to plunge into a gorge, resulting in the deaths of at least nine pilgrims and injuring 42 others.

The terrorist incidents have come after the relative peace of several months which saw tourist arrivals going up, followed by good turnout in the recent Lok Sabha elections.
India on Thursday rejected unwarranted references to the Union territory of Jammu and Kashmir in the joint statement issued by China and Pakistan during Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharifs recent visit to Beijing.

We have noted unwarranted references to the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir in the joint statement between China and Pakistan of 07 June 2024. We categorically reject such references. Our position on the issue is consistent and well known to the concerned parties. The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Ladakh have been, are and will always remain integral and inalienable parts of India. No other country has the locus standi to comment on the same, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.

Noting that the same statement also mentions activities and projects under the so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), some of which are in Indias sovereign territory under forcible and illegal occupation by Pakistan, the spokesperson said, We resolutely oppose and reject any moves by other countries to reinforce or legitimise Pakistans illegal occupation of these territories, impinging on Indias sovereignty and territorial integrity.

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The joint statement said China and Pakistan oppose any unilateral action for the resolution of all outstanding issues in South Asia after Mr Sharif briefed the Chinese leadership on the situation in Kashmir.
India is targeting to increase its defence exports to over Rs 50,000 crore in the next five years, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Thursday.

Mr Singh was taking charge of his ministry at the South Block here after his reinduction into the Union Cabinet as defence minister. He was received by the new Minister of State for Defence, Mr Sanjay Seth, and senior officials of the ministry.

He said India has already exported defence equipment worth Rs 21000 crores, which is a historic achievement for the country.

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He said he had honestly fulfilled his responsibility as the countrys defence minister during the last five years and would continue to do so. Our priorities will remain the same: safeguarding the country and ensuring the welfare of our jawans.

Mr Singh said the Modi Government is committed to building a strong and Atmanirbhar Bharat. The morale of our forces has always been very high and we will ensure it continues to remain high. Our forces have displayed an extraordinary level of bravery whenever an occasion has arisen. Any amount of appreciation of the armed forces, be it the Indian Army, Indian Navy or the Indian Air Force, is not sufficient, he added.

Soon after taking charge, Mr Singh held a review meeting with the services chiefs and senior ministry officials on the 100-day action plan of the Modi government in the area of defence. Chief of Defence Staff, Gen Anil Chauhan, Chief of Army Staff, Gen Manoj Pande, Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari and Indian Navy chief, Admiral Dinesh Tripathi were among those who attended the meeting.

The meeting focused on the welfare of veterans, wherein major issues pertaining to the Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare were discussed. He instructed the officers to re-dedicate themselves to fulfil the agenda laid out in the 100-day action plan.

With a view to enhancing defence preparedness and continued thrust on Atmanirbharta in Defence, Mr Singh stated that he would be conducting regular review meetings to fast-track the progress of the flagship schemes and the initiatives of the ministry.

Emphasising the growing salience of the Indian Ocean Region in the defence calculus, the defence minister decided that his first visit would be to the Eastern Naval Command, Visakhapatnam, wherein he would be interacting with the officers and sailors.
The Kerala High Court on Thursday directed the state police to proceed against retired DGP Siby Mathews for allegedly disclosing the identity of the survivor in the 1996 Sooryanelli rape case through his book Nirbhayam: Oru IPS Officerude Anubhavakurippukal.

A single bench of Justice A Badharudeen said that registration of FIR would be necessary in the case as the details revealed in the book were sufficient to identify the victim which is punishable under Section 228A of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which prohibits publishing information that could reveal the identity of a rape victim.

Even though the name of the victim was not specifically disclosed, the details of the parents of the victim, the place where the victim and parents resided, the school where the victim studied, were disclosed in detail. This disclosure prima facie shows commission of offence punishable under Section 228A of the IPC, the court said.

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The Court directed the Station House Officer, Mannanthala to conduct a preliminary investigation to determine whether Siby Mathews has disclosed the details of the identity of the rape victim in the Sooryanelli case in his book Nirbhayam: Oru IPS Officerude Anubhavakurippukal, potentially committing a cognizable offence warranting registration of FIR.

A retired police officer KK Joshwa approached the High Court seeking action against Siby Mathews after Thiruvananthapuram City Police Commissioner refused to act on his complaint.

Justice A Badharudeen recently quashed the order issued by the police commissioner, who said that there was no need to register a crime against Siby Mathews.

On reading the preliminary enquiry final report and the legal opinion, I have no hesitation to say that the finding in the final report is an attempt to save the former higher police official from the clutches of prosecution. As per the preliminary enquiry final report and the legal opinion given by the Director General of Prosecution, both of them found that the details were sufficient enough to identify the girl as peedippikkapetta penkutti (victim).

When analysing the Malayalam term peedippikkapetta penkutti the same means a victim of sexual assault or molestation or rape. So the word would carry the offences dealt in Section 228A of IPC. Apart from referring the girl as peedippikkapetta penkutti, her identity as a rape victim is discernible from the book itself otherwise, the court said.

The petitioner KK Joshwa had lodged complaints with the Mannanthala Police Station and the District Police Chief in Thiruvananthapuram, urging them to register FIR against Siby Mathews who had disclosed identifiable information about the victim of the 1996 Sooryanelli rape case in his memoir Nirbhayam:. Oru IPS Officerude Anubhavakurippukal.

Dissatisfied with the polices inaction, he approached the High Court, which then directed the authorities to consider his complaints.

However, the Commissioner of Police responded that no further action would be taken, prompting the petitioner to approach the High Court again seeking directions to the Police to register FIR.
Alleging a scam in the 2024 NEET-UG exam, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday demanded a Supreme Court-monitored investigation into the matter.

He said the Narendra Modi-led NDA Government cannot shirk its accountability in the matter.

In a post on X, the Congress chief said, Grace marks was not the only problem in the NEET exam. There was rigging, papers leaked, and corruption. The future of 24 lakh students appearing for the NEET exam is at stake due to the Modi government.

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He said, Modi government cannot shirk its accountability by placing the responsibility of its actions on the shoulders of NTA (National Testing Agency). The Congress party demands an impartial investigation under the supervision of the Supreme Court into the entire NEET scam.

After investigation, the culprits should be given strictest punishment and lakhs of students should be compensated and their years should be saved from getting wasted. In the last 10 years, the Modi government has ruined the future of crores of youth due to paper leaks and rigging, he said.

Echoing similar sentiments at a press conference here, Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi said, The Congress party believes that the BJP governments attitude towards the demand for an inquiry into the NEET exam is irresponsible and insensitive. We demand a Supreme Court-monitored investigation into the entire scandal because it has affected around 24 lakh students.

We believe that no inquiry can be a just and fair and comprehensive if it is headed by the NTA themselves, he contended.

Drawing the governments attention towards the agony of the students, Gogoi said, Prime Minister Narendra Modi should not forget the mental anxiety of these potential undergraduate. Instead of paying attention to the NEET scam, he is busy attending oath-taking ceremonies and going on foreign trips.

The INDIA alliance will take up the cause of these students because that is our responsibility. Now, the INDIA alliance has the sufficient strength to bring the government to its knees and make them accountable to the students, he added.

Last week, Subodh Kumar Singh, Director General, National testing Agency (NTA) said the integrity of the exam was not compromised.
In a fresh attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Jairam Ramesh on Thursday alleged that Modi is heading to Italy to attend the G7 Summit to salvage his diminished international image.

Taking a swipe at Modi, the veteran Congress leader recalled that former prime minister Manmohan Singh had emerged as the voice of the Global South through substance, not through hollow self-boasts.

Jairam Rameshs comments came in the wake of the prime ministers scheduled visit to Italy on Thursday to attend the three-day G7 summit.

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In a post on X, the Congress general secretary in charge of Communications wrote, The G7 Summit of the heads of state of USA, Canada, Germany, France, Italy, UK and Japan has been taking place since the late 1970s. Between 1997 and 2014, Russia was also a member. Since 2003, India, China, Brazil, Mexico, and South Africa have also been invited to G7 Summits.

He said, The most famous of the G7 Summits from Indias point of view was in June 2007 in Heiligendamm, Germany. It was here that the famous Singh-Merkel formula for ensuring equity in global climate change negotiations was first presented to the world. It is still talked about. Dr Manmohan Singh and German Chancellor Angela Merkel created history. Dr Manmohan Singh had emerged as the voice of the Global South through substance and not through hollow self-boasts.

Of course, it is too much to expect from our one-third Pradhan Mantri (Narendra Modi) to know or acknowledge this history as he flies to Italy today to salvage his diminished international image at this years Summit, he added.

Notably, Modis visit to Italy will be his maiden official trip abroad after taking over as the prime minister of India for a third consecutive term.

The G7 Summit is scheduled to be held from 13th June to 15th June in Italys Apulia.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will travel to Italy on Thursday to take part in the G7 Summit in his first foreign trip after taking charge as PM for the third consecutive term.

Modi has been invited to attend the G7 Summit, along with leaders of 11 more non-member countries.

The G7 countries are  Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, the UK, and the US.

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During the visit, Modi will hold a bilateral meeting with his Italian counterpart Georgia Meloni, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra said at a press briefing on Wednesday.

While Kwatra didnt confirm whether there were more meetings scheduled with other world leaders, all eyes will be on a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who is also likely to be present during the summit.

Moreover, a meeting with US President Joe Biden is also on the cards.

US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One that Biden expects to see PM Modi in Italy.

He (Biden) expects to see Prime Minister Modi here. Its up to the Indians to formally confirm his attendance, but our expectation is that the two of them will have the opportunity to encounter one another, he said.

The nature of that encounter is still fluid because so much of the schedule is fluid, Sullivan added.

The American NSA also told reporters that Biden called Modi when they were in Paris to congratulate on his election victory and swearing-in as PM.
Former chief minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday hit out at the Jammu and Kashmir administration for arresting and harassing people after four terrorist attacks in quick succession in Jammu region.

The government should keep the local population on its side if it wants to end militancy, he emphasized.

Omar was commenting on a post by the NC on X that claimed that ordinary people were being harassed, detained and arrested in the Chenab valley and Pir Panjal region following a series of terrorist attacks in the past four days.

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He wrote on X; If the only tool you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail. This incompetent J&K administration only knows how to arrest, detain & harass people. They repeatedly make the same mistakes & still hope for a different outcome. To end militancy you need the local population on your side, not alienated & angry.

The NC wrote, JKNC has always stood for peace and against extremist forces, having lost thousands of its workers to terror and deeply understanding their pain. However, the reports from Chenab and Pir Panjal, where ordinary people are being harassed, detained, and arrested, are profoundly distressing. This must be halted immediately.

Meanwhile, Senior Superintendent of Police, Reasi district, Mohita Sharma said 50 people have been detained for questioning in the incident of terror attack at a pilgrims bus on 9 June in which nine persons were killed and 41 injured.

Several suspects and others have also been detained in the Doda and Kishtwar districts following terrorist attacks at a joint operational base of the Army and police and also at a camp of the special operations group (SOG) in Doda.

The Police in Doda have released sketches of four terrorists reportedly roaming in the upper reaches of Bhaderwah, Thathri, and Gandoh. Police have announced a cash reward of Rs 5 lakhs for providing credible information on each militant.

J&K Police has appealed to the general public to provide information about the presence or movement of these terrorists on the helpline phone numbers.

A CRPF bus enroute Kashmir, caught fire at Battery Chashma on the Jammu-Srinagar highway due to short-circuiting in the engine bay. Ramban police responded to the situation and swung into action by extinguishing the fire, thereby preventing any casualty.

Senior superintendent of police (Railways) Shailender Singh reviewed the security arrangements at the railway station here in view of the upcoming Amarnath pilgrimage that begins on 29 June.

It was decided to establish a Joint Police control Room at the Railway station. The SSP stressed on exchange of information between various security agencies to thwart any terror incident and prevent any act of camouflaging by the anti-national elements.
Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister-designate Pema Khandu will take oath as the CM of the state for the third consecutive term on Thursday.

Preparations are underway for the swearing-in ceremony to be held at the DK State Convention Centre in Itanagar at around 11.00 am.

Tight security arrangements have been made for the event, which will be attended by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Union Ministers JP Nadda and Kiren Rijiju, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, and others.

Ahead of the event, Assam Minister Ashok Singhal said there is great enthusiasm among the people as the BJP is forming the government once again in the state.

People are very excited. There is enthusiasm among everyone in the state. Once again, the BJP is forming a government in Arunachal under the leadership of Pema Khandu. He will take oath at 11 am today. The Chief Ministers of Assam, Tripura, and Sikkim will be there. Our responsibility is increasing because people are trusting us more, Singhal said.

Khandu was re-elected as leader of the BJP Legislature Party in Arunachal Pradesh on Wednesday, paving the way for him to be sworn in as the Chief Minister for the third straight term. He became CM for the first time in 2016.

Following this, Arunachal Pradesh Governor Lieutenant General KT Parnaik (retd.) invited Khandu to form the government.

Earlier, Amit Shah and JP Nadda arrived in Itanagar on Wednesday night to attend the swearing-in ceremony. They were received by party workers at the Itanagar airport with great enthusiasm.

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The BJP Arunachal Pradesh posted on X showing the enthusiasm and excitement of party workers at the Itanagar airport ahead of Amit Shahs arrival.

The josh of karyakartas and wave of excitement filled Donyi Polo Airport, Itanagar, as Home Minister Amit Shah and Health & Family Welfare Minister cum National President JP Nadda arrived for their maiden visit to the state post the historic victory, it said.

On Wednesday, Pema Khandu, MLA along with Union Minister Kiren Rijiju, Chowna Mein, MLA and Tapir Gao, MP (Lok Sabha), BJP party central observers Ravi Shankar Prasad, Trun Chugh, Arunachal Pradesh State Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) President, Biyuram Wahge, called on the Governor of Arunachal Pradesh Lieutenant General KT Parnaik (retd.) at Raj Bhavan, Itanagar.

Pema Khandu briefed the Governor about the meeting held today of 46 elected members of the Arunachal Pradesh State Legislative Assembly from Bharatiya Janata Party in the recently concluded 8th Legislative Assembly election of Arunachal Pradesh.

He informed the Governor that the 46 members of the 8th Arunachal Pradesh State Legislative Assembly had unanimously elected him as their leader in the 8th Legislative Assembly of the State and staked his claim to form the government.

Under the provisions of Article 164 (1) of the Constitution of India, the Governor invited Khandu, MLA to form the Government and take oath as the Chief Minister on June 13 at 11 am at Dorjee Khandu State Convention Centre, Itanagar.

The Governor requested Khandu to advise and inform him about the names of others to be appointed as members of his Council of Ministers.

The BJP won 46 seats in the 60-member Arunachal Pradesh assembly in the elections held simultaneously with the Lok Sabha election. Ten seats were already won by the BJP unopposed before the polls.
Governor of Rajasthan Kalraj Mishra on Thursday convened the second session of the 16th Legislative Assembly Session on July 3 through official notification to the assembly speaker.

The first short session of the Chief Minister Bhajanlal Government was held on January 18 where all newly-elected MLAs took oath of office and a vote on account was passed for four months.

In the upcoming session, the BJP Government will present a full budget for fiscal year 2014-25, and present certain important bills.

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Stakeholders and influential figures from industry discussed the most urgent environmental issues and addressed them with a particular focus on energy efficiency and sustainable resource management during a conclave held recently.

Georg Enzweiler, Minister and Deputy Chief of Mission at the German Embassy, emphasised the critical importance of international cooperation in combating climate change during his address at the Wilo Sustainability Conclave.

Enzweiler called for a concerted global effort to tackle the environmental challenges man faces today.

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The Wilo Sustainability Conclave, a notable event organised by the German Engineering Federation (VDMA) in collaboration with Wilo Mather and Platt Pumps, took place in Pune. This gathering brought together influential figures from industry, government, and academia to discuss and address some of the most urgent environmental issues today, with a particular focus on energy efficiency and sustainable resource management.

Mr Deepak Mhaisekar, IAS, former Divisional Commissioner of the Maharashtra Government, shared his insights on the crucial role of policy in driving sustainability. His perspectives underscored the importance of governmental support and regulatory frameworks in fostering sustainable practices and technologies.

A highlight of the conclave was the presentation by Mr Georg Weber, Chief Technology Officer at WILO SE. Weber elaborated on Wilos innovative initiatives aimed at reducing environmental impact, showcasing the companys leadership and commitment to sustainability. His presentation demonstrated how Wilo is at the forefront of developing cutting-edge technologies and solutions that contribute to environmental conservation and efficiency.

The Wilo Sustainability Conclave 2024 successfully underscored the urgent need for responsible resource management and innovative solutions to environmental challenges. It reinforced the commitment of industry leaders to a sustainable future, setting a strong precedent for future collaborations and initiatives. The event not only highlighted the pressing issues but also inspired actionable strategies and partnerships aimed at fostering a more sustainable and resilient global environment.
The political landscape in Odisha has undergone a seismic shift, with the election result ending Naveen Patnaiks unbroken 24-year tenure as chief minister. This electoral upheaval, which saw the BJP wrest control of both the assembly and a majority of Odishas Lok Sabha seats, is a remarkable turn of events in the states political narrative. Mr Patnaiks political journey has been characterised by his ability to remain equidistant from the two national parties, the Congress and the BJP.

This balancing act allowed him to navigate the complexities of state and national politics effectively. His welfare schemes and a steady administrative hand earned him considerable popularity, enabling him to win election after election. However, the recent elections revealed cracks in this once unassailable fortress. One of the critical factors that contributed to Mr Patnaiks downfall was increasing reliance on his aide, V.K. Pandian, a former bureaucrat from Tamil Nadu. Mr Pandians growing influence within the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) became a focal point for the BJPs campaign. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other BJP leaders capitalised on this by portraying Mr Patnaik as a leader who had become captive of an outsider.

This narrative struck a chord with voters, who began to question the extent of Mr Pandians control and the implications for the states governance. The BJPs campaign strategy was relentless and multifaceted. Mr Modi, known for his combative style, led a vigorous campaign across Odisha, holding numerous rallies and leveraging the BJPs organisational strength. In contrast, Mr Patnaiks campaign was relatively subdued, and his limited public appearances did little to counter the BJPs narrative. Mr Modis allusions to Mr Patnaiks alleged health issues further compounded the problem, casting doubt on the BJD leaders ability to lead effectively. Moreover, the BJPs strategy involved a sharp critique of Mr Patnaiks role, highlighting alleged inefficiencies and the need for change.

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They skillfully wove a narrative that combined criticism of Mr Patnaiks reliance on Mr Pandian with broader themes of development and governance, resonating with a populace eager for new leadership. Mr Patnaiks failure to adequately address the succession question also played a role in his defeat. With no clear successor within the BJD, voters were left in a state of uncertainty. In retrospect, Mr Patnaiks defeat was not just a result of external pressures but also a series of strategic missteps. His underestimation of the BJPs organisational prowess and the growing discontent among the electorate regarding his reliance on Mr Pandian were significant factors. Additionally, his failure to communicate a compelling vision for the future or to engage more directly with the electorate allowed the BJP to dominate the narrative. But the BJP has big boots to fill, and the party has acknowledged this by choosing a chief minister and two deputy chief ministers, unusual for a state the size of Odisha. The days ahead will tell us if this arrangement provides better administration or just confusion.
Citizens and their families are at the centre of society or the nation. Economic development of a nation is for the well-being of citizens. Economic development is primarily a question of getting more work done. To work is the common and the most natural thing in the world. Every eligible youth of the country has the right to seek gainful employment. A large section of the population, say elders and children, depend on young family members. India has to create ample employment opportunities over the next decade to reap the benefit of demographic dividend.

India has a large workforce. About 64 per cent of the population was in the working age group 15-59 years during 2021 which is expected to drop to 36 per cent in 2036. Each year about 12 million persons are added to the working group population. This work force has varied knowledge, experience and skill sets. Creation of large numbers of good-quality jobs with decent earnings is the basis of long-term economic development. But some experts are of the opinion that India has witnessed jobless growth. This is also reflected in the current data on unemployment. The recent India Employment Report 2024 of ILO says the share of unemployed youth was almost 83 per cent in total unemployed population of 2022 with the share of educated youth at 65.7 per cent. According to ILO, in 2022, 18 per cent youth with higher education remained jobless whereas 29 per cent graduates did not have jobs. One among every three young persons is not in employment, education or training. This is after all an uneconomic situation for the nation. Underemployment or underutilisation of the workforce is another crucial aspect to be reckoned with. The rate of underemployment at 16.8 per cent in 2022 was on the higher side.

Employment in India is predominantly, about 90 per cent, in low-income generating agriculture, informal sector or in self-employment. These sectors do not provide social security provisions. It is also revealed that real per capita wage in India has not increased substantially, commensurate with the growth of the economy over the years. Job conditions in most workplaces are also not suitable. Gig workers are tightly controlled by algorithmic management. A much faster growth in the manufacturing sector is necessary to create more employment opportunities for a young and increasingly educated population which has high expectations and aspirations. Growth in the manufacturing sector has a multiplier effect and creates jobs in other sectors such as services and ancillary industries. The average earnings of workers in the formal manufacturing sector are higher than in agriculture and the unorganised sector.

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There is also a good prospect of individual growth. Rapid growth in the manufacturing sector will reduce dependence on agriculture. The share of the manufacturing sector in Indias GDP is a major concern for the economy. It has remained stagnant at around 15-16 per cent since the 1980s. The National Manufacturing Policy (NMP) of 2011 announced by the Government of India targeted to achieve an increase of this share to 25 per cent by 2022. It was considered that the manufacturing sector has the potential to contribute more to the national economy. The policy also aimed at generating 100 million jobs by 2022. To achieve these targets, an average annual growth rate of 12-14 per cent in the manufacturing sector over the next few years was envisaged. But the target remains unachieved. The new target has been set for 2025. The manufacturing sector employs about 15 per cent of the workforce. But this has remained stagnant. Employment increased at 1.7 per cent per year during 2000-2019. Capital intensive large manufacturing units increase production and productivity with the help of advanced technology, reducing scope of employment.

It also implies economic growth is associated with technological progress and productivity gain rather than with employment generation. For the manufacturing sector to grow at 12-14 per cent p.a. is a daunting task. It needs an exquisite action plan and policies, and efficient implementation of the same. The NMP 2011 emphasised on employment-intensive industries like garments and textiles, food processing, gems and jewellery, leather and footwear. A special focus was also given to capital goods industries and R&D activities. Emphasis was also given on industries with strategic significance like defence, IT, telecommunications and solar energy. The MSME sector had also attracted attention of the policy. One important criteria of performance of the Indian manufacturing sector is the low rate of return on investment which is often less than the cost of capital.

It is estimated that 700 out of the top 1,000 industrial establishments experience returns less than the cost of capital. So it is a challenge to bring in new capital in these industries. Only chemical and automobile industries give returns of 13.4 and 13.7 per cent respectively. The MSME sector plays a crucial role in overall economic development and employment generation. A little over 60 million MSME units produce about 40 per cent of the manufacturing sector output and contribute 45 per cent of exports. Its share in GDP is about 27 per cent. This sector provides employment to about 110 million people, the most after agriculture. So the obvious choice of the economy would be to boost MSMEs. Out of a total 60 million MSMEs, about 31 per cent of enterprises are engaged in manufacturing. MSMEs with low investment create mass employment.

But the major challenge in this sector is finance and low return. Most of the units, about 85 per cent, are owned by individual entrepreneurs who cannot provide adequate resources. Productivity is low. Average fixed assets held by each individual-owned enterprise are Rs 0.80 lakh. Annual revenue generated is only Rs 0.62 lakh and outstanding loan per enterprise stands at Rs 0.27 lakh. Small here is not beautiful. These small enterprises wish to grow and do better but often find it difficult. A majority report stagnation. An estimate also shows that about 60-80 per cent individual endeavours fail to achieve success in the MSME sector. Institutional support becomes necessary to make them a success. There must also be additional markets for additional output produced. Contrarily, an additional market is created only when employment increases, as the purchasing power of people increases. The market, if allowed to function freely, will try to maximise profit. Market does not recognise societal problems like unemployment, poverty and inequality.

Given the correct resources, capital investment and technology, the market will go on producing profits. Big players have the natural advantage as they grab most of the resources. The question is in such a market how can a small player stand. Institutional governance is necessary to manipulate the market to move in a certain direction so as to provide a level playing field to all participants in the market. Such direction is necessary in countries like India where there exists large-scale poverty, unemployment and inequality. Policy action on many fronts by central as well as state governments is required to activate directional changes in market and economic activities. It will not come by following business as usual. A special impetus is necessary. A National Plan should provide a detailed outline of key steps needed in each area for sustainable and inclusive growth. Regional imbalances in development are also to be considered for its correction. Earlier, this job was performed by the Planning Commission.

Presence of such an institution is necessary now. A comprehensive strategic planning for a short to mid-term is needed. National, regional and sectoral growth targets, and plans and programmes to achieve targets, must be prepared after wide consultation with all the stakeholders. Ultimately the benefits of growth must reach every section of society, every region, every nook and corner of the country. The Indian economy is now majorly driven by the service sector with a share of over 50 per cent of GDP and 25-30 per cent of workforce. But if the manufacturing sector does not flourish, who will be served by the service sector?

(The writer, a cost accountant, served as General Manager (Finance and Accounts) of a public sector power utility.)
US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will sign a bilateral security agreement between the US and Ukraine on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Italy on Thursday.

Bidens National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan announced the deal to journalists on Wednesday during the flight to Italy, which is hosting the two-day summit of G7 leaders near the southern city of Bari.

Fifteen countries have already concluded similar long-term security agreements with Ukraine, including Britain, France and Germany.

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Sullivan said the Biden administrations negotiations with Kiev have now been finalised.

He did not give any concrete details about the content of the agreement, which he described as a framework for how the two countries work together to address security issues.

However, he emphasised that the pact would not include the obligation for Washington to deploy US troops to Ukraine, nor would it contain commitments to supply specific weapons systems.

Our goal here is straightforward, Sullivan said.

We want to demonstrate that the US supports the people of Ukraine, that we stand with them, and that will continue to help address their security needs, not just tomorrow, but out into the future.

He also indicated that the agreement would state that the White House would work with US Congress to find a way to provide sustainable support for Ukraine.

The Biden adviser said the security deals Kiev is negotiating help serve as a bridge until Ukraines ultimate membership in NATO.

The US also said it was imposing sanctions on more than 300 individuals and entities connected to Russias war on Ukraine, including financial institutions, the Moscow Stock Exchange and Chinese companies.

The latest set of sanctions is chiefly focused on trade, finance and industry.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the sanctions hit across multiple sectors essential to Russias war effort, including energy, metals and mining production.

China was singled out for its support of Moscow.

The US remains concerned by the scale and breadth of exports from China that supply Russias military-industrial base, Blinkens statement said.

To that end, the US is sanctioning Chinese companies that provide duel-use goods that fill critical gaps in Russias defence production cycle, he added.

It is not just China, however.

Individuals and organisations in countries elsewhere in Asia, the Middle East, Europe, Africa and the Caribbean are also subject to new restrictive measures.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said Russia is deeply isolated from the international financial system, leaving the Kremlins military desperate for access to the outside world.

She added that the sanctions go after critical supplies Russia needs from other countries.

Several Russian banks also saw their foreign locations put on blacklists to make it harder for financial transactions to be fulfilled.

Other corners of Russias financial infrastructure were hit, including the Moscow Stock Exchange and two subsidiaries, and insurance and reinsurance providers.

The US Treasury Department said it was trying to choke off military supply chains by sanctioning dozens of individuals and entities in a slew of countries, besides Russia and China.

Some of the newly listed targets will help close sanction loopholes or go after evaders, it added.
Marking 1,000 days since girls in Afghanistan were banned from secondary school, a top official at the United Nations childrens agency, Unicef, on Thursday used this milestone to urge the Taliban to allow girls to go back to school.

For 1.5 million girls, this systematic exclusion is not only a blatant violation of their right to education but also results in dwindling opportunities and deteriorating mental health, UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell said in a statement.

The statement emphasised the far-reaching consequences of the ban, extending beyond the immediate loss of education.

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It exacerbates the ongoing humanitarian crisis and has serious ramifications for Afghanistans economy and development trajectory, the statement added.

Russell appealed for the return of girls to schools, pointing to the fact that no country can move forward when half its population is left behind.

I urge the de-facto authorities to allow all children to resume learning immediately. And I urge the international community to remain engaged and support these girls, who need us more than ever.

Since returning to power in August 2021, the Taliban has banned girls and women from studying beyond primary school. However, in some parts of the country, women and girls still attend religious schools, as well as midwifery and nursing schools.

The Taliban government is not recognised internationally.


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STATEMENT OF SEN. WIN GATCHALIAN ON POGOS AS THREAT TO NATIONAL SECURITY

The assessment by Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro that POGOs pose a threat to national security reinforces our call for the immediate ban of POGOs from the country. As defense secretary, he possesses privileged information and intelligence that convinced him to make that statement.

In addition to the proliferation of heinous crimes associated with POGOs, the industry has raised serious national security concerns that must be addressed promptly and with strong political will.

Inuulit ko ang ating panawagan sa Pangulo na dinggin ang lumalakas na kahilingan ng karamihan sa ating mga kababayan at maraming sangay ng gobyerno na wakasan na ang pananatili ng mga POGO sa ating bansa.
Thirteen churches in eastern Erie County and in Genesee and Wyoming counties would be closed as part of seven parish mergers recommended Wednesday by Buffalo Diocese officials.

'No reason why': Parishioners lament plans to close beloved churches in Buffalo Diocese As Buffalo Diocese officials continued to roll out church closure plans across eight counties, a growing number of parishioners are expressing anger, grief and frustration. But there's also a sense of resignation, and even hopefulness, among some Catholics.

Sites proposed to be closed were:

St. George, 74 Old Glenwood Road, West Falls.

St. Joseph, 46 North Main St., Holland.

St. Brigid, 18 Gibson St., Bergen.

St. Mary, 18 Ellicott St., Batavia.

Our Lady of Fatima, 65 South Main St., Elba.

St. Francis of Assisi, 18 West Main St., Corfu.

Holy Name of Mary, 8656 Church St., East Pembroke.

St. Mary Queen of Rosary, 3854 Main St., Strykersville.

Our Lady of Good Counsel, 10675 Alleghany Road, Darien Center.

Sacred Heart of Jesus, 1230 Clinton St., Bennington Center.

Immaculate Conception, 5865 Ellicott Street Road, East Bethany.

St. Mary, 11095 St. Marys St., Pavilion.

St. Mary, 23 Church St., Silver Springs.

Bishop Michael W. Fisher has cited the dioceses growing priest shortage, declining Mass attendance, aging congregations and ongoing financial pressures in its Chapter 11 bankruptcy case as reasons for the massive restructuring effort throughout the eight-county diocese.

Diocese recommends closing 14 churches in western part of Southern Tier The Buffalo Diocese proposed shuttering 14 churches in Chautauqua, southern Erie and Cattaraugus counties in its latest announcements to clergy and parish leaders.

Among the proposed parish mergers for the Genesee/Wyoming Vicariate are St. Brigid in Bergen merging with Our Lady of Mercy in Leroy, and St. Maximilian Kolbe parish in Corfu and East Pembroke merging with St. John the Baptist parish in Alden.

Several of the closures involve churches that already were secondary worship sites or had been part of a parish merger under the dioceses previous downsizing effort, Journey in Faith & Grace from 2007 to 2011, which resulted in the merger of about 100 parishes and closing of roughly 70 churches.

Under the current plan, diocese officials anticipate 54 parish mergers and at least 70 church closures.

So far, they have revealed 66 recommended building closings, with a final round of proposed closures and merger announcements scheduled past print time on Thursday for parishes in southern Erie County.
The Karnataka Police, investigating a murder case involving popular Kannada actor Darshan Thoogudeepa and his friend actor Pavithra Gowda, found that he had offered money to his associates to take the fall for the murder.

Darshan and a few of his aides have been arrested in connection with the murder of Renukaswamy, hailing from Chitradurga, on June 8 night. The deceased had allegedly sent lewd messages to Pavithra Gowda on social media.

Renukaswamy was allegedly beaten up by Darshan with a belt, and when he fell unconscious, his accomplices thrashed him with sticks. The victim was then thrown against a wall, and as a result, he suffered multiple bone fractures.

ALSO READ: Darshan beat up Renukaswamy, Pavithra Gowda instigated him: Chilling details of murder revealed

Meanwhile, Section 144 was imposed within 200 meters of Annapoorneshwarinagar police station in Bengaluru where Darshan and others are kept in police custody.

Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundurao assured that if Darshan is responsible for the crime, he would face the consequences for his action.

Dubbing it a "heinous crime" the minister said it is painful for the entire Kannada film industry.

READ MORE: Who is Pavithra Gowda, the Kannada actor and model arrested along with Darshan for alleged murder

"The police are doing their job and we need to have faith in the police. I don't see any kind of influence working in these cases. Since it is a murder case, I am sure there will be no room for any kind of pressure on the investigation. This is a heinous crime, and if he is responsible, he should face the consequences, and if he's not, let the court decide," news agency ANI quoted him as saying.

Earlier, Home Minister G. Parameshwara had said police have been given a free hand and action will be taken in accordance with law against Darshan and his associates.
The tragic fire incident in Kuwait that claimed the lives of over 49 people, over 40 of them Indians, may have been caused by a gas leak from the building's ground floor, according to local media reports. However, there has been no official word on how the blaze started or what caused it.

Kuwait Fire Department head of investigations Col Sayed Al-Mousawi told Kuwait Times that over two dozen cooking gas cylinders were found on the buildings ground floor.



Mousawi added that the probe team also found that inflammable material was used as a partition between apartments and rooms. This caused the fire to rage as thick plumes of smoke filled the building.



The chief added that many victims suffocated while trying to run down the stairs because they were filled with smoke. Though many tried to go to the rooftop, the door was locked, trapping them inside the building.



The investigation team has collected material to determine the cause of the fire.



Mousawi said that the fire teams received an emergency call at 4.23 am and the teams arrived at 4.28 am. The team's timely intervention helped save many lives by putting out the fire in under 10 minutes of arrival. However, the multiple violations inside and outside the building hindered the work of the fire teams and five firemen were injured in the process, Kuwait Times quoted the fire chief.



An Egyptian worker, one of the people who escaped the blaze with minor injuries, told reporters from his hospital bed that it took him two hours to get out of the building with the help of firemen. He also recalled seeing several charred bodies on his way down.



Deputy Premier, Defense and Interior Minister Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousef Al-Sabah visited the tragedy site and injured workers were taken for treatment. He has ordered the arrest of the Kuwaiti landlord of the building and the Egyptian guard of the building.



The labour camp where the incident occurred was run by a construction firm NBTC group, which rented the building for the stay of more than 195 workers. The company too is partly owned by an Indian and most of the workers were from Kerala, Tamil Nadu and northern states.


The number of those killed, injured and displaced in the ongoing Russia-Ukraine and Israel-Hamas conflicts may be comparable with those in Myanmar, yet the Eurocentric vision and concern of the G7 groupingwhich is to meet in Italys Puglia on June 14is betrayed by the fact that the Myanmar conflict is not part of the agenda.



Responding to a query by THE WEEK during a special briefing, Indias Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, while agreeing to the Myanmar conflicts direct fallout on India in particular and South Asia in general said:  the developments in Myanmar do directly impact on India. But insofar as its presence in the G7 discussion is concerned, the Summit agenda for G7 is fixed by the G7, and particularly by the host country.

Beginning on Thursday, the 50th G7 Summit is being hosted by Italy. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is attending the Summit making it his fifth participation in the outreach session of G7 Summits and Indias eleventh. This is also Modis first foreign visit in his third successive term as prime minister. The council of ministers were sworn in on June 9.

The civil war in Myanmar was sparked off by a coup led by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing on February 1, 2021. Fearing persecution, thousands of Myanmarese citizens, including government officials, have crossed the India-Myanmar border to enter Mizoram and Manipur after the coup.

Since then, a civil war between the military junta and combined forces of the Peoples Defence Forces, Ethnic Armed Organisations and ragtag bands of armed guerrilla fighters have engaged in a seesaw battle that has seen the two sides almost partitioning the ravaged nation into two near-equal parts.

According to the UNs humanitarian aid agency, since the start of a new junta offensive in October, about 10 lakh people have been displaced adding to the around 30 lakh already internally displaced since the February 2021 coup.

According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project (ACLED), a think-tank that specializes in disaggregated conflict data collection, analysis, and crisis mappingMyanmar is the most violent of the 50 wars it monitors around the world. ACLED has reported a death toll of more than 47,000 people in violence in Myanmar since the coup while pointing out that the figure is conservative.

The Summit will see the participation of leaders of the seven member states (Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the USA), as well as the President of the European Council and the President of the European Commission representing the European Union. India is an invitee to the outreach session.

Beginning as an institution with an economic focus, the G7 has gradually become a forum for consultation to find common ground on major global challenges, including peace and security, counter-terrorism, development, education, health, environment and climate change.
India on Thursday took strong objection to the unwanted references to Jammu and Kashmir in a joint statement by China and Pakistan, and asserted that the union territory is an integral part of the country.

"We have noted unwarranted references to the Union territory of Jammu & Kashmir in the joint statement between China and Pakistan of June 7. We categorically reject such references," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.

"Our position on the issue is consistent and well known to the concerned parties. The Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir and the Union Territory of Ladakh have been, are and will always remain integral and inalienable parts of India," he said.

The joint statement, issued on June 7 after the meeting between Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chinese Premier Li Qiang, said the Pakistani side briefed the Chinese side on the latest developments in Jammu and Kashmir. It also mentioned the projects under the so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) which passes through Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir (PoK).

"The same joint statement also mentions activities and projects under the so-called China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), some of which are in India's sovereign territory under forcible and illegal occupation by Pakistan," Jaiswal said.

"We resolutely oppose and reject any moves by other countries to reinforce or legitimise Pakistan's illegal occupation of these territories, impinging on India's sovereignty and territorial integrity," he added.
As many as 19 persons among 49 killed in a devastating fire in an apartment building in southern Kuwait were Keralaites, the Kerala government said. In an emergency cabinet meeting convened on Thursday, the state government decided to send Kerala Health Minister Veena George to Kuwait, to coordinate efforts to bring back the bodies of the deceased and medical treatment of the injured.



The state government also decided to offer a solatium of Rs 5 lakh to families of the deceased and Rs 1 lakh to persons who suffered injuries in the fire. According to reports, the majority of persons who got killed in the fire from Kerala hailed from Pathanamthitta, a district represented by the health minister. National Health Mission Director Vijay Babu will accompany the minister, the government said.

According to the statement, prominent businessmen M.A. Yusuff Ali and Ravi Pillai have informed the CM that they will provide Rs 5 lakh and Rs 2 lakh, respectively, to each of the families of the Keralites who died in the fire through the governments NORKA. Including this, each of the deceased family will receive assistance of Rs 12 lakh, it said.

Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu Minister for Minorities Welfare and Non-Resident Tamils Welfare Gingee KS Masthan said five Tamils died in the fire. Masthan told reporters in Chennai that the victims belong to Thanjavur, Ramanathapuram and Peravurani regions of the state and they were identified as Rama Karuppan, Veerasamy Mariappan, Chinnadurai Krishnamurthy, Mohammed Sherif and Richard.

According to officials, total number of people killed in the Al-Mangaf building is 49 and 42 of them are learnt to be Indians; the remaining hailed from Pakistani, Filipino, Egyptian and Nepali nationals.

Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh has reached Kuwait to oversee assistance to those injured in the fire tragedy and coordinate with local authorities for early repatriation of mortal remains of those who have died in this unfortunate incident. An Air Force plane is also on standby to bring the bodies back.
A day after a devastating fire in an apartment building in southern Kuwait's Mangaf area killed 49 people, over 40 of them Indians, Union Minister of State for External Affairs, Kirti Vardhan Singh left for the Middle Eastern state on Thursday.

The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) confirmed on Wednesday that over 40 people of the 49 were Indians, and the rest were Pakistani, Filipino, Egyptian and Nepali nationals. "In an unfortunate and tragic fire incident earlier today in a Labour housing facility in the Mangaf area of Kuwait, around 40 Indians are understood to have died and over 50 injured," the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement late on Wednesday night.

Singh said he hoped to get more details on arrival in Kuwait. "We had a meeting last evening with the Prime Minister, that is the last update we have about this very sad tragedy. The rest of the situation will be clear the moment we reach there," Singh told ANI at Delhi airport.

There were challenges in repatriation of the remains of the deceased, considering that many bodies have been charred beyond recognition, Singh said. "The situation is that the victims are mostly burn victims and some of the bodies have been charred beyond recognition. So a DNA test is underway to identify the victims."

The MoS added that an Air Force plane is on standby. "As soon as the bodies are identified, the kin will be informed and our Air Force plane will bring the bodies back," the MoS said. "The latest figures say the casualty is around 48-49 out of this 42 or 43 are believed to be Indians," he added.

Embassy helpline

The Indian Embassy in Kuwait continues to remain in touch with local authorities to provide relief to those affected by the incident. The Embassy has established a helpline +965-65505246 (WhatsApp and regular call) for family members to get in touch. Regular updates are being provided through the helpline.

Earlier, soon after the news of the fire incident in Kuwait broke out, Prime Minister Modi chaired a review meeting and announced an ex-gratia relief of Rs 2 lakh from the Prime Minister Relief Fund to the families of deceased Indian nationals.

External Affairs Minister spoke to his Kuwaiti counterpart Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on the phone and urged him for the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those killed. "Spoke to Kuwaiti FM Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya on the fire tragedy in Kuwait. Apprised of the efforts made by Kuwaiti authorities in that regard. Was assured that the incident would be fully investigated and that responsibility will be fixed," Jaishankar said on 'X'.

"Urged the early repatriation of the mortal remains of those who lost their lives. He emphasized that those injured were getting the requisite medical attention," he said.

The MEA said the Indian embassy in the Gulf nation is ascertaining the full details from the Kuwaiti authorities. "Those injured are presently admitted in five government hospitals (Adan, Jaber, Farwaniya, Mubarak Al Kabeer and Jahra) in Kuwait and receiving proper medical care and attention," it said, adding that most of the admitted patients are stable," it said.

 SHOCKING! Around 40 Indian nationals were killed in a building fire at an labour camp in Kuwait.



There is no saftey for Indian workers in middle east. Strong protest needed! pic.twitter.com/KkWfP8xdFm  Indian Tech & Infra (@IndianTechGuide) June 12, 2024

Strict action

The labour camp where the incident occurred was run by a construction firm NBTC group, which rented the building for the stay of more than 195 workers. The company too is partly owned by an Indian and most of the workers were from Kerala, Tamil Nadu and northern states.

Kuwait's Interior Ministry said criminal evidence department personnel are currently working on identifying the victims and revealing the cause of the fire. It said strict measures will be taken against building owners who violate laid down norms.

The Indian embassy said it is in touch with Kuwaiti law enforcement authorities, fire service and health department for necessary action.

Interior Minister of Kuwait Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah ordered an investigation into the fire incident and issued directions to apprehend the owner and janitor of the Al-Mangaf building. "What happened today is a result of the greed of the company and building owners," Al-Sabah was quoted as saying by Kuwait Times.
In a shocking development, a Mumbai resident reportedly found a human finger inside an ice cream that was ordered online from Yummo Ice Creams. It was inside a cone ice cream that the woman, a resident of Mumbai's Malad area found a human finger, on Wednesday night news reports said.



Mumbai media reported that the woman had ordered three ice creams in all -- two mango-flavored cones and a butterscotch. It was in the latter that the severed body part was reportedly found by the woman's brother, Hindustan Times said in a report.

After the man bit something solid inside the butterscotch ice cream, he took a closer look at the foreign particle. To his great horror, he found it was a piece of human flesh, the report added.

The woman soon reached out to the local police station and filed a complaint. Confirming the development, the police said that the finger was found by the complainant immediately after the cone was unwrapped. An FIR has been filed and a forensic test will be conducted to confirm whether the piece of flesh is human as claimed, or that of some animal, a Malad Police official told news agency ANI.

Another senior police official told the media that the place where the ice cream was made and packed will be searched by the department soon. The incident is being probed with utmost seriousness, he added.

Yummo Ice Creams, meanwhile confirmed that it will fully cooperate with the authorities in investigating the shocking incident.

"We have stopped manufacturing at this third-party facility, isolated the said product at the facility and our warehouses, and are in the process of doing the same at the market level," Hindustan Times reported a company spokesperson as saying.
Considering the suggestion of the National Testing Agency, the Supreme Court on Thursday cancelled the grace marks awarded to over 1,500 students to compensate for the loss of time during the NEET-UG 2024 examinations. The Court ordered the agency to conduct retest for the affected students only and announce results before the counselling process for undergraduate medical courses begins. The retest is likely to be conducted on June 23.

Hearing the case on Thursday, a vacation bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta accepted the NTAs suggestion that it will cancel grace marks awarded to as many as 1,563 students, to compensate for the loss of time in examinations. The agency said it would release revised scores for these students, their original scores without grace marks. Following complaints, the higher education ministry had constituted a four-member panel to look into alleged irregularities raised by aspirants.

Pronouncing the judgment, Justice Nath said, It has been suggested that score cards of affected 1,563 candidates will stand cancelled and withdrawn. These candidates will be informed their actual scores, without compensatory marks. Re-exam will be conducted for the affected 1,563 candidates. Results of those who don't wish to re-appear will be declared based on actual marks, Live Law reported.

The re-examination date, likely on June 23 will be notified on Thursday itself, Court said. The results should be declared ahead of counselling so that the admission process is not affected, the Court observed.

The apex court will hear pleas regarding the cancellation of NEET-UG 2024 examinations and allegations of malpractices on July 8.
The union representing more than 300 employees at four Western New York nursing homes has postponed its planned labor strike. The strike at four Absolut Care facilities  in East Aurora, Orchard Park, Allegany and Westfield  was originally scheduled to start at 6 a.m. Thursday and continue daily from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

But late Wednesday night, labor union 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East announced it was postponing the strike, after Absolut Care had come to the table "with some movement on Wednesday." The union postponed the strike "in an effort to reach a tentative agreement" with the employer.

That keeps union members on the job at four facilities: the 320-bed Absolut Care of Aurora Park; the 120-bed Absolut Care of Westfield; the 37-bed Absolut Care of Allegany; and the 80-bed Orchard Brooke Assisted Living Center.

More than 300 employees at four WNY nursing facilities plan to strike The strike at four Absolut Care facilities  in East Aurora, Orchard Park, Allegany and Westfield  would start June 13 and continue daily from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

The two sides have been negotiating a new contract since early February. Their one-year contract expired April 30.

The four for-profit facilities are part of Living Legends Health, a network of 19 health care facilities across four portfolios: Absolut Care; the McGuire Group; Taconic Health Care; and VestraCare. Living Legends, which serves more than 2,800 residents and employs more than 4,000, is managed by Edward Farbenblum, of Long Island.

In a statement, RCA Healthcare Management/Absolut Care said it "has remained steadfast in its dedication to the well-being of our residents and the community at large."

"We have demonstrated a commitment to fair and competitive compensation in negotiations, including a wage step scale and enhanced pay rates," the company said. "1199SEIU  elected to call off their strike yesterday after they made substantial movement in the union's proposals. Absolut Care deeply values the dedication and hard work of our employees. We remain committed to resolving the contact swiftly and amicably."

- Jon Harris
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will leave for Italy on Thursday to attend the G7 Summit, his first overseas visit since he assumed office for the third time.

The G7 Summit will see leaders of the US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom deliberate on topics of global interest. Besides these seven nations, India has been invited as an outreach country to the Summit.

Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra said on Wednesday that Modi will travel to Apulia in Italy at the invitation of Prime Minister of Italy Giorgia Meloni. "The G7 points to increasing recognition and contribution of the efforts that India has been consistently making including those of peace, security, development and environment preservation," Kwatra said.

Modi will also likely meet President Biden at the sidelines of the Summit. Biden arrived in Italy Wednesday night. According to National Security Advisor (NSA) Jake Sullivan, Biden expects to see Prime Minister Modi here. "It's up to the Indians to formally confirm his attendance, but our expectation is that the two of them will have the opportunity to encounter one another. The nature of that encounter is still fluid because so much of the schedule is fluid," Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One on his way to Italy to attend the G7 Summit, along with the US president.

He added that Biden spoke to Modi over the phone to congratulate him on the election outcome and on being sworn in as Prime Minister for a third term.

It is confirmed that Modi will meet Meloni but details of bilateral or meetings with other leaders are still being worked out.

Ukraine, Israel war to dominate G7

This year too, Russia's invasion of Ukraine is likely to dominate the Summit with Biden planning to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the meet. The two will sign a bilateral security agreement for Ukraine "making clear our (US) support will last long into the future."

"After the meeting, the leaders will sign a bilateral security agreement mentioning that the US support for Ukraine will last long and pledge continued cooperation, particularly in the areas of defence and security," Sullivan said.

"And by signing this, we'll also be sending Russia a signal of our resolve. If Vladimir Putin thinks that he can outlast the coalition supporting Ukraine, he's wrong. He just cannot wait us out, and this agreement will show our resolve and continued commitment," Sullivan said.
India will focus on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean at the outreach session of the G7 summit in Italy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Thursday.

Modi left for Italy in his first foreign trip after becoming prime minister for the third term.

He will attend the outreach session on Friday and is scheduled to hold bilateral talks with a number of world leaders on the margins of the summit.

There is a possibility of a meeting between Modi and US President Joe Biden.

In a departure statement, Modi said issues crucial for the Global South will also be deliberated upon at the outreach session.

The G7 summit, to be held in the luxury resort of Borgo Egnazia in Italy's Apulia region from June 13 to 15, is expected to be dominated by the raging war in Ukraine and the conflict in Gaza.

"At the invitation of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, I am travelling to Apulia region in Italy to participate in the G7 Outreach summit on June 14," Modi said.

The prime minister said he was glad that his first visit in his third consecutive term is to Italy for the G7 Summit.

"During the discussions at the Outreach session, the focus would be on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean," Modi said.

"It will be an opportunity to bring greater synergy between the outcomes of the G20 Summit held under India's Presidency and the forthcoming G7 Summit, and deliberate on issues which are crucial for the Global South," he said.

Modi will have a bilateral meeting with Meloni.

"Prime Minister Meloni's two visits to India last year were instrumental in infusing momentum and depth in our bilateral agenda," he said.

"We remain committed to consolidate the India-Italy strategic partnership, and bolster cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and the Mediterranean regions," he said.

The prime minister is likely to hold a number of bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the summit.

"I am also looking forward to meeting other leaders participating in the Summit," he said.

The G7 comprises the US, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Canada and Japan. Italy is holding the current presidency of the G7 (Group of Seven) and is hosting the summit in that capacity.

"PM @narendramodi embarks on a visit to Apulia, Italy to attend the 50th G7 Summit under Italy's Presidency. This is PM's first overseas visit after being sworn-in for the third term," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said on X.

"An opportunity to engage with G7 partners and other invited countries & international organisations in multilateral and bilateral format," he said.

A key focus of the Italian presidency has been to defend the rules-based international system.

Russia's war of aggression on Ukraine has undermined its principles and triggered growing instability, with multiple crises unfolding worldwide, according to Italy.

The G7 will give equal importance to the conflict in the Middle East, with its consequences for the global agenda, it says.

The bloc expanded into G8 between 1997 and 2013, with the inclusion of Russia. However, Russia's participation was suspended in 2014 following its annexation of Crimea.

In line with its tradition, representatives of a number of countries and international organisations are invited to the summit by the host nation that holds the chair.

Besides India, Italy has invited leaders from 11 developing countries in Africa, South America and the Indo-Pacific region to attend the summit.

Though the European Union is not a member of the G7, it attends the annual summit.
Trouble mounted for former Karnataka chief minister B.S. Yediyurappa after a Bengaluru court on Thursday issued an arrest warrant against him in a POCSO case.

The BJP veteran has been booked under the POCSO Act and Section 354 A (Sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code based on a complaint by the mother of a 17-year-old girl who alleged that he sexually assaulted her daughter during a meeting on February two this year, at his residence in Dollars Colony.

Earlier in the day, Karnataka Home Minister G. Parameshwara said the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which is probing the case, has issued a notice asking Yediyurappa to appear before it for questioning, and he may be arrested if necessary.

"Notice has been served procedurally, the charge-sheet has to be filed by June 15. Before that they (CID) will file the charge-sheet. They will have to follow procedure for it. They will have to record his statement and produce him (in court), all these are procedures and the department will do it," he told reporters in Tumkuru.

The Sadashivanagar police registered the case against Yediyurappa on March 14 and the investigation was handed over to the CID on the same day.

The 54-year-old woman, who had leveled the charge against the BJP leader, died at a private hospital in Tumkuru last month, due to lung cancer.

Meanwhile, the BJP veteran, who had dismissed the allegations, filed a petition in the Karnataka High Court on Wednesday seeking to quash the FIR against him.

Sources close to Yediyurappa told PTI that he is presently in Delhi and that he is likely to join the probe after he returns.
Fifty people have been detained in connection with the investigation into the recent terror attack on a bus carrying pilgrims in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir, police said on Thursday.

To ensure a comprehensive probe, the search operation to track down the terrorists, has been expanded to cover Reasi district's far-flung Arnas and Mahore areas which were terrorist hotbeds between 1995 and 2005.

On Sunday, terrorists opened fire on a 53-seater bus carrying pilgrims when it was en route to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra from the Shiv Khori temple. The bus, ferrying pilgrims from Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi, plunged into a deep gorge following the gunfire, killing nine people and injuring 41 others.

Confirming the detention of 50 suspects in connection with the attack, a police spokesperson said it followed an intensive investigation.

"Significant leads have been uncovered, aiding in the identification and capture of those who may be potentially involved in orchestrating the attack. To ensure a comprehensive probe, search operations have been expanded to cover the far-flung areas of Arnas and Mahore," the spokesperson said.

He said these operations aim to uncover further evidence and apprehend terrorists who may be hiding in these remote regions.

Police have already released a sketch of one of the terrorists and announced a cash reward of Rs 20 lakh for information leading to the neutralization of the culprits.

"The law enforcement agencies are committed to bringing the perpetrators to justice and ensuring the safety and security of all residents and visitors in the area," the spokesperson said.

Senior Superintendent of Police, Reasi, Mohita Sharma urged people to remain vigilant and report any suspicious activity to the authorities immediately.
Actor Salman Khan told police that he slept late on the day gunmen targeted his house and he woke up to the sound of bullet hitting the balcony. The Mumbai police recorded statements of the actor and his brother Arbaaz Khan in connection with the firing case.

The police recorded statements of both actors on Wednesday and according to police, Lawrence Bishnoi gang was behind the attacks. In his statement, Salman told police that he was home on the day of the incident, having returned late at night. The sound of a bullet which hit his flat's balcony woke him up, police told PTI.

Police also recorded the statement of the actors brother Arbaaz Khan though he was not present at the flat at the time of the attack. Salman's statement was recorded for nearly four hours, while his brother's statement was recorded for more than two hours, police said.

On April 14, two motorbike-borne people opened fire outside Salman Khan's residence in the Bandra area of Mumbai. Vicky Gupta and Sagar Pal, alleged shooters involved in the April 14 firing incident, were subsequently arrested from Gujarat. Police so far have arrested six persons in connection with the case. However, one of the accused, Anuj Thapan, allegedly hanged himself in a police lock-up on May 1.

Recently, Navi Mumbai police foiled an attack pre-planned on the actor and nabbed four members of the Bishnoi gang.

Lawrence Bishnoi, currently lodged in the Sabarmati central prison in Gujarat's Ahmedabad, and his younger brother Anmol Bishnoi, who is believed to be in the US or Canada, have been named in the firing case.

-with inputs from agencies.
At a time when climate change and managing water resources are major global concerns, the importance of advanced technology for monitoring and data collection is greater than ever. One notable effort in this field is the partnership between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the French space agency, Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES). Together, they have developed an innovative thermal imaging satellite called TRISHNA. The satellite, weighing approximately 770 kg, is expected to orbit at an altitude of 761 km in a sun-synchronous orbit, with a local crossing time (descending node) of 1 p.m., ensuring consistent lighting conditions for its observations. The mission is set to last for five years, with a launch date targeted for 2025.

This joint mission aims to deliver high-quality thermal images to help us better understand and tackle environmental issues, especially those connected to climate change and water management. TRISHNA, short for Thermal infra Red Imaging Satellite for High-resolution Natural resource Assessment, is built to provide exceptional details about the Earth's land and water temperatures. These measurements are crucial for various uses, such as farming strategies, tracking urban heat, and managing disasters.

The satellites advanced technology also addresses food security challenges by focusing on the impacts of human-induced climate change and improving water resource management through evapotranspiration monitoring. TRISHNA aims to enhance our understanding significantly and offer more accurate data for scientists, policymakers, and environmentalists around the world, explained space expert Girish Linganna.

Evapotranspiration is the process by which water is transferred from the land to the atmosphere through two main mechanisms: evaporation from soil and water surfaces, and transpiration from plants. It's a crucial part of the water cycle and helps in understanding water use and availability, especially in agriculture and climate studies.

The TRISHNA satellite comes with two main payloadsThermal Infra-Red (TIR) Payload provided by CNES which features a four-channel long-wave infrared imaging sensor capable of high-resolution surface temperature and emissivity mapping. Then the second payload Visible - Near Infra-Red - Short Wave Infra-Red (VNIR-SWIR) Payload developed by ISRO which includes seven spectral bands designed for detailed mapping of surface reflectance in VSWIR bands (Visible, Short-Wave Infrared) and will help generate important biophysical and radiation budget variables.

The satellite will orbit the Earth in a sun-synchronous path at an altitude of 761 km, crossing the equator at 12:30 PM local time. This orbit allows the satellite to capture images with a spatial resolution of 57 meters for land and coastal areas, and 1 km for ocean and polar regions. The mission is planned to last for 5 years.

Thermal imaging satellites are essential for monitoring Earth's climate, water resources, and environmental changes. They use thermal sensors to detect heat variations on the Earth's surface, aiding studies on urban heat islands, agricultural health, and forest fire detection, added Linganna.

There have been other similar programs such as the USA's Landsat, Europe's Sentinel-3, and China's Gaofen series. The Landsat program, overseen by NASA and USGS, has been providing continuous Earth observation data since 1972. This program is essential for monitoring environmental changes, land use, and natural resources with high-quality satellite images. The latest data from the Landsat program, featuring Landsat 9, is freely accessible to the public. Launched on September 27, 2021, Lands at 9 continues the work of previous satellites by offering detailed images of Earth. This data is vital for tracking land resources and understanding environmental changes. One can find this data on platforms like EarthExplorer, LandsatLook, and GloVis.

On the other hand Sentinel-3(Europe) is a key part of the Copernicus Programme, which helps monitor our oceans and land. There are two satellites, Sentinel-3A and Sentinel-3B, that provide detailed images and measurements. These satellites are useful for studying the oceans, water bodies, and land, and they play an important role in climate change research and protecting the environment. Recently, there have been some issues with the quality of Sea and Land Surface Temperature Radiometer (SLSTR)products due to satellite maneuvers, and the security system has been upgraded.

On the other hand China's Gaofen series is part of the China High-resolution Earth Observation System (CHEOS). The most recent satellite, Gaofen 12 (03), was launched in 2022. It orbits close to the poles and uses microwave remote sensing technology. This satellite helps improve land surveys, urban planning, and disaster relief efforts. Each of these programs contributes unique capabilities and data sets, advancing scientific understanding and practical applications in agriculture, water management, and disaster response.

The TRISHNA satellite, a collaboration between ISRO and CNES, represents a significant advancement in thermal imaging for climate and water monitoring. Compared to other prominent satellites, Trishna's cutting-edge technology captures high-resolution thermal data with exceptional precision. Landsat's historical data is invaluable, but TRISHNA offers higher resolution and sensitivity. Sentinel-3 excels in marine and coastal monitoring, while TRISHNA is tailored for terrestrial applications. Gaofen-5 provides detailed data on air pollution and water quality, yet TRISHNAs focus on climate and water monitoring offers more targeted thermal data. TRISHNAs frequent revisits and high temporal resolution enable near real-time monitoring of climatic and hydrological phenomena, enhancing our ability to track local and global climate patterns, explained Linganna.

The ISRO-CNES collaboration on TRISHNA highlights the potential of international cooperation in addressing global challenges like climate change and water resource management. TRISHNA, with its advanced thermal imaging technology, complements existing systems by providing higher resolution data and more frequent revisit times, enhancing global environmental monitoring. Its high spatial resolution and superior thermal sensitivity place it at the forefront of thermal imaging satellites. TRISHNA's data will support applications such as agricultural planning, urban heat island analysis, and climate change studies, playing a critical role in informing policy decisions and fostering sustainable development.

TRISHNA's technical prowess lies in its advanced payloads. The Thermal Infra-Red (TIR) payload, provided by CNES, features a four-channel long-wave infrared imaging sensor capable of high-resolution surface temperature and emissivity mapping. The Visible - Near Infra-Red - Short Wave Infra-Red (VNIR-SWIR) payload, developed by ISRO, includes seven spectral bands designed for detailed mapping of surface reflectance of VSWIR bands to generate important biophysical and radiation budget variables, said Srimathy Kesan, founder and CEO of Space Kidz India, which is into design, fabrication and launch of small satellites, spacecraft and ground systems.

This expert further says that when compared to other thermal imaging satellites globally, TRISHNA stands out for its high spatial and temporal resolution. If one compares it with the British company SatVu's HOTSAT-1 satellite, which also focuses on high-resolution thermal imaging, captures thermal images from space revealing the planets surface temperature in great detail. However, HOTSAT-1's resolution is down to 33 feet, which, while impressive, does not match TRISHNA's ambition to achieve a resolution better than 100 meters with frequent revisits several times a week, added Kesan.
On Wednesday, Russian frigate Admiral Gorshkov  the first of a four-ship convoy  entered Cuba's Havana harbour firing a 21-gun salute, to the amazement of hundreds who lined the seafront. Many waved Russian flags as they watched the largest show of force by the Russians with their longstanding ally Cuba.

The Cubans welcomed the fleet, which also included the nuclear-powered submarine Kazan, a rescue tug, and an oil tanker, with cannon fire from an 18th-century colonial fort built by the Spanish to guard the port.



Now docked in berths usually occupied by cruise ships, the Russian ships will carry out a five-day official visit to the Caribbean island. The show of strength at Havana, just 90 miles from Florida, comes as tensions rise between the US and Russia over the Ukraine war.



Analysts believe the frigate is capable of long-range missions, anti-submarine warfare, and carrying surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missiles, among other weapons systems. However, the Cuban Armed Forces Ministry statement said none of the Russian ships were armed with nuclear weapons. It also sought to downplay the event, calling it a standard practice by naval units from countries friendly to Havana.



"Visits by naval units from other countries are a historical practice of the revolutionary government with nations that maintain relations of friendship and collaboration," a statement from Cubas Foreign Ministry said.



Cubans can also tour the frigate for four hours each day for three days.



As for the US, though it downplayed Russian warships arriving in Cuba, U.S. Navy ships "actively monitored" the fleet as they made their way to a port of call in Havana. Six warships from the United States Navy, Canada, and France, including U.S. Navy destroyers USS Donald Cook, USS Delbert Black, USS Truxton, U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Stone, Canadian frigate HMCS Ville de Quebec, and a French Lafayette class frigate, shadowed the Russian fleet.



At a Pentagon press briefing, spokesperson Sabrina Singh said such visits happened multiple times over the years. She, however, acknowledged that U.S. military assets had been tracking the ships on their way to Cuba. "We've been tracking the Russians' plans for this," Singh added.



"This is not a surprise we've seen them do these types of port calls before and these are routine naval visits that we've seen under different administrations," Singh said. "We're always constantly going to monitor any foreign vessels operating near U.S. territorial waters," she added.



U.S. territorial waters stretch out 12 nautical miles from the coastline. However, the US officials confirmed that none of the ships ever came close to the American coastline as they transited the Atlantic Ocean.


US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Wednesday that mediators would keep trying to close an elusive cease-fire deal for Gaza after Hamas proposed changes to a US-backed plan, some of which he said were workable and some not.

The back-and-forth laid bare frustration over the difficulty of reaching an accord that could end eight months of war that has decimated the territory, killed tens of thousands of Palestinians and left scores of Israeli hostages still languishing in militant captivity. Previous moments of optimism have been repeatedly dashed by the differences between the two sides.

The cease-fire proposal has global support but has not been fully embraced by Israel or Hamas. Blinken did not spell out what changes Hamas sought, but he said the mediators Qatar, Egypt and the US will keep trying to close this deal. He put the onus on Hamas, accusing it of changing its demands.

"Hamas has proposed numerous changes to the proposal that was on the table. ... Some of the changes are workable. Some are not," Blinken told reporters in Qatar. "I believe that they (the differences) are bridgeable, but that doesn't mean they will be bridged because ultimately Hamas has to decide."

Blinken's comments came as Lebanon's Hezbollah fired a massive barrage of rockets into northern Israel to avenge the killing of a top commander, further escalating regional tensions.

Hezbollah, an Iran-backed ally of Hamas, has traded fire with Israel nearly every day since the Israel-Hamas war began and says it will stop only if there is a truce in Gaza. That has raised fears of an even more devastating regional conflagration.

Air-raid sirens sounded across northern Israel, and the military said about 215 projectiles were fired from southern Lebanon, making it one of the largest attacks since the fighting began. There were no immediate reports of casualties as some rockets were intercepted while others ignited brush fires.

Hamas asks for changes

Hamas conveyed its official reply to the proposal to mediators on Tuesday. Hamas spokesman Jihad Taha told the Lebanese news outlet ElNashra that the amendments requested by the group aim to guarantee a permanent cease-fire and complete Israeli troop withdrawal from Gaza.

The proposal announced by US President Joe Biden includes those provisions, but Hamas has expressed wariness about whether Israel will implement the terms. While the US says Israel has accepted the proposal, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has given conflicting statements, saying Israel is still intent on its goal of destroying Hamas.

Blinken, on his eighth visit to the region since the start of the war, said the deal on the table was virtually identical to one Hamas put forth on May 6. The UN Security Council voted overwhelmingly in favour of the plan on Monday.

"At some point in a negotiation, and this has gone back and forth for a long time, you get to a point where if one side continues to change its demands, including making demands and insisting on changes for things that it already accepted, you have to question whether they're proceeding in good faith or not," he said.
US lawmakers, led by Michael McCaul, the Republican chairman of the House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, and former House speaker Nancy Pelosi are scheduled to visit the Dalai Lama in Dharamshala next week in what is being seen as a giant leap in American support to the Tibet issue.

After the US sent out a clear message to China on the right of Tibetans to choose a successor to their spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, it has recently taken the next big step by throwing its weight behind restarting a dialogue between Tibet and China, by passing the Resolve Tibet Act in the House of Representatives on June 12. It is now pending in the White House for President Bidens signature.

Sources in the CTA say the proposed US law sends out a strong message to China that the Dalai Lama and the Central Tibetan Administration President Penpa Tsering are the representatives of the people of Tibet and a long-lasting negotiated solution to the Tibet-China dispute is the way forward.

The proposed visit of the US lawmakers to India comes in the backdrop of these racy developments that give the CTA a shot in the arm once again, drawing global attention to concerns of human rights and democratic freedoms and demonstrating to the Chinese that the exiled government has made considerable progress in establishing the Himalayan hill town as the nerve centre of dialogue on behalf of the Tibetans.

What is also noteworthy is that the Dalai Lama turns 89 on July 6 and the visit coming ahead of his birthday is also demonstrative of the long and warm relations with global leaders, especially Pelosi, who enjoys a personal rapport with the spiritual leader and has visited his Hilltop residence several times in the past leading bipartisan delegations.

The US Congressional delegation is likely to consist of seven members who will get an audience with the Dalai Lama first before holding meetings with the CTA leadership led by President Penpa Tsering.

Penpa has been travelling to all the Tibetan settlements across India and around the world, including 25 different countries, to bring the community together to prepare for future challenges.

Speaking exclusively to The Week, Penpa said they have been working closely with the US Congress over some years now and the Resolve Tibet Act is an apt counter to China's false narrative that Tibet is part of Peoples Republic of China.

We follow a non-violent approach to resolve the Sino-Tibet dispute through the Middle Way policy espoused by the Dalai Lama, he said.

He explained that the Middle Way approach can be understood only if the twin polarities are understoodthe historical status of Tibet as an independent state, and the present situation of Tibet under the repressive communist government.

Which is why the (US) law is important to explain to governments that if they keep parroting what the Chinese want them to say then it is against the law because if they support negotiations between Representatives of His Holiness Dalai Lama and the Chinese government, then they cannot contradict themselves by saying Tibet is part of PRC, because that removes the very ground for negotiation.

With the message going out clearly that the US is in no mood to soft-pedal on the issue, it also opens the door for many countries to take a relook at their vocal support of 'One China' policy. India, for that matter, has not spoken about it for quite some time now.
The Biden presidential campaign was dealt with a major blow on June 11 after a federal jury in Wilmington, Delaware, found the president's son, Hunter Biden, guilty of three felony counts lying to a federally- licensed gun dealer, lying on a federal firearms application used to screen applicants and possessing an illegally obtained gun for 11 days (from October 12 to October 23, 2008). It makes Hunter the first offspring of a sitting US president to be convicted of a crime.

The charges against Hunter, 54, were brought by Justice Department special counsel David C. Weiss, who was appointed by Donald Trump. The charges were filed in connection with the purchase of a Colt pistol at a Delaware gun store in October 2018 and keeping it for nearly two weeks. The two false statement charges against him came from the fact that he lied about his drug problem while filling out the federally mandated form while purchasing the gun. The third charge was about possessing a gun while being under the influence of drugs. Hunter has previously admitted to struggling with drug abuse, which he said got aggravated after losing his brother Beau to a brain tumour in 2015. He said he got sober in 2019.

Hunter had earlier reached a plea deal with the justice department, opting for a counselling programme for people who committed nonviolent firearm offences, instead of trial and jail. It involved Hunter pleading guilty to two misdemeanour tax charges, admitting to illegally possessing a firearm when he was a drug user and avoiding jail time. But the deal collapsed last July under intense questioning by Judge Maryellen Noreika who presided over the case and intense political opposition to what the Republicans alleged was a sweetheart deal for the president's son.

Noreika, who was appointed by Trump, said she would sentence Hunter within four months, so it could come just before the presidential elections in November. He could potentially face jail time up to 25 years for the three charges. But sentences for non-violent and first-time offenders are typically lenient. According to the guidelines set by the United States Sentencing Commission, the body tasked with recommending sentencing parameters, Hunter could face imprisonment from 15 to 21 months.

Defendants like Hunter, however, are less likely to be sent to jail if they comply with the rules and regulations of their pretrial release.

President Joe Biden weighed in on the conviction, releasing a statement offering support for his son. "I am the president, but I am also a dad.... I will accept the outcome of this case and will continue to respect the judicial process as Hunter considers an appeal. Jill and I will always be there for Hunter," said the statement.

While he was in France last week to attend the World War II D-Day commemorations, Biden said he would not pardon his son. But as soon as the guilty verdict was announced, Biden changed his schedule for the day and flew to Wilmington to be with Hunter.

The conviction has come at a bad time for Biden as he is in the middle of a tough reelection fight against Trump. Being the patriarch of a close-knit family, Biden will find it hard to balance personal and political commitments, especially as Hunter is his only surviving child from his first wife, who was killed along with his infant daughter in a car accident several decades ago. It could come as a major distraction as the campaign season enters the home stretch.

But an even bigger concern for Biden could be a second case against Hunter in California, also being prosecuted by Weiss. It involves three felony charges and six misdemeanour counts for failing to pay $1.4 million in taxes from 2016 to 2019. Hunter was indicted in December and pleaded not guilty on all counts. Weiss alleges that Hunter made more than $7 million during this period, which was spent on drugs, escorts and girlfriends, luxury hotels and rental properties, exotic cars, clothing and other items of a personal nature, in short, everything but his taxes".

US District Judge Mark Scarsi, who is overseeing the case, has set September 5 as the date to start trial in the case. A pretrial hearing is scheduled for mid-August, just before the Democratic National Convention where Biden will be formally nominated as the Democratic candidate for president. And, the trial will coincide with the last days of the campaign and early voting in some of the key states.

The verdict in the Delaware case would have serious implications on the tax fraud case as federal sentencing guidelines permit judges to impose a harsher sentence if a defendant has a history of criminal convictions. As Hunter has been found guilty of three felonies in the gun case, he could get a much harsher sentence in the California trial, although judges are not bound by such sentencing guidelines.

The tax case could also hurt Biden's presidential campaign as it is closely related to Hunter's business interests in Ukraine and China, which have been a favourite target of the Republicans. Many senior Republican leaders, including Trump, have alleged that Biden benefited from Hunter's business dealings. The Biden family and the president are still being investigated by the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability on whether they were targeted by foreign actors such as Russia, China, Ukraine and Kazakhstan, whether the president was compromised and whether national security was threatened.

According to a report by the House Committee, "the Bidens and their associates have received over $20 million in payments from foreign entities."The House Republicans have also tried to impeach Biden, but the process was stalled because of intraparty schism and scepticism.

The only silver lining for Biden among the legal travails facing his son is the fact that the guilty verdict from Delaware has proven that Republican charges of a "weaponised justice department" are incorrect. Trump, who is a convicted felon, has been making the point that his conviction in the hush money case was an attempt by the Justice Department to derail his presidential bid, although the DOJ had nothing to do with the case prosecuted by the Manhattan district attorney. Hunter, on the other hand, was prosecuted and convicted by the Department of Justice under Attorney General Merrick Garland, who reports to Biden.

Some experts say that the case could, ironically, help Biden. Larry Jacobs, who teaches politics at the University of Minnesota, told The Guardian that while the case is a personal disaster for Biden, it could bring some gains to the Democratic Party. 'The tragic case of Hunter Biden is painful for Joe and Jill Biden, but it is a win for the Democratic Party and the Biden campaign. It puts a lie to the Republican claims that the justice system is being manipulated by and for the benefit of the Democrats," he said.

But others worry that if the cases against Hunter get prolonged, it could take its toll on Biden. David Axelrod, former adviser to President Barack Obama, spoke about the emotional strain the issue is causing the 81-year-old president, especially during the brutal reelection campaign. "To a guy who has already experienced great loss and tragedy, this is another heavy brick on the load," said Axelrod. "It is going to take enormous strength to carry that load, given all the other bricks that are on there of the presidency and being a candidate."
Kolkata, Jun 13 (PTI) The West Bengal government is advocating for a more significant role of the industry in the decision-making processes of its nodal agency, WBIDC, to expedite and enhance the investment climate in the state, industry sources said on Thursday.

Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, during a closed-door meeting with industrialists during the day, called for an increased industry presence in the West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation (WBIDC).

The exact details of the plan in this regard were not immediately known and there is no official confirmation about the move.

Observers noted that if the plan is implemented, it would reduce red tape and foster an industry-friendly environment, thereby boosting investment attraction.

One of the participants from the industry side said that the chief minister was very receptive to certain issues presented and asked officials to address them immediately.

He said that she promptly allocated land for a steel project of a private company and a toy park project when the issues were brought up before her.
Kolkata, Jun 12 (PTI) In a bid to attract more investments to the state, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee will hold a meeting on Thursday with the WBIDC officials.

The meeting will be held at the state secretariat, 'Nabanna', an official said on Wednesday.

The CM is also expected to discuss the preparations for the 'Bengal Global Business Summit', which is likely to be held this November, he said.

"The chief minister wants to hold a discussion on several matters, including preparations for this year's Bengal Global Business Summit. She will review the progress of all the investment proposals that were received in last year's conference," he told PTI.



West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation Ltd. (WBIDC) is responsible for conceptualisation, development, growth and facilitation of industry, investment and infrastructure in the state.

Another source in the state secretariat said Banerjee received information that several industrialists were facing some difficulties while investing in the state, and she is likely to talk with the officials concerned about the issue.
Kolkata, Jun 13 (PTI) Low-cost carrier IndiGo has announced new routes connecting Durgapur with Bhubaneswar, Bagdogra, and Guwahati. These new flights will commence on August 30, a statement by the airline said.

Flights between Durgapur and Bhubaneswar will operate daily, Durgapur-Bagdogra four times a week, and Durgapur-Guwahati thrice a week, the statement added.

Vinay Malhotra, head of global sales at IndiGo, said, "We are pleased to announce new routes connecting Durgapur with Bhubaneswar, Bagdogra, and Guwahati. With these direct flights, we aim to provide our customers with further seamless connectivity."

With the addition of these services, IndiGo will now operate 42 weekly flights from Durgapur, significantly enhancing trade, travel, and tourism across eastern India, the statement said.

The introduction of these flights will further strengthen the airline's domestic connectivity.

Before the introduction of these new routes, travel between Durgapur and Bhubaneswar, Bagdogra, and Guwahati took approximately 10, 11, and 21 hours, respectively, by surface transport.

The direct flights will reduce this travel time to less than two hours, the statement said.

IndiGo is the only airline offering direct connectivity to all three destinations from Durgapur, it said.
MUMBAI, India , June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The Onsys Magma Black hinge is characterised by its discreet elegance and sleek black finish; crafted to integrate seamlessly with dark-themed furniture.



Designed to blend effortlessly with dark wood furniture, Onsys Magma Black elevates the aesthetic and functional appeal of residential interiors, offering a premium magical interior experience.



Dark-themed furniture remains a timeless choice for interior decorators and homeowners alike, thanks to its ability to impart a sophisticated and luxurious atmosphere. Recognising this enduring trend, Hettich has tailored the Onsys Magma Black to meet the aesthetic demands of dark furniture pieces without compromising functionality.



The Onsys Magma Black is produced at Hettich's state-of-the-art facility in Indore, embodying the company's commitment to the 'Made in India. Made for the World' ethos in alignment with the Government of India's clarion call for Atmanirbhar Bharat.



Mr. Andre Eckholt, Managing Director of Hettich India, commented on the launch, stating, "We had launched Onsys hinge three years ago and in this short period it has gained a sizeable market share. The launch of Onsys Magma Black bridges the need-gap and aims to further strengthen our position in Hinge segment with the launch. This discreetly elegant variant ensures that dark wooden furniture, a perennial market favourite, is accentuated in both style and durability."



The hinge features a black nickel finish, integrated silent closing and a 105 opening angle. Designed to withstand 40,000 open/close cycles, they are rigorously tested for corrosion and condensation resistance. Thus, promising a 10 Year Performance Warranty and a 3 Year Anti-Rust Warranty.



Onsys Magma Black Hinge is available at your nearest dealer or online at Hettich India Online website.



YouTube Link - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ylahJLI2qMI



About Hettich:



Hettich is a 136-year-old family-owned German lifestyle brand, being one of the world's largest manufacturers of Furniture Fittings with a global turnover exceeding 1.5 billion euros. In India, Hettich started operations at the dawn of the new millennium and within a short span of time gained an undisputed leadership position in the Indian furniture fittings and hardware industry. It is also the recipient of 'Best Brands 2022 & 2023' by the Economic Times and the 'Most Trusted Brands of India 2023 & 2024' by Marksmen Daily recognitions for its unwavering customer trust and strong brand equity.



Hettich's product portfolio comprises a repertoire of Furniture Fittings & Door Hardware made with cutting-edge German quality complemented by Wire Products, Aluminum Profiles, Shelving Systems, Built-in Appliances and Furniture Lights, thereby providing holistic fitting solutions for all residential and commercial spaces.



Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2437651/HettichLogo.jpg



Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/2437652/OnsysMagmaBlackHinge.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 / Bharuch (India), June 13: In a bid to spearhead the next wave of innovation in Automation, IED Communications Ltd., proudly presents the Automation Expo Roadshow in Delhi. This ground-breaking event sets the stage for the upcoming Automation Expo 2024, the 17th International Exhibition & Conference which will be held from 21st to 24th August 2024 at BEC, Nesco, Mumbai, featuring over 500++ stalls and 800++ companies.



To offer a glimpse into the future of automation, over 30 exhibitors who will showcase their cutting-edge technologies at:



1st Delhi Automation Roadshow on 29th June 2024 at The Lalit, Barakhamba Avenue, New Delhi, from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm & 1st Bharuch Automation Roadshow on 5th July 2024 at Hyatt Place, Bharuch from 10.00 am to 6.00 pm.



Anticipating a turnout of 500 to 1000 instrumentation and automation enthusiasts, this event marks a significant milestone in our mission to foster innovation and drive industry progress.



The Automation Roadshow promises an immersive experience, featuring diverse exhibits, demonstrations, and expert presentations. From robotics and artificial intelligence to industry-specific applications, attendees will gain valuable insights into the transformative potential of automation technology. Engaging kiosks, table top displays, and interactive sessions will provide a comprehensive understanding of the latest innovations shaping various industries.



Moreover, the event offers unparalleled networking opportunities, facilitating collaboration and knowledge exchange among industry professionals. Attendees can expect to forge new partnerships, explore growth opportunities, and prepare for the upcoming Automation Expo 2024 in Mumbai.



Join us on 29th June 2024 at The Lalit, Barakhamba Avenue, New Delhi, from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm, and on 5th July 2024 at Hyatt Place, Bharuch from 10.00 am to 6.00 pm to embark on a journey into the future of automation.



Don't miss this unparalleled opportunity to be part of the first-ever Automation Roadshow in Delhi and Bharuch discover the latest innovations propelling the industry forward.



Free Visitor Registration for the Automation Expo Road Shows is now open.



https://www.viablesoft.org.in/AutomationExpo2024VD/vipregistration.aspx



As the countdown begins, we encourage professionals to secure their attendance early to ensure access to this landmark event.



For more information and registration, please visit https://www.automationindiaexpo.com or



email: jyothi@iedcommunications.com/Mobile: 77770 15667 / 98200 93667



(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
Islamabad, Jun 13 (PTI) Pakistans budgetary allocation of Rs 2,122 billion for defence for 2024-25 constitutes just 1.7 per cent of the cash-strapped but nuclear-armed nation's GDP, which is the same as the previous year, despite the higher than the Rs 1,804 billion set aside during the outgoing fiscal 2023-24, according to budget documents.

Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb on Wednesday presented a Rs 18,877 billion heavily taxed budget for 2024-25.

The finance ministers speech and various budget documents show that Rs 2,122 billion allocated for the next fiscal year is Rs 318 billion higher than Rs 1,804 billion budgeted for the outgoing fiscal year 2023-24, ending on June 30.

According to the Pakistan Economic Survey 2023-24, which is a key document showing the budget and performance of the economy each year and is released ahead of the budget each year, defence spending as a percentage of the GDP has come down since 2020.

It shows that the defence spending was 2.6 per cent of the GDP in 2020 but it decreased to 2.4 per cent in 2021, and went down further to 2.1 per cent in 2022, followed by 1.9 per cent in 2023 and 1.7 per cent in 2024.

For the year 2025, defence spending has been retained at 1.7 per cent of the GDP, showing that there was no change in the share of the army in the overall pie despite it getting more money in the budget.

The document lists defence spending as per GDP since 2016 when it was 2.3 per cent, and increased to 2.5 per cent of the GDP in 2017 and further to 2.6 per cent in 2018. It remained unchanged at 2.6 per cent from 2018 to 2020 and then decreased.

However, the data released by the government may not convey the real picture of defence spending as several military-related expenses are budgeted in the civilian expenditures.

For example, a sum of Pakistani Rs 662 billion, allocated for retired military personnel, which equals to about 31 per cent of the allocation for the armed forces, will not be drawn from the defence budget but rather from the governments current expenditure.

Similarly, it is believed that key military acquisitions or funding for nuclear weapons and missile programmes are believed to be financed through separate channels, obscuring the exact military spending.

However, the budget document provides some details about the latest allocation, showing that the share of the three services and inter-services organisations has remained fairly consistent since 2019, with the Army getting 47.5 per cent, the Air Force 21.3 per cent, the Navy 10.8 per cent and the inter-services organisations 20.3 per cent of the budget.

It shows that this year the Army, Pakistan Air Force, Pakistan Navy and inter-services organisations will receive an equal percentage increase of 22.3 per cent in their respective allocations, a rare display of parity in funding distribution.

The allocation is divided into four categories: Employees Related Expenses, covering salaries and allowances for servicemen; Operating Expenses, which include costs for transportation, fuel, rations, medical treatment, training, and other essential services; Physical Assets, which funds the procurement of arms, ammunition, and related equipment through local purchases and imports; and Civil Works dedicated to maintaining existing infrastructure and financing new construction projects.

The civil works category got the biggest 25 per cent increase with Rs 244.8 billion allocation, followed by physical assets, which received Rs 548.6 billion (18.8 per cent increase), and operating expenses got Rs 513.3 billion (15.6 per cent raise).

The ERE (employee-related expenses) head still got the largest chunk of the budget for the armed forces with 39 per cent allocation. Physical assets and operating expenses got 25.8 per cent and 25 per cent of the budget, respectively, while civil works claimed 11.5 per cent.

Due to the peculiar security situation of Pakistan and its uneasy ties with India, its defence spending often comes under the scanner both at home and abroad.
Bari (Italy), Jun 13 (PTI) Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) nations on Thursday began their three-day summit on global affairs in the southern Italian region of Apulia, where Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been invited for the Outreach session to be held on Friday.

The Russia-Ukraine conflict is set to dominate the agenda as leaders of the G7  the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, France and Japan  are hosted by Italian Prime Minister Georgia Meloni at the luxury resort of Borgo Egnazia on the Adriatic coast.

While India has reiterated its stance on dialogue and diplomacy as the best approach, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is leading calls for decisive efforts to support Ukraine whatever it takes.

We must be decisive and creative in our efforts to support Ukraine and end (Russian President) Putins illegal war at this critical moment, Sunak said in a statement ahead of the summit talks.

The UK remains at the forefront of the international response as we have been from the outset. We must move from as long as it takes to whatever it takes if we are to end this illegal war, he said.

From Ukraine to the Middle East, we will be discussing significant global threats at the summit. Such threats are why it is so vital to strengthen the UKs national defence, through our commitment to spend 2.5 per cent of GDP on defence by 2030, he added.

According to Downing Street, at the summit, Sunak will announce up to GBP 242 million in bilateral assistance to Ukraine, to support immediate humanitarian, energy and stabilisation needs, and lay the foundations for longer-term economic and social recovery and reconstruction.

A priority for the PM at the Summit will be to work with partners to agree a way to use immobilised Russian assets to support Ukraine, a Downing Street statement said.

Meanwhile, in his pre-visit media briefing in New Delhi on Wednesday, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra recalled Modi's statement in September 2022 that today's era is not of war.

We have always maintained that dialogue and diplomacy is the best option, he said, pointing to the consequences of the war such as an impact on food, fuel and fertiliser availability, challenges to global supply chains and disruptions in the global economy.

We have always been in the forefront to talk about not just the conflict, the need for dialogue and diplomacy but also the way the conflict is impacting on the priorities and interests of the developing countries, he said.

We have always been at the forefront to offer assistance wherever we can to alleviate challenges faced by the Global South because of the conflict, humanitarian assistance to Ukraine and also to the Global South affected by conflict, he added.

The Foreign Secretary said India will continue to share its perspective with world leaders on the sidelines of the summit, where Modi will participate in the Outreach session along with the other countries.

The session will be focused on issues relating to artificial intelligence (AI), energy, Africa and the Mediterranean.

Besides India, Italy which holds the presidency  has invited leaders from 11 developing countries in Africa, South America and the Indo-Pacific region to attend the summit in line with the summit tradition.

For Prime Minister Modi, who had attended the G7 summit in Hiroshima in May last year, the visit marks his first foreign tour after being re-elected for a third term.

He is expected to hold several bilateral meetings on the sidelines, including with US President Joe Biden.

The G7 leaders were welcomed by Italian PM Meloni, as the President of the Council of Ministers, who is keen to showcase the Apulia regions many highlights.

Pope Francis will attend the summit on Friday, becoming the first pontiff to take part in a G7, and is set to talk about the need for ethical AI, as well as about efforts to bring about peace, Italy's ANSA news agency reported.

Massimo Bottura, a top Italian chef awarded seven Michelin Stars, is preparing the delicacies for the summit.

I wish to thank Chef Bottura for accepting our invitation, and for using his art to promote Italian food and wine. We invited him not only because he is one of the worlds most famous ambassadors of Italian cuisine, but also because of his ability to combine aesthetics and ethics, said Meloni.
Peshawar, Jun 13 (PTI) A total of 181 terrorists, including key commanders associated with banned outfits, have been killed during the over 7,500 operations by Pakistan Security Forces since April in the country's restive provinces, an official report has said.

The security forces conducted operations in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan and Sindh province collectively and claimed that the timely actions also foiled efforts of the banned Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) outfit to carry out their subversive activities in the urban areas.

Forces conducted 7,745 operations across the country between April 1, 2024 and June 10, 2024 killing 181 terrorists, including important commanders associated with banned outfits, the report released on Wednesday said.

In KPK Province, a total of 2,701 operations were launched against the militants on intelligence based reports and 61 terrorists eliminated; as many as 4,902 operations were carried out in Balochistan killing 12 terrorists, and 142 operations in Sindh province were carried out against the militants, it said.

The forces frustrated at least 20 cross border infiltrating attempts of the terrorists and killed scores of terrorists in such attempts.

The report also indicated that the terrorist network involved in the killing of five Chinese engineers in Bisham area of KPK has been busted and all of them arrested.
Dubai, Jun 13 (PTI) Prominent NRI businessman and Chairman of UAE-based Lulu Group on Thursday announced Rs 5 lakh each for the families of the deceased in the tragic Kuwait fire tragedy, which left 49 persons, including 45 Indians, dead.

At least 49 foreign workers were killed and 50 others injured in the fire on Wednesday at the seven-storey building where 196 migrant workers were staying in the southern city of Mangaf.

A sum of Rs. 5 lakh for each of the families of the deceased will be paid as part of this relief fund, a statement released by the group in Abu Dhabi said.

The central government as well as the Kerala government have also announced similar relief funds.

Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh reached Kuwait on Thursday and met some of the Indians injured in the fire. The Indian Embassy in Kuwait said all those injured were safe.
Wellington, Jun 13 (AP) China's Premier Li Qiang arrived in New Zealand on Thursday, beginning a rare visit to its closest partner among Western democracies, where a celebration of trade links is expected to vie with concerns about South Pacific security on Wellington's agenda.

China's No. 2 official, Li is the first Chinese premier to visit New Zealand since a 2017 visit by Li Keqiang. He will also visit Australia and Malaysia, China's Foreign Ministry said this week. The trip coincides with easing tensions between Australia and China that have vexed the relationship in recent years.

New Zealand's Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is expected to salute trade links with China in public statements this week. China is the South Pacific nation's largest trading partner, with two-way trade worth 36 billion New Zealand dollars (USD 22 billion). They signed a bilateral free trade agreement in 2008  China's first with an Organisation for Cooperation and Development nation  and the visit marks the 10th anniversary of a pledge to bolster ties signed in 2014 when China's President Xi Jinping last visited Wellington.

But while Luxon hailed the visit in remarks to reporters on Monday as presenting renewed opportunities for business, Wellington has long sought to diversify the country's export market away from dependence on China and the visit will not be a simple story of economic success as engagements with New Zealand leaders have sometimes been before.

As China and the US vie for influence in the Pacific, Luxon spoke ahead of a tour of Niue and Fiji this month of increasingly choppy geostrategic waters for the region, although he stopped short of naming China except as one of a list of countries jockeying for sway.

New Zealand has in recent years taken a less assertive line with Beijing on security matters than its Western partners in the Five Eyes intelligence sharing partnership and has sought a consistent foreign policy approach to Beijing that spans political parties and administrations. But Luxon told reporters Monday that there were areas where, in talks with Li, Wellington would call out our differences and discuss those openly, too.

One point of friction is likely to be New Zealand's contemplation of joining one tranche of the AUKUS security pact among Australia, the United States and Britain.

We happen to think AUKUS is good from a security point of view, providing security into the Indo-Pacific, Luxon said, calling it appropriate that New Zealand explores its options under the agreement before deciding whether to participate.

China's Foreign Minister Wang Yi decried New Zealand and Australia's security concerns in meetings with his New Zealand counterpart during a visit to Wellington in March.

They're real, Luxon said of regional threats.

On Thursday, more than 100 people held banners and Chinese and New Zealand flags aloft as they lined a side street near the airport in chilly, overcast conditions to watch Li's Air China flight arrive  an unusual sight in the capital, Wellington, population 215,000, which is absent from many international air routes.

The normally sleepy beachside suburb of Lyall Bay had a bolstered presence of law enforcement officers. As Li's motorcade emerged from the airport, drumming, chanting and singing from those assembled greeted the leader, prompting questions from bemused retail workers arriving to open nearby stores.

Li on Saturday will head to Australia's capital, where Beijing's relations in recent years have not been as smooth.

His visit to Canberra caps two years of efforts to rebuild China-Australia relations after a period of intense hostility and celebrates what both sides hope is a sustainable return to normalcy in ties, despite their differences on regional security and human rights.

His visit, the first by a Chinese premier in seven years, follows Albanese's trip to Beijing last November and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi's trip to Australia and New Zealand in March. China has been steadily rolling back tariffs and other restrictions it placed on imports from Australia as relations soured in 2020.

China is opposed to Australia's plan to acquire nuclear-powered submarines with assistance from the US and the UK, which it sees as part of American efforts to constrain China by deepening military ties with other countries in the region.

But with Australia unlikely to bend on that issue, Li's focus will likely be on moving past their differences and deepening economic ties. Australia, which has a trade surplus with China, is a major supplier of iron ore and other minerals to the world's second largest economy. (AP) GSP
The Erie County Sheriff's Department Air 1 helicopter assisted as Buffalo police recovered three stolen vehicles and took nine people into custody Tuesday night and early Wednesday, Sheriff John C. Garcia reported.

The first vehicle, stolen in Buffalo, was recovered at 124 Maple Ridge Ave. near Erie County Medical Center, where two of the three people inside were apprehended.

The second vehicle, which had been stolen in the City of Tonawanda, was found at Oakmont Avenue and Suffolk Street in the Kensington-Bailey neighborhood, where the sheriff's K9 dog Viva assisted in taking three people into custody.

The third vehicle, also stolen in Buffalo, was recovered at 177 Military Road in Black Rock and four suspects were detained by Buffalo police.

- Dale Anderson
Brindisi (Italy), Jun 13 (AP) President Joe Biden and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will sign a bilateral security agreement between the US and Ukraine on Thursday when they meet on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Italy.

Negotiators for the group have also reached an agreement on how to provide Ukraine with up to $50 billion backed by frozen Russian assets.

The international group of wealthy democracies has been discussing ways of using the more than $260 billion in frozen Russian assets, most of which are outside the country, to help Ukraine fight Russian President Vladimir Putin's war machine.

European officials have resisted confiscating the assets, citing legal and financial stability concerns, but the plan would use the interest earned on the assets to help Ukraine's war effort. An official with the French presidency confirmed the agreement Wednesday, saying most of the money would be flowing to Ukraine in the form of a loan from the U.S. government backed by the proceeds of the frozen Russian assets in the European Union. Two other people familiar with the matter confirmed the arrangement.

Final technical negotiations were underway ahead of the summit to finalize the legal terms of the deal.

The announcement of the agreement comes as Biden landed in Italy with an urgency to get big things done. Thursday's security arrangement was aimed to send a signal to Russia of American resolve in supporting Kyiv, the White House said.

National security adviser Jake Sullivan said the security agreement would not commit U.S. troops directly to Ukraine's defense against Russia's invasion - a red line drawn by Biden, who's fearful of being pulled into direct conflict between the nuclear-armed powers.

We want to demonstrate that the U.S. supports the people of Ukraine, that we stand with them and that we'll continue to help address their security needs, Sullivan said, adding this agreement will show our resolve.

Sullivan said aboard Air Force One that the goal of the financing plan was to have a loan that would pull forward the windfall profits from the seized assets of Russia, giving Ukraine a substantial source of funding to meet its immediate needs.

The national security adviser said he had a specific sum of money in mind, but declined to say if that figure was $50 billion. He stressed the urgency of getting Ukraine financial resources as soon as possible and that multiple countries would back the agreement.

It's to provide the necessary resources to Ukraine now for its economic energy and other needs, so that it's capable of having the resilience necessary to withstand Russia's continuing aggression, Sullivan said.

This year's meeting comes three years after Biden declared at his first such gathering that America was back as a global leader following the disruptions to Western alliances that occurred when Donald Trump was president. Now, there's a chance this gathering could be the final summit for Biden and other G7 leaders, depending on the results of elections this year.

Biden and his counterparts from Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Japan will use the summit to discuss challenges related to artificial intelligence, migration, the Russian military's resurgence and China's economic might, among other topics. Pope Francis, Zelenskyy and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan are joining the gathering at the Borgo Egnazia resort in the Puglia region of southern Italy.

The summit, which opened Thursday, will play out after far-right parties across the continent racked up gains of surprising scale in just-concluded European Union elections. Those victories - coupled with upcoming elections in the United Kingdom, France and the United States - have rattled the global political establishment and added weightiness to this year's summit.

You hear this a lot when you talk to U.S. and European officials: If we can't get this done now, whether it's on China, whether it's on the assets, we may not have another chance, said Josh Lipsky, senior director of the Atlantic Council's GeoEconomics Center, an international affairs think tank. We don't know what the world will look like three months, six months, nine months from now."

The G7 is an informal bloc of industrialized democracies that meets annually to discuss shared issues and concerns. This is Biden's second trip outside the U.S. in as many weeks; the Democratic president was in France last week for a state visit in Paris and ceremonies in Normandy marking the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings in World War II.

While last week's visit had a celebratory feel, this one will be dominated by pressing global issues, including how to keep financial support flowing to Ukraine as it fights Russia's invasion. Biden's trip comes days after his son Hunter was convicted on federal gun charges, a blow sure to weigh heavily on the president's mind.

Despite pressing global challenges, White House national security spokesman John Kirby said there's still a sense of relief among world leaders in 2024 that "America was back," referencing Biden's 2021 speech at the G7 in England.

Biden's message then was that democracies need to step up and show they can deliver for their people, Kirby said. That's true now more than ever.

Kirby said the U.S. was prepared to work with democratically elected officials in the EU no matter who they are, though some of those being elevated have expressed far less support for Ukraine than current leaders.

"We have every confidence that regardless of who fills the seats in the European Parliament, we're going to continue to work closely with our EU partners on all the issues relative to our shared interests across the European continent," Kirby said. "That includes supporting Ukraine.

Biden and Zelenskyy, who met last week in Paris, are expected to hold a joint news conference while meeting at the G7 summit. Biden is also expected to meet with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the pope and other leaders.

Biden, who's been adamant we will not walk away from Ukraine, last week publicly apologized to Zelenskyy for a monthslong delay by Congress in authorizing additional American military assistance. The delay allowed Russia to make gains on the battlefield.

Sullivan called the security agreement a bridge to when Ukraine is invited to join the NATO alliance - a long-term priority of Zelenskyy's that the allies have said will first require an end to the Russia-Ukraine war and that Putin has steadfastly opposed.

Biden's back-to-back trips to France and Italy amount to a rare doubleheader of diplomacy in the midst of the presidential election. The president, however, will skip a Ukraine peace conference in Switzerland this weekend to jet to Los Angeles for a campaign fundraiser with big names from Hollywood. Vice President Kamala Harris will represent the U.S. at the conference.

Despite the delays in military aid, the Biden administration on Tuesday announced it would send Ukraine another Patriot missile system to help fend off Russian strikes, two U.S. officials told The Associated Press.

Earlier Wednesday, the U.S. also announced fresh sanctions targeting Chinese companies that help Russia pursue its war in Ukraine, as well as Russia's financial infrastructure. Sullivan said, These actions will ratchet up the risk that foreign financial institutions take by dealing with Russia's war economy.

Biden is also expected to discuss economic concerns brought on by Chinese manufacturing overcapacity, how to use artificial intelligence in a way that maximizes benefits but still manages national security risks, and global migration.

The U.S. and other G7 nations are struggling to manage large influxes of migrants arriving for complicated reasons that include war, climate change and drought. Migration, and how nations cope with the growing numbers at their borders, has been a factor driving the far-right rise in some of Europe. (AP)

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Canberra, Jun 13 (The Conversation) The Summit on Peace in Ukraine, hosted by Switzerland this weekend, is not a peace conference in the usual sense. Russia, which has dismissed it as irrelevant, wont participate. And any summit aimed at ending the war cant produce a final settlement without Russias involvement.

Rather, the summit stems from a push by Ukraine to build wider support for a path towards a just and lasting peace in Ukraine. Specifically, it wants to build consensus around some basic principles for a future settlement.

President Volodymyr Zelenskys ten-point peace formula, first set out in November 2022, advocates some unobjectionable ideas. It also highlights the damage Russias invasion has inflicted on Ukraine, along with the dangers Russia poses to other countries.



The plan includes: nuclear safety (underlining the risks posed by Russias occupation of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, as well as Russian nuclear sabre-rattling)

-food security (addressing the disruption of global food supplies caused by the invasion and the need for freedom of navigation from Ukraines Black Sea ports)

-energy security (highlighting Russias attacks crippling Ukraines energy infrastructure)

-the release of all Ukrainian prisoners and return of Ukrainian children deported to Russia (the subject of arrest warrants by the International Criminal Court against President Vladimir Putin)

-the restoration of Ukrainian territory to its pre-2014, internationally recognised borders

-the full withdrawal of Russian military forces

-justice under international law, including a special tribunal to prosecute alleged war crimes and compensation for damage caused to Ukraine

-addressing environmental destruction caused by the war

-security guarantees for Ukraine against future Russian aggression

-a multilateral peace conference with a binding treaty to end the war.



Who is attending?



Ukraine has developed the proposal through informal meetings over the past 18 months. Host Switzerland says around 90 countries have agreed to attend out of 160 invited. Many European leaders will be there; the United States will be represented by Vice President Kamala Harris.

The summit is timed to follow immediately after this weeks G7 meeting in Italy. Ukraine hopes the G7 will build on its previous support for the war effort, particularly through action on reparations. This includes using frozen Russian assets for Ukraines reconstruction and defence.

Upcoming NATO and European Union summits in July will also be critical for securing assistance and progressing Ukraines membership aspirations in those bodies.

However, Ukraines main target audience at the summit will be countries of the Global South. It remains unclear how many of the bigger players, such as Brazil, India, Indonesia, Turkey and South Africa, will be represented  or if they will send officials rather than leaders or ministers.

There are indications that Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, among others, wont be there, which will disappoint Ukraine.

China, which has become more closely aligned to Russia since the war started, has also said it wont take part, given Moscows absence. Zelensky, in turn, has accused China of working with Russia to dissuade countries from attending.



What issues are most important on the agenda?



The Ukrainian government says it will prioritise nuclear safety, food security and the return of prisoners and child deportees at the summit. These likely offer the best prospects for consensus. The government feels it may need to move onto the other points gradually.

The Swiss have also downplayed expectations of major progress. They have suggested a second follow-up conference may be needed, in which Russia could be included.

Another major objective will be to reinforce support for the idea that any settlement must entail restoring Ukraines recognised borders, which Russia previously agreed to in a 2004 treaty.

To make this point, Ukraine invokes Article 2 of the UN Charter, requiring states not to use force against the territorial integrity of other countries.

This principle has been reinforced over the years by numerous UN Security Council resolutions, notably on the Israel-Palestine conflict, that affirm the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by force. As I have argued elsewhere, the international community as a whole has consistently respected this stance on territorial conquest over the past 60 years.

In addition, at least 141 countries voted in three UN General Assembly resolutions in 2022 and 2023 to condemn Russias invasion and demand that it withdraw from Ukraine. Just a handful of nations voted with Russia against the resolutions.

Ukraine pursued the summit partly as a counter to proposals floated by some countries or individuals that imply Ukraine may have to lose territory permanently in any ceasefire agreement. This could include Crimea and the eastern Donbas region.

For Ukraine, however, this is more than just territory. Before the war, several million Ukrainians lived in these regions. Many have since fled, but those who remain are being subjected to a brutal occupation regime. For the Crimean Tatars, that is their only homeland.



Why is the Global South staying on the sidelines?



Despite many countries backing Ukraines position in the UN, most of the Global South has been reluctant to apply diplomatic or trade sanctions against Russia. Some oppose the idea of unilateral sanctions (that is, not endorsed by the UN).

Russia itself has been very active diplomatically in the Global South and is giving several countries military support, notably in Africa. As a result, many non-Western countries have hedged their bets. They do not want to get caught up in what they see as a fight between the West and Russia, backed by China.

Many of these governments and their people are also sceptical about Western invocation of a rules-based order. This stems in part from the Wests past unilateral actions, such as the 2003 Iraq invasion. Western support for Israel (or at least lukewarm criticism) over the Gaza war has only entrenched such scepticism.



So, what can we expect from the summit?



Russia says a full withdrawal of its troops is a non-starter for negotiations. And without Russian participation in the summit  and with questions over buy-in from the Global South  expectations are modest for major practical outcomes. Some reports say a draft statement may not even cover questions of territorial integrity.

Nevertheless, it will be a chance to put Ukraines plight back in the spotlight after months of focus on Gaza. It will also be a valuable step if the summit can strengthen global opposition to Russias territorial conquest.

As historian Yuval Noah Hariri puts it, non-Western powers should act to protect the international order  not out of obligation to the West, but for their own benefit, to prevent a new age of imperialism. (The Conversation) NSA

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Borgo Egnazia (Italy), Jun 13 (AP) A Group of Seven summit opened on Thursday with agreement reached on a US proposal to back a USD 50 billion loan to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets as collateral, giving Kyiv a strong show of support even as Europe's political chessboard shifts to the right.

Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni welcomed the heads of state of the G7 leading industrialised nations to a luxury resort in southern Italy, saying she wanted the message of the meeting to be one of dialogue with the global south and unity.

She likened the G7 to the ancient olive trees that are a symbol of the Puglia region, with their solid roots, and branches projected toward the future.

Beyond discussions on Ukraine, the war in Gaza and China's industrial policy, Pope Francis will become the first pope to address a G7 summit, adding a dash of celebrity and moral authority to the annual gathering. He'll be speaking on Friday about the promises and perils of artificial intelligence, but is expected to also renew his appeal for a peaceful end to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

The G7 includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. Italy, which is hosting the summit, has invited several African leaders  Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Kenyan President William Ruto and Tunisian President Kis Saied  to press Meloni's development and migration initiatives on the continent.

Other guests include Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, fresh off his own election, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

With Biden, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and now French President Emmanuel Macron facing elections in the coming months, pressure was on the G7 to get done what it can while the status quo lasts.



Frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine

The US proposal involves engineering a USD 50 billion loan to help Ukraine in its fight against Russia that would use interest earned on profits from Russia's frozen central bank assets, most of them held in the European Union, as collateral.

A French official, briefing reporters on Wednesday, said a political decision by the leaders had been reached but that technical and legal details of the mechanism to tap into the assets still had to be worked out. The issue is complicated because if the Russian assets one day are unfrozen  say if the war ends  then the windfall profits will no longer be able to be used to pay off the loan, requiring a burden-sharing arrangement with other countries.

Zelenskyy listed the asset deal as one of many arrangements he hoped to see finalised during the summit, including a bilateral security agreement with the US.

"I am grateful to our partners for their belief in us and our victory," he said in a post on social media platform X.

Sunak, for his part, announced up to 242 million pounds (286 million euros or USD 310 million) in nonmilitary aid to Ukraine and a new round of sanctions against suppliers of munitions and other aid to Russia's military located in China, Israel, Kyrgyzstan and Turkiye.

Washington also sent strong signals of support, with widened sanctions against Russia to target Chinese companies that are helping its war machine.



Europe's new political chessboard

Meloni goes into the meeting fortified at home and abroad after her far-right party had an even stronger showing in the European Parliament election than in the national general election in 2022 that made her Italy's first female premier. Known for its revolving-door governments, Italy is now in the unusual position of being the most stable power in the EU.

The leaders of the G7's two other EU members, Germany and France, didn't fare nearly as well, rattled after hard-right parties made strong showings in the vote. Macron called a snap election and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz saw his Social Democrats finish behind mainstream conservatives and the far-right Alternative for Germany.

As a result, Meloni is likely to be able to steer the three-day meeting to her key priority items as she further cements her role on the world stage, analysts said. One sign of her flexed far-right muscles: Meloni's office denied media reports that Italy was trying to water down language about access to abortion in the final communique.

A French official, speaking anonymously in line with Macron's office's customary practices, said there were diverging views with Italian negotiators on some topics, including on sexual and reproductive health and vaccines.

Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani confirmed abortion was being addressed, but said discussions were continuing.

While it's unlikely the recent results will radically shift the focus of the upcoming G7 summit, this electoral win offers Premier Meloni additional leverage to frame this as an essentially Mediterranean Summit,' said Nick O'Connell, deputy director of the Atlantic Council.

That includes pushing her migration agenda as Meloni seeks to leverage her program for a nonexploitative relationship with Africa to boost development while curbing illegal migration to Europe.



The pope and artificial intelligence

Pope Francis has called for an international treaty to ensure AI is developed and used ethically, acknowledging the promise it offers but emphasising the grave and existential threats it poses.

He'll bring that campaign to the world's industrialised countries as wars are raging across multiple fronts. One of his greatest concerns has been on the use of AI in the armaments sector. But Francis is also concerned about what AI means for the poorest and weakest in daily life: technology that could determine the reliability of an applicant for a mortgage, the right of a migrant to receive political asylum or the chance of reoffending by someone previously convicted of a crime.



It's happening where?

The G7 summit is taking place in a sprawling luxury resort that's something of a theater set, a faux town made to resemble one of Puglia's medieval white-stone hamlets but that actually only dates from 2010.

Located next to an actual archaeological park, Borgo Egnazia features narrow streets, villas, restaurants and a town square complete with a clocktower. A favourite of celebrities, it was sealed off to outsiders for the duration of the summit.

No such five-star accommodations await the 2,000-plus police and Carabinieri forces who have been brought in to provide security. Authorities on Wednesday sequestered the decommissioned cruise ship that had been housing them in Brindisi's port, after the police union complained about unacceptable hygienic conditions on board.

As with any G7, an assortment of anti-global, anti-war and climate activists are staging protests around the summit venue, but far from where the leaders are meeting. One group is staging a dinner for the poor on Friday night calling for peace, the rights of peoples and against the Big 7 who claim to decide the destiny of the world and our planet. (AP) PY

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Washington, Jun 13 (AP) A coalition of immigrant advocacy groups sued the Biden administration on Wednesday over President Joe Biden's recent directive that effectively halts asylum claims at the southern border, saying it differs little from a similar move during the Trump administration that was blocked by the courts.

The lawsuit  filed by the American Civil Liberties Union and others on behalf of Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center and RAICES  is the first test of the legality of Biden's sweeping crackdown on the border, which came after months of internal White House deliberations and is designed in part to deflect political attacks against the president on his handling of immigration.

By enacting an asylum ban that is legally indistinguishable from the Trump ban we successfully blocked, we were left with no choice but to file this lawsuit, said Lee Gelernt, an attorney for the ACLU.

The order Biden issued last week would limit asylum processing once encounters with migrants between ports of entry reach 2,500 per day. It went into effect immediately because the latest figures were far higher, at about 4,000 daily.

The restrictions would be in effect until two weeks after the daily encounter numbers are at or below 1,500 per day between ports of entry, under a seven-day average. But it's far from clear when the numbers would dip that low; the last time was in July 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The order went into effect June 5, and Biden administration officials have said they expected record levels of deportations.

But advocates argue that suspending asylum for migrants who don't arrive at a designated port of entry  which the Biden administration is trying to push migrants to do - violates existing federal immigration law, among other concerns.

Biden invoked the same legal authority used by the Trump administration for its asylum ban, which comes under Section 212(f) of the Immigration and Nationality Act. That provision allows a president to limit entries for certain migrants if their entry is deemed detrimental to the national interest.

Biden has repeatedly criticized Trump's immigration policies as he campaigns, and his administration argues that his directive is different because it includes several exemptions for humanitarian reasons. For example, victims of human trafficking, unaccompanied minors and those with severe medical emergencies would not be subject to the limits.

We stand by the legality of what we have done, Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas said on ABC's This Week before the lawsuit was filed, saying he anticipated legal challenges. We stand by the value proposition.

Under Biden's directive, migrants who arrive at the border but do not express a fear of returning to their home countries will be subject to immediate removal from the United States, within a matter of days or even hours. Those migrants could face punishments that could include a five-year bar from reentering the US or even criminal prosecution.

Meanwhile, those who express fear or an intention to seek asylum will be screened by a US asylum officer but at a higher standard than currently used. If they pass the screening, they can pursue more limited forms of humanitarian protection, including the UN Convention Against Torture, which prohibits returning people to a country where they're likely to face torture. (AP) RPA
Beijing/Wellington, Jun 13 (PTI) Chinese Premier Li Qiang, who is visiting New Zealand amid the country's plan to join the AUKUS alliance, has warned that both countries must stop their differences from becoming a chasm between them.

AUKUS, comprising Australia, the United Kingdom, and the United States, a trilateral security alliance is intended to strengthen the ability of each government to support security and defence interests, building on longstanding and ongoing bilateral ties by promoting deeper information sharing and technology sharing and fostering the integration of security and defence-related science, technology, industrial bases and supply chains.

Beijing avers the partnership is aimed at containing Chinas rise.

It is natural that the two countries dont always see eye-to-eye with each other on everything, Li told a joint press conference with New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon after their talks in Wellington on Thursday.

Such differences should not become a chasm that blocks exchanges and cooperation between us, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post quoted Li as saying.

He added the two countries should use differences to learn from each other and grow together.

An official text of Lis speech released by the Chinese Foreign Ministry here said: The two sides should work to remove the disturbance of non-economic factors to bilateral trade and economic relations, and provide stable expectations and a sound business environment for the operation and development of companies.

He also announced a visa-free policy for New Zealanders to visit China.

The unusually strong words from Li, 64, a close associate of Chinese President Xi Jinping, come in the backdrop of reports that New Zealand plans to join the AUKUS alliance which involves the transfer of nuclear submarine technology and the latest cutting-edge technologies, including quantum computing, artificial intelligence and hypersonic weapons.

China regards both Quad, (US, India, Japan, Australia) and AUKUS as alliances aimed at containing its rise and is bitterly critical of both.

Reports from Wellington quoted Luxon as saying that he discussed with Li the significant China-New Zealand economic relationship with two-way trade in goods worth nearly USD 23.43 billion, mainly New Zealands dairy products.

Luxon said he told the Chinese premier he would have no tolerance for foreign interference in New Zealands affairs.

Luxon said Li had raised concern about Wellingtons possible participation in a trilateral security pact with Australia, the United States and Britain, the AP news agency reported.

New Zealand is among the candidates to join Pillar 2 of an expanded AUKUS, the Post reported earlier.

Launched in 2021, AUKUS has two key pillars: Pillar 1 supports Australias acquisition of conventionally armed nuclear-powered submarines, while Pillar 2 focuses on cutting-edge technologies, including quantum computing, artificial intelligence and hypersonic weapons.

The first pillar is limited to the core trio, with no plans for additional member states, while the expansion would take place in the second pillar, with Japan, South Korea, New Zealand and Canada also reportedly listed as prospective partners.

Beijing has repeatedly opposed the establishment and expansion of AUKUS saying it has undermined the international nuclear non-proliferation regime and triggered arms races in the region.

Li is on a three-day three-nation tour to New Zealand followed by Australia and Malaysia, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry.
Moscow, Jun 13 (AP) US journalist Evan Gershkovich, who has been jailed for over a year in Russia on espionage charges, will stand trial in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg, authorities said on Thursday.

An indictment of the Wall Street Journal reporter has been finalised and his case was filed to the Sverdlovsky Regional Court in the city about 1,400 kilometres (870 miles) east of Moscow, according to Russia's Prosecutor General's office.

Gershkovich is accused of gathering secret information for the CIA about Uralvagonzavod, a facility in the Sverdlovsk region that produces and repairs military equipment, the Prosecutor General's office said in a statement, revealing for the first time the details of the accusations against him.

The officials didn't provide any evidence to back up the accusations. There was no word on when the trial would begin.

Gershkovich was detained while on a reporting trip to Yekaterinburg in March 2023 and accused of spying for the United States. The reporter, his employer and the US government denied the allegations, and Washington designated him as wrongfully detained.

The Federal Security Service, or FSB, alleged at the time he was acting on US orders to collect state secrets but also provided no evidence.

President Vladimir Putin has said he believed a deal could be reached to free Gershkovich, hinting he would be open to swapping him for a Russian national imprisoned in Germany, which appeared to be Vadim Krasikov. He was serving a life sentence for the 2019 killing in Berlin of a Georgian citizen of Chechen descent.

Asked last week by The Associated Press about Gershkovich, Putin said the US is taking energetic steps to secure his release. He said any such releases aren't decided via mass media but through a discreet, calm and professional approach.

And they certainly should be decided only on the basis of reciprocity, he added in an allusion to a potential prisoner swap.

Gershkovich faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

He was the first US journalist taken into custody on espionage charges since Nicholas Daniloff in 1986 at the height of the Cold War. Gershkovich's arrest shocked foreign journalists in Russia, even though the country had enacted increasingly repressive laws on freedom of speech after sending troops into Ukraine.

The son of Soviet emigres who settled in New Jersey, Gershkovich was fluent in Russian and moved to the country in 2017 to work for The Moscow Times newspaper before being hired by the Journal in 2022.

Since his arrest, Gershkovich has been held at Moscow's Lefortovo Prison, a notorious czarist-era prison used during Josef Stalin's purges, when executions were carried out in its basement.

The Biden administration has sought to negotiate his release, but Russia's Foreign Ministry said it would consider a prisoner swap only after a verdict in his trial.

US Ambassador Lynne Tracy, who regularly visited Gershkovich in prison and attended his court hearings, has called the charges against him fiction and said that Russia is using American citizens as pawns to achieve political ends.

Since sending troops to Ukraine, Russian authorities have detained several US nationals and other Westerners, seemingly bolstering that idea. (AP) PY

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Male, Jun 13 (PTI) An official from Chinas top political advisory body on Thursday assured President Mohamed Muizzu that the Chinese government respects and supports Maldives sovereignty as Beijing stepped up its presence in the strategic archipelagic nation in the Indian Ocean.

Weeks after he took oath in November last year, Muizzu, known for his pro-China leanings, went to Beijing on his first official trip and signed several MoUs, including that for defence cooperation with it.

Bater, the vice chairman of the 14th Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), the top political advisory body to the ruling party in China, noted that the 2014 State Visit by President Xi Jinping to the Maldives and the recent visit by Muizzu significantly contributed to the advancement of cooperation and friendly relations between the two countries.

The vice chairman also highlighted the historic relations between the two countries. He reiterated that the Chinese government respects and supports the Maldives' sovereignty and promotes mutual respect while advancing cooperation between the two nations, a statement from Muizzus office said here.

During the meeting with Bater at the Presidents Office, Muizzu mentioned the key developmental initiatives such as the China-Maldives Friendship Bridge and said he looked forward to strengthening the friendly relations between the two countries.

Muizzu and Bater, who is a member of the Central Committee of the ruling Chinese Communist Party, and took over as Vice Chairman of the advisory board in 2018, both expressed their eagerness to work closely on future collaborations, the statement added.

Earlier, in March, Muizzu had announced that the Maldives will get free non-lethal military equipment and training from China's military under a newly inked agreement with Beijing and said it would further strengthen the Indian Ocean island nation's independence and autonomy.

It is the first time Maldives has signed a deal with China for military cooperation of this level. Previously, China had been exclusively known for its assistance towards urban and economic development of the Maldives.

China has been increasing proximity to Maldives in different ways and means. Since Muizzu took over, Chinese companies have been winning contracts for infrastructure development projects, and also providing humanitarian aid such as sending Tibetan glaciers waters to the Maldives.

Incidentally, Muizzu, who had taken objection to the presence of Indian military personnel in his country, allowed a Chinese research ship to dock near Male when the ship made forays into the Indian Ocean surrounding the archipelago at least twice since February.
Washington, June 13 (PTI) US President Joe Biden arrived in Italy Wednesday night to attend the G7 Summit, which in addition to the leaders of Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom is also being attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a special invitee.

On Thursday, Biden plans to hold a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during which the two leaders will sign a bilateral security agreement for Ukraine "making clear our (US) support will last long into the future," his National Security Advisor (NSA) Jake Sullivan told reporters aboard Air Force One on their way to Italy.

The war in Ukraine and the Middle East are expected to dominate the G-7 Summit in addition to some of the new critical challenges like Artificial Intelligence, climate change and supply chain.

Sullivan said Biden and Zelenskyy will sit down to discuss America's strong support for Ukraine now and in the future.

After the meeting, the leaders will sign a bilateral security agreement mentioning that the US support for Ukraine will last long and pledge continued cooperation, particularly in the areas of defence and security, he added.

Our goal here is straightforward. We want to demonstrate that the US supports the people of Ukraine, that we stand with them, and that we'll continue to help address their security needs not just tomorrow but out into the future, the NSA said.

The agreement outlines a clear vision of work with Ukraine to continue strengthening Ukraine's credible defence and deterrence capability. Any lasting peace in Ukraine has to be underwritten by Ukraine's own ability to defend itself and deter future aggression, he said

And by signing this, we'll also be sending Russia a signal of our resolve. If Vladimir Putin thinks that he can outlast the coalition supporting Ukraine, he's wrong. He just cannot wait us out, and this agreement will show our resolve and continued commitment, Sullivan said.

A day earlier, White House National Security Communications Advisor John Kirby told reporters that this year's summit would show that G7 is more unified than ever to tackle global challenges, and to renew their commitment to partners around the world that they will help them invest in bright futures for their people.

We will build on the progress we made last year on our shared approach to the Indo-Pacific as well, including by advancing an Indo-Pacific region that is free, open, secure, prosperous, resilient, and connected, he said.

We will address the PRCs support for the Russian defence industrial base. And we will confront China's non-market policies that are leading to harmful global spillovers, working with partners in and beyond the G7 to promote economic resilience and security, Kirby said.

Biden will again host a side event that will highlight its positive value proposition to countries around the world via the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, or PGI, he said.

We will continue to offer a path to help countries overcome unsustainable debt burdens, to boost the World Bank's lending firepower, to mobilize additional capital for high-standard infrastructure investments, and to make new commitments on food and health security, he added.

G7 leaders will be joined by His Holiness, Pope Francis, for a session on artificial intelligence, among other topics. This will be an important moment for our countries to come together and develop our shared approach to harnessing the benefits of AI while at the same time managing the risks to our national security and impacts that it may have to our workforces and inequality, Kirby said.

The bottom line here is that President Biden believes we must continue to imagine, to invent and to inspire. We are committed to investing in that vision with our closest allies. We are very confident that if we do, the United States will continue to lead on the world stage for generations to come, said the White House official.
Islamabad, Jun 13 (PTI) The Pakistan government on Thursday challenged in the Supreme Court the acquittal of former prime minister Imran Khan and former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi in the cipher case.

The case pertains to the incident in which Khan showed a piece of paper - allegedly a copy of a diplomatic communication - at a public rally in Islamabad, claiming it as proof of a conspiracy against his government by a foreign power, referring to US diplomat Donald Lu, who has been at the centre of the cipher controversy.

He had brandished the cipher paper just two weeks before the ouster of the PTI government in April 2022 through a vote of no-confidence in Parliament.

Khan and Qureshi were sentenced to 10 years of imprisonment in the cipher case in January by a special court, established under the Official Secrets Act.

However, they challenged the sentence and last week a bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC) consisting of Chief Justice Aamer Farooq and Justice Miangul Hassan Aurangzeb accepted their appeals, acquitting them in the case.

The federal government challenged their acquittal in the Supreme Court which would decide the final fate of the two in the case.

The petition argued that the IHC order was perverse, arbitrary and contrary to the material available on the record and thus liable to be set aside.

"That the impugned judgment/short order does not reflect any ground of acquittal of the respondent, even it is not observed that the prosecution has failed to prove its case beyond any shadow of doubt," the government said in its plea.

"That with utmost respect it submitted that the IHC has not appreciated the evidence available on the record as well as the admission of the accused, while acquitting the respondents, as such the impugned judgment is not sustainable in the eyes of law, the plea concluded.

The apex court has so far not set a date for hearing.
Islamabad, Jun 13 (AP) A thousand days have passed since girls in Afghanistan were banned from attending secondary schools, according to the UN children's agency, which said on Thursday that no country can move forward when half its population is left behind.

UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell in a statement urged Taliban authorities to allow all children to resume learning immediately, and called on the international community to support Afghan girls, who she said need it more than ever. The agency estimates that more than 1 million girls are affected.

The UN has warned that the ban on girls' education remains the Taliban's biggest obstacle to gaining recognition as the legitimate rulers of Afghanistan.

The Taliban, who took over in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of US and NATO forces in 2021, has said girls continuing their education goes against the group's strict interpretation of Islamic law.

Despite initially promising a more moderate rule, the Taliban have also barred women from higher education, public spaces like parks and most jobs as part of harsh measures imposed. When the Taliban ruled Afghanistan in the 1990s, they also banned girls' education.

The Taliban has barred girls from attending classes beyond sixth grade, making it the only country in the world with such restrictions on female education.

In March, the new school year started with girls barred from attending classes beyond the sixth grade. Female journalists were not allowed to attend the opening ceremony.

The Taliban also have been prioritizing Islamic knowledge over basic literacy and numeracy with their shift toward madrassas, or religious schools.

UNICEF's executive director called the systematic exclusion of girls not only a blatant violation of their right to education, but also results in dwindling opportunities and deteriorating mental health.

She said UNICEF works with partners to run community-based education classes for 600,000 children, two-thirds of them girls, and train teachers.

Although Afghan boys have access to education, Human Rights Watch has said the Taliban's abusive educational policies are harming them. In a report published in December, the group said deep harm has been inflicted on boys' education as qualified teachers  including women  left, including an increase in corporal punishment.

Also on Thursday, a spokesperson for the UN Human Rights Office said the Taliban have told female civil servants barred from working that their salaries would be cut to the lowest level regardless of their experience or qualifications.

The latest discriminatory and profoundly arbitrary decision further deepened the erosion of human rights in Afghanistan, said Liz Throssell.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, called on authorities to rescind all laws, instructions, edicts and other measures that discriminated against women and girls, in clear violation of the country's human rights obligations, Throssell added.

Nobody from the Taliban was immediately available for comment. (AP) PY

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Erie County legislators received Thursday a brief presentation about proposed salary increases for all county elected officials. But the one that interested legislators the most was the 53% pay increase recommended for them.

County legislators now are paid $42,588, plus full-time benefits. The citizens panel recommending raises said legislators salaries should increase to $65,000.

Legislator Howard Johnson, D-Buffalo, said he thinks that is too little. Given the weekly work commitments and constituent services involved for the smallest County Legislature among major New York counties, he said he thinks $85,000 a year  a doubling of legislator pay  is warranted.

I represent probably the most impoverished district in Erie County, and with that, the demand is different, he said of his time commitments.

Meanwhile, Minority Leader John Mills, R-Orchard Park, said that while he could have supported a $10,000 raise for legislators, the proposed $22,412 raise is too much. A lot of people working full time in the private sector dont earn that, he said, and legislator jobs are generally considered part-time posts with full-time benefits. Most legislators have full-time outside jobs.

The Citizens Salary Review Commission made raise recommendations in June, based on data collected from other counties, as well as other economic and wage data, and interviews with elected leaders.

The commission in March recommended the following raises, which would take effect after the next election for each position:

County executive: A $35,068 raise that would increase the salary from $139,932 to $175,000, a 25% jump.

Sheriff: A $48,189 raise that would hike the salary from $101,811 to $150,000, by 47%.

Comptroller: A $32,840 raise from $107,160 to $140,000, a 31% increase.

Citizens panel recommending big raises for Erie County elected officials The citizens panel tasked with reviewing the salaries of Erie County elected officials is recommending raises that would increase every official's salary by tens of thousands of dollars.

County clerk: A $39,871 raise from $90,129 to $130,000, a 44% increase.

Members of the citizens panel recommending the substantial raises for elected Erie County officials spoke with county legislators Thursday about their reasons. The recommendations were not unanimous, but rather a reflection of a majority of commission members. Some members thought elected leaders should receive less or more than what was finally approved.

Legislators asked no questions about the pay increases for any positions except their own.

Erie County legislators receive the highest salary of any county legislators in upstate New York, and the fourth highest for legislators in the entire state.

Poloncarz supports recommended raises for elected Erie County leaders The Citizens Salary Review Commission is recommending raising the salaries for county executive, sheriff, comptroller, clerk and legislators.

However, Erie County legislators have also gone the longest without receiving any raises, at all. The last time they received a raise was in 1996.

Legislator John Gilmour, D-Hamburg, said legislator jobs should not just be open to those who own their own businesses or hold jobs that allow them to set their own schedule. The position should pay enough to enable legislators to live on their legislator income alone.

This isnt a 9-to-5 job, he said. This is nights. This is weekends. This is constant phone calls, constant emails.

Legislator Lindsay Lorigo, R-West Seneca, said legislators dont have to meet during the day and noted that other town and village boards meet at night so that it doesnt interfere with their daytime jobs and allows more people to be involved in public service.

Legislator Christopher Greene, R-Clarence, asked whether the commission took into account the size of the staff that other county legislatures have, since Erie County legislators all have their own full-time staffers, plus additional support staff for the majority and minority caucuses.

Frederick Floss, an economic professor at SUNY Buffalo State University, said it was too difficult for the committee to make any comparison on the amount of staff support the Erie County Legislature receives, compared with what other county legislators have. But the commission members said the Erie County Legislatures budget is smaller than that of other major counties in New York.

Since the Legislatures Republicans are expected to vote against the Citizens Salary Review Commission recommendations, it will be up to Democratic legislators, who hold a three-vote majority, to support the measure if they want it adopted and are willing to take the inevitable political criticism that would come from opponents in their next elections.

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Geneva, Jun 13 (AP) The head of the UN refugee agency said on Thursday he understands that the Biden administration enacted new restrictions on asylum-seekers entering the United States, but cautioned that some aspects of the executive order may violate refugee protection required under international law.

Filippo Grandi, the UN high commissioner for refugees, spoke to The Associated Press as his agency issued its annual Global Trends report for 2023.

The UNHCR report found that the cumulative number of people who have been subjected to forced displacement rose to 120 million last year  6 million more than in the year before. The refugee agency noted that the total count was roughly equivalent to the entire population of Japan.

The report found that three-fourths of the people who were forcibly displaced  including both refugees driven abroad and people displaced inside their own countries  lived in poor or middle-income countries. Grandi insisted this was a sign of how migrant and refugee flows were not just an issue for the rich world.

He lamented that crises in Africa have been largely overlooked, particularly in Sudan, where some 10.8 million were displaced at the end of last year, after conflict erupted between forces loyal to rival generals in April 2023.

Grandi said the world's focus on crises faced by refugees and internally displaced people has largely centred on the Palestinian territory of Gaza  where a devastating and deadly war erupted in October last year  and Ukraine, which has been saddled by Russia's invasion since February 2022.

He lamented how the world has largely overlooked the refugee crisis spawned by the war in Sudan.

The United States, meanwhile, has faced the most complex challenge when it comes to refugees of any country in the developed world, Grandi said  alluding to an influx across the US-Mexican border.

He criticised the Biden administration's plans to enact new restrictions on migrants seeking asylum at the border  seen by some as a political maneuver ahead of national elections in November  as a possible violation of international humanitarian law. But he acknowledged that the administration's ambitions to resettle some 125,000 refugees in the US amounted to a very shining example of US generosity.

In the US on Wednesday, a coalition of immigrant advocacy groups sued the administration over the recent directive on asylum claims at the southern border, saying it differs little from a similar move by the Trump administration that was blocked by the courts.

Under pressure from the US government, Mexico has stepped up arrests to keep migrants from reaching the US border. Mexico sends migrants back south on buses and releases them  a tactic migrant advocates say is intended to exhaust their resources. But it also exposes them to repeated extortion from authorities and kidnapping by criminal groups.

The UNHCR report also highlighted difficulties faced by refugees and internally displaced people amid conflict in countries like Congo and Myanmar, and noted that Syria remains the world's largest displacement crisis, with nearly 14 million people forcibly displaced both inside the country and abroad. (AP) PY

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Buenos Aires, Jun 13 (AP) Argentina's Senate has approved key state overhaul and tax packages proposed by President Javier Miliei, delivering an initial legislative victory to the libertarian leader in his campaign to deliver on his ambitious agenda.

Senators voted 37 to 36 to give their overall approval to the state overhaul bill after 11 hours of heated debate. But the lawmakers still must approve individual measures in an article-by-article vote that will last throughout the night.

If the Senate approves the bills with modifications, the lower house still has to okay them before Milei can officially pass his first law since entering office last December. (AP) GSP

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Thane, Jun 13 (PTI) Police have arrested two persons for allegedly carrying mephedrone drug worth Rs 13.15 lakh in Vashi area of Navi Mumbai, an official said.

The arrest was made in the wee hours of Wednesday, he said.

"The duo was spotted moving suspiciously near the Kopri Signal around 1.45 am when the personnel of the Anti-Narcotics Cell (ANC) of the Navi Mumbai police were patrolling. They frisked the two persons and found them to be possessing 131.50 grams of mephedrone worth Rs 13,15,000," the official of the APMC police station said.

A case was registered against the duo, identified as Jitendra Vaijyanath Gupta (48), a scrap dealer, and Bupendra Hirachand Khandelwal (41), a real estate agent from Kharghar, under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, he said, adding that further investigation was underway.
Bhopal, Jun 13 (PTI) An elephant killed its mahout in Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh, a police official said on Thursday.

The pachyderm killed Narendra Kapadia (55) near Bhanpur bridge at around 11:30pm on Wednesday when he was sleeping close by, the official said.

"The elephant has been tied to a tree on the Cholla Mandir police station premises. We are trying to contact the forest department so that they can take the jumbo away. It poses a danger though it is behaving normally now. The deceased's mahout friend Bhupendra is keeping a watch on the animal," Inspector Suresh Chandra Nagar told PTI.

Asked about the mahout's friends claiming that the elephant gets aggressive due to rise in temperatures and that he had killed a man earlier, the official said he had heard about these things.

Incidentally, India Meteorological Department official Prakash Dhawle said the night temperature on Wednesday was 24.6 degrees Celsius, which is 1.8 degrees Celsius below normal.

"The elephant picked up the mahout, threw him to the ground several times and then trampled him. We tried to save him but in vain. We then called the police," Bhupendra said.

The deceased's nephew Dipak Kapadia claimed the elephant had killed a man two years ago and had attacked a man last year. The elephant should be handed over to the forest department, he added.

The mahout's body has been sent to his kin in Satna, Inspector Nagar said.
Dhamtari, Jun 13 (PTI) A 35-year-old woman and her teenaged daughter were found hanging in their house in Dhamtari city in Chhattisgarh, a police official said on Thursday.

The bodies of Khushbu Sharma and her 13-year-old daughter, who are suspected to have committed suicide, were found in the house located in Shiv Chowk under Kotwali police station limits on Wednesday night, the official said.

"As per preliminary information, the woman had divorced her husband six years ago and was staying at her parental home with her daughter. She was working as a teacher in a private school but had lost her job recently after which she went into depression. We believe it is a case of suicide but the exact cause of death will be known from the post mortem report," he said.

No suicide note was found at the spot, though prima facie it seems financial problems prompted the woman to take this extreme step, the official added.
Mumbai, Jun 13 (PTI) Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday said candidates of the Uddhav Thackeray-led Shiv Sena (UBT), which prides itself on its sons of the soil agenda, won Lok Sabha elections in Mumbai on the votes of minorities as well as non-Marathi and non-Hindi speakers.

In the recently concluded general elections, the Shiv Sena (UBT) won three of the six seats in the metropolis, while the BJP, the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and the Congress emerged victorious in one constituency each.

The opposition's victory was not due to the votes of Marathi speakers or common Mumbaikars or the north Indian population that has lived in the city for generations, Fadnavis said in his speech.

The opposition won on the votes of those for whom the Shiv Sena (UBT) had started using "janaab" for Bal Thackeray instead of the more popular Hindu Hridaysamrat, the senior BJP leader asserted.

Uddhav Thackeray had also stopped beginning his speeches with "my Hindu brothers and sisters" in the last six months in order to win the support of the minorities, Fadnavis further claimed.

The fake narrative of the opposition during the Lok Sabha poll campaign about the BJP wanting to change the Constitution and end reservations hit the ruling party hard, he admitted. The BJP contested 28 out of the 48 seats in Maharashtra but could win on just nine, down from the 23 it wrested in the 2019 edition.

"The Mumbai Graduates' constituency elections have been announced and we should win it again as we had given it to our former political ally (Shiv Sena) some years back. Now, it is time to win it back. Our candidate Kiran Shelar will win to prove that the fake narrative against the BJP will not work henceforth," Fadnavis asserted.

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the first head of government who implemented the Constitution in the entire country. Earlier, due to Article 370, the Constitution was not applicable in Jammu and Kashmir. After its (Article 370) scrapping, the Constitution is now applicable there as well," he claimed.

The BJP got 26 lakh votes in Mumbai as against MVA candidates gaining 24 lakh votes but the "arithmetic of votes helped them, and we (ruling BJP and Shiv Sena) could win only two seats", Fadnavis said.

"It is also a good indicator that the Worli assembly seat of Aaditya Thackeray could give a lead of only 6000 votes to their candidate (form South Mumbai Lok Sabha seat). It clearly means the Sena's charisma is over, and the BJP will make inroads in the civic polls," the deputy CM said.
Bhopal, Jun 13 (PTI) Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Thursday launched intra-state air service named 'PM Shri Paryatan Vayu Seva' by flagging off the first flight under it from here to Jabalpur.

He also gave boarding passes to the flyers and opened a ticket-booking counter.

With this, Bhopal, Indore, Jabalpur, Gwalior, Ujjain, Rewa, Khajuraho and Singrauli cities in Madhya Pradesh will be getting connected by air, officials said.

To boost the air service, a 50 per cent discount in fare has been doled out for 30 days, they said.

Madhya Pradesh Tourism Board (MPTB) will operate the air service. It is being run on Public Private Partnership (PPP) basis with M/s Jet Serv Aviation Private Limited (Flyola), an official release said.

According to some flyers, the fare of the intra-state service will be little more than the tariff of Vande Bharat Express train after a 50 per cent discount for 30 days.

They said that it will take just 55 minutes to reach Indore from Bhopal via the air service.

"On the basis of the response, we are going to expand the service," MPTB principal secretary and managing director Sheo Shankar Shukla told PTI over phone.

"Right now, the planes which are being run are six-seater with twin engines. If the response is good, we will go for 11-seater and then 20-seater aircraft and so on to expand the service," he added.

"These planes are very safe and meet international standards. We are going to provide the best and regular service at competitive prices," Shukla said.
Mumbai, Jun 13 (PTI) Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawars wife Sunetra Pawar on Thursday filed papers as an NCP candidate for Rajya Sabha elections.



In the just-concluded Lok Sabha elections, Sunetra Pawar lost from the Baramati constituency, where her sister-in-law Supriya Sule registered her fourth consecutive win.

The NCP has decided to field Sunetra Pawar for Rajya Sabha elections. Even I was keen on contesting the elections, but during a meeting on Wednesday evening, party leaders finalised her name, said state minister and senior NCP leader Chhagan Bhujbal here.

Everyone has to accept the party's decision. There are some compulsions. I am not an independent person, but a party worker and leader, Bhujbal said when asked if he was disappointed over not being fielded for the Rajya Sabha polls.

The Rajya Sabha secretariat has notified ten vacancies in the Upper House, including two each in Assam, Bihar and Maharashtra, and one each in Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Tripura.
Darbhanga (Bihar), Jun 13 (PTI) A middle-aged woman from Bihar has been frantically calling up her son since she heard about the fire that claimed the lives of 49 people, mostly Indians, in a building in Kuwait.

She has failed to get any information about the whereabouts of her son, who was supposed to get married next month.

Madina Khatoon said her eldest son Kalu Khan had been living in that building, and was about to return home for the wedding.

"I spoke to him over the phone at around 11 pm on Tuesday. He told me he would come to Darbhanga on July 5 as his marriage is scheduled for next month," she told media persons.

A resident of Naina Ghat area in Bihar's Darbhanga district, Khatoon said that her son had been living in Kuwait for several years.

According to villagers, Khan was working as a skilled labourer in Kuwait.

When she got information that the fire broke out in the same building where her son lived, she tried frantically contacting him.

"But he is not responding to my calls. We have no information about his whereabouts," Kalu Khan's inconsolable mother said.

She said she had no idea about what exactly happened to her son.

"He is my eldest son. We tried to contact authorities concerned in this regard, but all our efforts were in vain. We have sent his photographs to embassy officials. Now, we are waiting for an update. We are also in touch with district administration," she said.

"I am praying from the almighty that I get some good news about my son," Khatoon said while sobbing.

According to the Kuwaiti authorities, the fire broke out in a building in the southern city of Mangaf, in which 49 foreign workers, including around 40 Indians, were killed, while 50 others were injured.
Kolkata, Jun 13 (PTI) Officials of Kolkata Metro and Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) have conducted a joint inspection to locate the source of water seepage into the tunnel between Park Street and Esplanade stations under the Dakshineswar-New Garia stretch during recent downpour triggered by Cyclone Remal.

A Kolkata Metro statement said on Thursday, that during the inspection earlier this week, it has been found that the century-old brick sewer of KMC, has been silted and has pores and holes in the manhole wall.

"During the recent downpour when Cyclone Remal lashed Kolkata on May 27, Park Street Metro station and tunnels in between Park Street and Esplanade stations got inundated with rain water for some time," the statement said.

The inundation had caused temporary disruption in Metro services in the North-South corridor.

"Metro authorities took prompt action to drain out the accumulated water from the station and tunnels and restore normalcy of services at the earliest," it said.

However, to arrest the seepage from the tunnel wall, Metro Railway has started grouting at locations where visible porous concrete is found in the diaphragm wall, the statement said.

It was confirmed that water was coming through the KMC sewer.

Three holes have also been found in the wall of the brick sewer through which water entered the station area on May 27, the statement said.

Metro Railway and KMC authorities are working in tandem to stop the recurrence of such incidents in future, it added.
Two lawsuits are expected to be filed Thursday and a third Monday in State Supreme Court, with each having the potential to put a wrench in the $1 billion Kensington Expressway project.

Separating Buffalo: Olmsted's Humboldt Parkway made way for Kensington Expressway For decades, the Frederick Law Olmsted-designed Humboldt Parkway was a gentle, two-lane road, hugged by a bridal path that stretched east of d

Two of the court cases claim the environmental review process undertaken by the state Department of Transportation violated environmental laws, and also name Commissioner Marie Therese Dominguez and Chief Engineer Stephanie Winkelhake as defendants.

The third asserts the DOT in the 1950s lacked the authority to turn Humboldt Parkway into an expressway, and the current project violates citizens rights to a healthful environment enshrined in 2022 legislation.

About two dozen East Side residents have signed on as plaintiffs for the first two lawsuits, along with the East Side Parkways Coalition, a group that supports restoring the historic Humboldt Parkway and opposes plans for putting greenspace above a -mile-long tunnel along the expressway starting just north of Martin Luther King Jr. Park.

My clients have the right to clean air and a healthful environment, and the state needs to address that, said Alan Bozer, a senior attorney at Phillips Lytle who is working with a team of lawyers. They also want a first-rate restoration of the Humboldt Parkway; they will not accept this mediocre, second-rate, incomplete plan.

Gov. Kathy Hochul, who put forward the Kensington project in January 2022, announced in February that the Federal Highway Administration had signed off on the project, clearing the last regulatory hurdle. She has said she would like to see construction begin as early as the end of this year.

The lawsuits are being filed just under the deadline for challenging the project in court.

A fourth lawsuit is planned in federal court, prior to a July 15 deadline, attorneys and plaintiffs said.

We live in a cancer cluster, and are surrounded by hospitals that cant save us, said Dennice Barr, a Fruit Belt resident and one of the plaintiffs. Instead of the state looking at what is best for the residents affected, they are looking at what is best for the Department of Transportation. They should want to fix it and improve it, and make it better for us.

Tendaji YaUkuu, another East Side plaintiff, expressed concern over an increase of particulate matter for residents who live near the two ends of the tunnel. He is also skeptical that East Side residents will benefit from the flood of well-paying construction jobs predicted.

I hope the lawsuits are able to delay the project so much that the engineers and the politicians working on its development see there is community pushback, YaUkuu said, and decide there are other routes within this projects development to take.

The governors office told The Buffalo News that Hochul and others dont comment on pending litigation. A DOT spokesperson said the state agency hasnt yet received the lawsuits and cannot comment on hypotheticals.

The environmental review process adhered to all applicable state and federal laws, the spokesperson added, and we look forward to moving the project forward in the coming months.

Ignoring health data

The Kensington project is expected to require at least four years of heavy construction.

One of the lawsuits filed Thursday  an Article 78 proceeding that allows lawsuits against actions taken by New York State agencies  goes after the DOT for using an environmental assessment rather than the more demanding environmental impact statement typically used on large-scale projects.

In violating the State Environmental Quality Review Act, Bozer said, the DOT papered over serious health impacts identified by the federal Environmental Protection Agency.

This urban environment is already suffering among the worst rates in America for respiratory disease, cardiovascular disease and low-life expectancy, Bozer said. You will find DOT buried the EPA statistics that say that on page 178 of their report, after everybodys eyes have glazed over. It describes one of the very worst healthful environments in America, yet they paid scant attention to the projects effects on this urban East Side community.

Current EPA data in the report showed people living around the expressway, compared with New York State as a whole, were in the 98th percentile for both asthma for ages 18 and older and for higher prevalence of heart disease. They are in the 99th percentile for life expectancy.

Stephanie Lee, president of the Northland Beltline Taxpayers Association, said her home is in line to get exhaust coming from the northern end of the tunnel.

We have a lot of people who suffer from respiratory issues  asthma, bronchitis  or they suffered because they have died, said Lee, noting her mother, who wasnt a smoker, also died from a respiratory disease.

She is concerned her home near the northern end of the proposed tunnel will now be exposed to higher levels of exhaust.

Right now, the area of the East Side where I live is considered a cancer cluster, and by installing this project it is only going to make matters worse, during and after construction, Lee said.

Did DOT lack authority?

The second lawsuit, filed under the Public Trust Doctrine, and which doesnt have a statute of limitations, claims the removal of Humboldt Parkway required an act of the New York State Legislature that never happened.

Once you have an established park it remains a park until the State Legislature, with authority plainly conferred, discontinues the parkland, Bozer said.

But legislation enacted in 1947 made the parkway a state arterial, the lawsuit contends, which means the DOT lacked the authority to remove parkland to build a highway.

Only the Legislature could do that, Bozer said, adding there is no evidence he was able to determine that it ever did.

Plaintiff Wayne A. Blassingame, 76, fondly remembers Humboldt Parkway as a child when people rode horses from Martin Luther King Jr. Park to Delaware Park. He didnt understand then why the parkway was bulldozed for an expressway, but feels it was a huge mistake, one he hopes will finally be rectified.

I would like to see it restored, he said. I dont think a tunnel is going to restore the neighborhood the way it used to be.

The lawsuit also claims that an addition to the State Constitution, known as the Green Amendment, which voters approved by a 2-to-1 margin in 2022, was ignored.

The language states, Each person shall have a right to clean air and water, and a healthful environment.

State action, such as operating and maintaining a super highway through a densely populated urban area that brings disease, bad air and unhealthy effects, Bozer said, is a violation of the persons who live there.

Violation of Climate Act

The lawsuit being filed Monday, also an Article 78, will say the project violates the Climate Leadership Community Protection Act, passed in 2019 and largely untested in court.

The Climate Act is intended to reduce greenhouse emissions rapidly warming the planet. The Climate Action Council, of which Dominguez, the transportation secretary, is a member, adopted a rigorous plan that took effect in January 2023 with the goal of a carbon-neutral economy, mandating at least an 85% reduction in emissions below 1990 levels.

The climate scoping plan says that to meet these emission reduction goals, we are going to need significant and potentially disruptive changes, including in transportation, said attorney Daniel Brady, of Hagerty & Brady. Rather than following the Climate Act and making meaningful reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, the DOT opted for business as usual with this project.

The plan for the Kensington Expressway doesnt accomplish any of the Climate Acts goals, said Lindsey Haubenreich, an attorney with Phillips Lytle.

This is a significant investment going in the opposite direction, Haubenreich said. It doesnt reduce lanes, it will increase greenhouse gas production during construction, and does nothing to reduce emissions in an environmental justice community. This is a billion-dollar project that wont do anything to further the states goals.

Constance Strother of the East Side Parkways Coalition expressed optimism over the court filings.

I think the lawsuits are a great step in the right direction, Strother said. If we cant stop this project, we need to slow this project down.

She said the plan for the expressway doesnt connect communities or create generational wealth or improve property values.

The expressway may have been the right fit at the time given the dynamics of the city years before, but this is a different city and we are moving in a different direction, Strother said, noting people want a walkable, livable city.
Jammu, Jun 12 (PTI) The Jammu and Kashmir Police on Wednesday released sketches of four terrorists involved in two attacks in Doda district and announced a reward of Rs 20 lakh for information leading to their arrest.

On Tuesday terrorists fired on a joint checkpost of the 4 Rashtriya Rifles and police at Chattergalla in Bhaderwah while a search party in the Gandoh area of the district was attacked on Wednesday resulting in injuries to seven security personnel, including a policeman.

"Jammu and Kashmir Police has released sketches of four terrorists who are believed to be in the upper reaches of Bhaderwah, Thathri, Gandoh and carrying out terror-related activities," a police spokesperson said.

A cash reward of Rs 5 lakh for information about each of the terrorists has also been announced, he said.

The Jammu and Kashmir Police appeals to the people to provide information about the presence and movement of these terrorists.

On Tuesday night, police released a sketch of a terrorist involved in the attack on a passenger bus in Reasi district and announced a Rs 20 lakh reward for information about him.

On Sunday, terrorists opened fire at the 53-seater bus carrying pilgrims when it was en route from the Shiv Khori temple to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra near Teryath village in the Poni area.

The bus, which was ferrying pilgrims from Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi, plunged into a deep gorge following the gunfire, killing nine people and injuring 41 others.
New Delhi, Jun 13 (PTI) The CBI is conducting searches at 67 locations in Odisha in connection with an alleged recruitment fraud in the postal department, officials said Thursday.

The CBI action comes on an year old complaint from the postal department alleging 63 candidates of the Gramin Dak Sevaks Exam allegedly submitted fake certificates.

Over 204 officials, including 122 officers from the CBI and 82 personnel from other departments, swooped down at various premises in Kalahandi, Nuapada, Rayagada, Nabarangpur, Kandhamal, Kendujhar, Mayurbhanj, Balasore, and Bhadrak with an objective of uncovering the interstate organised gang responsible for providing these fake certificates.

"These certificates were allegedly issued by the Board of High School and Intermediate Education, Allahabad; West Bengal Board, Kolkata; Jharkhand Academic Council, Ranchi; among others. The complaint suggests alleged involvement of an interstate racket in creating and supplying these forged certificates in collusion with the candidates," a CBI spokesperson said in a statement.

The searches are taking place nearly an year after the CBI registered an FIR on a complaint from the postal department alleging 63 candidates of the Gramin Dak Sevak Exam, 2023 (Odisha Circle) submitted forged or fake 10th pass certificates.

The postal department was recruiting for 1,382 posts of Gramin Dak Sevak (GDS), for which it had invited online applications on January 27, 2023 keeping the minimum qualification to be 10th pass from a recognised board, with proficiency in the local language being mandatory.

The aspirants were required to submit online their certificates and mark sheets on a centralised server, they said.

"Selection was automated based on the marks secured in the 10th standard. Selected candidates were informed via SMS and email and asked to report to the verifying authority within 15 days for document verification prior to their appointment," the CBI spokesperson said.

The verification of certificates by the Odisha postal circle showed that 63 candidates from various postal divisions, including Baleswar, Mayurbhanj, Kalahandi, and Barhampur, had submitted forged or fake 10th pass certificates.
New Delhi, Jun 13 (PTI) Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) president and Union minister Chirag Paswan on Thursday swore its members, including newly-elected MPs, to lifelong dedication to the party, recalling the split in its ranks on this day in 2021 that had brought uncertainty to his political future.

Paswan chose the third anniversary of his party's split, spearheaded by his uncle and then MP Pashupati Kumar Paras, to call a meeting of its parliamentarians and members as they took the oath of loyalty.

The members pledged that they would remain dedicated for life to the party, spread its ideology and work for the progress of the Dalits, backwards, minorities and the poor.

Paswan lauded the party's rise amid a gloom of adversity after four of its MPs had deserted him and noted that it won all five seats it contested in the recent polls.

The split was not only in the party but also in his family, he said in a swipe at his uncle and former Union minister, adding that Paras did not his doors to meet him when he learnt of the upheaval.

While allies BJP and the JD(U) suffered a loss in their tallies in the polls, the LJP won all its five seats in Bihar. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made Paswan a minister in his Cabinet. Incidentally, he has been allocated the same portfolio -- food processing industries -- that Paras had in the preceding government.

During the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP picked Paswan, who has successfully reclaimed his father Ram Vilas Paswan's support base, as its ally, ignoring the claims of Paras.
New Delhi, Jun 13 (PTI) The National Investigation Agency (NIA) on Thursday filed charge sheet against seven persons for recruiting and radicalising vulnerable youths as "mujahideens" to operate as terrorist sleeper cells, an official statement said.

They were part of a bigger conspiracy by proscribed terrorist organisation Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) to prepare 50 such sleeper cells in each district of India by 2025, it said.

The sleeper cells were being prepared to carry out guerrilla attacks on Indian soldiers, police personnel and leaders of specific religious organisations, the statement issued by the NIA said.

The accused were also involved in the fabrication of explosives for furtherance of the ISIS goal to establish the Caliphate system in India by waging jihad against the government of India, it said.

"In a major step towards demolishing the ISIS anti-India module network, the NIA on Thursday charge sheeted seven accused involved in the Bellary IS module case," the probe agency said.

The seven accused, arrested earlier by NIA, have been charged with recruitment and radicalization of vulnerable youth as mujahideens to operate as terrorist sleeper cells, it added.

Six of them had taken 'bayath' (pledge of allegiance) from their co-accused Md Sulaiman alias Minaj, who had proclaimed himself as Amir of the group created by him, the NIA said.

Besides Minaj, the others named in the charge sheet by the NIA have been identified as Mohammed Muniruddin, Syed Sameer and Md Muzammil, all residents of Karnataka, Anas Iqbal Shaikh, a resident of Maharashtra, Mohd Shahbaz alias Zulfikar of Jharkhand, and Shayan Rehman alias Hussain of Delhi, it said.

The men, who were actively engaged in propagating the ISIS ideology, have been named in the charge sheet under various sections of Indian Penal Code, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, Arms Act and Explosive Substances Act, the NIA said.

According to the NIA, investigations in a case registered in December 2023, the Bellary module was inspired by the separatist and violent ideology of ISIS.

The NIA had, during investigation, seized explosive materials, sharp-edged weapons, digital devices containing propaganda magazines related to jihad, khilafat, fidayeen attacks published by various terrorist organisation including ISIS, and several incriminating documents/data exposing the ISIS roadmap for establishing Islamic rule in India, the statement said.

"The improvised explosive devices prepared by the accused were meant to unleash terrorist violence in various parts of the country, NIA investigations have further revealed," it said.

The accused had already carried out a trial blast in Bellary, Karnataka, and had also been sharing jihad related digital documents/data with other vulnerable youth, the probe agency added.
New Delhi, Jun 13 (PTI) In the wake of the alleged NEET exam paper leak, students on Thursday voiced their concerns and demanded a re-examination and a thorough investigation.

A group of students protested at the Jantar Manter here with the slogan "24 lakh students want exam, not scam" and a fair investigation into the paper leak matter.

The results of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test-Undergraduate (NEET-UG) were announced by the National Testing Agency (NTA) on June 4.

Kashish, a candidate of the NEET UG exam, said, "I got 670 marks and I want the seat I deserve. We all want a fair investigation into the paper leak issue as we have worked hard for the exam."

Speaking about the Supreme Court's decision on grace marks, Kashish added, "I have no issue with the Supreme Court's decision on grace marks, but no one is addressing the paper leak issue, which is the major demand of each student here."

Another student, Harsh Dubey, said, "No one is talking about the paper leak. If an FIR has been lodged in Bihar about the NEET paper leakage, it must be investigated."

Talking about the current scenario, Dubey told PTI Videos that ranks may increase by two to three thousand, but they should not reach up to 20 to 25 thousand."

Ranks and numbers have increased all over India due to the paper leak, and now there's talk of grace marks, Anuj Kumar said.

"We believe the exam should be held again, and a fair investigation should also be conducted," Anuj added.

Talking to reporters after taking charge as Union education minister for the second time, Dharmendra Pradhan said, "There is no evidence of a paper leak in NEET-UG. The allegations of corruption in NTA are unfounded.

"It is a very credible body. It conducts exams for more than 50 lakh school students annually, besides exams at the higher education level," he said.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday noted that the sanctity of NEET-UG 2024 had been affected, a charge denied by the NTA.

The top court, however, refused to stay the counselling process for admissions.

"If the candidates, out of the 1,563, do not wish to take up the retest then their earlier marks, sans the grace marks, will be given for the purposes of the results," the Centre informed the apex court on Thursday.

The results of the re-test will be declared on June 30 and counselling for admissions in MBBS, BDS and other courses will start on July 6, it said.

The NTA administered the entrance exam for undergraduate medical programmes on May 5.
New Delhi, Jun 13 (PTI) A criminal who had evaded arrest for over a decade fell for a honey trap laid by Delhi Police in which a male constable posed as a woman on a social media platform, officials said on Thursday.

The constable created a fake Instagram handle to lure 45-year-old Bunty, accused in 20 cases of snatching theft, possession of illegal arms and bootlegging at different police stations in Delhi, they said.

"The accused was declared as a proclaimed offender (PO) by city court in June 26, 2013 in a case registered against him in Tilak Nagar Police Station," Deputy Commissioner of Police (north) Manoj Kumar Meena said.

Even after several attempts by the team, he remained at large, the DCP said terming him a hardcore criminal.

The team received a tip-off this year that Bunty was hiding in Indira Vikas Colony, he said.

When the team visited the location, they found out that Bunty was using an Instagram account, the DCP said.

"Later, the team laid many traps and efforts were made to trace the accused, but the offender remained at large. Subsequently, the team member, a head-constable Omparkash Dagar came up with an innovative idea," said the DCP.

The constable created a fake Instagram handle with a girl's name, Meena said.

"Dagar started chatting with Bunty and he was eager to befriend the 'fake girl'," said the DCP.

Later, Bunty agreed to meet the constable posing as a girl at Punjabi Bagh Metro Station.

"On June 7, the meeting was fixed. The team was ready and laid a strategic trap with the help of technical surveillance. As the accused reached the spot, he was successfully apprehended from Punjabi Bagh Metro Station," the police officer said.

The DCP said Bunty kept changing his address and phone numbers regularly to evade arrest.
New Delhi, Jun 13 (PTI) Police here on Thursday began patrolling the Munak canal area to check the activities of tanker mafia and Delhi minister Atishi inspected a pipeline network supplying water to South Delhi residents as the water crisis in the city worsened.

A senior officer said police teams have set up pickets and started patrolling the 15-kilometre stretch of the canal on the Haryana borders, supplying water to the national capital.

The canal enters Delhi from Bawana and reaches the Haiderpur Treatment Plant.

Teams from Bawana, Narela Industrial Area, Shahbad Dairy and Samai Pur Badali police stations have been tasked with patrolling the Munak Canal and its nearby areas.

"Police personnel have been asked to prevent anyone from taking water from the canal in their tankers," the officer said.

Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena on Wednesday directed the Delhi Police chief to ensure a strict vigil along the Munak canal to prevent the theft of water and sought an action taken report within the week.

Meanwhile, Delhi Water Minister Atishi, accompanied by senior officials of Delhi Jal Board and Revenue Department, inspected the South Delhi Mains pipeline network that supplies water from the Sonia Vihar water treatment plant to millions of people across South Delhi, she said in a post on 'X'.

The plight of Delhiites braving an unprecedented high summer heat has been further aggravated by an acute shortage of water supply.

The Delhi government is ensuring through patrolling by additional district magistrates and sub-divisional magistrates across the city so that not even a single drop of water is wasted due to leakage from the main pipelines, Atishi said in her post.

Delhi is getting less water and the production at water treatment plants has decreased. In such a situation, wastage of water will not be tolerated, she said.

During the inspection, Atishi told PTI Video that the production of water has gone down by 40 MGD in Delhi and unless Harayna releases more water for the city through the Yamuna, the shortfall cannot be met.
Tumakuru (Karnataka), Jun 13 (PTI) Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Thursday said the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), probing the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) case against former Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa, has issued notice asking him to appear before it for questioning, and he may be arrested if necessary.

"Notice has been served procedurally, the charge-sheet has to be filed by June 15. Before that they (CID) will file the charge-sheet. They will have to follow procedure for it. They will have to record his statement and produce him (in court), all these are procedures and the department will do it," he told reporters here.

In response to a question, Parameshwara said: "If necessary they will arrest. I can't say (if) it is necessary, CID has to say it. If they feel it is necessary, they will do it."

The BJP veteran, who is also a member of the party's parliamentary board, is presently in Delhi, and he is likely to join the probe after he returns, sources close to him have said.

According to police, Yediyurappa has been booked under the POCSO Act and Section 354 A (Sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) based on a complaint by the mother of a 17-year-old girl who alleged that he sexually assaulted her daughter during a meeting on February two this year, at his residence in Dollars Colony here.

On March 14, hours after the Sadashivanagar police registered the case, the Karnataka Director General of Police Alok Mohan issued an order transferring it to the CID for further investigation with immediate effect.

The 54-year-old woman, who had leveled the charge against Yediyurappa, died at a private hospital here last month, due to lung cancer.

The 81-year-old Yediyurappa has denied the charge and said he would fight the case legally.

In April, the CID collected the voice sample of Yediyurappa after summoning him to the office.

The government, meanwhile, has appointed Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Ashok H. Nayak to represent the CID in the case.

Yediyurappa has moved the court seeking quashing of the FIR.
Chennai, Jun 13 (PTI) The Tamil Nadu government on Thursday slammed the Centre over the alleged irregularities in the conduct of the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admissions to medical courses, saying awarding grace marks was 'unacceptable' as it amounted to fraud.





The growing resentment and protest across the country to holding the NEET only strengthened the DMKs repeated plea to abolish the screening test, State Health Minister Ma Subramanian said.





The National Testing Agency has to be blamed for the irregularities and confusion arising due to the conduct of the test, especially awarding grace marks. What was the basis for granting grace marks and has this decision been communicated to the NEET aspirants? Subramanian asked.





The irregularities and confusion have only caused mental agony to 23 lakh candidates who appeared for the test, he told reporters here and claimed that none from Tamil Nadu were given grace marks.





Earlier in the day, the Centre informed the Supreme Court the decision to give grace marks to 1,563 NEET-UG 2024 candidates for admissions to MBBS and BDS courses has been cancelled and that they will be given an option to appear for re-test on June 23.





The call to scrap NEET is now being heard all over India and the DMK president and Chief Minister M K Stalin had been insisting on doing away with the test. The union government should come forward to abolish NEET exam at least now, Subramanian said.







The Health Minister accused former Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami of allowing NEET into the state despite his party supremo and late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa opposing it.





Demanding justice for the aspirants, Subramanian said NEET has denied many students, especially those with rural background and economically weaker, an opportunity to access medical education.
Chennai, Jun 13 (PTI) Relatives of two Indians who were reportedly staying in the building where a fire broke out in the Kuwaiti city of Mangaf said on Thursday that they have not received any official confirmation on their status.





They had to rely on their friends and agents, they said, and urged the government to confirm their kin's status soon.



"Tuesday night was the last time I spoke to my husband. He didn't respond when I called him the following morning. I got scared and called his friend who replied that he too could not reach my husband," the wife of Sivasankaran Govindan said.



One of his friends informed her that a fire had broken out at the building in which Govindan was staying, and the agent who had got him the job in Kuwait too said that the fire was on the floor where her husband was staying, she told reporters at Royapuram here.



"We have not got any official confirmation from the government," she said.



Similarly, a relative of a driver named Raju in Kuwait said in Tiruchirappalli that she could not get any confirmation on her husband's condition.



She said that one of her husband's friends had said that he may have been shifted to a hospital but he could not confirm which hospital.



She urged the government send her a photo of Raju from the hospital by WhatsApp and to update her about his health status.
Gurugram, Jun 13 (PTI) A 52-year-old woman, working as a sanitation worker here, was killed after a speeding car hit her on Thursday, triggering protests, police said.

The incident occurred around 8 am on Thursday when Saroj (52), a resident of Sarai Alawardi village, was working near the main road at Vatika Chowk, police said.

A speeding Hyundai Xcent car used in taxi service came at a high speed and hit Saroj. The collision was so severe that the woman fell several feet away after jumping in the air and died on the spot, police said.

Upon receiving information, other sanitation workers of the Municipal Corporation, Gurugram, gathered at the accident spot, blocked the road and staged protests. They objected to their deployment at high-speed main roads and demanded it to be changed, police said.

According to police, Saroj was recent tranferred to Badshahpur and was a permanent employee at the MCG.

An FIR was registered against the cab driver, who fled and left his vehicle, under section 279 (rash driving), 304A (death due to negligence) of the Indian Penal Code at the Badshahpur police station, they said.

"We have arrested the accused cab driver, identified as Chand, a native of Uttar Pradesh. The cab has been seized. We are questioning the driver", said Inspector Satish Kumar, SHO of Badshahpur police station.

The body was handed over to the kin after post-mortem, police said.
Dehradun, Jun 13 (PTI) Four forest workers were killed and four were injured while extinguishing a fire at the Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary under the Civil Soyam Forest Division in the Almora district of Uttarakhand, officials said on Thursday.

The deceased were identified as Binsar Range Forest 'Beat' Officer Trilok Singh Mehta, 'Fire Watcher' Karan Arya, Provincial Armed Constabulary Jawan Puran Singh and daily wage worker Diwan Ram, they said.

According to Civil Soyam Forest Divisional Officer Dhruv Singh Martolia, the incident occurred around 3.45 pm when eight forest workers were sent to extinguish a fire that had broken out at the Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary.

Martolia said that as soon as the team got down from their vehicle, the fire escalated due to strong winds and four of the workers were charred to death. Meanwhile, the other workers were injured and rushed to Haldwani Base Hospital for treatment.

In a post on X, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami said, "Very heartbreaking news has been received about the death of 4 forest workers due to forest fire in Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary. In this hour of grief, our government stands with the families of the deceased and is committed to provide all possible help. An ex-gratia amount of Rs 10 lakh has been announced to the families of each deceased."

"In a high-level meeting with the Chief Secretary, Principal Secretary and Chief Conservator of Forests (HoFF), instructions were given to immediately control the forest fire in Binsar Wildlife Sanctuary with the help of Air Force, by spraying water on the affected forest area using helicopters and other necessary resources as before and to control the fire as quickly as possible," he added.

Special Secretary to the Chief Minister, Shri Parag Madhukar Dhakate said that the situation is being monitored closely. The post-mortem of the deceased is being conducted.

Last month, a resin factory in Almora district was engulfed in forest fire and three workers trying to extinguish the fire were killed.

Due to hot and dry weather, forest fires have started raging again in Uttarakhand. According to the Uttarakhand forest fire bulletin, seven incidents were reported in the last 24 hours in which 4.50 hectares of forest were affected.
New Delhi, Jun 13 (PTI) The DMRC and RITES have signed an MoU to collaborate and jointly explore consultancy assignments in India and abroad in the mass rapid transit system field, a statement said on Thursday.

The MoU was officially signed by Amit Kumar Jain, director (of operations and services), of Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) and Deepak Tripathi, Director (technical) of Rail India Technical and Economic Service (RITES) in the presence of DMRC managing director Vikas Kumar and other senior officials, it said.

"The partnership aims at streamlining the process for jointly exploring, identifying, securing, and executing consultancy assignments for operations and management of Metro/Light Rail Transit/Mass Rapid Transit Systems in India and abroad," a press statement from RITES said.

This collaboration also includes rolling stock, depot management, station management, maintenance of railway Infrastructure among others in India and abroad.

The collaboration between DMRC and RITES will help both organisations to work together on new projects in India and abroad with their expertise in respective fields, the statement added.


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The first of four convoys of Irish ambulances and recovery and transport vehicles arrived in Poland on Friday ahead of their donation to Ukraine.

Led by the Defence Forces Transport Corps, Operation Carousel will see the movement of 30 Defence Forces vehicles to the International Donor Coordination Cell in Rzeszow.

As part of Irelands European Peace Facility contribution, 54 personnel will oversee vehicles being moved over four convoys which will arrive in Poland over the next month.

The donation is part of Irelands non-lethal aid to the Ukrainian armed forces following Russias invasion in 2022.

Speaking ahead of the convoys arrival, Tanaiste Micheal Martin, who is also the Minister for Defence, said: Ireland remains steadfast in support for the people of Ukraine following the illegal and immoral invasion by Russia and we will continue to provide what support we can as Ukraine defends itself against ongoing aggression.

The donation of these ambulances and transport vehicles is a practical and concrete measure to show that support and is fully consistent with our position of providing non-lethal aid.

Earlier this year, following consultation with the EU, the Department of Defence and the Defence Forces agreed a donation of 30 vehicles for Ukraine.

The vehicles are being conveyed in four separate convoys over a period of approximately a month from mid-June to mid-July.The planned donation consists of 20 x Ford Rangers; four Scania 8X8 DROPs (Demountable Rack Offload and Pickup System); three Iveco 8X8 DROPs, one Iveco 8X8 recovery vehicle and two Mercedes Sprinter ambulances.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Defence said that an application for partial reimbursement of the value of this donation is expected to be made via the European Peace Facility in the coming weeks once delivery is completed.

The convoys are travelling by ferry to Dunkirk, before moving through Belgium, Germany and on to Poland.
Senator Tolentino bats for emergency assistance to farmers displaced by Kanlaon eruption, lahar flows

Senate Majority Leader Francis 'Tol' Tolentino will seek the intervention of the Department of Agriculture (DA) to provide emergency assistance to upland farmers in Negros Island, whose livelihoods were wiped out by Mt. Kanlaon's June 3 eruption and the spate of lahar flows in recent weeks.

Tolentino learned about the plight of the Kanlaon farmers from La Castellana, Negros Occidental, Mayor Alme Rhummyla Mangilimutan, over the senator's radio program, 'Usapang Tol.'

"Mayor, we will raise this concern to the Department of Agriculture to determine what kinds of interventions they can provide for our farmers," Tolentino assured Mangilimutan.

"In the meantime, our immediate focus should be on the health concerns of your constituents," added the senator.

It should be recalled that Tolentino previously appealed to the Department of Health (DOH) to work with local water districts in affected communities around Mt. Kanlaon to ensure the supply of clean and potable water for residents and evacuees.

Mangilimutan shared that the DOH has already deployed medical teams and distributed water purification tablets and face masks to affected residents.

The Office of Civil Defense (OCD) of the Department of National Defense (DND) also responded to Tolentino's appeal by sending over water filtration equipment to La Castellana to enable access to safe drinking water.

Tolentino stressed that Mt. Kanlaon is one of the natural sources of clean water in Negros Island, and any contamination would pose significant health risks to communities both in Negros Occidental and Oriental.
News / National

by Staff reporter

President Mnangagwa expressed profound sadness at the death of Malawi Vice President Saulos Chilima and nine others in a plane crash this week.In his condolence message, President Mnangagwa praised Chilima as a Pan Africanist dedicated to African integration and strengthening bilateral relations between Malawi and Zimbabwe."It is with a profound sense of shock and sadness, that I received the devastating news on the fatal aircraft crash that claimed the lives of the Vice President of the Republic of Malawi, Honourable Saulos Klaus Chilima as well as the former First Lady of Malawi, Ms Shanil Muluzi nee Dzimiri, amongst other deceased Malawian patriots," he stated.President Mnangagwa extended heartfelt condolences on behalf of the Zimbabwean government and its people to the Malawian government, its citizens, and the families of the deceased. He emphasized Chilima's significant contributions to promoting bilateral relations and continental integration.The Malawian government has declared 21 days of mourning and will honor Dr. Chilima with a state funeral. Vice President Chilima, aged 51, had served as vice president since 2014.
News / National

by Staff reporter

President Mnangagwa has declared that Zimbabwe will not accept aid that comes with conditions undermining the nation's values, character, and beliefs. Speaking at the 376th Ordinary Session of the Zanu-PF Politburo, he urged Zimbabweans and Africans to stay vigilant against neo-colonial influences. He emphasized the importance of political consciousness to protect the country's independence and territorial integrity.Mnangagwa criticized NGOs for interfering in political affairs and using foreign funds to promote practices against Zimbabwean culture. He stated that Zimbabwe rejects any aid that seeks to impose foreign identities and cultures, emphasizing the need to uphold African morals and traditions.He called on Zimbabweans to prioritize national interests and prosperity, stressing the importance of politically conscious and disciplined party members. Mnangagwa encouraged Politburo members to guide and lead future generations, ensuring the party's revolutionary cause continues. He urged unity and effort in building and modernizing the country.Regarding the upcoming SADC Summit in Harare on August 17-18, Mnangagwa emphasized demonstrating Zimbabwe's hospitable, united, and peace-loving nature to enhance national branding. He expressed confidence in hosting a successful summit, which will focus on promoting innovation for sustainable economic growth and development. Mnangagwa will assume the chairmanship of the SADC regional bloc during the summit.On international relations, Mnangagwa highlighted significant progress in Zimbabwe's engagement and re-engagement efforts. He mentioned the Korea-Africa inaugural summit and the 27th St Petersburg International Economic Forum, where he held productive talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. These discussions aimed at deepening cooperation in various sectors, including mining, agriculture, science and technology, and health.Before the Politburo meeting, members observed a minute of silence for the late Malawian Vice President, Dr. Saulos Chilima, and others who died in a plane crash.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Mutare South legislator Tawanda Dumbarimwe (Zanu-PF) is facing criticism for allegedly inciting hungry villagers to protest against the government by claiming that the State is too broke to distribute food aid. His remarks led to Grain Marketing Board (GMB) officials being summoned by State security agents to explain the delay in transporting grain to the villagers.Dumbarimwe reportedly told villagers that he was using personal resources to deliver the grain, which he was contracted by the government to transport in Mutare district.The controversy intensified when Dumbarimwe allegedly mobilized people to attack a GMB manager at Bezel Bridge over the drought relief program.A meeting involving Mutare district development committee members, Joint Operations Command, and GMB officials was held to address the incident. Dumbarimwe, who is involved in the transport business, was accused of misleading villagers into believing he was distributing grain out of goodwill without government involvement.Mutare district development co-ordinator Tendai Kapenzi confirmed the incident but mentioned that further details would be provided later. Chief Bernard Marange of Mutare West claimed the issue had been resolved, citing fuel concerns as the main problem.President Emmerson Mnangagwa declared the El Nino-induced drought a national disaster in April and appealed for US$3 billion in humanitarian assistance. The United Nations recently issued a flash appeal for US$429.3 million to aid approximately 3.1 million people facing hunger in Zimbabwe. Government reports indicate that nearly 60% of the population urgently needs food aid.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Police constable Francis Takura, along with soldier Wirimai Nyandoro and their accomplice Shane Nyamhunga, has been sentenced to a total of 36 years in prison for armed robbery. The sentencing was delivered by magistrate Stanford Mambanje in Harare, Zimbabwe.The trio faced three counts of robbery, with Takura being convicted on all counts while Nyandoro and Nyamhunga were acquitted on the first two counts.On count one, Takura received a 12-year sentence with 2 years suspended on condition of good behavior and an additional 2 years suspended if he restitutes US$13,650 to the complainant by August 30.For count two, Takura was sentenced to 12 years, with 2 years suspended on similar conditions and a further reduction of 2 years upon restitution of US$6,767 by the same date.On count three, all three convicts were sentenced to 12 years each, with 2 years suspended. An additional year was suspended on condition that they restitute US$1,600 by the end of August.Magistrate Mambanje emphasized that the State presented compelling evidence, including forensic evidence linking the convicts to the crimes through fingerprints.The robberies included an incident in November 2021 where the trio, armed with an AK-47 assault rifle and a pistol, robbed James Rikonda's home of US$11,550, a wallet, cellphone, and pistol. They later forced Rikonda to accompany them to his workplace where they stole an additional US$10,000.In another incident in December 2021, they raided the home of retired CID detective Joseph Nemaisa, stealing US$850, a cellphone, laptop, and a shotgun. A shootout ensued when Nemaisa arrived unexpectedly, resulting in the deaths of three accomplices while Takura and Nyandoro managed to escape.Among the deceased accomplices was Tariro Gora, who was supposed to be on duty with the Zimbabwe National Army's elite commando regiment at the time of the incident. Another accomplice, Charles Chirara, was previously implicated in a major cash-in-transit heist.The sentencing reflects the severity of the crimes committed by the police constable and his associates, highlighting their involvement in multiple armed robberies and the tragic outcome of their criminal activities.
News / National

by Staff reporter

Wicknell Chivayo, a controversial businessman, has recently come under scrutiny for leaked audio recordings in which he claims to have secured government tenders through his close relationship with President Emmerson Mnangagwa.The recordings suggest that Chivayo portrays himself as a highly influential figure benefiting from the President's support, claiming to be "20 times richer than before."This has incited strong reactions from the Zanu-PF Youth League, which has publicly denounced Chivayo's claims and influence-peddling. Phillipa Mukoko, the Youth League's secretary for information and publicity, issued a statement criticizing Chivayo for his malicious and scandalous remarks. The Youth League expressed concern over Chivayo's use of the President's name to boost his own status and warned him to stop leveraging his proximity to Mnangagwa for personal gain.The Youth League emphasized the need to protect the integrity of President Mnangagwa and the national interests of Zimbabwe. They also urged authorities to take immediate action to prevent Chivayo from making further claims and misrepresenting his influence.In response, Chivayo denied the authenticity of the leaked audios, suggesting they were fabricated by disgruntled business associates, Mike Chimombe and Moses Mpofu, whom he described as extortionists. Chivayo refuted any involvement in recording the audios and distanced himself from the alleged statements. He also denied having any contracts with the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (ZEC) or other government entities.Chivayo maintains that the allegations are part of a broader attempt to tarnish his reputation and undermine the legitimacy of President Mnangagwa and the government. He expressed his readiness to face any legal consequences arising from these accusations.
We're not sure this is anything to get excited about . . .

WHAT INSIDERS FEAR MORE THAN ANYTHING IS PUBLIC/PRIVATE OWNERSHIP OF THE PLAZA!!!



A few more things to consider in the meantime . . .

- A sale doesn't solve problems with violence.

- A sale won't stop people from shopping on Amazon.

- And, again as always, the Mayor never apologized or even mentions how he marched and yelled "no justice, no peace" with a group of activists amid the 2020 "mostly peaceful" BLM riots.

In fairness, here's a text disguised as a news story . . .



A spokesperson for Lucas' office didn't immediately provide any other details on a timeline for when a sale would happen.



"Mayor Lucas is excited about the impending sale of the Country Club Plaza and looks forward to the rebirth of our communitys crown jewel," the spokesperson said in a text.



Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .
Tonight, celeb, socialite and reality star hottie Kylie inspires our latest peek at pop culture, community news and top headlines.

Check TKC news gathering . . .

Because We NEED Another Booze Fest

Kansas City's Boulevardia Music Festival returns with headliners Thundercat and Milky Chance The Boulevardia Music Festival is back this weekend outside of Crown Center, featuring a blend of prominent touring artists and local musicians with Kansas City's skyline as its backdrop.

Local Alternative Serving

KCMO mixologist partners with social club to create zero-proof bar menu to raise awareness on alcoholism KCMO mixologist and a Kansas City-based social club are working together to provide the community with a zero-proof bar menu.

Local Political Preferences

House votes to hold Merrick Garland in contempt. Here's how KS, MO voted "I think that the justice system hasn't earned my respect and hasn't earned the respect of the American people," said Rep. Eric Burlison, a Missouri Republican.

Selling Summer Fun, Youth & Good Times In A Can

Kylie Jenner shows off famous curves in a tiny blue bikini The Keeping Up With The Kardashians star turned heads for all the right reasons wearing an eye-catching two-piece. Kylie joined fellow models for a Sprinter drinks shoot

AI Defense FAILS AG

House votes to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt for withholding Biden audio The 216-207 vote fell along party lines, with Republicans coalescing behind the contempt effort despite reservations among some of the partys more centrist members. .

Red Wave For Realz?!?

Bullish GOP hones legislative plans for 2025 House Republicans are prepping their legislative plans for 2025 with eyes on controlling all levers of power in Washington next year. Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said Wednesday that he's bullish about the GOP's chances of not only keeping control of the House, but also seizing the Senate and sending former President Trump back to the White House for a second term.

Ladies Stay Winning



Southern Baptist ban on women pastors fails in historic vote The Southern Baptist Convention failed to amend its constitution to ban women as pastors.

Suspect Hater Indicted

Arizona man allegedly sold firearms to undercover FBI agent to 'incite race war' Indictment says Mark Adams Prieto recruited people at gun show to help carry out mass shooting targeting minorities

Prez Border Policy Rebuked By Progressives

ACLU sues Biden administration over new executive action on the southern border President Biden is using new executive actions to block migrants from seeking asylum at the southern border. The ACLU says this goes against U.S. asylum laws.

No Ceasefire For Holy Land

Hezbollah rains rockets on Israel after strike kills commander Lebanese militant group Hezbollah fired successive barrages of rockets at northern Israel on Wednesday, after an Israeli air strike killed a senior commander in south Lebanon the previous day.The latest barrages from Lebanon came after an Israeli air strike killed a senior Hezbollah commander on Tuesday.

Eastern Europe Alliance

US and Ukraine expected to sign long-term security agreement at G7 | CNN Politics The US and Ukraine are expected to sign a bilateral security pact on the sidelines of the G7 in Italy on Thursday, multiple people familiar with the matter told CNN, in a deal that lays out a path for the US' long-term security relationship with Kyiv but that could also be undone by future US administrations.

Dirty Job But Somebody Has To Do It!!!

I quit my boring 9-to-5 to become a professional sex toy tester Sarah Riccio ditched her traditional 9-to-5 to become a professional sex toy tester, a little known odd job that remedied Riccio's dissatisfaction with a normal office workplace. She now is a co-owner at Delicto.com.

Local Music Man Fights Future

How this genre-hopping KC musician is fighting back against digitized entertainment "[I want to] expose young people to live music because it's almost like it's a dying art these days," said Keelon Vann, a 25-year-old Kansas City native and one of the performers set for Friday's stage at Startup Crawl.

Warm Up On Its Way

Extreme heat and severe storms both possible tomorrow Thursday has been upgraded from an Impact Day to an Alert Day as certainty increases in early evening storms

And this is the OPEN THREAD for right now.
Follow-up report on this saga that's kinda getting old . . . Also, we're going to assume that the gator was broken out of jail by an old drinking buddy.

Here's the latest . . .

The Kansas City Police Department confirmed the petting zoo owner reported a stolen alligator on May 26.



The alligator turned up 11 days later outside a door at Lakeview Middle School.



On the first day of summer school a school staff member opened a back door and found Alex, which means someone brought Alex back, the petting zoo owner said.

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .

Twist in tale of Kansas City's lost-and-found alligator named Alex Owner of Missouri traveling pet zoo said someone stole an alligator during a visit to a Kansas City-area school last month.
Did Donald Trump Jr just break the law during his meeting with Hungarian leader Viktor Orban?

Did Donald Trump Jr just break the law during his meeting with Hungarian leader Viktor Orban?

Donald Trump Jr, four months after being hit with a $4 million fine and a ban on serving as an officer of a New York company for two years, is seeking opportunities elsewhere  namely, Hungary.

The former presidents eldest child arrived in Budapest on Thursday morning on an invitation from the Budapest Chamber of Commerce and Industry. There, he met with Prime Minister Viktor Orban and gave a talk entitled The World According to Donald Trump Jr., an event first reported by Hungarian journalist Szabolcs Panyi.

Trump Jrs visit focused on discussions about the future of Hungarian-American relations, the ongoing Russian-Ukrainian war, and opportunities for peace creation, according to Zoltan Kovacs, spokesperson for Orbans office.

Multiple legal experts say foreign policy discussions between Trump Jr  who is not employed by the US government  and a foreign prime minister raise questions about the Logan Act, which prohibits unauthorized diplomatic activity in certain circumstances.

Experts also tell The Independent the Hungarian governments increasingly authoritarian tilt may serve as a model for Trumps potential second presidency, should he win the election this November  and that Americans should pay attention as his eldest son speaks not only to Orban but a prominent conservative college with ties to Orbans Fidesz party.

The Trump campaign did not respond to multiple requests for comment from The Independent.

Donald Trump Jr (left) met with Viktor Orban (right) on June 13. (Zoltan Kovacs)

The Logan Act

Trump Jr  who met with Orban to discuss immigration, Russias war in Ukraine, and US-Hungarian relations  followed in his fathers footsteps. The former president met with Orban in March.

But Kim Scheppele, Professor of Sociology and International Affairs at Princeton University and Faculty Fellow at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, says this raises legal questions about Trump Jrs role.

There is an interesting US legal question about whether private citizens can attempt to influence US foreign policy by negotiating with foreign countries, Scheppele told The Independent. The Logan Act makes this illegal.

Specifically, Trump Jr, who does not hold any government office, spoke with Orban regarding US foreign policy as it relates to Ukraine.

Yet, the Logan Act states that any US citizen without authority of the United States, directly or indirectly, is not legally permitted to conduct any correspondence or intercourse with any foreign government or any officer or agent thereof, with intent to influence the measures or conduct of any foreign government when it comes to conflict situations.

Donald Baker, former assistant attorney general at the US Department of Justice, told The Independent it is unlikely the Department would ever pursue action against anyone using the Logan Act, given no one has been convicted of violating the 1799 law: Any action by the Justice Department would be unwise because it would be jumped all over as being political, given the Act really hasnt been regularly invoked.

But Baker said he believes Donald Trump Jrs discussions about Ukraine raise questions: Obviously Orban is opposed to helping Ukraine, has blocked the EU from making a substantial payment to Ukraine, and so therefore he is an ally of the Trump people.

An example of a Logan Act violation that could have taken place during those discussions, Baker added, would be if Trump Jr encouraged Orban not to release the funds or encouraged him to go on blocking the EUs funds for Ukraine.

Baker told The Independent there needs to be more consideration of the Logan Act in light of recent news: This is a subject we ought to be discussing.

He added that the former presidents discussion with Orban earlier this year was also concerning under the Logan Act.

To have the Republicans likely candidate taking a position on foreign policy [as it relates to Russia and Ukraine], getting close to actively opposing what the administration is doing, is a worrying situation we ought to be talking about, Baker told The Independent.

An ultra-conservative training ground

Trump Jr was also scheduled to speak on Thursday afternoon at Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC), a conservative Hungarian residential college. The event is not listed on the colleges public website as of Thursday.

SCOOP: Titled "The world according to @DonaldJTrumpJr," Trump's son will speak at the Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC) in Budapest on Thursday. MCC is the most important vehicle of Viktor Orban's foreign influence operations targeting the US, UK & EU. The event is not yet public. pic.twitter.com/3aATUcNP85  Szabolcs Panyi (@panyiszabolcs) June 11, 2024

Scheppele says the college serves as a training ground for members of Orbans Fidesz party. She said the college is where conservative leaders gather to determine how to keep the party in power.

The MCC is a training ground for the young people who are going to go into Orbans government, Scheppele told The Independent.

The MCC was founded in 1996 with private money from the Fidesz party. In 2021, The New York Times reported that Orban had funneled $1.7 billion in government funds and assets to the college as he prepared to seek re-election the following year.

Scheppele said one of the primary functions of the MCC is to maintain Orbans hold on Hungary: [The MCC] is also the idea factory for the Orban government: How can we adjust the laws so we never lose power?

Under Orban, Hungary is in a democratic backslide. Freedom House rates Hungary as only partly free, noting the countrys anti-immigration and anti-LGBTQ+ policies, as well as policies that hamper the operations of opposition groups, journalists, universities, and nongovernmental organizations.

Viktor Orban, pictured as he prepares to cast his ballot in the 2024 European Parliament elections, has triggered a democratic backslide in his country (MTVA - Media Service Support and Asset Management Fund)

Like father, like son

Trump Jrs father and the Hungarian prime minister also have a long-standing allyship.

Orban went as far as to call the former president his good friend earlier this year when the duo met in Washington, DC. Meanwhile, Scheppele told The Independent, Trump  who famously threatened to become a dictator on day one of his potential second presidency  may be looking to Orban as a model for policy.

Robert Benson, a senior policy analyst with the Center for American Progress, told The Independent it is dangerous for American voters to subscribe to American exceptionalism and to assume the democratic backsliding in Hungary cant possibly happen in the US.

I think our institutions are resilient  but that resiliency demands a careful eye, Benson said. We cant take it for granted that were simply going to be okay. If you talk to Hungarians, they didnt expect it to happen the way it did.

Donald Trump and Viktor Orban pictured together meeting in March 2024. The Hungarian Prime Minister called the former US president his good friend. (HUNGARIAN PRIME MINISTER'S OFFIC)

There are several parallels between Trump and Orbans policies.

Trump has made his far-right, anti-immigration stance clear since day one of his 2016 presidential campaign. Similarly, Orban has expressed radical views on immigration since 2015  and in 2022, he said he did not want Hungarians to become peoples of mixed race.

The pair have also both tossed aside NATO and its processes. The former president has threatened to violate NATO by allowing Russia to attack member states; meanwhile, Orban delayed a vote on Swedens membership for 18 months. As a result, the country was not admitted until this year.

Both Scheppele and Benson also pointed to Project 2025, a conservative playbook for the next presidential administration. Along with replacing supposedly impartial federal officials with fellow conservatives, Project 2025 also calls for several policy revisions, such as re-adding the citizenship question to the US Census.

Orbans success leading an authoritarian government relied on decapitating the civil service and replacing it with his extremist allies, which mirrors the Project 2025 strategy, Scheppele told The Independent.

Wes Coopersmith, the Chief of Staff for the Heritage Foundation who oversees Project 2025, previously told The Independent that replacing employees with Republican allies if Trump is elected would be democratic.

We think the most democratic way to run the administration is with folks who agree with the president, who voted for the president, who agree with his policies and want to implement that, Coopersmith said.

The Heritage Foundation  pictured in Washington, DC  designed Project 2025, a playbook for a potential conservative presidency following the 2024 election. (Copyright 2017 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Orbans suddenly uncertain future

Just days ahead of Trump Jrs scheduled visit, the European Parliament elections threw Orban into an unprecedented, weakened position.

Orban, for the first time in 14 years, has a real electoral problem, Scheppele told The Independent.

While the Fidesz party still received more votes than any other Hungarian party, they will only make up eleven of Hungarys 21 EU delegates. Whats more, this weekend marked their worst performance since 2004  long before Orbans reign began in 2010.

I think he assumed that he was just going to, as usual, swamp the vote, Scheppele said.

The politician responsible for bringing the Fidesz party numbers down is Peter Magyar, a former Fidesz insider who is now looking to end Orbans rule.

[Orban] is still winning, but he has lost so much support, Scheppele said. The fact that the emperor has no clothes is suddenly visible.
Special thanks to the BEST& BRIGHTEST TKC READERS who note this flaw in recent legislation that creates more uncertainty amongst educators.

Also, we celebrate the traditional hotness of hottie Cameron even if teachers getting shortchanged is also a tragic fact of life . . .



Here are the basics and more info . . .



Teachers and education advocates have fought for years to improve starting teacher salaries, which rank among the lowest in the country. Yet many districts and advocates say they dont believe the bill laid out a clear path for how those increases will be funded. The Missouri School Boards Association received at least 200 letters from school officials asking the governor to veto the legislation before he signed it into law, said Caitlyn Whaley, outreach director for the organization.



Some school leaders, like Webb City School District Superintendent Anthony Rossetti, say without consistent funding this new policy has the potential to decimate smaller districts.



Youre promising some things that I dont know that you can deliver on, Rosetti said. Were the ones who are going to be holding the bag if it doesnt get funded.

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .
As always, we start with a definition of terms, this time for the benefit of the gringos . . .

Pocho is slang in Spanish used in Mexico to refer to Mexican Americans and Mexican emigrants. It is often used pejoratively to describe a person of Mexican ancestry who lacks fluency in Spanish and knowledge of Mexican culture.



To be fair . . .

In the spectrum of Pochos . . . TKC is hopefully somewhere on the periphery if only because a causal mastery of profane Spanish-lish has proven effective to navigate through the metro and even lower Argentine.

But I digress . . .

Here's the more important question that should accompany this story . . .

WILL ALL THE POCHOS WHO VISIT THE WESTSIDE GIVE A BIT OF THEIR BEER MONEY TO HELP KEEP THE SHRINE INTACT!?!?

Probably not.

It's much easier to take chubby photos with homies than actually do something that benefits the community.

And of course . . . Those weekend lowriders need rims.

However . . .

We should also consider that it might not make much sense to maintain a shrine in a neighborhood that's now mostly comprised by hipsters making impressive real estate deals.



Either way, this story caught our eye this evening . . .



John Fierro, the chair of the finance council for Sacred Heart Guadalupe Parrish, explained what works needs to be done.



"Definitely we need to address the ceiling," he said.



He went on to explain that the new roof is phase one.



What will follow is more work on some crumbling exterior and front steps. After that comes interior work and painting.



He also explained what it'll cost.



"According to the estimates we've received, it's just about $900,000," he said. "And that is inclusive of the exterior work, as well as the interior work."



Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .
In Pompeii, Italy, archaeologists have uncovered a unique "blue room" adorned with ancient Roman murals. This discovery was announced earlier this month at the Archaeological Parks of Pompeii.

Found within the central area of the historic city, the room, measuring about 90 square feet, was first identified during the Bourbon period between 1813 and 1840 but has only recently been fully excavated. The grand reveal of the room took place on May 27, showing its vibrant cerulean-painted walls for the first time in centuries.

Pompeii Discovery Unveils Ancient Roman Secrets

The room's frescoes are significant both artistically and culturally. Some murals depict the four seasons, known as "Horea," while others feature symbols of agriculture, such as a plow and a "pedum," a short staff traditionally used by shepherds and hunters.

According to ABC News, the use of blue pigment in the room is particularly noteworthy; this color is rarely found in Pompeian frescoes and is typically reserved for more elaborately decorated spaces.

This suggests the room held considerable importance, likely serving as a sacrarium-a sanctuary devoted to ritual activities and the storage of sacred objects.

During the excavation, archaeologists also discovered various artifacts inside the room, including 15 transport amphorae, which are large vases, and a collection of bronze items consisting of two jugs and two lamps.

Additionally, they found piles of building materials intended for renovation and a heap of empty oyster shells.

This excavation is part of a broader initiative to protect the extensive heritage of Pompeii, which encompasses 1070 residential units with around 13,000 rooms, along with numerous public and sacred spaces.

As of now, it remains unclear whether the blue room is open to the public.

Related Article

Child Sketches Unveil Pompeii's Violent Past

Archaeologists in Pompeii have made a poignant discovery-charcoal sketches believed to have been drawn by children, depicting scenes of violence that they might have witnessed.

As per the Independent, these sketches include figures of gladiators and were found on the walls of a structure known as the "Colonnaded Cenacle."

The drawings also featured small handprints and other playful scenes such as children playing with a ball and a hunting scene, which suggests these were the works of children around six or seven years old.

According to Gabriel Zuchtriegel, the director of the Pompeii site, these drawings provide knowledge into the daily lives and even the psychological experiences of young residents in the ancient city.

Experts, including psychologists from the Federico II University in Naples, suggest that these images could represent real events the children saw, rather than creations of their imagination.

In a related discovery at the site, a unique banquet hall with elegant black walls and a mosaic floor was recently uncovered.

The walls were adorned with paintings of mythological figures like Helen of Troy and Apollo, intended to captivate and initiate conversation among guests.

This banquet hall, found near the southern Italian city of Naples, was part of a larger project aimed at strengthening the boundary between excavated and yet-to-be-explored areas of Pompeii.
Riyadh Air, Saudi Arabia's newest national airline, is set to challenge major players in the aviation industry by partnering with CellPoint Digital for advanced payment solutions. The airline, based in Riyadh, plans to begin commercial flights by mid-2025.

Riyadh Air Set to Transform Saudi Arabia

Riyadh Air aims to redefine air travel in Saudi Arabia. With a $30 billion investment, this start-up airline is gearing up to connect Saudi Arabia to 100 regional and international destinations by 2030.

This move is part of Saudi Arabia's broader goal to become a global aviation hub. The strategic location of the kingdom, bridging Asia, Africa, and Europe, supports this vision.

In preparation for its launch, Riyadh Air has collaborated with CellPoint Digital, a leader in payment technology.

According to Breaking Travel News, partnership focuses on equipping Riyadh Air with a Payment Orchestration platform. Such technology will enable the airline to handle various types of payment transactions, both local and international.

The system is designed to reduce the number of declined transactions, helping avoid booking cancellations and boosting revenue.

The Payment Orchestration platform by CellPoint Digital is particularly tailored to meet the needs of modern airlines. It allows for intelligent routing of transactions based on several factors like pricing, currency, and the geographical location of the payment processor.

This ensures higher success rates in transaction processing.

Riyadh Air's Chief Operating Officer, Peter Bellew, noted that the airline plans to hire about 300 pilots and cabin crew by spring 2025.

Adam Boukadida, the CFO of Riyadh Air, emphasized the importance of digital technology in enhancing the customer's booking and onboard experience. He praised CellPoint Digital's extensive knowledge of the airline industry and highlighted the consultancy support they have received in securing international partnerships.

The collaboration is expected to set a new standard in Saudi Arabia's aviation sector.

Related Article : Riyadh's Futuristic Airport Promises a Seamless Passenger Experience

Saudi Arabia Hits Tourism and Jobs High

The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) reported a significant boost in tourism for Saudi Arabia, setting new records in economic contribution and job creation in 2023.

Travel News Asia revealed that the tourism sector expanded by over 32%, adding SAR 444.3 billion to the nation's GDP, which is 11.5% of the entire economy. This figure surpassed the previous record by nearly 30%.

In terms of employment, the travel and tourism sector now supports over 2.5 million jobs, which is about 20% of all jobs in Saudi Arabia. This is an increase of 436,000 jobs from the previous year, demonstrating a robust recovery and growth since the pandemic.

Spending by international visitors surged by 57% to SAR 227.4 billion, a significant rise from the past record, while spending by domestic tourists grew by 21.5% to SAR 142.5 billion.

In 2023, Saudi Arabia welcomed 100 million tourists, achieving its target seven years early and setting a new goal of attracting 150 million tourists by 2030.

WTTC's latest forecasts anticipate continued growth in this sector, with potential contributions to GDP reaching SAR 498 billion and job creation increasing by over 158,000 in the near future.

The remarkable progress in Saudi Arabia's tourism sector underscores its crucial role in the nation's economic diversification and global tourism prominence.
Over six hundred people have died as a result of poor air quality in this country, in one ye
Member countries of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG) have already committed more than $98 billion in security assistance to Ukraine.

According to an Ukrinform correspondent, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said this while opening the 23rd meeting of the UDCG in Brussels on Thursday.

"I am proud that this Contact Group has committed more than $98 billion in security assistance to Ukraine since February 2022. And this coalition continues to find innovative and sustainable ways to rush in critical capabilities to meet Ukraine's most pressing needs," he said.

Read also: Argentina joins Ukraine Defense Contact Group

Austin said he was grateful to Sweden for announcing its largest military assistance package yet, worth about $1.23 billion, which includes two airborne surveillance and control aircraft, "which will be critical for Ukraine's long-range air surveillance."

"I am also grateful to our host, Belgium, which has committed to deliver 30 F-16 fighters to Ukraine by 2028, as well as an additional $1 billion in military aid this year. And I would like to thank Spain for its recent pledge of more air defense missiles," he added.

He also said that the United States continues to provide much-needed security assistance to Ukraine.
The United States has not yet given Ukraine any permission to use U.S.-provided weapons to strike targets inside Russia located far from the front line.

U.S. President Joe Biden said this at a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrinform reports.

"It is clear that along the Ukrainian-Russian border it makes a lot of sense for Ukraine to be able to take out or combat what is coming across that border. In terms of long-range weapons [] we have not changed our position on that," Biden said.

In late May, U.S. President Joe Biden gave Ukraine permission to use U.S.-made weapons to strike military targets inside Russia, but this permission applies only to the area of Kharkiv.

Archival photo: Office of the President of Ukraine
In a shocking and seemingly random act of violence, four American college instructors from Iowa were stabbed in Beishan Park, northeastern China, on Monday.

The victims, associated with Cornell College in Iowa, were in China as part of a teaching partnership with Beihua University. The incident has raised concerns about the safety of educational exchange programs and the response from both Chinese authorities and U.S. officials.

Details of the Incident

According to reports, the attack occurred in the city center of Jilin, a province bordering North Korea and Russia. The assailant, a 55-year-old Chinese man identified by his last name, Cui, allegedly collided with one of the foreigners while walking in the park. The situation escalated quickly, resulting in Cui stabbing the instructors and a Chinese tourist who attempted to intervene. Local police arrested Cui and characterized the incident as "random and unprovoked."

The victims, who were identified as part of a teaching collaboration with Beihua University, received immediate medical attention. David Zabner, a Ph.D. student in computer science education at Tufts University, was one of the individuals involved in the program with Cornell College. Zabner's brother, Iowa state Representative Adam Zabner, reported that David had been stitched up and was on the path to recovery. Two other victims were critically injured and underwent surgery, according to Iowa congresswoman Mariannette Miller-Meeks.

Response from Authorities and Institutions

Cornell College's president, Jonathan Brand, assured that the college is in contact with the injured instructors and providing necessary assistance. He also clarified that no students were part of the program during the incident. This statement aimed to alleviate concerns among parents and the wider college community about the safety of ongoing international programs.

Chinese authorities have labeled the attack as an isolated incident. Lin Jian, a spokesperson for China's Foreign Ministry, emphasized that such events should not deter the continuation of educational exchanges between China and the United States. This stance reflects a commitment to maintaining and promoting cultural and academic ties despite the incident.

However, reports suggest that Chinese government officials have been active in managing the narrative within the country. Social media discussions and visuals related to the attack were reportedly removed, although some commentary began to emerge online by the following afternoon.

Implications for U.S.-China Educational Exchange Programs

This violent episode has inevitably raised questions about the security of international educational exchange programs. Such collaborations are crucial for fostering cross-cultural understanding and academic advancement. Both the Chinese Foreign Ministry and U.S. officials have expressed their intention to continue supporting these exchanges, highlighting their mutual benefits.

In the wake of the attack, there may be increased scrutiny and potential revisions to safety protocols for such programs. Ensuring the safety of educators and students abroad is paramount, and institutions involved in these exchanges will likely review and strengthen their measures to protect participants.

Representative Adam Zabner's relief at his brother's recovery echoes the sentiments of many who have loved ones participating in international programs. The focus now shifts to not only supporting the victims and their families but also to reinforcing the structures that allow such valuable exchanges to continue safely.

The event highlights the inherent unpredictability of such undertakings. It underscores the need for vigilance and robust safety measures, even in environments that are generally considered safe. As the investigation continues, it is crucial for educational institutions, governments, and participants to work collaboratively to ensure that the pursuit of knowledge and cultural exchange can proceed without fear of similar incidents in the future.

The attack on the Iowa college instructors in China highlights the vulnerabilities inherent in international programs but also underscores the resilience and commitment of both nations to maintain these vital educational links. As the world becomes more interconnected, the lessons learned from this incident will hopefully lead to improved safety and understanding, ensuring that the benefits of such exchanges far outweigh the risks.
The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators (NASFAA) is urging Congress to take legislative action to extend the compliance deadline for the new gainful employment and financial value transparency rule.

The current extension from July 31 to October 1 is seen as insufficient by NASFAA, which argues that institutions require until July 2025 to adequately meet the new reporting requirements. This article delves into the context and reasoning behind NASFAA's request, the challenges faced by colleges due to recent FAFSA issues, and the implications of this potential legislative action.

Context and NASFAA's Request

Earlier this year, the Department of Education (ED) postponed the deadline for colleges to comply with the new gainful employment and financial value transparency rule from July 31 to October 1. This extension was granted after colleges highlighted the difficulties in gathering and reporting new program-level information, such as the total cost of attendance and private education loan disbursements to students. The challenges were exacerbated by issues surrounding the new Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), which faced delays and numerous complications.

While NASFAA welcomed the initial two-month extension, they argue that it is still not enough time for colleges to fully comply with the new requirements. In a letter to Congress, NASFAA President Justin Draeger emphasized the need for a one-year extension, suggesting that it would provide a more balanced timeline for both institutions and the ED to gather and report necessary data. Draeger contended that this extension would not hinder the department's plan to start holding institutions accountable for their outcomes beginning July 1, 2026.

The Impact of FAFSA Issues

The new FAFSA has been fraught with delays and technical problems, significantly impacting the timeline for financial aid professionals. These issues have compressed the period during which applications can be processed and aid letters sent to students. Consequently, financial aid administrators have faced an increased workload, adding to the existing pressures and responsibilities on campuses.

Draeger noted that many financial aid offices are already stretched thin and struggling to keep up with their duties. The additional burden of complying with the gainful employment rule's extensive reporting requirements exacerbates this strain. The NASFAA letter highlighted that the ED's rushed timeline forces schools to prioritize meeting the October 1 deadline at the expense of other critical tasks, leading to potential setbacks in other areas of student support and institutional operation.

Implications of the Legislative Action

If Congress heeds NASFAA's call for a one-year extension, it could significantly alleviate the pressure on colleges and financial aid administrators. This extension would provide institutions with the necessary time to adapt to the new requirements without compromising other essential functions. Furthermore, it would allow the ED to refine its data collection and reporting processes, ensuring a smoother implementation of the gainful employment rule.

A more extended deadline would also give schools the opportunity to address the ongoing issues with FAFSA more effectively. By easing the immediate burden, financial aid offices can focus on resolving the complications associated with the new application system, ultimately benefiting students who rely on timely and accurate financial aid information.

In the broader context, this legislative action would exemplify a balanced approach to regulatory compliance, recognizing the challenges faced by institutions while maintaining the integrity and objectives of the gainful employment rule. It underscores the importance of collaboration between educational institutions and regulatory bodies to achieve shared goals without overwhelming the resources and capacities of colleges.

The National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators' appeal to Congress for a one-year extension to the compliance deadline for the new gainful employment and financial value transparency rule highlights significant challenges faced by colleges due to recent FAFSA issues. By addressing these concerns and granting a more reasonable timeline, Congress and the Department of Education can ensure that institutions are better equipped to meet the reporting requirements without compromising their other critical functions. This balanced approach would ultimately benefit both students and educational institutions, fostering a more efficient and effective implementation of the gainful employment rule.
A recent survey by the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research highlights the controversy surrounding President Joe Biden's approach to student loan debt.

The results indicate that less than a third of U.S. adults approve of the President's actions in this area, with only 36 percent of those currently repaying loans supporting his initiatives. Despite the Biden administration's efforts to forgive $167 billion in student loans for 4.75 million Americans and plans for further relief, public approval remains elusive. This article delves into the survey results, examining the partisan divide, generational perspectives, and potential implications for Biden's reelection campaign.

Partisan Divide on Student Debt Relief

The survey results highlight a significant partisan divide regarding Biden's approach to student loan debt. Among Democrats, 55 percent expressed approval of the President's handling of the issue. In contrast, only 18 percent of Independents and a mere 9 percent of Republicans shared this sentiment. This stark disparity underscores the political polarization surrounding student debt relief. For many Democrats, Biden's efforts align with their broader goals of economic equity and support for working-class Americans. However, Republicans and many Independents appear skeptical of the effectiveness and fairness of these policies.

The Biden administration has taken steps to address student loan debt, including targeted relief for specific groups of borrowers. These measures, while supported by a majority of Democrats, have not garnered widespread approval among the broader public. This lack of bipartisan support poses a challenge for Biden, especially as he prepares for his reelection campaign. The administration's ability to bridge this divide and present a more universally appealing solution will be crucial in garnering broader support.

READ MORE : Biden's Student Loan Forgiveness Plan Sparks Controversy

Generational Perspectives on Debt Relief

The survey also revealed a generational gap in attitudes toward student loan debt relief. Adults under the age of 45 rated the issue significantly higher, with many considering it "extremely important" for the federal government to prioritize debt relief. This younger demographic, which often faces substantial student debt burdens, views the issue as a critical component of economic stability and upward mobility.

In contrast, older adults were less likely to prioritize student loan forgiveness, reflecting a potential difference in financial circumstances and educational experiences. Many older Americans may have completed their education during a time when tuition costs were lower and student loans were less burdensome. This generational divide highlights the need for policies that address the unique financial challenges faced by younger borrowers.

Biden's plans to provide relief to specific groups, such as borrowers with ballooning balances due to interest or those who have made payments for over 20 years, resonate more with younger Americans. However, these measures have not yet achieved widespread approval across all age groups. Bridging this generational gap will be essential for the administration to create a more cohesive and widely supported student debt relief strategy.

Implications for Biden's Reelection Campaign

Student debt relief is a key plank of President Biden's reelection campaign, but the mixed approval ratings suggest that this issue alone may not be enough to secure broad voter support. With only 34 percent of those surveyed who are responsible for repaying a student loan disapproving of Biden's approach, it is clear that there is a significant portion of the electorate that remains unconvinced by the administration's efforts.

Furthermore, the poll indicates that about 40 percent of adults believe it is important for the federal government to forgive student loans, while a similar percentage disagree. This division reflects the complexity of the issue and the challenges faced by the Biden administration in crafting policies that appeal to a diverse electorate. The generational and partisan divides add layers of complexity to an already contentious topic, making it crucial for the administration to engage in comprehensive dialogue and consider diverse perspectives when formulating future policies.

The survey results from the University of Chicago Harris School of Public Policy and The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research reveal that President Biden's handling of student loan debt remains a divisive issue among U.S. adults. The partisan and generational divides highlight the challenges the administration faces in garnering widespread support for its debt relief initiatives. As Biden prepares for his reelection campaign, addressing these divisions and presenting a more universally appealing solution will be critical in securing voter support and achieving meaningful progress in student debt relief.
UNODC Promotes Good Practices for the Prosecution and Adjudication of Terrorism Offenses in Central Asia

Prosecution authorities and judiciaries of Central Asian countries are faced with a number of foreign terrorist fighters (FTFs) who have travelled from the region to Syria and Iraq and have returned or may seek to return home. This phenomenon raises unique challenges in terms of developing an effective, appropriate and coordinated prosecutorial and judicial response. Good practices in such and other terrorism related cases, were the focus of a regional workshop held in Tashkent from 20-22 November 2018.

The event was organized by the General Prosecutor's Office of the Republic of Uzbekistan and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime's (UNODC) as part of the UNODC Program for Central Asia and the regional project "Support to Regional Approaches on Prosecution, Rehabilitation and Reintegration of Returnees" funded by the Governments of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Kingdom of Sweden.

"Strengthening measures to prevent and address violent extremism and terrorism and other forms of organized crime are key priorities for peace and sustainable development of Uzbekistan and the other countries in the region, " said Mr. Erkin Yuldashev, Deputy General Prosecutor of Uzbekistan. "Increased understanding of good practices for the collection, preservation, and presentation of evidence acquired from intelligence sources and enhanced expertise of our prosecutors and judges to investigate, prosecute and adjudicate terrorism related cases contributes to achieving this goal".

For three days, some 60 senior staff from law enforcement, security, prosecutorial and judicial bodies dealing with terrorism cases, legal practitioners, regional and international experts, as well as representatives of regional and international organizations and embassies, shared best practices on the management of cases involving terrorism offenses.

"Adherence to procedural guarantees, including the right of the accused to a fair trial with adequate legal representation, is a core part of any criminal justice response to violent extremism and terrorism", noted Mr. Koen Marquering, Acting Head of the UNODC Program Office in the Kyrgyz Republic. "Gender considerations, such as in the case of returnee women who accompanied their partners to Syria or Iraq, and measures to enable victim and witness participation in the criminal process, with due regard for their protection and security, are also key".

In response to the threats posed by returnees, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) on 21 December 2017 adopted resolution 2396, under Chapter VII, calling on Member States to take appropriate action against returnees and accompanying family members, including considering appropriate prosecution, rehabilitation, and reintegration measures, in accordance with domestic and international law. The rights of witnesses and victims in the criminal justice system have also been addressed by the third ( A/Res/66/282) and fourth ( A/Res/68/276) review resolutions of the Global Counter-Terrorism Strategy.

For more information:

UNODC ROCA on Twitter

UNODC in Central Asia on Facebook

***

For more information, please contact Ms. Vasilina Brazhko,

National Communication and PR Officer at UNODC/ROCA

at +996775987817 or by e-mail: vasilina.brazhko[at]unodc.org
Remarks:

Notification concerning the decommissioning of NSS-7 (2002-019A)
ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Jun, 2024) Reiterating the pressing need for digitization and broadening of tax base, Federal Minister for Finance and Revenue, Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb asserted here on Thursday that below 10 percent tax to GDP ratio was not sustainable for managing countrys economy.

We have to take it up to 13 percent in next three years gradually, the minister said while addressing the post-budget press conference, adding as per the international bench marks, no country could sustain at 9.5 tax to GDP ratio base without external assistance. Hence, there is a dire need to enhance tax to GDP ratio, the minister said.

The minister was flanked by State Minister for Finance, Ali Pervaiz Malik, Secretary Finance, Imdad Ullah Bosal and Chairman Federal board of Revenue (FBR), Amjad Zubair Tiwana.

Aurangzeb underscored the importance of doing away with undocumented economy with end-to-end digitization to reduce human intervention as much as possible and make the tax mechanism transparent and mitigate chances of corruption.

The minister admitted that the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) could not do compliance and enforcement to the extent it should have done.

He said, the government had introduced progressive taxes in the federal budget for upcoming fiscal year 2024-25 to impose more tax on high income earners.

He said, the country needed to move on the direction of broadening tax base to make economy sustainable. Therefore, it was imperative to bring into tax net the retailers and wholesalers to share the burden.

He said, the government had launched tax scheme for retailers and wholesalers and they were offered to registration on volunteer basis, however it was termed unsuccessful. Later, in May 2024, the minister added, FBR workforce mobilized itself, which resulted in registration of around 31,000 retailers with the scheme till date.

He said, the registration for the scheme would continue while tax would also be imposed from July 2024.

We have no other option but to get this sector into tax net, he remarked. The minister said that Point of Sale (PoS) prize scheme would be re-launched to do away with cash transactions.

To a question about Petroleum Development Levy (PDL), the minister said it would be increased gradually and in accordance with international oil prices.

The minister said that the exemption and 35% category of salary slabs were intact, adding that there was change in other slabs falling between. He said, the government took up tax for non-salaried personals up to 45 percent.

Talking about youth development, the minister said Pakistan was having third largest population in the world. Hence, keeping in view this reality, the government had provided record allocations for Information and Technology sector to improve digital infrastructure and provide the youth an enabling environment.

He said, the countrys IT exports stand at $ 3.5 billion which could be lifted up to $7 billion provided an enabling environment is given to youth.

He admitted that proper financing was not provided to SMEs because banks have no appetite for them and assured that banks would now come with specific schemes, in three sectors including agriculture, IT and SMEs.

Talking about PSDP priorities, the minister said that government had focused on completing ongoing projects therefore 81 percent allocations were made for these schemes while only 19 percent was allocated for new schemes, which included important projects and those have foreign funding.

Finance Minister Senator Muhammad Aurangzeb said that the government was determined to plug the tax leakages and has initiated end-to-end digitization of the revenue collection system to minimize human intervention; end harassment and improve tax compliance culture in the country.

He said measures were being taken to block the loopholes in Sales Tax system with a complete digitization adding that sufficient data was available, indicating potential tax evaders. However, he said the data would be thoroughly verified by a data analyst team.

He said that verified data would be provided to the field formation for execution and bring tax evaders into the tax net.

He said negotiations with the provincial government were also in progress to enhance revenue collection and rationalization of expenditures.

Elaborating rationalizing measures, the minister said in the first phase, devolved ministries would be closed such as PWD had already been closed. He said measures were afoot to shut down other ministries/departments during a couple of months.

Regarding the privatization programme of the current government, the minister categorically cleared that all the stakeholders were on-board and the government was taking the process forward in consultation with the allied political parties to complete it within the stipulated time-frame.

He said that the privatization of loss-making entities was essential for the economic recovery and social development of the country, adding that the privatization of Pakistan International Airlines would be completed by 15 August and after its divestment, under the direction of Prime Minister, work on the outsourcing of Islamabad Airport would be initiated.

Soon after that other airports including Lahore and Karachi would also be outsourced, he said adding that the government was also keen to introduce corporate governance in the power distribution companies (Discos) to enhance their efficiency by deputing their chairmen from the private sector experts.

To a question, the minister said that talks with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) were held in a cordial manner and were progressing towards a positive direction to reach a conclusion by next month.

Speaking on the occasion, Minister of the State for Finance and Power, Ali Pervaiz Malik said that the government was well aware of the hardships faced by the common man in the country and it was working on broad-based reforms agenda to enhance efficiencies of public sector organizations to create fiscal space for them.

He said that despite fiscal constraints, the government had enhanced the budgetary allocation of the Benazir Income Support Programme and subsidy for the power sector for the safety of protected consumers, adding that minimum wage was increased.

Chairman Federal Board of Revenue clarified that there was no increase in the tax on DAP fertilizer, adding that tax on imported tractors were enhanced by 10 percent as the locally manufactured tractors were levied about 18 percent tax and the imposition of tax on the imported tractors were aimed at making the product competitive in local market.
KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Jun, 2024) Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah chaired a meeting about law and order on Thursday and decided to acquire 4000 devices for E-tagging repeat street and drug criminals.

The CM decided to implement GEO-tagging and GPS utilization to prevent street and drug crimes in the hotspot areas of the city.

He instructed the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to provide 14 drones, which were procured last month, to the police in Sukkur, Ghotki, Kashmore, and Shikarpur Districts to monitor the movement of criminals/dacoits and their hideouts.

I know the police with the coordinated support of Rangers and other law enforcement agencies have made progress in controlling law & order, including street crimes in the city and kidnapping for ransom in the Kutcha area but we should take benefit of the latest technology in curbing the crime, the CM said and added he had already provided enough funds to the police for equipment.

The meeting was held at CM House and was attended by provincial ministers, Sharjeel Memon, Nasir Shah, Zia Lanjar, Mayor Karachi Murtaza Wahab, Chief Secretary Asif Hyder Shah, SMBR Baqaullah Unar, IG Police Ghulam Nabi Memon, Commissioner Karachi Hassan Naqvi, Additional IG Karachi Imran Yakoob, Secretary Local Govt Khalid Hyder Shah, Secretary Finance Fayaz Jatoi, Secretary to CM Raheem Shaikh, Secretary Law, Secretary E&T Saleem Rajput and provincial heads of other law enforcement agencies.

The CM said we should not be complacent in terms of the Karachi Situation and its current crime rate index if we did not control drugs. He was of the view that our future generations and society at large would fully become prone to the use of drugs consequently leading to crimes and lawlessness.

I committed to making Karachi a drug-safe city, the CM said. At this, the IG Police told the CM that 574 drug dealers had been identified in the province, from them 299 had been rounded up and put in jail, five were eliminated and 270 were at large but would be arrested soon.

The CM was told that 4000 devices would be procured for E-tagging of repeat criminals which includes street and Narcotics dealers. CM said that he has given a budget to the police for the installation of trackers in Police vehicles which must be ensured.

He was informed that 3,302 police vehicles had been equipped with a tracker system.

The CM was told that on his instructions, hotspot areas of street crime and narcotics selling had been identified in most affected districts of Karachi. Necessary installations to carry out GEO-Tagging and utilize GPS Systems with associated technologies to prevent street crime and drug activities efficiently.

Murad Shah said that he has already issued instructions for monitoring of entry and exit points of the province. At this, he was told that entry/exit points of the province have been provided with facial recognition/ANPR cameras.

The CM was told that under the first Phase of Karachi Safe City, the work of installation of 1,300 cameras has been started. The CM said that Rs 5.6 bln was already released for the Safe City project.

To a question, the CM was told that 14 Drones have been purchased and given to Sukkur, Ghotki, Kashmore and Shikarpur Districts police to monitor the movement of Criminals/dacoits and their hideouts.

Murad Shah directed the police to adopt the technology of laser-guided fencing to log them on the borders. He directed the IG police to coordinate with the NRTC, and explore its ways and means, and report him.

The CM was told that GPS or related technology would be used to forestall the possibility of any drug-related criminal activity through efficient monitoring.
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The Election Commission of Pakistan tells the top court that formation of election tribunals is the prerogative of the Election Commission and that the High Court cannot exercise the Election Commission's powers.

ISLAMABAD: (UrduPoint/UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News-June 13rd, 2024) The Election Commission of Pakistan on Thursday challenged the Lahore High Court's decision on formation of election tribunals in the Supreme Court.

The ECP in its appeal subitted that formation of election tribunals is the prerogative of the Election Commission and that the High Court cannot exercise the Election Commission's powers.

The ECP asked the apex court to nullify the Lahore High Court's decision and to schedule the appeal for a hearing tomorrow.

It may be mentioned here that the Lahore High Court had decided to form eight election tribunals, and following the decision, Chief Justice Shehzad Malik had issued orders for the formation of eight tribunals yesterday.
KARACHI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Jun, 2024) The Syndicate meeting of the University of Karachi in principal approved the proposal of establishing KUs medical and dental college.

KU Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Khalid Mahmood Iraqi chaired the Syndicate meeting, which was held at the VC Secretariat on Wednesday.

The members recommended submitting a detailed feasibility report along with the objective analysis to the Syndicate members for further deliberation. The conceptual approval to establish KUs medical and dental college was approved so that the University of Karachi could invite interested parties to the medical and dental college project.

The KU Syndicate approved the minutes of the Finance and Planning Commission meeting dated December 29, 2023, and proposed to revise the budget for 2024-25 at the earliest. The Syndicate also approved the appointments of the chairperson and director(s) in various departments and institutes.

The KU Syndicate also granted permission to the faculty, staff, and employees of centres for a funeral in the campuss graveyard.

The Syndicate members agreed to award BPS-19 to assistant professor (temporary) to the in-service lecturers BPS-18 based on PhD qualification on the availability of the budgeted posts in the concerned departments.

The Syndicate asked the KU Registrar Professor Dr Abdul Waheed to check the previous syndicate resolution and record for the up-gradation of various non-teaching posts and share his report with the members in the next meeting. The KU Syndicate also approved the suggestion of the Advanced Studies and Research board to award the MPhil degree to (late) Syed Tanveer Hayder after his demise based on external reports.

Earlier, new members of the Syndicates were welcomed and prayers were offered for the departed souls of the Iranian President Dr Seyed Ebrahim Raisi and KU faculty members.

The KU has recently conferred the Doctor of Philosophy (Honoris Causa) in the KU Faculty of Islamic Studies to the honourable President of the Islamic Republic of Iran Dr Seyed Ebrahim Raisi.

The members also approved the action taken at the last Syndicate meeting and confirmed the minutes of the previous Syndicate meeting. Furthermore, they approved the action taken by the KU vice chancellor.
CNR: On June 12, the opening ceremony of the 60th anniversary celebrations of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development was held in Geneva. We noted that President Xi Jinping attended the opening ceremony via video link and delivered an address. Could you share more with us?

Lin Jian: On June 12, President Xi Jinping attended the opening ceremony of the 60th anniversary celebrations of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) via video link and delivered an important address, which received extensive attention and warm response from the international community.

In his address, President Xi Jinping commended UNCTADs role, and called on all parties to assume their responsibilities for history and the people, keep to the right direction, and work together to build a community with a shared future for mankind. President Xi Jinping made the following three important propositions. First, foster an international environment for peaceful development. We need to pursue true multilateralism, advocate an equal and orderly multipolar world, abide by the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, and support a more effective role of UNCTAD and other multilateral agencies. Second, follow the trend toward open development. We should advocate a universally beneficial and inclusive economic globalization, promote trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, properly resolve development imbalance and other issues, and make the global governance system more just and equitable. Third, harness the historic opportunity for innovation-driven development. It is important to build an open, inclusive and non-discriminatory environment for the digital economy, follow the people-centered, AI-for-good principle and strengthen AI-related rules and governance within the framework of the United Nations, actively advance green transition, and help developing countries join the trend of digital, smart and green development.

President Xi Jinping stressed that China is advancing Chinese modernization on all fronts through high-quality development, which will provide new and greater opportunities for world development. China will always be a member of the Global South and the developing world. Holding humanitys future and peoples well-being close to our heart, we will work together with all parties to give the world a bright future of peace, security, prosperity and progress.

President Xi Jinpings participation in the opening ceremony of the 60th anniversary celebrations of UNCTAD via video link and delivering an address fully demonstrates the high importance that China attaches to global development and our tremendous support for the common development of the Global South. China looks to working with the international community to deepen solidarity and cooperation, promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, implement the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative and the Global Civilization Initiative, open a new chapter in global development, contribute to the modernization of the whole world and achieve common prosperity.

Al Jazeera: According to the Times of Israel, Hamas has demanded that China, Russia and Turkiye serve as guarantors for any hostage deal with Israel. The demand is said to be one of several changes made by Hamas to the proposal put forward by Israel last month and publicized by US President Joe Biden. Whats Chinas comment?

Lin Jian: China has noted the report. The Gaza conflict has been dragging on for more than eight months. The most urgent priority is to fully and effectively implement relevant UN Security Council resolutions, achieve an immediate ceasefire, protect civilians, guarantee humanitarian assistance and ensure the early release of all those held captive. China will continue to work with all parties to make unremitting efforts to end the fighting in Gaza as soon as possible, ease the grave humanitarian situation and implement the two-State solution.

CCTV: On June 12, the European Commission announced that provisional duties up to 38.1 percent would be introduced from 4 July on the electric vehicles imports from China. German government spokesman said we do not need further trade barriers. Hungarys Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade said in a statement that Hungary disagrees with the brutal European punishment of Chinese electric car manufacturers. Volkswagen, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Stellantis and other European major car makers also spoke out right away against the duties. Whats your comment?

Lin Jian: On the EUs pre-disclosure of anti-subsidy investigation on Chinas electric vehicles, the spokesperson of the Ministry of Commerce has responded to the question and made clear Chinas position. The industry, companies and business associations in China have also firmly opposed it.

Let me stress that this investigation is a typical act of protectionism which ignores the facts and the WTO rules. It goes against the overall trend and will benefit no one. We urge the EU to heed the rational and objective views from various quarters, correct its wrong decision at once, stop turning trade into political issues, properly address economic and trade frictions through dialogue and consultation, and avoid harming the mutual trust, dialogue and cooperation between China and the EU.

Yonhap News Agency: Its reported that Russias President Putin will visit the DPRK soon. How does China who maintains friendly relations with both the DPRK and Russia view the meeting between the leaders of these two countries? Does the Chinese side plan to hold meetings between the leaders of China and the DPRK?

Lin Jian: We noted the report. Your question concerns bilateral interaction between Russia and the DPRK. Its not for me to comment on that. Ill just say more broadly that China welcomes Russia to cement and grow ties with countries they have traditional friendship with.

On your second question. China and the DPRK are neighbors connected by mountains and rivers. We enjoy a traditional friendship and cooperative ties. This year marks the 75th anniversary of China-DPRK diplomatic ties and China-DPRK Friendship Year designated by the two sides. China and the DPRK maintain communication on visits of delegations as well as exchanges and cooperation in various fields. If there is anything to announce about a meeting between Chinese and DPRK leaders, we will release the information in a timely manner.

Shenzhen TV: We noted that in the latest Global Economic Prospects released days ago, the World Bank raised Chinas growth forecast in 2024 from 4.5 percent to 4.8 percent. Whats your comment?

Lin Jian: We noted the World Banks report and saw that days ago, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) again revised up Chinas growth forecast for this year, 0.4 percentage points higher than the April forecast. Many international institutions raised their forecast for Chinas economic growth this year, a case in point of the international communitys confidence in Chinas economy. Global Economic Prospects also mentioned Chinas stronger-than-expected activity, particularly exports. Statistics released by Chinas General Administration of Customs show that in the first five months this year, Chinas trade in goods with other countries grew year-on-year by 6.3 percent. As a major manufacturer and consumer in the world, China has provided cost-effective products to other countries and a big market for their own products, which is a vivid illustration of Chinas positive and distinct role.

As the second largest economy and an important component of the global economy, China has long remained a great contributor to global economic growth. Chinas sustained and steady economic growth is a powerful engine of global economic recovery. IMF analysis showed that a 1 percentage point increase in GDP growth in China leads to 0.3 percentage point increase in growth in other economies on average.

With complex changes unfolding in our world, the Chinese economy has the strength and resilience to brave headwinds and move forward. A prosperous China augurs well for the world. We stand ready to share with the world the benefits and opportunities of our high-quality development and work with other countries to sustain the global modernization process.

RIA Novosti: The US Treasury Department yesterday released a new anti-Russia sanctions package that includes more than 300 companies, banks and dozens of individuals from Russia and other countries, including China. According to the US State Department, the new sanctions are intended to inflict damage on the Russian economy amid the ongoing conflict in Ukraine. I wonder if these new sanctions will affect China-Russia economic cooperation?

Lin Jian: China and Russia are comprehensive strategic partners of coordination. The mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Russia is inherently logical and very much resilient, and is in the interest of both countries. China firmly opposes all illegitimate unilateral sanction and long-arm jurisdiction. The normal economic and trade interactions between China and Russia should not be interfered with or disrupted, still less be used as a tool to smear and contain China.

On the Ukraine crisis, it is quite clear to the international community who is calling for dialogue and striving for peace, and who is fueling the fight and inciting confrontation. The US on the one hand continues to pour weapons and munition into Ukraine, yet on the other shifts the blame of undermining peace and protracting the crisis to other countries. It even sees the crisis as an opportunity to slap sanctions and suppress others. All of it reveals the USs calculations, hypocrisy and what a bully it is.

The USs unilateral sanctions have created victims all over the world, severely undermined other countries sovereignty and security, caused humanitarian tragedies and disrupted industrial and supply chains. Since the escalation of the Ukraine crisis, the US even doubled down on sanctions. Wielding the big stick of sanctions does not solve problems and will only be a major source of risks for the world.

China did not create and is not a party to the Ukraine crisis. We will not accept smears, pressuring or blame-shifting. We urge the US to immediately stop slapping illegal unilateral sanctions and play a constructive role in ending the conflict and restoring peace. China will take all measures necessary to firmly safeguard the lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies and citizens.

Phoenix TV: To follow up on the EUs additional tariffs on Chinese electric vehicles. Will China take countermeasures?

Lin Jian: There are principles that China must defend, that is, the WTO rules and market principles. There are also interests that China must safeguard, that is, the lawful rights and interests of Chinas EV industry and enterprises. With this in mind, we will take all measures necessary.

Bloomberg: Climate diplomats at the Bonn climate conference told Bloomberg News that a major focus for this years COP29 talks will be Chinas role in global climate finance, and a push for China to play a much larger role in contributing to funds directed toward developing nations, in keeping with Chinas development in recent decades. Does the Chinese Foreign Ministry have any comment?

Lin Jian: Climate financing is key to taking climate actions and reaching emission reduction goals. To provide financial support to developing countries for their climate actions is an unshirkable moral responsibility of developed countries and, more importantly, an obligation they must fulfill under international law, including the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) and the Paris Agreement. This is an important manifestation of the principle of common but differentiated responsibilities.

Developed countries promised to provide US$100 billion per year for climate action in developing countries in 2009, but for too long they have only paid lip service and now owe developing countries over US$300 billion in total. This greatly undermines mutual trust between the North and the South and global climate response. If developed countries still cannot step up to their due historic responsibility when COP29 discusses the future arrangement of climate financing at the end of this year, and try every means to shift responsibility to developing countries, international cooperation on global climate governance will be greatly impaired and the target on global temperature rise of the Paris Agreement will be very hard to meet.

As the largest developing country, China has a multitude of tasks. We are working to grow the economy, improve peoples livelihood and control pollution, to name just a few. Despite the challenging nature of the tasks, China has faithfully carried out the obligations under the UNFCCC, made every effort to achieve carbon peaking and carbon neutrality, and undertaken to make the worlds biggest cut in carbon emission intensity in the shortest time frame ever seen in history. In the meantime, China has provided support and assistance to other developing countries under the framework of South-South cooperation on climate change. China has so far signed 50 cooperation MOUs with 41 developing countries, held 58 training sessions on South-South cooperation concerning climate change, helped to train more than 2,400 professionals in the field of climate response and provided practical assistance to relevant countries in actively responding to climate change. Chinas effort has been highly recognized and widely applauded by fellow developing countries. Looking forward, China will further strengthen South-South cooperation and continue to provide assistance to the best of our capability to other developing countries in coping with climate change.

Global Times: Its reported that US Republican Senator Lindsey Graham said in a recent interview that Ukraine has US$10 to 12 trillion of critical minerals and can become the USs best business partner. The US supports Ukraine so that the critical mineral assets could be used by Ukraine and the West, not given to Putin and China. Whats your comment?

Lin Jian: We noted the report. What he said reveals the true calculations of the US on Ukraine. Apparently, some in the US keep talking about rules and principles, but all they think about is just profit and business.
(@FahadShabbir)

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Jun, 2024) President Asif Ali Zardari on Thursday directed the Federal Insurance Ombudsman (FIO) to provide speedy and free of charge justice to the aggrieved insurance policyholders against the maladministration of insurance companies.

He said that FIO needed to enhance its outreach and ensure quick disposal of complaints so that a maximum number of citizens could be provided monetary relief.

The president expressed these views while talking to the newly-appointed Federal Insurance Ombudsman (FIO) Mumtaz Ali Shah, who called on him, at Aiwan-e-Sadr.

During the meeting, President Zardari highlighted the need to create awareness about the role of FIO in providing justice to aggrieved policyholders in the settlement of insurance claims.

He also advised the FIO to use modern technology and ICT tools to increase the disposal of complaints.

Earlier, the president administered the oath of office to Mumtaz Ali Shah as the Federal Insurance Ombudsman, at an oath-taking ceremony, held at the Aiwan-e-Sadr.

Mumtaz Ali Shah is a retired Pakistan Administrative Service (PAS) officer who previously served in various positions throughout his career. He retired from PAS in March 2022 as Sindh Chief Secretary.
New York, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 13th Jun, 2024) Boeing faces a Thursday deadline to respond to a US Department of Justice determination that the planemaker can be prosecuted for violating a 2021 deal that allowed it to escape criminal prosecution over two fatal 737 MAX crashes.

The embattled aviation giant delivered its official response on Wednesday contesting the Justice Department's assessment, Bloomberg news reported late Wednesday, citing unnamed sources.

"We'll decline to comment on any specific communications with the Justice Department, however we continue to engage transparently with the Department, as we have throughout the term of the agreement," Boeing said of the Bloomberg report.

The case, which relates to a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) over two MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 that together claimed 346 lives, comes as Boeing faces intensifying scrutiny following recent manufacturing and safety problems.

Also on Thursday, Federal Aviation Administrator Mike Whitaker is due to testify in the Senate Commerce Committee on Boeing's recent plan to upgrade its safety and quality control efforts.

And next Tuesday, Boeing Chief Executive Dave Calhoun takes a turn before Congress in a hearing with the Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.

The aviation giant has been under a microscope since a January 5 incident in which a 737 MAX operated by Alaska Airlines was forced to make an emergency landing after a fuselage panel blew out mid-flight.

The incident came soon before the three-year DPA was due to conclude.

If satisfied with Boeing's conduct, the Department of Justice (DOJ) could have moved to drop the charges.

But in a May 14 letter to US Judge Reed O'Connor, the DOJ concluded that Boeing "breached its obligations" under the agreement, citing a number of provisions.

The January 2021 agreement required Boeing to pay $2.5 billion to settle fraud charges over certification of the 737 MAX.

The DOJ letter cited measures requiring Boeing to implement a compliance and ethics program, beef up its internal controls "to effectively detect and deter violations of US fraud laws" and prohibit Boeing from providing "deliberately false, incomplete or misleading" information about its compliance.

"We believe that we have honored the terms of that agreement," Boeing said to AFP in a statement on May 14, adding that it planned to defend itself.

In October 2018, a MAX 8 operated by Lion Air crashed in Indonesia's Java Sea, leaving 189 people dead.

Less than six months later, in March 2019, another MAX 8 operated by Ethiopian Airlines crashed southeast of Addis Ababa, killing the 157 people on board.

Prosecutors met with family members who lost relatives in the two MAX crashes on May 31 this year.

"The families have been strongly urging the DOJ to prosecute Boeing versus supporting a negotiated plea agreement," said a press release from the Clifford Law Offices, which represents the families.

The families "asked for full transparency including a criminal trial on conspiracy and other possible criminal charges against Boeing and their executives responsible for the two crashes," it said.

The Justice Department has said it will decide how to proceed on the case by July 7.

Ahead of that, Calhoun can expect a grilling at the June 18 hearing, which has been called a probe into "Boeing's Broken Safety Culture" after the panel earlier heard from company whistleblowers.

In March, Boeing announced that Calhoun would step down as CEO at the end of 2024, setting the stage for the company to undertake an executive search.

The company's travails have continued to weigh on its finances.

Last month, Boeing Chief Financial Officer Brian West said the company expects negative cash for all of 2024 after previously forecasting positive cash generation in the low single-digit billions for the year.
(@FahadShabbir)

New York, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 14th Jun, 2024) Boeing has officially contested a Department of Justice determination that the passenger plane giant can be prosecuted for violating a criminal settlement following two fatal 737 MAX crashes, a person familiar with the matter told AFP on Thursday.

The embattled aviation giant disputed the Justice Department's determination of its compliance with a 2021 deferred prosecution agreement, meeting a deadline to file an official response by June 13, according to the person.

Bloomberg news reported aspects of the Boeing response late Wednesday, citing unnamed sources.

"We'll decline to comment on any specific communications with the Justice Department, however we continue to engage transparently with the Department, as we have throughout the term of the agreement," Boeing told AFP in an email.

The Justice Department declined comment through a spokesperson.

The case, which relates to a deferred prosecution agreement over two MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 that together claimed 346 lives, comes as Boeing faces intensifying scrutiny following recent manufacturing and safety problems.

The aviation giant has again been under a microscope since a January 5 incident in which a 737 MAX operated by Alaska Airlines was forced to make an emergency landing after a fuselage panel blew out mid-flight.

The incident came soon before the three-year DPA was due to conclude.

- 'Agent of change' -

Boeing's travails took center stage at a Senate hearing Thursday where Federal Aviation Administration Administrator Mike Whitaker pledged stepped-up oversight of Boeing involving additional inspectors, promising that the agency "will continue to hold them accountable for producing and delivering safe aircraft."

Senator Maria Cantwell, a Washington state Democrat who chaired the hearing, told Whitaker, "We're counting on you to be that agent of change."

While acknowledging shortcomings, Boeing maintains that it has upgraded safety since the MAX crashes and that it honored the terms of the deferred prosecution agreement.

If satisfied with Boeing's conduct, the Justice Department could have moved to drop the charges.

But in a May 14 letter to US Judge Reed O'Connor, the department concluded that Boeing "breached its obligations" under the agreement, citing a number of provisions.

The January 2021 agreement required Boeing to pay $2.5 billion to settle fraud charges over certification of the 737 MAX.

The DOJ letter cited measures requiring Boeing to implement a compliance and ethics program, beef up its internal controls "to effectively detect and deter violations of US fraud laws" and prohibit Boeing from providing "deliberately false, incomplete or misleading" information about its compliance.

In October 2018, a MAX 8 operated by Lion Air crashed in Indonesia's Java Sea, leaving 189 people dead.

Less than six months later, in March 2019, another MAX 8 operated by Ethiopian Airlines crashed southeast of Addis Ababa, killing the 157 people on board.

Prosecutors met with family members who lost relatives in the two MAX crashes on May 31 this year.

"The families have been strongly urging the DOJ to prosecute Boeing versus supporting a negotiated plea agreement," said a press release from the Clifford Law Offices, which represents the families.

The families "asked for full transparency including a criminal trial on conspiracy and other possible criminal charges against Boeing and their executives responsible for the two crashes," it said.

- CEO to testify -

The Justice Department has said it will decide how to proceed on the case by July 7.

Ahead of that, Boeing CEO Dave Calhoun can expect a grilling at a June 18 hearing before a different Senate committee, which has been called a probe into "Boeing's Broken Safety Culture" after the panel earlier heard from company whistleblowers.

In March, Boeing announced that Calhoun would step down as CEO at the end of 2024, setting the stage for the company to undertake an executive search.

The company's problems have continued to weigh on its finances.

Last month, Boeing Chief Financial Officer Brian West said the company expects negative cash for all of 2024 after previously forecasting positive cash generation in the low single-digit billions for the year.
(UroToday.com) In June 2024, the House of Delegates (HOD) met during the American Medical Association (AMA) Annual Meeting, where they engage in discussions, debates, and voting processes to determine the healthcare policies that the organization will adopt as official directives. Within Reference Committee E, which is focused on science and technology-related issues, several new policies relevant to urology were adopted.First, Decreasing Regulatory Barriers to Appropriate Testosterone Prescribing was adopted formally by the organization in the form of an official report. This policy directed the AMA to request the FDA to review current evidence on testosterone and, if necessary, provide updated recommendations to the DEA regarding the scheduling of testosterone-containing drugs. The report explicitly called for the removal of obstacles delaying or hindering patient access to prescribed testosterone, such as prior authorization, waiting periods, and drug monitor program requirements. Additionally, the policy encourages collaboration with partner organizations to advocate for and educate physicians on testosterone prescribing.Next, the AMA adopted into policy an official stance on androgen deprivation in incarceration. The new AMA policy strongly opposes any laws, regulations, or court actions that undermine physician autonomy and clinical judgment in treatment decisions related to androgen deprivation (chemical castration) for individuals convicted of sexual crimes. Additionally, the policy rejects the practice of linking criminal sentencing, parole, or probation to court-mandated androgen deprivation. It also emphasizes the importance of collecting data on the use, court mandates, duration, and clinical outcomes of androgen deprivation in the carceral setting. Furthermore, the policy advocates for continued research into effective treatments for paraphilic disorders, aiming to reduce associated stigmatization.To tackle the issue of inappropriate designation of penicillin allergy that leads to unnecessary avoidance of specific antibiotics, a policy officially recognizing National Penicillin Allergy Day, observed on September 28, be officially recognized by the AMA. Further, the policy encouraged penicillin allergy evaluations and appropriate delabeling. Lastly, the organization adopted an updated policy entitled Sex and Gender Differences in Medical Research, to emphasize the inclusion and representation of all genders, sexes, and gender identities in medical studies. Key points include reaffirming the necessity of including diverse gender groups in broad medical research to ensure the validity of study outcomes, supporting increased funding for women's health and sexual and gender minority health research, and advocating for the participation of these groups in clinical trials. The policy also recommends that medical and scientific journals require gender-based data analysis and diversify their review processes. The policy specifically outlines support for the FDA's requirements for clinical trial diversity action plans and post-marketing studies to ensure the efficacy and safety of drugs and devices in women and sexual and gender minority populations.

Written by: Ruchika Talwar, MD, Urologic Oncology Fellow, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, @RuchikaTalwarMD during the 2024 AMA Annual Meeting, June 7 to June 12
(UroToday.com) In June 2024, the House of Delegates (HOD) gathered at the American Medical Association (AMA) Annual Meeting in Chicago, IL. During this assembly, members of the legislative body engaged in discussions, debates, and voting to determine the healthcare policies that would be adopted as official directives. Numerous new policies pertaining to public health were reviewed and approved -- herein, we review some of the new policy related to the practice of urology.Recently, there has been an increased focus on sustainability and how surgical practices contribute to the climate crisis. Accordingly, a new policy entitled Addressing the Health Sectors Contributions to the Climate Crisis was passed by the HOD. The new AMA policy centers on the importance of maintaining clinical quality and safety while implementing strategies to reduce greenhouse gases and waste. It acknowledges the significant contribution of animal-based agriculture to greenhouse gas emissions and supports the promotion of plant-based menu options in hospital food services for both health and environmental reasons. The policy also calls for transparency from health systems regarding their greenhouse gas emissions, opposing any misleading claims about their environmental impact. Additionally, the AMA opposes corporate "greenwashing" and supports the development of locally managed electrical microgrids for hospitals and healthcare facilities to reduce reliance on diesel generators during emergencies. This initiative includes supporting grants to independent practices for this development. The policy further advocates for the use of virtual healthcare, with reasonable reimbursement, to reduce healthcares carbon footprint. Financial assistance for healthcare entities, including community health centers and small to medium-sized practices, is also supported to help them transition to environmentally sustainable operations.The HOD also debated a policy calling for expanded HPV vaccination for healthcare workers, such as urologists, who treat HPV associated disorders. Although the initial proposed resolution supported vaccination of healthcare workers over age 45 years who are exposed to HPV at work, after deliberation and testimony, a policy differing from the original submitted language was approved. This new policy supports healthcare workers (HCWs) who may be exposed to HPV during their clinical duties and strongly encourages the use of masks, preferably N-95. The policy also calls for collaboration with relevant stakeholders to ensure that the HPV vaccine is offered to all HCWs at risk of exposure to HPV oncogenic material at no or minimal cost.Lastly, the rural health access crisis, very pertinent to urology, was also the focus on HOD deliberations. A new policy entitled Improving Healthcare for Minority Communities in Rural Areas was adopted. The new AMA policy encourages promoting health, access to care, and disease prevention through educational efforts and publications specifically tailored to rural minority communities. It also urges federal, state, and local governments to address the unique health and health-related needs of rural minorities to improve their quality of life. Lastly, it calls for the collection of vital statistics and other relevant demographic data for rural minorities and emphasizes the importance of rural minority health to various organizations.Written by: Ruchika Talwar, MD, Urologic Oncology Fellow, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, @RuchikaTalwarMD during the 2024 AMA Annual Meeting, June 7 to June 12
(UroToday.com) The House of Delegates (HOD) convened at the American Medical Association (AMA) Annual Meeting in Chicago, IL, in June 2024. During the HOD, voting members of the legislative body of the organization deliberated, debated, and cast votes to finalize the healthcare policies that the organization would implement as official guidelines. A variety of important new policies related to urology and medical legislation were considered and passed.After the COVID-19 pandemic, healthcare saw a rapid expansion of telehealth services. Currently, the telehealth related flexibilities in Medicare reimbursement are set to expire at the end of 2024. Telehealth has played a pivotal role in improving access to urology care, particularly in rural areas where there is a significant workforce shortage. New AMA policy passed at the HOD calls for the removal of the December 31, 2024, deadline for Medicare to stop reimbursing telemedicine services. The policy supports the indefinite continuation of Medicare reimbursement for telemedicine, as determined by the Relative Value Update Committee (RUC).Another issue significant for the practice of urology that was considered at the annual AMA meeting was the concept of cost-sharing for cancer screening. The HOD passed a policy entitled Prohibit Health Benefit Plans From Charging Cost Sharing for Covered Prostate Cancer Screening. This new policy specifically advocates for federal legislation requiring that health insurance plans are not permitted to charge any form of cost sharing with patients related to covered prostate cancer screening.As some states have passed legislation or instituted court rulings limited access to reproductive healthcare services, another resolution was adopted relevant to urologists: Protecting Access to IVF Treatment. This new AMA policy opposes any legislation or ballot measures that could criminalize in-vitro fertilization, and calls for collaboration with other organizations to resist any legislation, ballot measures, or court rulings that equate gametes (oocytes and sperm) or embryos with children.Other policies that were adopted included those advocating for reduced patient financial burden for Medicare Part B related costs, expanding access to overdose reversal medications in educational settings, and increasing childrens hospital graduate medical education funding for training slots.

Written by: Ruchika Talwar, MD, Urologic Oncology Fellow, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, @RuchikaTalwarMD during the 2024 AMA Annual Meeting, June 7 to June 12
(UroToday.com) The 2024 Society of Nuclear Medicine & Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) annual meeting featured a session on prostate cancer, and a presentation by Dr. Louise Emmett discussing response assessment in radiopharmaceutical therapies for prostate cancer. Dr. Emmett started her presentation by noting that for patients with high PSMA SUVmean (quartile 4), PSA50 response rate to 177Lu PSMA is excellent (89%). However, for those patients with low SUVmean (quartile 1) there is relatively poor 177Lu PSMA PSA50 response rates (29%), but which are reasonable with cabazitaxel (43%):

Dr. Emmett notes that screening imaging is only one part of the puzzle. In 2021, Gafita and colleagues1 published a nomogram of baseline characteristics for prediction of overall survival following 177Lu-PSMA-617. Among 270 patients, predictors included in the nomograms were time since initial diagnosis of prostate cancer, chemotherapy status, baseline hemoglobin, and 68Ga-PSMA-11 PET/CT parameters (molecular imaging TNM classification and tumor burden). The C-index of the overall survival model was 0.71 (95% CI 0.69-0.73):

which was similar to the c-index of the PSA-progression-free survival model (0.70, 95% CI 0.68-0.72). Compared with high-risk patients, low-risk patients had significantly longer overall survival in the validation cohort (24.9 months vs 7.4 months; p < 0.0001) and PSA progression free survival (6.6 months vs 2.5 months; p = 0.022).

Radiation induced cell death includes direct and indirect DNA damage, leading to single strand and double strand breaks, with bystander effects known as the abscopal effect. However, the mechanism of cell death is complicated and predicting radiation sensitivity is complex. What we need is biomarkers to guide treatment. Dr. Emmett notes the following:

PSA response and RECIST/PCWG3 criteria: PSA progression is considered unreliable early in treatment secondary to a flare, and PCWG3 requires confirmation (2 + 2) for disease progression, which can take months

In TheraP, 2 55% of patients demonstrated PSA progression prior to the third dose (week 12)

55% of patients demonstrated PSA progression prior to the third dose (week 12) In VISION, 3 30% of patients did not have a significant response to treatment

30% of patients did not have a significant response to treatment Better dynamic biomarkers will allow personalization of treatment and improved patient outcomes

With regards to PSMA PET/CT for response assessment using 177Lu-PSMA-617, Gafita and colleagues4 developed version 1.0 of a novel framework for response evaluation criteria in PSMA PET/CT and a composite response classification that combines responses by PSA measurements and by RECIP 1.0 (PSA + RECIP). RECIP is defined as follows:

PSMA PET Partial Response: >30% decrease in PSMA volume without appearance of new lesions

PSMA PET Progressive Disease: >20% increase in PSMA volume with appearance of new lesions

PSMA PET Stable Disease: all other

Overall, patients with RECIP progressive disease (n = 39; 8.3 months) had a shorter overall survival than patients with RECIP stable disease (n = 47; 13.1 months; p < 0.001) or RECIP partial response (n = 38; 21.7 months; p < 0.001).

Previously, Dr. Emmetts group investigated the predictive value of serial 177Lu-PSMA-617 SPECT/CT imaging in monitoring treatment response.5 Among 56 men, 32 had serial 177Lu-PSMA-617 SPECT/CT imaging at both cycle 1 and cycle 3, of which the median PSA progression-free survival was 6.3 months (95% CI, 5-10 months), median overall survival was 12.3 months (95% CI, 12-24 months), and the PSA50 response rate was 63%. Additionally, 177Lu-PSMA-617 SPECT/CT total tumor volume was reduced in 68% (median -0.20 m,3 95% CI, -1.4 to -0.001) and increased in 31% (median 0.36, 95% CI, 0.1-1.4). Any increase in 177Lu-PSMA-617 SPECT/CT total tumor volume was associated with shorter PSA progression free survival (HR 4.1, 95% CI 1.5-11.2; p = 0.006):

Dr. Emmetts group subsequently published that 177Lu-PSMA SPECT quantitation at 6 weeks (corresponding with dose 2) predicts shorter progression-free survival.6 Among 127 men with progressive metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer, a PSA50 response was noted in 58% of patients, as well as a median progression free survival of 6.1 months (95% CI 5.5-6.7), and overall survival of 16.8 months (95% CI 13.5-20.1). Furthermore, median PSA progression free survival in those with an increase in 177Lu-PSMA SPECT total tumor volume was 3.7 months (95% CI, 2.8-6.8), compared with 6.7 months (95% CI, 5.8-10.6) in those with no increase in total tumor volume:

Another study by Neubauer et al.8 looked to assess tumor response with quantitated SPECT/CT and to correlate it with clinical outcome in metastatic castration-resistant prostate cancer patients treated with 177Lutetium-PSMA I&T therapy. This was a single center, observational study, of which 73 patients received 177Lu-PSMA I&T in metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer patients treated with at least two cycles of 177Lu-PSMA I&T 6 times weekly. After the first and second cycle, quantitated SPECT/CT was acquired 48 hours after injection:

The median follow-up was 8.9 months (range 1.4-26.6 months). Stable or decreased total tumor volume at cycle 2 was associated with longer overall survival (HR 0.28, 95% CI 0.09-0.86, p < 0.01). Similar, stable, or decreased PSA was associated with longer overall survival (HR 0.21, 95% CI 0.07-0.62, p < 0.01) and PSA progression free survival (HR 0.34, 95% CI 0.16-0.72, p < 0.01). Combining total tumor volume and PSA resulted in an augmented prognostic value for overall survival (HR 0.09, 95% CI 0.01-0.63; p < 0.01) and for PSA-progression free survival (HR 0.11, CI 0.02-0.68; p < 0.01). A reduction of SUVmax or SUVmean was not prognostically relevant for either overall survival (p 0.88 and 0.7) or PSA-progression free survival (p 0.73 and 0.62, respectively):

In 2023, Dr. Emmett and colleagues reported results of their study evaluating progression free survival and overall survival based on treatment interval adjustment utilizing 177LuPSMA 24-hour SPECT/CT and early PSA response.8 There were 125 men treated with 6 times weekly 177LuPSMA-I&T doses (median 3 cycles, IQR 2-4) at a median dose of 8.0 GBq (95% CI 7.5-8.0). Following dose 2 (week 6), a composite PSA and 177LuPSMA 24-hour SPECT/CT imaging response determined ongoing management:

Response Group 1 (marked reduction in PSA/imaging partial response): break in treatment until subsequent PSA rise then re-treatment

Response Group 2 (stable or reduced PSA and/or imaging stable disease): 6-weekly treatments until six doses, or no longer clinically benefiting

Response Group 3 (rise in PSA and/or imaging progressive disease): recommend for alternative treatment

The results were as follows:

Response Group 1: progression free survival 12.3 months, overall survival 22 months, treatment break for 6 months

Response Group 2: progression free survival 6.2 months, overall survival 15 months, no treatment break

Response Group 3: progression free survival 2.8 months, overall survival 11 months, early more to alternative treatment

The progression free survival Kaplan Meier curve stratified by response group is as follows (p < 0.0001):

In 2023, the PROMISE criteria were proposed as a framework for whole body staging to describe the prostate cancer disease extent on PSMA PET.9 PSMA expression assessed by the PSMA-expression score was used in several trials, and a low PSMA-expression score is a negative prognosticator of overall survival after 177Lu-PSMA radioligand therapy. The following highlights the PROMISE V2 framework:

Dr. Emmett notes that there is a need to develop standardized criteria for treatment response to systemic therapies on PSMA PET/CT both for prospective trials and clinical purposes. A proposal for systemic therapy response assessment has been suggested to include the following:

Appearance of 2 or more new PSMA positive distant lesions Appearance of 1 or new PSMA positive lesions plus consistent clinical or laboratory data and recommend confirmation by biopsy or correlative imaging within 3 months of PSMA PET Increase in size or PSMA uptake of 1 or more existing lesions by at least 30%, plus consistent clinical or laboratory data or confirmation by biopsy or correlative imaging within 3 months of PSMA PET

Dr. Emmett highlighted that there are treatment response criteria on the horizon:

PCWG4: Prostate Cancer Working Group criteria for identification of progressive disease PSMA PET criteria, as well as diagnostic CT and bone scan for evaluation of systemic treatment in prostate cancer SPARC: Standardized PSMA PET analysis and reporting consensus Multidisciplinary expert consensus on optimal reporting standards Downloadable reporting templates Recommended minimum criteria

Dr. Emmett concluded her presentation by discussing response assessment in radiopharmaceutical therapies for prostate cancer with the following take home messages:

There is increasing evidence to show prognostic value of dose two 177 Lu PSMA SPECT/CT for PSA progression free survival and overall survival

Lu PSMA SPECT/CT for PSA progression free survival and overall survival Effective early response biomarkers offer an opportunity for early intervention and improved personalization of treatment regimens for de-intensification/intensification

Two biomarkers are better than one

Change in intensity is not useful, as we need volume change or new lesions

PCWG4 is nearly out, which will incorporate PSMA PET for assessment of treatment response in clinical trials

SPARC represents expert clinical reporting guidelines

Presented by: Louise Emmett, MBChB, FRACP, MD, St. Vincents Hospital, Sydney, NSW, Australia

Written by: Zachary Klaassen, MD, MSc  Urologic Oncologist, Associate Professor of Urology, Georgia Cancer Center, Wellstar MCG Health, @zklaassen_md on Twitter during the 2024 Society of Nuclear Medicine & Molecular Imaging (SNMMI) Annual Meeting, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, Sat, June 8  Tues, June 11, 2024





References:
Eleven University of Wyoming students have been awarded scholarships by the U.S. Department of State to study abroad this summer and the upcoming fall semester.

Of the complete applications submitted by UW students for this highly competitive award, 58 percent were selected.

The Department of States Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs awards undergraduate students the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship each year on a competitive basis. On average, 70 percent of Gilman recipients self-identify as racial or ethnic minorities; 60 percent are from rural America; and half are first-generation college or university students.

Shelley Jewell, director of UW Education Abroad, serves as a national Gilman Advisor Ambassador. She works to promote and advise students who are interested in applying for this prestigious scholarship.

The Gilman Scholarship Program opens doors to a world of opportunities for our UW students who may not have the means to study abroad otherwise, Jewell says. Receiving these scholarships is a testament to our students dedication and potential to achieve. We are thrilled to have 11 recipients this round, and we know the opportunities abroad that await them have the potential to transform their lives, broaden their horizons and create a foundation for global citizenship.

Jewell teams up with Dianne Thompson, UW Education Abroads prestigious scholarship adviser, to support Gilman applicants before, during and after the study-abroad programs. They spend hours advising students and reviewing essays to ensure that applicants have strong and complete applications to submit.

Having 11 students selected to receive the Gilman Scholarship is a real feather in our cap for the University of Wyoming. This is a very competitive process in which UW students compete with peers from all around the country, says Isadora Helfgott, UW vice provost for global engagement. To be selected, they have to articulate why they want to study abroad and how the experience will enhance their Laramie-based education. The commitment of each of these Gilman Scholarship recipients shone through every one of their essays. I cant wait to hear their reflections on all theyve learned after theyve been abroad.

UW recipients, listed by hometown, are:

Big Piney -- Autumn Wright, a junior majoring in psychology with a minor in disability studies, will complete the UW faculty-led program Healthy Aging in Italy this summer. The course is led by UW-Casper faculty members Maria Kuznetsova, in the Department of Psychology, and Greta Maxfield, in the Division of Social Work.

Casper -- Carissa Bjorklund, a senior majoring in criminal justice, will complete the UW faculty-led program Healthy Aging in Italy this summer, led by UW-Casper faculty members Kuznetsova and Maxfield.

Cheyenne -- Lisa McBride, a junior majoring in psychology, will complete a semester-long exchange at Ulster University in Northern Ireland.

Cheyenne -- Alexa Rizzuto, a senior majoring in history, will participate this summer in the faculty-led program Environmental Aesthetics in Italy, led by Jeff Lockwood, a professor in the UW Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies.

Cheyenne -- Jacob Westover, a senior majoring in psychology, will participate in a semester-long, faculty-led program in Rome. This program is led by Conxita Domenech, a professor in the UW Department of Modern and Classical Languages.

Laramie -- Joseph Brasher, a junior majoring in Spanish with a minor in music, will complete intensive Spanish language studies in Buenos Aires this summer, studying in Argentina for nearly three months.

Laramie -- Ireland Earl, a junior majoring in communication with a minor in honors, will complete the Semester at Sea program this fall. The program includes classroom time on a boat and docking at several countries throughout the semester, including France, Germany, Ghana, Hong Kong, India, Kenya, Malaysia, Mauritius, Morocco, the Netherlands, Portugal, South Africa, Spain, Thailand and Vietnam.

Laramie -- Lynnea Taylor, a junior majoring in finance, will participate in a semester-long program in Rome led by Domenech.

Pinedale -- Michael Vitanza, a senior majoring in music with a minor in German, will complete the summer faculty-led program Classical Music in Brazil under the leadership of Theresa Bogard, a professor in the UW Department of Music. The group will spend three weeks in Goiania, Brazil, studying and playing classical music.

Rochester, Minn. -- Carter Matson, who is double majoring in secondary education and history with a minor in French, will complete the UW faculty-led program Nazi Germany and the Holocaust this summer. The course is led by Adam Blackler, an associate professor in the UW Department of History. The group will travel to Germany and Poland.

Rock Springs -- Dylan Chatterley, a sophomore majoring in psychology with a minor in honors, will complete the UW faculty-led program The Art and History of Medicine this summer. The course is led by Brian Cherrington, an associate professor, and Michael Dillon, a professor, both in the UW Department of Zoology and Physiology. The program will take place in Austria, Belgium, England and Scotland.

All UW Gilman Scholarship recipients are supported by the UW Global Engagement Office and UW Education Abroad.
The 12-month grace period for student loan borrowers ended on September 30. The "on-ramp" period helped borrowers who are struggling to make payments avoid the risk of defaulting and hurting their credit score.

"The end of the on-ramp period means the beginning of the potentially harsh consequences for student loan borrowers who are not able to make payments," said Persis Yu, Deputy Executive Director at the Student Borrower Protection Center.

Around 43 million Americans have student loan debt, amounting to $1.5 trillion. Around eight million of those borrowers had enrolled in the SAVE plan, the newest income-driven repayment plan that extended the eligibility for borrowers to have affordable monthly student loan payments. However, this plan is currently on hold due to legal challenges.

With the on-ramp period and a separate program known as Fresh Start ending and the SAVE plan on hold, student loan borrowers who are struggling to afford their monthly payments have fewer options, added Yu. Student loan borrowers who haven't been able to afford their monthly payments must consider their options to avoid going into default.

If you have student loans, here's what you need to know.

What was the on-ramp period?

The Education Department implemented this grace period to ease the borrower's transition to make payments after a three-year payment pause during the COVID-19 pandemic. During this year-long period, borrowers were encouraged to keep making payments since interest continued to accumulate.

"Normally, loans will default if you fall about nine months behind on making payments, but during this on-ramp period, missed payments would not move people towards defaulting and then being subject to forced collections. However, if you missed payments, you still be falling behind ultimately on repaying your loans," said Abby Shaforth, director of National Consumer Law Center's Student Loan Borrower Assistance Project.

Since this grace period has ended, student loan borrowers who don't make payments will go delinquent or, if their loans are not paid for nine months, go into default.

Borrowers who cannot afford to make payments can apply for deferment or forbearance, which pause payments, though interest continues to accrue.

What happens if I don't make my payments?

Borrowers who can't or don't pay risk delinquency and eventually default. That can badly hurt your credit rating and make you ineligible for additional aid and government benefits.

If a borrower missed one month's payment, they will start receiving email notifications, said Shaforth. Once the loan hasn't been paid for three months, loan servicers notify to the credit reporting agencies that the loan is delinquent, affecting your credit history. Once the borrower hasn't paid the loan for nine months, the loan goes into default.

If you're struggling to pay, advisers first encourage you to check if you qualify for an income-driven repayment plan, which determines your payments by looking at your expenses. You can see whether you qualify by visiting the Federal Student Aid website. If you've worked for a government agency or a non-profit organization, you could also be eligible for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, which forgives student debt after 10 years.

What happens when a loan goes into default?

When you fall behind on a loan by 270 days  roughly nine months  the loan appears on your credit report as being in default.

Once a loan is in default, it goes into collections. This means the government can garnish wages (without a court order) to go towards paying back the loan, intercept tax refunds, and seize portions of Social Security checks and other benefit payments.

What if I can't pay?

If your budget doesn't allow you to resume payments, it's important to know how to navigate the possibility of default and delinquency on a student loan. Both can hurt your credit rating, which would make you ineligible for additional aid.

If you're in a short-term financial bind, you may qualify for deferment or forbearance  allowing you to temporarily suspend payment.

To determine whether deferment or forbearance are good options for you, you can contact your loan servicer. One thing to note: interest still accrues during deferment or forbearance. Both can also impact potential loan forgiveness options. Depending on the conditions of your deferment or forbearance, it may make sense to continue paying the interest during the payment suspension.

What is an income-driven repayment plan?

The U.S. Education Department offers several plans for repaying federal student loans. Under the standard plan, borrowers are charged a fixed monthly amount that ensures all their debt will be repaid after 10 years. But if borrowers have difficulty paying that amount, they can enroll in one of several plans that offer lower monthly payments based on income and family size. Those are known as income-driven repayment plans.

Income-driven options have been offered for years and generally cap monthly payments at 10% of a borrower's discretionary income. If a borrower's earnings are low enough, their bill is reduced to $0. And after 20 or 25 years, any remaining debt gets erased.

What is the latest with the SAVE program?

In August, the Supreme Court kept on hold the SAVE plan, the income-driven repayment plan that would have lowered payments for millions of borrowers, while lawsuits make their way through lower courts.

Eight million borrowers who had already enrolled in the SAVE plan don't have to pay their monthly student loan bills until the court case is resolved. Debt that already had been forgiven under the plan was unaffected.

The next court hearing about this case will be held on October 15.

What happened with the Fresh Start program?

The Fresh Start program, which gave benefits to borrowers who were delinquent prior to the pandemic payment pause, also closed on September 30. During this limited program, student loan borrowers who were in default prior to the pandemic were given the opportunity to remove their loans from default, allowing them to enroll in income-driven payment plans, or apply for deferment, among other benefits.
Adam Fravel will not face a jury composed of his Winona County peers on four charges of homicide related to the death of the mother of Fravel's children, Madeline Kingsbury.

Judge Nancy Buytendorp granted Wednesday a change of venue request filed by Fravel's legal team, moving the case to another, undetermined, Minnesota county as the case moves toward trial.

Fravel's legal team filed the request due to its concern about the high level of media coverage and the impact it could have on a jury pool, among other factors.

A research firm hired by the defense team found that of 100 people surveyed in Winona County, 89 had read, seen or heard news about Kingsbury's disappearance. Sixty-six of respondents had formed opinions about who was responsible for Kingsbury's death.

Only one of those 66 people did not believe that Fravel caused Kingsbury's death, the report found.

The number of people involved in mass searches for Kingsbury after her disappearance was also cited as possibly tainting the jury pool, as well as the high interest in the case on social media.

"Considering the extensive pretrial publicity and the substantial involvement of the Winona community in this case, a change of venue is warranted. The Defendants motion for such a change is hereby granted," Buytendorp wrote Wednesday. "It is evident to this Court that a fair trial cannot be ensured within this county. Therefore, it falls upon this Court to determine which county within the state can best ensure the impartiality necessary for a fair trial. To facilitate this process, this Court will collaborate closely with both district and state court administration to identify a suitable county capable of accommodating this Winona County case."

Buytendorp also denied a request from Fravel and his legal team Wednesday to dismiss the murder in the first degree with premeditation charge against Fravel.

The defense claimed in its request that the evidence presented to the grand jury that indicted Fravel was not sufficient to support the charge.

"After thoroughly examining all pertinent facts and circumstances related to the indictment, this Court found that the State presented ample admissible evidence to substantiate the Grand Jury's determination of probable cause for issuing the indictment," Buytendorp wrote in court documents Wednesday.

Buytendorp also granted Wednesday the state's motion to submit an aggravated departure notice to a jury.

The defense had wanted the motion to be dismissed, citing insufficient probable cause.

"This Court found that the factual basis upon which the State relies in support of an aggravated sentence is sufficient to support submitting the question of an aggravated sentence to a jury in this case," Buytendorp wrote.

Buyentorp also denied the defense's request to suppress statements Fravel made to law enforcement on April 2, 2023.

The defense argued Fravel was not notified of his Miranda rights during the conversation.

"After thoroughly examining all pertinent facts and circumstances related to the statement made to law enforcement, this Court determined that the Defendant was not subjected to a custodial interrogation necessitating a formal Miranda warning. Consequently, the Court found no grounds to suppress these statements and Defendants Motion to Suppress was denied," Buytendorp wrote.

Fravel faces four charges in the case, including murder in the first degree while committing domestic abuse with a past pattern of domestic abuse, murder in the first degree premeditated, murder in the second degree and murder in the second degree without intent while committing a felony.

Fravel has been in custody since June 7, when the body of Kingsbury was found north of Mabel in a rural culvert. Kingsbury, the mother of Fravel's two children, went missing on March 31, 2023.
Two people have died after contracting mpox, or monkeypox, South African health authorities said Thursday.

Six recent mpox cases have been confirmed in South Africa, all among men in their 30s. Officials say the two deaths are among the six cases.

One of the men, a 38-year-old, died on Wednesday in eastern KawZulu-Natal province on the same day tests confirmed that he had mpox, according to the health ministry. The ministry also said that another man with mpox died Monday in a hospital near Johannesburg.

Mpox, in the same family as smallpox, is a rare viral infection. Until the World Health Organization noted expanding global cases in 2022, it was not known to spread easily.

Those outbreaks were the first time mpox was seen to spread via sex. The infection can also be contracted through bites from small animals such as rodents.

Genetic tests from the first three cases in South Africa produced results indicating the men had a less-severe version of mpox.

None of the men had a travel history to countries with a current outbreak, suggesting local transmission, said Health Minister Joe Phaahla. He said all six had underlying health conditions.

Last year, the World Health Organization said that mpox is not an international health crisis. A WHO report released last month noted 186 mpox deaths worldwide since 2022, giving a fatality rate of under 1%.

According to Phaala, South Africas last mpox case before the recent instances was in 2022. Although South Africa does not currently have mpox vaccines, it is considering an immunization campaign.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.
The Taliban's ban on educating girls over the age of 12 in Afghanistan reached 1,000 days Thursday amid global outrage and demands for the immediate resumption of children's learning.



The United Nations Children's Fund, UNICEF, denounced it as a "sad and sobering milestone" and noted that "1,000 days out-of-school amounts to 3 billion learning hours lost."



The statement quoted Catherine Russell, UNICEF executive director, as warning the male-only Taliban government that no country can progress if half of its population is left behind.



"For 1.5 million girls, this systematic exclusion is not only a blatant violation of their right to education but also results in dwindling opportunities and deteriorating mental health," Russell said.



"As we mark this grim milestone, I urge the de facto authorities to allow all children to resume learning immediately," she added.

Women banned from many public places



The fundamentalist Taliban have prohibited girls from attending school beyond sixth grade since retaking control of Afghanistan in August 2021. The ban was later extended to universities, blocking female students from finishing their advanced education.



Women also are not allowed to show their faces on television or visit public places such as parks, beauty parlors, or gyms, and they are barred from undertaking road trips unless accompanied by a male relative.



"Afghanistan will never fully recover from these 1,000 days," said Heather Barr, women's rights associate director at Human Rights Watch.



"The potential loss in this time  the artists, doctors, poets, and engineers who will never get to lend their country their skills  cannot be replaced," said Barr. "Every additional day, more dreams die."

UN officials calls for accountability



Meanwhile, in his latest report issued this week, the U.N. special rapporteur on Afghan human rights has called for the Taliban to be held accountable for their crimes against women and girls.



Richard Bennett alleged that de facto Afghan leaders have established and enforced "an institutionalized system of discrimination, segregation, disrespect for human dignity and exclusion of women and girls."



He will present and discuss the report at the U.N. Human Rights Council meeting scheduled for June 18.



The Taliban reject criticism of their government and policies, saying they are aligned with local culture and Islam. Their reclusive supreme leader, Hibatullah Akhundzada, has denounced calls to reform his policies as interference in Afghanistan's internal affairs.



The impoverished country is reeling from years of war and repeated natural disasters. U.N. agencies estimate that more than half of the population in Afghanistan  23.7 million people, including 9.2 million children  need relief assistance.



"Education doesn't just provide opportunities. It protects girls from early marriage, malnutrition, and other health problems and bolsters their resilience to disasters like the floods, drought, and earthquakes that frequently plague Afghanistan," UNICEF executive director Russell said.
More than 1,000 metric tons of humanitarian aid have arrived since Tuesday over the U.S. temporary pier off the coast of Gaza.

However, the aid has not reached any of the Palestinians who need it. Instead, it is sitting on the beach, according to Sabrina Singh, the Pentagons deputy press secretary.

The United Nations World Food Program, one of the organizations responsible for distributing the aid, has suspended its deliveries since rocket attacks on its warehouses last week.

It was not immediately clear when the WFP will be able to resume deliveries.

The Pentagons Singh said that, for now, the U.S. will focus on getting more aid from Cyprus to the temporary pier and into Gaza so that it is there and ready once the deliveries resume.

The temporary pier, designed as another way to bring aid into Gaza, was just recently reconnected to the Gaza beach after breaking apart in a storm in May.

A large section of the causeway was broken by heavy winds and rough seas. Four U.S. military vessels helping with the mission went aground, injuring three service members. Large sections of the pier were disconnected and moved to an Israeli port for repairs.

The United Nations oversees receiving shipments and coordinating distribution on the ground. The arrangement is part of an effort to boost what humanitarian organizations say is a vastly insufficient amount of aid for Palestinian civilians.

Aid has been slow to get into Gaza due to long backups of vehicles at Israeli inspection points and ongoing Israeli military operations against Hamas. The United States and other nations have air dropped food into Gaza dozens of times in recent months, but air drops are much less efficient and provide vastly smaller quantities of aid than distribution via sea or land.

VOA National Security correspondent Jeff Seldin and VOAs Pentagon correspondent Carla Babb contributed to this report.
Once seemingly fading into obscurity, anti-Muslim hate groups in the United States have surged back into the spotlight in recent months, reinvigorated by the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

Many of these groups, such as Jihad Watch and ACT for America, emerged in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks on the U.S. and thrived on public fears of terrorism. But as those fears waned in recent years, so did the groups sway. Some disbanded, while others gravitated to other hot-button issues.

From a peak of 114 in 2017, their number dropped to a mere 34 last year, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, a nonprofit that tracks hate groups.

In early 2023, "Islamophobia was down to a slow trickle," SPLC senior research analyst Caleb Kieffer said.

Then came the October 7 Hamas assault on Israel, which claimed about 1,200 lives and triggered a massive Israeli military response in Gaza.

Anti-Muslim groups that had "opportunistically" seized on divisive issues, such as critical race theory and LGBTQ-inclusive policies, swung back into action.

"These anti-Muslim groups went right back to their core messaging," Kieffer said in an interview with VOA. "They've been going hard on the rhetoric since October last year."

Take ACT for America. Founded in 2007 by Brigitte Gabriel, a Lebanese American political activist and self-described "survivor of terrorism," it grew into one of the country's leading anti-Muslim organizations.

At its peak, the group had more than 50 active chapters, each counted as a separate hate group by the SPLC. But in recent years, most of those chapters either shut down or shifted into other areas, leaving ACT for America with just eight on SPLCs most recent list.

According to the SPLC, ACT for America embraced a "nativist tone" before October 7, circulating, among other things, a petition calling to "Stop the Taxpayer Funded Border Invasion."

After October 7, the group launched another petition more in line with its agenda and with a call by former U.S. President Donald Trump to stop admitting Palestinian refugees from Gaza.

Warning her followers about homegrown jihadi terror, Gabriel, a staunch Trump supporter, began peddling her bestselling anti-Muslim book, Because They Hate: A Survivor of Islamic Terror Warns America, in exchange for a $25 donation.

In a video titled "Wake Up America" in October, she claimed, "Hamas has a large network of cells spreading all across America," from Laurel, Maryland, to Tucson, Arizona.

Other groups that had also latched onto contentious issues similarly pivoted back to their core agenda.

Jihad Watch, a website run by prominent anti-Muslim figure Robert Spencer, published an article last October claiming, "Were in a war between savages and civilization. Everything else is a detail."

Eight days later, an affiliated political website called FrontPage Magazine ran a piece titled "It's Islam, Stupid," arguing that everything Hamas did "has been done by Muslims throughout history and is still being practiced today.''

FrontPage Magazine is published by the David Horowitz Freedom Center, another leading anti-Muslim group. Jihad Watch is a project of the center.

ACT for America, Jihad Watch and the David Horowitz Freedom Center are part of what experts describe as a well-funded, close-knit anti-Muslim industry, with each group playing a distinct role in the ecosystem.

With chapters across the country, Washington-based ACT for America provides the "grassroots muscle" to the movement, Kieffer said. The Center for Security Policy serves as its think tank, he said.

The SPLC-designated groups appear on other hate lists. Several SPLC-branded groups contacted by VOA condemned their designation.

In a statement to VOA, a spokesperson for ACT for America rejected the "anti-Muslim" label, saying the organization has "always welcomed and included members of all faiths," including Muslims, and hosted Muslim keynote speakers at its conferences.

ACT for America works "on a broad range of issues, none of which are anti-Muslim," the spokesperson said. "As a matter of fact, since the defeat of ISIS and al-Qaida between 2018 and 2024, you didn't hear a blurb from ACT for America about radical Islam."

In response to a VOA query, Jihad Watch's Spencer accused the SPLC of smearing and defaming "organizations that oppose its far-left political agenda by lumping them in with the likes of the KKK and neo-Nazis."

In a brief interview with VOA, J. Michael Waller, a senior analyst for strategy at the Center for Security Policy, called the designation "slander," saying it was tied to his group's criticism of the Iranian government and the Muslim Brotherhood.

Kieffer defended the SPLC's methodology, saying it only designates groups that "vilify" and "demonize" people because of their race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation or gender identity.

The SPLC defines anti-Muslim hate groups as organizations that "broadly defame Islam and traffic in conspiracy theories of Muslims being a subversive threat to the nation."

Not every anti-Muslim hate group has stood the test of time. In recent years, dozens of ACT for America chapters have closed.

The ACT for America spokesperson said most of its member groups have "turned into digital chapters meeting via zoom or other technology platforms."

Last year, an anti-refugee and anti-Muslim blog called Refugee Resettlement Watch became inactive and was dropped from SPLC's list of hate groups.

Another well-known anti-Muslim group called Understanding the Threat announced last year it was shutting down. The group was operated by a former FBI agent known for spreading anti-Muslim conspiracy theories.

Other groups have rebranded. One former ACT for America chapter now operates as AlertAmerica.News, according to SPLC. Its focus ranges from "strengthening national security" to "fighting communism and American Marxism."

Kieffer said while the group's central focus may have shifted away from Islamophobia, it continues to invite well-known, anti-Muslim speakers to its events.

With the war in Gaza still raging, the resurgence in Islamophobia remains unabated, Kieffer said. But that's likely to change in the run-up to the presidential election in November.

"I imagine that we're going to slowly see a decline again as these groups start to push other issues," he said.

Brian Levin, a criminologist and hate crime researcher, noted that anti-Muslim hate crimes have surged in recent years, even as the number of hate groups has dwindled.

That's because hatred has found a new home in the mainstream, rendering niche groups such as Islamophobic outfits increasingly obsolete, he said.

"The bottom line is, the way we associate to express and amplify hatred has changed," Levin said in an interview with VOA. "Up-and-coming bigots of all sorts will find an array of xenophobic bigotry and conspiracism within general mainstream platforms."
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations will speed up negotiations with China on a code of conduct to mitigate the risk of conflicts in the hotly contested South China Sea, a senior official from the Southeast Asian bloc said. The bloc hopes to conclude talks by 2026.

But whether the code of conduct will be legally binding is still under discussion.

"We continue to call on all the direct parties concerned to exercise restraint," Kao Kim Hourn, secretary-general of the association, also known as ASEAN, told reporters during a roundtable on Wednesday. "We cannot deny the fact that the situation continues to escalate."

Kao is in Washington this week for his first working visit to promote the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the regional bloc and the United States.

Philippines seeks dialogue with China

During a seminar at the Stimson Center on Wednesday, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell urged ASEAN to "send an unmistakable message about concerns with respect to provocations in what are clearly Philippine waters."

His remarks came amid increasing tensions between China and the Philippines due to recent collisions near the waters around Second Thomas Shoal, known as Ren'ai Jiao in China.

It is an offshore maritime feature in the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, less than 370 kilometers from the Philippine Island of Palawan, and about 1111 kilometers from Chinas Hainan Island, according to CSIS.

Campbell added that Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. "does not seek a crisis" but desires a dialogue with Beijing. "We're looking for China to cease provocative activities," Campbell said.

According to an international tribunal's legally binding decision issued in July 2016, Second Thomas Shoal is located within the exclusive economic zone of the Philippines, and China has no lawful maritime claims to the waters around this low-tide feature.

Beijing has rejected the ruling, claiming "indisputable sovereignty" over most of the South China Sea.

"All ASEAN member states exercise their own foreign policy," Kao said, when asked if the regional bloc will issue a strong statement to support the Philippines. "In this case, it's actually up to each member state" to decide.

Analysts still skeptical

Some analysts say that since 2017 they have repeatedly heard that a code of conduct is just around the corner, but it has never come from the claimants that really have disagreements with China.

Another sticking point is that while ASEAN has long insisted a code of conduct should be legally binding, China has never accepted this key position.

"ASEAN remains quite divided in that the non-claimants are not really invested in solving or even managing this issue and won't risk China's displeasure on behalf of their fellow members. This effectively leaves the claimants  the Philippines and Vietnam, in particular  often standing alone to hold the line in negotiations with China," said Greg Poling, director of the Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.

Others, including Luigi Joble, who teaches at Manila-based De La Salle University, said such a challenge  the lack of unity amid member countries' diverse positions  "has been, unfortunately, chronic to ASEAN's engagements with China on the issue, including the decades-long Code of Conduct on the South China Sea negotiations."

Joble added that roadblocks to concluding the code of conduct have been encountered throughout its negotiations. This has prompted certain claimant states to exert control over disputed maritime features, despite violating established international law, hoping such developments will influence the outcome of the code of conduct negotiations.

Bloc divided about Myanmar conflict

The Southeast Asian bloc remains divided over the conflict in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, which began more than three years ago when the junta overthrew the democratically elected government.

Authoritarian ASEAN members such as Laos and Cambodia continue to support the junta to some extent.

Other members, including Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and Singapore, have had some level of interaction with the Myanmar resistance.

"I believe that we cannot expect a quick fix or solution" to end the crisis in Burma, said Kao, who was born in Cambodia. "The priority should be to eliminate violence on the ground inside the country and to promote inclusive dialogue among different stakeholders so there is a political path moving forward," he added.

Kao visited Myanmar last month. He said the country may send a nonpolitical representative to attend ASEAN foreign ministerial meetings in July in Laos' capital, Vientiane. ASEAN will hold its summit in October.

"On political issues, we shouldn't be expecting much of ASEAN, because member countries cannot reach a consensus that meets the needs of their political relations with countries outside ASEAN. So, they handle those individually on a bilateral basis," said Priscilla Clapp, a senior adviser at the United States Institute of Peace.

Shortly after the military coup, the leaders of nine ASEAN member states and Myanmar junta chief General Min Aung Hlaing agreed to an immediate end to violence in the country; dialogue among all parties; the appointment of a special envoy; humanitarian assistance by ASEAN; and the special envoy's visit to Myanmar to meet with all parties.

"The five-point consensus, I think, is basically dead," Clapp told VOA, citing conditions that the resistance has rejected as unreasonable, including the impracticality of holding new elections under the current circumstances in the country and accepting a return to the 2008 military constitution.

She added that ASEAN's special envoy cannot make any progress in ending the conflict without engaging Myanmar's National Unity Government  which views itself as a shadow government  as well as other major parties to the conflict.
What went wrong in Israels fight against Hamas? Presidents Biden and Zelenskyy are expected to sign a 10-year security agreement on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Italy. The deal allows for American financial support of Ukraine, but not troops will be sent. Ceasefire negotiations for the war in Gaza are ongoing, the National Security Advisor has an update. Russian naval vessels are in Cuba, sparking tensions reminiscent of another Cold War. Plus, a look at ongoing protests over the foreign agent law in Tbilisi, Georgia.
U.S. President Joe Biden is in Apuglia, Italy, meeting with leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies Thursday, aiming to address global economic security amid wars in Europe and the Middle East and U.S. rivalry with China.

The G7 leaders arrived at the luxury resort of Borgo Egnazia, the summit venue, welcomed by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Melonis hard-right party took nearly 29% of the vote in last weekends European Parliament election, making her the only leader of a major Western European country to emerge from the ballots stronger.

Meanwhile Biden is dealing with a contentious reelection campaign against Republican presumptive nominee Donald Trump, and a personal ordeal. On Tuesday, a day before departing for the summit, his son, Hunter, was found guilty on federal charges for possessing a gun while being addicted to drugs.

Still, Biden came to the summit hoping to convince the group to provide a $50 billion loan to Ukraine using interest from Russian frozen assets, and deal with Chinese overcapacity in strategic green technologies, including electric vehicles.

The European Union signaled their support by announcing duties on Chinese EVs a day ahead of the summit, a move that echoed the Biden administrations steep tariff hike on Chinese EVs and other key sectors in May.

Biden is also lending his support to key themes in Melonis presidency  investing in Africa, international development, and climate change. Those topics were covered in the opening session of the G7 on Thursday, followed by discussions on the Gaza and Ukraine wars.

Gaza cease-fire

With cease-fire negotiations at a critical juncture, Biden could face tough questions from leaders on whether he is doing enough to pressure Israel to pause its military campaign, reduce civilian casualties and provide more aid for Palestinians.

Leaders are focused on one thing overall; getting a cease-fire in place and getting the hostages home as part of that, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told VOA as he spoke to reporters on board Air Force One en route to Italy. Biden has their full backing, Sullivan added.

Leaders will also discuss increasing tension along the Israeli border with Lebanon, Sullivan told reporters Thursday morning.

They'll compare notes on the continuing threat posed by Iran both with respect to its support for proxy forces and with respect to the Iranian nuclear program, he added.

While the group has thrown its weight behind the cease-fire, G7 members are split on other Gaza-related issues, including the International Criminal Court's decision last month to seek arrest warrants for the leaders of Hamas and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The United States denounced the courts decision, and Britain called it unhelpful. France said it supports the courts fight against impunity, while Berlin said it would arrest Netanyahu on German soil should a warrant is released.

Sullivan dismissed a United Nations inquiry result released Wednesday that alleges both Israel and Hamas committed war crimes and grave violations of international law.

Weve made our position clear, he told VOA, referring to a review published in April by the State Department concluding that Israels campaign did not violate international humanitarian law.

Russian assets

Biden is pushing G7 leaders to provide Kyiv with a loan of up to $50 billion that will be paid back to Western allies using interest income from the $280 billion Russian assets frozen in Western financial institutions, estimated at $3 billion a year, for 10 years or more.

The goal is a leaders declaration at the end of the summit, a framework that is not generic, that is quite specific in terms of what it would entail, Sullivan told VOA Wednesday. Core operational details would still need to be worked out, he added.

In April, Biden signed legislation to seize the roughly $5 billion in Russian assets that had been immobilized in U.S. financial institutions. The bulk of the money, though, $190 billion, is in Belgium, and much of the rest is in France and Germany.

There's a tension here between a Biden administration ambition on an issue in which they do not have the final say, hitting against very staunch European fiscal conservatism and simply the mechanics of, how do you get something done in Europe in the week of European [parliamentary] elections, Kristine Berzina, managing director of Geostrategy North at the German Marshall Fund think tank, told VOA.

Attending the summit for the second consecutive year, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is advocating for the deal to pass. He and Biden will sign a separate bilateral security agreement outlining U.S. support for Ukraine and speak in a joint press conference Thursday evening.

From Italy, Zelenskyy heads to Switzerland for a Ukraine peace conference over the weekend.

Africa, climate change and development

Meloni, a far-right politician who once called for a naval blockade to prevent African migrants from crossing the Mediterranean Sea to Europe, now wants to achieve the goal by bolstering international investments to the continent.

Most of the nearly 261,000 migrants who crossed the Mediterranean Sea from northern Africa in 2023 entered Europe through Italy, according to the United Nations.

She has aligned her G7 presidency with this agenda, and the group is set to release a statement on providing debt relief for low- and middle-income countries, dealing with irregular migration and calling for more investments in Africa.

The G7 statement will reflect the Nairobi/Washington vision that Biden signed with Kenyan President William Ruto, Sullivan said.

Meloni invited several African leaders as observers to the G7 meeting, including Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Tunisia's Kais Saied, Kenyan President William Ruto and Mohamed Ould Ghazouani, the president of Mauritania. The invitation follows the first Italy-Africa summit in Rome in January, where Meloni launched her investment initiative called the Mattei Plan for Africa.

The Mattei Plan has been integrated into the G7s Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, which aims to mobilize $600 billion private infrastructure funding by 2027 as an alternative to Chin's Belt and Road initiative.

On climate change, the G7 has an uphill climb. None of the groups members are on track to meet their existing emission reduction targets for 2030 to align with the Paris Agreement goal, according to data compiled by Climate Analytics.
The United Nations refugee agency says forced displacement around the globe surged to historic new heights last year, driven by conflict, persecution, human rights violations, climate crises and other disturbing events.

In its 2024 Global Trends Report, UNHCR says 117.3 million people were forcibly displaced worldwide by the end of 2023. Some 68 million were uprooted from their homes by conflict and remain displaced within their own countries. Another 31 million were refugees, while tens of millions more were asylum seekers, returnees or stateless people.

The report, released Thursday, finds that the number of forcibly displaced has continued to rise this year and that the current figure now stands at 120 million.

"Regrettably, this is the 12th consecutive year in which this figure goes up," U.N. refugee chief Filippo Grandi told journalists in Geneva Monday in advance of the report's publication. "Conflict remains a very, very big driver of displacement."

Grandi added that UNHCR "declared 43 emergencies in 29 countries" in 2023. "This figure, until two, three years ago, used to be on average eight, maximum 10 times a year."

Grandi deplored changes in the conduct of wars, noting that warring parties almost everywhere nowadays "disregard the laws of war, of international humanitarian law and often with the specific purpose of terrorizing people, of instilling fear in people."

"This, of course is a powerful contributor to more displacement than even in the past," he said.

The report cites the conflict in Sudan as a key factor driving the current surge in forcible displacement. By the end of 2023, a total of 10.8 million Sudanese were displaced from their homes  triple the number before the war began in April of that year. Most of the uprooted Sudanese  9.1 million  are internally displaced, while another 1.7 million are refugees.

Describing himself as "very keen" to speak out about Sudan, Grandi called it "a very forgotten crisis although it is one of the most catastrophic ones  not just in terms of displacement, but in terms of hunger, lack of access, violation of human rights, and so forth."

Other crises that have created a spike in new forced displacements are the conflicts in Gaza, Myanmar, and the Democratic Republic of Congo. UNRWA, the UN relief and works agency for Palestine refugees, estimates up to 1.7 million people  over 75% of the population  "have been displaced within the Gaza Strip, with some having been forced to flee multiple times."

The report says more than 1.3 million people were displaced within Myanmar in 2023 "by escalating violence following the military takeover in February 2021" and that a resurgence of fighting in the eastern part of DRC uprooted 3.8 million people who "were newly internally displaced" during the year.

The U.N. report also touches on what the report calls endless conflicts that continue to displace people in countries that include Afghanistan, Syria, Yemen, Somalia, Venezuela, and Nicaragua.

Of the complex mix of diverse factors uprooting populations globally, Grandi described climate change as a particularly virulent driver of conflict and displacement, with one sometimes triggering the other.

"It can be a driver of conflict and hence of displacement, especially when the very scarce resources of very poor communities become even scarcer because of climate change," he said. "That drives conflict. We have seen it in so many parts of Africa, in the Sahel, for example. In the Horn of Africa, but also elsewhere."

The report debunks a common misperception that many refugees go to rich countries.

"The vast majority of refugees are hosted in countries neighboring their own, with 75 percent residing in low-and middle-income countries that together produce less than 20 percent of the world's income," say the report, which also notes that although children account for 30% of the world's population, they account for 40% of all forcibly displaced people.

Syria remains the world's largest displacement crisis, UNHCR reports, "with 13.8 million forcibly displaced in and outside the country."

The United States is identified as the world's largest recipient of new asylum claims with 1.2 million applications tallied in 2023, followed by Germany, Egypt, Spain, and Canada.

Authors of the report acknowledge that solutions for forced displacement are very rare. They note that only around five million internally displaced people and one million refugees returned home in 2023.

Despite this grim assessment, High Commissioner Grandi said that solutions do exist, citing the example of Kenya which has enacted the so-called Shirika plan, to resolve its nagging refugee problem.

"The President has decided, and the country's institutions have approved, that for the 600,000 refugees in Kenya, mostly Somalis and South Sudanese, measures will be progressively taken to include them in the communities in which they live.

"I consider that a positive trend," he said. "And Kenya being an important country in East Africa, I hope that this will have a positive impact also on other countries."
Thailand wishes to become the first Southeast Asian member of BRICS, a geopolitical group of developing countries including Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

The Thai Cabinet approved the draft application letter May 28, indicating the countrys intention to join the group.

But experts suggest the membership may provide Thailand, Southeast Asias second-largest economy, with mostly symbolic rather than concrete benefits that include existing free-trade agreements with countries such as China.

Nevertheless, the administration of Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin plans to move forward with the application during a BRICS summit, set for October, in Kazan, Russia.

'New world order'

Thailand expects the membership to enhance its participation in international economic policy and to create a new world order, according to a press statement by government spokesperson Chai Wacharonke.

Mihaela Papa, a senior fellow at the Fletcher School at Tufts University, told VOA by email that joining BRICS certainly means greater exposure to China and Russias policy agendas and influence.

Thailand's enthusiasm in joining BRICS supports efforts by China and Russia to expand their economic influence in Southeast Asia, Soumya Bhowmick, an associate fellow at the Observer Research Foundation in Kolkata, India, told VOA.

By joining BRICS, Thailand can contribute to the bloc's collective influence in global economic policies, thereby supporting China and Russia's strategic goals in the region, he said.

Co-founded by Brazil, Russia, India and China in 2006, the group added South Africa in 2010. Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates became members at the start of this year.

Driven in part by threats of Western sanctions, the group has sought to develop alternatives to the U.S. dollar-based economic and financial system through initiatives like the New Development Bank and the Contingent Reserve Arrangement.

The New Development Bank provides financial assistance, such as loans and equities, among BRICS member countries akin to the U.S.-influenced World Bank Group, which provides assistance to developing countries worldwide. The CRA, meanwhile, is an agreement among the BRICS central banks for mutual support during a sudden currency crisis.

However, analysts say geopolitical tensions and differences among member countries test the blocs effectiveness.

While BRICS has made significant strides in trade dynamics, the diversity among BRICS members  presents challenges in aligning interests and achieving consensus. The absence of formal trade and investment agreements further complicates the blocs effectiveness, Bhowmick said.

Joining BRICS at this stage means being one of many states in this large, informal group that increasingly acts as a bloc, Papa said. The groups design  a combination of large membership, rotating country presidencies and decision-making based on consensus  does not enable any BRICS state to gain much spotlight.

Thailand is already a member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP).

The latter is the first free-trade agreement embracing the largest Asian economies, including China, Indonesia, Japan and South Korea, and 11 other Asian countries.

But according to Hung Tran, a nonresident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, BRICS may not bring any concrete economic results for itself or for ASEAN beyond political symbolism.



According to Tran, Thailands membership with RCEP, for instance, has substantially increased Thailands trade with fellow Asian countries since the bloc was established at the beginning of 2022.

Trade volume for Thailand increased to $175 billion in 2023 with China, which has consolidated its position as the top trade partner of Thailand, accounting for 20% of its total trade.

Groupings such as APEC and IPEF, in which Thailand has been active, are also inspired by the United States, Tran said.



Joining BRICS would be a politically symbolic move for Thailand to show that it is open to all major countries or groups in the geopolitical context without being beholden to any sides  a stance in line with the ASEAN overall approach, he said.

Accenting multilateralism

According to a press release by the Thai government, Thailand has placed importance on multilateralism and the increased representation of developing countries in the international system, which is in line with BRICS principles.

Thailands current application only starts the conversation, Papa said, and it will become clearer during the October summit how Thailand might benefit from membership in BRICS.

Thailand has time to investigate what BRICS offers and if it works for its development, she said. After being invited to join the group, Argentina changed its mind, and Saudi Arabia has delayed accession.

Eerishika Pankaj, director of the New Delhi-based Organization for Research on China and Asia, said a Thai entry into BRICS would be unlikely to prompt others in the region to follow quickly.

Other Southeast Asian nations might be inspired  but they will still continue to proceed cautiously amidst U.S.-China rivalry, Pankaj told VOA via email.
The top U.S. law enforcement officer has concluded a five-day visit to Kenya, pledging to continue working with the East African nation to ensure peace and stability in the region. FBI Director Christopher Wray said there was a need for continued cooperation and collaboration with Kenyan security agencies to deal with ongoing terror threats from groups such as al-Shabab.

The United States Federal Bureau of Investigation will partner with Kenya's security agencies to enhance operations for the stability of Kenya and the region.

Speaking at Kenya's Department of Criminal Investigations (DCI), FBI Director Christopher Wray said there was a need to work together to stop criminals who threaten the country and global peace and stability.

"I have said before that the bad guys are not constrained by international borders, so the good guys should not be either. And together, leveraging our collective insights and authorities and perspectives, we're making a huge impact on the threats we face. Terrorism, of course, is very much top among them," he said.

While in Kenya, the FBI head visited shopping malls, a national park, and the Dusit D2 Hotel, which was attacked by al-Shabab militants in January 2019, resulting in the deaths of 21 people.

In February 2020, a year after the Dusit D2 hotel terror attack, the FBI and the U.S. State Department partnered to assist Kenya in creating the Joint Terrorism Task Force, which consists of the country's security agencies and some ministries. The agencies rely on each other's expertise to fight threats.

Kenyan security agencies have been accused of lacking coordination in dealing with terrorists when they storm populated areas like the Westgate Mall attack in 2013 and the Garissa University attack in 2015.

Kenya's head of the Directorate of Criminal Investigations, Amin Mohamed, said the Joint Terrorism Task Force has helped his country provide better security to its citizens and visitors.

"Our various security agencies were operating in silos. Then we said, why can't we all bring them like a one-stop shop, whereby now we can exchange information and ideas. And we have really registered a lot of success," he said.

Kenyan security expert Richard Tuta said a security collaboration can defeat criminals who have defied borders.

"I think what is of importance is that aspect of collaboration. Collaboration in terms of intelligence gathering, intelligence analyzing and intelligence dissemination. That is something that is very important because one thing that we should agree among us, all of us, is that it takes a network to beat a network. Criminals are networked, so security agencies must be networked," said Tuta.

He said there are also more persistent security threats and challenges in the world that will require U.S. support for Kenya to manage.

Some aspects of crime defies country boundaries, like, for instance, matters to do with human trafficking, drug trafficking, terrorism, other issues, like, for instance, matters to do with cybercrime. All of it now, it requires a concerted effort to counter such like aspect of crime," said Tuta.

The al-Qaida-linked terror group al-Shabab has been unsuccessful in conducting terror attacks in the capital, Nairobi, for the last couple of years, but the group continues to carry out attacks against government forces and civilians in northeastern and coastal regions that border Somalia.

In his five-day visit to Nairobi, Wray met with the ethics and anti-corruption agency head and officials, and focused on countering corruption, money laundering, and other economic crimes.

Washington said it will provide support, training, and modern investigation tools to help agencies prosecute economic crimes suspects that have contributed to terrorism and insecurity in the continent.

Kenyan government agencies hope the visit will make them better prepared to manage the security of the country and, if need be, the region.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Wednesday the release of Louis Arnaud, a French citizen who had been held in Iran since 2022 and who had been sentenced to five years in prison in November.

"Louis Arnaud is free. He will be in France tomorrow after a long incarceration in Iran," Macron said on X, thanking Oman in particular for its role in obtaining his release.

The release is rare positive news about France and Iran.

Bilateral relations have deteriorated in recent months, with Tehran holding four French citizens  including Arnaud  in what Paris has said are arbitrary arrests equivalent to state hostage taking.

France is also increasingly concerned by Iran's regional activities and the advance of its nuclear program.

Arnaud, who had been held since September 2022 after traveling in the country, was sentenced to five years in prison in November on security charges. He was held in Tehran's notorious Evin prison.

"This evening, I also think of Cecile, Jacques and Olivier," the remaining French citizens held in Iran," said Macron. "I am calling on Iran to liberate them without delay."

In recent years, Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards have arrested dozens of dual nationals and foreigners, mostly on charges related to espionage and security.

Rights groups have accused Iran of trying to extract concessions from other countries through such arrests. Iran, which does not recognize dual nationality, denies taking prisoners to gain diplomatic leverage.
A French citizen returned home to Paris on Thursday after spending 20 months in an Iranian prison, while a dozen other Europeans are still imprisoned.

Louis Arnaud, who was sentenced last year to five years in prison, was accused of taking part in a protest sparked by the death in 2022 of Masha Amini, who died in police custody after being arrested by morality police for allegedly violating the Islamic republics dress code for women.

Arnauds family has said he was an innocent traveler.

Three other French citizens are still being held.

Arnaud was welcomed in France by his parents and Foreign Minister Stephane Sejourne, who said the French nationals were held arbitrarily.



While the circumstances of Arnauds release were not clear, French President Emmanuel Macron thanked Omani friends on X. Oman has mediated between Iran and the West in the past.

France is not the only country with citizens imprisoned in Iran. Britain, Germany and Sweden also have citizens in Iranian jails, some of whom have been sentenced to death.

Five U.S. citizens were released last year. According to the U.S. government, no other U.S. citizens are held in Iran. However, 62-year-old retired Iranian ship captain Shahab Dalili, who has lawful U.S. resident status, has been imprisoned in Iran since 2016 on charges of cooperating with a hostile government that his family denies.

Some information for this report came from The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse.
Many foreign-funded non-governmental organizations in Georgia say they will not comply with a new foreign agent law that came took effect this month, setting up a showdown with the government ahead of October elections.

The law would force any organization receiving more than 20% of its funding from overseas to register with the government as a foreign agent.

Opponents say Georgias legislation is based on a similar crackdown in Russia and have dubbed it the Russian law." They fear the ruling Georgian Dream Party is increasingly copying Moscows playbook to stifle scrutiny and criticism.

In recent months, the government has launched a propaganda campaign against many NGOs and media organizations, accusing them of acting on behalf of foreign governments and undermining the Georgian state.

Among their prime targets is Eka Gigauri, executive director of Transparency International, which has exposed government corruption.

Across the capital, Tbilisi, government propaganda posters feature Gigauris face with a threatening red mark scrawled across it, alongside similar depictions of other civil society figures. The captions accuse them of becoming enriched by foreign money or trying to sell out the Georgian state.

Personally, it's not so easy, but you are getting used to such things. At the end of the day, I have realized that I'm fighting for the right cause. I'm serving my country, Gigauri told VOA in an interview earlier this month, adding that Transparency International will refuse to comply with the new law.

We will not live under the Russian law here. So, that's why we will not register. And this is the decision of each and every person who works for [Transparency International].

This is the matter of dignity for us. We are the patriots of this country. We were serving this country for many years and the people of this country. And we are not going to put on ourselves the sign of agent or spy who was undermining the state's interest, he said.

Last week, the United States announced sanctions, including travel bans, against dozens of Georgian officials who supported the legislation.

These actions risk derailing Georgias European future and run counter to the Georgian constitution and the wishes of its people, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters on June 7.

Miller did not name the individuals singled out for travel bans, citing visa confidentiality laws.

Supporters of the new law insist it is necessary to ensure transparency in public debate, dubbing it the "American law, comparing it with the U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act.

I think that every country that has respect for itself should have a similar law. So, we took an example from the United States, where the government makes sure that everything is transparent to it, said Fridon Injia of the Party of European Socialists, which is closely aligned to Georgian Dream.

Legal experts reject that comparison, noting that the U.S. Foreign Agents Registration Act was passed in 1938 to counter lobbying on behalf of the Nazi government, while Georgias foreign agent law targets nonprofit civil society organizations.

Media threat

Georgias free press is also in the governments sights. Publika, a small, independent media organization that mainly publishes online, also refuses to register as a foreign agent.

For me, the most unacceptable part is this label as an agent, Publikas editor-in-chief, Lika Zakashvili, said. Because you imagine that we are a media outlet. We are journalists, and someone is coming here and wants to share their story against, for example, the government, or against some institution. And you are [labeling us] a foreign agent. You are losing your trust.

It's just to make our work impossible here. And now the second goal  is to demonize the Western world, Zakashvili told VOA.

The new law gives authorities sweeping investigative powers against organizations and individuals, said Aka Zarqua, executive editor at the Governance Monitoring Center, which scrutinizes government spending and conduct.

You have to give them full financial disclosure of your own expenditures, all personal and sensitive information about your expenditures, and private communications," he told VOA. They also have the right to require from employees different information, like personal chats.

Zarqua said the risks for a small, independent media organization like his are huge and could force it to close, dismantling the whole civil infrastructure in Georgia.

Some NGOs are seeking ways to circumvent the law, including registering in other European countries such as Estonia  a tactic used by civil society organizations in Russia, Zarqua said.

The Georgian Dream Party is not the first to introduce such a law. It was implemented in Russia already in 2012, so there is some kind of experience there. So, we will try to use this experience and to just prolong our existence here as a non-governmental organization.

Zarqua said the future of his organization depends on the outcome of the fall elections.

It could be a very different world after October 26, he said.
VOAs Mandarin Service recently took Googles artificial intelligence assistant Gemini for a test drive by asking it dozens of questions in Mandarin, but when it was asked about topics including Chinas human rights abuses in Xinjiang or street protests against the countrys controversial COVID policies, the chatbot went silent.

Geminis responses to questions about problems in the United States and Taiwan, on the other hand, parroted Beijings official positions.

Gemini, Googles large-language model launched late last year, is blocked in China. The California-based tech firm had quit the Chinese market in 2010 in a dispute over censorship demands.

Congressional lawmakers and experts tell VOA that they are concerned about Geminis pro-Beijing responses and are urging Google and other Western companies to be more transparent about their AI training data.

Parroting Chinese propaganda

When asked to describe Chinas top leader Xi Jinping and the Chinese Communist Party, Gemini gave answers that were indistinguishable from Beijings official propaganda.

Gemini called Xi an excellent leader who will lead the Chinese people continuously toward the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation.

Gemini said that the Chinese Communist Party represents the fundamental interest of the Chinese people, a claim the CCP itself maintains.

On Taiwan, Gemini also mirrored Beijings talking points, saying the United States has recognized Chinas claim to sovereignty over the self-governed island democracy.

The U.S. only acknowledges Beijings position but does not recognize it.

Silent on sensitive topics

During VOAs testing, Gemini had no problem criticizing the United States. But when similar questions were asked about China, Gemini refused to answer.

When asked about human rights concerns in the U.S., Gemini listed a plethora of issues, including gun violence, government surveillance, police brutality and socioeconomic inequalities. Gemini cited a report released by the Chinese government.

But when asked to explain the criticisms of Beijings Xinjiang policies, Gemini said it did not understand the question.

According to estimates from rights groups, more than 1 million Uyghurs in Xinjiang have been placed in internment camps as part of campaign by Beijing to counter terrorism and extremism. Beijing calls the facilities where Uyghurs and other ethnic minorities are being held vocational training centers.

When asked if COVID lockdowns in the U.S. had led to public protests, Gemini gave an affirmative response as well as two examples. But when asked if similar demonstrations took place in China, Gemini said it could not help with the question.

Chinas strict COVID controls on movement inside the country and Beijings internet censorship of its criticisms sparked nationwide street protests in late 2022. News about the protests was heavily censored inside China.

Expert: training data likely the problem

Google touts Gemini as its most capable AI model. It supports more than 40 languages and can seamlessly understand different types of information, including text, code, audio, image and video. Google says Gemini will be incorporated into the companys other services such as search engine, advertisement and browser.

Albert Zhang, a cyber security analyst at Australian Strategic Policy Institute, told VOA that the root cause of Gemini making pro-Beijing responses could result from the data that is used to train the AI assistant.

In an emailed response to VOA, Zhang said it is likely that the data used to train Gemini contained mostly Chinese text created by the Chinese government's propaganda system.

He said that according to a paper published by Google in 2022, some of Geminis data likely came from Chinese social media, public forums and web documents.

These are all sources the Chinese government has flooded with its preferred narratives and we may be seeing the impact of this on large language models, he said.

By contrast, when Gemini was asked in English the same questions about China, its responses were much more neutral, and it did not refuse to answer any of the questions.

Yaqiu Wang, research director for China at Freedom House, a Washington-based advocacy organization, told VOA that the case with Gemini is a reminder that generative AI tools influenced by state-controlled information sources could serve as force multipliers for censorship.

In a statement to VOA, a Google spokesperson said that Gemini was designed to offer neutral responses that don't favor any political ideology, viewpoint, or candidate. This is something that were constantly working on improving.

When asked about the Chinese language data Google uses to train Gemini, the company declined to comment.

The Chinese Embassy in Washingtons spokesperson, Liu Pengyu, responded in an emailed statement, saying, The relevant comments are full of Cold War mentality and ideological prejudice.

He said there are opportunities and unpredictable risks to AI that require a global response.

The Global AI Governance Initiative launched by President Xi Jinping puts forward that we should uphold the principles of mutual respect, equality and mutual benefit in AI development, and oppose drawing ideological lines, Liu wrote. We support efforts to develop AI governance frameworks, norms and standards based on broad consensus and with full respect for policies and practices among countries.

US lawmakers concerned

Lawmakers from both parties in Congress have expressed concerns over VOAs findings on Gemini.

Mark Warner, chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee, told VOA he is worried about Beijing potentially utilizing AI for disinformation, whether thats by poisoning training data used by Western firms, coercing major technology companies, or utilizing AI systems in service of covert influence campaigns.

Marco Rubio, vice chairman of the committee, warned that AI tools that uncritically repeat Beijings talking points are doing the bidding of the Chinese Communist Party and threatens the tremendous opportunity that AI offers.

Congressman Michael McCaul, who chairs the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, is worried about the national security and foreign policy implications of the blatant falsehoods in Geminis answers.

U.S. companies should not censor content according to CCP propaganda guidelines, he told VOA in a statement.

Raja Krishnamoorthi, ranking member on the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, urges Google and other Western tech companies to improve AI training.

You should try to screen out or filter out subjects or answers or data that has somehow been manipulated by the CCP, he told VOA. And you have to also make sure that you test these models thoroughly before you publish them.

Googles China problems

In February, a user posted on social media platform X that Gemini refused to generate an image of a Tiananmen Square protester from 1989.

In 2022, a Washington think tank study shows that Google and YouTube put Chinese state media content about Xinjiang and COVID origins in prominent positions in search results.

According to media reports in 2018, Google was developing a search engine specifically tailored for the Chinese market that would conform to Beijings censorship demands.

That project was canceled a year later.

Yihua Lee and Elizabeth Lee contributed to this report.
Unrelenting attacks on international shipping by Iran-backed Houthi militants in Yemen are taking a toll on commerce and aid efforts despite attempts by the United States and its partners to dampen the effects.

A just-released report by the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, or DIA, finds Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden have affected at least 29 companies across more than 65 countries, driving up costs in multiple ways.

"As of mid-February, insurance premiums for Red Sea transits have risen to 0.7-1.0% of a ships total value, compared to less than 0.1% prior to December 2023," according to the DIA report.

The report also noted companies that continue to transit the region face increased costs for additional war risk insurance and bonuses for crew members.

As a result, the DIA assessment found container shipping through the Red Sea, which normally accounts for up to 15% of international maritime trade, fell by 90% from December 2023 through mid-February of 2024.

Shipping companies seeking to avoid the Red Sea are also seeing increased costs, with trips around Africa adding about $1 million to the price of a journey.

There is also a cost to aid efforts.

As of February, humanitarian relief for Sudan and Yemen is being delayed by weeks and costing aid organizations more because of longer routes around Africa, the report said.

In all, the DIA counted at least 43 Houthi attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden between November 19 and March 23.

The Houthis have said their campaign in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden is in solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza amid the war between Israel and Hamas.

And the attacks show little sign of slowing down.

According to U.S. Central Command, which oversees U.S. military operations across the Middle East, Houthi militants in Yemen have launched at least 12 missiles, two aerial drones and one surface drone against targets in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden since Sunday.

In the latest attack, on Thursday, CENTCOM said two Houthi anti-ship cruise missiles struck the M/V Verbena, a Palauan-flagged, Ukrainian-owned, Polish-operated bulk cargo carrier.

The missile strikes ignited onboard fires and severely injured a civilian mariner.

The U.S. military said it used naval aircraft to evacuate the injured sailor to a nearby ship for medical attention.

This continued reckless behavior by the Iranian-backed Houthis threatens regional stability and endangers the lives of mariners across the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, CENTCOM said in a statement Thursday.

The Houthis claim to be acting on behalf of Palestinians in Gaza and yet they are targeting and threatening the lives of third country nationals who have nothing to do with the conflict in Gaza, the statement said. The ongoing threat to the ability to safely transit the region caused by the Houthis makes it harder to deliver critical assistance to the people of Yemen as well as to Gaza.

Thursdays attack on the M/V Verbena, which had been en route to Italy with construction material, follows a naval drone attack Wednesday on the M/V Tutor, a Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned ship that had recently been docked in Russia, CENTCOM said. The attack caused severe flooding and damage to the engine room.

This past December, the U.S. and eight other countries launched Operation Prosperity Guardian to help protect ships in the region from Houthi attacks.

In February, the European Union launched its own mission, ASPIDES, to help further protect maritime traffic.

The U.S. and its allies have also conducted a series of strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen to deter further attacks on shipping, most recently late last month.
When riots broke out in the French territory of New Caledonia last month, journalist Coralie Cochin started rising before the sun.

For about a week, it was too dangerous for Cochin to leave her neighborhood in the suburbs of the capital, Noumea, so she would drive nearby streets looking out for developments.

Then at around 6:30 a.m., Cochin would park and start her live radio hits for public broadcaster Nouvelle-Caledonie la 1ere, informing listeners about roadblocks and clashes.

Every morning, it was a shock, Cochin said. As a journalist, of course Im passionate about this moment. But at the same time, Im terrified.



At least nine people have been killed, and dozens of buildings burned since mid-May amid the worst violence to affect New Caledonia in four decades.



Unrest in the nickel-rich Pacific archipelago came in response to amendments to a French voting law that, critics warned, risked marginalizing the indigenous Kanak population. The Kanak already suffer from economic inequality and discrimination, say rights groups.

The legislation, which was suspended by French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday, follows a series of independence referendums promised after conflict in the 1980s. Although the final vote  held in 2021 amid the COVID-19 pandemic  reaffirmed that the territory would remain part of France, many Kanaks boycotted the ballot.

Journalists covering the unrest say they have been confronted with violence and harassment from both pro-independence and loyalist camps. The press freedom group Reporters Without Borders, or RSF, has documented around 15 incidents.

Journalists continue to be threatened, and its still difficult for them to circulate freely, Pavol Szalai, who heads RSFs European Union desk, told VOA from Paris.

Frances Washington embassy and Ministry of the Overseas did not reply to VOAs emails requesting comment.

The press freedom landscape in New Caledonia has long been fraught, according to Audrey Poedi, who works for the local television station, Caledonia.



New Caledonia is generally referred to as the land of the unspoken, said Poedi, who was born in New Caledonia and is Kanak. That nickname, she said, refers to how many issues are viewed as taboo in the archipelago.

There is a lot of self-censorship in New Caledonian society. We dont say it out of shame, out of fear, so as not to dwell on the past, she said.

For Cochin, who grew up in the French region of Normandy but who has lived in New Caledonia for nearly two decades, the past few weeks have been the most difficult period weve ever experienced.

At one point, individuals called on social media for the offices of her broadcaster to be burned down. It was the first time I was really afraid for my life, Cochin said about seeing those comments.

A group of men also intimidated a crew from her channel on May 17 and stole their TV camera before smashing the windows of the journalists car and attempting to steal the vehicle, RSF reported.

Others have been threatened with violence at roadblocks.

Grassroots groups also appear to be attempting to track journalists. Screenshots shared with VOA appear to show individuals detailing where reporters from Agence France-Presse, or AFP, were staying and what car they were driving.

Mathurin Derel, who reports for Le Monde and AFP, told VOA he has also learned that photos of him were being circulated in loyalist group chats.

Its a way to intimidate us, to make us write different stories, said Derel, who says he narrowly avoided a carjacking at a roadblock last month. Originally from Paris, Derel has lived in New Caledonia for nearly two decades.

The violence has created an environment of anxiety among the countrys reporters, according to Poedi.

Not only are we afraid of being accused of doing our job badly, were also afraid that the people will be extremely hostile and that things will get worse  that there will be acts of violence against us, Poedi said. Its a real atmosphere of fear, stress and sadness.

The environment is also making it harder to find sources willing to speak on the record. Some of the reporters VOA spoke with say they believe the reluctance is driven by a combination of rising mistrust in the media and fears of retaliation.

To try to mitigate the risks, some local reporters are working to form a journalist association to advocate for their rights and protection. RSF has also provided safety equipment.

Back on the outskirts of Noumea, Cochin says she has been working nonstop but that reporting has also provided her with a welcome sense of duty at a challenging time.

When you are working, you have a kind of distance, Cochin said. Reality is much harder when you dont work.
Iran has started up new cascades of advanced centrifuges and plans to install others in the coming weeks after facing criticism over its nuclear program, the United Nations' atomic watchdog said Friday. The U.S. called the moves nuclear escalations.

Spinning up new centrifuges further advances Iran's nuclear program, which already enriches uranium at near-weapons-grade levels and boasts a stockpile enough for several nuclear bombs if it chose to pursue them. However, the acknowledgement from the International Atomic Energy Agency did not include any suggestion Iran planned to go to higher enrichment levels amid wider tensions between Tehran and the West as the Israel-Hamas war rages in the Gaza Strip.

The IAEA said its inspectors verified Monday that Iran had begun feeding uranium into three cascades of advanced IR-4 and IR-6 centrifuges at its Natanz enrichment facility. Cascades are a group of centrifuges that spin uranium gas together to more quickly enrich the uranium.

So far, Iran has been enriching uranium in those cascades up to 2% purity. Iran already enriches uranium up to 60%, a short, technical step away from weapons-grade levels of 90%.

Iran also plans to install 18 cascades of IR-2m centrifuges at Natanz and eight cascades of IR-6 centrifuges at its Fordo nuclear site. Each of these classes of centrifuges enrich uranium faster than Iran's baseline IR-1 centrifuges, which remain the workhorse of the country's atomic program.

Tehran did not immediately acknowledge the decision. However, it comes after Iran threatened to take action following a vote earlier this month at the IAEA's Board of Governors that censured Iran for failing to cooperate fully with the agency.

The decision immediately drew criticism from State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.

Iran aims to continue expanding its nuclear program in ways that have no credible peaceful purpose, Miller said in a statement. These planned actions further undermine Irans claims to the contrary. If Iran implements these plans, we will respond accordingly.

Miller did not elaborate on what steps the U.S. and its allies might take. However, Iran already faces grinding economic sanctions from Washington and others that have deeply cut into its economy and sent its rial currency tumbling over recent years.

Since the collapse of Iran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers following the U.S.' unilateral withdraw from the accord in 2018, it has pursued nuclear enrichment just below weapons-grade levels. U.S. intelligence agencies and others assess that Iran has yet to begin a weapons program.

Iran, as a signatory to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, has pledged to allow the IAEA to visit its atomic sites to ensure its program is peaceful. Tehran also agreed to additional oversight from the IAEA as part of the 2015 nuclear deal. However, for years it has curtailed inspectors' access to sites while also not fully answering questions about other sites where nuclear material has been found in the past.

The IAEA's director-general, Rafael Mariano Grossi, visited Iran in May in an effort to boost inspections, but there hasn't been any major public change in Iran's stance.

All this comes as the Islamic Republic also appears to be trying to contain the risk it faces from the U.S. after launching an unprecedented attack on Israel. The assault  a response to a suspected Israeli strike on April 1 which killed two Guard generals and others in Damascus, Syria  has pushed a yearslong shadow war between Israel and Iran out into the open.
An attack blamed on Islamic State-linked rebels has left dozens of people dead in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo's Beni region, local authorities said on Thursday.

Colonel Alain Kiwewa Mitela, a local official in Lubero territory where the overnight attack occurred, told AFP that 42 bodies had been found.

It brings to nearly 150 the number of people killed since the start of the month by rebels of the Allied Democratic Forces, according to figures from local authorities and civil groups.

A civil society leader, Seba Paluku, told AFP there were 41 bodies, including some that were "tied up" and "decapitated.

He said he had gone to the site with soldiers. "The bodies are lying still on the ground. There's no means of transporting them because vehicles can't get there, he said.

Samuel Kakule, a civil society leader in Mangurujipa, not far from the site of the attack, said that "around 2 p.m. yesterday, we were told of the presence of the enemy" and that later "they fired on the peaceful population, and the bodies began arriving at the hospital.

Between June 1 and 11, the Islamic State group claimed responsibility for about 15 attacks on villages and roads near Beni that have killed 125 people, almost all of them civilians.

A local official estimated the number to be 109 while a security official said it stood at 138.

The Allied Democratic Forces, or ADF, historically a Ugandan Muslim majority rebel coalition, has established a presence over the past three decades in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, killing thousands of civilians.

It pledged allegiance in 2019 to the Islamic State group, which portrays the ADF as its central African branch.

Since the end of 2021, the Congolese and Ugandan armies have conducted joint operations against the ADF in North Kivu and neighboring Ituri province but have so far failed to stop the deadly attacks on civilians.

The east of the country has been plagued by violence by armed groups for decades.

The Rwanda-backed March 23 Movement resumed its armed campaign in the region at the end of 2021, seizing swathes of territory in North Kivu, as intensified fighting continues to displace tens of thousands of people.
U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin would not confirm or deny reports that the U.S. is sending another Patriot surface-to-air missile defense system to Ukraine, after allies and partners from about 50 nations met to coordinate support for Kyiv in a meeting heavily focused on air defense.

"What I will tell you is that there will be no change in our Patriot coverage in Poland  there is no change in our Patriot coverage there," he told reporters at a press conference at NATO headquarters after the 23rd meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group (UDCG), a coalition of about 50 nations that coordinating military support for Kyiv in its fight against Russia's invasion.

The New York Times and The Associated Press reported earlier this week that the United States is providing another Patriot system, citing defense officials who were granted anonymity to discuss the move. The Times reported that the Patriot battery would come from Poland, where it has been protecting a rotational force of American troops as they return to the United States.

Germany has announced that it is providing Ukraine another Patriot missile defense system, and Italy has announced it will deliver a SAMP-T air defense system to Ukraine.

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General C.Q. Brown, the top U.S. military officer, said this Ukraine Defense Contact Group meeting prioritized Ukrainian air defense, along with sustainment and the ability to train and equip Kyiv's new forces.

"Air defense is one of those things that, as we engage with the Ukrainians, that is the top of their list," Brown said, speaking to reporters ahead of the UDCG while en route to Belgium for Thursday's one-day meeting.

'Ukraine has the right to strike

In Brussels, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said Ukraine should be allowed to hit military targets inside Russia to defend against attacks.

"Ukraine has the right to strike military targets on Russian territory [as] part of the right for self-defense, and we have the right to support them in defending themselves," Stoltenberg said in response to a question from VOA at NATO headquarters.

Stoltenberg welcomed the decision by various allies and partners to loosen restrictions on the use of weapons against "legitimate military targets" inside Russia, which started the war by illegally invading Ukraine.

"If they [Ukrainians] were not able to do so, then we would actually ask them to try to defend themselves, uphold the right of self-defense, with one hand tied on their back," he said. "Self-defense is not escalation."

Stoltenberg said Ukraine's right to cross-border strikes has become more obvious since Russia opened a new front to the north in Kharkiv and began attacking the area directly adjacent to Russian territory.

"The border and the front line is more or less the same, and of course, if the Russian forces, the artillery, the missile batteries, were safe as soon as they were on the Russian side of the border, it would become extremely difficult for Ukrainians to defend themselves," he said.

The U.S. recently gave Ukraine permission to strike ground targets inside Russia, but only to defend against cross-border attacks against Ukraine's Kharkiv region.

"Our policy in using long-range strike capabilities to conduct strikes deep into Russia, that's not changed. But the ability to conduct counterfire in this close fight in the Kharkiv region, that's what this is all about," Austin said in response to a question from VOA on Thursday.

The limitation does not apply to Ukrainian attacks on Russian planes or missiles. Last week, John Kirby, the White House national security communications adviser, said the United States has never put restrictions on Ukrainians shooting down hostile aircraft, "even if those aircraft are not necessarily in Ukrainian airspace."

Retired General Frank McKenzie, the former head of U.S. Central Command, told VOA this week that Ukrainians should be able to fire on any military targets inside Russia that are attacking Ukraine, "but with certain limits" on areas such as Russian nuclear capable sites.

"You can't give them a sanctuary there," he said. "I think that has significantly hurt the Ukrainian ability to respond [to] this latest offensive."

Reconsidering restrictions

For more than a year, the United States would not provide long-range tactical ballistic missiles known as ATACMS to Kyiv because of administration concerns that Russia would view their use for attacks inside Russian territory as an escalation of the war.

ATACMS have a range of up to 300 kilometers (186.4 miles), nearly double the striking distance of Ukraine's missile arsenal.

In late April, the U.S. first acknowledged that it had provided Ukraine with the long-awaited missiles in mid-March.

Since then, the United States has announced four presidential drawdown authority packages (PDAs) for Ukrainian security assistance, totaling $1.9 billion, which pull from U.S. military stockpiles to provide Ukraine's military with immediate needs.

Asked by VOA whether the United States has provided Ukraine with more ATACMS since mid-March, General Brown said, "We're working through the ATACMS piece, and we continue to provide that capability through our PDAs." Brown spoke to reporters en route to Brussels.

The Ukrainian Center for Defense Strategies reported Wednesday that Ukraine used at least 10 ATACMS in a strike against military targets deep inside Crimea this week, with Russia "failing to intercept any of them." Russia also confirmed the use of ATACMS on targets inside Crimea, but claimed nine of the ATACMS were shot down, according to the Russian state media outlet TASS.

Ukraine's military said Wednesday it had hit three Russian surface-to-air missile systems in Russian-occupied Crimea overnight.

"One S-300 division near Belbek, as well as two S-400 divisions near Belbek and Sevastopol were attacked. Two radars of the S-300 and S-400 systems were destroyed.

Regarding the third radar, information is being clarified," Ukraine's Defense Ministry said in a statement on X.

The UDCG has also worked to provide Ukraine with F-16 fighter jet capability sometime this summer, according to Brown. A number of Ukrainian pilots recently graduated from F-16 training in the U.S. state of Arizona, with more pilots and jet maintainers expected to complete training at various locations in the coming weeks.

"It gives them some options in order to be able to extend the range of some of the munitions that they already have," Brown said of the F-16s.

McKenzie told VOA the Western fighter jets "can make a significant difference" for Ukraine, "especially if you allow shots into Russia."

"It will probably allow you to go after some of the standoff Russian airborne platforms that are dropping glide bombs and other weapons that are going deep into Ukraine," he said.

Ostap Yarysh in Washington contributed to this report.
Bangladeshi Nobel Peace Prize laureate Muhammad Yunus and 13 others were indicted in Dhaka Wednesday for allegedly embezzling over $2 million from his telecom company.

The indictment, brought by Bangladeshs anti-corruption agency, charges Yunus with misusing funds from the workers welfare fund at Grameen Telecom, one of several companies he has founded, and engaging in money laundering.

Grameen Telecom owns a 34% stake in Grameenphone, Bangladeshs largest mobile phone network.

Yunus, 83, denies any wrongdoing and emphasized his commitment to serving people and accused the government of harassment. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2006 for pioneering microcredit to help impoverished people.

Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has accused Yunus of sucking blood from the poor.

Yunus' lawyer, Abdullah Al Manum, described the indictment as the most serious challenge Yunus has faced.

Earlier this year, Yunus was sentenced to six months in prison for labor law violations but was released on bail pending further proceedings.

More than 170 global leaders and Nobel laureates last year urged Hasina to halt legal action against Yunus, alleging he is being targeted due to his strained relationship with her.

The government denied these allegations.

Yunus also faces over 100 additional charges related to labor law violations and alleged graft.

If convicted, he could potentially face life in prison. His trial is scheduled to start July 15.

This information was sourced from The Associated Press and Agence France-Presse.
Political turbulence in Vietnam has increased the power of the police and military factions of the countrys Communist Party, as officials with these backgrounds gain seats in the top echelons of the government, experts have told VOA.

Activists and analysts interviewed point to To Lam  the former public security minister who took over as president on May 18  as a rising figure who could pose a threat to the party's collective leadership.

Zachary Abuza, Southeast Asia expert and professor at the National War College in Washington, described Lam as "ruthlessly ambitious," during a June 3 call with VOA.

As public security minister Lam led 80-year-old General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's key initiative  what Trong dubbed the "blazing furnace" anti-corruption campaign.

"To Lam has wielded that anti-corruption campaign to systematically remove one competitor after another," Abuza said.

Vietnam's collective leadership is based on "four pillars" at the top of the political structure: the general secretary, president, prime minister, and chairman of the National Assembly, the countrys unicameral legislature. Since January 2023, anti-corruption investigations have led to the downfall of two presidents and the National Assembly chairman.

Truong Thi Mai is the most recent top official to leave her post. The former head of the Central Organization Committee and permanent member of the party secretariat was the fifth-ranking leader. She was accused of breaking party regulations and resigned on May 16.

An analyst, who asked that his name be withheld because of increasing uncertainty regarding the potential pitfalls of discussing Vietnamese politics, told VOA on June 4 that such turbulent politics is new for the party. He added that the situation is unpredictable and will likely remain volatile until the next meeting of the National Assembly in 2026, when a new leader is expected to take over from Trong.

"In the past 60 years not a single four pillar leader in Vietnam has stepped down and within only two years to have three of the four pillars step down and then a permanent member of the secretariat also step down  this is unprecedented in the history of Vietnamese Communist Party," he said.

To Lam's rise

Alexander Vuving, a professor at Honolulu's Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, told VOA that Luong Tam Quang, who was appointed to replace Lam as public security minister on June 6, is an ally of the new president.

"To Lam has not subsided after Lam left the ministry," Vuving wrote in an email to VOA on June 7.

Duy Hoang, executive director of the unsanctioned Vietnamese political party Viet Tan, said that after To Lam became president on May 18, there was a "big internal struggle" for approximately two weeks during which there were attempts to nominate a public security minister without ties to Lam. With Quang's appointment, the efforts to neutralize Lam's power failed, he said.

Quang "is seen as an ally to To Lam because he's from Hung Yen which is where To Lam is from," Hoang said, referring to the countrys northern province.

"It shows that To Lam is continuing to consolidate power," he said.

Along with leading a "crackdown against peaceful dissent," Hoang said, Lam is known for arranging the kidnapping of whistleblower Trinh Xuan Thanh from Germany in 2017 and for being photographed eating a gold-encrusted steak at a high-end London restaurant in 2021.

Before the pricey meal, the communist leader visited Karl Marx's tomb in London.

"The irony that the last guy standing after an anti-corruption purge is the guy eating a $1,000 gold-leaf steak after laying a wreath for Karl Marx," Abuza said. "Increasingly he just wielded his sword and took out rivals until he was the last man standing."

David Hutt, a research fellow at the Central European Institute of Asian Studies in Slovakia, struck a similar chord in a May 20 email to VOA, although he predicted a period of stability until the partys 2026 National Congress.

"There were so few people in the Politburo who met the conditions to become state president that To Lam was almost certain to get this post. Plus, the Communist Party needs stability in the top-four posts, and To Lam is unlikely to be busted as part of the anti-corruption campaign (although corruption allegations swirl around him)," Hutt wrote.

Those now in top spots will probably stay there until the 2026 Congress, he said, adding, "The securocrats and the military factions are the clear winner. The Communist Party is becoming more security con[s]cious and is very concerned about its power."

Beyond Quang, Vietnam's Politburo  the country's top decision-making body  is now dominated by individuals from the Public Security Ministry, and the military makes up the second-largest bloc, Abuza said, describing the domination of a "very conservative security-minded bloc."

Weakened Communist Party

The analyst who asked for his name to be withheld said "the situation now is very precarious for the party itself."

"The power of the party is you have to control the gun in order to control the party. But now it seems like the gun has actually taken control of the party," he said, referring to the rising power of the Public Security Ministry.

Nguyen Ngoc Nhu Quynh, a Vietnamese activist living in Texas since obtaining U.S. asylum in 2018, cited a general unease among her contacts in Vietnam.

"I think that everyone is scared," she wrote to VOA over the messaging app Telegram on June 8.

"To Lam will continue to control the country under his own regime," she wrote.

An Hai of VOAs Vietnamese Service contributed reporting from Washington.
Andrei Kozlovs parents describe last Saturday as the happiest day of our lives.

Kozlov was one of the four Israeli hostages rescued that day in a special operation by Israeli security forces in the Nuseirat refugee camp in Gaza. His parents spoke with VOA about reuniting with their son after his eight months in Hamas captivity.

Twenty-seven-year-old Andrei immigrated to Israel just a year and a half ago and was captured by Hamas on the morning of October 7, 2023, at the Nova music festival, where he was working as a security guard.

We could never imagine that he was at the party  the one where these terrible events took place, says Andreis father, Mikhail, in an interview from Tel Aviv. An estimated 364 people were killed in the attack on the festival.

He got there completely by accident. He was invited to work as a security guard, and this was literally a day or two before the events. Neither we nor some of his friends knew about it.

Andrei's parents were in Russia when they learned of his rescue. On Sunday, they were able to hug him at the Sheba Medical Center in Tel Aviv. Andrei collapsed on the floor, hugging his mothers legs and weeping.

Mikhail and Evgenia call their sons rescue a miracle.

On June 8, I became the happiest mother in the world, says Evgenia Kozlova. Its a miracle that Andrei was released. According to the terms of the deal, he, a young male, was not to be released first. And we understood that we would have to suffer for a long, long time.

We have a feeling that June 8 has become a holiday for all Israel because Israel has not received happy news for a long time. People got the opportunity to continue to hope, to fight for the remaining hostages.

Andreis father, Mikhail, said strangers recognize Andrei when they pass him on the street this week "and suddenly they rush to him, saying I love you!, shake his hand. Cars drive past, windows open and people wave their hands. Its just great, its a wonderful feeling.

According to the parents, Andreis captors repeatedly told him and two other hostages, who were being held in the same residential building in Nuseirat, that they were "lucky" because their conditions were better than those of other hostages.

We, of course, must understand that everything he tells us is a light version of what happened to him, says Evgenia Kozlova. He tells us everything in such a way that it is easier for us to accept, and sometimes it has the opposite effect, because when your child says to you: Mom, after two weeks with our hands tied behind the back, they started tying our hands in front, and we said to each other: Its a gift from Hamas!

It's tough to hear. For two days we all couldnt get used to the fact that Andrei spoke in a whisper. I say, why are you whispering? He says: Mom, it's a habit. This is an eight-month habit, a habit that was forced upon them. And then he says: Mom, well, there are things that I'll probably never tell you."

Mikhail said his son was never allowed outside for a walk except when he was moved in darkness to a new location. He now says: I dont want to stand in the sun because I havent seen it for eight months. Its hard to even imagine what other hostages are going through if his situation was better than theirs.

According to Andreys father, in the hospital, standing in front of the buffet table, it was difficult for his son to make a choice of food.

He found it difficult to choose between porridge and pasta because for eight months he was not given any choice and was not given the opportunity to make any decisions. The fact that he looks good and feels good despite everything that he suffered, it seems to me that this is simply for one reason  because he was still with other people, in this the three of them were very lucky. And, in addition, he is simply a very strong, very optimistic person. We just want him to recover, to be his old self.

According to the Israeli government, 120 hostages remain in Hamas captivity. Government spokesman David Mencer said 43 of them are no longer alive.

The topic of hostages who remained in captivity is incredibly painful for him, says Evgenia Kozlova. That is, it seems that he should now enjoy life and laugh, but he will never forget about those people who remain there. Never.

When he was freed and came to his senses a little, one of his first words was: They need to be freed. They are in terrible condition. They need to be freed as quickly as possible.

According to the Gazas Hamas-run Ministry of Health, at least 274 Palestinians were killed as a result of the raid that freed Andrei. The Israel Defense Forces put the number at fewer than 100, adding that the forces trying to rescue the hostages came under heavy fire from Hamas.

Israeli government spokesman Mencer responded Monday to criticism of the raids Palestinian death toll.

It's the ultimate cheek for Hamas themselves to steal our people, hide them in crowded civilian areas, inside civilian homes, inside families where they've been put to work, from the latest reports from the current released hostages, and then chastise Israel for doing its utmost to release our hostages, he said.
Russias Defense Ministry reported Thursday destroying Ukrainian drones over two Russian regions east and northeast of Moscow, areas not typically targeted by Ukrainian forces.

The Russian ministry said on Telegram it shot down three aerial drones over the Yaroslavl region and another drone over the Vladimir region.

Mikhail Yevrayev, the regional governor of Yaroslavl, said on Telegram there were no injuries and no damage from the falling drone debris.

Ukraine more commonly focuses its drone attacks on Russian regions that border Ukraine.

Belgorod, which sits across the border from Ukraines Kharkiv region, is among the most often targeted and is 600 kilometers (372.8 miles) from Vladimir.

Belgorod Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on Telegram a Ukrainian drone attack Thursday struck a car and injured two people.

The latest Ukrainian attacks came as Ukrainian officials appealed for military aid at two international meetings.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was in Italy to speak with leaders from the G7 group of leading industrial nations. He said Ukraines priorities included pilot training, accelerating deliveries of fighter jets, and boosting Ukraines ability to carry out long-range strikes.

On Thursday, G7 leaders agreed to an outline of a deal to provide $50 billion to Ukraine using interest from Russian sovereign assets that were frozen after Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022.

U.S. President Joe Biden told reporters that the agreement was another reminder to [Russian President Vladimir Putin] that were not backing down.

The details of the agreement will be finalized in the coming weeks, and the money is expected to reach Ukraine by the end of this year.

This is a very clear commitment that should embolden the Ukrainians to do what they need to defend their independence and sovereignty, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said.

Biden and Zelenskyy also signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement on Thursday that seeks to help Kyiv get closer to NATO membership.

Today is a truly historic day, Zelenskyy said at a joint news conference with Biden.

The deal would also work to enhance Ukraines defense against Moscow.

Our goal is to strengthen Ukraines credible defense and deterrence capabilities for the long term, Biden said at the news conference.

In Brussels, Ukrainian Defense Minister Rustem Umerov was meeting with NATO defense ministers.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg told reporters that he expects allies to be making announcements in the coming days and weeks about air defense systems for Ukraine.

He said the defense ministers would be addressing Ukraines urgent needs for more supplies and ammunition, and that they would discuss plans for NATO security assistance and training for Ukraine.

Also at the meeting of NATO defense ministers on Thursday, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said Moscows advance in the Kharkiv area has been slowing after some of Ukraines allies, including the United States, waived restrictions on Ukraines use of donated weapons on Russian territory.

What I see is a slowing of the Russians advance and a stabilizing of that particular piece of the front," said Austin. "Now, I think well see incremental gains  and well see puts and takes  going forward.

Some information in this report came from Reuters and Agence France-Presse.
The recent elections to the European Parliament, a legislative body of the European Union, saw voters in 27 member countries elect 720 representatives from hundreds of political parties and a broad ideological spectrum.

While the governing centrist coalition will remain in power for the next five years, far-right parties made gains in several states, particularly France and Germany. Liberal and Green parties fared less well at the polls.

European intelligence accused Moscow of supporting pro-Russian candidates, many on the far right of the political spectrum, but also some on the far left, among other influence operations.

Moscow, in turn, has tried to undermine the democratic legitimacy of the elections.

Russian officials and state media spun the election results as lacking legitimacy and politically irrelevant.

The Kremlin and its leading analysts claimed the votes showed the citizens dissatisfaction with the Brussels "Russophobic policies and its support for Ukraine.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova painted the EU plebiscite as unfree and unfair.

"We have to say that the European elections took place under conditions of severe restrictions, lack of fair competition, cleansing of the information field from alternative sources of information and rampant anti-Russian campaign, Zakharova said on June 10.

The claim is false.

The elections saw a large number of candidates participating in a political field as diverse as the EU.

More than a half of Europes eligible 361 million-plus voters turned out to vote in the elections organized by the national authorities of each state. The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights said the vote was genuinely competitive and professionally organized.

While European political parties play an important role in the process, the ODIHR noted competition was exclusively among national parties and candidates within their constituencies, reflecting the diverse political landscape among member states.

The ODIHR said voters across the EU got to choose from 16,000 candidates and 530 party and independent lists, offering a wide choice of genuine political alternatives.

While the media landscape across the 27-member bloc is highly diverse, with some states ranking much higher than others in terms of a free and pluralistic press, media freedom and pluralism are enshrined in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.

Still, the Berlin-based Civil Liberties Union for Europe warned that media freedom and pluralism still stand perilously close to the breaking point in many EU countries, often due to the actions of national governments.

European leaders have beefed-up efforts to ensure media freedoms across the bloc.

That includes the adoption of the European Media Freedom Act in March, intended to guarantee the right of citizens to access free and plural information, and the adoption of the Anti-SLAPP directive, intended to protect journalists and human rights defenders from malicious cross-border lawsuits intended to silence them.

Zakharovas allegation that the information field had been cleansed of alternative sources of information likely references Europes banning of four Russian-state propaganda outlets the Voice of Europe, RIA Novosti, Izvestia and Rossiyskaya Gazeta  weeks before the election.

The EU linked those outlets to Russias systematic, international campaign of media and information manipulation intended to justify and support its full-scale aggression against Ukraine, and to enhance its strategy of destabilization of its neighboring countries, and of the EU and its member states.

The EU said Russian propaganda, information manipulation and interference activities particularly targeted European political parties during election periods.

Correspondingly, Newsguard, an information analysis company, reported a surge in EU-related false claims online in the weeks leading up to the vote. Those false claims targeted EU institutions, policies, and representatives, with the aim of sowing distrust among voters and delegitimizing the vote, Newsguard said.

European Intelligence sources told the Washington Post that Russian propaganda operatives used the Voice of Europe to funnel up to a million euros a month to dozens of far-right politicians in more than five countries to plant Kremlin propaganda in Western media that would sow division in Europe and bolster the position of pro-Russian candidates in the European Parliament elections.

The European Parliament is investigating allegations against its members suspected of accepting payments to spread pro-Russian disinformation.

Leaked Kremlin documents showed Viktor Medvedchuk, a pro-Russia Ukrainian business magnate with close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, worked with the Kremlin to establish the Voice of Europe. Ending aid to Ukraine was top on the outlets agenda.

Czech authorities sanctioned Medvedchuk for using Voice of Europe to run a Russian influence operation.

Artem Marchevsky, who ran the Voice of Europe, frequently met with far-right politicians across Europe. The EU later sanctioned Marchevsky for his role in the project.

A senior European intelligence official told the Post that the Kremlin creates entities like the Voice of Europe to help regain ground on the influence operation front after Europe expelled dozens of Russian intelligence officers following Russias full-fledged invasion of Ukraine.

A U.S. intelligence assessment found that Moscow had engaged in a concerted effort  to undermine public confidence in at least 11 elections across nine democracies using internet trolls, social media influencers, proxy websites linked to Russian intelligence, and even Russian state-run media channels like RT and Sputnik, VOA reported.

Moscow denied the allegations.
A Russian Israeli freelance journalist who has been labeled a foreign agent by Moscow said Wednesday that he was banned from entering Serbia because of alleged security risks.

In a Zoom interview with VOA, Roman Perl said he landed at the airport in Serbias capital, Belgrade, for a personal visit Saturday. He was kept waiting for about eight hours before being handed an order blocking his entry.

They gave me a paper stating that there are security risks if I were to be on Serbian soil, Perl said.

The Russian government designated Perl a foreign agent in 2021, a legal term the Kremlin has used since 2012 to enforce its harsh crackdown on news outlets and civil society groups. The law prompted Perl to depart Russia for Israel.

Press freedom experts expressed concern about the incident.

Its very worrying because it may confirm that the Serbian authorities are working with the Russian ones, Jeanne Cavelier, the head of the Eastern Europe and Central Asia desk at Reporters Without Borders, told VOA from Paris. To go to Serbia could be a great danger for journalists.

Perl, who has previously produced documentaries for Current Time TV, said he was traveling to Belgrade to visit a friend.

Perl said it was possible that Russian authorities can, in certain cases, persuade the Serbs to do something the Russian side deems necessary. But, he added, Serbia may have blocked him over his brief detention in Belgrade in 2023.

While filming a documentary about Russias invasion of Ukraine at that time, one of his interviewees unfurled the Ukrainian flag near the Russian Embassy, he said.

Then the members of the gendarmerie approached us and told us that the embassy had called them to remove us from the area, he said.

Perl was then held in police custody for a few hours before being released without charge.

Serbias Ministry of Internal Affairs, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Information and Telecommunications and Border Police did not reply to emails from VOAs Serbian Service requesting comment. Serbias Washington embassy also did not immediately reply to VOAs email requesting comment.

Although Serbia has a vibrant media landscape, reporters often face political pressure, and impunity for crimes against journalists tends to be the norm, according to press freedom groups.

The threat of impunity in Serbia was highlighted earlier this year. In February, four people who were previously charged with the 1999 murder of prominent Serbian journalist Slavko Curuvija were acquitted in an appeals trial.

Reporters Without Borders ranks Serbia 98th out of 180 countries in terms of press freedom.
Former U.S. President Donald Trump enjoyed an effusive welcome on his return to Washington on Thursday as he rallied support from Republican lawmakers following his criminal conviction in New York.

Trump, who is neck-and-neck with his successor Joe Biden in the race for the White House, thanked members of the House of Representatives at a private club near the U.S. Capitol who sang "Happy Birthday" to the billionaire, who turns 78 on Friday.

It was Trump's first meeting with lawmakers on Capitol Hill since leaving the White House in 2021 and his first trip to Washington since he was convicted last month in New York on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records.

He was in a defiant mood, according to U.S. media citing people in the room, as he called out the Republicans who had voted to impeach him after the 2021 assault on the Capitol and called the Justice Department "dirty, no-good bastards."

"Great meeting with Republican Representatives. Lots discussed, all positive, great poll numbers!" Trump posted on Truth Social afterward.

The Republican, who was due to speak with senators and business leaders later Thursday, took credit for the Supreme Court ending federal protections for abortion access in 2022 and railed against Biden's foreign policy.

Since his conviction, Republicans have circled the wagons around Trump  who faces more than 50 further felony charges  with numerous lawmakers denigrating a justice system they baselessly claim is biased against conservatives.

House Speaker Mike Johnson accused Democrats of being behind the two federal and two state criminal cases engulfing Trump's reelection bid.

"He raised $53 million in the first 24 hours after the verdict in that terrible, bogus trial in Manhattan. And I think that shows that people understand what's happening here," Johnson told reporters after the meeting.

Republicans in the House face an uphill battle to defend the lower chamber from a Democratic takeover in November's elections. Senate Republicans have a more favorable map as they seek to flip their 49-51 minority in the upper chamber.

Several centrist senators said they would not show up on Thursday, although Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who has not spoken to Trump since berating him from the Senate floor over the 2021 insurrection, said he would attend.

Trump was impeached for inciting the attack, when a mob of his supporters stormed the Capitol seeking to prevent the peaceful transfer of power to Biden, who beat his predecessor by more than 7 million votes.

The Republican faces federal and state prosecutions over his alleged role in a criminal conspiracy to overturn his defeat, which culminated in the insurrection.

"People see that ... that's a threat to our system of justice, and they want to push back," Johnson said. "In many ways, President Trump has become a symbol of that pushing back against corruption, the deep state, the weaponization of the judicial system, and that's a very encouraging development."

Johnson has been struggling however to deliver on Trump's demands for a robust defense from Congress, with a razor-thin majority that leaves him unable to lose more than two representatives for any vote.

Republicans have failed in efforts to impeach Biden, as a monthslong, multimillion-dollar corruption investigation has turned up no evidence of wrongdoing by the president, and congressional efforts to rein in the criminal cases targeting Trump have been largely ineffective.

The former president is also due to make his case for a White House return to chief executives at a meeting of Washington lobby group Business Roundtable.

The Biden campaign released a statement pointing to Trump's many failed business ventures and bankruptcies, contrasting the Republican's record of mass job losses during the pandemic with the economic recovery under Biden.

"Donald Trump couldn't run a lemonade stand, let alone our country. He is a fraud, a crook and a failed businessman and president who left America in economic ruin," a spokesperson said.
While in Qatar, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says Hamas response to the proposed cease-fire proposal includes numerous changes  some of which are workable, some are not. It comes on the same day that a United Nations inquiry finds that both Israel and Hamas committed war crimes at the onset of the war. In this U.S. presidential campaign, guns continue to divide Americans. President Joe Biden wants a ban on assault weapons. His opponent, Donald Trump, says Biden is threatening the constitutional rights of gun owners. Inter-Korean relations have sunk to their lowest level in years, as both countries intensify cross-border psychological warfare. Australias national science agency warns a lack of scientists specialized in plant breeding could lead to "dire" food security implications around the world.
Russian authorities on Thursday said American journalist Evan Gershkovich will stand trial in the city of Yekaterinburg, where he was detained over a year ago on charges his employer says are bogus.

Russias Prosecutor Generals Office said an indictment of Gershkovich has been finalized and his case filed to the Sverdlovsky Regional Court in Yekaterinburg. The city is about 1,400 kilometers (870 miles) east of Moscow.

Gershkovich, a Russia correspondent for The Wall Street Journal, has been jailed in Moscow since he was arrested in March 2023 on espionage charges.

Gershkovich, his employer and the U.S. government all deny the accusations, and the U.S. State Department has declared the reporter wrongfully detained.

The 32-year-old is accused of gathering secret information about a facility in the Sverdlovsk region that produced and repaired military equipment, the Prosecutor Generals Office said in a statement.

It is the first time that Russia has publicly detailed the accusations against the journalist. Russian officials have not provided any evidence to substantiate the accusations against Gershkovich, who was accredited by the Foreign Ministry to work in the country.

A State Department spokesperson told reporters on Thursday that the U.S. government will continue to work to secure Gershkovichs release.

We have been clear from the start that Evan has done nothing wrong. He should never have been arrested in the first place. Journalism is not a crime, State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said.

The charges against him are false, and the Russian government knows that theyre false. He should be released immediately, Miller continued.

The Wall Street Journal on Thursday also reiterated its calls for Gershkovichs immediate release.

Evan Gershkovich is facing a false and baseless charge. Russias latest move toward a sham trial is, while expected, deeply disappointing and still no less outrageous, Journal Publisher Almar Latour and Editor-in-Chief Emma Tucker said in a statement.

Evan is a journalist. The Russian regimes smearing of Evan is repugnant, disgusting and based on calculated and transparent lies. Journalism is not a crime. Evans case is an assault on free press, they said in the statement.

Press freedom groups also reaffirmed their condemnation of Gershkovichs jailing.

Hes held hostage by the Russian government, and the spying charges are completely fabricated, Jeanne Cavelier, who heads the Eastern Europe and Central Asia desk at Reporters Without Borders, told VOA from Paris.

The Russian Embassy in Washington did not immediately reply to VOAs email requesting comment.

It is unclear when the trial will take place. Press freedom experts have previously told VOA that a trial will almost certainly be a sham, but that it is a necessary step to securing Gershkovichs release through a prisoner swap between Moscow and Washington.

Moscow and Washington have been discussing a possible prisoner exchange over the past several months.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said last week that any deal to free Gershkovich would have to be mutually beneficial for Moscow. Putin has previously indicated that the Kremlin would be willing to trade Gershkovich for a convicted killer jailed in Germany.

If anything, we hope it [the indictment] adds an element of urgency to those negotiations, so that he doesnt have to endure a trial, said Paul Beckett, an assistant editor at The Wall Street Journal, who is leading the newspapers campaign to secure Gershkovichs release.

We hoped that he would be back home by now, Beckett told VOA. We remain optimistic that this will be brought to a close before too long. We just want him home.

Gershkovich is one of two American journalists currently jailed in Russia. The second  Radio Free Europe/Radio Libertys Alsu Kurmasheva  has been jailed since October 2023 on charges of failing to self-register as a so-called foreign agent and spreading what Moscow views as false information about the Russian military.

Kurmasheva, a dual U.S.-Russian national, has denied the charges against her. The U.S. government has also called for her immediate release.

Some information in this report came from The Associated Press.
The Group of Seven wealthy democracies announced Thursday that it would provide Kyiv with tens of billions of dollars in loans that will be paid back to Western allies using interest income from Russian assets frozen in Western financial institutions.

"We have reached a political agreement to provide additional financial support to Ukraine of approximately $50 billion by the end of the year, said the summit host, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

The announcement came as the G7 leaders met at the luxury resort of Borgo Egnazia in Puglia, Italy, on the first day of their summit.

The announcement was a win for U.S. President Joe Biden. He had been pushing G7 leaders to agree to his plan to provide funds up front to help Ukraine in its fight against Moscows invasion.

The G7 deal is another reminder to [Russian President Vladimir] Putin that we're not backing down, Biden said Thursday evening during a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. In fact, we're standing together against his illegal aggression.

Approximately $280 billion in Russian funds are frozen in Western financial institutions. Those funds are expected to generate interest income of at least $3 billion a year. The $50 billion loan will be paid back with that income for 10 years or more or until the loan is paid or Russia pays reparation.

The U.S. will not be part of a lending syndicate with other G7 members, a senior administration official told reporters traveling with Biden on Thursday.

Other G7 countries are expected to declare how much theyre willing to provide to Ukraine.

The finance ministers are now going through the details - for example, topics of backstops that are necessary - and clarify this as soon as possible, said Ursula von der Leyen, European Commission president. The EC is the executive body of the European Union.

Funds available in 2024

The administration official said that the U.S. is willing to front the full $50 billion if needed. The money can be made available this calendar year depending on how quickly Ukraine will be able to absorb it.

The U.S. Agency for International Development "has loan authority already established from Congress, the official told VOA during the briefing for reporters. There's not a set schedule that is required or a capped amount, but we have decided that we can provide up to $50 billion.

The European Union in May had agreed on a less aggressive plan that would provide Ukraine with the interest income as it is generated annually.

Under EU rules, the sanctions regime that freezes the funds must be unanimously renewed every six months by the blocs 27 member states. The senior Biden administration official said that Germany, France, Italy, the European Commission and the president of the European Council - the EU members' heads of state - have committed to keep the funds frozen and will seek approval from the full membership of the EU.

"This is controversial, and I dont know if they can pull it off," said Kristine Berzina, managing director of Geostrategy North at the German Marshall Fund think tank.

"But the EU is in the mood to make big leaps of faith. Europeans need to project ambition to counteract the perception of internal discord. And they can make concessions to individual member states if needed," she said.

Other requirements still need to be worked out, including adoption by the EU, as well as contracts between lenders, Ukraine and any intermediaries, the official added.

In April, Biden signed legislation to seize the roughly $5 billion in Russian assets that are frozen in U.S. financial institutions. The bulk of the frozen money, $190 billion, is in Belgium, and much of the rest is in France and Germany.

Much is still unknown about the plan. However, the U.S. goal is to have a leaders declaration at the end of the summit that lays out a framework that is not generic, that is quite specific in terms of what it would entail, White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan told VOA Wednesday.

Attending the summit for the second consecutive year, Ukrainian President Zelenskyy welcomed the deals passage.

US-Ukraine security agreement

On Thursday evening, Zelenskyy and Biden signed a separate bilateral security agreement outlining U.S. support for Ukraine.

The 10-year agreement says both sides will work together to build and maintain Ukraines credible defense and deterrence capability, strengthen Ukraines capacity to sustain its fight over the long term and achieve a just peace that respects Ukraines rights under international law, according to a White House fact sheet.

The agreement also says both sides will consult at the highest levels in case of any future Russian attack, and they will accelerate Ukraines Euro-Atlantic integration, including through Ukraines implementation of reforms to its democratic, economic and security institutions in line with its EU accession goals and NATOs program of reforms.

Still Zelenskyy expressed concern about how much longer "the unity in the world will remain - the unity in the U.S., together with European leaders. He was referring to the November U.S. election that could see former President Donald Trump, who has been skeptical of supporting Kyiv with military aid, back in the White House.

Zelenskyy said his country urgently needed additional air defense systems to protect Ukrainians and the nations infrastructure from Russias attacks. Biden promised to prioritize the transfer of existing Patriot air defense systems to Ukraine.

We have acquired commitment from five countries so far for Patriot batteries and other air defense systems, as well as we've let it be known to those countries that are expecting from us air defense systems in the future that they're going to have to wait, Biden said. Everything we have is going to go to Ukraine until their needs are met, and then we will make good on the commitments we made to other countries.
Russias intensive bombardment of Ukraine in recent months has significantly diminished the countrys ability to generate energy. This week, during Ukraines Recovery Conference in Berlin, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appealed for help in repairing Ukraine's electricity network and for long-term investment in its energy system. President Joe Biden emphasized that the U.S. will lead the international effort to prevent Russia from weaponizing winter conditions against Ukraine.

During the conference, U.S. officials announced $824 million in energy sector assistance for Ukraine. Of this amount, $500 million is new funding recently approved by Congress, while $324 million has been repurposed from previously approved funds.

The money will be used for reconstruction of thermal power infrastructure, accelerating the development of renewable energy projects, such as wind and battery storage, supporting the creation of a decentralized energy system to enhance resilience against air attacks and protect energy infrastructure.

Geoffrey R. Pyatt, the U.S. assistant secretary of state for energy resources, told VOA the U.S. is committed to supporting Ukraine but is looking for accountability and transparent governance. This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.

VOA: During the conference, Penny Pritzker [U.S. special representative for Ukraine's economic recovery] emphasized the need for transparency and reforms. How does the United States view the current Ukrainian government structure and decision-making process, particularly in light of the latest government reshuffling?

Geoffrey R. Pyatt: This is a very personal issue for me because I've been working on these issues, helping the people of Ukraine for 11 years now. The guidelines of the roadmap are very clear, it's laid out in the EU accession agreement. Of course, there's more work to be done. My team and the energy bureau are very engaged on issues of corporate governance around Naftogaz, around UGV [the countrys largest gas producer UkrGasVydobuvannya], around the whole energy sector that has seen so much lack of transparency in the past. In terms of what has to be done, it's what the Ukrainian people themselves are asking for. It's what the Ukrainian people expect. And it's also all the steps that are part of becoming a member of the EU.

VOA: You mentioned oversight boards in state companies. Last year, this issue caused significant tension in Ukraine. How is Ukraine fulfilling its obligations regarding transparency?

Pyatt: It's getting better, I mean, let me give you one example, Naftogaz is a company that had huge problems in the past, in part because Russia used gas, transit and gas sales as a vector of corruption to maintain control over the people of Ukraine. The answer to that is to build a corporate governance structure that meets the highest European Union OECD standards.

Naftogaz CEO [Oleksiy] Chernyshov has committed to that objective. He has brought in a new advisory board, which has credible international partners. That doesn't mean the problem is solved. But you can look at the performance figures that Naftogaz has established over the past year and for the first time in many years Naftogaz production numbers went up from domestic sources of gas. I can't tell you whether those are new molecules, or those are molecules that just weren't in the books before. But in either scenario, that's a positive development and it reflects progress.

VOA: U.S. officials often repeat that the U.S. will support Ukraine until victory is achieved. How does this victory look for you?

Pyatt: It looks like a Ukraine, which is a member of the EU, which has secured its borders, where people are able to come back. The mothers and the children that have fled over the course of this two and a half terrible years. Every time I come out of these meetings, I feel reassured that Ukraine is going to win, Ukraine is going to continue to stand for the values that we hold dear, and that Putin will lose, because he does not understand the essential human component of what's going on.
The U.S. expressed its support for providing outside information to the people of North Korea even as attempts are made in South Korea to block leaflet campaigns aimed at sending information to the North.

Tensions on the Korean Peninsula have been rising in recent weeks due to tit-for-tat exchanges between Pyongyang and Seoul over balloons they both have been sending across the inter-Korean border.

Responding to an inquiry by VOAs Korean Service, a State Department spokesperson said on Monday that "it is critical for the people of North Korea to have access to independent information not controlled by the DPRK regime."

"We continue to promote the free flow of information into, out of, and within the DPRK," continued the spokesperson, referring to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea.

"We continue to urge North Korea to reduce tensions and cease any actions that could increase the risk of conflict," the spokesperson added.

North Korea, listed by Human Rights Watch among "the most repressive countries in the world," considers outside information a threat to the ruling regimes survival and denies its people access to information.

The government heavily controls all forms of media and cracks down on people distributing, watching or listening to any South Korean cultural content.

In what it said was a response to South Korean activists sending balloons carrying leaflets into the North, Pyongyang has floated more than 1,600 balloons filled with trash and waste into South Korea since May 28.

In response, Seoul on June 4 fully suspended an inter-Korean military deal made in 2018 and resumed loudspeaker broadcasts at the border Sunday before halting them the following day.

The South Korean balloons, sent aloft by human rights activists, have carried leaflets conveying information about the outside world and the North Korean regime. They also carried thumb drives containing K-pop songs and dramas.

But the effort has caused controversy in South Korea, where attempts are being made to halt the campaign.

In September 2023, the South Korean constitutional court struck down a law banning the sending of leaflets to North Korea, saying it violated the constitutional right to freedom of expression.

Nevertheless, the opposition Democratic Party of Korea is attempting to apply other existing laws to block the campaign.

The opposition party, preferring engagement with North Korea, has been opposed to sending leaflets to North Korea. The anti-leaflet law was passed in December 2020 by the liberal party of former President Moon Jae-in six months after North Korea, expressing discontentment over leaflet activities, blew up an inter-Korean liaison office in Kaesong, a town in North Korea near the border.

On Tuesday, Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the party, called leaflet activities "illegal under the current law."

In June 2020, Lee, the then-governor of Gyeonggi Province, declared five cities in the province as "danger zones" under the Framework Act on the Management of Disasters and Safety. Gyeonggi Province borders North Korea.

Lee then issued an administrative order banning people from entering the areas to launch balloons.

Kim Dong-yeon, from the opposition party and the current governor of Gyeonggi Province, said on Wednesday a consideration is being made to declare some areas in the province "danger zones" to "prevent the launch of propaganda leaflets in accordance with related laws."

He said he will "immediately dispatch provincial police to potential leaflet sites to bolster patrols and surveillance," according to South Koreas liberal daily Hankyore.

Questions have been raised in South Korea whether the police can stop leaflet-sending activities based on the Act on the Performance of Duties by Police Officers, according to Seoul-based news agency Yonhap. The act allows police to restrain people from causing damage to property or harm other people.

Yoon Hee-keun, National Police Agency commissioner, told reporters Monday that the leaflet campaigns cannot be blocked on the basis of that law.

He said this is because it is "unclear whether the trash-carrying balloons" sent by North Korea "would constitute an urgent and grave threat to the lives and bodies of the public, which is prerequisite for restricting them under the law."

David Maxwell, vice president of the Center for Asia Pacific Strategy, told VOA on Tuesday via email that Seoul is "complying with the 2014 U.N. Commission of Inquiry that calls on people around the world to call out North Korea for its human rights abuses, one of which is the isolation of the people and the denial of all information going into the North."

Bruce Klingner, senior research fellow at the Heritage Foundation, said, "The North Korean balloons are government actions and thus a violation of the armistice," whereas balloons from the South are sent by non-government organizations.

Robert Rapson, who served as charge daffaires and deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul in 2018-21, said while Seouls "decision to pause loudspeaker broadcasts" is "a positive step toward de-escalation, it should go further by also pausing balloon launches from the South."
Foreign policy experts differ over what direction U.S. Ukraine policy will take if Donald Trump returns to the White House, with predictions ranging from more robust U.S. support to heavy pressure on Kyiv to concede all the land it has already lost.

Should Biden win re-election, most say, Ukraine policy will likely remain largely unchanged, with the possibility of even stronger sanctions on Russia.

Vague statements and personal feelings

Trumps position on Ukraine and Russias war against it has been vague, contradictory and, perhaps, evolving.

On February 22, 2022, just two days before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Trump called Russian President Vladimir Putin's moves against Ukraine "savvy" and "genius."

The following year, during a May 2023 CNN town hall, Trump refused to say which side he wanted to win in Ukraine or to commit to providing Ukraine further military support.

"We're giving away so much equipment, we don't have ammunition for ourselves right now," he said.

Trump told Fox News in July 2023 that he would tell Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, "No more. You have to make a deal, while also telling Putin: If you don't make a deal, we will give them a lot. We will give them more than they ever got, if we have to.

In April this year, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform: Why isnt Europe giving more money to help Ukraine?  Why cant Europe equalize or match the money put in by the United States of America in order to help a Country in desperate need? As everyone agrees, Ukrainian Survival and Strength should be much more important to Europe than to us, but it is also important to us! GET MOVING EUROPE!

Also in April, The Washington Post detailed what it called Trumps secret, long-shot plan to end the war in Ukraine, reporting that it included pushing Ukraine to cede Crimea and the Donbas region to Russia.

In May, however, the newspaper reported that Trump, during a fundraising event, had suggested that he would have bombed Moscow and Beijing if Russia invaded Ukraine or China invaded Taiwan.

Still, experts who talked to VOA noted that Trump has unpleasant personal associations with Ukraine.

His July 2019 phone call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy led to Trumps first impeachment over allegations that he improperly sought help from a foreign power to boost his reelection chances. In February 2020, a majority of the Republican-led Senate acquitted him.

On the other hand, some experts believe that Trump wouldn't want to be seen as a president who lost a war.

"We do know that Trump perceives himself as a strong man and does not want to be associated with foreign policy failure, said John Herbst, a former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine who is now a senior director of the Atlantic Council's Eurasia Center. And a Russian victory in Ukraine if Trump is president would look very much like a foreign policy failure.

Two wings of the Republican Party

The Republican Party is divided over Russias war on Ukraine war and support for the embattled country.

A pro-Trump faction  informally dubbed the MAGA (Make America Great Again) wing  views Russia as a declining power and thus believes the war needs to be settled as quickly as possible so that it does not drain the security resources of the United States," Sergiy Kudelia, an associate professor of political science at Texass Baylor University, told VOA.

The other Republican faction seeks more robust support for Ukraine to defeat Russia.

If that second wing prevails, said Kudelia, a second Trump administration might provide even more support to Ukraine than the Biden administration.

Possible clues of how a new Trump administration would approach Russia-Ukraine policy can be found in plans put forward by two pro-Trump policy projects. One of them is Project 2025, also known as the Presidential Transition Project, produced by the Washington-based Heritage Foundation.

In its Mandate for Leadership, Project 2025 favors an approach between isolationism and interventionism:

Rather, each foreign policy decision must first ask the question: What is in the interest of the American people? U.S. military engagement must clearly fall within U.S. interests; be fiscally responsible; and protect American freedom, liberty, and sovereignty, all while recognizing Communist China as the greatest threat to U.S. interests. Thus, with respect to Ukraine, continued U.S. involvement must be fully paid for; limited to military aid (while European allies address Ukraines economic needs); and have a clearly defined national security strategy that does not risk American lives.

The other plan, put forward by the America First Policy Institute, would make future U.S. military aid to Ukraine contingent on its leaders engaging in peace talks with Russia:

Specifically, it would mean a formal U.S. policy to seek a cease-fire and negotiated settlement of the Ukraine conflict. The United States would continue to arm Ukraine and strengthen its defenses to ensure Russia will make no further advances and will not attack again after a cease-fire or peace agreement. Future American military aid, however, will require Ukraine to participate in peace talks with Russia.

For his part, Michael Kimmage, a professor of history and department chair at the Catholic University of America in Washington, told VOA that it is difficult to predict how a re-elected Trump would conduct policy toward Russia and Ukraine:

"He's just a person who changes his mind often and responds often quite emotionally to events, sometimes in his personal life, sometimes in domestic politics, sometimes in international affairs. So I think it's fair to say that the Trump presidency would be a roller coaster."

What about a second Biden term?

Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022, the U.S. Congress has provided $175 billion in aid to Ukraine at the Biden administration's request. Washington has imposed numerous sanctions on Russia and led the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a coalition of about 50 countries coordinating military assistance.

In his address on June 6, the 80th anniversary of the Allied storming of Normandy, Biden compared the fight against Putin to the fight against Hitler in WWII.

Biden said last December while urging Congress to approve funding to support Ukraine that failure to do so would embolden other would-be aggressors and encourage Putin to attack a NATO country, which the U.S. is committed to defending:

"Then we'll have something that we don't seek and that we don't have today: American troops fighting Russian troops."

Recently, the Biden administration partially removed restrictions on Ukraine using U.S.-provided weapons against military targets in Russia.

Kimmage said that in a second term, the Biden administration would likely maintain its currently policy of providing military aid to Ukraine. However, he said that given it would have fewer political considerations in its final term, the Biden administration might be more aggressive in imposing sanctions against Russia:

"It's not as if they're determining their foreign policy on the basis of the election in some crude fashion, but there are limits and constraints, and those would be very different in a second term where Biden can no longer run for reelection in 2028. So, he would be quite a bit freer."
In Sudan's North Darfur state, displaced people and doctors say the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces are attacking hospitals and camps in the state capital of El Fasher. Meanwhile, nonprofits say the world is paying little attention to the crisis in a place regarded as a haven
The ruling Zanu PFs Youth League has ordered Harare businessman Wicknell Chivayo to stop denigrating the image of President Emmerson Mnangagwa saying audios being widely circulated on social media allegedly quoting him indicating that he is in full control of the government are unfortunate, regrettable and mischievous.

In a statement signed by National Youth League information secretary, Phillipa Mukoko, the furious Zanu PF members said Chivayo was not a ruling party activist and as a result, he should refrain from tarnishing the image of the president.

Whilst the Youth League appreciates donations that Mr Chivhayo has been giving to the members of our society in his own capacity as an ordinary citizen, and although we do not know the source of his income, let it be firmly known that as the vanguard of ZANU PF we will not just sit and watch the name of our most revered leader being tarnished by such malcontents for their own self-aggrandizement.

Our President has on open-door policy which must never be abused. We have realized that Mr Wicknell Chivhayo has abused his access to the leadership. Let it be known by whoever concerned that our tried and tested leader is a statesman of the highest caliber, integrity, standing and repute. The Youth League, therefore, calls upon Mr Chivhayo and his accomplices to desist from using the name of our President in their nefarious shenanigans.

The Youth League urged relevant authorities to take immediate measures to stop Chivayo from making further claims noting that this is designed to protect our revered leader and the national interests of our motherland, Zimbabwe.

Chivayo has been further warned to stay away from ruling party politics and to stop circulating a video in which he claims to have almost the status of a president.

We sternly warn him to abstain from abusing Party and Government structures for his brute personal agenda  The League wishes to put it on record that Mr Chivhayo does not hold any influential position in the Party that warrant him to have a delegation receiving him at the airport. Such an arrangement is a preserve for the President and Head of State only.

The Youth League claims that Chivayo posted a video purporting that he was received amid pomp and fanfare at the Joshua Nkomo International Airport recently together with Mnangagwa and some senior government officials.

Chivayo has distanced himself from all audios posted on social media in which he claims that he is very close to the president and is capable of getting all government contracts without any problem.

In a statement, he said, I categorically refute, deny and dismiss with contempt, recording the voice messages in question. For the avoidance of any doubt I have never, at any material time, recorded the alleged voice messages, neither have I transmitted such to anyone. I therefore unequivocally distance and totally dissociate myself from these unauthentic voice messages. I have reason to believe that these recordings were generated through sophisticated technology, all with the fraudulent intention of creating false alarm and despondency.

He claimed that the content and character of the alleged voice messages is however consistent with a sustained attack on my character and standing as a businessman by two excitable individuals who have recently made outrageous demands for certain payments from me without any legal or contractual basis of doing so.

The two individuals are Mike Chimombe and Moses Mpofu, who were unreachable for comment as they were not responding to calls on their mobile phones.
Good luck, babe, like, for real. Photo: Getty Images

Chappell Roan has been on a breakneck rise lately: cracking the Hot 100, drawing massive festival crowds, even turning down the White House. And at last nights show, the performer shared some of her complicated feelings around all that. Im trying to figure out how to say this, she began, before tearing up. The audience cheered and encouraged her as she continued. I just want to be honest with the crowd, and I just feel a little off today cause I think that my careers just kind of gone really fast and its really hard to keep up, she said. And so, Im just being honest that Im just having a hard time today. She added that she didnt want that to affect the show, but theres a lot on my mind.

Roan was headlining Raleighs 6,000-capacity Red Hat Amphitheater, which was four times bigger than the shows original venue to meet her increased demand. Bonnaroo just moved her set from a tent to one of its main stages in anticipation of another huge crowd. Its a big change from last year, when Roan was getting ready to release her debut album and playing 1,000-cap clubs. So I just thank you for understanding, she continued. This is all Ive ever wanted, its just heavy sometimes, so thank you.
Photo: Mario Tama/Getty Images

The hot dog eating competitions are now in competition with each other. Hot off the news that hottest dog Joey Chestnut would be barred from the annual 4th of July contest at Coney Island, Netflix has announced that theyre hosting their own contest. And this one has lured competitive eating champ Takeru Kobayashi out of retirement. Heres everything we know about this all-beef, uhhh, feud.

Nathans Says Chestnut is Impossible

On June 11, news broke that Joey Chestnut would be barred from competing in this years Nathans Hot Dog Eating Contest. The annual event is held at Coney Island and broadcast on ESPN, but this year the worlds biggest name in big eating will be absent. Why? Brand loyalty, or the lack thereof. Major League Eating said Chestnut was ineligible to compete this year due to a deal he made to become a spokesmouth for Impossible Foods. This gets in the way of brand exclusivity rules attached to the Nathans contest. We are devastated to learn that Joey Chestnut has chosen to represent a rival brand that sells plant-based hot dogs rather than competing in the 2024 Nathans Famous Fourth of July Hot Dog Eating Contest, Major League Eating said in a statement.

Chestnut and Impossible Foods both clapped back to Major League Eatings spin on events. Chestnut framed the dispute as MLE and Nathans are looking to change the rules from past years as it relates to other partners I can work with on Twitter. Impossible Foods added that We love Joey and support him in any contest he chooses. Its OK to experiment with a new dog. Meat eaters shouldnt have to be exclusive to just one wiener. Okay, someones been reading Polysecure!

The nations leading hot dog scholar Jamie Loftus went on TikTok to explain in more depth the long game of MLE and Chestnut. Take with a grain of salt any story you read about Major League Eating, she said. They are a very theatrical organization. Loftus says the Nathans competition looks like WWE more than anything else. So this could all be kayfabe. Secondly, Loftus pointed out that this issue of sponsor exclusivity is part of why Kobayashi left MLE a decade ago. (The other big reason was racism.) Which brings us to

Netflix Throws a Hot Dog Alternaprom

On June 12, Netflix announced that they would be throwing their own hot dog eating contest. This one will also take place on an American cookout-heavy holiday (Labor Day), and will be streamed live. Retiring for me will only happen after I take him down one last time, said Kobayashi. This rivalry has been brewing for a long time. Competing against Joey live on Netflix means fans all over the world can watch me knock him out. Chestnut vs. Kobayashi: Unfinished Beef will air September 2, using the livestreaming tech honed by six nights of Everybodys in LA. Maybe John Mulaney can host.
 Photo: Santiago Bueno/Sygma via Getty Images

Were sending a big, virtual hug to this unibrowed legend. Bill Berry left R.E.M. in 1997, two years after he suffered a brain aneurysm while the band was touring in Europe. Despite a successful surgery, Berry ultimately decided to eschew the music industry and enjoy a quieter life as a farmer  and R.E.M. went on to release five more albums without him as drummer before their permanent breakup. In celebration of their induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame, the famously reunion-prone quartet agreed to sit for a CBS Mornings interview to discuss their Really Entertaining Music, with Berry admitting he harbored second thoughts about walking away from everything they created. Of course I did. That was a weird time for me and I made it weird for these guys too, he said. However, Berry refuses to use his health issues as an excuse. It may have lowered my energy level and I just didnt have the drive I once did, he added. I didnt regret it at the time, but Ive sort of regretted it a little later. But now, looking at Michael Stipe, Mike Mills, and Peter Buck, were all sitting here, friends again. Take comfort in them.
Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: Everett Collection, Getty Images

When David Blum introduced the term Brat Pack in a New York Magazine story in June of 1985, he was referring to a specific group of male actors who co-starred in teen movies and hung out together in real life. They were, in his view, a roving band of famous young stars on the prowl for parties, women, and a good time, a group that Blum cleverly named to evoke the Rat Pack of 20 years prior.

But once that phrase entered the lexicon, its meaning morphed into something broader and more culturally significant than Blum could have anticipated. The Brat Pack became shorthand for the key actors who stood at the epicenter of the 1980s teen-movie explosion. There was no official list of its members; who was in and who wasnt remained a matter of debate, although Blum offers his own (extremely misguided in retrospect) assessment in his piece. But most Gen-Xers who grew up during that period shared a common understanding of who qualified and who did not.

The Brat Pack included some mix of the stars of John Hughes movies, the postgrad pals of St. Elmos Fire, and the faces that decorated the covers of Beats both Tiger and Teen. Everyone in it was a distinctive actor, but collectively, their filmographies (and, occasionally, personal lives) overlapped like the paths of students who keep crossing each other on campus. Were talking Emilio Estevez and Rob Lowe, Molly Ringwald and Anthony Michael Hall, Ally Sheedy, and Andrew McCarthy. You know: the Brat Pack.

But as more time passes, the definition of the Brat Pack continues to evolve. Even though Blums article was published in June of 1985, the term it invented has become synonymous with the 1980s as a whole. For too long, the Brat Pack  the subject of the new documentary Brats, a revisitation of the groups significance directed by one of its members, McCarthy  has been defined by people who werent in it and didnt grow up on the coming-of-age films its actors helped popularize. Like the kids in The Breakfast Club, its members were initially categorized (cough by baby-boomers cough) in the simplest terms, and the most convenient definitions, with little nuance or respect for what each actor had to offer.

Its time to redefine the Brat Pack in light of what it now signifies  to create a Revised Brat Pack, if you will  using a carefully considered list of criteria and an openness to the entirety of the decade and its impact on youth culture. Yes, this group skews male and is white as hell. Sadly, that was how mainstream Hollywood was back then.

The Revised Brat Pack consists of three tiers  the Brat Pack Inner Circle, the Brat Pack Adjacent, and the Next-Gen Brat Pack  and includes actors who meet some or all of the following criteria.

1. They played a teenager or very young adult in multiple popular films in the 1980s aimed at young audiences and, for a period, were defined by that. Every word in this requirement should be taken very literally, which is why some actors dont quite fit under the Brat Pack umbrella. Timothy Hutton, identified as a member in Blums piece, is not really in the Brat Pack because, with the exception of Taps, his notable early works were not teen movies. This is also true of Forest Whitaker, who played a small role in Fast Times at Ridgemont High, arguably the first 80s high-school movie of consequence, but pivoted to more adult roles too quickly to feel Brat Packy. The same can be said of Matthew Broderick, who, with the exception of WarGames and Ferris Buellers Day Off, did not appear in many explicitly teen-oriented movies. (Before you ask: Tom Cruise is in his own category and that is not open to debate, sorry.)

2. They became famous in movies, not on TV first. The Brat Pack was born when the biggest, most revered stars were products of the movie business. So while Michael J. Fox may have starred in Back to the Future and Teen Wolf, he was known first for his breakout role on Family Ties, which knocks him out of contention. One could argue that Molly Ringwald, the queen of 80s youth cinema, is also disqualified by this since she technically appeared in the first two seasons of The Facts of Life. But it was Sixteen Candles and the John Hughes oeuvre that truly catapulted her to fame, so shes totally in the group, whether she wants to be or not. (Both she and Judd Nelson opted not to participate in McCarthys documentary.)

3. They were in The Outsiders, The Breakfast Club, St. Elmos Fire, or more than one of these films. These three ensemble movies came along in the middle of the decade and established the appeal of the teen movie. 1983s The Outsiders turned every guy in its cast into instant heartthrobs, while the overlapping ensembles in The Breakfast Club and St. Elmos Fire in 1985 reinforced the idea that the hot young actors of the moment were members of the same clique. Blum name-checks all three of them in his original piece, and on this point he was correct.

4. They were in at least one John Hughes teen movie. Because Blums article was published before Weird Science, Pretty in Pink, Ferris Buellers Day Off, and Some Kind of Wonderful were released, it de-emphasized the importance of the Hughes canon, which is synonymous with what the Brat Pack came to represent. And that is wrong.

5. They co-starred in a project with at least one of the actors in the Brat Pack Inner Circle or Brat Pack Adjacent category. There has to be some IMDb overlap with the first two tiers of Brat Packers to be included.

The Brat Pack Inner Circle

The OGs of 80s teen cinema.

Molly Ringwald

She was John Hughess muse, an actress who could believably play the popular snob (Claire in The Breakfast Club) and the outsider too hip for the normies (Andie in Pretty in Pink). To practically every preteen and teenage girl in the 80s, she felt like both a relatable best friend and the cool girl you desperately wanted to be.

Criteria met: All five.

Emilio Estevez

The nucleus of the original article, as McCarthy puts it in Brats, he is the only actor who pulled off the Brat Pack hat trick by appearing in all three of the films mentioned in the third criterion for inclusion: The Outsiders, The Breakfast Club, and St. Elmos Fire.

Criteria met: All five.

Anthony Michael Hall

Its odd that Halls name is not mentioned in Blums article  perhaps because he was still an actual teenager at the time?  or in McCarthys documentary, because he is core to the Brat Pack as the only person other than Ringwald to star in three of the Hughes teen movies (Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, and Weird Science). He and Ringwald also briefly dated in the 80s.

Criteria met: All five.

Ally Sheedy

She played Matthew Brodericks girlfriend in WarGames, Rob Lowes love interest in Oxford Blues, and Judd Nelsons conflicted partner seeking independence in St. Elmos Fire. But it was her role in The Breakfast Club as Allison Reynolds, the introverted goth weirdo who decorates her artwork with her own dandruff, that made her a forever Gen-X icon.

Criteria met: All five.

Judd Nelson

While Nelson meets all the Brat Pack requirements, its true that he did not appear in as many popular teen movies as his colleagues. Counterpoint: He played John Bender in The Breakfast Club, a role that freeze-framed him with his fist raised in the air, creating one of the most recognizable symbols of 80s teen cinema.

Criteria met: All five.

Rob Lowe

Somehow, he was never cast in a John Hughes movie, but Lowe racked up more than enough coming-of-age credits in the 1980s, including The Outsiders, Class, Oxford Blues, and St. Elmos Fire, to qualify for Brat Pack success. In his piece, Blum described him as the Brat Packs Most Beautiful Face, and that face was on the cover of every teen magazine, over and over again.

Criteria met: 1, 2, 3, and 5.

Demi Moore

Like Nelson, she doesnt have as many blatantly teen-friendly 80s credits as her cohorts. She started out playing women in their early 20s, but in movies that were aimed at teens (No Small Affair, St. Elmos Fire, One Crazy Summer). But largely because of her role in St. Elmos  and, perhaps, the fact that she and Estevez were once engaged  shell always be an OG Brat Packer.

Criteria met: 1, 2, 3, and 5.

Andrew McCarthy

The sensitive soul among the Brat Pack men, he meets all the criteria. He gave Molly Ringwald the perfect first kiss in Pretty in Pink, and he made a documentary about the Brat Pack. While he once obviously yearned to shake his association with all these 80s teen movies, he seems to have finally embraced it.

Criteria met: All five.

The Brat Pack Adjacent

They traveled in the same cinematic terrain as the members of the Inner Circle but werent quite one of them.

Matt Dillon

Dillon broke out as a teen star in 1980s My Bodyguard well before the Brat Pack existed. That always made him feel separate from it, as did his status as the face of another 80s teen-movie subgenre: the S.E. Hinton adaptation. He starred in three of those: Tex, The Outsiders, and Rumble Fish.

Criteria met: 1, 2, and 5.

John Cusack

Because he was a Chicago guy and, at first, more of a supporting player, maybe Cusack didnt make it onto Blums radar. But this guy was all over the teen-movie spectrum in the 80s and one of its most beloved representatives. Class, Sixteen Candles, The Sure Thing, Better Off Dead (!), The Journey of Natty Gann, and Say Anything as Lloyd Dobler, the high-school graduate who doesnt want to sell anything, buy anything, or process anything as a career? People, bow down.

Criteria met: 1, 2, 4, and 5.

Charlie Sheen

I was on the fence about including Sheen because, you know: #winning. But its hard to act as though he werent a notable part of the 80s teen-movie scene  he was in Red Dawn and the sweet and underrated Lucas (best slow clap in an 80s teen movie!), and, most memorably, he played a burnout in Ferris Buellers Day Off. Hes also connected to the Inner Circle by birth, as Estevezs brother.

Criteria met: 1, 2, 4, and 5.

Ralph Macchio

He had an impressive run in 1983 and 1984 with three back-to-back hits: The Outsiders, The Karate Kid, and Teachers. But he was so defined during this time by the Karate Kid franchise that he falls a little outside the core Brat Pack.

Criteria met: 1, 2, 3, and 5.

Lea Thompson

When McCarthy interviews Thompson in Brats, she describes herself as Brat Pack adjacent, which is why this category is called that. And shes right. She wasnt quite in the Brat Pack, but her career ran right alongside it. She played Tom Cruises girlfriend in All the Right Moves, went to Space Camp with a very young Joaquin Phoenix (then known as Leaf), hit on her own son (in her defense, she didnt know he was her son) in Back to the Future, and eventually made her way into a John Hughes movie thanks to Some Kind of Wonderful.

Criteria met: 1, 2, 4, and 5.

Jennifer Grey

She played a teen in three of the most memorable youth movies of the era: Red Dawn, Ferris Buellers Day Off, and Dirty Dancing. The latter two were among the top-grossing teen movies of the decade. So were not putting her in a corner, but we are putting her in the Brat Pack Adjacent tier.

Criteria met: 1, 2, 4, and 5.

C. Thomas Howell

He played a high-schooler in some quintessential 80s movies  E.T., The Outsiders, Red Dawn  and a white Harvard Law student posing as a Black guy in the extremely ill-advised Soul Man. But most importantly: Hes Ponyboy.

Criteria met: 1, 2, 3, and 5.

Eric Stoltz

He was in the center or the margins of some of the most seminal coming-of-age movies of the era: Fast Times at Ridgemont High, Mask, Some Kind of Wonderful, and, lest we not forget, Say Anything, in which he plays the guy who designates Lloyd Dobler as the keymaster.

Criteria met: 1, 2, 4, and 5.

The Next-Gen Brat Pack

These were the teen stars who emerged in the latter half of the decade and therefore got completely ignored by the New York Magazine article. They also more clearly represent the Gen-X sensibility: These actors were a little edgy, a tad outside the mainstream, and cool as hell.

Winona Ryder

She was a nerd in Lucas, a goth freak in Beetlejuice, and a borderline sociopath in Heathers before blossoming into one of Gen Xs brightest stars in the 90s. (She also co-starred with Lowe in the movie Square Dance.)

Criteria met: 1, 2, 4, and 5.

Keanu Reeves

While we think of Reeves these days as an action star and a seemingly very nice guy who actually dates women his own age, he got his start mostly by playing sweet stoner types in films like the influential indie Rivers Edge, Parenthood, and Bill & Teds Excellent Adventure, in which he portrayed San Dimas High Schools own Theodore Ted Logan. (He also co-starred with Lowe in Youngblood and would later work with Ryder on more than one occasion.)

Criteria met: 1, 2, 4, and 5.

Christian Slater

Greetings and salutations to the bad boy of late-80s teen cinema, who made his mark in The Legend of Billie Jean and Gleaming the Cube, and, most importantly, as J.D., the James Dean of the darkly comedic classic Heathers, in which he seduces Ryder. (Pump Up the Volume and Young Guns II, in which Slater acts opposite Estevez, came out just after the 80s ended, in 1990.)

Criteria met: 1, 2, and 5.

River Phoenix

If Phoenix hadnt died of an overdose so tragically in 1993, its possible he would have become the most accomplished actor on this list. It was clear that he was gifted from the very beginning, whether he was starring in coming-of-age fare  Explorers, Stand by Me, A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon  or major films like The Mosquito Coast or Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade. In addition to appearing in Stand by Me, as Cusack did, he co-starred in multiple films with Reeves.

Criteria met: 1, 2, and 5.

Corey Feldman and Corey Haim, a.k.a. the Coreys

The most well-known duo in all of 80s teen cinema, they established themselves individually  Feldman in Gremlins, The Goonies, and Stand by Me, Haim in Lucas  before co-starring in a series of 80s movies made for the youths: The Lost Boys, License to Drive, and Dream a Little Dream.

Criteria met: 1, 2, and 5.
Watch enough competition shows, and youll learn to recognize the moment when competitors hit the wall mentally  when they get to that place where they just, in the immortal words of Tim Robinsons Karl Havoc, dont want to be around anymore. The moment doesnt have to be explicit. It can just be a sort of energy, a kind of shift, that signals when people who were winning suddenly stop doing it. Theyre tapped out, and theres something a little tragic and bittersweet about watching it. Thats what happens to Savannah and Laura in Top Chef: Wisconsin semifinal Set Sail, and its a bummer. Both women had been on such a roll recently, and yet theyre definitively on the bottom this week. Maybe six weeks off was too much?

To be fair, its an off week for nearly everyone. Contestant-wise, Danny and Dan each serve a dish that the judges identify as having major technical problems. Top Chef production-wise, they get the legendary Masaharu Morimoto to appear and cook the chefs a meal, but then they dont have him stick around and judge an elimination challenge partially inspired by his work, which is very weird. And person-wise, Dan gets further in my ugh, this guy category when he boasts, over and over, that Tom sopped up one of his dishes while the episode cuts to Tom insulting his food. (Whichever editor made that choice, I salute your bitchy energy.) No one sticks around at the judges table long enough to see how much of their dish the judges are going to eat! Why would Dan have this impression? If this braggadocio was an intimidation move to try and get in the other chefs heads, it totally failed since Tom later told Dan, to his face, that his fish was raw and his dish a mess. I know Ive turned on Dan in recent weeks, but theres a smugness there that I am exhausted by, and this moment was a particularly indicative example of how hes walking around like the automatic next winner of Top Chef when Im not so sure hes done enough to deserve that big-headedness. And to see Laura and Savannah collapse from their upswings  it hurt me.

The episode picks up six weeks after Goodbye, Wisconsin and gathers Danny, Dan, Savannah, and Laura in the island nation Curacao. Their Quickfire is to pair lionfish, an invasive species in the Caribbean that local chefs like guest judge Helmi Smeulders are encouraged to use, with Dutch gouda. Because the lionfish have poisonous spikes, the chefs will have the fish preemptively cleaned for them  which seems like a missed opportunity to really test how well versed the chefs are in seafood, given that this whole week is seafood-centered, but fine. With only 30 minutes, nearly everyone chooses to do a raw preparation of the lionfish: Dan makes a tartare aguachile, Laura a ceviche with guava, and Savannah a crudo inspired by the national dish of keshi yena. Only Danny breaks away from that by cooking the lionfish in deep-fried croquettes. The judges praise Dannys dish because it was different, but Tom thinks it didnt focus on the lionfish enough. Savannah and Laura both did well, too, but its Dan who walks away with the win and $10,000, with Gail specifically praising his use of Kewpie mayonnaise in the tartare binding. If youre not using Kewpie, you should; its luscious and delightful.

The final elimination challenge is far more involved. The chefs will need to present an eight-course fish-tasting menu, a challenge inspired by the cruise company Holland America Lines commitment to serving fresh seafood. (I will not repeat more of Kristens advertising for this cruise line, but be assured that there was a whole spiel about it.) In order, the courses need to be raw, steamed, mousse, poached, fried, roasted, smoked, and blackened, and each chef needs to prepare two courses and pick two different kinds of fish. Savannahs advantage from winning the last episodes elimination challenge is that she gets to choose her fish and her preparations, and she goes with raw salmon and fried striped bass. She decides this after the chefs shop in a local floating market for whatever ingredients catch their eye and after theyre served dinner by legendary Iron Chef Morimoto, who happens to be the cruises Fresh Fish Ambassador. (I deeply resent that my brain has been damaged enough by The Boys that I thought, Fresh Fish Ambassador would be a good secondary name for the Deep, actually.) Theres a little bit of friction when Laura and Dan butt heads over who gets the snapper, but otherwise, the division goes smoothly. Danny takes mousse sea bream and smoked rainbow trout, Dan poaches dorade and blackened snapper, and Laura roasts grouper and steams black bass. (A thought: I didnt care for Danny and Dan trying to pressure Laura into giving up snapper and doing roasted monkfish instead. If that dish would be so great, you two do it!)

The next day, the four make their way to the Eurodam cruise ships (cramped) kitchen and get to work cooking for Kristen, Tom, Gail, Top Chef alumnus Edward Lee, and a number of guest judges who work for the cruise line. Everyone seems pretty confident in the kitchen until things start going wrong, fast, when the judges dig into the food and discover that most of the fish theyre served is cooked incorrectly. Its honestly a little shocking how inconsistent everyone is. Going chef by chef, the judges say Savannahs sake-cured salmon roll with ginger dressing was too safe and the dressing too grainy, and her fried striped-bass sandwich had too much bread and not enough fish. Laura serves steamed black bass in a banana leaf, which the judges say wasnt cleaned correctly and gave the dish a dirty taste, and her grouper roasted with guajillo chili and pineapple broth is another failure; nearly everyones fish was raw, and her aioli sauce split. Dannys mousse didnt steam correctly and is also raw, but the judges praise his Scotch bonnet and green garlic spheres and his sauces and then go gaga over his smoked rainbow trout with smoked rainbow-trout foam and hazelnut-lemon relish. And Dan has a bad dish in his (raw) poached dorade with coconut turmeric sauce and a (greasy) yucca fritter, but he also does better on his second offering, blackened snapper with Chinese five-spice and butter-poached potatoes. The judges love that he switched up traditional Cajun blackening spices, and Kristen says it was the best-cooked piece of fish they got all day, which is a real shocker since its the last dish they were served of the eight.

Its pretty clear going into judges table that Danny and Dan are safe for each making one solid dish, and Danny gets the win for the creativity of his Scotch bonnet and green garlic spheres and his smoked-trout dish, which Ed Lee calls brilliant and unexpected. Hell be in the finals, and Dan will, too. When it comes time to decide between Laura and Savannah, the judges wonder whats worse: Savannahs safe but unremarkable dishes or Lauras more adventurous but badly executed dishes? When Tom says that Laura had the worst dish in the roasted grouper  which she more baked than roasted, since she didnt treat it with any fat before putting it in the oven  that seals her fate. Next week, Danny, Dan, and Savannah compete for the Wisconsin crown, after being told by Tom and Kristen that theyre all cooking scared and need to have fun with it. Sure, sure. Personally, Ill be having fun with the fact that Emeril Lagasse is back. An icon!

Assorted amuse-bouche

 Tom hat watch: another straw fedora! Do you think Tom bought a special one just for this trip?

 The dishes I most wanted to eat this episode: Dannys croquettes and Savannahs fried-fish sandwich. Yes, I want crisp and crunch.

 If someone makes an agua chile for the final challenge, I swear I will track down Tom and eat one of his hats.

 Ive never had quenepas before, but they look like lychee and rambutan, both of which I love. Can someone report back on similarity?

 If Morimotos Its good because I made it description of his tuna pizza charmed you, you can watch old Iron Chef episodes for free on a ton of streaming services, including Pluto and Tubi. Also available on Peacock for that Bravo and NBCUniversal brand synergy.

 I do appreciate how this show has treated Dannys Muslim faith matter-of-factly by showing him praying, drinking a nonalcoholic drink, and talking about his decision to convert. Anythings better than that time Jeff Goldblum was on Drag Race.

 My partner and I were big fans of the judges talking about how the Dutch just happened to introduce gouda to Curacao centuries ago. (Thats crazy. Why were the Dutch there? may have been said in a deadpan tone in our home.) Top Chef has gotten better about being like, And this was because of colonialism, but this whole episode felt so tourism-spon-con influenced that Im guessing they wanted to avoid talking about the evils of the Dutch East India Company and slavery. Heres some academic writing on how residents of the island feel about its colonial history and a broader look at colonialism within the Caribbean and its lingering effects.

 Thank you to Khadjiah Johnson for writing the recap while I was away last week! You can follow her on Instagram and X.
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Kiosk offers tourists still and sparkling water.

Tourists visiting the Colosseum now have an extra opportunity to fill up their water bottles, with refrigerated still or sparkling water, thanks to a new water dispensing kiosk.

The facility, located in the shadow of the Arch of Constantine near the Via Sacra, also has power points allowing tourists to charge their mobile phones and tablets.

The dark green Casa dell'Acqua, designed in the style of Rome's hexagonal newspaper stands, is the result of collaboration between the city, energy supplier ACEA and the Colosseum archaeological park.

The drinking water point was inaugurated on Wednesday, 10 years after one of the first such facility was installed outside the Colosseo subway station, and two months after the installation of three new nasoni fountains on the Via Sacra.

Over the last decade, the city has installed numerous water dispensing kiosks in busy tourist areas, outside metro stations and in parks.

Alfonsina Russo, director of the Colosseum archaeological park, said the move is part of the park's commitment to eco-sustainability, describing the new service as "indispensible" for visitors especially in the hot summer months.

Russo also said the new water supply, which can be geolocated with ACEA's Waidy Wow app, will act as a deterrent to the illegal practice of hawkers selling bottles of water to tourists on the street.

Before being offered for sale, these water bottles are usually hidden in unhygienic places such as under drain covers and in nearby undergrowth on the Caelian hill.

Photo Wanted in Rome, 13 June 2024.
Rome cartoonist joins restaurant solidarity project in Garbatella.

Zerocalcare, the Italian cartoonist known for his hit animated series on Netflix, is backing a new Rome restaurant that will offer support to women who survived domestic violence.

The Roman cartoonist, whose real name is Michele Rech, is one of four partners behind Osteria Sauli which is set to open in the capital's Garbatella district in mid-September.

The news, first reported by restaurant guide Gambero Rosso, will see Zerocalcare join forces with restaurateur Antonello Magliari and chefs Stefania Pinto and Francesco Cianciarelli who will serve up traditional Roman fare as well as dishes from the Abruzzo and Puglia regions.

We wanted to do something together and Michele's idea, which we immediately accepted and shared, was to open a real Roman osteria in one of the most authentic neighbourhoods of Rome" - Magliari told Gambero Rosso - "but also to create a setting in which to be useful from a social point of view.

The new restaurant will collaborate with Lucha Y Siesta, a group of feminists and womens rights activists which has been offering shelter as well as legal and psychological support to victims of gender-based violence in Rome since 2008.

As part of the agreement with Lucha Y Siesta, Osteria Sauli will provide the women with employment and training, offering them the opportunity of a fresh start in life.

Magliari clarified that Zerocalcare - best known for his offbeat animated shows This World Can't Tear Me Down and Tear Along the Dotted Line - is a financing partner and that diners who come with the hope of seeing him wait at tables or eating in the restaurant are likely to be disappointed.

Zerocalcare made the same point in an Instragram post on Wednesday, saying that he wasn't the one opening an osteria, "due to obvious gastro-entrepreneurial shortcomings" but that he has taken a share in the restaurant "because I felt like contributing and lending a hand to a project that involves friends of mine and people I trust."

Magliari said that all going to plan the osteria will open in mid-September at a former stationery shop in Piazza Sauli.
Kenneth Fox

Aer Lingus pilots have voted in favour of industrial action this evening.

They are seeking wage hikes of over 20 percent after rejecting a pay rise of 9 per cent brokered at the Labour Court.

The Irish Airline Pilots' Association (IALPA) says 97.7 percent of the ballots returned were in favour of industrial action, up to and including strike.

Aer Lingus says a strike would be unnecessary and regrettable, resulting in significant disruption to the airline's customers and other employees.

It says talks are ongoing, and it's also willing to seek the support of the Workplace Relations Commission to explore further solutions.

As the Irish Times reports, Ialpa president Mark Tighe said the union would announce what action it might take in due course but said he hoped the companys management would come to its senses.

The result of this ballot shows the resolve and determination of our members to get a fair share of the large profits that Aer Lingus are making,, said Mr Tighe.

He said pay at the airline had failed to keep pace with that at airlines like British Airways, Lufthansa and Virgin Atlantic in recent years.

At least seven days notice would have to be given of any strike action but this would cause enormous disruption for customers of the airline as the peak of the summer holiday period approaches.
With it in mind that this is the first academic year to sit through State Exams having no previous State Examination experience, the Leaving Certificate students have only the practice of mocks and end of term exams under their belts.

Ed Whelan and Oisin Cooke, De La Salle College, leaving cert students. Photo: Joe Evans

This year is the first to not have had a Junior Cert exam and speaking with some students from De La Salle in Waterford City, they said that the first few exams on the Leaving Cert timetable were very-well balanced, with plenty of choices for them not to be left struggling.

The exam criteria for some subjects were adjusted to cater for the impact that the Covid-19 pandemic had on students' education. Most of these changes now allow for students to have more choice on their exam papers, and also a shortened selection of material that's required of them to cover throughout their two-year course.

Mental health

Ed Whelan and Oisin Cooke also spoke about the healthy balance of studying and having a social life, particularly in the lead up to exams which they've never had to mentally prepare for until now.

"Balancing the social life and the study life is always hard. It's definitely come down way more on the side of the study life these past couple of months so it'll be nice to get back to the social life when this is all over," said Oisin.

Ed continued and developed more into the urgency for supports needed in Waterford, and nationally: "In terms of mental health organisations that are available to students, I think the Government needs to do more to put them in place. I think the one's that are there, not a lot of people know about them and I don't think they're funded enough," he said.

"I've found that, for my mental health throughout the Leaving Cert, for a lot of it I've had to rely on hobbies, which have been very helpful, such as scouts, music and theatre.

"But in terms of proper supports, the Government needs to be held accountable and set them up properly," Ed concluded.

Information on mental health services can be found on Spunout.ie
The long saga of pensions for those who worked in Waterford Crystal continues.

The closure of the Kilbarry plant in 2008, compounded by the financial crash of that year, plunged this city, not for the first time, into an economic crisis.

The local economy tanked.

The fallout is still visible in the investment deficit in the city. That deficit is only slowly being tackled and it hurt our small city badly.

The North Quays, while welcome, only begins the resolution process. This is a lovely city in a lovely area with bags of potential, yet that potential is degraded by politics.

Brian Hayes and Enda Kenny of Fine Gael knew the obvious solution and quickly proposed that Waterford needed a university to transform its fortunes. They saw what had happened with Limerick and knew such key intervention would have a powerful and dynamic local and regional impact.

Galway and Limerick have shown that business follows the states lead investment.

University designation has long been sought but was opposed by existing providers in Cork and Dublin and indeed in Carlow/Wexford and Kilkenny. Regional politics is a potent toxin, even when the common good is obvious.

A proper university would immediately generate a medical school in Waterford, just as UL did in Limerick. This would immediately allow the South East to function as its own regional health authority under Slaintecare, without being tied to St Vincents Hospital in Dublin via a ridiculous east coast leg.

It would have helped UHW and other hospitals in the South East attract medical staff and consultants.

It would have given the entire region a lift.

SETU has decided in its strategic plan that such a facility is not for it, despite the fact that UHW has all the facilities necessary to support such a school.

Even the SETU nursing school is constrained by government policy in the allocation of nursing student places. Why is that?

How can a new university set out on its first steps when it is constrained by state policy? Can SETU even borrow like existing universities or has it a professorial staff organisation like they do?

Why have we one arm tied behind our back before we even begin to compete?

In any event, Fine Gael was elected in 2011. Instead of delivering the promised proper university, the government embarked on a diametrically opposed process of absolute evisceration of WIT.

WIT saw no investment, no expansion, no new buildings, no new courses. The proposed new Engineering Building and Business Schools, which were part of a 2009 PPP on a site prepared at a cost of 2.9 million were cancelled, while university buildings in other parts of the country went ahead.

All expansion stopped at WIT and across the city UHW was threatened with severe downgrading.

Not a stick or a stone on the form of new teaching buildings has been added to WIT since then.

The last teaching building completed at WIT, Humanities on the Cork Road, commenced in 1998, stalled for some years and was completed in 2006. Weve had 26 years of lost development.

Is it any wonder that local business confidence was shot or that city nightlife, which hugely depends on student activity, was crippled?

Fine Gael promised the solution to the long-term economic development problems of Waterford city and then reneged.

Sure it was only an election promise wasnt it, and isnt that what one does before elections?

We have discovered that the characteristic, which most defines Waterford, is resilience, because without that ingredient, our city would have vanished down the plughole.

If normal people moan about things it is because we are not stupid. We can see the deficits.

Someone should tell Mr. Harris that we do travel, you know.

We have the least resourced and staffed Model 4 Hospital of nine such facilities in the country. How can that be fair?

It seems almost impossible for Waterford to get real government funding to develop infrastructure in the medical or third level space. Why?

Its very hard to listen to Taoiseach Harris boasting in a recent Dail debate that his government has increased staff and budget at UHW over the past four years when the comparative analysis shows UHW is still the most underfunded, understaffed and underresourced Model 4 hospital in the country.

Expansion at UHW has been in lock step with every other hospital in the land. No exceptionalism acknowledging that UHW was starting from a lower level is visible.

It had been hoped in the local elections that Mr. Harris might give the go ahead for the new WIT/SETU engineering building to boost his local troops, but no.

He says he is committed to it. But they all say that dont they?

The Taoiseach told the Dail that Fine Gael has delivered the university to Waterford. Such glib commentary is unacceptable given the lack of financial support for SETU Waterford.

All this came to mind when reading a press release from Minister for Further Education, Patrick ODonovan. He announced the completion of an 18 million 4,000sqm extension to the EO1 Building in ATU Sligo to deliver cutting-edge teaching and research facilities, a 17 million refurbishment of Blocks K and L in ATU Sligo to offer improved facilities to the Faculty of Engineering and Design, as well as the Yeats Academy of Arts Design and Architecture, and a 2 million delivery of a new building in Sligo College of Further Education to deliver enhanced learning in IT, Health, Care, Business, Law and Engineering for 500 students.

Meanwhile, nothing has been built at WIT/SETU. Far be it from me to begrudge investment in Sligo town, but questions re Fine Gael and Waterford city abound.

The Taoiseach Mr. Harris did nothing for Waterford while Minister for Health giving the go ahead for a second cath lab and then delaying it for years.

He did nothing for Waterford while in Further Education, except delay our PPP.

What makes anyone think he will have a late conversion to our cause and do something for us as Taoiseach?

We keep falling for the same auld stuff recently regurgitated by Mr. Harris in the Dail. We built the flood defences, the court house, the fire station...! So what? Where is the SETU investment?
By Cillian Sherlock, PA

RTE is negotiating an exit payment of up to 400,000 for an individual, the broadcasters new chairman has revealed.

Appearing before the Oireachtas Media Committee on Wednesday, Terence ORourke said the package had not yet been signed off but that the process could end up at a figure of around 400,000.

Mr ORourke confirmed to Fine Gael TD Brendan Griffin that exit package proposals from RTE had come before the board since he took over the role in March.

RTE chairman Terence ORourke said exit packages would be published in the broadcasters annual report (Niall Carson/PA)

Mr Griffin specifically asked if exit packages in excess of 400,000 were still being proposed, the chairman replied: I dont know the number, but it could be at that level, yes.

Mr Griffin said: That wont sit well with the public, Im sure.

Mr ORourke replied: I understand that, deputy.

He said he could not go into details for legal reasons around confidentiality  including whether it was someone who had previously declined to appear before the committee.

Minister for Media, Catherine Martin has committed to a decision on reforming the funding of RTE prior to the Dail summer recess (Brian Lawless/PA)

Mr ORourke defended the practice of exit packages in the context of strict employment law in Ireland, and added that exit packages would be published in RTEs annual report.

Asked if the minister was aware of the potential payment, he said she had been informed a number of months ago.

Mr Griffin also expressed concerns that there was something very wrong within the HR department of RTE.

Elsewhere in the committee, Mr ORourke said fixing the financing of RTE was one of the biggest concerns raised by the broadcasters new chair when he first met the media minister.

He further described the current TV licence collection system as archaic and out of date.

The broadcaster was plunged into crisis in June last year after it admitted understating the fees for its star presenter and previous top earner Ryan Tubridy, right (Niall Carson/PA)

Minister for Media Catherine Martin has committed to making a decision on reforming the funding of RTE before the Dail summer recess.

Some options reported to be under consideration are direct exchequer funding or a new broadcasting charge to be collected by Revenue, as opposed to An Post.

The broadcaster was plunged into crisis in June last year after it admitted understating the fees for its star presenter and previous top earner Ryan Tubridy.

A series of probing parliamentary committee hearings also uncovered other concerns about culture, governance and financial management at RTE and there have been several high-profile resignations from the board and executive of the station.

A pre-existing steady decline in licence fee revenue was accelerated by the expanding controversy.

RTE operates on a dual-funding model that sees around 55 per cent of its income brought in through the obligatory licence fee, which costs 160 a year for Irish households with a television.

Approximately 85 per cent of revenue from TV licence fees goes to RTE to carry out its public service broadcasting commitments, while it also earns money through commercial operations.

The Cabinet is due to sign off on a decision on reforming the funding model for public service broadcasting in the coming weeks.

On Wednesday, Mr ORourke appeared before the Oireachtas Committee on Media which was central to probing governance and culture issues at the broadcaster.

He said the board was seeking an adequate, independent, predictable and reliable source of funding.

A licence fee system which is depending on TV sets is archaic and out of date, he told the committee.

He added: There are different models out there. I think the current system is not working properly  a household charge would be another example involving public-sector funding.

There are different ways of doing it, but probably all of those would be better than the current system.

Former RTE chairwoman Siun Ni Raghallaigh resigned following a public dispute with the Media Minister (Brian Lawless/PA)

Asked about his biggest concerns when taking the job, he said: One would be that the financing model will be fixed.

Thats a preview of my initial discussion with the minister, that was very clearly an important thing.

RTE recorded fictitious accounting transactions and operated with a lack of trust between its board and senior management, according to reports commissioned by Ms Martin.

The reviews and examinations of practices at RTE found its culture was characterised by a lack of speaking up and good faith reporting.

They also found there was a lack of trust between the RTE board and its former executive, as well as an informality within board processes and a limited appetite to learn.

Mr ORourke took over as head of the board from Siun Ni Raghallaigh after she resigned following a public dispute with the minister.

Ms Ni Raghallaigh said she had been left with no option but to quit after being subjected to an enforced dismissal after Ms Martin expressed disappointment in her during a live television interview.

RTE director-general Kevin Bakhurst has announced a strategic plan for reforming the institution by 2028 (Niall Carson/PA)

The minister said she had been misled about the chairwomans role in approving an exit package for a former chief financial officer at the broadcaster.

Ms Ni Raghallaigh has since criticised the minister for actively taking a hands-off approach to the scandal at RTE and accused her of not assisting with falling TV licence revenues.

Mr ORourke, a former KPMG managing partner, was appointed shortly afterwards.

Asked if he had any concern about the circumstances around his predecessors departure, he said: Whatever happened, happened.

The chairman said somebody had to do the job and added: I wasnt there so I dont know what happened.

One of the things we agreed very early on with the minister was a protocol of communication.

So we now have an agreed protocol of things that myself and the minister keep in contact about so its very clear.

Mr ORourke also told the committee that RTE has learned from controversies around financial mismanagement at the broadcaster.

He also said that the board has profound disappointment and regret about events and behaviours which triggered the investigative reports.

Mr ORourke said: The organisation has learned from what happened. The necessary controls and procedures are being put in place to make sure that those kinds of events cannot happen again.

But he also warned that RTE would be faced with many challenges in a very disruptive decade ahead.

Mr ORourke said the broadcaster was working on implementing recommendations from the Government reports, which the minister said was a prerequisite for the release of emergency funding.

RTEs director general Kevin Bakhurst, who assumed the role in the early weeks of the crisis, has also announced a strategic plan for reforming the institution by 2028.

It includes cutting headcount by 400  a reduction of up to 20 per cent and a significant increase in investment in the independent production sector.
The Max was designed to compete against the Airbus A320neo family of planes. Experts say the verdict in that contest is clear: Boeing lost. Airlines around the world have ordered many more of the Airbus jets, especially the largest, the A321neo. The European companys lead was solidified after the Max crashes  which experts traced to poor design and engineering decisions  and the ensuing 20-month global ban on the plane. Loading In 2019, for the first time, Airbus had more passenger planes flying around the planet than Boeing did, according to Cirium, an aviation data provider. The Max remains popular, especially with airlines in the United States, which have a long history of flying Boeing planes. The company is working to fill about 4300 orders for the Max, a backlog worth hundreds of billions of dollars. But Airbus has sold far more of the A320neo family, with more than 7100 outstanding orders for the three variants of that plane.

Boeing still leads when it comes to larger, twin-aisle planes, but Airbus dominance in the lucrative single-aisle market could prove self-reinforcing, experts said. With more sales coming in, Airbus can invest more in research and development. With more planes flying, it can earn more from selling spare parts and providing services. The entire time Boeing has been running around putting out fires, Airbus has just been running their business, said Ron Epstein, an aerospace and defence analyst at Bank of America. Boeing has also squeezed all it can out of the 737, which debuted in the late 1960s. In developing the Max, the company pushed that planes structure to its limits. Its next plane is likely to be one that it builds from the ground up, aviation experts said. It was not clear what that new jet might look like or when it might arrive. Dave Calhoun, Boeings CEO, has said the company wont roll out a new plane until the mid-2030s  partly because such a monumental effort would be worthwhile only when companies such as General Electric, Rolls-Royce and Pratt & Whitney introduced more efficient engines.

But building a new plane could help Boeing fill an important gap in the market for larger-narrow-body jets, some experts said. Airbus most popular plane, by far, is the A321neo, which has the most seats and can travel the furthest of the companys three neo models. Boeings answer to that plane, the 737 Max 10, does not fly quite as far and has yet to be approved by regulators. Loading Epstein estimated last year that Boeing could sell 6500 larger single-aisle jets to airlines, mostly to replace smaller narrow-body planes. That jet could be developed in seven to eight years for an investment of up to $US20 billion ($30 billion), with Boeing generating at least five times as much in gross profits, he said at the time. Some aviation experts also argue that Boeing and Calhoun have been too cautious about committing to a new plane, which they said could be more efficient even without waiting for new engines. Newer materials, different kinds of wings and other advancements could help Boeing achieve meaningful improvements, they said.

If you present the airlines with a reasonably good plane, theyll take it, said Michel Merluzeau, an analyst at AIR, an aerospace and defence consulting firm. The longer Boeing takes to build a new plane, some said, the longer Airbus has to expand its lead. And while new engines promise big gains in efficiency, they may fall short in practice. Airlines may also be slow to buy planes powered by those engines, especially after problems with the current generations engines, which have needed more and longer repairs than expected. But others said it could be wise for Boeing to wait. If the company moves too soon, Airbus could swoop in with an even newer, better aircraft. Most analysts expect Airbus to release a new plane in the middle of the next decade, around the same time that Calhoun has targeted. Aviation experts disagree on whether Airbus would move first or wait to follow Boeing, but say the European manufacturer is well positioned for either approach.

Developing a new plane is a huge undertaking. Unlike wide-body planes, narrow-body jets are sold in larger numbers and, thus, need to be churned out rapidly; Boeing and Airbus aim to produce dozens every month. To accommodate that pace, Boeing will have to develop a complex production system and prepare its suppliers. Airlines will also probably have to be willing to train pilots for a new jet, an expensive and time-consuming process. Ultimately, any new plane will also have to last for decades, Calhoun said in an interview with Aviation Week, a trade publication, last year. Loading Twenty years is a disaster; 30 years is a disaster, he said. Theyve got to last 50 years. Of course, Boeing would not be starting from scratch. The company and Airbus are constantly developing and issuing new techniques, technologies and tools. Boeing can apply lessons learned elsewhere, for example, from developing the wide-body 787 Dreamliner, which it first delivered to an airline in 2011, or the coming 777X, a more efficient version of an existing wide-body Boeing plane whose wing the company will make in-house with composite materials.
Fired-up farmers have warned a parliamentary inquiry that some Western Australian towns will not survive if the live sheep export trade is banned by 2028 as planned.

The inquiry, which sat in regional WA on Friday, heard from farmers, shearers, transporters and community members impacted by the Albanese governments ban.

The live export ban is due to come into force in May 2028. Credit: Ryan Stuart

Farm utes lined up for kilometres as farmers and industry workers showed up in force to demonstrate their opposition to the proposed legislation.

During an at-times heated debate, stakeholders expressed concern the ban would ring the death knell for regional towns.

WA Farmers John Hassell told the inquiry: People will leave, schools will close, police stations will disappear. This is devastating to regional southwest Western Australia.

Questions from committee chair Meryl Swanson about how farming organisations were helping members to transition out of live sheep exports were met with anger.

WA Farmers Steve McGuire fired back: They are not dumb country hicks that live in a vacuum. They tell us what to do, we dont tell them. What the federal government is asking us to do is put all our eggs in the abattoir basket.

Fridays inquiry also heard from animal activists who describe live sheep exports as cruel.

Rebecca Tapp, from Stop Live Exports, said the overwhelming majority of Australians were opposed to the trade.

And she urged parliamentarians to ignore the fear and smear campaign being run by the industry.

Our animals have suffered enough, please listen to the community who dont have a vested interest in the trade and support the bill, Tapp said.

The reason the bill has been introduced is because live export is inherently cruel. Over 70 per cent of sheep voyages accompanied by independent observers still have incidents of non-compliance.

The ban, which was prompted by animal welfare concerns, is due to come into force in May 2028. It would still allow for live sheep to be exported by air and cattle to be exported by sea.

AAP
Charlotte was stood down for two weeks, effective immediately, and not allowed to attend the school campus unless for a prearranged meeting. She was told to treat the matter with appropriate discretion and invited to provide a written response within seven days. In her reply to the school, sent a week later, Charlotte described the profound joy she experienced daily as a teacher at the Christian college. I truly cherish every moment as I am able to combine my passion for music education with the opportunity to express my faith, she wrote. In the classroom, I have cultivated a strong rapport with our students, and it warms my heart to hear them declare on a daily basis, Music day is my favorite day, with such enthusiasm and sincerity. My private life does not and needs not inhibit my professional life. My social media is set to restricted access, and neither parents nor colleagues can view anything I share there.

I cant express the enormity of the emotional toll it has taken on me to find out that one parent has witnessed a post, then shared it amongst the parent chat groups over the holidays like gossip. The effect that this has had on my mental health is significant and I am now seeking therapy to process the lack of dignity and respect shown. I uphold the values of Christ and [the school]  I believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God and it provides for me a guiding doctrine and practice. Nine days after her response, she received a termination letter. The recent developments in your circumstances place you at odds with the doctrines and teachings of the College and with the expectations we hold for all our staff to align with the Colleges doctrines and beliefs, the principal said. I have formed the view that this places you in breach of the conditions of your employment as set out in your employment contract. Subsequently I regretfully advise you that your employment with the College is terminated, effective immediately.

Religious discrimination reforms shelved Charlotte is the latest teacher to lose her job under a special exemption in the Sex Discrimination Act that allows students and staff to be expelled or fired from religious schools because of their gender identity or sexuality. Her case will add to the pressure piling on Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to scrap the rule. Labor promised to protect students before the last election and, in March, the Australian Law Reform Commission weighed in on years of debate to say schools should be stripped of their right to discriminate against LGBTQ students and staff. But Albanese has since shied away from the issue and threatened to shelve the governments planned changes unless he could guarantee Coalition support, citing fears about a toxic debate. This is despite progressive crossbenchers and the Greens urging Labor to work with them instead to amend the law.

Many faith-based schools have argued they dont discriminate against LGBTQ students, claiming theres little evidence to show they do. They say their priority is hiring staff who reflect the religious beliefs of their community. LGBTQ advocacy groups, however, have surfaced several examples of discrimination and said the special exemption must be scrapped without delay. Loading Asked on Tuesday whether the planned changes were dead, Albanese said: Well, the Coalition have received a copy of the draft legislation. We await a response. Charlotte  who requested that the college not be named, to protect the school community  was fired in the three months since Albanese put the changes on ice. She admitted she always thought she could lose her job one day. It [the statement on sexuality] is in my contract. So I wasnt under any illusion as to what their viewpoint of homosexuality was, she said.

But I am a Christian, Im a person of faith, and my sexuality was never part of my professionalism and never came into my classroom. I wasnt trying to be deceitful to the school. I just wanted to do my job and I know I do a darn good job of it. Every single person that knows me, knows how much I loved that job and how passionate I was about that. She said the meetings with the school principal made her feel like she should be ashamed of her sexuality. But she became most emotional when she learnt her students choir performance would be cancelled and she would not be able to say goodbye to them. Im very passionate about my choirs and thats probably the first moment in that meeting that tears leaked out, she said. It affected my mental health greatly. Im a very positive, upbeat person, but I was grieving hard.

The right to discriminate The major pushback against scrapping the special exemption in the Sex Discrimination Act has come from religious schools. The Coalition, which has not yet said if it will work with Labor to pass legislation, has backed their concerns. While the Law Reform Commission recommended a path forward that would allow schools to preference teachers of faith when hiring staff where relevant, religious groups said this did not go far enough and would not allow them to maintain communities of faith. Mark Spencer is the director of public policy at Christian Schools Australia, which represents Charlottes former school. While he was not aware of the specifics of her case, he said that the way the school acted was exactly what parents would expect. Our schools are clear on what they are and what they believe. The staff member accepted she was outside their belief, he said. Many schools might take a different position and there are different schools this teacher could teach at, and in the current climate she wouldnt have trouble finding a new job. We look at how rights are balanced under international law, and for the employee, there is other employment available. For the school, if they dont have staff who share those beliefs, it becomes plain, vanilla, where our schools are no different to government schools.

All were looking for in changes to the law is to continue to be able to teach what we believe, to hire and fire, if we need to, staff who dont share those beliefs, and to be the authentic Christian schools that parents are choosing. He said sexuality was an example that people focused on, but not the only issue. Staff have ceased working for schools based on heterosexual activity or different applications of the Bible to life. Its a subset of a much larger issue around ensuring our staff reflect our beliefs, he said. Loading Not everyone has the same beliefs and thats OK. There are various beliefs across Christianity, and there are places for this teacher to work where shes better fit. But Charlotte disagrees. Their line was: we cant let them get rid of this clause because if they do, we cant hire Christians any more. But if this law was abolished, it said you may still hire people of faith to build your faith community, she said.

I agree that a religious school should be able to hire Christians. The whole point of a religious school is its a place of faith, and youre teaching faith to the kids as well as all the outcomes. I think thats a healthy thing. But the thing is, my values do align with the schools values. I am a person of faith; I have a very strong faith. My sexuality isnt my value. My sexuality is who I am. Thats not a value, thats me. [This exemption] should not exist. The chief executive of Equality Australia, Anna Brown, said Charlottes experience was shocking and unacceptable to most Australians, but sadly not surprising. Loading While the government waits to introduce its bill there are people being fired because of relationships that are legal under our laws and have nothing to do with their work. There are parents who cant enrol their children in local schools and kids too scared to be themselves because they fear being expelled, bullied or denied opportunities, she said.
By the end of 2024, Azerbaijan plans to export 1.2 billion cubic meters of gas to Greece, Azernews reports that this was stated by Minister Parviz Shahbazov at the 5th meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Economic, Industrial, and Technological Cooperation between Azerbaijan and Greece, held today.

According to him, last year, approximately 18% of Greece's gas demand was supplied thanks to Azerbaijan's "blue fuel."

P. Shahbazov stated that out of the 36.8 billion cubic meters of gas supplied to Europe over 3.5 years, more than 3.6 billion cubic meters, or over 10%, went to Greece.
Despite the fact hes on a first-name basis with Robert Bob De Niro, Alex Plank still doesnt feel like a movie industry mover and shaker.

It was always going to be a challenge for someone born in the hills of Virginia to make a name for themselves in the hills of Hollywood, but Plank is doing just that  whether he thinks so or not.

Hes been able to accomplish so much by finding a gap in the industry and working to fill it: the accurate representation and portrayal of autism.

After studying film at George Mason University, Plank started out as a neurodiversity consultant in television for an FX series called The Bridge in 2013. Roughly a decade later, his passion for both storytelling and advocacy eventually led him to the set of the movie Ezra, where he served as an associate producer and actor.

I feel honored to be able to do that, said Plank, who was diagnosed with autism at the age of 9 while at Meriwether Lewis Elementary School in Albemarle County. I feel relieved that finally theres going to be a generation of kids that doesnt have to go through that same sort of feeling that theyre defective. Thats the biggest thing for me.  Thats why I proudly just say Im autistic as much as I can.

Premiering in more than 1,300 theaters across the country on May 31, Ezra tells the story of a troubled, divorced comedian attempting to navigate both his own inner turmoil as well as co-parenting his autistic son Ezra. The father, played by Bobby Cannavale of Third Watch and Mr. Robot, makes some questionable decisions, including kidnapping his son, played by autistic, teenage actor William Fitzgerald in his film debut, from his bed in Hoboken, New Jersey, to drive across the country for a stand-up gig on the "Jimmy Kimmel Show" in Los Angeles.

This movie shows that autistic people are human, because the story is not a story that is just about autistic people, Plank told The Daily Progress. Its a story about humanity. Its a story about love. Its a story about families. And its a story about fatherhood. And its a coming-of-age story as well.

Fitzgerald is one of the few unknown names on a cast list that includes major stars such as De Niro, Whoopi Goldberg, Rose Byrne and Rainn Wilson under the direction of Tony Goldwyn.

Plank was brought on to manage Fitzgeralds safety and comfort on set, advise the crew on how to best work with the actors sensory issues to create a welcoming, accepting environment as well as ensure the film captured an accurate portrayal and sensitivity to autism.

Im tired of these shows and movies making shows about us without us. Nothing about us without us is a phrase from the disability community, he said. The same movies, they make an autistic character and they create a stereotype.

His work began with a questionnaire he sent to the young mans parents to learn more about his experience with autism as the condition affects each individual in a different way. Particularly, what environmental stimulants could bother him while filming? They informed him that Fitzgeralds sensory issues tended to fixate on smells, so Plank instructed the team on what laundry detergents to avoid and to clean off the set lights before turning them on so the dust wouldnt burn and emanate an odor.

You win some battles, you lose some battles, but I felt like I really won a lot of battles in terms of getting an accurate portrayal and also having a creative role in the film, said Plank. Thats also important, having someone on the creative team whos autistic is so important on a film about an autistic character.

In his role as an associate producer, Plank said he had more influence than hed previously held as a consultant, which he used to encourage Goldwyn and the other producers to grant Fitzgerald the latitude to make the character his own by including a few of his own lines.

In one scene as Cannavale and Fitzgerald approach a farmhouse in Nebraska, the young autistic actor comments, It looks like the start of a demon movie, an original joke Plank said the actor insisted on including in the final cut. The remark becomes even more ironic when the audience learns that actress Vera Farmiga, of The Conjuring, resides in the farmhouse.

Another way in which Fitzgerald managed to settle more into his character as Ezra was incorporating his stims, the repetitive, self-stimulating behavior people with autism often perform in order to handle different emotions or situations.

Plank noticed one such stim during one of the last scenes shot for the movie, in which Fitzgerald was dressed as a dinosaur. During breaks, the then-13-year-old would wag the tail of his costume with his hand but stopped once filming resumed. But when Plank pointed it out to Goldwyn, the director told the actor to keep on wagging.

That wouldnt have been in the movie if I hadnt pointed that out, but thats not the kind of thing other people will catch, because theyre not autistic, Plank said.

Most of the cast outside of Fitzgerald and Plank, who makes a brief appearance toward the beginning of the movie as a doctor, is not autistic, but a number of them have some relationship with the neurological condition.

The script itself was inspired by writer Tony Spiridakis autistic son. Spiridakis even incorporated a specific mannerism of his sons in the movie: Ezras mother gently rubs his ear if he becomes overstimulated.

De Niro also has a child with autism, whom Plank and his service dog Max were invited to spend time with in the stars trailer. Max was also occasionally summoned to ease Fitzgeralds emotions if he ever got overwhelmed.

The movie portrays Ezra as a nuanced character, something Plank said is groundbreaking, as it refuses to follow a stereotypical approach of depicting autistic individuals. Ezra frequently spouts famous quotes from other films, trades jokes with his father, slowly learns to accept hugs, orchestrates a mutiny in his elementary school classroom and has a habit of taking things too literally. Ezra even tries out some of his original stand-up content in a small restaurant in Nebraska. (The elderly diners do not share his sense of humor.)

I feel like when I was a kid, I didnt see portrayals like this about people like myself, and Ive had so many other autistic people come to me and tell me that same sort of thing, that they finally see themselves on screen, Plank said.

Growing up with autism in the 1990s, Plank said he saw very little representation of people like him in popular culture. So, he gravitated more toward countercultural shows and movies, especially The Matrix, which he admitted to having watched on a flight the day before talking to The Daily Progress.

Although he looked up to unconventional protagonists such as Neo in The Matrix or Robert Redfords computer hacker character in Sneakers, Plank still wishes there were movies like Ezra when he was a child.

I think that I would have been proud of it instead of sort of ashamed, because back then, youre told to feel ashamed by society, said Plank. Now, someone like William can proudly say Im autistic and say it publicly. Other kids can see that and be like, Oh, well, hes autistic, so am I, and hes cool, you know? So I think thats really important.

In an attempt to find other people like me, a 16-year-old Plank enrolled at Charlottesville High School and began combing the internet.

When his search revealed little, he and a friend created Wrong Planet, an online forum intended to connect and foster relationships among individuals with autism and other neurological differences. The website also includes a blogging feature and a range of educational resources.

People would have gone their entire lives without knowing anyone like them, said Plank, had it not been for the site.

His mother, who still lives in Planks childhood home, said she and her husband are proud of their sons eloquent advocacy for people on the spectrum and those in the wider disability community, a passion that hes carried from his childhood into adulthood.

Wrong Planet, which launched in 2004, now has roughly 200,000 registered members who regularly interact on communication channels dedicated to such topics as Characters whose autistic traits you relate to and Have you been bullied for a special interest?

Everyone wants to feel like they belong somewhere, said Plank. People sort of assume that autistic people dont want friends, but we desperately want friends. I think a lot of us are just at a loss of how to find them or make them. I found some of my most deep and meaningful friendships are with people who are also autistic.

Ezra is being shown in two theaters in the Charlottesville area: the Violet Crown on the citys Downtown Mall and Regal at the Shops at Stonefield just north of the city.
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Opel has announced pricing and equipment for its new generation of light commercial vehicles, as the vehicles land in Irish showrooms from this June.

Flexible, strong, ultra-modern and distinctive, each of the trio features a striking new exterior styling and a redesigned cockpit, and each is loaded with enhanced safety equipment as standard. Available in both diesel and all-electric, Opel has launched the new range with a low-cost finance rate of 4.9% APR Hire Purchase, plus five-year warranty, delivering the perfect partner for your business from just 380 per month.

James Brooks, Opel Ireland Managing Director, said: Year to date, Opel LCV registrations have seen a major uplift of 53% in Ireland, winning an 8.2% market share and maintaining fifth place in the marketplace. Now, armed with our new light commercial vehicle range that benefits from significant styling updates and much-enhanced safety equipment added as standard, we look forward with confidence to welcoming more new customers to the German brand.

The compact new Opel Combo is available in Komfort and Sportive trims, in two lengths (L1 and L2), and boasts a maximum load length of 3.4m, a load volume of up to 4.4m3 and payload of up to 1,000kg. The Combo Komfort level one trim, L1H1 1.5 turbo diesel 100hp, retails from 26,495 plus delivery. Standard equipment includes cruise control, traffic sign recognition, lane keep assist, driver attention alert, intelligent speed assist, auto emergency braking, rear parking sensors, six airbags, smartphone station with voice recognition, two USB ports, spare wheel, aircon, solid bulkhead with trapdoor, and automatic high beam assist.

The level two Combo Sportive trim, retailing from 28,895 plus delivery, gains a 10 touchscreen, a 10 multi-colour driver information screen, Matrix LED headlamps, 180-degree rear view camera, body-coloured bumpers, body coloured door handles, and body coloured rail covering and moulding.

The medium-sized new Opel Vivaro is available in Komfort and Sportive trims, and in two lengths, offering a voluminous cargo area with a maximum load length of four metres, load volumes of up to 6.6m3 and payload up to 1,400kg.

The Vivaro Komfort L1H11.5 turbo diesel 120hp, retails from 35,995 plus delivery. Standard equipment includes cruise control and speed limiter, traffic sign recognition, lane keep assist, driver attention alert, intelligent speed assist, advanced emergency braking, rear parking sensors, rain sensing front wipers, automatic high beam assist, solid bulkhead, a 10 touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, two USB C type ports, a 10 multi-colour driver information screen, aircon, 16 wheels and spare wheel.

The level two Vivaro Sportive trim, retailing from 37,995 plus delivery, boasts 17 wheels with full-size covers, uplevel front grille, body coloured door handles, body coloured power folding electric and heated door mirrors, body coloured front and rear bumpers, front fog lamps, and 180-degree rear view camera.

The large new Opel Movano is available in Komfort trim, in panel van body type offering three length and three height variants, and a chassis cab body type. The Movano offers a payload of up to two tonnes and towing capacity of up to three tonnes, with a load volume of up to 17m3. The Movano Panel Van Komfort model retails from 38,295 plus delivery.

Standard equipment includes cruise control and speed limiter, traffic sign recognition, lane keep assist, driver attention alert, intelligent speed assist, advanced emergency braking, passenger airbag, rear parking sensors, full steel bulkhead, USB port, DAB radio with 5 colour screen, manual aircon, 16 wheels and spare wheel.

Battery-electric versions of the trio will continue to offer class-leading driving ranges, with the new Movano Electric covering up to 420km on a single charge (WLTP). This is made possible by state-of-the-art battery technologies and improvements such as increased drive efficiency. The new Combo Electric, Vivaro Electric and Movano Electric also continue to offer the full operational capability of their counterparts with internal combustion engines.

Equipped to handle even the most demanding tasks of everyday work, the new Combo and Vivaro models are currently arriving in Opel Dealer forecourts nationwide and will be followed by the new Movano in the coming weeks. Your Opel dealer in Mayo is Rochford Motors in Ballyhaunis.
Claire Henry

A man who carried out an unprovoked attack on two American tourists in their sixties in the lift of a Dublin hotel will be sentenced later this year.

Dublin Circuit Criminal Court heard that Sean Dunne (26), currently of Clover Hill Prison, pleaded guilty to two counts of assault causing harm against a man and woman on April 7th, 2023, at the Ashling Hotel, Parkgate Street, Dublin.

Dunne has 10 previous convictions, which include convictions for threatening and abusive behaviour, breach of a barring order, and criminal damage.

Garda Stephen Lawlor told Michael Horrigan BL, prosecuting, that he was on mobile patrol on the night in question, and received a call about an alleged assault just after 9pm.

When he arrived at the hotel, he saw one man, who was later identified as Dunne, being restrained on the corridor floor. He also noted blood on the carpet.

The court heard that Dunne was arrested and cautioned at the scene and placed in a pGarda van.

Gardai spoke with both injured parties, an American couple aged in their 60s, who said they had returned to the hotel after eating dinner locally.

They went to the hotel bar and ordered a drink before getting into the lift, which Dunne also entered.

Gda Lawlor said Dunne told the woman that he was going to rape her and kill him, indicating her husband. He then struck the woman in the mouth and began to attack her husband.

The woman pressed the panic button, and when the door of the lift opened, the woman screamed for help and two others came to their assistance.

The court heard that Dunne was still attacking the man at this point, and there was blood everywhere.

Unprovoked

As Dunne was being subdued by onlookers, he continued to say that he was going to kill the man. The man fell to his knees and was shaking.

The couple were treated at the scene by emergency responders and did not require hospital treatment.

The woman told gardai the incident was an unprovoked attack. Images of the injuries sustained by both injured parties were submitted to the court.

The night in question was the couples last night in Ireland, and they returned to the United States the following day, the judge heard.

Dunne was interviewed but denied he assaulted either of the injured parties.

He has been in custody since April 2023. He took a trial date but pleaded in advance of the trial.

Gda Lawlor agreed with defending counsel that this was a frenzied attack and that Dunne had not known the couple.

The garda agreed with counsel that Dunne exhibited signs of someone going through a psychotic break, noting he suffers from schizophrenia, which he was diagnosed with in 2020.

The court heard that Dunne had been homeless and turned to addictive substances. Since he went into custody, he has been doing very well, and his mental health has improved significantly.

Dunne is currently on medication, is off all addictive substances and is tested regularly in prison.

Ms Justice Sarah Berkeley ordered the probation services to carry out a report and adjourned this matter for finalisation until October 2024.
Eoin Reynolds

A 32-year-old man has pleaded guilty to causing serious harm to another man in Dublin city centre four years ago.

Graham McGuinness, of Riverview, Blackcastle Avenue, Flower Hill, Navan, Co Meath, was initially charged with the attempted murder of Martin Reilly on June 11th, 2020, at Store Street in Dublin 1.

He was further charged that at the same time and date he produced a "homemade shank" in a manner likely to intimidate another person and that he caused serious harm to Mr Reilly, contrary to section 4 of the Non-Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997.

At a brief hearing on Wednesday, before a jury had been due to be sworn to hear his trial, McGuinness pleaded guilty to the charge of causing serious harm.

On Thursday morning, Patrick Gageby SC, for the Director of Public Prosecutions, told Ms Justice Karen O'Connor that the plea has been accepted, and a jury would not be required.

Ms Justice O'Connor adjourned the matter to July 19th to hear evidence before imposing sentence.

The judge ordered a prison governor's report, education report and urinalysis.

Eanna Molloy SC, for McGuinness, said his client has been making "steady progress on his educational attainments" since going into custody following the assault on Mr Reilly.

Mr Reilly has also been invited to deliver a victim impact statement to the court ahead of sentencing.
Charlottesville police have charged a local man with forcibly fondling a woman on two occasions last month.

Police have provided no indication it is the same man who reportedly grabbed multiple women on the citys Rivanna Trail this past fall and winter, but the original suspect in that case, later cleared by exculpatory video, says he hopes authorities have more reliable evidence this time around.

Court records show that 23-year-old Cole Robinson McNair was arrested after two misdemeanor indictments issued June 11.

McNair is considered innocent until proven guilty in a court of law, city spokeswoman Afton Schneider said in a statement.

What Schneider said is a fact of American jurisprudence but one that may bear repeating after the Charlottesville Police Department overlooked the video footage clearing the name of its primary suspect the last time it accused a man of attacking women.

This guy is innocent until proven guilty, period, that man, Patrick McNamara, told The Daily Progress in an email.

Unlike McNamaras January arrest, which was based on a victims word after reviewing pictures sent to her by friends, the case against McNair went through the additional step of getting presented to a grand jury.

Last time, it was just the police getting a warrant, local legal analyst Scott Goodman told The Daily Progress. Here, the commonwealth or the police can say, We took it to a group of citizens, and they reviewed it.

Goodman said theres a misconception that grand juries only hear felony cases.

Commonwealths attorneys can seek indictments for misdemeanors as well, he said.

While grand jury deliberations are secret, discussion of at least one of the groping allegations for which McNair is charged came up on police radio.

He grabbed her bottom, the dispatcher can be heard saying after an alleged May 12 attack. She says she was attacked by a male she doesnt know.

While faulty witness identification was implicated in the now-dropped case against McNamara, the May 12 attacker may have suffered a physical repercussion.

The male was bleeding from the neck after she hit him with her water bottle, the dispatcher can be heard saying.

McNair was charged with assault and battery, a Class 1 misdemeanor, in that incident which reportedly took place near the intersection of Carlton Avenue and Randolph Street in the citys Belmont neighborhood. Such misdemeanors are punishable by up to a year in jail.

McNair was charged with sexual battery, another Class 1 misdemeanor, in another incident reported May 1 on Chesapeake Street near the citys Riverview Park.

Riverview Park was the setting for a series of forcible fondlings that took place in September, October and January. While the ultimately exonerated McNamara was charged with just one of them, he said that getting branded a serial groper caused his employer to suspend him from work and his landlord to initiate an eviction.

A few days before the date of McNamaras slated trial, the Charlottesville Police Department turned over video surveillance to the commonwealths attorney showing McNamara harmlessly walking toward and past the victim in a location consistent with his version of events. The commonwealths attorneys office then dropped the charge against him. But McNamara said his legal bill was still about $27,000.

As for McNair, he has been taken to Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail pending a bail hearing. The court record indicates that McNair had a hearing advising him to hire an attorney on June 12.

I have no idea if this is the man that committed the assaults I was charged in, said McNamara. I hope they have evidence beyond eyewitness testimony.
Weather Alert

Bulletin: ...FROST ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 9 AM EDT FRIDAY... * WHAT...Temperatures ranging from 34 to 37 degrees will result in areas of frost formation in suburban and rural areas. * WHERE...Portions of central, northern, northwest, and southern New Jersey and east central, northeast, and southeast Pennsylvania. * WHEN...Until 9 AM EDT Friday. * IMPACTS...Frost could harm sensitive outdoor vegetation. Sensitive outdoor plants may be killed if left uncovered. PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS... Take steps now to protect tender plants from the cold. &&

Info:

Type: Frost Advisory

start_time_local: 2024-10-11T00:00:00-04:00

end_time_local: 2024-10-11T09:00:00-04:00

county_name:

state: PA

headline: Frost Advisory from FRI 12:00 AM EDT until FRI 9:00 AM EDT

county_fips:

category: Met

url:

urgency: Expected

severity: Minor

certainty: Likely

geographicname: Upper Bucks County

state_name: Pennsylvania
Ah, 1974: 50 years ago (gasp)!

My parents and I had just moved to Spokane, Washington, and were enjoying our season passes to the Worlds Fair. Dont argue with me; Spokane did indeed host a Worlds Fair, Expo '74, and remains the smallest city ever to do so!

When I wasnt in school or at Expo, I would hang out with friends. My favorite thing to do in the warm, dry, glorious summer was ride down Regal Street, which at the time was basically a country road. Id stop to pick multicolored bachelors buttons, which I had thought were always blue. Suddenly I found purple, pink, white and two-tone ones!

All the while, my transistor radio dangled from my handlebars on its leatherette loop, providing a scintillating summer soundtrack. The year 1974 was outstanding for having the highest number of No. 1 songs ever, at 35 (though 1975 would equal that score). Most songs were No. 1 for only one week, although a few lasted two or three weeks, but no more than that  unusual in that day and age.

I had long been listening to everything from Jimi Hendrix to Eddie Kendricks, so the musical variety of 1974 was exciting to me.

My parents asked me what I wanted for my birthday. I asked for Gordon Lightfoots album Sundown. I was mesmerized by the title track, and I figured there might be some other good songs on the record (I was right). I had never owned an LP, and was thrilled to receive it, along with a sterling silver spoon ring (I still wear it every day, even though most of the pattern has worn off).

A couple weeks after my birthday, Sundown became Lightfoots first and only No. 1 hit. It was a great anthem for the summer.

Other No. 1s of the year were Blue Swedes Hooked on a Feeling; MFSBs TSOP (The Sounds of Philadelphia); The Streak by Ray Stevens (I blushed when my dad explained streaking to me); Band on the Run by Wings (Paul McCartney!); Then Came You by The Spinners and Dionne Warwick; Come and Get Your Love by Redbone; Time in a Bottle by Jim Croce; and The Joker by the Steve Miller Band.

Of course, many of the songs I loved didnt make it to the top spot, except in my heart. I loved Midnight at the Oasis, Maria Muldaurs goofy little song about a camel, as she called it decades later when I interviewed her.

Eres Tu by the Spanish band Mocedades was a very rare and beautiful foreign-language hit for the U.S. And Aretha Franklin put out a fantastic song co-written by Stevie Wonder: Until You Come Back to Me (Basias cover is also great). And Rikki Dont Lose That Number started my love affair with Steely Dan.

I no longer track the Billboard hits (not much, anyway), and both birthdays and summers arent what they used to be. But oh, the memories!
September 15, 1943  May 30, 2024

Harold Wayne McCraven was born September 15, 1943 in Hatton, Ark. He was the fourth child born to Orvel and Ida McCraven. He spent his early childhood and grade school years growing up in Arkansas. The family moved to Lebanon in the late 50s. Harold attended Denny School and Lebanon High School.

As a teen he worked during the summers for Wheeler Bros grass seed farms.

He married Frances (Fran) Freeman in June of 1962. They lived in Harrisburg and later Halsey where he continued working doing field and warehouse work for grass seed farms.

After the birth of their son Clinton they moved to Lebanon where he worked at various mill jobs. During that time two more sons, Jeff and later Tim joined the family.

Awhile later Harold was able to take some vocational training in cabinet making and wood working, which he really enjoyed. A few years later he was able to start his own general contracting business which he and Fran along with sons operated for 40 plus years.

Harold was an active member of the Lebanon Ignite Hope Church where he taught Sunday School, worked with teen groups, served on the official board and as an usher. He also did many various construction jobs at the church.

Harold was an avid bow hunter and took many trophy animals. He also loved fishing of all kinds. He truly loved the outdoors. He also was an active member of the Wapiti Bowmen archery club for many years, serving as an officer and also doing construction on the club property.

The past few years Harold suffered with kidney failure and many infections which took a toll on his love to be active. He still enjoyed going to the local restaurant to visit with friends and tease the waitresses.

He is survived by his wife of 61 years Fran, and sons Clinton and wife Kathy, Jeff and wife Anita, Tim and wife Daina, 9 special grand kids, 14 great grand kids and numerous great-great grandkids, a brother Royce McCraven and numerous nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, a brother Bill McCraven, and sisters, Cloy Cotter, Erma Miller, and Connie Myers.

A celebration of his life will be held at 2:00 pm, Wednesday, June 26, 2024 at Ignite Hope Church, 580 F Street, Lebanon. Huston-Jost Funeral Home is handling arrangements.
Laman Ismayilova

An exhibition "National heritage of Azerbaijan living in Pearls of Art" has opened its doors at Uzbekistan Fine Arts Gallery, Azernews reports.

The event was organized within the Days of Azerbaijani Culture held in Uzbekistan.

Azerbaijan Culture Minister Adil Karimli, his Uzbek counterpart Ozodbek Nazarbekov, well-known figures of culture, art and science took part in the opening ceremony.

The first part of the exhibition covers Azim Azimzadehn's art, the founder of professional Azerbaijani graphics, preserved in the Azerbaijan National Art Museum, created at the beginning of the 20th century.

Artistic interpretations of graphic works are developed on the basis of unique exhibits of the museum fund.

Nearly 27 carpets from a private collection related to the 18th-20th centuries are showcased as part of the event.

The exposition also displays carpets produced by Azerkhalcha OJSC.

Handicrafts of embroidery, jewelry, coppersmith and netting are exhibited on the second floor of the gallery.

Here artisans have visually demonstrated the process of making handicrafts.

The idea of ??living traditions was included in the individual photo exhibition called "Ordinary city" presented at Uzbekistan Fine Arts Gallery.

The guests also viewed clothing collections of "ATIDE" and "Anara Zakirli".

The brand "ATIDE" was founded in 2019 by talented fashion designer Aida Kahveci.

The brand's name means "chest", which is no coincidence. Its main goal is to preserve the cultural heritage of Azerbaijan and pass it on to future generations by combining the national costumes with modern fashion.

The presented "Shamakhi" clothing collection is named after Shamakhi, one of the ancient cities of Azerbaijan.

The Azerbaijani brand "Anara Zakirli" was founded in 2018 by Anara Zakirli, in order to introduce Azerbaijan's national carpet ornaments to the fashion world by synthesizing them with modern clothes, and to bring the country's culture, shining in the harmony of the East and the West.

The presented "Zarafshan" clothing collection was inspired by Azerbaijan's "Afshan" carpet.

Odlar yurdu clothes are made of unique fabrics that reflect the national ornaments.

Centuries of history, mysterious stories, exquisite craftsmanship and boundless imagination are behind each work presented in the collection.

Historical relics, carpets and other handicrafts presented to the accompaniment of Azerbaijani folk songs left a lasting impression on visitors.

The Azerbaijani Culture Days in Tashkent feature a large-scale program that became another celebration of Azerbaijani culture and art in the fraternal country.

The Days of Azerbaijani Culture was remembered for a play "I am who I am" staged by the Azerbaijan State Yugh Theatre at the Uzbek State Institute of Art and Culture.

The Uzbek art lovers also enjoyed Uzeyir Hajibayli's operetta "The Cloth Peddler".

The Azerbaijan State Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre presented this world-famous work at the Uzbekistan State Academic Theatre.

On June 13, the Azerbaijan Cultural Centre, named after Heydar Aliyev in Tashkent, will host a presentation of the book "The Sword and the Pen" by the well-known author of historical novels, Mammad Said Ordubadi.

Organized by the Azerbaijan Culture Ministry, the Azerbaijani Culture Days in Tashkent will last until June 14.
Aerial photo taken on Jan. 8, 2022 shows people performing silk fan dancing at Langzhong ancient town in southwest China's Sichuan Province. [Photo by Wang Yugui/Xinhua]

CHENGDU, June 12 (Xinhua)  The ongoing Silk Road culture exhibition held in Chengdu, southwest China's Sichuan Province, has captivated visitors with a collection of artifacts that tell the story of how silk became a key international trade commodity, tracing its journey back to the Western Han Dynasty (202 BC-25 AD) about 2,000 years ago.

The Jinsha Site Museum showcases silk artifacts, a replica of a Han Dynasty loom, and ancient silk-woven texts excavated from various sites along the Silk Road. This captivating collection has sparked visitors' curiosity about the early mastery of silkworm domestication, silk utilization, and the creation of vibrant brocades by the Chinese.

Centuries ago, civilizations around the globe developed distinct textile traditions. While silk, wool, cotton, and linen are all nature's gifts, silk stands out as a unique Chinese innovation that spread globally via the Silk Road.

"Chinese silk has a 5,000-year history, characterized by its origins, evolution, dissemination, and exchange," explained Zhou Yang, deputy director of the China National Silk Museum.

Chinese silk not only is crafted through ingenious technological inventions but also embodies profound philosophical ideologies, reflecting the Chinese interpretation of life, death, and the harmony between humans and nature, Zhou noted.

The transformative life cycle of a silkworm, with its four distinct stages, inspired ancient Chinese thinkers to ponder profound cosmic and existential questions. Historical records reveal that silk played a vital role in ancient Chinese rituals, symbolizing the connection between heaven and earth.

While historical records serve as valuable references, recent archaeological discoveries have provided tangible evidence of early silk production in China, predating the Silk Road by millennia, as Zhou pointed out.

Although limited archaeological finds directly related to the early origins of silk in China, due to the decomposition of most ancient silk into residue or microtraces, recent technological advancements have shed light on these ancient origins.

Over the past decade, with support from the State Administration of Cultural Heritage of China and various research institutions, the China National Silk Museum has developed an affordable and convenient silk micro trace detection technology based on immunology. This breakthrough enables the detection of ancient silk traces within approximately 15 minutes.

Utilizing this technology, Chinese experts have discovered significant amounts of silk in the ash of sacrificial pits at the Sanxingdui Ruins, marking the earliest silk found in the upper Yangtze River region. The technology has also been effectively applied to the South China Sea No. 1 shipwreck site, challenging the notion that maritime Silk Road sites lacked silk and providing new archaeological evidence for World Heritage applications.

"We are continuously refining our silk microtrace detection technology, enhancing its sensitivity. Now we can confidently state that if silk was present, we can detect its traces," Zhou said.

Looking forward, Zhou plans to collaborate closely with archaeologists, applying this technology to prehistoric sites to further expand the temporal and spatial boundaries of silk's origins.

(Source: Xinhua)

Editor: Wang Shasha
Tsering Geden's wife and daughter have fun at the hall of their family hotel located at a gateway to Mt. Qomolangma in Dingri County, southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, May 23, 2024. [Xinhua/Ding Ting]

LHASA, June 11 (Xinhua)  It was already 10 at night, but Tsering Geden and his wife were still bustling around their restaurant filled with tourists from all over the world. The warm atmosphere inside formed a stark contrast to the chilly air outside at the foot of the world's highest peak  the 8,848-meter Mount Qomolangma.

As Xizang Autonomous Region in southwest China enters its peak tourism season, the couple's three-story hotel located at a gateway to Mt. Qomolangma in Dingri County is often fully booked.

The mountain deep in the Himalayas is not only a dream destination for climbers and tourists, but also serves as a source of hope of prosperity for locals.

Tsering Geden grew up in Basong Village at the foot of Mt. Qomolangma. When he was young, his family relied mainly on herding to make a living. Tsering Geden and his father also served as guides for climbers to earn extra income.

Tsering Geden recalled that in the past, visitors could only stay in the county seat located more than 100 km away from the base camp, due to a lack of adequate infrastructure closer to Mt. Qomolangma. Back then, travelers would often stop at Tsering Geden's home asking if there was a place to stay over.

To cater to travelers' needs, Tsering Geden's father converted their two-story Tibetan house into the village's first homestay.

"Although there was only a single light bulb for illumination and a stairway with only one person's width leading to the second floor, the homestay was the best in the village for a long time," said Tsering Geden, now 32.

In recent years, Xizang has developed rapidly, and improved infrastructure has brought more tourists to Mt. Qomolangma. As the old homestay could no longer accommodate the growing number of guests, in 2019 Tsering Geden built a new three-story building with 35 guest rooms.

The rooms are equipped with underfloor heating, as well as tap water, bringing an end to the days when only a yak dung stove was available for heating.

"Every time I come to Xizang, there are new changes. The development at the foot of Mt. Qomolangma is rapid," said Mike Thomsen, a tourist from Denmark, who was on his fourth trip to Xizang.

Thomsen, 49, rode a motorcycle there from the regional capital Lhasa along with his pals and checked in at Tsering Geden's hotel.

"It's incredible that in such a remote, high-altitude place, our hotel can provide underfloor heating and laundry services," he said.

In 2023, the hotel earned the family 3 million yuan (about 422,000 U.S. dollars) in revenue.

Figures show that from Jan. 1 to May 20 this year, the Mt. Qomolangma scenic area received more than 136,000 tourists, a 27 percent year-on-year increase.

To protect the ecosystem, the scenic area banned fuel cars in 2018 to reduce emissions, and has been offering electric shuttle bus services for tourists ever since. The fleet has grown from 20 to 84 vehicles and nearby villages have started investing in the shuttle bus business this year as well, with more buses purchased to boost transport options for tourists.

Over the years, Basong Village has transformed into a hot destination with ample tourist accommodation, and almost every household is running homestays or hotels. Tsering Geden's hotel is no longer the best one in the village.

The ambitious Tsering Geden plans to further expand his business this year by building a high-end Tibetan-style hotel with an investment of 9 million yuan. Thanks to support from the government, he will be able to borrow 4 million yuan from a bank.

"With more visitors expected, I am confident in the prospects of my business," he said.

(Source: Xinhua)

Editor: Wang Shasha
Calls for Sin Bin approach to sanction misbehaving Senedd members

This article is old - Published: Thursday, Jun 13th, 2024

An academic urged the Senedd to introduce a sin bin-style approach to sanctioning misbehaving members.

Jonathan Tonge, a professor at the University of Liverpool, gave evidence to a Senedd inquiry on creating a recall system to allow voters to remove members between elections.

Prof Tonge raised concerns about a suspension of 10 sitting days or more being used as one of the criteria for triggering a petition under Westminsters recall system.

He told the standards committee the blunt, arbitrary cutoff creates a cliffedge as he called for a tapered, sin bin approach with different sanctions for 10 to 30-day suspensions.

Prof Tonge contrasted relatively light sanctions, such as the removal of rights and privileges, below 10 days with a drastic and draconian penalty above the threshold.

Anti-democratic

The politics professor warned it is very, very difficult for the miscreant to survive, pointing out that only one MP has remained in post following a recall petition.

Vikki Howells, who chairs the committee, asked whether Senedd members who change their political allegiance after an election should be subject to recall.

From 2016 to 2021, more than 10% of members jumped ship at least once  with Mark Reckless representing Ukip, the Tories, Brexit Party and Abolish the Welsh Assembly.

Prof Tonge said defecting should be grounds for recall, particularly under the closed-list electoral system which will see people voting for parties rather than candidates from 2026.

He told the committee: If youve got a party list system and someones stood on a party label then switches, the electorate may struggle to understand the legitimacy of that.

It is in many ways anti-democratic.

Wrongdoing

Asked by Plaid Cymrus Peredur Owen Griffiths how a Senedd recall system could work, Prof Tonge said a straightforward option would be to co-opt a replacement from party lists.

He said holding by-elections risks punishing parties for the wrongdoing of individuals.

But he warned it would be more of a removal petition than a recall one because MSs would not be able to fight a by-election to clear their name as in Westminster.

Prof Tonge told committee members he is not a massive fan of co-option, stressing it is possible to hold by-elections under a proportional representation system.

The expert raised the example of Ireland holding 138 by-elections since 1923, with seats changing hands in almost half of those instances.

Insurmountable

He made a case for raising the threshold of 10% of voters signing a petition to 15%, if replacements are co-opted under Wales new fully proportional system.

Mark Drakeford suggested a simple retain-or-replace ballot, with a 20% threshold to ensure a reasonable proportion of the electorate takes part.

Prof Tonge was wary about raising the threshold too high, warning it might be a struggle to get 20% of the electorate to turn out.

I wouldnt start making the threshold insurmountable, said the academic.

He pointed out that 18.9% signed a petition which triggered a UK Parliament by-election in Brecon and Radnorshire in 2019 after an MP was convicted of claiming false expenses.

Hamstrung

Asked by the former first minister about spending limits, Prof Tonge said a 10,000 cap on expenditure by campaigners seems reasonable.

He told Prof Drakeford spending on recall petitions has been modest because campaigners are rightly not allowed to provide running commentary.

He said: Parties have found themselves fairly hamstrung in what they can do any way and that might explain why they have, thus far, not spent a lot of money campaigning.

Prof Tonge added that parties know the 10% threshold will likely be reached.

He explained that the threshold has been comfortably passed ever since the 2018 North Antrim petition, which was exceptional due to the particular politics of Northern Ireland.

Great opportunity

Prof Tonge described the ad-hoc number of petition stations, for people to sign in person, as a flaw in Westminsters model, which can be correlated with turnout.

He cautioned that recall petitions can be costly, with the most expensive costing 500,000, but he said: Its a balance  you dont want to cost cut on democracy.

Asked by the Conservatives Natasha Asghar for examples of best practice, he stressed that no institution has got recall 100% right and there will always be anomalies.

But Prof Tonge told the committee meeting on June 10: Its not often that these words might cross my lips but I actually think Westminster has got this broadly right.

He added: I do think youve got a great opportunity here  to correct the details that Westminster got wrong while retaining the 80%-plus that Westminster got right.

By Chris Haines, ICNN Senedd reporter
Conservative Parliamentary Candidate praises relaunch of Rossett Food Cupboard

This article is old - Published: Thursday, Jun 13th, 2024

The Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Wrexham has praised the launch of the Rossett Food Cupboards new upgraded premises.

The organisation works with supermarkets to collect food stuffs and items that would otherwise be wasted.

Paul, who alongside his wife Claire and a handful of local volunteers runs the service, which also works to reduce food waste at the same time as helping residents.

Items available range from cereals and fresh produce to kitchen staples.

On Saturday 1 June 2024, Ms Atherton attended the launch of the Rossett Food Cupboard at its new, bigger site.

In addition, there is now a cafe aimed at combatting loneliness where people can have a cup of tea, a slice of cake and a chat.

As the former Member of Parliament for Wrexham, Ms Atherton worked with owners Paul and Claire and Wrexham Council to secure bigger premises.

Sarah Atherton, Conservative Parliamentary Candidate for Wrexham said: It has been an absolute pleasure to witness the development of the Rossett Food Cupboard from its inception to its new, larger premises.

The Cupboards eco-friendly approach not only reduces food waste but also provides support to our community. It truly exemplifies the best of Wrexham.

As someone who has championed the Cupboards journey, I was pleased that our hard work paid off in securing a bigger site.

The progress made, including hosting a Secretary of State and now the successful re-opening, is a testament to our communitys unwavering commitment to sustainability.

Well done, Paul and Claire and all of your wonderful volunteers.

Paul Marshall, Co-owner of the Rossett Food Cupboard commented: After months of struggling dealing with the council, I reached out to Sarah Atherton and her team for help.

Their assistance was invaluable  through countless emails and meetings, we were finally able to secure the land we needed.

I have no doubt that Sarahs dedication and support were key in accelerating the process.

Its been a whirlwind of a year, from attending Prime Ministers Questions at Parliament to hosting visits from the Secretary of State.

I want to express my deepest thanks to everyone who has supported us, especially our incredible volunteers who make it all possible.

You know who you are, and we couldnt have done it without you.

For any residents who would like more information on the Cupboard, please click here.

Other candidates running to become Wrexhams next Member of Parliament are:

Paul Ashton: Abolish the Welsh Assembly

Charles Dodman: Reform UK

Becca Martin: Plaid Cymru

Tim Morgan: The Green Party

Andrew Ranger: Welsh Labour

Tim Sly: Welsh Liberal Democrats

You can view our General Election coverage here.
Dysfunctional Wrexham Council criticised in Senedd over negative direct payment experience

This article is old - Published: Thursday, Jun 13th, 2024

Disabled people too often face a David and Goliath-style battle for support under Wales health and social care system, a committee heard.

The Senedd health committee took evidence about the Welsh Governments plans to reform direct payments which allow disabled people to arrange their own care and support.

Nathan Lee Davies, an author, artist, and activist from Wrexham, told the committee he has had a largely negative experience of direct payments with his local council.

The local authority has recently clawed back 33,000 of my direct payments, he said, adding that he finds it difficult to spend his money in the way he would like.

Mr Davies, who has Friedrichs ataxia, which affects his co-ordination, balance and speech, was saving up for a rainy day as well as a holiday to Florida  his first break in 14 years.

David and Goliath

But Wrexham council demanded the return of surplus funds, leading him to launch a successful gofundme campaign to raise money for his dream trip.

Chris Hall, a volunteer who supports Nathan, said the campaigner gets no opportunity to co-produce his defective, appallingly written care and support plan.

He said Nathan faces a continual David-and-Goliath battle with a dysfunctional direct payments department, warning: Theyre not interested in what Nathan wants.

He drew a parallel with the victims of scandals around the post office, infected blood, and the Hillsborough disaster  who found themselves isolated and up against big organisations.

Mr Hall told the committee disabled people are too often walking a financial tightrope unable to save money for a potentially catastrophic rainy day.

Better the devil

He stressed that disabled people deserve the opportunity to live a fulfilled life, not just get by.

If passed, the health and social care bill will introduce a right to direct payments via the Continuing NHS Healthcare support service.

Mr Hall warned that disabled people who opt for direct payments for Continuing NHS Healthcare may not be able to go back to receiving support from the council.

I think Nathan and many people who are disabled say its better the devil I know, he said.

Rather than jumping into a swimming pool and saying Ill see if I can swim theyre saying Ill stay on the edge of the pool  at least Im not drowning.

Shahd Zorob, a fellow campaigner, from Carmarthenshire, warned about more pressure being piled on an already under-strain health service.

Revolving door

Ms Zorob, who has cerebral palsy, also raised concerns about a shortage of personal assistants, saying the pay is simply not good enough.

Mr Hall agreed that there is too often a revolving door in terms of support workers, with Mr Davies finding it difficult to recruit and retain staff.

Hes effectively self-employed and managing 10 staff, he told the meeting on June 12.

Cecilia Kenny, a disability rights campaigner, who is also from Wrexham, called for clearer information and communication around the plans for direct payments via the NHS.

Samantha Williams, policy manager at Learning Disability Wales, supported the reforms aims but raised concerns about implementation and the administrative burden on families.

Two-tier war

Jake Smith, policy officer at Carers Wales, said the bill would potentially increase choice and control for unpaid carers and their loved ones.

Kat Watkins, project development officer at Disability Wales, who recently moved to Continuing NHS Healthcare herself, also welcomed the proposed changes.

She said: Weve got a two-tier war between disabled people and people with long-term health conditions who either can have the control over their care or cant.

And that is not something that we want in Wales at all.

Ms Watkins added: Its so important for human rights they may have complex health needs but they still have rights as human beings to have an independent life.

By Chris Haines, ICNN Senedd reporter
Gwenfro Valley Adventure Playground celebrates completion of new Zipwire and facilities project

This article is old - Published: Thursday, Jun 13th, 2024

Gwenfro Valley Adventure Playground is celebrating the successful completion of its much-anticipated new toilet and zipwire rebuilding project.

The community came together on 11 June to celebrate this exciting development, with special guest Police and Crime Commissioner Andy Dunbobbin joining parents and children for the event.

The Gwenfro Valley new toilets has received 7482 from the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund. As well as 9829 from the Welsh Governments Landfill Disposals Tax Communities Scheme (LDTCS), administered by WCVA.

The new facilities mark a significant improvement to the playground, enhancing both the convenience and enjoyment for children and adults utilising the sessions.

The zipwire has been a much loved feature of Gwenfro Valley for years and replacing is has been a long term project with the children excited to see it return to use.

New toilet facilities also ensure a more comfortable and accessible experience for everyone using the playground and the wider community.

Mr Dunbobbin commented: I would like to congratulate everyone involved in the creation of the exciting new facilities at Gwenfro Valley Adventure Playground, including the Trustees, local residents and contractors.

As Police and Crime Commissioner for North Wales, I was delighted to be invited to attend and help inaugurate the new facilities.

I know that the playground is already a much-valued amenity for the local community, and the new Zipwire and toilets will only help to further cement the playgrounds importance for local children and their families.

Projects across Wrexham will also ideally benefit from the Wrexham Town Board, which is being set-up and will hopefully be distributing funding in the city in due course.

I look forward to seeing the playground and the new facilities at Gwenfro being used and enjoyed by residents even more in the months and years ahead.

Helen Williams of Cadwyn Clwyd, added: Cadwyn Clwyd and AVOW through the UK Shared prosperity fund are delighted to be able to provide funding to worthy groups within Wrexham and we wish Gwenfro Valley Adventure Playground every success in the future.

Local parents expressed their gratitude for the improvements. Carly Braisdell, shared: The new toilet facilities are a game-changer for us.

It makes visiting the playground so much easier and more enjoyable. It is great to see the zipwire return  my kids absolutely love it!

Gwenfro Valley Adventure Playground has long been a beloved community spot, open for over 17 years, providing a safe and engaging environment for children of all ages to play and explore.

With a range of play equipment and activities, it aims to foster creativity, physical activity, and community engagement among local families.

Organisers said that the completion of the new toilet and zipwire project is a testament to the communitys commitment to maintaining and improving this valuable resource.

Local charity Wrexham Youth and Play Partnership currently run Gwenfro Valley Adventure Playground.

Chair of the trustees, Mike Barclay, said of the projects: Gwenfro Valley Adventure Playground is a much loved community space and means a great deal to local children and their families.

However, securing funding for these sorts of community facilities is an ongoing challenge.

Its therefore great to have some good news to share and celebrate, especially given that today is the first ever International Day of Play!

And here we have some fantastic examples of our staff and volunteers working hard to support childrens right to play.

The projects were made possible through the collaborative efforts of Welsh Governments Landfill Disposals Tax Communities Scheme (LDTCS), administered by WCVA, AVOW, Cadwyn Clwyd, UK Shared Prosperity Fund, Wrexham County Borough Council, Gwenfro Valley Parent Steering Group, and generous donors through Just Giving. Gwenfro Valley Adventure Playground extends its heartfelt thanks to everyone who contributed to making these projects a reality.

Information about Gwenfro Valley Adventure Playground and Wrexham Youth and Play Partnership can be found on the website http://www.gwenfrovalleyadventureplayground.co.uk
The Sri Lankan parliament passed the electricity reform bill on June 6, as part of the restructuring of state-owned enterprises (SOE) demanded by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and in line with the conditions of its $US3 billion bailout loan.

Ceylon Electricity Board workers protesting against privatisation in Colombo on January 4, 2024.

The opposition parties, including the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) and the National Peoples Power (NPP), the electoral front of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), voted against the bill in the second reading. These parties, however, then allowed parliament to approve the final bill without a vote.

The Sri Lanka Electricity Bill repeals the 1969 Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) Act and subsequent laws regarding the electricity industry. The CEB has been the countrys main supplier, having the power to generate, transmit and distribute electrical energy, to reach all categories of consumers and collect the revenue. Established as a state entity, it provided limited subsidised tariffs to consumers.

The new bill, which becomes law as soon as the Parliamentary Speaker signs it, will unbundle the CEB into 12 newly-created companies that will take over all its activities. The power and energy minister will appoint their boards of directors. Although these companies will initially remain under government ownership, they will eventually be privatised or commercialised.

Prior to its passage, the opposition SJB, NPP and about two dozen other groups filed petitions in the Supreme Court which ruled that the Bill violates Article 12(1) of the Constitution ensuring equality before the law. The court, however, recommended amending 13 out of 54 clauses of the Bill, which if accepted would allow it to be passed through parliament with a simple majority.

The government, of course, accepted the amendments, with Power and Energy Minister Kanchana Wijesekera stating that the amendments would be incorporated in the Bills final, third stage.

The amendments relate to the ministers power to appoint the directors of the boards of companies created under the new law. They do not change the main thrust of the law which is to open the way for profit-hungry local and international investors to exploit this highly lucrative industry.

Notwithstanding the posturing of the opposition parties, their decision to allow the bill to pass without a vote makes clear that they have no fundamental differences with the government on privatisation of the CEB or any other SOE. The SJB, NPP/JVP and other opposition parties are fully committed to the IMFs austerity program.

Restructuring the CEB will result in the destruction of thousands of jobs, the slashing of wages and other rights, and the driving-up of workloads to boost the profits of the companies now formed in preparation for privatisations.

Addressing a parliamentary select committee in February, CEB General Manager Narendra de Silva said that the company only had about 22,000 employeesdown from 24,000and admitted that management planned to reduce the existing workforce to just 18,000. The job destruction, however, will not end there.

On June 7, the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce (CCC), Sri Lankas main business lobby, issued a statement hailing the Bill as a landmark decisionone it has been advocating for the past few years.

The restructuring process began with an Act of parliament in 2002. The government, however, was unable to implement its proposals in the face of widespread opposition by the working class and urban and rural masses, who feared losing the limited electricity subsidies.

Two decades later, the global economic turmoil created by the COVID-19 pandemic and the US-NATO proxy war in Ukraine drastically hit Sri Lanka. This resulted in the eruption of popular opposition with mass struggles from April to July 2022 that forced the resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapakse and the downfall of his government.

The betrayal of the mass movement by the trade unions and pseudo-left groups created the conditions for Ranil Wickremesinghe to be elevated into the presidency, who ruthlessly pressed ahead with the IMFs brutal program. This includes the privatisation or commercialisation of hundreds of SOEs, major attacks on welfare programs and other revenue-gathering measures through massive tax increases and devaluation of the currency.

Praising the so-called electricity reform bill, Minister Wijesekera claimed the measure would benefit the masses. This is a lie. The government rapidly scrapped energy subsidies, raising electricity tariffs by 75 percent in August 2022, 66 percent in February 2023 and an additional 18 percent last July. These increases had a devastating impact on the poor.



Last year, the CEB and the state-controlled LECO company disconnected electricity to 1.06 million consumers unable to pay the new rates. The higher tariffs, however, saw rising income for the CEB, which garnered 84.6 billion rupees in profit during the JanuaryMarch quarter this year.

The trade unions, many of which are affiliated to the ruling and opposition capitalist parties and totally committed to the IMF agenda, are the main prop of the Wickremesinghe government, allowing it to carrying out its restructuring of SOEs and other austerity measures.



The CEB trade union bureaucracies are a case in point, having played an essential role in this process.

On June 6, as the Electricity Bill was being discussed in parliament, several CEB unions, including the JVP-controlled All-Ceylon Electricity Employees Union (ACEEU), held a futile silent protest of about 100 members outside CEBs head office in Colombo. The union leadership only called this protest to posture as opponents of the governments move.

Ranjan Jayalal, leader of JVP-controlled All-Ceylon Electricity Employees Union, addressing the media outside CEB head office in Colombo, Sri Lanka, on June 6, 2024

When the Bill was passed in the parliament that evening, Ranjan Jayalal, a leader of the JVP and the ACEEU, told the media: We knew these law makers would pass the bill. They have no mandate to take decisions on SOEs. This government will have to go home, and they deserve a defeat.



Jayalal then cynically claimed that the Electricity Act will only be active in six months and that the current government will not be in office. He praised the Supreme Court for ruling that the bill was unconstitutional.

The JVP is seeking to divert the mass opposition to the privatisation into its campaign in the presidential election. However, its candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake has publicly declared the JVPs support for the IMFs dictates and, if elected, will implement the IMF measures just as ruthlessly as Wickremesinghe.

When the Electricity Bill was originally presented to parliament on April 25, Jayalal was even more explicit. Addressing a protest of a few dozen trade union officials near parliament, he declared that even if the restructuring bill was passed the Wickremesinghe regime would not be in power to enact it.

Opposing industrial action against the government, he declared, We [need to] think twice about taking strong measures if we suffer ourselves. We have not had any strike action since 1996. This referred to a three-day strike that was crushed by President Chandrika Kumaratunga in a military operation against the strikers.

Jayalal went on to explain: If the health employees go on strike, patients suffer. When railway workers go on strike, passengers are affected. We know that if CEB workers strike, the country goes dark and 20 million people will suffer.

In other words, Jayalal simply repeated the same propaganda churned out by every capitalist government, the corporate media and the ruling elite whenever workers take action to fight for their rights.

When tens of thousands of CEB workers held a three-day sick-leave campaign in early January this year, the government retaliated by suspending 62 employees. The CEB trade unions refused to lift a finger to defend their members or fight for their reinstatement.

The JVP-controlled unions and other trade union bureaucracies are deliberately working to demobilise workers and keep them tied to the parliamentary framework. Jayalals arguments indicate what JVP/NPP will say to justify repressive action against the working class if it were in power.

Workers in the CEB and all other public sectors must reject these pro-capitalist trade union bureaucracies. They should reject the empty promises of the JVP/NPP, which has made clear that it will carry out the dictates of the IMF and impose more misery for working people.

We call upon workers to form their own independent action committees as fighting organs to defend their jobs, wages and working conditions against government attacks. What is required is the mobilisation of workers and the rural masses to place all SOEs under democratic control of the working class, as an integral part of a broader fight for a workers and peasants government to implement a socialist and internationalist program.
A meeting of Western Sydney University (WSU) staff and students on Wednesday voted to form a rank-and-file committee to oppose the job destruction and restructuring at WSU College. To join the inaugural meeting of the committee, to be held on Zoom next Wednesday at noon, contact: cfpe.aus@gmail.com

Western Sydney University

Staff and students from Western Sydney University (WSU) voted at a meeting yesterday to form a WSU Rank-and-File Committee to organise a campaign against the destruction of scores of jobs and the pro-business restructuring of WSU College, the universitys wholly-owned feeder college.

They did so in opposition to a deal struck with the WSU management by the National Tertiary Education Union (NTEU) to impose the job losses and stifle resistance by encouraging or pushing staff members to accept so-called voluntary redundancies.

They decided to launch a fight against the role of the NTEU in trying to block any campaign against the job cuts and isolating the WSU College workers so that virtually no staff members or students at WSU even know about the pro-business restructuring of the college.

WSU management is demanding the elimination of the equivalent of 17 full-time educators positionsor more than 10 percentand a spill and fill regime to force staff members to compete against each other for the remaining posts. The heaviest cuts are to arts, literature and humanities, including the abolition of the English department.

Opening the meeting, WSU College lecturer Gabriela Zabala asked: Where are the leaflets and posters from the NTEU opposing the job cuts and restructuring? There are none.

If there is going to be a fight to inform, alert and win the support of the WSU staff, it will have to come from us, not the NTEU.

This restructuring is not just the work of the WSU College management. It comes from the very top of WSU itself and can therefore only be fought by a unified campaign across the university.

Zabala warned that the NTEU leadership is hostile to any rank-and-file fight against the decimation of jobs and conditions. That flowed from the unions 2022 enterprise agreement with WSU College, in which it agreed to assist the College to remain competitive in the market, which meant it may need to change its structure, operations, and priorities to meet business requirements.

With the predetermined agreement of the NTEU, that was precisely what WSU management was doing with the decimation of the WSU College and the elimination of jobs.

Zabala answered an accusation that she and other supporters of the Committee for Public Education (CFPE), the rank-and-file network, and the Socialist Equality Party were hiding their political affiliations.

We have never hidden the fact we are supporters of the CFPE and SEP, she pointed out. It is no accident that socialists are organising the necessary campaign against the cuts, against the NTEUs refusal to do so.

Taking a stand for quality education and the defence of jobs and conditions means rejecting the dictates of management, governments and the corporate elite.

But rank-and-file committee membership does not require political agreement. The committee will be democratically elected, based on a willingness to organise a counter-offensive.

WSU educator Mike Head told the meeting: College staff cannot be left to fight this attack on their own. This is an issue for all of us, including students, at WSU and at all the universities

What is happening at WSU College is part of a wider picture. Unless this assault on jobs and conditions is defeated, it will set another precedent across WSU and throughout the tertiary education sector.

Head said the Australian Financial Review had reported the day before that about 2,000 jobs have already been lost in the international education sector as universities, private colleges and recruitment firms are hit by the Labor governments cuts to international student enrolments.

According to the report, job losses will escalate, and another 6,000 workers could be forced out of the sector in the next six months as the cuts bite.

Under these conditions, the NTEU officials were helping to eliminate jobs, Head warned. What has been formed at WSU College is essentially a partnership between the NTEU and management to stifle opposition by pressuring or encouraging staff members to apply for redundancies.

Head said the Albanese Labor government was continuing to starve the public universities of funding, forcing them to scramble for enrolments, including by offering students vocational micro courses and alternative pathways into degree programs.

This financial squeeze was being intensified by the Labor governments pro-business Universities Accord, drawn up by a panel that featured the CEO of Macquarie Bank. Based on the Accord report, the government was demanding the wholesale reshaping of tertiary education to satisfy the specific employment and research demands of big business and the preparations for war, such as the AUKUS military pact against China.

During the discussion, an academic employed as a casual at WSU College said it was necessary to bypass the union, with which he had bad experiences years ago. He voiced deep concerns about the way education had been increasingly casualised and corporatised for decades.

Another WSU College educator said she agreed with the need to form a rank-and-file committee. She provided a picture of the onerous conditions at WSU College, saying she was coordinating multiple subjects at a time.

A WSU student, a member of the International Youth and Students for Social Equality club at the university, said students were also being kept in the dark about what was happening at WSU College. He noted that the Labor government was spending $368 billion on AUKUS submarines and that military spending would mean deeper cuts to education.

Educators from the University of Sydney and the Macquarie University Rank-and-File Committee related their experiences in being blocked by NTEU representatives, while raising the need for a unified struggle across the universities against the attacks on jobs and conditions.

Sue Phillips, the national convenor of the CFPE, said teachers in the schools also faced acute staff shortages and excessive workloads as a result of being straitjacketed by enterprise agreements rammed through by the education unions using anti-democratic methods.

After the discussion, the meeting voted to establish the WSU Rank-and-File Committee, independent of the NTEU. It formed a steering committee to draft a founding statement, a set of demands and an action plan to present for discussion at the inaugural meeting of the committee next Wednesday.

The committees first task will be to organise an information campaign throughout WSU and other universities and call for support for a university-wide and broader campaign to defeat the restructuring and job cuts.

It is calling on WSU staff and students who agree with this standwhether union members or notto join next Wednesdays meeting and help launch and build the committee. To attend the meeting, to be held on Zoom at noon, or send a message of support, contact the CFPE:

Email: cfpe.aus@gmail.com

Facebook: facebook.com/commforpubliceducation

Twitter: @CFPE_Australia
The Israeli government and military have committed systematic crimes against humanity, including extermination, during their eight-month-long assault on Gaza, a key United Nations commission found in a report published Wednesday.

The report is the first in-depth investigation by the United Nations into the events that have happened since October 7 and is based on detailed interviews with victims and witnesses. The three-person commission is led by Navi Pillay, a former United Nations human rights chief.

The commission concluded that the Israeli military and government committed the war crimes of starvation as a method of warfare; murder or willful killing; intentionally directing attacks against civilians and civilian objects; forcible transfer; sexual violence; outrages upon personal dignity; and [sexual and gender-based violence] amounting to torture or inhuman and cruel treatment.

It found that Israel was responsible for crimes against humanity. According to the report extermination; murder; gender persecution targeting Palestinian men and boys; forcible transfer; and torture and inhuman and cruel treatment were committed.

Palestinians look at the aftermath of the Israeli bombing in Nuseirat refugee camp, Gaza Strip, on June 8, 2024. [AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi]

This report lends further weight to the charges by Karim Khan, the lead prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant are guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

While the 2023-24 Gaza genocide shares elements of previous Israeli assaults on Gaza, it is of a totally different magnitude and intensity. The report asserts that Israels military operation and attack in Gaza has been the longest, largest and bloodiest since 1948. It has caused immense damage and loss of life.

It notes that hostilities between 2005 and 2023 resulted in less than a tenth of the fatalities since October 7. It adds: The Commission has also observed an increasing trend in the number of fatalities of women and children compared with previous hostilities.

The massive civilian death toll is due to the fact that, in the words of the commission, the Israeli government has given [the Israeli military] blanket authorization to target civilian locations widely and indiscriminately in the Gaza Strip.

The systematic mass bombing of Palestinian civilians is accompanied by a deliberate effort to starve the population of Gaza into submission in a form of collective punishment.

The report concludes that Israel has used starvation as a method of war, affecting the entire population of the Gaza Strip for decades to come, with particularly negative consequences for children. This is a war crime.

The report concludes:

At the time of writing this report, children have already died due to acute malnutrition and dehydration. Through the siege it imposed, Israel has weaponized the withholding of life-sustaining necessities, cutting off supplies of water, food, electricity, fuel, and other essential supplies, including humanitarian assistance. This constitutes collective punishment and reprisal against the civilian population, both of which are clear violations of [international humanitarian law].

The report documents the systematic blocking of food, water and electricity from entering the Gaza Strip, which was justified in the proclamation by Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant of a complete siege... no electricity, no water, no food, no fuel. We are fighting human animals, and we act accordingly.

The commission noted statements by Israeli authorities intending to hold the population of the Gaza Strip hostage to achieve political and military objectives, actions that aim to carry out the collective punishment of the entire population for the actions of a few, a clear violation of international humanitarian law.

While the US and Israeli media have repeatedly asserted that Hamas forces that took part in the October 7 attack on Israel committed mass rapes, the report concludes that the commission has not been able to independently verify such allegations, and that it found some specific allegations to be false, inaccurate, or contradictory with other evidence or statements and discounted these from its assessment.

Critically, the report also documents the Israeli militarys stand-down during October 7 and the deliberate targeting of Israeli civilians by the Israeli military that day.

The commission found that the Israeli militarys response to the October 7 attack was significantly delayed and, in many places, totally inadequate. This was despite the fact that the Israeli military was in possession of Hamass detailed battle plans for the attack. On the day of the attack, Israeli forces were deliberately withdrawn from the border.

Once Israeli forces arrived, they began attacking Israeli hostages and other civilians. The report states:

The Commission documented one statement by an ISF tank crew, confirming that the crew had applied the Hannibal Directive by shooting at a vehicle which they suspected was transporting abducted ISF [Israeli security forces] soldiers.

The Hannibal Directive aims to prevent the capture of Israelis by enemy forces, even at the cost of their lives, and implies that the IDF should kill Israelis rather than allow them to fall into the hands of Hamas.

The report continues:

The Commission also verified information indicating that, in at least two other cases, ISF had likely applied the Hannibal Directive, resulting in the killing of up to 14 Israeli civilians. One woman was killed by ISF helicopter fire while being abducted from Nir Oz to Gaza by militants. In another case, the Commission found that Israeli tank fire killed some or all of the 13 civilian hostages held in a house in Beeri.

The commission concluded:

Israeli authorities failed to protect civilians in southern Israel on almost every front. This included failing to swiftly deploy sufficient security forces to protect civilians and evacuate them from civilian locations on 7 October. In several locations, ISF applied the so-called Hannibal Directive and killed at least 14 Israeli civilians.

The report notes: Statements made by Israeli officials reflected policy and practice of inflicting widespread destruction, killing large numbers of civilians, and forcible transfer.

This report makes clear that despite a systematic slander campaign by the entire US political establishment and media, led by the Biden White House, ongoing mass demonstrations against the Gaza genocide are motivated not by antisemitism but by opposition to an immense violation of international law.

The perpetrators of this massive war crime are not merely in Israel, they are in Washington. The Biden administration has systematically funded, armed and politically supported the genocide. It has provided over 100 separate arms shipments to Israel and defended every one of Israels deliberate massacres of civilians, including last weekends Nuseirat Massacre that killed 274 people.
Socialist Equality Party member Mike Head was interviewed this week on 4ZZZ Brisbane community radio about the global campaign to free imprisoned Ukrainian socialist Bogdan Syrotiuk.

Blair Martin conducted the interview for 4ZZZ, which has an audience throughout Brisbane, Australias third-largest city, and beyond online.

Initially broadcast on Wednesday night, the interview will also be featured on the new Zed Digital program Radical Ozzz, which debuts on 4ZZZ this Saturday, June 15 at 5 p.m. (AEST). As well, it will stream live and on demand at the 4ZZZ website, or via the Community Radio Plus app. World Socialist Web Site readers can listen to the recording below.

Head explained that Syrotiuk is the victim of a blatant frame-up by the Ukrainian regime, which charged him with high treason and slandered him as a propaganda agent of the Russian government. In reality, Syrotiuk, as a leader of the Young Guard of Bolshevik-Leninists (YGBL), has published articles and statements on the World Socialist Web Site to fight to unite workers in Ukraine and Russia against the fratricidal US-NATO-instigated war and all the governments involved, including the Putin regime.

The Zelensky regimes June 3 martial-law ban on the WSWS had further shown that Syrotiuks arrest was targeted at socialist opposition to the war, Head said. It also demonstrated the fascistic and dictatorial nature of the regime, exposing the claims of the US and its imperialist allies to be fighting for democracy in Ukraine.

Head warned of the intensifying danger of nuclear war posed by escalating US and NATO moves against Russia in the Ukraine war, and emphasised the connection between that conflict and the global war drive of American imperialism and its allies, including their support for the Gaza genocide and preparations for a catastrophic conflict with China.

Head called on listeners to join the struggle for Syrotiuks freedom, as part of a fight to defend democratic rights and mobilise the working class against the threat of a new world war. He urged all defenders of human rights and civil liberties, as well as workers and youth, to take a stand in defence of the basic right to dissent and oppose war.
Over the past week, the federal Labor government and the Liberal-National Coalition have launched frenzied attacks on the Greens. They have accused its MPs of stoking division and even violence, solely because the minor party has condemned Israels genocide in Gaza and Australias complicity in it.

Greens leadership outside federal parliament, including Adam Bandt (speaking) with Mehreen Faruqi on his left and David Shoebridge (right).

The campaign is reactionary and sinister and undoubtedly driven in part by electoral motivations. With a federal election due to be held next year at the latest, Labors support remains at historically low levels. Neither major party is projected to be able to form a majority government.

More fundamentally, the frenzied denunciations of the Greens are intended to intimidate and even ban opposition to the Israeli genocide and to war in general. A wartime atmosphere is being whipped up, in which opposition to the militarist policies of the government is depicted as an unacceptable attack on social cohesion.

Under conditions of widespread hostility to Israels barbaric war in Gaza, there is substantial anger and opposition to the attacks on the Greens.

It would be a grave mistake, however, to conclude from the vilification of the Greens that the environmentalist party advances a principled and consistent opposition to war.

The Greens are a pro-capitalist party, with a base of support primarily in the most affluent sections of the middle class. Its criticisms of the genocide are tactical and largely serve the political purpose of diverting opposition back within the parliamentary set-up. That is underscored by the increasingly open support for imperialist war by the Greens over the 15 years.

The Greens response to the bipartisan denunciations of the past week has been tepid. In one parliamentary exchange last week, for instance, as Labors Foreign Minister Penny Wong launched a diatribe against the Greens over Gaza, its foreign affairs spokesperson Jordon Steele-John repeatedly uttered, this is beneath you, foreign minister.

Even in a party statement responding to the bipartisan onslaught and declaring that the Greens would not be lectured by parties supporting war crimes, a plaintive note was struck. The Greens complained of Labors refusal to do anything meaningful to put pressure on Benjamin Netanyahu to stop the slaughter.

The Greens have repeated this essential line throughout the eight-month genocide: moral appeals to Labor to change course and to do the right thing. The Greens have the same message week after week at mass protests opposing the war crimes, where they have called on attendees to increase pressure on Labor.

This political perspective is a bankrupt dead-end. Despite the mass opposition, Labor has not deviated one iota in its support for Israel.

Even in their promotion of protest politics, the Greens have only gone so far. At no stage have they threatened to vote against all Labor legislation until the government ends its support for the atrocities. Nor have the Greens ruled out entering into a power-sharing arrangement or even a coalition with Labor after the next election. That has always been at the very centre of the Greens perspective.

While rhetorically condemning the government, the Greens have continued to signal their willingness to collaborate with it. On May 30, for instance, the Greens issued a statement hailing Labor and its Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. The reason was meagre. All Albanese had done was deny reports of a backroom commitment to major companies that future environmental legislation related to coal and logging approvals would take no notice of climate change implications.

If one looks at the Greens statements and latest news items spanning the Israeli onslaught, a similar pattern is evident. Gaza is occasionally raised, but so are many other things, numbers of them congratulatory of the right-wing, pro-business Labor government.

The entire line of the Greens is aimed at promoting the fraud that Labors support for the genocide is a mistaken or immoral policy that can be corrected, with no intrinsic connection to the governments broader program or its class character.

However, as the WSWS and the Socialist Equality Party have explained, the genocide is one component of an eruption of imperialist militarism globally, which is why Labor and all of the worlds imperialist governments support the mass murder. To fight for an end to the ethnic cleansing in Gaza thus means a fight against imperialist war, the governments and the capitalist system itself.

The Greens are intensely hostile to this socialist perspective, because they defend the profit system and support other key fronts in the war program.

The Greens back the US-NATO proxy war against Russia

Along with overseeing the genocide in Gaza, as part of its drive to war throughout the Middle East targeting Iran, Washington is engaged in a proxy war with Russia in Ukraine. Last month, the US approved the use of its missiles by Ukraine on Russian territory, in a massive escalation highlighting the danger of a world war.

The Greens support the proxy war, repeating all of the lies that it is a conflict for freedom and democracy against Russian expansionism.

In March 2022, a month after the Russian invasion, the Greens joined with Labor and the Coalition to pass a Senate motion hailing the Ukrainian war effort.

In his remarks, foreign affairs spokesman Steele-John did not differentiate from the major parties even slightly. He uttered not a word of criticism of NATO or the US, which deliberately provoked the conflict to pursue their aim of weakening and subordinating Russia. This has included the relentless eastwards expansion of NATO since 1991, a US-sponsored coup ousting a democratically-elected Ukrainian government in 2014, and the subsequent cultivation of a militarist, extreme right-wing US-puppet government in Kiev.

Instead, Steele-John proclaimed that it was necessary to act as a global community in unison to ensure that Vladimir Putin and his dictatorial regime are held to account and that the people of Ukraine are provided with the support that they need. Steele-John called for major sanctions on Russia, which he denounced as a petro-state. He uttered the phrase Slava Ukraini, coined by the Ukrainian fascists who fought alongside the Nazis in World War II.

As the war has claimed hundreds of thousands of lives and NATO has intervened more and more directly, the Greens have not altered their pro-imperialist line one iota. In March 2023, the Greens again voted with the government and the Coalition for a motion backing the Ukrainian war effort.



Steele-John, who occasionally describes himself as a pacifist and a peace activist, spoke like a typical war hawk. Right now, as we sit here, the Ukrainian army is engaged in a great battle with Russian forces over the city of Bakhmut, he proclaimed.

Most significantly, Steele-John warned against any turn away from the war by the NATO powers. He declared: There is a profound moment of danger for the people of Ukraine in that moment if, in the aftermath of victory on the field, the international community declares mission accomplished and moves on. We cannot let that happen.

In their backing of the two resolutions, the Greens signalled their support for the funneling of Australian military aid to the Ukrainian regime, which now amounts to over a billion dollars, much of it in lethal weaponry.

The Greens have repeated the standard imperialist line that this is a war for democracy and freedom. They have thus covered up the reactionary character of the Ukrainian regime, which is dominated by fascists and wholly dependent on the US and NATO. The Greens have said nothing about the Zelensky regimes banning of most opposition parties, its imposition of martial law or its roundups of men to be used as cannon fodder in a war for US strategic interests.

No Greens MP has said a word about the arrest of Bogdan Syrotiuk. A leader of the Young Guard of Bolshevik-Leninists, Syrotiuk has been charged with high treason, for opposing the war from the standpoint of uniting Ukrainian and Russian workers against all the governments involved and the capitalist system. Syrotiuk faces life in prison for advancing that socialist and internationalist perspective on the pages of this website.

A broader pro-imperialist record

The Greens full-blown support for the war in Ukraine is not an aberration, but is part of a broader alignment with imperialist war.

The Greens have made certain tactical criticisms of the AUKUS pact with the US and Britain, which is directed against China. But they are themselves responsible for Australias alignment with the US-led preparations for war with China, which is viewed as the chief economic threat to American imperialism.

The Greens entered into a formal alliance to prop up the minority Labor government of Julia Gillard in 2010. In 2011, Gillard, in a de facto coalition with the Greens, signed up to the US pivot to Asia, a vast military build-up in the region directed against China. When US President Barack Obama announced this war drive on the floor of the Australian parliament, among the first people lined up to shake his hand were then Greens leader Bob Brown and his successor and current leader Adam Bandt.

The Greens had form, with Brown in particular criticising Australian involvement in the US-led wars in the Middle East and Afghanistan, but from the standpoint that the Australian military should focus on this region. Brown advanced all the propaganda points used by the US to justify its build-up, including the promotion of Tibetan and other minority separatism within China.

Support for the pivot was part of a turn to open militarism by the Greens. In 2011, Bandt, having replaced Brown, demanded the imposition of a no-fly zone over Libya. Referring to the CIA-sponsored Islamist forces fighting the Gaddafi regime, he declared: The Libyan rebels are calling for it, the Arab League supports it, and the international community needs to get on with it.

That no-fly zone was eventually forthcoming. It meant the US and NATO bombing Libyan cities to smithereens, in a regime-change operation aimed at securing control of the countrys oil and resources and removing Gaddafi, who had been an irritant to the major powers over decades. The consequence was the transformation of Libya into a failed state, with armed militia fighting to assert control and the reemergence of open-air slave markets.

In 2012, the Greens took the same position on the US-led regime-change operation in Syria. Again, they criticised the government from the right. In May of that year, Bandt and the Greens demanded the imposition of additional sanctions on Syria. The civil war, provoked by the US, is now acknowledged to have been among the largest CIA operations in history. In addition to displacing and killing hundreds of thousands, the Islamist groups sponsored by the US spawned ISIS.

The Greens have never repudiated this record or given an accounting for it. It should be stated bluntly that a party that supported war against the Libyan and Syrian masses will just as readily turn on the Palestinians.

That has already been foreshadowed in Germany where the Greens hold the foreign ministry. Like their Australian counterparts, they rabidly support the US-NATO war in Ukraine. But they also openly back Israel and have played a leading role in seeking to outlaw all political opposition to its genocide in Gaza.

This is a class phenomenon, rooted in the character of the Greens movement as one representing layers of the upper middle class, whose interests are rooted in the capitalist system itself. The Greens are hostile to the only way that war can really be foughtthe independent mobilisation of the working class internationally on a socialist program against all the governments and the capitalist system itself.
The World Socialist Web Site is leading a campaign for the freedom of Ukrainian socialist Bogdan Syrotiuk, who was arrested April 25 by the Ukrainian secret police (SBU) for his opposition to the US-NATO war on Russia. The far-right Ukrainian government, which lauds the legacy of Nazi collaborator Stepan Bandera and his fascist Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists, has slandered Syrotiuk as a stooge of the Russian nationalist regime led by Vladimir Putin. In fact, he is a fighter for the program of socialist internationalism represented by the International Committee of the Fourth International (ICFI), which provides the only way forward in struggle against imperialist war.

Bogdan Syrotiuk, founder and leader of the Young Guard of Bolshevik-Leninists

The campaign to free Bogdan has already won the support of thousands of workers, young people, artists, and intellectuals around the world. We post below further statements of solidarity from workers across Canada calling for his freedom. These statements demonstrate that, against the united front of the Trudeau government and all political parties in parliament, who fuel the bloody war in Ukraine by arming the fascistic Zelensky regime and give standing ovations to Nazi war criminals, opposition to imperialist war and authoritarian forms of rule is mounting in the Canadian working class. We encourage everyone to join the campaign by signing the petition and sending the WSWS your statements of support.

Jory, a worker in the energy sector in western Canada, said, In the strongest terms, I condemn the frame-up of comrade Bogdan Syrotiuk and demand his release. The charges of high treason are a complete sham. Any investigation of Bogdans courageous work against war identifies him as a socialist and an internationalist. He is as irreconcilably opposed to the nationalist adventurism of Russia as he is the ruinous servitude of Ukraine to western imperialism. By fabricating these charges, the Zelensky government and its NATO backers explode their own myths of defending freedom or human rights. Their hypocrisy is obvious when a champion of peace like Bogdan finds himself silenced in prison! Free Bogdan Syrotiuk!

Sterling wrote:

Im Sterling, an education worker in Toronto, and I support the campaign to free Bogdan Syrotiuk. He was arrested for simply being a member of the Trotskyist group, the Young Guard of Bolshevik-Leninists, which fights to educate and raise the class consciousness of the Ukrainian working class in opposition to the US/NATO provoked war against Russia in Ukraine. Bogdans arrest is an attack on the international working class. The government in Canada is at war not just against Russia but against the working class here. Public education and social programs are being gutted to pay for war against Russia, the genocide in Gaza and provocations against China. The quality of public education is diminishing rapidly, while students and staff have to bear with a lack of resources and school buildings in desperate need of maintenance. However, according to the imperialist politicians, this is the price to pay for defending democracy against autocracy. Bogdans imprisonment is a threat to workers in Canada who oppose the war to be quiet, but we will not be silenced. His arrest also tears apart the lies of the imperialist powers justifying their war of aggression against Russia and using the working class of Ukraine as cannon fodder for the predatory interests of imperialism. The only social force able to free Bogdan and stop the reckless escalation of the war is the international working class. Canadian, Russian and Ukrainian workers share common interests against our own governments and we must unite to sweep them aside and the capitalist system they defend to reorganize the planet on a socialist foundation.

Nathan, a bus driver from British Columbia, wrote, Bogdan must be freed! He is simply a young comrade trying to do some good in his country and the world. We cannot allow BS charges to be grounds for detention and imprisonment! Stand united!

Terry, a young worker from Montreal, stated,

The arrest of comrade Bogdan Syrotiuk is the latest act in a long dictatorial repression orchestrated by Zelenskys mafioso-political regime since the Russian invasion of 2022. Assassinations, kidnappings and arbitrary imprisonment are the language used by this criminal regime to assert its domination and stifle all opposition. Examples of this are Daria Dugina, the daughter of Russian ideologist Alexander Dugin, killed in a bomb attack, and a former Ukrainian MP, Illia Kyva, shot dead in his home in December 2023, for having crossed over to the Russian side. All fomented by the SBU, which uses the same accusation to justify its crimes: being pro-Russian! Supported by its imperialist backers, Canada, the United States and Europe, Zelenskys right-wing regime has carte blanche not only to wage a murderous war that is wiping out Ukrainian youth. It also doesnt hesitate to conduct a veritable witch-hunt against anyone it deems to be close to Russia or supporting a different ideology, on unfounded and empty evidence, as they did against comrade Bogdan, based on a 17-page indictment document which supposedly proves that he is pro-Russian, pro-Kremlin and supports the Russian invasion. First of all, the arrest of comrade Bogdan Syrotiuk is part of the cynical and perverse logic of the right-wing Zelensky governments attempt to continue concealing the reality of the war and the many crimes it is committing against the Ukrainian working class by imposing martial law and kidnapping citizens in broad daylight to send them to the slaughter at the front. Comrade Bogdan is fighting to bring this to light and is being persecuted for being the leader of the Young Guard of Bolshevik-Leninists, a socialist organization based in Ukraine and Russia, which campaigns for the unification of the Ukrainian and Russian working classes to stop the current war. His arrest is part of a process to silence all left-wing and socialist opposition, and comes in a context where the Ukrainian president has cancelled elections and suppressed all opposition parties, thus posing as a true autocrat. We cannot allow the capitalist bourgeoisie to attack our class brother, because in attacking him they are attacking all the readers of the World Socialist Web Site who want the end of capitalism. They are attacking Marxist thought and all those, like Bogdan, who fight for the legacy of Leon Trotsky, above all the ICFI. The idea of a proletarian revolution frightens the corrupt capitalist aristocracy, which can no longer justify its unreasonable behavior. Thats why they conduct a witch-hunt against those who want an end to the Palestinian genocide, and those who have a different analysis of the war in Ukraine and wish to see an end to NATOs endless expansionism. When an opinion or discourse differs from their own, they resort to censorship and persecution. Finally, the arrest is linked to the mass arrests across all capitalist countries against peaceful demonstrations for an end to the massacre in Gaza. In my view, it is imperative to link these two repressions, one in Ukraine and the other in Gaza, which are complementary in terms of imperialist objectives. I therefore demand the immediate release of comrade Bogdan Syrotiuk, who is in grave danger being held in the clutches of this fascistic regime.
The new chairperson of the TBT Committee, Daniela Garcia (Ecuador), took over the helm from outgoing chairperson Anna Vitie (Finland) and drew attention to a new WTO brochure highlighting 10 key results from the work of the TBT Committee in 2023. The brochure can be downloaded here.

Members expressed their appreciation to the outgoing chairperson, whose one-year tenure saw the adoption of key decisions in the areas of conformity assessment and transparency as well as the Ministerial Declaration on Strengthening Regulatory Cooperation to Reduce Technical Barriers to Trade.

Transparency

The TBT Committee welcomed the completion of the good practice guide on how to comment on a member's notification (G/TBT/GEN/386). This guide offers TBT Enquiry Points as well as other stakeholders a comprehensive overview of how interested parties can provide feedback on trading partners' regulations before they are finalized.

The guide was prepared based on inputs from a volunteer group of Enquiry Points (Australia, Kenya, Namibia, Peru, Philippines, South Africa and the United States) as well as from deliberations in the Transparency Working Group. Work will continue on developing additional materials targeting a broader range of stakeholders.

Australia and the United States shared their positive experience using the newly adopted online format and guidelines to notify, through ePing, updates to their statements of implementation under Article 15.2 of the TBT Agreement. These one-time notifications, to be updated as necessary, focus on the overarching legal and institutional arrangements members put in place to implement TBT Agreement commitments. Members were encouraged to take advantage of the new format and guidelines, which were elaborated in the Transparency Working Group, to update their statements.

Further information on the Transparency Working Group can be found here.

Conformity assessment procedures

After the adoption of the Guidelines on Conformity Assessment (G/TBT/54) at its last meeting in March 2024, the Committee discussed possible avenues for follow-up. An initial exchange of views was held on how to raise awareness on the Guidelines and, eventually, to exchange experiences on their use. An infographic highlighting the key features of the guidelines is available here.

10th Triennial Review progress

In line with the timeline adopted in June 2023, WTO members submitted 38 proposals under the 10th Triennial Review of the TBT Agreement, with the aim of defining the Committee's work during the upcoming 2025-2027 cycle. The proposals were submitted by Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the European Union, Kenya, New Zealand, Paraguay, the Russian Federation, Chinese Taipei, the United Kingdom and the United States. Members are expected to finalise this review at the last Committee meeting of the year scheduled for November 2024.

The Triennial Review covers key areas in the work of the Committee, including regulatory cooperation between members, transparency, standards, conformity assessment, and matters related to the operation of the Committee. The proposals submitted by WTO members address a wide variety of topics, such as trade and gender, additive manufacturing, the role of metrology in facilitating trade, market surveillance, good regulatory practices and decarbonization standards.

The proposals can be consulted on the dedicated webpage for the 10th Triennial Review.

Specific trade concerns

Members raised seven new trade concerns regarding proposed and final TBT regulations of members as well as 53 that had been previously raised in the Committee. The full list is available here.

The new trade concerns addressed issues related to animal welfare regulations, referencing international standards, domestic regulatory fragmentation, quality infrastructure, environmental objectives, duplicative testing, and transparency.

Brazil, Paraguay, the United Kingdom and the United States reported on progress made concerning several previously raised trade concerns.

ePing

The Secretariat announced the availability of the ePing interface in six languages  with Chinese and Vietnamese being the most recent additions, following the introduction of Portuguese in 2023. The ePing platform facilitates tracking of TBT measures, allowing users to receive alerts on notifications on new and updated product regulations and find information on trade concerns discussed in the Committee.

A walk-in session on the platform was held on 6 June to showcase recent ePing enhancements and to allow members to pose ePing-related questions.

What's next

The next TBT Committee week will take place on 5-8 November. The Secretariat will also organize an event on 8 November to celebrate 30 years of the TBT Agreement. As part of a series of WTO 30th anniversary celebrations taking place this year, this event will bring together current and past TBT delegates and other experts to reflect on the past, present and future of the TBT Agreement.
A couple had a $100,000 budget for their destination wedding. Here's how they spent it.

Misaki and Amir Hajimirsadeghi got married on April 2.

The couple planned a destination wedding at Nobu Hotel Los Cabos with a budget of $100,000.

They managed to come in under budget and splurged on showstoppers like fireworks.

Misaki and Amir Hajimirsadeghi got married on April 2, five years after they started dating and nearly 10 years after they met.

As they started planning their wedding, Misaki and Amir wanted to prioritize not overspending.

Business Insider spoke to Misaki about how they planned their destination wedding  and came in under their $100,000 budget.

Misaki and Amir Hajimirsadeghi were friends for nearly a decade before they started dating.

The Hajimirsadeghis have been friends for years. Francisco Salas

Amir and Misaki met as freshmen in college at the University of California San Diego through a mutual friend.

"After college, he went to San Francisco," Misaki, 29, said of Amir, 28. "I was in LA, and when he moved back down to LA, where he grew up, then we reconnected and we started dating."

They've been an item since 2019, and Amir proposed in December 2022.

Today, the Hajimirsadeghis are still based in LA. Misaki is an analyst, while Amir is a software engineer and the cofounder of Faliam, a healthcare and financial platform.

After they got engaged, they examined their finances to set an overall budget.

They paid for their wedding themselves. Francisco Salas

Misaki and Amir knew they would be paying for their wedding themselves, so after they got engaged, they started building a budget based on their savings and other big purchases they wanted to make soon, including a home.

Misaki told BI she and Amir "worked backward," setting aside money for a down payment on a home and several months of mortgage payments, money for car payments, and emergency funds in case they lost their jobs.

From there, they discussed how much they wanted to spend on a wedding, landing on $80,000. But everyone they knew advised them they would likely go over budget, so they set aside $100,000 for the day.

Misaki and Amir decided to have a destination wedding.

Most of their guests were traveling. Francisco Salas

"Most of our family and friends are out of California, so even if we had it in LA, it would have been a destination wedding for everyone else," Misaki said of why she and Amir chose a destination wedding.

They also had guests traveling internationally from Iran and Japan, so choosing a venue outside the US didn't seem like a big leap.

"Also, we were looking at the prices of LA venues, and it was crazy," she added. "The venue fee itself was half of our wedding budget. So we quickly found out we couldn't afford to do it in LA anyways."

They picked the Nobu Hotel Los Cabos in Mexico for their nuptials.

They got married in Mexico. Francisco Salas

Misaki knew she wanted a minimalist, black-and-white vibe for their April 2 wedding.

"The vision was very clear to me from the beginning," she said.

That aesthetic guided their venue search, and when she and Amir saw Nobu Hotel Los Cabos, they knew it would be perfect. The Nobu brand is known for its iconic Japanese restaurants frequented by celebrities and the wealthy, but it also has luxury hotels that draw in a similar crowd. The Los Cabos location is particularly popular on social media.

Nobu Hotel's buildings, which offer ocean views, are sand-toned and modern, serving as an ideal backdrop for Misaki and Amir's nuptials. They also liked that all of their guests could be in one hotel for the duration of the celebrations.

Nobu also appealed to the Hajimirsadeghis because they didn't have to pay a venue fee.

Nobu didn't charge for the venue separately. Francisco Salas

Unlike many venues, Nobu Los Cabos didn't charge a fee to reserve the space. Instead, Misaki and Amir had to use Nobu for catering and bar services.

The catering cost $14,254, while the drinks for the open bar  a nonnegotiable for Misaki and Amir  came in at $14,606.

"Directly, that's for the food and the drinks, but indirectly, it's just the cost you pay for doing your wedding at Nobu and the cost you pay for having everyone at one hotel," Misaki said of the fee.

As is the case at many destination weddings, the Hajimirsadeghis' guests paid for their lodging. Rooms at Nobu Hotel Los Cabos vary depending on the time of year, ranging from $400 to $999 a night, according to its website.

Catering and drinks: $28,860

Misaki also found a wedding planner who could help them pull off the wedding.

A wedding planner made the logistics of a destination wedding easier. Francisco Salas

Misaki used Instagram to track down a wedding planner, looking at planners who had already done weddings at Nobu Los Cabos.

"I made a list of all the wedding planners who have done weddings at Nobu that I liked so I could go to them and be like, 'I want a wedding like this,'" she said.

Look At Me Brides, based in Cabo, was a perfect fit.

"If you're doing a destination wedding, I can't recommend a destination wedding planner enough," Misaki said. "I could not have done any of this. She coordinated all the communication with the vendors."

Misaki also said she and Amir told the Look At Me Brides team that their budget was $80,000, not $100,000, in the hopes it would help them stick to it.

Wedding planner: $4,640

The ceremony took place overlooking the beach, and flowers helped to create the vibe they wanted.

The ceremony overlooked the beach. Francisco Salas

The Hajimirsadeghis had a Persian wedding ceremony overlooking the beach. Their setup was simple, but they used white flowers to make a big impact.

Floral Dreams by Vero Romo created a detached floral arch to frame the ceremony. They stuck to white flowers throughout the day.

Flowers: $4,595

The couple didn't have to pay an officiant for their ceremony.

The ceremony was an affordable aspect of the wedding. Francisco Salas

Amir's brother officiated their ceremony, so they didn't have to pay an officiant like many couples.

Misaki and Amir's wedding featured a Sofreh Aghd, a tradition in Persian wedding ceremonies where the bride and groom sit with a spread of items that hold symbolic meaning, including a mirror and candles, Brides reported.

The Hajimirsadeghis rented the table, mirror, and candelabras they used for their Sofreh Aghd from Yaya Rentals, while Misaki provided bowls and plates from their home collection for the other aspects of the ceremony.

Ceremony rentals: $275

Misaki wore a simple gown with a dramatic back.

The dress matched the minimalist aesthetic. Francisco Salas

Just as she did for the venue, Misaki first saw her wedding dress on Instagram. She knew the Made With Love gown was perfect as soon as she saw it.

"I just wanted something really simple that mimicked the minimalist, simple style that we went with for the wedding," Misaki said, adding that she liked that the dress hugged her figure because she's petite.

"I thought it was simple enough, but then it had some element of drama in the back," she said, pointing to the draping under the open back, buttons lining the gown, and the full train.

She paired the gown with platform heels from Badgley Mischka.

Dress: $3,027.78

Shoes: $130

A floor-length veil completed Misaki's bridal ensemble.

She paired the dress with a veil. Francisco Salas

Misaki chose an affordable veil from Etsy for the nuptials. It trailed behind her as she walked down the aisle.

An updo held up the veil, which was styled by Los Cabos Makeup. The company also did Misaki's natural makeup.

Veil: $152

Hair and makeup: $300

Amir splurged on his shoes.

The shoes were from Gucci. Francisco Salas

Amir rented a tuxedo from Michael Kors for the wedding rather than buying an ensemble. But he paired the affordable tux with high-end Gucci loafers.

"I feel like everyone focuses on the bride, and it was nice to have something special for him, too," Misaki said of the shoes. "He can re-wear those to a nice dinner. It was a good investment."

Tuxedo: $200

Shoes: $1,000

Misaki mixed and matched luxury and affordable details throughout the wedding.

Misaki Hajimirsadeghi ordered her invitations online. Francisco salas

The Hajimirsadeghis' wedding had a luxury feel, but Misaki ensured they didn't unnecessarily splurge on aspects of the wedding.

For instance, they both got high-end wedding rings from Cartier, but Misaki chose invitations from Minted, which are typically more affordable than fully custom stationery. However, she told BI she thinks she could have saved more money by DIYing the invitations.

"I think a lot of people will spend a lot on their wedding dress or invitations, some of the earlier costs, because you don't know how much everything else is going to cost," she said.

Rings: $5,820

Invitations: $549

Misaki and Amir had to build out their reception space, including a dance floor.

The reception was black and white. Francisco Salas

The reception occurred outside in a courtyard without lights, so the Hajimirsadeghis' planning team transformed it into a true reception space.

Misaki selected a black-and-white checkerboard dance floor from VVR PRO Cabo and strings of fairy lights from Pro-AV Los Cabos to frame it.

"We wanted to put our money toward big items that were noticeable and would be in every picture," Misaki said.

Dance floor: $3,300

Fairy lights: $2,800

Misaki and Amir stuck to their black-and-white theme with the rest of their decor.

They repurposed the ceremony flowers. Francisco Salas

The couple tapped Yaya Rentals again for their black tables and chairs, as well as their bar, and they chose coordinating plates, chargers, and runners from Del Cabo Events to complete their table settings. They also used both Yaya and Del Cabo for their linens and flatware.

Misaki and Amir were also able to repurpose the floral arch from the ceremony for their reception, ensuring they got more bang for their buck.

Misaki made the day-of signage for the wedding to save money, handmaking everything from their welcome sign to their menus.

Misaki told BI she could do most of the work on a laser printer, which saved her hundreds of dollars.

"You really can't tell the difference between the professional invitations and the DIY stuff that I made," she said.

DIY materials: $100

Tables, chairs, linens, flatware, and bar: $5,740

The Hajimirsadeghis wanted to invest in wedding details that felt true to them.

The shot wall was a fun feature of the day. Francisco Salas

For instance, Misaki didn't want to provide guests with a traditional party favor. Instead, she used that money to turn their seating chart into a shot wall made by Bunker Project Studio.

"I knew we wanted to keep the energy going after the ceremony because it's so easy to just get tired and not be in the mood to get onto the dance floor," Misaki said.

Likewise, they chose an audio guestbook from After The Tone rather than a traditional book, both because she thought it was sentimental and because she thought it would suit their event better.

"The vibe was party, and I knew a lot of my friends and family weren't gonna write a meaningful letter while drinking a cocktail," she said. "I was bawling when I got the voicemails back."

Seating chart: $1,440

Guestbook: $400

Their welcome bags had fun touches, too.

They included shoe bags for their guests. Francisco Salas

Misaki and Amir provided welcome boxes for guests upon their arrival at the wedding weekend, which included white bags with black bows.

They were designed to hold guests' shoes during the beachside ceremony, allowing them to leave them behind if they didn't want to get sandy.

Welcome bags: $700

They of course had a wedding photographer, as well as a videographer.

The bride and groom during their first look. Francisco Salas

They hired Francisco Salas to photograph the day, from the first look to candid shots at the reception, and Allan Carrazco was their videographer.

Photographer: $4,400

Videographer: $3,364

The Hajimirsadeghis also hired a content creator for the wedding.

They hired a content creator for the wedding. Francisco Salas

Misaki connected with Kaitlin McDermott of Social Hour on TikTok and hired her to create content for the wedding.

"She, in hindsight, was probably my best hire," Misaki said.

"The amount of pictures and videos that I got back from what she took of us, it's just priceless," Misaki said, adding that she loved seeing candid content, including when she changed into her gown or when her guests started limboing on the dance floor.

"You can't put a price tag on it," she added.

Content creator: $1,500

They opted for a DJ over a band.

The couple during their first dance. Francisco Salas

"We like DJs more than a live band," Misaki said of how they selected music for the event. "We like EDM, hip-hop, that kind of music."

They hired DJ Emmanuel for the reception and the ceremony.

"Having a live musician for the ceremony would have cost a lot more money," Misaki said.

DJ: $3,646

Misaki also changed into a shorter dress for the end of the festivities.

The bride had a second outfit. Francisco Salas

Later in the evening, Misaki changed into a strapless minidress from Meshki that was easier for dancing, which she paired with sheer gloves.

Her second ensemble was more affordable and perfect for the dance party vibes.

Second dress: $165

Gloves: $7

The Hajimirsadeghis chose a champagne tower over a cake.

They didn't have a wedding cake. Francisco Salas

Nobu's catering menu featured three courses, and Misaki told BI their menu included a bread assortment, a salad, a choice of entree between beef, salmon, lamb, or ravioli, and a cheesecake dessert. Since dessert was already built into the meal, Misaki and Amir decided not to buy a separate wedding cake, which also would have had to come from Nobu.

Instead, the Hajimirsadeghis invested in a champagne tower they could pour bubbly into at the end of the night instead of cutting into a cake.

Champagne tower: $320

And to make the end of the night extra special, they splurged on fireworks.

Fireworks exploded as they poured champagne. Francisco Salas

The Hajimirsadeghis had their planning team arrange for fireworks to erupt while they popped the bubbly.

"We were pouring champagne while the fireworks were coming down," Misaki said.

The fireworks cost over $2,000 and only erupted for one minute, but it was worth it for Misaki and Amir.

Fireworks: $2,800

Misaki and Amir ended up coming in under budget, spending just over $80,000.

They were under their budget. Francisco Salas

Misaki and Amir managed to stick to their preferred spend of $80,000 almost perfectly.

Misaki told BI that telling their planning team a lower budget than they actually felt comfortable spending helped keep their costs low and prevented her and Amir from getting stressed out when surprise costs came up.

"We actually felt good about it because we were kind of under budget," she said. "Obviously, you can always have a cheaper wedding; you can always have a backyard wedding. But for what we wanted, which was at a five-star hotel with all of our guests together having Nobu food, I think we saved a bunch of money."

Misaki advises other couples who are just starting to wedding plan to have an intentional conversation with their partner about what they want to prioritize financially before they start making wedding decisions.

"Everyone has different priorities," she said. "If you don't care to have a wedding, then obviously spending $80,000 on a wedding doesn't make any sense."

"Talk with your partner on where your priorities lie, whether you even want to have a wedding," she said. "And then if it is something you want to do, then think about all the other priorities in your life. For us, it was owning a home and having kids in the next few years."

Total: $80,230.78

Catering and drinks: $28,860

Wedding planner: $4,640

Flowers: $4,595

Ceremony rentals: $275

Bride's first dress: $3,027.78

Bride's shoes: $130

Bride's second dress: $165

Gloves: $7

Veil: $152

Hair and makeup: $300

Tuxedo: $200

Groom's shoes: $1,000

Rings: $5,820

Invitations: $549

Dance floor: $3,300

Fairy lights: $2,800

DIY materials: $100

Tables, chairs, linens, flatware, and bar: $5,740

Seating chart: $1,440

Guestbook: $400

Welcome bags: $700

Photographer: $4,400

Videographer: $3,364

Content creator: $1,500

DJ: $3,646

Champagne tower: $320

Fireworks: $2,800

Misaki said her relationship with Amir "feels like home."

The bride and groom. Francisco Salas

"We've been friends for over a decade now, so I'm just comfortable with him," Misaki said of her husband.

"We have the same sense of humor, the same goals and values in life," she added. "It's just easy with him."

If you want to share the real cost of your wedding with Business Insider for a story, get in touch at sgrindell@businessinsider.com .

Read the original article on Business Insider
Elon Musk had sex with SpaceX worker who began as intern, asked another to have his babies: report

Elon Musk had a sexual relationship with a SpaceX employee who started at the company as an intern and was then hired not long after she finished college before she ended things, according to a report.

Musk, who has a fortune valued by Bloomberg Billionaires Index at $198 billion as of Wednesday, also pursued relationships with other female subordinates at his rocket company, including with one woman who was asked by the mogul to bear his children, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday.

The mogul also carried on a month-long sexual relationship with a third woman who reported to him directly at SpaceX before the two cut ties, according to the report.

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk reportedly pursued sexual relationships with several female subordinates, including one he hired after she interned at the company. REUTERS

The third woman and Musk were involved romantically after she was accused of having an affair with the husband of another SpaceX executive, it was reported.

The Post has sought comment from SpaceX and Musk.

Musk first met the then-intern in the early 2010s when she was a college student studying engineering.

According to the Journal, Musk and the woman went out for a meal after she sent him ideas about how to improve the company.

Musk and the woman kissed after the two bonded over their love of Star Wars, according to the report.

A year later, Musk arranged for the woman to be flown to a resort in Sicily where the two met, the Journal claimed. Musk was in Sicily attending a conference sponsored by Google.

The womans passport was in another city, so Musk made arrangements for a friend of the woman to bring it to her on an early morning domestic flight, according to the Journal.

The woman was then booked for a first-class flight to London and then a private jet to Italy, it was reported.

In 2017, Musk offered the woman a role on his executive staff.

SpaceX is Musks rocket-building firm whose Starship shuttle is seen in the above file photo. SPACEX/AFP via Getty Images

Former SpaceX staffers thought it was odd that someone so young was offered a high-profile position close to the boss, according to the report.

After she moved to Los Angeles from New York, the woman accepted an invitation from Musk for drinks.

Her friends told the Journal that Musk came on to her and touched her breast.

One of her friends said the woman recalled Musk telling her: Oh, Im so bad. I shouldnt be doing this.

Elon tried to rekindle our relationship prior to my employment, and I rejected the advance. While there was some initial awkwardness, it was nothing out of the ordinary after a rejection, the woman said in a sworn affidavit provided to the Journal by a law firm which also represents Musk and Tesla.

According to the Journal, the woman, who denied ever having a romantic relationship with Musk, said she was unhappy at SpaceX because she had no authority and that she also had trouble getting other executives to take her ideas seriously.

The situation got so bad that on several occasions she would hide in the bathroom on company grounds, the Journal reported.

In the affidavit provided to the Journal, the woman said that her feelings about the job at SpaceX were completely unrelated to any romantic or personal interactions with Elon Musk.

I came into a very difficult role as a newcomer into an established company, she said in the affidavit.

Gwynne Shotwell, president and COO of SpaceX, accused a subordinate of having an affair with her husband, according to the Journal. REUTERS

As she struggled to establish herself in the company, she would visit Musk at his home after the boss frequently texted her, according to a friend.

Come by! Musk would text her. When she didnt respond, he would continue texting.

Look, its either me or 6am [exercise] :) he wrote on one occasion.

On another occasion, Musk texted: Just finished the Model 3 production call. Its def going to be hell for several more months.

Are you coming over? If not, I will probably tranq out. Too stressed to sleep naturally, Musk wrote to her.

When Musks texts went unanswered, he wrote: Probably best if we dont see each other.

The next morning, the woman texted back to him, writing: Oh man. Im sorry, Id already fallen asleep. Ive been a late night person most of my life but have been trying to switch over because it seems responsible. Tbh. Sorry I crashed last night.

Later that same day, the girl confided in a friend that she had mild [social] anxiety resulting from imposter syndrome which definitely makes this job harder.

Musk has two children with Shivon Zilis, one of his employees at SpaceX and Neuralink. AP

And thats definitely exacerbated by Elons behavior, her friend responded. The woman replied: So badly.

She said Musk displayed a lack of interest in her job, which made it more difficult, according to the Journal.

The awkwardness with Musk eventually led her to leave Musks executive staff. She was reassigned to another role in which she reported to another engineer, according to the Journal.

In 2019, when her manager was part of mass layoffs, she left the company.

In 2013, a woman who worked at SpaceX left the company and then reappeared with a lawyer.

She alleged that Musk had asked her on several occasions to have his babies, according to the Journal.

Musk, the father of 10 children including twins that he shared with another SpaceX employee, Shivon Zilis, has often spoke about the need to boost birth rates in order to save the human population.

Zilis agreed to Musks offer to give birth to his children, who were conceived via artificial insemination. @shivon/X

After the woman declined Musks offer to have his children, the relationship between the two deteriorated, according to the Journal.

Musk would often complain about her job performance. He also reportedly denied her a raise.

The woman eventually left the company with an exit package work more than $1 million in stock and cash, the Journal reported.

A year later, Musk began a sexual relationship with another woman who would often spend 17-hour days working alongside the boss.

Before the relationship with Musk, Gwynne Shotwell, SpaceXs presient and chief operating officer, accused her of having an affair with her husband. She denied the allegation.

The woman alleged that when she went to human resources with Shotwells allegation, Shotwell retaliated against her by trying to get her removed from her position.

People close to the woman told the Journal that while Shotwell was working to get her fired, Musk brought her closer to him.

In 2022, it was reported that Musk allegedly exposed himself to a SpaceX flight attendant. AP

The relationship began while Musk was in the middle of divorce talks with British actress Talulah Riley.

But it ended weeks later when she confided in friends that she felt used and that Musk had no desire to be seen in public with her.

She left the company and was forced to sign a nondisclosure agreement. In exchange, she was reportedly paid $85,000 for unpaid work that she did earlier for Tesla.

The untruths, mischaracterizations, and revisionist history in your email paint a completely misleading narrative, Shotwell told the Journal.

I continue to be amazed by what this extraordinary group of people are achieving every day even amidst all the forces acting against us. And Elon is one of the best humans I know.

In 2022, a SpaceX flight attendant accused Musk of exposing himself to her aboard one of his private jets in 2016.

The woman was later paid $250,000 to settle the claim.

News of the allegation and the subsequent settlement was first reported by Business Insider.
PROVIDENCE  Italian aerialists, West African drummers, an all-women salsa dance group, hip-hop and R&B performers  all these groups and others will perform at this years PVDFest in downtown Providence, the festivals organizers announced at a press junket in front of City Hall on Thursday afternoon.

The festival will be held in the Kennedy Plaza area on Sept. 6-7, with an inclement-weather date of Sept. 8. It will include block parties, cultural heritage celebrations, showcases of craft makers and designers and immersive tech exhibitions featuring AI and virtual reality. A so-called Food Truck Village will bring in mobile restaurants and vendors to Kennedy Plaza.

PVDFest is the signature event of, by and for the great people of Providence. This festival remains and will always be the people's festival, celebrating all that makes Providence the dynamic cultural destination that it is, said Joe Wilson Jr., director of art, culture and tourism for the City of Providence.

Mayor Brett Smiley promised an exciting weekend packed with amazing performances.

Mayor Brett Smiley at Thursday's press conference: The community feedback was pretty consistent, that they preferred to have a festival downtown."

Who is performing at PVDFest?

Kathleen Pletcher, executive director of FirstWorks, a nonprofit that is the citys planning partner for PVDFest, said performances are still being finalized, but she provided a sneak peek of what to expect at this years festival. Among them are:

eVenti Verticali: A gravity-defining troupe of Italian aerialists who are suspended from a crane 60 feet above the ground. The performance begins with a deflated transparent sphere, an aerialist suspended inside, that inflates as it rises. The performance inspires us to reflect on our relationship with the earth in these times of climate peril, Pletcher said.

Lulada Club: This all-women salsa band hailing from New York City will perform Friday, Sept. 6. Rolling Stone magazine wrote the group is reimagining salsa and challenging the patriarchy at the same time. The performance will include a dance lesson by Rodney Eric Lopez, a Providence dance instructor.

Chip Douglas: A soulful blend of hip-hop, R&B and dance. The performance, which will highlight various genres of music, will be anchored by DJ Nyce Hitz along with Derrick Jones and band. I think of Chip as an empresario bringing together raw talent, said Pletcher. Muralist Agonza will do a live painting on stage during the performance.

Sidy Maiga: Returning for the 12th annual Afrika Nyaga Drum & Dance Festival, a celebration of West African music and dance and its influences on the African diaspora. Maiga envisions Afrika Nyaga as a sonic synthesis of African traditions and Rhode Islands diverse communities, said a press release. The festival nurtures artistic exchange through the universal language of music across cultures, ages and nationalities.

Returning downtown after a major letdown

Last years PVDFest left much to be desired. One reason for the disappointment was the choice of location. Organizers moved the festival from its traditional downtown location to the 195 District Park by the Providence River. Vendors  who had to pay $300 more than in previous years to participate  complained that they were separated by the pedestrian bridge from the performances, affecting their sales.

This feedback led Smiley to bring back the festival celebrations to downtown.

The community feedback was pretty consistent, that they preferred to have a festival downtown. And so we heard that loud and clear, which is why we're returning to our roots, Smiley said.

Attendees also complained that open containers of alcohol were prohibited, and block parties, which were initially barred, were held only on one night. Smiley clarified that open containers would be allowed at this years PDVFest, but only at block parties, which Josh Estrella, Smileys spokesperson, said should be held Friday and Saturday. That, however, is yet to be finalized and specific hours for them have not been confirmed. Businesses can still apply to have their premises expanded to host a block party, Smiley said at the press conference.

There will not be open containers in the street, which means that you'll need to finish your drink at one of our establishments before heading to the next block party, Smiley said.

Compounding matters last year was a torrential downpour that washed out most of the weekend, causing thousands of dollars in damage to vendors goods. The city then paid vendors $500 for damages.

Smiley, at the press conference, seemed optimistic after deciding to return the festival to its downtown location and setting a contingency date in case of inclement weather.

After last years rain, we deserve nothing but todays sunshine, Smiley said.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: PVDFest performers announced for 2024 return to downtown
Daily Show correspondent Jordan Klepper said Republicans should be celebrating the guilty verdict in Hunter Bidens criminal gun case.

Except theyre not, with Donald Trumps supporters instead using the conviction to launch entirely new conspiracy theories, leading Klepper to one genuine question for MAGA fans.

Can you guys rest the conspiracy-mongering for just a second and squeeze a beat of joy out of this? I mean, my God, youre all so miserable! he said. The last time a Republican had fun was when she was kicked out of the Beetlejuice musical.

That was a reference to Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) getting booted from a theater for inappropriate behavior.

Your political enemys son is headed to prison and your mind immediately jumps to, Hes just taking the fall for Joe Biden, Klepper said. Let me tell you something: Nobody is taking the fall for Joe Biden. He falls plenty enough on his own.

Klepper, who is hosting this week, urged conservatives take the W in his Wednesday night monologue:
The oldest member of the K-pop phenomenon BTS is spending his day hugging 1,000 fans, after finishing his mandatory military service in South Korea on Wednesday.

Jin made his first public appearance at Seouls Jamsil Sports Complex this afternoon, where he is performing and meeting fans.

At the event, 1,000 lucky fans who won in a raffle will receive hugs from the 31-year-old, while a total of 4,000 select fans will be able to attend his performance at the end of the day.

K-pop boy band BTS member Jin waves after being discharged from his mandatory military service outside a military base in Yeoncheon, South Korea on June 12, 2024. Jin the first member of the band to complete the mandatory duty, freeing him up to fully resume musical activities. - Jun Yeon-Je/AFP/Getty Images

Some BTS superfans  known as ARMY (Adorable Representative MC for Youth)  have journeyed from overseas to attend the BTS Festa event.

The countrys compulsory military service, which requires almost all able-bodied men to serve for 18 months by the time they are 28 years old, enforced a hiatus on one of the worlds most successful contemporary pop acts. The government passed a law in 2020 that allowed major pop stars to defer until the age of 30. The other six members of the septet are still serving.

Mim Cheenchanya from Thailand is one of the lucky fans who will hug Jin  and told CNN she started crying tears of immense joy when she learned she had won in the raffle.

I wish to tell Jin if he comes to Thailand, can he hold a concert for seven days, because I love BTS so much, Cheenchanya said.

As Jin started giving out hugs in the afternoon, videos began flooding social media from ecstatic fans, showing the star quickly hugging each person as they walked across a purple stage in a line. Many can be heard screaming, whooping, and crying.

Even those who cant get hugs are happy to be there.

Holly Campbell, who had traveled from Melbourne, Australia, and Ashley Stoudnour, from Florida, told CNN they wouldnt have missed the festival for anything. They had entered the hug raffle too, but no luck. Everybody here tried, Campbell joked, wearing purple  the bands color  from her shiny boots to her lavender cap.

Purple has become ubiquitous with BTS since member V described it as a symbol of the bands long-lasting love and relationship with their fans. Since then, the color has made appearances in many of their live performances, merchandise and branded collaborations.

BTS themselves pour out so much love  they put love into their music, into their personalities, their fans, said Stoudnour. Flying thousands of miles across the world to welcome Jin back was just a way for the fans to give them love back, Stoudnor added  describing him as the comedian of the group.

Fans of K-pop boy band BTS swap cards as they attend the event in Seoul on June 13, 2024. - Anthony Wallace/AFP/Getty Images

Another fan, Kim Yoon-jeong, said she had cried all night after finding out she didnt win a coveted seat in the stadium for Jins performance, or a hug  but she was still excited to support him. She showed CNN her artworks  digitally painted portraits of each BTS member  and tiny stuffed dolls of them in her bag, including one member dressed in a military uniform.

Michelle Pedraza, another fan who flew to Seoul from her home in California and also missed out on winning a hug ticket, showed off her purple-dyed hair for the event. No hug, but all of the air that hes breathing, Ill be breathing, she joked, adding shed probably be crying and screaming once he took to the stage.

The festival was already packed in the morning, with various activities and stalls set up  photo booths, bracelet-making, custom pins, BTS sticker shops and more. Fans queued to enter, with some enjoying snacks under the shade or using umbrellas to evade the boiling heat.

BTS have become worldwide superstars since debuting in 2013, earning No. 1 singles in more than 100 countries. Theyve racked up a long list of accolades  numerous Billboard Music awards, Time magazines Entertainer of the Year award in 2020, and multiple titles at the 2021 American Music Awards  even becoming the first K-Pop act to earn a Grammy nomination in 2021.

Beyond music, the groups members are among the worlds most bankable fashion icons  with what they wear on the red carpet and in music videos closely watched.

In 2021, Louis Vuitton named the group brand ambassadors and dressed them in complementary suits for the 64th Grammy Awards the next year. Dior outfitted the band in custom stagewear for their 2019 tour. Individual members have starred in various luxury fashion house campaigns.

In the last few years, the hiatus that military service would bring loomed large. Jin was the first in the group to enlist at 30. BTS is expected to reconvene as a group around 2025.

This story will be updated as the event unfolds.

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Amid a cove filled with boats and happily inebriated revelers, Doug Gaineys was one of the few faces that looked tired.

The local event producer was in the midst of mounting his seventh and final Drift Jam Flotilla Music Festival, the famously floating party on Lake Murray that was, in this last hurrah, bound by land. The festival announced two days before its June 1 date that it wouldnt be anchored at Spence Island as planned but would instead move across the reservoir to the lakeside deck of the old Frayed Knot, a former bar in the Chapin area.

The move came when the floating festival found itself with nothing to float on. Long story short, the barges werent delivered on time  just one symptom of the problems that have made floating festivals of this sort on the Midlands crown jewel lake such a difficult task to pull off, and may be pushing them toward extinction.

The festival had both barges and back-up barges lined up, but both fell through, Gainey posted to social media.

Things didnt get much easier when the festival got rolling. None of the people who pledged to ride jet skis and help Gainey get boats organized into rows and anchored showed up. The task was harder than normal anyway, as the Frayed Knots cove sits along a channel, making it narrower than the cove at Spence Island. As Gainey rushed around to get all the boats settled, he lost his phone to the bottom of the lake  contributing to why he couldnt be reached by The State to talk after the event.

In a brief post after the final Drift Jam, Gainey said, It has been (mostly) fun Miss Murray, but it is time to take my baby on to a bigger and better market.

The Reggaetronic Lake Murray Music Festival returns June 15.

Since 2014, there have been two floating festivals on the lake, with the Reggaetronic Lake Murray Music Festival, which bills itself as South Carolinas longest running flotilla music festival, having started its run in 2011.

The events draw a crowd  Reggaetronic claimed an attendance of 2,200 boats and 13,000 people from 34 states last year  but theyre a bear to pull off.

Reggaetronic founder Ronnie Alexander said that while the event is moving forward this Saturday, June 15, he was 80% sure hed have to cancel it a little more than three weeks prior to logistical challenges. Drift Jam canceled in 2022 and at the last minute in 2023 before coming back for one more go.

As with many events, COVID-19 scuttled both festivals in 2020, with Reggaetronic getting the permit for its postponed date pulled a little more than two weeks before it was scheduled to take place.

Finding a float

Alexander has called putting on Reggaetronic a logistical nightmare in the past, and its only gotten worse in the past three years due to a project thats high on many commuters minds.

The barges the festival typically uses are floating downstream from Lake Murray in the Saluda River, below an in-progress bridge that will soon carry Interstate 26. Theyre being used in the ongoing effort to reconfigure the conglomerated interstate interchange known as Malfunction Junction.

The barges continuing to be occupied almost caused this years festival to be canceled. Reggaetronic had its lineup booked and held back on announcing it until June 5, after finding barges and being sure theyd have a floating stage for artists to perform on.

We have to use all kinds of resources and call around and go a little further to truck them in, Alexander said of the difficulty to find barges that can accommodate their needs. One of our sponsors, Coogler Construction, provides the trucking. So, you know, you dont want to dial them in to go all the way to Indiana, right? But if its anywhere in the Southeast, probably do that. So we try to find them logistically in the Southeast area and see if we can make it work.

The Reggaetronic Lake Murray Music Festival returns June 15.

Any disruption to the process and timing of assembling the event is hard to manage since there are so many moving parts. For instance, a crane has to be in there to get the barge in the water.

Whenever youre trying to schedule the crane, youve got to get an ETA on when the barges will be available and kind of coordinate everything at once. So its kind of hard when its, It might be Monday, it might be Tuesday. Were expecting some barges in. You could pick it up. Ill let you know soon, Alexander said, explaining that if the right barges arent available, that necessitates a change in the stage they must use.

Its gotten a little harder now because were used to going to the same people. It should be copy and paste, he added. But now, since its different vendors, it makes it a little more challenging.

Paying the bills

Alexander said Reggaetronic is steadied by a slate of reliable sponsors, which he said is crucial. When youre worrying about so many logistical variables, the budget needs to be rock solid.

Neither Drift Jam nor Reggaetronic can sell tickets to most of their attendees due to the fact that theyre out on open water and anybody who can drive up a boat is free to be there. Both festivals sell VIP parking up front with priority viewing and lounge space to help them pay the bills and set some cash aside to donate to charity.

Its definitely instrumental, vital, Alexander said of maintaining a consistent pool of sponsors. Without them, theres no show.

That proved to be the case with Drift Jam last year, which had a sponsor pull out late in the process.

Unfortunately, we had a major sponsor fail to honor their financial commitment to the festival on the day of our sponsor deadline last week, Gainey posted online a little more than a week before the 2023 festival was set to take place. After exhausting all possible avenues to continue on with the festival, we simply cannot make it work at this point.

The final Drift Jam Flotilla Music Festival was held June 1, 2024.

That was the same day he announced the 2024 Drift Jam would be the last.

Gainey and his production company ran into trouble after stretching further than ever in 2021, putting on a second year of the grounded country festival Land Jam in Lugoff and throwing two Drift Jams, matching the Lake Murray throwdown with a second on Lake Marion.

All three were scheduled to come back the next year along with the first year of a 3 Rivers Float Festival, which would have placed bands at various spots along Columbias rivers for people to float past and enjoy. But Gainey announced in February 2022 that all of that years events were canceled.

Gainey posted in 2022 that he needed to restructure my events to run more efficiently.

But while there have been struggles, Reggaetronics Alexander said he feels its still very viable to float a festival on Lake Murray. There are no plans to stop his annual summer event, and his production team is adding to its portfolio with a festival in North Charleston Aug. 24 at Riverfront Park (the same location used by the famed High Water Music Festival). The new event will be land- and water-based, allowing organizers to sell hard tickets and push to a higher echelon of performers: Alexander mentioned names such as Rebelution, Snoop Dogg and DJ Steve Aoki, all regular inclusions at big-ticket festivals.

Alexander said his team has also been approached about putting on a floating festival in Key West.

I think people kind of rely on it, he said of Reggaetronic. As it continues to grow, I think people kind of depend on it.







Making an impact

The festival definitely seems to be making a local impact. Alexander said his team has been able to pull reports from stores, owners, marinas, rental companies and Airbnb that show that all rentals around the lake were booked up the day of the festival and local businesses were 19% over flatline.

We know in the past the hotel rooms utilized for Reggaetronic have involved two hotels over the years, said Miriam Atria, president and CEO of the Capital City Lake Murray Country regional tourism board. We also know they have room blocks at the Aloft in The Vista for this year, and many lake rentals are full for the weekend of the 15th. Capital City/Lake Murray Country gathers all statistics after the events from various sources including AirDNA reports. Both of these events usually have visitors booking homes over hotels.

And while it was the final go-round, the crowd at this years Drift Jam certainly seemed to appreciate it.

Can I hear some horns here? Hello! shouted Tyler Ryan, the days emcee as well as an ABC Columbia meteorologist and master captain with Lake Murray Boat Tours.

A chorus of honks quickly followed, reverberating around the cove.

The final Drift Jam Flotilla Music Festival was held June 1, 2024.
Fans of The White Lotus are so eager for season three that theyre already adding Thailand to their travel plans.

The hit HBO series, which will premiere in 2025, has been filming its next installment on location at several resorts throughout the country. Now that the show is done shooting, Thailand is preparing for an influx of set-jetting visitors who want to get a jump on staying in the same place as their favorite on-screen characters, Bloomberg reported.

More from Robb Report

Were waiting for Thailand to go crazy because everyone knows as soon as White Lotus comes out, you wont be able to get in, Misty Belles, a spokeswoman for luxury travel network Virtuoso, told Bloomberg. Were starting to see people wanting to go there before.

The company has already noticed bookings to Thailand increase by 38 percent from 2023, with most of the activity coming from the U.S. Similarly, bespoke travel brand Black Tomato recorded an uptick in sales between January and April 2024, a 44 percent spike compared to the same time last year.

Bloomberg previously reported that season three would take place in and around Koh Samui, Phuket, and Bangkok. The $1,700-per-night Four Seasons Koh Samui, one of the properties White Lotus guests will be checking into, has already had a rush of reservations. The Anantara Mai Khao Villas Phuket, another resort that could show up on-screen, is also filling up.

This isnt the first time that a locale has felt the so-called White Lotus Effect. Season one took place in Hawaii; after the series aired, the real-life White Lotus hotel (a.k.a. Four Seasons Resort Maui) had a surge in bookings. You couldnt imagine the amount of calls weve gotten, the hotels general manager, Ben Shank, previously told The Guardian.

The next installment headed abroad to Sicily and after its debut, destinations like Taormina and Noto were suddenly seeing huge amounts of interest from tourists. You still cant get into the Four Seasons in Taorminaits completely chockablock, Belles added. Black Tomato cofounder Tom Marchant told Bloomberg that the companys sales to Sicily tripled in 2023, which he attributed to the influence that programs like The White Lotus can have on travelers.

If the past is any indication, it would appear that Thailand is already shaping up to be the shows next breakout star.

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Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated the number of graduates. The article has been updated.

Thirty new nurses began their careers last week as the Victor Valley College School of Nursing held a graduation ceremony in Hesperia.

The "Pinning and Candlelight Ceremony" took place June 6 at Victor Valley Christian Church.

The ceremony is "a time-honored tradition in the nursing community, symbolizing the transition from student to professional nurse," college representatives said in a written statement. "The event included the ceremonial lighting of candles, representing the light of knowledge and compassion that nurses bring to their practice."

The Victor Valley College School of Nursing Class of 2024 takes part in a graduation ceremony at Victor Valley Christian Church in Hesperia on Thursday, June 6, 2024.

Each new nurse was presented with a special pin signifying their preparedness.

Class President Louisa Castillo told her classmates she was "in awe of your dedication and passion."

"You all have brought something valuable and unique to our cohort, and Im proud to be standing alongside you all during this journey," she said. "During these two years, Im delighted to say the experiences we have shared, the knowledge gained, and the bonds we made with one another give me an overwhelming sense of gratitude."

Victor Valley College President and Superintendent Daniel Walden commended the students on choosing a career of service.

"Being a nurse, that's a blessing. When you bless others, you are blessed," he said. "Not only are you gonna live your life being a blessing everyday you go to work, but you are going to live your entire life and career as a blessing."

California Nursing Students' Association President-Student Margaret Sandige said that nursing was not just a profession, but rather, "a calling."

"It is a commitment to serve others, to advocate for those who cannot speak for themselves, and to provide care with dignity and respect," she said. "We will encounter moments of joy and sorrow, achievement and defeat, but through it all, we must remember the core of why we chose this path: to make a difference in the lives of others."

A recording of the ceremony can be viewed online on the Victor Valley College YouTube channel.

This article originally appeared on Victorville Daily Press: 30 nurses graduate from Victor Valley College
Ethiopia halted the sale of shares of its state-owned operator Ethio Telecom to foreign companies, to prioritise domestic retail investors instead, reported Bloomberg.

The government wanted to sell 45% of Ethio Telecom to foreign investors in a move to keep the operator competitive against Safaricom. French operator Orange, which has a substantial footprint in Africa, announced it withdrew from the bidding process as it did not gain assurances to deploy its strategy in the populous 120 milliion strong country. Speaking to Developing Telecoms at MWC Barcelona, Orange MEA boss Jerome Henique said the group is still open to do a deal.

There were bidders, but each one of them has left the process at one point, said Abdurehman Eid, chief executive officer of Ethiopian Investment Holdings, which is handling the process along with the finance ministry. At the end, we felt its probably better to halt the process.

The chief executive said foreign bids did not meet state expectations in an interview last week with Bloomberg.

Eid added that Ethiopia will push to sell a 10% stake to retail investors who are showing appetite. But a sale to foreign investors is not off the table as the process will resume after the company lists on the Ethiopian Securities Exchange that starts operations in October.

Ethiopia worked to open its economy to foreign investment and firms since 2018. According to Bloomberg, Ethio Telecom had 74.6 million subscribers in January and reported 11 billion birr ($191.6 million) profit its H1 results.
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.
Riders make their way into Dallas Center on the Raccoon River Valley Trail as part of the BACooN Ride on Saturday, June 17, 2023.

St. Patrick's Rummage Sale

June 13-15 at St. Patrick's School Gym, Perry.

The Regina Guild will sponsor the St. Patrick's Rummage Sale at the school gym. The sale will be open from 12-7 p.m. Thursday, 9 a.m. - 7 p.m. Friday and 9 a.m. - 12 p.m. Saturday.

Woodward Public Library Summer Reading Program

1 p.m. Thursday, June 13 at Woodward United Methodist Church.

The Summer Reading Program at the Woodward Public Library kicked off on June 1. The theme is Get Caught Reading with emphasis on the importance of reading for enjoyment and learning. The program runs during the month of June with the prize party on June 27. Ages 2-5 meet every Monday at 10 a.m. K-5 grades meet every Tuesday at 10 a.m. Teens meet every at Wednesday 10 a.m. Special programs will be held at the Woodward United Methodist Church, including Cartoonist Buck Jones at 1 p.m. on June 13; Instruments through Time at 2 p.m. on June 17; Balloon Workshop at 1:30 p.m. on June 18.

Movie at Heritage

6 p.m. Thursday, June 13 at Heritage Park, Grimes.

Join Grimes Parks and Rec on June 13 at Heritage Park for a free showing of "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem." Activities start at 6 p.m. and the movie will begin at 7 p.m. The movie will be shown on a special outdoor screen with a perfect picture (even in the daylight) so you wont miss a second of the movie. There will be free popcorn, but grab any snacks, drinks, and chairs/blankets you need from home.

June Sip & Shop

4-7 p.m. Friday, June 14 at Perry businesses.

Enjoy an after-hours shopping experience at Perry Businesses on Friday, June 14. Shop warm-weather apparel, summer decor, gifts and more while sipping complimentary refreshments at each location. Refreshments and in-store offerings vary per location. Find more information on the Perry Chamber's Facebook page.

Flag Day Program

6 p.m. Friday, June 14 at Josh Memorial Davis Plaza.

Perry Elks Lodge No. 407 will celebrate Flag Day on Friday, June 14 at the Josh Davis Memorial Plaza. Community members are encouraged and invited to attend. Should inclement weather be present, the ceremony will be moved to the Lodge.

Dallas County Pre-Fair Rodeo

7:30 p.m. June 14 and 15 at Dallas County Fairgrounds, Adel.

Join the Dallas County Fair Association for its two-day pre-fair rodeo in conjunction with Wright Rodeo Company. The gates open at 6 p.m. with the rodeo to follow at 7:30 p.m. Live music will follow each night of the rodeo, with Royce Johns performing Friday and Jordan Beem on Saturday. Admission is $10 for adults and $5 for children ages 6-12.

BACooN Ride

Saturday, June 15 along Raccoon River Valley Trail.

The 71-mile ride on the Raccoon River Valley Trail combines the love of bacon and the love of bike riding, with bacon stops in each town along the route. The theme for the 10th annual event is Bacoonritaville. Bacon stops include Waukee: Bacon Breakfast Taco; Dallas Center: Maple Bacon Donut at the Town Center; Minburn: Bacon Breakfast Taco at Casa Oaxaca Mexican Grill; Perry: Pulled Pork Sandwich at the Proletariat; Jamaica: Hydration Station; Herndon: Berkwood Farms Hot Dog; Redfield: Berkwood Farms Pork Burger at City Park; Adel: Thelma's Ice Cream Sandwiches at Brickyard Cafe; Waukee: Peanut Butter Bacon Bar at Mickey's Irish Pub. The BACooN Ride, presented by Veridian Credit Union, will kick off at 7 a.m. in Waukee and will travel counter-clockwise towards Dallas Center, Minburn and Perry. The route will continue around the loop and return from Adel to Waukee. For more information, including how to register, visit bacoonride.com or the BACooN RIDE Facebook page.

June Bird Hike

8-10:30 a.m. Saturday, June 15 at Kuehn Conservation Area, 32828 Houston Trail, Earlham.

Kuehn Conservation Area is a Dallas County birding hot spot. It has a fantastic diversity of habitats and is located along the Raccoon River corridor. Spring migration will be wrapping up, so the birds we see and hear will likely be nesting. This will be a moderate hike on even ground. Beginning birders, including children, are welcome and encouraged. Some binoculars and books will be provided. Registration is required through DCCB's Eventbrite page.

New Hope Church Car Show

9 a.m. - 1 p.m. Saturday, June 15 at New Hope Church, 25712 Hwy 6, Adel.

New Hope Adel is hosting a car show to raise money with free-will donations and awareness for Operation Christmas Child. Bring your vehicle to share, car, truck, tractor, or bus. There will be food and fun activities for the entire family. No entry fee or pre-registration, just a free-will donation to support Operation Christmas Child.

Iowa Cubs - Little League Takeover

10 a.m. Saturday, June 15 at Perry Little League Fields.

The Iowa Cubs will be in Perry for a community event on Saturday, June 15. The event features free admission, appearances from Cubbie Bear, in-between inning games and activities for all fans, giveaway items and more. For more information, contact Sam Jochimsen at 515-280-2651 or samj@iowacubs.com.

Free Merchant Movies

11 a.m. Wednesday, June 19 at Perry Grand 3 Theatres.

The Perry Grand 3 Theatres will continue the 2024 summer movies on Wednesday, June 19 with "The Land Before Time." All movies will be shown at 11 a.m. on Wednesdays through Aug. 7. Admission is free thanks to local sponsors. Look for a full list of upcoming movies on the Perry Grand 3 Theatres Facebook page.

Summer Solstice Sunset Celebration

8-9 p.m. Thursday, June 20 at Hanging Rock Park.

Join DCCB naturalists at the astronomical clock atop the ridge at Hanging Rock to observe and celebrate the sunset of Summer Solstice. The meaning of the word "solstice" is sol- sun and stice- to stand still. Perhaps the frenetic pace of your life could use a little stand-still time. Explore metering time in a different scale, a clock made of rocks, and enjoy the magic of a sunset. Registration not required.

Pancake Breakfast

7-10 a.m. Saturday, June 22 at Washington Township School, eight miles south of Perry on P58 at the intersection with F31.

A pancake breakfast will be held on Saturday, June 22 at the Washington Township School. Pancakes, eggs, sausage, biscuits and gravy, hash browns and drink will be served. Proceeds will go to maintain and improve the historic Washington School Building that is used for community events.

Adel Parks and Rec Power Wheels Nationals

Saturday, June 22 at Kinnick-Feller Park, Adel.

The third annual Adel Parks and Rec Power Wheels Nationals, presented by Alley Auto Sales and BigDeal Car Care, will be held on Saturday, June 22. Race day registration will be from 9-10 a.m. with races beginning at 11 a.m. Races will be held for ages 2-7. The divisions include Limited Pro Stock - ages 2 to 4 and Pro Stock - ages 5 to 7. Community power wheels will be available for kids who don't have one but still want to participate. At the conclusion of the event, 25 power wheels will be given away via raffle. Helmets and seatbelts are required and local mechanics will be inspecting vehicles the day of the event. Trophies will be handed out to the top three podium finishers in each class. Find more information on the Power Wheels Nationals Facebook page.

Outdoor Concert

7 p.m. Monday, June 24 at Spurgeon Manor, 1204 Linden St., Dallas Center.

Come and enjoy another outdoor concert by the Greater Des Moines Community Band on Monday, June 24. Bring a chair and join us at Spurgeon Manor for this event.

To submit events to be included in the Around the County round-up, email news@adelnews.com or news@theperrychief.com.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Things to do this weekend in Dallas County: BACooN Ride, rodeo
A Florida man was riding his jet ski when an aggressive shark began aggressively circling and even jumped out of the water to multiple times to ram the craft. The encounter occurred just days after a series of shark attacks have hit the region.

The video was first posted to Facebook by Walton County mortgage broker Andrew Cady. It is a little unnerving to see that aggressive a bull shark within a few days of having three people attacked in a single day, Cady told Inside Edition. It literally launched itself out of the water towards the back end of my jet ski. Cady believes the species to be a bull shark, though that has not been confirmed by experts.

On June 7, three Walton County beachgoers were injured in two separate shark attacks. The encounters occurred just four miles apart, within 90 minutes of each other. One 45-year-old woman had part of her left arm amputated and suffered significant trauma to her midsection, according to CNN. The second attack involved two teenagers, one of whom received significant injuries to her upper leg and one hand, while the other had minor injuries to her foot.

We encourage all of our beach patrons to be situationally aware in the water today, swim near a lifeguard, stay hydrated, and look out for each other, the South Walton Fire District said in an update on its Facebook page after the incidents.

Another video, also posted to Cadys Facebook account, shows another encounter happening even closer to shore, directly next to bathers wading in shallow water. This was two weeks ago at the Lake Powell Inlet, wrote Cady in the caption. My daughter shot the video. As we were coming back from the gulf into the Inlet we spotted a shark coming in right beside us. We yelled for everyone to get out of the water. What wasnt captured on video was the shark charging a father carrying his young daughter. If you look at the very beginning of the video you see him trip and fall in the water with his daughter in arms. The shark was heading straight for him and changed directions literally feet from them. We play in their world. Stay safe out there Walton

The post Aggressive Shark Repeatedly Rams Florida Mans Jet Ski first appeared on The Inertia.
"Rooster Man" is one of more than 200 images photographer Paul Mobley took of American farmers.

MANITOWOC  Farming is about as central to Wisconsin as cheese, the Green Bay Packers and Harley-Davidson.

A traveling photo exhibit opening June 17 at Manitowoc Public Library celebrates and adds new dimension to the history of American farms and farmers.

According to a news release from the library, when photographer Paul Mobley set out to capture the soul of our countrys farm communities, he encountered an enduring rural culture that remains rooted in the principals of tradition, family, integrity and hard work. Crisscrossing the country, from Alaska to Florida, Mobley and his camera were welcomed time and time again into the homes of hundreds of farm families.

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The photographer came to know the independent farmers spirit from behind the lens and across the dinner table, according to the release.

He sought the elusive spirit of agriculture, looking for subjects that mirrored the projects sense of risk and independence, the release said. The resulting images show farmers with a strong sense of where they belong in the universe, a close connection to the land and their day-to-day work as it affects the rest of the world.

Library events: SSSSSee the SSSSnakes! and more at Manitowoc library this week. Here's everything coming up.

ExhibitsUSA distilled a selection of 45 portraits out of Mobleys collection of more than 200 portraits. The display includes anecdotes and memories in the farmer's own words that provide a glimpse into their worlds.

It also pays homage to a disappearing way of American life. From Jim Taber, a young single father raising cattle in Montana, to Shirley Schollenberg, the daughter of Alaskan homesteaders, Mobleys photos reveal the face of American farming and remind us what it means to live with simplicity, contentment and decency in a world that so often forgets, the release said.

Mobley has traveled extensively throughout the U.S. and world to capture images. His first book, American Farmer: Portraits from the Heartland, was published in fall 2008.

Rainy May's impact on farmers: Last May, a drought. This May, the second-wettest May on record. How Manitowoc County farmers are coping.

Visitors can check out the display at the library, 707 Quay St., from June 17 to Oct. 24 during regular hours. The library also plans a variety of events and programs during the run of American Farmer, including panel discussions with local farming families and a presentation by urban farmers. Learn more at www.manitowoclibrary.org/events.

Admission is free. For information, call 920-686-3000 or visit manitowoclibrary.org.

Contact reporter Patti Zarling at pzarling@gannett.com or call 920-606-2575. Follow her on X @PGPattiZarling and on Instagram @PGPattiZarling.

This article originally appeared on Manitowoc Herald Times Reporter: American Farmer exhibit by photographer Paul Mobley comes to Manitowoc
Construction is underway for a new visitor center at Mohican State Park near the campground entrance from Ohio 3 in Loudonville.

The new building is scheduled to be finished and open to the public by sometime in late 2025.

The visitor center will be open year-round for the park's roughly 1 million annual guests, according to Mary Mertz, director of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

"We want people to have an opportunity to learn about the whole area," Mertz said Monday during a groundbreaking ceremony. "It's a beautiful place. I love it here and I want people to see this beautiful visitors center and stop by and learn."

More: Conservation, food-centered festival promises family fun at Malabar Farm on June 29

Some park amenities will be closed during construction

The project is budgeted to cost $3.6 million.

The new structure will be immediately west of Mohican State Park Campground. The visitor center will be accessible by the road off the campground entrance that now leads to a playground, picnic pavilion and parking area.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources broke ground this week on a new visitors center at Mohican State Park in Loudonville.

That road and its existing amenities will be closed to the public during construction, according to Karina Cheung, an ODNR spokesperson.

"This will not impact traffic or the ability to enter or leave the campground," Cheung said. "The ODNR Division of Parks and Watercraft will provide signage about the site closure at necessary points, such as near the river where paddlers may try to exit, and at closure points for the hiking and mountain biking trails."

'A wow factor both inside and out'

The visitor center will be within the floodplain of the Clear Fork River.

To combat any future flooding issues, the building was designed with protective landscaping and a long ramp upward from the ground to the front door.

A rendering of the new visitors center at Mohican State Park in Loudonville.

The entry to the building has been described by designers as "grand and inviting."

"We want it to catch people's attention," Mertz said. "We want it to have a wow factor both inside and out. And so we are working really, really hard to make that happen."

More: ODNR celebrates Malabar Farm State Park's new Visitor Center exhibit

'Tell people about all the things they can do here'

The visitor center will feature a central exhibit space, a merchandise area, staff support rooms as well as storage and mechanical spaces.

The building will have doors facing both the parking area and the campground.

The main entrance will have a vestibule designed to lock off from the rest of the facility, allowing off-hours access to restrooms and drinking fountains.

The space will also feature exterior porches and a fireplace.

"We need this visitor center to tell people about all the things they can do here," Mertz said. "People who want to hit the trails for mountain biking, they're going to be able to get started here. Public access to the river outside the visitor center for people who want to go kayaking, canoeing, tubing. The archery range is right across the way."

The building can serve as a hub for the greater Mohican area.

"This facility is designed to blend seamlessly with the parks natural beauty while providing modern amenities and educational opportunities for our visitors," Mertz said. "It will enhance the overall experience for everyone who comes to explore and enjoy one of Ohio's most cherished parks."

ztuggle@gannett.com

419-564-3508

This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Mohican State Park visitor center to open in Loudonville late 2025
It is impossible to drown a tomato plant.

Thats what I always thought during my years growing little cherries on the back porch every summer in Ruidoso. You need plenty of water and sunshine  thats about it  until the subject came up with the new owners and operators of Conleys Nursery and Landscaping, Victoria and Robby Bomer, who had a different opinion.

Actually, the plant will let you know, Robby said. Youll see a yellowing or curling of the leaves which is the giveaway. You can do a little pinch-test on the dirt to find out what the water content of the soil is like.

Robby picked up a tiny piece of soil to demonstrate water content and rubbed it gently between his thumb and index finger. Squeeze it tight with your finger and see if you get any moisture.

Robby and Victoria seem to be in plant heaven these days. They spend their time taking care of thousands of tomato plants, geraniums, petunias, vegetables and flower baskets. Plants are everywhere inside the Conleys greenhouse waiting to be adopted.

Robby and Victoria Bomer are the new owners and operators of Conleys Nursery and Landscaping, 26575 U.S. 70 in Ruidoso Downs.

We love this place and what live plants mean to the community, Victoria said. Our entire family, including our parents and our three children, are all involved in the business every day. Were excited about what were building here.

There seems to be a new vibe at Conleys. A lot has changed since the Bomer family took over last fall for longtime second-generation owner Ted Conleyexcept the name.

Were keeping the name Conleys, Robby said. Ted has been very gracious to us and we think there is a sense of tradition to the name Conley and the quality that stands behind it.

Robby and Victoria had been living in Muleshoe, Texas, while thinking about purchasing the business for several years from Ted, but another job opportunity forced their hand to finally make the purchase.

I was offered the assistant principals position at the high school, Victoria said. Thats when we really started getting serious about the idea of combining my new job with something that Robby could get excited aboutlandscaping and design. My new job and owning Conleys sort of fell into place for our family all at the same time.

Robby manages a staff of six employees doing yard and tree services, landscaping and maintaining the nursery. Victoria has more time to spend on plants during summer break from school. Their two sons, Lincoln and Nolan, stay busy carrying out purchased plants to the customers vehiclesa known practice of customer service that has been a Conleys tradition.

We want to own and operate this business for a long time and contribute to this community, Robby said about their shared family goals. Our hope is to one day hand down this business to our kids.

Which might have been the same idea the late Wilber Conley had when he opened the nursery so many decades agohanding it down to Ted.

Time to see what the Bomer family can grow.

Ruidoso News columnist Tim Keithley writes about the people and events in the community. If you have a story idea, contact Tim at tkeithley@zianet.com.

This article originally appeared on Carlsbad Current-Argus: Bomers blooming in new role at Conleys Nursery and Landscaping
Celebrate freedom at 2024 Juneteenth celebrations in Salisbury and across Lower Shore

Join Marylanders in celebration of "Freedom Day" or Juneteenth, short for June 19, as communities around the nation come together to recognize June 19, 1865, a key day in United States history when enslaved African-Americans learned of their emancipation.

Here's everything you need to know about this year's Juneteenth festivities taking place on the Eastern Shore.

Salisbury

Salisbury held its sixth annual Eastern Shore Juneteenth Parade and Festival Saturday in downtown.

The city of Salisbury's seventh annual Eastern Shore Juneteenth celebration is set to take place on Saturday, June 15, from 1 to 6 p.m. in downtown Salisbury. The event will feature a parade complete with colorful floats, dance groups and antique cars. The parade is slated to begin at 1 p.m. at the Main Street Plaza, with the festival beginning immediately after along North Division Street.

The celebration is organized by Eastern Shore Juneteenth, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based on the Lower Shore of Maryland. Eastern Shore Juneteenth aims to bring the community together to celebrate Black culture and achievement, provide community education on Black history and the ongoing struggle for civil rights, and create a safe space for Black creativity and expression.

GUIDE TO MARYLAND FOLK FESTIVAL: Salisbury to host Maryland Folk Festival again: All to know about the event

Princess Anne

Young steppers get ready to show off their skills at the Juneteenth Unity Parade in Exmore.

The fourth annual Princess Anne Juneteenth Celebration is set to take place on Wednesday, June 19, from noon to 5 p.m. The big event  located in downtown Princess Anne and free to all who attend  will feature family-friendly activities such as a peace walk, live performances, music, food and an array of vendors.

BLACK BUSINESS OWNERS: Meet the Black business owners 'bringing energy, options and opportunity' to Princess Anne

Snow Hill

Family and friends gather together to celebrate the 2022 fifth annual Eastern Shore Juneteenth Celebration on Saturday, June 18, in Salisbury, Maryland.

Celebrate Juneteenth with the African American Heritage Society of Snow Hill and Surrounding Areas at Byrd Park  400 Dighton Ave.  on Saturday, June 15, from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. The event will feature a walk past significant African American landmarks in Snow Hill, as well as guest speakers, food, vendors, music and more.

OCEANS CALLING FESTIVAL LINEUP: Ocean City's 2024 Oceans Calling to host Blink-182, Dave Matthews Band: Here's the lineup

Pocomoke City

Immerse yourself in history at this year's Sturgis Museum Juneteenth Celebration, set to take place on Saturday, June 22, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 209 Willow St. in Pocomoke City. The celebration will feature door prizes, live performances, a bounce house, food vendors, and guest speakers such as Sharnell Tull and community partners.

COUNTRY CALLING FESTIVAL LINEUP: Ocean City's 2024 Country Calling to host Eric Church, Tyler Childers: Here's the lineup

Olivia Minzola covers communities on the Lower Shore. Contact her with tips and story ideas at ominzola@delmarvanow.com.

This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Here's where to celebrate Juneteenth on the Eastern Shore of Maryland
Falling birth rates are freaking countries out and spawning dubious fixes like tax breaks, cheaper cars, and free surgery

Countries are exploring innovative strategies to combat declining birth rates.

Cash incentives, medals, and even car subsidies are among the measures being adopted.

But experts say that no country seems to have found a workable solution.

As fertility rates decline across much of the world, countries are exploring innovative strategies to encourage women to have more babies.

Several demography experts told Business Insider that these involved lump sums of money, gold medals, and even tax breaks.

But none will be enough to solve the problem alone, they said.

Baby bonuses

Several countries have introduced so-called baby bonuses to combat declining fertility rates.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Singapore offered one-time payments, and the "Baby Bonus Scheme" continues to provide cash incentives for Singaporean couples having children.

South Korea, which has the world's lowest fertility rate, runs an allowance system that gives parents with a newborn $750 a month until their baby turns 1 year old.

According to Bloomberg, the country is even considering a proposal to pay families about $70,000 to have children.

Local Chinese governments, meanwhile, offer one-time subsidies, often worth thousands of dollars, to encourage parents to have two or more children.

However, experts say that financial incentives alone are not a long-term solution.

Sarah Harper, a professor of gerontology and the director of the Oxford Institute of Population Ageing, told BI that cash incentives encouraged a "mini baby boom, followed by a baby crash."

She added: "Those women who would have spread their childbearing across several years all go at the same time to get the cash bonus, and then there is a lull in childbearing."

Gold medals, tax breaks, and car subsidies

Other financial incentives include Kazakhstan's prize system for mothers with many children, inspired by the "mother heroine" honorary title from the Soviet era.

BBC WorkLife reported that mothers in the country received silver medals for six children, gold medals for seven or more, and a financial allowance for the rest of their lives.

In 2022, Russian President Vladimir Putin introduced a similar program, offering a title and a lump sum of about $17,000 to Russian citizens with 10 or more children.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has also focused on boosting the fertility rate with financial perks.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. ATTILA KISBENEDEK/Getty Images

Women in Hungary who become mothers under 30 or have four or more children receive a lifelong exemption from paying personal income tax.

Meanwhile, Hungarian families with three or more children receive subsidies for purchasing seven-seater cars, The Associated Press reported, and parents get loan deductions on their homes based on the number of children they have.

Trent MacNamara, a Texas A&M professor whose work has focused on fertility rates, told BI that the impact of financial incentives on fertility rates was uncertain and might lead to only modest gains.

"For example, if a government transferred new parents about 5% of the costs of raising a child, we could expect a roughly 5% bump in fertility," he said.

Generous leave and flexible working conditions

Financial incentives often have an underlying assumption that the cost of parenting is the main reason behind declining fertility rates.

However, Poh Lin Tan, an assistant professor at the National University of Singapore, told BI that "an amalgam of factors" pushes people to have fewer children.

In Singapore, these factors include people spending more time in education, changes to traditional family dynamics, and the conflict between building a family and a career, she said.

In 2023, Singapore attempted to address some underlying factors by doubling paid paternity leave to four weeks and increasing unpaid infant-care leave from six to 12 days annually for a child's first two years.

Scandinavian countries have gone even further.

Norway provides 49 weeks of parental leave with full pay, Finland offers seven months to each parent, and Sweden provides 240 days per parent of leave.

But Philip N. Cohen, a family demographer at the University of Maryland, told BI that these policies often have unintended effects.

He said that in some circumstances, parents don't end up having more kids; instead, they use generous leave provisions like paid time off and universal childcare to space out having fewer children so they benefit more.

Subsidized fertility treatments and vasectomy reversals

Cohen said that other strategies to increase fertility rates included countries like Israel offering free or heavily subsidized in vitro fertilization.

According to the American Economic Association, this may have also had an unintended consequence  leading Jewish Israeli women to delay getting married and having kids.

Some countries offer free or heavily subsidized treatments for in vitro fertilization. Antonio Marquez lanza/Getty Images

Hungary also offers free IVF as part of its pronatalist policies, and Singapore and Japan offer significant subsidies.

However, a 2020 essay by Tan said the Japanese example showed that reproductive technologies were not a panacea for low fertility rates.

Japan has the world's highest percentage of babies born through IVF, yet it has one of the lowest fertility rates, she said.

South Korea also covers the costs of various reproductive-technology treatments, such as egg freezing.

More recently, Seoul's government made headlines with a proposal offering up to $730 each to 100 people to reverse their vasectomies or untie their tubes.

No magic bullet

Experts agreed that there's no easy solution to the fertility crisis.

"No government has discovered a policy that produces sustained bumps in fertility," MacNamara told BI, adding: "Plenty of bright people in wealthy countries have spent decades trying to figure this out without evident success."

He said that young people increasingly saw small families as the norm, which is a "really tough cycle to break."

Even if a "magic formula" were to be discovered, he added, it would need to be implemented carefully to avoid then promoting unsustainable population growth.

"Rapid growth would make it harder to scale back our present overconsumption of resources, including fossil fuels," he said.

Read the original article on Business Insider
The list of parents and their children sharing waves of mortal peril is a small but celebrated group. Dave and Bronte Macaulay love Western Australian slabs. Peter and Jon Mel sit side by side at Mavericks. Coco and Mason Ho still look up to Michael.

Over the past three years, Dylan Longbottom and his daughter Summa have been doing what few fathers and daughters have ever experienced together: bagging a variety of the best (and most dangerous) subterranean cylinders around Australia. Adding to the intrigue is that 21-year-old Summa is on her backhand at the rights, a different approach than her fathers frontside.

Dylan needs no introduction, but he deserves one anyway. At age 50, he still has a groms froth, and when hes not searching for barrels hes making boards under his label Dylan Surfboards for some of the worlds premier thrill seekers like Matahi Drollet, Laura Enever, Laurie Towner, Lucas Chianca. Out of his shop in Cronulla, he builds blades based on decades of experience. You might recall his bomb during the legendary Teahupoo Code Red swell in 2011.

I feel like shes almost sparking something within Dylan, Kipp Caddy said. Obviously, hes one of the slab godfathers. Even at that last Shipstern's session, I feel like he was doing some of the best surfing hes ever done, which at 50 years old is insane. Photo: Peter Balmer

Its been a gradual progression for the family from the South Coast of New South Wales to get to this point. But there were early signs Summa was up for the challenge. When they were based in Bali during Summas childhood, Dylan recalled how she followed him around lineups. Most kids do this with their parents, except Summa tailed her pops to proper Outside Corner and G-land. At age 13, she towed 15-foot Nazare. There was no coaxing or nudging necessary. Recognizing her commitment, Dylan eased her into bommies in NSW and abroad.

I keep telling my dad, five years ago I would never have seen myself doing this stuff, Summa said. We didnt have it in the books.

Undertaking waves of this magnitude, however natural it may feel, comes with inherent risks. On her first trip to the South Australian desert in 2023, Summa was on the beach when her dad broke four ribs and partially collapsed a lung after colliding chest-first with the reef below a notoriously heavy slab. After popping some Advil and a couple beers, Dylan stayed the night in Nowheresville rather than drive 12 hours to the nearest hospital. Summa had exercised caution and did not attempt a wave the day her father was injured. But the following morning the swell dropped, and Summa took her shot. It was her first time towing without her father by her side.

Jerome Sahyoun and Kipp Caddy took her out, Dylan said. It was the first time I had no control because I wasnt out there with her. And she nailed it. She got three bombs. It was heavy for me just watching.

With dad on the sand and a minimal crowd in the water, Summa had to read the wave without the usual marker of paddlers, and she found herself deep into a cone coughed up by the Great Australian Bight.

I was thinking I may not get it right because I didnt know where the wave was going to start, she said. But I just tried it. It was my best wave, the one I was deepest on. It was crazy.

Related: The Day After Breaking 4 Ribs at This Mutant Slab, Dylan Longbottom Watches Daughter Summa Tow It

Asked what its like to watch each other on waves of consequence, both gave illuminating and varying answers. Theres an element of parental protection, but who better than Summas father to teach her and share these remarkable rides with her?

Were a tow team now, and Im teaching her how to drive, Dylan said. I tell her, I cant just drive you all the time, you have to tow me! But its definitely a lot more challenging teaming up with my daughter than anyone else like Laurie or Matahi or Chumbo. Because I know the waves we surf. But Im staying positive. Between waves, I tell her Do this! Focus! Bend your knees over the step! Dont hit it at an angle. Its all pep talk and teamwork.

Its definitely scary, but I feel like hes more nervous for me than I am for him because hes so experienced, Summa said. But I still get worried. I remember at the last Shipsterns swell, on his big wipeout my heart stopped for a second. Its weird because Ive seen it so many times now, but every time he falls I still get that feeling, even though I know hes probably fine.

When we were (at Shipsterns) last year, I said get to the step as early as you can, Dylan said. Aim for the step and hit it straight on. Get down as early as possible, because the later you get to that step the higher you are in the gnarly part. Photo: Peter Balmer

Kipp Caddy, another of Australia's finest slab aficionado, has gotten close with the Longbottoms since they moved to the Cronulla years ago.

Its been pretty crazy watching Summas progression from the start to now, Kipp said. Its such a cool environment in the sense of picking the moments, finding the conditions that will be best for her to surf."

Summa knows she can improve her backhand technique, and shes exposed to plenty of talent in her familys inner circle. But shes keen for bigger lefts and wants a rematch to paddle and tow Teahupoo. Last year at the bottom of the continent she whipped into one of the waves of the day, frontside, at one of the craziest big left slabs in Australia, Dylan recalled.

I try to watch guys like Jerome, who we go on trips with, or someone on their backhand and study their lines, Summa said. Then Ill try it for myself and see how I go. Usually, when we go to a new wave we study it for a bit. You dont want to just go out there on the rope or paddle and wing it. You want to know what your line is going to be.

No slab lesson would be complete without a field trip to Shipstern Bluff, and Summa has made annual trips to Tasmania with her father since she was 17. Prior to a run of swell at Shipsterns last April, shed yet to wipe out. Summa bided her time before snagging one, then caught rail on another and got worked inside.

Laura is one of Summas most encouraging supporters. The Guinness World Record holder rides Dylans guns and has seen firsthand how the father and daughter work together. That April day at Shipsterns, Laura and Summa sat in the channel for a long while discussing the line they wanted to take over the infamous step. Laura said watching Summa take the first crack at it fired her up to get a gem.

Summa is such a chiller, Laura said. Shes a cruiser but she loves a challenge. Shes a really sweet girl.

Even the really good guys with experience were getting smashed, Summa recalled. I was like, Shit, I dont know if I can do this day. But I was on the boat thinking if I dont get another one Im going to be devo-ed.

After catching her breath, her father whipped her into another one. Summa fell again, only to get whacked in the face by her board, fracturing her cheekbone. Like daughter like father, she didnt see a doctor. She stayed on the boat the rest of the day, watching the scene and taking notes.

Its a hard wave forehand, let alone backhand, Dylan said. Not many goodies over the years have even wanted to try it. Its so hard.

What happened next exemplified the Longbottoms commitment to heavy water. Five days after the Shippies swell, Summa was towing at Cape Solander and negotiating the rocks inside Ours with a black eye and a not-full-healed skull.

My first wave I went over the handlebars, she said. My helmet ripped off. The zipper on my hoodie ripped off, and my necklace ripped off. Straight after that, I got another one, but it was shit. So I pulled off near the paddlers and I nearly got two rouge set waves on the head. I was shitting myself. It was so heavy.

"It's so good to have another girl to chase that thing with, to pump each other up," Laura Enever said of Summa. Photo: Sam Venn

In some respects, Dylan and Summa are like many families who surf together regularly. During this interview, they talked excitedly about chasing swells to Indonesia and Morocco. But then there are things that remind you of the larger scale theyre attempting. They both received invites to the Pico Alto Tow In Challenge at Perus Punta Hermosa. The waiting period runs through July, and theyre slated to compete against a field of 23 other men and seven women, including Lucas Chianca, Andrew Cotton and Justine Dupont. In regards to Ours, while Layne Beachley and Laura Enever have built a portfolio there, Summa is believed to be the youngest female ever to ride the wave when she first did so at age 17.

If Im not there, Im freaking out, Dylan said. I relish being there for her. Similar to Peter Mel, hes got so much knowledge to pass on to his son, and its the same for me with Summa. Photo: Peter Balmer

Both of them recognize the unique position theyre in. A family bond strengthened by surfing is not a novel concept, but theyre putting themselves in positions few have ever experienced, let alone a parent and their child. Its an opportunity for Dylan to share, and Summa to learn, decades of knowledge accumulated in some of surfings most extreme arenas.

Sometimes I dont even think about it because it comes so naturally, that were father and daughter, Summa said. But then I see people say how cool this is, a father-daughter team. And some people trip out on it because it doesnt happen a lot. So I guess it is pretty cool.
Local domestic violence center, FavorHouse of Northwest Florida, is partnering with Cat Country 98.7 and area restaurants to throw the country-western themed FavorHouse Round-Up to raise critical funds to help domestic violence victims in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday, June 21 at the Escambia County Equestrian Center, 7750 Mobile Highway.

The Round-Up features live music from Blackwater Country, walk-about food tasting, dancing, a mechanical bull and rodeo roper, bourbon and wine pulls, a live auction of experience packages and more.

Since 1980, FavorHouse of Northwest Florida Inc. has been committed to excellence in service to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault. As the only certified domestic violence center serving Escambia and Santa Rosa counties, FavorHouse provides crisis intervention, emergency shelter, outreach counseling, community education and legal assistance for injunctions for protection.

FavorHouse hosts New Beginning dance to support domestic violence survivor awareness.

Tickets are $60.

Visit FavorHouse.org for details.

UWF Historic Trust and DeFuniak Landmarks promote historic preservation

The University of West Florida Historic Trust recently announced a partnership with F. Diane Pickett, local emerging author and the president and founder of DeFuniak Landmarks, a nonprofit foundation established to preserve and protect the architectural integrity of homes within the historic districts of DeFuniak Springs. This partnership will further the mission of the UWF Historic Trust to collect, preserve, interpret and share the history of Northwest Florida.

Pickett made significant contributions to the UWF Foundation and UWF Historic Trust to establish two endowments that will support the UWF Historic Trust and their ongoing programming and education of history in Northwest Florida.

The first endowment will fund the preservation and maintenance of historic homes in DeFuniak Springs. The second endowment, the F. Diane Pickett Historic Landmarks Endowment Fund or Pickett Fund, will be used to educate the public through presentations and programs to provide an understanding of the historic and cultural significance of homes and public buildings in DeFuniak Springs in the early 1900s.

Through engaging educational programs, hands-on workshops, and community partnerships, DeFuniak Landmarks will empower individuals of all ages to become stewards of their local history. The UWF Historic Trust will offer interactive walking tours and in-depth lectures by renowned historians.

Visit historicpensacola.org for details.

Pilot Club receives matching grant from Pilot International

The Pilot Club of Pensacola received a matching grant from Pilot International for a project entitled, Project Lifesaver. Through this grant, the Pilot Club of Pensacola received $5,000 and will match this amount to fund their project to benefit 31 Escambia Search and Rescue clients now waiting to be included in this program.

Pilot Internationals mission is to influence positive change in communities throughout the world. To do this they come together in friendship and service, focusing on encouraging brain safety and health and supporting those who care for others.

Because of this grant, members of the Pilot Club were able to serve their community by supplying 31 receivers, batteries and wrist bands for those clients on a waitlist at Escambia Search and Rescue.

Pilot Club of Pensacola funds were raised through donations and fundraisers. Their fundraisers for this year include an upcoming fashion show on Oct. 16 at the Pensacola Yacht Club.

Email pilotclubpensacola@gmail.com or visit pilotinternational.org for details.

Baptist Health Care offers support groups in June

Baptist Health Care will offer the following support group meetings in June to help enhance the quality of life throughout the Pensacola community. More information, including location details, is available by calling the phone number provided for each meeting.

5 to 6 p.m. Thursday, June 13: Prostate Cancer Support. Register in advance by calling Cancer Support Services at 448-227-6000.

4 to 5 p.m. Tuesday, June 18: Breast Cancer Support Group. Bear Family Foundation Health Center, Suite 1C. For details, call 448-227-6048.

5 to 6 p.m. Thursday, June 27: Diabetes Management Support Group. For details, contact the Pharmacotherapy Clinic at 448-227-6221 or email pharmacotherapy@bhcpns.org.

Take part: To make a Causes submission, email giving@pnj.com.

Never miss a story: Subscribe to the Pensacola News Journal using the link at the bottom of the page under Stay Connected.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: FavorHouse gives domestic violence the boot during Round-Up fundraiser
Philippines-based operator Globe Telecom chose Nokia equipment to modernise its network infrastructure with Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) capabilities in several key locations nationwide.

In a statement, Nokia stated that Globe tapped it for its Broadband Network Gateway (BNG) solution which will bedeployed in: North Luzon, South Luzon, National Capital Region, Visayas and Mindanao.

The Finnish vendor claimed the BNO solution aids in optimising total cost of ownership of sites and introduces a capability to support FWA services, enabling the operator to offer consumers Fixed Mobile Convergence.

Joel Agustin, SVP of Network Planning and Engineering, Network Technical Group at Globe Telecom, said: We are committed to continuously improving our network infrastructure to provide the best possible broadband experience to our subscribers. Nokias new BNG solution introduces capability to evolve into a flexible multi-access gateway that can combine wireline and wireless access technologies, enabling us to further increase efficiencies. We are looking forward to working with Nokia on this crucial initiative.

Kent Wong, VP and Head of IP Business at Nokia Asia Pacific, added: We have a longstanding partnership with Globe Telecom and are now delighted to work on this initiative to modernize the BNG network for an overall improved broadband experience.
For better wine this summer, these three bottles should be at every gathering.

Food & Wine

June is here, summer is here, and I dont know about you, but for me that means saying hello to an ever-intensifying thirst (at least for the next three months) for wines that are truly refreshing.

Its not just the heat of summer days; its the long, lingering light, the dream of being on a beach or a boat, and meals  ok, setting aside the occasional juice-dripping, melted-cheese-draped burger off the grill  that dont weigh you down.

Related: 16 Chillable Red Wines for Summer Sipping

I want light, bright, zesty whites, and reds that will survive a light chill if need be. Albarinos and Alvarinhos (the Spanish and Portuguese spellings of that grape, respectively); minerally, unoaked Chablis; and shimmering, light-bodied reds from the slopes of Sicilys Mt. Etna. There are plenty of other possibilities, but this June thats where my summertime wine fantasies were leading.

2022 Anselmo Mendes Contacto Alvarinho ($22)

On a recent trip to Portugal, I drank more than my share of this vivid, minerally whitewhat can I say, it was hot outside!from one of the stars of Portugals Vinho Verde region. Mendes is one of the top talents in this part of Portugal, and this wine gets a touch of skin contact during the winemaking process (unusual for white wines), hence the name.

Its far more complex than most of the traditional wines from the region, thrillingly aromatic and citrusy, and is a stellar companion to fish of any kind (particularly bacalhao, if you want to be truly Portuguese).

Related: 16 Best Wines to Buy Right Now for $20 or Less, According to Wine Pros

2022 Albert Bichot Domaine Long-Depaquit Chablis ($26)

As Burgundy prices spiral ever upward, I was pretty thrilled to find this basic village Chablis at such a moderate price. Bichot makes wines throughout the Burgundy region, but some of the firms best come from its 160-acre Chateau Long-Depaquit estate in Chablis.

And this has everything you want in a classic village Chablis: a whiff of springtime flowers on the nose; vivid, bright acidity; crisp citrusy fruit; and a hint of stoniness on the finish. Bring on the raw oysters. Or the steamed mussels. Or just stand in the ocean and drink a glass.

Related: Sicilys Best Kept Secret Is This White Wine

2022 Girolamo Russo a Rina Etna Rosso ($29)

I finally had a chance to meet Giuseppe Russo at NYCs Terroir wine bar after several years of loving his wines, and then writing about them in my book The World in a Wineglass. Hes charming, impressively talented, and definitely one of the new (or new-ish) names to follow if you are intrigued by the elegant transparency and complexity that Nerello Mascalese gets when its grown on Etnas volcanic soils. His Etna Rosso is a perfect summertime redfragrant with red berry fruit, light-bodied, and a total pleasure whether you serve it at standard red wine temperature or chilled down on a hot day.

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Read the original article on Food & Wine.
A local nonprofit is giving a free laptop to every Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools graduate headed this fall to a historically Black college or university.

E2D  which stands for Eliminate the Digital Divide  is a Davidson-based nonprofit aimed at providing free, refurbished personal computers to North Carolinians who need them. The organization has given out 42,600 laptops since its founding in 2013. Over the past two weeks, the organization has distributed laptops to around 700 CMS graduates headed for HBCUs in-state and out-of-state in the fall  7.5% of total CMS graduates this year.

Its not the first time E2D has focused on CMS students. The organization began as an effort to get laptops to families who needed them in Davidson, where E2Ds CEO and founder Pat Millens three children attended CMS Davidson Elementary School. In 2013, E2D gave out 150 laptops in its first year. In 2023, it distributed around 12,000. Its aiming for at least 15,000 in 2024.

If you dont have a computer in 2024 in North Carolina, youre going to struggle, said Millen. Our goal is for every home in North Carolina to have an unrestricted computer in it so families can have what they need to be prosperous.

Last year, it partnered with Johnson C. Smith University, down the road from one of E2Ds two Charlotte labs. School leaders found out of JCSUs 1,086 students, 380 of them reported not having access to a personal computer. The project at JCSU was the inspiration for E2Ds collaboration with CMS.

Devices are embedded within everything we do as a society, and its similar for students on campus, said John Oliver, project manager for the Connecting Minority Communities Grant at Johnson C. Smith University. Just like textbooks used to be key, and students who couldnt get access to them at the start of the semester fell behind, thats how laptops are because assignments start day one.

David W. Butler High School graduates listen to various speeches before going onto the stage to receive their diplomas at the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte on Monday, June 10, 2024.

Oliver said access to laptops can particularly be an issue for first-generation college students.

Many of our students are first-gen students and come from families that support them in every aspect but still can have issues with finances sometimes, and many of them dont have personal devices, he said. Having that device the first day in class increases their engagement and self-efficacy.

Thats where E2D came in. Within an hour in April 2023, it raised the money necessary to get laptops to each student at Johnson C. Smith who reported needing one.

Free laptops in Charlotte

Companies like Truist, Wells Fargo and Lowes donate used laptops by the thousands to E2D, which hires and trains high school students in the Charlotte area to refurbish and repair them. E2D currently employs around 70 Charlotte-area students in its labs, Millen said. The revamped computers are then donated to families who lack access to their own devices. These are also the laptops E2D gave to CMS grads.

Around 328,000 households in North Carolina currently do not have computers, including 26,000 in Mecklenburg County.

In 2022, Honeywell pledged to donate 13,000 already-refurbished laptops to E2D over the next five years to spread digital equity in Mecklenburg County.

Thats about $5 million in laptops, said Honeywell Vice President of Information Technology Angela Bhurji. And it should cut down on the number of Charlotte households that dont have laptops by half.

Bhurji also now serves on the board of E2D. She said around one third of the laptops Honeywell committed to donate have already been distributed, but she doesnt have an exact number.

CMS laptops after graduation

A West Charlotte High School graduate shares a hug after the graduation ceremony at the Bojangles Coliseum in Charlotte on Monday, June 10, 2024.

CMS students get access to Chromebooks to use for school work, but when they graduate, they turn them back in.

These laptops often come to us at only three or four years old, Millen said about the devices that companies donate to E2D. These are great computers to begin with, and when were done with them, theyll easily work for four to five more years.

So, why HBCUs?

After giving Johnson C. Smith students laptops, E2D hired an HBCU impact fellow. She found one in three students who start at HBCUs in North Carolina do not continue into their second year, and access to a laptop is a factor for many students.

E2Ds focus on CMS students who have enrolled and are headed to an HBCU in the fall ensures that these students will have access to the technology theyll need to be successful in college, a spokesperson for CMS wrote in a statement to The Observer. It is crucial that students have access to technology and the internet  without it, they could be at a disadvantage in completing assignments, conducting research, and developing their digital literacy skills.

Millen said he was inspired to make sure lacking a personal computer was never the reason a student had to abandon school.

Its a tool of empowerment, he said.

Millen says E2D is just getting started.

There are still 300,000 North Carolina households that dont have their first computers, he said. We want anyone who needs a computer to be prosperous to get one.
This iconic MS restaurant is back open after a year of pain and hardship. See where

Like virtually everything else in the nearly 15-month journey, nothing was expected.

But when Tracy Harden was able to re-open Chuck's Dairy Bar in storm-ravaged Rolling Fork last week, all became right with the world for her.

It was in March of 2023 when an EF-4 wedge tornado began to rip a nearly mile-wide scar through this small town in the Mississippi Delta and obliterated virtually everything along historic U.S. 61.

In one of the more amazing statistics that has come from the storm, along U.S. 61, the true business corridor for the town, every business that was either destroyed or damaged, except for one, had been back in business.

New BBQ joint is coming: Jackson's Derek Emerson ready to open his newest hit restaurant. See what and where it is

Opening soon: One of Jackson's oldest and most iconic restaurants has a new owner. See who it is

The only one that hadn't opened was Chuck's Dairy Bar, but Harden had been running the restaurant from a food truck, basically since the dust settled after the storm.

Then came last week.

Harden called the health department to see when she could schedule an appointment for an inspection.

Tracy Harden stands outside Chuck's Dairy Bar Wednesday, June 12. Chuck's re-opened June 7 in its new building after nearly 15 months working in a trailer since a tornado ripped through Rolling Fork in March of 2023.

"She said she could be here in a couple of hours," Harden said. "Nothing ever happens in a couple of hours."

The inspector got all of the paperwork done and the iconic Mississippi Delta restaurant could move out of the food truck and into a new building on the same footprint that was flattened by the tornado. The plan, however, was to be in the food truck until this week.

"The next day I had the phones switched over to the new building and then went with it," Harden said. "We are up and running, and we are ready to make some new memories with our community."

How it happened?

The storm destroyed nearly 300 homes, many businesses and claimed 15 lives in the town of then 1,800 people. Wind speeds were reported just shy of 200 mph.

Harden and her staff hid from the storm last year in the restaurant cooler while two patrons hid in the bathrooms.

With that knowledge, Master-Bilt, the refrigerator company, donated $35,000 worth of a cooler system for the new Chuck's with double the capacity of the old system. The old cooler had been in place since 1977 when the last Chuck's building was built.

Tracy Harden, center, the owner of Chuck's Dairy Bar in Rolling Fork poses March 29, 2023, on the slab of Chuck's with some of the kids who frequented her restaurant before the EF-4 tornado wiped it out last year.

Rebuilding Chuck's Dairy Bar offers a beacon of hope for the community as well, since Chuck's has been around longer than most people can remember and many people hope it will still be around for years to come.

It opened in 1964 with then-owner Chuck Henderson at the helm of what would one day become a legendary eatery.

In a story that's been told and retold, many of the Chuck's regulars that Friday night were at their high school prom for Sharkey Issaquena Academy.

While 15 people were killed in the tornado, none of the kids who would have normally been in harm's way were left with a scratch.

But a group of senior boys, hearing where the twister had hit, charged the 15 or so miles back into town to make sure Harden and the people they would have normally been with on a Friday night, were safe.

Back and better than ever

Despite not being fully stocked, Harden and her crew opened at 6:30 last Wednesday morning and stayed open until they ran out of food.

There was no ceremony, no big speeches. They just jumped in with both feet and started working just like they had before the storm ever came, except in a brand new building with new appliances and a new lease on life.

A group of people from a Methodist church in Ohio, who were in Rolling Fork to help rebuild houses, posed with Chuck's Dairy Bar Owner Tracy Harden the day the restaurant re-opened last week. They were some of the first customers in the new building that was built.

"I just could not wait, and we were slammed with customers," Harden said. "It was such an emotional day. Every time a customer walked in, they were overwhelmed, we were overwhelmed. It was just the excitement of having our little business back, having that gathering placing back for the community. It was a great day."

Chuck's Dairy Bar is open Monday through Saturday from 6:30 a.m. until 8 p.m., but the hours will adjust to what had been normal hours in a few weeks.

One customer, who once lived in Rolling Fork, heard through the grapevine that Chuck's had re-opened and drove from Florida this past weekend just to show support, eat a Chuck's Burger and wash it down with one of those amazingly thick chocolate shakes.

"Things like that just lets you know that everything is going to be OK, that people are still going to come and people still want what you have to offer," Harden said, holding back tears. "It feels really good."

Ross Reily can be reached by email at rreily@gannett.com or 601-573-2952. You can follow him on Twitter @GreenOkra1.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Chuck's Dairy Bar in Rolling Fork has reopened
Learn about the history of enslaved Black people and their freedom during Juneteenth events

Communities across the state and nation are holding events starting this weekend to celebrate the oldest Black holiday in the country.

Juneteenth celebrates the freedom and emancipation of enslaved Black people in America. From June 14 through June 23, there are many events across the Upstate to educate and honor its history.

The name Juneteenth refers to June 19, 1865, when enslaved Black people learned about their newfound freedom from federal troops who arrived in Galveston, Texas. This was more than two years after President Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863.

Though it has long been celebrated in Black communities throughout America, Juneteenth became an official federal holiday when President Joe Biden signed a bill on June 17, 2021.

Here in the Upstate, people are celebrating the holiday in many ways. Here are the events happening across the area:

More on Juneteenth: What is June 19th, and why do we celebrate the federal holiday in South Carolina

Three Juneteenth Greenville Events - June 14 - 19

Juneteenth Greenville, Inc. is hosting a trio of events over the week of June 14 through 19.

Their third annual Juneteenth Royal Gala will be held at the Greenville Convention Center between 6 p.m. and midnight on June 14. The event will include live music, food and fellowship for those in attendance. Tickets start at $125, and guests are encouraged to come dressed to impress.

On June 15, the 5K run, ride and recover event will begin at 7 a.m. at 300 River St. and continue through the Swamp Rabbit Trail. Proceeds go to the Vernon Veteran Services. There will also be a 30-minute cycle class at 9 a.m. and an 11 a.m. yoga session at 307 E. McBee Ave.

On June 19, a Freedom Ride Car & Bike Show will be held at 931 Garrison Road in Simpsonville between 5 and 9 p.m. This show will feature a motorcycle convoy, muscle cars, music, food trucks, games for children and more.

Juneteenth Soul Food Festival in Fountain Inn - Saturday, June 15

The city of Fountain Inn, alongside other small businesses and nonprofits is hosting the Soul Food Festival from noon until 6 p.m. on Saturday, June 15.

Live music, food vendors, spoken word, bounce houses and more will be available at 200 Main St., in Fountain Inn.

The Juneteenth GVL Mega Fest took place in Falls Park on June 18. The event is free for the entire family and featured a day full of cultural and live performances from local bands. Darnell Clayton of Greenville walked around the event greeting people with the flag that symbolizes Juneteenth or 'Freedom Day' to some.

Paint and Social Fundraiser at Judson Mill - Saturday, June 15

Hosted by Infinite Possibilities Inc. and Judson Mill, a painting event with food, drinks and networking is scheduled at 701 Easley Bridge Road on June 15.

Tickets begin at $25 for the adults-only event. It will host professional artist Jackie Jackson in an event starting at 4 p.m. and lasting through 9 p.m.

Traci Fant speaks during downtown Greenville's first Juneteenth celebration event at the Peace Center Friday, June 19, 2020.

Juneteenth Swamp Rabbit Trail, Falls Park to Unity Park - Wednesday, June 19

The city's third annual event will host a walking parade along the Swamp Rabbit Trail with remarks from Gail Wilson Awan of the Urban League of the Upstate, poetry and a dance performance at Unity Park. This event begins at 9:30 a.m. on June 19.

At 10:30 a.m. a discussion panel will happen inside the Prisma Health Welcome Center at 111 Welborn St., where community and national speakers will discuss Martin Luther King Jr.'s writings. The program includes a musical performance by Loretta Holloway and poetry from Poet Laureate Glenis Redmond. At noon, barbecue and shaved ice will be available outside the welcome center.

Mauldin Hosts first Juneteenth event - Saturday, June 22

The city of Mauldin will host its first Juneteenth celebration between 2 and 6 p.m. on June 22 at the Mauldin Cultural Center amphitheater located at 101 East Butler Road. Attendees can expect to experience spoken word by Moody Black, gospel music, dance performances and live music by DJ Yuni.

There will also be 25 market vendors, adult beverages, children's activities, and more educational materials related to Juneteenth.

Anderson Juneteenth Celebration with DocRaen - Monday, June 17

The Electric City Creative Marketplace at the Anderson Main Library will host an event to discuss the history of Juneteenth with spoken word, mixed media projects and more.

Hosted by local writer DocRaen, this event is for children and families who want a creative and educational experience in celebrating Juneteenth. This event is from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on June 17. For more information, visit the Anderson Library Website.

Learn about history and have fun at a block party and a festival this weekend in downtown Spartanburg

The Cost of Inheritance: An American Reframed Special documentary & panel discussion from 6 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, June 13 at Wofford College: Olin Teaching Theater.

Have fun at the Block Party at Love Where You Live Park (off South Spring St), from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday, June 14.

Celebration Festival Downtown Spartanburg (near Love Where You Live Park) from 4 to 10 p.m. Saturday, June 15.

Black Market Tuesday in Spartanburg - Tuesday, June 18

On June 18, from 5 to 9 p.m. at 498 Howard St., local vendors, artist and small business owners will offer their goods and services at Black Market Tuesday in Spartanburg.

McClellan Monarch Cafe will showcase the creativity, entrepreneurship and talent across the Spartanburg and Upstate community.

Educational Race Seminar in Spartanburg - Wednesday, June 19

Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church, at 502 S. Daniel Morgan Ave., will lead a discussion on race relations and the history and impact of Juneteenth. The event is from 6 to 7:45 p.m. on June 19.

P'Asiah Sanders, 10, of Anderson, performs before the crowd with the I AM Strong Dance Company, an Interpretive Dance group, during the Anderson Area Remembrance and Reconciliation Initiative's Juneteenth event at Carolina Wren Park in downtown Anderson Saturday, June 19, 2021.

Spartanburg Juneteenth BEC Gala & Fashion Show 2024 - Friday, June 21

An evening of elegance will include a red carpet, awards show and full gala experience with live music and refreshments as the BEC Gala & Fashion Show at the Chapman Cultural Center.

Located at 200 E. St. John St., in Spartanburg, this event celebrates Juneteenth and Black excellence. The event is from 6:45 until 11 p.m.

Tickets begin at $55. For more information, visit spartanburgjuneteenth.com

Worship, Revival & Black Business Expo in Spartanburg - Sunday, June 23

A soulful revival and black business expo will be held at the Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church located at 502 S. Daniel Morgan Ave.

This event highlights local small businesses in Spartanburg and operates as a spiritual service to celebrate Juneteenth.

More: Greenville Honor Tower, Gardens at Unity Park break ground, plans to open at end of 2025.

 A.J. Jackson covers the food & dining scene, along with arts, entertainment and downtown culture for The Greenville News. Contact him by email at ajackson@gannett.com, and follow him on X (formally Twitter) @ajhappened. This coverage is only possible with support from our readers. Sign up today for a digital subscription.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: Juneteenth events happening in Greenville, Spartanburg. Anderson in 2024
Emily Post would be proud.

A high school class president in Massachusetts who gave a commencement speech wanted to recognize all of his fellow graduates. So he wrote them personal thank-you notes presented at the ceremony  180 to be exact.

I wish I couldve acknowledged you all, but there was simply not enough time, Mason Macuch of Lakeville said in his June 7 speech. Instead, I want you to reach under your chairs, where you will find a personal note that Ive written to each of you as a way to say one final goodbye and thank you for making these years that will soon pass the good ole days.

The seniors at Apponequet Regional High School about 40 miles (64 kilometers) south of Boston found envelopes containing 5-by-7-inch (13-by-18-centimeter) white cards with their messages.

Macuch said it took him about 10 hours to write the cards. As class president, he said he knew most of the students.

I just wrote anything from farewell messages to little memories that I had with whoever I was writing to, or maybe if it was a close friend, a longer message to them, Macuch, 18, told The Associated Press on Wednesday. Anything that I could think of about the person I wanted to say about them before we graduated and went on our separate ways.

Macuch had to clear the idea with school administrators first. He arrived an hour before the ceremony and got help from an assistant principal and a teacher taping the cards under the chairs.

It was a surprise to everyone, said his best friend, Conor Tripp, in an email.

I do not consider myself an emotional person, but his speech and the gesture of writing each and every member a letter moved me so much and I was very emotional from that moment on, Tripp said. It was such a special way to acknowledge every member of the class and show a strong bond between the members of our class.

Macuch said a lot of graduates thanked him in person afterward. Many parents sent him nice comments on social media.

Some people I hadnt talked to in a few years were just so thankful for them. It was really nice to see that they were just so appreciative of all the hard work that went into them, and it was a really nice way to say goodbye to everyone, said Macuch, who is starting college in the fall and plans to study biochemistry.

He was trained well.

My mom always pushes to write a thank-you note, he said.

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Meet Worcester's high school valedictorians: How they got here, where they're going next

The class of 2024 had a unique high school experience from the beginning. After finishing up middle school remotely, they entered high school online too, amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

They spent most of their first year of high school without being physically with their peers or teachers.

The seven valedictorians from surrounding high schools gathered last week to discuss what their unconventional high school careers were like and share their stories and the wisdom they gained over the last four years.

Five have chosen to stay in Massachusetts, while two others have chosen to attend college out of state.

Ai Vy Ngo  South Community High School

Valedictorian Ai Vy Ngo speaks during the South High Community School commencement at the DCU Center Wednesday.

When Ai Vy Ngo entered freshman year, virtual learning helped ease her into high school. In her sophomore year, she took a computer science class, which sparked her interest in the subject. She plans to major in computer science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology next fall.

"I feel like I was all over the place in high school. I tried lots of different things but the only thing that really stuck with me was computer science," Ngo said.

Ngo said after taking her computer science class in high school, she thought of it as a unique way to solve problems.

"I thought it was a very interesting way of problem-solving," Ngo said. "The method of thinking was really unique, so that's why I chose it (as a major)."

Ngo, who grew up in Worcester, said she feels like a completely different person from when she began high school, and that the pandemic played a big part in that.

"My sophomore year, when we went in person, I felt like a completely different person. With middle school and freshman year being online, I wasn't exposed to new people," Ngo said. "My sophomore year, I feel like I was completely unrecognizable."

Her speech at graduation reflected that. She wanted to send off her fellow graduates from South Community High with a message highlighting the importance of growth and change throughout high school.

"You think you know who you are at some point in your high school career, but then you realize, looking back, you actually changed so much," Ngo said. "You're just going to keep on changing but that's the point of high school. It's to find who you are, take all the experiences and lessons you've learned to shape who you are now and who you'll become in the future."

Brandon Nguyen  Worcester Technical High School

Valedictorian Brandon Nguyen speaks during the 2024 Worcester Technical High School commencement ceremony at the DCU Center.

Brandon Nguyen said his main message to his fellow graduates from Worcester Technical High School was to "live in the present." Nguyen, who is from Worcester but has roots in Vietnam, will attend Johns Hopkins University with a major in chemical and biomolecular engineering.

As a freshman at Worcester Tech in the middle of a pandemic, he explored shops online, which was not ideal, he said.

"I felt super disconnected from my peers, teachers and community at school," he said. "So, when we explored shops online, it wasn't the true experience of how exploring (how) the shops really work. It was difficult in January when we had to make a decision on what to choose."

Throughout his four years at Worcester Technical High School, Nguyen excelled academically, maintaining high honors in advanced placement and dual enrollment courses. In addition to his academic achievements, Nguyen also graduated with a trade certificate in hospitality management. He chose engineering and joined Worcester Tech's robotics team.

"I visited the robotics shop a lot in high school because I had friends on the robotics team," Nguyen said. "I got interested in the field after one of the teachers walked me through the different career paths and majors involved with engineering."

Throughout his time at Worcester Technical High School, Nguyen learned a variety of skills. He worked in the Skyline Bistro for three years, rotating between server, busser, cashier and host roles. He also worked in an unpaid internship as the events administrator for his high school.

"My message in my speech was to live in the present because oftentimes I just see everyone saying how much they can't wait to (get high school) over with," Nguyen said. "They're always thinking about the future and they can't enjoy the present, I think."

Estefany Sanchez-Carranza  Claremont Academy

Estefany Sanchez-Carranza, originally from Virginia, moved to Worcester at a young age. She said she was proud all her hard work paid off after being named her class' valedictorian.

"I just feel like all my hard work and dedication had finally paid off to reach the place where I am today," Sanchez-Carranza said. "Academic-wise, (virtual learning) wasn't really a struggle, but the social aspect was mentally exhausting."

Sanchez-Carranza, however, said going through the pandemic and online learning with the support of her family helped.

In her freshman year, she virtually joined the community service club and the math club. Initially, she joined the math club because she wanted to challenge herself. Now, she says it is her strongest subject.

Sanchez-Carranza took advanced placement psychology in her junior year, which kindled her interest in the subject.

"There was a specific unit in that class, language development, that interested me," Sanchez-Carranza said. "My final paper focused on language development and that sparked my interest in speech pathology."

Sanchez-Carranza said now she wants to pursue something in clinical psychology. She is not sure what she wants to do in the future but she does want to work with children. Sanchez-Carranza will attend Clark University in the fall.

Sanchez-Carranza said a lesson she will take with her into college and beyond is to embrace everyone's differences.

"High school is a great time to learn about yourself," Sanchez-Carranza said. "I think that's a great perspective to have going into college, that everyone's different. I think it makes (high school and college) more fun that way because you are able to meet so many new people."

Hopsa Mic  Burncoat High School

Valedictorian Hopsa Mic speaks during the Burncoat High School commencement at the DCU Center.

Hopsa Mic was born in Thailand but raised in Worcester; her parents are Burmese.

Mic said she wanted to join the math team but due to COVID restrictions, she could not at first. She did join the team midway through her sophomore year and was captain in her junior and senior years.

"(Being captain) helped me develop a sense of leadership," Mic said. "I think building my foundation in math helped me prepare for more advanced classes. I'm also really into the STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) curriculum."

Mic joined Dungeons & Dragons club and chess club at Burncoat. In Dungeons & Dragons club, roleplaying different characters helped her understand the "values, intricacies and challenges" she could have in the future, she said.

"I guess my main takeaway from high school is just how important the growth mindset is," Mic said. "Once you realize everyone faces their fair shares of trials and errors, the only way that you can succeed is by seeing those trials and errors as an opportunity of growth and an obstacle to overcome. I think it took me a while to understand that."

Mic also said her struggles "don't define (her)."

"I can use (the struggles) to define me in a positive way," Mic said. "They can show my resilience and highlight my strength, rather than showing it as a weakness."

Mic will study pre-medicine at MIT.

Kali Zavras  Doherty High School

Valedictorian Kali Zavras speaks at the Doherty Memorial High School graduation at the DCU Center.

Kali Zavras was part of a special class from Doherty High School. Her class was the last to graduate from the old building, before the district opens the new and improved Doherty High School this fall.

Zavras said she was surprised when she discovered her class rank and title as valedictorian. The main message of her graduation speech was that students are not defined by their grades.

"I struggled a lot with that over the past four years, but I did push myself a lot," Zavras said. "I had no idea where I was going, and that is something I still struggle to wrap my head around."

Thanks to the Engineering and Technology Academy program at Doherty, Zavras found her passion for engineering. The program is a smaller learning community where students take engineering and technology courses their junior and senior years. She also took part in the early college program.

"I took a bunch of college classes and they were quite different from (high school classes) where teachers are reminding you to complete an assignment or we have time in class to work on them," Zavras said. "In my college courses, I had to manage the assignments on my own time, which I'm hoping will help me next year."

Zavras, who is going to Syracuse to study engineering, said that while she is excited about this new chapter, she's a bit nervous about moving so far away from home.

"I'm a medley of excited and nervous (about moving for college)," Zavras said. "There are so many things about it that are scary, like I've been going to school with relatively the same people and now it's completely new. So that's terrifying, but also really exciting because of the new people you can meet."

Neve Tran  North High

North High valedictorian Neve An Tran.

Even though North High valedictorian Neve Tran took classes online her freshman year, she and Nguyen were part of Upward Bound, a program aimed at providing an opportunity to succeed for students from low-income families or those in which neither parent holds a bachelor's degree.

Tran said the program helped her connect with peers outside of virtual learning.

Tran, who is set to attend the Massachusetts College of Art and Design, joined art club in high school. In her junior year Tran and her best friend created a dance club.

"It was really fun. I feel like I put my heart and soul into (dance) club," Tran said. "I planned events, created posters, flyers for bake sales and stuff like that. I even designed new jerseys for the team."

After graduating high school, Tran said she learned the importance of fighting for one's values and dreams. This was a message she sought to share with her classmates in her valedictorian speech.

"Of love or loss, you all deserve to take pride in the accomplishments and growths you made, no matter how big or small," Tran said.

Tran will study animation at MassArt.

"I'm feeling really excited to go to MassArt because it'll be a really huge transition. In high school, you had your core classes and other subjects," Tran said. "But at MassArt, I'm more excited for that creative part and (I'll have) more time to spend on art."

Susan Luong  University Park Campus School

Susan Luong and her sister Diana were named valedictorian and salutatorian of University Park Campus School. Luong and her siblings act as the primary translators for their Vietnamese parents.

Luong said she and her sister checked their class rank together. Finding out she was valedictorian and her sister was salutatorian was "overwhelming," in a good way.

"We both worked super hard, even throughout freshman year during COVID," Luong said. "We pulled a lot of all-nighters together. When we found out we were both valedictorian and salutatorian, we were both really happy for each other and really happy that we would stand on that stage and present our speeches together."

Since the school is smaller than most, with 39 graduates in the Class of 2024, Luong had to branch out for extracurricular opportunities, like H-Prep, a biology course geared toward high school students at Harvard Medical School.

Through H-Prep, Luong and her sister both realized their passion for medicine. They went every Saturday morning for a couple of hours, listening to lectures about case studies, genetics and more.

In her speech, Susan Luong wanted to highlight growth and how her class persevered through the pandemic and online learning.

"No matter where we go, whatever unexpected experiences we have, I know that this class can overcome anything," Luong said.

Luong and her sister will attend Harvard University in the fall along with their older sister, who is already a student there. They both got full-ride scholarships. A struggle Luong anticipates is the distance and being away from her family.

"But at the same time I'm really excited because I get to go to college with my two best friends," Luong said. "So I'm excited for all the new experiences we'll have together."

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Who were the valedictorians of Worcester high schools in 2024?
I was settling in for an interview over Zoom when I glanced at my baby monitor and saw it: the unmistakable wiggle of a toddler whod pooped himself awake from a nap. I sighed and set the monitor aside. I had no choice but to wait till after the call to check on him.

When the Zoom ended, I dashed in to clean him up, then texted my friend a photo of the three of us (my baby, myself and my laptop). Look at me, I wrote wryly. I have it all.

I started thinking a lot about having it all after my son was born in late 2021. I went back to work after four months of parental leave, breast-pumping my way through phone calls and changing diapers on the sly. I loved being close to my son and was lucky to have a husband who thrived as a stay-at-home dad, but it was all so completely exhausting. For every stolen midday snuggle there was sobbing (on both sides of the door) when I had to close my eyes and tune out my sons cries for Mommy as I buckled down to get a project done.

Surely, I often thought to myself, this isnt what Helen Gurley Brown had in mind when she published Having It All, her famed book of advice on balancing sex, work, relationships and more, in 1982. I may have a career and a family, but I often have it all  or, rather, do it all  at the exact same time.

Stephanie Hallett

In the summer of 2012, just a couple of years into my journalism career, The Atlantic published Anne-Marie Slaughters culture-defining text, Why Women Still Cant Have It All. In it, she described stepping back from powerful government work to be closer to home and more available to her two teenage sons, and she outlined the workplace changes she saw as necessary to allow ambitious women to pursue big careers and remain present mothers.

I read it hungrily, feeling smug about my own ambivalence toward motherhood. At 25, I was climbing the career ladder fast and loving it. Why derail the train with a baby when the ride was so exciting? Plus, I couldnt imagine a world where Slaughters proposed changes  more flexible schedules, remote work, less business travel, teleconferencing instead of in-person meetings  would materialize. Little did I know a global pandemic would abruptly shift that tide.

A decade later, in a post-COVID world, I had, in many ways, exactly what Slaughter had described: an exciting career with a flexible, remote job that allowed me to be close to the baby Id decided I wanted. But I also had a hefty dose of burnout. For me, it was all too much  the constant doing it all. And I was losing my ambition as a result.

Im not the first millennial mom with an office job to feel this way. Between lazy girl jobs, the death of the girlboss and the countless ambitious women whove written about losing their drive in recent years, the collapse of millennial womens ambition is well-documented. Heck, we now even have the millennial mom midlife crisis.

But its no wonder: Millennial moms work more than previous generations of mothers, and we spend more time parenting our kids, plus our parents cant or dont want to help us out (or need care themselves). And then theres the astronomical cost of child care. We are at capacity all the time, even with the trappings of professional flexibility.

I decided to ask Anne-Marie Slaughter what comes next.

The workplace transition isnt over yet.

Halfpoint Images / Getty Images

Slaughter acknowledged that weve made strides toward her envisioned workplace, but were not there yet.

Weve transitioned the where we can work, and we have the flexibility  so now, if your kid is sick or you have a teachers conference or you need to take a parent to a doctors appointment, you have the flexibility to do that, she said. But we havent reached the place where professional and personal ambition can coexist.

Aside from major structural changes we know are needed to support families  such as 12 months of parental leave, plentiful and affordable child care, free pre-kindergarten and well-funded public schools  there is one big thing that needs to change in the workplace, according to Slaughter: management practices. Face time is still the reigning tool for performance measurement, and that disadvantages anyone working remotely.

If youre in the office and that other person is in the office, you are still going to have a better sense that they are working than the person who is not [in the office], she said. Ive said for a long time, to really make this work, you have to have much more objective and precise management practices, and that takes more work. I dont think were there yet.

Indeed, McKinseys Women in the Workforce reports from both 2022 and 2023 found that women in leadership are leaving their roles in record numbers, in part because their labor isnt being recognized by their superiors. Theyre taking on diversity, equity and inclusion work or heading up employee resource groups in addition to their full-time roles, for example, but its not being counted toward their overall performance, and theyre working remotely (often to juggle family responsibilities), which is being counted against them.

They are looking for the ability to advance. They are looking for flexibility and choice in terms of where, when and how they work. They are looking for companies that authentically prioritize DE&I. They are looking for people who are backing their careers, said McKinsey senior partner Lareina Yee in a podcast about the 2022 report. But, quite frankly, she said, companies havent stepped up.

Beyond changes in performance evaluation and management, Slaughter also advocates for what she described in her Atlantic article as investment intervals, the idea that you grind hard in certain periods of your work life  early in your career before you have kids, for example  and then make different choices as your career moves forward, including saying no to promotions that wont work for your family life or taking time off from full-time work to consult, take a sabbatical or accept project-based work. Then when your kids are grown, you can lean back in and keep rising.

In my view, when it comes to frazzled millennial moms, a wholesale shift in the way we understand and reward professional ambition is due. Forget this idea that moving up, down, back or sideways in your career is a sign that youre not committed. Instead, we must think of ambition as a tide  sometimes rolling in, sometimes rolling out, always doing its part. Under this rubric, millennial moms arent losing their ambition, theyre simply moving with the tide, and theres no reason to feel ashamed about that. We shouldnt be sent back to square one in our careers simply because the tide of our ambition went out while our children needed us most.

Slaughter said that taking a break to have kids or to work on professional development isnt the kiss of death that it used to be, but there are still plenty of workplaces where, if you get knocked off that straight-up path, its going to be very, very hard to get back on. I can see it changing; it just hasnt changed yet.

At her company, New America, Slaughter said shes found that a flexible and supportive culture, which includes hybrid work, paid parental leave and a family comes first mantra, has ensured the work always gets done without sacrificing peoples personal lives and has also helped more junior staff find opportunities to rise and be seen.

Parental leave, for example, creates opportunities for other people, younger people, other members of the team to step in and work with Slaughter and other senior staff who they might not have otherwise crossed paths with directly. It builds resilience in the workplace.

Embrace a holistic view of ambition.

Thanasis Zovoilis / Getty Images

Slaughter sees millennial and Gen Z workers rejecting the old hustle-culture model and applauds it, but also notes that many of us arent sure where to go from here. Theres a sense that the world that we knew is coming apart in many ways, and people are not sure what they should be wanting, she said. But they know that the traditional whatever it was that was going to make you happy is not likely to.

That said, she thinks the idea of striving to be a whole, healthy person is a move in the right direction. By whole, I really do mean having different dimensions to your life. That could be work and family, that could be sports, hobbies, friendships.

She doesnt even use the phrase having it all anymore.

The whole framing makes me uncomfortable, even though that is the phrase I grew up with that meant having a career and a family, she said. Theres a hyper-capitalist dimension to it that runs counter to the way most millennials and Gen Zers think about their lives. Its time we tossed it for good and focused on building workplaces that support the multidimensional lives of all workers.

As for our millennial mom midlife crises and waning ambition? Slaughter advises us all to hang in there.

It is a life passage that many, many, many people go through. We are maturing into our fuller selves who realize that theres more to life and theres more to ambition. I have plenty of ambition. Its just not expressed in the way that it once was, to climb to the top of a particular ladder.This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Oklahoma babies need Infant Crisis Services. We need your help to keep going.

For low-income families with babies and toddlers, neither food stamps nor WIC benefits allow the purchase of diapers or wipes. When raising young children, diapers and wipes are a basic need. Without clean diapers, little ones are at greater risk for diaper rash, bladder infections and toxic stress, while mothers may experience increased levels of maternal depression and anxiety if they cannot provide these items to their children.

If a family can afford to send their child to day care, sending diapers to the facility is required. If they are unable to do so, it can result in parents missing work or school, often resulting in a smaller paycheck, putting a strain on resources to buy the next round of diapers. Last year, nearly a fourth of U.S. families with diaper need reported having to miss work or school due to the inability to provide diapers for their children. These statistics are heartbreaking and are not slowing down.

In 2023, Oklahoma was home to nearly 150,000 children under age 3, nearly a fourth of which lived below the federal poverty level, a number 5% higher than the national average. We know there are Oklahoma parents who need diapers for their children, but cannot afford them. This is why Infant Crisis Services exists. As one of three National Diaper Bank Network members in Oklahoma, we contributed to the more than 2 million diapers distributed to babies and toddlers in our state in 2023.

Vanessa Aviles loads a sack of supplies, including baby formula, at Infant Crisis Services during a baby formula shortage.

From 2022: 6 Oklahoma nonprofits earned $55K in grants from Gannett's A Community Thrives program

For 40 years, Infant Crisis Services has stood as a beacon of hope and support for infants and toddlers in Oklahoma, providing essential food, formula and diapers to families in need. Founded in 1984, Infant Crisis Services emerged from a humble yet powerful vision: No baby should go hungry. It stands as a testament to what can be achieved when a community comes together, driven by compassion and a shared commitment to the well-being of its youngest members.

The need for this organization is as pressing today as it was 40 years ago. Despite advancements in social services, many families in Oklahoma continue to struggle to provide their children with essential items. In 2023 alone, Infant Crisis Services provided 1,165,400 diapers, 286,251 bottles of formula, and 15,168 food packages to families across the state.

This OKC grocery store opened to combat a food desert. Now it's offering more community resources

These numbers are more than statistics; they represent real children and families whose lives have been touched by the organization's work.

To secure the next 40 years of its services, Infant Crisis Services is launching the first phase of an endowment campaign, with an initial goal of raising $4 million. This endowment will provide a stable financial foundation, ensuring that the organization can continue to meet the needs of the community regardless of economic fluctuations or unforeseen crises. The interest generated from this endowment will fund its programs, allowing the nonprofit to expand its reach and adapt to the evolving needs of the community.

Help Infant Crisis Services honor the past, celebrate the present, and invest in the future. Ensure that this vital support network remains a pillar of our community for 40 more years. Together, we can continue to make a difference, one child, one family, one diaper at a time.

Miki Farris

Miki Farris is executive director and co-founder of Infant Crisis Services in Oklahoma City.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma nonprofit Infant Crisis Services launches endowment campaign
On the Rio Chagres motorized wooden boats are the only means of transport. Make this trip to Panama's Embera people, and you witness not just some folkloristic performance, but the very culture by which these indigenous people live and die. Andreas Drouve/dpa

Barefoot indigenous people in colourful traditional costumes welcome village visitors with dance and music. It's the sort of presentation that makes you think of fake authenticity, a touristy folkloric showtime.

The setting is Parara Puru, a settlement of the Embera people, located in Panama's interior in the Chagres National Park above the banks of the Rio Chagres, which feeds the legendary Panama Canal. Piraguas, motorized wooden boats, are the only means of transport in the area.

Of course, many of the Embera people are focussed on the money that tourism brings. But Anel Zarco puts a different spin on it. "Tourism is our only source of income. It's the only way we can maintain and present our culture and way of life," says the 30-year-old, wearing a short skirt. He grew up here and speaks fluent Spanish in addition to his own language.

No cars, no televisions

An excursion package to the Embera includes a Piragua tour starting at Lake Alajuela through the vastness of the river system to the Quebrada Bonita waterfall. At the front of the boat is Zarco, who helps manoeuvre the boat with a long wooden pole through the greenery on the narrow approach. Later, he accompanies the guests to the welcome ceremony in Parara Puru and through the village of 120 inhabitants.

There are no cars, no televisions. Thatched huts stand on wooden and concrete stilts. Laundry dries next to them. Dogs and chickens run around, boys in loincloths. Lizards scurry around. An iguana disappears into a tree.

Zarco leads us into a tiny one-room museum with musical instruments and kitchen utensils. Several faded photos show his great-grandfather Antonio Zarco, who previously taught survival techniques to the US moon landing team led by astronaut Neil Armstrong, says the great-grandson proudly.

Visitor money financed the village school

Cross-cultural contacts are nothing new among the Embera, but similar partnerships are taboo. "There are internal laws," says village chief Brenio Dogirama, 55 years old. Anyone who decides in favour of non-Embera in matters of love must leave the community. Dogirama's self-image includes explaining everything about indigenous life to visitors in a lecture.

Each of the 33 families receives $100 every fortnight from the tourist revenue collection pot. Dogirama is keen to point out that the village school building was financed thanks to the visitors' money. The two teachers, on the other hand, receive their fees from the state.

Hard-working people like Yaribet Tocamo make handicrafts from palm fibres and sell them to tourists. The earnings go straight into their own pockets. "I can use it to buy school books or school uniforms," she says. Tocamo, at 26, a mother of three, appreciates the "peaceful life" in the village.

A village trapped in time

Parara Puru, which translates as "village of palm trees", seems trapped in time. But resisting the tentacles of progress does not work.

As he has to coordinate the visits, village head Dogirama is one of the few people to enjoy the privilege of a mobile phone. "The village needs electricity," he says, outlining another task for the future. Ultimately, this is also important for the school and learning with computers.

The visit ends with music and leaves a deep impression. Thanks to tourism, these Embera have been spared the vicious cycle of uprooting, rural exodus and poverty.

"In some countries, indigenous cultures have disappeared," says Anel Zarco. "We are proud to be indigenous and feel honoured that other people want to get to know our culture."

The Chagres river gave the Chagres National Park its name. Andreas Drouve/dpa

"Tourism is our only source of income. It's the only way we can maintain our culture and way of life," says 30-year-old Anel Zarco. Andreas Drouve/dpa

Brenio Dogirama is the head of Parara Puru village. Andreas Drouve/dpa

A typical Embera hut in the village of Parara Puru. Andreas Drouve/dpa

Yaribet Tocamo produces handicrafts in the Embera village. Andreas Drouve/dpa
The eighth grade girls cleaned up at the middle school graduation I attended last week. Of the four major awards, three went to girls, and just one to a boy.

This pattern is all too typical in American life today. Two-thirds of high school students in the top 10% are girls, while boys dominate the ranks of the bottom rung, as Richard Reeves noted in his book Of Boys and Men: Why the Modern Male is Struggling, Why it Matters, and What to Do About It. This pattern doesnt stop at middle school, either, as college classrooms  including many of mine at the University of Virginia  are generally dominated by young women. We are fast approaching a world where only 40% of college students are male.

What is happening in our schools and colleges today is emblematic of what is happening in all too many domains of life, which is that, for more and more young adults, females are flourishing and males are floundering. Young women are outpacing young men in college, graduate school and many a workplace in cities across the United States. Meanwhile, young men are much more likely to be denizens of the basement or, even worse, prison or jail.

What accounts for this male malaise? Education scholars Andrew Bacher-Hicks, Stephen Billings and David Deming point to the effect that strict schools can have in elevating the odds that boys end up in prison  especially Black and Hispanic boys. Reeves points to the ways that schools hold boys back by offering them insufficient opportunities for recess and attention from male teachers, among other things. And psychologist Jonathan Haidt, in his new book The Anxious Generation, points to the negative effects of Big Tech  especially gaming and pornography  in robbing boys and young men of their ambition and countless opportunities to engage the real world.

But one word generally goes unmentioned in contemporary discussions of our male malaise: marriage.

The scholars and activists who are tackling the misfortunes of our boys and men rarely focus on the breakdown of marriage as a crucial cause of young mens problems. Even Reeves, the president of the new American Institute for Boys and Men and who acknowledges that dads matter for boys, minimizes the importance of marriage and family structure in boys lives in Of Boys and Men. By his account, what matters for males is a good relationship with Dad  the requisite time, engagement, involvement, closeness, and so on. Good fathering can take place in or outside of an intact, married home. There is no residency requirement for good fatherhood, Reeves contends. The relationship is what matters.

But in the real world, boys who reside with their married fathers are much more likely to flourish, and boys who live apart from an intact, married family are much more likely to flounder. In fact, a new study finds that boys who dont reside with their married fathers are, amazingly, more likely to go to prison than graduate from college, whereas boys from intact, married families are markedly more likely to graduate from college than spend time in jail.

According to a new Institute for Family Studies report I wrote with Sam Herrin, Jesse Smith and Wendy Wang, young men who grew up in an intact family with their married father are almost twice as likely to graduate from college as they are to land in prison. By contrast, young men from homes headed by a single mother, single father, stepfamily or adoptive parents are more likely to go to jail than graduate from college.

DN graphic-young men

Whats more: Their parents marriage seems to matter more for young men than their race when it comes to predicting their odds of ending up incarcerated, according to this study. This is striking given the ways so much of the research and discourse around the incarceration of young men has focused more on race than family.

The American Civil Liberties Union, for instance, fingers racial bias as keeping more people of color in prisons and on probation than ever before. The ACLU had nothing to say about family breakdown on this topic. And yet data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health tell us that being Black elevates a young mans odds of landing in jail by 65%. On the other hand, coming from a home without his mother and father increases a young mans odds of being incarcerated by almost 86%. In other words, what we are seeing is a fragmented family pipeline to prison that is almost completely overlooked in our public discourse.

A similar story applies to college graduation. Family structure predicts young mens odds of graduating from college better than race does. Young men from non-intact families are 56% less likely to graduate from college, according to the study. By contrast, being Black reduces the odds of graduating by 27%.

Statistics like these are telling. They tell us that not only are our public discussions about what ails our young men off the mark, but also, contra Reeves, a father and mothers residency seems to matter. Young men in stepfamilies, single-mother, single-father and adoptive families are much more likely to fail in one of the most profound ways  by landing in jail. By contrast, young men who hail from families where their father is married to their mother are almost twice as likely to graduate from a college or university, compared to their peers who dont enjoy a similar residential advantage.

So, as Fathers Day approaches, its worth celebrating the men and women who make countless sacrifices to get and stay married, thereby putting their boys on a pathway toward not just winning a prize at a middle school graduation but taking a degree home from a place like Princeton rather than spending time in prison.

Brad Wilcox is a professor and director of the National Marriage Project at the University of Virginia and the author of Get Married: Why Americans Must Defy the Elites, Forge Strong Families, and Save Civilization.
Telecom Italias international arm Sparkle said on Wednesday it has signed a deal to provide international capacity services to state-owned telco Telecom Namibia via Googles Equiano subsea cable.

Sparkle said the exclusive agreement provides Telecom Namibia with extra internet capacity and a diversified, low latency route between Africa and Europe. No details were given on how much capacity Telecom Namibia is getting from the deal.

Telecom Namibia CEO Dr. Stanley Shanapinda said the deal will help support Namibia's digital development, as well as growing demand for data from neighbouring countries.

The Equiano cable's high-speed, low-latency connection will serve as a catalyst for innovation and economic growth across the nation, he said in a statement.

Sparkle said the deal also helps Telecom Namibia beef up its network resilience in case of outages on the SAT-3 and West Africa Cable System (WACS) cables, which  like Equiano  run along Africas western coast between South Africa and Portugal.

Telecom Namibia is a member of the SAT-3 and WACS subsea cable consortiums, although only WACS has a landing station in Namibia. Telecom Namibia co-built Equianos landing station in Namibia with Paratus Group that was switched on in June 2023.

Awareness of diverse routing is high across Africa in the wake of numerous subsea cable outages around the African continent this year. In March, four cables off Africas western coast  WACS, MainOne, South Atlantic 3 and ACE  were damaged by an undersea canyon avalanche incident off the coast of Cote dIvoire.
Coastal Pet Products and Aeonian Brewing Company joined forces on a sunny Saturday to raise funds for Leader Dogs for the Blind. The annual Bark & Brew event includes a 5K walk/run along part of the Iron Horse Trail followed by a fundraiser at Aeonian. Coastal Pet is a longtime supporter of Leader Dogs for the Blind, even sponsoring a pup for a year in advance of its training to work with a visually impaired person. Aeonian played host to raffles and games in a free event for all ages. Leader Dogs, based in Michigan, aims to empower blind or visually impaired people to be able to live independently, with the support of a fully trained companion dog. The pups go through several levels of training, and then are paired up and fully ready to guide their human through daily tasks and even out in the community. To learn more, check out leaderdog.org.

Colin Hendrick, 5, receives a high five from Chomper during the Coastal Pet Products Aeonian Brewing Company Bark & Brew 5K event on Saturday, June 8, 2024, at Aeonian Brewery in Alliance.

Coastal Pet Products and Aeonian Brewing Company raised money for Leader Dogs for the Blind on Saturday, June 8, 2024, with the Bark & Brew 5K event in Alliance.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Coastal Pet, Aeonian Bark & Brew boosts Leader Dogs for the Blind
When I first visited Padua, I found the interior of the large cathedral bare, white, cold and empty. The medieval structure had been rebuilt in Renaissance style, not being completed until the middle of the 18th century.

Half a mile away, I found the basilica of St Anthony of Padua busy, colourful, warm and thronged with pilgrims.

St Anthony is a popular saint, depicted winningly as holding the Child Jesus in his arms. Many people attribute to the saint a willingness to find objects that have been lost. He does not seem fussy about his clients. I have often found him obliging in his intercession, sometimes in an astonishing way that cannot be explained by psychological prompting.

Of course some object to asking for saints to pray to God on their behalf. I cant quite see why that should be ruled out if it is perfectly allowable to ask people still alive on earth to say a prayer.

Anyway, St Anthony (1195-1231) took his name from the great St Anthony, the desert monk. But St Anthony was only of Padua because he died and was buried there.

He was born in Lisbon and baptised Fernando. As a young man he joined the Canons Regular of the Holy Cross, who followed the monastic rule of St Augustine. It was only at a hermitage at Coimbra dedicated to St Anthony that his life changed, when he joined the Franciscans and took the name Anthony.

This was in 1220, 11 years after the Franciscans had been founded. St Francis of Assisi was still alive, and in 1219 had gone to Egypt, where he succeeded in meeting Sultan Malik al-Kamil. In 1220 five Franciscan friars were beheaded in Morocco.

They had first of all preached in Seville, the capital of al-Andalus in the Almohad Caliphate, which straddled the straits of Gibraltar. The friars were arrested and sent to Marrakesh, where the Caliph ruled. He attempted to send them back to Spain, but they persisted in preaching in Marrakesh and were put to death.

As I understand it, St Anthony came across relics of these martyrs at Coimbra, met some live Franciscans, and was moved to join them. St Francis certainly approved of preaching to the Islamic world. The next year, 1221, he wrote in the Franciscan rule, the Regula non bullata, that friars might choose to live among Muslims not engaging in arguments or disputes, but acknowledging that they are Christians. Or else they could announce the Word of God, when they see it pleases the Lord, so that unbelievers might be baptised and enter the kingdom of God.

This was obviously high-risk, but Anthony got permission to set off for Morocco. There he fell ill and to his disappointment was sent back to Europe. A storm diverted his ship to Sicily and he recovered his health in Italy. St Francis entrusted him with teaching theology to the brothers, so long as this did not extinguish their spirit of prayer and devotion.

Anthonys skill in preaching was discovered by accident, when the expected preacher did not materialise. There is a legend of his preaching to the fishes at Rimini until the curious townsfolk latched on to his words. His vision of the Child Jesus is attributed to the period before his early death aged 35.

He was canonised, at a time when surprisingly few were declared saints, less than a year after his death.

Many churches have a collecting box fixed to the wall marked St Anthonys Bread. It is for alms for the poor, to whom he, like St Francis, was devoted and imitated. His day falls on June 13.

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Second annual Everything Woman banquet honors NE Kansas women

TOPEKA (KSNT)  KSNT 27 News has been highlighting the accomplishments of women across Northeast Kansas and sharing their stories every month. Wednesday, June 12, we were at Sharp Honda as honorees were recognized at the Everything Woman banquet.

Out of the 12 amazing women weve featured in the past year, 10 of them were able to make an appearance. The banquet started with some mingling and eating, then after several speakers, the awards and gifts were presented.

I just appreciate the honor of being recognized for an everything woman, Februarys Everything Woman Carrie Greenwood said. Again, its really neat to be able to be a part of an elite group of people, and Im just happy I can bring my leadership skills to our city.

A strong work ethic, caring nature earns special recognition

You know to be in the company of all of these incredible women in our community is really humbling, Octobers Everything Woman Jennifer Leclair said. It makes me really grateful for the recognition and I think were all just trying to make Topeka a better place.

It truly is an honor, Decembers Everything Woman Michelle Gilbert said. I think this is not something that just happens every day, and it feels really special and I feel completely honored.

Im just thrilled to be a part of something where women are celebrated, Junes Everything Woman Amy Button Renz said. And Im looking forward to getting to know the other honorees and I just really appreciate KSNT doing this.

Its really cool because I havent seen any other organization do something like that, so for KSNT to think outside the box and do something special its really cool, Septembers Everything Woman Sarah Lundry said. Especially to recognize women in the community and honor them in such a special way.

Proud, very proud, always proud of her in everything she did, Amber Mertels Mom, Novembers Everything Woman said. I thought it was a wonderful thing. A wonderful tribute to her. You guys did a fantastic job by the way.

Life-long Topekan educates the next generation of lawyers

A huge honor to be included amongst these powerhouse women in the room tonight, Augusts Everything Woman Jade Pyros De Carvalho said. And really just so lovely of KSNT to put this event on and highlight the women who are trying to make positive contributions in the lives of others.

Its such an honor to be here tonight with KSNT celebrating women, Washburn President and sponsor Juliann Mazachek said. So many of these women have such create stories, so many peoples lives that theyve impacted. And some of them are associated with Washburn and this wonderful community of course, and were just so happy to be a part of celebrating all that they do and the differences they make.

Women dont get enough credit for what they do, Sharp Honda GM and sponsor Steve Matukewicz said. They lead us in everything. Theyre the calming voice sometimes, and I dont think they get recognized enough. When the ladies from KSNT came to me with this idea, I was immediately was like oh my gosh thats genius.

Its an honor, Topeka ER & Hospital Director of Operations and sponsor Karly Rogers said. When KSNT came to us a couple of years ago and asked if we would be a part of this we jumped right on board. Its very exciting. We like anything that promotes women.

Woman stresses the power of community with every phase of life

To be in the room with these women in our community that are such trailblazers is just truly an honor and also a motivation, Mays Everything Woman Danielle Hall said.

To be here, I think this is a great experience, I dont know who actually came up with this idea, but I think its a great idea to recognize women in the communities that are reaching out, Julys Everything Woman Sharon Blankenship said.

I think its amazing that you all do this for women in our community in Northeast Kansas, Marchs Everything Woman Jennalea Randall said. You know, one of the things we talk about in rotary is empowering girls and women. And if you can see others doing it, you can believe that you can do it.

The main sponsors that support this initiative are Sharp Honda, Topeka ER & Hospital and Washburn University. The third season of Everything Woman begins on Tuesday on June 25, and you can submit a nomination at ksnt.com

If you know a woman in northeast Kansas that we should recognize in this segment, please go to ksnt.com and nominate them there. We feature these honorees on the last Tuesday of each month.

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 KSNT 27 News.
We may be creatures of habit, but research suggests that the best way to boost our everyday happiness is to shake up our routine. According to a study published in the journal Nature Neuroscience, we feel happier when we have more variety in our daily lives. The researchers found that regularly going to novel places and having a wider array of experiences reliably boosts positive emotions.

Previous research has shown that rodents raised in "enriched environments"  environments where they are exposed to novel and diverse experiences  are more playful, relate better to fellow rodents, learn better, and demonstrate greater resilience to stress. As the study in Nature Neuroscience shows, the same principle seems to hold true for human beings.

How variety can influence happiness

Using GPS, the researchers tracked participants' daily movement for 3 to 4 months. Each individual's "roaming entropy"  their level of exploration  was quantified using the location data. Those with low roaming entropy stayed close to home. Those with high roaming entropy were more intrepid, frequently venturing beyond their neighborhood and exposed to novel situations. On days when participants had higher roaming entropy, they reported more positive emotions such as "happy," "excited," "strong," and "relaxed."

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"Our results suggest that people feel happier when they have more variety in their daily routines  when they go to novel places and have a wider array of experiences," explained Catherine Hartley, an assistant professor in New York University's Department of Psychology and one of the paper's co-authors.

The benefits of shaking things up linger  those who spent time in different locations and engaged in varied experiences on one day also felt more upbeat the following day.

The benefit of fresh and diverse experiences

Low roaming entropy may partially explain why lockdown was so challenging. It may also account for why some people find working from home to be draining or devitalizing. Being locked into a routine that limits exposure to new places, people, or things can take a toll. That said, fresh and diverse experiences can be had without venturing too far.

Biking across town, visiting a museum, walking a different path, or trying a new skill are all ways to lean into the unfamiliar. Exploring the unknown has a powerful effect on mood. Take advantage of it. No need to become an intrepid explorer or climb Mount Everest. Just a little variety is enough to give you a boost.

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Patients often tell me, "I am who I am." I remind them that they are who they choose to be.

Bottom line: As tempting as it is to retreat, remember that the most uplifting moments of the day come from venturing out into the world.
As students enjoy their summer vacations, a regional food bank is working to ensure these children have access to nutritional food while out of school.

The Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank has announced it will host its Summer Youth Cafes throughout the season, providing community members 18 years old and younger access to meals during the summer. The program, which is a part of the federally funded Summer Food Program, will ensure children and teenagers facing issues such as food insecurity will be able to receive nutritional meals while classes are on break.

We know many families are struggling to make ends meet this summer with higher costs at the grocery store, increasing utility bills and higher housing costs. We want to make sure all families know these sites offer meals to any child, no strings attached, said Kelsey Gross, the food bank's director of Child Nutrition Programs.

A flier showcasing the locations of the Greater Pittsburgh Food Bank's Summer Youth Cafes in Beaver County.

The cafes will be offered at a variety of locations within Beaver County, including spots such as local parks, churches, schools, libraries and other public gathering spaces. Each spot will offer a different selection of meals for visitors, which can include breakfast, lunch or dinner. No registration is required for these minors seeking food.

Community members looking for food distribution sites near them are encouraged to visit the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank's website. For the Summer Youth Cafe program, community members can filter their search by Meals for Kids and Teens to find these specific distribution sites.

The food bank is also encouraging families in need to sign up for SNAP benefits so that they are enrolled in Pennsylvania's new SUN Bucks program, which provides additional funds for families during the summer. More information on this program can be found on the state's website or by calling the food bank at 412-460-3663, ext. 655.

This article originally appeared on Beaver County Times: Summer Youth Cafes to offer meals for children and teens
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  The newest member of Utahs Hogle Zoo gorilla troop now has a name. In a Facebook post, the zoo announced that his name is Addo, pronounced (ah-doh), saying its as strong and remarkable as he is.

According to the zoo, his name comes from the African Ga language of Ghana, where it means King of the Road.

READ MORE: Gorilla infant born at Salt Lake Citys Hogle Zoo, marking conservation efforts

In May, Utahs Hogle Zoo announced when Addo was born to 22-year-old gorilla Pele. In their recent post, they gave an update on Pele, Addo and the troop, saying they are doing well together.

Baby Addo at Utahs Hogle Zoo. (Utahs Hogle Zoo)

Our teams have seen many positive signs from Addo, like occasionally holding on tightly to Pele without her support  showcasing that strong nature, the zoo wrote.

They added that Peles dad, Husani, stays close to Pele to get a glimpse of his son whenever Pele allows.

The zoo said the best times to see the troop are at opening, 9 a.m., and 11:15 a.m. for snack time.

The zoo called Addos birth an important step in the conservation of western lowland gorillas, which are considered a critically endangered species.

The zoo said the species numbers have decreased by more than 60% over the last 25 years, due to poaching and disease. Scientists calculate it would take 75 years for the species population to recover if all threats were removed.

Visit the Utah Hogle Zoos website to learn more about how to contribute to conservation efforts.

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 ABC4 Utah.
'We're still here': LGBTQ+ seniors reflect on what pride means to them

Mitch Augarten didn't, and still doesn't, view being gay as his lead quality.

In fact, Augarten had little interest in hanging out with other people just because they were also gay and old. So, when his husband joined an LGBTQ+ senior support group six years ago, Augarten said he'd rather stay home.

But his disinterest didn't last long.

Now, the 69-year-old said he feels like more of an activist than he ever has.

"My being a member has changed me," he said.

Augarten, his husband Don Levitsky and the other seven original members of Aging with Pride, a Cherry Hill-based support group for LGBTQ+ seniors, were alive during the Stonewall Riots in 1969 that catapulted gay rights activism into the forefront of history and during the AIDS epidemic in the 1980s.

They were alive when gay marriage wasn't legal, before the first pride flag flew and when dates were arranged through personal ads in newspapers and magazines.

Now, they're reflecting on what they can teach the younger generations of gay people that are able to walk through doors previously pried open, as well as recognizing things they may still have to learn about what being gay means in 2024.

Mitch Augarten (left) and husband Don Levitsky (right), members of Cherry Hill's Aging With Pride LGBTQ+ senior support group.

More: 'People that accept you': Learn more about Haddon Township's Pride Parade

Teaching and learning

Though not a member of the gay community herself, Reva Farenback-Brateman started Aging with Pride in 2018 after noticing support groups available for gay teens and young adults at the Samost Jewish Family & Children's Service of Southern New Jersey and thinking, "Well, what about my age group?"

The 73-year-old thought the group would run for six months when she pitched it to her supervisor and planned its sessions accordingly.

At the very first meeting, she said, the seniors requested earlier meetings that weren't past their bedtime and declined the sweets she'd brought because they were watching their figures.

Six years later, Aging with Pride is still kicking, and 111 different members have attended sessions at one point or another. They meet during the day now, and Farenback-Brateman still brings them nice desserts, "and they gobble them up."

Much of the group's sessions revolve around education, especially keeping the seniors informed on what is happening within the community, like a stronger focus on pronouns, trans issues and new terminologies.

Lary Campbell stands in front of his Magnolia home on Tuesday, June 25, 2024.

Members of Aging with Pride complimented Farenback-Brateman for the effort that goes into finding speakers and developing programming for each meeting.

"They're fun, they're interested, they're learning, they're growing" she said. "It's one of the joys of my life."

At the same time, the seniors encourage younger generations to be true to themselves and their identities  and to learn about the struggles and triumphs of past generations.

"Learn the history of the gay world because it will make you appreciate what you have and make sure you keep it," Levitsky said.

More: June is Pride Month, and here are some of the LGBTQ events happening in South Jersey

Don Cook, Dave Phillips and Lary Campbell at Haddon Township Pride's community night on June 7.

'We're still here'

When Augarten came out in his early 30s, Levitsky was his first gay relationship. The pair reside in Cherry Hill, though they're planning to move soon, much to the dismay of their neighbors.

Levitsky said that he was "never in [the closet]." After his parents sent him to a psychologist in 1963, they got a letter back that read, "Don is a homosexual. He's okay with it."

Lary Campbell, 68, of Magnolia came out in the '70s during the post-Stonewall era and participated in a lot of activisms within New York City's gay community; "It was not a parade then, it was a march, because we were angry," he said through a quiet laugh.

Sherry Eason, 73, always knew she'd loved women, even after getting pregnant and marrying her husband and best friend, who she said knew she was gay.

Lary Campbell sits in the living room of his Magnolia home on Wednesday, June 26, 2024.

Don Cook, 75, was out in college, "sort of, not really" and was briefly engaged to a woman.

Dave Phillips had known he was gay since the early '60s. But it wasn't until three or four years ago that the 76-year-old came out publicly.

"Don't be afraid like I was for a lot of years in my life," he said. "Be proud of it. I finally am after all these years."

"What an older gay community can offer the younger is resilience," Campbell said.

Sure, this group is tied together by their age, but their stories aren't identical.

What they really want people to know is that they're still here. And they always have been.

More: Magnolia filmmaker will compete in multiple categories at film festival in France

Kaitlyn McCormick writes about trending issues and community news across South Jersey for the Courier-Post, The Daily Journal and the Burlington County Times. If you have a story she should tell, email her at kmccormick@gannett.com. And subscribe to stay up to date on the news you need.

This article originally appeared on Cherry Hill Courier-Post: Support group gives voice, community to LGBTQ+ seniors in South Jersey
Where to celebrate Juneteenth in Greater Lansing

Correction: The 517 Juneteenth Festival is scheduled for Saturday. An earlier version of this story had the day wrong.

LANSING  Greater Lansing's Black community, along with its friends and supporters, will spend this weekend celebrating Juneteenth.

A two-day Freedom Festival has been planned by a Lansing Juneteenth Committee and will include food, music, a parade and health and community resource fairs.

June 19 commemorates the end of slavery in the United States and has been commemorated for more than 150 years.

The day gained prominence in recent years amid a nationwide reckoning with racial justice and the legacy of slavery in the United States.

President Joe Biden signed legislation on June 17, 2021, making Juneteenth a U.S. federal holiday after Congress passed The Juneteenth National Independence Day Act that same month.

Kierra Lanice from Lansing has a successful turn at jumping the double Dutch ropes at the Juneteenth celebration in Lansing's REO Town Saturday, June 17, 2023.

In Lansing, the Lansing Juneteenth Committee's Freedom Festival will happen this weekend at St. Joseph Park, 2125 W. Hillsdale St., as part of the region's celebration.

A kick-off ceremony and Essay/Scholarship Awards Program will happen at 5:30 p.m. Thursday at Lansing Community College.

Friday activities will begin with a 4 p.m. Family Night with a Village Market, showcasing food and merchant vendors and public service exhibitors. There will be music by DJ Magic and DJ Genesis, along with Hustle Line dancing.

Saturday's activities will include an 8:30 a.m. 5K run and an 11 a.m. parade, both starting from J.W. Sexton High School, 102 S. McPherson Ave.

The festival will continue at the park and will include a community resource fair from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Jaynaya James, left, shows Ereka Peek from Lansing some of her son's jewelry at the Juneteenth Festival in REO Town Saturday, June 18, 2022.

Other events include:

A 517 Juneteenth Weekend that starts Thursday and runs through Sunday in REO Town. Festivities will include a 6:30 p.m. Thursday seminar, "Black History. Black Future. Empowering Black Wellness," at The Cadillac Room, 1115 S. Washington Ave.; a 5:30-7:30 p.m. Friday ice cream social with inflatables and music in Riverview Church's parking lot, 1115 S. Washington Ave.; a 3:30-10 p.m. Saturday 517 Juneteenth Festival with musical performances, dancing, a food court and more than 70 vendors; and a 6:30 p.m. Sunday Juneteenth Father's Day Jazz Night at the Cadillac Room.

Grewal Hall at 224, 224 S. Washington Square, will host a Juneteenth Comedy Kickback, with doors opening at 7 p.m. Wednesday. The lineup includes Bigman Genesis and Stellana. Tickets cost up to $40.

Michigan State University also is planning a 4th annual MSU Juneteenth Commemorative Celebration from 5-8:30 p.m. Friday at the Breslin Center. Doors open at 4:30 p.m. for the food and music event.

This year's theme is "Acknowledging the Journey: Freedom, Resilience, Empowerment and Liberation."

Registration and RSVPs are encouraged. Food will be provided on a first-come, first-served basis.

Some communities including Meridian and Delta townships also are holding events. Meridian Township is hosting a Juneteenth Over Lake Lansing event 1-7 p.m. Saturday at Lake Lansing Park South, 1621 Pike St. Live music, games, and more are planned. Delta Township will host events Tuesday through Friday, June 21.

Contact editor Susan Vela at svela@lsj.com or 248-873-7044. Follow her on Twitter @susanvela.

This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Where to celebrate Juneteenth in Greater Lansing
Where can you hunt alligators in northwest Louisiana? LDWF releases list of locations

Where can you hunt alligators in northwest Louisiana?

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries will begin the alligator lottery harvest Aug. 28. It will last until Nov. 2.

According to the LDWF, 22 LDWF Wildlife Management Areas, 28 public lakes and one U.S. Army Corp of Engineers lake will be on this list of properties to conduct the lottery.

Alligator Lottery Harvests starts in August for Louisiana. Here's what you need to know.

But where can northwest Louisianans hunt?

Caddo Lake

Cross Lake

Wallace Lake

Ivan Lake

Bodcau Wildlife Management Area

Cypress/ Black Bayou Lake

Lake Bistineau

Lake Claiborne

Corney Lake

Kepler Lake

Black Lake

Caney Lake

Saline Lake

To check out all the properties where you can hunt alligators, visit www.wlf.louisiana.gov/assets/Hunting/Alligator/Files/lottery_choices.pdf.

Caddo Lake at sunset by Timothy Frederick

Before hunting gators, LDWF said hunters must apply for the alligator lottery. Applications are due June 23.

To apply, visit www.louisianaoutdoors.com/lottery-applications. Once there, click on the Lottery Applications tab, update or create customer details similar to purchasing a license and submit an application.

There will be a $5 application fee and a $3.50 transaction fee. Only one alligator lottery application may be submitted per customer. Applicants must be legal Louisiana residents and 16 years or older.

More: Are two Northwest Louisiana lakes infested with alligators?

Makenzie Boucher is a reporter with the Shreveport Times. Contact her at mboucher@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Where to hunt alligators in northwest Louisiana, how to apply
A Michigan Indian Community is taking back ownership of close to 1,000 acres of stolen land with the help of global environmental nonprofit, The Nature Conservancy.

The tribe, the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community (KBIC) of the Lake Superior Band of Chippewa Indians, made the announcement on June 12. KBIC is a federally recognized Tribe will a primary land base of close to 60,000 acres, the LAnse Indian Reservation. The tribe serves about 3,500 enrolled members in Baraga, Ontonagon, Gogebic, Marquette, Houghton and Keweenaw Counties.

The 760 acres of forest land in Baraga County was originally part of KBICs 1842 reservation boundaries, according to the tribe. The Nature Conservancy purchased the land in 2021 from a local owner, and officially transferred the deed back to the tribe at a tribal council meeting on Wednesday.

Evelyn Ravindran, the Natural Resources Director for KBIC, said that the tribe is dedicated to the long-term protection of natural resources, healthy ecosystems, and preservation of traditions for the generations to come.

We recognize the importance of working together with like-minded co-stewards to achieve goals across man-made boundaries and look to developing and strengthening partnerships to realize our vision, Ravindran said in a press release. Over the years, TNC has welcomed KBICs input and involvement in the Keweenaw Heartlands Project and has expressed interest in other collaborations including wildlife monitoring and wild rice restoration.

Helen Taylor, state director for The Nature Conservancy in Michigan, called the land transfer vital for supporting Indigenous and local communities.

We are honored to make this contribution to KBICs future success by transferring this land to them, said Taylor. KBIC members have been stewards of the land for generations, and their cultural teachings signify and honor the connection between people, wildlife, and the natural world around us. 

About the Author: "Native News Online is one of the most-read publications covering Indian Country and the news that matters to American Indians, Alaska Natives and other Indigenous people. Reach out to us at editor@nativenewsonline.net. "

Contact: news@nativenewsonline.net
Fatime Letifova

A delegation of the Justice and Development Party of Turkiye (AK Party) will visit Azerbaijan, the head of the Turkiye-Azerbaijan Interparliamentary Friendship Group, Azernews reportss, citing Turkish MP Samil Ayrim as he telling to Report.

He said that the delegation will visit the country at the invitation of the New Azerbaijan Party:

Within the framework of the visit, the delegation will visit the Alley of Martyrs, the Alley of Honor, and the Baku Turkish Martyrs Memorial. Later, the AK Party delegation will visit Shusha to participate in the event dedicated to the 3rd anniversary of the Shusha Declaration on allied relations between Azerbaijan and Turkiye signed in Shusha on June 15, 2021.
Recent satellite internet news coming out of Latin America and India is a reminder that Starlink isnt having things entirely its own way when it comes to satellite internet.

Amazon and telecommunications firm Vrio have announced plans to jointly launch a satellite internet service in seven South American countries. Vrio manages the Latin American branch of American multichannel video programming distributor DirecTV as well as direct broadcast satellite company Sky Brasil.

The partners will offer the service to customers in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia.

Reuters reports that Amazon's satellite subsidiary Project Kuiper will provide internet using satellites in low Earth orbit. The service is set to come online in mid-2025, starting in Argentina.

Project Kuiper as a whole will eventually involve 3,236 satellites and an estimated US$10 billion of investment to provide broadband internet access across the globe.

Meanwhile, a joint venture between technology firm Jio Platforms, part of Indian multinational conglomerate Reliance Industries, along with satellite telecommunications network provider SES, has won approval from the Indian space regulator IN-SPACe to operate satellites in India. The joint operation, called Orbit Connect India, aims to provide gigabit fibre internet.

Reuters notes that, although the new company is now approved to operate satellites above India, the countrys department of telecoms (DoT) will need to give its approval before Orbit Connect India begins operations.

The company joins Inmarsat and OneWeb as approved groups, while Starlink and Project Kuiper are awaiting approvals. Other companies are also hoping to benefit from the governments desire to encourage the growth of India's space industry.

As for the market, Lucas Werthein, vice president of Vrio, has been quoted as highlighting the likely advantages of satellite communications to hundreds of millions of people with poor, little or no internet access, and as a way of overcoming the challenge of difficult terrain.

Hes by no means alone in implying that such factors could drive a potential market. But finding pricing plans that will benefit operators and attract less well-off end users could still be a challenge.
1,000 days have passed since the Taliban barred girls from secondary education, the UN says

FILE - Afghan girls attend school in a classroom, in Kabul, March 25, 2023. One thousand days have passed since girls in Afghanistan were banned from attending secondary schools. Thats according to the U.N. childrens agency, which says that no country can move forward when half its population is left behind. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File)

ISLAMABAD (AP)  A thousand days have passed since girls in Afghanistan were banned from attending secondary schools, according to the U.N. childrens agency, which said Thursday that no country can move forward when half its population is left behind.

UNICEF Executive Director Catherine Russell in a statement urged Taliban authorities to allow all children to resume learning immediately, and called on the international community to support Afghan girls, who she said need it more than ever. The agency estimates that more than 1 million girls are affected.

The U.N. has warned that the ban on girls education remains the Talibans biggest obstacle to gaining recognition as the legitimate rulers of Afghanistan.

The Taliban, who took over in Afghanistan following the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO forces in 2021, has said girls continuing their education goes against the group's strict interpretation of Islamic law.

Despite initially promising a more moderate rule, the Taliban have also barred women from higher education, public spaces like parks and most jobs as part of harsh measures imposed. When the Taliban ruled Afghanistan in the 1990s, they also banned girls education.

The Taliban has barred girls from attending classes beyond sixth grade, making it the only country in the world with such restrictions on female education.

In March, the new school year started with girls barred from attending classes beyond the sixth grade. Female journalists were not allowed to attend the opening ceremony.

The Taliban also have been prioritizing Islamic knowledge over basic literacy and numeracy with their shift toward madrassas, or religious schools.

UNICEF's executive director called the systematic exclusion of girls not only a blatant violation of their right to education, but also results in dwindling opportunities and deteriorating mental health.

She said UNICEF works with partners to run community-based education classes for 600,000 children, two-thirds of them girls, and train teachers.

Although Afghan boys have access to education, Human Rights Watch has said the Taliban's abusive educational policies are harming them. In a report published in December, the group said deep harm has been inflicted on boys education as qualified teachers  including women  left, including an increase in corporal punishment.

Also on Thursday, a spokesperson for the U.N. Human Rights Office said the Taliban have told female civil servants barred from working that their salaries would be cut to the lowest level regardless of their experience or qualifications.

The latest discriminatory and profoundly arbitrary decision further deepened the erosion of human rights in Afghanistan, said Liz Throssell.

The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Turk, called on authorities to rescind all laws, instructions, edicts and other measures that discriminated against women and girls, in clear violation of the country's human rights obligations, Throssell added.

Nobody from the Taliban was immediately available for comment.
CEDAR CITY, Utah (ABC4)  One person was injured after an alleged road rage in Cedar City on Wednesday afternoon, and officials with the Cedar City Police Department are advising citizens of an active incident.

According to a social media post, the incident took place at Fiddlers Canyon Road and Main Street. Police said the suspect reportedly shot the victim after pulling out a firearm.

READ NEXT: Utah County officials put out river safety advisory notice after weekend drownings

A press release later clarified that the incident happened around 3:30 p.m. between a motorcycle rider and the driver of a passenger vehicle, and the incident started off as a physical confrontation in downtown Cedar City.

The situation escalated as the confrontation resumed near the intersection of Fiddlers Canyon Road and Main Street, police said in a press release. During this escalation, the motorcycle rider allegedly produced handgun and shot the driver of the passenger vehicle.

The suspect reportedly left the scene, but was found at a nearby residence moments later and taken into custody, police said.

Emergency personnel responded to the scene and provided care to the victim before the victim was airlifted to a local hospital in critical condition.

Police said there was not an active threat to the public, and they are not seeking additional suspects at this time. However, the investigation is ongoing.

Anyone with information on the situation has been asked to call the Cedar City Police Department at 435-586-2955.

There is no further information at this time.

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RICHMOND COUNTY, Ga. (WJBF)  A 17 year old is wanted by the Richmond County Sheriffs Office for aggravated assault.

According to the Richmond County Sheriffs Office, Brandon Alexander Francis, 17, is wanted in reference to a shooting which happened on Monte Carlo Drive.

Francis is described to be 57 and weighing 126 pounds.

According to authorities, officers initially responded to a call for shots fired with one subject down on Sunday, June 9th at 12:18 A.M. to the Sprint Food Store on Peach Orchard Road, and deputies say when trying to locate the victim, they were told that the victim was being transported to a local hospital by vehicle.

ALSO ON WJBF: Man dead after mowing incident near I-20 Thomson exit

Officers then state that at 12:30 A.M. they responded to a residence on Monte Carlo Drive in reference to shots being fired, and they say when they arrived, several spent brass casings were located in the roadway in front of the residence along with blood evidence, which officers state that this residence was the incident location.

According to the incident report, officers were advised that the victim was located in the same vehicle stated earlier on 5th Street at Broad Street at 12:32 A.M. and then transported to a local hospital for treatment.

Authorities state that Francis is known to frequent the Hephzibah area and should be considered to be Armed and Dangerous.

If anyone has any information concerning the whereabouts of Francis, please contact Inv. Robert Ferraro at (706) 821-1464, or any Investigator at the Richmond County Sheriffs Office at (706) 821-1020 or (706) 821-1080.

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19-year-old arrested in connection to murder of woman while toddler was in car

A second suspect has been arrested in connection to the murder of a woman last month in northwest Atlanta.

Atlanta police said 21-year-old NeJah Cox was shot and killed while driving outside an apartment complex on Center Street in Atlanta around 2 a.m. on May 18.

Channel 2s Bryan Mims learned Cox was a passenger in the car and her young child, a toddler, was in the back seat during the shooting

On Thursday, officers arrested 19-year-old Cartez Harvey was arrested by Atlanta police in connection to Coxs death.

Harvey was charged with murder, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during a felony and cruelty to children in the second degree.

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Late last month, officers arrested 23-year-old Jamal Baker in connection to Coxs death.

Baker was booked into the Fulton County Jail. Hes charged with murder, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and cruelty to children in the second degree.

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19-year-old faces slew of charges in connection to Cambridge double shooting, DA says

A second suspect was arrested in connection to a May shooting that injured two people at a Cambridge park.

Police: One suspect arrested amid ongoing investigation into a double shooting near a Cambridge park

Machyus Battle, 19, of Cambridge, is charged with attempted assault and battery by discharge of a firearm, assault and battery by discharge of a firearm, assault with a dangerous weapon, carrying a firearm without a license, carrying a loaded firearm, discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling, carrying a dangerous weapon on school grounds, and possession of ammunition without an FID card, according to Middlesex District Attorney Marian Ryan.

Cambridge Police say on May 23 just after 9:30 p.m., they responded to a report of multiple gunshots at Donnelly Field and found 23-year-old Yonayvi Cruceta and a 22-year-old Cambridge woman suffering from a gunshot wound. Both were transported to area hospitals with non-life-threatening injuries.

According to investigators, Battle and Cruceta were at the basketball courts when an argument ensued. The two then allegedly began exchanging gunfire.

Cruceta was previously arrested for his alleged involvement on May 28.

The 22-year-old woman was believed to have been hit by a stray bullet fired from either Battle or Cruceta.

Battle was arraigned in Cambridge District Court on Monday. He will return to court on Thursday for a dangerousness hearing.

The shooting remains under investigation and anyone with any information related to this incident, including home surveillance or dashcam video, is strongly encouraged to call Cambridge Police.

CPD Investigation Update: Middlesex DA Marian Ryan and Cambridge Police Commissioner Christine Elow have announced that a second suspect has been charged in connection with the May 23, 2024, double shooting in the area of Donnelly Field. Read more: https://t.co/vbICy8jImz https://t.co/l3tGZ4ny8L  Cambridge Police Department (@CambridgePolice) June 13, 2024

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  Two women hiking near Mt. Hoods Top Spur Trailhead were rescued by a search and rescue team on Thursday after becoming lost and injured in heavy snow, Clackamas County Sheriffs Office said.

After the hikers  ages 76 and 78  called 9-1-1, dispatchers tracked their phone about a mile southeast of the Top Spur Trailhead at an elevation of 4,200 feet.

Crews found the hikers within 30 minutes and transported one of the hikers on a wheeled litter after complaining about knee pain, officials said, noting the painstaking process of navigating the trails snowy and rough terrain.

VIDEO: Robert Irwin visits Oregon Coast, documents squabbling sea lions

An hour later, the hikers were safely returned to the parking lot.

While some areas of the trail were bare, other areas had one to two feet of snow, the sheriffs office told KOIN 6 News.

As temperatures rise in June, hikers may be surprised to learn that many of the popular Mt. Hood area trails are still covered by snow, CCSO said.

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A $2 million project could extend this popular Peoria trail. Here's what we know

The end of the Rock Island Greenway on Park Avenue in Peoria's North Valley. An extension of the trail to Peoria's riverfront is being proposed by city officials.

An extension of the Rock Island Greenway from its end point near Glen Oak Park to the Peoria riverfront is being proposed by city officials.

The plan calls for the trail to extend from its end point on Park Avenue in the North Valley, down Abington Street, across Adams and Jefferson streets and to the Peoria riverfront.

Extension of the trail is still in its initial planning phases and does not yet have any funding allocated for actual construction of the project. Federal funding has been allocated for the planning of the project to the tune of $375,000.

Total cost of the project is estimated to be around $2 million.

Trails in Peoria: Bridge over War Memorial part of latest Peoria trail extension

Peoria city councilman Tim Riggenbach, whose 3rd District is home to the proposed extension, said the city is targeting all grant opportunities, both federal and state, to find funding for the proposal. He said city funds would also likely be required.

Riggenbach is highly enthused about the possible extension.

"I think it's phenomenal because you're going to have people who live on the north side of Peoria have a connection to the riverfront," Riggenbach said. "That's our greatest natural resource in Peoria that we sometimes take for granted, so to be able to allow more people access to the riverfront is always a good thing."

An abandoned railroad track in Peoria's North Valley would be the ideal spot for an extension of the Rock Island Greenway. The Illinois Department of Transportation will not allow it to be however.

Completion of the extension will require some creative maneuvering to get from Glen Oak Park to the riverfront, as the Illinois Department of Transportation has told the city its preferred route for the path  which would follow an abandoned railroad track  is not allowed.

"We would just follow the abandoned railroad track line and just have it be a diagonal shot across the North Valley and be a beautiful connector to the riverfront. But because of IDOT's requirements, it's going to be a little more complicated," Riggenbach said.

The proposed path would follow an existing rail bed from the trail's end on Park Avenue to Abington Street. From there, it would turn southeast from Madison Avenue and cross Jefferson Street. The trail would cross Jefferson Street to Adams Street and then end up at Grant Street. From there, it would follow the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers driveway to the existing marina path on the riverfront from Caroline Street to Spring Street.

Riggenbach said there have been high-level conversations held about this potential extension of the trail for over 10 years but added it's likely at least two years away from completion.

'Anchor for the park': Glen Oak amphitheater will see changes over the next two years

Last summer the Peoria Park District did work on the Rock Island Greenway to repair the trail's bridge that runs over Knoxville Avenue.

In 2022 the trail's last extension project brought it over War Memorial Drive on a former railroad bridge.

The Rock Island Greenway runs about 13 miles from Peoria to Alta, where it then connects with the state's Rock Island Trail, which heads north to Toulon.

The Peoria Public Works Department will be holding an informational meeting about the proposal Thursday at 5:30 p.m. at Woodruff Career and Technical Center.

Business news: Luxury residences and a rooftop pool planned for Peoria's riverfront. Here's what we know

This article originally appeared on Journal Star: Popular Peoria trail could be extended to the Illinois riverfront
Two Palm Beach Central High School administrators who were arrested last year and charged with failing to report sexual assault allegations made by a student have new jobs with the school district after the charges against them were dropped.

Palm Beach County School Board members on Wednesday, June 12 approved a new position for former principal Darren Edgecomb, who will be a principal on assignment supporting the department of charter schools. The board also approved a new position for former assistant principal Daniel Snider, who will take on the same assistant principal job at Royal Palm Beach High.

The two men were among five employees at Palm Beach Central arrested in July and charged with failing to report the suspected sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl that occurred off campus in 2021. A friend of the girl reported the incident to Snider, who is related to the boy accused of assault.

Law enforcement investigators found that neither Snider nor the other employees notified the Department of Children and Families. Under Florida law, all employees of the public school district, charter schools and private schools have "an affirmative duty to report all actual or suspected cases of child abuse, abandonment, or neglect."

A judge dismissed the case against Snider in November after Snider said he didn't report the sexual assault to DCF because he didn't believe it happened. Judge Scott Suskauer ruled that Florida law requires the recipient of a sexual abuse report to decide whether the report has merit before reporting it.

Prosecutors dropped the charges against the remaining employees in March.

Marc Freeman, a spokesperson for the state attorney's office, said that prosecutors felt it would not be in the girl's best interest to endure cross-examination in five separate trials. He added in March that the girl's family agreed with the decision to end the prosecution.

Darren Edgecomb's new job title with department of charter schools remains unclear

The other three employees arrested, former assistant principal Nereyda Cayado de Garcia, chorus teacher Scott Houchins and then-guidance counselor Priscilla Carter, have not yet returned to school campuses.

All five employees became subjects of school district investigations in addition to the criminal charges filed against them. Citing the fact that the investigations are open, the school district has previously declined to release documents regarding those reviews.

Snider's start date for his new job has not yet been set. A review of his personnel files showed he has been a district employee since 1997 and has no previous disciplinary history with the district.

Edgecomb will start his new job on July 1, but it's not clear what his role will be in the department of charter schools. District documents show his job title as "principal on assignment," a role typically assigned to principals when they are removed from their schools.

Edgecomb has been with the school district since 1996 and became the principal at Palm Beach Central in 2014.

In 2019, the school districts inspector general found that Edgecomb and then-Assistant Principal Laurence Greenberg raised the grades of at least 11 students without their teachers knowledge.

According to their report, Greenberg said he "changed the students' grades because there were extenuating circumstances where the teachers targeted the students and where teachers unfairly graded the students' class performance or did not accept the students' class work.

Edgecomb was put on probation for three years starting in October 2022.

Egdecomb also got into trouble in 2010, when he was the principal of Turning Points Academy near West Palm Beach. He was accused of punishing assistant principal Anne Williams Dorsey, who went on maternity leave, by demoting her and cutting her pay.

Five years later, the U.S. Justice Department sued the school district over the demotion. The school district reached a settlement that cost taxpayers $350,000.

Katherine Kokal is a journalist covering education at The Palm Beach Post. You can reach her at kkokal@pbpost.com. Help support our work; subscribe today!

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Palm Beach Central High admins in sex assault reporting cases get new jobs
DENVER (KDVR)  A man was shot in an apparent road rage incident on Interstate 70 on Tuesday, according to the Clear Creek County Sheriffs Office. Two suspects were taken into custody after a subsequent pursuit and crash.

According to the sheriffs office, deputies were dispatched to eastbound I-70 at mile marker 220 for an adult man who had been shot in an alleged road rage incident.

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The victim was found and transported to a local hospital with a gunshot wound to his arm.

The victim relayed a description of the suspect and his vehicle to officers. An Idaho Springs officer later spotted the vehicle on eastbound I-70 at mile marker 246.

When the officer tried to stop the suspect, the vehicle drove away and a pursuit began. The Jefferson County Sheriffs Office was told about the incident and also assisted when the suspect vehicle entered their jurisdiction.

The vehicle exited I-70 at Lookout Mountain. The suspect vehicle was driving at a high speed and tried to get back on I-70 but lost control and rolled over several times before coming to a complete stop.

Two suspects  a male driver and a female passenger  were taken into custody with unknown injuries.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. A young Army veteran who relocated from Nashville to Memphis had only been in the city a week when she was carjacked and shot multiple times at a South Memphis gas station earlier this month.

Police said the 31-year-old woman identified Kendrick Ray, 21, as one of three gunmen she tried to fight off at the BP on South Parkway East on June 3.

Ray is the same person arrested in a road rage shooting along Interstate 240 Tuesday that left four kids and a dad in critical condition.

Two men praised for helping family shot on interstate: There is still some good in Memphis

I just saw that on the news, said the carjacking victims mother.

The victims mother did not want to be identified but said her daughter is still in the hospital and has a long road to recovery. She said her daughter was shot three times in the leg, and one bullet hit an artery.

She was transferred today to wound care because they left terrible injuries, said the victims mother. The first time, she went into surgery for 14 hours trying to save the artery in her leg, and Friday, she had another surgery.

According to the police, the victim was pumping gas into her car when she was approached by three males armed with rifles. Investigators said after the victim was shot, the gunmen forced the victims friend and the friends three young children out of the 2015 black Nissan Altima and drove off in the vehicle.

They were trying to get the car with the kids in there, and she was trying to defend the kids to get them out of the car, said the victims mom.

Ray is facing numerous charges in the carjacking, including attempted first-degree murder, two counts of carjacking, and three counts of reckless endangerment.

Ray has a lengthy criminal history, but the Shelby County District Attorneys Office said he has no prior convictions. In July of 2023, Ray was accused of having a stolen gun modified with a Glock switch. He was charged with possession of a prohibited weapon and theft but released on a $500 bond.



In a statement, Mulroy said, Now that hes been re-arrested, were moving to have him held without bond.

Attorney Brandon Hall has represented Ray before.

If youre just a passenger in a vehicle, does it mean youre guilty of committing a crime if another passenger in the vehicle decides to commit a crime? All that evidence will have to come to light in the later days, Hall said.

Mulroys office seeks to revoke bond for accused interstate shooter

The carjacking victims mother said her daughter tried to use some of her military training to defend herself. She said she had just bought the Altima.

Its safer in Iraq than it is now in Memphis. Memphis has changed tremendously, said the mom. Im afraid, and as a mother, its hard seeing your daughter sustain those injuries.

She said her daughter will need more surgeries. So far, Ray is the only person who has been arrested in connection to the carjacking and shooting.

Rays bail is currently set at $1 million.

If you have seen the Altima or have any information that can help police, call CrimeStoppers at (901)528-CASH.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WREG.com.
The situation on the Pokrovsk front is the most complicated. The Russians have launched 26 attacks on the positions of Ukrainian forces since the beginning of the day.

Source: the report by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine as of 16:00

Details: On the Pokrovsk front, the Russians launched attacks near the settlements of Novooleksandrivka, Kalynove, Novoselivka Persha, Yevhenivka, Novopokrovske, Mezhove and Nevelske. Russian aircraft are highly active on this front. Ukrainian forces deter the pressure and have repelled 16 Russia assaults, 10 more combat clashes are ongoing.

Ukrainian forces keep deterring the offensive actions of the Russians. As of now the number of combat clashes all along the frontline has increased to 71.

On the Kharkiv front the Russians attacked the units of the Defence Forces near the settlement of Hlyboke and to the west from Tykhe two times, but to no avail. At the moment a combat clash near the city of Vovchansk is ongoing. The Russians also keep destroying Ukrainian villages and cities by launching airstrikes from Russian territory. In the afternoon the Russians launched five attacks using guided aerial bombs from the Belgorod district (Russia) on Vovchansk, and struck the settlement of Vovchanski Khutory with eight non-guided aerial missiles.

On the Kupiansk front Ukrainian forces repelled two Russian attacks. Two more combat clashes are ongoing. Near the settlement of Petropavlivka Russian aircraft launched an attack with 11 non-guided aerial missiles, and used seven more to strike the settlement of Tabaivka.

On the Lyman front Ukrainian forces successfully repelled three assault actions of the Russians. The combat clashes are ongoing near the settlements of Hrekivka and Nevske.

On the Kramatorsk front, the Russians attempted to dislodge Ukrainian units from their positions six times but to no avail. Two attacks are still ongoing near Nove and Andriivka.

On the Kurakhove front, combat clashes are ongoing near the settlements of Krasnohorivka, Heorhiivka, Paraskoviivka. Total number of attacks rose to 16 there. Ukrainian forces successfully repelled 10 assault actions of the Russians. Six more combat clashes are ongoing.

On the Vremivka front the Russian aircraft got more active. The settlement of Staromairoske was struck with non-guided aerial missiles, while the settlements of Storozhove, Velyka Novosilka and Bohoiavlenka were struck with guided aerial bombs.

There were no significant changes to the situation on other fronts.

Quote: "All along the frontline Ukrainian forces prevent Russian occupiers from breaking through Ukrainian defences, and inflict losses on them."

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A grand jury in Catawba County has indicted a man in connection with five arsons north of Conover. Channel 9s Dave Faherty learned two women have also been charged in connection with two of the fires.

The map below shows where those fires took place over a more than two-year period in Catawba County. Investigators said there were five fires at four locations; one location was burned twice.

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Sheriffs deputies estimate they caused hundreds of thousands of dollars in damage.

Several departments fought each of the fires over the last couple of years and very early on, investigators suspected they were set.

In one case, firefighters said they could see the smoke north of Conover for miles before arriving on the scene along Houston Mill Road. It is one of the five arson cases theyve worked since the spring of 2021.

PREVIOUS: Investigators say mobile home fire in Catawba County was intentionally set

Just a couple of miles away, Dwayne Mullins lives along Rifle Range Road. His next door neighbors home caught on fire last October and he immediately thought it could have been intentionally set.

This is where the blaze was and it was hot, Mullins said. It was almost like there were arrows pointing, right here is where it started.

The grand jury indicted Tad Navey for arson in four of the fires and burning a building in a fifth case. The two women who deputies say knew Navey were also charged with first-degree arson in two of the fires.

It seems to be domestic-related between the parties involved, said Catawba County Sherriffs Office Maj. Aaron Turk. These were major fires. Im told all the residences were completely destroyed.

ALSO READ: 90 fires in Charlotte this year were intentionally set, investigator says

The St. Stephens Volunteer Fire Department responded to nearly all of the fires. The chief said arsons put firefighters and the public at unnecessary risk.

We go into this job knowing the risk, Chief Shawn Greene said. However, when its cause its specifically on purpose, it only makes it that much worse.

Dwayne Mullins had to move out of his home because of the damage. He is thankful deputies made the arrests in the case.

If they were like a serial arsonist, absolutely they need to pay for what they have done, he said.

According to the indictments, in some of the cases, people were at home when those fires started.

(WATCH BELOW: Neighbors deal with collateral damage after arson at vacant home)
CHICAGO  Chicago police are searching for a hit-and-run driver who injured five people in a crash, including three children, on the citys North Side.

According to the Chicago Police Department, around 6:30 p.m., emergency crews responded to the 1600 block of W. Jonquil Terrace in Rogers Park for a two-car versus bicycle crash.

Police said a vehicle driving at high speeds hit a Blue Nissan and then went on to hit a 13-year-old boy on a bicycle before fleeing the scene. In all, three children  ages 7, 10 and 13  and two adults in their 40s were injured in the crash.

Chicago fire personnel told WGN News that paramedics rushed two minors to Lurie Childrens Hospital in critical condition. Another minor was taken to Lutheran Hospital, also with critical injuries.

Fire crews also transported two adults to St. Francis Hospital in critical condition. Another person at the scene was said to have suffered minor injuries.

CPD said all five victims are expected to recover.

Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines

Witnesses say the crash may have resulted from one drivers attempt to evade police. WGN News has not yet confirmed those details but has reached out to Chicago police.

A description of the suspect has not been provided. No one is in custody.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV.
EAST HARLEM, Manhattan (PIX11)  Three people were shot in East Harlem Thursday afternoon, according to the NYPD.

The shooting happened just after 12:30 p.m. Thursday at the Johnson Houses NYCHA development on 112th Street, according to the FDNY. Police believe the suspect shot two people before turning the gun on themself, sources told PIX11 News.

Teen driver who killed Yonkers police sergeant gets 2 years probation

A 40-year-old woman and 19-year-old man suffered multiple gunshot wounds and were rushed to an area hospital, according to the NYPD. A 25-year-old was shot once and was in critical condition, according to the NYPD.

The shooting is believed to be a domestic incident, sources told PIX11 News. The relationship between the three people and the motive of the shooting were not immediately known.

This is a developing story. Please refresh this page for updates.

Suicide prevention and mental health resources for those in need

If you or someone you know is considering suicide, call the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988. It is a free, 24/7 service that offers support, information, and local resources. You can also click here for additional hotlines within your state.

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.

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Four suspects with alleged gang ties were arrested in connection to a violent home invasion robbery in San Bernardino County.

The suspects were identified as:

Marcos Guerrero, 48, of Glendora

Elijah Gafare, 35, of West Covina

Cynthia Leal, 38, of Ontario

Vincent Solarez, 58, Upland

The San Bernardino County Sheriffs Department believes all four suspects have gang ties in the Inland Empire and are responsible for a series of home invasions, assaults, and extortions of local business owners.

The invasion happened on March 12 as the suspects broke into a home on the 18000 block of Valley Boulevard in Bloomington at around 3 a.m.

The victims, a man and a woman, were woken up by the suspects at gunpoint. The male victim was assaulted and pistol-whipped, while the woman was held against her will, deputies said.

After rummaging the home for about two hours, the suspects stole around $12,500 in cash and took the hard drive to the homes surveillance cameras along with the victims vehicle.

From left: Cynthia Leal, Vincent Solarez, Elijah Gafare, and Marcos Guerrero are seen in booking photos from the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department.

After the suspects fled, the male victim called the police for help. He was transported to a local hospital for treatment.

Detectives later identified three suspects involved and a search warrant at two separate homes was served on May 30. Guerrero and Leal were arrested at an apartment in Glendora. Gafare was arrested at a home in West Covina.

On June 11, detectives discovered a fourth suspect, Solarez, was allegedly involved in the home invasion. Solarez was spotted driving in Upland near the intersection of North Campus Avenue and East Washington Boulevard.

He was pulled over and arrested at the scene. A search warrant at Solarezs home yielded evidence related to the home invasion, deputies said.

36 arrested in massive California drug trafficking bust with ties to Sinaloa cartel

All four were arrested on charges of residential robbery, assault with a firearm, and conspiracy to commit a felony.

Detectives believe there are additional unreported incidents involving the suspects and have released their booking photos in case victims recognize them.

Anyone with information can contact Detective Pedersen at the Fontana Station at 909-356-6767.

Anonymous tips can be provided to We-Tip at 1-800-782-7463 or online at wetip.com.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA.
One month after Sen. Bob Menendezs corruption trial began, and with weeks of testimony still to come, the prosecution and its witnesses have painted a politically damning portrait of the New Jersey Democrat, who chaired the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee until stepping down last fall after being indicted.

But for all the sharp angles and colorful flourishes delivered by witnesses for the government  none more so than turncoat businessman Jose Uribe, who pleaded guilty to multiple counts as part of a cooperation agreement that put him on the stand for parts of the past four days  some of the underlying questions from the beginning of the trial still appear unresolved.

Uribe delivered the most detailed testimony to date placing Menendez, 70, at the center of an alleged bribery scheme in which he had previously appeared as a marginal figure. Instead, it had been the senators then-girlfriend (and now wife), Nadine, appearing in nearly every scene of the legal drama  prosecutors describing her as a glorified fixer for her partner; the defense insisting she was pulling the strings herself.

Nadine, who along with her husband and co-defendants Wael Hana, an Egyptian American businessman, and New Jersey real estate developer Fred Daibes, has pleaded not guilty to their alleged roles in the scheme, is expected to go on trial separately in August. The senator disclosed last month that his wife has breast cancer. Together, the four have been accused of assorted roles in the alleged bribery scheme, spanning from cattle slaughterhouses in the American Midwest to the inner workings of the Egyptian government.

Here are five takeaways from the prosecutions case, and the defenses pushback, as the trial enters its second month.

For whom the (tiny) bell tolls

The story, as Uribe told it, was a thrilling one.

Face-to-face at last, following months of drinks, dinners and written correspondence with Nadine, Uribe was alone with the senator in September 2019. They were seated at a patio table in the backyard of Nadines suburban home and, after a brief chat, Menendez asked Uribe for the names of the associates he was trying to shield from prosecution or investigation.

Realizing he had nothing to write on, Uribe testified, Menendez called out mon amour to Nadine and then rang a small bell on the table. At that, Nadine emerged from inside with paper. Uribe scribbled the details for Menendez, who pocketed the information.

The next morning, Menendez welcomed then-New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal to his Newark office, where he raised concerns with the states top prosecutor, according to Grewals account, about an ongoing criminal case. (Grewal testified that Menendez never explicitly identified the case or the defendants by name.) Following the brief meeting, Grewals deputy who had accompanied him rendered his verdict: Whoa, that was gross.

But if Menendez had been rebuffed, his subsequent actions suggested otherwise. Nadine told Uribe to meet Menendez at the senators apartment building, where Menendez, per Uribe, told him, That thing that you asked me about (last night), it doesnt seem to be anything there.

For Uribe, who told the court he wanted all the probes stopped and killed, this registered as qualified good news. He texted an associate saying it had been a good meeting and that Menendez felt very positive.

The peace that Uribe craved, though, would not come until months later, when he testified that Menendez, called from his office on Capitol Hill with more definitive word.

That thing that you asked me about, he began again, theres nothing there. I give you your peace.

Days later, Uribe, a friend, the senator and Nadine gathered at an upscale North Jersey restaurant to celebrate  not their alleged deal, which never came up, but the future Menendezes engagement. Jurors saw a picture of the foursome with champagne glasses in hand, sharing a toast after diners at another table had sent over a bottle.

That might have been the end of the story, but the most sensational testimony had yet to come. After months apart, largely because of the Covid-19 pandemic, Uribe was again sitting for a meal with Bob Menendez and Nadine. This time, Nadines adult daughter was also present.

At some point, Menendez quietly texted Nadine, Can you go to (the) bathroom?

Uribe was, once again, alone with Menendez. The senator, he testified, sat back in his chair, hands across his stomach, and spoke in Spanish.

I saved your ass twice, Menendez said, according to Uribe. Not once, but twice.

Jose Uribe arrives for trial at federal court in New York City on June 11, 2024. - Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

The Bob-father?

Lovestruck naif or the all-knowing boss of a carefully managed alleged criminal network?

The defense has often sought to portray Menendez as a victim of sorts, at worst an unwitting accomplice to his glamourous new girlfriends corrupt machinations. Prosecutors, with Uribe as their star witness, have called that claim nonsense.

Menendez used Nadine as his go-between to deliver messages to and from the people paying bribes, prosecutor Lara Pomerantz said in her opening statement, after telling the jury that the alleged episode was not politics as usual,

This was politics for profit, she said, a US senator on the take.

From there, the government has fought the perception, advanced by the defense, that Menendez had a limited view into Nadines world  they even had separate phone plans, the defense noted  and could not have known what she was promising Uribe, Hana and others.

Menendez attorney Avi Weitzman described his client as being smitten by Nadine, a beautiful and tall, international woman, who entered his life as a romantic prospect shortly after another corruption case against Menendez was dropped following a mistrial.

The defense also tried and failed to call a psychiatrist as a witness to testify that intergenerational trauma  in Menendezs case, Fidel Castros seizure of power, and property, in communist Cuba  led the anxious senator to keep the now infamous bricks of cash in his home, stuffed in jackets, closets and boots.

Prosecutors, through testimony from Uribe and, before him, a former senior official at the US Department of Agriculture, sought to rubbish the defenses suggestions.

Ted McKinney, the undersecretary for trade and foreign agricultural affairs, testified that in May 2019 Menendez told him to stop interfering with the workings of a mysterious new halal meat certification firm, based in New Jersey and owned by Hana, that suddenly became the sole Egyptian-sanctioned US operator.

McKinney testified he understood what Menendez told him over the phone: to stand down and stop doing all of the things that we were doing to probe the arrangement. McKinney said he demurred but felt that Menendez was trying to inappropriately pressure him.

Other prosecution witnesses, like Grewal, depicted Menendez in a similar way: cautious with his words, but plainly comfortable exercising his power in the form of pointed, informal conversations and inquiries into their work. Uribe delivered the most striking picture  of Menendez calling him from his Senate office to confirm he had delivered on Nadines promise and then crowing about it at their dinner months later, suggesting it hadnt been that heavy a lift after all.

The two Nadines

Nadine Menendez, though absent from court, has loomed over nearly all the proceedings.

The prosecution calls her the central conduit of cash, gifts  including the infamous Mercedes Benz convertible  and information traded among the defendants and other unindicted parties. But still, only that: a connector or go-between.

The defense, however, says that undersells her influence. Menendezs lawyers have accused her of hiding her financial troubles from her then-boyfriend and keeping him in the dark about key pieces of her negotiations with a rogues gallery of local business operators.

Her delayed trial is slated for August, but for now, for her husband and his lawyers, she stands as the clearest buffer between the senator and a laundry list of alleged criminality. Through weeks of testimony, and most sharply over the past four days in court, it has been Nadines text messages, with Uribe and others, driving the case.

The jury will likely need to decide which version of Nadine they believe to be closest to the truth  a reckoning that will be intertwined with their perception of her husband.

Unanswered questions

Even after nearly five weeks, many of the crucial issues at the crux of the case remain either in doubt or are being fiercely contested.

Uribe said he didnt know how the senator would have carried out a plan to try to obtain a more favorable outcome for an Uribe associate and then quash a wider investigation that threatened Uribes close friends and relatives, as prosecutors have insisted.

Testimony with insight into these matters has either focused on the before or the after. The alleged crimes themselves, the how and the when remain murky. Prosecutors will likely ask jurors to make simple, logical inferences using a combination of testimony and documentary evidence, like text messages, to come to what theyve suggested is a simple, logical conclusion.

But with the defense aggressively seeking to undermine Uribe, who had an estimable rap sheet even before getting involved with Menendez, what appeared clear-cut at first glance is now at least a little murkier.

Adam Fee, a lawyer for Menendez, drilled down hard from the beginning of his cross-examination.

Youre a very good liar, arent you?, Fee said to Uribe, before questioning nearly every aspect of the businessmans testimony and suggesting Wednesday that Uribes admitted use of Xanax, an anti-anxiety medication he was not prescribed, and alcohol made his memory  and so his testimony  wholly unreliable. (Uribe denied ever being intoxicated during meetings with Menendez.)

Where do we go from here?

With Uribes excusal, the trial quickly pivoted to co-defendant Daibes, whom prosecutors say Menendez sought to help with a pending criminal case in 2020.

He did so, the prosecution said, by trying to influence who would fill the role of US attorney for the District of New Jersey, a federal position. Philip Sellinger, who now holds the job but was a potential pick during a meeting with Menendez shortly after Joe Biden was elected president, told the court that Menendez had brought up Daibes case during their sitdown.

Sen. Menendez mentioned that Fred Daibes had a case before the US attorneys office, and Sen. Menendez believed that he was being treated  he, Mr. Daibes  was being treated unfairly, and Sen. Menendez hoped that if I became US attorney that I would look at it carefully, Sellinger testified Wednesday afternoon.

After another conversation in which Sellinger says he told Menendez he might have to recuse himself from any case involving Daibes because of conflicts pre-dating 2020, the buzz quieted. Later, Sellinger testified, the senator informed him that he would not boost his bid for the US attorney position.

He told me that he was unable to have the White House nominate me and therefore he wasnt going to recommend it, Sellinger recalled. He did not say specifically why.

After the eventual nominee, Esther Suarez, fell out of favor, Sellinger said he spoke to Menendez again in the spring of 2021. A top aide to Menendez later called to follow up on Sellingers previous chats with the senator. By December, Sellinger had been nominated by the White House, confirmed by the Senate and sworn into his post.

Menendez, he said, did not bring up Daibes again, but Sellinger was informed by the Justice Department shortly after taking office that while he could not participate in the case, his staff could continue working on it.

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Russia has moved one of its S-500 air defense systems, the most advanced it has, to the occupied Crimean Peninsula to protect the Kerch Bridge, Ukraines spy boss said Wednesday. If true, it would mark the first known time it has been fielded and would provide Russia with significant air defense capabilities, especially against ballistic missiles. The latest elements of the S-500 have appeared, in Kerch City, Lt. Gen Kyrylo Budanov, head of the Ukrainian Defense Intelligence Directorate, said in an interview with Ukrainian media. This will, in principle, be an experimental application. Kerch Bridge is always used, and as long as its there, it will be used. The Russians have deployed the latest S-500 air defense system in Crimea," said the chief of Ukraine ISIS NATO Intelligence Kirilo Budanov. pic.twitter.com/jtZcQ5dBrA SLOVENSKI MEDVED (@slovenskimedved) June 12, 2024 The War Zone could not independently verify Budanovs claim The system, which is named Prometey (Russian for Prometheus), is designed to provide theater ballistic missile defense and other long-range air defense capabilities. It was developed to eventually replace the current A-135 anti-ballistic missile system deployed in silos around Moscow. It is also intended to supplement the long-range S-400 Triumf surface-to-air missile (SAM) system, examples of which have been the frequent target of Ukrainian attacks. In April, then-Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that the systems would be fielded sometime this year, in two versions, missile defense and anti-aircraft, the official Russian news agency TASS reported. Russia first released video of an S-500 launch, conducted during a test campaign at Kapustin Yar, near Astrakhan in southern Russia in July 2021. It reportedly downed a ballistic missile surrogate target, according to the Russian Ministry of Defense at the time. You can see that in action in the video below. This followed a test of the system in 2018, where Russian authorities said it hit a target nearly 300 miles away. According to a past report from Russias state-run media outlet RIA Novosti, the S-500s maximum range is around 370 miles. Russian officials have also previously said they expected the first series production S-500 to enter service by 2025. The S-500 is a road-mobile system that includes 1010 transporter-erector-launchers based on the BAZ-69096 chassis. A screen capture from the Russian Defense Ministry video of the 2021 test showing one of the 1010 TELs used in the S-500 system. Russian MoD As we explained in our story about that 2021 video reveal, while the S-400 already provides Russian  and an expanding list of export customers  with a mobile system that can take down air-breathing targets at prodigious ranges, the S-500 promises to do similar against ballistic missile threats. Thats an important element, given Ukraines long-standing desire to destroy the Kerch Bridge. Its not a question of will we strike or wont we strike, Budanov told us last September in an exclusive interview. Were doing that regularly so we will finish it. Its just an issue of time. Ukrainian Lt. Gen. Kyrylo Budanov, commander of the Defense Intelligence Directorate, during an exclusive interview with The War Zone. Howard Altman Howard Altman The Kerch area has already come under attack by a U.S.-supplied Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) short-range ballistic missiles, according to the Ukrainian General Staff. The May 30 strike reportedly hit two Russian ferries. Those boats have been critical for transporting Russian troops and materiel heading to the front lines, especially during interruptions to bridge traffic. The Ukrainian MoD released the satellite imagery below following that attack. Ukraine released satellite imagery it says showed two Russian ships damaged by U.S. donated ATACMS. Ukraine MoD Ukraine General Staff The ATACMS, especially the longer-range variants with unitary (single high explosive) warheads that Ukraine now appears to be using, add a new wrinkle to Russias defense of Crimea. Compared to ATACMS variants with cluster munitions warheads that Ukrainian forces received initially, the new missiles present a new threat to larger and more robust structures like the Kerch Bridge. While the ferries are important targets, the bridge is the prize. Its been successfully attacked twice, once by a truck bomb in October 2022 and again by drone boats in July 2023. Deploying an S-500 system now would help provide another layer of protection, especially against potential ballistic missile strikes. The Kerch Bridge was severely damaged July 17, 2023 by a Ukrainian drone boat attack. Maxar Technologies Maxar Technologies However, it has yet to be hit by long-range fires. On Wednesday, Budanov reiterated his desire to strike Russian President Vladimir Putins prized $4 billion span linking Russia with the Crimean peninsula it occupies. The main fact that the cargo is transported by ferry, yes, it is true, he said. But they also pass over the bridge, and the staff above all. The cargo is less, but for the staff it is the main road. With Ukraine itching to destroy the Kerch Bridge, it may not be too long before we find out for sure if the S-500 system is there and how effective it really is. Contact the author: howard@thewarzone.com

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59% fall short on third grade reading test in Tennessee; here's what's next

Third graders in Tennessee's public schools only saw slight improvement in English language arts scores on this year's standardized state test, with 41% reaching proficiency, up from 40% last year.

Statewide scores on the critical section of the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program, or TCAP, test were released by the state education department Thursday.

Individual scores, released to districts on May 20, set off a fast-moving timeline to determine if third graders who fell short will be held back under the state's controversial reading law. To avoid retention, those students must either pass on a retake, meet exemption standards, win an appeal, enroll in summer school and show adequate growth, or opt into tutoring for the entirety of fourth grade. Not all students qualify for the tutoring option alone.

A third grade student works on an English language arts assignment at Dodson Elementary School on Tuesday, June 6, 2023, in Nashville, Tenn.

The release also included fourth grade TCAP English language arts scores, which showed modest gains, with roughly 46% scoring proficient. That's up from 44% last year. Fourth graders who fell short on the state reading standard last year but opted into tutoring must pass the section of the test or hit an individualized growth goal. If they do not, the reading law leaves it up to parents and school leaders to decide if those children are held back or sent to fifth grade with more tutoring and academic supports in place.

The overall numbers released Thursday do not reflect exemptions, which are up to districts to sort out and apply.

While growth from last year's scores was limited, both third and fourth graders have shown steady improvement since recent lows driven by the pandemic. Here's a look at how they scored in the year before the coronavirus pandemic and the years following. State testing was not administered in 2020 due to the pandemic.

Tennessee third-grade reading law: What to know about TCAP scores, retention and more

Third graders

2019: 63% not proficient / 37% proficient

2021: 68% not proficient / 32% proficient

2022: 64% not proficient / 36% proficient

2023: 60% not proficient / 40% proficient

2024: 59% not proficient / 41% proficient

Fourth graders

2019: 66% not proficient / 34% proficient

2021: 67% not proficient / 33% proficient

2022: 61% not proficient / 39% proficient

2023: 56% not proficient / 44% proficient

2024: 54% not proficient / 46% proficient

"Tennessee's strategic education investments have resulted in significant gains in reading for students across the state," Gov. Bill Lee said in a news release from the Tennessee Department of Education. "As we continue our work to ensure that all Tennessee students can read at grade level, we remain committed to supporting teachers and empowering families with multiple pathways to achievement so every student can thrive in their academic journey."

While 60% of third graders fell short as the state reading law rolled out for the first time last year, only 1.2% were ultimately held back. Final decisions for third graders must be made at least 10 days before school starts.

Here's a look at what options third graders who did not meet proficiency this year have.

Previously: Only 1.2% of Tennessee third graders held back in 2023 after reading law rollout

What's next for third graders

Some third graders whose scores fall short can meet exemptions that allow them 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 identify and apply exemptions and inform parents.

Third graders who scored as "approaching" proficiency must complete one of the following to move on to fourth grade:

Retest and score as "meets" or "exceeds" proficiency, with a retest window of May 22-31 (statewide retake data had not been released, as of Thursday)

Enroll in summer school, meet 90% attendance and show adequate growth

Have a free state-provided tutor for the entirety of fourth grade

Families and students crowd around the front of Goodlettsville Elementary School on the first day of school in Goodlettsville, Tenn., Tuesday, Aug. 8, 2023.

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 five 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

The state Education Department allows for appeals for third graders who fell short 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 opened May 28 and will close June 28. Parents and legal guardians can also authorize school personnel to file an appeal on their behalf.

Where can I learn more?

The education department provided a 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.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: 59% fall short on third grade reading TCAP in Tennessee
8-Year-Old Boy Shot By Father While Protecting Mother From Him, Family Says

8-Year-Old Boy Shot By Father While Protecting Mother From Him, Family Says

An 8-year-old Minnesota boy died on Sunday after shielding his mother from a shooting allegedly committed by his father, his family said.

Danair Harden, 30, allegedly shot his son, Amir Harden, on June 5, according to the Star Tribune. The boy was rushed to a local hospital in Hennepin County but days later died of his injuries.

According to the Star Tribune, Harden was in Dakota County District Court earlier that day on domestic violence charges. Hed allegedly choked Cherish Edwards, Amir Hardens mother, in their home days before the shooting.

Edwards had told police that she was concerned that Harden would assault her again, as there had been been several other domestic disputes between them years ago, according to a charging document cited by the outlet. She also told officers that Harden had a permit to carry a gun and often had one with him.

Amir Harden via GoFundMe GoFundMe

A spokesperson for the Burnsville Police Department told HuffPost in an email that authorities believe there was a family situation that led up to the incident, adding that there other people inside the home at the time.

Edwards provided more detail on the shooting in a GoFundMe.

She said she was Hardens initial target, but her son tried to wrestle the gun out of his fathers hand and was shot instead.

I screamed for him to leave and go to the neighbors, he refused & said mommy, im not leaving you here, Edwards wrote.

Harden shot himself in the head immediately after shooting his son, according to the fundraiser.

In an interview with local news station KSTP, Edwards said that Amirs four siblings were home at the time of the shooting and witnessed their brother getting shot. She opened up to the outlet about the guilt she feels as well as grief following Amirs death.

That bullet was for me and not my child, she said.

Burnsville Police responded to the shooting at around 11:48 p.m. on June 5 and found a child and an adult in critical condition, according to a press release shared with HuffPost. The Hennepin County Medical Examiners Office later identified the boy as Amir Harden.

Police said in the release that the adult suspect is being treated for injuries from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. The spokesperson told HuffPost that no arrest have been made because the suspected shooter is still in critical condition.

Amir was known for his infectious smile and kind heart, and his presence, Logan Schultz, the principal of his elementary school, told HuffPost in a statement.

Our heartfelt condolences go out to Amirs family, friends, and the entire Echo Park Elementary School community as we mourn this tragic loss together, Schultz wrote.

In an interview with KSTP, Edwards had a message for other mothers who are living with domestic violence.

I know a lot of women try to see the good, especially when you have children with that person. Or, you think youre alone or you dont have help, and you cant leave, you feel stuck, Edwards said.

I didnt want my family to be the example of what can happen. But unfortunately, we are, she added.

According to research published by the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, one in three women have experienced some form of physical violence by an intimate partner. The organization also cited the presence of a gun in a domestic violence situation as increasing the risk of a homicide by 500%.

Need help? In the U.S., call 1-800-799-SAFE (7233) for the National Domestic Violence Hotline.

Related...
The command chief of the Special Warfare Training Wing at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, Texas, is the new command chief of the 88th Air Base Wing at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

>> Nearly 2 dozen sets of twins graduate from the same middle school class

Chief Master Sgt. Tessa Fontaine assumed responsibility during a ceremony June 11 at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force.

Col. Dustin Richards, 88th Air Base Wing and installation commander, welcomed his new senior enlisted leader and wingman.

She brings a breath of knowledge to the role and has a natural talent for peer leadership that will serve her well, Richards said.

Fontaines career spans Security Forces, the National Reconnaissance Office, and Air Force Basic Military Training.

I look forward to leading this wing with a warfighting focus, enhancing our strength through support in the midst of great power competition, Fontaine said. I am committed to providing an environment where the people and mission can always find a pathway to success.

Fontaine is now the senior enlisted leader of one of the Air Forces largest air base wings with more than 5,000 military, civilian and contractor personnel. The 88th Air Base Wing command chief position was established in 2005. From 1992-2005, the position of command chief master sergeant was originally at the Aeronautical Systems Center level before coming to the Air Base Wing. The wing provides support and services to the base, which includes a major acquisition center, research and development labs, major command headquarters, airlift wing and the worlds largest military air museum.

Fontaine takes over for Chief Master Sgt. Lloyd Morales.

Richards thanked Morales for tackling the unique position of command chief.

The role of a command chief is multifaceted, a heavy burden to bear even in remote with lower personnel levels, Richards said in his remarks. At Wright-Pat, the installation command chief needs to navigate the personalities of six other command chiefs, 200 plus active duty and retired chief master sergeants, first sergeant requirements for a diverse collection of units, and the needs of more than 120 mission partners.

Morales, the wings senior enlisted leader for two years, will be the new 78th Air Base Wing command chief at Robins AFB, Georgia.
By Brendan Pierson

(Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling on Thursday keeping the abortion drug mifepristone on the market with no new restrictions ends one chapter of the legal fight over the drug, but efforts by abortion opponents to restrict its use may not be over.

In rejecting a lawsuit by anti-abortion medical groups and doctors, the Supreme Court did not rule on their claim that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) acted improperly when it eased restrictions on mifepristone, including allowing it to be prescribed by telemedicine and dispensed by mail. Instead, the court found that they had not shown that they had suffered the kind of harm that would allow them to bring a lawsuit.

The plaintiffs had argued that anti-abortion doctors were harmed by the pill's availability because they might be forced to violate their conscience by treating patients who developed complications after taking it. But the Supreme Court decided they had not offered any evidence that any doctor had actually faced that situation or was likely to in the future.

Normally, that would be the end of the case. Last November, however, U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk in Amarillo, Texas, where the lawsuit was originally filed, allowed three Republican-led states that ban abortion to join the case as plaintiffs.

Those states - Idaho, Missouri and Kansas - had asked to join the Supreme Court appeal, but the justices refused, leaving their claims pending in Kacsmaryk's lower court.

Now, they can try to go forward on their own. Abortion rights groups, including Planned Parenthood and the Center for Reproductive Rights, as well as abortion opponents, including Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America, said the fight is not over and cited the pending claims by the states.

Mifepristone is the first part of a two-drug regimen used for medication abortion, which is approved by the FDA to terminate pregnancy in the first 10 weeks. Medication abortion accounted for more than 60% of U.S. abortions last year.

The drug has drawn increasing attention as Republican-led states have banned or restricted abortion in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court's 2022 ruling reversing Roe v. Wade, its longstanding precedent that had guaranteed abortion rights nationwide.

The dwindling availability of abortion services in much of the United States has led some women to obtain abortion pills in defiance of laws in their states. Several Democratic-led states have passed expansive shield laws intended to allow doctors to prescribe and mail the drug across state lines.

Idaho, Missouri and Kansas claim that their residents had obtained mifepristone elsewhere or received it illegally in the mail, leading public hospitals to incur costs dealing with complications of medication abortions.

That theory of standing is also untested, but Kacsmaryk has already shown that he is open to it by allowing the states to join the case in the first place. President Joe Biden's administration has argued that the claim to legal standing made by the states, like the claim made by the original plaintiffs, is based on unsupported hypotheticals.

'A CLOSE LINK'

David Cohen, a professor at Drexel University's Kline School of Law in Philadelphia, said the argument advanced by the states for standing raised "similar concerns" to those cited by the Supreme Court in Thursday's ruling.

"They are also claiming a theory that does not have a close link in terms of causation" between the FDA's actions and any potential injury, Cohen said.

James Blumstein, a law professor at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, said he agreed that the claim by the states that they face imminent harm as a result of mifepristone's availability is "iffy."

It is not clear, Blumstein added, that any potential harms to the states were "imminent" enough to create standing, since these also seemed to rely on a series of hypothetical events.

Kacsmaryk, a former conservative Christian activist, has proven broadly sympathetic to abortion foes, likely the reason they chose to sue in his court. In his original ruling in the case, the judge went further than restoring old restrictions on mifepristone, instead suspending its approval, which the FDA had issued in 2000, altogether.

On appeal, the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that the lawsuit was too late to challenge that decades-old approval, and the Supreme Court declined to review that finding, meaning that the original approval is likely safe. But if Kacsmaryk lets the states go forward, he would be free to impose the later restrictions once again.

That would trigger another round of appeals to the 5th Circuit and possibly the Supreme Court, dragging out the uncertainty and confusion around the pill for months or years.

(Reporting by Brendan Pierson in New York; Editing by Will Dunham and Alexia Garamfalvi)
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET)  A Colorado man accused of abducting an 11-year-old Bakersfield girl had a preliminary hearing postponed Thursday to late August.

Joshua Michael Stehle is due back in court Aug. 26. His attorney, Mark Anthony Raimondo, said there has been no plea offer.

Kern County Fair announces first acts for 2024 concerts

Stehle, 29, has pleaded not guilty to charges of kidnapping, contacting a minor to commit a sex act and possession of child pornography, among other offenses. Hes being held without bail.

On March 17, the girls family reported her missing around 5:30 a.m., telling authorities theyd last seen her at about 2 a.m. Deputies gathered evidence pointing to Stehle as the suspect, pinged his cellphone and alerted authorities in Utah after learning the device was headed there on Interstate 70, according to court filings.

Stehles pickup was stopped near Salina, Utah, with him and the girl inside, the filing says. He was arrested and extradited to Kern County.

Never miss a story: Make KGET.com your homepage

Its believed he was taking the girl to Colorado. The two met online.

Stehle gave the girl a promise ring, she told investigators, and told her they were a couple and going to get married. She said they engaged in sexual contact after pulling over somewhere in Utah.

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 KGET 17.
The American Civil Liberties Union sued the Biden administration on Wednesday after the White House said it would effectively shut out asylum seekers who attempt to cross the countrys southern border from Mexico.

President Joe Biden unveiled the plans earlier this month, after chastising Republicans for tanking a bipartisan border deal in February. The new executive action prohibits migrants along the border from being granted asylum when the system is overwhelmed, as defined by the White House under the new rules.

The White House had been working on the move for months, as immigration policy is sure to play a central role in the November election.

The ACLU, which sued alongside other civil rights groups, compared Bidens actions to those of his predecessor, former President Donald Trump, which were ultimately blocked in federal court.

We were left with no alternative but to sue, Lee Gelernt, the deputy director of the ACLUs Immigrants Rights Project, said in a statement. The administration lacks unilateral authority to override Congress and bar asylum based on how one enters the country, a point the courts made crystal clear when the Trump administration unsuccessfully tried a near-identical ban.

BREAKING: We're suing the Biden administration over executive actions that severely restrict asylum and put thousands of lives at risk.



These actions follow the approach of the Trump administrations previous asylum entry ban, which we successfully challenged in court.  ACLU (@ACLU) June 12, 2024

The White House rejected those assertions in a statement on Wednesday night, reiterating that the president had no choice after the GOP stymied efforts to up border security and funding.

The Biden-Harris administration took these actions, within its authorities, because border encounters remain too high and after Congressional Republicans twice voted against a historic bipartisan border security agreement that would have provided critical resources, statutory changes and additional personnel to the border, a White House spokesperson said in a statement. The administration will continue to enforce our immigration laws  those without a legal basis to remain in the United States will be removed.

The new rules, which went into effect last week, limit the processing of new asylum applicants as soon as the number of average migrant encounters at the southern border tops 2,500 a day. At the time of the order, that figure was much higher, at about 4,000 a day, according to the Associated Press. At times, including last December, there were more than 10,000 encounters each day.

The ACLU said in its suit Wednesday the country had long sheltered refugees seeking a haven from persecution. FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP via Getty Images

The temporary bans can only be lifted two weeks after average numbers of migrant encounters drop below 1,500 a day.

As The New York Times notes, many people intentionally cross the border and then turn themselves in to border agents to begin the asylum process. Doing so allows them to remain in the U.S. for years while they await their court appearances  but under Bidens executive action, migrants can be returned to Mexico or their home countries in a matter of days or hours, and would-be asylum seekers need to prove they have reason to fear being tortured if theyre sent back.

The ACLU said in its suit Wednesday the country had long sheltered refugees seeking a haven from persecution.

While Congress has placed some limitations on the right to seek asylum over the years, it has never permitted the Executive Branch to categorically ban asylum based on where a noncitizen enters the country, the group wrote in the lawsuit.

Related...
ACLU sues Biden over border executive order that allows him to turn back migrants

A coalition of civil rights groups is suing President Joe Bidens administration to block an executive order that aims to ban people seeking asylum from crossing the US-Mexico border.

The ACLU and five other immigrants rights groups filed a federal lawsuit in Washington, DC, Wednesday on behalf of two Texas-based groups  Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center and the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services  after the president signed the order earlier this month.

The lawsuit argues the order creates a narrow path to asylum that flies in the face of federal law and mirrors a similar illegal order under former President Donald Trump that was rejected by the courts.

We were left with no alternative but to sue, Lee Gelernt, deputy director of the ACLUs Immigrants Rights Project, said in a statement.

The administration lacks unilateral authority to override Congress and bar asylum based on how one enters the country, a point the courts made crystal clear when the Trump administration unsuccessfully tried a near-identical ban, he added.

US border patrol agents lead a group of migrants seeking asylum towards a van to be transported and processed near Dulzura, California on June 5. Civil rights groups sued the Biden administration on June 12 to block an executive order that significantly limits asylum claims. (AP)

Bidens plan will effectively shut down asylum claims once the number of daily border encounters reaches 2,500 at ports of entry, and will only reopen once those daily encounters decline to 1,500. It remains unclear whether those terms have kicked in since the order was put in place earlier this month.

Critics have warned that such an action upends international guarantees that protect asylum rights for people on US soil, and will endanger the lives of thousands of people fleeing violence, instability and corruption below the southern border.

Around the world, people are fleeing persecution and torture at higher rates than ever before, according to National Immigrant Justice Center litigation director Keren Zwick.

Its shameful that the US government has chosen to respond by shutting out access to asylum to those who come to our border in need.

The lawsuit names six federal agencies and six officials as defendants, including US Attorney General Merrick Garland and Homeland Security Director Alejandro Mayorkas.

President Joe Biden delivers remarks on an executive order limiting asylum in the East Room of the White House on June 4. (Getty Images)

As The Independent previously reported, Bidens order invokes Section 212(f) of the 1952 Immigration and Nationality Act, which allows the president to suspend immigration for anyone determined to be detrimental to the interests of the United States  the same authority that Trump used to unilaterally ban immigrants from majority-Muslim countries, which was later struck down in court.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the United Nations Refugee Convention have affirmed asylum rights for people fleeing persecution and violence.

In the US, a person granted asylum is legally allowed to remain in the country without fear of deportation, and qualifies for legal work with potential pathways to permanent legal status. Those claims can only be made at the US border or within the US.

The Refugee Act of 1980 enshrined that commitment in law, and the executive officer has never been allowed to categorically ban asylum based on where a noncitizen enters the country, according to the lawsuit.

Bidens order also aims to speed migrants through fast-tracked deportation proceedings, which critics fear will expose already vulnerable people who are seeking protection into volatile and violent circumstances on the southern border.

That screening policy will systematically lead to the refoulement of people seeking protection from persecution, torture, and death, according to the lawsuit.
WARMINSTER, PA - MARCH 24: First graders at Longstreth Elementary School pledge allegiance to the flag March 24, 2004 in Warminster, Pennsylvania. An atheist parent, Michael Newdow, of Sacramento, California is scheduled to be heard by the Supreme Court today to defend his position that the "Under God" in the Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional. If the Supreme Court upholds and expands their original ruling, which affected western states, all U.S. children will be affected. (Photo by William Thomas Cain/Getty Images)

Six West Virginia schools were notified Thursday that policies in their student handbooks may violate students First Amendment rights by requiring them to participate in certain activities like standing for flag-raising ceremonies and the Pledge of Allegiance and removing hats for the national anthem, among other things.

The notice  which was sent as a letter to the schools  came from the West Virginia arm of the American Civil Liberties Union on the 81st anniversary of the landmark legal case West Virginia State Board of Education v. Barnette. In 1949, The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in that case that students cannot be forced or compelled to salute a flag or recite the Pledge in schools. Policies that direct otherwise, according to the case, are a clear violation of the students freedom of speech.

The Constitution affords protection for Americans to freely express our beliefs and ideas. That protection expands beyond written and spoken word; it extends to symbolic speech as well, ACLU-WV Legal Director Aubrey Sparks wrote in the letter. One powerful way that people can express themselves is by choosing to remain silent when everyone else is agreeing, or remaining sitting when everyone else stands. Barnette codified that right. Students still have that right in schools today.

Staff from the ACLU, according to a news release, reviewed student handbooks for all schools in the state to ensure their policies were compliant with the rulings in Barnette.

Schools that received the letters due to having policies in violation of the law are: Calhoun Middle/High School, Riverside High School in Kanawha County, Summers County Comprehensive High School, Richwood High School in Nicholas County, Sissonville Middle School in Kanawha County and John Adams Middle School, also in Kanawha County.

The policies in the student handbook vary school by school.

Riverside High, for example, directs that students must rise and remove hats during the national anthem and flag ceremonies held during extracurricular activities.

At Sissonville and John Adams middle schools, the handbooks state that students must stand for the Pledge of Allegiance during class. If they dont recite the Pledge, they must remain silent.

The letters sent Thursday urge leaders at the listed schools to review their policies with consideration of the Barnette ruling and amend them if needed to ensure that they meet constitutional obligations.

Schools are often the first places that students learn about their civic obligations, their constitutional rights, and the importance of being brave enough to engage in speech thats not always popular, Sparks wrote in the letter. The First Amendment exists to safeguard the diversity of thought and expression, which are essential components of a thriving democratic society. Protecting free speech in public schools is paramount, something that was determined by the Supreme Court in West Virginia v. Barnette eighty-one years ago.

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Activists who want fines for backyard dog breeders will tell Fresno City Council

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE)  Fresno City Council members, along with local animal activists, are asking for the communitys support in a call to action to fine backyard dog breeders at Thursdays city council meeting.

City councilmembers Annalisa Perea and Garry Bredefeld are encouraging the community to come out and speak at the city council meeting regarding the temporary moratorium on the issuance of unaltered dog licenses and the addition of new fines for violators.

Fresno protesters want fines for backyard dog breeders

According to the Fresno City website, the community is experiencing a crisis due to the overcrowding of dogs in the citys shelter.

The proposed resolution is for the city to not issue any new unaltered dog licenses until the three-month moving average of the daily inventory count of all the dogs at the Animal Center is equal to or less than 75% of the Animal Centers total dog kennel capacity.

In addition, the resolution proposes that the city fine any dog owners whose animal has been either bred, sold, or transferred without an unaltered dog license to be subject to an immediate $500 administrative fine for the first violation, $750 for the second, and $1,000 for each additional violation.

The city council meeting is set to take place at the Fresno City Hall on Thursday, June 13 at 9 a.m.

Officials encourage those who would like to provide a comment over Zoom to please register here. For more information on the meeting, view here.

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Amanda Taylor, a patient advocate, speaks at the Patients' Coalition for Medical Cannabis press conference on June 12 in Montgomery. Taylor said she has seven conditions that could be treated by medical cannabis. (Alander Rocha/Alabama Reflector)

Medical cannabis supporters advocated for making medical cannabis, which is stalled due to litigation, available in Alabama.

The Patients Coalition for Medical Cannabis, a new organization advocating for possible patients, hosted speakers Wednesday in Montgomery to discuss potential benefits for patients, setbacks in Alabama and other states that have active medical cannabis programs.

Let me ask you this question: Who are these lawsuits serving? Theyre not serving the patients. Ive been suffering for three years, said Amanda Taylor, an advocate for medical cannabis and a former medical cannabis patient in Arizona. She said she has seven conditions, including multiple sclerosis, that could be treated with medical cannabis.

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Alabama Legislature approved the medical marijuana program in 2021, but litigation over licenses has ground the process to a halt.

The Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission (AMCC) began accepting applications in late 2022. The AMCC initially issued licenses in June but voided them due to scoring inconsistencies, later rescinding awards again in August amid a lawsuit over Open Meetings Act violations. The AMCC issued new licensing rules in October. The commission issued licenses a third time in December, but litigation halted the licensing process again in January for dispensaries and integrated facilities.

Integrated facilities  multimillion dollar operations that can grow, process and sell medical cannabis  have been at the center of the ongoing litigation regarding licenses.

A state official speaks to an advocate at an event

Dr. Marshall Walker, a pain management physician in Mobile, said that he has several treatments for pain, but he needs medical cannabis to fill the gaps in pain treatment.

He said that in his own pain practice, hes seen patients who know that certain treatments could cause harm, but they have no other option unless the lawsuits end.

All this requires is for our law to actually work for us, and weve already used the democratic process. We have an artificial injunction against the democratic process working and that ought to infuriate every voter in Alabama, Walker said.

When the product is available, certified patients can use medical cannabis for 15 conditions, including cancer, chronic pain, depression, and Parkinsons Disease. Patients must apply for a card to obtain it from licensed dispensers.

The law bans smoking or consuming cannabis in food. It will be available in tablets, capsules, gummies, oils, gels, creams, suppositories, transdermal patches, and inhalable forms. Only peach-flavored gummies are allowed.

Will Somerville, an attorney representing Alabama Always, one of the firms that sued AMCC, said that they only asked the commission to follow the law, alleging the commission did not properly follow licensing procedure.

Why the commission has chosen to do things the way they have  with total disregard for the statute  is beyond me. We should do this the right way  how the Legislature intended it to be done. We look forward to the courts compelling the AMCC to do the right thing, the right way, Somerville said in a statement.

Dr. Corey Hebert, a professor of pediatrics at the Louisiana State University Health Science Center, and Dr. Kirk Kinard, a pain management doctor in the Mississippi State Board of Medical Licensure also advocated to make medical cannabis available in Alabama at the press conference, sharing their experience in treating patients.

Hebert said he treated a baby with infantile spasm, a type of seizure, whos condition only improved after being treated with medical cannabis.

Its inappropriate when your state is only holding this back because of the people that want to be involved in it. But it has nothing to do with the science. It has nothing to do with the law. It has nothing to do with that, Hebert said.

Kinard said after the event that Alabama has had more than 30 states to learn from, and that Alabama is not really stepping out on the edge of the cliff with this.

Ive got thousands of patients reporting to me positives, very few negatives. I havent gotten, in 20,000 patient certifications  Ive gotten zero calls from an emergency physician reporting that I have one of your certified patients in the ER, Kinard said.

Taylor said after the event that with pharmaceuticals, there are often side effects that she doesnt get from medical cannabis. She said that while theyre helping one thing, theyre pulling something else.

Theres nobody in the hospital because of an overdose on cannabis, none of those things. I can use cannabis without side effects. I can function, and I can actually be more productive in life, Taylor said.

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A Lewiston man who is a registered sex offender was handed a $1 million bond after receiving more charges for alleged incidents involving minor girls.

Jesse E. Burnett, 40, of Lewiston, was charged with felony sexual abuse of a child under 16 years of age that allegedly took place between April 15 and May 8.

The case involved a 10-year-old girl whom Burnett allegedly sent photos of him masturbating.

Another charge is for felony sexual exploitation of a child that also took place between April 15 and May 8, when Burnett allegedly used a child for sexually exploitative material, according to court documents.

There was also a notice of intent to seek the mandatory minimum sentence of 15 years, and Burnett was given a persistent violator enhancement because he has two previous convictions in Latah County.

That means Burnett could face a minimum sentence of 15 years to a maximum of life in prison, according to court documents.

The maximum penalty for sexual abuse of a child is 25 years as well as a $50,000 fine. The maximum penalty for sexual exploitation of a child is 30 years in prison as well as a $50,000 fine.

Burnett has a criminal history from Latah County involving two separate cases.

He was charged with lewd conduct with a child under 16 on Dec. 21, 2021, and four counts of sexually exploitative material Feb. 17, 2022. In the latter case, he ended up pleading guilty to one count and the other three counts were dismissed, according to court documents.

He was sentenced in both cases Feb. 3, 2023, by Latah County District Judge John Judge.

Burnett was to serve a minimum of 5-20 years in prison and was given retained jurisdiction for 365 days to receive treatment for both cases, according to court documents.

Burnett was given an amended sentence for both cases Oct. 25, 2023, by Judge in which the 5-20-year sentence was suspended and Burnett was given credit for serving 586 days and given 20 years of probation.

Judge ordered that he complete treatment, be subject to polygraphs and register as a sex offender. In both cases he also received a probation violation that was filed Tuesday, according to court documents.

Burnett made his initial Zoom appearance on the new case from Nez Perce County on Wednesday before Magistrate Judge Victoria Olds. County Chief Deputy Prosecutor April Smith asked that bail be set at $1 million.

I know that is a high bond, but that is based on the defendants criminal history, Smith said.

Smith outlined that Burnett was on felony probation for a case in which the victim was 12 years old, and he is now allegedly targeting girls 10-15 years old.

Burnett was sentenced on a rider and was released in October, but in December he allegedly began grooming girls again, providing them with photos or asking for photos. Smith said Burnett is a risk to all juvenile girls, and allegedly grooms them to provide sexual images and other sexual abuses.

Smith also cited the high penalties in the case could cause Burnett to skip court hearings and that pretrial conditions wouldnt prevent him from creating more victims considering hes already on felony probation.

Burnetts attorney for his initial appearance, Payton Lawrence, asked that Burnett be given a reasonable bond.

Olds noted the ages of the victims in his Latah and Nez Perce county cases and that treatment Burnett received during his rider was ineffective.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (WCIA)  More than 200 people packed Union Baptist Church Monday to express support for a monument commemorating a dark point in the citys history.

The U.S. Department of the Interior hosted a public meeting to hear from people in the community about making the 1908 Springfield Race Riot Site a national monument.

The national monument tells a story, and it tells a story about our history, American history, and its extremely important to tell the story of American history, Ken Page, the president of the Springfield ACLU, said. It was tragic, but it should be told and this national monument helps tell that story.

In 1908, two black men accused of crimes were being held in a jail in Springfield. A white mob demanded their release.

Instead, they were moved to a jail in Bloomington. When the mob learned of that, they became violent. Seventeen people died and black owned homes and businesses were destroyed  many burned to the ground.

Springfield hosting week full of Juneteenth celebrations

It is our duty as a community to come together to plan for future generations, so they, along with us, can properly pay our respects and honor those lost during the 1908 Riot, Springfield Mayor Misty Buscher said during the meeting.

Those advocating for a monument say whether the Race Riot site becomes a national monument depends on President Biden signing the Antiquities Act, a federal law passed over 100 years ago that protects cultural and natural resources on federal lands that are historically or scientifically significant. The effort is getting his administrations attention in the Department of the Interior.

Theres a lot of ways that you can learn history, you can read it in books and you can go to museums, Shannon Estenoz, the assistant secretary of the Interior for Fish and Wildlife and Parks, said during the meeting. But the other way you can learn history is to stand where it happened, and thats what the park service does is it puts you in the place where it happened.

History Cooks returns to History Comes Alive in Springfield

The NAACP supports getting a monument built in Springfield. The 1908 Race Riot led to the formation of the organization.

This site is actually going to send a message that we are actually moving to a place of inclusion and that this site could potentially be used for green space to ensure that black folks have a place where they can feel comfortable, Abre Conner, the director for the Center for Environmental and Climate Justice for the national NAACP, said.

Congresswoman Nikki Budzinski, Congressman Darin LaHood, and Sens. Dick Durbin and Tammy Duckworth have been pushing legislation in Congress to make the 1908 Race Riot site a national monument. Budzinski sent a letter to Biden in December asking him to make that happen through the Antiquities Act.

Im also grateful to each and every member of our community who has come together as we demonstrate the enthusiasm and support behind making this longtime goal a reality for Springfield, Budzinski said in a statement after the meeting. Its because of their advocacy and the collaboration of local leaders that weve gained the attention of the White House in this important effort.

Last June, the National Park Service determined that the site met the eligibility criteria to be included in the National Park System.

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Student Alexandra Bui, left, of Temple, Texas, explains her project entitled "Turning The Page: The Sears Catalog's Impact On African Americans" to judges Sean Brennan, center, Kris Ice, second from right, and Traci Manning on Tuesday, June 11, 2024 in College Park, Md.. Bui's was one of the many exhibits on display for the National History Day event at the University of Maryland. (AP Photo/John McDonnell)

COLLEGE PARK, Md. (AP)  It wasn't your typical trifold poster board display. High school freshman Alexandra Bui constructed a jumbo mail-order catalog replica from wooden sheets  an inventive, oversized way to convey her research on the Sears catalog's impact on getting consumer goods to Black shoppers who faced in-store discrimination in the Jim Crow South.

Bui, of Temple, Texas, is one of half a million young scholars taking part in this year's National History Day, a Maryland-based nonprofit's annual campaign that encourages students to take ownership of their history educations and rigorously examine the past. As the 2024 edition marks 50 years of championing evidence-based argumentation, participants say they find the work more relevant than ever.

With students encountering toxic falsehoods online and some Republican-led states like Florida looking to limit historical analysis in the classroom, the competition wants to empower middle and high school students to dive deeper into topics of their own choosing.

We can do our research. We can talk to experts. And we can figure out the truth, Bui told The Associated Press.

This years theme of Turning Points in History asked students to explore ideas or events that sparked change. More than 2,800 finalists reached the national competition after months spent visiting libraries and poring over primary sources. Contestants lined University of Maryland hallways this week as they anxiously waited to present trifold exhibits, documentaries or even theatrical performances. They rehearsed lines or chatted with their peers, sometimes carrying props around campus and adjusting period-appropriate costumes. National winners will be announced Thursday, though all the students had already triumphed in several competitions just to get there.

National History Day was founded to invigorate history curricula beyond the boring textbook that students felt had no meaning, according to executive director Cathy Gorn. She cast the mission nowadays as one that strengthens democracy. A strong social studies education is an antidote to conspiracy theories and necessary for developing engaged citizens, she said.

Gorn finds the process especially effective today when many children want to understand the background for current events. The nonprofit does not promote a particular agenda, she emphasized, but instead guides students through their own inquiries. It equips teachers with classroom resources for navigating the Library of Congress, conducting oral histories and annotating bibliographies, among other skills.

We are not telling the kids how to interpret the past or what to interpret of the past, but how to go about creating an interpretation and an argument based on the real research, Gorn told AP.

In learning that, they learn the importance of historical perspective," Gorn added. "And they learn, hopefully, to understand the past to be part of the future.

National History Day also launched a $15 million capital campaign, though Gorn said it is difficult raise funds for history education.

The humanities have historically gone underfunded in K-12 public education. But theres a growing recognition that high school graduates today must sort through a much more complex information environment than previous generations, according to David Knight, a professor of education finance and policy at the University of Washington. The education policy realm is beginning to understand the increased need, for example, to educate young people about the difference between primary and secondary evidence.

Judges said the projects jumpstart a lifelong pursuit of knowledge that serves all students regardless of their future endeavors. One of the most important lessons is to follow the rabbit hole, according to Robyn Gausman-Burnett, a University of Maryland geographical sciences doctoral student. She said National History Day trains students to never stop digging for that next supporting piece of evidence," or the other half of the story that isn't easily found on the Google search.

Nowadays on the internet, theres a lot of false information," said Macy Huish, a high schooler from Logan, Utah. "So being able to pick out the little, golden nuggets is very important.

You might get resources that contradict with your thesis, said Hannah Jang, a student at an international school in South Korea. Thats also part of the process. You got to have the ability to accept it. And you can also study the reason behind it.

Many students interviewed by AP said their projects were born out of personal experiences. Three middle schoolers who live near Alabama State University researched a nearly thirty yearslong federal court case that successfully challenged funding disparities between historically Black schools and predominantly white ones in their home state.

The legal battle is part of their history, they said, and they wanted to learn more about their history.

Acclaimed documentary filmmaker Ken Burns tasked finalists with defending American democracy. During a Q&A with students, Burns said they must say no to authoritarians who wish to revert the public back into a superstitious peasantry. Burns told AP that he felt optimistic to see so many students questioning and diving deep into archives and not accepting the restrictions or the limitations.

Were just trying to tell complicated stories about the United States, he said. It can only bode well in the age-old struggle between those who want to limit these things and those of us who think that we are liberated by the truth.

___

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The question of enhancing Ukraine's air defence with Patriot systems or similar weapons will be discussed at the upcoming meeting of the Ukraine Defence Contact Group (also known as the Ramstein format), which will be held in person on 13 June in Brussels.

Source: Deputy Pentagon Press Secretary Sabrina Singh during a briefing

Details: A reporter asked Singh when the US expected to deliver the new Patriot system to Ukraine and what impact the Pentagon believed this would have on the war.

Quote: "In terms of your first question on Ukraine and air defences, I've seen some of the reporting out there on the Patriot. I don't have any announcements to make on a Patriot battery today."

"We know air defences are a priority for Ukraine, it's something that they need, whether it be in the Patriot or other forms. And so I'm sure that's going to be a topic of discussion tomorrow at the UDCG [Ukraine Defence Contact Group]."

Details: Singh added that US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin has set off for Brussels to participate in the 23rd Ramstein format meeting on 13 June and in the NATO defence ministers meeting on 14 June.

Background: On 12 June, The New York Times reported that President Joe Biden had decided to send a second US Patriot air defence system to Ukraine following a series of meetings and debates.

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ALABAMA (WDHN)  A 15-year-old girl from Alabama has been moved to another hospital in hopes of having prosthetics fitted following a bull shark attack while in Florida panhandle waters.

Lulu Gribbin was one of three women attacked by a bull shark in Walton County waters on Friday. While one of the victims, a friend of Lulus, 17-year-old McCray Faust, walked away with relatively minor injuries, a 45-year-old woman had severe injuries and lost her left hand, and Lulus attack resulted in the loss of her left hand and leg.

Officials on the coast believe the same bull shark attacked the women aound 4 miles apart.

Since the attack, Lulus mother, Ann Blair Gribbin, has given daily updates on her daughters condition.

According to Gribbons, on Wednesday, June 13, six days after the attack, Lulu was transported from Ascension Sacred Heart Hospital in Pensacola to another unnamed hospital via AirMed Medical Transport Jet.

Gribbons said the decision was made to move Lulu after speaking with a specialist who is a pioneer in multi-extremity amputees in hopes to have her daughter fitted for prosthetics.

We made the decision, not lightly, to have the remainder of her surgeries and re-hab done in another hospital setting, said Gribbons. I prayed for God to help Joe (Lulus father) and I make the best decision for Lulu regarding her care, and we believe this will give Lulu the best opportunity to live a normal life as possible with two prosthetics. Medically this is the best option for Lulu and is another step in this journey and road to healing.

The teen underwent one of her many surgeries on Sunday, where doctors cleaned out the wounds and flushed out any bacteria. Surgeons also began the process of closing the amputations.

RELATED: Alabama shark attack victim speaks to beach doctors after life-saving emergency surgery

In the update, Gribbons spoke about the heartwarming send-off that the hospital staff at Sacred Heart gave Lulu.

Leaving her hospital room on a stretcher, we wheeled her out into the hallway of the PICU and through the double doors. Once outside of the double doors, the halls were lined on either side for what seemed like an eternity with all the nurses and doctors who helped save Lulu, those who have been with her ever since, and those just from other parts of the hospital, recalled Gribbons. They were cheering, playing music, and spraying silly string. They gave Lulu some sully string so she could spray it too. It was an amazing feeling and send-off for our girl.

However, before departing, Lulu got one final surprise at Sacred Heart: a visit from a furry four-legged friend.

The child support therapist came in today (Wednesday) with a surprise. She came in with an emotional support dog named Sherlock. Sherlock is a golden doodle but way more golden than a doodle. The only doodle we could tell was some slight curly hair on the inside of his ears. Sherlock came onto Lulus bed and lay with her.

Gribbons wrote that Lulu and Ellie, Lulus twin sister, are dog lovers and cuddled on the hospital bed with Sherlock before leaving for the transport jet.

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Indianapolis (AP)  Southern Baptist delegates expressed alarm Wednesday over the way in vitro fertilization is routinely being practiced, approving a resolution lamenting that the creation of surplus frozen embryos often results in destruction of embryonic human life.

They urged members to carefully weigh the ethical implications of the technology while also expressing sympathy with couples who experience the searing pain of infertility.

The resolution  approved near the end of the Southern Baptist Conventions two-day annual meeting  affirms that embryos are human beings from the moment of fertilization, whether in the womb or generated in the laboratory via IVF. Thats the same position held by the Alabama Supreme Court in ruling that frozen embryos have the full rights of people.

In the wake of that decision, Alabama passed a law shielding IVF providers from prosecution and lawsuits  reflecting that even in a state with strong anti-abortion sentiment, there is support for a technology used by many couples facing infertility.

The resolution also urged couples to adopt surplus frozen embryos that would otherwise be destroyed.

Did the resolution condemn IVF or call for its banning?

Not in a blanket way. What it did was denounce the routine practice of creating multiple embryos, frozen for potential use but often with surplus embryos destroyed. It also denounced the use of embryos for experiments, as well as dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting, based on notions of genetic fitness and parental preferences.

Kristen Ferguson, chair of the committee on resolutions, said after the vote that the resolution amounts to the SBCs first foray into a new ethnical frontier but rooted in their longstanding belief in the sanctity of the human embryo.

IVF is not respecting the sanctity of the human embryo  in the way it is routinely practiced, she said. Right now were trying to open the conversation, remind Southern Baptists of our long-held beliefs of the sanctity of human life and allow them to begin to think through the ethical implications.

She anticipated there may be resolutions with much stronger language and more specific applications in the future, such as how these issues relate to the medical community, she said.

But we are not speaking to that at this time, because Southern Baptists arent ready to speak to that yet, she said. They wanted to say an affirmation of the human embryo and that it has implications for IVF. 

Why is this an important issue for Southern Baptists?

Ever since the nations largest Protestant body took a conservative turn in the 1980s, it has made opposing abortion a top priority. With the overturning of the Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion, new issues have reached the forefront, including IVF.

This resolution makes clear that Southern Baptists belief that life begins at conception extends to embryos generated via IVF.

Do Southern Baptists and other conservative evangelicals have consensus on IVF?

No. On the convention floor, some delegates gave impassioned testimony to how IVF enabled couples to have long-sought children. Others said that despite that laudable goal, the practice is ethically unacceptable.

Some believe its ethical to use IVF to create only the number of embryos intended for implantation.

Albert Mohler, a prominent SBC seminary president and conservative activist, made a hardline denunciation of IVF at a sideline event before the SBC meeting on Monday, calling IVF a commodification of the embryo that assaults human dignity. He also criticized it for enabling people to have children outside of heterosexual marriage.

Did the resolution call for a government ban on IVF?

No. It calls for government to restrain actions inconsistent with the dignity of  frozen embryonic human beings. But it doesnt prescribe specific measures.

I think especially after the Alabama Supreme Court decision, theres been a rush at state level as well as federal level to protect IVF or to even expand IVF access, often with very little thought to some of the other realities at stake, said Jason Thacker, a Southern Baptist ethicist who advised the resolutions committee.

Were not naive enough to say that we can just ban this technology, full stop, he said. While that would be the goal, because thats consistent with dignity of the human embryo in many ways, he said he recognized that there are others who believe there are ethical ways to apply IVF technology.

Whats essential, he said, is laws that respect embryos human dignity.

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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN)  An alleged drug dealer is facing multiple charges after Metro Nashville police said he supplied drugs to a woman who ended up overdosing on fentanyl.

Donald Frank Swagler, 53, was arrested and booked into the Davidson County jail on Wednesday, June 12. Court records show he has been indicted by a grand jury on multiple charges related to the womans death on June 1, 2023.

CRIME TRACKER | Read the latest crime news from Middle Tennessee

Donald Swagler Jr. (Courtesy: Metro Nashville Police Department)

The charges against him include second-degree murder and four counts of delivery of a schedule 2 controlled substance. According to the indictment, Swagler is believed to have delivered fentanyl to people on multiple occasions between May 16 and May 28.

Authorities said the womans death was the direct result of the unlawful, intentional, knowing, or reckless distribution, delivery, or dispensation of fentanyl or carfentanil.

 Read todays top stories on wkrn.com

As of Thursday, June 13, Swagler was still behind bars with a $500,000 bond.

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The American Medical Association House of Delegates meeting in Chicago Thursday voted 345-171 to support decriminalization of drug use and possession. Photo courtesy of AMA

June 13 (UPI) -- The American Medical Association's House of Delegates Thursday voted 345-171 to decriminalize drug personal use and possession.

"The war on drugs is quite reminiscent of the phrase, 'The beatings will continue until morale improves,'" said AMA Connecticut delegate Ryan Englander. "We have tried for decades to criminalize our way out of a substance use crisis in this country, and it has not worked."

Englander said Portugal's experience of decriminalization allowed the country to get people into treatment and drug use mortality dropped.

Delegates passed the drug decrimninalization proposal in the face of opposition from the AMA's Board of Trustees. The board said "it is premature to recommend decriminalizing drug possession offenses as a public health benefit in the absence of evidence demonstrating public health benefits."

AMA President-elect Bobby Mukkamala spoek for the board Wesnesday when he said AMA policy must reflect the evidence "and currently, the evidence does not support broad decriminalization."

Language in the AMA's report on drug decriminalization was revised to call for "elimination of criminal penalties for drug possession for personal use as part of a larger set of related public health and legal reforms designed to improve carefully selected outcomes."

That call for decriminalization language revision was proposed by Stephen Taylor of the American Society of Addiction Medicine.

An AMA reference committee report said the National Center for Drug Abuse Statistics reports that 1.6 million Americans are arrested each year for drug-related offenses. A 2022 Pew report found 87% of arrests were for drug possession.

The Pew report said, "While use and dependence rates between groups vary by 1-2%, Black people are far more likely to be arrested and incarcerated. These disparities have existed for decades."

The AMA report said decriminalization proponents cite several benefits of no longer criminalizing drug use and possession. Among them are saving money on incarceration, focusing resources on treatment and social services and reducing the stigma of drug use and having a substance abuse disorder.

The report also noted that the AMA supports "automatic expungement, sealing, and similar efforts regarding an arrest or conviction for a cannabis-related offense for use or possession that would be legal or decriminalized under subsequent state legalization or decriminalization of adult use or medicinal cannabis."
American womanhood is not what it used to be  understanding the backlash to Dobbs v. Jackson

Experts have said that a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the use of mifepristone, a key abortion medication, could have implications for drug approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (Getty Images)

Experts have said that a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on the use of mifepristone, a key abortion medication, could have implications for drug approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (Getty Images)

As someone who over the past 50 years has thought about and written many books and articles on U.S. feminism, I should have been less surprised by the strong electoral backlash to the Supreme Courts 2022 Dobbs V. Jackson Womens Health Organization ruling, a judgment that overturned the 1973 Roe V. Wade decree and thus 50 years of national abortion rights.

True, I expected massive street demonstrations and marches after Dobbs was announced, the kind of political actions that abortion-rights supporters used in the years before Roe was enacted  and in the years since, as abortion rights continued to be challenged.

But surprising to me, and to many others, was the nature of the backlash. People were taking their outrage not only to the streets but to the ballot box as well.

In August 2022, for example, 60% of voters in Kansas easily defeated a proposed state constitutional amendment that would have taken away abortion rights in Kansas.

Abortion rights also motivated many existing and new Democratic voters to turn out during the 2022 midterm elections, causing Republicans to fare worse than expected.

Similar favorable outcomes for Democrats also occurred in special elections in places such as Virginia and Ohio in 2023.

And now, heading into the presidential election in November, abortion rights continues to command a central spotlight in American politics.

Why have abortion rights so recently come to occupy such a center stage in our state and national elections? I believe that over the past few decades, there have been major shifts in how women live, view themselves and are viewed by others. As long as Roe was in place, these shifts could coexist with the abortion rights Roe provided. When Roe was overturned, the clash between these newer versions of womanhood and the elimination of such rights led to major outrage at the ballot box.

Feminism in the 60s

The story begins in the 1960s, when feminism became a loud presence on the national political stage. Women founded the National Organization for Women, or NOW, in 1966.

NOW initially came together over anger that the national Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, tasked with equalizing opportunity in the labor force, was not taking a stand against sex-segregated want ads. A central focus of NOW became ensuring that women should have the same options as men in the paid labor force.

Later in the 1960s, younger women formed a separate movement, calling it womens liberation, and argued for greater equality between men and women in private life  not just the workplace  and for women to have greater control over their bodies.

This movement created the popular slogan the personal is political. In 1970, a womens collective in Boston printed the first edition of Our Bodies, Our Selves, a book focused on giving women greater knowledge of and control over their bodies.

Motherhood, marriage and abortion in the 60s

Neither of these movements accepted the popular view that unexpected pregnancies ought to be carried to term, a view based on the belief that womens primary role in society was that of wife and mother.

Alongside this social norm of womens proper roles came the idea that if a married woman unexpectedly got pregnant, the pregnancy should be embraced. Married women who rejected such a pregnancy were viewed as selfish.

Unmarried women, meanwhile, were shamed, sometimes sent away from their homes, and pressured to give up the baby for adoption.

In response, feminists, both in NOW and within the womens liberation movement, demanded increased access to birth control and abortion. A first-of-its-kind abortion-rights group, The National Association for the Repeal of Abortion Laws, was formed in the late 60s. In Chicago, in 1969, feminists also organized an underground abortion access network called Jane.

From the 1960s to today

While NOWs creation was noteworthy, the professional women who came together to create the group formed only a small part of the U.S. population. In the late 1960s, women who had a college degree were only 8.2% of the population, compared with 38.3% in 2021. And those who were active in early womens liberation groups were mostly young and veterans of other protest movements of the 1960s, all of which set them apart from many Americans.

But if, initially, these groups were not large in number, many of the ideas they called for seeped into American institutions or were instrumental in creating new forms of awareness in subsequent decades.

Women, for example, have continued to enter the workforce in larger numbers since the 1960s. In 1968, approximately 45% of women over the age of 16 had paying jobs. In 2021, that rate was about 57%. And this growth included not just poor women, who have almost always had to contribute to household finances, or single women working before marriage and motherhood, but increasingly middle-class married women.

Women have come to think of paid work differently, too, since the 1960s. Paid work for women has steadily become not just a means to increase family income but also a source of self-identity. While this has been more true for higher-income women than for lower-income women, lower-income women have also, to a greater extent, come to see their work lives as an important part of who they are.

Womens control over their bodies

Since the 1960s, women have also increasingly come to believe that they should control their own bodies and their own sexuality.

In the late 1970s, feminists organized Take Back the Night marches, which asserted womens right to freedom from assault by men at night. In the late 1970s, feminists brought the issue of domestic violence to public attention, creating shelters for the victims of domestic violence and pressuring politicians to put in place laws that would meet the needs of victims. During the 1980s, rape became more widely understood as something that could happen within a marriage or between people who were dating or just acquaintances.

It wasnt until 2017 that the #MeToo movement developed on social media. Shortly after, women  some of them well-known public figures  posted this hashtag, and powerful men, such as Harvey Weinstein and Bill Cosby, were accused of sexual harassment and abuse. In many cases, these men lost their jobs and some went to prison for their actions.

This stands in contrast to 1991, when Anita Hill accused Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of making inappropriate sexual comments to her. She faced an uphill battle in getting her charges taken seriously, and people undermined the credibility of her charges with attacks on her character.

American womanhood is not what it used to be. A larger portion of women see themselves and are seen by others differently than was the case in the early 1970s. And that means that laws that give power to politicians to control womens bodies are even more out of sync with a large swath of the population than they were at the time of the Roe ruling. I, like many others, thought that the Dobbs decision would simply take us back to the pre-Roe period with massive demonstrations and marches, but not much more. It turns out that an unexpected number of women and their supporters had a different plan.

The Conversation

Linda J. Nicholson, Susan E. and William P. Distinguished Professor of Women and Gender Studies and Professor of History Emerita, Arts & Sciences at Washington University in St. Louis

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.

The post American womanhood is not what it used to be  understanding the backlash to Dobbs v. Jackson appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal.
Two of the four men accused of coordinating and carrying out the fatal carjacking of a Homestead woman in Central Florida pleaded not guilty in an Orlando federal courtroom Wednesday.

Its the second time that Jordanish Torres-Garcia, 28, and Giovany Joel Crespo Hernandez, 27, entered pleas in connection to the deadly ambush of 31-year-old Katherine Altagracia Guerrero De Aguasvivas. They, along with Kevin Omar Ocasio Justiniano and Dereck Alexis Rodriguez Bonilla, were indicted last week on charges that include carjacking, kidnapping and the use of a firearm during a violent crime.

All four men could now face the death penalty, though prosecutors have yet to determine if they will be seeking the punishment. The Department of Justice has only sought the death penalty once during the term of President Joe Biden, the first president in office to openly oppose capital punishment. Earlier this year, federal prosecutors announced that they planned to pursue the death penalty in the hate crime case of the gunman convicted of killing 10 Black shoppers at a Buffalo, New York, grocery store in May 2022.

READ MORE: How did the deadly carjacking of a Homestead woman unfold? Prosecutors lay out theory

Prosecutor Dana Hill, in a filing urging a judge to keep the men locked up as they await trial, argued they pose a grave danger to the community and that their incentive to flee could not be stronger as the possibility of life or death sentences loom.

Torres-Garcia, shackled and in a red jumpsuit, was led into the courtroom first on Wednesday. Before the proceeding began, his attorney Todd Doss quietly reviewed a packet containing his indictment with the help of a Spanish interpreter.

Jordanish Torres-Garcia

When Magistrate Judge Embry Kidd asked Torres-Garcia if he understood that he faced the possibility of the death penalty, Torres-Garcia responded in Spanish with a simple yes. Torres-Garcia, the first to be charged during the probe, previously pleaded not guilty to carjacking, kidnapping and possession of a firearm in the commission of a crime resulting in death.

Giovany Joel Crespo Hernandez

Crespo Hernandez was led in  also cuffed  after Torres-Garcia was escorted out of the courtroom. He leaned forward, nodding along as he listened to the charges being read. Crespo Hernandez had previously pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking charges after agents uncovered three bricks of cocaine inside a lamp in a package sent from Puerto Rico to an Osceola County home.

Coordinated plan to swindle $170K?

The two arraignments came after court records filed last week shed light on why Guerrero De Aguasvivas made the hours-long drive from Homestead to Central Florida on the day of her killing.

Prosecutors say the unsuspecting Homestead woman trekked the state to meet Crespo Hernandez at his Seminole County home and collect $170,000  money associated with drug trafficking activities. Its still unknown how Guerrero De Aguasvivas was connected to the criminal underworld.

READ MORE: Homestead womans carjacking death unveils tangled web of drugs and murder beyond Florida

As the woman drove north, Crespo Hernandez recruited Torres-Garcia and plotted to fleece her of the same money he was turning over, records allege. They then coordinated with Ocasio Justiniano, 28, and Rodriguez Bonilla, 21.

Torres-Garcia, who admitted to being the masked carjacker, ambushed Guerrero De Aguasvivas while she was stopped at a red light in Winter Springs, according to prosecutors. Cellphone footage of the incident shows a masked man hopping out of a green 2002 Acura as he held a semiautomatic weapon.

READ MORE: Unveiling a drug nexus? A look at the probe into Homestead womans deadly carjacking

Moments later, Torres-Garcia brandished the weapon as he carjacked the white Dodge Durango driven by Guerrero De Aguasvivas, court records say. He ordered the woman to follow the green Acura to an isolated construction site in Kissimmee.

Investigators believe Ocasio Justiniano was behind the wheel of the Acura.

The white Durango in which Katherine Altagracia Guerrero De Aguasvivas was carjacked was set ablaze.

While Torres-Garcia held Guerrero De Aguasvivas at gunpoint, Ocasio Justiniano met up with Rodriguez Bonilla to obtain a 10mm firearm, according to court documents. When he returned to the desolate area, the pair then doused Guerrero De Aguasvivas  and the Durango  in lighter fluid, shooting up the SUV before setting it ablaze.

Her remains, found in the passengers side of the torched car, were identified by testing DNA from blood found inside the car, records show.

Prosecutors have also linked Guerrero De Aguasvivas slaying to the shooting death of tow truck driver Juan Luis Cintron Garcia a day prior to the carjacking. Cintron Garcia had towed the green Acura in March.

The 39-year-old man was shot to death outside his home with the same weapon used to kill Guerrero De Aguasvivas.

Bonilla, who hadnt been previously associated with the investigation, pleaded not guilty to the charges a day after the indictment. Ocasio Justiniano has yet to face a judge, and its unclear where hes being detained. He was previously in federal custody in Puerto Rico.

Also arrested in connection to Guerrero De Aguasvivas case include:

 Monicsabel Romero Soto, 28, the live-in girlfriend of Crespo Hernandez. Romero Soto was surveilled by federal agents after three bricks of cocaine were found in a lamp in a package sent from Puerto Rico to a St. Cloud home in Osceola County.

 Francisco Estrella Chicon, an Orange County deputy accused of illegally accessing the personal and professional profile information of the lead Seminole County detective on the case and sharing that information with Guerrero De Aguasvivas husband.
An interception of a rocket launched from Lebanon to Israel over the border, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, close the Israeli border with Lebanon

An interception of a rocket launched from Lebanon to Israel over the border, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, close the Israeli border with Lebanon

By Laila Bassam, Maya Gebeily and Tom Perry

BEIRUT (Reuters) - Hezbollah is drawing on more of its arsenal in its conflict with Israel even as it declares no interest in a full-scale war, an escalation analysts believe aims to deter Israel from a wider confrontation but which could also risk igniting one.

Sparked by the Gaza war, the conflict across the Lebanese-Israeli border has shifted up several gears in the last month, adding to concern the heavily armed adversaries could escalate towards a war that would be ruinous for both countries.

The spectre of such a war is looming over the region as U.S.-led mediation struggles to secure a Gaza ceasefire, with increasingly bellicose rhetoric from both Israel and the Iran-backed Hezbollah.

Hezbollah has ratcheted up its attacks in several ways of late, sending larger numbers of explosive drones in one go, using a new type of rocket, and declaring that it has targeted Israeli warplanes for the first time - a milestone for the group, according to a source familiar with Hezbollah's arsenal.

Retaliating for the killing of a senior commander by Israel, Hezbollah unleashed two days of its heaviest bombardment of the conflict so far, firing some 250 rockets at Israel on Wednesday and an even larger attack at nine Israeli military sites with rockets and drones on Thursday.

Many of Wednesday's rockets appeared to have landed in open ground and set off large brush fires. Shrapnel from Thursday's attack left at least two people wounded in Israel.

The escalation has tested unwritten rules that have largely confined the conflict to areas at the border or near it since October, keeping Lebanese and Israeli cities out of the firing line.

Israel said on Thursday that it holds Hezbollah and its Iranian sponsors to blame for the increase in violence and repeated vows to restore security to the border. The Israel Defence Forces did not immediately reply to a request for comment on new Hezbollah capabilities such as the claim to have targeted a warplane.

The source familiar with Hezbollah's arsenal said it is still calibrating its actions with the intention of avoiding all-out war even as it has stepped up its attacks - the approach it has adopted since the conflict started.

The source said Hezbollah had begun escalating with the aim of increasing pressure on Israel as it launched an offensive in Rafah in the Gaza Strip in early May, and also with the intention of gradually unveiling more of its capabilities.

This included the anti-aircraft weapons Hezbollah fired at an Israeli warplane for the first time on June 6, an effort to challenge the air supremacy Israel has long enjoyed, the source said, declining to identify the type of weapon used.

Hezbollah has announced four attacks targeting Israeli warplanes in the last week, saying it had forced them to leave Lebanese air space.

"Hezbollah is showing the kinds of capabilities they have" in an effort to "strengthen deterrence for a conventional war," said Seth G. Jones, senior vice president at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington.

"The question is what kind of air defence does Hezbollah have and what more could it get from the Iranians and the Syrians. I suspect that any serious indication of serious capabilities would lead the Israelis to hit hard," he said.

MORE 'SURPRISES'

Hezbollah began trading fire with Israel on Oct. 8, a day after its Palestinian ally Hamas attacked southern Israel, sparking the Gaza war. Hezbollah says it will cease fire only when the Gaza war stops.

Tens of thousands of people have fled both sides of the border. Israeli strikes have killed more than 300 Hezbollah fighters and around 80 civilians in Lebanon, according to Reuters tallies. Attacks from Lebanon have killed 18 Israeli soldiers and 10 civilians.

Israel has pounded areas where Hezbollah operates in south Lebanon and the Bekaa Valley. In Israel, the displacement of so many people has become a big political issue, piling pressure on the government to act.

Prior to this conflict, Israel and Hezbollah had avoided a major clash since a month-long war in 2006, deterred since then by mutual threats of catastrophic destruction.

Hezbollah's arsenal has grown enormously since 2006.

Hezbollah has downed five Israeli drones, flown drones at Israeli targets, and used sophisticated guided rockets that capture footage as they approach their targets, images later broadcast on the group's al-Manar TV.

Hezbollah fired Iranian-made Falaq 2 artillery rockets for the first time on June 8, able to carry a bigger warhead than the Falaq 1 it has fired in the past.

Its rockets have also set off wildfires in northern Israel.

Hezbollah deputy head Naim Qassem said on June 4 the group did not seek war, but was ready to fight if one was imposed on it. He has also hinted at the weaponry the group has in reserve.

"What the party has used so far in the battle to support Gaza and proactively defend Lebanon is a small part of what it has, and there are matters whose surprises may be greater," he said on June 10.

RESTORING LOST DETERRENCE

The United States, which deems Hezbollah a terrorist group, has led diplomatic efforts to de-escalate the conflict. A U.S. official said on Thursday Washington was very concerned about potential escalation.

Hezbollah has indicated its openness to diplomatic arrangements if Lebanon is to benefit, but says this can't be discussed until Israel halts the Gaza offensive. Israel has also indicated openness to a diplomatic settlement that would restore security in the north, whilst preparing for an offensive.

Meanwhile, Israel has been using its air power to strike Lebanon on a near daily basis, targeting Hezbollah fighters in the south, the Bekaa Valley, and even striking Beirut on one occasion to kill a senior Hamas leader. Hezbollah wants to reestablish the deterrence that would make Israel think twice.

"They had to escalate because they lost deterrence, they need to reestablish deterrence," said Mohanad Hage Ali, deputy director for research at the Carnegie Middle East Center.

"But also when it comes to Israel's Rafah operation, they needed to act. They justified their participation in the war to support and show solidarity to Gaza, so they had to act."

(Additional reporting by Tom Perry in Beirut and James Mackenzie in Jerusalem; Writing by Maya Gebeily and Tom Perry)
By Tom Hals

WILMINGTON, Delaware (Reuters) -Tesla has convinced an army of small investors and major funds to ratify Elon Musk's $56 billion pay package. Now comes the harder part: persuading an already skeptical Delaware judge to recognize it.

The company said Thursday that shareholders had approved both Musk's pay package and a board-sponsored move of Tesla's legal home to Texas from Delaware.

Musk is the driving force of Tesla and responsible for many of its advances, leading to vocal support for the pay package especially among small shareholders. Still, sales and stock price have fallen recently, adding to concerns that produced a concerted 'no' vote.

Before Tesla can give the shares to Musk, there will likely be months of litigation over the pay ratification vote, Musk's efforts to rally shareholders in support of his compensation and the appeal of the original ruling, four months after a Delaware judge voided the pay package.

A final legal result in Musk's favor is not certain and will not be quick.

Judge Kathaleen McCormick of Delaware's Court of Chancery rescinded the pay package in January because she found that Musk improperly controlled the 2018 board process to negotiate it. She also ruled that Tesla failed to fully inform investors before they voted for it.

"This thing is not over," said Brian Quinn, professor at Boston College Law School. He said McCormick will require Tesla to prove the vote was uncoerced, and the timing and strategy were not influenced by Musk. "So when they show up (to the Delaware court) saying it's all good now, they're going to have to come with receipts."

As Tesla sees it, Thursday's shareholder vote essentially reached back in time and corrected the 2018 shareholder vote by disclosing enormous amounts of information to investors, including McCormick's 200-page ruling.

Tesla argued it corrected the problem of Musk's domination of the process to negotiate the pay package as well. It created a special committee eventually composed only of Kathleen Wilson-Thompson, an independent board member, who reviewed the 2018 pay deal and decided it was in the best interest of shareholders.

But Tesla also acknowledged in securities filings that a favorable ratification might not resolve the pay dispute. Ratification is primarily seen as a tool for fixing problems such as technical glitches in corporate documents.

Many major shareholders and some smaller ones voted against the pay package, frustrated by the size of the award, slowing business at Tesla and Musk's growing list of distractions, including businesses in rockets, AI, social media, neuroscience and tunnel digging.

Story continues

At least one shareholder has already filed a legal challenge to the vote.

The lawsuit in Delaware's Court of Chancery by Tesla investor Donald Ball accused Musk of using "strong-arm, coercive tactics" to get his pay package approved. It cited Musk messages on his X social media platform saying he was uncomfortable transforming Tesla into an AI leader unless he had 25% of the company's stock, almost double his current holdings.

But Tesla and Musk will likely argue that Musk is allowed to express his desire to leave the company.

Columbia Law School Professor Zohar Goshen said he thought the Delaware court decision should reverse itself after a yes vote, but acknowledged the situation was too unusual to say.

"It is hard to estimate how the court will rule because there is too much noise around this decision. But my personal view is that Tesla should succeed," Goshen said.

(Reporting by Tom Hals in Wilmington, Delaware; Additional reporting by Rachael Levy in Washington; Editing by Peter Henderson, Matthew Lewis and Miral Fahmy)
We were in Accra, Ghana, for only one week in May 2024. During that eventful week, we experienced hot weather, encountered heavy rain and a host of other conditions, but it was a good trip. At no time during our mission trip did we feel uncomfortable or unsafe. The people were very friendly and almost everyone spoke English.

There were three of us, representing both the Rotary and Kiwanis clubs of Monroe. We traveled there to work on the Angel City School Complex. This is a project that I have been working on for almost 10 years. The complex is literally being built, and there is still much work to be done. It is about 70% complete and progresses as funds allow. The project is coming along well, and the support of my two colleagues, Cajetan DCunha and Ron George was very much appreciated.

People go on mission trips for various reason, including but not limited to, doing Gods work for others, assisting the less fortunate, simply making a difference and meeting an obligation. For me, it is all of the above. Having been born in Ghana, I understand the needs and have a vision of helping the many poor people and especially children who roam the streets.

Ron George, Kojo Quartey and Cajetan DCunha are pictured at the Angel City Complex in Accra, Ghana. When completed, the complex will house educational, social and business services.

Angel City is a massive complex. At this point, all of the buildings have almost been completed; it is the internal work that is still ongoing. The first day we arrived at the site, there were over 20 workers there. They included masons, electricians, plumbers, carpenters, air condition specialists, welders, painters, metal workers and laborers. Some of them had set up residence there in rooms with bedding, televisions and other amenities and were raising chicken and growing various crops. Such arrangements allow them to not travel back and forth so as to focus on their work. Even as they build, lives are being affected as the workers are gainfully employed and the supply chain is positively impacted. Also, meals and snacks are brought to the site and sold to them by locals, so there is a local multiplier effect.

Our first day was education in action  as laborers picking up trash that the workers had dumped all over the premises as they worked. There were lots of water bottles, plastic sachet water containers and other trash. It appears that they had no trash receptacles on site, and as they worked and consumed various products, they simply threw them on the ground. This raised awareness of proper trash disposal.

Each worker, depending on their specialty earns anywhere from $10 to $25 a day; of course, their supervisors or foremen earn more. While those earnings may not be significant by U.S. standards, it is substantially above the international poverty level of $2.15 a day.

During our visit, we mostly worked as painters. Ron George, a Monroe County plumbing engineer who is president of Plumb-Tech Design and Consulting Services LLC, paid for all our meals when we ate out. On a few occasions, we ate at a high-end restaurant, and Ron even rented an airconditioned SUV for our transportation. Ron was so generous that he bought our driver new eyeglasses when he realized that his old glasses were in terrible shape. Cajie DCunha, our other colleague, is retired from Guardian Industries and hails originally from India  he now writes grants at Monroe County Community College.

When Angel City is completed, it will serve individuals from birth to senior citizens. The project includes a medical clinic, dental clinic, day care center, K-8 school, orphanage, community center, chapel, computer facilities, living quarters/apartments, entrepreneurial center, microenterprises and more. The vision is to serve as many as possible to alleviate poverty.

The vision lives on and progress is being made. Already, lives are being impacted, and the sacrifices made to get to this stage have taken a significant amount of real income, but the psychic income generated is more than worth it.

Kojo Quartey, Ph.D., is president of Monroe County Community College and an economist. He can be reached at kquartey@monroeccc.edu.

This article originally appeared on The Monroe News: Kojo Quartey: Angel City: A vison to alleviate poverty
Stock image from Pixabay.

The Upper Arlington City Schools Board of Education chose to join a lawsuit seeking to eliminate Ohios EdChoice private school voucher program, despite Lt. Gov. Jon Husted telling the group it would be a waste of money.

Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted threw in his two cents in a letter emailed to the school board as they considered signing on to the suit.

In the email to the board, Husted said the case of school vouchers was long ago litigated, and on the basis of that U.S. Supreme Court case, the EdChoice private school voucher program was created and structured.

I know because I created it in 2005 when I served as Speaker of the Ohio House of Representatives, he wrote.

A spokesperson for Husted confirmed on Tuesday that the statement, which was shared by the conservative advocacy group Ohio Value Voters, was indeed written by him.

The letter comes as a lawsuit works its way through the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas that would, if plaintiffs are successful, eliminate the private school voucher program in Ohio entirely. Public school advocates who filed the lawsuit argue state funding of the private school vouchers creates an unequal system of education that violates the state constitutions requirements for a properly supported public education system.

Husteds letter

Husted said joining the lawsuit would serve as an attempt to deny 348 Upper Arlington families and students currently using a state voucher as their choice of education for their children, many of which are attending other schools because of autism or other special needs.

If after reading this email, you choose to fund this lawsuit, you will knowingly be wasting thousands of dollars on attorney fees for a lawsuit that has no chance of succeeding in an attempt to thwart the will of students and families who pay the property taxes that fund Upper Arlington schools, Husted wrote.

A court case cited by Husted was Zelman v. Simmons-Harris, an Ohio case that made its way to the nations highest court in 2002 in an attempt to decide whether voucher programs were valid under the U.S. Constitution.

The split (5-4) decision upheld a state law that allowed Cleveland students to attend public or private schools through the Cleveland Scholarship and Tutoring Program, which the legislature attached to the 1995 budget as part of a test of the impact of school choice on academic performance, according to a Case Western Reserve University breakdown of the case.

Cleveland was the target of the program because the program built under state law was to be used on any district that required supervision and operational management of the district by the state superintendent, according to the ACLU of Ohio.

Ohios program was the first to include religious schools, which was part of the reason the program was challenged in court.

Husted also cited a 1999 Ohio Supreme Court case, in which the state court struck down the school voucher program, but Husted argued it was good law, in that the voucher program did not violate provisions of the state constitution regarding school funding.

The state supreme court in the 1999 case, also involving the Cleveland City School District, ruled that the school voucher program that existed at that time does not involve the state in religious indoctrination.

The court disagreed with one of the priorities set forth in Ohio law to dictate the order in which registered private schools could admit students, a priority which allowed students whose parents are affiliated with any organization that provides financial support to the school.

That priority, the court ruled, provides an incentive for parents desperate to get their child out of the Cleveland City School District to modify their religious beliefs or practices in order to enhance their opportunity to receive a school voucher program scholarship, and was therefore unconstitutional, according to the majority in the 1999 decision.

The voucher program in 1999 was found to have a secular legislative purpose, does not have the primary effect of advancing religion, and does not excessively entangle government with religion.

The state supreme court ended up striking down the voucher program for a different reason: a violation of the one subject provision of the state constitution, in which legislation can only pertain to one issue. In this case, the voucher program was tied into the state budget, which the supreme court found to be a violation of the state constitution.

For and against

The Upper Arlington Board of Education was split in their decision to join the lawsuit, with three of the members urging the district to push forward in order to protect the tax dollars of those who elected them, and two other members expressing concern about the time and money a lawsuit would take.

Board member Liz George Stump disputed myths about the aims of the EdChoice voucher program and its expansion to help low-income students avoid underperforming districts, citing Ohio Department of Education and Workforce data in her argument in support of the lawsuit.

Data from the ODEW show less than 8% of UAs 2024 voucher recipients for EdChoice are considered low-income, a number that only rises to 17% statewide.

As we watch our state funnel this billion dollars into the voucher program, that threatens our states ability to meet its constitutional requirement to fully fund our system of common schools, Stump said in a Tuesday meeting of the board. Because that voucher money is uncapped and it is tied to the level of public school funding, and as that pot shrinks year over year, which it is, thats less money (the school district) has to get split two places.

Board VP Lou Sauter and fellow member Lori Trent voted against joining the lawsuit, hoping for a different way to change the way funding is distributed and public education is supported.

Joining this lawsuit would be an unnecessary distraction from the hard work that we have ahead of us, Sauter said.

Trent acknowledged that a GOP state supermajority who generally favors the EdChoice program creates a political climate that may not be conducive to legislative changes, but she also said there was way too much conflicting information out there to support joining the litigation, like how long the suit would last and whether things would change.

With so many unknowns and the complexity of the the situation, I am not in support of joining the lawsuit at this time, Trent said.

The group that shared Husteds letter publicly, Ohio Value Voters, praised the lieutenant governor for supporting the voucher program. The groups president, John Stover, said in a statement that families across the state appreciate the opportunity to have their children enrolled in the EdChoice Scholarship program.

The groups website says they also support the Parents Bill of Rights legislation introduced by Ohio House Republicans to require public schools to inform parents about sexuality content in curriculum and which has been likened to Floridas Dont Say Gay bill.

They have a separate website called Protect Ohio Children, which includes an indoctrination site map with the goal of putting daylight on the darkness of critical race theory, comprehensive sex education and social emotional learning.

A coalition supporting the lawsuit against the private voucher program released its own statement about Husteds letter, calling the information in it misleading and wrong.

We have worked for more than three years to build a solid case challenging the constitutionality of the harmful EdChoice private school voucher program, and we are prepared to go to trial on Nov. 4 in Franklin County Judge Jaiza Pages courtroom, a statement from Eric Brown, chairman of Vouchers Hurt Ohios steering committee read.

The group said the issue of private school vouchers can not be considered settled, as Husted argued, because of the active lawsuit in Franklin County.

Vouchers Hurt Ohio also pushed back on Husteds claim that those on a voucher for autism or special needs would be impacted, saying the lawsuit challenges only the universal voucher program known as EdChoice.

Motion for dismissal

Most recently in the case, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost, the states legal counsel, asked the judge to end the case via summary judgment, which would end the case before it could go to trial. A summary judgment is used in a case when the law is clear and no factual dispute is material, according to court documents.

In his motion for a summary judgment, Yost argued that the challengers of the voucher program have not shown any constitutional violation that harms them and that the state supreme court has already upheld vouchers and the broader school-choice principle that per-pupil funding may follow students to various types of schools.

Plaintiffs claims are a repackaging and hybrid of claims under the previous voucher cases, the charter-school case, and the DeRolph school-funding case, the motion by Yost states.

The DeRolph case is a reference to the multiple Ohio Supreme Court decisions in which the court found the state did not properly fund its public school education system.

If challengers want to change the policies on education in Ohio, Yost argues they need to ask the Peoples elected, democratic representatives in the General Assembly  not the courts  to do that.

Ohios Constitution allows educational choice, and this Court should tell Ohios parents and students that it will not take their choices away, Yost concluded.

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The post Another Ohio school district joins EdChoice lawsuit, despite Lt. Gov.s attempt to dissuade appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal.
A conservative federal judge in Texas has blocked one of President Joe Bidens attempts to expand Title IX protections to include transgender students. The ruling, handed down Tuesday by U.S. District Judge Reed OConnor, sided with Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, who argued that the administration had overstepped its authority, Reuters reports.



The contested guidance, issued in 2021, would have prohibited discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity in schools receiving federal funding. It was based on the Supreme Court's 2020 ruling in Bostock v. Clayton County that the federal law banning sex discrimination in employment also covers discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity. The ruling did not address education, but the Department of Education interpreted it to apply to Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, which bans sex discrimination in education. Some courts have interpreted it in that fashion as well. The guidance also built on guidelines issued by President Barack Obama's administration in 2016. That effort had ended up getting blocked in court too.

OConnor, appointed by President George W. Bush, said the Biden administration engaged in unlawful agency action taken in excess of their authority and failed to follow proper notice and comment procedures. He argued that allowing the guidance to stand would effectively rewrite Title IX, a move he deemed beyond the administrations power. He declined, however, to issue a nationwide injunction blocking the guidance; his action applies only to Texas.

Paxton, an anti-LGBTQ+ Republican, praised the decision, claiming it prevents what he described as an extremist agenda from taking hold. Joe Bidens unlawful effort to weaponize Title IX for his extremist agenda has been stopped in its tracks, he said in a statement . Threatening to withhold education funding by forcing states to accept transgender policies that put women in danger was plainly illegal. Texas has prevailed on behalf of the entire Nation.

In 2022, a federal judge in Tennessee had blocked the guidance from being enforced in 20 other states that sued, but the injunction he issued is on hold while the Biden administration appeals.

In a separate action in April of this year, the Education Department issued a final rule requiring schools to respect trans and nonbinary students' pronouns and allow them access to the restrooms of their choice. It is set to take effect in August, but it is already being challenged in court by Republican attorneys general in about 20 states. The administration has also been working on separate regulations regarding the eligibility of transgender athletes, which have yet to be finalized.

This ruling is part of a broader pattern of conservative legal challenges against the Biden administrations efforts to protect LGBTQ+ rights. In 2022, OConnor ruled that requiring insurance companies to cover HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis violated religious freedoms , with the plaintiffs arguing that such coverage encourages so-called homosexual behavior. This decision sparked outrage among LGBTQ + advocates and legal experts, who warned that it jeopardizes access to essential preventive health care services.

The Department of Health and Human Services responded to that ruling by reaffirming its commitment to ensuring access to health care free from discrimination.

On O'Connor's decision, the Education Department issued a statement saying it stands by the guidance and that every student deserves the right to feel safe in school."

Trudy Ring contributed additional reporting.
Kashmiri devotees belonging to nomadic Gujjar tribe pray at a forest shrine of Sufi saint Mian Nizamuddin Kiyanwi in Baba Nagri, northeast of Srinagar, Indian controlled Kashmir, Saturday, June 8, 2024. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)

BABA NAGRI, India (AP)  The road to the Baba Nagri forest shrine in India-controlled Kashmir was a colorful spectacle. Tens of thousands of men in vibrant attires, henna-dyed beards and bright headgears thronged the Muslim shrine nestled at the base of a mountain to pay their obeisance last week.

Worshippers raised their hands and cried their wishes. Some also tied multicolored threads around the trees at the shrine, which represented their prayers.

The shrine to Mian Nizamuddin Kiyanwi has its origins in the 19th century and provides free meals all year to the devotees, most of them from Kashmirs nomadic pastoral community. Devotees believe their wishes are granted at the shrine.

Kiyanwi, originally from Kashmir, migrated to the Hazara region of modern-day Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province in Pakistan during the late 19th century. There he was mentored by a Sufi saint and later returned to Kashmir to preach Islam. After he died, the shrine was built as a mark of respect towards him  a manifestation of the regions unique ties with Sufism.

Abdul Razaq, a devotee, said that he has been visiting the shrine since he was 6 and feels blessed by paying obeisance there.

I remember as a kid we had to travel a lot by foot, but things have changed, and today we can reach the shrine in a day, he said.

Another devotee, Mohammad Farooq, who is blind, said: It would have been great if I could see things for myself, but I find peace when I visit the shrine.

Kashmir, divided between India and Pakistan and claimed by both in its entirety, is a Muslim-majority region.

Rebel groups have been fighting since 1989 for Kashmirs independence, a goal supported by a large number of Muslims in the disputed territory.

The region has remained embroiled in civil strife for decades and the shrine, including hundreds of others strewn around its landscape, has been and continues to be, far more than a mere spiritual retreat for Muslims.

Many worshipers find these shrines a rare space far removed from unrelenting political tensions in the region.
Red paint covers portions of the entrance to the German consulate building, Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in New York. Pro-Palestinian protesters have vandalized locations associated with the Brooklyn Museum and United Nations in New York City, throwing red paint across their entrances in opposition to the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. (AP Photo/Sophie Rosenbaum)

NEW YORK (AP)  People purporting to be pro-Palestinian activists hurled red paint at the homes of top leaders at the Brooklyn Museum, including its Jewish director, and also splashed paint across the front of diplomatic buildings for Germany and the Palestinian Authority, prompting a police investigation and condemnation from city authorities.

Mayor Eric Adams, in a post on the social platform X, shared images of a brick building splashed with red paint with a banner hung in front of the door that called the museums director, Anne Pasternak, a white-supremacist Zionist.

This is not peaceful protest or free speech. This is a crime, and its overt, unacceptable antisemitism, Adams wrote of the paint attacks early Wednesday. Adams sent sympathy to Pasternak and other museum board members whose homes were defaced.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat who lives close to the Brooklyn Museum, praised it on the Senate floor as an institution whose leaders are deeply concerned with issues of social justice, and said the pictures of the director's home filled him with grief and anger.

Every single American needs to see this. This is the face of hatred. Jewish Americans made to feel unsafe in their own home  just because they are Jewish.

Four museum officials were targeted. Not all are Jewish, Brooklyn Museum spokesperson Taylor Maatman said. A report was filed with police.

Red paint was also splashed early Wednesday across the front of a Manhattan building that houses Germanys consulate and its United Nations mission, and another building that is a headquarters for Palestinian diplomats. Flyers critical of the Palestinian Authority and its president, Mahmoud Abbas, were scattered outside the building.

It wasnt immediately clear who was responsible or whether the acts of vandalism were all related.

The paint attacks came the same week that pro-Palestinian groups held a large demonstration outside a New York City exhibition memorializing victims of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on the Tribe of Nova music festival. The group Within Our Lifetime called the tribute to the victims Zionist propaganda and dismissed the music festival, where hundreds died, as a rave next to a concentration camp.

That protest also drew condemnations from across the political spectrum.

The callousness, dehumanization, and targeting of Jews on display at last nights protest outside the Nova Festival exhibit was atrocious antisemitism  plain and simple, U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Tuesday on X.

One group of protesters riding a subway train to the demonstration outside the Nova exhibit chanted Raise your hands if youre a Zionist, at their fellow passengers, followed by "This is your chance to get out.

Leaders of Jewish organizations said a widely shared video of the subway episode was horrifying.

Essentially its a call for separating Jews from everybody else on the subway and somehow kicking them off, said Scott Richman, regional director of the Anti-Defamation League for New York and New Jersey.

Every Jew is looking at that and saying What if I were on the subway? or What if I were standing at the Nova exhibit and hearing that awful rhetoric and seeing Hamas flags being waved? Richman said.

Richman said hateful words can lead to antisemitic violence like the 2018 massacre at Pittsburgh's Tree of Life synagogue.

You just need one unhinged person to hear all of this hateful rhetoric and decide that theyre going to take action, he said.

Logan Levkoff-Cortes, who heads a Jewish National Fund program to send non-Jewish college students to Israel, said the use of Zionist as a derogatory term was a blatant display of antisemitism.

There is no distinction between asking Zionists to get off the train car and asking for Jews to get off, she said. It has become this legitimized buzzword for people to talk about Jews without using the word Jews, she said.

Videos posted on social media also showed demonstrators spraying the side of a subway train at the Union Square station with graffiti.

A spokesperson for the New York Police Department said it was investigating the vandalism aimed at the Brooklyn Museum leaders and the diplomatic buildings. The German mission said its security staff was in close contact with New York authorities. A message seeking comment was also sent to Palestinian diplomats.

Hundreds of protesters marched on the Brooklyn Museum late last month, briefly setting up tents in the lobby and unfurling a Free Palestine banner from the roof before police moved in to make dozens of arrests. Similar protests have happened since October at other New York City museums.

Within Our Lifetime and other organizers of that demonstration said in a statement that it did not coordinate the paint attacks, but we commend any such actions. The group has said the museum is deeply invested in and complicit" in Israels military actions in Gaza through its leadership, trustees, corporate sponsors and donors  a claim museum officials have denied.

Earlier today, the homes of people connected to the Brooklyn Museum were vandalized in an attempt to threaten and intimidate them, the museum spokesperson, Maatman, said in a statement. For two centuries, the Brooklyn Museum has worked to foster mutual understanding through art and culture, and we have always supported peaceful protest and open, respectful dialogue. Violence, vandalism, and intimidation have no place in that discourse.

City Comptroller Brad Lander, who was among the New York politicians to speak out against the protests, said the Brooklyn Museum has done more to grapple with questions of power, colonialism, racism & the role of art than many other museums.

The cowards who did this are way over the line into antisemitism, harming the cause they claim to care about, and making everyone less safe, he wrote on X.

The grand beaux arts museum, the citys second largest, sits at the edge of Crown Heights, home to one of the citys largest communities of Orthodox Jews.

It is no stranger to ideological confrontations.

Then-Mayor Rudy Giuliani threatened to close the museum in 1999 over artwork he considered disrespectful of Catholics. Protesters have staged demonstrations inside, outside, and on top of the building repeatedly over the years. And in 2016, pro-Palestinian activists demonstrated against a photo exhibit on life in Israel and the West Bank, saying it did not take a strong enough stance against Israeli colonization.

___

Associated Press reporters Jennifer Peltz and Karen Matthews. Follow Philip Marcelo at x.com/philmarcelo.
HOWELL TWP.  A dispute over gun rights in Howell Township might be over after a federal appeals court panel affirmed the case's dismissal.

Still, an attorney representing a gun store and several gun owners has indicated they aren't ready to stop fighting for what they've argued is a Second Amendment right to train with long-distance firearms.

In 2018, Mike Paige, owner of Oakland Tactical Supply, and five firearms owners sued Howell Township after officials halted plans for a shooting range.

In their suit, Oakland Tactical and residents Scott Fresh, Jason Raines, Matthew Remenar, Edward Dimitroff and Ronald Penrod claimed the township violated their rights in 2017 by denying Paige's request to amend zoning law to allow shooting ranges on land zoned for agricultural residential development.

Mike Paige, owner of Oakland Tactical, is pictured in 2017.

Paige wants to develop Premier Precision Park, with a 1,000-yard-plus outdoor shooting range and other amenities at an abandoned gravel pit on about 350 acres off Fleming Road.

It's unknown if attorneys for Oakland Tactical and the gun owners will attempt to persuade the U.S. Supreme Court to take up the case.

Attorney Peter Patterson told The Daily they are "evaluating options." Patterson is on the case, along with the Law Offices of Martha A. Dean.

We are disappointed with the panel majoritys decision to affirm the dismissal of our clients important right-to-train claims under the Second Amendment," Patterson wrote in an email.

Paige declined a request for comment.

Howell Township attorney Christopher Patterson told The Daily the panel's decision "puts an end to what is prolonged litigation."

"The township is certainly pleased with the Sixth Circuit's ruling upholding (the dismissal)," Patterson said. "The township (succeeded) at every level of the case."

In 2020, U.S. District Court Judge Bernard Friedman ruled the township did not violate the gun owners' constitutional rights, concluding local governments are not required to permit ranges within a particular zoning district. He also found the township is not banning ranges altogether.

Federal appeals judges later sent the case back to Friedman after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling on gun rights in New York State Rifle and Pistol Association Inc. vs. Bruen. The Supreme Court ruling changed the "test" lower courts should use when determining the constitutionality of firearm regulations.

Last year, Friedman reaffirmed his ruling.

Two of three judges on the appeals panel also sided with the township, according to an opinion issued May 31.

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"We cannot conclude, based on these arguments, that the plain text of the Second Amendment covers ... plaintiffs proposed course of conduct  the right to commercially available sites to train to achieve proficiency in long-range shooting at distances up to 1,000 yards," U.S. Sixth Circuit Judge Helene White wrote in her opinion.

Judge R. Guy Cole Jr. concurred, finding: "We need not conclude that the right to train with firearms is a necessarily protected right under the Second Amendment."

The third judge on the panel, Judge Raymond Kethledge, disagreed and issued a dissenting opinion.

"This case involves target shooting, so a threshold question is whether firearms training is to any extent 'cover(ed)' by the Second Amendments 'plain text,'" Kethledge wrote. "To date, nearly every relevant authority (save the district courts opinion here) has said that training can fall within that coverage."

 Contact reporter Jennifer Eberbach at jeberbach@livingstondaily.com.

This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Appeals panel finds Howell Township didn't violate gun owners' rights
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT)  The Huntsville Police Departments communication division is looking to hire police dispatchers, with pay starting at $45,240 annually.

Dispatchers are first responders, just like police officers, EMTs, paramedics, firefighters and more, Huntsville Police Sgt. Dana Springfield said. The role of dispatcher is crucial and requires efficiency, composure, compassion and discretion.

Ider police arrest man after incident at gas station, foot chase

The department said that some responsibilities this role includes are fast and efficient work in receiving, dispatching and processing calls to appropriate emergency personnel.

Applicants must meet the following criteria to apply:

At least 18 years old

High school diploma/ GED

A valid drivers license

Type at least 30 words per minute

Candidates must also pass an interview, an aptitude test that involves typing and listening, a drug screening and a polygraph test for the chance to be offered the position.

HPD says that salary is one of the highest for public safety dispatchers in the state of Alabama.

To view the full job posting and apply, click here.

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.
Can our aquifer support big water needs of Amazon and EV plant?

Construction work on an $11 billion Amazon Web Services data center takes place on land between Walnut Road and Larrison Boulevard and north of Early Road east of New Carlisle on April 30, 2024.

Water wars are going on around the country where there are data centers, like the $11 billion project that Amazon Web Services plans to build east of New Carlisle. Not to forget Microsoft's plans for data centers in Granger and LaPorte.

Out west, especially in desert areas, residents are fighting over the huge draws that data centers tend to make on the communities already-scarce water supplies.

Here, where the Kankakee Aquifer is known to be generous, the supply may not seem as fierce of a question. The Tribune has pressed for answers, but an Amazon spokesperson wouldnt say how much water the data center would use. Likewise, a Microsoft spokesperson refused any comment on that company's two projects.

But county and New Carlisle officials have proposed a collective limit on water usage that, at least, gives us some insight.

Keeping water safe: Are there enough protections to keep New Carlisle water clean as industries grow?

However, keeping contamination out of the large aquifer  the source of drinking water for the people of New Carlisle  will forever be a pressing issue. A study by local water experts shows the aquifer lacks a protective layer of clay over it, which makes it vulnerable if toxins accidentally seep into the soil.

The AWS data center and the General Motors/Samsung SDI electric vehicle battery plant would both sit on top of those soils, along with other industries that may grow there in the countys Indiana Enterprise Center.

By nature, this was once a rich, biodiverse land that sat just beyond the sprawling wetland known as the Grand Kankakee Marsh, a detoxifying cleanser of local water, which people had drained decades ago and turned into productive farmland.

Now, Amazon touts the efficient use of water at its data centers. And local officials say they are planning steps to protect the groundwater supply so that it can continue feeding the new industries, plus the local residents, irrigation for farms and other businesses.

Given the vulnerability, University of Notre Dame professor Alan Hamlet urges officials to make an environmental impact statement to protect the Kankakee Aquifer.

Dan Caruso said that he and fellow New Carlisle residents had initially questioned, "How much water is going to come out of here before we're pushed beyond capacity?"

Dan Caruso of New Carlisle speaks at a St. Joseph County Commissioners meeting on Nov. 9, 2021, in the County-City Building in South Bend.

Now, he feels there might be enough water for the town, even as housing and the number of residents would likely boom from the added jobs. But he wonders if those downstream of the aquifer in Illinois would be affected.

Caruso routinely attends county meetings and vigilantly raises questions about the potential risks of development for the town.

"I'm for growth," he said, "as long as they're going to be good neighbors."

All of this comes as, outside of the Kankakee Aquifer, the Microsoft Corp. has plans for two local data centers: one on more than 900 acres of the former St. Joe Farm in Granger that it just purchased, and the other, a smaller project with plans to build a $1 billion data center on 489 acres in LaPorte.

Are the promises of industries, plus federal and local regulations on contamination, enough to protect the groundwater?

In this piece, we explore the aquifers capacity. In a follow-up story, well look more closely at the environmental questions.

Follow up: Are there enough protections to keep New Carlisle water clean as industries grow?

Will corporate pledges of efficiency reach us?

This Midwestern story isnt alone.

Data centers, in particular  and were talking about major global players like Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Facebook and Apple  are known for consuming lots of fresh, clean water, which helps to cool their computing systems. Its cheaper than traditional air conditioning.

They are growing as they keep up with the worlds demand for digital data.

Nationally, there has been real concern in other communities where data centers are being built, especially in water-scarce regions in the West, as residents there also contend with droughts.

Early last year, The Oregonian newspaper found that one Google data center had tripled its water usage in five years and was consuming more than a quarter of all the water being used in The Dallas, Oregon, a city with about 16,000 people. It was drawing sharp concerns for fish, wildlife, farms and residents, because Google had plans to continue adding data centers nearby.

This is a map of aquifers in St. Joseph County as of 1994. The Kankakee Aquifer is the yellowish patch to the west. The light blue area is the St. Joseph Aquifer System, which serves much of the northeast part of the county. To see the map up close and with descriptions for each aquifer, visit www.in.gov/dnr/water/files/St_Joseph_County_UNC_AQSYS_map.pdf.

Several other articles and studies likewise have been examining both the water and the electrical demands of data centers.

That plays into one of the major reasons why Amazon and GM were attracted to St. Joseph County: our ample water supply.

Also, our northern climate means that it takes less water and energy to cool data center computers than, say, in California and Arizona.

How it was done: Winning the $11 billion Amazon Web Services project was years in the making

But spokespersons for both Amazon and GM wouldnt specify how much water their facilities would use. Microsoft has refused any comment yet on its local projects. Amazon, in particular, doesnt typically disclose its water usage.

Instead, the AWS spokesperson pointed to the companys statement that, when looked at across the globe, its data centers use 0.19 liters of water per kilowatt-hour. That number is what you get when you divide water usage (in liters) by the electricity used by computer equipment (in kilowatt hours).

And that global average would make AWS highly efficient because, as an article at techtarget.com points out, the average data center uses 1.8 liters of water per kilowatt-hour.

The spokesperson argued that its more telling and fair to compare this water use efficiency than the raw volume of water consumed.

"AWS designs data centers that provide efficient, resilient service for our customers while working to minimize our environmental footprint, the AWS spokesperson said in a written statement. We are committed to being water positive by 2030 and returning more water to the communities where we operate than we use in our direct operations.  In Indiana, we are working with utilities to expand public infrastructure to meet our needs and the needs of the growing community.

Bill Schalliol, executive director of economic development for St. Joseph County, said it didnt sound as if AWS is going to use major water-saving strategies that it touts  aimed at its water positive goal for 2030  in the first set of four 216,000-square-foot buildings southwest of Edison Road and Larrison Boulevard that AWS aims to finish in 2024.

Bill Schalliol

But, he said, its possible that the company may use those strategies in the future because this is an evolving campus thats expected to grow in the coming years. That may be especially true as AWS aims to build seven total shells at this parcel, then another nine shells on another parcel of land that it recently purchased southwest of Indiana 2 and Larrison.

Amazons water-saving strategies include making sure data centers run efficiently, using sustainable water sources like recycled water and rainwater, turning discharged water back to the community for uses such as irrigation and doing projects that restore and replenish local watersheds.

An Amazon blog in 2022 points to the small Oregon community of Umatilla where recycled water from an AWS center was used to irrigate local farm fields.

When asked, the Amazon spokesperson wasnt specific about the companys plans here for either water conservation or disposal of its waste.

The spokesperson referred to an Amazon blog post about how it recycles its data center hardware, or e-waste, and our path to reaching net-zero carbon by 2040.

A spokeswoman for GM likewise wouldnt share details when asked about water use and handling of waste.

Im not able to share details about the specific water plans at this time while agreements are still in process, GM spokeswoman Liz Winter said. Previously, in April, shed refused an interview with a Tribune reporter about the projects timeline, explaining, "We continue to work toward a definitive agreement to proceed with construction of a new cell plant in Indiana.

Instead, Winter pointed to the companys 2023 sustainability report. By 2035, the report states, it aims to reduce the intensity of its water usage by 35%, but thats measured against a 2010 baseline. The report also notes that the effort is particularly in water-stressed locations where we have manufacturing operations.

How much water can the aquifer spare?

The county hired the Mishawaka-based water services firm Peerless Midwest to do a hydrological study of western St. Joseph County, where the major developments are heading.

The first study was done in 2018, then updated in 2023 to estimate the rates at which water is currently being pumped out of the aquifer, along with how well the system could safely and naturally recharge itself with more water. It looked to see what the safe yield would be  that is, how much water could be drawn out of the aquifer without depleting its long-term supply.

The safe yield for the Kankakee Aquifer is an estimated 44 million gallons per day, as long as its recharged as usual. About 25% to 35% of that yield is already being used.

County and New Carlisle officials now are seeking to cap usage from the aquifer at 24 million gallons per day, which would be set in an interlocal agreement between the two governments. Schalliol announced the limit at a May 28 meeting of the county council.

If we need to go above that, he told the council, wed go back to the study with Peerless.

Two existing water plants in the New Carlisle area are being remodeled, and their capacities are being expanded to serve homes, local businesses, farms and the new industries.

This, at least, gives us an idea of maximum water that AWS, GM and other users would draw collectively since all of it would come from one water treatment plant. That one sits close to the nearby St. Joseph Energy Center, which generates electricity, and would feed water to AWS, the EV battery plant and the energy center.

Construction work on an $11 billion Amazon Web Services data center takes place on land between Walnut Road and Larrison Boulevard and north of Early Road east of New Carlisle on April 30, 2024.

When that water plant is fully built out, its maximum capacity would grow by an extra 9.4 million gallons per day (MGD), to a total of 12.4 MGD, said Jared Huss, an engineer with the local firm Lawson-Fisher Associates who also serves as town engineer for New Carlisle. After that, the next phase of its expansion would grow water usage to 18 MGD.

The other water treatment plant serves the town of New Carlisle and existing businesses. Huss said theres a potential for this plant to also serve new developments in the future. It will have a day-to-day capacity of 3 MGD when fully built out, he said.

Whats being done locally to control water usage?

Schalliol said the interlocal agreement on limiting water usage to 24 MGD is being drafted. It will come to town and county officials for a public vote in the coming weeks.

Previously, Huss had said the goal was much less than the safe capacity, so that the water use isnt taxing the aquifer. He said local officials had stated the high importance of the aquifer almost four years ago.

GM/Samsung project: Electric vehicle sales might be slumping, but a battery plant here is still moving forward

That has been a focal point from the beginning, said Huss, who guides the town of New Carlisle on engineering plans. Youre not only utilizing it, but youre protecting it.

Along with farming, town life and other businesses, he said, clean water is the lifeblood of the new industries.

They dont work if they dont have a healthy aquifer, Huss said.

To that end, Schalliol said, a local project design team has done a lot of due diligence to prepare for the new industries. That team includes water and engineering consultants from DLZ, Peerless Midwest and Donohue & Associates, along with the county and the town of New Carlisle.

They have been working with GMs and AWSs project designers and their needs. The challenge, Schalliol said, will be meeting peak demands for water in the summer, on the hottest days when AWS will need the most water for cooling.

Collaboratively, you have to look at the whole picture, Huss said.

What is safe?

This seems to allow a good amount of room to factor in other demands on New Carlisles water. But how much?

For perspective, The Tribune sought help with interpreting the Peerless report from Alan Hamlet, associate professor of civil and environmental engineering and Earth sciences at the University of Notre Dame. He specializes in computer models of climate, hydrologic systems, water resources systems and ecosystems, including the assessment of climate change.

When The Tribune told him of the proposed 24 MGD limit, he responded, That seems like a reasonable policy if they can enforce it.

Previously, hed cautioned that seasons of drought could pose challenges, meaning less water to recharge the aquifer, which could potentially affect existing wells.

Those times of drought, he said, are why its not a particularly good idea to merely shoot for a safe yield from the aquifer. In other words, leave some extra water capacity. Otherwise, those times of drought could compromise the water supply.

Then again, he also said that Notre Dame researchers did a recent hydrological study of the Kankakee aquifer, showing that climate change could help to replenish it through increasing precipitation in fall, winter and spring.

What the Peerless study doesn't discuss is the impact of increased pumping on existing wells. Hamlet said some shallow wells could be affected by nearby high-capacity wells.

Will South Bend and Mishawaka be affected?

South Bend and Mishawaka city officials say their residents wont be affected by the new developments near New Carlisle. They rely on different aquifers that are also generous.

Separately, Granger residents have raised questions about water usage for the data center that Microsoft Corp. plans to build on more than 900 acres of the former St. Joe Farm.

That project hinges on the city of Mishawaka extending water and wastewater utilities roughly 1,000 feet to the site, to be paid for by the developer. Dave Majewski, the citys water division manager, said Microsofts data center would have only minimal effect on the citys water supply, thanks to the newly opened Juday Creek wellfield and treatment plant in the citys northeast corner.

That wellfield, Majewski said, has an initial capacity of 8.5 million gallons per day, and with the addition of two more wells, the daily capacity grows to 12.4 million gallons per day.

South Bend Tribune reporter Joseph Dits can be reached at 574-235-6158 or jdits@sbtinfo.com.

This article originally appeared on South Bend Tribune: Can groundwater support Amazon AWS GM electric vehicle battery plant
Argentina has joined the Ukraine Defense Contact Group that meets regularly to coordinate military aid for Ukraine, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin announced on June 13 at the opening of the 23rd Ramstein-format summit.

The U.S.-led group comprises over 50 countries, including all 31 NATO members, and gathers at the Ramstein Air Base in Germany.

Argentina's Defense Minister Luis Petri is representing the country at the new meeting at the NATO headquarters in Brussels.

"Fortunately, support for Ukraine is growing and not weighing," Austin said.

The partners are expected to discuss the strengthening of Ukraine's air defenses capabilities, including with Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems. The meeting is held amid Kyiv's increasingly dire need for air defenses, facing heavy Russian aerial attacks against cities and the energy grid.

In late May, Argentina joined the international coalition for the return of Ukrainian children abducted by Russia.

According to the reports, Argentina's President Javier Milei may visit Kyiv in June, making it the first visit by a South American leader to Ukraine since the outbreak of the full-scale war.

Read also: Ukrainian survivor of Russian torture files legal complaint in Argentina

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FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE)  A Fresno city councilmember says the citys action against Chief Paco Balderrama highlights discrimination within Fresno City Hall, suggesting during Thursdays council meeting that Fresno applies a double standard for dealing with non-white employees.

If white executive officials and high-ranking employees can engage in extramarital affairs with city employees, why is it a violation when an executive of color makes the same mistake with not employees? asked Councilmember Miguel Arias.

Chief Balderrama investigation: YourCentralValley.coms complete coverage

Arias comments follow revelations about Chief Paco Balderramas inappropriate off-duty relationship. On Wednesday, Chief Balderrama was placed on paid administrative leave.

I feel compelled to address it from my experience, said Arias. Several high-ranking city officials have openly engaged in extramarital affairs with city employees under the chain of command. In those incidents, those officials who happened to be white did not face disciplinary termination.

Arias said as a policymaker, he was told then that such behavior was not a matter for the city and the city had no business looking into the bedrooms of city officials or employees.

I never claimed to be perfect, says Chief Balderrama

Our city has a well-documented track record of not taking personal action against white executive leaders that engage in extramarital affairs with city employees under their command, said Arias.

On June 10, the union representing the Fresno Police Officers Association, said that the trust has been lost between their members and Balderrama. Balderrama responded that same day that he will pay for those mistakes and asked for forgiveness from his staff.

If a double standard is applied for employees of color, I will bring forward a city policy to address how we handle extramarital affairs across all employee groups, said Councilmember Arias.

The City of Fresno did not wish to issue a statement in response to Councilmember Miguel Arias comments.

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 YourCentralValley.com | KSEE24 and CBS47.
A federal grand jury has indicted an Arizona gun vendor for allegedly selling firearms to be used in a mass shooting he was planning in hopes of inciting a race war ahead of the 2024 presidential election, authorities said.

Mark Adams Prieto, 58, of Prescott was indicted Tuesday on charges of firearms trafficking, transfer of a firearm for use in a hate crime and possession of an unregistered firearm, the U.S. attorneys office in Arizona announced.

Prieto was taken into custody in New Mexico on May 14 after allegedly supplying rifles to an informant and an undercover agent while plotting out an attack on African Americans and other minorities at a concert in Atlanta.

According to federal prosecutors, Prieto told the individuals, who he met while selling at gun shows, that he hoped to kill as many people as possible and leave Confederate flags, Ku Klux Klan propaganda and other offensive rhetoric at the scene of the shooting in order to incite retaliation and start a race war.

Mark Adams Prieto, who's seen here at a gun show in Arizona earlier this year according to federal prosecutors, allegedly said he hoped to kill as many people as possible. U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Arizona

In his mind, it had to unequivocally be perceived as race related. He expressed frustration with the direction the country is going and a willingness to do violence to change its direction, prosecutors said in a May 17 court document arguing for his detention pending trial.

Prieto allegedly personally chose the city where the shooting would take place and the specific guns that the trio would use in their attack. When one of the other two participants said they did not have an AR-15 rifle, which was the firearm Prieto wanted everyone to use, Prieto supplied them with one, prosecutors said.

Prieto did not know the individuals were working with the government, but instead believed that they shared his racist beliefs and wanted to commit a mass shooting to incite a race war, the U.S. attorneys office in Arizona said in a statement announcing his indictment.

Prieto was ultimately arrested while driving east from Arizona through New Mexico. In his vehicle authorities said they found seven firearms, which he said he was taking to a gun show in Florida where his mother lives. The government agent and informant said Prieto told them he was heading to Atlanta to do reconnaissance. The concert selected for the attack was scheduled to run from May 14-15.

Authorities searched his Prescott home, which he shared with an elderly man, and recovered approximately 178 firearms. These included some suspected automatic firearms and short-barreled rifles, which are illegal to possess without proper registration, prosecutors said.

In an interview with federal agents, Prieto admitted to planning a mass casualty event in Atlanta but said that it was only a fantasy and something he never would have actually done. He said he planned to call it all off when he regrouped with the two individuals at a gun show in June, authorities said.

Prietos defense attorney, in requesting his pre-trial release last month, argued that the federal government had not presented adequate proof that his plot wasnt more than fantasy or that he is a flight risk or danger to the public. His alleged racist beliefs, even if true, also should not be a basis for denying him bail, they added.

A judge disagreed and ordered Prieto to remain jailed, citing the strong weight of the evidence against him and the lengthy prison sentence he faces if convicted.

Each conviction for firearms trafficking and transfer of a firearm for use in a hate crime carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison. A conviction for possession of an unregistered firearm carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison, the U.S. attorneys office said.

Prietos attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment Thursday.

Related...
Mark Adams Prieto allegedly planned to orchestrate a mass shooting ahead of the presidential election

Getty Stock image of flashing lights on top of police patrol car

Mark Adams Prieto was indicted after he allegedly attempted to incite a race war

The Arizona man was allegedly planning a mass shooting in Atlanta before the upcoming election

He was arrested in May, and indicted by a federal grand jury on Tuesday, June 11

An Arizona man allegedly planned a mass shooting at a May concert in Atlanta with the intent to incite a race war ahead of the presidential election, according to federal authorities.

Mark Adams Prieto, 58, was indicted by a federal grand jury on Tuesday, June 11 on charges of firearms trafficking, transfer of a firearm for use in a hate crime and possession of an unregistered firearm, per a press release from U.S. Attorney's Office, District of Arizona.

The indictment follows the FBIs five-month investigation, which concluded with Prieto's arrest in May. Throughout the investigation, the FBI learned that Prieto allegedly had discussions with two other individuals to devise a plan to commit a mass shooting of African Americans and other minorities to incite a race war prior to the 2024 United States Presidential Election.

The investigation was instigated in October when FBI Phoenix was alerted by a source that an individual  who was later identified as Prieto  allegedly expressed a desire to incite a race war, per the arrest affidavit obtained by PEOPLE.

The source allegedly informed authorities that they spoke with Prieto more than 15 times over three years at various gun shows. Prieto allegedly began to make suspicious and alarming comments as their conversations leaned more political. Per the affidavit, Prieto began advocating for a mass shooting and was specifically targeting Blacks, Jews or Muslims.

In late 2023, Prieto allegedly asked the source if they were ready to kill a bunch of people. His question followed Prietos belief that martial law will be implemented shortly after the 2024 election and that a mass shooting should occur prior.

Related: Texas Man Arrested After Officials Allegedly Intercept His Plans For a Mass Shooting at Walmart

Matti Blume/Wikimedia Commons FBI Police Vehicles at Hoover Building

He was a vendor at gun shows in Prescott, Ariz., and traded firearms from his personal collection. However, he would only conduct cash deals or trades in an effort to evade the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives, per the arrest affidavit. This was allegedly later confirmed through observation with help from the source. Prieto was under FBI surveillance from January to March.

Then, when the surveillance began, on Jan. 21 in Phoenix, Prieto allegedly expressed to the source and an undercover FBI agent that he wanted their assistance in completing a mass shooting targeting African Americans at a rap concert in Atlanta, according to the affidavit.

Getty Stock image of crime scene tape police line do not cross.

Prieto also said that he wanted to target a rap concert because there would be a high concentration of African Americans at the concert, per the affidavit. He allegedly said he planned to leave Confederate flags after the shooting and wanted to show no mercy, no quarter.

He said he wanted to shout whities out here killing, whats we gonna do and KKK all the way, per the affidavit.

He told both the source and undercover agent that the attack was to follow Super Tuesday (March 5, 2024) so that they would know the election candidates, according to the affidavit. He also told both what weapons he planned to use, and suggested the group travel to Atlanta before the plan to store weapons.

Prieto stressed to both that the most important thing was a high body count, per the affidavit.

Getty Police tape night time stock image

Related: School Nurse Charged in Student's Rape Allegedly Planned to 'Start Killing People' in Mass Shooting

In February, Prieto  who was under surveillance  allegedly went to a gun show in Phoenix and asked the source and the undercover agent if they were still going to participate in the mass shooting. The following day, he allegedly sold a firearm to the undercover agent for $2,000.

The following month, on March 23, Prieto told the undercover agent he intended to move forward with the shooting while both were at a gun show in Prescott Valley, Ariz. He said they should not wait until after the election, but rather the rap concert that was going to take May 14 and May 15, or sometime in June or July, per the affidavit. While authorities did not identify whose concert Prieto planned to attack, the two proposed dates coincided with the two nights Bad Bunny was performing.

Then, on March 24, Prieto allegedly sold an AR-15 rifle to the undercover agent for $1,000 and directed him to use it for the attack, the affidavit says.



The following month, at another Prescott Valley gun show, the undercover agent inquired if the attack was still set for May, but Prieto allegedly said he wanted to move it to a later date, per the affidavit.

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On May 14, Prieto was arrested on a New Mexico interstate. At the time of arrest, he allegedly confirmed he knew both the source and the undercover agent and discussed orchestrating a mass shooting in Atlanta. Prieto also admitted he sold an AR-15 to the undercover agent as well as told the agent the weapon would be good for the shooting, per the affidavit.

During the arrest, he had seven firearms in his vehicle and was then taken into federal custody, per the U.S. Attorney's Office press release. After the arrest, authorities received a search warrant at his home and recovered additional firearms, including an unregistered short-barreled rifle, the press release says.



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Dragan Vicentic (center), owner and license holder of Green Springs Medical Marijuana Dispensary in Hot Springs, defends himself before the Arkansas Alcoholic Beverage Control board on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. The board revoked the license after a five-hour hearing discussing several violations. (Tess Vrbin/Arkansas Advocate)

A Hot Springs medical marijuana dispensary became the first in Arkansas to have its license revoked after a nearly five-hour hearing Wednesday.

The board of the states Alcoholic Beverage Control Division voted to uphold Director Christy Bjornsons May 2 decision to revoke Green Springs Medical Marijuana Dispensarys license in light of several violations of the rules for medical marijuana handling and sales.

Green Springs owner Dragan Vicentic appealed Bjornsons decision to the ABC board, allowing his business to remain operational before the hearing. He said Wednesday that he plans to appeal the boards decision to a circuit court judge.

Arkansas voters approved a constitutional amendment in 2016 to legalize marijuana for medicinal use. The state has 37 dispensaries besides Green Springs, which was the second to open in 2019 upon being licensed; Suite 443, also in Hot Springs, was the first.

ABC enforcement agents found that Green Springs sold 1,882 expired products, Bjornson said. Medical marijuana products expire a year after their testing date and lose potency from then on.

Green Springs violations

Bjornson argued that this would negatively impact the health of the dispensaries clients.

At best case, theyre getting ripped off. At worst case, somethings going to happen where theyre at risk of harm, she said. They cannot verify that they are keeping up with their treatment plan the way that theyve been instructed to do by a medical professional.

Bjornsons decision came after an April ABC board hearing substantiated several charges of violations against Green Springs, according to the board order. In addition to the sale of expired products, the dispensarys processing area was unsanitary, a required comprehensive inventory had not been completed, some products were unlabeled and some of the marijuana in the inventory system was unaccounted for in the store.

Vicentic said Wednesday that the inventory issues were a result of human error and that the processing area is rarely used.

ABC enforcement agents Haley Allen, Austin Hodges, Kanoesha Wilson and Blake Miller all testified to the board about the range of findings, mostly resulting from 2023 inspections of the facility.

Miller said he made two undercover purchases at the dispensary last year, yielding an unlabeled bottle of bud and an expired marijuana cartridge.

Green Springs serves more than 20,000 clients throughout Central and Southwest Arkansas. Some clients posted on social media last year that they bought two-year-old products at the dispensary, according to the board order.

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Blatant disregard

After an August inspection, Allen said, she gave Vicentic a list of the expired products she had found at the dispensary and said he was no longer allowed to sell them.

Vicentic signed the document at the time, but on Wednesday he claimed the list was illegible and he could not read it.

The boards order states that after a January inspection, Vicentic admitted to selling over 500 expired items.

He said at the hearing that many of the items in question were within days of expiration but not yet there, so he reduced the prices in order to sell them more quickly. He claimed the discrepancy between what he believed to be the expiration dates and what ABC agents found was due to errors in the states medical marijuana tracking system.

Bjornson said Vicentics testimony was proof that he will lie to your face.

Green Springs Order

We awarded him this license, and at this point hes laughing in our faces because he doesnt care about the regulations of it, she said.

Chip Leibovich, ABCs senior staff attorney, also chided Vicentic for blatant disregard of enforcement agents orders, which he called the biggest violation at hand.

Attorneys from the Hurst Law Group of Hot Springs represented Vicentic. One of them, Justin Hurst, asked Allen if she was aware of any endangerment to Green Springs clients as a result of her inspections.

If we had a recall and something was wrong [with a product], we wouldnt be able to track down what patient that affected, Allen said.

Board member Jamie Anderson asked if ABC agents are only tasked with bringing up issues with medical marijuana products if someone has been harmed by them.

We definitely want to be proactive and make sure nobody is harmed, Allen said.

The ABC board has held eight hearings over medical marijuana violations in the past five years, and four have been about Vicentic and Green Springs, Leibovich said.

According to DFA, Green Springs past violations include:

Failure to maintain accurate personnel records

Failure to maintain video surveillance on the property

Lack of commercial grade locks at the facilities

Improper signage

Other dispensaries have violated rules but have not reached the point where we dont want to work with them anymore or put the entire integrity of the market at stake, Bjornson said.

Purchases at the states dispensaries total $1.1 billion so far in five years, according to the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration last month.

Vicentic said he expects further legal action to keep him in business. He did not comment further on the boards decision.

An appeal to the court system will not delay the impact of the decision, which is that Vicentic has 30 days to sell or dispose of the cannabis at the dispensary, DFA spokesman Scott Hardin said. ABC agents will be able to seize any remaining products after the 30-day deadline.

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The post Arkansas ABC upholds revocation of Hot Springs medical marijuana dispensarys license appeared first on Arkansas Advocate.
WASHINGTON, D.C.  A two-year Senate investigation into youth residential treatment facilities (RTFs) in Arkansas and other states is calling for widespread reform.

The report titled Warehouses of Neglect: How Taxpayers Are Funding Systemic Abuse in Youth Residential Treatment Facilities was released Wednesday. It claims there is a systematic problem with companies operating RTFs often providing substandard care while abusing and neglecting kids.

Arkansas Department of Human Services announces new prevention pilot programs for children and families

Senators instantly condemned the Senate Finance Committee hearing minutes after the report was made public. Disability Rights Arkansas managing attorney Reagan Stanford was called to D.C. to give key testimony.

In facilities across Arkansas, there are countless examples of abuse violence, and neglect, Stanford stated.

The Senate investigation is 135 pages long, and it mentions by name 189 times. Stanford said kids are being raped by peers and by staff members, as well as inappropriately restrained and secluded.

Other witnesses claimed the children aged 21 and younger are often watched by staff without sufficient training and not given individualized special treatment.

We have seen firsthand how deeply flawed the overall RTF model is, the pervasive nature of abuse and neglect, the lack of active treatment, and failure to provide a therapeutic environment, Stanford continued.

The report states large operators of RTFs receive billions of dollars in federal funding, including Medicaid and child welfare dollars.

With its findings, the committee recommends focusing and strengthening the oversight over the facilities and prioritizing spending on community-based behavioral health services as an alternative to placement in RTFs whenever possible and safe.

Committee Chairman, Senator Ron Wyden, D-OR, says legislation in response to the reports findings should be expected this Fall.

KARK asked for comment on the hearing and investigation from each of the 13 RTFs operating within Arkansas. Three responded as of this report.

More than 78,000 Arkansas children dropped from Medicaid this year, forced to find coverage elsewhere

Acadia Healthcare was one of the four large companies specifically investigated. A spokesperson said:

The patient stories highlighted in the Committees report are heartbreaking. Our industry can and must do better, especially given the critical role that residential youth treatment centers have in addressing our nations behavioral health crisis. At Acadia, we are committed to doing everything in our power to ensure that all patients in Acadias care, including those in Arkansas, receive the support and compassionate treatment they deserve. Thousands of youths have been successfully discharged from Acadias facilities with great outcomes.

Acadia is at the forefront of our industry in initiatives that improve care. We have been deploying new talent, technology, clinical protocols, and training across all of our service lines for some time to drive forward our culture of caring. As a leader in our industry, we will continue to collaborate with policymakers, patient advocates and other industry stakeholders to achieve the absolute best care for our patients. Additionally, please note that the report reviews historical incidents going back nearly five years or more that were publicly reported on at the time. These facilities are licensed, accredited and in good standing.

The Centers which operates RTFs in Little Rock and Monticello said:

We are aware a Senate hearing took place but have not had an opportunity to review the testimony. The Centers is pleased to learn that Congress is addressing adolescent behavioral healthcare. It has too often been ignored. The recent explosion in patients seeking treatment has strained the system. We encourage Congress and state policymakers to prioritize the issue of behavioral healthcare and to fund programs to a level that ensures patient safety and well-being. Bill Paschall, Spokesperson, The Centers

Another RTF operating in Little Roc, Methodist Family Health sent this statement:

We are aware of todays hearing. As discussed in that hearing, every PRTF provider in the state is included in DRAs database. Thank you for reaching out. Kelli Reep, Methodist Family Health

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 KARK.
An Enterprise woman serving as a public affairs specialist for the United States Army Aviation Center of Excellence has earned the Moss-Holland Civilian Writer of the Year Award.

Kelly Pate Morris is the winner of the Army-level award and was recognized recently in a ceremony hosted by USAACE and Fort Novosel Commanding General Maj. Gen. Michael McCurry.

Morris was also presented the Honorable Order of Saint Gabriel award for public affairs/ communication excellence and professionalism and a Civilian Meritorious Service Commendation Medal.

The Writer of the Year Award, named after Public Affairs Specialists John Moss and Peggy Holland killed in the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City in 1995, is earned based on a portfolio of stories submitted through the Defense Visual Information Distribution Service.

The daughter of the late Air Force Staff Sgt. Herman D. Pate placed first at U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command level, then at Army level in spring of 2023. Competition at the Army level is stiff and used a rigorous grading matrix, said USAACE Public Affairs Officer Lt. Col. Andy Thaggard.

Morriss competition portfolio consisted of five stories, each judged by a Department of the Army Office of Chief of Public Affairs panel, said Thaggard. Kelly Morris writing skills are excellent, as adjudicated by an expert panel. Her stories routinely result in favorable publicity for the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence, and the Army Aviation soldiers, and Army civilians featured.

The Chief of Army Public Affairs designated Saint Gabriel as the patron saint of Army Public Affairs in 2014, said Thaggard. The Military Order of Saint Gabriel programs focus is to recognize those individuals who have made significant contributions to the U.S. Army Public Affairs community and practice.

The Honorable Order of Saint Gabriel is bestowed upon eligible individuals who have served the U.S. Army Public Affairs community with honor and selflessness, Thaggard said. Ms. Morris consistently tells the soldiers stories through her unique lens that reflects a love of Army Aviation and Army Aviation soldiers. Shes worked hard to improve her craft, justly earning this outstanding recognition for her writing talent.

Morris was awarded the Honorable Order of Saint Gabriel partially for earning the 2022 Moss-Holland Civilian Writer of the Year, Thaggard said. But primarily she earned it because she is a great speech writer and theres not an Army competition for this skill.

Many books are written on how to write effective speeches, but she could certainly write her own. Her works are well researched, appropriately localized, and in the tenor or tone and voice of the speaker. Again, her work reflects her love of Army Aviation and Army Aviation soldierspast and present.

Morris was also presented the Commanders Award for Civilian Service for exceptional achievement. Your excellent writing skills have highlighted our greatest assetsour Army Aviation soldiers, civilians and families, said McCurry as he presented the award to Morris. These actions reflect great credit upon you, the USAACE Public Affairs Directorate, the U.S. Army Aviation Center of Excellence, the Department of the Army and the Federal Service.

Morris began her Army civilian career in December 2006 through the Army Fellows Program, serving one year at Fort Cavazos, Texas, before graduating from the Public Affairs Officer Qualification Course at the Defense Information School at Fort Meade, Md., and interning at the Office of the Chief of Public Affairs.

Morris has been assigned to the Army Aviation Center since November 2009. She and her husband, Phillip E. Morris, reside in Enterprise.
Little Rock attorney Abtin Mehdizadegan responds to legislators' questions about his contract with the Arkansas Board of Corrections during a Joint Performance Review Committee hearing on Thursday, April 4, 2024. (Screenshot from Arkansas Legislature live feed)

This story was updated Friday, June 14, 2024 at 10:52 a.m.

An Arkansas legislative panel has asked the states nonpartisan auditing body to look into a contract between the Board of Corrections and attorney Abtin Mehdizadegan.

The Legislative Joint Auditing Committees executive committee approved the proposal from Rep. Jeff Wardlaw, R-Hermitage, on Thursday with no dissent. The full committee approved it Friday with no dissent or discussion.

The board hired Mehdizadegan in a three-minute public meeting after a half-hour executive session in December.

Lawmakers have taken issue with the lack of a formal bid process for the contract and the boards lack of public discussion and votes on the agreement. The board has argued that its constitutional independence may exempt it from state procurement law.

Mehdizadegan has been representing the Board of Corrections in both its legal challenge against two 2023 state laws and Attorney General Tim Griffins suit against the board for allegedly violating the Freedom of Information Act in Mehdizadegans hiring.

In March, the board asked the Arkansas Legislative Council for an emergency, retroactive appropriation of $207,000 to pay Mehdizadegan for his work on both cases.

The Joint Performance Review Committee spent three April meetings questioning Mehdizadegan, several board members and Department of Corrections staff about Mehdizadegans hiring and contract. The committee voted to recommend that the Legislative Council not review the contract.

Joint Performance Review also voted to make the following statements to the council that:

The Board of Corrections disregarded government transparency laws, including the Arkansas Freedom of Information Act.

The board did not have the financial or statutory authority to hire Mehdizadegan.

Board members acknowledged to the committee their lack of process for board meetings and procurement.

The committees investigation yielded perceived and discussed violations of law.

The Department of Corrections pulled Mehdizadegans contract from the Legislative Councils agenda in March, so the council has not taken any action on the contract or JPRs recommendation, said Wardlaw, the councils House chair.

The Legislative Joint Auditing Executive Committee tailored Thursdays audit request to exclude anything pertaining to ongoing litigation at the advice of Emily White, Arkansas Legislative Audits legal counsel.

There are some things we can look at  such as the facts, how the contract was filed and things of that nature, but issuing those ultimate opinions about whether or not it was lawful and whether or not the board had the authority to hire the lawyer  thats ultimately a decision for the appellate court, White said.

Griffins office usually represents state agencies in legal cases, but Arkansas law allows special counsel to be appointed in disputes between the attorney general and constitutional officers.

The Board of Corrections has been embroiled in a dispute since November with Griffin, Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders and former Corrections Secretary Joe Profiri over who has ultimate authority over Arkansas prison system.

The two 2023 laws in question in one of the lawsuits  Act 185 and Sections 79 and 89 of Act 659  removed the corrections secretary, director of correction and director of community corrections from the boards purview. The board took the stance that these laws violate Amendment 33 of the Arkansas Constitution, which grants some independence to the boards of state universities and corrections.

Board Chairman Benny Magness wrote a letter to Sanders in November stating that he believed Profiri was violating the amendment. Sanders did not respond, and she directed Profiri in December to move ahead with parts of a temporary prison expansion without board approval, which made the need to hire outside counsel an emergency, board Secretary Lee Watson told lawmakers on April 4.

Sanders order to Profiri gave the board no time to go through the states procurement process, which includes requests for qualifications and bids from multiple candidates, Watson and Mehdizadegan both testified.

Pulaski County Circuit Judge Patricia James blocked the two laws in January, and Pulaski County Circuit Judge Tim Fox dismissed the FOIA suit later that month. Both decisions have been appealed.

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The post UPDATED: Arkansas lawmakers approve audit into Corrections Boards hiring of outside counsel appeared first on Arkansas Advocate.
Armenia will leave a Russia-led military alliance, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan confirmed Wednesday, accusing members of the bloc of plotting with bitter rival Azerbaijan to start a war against them.

Pashinyan has for months accused the Kremlins Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) of failing to protect Armenia from resurgent Azerbaijani aggression, threatening to leave the bloc if Moscow did not provide greater assurances and trying to cleave more closely to the United States and European Union.

Since the collapse of the Soviet Union, Armenia and Azerbaijan have fought two wars over the breakaway Nagorno-Karabakh region, which Azerbaijan reclaimed in full by force in September. Russia has traditionally allied with Armenia, but their relations have soured in recent months while Moscows ties to Azerbaijan have deepened.

Speaking to parliamentarians in the capital Yerevan, Pashinyan said his country had frozen its participation in the CSTO and would leave the bloc at a time of Armenias choosing.

We will decide when we leave, but we will not go back, Pashinyan was quoted in state media Armenpress as saying. It turned out that members of the alliance are not fulfilling their contractual obligations, but are planning a war with Azerbaijan against us.

Pashinyan stopped short of naming the accused countries in the bloc, which includes Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan, and was founded in 1992 as the Soviet Union crumbled.

Pashinyan confirmed to lawmakers that Armenia will withdraw from the Russia-led military alliance. - Karen Minasyan/AFP/Getty Images

The rupture in Armenias relations with Russia comes after Azerbaijan retook Nagorno-Karabakh in a one-day war in September, sparking an exodus of virtually all of the Caucasian enclaves ethnic Armenian population, despite the presence there of Russian peacekeepers.

Several Karabakh Armenians told CNN at the time that they felt betrayed by Russian peacekeepers who did nothing to protect them, leaving them no choice but to abandon their homes and flee to Armenia proper. As more than 100,000 people took to the only road out of Karabakh, a billboard displaying the face of Russian President Vladimir Putin watched down over them.

Some 2,000 Russian peacekeepers had deployed to Karabakh after a 44-day war in 2020, when Azerbaijan retook about a third of the enclave, in an offensive halted only by a Moscow-brokered ceasefire  which Azerbaijan would eventually breach three years later.

When Russias security guarantees proved hollow and Western support no more than rhetorical, Pashinyan  fearing an all-out war with Azerbaijan  declined to send Armenian military support to Karabakh, leaving the enclaves troops vastly outnumbered and with little choice but to surrender swiftly.

Azerbaijans President Ilham Aliyev had described retaking Karabakh as the sacred goal of his presidency. Despite international condemnation of the exodus of Karabakh Armenians, which officials in Yerevan said amounted to ethnic cleansing, there was hope that this was the tragic price of putting an end to one of the worlds most protracted conflicts.

But a formal peace treaty has not been signed despite months of negotiations. In April, however, Armenia agreed to return four border villages to Azerbaijan, which both countries described as a major step toward a peace deal.

Buoyed by recent progress, Pashinyan said Wednesday that Armenia is ready to sign a peace agreement within a month, describing the terms of the deal as fully developed and ready to be finalized.

Russian peacekeepers, pictured here in Nagorno-Karabakh in October 2023, withdrew from the enclave on Wednesday. - AFP/Getty Images

But attempting to normalizing ties with Azerbaijan has stoked discontent at home, as protesters have accused Pashinyan of making unacceptable land concessions to Aliyev. Azerbaijan has also demanded that Armenia change its constitution to remove a reference to Karabakh independence, but Pashinyan has so far resisted the calls.

In scenes reminiscent of those that propelled Pashinyan to power in 2018, protests erupted outside the parliament in Yerevan on Wednesday. Videos showed police using stun grenades to repel the crowds. More than 100 police officers and civilians were injured, Armenpress reported.

The protests have been spearheaded by Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan, who has for months called for Pashinyans resignation. The problem is very simple: this man must leave, there is no other option, Galstanyan wrote Wednesday on social media.

While Pashinyan has not yet specified when Armenia will leave the CSTO, the last of the Russian peacekeepers who had been deployed to Karabakh completed their withdrawal on Wednesday, Azerbaijans defense ministry said.

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An Army Reserve colonel who lied about his living situation to receive lodging expenses pled guilty to defrauding the Army on Tuesday.

Col. Reece Dennis Roberts, 53, admitted in a Utah federal courtroom to making a fraudulent claim against the United States, conspiracy to defraud the United States, theft of government property, and conspiracy to commit money laundering.

He pleaded guilty to illegally obtaining more than $60,000 after deceiving his way into temporary change of station entitlements that are intended to assist individuals who have to travel lengthier distances to reach their military base.

When a soldier is required to temporarily change their station, if their home is outside commuting distance from their military base, then they are entitled to a larger allowance for meals and room and board than those who live within commuting distance, according to court documents.

Roberts served on active duty from June 2020 to July 2021 at Fort Douglas, Utah, with the 76 Operational Response Command, the U.S. Army Reserves Center for Defense Support of Civilian Authorities.

He listed his primary address as an out-of-state one in a bid to maximize the amount of financial benefits he could get out of the temporary change of station entitlement program, court documents say.

Roberts qualified for a family separation allowance as a result of the out-of-state residence, as it allowed him to claim that his temporary change of station was separating him from his familial dependents.

He also forged lease agreements for a house he never lived in and received $3,700 per month in lodging reimbursements, according to the Department of Justice.

He allegedly recruited another individual to take part in the scheme so that the individual could receive the rent payments for the property Roberts claimed he was living in, only to deposit it back into his bank account using Venmo, the Justice Department said in a press release.

This type of deceit and misconduct is unacceptable for service members at any rank, but it is particularly disheartening when committed by a field grade officer during a national emergency, said U.S. Attorney Trina A. Higgins of the District of Utah in a statement provided to the Department of Justice.

Roberts is set to be sentenced on Aug. 29, 2024.

The Department of Defense Office of Inspector General and U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division investigated the case.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)  A man has been arrested for his alleged role in a rape nearly 30 years ago.

According to Franklin County Prosecutor Gary Tyack, Anthony Shinaul, 53, of Columbus, was charged Wednesday with aggravated burglary, kidnapping, and three counts of rape.

Canal Winchester man pleads guilty to raping, molesting girls

A 20-year-old woman was raped in her Columbus home in July 1994, Tyacks office said, but investigators were never able to identify a suspect.

In 2013, with Ohios 20-year statute of limitations for sex crimes approaching, prosecutors filed an indictment using a placeholder name and DNA profile created from evidence collected at the scene, Tyack said in a statement. This allowed the case to remain open until a suspect could be identified.

That indictment was amended this month when Shinauls DNA was allegedly matched to the profile on record.

Former Columbus officer pleads guilty to stealing cocaine from crime scene

Its been 30 years since this crime was committed, and we finally have the chance to bring the perpetrator to justice, Anthony Pierson, deputy chief counsel for the prosecutors office, said in a press release. I am thankful to our investigative team for using DNA technology to hold this defendant accountable for his crimes.

Online court records do not yet list filings in this case.

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 NBC4 WCMH-TV.
(KRON)  Approximately 20 robbers armed with hammers entered a Sunnyvale jewelry store Wednesday afternoon and began smashing display cases and stealing merchandise, according to the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety.

The incident occurred at around 1:27 p.m. at PNG Jewelers on 791 E. El Camino Real. The alleged robbers fled the business in multiple vehicles before authorities arrived.

Video from Sunnyvale DPS (above) shows the suspects blitzing the jewelry store.

Two suspect vehicles were located by Sunnyvale officers and pursuits started when the vehicles evaded traffic enforcement stops, authorities said. On Highway 101 toward the San Francisco Peninsula, officers lost sight of the first suspect vehicle and abandoned the chase.

The alleged robbers inside the second vehicle threw stolen jewelry out onto the roadway as the pursuit continued on Highway 101, Sunnyvale DPS said. Officers lost sight of the second vehicle and the chase was ended.

Officers from outside agencies located the second suspect vehicle abandoned on Highway 101 near Whipple Avenue in Redwood City, according to Sunnyvale DPS. Five suspects fled from the vehicle on foot across the highway and into the nearby neighborhood.

Berkeley car thieves target Honda models, steal airbags

Four of the robbery suspects were found and arrested near Industrial Road and Britan Avenue in San Carlos. The fifth robbery suspect was found nearby and arrested with the assistance of a Sunnyvale DPS K-9, authorities said.

The arrested suspects, identified as Tonga Latu, Tavake Esafe, Ofa Ahomana, Kilifi Leaaetoa and Afuhia Lavakeiaho, were booked into the Santa Clara County jail for offenses including:

Armed robbery

Felony vehicle evasion

Resisting arrest

Burglary

Conspiracy to commit a crime

Vandalism

Possession of burglary tools

Outstanding warrants

Sunnyvale DPS said some of the stolen jewelry was recovered, though the total value of merchandise taken from the business is still unknown.

Investigators are working to determine if the Wednesday incident is connected to another jewelry store robbery involving multiple suspects that took place in Sunnyvale in May.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Thomas McKenzie at (408)-730-7110.

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 KRON4.
A temporary art display on the U.S.-Mexico border is bringing to light the plight of species whose movement has been obstructed by the border wall.

What's happening?

Artist Lauren Strohacker, backed by the support of environmental nonprofits, has created a temporary art installation in the border town of Nogales, Arizona, Inside Climate News reported. Here, images of native animals like the jaguar and Mexican gray wolf have been projected onto the border wall to bring attention to how the structure is disrupting their habitat by blocking passage.

"This isn't about making beautiful art," Strohacker told the publication. "It's about radicalizing people to what this wall does, what it doesn't do, what people say it does, and that it's not a solution to whatever we consider to be problems. And it's causing more and more problems for those communities  both human and nonhuman  in the borderlands."

Why is this message important?

The borderlands region is home to imperiled species like the jaguar, ocelot, Sonoran pronghorn, Mexican gray wolf, Peninsular bighorn sheep, and a subspecies of ferruginous pygmy-owl found nowhere else in the United States, according to Defenders of Wildlife.

The organization adds that the survival of these animals depends on habitat connectivity and their ability to migrate across a vast network of national parks, monuments, wildlife refuges, national forests, national wilderness areas, and preserves in both countries.

However, barriers like the wall can prevent these animals from doing so, impeding their ability to find food, water, and potential mates. In Nogales, for instance, the wall towers about 20 feet high with steel bollards filled with concrete and wrapped in barbed wire.

"The newer border wall design geared to try to keep every single thing out  really has reduced the ability of animals, particularly large animals, to get through the fence just because there's not as much space in between the slats," Jesse Alston, who is an assistant professor at the University of Arizona's School of Natural Resources and the Environment, told Inside Climate News.

The problem is only compounded by a warming world. For instance, warmer temperatures could push some species like jaguars north, only to find that they're at the end of the road.

These challenges come amid a global biodiversity crisis  in fact, we are losing species at a rate "between 1,000 and 10,000 times higher than the natural extinction rate," according to the World Wildlife Fund.

This is troubling for many reasons. At its most basic, having a wide range of animals helps support healthy ecosystems that provide us fresh air, food, and water. Iconic animals like jaguars and wolves are also important to many cultures. For instance, ancestral communities across the Americas revere jaguars, and many include them in their symbolism and stories.

What's being done about habitat connectivity at the border?

In addition to public awareness campaigns like the recent art installations, nonprofit environmental groups like Defenders of Wildlife have been fighting against the wall for years. For instance, in 2007, they won an injunction to stop the George Bush administration from building a wall in the San Pedro River National Riparian Conservation Area in Arizona.

Groups are also advocating for the mitigation of damage due to the wall's construction and the reestablishment of critical wildlife movement routes.

You can help minimize climate-related impacts to wildlife by voting for environmentally-minded politicians.

You can also reduce the amount of planet-warming pollution you produce by changing the way you get around. Some options include riding your bike more often, taking public transit, making sure your car is running as efficiently as possible, and making your next car an electric vehicle.

Join our free newsletter for cool news and cool tips that make it easy to help yourself while helping the planet.
ASHEVILLE - An over 15-year-old plan to bring an urban village to Montford has new life after a Jackson-county based developer submitted an amendment to the Montford Common master plan. The amendment, if approved, would expand residential offerings and rebrand the project as "Sanctuary Asheville," according to development documents submitted to the city June 5.

The view of the proposed "Sanctuary Asheville" development off of Hill Street, near Isaac Dickson Elementary School.

The developer for the site is pitching an amended master plan that envisions an "open urban oasis with a modern mountain, organic attitude, exemplifying responsible growth," according to city development documents.

Development documents indicate the developer plans to increase residential units from 309 to 377 by cutting commercial space at the location and removing the previously planned mixed-use, single-family development.

The Montford Common project fell through in the early 2010s after developers lost the property in a foreclosure auction, the Citizen Times reported in 2012.

Between the master plan's approval and the new amendment, the site may also see other projects, among them a Duke Substation on the property.

Duke Energy sold the property on the site for $6.5 million to Blue Ridge Views NC LLC in July 2023.

Derek Allen, an Asheville-based land use attorney is representing B Smart Development on the project. Allen said the site had already seen one master plan amendment before the original plan went belly-up in the early 2010s and the amendment comes as Asheville's needs for more housing have changed.

"We need a lot of residential," Allen said, "but we need almost no office space."

Alongside the 377 residential units, Sanctuary has proposed to bring a "grocer/cafe" along Hill Street and retail along Michael Street, according to development documents. Other details include that two residential buildings, the "Forest West" and "Forest East" buildings, would be oriented around "park space."

The "East Building," adjacent to a series of homes and Holcombe & McGrath Independent Financial Advisors, would also include retail space, office space and a street level restaurant. Near Isaac Dickson Elementary School, trees would be added as a barrier between the school and the "West Building," which would include retail, a "grocer/cafe" and residential space.

Development documents also indicate the project would pivot from its originally proposed early-20th century style to a series of six modernized multi-story buildings.

Allen said the change in style and type of development is indented to reflect its location.

"If this project were adjacent to historic Montford homes, that might be one thing, but it's not. It's adjacent to the newly constructed Isaac Dickson," Allen said, who also noted the Asheville Chamber of Commerce building doesn't look like historic Montford and the end goal is to "bridge" downtown and Montford through the development.

The view of the proposed "Sanctuary Asheville" development from Michael Street. The development is proposed for a lot near Isaac Dickson Elementary School in Montford.

In a June 4 press release about the amendment, BSmart Development founder Barbara Salk highlighted that the new plan would maintain more trees on the development site, rather than a parking lot and massive, mixed-commercial and retail building. Though B Smart is developing the property, the company owning the property is Blue Ridge Views NC LLC, a Florida-based company that is half owned by BSmart and the Florida-based Greenwood Sanctuary LLC.

"Keeping the forest will provide a unique natural buffer for the Montford neighborhood and will allow us to provide connectivity for the greenways that have been planned for some time," Salk wrote.

A map of the proposed "Sanctuary Asheville" development off of Hill Street near Isaac Dickson Elementary School.

The area is currently zoned for "Urban Village District," under the city of Asheville's development code.

The zoning-type is "established to create mixed use development that is economically vital, pedestrian-oriented and contributes to the place-making character of the built environment," according to Asheville's Unified Development Ordinance.

City Council will review any revisions to an Urban Village District master plan that increases the overall development density or changes the proposed mix of uses in any category by 25% or more, according to the city of Asheville UDO. The current plan indicates commercial and office uses would decrease by 61% and 93%, respectively. Currently, the development is in the "pre-application" process with the city of Asheville.

City spokesperson Kim Miller said the project application "will be handled similarly to that of a conditional zoning, which requires advisory review by Planning & Zoning Commission with final decision making by City Council in a legislative hearing."

The concept of Sanctuary Asheville is to create a nature-centered project that will integrate natural open space within an urban environment. We can build the existing Master Plan, but I think our updated version is a better fit for the City and the neighborhood," Salk wrote in the June 4 release.

More: Asheville considers $269K contract for Urban Forest Master Plan; Who was selected?

More: In Asheville, a land-use YouTuber makes waves advocating for more housing, safer roads

Will Hofmann is the Growth and Development Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Got a tip? Email him at WHofmann@citizentimes.com. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Former Montford Common urban village project revived with new plans
ASHEVILLE - A juvenile pleaded guilty in Buncombe County Superior Court June 11, nearly one year after shots he fired left a 14- and 15-year-old with serious gunshot wounds at the end of Asheville's Juneteenth Festival in Pack Square Park.

Ja'Woun De'Shun Hackett, 17, of Asheville, pleaded guilty to two counts of felony assault with a deadly weapon inflicting serious injury, one count of felony possession of a stolen firearm and one count of possession of a handgun by a minor, according to a news release from District Attorney Todd Williams' Office. The case was originally in juvenile court but was indicted to Superior Court in September  while Hackett was still 16  to be prosecuted as an adult.

At 8:51 p.m. on June 17, 2023, a young male  later identified as Hackett  wearing a red jacket, black ski mask and a fanny pack across his chest, shot two juveniles with a two-toned silver and black pistol in Pack Square Park, in front of the Buncombe County Courthouse, the release said. Hackett was 16 years old at the time.

A shooting June 17 during Asheville's Juneteenth Festival at Pack Square Park downtown prompted the cancellation of official festival events planned for June 18.

Asheville Police Department officers, whose headquarters are located next to the park, "responded immediately and took Hackett into custody minutes after the shooting," the release said. He was wearing the same clothes described by witnesses, and a two-toned silver and black 9 mm handgun was found in the bushes nearby.

Investigators later found social media videos of a fight between the victims and Hackett, who is seen "drawing" a two-toned handgun, according to the release.

Forensic evaluation of the handgun matches a gun stolen from an unsecured vehicle in Macon County on Nov. 11, 2022, though the DA's Office did not specify how Hackett ended up with the firearm. Law enforcement and community officials who held a gun safety event at this same park June 7 said improperly stored guns is a major factor in how youths are getting their hands on firearms and contributing to a large increase in youth gun violence seen in Buncombe County.

More: Minor who shot AR-15 into homes, seriously injuring Asheville restaurant worker sentenced

More: Shooting at Asheville Juneteenth Festival cancels 2nd day at Pack Square; suspect charged

Why was a 16-year-old prosecuted as an adult?

North Carolina used to be the only state to automatically prosecute juveniles as adults beginning at age 16. That's before the General Assembly enacted the Juvenile Justice Reinvestment Act, or "Raise the Age," in 2017, according to the UNC School of Government. The act raised the age of criminal responsibility to 18, meaning most minors must be prosecuted in juvenile court, barring a few exceptions.

However, the act stipulated that all 16- and 17-year-olds charged with Class A through C felonies must be transferred to Superior Court after starting in juvenile court. When he was indicted, Hackett faced a Class C felony of assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill inflicting serious injury. Class D and E felonies can be transferred at the district attorney's discretion, according to lawyers with the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina.

The time in juvenile court gives prosecutors the option to reduce charges, or choose to indict D and E felonies, based on additional evidence before the juvenile is sent to be prosecuted as an adult after an indictment or probable cause hearing, according to UNC School of Government.

But all this may soon be changing based on a bill currently sitting on Gov. Roy Cooper's desk, spokesperson Keisha Williams with N.C. ACLU said. House Bill 834, also called "Juvenile Justice Modifications," would automatically place 16- and 17-year-olds facing A through E felonies in adult court, with the option for D and E felonies to be transferred to juvenile court. Cooper has until June 16 to veto or sign the bill into law, Williams said.

"Prosecuting children as adults causes significant harm to young people and does nothing to address the underlying causes of youth crime," Liz Barber, N.C. ACLU's policy and advocacy director, wrote in a letter to Cooper asking him to veto the bill.

'She saved your life': Corrections officer given medal of honor, juvenile sentenced

The juvenile victims in the June 2023 shooting suffered serious injuries, according to previous Citizen Times reporting. Kalla Hughley, a probation and parole officer with the N.C. Division of Adult Corrections, was at the Juneteenth event with her family and saw the shooting, the release said.

She immediately aided the "more seriously wounded juvenile victim," applying a temporary tourniquet to the victim's leg and pressure to the wound while keeping the victim calm until emergency medical responders arrived. Both juveniles were then transferred to Mission Hospital and made a full recovery, according to the release.

Hughley's quick response was recognized by receiving the Bronze Medal of Honor by One Voice United for her actions in saving the injured juvenile.

Kalla Hughley, a probation and parole officer with N.C. Division of Adult Corrections, was given the Bronze Medal of Honor by One Voice United for her quick response when two juveniles were shot in Pack Square Park.

"Not only did she save the victims' lives, she saved yours," visiting Superior Court Judge Joseph N. Crosswhite told Hackett in court, according to the DA's Office.

"If it were not for Hughleys life-saving assistance, Hackett could well have been charged and convicted of first-degree murder and might have been sentenced to life without parole," the release said.

The Citizen Times reached out to Hackett's family.

More: Asheville area youth gun violence up 255%: Community holds gun safety event downtown

Crosswhite sentenced Hackett to two consecutive felony sentences, the first being an active sentence of 20 to 36 months, or up to three years, in N.C. State Prisons, according to the release. The second sentence is a three-year supervised probationary term. If Hackett violates the probation conditions, he can be given a suspended prison term of 25 to 42 months, or up to 3.5 years in prison.

Hackett was transferred to the Foothills Correctional Institution in Morganton on June 11 and placed with the regular population in the prison, according to the N.C. Department of Adult Corrections offender locator.

"I gave a lot of thought to the structure of this plea, and it is designed with my sincere hope and that of the State that upon his release from custody, Mr. Hackett will receive the structure, education, and support that he needs to never again be involved in the criminal justice system, Katie Kurdys, the assistant district attorney prosecuting the case, said.

Hackett must serve 100 hours of community service during probation, with at least 25 of those being through local organizations dedicated to juvenile violence intervention. Crosswhite also ordered Hackett to wear an electronic monitor for 160 days, complete his graduate equivalency diploma and have no contact with the victims, the release said.

Ryley Ober is the Public Safety Reporter for Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA Today Network. Email her at rober@gannett.com and follow her on Twitter @ryleyober

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville's Juneteenth festival shooting: teenager sentenced as adult
Im proud of every American, Texas GOP Senator Ted Cruz replied, trying to be punny, when I asked if he celebrates Pride Month. Thats none of your damn business, he shot back when I asked if his friends or family celebrate Pride.

Mitt Romney was more forthcoming. Of course, said Utahs retiring senior senator and former GOP presidential nominee: He has gay friends and family. But when I asked if hell celebrate Pride with them, he laughed and said, Ah, no. In 2023, a whopping 86 percent of Utahns polled supported LGBTQ nondiscrimination policies.

The New Republic asked 14 GOP senators this week about LGBTQ Pride Month. None had any plans to celebrate the movement for equality that began in New York City with the Stonewall uprising of 1969 and has become, over the decades, an audacious global street carnival honoring queer liberation in major cities around the world.

In 1982, Wisconsin became the first state to pass a statewide anti-discrimination law that included sexual orientation, an achievement that Ron Johnson, the states junior senator, didnt mention when I asked him about Pride Month.

Is Pride a positive human problem? Ron Johnson said under his breath after an awkward pause. Dumbfounded, I began to repeat the question, but he interrupted. Pride comes before the fall, said Johnson, more loudlyif also more crypticallythis time, before stepping into an elevator with Rick Scott, Floridas junior senator.

I did quickly get to ask my question of Scott, who might be the next Republican Senate leader. No, not really, he said. The Sunshine State didnt legalize same-sex marriage until 2015. Florida still has no statewide laws to explicitly protect LGBTQ residents from discrimination. I asked Marco Rubio, the states senior senator, if Pride is a big deal in Florida. Not to me, it isnt, said Rubio, who is on Donald Trumps veep short list.

The best thing I can do to help Pride is end the war in Gaza, said Senator Lindsey Graham, a South Carolina Republican, as he walked into the Senate chamber. In 2022, Graham voted against the Respect for Marriage Act, which protects same-sex and interracial marriage. South Carolina remains among the worst states for the LGBTQ+ community, according to a new report by Out Leadership.

Neither Senator Susan Collins of Maine nor Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina had plans to celebrate Pride, but both said they were proud of their part in repealing the Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, which had outlawed same-sex unions since it was signed into law under President Bill Clinton in 1996. DOMA was repealed by the Respect for Marriage Act, signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2022. Twelve Republican Senators voted for the repeal, including Todd Young of Indiana.

I support life, said Young when asked about his Pride Month plans in a Senate hallway. The senator stopped walking after considering his response, then returned to confront me about whether I celebrate Pride. I dont go out much anymore, I told Young, which is true. But you dont have a problem with it, right? said Young, looking me dead in the eye. None, I replied. Well good, said Young as he turned and walked away. Just checking, he added over his shoulder. The Out Leadership report lists the Hoosier State as high risk for those in the LGBTQ community.

Senator Eric Schmitt of Missouri had no plans of his own to celebrate Pride, he said, but he was familiar with festivities in St. Louis. I think down on Cherokee Street they got something going on, he said. In 2023, Missouri Attorney General Andew Bailey promulgated an emergency resolution limiting gender-affirming care in the state. The resolution was eventually blocked in court. As Missouris attorney general in 2019, Schmitt argued that the 1964 Civil Rights Act does not include protections for transgender people.

Josh Hawley, Missouris senior senator, introduced a bill that would allow parents to sue clinics that provide trans health care, which he said would be his priority next year if Republicans control all branches of government. Im not a big Pride Month supporter or fan, said Hawley. I just think this idea that were supposed toespecially with the trans pieceI mean, now were being told that men can get pregnant. Our kids are being told in schools, often behind their parents backs, that if theyre a boy, they should be a girl.

Log Cabin Republicans, a group representing LGBT conservatives and straight allies, wouldnt say if any congressional Republicans celebrate Pride this year. None of the Republicans interviewed for this article had any plans to celebrate Pride.

Meanwhile, Democrats have been steadfast in condemning the GOPs culture war on LGBTQ Americans, especially trans folk. The targeting of LGBT and trans communities specifically has been extremely concerning, Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez told The New Republic last March. Its something were going to have to figure out and use every opportunity that we have in order to defend these folks. Representative Maxwell Frost agrees. They cant do it alone, he said of defending trans people. It has to be all of us. Like with any marginalized community, you cant just leave it up to that community. It has to be every single one of us pushing back every single day.
GENEVA (AP)  The head of the U.N. refugee agency said Thursday he understands that the Biden administration enacted new restrictions on asylum-seekers entering the United States, but cautioned that some aspects of the executive order may violate refugee protection required under international law.

Filippo Grandi, the U.N. high commissioner for refugees, spoke to The Associated Press as his agency issued its annual Global Trends report for 2023.

The UNHCR report found that the cumulative number of people who have been subjected to forced displacement rose to 120 million last year  6 million more than in the year before. The refugee agency noted that the total count was roughly equivalent to the entire population of Japan.

The report found that three-fourths of the people who were forcibly displaced  including both refugees driven abroad and people displaced inside their own countries  lived in poor or middle-income countries. Grandi insisted this was a sign of how migrant and refugee flows were not just an issue for the rich world.

He lamented that crises in Africa have been largely overlooked, particularly in Sudan, where some 10.8 million were displaced at the end of last year, after conflict erupted between forces loyal to rival generals in April 2023.

Grandi said the worlds focus on crises faced by refugees and internally displaced people has largely centered on the Palestinian territory of Gaza  where a devastating and deadly war erupted in October last year  and Ukraine, which has been saddled by Russias invasion since February 2022.

He lamented how the world has largely overlooked the refugee crisis spawned by the war in Sudan.

The United States, meanwhile, has faced the most complex challenge when it comes to refugees of any country in the developed world, Grandi said  alluding to an influx across the U.S.-Mexican border.

He criticized the Biden administration's plans to enact new restrictions on migrants seeking asylum at the border  seen by some as a political maneuver ahead of national elections in November  as a possible violation of international humanitarian law. But he acknowledged that the administration's ambitions to resettle some 125,000 refugees in the U.S. amounted to a very shining example of U.S. generosity.

In the U.S. on Wednesday, a coalition of immigrant advocacy groups sued the administration over the recent directive on asylum claims at the southern border, saying it differs little from a similar move by the Trump administration that was blocked by the courts.

Under pressure from the U.S. government, Mexico has stepped up arrests to keep migrants from reaching the U.S. border. Mexico sends migrants back south on buses and releases them  a tactic migrant advocates say is intended to exhaust their resources. But it also exposes them to repeated extortion from authorities and kidnapping by criminal groups.

The UNHCR report also highlighted difficulties faced by refugees and internally displaced people amid conflict in countries like Congo and Myanmar, and noted that Syria remains the world's largest displacement crisis, with nearly 14 million people forcibly displaced both inside the country and abroad.
The Supreme Court of Georgia chose to disbar an Atlanta-based attorney as punishment for using a clients funds for personal gain.

While now-former attorney Diana McDonald was not prosecuted for fraud, the courts investigation into her actions surrounding a $4 million Bitcoin transaction ended with her losing her ability to practice law in the state.

In their review of the situation and written reasoning for revoking McDonalds law license, the Supreme Court said her complete disregard for her role as a fiduciary...is staggering and would support disbarment on its own as well.

According to court records, the issue stemmed from a 2019 incident where McDonald was acting as the fiduciary for a third party on behalf of a client, who before taking the money for herself.

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After a complaint was submitted to the state bar association, officials found shed started sending money to her own bank accounts as well as family and friends, and paying off various debts, the same day she received the $4 million.

Due to lack of payment, the third party asked McDonald for their money back but did not receive it. After repeated attempts to get the $4 million back, they filed a complaint with the Georgia Bar Association.

Initially, the Bar reminded McDonald of her responsibilities as the fiduciary for the funds. The court record says she assured the Bar that the funds were still safe in her Interest on Lawyers Trust Accounts (IOLTA).

Days later, after another complaint was sent to the Bar that the funds had not been returned, the Bar asked directly whether the $4,000,000 was still in her IOLTA account, but McDonald did not respond.

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Instead, she wired $2 million back to the client, but the court later learned she could not transfer the rest.

As it turns out, McDonald had begun transferring the third partys money out of her IOLTA account to different recipients on the same day she received it, the court wrote. By January 7, when she assured the third party that its funds were safe and protected, she had already disbursed approximately $2,000,000 of the third partys funds out of her IOLTA account to herself and others unaffiliated with this transaction.

Detailing where the funds went, the Georgia Supreme Court records note the following recipients:

$415,000 sent to McDonalds accounts

$25,000 to McDonalds sister

$450,000 to parties involved in the clients earlier deals

Attempted wire transfer of $1.2 million to a Chinese bank

$800,000 to corporation, alleged Bitcoin trader

Additional funds used to operate McDonalds business

A federal court got involved during the process or returning funds and a lawsuit for damages against McDonald. She provided sworn testimony where she admitted to using $440,000 of the money for personal accounts and operating accounts, telling the court they were fees for services to the client and saying she did not need permission to distribute the funds to herself or others.

However, the court determined McDonald still had $310,000 left in IOLTA accounts and ordered her to transfer it back to the client. Instead, the Georgia Supreme Court says McDonald continued to use the money for herself.

A federal court ordered McDonald to deposit all money in any of her accounts that could be traced back to the initial $4 million from her client into the registry of the court. McDonald only placed $104,200 in the account.

So, in the end, the third party only recovered $2,414,200 of its $4,000,000 from McDonald, with the remaining $1,585,800 having been retained by McDonald and her family ($335,800) or paid out to various third parties seemingly unrelated to this Bitcoin transaction ($1,250,000), the court record says.

Additionally, $400,000 was used to repay debts McDonald owed to individuals or entities who had deposited money into her IOLTA account to be held in escrow for earlier deals, but instead had been distributed despite the deals never closing, the court wrote. McDonald also told the court she used some of the funds to make donations to charity and to buy goods and services for herself, friends and family, and her business, including as payments on behalf of other clients.

A special master investigating McDonald found that she had violated rules that are intended to block a lawyer from behaving dishonestly, fraudulently, or being deceitful and misrepresenting information and intentionally misleading her client.

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At the end of the process, McDonald petitioned the court to have her voluntarily retire, rather than be disbarred, but the justices denied her request.

After consideration of the entire record in this matter, we dismiss McDonalds petition for voluntary discipline and order that she be disbarred for her violations of the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct, the court ruled, adding that McDonalds actions, combined with McDonalds continuing refusal to see or acknowledge the pivotal role she played in the misdeeds apparently being perpetrated by her client and the fact that she has not made the third party whole, we cannot fathom a punishment less than disbarment.

The decision to disbar McDonald was unanimous.

In response to a request for comment by Channel 2 Action News, McDonald said in part:

The Georgia Supreme Court in its decision merely adopted the findings of the Special Master without conducting a fair and complete independent examination of the facts. The Plaintiff dismissed the case against me because they knew they would not prevail in the litigation. The evidence showed that the party who contracted with the Plaintiff (another named Defendant) had guaranteed the return of up to 2 million dollars of the funds which is the reason the Plaintiff went forward with the transaction. I returned 2 million plus of the funds. Per my Client, I was instructed in writing to disburse funds to facilitate the release of the Bitcoin from their cold storage Bitcoin wallet and for outstanding fees. The Client showed me evidence of their attempts to send a Satoshi and initiate the transaction and that information is contained in the record.

It was obvious that I had been a victim of a scam and obviously trusted people I should not have trusted. Payment to my attorney was done after negotiation between the attorneys and with the agreement of the Plaintiff. The State Bar and Special Master adopted the Plaintiffs incorrect computations regarding the disbursement of the funds. Plaintiffs attorney and the State Bar attorney worked in tandem with each other to ensure this result. The Courts 42 page opinion was written in an attempt to protect the justices and justify the result.

IN OTHER NEWS:
Atlanta Bus Driver in Hijacking Says I Was Ready to Die for Passengers as Shooter Held Gun to His Head

Ernst Antoine only had the job for three months prior to the dangerous incident

Good Morning America/X Ernst Antoine on 'GMA'

The driver of the hijacked bus in Atlanta is speaking out.

On Thursday, June 13, driver Ernst Antoine appeared on ABCs Good Morning America to talk about the incident that took place on June 11th, when a convicted felon allegedly hijacked his bus and forced him to drive away from the police.

Antoine, who only had the job for three months, said, I dont know exactly what other people will do in my place. But for me, I was right because people always coming first. I was ready to die for them.

The driver continued to describe the situation with the hijacker, saying, He turned the gun on me and I made to go. He recalled thinking, Dont stop in the world. If I stop, he's going to kill me.

Another passenger told ABC News that said when the police managed to stop the bus, the suspect "threw his gun and tried to disguise himself as one of the victims."

Then, "when I get out, the police point the gun on me. I said, 'No, Im not the killer. Im the driver.' And they asked me, 'Who is the killer?' I say, 'Him,' " Antoine recounted.

Related: 1 Dead After Shooting During Atlanta Bus Hijacking

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On Tuesday, Atlanta Police Chief Darin Schierbaum stated in a press conference that the officers received a 911 call from a family member of an occupant of the bus claiming it'd been hijacked before another emergency call was made from the bus.

In a press release issued by the Atlanta Police Department, when officers' first arrived at the scene, "the bus fled the location, and a pursuit ensued." They added that police used "various tactics to stop the bus" before it "ultimately came to a stop near 5107 Hugh Howell Rd. in Stone Mountain."

After clearing the bus  which had 17 individuals on it including the driver  officers found an adult victim with what they believed to be a gunshot wound. "The victim was transported to the hospital by ambulance in critical condition, where they succumbed to their injury," the Atlanta PD said.

Schierbaum confirmed that the suspect taken into custody, Joseph Grier, 39, was a convicted felon with 19 prior arrests.



The police chief also noted that the bus driver was shaken up, adding that it seemed like he was a "hero" in a "very dangerous situation."



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Starting this weekend, the city of Atlanta is offering some residents rebates of up to $2,000 for those participating in the new e-bike rebate program.

The program will officially launch on Sunday at the Atlanta Streets Alive event in downtown Atlanta.

Residents could get somewhere between $500 and $2,000 instant rebate. How much would depend on a persons income level and the type of bike they buy.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]

Priority for the program will be for those with low and moderate income.

Income-qualified residents are eligible to receive a $1,500 rebate for a standard e-bike and $2,000 for a cargo e-bike. Rebates for other residents are $500 for a standard e-bike and $1,000 for a cargo e-bike.

Applicants must be City of Atlanta residents aged 18 and older. Rebates will be issued every quarter and may be redeemed at participating retailers located in the City of Atlanta.

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This program helps address twin challenges we have in Atlanta: Climate change and traffic congestion, Atlanta City Council Member Matt Westmoreland said. This offers an incentive to encourage people to get out of their vehicles and do so in a climate-friendly way.

Atlanta is the first city in Georgia to offer this rebate program, though other cities in the south like Tampa and Raleigh have offered this program previously.

Rebate applications must be submitted, starting Sunday, here: atlantaregional.org/ebikerebate.

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FBI agents search the Shakopee townhome of Abdimajid Mohamed Nur, who was convicted Friday in the Feeding Our Future case. Photo by Madison McVan/Minnesota Reformer.

The states legislative auditor found that the Minnesota Department of Education failed miserably in its duty to properly oversee millions of federal dollars it administered to nonprofits to feed children during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a special review by the Office of the Legislative Auditor released Thursday.

The audit examined how MDE administered a child nutrition program for the U.S. Department of Agriculture and found the agencys inadequate oversight created opportunities for fraud.

Legislative Auditor Judy Randall said MDE was ill-prepared to handle a burgeoning fraud, with child nutrition workers used to working with schools and daycares, and not equipped to do investigations.

Maybe we all were naive that there arent bad actors, Randall said. This certainly has woken us up.

Randall wouldnt comment when asked whether she was aware of any investigation into MDE involvement in the federal prosecution charging scores of Minnesotans with ripping off the federal program by at least $250 million in the nations largest pandemic fraud scheme. Federal prosecutors say they gave away very little food, but got paid millions of dollars, which they used to buy Porsches and Teslas, vacations in the Maldives, and homes from Prior Lake to Kenya.

Prosecutors have charged 70 people so far with being part of the Feeding Our Future case, named after one of two nonprofits at the center of the scheme. Eighteen people have pleaded guilty, one fled the country, and five were convicted of bribery, money laundering and wire fraud charges last week. Two were acquitted.

The nonprofit Feeding Our Future was supposed to oversee other vendors and nonprofits purporting to be giving away ready-to-eat meals at sites all over the state, but instead, prosecutors said they enabled and participated in the fraud.

MDE has said its fast action and diligence launched the investigation that stopped the fraud and led to dozens of indictments. But the report said MDE could have taken more decisive action, sooner.

Auditors found MDE failed to act on red flags even prior to the pandemic and didnt exercise its authority to make Feeding Our Future follow program requirements. MDE received at least 30 complaints about the nonprofit from mid-2018 through 2021  including allegations that Feeding Our Future used unethical or inappropriate methods to recruit food sites; operated sites at locations without the property owners permission; ran a messy and haphazard food distribution process; and demanded kickbacks from food vendors.

Among some of the complaints MDE received about Feeding Our Future:

A June 2018 complaint alleging that Feeding Our Futures executive director had, through theft and forgery, taken control of the organization from the other founding members. MDE responded that they should not provide further information to MDE unless there is a conviction for any business related offense; or the organization is no longer in good standing with the IRS.

In August 2021, a vendor told MDE that Feeding Our Future had demanded a kickback, and when the vendor refused to pay, Feeding Our Future canceled the vendors contract in retaliation.

MDE received at least three complaints from a sponsor alleging that Feeding Our Future was inappropriately recruiting people at meetings of a child care provider association.

In October 2021, MDE was told Feeding Our Future was delivering food to nobody in particular  just leaving it in common areas or entry ways and creating messes at three locations where it did not have permission to operate.

Although the agency is required by law to promptly investigate complaints or irregularities, it didnt investigate some complaints about Feeding Our Future at all. When MDE did follow up on complaints, its investigations were inadequate, to the point where MDE inappropriately asked Feeding Our Future to investigate complaints about itself, the report said.

MDE often relied on the statements made by Feeding Our Futures executive director Aimee Bock, the report said. Bock is charged with overseeing the massive fraud scheme.

The legislative auditor found MDE failed in numerous ways to prevent the fraud, including:

By failing to use its authority to deny applications for the program years before the pandemic. MDE had concerns about nearly all of Feeding Our Futures sponsor applications and budget revisions, but approved them anyway.

By failing to verify statements made by the Feeding Our Future before approving applications, especially high-risk applicants.

By failing to follow up on its 2018 review of Feeding Our Futures child nutrition operations, which raised concerns.

MDE provided no documentation showing it visited any of Feeding Our Futures sites in person during the pandemic. Even though many monitoring requirements were waived during the pandemic, the USDA still encouraged states to continue some kind of oversight and monitoring. But MDE did limited desk audits.

MDE did stop payments to the nonprofit in 2021, but Feeding Our Future sued the state, alleging racial discrimination. Ramsey County District Judge John Guthmann ruled that the state couldnt halt payments unless they found fraud, so MDE resumed payments.

During a Thursday hearing on the OLA report, Education Commissioner Willie L. Jett II called the fraud coordinated, flagrant and brazen and said MDE made effective referrals to law enforcement and cooperated with their direction to not impede their investigation.

The responsibility for this flagrant fraud lies with the indicted and convicted fraudsters, he said in written response to the report.

Jett said the department has made changes to strengthen its oversight, establishing an Office of Inspector General, adding a general counsels office, training staff on updated fraud reporting policy, and contracting with a firm to conduct financial reviews of certain sponsors.

MDE officials told auditors they lacked the investigative authority to prove sponsors knowingly submitted false claims in order to take administrative action. For example, MDE didnt have the authority to subpoena bank records. Another reason the department didnt take action: Feeding Our Futures lawsuits and public relations campaign pushed back when the state rejected site applications. The nonprofit held a protest outside MDE headquarters and sued repeatedly.

MDE officials told auditors they expected the nonprofit would challenge them in court if it denied any of the organizations sponsorship applications.

MDE General Counsel Maren Hulden said the department was not equipped to prove fraud happened.

We really did need their help, she said of the FBI.

This came up during the recent trial of seven defendants charged with defrauding the program. The director of Minnesotas nutrition program acknowledged she got some pushback from her own supervisors when she raised concerns about suspiciously high reimbursement claims. Honer said due to Feeding Our Futures very nasty lawsuit, MDE employees were often hauled into court.

Emily Honer, MDE director of nutrition program services, testified that she quickly became suspicious of huge reimbursement requests and alerted her superiors, the USDA, and eventually, the FBI.

Outside of a month where MDE payments were stopped to some sponsors, MDE kept paying reimbursement claims until the FBI investigation went public in January 2022.

Republicans have blamed Gov. Tim Walzs administration for failing to prevent the fraud. Walz has said the states hands were tied by a court order to resume payments, although Ramsey County District Judge John Guthmann disputed that in a rare rebuke.

Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson said during a press conference that Republicans were completely vindicated by the report, after MDE has been extremely defensive and taken no responsibility for the fraud. He said commissioners normally are let go when something like this happens, but two left MDE with glowing reviews and the administration has suggested it helped stop the fraud.

Sen. Mark Koran, R-North Branch, vice chair of the legislative audit commission, said MDE was divorced from reality and could have prevented the fraud.

The red flags were blinding, he said.

He said the state needs an independent inspector general that cant be thwarted by the executive branch.

Randall, the legislative auditor, said her office didnt find any indication MDE was ordered by higher-ups to continue paying Feeding Our Future.

Even Democrats were outraged by what they read and heard Thursday.

Sen. Ann Rest, DFL-New Hope, called it extremely disappointing that MDE didnt clearly endorse all of the OLA recommendations and nobody took responsibility.

The buck is still running down the street and stopping nowhere, and that is unacceptable, she said very loudly during the OLA hearing.

The post Audit: Minnesota failed to investigate fraud complaints in child nutrition program appeared first on Minnesota Reformer.
Australian man goes on trial in Indonesia for alleged drug possession on Bali

Australian Troy Smith, sits in a courtroom for his first hearing trial at Denpasar district court, Bali, Indonesia on Thursday, June 13, 2024. Indonesian police arrested Smith on April 30, allegedly being caught with methamphetamine in his hotel.(AP Photo/Firdia Lisnawati)

DENPASAR, Indonesia (AP)  A court on the Indonesian tourist island of Bali on Thursday began the trial of an Australian man who faces up to 12 years in prison if convicted of possessing methamphetamine under the country's tough drug laws.

Troy Andrew Smith, from Port Lincoln in South Australia, was arrested on April 30 after police raided his hotel near Kuta beach, a popular tourist spot, and seized 3.15 grams (0.1 ounce) of crystal methamphetamine from his room, authorities said.

The arrest followed a tip that Smith had received a suspicious package containing toothpaste by mail from Australia.

Prosecutors at the District Court in Denpasar, Bali's provincial capital, said he violated anti-narcotics laws that carry a penalty of up to 12 years in prison and a fine of 8 billion rupiah ($491,000).

Authorities reduced the initial charge of drug trafficking, which carries a possible death penalty, to the less serious charge of drug use after a police drug assessment team determined he was a drug user.

The 49-year-old accountant confessed to using drugs since 2020 to stop drinking alcohol, and denied being a dealer, lead prosecutor Isa Ulinnuha said.

He was not involved in illicit narcotics trafficking, but was a narcotics abuser in the moderate category, Ulinnuha told the court. Therefore, we also recommend that he undergo a psychological evaluation and inpatient medical rehabilitation for at least six months in a government rehabilitation facility.

After the charges against Smith were read, the panel of three judges adjourned the trial until June 20.

Smiths lawyer, Ida Bagus Gumilang Galih Sakti, said he would seek to prove that Smith is a user, not a trafficker, and has no connection with any drug network.

He said his client is nervous and depressed as he faces trial.

Im trying to make him calm down and make him understand that he will get rehabilitation so he can return to his family as soon as possible, he said.

Indonesia has very strict drug laws and convicted traffickers can be executed by a firing squad. More than 150 people are on death row, mostly for drug crimes, and about a third of them are foreigners.

Eighteen people convicted of drug-related offenses have been executed under current President Joko Widodo, who took office in 2014.
Crown VIC

An AI chatbot named VIC, or Virtually Integrated Citizen, is trying to make it onto the ballot in this year's mayoral election for Wyoming's capital city of Cheyenne. But as reported by Wired, Wyoming's secretary of state is battling against VIC's legitimacy as a candidate  and now, an investigation is underway.

According to Wired, VIC, which was built on OpenAI's GPT-4 and trained on thousands of documents gleaned from Cheyenne council meetings, was created by Cheyenne resident and library worker Victor Miller. Should VIC win, Miller told Wired that he'll serve as the bot's "meat puppet," operating the AI but allowing it to make decisions for the capital city.

And why should VIC run? According to its creator: paperwork!

"My campaign promise," Miller told Wired, "is he's going to do 100 percent of the voting on these big, thick documents that I'm not going to read and that I don't think people in there right now are reading." (Also, VIC is a "he," apparently.)

Unfortunately for the AI and its  his?  meat puppet, however, they've already made some political enemies, most notably Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray. As Gray, who has challenged the legality of the bot, told Wired in a statement, all mayoral candidates need to meet the requirements of a "qualified elector."

This "necessitates being a real person," Gray argues. And VIC, of course, is not a real boy.

Mayorbot

Laramie County attorney Brad Lund, who's working on the investigation, told the local Wyoming Tribune Eagle newspaper that the matter should be concluded by the first week of July, when ballot documents are due to go public.

"Ultimately," Lund told the Tribune Eagle, "Wyoming law will decide the matter."

But VIC's legal battle may not be its only obstacle. Per Wired, it's also run amuck with OpenAI, which says the AI violates the company's "policies against political campaigning." (Miller told Wired that he'll move VIC to Meta's open-source Llama 3 model if need be, which seems a bit like VIC will turn into a different candidate entirely.)

VIC wouldn't be the first effort to put AI in positions of political leadership. Back in 2022, a new political group dubbed "The Synthetic Party" emerged in Denmark, touting an AI chatbot dubbed "Leader Lars" as the party's figurehead.

But making a chatbot mayor, if still theoretically, is rife with practical and ethical landmines. Like feeble humans, AI programs make mistakes; that the AI isn't human could also confuse normal routes of political accountability. It's also often unclear how and why AI models come to the decisions that they do, which doesn't exactly facilitate public trust.

In any case, like any politician, VIC is campaigning on in the face of scrutiny.

"I'm running for mayor to bring innovative technology," the bot "told" the Tribune Eagle, "and data-driven decision-making to Cheyenne."

More AI: Official NYC Chatbot Encouraging Small Businesses to Break the Law
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'Right back at you, buddy': Milwaukee mayor responds to Trump calling his city 'horrible'

Mayor Cavalier Johnson clapped back Thursday to former President Donald Trump labeling Milwaukee a "horrible city."

"Donald Trump was talking about things that he thinks are horrible. All of us lived through his presidency. So, right back at you, buddy," Johnson said. "Donald Trump once again is wrong about something. That shouldn't be new news, especially for somebody who has a proven track record of lying about a number of things."

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson on Thursday pushed back on former President Donald Trump's comment that Milwaukee is a "horrible city."

Johnson said about 50,000 Republicans call the deep blue city home. The Democratic mayor has welcomed the Republican National Convention while also vocally backing Democratic President Joe Biden's bid for a second term in the White House.

Trump is expected to accept the party's nomination at the RNC to take on Biden in the Nov. 5 election. Wisconsin, a key swing state, is expected to again play a crucial role in the election's outcome.

"I find it kind of strange that he would insult the largest city in Wisconsin because he's running for president," Johnson said. "To insult the state that's hosting your convention, I think it's kind of bizarre."

More: Here's how social media is reacting to Trump's 'horrible city' comment about Milwaukee

Trump, who is scheduled to hold a campaign rally in nearby Racine on Tuesday, made the comment Thursday morning to House Republicans in a meeting on Capitol Hill to discuss campaign strategies. Republican members of Wisconsin's congressional delegation offered varying accounts of the comment's context. Three said he was referencing the upcoming election while another said Trump had been talking about crime in the city.

Despite its challenges, Johnson said the crime rate in Milwaukee is dropping and he will continue investing in public safety.

"I'm aware that in urban areas there are challenges," Johnson said. "And these urban challenges are not unique to Milwaukee. They exist in cities all across the United States."

Despite the comment, Johnson said he remains confident Milwaukee's image will be unharmed.

City leaders have billed the Republican National Convention as an opportunity for Milwaukee to make a name for itself on the national stage. About 50,000 people, including thousands of members of the media from across the nation and globe, are expected to visit the city during the July 15-18 convention.

"I don't think this changes anything or people's perceptions about Milwaukee," Johnson said.

Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley also spoke up.

The RNC still chose Milwaukee to come to, right? Crowley said. "It is my hope that not only our former president but everybody who is going to be embarking on Milwaukee sees everything that we have to offer. We are a great county on a great lake  I can't wait to really prove him wrong and let him know what we have to offer.

Trump's comment left Johnson with one piece of advice for local voters:

"For voters here in Milwaukee, I think the message is pretty clear. You've heard from the man himself. Let's all work to make sure that he doesn't have the opportunity to live in another city that I think he probably thinks is horrible, too," Johnson said. "And that's Washington, D.C."

Molly Beck, Lawrence Andrea and Vanessa Swales of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Mayor Johnson claps back at Trump calling Milwaukee a 'horrible city'
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock arrives at Helsinki airport for the meeting of the Baltic Sea Council foreign ministers. Kay Nietfeld/dpa

Western allies with a Baltic Sea coastline will join forces to oppose Russian provocation, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said in the Finnish coastal city of Porvoo on Thursday.

"If Russia's pinpricks attempt to divide us, we will draw closer together," Baerbock said ahead of a meeting of the foreign ministers of the Council of the Baltic Sea States in Porvoo starting on Thursday and continuing into Friday.

Security in the region meant security against Russia and not with Russia, Baerbock said.

The council was set up in 1992 to support the political and economic transformation of the region. It includes eight countries with a coastline on the Baltic Sea, as well as Iceland and Norway. Russia was suspended in March 2022 following its invasion of Ukraine and withdrew in May.

Baerbock noted that the region was home to a dense network of data cables, shipping routes and wind turbines.

The democratic countries of the council would oppose complex hybrid threats, from GPS disruption and social media disinformation to sabotage to undersea cables, she said.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock arrives at Helsinki airport for the meeting of the Baltic Sea Council foreign ministers. Kay Nietfeld/dpa
The list of worst countries for workers has dropped, and the results might be surprising.

The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) this week released its 2024 Global Rights Index, which documents violations of internationally recognized collective labor rights by worldwide governments and employers.

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Through a questionnaire sent to 340 labor unions in 169 countries, the group determined that nearly nine out of 10 countries across the globe actively impeded workers rights to strike, while eight in 10 denied them the right to collective bargaining for better wages and working conditions.

Whats more, illegal action against unionized workers is on the rise. According to ITUC, 49 percent of countries saw union members arbitrarily detained or arrested in 2024a three-point jump from last year. More than 40 percent of countries assessed denied workers the right to freedom of speech and assembly. Since the inception of the index a decade ago, ITUC said the treatment of workers has only worsened over time.

The countries fingered as the worst for workers in 2024 include Bangladesh, Belarus, Ecuador, Egypt, Eswatini, Guatemala, Myanmar, the Philippines, Tunisia and Turkey. But many others also saw weakened performance, including Costa Rica, Finland, Israel, Kyrgyzstan, Madagascar, Mexico, Nigeria, Qatar, the Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Switzerland. and Venezuela.

The groups 11th annual report showed that regionally, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) remain the worst for workers globally, showing a sustained deterioration in workers rights.

Using a five point rating system1 denoting sporadic violations of workers rights, and 5 indicating the worst countries in the world to work inITUC gave the MENA region a 4.74 ranking in 2024, a marked decline from the 4.53 rating it received in 2023 and much worse than the 4.25 ranking from 2014.

Every single country in this region has excluded workers from the right to establish or join a trade union, violated the right to collective bargaining, and impeded the registration of unions, the study said. Nearly all (95 percent) of the countries assessed have violated workers rights to strike, including Israel, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, which saw massive conflict and breakdowns in the rule of law, along with Libya, Palestine, Syria, and Yemen.

ITUC said that governments in Algeria and Egypt implemented stringent registration procedures in an attempt to undercut the trade union movement. The group estimated that since 2018, the number of independent trade unions has dwindled from 1,500 to 150. Meanwhile, Libya saw authorities create a union monopoly under a national confederation run by the countrys government.

The Asia-Pacific region maintained its ranking as the second-worst zone for workers with a rating of 4.13. Nearly 90 percent of Asian-Pacific countries were found to have violated workers rights to join, establish or register unions as well as the right to strike.

For example, Myanmar saw the state military abduct a union leader and hold him for five months before sentencing him on charges of terrorism without legal representation. Such incidences happened in 74 of the countries assessed, a jump from the 69 recorded last year. Meanwhile, nine union leaders were prosecuted for peacefully protesting against union busting at a casino in Cambodia.

Notably, workers rights in Africa remained mostly the same year over year from 2023 with an average country rating of 3.88though the figure is significantly worse than the 3.26 ranking seen 10 years ago. The Americas, too, held steady in its 3.56 rating, but ITUC noted that the region is the deadliest for workers and unionists, with 16 assassinations recorded throughout 2023 and 2024. Mexicos rating dropped from 3 to 4 year over year, with ITUC citing a rash of unlawful arrests of union members in an attempt to stifle the union movementa trend also prevalent in Panama and Venezuela.

While Europe is broadly characterized as the global standard bearer for workers rights, the continents average country rating went from 2.56 to 2.73 over the course of one year. And over the past 10 years, European nations have shown the steepest decline among all regions, having started at 1.84 in 2014.

ITUC attributed the shift to a movement away from the worker-centric social model that has distinguished the region. Finland lost its spot at the top of the index because of its prime ministers proposed reforms to limit political strikes, undermine wage negotiation and cut certain employee benefits. Meanwhile, Switzerlands rating fell precipitously, from 2 to 3, when attempts by union leaders to secure better worker protections failed.

Not surprisingly, Russia received a rating of 5 because of expanding restrictions of civil rights and worker rights, especially related to political dissent.

This years report makes for difficult readinga clear and urgent wake-up call that the future of democracy and fundamental rights agreed by most countries at an international level are at risk, ITUCs general secretary Luc Triangle wrote. While there have been some signs of positive improvements, even in the worst regions, the general picture displays a relentless attack on civil liberties and the interests of working people.
On todays episode we check in with Israel Correspondent Nicola Smith about the controversy surrounding Israels hostage rescue, the latest ceasefire talks and could a full scale conflict break out with Lebanon. Then we spoke with Europe editor James Crisp about the surprising gains by the far right in the EU elections. Finally Senior foreign correspondent Sophia Yan explains why three judges have quit the courts in Hong Kong this week.

Across the world, from Europe to Asia, from the Americas to the Middle East, tensions are rising between nation states as the traditional alliances and alignments evolve in the 21st century.

This year sees war in Europe and the Middle East, and elections in major economies, from the US and the UK to Taiwan. Insurgencies flare in Yemen and Burma, tensions escalate in East Africa, and all around the world the international security architecture buckles under increasing pressure.

Battle Lines, a new podcast from The Telegraph, combines on-the-ground reporting with analytical expertise to help the listener to better understand the course of world politics, wars and tensions, as fault lines grind and slip in an increasingly dangerous and confusing multipolar world.

Listen to Battle Lines using the audio player in this article or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or your favourite podcast app.

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.
EXCLUSIVE: Clive Myrie, one of the BBCs most senior news anchors, has been criticized after making thousands of pounds delivering speeches to an investment company linked to Israeli arms suppliers.

Myrie is a household name in the UK and will be the face of the BBCs election night coverage next month after being elevated into a more prominent role following the resignation of Huw Edwards in April.

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The presenter supplements his 290,000 ($370,000) BBC salary with external speaking engagements and he was paid up to 10,000 ($13,000) by Quilter Cheviot, one of the UKs largest asset managers, to present at a series of adviser roadshow events earlier this year. The events came after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, sparking months of retaliatory assaults.

Myrie delivered an address on politics, performance and planning for Quilter Cheviot on at least three occasions in February, March, and May. He declared the contract in the BBCs external events register, which the corporation publishes every three months.

An analysis by Deadline has revealed that Quilter Cheviot has stakes in two arms manufacturers with known connections to the Israeli military: RTX, the U.S. defense giant formerly known as Raytheon Technologies, and Britains BAE Systems.

RTX trumpets its role in supplying assets to Israels Iron Dome missile defense system, but has also been accused of manufacturing weapons used against Palestinian civilians. The American Friends Service Committee, a U.S. Quaker group that monitors the human rights credentials of listed companies, recommends divesting from RTX because of Israels use of its GBU-28 bunker buster and laser-guided Paveway bombs in Gaza.

Meanwhile, the Campaign Against Arms Trade detailed last November how BAE Systems is the biggest UK supplier of components for F-35 fighter jets, which Israel said it has used to target Hamas militants during strikes on Gaza. BAE Systems said it complies carefully with all relevant defense export controls.

Amnesty International and the Palestine Solidarity Campaign said Myries work for Quilter raised questions about his judgment and put the BBCs impartiality at risk. The Israel-Gaza crisis has been a complex story for the BBC to navigate, with the British broadcaster being accused of bias by all sides.

Myrie did not respond to a request for comment. The BBC is said to be comfortable with presenters earning extra-curricular cash from investment firms exposed to controversial industries, with insiders arguing that it does not pose a risk to impartiality. Quilter has also held investments in companies including British American Tobacco and Exxon Mobil.

A BBC spokesperson said the corporation is the most trusted news source in the UK, adding: We publish the external paid-for work of on-air journalists for transparency and every event is approved in line with our editorial guidelines. The editorial rules state that speaking engagements should not compromise the authority, impartiality or integrity of presenters.

Deadline understands that Quilters investments in RTX and BAE Systems are small, representing 0.004% (1.1M) and under 0.15% (37.6M) of the 28.1B in assets it has under management. Despite the size of its investments, Quilter has attempted to wield influence at RTX, voting in favor of shareholder proposals to strengthen governance procedures and climate change reporting at the defense contractor.

A Quilter spokesperson said: We invest in a wide range of companies across a number of different sectors on behalf of our clients. We take the stewardship of our clients assets very seriously and engage regularly with the companies we invest in on their behalf. Should any clients want to avoid investing in any companies associated with the Middle East conflict, we exclude these firms from their portfolios.

We automatically exclude defence companies from the sustainable and ethical investment funds that we manage and as such neither of these companies [RTX and BAE Systems] are held by investors who have a preference for this style of investing.

Myrie Not Alone

Myrie is not the only BBC presenter to have delivered a public address to an asset management company exposed to arms suppliers.

Naga Munchetty was engaged by PIMCO in October 2022, supplementing her 340,000 salary with a paycheck worth up to 10,000. Deadline can reveal that PIMCO is invested in Honeywell, which has links to Israeli munitions. Al Jazeera found evidence this month of Honeywell parts being used in a bomb that hit the UNs al-Sardi school in Gaza.

Naga Munchetty presents BBC Breakfast

Munchetty, who hosts BBC Breakfast and a Radio 5 Live show, did not respond to a request for comment. PIMCO declined to comment.

Kristyan Benedict, Amnesty International UKs crisis response manager, said: Anyone accepting lucrative speaking engagements from fund managers should do basic due diligence on whether these funds are invested in arms companies supplying weapons to the Israeli military.

Very few people would think it right to accept money which linked them to investments in a Russian state arms company given Russias war crimes and occupation and annexation of Ukrainian territory, and nor should they do so when it comes to Israel.

Palestine Solidarity Campaign director Ben Jamal added: It is deeply concerning that top BBC presenters, who should be holding the powerful to account, are conducting lucrative speaking gigs for financial institutions profiting from the production of weaponry used in Israels devastating attacks on Palestinians.

He added that the BBC must not allow high-profile staff to endorse companies that are complicit in Israels actions in Gaza. Sources at the BBC and Quilter said Myries speaking arrangement did not represent an endorsement of the asset managers investment strategies.

RTX and Honeywell did not respond to requests for comment about their connections to the Israeli military. A BAE Systems spokesperson said: The situation in Israel and Gaza is having a devastating impact on civilians in the region and we hope it can be resolved as soon as possible  We operate under the tightest regulation and comply fully with all applicable defence export controls, which are subject to ongoing assessment.

Other BBC presenters have spoken for investment firms with stakes in fossil fuel companies. Deadlines findings come amid controversy about major British literary festivals, including the Hay Festival, being sponsored by Baillie Gifford, which has interests in oil companies including Petrobras. Fossil Free Books successfully lobbied authors to pull out of Baillie Gifford-backed festivals and Hay ultimately dropped the sponsor.

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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD)  A Benton Harbor man will spend years in prison after federal prosecutors say he repeatedly sold drugs and machine gun switches to undercover officers in 2022.

Earl Austin IV, 22, was sentenced to nine years in a federal prison, the U.S. Attorneys Office said in a Thursday release.

Benton Harbor men sentenced for gun crimes after feud, murder

Federal prosecutors say undercover officers bought drugs including meth, fentanyl and oxycodone from Austin 17 times over the course of six months in 2022. Twice  in August and September of that year  he sold switches to undercover officers. Switches effectively turn semi-automatic guns into machine guns.

Authorities said he also sold two pistols and what they described as an assault rifle between November and December.

They say when they searched his home, they found more meth and guns. Austin was already a felon, the feds said, and shouldnt have had any guns.

Austin was convicted in February of this year of all 15 criminal counts he faced.

He was among 17 people charged since December 2022 in three federal gun, drug and switch cases stemming from the same investigation, and the last to be sentenced.

Benton Harbor man sentenced for Glock switch scheme

Previously, three of Austins co-defendants pleaded guilty and were sentenced: Robert Griffin got five years, 10 months in prison for selling meth. Rhonda Acklin got three years, five months  also for selling meth. Evorion Anderson got five years, 10 months for selling meth and switches.

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Climate activist Wolfgang Metzeler-Kick (C), who had previously taken part in a hunger strike in Invalidenpark, blocks traffic on Invalidenstrasse. The hunger strike is said to have ended for the time being. Jorg Carstensen/dpa

A climate hunger strike conducted in public in central Berlin has been called off after 92 days.

The decision was taken on Thursday because Chancellor Olaf Scholz had neither changed course on Germany's global warming policies, nor had he attempted to engage in discussion with the hunger strikers, according to the campaign called "Starve until you are honest."

Eight people had participated in the strike at various times since it began on March 7, when Wolfgang Metzeler-Kick stopped taking solids. He spent 92 days without solids, and his fellow striker Richard Cluse 77 days.

The aim was to provoke Scholz into a statement acknowledging that civilization was being jeopardized by the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere.

"Instead of telling the truth about the climate crisis, Scholz prefers to talk about combating the symptoms," the activists said on Thursday.

The hunger strikers drank small quantities of fruit juice for long periods to maintain energy levels. Metzeler-Kick, 49, stopped doing so and landed in hospital earlier this month.

The hunger strikers lived in a tented encampment in the government district in central Berlin.

Activists, some of whom had previously taken part in a hunger strike in Invalidenpark, block traffic on Invalidenstrasse. The hunger strike is said to have ended for the time being. Jorg Carstensen/dpa

Activists, some of whom had previously taken part in a hunger strike in Invalidenpark, block traffic on Invalidenstrasse. The hunger strike is said to have ended for the time being. Jorg Carstensen/dpa
CHICAGO  A church on the citys far South Side was vandalized Sunday night, with the group of suspects destroying the chapels LGBTQIA+ pride flags and decorations, according to the church.

Officials with the Beverly Unitarian Church (BUC) said the vandalization of the property happened overnight on Sunday, June 9, and the flags and decorations they had put up in celebration of Pride Month were thrown into a pile in front of the church and set on fire.

BUC minister Allen Harden, along with the churchs board of trustees issued the following statement in response to the incident, which they called a deliberate act of hate and violence.

Chicago woman wanted in failed murder-for-hire plot in United Kingdom: Reports

These acts will not deter us from maintaining a safe and welcoming space at The Castle and in

our community for all. Instead, they reaffirm the mission of our church to nurture the spirit

and heal the broken spaces in our world.

BUC plans to respond to this act of vandalism by replacing these decorations, holding a joyful

demonstration in support of Pride activities at noon on Sunday, June 30, and by extending this

years observation of Pride Month through all of July.

Rev. Allen Harden, BUC Minister, said, We abhor this violent and disrespectful act which was

directed at our churchs commitment to love and justice for all. We will not let such hateful

and cowardly deeds prevent us from continuing to speak our convictions. Disagreement and

dialogue are a necessary part of any community. But our disagreement should come through

words, never through stealth, flames, and violence. Hate is unwelcome in this church.

BUC has long stood for LGBTQ+ rights, reflecting our principled call to affirm the inherent

worth and dignity of every person. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and

asexual individuals are beloved members of our community. Pride Month is an opportunity to

celebrate the joy of being together in a place where everyone is welcome and safe. We strive

to support this community while LGBTQIA+ rights are under attack nationwide  and closer to

home.

BUCs Pride Month celebrations kicked off on June 2nd with a community Pride festival that

included button-making, storytime, a DJ and dancing, and vendors.  Minister Allen Harden, BUC Board of Trustees

Beverly Unitarian Church will be holding a Pride Month rededication ceremony on Sunday, June 30, and invites the Chicago community to join them in celebrating the citys LGBTQIA+ residents.

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President Bidens reelection campaign on Thursday called on Republicans to drop lawsuits related to mail voting after former President Trump launched an effort to promote alternative types of voting.

If Donald Trump is serious about finally recognizing that mail voting is a great option for voters to utilize this November, he should demand the RNC and his MAGA allies drop every one of these lawsuits throughout the country, said Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez.

Trumps team and the Republican National Committee (RNC) launched Swamp the Vote last week to ease voter concerns about the integrity of nontraditional voting methods, like mail voting, and to encourage people to vote early if possible.

Meanwhile, the RNC filed a federal lawsuit in Nevada last month that tries to prevent the state from counting mail-in ballots that are received after Election Day, the Associated Press reported.

Bidens campaign challenged Trump to acknowledge that mail voting in effective and safe if hes serious about a fair election. Chavez Rodriguez accused him of trying to hide the truth from Americans by encouraging voting by mail while the RNC files lawsuits.

The right to vote should never be up for debate. Eligible voters should feel confident that their vote will be counted and that the 2024 election will be free and fair, Chavez Rodriguez said.

The Trump campaign criticized the comments, saying they support mail-in voting.

Democrats are playing dumb about a very simple concept: We support mail voting, but we also support safeguards to make mail voting secure, Trump campaign senior adviser Danielle Alvarez said in a statement. Its really not hard. The left should stop its assault on the foundation of our election system and accept that Americans dont agree with their extreme attempts to make voting less secure.

The RNC has argued that counting ballots received after Election Day that do not have a postmark could have a potential fraudulent impact on the election in Nevada and that accepting mail ballots up to four days after Election Day clearly violates federal law.

During the 2020 election, states encouraged voters to seek out alternative voting methods like voting by mail to avoid the spread of COVID-19. Trump, at the time, urged his supporters to show up to the polls.

Mail-in and early voting options have long been a target of conservative critics who argue that they could be used to facilitate voter fraud, though no evidence has shown widespread improper influence over election outcomes.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Biden campaign says Trump ready to burn it all down as he returns to Capitol Hill

An Appeal to Heaven flag is seen during he Capitol riot on January 6, 2021 (Getty Images)

As Donald Trump returns to the place where a riotous mob of his supporters tried to block certification of his 2020 election loss, President Joe Bidens re-election campaign is reminding voters of the ex-presidents willingness to embrace violence for political ends in a new advertisement.

The 30-second television spot, called Burn, opens with scenes of the January 6, 2021, attack on the Capitol and a narrator stating that Trump lit a fire in this country that day before recalling how the riot left 140 police officers with injuries.

The siege lasted for seven hours, stoking the flames of division and hate, the male voiceover continues before adding that Trump is now pouring gasoline on those flames.

The scene then switches to a series of Trumps public appearances, using his own words to illustrate that point, with Trump describing rioters as unbelievable patriots, then the narrator intoning that Trump is inciting the rioters to try again by offering them pardons if he is returned to the White House for a second term.

There is nothing more sacred than our democracy, but Donald Trump ready to burn it all down, the narrator adds.

The Biden campaigns latest ad comes as Trump is set to visit the Capitol complex for a series of meetings with House and Senate lawmakers.

He is also set to address a number of corporate executives at a Business Roundtable gathering later in the day.
Customers buy gold at a branch of Agribank in Ho Chi Minh City on June 3, 2024. Photo by VnExpress/Quynh Tran

State-owned lender Agribank will allow gold buyers to register their purchase online starting next week instead of queuing for hours at its branches.

The bank is now finalizing its technical infrastructure, a representative told VnExpress Thursday.

Agribank is set to be the second gold seller to allow online registration after Vietcombank launched its system Wednesday.

However, customers complained that they were unable to make a reservation only minutes after Vietcombank opened registration Thursday morning.

I tried to sign in but there was an error message. When I finally got in, all branches have been fully reserved for the day", said Thanh Tuan in Hanoi.

Since earlier this month, long queues have been seen at these banks as the State Bank of Vietnam (SBV) began distributing gold bars through them. Some customers have been lining up as early as 4 a.m. to secure tokens, with each branch serving only 20-40 customers per day.

Saigon Jewelry Company gold price remained steady at VND76.98 million ($3,025.71) per tael Thursday for the fifth day in a row.
Biden is hiring a meme manager. But viral success might not be as easy as he hopes.

Two of the videos the Biden campaign has shared to its 375,000 TikTok followers. (via Biden-Harris HQ TikTok)

Buried within the list of 100 available jobs for President Bidens 2024 campaign is a role dedicated to running content and meme pages. The salary range caps at $85,000 and the application requires only entering a full name and uploading a resume. (The other common job application features that include questions about identity, cover letter and social media links are all optional.)

The full-time position is to help the campaign bring political content to voters who are online by leveraging internet trends and forming relationships with podcasters and meme pages.

It makes sense the campaign is looking for someone to tap into internet culture; Biden has historically struggled to win over young voters. DeNora Getachew, the CEO of DoSomething.org, a nonprofit dedicated to helping young people implement social change, explained to Yahoo News that Gen Z doesnt have this trust in political figures and decision makers right now. She thinks it could be a good thing for the Biden campaign to adapt its marketing strategy to Gen Z, rather than trying to get Gen Z to come to them.

Were all watching in real-time and forging new territory of modern campaigning, she said. She added that for this tactic to work, the campaign needs to demonstrate theyre aware of the evolution of modern campaigning and theyre going to meet Gen Z and millennials where they are.

Does 'modern campaigning' mean through the use of memes?

Reaching young voters through TV and website ads doesnt make the most sense, considering where they get their news. The Pew Research Center found that most polled users use X specifically for political news, although people still consume news  whether they seek it out or not  across all major social platforms.

Specifically for Gen Z, a 2021 study from the Journal of Student Research concluded that meme culture for the generation is deeper than a simple online joke and is a form of speech in political discourse. The study concluded that if marketing teams use memes, understanding humor preferences of Gen Z, it could be greatly beneficial to marketing and social outreach.

Biden has already seen some minor success with his social media presence, even joining TikTok in February. (He has since signed a law potentially banning the platform in the U.S.) In response to the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl win, his social team leaned into the Dark Brandon meme  a phrase that originated in October 2021 as code for anti-Biden rhetoric. His tweet generated over 200,000 shares and over 500,000 likes and was covered by multiple major news outlets.

Political figures like Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez have found success in reaching young people by leaning into online culture, too.

But Jamie Cohen, a digital media expert, told Yahoo News several factors go into making a political candidates social media outreach work. For Sanders and Ocasio-Cortez, they both are populist figures, which does not apply to Biden. (Although political pundits have pointed out that Biden seems to have road-tested populist re-election themes leading up to his nomination.)

Populism always uplifts the common person, which is your basic internet user, Cohen explained. [Their] popularity of memeing comes from the populism, not from anything else.

The line between successful memes and cringe

When it comes to Biden, Cohen said he gets what the Biden administration is trying to do, but noted that successful memes have evolved to a point where they are too hyperspecific and niche to resonate with a widespread audience.

This isnt how young Gen Zers or Gen Alpha, future voters  this isnt how they communicate, he said. Its different now. Playing this game feels, like, three years late.

In 2020, Mike Bloombergs presidential campaign had partnerships with big Instagram meme accounts like F***Jerry, which had close to 15 million followers, and tank.sinatra, which had almost 3 million. Several of the meme accounts shared staged Instagram direct message conversations between them and Bloomberg, wherein Bloomberg asks all of them to make him look cool. It did not work.

I think, unfortunately, the most successful memes in politics are extreme far-right memes, Cohen continued. Those work really well because the base is interested in it because it carries so much encoded messaging, its hard for the audience to know what the meme even means.

Take as an example the early iterations of the Dark Brandon meme. A person not within the online inner circles as the meme evolved would not understand the joke. Cohen argues that the niche element that makes a meme successful or go viral is hard to create organically  a lot of them, he says, are reactionary. Its also not necessarily something a presidential candidate trying to appeal to the masses would want in the first place.

When youre dealing with the general public, a Kermit sipping tea isnt going to do the thing, he said. Its just going to be cringeworthy.

The line between cringeworthy and successful is thin because Getachew sees something in what Bidens campaign is trying to do.

Combine eligible Gen Z voters with millennial voters, they are poised to make up 49% of the electorate  thats a game changer, she said. If modern campaigning doesnt evolve to meet the needs of the fastest-growing segment of our demographic, then democracy is never getting close to a more perfect union.
President Biden on paid tribute Thursday to veteran journalist Howard Fineman, who died Tuesday of pancreatic cancer.

Great journalists hold a mirror up to the Nation to reveal the good, the bad, and the truth of who we are as Americans. For four decades, Howard Fineman was one of the great journalists of our time, Biden said in a statement. His career covered much of mine, and throughout the debates over big issues and historic campaigns, I respected his reporting and insights whether I agreed or disagreed with him.

Fineman, 75, was an analyst for NBC and MSNBC and spent three decades working for Newsweek and then worked at HuffPost.

Biden honored Fineman for believing that all journalism is personal and understanding the fundamental role of journalism in our democracy is to illuminate, educate, and shed light.

The president also noted that Fineman was a respected voice in journalism and was widely respected by other journalists.

With his focus on the facts and ability to tell a great story, its no surprise why Howard was a trusted and respected voice for millions of Americans, and true friend and mentor to countless colleagues, Biden said.

The president said him and first lady Jill Biden send their love to Finemans wife, Amy Nathan, and children, Nick and Meredith.

Above all, in the decades we knew each other, it was clear that his love of family was the greatest story he ever told, Biden said. We know what its like when cancer takes away the life of a beloved family member. But no matter where you are, he will always be with you.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
President Biden on Thursday pushed back on a reporters line of questioning about the Gaza cease-fire proposal during his press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

A reporter asked Biden for an assessment of Hamass response to the proposal and to describe his message to allies at the Group of Seven (G7) summit about the U.S.s work toward a peace agreement.

Wish you guys would play by the rules a little bit, Biden replied. Im here to talk about a critical situation in Ukraine, you asked me another subject. Ill be happy to answer in detail later.

The president added that the biggest hang up so far is Hamas refusing to sign on, even though they have submitted something similar.

Were going to continue to push. I dont have a final answer for you, he said.

The White House Correspondents Association (WHCA) said in a statement after the presidents pushback that there are no preconditions regarding question topics and professional journalists decide what to ask.

Any leader may prefer that reporters ask only one question or ask only about a topic that is of most interest to the president or another world leader, but a free press functions independently, WHCA president Kelly ODonnell said.

Earlier Thursday, Biden was asked in Italy about the proposal and told reporters it was discussed among allies at the summit.

When asked if hes confident they will get a deal soon, he said, No, adding, I havent lost hope.

Hamas has to move, he said.

The Biden administration earlier this week said it was evaluating a response from Hamas for the deal, which would halt fighting with Israel in the Gaza Strip. The United Nations Security Council also has passed a U.S.-drafted resolution that laid out the three phases of a temporary cease-fire deal with a pathway toward a permanent end to hostilities.

The cease-fire proposal was announced by Biden last month and was characterized at the time as having originated with Israel, although Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has offered vague assurances of Israels commitment to the proposal.

 Updated at 5:02 p.m.

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Biden says he wont pardon Hunter Biden or commute his sentence in first public remarks after guilty verdict

President Joe Biden on Thursday offered his first public remarks about his son Hunters conviction on federal gun charges earlier this week, telling reporters in Italy he is proud of him and accepts the jurys verdict.

Im extremely proud of my son Hunter. He has overcome an addiction, hes one of the brightest, most decent men I know, Biden said during a news conference on the margins of the G7 summit.

I am satisfied that Im not going to do anything  I said Id abide by the jury decision. I will do that. And I will not pardon him, he added.

Hunter Biden was found guilty on three federal charges this week, punctuating an emotionally tumultuous trial that unearthed many dark and private moments for the Biden family.

Biden reaffirmed that he would not pardon his son, echoing a commitment he made last week, before he was convicted in his gun case.

The president also went a step further Thursday, saying he would not consider commuting his sons sentence. Presidents have the power both pardon and commute, or reduce, sentences in federal cases.

Hunter Biden has not yet been sentenced in his gun case, and it likely will not happen for another couple of months.

White House officials suspected the president may face questions from reporters at Thursdays press conference regarding his sons conviction, including whether the president would commute the sentence, a senior White House official told CNN.

Biden aides suspected there was a good chance the president would be asked to comment on the verdict, the official said, and they were sensitive to the fact that White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierres response to a question the day before had inadvertently created fresh headlines that the White House would not rule out the possibility of a commutation.

But the official told CNN that Jean-Pierres response had simply been a reflection of the fact that some aides had not discussed that matter with the president.

The president has sought to draw a distinction between his own acceptance of the jurys verdict and rival Donald Trumps claim that his own legal issues amount to a rigged justice system. To that end, he has largely chosen to stay quiet about his sons criminal trial.

Last week, the president in a statement noted that while he is the commander-in-chief, he is also a father. He repeated those sentiments in a statement after his sons conviction on Tuesday.

While Biden has largely shied away from talking about his sons criminal case in an effort to avoid looking like he is putting his thumb on the scale, other family members had shown up to support Hunter Biden in court. First lady Dr. Jill Biden was in the courtroom for most of the trial, making several transatlantic flights to be by Hunter Bidens side while the first family was in France to commemorate the 80th anniversary of D-Day.

The presidents siblings, Valerie and James, also appeared in court to support Hunter Biden.

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

CNNs MJ Lee contributed to this report.

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President Biden on Thursday stopped short of celebrating the Supreme Court ruling to preserve access to the abortion pill mifepristone, saying that the fight for reproductive freedom in the U.S. is an ongoing matter.

Todays decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues. It does not change the fact that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, and women lost a fundamental freedom. It does not change the fact that the right for a woman to get the treatment she needs is imperiled if not impossible in many states, Biden said in a statement shortly after the opinion was issued.

The Supreme Court ruled Thursday in a unanimous decision that a group of anti-abortion doctors does not have any legal basis to challenge access to mifepristone. The opinion, written by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, sided with the Biden administration and the manufacturer of the branded version of mifepristone.

In his statement, Biden said that while the ruling means medication abortion remains available and approved, attacks on mifepristone are part of Republican elected officials extreme and dangerous agenda to ban abortion nationwide.

He noted that 21 states have passed what he deemed as extreme abortion bans since Roe v. Wade was overturned two years ago and argued that contraception and in vitro fertilization are under attack.

The stakes could not be higher for women across America. Vice President Harris and I stand with the vast majority of Americans who support a womans right to make deeply personal health care decisions, Biden said. We will continue to fight to ensure that women in every state get the health care they need and we will continue to call on Congress to restore the protections of Roe v. Wade in federal law  that is our commitment.

Vice President Harris, in a statement distributed by the Biden-Harris campaign, blamed former President Trump  who often touts the overturning of Roe v. Wade came as the result of the conservative justices he appointed to the high court during his term  for the reason women are living under cruel abortion bans.

The contrast is stark: While Trump relentlessly attacks reproductive freedoms, President Biden and I will never stop fighting to protect them. Americans have repeatedly made it clear they want more freedom, not less, and they will make their voices heard at the ballot box once again this November.

Harris has been made the face of the White Houses efforts on abortion, and she has delivered speeches in which she centers on Trump and Republican efforts to limit reproductive rights.

But the president, too, has had to balance hot-button issues with his own 2024 reelection campaign, including the delicate issue of abortion as a Catholic, which the church opposes. The high courts ruling comes just one day before Biden is set to meet Pope Francis at the Group of Seven summit in Italy.

Abortion has served as a key issue for Democrats since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, landing the party surprise wins in that years midterm elections, which Democrats hope to repeat this year.

Updated 12:05 p.m.

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FASANO, Italy  President Joe Biden on Thursday expressed doubts that a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas would soon come together, telling reporters that Hamas needs to move.

No, Biden responded when asked if he was confident a peace deal was imminent. But, he added, I havent lost hope.

The brief exchange followed a skydiving demonstration during the G7 summit here, where Biden has been meeting with fellow world leaders on a range of foreign policy and economic issues.

Biden later expanded on his concerns, saying the biggest hang-up is on Hamas side.

Whether or not it comes to fruition remains to be seen, he said at a press conference alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Were going to continue to push. I dont have a final answer for you.

And it came days after Hamas responded to an Israeli cease-fire proposal with a counteroffer of its own. The White House is still evaluating that offer, officials said, though they cautioned that it differs significantly in some aspects with Israels initial three-stage plan. Biden confirmed that he had discussed those Middle East negotiations with other G7 leaders during the summit, though did not offer details on those conversations.



The U.S has pitched Israels cease-fire plan as a reasonable pathway toward permanently ending the war, arguing it would immediately halt the fighting in Gaza and create a process for returning the hostages still held by Hamas.

Some of those amendments are modest and minor, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said earlier Thursday. Others are not consistent with what President Biden laid out.

Sullivan added that the administration is still trying to find a path to a cease-fire agreement, but could not provide any timetable.

Biden confirmed that he had discussed those Middle East negotiations with other G7 leaders during the summit, but did not offer details on those conversations.
President Joe Biden and former President Trump held competing fundraisers in London on Wednesday, sources told CNN, amid an intensifying race for campaign cash and signs that the former president is gaining some financial ground.

Anna Wintour, editor-in-chief of Vogue, hosted Bidens event, while actress and political activist Holly Valance hosted the Trump event, which Trumps son, Don Jr. and his fiancee, Kimberly Guilfoyle, attended.

Ric Grenell, Trumps former ambassador to Germany, posted on X that Trumps event raised $2 million.

London has long been fertile fundraising ground for American politicians, who are allowed to solicit donations from US citizens abroad.

Gwyneth Paltrow, then a resident of the UK, held a fundraiser for then-President Barack Obama during his reelection bid in 2012. And then-Republican nominee Mitt Romney held a fundraiser in the British capital during a visit the same year. Wintour, a longtime Democrat, previously hosted a fundraiser for Biden during Paris Fashion Week in March.

The Financial Times first reported on the fundraisers, which come amid signs of an increasingly competitive money race.

Throughout early 2024, Bidens reelection effort dominated the fundraising landscape, outraising Trumps team significantly during the first three months of the year while building a substantial war chest that the campaign said totaled more than $192 million across all of its allied committees entering May.

In April, however, Trumps first full month as the de-facto GOP nominee, the former presidents team raised $76 million, significantly ahead of Bidens $51 million haul in the same month, and the first time that Trumps team outraised Bidens team this year.

Trump also benefited from a fundraising bonanza following his historic conviction in the criminal hush money trial in New York at the end of last month. His team sent out numerous fundraising appeals to supporters in the aftermath of the high-profile verdict announcement.

As a result, Trumps campaign and its affiliated committees announced they had hauled in $141 million in May, with more than one-third of that total, $53 million, coming in just the 24 hours following the verdict at the end of the month.

Trumps team did not announce a cash-on-hand total when announcing its May fundraising surge, but the $141 million that it raised is significantly more than Bidens team has raised in any month so far this year. And it could help close the cash-on-hand gap between the principal campaign committees, with the Biden campaign holding a $35 million advantage at the end of April.

Bidens team has not yet announced their May fundraising totals, but while being outraised by Trump in recent months, the campaign has repeatedly pointed to its substantial war chest of $192 million across all allied committees at the end of April, which they described as the highest cash-on-hand figure for any Democratic candidate in history and one they say positions the president to compete effectively with the former president.

Biden advertising blitz

Bidens team has also put its early cash advantage into play, dominating the TV advertising landscape during the first half of the year.

According to data from the ad tracking firm AdImpact, since Super Tuesday, when Trump effectively secured the GOP presidential nomination, through Wednesday, Bidens campaign had spent $47.8 million on advertising, blitzing battleground states, while Trumps campaign has spent just $105,000.

Trumps reelection effort has effectively left its paid advertising to allied outside groups so far, as opposed to the campaign, but the advertising gap remains when accounting for all outside spending from both parties in the presidential race.

Including all advertisers, Democrats have outspent Republicans on presidential advertising by about $81.2 million to $31.9 million, according to AdImpact data, a gap roughly equivalent to the Biden campaigns ad spending alone.

Further complicating the financial picture is the significant strain that Trumps legal troubles have placed on his reelection effort. Save America, a leadership PAC that has taken a lead role in paying legal fees for the myriad cases facing the former president, has had to divert nearly $80 million to legal expenses since the start of 2021  funds that could otherwise go toward staff, organizing, paid messaging, and other campaign activities.

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By Bayram Elshadov, Day.az





The Armenian opposition organized a circus in which it acted as the main clown. Having staged a show in which they promised to impeach Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan in the Armenian parliament, the Armenian opposition decided to make an unpredictable decision and ignored the meeting at which the draft message on the governments resignation was to be discussed. Thus, showing that he has absolutely no control over the events taking place.





According to official information, the meeting was postponed due to the absence of the main speaker.





The Armenian opposition tried to take advantage of anti-Pashinyan sentiments spread by the church and increase pressure on the current prime minister. And there are two possible explanations for the absenteeism of the Armenian opposition.





Firstly, it is possible that the Armenian opposition simply did not calculate its strength and realized that an unsuccessful attempt to remove Pashinyan could damage their image.





The second point is related to the fact that the Armenian opposition decided not to help Bagrat Galstanyan, who leads the protest movement. Probably, the opposition decided that it was not worth helping the priest, who could then leave some of the oppositionists out of work.





It turned out to be a very interesting situation in which the Armenian opposition showed its inability to function as a unified political mechanism that has the ability to offer an alternative to the current political forces.





All this shows the deepest split in the political opposition in Armenia.





Whatever the motives of the opposition deputies, their desire to punish the current political leadership at any cost was a blow to their own image.





It is interesting that if earlier the Armenian government organized similar circus performances, today the opposition has managed to outdo its political opponents.





The events taking place in Armenia illustrate the degree of divergence of views not only among different camps, but also among politicians who should, in theory, support each other.





It is difficult to predict the outcome of this entire show, but what is certain is that Armenian politicians have made a habit of making fools of themselves in front of the country and the world.




The past six months have seen positive movement in central Africa. Several countries have turned back to constitutional order. For example, Chad adopted a new constitution last December and held presidential elections on May 6.

Sao Tome and Principe advanced justice and security reforms while Gabon held an inclusive national dialogue in April and formed a National Constitutional Committee to draft a constitution and an electoral code. This prompted the Economic Community of Central African States, or ECCAS, to lift sanctions against Gabon and welcome it back into the fold. This is important because Facilitating intraregional trade will play a crucial role in the promotion of stability and the prevention of conflicts in this subregion, according to the UN.

That said, the region faces some serious obstacles, not least of which are strife and violence. The United States is particularly concerned by the effect of the Sudan crisis on Chad and the Central African Republic, with both countries collectively hosting over 600,000 new Sudanese refugees, said U.S. Alternative Representative for Special Political Affairs at the UN, Robert Wood.

The United States continues to provide robust humanitarian aid to help ensure the needs of refugees, host communities, and others are met, he said. We will continue working with key partners, particularly those within the region, to press the warring parties to lay down their arms, ensure unhindered humanitarian assistance, and resume peace talks.

Meanwhile, the United States applauds progress toward stability and conflict prevention. In Chad, we welcome the largely peaceful conduct of the presidential election on May 6, said Ambassador Wood.

U.S. assistance is highly dependent on Gabon moving toward free and fair elections with inclusive electoral processes and establishing in a timely manner a democratically elected government that represents the Gabonese people.

In the Central African Republic, the United States calls on the government and opposition to engage constructively and transparently ahead of the countrys first local and regional elections since 1988, said Ambassador Wood.

These elections are a critical element of decentralization and building local institutions responsive to citizens need.

The United States believes it is vital to support the democratic and peaceful aspirations of the people of Central Africa, said Ambassador Wood. The United States stands ready to continue our support for the democratic and peaceful aspirations of the people of Central Africa.
A mother and daughter. (Getty Images.)

The Ohio House passed a bipartisan bill that would ban discrimination against natural hair in K-12 schools with a 83-7 vote during Wednesdays session.

State Reps. Juanita Brent, D-Cleveland, and Jamie Callender, R-Concord, introduced the CROWN Act  which stands for Creating a Respectful and Open World for Natural Hair  last year. The bill would also allow someone who alleges that a public school has discriminated against them based on traits associated with their race the ability to sue in any court that has jurisdiction.

Hair discrimination is real, Brent said Tuesday at a Juneteenth press conference. I dont feel like anybody should have to conform to Eurocentric values of having to have my hair straight. Its stressful.

She said people have told her to straighten her hair and recalled when one of her first aides had an afro and people in the Statehouse told her to doing something about it.

I remember I said well thats how his hair grows. It grows like that, she said. Thats the world were living in  where people do not feel seen, do not feel accepted.

Hair discrimination is part of the reason why people are leaving Ohio, she argued.

How dare somebody tell you how you should look when thats your natural state of your hair, Brent said. Hair discrimination is alive and legal here in Ohio.

Republican Reps. Gary Click, Rodney Creech, Al Cutrona, Bill Dean, Kevin Miller, Reggie Stoltzfus and Scott Wiggam all voted against the bill.

Callender shared a story that happened 25 years ago that led him to ultimately co-sponsor the bill. He said a mother told him how she got her daughter ready for her first day of kindergarten by putting cornrows and beads in her hair.

One hour into the school day, she got a phone call and they said that her hair was outside of the dress code and she wasnt allowed to attend her first day of kindergarten, and was waiting in the office for her mom to pick her up to correct her hair, Callender said. Think of what that does to a child personally at school.  Thats not acceptable. And this will make sure that that doesnt happen in the future.

Rep. John Williams, R- Sylvania, spoke up in support of the bill on the House floor.

Students are required to go to school by law, so why should schools be allowed to prevent them from wearing their hair in a natural, culturally appropriate and healthy way? he said. Hair styles are an extension of your race and ethnicity.

This is the third time Brent has introduced this bill, but it previously never made it out of committee.

Ohio House Bill 178 originally would have prohibited discrimination against natural hair in jobs and housing, and would have made it unlawful to discriminate against someones hair texture and protective hair styles such as braids, locks and twists under Ohios Civil Rights Law.

But an amendment to the bill in committee removed all of those things from the bill  leaving only public K-12 schools.

This bill originally was a lot more expansive than what we have for you today, Callender said. Getting a bill passed requires sometimes that we make compromises on what wed really like to see and might very well be introduced again next year.

Columbus, Cleveland Heights, Akron, and Cincinnati have already enacted the CROWN Act at the local level. Nationwide, 23 states have already enacted the CROWN Act as of last summer, according to the Society for Human Resource Management.

Two-thirds of Black children in majority-white schools have faced race-based hair discrimination, according to a 2021 CROWN Act study. 86% of those children reported experiencing hair discrimination by age 12.

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A decade after a federal court struck down Pennsylvanias law against same-sex marriage, a bill to repeal the invalid statute was voted out of the state House Judiciary Committee for the first time ever on Wednesday.

While that decision was affirmed and became the law of the land a year later when the U.S. Supreme Court outlawed bans on same-sex marriage, House Bill 2269s prime sponsor said repealing Pennsylvanias law defining marriage as a contract between one man and one woman is an important symbolic step.

The fact that these statutes are outdated proves the point and the necessity of us doing this, and it also sends an important message about us embracing William Penns vision of tolerance and acceptance no matter who you are, state Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta (D-Philadelphia) said during the Judiciary Committee meeting.

The legislation passed with a 17-8 vote, including yes votes from three Republicans, Timothy Bonner of Mercer County, Toren Ecker of Adams County, and Kate Klunk of York County. The bill will now go to the House floor for consideration.

Rep. Paul Schemel (R-Franklin) spoke in opposition to the bill, saying that the states interest in promoting legal marriage is rooted in protecting the welfare of children born out of a union between a man and a woman.

The law does not assert that same-sex relationships are either good or bad. Only that they are different in a substantial way and that changing the law on marriage alters the fundamental understanding and calls into question the convention by which the state recognizes marriage altogether, Schemel said.

Other members of the committee said that changing Pennsylvania law to explicitly state that marriage is a contract between two people is necessary to protect the rights of LGBTQ+ people.

Rep. Joe Hohenstein (D-Philadelphia), who said he is the parent of a transgender person, noted that the justices of the Supreme Court have shown themselves willing to engage in judicial activism. In June 2022, the Supreme Court overturned its own 49-year-old precedent establishing a national right to abortion, clearing the way for states to enact bans on the procedure.

If that were to occur, I would want Pennsylvania to remain a bulwark of marriage equality. And for that reason, this law needs to go off the books, Hohenstein said.

Preston Heldibridle, executive director of the Pennsylvania Youth Congress said LGBTQ+ Pennsylvania residents should be free to marry without worrying about the possibility of their marriages being declared invalid.

Todays vote affirms that updating the language in our state statute to put aside past exclusion has bipartisan backing, and embraces the reality that marriage equality is broadly supported today, Heldibridle said. Marriage equality is simply the right public policy for Pennsylvania  what more needs to be said?

The language defining marriage in Section 1704 of Pennsylvanias Domestic Relations Act was declared invalid following the U.S. Supreme Courts 2013 decision striking down the federal Defense of Marriage Act. U.S. District Judge John E. Jones ruled in favor of a widow, 11 same-sex couples, and the children of one of the couples, who wanted the state to recognize their marriages from other states.

The Pennsylvania House last year passed the Fairness Act, which would extend protections under the states anti-discrimination law to LGBTQ+ people. The bill, first introduced more than 20 years earlier, passed the House with a bipartisan 102-98 vote with support from two GOP lawmakers, Reps. Aaron Kaufer and Alec Ryncavage, both of Luzerne County. Democratic Rep. Frank Burns of Cambria County voted in opposition.

The Fairness Act has not been considered in the Senate,

The post A bill to repeal Pennsylvanias same-sex marriage ban will be considered in the state House appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)  A bill that would legalize the shooting feral hogs took a step forward at the Ohio Statehouse on Wednesday.

House Bill 503, sponsored by Reps. Don Jones (R-Freeport) and Bob Peterson (R-Sabina), was voted out of the House on Wednesday 89 to zero.

Man killed in Columbus police shooting encountered officers hours before

They can multiply very quick if something is not done and I think thats what we have to understand: we dont want to wait until theres a real true problem before we address it, Jones said. Most of the time theyre very rough looking, they have longer hair, theyll probably be a little on the thinner side.

Jones said there are nearly 7 million feral hogs in the U.S., most of them in southern states. But, here in Ohio, there were more than 100 sightings this last year. Jones said the bill is a proactive measure to ensure the problem does not spread here.

We have a small population here in Ohio now, but feral pigs are very destructive, Jones said. They eat crops they tear up property but more importantly they carry disease. We do not want our producers in Ohio worrying about having a problem because of feral swine.

The bill allows feral hogs to be shot anytime without a license if one is spotted on your property.

Which areas of Franklin County successfully appealed rising property values

Its not like you can go all around the state and shoot them, Jones said.

If someone does shoot one, they must report it to the Division of Wildlife and follow their protocols. Jones said besides the destruction feral hogs can create, it is also a good security issue.

We dont want anybody to feel uncomfortable in the state of Ohio, like they cant go buy a gallon of milk or packet of hamburger or steak and we want them to be confident that they have a good product thats wholesome, he said. We just dont want to see damage and disease being spread by something that has no service.

The bill now heads to the Senate for committee hearings before a possible floor vote.

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Bird flu worries prompt new testing orders for cows, concern for farmworkers and others at risk

Male farmer pouring raw milk into container with dairy cows in background on a dairy farm with cows

A farmworker pours milk into a container. A new Wisconsin agriculture order requires cows to be tested for avian flu before they're taken to shows or to be displayed. (Getty Images)

No Wisconsin dairy herds have reported an infection with the H5N1 influenza, nicknamed bird flu, but starting later this month farmers will be required to test lactating cows for the virus before taking them to shows or displays.

The Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) announced this week it would require the tests starting June 19.

Farm organizations endorsed the requirement Wednesday.

Wisconsins dairy community is committed to protecting cows in our state from the H5N1 virus, said Tim Trotter, CEO of the Dairy Business Association, in a statement. Recognizing the need to be as careful as possible, we see the new testing requirement related to fairs and exhibitions as sensible in those efforts.

It makes sense to require testing, said Michelle Ramirez-White, policy coordinator for the Wisconsin Farmers Union. We think its really important to make sure that the commercial milk supply is secured.

DATCPs avian flu test order

Under the new DATCP order, producers who want to move lactating dairy cattle to fairs or exhibitions in Wisconsin must receive a negative test for H5N1 Type A influenza virus at an approved National Animal Health Laboratory Network lab. The sample must be collected no more than seven days before the animal is to be moved.

The test is available for free, and producers can be reimbursed for shipping and veterinary fees, DATCP says. The order will remain in effect until 60 days after the last detection of H5N1 in cattle herds in the U.S.

DATCP is also advising dairy farmers and dairy employees to practice strict biosecurity to protect their herds. The department encourages producers who notice unusual clinical signs in their cattle to consult their herd veterinarian.

Veterinarians should report unexplained animal symptoms to DATCP at (608) 224-4872 during business hours or (800) 943-0003 after hours and on weekends, or by email to datcpanimalimports

@wisconsin.gov

DATCP has posted a webpage on H5N1 in dairy cattle at AvianInfluenzaCattle. [/infobox]

The virus is known as avian flu because its normally spread by migratory birds. But in recent months it has turned up in dairy cattle in 12 states, including Iowa, Michigan and Minnesota, which all border Wisconsin.

We have not seen a case in Wisconsin, but with the busy fair season coming up thats a concern, Ramirez-White told the Wisconsin Examiner.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has already issued a federal order requiring dairy cattle moving across state lines to be tested for the virus.

Nationally three people have been reported to have been infected with the virus, none of them in Wisconsin.

As Wisconsin does not have any known infected dairy herds at this time, there has been no human testing for the H5 bird flu in Wisconsin, said Elizabeth Goodsitt, spokesperson for the Wisconsin Department of Health Services (DHS).

In an email message, Goodsitt told the Wisconsin Examiner that DHS is collaborating with DATCP to make personal protective equipment, including coveralls, face shields, vinyl gloves and N-95 respirators, available to dairy and poultry farms, dairy processing plants, slaughterhouses and agencies that support farm or slaughterhouse workers.

DHS has posted a form for PPE requests at the departments Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Medical Stockpile web page.

Participants in a national public health webinar Wednesday on the recent spread of the H5N1 flu virus to dairy herds and people said that much more data is needed both to understand the current risk and to prepare for the possibility of a pandemic. The webinar was presented by the University of Southern California Center for Health Journalism.

We dont know how many people have been infected, said New York Times health and science reporter Apoorva Mandavilli. We know of three cases, but only about 45 people have been tested. So there could be many more that we just dont know about.

The actual spread to cows is also unknown, she added.

My highest level of concern right now is for the workers on the farms, who we know are being exposed to this virus and we know are already getting sick with this virus, said Jennifer Nuzzo, director of the Pandemic Center at the Brown University School of Public Health. We need to be talking more about protecting the workers who are in harms way today.

Nuzzo said she believes there should be much more widespread testing for the virus, with particular attention to farmworkers and others at high risk. In addition to the three confirmed cases, there have been reports of other people with similar symptoms, she observed.

So far, the infections that have happened have been mild, Nuzzo added. But I do not see anything in the data to give me hope that future infections will necessarily be.

Dr. Matifadza Hlatshwayo Davis, the director of health for the city of St. Louis, agreed that people who work with animals are among the most at risk, and that focusing on their risk is important.

At the same time she cautioned that the message needs to be clear that risks are different for different groups of people. I wouldnt be doing my job, quite frankly, [by being] alarmist about the risk for the general public, Davis said.

The post Bird flu worries prompt new testing orders for cows, concern for farmworkers and others at risk appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner.
Downtown Birmingham viewed from Red Mountain. Birmingham is one of the largest banking centers in the United States and has a long history as a steel and iron producer. (John Coletti/The Image Bank)

The Alabama Public Charter School Commission Wednesday approved an amendment to the initial plan for a school campus to open in Birmingham.

The Freedom Preparatory Academy Birmingham campus was supposed to open in the fall to serve kindergarten and first grade students. After a delay with the facility, the school requested the Commission approve changes to allow them to host kindergarteners in portable classrooms.

We are confident in our ability to meet this requirement within that specific timeline for a student recruitment plan, which weve submitted, said Crystal Shaw-Nasir, executive director for the school.

Freedom Preparatory Academy will open with 80% enrollment for kindergarteners. They are currently at 25% and will have an enrollment blitz, Shaw-Nasir said.

Roblin Webb, founder and CEO of the Freedom Preparatory Academy Charter Schools, said they will return to their original growth pattern to serve kindergarten through second grade.

This is just an exception because of facilities challenges in space this first year, she said.

According to the Public Charter School Commission website, the school aims to prove what is possible and inspire broader change and to carry the torch of the civil rights movement and help realize the dream. They plan to provide a high-quality option for families in traditionally disaffected communities.

Lane Knight, counsel for the commission, said that the school had been approved, pending legal guidance from the Attorney Generals office.

Logan Searcy, executive director, said that there was going to be another check to ensure that safety requirements were met in that a storm shelter did not need to be in place for the portable.

If a problem comes up because theyre in portables and the building is not ready, she said. We will be informed and we can make those changes if they end up being necessary.

Spokesperson for the Alabama State Department of Education Michael Sibley confirmed that Searcy spoke with Brandon Payne, deputy state superintendent of administrative and financial services, and that he would reach out to the Division of Construction Management for clarification and said they have oversight of safety compliance for buildings.

The ALSDE office does not oversee code compliance, wrote Sibley.

The amendments to the charter for the facilities, revised enrollment plan and extension for pre-opening conditions for enrollment were approved by the Commission, pending that appropriate safety measures are in place for students.

Freedom Preparatory Academy also has campuses in Memphis. A Montgomery campus is set to open the following school year in 2025-26, according to CBS42.







The post Birmingham charter school receives approval for amended enrollment plan appeared first on Alabama Reflector.
The calf was reportedly born in Yellowstone National Park on Tuesday, June 4

Erin Braaten/Dancing Aspens Farm and Photography Rare white buffalo

A rare white buffalo reportedly born in Yellowstone National Park fulfills a Lakota prophecy predicting better times ahead and a need to take better care of the Earth.

The extremely rare buffalo calf  also called a bison  was born on Tuesday, June 4 in the north-eastern corner of the park and captured by photographer Erin Braaten, who was visiting the park and saw the calf moments after its birth. Park officials had not yet seen the calf in person at the time of the Associated Press report.

They could not quantify how rare the birth of a white calf is but didn't have any records of one ever being born in the park before.

The young animal is deemed sacred by many Native American tribes and is sometimes called a "spirit bison" or "ghost bison," per KTVQ.

Erin Braaten/Dancing Aspens Farm and Photography Rare white buffalo

Related: Bison Calf Killed After It Was 'Disturbed' by Tourist at Yellowstone National Park

Per the Lakota Tribe's legend as reported by the AP, 2,2000 years ago when food was running out in the area and times were bad, a White Buffalo Calf Woman appeared to a tribe member, presenting them with a bowl pipe and a bundle. She also taught the person how to pray and said the pipe could be used to bring food to the area.

When she left, she turned into a white buffalo calf.

And some day when the times are hard again, Arvol Looking Horse, the spiritual leader of the Lakota, told the AP, I shall return and stand upon the earth as a white buffalo calf, black nose, black eyes, black hooves.

Per photographs Braaten posted to Facebook, the calf born on June 4 appears to have those exact markings.

The birth of this calf is both a blessing and warning. We must do more, Looking Horse told the AP. He said that while it means prosperity is ahead, it's also a warning to take better care of the earth.

Erin Braaten/Dancing Aspens Farm and Photography Rare white buffalo

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"I couldnt believe what I was seeing," Braaten told KTVQ. "It was so surreal. I just knew it was something special and one of the coolest things Ive ever photographed."

Per the AP, in 2023 severe weather drove many Yellowstone buffalo that had made the park home to lower elevations, adding to the rarity of the calf's birth.



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EYEWITNESS NEWS (WBRE/WYOU)  A woman who won $1 million from a PA Lottery Scratch-Off says her winning was bittersweet after her husbands death two weeks later.

Officials from the Pennsylvania Lottery presented a check to the winner of a $1 million Scratch-Off ticket called $1,000,000 Game.

The lucky winner, 61-year-old Karen Coffman of Armstrong County, said that winning was bittersweet.

My husband had a brain tumor and died two weeks after I won, said Coffman. I kept telling him, One of these days Im going to hit the million! When I told him about this prize, he thought I was lying to him.

PA Lottery player wins $1,000 a week for life

According to PA Lottery officials, Coffman said she was in disbelief when she scanned the ticket at the store and realized she won.

I thought, This cant be right! The guy working there said, Whats wrong? I said, Look! He started counting the zeroes and we just started jumping up and down, hugging. When I got home, I was shaking, stated Coffman.

Coffman worked as a chef at a nursing home and has recently retired. She plans to invest part of the winnings and is thinking of relocating to Florida to be closer to family, as stated in the release.

The check presentation was held at the Lottery retailer where the winning ticket was sold  BP gas station (Radhe Oil Corporation), in Armstrong County. The retailer will receive a $5,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket.

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 PAhomepage.com.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken refused to say Thursday whether the U.S. could pursue a separate deal with Hamas to free American citizens still held hostage by the organization in Gaza, while negotiations with Israel over a potential cease-fire continue.

Hamas negotiators have accepted only in part a U.S.-led proposal that would see hostages freed and a cease-fire in the ongoing war in Gaza, with some of the groups demands still unacceptable, according to the Biden administration.

The administration and Israeli leaders have pressed Hamas to fully accept the deal for weeks, and the United Nations endorsed it with a Security Council vote Monday. If that deal falls through, however, U.S. officials have discussed working with Hamas through Qatari negotiators without Israel, NBC News reported.

NBC Newss Savannah Guthrie pressed Blinken about the possibility Thursday, which he brushed off.

Savannah, when I was in Israel a couple of days ago, I met with the families of the American hostages. There are eight families. Ive met with them repeatedly, he said. President Bidens met with them. Jake Sullivan, the national security advisers met with them.

And our commitment, my commitment, my priority, is always going to be on American citizens wherever theyre in harms way, if theyre being unjustly detained, if theyre being held hostage, my number one responsibility is to do everything I can do to get them out of harms way, the secretary added.

Guthrie asked again, Is that a yes?

Now, the best way to do that  the best way to do that is through this agreement, thats the fastest way to do it, Blinken continued. If the agreement doesnt work, well always be looking at what we can do if theres anything we can do to get our people home.

Reports indicate Hamas is holding five American citizens among the hostages taken from Israel on Oct. 7, the outset of the Israel-Hamas war. Officials are also hoping to recover the remains of three Americans who were killed on that day but still taken into Gaza.

The unnamed Biden administration officials told NBC News a unilateral deal could be in Hamass best interest to put domestic pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he resists negotiations.

Last week, Israeli officials estimated that some 120 hostages are still being held by Hamas and that 43 of them have died in captivity.

Blinken visited the Middle East again earlier this week, further urging Hams to accept the larger cease-fire deal with Israel.

I know that there are those who are pessimistic about the prospects, he said Monday in Egypt. Thats understandable. Hamas continues to show extraordinary cynicism in its actions, a disinterest not only in the well-being and security of Israelis but also Palestinians.

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 The Hill.
On May 10, the Russian Federation launched an offensive against the Kharkiv region of Ukraine, said U.S. Alternative Representative for Special Political Affairs at the UN, Robert Wood. The world witnessed the havoc and destruction that followed. Russias missiles have hit apartment buildings, shopping centers, and book publishing facilities. Russias missiles pounded Kharkivs energy system, in a continuation of its practice of attacking civilian infrastructure.

Indeed, May was the deadliest month for civilian casualties in Ukraine since June 2023, according to the United Nations. More than half of these casualties can be attributed to the fighting in Kharkiv.

Russia, said Ambassador Wood, continues to deny international monitors and humanitarian organizations access to the Ukrainian territory it occupies, as well as to facilities in Russia holding prisoners of war and Ukrainian civilians.

Putin has no regard for Russias obligations under the Geneva Conventions, given the haggard, beaten, and malnourished bodies of prisoners of war returned to Ukraine on May 31, following the first prisoner swap in months, he said.

Russia also continues its forcible transfer and deportation of Ukrainian children, as part of a systematic campaign to strip the most vulnerable victims of this war of their Ukrainian identity, said Ambassador Wood.

Vulnerable children were taken from Ukrainian caregivers and relocated to Russia. In many instances, these children were provided with Russian names and passports, and adopted by Russians. These transfers are not humanitarian in nature. They may amount to war crimes. The forcible changing of names and nationality is a blatant violation of international law.

The evidence of Russias war crimes is well-documented, staggering, and mounting every day. Nevertheless, Ukraine continues to develop a formula for a just and durable peace that is in line with the principles of the UN Charter, said Ambassador Wood.

We call on all countries to support Ukraines pursuit of a just and lasting peace, consistent with the principles and purposes of the UN Charter, he said.

We regret Russia has shown no support or readiness for good-faith negotiations or engagement on a durable peace, said Ambassador Wood. The United States will stand by Ukraine as it seeks a just and lasting peace.  We will continue to call for justice for the victims of this war of aggression, and to work for accountability for those responsible.
(Bloomberg) -- A New Jersey lawyer who became the states top federal prosecutor in 2021 testified that Senator Bob Menendez told him during a job interview that a friend had been indicted unfairly and he should review the case carefully if he got the position.

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US Attorney Philip Sellinger testified Wednesday at the bribery trial of Menendez, a New Jersey Democrat accused of accepting gold bars, cash and a Mercedes Benz from businessmen seeking favors, including developer Fred Daibes. Prosecutors charge that Menendez, 70, improperly sought to influence the outcome of a separate fraud indictment of Daibes in New Jersey.

Sellinger told jurors at Menendezs trial in New York that he met with the senator in December 2020. Menendez started by asking about Sellingers vision for the US attorneys office before making a more pointed comment about Daibes.

Senator Menendez said he believed Mr. Daibes was being treated unfairly, Sellinger said. Senator Menendez said he hoped that if I was appointed US attorney that I would look at the case carefully.

Sellinger said he told Menendez that if he got the job, he would treat all cases the same. He also said he would ask the Justice Department whether he should recuse himself from the matter because he had worked as a private attorney on a lawsuit involving Daibes.

Prosecutors say the meeting was one of several instances of Menendez corruptly using his power to help people who bribed him. Menendez is also accused of trying to influence the outcome of two criminal cases handled by the New Jersey attorney generals office, of improperly trying to protect a business monopoly of an Egyptian American businessman and of acting as an agent of Egypt.

Prosecutors say Daibes gave cash, furniture and gold bars to Menendez to help him avoid prosecution. Sellinger was recused from overseeing the case, and Daibes eventually pleaded guilty in New Jersey in a deal that called for probation.

Menendez, a three-term senator, denies wrongdoing and has vowed to run for re-election in November as an independent. He stepped down as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee after his indictment last year and has seen his political support collapse in New Jersey and among Democratic colleagues.

After the meeting, the senator withdrew his support of Sellingers nomination by President Joe Biden and backed another lawyer who he believed he could influence in the Daibes case, prosecutors say. But that lawyers candidacy fell through, and Menendez eventually backed Sellinger, who had raised money for the senator and socialized with him.

On cross-examination, Menendez lawyer Avi Weitzman asked Sellinger if in 20 years of friendship, the senator had ever asked him to do anything unethical.

I never believed him to be asking me to do anything improper or unethical, Sellinger said.

Weitzman will resume his questioning of Sellinger Thursday.

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Body Found in Trunk of Used Car Lot Belongs to Missing Woman, Police Say Foul Play Isnt Suspected

Samantha Elisabeth McCowan was involved in a motor vehicle crash on Victory Road near Highway 184 in Mississippi on June 7

Samantha McCowan/Facebook Samantha Elisabeth McCowan

Mississippi authorities confirmed that human remains recently found in the trunk of a used car earlier this week are that of a woman who disappeared on June 7.

In a news release shared with PEOPLE, the Jones County Sheriffs Department (JCSD) said that a body discovered on June 10 at a business on Highway 184 has been identified as Samantha Elisabeth McCowan, 32, of Laurel, Miss.

"Following an autopsy completed by the Mississippi Forensic Laboratory, no indications of foul play were noted," the release noted.

The JCSD also shared that its investigators "obtained security camera video from the area during their investigation which also indicated no foul play."



Related: Body Found in Search for Missing TV Doctor Michael Mosley: Reports

According to the departments Facebook post, McCowan was last seen around Highway 184 and Highway 84 East.

She was involved in a motor vehicle crash on Victory Road near Highway 184 in the early morning hours of June 7 and was observed leaving on foot, authorities said.

McCowan may have sustained injuries in the crash. JCSD deputies and investigators have been and currently are searching the area surrounding the crash site seeking to locate her, the sheriffs department wrote at the time.

Samantha McCowan/Facebook Samantha Elisabeth McCowan

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Authorities described McCowan as a white female measuring 5 6 in height, weighing about 160 lbs. and having light brown colored hair. They added she has a tattoo on her right leg from her hip to her knee, a tattoo of a dragon on her left hip, and a tattoo on the back of her neck.

In a subsequent Facebook update, the JCSD has been asking residents and businesses located along Highway 84 East and surrounding roadways in eastern Jones County to check their security cameras from the time of the vehicle crash if they captured McCowans whereabouts. It added that McCowan was reported to be wearing "a lime green shirt, black and white zebra print shorts and colorful Crocs footwear."



Related: Body of 23-Year-Old Missing Hiker Found on Mills Glacier, Colo., 4 Days After Going Missing

In a later posting, the JCSD said that authorities spent June 9 canvassing the highway and nearby roadways during f the search.

Before McCowan was positively identified, the JCSD said in a June 10 press release that a body was found in the 1600 block of Highway 184 on that same day, adding that the area has been deemed a crime scene pending the result of the investigation. The department also said it has asked the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation Crime Scene Unit to assist.

A published obituary said McCowan was born in Hattiesburg and worked as a bookkeeper. She is survived by her parents and her three sisters, her forever partner and her five children.



Related: Remains of Missing Texas Woman in Her 60s Found Inside Alligators Jaws, Officials Say

A future Celebration of Life ceremony will be announced at a later date, the obituary noted. Her cremains will be endowed to the sea by Samatha's wishes. She will be forever loved, missed and her memories will always be in the hearts of her family and friends.

Authorities further noted to PEOPLE that "additional information will be released as soon as possible."



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Read the original article on People.
The city of Boise is taking over repairs of the historic downtown Union Block building, citing inaction from the owner and public safety concerns.

Boises chief building official, Jason Blais, said in a letter to Ken Howell, the buildings owner, that the city is pursuing structural design and repairs at Howells expense under a facade easement, which allows the city to act to preserve buildings with historical or architectural significance. The letter, obtained by the Idaho Statesman, was sent Thursday.

The citys highest concern is the safety of everyone who lives, works and plays downtown, the city said in a statement provided to the Statesman on Monday.

The city cordoned off the Union Block building at 730 W. Idaho St. on Nov. 9 after officials inspected the space. Notices posted to the buildings doors said Do not enter. Unsafe to occupy. An order to vacate the building listed several subsections of the citys code for dangerous buildings.

The former entrance to Moons Kitchen in the Union Block building in downtown Boise on June 11, 2024. Moons Kitchen moved to a new space in the Zions Bank building after the Union Block building was condemned by the city on Nov. 9, 2024.

The Ada County Highway District also closed the sidewalk, on-street parking and far-right lane of traffic next to the building on Idaho Street between Capitol Boulevard and Eighth Street as a precautionary measure.

The city ultimately gave Howell, a Boise developer and owner of Parklane Management Co., which leases apartments, offices and retail space downtown, about six months, or 180 days, including a 120-day extension, to make the necessary fixes to shore up the building and reopen it.

Howell told the Statesman Monday that the city had no right to condemn the building in the first place.

The two-story building has been under construction for years, with steel beams temporarily holding it up, after Howell got approval from the city in 2018 to carve out an additional floor below ground to lease to businesses or other tenants. The basement renovation was only supposed to take about a year. An original permit for the rear basement wall since expired due to inaction of work with no required inspections, Blais said in the letter, which was first reported on by BoiseDev. Howell has to reapply and obtain a new permit to do any further work on the wall.

Photos show cracks, bowing posts

At a public hearing in January, Blais gave a presentation detailing numerous issues stemming from the project.

He showed photos of several large cracks, temporary shoring posts bowing under significant weight and areas where the facade has separated from the exterior of the building.

This photo, obtained by the Idaho Statesman via a public records request, shows red steel posts temporarily holding up the front of the Union Block building. If you look closely, there are shoring posts that are bowing, and bowing means its overloaded, Jason Blais, the citys chief building official, said.

To ensure public safety and restore normal traffic flow on Idaho Street, we have notified the owner of our intent to make the necessary repairs to the front of the building and look forward to being able to reopen the lanes on Idaho Street, the citys statement continued.

Howell said by phone that none of the posts temporarily holding the building up are at risk of suddenly failing.

The implication is that sandstone blocks are flying everywhere, he added.

Blais said in the letter to Howell that the citys priority is to permanently support the front of the building. He said Howell still hasnt installed a framing system to support the 121-year-old stone structure following the basement renovation. The permit for that part of the project is under review.

City says many repairs are incomplete

Currently there is no updated approved structural design for this, Blais wrote to Howell. Due to your inaction, these repairs have remained incomplete.

A blocked off entrance to the Union Block building in downtown Boise on June 11, 2024.

Howell said hes completed much of the work already.

An email Blais sent to Howell on May 20 included a checklist of work items, with several showing completion or approximately 80% completion.

For example, the list notes that much of the temporary shoring to reinforce the floor has been removed, and the remaining floor work is nearly complete. Repairs to the foundation and support wall on the east side of the building are also nearly finished, and special inspection reports were provided to the city. Cracks in the masonry wall have been fixed and inspected. Howell has also obtained a fire sprinkler permit to replace the system in the basement  that work is in progress, according to the list.

Still, several other items on the list were marked as incomplete, such as the crucial framing support for the front of the building, which the building is vulnerable and dangerous without, Blais said. Repairs to the foundation and wall on the west side of the building and cracks on the buildings interior remain outstanding.

The city is giving Howell 30 more days to receive approval for and complete other outstanding work items. If that work isnt completed by July 6, the city may elect to complete it at Howells expense, too, according to the letter. Such work includes repairs to a space on the first floor previously occupied by Mai Thai, a restaurant that temporarily closed just before the building was condemned thanks to a kitchen fire.

The former entrance to Mai Thai in the downtown Union Block building on June 11, 2024.

Mai Thai is now doing takeout and delivery out of a kitchen at 2900 W. Excursion Lane in Meridian.

Moons Kitchen, a breakfast spot that operated out of the Union Block building for 15 years, moved into a second-floor restaurant space in the Zions Bank building at 800 W. Main St. in January.

Howell says he wants to wrap up the project

Meanwhile, Howell is suing the city over the buildings forced closure.

The lawsuit seeks damages for the loss of tenants and reputational harm to Howell, his company and the building, which will continue to be regarded as a dangerous building, thereby lowering the market value. It also seeks payment for expenses incurred defending any litigation filed by those tenants. The lawsuit said tenants have threatened legal action against Howell and his company for breaching obligations outlined in their lease agreements.

The city has previously declined to comment on the lawsuit.

At this point, I just want to wrap up the project and get the building looking fabulous, Howell said. I love and admire my city. I hate the fact that I have had to resort to a lawsuit.

Union Block building restored in 90s

The Union Block building, completed in 1902, is a Boise landmark. The building is on the National Register of Historic Places, and its sandstone facade is a quintessential part of the downtown streetscape.

The front of the historic Union Block building in downtown Boise on June 11, 2024.

It was designed by Boise architect John E. Tourellotte in 1899, according to the Idaho Architecture Project, and completed three years later. Its made of brick and sandstone sourced from the local Tablerock quarry, which was used in the construction of several other downtown Boise buildings, including the Capitol. The Richardsonian Romanesque-style structure has a 125-foot-long frontage with five arches and many windows.

During the 1960s the building fell in and out of occupancy and was in danger of being demolished. A few decades later, in the 1990s, the city gave Howell a contract to restore it. It reopened five years later.

Tim Keane, the former director of the citys Planning and Development Services department, previously said the city has a great interest in protecting it. He said the Union Block building, and others like it downtown, are tremendously important to the citys character.

Malicious, arbitrary: Owner of historic downtown building steps up fight with Boise

See the staggering amounts of steel and concrete going into Microns new Boise plant

Idaho AG Raul Labrador retracts arguments in ITD campus lawsuit after rift with Gov. Little
Opinion writer Jay Bookman writes that state leaders have compromised the safeguards that protected the integrity of the vote in 2020. John McCosh/Georgia Recorder

Last fall, James McWhorter was summoned to appear before the DeKalb County Board of Elections to save his precious right to vote.

It wasnt the first time he had been forced to do so.

Years ago, I had obtained a traffic felony, I was stripped of my right to vote, he explained to the board during a hearing. So I did everything I needed to do to regain that right to vote. After 15 years, I gained a pardon for my felony.

This time, under a mass voter-registration challenge orchestrated by conservative voter integrity activists, McWhorter had become one of thousands of Georgians who are being forced to show up at hearings around the state, often based on spurious grounds, to avoid having their voter registrations revoked.

McWhorter had originally registered to vote in 2008, after regaining his rights. As McWhorter later explained to Capital B News, he had come back home a few years earlier from serving in the Army in Operation Desert Storm. He suffered from post-traumatic stress, and had racked up three DUI convictions.

After serving his time, he also had no permanent address.

I was displaced. I was homeless, he told the board, but he still wanted to vote. So he used his place of employment, where he sometimes slept, as his mailing address. Thats how he had ended up in the crosshairs of activists looking to strip people of their voting rights, because that business, a barber shop, wasnt zoned for residential use.

As McWhorter told a reporter, he had taken the time to show up for his hearing because his late grandmother had stressed the importance of the right to vote, given the struggle that black Americans had faced to win that right.

They endured water hoses. They endured dogs. They endured heinous things, McWhorter said. They endured stories that I heard of dragging her grandfather out and putting him on a tree just for the right to say, I would like this individual to represent me in my local, my state or my national elections.

That day, McWhorter was able to salvage his right to vote by re-registering at his now-permanent residential address. But in the weeks ahead, hundreds of thousands of other Georgia voters will probably face similar mass challenges to their eligibility, thanks to state laws adopted after the 2020 election giving activists the right to file an unlimited number of challenges to voter registrations. Election boards fear chaos in trying to handle that upsurge.

Unfortunately, those changes in state law are just part of the changed landscape since 2020, when Donald Trump and his supporters tried and failed to overturn the election results here in Georgia and in other swing states.

Consider whats been done to the state Board of Elections. After the 2020 debacle, Georgia Republicans passed a law that removed Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger as chair of the board and stripping him of his vote on the board. Later, it passed another law that removed him from the board altogether.

That was odd for a couple of reasons:

First, the state constitution gives Raffensperger, as secretary of state, primary responsibility for running elections. Cutting him off from the elections board makes it difficult to carry out that important duty. Second, the move reeks of punishment for Raffensperger having dared to run clean, fair elections and for standing by the results, refusing to find the 11,800 votes that Trump had demanded in that notorious phone call.

In addition to removing Raffensperger, Republicans in the Legislature have removed three other members of the five-member election board, all of whom had previously expressed confidence in the outcome of the 2020 election. Theyve been replaced with new appointees who have each expressed doubt that Joe Biden was the legitimate winner of the 2020 election, meaning that a new majority of the state board is unwilling to acknowledge Bidens legitimacy.

Others who had played important roles in protecting the outcome of the 2020 election have also left the scene.

In 2020, then-Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan had refused to participate in the conspiracy to overturn Georgias election results. He has been replaced by Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, who was an active participant in that conspiracy.

In the House, then-Speaker David Ralston had also refused demands from Trump and others to push for a special legislative session to overturn the election. Ralston has since died, replaced by state Rep. Jon Burns. Burns has a moderate reputation but may lack the influence Ralston was able to wield to fend off demands the election be overturned.

Republicans have also worked to place election-doubters in local boards of election. A newly appointed GOP member of the Fulton County election board, for example, recently refused to certify the results of the 2024 primary, claiming she had vague concerns about process.

There are two ways to look at all these changes. One is that they are the minimum necessary to placate a Republican base still somehow convinced that the 2020 election was stolen. The second is that they have weakened the system that successfully stood up to pressure four years ago.

If we had actual evidence of vote fraud, such changes might be justified. We do not have that evidence. To the contrary, the biggest demonstrated threat to election integrity in Georgia is the willingness of some to overturn an election whose outcome they do not like, based on no evidence whatsoever.

And instead of bolstering the systems ability to withstand a similar threat in 2024, state leaders have compromised those safeguards.

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Border guards have shared unique footage of a battle under siege when, in early May, State Border Guard Service of Ukraine fighters stopped an attempt by the Russians to capture Vovchansk.

Source: State Border Guard Service of Ukraine

Details: On 10 May, when a new phase of the Russian military invasion began in northern Kharkiv Oblast, units of the State Border Guard Service, together with all Ukrainian soldiers, met the Russians with fire.

On one of the flanks near Vovchansk, the Russians, mainly by deploying personnel, attempted to capture dominant heights and encircle the city. One of the strongholds that thwarted the Russians' plans was defended by the Shkval (Squall) Border Guard Rapid Response Unit.

Border guards say the frontal attack failed, as Ukrainian forces destroyed several Russian infantry waves. Facing resistance, Russian units began to bypass the defence node to encircle it. The Russians actively supported their assault groups with Grad projectiles, MLRS, mortars, artillery fire, and continuously operated drones.

Quote: "However, despite everything, the border guards held the defence line. How they repelled the enemy and what atmosphere prevailed at our positions  all this can be felt by watching the video with footage of one of the battles that took place near Vovchansk at that time."

Background: The Ukrainian defence forces repel Russian assaults daily in Vovchansk, where street battles are raging. In a month, this city in Kharkiv Oblast has been practically levelled to the ground.

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The Boston Police Department on Thursday announced the recent death of an active-duty detective.

Lt. Detective Henry Staines passed away on Monday after serving nearly 30 years on the force, the police department said.

Staines, who was appointed to the police department in 1996 as a student officer, had been assigned to District C-6 Detectives. He was promoted to lieutenant in 2020 after serving in various roles throughout his career.

Staines received numerous commendations for his dedicated service including for his efforts surrounding arrests made, firearms recovered, and drugs seized.

Staines was highly regarded by those he worked with, his supervisors, and all who knew him, both within the department and by those we serve, police wrote in a statement. As you go about your duties, please keep Lieutenant Detective Staines and his family in your thoughts.

Boston police also noted that Staines was well known for his simple acts of kindness and assistance in the community.

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Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton threw her support behind Westchester County Executive George Latimer as he seeks to unseat Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-N.Y.) in a tense Democratic New York House primary.

With Trump on the ballot, we need strong, principled Democrats in Congress more than ever, Clinton wrote Wednesday on the social platform X. In Congress, @LatimerforNY will protect abortion rights, stand up to the NRA, and fight for President Bidens agendajust like hes always done. Make a plan to vote by June 25th!

The race in New Yorks 16th Congressional District has heated up in recent weeks, with Democrats and other key groups split over Latimer and Bowmans stances on the Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza.

Latimer has repeatedly expressed pro-Israel views, in contrast to Bowman, who was among several progressives in the House to support a cease-fire resolution in the early days following Hamass Oct. 7 attack.

The Westchester County executive touted Clintons endorsement, saying it gives his campaign major momentum just days before New York begins its early voting period on Saturday. The primary election is June 25.

It is such a deep honor to have the support of Secretary Clinton, who has an unmatched record of fighting for womens rights, childrens health and safety, and a more peaceful and politically stable world, Latimer wrote in a statement.

Her voice gives even more momentum to our grassroots campaign, which keeps gaining strength because we stand strongly and honestly for our values and for our belief in delivering meaningful results for the communities we serve, he added.

Latimer also has the backing of the pro-Israel American Israel Public Affairs Committee and former Rep. Mondaire Jones (D-N.Y.), who is running in New Yorks 17th Congressional District.

The Congressional Progressive PAC rescinded its endorsement of Jones earlier this month as he faced backlash for supporting Latimer.

Meanwhile, a series of progressives has rallied support behind Bowman, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who announced hours before Clintons post that he will campaign for the Democratic lawmaker at a Bronx rally on June 22.

AIPAC, funded by right-wing billionaires, supports extremist Republican candidates. They will spend $100m against progressives this year, including $25m against @JamaalBowmanNY, Sanders wrote Wednesday on X. Democrats must unite against this Super PAC. I look forward to joining Jamaal & @AOC in New York.

Latimer held a 17-point lead over Bowman in a new poll by Emerson College Polling/PIX11/The Hill released Tuesday.

Pollsters found 51 percent of likely Democratic primary voters in Bowmans district have a favorable view of the incumbent, compared to 43 percent who have an unfavorable view of him. In comparison, 65 percent said they have a favorable view of Latimer, while 23 percent had an unfavorable view of the county executive.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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A very special guest is about to visit Kim Jong-Un, according to multiple reports, and if history is any indication, the North Korean leader will be pulling out all the stops to woo his visitor from Russia.

Several Russian and South Korean news outlets have reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin will be visiting North Korea as soon as next week, and there are already some signs that Pyongyang will be rolling out the red carpet for his Russian counterpart.

A large new structure was spotted in satellite images this week that could be part of the preparations underway for the high-level visit, VOA reported.

North Korea has previously established structures in the squarenamed after Kims grandfatherin advance of visits from high-ranking officials. It frequently uses the square to host military spectacles and drills to project an image of military might to the world. Past parades have included thousands of carefully coordinated troops marching in formation and military drills, as well as tank battalions, rocket launchers, and intercontinental ballistic missiles on display, for instance. Kim Jong-un just this September observed a military parade in Kim Il-Sung Square to celebrate the countrys founding anniversary.

The visit would mark Putins third meeting with Kim.

Putin Gifts a Car to Kim Jong Un in Touching Valentines Week Gesture

While sanctions have isolated Russia on the world stage, its military partnership with North Korea has only deepened in recent months. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu visited North Korea last year with the intention to increase weapons sales to Russia. Last fall, Kim visited Moscow in what his first foreign trip since 2019. The North Korean leader made several stops in the tour, which was focused on military equipment and aircraft.

The partnership has impacted the war in Ukraine as well. Early this year, the White House accused Russia of using North Korean missiles in Ukraine. North Korea also sent more than 1,000 containers of military equipment and munitions to Russia for use in the war, the White House National Security Council said in October.

As of late May, Russia has used more than 40 North Korean-produced ballistic missiles, according to the State Department.

Kim and Putin have also exchanged congratulatory and flattering messages in recent hours. Thanks to the significant meeting between us at the Vostochney Spaceport in September last year, [North Korea]-Russia friendly and cooperative relations developed into an unbreakable relationship of comrades-in-arms, Kim said in a message, according to North Koreas official Korean Central News Agency.

The Kremlin noted on Thursday that it maintains the right to build its relationship with North Korea.

The Grim Endgame of Putin and Kim Jong Uns New Lovefest

We believe that our right to develop good relations with our neighbors should not be of concern to anyone and cannot and should not be challenged by anyone, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, adding that North Korea is a "friendly country for Russia.

The blossoming relationship has stirred concern in Washington over the the Russian invasion of Ukraine. We condemn the DPRK for providing Russia with this military equipment, which will be used to attack Ukrainian cities, kill Ukrainian civilians, and further Russias illegitimate war, John Kirby, a White House National Security Communications Advisor, told reporters on a call in the fall.

The White House has also suggested that Russia may, in return, provide North Korea fighter aircraft, surface-to-air missiles, armored vehicles, ballistic missile production equipment, and other advanced technologies. In September, Kim visited a facility producing Russian fighter jets during his visit to Russia.

The State Department labeled the burgeoning relationship "a wide-ranging threat to global security and the international non-proliferation regime in a statement last month.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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In 2013, the Assad regime released deadly sarin gas on Syrian civilians in the Ghouta district of Damascus. More than 1400 people, many of them children, were killed. A month later, after an international chorus of condemnation and outrage, Syria joined the Chemical Weapons Convention and pledged not only to never use chemical weapons, but also committed to the prohibition on their development, production, stockpiling and transfer.

Tragically, as U.S. UN Alternative Representative Robert Wood pointed out at a recent Security Council briefing, For the past decade, multiple  I repeat multiple - independent investigations have concluded the Assad regime repeatedly used chemical weapons against its own people.

Still, the Assad regime has yet to fully account for or destroy its chemical weapons arsenal, nor has it accepted responsibility for the atrocities these weapons caused, he said.

For this reason, the United States welcomes the ongoing work of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, the OPCW, which is the implementation arm of the Chemical Weapons Convention. The OPCW continues to investigate Syrias residual chemical weapons capabilities, in the face, as Ambassador Wood noted, of the Assad regimes continued obfuscation.

The United States has long been concerned the Syrian regime retains residual chemical weapons capability. And indeed, the OPCW continues to uncover new alarming evidence, he said. Last month, the Director General reminded OPCW States Parties of the presence of unexpected chemicals in samples collected by the Declaration Assessment Team between 2021 and 2023 across several declared sites. Such results clearly demonstrated the Assad regime has neither declared nor accounted for the full history and scope of its chemical weapons program.

Ambassador Wood praised the decision by the OPCW Conference of States recommending that States Parties take collective measures to prevent the transfer to Syria of dual-use chemicals and equipment.

This decision also aims to prevent the same dual-use chemicals and equipment from falling into the hands of non-state actors, including terrorist groups, he said.

The United States, Ambassador Wood declared, will continue working with partners across the world to bring an end to the regimes chemical weapons program and promote accountability for the use of chemical weapons in Syria and elsewhere.
The California state Senate has passed a bill that would require speed governors on all new cars manufactured or sold in California by 2032. These devices would give drivers "audible and visual signals" when they exceed the speed limit by more than 10 miles per hour. The bill's sponsor, Sen. Scott Wiener (DSan Francisco), says the measure will reduce traffic accidents and deaths.

The post Brickbat: Life in the Slow Lane appeared first on Reason.com.
Micah Beckwith has not come to bring peace to the Indiana Republican Party, but a sword.

The proud Christian nationalist pastor is storming the party's convention Saturday in hopes of convincing delegates to nominate him as Sen. Mike Braun's running mate in the gubernatorial race  against Braun's wishes (sort of).

Braun last month won the Republican nomination for governor and will face Democrat Jennifer McCormick in November. Braun has already named state Rep. Julie McGuire as his preferred lieutenant governor, and the Republican establishment has rallied around that pairing. Parties usually defer to gubernatorial nominees on running mates, but Beckwith is attempting to deny Braun's prerogative.

As Diego Morales showed in 2022, anything can happen at the convention, where the party's truest believers gather and impose purity tests on candidates.

That's Beckwith's kind of crowd.

Micah Beckwith, right, talks with Dr. Dan Stock before Stock speaks at the Hoosier Leadership Series session on health care Thursday, June 29, 2023 at Life Church in Noblesville. Beckwith is executive director for the Hoosier Leadership Series. The conservative pastor is also running an unusual campaign for the bid as Indiana lieutenant governor.

Beckwith is an affable fellow with an apparent unlimited gift card to J.Crew. His perfectly white teeth can hypnotize you into nodding along to the idea that, yeah, it sort of makes sense that Jesus was a pro-America messiah who turned over tables because of oppressive property taxes.

Few Indiana political figures embody cultural conservatism as well as Beckwith. He is an influential evangelical who preaches the merging of Christianity and politics. He led the charge to pass a book relocation policy at the Hamilton East Public Library. He wants to fight wokeness in schools, sunset state regulations and turn the lieutenant governor job into a more muscular role through his would-be affiliations with boards and commissions.

Beckwith is going to hijack Braun's job if he wins.

So far, Braun and Beckwith are keeping things cordial. Beckwith has said he'd like to partner with Braun, and Braun, oddly, has offered encouragement for Beckwith's rogue campaign.

Briggs: Why Mike Braun is a bad senator

"If you can convince delegates that you're the one that needs to be lieutenant governor, that's fine with me," Braun told the Madison County Tea Party in March. Beckwith's "Jesus, Sex and Politics" YouTube channel uploaded that clip June 7 without making clear it was three months old. I've updated this column to note the timing.

Braun in recent days has continued to speak warmly of Beckwith even while campaigning for McGuire, the running mate of his choice, per Politico's Adam Wren, who has been following Braun. In doing so, Braun is signaling to Republican delegates that it's totally cool if they pick Beckwith instead.

Is there any principle that MAGA mime Braun won't toss aside for the sake of politics? Let me answer that: no.

Beckwith hasn't even won yet, and he's already turning Braun squishy. What do you think would happen if they become governor and lieutenant governor? Beckwith is telling us, if you read between the lines.

"Ill take arrows with him if hes taking arrows for doing the right thing," Beckwith told State Affairs. "I look forward to going into battle with him and standing up for truth.  There always needs to be an insurance policy."

If he's taking arrows for doing the right thing? An insurance policy? Is this the mafia? Nice governor's office you got there  it'd be a shame if anything were to happen to it.

U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, who on Tuesday won Indiana's Republican gubernatorial primary, poses Wednesday, May 8, 2024, with Rep. Julie McGuire, R-Indianapolis, his recommendation for the state's next lieutenant governor.

In another part of the State Affairs interview, Beckwith described himself as potentially an "independent set of eyes in the executive branch"  an independent set of eyes that happens to be pushing a Christian nationalist agenda.

That's the thing about Beckwith: He has a clear vision for what he wants and how to pursue it. He has an authentic connection to the conservative base (in contrast to Braun's cosplay) and a mandate from the right to execute it through sheer force of will. Like, running uninvited for lieutenant governor.

Briggs: Trump is leading Indiana Republicans to a dangerous place

Meanwhile, Braun has yet to demonstrate any governing philosophy that he'd be willing to stand up for in the face of pressure. He won't even stand up and tell delegates that Beckwith  who has no relevant experience for a high-level government office  is an unacceptable choice for lieutenant governor.

Braun's weakness presents an opportunity for takeover on the Christian right. Beckwith is heading to the Republican convention to strike down the establishment and smile while doing it.

Contact James Briggs at 317-444-4732 or james.briggs@indystar.com. Follow him on X and Threads at @JamesEBriggs.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: As Indiana lt. governor, Micah Beckwith would steamroll Mike Braun
$50bn loan shows West is not backing down to Putin, Biden says

Todays $50 billion loan to Ukraine shows Vladimir Putin we are not backing down, Joe Biden said at the G7 Summit in Italy.

Speaking alongside Volodymyr Zelensky, the Ukrainian president, Mr Biden said he was very pleased with the loan, which is secured against $260 billion in frozen Russian assets.

To put that money to work for Ukraine [is] another reminder to Putin were not backing down. In fact, were standing together against this illegal aggression, he said.

Mr Biden also announced that the US had signed a 10-year security pact with Ukraine to continue training Ukrainian troops, providing weapons and increase intelligence sharing.

Our goal is to strengthen Ukraines credible defence and deterrence capabilities for the long term, he declared. However, the agreement may be undone by a future president because it is an executive order rather than a formal treaty.

Mr Biden said: A lasting peace for Ukraine must be underwritten by Ukraines own ability to defend itself now, and to deter future aggression, anytime in the future.

The United States going to ensure that Ukraine can do both, not by sending American troops to fight in Ukraine, but by providing weapons and ammunition, expanding intelligence sharing, continuing to train brave Ukrainian troops at bases in Europe and the United States.

Interoperability between our militaries in line with Nato standards, investing in Ukraines defence industrial base so in time, in time, they can supply their own weapons and munitions.

Volodymyr Zelensky said that fighter squadrons would be sent to aid the Ukrainian war effort as part of the security agreement.

The agreement has good provisions on weapons for our defence... very specifically on the supply of fighter squadrons to Ukraine, he said.

Thats right, plural - squadrons. Including, but not limited to F-16s. We have worked for a long time for these.

The 10-year pact will last not just for the duration of this war, but also, also for the period of peace after the war, he added. And we will definitely ensure peace.

09:05 PM BST

Thats all for now

Todays live blog has closed. Thank you for following todays coverage of the developments from Ukraine, along with the G7 summit getting underway in Italy. Main headlines today include:

Joe Biden announced a security pact between the US and Ukraine

Rishi Sunak hailed a $50 billion loan to Ukraine as game-changing

Biden revealed plans to target countries supplying the Russian war effort

Volodymyr Zelensky said fighter squadrons would be delivered to Ukraine

Biden was expected to skip dinner with world leaders

08:50 PM BST

Europe bows to US pressure to agree $50bn loan for Ukraine

European leaders bowed to American pressure and agreed a $50 billion loan deal for Ukraine on Thursday using the proceeds from frozen Russian assets.

G7 leaders in Italy announced that Ukraine would receive a major financial boost by the end of the year, as Western countries try to placate Volodymyr Zelensky ahead of next months Nato summit.

Under the deal, returns from $320 billion in frozen Russian central bank assets will be used to secure a loan of $50 billion, which can be used by Ukraine for its military or economic recovery.

Read the full story from Tony Diver and Daniel Martin here.

08:35 PM BST

Pictured: Biden and Zelensky shake hands after signing security pact

Joe Biden and Volodymyr Zelensky shake hands at a joint press conference on the sidelines of the G7 summit - REUTERS/Alessandro Garofalo

08:14 PM BST

Biden: Ukraine is our priority for air defences

Countries that want Patriot missile systems and other air defence systems will have to wait until Ukraines needs are met, Joe Biden said.

The US President said Ukraine is the priority for its converted weapons and then after that we will make good on the commitments weve made to other countries.

08:01 PM BST

Zelensky: Thank you America

Volodymyr Zelensky speaks at a joint press conference with Joe Biden

Volodymyr Zelensky concluded: I would also like to thank the United States Congress for their support - both parties, both chambers. Thank you, and thanks to every American heart that does not betray freedom and supports us.

08:00 PM BST

Zelensky: Fighter squadrons are being sent to Ukraine

Volodymyr Zelensky said: The agreement has good provisions on weapons for our defence... very specifically on the supply of fighter squadrons to Ukraine.

Thats right, plural squadrons, including, but not limited to F-16s. We have worked for a long time for these.

The agreement also includes sanctions make Russian feel the pain, Mr Zelensky said.

07:58 PM BST

US-Ukraine pact will last after the war is over

A 10-year security pact between the US and Ukraine will last not just for the duration of this war, but also, also for the period of peace after the war, Volodymyr Zelensky said.

And we will definitely ensure peace, he added.

07:56 PM BST

Zelensky: US-Ukraine agreement guarantees sustainable peace

Volodymyr Zelensky said: This is an agreement on steps to guarantee sustainable peace. And therefore it benefits everyone in the world, because the Russian war against Ukraine is a real global threat.

I thank you very much, Mr President, for your leadership, which is reflected in particular in this agreement. And in your years of support for Ukraine.

07:55 PM BST

We will target Russian war suppliers, says Biden

Three key measures have been agreed at the G7 summit to support Ukraine, Joe Biden said.

He continued: A bilateral security agreement just signed. Second, historic agreement provide $50 billion in value from Russian sovereign asset to Ukraine.

Joe Biden speaks at a press conference with Volodymyr Zelensky at the G7

And third, and agreement to ensure sanctions efforts, disrupt, third countries that are supplying Russias war effort.

He added: Collectively this is a powerful set of actions.

07:53 PM BST

Biden: Were not backing down

The $50 billion loan to Ukraine is a reminder to Putin were not backing down - in fact, were standing together against this illegal aggression, Joe Biden said.

He cut off while talking about support for Ukraine while an aircraft passed overhead.

07:51 PM BST

Biden announces security pact with Ukraine

Joe Biden announces he has signed a security agreement with Ukraines Volodymyr Zelensky.

Our goal is to strengthen Ukraines credible defence and deterrence capabilities for the long term, he said.

A lasting peace for Ukraine must be underwritten by Ukraines own ability to defend itself now, and to deter future aggression.

This will be by providing weapons and ammunition expanding intelligence training, sharing, continuing to train brave Ukrainian troops at bases in Europe and the United States.

Interoperability between our militaries in line with NATO standards, investing in Ukraines defence industrial base so in time, in time, they can supply their own weapons and munitions, working with Ukraines partners to build a future force that is strong sustainable and resilient.

07:47 PM BST

Biden one hour late to press conference

Its now an hour since Joe Biden and Volodymyr Zelensky were due to appear on stage together for a joint press conference.

The White House suggested earlier today that Mr Biden would be skipping a G7 meal with world leaders, having flown in late Wednesday evening.

07:24 PM BST

Zelensky: Britain and Ukraine are united against Russia

We will do whatever it takes to end Putin's illegal war.



That's why Ukraine welcomes Britain's commitment to continuing to support Ukraine's military, economy and people.



In an increasingly uncertain world, Britain and Ukraine are united in wanting a secure future for our pic.twitter.com/URGC3z52bN  Volodymyr Zelenskyy /   (@ZelenskyyUa) June 13, 2024

07:13 PM BST

Biden and Zelensky expected soon

Joe Biden and Volodymyr Zelensky should appear at the G7 for a joint press conference soon. They were initially scheduled to appear at 6:45pm BST (7:45pm local time).

06:49 PM BST

Biden to skip dinner with world leaders at G7 summit

Joe Biden, the US President, is expected to skip a dinner this evening with world leaders at the G7 in Italy.

It comes after member states agreed to provide a $50 billion (39 billion) loan to Ukraine for its for military, economic and humanitarian needs, as well as reconstruction after more than two years at war.

Karine Jean-Pierre, the White House press secretary, said Mr Biden will have a jam-packed two days and that reporters should not read too much into the presidents choice not to attend.

Mr Biden, 81, arrived in Italy late yesterday after an almost eight-hour flight, and follows his visit to France last week for the anniversary of D-Day and a state visit to Paris.

It is the fourth time that the US President  who frequently has to fend off questions about his age on the campaign trail as he faces re-election  has avoided or left early from a dinner with fellow world leaders, according to US broadcaster CNN.

He is expected to hold a press conference with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, later today.

06:48 PM BST

Sunak: Ukraine loan is game-changing

Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, said of the $50 billion loan to Ukraine:

What were announcing is a game-changing package of support for Ukraine that will be funded from the G7, and it will be funded by the profits on the seized Russian assets. Its fantastic news, its something that I personally and the UK have been leading on and championing for some time now. So to get it over the line is obviously great news. And it just demonstrates the G7 is completely united in doing whatever it can and whatever it takes to support Ukraine to defend against Russian aggression. The money is provided by the G7 as a loan and then secured against the profits of the assets that have been immobilised.

06:32 PM BST

Reports: US to sign security pact with Ukraine

The US is expected to sign a security pact with Ukraine later today, agreeing to train Ukrainian troops and provide military assistance over the next 10 years.

Washington will also undertake to cooperate more closely in producing weapons and military equipment, along with intelligence sharing, US media reports.

As an executive agreement, it will not be binding on future administrations and could theoretically be undone by a future president. A formal treaty arrangement would need to be ratified by the Senate.

06:21 PM BST

What has the G7 agreed on the $50 billion Ukraine loan?

The G7 has agreed to send a $50 billion loan to Ukraine, which is being secured against the profits from $260 billion in Russian assets frozen in Europe countries.

Kyiv is expected to receive the first payment later this year, and can use it for military, economic and humanitarian needs as well as reconstruction from its two years at war with Russia.

The deal will be included in the G7 leaders communique on Friday, on the second day of their summit in the Puglia region of Italy.

The move overcomes any legal hurdles that countries might have faced from directly confiscating Russian assets and sending them to Europe - a move that has constantly debated since Moscows invasion in February 2022.

Jake Sullivan, the US national security adviser, said the loan would provide the necessary resources to Ukraine now for its economic energy and other needs, so that its capable of having the resilience necessary to withstand Russias continuing aggression.

06:05 PM BST

Pictured: Sunak meets with Zelensky at G7 summit

Rishi Sunak attends a meeting with Volodymyr Zelensky at the G7 leaders' summit at the Borgo Egnazia resort in Italy - Christopher Furlong/PA Wire

Rishi Sunak speaks with Emmanuel Macron and Volodymyr Zelensky at the G7 summit - Simon Dawson / No 10 Downing Str

02:39 PM BST

Two Russian state journalists hurt on Ukraines front lines

Two journalists covering the Ukraine conflict for Russian state-controlled media were seriously wounded by Ukrainian shelling on Thursday, Moscows NTV television station claimed.

A Russian officer accompanying them was also injured in the incident in Golmivskyi, a Russian-controlled village close to the front lines in the eastern Donetsk region.

During shelling by Ukrainian forces ... NTV correspondent Alexey Ivliyev and cameraman Valery Kozhin were wounded, NTV said in a statement.

The two were transferred to a hospital where they were undergoing surgery, it added.

02:22 PM BST

Pictured: Zelensky meets Meloni

Volodymyr Zelensky gave Giorgia Meloni, the Italian prime minister, a warm greeting upon his arrival at the G7 on Thursday.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky hugs Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni - AP Photo/Alex Brandon

01:52 PM BST

Russian and Cuban foreign ministers to hold talks

Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov will hold talks with his Cuban counterpart later on Thursday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said.

The talks come a day after a Russian navy frigate and a nuclear-powered submarine entered the harbour in the Cuban capital Havana, a stopover the US and Cuba said posed no threat but which was widely seen as a Russian show of force as tensions rise over the Ukraine war.

01:27 PM BST

No need for US to worry about Russian warships in Cuba

The Kremlin has said there is no reason for any country, including the United States, to be worried about the presence of Russian warships in Cuba on an exercise.

A Russian navy frigate and a nuclear-powered submarine churned into Havana harbour on Wednesday, a stopover the US and Cuba said posed no threat but which was widely seen as a Russian show of force as tensions rise over the Ukraine war.

Jake Sullivan, the White House national security adviser, said there was no evidence of Russia transferring any missiles to Cuba, but that the US would remain vigilant.

When asked about purported nervousness in Washington over the fear that Russia could transfer military personnel to Cuba or even create a military base on the island, Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, said such exercises were common practice.

This is a normal practice for all states, including such a large maritime power as Russia, Mr Peskov told reporters. So we dont see any reason to worry in this case.

12:55 PM BST

Russias ties to North Korea should not be challenged

Russias right to develop closer ties with North Korea should not be challenged by anyone, the Kremlin has said, adding the potential for the two countries relations was very deep.

Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin spokesman, made the comments to reporters when asked about Western fears that Moscow may revise its policy towards Pyongyang due to Western pressure on Russia over Ukraine and, in particular, may transfer missile and nuclear technology to it.

It is our neighbour, it is a friendly country with which we are developing bilateral relations. We will continue to do so in an upward direction, said Mr Peskov.

The potential for the development of our relations is very deep. We believe that our right to develop good relations with our neighbours should not be of concern to anyone and cannot and should not be challenged by anyone.

12:35 PM BST

Kremlin says Nato decision to coordinate arms deliveries to Ukraine changes nothing

The Kremlin on Thursday dismissed a decision taken the day before by Nato to begin coordinating arms deliveries to Ukraine, saying it would change nothing and that Moscow already knew that Nato countries were sending weapons to Ukraine.

11:54 AM BST

Pictured: Soldiers on the frontline

Ukrainian servicemen of the 33rd Separate Mechanised Brigade have been photographed during a military drill near a frontline in the Donetsk region.

A Ukrainian serviceman of the 33rd Separate Mechanised Brigade - REUTERS/Alina Smutko

A Ukrainian serviceman of the 33rd Separate Mechanised Brigade smokes - REUTERS/Alina Smutko

11:21 AM BST

Russia says tactical nuclear drills involved dummy warheads

Russias tactical nuclear drills have involved the delivery of dummy nuclear warheads to forward storage units and airfields, the defence ministry said on Thursday.

11:08 AM BST

Zelensky says expects important decisions at G7 summit

Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukrainian president, said on Thursday he was expecting important decisions at a G7 summit in Italy, where he will also sign security agreements with Japan and the United States.

The G7 is set to discuss a major deal that could unlock a $50 billion loan for Kyiv, secured against future profits from Russian funds that have been frozen in Western jurisdictions as punishment for its invasion.

A large part of [the summit] will be devoted to Ukraine, our defence and economic resilience. And we are expecting important decisions today, Mr Zelensky said in a post on Telegram.

The G7 countries have been Ukraines key military and financial backers since Russia invaded in February 2022.

Mr Zelensky also said he would sign two more security agreements with Tokyo and Washington on the sidelines of the summit.

10:51 AM BST

Russian missile attack kills nine in Zelenskys home town

Nine people were killed and 29 injured, including five children, after a Russian ballistic missile struck Ukraines southern city of Kryvyi Rih.

It was the deadliest attack to strike Ukraine in weeks, destroying an administrative building and an apartment block on Wednesday, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said.

Commenting on the attack, President Volodymyr Zelensky said: Every day and every hour, Russian terror proves that Ukraine, together with its partners, should strengthen air defences.

Kryvyi Rih is his hometown.

One man could be seen being carried out of the rubble on a stretcher in a video shared by Mr Zelensky.

Firefighters battled blazes and rescuers heaved a block of concrete in the ruins. Mr Klymenko said recovery work was now complete.

10:19 AM BST

Pictured: Russia practices missile drills

Photographs have emerged of Russia conducting drills on how to deploy nuclear weapons on Thursday, practising the electronic launch of missiles.

Russia practised electronic missile launches during tactical nuclear drills - Reuters/RUSSIAN DEFENCE MINISTRY

Russia practised electronic missile launches during tactical nuclear drills - Reuters/RUSSIAN DEFENCE MINISTRY

Russia practised electronic missile launches during tactical nuclear drills - Reuters/RUSSIAN DEFENCE MINISTRY

09:57 AM BST

Ukraines foreign minister welcomes US sanctions on Russia

Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraines Foreign Minister, said on Thursday he welcomed a new set of US sanctions imposed on Russia.

He particularly praised the measures taken against its defence industrial base.

We strongly welcome the new sweeping set of U.S. sanctions on Russia and anyone else willing to aid Russia's war effort.



Given the loud whines of the Russian regime's top propagandists, these measures strike right where it hurts.



We particularly applaud tough measures against  Dmytro Kuleba (@DmytroKuleba) June 13, 2024

We particularly applaud tough measures against Russias defence-industrial base and its access to technology and resources abroad, he wrote on X.

Any entity assisting Russia in the production of weapons must be subjected to the most intense pressure.

09:40 AM BST

Eight EU countries call for restricting Russian diplomats movement

Eight European Union foreign ministers called on the EU to ban Russian diplomats from moving freely around the bloc and restrict them to countries where they are accredited, in a letter to EUs foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.

Free movement of holders of Russian diplomatic and service passports, accredited in one host state, across the whole Schengen area is easing malign activities, according to the letter, dated June 11, seen by Reuters.

The ministers said that intelligence, propaganda or even preparation of sabotage acts are the main workload for a large number of Russian diplomats in the EU, and while expulsions were important, the threat remained.

We believe the EU should strictly follow the reciprocity principle and restrict the movement of members of Russian diplomatic missions and their family members to territory of a state of their accreditation only, they said.

This measure will significantly narrow operational space for Russian agents, added the letter, which was signed by ministers from the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland and Romania.

09:19 AM BST

Listen: Ukraine The Latest

Listen to the newest episode of our podcast Ukraine: The Latest below:

09:02 AM BST

Russia deliberately starved Ukrainian civilians

Civilians in Mariupol were deliberately starved by Russian forces as a tactic of war, a new report has claimed.

Global Rights Compliance found that troops targeted water and food supplies and medical facilities before taking the strategic port city in 2022.

It examined satellite imagery that showed evidence of targeted attacks on civilian infrastructure in the city and relate to the first 85 days of Russias invasion of Ukraine before the fall of Mariupol.

08:40 AM BST

Good progress made on Russian asset plan, US says

Good progress has been made on international efforts to unlock the value of frozen Russian assets to help fund Ukraine, US national security adviser Jake Sullivan said on Thursday, adding he hoped for agreement by the time G7 leaders meet.

Leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) wealthy nations were more unified than ever on major issues, including Chinese industrial overcapacity, Mr Sullivan said, ahead of the opening of the G7 summit in southern Italy later on Thursday.

08:20 AM BST

Sunak to announce up to 242 million in Ukraine aid

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is set to announce up to 242 million in fresh assistance for Ukraine at the G7 summit in Italy set to open on Thursday, his office said.

Ukraine is expected to be top of the agenda at the gathering in Puglia, where President Volodymyr Zelensky will join G7 leaders seeking to seal a deal on using frozen Russian assets to help his war-torn country.

At the summit, Mr Sunak will announce up to 242 million ($310 million) in bilateral assistance to Ukraine, to support immediate humanitarian, energy and stabilisation needs, and lay the foundations for longer term recovery, the prime ministers office said in a statement Wednesday night.

This funding demonstrates the UKs continued international solidarity with Ukraine, and our flexibility in responding to immediate needs created by Russian aggression, it added, noting recent Russian strikes on energy infrastructure.

The statement added that Sunak would work with other leaders at the G7 to find a way to use frozen Russian funds to assist Ukraine.

We must be decisive and creative in our efforts to support Ukraine and end Putins illegal war at this critical moment, Sunak was quoted as saying.

08:07 AM BST

Pictured: Emergency workers in Kryvyi Rih

Nine people were killed and 29 injured, including five children, after a Russian ballistic missile struck Ukraines southern city of Kryvyi Rih.

Emergency workers clear the rubble as they search for victims - Ukrainian Emergency Service via AP

07:56 AM BST

Record 120 million people forcibly displaced globally

A staggering total of 120 million people are living forcibly displaced by war, violence and persecution, the UN said on Thursday, branding the ever-increasing number a terrible indictment on the state of the world.

The United Nations refugee agency UNHCR said forced displacement globally had once again smashed records, with conflicts in places like Ukraine, Gaza, Sudan and Myanmar forcing even more people to flee their homes.

The global displaced population is now equivalent to that of Japan, it pointed out in a statement.

Conflict remains a very, very big driver of mass displacement, UN refugee chief Filippo Grandi told reporters.

At the end of last year, 117.3 million people were displaced, UNHCR said in a report.

And by the end of April, the number had swelled further, with an estimated 120 million people around the world living in displacement.

07:46 AM BST

Russia practised electronic missile launches during tactical nuclear drills

Russia practised the electronic launch of missiles as part of a second stage of drills on how to deploy tactical nuclear weapons, the defence ministry said.

As part of the second stage of the exercises of non-strategic nuclear forces, the personnel of a Leningrad Military District missile unit worked out combat training tasks for covertly advancing to the designated positional area and carried out electronic missile launches against conditional enemy targets, the defence ministry said.

The personnel involved in the exercise navy crews carried out sea trips to the designated patrol area.

President Vladimir Putin ordered the drills after what Russia said were threats from the West, including signals from Western officials that they would allow Ukraine to strike deep into Russia with Western weapons.

Footage released by the defence ministry showed Russian sailors focusing on a dummy target and then counting down to launch, including pressing the launch button.

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The owner of British Gas has backed a pioneering plan to build the UKs first commercial energy storage project to use liquid air in a 300m fundraising.

Highview Power has revealed Centrica is among a consortium of investors that are supporting its proposal, alongside the UK Infrastructure Bank, mining giant Rio Tinto and Goldman Sachs.

Centrica put 70m into the fundraising, the company said.

The money will help to finance construction of a 50 megawatt energy storage facility in Carrington, on the outskirts of Manchester, capable of running for six hours by 2026.

It will work by compressing air into a liquid and then cooling it to temperatures of almost -200C.

The air will be stored in insulated tanks at low pressure. When power is needed it will be drawn from the tanks and heated up so it expands, resulting in a high-pressure gas that powers a turbine.

The novel technology has been developed by UK-based Highview and is seen as a highly promising form of long-duration energy storage.

Experts say large amounts of energy storage will be needed as countries move away from readily-dispatchable gas or coal-fired power stations to intermittent sources of energy such as wind and solar farms, which do not always generate energy when it is needed most.

Highviews Carrington facility will help the National Grid balance the system by drawing power or supplying it when needed.

Construction is set to begin immediately with the work expected to create 700 jobs.

It comes after the company successfully proved the concept with a pilot 5 megawatt plant in Pilsworth, nearby in Bury.

Highview also hopes the new facility will prove to be another stepping stone towards building even bigger, 2.5 gigawatt facilities elsewhere around the UK.

The company is exploring whether it could build energy storage schemes for wind farm giant rsted.

The National Grids Electricity System Operator has said a total of 13 gigawatts of long-duration storage will be needed by 2035.

Richard Butland, Highviews co-founder and chief executive, told the Telegraph: This has been in development for almost 17 years and it will be one of the largest long-duration energy storage projects being built globally.

So its a huge step forward in technology, for Britain and for decarbonisation.

Chris OShea, chief executive of Centrica, said: The energy transition is an opportunity that could transform lives across the UK.

But with a changing energy mix, and more intermittency from renewables, we have to explore new, innovative ways to store energy so our customers have electricity available when the wind doesnt blow and the sun doesnt shine.

Low carbon storage is an essential part of the solution when looking at how we manage peaks in demand.

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Brokers fees: the subject of a heated hearing and rallies in NYC

Brokers fees: the subject of a heated hearing and rallies in NYC

LOWER MANHATTAN (PIX11)  New York City has just over 1 million apartments, about half of which, according to the Real Estate Board, require a brokers fee in order to rent them. Typically, that fee is paid by the renter. Proposed legislation that was the subject of a hearing by a New York City Council committee on Wednesday would instead require whoever hires the broker to pay the fee. Most often, thats the landlord.

On Wednesday, both opponents and supporters of the measure made their voices heard, loudly and clearly.

It began with a rally featuring hundreds of real estate agents outside of City Hall in advance of the hearing.

What do we say to less jobs? shouted James Whelan, the president of the Real Estate Board of New York, or REBNY. No! the crowd replied.

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They argue that any change to the brokers fee situation will result in less employment, less economic activity, and higher rents, since landlords will factor in fees if theyre forced to pay them.

Supporters of the bill held their own rally and then waited in line to get into the committee hearing.

It was filled to capacity, so the line to get in was about two blocks long and moved very slowly.

They wanted to testify about the FARE Act, which stands for Fairness in Apartment Rentals.

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To a person, the hundreds of renters whod shown up at City Hall said that the fees are too high and unfair.

Its the first months rent, said Harsha Hanumaiah, describing the various payments that he and his mother had to pay for their apartment on Staten Island, and the last months rent, and the brokers fee, which is the equivalent of the first months rent.

The hearing began at 10 a.m., and people were on line to testify, starting at around 9 a.m. The line didnt end until around noon.

Selenia Nelson had been waiting two hours when she spoke with PIX11 News about her concerns. She works for an organization that houses domestic violence survivors.

She said that typically, her office has to pay a $5,000 brokers fee for each apartment it finds to house people escaping domestic violence.

We could help more people pay their rent, she said, if we just stop paying this ridiculous amount of broker fees.

The hearing was in front of the Consumer and Worker Protection Committee.

The Adams administration had been expected to send the commissioner of the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection, Vilda Vera Mayuga. Instead, a deputy commissioner of the Department of Housing Preservation and Development was the sole representative of the city at the hearing.

A number of councilmembers called it a waste of time for the New York City Council and said that they were offended at the administrations response.

More than 400 members of the general public and professional and labor groups had signed up to testify. Their testimony lasted from 10 a.m. until nearly 5 p.m.

The bill, sponsored by Councilmember Chi Osse of Brooklyn, has so many councilmembers committed to its passage, that its just shy of being veto-proof.

Its expected to go before the full City Council for a vote this summer.

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BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB)  The Buffalo Diocese announced their recommended closures and mergers Wednesday night for the Genesee Wyoming Vicariate during a meeting at the St. Joachim and Anne Church in Attica.

The recommendations come after the dioceses decision to rightsize and reshape their parishes due to financial troubles from payouts to settle child sexual abuse cases, declining Mass attendance, and a priest shortage.

At least five parishes in the Genesee Wyoming Vicariate are affected by the recommendations, along with numerous worship sites that are being recommended to close.

The total number of parishes recommended to close or merge is now nearing 50 as of Wednesday night.

Complete list of Catholic churches Buffalo Diocese plans to close or merge

View the list of affected parishes within the Genesee Wyoming Vicariate below:

Family No. 6

St. George (West Falls): merge with Immaculate Conception (East Aurora) and close. Sell the entire campus.

St. Joseph (Holland): merge with Immaculate Conception (East Aurora) and close. Sell the entire campus.

Post Chapter 11, Annunciation, St. Vincent and Immaculate Conception will merge to become one parish with three worship sites, a list obtained by News 4 said.

Family No. 12

St. Brigid (Bergen): merge with Our Lady of Mercy and close

Resurrection (Batavia): close St. Marys worship site

St. Padre Pio (Oakfield): merge with Resurrection. Close Our Lady of Fatima worship site.

Family No. 13

St. Maximilian Kolbe (Corfu and East Pembroke): merge with St. John the Baptist and close both locations

St. John Neumann (Strykersville): close and sell the Queen of Rosary site (Strykerville). Merge with Family #14.

Immaculate Heart of Mary (Darien and Bennington): merge with St. John Neumann and close both locations

Family No. 14

Mary Immaculate (East Bethany): merge with St. Isadore and close both locations of Mary Immaculate

St. Isidore (Perry): merge with St. Michael. Close and sell entire St. Mary site in Silver Springs.

New formation of the St. John Neumann Parish including Attica, Sheldon and Varysburg joins Family #14.

In a list obtained by News 4, the projected active number of priests for Family No. 6 by 2030 is three. The location of St. Joseph in relation to other parishes influenced their recommendation.

The merger of St. George with Immaculate Conception was based on contributing families, sacramental life, and geographical proximity to other parishes in the family, the list said.

At Tuesday nights meeting in Dunkirk, a total of seven churches and six worship sites within the Southern Tier West Vicariate were recommended to close or merge.

Buffalo Diocese announces Southern Tier closures, mergers

The diocese said that the actual number of parishes merged will not be determined until their leadership has an opportunity to review the proposed recommendations. Parishes have until July 15 to make a counter proposal.

The full list of mergers and closures is set to be finalized by Sept. 1, with changes beginning in October.

To view News 4s full coverage of the Buffalo Diocese restructuring, click here.

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Katie Skoog joined the News 4 team in April 2024. She is a graduate from the University at Buffalo. You can view more of her work here.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to News 4 Buffalo.
House Republicans are prepping their legislative plans for 2025 with eyes on controlling all levers of power in Washington next year.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) said Wednesday that hes bullish about the GOPs chances of not only keeping control of the House, but also seizing the Senate and sending former President Trump back to the White House for a second term.

With that trifecta in mind, Republican leaders are already honing a bold strategy to send a slate of promised policy priorities  everything from tax cuts and deregulation to border security and deficit reduction  to Trumps desk as swiftly as possible.

When he comes in, weve got to have a very aggressive first 100 days agenda, said Johnson, who huddled with Senate Republicans during their weekly lunch gathering Wednesday.

The first year will be important, and I think we cannot waste a moment because theres so many things to do. So in light of that, were having discussions with [him] and his team now, and amongst ourselves, to plan accordingly.

Johnson, in the meeting with the Senate GOP, promoted the idea of using an obscure budget procedure known as reconciliation to enact major conservative legislation thats certain to be opposed overwhelmingly by Democrats in both chambers.

You dont put the cart before the horse, Johnson said. But you do have to be prepared to lead, and were gonna be prepared.

GOP leaders have struggled throughout this Congress to unite their warring conference behind the partys priorities.

Johnsons remarks, which are being echoed across the conference, are an indication that Republicans are eager to turn the page on the internal sniping and demonstrate to voters that they can deliver on a conservative agenda beginning in the earliest days of 2025  an agenda left largely unrealized given the divided government that currently defines Washington.

Trumps visit to Capitol Hill on Thursday, when hell huddle separately with Republicans in both the House and Senate, provides an early opportunity to do so.

The former president still has an iron grip on the GOP, despite his recent conviction on 34 felony counts related to paying hush money to a porn actor.

And Trumps appearance in Washington will highlight a major theme of the GOPs campaign strategy this year: that President Biden and the Democrats have weaponized the Department of Justice to go after conservatives, and only Trump and the Republicans are willing and able to rein it in to create an even playing field.

Indeed, Johnson this month laid out the contours of a three-pronged plan to defang the Justice Department, promising efforts to use Congresss powers of the purse, oversight authority and legislative prerogatives to put new limits on the agencys powers.

House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) said that effort will include supporting whistleblowers, putting new limits on the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms, and other avenues for cracking down on the department.

Were looking at, obviously, the Justice Department; were looking at the fact that FBI whistleblowers say theyve been retaliated against, Jordan said. So were looking at all those kinds of things.

But those reforms are just one in a long and growing list of policy priorities Republicans are considering if they take over Washington next year.

Johnsons reconciliation pitch is designed, at least in part, to extend the sweeping tax cuts Republicans enacted in 2017 under Trump  the last time the GOP controlled both chambers of Congress and the White House. While both parties support that extension for the cuts benefiting working- and middle-class taxpayers, Democratic leaders want the corporate and upper-income cuts to expire, making reconciliation a crucial part of the GOPs design.

We have to make the tax cuts permanent, because theyll expire [in the] first part of the year, and then through the budget reconciliation process well be doing a number of things to fix the problems that the Biden administration has created, Johnson said.

Other Republicans are already identifying their own wish lists.

Theres a lot of work to be done for the American people in a short amount of time, and we still have to cut spending, Rep. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) said. And having all levers to actually get spending under control is probably going to be the biggest thing we get to do, because that sets the trajectory going forward.

To achieve their goals, Republicans will need to win all levers of power in Novembers elections.

Republicans had a brief scare Tuesday in the special election for Ohios 6th Congressional District, where Republican Michael Rulli beat Democrat Michael Kripchak by just more than 9 percentage points  an extreme underperformance for a GOP candidate in an R+28 district.

Johnson, however, is confident that with Trump at the top of the GOP ticket  and with Bidens approval rating well underwater  the party will succeed.

If you look at the latest polling, everyone  almost everyone, now  is projecting that the Republicans will retake the Senate, that we will grow the House majority, and that well have the White House as well, he said. When you have unified government like that, it comes with great responsibility, and I look forward to those days and fixing lots and lots of things.

Rank-and-file Republicans are also sanguine on their odds. Some, however, are hedging predictions with a dose of warning.

I share that optimism, but optimism doesnt mean much without work, Donalds said. Theres a lot of campaign work ahead of us.

They will also have to tamp down the internal fighting that has plagued the conference all Congress and, many have argued, has held the chamber back from moving substantive policy.

Eight House Republicans joined with all Democrats in October to oust then-Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.), marking the first time in history that someone was toppled from the top job. A fight over McCarthys successor ensued as Republicans were unable to come to a consensus, bringing the House floor to a screeching halt for roughly three weeks, with lawmakers unable to consider any legislation.

The infighting has not died down since the Speakership fight. Some Republicans have openly expressed their unhappiness with Johnsons leadership, which led to another  unsuccessful  coup attempt last month.

At least one top Republican, however, is confident that if the trifecta comes to fruition, House GOP lawmakers will turn down the temperature on one another.

The sheriff will be in town and calling the president of the United States, House Appropriations Committee Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.) said. That will make a difference.

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Santaquin Police Sgt. Bill Hooser pictured in this undated photo. Utah Rep. Burgess Owens introduced legislation Wednesday, June 12, 2024, to rename the Santaquin Post Office on 20 West Main Street in honor of Hooser, who was killed in the line of duty on May 5, 2024. | Santaquin Police Department

Utah Rep. Burgess Owens introduced legislation Wednesday to rename the Santaquin Post Office on 20 West Main Street in honor of Utah police Sgt. Bill Dean Hooser, who was killed in the line of duty on May 5, 2024.

Sgt. Bill Hooser served Utah with courage and dedication, making the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty, said Owens, who represents Utahs 4th District.

Renaming the Santaquin Post Office in his honor is a fitting tribute to Sgt. Hoosers legacy  one that truly embodied our states spirit of service and will ensure his contributions to our community become an indelible part of Utahs story. May God continue to comfort the Hooser family in their time of grief and watch over all who answer the call to serve.

He told the Deseret News Wednesday morning he hopes to get this bill across the finish line this year.

Hoosers career in law enforcement began at the San Juan County Sheriffs Office in New Mexico eight years ago. He came back to Utah in 2017 and joined the Santaquin Police Department. Earlier in February, Hooser was promoted to the rank of sergeant, according to KSL.com.

He died on May 5 while assisting a Utah Highway Patrol trooper with a traffic stop involving a semi-truck and 53-foot trailer. The semi-truck driver crashed into the police car. Hooser is survived by his spouse of 29 years, two daughters, and one granddaughter.

Owens attributed Utahs success to its frontline workers, like the fallen officer, who keep the community safe, he said over the phone.

The entire four-person congressional delegation attended Hoosers funeral service in Utah Valley Universitys event center in Orem. Owens worked with Reps. Blake Moore, John Curtis and Celeste Maloy to find the perfect way to honor Hooser.

To change the name of a post office building, the rules require the consensus of the entire states congressional delegation, which can be tough in some instances, said Owens. But he and the other three understood what Hoosers loss meant and agreed it needed to be done.

The three other Utah representatives are co-sponsors of this bill. I am deeply honored to commemorate the bravery and sacrifice of Sgt. Hooser by renaming this post office in his memory, said Rep. John Curtis, who represents Utahs 3rd District.

This act serves as a lasting tribute to his dedication to the Santaquin community and to all of Utahs law enforcement officers who risk their lives daily to protect our communities. May this serve as a constant reminder of his service and sacrifice.

Rep. Blake Moore, who represents the 1st District, said, This bill will provide a way for Utahns in Santaquin to remember Sgt. Hooser and his family, along with law enforcement families across the nation who are forever changed by senseless tragedies like this.

Rep. Celeste Maloy, who represents the 2nd District, also said she was honored to be a part of this legislation to rename the Santaquin building. She said she hoped it serves as a symbol of our support for law enforcement.

Santaquin Mayor Daniel Olson said he saw Hooser as a friend after years of knowing him.

He faithfully served the city, the citizens of Santaquin and neighboring communities and has always been a model of faithfully executing the duties of his office, said Olson. He was a friend to all and a mentor to those who served alongside him. His ability to reach out and teach was a gift we will always remember.

Owens said he was grateful to Hoosers family for allowing him to honor the late officer, and other members of law enforcement.

When I was growing up, we had some respect for that. All the kids wanted to be one day was a policeman, he said, adding, We need to get back to having that same kind of respect again.
COLLEGE STATION, Texas (KXAN)  Texas A&M is holding a series of events celebrating what would have been former President George H.W. Bushs 100th birthday on June 12.

The George & Barbara Bush Foundations 41@100 centennial celebration from June 11-13 will include events for Bush administration alumni, commemorative parachute jumps by President Bushs grandchildren and performances from country music stars Lyle Lovett and Robert Earl Keen.

During the three-day-long celebration, admission to the George H.W. Bush Presidential Library and Museum is free to the public. The Marine One helicopter used by President George H.W. Bush is also on display at the new Marine One/4141 Locomotive Pavilion along with a new exhibit.

Entitled The Spirit of the Place, the exhibit explores the George H.W. Bush Presidential Centers influence in the College Station and Texas A&M community and its impact on the world. In a press release, the George H.W. Bush Library says visitors will discover how President Bushs legacy is intertwined with the spirit of Aggieland.

The exhibit will include artifacts, documents, photographs, and other materials to provide visitors with perspective on President Bushs vision for the Bush School of Government and Public Service. The exhibit will be located in the Ansary Gallery of American History until March 30, 2025.

The librarys director said the building hours will be extended to 7:30 pm on Thursday due to an anticipated increase in tourism.

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Auroras Business School adopts a multifaceted approach, prioritizing industry integration, experiential learning, & global exposure

Auroras Business School distinctive teaching learning approach sets it apart with a unique quarter system, offering eight quarters annually, fostering continuous student assessment and engagement. The system, unparalleled in Hyderabad's business schools, ensures constant preparation, eliminating the laxity found in semester systems. Its Innovations include student reflection reports, requiring 20 handwritten pages after each chapter.Proactively monitoring learning levels, the university forms diverse learning groups for collaborative assignments and leverages theater techniques in teaching. Offering numerous add-on courses, skill development sessions, and diverse student clubs, it prioritizes practical learning. Additionally, add-on certification programs and initiatives like Business Day and visits to Telangana's startup ecosystem contribute to a holistic educational experience.Our Business School consistently advances in pedagogical innovation and admissions, witnessing a continual rise in enrollment over the past years. This sustained growth reflects the robust demand for admissions, a testament to the challenging selection criteria. Situated in the vibrant city of Hyderabad, our institution embraces local culture, ensuring a student-centric teaching approach. As a secular campus, we celebrate diverse festivals, fostering an inclusive environment, adds Dr. K Raghu Naga Prabhakar, Director, Aurora's Business School.Auroras Business School adopts a multifaceted approach, prioritizing industry integration, experiential learning, and global exposure. The eminent faculty at the institution brings a wealth of diverse experience, surpassing even the educational qualifications mandated by AICTE and regulatory bodies. With decades of expertise, these educators go beyond theoretical knowledge, offering invaluable insights. Faculty members not only have substantial industry exposure but also bring an international perspective, gained through annual study tours. This global insight enriches the teaching environment, providing students with a holistic understanding of business dynamics. Moreover, students actively engage in international study tours, enhancing their global exposure by visiting four countries throughout the course of the comprehensive two-year PGDM program.Aurora's strategic partnerships with 15 prominent organizations, including CII, IIM Ahmedabad, and Cambridge University, not only offer students a competitive edge but also provide valuable insights into industry trends and practices. The institution's emphasis on faculty development programs, research publication, and its dedicated journal, the Aurora Journal of Management, showcases a commitment to academic excellence. The comprehensive pedagogy, including workshops, seminars, and internships, enriches students' exposure to real-world scenarios. A unique 30-day intensive induction program, covering fundamentals, physical fitness, and corporate interactions, culminates in Induction Day, where corporate executives motivate and guide students. Placements in top companies across diverse sectors affirm the institutions dedication to nurturing well-rounded professionals equipped for success in the global business landscape.Auroras Business School is dedicated to perpetual innovation in teaching and learning practices, with a strong focus on updating methodologies. The future roadmap includes a pioneering IEV program, emphasizing Innovation, Entrepreneurship, and Venture Capital, as a parallel offering to the PGDM core. This strategic addition aligns with the institution's commitment to encouraging entrepreneurship. Furthermore, the school is poised to introduce courses in cutting-edge fields like Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, and Machine Learning. With a vision to be a global leader in providing quality yet affordable education, the institution remains committed to offering accessible learning opportunities for the middle-income segment. Notably, the school's affordable fee structure ensures that the average annual package far exceeds the two-year expenditure, reinforcing its dedication to accessible and high-quality education.
California mother arrested after her infant died in 2023. Police say fentanyl was to blame

A Butte County mother was arrested last month nearly a year after her infant died from what Chico authorities say was a fentanyl overdose.

Chico police were called to Enloe Medical Center on July 6, 2023, after the mother took the 1-year-old to the hospital. The child, who was not identified, was pronounced dead.

Butte County sheriffs deputies and Chico police officers began investigating the death and responded to the childs home, the Chico Police Department said in a news release this week. During a search of the residence, officers found fentanyl drug paraphernalia in close proximity to where the child slept.

As part of its lengthy investigation, detectives interviewed relatives and collected evidence indicating the mother was using fentanyl prior to and after the infants death. Officers also said they found evidence that drug paraphernalia (was) in close proximity to where the child slept.

On May 30, officers obtained an arrest warrant for the mother  identified as Christy Ann Scarbrough, 40, of Durham  and took her into custody.

Scarbrough remains held in Butte County jail without bail after she was charged June 3 with felony child cruelty resulting in death, as well as an enhancement in connection with injuries causing a childs death.

Scarbrough has not entered a plea and is expected to return to court June 20.
Bill that bans schools from outing students passes California Senate. Will Newsom sign it?

After some impassioned testimony on both sides, California senators voted on party lines Thursday to approve a bill that would ban school districts from passing policies requiring staff to notify parents if their child uses a different name or pronouns at school.

Critics call those policies forced outings, noting that they dont take the students consent or personal well-being at home into account.

Sen. Susan Talamantes Eggman, D-Stockton, introduced the bill and started the debate, saying that Assembly Bill 1955 is a surgical attempt to put guardrails in place to prevent these policies from being enacted.

Stockton, who is LGBTQ, told her own story of how she didnt share her sexuality with her parents at first, and how one time in high school, in the 70s, her principal called her father to tell him that she was dating a Black man.

Im still struck by that, it still makes me angry, she said.

She said that todays transgender notification policies are similar, and that teachers should not be the gender police.

Kids have a right to privacy. Thats what this bill is, she said.

Republicans had a different view. Sen. Roger Niello, R-Fair Oaks, said that while everyone was talking about the right of students, we havent talked about the right of parents.

He asked his colleagues and people watching to consider how they would feel if a school kept their childs gender identity from them, preventing them from making important decisions.

Sen. Kelly Seyarto, R-Murrieta, echoed that sentiment.

Thats what parents are afraid of, they dont want to be left out of that conversation, he said.

The bill passed the Senate 29-8. It now has to go back to the Assembly for a vote.

If the bill does make it to Gov. Gavin Newsoms desk, its unclear whether he will sign the bill into law. Newsom has cast himself as a strong LGBTQ ally, but in 2023 he vetoed legislation that would have required courts to weigh whether a parent is accepting of their transgender child when determining custody.

A spokesman for Newsoms office told Politico California that the governor doesnt generally opine on active legislation and that he would evaluate the bill on its merits if it reaches his desk. His office had not responded to The Bee before the storys deadline.

Democratic support

Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, said that her daughter came out to her as a high school freshman but didnt come out to her father.

What a violation of her privacy, and what a violation of her ability to talk to her father when she was ready if the school district had contacted the father to tell him, Skinner said.

It is the role of our schools to have our kids feel safe, she said.

Sen. Scott Wiener, D-San Francisco, who is gay, said that while his parents were very loving and supportive, it still took him three years to come out to them.

I made that decision on my own timetable, he said.

Sen. Caroline Menjivar, D-Van Nuys, offered a very different, and very painful, perspective of growing up as a queer youth.

She spoke of how a cousin outed her to her mother when she was in high school

I came home to literally all my things on the front lawn, because I was kicked out. Because thats what happens when parents dont accept queer kids, she said.

Menjivar said she didnt fully come out to her mother until she was 25.

To this day, my mom doesnt accept me, she said. ...There are many queer kids in California who have these stories.

Sen. Susan Rubio, D-Baldwin Park, who has worked as a victims advocate, listed examples of parents who allowed, or actively participated in, the abuse of their children.

Lets just remember that not all parents do the right thing, she said.

Republican opposition

Sen. Brian Dahle, R-Bieber, said he couldnt support the bill because it undermined local control of elected school boards.

Sen. Rosilicie Ochoa Bogh, R-Yucaipa, said that children forfeit their right to privacy when they choose to disclose their gender identity to school staff and ask them for accommodations.

She added that historically, parents have always wanted what is best for their children.

Maybe not always, but the majority, the majority of parents would, she added.

Thursdays vote was preceded by an opposition rally outside the Capitol, which was organized by the California Family Council, which recently was designated as an anti-LGBTQ hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks and studies extremist groups.

Participants of the rally included anti-transgender activists Erin Friday and Jonathan Zachreson; Assemblyman Jim Patterson, R-Fresno; Lance Christensen, who unsuccessfully ran for superintendent of public instruction in 2022; Brandon Campbell, pastor with California Baptists for Biblical Values; and Jonathan Keller, president of the California Family Council.
(KTLA)  A Southern California woman was shocked to discover a family of coyotes had been living underneath her home.

Surveillance cameras capture the moment a woman walking her dog had to run to safety after coming face to face with a pack of coyotes in her neighborhood.

Residents in the Leimert Park neighborhood said a rise in the number of coyotes canvassing the area has left them concerned for their safety.

Phaedra Harris, a Leimert Park resident, recalls the moment she was jolted out of bed by the sounds of the woman screaming for help in the middle of the night.

Harris immediately suspected that it was likely a pack of coyotes surrounding the woman.

Sure enough, this woman was just running for her life, Harris recalled. And I was like, Get in here! Get your dog! Get in here! as she waved the woman to safety inside her home.

They were chasing her and her dog, and they were growling at the dog, Harris said.

A coyote is seen prowling around a Leimert Park home on June 2, 2024. (Phaedra Harris)

A woman walking her dog was heard screaming after being surrounded by a pack of coyotes who were growling at her and her dog. (Phaedra Harris)

A coyote is seen prowling around a Leimert Park home on June 2, 2024. (Phaedra Harris)

A coyote is seen entering the crawlspace of a Leimert Park home on June 2, 2024. (Phaedra Harris)

The crawlspace at Phaedra Harris Leimert Park home where a family of coyotes were discovered living inside. (KTLA)

A coyote is seen prowling around a Leimert Park home on June 2, 2024. (Phaedra Harris)

A coyote is seen entering the crawlspace of a Leimert Park home on June 2, 2024. (Phaedra Harris)

Just days before, Harris said she discovered the pack of coyotes werent just roaming around the neighborhood, but they had also been living underneath her home.

My neighbor, she sent me a video of the coyotes coming out of my crawlspace, Harris said.

After reviewing her home security footage, she confirmed it.

I actually saw four pups and two adult coyotes in my front lawn killing a raccoon or a possum or something, and I thought, Oh my gosh, theres a whole family.

She contacted local law enforcement, which referred her to animal control, but no one was available to help. She felt helpless until she contacted Humane Wildlife Control, Inc., an organization that uses humane, no-kill methods to remove wildlife.

Harris crawlspace was eventually sealed, and the coyote family left her property.

Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that coyotes were right here, but yeah, theyre here, she said.

However, Harris said she also understands the coyotes will likely stay in the neighborhood as they are is also their natural home.

What Ive learned is that we basically have to learn to live with the coyotes, she said of the information provided to her by the humane pest control company.

Earlier this month, Mar Vista residents were on edge as a pack of coyotes stalked the community.

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Calmes: We don't need more evidence of Alito's bias, but we got it

The Alitos, photographed in 2018. The justice's disregard for judicial impartiality was revealed again, this time in a surreptitious recording. (Pablo Martinez Monsivais / Associated Press)

Let me stipulate: I disapprove of pseudo-journalistic stings that surreptitiously record people, often public figures, in a gotcha moment. Its unethical whether the trapper is the far-right Project Veritas or the left-leaning advocacy journalist who ensnared Justice Samuel A. Alito Jr. and his wife, Martha-Ann, just last week.

And yet. The courts farthest-right justice didnt have to answer in the unguarded, utterly inappropriate way that he did when Lauren Windsor , masquerading as a fellow Catholic conservative, approached him at the annual black-tie gala for the Supreme Court Historical Society.

No one made him agree, emphatically, that the nation must return to a place of godliness, or that theres really no compromising with the left, as if he were a minister or a politician, not an impartial jurist.

Embarrassing as Windsor's recordings are for Alito, the audio made public Monday doesn't tell us anything we didnt already know: The justice shows bad judgment and has a right-wing, theocratic bias that should be disqualifying but for the fact that he enjoys lifetime tenure.

What is remarkable, though, is that Alito walked straight into the trap just when youd think hed be most cautious, amid the ongoing furor over disclosures that flags favored by pro-insurrection, pro-Trump and pro-Christian nationalist groups flew at the Alitos Virginia and New Jersey homes.

Lest anyone doubt that he could have avoided the snap of Windsors snare, she also baited conservative Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr. at the same elite event, and he answered with the judicial temperament Alito lacks  impartially, rejecting Windsors leading assertions.

Read more: Opinion: The Supreme Court's lack of accountability is worse than you think

Still, Roberts gets no pats. The chief justice leads a court where for too long he has tolerated gift-grifting , by Justice Clarence Thomas especially and Alito, too . Lately hes countenanced both justices refusal to recuse themselves from rulings on Donald Trumps criminal liability, despite evident conflicts of interest arising from the actions of their pro-Trump spouses.

The new recordings almost certainly wont change Alitos refusal to recuse. Roberts, meanwhile, claims to be as powerless over Thomas and Alito  justices get to decide whether they should recuse from a case  as Thomas and Alito profess to be with their partisan wives. Im not buying it.

The court, Alito and Roberts all have declined to comment on the recordings, first disclosed in Rolling Stone . The Supreme Court Historical Society , which hosted the gala, released a statement seeming to confirm the audios authenticity: We condemn the surreptitious recording of justices at the event, which is inconsistent with the entire spirit of the evening.

Read more: Abcarian: Samuel Alito's ethical lapse isn't the Supreme Court's first. This is why it's different

Ah, yes, the spirit of the evening. That would be off-the-record coziness between justices and the societys wealthy donors, many of whom argue before the court or run businesses affected by the courts decisions. The society has been in the news before. In 2022 a former antiabortion leader disclosed that for years hed pressed rich supporters to join and donate to it, to gain social access to justices, including Alito and his wife.

Windsor certainly had extended access. When she suggested to Alito that the right shouldnt negotiate with the left, he concurred at some length. One side or the other is going to win, he said, and added, There can be a way of working, a way of living together peacefully. But its difficult, you know, because there are differences on fundamental things that really cant be compromised.

When she pressed on, suggesting that people who believe in God must win the moral argument and return our country to a place of godliness, Alito quickly assented: Oh, I agree with you, I agree with you.

Read more: Calmes: Alito and Thomas taint the Supreme Court's all-important Jan. 6 decisions

Contrast that with Roberts. He rejected out of hand Windsors contention that the court must lead the nation onto a moral path: Thats for people we elect. And when she persisted, saying, We live in a Christian nation, Roberts rebutted: I know a lot of Jewish and Muslim friends who would say maybe not. And its not our job to do that. Its our job to decide the cases as best we can.

Id pass over the garrulous Martha-Ann Alitos nearly six-minute chat with Windsor  the missus is not the justice  but for two points. First, she evidently shares her husbands hostility to gay rights : I have to look across the lagoon at the Pride flag for the next month, she whined. Which goes to the second point: Mrs. Alito said she told her husband that shed fly an anti-gay flag in response when you are free of this nonsense.

So, public service on the nations highest court is nonsense. I take her comment as confirmation that the 74-year-old Alito is itching to step down if Trump wins the election. Thats just one more reason to vote against the disgraced former president: We dont want a much younger version of Alito replacing him for decades to come.

The partisan stench on the supermajority-conservative court that liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor warned about in late 2021 just keeps getting more rancid. Last year, when Windsor similarly accosted Alito undercover, he told her he blamed the media for having really eroded trust in the court by its negative coverage.

Once again, the justice shows his bad judgment. The messenger isnt the problem. He is.

@jackiekcalmes

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
BECKLEY, WV (WVNS)  WVU Tech is hosting their annual Camp STEM.

WVU Tech receives $70,000 grant for summer program

22 high schoolers from across the state will be getting special training in STEM fields like Chemistry, Physics, Biology, and Nursing.

STEM Camp Director Nathan Galinsky told 59News how the camp aims to make a lasting impact on these kids. They get to meet students that are interested in the same fields that they are. They canthese people will share their numbers and they can learn from each other after they leave the camp, said Galinsky. They get contacted by the faculty. They can use the faculty as references and guidance toward what they need to do to finish out high school and it grows their passion, which is ultimately the goal.

This year, the camp accepted students on a first come-first serve basis.

WVU Techs Camp STEM runs from June 9 to June 14.

WVU Tech announces the Southern West Virginia Success Program, expanding access to higher education

Campers all receive scholarships from Camp STEM sponsors, DOW and T.C. Energy, to reduce their entry fee to, at maximum, $400 per camper.

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Canadian Minister of Defence Bill Blair, speaks during a press conference. Canada will supply Ukraine with rockets, small arms ammunition and remote-controlled weapon mounts for vehicles, Blair announced in Brussels on 13 June. Britta Pedersen/dpa

Canada will supply Ukraine with rockets, small arms ammunition and remote-controlled weapon mounts for vehicles, Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair announced in Brussels on Thursday.

"Canada will provide Ukraine with 2,300 Canadian Rocket Vehicle 7s or CRV rocket motors," Blair said. He added, "Canada will send an additional number of rounds of small arms ammunition, as well as 29 Nanuk remote systems," which are remote-controlled weapon mounts for military vehicles.

He said the CRV7s were "formerly used by the Royal Canadian Air Force on our CF-18 aircraft." Meanwhile, "the Nanuk is a remotely-controlled weapon station used by the Canadian Army on our own light armored vehicles."

He added, "this week, Canada is beginning the shipments of a new fleet of 50 armoured vehicles to Ukraine. The first four vehicles are departing Canada this week, and they will be delivered to the Ukrainian armed forces in the coming weeks."
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Canada announced new sanctions against Russia for unleashing the war against Ukraine on 13 June.

Source: statement by Canadas Foreign Ministry, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Canadas new sanctions were imposed against individuals and legal entities involved in disinformation and propaganda operations, as well as against the facilities of the Russian military-industrial complex.

Canadas restricting measures also target entities involved in sanctions circumvention that facilitate Russias access to sanctioned goods or to revenue from oil sold above the G7 price cap.

Among others, Anton Alikhanov, Minister of Industrial Trade of Russia; Aram Gabrelyanov, publisher who is behind Russian propagandistic projects like LifeNews; and the Pobieda air company are mentioned in the sanctions list.

The list also includes the Russian parliamentary newspaper Rossiyskaya Gazeta, several Russian media outlets from the occupied territories of Ukraine and the Voice of Europe platform involved in the campaign to influence elections to the European Parliament.

Canada imposes a ban on the export of computer numerically controlled machine tools that Russia could use in the production and manufacturing of weapons.

On 12 June, the US announced a range of new sanctions against Russia, including those against over 100 companies in the Russian defence industry.

The UK also announced new sanctions against Russia, aimed at making waging war against Ukraine more difficult for it. Among the financial institutions that were sanctioned are the Moscow Stock Exchange, which was sanctioned by the US earlier.

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Canada introduced new sanctions on June 13 against 11 Russian individuals and 16 entities who have been purportedly engaged in activities that support Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Ottawa imposed the sanctions in cooperation with its Group of Seven (G7) partners during the ongoing G7 Leaders Summit in Italy.

New restriction measures targeted the Russian military-industrial complex, which supplies technology and electrical components to support Russia's war efforts, as well as entities involved in sanctions circumvention that facilitate Russia's access to sanctioned goods or to revenue from oil sold above the G7 $60-per-barrel price cap.

New sanctions were also imposed on individuals and entities operating a network of Russian disinformation and propaganda.

"Today's (June 13) newest sanctions reflect our long-standing efforts to disrupt President (Vladimir) Putin's ability to wage Russia's illegal war, including by conducting gross disinformation campaigns," Canadian Foreign Minister Melanie Joly said in a statement.

"Our message to President Putin is clear: Withdraw your military and proxy forces from Ukraine. Canada, alongside its international partners, will continue to stand by Ukraine and its people."

The sanctions list mentions Russian Industrial Trade Minister Anton Alikhanov and publisher Aram Gabrelyanov, who is behind Russian propaganda projects such as LifeNews.

The sanctions targeted the Russian parliamentary publication Rossiyskaya Gazeta, several Russian media outlets operating in Russian-held territories in Ukraine, and the Voice of Europe media outlet, previously identified as a tool of Russian propaganda and suspended by the European Union.

Canada also banned the export of computer numerical control machines that Russia can use to produce and manufacture weapons.

On the same day, the United Kingdom unveiled sanctions against 50 entities, individuals, and vessels to crack down on Russia's war machine.

The sanctions targeted the Russian oil fleet, military suppliers, and financial sector, including the Moscow Stock Exchange, which was sanctioned by the United States the day earlier as well.

Read also: Zelensky at G7 summit: We need mechanism for confiscating $300 billion in Russian assets

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Canada to send about 2,000 decommissioned CRV7 rocket motors to Ukraine

The Canadian government has stated that it will start delivering decommissioned CRV7 rocket motors to Ukraine.

Source: Canadian national news agency Canadian Press, citing a press release from Canada's Department of National Defence, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Canada will reportedly send the first tranche of about 2,000 rocket motors. The countrys government intends to start deliveries in the coming weeks.

Canadian experts have spent the last few months ensuring the safe operation of the CRV7s.

The announcement will be made by Bill Blair, Canada's Minister of National Defence, at the Ramstein meeting in Brussels on Thursday.

Canada will also provide Ukraine with 29 Nanuk remote weapon stations and more than 130,000 rounds of ammunition for small arms.

The Canadian Armed Forces have more than 83,000 CRV7 air-to-ground rockets in service, which were developed in the 1980s and decommissioned in the early 2000s. Several years ago, the federal government signed a contract to dispose of these rockets.

The CRV7s were considered one of the most powerful air-to-ground rockets of its time and were in service with allied countries during the war in Afghanistan in 2001-2021. The Canadian Conservatives demanded that the government transfer tens of thousands of these missiles to Ukraine.

Blair further said Canada was sending Ukrainian defence forces the first four armoured vehicles out of 50 built for Kyiv.

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Canada sends first 4 armoured vehicles to Ukraine from batch of 50

Canada has been delivering the first four armoured combat vehicles to Ukraine from a batch of 50. They will first arrive in Europe, where Ukrainian military personnel will undergo training on their use.

Source: European Pravda with reference to Bill Blair, Canada's Minister of National Defence on X (Twitter)

Details: Blair reported that the first four out of 50 new armoured combat vehicles, built by Canadian workers to be sent to Ukraine, are heading to Europe this summer, where Ukraine's Armed Forces personnel will undergo training on their use.

The initial batch of 10 vehicles being provided consists of ACVS (Armoured Combat Support Vehicle) ambulances.

The vehicles are being transported from the Canadian city of London in Ontario to Europe.

During a visit by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on 22 September 2023, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that Canada was investing CAN$650 million over three years to provide Ukraine with these 50 armoured combat vehicles.

These modern armoured combat vehicles will fulfil a wide range of battlefield functions, including transport of troops, providing secure command and control locations as well as medical evacuation.

These armoured combat vehicles, also used by the Canadian army, provide a high level of manoeuvrability and protection for the crew and the cargo being transported.

The ambulance version of the ACVS is equipped with medical equipment and has an interior layout designed to treat a wide spectrum of injuries.

The first 10 vehicles are scheduled to arrive in Ukraine by autumn, enabling Ukraine's Armed Forces to evacuate the injured from combat zones safely.

This transfer is part of Canada's overall CAN$14 billion assistance package committed to Ukraine since February 2022, including CAN$4 billion allocated for military aid.

Canada has previously sent Leopard 2 battle tanks, anti-tank weapons, M777 howitzers, artillery ammunition, winter clothing and more to Ukraine as part of its support efforts.

Background:

On 12 June, Lithuania approved the provision of 14 M113 armoured personnel carriers to the Ukrainian army.

Norway is providing 240 million to enhance Ukraine's air defence capabilities, including funding for around a hundred interceptor missiles for the Patriot system, which Germany will provide.

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At ITM, education is not just about providing a degree but about crafting an experience that prepares students for real-world challenges

develops its faculty, focusing on qualifications, expertise, industry experience, and more.This ensures high teaching standards and supports students in navigating the complexities of industry. Moreover, it offers a rich learning environment that encourages free and open inquiry among its students and scholars. Quality faculty members ensure the smooth delivery of knowledge and guide students toward professional success.ITM University Gwaliors strong industry connections and global colla-borations guarantee that students benefit from real-world exposure and diverse perspectives, preparing them to face todays ever-changing professional landscape. With over 200 actionable MOUs, including ones with global giants like Amazon, the university provides students with cutting-edge knowledge and skills in emerging technologies like blockchain, AI, and more. These collaborations not only provide students with real world exposure but also open up avenues for internships, projects, and placements. Through close ties with industry and academia, students have access to the latest developments and opportunities in the field. This prepares them to stay ahead in the corporate world.The mission of ITM University Gwalior is not just confined to producing scholars or skilled professionals, but to cultivate individuals with a deep sense of purpose and thirst for knowledge. The academic programs are designed to not only impart knowledge but also to instill essential life skills, a spirit of curiosity, and enthusiasm for innovation, shares Prof. Dr. Yogesh Upadhyay, Vice-Chancellor.One of ITMs USPs is its emphasis on experiential learning. The students are encouraged to take part in research projects, internships, and industry-led initiatives, which not only enrich their academic experience but also prepare them with relevant industry knowledge. Another unique aspect of ITM is its focus on fostering entrepreneurship among its students.The university has a dedicated entrepreneurship cell that provides support and guidance to aspiring entrepreneurs, helping them turn their ideas into successful ventures. Here, learning is mostly practical and hands-on along with interaction, conferences, and live projects with industry experts. They also benefit from guest lectures and assessments that include surprise quizzes and industry projects. This ensures that students are well-prepared from an industry standpoint.Looking into the future, ITM is committed to continue staying abreast of the latest developments in technology and pedagogy. It will integrate more of cutting-edge technologies to provide students with global exposure and diverse learning opportunities. The university is exploring innovative approaches such as gamification and project based learning to make education more engaging and effective. Studying at ITM University Gwalior will be a transformative and impressive experience going forward. It will remain a place where students are encouraged to dream big, think outside the box, and make a positive impact on the world.
Ottawa is preparing a new defense aid package for Ukraine, Canadian Defense Minister Bill Blair said on June 13 during a Ramstein-format meeting in Brussels.

Canada will soon send the first tranche of 2,300 decommissioned CRV7 rocket motors, which were previously used by the Canadian Air Force on CF-18 fighters.

The country's military reportedly stores 83,303 CRV7 air-to-ground unguided rockets, which were taken out of service in the early 2000s. Both Kyiv and the Canadian opposition called on the government to ship them to Ukraine instead of disposing of them in another way.

"Over the past few months, Magellan Aerospace and Defence Research and Development Canada (DRDC) have been testing the rocket motors to ensure their viability following a request from the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) for this equipment," a statement by the Canadian government read.

Ukraine will also receive 29 Nanuk remote weapons systems from the surplus of the Canadian Armed Forces' arsenal. The Nanuk system, manufactured by Rheinmetall Canada, can be installed on various armored vehicles and used for different purposes.

Canada will also send more than 130,000 rounds of surplus small round arms and has begun delivering the first four of the 50 pledged Armoured Combat Support Vehicles built in Canada.

"The first four vehicles, which are the ambulance variant of the vehicle, will be delivered to Europe in the coming weeks, where Ukrainian troops will be trained in their use," the statement read.

As of May 13, Ottawa has committed 4 billion Canadian dollars ($2.9 billion) in military assistance to Ukraine, which "will allow Canada to deliver military assistance to Ukraine through to 2029," the country's government said.

Read also: Finland, Canada, Poland dont prohibit Ukraine from striking targets in Russia with their weapons

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
All four candidates for the Oklahoma House District 88 race  three Democrats and one Independent  appeared earlier this month at a candidate forum at First Unitarian Church.

The district, just north and west of downtown Oklahoma City, is culturally diverse and features a mix of locally owned businesses, 2SLGBTQ+ supportive businesses and an Asian cultural district. It encompasses a constituency of highly engaged residents, and part of that is a result of past dynamic representation, said the Rev. Lori Walke, senior pastor of Mayflower United Church of Christ.

Walke pointed to lawmakers such as Rep. Mauree Turner, the state's first non-binary legislator who decided not to run for reelection to her District 88 seat this year due to health issues. Turner, first elected in 2020, is Black and Muslim.

These are neighborhoods that expect to be heard and responded to, Walke told The Oklahoman.

Local grassroots organization Voices Organized In Civic Engagement (VOICE) hosted the forum and framed questions from stories they've heard in their listening sessions.

Meet the candidates

No Republicans entered the district race, so the winner of the Democratic primary will face the single Independent candidate in the November general election.

Nicole Maldonado (D)

Democratic candidate Nicole Maldonado works as a legislative assistant for Turner and serves on the citys Community Public Safety Advisory Board. She was born in Texas but grew up in Colombia and came to Oklahoma on a tennis scholarship and studied political science at Southeastern Oklahoma State University.

Maldonado said topics of concern that she hears about in the district include affordable housing, homelessness, mental health, reproductive justice, public education and state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters, immigrant rights and 2SLGBTQ+ rights. She said she believes voters are tired of legislation that fails to create solutions or improvements and that fosters a more hostile environment where people dont feel safe.

Nicole Maldonado is a candidate for House District 88. She faces three others in the primary race.

Paula Sophia (D)

Democratic candidate Paula Sophia is an Army veteran and worked as an Oklahoma City police officer and is a licensed medical social worker and mental health provider. She lives in Oklahoma City with her wife and is transgender.

Paula Sophia said shes also heard concerns about the Oklahoma State Department of Education and Walters and what she called the demonization of public education. Voters also expressed concern about the need to raise the minimum wage, criminal justice reform, abolishing the death penalty, MAGA extremism within the Republican Party in Oklahoma and preserving a voice for democracy, she said.

Paula Sophia is a candidate for House District 88. She and three others are running for the seat in the primary race.

Ellen Pogemiller (D)

Democratic candidate Ellen Pogemiller has a degree in education and worked for the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma where she established programs to increase food access for kids and access to healthier foods. Highlighted issues include public schools, access to health care and reproductive care and voting and ballot access. She lives in Oklahoma City with her family. Top issues she's heard are supporting and funding public education, expanding affordable housing options and defending the rights of 2SLGBTQ+ Oklahomans.

Ellen Pogemiller is a candidate running against three others in the House District 88 primary election.

Bobby McCollum (I)

Bobby McCollum has lived in the district for 40 years with his family and is running as an independent. He has worked as a tax auditor for state government for 15 years, with previous experience gained in the finance industry. Things that keep him up at night include a wide range of topics including economy, health care and mental health care, public education, criminal justice, gun violence and lack of humanity in the Legislature. He is a member of the Achumawi Native American tribe.

Bobby McCollum is an Independent candidate for House District 88, facing off three Democratic candidates in the primary election.

Supporting locally owned businesses

House District 88 has a mix of diverse businesses, from locally owned to Asian cultural and ones supporting the 2SLGBTQ+ community.

Scarlett Le-Cao, president of the OKC Asian Chamber of Commerce, told The Oklahoman her community has had good representation in the past, but they also want stronger connections with lawmakers. She also wants people to feel safe and laws like House Bill 4156 is a result of the lack of dialogue. Mental health support is another top concern.

If they have any policy coming out that might affect our community, we would love to be the first one to [be] in the dialogue with them, she said. We dont want to get hit by surprise.

Paula Sophia said the diversity of businesses is one of the wonderful things about the district. She said she thinks small business owners get overlooked amongst the bigger chain corporations, but if elected, shes willing to look for those businesses so the area stays local.

Its unique and distinctly representative of that part of Oklahoma City. We need to do the best that we can to preserve that, she said.

Maldonado said she would love to work closely with the chamber because as an immigrant, she believes the heart of the district lies within small businesses and entrepreneurships. Maldonado talked to the owner of The Secret Bar, a lesbian bar owned by a queer Latina, who said its challenging to attract customers and keep the place open. She wants to work closely with them, as well.

McCollum and Pogemiller did not respond to a question about how they would work with local business.

Mental health focus

Candidates said mental health was another key concern in the district.

Oklahoma ranks fifth in the country for students suffering from trauma, according to the Oklahoma Education Department and data from the National Survey of Childrens Health in 2019. The report said nearly half of students have adverse childhood experience scores of 2 or higher, meaning theyve experienced a traumatic event and may have long-term impacts on health, opportunity and well-being, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Paula Sophia said in her job experience, she knows the struggles people face in seeking mental health care, and those students mental health issues need to be caught early so they can receive support in school and beyond.

One of the tragedies of our system is that we do not have enough mental health care support and that leaves a lot of responsibility on law enforcement who are not trained and equipped properly to handle these issues, she said.

Maldonado said she and her peers have experienced mental health struggles. Kids in their community are experiencing it right now, due to legislation like HB 4156  an anti-immigration law that targets undocumented people  because theyre afraid of losing their families. Maldonado said she is queer and an immigrant.

For me, thats one of the true causes in all of the issues were struggling, she said. If we address mental health, were going to address many more issues.

Pogemiller said Oklahoma has mental health supports, but the partnerships are not being utilized to enhance those services. She said there should be legislation to support people going into those career fields.

McCollum, the independent, said people dont need to be suffering, especially when theyre younger. Working with teachers unions, recruiting mental health providers into the system and paying proper wages would help address this issue, he said.

Affordable housing

Paula Sophia said she supports funding for expanding access to housing because other issues cant be addressed if people dont have shelter.

Pogemiller said two out of five people in Oklahoma dont have access to affordable housing and many are frustrated that people who are unhoused are criminalized.

We know that the solution to those is keeping people in their house, she said. Eviction is a huge problem.

Oklahoma created the Housing Stability Act, allowing more than $200 million for new homes, apartments and to provide homebuyers with down-payment and closing-cost assistance. Homes are intended to be affordable, but there are no income limits for buyers unless they use the Down Payment Assistance Program, The Oklahoman reported earlier this year.

Maldonado said she supports affordable housing and resources to help people who are unhoused because its one of the biggest crises.

McCollum supports affordable housing, citing Oklahomas high poverty level.

Immigration policies

Several candidates expressed opposition to House Bill 4156, which was signed by Gov. Kevin Stitt in April. The bill, held up by court rulings makes impermissible occupation a crime in, with the possibility of fines and jail time. Law enforcement agencies said they wont enforce it due to vague language and danger of racial profiling, but minority communities said its still harmful.

They spoke in favor of a bill authored by state Sen. Michael Brooks-Jimenez, D-OKC, which would allow undocumented people to apply for a drivers license using their individual taxpayer identification number. The bill has stalled in the Legislature.

McCollum said everyone in Oklahoma should drive because you cant get from point A to point B on the bus. It would also ensure people are driving legally.

In Oklahoma, were always talking about striving for being a world class state, world class city. I think we need to support this bill," he said.

Pogemiller said it was embarrassing that state has not passed the drivers license bill and said the outcry over passage of HB 4156 was because legislators dont understand that people just want to keep their families together and be productive residents.

Were going to lose members of our community, and were not going to have the ability to recruit amazing, incredibly talented people to our state, she said.

Paula Sophia said without a drivers license, undocumented people take a huge risk in just going to work to put groceries on the table. She called the law a dog whistle policy to catch people.

Maldonado said HB 4156 is personal to her because she is an immigrant. She said she hears hateful rhetoric directed toward immigrants while she works at the Capitol.

We deserve to live freely without being in fear that were going to be deported," she said.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Four candidates vie for House District 88
All four candidates for the Oklahoma House District 88 race  three Democrats and one Independent  appeared earlier this month at a candidate forum at First Unitarian Church.

The district, just north and west of downtown Oklahoma City, is culturally diverse and features a mix of locally owned businesses, 2SLGBTQ+ supportive businesses and an Asian cultural district. It encompasses a constituency of highly engaged residents, and part of that is a result of past dynamic representation, said the Rev. Lori Walke, senior pastor of Mayflower United Church of Christ.

Walke pointed to lawmakers such as Rep. Mauree Turner, the state's first non-binary legislator who decided not to run for reelection to her District 88 seat this year due to health issues. Turner, first elected in 2020, is Black and Muslim.

These are neighborhoods that expect to be heard and responded to, Walke told The Oklahoman.

Local grassroots organization Voices Organized In Civic Engagement (VOICE) hosted the forum and framed questions from stories they've heard in their listening sessions.

Meet the candidates

No Republicans entered the district race, so the winner of the Democratic primary will face the single Independent candidate in the November general election.

Democratic candidate Nicole Maldonado works as a legislative assistant for Turner and serves on the citys Community Public Safety Advisory Board. She was born in Texas but grew up in Colombia and came to Oklahoma on a tennis scholarship and studied political science at Southeastern Oklahoma State University.

Maldonado said topics of concern that she hears about in the district include affordable housing, homelessness, mental health, reproductive justice, public education and state schools Superintendent Ryan Walters, immigrant rights and 2SLGBTQ+ rights. She said she believes voters are tired of legislation that fails to create solutions or improvements and that fosters a more hostile environment where people dont feel safe.

Nicole Maldonado is a candidate for House District 88. She faces three others in the primary race.

Democratic candidate Paula Sophia is an Army veteran and worked as an Oklahoma City police officer and is a licensed medical social worker and mental health provider. She lives in Oklahoma City with her wife and is transgender.

Paula Sophia said shes also heard concerns about the Oklahoma State Department of Education and Walters and what she called the demonization of public education. Voters also expressed concern about the need to raise the minimum wage, criminal justice reform, abolishing the death penalty, MAGA extremism within the Republican Party in Oklahoma and preserving a voice for democracy, she said.

Paula Sophia is a candidate for House District 88. She and three others are running for the seat in the primary race.

Democratic candidate Ellen Pogemiller has a degree in education and worked for the Regional Food Bank of Oklahoma where she established programs to increase food access for kids and access to healthier foods. Highlighted issues include public schools, access to health care and reproductive care and voting and ballot access. She lives in Oklahoma City with her family. Top issues she's heard are supporting and funding public education, expanding affordable housing options and defending the rights of 2SLGBTQ+ Oklahomans.

Ellen Pogemiller is a candidate running against three others in the House District 88 primary election.

Bobby McCollum has lived in the district for 40 years with his family and is running as an independent. He has worked as a tax auditor for state government for 15 years, with previous experience gained in the finance industry. Things that keep him up at night include a wide range of topics including economy, health care and mental health care, public education, criminal justice, gun violence and lack of humanity in the Legislature. He is a member of the Achumawi Native American tribe.

Supporting locally owned businesses

Bobby McCollum is an Independent candidate for House District 88, facing off three Democratic candidates in the primary election.

House District 88 has a mix of diverse businesses, from locally owned to Asian cultural and ones supporting the 2SLGBTQ+ community.

Scarlett Le-Cao, president of the OKC Asian Chamber of Commerce, told The Oklahoman her community has had good representation in the past, but they also want stronger connections with lawmakers. She also wants people to feel safe and laws like House Bill 4156 is a result of the lack of dialogue. Mental health support is another top concern.

If they have any policy coming out that might affect our community, we would love to be the first one to [be] in the dialogue with them, she said. We dont want to get hit by surprise.

Paula Sophia said the diversity of businesses is one of the wonderful things about the district. She said she thinks small business owners get overlooked amongst the bigger chain corporations, but if elected, shes willing to look for those businesses so the area stays local.

Its unique and distinctly representative of that part of Oklahoma City. We need to do the best that we can to preserve that, she said.

Maldonado said she would love to work closely with the chamber because as an immigrant, she believes the heart of the district lies within small businesses and entrepreneurships. Maldonado talked to the owner of The Secret Bar, a lesbian bar owned by a queer Latina, who said its challenging to attract customers and keep the place open. She wants to work closely with them, as well.

McCollum and Pogemiller did not respond to a question about how they would work with local business.

Mental health focus

Candidates said mental health was another key concern in the district.

Oklahoma ranks fifth in the country for students suffering from trauma, according to the Oklahoma Education Department and data from the National Survey of Childrens Health in 2019. The report said nearly half of students have adverse childhood experience scores of 2 or higher, meaning theyve experienced a traumatic event and may have long-term impacts on health, opportunity and well-being, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Paula Sophia said in her job experience, she knows the struggles people face in seeking mental health care, and those students mental health issues need to be caught early so they can receive support in school and beyond.

One of the tragedies of our system is that we do not have enough mental health care support and that leaves a lot of responsibility on law enforcement who are not trained and equipped properly to handle these issues, she said.

Maldonado said she and her peers have experienced mental health struggles. Kids in their community are experiencing it right now, due to legislation like HB 4156  an anti-immigration law that targets undocumented people  because theyre afraid of losing their families. Maldonado said she is queer and an immigrant.

For me, thats one of the true causes in all of the issues were struggling, she said. If we address mental health, were going to address many more issues.

Pogemiller said Oklahoma has mental health supports, but the partnerships are not being utilized to enhance those services. She said there should be legislation to support people going into those career fields.

McCollum, the independent, said people dont need to be suffering, especially when theyre younger. Working with teachers unions, recruiting mental health providers into the system and paying proper wages would help address this issue, he said.

Affordable housing

Paula Sophia said she supports funding for expanding access to housing because other issues cant be addressed if people dont have shelter.

Pogemiller said two out of five people in Oklahoma dont have access to affordable housing and many are frustrated that people who are unhoused are criminalized.

We know that the solution to those is keeping people in their house, she said. Eviction is a huge problem.

Oklahoma created the Housing Stability Act, allowing more than $200 million for new homes, apartments and to provide homebuyers with down-payment and closing-cost assistance. Homes are intended to be affordable, but there are no income limits for buyers unless they use the Down Payment Assistance Program, The Oklahoman reported earlier this year.

Maldonado said she supports affordable housing and resources to help people who are unhoused because its one of the biggest crises.

McCollum supports affordable housing, citing Oklahomas high poverty level.

Immigration policies

Several candidates expressed opposition to House Bill 4156, which was signed by Gov. Kevin Stitt in April. The bill, held up by court rulings makes impermissible occupation a crime in, with the possibility of fines and jail time. Law enforcement agencies said they wont enforce it due to vague language and danger of racial profiling, but minority communities said its still harmful.

They spoke in favor of a bill authored by state Sen. Michael Brooks-Jimenez, D-OKC, which would allow undocumented people to apply for a drivers license using their individual taxpayer identification number. The bill has stalled in the Legislature.

McCollum said everyone in Oklahoma should drive because you cant get from point A to point B on the bus. It would also ensure people are driving legally.

In Oklahoma, were always talking about striving for being a world class state, world class city. I think we need to support this bill," he said.

Pogemiller said it was embarrassing that state has not passed the drivers license bill and said the outcry over passage of HB 4156 was because legislators dont understand that people just want to keep their families together and be productive residents.

Were going to lose members of our community, and were not going to have the ability to recruit amazing, incredibly talented people to our state, she said.

Paula Sophia said without a drivers license, undocumented people take a huge risk in just going to work to put groceries on the table. She called the law a dog whistle policy to catch people.

Maldonado said HB 4156 is personal to her because she is an immigrant. She said she hears hateful rhetoric directed toward immigrants while she works at the Capitol.

We deserve to live freely without being in fear that were going to be deported," she said.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Four candidates vie for House District 88
Dakota Rioux with Cleveland-based Central Window Cleaning power washes a home on Wood Owl Street NE in Canton. The city is using a $300,000 settlement with the former Republic Steel mill to clean homes in the neighborhood.

CANTON  Eric Thompkins loves being outside, cookouts and cornhole.

But for decades, the Republic Steel mill on Eighth Street NE compromised outdoor plans for him and his neighbors. Air pollution kicked up by leaded steel production settled on everything in the area  houses, cars and, according to those living nearby, their lungs.

"A lot of people moved here before the smog under the impression it was going to be a quiet, peaceful, safe community," Thompkins said. "Some people have told me that had they known what the Republic situation would become, they wouldn't have moved out here."

Republic Steel, a subsidiary of Mexican-based Grupo Simec, shuttered the plant in August with no warning to the community or workers. It was the only producer of leaded steel in the country  an inherently dirty production process. After closing, the company settled a court case involving air pollution, providing $300,000 to the city of Canton to help clean up neighboring properties.

Now, work crews with Cleveland-based Central Window Cleaning are making their way through the neighborhood, power washing homes, sidewalks and driveways to remove years of soot buildup.

The cleaning process began in April and is expected to finish in October. More than 510 homes are eligible and property owners have received letters and vouchers from the Canton Mayor's Office and Canton Air Pollution Control office with scheduling instructions. Eligible homeowners have until the end of September to schedule their home cleaning.

A look at the shuttered Republic Steel mill on Eighth Street NE in Canton.

"It's definitely gotten better with the noise and emissions going away, but I hesitate to say I'm happy," Thompkins said. "You hate to see anyone lose their jobs and I wish Republic could've run a clean factory with updated, compliant equipment. The owners just weren't willing to be good neighbors. So be it."

Thompkins serves on the executive board of the Georgeview Estates Neighborhood Association, which contains 60 homes in the area.

'We've got some beautiful homes out here.'

Homeowner Gerry Radcliffe sits on her front porch in Canton near her purple flowers. She said she enjoys sitting outside and hopes continued monitoring of the air quality around the former Republic Steel mill will make it increasingly safer to continue doing so.

Homeowner Gerry Radcliffe decorates her tidy house with vibrant colors like her purple flowers and a welcoming, bright yellow front door.

Her home on Doeskin Street NE was cleaned to what she said was a satisfactory degree. Radcliffe, who has lived there for 21 years, said the Canton Mayor's Office sent out letters to all eligible residents to inform them they would be able to schedule their street for a cleaning day.

She also said the cleaners needed a voucher confirming the name and identity of the homeowner, as well as what kind of cleaning would be done. Eligible homeowners could have either the exteriors of their homes or their sidewalks and driveways cleaned with Republic's settlement money, but not both.

"I didn't have a whole lot of specks on my house, but the cleaners cleaned my entire house and did a very good job," Radcliffe said. "I have a power washer, so my son can come and clean my driveway but it's not that bad."

Radcliffe said despite being pleased with the cleaning job by the Cleveland-based company, the air quality remains a concern.

Dakota Rioux with Cleveland-based Central Window Washing power washes a home on Wood Owl Street NE in Canton as the former Republic Steel mill on Eighth Street NE is shown in the distance.

"My husband died recently and he had COPD," Radcliffe said. "His breathing was really bad and I'm almost certain it had something to do with the quality of the air. I think the city needs to continue to monitor it."

Radcliffe said the cleaning program is sufficient repayment for Republic's environmental problems. However, she said there is a long way to go before things are fully rectified and the neighborhood is made safe once again. Radcliffe suggested that the city should check soil for any chemicals or particulates that may have contaminated the ground.

A view from Doeskin Street NE of Gerry Radcliffe's house. She has lived in the area for 21 years and is among the hundreds of residents who have had or will have their homes cleaned after decades of pollution by Republic Steel.

Radcliffe said homeownership is a long-term investment, and Thompkins said issues like the steel mill smog could deter people from moving to the area.

Radcliffe said the cleaning is a step in the right direction, and a welcome one.

"The city got on the Republic Steel thing right away," she said. "I hope they continue to do so with other issues involving our safety as well because we've got some beautiful homes out here."

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Pollution monitors still waiting on parts before installation

In addition to the cleaning program, the city is in the process of installing new and additional air pollution sensors and monitors, which has made headway since it was delayed from its original slated completion date of April 1. Radcliffe said some neighbors had volunteered to have air sensors installed onto their properties, with others being planted on nearby roads like Marietta Avenue NE.

However, some parts for more monitors are still missing. Linda Morckel, air pollution control monitoring and inspections supervisor for the Canton City Public Health, said she is waiting on a piece of tubing for a sulfur dioxide monitor and a isobutylene tank for a volatile organic compound sensor.

The sensors and monitors should be fully operational within the coming weeks, during which the training of volunteer sensor community operators will continue, Morckel said.

"We're oh so close to having everything up and running, much further along than we were a few weeks ago," she said.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: Canton residents near Republic Steel mill relieved by cleaning program
The Board of Canyon County Commissioners breaks grounds for the upcoming Canyon County Elections Building at a ceremony in May.

The Board of Canyon County Commissioners breaks grounds for the upcoming Canyon County Elections Building at a ceremony in May. (Courtesy of Canyon County)

Canyon County has broken grounds on a new elections building with the help of federal funds.

The new facility is set for completion in late 2024 or early 2025, and it will span 16,500 square feet, according to a press release from Canyon County.

The project is funded by the American Rescue Plan Act, also known as ARPA. This was a $1.9 trillion financial aid package signed into law by President Joe Biden in 2021 to address the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Canyon County has received $44.6 million in ARPA funds, and still has $36.1 million to use, according to the 2024 Canyon County budget. The elections facility will cost $4.7 million in ARPA funds.

December 2024 is the deadline for ARPA funds to be contracted and allocated. Canyon County must spend the funds by December 2026.

Other projects Canyon County is interested in pursuing include a warehouse project and a project with the Canyon County Ambulance District, according to the county budget. ARPA funding is already being used for the construction of a Sheriffs Administration Building and enhancements to the West Valley Humane Societys kennels and roof, Boise Dev reported.

The elections facility will address the needs of Canyon Countys growing population without raising local taxes.

New election building to address previous facility challenges

Canyon County officials told the Sun that the new elections facility will accommodate Canyon Countys growing population.

Canyon County is the second largest county in Idaho, according to the U.S. Census Bureau and Idaho Department of Labor. It also leads all Idaho counties in total population growth, the Idaho Press reported.

In 2010, Canyon County had a population of 188,923. According to the latest census data, this number increased by 22.3% to 231,105 people by 2020.

We are busting at the seams when it comes to space, Haley Hicks, the Canyon County Elections Manager, told the Idaho Capital Sun. The new building will have specific rooms and areas that will provide more space and allow more people to actually come in and get engaged as well.

The current elections office in Canyon County is limited in its 4,000 square foot space which has been causing challenges such as off-site training and limited storage for polling equipment, Canyon County Clerk Rick Hogaboam told the Sun. The new building, he said, will provide almost four times the space  offering more office and training spaces, more storage, a larger parking lot and an improved drive-thru voting design.

These upgrades will improve operational efficiency and enhance election integrity, Hogaboam said.

Hogaboam said the new facility will welcome students on field trips to learn about the electoral process and potential internship opportunities.

I would like for our young people to learn how elections work at a younger age, and we could also have more space for interns, he said.

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The post Canyon County breaks ground on new elections building using federal ARPA funds appeared first on Idaho Capital Sun.
Protestors sing and chant while laying done on the Michigan State Capitol lawn on June 12, 2024 | Lucy Valeski

Updated on Thursday, June 13 at 12:30 p.m.

Auto crash survivors were joined by their friends, families and auto insurance reform advocates on Wednesday on the Michigan State Capitol lawn. They laid in the grass with lilies, sang Yesterday by The Beatles, chanted, raised signs and ate lunch together.

Tate, Tate, we cant wait, protestors chanted in unison, referring to Michigan House Speaker Joe Tate (D-Detroit).

The protesters want Michigan House lawmakers to vote on a bill that would make health care more affordable and accessible for people who get into catastrophic car wrecks and require long-term, around-the-clock care.

Linda St. Amant is an advocate for reforming the 2019 law reforming auto insurance. Her son was injured over two decades ago in a car accident, and she continues to be his primary caregiver.

Were not out here because its fun, St. Amant said. Were out here because we have lived it.

While supporters hailed the 2019 no-fault auto insurance overhaul as a way to lower prices for motorists, it has received backlash for limiting health services to even the highest paying consumers. The bipartisan package was signed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. In the past few years, some lawmakers have worked to change the law, so wreck victims can receive better care through improved compensation for family health care providers and set rates that insurers will reimburse for a variety of services, including long-term care and physical therapies.

Prior to 2019, Michigan drivers paid the highest auto insurance prices in the country, but health providers received reimbursements from insurers for long-term care, in the case of a catastrophic collision.

Now, three years after the implementation of auto insurance reform, Michiganders still pay one of the highest rates in the country, and according to patient advocates, deal with dwindling access to health care.

Senate bills that would amend the 2019 reform (SB 530 and 531) set fee schedules for reimbursements to health care providers for a variety of long-term services and care relating to a catastrophic collision.

Last summer, the Michigan Supreme Court decided that people who were receiving care prior to the rule change in 2019 could continue that care under the old policy.

However, Maureen Howell, the mother of someone who was seriously injured in a car crash, says this case lacks teeth and is difficult to enforce.

Sometimes, victims of a car wreck will deal with brain or spine injuries that leave them needing a full-time caretaker, a role family members will often fill. The new rules would allow those caretakers to receive pay for providing health care. Current laws only allow care providers to receive reimbursement for up to 56 hours, which is only about one-third of weekly care many patients need.

Peggy Campbell, the founder of no-fault auto insurance reform advocacy organization We Cant Wait, said family members will sometimes quit their jobs to take care of someone who became disabled in a collision. This can be due to a lack of options caused by the lower reimbursement rates or the reliability of family care. Campbell helps care for her sister, who was severely injured in a collision.

Families are forced to take care of their loved ones, Campbell said.Because if they dont, the alternative is to put them in a nursing home thats not equipped. Its not staffed. People arent educated for caring for these catastrophic injuries.

St. Amant said she works around the clock to take care of her son, which includes constantly getting up at night to make sure he is OK.

The plan for reform of the current no-fault auto insurance system passed through the Senate with bipartisan support in October. However, the bills remain stuck in the House. Howell said she believed there is bipartisan support to pass the bills.

Amber McCann, a spokesperson for Tate, told the Advance that there is no timeline for taking up the Senate-passed auto insurance legislation.

Chair Carter has been engaged in many conversations on the topic and Speaker Tate has been clear that any reform in addition to the 2019 change should be one that also helps to further reduce the cost of car insurance for Michiganders, said McCann.

Protesters expressed frustration with Whitmer for signing the bills in 2019 and failing to back the reform package. Additionally, Campbell said she has had a difficult time getting a meeting with House leaders and wants the opportunity for more dialogue with lawmakers.

We just get brushed off, Campbell said.

This story has been updated to include a statement from Speaker Tates office.

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The post Car wreck survivors and loved ones demand House lawmakers take up no-fault auto insurance reform appeared first on Michigan Advance.
The Community College of Allegheny County is offering a teach-out program for students at Pittsburgh Technical College.

>> Current quarter will be the last for Pittsburgh Technical College students

PTC announced Monday it would be closing its doors after the current semester ends on June 27.

>> AGs office investigating complaints against local technical college, sources say

CCAC said its teach-out program has been put in place for 19 academic programs, including:

Business management

Criminal justice & criminology

Culinary arts

Graphic communications

Film technology

Mechatronics technology

Medical insurance specialist

Cybersecurity and IT support specialist

Software development

Nursing

Facilities maintenance technology

Heating & air conditioning technology

Welding

We are committed to assisting and welcoming interested PTC students to the CCAC community. We are ready to help these students transfer to similar programs here at CCAC, said Dr. Stephen Wells, CCAC Interim Chief Academic Officer.

>> Pittsburgh Technical College placed on probation, in jeopardy of losing accreditation

PTC students must be in good academic standing for their credits to transfer. They will pay the same tuition rates as CCAC students.

Earlier this week, Point Park University in Downtown Pittsburgh also established a teach-out program for PTC students.

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Some Moon Township neighbors concerned over large church festival planned for this summer Supreme Court upholds access to widely used abortion pill Sen. John Fetterman at fault for weekend car crash, police report says VIDEO: 1 person in custody after suspicious fire at old Hooters restaurant in Wilkins Township DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA)  The drama continues with the Champaign Unit 4 School District Board.

At the end of Monday nights meeting, board President Gianina Baker announced during board comments her intention to censure fellow board member Betsy Holder, saying she has violated several principles of the Boards Code of Conduct.

When Baker asked if any other members support the censure, board Vice President Heather Vasquez and member Bruce Brown both stated their support.

One of Bakers main reasons in calling for a censure is her refusal to cooperate with filling the vacancies on the board. Holder said at that time the board was too decisive and the vacancies should be handled by the Regional Superintendent of Education and purposefully did not attend board meetings so quorum could not be met.

One of the boards duties is to fill vacancies that occur on the board, Baker said in a prepared statement. Holder refused to participate in much of the process and refused to attend meetings, where the board was to interview and ultimately select board members. This is a dereliction of duties.

Members chosen for Champaign School Board of Education after months-long vacancies

Baker also alleges Holder has shared confidential information discussed in closed sessions. Holder defended the information she shared, describing all the documents as FOIA-able.

Information was shared with us enumerating communications you had had with people pursuing legal action against the district, Vazquez said to Holder.

Other items of misconduct Baker alleged in her statement include misrepresenting her position on the board, not receiving approval from the board President before talking to the media and using her professional email instead of her Board of Education email.

Baker also criticized Holder for her pessimistic attitude toward board operations.

Theres enough evidence that [Superintendent Shelia] Boozer could pursue litigation on member Holder and ultimately the board, for creating a hostile work environment, Baker said.

Holder fired back at Baker, saying that several of those allegations are false. She also claims her behavior was in pursuit of transparency to the public.

I could go on and on and on about the lack of transparency in this district over and over, Holder said. And Im sorry that Im calling it out.

Your business is to invest in these children: Special ed advocates urge better training in Champaign schools

In a Facebook post Tuesday on her Board of Education account, Holder thanked members of the community for their support at the tense end of the meeting.

Given everything we have experienced over the past several months as a board, it is crucial that we welcome our new members and move beyond our differences to collaboratively address the pressing concerns in Unit 4, she wrote on her Facebook page Tuesday. This is not the time for vengeance, pettiness, and internal conflict.

Holder also claimed shes experienced retaliation from her work as a board member, including people meddling with both her and her husbands work as private lawyers, as well as anonymous threats over text message to her parents.

We now have a board president and board vice president who are engaging the boards attorneys for their own personal vendettas, she told WCIA Wednesday.

WCIA reached out to Baker on Wednesday for further comment, but she was unavailable.

A censure is an official reprimand, but will not remove Holder from her position or any of her powers if passed.

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 WCIA.com.
Charges withdrawn against activist who was arrested after speaking at Pittsburgh City Council

The charges have been withdrawn against a local activist who was arrested after speaking at Pittsburgh City Council in May.

Chief Investigator Rick Earle has been covering this situation for several days and spoke to Will Parker and his attorney last week.

>> Local activist claims hes being targeted, speaks exclusively to 11 Investigates

On May 29, Parker spoke out about the Juneteenth controversy and the decision by the Gainey Administration to award the contract to Bounce Marketing over William B. Marshall, who brought the celebration to the city and has run the event for over a decade.

After Parker spoke, he was arrested on outstanding warrants issued by Carnegie Mellon University.

The university charged him with defiant trespassing earlier in May. 11 Investigates learned that CMU police removed Parker from a symposium and told him not to return to campus.

I was surprised. I had no idea there was a warrant out for my arrest, said Parker.

When Parker spoke to Chief Investigator Rick Earle last week, he claimed authorities were attempting to silence him.

His May 29 arrest was the second time Pittsburgh police have taken him into custody this year.

It appears this is nothing more than retaliation for his views, said Ryan Gailey, Parkers attorney.

Earle spoke with the Allegheny County District Attorneys office and they say it appears police followed proper procedures in getting the arrest warrant.

When Earle spoke to Parker and his attorney last week, he learned they are considering filing additional lawsuits in light of his most recent arrest.

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Some Moon Township neighbors concerned over large church festival planned for this summer Supreme Court upholds access to widely used abortion pill Sen. John Fetterman at fault for weekend car crash, police report says VIDEO: 1 person in custody after suspicious fire at old Hooters restaurant in Wilkins Township DOWNLOAD the Channel 11 News app for breaking news alerts
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LANSING, Mich. (WLNS) Hundreds gathered at the state Capitol yesterday to unite those who have been affected by organ and tissue donation.

Gift of Life Michigan put on the Check Your Heart Rally, which brought together donor families, recipients and those still waiting for that lifesaving gift. This years focus is educating the next generation and encouraging young teens to become donors.

(Photo: Check your Heart Rally encourages organ donation and education)

One of the big things that were talking about today is our need for education among teenagers in the state of Michigan, said Dorrie Dils, the president and CEO of Gift of Life Michigan. Our state, unlike surrounding states we dont have a requirement that theres education in high school that theres tissue and organ donation.

Dils says that only 21% of new drivers registered as an organ donor and only about half the rate as most states.

The new legislation we are pushing for is to encourage schools to add education to their high school curriculum about organ and tissue donation, said Dils.

(Photo: Check your Heart Rally encourages organ donation and education)

The event featured speakers like Jill Soave, whose son, Justin Schilling was killed in the Oxford high school shooting.

Justin was a giver, spending his final moments protecting another student and saving six lives with his gift, said Soave. Justin was brain dead, but miraculously he was still able to donate his organs. This was a light in the darkness for all who knew and loved Justin.

Another mother, Wendy Smith, shared her story. When her son Cody passed away a few years ago, he was able to give 117 gifts of life.

Because he was generous and wanted to be a donor, there are people now who are now able to live and hug their grandkids, said Smith.

One of those recipients, Chris Kowalski, now carries Codys heart.

(Photo: Check your Heart Rally encourages organ donation and education)

The first time I met Chris, he got me this build-a-bear, said Smith, holding the bear has a recording of Codys heart beating inside Chris. So anytime I want to hear my sons heart beating and feel it next to me, I can do that.

This event highlighted the importance of organ donation. Today, about 2,500 Michiganders are waiting for a lifesaving organ. To register or to learn more about becoming a donor, visit the Gift of Life Michigan website

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 WLNS 6 News.
Shreveport Councilwoman Tabatha Taylor, Mayor Tom Arceneaux and Housing Authority of the City of Shreveport's CEO Bobby Collins cut the ribbon during the phase III ceremony of Bayou Grande in downtown Shreveport, Wednesday morning, June 12, 2024.

With the snip of the scissors held by Shreveport Mayor Tom Arceneaux, Housing Authority of the City of Shreveports CEO Bobby Collins and Councilwoman Tabatha Taylor, phase III of Bayou Grande was officially opened Wednesday morning.

We're proud to bring on board 122 new units, said Collins during the dedication ceremony. These units are in addition to the ones already completed in the first two phases and will be part of the total 528 units once all five phases are completed. You're gonna be amazed. This is nice, affordable housing that this city can say we're proud to offer, said Collins.

Its a big accomplishment for the housing authority, an achievement that was hard-earned and has spanned 13 years. Collins mentioned several people who were instrumental in the process, but none so much as the 'Godmother of Housing' Bonnie Moore, the Director of the City of Shreveport Community Development.

Director of the City of Shreveport Community Development Bonnie Moore (right) during the ribbon cutting ceremony of phase III of Bayou Grande in downtown Shreveport, Wednesday morning, June 12, 2024.

First and foremost, this has truly been a labor of love, she said with tears to the crowd.

It could not have been without the $24.2 million grant from the Choice Neighborhoods Initiative, a U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development program designed to help transform distressed high-poverty neighborhoods into ones with mixed-income, affordable housing, safe streets and good schools.

Getting that grant did not come easy, We took our time and did a robust planning process, said Moore. She went on to describe what the first three years involved. We had to amass land, we had to do environmental clearances, we had to do site preparation and we had to create $100 million in match dollars to be able to compete.

That's what growing a community is about, continued Moore, It's about all of us working together to achieve the results of the people that have no voice, the vulnerable people in our community, and the disadvantaged people of our community.

When we work together, we create a better quality of life, Moore added.

Quick to give accolades to Moore was Mayor Arceneaux. It was her work with him and the three prior mayors that had brought them to this point.

It comes at a particularly significant time when the city has a housing shortage and is battling the effects of absentee landlords at several apartment complexes. We are going to do everything that we can to improve affordable housing for the people of Shreveport.

He asked Councilwoman Tabatha Taylor to stand for recognition in her efforts, There is no greater advocate for affordable housing on city council than then Councilwoman Taylor.

Housing Authority of the City of Shreveport's CEO Bobby Collins hugs Housing Finance Deputy Administrator Attorney Thomas Bates during the phase III ceremony for Bayou Grande in downtown Shreveport, Wednesday morning, June 12, 2024.

During the tour of the new facility, Tayor looks around with admiration, This is how an apartment should look.

To help with the celebration, all the way from Washington D.C., was Housing Finance Deputy Administrator Attorney Thomas Bates. What a beautiful day in every way, he said, Of the many dignities we can together seek to aspire for our fellows, none is greater than a place to call home.

This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Shreveoport's Bayou Grande ribbon cutting for phase three
CHICAGO  Mayor Brandon Johnsons administration has begun the process of removing from city shelters dozens of migrant families, including those with children who attended Chicago Public Schools.

Just days after the CPS school year ended, officials this week began the eviction process to continue to ease pressure on overstretched resources in shelters run by the city and state.

Its the second significant wave of forced removals at shelters since the city began ordering mostly single men and some single women to find housing elsewhere. Now, entire families are being told the same.

Homeless advocates and experts said moving the families from shelters could be detrimental to the childrens sense of stability. For many of the migrant children, school has been the only structure in their lives after traveling for months to the United States, the experts said.

Going through this eviction process is stressful and very challenging for them, said Alyssa Phillips, education attorney for the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless.

More than 43,000 migrants have arrived in Chicago since August 2022 when Republican Gov. Greg Abbott of Texas first ordered asylum-seekers be shuttled to Chicago and other northern cities to share the costs of the high number of people as well as to make a political statement about the nations immigration policies.

The migrants  who mostly come from Venezuela  are escaping their country of origins economic and political turmoil caused by tanking oil prices and a far-left federal government. Chicago has spent about $150 million so far to shelter and feed those who have arrived here.

In mid-March, Johnsons administration began enforcing a limit of 60 days for migrants to stay at city shelters. At the time, the city made exceptions on a case-by-case basis, including for medical issues or because some asylum-seekers were in the process of securing housing. Families with children had been given three, 30-day extensions to ease disruptions.

Phillips said families were originally supposed to be evicted in the middle of the school year, but she and other advocates pushed back.

Friday was the last day of school and family evictions began this past Monday. Four individuals exited the shelter system on Tuesday, the day after evictions started, according to a spokesperson at the citys Department of Family & Support Services. About 40 people are expected to leave in the next week.

Following a Chicago City Council meeting Wednesday, when asked how migrant childrens education might be disrupted by evictions, Johnson, a former CPS teacher, didnt directly answer the question and instead said his ultimate goal was to help migrant families find houses of their own.

The standard is not shelter in perpetuity, he said. The standard and the expectation is that people can actually live sustainable, fruitful lives in Chicago or anywhere else in America.

Once migrant families are evicted from shelters, they are asked to go to the citys landing zone in the West Loop, where they are allowed to temporarily sleep on CTA buses in the landing zones parking lot while they reapply to reenter the shelter system.

On Wednesday, many migrant families expressed uncertainty about how that process will work, or if shelter space will be available. As of Wednesday, of 966 total people evicted from shelters, more than 55% had reentered the system  a collection of 17 warehouses and once-shuttered buildings now housing 6,722 people.

Maria Perez, a volunteer with Southwest Collective who works with migrants at the shelter on the Lower West Side, said she has seen several families leave the shelters this week. She said she last saw those families standing on nearby street corners with their belongings and waiting for Uber drivers to pick them up.

Theyve already made so many journeys to make it here, she said. I cant imagine what theyre thinking.

City officials have said repeatedly that they give migrants exit dates to push them toward finding their own, independent housing options. The city officials have said theyve coupled the eviction process with wraparound services from case managers and nonprofit organizations.

But those staying in shelters on Wednesday said they hadnt received any guidance on where to find housing or resources.

Virginia de Jesus, a 27-year-old from Valencia, Venezuela, said she and her son arrived at a shelter on the Lower West Side two days ago and they have yet to receive any support from shelter workers. They were told by officials at the shelter that they needed to leave in 60 days, which de Jesus said was not enough time to find independent housing.

The workers seem to be in their own world, she said. We dont know where to look for help. We really dont know what to do.

Her 6-year-old son Sebastian, who wore a blue and red cape, occupied himself by sweeping the pavement outside the shelter. In his home city, his mother said, he went to school for maybe two hours a day, three days a week.

She said she hoped to register him for school but wasnt sure where she would be living in a month and a half.

The large population of asylum-seekers who have arrived in Chicago seeking assistance has contributed to record rates of homelessness in the city. More than 18,000 people experienced homelessness according to a point-in-time count conducted in late January. Thats a threefold increase from last year.

The numbers are slightly skewed because, at the time of the count, the city was sheltering a record numbers of migrants, spurred by an increase in border crossings in the winter. The count also doesnt include migrants who were doubled up, or sharing a house with others.

But the count indicates a trend: following the end of a state-funded rental assistance program, the migrant population in Chicago is increasingly overlapping with people experiencing homelessness. In fact, city and state officials and nonprofit leaders are in the preliminary stages of a plan to combine the legacy homeless shelter system with the shelter system for migrants.

Homeless advocates said combining the shelter systems will take time and coordination but will be beneficial for all unhoused Chicagoans. Still, those working with migrants said there will be large logistical hurdles, such as translation services.

This has more implications for children, said Darcey Merritt, a professor at the University of Chicago Crown Family School of Social Work.

Theyre at some really sensitive developmental stages in their lives, Merritt said. They will end up behind in school.

The Chicago Public Schools system is federally required to support the enrollment and education of students who are homeless or in temporary living situations. For migrant children who move, this means providing free transportation to stay at the school near their shelter if they wish.

There were 23,470 students in temporary living situations enrolled at the end of May  a 46% increase from last May and the most ever recorded at this time of year, according to data provided by the Chicago Coalition for the Homeless. CCH attributes the increase in part to the thousands of migrant children who have arrived over the past year.

With so many students in volatile living situations, migrant advocates said it will be important to communicate that children have the right to stay in the same school. They hope to connect them with summer programming.

Advocates, however, said it is virtually impossible to talk to migrants while theyre staying on buses at the landing zone.

Gleidis Calderon, a 22-year-old mother from Maracay, Venezuela, said her eviction date is July 17, but she doesnt know how to find stable housing.

On Wednesday afternoon, she sat in the shade of a driveway by the shelter on the Lower West Side with her 7-year-old daughter Eudima. She said her daughter has been restless since school let out.

With nothing to occupy their time, Calderon said children inside the shelter were fighting. Shed left Venezuela seeking a safer life only to find herself worried about the wellbeing of her kids.

Here, they arent doing anything. They arent learning anything, she said.

-------

(Chicago Tribunes Alice Yin contributed.)

____
CHICAGO  A woman who reportedly has ties to Illinois is wanted by authorities in the United Kingdom in connection with a murder-for-hire plot against the owner of a Birmingham boutique and his family.

Aimee Betro flew to Chicago two days after pulling a gun on her target in the Birmingham village of Acocks Green in September 2019, a UK jury heard, according to The Telegraph. She ran off when the gun jammed but later returned and fired shots at a home shortly before texting the father of her would-be victim with threatening messages: Stop playing hide-and-seek and Where are you hiding?

The Mirror reported in April that Betro is originally from Chicago.

The men who allegedly hired Betro, Mohammed Nazir and his son Mohammed Aslam, were recently found guilty of conspiracy in Birmingham Crown Court, the newspaper Birmingham Live reported.

In court, jurors heard how Aslam and Nazir hired Betro and flew her to Birmingham to kill a man named Sikander Ali, with whom Aslam and Nazir had an ongoing dispute, the International Business Times reported. The men allegedly wanted revenge for an incident nearly a year earlier inside Alis clothing store that left both men injured and the store badly damaged.

A prosecutor said that on the day of the failed shooting, Betro donned a hijab to disguise herself, got out of a Mercedes and calmly walked toward Ali, her target, and pointed a gun at him.

Mercifully and luckily for him the gun jammed, the prosecutor, Kevin Hegarty, told the court.

It was the next day when she returned in a taxi, fired shots at a home and sent the threatening text messages. She flew back to Chicago two days after the failed shooting but not before contacting Virgin Atlantic in an unsuccessful attempt to have Nazir accompany her, the International Business Times report said.

Betro continues to elude British authorities, the reports said. Without naming Betro, a West Midlands Police spokesman said in a statement to WGN that efforts to locate a woman we believe to have been involved in the conspiracy continue.

A sentencing hearing for the father-son duo of Nazir and Aslam was scheduled for August 9.

While several reports indicated Betro is from Chicago, the British tabloid The Daily Mail reported Wednesday that she is from Milwaukee and worked for the Milwaukee Brewers. WGNs attempts to confirm those details have so far been unsuccessful.

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 WGN-TV.
The well-being of 42,000 egg-laying hens in Foster brought emotions to the surface Thursday in a long, late-night debate  again  over chicken cages.

As the final day of the legislative year approached midnight, lawmakers voted to extend a deadline for Rhode Island to go cage-free for another four years.

The campaign to ban traditional battery chicken cages led to a memorable State House standoff in 2015  which was blamed for an abrupt end to lawmaking that year  and then three years later to passage of a law requiring extra space for hens to move around.

But the 2018 bill gave farmers until July 1, 2026, to comply, a date that at the time seemed impossibly far off, but is now advancing on the lone commercial egg producer in the state that would be affected.

Republican-backed legislation in the House and Senate sought to push the deadline back to 2034 in an initial proposal and now 2030 in a potential compromise that had been slated for votes Thursday.

A New Hampshire Red hen looks in on eggs laid in a backyard chicken coop in Rhode Island.

House GOP leader Michael Chippendale of Foster, sponsor of H 7946, said the owner of Little Rhode Farms will have to retrofit his entire operation to comply with the law and can't get a loan to cover costs ranging from $1 million to $1.6 million with avian flu spreading across the country.

"This is not a man who is a diabolical monster trying to make chickens' lives miserable. He is a farmer," Chippendale said. "We have seen our farms disappear at a rapid clip and we can't lose any more farms.

Little Rhody Farms' 20 employees make it Foster's largest employer, Chippendale said.

But animal welfare groups are not convinced that Little Rhody owner Eli Berkowitz will ever comply with the law and objected to the extension.

"Here we go again, right? End of session and here we are with another chicken coop bill," said Rep. Patricia Serpa, sponsor of the 2018 law and many animal bills. "I am convinced he will do nothing between now and 2026 and the poor little chicks and chickens can't live in humane conditions."

"It is a bunch of chicken poop," she added.

When or if it goes into effect, the cage law would ban housing chickens "in a manner that prevents the animal from turning around freely, lying down, standing up or fully extending the animal's limbs."

Rep. Charlene LIma: "These animals are suffering. It is a cruel, rotten life to be placed in a cage where you can't move around. We are better than this."

But bill supporters argued that if Little Rhody closes, the chickens die anyway and Rhode Islanders will just get their eggs from a similar farm, maybe at higher prices.

"I'm going to wing it," Rep. Stephen Casey said with a chuckle. "It did appear this gentleman was running afoul of the law. But after [Chippendale's] explanation, we need to give the business a chance. This gentleman is not giving us the finger."

Chippendale promised never to ask for another extension to the cage law beyond 2030 and said Berkowitz is, in fact, setting aside money to transition to cage-free operations.

"He just needs time," Rep. Ray Hull said. "What did we just do for Citizens Bank to keep them here."

The bill passed the House 41-15 and the Senate 26-8.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: RI General Assembly debating chicken cage ban legislation
Lin Jian, spokesman for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, speaks to journalists at his agency's daily briefing. China has criticized another US sanctions package on Russia. Johannes Neudecker/dpa

The Chinese Foreign Ministry sharply criticized a new package of US sanctions targeting the Russian war economy, including Chinese companies accused of aiding the invasion of Ukraine.

"We call on the United States to stop the indiscriminate, illegal, unilateral sanctions," said Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian in Beijing on Thursday.

She said that China was neither a party nor the cause of the "Ukraine crisis" and that Beijing would act to protect the rights of Chinese companies and citizens.

China has forged strong ties with Russia since President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Washington says that while Beijing may not directly provide weapons for Moscow's campaign, it has become a critical lifeline for Russia's sanctioned economy and its military.

On Wednesday, a day before G7 leaders gathered in southern Italy to discuss Ukraine, the Biden administration announced it was imposing 300 new Russia-related sanctions. Among them were multiple Chinese and Hong Kong-based companies, with the US alleging some of them sent dual-use items that could be used in Russian military equipment.
China, which will not attend this weekend's Peace Summit in Switzerland, is lobbying world governments ahead of the Swiss meeting to promote its peace plan.

Source: Reuters citing 10 unnamed diplomats, European Pravda reports

Details: The diplomats said that as the Peace Summit approaches, China has stepped up its outreach activities through meetings with visiting foreign dignitaries, phone calls and messages to foreign missions on the Chinese platform WeChat.

Beijing's special envoy for Eurasian affairs, Li Hui, visited Turkiye, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates last month and met with officials from developing countries at their embassies in Beijing, diplomats said.

In explaining why it will not attend the Peace Summit, China is trying to engage developing countries in a six-point peace plan it unveiled with Brazil last month.

In conversations with developing countries, China did not criticise the summit in Switzerland and did not explicitly ask them to refrain from attending, Beijing diplomats told the agency.

But one diplomat with knowledge of the outreach said Beijing told developing countries that the Peace Summit would prolong the war. Two diplomats said that China has been telling Western countries that many developing countries share its views on the Peace Summit.

The Chinese proposal envisages holding an international peace conference "at a proper time that is recognised by both Russia and Ukraine, with equal participation of all parties as well as fair discussion of all peace plans".

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov suggested that China could organise such a conference. Russian leader Vladimir Putin expressed support for the Chinese plan, saying that Beijing fully understands what is behind it.

Last week, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that 45 countries supported the Chinese proposal, and more than two dozen had either joined or were "seriously considering" it.

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said last week: "China sincerely hopes that a peace conference will not turn into a platform used to create bloc confrontation. Not attending it does not mean not supporting peace."

Background: Switzerland has changed the troublesome provisions of the final document of the Peace Summit, which could have had undesirable consequences for Ukraine  the text of the decision has been changed in recent days.

As a result, several states that had planned to attend the Peace Summit in Switzerland decided not to go there after the draft decision was changed in favour of Ukraine.

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Beijing, skipping Ukraine's peace summit, has been pushing its alternative peace plan ahead of the upcoming event in Switzerland, Reuters reported on June 13, citing undisclosed diplomatic sources.

The Chinese proposal is presented as an alternative to President Volodymyr Zelensky's peace plan, which is backed by Kyiv's Western partners and will be discussed on June 15-16 in the Burgenstock resort.

Zelensky's 10-point peace formula, a plan first outlined in the fall of 2022, calls for a complete withdrawal of Russian forces from Ukraine, punishing those responsible for war crimes, and the release of all prisoners, among other goals.

Ten diplomats confirmed for Reuters China's efforts to lobby for its plan, while one of them called China's campaign a "subtle boycott" of the summit.

Ukraine invited China to the peace summit back in January, but Beijing indicated it would not attend.

The Chinese government said its required terms for attending were not met, as not both warring countries would participate. Russia has not been invited to the summit.

After Beijing signaled its refusal to participate, Zelensky accused China of "working hard" to prevent countries from attending the summit.

In conversations with developing nations, China has not overtly criticized Ukraine's summit or directly asked countries to abstain, Reuters reported, citing the Beijing-based diplomats.

But one of the undisclosed diplomatic sources said Beijing told developing nations the meeting "would prolong the war," while two other sources said China has been telling Western nations that many developing countries are "aligned with its views on the conference."

Before the summit, China had increased meetings, phone calls, and messages via the Chinese platform WeChat with foreign officials, the diplomats said.

Last month, Chinese Special Representative for Eurasian Affairs Li Hui visited Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. He met officials of developing countries at their embassies in Beijing as well, according to the undisclosed sources.

While explaining why it will not attend the summit, Beijing has also been trying to enlist developing nations to join its six-point peace plan, which China and Brazil laid out in May. The alternative peace plan called for an international conference recognized by both Ukraine and Russia.

At least 26 nations have agreed to or are seeking ways to join the conference Beijing suggested, while 45 countries supported the ideas presented in the alternative plan, according to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

As China is reportedly lobbying for its alternative peace plan, the number of participants in Ukraine's peace summit has decreased. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) reported on June 11 that the number of attendees dropped from 93 to 78.

Read also: Explainer: What is the global peace summit in Switzerland, and what does Ukraine hope to achieve?

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The digital display indicates when a cubicle is occupied and for how long - AsiaWire

A Chinese city has placed timers above toilets at a key tourist site to ensure the safety of its users.

Video posted by local media shows a row of cubicles, each with a timer outside the door. The digital display indicates when a cubicle is occupied and for how long.

The displays were spotted at toilets in the Yungang Buddhist Grottoes in the city of Datong, Shanxi Province.

But according to a longtime China expat, the timers have also appeared in Shanghai.

Christian Petersen-Clausen, a documentary maker, said: First time Ive seen these digital clocks that announce how long each of these bathroom stalls have been occupied. Seen in a park in Shanghai.

While many have decried the timers as yet another example of overreach by the government into peoples private lives, others say they might stop the nuisance of people hogging public toilets to scroll on their phones.

The Yungang Buddhist Grottoes is a Unesco-heritage site, boasting tens of thousands of huge statues cut into caves in the mid-fifth century to early-sixth century AD. Last year it received 3 million people, according to official data.

Embarrassing

The toilet timers there were flagged to the Xiaoxiang Morning Herald by a visitor who said they found them embarrassing.

I found it quite advanced technologically so you dont have to queue outside or knock on a bathroom door, the paper quoted the visitor as saying.

But I also found it a little bit embarrassing. It felt like I was being monitored.

A buddha from the Yungang caves, a Unesco-heritage site - NurPhoto

A staff member at the attraction told the Xiaoxiang Morning Herald that the timers had been installed to cope with an increase in the number of visitors, but stressed they were not imposing a limit.

They arent there to control the durations you could use the bathrooms, they said.

Its impossible that we would kick someone out [of the bathroom stall] midway. And we arent setting a time limit, such as five or 10 minutes, of how long one could use the toilets.

Another staff member was quoted by the Nanchang Evening News as saying the timers had been installed on May 1 for safety, and to make it known if a guest had been in there for a long time due to an emergency.

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While the number of licensed foster homes in rural Nevada has decreased dramatically, the number of children in care has not. (Getty Images)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

Clark County child welfare officials asked state lawmakers to consider removing educational neglect, which includes issues like chronic absenteeism and truancy, from what their office investigates.

Clark County received roughly 600 educational neglect referrals last year. None resulted in a child being removed from a home, according to Jill Marano, the director of family services at Clark County.

We believe there are other and more appropriate solutions in addressing chronic absenteeism, she told the interim Committee on Health and Human Services on Monday.

Other states have been looking at how to address chronic absenteeism outside of the child welfare system, something Marano said Nevada should consider.

A new approach wouldnt stop school districts from asking child welfare agencies from investigating neglect and potential abuse, she said.

With a high volume of cases and limited resources, it would free up caseworkers to investigate other incidents of abuse and neglect.

What were finding is that in a system that is overtaxed and overburdened where workers are getting sometimes two or three reports a day, getting an educational neglect report is adding to a workload that is really, in our view, taking them away from being able to do the work they need to do, Marano said.

Representatives from Clark, Washoe and rural child and family services departments gave state lawmakers an overview of the challenges faced by agencies whether its providing families with resources to prevent removal or placing children in foster homes.

In either instance, there arent enough resources.

Ryan Gustafson, the director of the human services agency in Washoe County, said there has been more efforts in recent years to focus on prevention services to keep children in the home and out of the child welfare system.

Marla McDade Williams, the administrator for the Nevada Division of Child & Family Services, said families at risk of entering the system are often resource poor and lack access to affordable housing and child care.

If families are struggling economically, its going to translate to how they are able to care for their kids, she said.

The lack of medical providers in rural counties that take Medicaid can also introduce families to the child welfare system, McDade Williams said.

I have one case of a family of eight and there is no dental access, she said. The school system sees that, they call it neglect but really all they need is an access to a dentist. There is no dentist in that rural area. We are figuring out how to get them access to a dentist so we dont have to bring them into the system. How do we support these families?

Some children do need to be removed for their safety and placed in the system.

All agencies are struggling to find enough families to place children. The first choice for placements, Marano said, is relatives and fictive kin, who are unrelated to the child but have a relationship with the child.

Agencies have been working to increase the number of licensed foster homes when that isnt available.

Gustafson said the number of foster homes in Washoe County has declined since the Covid pandemic. There are 57 licensed foster homes that are on hold and not taking any children at the moment, he said.

Some of it has to do with the economic realities in the aftermath of Covid.

Its 2024 now but some folks are sort of catching up on life and just not in the space where they are wanting to take kids, he said. We are working on these 57 families to get them to re-engage. They are technically licensed and have gone through that arduous licensing process, but they are sitting in a holding pattern and not wanting to take any new children at this time.

Agencies are also dealing with logistical challenges, such as inadequate transportation resources.

If a child is removed, Gustafson said the ideal situation is to place them in with a family near their current school. The school, he added, may be the only normalcy they have, the only constant they have is the school they are going through.

However, if the only placement is across town, without resources to assist the foster family it creates additional burdens getting children to their school and to appointments, he said.

When you have a surplus of foster homes you can place children in a home thats close in proximity to the home that they came from, he said.

Counties have looked at making the licensing process simpler by reducing the number of classes, increasing how often training can take place, and combining various aspects of training.

Marano said they used to require nine classes and separate training for CPR and car seat safety. The county reduced it to seven, and included the safety instruction within those seven.

Both Washoe and Clark said they attempted to keep online training implemented during the pandemic, but found it led to more challenges, including reduced engagement and disruption of the number of places.

One of the things we see that helps with foster parents is when they are connected with other foster parents and have that community support, which they can develop when they are in person in a cohort that is going through training together, Marano said. We didnt see they were doing that online. Thats why we made the decision to go back to in-person.

The post Chronic absenteeism should be investigated outside child welfare system, lawmakers told appeared first on Nevada Current.
(COLORADO SPRINGS)  Mayor Yemi Mobolade will be hosting his first Flag Day recognition ceremony on Thursday, June 13.

The event will begin at 4 p.m. at the flagpole outside of the City Administration building located at 30 S. Nevada Ave.

Mayor Mobolade and City Council President Randy Helms will present three local veterans each with a flag that has flown over a City of Colorado Springs building. Veterans Edwin Beck (World War 2, Korean War), Walter Knight (World War 2), and Melvin Postlewait (Korean War) will receive a flag.

The intent is to make it an annual tradition to honor the United States flag, a symbol of freedom, and recognize outstanding local individuals of character who embody what the flag stands for.

The official Flag Day occurs each year on June 14, the anniversary of the flags official adoption.

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 FOX21 News Colorado.
The family of a motorist who was killed in a collision with a speeding Minneapolis police squad in the summer of 2021 sued the city Thursday, pointing out that officers in the city have had a long history of causing deadly crashes and that it knew but never disciplined the officer involved for his penchant for reckless pursuits.

The federal civil rights and wrongful death suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Minnesota on behalf of the sister and other relatives of 40-year-old Leneal Frazier. Frazier's SUV was hit at the intersection of N. Lyndale and 41st avenues by Brian Cummings when the officer sped through a red light while pursuing a carjacking suspect on July 6, 2021.

The suit asks the court for unspecified monetary damages for Cheryl Frazier, of Minneapolis, in her role as trustee for the family and for an injunction to ensure that the city's police officers no longer engage in similar pursuits.

In response to the suit, a spokesman relayed to the Star Tribune that "the city has no comment at this time."

Cummings, who served for 14 years with the Minneapolis Police Department, was convicted in Hennepin County District Court of criminal vehicular homicide and sentenced in July 2023 to a nine-month term combining time in the workhouse and on electronic home monitoring.

Much of the contentions in the suit were directed at the history of police pursuits in Minneapolis and how they have often led to deadly crashes, and it also argued that Black drivers disproportionately subjected to officers chasing them down.

Cummings initiated the chase after spotting a Kia Sportage with no license plate near W. Broadway and N. Lyndale Avenue that matched the description of a vehicle that was carjacked three days earlier. James J. Jones-Drain, who fled the scene after the crash, was later charged with with fleeing police and auto theft.

"In at least 15 fatalities caused by an MPD pursuit, 13 of the drivers were Black," including Frazier, the suit read. "These pursuits are also more likely to be initiated in and continued through neighborhoods with a disproportionately high number of Black residents compared to other Minneapolis neighborhoods with predominantly white residents."

The suit also pointed out that Minneapolis police pursuits have ended in crashes roughly 24% of the time since 2021, a far higher proportion than by any other police department in the state, according to state Bureau of Criminal Apprehension data.

The Police Department knew that the practice of its officers, and Cummings in particular, "engaging in dangerous high-speed pursuits had the natural and probable consequence of causing significant injury and/or death of MPD officers," the suit continued. "Despite the proven danger of MPD's proclivity for unnecessary, high-speed pursuits, MPD Chief Brian O'Hara announced in 2023 that he was planning on relaxing the MPD's pursuit policy."

O'Hara did just that 14 months ago, when he loosened the policy to allow officers to chase fleeing suspects involved in certain firearm-related offenses, a change he said was needed to help counter increasing gun violence.

Cummings was not named as a defendant in the lawsuit, but the the civil action ticked off numerous allegations against him, both on the night of the crash and over the course of his time on the Minneapolis police force:

Cummings was involved in at last 12 instances of high-speed pursuits in 2021, including the one that killed Frazier, and he knew the driver was Black in nine of those chases. His 12 pursuits accounted for 10% of all chases by Minneapolis officers. Cummings was never disciplined for his sometimes dangerous chases.Even though the 3-mile pursuit he initiated before the deadly crash was not deemed an emergency, Cummings disobeyed eight stop signs, and lied to his sergeant and reported he was going 40 mph but actually was traveling more than 80 mph. At one point, he topped 100 mph.He ran a red light at 89 mph when he broadsided Frazier's SUV.Cummings' statements at the scene showed no concern for Frazier. "[Expletive], I just got this car back," the suit contends he said. Cummings approached a dying Frazier still pinned in the wreckage, said nothing to the victim and walked away.

Frazier was the uncle of Darnella Frazier, the young woman whose cellphone video of George Floyd's death in May 2020 helped convict fired Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin of murder.
Civil rights leader James Lawson, who learned from Gandhi, used nonviolent resistance and the power of love to challenge injustice

Rev. James M. Lawson Jr., who died on June 9, 2024, at the age of 95, was a Methodist minister and a powerful advocate of nonviolence during the Civil Rights Movement.

Lawson is best known for piloting two crucial civil rights campaigns  one in Nashville in 1960 and the other in Memphis in 1968.

In Nashville, Lawson trained students in the systematic use of nonviolent pressure. Interracial teams of students would sit at local lunch counters reserved for white people to defy segregation laws. Most importantly, he prepared them to be beaten or arrested. Following the example of Mahatma Gandhi, who used nonviolent resistance to challenge the British occupation of India, students engaged in collective nonviolent direct action. When the first wave of students were beaten or arrested, another wave of students flowed in behind them to take their places.

Hundreds were arrested or beaten before their actions led Nashville Mayor Ben West to publicly declare segregation immoral  a signal to downtown business owners it was time to end the policy of racial segregation in Nashville.

In Memphis, Lawson organized what became the final campaign of Martin Luther King Jr.s life. King came to Memphis to ally with 1,300 impoverished sanitation workers striking against their employer, the municipal government of Memphis, because of poor wages and work conditions. When two workers, Echol Cole and Robert Walker, were crushed by a trash compactor as they took shelter from the rain, the workers decided theyd had enough and went on strike. Ultimately, they won a small pay increase and modest workplace improvements.

By 1968, Lawson had established himself as the leading authority on nonviolent conflict, a fact to which King himself attested. I have studied Lawson for more than 20 years, and I argue that he was among the most important figures in the nonviolent civil rights movement of the 1950s and 1960s.

Early influences

Lawson grew up in Massillon, Ohio. His father, James M. Lawson Sr., was an African Methodist Episcopal minister who carried a pistol on his hip, perhaps an odd influence for an advocate of nonviolence. But the elder Lawson taught his son to always fight for whats right.

His mother taught him the power of love. After Lawson slapped a white child who had called him a racial slur, his mother patiently asked, Jimmy, what good did that do  there must be a better way. Lawson called this moment a numinous experience, a transforming experience  that began my experiment with finding the better way.

As a student at Baldwin Wallace College, he was inspired by Abraham Johannes Muste, whom Time magazine described as Americas number one pacifist. Muste represented the Fellowship of Reconciliation, the oldest pacifist group opposing war in U.S. history.

Lawson also closely followed the work of the Congress of Racial Equality as it challenged segregation laws with nonviolent direct action in the early 1940s.

Lawson began to see that he had an opportunity: He could challenge segregation, and he could use nonviolence to do it. Inspired by these examples, Lawson decided he would never again obey a racial segregation law. He said: I made the commitment that  Im not going to be disciplined, contorted into something that Im not.

Nonviolence and segregation laws

Lawson put his philosophy into practice when the United States entered into war with Korea in 1950. Required to register for the draft, Lawson concluded he would not cooperate: There were certain laws that the Christian had to disobey: the laws of segregation and the laws of conscription. So then I sent back my draft cards and said I could no longer cooperate with it.

He felt that conscription laws had the same fundamental problem as segregation laws. They, too, were a complete denial of the meaning of freedom.

For his refusal to fight in the Korean War, Lawson spent nearly 14 months in prison. After being paroled, he went to India, where he worked with the Student Christian Movement in Nagpur. Lawson sought to better understand Gandhian principles so he could apply them to battling Jim Crow segregation, racism and violence.

In the fall of 1957, Lawson made the decision to move south and became the southern secretary for the Fellowship of Reconciliation, a primarily white pacifist group long interested in the issue of African American civil rights. Lawson was based in Nashville, and in his first full year of work he traveled to every former Confederate state but Florida, teaching the philosophy and practice of nonviolent protest.

He taught Black Christian students that by resisting segregation, they were emulating Jesus, who challenged the oppression of the Roman Empire.

This map shows the many locations where James Lawson taught workshops on nonviolence in the late 1950s. Many of these same communities subsequently launched nonviolent protests against segregation during the 1960s. Anthony Siracusa

Lawson taught his students that Jim Crow laws were designed to make Black Americans both feel and act like second-class citizens. He argued it was unethical to abide by such laws. To knowingly cooperate with evil is to live a lie, Lawson argued. To participate in your own suffering and the suffering of others is a fate worse than death, he said.

His powerful argument convinced many Americans that they could no longer cooperate with Jim Crow. As his student Diane Nash recalled, Oppression always requires the participation of the oppressed.

Lawson and students across the nation used nonviolent noncooperation to end legalized racial segregation in the United States. He taught his students they must be willing to fight and die for the cause of human freedom and justice, but that they shall not kill.

Lawsons influence lives on

Lawson carried forward his philosophy of nonviolence when he moved to California in 1974. He allied with the Justice for Janitors movement and continued teaching workshops on nonviolence up until his death.

Lawson leaves behind powerful teachings. In a recent documentary called Love & Solidarity, Lawson said: Love is power. It is the most creative power in the universe. It is the greatest force that is available to humankind. Humankind needs to learn how to use it.

In a world roiled by violence, Lawson has shown us that nonviolence can be an even more powerful force to create societies defined by justice, freedom and equity.

This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit, independent news organization bringing you facts and trustworthy analysis to help you make sense of our complex world. It was written by: Anthony Siracusa, St. John Fisher University

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Anthony Siracusa does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
Add three more private jet rides to the tally of gifts Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas has accepted from right-wing billionaires. A Senate investigation into Thomas relationship with conservative megadonor Harlan Crow revealed three additional, unreported trips by the justice on Crows personal jet.

Democrats on the Senate Judiciary Committee obtained information on the flights through a written response from Thomas attorney, who disclosed that the justice had taken flights on Crows plane to Glacier National Park in Montana, Washington D.C., and Georgia.

Thomas relationship with Crow, and the many lavish gifts showered upon him by the billionaire, have been heavily reported on by ProPublica over the last year. These include rides on private jets and luxury yachts, expensive vacations, tuition payments, and even the purchase of properties. Last week, Thomas disclosed two additional trips to Bali and California paid for by Crow in 2019, claiming that he had inadvertently omitted them from previous financial disclosures.

Senate Democrats noted that despite Thomass disclosure of the eight-day yacht trip to Bali, Crows documents show different dates for the July 2019 Indonesia trip, further calling into question the accuracy of the details Justice Thomas decides to disclose.

The reporting prompted an investigation by Senate Democrats into potential ethics violations stemming from Thomas relationship with the GOP megadonor. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), who heads the committee investigating Thomas, wrote in a statement that as a result of our investigation and subpoena authorization, we are providing the American public greater clarity on the extent of ethical lapses by Supreme Court justices and the need for ethics reform.

Its crystal clear that the highest court needs an enforceable code of conduct, Durbin added. Despite an approval rating near all-time lows and never-ending, self-inflicted scandals, Chief Justice Roberts still refuses to use his existing authority to implement an enforceable code of conduct. Until he acts, we will continue our push for the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal, and Transparency Act to become law.

The clamor for a binding code of conduct for Supreme Court justices has reached a fever pitch in recent weeks after two flags associated with the 2020 Stop The Steal movement were seen flying outside of homes belonging to Justice Samuel Alito.

In an undercover recording provided exclusively to Rolling Stone, Alito complained that groups that are very well-funded by ideological groups, were fomenting attacks against the court. ProPublica gets a lot of money, and they have spent a fortune investigating Clarence Thomas, for example. You know, everything hes ever done in his entire life, Alito said. And theyve done some of that to me, too, he added. They look for any little thing they can find, and they try to make something out of it.

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The US supreme court justice Clarence Thomas took at least three additional trips funded by the billionaire benefactor Harlan Crow that the conservative justice failed to disclose, the chair of the Senate judiciary committee said on Thursday.

Crow, a Texas businessman and Republican donor, disclosed details about the justices travel between 2017 and 2021 in response to a judiciary committee vote last November to authorize subpoenas to Crow and another influential conservative, according to the committee chair, Senator Dick Durbin, a Democrat representing Illinois.

Related: Lindsey Graham vows to block Democrats supreme court ethics bill

The Senate judiciary committees investigation into the supreme courts ethical crisis is producing new information  like what weve revealed [on Thursday]  and makes it crystal clear that the highest court needs an enforceable code of conduct, because its members continue to choose not to meet the moment, Durbin said.

A supreme court spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did a lawyer for Crow.

Thomas has previously come under criticism for failing to disclose gifts from Crow. Most recently, Thomas last week belatedly revised his 2019 financial disclosure form to acknowledge that Crow had paid for his food and lodging at a hotel in Bali, Indonesia, and at a California club.

But the recent filing by Thomas failed to disclose that Crow had paid for his travel by private jet related to the Bali and California trips, and an eight-day excursion on a yacht in Indonesia, omissions that were revealed on Thursday in a redacted document that Durbins office said contained travel itineraries where Crow had provided the justice with transportation.

The document shows private jet travel in May 2017 between St Louis in Missouri, the state of Montana, and Dallas. It also shows private jet travel in March 2019 between Washington DC and Savannah, Georgia, and private jet travel in June 2021 between Washington DC and San Jose, California.

Under pressure from criticism over ethics, following a series of rows focusing mainly on Thomas and Samuel Alito, the most conservative justices, the nine justices of the supreme court last November adopted their first code of conduct.

However, critics and some congressional Democrats have said the code does not go far enough to promote transparency, continuing to leave decisions to recuse from cases to the justices themselves and providing no mechanism of enforcement.

Earlier this week, the South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham, the top-ranking Republican on the Senate judiciary committee, said he would block Democrats attempts to pass an ethics bill to rein in the US supreme court.

And the Democratic congresswomen Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said the court had been captured and corrupted by money and extremism, provoking a crisis of legitimacy that threatens the stability of US democracy.

Reuters contributed reporting
Five former priests who have been deemed credibly accused abusers by church officials and who previously worked in Minnesota arent listed on the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis public list, clergy abuse victims said Wednesday.

That needs to change, said organizers with the Survivor Network of those Abused by Priests (SNAP).

Each of the five were investigated, declared a credibly accused child molester by his own direct supervisor, and are on an official list of credibly accused clerics in another Catholic jurisdiction, said David Clohessy, SNAPs former national director and now SNAPs volunteer Missouri director.

Rev. Bernard Hebda, Archbishop of St. Paul and Minneapolis, said of the five men brought to their attention by SNAP on Wednesday: I have asked our experienced investigators to review the clergy records here at the Archdiocese, along with other available information, to determine whether the well-established criteria for adding the men to our clergy disclosure list have been met. If the criteria are satisfied, we will add the names, as we have done on previous occasions.

For example, when the local archdiocese was notified in 2022 that the Diocese of Green Bay had made a substantiated claim of abuse against the Rev. Dennis Lally, who served locally before 1982, his name was added to the Twin Cities list two years ago, Hebda said.

Two of the five priests who SNAP highlighted Wednesday are still living and their whereabouts are unknown, according to the organization. I cant stress enough  this is a public safety issue, Clohessy said at a Wednesday press conference outside the Cathedral of St. Paul.

Furthermore, Clohessy said their discovery that the five former priests are missing from the local archdioceses list wasnt rocket science.

None of us are internet sleuths, he said. We do not have access to sophisticated databases.  We dont have a key to the church archives, but we can find these names in less than an hour using material thats in the public record, court documents, church records, church clergy yearbooks, mainstream media sources. So it would be tempting to think that maybe Archbishop Hebda just overlooked these names, but its very hard for us to believe that, because some of these men have been outed by other church officials five and six and seven years ago.

In a statement after the press conference, Hebda said victims/survivors and their loved ones have expressed to me how important it is for them to have complete and accurate disclosure lists. With that in mind, the Archdiocese is committed to adding names when appropriate. I thank victims/survivors and their loved ones for their advocacy on behalf of those who have been hurt by abuse and ask that all people of goodwill continue to join me in prayer for them.

Shame and secrecy

Two of the five former priests were accused of abuse in Minnesota, though all previously worked in the state and people should know who they are, Clohessy said.

The two who are alive are former pastors William Tanguay and Elwood Woody Bernas, according to SNAP.

The Providence, R.I., bishop deemed Tanguay in 2019 to have credible allegations of sexual abuse and listed him on its website, according to SNAP. He worked in pastoral care of Hmong refugees in Minneapolis in 1983 and 1984.

Bernas was deemed in 2018 credibly accused of sexual abuse of a minor by the Steubenville, Ohio, bishop, and posted on that diocesan website. He left the ministry in 1989 and became a substitute organist at the Cathedral of St. Paul and at a local Lutheran church before moving to Washington state in 2009, according to SNAP.

The Pioneer Press was unable to reach Tanguay or Bernas for comment Wednesday.

The deceased priests are:

James William Murphy, who the bishops of Nashville and Knoxville, Tenn., deemed credibly accused in 2018 and 2020, respectively. He worked at at a retreat center in the St. Paul-Minneapolis archdiocese.

Casimir Plakut, who was added to the list of credibly accused in 2017 by St. Johns Abbey of Collegeville, Minn., and the Diocese of Crookston, Minn. He also previously worked for the St. Paul-Minneapolis archdiocese, according to SNAP.

Alphonsus P. Ferguson, who the Nebraska-based Columban religious order to which he belonged deemed credibly accused in 2022, according to SNAP. A man sued the St. Paul-Minneapolis Archdiocese in 2014, saying Ferguson sexually assaulted him when he was an altar boy at Guardian Angels Church in Hastings.

Its important to also publicize the names of priests who were credibly accused and are now deceased because the unacknowledged wound rarely heals or heals slowly, Clohessy said.

This has happened dozens and dozens of times in our group: A Catholic grandmother in St. Paul sees this name and says, Hes the one who used to take Sally to the movies every Saturday that one summer, right? Or hes the one that used to take Billy camping those times. And a grandmother or a mom  picks up the phone and says, This guy is a molester. Did he do anything to you?'

That kind of outreach has broken the logjam of people who were suffering in silence and shame and secrecy for decades, Clohessy said.

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Nevadas primary election day was marked by low turnout, excessive heat in the states most populous county and a smooth execution of universal mail-in voting across the state.

Early voting ran smoothly, and Election Day went well, Nevada Secretary of State Cisco Aguilar said.

County election workers will still accept mail-in ballots until June 15, but unofficial returns put turnout for the primary at about 14% of registered voters as of Tuesday night. Thats lower than previous primary elections, which have ranged from 18% to 30% since 2000, according to States United Action.

I cant give you a reason for the low turnout. Obviously, you know, everybody has a lot going on, Aguilar said in a news conference after polls closed. I can say the November election is going to be super competitive, and that Nevada is going to have a significant role in the national election.

The race between Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen and Republican Sam Brown is expected to figure largely in determining which party will control the Senate. Nevadas U.S. House races are also likely to receive national attention.

Nevada voters showed their preference for mail-in voting, which accounted for nearly 60% of ballots cast by voters as of late Tuesday. Election Day voting  which was hampered by a high temperature of 108 degrees in Clark County  accounted for about 20% of total votes. In-person early voting attracted slightly more voters, making up about 21% of ballots cast.

Aguliar attributed the smooth election process to his offices Voter Registration and Election Management Solution project, which streamlined vote tabulation through a centralized statewide voter registration database and election management system.

While the system has not been implemented statewide yet, Clark County has used the system for the past two elections. The system will go statewide in the general election, said Aguilar.

We were able to see the poll pads work in Clark County as they should. It was great to talk with poll workers using the poll pads and talk about their experience today versus previous elections when they did not have the system, and seeing where it built in efficiencies that made their job easier, Aguilar said.

Were excited to see that expand statewide, Agular said. Im confident that the rest of the state will really appreciate the system as well.

Aguilar acknowledged that, as with any election, there will be opportunities to smooth out wrinkles as local election officials provide feedback to state officials.

Thats the big question after every election. Stepping back and saying, Where can we improve? How do we build that communication flow so were all on the same page consistently?

Aguilar vowed to work with county clerks to improve the election process and voter turnout ahead of Novembers general election. Otherwise, Aguilar said, the primary had a good flow overall.

I hope Nevadans recognize the value of their vote. That is a significant, powerful vote here in Nevada, and we have to have to talk to voters about the power of that vote, Aguilar said.
A family in Washington State was saved from the frigid bay waters on Monday after their sea kayaks were swamped by high winds and waves near Lummi Island. Officials with the U.S. Coast Guards Bellingham Station, which coordinated the successful rescue, said the groups use of a Garmin inReach was crucial for their quick recovery. USCG Lt. Terrel Sisk, the commanding officer who oversaw the rescue, tells Outdoor Life that they first received an SOS signal from the familys Garmin inReach around 4 p.m. The entire operation took a little over an hour, and rescuers had the family back on dry land by 5:15 p.m. Nobody in the party was badly injured, but some were on the brink of hypothermia by the time rescuers arrived. If they were in that water for any longer, we definitely would be dealing with a different case, Sisk says. The two kayaks were swamped in waves caused by high winds. Photo by USCG Although there are some lessons to be learned from the familys experience on Bellingham Bay, the USCG emphasized in a Facebook post that the adults in the party were experienced paddlers. The group included four adults, one child, and a small dog. They were all wearing life vests, including the dog. Paddling in two three-seater sea kayaks roughly a mile west of Lummi Island, the group was caught off guard by high winds, which kicked up three- to five-foot waves that quickly swamped their boats. As soon as they hit that section where the wind picked up, thats where stuff started to go wrong, Sisk explains. Now people are in the water and panic is starting to set in  and they couldnt get the water out of their boats fast enough. As soon as they would get the water out of one of the kayaks, the next wind wave would fill it back up. Read Next: Watch: Fishing Guide Rescues Kayaker from Deadly Low-Head Dam Neither of the kayaks were recovered, Sisk says, because rescuers were focused on getting the family out and the boats were too long to easily bring aboard. Its unclear if the paddlers were wearing spray skirts (also known as spray decks), which would have prevented water from entering the boats. Sisk says that regardless, they could have been much better prepared with cold-water immersion gear. Some had neoprene shirts or wetsuits on, which Sisk says provided some warmth as they waited in the 50-degree water, but they should have been wearing dry suits instead. None of the paddlers were wearing the proper cold-water immersion gear, but at least they had their life vests on. (The emoji was included in the photos released by the USCG to protect the minors identity.) Photo by USCG The child did have a neoprene shirt on, but it was the kind of gear youd wear when youre not planning on going in the water, he says. This gets at two cardinal rules of what to wear when kayaking: Always dress according to the water temperature and not the air temperature, and always be prepared for a swim. One of the adults in the group hit the SOS button on their inReach immediately after the boats swamped. Sisk says the adults were able to get the dog and child back into the water-filled kayaks, while they stayed in the water and waited for rescue. None of the family members were injured thanks to the fast response by the U.S. Coast Guard. Photo by USCG All kayakers should learn and practice self-rescue techniques so theyre prepared if they capsize, and anyone recreating on open seas should check detailed wind and weather forecasts. Sisk says this incident just goes to show that conditions can change rapidly on the water, and that its always harder to perform under pressure. Read Next: The Best Life Jackets, Tested and Reviewed You can go through those recovery procedures yourself when youre in a nice, closed environment, Sisk says. But when you add other people and theyre panicked, its different.

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School leaders in a popular coastal tourism area are not giving up their fight against the tourism industry and North Carolinas school calendar law.

Last week, a state judge sided with three local tourism-related businesses in declaring Carteret Countys plan to start classes on Aug. 13 to be illegal. In response, the school board unanimously voted Thursday to appeal the decision and to seek a stay to keep the ruling from going into effect.

The appeal comes as the start of the next school year is just two months away. School board members said they may consider revising the calendar when they meet again in late June.

Carteret County is not the only county that adopted an illegal calendar, said school board member Dana Mull. We just happened to be the only one thats currently being sued.

Our goal is not to adopt an illegal calendar. Our goal is to have a calendar that meets the needs of our students and our staff to put students first.

A quarter of NC districts defy calendar law

Carteret County is home to popular summer beach tourism areas such as Atlantic Beach, Beaufort, Emerald Isle and Morehead City. Located about 150 miles from Raleigh, Carteret County is flooded with visitors during the summer months.

Its also among 29 school districts cited in a recent state report as defying a state law that requires classes to start in late August. Statewide, a quarter of North Carolinas school districts plan to ignore the school calendar law for the upcoming school year.

I am troubled to see the Board members continue to disregard their oath to follow the law, Mitch Armbruster, a Raleigh attorney representing the businesses, said in an email Thursday. That is unacceptable behavior for our elected officials.

However, it is their right to appeal, which I hope ends in a statewide appellate decision that will stop all the illegal calendars across the state, once and for all..

Lawmakers not budging on calendar law

State lawmakers have regulated school calendars for 20 years, since the tourism industry raised concerns about classes starting earlier in August.

The states traditional public schools cant open sooner than the Monday closest to Aug. 26 or close later than the Friday closest to June 11. The calendar law doesnt apply to private schools, charter schools, year-round schools and early college high schools.

The state Senate hasnt acted on multiple bills passed over the years by the House to change the calendar law.

Theyre not even allowed to vote on it, said school board member Travis Day as he made the money hand gesture of repeatedly rubbing his thumb over the tip of the index finger and middle finger.

We feel like were getting held hostage. Theres a small little group controlling what we can do.

Carteret County school board member Travis Day holds up his hands to do the money gesture at the June 13, 2024 meeting as he accuses the tourism industry of blocking changes to North Carolinas school calendar law

The district had tried to argue in court that the calendar law violates the state Constitution.

Businesses will fight appeal

In December, the Carteret County school board unanimously approved a 2024-25 school year calendar that would run from Aug. 13 to May 22. School leaders cited academic benefits such as allowing high school students to finish fall semester exams before winter break.

Day said they had tried to adopt a calendar that was sensitive to the concerns of the tourism industry while still meeting academic needs.

Theres no budging whatsoever from some of the tourism industry, unfortunately, Day said. I think thats really hurting us. Thats why so many counties and so many school systems across the state have chosen to defy the calendar law.

In April, the owners of Atlantic Beach Surf Shop, Marshs Surf Shop and Sanitary Fish Market & Restaurant filed a lawsuit to block the calendar. The business owners said the loss of revenue from shortening the summer season would be significant.

Bathers take to the beach on Atlantic Beach following Hurricane Arthur on July 4, 2014.

Carteret County ranked 11th out of the states 100 counties in tourism revenue in 2022 at $695 million, according to a state report.

Armbruster, the attorney for the businesses, said they will oppose the request for the stay as being without merit.

In the meantime, the Courts Order means that the district has no calendar, but cannot start school before Aug. 26, Armbruster said.
BROOKLYN, N.Y. (PIX11)  In 2005, 17-year-old Darnell Garfield went missing from the Lower East Side, that summer police found a human torso and head in two separate locations in Brooklyn.

With very little evidence and not much to go on, they could not immediately identify the victim.

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A full examination of the remains gave police a partial profile of the victim but it took years to get familial DNA to connect the remains to Garfields family.

Detective Anna Marie Bernagozzi said, It wasnt until science caught up with us that we were able to make an identification.

With the confirmation and true identity of the victim, the family was notified. Over the years the family held on to hope thinking Garfield would return home. Now his father wants justice and who ever is responsible arrested and sent to prison. The detective said its never easy to make these notifications to families without solving the case.

Bernagozzi said, I feel like hes not going to rest in peace, his family is going to always wonder, we told him this was his son. Lets tell him who and why?

Weapons found during Queens car stop sparks terrorism probe: sources

Garfield was a high school student, his father said he went to church and was a good kid and that he did not deserve to die this way.

Unfortunately, over the years there are still no new leads, no suspect, and no closure.

The department is hoping someone remembers something and comes forward.

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 PIX11.
Its been an age-old problem for Colombian drug traffickers: Moving mountains of cash from U.S. cocaine profits back to their country.

The cartels latest solution: automated teller machines.

But they arent withdrawing money from ATMs; theyre depositing tons of it, in stacks of $20, $50 and $100 bills, all across the United States.

Over the past few years, U.S. authorities say, narco-traffickers have recruited a number of Colombians to fly to Miami and set up phony businesses with corporate bank accounts. With a bit of wit, they named one local company PJ Cleaning.

The Colombian recruits then traveled to various U.S. cities to pick up duffel bags of bulk cash from cocaine sales, with each depositing hundreds of thousands of dollars at ATMs into the bank accounts of the fake companies. Those businesses, in turn, wired millions through financial networks in the United States and abroad to the Colombian cartels, authorities say.

Federal investigators and prosecutors say theyve been on to them. This week, at least eight Colombians were charged with money laundering conspiracies, including some who made their first appearances in Miami federal court. Agents with the FBI and Homeland Securities Investigations have had their eyes on them, not only because theyve been moving huge sums of cash through ATMs but because bank security cameras have captured their images while theyve make the brazen deposits.

Richard Gregorie, a retired Miami federal prosecutor who took down notorious Colombian kingpins and associates, said that during the era of the cocaine cowboys the Colombian traffickers relied mostly on the Black Market Peso Exchange to convert cocaine dollars into pesos, creating paper trails in South Florida by using local businesses as intermediaries to wire their profits back home.

This is no different than that; they just found another way to move the money, Gregorie said in an interview Thursday. They think of every way possible to do it to avoid the law. Theyre usually way ahead of law enforcement.

Federal authorities, he said, need to start picking these guys up and getting them to cooperate so they can work their way up the line.

Thats exactly what South Florida investigators and prosecutors are trying to do. The latest arrests stem from an initial federal case last year involving two Miami-area companies  P&J Maintenance Group LLC and PJ Cleaning LLC  located at 18000 NW 24th Ave. Those bogus businesses and others set up at the direction of Colombian narco-traffickers have been at the center of a variety of multimillion-dollar ATM laundering schemes.

The two businesses were operating as unlicensed remittance companies, according to charges brought by Assistant U.S. Attorney Tony Gonzalez. The Colombian behind the businesses: Daniel Gustavo Martinez Yepes, a cartel minion who pleaded guilty and was sentenced in April to one and a half years in prison.

According to an FBI criminal affidavit, the two companies had no employees and did no business, but between October 2022 and November 2023 about $7.6 million was funneled through their bank accounts in the U.S. to Colombia. Martinez was responsible for moving a chunk of it.

Over just two days in July 2023, Martinez himself was captured on a security camera depositing $265,090 at Bank of America ATMs into the corporate accounts of the two Miami companies, the FBI affidavit says. On July 6 and 7, Martinez made 22 deposits ranging from $400 to $30,250 at two ATM locations, the Black Rock Turnpike in Connecticut and the Perimeter Center near Atlanta.

He kept track of each deposit and the bill denominations in a dark, hard-cover spiral ledger with the numbers 2019 on the front. Most of his deposits were structured in amounts of less than $10,000 to avoid bank reporting requirements, but Martinez made even larger deposits while flouting the law.

The footage shows Martinez both driving up to Bank of America ATMs and walking up to others and making deposits, according to the affidavit. Martinez is seen pulling out large bundles [of] cash from a duffel bag. He is then seen utilizing the mobile phone wallet feature on a cell phone before inserting cash into the ATM.

FBI agents caught up with Martinez last November at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport upon his return flight from Medellin, Colombia. He had his ledger on him.

According to the affidavit, Martinez admitted that he collaborated with a handler in Colombia on making large bulk-cash pickups in multiples cities across the country. The Colombian collaborator provided photos of the people delivering the bags of money and of Martinez to both sides so they could recognize each other. Then, the affidavit says, Martinez deposited the cash at ATMs into the bank accounts of the two Miami companies.

Martinez told the FBI agents during the airport interview that he reviewed his ledger and said he was involved in pickups and deposits totaling about $350,000 in Connecticut, Georgia and Illinois. He also said he was paid $3,000 for the pick-ups, plus $2,000 for traveling expenses. However, he was reluctant to talk about his handler in Colombia, identified as co-conspirator 1 in the affidavit.

At least eight other suspects have been implicated in similar alleged money-laundering schemes as Martinez, with most in federal custody in Miami.

According to another FBI affidavit, Geniver Andres Hernandez Arias flew from Bogota to New York City in July 2023 and returned via Miami to Colombia the following month. During his visit in the United States, Hernandez was caught on security cameras making at least $350,000 in cash deposits at Bank of America ATMs in New Hampshire, Virginia and Massachusetts into the corporate accounts of the two Miami businesses, P & J Maintenance and PJ Cleaning.

The footage shows Hernandez standing [at] and driving up to ATMs in multiple vehicles, the affidavit says. On one occasion, Hernandez was observed using two different cellphones while standing at an ATM. On another occasion, in the front passenger seat of one of Hernandezs vehicles, you can see a plastic bag with loose cash hanging out of the bag.

Other suspects recently charged with laundering Colombian cocaine profits through ATMs in the United States: Edison Zapata Sanchez, Diovany Gutierrez, Gabriel Antonio Martinez, Paola Andrea Sanchez Moreno and Andrew Shawn Fermin. Two other Colombian cartel associates are being charged along with Fermin.
Freight trains sit idle in railyards in Grand Junction on May 16, 2023. (Chase Woodruff/Colorado Newsline)

Two Colorado Democrats on Tuesday called on the Environmental Protection Agency to carefully examine the proposed expansions of three rail terminals in eastern Utah that could dramatically increase hazardous oil-train traffic through the Colorado River Basin and the Denver metro area.

The three facilities located near Price, Utah  the Wildcat Loadout, the Price River Terminal and the Savage Energy Terminal  are used to export crude oil from the Uinta Basin, located roughly 50 miles to the northeast, to refineries along the Gulf Coast via the national rail network. Most of that oil-train traffic is routed through Colorado, and together the proposed expansions could increase the basins rail export capacity from 110,000 to 260,000 barrels per day.

As oil transport by rail increases, the risk of spills and other incidents also increases, U.S. Sen. Michael Bennet and Rep. Joe Neguse of Lafayette, both Democrats, wrote in a letter to EPA Administrator Michael Regan. A train derailment that spills oil in the Colorado Rivers headwaters would be disastrous to our states water supplies, wildlife habitat, and outdoor recreation assets, and the broader Colorado River Basin.

Production in the Uinta Basin has soared in recent years, but its waxy crude oil is solid at room temperature and cant be transported through pipelines, and currently must be hauled to the rail terminals in tanker trucks. The terminals planned expansions are viewed as either a stepping stone or a backup plan to the proposed Uinta Basin Railway, an ambitious multibillion-dollar scheme to build a new 88-mile railroad spur into the heart of the oil-rich region.

The railway project is on hold after a court last year overturned its approval by federal regulators, ordering the Surface Transportation Board to conduct a more thorough review of its environmental risks, though its backers have appealed that decision to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Bennet and Neguse had previously urged the Bureau of Land Management to undertake a full environmental review of the Wildcat Loadout expansion, a process that is currently on hold. They noted in their letter Tuesday that the total export capacity that would result from the three proposed expansions would amount to nearly three-quarters of the 350,000-barrel-per-day capacity of the Uinta Basin Railway, which prompted alarm from dozens of local governments and environmental groups from across central Colorado.

At the state level, air quality regulators in Utah have issued a permit for the Wildcat Loadout expansion, while permits for the other two facilities are still pending. But Bennet and Neguse want federal regulators to step in and assess whether these applications or permits are based on erroneous assumptions.

(The applications) include no requirements for monitoring, testing or operational and maintenance practices that would assure the assumed levels of emissions reductions actually occur, wrote Bennet and Neguse. We urge EPA to examine these proposed loadout expansions and ensure their permits are enforceable and will effectively limit harmful emissions.

Colorado Newsline is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Colorado Newsline maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Quentin Young for questions: info@coloradonewsline.com. Follow Colorado Newsline on Facebook and X.

The post Colorado Democrats urge EPA review of terminal expansions for Utah oil trains appeared first on Utah News Dispatch.
COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL)  The Columbus Police Department is asking for the publics help with finding a juvenile who went missing from the east Columbus area.

Police say DaMarrion Vaughn, 15, was last seen around Urban Avenue and Norton Street on Thursday at 1 p.m. He was wearing a black t-shirt and black pants.

Vaughn stands at 5 feet, 11 inches and weighs 160 pounds. He has black hair and brown eyes.

Anyone with information is asked to call 911, the CPD Special Victims Unit at 706-225-3449, or lead investigator Det. Maymi at 706-225-4173.

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 WRBL.
Demonstrators march near the Texas state Capitol in Austin following the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade. (Eric Gay / Associated Press)

Huge sigh of relief.

In a ruling that I happily admit surprised me, the Supreme Court on Thursday affirmed the obvious: Women should have the right to safe medication abortions.

But ladies, our uteri are not safe yet.

For now, in a unanimous decision, the justices have tossed a case that would have prevented the drug mifepristone from being used by women seeking to end pregnancies.

So mify, as the drug is commonly called, is safe. But this is far from the end of the MAGA war on women.

Read more: Supreme Court upholds FDA's approval of abortion pills for early pregnancies

Let's be clear on this: The ruling wasn't actually about the drug. It was about the folks who brought the suit, a bunch of doctors who really didn't have much of a reason to keep millions of women from accessing care other than they didn't like the care those women wanted.

That's not actually a reason to sue, even by Samuel A. Alito Jr. and Clarence Thomas standards.

So this ruling is about "standing" and the fact that these docs didn't have it. Already, antiabortion activists are lining up other cases with defendants whose legal footing is much more solid.

And the Supreme Court is hardly the only front in this war for women's rights. Here's three other ways the far-right wants to control female bodies:

First, "fetal personhood" has bubbled up as a scary push by the religious right.

Alito hinted at this concept in the Dobbs ruling, which knocked out Roe vs. Wade, when he referred to an embryo as an "unborn human being."

In Alabama, we saw this take greater life recently when state Supreme Court judges ruled that embryos created during in vitro fertilization should be considered protected human life (though the state Legislature for now has protected the procedure).

And this week, the Southern Baptist Conference, which speaks for more than 10 million Protestant Americans, announced it would now oppose IVF on those embryos-are-life grounds.

If courts do recognize the idea of fetal personhood, it would pave the way for abortion to be considered not just illegal, but murder. It would also give a state the right to police pregnant women in any way it deems necessary to protect the "unborn child."

We are already seeing some states attempting to prosecute women for abortions under strict new abortion laws and dozens of states (such as Kansas) either have outright legal language broadly giving fetuses rights or language that edges right up to it. We are closer to this than you think.

The second front on the war on women is contraception.

Though it seems insane and inane to most of us to forbid women from taking the pill or an emergency medication in the immediate aftermath of intercourse to prevent pregnancy, some folks do want to ban it as a form of abortion.

There is a logic to it. If all abortion is illegal, then anything affecting the embryo after conception is off limits.

Finally, there's former President Trump.

I've written before about the Comstock Act, an obscure and angry old law that many speculated the Supreme Court justices might dredge up in this mifepristone case.

Read more: Trump could gut abortion access in California if elected. Here's how

That law (which is on the books, but not enforced) theoretically makes it illegal to mail anything that could be used in an abortion  so not just the medication. Hard-liners could argue that anything shipped to an abortion clinic to help it operate could be verboten, even latex gloves.

MAGA types are already floating the frightening notion that if Trump were elected, he could simply bypass courts and Congress and order his Department of Justice to enforce the Comstock Act  ending abortion access without technically ending abortion access.

This week, Trump sent a recorded message to the Danbury Institute, an ultraconservative organization that has advocated for abortion to be prosecuted as homicide and called it "child sacrifice."

He didn't mention abortion, but there's this:

These are gonna be your years, because youre gonna make a comeback like just about no other group," he said. "I know whats happening, I know where youre coming from and where youre going, and Ill be with you side by side."

So while Thursday's ruling is a welcome win in the fight to keep women equal, it's a victorious battle.

The war continues.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
President Biden speaks to the media at a ceremony at the Aisne-Marne American World War I Cemetery in Belleau, France. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press)

There really should be an alert system in place for TV campaign ads in the run-up to the November election. Red lights would flash and sirens would wail right before they aired, so you could quickly change channels or dive behind the sofa before youre sucked into the fetid squalor of the political season.

The idea came to me during an early June visit with family in central Pennsylvania. I happened to be watching television one night, and a political ad popped up on the screen.

I was slow on the remote trigger, so I watched the ad, which began with a critique of Bidenonmics. "Americans are struggling," the narrator said, and yes, many are struggling. But that's has been the case during every presidential administration.

"Bidens ignoring our problems," the ad continued. Well, not exactly, but nuance and complexity are a tough sell.

And then came the part that really got my attention: He keeps denying reality, said the narrator said.

Is it dishonesty or dementia?

OK, lets stop there.

As we are all aware, this is down-and-dirty season, when the wicked and the vile sharpen their knives, and we fully expect things to get nasty, especially given the rancid state of American politics.

But dishonesty or dementia?

That crosses a line, not that anyone should be surprised.

If the concept of shame still exists, Id call it shameful, said Dr. Laura Mosqueda, a Keck-USC geriatrician and director of the National Center on Elder Abuse. This is a cynical and sad attempt to plant a seed with zero basis in fact. There is not one shred of evidence that President Biden has dementia. It does a disservice to people who truly do have dementia and does a disservice to all older adults with its ageist messaging tactics.

Read more: Column: Trump claims Beverly Hills residents stink. I put it to the smell test

So if youre wondering about the not one shred of evidence part of Mosquedas response, given Bidens occasional fumbles, heres an explanation from Dr. Zaldy Tan, a neurologist and director of Cedars-Sinai Health Systems Memory and Aging Program:

Dementia is a medical diagnosis and can only be done by a qualified healthcare provider who has personally examined the person, Tan said. It is a serious neurologic condition that should not be taken lightly. It is not a label that should be given casually.

So how is such a diagnosis made?

By obtaining a history of symptoms and performing a cognitive evaluation, and a neurological examination, and ruling out other causes of memory or cognitive change, Tan said. In my view, stating that an older person must have dementia is an ageist and unfair statement. It is similar to saying that a public figure who has recently lost weight must have cancer.

Someone should have mentioned that to Robert Hur, the special counsel who interviewed Biden about his handling of classified material. Hur called the president "a well meaning, elderly man with a poor memory." Biden said, defiantly: "My memory is fine."

Former President Trump speaks at a campaign rally on June 6 in Phoenix. (Rick Scuteri / Associated Press)

It's possible Biden has an issue, but we don't know that. And it's not something that can be diagnosed by an amateur doctor or a political hack.

The ad in question was paid for by Make America Great Again Inc., and not authorized by any candidate or candidates committee, says the small print on the ad. Politico reported that Securing American Greatness, a nonprofit "dark money" group (donors dont have to be disclosed) was behind the ad and that the group is run by Taylor Budowich, a former spokesman for Donald Trump.

What came to mind after I watched the ad was that old line suggesting that people who live in glass houses shouldnt throw the first stone. Any Trump surrogate or supporter whos being honest has to admit that mental acuity and coherent discourse are topics best avoided.

On Sunday at a rally in Las Vegas, Trump took a rambling hypothetical journey into uncharted waters. Trump speculated  for no clear reason  whether it would be worse to die of electrocution or to be eaten by a shark. The context, quite loosely, was fossil fuel alternatives and a conversation Trump claimed to have had about electric vessels with a boat manufacturer.

Read more: Column: In the land of giant sequoias, the largest tree in the world gets a checkup

You must watch the video, if you havent already seen it, especially if youve been scratching your head and wondering what would happen if you were in a battery-powered boat that began taking on water on the open sea.

Spoiler alert: After telling the audience he was very smart because of his relationship with MIT (an uncle was a professor there), Trump concluded, You know what Id do, if there was a shark or you get electrocuted? Id take electrocution every single time.

Well, taking a firm stand on important issues is certainly what were looking for in our leaders.

And aging, by the way, is a topic rich with policy-making opportunities, given how close the U.S. is to having a population with more people who are older than 65 than are younger than 18. Should the candidates choose to weigh in constructively, they would acknowledge that the United States faces great challenges when it comes to expanding the elder-care workforce, developing ample affordable housing, and managing the needs of a generation thats living longer, reinventing the rules of retirement and searching for ways to contribute through extended careers or volunteering opportunities.

Biden, 81, and Trump, who turns 78 on Friday, would do well to embrace all those challenges  along with harnessing the wisdom and experience of the aging population  rather than take cheap shots and feed stereotypes.

The assumption that Donald Trump or Joe Biden may have dementia is unethical and stigmatizes people living with dementia, said Craig Fleishman, advancement director of OPICA, an adult day care and memory loss treatment center in West L.A. The TV ads suggestion that Biden might have dementia is said in a negative and demeaning manner. This is not helpful to people living with dementia and their families, who...often struggle with the condition every day.

I visited OPICA last summer while profiling the lives of Mannie Rezende and his wife, Rose, a family therapist who juggles work and the needs of her husband, one of roughly 7 million Americans diagnosed with Alzheimers.

I asked Rose to watch the ad and send me her thoughts.

No matter where one resides on the political spectrum, the flippancy with which this ad uses the clinical term dementia is cruel and disrespectful to those suffering with it, she wrote.

Dementia is a series of progressive and heart-breaking losses that clearly do not describe Biden, she continued. It is one of the most harrowing of diseases. It involves the progressive unwinding of the selffrom early-on memory loss tothe loss of language, recognition, motor ability, and, finally, death. It is a clinical term, and to use it so misleadingly is, to me as a therapist and wife of a husband with the disease, unethical and immoral.

I couldnt have said it better myself.

Steve.lopez@latimes.com





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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Mamuka Mamulashvili, the commander of the Georgian Legion, has claimed that he has been poisoned with different chemicals. Now that the soldier is in good shape, he has contacted law enforcement about the poisoning.

Source: Mamulashvili in a comment to Ukrainska Pravda

Details: The commander of the Georgian Legion stated that he had been concerned about abdominal cramps for a long time, but doctors were unable to determine the cause. A toxicological investigation in a German laboratory revealed that the body contains significant quantities of arsenic, mercury, and tin, which were most likely ingested through food.

Mamulashvilis test results

Photo: provided by Mamulashvili to Ukrainska Pravda

Quote: "It is really difficult to calculate; the toxicologist estimates that it takes about four to five months for the poison to be in the blood. During this time, I could have eaten wherever and with whomever. It could well have been in Germany, where fragments were taken out of me in February of this year. And I didn't like the fact that there were mostly Russian staff in the hospital, specifically nurses. When I inquired if they might poison me there, the doctor told me that everything had been thoroughly tested. However, following the operation, severe spasms developed."

Details: According to Mamulashvili, the military prosecutor's office and the National Police are conducting an inquiry into his suspected poisoning.

According to the soldier, two attempts to poison him with arsenic and an unknown toxic chemical material were made a few years ago.

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LAKELAND, Fla. (WFLA)  Thursday marks a major milestone for Lakeland Linder International Airport. Commercial flights begin serving passengers at the airport after more than a decade.

Lakeland Linder leaders made big plans to celebrate. All of the action started when the first flight arrived around 10:30 a.m. on Thursday.

The first and only available route is to and from New Haven, Connecticut.

Avelo Airlines first flight out of Lakeland Linder International Airport departs Thursday

The Lakeland International Airport already has a $1.5 billion impact on the community, which is huge, said Katie Worthington Decker, Senior Vice President of the Lakeland Economic Development Council. Bringing in commercial air just increases the opportunity of that impact.

Lakeland mayor, airport leaders, and Avelo Airlines officials all joined in on Thursdays celebration.

The special welcome to the passengers flying in from New Haven included a water canon salute. The passengers leaving on the noon Avelo flight were scheduled to receive a special send-off.

We have to grow into the numbers, Mayor Bill Mutz said. There are 2,200 people a day that fly in and out of Polk County either out of Tampa or Orlando.

Mutz told 8 On Your Side they hope to add more routes out of Lakeland by the end of 2024.

There is a tremendous opportunity for expansion, an Avelo Airlines representative said. If you look at what we do out of Orlando, we serve two Michigan markets, Kalamazoo and Lansing. Those cities could easily fit the bill for Lakeland in the future.

The New Haven, Connecticut flight costs about $100 one-way and travelers now have the opportunity to take it every Thursday and Sunday.

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 WFLA.
The Supreme Court is upholding access to a widely-used abortion pill, mifepristone, in a case that could have had a massive impact on how patients seek abortion care in the US.

In a unanimous decision, the justices ruled that the plaintiffs  a group of anti-abortion organizations  ultimately lacked the standing to legally challenge the actions of the Food and Drug Administration, which oversaw expanded access to mifepristone over the last several years. The plaintiffs have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to mifepristone being prescribed and used by others, wrote Justice Brett Kavanaugh in the majority opinion. Because the plaintiffs dont prescribe or use the drug themselves, they sought to challenge FDAs regulation of others. The court found that the plaintiffs arguments failed to establish that they themselves had been injured by the FDAs regulation of others, and that they therefore had no legal standing to sue.

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The federal courts are the wrong forum for addressing the plaintiffs concerns about FDAs actions, Kavanaugh concluded, noting that they could instead take their concerns to the president, the FDA, Congress, or other citizens.

By using this reasoning, the Court didnt actually rule on whether the FDA was legally able to lift the restrictions it did when expanding access to mifepristone  just that this particular lawsuit couldnt stand. That means another lawsuit on those matters could potentially reach the Court in future.

For now, though, mifepristone will continue to be available by mail and used for up to 10 weeks into pregnancy, among other regulatory decisions the Court left in place.

Why was the Supreme Court reviewing the abortion pill, mifepristone?

The legal challenge to mifepristone came from the Alliance Defending Freedom, an organization that the Southern Poverty Law Center calls a designated hate group, on behalf of four anti-abortion organizations in Texas. Originally, their goal was to invalidate the FDAs original approval of mifepristone, a decision that dates back to 2000.

A Texas district judge ruled in their favor in April 2023, which would have removed mifepristones FDA approval, but the Supreme Court put that decision on hold while appeals took place. And sure enough, in August, an appeals court ruled against the anti-abortion groups call to overturn the drugs original approval. The appeals court also upheld the FDAs 2019 decision to approve a generic form of mifepristone.

So why didnt the case end there? Well, the appeals court left a few doors open for the anti-abortion groups. Specifically, that court ruled that a few FDA decisions in 2016 and afterward, which increased access to mifepristone, should be put on hold because the actions were taken without sufficient consideration of the effects those changes would have on patients.

What the Supreme Court ultimately ruled on were a series of FDA actions that made the medication more accessible. The actions under review (and now upheld) included:

Mifepristones availability by mail, approved in 2021

Extension of the window in which mifepristone could be used to end a pregnancy (from seven weeks to 10 weeks)

Decrease in the number of in-person doctors visits required before patients could receive mifepristone (from three visits to one)

Decrease in the dose of mifepristone

The Biden administration and drugmaker Danco, which makes the brand version of mifepristone, both defended the FDA decisions to the Supreme Court.

What is the abortion pill, mifepristone?

Mifepristone is one of two pills typically taken for a medication abortion. Mifepristone works to block progesterone, which stops the pregnancy from continuing; the second pill, misoprostol, causes cramping and bleeding to empty the uterus, per Planned Parenthood. (Misoprostol alone can also be used to end a pregnancy.) Medication abortions account for more than half of all US abortions, according to the Guttmacher Institute.

Whats next?

Access to mifepristone remains the same  you can get it by mail, for up to 10 weeks into pregnancy, after one doctors visit, and at a lower dose. But, unsurprisingly in this time of widespread attacks on abortion rights, the abortion still facing other legal threats. The Court is due to decide whether Idahos abortion ban prevents emergency room doctors from providing abortion care when a pregnant person is facing dangerous complications. The federal government is arguing that the abortion ban conflicts with the federal Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, which requires that patients receive adequate emergency room care.

Before you go, read about these celebs whove spoken about their abortion experiences:

celebrity abortion stories

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Community service has been a part of Miranda Jennings's entire life. She remembers her childhood filled with volunteer days with her parents at local homeless shelters and soup kitchens.

Decades later, Jennings, the Winchendon Community Action Committee executive director, has been awarded a spot in the Class of 2024 Commonwealth Heroines. Every year, state officials choose over 125 women who are leaders in the advocacy and nonprofit field to be named Commonwealth Heroines. Jennings was nominated by state Rep. Jon Zlotnik.

The Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women will host a celebration event at the State House in Boston on Friday, June 14. Jennings said she plans to take her daughter and mother to the event.

Miranda Jennings, the executive director of the Winchendon Community Action Committee, was announced a Commonwealth Heroines Class of 2024. She said she plans to attend the celebration event at the Massachusetts Statehouse with her daughter and mother on Friday, June 14.

Parents fostered her urge to help others

Both her mother and father instilled community service into her life at a young age, not only by normalizing volunteer work but through their careers. Jennings said her mother was a career educator and advocate for women's rights, while her father was a psychologist and social worker at a rehabilitation program.

Jennings's mother was a teacher for several years, and then became a school principal. Eventually, she became the superintendent of schools in the Groton-Dunstable Regional School district.

Jennings said she grew up in Cambridge for most of her childhood and then moved to Connecticut for a couple of years before her family settled in the Groton area. She said her mom was her role model, and she always tried to be a fearless leader like she was.

Miranda Jennings, the executive director at Winchendon CAC, said she sometimes feels guilty for not being able to spend a lot of time with her daughter, but she does hope she is a role model for her as her mother was for Jennings.

"My mom is a powerhouse. She fought a lot for women's rights and she has been a great role model," she said. "Being able to watch her make a change and be a role model for leadership made me realize that anything is possible."

Jennings said her parents supported her early interest in service work. During high school, she said her parents helped her develop a service learning program in her school, which molded her path into nonprofit work. Then, Jennings said, her mother saw her growing interest in service, so she decided to pay for Jennings's first service learning trip to Nicaragua.

Meet the 2023 winner: This woman helped bring $20 million to Winchendon. Here's what she did to help veterans

"The trip completely changed my life, and it propelled me to study community development and community change in college," she said. "If it weren't for my parents' support at such a young age, I wouldn't be inspired to do any of it."

After the service trip to Central America and graduating from high school, Jennings attended Clark University in Worcester, where she received a master's degree in International Development, Community, and Environmental Work. Post-college, she worked with Bridges to Community and lived in Central America for 10 years.

What brought her to Winchendon?

After a decade of living abroad, Jennings said she wanted to do community work at a more local level. Although global service work is important, she said that if you want to create change, it starts locally.

The Winchendon School hired Jennings as a Spanish teacher and wanted her to use her experience as a global community service worker to develop a service learning and student leader program for the school. Through the program she developed, Jennings said she started to build relationships with local organizations, and that's how she got involved with the Winchendon CAC.

Miranda Jennings, the executive director of the Winchendon CAC, said she has been mentored by some of the most amazing women in the community. She said she owes a special thanks to Mary Giani and Ayn Yeagle, the executive director of Growing Places, based in Leominster. "I have the opportunity, on a daily basis, to work with women who are heroines," she said. "The difference that I am able to make comes from being surrounded by a supportive and inspiring, hard-working community."

After five years at The Winchendon School, Jennings said when the town lost its only grocery store and food insecurity started to rise in the community, she decided to step away from her teacher position and participate in the establishment of the Heal, Empower, Access, and Love Winchendon Collaborative.

H.E.A.L Winchendon Collaborative is a nonprofit that focuses on improving the quality of life of Gardner and Winchendon residents through access to healthy foods, economic empowerment, and social inclusion.

For three years, Jennings was the Collaborative program manager until she was appointed as the interim executive director for Winchendon CAC in late 2021. In April 2022, Jennings became the official Winchendon CAC executive director.

Advice to girls and young women

For young women and girls who want to pursue a career in the nonprofit field, Jennings said to remember that you can always build something to improve the community through your passion, skills and talents. She said there are so many women in the field who will help support your vision, if you just ask.

"It's really nice the state is recognizing the real hard work of a lot of women who are just so passionate about making our communities better for everybody," she said. "The nonprofit world is very female-driven so I'm inspired every day by the hard work of women."

Jennings said she is happy that the work that women are doing for their communities is being recognized by the state. She said many women in the nonprofit world are not only there to improve the quality of life for families, but they have families of their own.

This article originally appeared on Gardner News: Winchendon CAC executive director named a Commonwealth Heroine in MA
Construction to begin for apartments on former Salvation Army campsite in Delaware

Construction to begin for apartments on former Salvation Army campsite in Delaware

DELAWARE, Ohio (WCMH)  Construction is beginning soon to overhaul a former 60-acre Salvation Army campsite in Delaware into a nearly 600-unit apartment and townhome complex.

T&R Properties, a Dublin-based real estate developer, received final approval from the Delaware Planning Commission on June 5 to begin construction in the coming months on 592 apartment and townhome units across 61 acres on the east side of Lake Street and north of Joy Avenue. The site, a former Salvation Army summer campsite for disadvantaged children, will be split into two sections, Greenwood Commons and The Flats at Sugar Run.

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Plans call for Greenwood Commons to feature 252 apartments across seven three-story buildings, along with a clubhouse and a one-acre plot for a future mens shelter. The buildings will house studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments.

T&R Properties received approval to construct 593 apartment and townhome units across 61 acres. (Courtesy Photo/Delaware Planning Commission)

Building design renderings for T&R Properties Greenwood Commons and The Flats at Sugar Run. (Courtesy Photo/Delaware Planning Commission)

Building design renderings for T&R Properties Greenwood Commons and The Flats at Sugar Run. (Courtesy Photo/Delaware Planning Commission)

Building design renderings for T&R Properties Greenwood Commons and The Flats at Sugar Run. (Courtesy Photo/Delaware Planning Commission)

The Flats at Sugar Run will feature 276 one and two-bedroom apartments across three three-story buildings. In addition, 64 townhomes across 16, four-unit buildings will be constructed on the site, along with one single-family home and a clubhouse.

Developers are renovating the former camp directors home into the single-family home, and an existing amphitheater will be renovated as an amenity for residents. In addition, half of the land will be preserved for open green space.

Red Lobster shutters Columbus eatery, to close other Ohio locations after bankruptcy

T&R Properties 60-acre complex comes as several other developments are taking shape in Delaware. The commission approved in May a proposal to construct the last three of six phases making up Winterbrooke Place, a sprawling subdivision built by M/I Homes, Rockford Homes and Arlington Builders. Plans call for the developments final three phases to include 84 lots, increasing the subdivisions total footprint to about 260 homes.

Maronda Homes is building 655 homes as part of a residential and commercial development named Donovan Farms on a 114-acre site next to Boulder Park, east of South Section Line Road and west of Houk Road. Fincon Bowtown is developing 132 for-sale townhomes across a 16.8-acre site home to city-owned farmland, located north of Bowtown Road and west of the Village Gate Apartments complex.

Romanelli and Hughes is constructing 97 single-family homes to continue building out the 473-acre Terra Alta development north of Braumiller Road and west of Berlin Station Road. The plan calls for 43 homes to be built on 27.2 acres and 54 homes on 21.2 acres.

Nighttime racing on I-270 targeted in joint enforcement operation

Further, Addison Rutherford is moving forward with plans to expand its central Ohio footprint by building more than 72 single-family homes across 22 vacant acres. The developer is one of several development companies owned by Jason Friedman  a prolific real estate developer also constructing Delawares sprawling 273-acre Addison Farms development.

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 NBC4 WCMH-TV.
A media consultant for Nathan Wade interrupted his interview with CNN when he was pressed about his relationship timeline with Fulton County (Ga.) District Attorney Fani Willis.

CNNs Kaitlan Collins asked Wade in an interview that aired Wednesday on The Source when his romantic relationship with Willis began. As Wade began answering, he seemed to be interrupted by someone whom CNN identified as his media consultant.

Wade looked off camera midanswer and said he was getting signaled here. His microphone was then taken off before he stood off to the side and appeared to whisper with his media consultant.

Someone could be heard in the background saying to keep rolling.

When he returned to his seat, Collins asked if everything was OK before asking the question again.

Just to revisit the question, it was to clarify when the romantic relationship started and when it ended, she told Wade.

I believe that the public has, through  through the testimony and other interviews, the public has a clear snapshot that this is clearly just a distraction, Wade responded. It is not a relevant issue in this case. And I think that we should be focusing on more of the facts and the indictment of the case.

Collins replied by noting that the question of his relationship could be brought before the Court of Appeals of Georgia.

The appeals court could hear arguments in October on former President Trumps efforts to have Willis  the Democratic DA whose office indicted him on election interference charges  removed from the case due to her prior relationship with Wade, whom she appointed to the case. The appeals court froze Trumps criminal trial proceedings last week as it takes up the appeal.

The Georgia Court of Appeals has properly stayed all proceedings against President Trump in the trial court pending its decision on our interlocutory appeal which argues the case should be dismissed and Fulton County DA Willis should be disqualified for her misconduct, Steve Sadow, Trumps lead Georgia defense attorney, said in a statement at the time.

Wade resigned from his position in March, in response to a ruling from Judge Scott McAffee that said Willis could stay on the case if Wade stepped down.

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 The Hill.
Erik Fernandez of Oregon Wild stands in a swath of the Deschutes National Forest that was thinned to prevent wildfires. He holds up a photo he took in 2022 of large old Ponderosa pines in the area that were cut as part of the project. (Alex Baumhardt/Oregon Capital Chronicle)

Erik Fernandez of Oregon Wild stands in a swath of the Deschutes National Forest that was thinned to prevent wildfires. He holds up a photo he took in 2022 of large old Ponderosa pines in the area that were cut as part of the project. (Alex Baumhardt/Oregon Capital Chronicle)

It was a mountain biker on a trail in Bend in 2022 who first spotted the pod of large old Ponderosa pines marked for cutting. The biker alerted local environmental groups, including the Bend office of the nonprofit Oregon Wild, where Erik Fernandez works as a wilderness program manager.

Fernandez went out to photograph the trees in the Deschutes National Forest, some of which he and others figured were more than 80 years old after measuring their circumference. More than a dozen were marked with blue spray paint  a universal sign on federal lands meaning cut.

The trees were among a stand of pines and other trees slated to be thinned as part of a wildfire prevention strategy overseen by the U.S. Forest Service. Thinning stretches of forest to eliminate some smaller trees and debris that could dry out and catch or fuel fires is controversial among wildfire scientists and conservationists. Many agree it can be helpful if done before a prescribed burn  a low intensity fire started across the forest floor to spur soil health and reduce competition among plant and tree species. It can also be helpful to create buffers around infrastructure and areas near communities where flames could easily jump, called fuel breaks. But its less helpful in areas where vegetation can grow back quickly or in remote areas where people and infrastructure are not protected.

The Forest Service often hires timber companies to help with the thinning, which the agency lacks the staff and resources to undertake alone. In turn, timber companies get access to some marketable timber.

But a growing number of environmentalists say federal agencies in charge of 60% of forested acres in Oregon are increasingly allowing timber companies to log old and mature trees within those thinning projects  the trees that are in fact best equipped to withstand wildfires. Those trees are also among the best resources for sequestering climate-warming greenhouse gases creating increased wildfire risk in the region and globally.

Looking into the future, if we keep cutting the big trees, its self-defeating, Fernandez said.

Responding with protest

A coalition of environmental groups called the Pacific Northwest Forest Climate Alliance is planning to protest old-growth logging on public lands in front of the Forest Services Portland office Thursday afternoon. Member Meg Ward, also co-founder of the Eugene-based nonprofit Breach Collective, said it is part of a growing movement of opposition to mature and old-growth logging across the region.

In southern Oregon, environmentalists calling themselves the Pacific Northwest Forest Defense recently overturned the sale of one forest thinning project near Grants Pass by sitting in an old growth tree that was marked to be cut. Last week members began another protest up in the trees against whats called the Rogue Gold project, between Grants Pass and Medford, which involves thinning in some forested areas that are in reserve to develop into old-growth habitat. The Bureau of Land Management is managing that project.

Left: a member of the Pacific Northwest Forest Defense sits in an old-growth tree to protest the Bureau of Land Managements Rogue Gold forest thinning project. Right: a large old tree with blue paint on its trunk, indicating it is slated to be cut. (Photos courtesy of Pacific Northwest Forest Defense)

Cutting down trees does not make forests more resilient to fire, as the Bureau of Land Management wants us to believe, but actually has the opposite effect  increasing wildfire risk, endangering our communities and driving the climate crisis, said Sam Shields, an organizer with the forest defense, in a news release.

Both the Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management allow logging old and mature trees in thinning and wildfire prevention projects if such trees stand in the way of a road that needs to be built for a project, if the old trees are in fuel break areas or if they deem the trees detrimental to regeneration projects  projects meant to restore forests and create ecosystems that would have existed before more than a century of industrial logging that was followed by replanting tightly packed Douglas fir trees. Federal forest management plans that cover much of the state, including the Northwest Forest Plan and the Eastside Screens, offer flexibility for some old growth to be cut in the process of thinning and wildfire prevention work.

The Forest Service maintains that the greatest threat to old growth is not logging, but wildfire, which is what they are trying to prevent through thinning, Catherine Caruso, a spokesperson for the agency, said in an email.

In general, the Bureau of Land Management does not allow trees with a diameter greater than 36 inches to be cut, Sarah Bennett, an agency spokesperson, previously told the Capital Chronicle. Caruso, of the Forest Service, said Wednesday that any further questions about the Forest Services allowance for logging and old-growth have to go through channels to the national office of the agency for vetting because the Biden administration is in the middle of crafting new policy on old-growth logging.

In 2022, the president issued an executive order to end old-growth logging on federal lands by 2025 and earlier this year, announced a plan to amend all national forest management plans to ban commercial old-growth logging.

Why thin the forest?

Not all scientists are in agreement that forest thinning is a good idea writ large. Former U.S. Forest Service scientist Jack Cohen has argued in a number of research papers that thinning is futile in many types of forests and in places distant from communities that could be harmed. This is because in many climates, forest vegetation regrows fast and building roads to thinning sites invites more fire risk from humans. Thinning can also create dry conditions that favor fire.

Former deputy chief of the U.S. Forest Service, Jim Furnish, has become outspoken about not using vegetation management to spur logging. Most scientists agree any forest thinning should be in strategic areas to protect people and infrastructure, and be followed by prescribed burning, but such burning is rare in many areas where federal agencies undertake thinning.

Were actively engaged on multiple fronts in expanding the use of prescribed fire on forests, said Caruso of the Forest Service in an email. But while sometimes we are able to follow thinning with fire in short order, in other cases there are barriers.

The benefits of forest thinning to prevent wildfire start and stop at protecting communities close to forests and to protect critical habitat for Fernandez and Oregon Wild. Theyve been part of projects in the past where they agree it was beneficial to thin and where large old trees were not cut.

There is a sweet spot, Fernandez said. Oregon Wild previously partnered with the Confederated Tribes of the Warm Springs and the Forest Service to undertake thinning near an area near Bend called Black Butte.

That was thinning the small trees, protecting the big trees, doing prescribed fire, protecting important meadows and riparian areas, and it was great, he said.

The challenges, Fernandez said, are the financial incentives timber companies need to agree to do the thinning for the Forest Service, and targets set by Congress for logging on public lands. The sale of thinning projects to timber companies helps financially support the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management.

Whats left of a variety of pines in the aftermath of a forest thinning project near Bend. (Alex Baumhardt/Oregon Capital Chronicle)

Thousands of the more than 15,000 acres of forest thinning and restoration projects that the Forest Service alone is planning across the Deschutes, Mount Hood and Umpqua National Forests will be undertaken by timber companies as commercial thinning, according to planning documents. Hundreds of acres are in areas designated late successional reserves, meaning areas that are being managed to one day become mature and old-growth forests. These areas include some of the oldest trees in Oregons forests.

Some project plans include specific protections for old growth trees, while others do not have clear specifications about the size of the trees that can be taken. Caruso of the Forest Service said there are often differences between what is included in an approved project plan and what actually happens on the ground due to discoveries, litigation and other factors.

Pulling the fire alarm

After Fernandez saw the old-growth slated to be cut near the bike trail in Bend, he raised alarms with the Forest Service and the Bend City Council. But the Forest Service would not change course. The trees were cut a few months after the discovery. In response, the city council wrote a letter to the Forest Service urging it to protect large old growth trees and to keep them out of any logging and thinning plans.

A few years before that, Fernandez himself found several old-growth trees slated to be cut just off of the Cascade Lakes Highway between Bend and Mt. Bachelor. Trees that appeared to be 200 or more years old were marked with the tell-tale blue spray paint. That time, the Forest Service took a different approach. He got officials to come visit the site with him 48 hours before, it turns out, the trees were scheduled to be cut. The Forest service agreed they had been mismarked, and that they should not be cut.

Old-growth saved from cutting off the Cascade Lakes Highway between Bend and Mt. Bachelor. The orange paint on the trunks means do not cut, and was added over blue paint previously indicating cut. The Forest Service corrected this after Fernandez of Oregon Wild brought his concerns to the agency. He estimates the trees are at least 200 years old. (Photo courtesy of Erik Fernandez)

They were like: Were gonna go get the paint cans and fix this, because this was not supposed to happen, Fernandez recalled. They painted orange stripes, meaning do not cut over the blue paint wrongfully applied. But if I had not randomly been out there, then a bunch of some of the last few old growth trees would have been gone, he said.

Correction: Fernandez of Oregon Wild discovered old growth slated to be cut near Cascade Lakes Highway before, not after, the discovery by a Bend mountain biker of more old-growth slated to be cut in the Deschutes National Forest.

Reporting for this story was made possible with a fellowship from the nonprofit Institute for Journalism and Natural Resources.

The post In controversial push to thin forests to prevent wildfire, concerns grow over loss of old growth appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle.
PORTLAND, Ore. (PORTLAND TRIBUNE)  Multnomah County is continuing to support the distribution of thousands of tents and tarps to the homeless in Portland, costing the city millions of dollars to remove them to comply with a federal court settlement to keep sidewalks clear for the disabled.

Portland attorney John DiLorenzo made those charges before the City Council on Wednesday, June 12. DiLorenzo represented a number of disabled Portlanders who won the settlement last May after filing suing the city in the Oregon U.S. District County for violating the Americans with Disabilities Act by allowing the tents and tarps on sidewalks.

Cougar stalks hiker on Angels Rest Trail in Columbia River Gorge; trails closed

While researching the suit, DiLorenzo discovered Multnomah County had bought and distributed at least 33,500 tents and tarps to the homeless that potentially violated the rights of the disabled by blocking sidewalks. At the time, county officials said they were intended to help the homeless live safely outside during the COVID-19 pandemic when shelter capacity was reduced because of social-distancing requirements.

But DiLorenzo presented the council with the results of a public records request that showed the county-run Joint Office of Homeless Services had distributed an additional 6,554 tents and 24,172 tarps in the year since the settlement was approved.

Neil Goldschmidt, former Oregon governor who sexually abused teen, dead at 83

Since last July, the city has funded over 4,000 encampment removals involving approximate 8,000 to 12,000 tents, DiLorenzo said. The city has paid Rapid Response, a bio-hazard removal company, to perform these removals as part of a four-year contract costing over $26 million through this year, he added.

Read more at PortlandTribune.com.

The Portland Tribune and its parent company Pamplin Media Group are KOIN 6 News media partners

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 KOIN.com.
A convicted felon is on track for the White House. Were letting it happen | Opinion

Wheres the outrage?

A convicted felon whose crime grew from a sexual encounter into an elaborate cover-up involving payoffs from an unreported campaign contribution would not be anyones choice for a next-door neighbor. Yet, this criminal is still on track to the White House.

After the unanimous jury verdict, Donald Trump immediately enjoyed a huge dump of campaign contributions into his coffers.

What is the quid pro quo expected from this?

In 1972, a righteous tidal wave of public opinion forced President Richard Nixon to resign over his role in a botched break-in at a Democrat campaign office. Similarly, the crime grew into an elaborate cover-up involving payoffs from Nixons campaign funds.

Trump has never made a habit of moral or truthful behavior. Now hes a criminal to boot.

Still, We the People have not taken to the streets in protest.

Why? Where is that outrage today?

Penny Drost, Tacoma

D-Day anniversary

It is unfathomable that The News Tribune did not recognize the 80th anniversary of D-Day on the front page of the print paper or the e-edition. Instead, the death of a tiger and two teenage murderers commanded front-row attention on June 6.

Twenty-five hundred Americans died in the D-Day assault at Normandy which began the world-saving effort to defeat Nazi Germany. At a time of much social unrest in our society, its important to remind everyone, particularly our young people, that the freedoms and opportunities we currently enjoy did not come about without sacrifice.

It appears the TNT is ignoring the heroic efforts, which were made to ensure the civil liberties that we enjoy today.

As my mom used to say, Shame on you.

Scott Shelton, Tacoma

Day in the life

My name is Rilee I am 55 years old. I am sending this letter to make people aware of the life of a disabled person.

I was born with many challenges that have carried into my adult life. When I was 10, I found out I have autism and a learning disability that made me learn a different way than most children. I struggled in school but graduated when I was 19.

I am speaking on behalf of disabled people: When you see us out in the community we may act differently. Please, if you see us out having fun  talking differently or loudly  do not stare or make rude comments. It is hard for disabled people to go out. It takes a lot of work, patience and encouragement.

If you want, you can just ask us how were doing; some of us will answer and some dont talk. I love my life. I am happy to be me.

Next time you are out in the community, please do not judge us. We are humans with disabilities.

Rilee Higley, Lacey
A former Georgia police officer was convicted on Wednesday of kidnapping and murdering a 16-year-old girl who went missing as she was walking home from a friends home.

Miles Bryant, a former police officer in Doraville, a suburb north of Atlanta, was found guilty ofmalice murder, felony murder, kidnapping and a false report of a crime in the death of Susana Morales, who disappeared in 2022. Her body was found months later in the woods, WXIA-TV in Atlanta reported. Bryant was found not guilty of attempted rape.

In an email following the verdict, Tracy Drake, Bryants defense attorney, said the former police officer still maintains his innocence in causing [Morales] death or kidnapping her. Drake added that while she and Bryant respect the jurys verdict, they have good issues for appeal.

Morales was initially reported missing in July 2022 by her mother, who said her daughter never returned to their Norcross home from a friends house nearby, according to an incident report obtained by HuffPost.

A photo of Susana Morales was posted with a GoFundMe page. GoFundMe

The family said they last heard from Morales at 9:40 p.m. on July 26, 2022, when she messaged her mother that she was on her way home, according to a news release from the Gwinnett County Police Department.

Her mother told officers that Morales did not pick up her phone after that text, though her sister was able to track her phones location through an app until 10:30 p.m. that day

Morales body was not located until Feb. 6, 2023, when the Gwinnett County police responded to a report from a passerby who said they found skeletal remains while walking in a wooded area about 20 miles east of her home, according to an incident report.

Dr. Carol Terry, Gwinnett Countys chief medical examiner, testified that the cause of death could not be determined due to decomposition of the body, according to WXIA-TV.

Bryants gun was found near Morales remains, the Gwinnett County police said at the time. On the night she was reported missing, the then-officer with the Doraville Police Department had made a report to Gwinnett County police that someone had gone into his truck and stolen his wallet and handgun, according to a police incident report. He was arrested in February 2023 on charges of concealing the death of another and false report of a crime in connection with Morales death.

According to an arrest warrant cited by Atlanta News First, police said that Bryant lived in close proximity to the victim at the time of the killing and dumped her naked body in the woods.

Speaking at Bryants trial, Avyonne Smyre, his ex-girlfriend, told the court that she and Bryant had gotten into an argument on the night of Morales disappearance. She testified that she noticed suspicious scratches on his truck, WXIA reported.

Since her disappearance was reported, Morales family has demanded justice, saying that police ignored their initial fears for her safety and wrote her off as a runaway.

Throughout the entire investigation, the police dismissed us and said that she was a runaway when we knew she would never do that, Morales sister wrote in a now-deleted online petition. How could she run away when she was on her way home?

On Tuesday, Gwinnett Police Detective Angela Carter testified that Bryants cellphone data revealed that he was in the area where Morales body was dumped on the night she went missing, according to reports by Atlantas WSB-TV.

Carter also said Bryant had conducted several internet searches related to Morales disappearance, including one using the phrase How long does it take a body to decompose? according to WSB-TV.

He took his power, and he took his badge, and he used that to murder. He is a cop turned killer, prosecuting attorney Brandon Delfunt told the court in his closing argument Wednesday, according to WXIA.

In a statement shared with HuffPost following the jurys verdict, Gwinnett County District Attorney Patsy Austin-Gatson said her office is profoundly sad for the Morales family.

The despicable nature of the defendants acts is compounded by the fact that he was a police officer at the time, Austin-Gaston said.

Related...
New Costco opens in Riverbank. Take a look at Day 1 of the popular warehouse store

Hundreds of people lined up to be the first customers of Costco in Riverbank on Thursday. Stretching around both sides of the building, the doors opened a little earlier than the announced 8 a.m. time to accommodate the eager shoppers.

Inside, the new store is similar to the Costcos in Turlock and Modesto, with only a few differences in layout. The optical department is just to the right of the registers in the front and the food court is right at the end of the checkout.

Filled with hundreds of people, and their full carts, the store did not seem crowded given its large size. A previous story reported the new location is a little over 150,000 square feet, which makes it larger than the Turlock location of about 130,000 square feet but similar to the Modesto location.

A large crowd of Costco members lines up for the grand opening of the new warehouse store in Riverbank, Calif., Thursday, June 13, 2024.

The new Costco has the usual departments, including a pharmacy, optical center, hearing aid center, tire services, food court and gas station.

Vendors including Don Julio, Love Corn, Traeger Pellet Grills and Petit Pot French Dessert were on site to greet customers and hand out samples. There was a long line inside to shop in the alcohol section due to special on bourbon and other spirits available on opening day. One shopper said there were people camped overnight to purchase more limited varieties.

Following retail trends, this Costco offers self-checkout to better manage the legendary long lines.

Costco on Claribel Road in Riverbank, Calif., Thursday, June 13, 2024.

At the gas station, cars already were in formation to get Costco-priced fuel. Though the parking area is large, finding space was a challenge. It was opening day, of course, but packed parking lots are part of the Costco shopping experience and, depending ones mood, maybe part of the charm. Employees were spread throughout the parking area to help drivers along and clear carts.

Based on the enthusiasm and attendance, this Costco is sure to be a hit. Earlier this month, it was announced that TJ Maxx and HomeGoods also will be joining Costco in the Crossroads West shopping center.

Costco Riverbank is at 2015 Claribel Road, at Oakdale Road. It is open Mondays through Fridays from 9 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Costco members enter the new warehouse store in Riverbank, Calif., Thursday, June 13, 2024.

Costco warehouse in Riverbank, Calif., Thursday, June 13, 2024.

Costco members shop on the first day of operation at the warehouse store in Riverbank, Calif., Thursday, June 13, 2024.

Costco warehouse store in Riverbank, Calif., Thursday, June 13, 2024.

Costco opens in Riverbank, Calif., Thursday, June 13, 2024.
A couple headed to Spain on vacation was instead flown 1,500 miles away to Eastern Europe

A couple headed to Spain on vacation was instead flown 1,500 miles away to Eastern Europe

A British couple headed to Spain ended up in Lithuania due to an airport error.

The couple, with disabilities, booked special assistance and were put on the wrong plane.

They told BBC News that the incident left them "distraught" and "scared."

A British couple who booked a flight to Spain ended up in a different European country after airport staff escorted them onto the wrong plane.

Andrew and Victoria Gore, both 47, told BBC News that they had intended to board a flight to Barcelona with the budget airline Ryanair as part of a package vacation worth 1,500, or around $1,915, on Saturday, May 25.

They had booked the trip with their family to celebrate Andrew's birthday.

But Andrew, who is an amputee, and Victoria, who is autistic, ended up on a different flight to Lithuania after booking special assistance at Bristol Airport in England.

Passengers with disabilities or reduced mobility are legally entitled to special assistance without an additional charge when flying from the UK, the US, and many other countries.

Bristol Airport's website states that special assistance can be booked by passengers who have mobility issues or hidden disabilities to help with check-in, getting through security, and boarding the plane. It is facilitated through the airport's service partner, ABM, the website states.

"We have been away lots of times and always had special assistance, so this was nothing new to us," Victoria told the BBC.

"The minibus took us to the Ryanair plane and they checked our boarding pass and let us on the plane," she said.

The couple said their boarding passes were checked by airport staff multiple times, and they were also reassured that their family was already on board.

They didn't realize there had been a mix-up until they arrived at Kaunas Airport in Lithuania.

"When I woke up, it didn't look like Spain out the window, I turned my phone on and it said 'Welcome to Lithuania'," Andrew said.

"I was distraught, and scared. I didn't stop crying," Victoria said.

The couple said the airline provided them with overnight accommodation and transportation to Riga, the capital of neighboring Latvia, where they could board a flight the following day.

However, their bags didn't arrive in Barcelona until two days later.

Andrew and Victoria's experience follows a trend of travel nightmares that are sometimes experienced by airline passengers with disabilities.

A Department of Transportation report recorded a 108% increase in complaints from flyers with disabilities, from 76 in May 2019 to 158 in May 2022.

In a statement sent to Business Insider, a Ryanair spokesperson said special assistance is "provided by Bristol Airport's special assistance provider  not Ryanair."

"As these passengers did not board their flight to Barcelona, their bags were removed from the aircraft at Bristol Airport in line with standard safety procedures," part of the statement said.

"When it was realised that these passengers had been misrouted in error by Bristol Airport's special assistance provider, and rerouted to Barcelona, their bags were rushed from Bristol Airport to Barcelona to them.

"We sincerely apologise to these passengers for any inconvenience caused as a result of Bristol Airport's special assistance provider's error and have assured that they will be fully compensated by Bristol Airport," the statement concluded.

A spokesperson for Bristol Airport told BI that the situation is being investigated, and the couple will be contacted to "direct their complaint to the correct business partner for resolution."

Representatives for ABM did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider
COVID Variant KP.3 Surges to DominanceHere's What You Need to Know

Fact checked by Nick BlackmerFact checked by Nick Blackmer





Data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows that a new COVID variant called KP.3 has risen to dominance in the United States.

KP.3 accounts for 25% of cases, while another variant, KP.2, makes up about 22% of cases.

Experts said that KP.3 isn't likely to cause more severe symptoms than other COVID strains.







A new COVID-19 variant called KP.3 has surged to dominance in the United States, according to recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

As of June 8, KP.3 accounted for 25% of cases, per the CDC. The variant has surpassed the previous dominant variant, KP.2, which now makes up about 22% of cases. Both have knocked down JN.1, the top strain circulating this past winter.

With SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID, mutating consistently, its natural to be concerned each time a new variant rises to prominence.

Heres what you need to know about KP.3, including whether experts are worried about its speedy spread.

JulPo / Getty Images

What Is KP.3?

KP.3 is part of a newly identified group of variants dubbed FLiRT, which are part of SARS-CoV-2s Omicron lineage. In addition to KP.3, the FLiRT variants also include KP.2 and KP.1.1. They all descend from JN.1.

KP.3 is similar to JN.1 in its structure except for two changes in the spike protein, Carlos Zambrano, MD, a board-certified infectious disease physician and the head of the COVID-19 Task Force at Loretto Hospital in Chicago, told Health.

The spike protein is located on the viruss surface and facilitates its entry into human cells.

One change was observed in the XBB.1.5 lineage, which was predominant in 2023, he said. The second change was observed in viruses circulating in 2021.

Why Is KP.3 Involved in So Many Cases?

According to C. Leilani Valdes, MD, a pathologist and medical director at Regional Pathology Associates in Victoria, Texas, the KP.3 variant has become the frontrunner because it spreads quickly and easily.

It is very good at jumping from one person to another, she said. This means more people are getting infected with KP.3 compared to other variants.

Does KP.3 Cause More Severe Illness Than Other COVID Strains?

Both experts agreed that there is currently no clear evidence that KP.3 causes more severe illness than other strains, including the JN.1 strain or its derivatives. As such, people who contract KP.3 can expect to experience symptoms characteristic of other recent COVID variants.

KP.3 symptoms resemble typical COVID-19 symptoms, including fever, cough, fatigue, and loss of taste or smell, Valdes said. Some individuals may also experience a sore throat, headache, or muscle pain.

Are COVID Cases Rising?

COVID cases are on the rise, and we can expect the number of cases to continue to increase, especially with the KP.3 variant spreading quickly, Valdes said.

The CDC reported last week that COVID-19 infections are growing or likely growing in 30 states and territories. Cases are stable or uncertain in 18 others and are likely declining in oneOklahoma.

Do Vaccines Protect Against KP.3?

Per Zambrano, all three COVID vaccine manufacturersPfizer, Moderna, and Novavaxhave said that their new vaccines slated for August 2024 will target the JN.1 variant.

Because the JN.1 variant is closely related to the FLiRT variants, experts have said that matching the vaccines to JN.1 will offer better protection.

Valdes stressed that vaccination remains one of the most effective tools against COVID. Staying up to date with booster shots significantly reduces the risk of severe illness and hospitalization, she said. Wearing masks, washing hands, and keeping distance from others can help prevent the spread.

The most important takeaway as we head into the summer is that KP.3 spreads easily, she added, so its important to be careful.



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Read the original article on Health.com.
As the weather heats up, firefighters are preparing for the possibility of an intense and deadly wildfire season in Southern California.

Smaller fires have already ignited across the Inland Empire and plenty of dry brush and rising summer temperatures could create a deadly combination.

Over the past three days, weve seen fires that have occurred in the valley, the high desert and in the mountains, said Eric Sherwin with the San Bernardino County Fire Department.

The Stoddard Fire broke out on Tuesday afternoon near Stoddard Wells Road, located about 20 minutes north of Victorville.

The blaze had grown to nearly 500 acres by Wednesday night.

Earlier in the week on Sunday, crews battled a fire that ignited at Little Mountain in San Bernardino, a popular hiking area. Around 20 acres were scorched.

The Stoddard Fire, located about 20 minutes north of Victorville, ignited on June 11, 2024 and expanded to over 500 acres the next day. (San Bernardino County Fire Department)

A brush fire at Little Mountain in San Bernardino, a popular hiking area, that burned 20 acres on June 9, 2024. (San Bernardino County Fire Department)

A man on a rooftop looks at approaching flames from the Springs Fire on May 3, 2013 near Camarillo, California. (Getty Images)

A firetruck drives along California Highway 96 as the McKinney Fire burns in Klamath National Forest, Calif., July 30, 2022. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)

Flames rise from the York Fire on Ivanpah Rd. on Sunday, July 30, 2023, in the Mojave National Preserve, Calif. The York Fire has burned over 77,000 acres and has 0% containment. (AP Photo/Ty ONeil)

FILE  Flames burn inside a van as the Camp Fire tears through Paradise, Calif., on Thursday, Nov. 8, 2018. Currently, the Maui wildfires are the nations fifth-deadliest on record, according to research by the National Fire Protection Association, a nonprofit that publishes fire codes and standards used in the U.S. and around the world. The Camp Fire killed 85 people and forced tens of thousands of others to flee their homes as flames destroyed 19,000 buildings in Northern California. (AP Photo/Noah Berger, File)

In this photo provided by the National Park Service Mojave National Preserve, the York fire burns in an area of the Mojave National Preserve on Saturday, July 29, 2023. A massive wildfire burning out of control in Californias Mojave National Preserve is spreading rapidly amid erratic winds. Meanwhile, firefighters reported some progress Sunday against another major blaze to the southwest that prompted evacuations. (Park Ranger R. Almendinger/ InciWeb /National Park Service Mojave National Preserve via AP)

Forest burns in the Carr Fire on July 30, 2018 west of Redding, California. (Getty Images)

Firefighters work to keep the Oak Fire from reaching a home in the Jerseydale community of Mariposa County, Calif., on Saturday, July 23, 2022. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

This photo provided by the National Park Service Mojave National Preserve shows a tanker making a fire retardant drop over the York fire in Mojave National Preserve on Saturday, July 29, 2023. A massive wildfire burning out of control in Californias Mojave National Preserve is spreading rapidly amid erratic winds. Meanwhile, firefighters reported some progress Sunday against another major blaze to the southwest that prompted evacuations. (Park Ranger R. Almendinger/ InciWeb /National Park Service Mojave National Preserve via AP)

Firefighters battle a wildfire as it threatens to jump a road near Oroville, Calif., on Saturday, July 8, 2017. Evening winds drove the fire through several neighborhoods leveling homes in its path. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

FILE  A helicopter drops water on the Fairview Fire burning on a hillside Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022, near Hemet, Calif. Scientists say a warming planet will lead to hotter, longer and more wildfire-plagued heat waves. (AP Photo/Ringo H.W. Chiu, File)

FILE  A home burns as the Dixie fire jumps Highway 395 south of Janesville, Calif., Aug. 16, 2021. Two insurance industry giants have pulled out of the California marketplace, saying that wildfire risk and the soaring cost of construction prompted them to stop writing new policies in the nations most populous state. (AP Photo/Ethan Swope, File)

Flames consume a home on Triangle Rd. as the Oak Fire burns in Mariposa County, Calif., on Saturday, July 23, 2022. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Firefighters mop up hot spots while battling the Oak Fire in the Jerseydale community of Mariposa County, Calif., on Monday, July 25, 2022. They are part of Task Force Rattlesnake, a program comprised of Cal Fire and California National Guard firefighters. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

Seen from the Foresthill community in Placer County, Calif., a plume rises from the Mosquito Fire on Thursday, Sept. 8, 2022. (AP Photo/Noah Berger)

A firefighter watches the Station Fire as it burns in Angeles National Forest Sunday, Aug. 30, 2009 in La Canada Flintridge, Calif. (AP Photo/Philip Scott Andrews)

Fires approach a home near Lower Lake, Calif., Friday, July 31, 2015. A series of wildfires were intensified by dry vegetation, triple-digit temperatures and gusting winds. (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu)

A large wildfire burns in Riverside County, California. (KTLA)

A man is seen using his T-shirt to fight a wildfire in the Sylmar area on July 11, 2023. (RMG News)

While that was burning, we had a new start in Lytle Creek, Sherwin recalled.

Sherwin said thankfully the two fires were relatively small but said they remain examples of just how quickly fires can ignite in dry Southern California weather.

With flames able to expand quickly under these conditions, firefighters remain concerned about having enough resources to tackle the blazes.

Whenever we have multiple fires burning in relatively close proximity to each other, we are going to see a competition for resources, Sherwin explained.

With the first day of summer approaching on June 20, rising temperatures mean more dry vegetation and a dangerous potential for large fires.

In 2023, three massive fires burned simultaneously in Riverside County, scorching thousands of acres and threatening nearby homes.

This past weekend, several fires broke out in the county as well, including in Norco, Lake Elsinore and Mead Valley.

The flames were quickly extinguished in each instance, however, fire crews said the consistency of new blazes is a sign of things to come in the summer months.

Many agencies like the Forest Service and CAL FIRE Riverside County are performing prescribed burns to remove dry vegetation that can become a hazard.

Although wildfires can happen year-round, peak wildfire season in California typically runs from June through late October or November.

Those who live in a fire-prone community should be prepared to evacuate in the event they are threatened by a wildfire.

if you are in that area, be ready to evacuate if you need to, advises Capt. John Clingingsmith Jr. from CAL FIRE Riverside County. Have the essentials that you need  medications, computers, pictures.

Some general items to pack in an emergency kit should include:

Water (one gallon per person per day for several days, for drinking and sanitation)

Food (at least a several-day supply of non-perishable food)

Battery-powered or hand crank radio and a NOAA Weather Radio with tone alert

Cell phone with chargers and a backup battery

Prescription medication

Flashlight

First aid kit

Extra batteries

Whistle (to signal for help)

Dust mask (to help filter contaminated air)

Plastic sheeting and duct tape (to shelter in place)

Moist towelettes, garbage bags and plastic ties (for personal sanitation)

Wrench or pliers (to turn off utilities)

Manual can opener (for food)

Local maps

For more information on how to prepare for a wildfire evacuation, including how to protect your home, visit CAL FIREs website or Ready.gov for more tips.

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 KTLA.
Cybercriminals stole files from hospital system Ascension that likely contained personal information, Ascension said in a statement Wednesday, about a month after revealing it had fallen victim to a ransomware attack.

Ascension said it now has evidence that the attackers took files from seven of the systems 25,000 file servers. Ascension is still investigating but said it believes those files may contain protected health information and personally identifiable information for some individuals. The system does not yet know exactly which data was stolen or from which patients, Ascension said.

Ascension said it has no evidence that the attackers stole data from its electronic health records. The system said the attack occurred after a person working at one of its facilities accidentally downloaded a malicious file that the person thought was legitimate.

Ascension is offering free credit monitoring and identity theft protection services to any patient or employee who would like the services, and those who wish to enroll can call 1-888-498-8066.

Ascension is a nationwide health system with about 150 sites of care in Illinois, including 14 hospitals.

The system has said that it discovered the attack on May 8. The systems hospitals and clinics postponed some elective surgeries and appointments, and one Ascension Illinois hospital temporarily went on ambulance bypass, meaning ambulances were asked to take new patients to other hospitals.

A nurse in at least one of Ascensions Illinois hospitals said, shortly after the attack, nurses couldnt automatically see doctors orders for patients, such as for medication or tests, or use their usual procedures to ensure accuracy when administering medication to patients.

Ascension Illinois said earlier this week that it had restored the primary technology it uses for electronic patient documentation, which would allow hospitals and doctors offices to again document, chart and send orders electronically.

The incident at Ascension was one of the latest in a string of cyberattacks on health care institutions in Illinois and across the country. Lurie Childrens Hospital in Chicago was attacked in January, and University of Chicago Medical Center said in late May that the information of about 10,300 people may have been exposed in a phishing incident.

Cybercriminals often target health systems because of their size, their dependence on technology and the large amounts of sensitive data they hold, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
On a sunny Tuesday morning in June, Beth OSullivan watches her two-year-old son play in the local park in Bideford, a town on the Torridge estuary.

OSullivan, 36, lives in nearby Dolton, a picturesque village in rural North Devon and was working full-time in communications and marketing until she gave birth.

She had hoped to go back part-time after her maternity leave but was forced to give up her job because she couldnt find childcare.

Childminders were few and far between and they all had waiting lists, she says. I spent months looking and eventually I gave up. It forced my hand not to go back to work. The whole system is a real mess.

OSullivan, who now manages to do some of her own freelance work, is exactly the kind of person that both Labour and the Tories want to win over in the election. Both parties have made tackling Britains childcare crisis a priority.

The district of Torridge, on the Hartland Devon Heritage Coast, is on the frontline of the crisis. It is the worst of what charity Pregnant Then Screwed calls Britains childcare deserts.

According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), Torridge has just 12 childcare places for every 100 local children under seven. This is the worst ratio of any local authority in England.

While the lack of childcare is most stark in Torridge, it is a national problem and one which is holding back Britain.

A lack of support is forcing parents  often mothers  to work less than they would like, damaging growth. ONS data shows Torridge has the fourth-lowest productivity rate out of 374 local authorities across the country.

In Torridge, 54pc of women work part-time, the fourth-highest share of the 282 local authorities in England and Wales for which data is available.

In turn, womens weekly wages are lower than elsewhere in the country. The average woman in Torridge earns 387 per week before tax, nearly 100 less than the average woman in England and Wales.

Isabel Saxby, who is running as Labour candidate for Torridge and Tavistock, says: Without access to childcare, parents, mainly mothers, find it more difficult to find work, which means a lot of families continue to be stuck in poverty.

Torridge exemplifies a national problem that has become a major election issue.

In his Budget last year, Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced what he called the biggest expansion of childcare in a generation with a pledge to offer 30 hours a week of free childcare for all children under five with working parents.

The offer is being rolled out gradually and will be fully up and running by September 2025. It is a promise that the Tory manifesto now estimates will be worth 6,900 per year per working family.

The policy will double government spending on pre-school support from 4bn to more than 8bn a year, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).

Labour has made access to childcare a key part of its manifesto, describing it as a crucial opportunity to transform life chances.

Sir Keir Starmer has committed to continuing the roll-out if his party wins and says Labour will go further. He has promised to create 100,000 childcare places across 3,000 new nurseries by turning spare classrooms in primary schools into school-based nurseries.

Sir Keir Starmer has promised to create 100,000 childcare places across 3,000 new nurseries Labour wins - Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire

While the Tories plan to let the market deliver the new nursery places, Labour will pay for the cost of creating them. Crucially, this means Labour gets to choose where in the country they will be located, says Christine Farquharson, associate director at the IFS.

However, there are doubts over whether the sector will be able to scale up to meet the new plans. Just 28pc of local authorities are confident they will be able to offer 15 hours of childcare per week for children over nine months old by this September, when the requirement kicks in.

Even with soaring prices, the childcare business model is broken.

Laura Truepenny and her husband started a childminding and tutoring business, Truependous Tutoring, from their home in Bideford in 2020. But they stopped the childminding side of the business in August last year, in part because the money did not add up.

Taking children on government-funded places meant they received around 4.50 per hour per child.

You had to have three kids just to be on minimum wage. People get paid more to walk a dog than we would get to look after peoples kids, says Truepenny.

Now, she is just focused on tutoring, where she charges 10 an hour for group lessons. I have up to eight in a group, so then that is 80 an hour, compared to the 15 an hour we were getting with child minding.

While raising prices would likely encourage more providers into the market, it would only worsen the problem for many parents.

One of the reasons childcare provision is so low in Devon is because many people cannot afford to pay for it.

Jade*, 36, lives in Barnstaple, the North Devon district next door to Torridge. She works full-time and earns just over 30,000 per year. Her partner also works full-time doing shift work for around 15 per hour.

They have managed to get on the housing ladder, but they have just had to apply for Universal Credit to cover nursery fees.

It now works out as just under 1,400 per month, which is double our mortgage, she says. On top of all of the other costs that have gone up, it is just crippling us as a family.

The couple now receive around 500 per month in Universal Credit to help cover the costs but this comes with its own problems.

Now, if my partner were to work extra hours, we would lose money in UC. It would be pointless, says Jade.

The costs are about to get bigger as Jade is pregnant. We are panicking thinking how the hell are we going to be able to pay for two children in daycare.

Her situation lays bare the limitations of both parties childcare plans. In theory, from September 2024, she will be able to get 15 hours free childcare per week for her toddler. From September 2025, she will be able to get 30 hours per week for both of her young children.

But the free hours are only for 38 weeks per year, during school term time. Parents can spread the entitlement over 52 weeks, but only if they reduce the hours per week accordingly. It means 15 hours will actually only be 11 hours over a 52-week year.

When you are a full-time employee, that doesnt work, says Jade. Try saying that to an employer: Actually, I can only come back to work 11 hours a week.

Why is childcare so expensive? Experts blame problems with staff retention, minimum wage rises, and high rent and energy bills.

Childcare fees rose three times faster than nominal wages between 2008 and 2018, according to analysis by the Trades Union Congress. A part-time nursery place for a child under two now costs 158 per week, according to a March report by the Coram Group charity, up 7.4pc since 2023.

In Devon, these national problems are coupled with lack of suitable buildings, issues with staff recruitment and a sparse population that makes providing group services difficult, says a spokesman for Devon County Council.

He said: Put simply, demand for childcare outstrips supply, and there are too few new child carers coming into the market.

The spokesman added that the council was doing all we can as a local authority to support childcare providers, and to help them recruit new child carers in order to meet the growing demand.

Jade chose the cheapest nursery she could find: it costs 63 per day. Others she looked at cost 75  or an extra 300 per month.

Who can afford that? Who has that disposable income?, she laments. The thing is that if you dont have two huge wages coming in  if you have got one OK wage and one OK wage  there is no way that you can cope.

*Name has been changed

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A dust up on critical materials or mineral designations played out in the U.S. House Committee on Natural Resources Wednesday, centering on how two different federal agencies classify them.

Rep. Pete Stauber, R-Minn., said amendments to the Energy Act of 2020 would streamline classifications between the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Geological Survey which use different metrics in their designations.

The two agencies use different criteria and do not take into consideration the same parameters leading to sometimes very different lists. Notably, the USGS list does not take into account the forward looking data and analysis such as international demand and growth trajectories that the DOE list does, he said. Accordingly, the USGS list omits important minerals like copper, and others.

He said the Department of Energy does not make the same omissions since any mineral on the USGS list automatically gets placed on the energy agencys critical material lists.

A bill, HR8446, would fix that, he added.

This amends the Energy Act of 2020 to automatically place DOEs deemed materials onto the USGS list.

Committee Chairman Bruce Westerman, R-Ark., stressed that the measure does not add any mineral to the lists, such as copper, but aims to coordinate the lists and improve agency communication and policy.

Utah is home to one of the worlds largest copper producers, the Rio Tinto Bingham Canyon Mine, which also produces by-product gold, molybdenum, silver and tellurium.

GOP members on the committee took heavy criticism from some of their Democratic colleagues.

The narrative, if you will, that we hear across the aisle for this bill is that its just about consistency, that we have too many lists of critical minerals and materials so we should just combine them, said Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif. I dont buy it. This bill is the result of years of heavy lobbying to politically influence the critical minerals list.

Huffman said the GOP is trying to inject politics into a classification that should be based on science, not industry-driven interests.

It is amazing in this Congress, that my colleagues across the aisle who are leading a Congress that cant govern their way out of a wet paper bag, the least productive Congress in American history, and yet, they seem to believe that the same befuddled members of Congress (know) more than scientists and experts and wildlife biologists and everyone else, he said. Members of this Republican majority should stick to doing what theyre actually really good at  which is fighting like ferrets in a phone booth, and they should stay out of science, he added.

Both Huffman and Rep. Melanie Stansbury, D-N.M., said if copper was indeed a critical mineral it would be deemed so by the USGS.

According to that agency, copper has become a major industrial metal, ranking third after iron and aluminum in terms of quantities consumed. Electrical uses of copper  including power transmission and generation, building wiring, telecommunication and electrical and electronic products  account for about three quarters of total copper use. Building construction is the single largest market, followed by electronics and electronic products, transportation, industrial machinery, and consumer and general products.

Stansbury stressed, too, that the process for listing needs to be insulated from the political process and not detract from minerals and materials that are deemed critical for good reason.

Unfortunately, for as long as there has been a critical minerals list, there have been efforts to influence it. And weve seen these attempts to legislatively add minerals like copper, uranium, phosphate, potash, and other industry demands with no guarantees that adding these minerals would actually benefit the economy or national security, but most certainly would benefit the bottom line and pockets of these industries, she said.

The debate over potash, phosphorus

Potash is used to manufacture a variety of products including soap, glass, synthetic rubber and explosives, according to the Utah Geological Survey. Potash is also an essential plant nutrient, and 93% of the potash mined in the world is used as plant fertilizer.

Like copper, Utah contains abundant potash resources mined from the Great Salt Lake and elsewhere, including outside Dead Horse State Park near Moab.

Potash and phosphorus are critical to the agriculture industry. The Russian invasion of Ukraine put a chokehold on the supply chain.

Westerman said scientists in at a California university said phosphorus  not water  is the key limiting factor impacting the ability to feed people.

In some cases, farmers have seen the price of fertilizer spike as much as 350% over a three-year period, threatening their operations and driving up food costs.

The measure would not force placement of those minerals on the critical list, but rather direct the U.S. Department of Interior to coordinate with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Stauber said.

Westerman objected to the criticism about the measures being a political move.

It is good governance and a common sense piece of legislation. It helps to remove confusion and leaves the autonomy with the Department of Interior and the Department of Energy to decide which minerals and materials go on the list.
A saltwater crocodile terrorized a remote Australian community by snapping up dogs and lunging at kids -- only to meet its end in a feast cooked up by locals. The 12-foot reptile "had been stalking and lunging out of the water at children and adults," Northern Territory police said in a statement.

"The crocodile had also reportedly taken multiple community dogs."

After talking to elders and traditional landowners in the Bulla community, police shot and killed the scaly predator on Tuesday, police said.

"The community prepared it for a feast in the traditional manner," they said.

The crocodile had migrated during floods earlier in the year into a river near homes in the area, about six hours' drive south of Darwin, police said.

The animal ended up as the main ingredient in various meals, Sergeant Andrew McBride told Australian public broadcaster ABC.

A saltwater crocodile that terrorized a remote Australian community ended up being cooked and eaten by locals. / Credit: Northern Territory Police

"I believe he was cooked up into crocodile tail soup, it was on the barbecue, a few pieces were wrapped up in banana leaves and cooked underground," McBride said.

"There was a rather large traditional feast."

Commander Kylie Anderson said "crocodiles can pose a significant risk to community safety" and praised officers and residents for working closely together to resolve the issue.

"There's never a dull moment in remote policing," Anderson said.

The Northern Territory government says it "uses a risk-based strategic management approach to determine the level of management activity" for crocodiles.

Crocodiles are highly mobile, and have periodically had dangerous encounters with people in Australia. Earlier this year, a crocodile jumped on board a fisherman's boat in Queensland while the man was fishing at a creek on New Year's Eve.

Last year, the top politician in Australia's Northern Territory said it was "time to consider" a return to crocodile culling after an attack at a popular swimming spot.

In May 2023, a man snorkeling off the coast of North Queensland, Australia, was attacked by a crocodile  and survived by prying its jaws off his head. That same month, the remains of an Australian man who went missing on a fishing trip in crocodile-infested waters were found inside two of the reptiles.

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COLUMBUS, Ga. (WRBL)  A little more than two weeks after Columbus State University students and faculty left on a two-week study abroad trip to South Korea, they returned to the classroom for a final day of class.

It was a day for reflection after a school years worth of instruction surrounding the Korean history, culture and its military- and business relationship with the United States. The programming and study abroad trip coincided with the 70th anniversary of the Korean War Armistice.

The Korean War has a reputation as the forgotten war. Its the war that doesnt get much attention, sandwiched in between World War II and Vietnam, said Dr. David Kieran, one of the CSU faculty and staff leaders on the trip.

Kieran CSUs Col. Richard Hallock Military History chair and has moderated panel discussions about U.S.-Korea relations across the past school year. He worked with CSUs Daewoo Lee and retired U.S. Army Maj. Gen. Pat Donahoe to lead the discussions and curriculum which students on the trip, as well as community members, had access to over the course of the school year.

ROBOTICS: Local university partners with U.S. Army to offer new program

Having spent a year thinking about it, reading about it, holding the panel discussions that we had here at CSU and now going to Korea with the students, you really see what a critical of event it was in the 20th century, not just for South Korea, Kieran continued.

Students agreed that the curriculum and trip had given them new perspectives and passion for Korean history, business and culture.

It was emotionally impactful to see the different monuments and memorials for the war, said Daphne Bryant, a sophomore at CSU. It was really beautiful to see the respect and commemoration.

Trip photos from CSU professor Daewoo Lee. (Daewoo Lee)

Trip photos from CSU professor Daewoo Lee. (Daewoo Lee)

Trip photos from CSU professor Daewoo Lee. (Daewoo Lee)

Trip photos from CSU professor Daewoo Lee. (Daewoo Lee)

Another student, senior Danielle Blake, talked about the visible impact the Korean War has had, even 70 years later.

Blake said, It was interesting to see how different aspects of that just impact their whole life and how theres just museums everywhere specifically focused on that war and the impact that it had on the nations [involved].

For other students, including senior Zachary Brundidge, the trip highlighted the still changing and developing relationship between the U.S. and Korea following the war.

We have fostered this relationship that has created such an economic superpower that South Korea is today, Brundidge said.

He continued, It started off as one of the poorest countries in the world following the Korean War and now is in the top 20 of global GDPs and its just beautiful to see this relationship blossom from this horrible war.

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Senior Sonya Mahon focused on the integration of Korean business in the U.S., with brands like Kia having major manufacturing plant in Georgia.

I grew up with Kia and Hyundai cars on the streets but theres a chance that you know, that myself of someone in my family might be working in their factory here in the near future, said Mahon.

In the next years, CSU officials hope to make the Korea course and a speaker series at least a bi-annual offering.

Hear Daphne Bryant and Danielle Blake:

Hear from Zachary Brundidge and Sonya Mahon:

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Azerbaijani Ambassador to Sweden, Norway, Finland, and Denmark Zaur Ahmadov participated in a working lunch hosted by Norwegian Minister of International Development Anne Beathe Tvinnereim within the co-chairmanship of the Alliance of Champions for Food Systems Transformation (ACF), Azernews reports.

The event was attended by representatives of relevant international organizations and ambassadors of several countries.

Addressing the event, Ambassador Zaur Ahmadov provided insight into the ongoing preparations for COP29, as well as spoke about the initiative put forward by Azerbaijan's COP29 Presidency in the field of agriculture and food security - the "Harmoniya" initiative aimed at better coordination of existing partnerships.
BISHKEK, June 12 (Xinhua) -- The China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway project, on which an intergovernmental agreement was signed last week, will bring enormous and tangible benefits to all participants and peoples in the region, experts have said.

In an interview with Xinhua, Kubanychbek Taabaldiev, a Kyrgyz political scientist and professor of international relations at Bishkek-located Ala-Too International University, said that signing of the agreement on the construction of the railway is a historical event for the participants of this project.

"The implementation of the project will bring enormous benefits to all project participants and all of Central and South Asia, since a new transit route will be open from East to West," Taabaldiev said. "The transit of goods from China to the south and further to the west will be carried out via a shorter route."

The railway starts from Kashgar in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, and enters the territory of Uzbekistan through Kyrgyzstan. In the future, it can extend to West Asia and South Asia.

"The appropriate infrastructure will be created, new jobs are open, and new opportunities will appear for the development of the entire Central Asian region," he said.

President of the Association of Markets of Kyrgyzstan, Sergei Ponomarev, told Xinhua that the historical parallel of this project is that the railway will run along the route of the Great Silk Road.

"The point is that the project comes from the Belt and Road Initiative. Kyrgyzstan was one of the first to appreciate this initiative, as it is very promising and interesting," Ponomarev noted.

Speaking about the benefits that Kyrgyzstan receives from this project, the expert noted that the republic, with the help of the railway, will receive a large increase in the passage of goods. In addition, thanks to the railway, Kyrgyzstan, which is located in a geographical dead end, will have access to the sea.

"Therefore, it is an interesting opportunity for Kyrgyzstan to use this chance. This is not only the creation of jobs and infrastructure development, but also the improvement of economic indicators and an increase in the budget. But in general, the main goal of the project is to improve the lives of citizens of Kyrgyzstan, China and Uzbekistan," Ponomarev said.

The implementation of this railway project will have a beneficial impact on all spheres of public life in Central Asia, including Uzbekistan, as it will generate a corresponding economic effect, said Azamat Seitov, Doctor of Sociology, Professor, Head of the Laboratory of Anthropology and Conflictology at the Institute for Advanced International Studies of the University of World Economy and Diplomacy of Uzbekistan.

"Moreover, the new railway will allow Uzbekistan to expand its export capabilities and strengthen its role as a transit hub. New enterprises and tens of thousands of jobs will be created, mutual trade volumes and industrial cooperation scales will increase, and investment attractiveness will improve, all of which will contribute to economic development, better living conditions, and quality of life for residents of the country and the region," said Seitov.

He noted that the annual volume of freight traffic on this route will increase, and delivery time for goods to end consumers will be reduced. Additionally, a modern transit-logistics infrastructure, warehouses, and terminals will be established.

As a result, this project will open new transportation opportunities in Central Asia and provide a completely new transport corridor for the implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative, Seitov said.

He voiced confidence that the signing of the agreement on the implementation of the railway construction will send an important signal to the international community about the firm intention of China and Central Asian countries to further deepen cooperation, strengthen security, and ensure stability in the region, which is in the fundamental interests of the parties.

His remarks were echoed by Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov in a congratulatory video message to participants of the agreement signing ceremony held in Beijing.

"This project will become a symbol of cooperation within the framework of a comprehensive strategic partnership in a new era between Kyrgyzstan, China and Uzbekistan. The creation of this key continental bridge in the Eurasian space will bring significant benefits to our peoples," Japarov said.

Editor: WXL
The U.S. intelligence community believes the Cuban government will attempt to influence U.S. elections in 2024, possibly deploying targeted campaigns to affect state and local races in Florida, officials with the Office of Director of National Intelligence said.

The assessment comes after the directors office assessed last year that Havana attempted to affect midterm elections in Florida in 2022.

Weve seen interest in down ballot races, one of the intelligence officials said. On Cuba, we very much expect that the same kind of activity will occur.

The intelligence community had found that, in 2022, Cuba conducted influence operations in the United States aimed at denigrating specific U.S. candidates in Florida.

After the assessment became public in December last year, U.S. Rep. Carlos Gimenez said he believed he and fellow Miami Republicans Reps. Maria Elvira Salazar and Mario Diaz-Balart had been targeted, though he said he had not been told that directly by U.S. intelligence officials.

Cuban officials worked to build relationships with members of the U.S. media who held critical views of Havanas critics in Congress, a U.S. intelligence report found, and that a network of social media accounts almost certainly covertly tied to Cuba amplified derogatory content on U.S. politicians viewed as hostile to the Cuban state.

Cubas efforts are of concern, even though they are at a smaller scale than the attempted influence campaigns of Washingtons major adversaries in Russia, China and Iran, the officials said.

Last year, Meta, Facebooks parent company, said it had taken down hundreds of fake accounts linked to the Cuban government and its institutions that were posting propaganda on Facebook and Instagram and attacking critics in Cuba and the United States.

The Cuban government network targeted Cubans on the island and abroad and reached a broad audience. The Facebook pages had 650,000 followers, and the groups were joined by 510,000 accounts. The Herald previously reported on an effort to expose hundreds of fake accounts that were posting Cuban propaganda on Twitter, currently known as X.

Since Cuba started to expand internet service, dissidents and independent journalists started denouncing the hacking of their phones and social media accounts and receiving online harassment from fake accounts linked to the Cuban government. Former students have described how Cuban state security ran online operations from within the University of Informatics Sciences to attack dissidents and critics.

In 2020, Special Envoy Lea Gabrielle, then coordinator of the Global Engagement Center at the U.S. State Department, said the agency had noticed an increasing alignment of efforts between accounts that promote Russian, Cuban, and [Venezuelan government] disinformation and propaganda narratives.

More recently, Cuban government outlets and influencers have been very active in promoting Russian disinformation about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

While Cuba has leaned on China for building its internet and cybersecurity infrastructure, Cuban authorities have recently signed agreements with Russian officials in that area, including on developing artificial intelligence capabilities.

This year, the U.S. intelligence directors offices Foreign Malign Influence Center is preparing for adversaries to deploy more complex tools, including AI, in their influence campaigns.

Intelligence analysts and experts trained on commercial and proprietary forensic capabilities will be deployed to counter A.I.-driven threats, the intelligence officials said.

Analysts across the intelligence community are on the lookout for potential foreign malign influence threats, and nominate intelligence information that they view as concerning to the center for consideration. The group then decides  anywhere between 24 hours and a week from receiving the material  whether to take action on the item, either privately informing the target of the attack or issuing a notification to the public.

Could this influence the outcome of the election? That is what were guided by, one of the officials said.
The exterior court of the Minnehaha County Juvenile Detention Center, pictured on Oct. 21, 2022. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight)

The exterior court of the Minnehaha County Juvenile Detention Center in Sioux Falls, pictured on Oct. 21, 2022. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight)

The state Department of Corrections will award over $800,000 in funds to 17 juvenile service programs across the state this year.

The money will be used to support expanded diversion programs for young offenders, as well as cultural healing camps, equine therapy programs and court resource homes.

The awards were approved by the Council of Juvenile Services at a meeting this week. The group oversees the states role in the federal Formula Grants Program, meant to help states support delinquency prevention and make juvenile justice system improvement.

There is some great programming going on around the state, said council chairwoman Elisabeth OToole after the award amounts were decided.  Were putting a lot of money into this state, and that is wonderful.

The 17 awards approved include:

$73,470 for the Hughes County States Attorney to dedicate staff time to diversion coordination, including data and success tracking for diversion programs.

$16,000 for the Hughes County States Attorney to focus diversion efforts on Native American youth by developing cultural programs in the community.

$30,000 for Crow Creek Sioux Tribal Courts to fund a Juvenile Healing to Wellness Program for juveniles.

$75,000 for the Boys & Girls Club of Vermillion to expand diversion programs alongside the Teen Court and Teen Club program by creating a youth diversion director position.

$94,061 for Lutheran Social Services to support its Strengthening Families early intervention program, which teaches parents, teenagers and children skills in communication, discipline, and positive interactions.

$30,000 for the Brown County States Attorney to expand alternatives to detention programming by recruiting a family as the countys court resource home to care for and shelter some juveniles.

$29,405 for the Brown County States Attorney to support an inter-tribal cultural community center called the Wotakuye Oyate to provide restorative healing, revive cultural practices and reduce racial disparities.

$21,860 for the Boys and Girls Club of Watertown for a Codington County court resource home. A local family was licensed in 2023 to remain on-call for youth who need to be held but dont need secure detention. The family will act as liaison between the juvenile, courts, school and other community partners.

$24,956 for the Boys and Girls Club of Watertown to reduce the disparate representation of Native American youth involved in the juvenile justice system. The club plans to place some Native American youth in a healing camp, rather than in juvenile detention.

$104,566 for the Oglala Lakota Division of Behavioral Health to employ juvenile probation officers, since the tribe does not employ any officers, provide shelter care and preventative programming and connect youth to cultural resources. The tribe plans to expand diversion options for youth living off-reservation through its partnership with Bennett County.

$25,564 for the Yankton County States Attorney for a court resource home as an alternative to detention. The county is seeking a court resource home host family.

$120,000 for the Northern Hills Diversion, which serves as Teen Court for Lawrence, Meade and Butte counties, to expand diversion services, including piloting a risk assessment tool for alternatives to detention.

$90,856 for Lincoln County to improve existing diversion services and assess needs in the community.

$29,500 for the Davison County States Attorney to support court resource homes as an alternative to detention..

$31,987 for the Davison County States Attorney for equine therapy at the Reclamation Ranch, and for a partnership with a group called I.AM.LEGACY to work with and guide Indigenous youth.

Less than $20,000 for the Pennington County States Attorney to fund and expand its community court, which includes Lakota-centered cultural programs, ceremonies and case management. Council members did not say how much the award would be worth, only that it would cover juvenile-related costs.

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The post Cultural healing camps, equine therapy: Federal diversion grants for kids awarded across SD appeared first on South Dakota Searchlight.
ROGERS, Ark (KNWA/KFTA)  Its a long road to recovery for the city of Rogers and a local company is making sure the work isnt being done on an empty stomach.

Tom Allen who is the President of Cushman and Wakefield Sage Partners was at the Frisco Mall on June 12 serving lunch to victims of the tornado outbreak on Memorial Day weekend.

Cushman and Wakefield, a commercial real estate company, expressed its gratitude for having the opportunity to serve residents and businesses affected by the storm.

The team of relators served hamburgers and hot dogs to storm victims, and they even handed out goody bags.

Rogers City Council passes two resolutions aimed at storm cleanup assistance

Its our way of showing gratitude to everyone working hard to rebuild our community, Allen said. Its been great, the whole purpose of this though is to be a part of the community. There are so many people here working to help restore Rogers electricity. Repairing homes with all of the tree removal services is devastating. There are still people who are without power or just now received power. This event was for the people in our community who dont have access to lunch or food at this time, so we just want to have a small part of that relief effort.

The company president encourages people to take a break from the intense heat and to come by and grab a free meal with cold water.

The Cushman and Wakefield Sage Partners team will still serve in the community as it continues to repair from the recent storm.

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Cyprus and Greece extreme heat: What the wildfires and high temperatures could mean for your holiday

Burning sun: The east coast of Rhodes, which suffered wildfires in the summer of 2023 (Simon Calder)

As the main summer holiday season begins, the eastern Mediterranean is experiencing extreme temperatures  together with the outbreak of wildfires in western Cyprus.

High temperatures, typically reaching 43C in Cyprus, are expected to continue through the weekend.

Firefighters are struggling to respond to a blaze near the popular resort of Paphos, with high winds and tough terrain making the fire difficult to control. Specialist teams have flown in from Greece and Jordan.

Some inland villages have been evacuated and roads closed, with concern that smoke could disrupt Paphos airport  though this has not happened so far.

Further east, the Greek mainland and islands are once again experiencing extreme heat, with particular concern about the effects of high temperatures on vulnerable local residents and travellers.

Last July, around 20,000 holidaymakers were evacuated from Rhodes due to severe wildfires.

These are the key questions and answers.

What is happening?

The Department of Meteorology in Cyprus has issued an extreme maximum temperature warning for Friday 14 June 2024. It warns that the inland maximum temperature is expected to rise as high as 44C, with a temperature of 34C even in the mountains.

An orange weather warning is in place from 11am to 5pm.

The Greek Met Office has also issued an emergency weather bulletin, warning of temperatures of up to 43C in the eastern Peloponnese and up to 42C in Crete and the Dodecanese islands. Athens could reach 42C.

Is it safe to go to the region?

For most travellers who take steps to stay in the shade, avoid direct sunshine during the day, and maintain hydration, there is no particular reason not to travel.

The UK government highlights travellers who are particularly vulnerable:

older people aged over 65 years

people with underlying health conditions, particularly heart problems, breathing problems, dementia, diabetes, kidney disease, Parkinsons disease or mobility problems

people who are already ill and dehydrated (for example from stomach ailments)

Any Foreign Office warnings?

On Cyprus, the Foreign Office says: Wildfires are dangerous and unpredictable. Take care when visiting or driving through woodland areas.

For Greece, the official advice is: Be cautious if you are in or near an area affected by wildfires. You should:

follow the guidance of the emergency services

call the Greek Emergency Services on 112 if you are in immediate danger

contact your airline or travel operator who can assist you with return travel to the UK

Does that mean holidaymakers are being evacuated?

No. Exactly the opposite. At Heraklion, the main airport of Crete, dozens of planes are flying in on schedule from the UK and other western European nations on Friday.

The same applies at Paphos airport. The visitors will certainly feel the heat when they step off the aircraft, but there is no disruption at present. Roads to all the key resort locations remain open.

But parts of Cyprus are off limits?

Yes, but it is unlikely that tourists will be directly affected by the closures.

I am anxious about travelling to the region. Can I cancel without penalty?

Probably not. Under the Package Travel Regulations, holidaymakers can cancel for a refund if unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances occur at the place of destination or its immediate vicinity which significantly affect the performance of the package or the carriage of passengers to the destination.

The high temperatures and localised wildfires do not (yet) constitute unavoidable and extraordinary circumstances that could affect holidays.

Usual terms will apply: for imminent departures, cancellations are likely to result in the loss of the total cost of the holiday. It can, though, be transferred to other people for a nominal fee.

Holiday companies may also be prepared to show some flexibility, with the option to switch to destinations where they have spare capacity.

Will travel insurance help?

Possibly, if you have declared a pre-existing medical condition that would clearly be exacerbated by the unusually hot weather.

Would you travel to the region?

Yes, if I had a booking  though I prefer to visit the eastern Mediterranean in April, May, September and October.
The State Bureau of Investigation and Henderson County district attorney are weighing a possible criminal probe into a community college's suspended police training program.

Andrew Murray, district attorney for Henderson, Transylvania and Polk counties, said June 12 he was waiting for information from the SBI about Blue Ridge Community College's Basic Law Enforcement Training. The Henderson County program was halted May 8 out of concern for the health, safety and welfare of students and the public, according to the chair of the North Carolina Criminal Justice Education and Training Standards Commission.

In a June 12 text to the Citizen Times, Murray said he had not received "preliminary facts/evidence as of yet" from the SBI but expected to get them this week.

A spokesperson for the SBI had said in a June 7 message to the Citizen Times that the state agency received a request from the Henderson County Sheriffs Office about the possible need for a criminal investigation.

"We are consulting with the District Attorneys office and are awaiting their decision. We have not initiated an investigation at this time," SBI spokesperson Anjanette Grube said. Grube did not respond to June 12 messages seeking further comment.

There had been one criminal complaint in November about the program by a student who alleged he was assaulted by a trainer from the sheriff's office, but the DA and Hendersonville Police Department said the complaint was unfounded and did not press charges. The deputy is currently working and remains in good standing, Sheriff Lowell Griffin has said. There had been no other criminal allegations associated with the program.

But the training standards commission has taken administrative actions, saying there were "egregious rule violations related to the BLET Subject Control Arrest Techniques block of instruction." Commission members voted unanimously to suspend both the program and six trainers May 8, according to meeting minutes. Officials have declined to give many details about the violations or say if anyone was injured  though training standards commission Chair Chris Blue said the action was taken out of concern for the health, safety and welfare of students and the public."

Blue and others have declined to name the trainers, citing the ongoing administrative investigation. The six trainers are set to appear in August before the commission, which has the power to sanction officers up to revoking law enforcement certification.

Griffin, the Henderson County sheriff, told the Citizen Times June 5 that none of his deputies were among the six suspended trainers.

A spokesperson for Blue Ridge Community College said June 12 no one was available who could comment. The college has said it first shut down the BLET program last fall due to "concerning conditions and actions of certain instructors." It reopened the program in spring 2024 after consulting with the training standards commission. But the program was soon shuttered again, following the commission's vote.

More: Suit alleges Fletcher police, Henderson Sheriff deputies killed man by improper restraint

More: SBI: Henderson County sheriff deputy arrested, charged with felony in off-duty shooting

Joel Burgess has lived in WNC for more than 20 years, covering politics, government and other news. He's written award-winning stories on topics ranging from gerrymandering to police use of force. Got a tip? Contact Burgess at jburgess@citizentimes.com, 828-713-1095 or on Twitter @AVLreporter. Please help support this type of journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: DA, NC investigators weigh criminal probe of college police training
DA says her office cannot prosecute gunman charged with hijacking Atlanta bus, killing man on board

The Fulton County District Attorneys Office said it cannot prosecute the man accused of hijacking a bus in downtown Atlanta on Tuesday and shooting and killing someone board while putting a gun to the drivers head and making them drive across 3 counties.

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A total of 17 people were on board the bus at the time and were held hostage. According to a letter obtained by Investigative Reporter Mark Winne with Action News Jaxs sister station WSB-TV, a legal assistant from the Fulton County DAs Office was one of those passengers on the hijacked bus and was allegedly threatened by the hijacker.

Based on preliminary information that Winne has learned about the case, that person may have had a gun held to his head.

Read: The only car they took was mine: Growing number of stolen Kias and Hyundais in Jacksonville

In the letter from Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis to the Prosecuting Attorneys Council of Georgia, it said the District Attorney is conflicted because it has been determined that a victim/witness, in this case, is a current employee of the Office of the District Attorney for the Atlanta Judicial Circuit.

If the council accepts Willis recommendation, the Prosecuting Attorneys Council of Georgia will have to find and appoint a district attorney to prosecute the case.

CLICK HERE to read the full story by WSB-TV.

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On a Saturday in May, Sam Teusch said he and his wife and their four children had gone to a family favorite spot in Indianapolis, where they played ping pong and ring toss and other games together.

The next day, May 5, Teusch said they had a normal Sunday morning, with him cooking a homemade breakfast and the kids playing video games together.

When his youngest son, 10-year-old Sammy, wanted pancakes for breakfast, Teusch said he and one of his 13-year-old twin sons drove to a nearby store to pick up an ingredient they needed.

When they came home and called Sammy down for breakfast, Teusch said his and his family's lives changed forever.

Sammy, a fourth-grade student who was nearing the end of the school year, had died by suicide at home, according to Teusch.

"I wish I had said, Come on, get up and go [to the store] with me,'" Teusch told "Good Morning America" of a conversation he wishes he'd had with Sammy, adding, "There was no indication that morning that Sammy was distraught or something really bad was getting ready to happen. It just boom, happened."

Describing the aftermath as a "nightmare," Teusch continued, "I spent four or five days afterwards where I really couldnt form a sentence. I kept wanting to comfort the kids but I couldnt comfort the kids because I couldnt comfort myself."

Through his grief, Teusch said he is choosing to speak out about his son's life, as well as his death, in hopes of preventing a similar tragedy from happening to another family.

As many as 20% of students ages 12 to 18 in the United States experience bullying, according to data shared by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. And while suicide is rare in children younger than 10, it is the cause of more deaths among kids ages 10 to 24 years than any single medical illness, according to the American Academy of Pediatrics.

"I want to be the last parent crying on television," Teusch said, adding of his beloved son, "We all cherished Sammy. In a lot of ways, he was our leader."

PHOTO: Sammy Teusch is pictured with his parents, Sam and Nicole Teusch, and three siblings. (Sam Teusch)

Teusch described Sammy as a good-hearted kid who loved trying different foods and loved being outdoors, going fishing and looking at stars in the night sky.

"He was a spontaneous little kid who didnt think through every action. He would stand his ground if he believed passionately about something," Teusch said. "As a family unit, if Sammy wanted his voice heard, were listening. Hes an amazing, amazing child. Its just so hard for me right now."

'This can happen to anyone'

When it came to Sammy's mental health, Teusch said he began to notice a change when the family moved in 2022 from Florida to Indiana.

Teusch said he watched his son struggle in a new state and a new school with what he described as bullying.

"It started not long after we got here, Id say weeks. We always made sure he had the best shoes, had the best clothes ... and hes kind, so that added to Sammy," Teusch said. "Hes a good-looking kid and this to me shows that stuff can like this can happen to anyone, anyone, no matter looks, clothes, attitude, anything."

Parents whose daughter died by suicide reach $9.1M settlement with school district, lawyer says

Sammy's experience inspired Teusch to speak out about bullying and what can be done to change the ways kids and adults alike treat each other.

An online petition supported by Teusch and calling on Congress to introduce anti-bullying legislation has received over 25,000 signatures.

On June 1, less than a month after Sammy's death, The Uvalde Foundation for Kids -- a nonprofit organization formed after the 2022 mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas -- announced it would rename its national bullying prevention program in Sammy's honor.

Teusch said he wants parents, caregivers and kids alike to be aware of how bullying can deeply hurt kids, as he says he saw with Sammy.

"I hope that they understand that they don't know what kids are going through at home, they don't know what kids are going through anywhere in life," he said. "And a lot of times kids do not understand that their words can be as hurtful as they are, that their actions are what they are."

PHOTO: Sammy Teusch is pictured with his mom, Nicole, and siblings. (Sam Teusch)

Bullying, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is defined as, "any unwanted aggressive behavior(s) by another youth or group of youths, who are not siblings or current dating partners, that involves an observed or perceived power imbalance, and is repeated multiple times or is highly likely to be repeated."

The act is one that impacts youth of all ages, races and backgrounds -- whether they are bullied, bullies, or witnesses to bullying -- and the effects of it can last into adulthood, according to both the CDC and HHS.

Mom whose daughter died by suicide says parents need to talk with their kids

In recent years, other parents who lost children to suicide have also spoken out about bullying, including parents in New Jersey who started an anti-bullying nonprofit organization, Mallory's Army Foundation, after reaching a $9.1 million settlement in a wrongful-death lawsuit against the local school district following the death of their 12-year-old daughter.

"Putting an end to bullying is not something achieved by individuals operating alone, it is done by a community banding together," the foundation states on its website. "We achieve this by unifying students, teachers, kids, and adults alike, against bullying and anyone who seeks to make less of, or cause harm to others."

Advocating for change

Teusch said he too hopes to see changes from all sides of the community. He said he, as a parent, wishes he had asked more questions when Sammy expressed angst about going to school, and he wishes Sammy had more resources to turn to at school.

"I think he was angry mostly that he didnt know what to do, didnt know where to turn," Teusch said. "I do feel at fault because I didnt do more, but as parents were supposed to be able to entrust people that when your child is at school, theyre taking care of our kid."

PHOTO: Sammy Teusch died on May 5, 2024, at the age of 10. (Sam Teusch)

Greenfield Chief of Police Brian Hartman confirmed in a statement on May 31 that Sammy died by suicide, and that an investigation into his death had been completed and no charges would be filed.

"Through our investigation it is believed there was some bullying taking place in this childs life. Through our investigation the child did encounter some bullying at school, school records show these incidents were addressed," Hartman's statement read. "It was also found that bullying was taking place outside the school and sometimes in a place where the child should have felt safest."

"Bullying is an issue in our society, whether you are a child or an adult. No one is allowed to be different or have a different opinion anymore without someone somewhere being disrespectful and saying hurtful things," the statement continued, in part. "We as a community need to understand we have a problem, no matter the reason for this tragic and untimely death. We have children who feel their lives are so bad that it is not worth living. We need to come together and give these children a life worth living."

The Greenfield-Central School Corporation, the public school district that Sammy attended in Greenfield, Indiana, did not respond to ABC News' request for comment.

The district issued a statement on its website after the findings of the police investigation were released, saying, in part, "We have reviewed GPDs statement, whose findings are consistent with the information gleaned from Greenfield-Centrals internal investigation.

"Aside from directory information, student records are protected by the Family Educational Rights to Privacy Act (FERPA). Therefore, we cannot address many of the specific items related to this matter," the statement continued. "Greenfield-Central takes all bullying concerns very seriously. We have provided and will continue to provide a safe environment for students in our schools."

Teusch said he and his family have vowed to make sure Sammy's name and legacy live on to help other people.

"My situation will never be fixed. Sammy is gone. He's not going to be here tonight when I go to sleep. He's not going to be here when I wake up in the morning," Teusch said. "But how many people can we reach to fix their problem and to help them become productive members of society."

If you or someone you know are experiencing suicidal, substance use or other mental health crises please call or text 988. You will reach a trained crisis counselor for free, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can also go to 988lifeline.org.

Dad speaks out on bullying after 10-year-old son dies by suicide originally appeared on goodmorningamerica.com
Pictured is the entrance to St. Mary's Home for Children in North Providence in April 2024. (Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current)

The Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) has decided to hold off on additional construction at the embattled St. Marys Home for Children in North Providence.

A construction contract for a new building with 12 beds on St. Marys campus was approved in February 2023 and enjoyed the support of lawmakers, DCYF and Gov. Dan McKee, all of whom pointed to the need for more facilities that can provide intensive psychiatric care for the states youth, especially adolescent girls and transgender kids.

But Kerri White, a spokesperson for the Executive Office of Health and Human Services, said via email late Thursday afternoon that DCYF has asked the Division of Purchases at the Department of Administration to pause the contract.

This is a pause in construction, not a termination, White wrote. The reason for the pause is that DCYF is waiting for additional leadership and organizational decisions to be made by St. Marys and Tides Family Services.

The nonprofit Tides Family Services provides services in youth and families homes and schools around Rhode Island. In a joint announcement on May 8, the two organizations revealed Tides Family Services was taking over the management of residential clinical services at St. Marys, which was the subject of a scathing report from the Office of the Child Advocate highlighting abuse, neglect and misconduct there. The report made public in January led to a number of sanctions from DCYF and the Rhode Island Department of Health. It also generated numerous discussions at the State House over whether the construction, tentatively priced at $11 million and funded by pandemic dollars, should continue.

DCYF manages child protective services as well as the foster care system in Rhode Island. It can also coordinate behavioral health services, like residential treatment at St. Marys, for children not in state custody. Thats partially due to a Medicaid extension the state filed in 2018, one which allows kids otherwise ineligible for Medicaid to receive treatment in a psychiatric residential treatment facility, or PRTF  a federally regulated form of intensive, residential psychiatric treatment for people under age 21. The extension does not require parents to give up custody to DCYF.

The discovery of contaminated soil at the Fruit Hill Avenue site had already delayed construction earlier this year. During a March hearing before the Senate Committee on Finance, DCYF Director Ashley Deckert expressed hope that the new facility could begin taking patients as early as April 2025.

Deckert also underlined the need for the facility at a House Oversight Committee hearing in January, shortly after the release of the child advocates report. We cant lose this capacity. So its almost like a too big to fail sort of situation, she said then.

Katelyn Medeiros, who leads the Office of the Child Advocate, which completed the report on St. Marys last December, was recently confirmed by the Senate as the states permanent child advocate after serving as the interim leader for two years. In a May 23 committee hearing before her final confirmation, senators were curious about the ongoing St. Marys situation. What was she going to do about it?

I am hopeful that we are going to see an improvement at this facility, Medeiros told senators. But right now, Ill say my sole focus is the safety and well being of the children that are still placed there.

That also seems to be the focus of DCYF and the office of human services.

At this point, our focus is on supporting St. Marys and Tides collaboration efforts, White said. We will continue to monitor the situation before we determine when construction will start.

St. Marys announced last month that the children currently residing there would be placed elsewhere. That leaves another gap in the states array of psychiatric residential treatment and other intensive behavioral care services. The lack of services was the subject of an investigation by U.S. District Attorney Zacahry Cunha, who released a report last month documenting overhospitalization practices at Bradley Hospital, another provider of intensive psychiatric services for youth.

The post DCYF pauses St. Marys Home expansion pending reorganization appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
FILE - The Cinderella Castle is seen at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, July 14, 2023, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Months after Disney and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' appointees agreed to end a protracted legal fight, the two sides are set to approve an agreement Wednesday, June 5, 2024, that could result in the company investing $17 billion into its Florida resort and opens the door to a fifth major theme park at Walt Disney World. (AP Photo/John Raoux, File)

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP)  Disney asked a federal appellate court to dismiss its lawsuit against Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Thursday, a day after his appointees approved a deal with the company on how Walt Disney World will be developed over the next two decades, ending the last piece of conflict between the two sides.

The request came as little surprise because the federal lawsuits future was contingent on whether a development agreement could be reached between Disney and the DeSantis appointees to the board of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District that governs Disney World, according to a settlement reached in March.

The development deal was approved Wednesday night by the DeSantis appointees. Disney was facing a deadline next week to a file a brief with the court if it wanted to move ahead with the lawsuit against DeSantis and his appointees.

As part of the 15-year deal, Disney agreed to invest $17 billion into Disney World over the next two decades and the district committed to making infrastructure improvement on the theme park resort's property. The district provides municipal services such as firefighting, planning and mosquito control, among other things, and was controlled by Disney supporters before last year's takeover by the DeSantis appointees.

This new development agreement paves the way for us to invest billions of dollars in Walt Disney World Resort, supporting the growth of this global destination, fueling the Florida economy, and allowing us to deliver even more memorable and extraordinary experiences for our guests, said Jeff Vahle, president of Walt Disney World Resort.

Under the terms of the deal, Disney is approved to build a fifth major theme park at Disney World and two more minor parks, such as water parks, if it desires. The company can also raise the number of hotel rooms on its property from almost 40,000 rooms to more than 53,000 rooms and increase the amount of retail and restaurant space by more than 20%. Disney will retain control of building heights so it can maintain an immersive environment.

In exchange, Disney will donate up to 100 acres (40 hectares) of Disney Worlds 24,000 acres (9,700 hectares) for the construction of infrastructure projects controlled by the district. The company also will need to award at least half of its construction projects to companies based in Florida and spend at least $10 million on affordable housing for central Florida.

A DeSantis spokesman said the governor was pleased that an agreement had been reached.

This agreement is a big win for central Florida and will lead to numerous jobs and improved guest experiences, said Bryan Griffin, communications director for the governors office.

The agreement followed a detente in March in which both sides agreed to stop litigating each other in state court and work toward negotiating a new development agreement and a new comprehensive plan no later than next year.

The March settlement ended almost two years of litigation sparked by DeSantis takeover of the district after the companys opposition to a 2022 law that bans classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades. The law was championed by the Republican governor, who used Disney as a punching bag in speeches during his run for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination until he suspended his campaign earlier this year.

As punishment for Disneys opposition to the controversial law, DeSantis took over the governing district through legislation passed by the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature and appointed a new board of supervisors. Disney sued DeSantis and his appointees, claiming the companys free speech rights were violated for speaking out against the legislation. A federal judge dismissed that lawsuit in January, but Disney appealed.

Before control of the district changed hands early last year, the Disney supporters on its board signed agreements with the company shifting control over design and construction at Disney World to the company. The new DeSantis appointees claimed the eleventh-hour deals neutered their powers, and the district sued the company in state court in Orlando to have the contracts voided.

Disney filed counterclaims that included asking the state court to declare the agreements valid and enforceable. Those state court lawsuits were dismissed as part of the March settlement.

___

Follow Mike Schneider on the social platform X: @MikeSchneiderAP.
Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. Fu Bao, the first giant panda born in the Republic of Korea, met the public on Wednesday morning after returning to southwest China's Sichuan Province, the hometown of pandas. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

CHENGDU, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Fu Bao, the first giant panda born in the Republic of Korea (ROK), met the public on Wednesday morning after returning to southwest China's Sichuan Province, the hometown of pandas.

Dozens of visitors and international media waited for the panda star, before Fu Bao walked into the yard of her enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve at 9:35 a.m., following two months of inspection, quarantine and adaptation.

She paced slowly, sniffing and looking around curiously. After exploring her yard, she found the food prepared for her in the playground, where she indulged herself in a feast of bamboo shoots.

According to Cheng Jianbin, Fu Bao's breeder, the panda was fed with 30 to 40 kilograms of bamboo every day, as well as five to 10 kilograms of bamboo shoots. Veterinarians and breeders monitor her meal amount, defecation and mental state to ensure the bear lives a comfortable life.

Li Desheng, deputy director of the China Conservation and Research Center for the Giant Panda, said that Fu Bao's weight was a proof of her quick adaptation to the new environment. "It has been between 103 and 106 kilograms during the past two months," he said. "It is about the same as her weight in ROK, and within the normal range of pandas in this age group."

Fu Bao returned to China in early April. Wei Rongping from the Shenshuping base noted that the biggest challenge for her was how to fit into the "panda family" there.

"During the transitional period, Fu Bao could interact and get acquainted with her pals through odor and sound, or visit her neighbors, so as to adapt to the new environment quickly," said Cheng.

Starting from Wednesday, a flow restriction is implemented in accordance with the number of visitors to ensure the normal order around Fu Bao's enclosure, with visit time limited to five minutes per round.

Born in July 2020, Fu Bao, meaning "lucky treasure" in English, is the first cub of giant pandas Ai Bao and Le Bao, who were sent to ROK from China in 2016 on a 15-year lease. She quickly became an online sensation among netizens in ROK after her birth, becoming a source of joy for people during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao looks at food dropped to the ground while dining at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is about to exit the inner compartment of its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

This combo photo taken on June 12, 2024 shows giant panda Fu Bao wallowing at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao is seen at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Giant panda Fu Bao dines at its enclosure in the Shenshuping giant panda base of Wolong National Nature Reserve in southwest China's Sichuan Province, June 12, 2024. (Xinhua/Shen Bohan)

Editor: ZAD
Electric powered heat pumps can reduce the nations heavy reliance on oil and gas for home heating. (Oregon Department of Energy)

Environmental advocates celebrated as the Rhode Island Senate passed long-awaited legislation Wednesday laying a framework to reduce carbon emissions from buildings, and requiring new construction be electric ready for future heat pump conversion.

But victory was bittersweet; an hour before, a House panel advanced a watered-down substitute for its companion legislation.

The original companion bills, sponsored by Sen. Meghan Kallman, a Pawtucket Democrat, and Rep. Rebecca Kislak, a Providence Democrat, aim to bring the state building sector up-to-speed with decarbonization mandates under the state Act on Climate law passed in 2021.

Deadlines for incremental emissions cuts under state law are fast-approaching, including a 2030 benchmark to reduce emissions by 45% compared with the 1990 baseline. And preliminary modeling suggests the state might miss its 2030 target.

Which is why including the Environmental Council of Rhode Island named the building decarbonization bill as one of its top priorities for the year. As first proposed, the bill would charge the states Executive Climate Change Coordinating Council with gathering data on energy use for every building above a certain square footage in the state. The information would be used to set baseline energy usage benchmarks and eventually, new metrics to help the state achieve its climate change mandates. Revised legislation also requires new construction to be electric-ready, meaning having the wiring to allow for conversion to electric heat pumps down the line.

You cant reduce what you dont measure, Amanda Barker, co-vice president of policy for the Environmental Council of RI, said in an interview on Wednesday. We think this a huge step in decarbonizing existing building stock, which is where most emissions are coming from.

State senators heaped praise upon the legislation as a symbol of commitment to decarbonization, backing Kallmans bill in a 30-6 vote along party lines. But minutes before the Senate issued its stamp of approval, the House got cold feet.

Instead, lawmakers in the House Committee on Environment and Natural Resources advanced a significantly stripped down version of the legislation.

The committees unanimous vote substitutes the original bill with a resolution requesting the EC4 gather data and issue a report to lawmakers in February 2025 with a small fraction of the original information on building energy use.

The House resolution does not require Senate approval. Nor does it advance the original bill backed by the Senate, effectively killing the proposal despite strong Senate support.

Kislak in an interview prior to the committee vote blamed late-in-the-game opposition, including from state administrators, for taking the teeth out of her initial legislation.

Theres nothing like a deadline to focus on folks on bills that look like theyre moving, Kislak said. I am confident that given a little more time, we could have been able to figure something out to address the concerns.

However, Kislak didnt see the weakened resolution as a total defeat.

Were not doing nothing, she said.

She also hoped a new Providence City Council ordinance laying out a path to carbon-neutral municipal buildings by 2040 would serve as a model for statewide action.

But with the clock ticking down on the 2030 deadline, will that be too late?

We dont have time to mess around, Kallman said. Its going to be much more expensive and much more painful to do these things as retrofits, than it is to give ourselves a longer runway.

Kislaks counter perspective: Its all too late, and yet, we have to do what we can within the parameters we have.

Three more bills to watch on the 2024 green list

CRMC reform: Never say never, but Attorney General-backed legislation abolishing the politically appointed-council and replacing it with an administrative agency akin to DEM remains lingering in committee with no plans to advance to the floor as of Wednesday. Disappointment, was the single-word summation from Rep. Terri Corvriend, a Portsmouth Democrat and bill sponsor.

Bottle bill: A late-in-session bottle bill sponsored by Rep. Carol McEntee, a South Kingstown Democrat, also looks bound to die in legislative purgatory following a committee hearing on June 5. But the 15-member legislative panel tasked with studying the issue is getting more time, and more members, to continue its work, with a 10-month extension approved by the House on Tuesday and headed to the Senate Thursday.

Shoreline access: A year after the state enacted long-awaited protections for public shoreline access, lawmakers approved supplemental legislation requiring that oceanfront property sales include information about the state shoreline access law and coastal permitting requirements. The companion bills, sponsored by Cortvriend and Sen. Victoria Gu, a Westerly Democrat, await signage by Gov. Dan McKee following passage in both chambers on June 6.

The post Decarbonization bill hangs in the balance appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
DECATUR, Ill. (WCIA)  A Decatur man who was shot while attacking police officers with a knife last year has been sentenced to 14 years in prison.

Steven Hirstein, 44, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to one count of armed violence in connection to that incident, which started with a domestic violence situation on March 30, 2023. Hirstein was accused of stabbing and slashing his girlfriend with a knife and threatening her child. His girlfriend survived her injuries.

They can become violent very quick: Decaturs Police Chief explains details behind stabbing, officer-involved shooting

When police officers were made aware and responded to the home, Hirstein barricaded himself in a bathroom. Body camera footage showed five officers surrounding the bathroom, demanding that Hirstein come out with his hands up.

The footage showed that instead of coming out as officers instructed, Hirstein broke the door off its hinges and threw a knife at the officers. It missed hitting them, but officers saw he had a second knife. In response, Officers Dawson Roberts and Joseph Oberheim opened fire; Hirstein was shot in both hands and above his right elbow.

Of course its triggering: Chris Oberheims brother in Decatur officer-involved shooting

After investigation by the Illinois State Police, the shooting was found to be justified by both the Macon County States Attorney and Decatur Police Chief Shane Brandel. They determined that Roberts and Oberheim acted in accordance with Illinois law and Decatur Police Department policies in response to Hirsteins actions.

In exchange for pleading guilty to armed violence, prosecutors dropped all other charges against Hirstein, which included attempted murder, aggravated domestic battery, domestic battery and criminal damage to property.

Hirstein is eligible to be released after serving half his sentence. When he gets out of prison, he will have to serve a further 18 months on parole.

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 WCIA.com.
Decorated Army officer from New York comes out as gay in obituary: Ill forever rest in peace

After a lifetime of secrecy, a decorated Army veteran from New York has come out as gay in his obituary.

In a final message to the world, Col. Edward Thomas Ryan of Albany, 85, said he had always known his sexual orientation but was afraid of being ostracized.

I must tell you one more thing. I was Gay all my life: thru grade school, thru High School, thru College, thru Life, Ryans last words stated in the obituary that family members say he penned himself before he succumbed to cancer.

Col. Edward Thomas Ryan wrote his own obituary in which he came out as gay after living 85 years in secrecy. Hans Funeral Home

Despite keeping his sexuality under wraps, Ryan revealed he was still lucky to enjoy a 25-year loving and caring relationship with a man named Paul Cavagnaro  whom he described as the love of my life.

According to the Vietnam War veterans nephew, Joseph Ryan, the couples relationship was something of an open secret in the family.

He was a private person, Joseph Ryan, 68, of Rensselaer, told The Post.

They would go on vacation. Once he did retire, he would take a month off, and they would just put down where they wanted to go, any place in the world, he added.

So, we kind of knew, but he wasnt one that would come right out and say anything  Our family isnt one that tries to say anything about people.

Col. Ryan was a private person, his nephew told The Post. Legacy via Tina McCarthy

Col. Ryan  who was awarded several prestigious medals throughout his military career  was mainly fearful of being shunned by his Army colleagues.

For most of the brave soldiers career, same-sex relations were grounds for discharge, even being explicitly banned from 1982 until 1994, when the Clinton administration enacted the controversial Dont Ask, Dont Tell policy.

Even after retiring within the last decade, Ryan was scared he would be court-martialed for being an openly gay man, his nephew said  a decision the decorated veteran came to regret in death.

Im sorry for not having the courage to come out as Gay. I was afraid of being ostracized: by Family, Friends, and Co-Workers. Seeing how people like me were treated, I just could not do it, Col. Ryan wrote in his obituary.

He was quiet, but he was bold, Joseph Ryan said of his uncle. Legacy via Tina McCarthy

Now that my secret is known, Ill forever Rest in Peace.

After succumbing to his battle with intestinal cancer  possibly contracted from his proximity to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War  Col. Ryan donated his body to the Anatomical Gift Program at Albany Medical College.

After students are done using his cadaver, his body will be cremated and buried alongside Cavagnaro, who died in 1994 from a medical procedure gone wrong.

When asked whether his uncles final message to the world was shocking to his family, Joseph Ryan said it was a long time coming.

Ryan succumbed to intestinal cancer  possibly contracted from his proximity to Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. Legacy via Tina McCarthy

He was quiet, but he was bold. Its been inside him all this time, Joseph Ryan said, noting that the significance of his uncles coming out occurring during Pride Month is not lost on the family.

After serving in the Armys 10th Brigade, Col. Ryan stayed on in the military branch as the chef at East Greenbush American Legion Post #1231.

He also worked as a fireman in his lifelong hometown of Rensselaer  where his family history dates back some 200 years  and helped found the radio station WHRL-FM in Albany.

His military service led to a litany of honors, including the National Defense Service Medal and the Defense of Liberty Medal for participation to the State following the attack on America, 11 September 2001.

More importantly, Col. Ryans loss has already left a considerable hole in his family.

He was always cheerful, Joseph Ryan recalled.

He always showed up at family events, and he always brought trays of food so everybody was fed well. He always sent his sisters and family flowers and stuff for birthdays, holidays. He never forgot anybodys birthday.
Decorated US Army veteran Colonel Edward Thomas Ryan waited until after he was gone to reveal a lifelong secret.

I must tell you one more thing. I was Gay all my life: thru grade school, thru High School, thru College, thru Life, the New York-based retired army veteran revealed in his June 8 obituary, which appeared in The Times Union.

I was in a loving and caring relationship with Paul Cavagnaro of North Greenbush. He was the love of my life, Ryan wrote. We had 25 great years together. Paul died in 1994 from a medical procedure gone wrong. Ill be buried next to Paul.

Im sorry for not having the courage to come out as Gay. I was afraid of being ostracized: by Family, Friends, and Co-Workers. Seeing how people like me were treated, I just could not do it. Now that my secret is known, Ill forever Rest in Peace.

The message was written in Ryans own words. Despite harboring this secret, Ryans obituary depicts a well-documented 85-year life, not one lived in the shadows.

Known as Uncle Ed, he was a Vietnam War veteran, a Rensselaer fireman, the founder of an Albany radio station WHRL-FM, and a chef at the East Greenbush, American Legion Post #1231.

The late colonel was decorated with prestigious awards, including the National Defense Service Medal and Defense of Liberty Medal For participation to the State following the attack on America, 11 September 2001.

Ryan leaves behind five siblings and more than a dozen nieces and nephews. His body will be cremated and his ashes returned to Kinderhook, New York, where he will be buried, the obituary states. There will be a private funeral, only with family.

Many people commented on the online obituary, remarking that they were touched by Ryans lifelong profile of bravery, including his final message.

Rest in Peace. You are a brave man on so many levels. Thank you for your service and Thank You for your Courage, one person wrote.

Another remarked, Condolences to your Family, Col. Edward Ryan. Thank you for your amazing service to your Country. Rest In Peace with your beloved lifelong partner in heavenly peace.

This brought tears to my eyes. Everyone deserves the right to live a life they choose, and to think that some people are denied this is tragic, another said. Sir, you were a brave man and thank you for your service to this country. RIP forever with your beloved Mr Cavagnaro.

Your story touched me deeply. I am so sorry that we live in such a judgmental world that you had to hide who you were and who you loved. But I am so glad that you got to experience a loving relationship for 25 years--not many people get that, gay or straight, yet another wrote. I hope theres a way for you to know that sharing your story--no matter when you did it--will be helpful to others. Thank you for all your service.
Three people at the center of a commercial sex ring in Massachusetts and Virginia that authorities said catered to wealthy and well-connected clientele are seeking plea agreements, court filings show.

Authorities in November arrested Han Hana Lee, 41, of Cambridge; James Lee, 68, of Torrance, California, and Junmyung Lee, 30, of Dedham, who are all accused of running a sophisticated commercial sex network in Watertown, Cambridge, and in Virginia, where buyers paid up to $600 per hour for a wide array of advertised sex acts.

All three were indicted by a federal grand jury on one count of conspiracy to persuade, induce, entice, and coerce one or more individuals to travel in interstate or foreign commerce to engage in prostitution; and one count of money laundering conspiracy.

The parties have engaged in plea discussions, U.S. Magistrate Judge David Hennessy wrote in a report filed Monday in U.S. District Court in Boston.

All three defendants were arraigned in person on Feb. 6. Since then, Hennessy wrote, federal prosecutors produced discovery on March 5 and May 30, 2024 that is described as voluminous and intends to produce further discovery, such as forensic searches of some electronic devices not already completed, as such discovery becomes available.

A trial of all three defendants would require up to 10 days, wrote Hennessy. A status conference is scheduled for July 18 in Worcester.

Attorneys for the alleged sex ring clients, only identified as John Doe #1-17 to date in court documents, have pushed to keep the court hearings private.

Elected officials, doctors, lawyers, professors, accountants, and military officers were reportedly among a group of high-end clients who paid for the illegal sex services at various locations in the Bay State and in Virginia.

A Cambridge police detective on Dec. 18, 2023 filed applications for criminal complaint against 28 people for sexual conduct with another person for a fee.

No names on the client list will be released until probable cause has been found, officials have said.

It was unclear Thursday when, or if, public court hearings would be held.

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.

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BARNSTABLE  A former Cape Cod priest accused of rape did not take the stand before his attorneys rested their case in Barnstable Superior Court on Thursday morning.

Mark Hession served as the parish priest of Our Lady of Victory in Centerville from 2000 to 2014. He is on trial for two counts of rape alleged to have happened between 2005 and 2009 and one count of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14 alleged to have happened sometime in 2002. A count of intimidating a witness was dropped.

He pleaded not guilty to the charges in January of 2021.

Closing statements from attorneys on both sides were expected to be delivered on Friday morning. Judge Mark C. Gildea instructs the jury about the specific laws that apply to the case before they enter into deliberations to reach a verdict.

Defendant Mark Hession, left, and his attorney Paolo Corso listen to defense attorney Frank Corso question a witness Thursday. Testimony continued in the Mark Hession trial in Barnstable Superior Court on Thursday. The former priest faces two counts of rape and one count of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14.

Frank Corso, one of Hession's two defense attorneys, declined to comment while leaving the courthouse.

Testimony for the defense

On Thursday, four witnesses who all worked at the church in various roles each testified for the defense that they never saw Hession sexually abuse or inappropriately interact with the accuser.

"Absolutely not," said John Murray, a Catholic priest on Nantucket who was in residence at Our Lady of Victory while chaplain at Cape Cod Hospital from 2003 to 2005, when asked if his friendship with Hession would interfere with his duty to report any improper behavior.

John Murray, a Catholic priest on Nantucket, is sworn in to testify Thursday. He was one of four witnesses who testified for the defense. He said he was in residence at Our Lady of Victory while chaplain at Cape Cod Hospital from 2003 to 2005.

Prosecutor cross-examines witnesses

Cape and Islands Assistant District Attorney Alexandra Halprin Isaacs pointed out some of the witnesses did not know the accuser or did not see Hession in the church often due to conflicting schedules.

For instance, Isaacs said Dariusz Kalinowski, who was a priest at the church from 2005 to 2007, did not know the accuser, was unaware the accuser worked at the church, and was not interviewed by police.

"You don't really have anything to say, no offense," said Isaacs to Kalinowski.

Father Dariusz Kalinowski testifies Thursday morning. He said he was a priest at Our Lady of Victory from 2005 to 2007 and did not know the accuser.

On Tuesday, the accuser, a now 36-year-old man, took the stand to testify that Hession had sexually abused him as a young boy. The man also testified that Hession had raped him, saying he received and performed oral sex without consent.

The Times does not identify an accuser unless that person has given permission to be identified.

As the prosecution laid out its case, Isaacs also called the accuser's ex-wife, grandmother, and Barnstable Police Detective Meaghan Cunningham to the stand.

Who is Mark Hession?

Hession was ordained in 1984. In 2009, he delivered the homily at the funeral for U.S. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy in Boston.

Hession served at 12 different institutions in the Cape Cod and Fall River areas.

On the Cape, besides Our Lady of Victory, Hession served at Our Lady of the Assumption in Osterville; St. Joan of Arc church in Orleans; and St. Patrick church in Falmouth, according to the Diocese of Fall River.

Off-Cape, he served at St. Patrick Parish in Wareham; Holy Name Church and Holy Rosary Chapel, both in Fall River; St. Marys Parish in New Bedford; Charlton Memorial Hospital in Fall River; St. Joseph Church in Taunton; Our Lady of Mt. Carmel in Seekonk; and Holy Family parish in East Taunton.

He has been suspended from "active priestly ministry" by the Diocese of Fall River since 2019. That move came after parishioners of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Seekonk complained that he had sent inappropriate communications, according to previous reporting by the Times.

The diocese said then in a statement that Hession was placed on leave because of conduct inconsistent with standards of ministerial behavior and in direct violation of the Code of Conduct for priests."

Zane Razzaq writes about housing and real estate. Reach her at zrazzaq@capecodonline.com. Follow her on X @zanerazz.

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Former Cape priest rape trial: Here's what happened in court Thursday
The House Appropriations Committee on Thursday advanced its fiscal 2025 defense spending bill while adding a provision that would eliminate the militarys makeshift pier off the coast of the Gaza Strip, which has struggled to deliver an adequate level of humanitarian aid to Palestinians facing famine-like conditions.

The committee voted 34-25 along party lines to send the $833 billion bill to the House floor with Democrats objecting to the provision that would shut down the pier, which will cost anywhere between $230 and $320 million according to Pentagon estimates.

The amendment from Rep. Andrew Clyde, R-Ga., bans the Defense Department from building or maintaining a pier or Joint-Logistics-Over-the-Shore capabilities in the vicinity of Gaza.

The pier has been plagued by prolonged delays, hijacked humanitarian aid, additional costs and debilitating damages, Clyde said ahead of the vote. President [Joe] Bidens Gaza pier has been a total failure. Its not provided anywhere near the expected amount of aid to the Palestinians as promised by this administration.

The Appropriations Committee adopted Clydes amendment by voice vote over objections from Democrats, who also opposed the final bill due to a series of socially conservative policy riders and a lack of Ukraine aid.

Rep. Betty McCollum of Minnesota, the top Democrat on the committee, noted that the Defense Department does not intend to continue its Gaza pier operation through FY25, which begins in October.

A month ago, the head of the United Nations World Food Program announced that northern Gaza has entered a full-blown famine, said McCollum. This operation is only for a limited period of time and it ends in August when the weather and the seas will make it untenable to continue.

Democrats on the Appropriations Committee also criticized a provision in the defense spending bill that bans funding for United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East. Another provision in the bill would prevent the president from withholding weapons deliveries to Israel and force the Pentagon to deliver the single shipment of roughly 3,500 air-to-ground munitions that Biden withheld in April.

Lawmakers on Wednesday also added two other amendments defunding the Gaza pier to the FY25 defense policy bill, separate legislation that the full House is expected to vote on Friday. The House adopted the provisions from Republican Reps. Nancy Mace of South Carolina and Warren Davidson of Ohio as part of a bipartisan package of amendments that both parties agreed to by voice vote.

The House on Wednesday added another amendment to the defense policy bill by voice vote that would bar the Defense Department from using funds to rebuild Gaza, though theres no money allocated to do so in the defense spending bill. Lawmakers adopted the amendment from from Rep. Brian Mast, R-Fla., by voice vote over Democratic objections.

The House narrowly passed another Mast amendment 204-199 that would bar the Pentagon from evacuating Palestinian refugees to the United States, though the Defense Department has no plans to undertake such an operation.

Biden announced the pier to deliver aid to Gaza during his State of the Union address in March because of Israels ongoing restrictions on food, water, fuel and medicine deliveries through the land crossings. The pier sits on the coast at the end of the Israeli militarys Netzarim Corridor, which now divides the Gaza Strip in two.

Twenty aid agencies warned in May that deliveries from the pier have been inadequate to compensate for the low level of assistance through land crossings. And the UN World Food Program recently paused distribution of aid from the pier, citing safety concerns for its staff after rocket attacks on its warehouses.

Additionally, three U.S. troops sustained noncombat injuries in May while setting up the pier. Shortly thereafter, adverse weather conditions tore the pier apart and forced the military to repair it.
George Latimer, the Westchester County politician who has launched a primary challenge against incumbent Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., would like to talk about anything but a Facebook post he made in 2021 that compared the fallout over then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo's sexual harassment scandal to the 1955 lynching of Emmett Till, a Black teenager from Mississippi.

But on Wednesday, Latimer, already dogged by allegations of racist campaign tactics, was confronted about the post by a caller named Becky on the Brian Lehrer Show.

"When Andrew Cuomo was facing his reckoning for sexually harassing women, and you came to his defense, you had the audacity to compare what Cuomo was experiencing to the lynching of Emmett Till, a 14-year-old child who was mutilated, murdered, and lynched," the caller said. "I'd like for you to respond to that."

In the 2021 post, Latimer wrote in response to allegations that then-Gov. Cuomo sexually harassed multiple women: "In our world, no matter how heinous the crime committed, we presume innocence until guilt is proven. That standard when we adhere to it, protects you and me. When it is not adhered to, when a mob hangs Emmett Till, the quote, 'justice turns out to be a crime itself.'"

On Wednesday, Latimer responded to the question about the post by trumpeting his support among Black leaders.

"What I can tell you is, is that the Mount Vernon Democratic Committee, which is 85% African American, endorsed me unanimously for this position," Latimer said. "I have the support of African-American county legislators, African-American elected officials throughout the county."

Latimer went on to suggest he was being targeted because of the color of his skin, arguing it was not right to say that "you cannot be in office unless you have my identity," prompting an interjection from Lehrer, who noted that the caller did not actually say that.

When Lehrer tried to bring the conversation back to the Facebook post, Latimer responded that he had already deleted it, grudgingly admitting that it was a "foolish set of words" and that it was "hurtful to some people." Lehrer, saying that people deserved to know what the post said, then read it out loud.

Latimer finished the exchange by reiterating his position that Cuomo should not have been asked to resign before a full report on the allegations against him was completed by Attorney General Letitia James. In August 2021, James issued that report, finding that Cuomo had sexually harassed multiple staffers and government workers. Latimer at that point joined other elected officials in calling for Cuomo's resignation, which was tendered by the end of the month (Cuomo still denies he did anything wrong).

Latimer, a staunch Israel supporter who is backed by millions of dollars from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, leads Bowman in polls heading into the June 25 primary election. Bowman, a critic of Israel, has also been involved in recent controversies, such as setting off a fire alarm that disrupted a congressional vote. The Daily Beast also reported that Bowman promoted conspiracy theories about 9/11 on his personal blog back when he was a middle school principal.

Latimer's primary challenge has won the support of many prominent Democrats, including Rep. Eliot Engel, who Bowman defeated in 2020, and Hillary Clinton, as well as former Rep. Mondaire Jones. Bowman can count on the support of House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries and many progressives, including the Working Families Party, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.
A growing number of President Joe Biden's allies in Congress, including the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee, are urging the administration to permit Ukraine to strike even deeper inside Russian territory using U.S.-supplied weapons.

The shift comes after Biden told Ukraine last month it may use U.S.-provided weapons, but only near Kharkiv and only against attacking Russian forces. Ukraine cannot use those weapons to hit civilian infrastructure or launch long-range missiles to strike military targets deeper inside Russia.

But lawmakers say Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy told them in recent meetings in Singapore and France that the new permissions are too narrow for him to effectively defend Kharkiv  and that he wants to strike more of the Russian military targets bombarding his people and forces. Moscow has stepped up its offensive against Ukraines second-largest city, which is just 12 miles from the Russian border.

Its the latest case of Biden feeling pressure from within his own party to move a red line in U.S. support for Ukraine, as he has done for long-range missiles, tanks and fighter jets, while he weighs fears about escalating the war.



A top Biden ally, Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) said he is pressing Zelenskyys case with the White House.

I respect the presidents concerns and the concerns of many about how deep into Russia to facilitate strikes, but I think Zelenskyys made reasonable requests and we ought to pursue them, Coons said.

The administration should permit Ukraine to launch counterstrikes against Russian artillery and missiles striking from within Russia within a range of north of Ukraine, he said in an interview.

House Foreign Affairs Committee ranking member Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), and Sen. Richard Blumenthal said after meeting with Zelenskyy last week during the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion in Normandy that theyve changed their minds and feel as Coons does.

I think that Ukraine should be able to fire back wherever they see Russia firing from  and preparing to fire, Meeks said.

Thats because the long delay by the U.S. Congress in approving military aid for Ukraine allowed Russian President Vladimir Putin to inflict more suffering and weakened the prospects of repelling the 2-year-old invasion.

Had we given them the money in the first place we wouldnt be where we are right now  so were playing catch up, Meeks said. Because the Ukrainians couldnt fire on certain positions so [Russian forces] got established so that they could fire more at the Ukrainians. Now I am trying to catch up for the lack of funding because we couldnt pass the supplemental.

An obstacle may be in achieving unanimity among allies, which is a prerequisite for the Biden administration, Meeks said. He said he learned in Normandy that French President Emmanuel Macron is on board with the idea of allowing donated weapons to strike Russia, but not all countries are.

The first thing is making sure all of our allies are on the same page, to keep us together, so nobody can say youre escalating  and youre not escalating if youre firing where theyre firing from, Meeks said.

In Europe, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg is pushing allies to agree.

Different allies have different types of restrictions on the use of the weapons but I would like to welcome that allies have reduced or loosened the restrictions on the use of weapons  inside Russia, because we have to understand what this is: this is a war of aggression, he said at a regular meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in Brussels on Thursday. According to international law, Ukraine has the right for self-defense, and the right to self-defense includes also striking legitimate military targets on the territory of the aggressor Russia.

Though the White House has taken a series of steps to aid Ukraine it was previously unwilling to take, such as sending cluster bombs, F-16 jets and longer-range missiles, no move to expand permissions for Ukraine is imminent, a senior DOD official said Thursday

So there's always a constant conversation and reassessment of what the right answer is, and I think that's healthy, said the official, who was granted anonymity to discuss internal deliberations. So never say never, but I don't ... see anything impending."

Yet Meeks is seeing a shift in thinking among congressional Democrats. Some of his colleagues are telling him in off-record conversations they are now convinced Ukraine should have even broader permission to strike in Russia.

Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) said he believes most House Democrats support relaxing the limits on where Kyiv can fire U.S.-made weapons. Its a position in line with the House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Rep. Michael McCaul (R-Texas), who urged Biden last week to let Ukraine strike Russia using longer-range missiles.

This is a war to be won, not just managed nicely, Connolly said. I think that would be the position of most Democrats upon reflection  most members probably dont know or didnt know that there were these restraints.

In particular, several Democrats said that Ukraine needs to be able to strike strategically important targets inside Russia.

We dont want them attacking the Kremlin, but if legitimate military targets are hiding in Russia or hiding behind the Russian border so that theyre untouchable  that makes no sense, Connolly said. Thats keeping Ukraine in a straitjacket, and we need to remove that straitjacket.

Blumenthal said he had urged the administration for at least a year to grant Ukraine long-range artillery to strike inside Russian-occupied Ukraine. Now he is pressing the Biden administration at the highest levels to grant Ukraine broader permission to strike more targets inside Russia itself because he feels the circumstances have changed, he said in an interview.

First, Ukraine is seeking to withstand a much more deliberate and aggressive attack from Russia, an offensive that is going on right now and needs to be defeated, he said. Equally important, Putin has shown he isnt going to escalate with tactical nuclear weapons unless we do something radically different. If the long-range artillery were used against Moscow or St. Petersburg thats a different use than against supply depots and behind the current Russian lines.

Senate Armed Services Committee Chair Jack Reed (D-R.I.), who also met with Zelenskyy in Normandy as part of the bipartisan Senate delegation, said it is essential to avoid escalation. He is pushing the Biden administration to reevaluate Moscows red lines.

It has to be a constant effort to look and really to have a good sense of where the red line is, Reed said. We crossed a dramatic sort of threshold when we said OK, you can use these weapons systems even if they are directed to activities in Russia. And so far, the Russians have kind of accepted it.

It would not surprise me if, over the course of the next several weeks, range increases are allowed, Reed added.

Lara Seligman contributed to this report from Brussels.
This file photo taken on June 3, 2024 shows a lock on chains backdropped by the European Commission building in Brussels, Belgium. The European Commission on Wednesday issued a statement to pre-disclose the level of protectionist provisional duties it would impose on imports of battery electric vehicles (EVs) from China. (Xinhua/Zhao Dingzhe)

BMW CEO Oliver Zipse criticized the Commission's plan as "the wrong way to go," stating that it would damage European companies and interests.

BERLIN/BRUSSELS, June 12 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission on Wednesday revealed a list of protectionist duties it would levy on imports of battery electric vehicles (EVs) from China, sparking opposition and concerns from governments and businesses across Europe.

The provisional duties envisaged by the Commission on the imports of EVs from China would range from 17.4 percent to 38.1 percent.

Hungarian Minister for National Economy Marton Nagy condemned the move as overly protectionist. He said in a statement that "protectionism is not the solution," and the Commission's decision would unfairly discriminate against Chinese manufacturers and disrupt market competition, which had been vital for the European Union (EU).

Nagy pointed out the focus of the EU should be on enhancing the global competitiveness of the European EV industry, instead of imposing punitive tariffs, since such a move would stifle competition and hinder the growth of the EU market.

Volker Wissing, Germany's federal minister for Digital and Transport, said tariffs would affect German companies and their exports. "Vehicles must become cheaper through more competition, open markets and significantly better location conditions in the EU, not through trade wars and market isolation," he said on the social media platform X.

This file photo taken on June 6, 2024 shows an electric car at a charging station near the European Commission building in Brussels, Belgium. The European Commission on Wednesday issued a statement to pre-disclose the level of protectionist provisional duties it would impose on imports of battery electric vehicles (EVs) from China. (Xinhua/Zhao Dingzhe)

The EU's high additional tariffs would further deviate from the goals of global cooperation and could quickly have a negative impact in the event of a trade conflict. The potential fallout originating from these measures may be greater than their potential benefits for the European -- as well as the German -- automotive industry, Hildegard Mueller, president of the German Association of the Automotive Industry, told Xinhua in a written interview.

"The fact is that we need China to solve global problems, which applies, in particular, to successfully tackling the climate crises," Mueller said, stressing China's role in the transition towards electromobility and the digitalization of the global automotive industry.

BMW CEO Oliver Zipse criticized the Commission's plan as "the wrong way to go," stating that it would damage European companies and interests. "Protectionism risks starting a spiral: Tariffs lead to new tariffs, to isolation rather than cooperation," he said.

Other major German carmakers including Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen also voiced their support for fair competition and free world trade, reported German media Handelsblatt. Europe's largest vehicle manufacturer Volkswagen rejected the planned tariffs, saying that "the negative effects of this decision outweigh any benefits for the European and especially the German automotive industry."

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares (L) and Leapmotor CEO Zhu Jiangming shake hands at Stellantis and Leapmotor Strategic Cooperation Signing Ceremony in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, Oct. 26, 2023. (Stellantis/Handout via Xinhua)

The Swedish government wants to know whether the European Commission has exhausted other options besides tariffs, Sweden's Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Johan Forssell said. "We are generally skeptical of tariffs. Someone has to pay them, and in this case, it will sooner or later be the consumers," the Swedish TT news agency cited Forssell as saying.

The multinational carmaker Stellantis, in response to the EU announcement, also expressed its position by advocating free and fair competition in a global business environment and opposing measures that lead to "the fragmentation of the world." The company said through its affordable EVs and cooperation with Chinese electric carmaker Leapmotor, it has confidence in competing with Chinese products that have price advantages.

Hrvoje Prpic, president of the Croatian Electric Vehicle Drivers Association, said the high tariffs would fail to help European industry keep up the pace of Chinese car manufacturers, and moreover, the end users in Europe would front the increased cost.

"Businesses must be open, and tariffs are not beneficial for business exchanges," said Pavol Antalic, chairman of the Slovak-Chinese Joint Business Council. Recognizing the level of cooperation with Chinese companies in developing green energy, the Slovak business leader praised China's technological advancements in developing electric cars with excellent batteries and said "local customers are very interested in Chinese EVs."

NIO cars are displayed in the NIO House in Oslo, capital of Norway, Sept. 30, 2021. Chinese electric vehicle maker NIO on Thursday opened its first NIO House in Europe here in Norway's capital, and started selling its ES8 electric sports utility vehicle in the northern European country. (Xinhua/Zhu Sheng)

As a non-EU member state, Norway said it will not follow the EU to increase tariffs on Chinese electric cars. The country's Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum announced the decision on Wednesday. "Introducing tariffs on Chinese cars is neither relevant nor desirable for this government," Norwegian national broadcaster NRK cited Vedum as saying.

Editor: ZAD
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., speaks to reporters about a vote to protect rights for access to in vitro fertilization to achieve pregnancy, at the Capitol in Washington, Wednesday, June 12, 2024. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

WASHINGTON (AP)  Senate Republicans blocked legislation that would make it a right nationwide for women to access in vitro fertilization and other fertility treatments after Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer forced a vote on the matter Thursday in an effort to drive an election-year contrast on reproductive care.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth, a military veteran who has used the fertility treatment to have her two children, has championed the bill, called the Right to IVF Act. The bill would have also expanded access through insurance as well as for military members and veterans.

As a mom who struggled with infertility for years, as a parent who needed IVF to have my two beautiful little girls, all I can say to my Republican colleagues in this moment is, How dare you, Duckworth, D-Ill., said following the vote.

All Republicans except Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine voted against advancing the measure, ensuring that it only gained 48 votes  well short of the 60 votes needed. Instead, GOP senators offered their own, alternative legislation that would discourage states from enacting explicit bans on the treatment. Democrats in turn blocked it Wednesday.

The overtly political back-and-forth, with no attempt at finding a legislative compromise, showed how quickly Congress has shifted into a campaign mindset five months out from the fall election.

As Schumer seeks to protect a narrow Senate majority and buoy Democrats' hopes of holding the White House, he has sought to spotlight Republican intransigence to federal legislation that would guarantee women's rights to reproductive care. Democrats have campaigned heavily on the issue ever since the 2022 Supreme Court decision that ended a federal right to abortion.

The anti-abortion movement is not yet finished. Now that Roe is gone, they have set their sights to a new target  in vitro fertilization, Schumer said on the Senate floor Thursday.

Schumer, a New York Democrat, also held a vote last week on legislation to protect access to contraception, but Republicans blocked it, arguing it was nothing more than a political stunt. Republicans have also blocked previous attempts to quickly pass IVF protections. They stressed that they support IVF and said Schumer was once again playing to the campaign trail with Thursday's vote.

Sen. Bill Cassidy, a Louisiana Republican, said Democrats were trying to politicize a deeply personal issue for short term political gain. He added that Schumer had brought the bill to the floor without allowing the committee work and studies that usually mark a serious piece of legislation.

Still, Schumer said he would continue to bring up legislation on reproductive care.

Republicans are twisting themselves in knots trying to run away from their very record on reproductive freedom, he said at a news conference following the vote.

Democrats took to the Senate floor Thursday to make a series of speeches that highlighted personal stories of how people have been able to have children using IVF. They say Congress must protect access to the fertility treatment after the Supreme Court in 2022 allowed states to ban abortions and the Alabama Supreme Court in February ruled that frozen embryos can be considered children under state law. Several clinics in the state suspended IVF treatments until the state enacted a law to provide legal protections for IVF clinics.

After the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that a frozen embryo is the same, has the exact same rights as a living, breathing person, women who waited for months and spent tens of thousands of dollars and were days away from an IVF appointment were left to wonder if it was all for nothing when their treatment was abruptly canceled, said Sen. Patty Murray, a Washington Democrat.

Most Republicans in Congress, meanwhile, have expressed support for IVF, but have also largely declined to tell states how to regulate reproductive care. Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican GOP presidential nominee, met with lawmakers on Thursday and told them that abortion rules should be left to the states. He also said he supported exceptions for rape, incest and to save the life of the mother, according to Republicans in the meetings.

Republicans are seeking to come up with a response to voters' concerns about access to abortion and reproductive care  an issue that is expected to figure largely in the November election. Following the Supreme Court's ruling Thursday that preserved access to the abortion pill mifepristone, anti-abortion groups expressed dismay while most Republicans remained quiet.

In the Senate this week, Republicans highlighted their efforts to expand access to fertility treatments, yet stopped short of endorsing the Democratic plan.

Sen. Rick Scott, a Florida Republican, said in a floor speech this week that his daughter was currently receiving IVF treatment and spoke of a proposal to expand the flexibility of health savings accounts. Two other GOP Republicans, Sens. Katie Britt of Alabama and Ted Cruz of Texas, also tried to quickly pass a bill that would threaten to withhold Medicaid funding for states where IVF is banned.

Democrats blocked that bill on Wednesday.

Cruz, who is running for reelection in Texas, said it showed Democrats were making a cynical political decision.

They dont want to provide reassurance and comfort to millions of parents in America because instead, they want to spend millions of dollars running campaign ads suggesting the big, bad Republicans want to take away IVF, he said in a speech on the Senate floor.

Democrats argued that the GOP bill was insufficient because it would still allow states to enact laws that grant embryos or fetuses the same rights as a person. Abortion opponents in over a dozen states have advanced legislation based on the concept of fetal rights.

Murray, who objected to quickly passing the GOP bill, said the bill was flawed because it is silent on whether parents should be allowed to have clinics dispose of unused embryos  something that is a common and necessary part of the IVF process.

But Republicans also criticized the Democratic bill. Britt said it extends far past IVF. It also treads on religious freedom and protection."

In the wake of the Alabama Supreme Court ruling, Christians, who have been a driving force in the anti-abortion movement based on the belief life begins at or around conception, have wrestled with the fertility treatment.

The Southern Baptist Convention this week approved a nonbinding resolution that cautioned couples about using IVF. The resolution lamented that the creation of surplus frozen embryos often results in the destruction of embryonic human life.

The bill proposed by Britt and Cruz also came under criticism from the Heritage Foundation, a conservative group that has pushed for stringent regulations on IVF clinics.

With the Senate deadlocked on the issue, advocates for access to the treatment said families would still be left in uncertainty.

Jamie Heard, who lives in Birmingham and had to suspend her effort to have a second child using IVF when the state Supreme Court made its decision, said that ruling left her both scared and angry. She has been able to continue the treatment, yet spoke alongside other IVF advocates at the Capitol Wednesday to urge lawmakers to act.

There are still a lot of questions that we have about how to move forward, Heard said.
Insights from Rolling Stone, NBC News, MSNBC, and The Washington Post

The News

Senate Democrats, led by Judiciary Committee Chairman Dick Durbin, are set to bring a vote Wednesday on legislation that would require the Supreme Court to adopt a binding ethics code.

The push for an enforceable ethics code (the justices currently police themselves with no oversight) came after conservative Justice Samuel Alito was secretly recorded by a liberal activist posing as a Christian conservative at a meeting. In the tapes, Alito can reportedly be heard speaking about polarization in America, and said there are differences on fundamental things that really cant be compromised.

His wife, Martha-Ann Alito, can also reportedly be heard on another secretly made recording discussing the recent controversy over flags linked to the far-right and Jan.6 rioters that she reportedly flew over the Alito households, and threatening to sue the press for libel.

SIGNALS

Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories.

Recording may call Alitos impartiality into question

Sources: Rolling Stone, NBC News, The Washington Post

Alitos comments suggest makes little effort to present himself as a neutral umpire calling judicial balls and strikes, but rather as a partisan member of a hard-right judicial faction, Rolling Stone wrote in its exclusive story on the recordings. In one, Alito can reportedly be heard agreeing that the US should return to a place of godliness. Some legal experts agreed with Rolling Stones assessment, while other experts called the comment a rather unremarkable statement for a conservative. Ultimately, the court is inseparable from politics, one law professor told The Washington Post. I am sad that weve reached the point where the justices are getting caught in these gotcha moments, but if there was nothing to get, then this wouldnt be a story.

The Supreme Court lacks clear ethics rules

Sources: MSNBC, The Washington Post, The Brennan Center, Fox News

Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin referred to the Supreme Court as the highest court in the land with the lowest ethical standards in a Tuesday MSNBC interview. The Court has ethical guidelines, but court-reform advocates have long pointed out that theyre toothless  their enforcement is solely up to the justices themselves. The Alitos recent flag scandal showed that Congress needs to step in and shore up rules for justices, two Brennan Center experts wrote. To have any one of our coequal branches be completely unaccountable to the others is paving the path to authoritarianism, tyranny, the abuse of power in the United States and it is structurally completely unsustainable, Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said Tuesday.
Democrats think they can flip Texas House seats by going after GOPs education funding and school voucher policies

Third grade teacher Eran McGowan watches students demonstrate their answers to the class at the Eddie Bernice Johnson STEM Academy in Dallas, Texas on Feb. 5, 2024. Credit: Azul Sordo for The Texas Tribune

Texas Democrats are zeroing in on education issues in their bid to flip several state House districts this fall, as they look to blame GOP lawmakers for teacher shortages and school closures and mobilize their base around defeating Gov. Greg Abbotts signature school voucher policy.

That approach came into focus last week at the Texas Democratic Convention in El Paso, where party leaders and House candidates repeatedly bashed Abbotts push to provide taxpayer funds for private school tuition. They also acknowledged the governors recent success ousting members of his own party who oppose school vouchers, invoking it as a reason to focus on battleground House races this fall.

State Rep. Gina Hinojosa, an Austin Democrat who is leading House Democrats campaign efforts, told delegates at the convention that Abbotts crusade against voucher opponents in the primary has tipped the scales of the House narrowly toward passage of vouchers next year.

To put it another way, we need to elect about three more Democrats to the Texas House to defeat vouchers and defend our neighborhood public schools, she said.

Democrats and rural Republicans in the lower chamber have historically united against measures that would divert state funds to help families pay for private school. Critics say vouchers would siphon money away from public schools that are already facing widespread teacher shortages and budget deficits  a trend exacerbated by lawmakers failure last year to tap the states historic $33 billion budget surplus to boost school funding, after the effort got caught up in the voucher fight.

Most of the House battlefield this election cycle is centered in the Dallas and San Antonio suburbs and South Texas, across several districts with struggling schools where Democrats hope public education will resonate at the ballot box.

Among their top targets is GOP state Rep. John Lujan, who won his Bexar County district in 2022 by 4 percentage points  overcoming trends atop the ballot, where Democrat Beto ORourke carried the district by 2 points over Abbott.

Kristian Carranza, a progressive organizer and Lujans Democratic opponent, said when she meets voters on block-walks, the No. 1 issue at the door is public education and the voucher fight. She noted that the district  which covers south San Antonio and the eastern side of Bexar County  includes beleaguered districts like Harlandale ISD, which closed four elementary schools last fall amid a funding deficit.

For people, this is a lived reality when we talk about private school vouchers, said Carranza, who opposes the measure. The way I talk about this is, the financial crisis schools are facing is due to massive budget deficits, and that's the inevitable result of elected officials like John Lujan who have been choosing to toe the line with their party rather than stand up for their community.

Abbott and his pro-voucher allies argue that parents deserve the option to remove their kids from the public education system, which has been attacked by conservatives over its response to the COVID-19 pandemic and concerns about how race, history and sex are taught in the classroom.

Republicans are already countering Democrats narrative, accusing the House voucher opponents of being responsible for the demise of a bill last fall that would have pumped billions into public schools. The bill died after a coalition of House Democrats and 21 Republicans removed vouchers from the package; the bill author then withdrew the entire measure, citing Abbotts threat to veto education funding that did not include vouchers.

Abbott spokesperson Andrew Mahaleris said Democrats, by putting voucher opposition at the forefront of their campaigns, are fighting for teacher unions and their self-serving agenda, instead of the Texans they claim to represent.

When it comes to education, parents matter, and families deserve the ability to choose the best education opportunities for their children, Mahaleris said in a statement. If Democrats want to make their opposition to parental empowerment a central theme of their campaign, good luck.

Joshua Blank, research director for the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas at Austin, said part of the strategy for Democrats is to move the debate over public education back onto friendlier terrain  toward school funding and away from things like curriculum.

In recent years, Blank said, Republicans have mobilized voters based on the idea that, essentially, teachers weren't to be trusted and the curriculum had gone off the rails, allowing them to go on offense in an area typically dominated by Democrats.

Traditionally, we think of public education as a Democratic issue, because most often if we're talking about public education, we're talking about spending, and  there's almost no debate in which Democrats aren't going to be more willing than Republicans to spend money on public education, Blank said. But if we're talking about curriculum concerns and parental rights, that puts Democrats in a difficult position.

Under the banner of protecting kids in public schools, Texas Republicans in recent years have passed laws aimed at keeping sexually explicit books out of school libraries and limiting how topics like race and racism can be taught in public schools. Conservatives have also extended the battle outside the classroom, passing a law restricting sexually explicit performances in front of minors and proposing a bill that targeted drag queen story hours  events typically held at public libraries and bookstores aimed at promoting literacy.

Over the last several days, Republicans including Abbott and U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz have taken aim at Democrats for hosting a drag queen, Brigitte Bandit, at their convention. Bandit delivered a speech where she defended the practice of reading books to children at drag queen story hours and took aim at the Legislatures move to ban transgender youth from taking puberty blockers and receiving hormone therapies.

These are the same Texas Democrats who thought it was a good idea to parade a drag queen on stage to talk about indoctrinating impressionable children, Mahaleris said, underscoring how Abbott has painted the public school system as a hotbed of liberal indoctrination in his push for school vouchers.

Carranza is not the only Democratic candidate shaping her campaign around public education and vouchers. In Dallas County, Democratic hopeful Averie Bishop is emphasizing her background as a substitute teacher in her bid to unseat state Rep. Angie Chen Button, R-Richardson. Bishop also has pointed to the firsthand view she received of Texas flagging public schools as she traveled the state after winning the 2022 Miss Texas competition.

I personally saw how severely underfunded and undersupported our schools are, Bishop said at the Democratic convention. School vouchers will pass if we do not flip my seat from red to blue.

Democrats also see a newfound opportunity to pick up the San Antonio-area seat held by state Rep. Steve Allison  a moderate Republican who opposes school vouchers  after Allison was defeated in the March primary by conservative challenger Marc LaHood, a criminal defense attorney who backs vouchers.

State Rep. Trey Martinez Fischer, D-San Antonio, said LaHood holds extreme views that are out of step with the district.

Looking at the contrast between Steve Allison and Marc LaHood, and understanding and knowing the independent and educated voters in the [districts] Alamo Heights area, there's no doubt in my mind that our Democratic hopes just increased tenfold, said Martinez Fischer, who chairs the Texas House Democratic Caucus.

Under its current configuration, the district would have been carried by former President Donald Trump by about 2 percentage points in 2020. Trump would have carried Buttons district by half a point the same year.

LaHood, asked about Martinez Fischers comment, said in a statement that parental choice isnt a partisan issue.

Parents want and deserve to have more options in selecting the best educational environment for their individual children, LaHood said. Democrats are in for a rude awakening if they want to make disempowering parents their hill to die on. I welcome the conversation and the fight.

The Texas Tribune answering reader questions about 2024 elections. To share your question or feedback with us, you can fill out this form.

Just in: Former U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyoming; U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pennsylvania; and Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt will take the stage at The Texas Tribune Festival, Sept. 57 in downtown Austin. Buy tickets today!
DENVER (KDVR)  After sending a series of harmful messages about the LGBTQ community, the Denver Republican Party is calling for the immediate resignation and removal of Colorado Republican Party Chairman Dave Williams.

In a letter obtained by FOX31 on Thursday, the Denver Republican Party Executive Committee unanimously voted to call for Williams resignation.

The fallout stems from letters that Williams sent on June 3 titled, God Hates Pride and June 10 titled No to Pride, Yes to Jesus, according to the Republican party.

Suspects wanted in Arvada pride flag thefts

The party said these emails threatened Republicans who expressed different views than Williams own and that those who do not agree are not true Republicans.

The Denver Republican Party Executive Committee is shocked and saddened at the attempt of Chairman Williams to suppress freedom of speech and dox those who do not agree with him, said the Denver Republican Party.

The letter also claims that Williams violated Republican bylaws by endorsing candidates in contested primaries.

According to Article III, Section C of the Colorado State Republican Bylaws, No candidate for any designation or nomination for partisan public office shall be endorsed, supported, or opposed by the CRC [Colorado Republican Committee], acting as an entity, or by its state officers or committees, before the Primary Election, unless such candidate is unopposed in the Primary Election, or the candidate has gained access to the primary election ballot but has not participated in the applicable authorized Republican Assembly/Convention.

Lauren Boeberts ex-husband pleads guilty to reckless endangerment

The party claims Williams endorsed candidates in Districts 3, 4 and 8, and therefore undermined election integrity.

Because of these claims, the Denver Republican Party has officially called for the immediate resignation and removal of Williams in order to restore integrity, transparency, and unity within the party.

FOX31 reached out to Williams for a comment on Tuesday but he has not responded.

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 FOX31 Denver.
Department of Health cautions boaters and swimmers of blue-green algae in Doctors Lake

Blue-green algae has been detected in Doctors Lake.

>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<

The Florida Department of Health in Clay County is cautioning boaters and swimmers that while toxins have not yet been confirmed, conditions can change at any time.

DOH-Clay advises residents and visitors to take the following precautions:

Do not drink, swim, wade, use personal watercrafts, or come into contact with waters where there is a visible bloom.

Wash your skin and clothing with soap and water if you have any contact with algae, or discolored or water that smells unpleasant.

Keep pets and livestock away from the area to avoid any contact with water. Waters where algae blooms are present are not safe for animals. Pets and livestock should use an alternative source of water when algae blooms are present.

Do not cook or clean dishes with water contaminated by algae blooms. Boiling the water will not eliminate toxins.

Eating fillets from healthy fish caught in freshwater lakes experiencing blooms is safe. Rinse fish fillets with tap or bottled water, throw out the guts, and cook fish thoroughly.

Do not eat shellfish in waters with algae blooms.

Blue-green algae can produce toxins that are harmful to humans and pets. Ecosystems can also suffer from effects, including fish and other aquatic animals.

For additional information on the potential health effects of algae blooms, visit DOHs harmful algae blooms webpage.

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Republican nominee for Michigan attorney general Matthew DePerno campaigns in Lansing on Aug. 27, 2022. (Andrew Roth | Michigan Advance)

Matt DePerno, a Republican lawyer who ran for Michigan Attorney General in 2022 with the support of former President Donald Trump, is running for the states supreme court while facing charges for reportedly tampering with voting machines after the 2020 presidential election.

Michigans 4-3 Democratic majority state supreme court is falling short of doing its duty, Deperno said in an emailed statement to Michigan Advance.

After watching the abuse of our legal system both here in Michigan, as well as across the country, it is clear that the Michigan Supreme Court needs members that are committed to following the constitution and rule of law, DePerno said. Activist judges, prosecutors, and attorney generals are using their power to prosecute their political enemies. This has to stop. And that is why I am running for Supreme Court.

DePerno, a Kalamazoo lawyer, has garnered favor from Trump in the past, not just in his 2022 run for state attorney general, but again securing an endorsement in 2023 for chair of the states Republican party.

Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel won reelection against DePerno and former Michigan Secretary of State candidate Kristina Karamo secured the chairmanship, losing the position amid infighting within the state party to current Chair Pete Hoekstra.

A vocal supporter of Trumps disproven claims that the 2020 presidential election was full of fraud and Trump was the rightful winner, DePerno built a campaign for attorney general largely on the subject of election security. A focus area for DePerno was Antrim County, where he filed a lawsuit to try and audit the election after the GOP dominated county temporarily and incorrectly reflected a Biden victory in unofficial election results due to human error, but was promptly corrected.

DePerno was charged last year in an investigation into the tampering of election equipment following the 2020 election. The prosecution asserts that DePerno orchestrated efforts to obtain and test voting machines in 2021 alongside others who were charged. DePerno is fighting against the charges.

Two seats on the state supreme court are up for grabs this November as Republican Justice David Viviano announced his retirement in March and Democrat Justice Kyra Harris Bolden is up for re-election.

DePerno is running for the four-year seat in the state supreme court as former Chief Justice Bridget Mary McCormack, a Democrat, retired part way into her 8-year term in 2022. She was replaced by Bolden, a gubernatorial appointment.

The post DePerno announces Michigan Supreme Court run amid election related criminal charges appeared first on Michigan Advance.
HOBE SOUND  A man accused Thursday of a violent robbery and car theft involving a woman leaving a Publix on Cove Road was apprehended near Bridge Road just west of U.S. 1, according to Martin County sheriffs officials.

The man, who was not identified by name or age, is accused of attacking a woman as she left the Publix in the Cove Shopping Center, on Southeast Federal Highway, in Stuart.

A man accused of a violent robbery and car theft involving a woman leaving a Publix on Cove Road was apprehended near Bridge Road just west of U.S. 1, in Stuart, on Thursday June 13, 2024, according to Martin County Sheriffs Officials.

Sheriffs officials reported the man confronted the woman, grabbed her belongings and fled in her vehicle, according to the agencys Facebook page.

Deputies located the vehicle on Bridge Road and performed a vehicle intervention technique, which disabled the car.

The man, who is not from Martin County, sheriffs officials said, remains in custody.

Letters exchanged: U.S. Attorney, Pearson spar over St. Lucie sheriff's viral social media posts

A book about banning books? Indian River School Board votes it off shelves

Melissa E. Holsman is the legal affairs reporter for TCPalm and Treasure Coast Newspapers and is writer and co-host of "Uncertain Terms," a true-crime podcast. Reach her at melissa.holsman@tcpalm.com. If you are a subscriber, thank you. If not, become a subscriber to get the latest local news on the Treasure Coast.

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: MCSO deputies stop man who attacked woman Thursday, fled in her car
FILE - The Cinderella Castle is seen at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, July 14, 2023, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. Months after Disney and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis' appointees agreed to end a protracted legal fight, the two sides are set to approve an agreement Wednesday, June 5, 2024, that could result in the company investing $17 billion into its Florida resort and opens the door to a fifth major theme park at Walt Disney World. (AP Photo/John Raoux, File)

ORLANDO, Fla. (AP)  Gov. Ron DeSantis' appointees on Wednesday gave final approval to an agreement that buries the hatchet between Disney and the governing district for Walt Disney World, which the Florida governor took over after the company two years ago publicly opposed a state law critics dubbed Don't Say Gay.

The five DeSantis-appointed board members to the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District unanimously voted to approve a 15-year development deal in which the district committed to making infrastructure improvements in exchange for Disney investing up to $17 billion into Disney World over the next two decades.

The agreement followed a detente in March in which both sides agreed to stop litigating each other in state court and work towards negotiating a new development agreement and a new comprehensive plan no later than next year. The district provides municipal services such as firefighting, planning and mosquito control, among other things, and was controlled by Disney supporters before the takeover by the DeSantis appointees.

District board member Brian Aungst said at Wednesday night's board meeting that the agreement provides a lasting and stable framework for Disney and the board to work together.

This is the day we all have been looking forward to, Aungst said. I was always extremely optimistic and knew we would get here because it was the right outcome.

Under the deal, Disney will be required to donate up to 100 acres (40 hectares) of Disney Worlds 24,000 acres (9,700 hectares) for the construction of infrastructure projects controlled by the district. The company also will need to award at least half of its construction projects to companies based in Florida and spend at least $10 million on affordable housing for central Florida.

Disney would then be approved to build a fifth major theme park at Disney World and two more minor parks, such as water parks, if it desired. The company could raise the number of hotel rooms on its property from almost 40,000 rooms to more than 53,000 rooms and increase the amount of retail and restaurant space by more than 20%. Disney will retain control of building heights due to its need to maintain an immersive environment.

Leaders of Orlando's tourism industry praised the agreement, telling the district's board members that it will bring boundless jobs, tourists and attention to central Florida.

It very clearly demonstrates to the world that the district and Disney are eager to resume working together for the great state of Florida, said Robert Earl, founder and CEO of Planet Hollywood International, Inc.

Still up in the air was an appeal of a federal lawsuit Disney had filed against DeSantis and his appointees. After the settlement was reached in March, Disney asked the appellate court to put that case on hold while the development agreement was negotiated. The company has until next week to file a brief with the court if it wants to move ahead with the case.

Disney didn't respond to an email Wednesday afternoon seeking comment on how the company planned to proceed. The DeSantis appointees to the district had planned to hold a closed-door discussion about the lawsuit after their board meeting Wednesday but cancelled that meeting.

Matthew Oberly, a spokesperson for the district, said Wednesday night that the district didn't have any comment on the future of the federal litigation.

The March settlement ended almost two years of litigation sparked by DeSantis takeover of the district following the companys opposition to the 2022 law that bans classroom lessons on sexual orientation and gender identity in early grades. The law was championed by the Republican governor, who used Disney as a punching bag in speeches during his run for the 2024 GOP presidential nomination until he suspended his campaign earlier this year.

As punishment for Disneys opposition to the controversial law, DeSantis took over the governing district through legislation passed by the Republican-controlled Florida Legislature and appointed a new board of supervisors. Disney sued DeSantis and his appointees, claiming the companys free speech rights were violated for speaking out against the legislation. A federal judge dismissed that lawsuit in January, but Disney appealed.

Before control of the district changed hands early last year, the Disney supporters on its board signed agreements with the company shifting control over design and construction at Disney World to the company. The new DeSantis appointees claimed the eleventh-hour deals neutered their powers, and the district sued the company in state court in Orlando to have the contracts voided.

Disney filed counterclaims that included asking the state court to declare the agreements valid and enforceable. Those state court lawsuits were dismissed as part of the March settlement.

___

Follow Mike Schneider on the social platform X: @MikeSchneiderAP.
DeSantis calls for state of emergency amid flooding in South Florida: See photos

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency after flooding caused cars to stall on the road, put pressure on sewage systems and caused delays as the southern part of the state saw heavy rainfall and flooding this week.

The following counties are under a state of emergency, according to the memorandum posted to to Florida Government's website:

Broward

Collier

Lee

Miami-Dade

Sarasota

Flooding in South Florida: More storms coming after days of record-breaking rain

Early Tuesday morning, a "broad area of low pressure began moving across the Florida Peninsula producing severe weather, widespread heavy rainfall with totals of 10 to 15 inches, and consequential flooding across portions of South Florida," states the memorandum.

It adds that rainfall and flooding could continue to affect the "operational capability of critical infrastructure, including major interstates, state and county roadways, airports, schools, and other critical infrastructure" in the counties listed above.

Local state of emergency

In Miami-Dade County, Mayor Daniella Levine Cava declared a local state of emergency.

"I just declared a local state of emergency, effective immediately, in response to the inclement weather in South Florida.," she posted on X, formerly known as Twitter. "As our departments work to keep residents and businesses safe, this is a necessary step to protect the health, safety, and welfare of our entire community."

The county is encouraging its people to stay inside if possible on Thursday. It adds that its administrative buildings will remain open, but it will have reduced staff.

Sitting in a 9hour weather delay at FLL. People at the airport are killing time watching cars drive thru rivers into the airport. pic.twitter.com/ikNjjWQCoM  Rich Basen (@RichBasen) June 12, 2024

Photos show flooding in Florida

Miami-Dade and Broward weren't the only counties to see flooding. Naples, Sarasota and Marco Island got their fair share of rain, too. See photos of flooding in Hollywood and other parts of Florida.

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA - JUNE 12: A person walks through a flooded street on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. As tropical moisture passes through the area, areas have become flooded due to the heavy rain. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA - JUNE 12: People walk through a flooded street on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. As tropical moisture passes through the area, areas have become flooded due to the heavy rain. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA - JUNE 12: A person walks through a flooded street on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. As tropical moisture passes through the area, areas have become flooded due to the heavy rain. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA - JUNE 12: People walk through a flooded street as they evacuate on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. As tropical moisture passes through the area, areas have become flooded due to the heavy rain. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA - JUNE 12: A person walks through a flooded street on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. As tropical moisture passes through the area, areas have become flooded due to the heavy rain. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA - JUNE 12: A vehicle sits in flood waters on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. As tropical moisture passes through the area, areas have become flooded due to the heavy rain. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA - JUNE 12: Ildemaro Srateral leaves his car behind after flood waters made it inoperable on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. As tropical moisture passes through the area, areas have become flooded due to the heavy rain. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA - JUNE 12: A person walks through a flooded street on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. As tropical moisture passes through the area, areas have become flooded due to the heavy rain. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA - JUNE 12: People walk through a flooded street on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. As tropical moisture passes through the area, areas have become flooded due to the heavy rain. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

HOLLYWOOD, FLORIDA - JUNE 12: Flood waters surround a home on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. As tropical moisture passes through the area, areas have become flooded due to the heavy rain. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Airport delays

Flights at Miami International Airport, MIA, located in Miami-Dade, and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, FLL, located in Broward County, saw flight delays and cancellations.

"Heavy rainfall across South Florida is impacting flight schedules," FLL posted on X. "If youre traveling today or picking up/dropping off, check with the airline for the latest flight status. There are delays, cancellations, & standing water on the airport & neighboring road."

MIA asked that people preparing to travel check their airline for the latest updates and added that it is under flood watch.

"Before heading to the airport, please check local conditions and avoid driving through flooded areas," said the airport in a post on Facebook.

Unbelievable flooding in Aventura just north of Miami. Street full of abandoned cars. This area is still under Flash Flood Emergency. #FLwx @NWSMiami



: Daniel Labaton pic.twitter.com/NafHMfrNy2  Reid Lybarger (@ReidLybarger) June 12, 2024

Driving through a flood

A video of cars at a stand-still in the middle of a street north of Miami was posted X. Water is seen covering the people's tires.

"Don't try to turn on your vehicle in this!" replied a user to the video. "If there's water, WAIT for the water to recede."

"This is the worst flooding I've seen in the years I've lived in Miami Beach," said another X user in a separate post.

Okay, this is the worst flooding I've seen in the years I've lived in Miami Beach. I actually had to go move our car before it got any worse. pic.twitter.com/fcU8Typ0mv  ANDER |    (@actionxander) June 12, 2024

Flooding here in downtown #Miami and its barely even raining. Cant imagine if it was a real storm. City would be a mess. #Florida pic.twitter.com/vSURjOq7wz  Brett Velicovich (@TheDroneWarrior) June 12, 2024

Julia is a trending reporter for USA TODAY. She has covered various topics, from local businesses and government in her hometown, Miami, to tech and pop culture. You can connect with her on LinkedIn or follow her on X, formerly Twitter, Instagram and TikTok: @juliamariegz

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Florida in state of emergency after rain brings flash floods: photos
DeSantis cuts $1B to bring state budget to $116.5B, slightly less than the current plan

DeSantis cuts $1B to bring state budget to $116.5B, slightly less than the current plan

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP)  Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis spent more than an hour talking about what is in the $116.5 billion he signed Wednesday, but he left out the most important part of the announcement: What was in the nearly $1 billion he vetoed.

Overall, the state spending plan is slightly lower than the current budget and provides 3% raises for state employees and sets aside $1.5 billion that has to be used for teacher raises.

All in all, I think that this is a budget that shows it can be done, DeSantis said, saying that the state will fund major programs, provide tax relief, boost emergency savings and still have a lower budget.

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But he didnt detail the biggest question budget watchers were anticipating: The cuts. The Legislature approved the budget more than three months ago, and DeSantis has been talking for weeks about what he wasnt going to veto. So the only mystery left when he signed it was what was getting the ax.

I even had some Republican colleagues text me, saying, Did you get a list? Did you get a list? Did you get a list? said Democrat Sen. Jason Pizzo.

DeSantis office released the veto list about four hours after the governor began his budget-signing ceremony in Tampa, about a four-hour drive from the Capitol.

The 16 pages of cuts came largely from local projects and lawmaker requests, ranging from as little as $10,500 for a Taylor County public works generator to $80 million for group insurance for the state college system.

In between, there were vetoes denying vehicles to scores of police and fire departments, $6.4 million to provide free menstrual products to public school students, money for local museums and cultural events, and millions to private, non-profit organizations that help the homeless, the hungry, drug addicts and foster children.

St. Pete woman, 24, left dog in hot car for over an hour to attend community meeting: affidavit

In a show of bipartisanship, the budget passed unanimously in the Senate and 105-3 in the House, where a Republican and two Democrats opposed the spending plan.

But on late Wednesday afternoon, lawmakers were still analyzing the cuts. I have to look at it more closely, Pizzo said.

One thing he did notice was that a lot of local infrastructure projects got chopped.

As Im sitting here stuck on a Brightline train because of flooding in my district, all those storm water projects he cut look pretty stupid right now, Pizzo 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 WFLA.
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency as life-threatening rainfall and flooding pounded the state.

More than a foot of rain slammed several counties in Florida on Wednesday, causing major flooding, with destructive downpours expected to continue for a third day on Thursday.

Preliminary reports indicate that the rainfall and flooding has affected and may continue to impact the operational capability of critical infrastructure, including major interstates, state and county roadways, airports, schools, and other critical infrastructure throughout these counties, DeSantis said in the declaration.

Additional rounds of heavy rain and thunderstorms are forecasted for South Florida for the next several days which will further exacerbate ongoing flood conditions over already impacted and vulnerable metropolitan areas.

The state of emergency applied to Miami-Dade, Broward, Collier, Lee, and Sarasota counties. Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis and Miami Mayor Francis Suarez also made declarations for their cities.

People walk through a flooded street as they evacuate on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. (Getty Images)

In Broward County, Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis said high-water vehicles have been deployed throughout the city to respond as needed, and the Florida Fish and Wildlife Commission will be sending boats and buggies, but urged people to stay off the roads if possible.

The severe weather has caused severe travel disruption, with roads forced to close, vehicles stranded, and dozens of flights canceled out of Fort Lauderdale and Miami, causing chaos for passengers.

According to FlightAware, which shares the status of flights around the country, 171 flights were delayed at Fort Lauderdale airport yesterday, while 284 were canceled. Miami saw 391 delays and 329 cancellations.

Man stands near the flooded parking lot of his apartment building, Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Hallandale, Florida (AP)

Both airports have urged travelers to check with their airlines for the most up-to-date flight information.

Meanwhile, pictures show South Florida residents wading through knee-high waters, shoes in hand, as they attempt to rescue vehicles from floating away in the floodwaters.

The National Hurricane Center announced a 20 percent chance of a two-day cyclone forming just offshore of north-east Florida on Thursday morning due to an elongated area of low pressure. At the same time, the NWS said that more than ten inches of rain is in the realm of possibility on Thursday  eclipsing the June average of 9.5 inches (24cm).

In an aerial view, a person walks through a flooded street on June 13, 2024, in Hallandale Beach, Florida (Getty Images)

Up to 25 inches of rain has fallen in some parts of the state (Getty Images)

An additional round of heavy rainfall is forecast across SFL today as a large convective band of showers & thunderstorms develops & move southward for the 3rd day in a row, it said in a statement on X.

Even a small duration of heavy rainfall could lead to more flash flooding! the NWS added.

It has urged workers not to drive or walk through flood waters.

Two people stand next to a car in a flooded neighborhood in Hallandale Beach, Florida (EPA)

A vehicle sits in flood waters on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. (Getty Images)

Further deluges are expected across parts of the region through Saturday, while next week the rains are expected to move west, bringing with them an increased threat of flash flooding to other parts of the Gulf Coast.

It comes after parts of Miami-Dade and Broward received up to 15 inches (38cm) of rain on Wednesday. Fort Lauderdale saw over 22cm of rainfall and Miami approximately 20cm, according to the NWS.

Collier County saw the most rainfall, with up to 25 inches reported.

The Tampa Bay area was also drenched by eight inches (20cm) of rain in three hours, a rare event expected once every 500 to 1,000 years.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency in five counties after severe flooding and rainfall impacted large areas of the state Wednesday.

The order affects Broward, Collier, Lee, Miami-Dade, and Sarasota counties.

DeSantis said an area of low pressure resulted in severe weather, widespread heavy rainfall with totals of 10 to 15 inches, and consequential flooding across southern Florida on Wednesday, with more weather expected in the coming days, according to the executive order.

Victor Corone, 66, pushes his wife, Maria Diaz, 64, in a wheelchair through more than a foot of floodwater on 84th Street in Miami Beach, Fla., on Wednesday, June 12, 2024.

He warned in the order that the weather could affect the operational capability of critical infrastructure, including major roadways, schools and airports. He said additional weather in the coming days will likely exacerbate the flood conditions in the affected areas.

The National Weather Service in Miami warned Wednesday afternoon of life-threatening flooding occurring in the area. The service urged residents to seek higher ground at the time and for drivers to get off the roads.

Matthew Koziol, Matias Ricci, Manuel Ricci and Raul Fernandez travel by raft through a flooded street caused by heavy rain on North Bay Road in Sunny Isles Beach, Fla., on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. (David Santiago/Miami Herald via AP)

The Florida Division of Emergency Management said the flooding warnings will continue overnight for Miami-Dade and Broward counties.

Its never safe to enter floodwaters  and theyre especially dangerous at night. Turn around, dont drown! Listen to all orders from local officials and have multiple ways to receive emergency alerts, the division wrote in a post on social platform X.

Jim Comunale and Pam Mervos walk down Arthur Street as heavy rain floods the surrounding neighborhood on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Fla. (Matias J. Ocner/Miami Herald via AP)

The South Florida Sun Sentinel reported that 10-15 inches of rain fell in the areas of Hallandale Beach, Hollywood and Aventura between midnight and 6 p.m. Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service. The outlet reported that many people were stranded in the cars while traveling on flooded roads, and there were delays at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

Fort Lauderdale, Hallandale Beach, Hollywood and Dania Beach all declared local states of emergency Wednesday, according to the outlet.

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 The Hill.
MIAMI - Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for South Florida Wednesday evening after 24 hours of inclement weather brought heavy rain and flooding to the region.

Flash flood warnings were issued for parts of Miami-Dade and Broward counties, where rainfall rates of several inches an hour submerged streets and snarled traffic.

The city of Sarasota was swamped Tuesday, with a record 3.93 inches of rain falling in just one hour. The rain forcing ground stops at both Miami International and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International airports, causing delays in excess of seven hours.

People walk through a flooded street on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. As tropical moisture passes through the area, areas have become flooded due to the heavy rain. / Credit: Getty Images

"We were looking at renting a vehicle to try and make it even to Orlando and maybe get on a flight but that isn't going to work either," frustrated traveler Chris Stephens told CBS Miami.

In a statement, the governor's office said that the severe weather and flash flooding prompted DeSantis to declare state of emergencies for Broward, Collier, Lee, Miami-Dade and Sarasota counties.

Earlier in the day, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava and Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis also declared states of emergency, along with the cities of Dania Beach and Sunny Isles Beach.

"Due to ongoing heavy rainfall, several roadways throughout the City of Fort Lauderdale, including major thoroughfares like Broward Boulevard and Federal Highway near downtown are experiencing high water levels," Trantalis said on X.

In Dania Beach, there were at least 40 rescues conducted by police and fire crews, CBS News Miami learned.

Periods of heavy rain continued to flood low-lying areas, with poor drainage throughout South Florida.

In Lee County on the Gulf Coast, emergency officials had to rescue at least one driver from floodwaters. Farther north, a possible tornado brought down trees and powerlines in Martin County.



The storms are part of a stalled system that's pummeled Florida, dumping a month's worth of rain in just 24 hours, with more rain forecast this week.

A flood advisory remained in effect for Miami-Dade and Broward counties through 10 p.m. The National Weather Service also issued a rare flash flood emergency for portions of southern Broward County and northern Miami-Dade which expired at 8 p.m.

A flash flood warning was also issued for Broward and Miami-Dade.

Iraida Rodriguez carries her dog, Benji, in a bag as she evacuates from her flooded home on June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida. / Credit: Getty Images

The National Weather Service warned residents to "move to higher ground now! This is an extremely dangerous and life-threatening situation. Do not attempt to travel unless you are fleeing an area subject to flooding or under an evacuation order."

Meanwhile, officials at MIA said at least 221 flights had been canceled and 165 had been delayed so far Tuesday, while at FLL there were at least 261 flight cancelations and 166 delays.

The Florida Panthers were on a three-hour delay at FLL before their flight took off to Edmonton, Canada, for Game 3 of their Stanley Cup Final series.



South Florida officials said pump trucks were either in place or headed to flooded areas where they are needed.

In Broward County, part of I-95 had been closed due to flooding on the highway.

Power outages were also reported across South Florida, and some traffic lights had been affected, making an already dire driving situation even worse for drivers.

Florida Power & Light said there were more than 8,900 customers without power in Miami-Dade County as of Tuesday evening, and another approximately 1,900 without power in Broward County.



Law enforcement was warning drivers in need of a tow to call tow truck companies first if possible, as opposed to immediately contacting police.

This wet, stormy weather pattern will hold in South Florida through the end of the work week, forecasters say, with the tropical moisture dissipating slightly by the weekend. That will leave the region a bit drier, but there will still be a chance for storms, but not nearly as widespread.

Over the past 24 hours, Miami Beach saw nearly 7 inches of rain, Hallandale Beach saw 6 inches of rain, while Hollywood, North Miami and Coral Gables received just over 5 inches.



The 4 to 6 inches of rain that fell Tuesday squashed the rainfall deficit in Miami-Dade County, and put a good dent in Broward's deficit.



However, forecasters say an additional 4 to 8 inches is possible over the next few days, and flooding risk will continue.

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DeSantis vetoes $4.23 million out of $10 million proposed for Ellis Road widening

Funding for two large Space Coast transportation projects was vetoed out of the Florida budget by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

DeSantis on Wednesday vetoed $4.23 million from a proposed $10 million allocation for pre-construction activities for a project to widen Ellis Road. That money would have come from the state transportation trust fund, according to Florida Rep. Tyler Sirois, R-Merritt Island, who sponsored the Ellis Road funding proposal.

The other $5.77 million remains in the budget, and comes from the state's general revenue fund.

The widening of Ellis Road from John Rodes Boulevard to Wickham Road is a top priority of the Space Coast Transportation Planning Organization.

Top transportation needs: Roadwork alert: These are the top priorities for improving Brevard's highways, major roads

Sirois said the reduction in funding could extend the timeline for completion of the $80 million project.

But Sirois added that he is pleased that there remains $5.77 million for the project in the just-signed 2024-25 budget. He said he would work to secure more funding for the project in the next budget year as well.

DeSantis also vetoed $5 million for modernizing the operations facilities at Melbourne Orlando International Airport.

Among other Brevard County projects that fell victim to the governor's $949.6 million in vetoes statewide were:

$2.5 million for a Technical Agricultural Operations Program at Astronaut High School in Titusville.

$1.75 million for renovations to the Dr. Joe Lee Smith Community Center in Cocoa.

$668,000 for the Inspiring and Developing the Future Florida Aerospace Workforce Program for grades K-12 at Kennedy Space Center.

$650,000 for the second phase of a Cape Canaveral Light Station reconstruction project.

$600,000 for a Medal of Honor Tribute at the Veterans Memorial Park on Merritt Island.

$588,000 for a public safety complex and emergency operations center in Palm Bay, on a city-owned, 13-acre site at the southwest intersection of Malabar Road and St. Johns Heritage Parkway.

$55,000 for repairs and upgrades to the Sendler Education Outpost at the Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge.

What made it into the budget

But a number of other Brevard County projects made the 2024-25 state budget, which totaled $116.5 billion.

That includes two major projects at local colleges  $10 million for an Advanced Technologies Center at Eastern Florida State College and $5 million for an AeroSpace CyberSecurity Engineering Development project at Florida Institute of Technology.

Other Brevard projects that received funding in the budget for the state's fiscal year that begins July 1 included these:

Economic development

$11 million for the Operation New Hope Ready4Work Re-Entry Program (funding shared with Duval, Hillsborough, Orange and St. Johns counties).

$225,000 for a Manufacturing Talent Asset Pipeline program.

Education

$2.625 million for expansion of the Brevard Adult & Community Education Career Technical Center.

Health

$2.06 million for a state hospital diversion program at Circles of Care.

$975,000 for a Who We Play For sudden cardiac arrest prevention program.

$650,000 for the Lifetime Counseling Center's Thrive Within Program.

$300,000 for a Brevard Adults with Disabilities program.

Housing

$250,000 for a veterans' housing and homeless intervention program.

Public safety

$1.25 million for a Florida Law Enforcement Education Initiative, a training program that would be based at the American Police Hall of Fame & Museum complex in Titusville.

$316,000 for a domestic violence offender monitoring program (funding shared with Seminole County).

Transportation

$223,000 for implementation of a Port Canaveral inlet management plan.

Dave Berman is business editor at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Berman at dberman@floridatoday.com, on X at @bydaveberman and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/dave.berman.54

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Ellis Road widening state funding reduced by $4.23M with DeSantis veto
Gov. Ron DeSantis veto of $32 million in cultural and museum grants and related funding rattled hundreds of organizations across Florida, with critics saying the move damages an almost $3 billion engine of the states tourist-powered economy.

The veto was among almost $950 million worth of programs and projects slashed by DeSantis, who signed a $116.5 billion state budget Wednesday for the fiscal year beginning July 1.

But it also has left some of the 577 arts programs and 33 facilities around the state who lost anticipated dollars scrambling to plug holes.

Weve spent the morning cutting things, Bari Newport, the producing artistic director at GableStage, said Thursday. The longtime theater companys work is staged at Coral Gables historic Biltmore Hotel.

Veto came as a shock

The $70,500 GableStage expected to receive from the state represents just under 3% of its $2.6 million budget, Newport said. But she added that the veto came as a shock as the theaters budget must be finalized by Monday for the new budget year starting in July.

We have other sources of income that keep us going, she added. But this state money helps us support artists, fund educational programs and it keeps tickets affordable for as many people as possible.

Anissa Ford, Education Director at Gadsden Arts, talks with students from Greensboro Elementary School to interpret the meaning of a painting by Mark Messersmith.

GableStage is among the hundreds of community-oriented theater and arts programs that were poised to receive some level of state support until Wednesdays $32 million veto by the governor.

The states own analysis says nonprofit arts and culture organizations generate $2.9 billion in economic activity in Florida. They also create thousands of jobs.

The loss of state dollars could threaten the futures of some theaters, museums and county cultural groups. The veto makes little sense to critics.

An economic effect in many communities

The state has an overall nine-to-one return on investment from these grants that generate hundreds of millions in tax revenue and fuel our local economy, said Carlos Guillermo Smith, a former Democratic state House member now running for a Central Florida Senate seat.

Fomer Represenatives Scott Plakon and Carlos Guillermo Smith talk with one another during the opening day of the 2024 Legislative Session on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024.

Smith was an advocate for such funding during his time in the Legislature. While state dollars for cultural and museum grants have rollercoastered in recent years, Smith said DeSantis action was unprecedented.

This isnt smart and makes no sense, he concluded.

For some organizations, like Orlandos Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts or the Sarasota Opera Association, a lost $150,000 in cultural grant state aid may eventually be covered by other funds or donations.

But for Orlandos MicheLee Puppets, the loss of the $38,720 it was expecting, will likely hit harder. The $47,000 heading to Gadsden Arts, Inc., now lost to Floridas only Black-majority county, also may prove tough to make up.

DeSantis vetoes close to $950M: Florida Gov. DeSantis signs $116.5 billion state budget after vetoing almost $950 million

Deep Dive: Where arts dollars go -- Florida increases arts funding for legislator earmarks, decreases arts and culture grants

Despite the veto, some museums and arts organizations managed to dodge a loss of state dollars, by being included specifically as line-items elsewhere in the budget.

DeSantis during his budget signing, for example, touted how Holocaust museums and educational centers in the state were drawing taxpayer money. Among them is $5 million for a new Holocaust Museum for Hope and Humanity in Orlando.

The governor has made culture fights and a demand for anti-woke state policies a central part of his political brand. But arts leaders were not ready to conclude that the veto fit into a mosaic of earlier policies in education, health and elections which alienated many in the LGBTQ and Black communities.

DeSantis was eager to hold down spending

My understanding is the governor wanted to have a budget that was fiscally conservative, even more so than the year before, said Jennifer Jones, executive director of the Florida Cultural Alliance, which advocates for funding for non-profits across the state.

She added, Obviously, we can internalize and can take these things personally. Anyone could think the nature and content of funded programs would be a factor in the decision. But Jones cautioned, Im not wanting to put words in someones mouth. Arts is a broad field in messaging and content.

During his budget-signing Wednesday, DeSantis in fact boasted a couple of times how the states new $116.5 billion blueprint was below current year spending after he eliminated the almost $950 million in line items.

This is a budget that shows it can be done, DeSantis said about the rollback in spending.

A spokesman for the governor, Jeremy Redfern, said about the culture and museum veto, The governor reviews every bill and appropriation that comes across his desk and uses his authority under the Florida Constitution to make veto decisions that are in the best interest of the state of Florida.

Jay Handelman, arts editor and theater critic at the Sarasota Herald-Tribune contributed to this report. John Kennedy is a reporter in the USA TODAY Networks Florida Capital Bureau. He can be reached at jkennedy2@gannett.com, or on X at @JKennedyReport.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: DeSantis veto of cultural, arts funding will dent economy, critics say
 Welcome to 5 Things PM! It pays to keep workers happy  for the good of the country as well as the company. A new report found that bad vibes among employees cost the global economy a staggering amount of money.

Heres what else you might have missed during your busy day:

5 things

3D Illustration Getty Images/NASA

1 Dyson spheres: Inspired by a science fiction novel from the 1930s, a renowned physicist theorized a way to detect alien life. Scientists say theyve found potential evidence.

2 Digital dermatology: An increasing number of people are seeking help with their skin through virtual technology rather than in real life. Heres what you should know.

3 Modern religion: In his latest effort to embrace contemporary culture, Pope Francis will host more than 100 comedians from 15 countries at the Vatican. Whoopi Goldberg, Jimmy Fallon and Chris Rock are among those expected to attend.

4 Brat Pack: For people who grew up in the 1980s, a new documentary gives them a chance to relive their adolescence captured in movies like The Breakfast Club and Sixteen Candles.

5 Problem solvers: A massive crocodile was chasing children and pets were disappearing, so people in an Australian town took matters into their own hands.

Watch this

 Scary moment: Toddler Paisley Toten and her family were feeding the animals at a Texas wildlife refuge when a hungry giraffe accidentally grabbed her shirt and lifted her in the air. The giraffe quickly let go, and Paisleys mom was right there to catch her.

Top headlines

Check this out

 Fearsome predator: An amateur paleontologist discovered a new species of pterosaur, a flying reptile with a huge wingspan that lived alongside dinosaurs 100 million years ago.

An artist's impression of Haliskia peterseni, a new species of pterosaur. - Gabriel Ugueto/Curtin University

Your health

 Bugging out: Summer is prime time for ticks and mosquitoes. Heres how to protect yourself from those pesky little critters that want to take a bite out of you.

Quiz time

Low water levels on the Amazon River in Brazil. - Gustavo Basso/NurPhoto/Getty Images

 A natural climate pattern marked by warmer than average ocean temperatures in the tropical Pacific Ocean has officially ended. What is this pattern called?

A. Tropical wave

B. La Nina

C. El Nino

D. Pacific drift

 Scroll down for the answer.

Good vibes

 We like to wrap things up on a positive note:

Sassy Wyatt has been blind for most of her adult years, but that hasnt stopped her from spending her life traveling the globe. Her blog, Blind Girl Adventures, chronicles her trips. I really do believe that my blindness has actually opened up the world to help me see it better, she said.

Thanks for reading

 What did you like about todays 5 Things PM? Did we miss anything? Email us: 5ThingsPM@cnn.com

 Quiz answer: C. El Nino has come to an end, setting the stage for La Nina to arrive later this summer. Test your news IQ with our weekly news quiz in tomorrow mornings 5 Things newsletter.

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A state police detective assigned to the Norfolk District Attorneys Office who reported Trooper Michael Proctors vulgar texts about Karen Read up his chain of command returned to the stand Thursday as the Mansfield womans murder trial continues.

Shame on you: Karen Reads defense attorney blasts Detective Proctor over vulgar texts

Tess Chart, a forensic DNA analyst at Bode Technology, and colleague Nicholas Bradford, later testified that John OKeefes DNA was found on taillight pieces found outside 34 Fairview Avenue in Canton that matched Reads SUV.

Andre Porto, a forensic scientist at the Massachusetts State Police Crime Lab, later testified that a DNA profile found on a drinking glass at the scene matched OKeefes.

Read is charged with second-degree murder in OKeefes death. Prosecutors allege she backed over him and left him for dead in a snowstorm.

PLAY-BY-PLAY FROM DAY 24 OF TESTIMONY:

3 p.m.

Defense declines to cross. Porto is excused. Judge tells jury she is going to send them home for the day.

2:45 p.m.

Porto says the DNA profile on the drinking glass matched JOs profile.

2:20 p.m.

Chart is excused. The defense does not question. ADA Lally calls Andre Porto from MSP crime lab DNA unit.

2:15 p.m.

Tess Chart from Bode Labs says the hair sample is consistent with John OKeefe so he cant be excluded.

2 p.m.

Court is back. ADA Lally calls Tess Chart, who also works at Bode Labs

12:55 p.m.

A 45-minute lunch break is called.

12:48 p.m.

Bradford testifies that OKeefes DNA was found on taillight pieces found at the scene which matched Reads SUV.

Says hair sample did not have enough material for nuclear DNA analysis.

12:30 p.m.

ADA Lally calls Nicholas Bradford a DNA Analyst from Bode Labs in Virginia to the station.

12:15 p.m.

Sgt. Brian Gallerani from Needham police was quickly called to the stand to say he took Proctor and Bukheniks DNA. No defense questions.

11:45 a.m.

Jackson asks Lt. Tully about statements made by Canton plow driver Brian Lucky Loughran. He will be an important witness for the defense.

Loughran reported he didnt see a body outside 34 Fairview but he did see a Ford Edge parked near the flag pole.

On the stand, Lt. Tully said Loughrans story changed 3 times and he questioned his reliability.

11:27 a.m.

AJ asks why there are 5 pieces of plastic taillight evidence from SERT team search when Lt. Tullys report says 3 were collected

AJ: Where did the extra items come from?

BT says a fragment in one evidence bag may have come off a bigger piece.

10:55 a.m.

A morning recess is called.

10:40 a.m.

AJ asking BT if a search warrant would have been appropriate if Brian Higgins reported seeing A tall, dark hair man, enter the house

BT: in the off chance Mr. Higgins said something like I would certainly need more information Higgins wasnt interviewed until more than a week after JOs death

10:20 a.m.

Jackson is called to cross-examine of Lt Tully: AJ: youre aware drinking glasses are commonly found in houses?

BT: houses or bars

AJ: he was also found with a coat on are coats commonly worn inside or outside?

BT: Users choice

AJ: Have you ever experienced a homicide where a body has been dragged and lost a shoe?

BT: I dont have any experience with that.

9:50 a.m.

ADA Lally had Lt. Tully walk him through surveillance videos showing a dark colored SUV.

Lt. Tully says KR would have had time between 5:18 a.m. to 5:35 a.m. to return to 34 Fairview before driving to McCabes.

9:30 a.m.

Lt. Tully says there were 53 phone calls from KRs phone to JOs phone from 12:33 a.m. to 6:03 a.m. on 1/29/22.

9:20 a.m.

Lt. Tully was about to say what he believes caused the injuries to JOs right arm but it did not get in

BT: I would be comfortable saying the marks on Mr. OKeefe are consistent with....

AJ: Objection

Judge: Sustained

9:15 a.m..

Lt. Tully says evidence is needed to get a search warrant for a property and he tells ADA Lally there was no evidence to put JO inside the home.

He says KRs SUV was towed to Canton Police because it has a heated garage

9:10 a.m.

Lt Brian Tully is called back to the stand.

Detective Lt. Brian Tully testified Wednesday afternoon that he admonished Proctor, the lead investigator tasked with looking into the death of Reads Boston police officer boyfriend, John OKeefe, over crude and vulgar text messages about Read that he admitted to sending to friends, family, and fellow troopers after OKeefes death.

Tully, the Norfolk County State Police Detective Unit Commander, has been a member of the law enforcement agency for 18 years.

Massachusetts State Police Detective Lt. Brian Tully listens on the witness stand during the Karen Read murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., Wednesday, June 12, 2024. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

After OKeefes body was found outside the Canton home of fellow Boston Police Officer Brian Albert at 34 Fairview Road in January 2022, Tully testified that he the former Canton police chief decided the Canton Police Department should recuse itself from the investigation due to the Albert brothers connection to the case.

Proctor acknowledged in his testimony that he is friends with the brother of Brian Albert and his wife. The Albert family was hosting a house party on the night of OKeefes death.

Proctor, who first took the stand Monday, acknowledged to the jury that he called Read names in his private text messages, including wack job. He also admitted texting his sister that he wished Read would kill herself, which he claimed was a figure of speech and that emotions got the best of me.

Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor testifies during Karen Read's trial, Wednesday, June 12, 2024 in Norfolk Super Court in Dedham, Mass. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Tully testified that he had a long discussion with Proctor over those text messages, expressing displeasure over his unprofessionalism. Tully said he then reported them up his chain of command.

Proctor apologized for some of the language he used but insisted they had no influence on the investigation.

Boston 25 legal expert Peter Elikann said Proctors testimony will prove extraordinarily damaging to the prosecution.

The prosecution alleges Read committed second-degree murder when she backed into OKeefe after dropping him off at 34 Fairview Avenue.

The defense aims to prove that OKeefe was murdered by someone inside 34 Fairview Avenue -- then tossed into the snow.

Karen Read reacts to he attorney Alan Jackson as he cross examines state trooper Michael Proctor during her trial, Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Norfolk Super Court in Dedham, Mass. Read is facing charges, including second degree murder, in the 2022 death of her boyfriend Boston Officer John OKeefe. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Defendant Karen Read listens to her lawyer Alan Jackson question witness Massachusetts State trooper Michael Proctor during her, Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Norfolk Super Court in Dedham, Mass. Read is facing charges, including second degree murder, in the 2022 death of her boyfriend Boston Officer John OKeefe. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Mass State Police Trooper Michael Proctor listens on the witness stand during the Karen Read murder trial, Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Norfolk Super Court in Dedham, Mass. Read is facing charges, including second degree murder, in the 2022 death of her boyfriend Boston Officer John OKeefe. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor testifies during Karen Read's trial, Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Norfolk Super Court in Dedham, Mass. Read is facing charges, including second degree murder, in the 2022 death of her boyfriend Boston Officer John OKeefe. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor testifies during Karen Read's trial, Wednesday, June 12, 2024 in Norfolk Super Court in Dedham, Mass. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Defense lawyer Alan Jackson cross examines cross examines witness Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor during Karen Read's trial, Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Norfolk Super Court in Dedham, Mass. Read is facing charges, including second degree murder, in the 2022 death of her boyfriend Boston Officer John OKeefe. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor testifies during Karen Read's trial, Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Norfolk Super Court in Dedham, Mass. Read is facing charges, including second degree murder, in the 2022 death of her boyfriend Boston Officer John OKeefe. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Attorney Alan Jackson questions trooper Michael Proctor about text messages to his sister during the Karen Read murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., Wednesday June 12, 2024. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Karen Read and attorney David Yannetti listen during her trial, Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Norfolk Super Court in Dedham, Mass. Read is facing charges, including second degree murder, in the 2022 death of her boyfriend Boston Officer John OKeefe. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Massachusetts State Police Detective Lt. Brian Tully listens on the witness stand during the Karen Read murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., Wednesday, June 12, 2024. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

A copy of text messages between trooper Michael Proctor and his sister Courtney Elberg related to a thank you gift appears on a screen during the Karen Read murder trial in Norfolk Superior Court in Dedham, Mass., Wednesday June 12, 2024. (Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool)

Michael Proctor

Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor opens an evidence box to show the jury a broken tail light while testifying, Monday, June 10, 2024, at Norfolk Superior Court, in Dedham, Mass., during the trial for Karen Read. Read is accused of killing her boyfriend, Boston police Officer John O'Keefe, in 2022. (Kayla Bartkowski/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor shows the jury a broken tail light while testifying, Monday, June 10, 2024, at Norfolk Superior Court, in Dedham, Mass., during the trial for Karen Read. Read is accused of killing her boyfriend, Boston police Officer John O'Keefe, in 2022. (Kayla Bartkowski/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

Karen Read, center right, is seated Monday, June 10, 2024, in Norfolk Super Court, in Dedham, Mass., during her trial on charges in connection with the 2022 death of her boyfriend, Boston police Officer John O'Keefe. (Kayla Bartkowski/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

Karen Read is seated Monday, June 10, 2024, in Norfolk Super Court, in Dedham, Mass., during her trial on charges in connection with the 2022 death of her boyfriend, Boston police Officer John O'Keefe. (Kayla Bartkowski/The Boston Globe via AP, Pool)

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The devil is in the details: Educators say DeSantis is missing the mark on teacher pay

The National Education Association is firing back at Governor Ron DeSantis, saying his recent budget misses the mark in improving teacher pay.

>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<

Governor DeSantis signed off on $1.25 billion dollars in funds for teacher salaries, on Wednesday. Taking a closer look at the budget numbers, its $200 million in new dollars for teacher pay.

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He was intentionally misleading, Andrew Spar, President of the Florida Education Association, said. The reality of it is the amount of money thats been allocated for teacher pay increases by the legislature this year is about 100 or 125 dollars a month on average.

The devil is in the details, Chris Guerrieri said.

Guerrieri has been a teacher with Duval County Public Schools for twenty-three years. He takes issue with the fact that most of this money goes towards new teachers starting salaries. He said pay increases after the first couple of years are few and far between.

Until last year, I was making $4,000 more at year 22, than a first year teacher, Guerrieri said. That was just insulting.

The Florida Education Association said the governors budget doesnt go far enough for educators.

Supporting our students, making sure they have highly trained teachers in the classroom, and this governors administration has failed to do that, Spar said. We are one of the largest states in this nation. We should lead this nation in the area of public education.

Governor Ron DeSantis fired back at the National Education Association.

RELATED: Gov. Ron DeSantis signs bill to enhance Florida education at Jacksonville Classical Academy

National Education Association is a very partisan teacher union, DeSantis said during a press conference. Theyre obviously going to generate things that are gonna be more positive views for union-dominated states, and negative for people who have actually beaten the teachers union, like we have in Florida.

He made these comments during a news conference on Monday, before signing the budget on Wednesday.

Those are massive increases in teachers salaries that weve done since weve been in officesince Ive been in office, DeSantis said. For average minimum salary, we are number one in the entire southeastern United States.

For the average starting salary, we rank 16th in the nation, according to the National Education Association. Were in last place for the average teacher salary, which is a drop from our 48th place spot last year.

The governors office sent us a response to the criticism from some educators.

On Monday, the governor announced his commitment to approving a historic teacher salary funding increase of $1.25 billion in the Fiscal Year 202425 budget. Since 2019, Florida has invested over $4 billion in teacher pay increases and has raised starting teacher pay by nearly $10,000. Yesterday, [Wednesday] the governor signed the Focus on Floridas Future budget, which included $1.25 billion (an increase of $201.8 million from last year) in funding to increase salaries for teachers and other instructional personnel.  Spokesperson for Governor Ron DeSantis

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When did Kentucky actually abolish slavery? A lot later than you think.

April 12, 1861: The American Civil War begin after Confederate troops fire on Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina.

Jan. 1, 1863: President Abraham Lincoln announces the Emancipation Proclamation, which frees all enslaved people in the rebellious states of the Confederacy. It does not apply to Kentucky, which had not joined the Confederacy.

April 1863: Camp Nelson is established as a U.S. Army depot logistics center for the Western Theater of the Civil War. Enslaved Kentuckians built a series of forts as a defense along the palisades of the Kentucky River.

June 1864: Racial restrictions are removed on enlistment. Camp Nelson quickly becomes the third-largest United States Colored Troops (USCT) recruiting center in the entire nation, surpassed only by Camp William Penn in Pennsylvania and recruiting centers in New Orleans. Many enslaved men are joined by their families, although the Army has not made provision for them.

Nov. 22-24, 1864: Camp Nelson expels more than 400 Black refugees, most of them women and children during a cold snap. Of those, 102 people die.

January 1865: In response to the tragedy, the Army establishes the Camp Nelson Home for Colored Refugees across U.S. 27 from the camp. Rev. John Fee, founder of Berea College eventually leads the home.

March 1865: After hearing first-person accounts of the tragedy, Congress enacts a law emancipating the wives and children of any enlisted member of the U.S. Colored Troops.

April 9, 1865: Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee surrenders to Gen. Ulysses S. Grant at the Appomattox Court House in Virginia.

June 19, 1865: Gen. Gordon Granger delivers General Order No. 3 in Galveston, Texas, informing the people of Texas that all enslaved people are free, even though they have been free since 1863. The day becomes a holiday celebrating emancipation in Texas, and then spreads throughout the nation.

Dec. 6, 1865: National ratification of 13th Amendment, which ends slavery in the United States. The amendment is ratified by 27 of the existing 36 states. Kentucky is not one of them.

(Note from Linda Blackford: Heres the embarrassing part. Although national ratification of the 13th Amendment meant Kentucky was bound to the federal law, Kentucky did not itself ratify it until 1976. As always, thank goodness for Mississippi. It did not ratify until 2013. )
The Ford 150 Lightning photographed at Town and Country Ford in Madison, Tenn. Photo John Partipilo.

UPDATE: This article has been updated to more closely reflect a delay in the start of deliveries of the Ford electric truck from a new plant in West Tennessee.

Slowing demand for Fords F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck is delaying the start of full production at the companys new West Tennessee factory and pushing vehicle deliveries to dealers until early 2026, according to the state senator representing the community home to the new facility.

State Sen. Page Walley, a Savannah Republican, told the Lookout his understanding is that full production of the truck at the BlueOval City campus in Stanton was pushed back earlier this year by nine months from its initially scheduled full production start date.

Based on whats happening, with (Fords) read on the economy, the company might need a little bit longer runway before full production takes off, Walley said.

When Ford made the BlueOval City announcement in 2021, the Michigan automaker said it would start production in 2025. While hiring and work will begin next year, the first electric pickup trucks arent expected to be delivered to dealers until 2026, which the auto giant said is on track, creating a delay from midsummer of a matter of weeks.

Clay Bright, chairman of the states megasite authority, said this week that Fords time frame slid some, but he didnt think work was ever scheduled to start until the latter part of 2025, anyway. He added that the automaker is committed to finishing the plant, but we really wont know if theyre serious until they start hiring their staff that has to operate the facilities.

Early this year, Ford announced the demand for electric vehicles had softened, forcing it to change some of its plans. It is delaying the start of electric vehicle production at its Oakville, Ontario plant from 2025 to 2027. The company still went through with retooling at the Ontario facility to produce electric vehicles. In Kentucky, the company put on hold a second battery plant. Ford CFO John Lawler said the decision was part of a $12 billion capital spending freeze as the companys electric vehicle unit was expected to lose $1.3 billion in 2023.

Lawmakers are heavily invested in Fords success

Bright said the auto market has struggled with uncertainty, especially with the technology and demand for electric vehicles.

Its new, and, as you would expect, its kind of shaking itself out a little bit, Bright said.

Tennessee lawmakers overwhelmingly approved nearly $1 billion for the $5.6 billion project three years ago as Ford promised to create 5,800 jobs

Walley said, however, he isnt concerned about the state losing money amid Fords slowdown because of a clawback provision that would enable Tennessee to reclaim funds if the automaker fails to follow through on its investment and hiring promise.

Thats kind of our security in this, Walley said.

Ford is confident it will meet the requirements of a state incentive package, a spokesperson said.

The construction site at the Memphis megasite looks comparable to downtown Nashville with multiple cranes visible from I-40 and production buildings already under roof, according to Walley.

The state is set to hold a ceremonial ribbon cutting there Friday for a $60 million Tennessee College of Applied Technology that will train Ford workers and provide education for the region.

Along with Ford and SK Innovation, the Tennessee Economic and Community Development Department has announced three Magna projects and an Avancez Assembly project that will supply the automaker.

Magna said it would invest more than $790 million to build two supply facilities at BlueOval, in addition to a stamping and assembly facility in Lawrenceburg in southern Middle Tennessee. Magnas BlueOval plants will supply Ford with battery enclosures, truck frames and seats. Combined, the three will create 1,300 jobs in the state.

Avancez, meanwhile, is spending $54 million to expand its assembly operations and open a facility at BlueOval, creating 501 jobs specializing in modular assembly, sequencing and supply chain operations.

The post Dimming electric vehicle market may delay start of full production at Fords new West Tenn. plant appeared first on Tennessee Lookout.
At long last, the feud between Florida governor Ron DeSantis and Disney has come to an end. The two parties reached an agreement on Wednesday that clears the way for $17 billion in planned development at Walt Disney World, an expansion that will create an estimated 13,000 jobs, according to the company.

This new agreement lasts for the next 15 years and came about after the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District agreed to a long-term plan for expanding Disney World. The organization was under Disney control for 55 years until DeSantis took it over in 2022, a move that led to several lawsuits. Under this new agreement, Disney will be able to develop its resort without interference by Florida politicians.

More specifically, this new deal gives the resort the ability to build a fifth theme park, add three small parks, expand its retail and office space and build 14,000 hotel rooms. This agreement does come with some caveats. Disney is obligated to spend at least $8 billion, and the company must also expand an affordable housing initiative and carry out a buy local initiative. The latter initiative requires that at least 50 percent of its total spending when it comes to this expansion go to Florida businesses.

The expansion plan was unanimously approved by all five members of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board. Following that approval, Disney said it will halt its litigation against DeSantis and the district.

In a statement acquired by the New York Times, Jeff Vahle, president of Disney World, said the agreement will support the growth of this global destination, fueling the Florida economy.

DeSantis war against Disney started in 2022 when Florida legislature passed a law to disband the Reedy Creek Improvement District, the former name of the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District. Many lawmakers have argued that the move against Reedy Creek was in retaliation to Disneys opposition to DeSantis Parental Rights in Education Act, which is more commonly known as the Dont Say Gay bill. In 2023, Florida state legislature voted to replace the RCID boards five Disney-selected members with five members appointed by DeSantis as well as remove parts of the districts authority. That led to Disney filing a lawsuit against DeSantis, claiming the politician violated the companys First Amendment rights (A judge ultimately ruled in favor of DeSantis).

Shortly after the Dont Say Gay bill was largely overturned  allowing

gender identity and sexual orientation to be discussed in Florida classrooms  DeSantis replaced a CFTOD member who was critical of Disney. That led to DeSantis and Disney reaching a settlement in March.

The post Disney and DeSantis End Florida Feud, Making Way for $17 Billion Disney World Development appeared first on TheWrap.
UPDATE: The legal fight between The Walt Disney Co. and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis is officially over.

The company has dropped its appeal that challenged DeSantis moves to strip the company of control over a special district that covered its Florida theme park properties.

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A stipulation of dismissal was filed earlier today in a federal appellate court in Florida.

Read Disneys dismissal of DeSantis lawsuit.

The dismissal came one day after the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board, made up of DeSantis appointees, approved a new development agreement with the company. Disney is planning up to $17 billion in development over the next 10 to 20 years, including the possibility of a fifth theme park as well as other expansion.

Based on the new Development Agreement between appellant Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, U.S., Inc. and appellee Central Florida Tourism Oversight District, Disney has agreed to dismiss the above-captioned appeal. All parties to this appeal hereby stipulate to dismissal of the appeal with prejudice. All parties agree to bear their own costs on appeal, according to the court filing.

A district court judge had dismissed Disneys lawsuit against DeSantis and others earlier this year. The company then filed for an appeal, but since reached a settlement with the oversight district.

Disney had sued DeSantis, claiming that his actions to take control of the special district were retribution after the company opposed a parental rights bill, known as the dont say gay law.

PREVIOUSLY, Wednesday: The way has been cleared for $17 billion in planned development at Walt Disney World near Orlando.

On Wednesday night, the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District gave the Walt Disney Co. a locked-in, 15-year plan for expanding Walt Disney World.

The agreement gives Disney the ability to build a fifth theme park, add three small parks, expand retail and office space, and build 14,000 hotel rooms.

EARLIER: After years of acrimony between Disney and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, the two sides are working on a new development agreement that would provide assurances and guardrails for the Bob Iger-run behemoth as it plans to expand near Orlando. In exchange, the State of Florida would see up to $17 billion in investment from Disney over the next ten to twenty years. It also sets the stage for a fifth park at the resort.

While the cessation of hostilities is good for all involved, the monetary commitment from Disney is more a renewal of vows than a new promise. The corporation has repeatedly promised over several years to invest $17 billion in and around Disney World and hire over 10,000 new parks employees in the state over the 10 years. The new agreement cites the same monetary investment, but extends the timeframe. But given all thats happened between the parties in Florida, state and local officials are likely grateful to have any reassurance.

One new deal point in the proposed agreement is a minimum spend on Disneys part.

In furtherance of its plans to make significant capital investment in the Project during the term of this Agreement, Disney agrees to make at least an initial capital investment of $8 billion dollars within the first ten (10) years of the term of the Agreement, consisting of capital investment in existing infrastructure, new construction and technology investment.

There is also a promise of a minimum development of 5 major theme parks in Orlando.

Additionally, there is a provision that Disney may convert hotel/motel land use entitlements to up to an additional 225,000 gross square feet of office uses within the District Jurisdictional Properties.

That item may just be additional flexibility, but it also could make room for Disney to restart its plan to move approximately 2,000 Parks, Experiences & Products staffers and their families to central Florida from California. That plan, which was put on ice almost exactly a year ago, would add not just jobs, but more tax revenue to the $1.1 billion Disney already pours into the states economy.

The new agreement would replace a very favorable 30-year development deal the then Disney-controlled board signed at its last meeting before the current DeSantis appointees stepped in. It requires a final vote next week to become official.

Disney just locked down a similar revised development agreement with the City of Anaheim for Walts original park. That deal gives Disney increased flexibility to create mixed use environments and new zoning permissions enabling it to add additional attractions. Dubbed DisneylandForward, the multi-decade expansion plan is tabbed at $1.9 billion. The company last fall touted a $60 billion investment commitment to its parks worldwide over the next 10 years, though details have been scant.

Another force likely driving the Disney deals is Epic Universe, a highly anticipated $1 billion expansion at Universal Studios Orlando set to open next year. Universals parks unit is riding high ofter opening its first Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Hollywood last year and announcing regional parks in Las Vegas and Texas.

In response to a question about competition from NBCU during the companys last earnings call, Disney CEO Bob Iger said, Weve been aware of Universals plans for a new park for more than a decade. And we have a sophisticated approach to analyzing the needs of all of our businesses and strategically deploying capital.

He then got another shareholder question about why more details about Disneys promised total $60 billion investment in its parks have not been shared. Iger kept his comments fairly brief. You know, we have a lot of projects in development, he said. Many of them are known to us. But we disclose these at a cadence and when we really feel were ready, and we have something more tangible to show people.

Experiences, the division that encompasses theme parks and consumer products, reported a 10% rise to $8.4 billion, while operating profit climbed 12% to almost $2.3 billion in the most recent quarter.

The uptick was driven by international led by Hong Kong Disneyland. Walt Disney World and the cruise line were solid. But Disneyland, despite growing attendance and per capita spend, saw results dip year-on-year on higher costs, including labor, said CFO Hugh Johnston on an earnings call with analysts.

A big surprise  he said Parks growth in the current fiscal third quarter will be flat for a few reasons including some normalization of post-Covid demand as it relates to demand. While consumers continue to travel in record numbers and we are still seeing healthy demand, we are seeing some evidence of a global moderation from peak post-Covid travel.

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Disney's feud with DeSantis is over  and it's donating to Republicans again

Disney is once again donating to politicians  just months after ending its feud with Ron DeSantis.

It's even donating to Florida Republicans who voted for the state's so-called "Don't Say Gay" bill.

Disney executives' opposition of the bill sparked a yearslong conflict with DeSantis.

Since ending its feud with Florida's governor, Ron DeSantis, Disney has wasted no time donating to Republicans again.

The Walt Disney Comany gave more than $87,000 worth of in-kind, or nonmonetary, donations to political committees, including Republican lawmakers, in the months of April and May, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

That's an about-face for the House of Mouse, which had paused political donations as it brawled with DeSantis.

The yearslong feud first started in 2022 when Disney executives publicly opposed DeSantis' bill  which has since been signed into law  that restricts discussions of gender and sexual orientation in classrooms.

Critics called the legislation the "Don't Say Gay" bill.

In response to its opposition, DeSantis grabbed control of the board that oversees Disney World's special tax district, renaming it the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District and replacing all of its board members with his own.

Disney, in turn, sued, arguing it was being politically targeted; DeSantis' board sued right back.

The legal back-and-forth finally ended in March when DeSantis' handpicked board agreed to settle the lawsuit brought by Disney.

Now, ironically, Disney is supporting some Republican lawmakers who voted in favor of the so-called "Don't Say Gay," bill, the Sentinel reported.

That includes an in-kind donation worth more than $16,000 to Florida Farmers and Ranchers United, a group associated with Rep. Josie Tomkow, campaign-finance records show. Tomkow voted for the bill, officially called the Parental Rights in Education Act.

Disney also gave about $10,000 each to two committees affiliated with the Republican state senators Jason Brodeur and Joe Gruters, campaign-finance records show. Both state lawmakers also supported the controversial bill.

Though Disney has resumed in-kind donations, Sen. Geraldine Thompson, a Democrat, has said Disney headquarters has not yet approved monetary donations, the Sentinel reported.

Perhaps the most significant sign of a final detente between Disney and the DeSantis administration came Wednesday when the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District approved Disney's $17 billion development deal.

The deal allows Disney to spend billions on its Walt Disney World properties in the next 10 to 20 years, potentially on an expansion to build a fifth park.

Disney, in return, must award half of its related construction work to Florida-based businesses and spend $10 million on "attainable housing projects." The company must also donate 100 acres of its land to the tourism district.

Read the original article on Business Insider
LANSING  The Michigan Department of Natural Resources is looking to team up with farmers and hunters to reduce the deer population in Berrien, Branch, Calhoun, Cass, Kalamazoo, and St. Joseph counties  in hopes of filling hungry stomachs with venison.

Michigan DNR Biologist Ken Keeson heads a program to sign up farmers to host a refrigerator trailer on their farms. Farmers and designated DNR-licensed shooters harvest deer as normal and then dress them in the refrigerator trailer as part of the program.

Kesson said a DNR representative will clean out the trailer and deliver the deer to a licensed processor. The DNR will pay for all processing, and the meat will then be packaged and returned to Southwest Michigan Food Bank or a local food bank for distribution.

Deer eating a soybean crop on Southern Road this week in Branch County.

"This program has great potential to help farmers with deer damage that need an avenue for storage and a mechanism to use problem animals," Kesson said.

Rather than waste nuisance deer, the program allows farmers to contribute much-needed food resources to the local communities.

With crops out of the ground, "some farms, especially the large ones, seem to (experience) quite a bit (of) agricultural damage," Kesson said.

Farmers with crop damage can obtain out-of-season permits to hunt the nuisance deer.

"They have a list of people they work with, employees, people that access the property that they are comfortable with and know," Keeson said.

The out-of-season permit programs are not new. What is different is that selected farmers have refrigerator coolers to put the field-dressed deer in to preserve them.

"We're packaging that up and then distributing it through the Sportsmen Against Hunger program to local food banks," Keeson said. The DNR said each deer donated will provide roughly 160 high-protein and nutritious meals.

The six counties in the program have no cases of Chronic Wasting Disease or Bovine tuberculosis, which prevents the use of food. A 2023 test of the program with two farmers in each Branch and St. Joseph counties produced more than 1,000 pounds of processed venison, according to the DNR.

Those who wish to participate can contact Keeson at (269) 244-5928. "Leave a message and I will call them back," he said

Subscribe Support local news. Subscribe to the Daily Reporter.

Branch and St. Joseph counties are very agricultural, providing food for foraging deer throughout the growing season. A 2017 DNR study showed that grown deer can eat around 2,000 pounds of plant matter annually, and deer damage can damage up to 10% of the field.

If the program works well, the DNR could "potentially expand the program to other areas of the state that have deer damage," Kesson said, "It's a big problem throughout a lot of Southern Michigan."

 Contact Don Reid: dReid@Gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Farmers can join DNR program to process nuisance deer for food banks
Six counties will likely get "buck only" restrictions for the first shotgun season in 2024. (Photo courtesy of National Park Service)

State regulators are seeking to severely restrict the hunting of female deer in several southwest Iowa counties in an effort to increase the animals population in that area.

Hunters in six counties would be barred from shooting white-tailed does during the first shotgun season, and none of the counties will have additional doe licenses available for other seasons.

Those counties include Fremont, Harrison, Mills, Monona, Pottawattamie and Shelby. The new restrictions already exist in 17 counties of northwest Iowa, where some have been in place for a decade.

The Iowa Department of Natural Resources has been gradually reducing the number of licenses for antlerless deer in the southwest counties in recent years.

This is in response to what weve noticed is a sustained population decline, said Jace Elliott, the DNRs deer biologist. The hunters in that area, what Im hearing from them is, its about time. Im always surprised when we propose relatively large changes, and I dont get a single person reaching out from that part of the state thats even confused about why were going in that direction.

Also, no doe licenses would be issued for Cass and Page counties, and the number of available licenses will be reduced for Adams and Montgomery counties.

The department might finalize the new restrictions next month as it hosts a series of meetings that are part of its Western Iowa Deer Initiative, which is meant to solicit input from hunters and landowners.

The new restrictions represent a significant reversal of the states policies two decades ago, when there was a robust deer population in southwest Iowa. The DNR had made thousands of antlerless licenses available and also allowed hunters to use powerful rifles during special January seasons to encourage more participation.

It worked probably too well, Elliott said. At the time, people didnt have the foresight to realize that wed be in this situation.

He said deer numbers declined gradually over time in the area and  because of the areas relatively open landscape  were unable to rebound as they quickly can in southeast Iowa, where there are vast areas for deer to hide.

Tim Powers, an Iowa field director for Whitetails Unlimited, a group that promotes hunting and habitat conservation, said he trusts that the DNRs decision to impose new restrictions is necessary to increase deer numbers.

Id go along with what their research is telling them to do, he said.

The restrictions have worked in north-central Iowa, where they have been lifted or loosened in some counties in recent years as populations recovered, Elliott said. It will likely take at least five years to notice an appreciable improvement in southwest counties. Those with the quickest gains are typically adjacent to counties with larger populations and have more available habitat.

The following DNR public meetings are scheduled to go from 6:30 to 8 p.m.:

 July 8: Atlantic, at The Venue, 307 Walnut St.

 July 9: Denison, at the Lookout Shelter at Yellow Smoke Park, 2237 Yellow Smoke Road

 July 10: Council Bluffs, at Bass Pro Shops, 2901 Bass Pro Drive

 July 11: Shenandoah, at the Shenandoah Public Library, 201 S. Elm St.

 July 15: Onawa, at the Onawa Public Library, 707 Iowa Ave.

 July 16: Sioux Center, at the Sandy Hollow Clubhouse, 3395 400th St.

 July 17: Sioux City, at the Dorothy Pecaut Nature Center, 4500 Sioux River Road

 July 18: Cherokee, at the Cherokee Community Center, 530 W. Bluff St.

The post DNR proposes new deer hunting restrictions for southwest Iowa appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch.
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD)  The latest survey from the Michigan Department of Natural Resources estimates that the states wolf population is the highest it has been since the start of its semiannual surveys.

The 2024 winter wolf population survey estimates at least 762 wolves across Michigans Upper Peninsula, up from 631 in 2022 and fairly consistent with the estimates over the last several years.

This years survey findings are statistically consistent with our wolf population surveys for the past 14 years, DNR large carnivore specialist Brian Roell said in a statement.

Roell says its likely that the wolf population has reached its ideal equilibrium, the number of wolves that the local habitat can support given the amount of space and prey.

DNR: Gray wolf killed in Calhoun County

When a wild population reaches this stable point, it is typical to see slight variations from year to year, indicating that gray wolves may have reached their biological carrying capacity in the Upper Peninsula, he stated.

Based on evidence gathered through trail cameras and tracks left in the snow, the DNR estimates there are approximately 158 packs of wolves across the Upper Peninsula, with an average of 4.8 wolves per pack.

The DNR is also expanding its search for wolves across the Lower Peninsula. The last survey in the northern Lower Peninsula was conducted in 2019. A new one is being planned for next winter.

Monitoring wolf presence in the northern Lower Peninsula is significantly different than in the Upper Peninsula because wolves, if present in the Lower Peninsula, are at such low-density levels the track survey protocol used in the U.P. is impractical, the DNR stated.

State lawmakers urge DNR to decide against criminal charges in wolf incident

Instead, they rely on resident reports of tracks or droppings to concentrate on specific areas.

Research has suggested that there is suitable habitat for wolves in the northern Lower Peninsula, Roell said. However, this habitat is fragmented and the ability of wolves to travel the landscape among these habitat patches is uncertain. Suitable habitat becomes even more patchy in the more populated southern Lower Peninsula, which makes it unlikely that wolves would establish themselves there.

There have only been a handful of signs of a consistent wolf population in the Lower Peninsula in recent years.

The DNR did confirm some wolf tracks in Emmet and Cheboygan counties during their 2011 and 2015 surveys, and biologists with the Little Traverse Bay Bands of Odawa Indians spotted a wolf on a trail camera in 2014.

New proposal would allow e-bikes on DNR trails

Otherwise, the only confirmed piece of evidence is the wolf that was killed in January in Calhoun County by a hunter. The hunter who killed the animal told the DNR that he thought it was a coyote.

News 8 can confirm the DNRs investigation into the case has been submitted to the Calhoun County prosecutor, but the office has yet to announce whether criminal charges will be filed.

Wolves are protected under the Endangered Species Act, meaning they can only be legally killed if there is a direct and immediate threat to human life. Any person who knowingly kills an endangered animal could face up to a year in prison and a $50,000 fine.

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 WOODTV.com.
NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY)  When Jim Purekal moved to Norfolk in 2023, he started shopping around for a doctor.

There were certain doctors that looked like they were available, Purekal said. But when I made the phone call it, I was informed that they were not taking any new patients.

After he expanded his parameters to look 25 miles out, then 50, and found nothing available, he began to get concerned, he said.

Purekals frustraton is felt across Hampton Roads, where new patients are scheduling appointments ten months to more than a year out.

Its the perfect storm here in Hampton Roads, said retired Nuerologist, Dr. Armistead Williams.

Williams is now working to save the profession and people hes taken care of for 45 years.

We realized there was a need and there was nobody else going to go speak up and say, This is a problem. This  this is like a hair on fire problem,' Williams said.

Williams along with Consultant and Partner Emeritus, or CPA, and Dixon Hughes Goodman LLP, Bruce Holbrook, have done a lot of research to diagnose the condition of local health care.

Were in a huge crisis, Holbrook said. We cant wait a year. We cant wait two years. We need to start recruiting doctors now.



Overall, Williams said, people living in Hampton Roads are not as healthy as in other parts of the state.

When ranked by county, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Suffolk, Newport News and Hampton all have worse than average health outcomes for Virginia. All of those cities, except Suffolk, are also fairing worse than average for the nation.

Were a sick area and we need more doctors, Williams said.

At the root of the crisis is a short supply of doctors and increasing demand from patients. But why now? Where did all of the doctors go? Williams and Holbrooks research points to three main drivers of demand.

Medicaid Expansion : In 2019 gave medical insurance to 50,000 people who didnt have it before.

Military Readiness : In 2017 the Department of Defense shifted to wartime readiness. That reduced the number of medical staff at Portsmouth Naval Medical Center

sending military families (Tricare Beneficiaries) into the community for care.

Baby Boomers: This generation is affecting supply and demand. The Baby Boomer generation is getting older and sicker, while those in health care are getting out.

Ive consulted with some family practice groups around there, and you go out and talk to them and say, Whats happening? And four to five of them are going to retire in the next two or three years and they cant replace them, Holbrook said.

Williams told WAVY that for every doctor who retires it takes one and a half new doctors to replace them. Why? Quality of life.

They dont want to work like I did  its true, Williams said. You ought to be able to go home, have supper with your children.

The cost of medical school is also dissuading some from pursing a career in medicine at all.

Everybody else wants these doctors, too, Williams said. And if were going to be competitive, we have to have the work life balance and the compensation.

Pay-to-stay scholarships could help. Just last week EVMS announced a $20 million gift from philanthropist Joan Brock to establish a scholarship for Virginia students who plan to practice in Hampton Roads. Sentara also committed to provide $350 million in dedicated funding over the next decade.

Thats good, but they can make  could commit to even more than that, Holbrook said. Sentara has the money to fund it, and the city and the state has realized that it has to be done.

It took Purekal 10 months to see a healthcare provider. Over which time, he developed a shoulder injury that now prevents him from lifting and playing with his daughter the way he used to.

Had I had maybe some sort of a diagnosis at that time, Purekal said. Then it wouldnt gotten to the level of where its kind of constant pain.

The DOD is now working to bring military families back into the military health system. Also, Sentaras director of communications said Sentara is committed to expanding its physician training adding new fellowship programs and expanding existing residency programs. Both of which will help, but will take years to play out.

So what can you do now? Williams said to appreciate the doctor you have and keep yourself as healthy as possible.

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 WAVY.com.
Leaders of environment watch group Suncoast Waterkeeper say they have new DNA evidence linking popular horseback rides in Bradentons Palma Sola Bay to water pollution.

The group points the finger at horse manure, which it says is contaminating the water with potentially harmful bacteria that make it unfit for swimming. The waste can also add nutrients to the water that can help fuel harmful algal blooms. Concerns have also been raised about the horses trampling seagrass.

The fact that were allowing these horses to just defecate in the water is mind-boggling, Suncoast Waterkeeper Executive Director Abbey Tyrna said. Whats definitely known is that some level of our high enterococci bacteria is coming from the horses.

But the operator of one of the areas largest horse riding operations, C Ponies Horseback Rides, pushes back on claims that the horses are damaging the bay. Owner Carmen Hanson says that ride operators keep the beach clean and remove most of the waste from the water.

Hanson claims that horse manure poses a low risk to human health and says the focus on horses is a distraction from major sources of pollution to the bay, like municipal wastewater spills and stormwater runoff.

Based on the DNA results, Suncoast Waterkeeper is making a renewed call for Bradenton officials to regulate companies that offer the rides and stop the release of horse waste into the habitat.

Bradenton officials say they want more information before taking any action.

DNA test studies horse manure

The Sarasota Bay Estuary Program, which advises Bradentons city council on water quality issues, says a study could help determine whether horses are causing a significant enough impact on the bay to merit regulation.

Were not pro- or anti-horse, SBEP Executive Director David Tomasko said. If the horses are contributing a fairly substantial percentage of the bacteria, then maybe doing something about the horses is going to make a big difference. But if its only... .05%, you could get rid of the horses and really not change anything.

A rider enjoys a group horseback ride along the shoreline at Palma Sola Bay with C Ponies Beach Horses.

For over a decade, Bradentons city leaders have debated whether they should ban horse rides along Palma Sola Causeway due to water quality concerns.

But previous discussions faltered after leaders disagreed about what action they should take or decided more information was needed. Questions have also lingered about whether the city has the authority to regulate activity on Palma Sola Causeway, which is maintained by the Florida Department of Transportation.

Horse rides have controversial history

Last year, Bradenton City Council consulted Sarasota Bay Estuary Program as leaders again considered whether they should pass a ban.

At the time, Tomasko told the council that more research was needed to determine how much horses contribute to pollution in the bay. He also noted that while horses may have a localized impact, the bay was in good condition overall.

The issue was once again dropped.

The Florida Department of Health (FDOH) regularly tests the water on the south side of Palma Sola Causeway for enterococci bacteria and issues no-swim advisories when the bacteria levels are too high. The most recent advisory came Friday and was lifted Thursday morning. The bacteria is a potential indicator of fecal matter, and it can make people sick when ingested.

FDOH does not indicate the source of the bacteria in its reports. Its unknown whether horses, which swim on the north side of the causeway, are a factor. Other sources of enterococci bacteria include human waste and plant matter.

To fill in the information gap, Suncoast Waterkeeper performs weekly enterococci testing on the north side of the causeway, where their reports often show elevated levels of bacteria.

Waterkeepers push for horse ride regulation

Suncoast Waterkeeper leaders say there is enough evidence of horses contaminating the water for officials to start regulating the industry now.

Theres enough evidence to warn people about the risk, and theres enough evidence to create and operate a permitting program to make sure that there are best management practices in place, Tyrna said.

The north side of Palma Sola Causeway is among 11 sites the group tests weekly for enterococci bacteria. After samples in April showed high levels of the bacteria, the group sent water and sediment samples from the area for DNA testing by LuminUltra.

Both the water and sediment samples had detectable levels of horse DNA but no human DNA. This suggests that the high levels of enterococci we observed on April 8 came from horses, a recent newsletter from Suncoast Waterkeeper said.

Tyrna suggested that the horse rides could continue with new limits in place to protect water quality, such as limiting how deep horses are allowed to go and how many are allowed in the water at once.

There should be signage to alert people who recreate on that side of the bay to the risk due to the horse operations, Tyrna said. Swimming around horse poop is dangerous.

Tyrna also noted that horses are just one source of bacteria in the bay, and she suspects that horses contribute more to the issue during the dry season.

She said that Suncoast Waterkeeper will continue to collect water quality data going into the rainy season for a more complete picture.

Theres horse DNA, theres human DNA and theres plant material. Wed like to know how much of each is contributing, Tyrna said.

Tyrna also commended the horse ride operators who are trying to take good care of the bay and said that some she spoke to are open to being permitted.

Theyre trying to be really good stewards of the bay, which is great, Tyrna said.

Riders enjoy a group horseback ride along the shoreline at Palma Sola Bay with C Ponies Beach Horses for an hour.

Horse ride owner opposes regulation

We thought after last year that this was finally settled, said Carmen Hanson, owner of C Ponies Horseback Rides. But theres a handful of people that keep pushing and pushing.

Hanson called the concerns about horses smoke and mirrors that distract from other sources of pollution to the bay.

Lets focus here on horses and then we dont have to focus on any of the bigger issues, Hanson said.

Hanson pointed to reports by horse advocates that claim horse manure is non-toxic and rarely transmits disease.

Scientific literature reviewed by the Bradenton Herald supported the claim that transmission of disease by horses is rare but also noted that horse manure can contain a number of pathogens that can make people sick.

Horse droppings are scooped up by a worker with a net and a basket while riders participate in a group ride at Palma Sola Bay.

Bradenton officials seek more info

We have tried to follow reliable science on what the condition of Palma Sola Bay is, especially the north side that seems to be of larger concern, City Administrator Rob Perry told the Bradenton Herald.

Perry said the council relies on the latest water quality findings from the Sarasota Bay Estuary Program to guide its decisions. SBEP is scheduled to present to the city council again in July.

The last report we got is that its been better than its been in a long time and moving in a steady positive direction, Perry said. Were going to wait to see what the latest is, and well listen carefully and assess.

Meanwhile, Perry said the citys jurisdiction over the causeway remains murky.

Weve done some legal research into that and its a novel situation because you have multiple state and local entities with jurisdiction out there. Were still looking at what options may be, Perry said.

The city administrator said hes been impressed by the horse ride operators efforts to keep the water clean.

The folks that operate the horse rides have come in and pled their case, and they seem to be pretty good stewards of the coastline, Perry said.

Estuary program says more study needed

Now that they have a (DNA) hit for horses, it shifts into a different mode of research, said Sarasota Bay Estuary Program Executive Director Dave Tomasko. Alright, so what percentage of bacteria are due to horses?

Tomasko said a study on the extent of the horses impact could provide city leaders with better information to decide whether regulation is needed.

The horses do damage to the bay, Tomasko said. There is scarring in the seagrass meadows. But so does every boat. So does everyone who brings a jet ski. So do people who leave trash on the beach. So its a matter of, is their proportionate impact so great that we should get rid of them?

Tomasko said the estuary program has set money aside in its budget to help Bradenton with such a study, which he previously estimated at a cost of less than $10,000.

In the meantime, Tomasko said one precaution he would like to see is warning signs at the beach.

Until this works out, it might make sense to put up signs that mark the beach as not appropriate for swimming, Tomasko said.

A rider enjoys a group horseback ride along the shoreline at Palma Sola Bay with C Ponies Beach Horses.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) has uncovered a pattern of civil rights violations, discrimination and excessive force in the Phoenix Police Department.

According to a DOJ report released Thursday, Phoenix police discriminate against Black, Hispanic and Native American people when enforcing the law, including when they use excessive and unjustified deadly force.

Phoenix residents deserve nothing less than fair, non-discriminatory, and constitutional policing, Kristen Clarke, assistant attorney general of the Justice Departments Civil Rights Division, said in a statement.

Our comprehensive investigation revealed unlawful and unconstitutional practices in the Phoenix Police Departments enforcement activities that impact some of Phoenixs most vulnerable residents, including Black, Hispanic, and Native American people, homeless people, and those experiencing behavioral health crises.

The DOJ launched its investigation in August 2021 following criticism around how Phoenix treated protesters in 2020, deaths of people who were restrained by officers and a high number of shootings by officers.

In the years leading up to the investigation, Phoenix officers shot and killed people at one of the highest rates in the country, the report said.

Some city officials blamed a more violent population for the number of shootings, rather than police conduct, the report said. But we found a significant number of the shootings did not meet constitutional standards.

The report added that the department has a distorted view of de-escalation.

Rather than teaching that de-escalation strategies are designed to eliminate or reduce the need to use force, PhxPD has misappropriated the concept and teaches officers that all force  even deadly force  is de-escalation, the report reads.

For instance, the report found, police have shot projectiles at people without evidence that the person was an immediate threat, including in the case of a man who was accused of taking his mothers car without permission.

In that particular incident, an officer fired PepperBalls at the man and continued to fire after the man was on his knees and had curled his body onto the sidewalk, the report said.

Phoenix officers also enforce certain laws more severely against Black, Hispanic and Native American people than against white people who engaged in the same conduct, the report said, though the city has claimed it is unaware of any credible evidence of discriminatory policing.

According to the report, a disproportionate number of Black and Hispanic drivers have been stopped for traffic violations by Phoenix police compared to violations recorded by neutral traffic cameras in the same locations. Officers also enforced traffic laws more severely against Black and Hispanic drivers than it did against white drivers exhibiting the same behaviors.

Police also enforced quality-of-life laws such as loitering and trespassing more severely against Black, Hispanic, and Native American people than against white people.

Other issues in the report included police delaying necessary medical aid.

In one incident, the report said, officers shot a woman 10 times, then waited more than nine minutes to approach her, even as she lay immobile on the ground.

In another, the report said officers fired multiple rounds from a less-lethal projectile launcher after shooting a man, then sent a police dog to drag the man back to the officers. More than nine minutes passed from when officers shot the man to when they moved in to complete the arrest and render aid.

Thursdays report found that Phoenix police also arrest homeless people without reasonable suspicion that they committed a crime and unlawfully dispose of their belongings.

A persons constitutional rights do not diminish when they lack shelter, the report states.

The DOJ also expressed serious concerns over the Phoenix Police Departments treatment of children. Phoenix police do not take into account the vulnerability of children and their stage of development, according to the report, with one sergeant reporting, We dont really treat youth any differently than adults.

The DOJs report said this can have long lasting mental and physical repercussions on childrens well-being.

The departments problematic de-escalation tactics persist with children, and in fact have escalated situations instead.

In one incident, the report detailed how two officers threw a 15-year-old Latino boy against a bus stop pole, held the back of his neck and handcuffed him after he asked to call his mother. Police questioned the boy as he was handcuffed without reading him his Miranda rights.

The release of todays findings report is an important step toward accountability and transparency, and we are committed to working with the City of Phoenix and Phoenix Police Department on meaningful reform that protects the civil rights and safety of Phoenix residents and strengthens police-community trust, said Attorney General Merrick Garland.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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WASHINGTON  Former President Donald Trump gave House Republicans a rambling pep talk Thursday in his first visit to Capitol Hill since a mob of his supporters attacked Congress on Jan. 6, 2021.

Lawmakers told HuffPost Trump didnt bring up the insurrection, but sources told other outlets he did mention Taylor Swift, the missed opportunity for a romantic relationship with former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), and Rep. Steve Scalise (R-La.) being supported by his wife.

The official readout from House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) was that Trump told Republicans they were doing a very good job, and they clapped for him.

He said very complimentary things about all of us. We had sustained applause, Johnson said. He said Im doing a very good job. Were grateful for that.

Republicans have poured resources into their so-far-unsuccessful efforts to impeach President Joe Biden and to investigate the supposed weaponization of the Justice Department against Trump, who faces felony charges for hoarding classified documents and trying to steal the 2020 election.

One thing Trump didnt do much of during his Capitol Hill visitwas discuss a governing agenda if he wins the White House and Republicans control Congress next year.

I didnt hear any policy talk, Rep. Mark Amodei (R-Nev.) told HuffPost as he left the meeting. It was a pep talk.

In other words, the former president delivered the same kind of stream-of-consciousness remarks that he uses at his rallies.

Sources told the nonprofit news outlet NOTUS that Trump rambled like a drunk uncle and that he said one of Pelosis daughters told him that he and Pelosi could have been a couple.

If things were different, Nancy and I would be perfect together, Trump said, before noting their six-year age difference.

Pelosis daughter, Christine Pelosi, quickly responded that Trump was lying and unwell, unhinged and unfit for office.

Trump also reportedly spoke about visiting Scalise in the hospital after hed been severely wounded in a 2017 mass shooting.

Steve shows great courage, Trump said, according to CNNs Melanie Zanona. I saw him in the hospital. I can tell your wife really loves you, Steve, because some wives wouldnt care.

The former president even got in a dig at Milwaukee, the city where next months Republican National Convention will formally make him the Republican Partys presidential nominee.

Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city, Trump said, per Punchbowls Jake Sherman.

(Several Republicans disputed the quote; Wisconsin Rep. Derrick Van Orden insisted Trump was only referring to the crime in Milwaukee, not the city itself.)

And Trump reportedly bragged about chasing his haters out of the party, such as former Reps. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) and Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.). Of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump for starting the riot at the Capitol in 2021, only Reps. David Valadao (R-Calif.) and Dan Newhouse (R-Wash.) remain.

He didnt mention me at all, Newhouse told HuffPost as he left the meeting. So that was good.

In the afternoon, Trump met with Republican senators on the other side of the Capitol. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), previously one of Trumps fiercest critics among elected Republicans, shook Trumps hand and sat beside him during the meeting.

Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) said Trump was gracious and did not take any shots at Senate Republicans.

There were no barbs, no little asides, Hawley told reporters. It was slightly surreal.

Related...
Donald Trump and Hunter Biden's convictions may have damaged the reputation of the US for good

Hunter Biden and Donald Trump's convictions may have damaged the US's global brand.

Andrew Payne, a foreign-policy expert, says they undermine the US's status as a democratic system.

He says Joe Biden's non-pardon of his son may benefit his campaign, but US credibility has been hurt.

The US's reputation is in tatters, regardless of who takes the Oval Office in January, an expert in foreign policy says.

With criminal convictions on both sides of the election campaign, it's a lose-lose situation, says Andrew Payne, the author of "War on the Ballot: How the Election Cycle Shapes Presidential Decision-Making in War."

On Tuesday, Joe Biden's son Hunter Biden was found guilty of three federal charges related to the purchase of a gun while he was using illegal drugs.

His conviction came less than two weeks after Donald Trump was found guilty of 34 counts related to falsifying business records before the general election in 2016.

Hunter Biden was the first child of a sitting president to be criminally convicted, while Trump was the first US president to be criminally convicted.

Speaking to Business Insider, Payne said the historic convictions had "significantly damaged" the US's reputation on the world stage.

The election won't help save the US's reputation

The presidential candidates had contrasting reactions to each conviction. While Trump told reporters his trial was "rigged," Joe Biden said he'd accept the outcome of his son's legal woes.

Trump used the publicity from his trial to capitalize on fundraising opportunities. Shortly after his guilty verdict was announced, his donor website crashed, a spokesperson wrote on X.

Trump and Joe Biden at a presidential debate in 2020. Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

A person with knowledge of the Trump campaign who spoke to The New York Times said the campaign had hoped Hunter Biden would be acquitted during his trial, as it would prove the narrative that Trump was a victim of political persecution  and would probably raise millions of dollars from supporters.

John Zogby, a veteran pollster, told The Guardian that Hunter Biden's guilty verdict could be a "marginal political gain" for the president and that his decision not to pardon his son would be seen positively.

"It pulls the rug out from under that Republican argument that the justice system is rigged against Republicans to get Trump," Zogby said, adding, "A Biden did not get a pass."

Hunter Biden's conviction might be slightly beneficial to his father's campaign, Zogby said, though it wouldn't "move mountains."

Payne said that in contrast, it was likely to further damage the US's reputation, which took a significant hit when Trump was convicted.

"It is hardly a ringing endorsement of the health of democracy in the United States that allegations of the politicization of the judicial system or questions about candidates' commitment to the rule of law feature so prominently in the campaign," Payne said.

If Joe Biden were to be elected, he might attempt to rebuild the US as "an example of a country where no one is above the law," Payne said. But as the president's approval rating reached a record low this week, his future in The White House is unknown.

On Monday, FiveThirtyEight's weighted tracker recorded a 37.4% approval rating for Joe Biden, compared with 41.6% for Trump. Neither candidate is considered hugely popular, with an April Pew Research Centre survey suggesting that 49% of voters would replace both candidates if they could.

This makes the upcoming election particularly difficult to call.

"Even if Trump isn't elected, when you have one of the two major presidential candidates and someone who is a former president who carries a criminal conviction, it kind of undermines your case that the democratic system is superior," Payne said.

"So there's a big undermining of the US brand, irrespective of whoever is elected in November," he added.

Representatives for The White House and the respective Biden and Trump campaigns didn't immediately respond to requests for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider
WASHINGTON  Former President Donald Trump made his first visit to Capitol Hill on Thursday since a rioting mob of his supporters mounted an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

Trump, now a convicted felon, is huddling with GOP lawmakers at their campaign headquarters on both sides of the Capitol complex. His meetings mark his triumphant return to the top of the Republican Party after the violent attempt to steal the 2020 election briefly made him a pariah.

Some Republicans, namely those who previously voted to impeach Trump and remove him from office, skipped the meetings. But Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who denounced Trump for the riot more forcefully than any other GOP leader, intends to pay his respects.

Hes earned the nomination, McConnell said Wednesday, reiterating his support for Trump as the GOP presidential nominee, despite the fact that they havent spoken since the 2021 attack on the Capitol.

Trumps allies described the meetings as a chance to unify and strategize on their plans to recapture the Senate and White House. Already, they are discussing a new round of tax cuts and a wave of deregulation should they succeed.

I think we all are on the same team and we need to be united as we move into the fall, said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.).

Trump is not expected to enter the Capitol proper on Thursday, but he is visiting Republican campaign headquarters adjacent to the Capitol campus. The twice-impeached former president was near the Capitol last summer when he was arraigned at a federal courthouse in downtown D.C. in his election subversion case.

Over the weekend, Trump falsely called the Jan. 6 insurrection a setup by police.

Former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential candidate for 2024, speaks at a campaign rally on June 6 in Phoenix. Rick Scuteri via Associated Press

Democrats expressed disgust at his return to Capitol Hill.

Today, the instigator of an insurrection is returning to the scene of the crime. January 6th was a crime against the Capitol, that saw Nazi and Confederate flags flying under the dome that Lincoln built, former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said in a statement.

It was a crime against the Constitution and its peaceful transfer of power, in a desperate attempt to cling to power, Pelosi said.

President Joe Bidens campaign released an ad Thursday that hits Trump for his attacks on democracy and is airing in all battleground states.

On January 6, Donald Trump lit a fire in this country, the narrator in the spot says. Stoking the flames of division and hate. Now hes pouring gasoline. ... Inciting them to try again. There is nothing more sacred than our democracy. But Donald Trump is ready to burn it all down.

Trump still faces state and federal charges related to his effort to undo Bidens victory in the 2020 election. Among the charges, the Justice Department indicted Trump for conspiring to obstruct congressional proceedings on Jan. 6, 2021, when lawmakers were certifying the election result.

When advisors urged the Defendant to issue a calming message aimed at the rioters, the indictment said, the Defendant refused, instead repeatedly remarking that the people at the Capitol were angry because the election had been stolen.

Dozens of police were injured as Trumps mob stormed the Capitol, and more than 1,400 people have been charged with crimes since the attack.

The former president has said he would consider pardoning the rioters. In response to Trumps indictment, Republicans on Capitol Hill have worked overtime to delegitimize the Justice Department, falsely saying its been weaponized by Biden against his top political opponent.

This is despite several prominent Democrats, including the presidents son, being prosecuted by the Justice Department.
NEW JERSEY (PIX11)  A more than five-hour manhunt for a double shooting suspect in Carteret, N.J., came to an end with the alleged murderer being arrested in the backyard of a nearby home.

The arrest was caught on ring doorbell video, obtained by PIX11 News.

More Local News

Next thing you know, I hear get down. Im like whats going on, I come out, I see some guy on his knees, Orlando Suarez said.

Suarez said he was inside his house on Post Avenue when he saw a man run into his backyard, followed by dozens of police officers.

All of a sudden, SWAT just swarmed in. There were a lot of vans, Ana Santiago, who lives next door, told PIX11 News. Some of the SWAT went through my yard and jumped over, and they captured him without any incident.

Police said the man, who was described as 20 to 30 years old, shot two women outside a home on Roosevelt Avenue around 9:30 a.m. The women were shot in the driveway of the home.

Neighbors on the block said the women did not live at that home. One woman was declared dead. The other was in critical condition at the hospital.

Police have not released the identities of the women or given a motive for the shooting.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11.
an array of paper face cutouts is a variety of colors

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Former Duke University provost Sally Kornbluth said that while 68% of admitted white students decided to attend Duke, only 39% of Black admitted students did the same, pointing to a need to create a more welcoming environment. The statement was made at the virtual Living While Black symposium in July 2020 following the death of George Floyd and Dukes announced commitment to anti-racism, although they later abandoned that language in favor of racial equity. Four years later, Duke has undermined its own stated commitment by cutting race-conscious scholarships and changing the notification timeline for merit-based aid.

I am a recent alumna of Duke. I followed my interest in health policy to Washington, D.C., where I enrolled at The George Washington University and accepted a research position with the Social Mission Alliance. The Alliance focuses on research and advocacy surrounding equitable conditions in health professions schools and ensuring those schools adequately serve the needs of the communities they are part of. A few weeks into my position, I learned that the Alliance would be hosting a conference in partnership with the Duke University School of Nursing in April 2024. I was excited to return to my alma mater to share what we had been working on and learn about others health equity work.

On April 9, the second-to-last day of the conference, I finished giving a presentation and opened my inbox to see an email announcing the end of Dukes Reginaldo Howard Memorial Scholarship for Black students. The decision cited the legal landscape after the Supreme Court decision on race-conscious admissions. The irony of celebrating Dukes equity efforts in one area  the School of Nursing  while another area suffered was not lost on me.

The announcement sparked national coverage, and students, faculty, alumni, and non-affiliated individuals have expressed concerns. The loss of the Reggie scholarship is foreboding for existing diversity scholarships managed by alumni associations as well as student activist efforts to implement scholarships for other marginalized students, such as Native American and indigenous students.

While the end of the Reggie scholarship was surprising, it wasnt the only change  a few months prior, the university decided to change all merit scholarships to a post-matriculation model, in which students would only be notified of their nomination for a scholarship after the final enrollment deadline. Both of these changes stand to have a detrimental impact on Black students and students from other underrepresented backgrounds because financial aid plays a large role in where these students choose to enroll.

After Kornbluths address at the 2020 symposium, I wrote an article in the Duke Chronicle exploring why Black students seemed less likely to attend Duke when offered acceptance compared to white students. I talked to Black students who had gotten into Duke and chosen to go elsewhere. One person told me the school she chose had offered her a scholarship while Duke had not. The then-director of Dukes Black culture center reiterated to me that financial aid and campus climate were big factors in where Black students chose to go to school.

These answers aligned with what I experienced firsthand as a high school senior choosing a college. In my case, Dukes University Scholarship was ultimately what brought me to the university, and being part of this program largely shaped my undergraduate experience. With the exception of the application-based Robertson Scholarship, all merit scholarship candidates are identified by admissions and referred to their respective scholarship programs, who then select recipients. The Reggie scholarship was included in this process. Until the 2023-2024 academic year, scholarship finalists were notified before the May 1 commitment deadline and invited to campus for interviews and admitted student events. I had visited campus on my own before being selected as a scholarship finalist, but returning for finalist weekend (and the Black Student Alliance Invitational, which was the same weekend) in 2019 made me feel more immersed within the campus community and ultimately commit to attending Duke.

In November 2023, current and former merit scholars signed a letter in opposition to removing the pre-matriculation selection process that was sent to the university in April 2024. Current scholars also verbalized their disapproval to the student newspaper, speculating the change was due to legal concerns and expressing worries about socioeconomic diversity. Most merit scholarships do not require proof of financial need, but many first generation and low-income students have been merit scholars in recent years, and two scholarships in particular  the Rubenstein Scholarship and the University Scholarship  are intended for students with financial need. Merit scholars also have access to community and dedicated enrichment funding for internships and research. For this reason, merit scholarships are about more than just the financial aid, and students have to meet specific standards to keep them.

The changes at Duke occur within the greater context of the wider social justice backlash in North Carolina. The University of North Carolina System, which oversees 16 public universities and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics for 11th and 12th graders, recently repealed its diversity, equity and inclusion policy. A trustee at UNC Chapel Hill recently expressed that North Carolina would follow Floridas path as it relates to DEI; that state as well as Texas saw universities fire DEI staff. Student employees at UNC Chapel Hills Office for Diversity & Inclusion have resigned. North Carolina also banned certain discussions around racism, sexism and politics in state workplaces in 2023.

Duke has defended against the criticism of its scholarship changes by pointing to recent initiatives to cover the cost of attendance for students from North and South Carolina and its involvement with QuestBridge, a program that helps high-achieving low-income students apply to top universities. Students who match with Duke through QuestBridge are meant to have 100% of their demonstrated financial need covered by the university for four years. Jenny Wood Crowley, assistant vice provost for undergraduate education, also told the Duke Chronicle the post-matriculation model would allow the university to more fully review students financial situations before awarding scholarships.

In place of the Reggie scholarship, the university will redirect funds to need-based aid and a non-selective leadership program focused on enrichment opportunities. In a May 6 email to alumni, Provost Alec Gallimore said directing funds to need-based aid would be more beneficial for Dukes Black students, with between 85% and 92% of enrolling Black students receiving financial aid each year and over half being Pell-eligible.

Despite this, the changes to scholarships may still have a negative impact on recruiting diverse students. The elimination of the Reggie scholarship will not inspire confidence in campus climate for students of color, and making students commit before theyre offered a scholarship could lead to students opting to go elsewhere for financial reasons.

I also want to reiterate how valuable these programs are to students. My scholarship director became someone I could rely on for academic and emotional support. My program in particular was the only merit scholar program that included undergraduate, graduate and professional students, so we were able to form relationships with people at all levels of education. Undergrads were paired with mentors with similar interests; I was paired with people that shared my interest in scientific research, and people interested in health professions were paired with medical and nursing students. We partook in academic enrichment and volunteering together. Having a merit scholarship felt more secure than having the university redetermine my financial need each year. Additionally, it eliminated my need to do work-study, which freed up time for me to pursue more on-campus opportunities - research points to employment being a barrier to campus involvement for about a third of college students. The scholarship also allowed me to graduate debt-free, which is immensely helpful now that Ive taken out loans for my MPH.

The situation at Duke is still evolving, with students and alumni actively engaging in conversations about next steps. In the year that Ive been working as a researcher for the Alliance, Ive spent time reviewing strategies that schools use to implement the social mission. Research has suggested that colleges are less likely to advertise in areas with high concentrations of low-income individuals or high concentrations of individuals identifying as racial or ethnic minorities other than Black people.

It also suggests that college recruiters tend to visit whiter, wealthier schools. This needs to change; targeted recruitment is still permitted by the Supreme Courts affirmative action decision, and these efforts can make a difference. Latine student activists at Duke have demanded targeted recruitment in diverse areas in recent years, and given student concerns about socioeconomic diversity with the post-matriculation timeline, its imperative for Duke to reach out to low-income areas and racially diverse areas. Other universities have already started down this path. After these students arrive, support services are crucial in ensuring they feel supported in completing their programs.

While I have primarily focused on Duke here, these lessons apply to all universities. With race-conscious admissions and now scholarship programs at risk, it is important for schools and programs to double down on targeted recruitment and provide supportive communities for marginalized students.

The post Duke University mirrors national trend with troubling retreat on DEI appeared first on NC Newsline.
Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer speaks during the launch of Labour's general election manifesto on June 13, 2024

Since becoming Labour leader, Keir Starmer has sought to attract the support of two key groups of voters: disillusioned Conservatives and former Labour supporters who abandoned the party during the Corbyn era.

At todays manifesto launch the message could hardly have been more accurately aimed to these two groups. To gauge just how much Labour (or at least its leadership) has changed, try to imagine Jeremy Corbyn saying this: This changed Labour Party has a plan for growth. We are pro-business and pro-worker, the party of wealth creation.

To a dyed-in-the-wool Blairite like myself, someone who voted Conservative in 2019 specifically to foil Corbyns ambitions of becoming prime minister, this felt like a message aimed at me personally.

Had Starmer been in a weaker polling position, if success was in the balance, if the outcome on July 4 was in any doubt, we might have expected him to pull a few rabbits out of the manifesto hat in order to generate a shift in support towards him..

Instead he could afford to tell sceptical journalists that he makes no apology for revealing no new policies today. He surprised many in his audience only by offering no surprises. He doubled down on his and his partys dullness and predictability, in the full expectation that he will be carried into Downing Street on the metaphorical shoulders of voters who are doing so because theyve nothing better to do.

Yet there were glimpses of stirring rhetoric. He dismissed those in his party and on the Left in Britain who believe that wealth is about how you tax it, how you spend it and not on how you generate it.

This manifesto is a total rejection of that argument.

Hed better be careful: that sort of language could risk waking voters up and becoming engaged in this ever-so-dull campaign.

Still there were hints of the difficulties and contradictions that might lie ahead. He promised a redrawn planning system to allow his government to build enough new homes. But he also  in a rather more vague way  promised local communities more power. Few aspiring prime ministers speak so enthusiastically about a future clash between an irresistible force and an immoveable object.

To say there were no surprises would not be entirely true: Starmer did reveal that his father was a tool-maker and his mother was a nurse. Tomorrows front pages write themselves sometimes.

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WASHINGTON (DC News Now)  A popular restaurant and bar in Adams Morgan has closed its doors after more than 25 years in business.

Duplex Diner has been a staple in the LGBTQ community and its closing has caught many off guard.

HFStival Lineup announced: Festival returns to DC after two decades

Since its opening in 1998, Duplex Diner has been an integral part of Adams Morgan.

Ive been working in this area for about two and a half years now, and this is a very beloved diner, especially for the queer community. And, we are a queer bakery, Desree Quartey, who works next door at The Cake Room, said.

The diner announced Tuesdays that its immediate closing caught many off guard.

Customers Charles Burnett said it doesnt make sense.

Every single time I walk by, its packed, Burnett said. Everybody loves it. My wife and I come and eat here.

JAM Holdings, owners of Duplex Diner since 2014 said it has come to an agreement to sell their assets to general manager Kelly Laczko.

Its been super sad not to be able to say farewell to the customers that made that place an institution, Laczko said.

Annies Way sign officially unveiled, honoring longtime DC LGBTQ advocate

She worked there for 11 years and said shes excited to take over the space and give it her own spin in the neighborhood.

Honestly, I was pretty disappointed to see it getting closed during Pride Month and it just came out of the blue, said customer Ryan Cudemus-Brunoli. I really hope all the employees and staff were given at least some notice.

Employees told DC News Now they were just as surprised as everyone else finding out about the closure, with some posting on social media asking for job leads this month.

Customers hope the new concept will have the same welcoming atmosphere Duplex Diner exuded for years.

I hope its a good spot for the neighborhood to continue enjoying, Burnett said.

DC Pride weekend off to running start

Laczko hopes to open her new concept by the end of summer. She intends to hire any former employees who want to come back.

As for the Duplex Diner, JAM Holdings is searching for a location in Rehoboth Beach to open Duplex Diner 2.0.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to DC News Now | Washington, DC.
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What would be the ultimate solution to the energy problems of an advanced civilization? Renowned British American physicist Freeman Dyson theorized it would be a shell made up of mirrors or solar panels that completely surrounds a star  harnessing all the energy it produces.

One should expect that, within a few thousand years of its entering the stage of industrial development, any intelligent species should be found occupying an artificial biosphere which completely surrounds its parent star, wrote Dyson in a 1960 paper in which he first explained the concept.

If it sounds like science fiction, thats because it is: Dyson took the idea from Olaf Stapledons 1937 novel Star Maker, and he was always open about that. The late scientist was a professor emeritus at the Institute of Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey.

Still, coming from a thinker who some in the scientific community say might have been worthy of a Nobel Prize early in his career, the concept took hold and the hypothetical megastructures became known as Dyson spheres, even though the physicist later clarified that they would actually consist of a loose collection or swarm of objects traveling on independent orbits around the star.

In his paper, Dyson also noted that Dyson spheres would give off waste heat detectable as infrared radiation, and suggested that looking for that byproduct would be a viable method for searching for extraterrestrial life. However, he added that infrared radiation by itself would not necessarily mean extraterrestrial intelligence, and that one of the strongest reasons for searching for such sources was that new types of natural astronomical objects might be discovered.

Scientists (at the time) were largely receptive, not to the likelihood that alien civilisations would be found to exist, but that a search for waste heat would be a good place to look, said George Dyson, a technology writer and author and the second of Dysons six children, via email. Science fiction, from Footfall to Star Trek, took the idea and ran with it, while social critics adopted the Dyson sphere as a vehicle for questioning the wisdom of unlimited technological growth.

The elder Dyson himself argued, It would be much more rewarding to search directly for intelligence, but technology is the only thing we have any chance of seeing.

Physicist Freeman J. Dyson, shown here in August 1963, introduced this theory about hypothetical alien megastructures in a 1960 paper. - AP

In the 1960s, there was no way to actually search for Dyson spheres, but in more recent times many researchers have looked for them, including those at the SETI Institute, a nonprofit organization with a mission to search for extraterrestrial intelligence, and Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory, known as Fermilab. Now, a new study that looked at 5 million stars in the Milky Way galaxy suggests that seven candidates could potentially be hosting Dyson spheres  a finding thats attracting scrutiny and alternate theories.

Possibilities

The authors of the study, published May 6 in the journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, specifically set out to search for Dyson spheres, in the form of infrared heat near stars that couldnt be explained in any other way.

Using historical data from telescopes that pick up infrared signatures, the research team looked at stars located within less than 1,000 light-years from Earth: We started with a sample of 5 million stars, and we applied filters to try to get rid of as much data contamination as possible, said lead study author Matias Suazo, a doctoral student in the department of physics and astronomy of Uppsala University in Sweden.

So far, we have seven sources that we know are glowing in the infrared but we dont know why, so they stand out.

There is no conclusive evidence that the seven stars have Dyson spheres around them, Suazo cautioned.

Its difficult for us to find an explanation for these sources, because we dont have enough data to prove what is the real cause of the infrared glow, he said. They could be Dyson spheres, because they behave like our models predict, but they could be something else as well.

Among the natural causes that could explain the infrared glow are an unlucky alignment in the observation, with a galaxy in the background overlapping with the star, planetary collisions creating debris, or the fact that the stars may be young and therefore still surrounded by disks of hot debris from which planets would later form.

The authors of the May 6 study used data from the NASA Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, telescope (left) and Gaia observatory to identify seven candidate stars that could have Dyson spheres. - NASA/JPL/ESA

The data used by the researchers comes from two active space telescopes  the Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer, or WISE, from NASA and Gaia from the European Space Agency  as well as an astronomical survey of the sky in infrared light called The Two Micron All Sky Survey. Also known as 2MASS, the collaboration between the University of Massachusetts and the US space agencys Jet Propulsion Laboratory took place between 1997 and 2001.

The candidate stars are all red dwarfs, the most common type of star in our galaxy. They are also dimmer and smaller than our sun, which makes follow-up observations more difficult. Its unclear at this point whether the stars have planets around them, as they havent been observed yet by any of the telescopes that could potentially spot orbiting planets. However, many of the thousands of exoplanets scientists have identified so far orbit red dwarfs, which makes their presence likely; planets orbiting red dwarfs have a higher chance of being inhabitable, according to NASA.

An earlier study, published in March and using data from the same sources as the new report, had also found infrared anomalies among a sample dataset of 5 million stars in our galaxy.

A job for the Webb space telescope

We got 53 candidates for anomalies that cannot be well explained, but cant say that all of them are Dyson sphere candidates, because thats not what we are specifically looking for, said Gabriella Contardo, a postdoctoral research fellow at the International School for Advanced Studies in Trieste, Italy, who led the earlier study. She added that she plans to check the candidates against Suazos model to see how many tie into it.

You need to eliminate all other hypotheses and explanations before saying that they could be a Dyson sphere, she added. To do so you need to also rule out that its not some kind of debris disk, or some kind of planetary collision, and that also pushes the science forward in other fields of astronomy  so its a win-win.

Both Contardo and Suazo agree that more research is needed on the data, and that ultimately they could turn to NASAs James Webb Space Telescope for more information, as it is powerful enough to observe the candidate stars directly. However, because of the lengthy, competitive procedures that regulate use of the telescope, securing access might take some time.

If Dyson spheres really exist, what could they be used for? If you picture ourselves having as much energy as the sun is providing every second, we could do unheard of things, Suazo said. We could do interstellar travel, maybe we could even move the entire solar system to our preferred location, if we wanted.

But dont hold your breath, because the technology and the raw materials required to build the hypothetical structures are far beyond humanitys grasp.

They are so big that everything we have on Earth would not be enough to build them, Suazo added. Freeman Dyson said that we should dismantle Jupiter  the whole planet (for the raw materials).

That supercolossal scale probably means that Dyson spheres, if they exist at all, are very rare.

The importance of this work is that it provides the first strong evidence that there are not a lot of Dyson Spheres in our galaxy, contrary to the expectations of some that they might be an inevitable end-state of technological species expansion out into their solar systems, said study coauthor Jason Wright, a professor of astronomy and astrophysics at Penn State University, via email.

The candidates Matias (Suazo) has found are important because whatever they are  and they are likely stars surrounded by material from some sort of rare event, like a planetary collision, although they could be Dyson spheres  they are rare and interesting objects worthy of further study, for instance by the James Webb Space Telescope.

Broken spheres

Dyson died in 2020 before any of his spheres could be found  although they are just one of a dozen ideas that bear his name.

As a young scientist, Dyson showed that three competing quantum theories were actually the same theory  he summarily ended the competition, said William Press, the Leslie Surginer Professor of Computer Science and Integrative Biology at the University of Texas at Austin. He was not involved in the study. Later, he applied his genius to areas of astronomy, cosmology, the extraterrestrial realm, and also the very real problem of nuclear proliferation here on planet Earth. At the time of his death, he was recognized as a provocative and creative thinker.

George Dyson also attested to his fathers fascination and comprehensive reach across disciplines.

Taking advantage of a short attention span and an aversion to bureaucracy, he contributed to five fields of mathematics and eleven fields of physics, as well as to theoretical biology, engineering, operations research, literature, and public affairs, the younger Dyson said. Many of his ideas were controversial, with one of his guiding principles being that It is better to be wrong than to be vague.

The approach of the researchers behind the new study could offer a more fruitful path in the search for extraterrestrial intelligence, said Tomotsugu Goto, an associate professor of astronomy at the National Tsing Hua University in Taiwan. He also was not involved with the study.

However, contamination by circumstellar debris disks, which mimic Dyson Sphere infrared signatures, remains a concern, he added in an email. Authors argue that the debris disks around (dwarf stars) are rare, but the 7 candidate authors selected out of 5 million sources are also rare. Despite this, the seven candidates warrant further investigation with powerful telescopes for a more definitive evaluation.

A May 23 paper published in response to the one by Suazo and his colleagues suggests that at least three of the seven stars have been misidentified as Dyson spheres and could instead be hot DOGs  hot dust-obscured galaxies  and that the remaining four could probably be explained this way as well.

Because Suazos study touches on the fundamental question of whether humankind is alone in the universe, the search for Dyson candidates straddles different fields  including basic sciences, philosophy and religion  and might therefore increase the involvement of young scientists and the interest of the scientific world in the topic, according to Zaza Osmanov, an affiliate of SETI and associate dean of the School of Physics at the Free University of Tbilisi in Georgia, who also was not involved with the research.

However, he added, the radiation fingerprint of the seven Dyson sphere candidates might be explained by natural phenomena as well. The hypothesis of the artificial origin of any, even very interesting, radiation, should be the last springboard when all possible natural explanations are exhausted, Osmanov said. And for this, future research is necessary.

As for Dyson himself, if he were still alive, he also would be highly skeptical that these observations represent a technological signature, his son George argued: But the discovery of new, non-technological astronomical phenomena is exactly why he thought we should go out and look.

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TAMPA  Inside a classroom gradually filling with the smell of fried chicken as students wolfed down lunch, Alonzo Godwin thought about what he wanted for his future.

A stable paycheck. A restful retirement for his grandma. His own apartment. A truck.

It was the first day of a summer program he hoped would help him reach that life, and he stared at a worksheet placed on his desk, asking for his financial goals.

Dont spend money on things you dont need, the 18-year-old jotted down. Save your money as much as possible.

He is one of 36 participants in the city-funded summer program for teenagers in East Tampa, which kicked off Monday and aims to help them think about their financial futures and professional paths.

The city launched the Career Explorations program back in 2006 as a way to keep young people safe and productive over the summer. But it faced years of criticism that teens in this predominantly Black neighborhood were just picking up trash under the hot Florida sun in the name of work experience.

This year, the program has evolved.

Participants will spend three days a week working for the citys Neighborhood Enhancement Division  enforcing code, mowing lawns and, yes, picking up trash. But they will also spend one day a week touring city buildings, chatting with elected officials and learning skills such as networking and budgeting inside a classroom.

Theyll be paid $15 an hour for 32 hours per week, from early June until late July. Godwin, who recently graduated from high school, wants to set aside as much of his paycheck as possible in his newly opened savings account.

The program helps you with resumes, with connections but also with just how to be yourself, he said.

Godwin took part in the program, run by the East Tampa Community Redevelopment Agency, last year, too. Having the chance to meet Mayor Jane Castor was a highlight, he said.

Try to take advice from people who are where you want to be, he remembers her telling the group.

He isnt sure where, exactly, he wants to be just yet, he said. But Im working hard to figure it out.

Maybe hell become a firefighter, he thinks. Maybe hell join the military. In October, hes starting a four-month training program at Hillsborough Community College to learn the basics of becoming an electrical line worker.

Sevion Daniels, 17 years old and a rising senior, is also taking part in the program, excited for the chance to meet leaders throughout the city to explore various career paths. Hes considering joining the Air Force. Or perhaps hell work for the citys Wastewater Department, like his dad.

For now, hes grateful for the chance to take home a paycheck during the summer months and to improve his job-hunting skills as he eyes graduation next year.

These are skills for life, he said Monday after a training session from the Tampa Bay Federal Credit Union.

The week before, the teens had huddled in a community center for orientation, as the rain lashed outside one evening in early June.

The community fought to get this program for you, Ed Hundley, one of the coordinators, told the crowd. Make the most of it.

Godwin, sitting beside his grandma, nodded.

Consider yourself keenly blessed, added longtime East Tampa community organizer Connie Burton, among those who pushed the city to make the program more focused on career development than street cleanup. Shed like the cohort size doubled.

We were pushing for more young people to be able to come, she told the teens. Maybe next year.

Last year, Tampas communication director, Adam Smith, told the Tampa Bay Times he believes everyone in the city involved with the program thinks its due for improvements. Council members said it was unacceptable that the focus on trash pickup was specific to East Tampa, prompting staff to pledge an overhaul.

While some of the goals laid out last year remain unmet (participants, for example, still do not have the choice to work for a city division other than Neighborhood Enhancement) and manual labor remains, as one program coordinator said, the meat and potatoes of the program, students were grateful to be there. Spots fill up fast.

When asked what theyd be doing with their summer were it not for the program, most replied simply: I dont know.

Ronnisha Simmons, 16, added that she was glad she wasnt just going to be spending her summers stuck inside, playing on her phone. That, instead, shed be able to explore what her city had to offer.

I want to know my options, said Simmons, an aspiring lawyer and one of the programs few female participants. Theres a whole world out there.

As the clock ticked to 3:30 p.m. on Monday, the teens scooped up their bags, stuffed with new uniforms and notebooks scrawled with notes from the days sessions, and headed for the door. They poured into the afternoon sun, cardboard boxes containing their new work boots tucked under their arms.

They would be back early tomorrow to lace up those boots and get to work.
All-you-can-eat sushi, hot pot restaurant opens in Sacramento area. Here are the details

Elk Grove recently welcomed a new restaurant serving all-you-can-eat sushi and Japanese-style hot pot.

Shabu Gen started its soft opening phase at 9135 West Stockton Blvd., Suite 100, on June 5, according to its social media page.

The restaurant specializes in shabu shabu, which invites diners to cook meats and vegetables in their choice of broth.

Theres also a variety of nigiri and sushi rolls on the menu.

Whats on the menu at new Elk Grove menu?

Customers craving shabu shabu can choose from six different broths, such as spicy miso, tomato and tonkotsu, a creamy garlic pork broth.

They can choose the type of meat to dip into the broth.

Menu options include premium ribeye, prime brisket and beef toro.

For seafood fans, Shabu Gen offers classic sushi rolls, signature sushi rolls, specialty poke bowls and salmon carpaccio.

What are prices for all-you-can-eat sushi, hot pot?

At Shabu Gen, prices and menu options vary depending on the time of day.

Only shabu shabu is served during lunch. It costs about $26 per person, according to the menu.

Dinner, which includes shabu shabu and sushi options, is $36 each person.

From 9 to 11 p.m., the Elk Grove restaurant serves a late-night menu with shabu shabu and sushi for $29 a person.

Meal prices for children are based on their heights, not their ages.

Kids under 40 inches tall are free. Those between 40 to 50 inches pay $11 per person for food.

Children 50 inches and taller are charged full price.

What are Shabu Gen open hours?

According to Yelp, Shabu Gen is open 11:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. every day.

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.
Humanity has lost an interstellar pioneer.

Ed Stone, who served as the project scientist for NASA's groundbreaking Voyager mission from 1972 to 2022, died on Sunday (June 9) at the age of 88.

"Ed Stone was a trailblazer who dared mighty things in space. He was a dear friend to all who knew him, and a cherished mentor to me personally," Nicola Fox, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington, said in NASA's obituary for Stone, which the agency posted on Tuesday (June 11).

"Ed took humanity on a planetary tour of our solar system and beyond, sending NASA where no spacecraft had gone before," Fox added. "His legacy has left a tremendous and profound impact on NASA, the scientific community, and the world. My condolences to his family and everyone who loved him. Thank you, Ed, for everything."

Related: Going interstellar: Q&A with Voyager project scientist Ed Stone

Voyager launched twin probes on a "grand tour" of the solar system's giant planets in 1977. The two spacecraft made many discoveries in our cosmic backyard  finding intense volcanism on the Jupiter moon Io and 10 new moons of Uranus, for example  and then kept on flying, into exciting and unexplored realms.

In 2012, Voyager 1 popped free of the heliosphere, the huge bubble of charged particles and magnetic fields that the sun blows around itself, becoming the first human-made object ever to reach interstellar space. Voyager 2 , which took a different path and is moving slightly more slowly than its partner, followed suit in late 2018.

Both Voyagers remain operational today, studying the exotic environment between our star and the next. Voyager 1 is currently more than 15 billion miles (24 billion kilometers) from home, and its twin is about 13 billion miles (21 billion km) into the void. That's about 162 and 136 Earth-sun distances (or astronomical units), respectively.

"It has been an honor and a joy to serve as the Voyager project scientist for 50 years," Stone said in a NASA statement in October 2022, when he announced his retirement from the role.

"The spacecraft have succeeded beyond expectation, and I have cherished the opportunity to work with so many talented and dedicated people on this mission," he added. "It has been a remarkable journey, and I'm thankful to everyone around the world who has followed Voyager and joined us on this adventure."

Related: Voyager: 15 incredible images of our solar system (gallery)

Stone was born on Jan. 23, 1936, in Knoxville, Iowa, according to NASA's obituary. His father was a construction superintendent who loved showing his son how to take things apart and put them back together  and young Ed was an eager student.

"I was always interested in learning about why something is this way and not that way," Stone said in an interview in 2018, according to NASA's obituary. "I wanted to understand and measure and observe."

He studied physics in junior college, then went to the University of Chicago for graduate school, where he helped build science instruments for spacecraft  still a very young field at this stage.

"The first he designed rode aboard Discoverer 36, a since-declassified spy satellite that launched in 1961 and took photographs of Earth from space as part of the Corona program," NASA wrote in the obituary. "Stone's instrument, which measured the sun's energetic particles, helped scientists figure out why solar radiation was fogging the film and ultimately improved their understanding of the Van Allen belts, energetic particles trapped in Earth's magnetic field."

Stone became a post-doctoral fellow at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in 1964 and soon began working on NASA missions. Over the years, he served as the principal investigator or a science instrument lead on nine different agency missions and a co-investigator on five others, according to the agency.

Stone also served as director of the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California  the agency's lead center for robotic planetary exploration  from 1991 to 2001. That stretch saw some major milestones, including the landing of NASA's first-ever Mars rover, Sojourner, in 1996 with the Pathfinder mission and the launch of the Cassini-Huygens mission to Saturn (a joint effort with the European Space Agency) in 1997.

"Ed will be remembered as an energetic leader and scientist who expanded our knowledge about the universe  from the sun to the planets to distant stars  and sparked our collective imaginations about the mysteries and wonders of deep space," JPL Director Laurie Leshin, who's also the vice president of Caltech, said in NASA's obituary.

"Eds discoveries have fueled exploration of previously unseen corners of our solar system and will inspire future generations to reach new frontiers," Leshin added. "He will be greatly missed and always remembered by the NASA, JPL and Caltech communities and beyond."

RELATED STORIES:

 Voyager: 15 incredible images of our solar system captured by the twin probes

 NASA's Voyager project scientist Ed Stone retires after 50 years

 Voyager turns 45: What the iconic mission taught us and what's next

Stone's colleagues have repeatedly noted his commitment to science education and communication, his genuine desire to help tell the world about scientific results in a manner both accurate and engaging.

I can attest to this commitment, for I witnessed it first-hand on multiple occasions. Despite being a very busy man, Stone was open and available to the media; he took our phone calls and stayed on after press conferences to answer more and more of our questions.

And he was unfailingly nice, polite and patient in all of these interactions. I didn't know Ed Stone well, but I could tell he was a good man. And I, like countless others, will miss him.
Edible Arrangements employees left with a bitter taste, turned sweet

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR)  Working overtime can be draining, but the paycheck is always sweet.

Unfortunately, two former employees with Edible Arrangements were left with a bitter taste in their mouth after they were shorted on their payday.

The pair put in dozens of hours of overtime, making extra deliveries for Mothers Day, but say they never got paid for their time.

IN YOUR CORNER: Because In Your Corner woke them up: ONG fixes problems at NW Oklahoma City condos

Amanda Everson says her work at Edible Arrangements picked up in a big way around Mothers Day, but her paycheck didnt.

We got paid for the regular (hours) on time, Everson said. Actually it surprised me, but the overtime and deliveries was not on there.

There were more than 23 hours of overtime and more than 100 hours of deliveries on her timecard, but not reflected on her paycheck.

Theres no communication, theres no hotline to call and talk to anybody, Everson said. You dont get no answer.

She wasnt alone, John Rayer had the same problem as Amanda for the missing delivery hours.

As soon as I got my check, I looked it over because I was aware of the issues that they had before with paying us, and as soon as I saw there was zero, I got on the email with them, Rayer said.

For more than a month they tried sorting the issues out on their own with no luck.

Within days of each other, they each reached out to the News 4 In Your Corner team.

I remembered in your corner, Rayer said. You guys have helped so many people over the years, and you know, said theyve got to be able to do something for us.

OKLAHOMA NEWS: Took everything apart. Literally. Thieves steal copper from churchs AC units

News 4 started digging into the issue and spoke with Edible Arrangements as well as the payroll company they operate through.

Within 24 hours of the first call, both Everson and Rayer received a payment for the amount of money they had earned.

I appreciate Channel 4 and In Your Corner, Rayer said.

Thank you and a big shout out to In Your Corner on News Channel 4, Everson said. I appreciate you guys and I cant tell you thank you enough.

Edible Arrangements and the payroll company apologized for the delay.

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.
NEW EFFINGTON  The Read-Veflin American Legion Post 180 in New Effington recently established the Read-Veflin American Legion Post 180 Scholarship Fund with the South Dakota Community Foundation.

The scholarship will assist high school graduates from the New Effington and Roberts County area to pursue higher education in colleges and technical colleges.

The Read-Veflin American Legion Post 180 in New Effington recently established the Read-Veflin American Legion Post 180 Scholarship Fund with the South Dakota Community Foundation. The scholarship will assist high school graduates from the New Effington and Roberts County area to pursue higher education in colleges and technical colleges. Picture are Morris Shelstad (Korean War), seated in front; Commander Russell McKee (seated) signing the scholarship agreement and back, left to right, Danny Curran, Butch Leen, Jerold Krueger, Art Brandenburger, Neil Fritz, Cecil Strangeland, Curtis Stowe and Keith Bostrom.

The scholarship stands as a legacy for not just the Post members here today who created it, but also to the many members and veterans from our area who served their country and their community over more than a century, Post Commander Russell McKee said.

Fitting that sense of legacy, Commander McKee signed the scholarship agreement on Memorial Day 2024 in the Posts headquarters when they gathered for their Memorial Day program. The first scholarships from the fund will be awarded in 2026.

-30_

This article originally appeared on Watertown Public Opinion: Read-Veflin American Legion Post 180 Scholarship Fund established
Immature spotted lanternflies rest on a branch in West Orange, N.J., in 2023. Eggs of the pest were discovered recently in an art installation that was headed to Sonoma County. (Seth Wenig / Associated Press)

Eggs of the spotted lanternfly, an invasive species that's wreaked havoc on crops across more than a dozen states, were recently discovered on a metal art installation that was headed to Sonoma County, one of California's most esteemed wine regions.

The discovery of the infamous bug's eggs represents the first time the insect has been seen in California. The California Assn. of Winegrape Gowers, a statewide nonprofit, warns the invasive plant-hopper native to Asia has the potential to affect the entire winegrape industry in California, potentially pushing up prices if an infestation results in a smaller grape crop.

"Spotted lanternflies have been found in 18 states and have proven to pose a serious threat to vineyards," Natalie Collins, president of the growers group, said. "These invasive insects feed on the sap of grapevines, while also leaving behind a sticky honeydew residue on the clusters and leaves."

Read more: Tree-killing beetle is on a death march through Southern California's oaks. Can it be stopped?

Impacts of the stress on the plant could range from reduced yields  and fewer bottles of wine for consumers  and, if severe and persistent enough, complete vine death and higher wine prices. No adult spotted lanterflies have been reported in the state, Collins said.

California is responsible for an average of 81% of the total U.S. wine production each year, according to the Wine Institute.

The association warned that if there are additional egg masses in California from other shipments that haven't been detected "they may produce adult [spotted lanternflies] in the coming weeks with peak populations expected in late summer or early fall."

The California Department of Food and Agriculture last year developed an action plan to try to eradicate the pests if they were to enter the state. State officials have asked the public to look for egg masses outdoors. If a bug is found, they recommend grabbing it and placing it in a container where it can't escape, snapping a photo and reporting it to the CDFA Pest Hotline at (800) 491-1899

The metal art installation on which the eggs were found was shipped to California in late March from New York, where the insects have been a persistent problem. After 11 viable egg masses were spotted at the Truckee Border Protection Station, the 30-foot-tall artwork was sent back to Nevada, where officials discovered an additional 30 egg masses. The art was power washed with detergent and then sent on its way again to Truckee, according to the association.

By the time the installation reached Sonoma County on April 4, the owner agreed to allow officials to open up the hollow beams in the artwork to inspect it further. Inside, they found an additional three egg masses and searched until they were confident no other eggs were present.

Spotted lanternflies were first discovered in Pennsylvania in 2014 and quickly spread to nearby states, where they became a nuisance. In New York they proved to be such a problem that officials encouraged residents to kill them on sight. The pest has become so notorious that it made an appearance on "Saturday Night Live" in a 2022 skit where one viewer applauded them for capturing "the unbelievable hubris of the lanternfly."

Read more: Global wine glut compounds headaches for struggling California vineyards

While they feed on more than 100 different plant species, they have a particular affinity for grapevines and a tree known as the "tree of heaven." The adults, which have the ability to fly short distances, are typically 1 inch long. At rest, with its wings folded, the bug is a dull tan-gray color with black spots. During flight, its open wings feature a bright red, black and white pattern.

The species is often described as a "hitchhiker," since its egg masses appear similar to cakes of mud and can easily be transported on tractor trailers and semi-trucks. During the first three immature stages of the bug's life cycle they appear to be black with white spots and later turn red and black with white spots.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Eight EU foreign ministers have urged the EU to ban Russian diplomats from travelling freely in the Schengen area and restrict their movement to countries where they are accredited.

Source: Reuters, citing a letter from the ministers to Josep Borrell, High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, as reported by European Pravda

Details: The letter was signed by the foreign ministers of Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, and Romania.

"Free movement of holders of Russian diplomatic and service passports, accredited in one host state, across the whole Schengen area is easing malign activities," reads the letter, dated 11 June, which was seen by Reuters.

The ministers stated that intelligence, propaganda "or even preparation of sabotage acts are the main workload for a large number of Russian 'diplomats' in the EU". The letter further notes that while expulsions are crucial, the threat remains.

"We believe the EU should strictly follow the reciprocity principle and restrict the movement of members of Russian diplomatic missions and their family members to territory of a state of their accreditation only," they said.

The letter's authors believe this measure will significantly narrow the operational space for Russian intelligence assets.

Background:

In late May, Polish Foreign Minister Radosaw Sikorski announced that Warsaw would impose restrictions on the movement of Russian embassy staff on Polish territory.

The foreign minister explained that the so-called Russian diplomats movement will be limited to Mazovia (a region in eastern Poland), while consuls movement will be limited to the voivodeships where they are stationed. The Polish foreign minister noted that an exception would be granted to the embassy's chief.

Czechia suggested including restrictions on the movement of Russian diplomats within the Schengen area in the EU sanctions package starting in the summer of 2023. Still, the proposal has not gained much backing to date.

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(EL PASO COUNTY, Colo.)  The El Paso County Assessors Office is alerting the public to a letter circulating that threatens to seize assets due to a nonpayment in taxes, which the Assessors Office said is a scam.

The Assessors Office said the letter, titled DISTRAINT WARRANT Tax Assessment Securities Public Judgment Records, falsely claims the recipient has a federal tax debt and threatens seizure or forfeiture of property and claims Social Security and bank accounts may be seized.

According to the Assessors Office, the letters are not legitimate and do not represent distraint warrants issued by the county treasurer. The Assessors office urges the public to be cautious of any letter making threatening claims about unpaid taxes. Victims of the scam should report it to law enforcement.

Property owners concerned about their tax status should visit the El Paso County Treasurers website for information on taxes owed or paid on their property.

More information about the scam can be found on the El Paso County Assessors Office website.

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 FOX21 News Colorado.
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)  El Paso County Courthouse is celebrating Womens Veterans Month by honoring women on their Wall of Courage.

The Enrique Moreno County Courthouse now has over 75 photos of women in uniform displayed on the Wall of Courage, which is located on the third floor inside the County Commissioners Court chambers, according to the news release by El Paso County.

Wall of Courage celebration Womens Veterans Month at the El Paso County Courthouse. Photo courtesy of El Paso County.

The community is invited to visit and pay respects to the photos of the women who served in the military, according to the County.

The County says the display will be up throughout the month of June.

For more information on events, you can contact the Veterans Services office at (915) 273-3454 or email at cvso@epcountytx.gov.

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 KTSM 9 News.
El Pasoans are ducking under umbrellas looking for relief from the hot El Paso sun as temperatures near triple digits yet again Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2019.

As we approach summer, El Paso has already hit the 100-degree mark eight times up until June 13. The first triple digit day this year being 101 degrees on May 28, the hottest so far, 108 recorded on June 6.

According to the National Weather Service (NWS), Santa Teresa website, The earliest occurrence of 100 degrees was on May 7, 2020. The hottest day In El Paso, 114 degrees, occurred on June 30, 1994. That summer saw 62 100-degree days.

Some interesting El Paso heat related facts posted by David Hefner on the NWS site:

On average El Paso experiences 15 days of triple digits heat per year.

Since 1879 no year has gone without at least one triple digit occurrence.

The following years saw only one occurrence of triple digits: 1899, 1904, 1914, 1917, 1919, 1926, 1941 and 1967.

Following is a look at some weather-related headlines from the El Paso Times archive back to June 2013:

Aug. 1, 2023

Heat wave ends in El Paso after 44 days

A hellishly hot record of 44 consecutive 100-degree days in El Paso came to a thankful end when the high temperature missed the triple-digit mark for the first time since June 16. The high temperature on Sunday was 97 degrees.

More: La perdida - The loss: Deadly disaster at El Paso, Juarez border

July 24, 2022

Migrant deaths in El Paso region are climbing

Border-crossing deaths in the El Paso area are mounting, as migrants desperate to reach the U.S. risk dangerous canals and scorching temperatures. At least 37 migrants have died of injuries, drowning, dehydration and vehicle fatalities crossing into El Paso and southern New Mexico since October 2021, compared with 39 in all of fiscal 2021.

July 22, 2023

El Paso Electric hits new power-demand peak

El Paso Electric officials are asking customers to conserve power as the utility hit a new high for electricity consumption this week as the El Paso-Las Cruces area continues to swelter in triple-digit heat and gets little moisture. It's possible the peak electric demand record could be broken again as the heat wave continues.

June 10, 2022

Scorching heat breaks records in El Paso

June is El Paso's hottest month, but this week's triple-digit heat is still setting records. The El Paso airport hit 106 degrees Wednesday, setting a record for June 8. The high temperature broke the record of 105 that stood since 1981.

May 18, 2022

Triple-digit weather comes early this year

El Paso's first 100-degree day came early this year. At 3:08 p.m. Monday, the weather station at the El Paso International Airport recorded 101 degrees, a new record high for May 16, beating the previous high of 98 degrees set in 2018.

Sept. 26, 2021

Heavy rains spared area worst of summer heat

A record-setting monsoon season quenched the parched landscape surrounding El Paso this summer. Dating back to 1882, 2021 was the second wettest summer monsoon on record. The heavy monsoon rains brought down average temperatures this summer to the coolest since 2008.

June 29, 2021

Record-setting rains drench El Paso region

El Paso has gone from Sun City to Soaked City. Record-breaking rainfall began with Sunday afternoon's thunderstorms causing some street flooding, but authorities reported no major problems after an abrupt change from hot, dry 100-degree weather last week.

June 5, 2021

Be cool! El Paso to see string of 100-degree days

Everybody try to be cool. Triple-digit summer heat is returning to the El Paso-Juarez region. After a few cloudy days, the Borderland is set to see a string of 100-degree days this week

Snow surrounds an Austin Energy station in Austin on Feb. 18, 2021 during a powerful winter storm that left millions of Texans without power or heat for days. The state's power grid operator tried to get additional power online to prepare for this winter before abandoning the effort after a poor response.

Feb.16, 2021

2M without power as storm overloads grid

AUSTIN  Record-shattering demand for power and crashing generators overnight have left 2 million Texans without electricity during one of the worst winter storms the state has seen in memory.

Sept. 12, 2020

Escobar is calling for action on climate

In El Paso, only one year in history has seen more days with temperatures in the hundreds than 2020. July and August were the hottest on record. It's a trend that's concerning to U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso.

Aug. 12, 2020

Heat advisory issued for El Paso-Juarez area

A heat advisory has been issued for the El Paso-Juarez area amid possible record-setting temperatures. Temperatures have reached 105 degrees and are expected to stay above 100 for several days. Normally, the average high temperature is in the low 90s at this time of year.

July 11, 2020

El Paso and Juarez under 'dangerous heat' advisory

Residents should take heat-related caution as temperatures top 105 degrees in the El Paso-Juarez area and Southern New Mexico. Wednesday's high hit 106 degrees. It was forecast to reach 106 Thursday and 107 Friday through Monday.

Aug. 28, 2019

Monday broke heat records for August

If you were sweating with the rest of El Paso on Monday, you might not be surprised to learn the weather was setting a heat record. The temperature hit 106 degrees at 4:34 p.m. Monday. It tied for the hottest day so far of 2019.

June 28, 2017

EP Electric sets usage record amid heat wave

El Paso Electric set a peak electric-demand record June 22, toward the end of a heat wave when the El Paso temperature hit more than 100 degrees for 10 consecutive days. The heat wave included a temperature of 111 degrees on Friday at El Paso International Airport  the hottest day in El Paso since June 30, 1994, when the temperature hit 114 degrees.

July 20, 2016

Officials: Heat wave kills 4 in El Paso

Four people have died from heat-related illnesses as El Paso swelters in a string of 100-degree days. City public health officials urged residents to protect themselves from the heat as a streak of 16 consecutive days of 100 or hotter came to an end Tuesday.

Nov. 5, 2015

Summer boosts El Paso Electric's Q3 sales, profit

An extremely hot summer boosted El Paso Electric's sales and profit in the third quarter. The company had a profit of $56.7 million in the third quarter, an increase of almost $4.3 million, or up 8.1 percent, compared to the same quarter a year ago.

June 4, 2014

El Paso Health Department declares extreme weather emergency due to heat

El Paso public health officials declared a heat emergency Wednesday while authorities in Juarez also took measures to deal with a record-baking string of 100-plus degree days predicted to continue until next week. It hit 107 on Wednesday, shattering the previous record of 103 in 1990, said the National Weather Service office in Santa Teresa.

June 3, 2014

El Paso hits record 109 degrees

Residents in the El Paso area are struggling to cope with oppressive temperatures  a struggle that will continue a few more days. "We're looking at one hundred's into the weekend for sure," said Tom Bird, meteorologist at the National Weather service Office in Santa Teresa. Temperatures were record-breaking Saturday (102 degrees), Monday (104 degrees), and Tuesday, at 109 degrees.

June 12, 2013

106 sets El Paso region record

Water and fan distributions have begun as El Paso and Juarez officials carry out measures to prevent heat-related incidents while triple-digit temperatures continue to suffocate the borderland. The National Weather Service reported a high of 106 degrees on Wednesday, surpassing the record high for the date of 105 set in 2006.

Trish Long may be reached at tlong@elpasotimes.com or 915-253-6817.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: A look at some El Paso Times weather related headlines: Trish Long
Authorities in El Salvador burned a 2.7-ton pile of cocaine worth an estimated $67.5 million. Salvadoran police released images and video this week of the huge pile of drugs being burned in the town of Ilopango, east of the capital San Salvador.

The cocaine was seized in May more than 1,000 miles off the coast of El Salvador from seven men in boats. Two Ecuadorians, two Colombians and three Mexicans were arrested. Police did not detail their exact charges.

El Salvador's government has implemented a widespread crackdown on gangs and drug traffickers since the election of President Nayib Bukele in 2019. He was inaugurated for a second term on June 1 after being reelected with 85% of the vote. Under his leadership, the government declared a state of emergency in March 2022 that led to mass arrests of tens of thousands of suspected gang members.

Recently, El Salvador's government transferred around 2,000 suspected gang members from prisons around the country to a new 40,000-capacity "mega prison" in Tecoluca, southeast of the capital. In a highly produced video shared by Bukele on social media, the prisoners are seen being escorted into the facility under heavily armed guard. Bukele pledged the prisoners would "pay for the crimes committed against our people."

Gang violence was widespread in the country for decades, with official estimates placing the number of gang members in the country between 60,000 and 86,000, according to Human Rights Watch. El Salvador had a longstanding high homicide rate, which peaked at 105 per 100,000 people in 2015, before falling to a historic low in 2022.

The Bukele government's anti-crime tactics have come under fire from human rights groups over concerns for due process and arbitrary confinement.

As of February of this year, more than 78,000 arbitrary detentions have been registered leading to prison overcrowding of approximately 148%, with at least 235 deaths in state custody, according to Amnesty International. The organization also reported 327 enforced disappearances.

Human Rights Watch warns that Bukele's government has "systematically dismantled democratic checks and balances." The country's constitution prohibits immediate reelection of the president, but a court decision paved the way for Bukele's return.

The Biden administration has also expressed concern, turning down a meeting request with Bukele in 2021 and sanctioning several of his top aides.

However, U.S. relations with Bukele appear to have shifted as a high-level delegation was sent to attend his second-term inauguration. The Associated Press reported the change could be attributed to a shift in the Biden administration's priorities in addressing illegal immigration. El Salvador's public security policies are credited with a 60% drop in migration from the Central American country to the U.S. since Bukele took office.

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Former legislator and member of Montanans for Election Reform Frank Garner speaks at a press conference on June 12, 2024. (Photo by Nicole Girten/Daily Montanan)

Sandi Ashley said she was taken aback when she moved from Colorado to Montana in 1976 and was asked to pick a primary to vote in, which she saw as a loss to her voting power.

Now, Ashley volunteers to gather signatures for two ballot initiatives that would change how primaries run and how elections are won in Montana, which as of Wednesday has enough signatures to qualify to be on the ballot, according to the group behind the effort, Montanans for Election Reform.

Constitutional Initiative-126 would change Montana primaries to a top-four system, meaning the top four vote-getters regardless of party would advance to the general election.

Constitutional Initiative-127 would change the rules for winning a general election from a plurality vote (meaning whoever receives the most votes, wins) to needing a majority vote to win (meaning they need 50%+1 vote to take office).

Republican Party leadership has come out in opposition to both initiatives, calling them deceptive, but those in favor say these measures give electors more choices and push politicians to be more moderate and attract wide support to get elected.

Former Republican legislator and Montanans for Election Reform member Frank Garner said the group was submitting 200,000 total signatures including from every county and legislative district in the state, passing the statutory requirement to get on the ballot with 10 percent of the qualified electors of the state, including at least 10 percent of the qualified electors in each of two-fifths of the legislative districts.

They are simple, common sense reforms that give Montana voters better choices and more accountable leadership, Garner said at an event on the steps of the Capitol in Helena.

The group stacked boxes filled with signed petitions behind speakers, and the boxes blew open with a strong gust of wind at the end of the event, but organizers retrieved petitions.

Primaries in Montana are now semi-closed, meaning a voter doesnt need a party affiliation to vote, but the voter has to choose one partys ballot. This new system would allow voters to select candidates for office in the primary across party lines on one ballot.

The group says these measures would help reduce extreme political rhetoric and make candidates have to earn Montanans votes  making it harder for parties to choose winners.

Retired Lt. Col. David Oclander said he answered a call to action in his military service in Afghanistan due to an existential threat to the U.S., and he said the country faces another threat now  the current political division. Oclander is with Veterans for All Voters, a national election reform nonprofit.

My call to action for all of us is to stand up and serve with your brothers and sisters, our brothers and sisters to your left and right, and defend our nation from division, Oclander said.

Montana Republican Party Chairman Don K Kaltschmidt wrote an op-ed in Lee Newspapers denouncing what he called the Top 4 scheme, saying it would be deceptive to voters and cause confusion around party affiliation.

The party launched a Rank Choice Voting Task Force in opposition to the constitutional initiatives, intended to educate Montanans on the issue, highlight its true intentions, and stop it.

Garner said Wednesday that the people in power dont want to see the system change.

Montanans for Election Reform said if the initiatives pass, the legislature could choose to hold a run-off election between the top two vote-getters  with a recent example being the Georgia run-off between U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker. But group members said this would be costly and time consuming.

Or the group said the general election could be structured like ranked-choice voting, so in the event someone didnt receive more than 50% of the vote, the electorate wouldnt have to vote again  the second-choice selections would determine the outcome of the race.

However, Montana banned ranked-choice voting in the last legislative session, so legislators would have to amend the law if they want to pursue that option.

The Secretary of States Office will verify whether the group has the required number of signatures to appear on the ballot. If so, and if the initiative receives a majority support from the electorate, it will be an effective part of the constitution in July of 2025.

The post Election reform group says it gathered enough signatures for Nov. ballot appeared first on Daily Montanan.
LANSING, Mich. (WLNS)  Two men charged with voter intimidation in a 2020 robocall scheme were properly criminally charged by the Office of the Michigan Attorney General, the Michigan Supreme Court ruled Thursday.

Jack Burkman, 57, and Jacob Wohl, 25, were charged in October 2020 for allegedly orchestrating a series of robocalls aimed at suppressing the vote of predominantly black voters in Detroit in the 2020 general election by promoting falsehoods, a news release from the Office of the Attorney General reports, that:

voting by mail would place voters personal information in a public database that will be used by police departments to track down individuals with outstanding warrants; voting by mail would place voters personal information in a public database that will be used by credit card companies to collect outstanding debts; and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention were attempting to utilize vote by mail records to track individuals for mandatory vaccines.

This is the actual audio from one of the robocalls, the Office of the Attorney General reported.

They were each charged in 36th District Court in Detroit with:

One count of election law  bribing/intimidating voters, a five-year felony;

One count of conspiracy to commit an election law violation, a five-year felony;

One count of using a computer to commit the crime of election law  intimidating voters, a seven-year felony; and

Using a computer to commit the crime of conspiracy, a seven-year felony.

Burkman-Wohl_complaint_RedactedDownload

The cases were bound over to the Circuit Court and when the court refused to quash the charges, the defendants appealed their cases to through the Michigan court system.

In a news release, the AGs press office explained the Michigan Supreme Court ruling as follows:

The Court also provided a narrowing construction of the statute, ruling that the language other corrupt means or device prohibits intentionally false speech that is related to voting requirements or procedures and is made in an attempt to deter or influence an electors vote. Based on this ruling, the Court remanded the case to the Court of Appeals for consideration of the criminal charges brought by the State, asking that court to review the conduct at issue under the newly issued limiting construction of this provision of election law. News Release, Office of the Attorney General of Michigan, June 13, 2024

In that release, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel stressed the importance to prohibiting intimidating actions and voter suppression, vowing to continue the prosecution of the duo.

This voter intimidation law is a vital protection for Michigan voters and proponents of a participatory democracy, said Nessel in the news release. Intentionally false statements to deceive any Michigan voter from exercising their rights at the ballot box are illegal, and Im grateful to have this ruling make that abundantly clear, especially as we head toward another presidential election this autumn. We look forward to continuing with the criminal case and bringing this matter to trial.

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 WLNS 6 News.
Shocking details of Elon Musks alleged conduct are laid bare in a new lawsuit filed by eight former employees of SpaceX, who claim the Animal House environment fostered by the eccentric CEO and his executive team created a toxic work environment unbecoming of the company whose futuristic mission includes the colonization of other planets.

The allegations include near-constant sexual comments and actions from Musk himselfboth publicly and privatelywhich were immediately repeated and mimicked by other employees at the company. This fraternity-house culture became pervasive at SpaceX, the ex-employees allege, with a number of engineers creating crudely-named products including an upskirt camera on the Falcon rocket, the fun tunnel (a euphemism for anal sex) and B-plugs on the Dragon vehicle, as well as teams of employees calling themselves the chodes and schlongs.

Its reminiscent of the kind of charges that came out in Wall Street in the 1990s, Anne Shaver, one of the lawyers representing the plaintiffs, told The Daily Beast. Its really shocking to see this happening in, you know, 2020s, in California.

Claire Mallon, Tom Moline, Andre Nadeau, Deborah Lawrence, Rebekah Clark, Scott Beck, Yaman Abdulhak and Paige Holland-Thielen all worked for SpaceX some time between June 2014 to August 2022, according to the lawsuit which was filed out of Los Angeles on Wednesday. They all claim to have been fired after raising concerns about the work environment at the company.

Elon Musk Had Sexual Relationship With a Former SpaceX Intern: Report

The eight are being represented by Anne Shaver and Laurie Burgess of Lieff Cabraser Hiemann and Bernstein and are seeking monetary damages to account for lost wages, earnings, and other employee benefits, emotional distress. The exact amount is unclear.

The lawsuit also lambasts Musks self-favored image as a forward-thinking visionarysomeone who wants to be the leader to a brave new world of space travel, but runs his company in the dark ages  treating women as sexual objects to be evaluated on their bra size, bombarding the workplace with lewd sexual banter, and offering the reprise to those who challenge the Animal House environment that if they dont like it they can seek employment elsewhere.

SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Daily Beast.

According to The Guardian, it has denied the allegations and dismissed the claims, claiming the employees were fired legally. SpaceX does not often respond to media inquiries.

The lawsuit labeled Musks alleged constant sexual jokes, open bigotry toward the LGBTQ+ community and sexual advances on employees juvenile and grotesqueoften serving to doubly affect workers by encouraging others to emulate his conduct.

When former SpaceX employee Ashley Kosak first raised the issue of sexual harassment at the company in December 2021, she alleged that SpaceX conducted an internal audit which failed to identify any problems. SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell even publicly discredited Kosaks complaints in company meetings, the lawsuit alleges.

Following the May 2022 expose which alleged that Musk offered a flight attendant a horse in exchange for sexual favors, the lawsuit alleges that Shotwell sent out a company-wide email supporting Musk while Musk joked about the allegations on Twitter.

Holland-Thielen further alleged in the lawsuit that she was denied promotions while her male colleagues advanced, and saw her ideas routinely shut down by her male colleagues.

Paige Holland-Thielen Anne Shaver

Holland-Thielen alleged that during the SpaceX womens forum in December 2021, following Kosaks allegations, SpaceX human resources director Lindsay Chapman shot down her allegations, joking to the crowd Ive never been sexually harassed; I must not be hot enough. When pressed about the rubric that sexual harassment claims are vetted on, Lindsay further replied, Its hard to develop [one]. Things are not black and white, they are fifty shades of gray.

The disregard for the alleged workplace harassment at SpaceX drove Holland-Thielen to make a group chat with fellow employees who shared her concerns in May 2022.

Abdulhak, in the lawsuit, corroborated much of what Holland-Thielen alleged. He added that when he raised concerns about Musks conduct to Michael Saqr, the head of a diversity group at SpaceX, the company leader allegedly told him that they were powerless to do anything.

When Abdulhak raised the issue to HR Director Jamin Gallman, they also took no action, the lawsuit claimed.

Claire Mallon, who worked at SpaceX from August 2017 to June 16, 2022, similarly relayed stories of a sexist, discriminatory and harassment-filled workplace. Mallon was allegedly made to do more work than her male colleagues in order to earn a promotion by her boss David Forinash.

Clark, Moline, Beck, Lawrence and Nadeau all alleged similar stories: experiencing or witnessing sexual harassment or other forms of inappropriate behavior that did not align with the companys espoused values, and when they brought their grievances up to management, they were disregarded.

Tom Moline Anne Shaver

The seven all joined Holland-Thielens group chat, where they began putting together a 31-page document of all their documented grievances and what they expected from the company. The Open Letter was then shared to the whole company on June 15 and signed by 400 other employees.

It wasnt long before the company allegedly retaliated by interrogating all suspected employees responsible for writing the letter and firing them soon after.

Musk personally ordered the Plaintiffs terminations, the lawsuit alleges.

All say they suffered emotional distress following their termination.

The group filed a separate lawsuit with the NLRB on May 1 for wrongful termination. Musk initially tried to block the suit by challenging the constitutionality of the NLRB.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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MORRIS, Ill.  Illinois State Police are investigating what caused a semi-tractor trailer to veer off the road and crash into an apartment building in the southwest suburbs.

While no one was hurt, the crash left one family in Morris in search of their beloved support animal.

I was sobbing earlier. Im just glad you didnt see that part. It was just such a shock and I think I still cry here and there, building resident Jody Doran, whose apartment was in the upper corner unit of the building where the semi crashed, told WGN News.

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Doran, who shares the home with her daughter and two cats, wasnt inside the apartment when the crash occurred. But the impact, Doran believes, led to their emotional support cats disappearance.

Her and her father are going to take a look and see if they can find him, Doran said. Were saying a lot of prayers and hope he is found.

Morris officials say the incident occurred around 9:30 a.m. Wednesday in the 1800 block of East Anne Lane. The semi-truck was reportedly headed eastbound on Interstate 80 when it experienced a mechanical failure, causing the vehicle to steer off the road and strike an apartment building.

The Red Cross is assisting displaced residents.

Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines

The semi-tractor trailer was removed from the building around 2 p.m.

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 WGN-TV.
When Topeka police arrested state Rep. Carl Maughan on suspicion of driving while drunk in March, officers found inside his vehicle a loaded semi-automatic handgun, an empty bottle of Fireball whiskey and a case of beer with several cans missing, court records show.

In an unsealed affidavit, an arresting officer said they could smell alcohol on the Colwich Republicans breath when he was arrested in early March on suspicion of possessing a loaded handgun and traffic violations while under the influence. Colwich is in Sedgwick County.

Officer Brian Willyard said he pulled Maughan over for allegedly failing to signal before changing lanes and veering outside of the lane he was traveling in, according to the affidavit, the court document filed in support of the criminal charges in Shawnee County District Court.

When I contacted him, I observed inside the vehicle an open cardboard box of beer missing multiple cans and there was an odor of an alcoholic beverage on Carls breath, Willyard wrote in the affidavit.

There was also an open/empty 100 ML bottle of Fire Ball and two open containers in a blue duffel bag in the passenger seat located in the same compartment/zipper as a loaded Silver Taurus PT-111 9MM semi-automatic handgun, Willyard said.

The details of the arrest were released last week after The Topeka Capital-Journal and KSNT, a local television station, asked District Magistrate Judge Christopher Turner to open the affidavit to the public.

Maughan, a lawyer, is charged with two misdemeanors and two traffic violations: possession of a firearm while under the influence, DUI, failure to signal a lane change and failure to maintain safe passage from a single lane.

Maughan and his defense attorney Thomas Lemon, a Topeka-area attorney, did not respond to a request for comment through email and phone requests.

The arrest happened early March 4 on Southwest Topeka Boulevard near Southwest 29th Street after Willyard saw Maughans vehicle veering outside his lane over the single yellow line into the northbound lane, according to court documents.

Willyard said Maughan traveled 7 mph below the 40 mph speed limit, but later accelerated and failed to signal before changing lanes.

Maughan refused the field sobriety test but consented initially to a breath sample. He withdrew that consent after he was taken to the Law Enforcement Center.

Maughan also refused to give a blood sample, Willyard said. Maughan was taken to the University of Kansas Health System St. Francis Campus in Topeka while police obtained a search warrant.

The results of the blood test results have not yet been released. Maughan was booked into Shawnee County Jail.

Maughan is scheduled to appear in Shawnee County District Court at 9 a.m. on June 26.

Release of Affidavit

Turner ordered the release of the affidavit to the public on June 4 following a request by news media.

Attorneys for Maughan asked the judge to seal the affidavit, arguing public access would constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy, endanger Maughan and cause irreparable harm if he were later acquitted.

Turner argued that sealing the affidavit was unnecessary, and said the defendants arguments did not meet the requirements for justifying the sealing of court documents.

Maughan, who has served in the Kansas House of Representatives since 2023, filed for reelection just weeks after his arrest on March 20.

More than two months later, on May 30, he announced on X, formerly Twitter, that he terminated his reelection campaign for personal and family reasons.

His name will remain on the August primary ballot alongside three other Republican candidates because Maughan missed the deadline to have it removed.
Inside a drab conference room on Bull Street, the states environmental and health board huddled for the last time Thursday, listening to several enforcement reports and hearing updates about the looming changes ahead.

As board meetings go, it was one of the least eventful in the Department of Health and Environmental Controls 51-year history. But that was expected as the departments board met for the last time.

In little more than two weeks, the DHEC board and the sprawling agency will be dissolved. Its staff will be dispersed mostly to two new agencies. And the big bureaucracy that drew plenty of criticism through the years will be gone, the victim of a government restructuring law.

On Thursday, DHEC board members and staffers reflected on the agencys accomplishments that they said were often undervalued. They noted that, among other things, the department had helped guide South Carolina through the COVID-19 threat in 2020, responded to the disastrous effects of Hurricane Hugo in 1989 and helped the small Graniteville community react to a train wreck and fatal chlorine spill in 2005.

Our staff cares more than our citizens understand, said board chair Seema Shrivastava-Patel, who said criticism of the department staff makes her defensive, like a mother hen.

I will tell you as a board member, and as chair, its been an incredible journey.

DHECs final board meeting, held at its Bull Street headquarters in Columbia, lasted less than two hours and was dominated by praise from board members and agency director Edward Simmer, who is credited with helping improve DHECs response to the coronavirus threat. He took office in early 2021 after critics had questioned DHECs COVID-19 efforts.

Incoming Department of Environmental Services director Myra Reece hugs new Department of Public Health director Edward Simmer during the final meeting of the S.C. Department of Health and Environmental Control board. Both Simmer and Reece work for DHEC, but will take charge of the new agencies that will replace DHEC July 1, 2024.

Former agency directors Doug Bryant and Rick Toomey attended the meeting, as did the widow of former director Michael Jarrett. During a post-meeting ceremony, Bryant said the agency went through good and bad times, but he was proud to have worked there. Bryant, who started work at DHEC in 1976, succeeded Jarrett.

DHEC, with about 3,500 full-time staff members, was created in 1973 in an attempt to improve government services. It followed a dispute over whether the state Pollution Control Authority and the state Health Department needed to remain separate.

South Carolina became one of the few places in the country that combined environmental and health functions in one agency. DHECs duties ranged from considering pollution permits and monitoring the safety of dams to regulating hospitals, inspecting restaurants and responding to public health threats.

While its mission was to both protect public health and the environment, the Legislature also tasked DHEC with helping South Carolina prosper. That often drew criticism from those who said that worrying about economic prosperity should never have been part of the departments charter.

At the same time, many of the agencys critics said board members and high-level officials, often including former agency lobbyists, were too willing to make deals with the Legislature. The agency had plenty of quality staffers, but DHEC management should have stood up more strongly for the environment, and to a lesser degree, public health, critics have said.

Agency defenders say DHEC often was caught in the crossfire between business interests and environmental and health advocates, and the agency did its best to referee the disputes.

The board room that provided so little drama Thursday had been the location of many of the biggest environmental and health disputes in South Carolina history. The board acted as a judge on whether to issue permits that were in dispute or uphold staff members on enforcement actions.

This is the room where it all happened, Simmer said after the meeting.

Among those happenings was a bitter fight in 1995 over whether to force the operator of a hazardous waste dump to sock away $133 million in the bank to pay for monitoring and cleaning up the site one day. The board backed down from the requirement, the dumps operator later filed for bankruptcy and today, taxpayers, are spending $4 million a year to make sure the site doesnt leak into nearby Lake Marion.

But the board also heard disputes over whether to approve foul-smelling chicken farms and development along the states eroding beaches, as well as whether to hit businesses that broke environmental laws with stiff penalties. Disputes over midwife regulations and hospital expansions also kept the board busy.

Board members, who were appointed by the governor, sometimes overruled the departments professional staff and at other times, they downplayed reports by news media for pointing out environmental problems.

Whether the dissolution of DHEC will make for better protection of the environment and health is an unknown, but some people are hopeful.

The new S.C. Department of Environmental Services will pick up the duties of DHECs environmental division, while the new Department of Public Health will absorb the agencys health division. The two agencies will be directly under the authority of Gov. Henry McMaster. Staff from DHEC will, for the most part, move to the new agencies, although some will go to the Department of Agriculture.

Department of Health and Environmental Control board chair Seema Shrivistava-Patel presides over an agency recognition ceremony after the board met for the final time June 13, 2024. DHEC is being disbanded and the board dissolved July 1, 2024. New agencies will take DHECs place.

Shrivastava-Patel said the Legislature needs to tweak the restructuring law next year. With DHEC becoming a cabinet agency, citizens wont have a board to address or to hear their challenges to permit decisions or fines. Theyll now have to hire lawyers to go to the Administrative Law Court. She favors having some panel to hear such issues before they go to the administrative court.

Still, Shrivastava-Patel and Simmer said they ultimately agreed with the plan to split DHEC, which at one time had been opposed by many in the agency. They said having two departments should allow the state to focus better on environmental issues and health issues.

The new health department may eventually include other state health agencies, such as the Department of Mental Health, but that remains a point of contention in the Legislature and may not be fully resolved until next year.

Separating the agencies allows us to get to a better integration of health services, said Simmer, who said hes interesting in remaining director of the new health department for several years. Whether it happens this year or next year, thats probably the right thing.

After DHEC is disbanded, the new health and environmental departments that come from the agency are expected to eventually move to other offices. But for the near future, most offices should remain in the same places as they were under DHEC.

DHEC is South Carolinas environmental and health agency. It is being dissolved in July 2024. Two new agencies are being created to replace DHECs environmental and health services.
Elon Musk, shown at a Hollywood event in April, is the subject of a lawsuit that spotlights crude social media posts and alleges retaliatory firings. (Jordan Strauss / Invision / Associated Press)

SpaceX and its billionaire owner, Elon Musk, are being sued by eight former employees who allege they were fired after asking the company to address a toxic work culture they say is rife with sexual harassment and discrimination.

The former employees say Musk encouraged an inappropriate work environment in the spacecraft company with his social media posts, where he often announced important company news including launch dates and accomplishments, but mixed in memes and jokes filled with sexual innuendo.

In the complaint, the former SpaceX engineers say the troubling posts weren't just private rantings from its billionaire CEO. SpaceX told employees to consider Musk's posts on X as official statements and news from the company.

"There was no separation on [Elon] Musk's statements and the company's statements," said Anne Shaver, one of the attorneys representing the plaintiffs. "When employees raised concerns, they were told: 'We can't do anything. SpaceX is Elon, and Elon is SpaceX.'"

A representative for SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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Musk, who owns SpaceX and X, is a prolific user of the social media site formerly known as Twitter. He is known for posts that are questionable at times, attacking politicians, personal opponents and people he disagrees with.

In one post highlighted in the complaint, Musk posted to Chad Hurley, the former CEO of YouTube, "if you touch my wiener, you can have a horse."

In another instance, he posted a picture of Bill Gates with a pregnant-looking stomach with the message, "in case u need to lose a boner fast." In a response to SpaceX competitors, he once posted that they "[c]an't get it up (to orbit) lol."

In one post, he said he was considering making a university in Texas similar to MIT and proposed calling it "TITS."

The online behavior, the lawsuit alleges, seeped into day-to-day work at SpaceX.

"Employees could not escape seeing them or hearing about them," states the lawsuit filed Tuesday in Los Angeles County Superior Court. "Musk's utterances were quickly circulated by email, Teams channels and/or word of mouth and widely discussed."

The lawsuit claims SpaceX's handbook instructs employees to look at Musk's social media feed on X as "a source of approved company news" and encourages employees to share it publicly.

Musk's activity on social media also had another consequence, the lawsuit states: "Musk's conduct of interjecting this juvenile, grotesque sexual banter into the workplace had the wholly foreseeable and intentional result of encouraging other employees to engage in similar conduct."

At SpaceX's Hawthorne offices, the suit claims, company meetings and employees mimicked Musk's humor.

At meetings, the lawsuit alleges, senior engineers called mechanical parts "chodes" and "schlongs." A camera that was placed on the bottom of a second-stage Falcon rocket was referred to as the "Upskirt Camera," and a structure used by astronauts to transfer from SpaceX's Dragon spacecraft to the International Space Station was called the "Fun Tunnel," a euphemism for anal sex.

Paige Holland-Thielen, one of the former employees suing SpaceX, alleged that a principal engineer in December 2021 saw a graph on her computer that pointed downward. The engineer made a reference to a penis and asked her, "How can we get it up, up, up?"

Musk, who has been listed by Forbes as one of the wealthiest people on the planet, has long faced allegations of turbulent leadership, including claims of retaliation against those who speak out against him.

When he bought Twitter in 2022, Musk fired a large number of the social media platform's employees, including those who had criticized him, the New York Times reported.

Read more: Elon Musk blasts Apple's OpenAI deal over alleged privacy issues. Does he have a point?

He's also faced allegations of sexual harassment.

Business Insider reported in 2022 that a SpaceX flight attendant was paid $250,000 to settle a sexual misconduct claim, alleging Musk exposed himself to her and offered to buy her a horse in exchange for an erotic massage.

On Tuesday, the day the lawsuit was filed, the Wall Street Journal reported that Musk had a sexual relationship with a SpaceX intern more than 20 years his junior.

The eight employees  four women and four men  were fired in 2022 at the direction of Musk, the complaint alleges, after they drafted an internal letter asking SpaceX executives to denounce Musk's social media posts.

The letter mentioned the allegations against Musk, as well as troubling social media posts that it stated included "subtle sexual harassment" and "bullying." It also asked executives to "condemn Elon's harmful Twitter behavior."

According to the complaint, Holland-Thielen and Tom Moline were told by SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell to "stop flooding employees [sic] communications channels" after they shared the letter on June 15, 2022.

The same day, the lawsuit alleges, Musk asked an HR representative to fly from Texas to Hawthorne, and then ordered officials to fire Holland-Thielen and Moline.

SpaceX continued to investigate the authors of the letter and those involved in drafting the document, the lawsuit states, and fired more employees as a result.

"Musk thinks he's above the law," said Laurie Burgess, one of the attorneys representing the plaintiffs. "Our eight brave clients stood up to him and were fired for doing so. We look forward to holding Musk accountable for his actions at trial."

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
blue school hallway lockers and checkered tile in high school students in the background (down-sampled to increase sharpness)

The federal Environmental Protection Agency says it disagrees with a West Virginia school districts decision to relocate students from a superfund site for the upcoming school year. (Getty Images)

The federal Environmental Protection Agency says it disagrees with a West Virginia school districts decision to relocate students from a Superfund site for the upcoming school year.

An EPA spokesperson said Thursday that based on sampling of the site so far, the agency has not recommended that Paden City High School close.

Current EPA Superfund Remedial Investigation data shows no imminent health risks related to the Superfund Site for the students at the Paden City High School, Kelly Offner, a media and public affairs specialist for the EPA, said in an email to West Virginia Watch Thursday.

EPA representatives have expressed to the Wetzel County School District and the community that there are no unacceptable health risks caused by vapor intrusion from the Superfund site, Offner said. The agency is planning another public meeting in late summer to give an update on the Remedial Investigation progress, including to provide final results from vapor intrusion tests in February 2024.

Earlier this week, Wetzel County School superintendent Cassandra Porter announced that students of Paden City High School would be moved to New Martinsville School and Magnolia High School because of health concerns about the school being located on top of an Environmental Protection Agency designated Superfund site.

A safe learning environment for our students is fundamental and imperative, Porter wrote to staff and faculty. Fortunately, in Wetzel County, we can prioritize student safety without interrupting the instructional process during this temporary school closure. As county superintendent, I am charged with and given the authority to protect the health, safety and welfare of our students and employees.

Having an environmental hazard like an EPA Superfund site underneath PCHS leaves little room for error or half-measures, Porter wrote. Decisive action is needed.

According to the EPA, the site, located in the 200 block of North Fourth Avenue, has soil and groundwater plumes contaminated with tetrachloroethylene, a likely carcinogen used for dry cleaning fabrics. An EPA site inspection that began in 2020 determined that the site poses a risk and would require long-term clean up. It was added to the National Priorities List in March 2022.

Offner wrote that the agency is taking steps to evaluate the Paden City Superfund site, including installing additional wells to confirm the extent of the groundwater plume and monitoring the plume with regular sampling.

There are several wells in the schools vicinity, Offner wrote. Weve also conducted three rounds of vapor intrusion sampling at the Paden City High School, with more planned this year. If future sampling results exceed unacceptable risk, thresholds mitigation measures can be implemented quickly.

In an email to West Virginia Watch Thursday, Porter acknowledged the EPA had not recommended relocating students and that the agency said there is probably not a risk.

We do not wish to have any students in a probably situation, she wrote. We have two choices. 1. remove the threat or 2. move the people. The second option is easily achieved in our county. We do not have the capacity to mitigate the risk to zero. Our number one priority is the health and safety of our students and staff.

The post EPA says no imminent health risks for Paden City High School appeared first on West Virginia Watch.
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)  The El Paso Independent School District is searching for a principal for Guillen Middle School and will also be holding a meeting to receive input from the community, according to a press release from the district.

The meeting will be held at 4 p.m. for faculty members and at 5 p.m. for the community on Monday, June 17, at the Guillen Parent Center.

The meeting will be in person and also via zoom, the school district said. Spanish translation will also be provided.

The Zoom link to the meeting can be accessed here: https://episd-org.zoom.us/j/93742950650?pwd=AkSijbWn6elbXw6a95DTh4xcndir9e.1.

The school district says its seeking input from the community to ensure the selection process reflects the needs and values for the community.

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An ethics complaint filed against Newberry Mayor Jordan Marlowe over the possible misuse of government resources related to the initiative to covert the city's three public schools into charter schools has been dismissed.

The Florida Commission on Ethics in a June 12 press release notes that it dismissed during a June 7 meeting the complaints against Marlowe and 21 other individuals for a "lack of legal sufficiency."

"These reviews are limited to questions of jurisdiction and determinations as to whether the contents of the complaint are adequate to allege a violation of the Code of Ethics or other laws within the Commission's jurisdiction. As no factual investigation precedes the reviews, the Commission's conclusions do not reflect on the accuracy of the allegations made in these complaints," the release says.

The Florida Commission on Ethics has dismissed a complaint against Newberry Mayor Jordan Marlowe.

The complaint stemmed from emails obtained via a public records request by Save Our Schools Newberry, which was created to oppose the charter conversion, and appeared to show that Marlowe had been directing city staff to assist behind the scenes with the charter initiative.

"We believe that this a grave misuse of government resources, time and taxpayer money," said Tyler Foerst, co-organizer of Save Our Schools Newberry, on April 2 outside Newberry City Hall.

Marlowe responded to requests from The Sun for comment via text later that afternoon.

"I am proud to support parents and teachers in our community who were engaged in doing their due diligence on a complex community initiative. Any attempt to create a narrative that deviates from that simple truth is unfortunate and categorically false," he wrote.

The initiative to convert two of the three schools  Oak View Middle and Newberry High  failed after votes from parents and teachers were counted by Alachua County Supervisor of Elections Kim Barton, acting as an independent arbitrator, on April 17.

The initiative for Newberry Elementary, however, remains muddled after a parent ballot was discovered inside a teacher envelope, leading to exactly 50% of the school's teachers voting in favor of the conversion.

Based on a initial presentation by Newberry Education First, the nonprofit behind the conversion effort, that said 50% plus 1 of the 44 eligible teachers needed to vote in favor for it to pass, the initiative appeared to fail.

Alachua County Public Schools quickly posted the result to its Facebook account.

"The Alachua County Supervisor of Elections has completed counting the votes for the charter conversion of Newberry Elementary and it did not pass," the post says.

Newberry Education First and Marlowe, however, claimed victory less than a month later based on an undated email from Department of Education Senior Chancellor Adam Miller.

Miller wrote that based on Florida Statute 1002.33(3)(b), the charter school conversion process must meet certain voting thresholds, including that at least 50% of the teachers employed at the school voted in favor of converting the school to a public charter school.

"If a conversion charter school application is submitted to either the Alachua County School Board or the Charter School Review Commission, and the application can successfully demonstrate that at least half of the teachers voted for conversion, then the applicant has met the threshold requirement."

The email, however, makes no direct reference to Newberry Elementary School or a state rule that stipulates a majority of teachers at any given school must approve the change.

Despite a lack of clarity on the situation, the city of Newberry is preparing a charter school application, which is due Aug. 24. As part of that application, the city has selected six new board members, including UF compliance analyst Derek Danne; Florida Virtual School teacher Leslie McGehee; human resources manager Leslie Hayes-Morrison; Family Promise Executive Director Shari Jones; speech pathologist Veronica Kadala; and non-voting chair Chelsea Leming

Alachua County School District spokesperson Jackie Johnson wrote in a news release in early May that "the district had not received any official notification from the Florida Department of Education about changing the results of the Newberry Elementary School conversion vote."

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Florida ethics commission dismisses complaint against Newberry mayor
President of the EU Council Charles Michel speaks at the Africa, climate change and development Roundtable during the G7 Summit at the Borgo Egnazia resort. Dario Pignatelli/EU Council/dpa

EU Council President Charles Michel criticized China's decision to boycott a Ukraine peace conference being held in Switzerland in the coming days.

"It is disappointing that China will not be attending," Michel said on Thursday on the sidelines of the meeting at the meeting of leaders from the seven advanced industrialized democracies in southern Italy.

China said late last month it would not take part in the Ukraine peace conference that Switzerland is organizing. Beijing pointed to a clear gap between the organization of the conference and China's requirements plus the general expectations of the international community, which made it difficult for China to take part, saod Foreign Office spokeswoman Mao Ning.

Some 40 heads of state and government, along with delegations from 90 countries and organizations are expected to attend the summit being held over the weekend in the Burgenstock Resort on Lake Lucerne.

Russia has not been invited and has dismissed the event as Western propaganda.

The summit's aim is to prepare the ground for a subsequent peace summit with Russian participation. It will also discuss food security and nuclear safety.

Earlier on Thursday, the Swiss National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) reported attacks on state websites ahead of the summit.

The distributed denial of service (DDoS) attacks hit websites of the government and organizations linked to the summit by flooding them with requests.

"The attacks were expected and are presumed to be in connection with the summit. They resulted in minor outages which were within the specified tolerance. The operation of the affected units was not significantly affected," the NCSC said in a statement.
Evacuated Ukrainian war refugees arrive at the airport. EU justice and home affairs ministers are to examine plans to extend emergency rules to shelter people who fled the war in Ukraine until at least March 2026, in two days of meetings in Luxembourg starting on 13 June. Bernd Thissen/dpa

EU justice and home affairs ministers are to examine plans to extend emergency rules to shelter people who fled the war in Ukraine until at least March 2026, in two days of meetings in Luxembourg starting on Thursday.

Ukrainians who fled to the European Union after the full-scale invasion of their country by Russia in 2022 were granted immediate protection after EU member states set up a temporary regime designed for cases of mass influxes of people.

The proposal is designed to avoid the lengthy national asylum-seeking procedures required to process large numbers of displaced people. Extensions of the temporary rules are possible for up to one year.

In addition, people under temporary protection are entitled to social benefits, housing, access to education and work permits, among other things.

The existing regime was set to end in March 2025. The European Commission announced the planned extension on Tuesday.

The commission reported almost 4.2 million Ukrainians are currently residing in the EU under these rules, with Germany hosting the most people at 1.2 million.

EU justice and home affairs ministers are also set to examine a strategy from the commission to roll out controversial new migration and asylum rules in the EU.

The commission's strategy is to help the bloc's countries implement the legal system by mid-2026.

A major part of the commission's plan is a large IT system called Eurodac, in which the data of people seeking asylum is to be stored and processed to better monitor applicants between EU countries.
Europe bows to US pressure to agree $50bn loan for Ukraine

Ursula von der Leyen, pictured with Mr Zelensky, EU Council president Charles Michel and G7 leaders, said how much each member would pay was yet to be worked out - Massimiliano De Giorgi/UPI/Shutterstock

European leaders have bowed to American pressure and agreed to a $50 billion loan deal for Ukraine using the proceeds from frozen Russian assets.

On Thursday, G7 leaders in Italy announced that Ukraine would receive a major financial boost by the end of the year, as Western countries try to placate Volodymyr Zelensky ahead of next months Nato summit.

Under the deal, returns from $320 billion in frozen Russian central bank assets will be used to secure a loan of $50 billion, which can be used by Ukraine for its military or economic recovery.

Diplomatic sources told The Telegraph that Britain and the US had successfully overturned concerns about the plan from Germany, which worried it would set a legal precedent for countries making use of frozen assets.

Joe Biden called the loan deal a significant outcome that would be put to work for Ukraine in the coming months.

Were not backing down. In fact, were standing together against this illegal aggression, the US president said at a joint press conference with Mr Zelensky, adding that the war had been a test for the world that the West had met.

The Ukrainian president hailed a historic day that would provide his country with sustainable support to win the war.

Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, said the loan would be game-changing for Ukraines ability to ward off Russian attacks.

Its fantastic news, its something that I personally and the UK have been leading on and championing for some time now, he said.

The deal came despite initial objections from Germany and Belgium, who had legal concerns about setting a precedent by using frozen assets to borrow.

Berlin has been accused by some Western officials of hampering support for Ukraine in recent months, amid a row between politicians in the countrys ruling coalition about spending public money on the war.

Berlin was concerned that seizing the money could open it up to more lawsuits demanding reparations for Nazi crimes in the Second World War, The Telegraph understands.

Around $220 billion of frozen Russian assets are held in the Belgian securities depository, Euroclear. Brussels had opposed interfering with the sum in any way for fear of undermining its banking sector.

The loan is the result of months of negotiation between G7 countries over how to use Russian assets frozen at the beginning of the war, most of which are in Europe.

The US had originally proposed to send the full $320 billion directly to Kyiv, but this was blocked by EU leaders over fears of legal repercussions from the Kremlin.

A second version of the plan, proposed by the EU, would have transferred the $5 billion annual interest earned from the assets to Ukraine while leaving the underlying capital untouched.

The compromise agreed on Thursday will use the profits to secure a loan that will ultimately be guaranteed by the US Treasury, officials said.

Ursula von Der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, said that all members of the G7 would contribute to the loan but the extent of each countrys participation was still to be worked out.

Forward leaning

A Foreign Office source said: Its always been the case that us and the US have been most forward-leaning, needing to persuade the others.

US officials hope the loan plan will avoid a tantrum from Mr Zelensky at next months Nato summit in Washington DC, where Ukraine is not expected to be offered a concrete timeline for joining the alliance.

At last years summit in Lithuania, Nato allies agreed to extend an invitation to Ukraine to join the alliance when allies agree and conditions are met. Mr Zelensky described the lack of a timeline as unprecedented and absurd.

In Washington, Ukraine is set to be shown a well-lit bridge to membership, but no further assurances on when its request to join the alliance will be granted.

The announcement of the loan came as the UK announced new sanctions on a shadow fleet of Russian tankers that have been used to circumvent British and G7 restrictions on oil exports.

It follows months of concern about funding for Ukraine, which was held up in the US Congress until April amid objections from Republicans.

Mr Zelensky warned that without a major cash injection from the West, he would be unable to fend off Russian missile attacks on civilians in cities this summer, nor retake territory lost since Vladimir Putins invasion.

Congress eventually approved a $61 billion package, but Western leaders have been exploring further funding options that could be used if Donald Trump wins this years presidential election.

Mr Trump has signalled his opposition to spending US tax dollars on Ukraine and told voters he would end the war in one day by pushing negotiations between Kyiv and Moscow.

The loan agreed on Thursday is expected to fund Ukraines war effort into 2025. Mr Biden and Mr Zelensky separately agreed a 10-year funding guarantee for Ukraine designed to futureproof US support.

Mr Biden skipped a G7 dinner hosted by Sergio Mattarella, the Italian president, on Thursday night. Officials cited his busy schedule, which has included two trips to Europe in as many weeks.

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Even when Africans want to visit Europe legally, rejection rates are high. Algeria is one example

FILE - Children play football in Kasbah of Algiers, a UNESCO world heritage site, Algeria, April 11, 2019. Visa applicants from Africa who want to visit Europe's Schengen Area face far higher rejection rates than people from anywhere else in the world. In Algeria, more applicants are rejected than in any other African nation. (AP Photo/Mosa'ab Elshamy, File)

ALGIERS, Algeria (AP)  France has twice rejected visa applications from Nabil Tabarout, a 29-year-old web developer from Algeria who hopes this year to visit his sister there.

He's among the many people navigating the often arduous visa process throughout Africa, which faces higher visa rejection rates than anywhere else in the world when it comes to visiting Europe's Schengen Area. Appointments are often difficult to secure. Applicants often must prove a minimum bank balance, substantiate the purpose of their visit and prove they plan to return home.

Thats how it is. Every pleasure deserves pain, said Tabarout, who has succeeded just once in obtaining a French visa.

Though much of Europe's debate about migration centers on people who arrive without authorization, many more people choose to come by legal means. Its painful, then, to discover that following the rules often fails.

The disproportionate rejection rates  10% higher in Africa than the global average  hinder trade, business and educational partnerships at the expense of African economies, according to an April study from U.K.-based migration consultancy firm Henley & Partners.

The study called the practices discriminatory and urged Schengen countries to reform them.

Nowhere are applicants more rejected than in Algeria, where more than 392,000 applicants were rejected in 2022. The 45.8% rejection rate is followed by a 45.2% rejection rate in Guinea-Bissau and 45.1% in Nigeria.

Only one in 25 applicants living in the United States were rejected.

While the study found that applicants from poorer countries experienced higher rejections in general, it noted that applicants from Turkey and India experienced fewer rejection than applicants from the majority of African countries.

The reasons for that anti-Africa bias could be political, according to the studys author, Mehari Taddele Maru of the European University Institutes Migration Policy Center. Visa rejections are used as a political tool by European governments, including France, to negotiate the deportation of those who migrate to Europe without proper authorization. North African governments have refused to provide consular documents for their citizens facing deportation.

In an interview, Maru said Algeria has continent-high rejection rates because its number of applicants outpaces those from other African countries for geographic, economic and historical reasons. Many Algerians apply for visas in France, where they speak the language and may have family ties. And North Africas proximity to Europe means flights are short and cheap compared to flights from sub-Saharan Africa, leading more people to apply, he said.

Beyond rejection rates, the difficulty of applying is also a policy choice by European governments, Maru said. When we talk about increasing barriers for potential applicants, it's not only the rate of rejections, it's also the restrictions to apply.

That means the challenges can be local too.

For Algerians like Tabarout, VFS Global is a new player in the visa application process. The subcontractor was hired by French consular authorities after years of criticism about the previous system being dominated by a so-called visa mafia.

Applicants previously faced challenges securing time slots, which are quickly reserved by third-party brokers and then resold to the public  similar to how scalpers have dominated concert platforms. Rumors swirled about intricate computer programs connecting to appointment platforms and gobbling up slots within moments.

Theyre a bunch of swindlers whove been at it for years, making fortunes on the backs of poor citizens by making them pay dearly to make an appointment to apply for a visa," asserted Ali Challali, who recently helped his daughter submit a French student visa application.

Under the previous system, applicants told The Associated Press they had to pay 15,000 to 120,000 Algerian dinars (103 to 825 euros) just to get an appointment.

In Algeria, many decide to pursue opportunities in France after not finding adequate economic opportunities at home or seek residency after going to French universities on student visas. According to a 2023 report from Frances Directorate General for Foreign Nationals, 78% of Algerian students say they have no intention of returning to Algeria upon finishing their studies.

The visa issue has historically been a cause of political tensions between the countries. Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune is scheduled to visit France later this year.

Everything that can contribute to increasing trade between France, Europe and Algeria must be facilitated in both directions," French Ambassador Stephane Ramotet said at a recent economic conference in Algiers. Algerians who want to go to France to develop a business must be able to benefit from all the facilities, particularly visas."

___

Follow APs coverage of migration at https://apnews.com/hub/migration
(KRON)  Less than 24 hours after Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price held a news conference and lectured reporters about the importance of the First Amendment, Price was hit with a lawsuit accusing her office of violating the First Amendment.

The lawsuit, released publicly on Wednesday, was filed on behalf of former KTVU reporter Patricia Patti Lee. Lee worked as a Public Information Officer for the District Attorneys Office in 2023 until she was abruptly fired.

The lawsuit claims Lee discovered that the DAs office was hiding, deleting, and/or altering records requested by journalists through the California Public Records Act. Days after Lee raised concerns, she was unceremoniously fired as PIO in December, attorneys said.

I had to speak out, Lee said. I have been a serious and dedicated journalist for more than two decades. I believe in transparency and the publics right to know. This case is about more than just one individual; its about maintaining the integrity and transparency of our public institutions.

The lawsuit was filed on May 29 by firm Roxborough, Pomerance, Nye & Adreani. It alleges retaliation, discrimination, and wrongful termination. Price and Alameda County are named as defendants.

Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price (KRON4 image)

KRON4 asked the District Attorneys Office about the lawsuit on Wednesday. The current PIO for the DAs Office responded by writing, The District Attorneys office cannot comment on litigation on personnel matters.

Lees attorney, Nicholas Roxborough said, Pamela Price, the top cop at the DAs office, is attempting to silence her own people for refusing to participate in a cover-up. That Ms. Price often spends more time worrying about her appearance and her image than fighting serious and complex crimes in the Bay Area is astounding.

First Amendment violation allegations against Price stem from a Nov. 29, 2023 news conference held by the district attorney.

When reporter Emilie Raguso of The Berkeley Scanner showed up to cover it, she was refused entrance and escorted away by DAs Office employees. Ragusos experience raised alarms that Price may have a blacklist banning certain reporters who printed negative news stories. To find out if the DAs Office had violated Ragusos First Amendment rights, multiple media outlets filed CPRA requests.

Reporters, press freedom groups, and First Amendment organizations were understandably troubled by this cartoonish violation of the First Amendment, content-based restriction of reporting, and the arbitrary exclusion of a reporter, the lawsuit states.

Ms. Lee was tasked with responding to CPRA requests that were aimed at uncovering a media list meant to blacklist certain reporters who are critical of the Alameda County District Attorneys Office, the lawsuit states.

Lee began seeking to obtain information for responding to CPRA requests, in compliance with the law. But instead of producing records, the DAs Office decided to hide, delete, and change the records, the suit claims.

Lee claims that she spoke up and refused to participate in illegally withholding records that the public was entitled to see. On Dec. 12, 2023, she was handed a termination notice and told to clear out her office within eight minutes. No reason for her firing was given, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit also accuses Price of anti-Asian sentiment. Lee, who is Asian American, said she witnessed Price make derogatory comments about Asian people. Ms. Price would constantly and openly make derogatory remarks, attorneys wrote.

Price allegedly said her enemies are the media and the Asians, the lawsuit states.

Lee says she was fired as PIO out of retaliation and discrimination. Conduct in the DAs Office caused her to suffer humiliation, embarrassment, psychological harm, and emotional harm, attorneys wrote.

Patti-Lee-lawsuitDownload

Attorney Roxborough said, Something is very amiss in Alameda County and Ms. Prices office.

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 KRON4.
Ex-spy says US should be concerned by Russian ships visiting Cuba as Kremlin insists nothing to worry about

The Russian navy's Admiral Gorshkov frigate is seen en route to Cuba (Russian Defense Ministry Press Service)

An ex-spy has warned that the US should be concerned by Russian ships visiting Cuba, but the Kremlin has insisted that there is nothing to worry about.

Former KGB spy Jack Barsky, who spent a decade spying for the Soviet Union in the US before he was discovered by the FBI, told NewsNation that the US should be worried after Russia sent three warships and a nuclear-powered submarine into Cuban waters  just 90 miles from Florida  on Tuesday for routine military exercises.

You cant look at this as just a routine exercise. It has to be seen against the background where Putin is stating that hes actually fighting the West in the Ukraine, he said.

The Pentagon has maintained that it is not worried about the deployment of the ships, saying that they pose no threat because the deployment is part of routine naval activity. Cuba has also said the deployment poses no threat.

Visits by naval units from other countries are a historical practice of the revolutionary government with nations that maintain relations of friendship and collaboration, a statement from Cubas Foreign Ministry said.

According to a Cuban Armed Forces Ministry statement, none of the Russian ships are armed with nuclear weapons.

But Barsky said he disagreed with the Pentagon and Cubas stance. Everything that Putin does is sending messaging, particularly threatening ones, Barsky said, adding that Putin likes to scare people.

Barsky added that his fear stems from the Cuban missile crisis of 1962, when the fear of nuclear war paralyzed America for nearly two weeks.

With this kind of tension that we have, theres always the possibility of an accidental launch, Barsky said. Im worried about that.

Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander General Wesley Clark shared similar remarks on NewsNations The Hill on Tuesday, arguing that while Russias presence in Cubas waters does not signal war, it is clearly a show of strength by Putin who is trying to send a message to the world as the war in Ukraine continues.

I dont think its anything that will erupt in violence, Clark said. But does [Vladimir Putin] send a message to the United States and the world? Sure.

Despite such sentiment, the Kremlin insisted on Thursday that there was no reason for any country including the United States to be worried by the exercise.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that it was common practice for all states including major maritime powers such as Russia to carry out military exercises.

Cuba is a long-time ally of Russia, dating back to the Cold War years. The country hosted Russian ships every year between 2013 and 2020.

Cuba is also increasingly reliant on Russian oil and aid as the communist-run country weathers its worst economic crisis in decades.

The ships are expected to stay in Cuban waters for five days.
A former State College Area High School teacher was accused Thursday of having inappropriate contact with a student, allegations the school district described as deeply disturbing.

Former Spanish teacher Cesar J. Caceres Tello, 43, was accused of asking the girl sexual questions in school before touching her inappropriately in December 2022, State College police wrote in an affidavit of probable cause.

Caceres Tello was placed on administrative leave immediately after the student reported the allegations, the school district wrote in a statement. He resigned three days later.

Student safety is our highest priority, and we are appalled by the deeply disturbing accusations against former teacher Mr. Caceres Tello. When our administration became aware of what a teacher had reported, we took immediate action, which included informing the police and protecting our high school students, the district wrote. Since that time, we have been cooperating with the police during their investigation and also providing support to anyone in need of assistance.

The girl told investigators Caceres Tello shut the door and closed the blinds when they were the only two in the classroom, police wrote. The rest of her classmates went to lunch, but she briefly remained behind to send a text message to her friend.

She said her heart dropped a little bit and was thinking of the worst, police wrote.

Caceres Tello, the girl alleged, then sat in a desk, slid his chair directly next to her and began asking a lot of questions and getting uncomfortably close, police wrote. She told investigators it made her so upset that she cried.

In response, Caceres Tello was accused of telling her she was too pretty to cry. He then touched her arms, legs, back, face and hair, and continued to make inappropriate sexual comments, police wrote.

The girl said she didnt know what to do and remained sitting with her legs shaking, police wrote.

After she went to the bathroom to hide, police wrote that Caceres Tello sent another female student to look for her and also yelled for her himself. She said her heart dropped again, police wrote.

Caceres Tello interrupted the girls next class to speak with her in the hallway, which a fellow teacher said was abnormal behavior. Caceres Tello told the student not to start rumors, before adding you know nothing happened, police wrote.

The girl did not respond and returned to the classroom, police wrote. Her teacher told investigators she was visibly upset and had been crying, police wrote.

Text messages and security camera video reviewed by a school resource officer corroborated the students allegations, police wrote.

Nothing is more critical than the trust of our students, employees, and community at-large, the district wrote. Any infringement on that relationship is heartbreaking, and we will do everything we can to repair any harm that has been done. Behavior of this alleged nature violates our core values and will never be tolerated.

Caceres Tello, of State College, was charged with one felony count of unlawful contact with a minor and misdemeanor counts of corruption of minors and indecent assault. No defense lawyer was listed.

He was arraigned Thursday by District Judge Gregory Koehle, who released him on $25,000 unsecured bail. His preliminary hearing is scheduled for June 26.

While we cannot discuss any more details during this process, we want to reassure our community that decisive measures have been taken related to this matter, the district wrote. As always, our commitment is to provide a nurturing environment where every student feels safe, respected, and able to reach their full potential. Anything less than that is unacceptable.
By Giulia Paravicini and Steve Stecklow

(Reuters) - An estimated 756,000 people in Sudan could face catastrophic food shortages by September, according to a preliminary projection used by United Nations agencies and aid groups to determine whether to officially declare a famine.

The preliminary results, as of June 1 and seen by Reuters, reflect a rapidly deteriorating situation in the war-torn country. The most recent previous projection, released in December, showed that 17.7 million people, or 37% of the population, faced high levels of food insecurity, but none were considered in a catastrophic situation.

Now, an estimated 25.6 million people, or 54% of the population, face critical shortages, including more than nine million people in an emergency situation or worse.

The latest projection is preliminary and could change. It will require approval by the military-controlled Sudanese government and U.N. and international agencies. The government has previously denied the country is experiencing famine.

The new analysis was done by the Rome-based Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), an initiative of U.N. agencies, regional bodies and aid groups. The data is expected to be incomplete. In March, the IPC said security threats, roadblocks and telecommunications outages in Sudan were hindering its ability to do assessments.

The IPC, which analyzes food insecurity and malnutrition data, hopes to publish a report on Sudan in the next several weeks, according to people familiar with the matter.

Fatima Eltahir, a Sudanese government official who is also the IPCs chairwoman in Sudan, told Reuters: We are not done yet. There are no final results.

Lavonne Cloke, an IPC spokesperson, said the analysis is ongoing, adding that its not yet clear when it will be finalized.

The latest projection for Sudan comes at a time when another conflict zone  Gaza  is also experiencing severe food shortages. In March, the IPC said famine was imminent as 1.1 million people, about half of Gazas population, were expected to experience catastrophic food insecurity.

In Sudan, fighting broke out in the capital Khartoum in April 2023 and quickly spread across the country, reigniting ethnic bloodshed in the western Darfur region and forcing millions to flee. The number of people internally displaced in Sudan due to current and past conflict has surpassed 10 million, the United Nations migration agency said this week. The country is already experiencing the worlds largest displacement crisis.

Last month, U.N. agencies also said Sudan was at "imminent risk of famine. About 3.6 million children are acutely malnourished, according to a joint statement by U.N. chiefs, including the high commissioner for human rights.

Whether a famine will be declared in Sudan remains unclear. Governments sometimes challenge famine data and projections. To date, U.N. agencies and other organizations only have declared famines twice since the IPC warning system was created 20 years ago: in Somalia in 2011, and in South Sudan in 2017.

The determination of whether to declare a famine is based on a scale used by the IPC that has five classifications, ranging from Phase 1, which reflects no serious food issues, to Phase 5, which represents either a catastrophe or, even worse, a famine. Phases 3, 4 and 5 are all considered crisis situations or worse.

The ratings are determined using a complex set of technical criteria, which include measurements of starvation, malnutrition and mortality. In areas formally designated as Phase 5 famine, more than two people per 10,000 are dying daily, among other criteria.

The latest preliminary IPC projection for Sudan states that between June and September, an estimated 756,000 people in Sudan will face Phase 5 catastrophe. This means that the country hasnt technically reached widespread famine conditions, but it is still considered a major crisis.

The projection identified 32 localities and clusters where the population was suffering catastrophic food shortages. They included two areas where 15% of the population faced IPC 5 catastrophic conditions  the city of al-Fashir, the capital of North Darfur; and a nearby camp for internally displaced people called Zamzam. Three other areas were cited where 10% of the population had reached the threshold.

Many of the areas in the projection were seized by the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), which has been fighting the Sudanese army.

On Tuesday, a top U.S. diplomat told Reuters that parts of Sudan are already in famine, adding that the extent of extreme hunger remained unclear.

"I think we know we are in famine," said Tom Perriello, the U.S. special envoy to Sudan. "I think the question is how much famine, how much of the country, and for how long."

(Reporting by Giulia Paravicini in Nairobi and Steve Stecklow in London. Additional reporting by Maggie Michael in Cairo. Editing by Michael Williams.)
The executive director of a Georgia pride organization has been arrested on drug charges.

The Columbus Police Department said it executed a search warrant on the home of Jeremy Hobbs on Wednesday.

When they got to the home, they found crack cocaine, methamphetamine, liquid GHB, and a revolver.

Hobbs is the executive director of Colgay Pride in Columbus.

The organization released a statement, saying it expressed its utmost concern and regret regarding the arrest and charges facing our Executive Director, Jeremy Hobbs.

TRENDING STORIES:

The board does not condone the alleged actions and we will cooperate with law enforcement in the coming investigations regarding our operations and finances, the statement said. With humility, we ask for the understanding and solidarity of the local community in this period. We apologize to our allies, colleagues and partners for the distress caused by these developments.

The organization said it would be meeting in the coming days to discuss its next steps and new leadership.

As for Hobbs, hes been charged with possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, possession of VGCSA Schedule I drug with intent to distribute and possession of drug-related objects.

According to WTVM-TV, Hobbs appeared in court Thursday morning and pleaded not guilty to the charges.

The TV station reported that the officer on the case asked the judge to continue the hearing until Monday.

The judge granted Hobbs a $25,250 bond. The case will resume on Monday if Hobbs does not post his bond.

IN OTHER NEWS:
How to experience Africas wildest coastline from the comfort of your balcony

Seven countries in 13 days in luxurious comfort. Had I heard this 20 years ago when driving through West Africa, I would have rolled my eyes in disbelief. Back then I recalled hot days along potholed roads, hotels of dubious character and negotiations  fiscal ones  at multiple border crossings. West African travel can be as challenging as it is richly rewarding.

Now, departing from Tema, Ghana, on Swan Hellenics small 76-cabin expedition cruise vessel, Vega, I would explore West Africas little-travelled coastline while scarcely breaking sweat or laying out a fistful of euros.

Unheralded as this coast may be, off-the-beaten track Africa is in demand from consumers. Vega was repositioning from Antarctica for its Arctic summer season via a West African cruise with a completely full complement of passengers. So few vessels explore this coast that when we docked in Liberia, their tourism minister appeared on deck to inspect the first visiting cruise ship in 12 years.

Boats bobbing in the water around Elmina in Ghana (Mark Stratton)

Read more on Africa travel:

From my large cabin on the sixth deck, balcony doors flung open to enjoy ever-present dolphins and Atlantic breezes tempering 28C heat, I watched Ghana, Cote dIvoire, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea-Bissau and The Gambia come and go during a 1,759 nautical mile voyage to Senegal. Soporific sea days alternated with landings at major ports. It wasnt always plain sailing, as languid officialdom held up disembarkations, and high sea temperatures (meaning denser seawater) slowed Vega down.

Yet the exposure to Portuguese, British, and Francophone colonial influences and ethnic groups proved an engrossing, and at times sobering, voyage into the unknown. If the regions beleaguered wildlife has little reputation for nature-based tourism, West Africa remains the visceral core of the transatlantic slave trade. It was the main conduit for the middle passage shippage of 1012 million Africans to the Americas.

Inside Cape Coast Castle, which is now included on the Unesco World Heritage List (Mark Stratton)

Take Elmina, our first stop along Ghanas Gold Coast. Its wharves thronged with energy, hundreds of wooden fishing pirogues emblazoned with platitudes to God and decorated with flags. Barracuda and red snapper is feverishly traded quayside and moved in baskets on the heads of sashaying Ghanaian women. Just outside Elmina is Cape Coast Castle.

Thirteen hundred slaves were kept here at any one time, said local guide, Marc Tetteh, as we explored the whitewashed 17th-century British castle, where sunshine beat down on corroded cannon and mounds of cannonballs. Marc found us shade inside a gloomy dungeon that once enslaved 200 Africans at a time. Those who survived this hellhole were spirited away across the Atlantic. Above us the chapel of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel once existed. They didnt think it was wrong to pray while Africans suffered beneath their feet, said Marc.

Swan Hellenics Vega, docked close to Guinea-Bissau (Mark Stratton)

An intriguing debate on slavery continued during lectures with guest experts in the seventh-floor observation lounge, where complimentary cocktails were served each evening. Ninety per cent of all slaves transported from Africa were already in some form of forced labour, said Dr Dean Allen, a South African academic. Although without the Europeans there would have been no transatlantic trade.

Over the next three days, we visited capitals forged by returning Africans. In Monrovia, Liberia, we pass Provenance Island, where repatriated slaves from the US arrived from 1821 on ships chartered by the American Colonization Society.

Later in Freetown, Sierra Leona, a 400-year-old cotton tree marked where freed returnees met under its shade. Freetown was established by former slaves from London in 1787, known as the Black Poor who were returned by British abolitionists. In 2023, a heavy rainstorm felled the cotton tree, leaving a fractured stump.

The buzz of the market in Freetown (Mark Stratton)

By contrast, the lack of enslavement meted upon Guinea-Bissau, reached a few days later, accounts for a cultural authenticity that proved my highlight of the voyage. Guinea-Bissau is near anonymous, receiving few annual visitors. We entered a shimmering delta of 88 shallow water islands off the countrys coast called the Bijagos Archipelago.

The Bijagos people sold slaves from inland ethnicities but were never subject themselves to slavery, explained Sonia Durris, a Portuguese-born islander who joined us to talk about their unbroken animist traditions. Slavers were afraid of their fierceness and their pagan worship of forest spirits.

During a fabulous day on two islands, we stepped ashore on Boloma, once Guinea-Bissaus Portuguese colonial capital. The eponymous town crackled with birdsong in palm forests laden with hanging fruit-bats. The late 19th-century architecture is collapsed and abandoned, the governors palace, built during a century-long British occupation, is a magnificent ruin with a facade of 10 Corinthian columns.

The sands of Canhabaque Island (Mark Stratton)

Later, we waded ashore at Canhabaque Island, onto a broad caramel-hued beach to the beat of multiple djembe drums urging on a young man to perform a mask dance. He wore cow-horns to symbolise bovine strength and was covered in little bells exchanged with Portuguese traders. Sonia explained the dance was part of a lifelong journey to nurture the soul towards old age usually performed in secret in their matriarchal jungle villages. She said 100 days each year are given over to their ceremonial life.

Our odyssey ended soon after in Senegal, in its energetic capital Dakar, where offshore is the Unesco-prescribed Goree Island, where transatlantic slavery continued unabated between 1536 and 1848.

West Africa will forever remain a coast of lost souls. Yet when seen from the sea, it yielded access to untold stories of darker days and captivating colour that illuminated this unheralded coast more than I ever couldve imagined.

Travel essentials

Mark Stratton travelled with Swan Hellenic on the 14-night Crucibles of West Africa cruise. A cabin costs from 5,981pp (based on two sharing), all-inclusive; the next departure is in April 2025.

Read more: Where to go on holiday in Morocco, from Marrakech to Fes
Fatime Letifova

Deputy Chairman of the Board of the Azerbaijans Mine Action Agency (ANAMA) Samir Poladov met with a delegation led by Deputy Ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to the country Edward Evans, Azernews reports.

Samir Poladov informed the UKs deputy ambassador about the mine problem and the consequences caused by mines, the activities carried out to address this problem, the progress achieved, as well as the international cooperation in the field of mine action.

The ANAMA Chairman of Board noted that Great Britain has supported the humanitarian demining activities carried out in Azerbaijan from the first day, and emphasized the existence of quite successful projects in this field.

During the meeting, Edward Evans acknowledged the significant scale of the landmine problem that Azerbaijan faced, commending the work done in this area.

The meeting also included an exchange of views on expanding UK's support for the humanitarian demining activities carried out in Azerbaijan, enhancing existing cooperation in this field, as well as other issues of mutual interest.
An unknown number of explosives found in the Chattahoochee River this week pose no threat to the public, according to law enforcement.

Officers from the Columbus police and Muscogee County Sheriffs office found explosives in the Chattahoochee River around the Dillingham St. Bridge Wednesday.

The number of explosives found is unconfirmed, but a spokesperson for the sheriffs office said they were not a danger.

The spokesperson said the bombs were likely left in the river after an Army training exercise. As of now, it is unknown whether any of them were live.

One of the officers behind the Columbus Convention and Trade Center said the Army was responsible for continuing to search for more explosives. Two boats from the Columbus Fire & EMS department were at the bottom of the raft launch behind the convention center.

Nearly a dozen CPD officers were dispatched to block traffic near where the explosives were found, including the Dillingham St. Bridge and a part of the Riverwalk behind the convention center. Columbus police said the areas will be closed until at least 11 a.m.

Police block off traffic in Columbus, Georgia, after munitions were found nearby. Officials say theres no danger to the public.

The river is known for world class kayaking and paddling, but it also home to historic artifacts, including cannonballs, according to reporting by the Ledger-Enquirer.
Extra large super load exceeding 900,000 pounds to begin moving through the area on June 16

COLUMBUS  The 12th of nearly two dozen super loads, and first of four loads that exceed 900,000 pounds, will depart the dock site in Adams County on Sunday, June 16. The convoy will head to New Albany to deliver the load to the site of the new Intel plant in Licking County.

Like the other loads, this one will move through the region including the areas of Piketon, Chillicothe and Canal Winchester.

One of the super loads travels through the area on Ohio 104.

This load, an air processor known as a cold box used in the silicon chip manufacturing process, measures approximately 23 tall, 20 wide, 280 long, and weighs 916,000 pounds.

These extra-large loads will have significant traffic impacts as they move. Unlike the previous loads, these will take more than a week to deliver and will travel much slower. Motorists are strongly encouraged to plan ahead and avoid the route while the load is moving.

Due to the size of the loads and slow speed of the convoy, moves will begin earlier than previous trips to ensure each move can be completed during daylight hours.

Because of an anticipated increased interest from the public, large crowds are expected along the route. This will lead to additional traffic delays. Safety of the public and those working to move the load is the top priority. Observers are asked to stay out of the path of the transport trucks and work crews and off the sidewalks along the roadway. Spectators should obey orders to move back if instructed to do so.

The Ohio Department of Transportation has carefully analyzed and planned the route to make sure these extra-large loads can be accommodated. Since each load will be escorted by several Ohio State Highway Patrol troopers, emergency traffic will get around the rolling roadblock with minimal delay. Working with partners like local governments and utility companies, obstructions along the route such as large overhead signs, traffic signals, and utility lines have been adjusted and moved.

The twelfth of nearly two dozen super loads, and first of four loads that exceed 900,000 pounds, will depart the dock site in Adams County on Sunday, June 16.

The schedule of each of the nearly two dozen loads will be checked against local events, like festivals and fairs, to further minimize impacts.

Notifications will continue to be made in advance of each load leaving the dock on the Ohio River near the village of Manchester in Adams County. Updates will be provided as each load moves north toward central Ohio.You can find more information, updates, and sign up for email alerts at transportation.ohio.gov/superload

The route the loads will follow includes:

From the dock site east of Manchester, it will travel east on U.S. 52 to West Portsmouth.

At west Portsmouth, cross over into the U.S. 52 westbound lanes just before the junction of the Ohio 239 on ramp to U.S. 52 Westbound.

Travel north on the SR 239 Southbound ramp to Ohio73/Ohio 104

Travel south in the Northbound lanes of Ohio 73/Ohio 104 to US 52

Travel east on U.S. 52 in the Westbound lanes to U.S. 23 in Portsmouth

Travel north on U.S. 23 southbound ramp to U.S. 52 westbound

Travel north on U.S. 23 in the northbound lanes to the intersection with Kinneys Lane and Argonne Road

Cross over into the northbound lanes and travel north on U.S. 23 to the Village of Piketon

In the Village of Piketon cross over into the Southbound lanes of U.S. 23 at Market Street to maneuver around the traffic signals then cross back over into the northbound lanes of U.S. 23

Travel north on U.S. 23 to Chillicothe

Take U.S. 35 West to Ohio 104 north

Take 104 north to Ohio 762 near Commercial Point

Travel east on Ohio 762 to Rickenbacker Parkway

Travel north on Rickenbacker Parkway North to Ohio 317

Travel north in the Southbound Lanes on Ohio 317 past Groveport to Bixby Road east

Travel east on Bixby Road to U.S. 33

Travel east in the westbound lanes of U.S. 33 to the Gender Road southbound to U.S. 33 westbound ramp in Canal Winchester

Travel the wrong way on the Gender Road Southbound to US Route 33 Westbound ramp

Take Ohio 674/Gender Road North to Brice Road

Take Brice Road North to the intersection with Tussing Road/Ohio 204 in Columbus

Travel East on Tussing Road/Ohio 204 East to Ohio 310

Travel North on Ohio 310 to US Route 40 in Etna

Travel West on US Route 40 to Mink Street

Travel North on Mink Street to Ohio 16

Travel East on Ohio 16 to Ohio 310

Travel North on Ohio 310 to Ohio 161

Travel West on Ohio 161 to Mink Street

Travel North on Mink Street to Clover Valley Road NW

This article originally appeared on Lancaster Eagle-Gazette: First of four extra large super loads to move through area on June 16
Boeing remains under a microscope on Capitol Hill after a midair scare on January 5 when a door panel blew off a Boeing 737 Max 9 airplane during an Alaska Airlines flight.

Month later, Boeing leaders said the company is taking steps to improve safety and production quality.

Thursday on Capitol Hill, Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Administrator Michael Whitaker admitted his agency should have been more aware of what was happening at Boeing before that Alaska Airlines incident. The FAA is responsible for oversight of Boeing and other aircraft manufacturers.

FAAs approach was too hands off, too focused on paperwork audits and not focused enough on inspections, Whitaker said.

During a Senate hearing, both Democrats and Republicans questioned the FAAs role in passenger safety.

RELATED: The head of the FAA says his agency was too hands-off in its oversight of Boeing

Im very concerned that your, your oversight is not strong enough, Sen. Maria Cantwell, D - Washington State, said.

What is the FAA doing differently to hold itself accountable for the oversight that the agency is required to conduct? Sen. Ted Cruz, R - Texas, said.

Whitaker said the agency was too reactive in the past; now its shifting to a more proactive approach.

Read: Boeing tells federal regulators how it plans to fix aircraft safety and quality problems

We must develop a more dynamic oversight protocol that allows us to anticipate and identify risks before they manifest themselves as events, Whitaker said.

He said those actions are playing out with the FAAs enhanced oversight at Boeing.

Well have boots on the ground at their facilities, so well be able to interact with the employees directly and have a sense of whats going on, Whitaker said.

[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]

The FAA said a key part of Boeings new comprehensive plan is implementing a Safety Management System. This includes a system for employees to report safety or quality control issues confidentially and anonymously.

The reason safety management systems work is because they are a risk analysis tool and it allows you to find risks that may not be obvious and one way you get that is by hearing from your employees who are on the frontlines, Whitaker said.

Moving forward, lawmakers say they want both the FAA and Boeing to commit to permanent changes.

[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]

The FAA must guarantee that not only are they certifying that an aircraft is safely designed but that the manufacturer is building them to that safe design -- clearly that wasnt always happening at Boeing, Cruz said.

Both Boeing and the FAA need a strong safety management system, not just in name only, one that actually saves lives, Cantwell said.

Next Tuesday, Boeings CEO Dave Calhoun will be on Capitol Hill where hes expected to face tough questions from Congress.

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.
The head of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said Thursday the agency was too hands-off with regulating aircraft manufacturers before a door blew out of a Boeing plane in January, causing weeks of scrutiny into the companys manufacturing safety.

FAA Administrator Michael Whitaker said in a Senate Commerce Committee hearing about Boeing that his agency should have had much better visibility into Boeings manufacturing process.

FAAs approach was too hands-off, too focused on paperwork audits, and not focused enough on inspections, he said. We have changed that approach over the last several months, and those changes are permanent. We have now moved to a more active, comprehensive oversight model, the audit plus inspection model, which allows the FAA to have much better insight into Boeings operations.

The door blowout of a Boeing 737 Max operated by Alaska Airlines, caused by missing bolts, resulted in the grounding of every similar aircraft in the country and mandatory inspections. An investigation into Boeings process found a lax safety culture and oversights during manufacturing.

There are issues around the safety culture in Boeing. Their priorities have been focused on production and not on safety and quality, Whittaker said in March. And so, what we are really focused on now is shifting that focus from production to safety and quality.

The FAA said its six-week audit of Boeing found multiple instances when the companies allegedly failed to comply with manufacturing quality control requirements.

The scrutiny has tanked the companys stock and brought additional scrutiny from Congress. The Justice Department launched a criminal investigation in March, and members of the Senate Commerce Committee have previously promised more oversight.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), the committees ranking member, said in March more oversight is unquestionably needed.

This is an ongoing issue. Obviously, what has happened with Boeing in recent months is deeply concerning. The NTSB is engaged in investigation dealing with the Alaska Airlines incident. That investigation needs to proceed to conclusion, he told The Hill.

The challenges weve seen recently have raised real and material concerns and concerns that need to be addressed.

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 The Hill.
Claim:

A newspaper clipping accurately quotes antisemitic comments by Benjamin Franklin in 1787.

Rating:

Rating: Unfounded

Context:

The newspaper clipping was authentic, published by anti-Communist and antisemitic newspaper Common Sense on Nov. 15, 1966. However, it was unknown how, or with what evidence, the newspaper connected the quote to Franklin. There was no evidence to definitively confirm or disprove he said or wrote the passage during his life (1706-1790).

For years, a photo of an alleged newspaper clipping with a purported transcription of an anti-Semitic speech by U.S. Founding Father Benjamin Franklin has circulated online. In June 2024, for instance, an X user posted the image, asking whether the passage was accurately attributed to Franklin and, if so, why "so many incredibly famous intellectuals [have] written so negatively about Jewish behavior?"

Is this image @scouts_sel41169 shared truly of the writings of Benjamin Franklin?



If so, why have so many incredibly famous intellectuals written so negatively about Jewish behavior? pic.twitter.com/ICJpzuMPQW  IanMalcolm84 (@IanMalcolm84) June 4, 2024

According to the rumor, Franklin said the following:

In whatever country Jews have settled in any great numbers, they have lowered its moral tone, depreciated its commercial integrity, have segregated themselves and have not been assimilated, have sneered at and tried to undermine the Christian religion, have built up a state within a state, and have, when opposed, tried to strangle that country to death financially. If you do not exclude them from the United States in the Constitution, in less than 200 years they will have swarmed in in such great numbers that they will dominate and devour the land and change our form of government. If you do not exclude them, in less than 200 years our descendants will be working in the fields to furnish the substance while they will be in the counting house rubbing their hands. I warn you, gentlemen, if you do not exclude the Jews for all time, your children will curse you in your graves. Jews, gentlemen, are Asiatics; they will never be otherwise.

A text box beneath the passage claimed Franklin said the words in an address "before the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia 1787." The convention was a legitimate event for America's founding fathers  including Franklin  and state delegates to flesh out ideas for what would eventually become the U.S. Constitution. The convention lasted May to September 1787.

Similar posts with the in-question passage circulated on Reddit and Facebook, too. It surfaced online as early as August 2012.

The newspaper clipping itself was authentic. Snopes found a digital copy of it, published on Nov. 15, 1966 by an anti-Communist, ant-Semitic and pro-Nazi newspaper, Common Sense. However, it was unknown how, or with what evidence, the newspaper connected the quote to Franklin. Also, the column did not list an author. (Common Sense reportedly went defunct in June 1972.)

That said, historians and scholars have repeatedly discredited Franklin's alleged connection to the passage, referred to as the "Franklin Prophecy." While evidence confirms Franklin attended and spoke at the 1787 Philadelphia event, there's no evidence of him saying the alleged quote there  much less writing or saying the passage at any other point during his life (1706-1790). There's also no irrefutable evidence to definitively disprove the rumor about Franklin. For those reasons, we rated this claim "Unfounded."

Historians Dispute the Passage's Connection to Franklin

In 1938, the American Jewish Committee (AJC), a Jewish civil rights and lobbying group, published a pamphlet titled, "Benjamin Franklin Vindicated: An Exposure of the Franklin 'Prophecy' by American Scholars." Six academics contributed to the publication, and they all claimed the alleged speech was an anti-Semitic forgery  that is, Franklin did not say it  and its provenance was unknown.

Decades before the Common Sense column, an anti-Semitic journal, Liberation, first published the extract attributed to Franklin, according to the scholars. William Dudley Pelley  an American, pro-Nazi fascist who was arrested in 1942 and imprisoned on sedition and insurrection charges  edited that journal. (Other editions of the Liberation publication can be seen here and here.) Snopes found a digital copy of the issue including the passage, published on Feb. 3, 1934. That was possibly the first instance of the alleged Franklin passage appearing in print, though there was no evidence to confirm.

In the February volume, Pelley cited a private diary of someone who supposedly attended the Constitutional Convention and witnessed the alleged speech by Franklin firsthand. That alleged witness, Charles Cotesworth Pinckney, was a South Carolinian delegate who became one of the country's founding fathers.

According to Pelley, Pinckney published his diary for private distribution among friends under the title, "Chit-Chat Around the Table During Intermission." But, Pelley claimed, most copies were destroyed during the American Civil War. "Among the few copies extant is one given by Mr. Pinckney to his daughter," Pelley wrote. "[It] is from this copy that the following extract [Franklin's alleged speech] has been taken.

However, Snopes was unable to find a copy of the purported diary to confirm whether it contained Franklin's alleged speech. In the February 1934 article, Pelley did not state the then-location or owner of the diary, nor how he supposedly learned of its contents.

In the 1938 AJC pamphlet, historian Charles A. Beard  who dismissed the claim about Franklin in a separate 1935 publication, "Charles A. Beard Exposes Anti-Semitic Forgery About Benjamin Franklin"  said the alleged diary was never verified despite "extensive researches." He said his search for it only "produced negative results."

Also in the AJC pamphlet, Beard said he approached multiple people to ask about the provenance of the alleged speech but nobody confirmed Franklin's attribution.

Despite being convinced the so-called "Franklin Prophecy" was a forgery, he wrote to another scholar familiar with the writings of Franklin and Pinckney  historian J. F. Jameson. Jameson told Beard it was "almost certain Pinckney did not keep a diary of convention proceedings," and "that there is nowhere any evidence that Franklin ever made such a speech and that it is inconceivable that he should ever have done so."

After searching through Franklin's writings with the help of others, Beard said he found no evidence Franklin ever expressed "any such sentiments against the Jews as are ascribed to him." He wrote: "In his writing on immigration, Franklin made no mention of discrimination against Jews."

In fact, on page seven of the AJC pamphlet, Beard and the publication's other contributors cited an incident in which Franklin supposedly participated in a fundraiser to benefit Philadelphia's Jewish community: "When the Hebrew Society of Philadelphia sought to raise money for a 'religious house,' or synagogue, in Philadelphia, Franklin signed the petition of appeal for contributions to 'citizens of every religious denomination,' and gave 5 himself to the fund," the pamphlet said.

Also in the pamphlet, Henry Butler Allen, then-director of the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia, reiterated Beard's findings regarding the alleged diary; that it "has not been produced." On the next page, he repeated the anecdote about Franklin supposedly donating to the synagogue in Philadelphia and dismissed claims the Franklin Institute was allegedly in possession of the diary. "The truth is, we do not possess the notorious diary. In fact we know no more about its whereabouts than we did before, and that was nothing," Allen wrote.

Alfred Rigling, the Franklin Institute's then-librarian, echoed Allen and Beard in the AJC pamphlet, saying:

Historians and Historical Societies have endeavored to locate the Pinckney work, but without success. There is no copy in the Library of Congress, or the New York Public Library. Our state Historical Society has made careful investigation and fails to find any information concerning it.

Three other contributors to the AJC pamphlet agreed. They were J. Henry Smythe, author of "The Amazing Ben Franklin" and member of the Benjamin Franklin Committee of the National Society, Sons of the American Revolution; Julian Boyd, librarian of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, and Carl van Doren, author of the Pulitzer Prize-winning biography "Benjamin Franklin."

More than five decades after the AJC pamphlet's publication, the American Philosophical Society published a book by Nian-Sheng Huang, a history professor at the California State University Channel Islands, in which Huang concluded the Pinckney diary and subsequent Franklin passage was "proved to be a forgery." (The book's title is "Benjamin Franklin in American Thought and Culture, 1790-1990, Volume 211.")

On June 8, 2023, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum echoed Huang and the AJC contributors by calling the passage "an antisemitic speech falsely attributed to Benjamin Franklin."

Multiple outlets have addressed the unfounded claim about the "Franklin Prophecy," such as the Atlanta Jewish Connector, an initiative of the Atlanta Jewish Times, and the U.K. media nonprofit JewThink.

Snopes contacted the University of Pennsylvania's Benjamin Franklin Society, as well as the Jewish Labor Committee and American Jewish Congress, for their comment on the findings of this report. We will update this article if we receive responses.

Sources:

Accept Terms and Conditions on JSTOR. https://www.jstor.org/tc/accept?origin=%2Fstable%2Fpdf%2Fcommunity.28144693.pdf&is_image=False. Accessed 10 June 2024.

Afsai, Shai. 'How Ben Franklin Became an Antisemite'. Atlanta Jewish Connector, http://www.atlantajewishconnector.com/how-ben-franklin-became-an-antisemite/. Accessed 10 June 2024.

---. 'How Ben Franklin Was Turned Into an Antisemite'. JewThink, 8 Mar. 2021, https://www.jewthink.org/2021/03/08/how-ben-franklin-was-turned-into-an-antisemite/.

Beard, Charles A. 1874-1948 (Charles Austin). Charles A. Beard Exposes Anti-Semitic Forgery about Benjamin Franklin. New York City, Published by the League for Labor Palestine, 1935. Internet Archive, http://archive.org/details/dudeman5685_yahoo_BF1.

Benjamin Franklin | Biography, Inventions, Books, American Revolution, & Facts | Britannica. 16 May 2024, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Benjamin-Franklin.

'Benjamin Franklin'. Goodreads, https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1558473.Benjamin_Franklin. Accessed 10 June 2024.

Benjamin Franklin Constitutional Convention 1787 Speech Jew OR Jewish - Google Search. https://www.google.com/search?q=benjamin+franklin+constitutional+convention+1787+speech+jew+OR+jewish&sca_esv=14e030f61bc09c7c&ei=ezlnZvyzH6uAhbIPtfinmAg&ved=0ahUKEwi83fOmydGGAxUrQEEAHTX8CYMQ4dUDCBA&uact=5&oq=benjamin+franklin+constitutional+convention+1787+speech+jew+OR+jewish&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiRWJlbmphbWluIGZyYW5rbGluIGNvbnN0aXR1dGlvbmFsIGNvbnZlbnRpb24gMTc4NyBzcGVlY2ggamV3IE9SIGpld2lzaEgAUABYAHAAeAGQAQCYAQCgAQCqAQC4AQPIAQD4AQGYAgCgAgCYAwCSBwCgBwA&sclient=gws-wiz-serp. Accessed 10 June 2024.

Carl Van Doren | Biographer, Pulitzer Prize, Historian | Britannica. 12 Apr. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Carl-Van-Doren.

Charles A. Beard | American Historian & Political Scientist | Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-A-Beard. Accessed 10 June 2024.

Charles Cotesworth Pinckney | Revolutionary War, Founding Father, Diplomat | Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Charles-Cotesworth-Pinckney. Accessed 11 June 2024.

Charles Cotesworth Pinckney (U.S. National Park Service). https://www.nps.gov/people/charles-cotesworth-pinckney.htm. Accessed 11 June 2024.

'Chit-Chat Around the Me Table During Intermission' Charles Pinckney - Google Search. https://www.google.com/search?q=%22Chit-Chat+Around+the+me+Table+During+Intermission%22+charles+pinckney&sca_esv=d254fc4124ffde86&ei=JWVoZr6yG-uPhbIPt7e7uAU&ved=0ahUKEwj-2PqK59OGAxXrR0EAHbfbDlcQ4dUDCBA&uact=5&oq=%22Chit-Chat+Around+the+me+Table+During+Intermission%22+charles+pinckney&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LXNlcnAiRCJDaGl0LUNoYXQgQXJvdW5kIHRoZSBtZSBUYWJsZSBEdXJpbmcgSW50ZXJtaXNzaW9uIiBjaGFybGVzIHBpbmNrbmV5SABQAFgAcAB4AJABAJgBAKABAKoBALgBA8gBAPgBAZgCAKACAJgDAJIHAKAHAA&sclient=gws-wiz-serp. Accessed 11 June 2024.

'Closing Speech at the Constitutional Convention (1787) | Constitution Center'. National Constitution Center  Constitutioncenter.Org, https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/historic-document-library/detail/benjamin-franklin-closing-speech-at-the-constitutional-convention. Accessed 10 June 2024.

Collections Search - United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn3760. Accessed 10 June 2024.

COMMON SENSE - AMERICA'S NEWSPAPER AGAINST COMMUNISM 1962 9 DIFF ISSUES + 4 EXTR. https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/common-sense-americas-newspaper-1868007088. Accessed 11 June 2024.

Common Sense Newspaper Article Featuring Highlander Folk School. https://teva.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/p15138coll18/id/185/. Accessed 11 June 2024.

CONTENTdm. https://digital-collections.csun.edu/digital/collection/InOurOwnBackyard/id/153/. Accessed 10 June 2024.

'HENRY ALLEN DIES; METALLURGIST, 74; Ex-Franklin Institute Aide Cited for War Research'. The New York Times, 22 Mar. 1962. NYTimes.com, https://www.nytimes.com/1962/03/22/archives/henry-allen-dies-metallurgist-74-exfranklin-institute-aide-cited.html.

Home | The Franklin Institute. https://fi.edu/en. Accessed 10 June 2024.

Huang, Nian-Sheng. Benjamin Franklin in American Thought and Culture, 1790-1990. American Philosophical Society, 1994.

IAPSOP-Liberation_v5_n24_feb_3_1934. Internet Archive, http://archive.org/details/IAPSOP-liberation_v5_n24_feb_3_1934. Accessed 11 June 2024.

Internet Archive: Digital Library of Free & Borrowable Books, Movies, Music & Wayback Machine. https://archive.org/details/iapsop?tab=collection&query=liberation. Accessed 11 June 2024.

J. Franklin Jameson Biography | AHA. https://www.historians.org/about-aha-and-membership/aha-history-and-archives/presidential-addresses/j-franklin-jameson/j-franklin-jameson-biography. Accessed 10 June 2024.

J. henry smythe. The Amazing Benjamin Franklin. frederick a. stores, 1929. Internet Archive, http://archive.org/details/amazingbenjaminf0000jhen_f7q7.

Julian P. Boyd Biography | AHA. https://www.historians.org/about-aha-and-membership/aha-history-and-archives/presidential-addresses/julian-p-boyd/julian-p-boyd-biography. Accessed 10 June 2024.

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The Amazing Benjamin Franklin by Smythe, J. Henry: Near Fine Hardcover (1929) First Edition. | E Ridge Fine Books. https://www.abebooks.co.uk/first-edition/Amazing-Benjamin-Franklin-Smythe-J-Henry/15925920009/bd. Accessed 10 June 2024.

'The Constitutional Convention of 1787: A Revolution in Government | Constitution Center'. National Constitution Center  Constitutioncenter.Org, https://constitutioncenter.org/the-constitution/white-papers/the-constitutional-convention-of-1787-a-revolution-in-government. Accessed 11 June 2024.

TIMES, Special to THE NEW YORK. 'ALFRED RIGLING, 72, LIBRARIAN 58 YEARS; Franklin Institute Official in Philadelphia Dies After a Few Days' Illness ALSO EDITOR ON JOURNAL Assistant Secretary for the Organization--Worked With Famed Scientists'. The New York Times, 10 Dec. 1940. NYTimes.com, https://www.nytimes.com/1940/12/10/archives/alfred-rigling-72-librarian-58-years-franklin-institute-official-in.html.

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Fact Check: Biden Was Supposedly Listed as 'Dead in 2018' on Ancestry.com. Here's the Full Story

Claim:

Social media posts in June 2024 accurately stated Ancestry.com listed a Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. as having died in Guantanamo, Cuba, in 2018.

Rating:

Rating: True

Context:

Although Ancestry.com did have a page stating a Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. died in Guantanamo, Cuba, in 2018, a site disclaimer stated anyone can upload information to the database. Therefore, some listings might not be accurate. No credible news outlets reported U.S. President Joe Biden died in Guantanamo in 2018, which would have been eminently newsworthy if it were true.

On June 11, 2024, an X user claimed genealogy website Ancestry.com listed U.S. President Joe Biden as dead. According to the site, she said, Biden died in Guantanamo, Cuba, in 2018.

The X user included a video in her post that allegedly showed Ancestry.com listing a Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. as dead.

Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. on https://t.co/JOhRx5V8QN , shows he died in 2018 at Guantanamo, Cuba https://t.co/OoSz7cH5xv  Carli B. Frueh - EOTM Media (@CarliFrueh) June 11, 2024

The same X user posted a similar claim on June 12 and held a live broadcast discussing the rumor on June 11.

Similar posts appeared elsewhere on X, while one X user asked whether it was true.

Another X user said: "Interesting. I am able to pull this up also. Now my question is, who owns/runs Ancestry.com? I never use this website, so I have no idea on the validity of the information provided. Though, I would not be surprised if true."

Together, the posts had amassed more than five million views at the time of this writing.

Joe Biden is not realhttps://t.co/63H0YxYDY4 shows Joe Biden has died back in 2018 at Guantanamo Bay. Even Trump was dropping clues about his demise. The real question is, who is playing his role?



Truth is stranger than fiction.

S/O to @CarliFrueh for the great find pic.twitter.com/Y6cRYfII4i  The Maverick Approach (@Maveapproach) June 12, 2024

The Ancestry.com page referenced in the claim and video was real (archived here), which is why we have rated this claim as "True." It said a Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. died in Guantanamo, Cuba, in 2018. The date and place of birth  Nov. 20, 1942, in Scranton, Pennsylvania  matched that of U.S. President Joe Biden.

However, despite the listing being real, a disclaimer on Ancestry.com's website stated anyone can upload information to the database. Therefore, not everything seen on the website will be legitimate:

The decision to upload personal information to the Ancestry website is your responsibility... You agree to provide true, accurate and complete information. If any information you provide is, in our sole judgment, false or misleading, we reserve the right to terminate your use of Ancestry and/or delete all content that you have submitted... We also reserve the right to remove any user provided content which comes to our attention and which we believe, in our sole discretion, is illegal, obscene, indecent, defamatory, incites racial or ethnic hatred, violates the rights of others or otherwise violates this Agreement.

Another page on Ancestry.com explained how to add and remove information from its database.

After publishing this fact-check, Katherine Wylie from Ancestry's communications team told Snopes via email on June 13 the listing for Biden had been removed from the company's website:

Ancestry provides the tools for our customers to document and record the details of their family history, including building family trees and creating memorials on Find a Grave. Memorials dedicated to famous figures make up a special collection  approved, curated and solely maintained by Find a Grave. Because the page in question doesn't fall under this category, it has been removed from both Find a Grave and Ancestry.

In addition, the Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. listing said the president was buried in the U.S. Army's Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia. However, the cemetery's media chief, Rebecca Wardwell, told Snopes via email: "I can confirm that President Joe Biden is not laid to rest at Arlington National Cemetery."

The Ancestry.com listing also cited a separate listing (archived here) on cemetery record website Find a Grave as the source of the claim Joe Biden died in Guantanamo in 2018. The Find a Grave listing was published on March 15, 2024; however, it had since been deleted.

A Find a Grave research associate later told Snopes via email: "This memorial has already been removed from Find a Grave because President Biden is still alive."

The memorial written in the archived Find a Grave listing also contained conspiratorial claims, such as former U.S. President Donald Trump being in charge of the current Biden administration.

The Find a Grave user who published the listing confirmed to Snopes via the platform's messaging service that he created it and stood by his false assertion the president died in 2018.

Ancestry.com's disclaimer said it was not responsible or liable for links  e.g., the Find a Grave link  its members post to other sites:

An Ancestry user could post links to other sites. Neither Ancestry.com nor Ancestry endorses and is not responsible or liable for any content, products or services available from those sites and via those links.

Among Ancestry.com's "Rules for Conduct" is an obligation for users not to "impersonate any person or entity or falsely misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity or falsely claim an endorsement that you do not have."

No credible media outlets reported that Joe Biden died in Guantanamo in 2018, which would have been eminently newsworthy if it were true.

On June 13, 2024, Getty published numerous photos of the U.S. president attending the 2024 G7 Summit in Italy.

Sources:

Ancestry Content Submission Agreement - Ancestry.Com. https://www.ancestry.com/family-tree/pt/MultimediaSubmissionAgreement.aspx. Accessed 13 June 2024.

AncestrySupport. https://support.ancestry.com/s/article/Managing-Facts-and-Events?language=en_US. Accessed 13 June 2024.

Arlington National Cemetery. https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/#/. Accessed 13 June 2024.

Find a Grave - Millions of Cemetery Records. https://www.findagrave.com. Accessed 13 June 2024.

Joe Biden | Biography, Family, Policies, & Facts | Britannica. 13 June 2024, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Joe-Biden.

'joe Biden' Died Guantanamo '2018' - Google Search. https://www.google.com/search?q=%22joe+biden%22+died+guantanamo+%222018%22&sca_esv=3e24a8afe08e43d7&biw=1280&bih=593&tbm=nws&ei=cRNrZs41_5eFsg-Gwqi4DQ&ved=0ahUKEwiOspzL9diGAxX_S0EAHQYhCtcQ4dUDCA0&uact=5&oq=%22joe+biden%22+died+guantanamo+%222018%22&gs_lp=Egxnd3Mtd2l6LW5ld3MiIiJqb2UgYmlkZW4iIGRpZWQgZ3VhbnRhbmFtbyAiMjAxOCJIhhFQ9gFYmw1wAHgAkAEAmAF6oAGjAqoBAzIuMbgBA8gBAPgBAZgCAKACAJgDAIgGAZIHAKAH3gE&sclient=gws-wiz-news. Accessed 13 June 2024.

Joseph Robinette "Genocide Joe" Biden Jr. https://web.archive.org/web/20240318081452/https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/267327344/joseph-robinette-biden. Accessed 13 June 2024.

'Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, Giorgia Meloni, Italy's...' Getty Images, 13 June 2024, https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/news-photo/justin-trudeau-prime-minister-of-canada-giorgia-meloni-news-photo/2157440270.

Member Profile: Dan the Chickenman - Find a Grave. https://www.findagrave.com/user/profile/49132208. Accessed 13 June 2024.

U.S., Find a Grave Index, 1600s-Current - Ancestry.Com. https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/238124728:60525. Accessed 13 June 2024.

'U.S. President Joe Biden Attends the 50th G7 Summit in Brindisi,...' Getty Images, 13 June 2024, https://www.gettyimages.co.uk/detail/news-photo/president-joe-biden-attends-the-50th-g7-summit-in-brindisi-news-photo/2156752723.

Updates:

June 14, 2024: This report was updated to include comments from Ancestry, Find a Grave and the Find a Grave user who created the "Biden Died" listing.
U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., drew criticism for his comments comparing today's Black culture with that of the Jim Crow era.

Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., a prominent supporter of former President Donald Trump, recently tried to draw Black voters to Trumps side, but a comparison he made involving the Jim Crow era drew criticism from Democrats.

At a June 4 event in Philadelphia, Donalds compared todays Black culture with that of the Jim Crow era, when Black people in the South were subject to multiple forms of state-sponsored discrimination. Jim Crow laws were enacted over several decades after the end of post-Civil War Reconstruction in the late 19th century and formally ended with passage of the Civil Rights Act and the Voting Rights Act in the mid-1960s.

"You see, during Jim Crow, the Black family was together," Donalds said in a recording published by the Philadelphia Inquirer. "During Jim Crow, more Black people were not just conservative  Black people have always been conservative-minded  but more Black people voted conservatively. And then (the Department of Health, Education and Welfare), Lyndon Johnson  you go down that road, and now we are where we are."

Donalds mention of Johnson refers to increased federal efforts to fight poverty, which some conservatives say provided incentives for the breakup of families.

Leading Democrats criticized Donalds statement as lionizing the Jim Crow era. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries of New York, called out Donalds on the House floor, saying his comparison was a "factually inaccurate statement that Black folks were better off during Jim Crow. Thats an outlandish, outrageous and out-of-pocket observation."

The Congressional Black Caucus, which consists of House Democrats, demanded that Donalds apologize to Black Americans "for misrepresenting one of the darkest chapters in our history for his own political gain."

Vice President Kamala Harris weighed in May 10, saying, "Its sadly yet another example of somebody out of Florida trying to erase or rewrite our true history," referring to a controversy over a proposed rewrite of some Black history standards for middle schools in the state. "I went to Florida last July to call out what they were trying to do to replace our history with lies. And apparently theres a never ending flow of that coming out of that state."

Donalds defended his comments on MSNBC, saying he was not being "nostalgic" about Jim Crow but was trying to make the narrow point about Black marriage rates and a stronger conservative identity.

During the Jim Crow period, he said, "the marriage rates of Black Americans were significantly higher than any other time since then in American history" and that since then, "they have plummeted."

Some Democratic characterizations of Donalds remarks were overbroad. But experts told PolitiFact that Donalds remarks about Black Americans families and conservative identity were thorny.

Donalds office did not respond to an inquiry for this article.

Black and White residents picket on Congress Avenue to protest segregation in Austin in 1960. During the Jim Crow era, Black people in the South were subject to multiple forms of state-sponsored discrimination.

Black marriage rates have fallen, but for multiple reasons

There is some statistical evidence to support Donalds claim about Black marriage rates being stronger during the Jim Crow era. However, it omits a lot of important context, experts told PolitiFact, including the role of broader social, educational and economic patterns.

The percentage of Black women ages 40 to 44 who were ever married was about 94% in 1930 and remained above 90% through 1970, research by sociologists Kelly Raley of the University of Texas and Megan Sweeney and Danielle Wondra of UCLA shows. Since then, the rate has fallen considerably, to about 63% in 2012.

The pattern for white women has also fallen, but less dramatically, ending up around 88% in 2012, down from nearly 100% in 1930.

The researchers found a similar pattern of rising divorce rates. "Between 1940 and 1980, both white and Black women experienced large increases in divorce, but the increase occurred sooner and more steeply for Black women," they wrote.

Some conservative commentators have argued that government policies, including safety net programs that make it possible for women to try single parenthood, are a leading cause of fractured families.

However, the presence of other factors makes it hard to pinpoint a single cause for this family fracturing. Raley, Sweeney and Wondra cite such factors as "an enormous decline in unskilled manufacturing jobs during the 1970s and 1980s (that) hit Black men particularly hard" and higher rates of death and incarceration among Black men.Another factor is the rising status of women and increased female employment. With women, and especially Black women, often ending up with more education than men, the pool of what the authors call "desirable partners" is constrained.

"Donalds ignores the negative impact of poverty on families and the reduction in Black family poverty produced by civil rights enforcement and social welfare programs," said Dorothy E. Roberts, a University of Pennsylvania law and sociology professor. "Surely, Black families would be stronger if the United States had less structural racism, including lower incarceration rates, and more generous social welfare programs."

Black Americans political motivations during Jim Crow are difficult to prove

Donalds claim that Black people "voted conservatively" during the Jim Crow era is not possible to prove through hard evidence, experts said.

In the South under Jim Crow, "most Black people could not vote," University of Pennsylvania historian Kathleen M. Brown said. There might be voting records for the fraction of Southern Black people who were able to vote during the decades of Jim Crow laws, but this small group would not represent the views of the entire Southern Black population.

Black Americans did vote in the North during the Jim Crow period, but they were not living under Jim Crows legal and social strictures.

Historians said a pattern of Black voters backing Republicans during the Jim Crow era would not support the idea that they were "conservative" in the way that todays Republican Party is.

In the North, Black people "voted for Republicans as the party of Abraham Lincoln who freed the slaves," said Mary Frances Berry, a University of Pennsylvania historian whom Democratic President Jimmy Carter named to the U.S. Civil Rights Commission.

Black people in the South would have been likely to vote Republican for the same reason if theyd been able, Harvard University historian Alexander Keyssar said.

The Republican Party in that period "tended to be more conservative" on economic regulation while also being seen as "more sympathetic to Black rights," Keyssar said."Conservatism" as a defined ideological movement emerged in the 1950s, late in the Jim Crow period, historians said.

Andra Gillespie, an Emory University political scientist, said Black voters have historically compartmentalized their views, separating what Donalds might consider their "conservative" perspectives on social issues from their more liberal views on racial issues.

Today, Gillespie said, conservative Black people "are more likely to still vote for and identify with the Democratic Party, despite the fact that liberals of other racial groups would be strongly predicted to be Democrats and conservatives of other backgrounds would be strongly predicted to be Republican. This is because of the Democratic Partys 60-year issue advantage on questions of race and civil rights."

Our sources

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Fact-checking Florida Congressman's comments on Jim Crow
(Getty Images)

The states police commission has ordered a Bennett County sheriffs deputy to take part in remedial training because of his mishandling of domestic violence cases.

The Law Enforcement Officers Standards and Training Commission made its vote on Deputy Kevin Curtis after a Wednesday hearing in Pierre. The hearing included more than two hours of testimony on his response to two separate domestic violence incidents in late 2017 and early 2018, and one from 2020.

Bennett County Sheriffs Deputy Kevin Curtis, left, speaking in Pierre at a hearing before the Law Enforcement Officers Standards and Training Commission. (courtesy SD LEOSTC)

Curtis was found to have engaged in conduct unbecoming of an officer for the first two incidents. For the third, during which the Bennett County sheriff argued that Curtis had followed his instructions and properly handled the situation, the commission ruled there was insufficient evidence to call his conduct unbecoming.

Curtis had already attended remedial domestic violence training after the 2017-18 incidents. One involved a 15-year-old allegedly assaulted by a family member of the child on New Years Eve of 2017; the other involved an assault Curtis witnessed a little over a month later before giving the assailant a ride away from the scene.

Officers are required to make an arrest in domestic violence cases in South Dakota if the officer is able to determine the primary aggressor in a physical altercation, but Curtis failed to make an arrest in either of the two cases, and failed to interview the victim in one. Victims in such cases are not legally able to decline pressing charges.

Both of the older assaults involved the same perpetrator, a woman whod eventually plead guilty to domestic simple assault after being charged by a prosecutor. Curtis participated in domestic violence training after those incidents at the behest of an investigator with the police commission.

Complaints came from prosecutor

Bennett County States Attorney Sarah Harris brought a complaint against Curtis to the commission in 2021. She alleged that in spite of his additional training, hed once again failed to properly attend to a domestic violence situation.

In that case, the perpetrator was an employee of the Bennett County Sheriffs Department.

Curtis had attempted to resolve the years-old complaint  delayed at one point by the illness of the attorney handling the complaint for the state  through a consent decree in April.

But the commission rejected the terms of that decree, which would have involved a seven-day suspension for Curtis.

On Wednesday, the Bennett County States Attorney and two detectives with the state Division of Criminal Investigation testified that Curtis should have taken all three of the incidents more seriously.

In the first situation, Curtis did not interview the underage victim without others present. Hed arrived after the victims young sibling called 911 to report that her sister was having a seizure. Curtis talked to a man on the scene whose blood alcohol level was found to be nearly three times the legal limit, who told him that the girl didnt have a history of seizures.

Harris later heard from the childs grandmother, who said the girl was covered in bruises from an attack.

In the second situation, Curtis saw the perpetrator strike the victim and give him a bloody lip. Harris charged the perpetrator with assault after fielding a call from that victim.

He witnessed domestic abuse happen right in front of him and didnt make the mandatory arrest, said Harris.

In the third situation, Curtis responded to an incident in Martin that would ultimately result in a felony aggravated assault charge for a man whod worked in maintenance for the sheriffs office.

Harris argued that he failed to interview the victim or follow through. Curtis and his boss, Bennett County Sheriff Paul Williams, said Curtis followed his instructions to get the victim away from the scene, and that the investigation was properly handed off to an outside agency.

Harris and Kelly Marnette, the assistant attorney general who prosecuted the case on Wednesday, argued that Curtis had time to interview the victim as she waited for a ride at the sheriffs office, and that he should have.

Did you believe that Deputy Curtis did everything he should have done? Marnette asked Williams.

Im working on memory, so I really cant say, Williams said.

Sheriff: Deputies needs discretion

Williams said officers and deputies need to be able to use discretion. When asked by Marnette if that applies in domestic violence cases where arrests are meant to be mandatory, he said, If we arrested everybody in Bennett County that had a fight, the jail would be full.

In his own testimony, Curtis said the victim in the second incident from 2018 didnt want the perpetrator charged, only removed from the home to sober up. The assault he witnessed came as the perpetrator was trying to leave the home, he said.

It looked to me more like a get out of the way and let me get the door open, Curtis said.

Curtis said he felt as though hed handled any shortcomings with his performance on domestic violence calls by attending the additional training.

He learned from his mistakes, he said on Wednesday.

I will admit that there are things I couldve handled better, Curtis said.

In the 2020 incident, Curtis said, he didnt interview the victim because she didnt want to talk to him.

I cant force someone to talk who doesnt want to, Curtis said.

After about an hour of deliberations, the commission reconvened to make a vote.

Before the group cast its unanimous vote to formally determine that Curtis had gone astray of his law enforcement obligations in the first two incidents, Lincoln County States Attorney and commission member Tom Wollman said its important for the people of South Dakota to know how seriously police officers ought to take domestic violence.

We know that victims of violence, particularly domestic violence, often will be abused for years before reaching out to law enforcement, Wollman said. How law enforcement responds to those calls is of the utmost importance.

Curtis will be required to complete 12 hours of domestic violence training by 2025 to maintain his law enforcement certification.

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Russia's move on Kharkiv has bogged down. But was it a failure?

In the first half of May, Russia opened a new front to its war against Ukraine in dramatic fashion.

The two-pronged offensive on Kharkiv Oblast unfolded on the back of some of the most difficult months for Ukrainian forces, overstretched and depleted after a brutal winter and early spring campaign fought with severe ammunition shortages.

The initial offensive was particularly painful for Ukrainians, taking areas that had already once been occupied and liberated by the Ukrainian army, and accompanied by escalating attacks on civilian targets in Kharkiv city itself.

But just two weeks after it started, Russias move on Ukraines second-largest city stopped moving, meeting fierce resistance from a number of hardened Ukrainian brigades and specialist units sent there from the eastern and southern fronts.

Soon after, Kyiv declared that its forces had gone on the counterattack in some areas, particularly around the border town of Vovchansk, the majority of which Ukrainian forces control as of June 13, according to open source information.

By June 8, President Volodymyr Zelensky declared that Russia had failed in its offensive on Kharkiv, adding that Ukrainian forces were effectively holding and destroying the enemy in the area.

Making a judgment regarding the failure or success of an operation depends on the initial strategic goals of the operation in the first place.

Ukrainian servicemen of the 92nd Assault Brigade fire BM-21 'Grad' multiple rocket launcher toward Russian positions, in the Kharkiv region, on May 15, 2024, amid the Russian invasion of Ukraine. (Roman Pilipey / AFP via Getty Images)

Analysts and officials were generally in agreement that Russian forces had little to no chance  and thus no intent  to actually surround or enter Kharkiv itself.

Exactly how far Moscow truly hoped to advance is difficult to say, but the offensive has been often framed by experts in the larger context of Russias attempt to create broader strategic dilemmas for Kyiv, whose army remains stricken by chronic manpower issues.

It's not surprising that the Kharkiv offensive did not advance that far, said military expert Rob Lee, senior fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, to the Kyiv Independent, because we knew that Ukraine had a better defense prepared and we knew pretty early on that Ukraine moved a number of units to strengthen that defense.

It was more a question of how far would Russia be able to advance elsewhere? Would they be able to capitalize on that? And I don't think they've really capitalized.

Results on the ground

As of June 13, according to open source mapping project DeepStateMap, Russian forces have occupied at least 183 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory in Kharkiv Oblast, with more territory labeled as a contested gray zone.

The gains made are split roughly evenly between two axes.

Immediately north of Kharkiv, Russian forces advanced a maximum distance of around ten kilometers, eventually being stopped outside the village of Lyptsi, itself around 20 kilometers from the Northern Saltivka neighborhood on the outskirts of Kharkiv.

Ukrainian soldiers from the 92nd assault brigade, who were involved in holding back the Russians on the border with Russia, take part in mortar training on the outskirts of the frontline Kharkiv region, Ukraine, on May 18, 2024. (Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images)

Russias failure to get any closer means that Kharkiv remains outside the range of all of Russias abundant conventional tubed artillery, as well as Grad multiple-launch rocket artillery, preventing the same kind of wanton barrages the city suffered in the first month of the full-scale invasion from being possible again.

On the other axis further east, fighting continues for Vovchansk, over 70% of which is under the control of Ukrainian forces, according to Nazar Voloshyn, spokesperson for Ukraines Khortysia group of forces.

Well-coordinated with electronic attacks that allegedly disabled the Starlink communications of some of the Ukrainian units defending the town, Russias early push found success initially, much thanks to the reported lack of properly prepared defensive lines in the areas along the border.

Read also: We took out so many of them: Ukraine stabilizes Kharkiv front after brutal Russian offensive

Still, as Lee argued, the lack of coordinated combined arms assaults and the continuing reliance on small infantry group assault groups ultimately limited the offensive progress that Russian forces could make.

Russia still has issues scaling operations because of lack of leadership and lack of training (among their ranks), said Lee.

Russia was taking heavy attrition over the war, there is a lack of time for units to train together, so you have a varied force quality of the units that are committed.

Ultimately, Lee said, Ukraines commitment of some of its most combat-capable units meant that stopping Russias attack was the logical result.

A mortar unit with a 120 mm mortar prepares to perform a combat mission in the Kharkiv region, Ukraine, on May 18, 2024. Ukrainian soldiers from the 92nd assault brigade were involved in holding back the Russians on the border with Russia. (Kostiantyn Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images)

Among others, brigades sent by Kyiv to Kharkiv Oblast included the 42nd Mechanized, 92nd Assault, and Khartiia Brigade of the National Guard, all of which had been fighting for months in hotspots in Donetsk Oblast, as well as the 82nd Air Assault Brigade, which had played a leading role in the southern counteroffensive last summer.

When we started getting a better understanding of what Ukraine had moved up there, it became clear that Ukraine would be able to hold, Lee said.

Capitalizing on dilemmas

Forcing Ukraine to whisk its best brigades out of fighting in Donetsk Oblast was exactly Russias hope when opening its new front north of Kharkiv, Lee says.

It was more a question of whether, by moving all these units up there, does that put Ukraine in a more vulnerable position elsewhere?

In this framing, the true metrics for success by which Moscows offensive can be measured is not in Kharkiv Oblast at all, but in Donetsk Oblast, where multiple Russian offensives launched in spring continue at high intensity.

Northwest of the occupied city of Avdiivka, Russian forces continue to expand on a large bulge around the village of Ocheretyne, where a localized breakthrough in April gave Russia the platform for some of its fastest territorial gains since summer 2022, bringing them within 10 kilometers of a key highway between the cities of Pokrovsk and Kostiantynivka.

Around 40 kilometers north of the Ocheretyne salient, Moscows offensive on the strategically crucial city of Chasiv Yar has also made progress, albeit still failing to enter the city proper or cross the Siverskyi Donets-Donbas canal.

View of the city from a drone in Chasiv Yar, Bakhmut region, Ukraine on Nov.5, 2023. The city suffers from shelling every day. (Kostya Liberov/Libkos/Getty Images)

A Ukrainian soldier walks near a destroyed house and car in Chasiv Yar, Ukraine on March 16, 2024. A front line is a few kilometers from the city, on which Russian troops are dropping aerial bombs and shelling with artillery every day. (Roman Chop/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images )

The risk when the Kharkiv offensive began was that Russia might get a foothold in Chasiv Yar itself, said Lee.

Once Russian forces get into cities, they become more difficult to hold, as opposed to when they are still crossing open ground.

Russian forces have also advanced in other areas of the front, including in the city of Krasnohorivka west of Donetsk, and the village of Staromaiorske on the southern front line, the ruins of which were recaptured by Ukrainian forces in the summer counteroffensive last year.

But overall, says Lee, none of these gains amount to the kind of greater collapse in the Ukrainian defensive front that Moscow was likely hoping for.

The worst-case scenario didn't happen, he said. It made sense for them to commit forces in other directions to try and capitalize on it (Ukrainian redeployments to Kharkiv). They didn't really do that to the extent that I expected.

Signs for the future



On June 8, Kharkiv Oblast Governor Oleh Syniehubov declared that Russian offensive operations in the region had been reduced.

Since the offensive began, Russia has lost almost 2,500 troops and over 500 pieces of equipment in the area, according to openly available figures from Ukraines General Staff compiled by Gwara Media on June 12.

Ukraines successful redeployment of combat units to Kharkiv Oblast and stabilization of the front means that not only will the area be easier to defend in the future, but that those units can soon be moved back to higher priority sectors, said Lee.

Ukraine can now pull back some of these units or maybe develop a better rotation up there, he said.

Still, the overall manpower issues plaguing Ukraines army look to remain in the near future, at least until the training of tens of thousands of new troops drafted under Ukraines new mobilization law can start to finish up later in summer.

Ukrainian Army soldiers rest in the shelter on their fighting position in the direction of the Chasiv Yar, Donetsk Oblast, Ukraine, June 9, 2024. (Jose Colon/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Ultimately Ukraine still has an issue where it is piecemeal deploying battalions from brigades in different directions as a kind of firefighting method, Lee said, and there are long-term issues that come about by doing so.

In the meantime, Russias torrid experience in Kharkiv Oblast means that Moscow is unlikely to attempt to pull off a similar kind of diversionary attack on a new front any time soon, as some had initially speculated to be a threat in Sumy Oblast, said the expert.

I think the priorities are still Pokrovsk and Donetsk Oblast overall, he said.

Committing some elements elsewhere on the border makes some sense as a diversion, to draw away Ukrainian reserves and so on. But overcommitting doesn't really make that much sense.

Note from the author:

Hi, this is Francis Farrell, cheers for reading this article. I hope that news about Russia making gains across the front line hasn't come as a surprise to you. Things are moving fast, and not in the direction we would like, but whatever happens, we are dedicated to continue being Ukraine's voice to the world, no matter how dangerous and dark this war gets. Please consider supporting our reporting.

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Freedom. Not one single day. Instead, endless hours of terror and deprivation in a Nazi concentration camp, the birthplace for this Ukraine Jew.

My fatherhis name is Andrewhad only a few memories up until age 5, Adam Hrebeniuk of Kennewick said as he thought back on his familys history during World War II. He remembers standing in the work camp area and looking through the wires at a kid his age in the death camp, being carted off to the gas chambers.

It was the only life this small child had ever known. Prior to his birth the Nazis had invaded Kiev in 1941 where his motherlike thousands upon thousands of other Jewswas herded with her four children into an open railroad car, her husband and also her father sent elsewhere.

She was sick, standing for days in the train, Adam said about the agonizing winter ride, one that evoked a desperate cry for help in the packed car, foul with death.

My grandmother called out to God, Im going to die if I dont have a covering! And all of a sudden, a tarp from two cars ahead flew off and landed perfectly on theirsand it stayed there, the first of what she believed was divine intervention.

But to what end had Andrews mother and children been saved? Adolf Hitler was set on conquering all of Russia and annihilating the Jews, there and in all of Europe. By wars end, millions of Jewish men, women and childrenwhole communitieswould be extinguished; newborn infants killed.

An Auschwitz, Germany concentration camp stands vacant as a reminder of the Holocaust.

The future seemed bleak, and yet this mother held onto her faith. Unknown to the young woman, her husband had found unexpected favor.

My grandfather (Andrews father) used to draw the backdrops for the Bolshoi ballet in Kiev, Adam said about the talent that attracted German officers who wanted their portraits painted. He told them, If Im going to do art for you, dont kill my child (Andrew) when he is born, adding that he also wanted his family housed together in that camp, adjacent to the killing camp.

Already an older sister had been executed as a toddler, but Andrew was spared upon birth in the Parshen, Germany, labor camp, the smell and threat of death hanging in the air.

The war years dragged on. The child grew despite harsh conditions. Then one day, word came that the war was over. The Americans were coming. Still, cruelty had time to taunt the 5-year-old Jew.

Andrew Hrebeniuk, U.S. Army marksman and chef during the Vietnam War.

He had managed to find a potato, Adam said about the scene unfolding, a vivid memory for young Andrew. A German officer walked up to him, Youre the lucky one eating a potato. Lets see if its really your lucky day, and then proceeded to play Russian roulette with the potato on the childs head. The bullet didnt fire and he got to eat his potato.

Spared once more.

Finally, the vicious wire gates opened. Freedom lay just beyond the expansive field. The U.S. military waited on the edge of the forest ready to welcome the concentration camps victims stumbling toward them. But in the prisoners panic to get away, the Nazis shot as they ran toward liberty. The Americans returned fire from the other side.

My grandma (Andrews mother) remembers running across with their children and all the shooting around her. I dont understand how they werent hit, Adam said, retelling the horrific scene as survivors were struck down in flight. They got to a location where you werent supposed to cross, a zone of some kind. She looked into an American officers eyes and said a silent prayer, God I need to get into the forest and to the other side!

Life hung in the balance.

Suddenly, disregarding the rules, the soldier reached across the divide and pulled the family to safety, his commanding officer swearing at his disobedience. Onward the tiny band fled to a checkpoint where they and other refugees were setup in makeshift shelters.

My dads first happy memory is being in a tent in the American camp and a photographer snapping pictures while kids were writing, Adam said, reflecting on how Andrew had never held a pencil or had any kind of paper.

Weeks passed in the refugee camp until one day their new normal changed. Refugees were going to be moved.

An American soldier told my grandfather to get into a line, Adam said, how Andrews dad worried about being separated from his family. He asked, Can my kids come? but the soldier didnt speak the foreign language.

Some refugees were chosen for a different line and sent back to Russia where they were seen as traitors, many executed. But young Andrews family was able to stay together and placed on a waiting shipone headed to Ellis Island and freedom.

The Hrebeniuks American dream comes true when the family opens the Willows, Calif., gas station and adjoining hamburger cafe in 1950s.

Providence once again had intervened.

In the years ahead, the little boy, Andrew, who once only knew limits, found success and freedom in America as a grown mana freedom he wanted his young son, Adam, to recognize.

Hed bend down on one knee, said Adam as he remembered his fathers wordsa father who was a daily example of trust in Christ. And hed say, You can be whatever you want to be. Dont waste your freedom.

That son listened. Today, Adam Hrebeniuk is a church pastor leading others to a different kind of freedom through faithvery possibly an answer to his late grandmothers long ago prayer and the wisdom of his father.

Lucy Luginbill

Lucy Luginbill is a Tri-City Herald columnist in national distribution, religion editor and retired public television producer and host. Her popular Light Notes column reflects inspirational and faith-focused stories. Shes been working in journalism for more than 30 years. @LucyLuginbill or lluginbill@tricityherald.com.
Signage for voters looking to vote in-person at the Wellington E. Webb Municipal Office Building on Super Tuesday, March 5, 2024, in Denver, Colorado. (Marc Piscotty/Getty Images)

One of the candidates in the Democratic primary for Maine Senate District 24 is asking for a recount after losing by just 22 votes.

When we launched this campaign we went in clear-eyed that this was going to be a hard-fought race and a close one, said political newcomer Jean Guzzetti, a legislative policy analyst, who challenged former state representative Denise Tepler. And we werent wrong.

Senate District 24 Democratic candidates Denise Tepler (left) and Jean Guzzetti (right). (Campaign photos)

As of Wednesday morning, Guzzetti had 1,795 votes and Tepler had 1,817.

Candidates are allowed to request a recount without having to pay a deposit if the votes are within a certain margin, per state law. For races like this one with 1,001 to 5,000 combined votes for the candidates, the difference must be 2% or less.

With Tepler receiving 50.3% of the vote and Guzzetti receiving 49.7%, the totals fall well within the threshold of requesting a recount without it being at the candidates expense.

In a statement Wednesday, Guzzetti said she has complete confidence in the election process, but with such close margins in many towns, she wants to be absolutely certain that every vote is counted and every voice is heard.

Tepler did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Even if she isnt the winner, Guzzetti said Senate District 24, which includes Sagadahoc County and Dresden in Lincoln County, will be well represented on the Democratic front,calling Tepler an experienced and respected legislator.

The winner of this primary will face Republican Jeffrey Pierce in the November election.

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The post Falling just 22 votes shy, Democratic Maine Senate candidate requests recount appeared first on Maine Morning Star.
After a congressional hearing on Wednesday on safety concerns over the V-22 Osprey, during which a military leader said the aircraft will remain under safety restrictions until 2025, grieving families of fallen service members voiced frustration over unanswered questions and demanded accountability in an interview with ABC News.

Lawmakers on the House Oversight subcommittee on national security pressed Pentagon witnesses on the deadly history of the aircraft throughout the hearing.

"The total number of fatalities that I'm tracking is 54 fatalities ... and 93 injuries," said Vice Adm. Carl Chebi, head of U.S. Naval Air Systems Command, which oversees the Osprey for the entire U.S. military.

PHOTO: An MV-22 Osprey aircraft is used during the annual Steel Knight training exercise, Dec. 5, 2022 at Camp Pendleton, Calif. (Mindy Schauer/MediaNewsGroup/Orange County Register via Getty Images, FILE)

After a string of fatal V-22 crashes between 2022 and 2023, Chebi decided to ground Osprey flights to give time for investigators to identify potential problems and come up with safety recommendations. The military lifted the flight ban in early 2024, after instituting several new protocols and restrictions.

In June 2022, five Marines were killed after a clutch problem caused a failure in the right engine of their V-22 during a training flight over Glamis, California, a military investigation found. Some of the changes that came out of Chebi's safety stand-down were designed to address this problem, both by giving flight crews updated protocols on how to handle clutch problems and by preventatively replacing key parts before they could become too worn.

But on Wednesday, Chebi said that the risk posed by the clutch problem will not be eliminated until a redesign is completed, which could take more than a year, and he will not lift the restrictions on Osprey flights until then.

"I will not certify the V-22 to return to unrestricted flight operations until I am satisfied that we have sufficiently addressed the issues that may affect the safety of the aircraft. Based on the data that I have today, I'm expecting that this will not occur before mid 2025," he said.

Chebi said he has also ordered a comprehensive review of the Pentagon's Osprey program, which will take another six to nine months to be completed.

Several family members of Marines killed in the 2022 tragedy traveled to attend Wednesday's hearing, and could be seen holding photos of their deceased loved ones in their seats directly behind the witnesses.

"The families submitted some questions that we had hoped to be answered," Amber Sax, wife of Capt. John Sax, told ABC News after the hearing. "Not all of them were answered. I would say the majority actually were not, unfortunately."

Sax would also like answers from the companies that make the Osprey. And she's not alone.

Last month, she and family members of the other Marines killed in the 2022 catastrophe filed a federal wrongful death lawsuit against Boeing, Rolls Royce and Bell Textron, which are each involved in producing the aircraft.

The companies have said they can't comment on pending litigation.

"We have many questions for them that we hope that they will answer and that will come to light," Sax said. "And I believe that they're the people that should be sitting in those seats next time."

"We don't want someone else to have to go through what we've been going through for the last two years now. Something has got to change. Something definitely has to change," said Michelle Strickland, mother of Lance Cpl. Evan Strickland, who was 19 when he was killed in the crash.

Evan's father agreed.

"We stand together as families to hold accountable those that owe us answers," said Brett Strickland. "We have to be their voice, because they no longer have one."

While the military has other aircraft that could possibly take on the missions currently carried out by the V-22, the Osprey stands out for its ability to take off and land vertically like a helicopter, but also fly fast like a conventional airplane by changing the angle of its propellers.

PHOTO: Lance Cpl. Evan A. Strickland is seen in this undated photograph. (Courtesy of The Strickland Family)

Timothy Loranger, an attorney at Wisner Baum representing the families, echoed lawmakers who advocated the military prioritize safety by using helicopters to replace Ospreys, until more problems have been worked out.

"They should, as they were asked, consider grounding the aircraft, using some alternative platform like the CH-53 [helicopter] or something else that they know is reliable," Loranger said.

MORE: Families of Marines killed in 2022 Osprey crash file wrongful death lawsuit

The Gold Star families who spoke to ABC News after the hearing opened up about the strong character of their lost loved ones.

"He was kind, he was so genuine ... he had such a zest for life. Everything was like an adventure to him ... He was just so genuine and just a pure spirit," said Michelle Strickland of her son.

His father spoke about with the lengths to which the young Marine would go to for his friends, from walking miles in the dark to be there for someone after a breakup, to "just lightening the mood a little bit with this goofiness."

PHOTO: Capt. John J. Sax is seen in this undated photo provided by the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing. (3rd Marine Aircraft Wing)

Amber Sax said of her late husband, "John grew up with a love for flight. He loved his family very deeply. He loved his country very dearly."

The family members are not trying to get rid of the Osprey their loved ones flew; they just want it to fly at its best.

"A few short months before losing John, we celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary by getting an ultrasound to see our youngest daughter, who went on to arrive three months after his passing," Sax said in written testimony submitted to the House Oversight subcommittee ahead of Wednesday's hearing.

Just after the hearing, she told ABC News, "I want to be able to take my daughters to an air show someday -- John loved going to air shows, and he would have taken them if he were here -- and I want them to be able to see an Osprey flying and say 'That's flying because my daddy and other brave people made it safer for them to fly.'"

Families of Marines killed in V-22 Osprey crash demand answers as Pentagon officials testify before Congress originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  A 6-year-old girl is lucky to be alive after she was hit by a stray bullet that flew through the wall of her familys apartment.

Draya Ransey, 6, was going to the bathroom when a stray shot left her paralyzed from the chest down. The bullet went straight into her back and struck her spine.

Her mother, Porschia Ransey, said it came out of nowhere.

She was like, I got to go to the bathroom. I said, OK, but when you get back, get the clothes, and then you can use your tablet,' Porschia Ransey said. We heard a loud bang and a drop, and I was like, Drew, go see what your sisters doing, because Im thinking shes just playing because the door is closed. So Drew opened up the door and he saw her first. And when he opened it, I looked behind because he said Drayas on the floor. And Im like Drayas on the floor?

Drayas mother found her lying in a pool of blood on the ground of the bathroom. At first, she thought Draya fell off the toilet and hit her head.

Just seeing her lay there. The way she looked at me when she was mouthing mom. I couldnt hear her voicethe blood that was on the floorseeing my baby still there.







However, it wasnt until they got to the hospital that they realized she had been shot. Drayas father, Gregory Harris, described getting the news from the doctors like being in a horror movie.

He says Draya was extremely active and was supposed to be his track star. But now, shes stuck in a wheelchair unable to do things on her own.

Sometimes shell go Mommy, I want to walk now,' Porschia Ransey said. And then I have to tell her, You will, baby. And then sometimes her siblings even say, like, you know, like Drea, youre going to walk.

Draya and her three siblings moved to Utah shortly after the incident to get specialized care at Primary Childrens and Neuroworx. Between doctors appointments and home healthcare visits, theyre still getting used to their new normal.

When it comes to, like, our favorite things to do, which is the movies, you know, weve got to take an oxygen tank, weve got to take a book bag that has like over 100-something items. We have to take a pulse reader that beeps, Porschia Ransey said.

While navigating the trauma from that day is physically exhausting for them, its the mental toll that really gets to them. Draya and her siblings are all potty trained, but going to the bathroom has become a challenge for all the children ever since she was shot.

I had to help build their confidence back up to go use the bathroom. So I had to go in there with them and sit down, Harris said. Our youngest still struggles to go to the bathroom. She has accidents every day.

Drayas parents tell ABC4.com they struggle to let go of the guilt they say they feel every single day.

My baby should not be in a wheelchair. My baby should not have a feeding tube in her stomach. My baby should not have a trach. My baby should not have to get hooked up to three different machines Monday through Sunday.

While Drayas prognosis isnt promising, her family is choosing to stay positive. Theyre determined to get her walking again while they make her new reality fun.

She loves her power chair because she feels like shes driving, Porschia Ransey said.

While Drayas Family cant change the past, theyre hoping to prevent this from happening to any other family in the future.

Just be careful because you dont know who is behind that bullet. You dont know whose lives it can affect. You dont know what you could do to that child, that family, that person.

Since the tragic accident back in November, theyve had a hard time finding and paying for transportation. They dont have a family car, and since there are six of them, its difficult to find a ride-share company that can fit them. Theyve been taking Ubers everywhere and spending thousands of dollars doing so.

Recently, they got in touch with a family who just lost their son, who is now selling their wheelchair-accessible van. That family wanted to ensure the van went to another family in need, so theyre asking for less than half the normal price. But Drayas parents still have medical bills and other needs to worry about. They still need $30,000 to purchase the van.

So if you want to help them get the van, you can donate to this GoFundMe.

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 ABC4 Utah.
Israeli hostage Andrey Kozlov, 27, reacts while looking on his phone at the Sheba Tel-HaShomer Medical Centre, after his rescue by the Israeli army from captivity in the Gaza Strip. -/IDF Spokesperson's unit via GPO/dpa

The family of one of the Israeli hostages who were recently freed from the Gaza Strip after being held there for eight months has disclosed details about their son's time in captivity.

Andrey Kozlov, one of four hostages freed in an Israeli military operation on Saturday, was tied up for two months during his captivity, his mother said in an interview with Israeli broadcaster Kan on Wednesday.

The 27-year-old man, who is originally from Russia, was abducted on October 7 from the Nova music festival, where he worked as a security guard, according to Israeli media.

Kozlov's mother told Israeli news website ynet that her son had shared with her that he had gone through experiences that he did not want to discuss.

According to his parents, he took comfort in being held together with two other hostages, who were also freed on Saturday. The fourth hostage, an Israeli woman, was rescued from a nearby building.

The mother reported that her son's hands had initially been tied behind his back, adding that he was later gagged with his hands in front of his chest, which seemed like a relief to him.

According to the report, his father stated that his son initially feared that the Israeli special forces freeing them would harm the hostages. Several media outlets reported, citing Kozlov's parents, that the men were told that Israel wanted the hostages to die.

Kozlov's girlfriend told Israeli broadcaster Channel 12 that the three men had been held captive in four different apartments. She said in October and November last year, they had very little to eat and they were only allowed to shower once a week.
Family of Mexican immigrant fatally shot by deputy at NC hospital asks for answers

This story has been updated to include comment from the Mexican Consulate in Raleigh.

The family of a Mexican immigrant who sought medical help at a Johnston County hospital wants to know how he ended up shot to death by a sheriffs deputy hours later, several Mexican news outlets have reported.

On Wednesday, the State Bureau of Investigation identified the man killed as 24-year-old Jose Luis Rincon Lopez.

It also identified the deputy as 32-year-old Jonathan Lee, who has worked for the Johnston County Sheriffs Office since 2018, spokesperson Maj. Jeff Caldwell said.

The Sheriffs Office said Monday that Rincon Lopez had tried to take the deputys firearm outside the UNC Health Johnston hospital in Clayton.

But Rincon Lopezs family questions that account, Cronica de Xalapa, Golpe Politico and La Opinion de Poza Rica reported this week. The three Mexican publications are based in Veracruz, where Rincon Lopezs family say he was originally from.

Nuestra pregunta es por que? (Our question is why?), Jose Rincon Lopezs sister Lizbeth Rincon Lopez said in a video on Cronica de Xalapas Instagram account.

Ambulance called before shooting

Rincon Lopezs sister and mother, Griselda Lopez Martinez, said he left for his construction job at about 3 a.m. Monday, but then felt ill and stopped at a gas station to call for an ambulance, La Opinion reported.

After telling his father he was in an emergency room, Jose Rincon Lopez was never heard from again, they said.

Rincon Lopezs uncle, a migrant worker in North Carolina, was informed at about 1:30 p.m. that his nephew was dead, Lopez Martinez said.

Rincon Lopez had been in the U.S. for less than a year and a half.

His family members are asking for Veracruz and Mexican authorities to investigate his death and help repatriate Rincon Lopezs body, Cronica de Xalapa reported.

In a Thursday email, a spokesperson for the Mexican Consulate in Raleigh confirmed Rincon Lopez is a Mexican national.

The consulate offers guidance, advice, and support to facilitate the repatriation process and obtain necessary documentation, as it happens with any Mexican national that asks for this procedure, the spokesperson wrote.

He added that the consulate has established communication with the State Bureau of Investigation and will wait for the results of its investigation into the shooting.

No body camera footage available

According to the Sheriffs Office, the deputy was trying to leave the hospital parking lot at about 5:45 a.m. when the man confronted him and attempted to gain control of the deputys firearm.

A struggle ensued into the parking lot where the deputy was able to regain control of his firearm, and shots were fired resulting in the death of the suspect, the Sheriffs Office said in a statement, The N&O previously reported.

The Sheriffs Office has placed Lee on administrative leave with pay, which is standard procedure, and referred additional questions to the State Bureau of Investigation, which investigates shootings by law enforcement officers.

The office does not have in-vehicle or body-worn cameras, Caldwell told The N&O on Monday.
Family of 'Miracle Boy' Who Fell 60 Feet Off Italian Cliff Awaits His Return to the U.S.

Hayden Hill, 18, was on a class trip to Italy when he plunged off a cliff on June 6

GoFundMe

An Alabama mother says she is hopeful her son will return to the U.S. to receive further medical care, one week after he fell off a 60-foot cliff outside of Rome and sustained serious injuries.

Hayden Hill, a recent high school graduate, was on a class trip to celebrate the milestone when the accident occurred, his mother, Sharon Hicks, wrote on Facebook.

Hill suffered a dislocated hip, broken ankle and a small head injury, Hicks wrote.

All very bad injuries, his mom, who flew to Italy to be by her sons side, shared, but [hes] ALIVE which is all that matters. The community here calls him The Miracle Boy and they have gathered around us with so much support and kindness.

Related: Body of Female Skier Recovered at Mount Rainier National Park 1 Month After She Disappeared

Hill, 18, was searching for a beach along with a friend on Thursday, June 6 when the teenager jumped over a wall and plummeted off the cliff, according to NBC affiliate WAFF-TV and ABC affiliate WAAY-TV.

"My mom got the phone call first, and she called me, Hills sister, Hannah Hill, told WAAY-TV. But where he was, there was no way to get to the beach. So he was stranded where he was for about an hour. And the coast guard was finally able to get to him. So they could take him to the hospital.

Hill is receiving care in a small, community hospital in Nettuno, about 40 miles south of Rome, but the language barrier has proven frustrating, Hicks said.

Related: 75-Year-Old Woman Found Alive 2 Days After She Disappeared with Her Dog During Hike

According to a post on Thursday, June 13, which was viewed by PEOPLE before being deleted, his mother wrote that the coastal hospital does a good job of providing healthcare to the residents of this community but maybe not the best place for 2 Americans that need special 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.

However, she added that she was grateful that her son  who had surgery to repair his dislocated hip and femur  was recovering.

Related: American Tourist, 16, Dead After Falling Over 300 Feet from Popular Walking Trail in Switzerland

Still looks like we will be home by the end of this week, she wrote. Our US nurse should arrive today to help us with transport arrangements.

The family has started a GoFundMe, dubbed Operation Lets Bring Hayden Home!, to help with the considerable cost involved in flying Hill back to New Hope.



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Read the original article on People.
An election poster depicting AfD politician Maximilian Krah hangs on a lamp post on the ground. The far-right Identity and Democracy (ID) group in the European Parliament currently has no plans to readmit the Alternative for Germany (AfD), despite the exclusion of controversial politician Maximilian Krah from the party's parliamentary delegation. Martin Schutt/dpa

The far-right Identity and Democracy (ID) group in the European Parliament currently has no plans to readmit the Alternative for Germany (AfD), despite the exclusion of controversial politician Maximilian Krah from the party's parliamentary delegation.

An AfD spokesperson confirmed a report by Politico on Thursday, stating that France's National Rally party along with other ID representatives had made the decision at a meeting in Brussels.

Last month, the ID group had expelled the AfD over scandals involving their top election candidate Maximilian Krah shortly before the June 6-9 European Parliament elections.

After last week's election, the newly elected AfD members of parliament decided by a majority on Monday not to include Krah in their delegation.

Excluding Krah from the delegation was seen as part of an effort by the AfD to patch things up with the other far-right parties in the European Parliament that form the ID bloc.

Krah described the decision as a mistake and predicted that it would not change the ID's mind.

Krah has been battered by several scandals, including allegations of accepting funds from Russia and China. A former top aide to Krah was separately arrested on allegations of having spied for China.

Krah also made highly controversial remarks to an Italian newspaper in which he said that members of the notorious Nazi SS paramilitary were not all criminals.
Whats behind the enemies of Ukraine list allegations by far-right US politicians?

Republican Congressman Jim Banks sent letters in recent days to a number of high-profile figures in the U.S. far-right, saying that they had been added to a Ukrainian NGO's list of individuals and groups responsible "in the U.S. impeding aid to Ukraine."

The congressman alleged that Texty, the Ukrainian NGO in question, previously worked with the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

Texty released a statement on June 13 that its team was facing "unprecedented pressure, manipulation, slander, demands to strip us of donor funding, and threats of physical violence."

Banks, who is running for Senate in Indiana, had said on June 11 that "other Ukrainian NGOs have published similar lists, which have published the personal information of those named in apparent attempts to intimidate them."

Banks added that he sent an accompanying letter to key congressional committee members, urging them to stop "partnering with any actors overseas who encourage the harassment of Americans."

Banks also posted on his personal X account that he was put on an "enemies list" that was "compiled by the Ukrainian government.

What's really behind the governmental funding allegations?

Inna Gadzynska, a journalist at Texty and one of the authors of the report, told the Kyiv Independent that the outlet has no connection to either the Ukrainian or U.S. governments, does not consider its report to be a "hit list," and did not publish any personal information.

Gadzynska added that Texty did not receive any government funding for the project.

The following day, Banks wrote that Congressional Republicans had moved to "defund" the "Ukrainian NGO that created a 'watch list' that consisted of conservative lawmakers and private American citizens."

The Kyiv Independent reached out to Banks' press office for comment several times, but received no response.

Elon Musk then commented below the post, saying that the NGO should be "added to the list of sanctioned terrorist organizations."

Rogan O'Handley, a prominent "MAGA influencer" active on X with the handle "DC_Draino," shared the letter he had received from Banks, claiming that "(President Volodymyr) Zelensky has added (him) to his 'enemies' list."

O'Handley then added that a "Ukrainian NGO 'funded with our tax dollars' has labeled me an enemy of their state."

Texty's report has been widely shared on social media, with false claims about the organization, the list's contents, and its connections to the Ukrainian and U.S. governments growing with every retweet.

Far-right conspiracy theorist and Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene wrote that Zelensky's "thug regime has deemed me an enemy of the state" and put "elected members of Congress like me on their state KILL list."

Read also: Opinion: Europe faces 3 choices in combating the far-right surge

What exactly is Texty's report?

Texty's report, labeled "Roller Coaster: From Trumpists to Communists. The forces in the U.S. impeding aid to Ukraine and how they do it," was released on June 6.

The report contains an in-depth exploration of 388 individuals and 76 organizations involved in the "ecosystem of mutual support" of opponents of aid for Ukraine.

Texty's website states it is a media outlet founded by Anatoliy Bondarenko and Roman Kulchynsky in 2010 and has won several journalism awards, including the European Press Prize in 2024. Texty says its research is "funded exclusively" by its readers.

The claims about the alleged financial support by the U.S. State Department appear to stem from the fact that Bondarenko previously was a volunteer trainer at the TechForum Ukraine almost ten years ago.

The forum was a program from TechCamps, a "public diplomacy program hosted in the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) at the U.S. State Department."

The program "brought together more than 60 local journalists, civil society, community leaders, and private sector partners in Eastern Europe with local and international technology experts."

"The two-day workshop helped increase digital and media literacy and gave participants the tools to communicate effectively in the 21st century."

Besides the single two-day workshop conducted almost 10 years ago, there is no other evidence to support the claim that the U.S. State Department or any other government entity has supported Texty, financially or otherwise.

In a statement on X on June 9, Texty said that it had "faced an unprecedented wave of hate" after the report was published.

Read also: Its not a pretty picture: What a second Trump presidency could mean for Ukraine

"Claims that the list of U.S. opponents of aid to Ukraine is a 'kill list,' persecution, or doxxing, or that the Texty editorial team is trained or funded by the U.S. government is an outright lie."

Texty reiterated that "Bondarenko was a trainer who taught activists at one of the TechCamps" but said that it was just one of many training sessions it had conducted.

Gadzynska told the Kyiv Independent that Bondarenko was not paid for his work as a trainer. Bondarenko did receive a grant from the U.S. Embassy in 2020 to help "counter disinformation about Coronavirus," she added.

Texty also previously received USAID grants via other organizations, but Gadzynska emphasized that the report in question was not funded by any institutional donor.

In any case, Bondarenko had "no relation" to the report and did not contribute to it, Gadzynska said.

The aim of the report was not to "harass" or "intimidate" the individuals and groups named but rather to "openly and objectively examine issues that are key to our country's survival, such as who the U.S. opponents of aid to Ukraine are and why they oppose it," Texty said.

Gadzynska emphasized that the report did not call the listed individuals and groups "enemies."

Texty "operate(s) as an NGO and never takes money from the Ukrainian government," she said, adding that the outlet has criticized Zelensky "before and after the presidential election in 2019."

Gadzynska also shared with the Kyiv Independent some of the vitriolic and threatening messages that Texty received after the report was published, which insulted Ukraine and claimed that the report was an act of "declaring war" on the U.S.

Which other figures are mentioned by Texty?

As the title suggests, the report is not limited to the far-right politicians and commentators who are often the face of American opposition to Ukraine.

It also includes a number of prominent individuals and organizations from the left, such as the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft (QI) and the "anti-war" organization CodePink, mostly known for its opposition to Israel.

Anatol Lieven, a U.K. journalist and director of QI's Eurasia Program, told the American Conservative media outlet that "it is completely inappropriate that a foreign institution that participates (in) training funded by U.S. taxpayers' money should use that money to try to limit public debate in the U.S. on a matter of vital U.S. interest."

Lieven has written about the need for a ceasefire in Ukraine and says that the war is "Russia's fault," but also regularly references Russian talking points, such as the unfounded assertion that "most Crimeans still appear to want to be part of Russia."

To support his claim, Lieven cited a survey by the independent Russian polling firm the Levada Center conducted in 2019 when Crimea was already under Russian occupation.

Previous polls conducted before the illegal annexation, such as one by the International Republican Institute in May 2013, found that only 23% of respondents wanted to be part of Russia, compared to 67% who wanted some form of autonomy within Ukraine.

In a co-written article with George Beebe published by QI in January 2024, Lieven wrote that the U.S. "will have to offer some serious incentives" to Putin to end the war.

"If we want a prosperous Ukraine with a viable path toward liberal governance and European Union membership, we will have to concede that it cannot be a NATO or U.S. ally, and that this neutral Ukraine must have verifiable limits on the types and quantities of weapons it may hold."

Lieven's comments were indicative of the wide range of narratives harmful to Ukraine that come from across the political spectrum.

Anti-war protestors led by CodePink protest outside the U.S. Capitol on March 16, 2022, in Washington, D.C. (Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images)

CodePink, an ostensible left-wing "pro-peace" organization, also mentioned Texty's report, reiterating claims that Bondarenko "trains foreign journalists and media companies in the State Department's TechCamp."

While regularly calling for an end to the conflict, CodePink also says that "expansion of NATO and the aggressive approach of Western nations have helped cause the crisis, and we demand an end to NATO expansion." CodePink is also opposed to sanctions that "harm ordinary Russians."

Medea Benjamin, one of the co-founders of CodePink, has also repeated Russian propaganda talking points. In a November 2022 interview with Chris Hedges, a political commentator who has a show on the Russian state-owned media outlet RT, Benjamin falsely claimed that Crimea is a part of Russia and that Russian speakers are being discriminated against in Ukraine.

CodePink takes a "leftist position," Texty said, but "uses every Russian propaganda thesis to support its beliefs."

Tucker Carlson's allegations of Ukraine's 'hit list'

It is not the first time that far-right figures in the U.S. have falsely claimed that the Ukrainian government has created a public "hit list" of opponents of Ukraine.

After far-right political commentator Tucker Carlson interviewed Russian President Vladimir Putin in February 2024, a widely distributed post on X claimed that Carlson had been placed on a "kill list" by the Ukrainian government.

Carlson traveled to Moscow to record the two-hour and seven-minute interview, during which he seldomly interrupts Putin as he echoes Russian propaganda and shares false narratives on a wide variety of topics, including his justification for Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

In fact, Carlson had been added to a list compiled by the Ukrainian NGO Myrotvorets, which studies threats to Ukraine's national security, and has been in the Myrotvorets database since 2023.

U.S. far-right political commentator Tucker Carlson speaking at an event in Esztergom, Hungary on Aug. 7, 2021. (Janos Kummer/Getty Images)

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FAYETTEVILLE, WV (WVNS)  Help continues for those still suffering from the tornados that devastated parts of West Virginia including Fayette County in early April.

Record tornados in West Virginia for 2024 year

More than two months later, those who suffered destruction from the violent storms in April are still needing help.

FEMA opened a disaster relief station at the Fayette County Soldiers and Sailors Memorial Building on Wednesday, June 12th, 2024, after being in the area prior.

FEMA Crew Leader, Lynwood said, We have a variety of ways we can assist them. The best thing to do is just come on in, fill out an application, sit down and talk to our representatives. We can see what, you know were able to do and were able to do quite a few things.

This disaster relief location will be open Mondays through Saturdays from 8 in the morning to 6 in the evening.

Lynwood told 59News some of the different services that FEMA provides. Were able to able to provide assistance with home repairs for people whose homes have been damaged by the storm, said Lynwood. We can provide assistance with people whose vehicles have been damaged, who have lost personal property, peoples homes who have been totally destroyed, or just rendered unliveable temporarily. We can, in many cases, provide them with temporary assistance to find a new place to live until their home is repaired.

Major Disaster Declaration for severe weather events in April 2024 announced by Governor Justice and the West Virginia Emergency Management Division

Additionally, the U.S. Small Business Administration is setting up shop at this FEMA location to offer low-interest loans to those affected by the tornados.

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 WVNS.
Fact checked by Nick BlackmerFact checked by Nick Blackmer





The FDA has issued a warning about certain oysters, clams, and other shellfish harvested from Oregon and Washington between May 26 and May 30.

The shellfish could be contaminated with toxins that could cause paralytic shellfish poisoning.

Symptoms can include nausea, vomiting, tingling in the arms and legs, and temporary paralysis.







Certain oysters, clams, and other shellfish harvested in Oregon and Washington could be contaminated with dangerous paralytic toxins, according to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

In a notice posted on June 5, the agency said the affected shellfish could contain high levels of a certain toxin that, when ingested, causes paralytic shellfish poisoning (PSP).

About 30 minutes after eating shellfish contaminated with this paralytic toxin, people may experience symptoms such as tingling or numbness in their mouth, arms, or legs, dizziness, headache, or temporary paralysis in their extremities. In very rare cases, the toxin may cause life-threatening paralysis of the respiratory system.

The Oregon and Washington state departments of health first alerted the FDA to the issue on May 30.

Oregon issued a recall of oysters and bay clams harvested in Netarts Bay and Tillamook Bay anytime on or after May 28. The state of Washington recalled all shellfish harvested in multiple regions of Willapa Baythe exact recall dates depend on the specific growing area, though they range between May 26 and May 30.

The Oregon clams and oysters exposed to high amounts of paralytic toxins were shipped to restaurants and food retailers in Oregon and New York, and possibly contaminated shellfish harvested in Washington was distributed in Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington.

However, the FDA said the recalled shellfish couldve also been shipped to other states. The agency is waiting for more information on where the harvested shellfish was distributed and said it will update the safety alert when it knows more.

Restaurants and food retailers who may have received clams, oysters, or other shellfish from these specific regions should not serve or sell them and should discard them, the FDA recommended. The same is true for consumers who think they may have purchased contaminated shellfish.

The FDA did not mention any illnesses in connection to shellfish sold in restaurants or by commercial retailers. However, at least 21 people got sick with PSP after consuming mussels recreationally harvested off the Oregon coast in late May. No illnesses have been reported in Washington, though recreational shellfish harvesting is also closed in certain parts of the state.

If a person thinks theyre experiencing any symptoms of PSP after consuming shellfish, they should reach out to their healthcare provider.

Heres what experts had to say about PSP and how to stay safe while enjoying oysters, clams, and shellfish this summer.

Oscar Wong / Getty Images

Where Does PSP Come From?

The paralytic toxins that can contaminate shellfish come from the algae they feed on, said Courtney Temple, MD, assistant professor of emergency medicine at Oregon Health and Science University and medical toxicologist at the Oregon Poison Center.

Paralytic shellfish poisoning typically occurs from ingesting shellfish mollusks that are filter feeders, she told Health. [They] are contaminated by naturally occurring marine toxins, produced by algae.

More specifically, PSP is often linked to phytoplankton of the genus Alexandrium, which can produce saxitoxin, a neurotoxin, added Vera Trainer, PhD, marine program director and research scientist at the University of Washington Olympic Natural Resources Center.

These specific algae are often found in coastal waters in the Pacific Northwest, Trainer told Health, but in the summer especially, it can bloomposing a risk for people consuming shellfish.

We typically see events like this during times of harmful algal blooms, Temple explained. There may be varying degrees of this marine algae during different time periods throughout the year, but its really this period of robust overgrowth that leads to excessive accumulation within the shellfish that makes it dangerous for consumption.

Its typical for the Pacific Northwest to see some beach closures due to unsafe levels of paralytic shellfish toxin throughout the summer months, Temple and Trainer said. However, the scope of this current issue is out of the ordinary.

Recalls are not common, said Trainer. This is one of the largest events on the outer coast of the [U.S.] However, there are often closures due to PSP toxins in bivalve shellfish in Puget Sound, Washington.

The same goes for Oregon: We typically dont see this number of closures, and we certainly havent seen a cluster like this in Oregon for quite some time. So now we have nearly 30 patients who have had some degree of symptoms from this toxin, Temple added.

How Do These Toxins Affect the Body?

People run the risk of developing PSP when they consume clams, oysters, or other shellfish that have high levels of saxitoxin or another paralytic toxin.

These paralytic toxins can affect a persons tissues and cause symptoms that can vary quite significantly in severity.

Symptoms typically begin about 30 minutes after eating the [contaminated] shellfish, and most of them involve some component of stomach upsetso nausea, vomiting, diarrheaand that is along with numbness or tingling around the lips or mouth, Temple explained.

These mild cases are the most common, she added. Theres no antidote or treatment for PSP, but most people eventually pass the toxin from their bodies and recover with no lingering effects.

However, certain PSP cases can be more serious. It can be hard to determine who is more likely to develop a severe case, Temple said, though eating more contaminated seafood is risky.

[PSP] does tend to be dose-related, she explained. For one person who eats one clam or mussel versus someone who eats 30 clams or mussels, that person whos ingested more is more likely to have more severe symptoms.

In these severe instances, PSP patients may experience profound weakness, difficulty breathing, and then eventual paralysis that would require admission to an intensive care unit, Temple said. Severe cases could also lead to more lingering or residual effects from the toxin, she added, or very rarely, can lead to asphyxiation and death.

How to Stay Safe While Enjoying Shellfish

As common as saxitoxin-producing algae are, experts agreed people dont need to be too concerned about getting sick with PSP while enjoying clams, oysters, or their other favorite shellfish.

There is active surveillance thats always taking place along the coastespecially in the Pacific Northwest, where there is a risk of several different kinds of marine toxins, Temple explained. Shellfish, mussels, clams, oystersthose are all tested to ensure that the levels of saxitoxin do not exceed the threshold for consumption.

Because of this surveillance, Trainer said theres little risk of contracting PSP from shellfish at a restaurant or from one you harvested locally, so long as there isnt an active warning or beach closure posted.

However, people should do their homework and check for beach closures before harvesting shellfish recreationally, especially because shellfish contaminated with toxins may look, smell, and taste normal.

People should look at their local health departments website before harvesting shellfish recreationally, said Trainer. The public should be very cautious now harvesting any shellfish recreationally on the U.S. West Coast and Alaska. There are some very high levels of toxins in bivalve shellfish right now.

And in addition to being mindful of where your shellfish is coming from, its also important to seek care and call your state poison center if you do think you might be sick with PSP, said Temple.

[If] they are experiencing symptoms like nausea, vomiting, tingling, numbness in the mouth or face, they should seek medical attention as soon as possible, she advised. We can certainly give further guidance, and we are in constant contact with the health authorities in the state to continue reporting and monitoring for additional cases.



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What was supposed to be a groundbreaking step in mental health treatment became a devastating rebuke of a biopharmaceutical company at the forefront of researching MDMA-assisted therapy as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. Although many psychedelic-therapy advocates were disappointed by the decision, the move could actually prevent serious harm to those seeking treatmentand ultimately help secure a safe future for psychedelic-assisted therapy.

On June 4, a panel advising the Food and Drug Administration voted 92 that Lykos Therapeutics, a company developing psychedelic drug treatments for mental health issues, had not proved that its MDMA-assisted therapy protocol was an effective treatment for PTSD, and voted 101 that the risks of MDMAalso known as ecstasyoutweigh its benefits. The FDA will officially vote Aug. 11 on whether to approve the treatment. The agency isnt required to follow the panels recommendation, but given the magnitude of the safety concerns raised by the committee, and the landslide votes, FDA approval would be a fairly stunning turn of events.

For nearly four decades, the nonprofit Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies has been the leading advocate for the legalization and medicalization of psychedelic drugs like MDMA, psilocybin, and LSD. In 2014 MAPS created Lykos Therapeutics (formerly MAPS PBC) as a for-profit drug development company. MAPS and Lykos have invested heavily in clinical trials evaluating the therapeutic potential of MDMA. Taking into account the anemic treatment landscape and the panels support of veterans groups, many observers expected the body to offer a resounding approval.

However, June 4 was unequivocally a very bad day for Lykos, Mason Marks, a visiting professor of law at Harvard Law School and lead of the Project on Psychedelics Law and Regulation at the Petrie-Flom Center for Health Law Policy, Biotechnology, and Bioethics, tells me. Lykos largely created this situation for themselves.

There were two prongs to Lykos clinical trials: MDMA as a drug, and the psychotherapy process before, during, and after the MDMA dosing sessions. The panelists roundly criticized both. Many of the concerns the group discussed had been brought to the attention of MAPS and Lykos during and after the trials by advocates, researchers, and even the FDA. For example, in 2016 the FDA recommended that MAPS use an active compound (as opposed to an inactive placebo) for the trials control group to better obscure who received the drug and who didnt, but the nonprofit decided against it.

This functional unblindingwhen a trial participant becomes aware of whether theyve been given the drug being studied or a placeboresulted in more than 90 percent of participants in the MDMA group in the Phase 3 trials realizing that theyd received MDMA, and 75 percent of the control group realizing that they hadnt.* It makes sense. If you understand anything about the popular drug, which is known to create feelings of immense euphoria and sensitivity to light, sound, and touch, youre probably going to detect whether youve just taken it.

However, the advisory committee maintained that functional unblinding alone wouldnt have been a dealbreaker. There are so many problems with the data, Melissa Barone, a psychologist with the VA Maryland Health Care System, said during the committees discussion. Each one alone might be kind of OK. But when you pile them on top of each other  there are just a lot of questions still about how effective and durable the treatment is.

The FDA advisory committee also had plenty of concerns about Lykos second treatment arm, psychotherapy. MAPS and Lykos repeatedly made it clear that MDMA was only part of what made their treatment effective. Discussing the trials last year, MAPS founder Rick Doblin said in an interview in Nature, The results that we got were not from MDMA. They were from highly trained therapists who are then using MDMA.

Crucially, however, the FDA does not regulate psychotherapy. So Lykos is asking it to approve a medication-therapy combination when half of the process doesnt even fall under the agencys purview. Instead of suggesting that the FDA label the medication as part of a treatment plan that includes counseling and psychosocial supportas the agency did with Suboxone, a drug for opioid use disorderLykos asked that its specific psychotherapy process be included in the approval procedure. If the FDA approves Lykos application in August, it would be the first time in the agencys history that a psychotherapeutic process was approved alongside a drug treatment.

I dont have any ill will toward Lykos, and I strongly believe in the therapeutic potential of MDMA, Marks says. But Im a bit mystified by why [Lykos] insisted on framing it as a therapy-drug combo when they know full well that the FDA doesnt and cannot think of it that way. And I think all of the committee was a bit mystified by that as well.

Even if psychotherapy were under the FDAs jurisdiction, serious questions remain about Lykos therapeutic protocol. David Millis, a clinical reviewer for the FDA, raised concerns about the standardization of therapy at the advisory committee meeting, saying, The content or approach of these integrated sessions was not standardized in the treatment manuals and was mainly left up to the individual therapist.

The therapeutic practices behind Lykos protocol may not be standardized, but the ideology behind them is. Doblin has publicly stated that the entire therapeutic approach that we have in the MDMA studies is based on Stanislav Grofs transpersonal spiritual teachings. Grof believed in the idea of inner healing intelligence, accessed through psychedelics.

When considered in this context, its astonishing that Lykos is requesting that the FDA for the first time approve a psychotherapy process alongside a drug and asserting that the treatment is rooted in transpersonal, spiritual teachings.

In a public comment to the advisory committee hearing, Nese Devenot, a senior lecturer at Johns Hopkins University with expertise in psychedelic bioethics, outlined concerns with the Grofian underpinnings of MAPSs/Lykos therapy protocol. Devenot argued that the system primes study participants to interpret any outcome as successful, even if it results in ongoing and distressing symptoms. This may lead participants to think that distress is healingeven if its actually causing harm.

This sentiment is reflected in MAPSs handbook detailing MDMA-assisted therapy protocols for PTSD. The guidelines are clear that a therapist should not touch a patient without their consent, but they dont address the fact that, legally and ethically, a person cannot give consent while under the influence of a psychedelic drug. Further, there are confirmed examples from MAPSs/Lykos MDMA trials in which a therapist explicitly overrode the will of a participant and initiated physical contact while the patient was on MDMA, even after it became clear that such contact was further upsetting them. In an incident from 2015, study facilitators sexually assaulted trial participant Meaghan Buisson during an MDMA dosing session.

A video of the session shows both therapists, Donna Dryer and Richard Yensen, hugging and cuddling Buisson and Yensen lying on top of her while shes obviously distressed and resisting touch. Notably, her PTSD stemmed from previous sexual assaults. MAPS said it didnt review the videos from Buissons sessions until 2021six years after they were filmed and three years after Buisson filed a complaint with the organization. Between MDMA dosing sessions, she attempted suicide.

Buisson says MAPS was aware of the incident but never reported it as an adverse event in its trial results, an allegation echoed by another participant about his own suicidality during the trial and by two former MAPS PBC staff members about a participant in the Phase 3 trial. Over the next year, Dryer and Yensens abuse of Buisson escalated. In 2019 MAPS released a statement asserting that the therapists substantially deviated from MAPS protocol.

Buisson told me that the way MAPS handled the incident suggests that it should not be a facilitator of this kind of therapy. MAPS is not an organization that understands trauma-informed care, she says. Assault is not a therapeutic modality. Sexual assault is not a therapeutic modality. Pinning someone down as they are screaming No for hours is not trauma-informed care.

PTSD is a major, prevalent public health concern that desperately needs new treatment. MDMA and other psychedelics are potentially lifesaving treatments that demand the FDAs serious consideration. But serious consideration requires high evidentiary standardsto do otherwise would be unfair to the people who need help and to everyone who relies on the FDA to rigorously evaluate the safety and efficacy of drugs before approving them.

The agency doesnt have a spotless track record in this department, as many critics of the advisory panels decision were quick to note. David Nutt, a psychedelics researcher at Imperial College London, told Science that the decision calls into question a regulatory system that allows new versions of potentially lethal opioids for pain yet denies the most novel and safe intervention for treatment-resistant PTSD ever seen.

But mistakes in the FDAs approval history should illustrate the dangers of rubber-stamping drugs without proper evaluation, not diminish the importance of rigorous standards. Considerable harm can be inflicted upon patients when the agency gets it wrong. Further, if Nutt is correct about MDMA, it shouldnt be too hard to provide the FDA with bulletproof data. Instead, Lykos conducted trials that ignored the agencys recommendations and failed to follow best (and basic) practices, like taking and evaluating participants blood work throughout the course of the trials.

These oversights are especially concerning given that if the FDA does break with the committee and approve Lykos MDMA-AT protocol, itll also be granting Lykos a functional monopoly on the treatment. Any therapist who wants to administer the drug would have to buy it from Lykos, take a course in Lykos treatment protocol, and potentially renew that license every year. That would establish Lykos as the gold standard for MDMA-assisted therapy. Every provider offering MDMA-AT would be taught the transpersonal, spiritual framework offered by Grof that psychedelics are a catalyst for inner healing intelligence and that focused bodywork and nurturing touch can be instrumental in healing even when the patient is distressed by it.

Doblin has given every indication that he doesnt appreciate the seriousness of what happened to Buisson. In a recent Business Insider story, hes quoted as saying that the $15,000 MAPS provided Buisson for therapy costs went  above and beyond what was required of us, adding, Whether shes grateful or not is up to her.  Instead of downplaying Buissons abuse as the result of two rogue bad actors, Lykos should transparently investigate how the therapeutic process it continues to teach may have empowered Yensen and Dryer to cross ethical boundaries. This is especially true in light of other documented instances of distressed patients being touched by MAPS facilitators even after the participant has explicitly told them to stop, as Devenot explained in her public comment to the FDA advisory committee.

For its part, Lykos appears to be holding out hope that the FDA will break with the committee on Aug. 11 and approve the treatment. Lykos CEO Amy Emerson said in a statement that the company was disappointed by the decision but remains committed to working with the FDA to address outstanding questions so that we may find a path forward to ensure the responsible and careful introduction of MDMA-assisted therapy into the healthcare system, if approved.

I want people to have treatment.  It would be bad if this means we dont have MDMA treatment available for a very long time, Marks says. But in the long run, this could be very beneficial to the patient and help guide future researchers and companies entering the pipeline. Theres a lot to learn from this.

Meaghan Buisson has never seen the video of her being assaulted by the therapists she and MAPS entrusted to help treat her PTSD. Simply hearing their voices triggers her now considerably aggravated condition. Although hers is among the worst-case harms of improperly conducted MDMA-AT, it shouldnt be discounted, and it deserves a real reckoning. The risk of further trauma when MDMA is paired with bad therapeutic protocols matters. Until a biopharmaceutical company is honest about that and offers detailed safeguards against it, the safest thing may be to unpair MDMA from psychotherapy and evaluate the drug alone in clinical trials. Unfortunately, thats not the question currently in front of the FDA.
A federal judge has issued an injunction blocking enforcement of a state law that requires extensive financial disclosure by Florida's mayors and city council members.

U.S. District Court Judge Melissa Damian entered the preliminary injunction, preventing members of the Florida Commission on Ethics from enforcing the new requirement.

Damian's ruling comes in a federal lawsuit filed by a group of city and town officials, claiming the rule violates the First Amendment.

Municipal officials feared that the added disclosure requirement would discourage residents from running for municipal office, and potentially could create vacancies on city and town councils or commissions.

About 125 municipal officials statewide resigned, including at least three in Southwest Florida, before the new requirements took effect in January.

They included Sanibel City Council member Scott Crater, Fort Myers Beach Town Council member Bill Veach and Naples Vice Mayor Mike McCabe.

"I believe the court decision rightfully recognized the State Legislature did not have any justification for their action," McCabe said in an email to the Naples Daily News on Tuesday. "The legislatures action resulted in over 125 local representatives resigning from office. That took an enormous toll on our local communities across the state."

More than 170 elected officials in Florida are plaintiffs in the case, including Marco Island City Council Vice-Chair Erik Brechnitz. Earlier this year, the Marco Island City Council voted to join in the lawsuit, committing $10,000 to the fight.

City of Naples Councilman Mike McCabe speaks during a City Council meeting on May 13, 2021.

Requirement changes

Law triggers resignations: Form 6 fallout: New financial disclosure requirements lead elected officials to resign

For the past 50 years, municipal elected officials have been required each year to file a Form 1 financial disclosure, which lists the officials employers, primary sources of income and major assets.

Last year, the Florida Legislature enacted a new law, Senate Bill 774, requiring them to file a Form 6, which is a significantly more detailed form that state legislators and county elected officials file. Form 6 also requires disclosure of the amount of their net worth; the amount of their income, including from their primary jobs; the value of each of their assets; and the amounts of each liability.

The deadline for submitting the disclosure form was set at July 1, with a requirement for an annual filing.

Candidates for elected municipal office also were required to file the form before they qualified for a spot on the ballot. Many cities and towns in Florida are in the midst of the candidate qualifying process.

"These additional disclosures have nothing to do with the officials duties and are not relevant in any way to possible breaches of the public trust," said Jamie Cole, the lead attorney representing the more than 170 elected municipal officials from throughout Florida who challenged the law as a violation of the First Amendment.

What the judge said

Jamie Cole, an attorney representing municipal officials challenging the new financial disclosure law, said the Form 6 disclosure "is the most intrusive form of financial disclosure that I am aware of in the entire nation."

Damian, the Fort Lauderdale-based federal judge, wrote that it wasn't apparent in the court filings why the more stringent requirement for local officials was in the state's interest.

Damian ruled that the elected municipal elected officials have demonstrated a reasonable likelihood that they will succeed on the merits of their claim.

The judge's 33-page ruling found that this is a First Amendment issue, because, "where, as here, a law compels disclosure of financial information the speakers would not otherwise have disclosed, the law burdens speech and does fall within the purview of the First Amendment."

Cole said the Form 6 disclosure "is the most intrusive form of financial disclosure that I am aware of in the entire nation, requiring more disclosure of quintessentially personal financial information than is required of the president of the United States, members of Congress and elected officials in every other state. Most municipal elected officials receive little to no compensation for their public service, yet they are being asked to disclose their precise net worth, income and assets."

Cole called the preliminary injunction "a significant step in the plaintiffs efforts to ultimately obtain a ruling that the Form 6 disclosure requirements are unconstitutional." He said there is no indication when such a final ruling might occur.

Under the disclosure requirements in Senate Bill 774, any official who fails to comply would be subject, after a 60-day grace period, to fines of $25 a day up to $1,500. After an investigation and public hearing, the noncompliant official could be subject to a civil penalty of up to $20,000 and, among other things, a recommendation of removal from office.

Florida Sen. Jason Brodeur, R-Lake Mary, who sponsored the bill in the Senate, has defended the requirement, saying that city officials have a say on how taxpayer dollars are spent, just like state legislators.

Brodeur maintained the "taxpayers deserve transparency. If a simple disclosure that hundreds of other elected officials already do makes someone quit, then voters should be glad."

Cole has filed another lawsuit, representing the same plaintiffs, in the state's Circuit Court in Tallahassee, challenging the Form 6 requirements, based on the right to privacy found in the Florida Constitution. That case is pending.

Dave Berman is business editor at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Berman at dberman@floridatoday.com, on X at @bydaveberman and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/dave.berman.54

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Florida financial disclosure rules for city officials blocked by judge
Feds force Rockland Drug Treatment Court to better serve those with limited English

NEW CITY  Federal intervention has forced the Rockland County Drug Treatment Court to end discriminatory practices and ensure defendants who speak limited English can qualify for full treatment instead of incarceration.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District in Manhattan reviewed a complaint filed in January 2023 that Rockland's specialized court failed to provide translation and interpretation services for people with limited English proficiency. The district's jurisdiction includes Rockland, Westchester, and Orange counties.

The New York State Office of Court Administration became involved and seized control of the court in March 2024.

A June 11 agreement reached by federal prosecutors and the New York State Office of Court Administration to reform the 26-year-old Drug Treatment Court found that not all people could take full advantage of the court because of language issues, which is discriminatory.

U.S. Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke for the Civil Rights Division said the agreement stands as "a model for ensuring access to the courts, including its programs and services, for all people, regardless of English proficiency."

Rockland County District Attorney Thomas Walsh (Credit: John Meore/The Journal News)

Drug Court reforms to include state-funded translators

A Suffern resident sued the Drug Court and the state court system in January 2023, saying he was essentially barred from the Drug Court because he did not speak English fluently.

More: Suffern resident barred from drug court because of language barrier, lawsuit alleges

Reforms outlined in the agreement aim to ensure the court meets regulations outlined in Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race, color, and national origin by recipients of federal financial aid. Discrimination may include a failure to provide meaningful language access, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Among reforms being instituted after a review by federal prosecutors, state officials and the Rockland County District Attorney's Office are state-funded translators in Spanish, Creole, and Yiddish, personnel training, and the availability of documents in those languages, according to the memorandum of understanding.

Rockland Drug Treatment Court Memorandum of Understanding by The Journal News on Scribd

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Members of the community should not be denied meaningful access to court proceedings and programs offering alternatives to traditional sentencing because of their limited English proficiency," U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said in announcing the agreement.

Rockland District Attorney Thomas Walsh and his staff declined to comment on the agreement because of a Suffern resident's 2023 lawsuit involving Drug Court, spokesperson Scott Waters said. One of Walsh's assistant prosecutors, Charles Apotheker, had once been the county's chief judge and advocate for Drug Court.

The U.S. Attorney's Office and its Civil Rights Division identified reforms and collaborated on reforms with the Rockland District Attorney's Office and the Office of Court Administration.

Rockland established Drug Court in 1998

Drug courts, established statewide decades ago, provide up to two years of judge-monitored treatment for substance abuse for people who admit predominantly non-violent crimes.

Dispositions to the criminal charges take into consideration an individual's drug and/or alcohol abuse, mental and physical health, and the seriousness of the offense. Completion of the treatment program would lead to sealing the person's conviction.

Rockland established its Drug Court in 1998. Advocates contend the courts save money by lowering criminal justice costs, reducing jail/prison use, and reducing criminality.

Reforms aim to serve people with limited English proficiency

The agreement includes that the Drug Court must publicize that documents are available in several languages. The court must also secure treatment providers that will offer accessible, court-mandated drug treatment programs at no cost to participants.

The District Attorneys Office and state Office of Court Administration have taken steps to improve access to treatment for court participants with limited English proficiency, The U.S. Attorney's Office said. Those steps included committing to provide interpreter services for court proceedings, conducting outreach to stakeholders, and identifying a local treatment provider to provide court-mandated treatment services in Spanish.

Clarke said the reforms aim to ensure that people are not penalized for their limited English proficiency.

"Ensuring equal justice under law means doing so in a manner that is fair, accurate, and understandable for all, but that does not happen unless people involved in the judicial process can communicate with each other," Clarke said.

Steve Lieberman covers government, breaking news, courts, police, and investigations. Reach him at slieberm@lohud.com Twitter: @lohudlegal

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This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Rockland NY drug court forced to end language discrimination by feds
(FOX40.COM)  Northern California police officers recently arrested a woman for child abuse after learning that her child died of fentanyl poisoning.

The Chico Police Department said on Wednesday that Christy Scarbrough, 40, was arrested on May 30 for child abuse with possible great bodily injury or death and abuse resulting in death, adding that the infant was able to access the fentanyl because it was left unattended next to the area where they would sleep.

According to police, officers were called to Enloe Hospital in Chico for the death of a 1-year-old on June 6, 2023. Upon arrival, officers learned that the child was driven to the hospital by their mother, who was identified as Scarbrough.

Girl who was reported missing found, Chico Police say

The Butte County Sheriffs Office and Chico Police Department began investigating the death at the childs home, located at 200 E. 8th Ave, and immediately found fentanyl drug paraphernalia next to the childs bed.

Law enforcement began interviewing family members and collecting evidence before determining that the child died due to acute fentanyl intoxication.

Detectives obtained additional evidence indicating Scarbrough was using fentanyl before and

after the infants death, Chico police said.

Scarbrough was taken to a jail in Butte County for her crimes, police 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 FOX40.
Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) was traveling at a high rate of speed ahead of the car accident he was involved in that took place in Maryland over the weekend, according to a Maryland State Police report.

The report, obtained by The Hill, said that a witness observed that Fettermans vehicle was traveling at a high rate of speed, well over the posted speed limit, when the car passed her on Sunday morning. Fetterman, who was driving a Chevrolet Traverse, rear-ended a Chevrolet Impala shortly after passing the witness, according to the report.

The report noted the highways speed limit was 70 mph and that both vehicles involved were towed away from the scene. Fetterman, his wife and the driver of the other vehicle were all transported to a hospital following the crash, the police report said.

It also lists that Fetterman was at fault for the incident.

This was an unfortunate accident and Im relieved and grateful that there were no serious injuries. I need to do better and do it slower  and I will, Fetterman said in a statement to The Hill when reached for comment on the report.

Fettermans office said that Fetterman and his wife, Giselle, were doing well after they were involved in a car crash on Sunday morning. The office said they were both evaluated at a local hospital and were discharged that afternoon after Fetterman was treated for a bruised shoulder.

Fetterman thanked people for their well wishes in a video on the social media platform X earlier this week.

Not the best way to spend our 16th wedding anniversary but were doing well and happy to be back home in Braddock with the family, he wrote.

Maryland State Police said in a statement earlier this week the crash investigation remains active and ongoing, noting no citations were issued.

Miranda Nazzaro contributed reporting.

This story was updated at 6:58 p.m.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
Abortion rights advocates celebrated the Supreme Courts decision to toss out a challenge to the abortion pill Thursday, calling it a unanimous win and incredibly good news for reproductive freedoms.

But the fight over the abortion pillthe two-drug regimen that makes up more than 60 percent of abortions in the USis far from over.

This case really represents the kind of opening shot on the anti-abortion movements attack on abortion pills, Greer Donley, a law professor at the University of Pittsburgh, told The Daily Beast. The very beginning, not even close to the end.

The Supreme Court ruled unanimously Thursday that the group of conservative doctors who sued to roll back the FDAs approval of mifepristoneone of the drugs most commonly used in medication abortionsdid not have standing to bring the case because they did not prescribe or use the medication themselves.

Even Brett Kavanaugh Tears Anti-Abortion Lawsuit Apart

The case was first brought by the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (AHM), an umbrella organization of anti-abortion doctors who argued that the FDA had not adequately considered safety concerns when it expanded access to mifepristone in 2016. (Studies have shown the drug is safer than penicillin and Viagra.)

The medication is a prime target for conservatives because of how often it is used to perform abortions and how relatively easy it is to dispense. Doctors in states where abortion is legal have been prescribing abortion pills to patients in states where it was banned since the fall of Roe v Wade in 2022, much to the chagrin of Republican politicians.

The Supreme Court did not rule on the merits of the AHM suit, simply on the doctors ability to bring it. While that decision allows mifepristone to continue being used in medication abortions for now, experts said, it leaves the door open for other attacks on the drug.

Three statesIdaho, Missouri, and Kansasjoined the dispute in a lower court in Texas earlier this year. The Supreme Court did not allow them to join at the federal level, but they are now free to proceed in the state courtthe same one that sided with the AHM and blocked mifepristone access nationwide before higher courts stepped in.

The AHM specifically mentioned those states in a defiant statement it issued after the ruling, saying it was disappointed with the courts decision but would continue to advocate for women and work to restore commonsense safeguards for abortion drugs.

We are grateful that three states stand ready to hold the FDA accountable for jeopardizing the health and safety of women and girls across this country, the Alliance said.

In a briefing with reporters, Erin Hawleythe lawyer who argued the AHMs case and the wife of Republican Sen. Josh Hawleysaid the fact that the court did not rule on the merits of the case left her encouraged and hopeful that the FDA will be held to account, according to NPR.

A general view of the U.S. Supreme Court building, with members of a student group in the foreground, in Washington, U.S., June 1, 2024. Will Dunham/File Photo/Reuters

Mary Ziegler, a law professor at the University of California, Davis, told The Daily Beast there were plenty of other groups looking to mount their own court battle if the states failed.

Some of the cities and counties that define themselves as sanctuary cities for the unborn have suggested they want to do that, she said. So were not limiting it to just the people who have already proceeded, but the people who could.

And the fact that the AHM case made it to the Supreme Court at all can be seen as a victory for the right, Greer addedas well as a sign of how partisain the courts have become. She said the plaintiffs case for standing was shaky at best, and should have been dismissed by the first judge on the case, the Trump-appointed Texas district court judge Matthew Kacsmaryk.

Matthew Kacsmaryk, is an ideologue, essentially, Greer said. He basically rubber stamps whatever the anti-abortion movement throws at him. So you're left with the Supreme Court being the only place that you can attempt to have a fair hearing.

And of course, were talking about the Supreme Court that overturned Roe v Wade, she added. So were not talking about a moderate Supreme Court.

There are also risks to the abortion pill outside the courts, especially if Donald Trump is elected president in November. According to Greer, Trump could appoint his own head of the FDA and direct them to overturn the agencys approval of mifepristone, arriving at much the same outcome as if the Alliance had won at the Supreme Court.

Trumps allies are also pushing for him to enforce the Comstock Act, a long-defunct law that bans anything used in an abortion from being sent by mail. If he is successful in enforcing it, the law would threaten anyone who sent abortion drugs by mail with jail time.

The Biden-Harris campaign hosted a press call shortly after the verdict to impress upon voters the effects a Trump presidency could have on access to the pill.

This case brought on by Donald Trumps allies was only one tactic in a broader, relentless strategy to strip away access to reproductive freedom everywhere in this country, campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez told reporters, adding that a Trump presidency would threaten access to the medication in every single stateeven where abortion remains legal.

And other abortion advocates acknowledged Thursday that the case was only the opening salvo in the war against medication abortion. Brittany Fonteno, President and CEO of National Abortion Federation, said in a statement that the group was outraged that this case got as far as it did in the first place, adding that it was part of anti-abortion extremists wider, politically-motivated agenda to ban abortion nationwide.

Cecile Richards, former president of Planned Parenthood, told The New York Times that other states were already attempting to make abortion pills harder to get, noting how Louisiana recently made the medication a controlled substance.

I know from years of experience that women will do anything to end a pregnancy that they dont want, and I fear that what the Supreme Court is doing, and anti-abortion politicians, theyre just making it more difficult, more costly, and threatening womens health and their lives, she said.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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DE SOTO, Kan.  The big investment in De Soto, Kansas is sparking big changes for one of the Johnson County communitys main roads.

The $4 billion EV Battery Plant and other development in and around the Astra Enterprise Park that will follow is already creating more traffic north of the park. It sparked a study of the 83rd Street and Lexington Corridor, which City Administrator Mike Brungardt says is the alternate route to Astra Enterprise Park, after K-10.

KCI workers replace signs to help with traffic

The planning level study did give us an idea about overall traffic volumes and the overall width of the corridors that are going to have to be constructed to accommodate those volumes out to the year 2050, Brungardt said.

The estimate is that traffic flow will eventually double, but residents like Elissa Stewart are already seeing some increase.

Its, right now, chaotic, Stewart said.

She lives near the intersection where 83rd Street becomes Lexington, which is slated to become one of two new roundabouts when the recommendations from the study are implemented.

One other intersection will get a new traffic light. A fourth will become three lanes with a dedicated turning lane in what is now rural highway.

Brungardt admits public opinion is mixed on roundabouts but they generally require less maintenence once theyre built, improve traffic flow, and are safer than other forms of intersections.

[Roundabouts] take severe accidents and turns them into not-severe accidents just because of the angle of collisions, Brungardt said.

Chiefs star Chris Jones has a message for Clark Hunt haters

The final draft of the plans go to De Soto City Council in July. Brungardt says if theyre approved, these will allow the city to pursue federal, state, and county funding to try to pay for the project.

More detailed engineering plans will also need to be drawn up over the next year to complete the project.

Panasonic says the EV battery plant is on pace to produce electric vehicle batteries in early 2025.

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.
(Bloomberg) -- Finland will offer vaccines to citizens, including poultry-farm workers and veterinarians, who are at risk from avian influenza, as the virus spreads across the world.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The Nordic nation will receive the shots as part of the European Unions joint procurement program, in which 15 countries are taking part, the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health said in a statement on Thursday. So far, no avian influenza infections have been detected in humans in Finland, it said.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

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Fire at industrial facility in Kyiv Oblast caused by Russian attack taking over 24 hours to extinguish

A fire at an industrial facility in Kyiv Oblast has been burning for more than a day now, started by a Russian attack on the night of 11-12 June.

Source: State Emergency Service of Ukraine

Quote: "A fire at an industrial facility caused by Russia's armed aggression is currently being extinguished."

Firefighters extinguishing the fire.

Photo: State Emergency Service in Kyiv Oblast

Details: A total of 249 firefighters, 98 fire appliances and four fire trains are working at the scene.

Firefighters extinguishing the fire.

Photo: State Emergency Service in Kyiv Oblast

Background: A fire broke out at an industrial facility in Kyiv Oblast due to a Russian attack on the night of 11-12 June.

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FILE - Tesla and SpaceX Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk speaks at the SATELLITE Conference and Exhibition in Washington, March 9, 2020. Eight former employees sued SpaceX and its CEO Musk, alleging that Musk ordered them fired after they challenged what they called rampant sexual harassment and a hostile Animal House-style work environment at the company. The employees, who filed suit in a California state court, detailed their complaints in a 2022 open letter to management they shared via a company intranet. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh, File)

NEW YORK (AP)  Eight former employees sued SpaceX and its CEO Elon Musk, alleging that Musk ordered them fired after they challenged what they called rampant sexual harassment and a hostile Animal House-style work environment at the company.

The employees, who filed suit in a California state court, detailed their complaints in a 2022 open letter to management they shared via a company intranet. The next day, four of the plaintiffs were fired, they alleged; others were terminated later after an internal investigation.

In January, the federal National Labor Relations Board filed its own complaint against SpaceX based on issues raised by nine fired employees.

Among other workplace concerns, the open letter called on executives to condemn Musks public behavior on X  the platform then known as Twitter  and to hold all employees accountable for unacceptable conduct. Musks actions included making light of sexual harassment allegations against him  charges that the billionaire denied.

As our CEO and most prominent spokesperson, Elon is seen as the face of SpaceX  every tweet that Elon sends is a de facto public statement by the company, the open letter said at the time. The letter also referred to Musks actions as a frequent source of distraction and embarrassment.

The plaintiffs are seeking unspecified monetary damages.

The complaint drew connections between Musk's behavior  in particular, his often lewd posts on Twitter  and the working environment at SpaceX. It states that one of the plaintiffs, Yaman Abdulhak, noted that many of the inappropriate examples cited in a 2021 appropriate behavior employee training closely resembled the contents of Musk's tweets. Abdulhak sent examples of those tweets to the SpaceX human resources director, who took no action, the complaint stated.

SpaceX did not immediately reply to an emailed request for comment.
Firefighters worked to put out a fire at a Xenia restaurant on Thursday afternoon.

Firefighters were called to Los Mariachis of Detroit Street around 2:10 p.m. on reports of a dumpster fire. When they got to the scene, crews found that the fire was against the building, according to Xenia Fire Chief Ken Riggsby.

>> PHOTOS: Popular Mexican restaurant damaged by fire in Xenia

As reported on News Center 7 at 6:00, our crew learned the fire actually started when a large freezer caught fire and then spread to the attic of the building.

Witnesses recalled seeing smoke pouring out of the building as they were walking their dog.

Were really worried, Bill Russell said.

Two people were taken to the hospital for evaluation. One was a manager of the restaurant and the other was a firefighter who was injured after falling at the scene.

Riggsby said the pace at which the fire was spreading prompted them to put out a second alarm for the fire.

>> Son accused of killing his mother arrested for murder 17 years later

It was how fast the fire was spreading, Riggsby said. The goal is, obviously, to protect property, and we had an injury early on, so we went ahead and did that second alarm, just to make sure we had the proper equipment here to cover what we had.

While the amount of damage done by the fire is currently unknown, Riggsby believes that it can be repaired.

The fire remains under investigation. The restaurant is temporarily closed.




GREEN BAY - First lady Jill Biden visited Green Bay to court older voters as a part of the Seniors for Biden-Harris campaign on Thursday.

"Standing in the way of progress that could help people of all ages, Donald Trump supported ending Medicare as we know it," the first lady said during a news conference at the Brown County Central Library. "He came one vote away from repealing the Affordable Care Act  He wants to cut Social Security to give more tax breaks to his billionaire friends. Make no mistake, Donald Trump is dangerous to our livelihoods.

Wisconsin was her first stop along her tour of Minnesota, California and key battleground states Nevada and Arizona. The program aims to engage senior voters across the U.S. to reelect President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

The campaign is highlighting the contrast between former President Donald Trumps policies and the work of the Biden-Harris administration to protect programs like Social Security and Medicare.

First lady Jill Biden campaigns Thursday, June 13, 2024, at a Seniors for Biden-Harris event at the Brown County Central Library in Green Bay, Wis.

However, at a rally in Green Bay, in April, Trump stated that if reelected, he would keep Social Security intact.

Forty-five percent of registered voters believe Biden would handle Medicare and Social Security better compared to Trump, according to a Marquette University poll. Jill Biden highlighted President Biden's efforts to make health care more accessible for older Americans.

"He kept insulin at $35 per month for seniors, and for the first time in history, he made sure Medicare can negotiate drug prices directly, something that presidents have been trying to do for decades," Jill Biden said. "He strengthened the Affordable Care Act and Medicaid, bringing the uninsured rate lower than any other president has."

Senior Americans could play a key role in the upcoming election, as they vote in higher numbers compared to other age groups. Biden currently holds a narrow lead among voters over the age of 65, according to a Quinnipiac University poll.

Kim Javens of Green Bay attended the first lady's news conference and plans to vote for Biden in November.

President Biden "might have a little bit of age on him, but his mind is still there, and I just feel he's done a lot for the country," Javens said. "He's going to save Social Security, he believes in women's choice, and he wants to keep democracy."

First lady Jill Biden campaigns during a Seniors for Biden-Harris event on June 13, 2024, at the Brown County Central Library in Green Bay.

Age is an issue for some voters. A Quinnipiac University poll showed 31% think Biden, 81, "is too old to effectively serve another four-year term as president," compared with Trump who is 77.

But Wisconsin Lt. Gov. Sara Rodriguez doesn't believe that.

"It's not about the age, it's about the age of the ideas," she said. "And President Biden has been very, very progressive ... He is engaged, he is leading on many of these issues, and I trust him for the next four years to make sure we can move in the right direction."

First lady Jill Biden campaigns Thursday, June 13, 2024, at a Seniors for Biden-Harris event at the Brown County Central Library in Green Bay, Wis.

In her speech, Jill Biden assured Wisconsin voters that President Biden is "willing to work for you every day to make our future better," and is ready to continue the progress he has made on prescription drug costs, Social Security, Medicare and Medicare if reelected.

"This isn't about stopping an extremist, and this election is most certainly not about age. Joe and that other guy [Donald Trump] are essentially the same age. Let's not be fooled. But what this election is about, it's about the character of the person leading our country. It's about finishing the job we started, Biden said.

Abra Richardson of the Appleton Post-Crescent contributed.

Alyssa Salcedo is a reporter with the Green Bay Press-Gazette. She can be reached at asalcedo@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: First lady campaigns in Green Bay, courts seniors on Medicare, ACA
Five men indicted on charges related to Merced drug trafficking operation, authorities say

A federal grand jury has indicted five men, including four from Merced County, on multiple charges related to what authorities say was a Merced drug trafficking operation, according to U. S. Attorney Philip A. Talbert.

The case against the men is a result of a long-term investigation into gang violence and drug trafficking by multiple agencies which authorities have referred to as Operation Red Rooster.

The investigating agencies include the Merced Area Gang and Narcotics Enforcement Team, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the California Department of Justice, Homeland Security Investigations and assisted by the Merced County Sheriffs Office, Merced Police Department, California Highway Patrol and Livingston Police Department, among other agencies.

This case is being prosecuted by U.S. Attorney Robert L. Veneman-Hughes. According to authorities, the case is also part of Project Safe Neighborhoods and investigated under the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Forces program.

Authorities said Fernando Arellano, 36, of Planada, Isaiah Serena, 40, of Merced and Jason Mott, 49, of Merced have been charged with conspiracy to distribute methamphetamine. David Gonzales, 45, of Merced and Christopher Baca-Arias, 18, of Honduras, were charged with conspiracy to distribute fentanyl and distribution of fentanyl.

Both Serena and Mott were also charged with distribution of methamphetamine and conspiracy to distribute fentanyl. Additionally, Serena was charged with distribution of fentanyl and possession of a firearm by a felon.

Court documents allege Mott and Serena operated a drug trafficking operation that was centered on a self-storage business which is located in Merced. Authorities allege Baca-Arias supplied fentanyl for the operation while Arellano supplied the operation with methamphetamine.

Authorities said it appears Gonzalez worked for Mott and Serena and during an investigation, more than 40 pounds of methamphetamine and two pounds of fentanyl were distributed.

Serena, Mott, Arellano and Gonzalez could face a maximum of life in prison and a $10 million fine if convicted. Authorities said Baca-Arias could face a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $1 million fine if convicted.
A crew of Westchester County Jail workers  including corrections officers and commissary workers  have been slapped with bribery charges in a jailhouse crackdown, officials confirmed Wednesday.

Two officers and three former jail employees  a guard and two civilian commissary workers  were charged with third-degree bribe receiving on Tuesday and released on desk-appearance tickets pending arraignment on June 20, the Westchester County District Attorneys Office said in an email to The Post.

The suspects hit with charges include corrections officers Peter Cumberbatch and Sharia Smythe, according to sources. The others were not immediately identified.

Five current and former employees at the Westchester County Jail have been hit with bribery charges, officials said. google

They could not be reached for comment and officials at the Westchester County Corrections Officer Benevolent Association did not immediately respond to calls on Wednesday.

Officials did not provide further details of the alleged crimes.

Westchester County DA Mimi Rocahs office confirmed that five corrections employees were hit with bribery charges. Pacific Press/LightRocket via Getty Images

In a statement to The Post, Westchester County Corrections Commissioner Joe Spano thanked District Attorney Mimi Rocah and her staff for cracking the case.

Its obviously very upsetting to learn that some of our employees made conscious decisions to engage in criminal activity that compromised the safety of our staff and the individuals in our care, Spano said.

The involved correction officers not only violated their oath of office and the trust we put in them. They also tarnished the reputations of all honest and dedicated correction officers, he added.

These arrests should serve as a strong warning to any correction agency employee who is contemplating engaging in criminal activity, you will be found out and you will be prosecuted.
Flag Day is Friday: Here's the symbolism and history behind the US flag

Flag Day 2024 is Friday, June 14. The date commemorates the adoption of the American flag's design, as well as the symbolism and history behind it. Many Americans are unfamiliar with the observation, especially compared to other patriotic days like the Fourth of July.

So, why do we celebrate Flag Day? What's the origin story behind it? Here's a brief rundown.

Is Flag Day a national holiday?

Flag Day isn't a federal holiday, but it has been celebrated for over a century. President Woodrow Wilson proclaimed June 14 as a day of national observance in 1916, according to the U.S. General Services Administration. President Calvin Coolidge did the same in 1927. Congress did not approve the national observation until August 3, 1949, after which President Harry S. Truman signed it into law.

However, the origins of Flag Day can be traced much further back.

May 27, 2024; Phoenix, Ariz., U.S.; The Luke Air Force Base Honor Guard performs a flag folding ceremony for people gathered during a Memorial Day ceremony entitled aHome of the Bravea at the VA National Memorial Cemetery of Arizona.

Origins of Flag Day

An earlier version of the American flag's current design was adopted by the Second Continental Congress on June 14, 1777, though the date wouldn't be celebrated until a hundred years later. The U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs has documented three claims for the nation's first Flag Day.

Hartford, Connecticut

Hartford, Connecticut, may have held the first celebration in the summer of 1861. In the late 19th century, U.S. schools hosted Flag Day programs in an effort to Americanize immigrant children. The tradition was then taken up by other communities.

New York City, New York

However, the more recognized claim originates from New York City. On June 14, 1889, the principal of a free kindergarten for children in low-income families held ceremonies to honor the anniversary of the Flag Day resolution. According to the VA, the State Department of Education then adopted the initiative for all public schools. In 1897, New York's governor proclaimed the flag should be displayed over all public buildings within the state.

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Yet another Flag Day origin story comes from Philadelphia in 1892. The Society of Colonial Dames successfully passed a resolution to display the flag at all public buildings, the VA reports. The president of the society and a direct descendent of Benjamin Franklin, Elizabeth Duane Gillespie, led the push to declare June 14 as Flag Day. However, it wasn't until 1937 that Pennsylvania became the first state to deem Flag Day a legal holiday  and it remains the only state to do so.

Is the U.S. flown at half staff on Flag Day?

The U.S. flag is usually flown at full staff on Flag Day, though a president or state governor issues a proclamation to fly it at half staff.

People are also reading: Flags are half-staff in Texas for Memorial Day, but only until noon. Here's why

What do the colors of the flag mean?

The colors red, white and blue did not have meanings for the Stars and Stripes when it was adopted in 1777. However, when the Congress of the Confederation chose red, white and blue for the Great Seal of the United States in 1782, the meanings were listed as:

How to properly display the American flag

Flag etiquette has long been established to treat the flag with dignity. In 1942, Congress created the U.S. Flag Code, which provides guidelines for displaying and caring for the flag. Flags should always hang freely but never with the stars down, except as a distress signal.

Some codes for the U.S. flag include:

No other flag may be flown above or to the right of the U.S. flag except at the United Nations headquarters.

Citizens may fly the flag anytime, preferably from sunrise to sunset  except for special occasions or when well-lighted.

When a flag becomes unfit to fly, it should be destroyed with dignity.

A flag should never touch the ground.

How to fold the American flag

There is a traditional triangular method used to fold the American flag. According to the American Legion, the origins of the triangular fold are unknown, but some sources attribute it to the Gold Star Mothers of America or a chaplain stationed at the U.S. Air Force Academy. Heres how it's done:

When are flags flown at half staff?

There are specific holidays and events when flags are flown at half-staff in the U.S., according to the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs. That includes:

Memorial Day, when the flag should be displayed at half-staff until noon only, then raised to the top of the staff.

Peace Officers Memorial Day, unless that day is also Armed Forces Day.

Patriot Day.

National Pearl Harbor Remembrance Day.

National Firefighters Memorial Day.

President Dwight Eisenhower also issued a proclamation on the proper times for flying the flag at half-staff when government officials die. That includes:

30 days at all federal buildings, grounds, and naval vessels throughout the United States and its territories and possessions after the death of the president or a former president.

10 days at half-staff after the death of the vice president, the chief justice or a retired chief justice of the United States Supreme Court, or the speaker of the House of Representatives.

From the date of death until interment for an associate justice of the Supreme Court, a member of the Cabinet, a former vice president, the president pro tempore of the Senate, the majority leader of the Senate, the minority leader of the Senate, the majority leader of the House of Representatives, or the minority leader of the House of Representatives.

The date of death and the following day of a United States senator, representative, territorial delegate, or the resident commissioner from the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It should also be flown at half-staff on all federal facilities in the state, congressional district, territory, or commonwealth of these officials.

From the date of death until interment for the governor of a state, territory or possession.

The president may also order the flag to be flown at half-staff to commemorate the death of other officials, former officials or foreign dignitaries, in addition to tragic events.

 USA TODAY reporter Janet Loehrke contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Flag Day 2024: History, symbolism behind the American flag
Travelers at South Floridas two major airports faced more delays Thursday because of the rain and flooding in the region.

On Thursday morning, Miami International Airport had canceled 187 flights and delayed 47 others, according to Greg Chin, communications director for the Miami-Dade Aviation Department. Those figures jumped to 284 flights canceled and 132 flights delayed by 3 p.m. The storms had not even started by then, so if they hit later in the evening as forecast, those numbers would likely increase.

Chin urged travelers to confirm the status of their flight with the airline before heading to MIA.

They should also take note that parking garages are near capacity because many returning passengers have had their flights canceled or delayed, he said.

Once travelers confirm their flights, he recommended they find other ways to get to MIA: ride-share services, taxi, public transportation, family or a friend.

An airplane is seen on the runway as heavy rain falls over the Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla. Many flights were either canceled or delayed due to the bad weather.

MORE: Is your Miami flight delayed from the rain and flooding? Here are easy ways to check

Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport has canceled 77 flights  39 arrivals and 38 departures  as of Thursday morning. The numbers grew to 90 canceled flights  52 arrivals and 38 departures  by 4 p.m. Thursday. The airport also reported 106 delayed flights: 45 arrivals and 61 departures.

Affected destinations include Boston, Guatemala City, Dallas/Forth Worth; Charlotte/Douglas International Airport; Richmond, Virginia; Atlanta, San Francisco; and Guayaquil, Ecuador, and Kingston, Jamaica.

Airport spokesperson Arlene Satchell said that while the bad weather was likely the major cause of the disruption at FLL, other factors including airline operational issues or federal air space air traffic management initiatives may have contributed.

She urged anyone traveling to FLL to check with their airline for the most up-to-date information before coming to the airport.

For drivers, FLL said on X just before 3 p.m. Thursday that the section of East Perimeter Road near the airport entrance has reopened after flooding had shut it down. The I-595 or U.S. 1 exits into the Broward airport continue to be other options.

As rain returns, travelers should continue to watch for roadway updates and check with their airlines before heading for the airport, she said.

For FAA traffic management initiatives relating to weather conditions in South Florida, travelers can visit this site: https://nasstatus.faa.gov/
It needs to stop: Another night of rain could tip South Florida neighborhoods over the edge

This weeks deluge  more than 20 inches in some spots  overwhelmed drainage systems across South Florida, clogging roads with feet of water and hundreds of stalled cars.

The state and multiple cities declared a state of emergency as floodwater poured into homes and businesses, stopped traffic on Interstate 95 and froze travel from both major airports. By midday Thursday, normal activities had mostly resumed and some spots had dried up, despite seeing more than a foot of rain this week.

But with another 4 to 8 inches of rain projected Thursday evening, and up to 10 inches in some spots, officials warned residents not to let their guard down. With the ground now soggy with millions of gallons of rain, it wont take much to set off a fresh round of flash flooding.

Dont be deceived by the sun peeking out from the clouds, Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava said at a press conference Thursday in the countys emergency operations center in Doral. Weve seen clear skies this morning, but we are expecting heavy rainfall once again today.

Flooding is seen in a residential area of Allapattahs Northwest 32nd Street and Northwest 21st Avenue in Miami on Thursday, June 13, 2024.

Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis echoed that message in an afternoon press conference, where he warned that the city could see another up to 10 inches of rain overnight, which could turn into a disaster very quickly.

It is very, very important  I want to stress this  for everyone to stay off the roads, he said. The roads need to be open for emergency vehicles to get to emergency situations.

Trantalis also addressed concerns from residents asking the city to deploy one of its 22 temporary pumps or 15 vactor trucks, used to suck up excess water, to their neighborhoods. He said the city was doing everything it could to contain the water Wednesday night, but at a certain point, the rain was overwhelming.

To be able to pump water out, we need to put it somewhere, he said. We had no place to pump the water. The canals were full.

A vehicle travels along a flooded street in a residential area of North Miami, Florida, along Northeast 11th Avenue near Northeast 123rd Street on Thursday, June 13, 2024.

The South Florida Water Management District, the main agency in charge of keeping the region dry, has a system that is designed to handle about 6 to 8 inches of rain per day. Most spots in South Florida stayed below that level, but places like Fort Lauderdale did not.

In response, the district set up five temporary pumps, one in Miami Beach and four near the Miami River by the Miami International Airport. Its also storing extra water inside the C-4 drainage basin, a 900-acre just in case space used for massive floods.

Fort Lauderdales drainage system, which works alongside the districts pumps and canals, is designed to handle about 3 inches of rain in a day  or up to 7 inches in some of the newly redesigned spots.

What happened Wednesday, and whats expected Thursday night, is quite a bit higher than that.

This level of water may outpace what our stormwater system is capable of handling, Trantalis said.

Swamped roads and homes

The brief reprieve from the rainfall Thursday morning revealed the worst of the damage appeared to be concentrated in Hallandale Beach and Hollywood, which saw more than 19 inches of rain between Tuesday and Wednesday.

Broward Sheriffs Office Battalion Chief Michael B. Kane said his department received 174 calls for help from Hallandale Beach alone Wednesday evening, leading to 26 high-water rescues  some by boat.

We were very fortunate. The area of high-density calls was in a very concentrated area. We were able to keep up with all the calls, he said.

With a potential repeat event on the way Thursday evening, Kane warned drivers to stay off the road unless its an emergency.

I couldnt tell you how many roads we couldnt traverse because of all the stranded vehicles, he said.

Alim Sharif, 55, cleans debris from his home on Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Hallandale Beach, Florida. Sharifs home was inundated with 3 inches of rain after Wednesdays storm left his community flooded by heavy rain.

On Thursday afternoon, Peter Jelonk, 62, his wife, Patricia, 58, said this week brought the worst rain he and his wife have seen in the 24 years theyve called Hallandale Beach home.

When its heavy rain, it gets like this. Its a bad intersection, Jelonk said. Trucks could [only] drive through it in a single-file line.

Passing cars sent a wake toward the Jelonks house, visible in a high-water line of mud on the side of their home. Water had reached the sill of the doorway, but it was kept at bay by a towel against the doorframe.

Their neighbor, 55-year-old Alim Sharif, wasnt so lucky. After 3 inches of rain entered Sharifs home Wednesday, he and his family spent Thursday morning cleaning up the aftermath and were without internet.

Sharif and his family have lived in the home for 10 years. After three nasty floods at his house, mostly in his daughters room, hes selling it.

This is the end of it. Im moving, he said.

Sam Demarco makes his way through his wet living room after a heavy downpour flooded his home on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, in Hollywood, Florida.

While the rainfall still wasnt anywhere near levels seen in the April flood event in Fort Lauderdale last year, some scattered homes still saw floodwaters breach the front door.

At Sam Demarcos house in Hollywood, water seeped under his front door, and passing cars sent wakes that pushed the water even further inside.

We were kind of ambushed today, he said Wednesday evening.

At that time, Demarcos front yard was knee-deep in water. He had a pile of towels in the hallway to his bedroom to make sure the floodwater in his living room didnt reach it.

Demarcos home was flooded in April 2023, destroying all of the furniture at the front of his house. Since then, hes moved most of his furniture to the back of the home to prepare for weather like this weeks.

Im not giving up paradise for a little bad weather, Demarco said.

Sara Vilchez, 63, who lives at Royal Palm Mobile Home Park, reacts as she walks through her residence that was damaged by flooding on Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Hallandale Beach, Florida. Residents at the mobile home park are dealing with the aftermath of Wednesdays storm that left their community flooded.

Remnants of Wednesdays storms remained at the Royal Palm Mobile Home Park in Hallandale Beach as residents worked to clean out their homes Thursday morning.

Manuel Sarmiento, 78, and Sara Vilchez, 63, were hauling a wet mattress from Vilchezs home after water entered her place and damaged her wood flooring. The flooding stopped just short of her kitchen and dining area.

Now, Im going to be bedless. I have to throw everything out because its humid, she said in Spanish.

Manuel Sarmiento, 78, who lives at Royal Palm Mobile Home Park, wheels a wet mattress down his neighborhood after his community was flooded on Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Hallandale Beach, Florida. Residents at the mobile home park are dealing with the aftermath of Wednesdays storm that left their community flooded.

Inside her home, Vilchezs clothes and other belongings were atop her bed as she worked to clean what she could.

I didnt think itd be like this, she said.

In her 20 years living there, Vilchez said the only other time the flooding was this bad was four years ago.

I dont have anything left, she said as her dog, a Pomeranian named Pierro, barked in the background.

Guil Cardenas, 75, looks on from the entrance to her residence at Royal Palm Mobile Home Park on Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Hallandale Beach, Florida. Residents at the mobile home park are dealing with the aftermath of Wednesdays storm that left their community flooded.

Meanwhile, a few blocks over, Sarmientos sister Guil Cardenas, 75, was stuck in her home after water gushed onto her front porch and cracked her stairs. Inside her home, a brand new water heater is broken, and she was down to 14 bottles of water. Newspapers were strewn about to create traction on the floor to help avoid slipping and falling.

When asked if anyone had been by to help, she said: Nobody, nobody, nobody.

Stranded cars everywhere

In Miami-Dade, the bulk of the rain was dumped in North Miami  which saw more than 20 inches of rain over the last two days  and in Miami Beach, where nearly 14 inches accumulated.

That prompted about three dozen rescue calls from people trapped in homes or businesses by rising floodwaters, officials said.

Of those, most were in vehicles and a few were in businesses isolated by flooded streets, Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Chief Ray Jadallah said. Levine Cava also said some rescues were conducted in homes left isolated by floodwaters.

Jadallah said the department used converted military vehicles with wheels six feet off the ground to ferry people to higher ground during the rescues and that the crews were deployed in Northeast Dade again Thursday.

Unfortunately, what weve seen is vehicles that try to leave  they try to enter a congested area. Water sits just a couple of feet high and then next thing you know, water gets into the engine and kills it, he said.

Aerial view of flooded streets at Royal Palm Mobile Home Park on Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Hallandale Beach, Florida. Residents at the mobile home park are dealing with the aftermath of Wednesdays storm that left their community flooded.

As of Thursday morning, State Farm reported more than 300 vehicular flood claims from South Florida so far, said spokesman Michal Brower.

Majority of the auto claims are for flood damage, and number of claims reported could be expected to increase as rain is projected to continue today and tomorrow and additional drivers discover flood damage to vehicles, he wrote in a statement.

The flooding was so bad Wednesday evening that AAA suspended service overnight, although it had resumed operations in all but the most flood-prone places by mid-Thursday.

With flooded streets and driveways an ongoing concern, Miami-Dade County on Thursday opened its Metrorail garages for free parking for people wanting to get their vehicles to higher ground. The seven garages from Brownsville to South Miami will be open through 5 p.m. on Friday, the Department of Transportation and Public Works said Thursday afternoon.

While some of the hard-hit spots in Miami-Dade had dried up by midday Thursday, others without the benefit of dry ground, the sun or temporary pumps were still underwater.

Allapattah resident Marvin Morales isnt relying on government officials to fix the flooding in his neighborhood. On Thursday, June 13, 2024, his own pump was draining out the water that flooded his backyard in Miami. This isnt the only measure hes taken to fight the flooding. He built a concrete wall around his back porch two years ago. Before that, water would flood and reach his windows. The same wall saved him from home damage this year. Morales said commissioners come into this neighborhood to campaign, but they dont actually maintain the streets.

In Allapattah, resident Marvin Morales took matters into his own hands with a personal flood pump, which he used to drain floodwater from his backyard. That isnt the only measure hes taken to fight flooding. He built a concrete wall around his back porch two years ago, because before that water would flood and reach his windows. The wall saved his home from damage this year.

In North Miami, Robert Lees home was luckily high enough to escape the floods. But it was ringed with a moat that soaked his entire front yard and invaded the 52-year-olds garage, ruining his tools and paint.

There is nowhere to go cause we are so close to the ocean, Lee said.

Robert Lee, at right, and his next-door neighbor Robert Husted, at left, survey the floodwaters surrounding Lees home at Northeast 123rd Street and Northeast 11th Court in North Miami, Florida, on Thursday, June 13, 2024.

There is no temporary pump near Lees home, and the flooding hadnt died down Thursday. Lee said he hadnt seen anyone from the city checking on his neighborhood and said he had called several times about the flooding, to no avail. Lee said this is the second time he has experienced a flood like this, but he thinks this time it was worse.

This rain is giving no justice. It needs to stop, Lee said.

This article was updated with the correct time that free parking ends at Metrorail garages, which is 5 p.m. Friday.
Floodwaters, damaged cars and lots of crying: Calls coming in nonstop for tow-truck help

As many stranded drivers faced flash flooding, South Florida tow truck drivers have been receiving many pleas for help. People were hysterical, they were crying. It was a madhouse, one tow-truck manager reported.

A day after Wednesdays heavy rains, which set off flash flooding, tow truck companies say theyre still receiving dozens, if not hundreds, of calls. And the calls arent stopping: Theyre working round-the-clock to retrieve cars from the water, with several of them considered totaled.

Motorists were stuck everywhere, said Miguel Rivera, general manager of Monster Towing & Recovery in Fort Lauderdale. Its like a movie. Were backed up and more rain is coming today.

Theres still a backlog of calls for cars stuck on the side of the road.

John Ruiz, manager of J&S Towing and Transport Services in Fort Lauderdale, said his company towed more than 150 cars Wednesday. He described the calls as nonstop, since another 79 calls came Thursday morning. People were hysterical, he said. They were crying. It was a madhouse.

Theres not enough towing companies to cover all these cars, he said.

The National Weather Service in Miami shared via social media some video of submerged cars, and wrote, Now that the sun is up, the true shocking scope of the ongoing flooding is now being observed from the air.

As a flood watch remained in effect Thursday, Rivera said most of his calls for help were coming from the Fort Lauderdale area.

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Some cars on the side of the road got the brunt of the wakes created by passing cars going too fast  and then became disabled.

Thats because as cars zipped by, it created a wake for everyone else: People werent being nice, everyone was scared for themselves, damaging other peoples vehicles by trying to go fast. Theres still cars on the side of the road.

Much of his companys work Thursday has been centered in Hollywood, with Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood and Dania Beach not far behind.

Monster Towing & Recoverys Rivera said the tow company is backed up trying to tend to the callers. About 200 desperate calls came overnight for help.

Cars are underwater, people are trying to go around other people and they get stuck, he said. He anticipates about 80% of the cars he helped tow are totaled.

State Farm has received approximately 300 auto claims that has triggered torrential downpours and widespread flooding in Broward, Miami, Sarasota and Palm Beach counties since Tuesday, the company said in a statement.

Rivera said drivers were anxious about their cars being completely underwater submerged.

People call to save them, some cant even get out of their car cause the water is so high, he said. Theyre crying.

The need for help was so high that the Broward Sheriffs Office said Wednesday it also was receiving non-emergency calls, through 911, for disabled cars.

The Sheriffs Office was reminding the public that 911 is only to be used for true emergencies.  If you must travel outside and find yourself stranded, do not call 911. Find a safe place to shelter and call a tow truck company, if necessary.

Lisa J. Huriash can be reached at lhuriash@sunsentinel.com. Follow on X, formerly Twitter, @LisaHuriash
Florence, S.C. (WBTW)  Mayor-elect Lethonia Barnes is already gearing up to step into her new role.

In an interview with News13 Wednesday morning, Barnes reiterated her commitment to economic growth and crime reduction, which were key themes of her campaign.

Barnes plans to drive economic growth by attracting new businesses and revitalizing the downtown area.

Although economic advancement is important, Barnes top priority is implementing a comprehensive five-point crime plan.

The five-point crime plan includes a gun buy-back program and a camp for boys aged 12 to 18, that seeks to reduce crime and provide more opportunities for the youth.

Unity and collaboration with other political parties were also significant themes throughout Barnes campaign.

Tim Waters, the owner of a community grocery store in downtown Florence, highlighted this as a key reason he supported Barnes.

Her focus on working together with all parties to solve our communitys problems is why she was my top pick, Waters said.

Barnes expressed her readiness to work with the community to address various issues during her tenure. Barnes said one of her first actions as mayor will be to tackle crime in city neighborhoods.

She emphasized that having safer communities is her number one priority. Her crime plan includes creating a Community Action Team (CAT) to address neighborhood issues, initiating a gun buy-back program, and establishing a camp for boys aged 12 to 18. Additionally, she plans to evict businesses that harbor criminal activity.

Our youth must have more options than picking up a gun, Barnes stated.

Barnes will be uncontested in the general election in November.

* * *

Tomika Jackson joined News13 in April 2024 as a multimedia journalist. She started her journalism career in 2000 with previous stops at WALB TV10, CBS47 & WTOC11 in Savannah, Georgia. Tomika is a Georgia native and Valdosta State University graduate. Follow Tomika on X, formerly Twitter, and Instagram. You can read more of her work here.

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 WBTW.
The effort to move a proposed fuel storage and distribution facility from near Ormond Beach to another location has received substantial support from Florida's state budget.

The budget, which Gov. Ron DeSantis signed this week, includes "$10 million for the potential relocation of the proposed terminal in Ormond Beach," according to a Volusia County government news release.

Residents near the site and beyond have advocated for the county to stop the project over concerns such as personal safety. In February the County Council voted against a moratorium that would have stalled development in the heavy industrial zoning category; that is the zoning of most of the proposed site.

After that, developer Belvedere Terminals submitted a conceptual site plan to the county for review in February. The county provided comments on the plan in the same month. As of April 17, Belvedere Terminals had not responded to those comments, according to the county's webpage dedicated to the project.

The $10 million from the state could fund an alternative site in Volusia, Brevard or Flagler counties and would come from the Florida Department of Commerce, according to the budget.

The funds would be made available through an agreement between the department and one of those three counties. The funds could be used "for land acquisition and the construction of critical infrastructure necessary to support a facility, as well as other site improvements necessary for the development of the facility," according to the budget.

The county will apply for the funding if Belvedere Terminals decides to relocate the fuel terminal.

Volusia County is grateful to the Governor, the State Legislature, and the Volusia County Legislative Delegation for responding to our request for funding and their support in helping to solve the communitys concern and potentially relocate the fuel terminal to a more suitable location, County Manager George Recktenwald said in a prepared statement.

An image from Belvedere Terminals shows an example of what the firm's storage tanks look like.

County spokesman Michael Ryan said the county has reached out again to Belvedere Terminals about relocating the project now that the funding is available.

The state budget also includes $2.1 million to expand Volusia County's Emergency Operations Center in Daytona Beach.

"The expanded area will function as a dual-purpose saferoom during emergencies and a training area during non-emergency periods," according to the county. "The facility will be enhanced to include bunk space for 70 people and equipped with necessary restroom facilities."

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: State of Florida's annual budget could help move Ormond fuel terminal
The dramatic plunge in requests for vote-by-mail ballots proves two things: Voter suppression works, and its up to every Floridian to protect their access to the ballot box. Local elections supervisors are doing what they can, but Florida voters must look after themselves in overcoming these new hurdles.

Tampa Bay is facing a steep drop in mail ballot requests ahead of this years presidential election, thanks to changes in state law under Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and the GOP-led Legislature. The sponsors maintained the shift would make voter rolls more secure.

Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas counties have far fewer mail ballot requests for this years general election cycle than they did in the 2022 midterms, as the Tampa Bay Times Nina Moske reported recently. As of last week, fewer than 42,000 Pasco voters had requested mail-in ballots for the general election, compared to more than 124,400 requests two years ago.

Hillsborough reported fewer than 155,500 vote-by-mail requests for elections this year, compared to more than 335,600 requests for the midterms. Pinellas reported about 232,900 requests this year, compared to more than 332,800 requests in 2022.

These drop-offs of up to more than 50% illustrate the wrecking ball that lawmakers took to the electoral process. Counties scrubbed their existing ballot requests after the 2022 election because of a change in state law that requires voters to request a mail ballot each general election cycle every two years.

Critics complain that these and other voting changes particularly affect low-income voters and those with limited transportation options, groups that tend to support Democrats. Abdelilah Skhir, senior strategist at the ACLU of Florida, said the drop-off could mean lower turnout this year from marginalized groups and occasional voters, adding that the hardest hit would be the poor, elderly and those with limited mobility who already face higher barriers to getting to the polling place.

This all means extra work and extra initiative on the part of elections offices and voters alike. Vote-by-mail is convenient, secure and enormously popular across Tampa Bay; in the 2022 general elections, nearly half of Hillsborough, Pasco and Pinellas voters cast ballots by mail.

Registered voters can request a vote-by-mail ballot until 12 days before an election. With primary elections in August, county elections supervisors are scrambling to reach voters to update their registries. The Pasco Supervisor of Elections office has sent tens of thousands of postcards to voters whose requests were erased after 2022. Pinellas has sent more than 100,000 letters and emails reminding voters to re-request mail ballots. Hillsborough has sent hundreds of thousands of notices to voters in multiple waves. Elections officials are also writing newspaper columns, communicating on social media and speaking to civic groups. These are laudable efforts to expand voter participation that local supervisors should continue.

Voters should contact their county elections office to request a mail ballot or to check the status of their registration. This takes only a minute and many services are available online. Floridas new restrictions are a hassle, but mail voting is still reliable, easy and secure. Dont wait too long this election year before ensuring that your vote will count.

Where to request a mail-in ballot

Voters can request a mail ballot or check the status of their registration by contacting their local county elections office.

In Hillsborough, call 813-612-4180 or click here.

In Pasco, call 800-851-8754 or click here.

In Pinellas, call 727-464-8683 or click here.

Editorials are the institutional voice of the Tampa Bay Times. The members of the Editorial Board are Editor of Editorials Graham Brink, Sherri Day, Sebastian Dortch, John Hill, Jim Verhulst and Chairman and CEO Conan Gallaty. Follow @TBTimes_Opinion on Twitter for more opinion news.
Alan Gratz's children's book "Ban This Book" was published in 2017. Seven years later, his novel for kids ages 8 and older is at the center of a debate over book banning after a Florida school district last month took took the title literally and banned the book.

The Florida school district of Indian River County, home to the city of Vero Beach, last month voted to remove "Ban This Book" from its shelves. In removing the book, the school board overruled its own review committee, which had recommended that the school district retain the novel.

"Ban This Book" is about a schoolgirl who tries to check out her favorite book from her school library, E.L. Konigsburg's "From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler," only to find it's been removed due to a ban. She rebels by starting a secret banned book library  an aspect of the novel that the Florida school board objected to, with one member saying he believed the book's message was about how to "overtly subvert school boards."

"The thing they took objection to was calling out [school officials] in banning books. Now irony is dead." Gratz told CBS MoneyWatch in a phone call. He added wryly, "I guess if you call a book 'Ban This Book,' you are kind of asking for it."

Indian River County School District didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

Impact of book bans

Despite the ban, the incident is sparking renewed interest in his novel, Gratz said, although he won't know the ban's impact on sales until he receives a royalty statement later this year. Book bans typically harm sales, he added, and deters some schools from inviting authors to discuss their work with students.

"In a select few cases, it's true that a banned book equals more sales," Gratz said. "But for most authors that have books banned or challenged, their books disappear."

It's an issue that's impacting more books and authors, with the American Library Association (ALA) finding that the number of books targeted for censorship surged 65% in 2023 compared with a year earlier, reaching the highest number of titles ever documented by the group.

In all, about 4,240 books were targets of censorship efforts last year, with about half of those books written by or including people of color and those from LGBTQ+ communities, the ALA found.

Gratz said that when "Ban This Book" was published, the most frequently banned books were works from series such as "Harry Potter" or "Captain Underpants," with some critics objecting to the descriptions of witchcraft or attitudes toward authority.

Children's book authors often support themselves by visiting schools, which pay for travel and provide an honorarium to speak with students, Gratz said. But a ban can cause school officials to shy away from inviting authors onto school grounds for fear that they'll get into hot water or even lose their jobs.

"If their book isn't on the shelf at all, they aren't getting invited," Gratz said. "When authors of color and those who identify as LGBTQ+ aren't making money off their books, they have to stop writing and make money from other jobs, so we lose those voices."

Gratz noted that some of his other books  he's written 20 in all  have faced bans, but none have gotten the same amount of attention as "Ban This Book."

"The big theme of 'Ban This Book' is that nobody has a right to tell you what book you can or cannot read, except your parents," he said. "If the book is removed, then I can't let my daughter read that book  you've already chosen for me that my kid can't read it."

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Florida education panel decides former teacher who supported Black Lives Matter can reapply for her teaching license

A former Jacksonville, Florida, teacher who said she was fired for displaying a Black Lives Matter flag outside her high school classroom will be able to reapply for her teaching license, an attorney representing the teacher confirmed to CNN.

Attorney Mark Richard said a five-member panel of Floridas Education Practices Commission agreed with an administrative judges recommendation that Amy Donofrio receive a written reprimand after state officials accused the teacher of bringing her personal views into the classroom.

Black students matter, and they are worth fighting for 100 percent every single day, Donofrio said after the hearing. Teachers across the state feel that way too.

Donofrio said her goal remains to return to the classroom. Her contract with the school was not renewed after the 2020-21 school year.

Its a big day in Florida for teachers, Richard told CNN. You can stand up to a system thats been attacking teachers and prevail.

Thursdays hearing was prompted by administrative law judge Suzanne Van Wyks April recommendation that Donofrio receive a written reprimand for wearing and displaying face masks that read Robert E. Lee was a gang member as the district was in the process of renaming six schools.

Donofrio was a beloved and highly regarded high school teacher in Jacksonville, where for years she sought to empower students and advocate for racial justice.

Outside the room where she taught English to mostly Black students at the former Robert E. Lee High School she had placed a sign that read, Hate Has No Home Here, according to the April order by an administrative law judge.

Ms. Donofrio was a pillar for us, former student Diamond Wallace, 24, told CNN this week. She acted as a rock for us and she was more like a mom, like a second mom to all of us students.

At the start of the 2020 school year, in the aftermath of George Floyds murder at the hands of police in Minneapolis, Donofrio, who is White, put up a large Black Lives Matter banner outside her classroom. She had displayed a BLM sign and t-shirt in her classroom as early as 2018, according to findings in the administrative judges recommendation.

Administrators asked her to remove it, and expressed concern the display might violate school district policy. Donofrio refused. She said she believed the policy did not apply to the banner. On March 23, 2021, a school administrator removed the banner  about five months after she was first asked to bring it down. A day later Donofrio was reassigned to a work at a district warehouse.

School officials had also voiced concerns that Donofrio displayed Robert E. Lee face masks in her classroom  which they considered to be an expression of her personal view. At the time the school district was in the process of renaming six schools named for Confederate generals. Donofrio denied the masks  which were common during the pandemic  were on display. She said the logo I am not a gang member was a phrase students use as part of their advocacy of racial justice, according to the administrative judges findings.

Van Wyks order noted in part that the offense was not severe and there was no danger or harm to the public or students. The judge determined there was no evidence that Donofrio failed to distinguish between her personal views and those of the School, or District when she displayed the Black Lives Matter banner or that it went against district policy, according to her findings.

The five-person panel of the Education Practices Commission  a member of law enforcement, a parent and three teachers  had the final say and could have revoked her teaching license. The quasi-judicial state agency imposes discipline on teachers and school administrators.

Im not doing the thing that I was born to do, that I loved more than anything and Im having to fight to get it back, Donofrio, who taught at the school for nine years but has not been allowed back in a Florida classroom since 2021, told CNN earlier this week.

She added, School is supposed to be a safe place for students. Its about them.

Florida Education officials didnt respond to CNNs request for comment ahead of the hearing.

The decision on Donofrios future as a teacher came at a time when Floridas classrooms have become front lines in Gov. Ron DeSantis culture wars, which have taken aim at every aspect of education from formal classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity to what public schools teach about racism and American history to what books students can read and what bathrooms they can use.

Our school system should be about educating kids not indoctrinating kids, DeSantis told reporters in May 2023.

Im a passionate, quality teacher

In 2021, the BLM banner hanging over Donofrios classroom door, as well as her outspokenness on racial justice, became a political flash point across the state. Her advocacy of racial justice was brought up in discussions about whether the school should abandon its Confederate namesake. The school was renamed Riverside High School in June 2021.

Days before the banner was taken down, the district published a memo that stated employees are not permitted to display flags, banners or other signage representing a particular social cause or movement in a manner that may be interpreted as District speech, and identified Black Lives Matter as an expression of support for a social justice movement, according to the administrative judges recommended order.

Floridas former education commissioner called it an example of indoctrination and critical race theory in schools  even though the discipline was not part of Donofrios curriculum.

There was an entire classroom memorialized to Black Lives Matter, the former commissioner, Richard Corcoran, told reporters at the time. We made sure she was terminated.

Donofrio was not fired even as she defied multiple requests from school officials to take down the flag. She also challenged the district on its treatment of Black students and staff.

The Jacksonville, Florida, school formerly named Robert E. Lee High School is seen in this August 2020 file photo. - Edward Kerns II/MediaPunch/AP

Her students responded by collecting nearly 18,000 signatures on a public petition calling for her return.

I wasnt removed for anything having to do with my teaching, Donofrio said. No one has ever been able to say anything. Nor of my test scores, right, reflected anything but that Im a passionate, quality teacher.

Donofrio eventually sued Duval County Public Schools and its regional high school superintendent in federal court, alleging that the district retaliated against her for her protected speech, her complaints about discrimination, and, more broadly, her support of Black students lives, according to a complaint filed in April 2021. The school board paid $300,000 to settle the lawsuit in 2021, according to CNN affiliate WJXT.

I really thought that things were kind of moving forward and then suddenly, we turned human compassion into something thats controversial, Donofrio said.

Donofrios outspokenness on racial justice was not new. Even before she put out the Black Lives Matter flag, she had led a course for several years to empower Black students through professional development, college preparation and civic engagement.

For her to be able to make teenagers feel comfortable enough to come in her classroom and express the trauma that they have gone through voluntarily, thats a gift, said Wallaces mother, Renita Turner.

Donofrio and her students earned national attention, and the course eventually became the organization known as the EVAC Movement. Students traveled to the White House in 2016 and met with congressional leaders. Then-President Barack Obama met with them when he visited Jacksonville.

It is honestly the most beautiful thing I have ever been a part of, Donofrio recalled this week, referring to the EVAC movement and the attention it garnered for her students.

Teachers have gathered to swing back in the name of teaching honest history, teaching honestly to their students, said Donofrios lawyer, Mark Richard. We do not want to be caught in these culture wars.

Donofrio added, My students matter, teachers who care about students matter  I have no doubt that with or without me, theyre going to change the world.

CNNs Harmeet Kaur contributed to this report.

Correction: A previous version of this story misstated whom CNN reached out to for comment. It was the Florida Department of Education.

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GREENFIELD TOWNSHIP, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) A woman wanted out of Florida was taken into custody June 1 after attempting to bribe a state trooper.

Trooper Maguire states that he pulled over Andrea Mayze, 32, from Jacksonville Florida after she was following his vehicle closely, speeding, and unsafely passing his vehicle.

While questioning Mayze, Maguire became suspicious after she gave him a false name of Megan Shoults, a false date of birth, and said her license was out of North Carolina. Mayze was unable to answer questions about her address and Social Security Number, according to the report.

Maguire then searched the vehicle and found several baggies containing white powder, a marijuana cigarette, and several IDs with Mayzes name on them. He then confirmed she had an active arrest warrant out of Florida.

Mayze then complained of a medical issue, and was transported to Regional Hospital of Scranton. There, she tried to bribe Trooper Robert Mikulak with money to let her go because she did not want to go to jail for her existing warrant.

Mayze was discharged from the hospital and transported to the Lackawanna County Prison where authorities found more baggies with white substances and a pink crystal like substance.

Mayze was arraigned on misdemeanor charges of possession of a controlled substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, and false identification among other charges. She was taken to the county prison, unable to post $5,000 bail, with a preliminary hearing June 24.

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Former employee charged with fraud from Cookies & Dreams in Davenport, Bettendorf

Former employee charged with fraud from Cookies & Dreams in Davenport, Bettendorf

A 50-year-old Brooklyn, Iowa, woman faces felony charges after police allege she tried to evade income tax through fraudulent practice, court records say.

Lisa Hobart faces felony charges of ongoing criminal conduct  unlawful activity, first-degree theft, first-degree fraudulent practice, and evasion of Iowa income tax, according to court records.

On June 13, 2023, a victim reported fraud at Cookies & Dreams, 626 W. River Drive, Davenport, to Davenport Police.

Lisa Hobart (Scott County Jail)

Hobart, according to arrest affidavits, was hired as an employee with Cookies & Dreams. During her time working there, she hired two of her children. Neither of the children worked for Cookies & Dreams; however, they were paid for working, police allege in affidavits.

One was paid on 18 different occasions from March 17, 2023, to June 9, 2023, and was paid a total of $11,509. This is from stores in Ankeny, Bettendorf, and Coralville in Iowa, and Naperville and Oak Lawn in Illinois, according to affidavits.

After police reviewed that persons banking information, It was found all direct deposits were routed directly to (Hobarts) bank account. This account was solely occupied by (Hobart) and (Hobart) was receiving her checks in this account as well, according to affidavits.

Another child was paid on six occasions in the amount of $3,900 from the Naperville location from March 31, 2023, to June 9, 2023. Those paychecks were routed to a bank account with that childs name and date of birth. Police allege the email associated with this account is Hobarts and it has the same phone number Hobart gave as her personal phone number, affidavits show.

At Cookies & Dreams stores, police spoke with several workers who said the two never worked at any of the stores.

Hobart, police allege in affidavits, did willfully attempt to evade a tax imposed by the Division of Iowa State Income by not filing earnings in her name.

In affidavits, police allege Hobart did misappropriate funds trusted to her by her employer with the intent to permanently deprive her employer of funds over $10,000, and entered records for Cookies & Dreams she knew to be false.

Hobart, who was released on $10,000 bond from Scott County Jail, is set for a preliminary hearing June 13 in Scott County Court.

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Former Employees Sue SpaceX, Saying They Were Fired for Objecting to Elon Musk's "Grotesque Sexual Banter"

Eight former SpaceX employees have sued the company and its CEO Elon Musk, claiming they were illegally fired for raising concerns over rampant sexual harassment and gender discrimination.

"Musks conduct of interjecting this juvenile, grotesque sexual banter into the workplace had the wholly foreseeable and intentional result of encouraging other employees to engage in similar conduct," the lawsuit reads.

The news comes the same week as a scathing new Wall Street Journal report that revealed Musk had sex with a SpaceX college intern.

The employees behind the latest lawsuit penned an open letter, accusing Musk of failing to fulfill SpaceX's "No Asshole" and zero-tolerance sexual harassment policies.

Not long after, at least five of the letter's authors were fired, with SpaceX president Gwynne Shotwell accusing them of making other workers feel "uncomfortable, intimidated and bullied, and/or angry because the letter pressured them to sign onto something that did not reflect their views."

The lawsuit is the latest escalation, shedding light on a well-documented work culture at the space company that has been rife with unprofessional behavior. And it's not just SpaceX  Musk's other ventures, most notably Tesla, have been accused of similar things.

In 2021, former mission integration engineer Ashley Kosak published an essay, describing the company as being "so rife with sexism, the only remedy is for women to leave."

Kosak alleged that "countless men made sexual advances" towards her, touched her without her consent, and even showed up at her house. Even after she brought these incidents up with HR, "nothing was done."

Then, a month before the employees' open letter was published, Insider reported that the space company had paid off a flight attendant to silence her after she accused Musk of exposing himself to her and propositioning her for sex. SpaceX paid her $250,000, documents showed.

The incident clearly infuriated many at the company.

"Elons behavior in the public sphere is a frequent source of distraction and embarrassment for us, particularly in recent weeks," read the letter, which was signed by at least 400 employees.

Musk has made plenty of sexist comments himself over the years. In late 2021, he joked in a since-deleted tweet thread that degrees at his fictional university  named Texas Institute of Technology & Science to make a crude acronym joke  would be based on women's physical characteristics.

He has also been an outspoken opponent of gender expression, tweeting that "pronouns suck." He has accused senator Elizabeth Warren of reminding him of "my friends angry Mom" who "would just randomly yell at everyone for no reason." In March, he deleted a tweet in which he accused his ex-wives of being among "Reasons that Western Civilization died."

In short, the letter seems to be a pretty believable documentation of the kind of work culture you'd expect at a company run by the mercurial CEO.

Now, eight former employees who were involved in writing the 2022 letter have filed a lawsuit in a state court in California, alleging that SpaceX illegally fired them.

They also allege that other engineers commonly gave others "crude and demeaning names" in an "attempt at humor, often at the expense of women and LGTBQ+ individuals."

The complaint disclosed that a camera on a Falcon rocket was dubbed the "Upskirt Camera," referring to an angle that "views the bottom of the second stage."

The employees are seeking damages to make up for "lost wages, earnings, and other employee benefits, emotional distress."

It's the beginning of what will likely turn out to be a long and ugly court battle in the absence of a settlement.

More on Musk: Analyst Predicts Tesla Shareholders Are Going to Vote Down Elon Musk's Gigantic Pay Package This Week
Former Atlanta prosecutor Nathan Wade was in the middle of an interview with CNNs Kaitlan Collins when the news anchor asked about his relationship with Georgias District Attorney Fani Willis  and Wades own media team interrupted the moment. Wade and Willis relationship nearly derailed Georgias case against Donald Trump for interfering in the 2020 presidential election.

The exchange took place after Collins asked when exactly the relationship began, and Wade answered that theres been this effort to say that, OK, these exact dates are at issue and these exact dates are before he stopped, noting, Im getting signaled here. They asked to speak with him off mic and he left to talk privately with an advisor.

After he returned about 30 seconds later, Collins asked, Everything OK? to which Wade nodded and replied, Yeah. Collins then asked the question for a second time, and Wade insisted that questions about the relationship are just a distraction.

Watch the moment Nathan Wades team interrupted him mid-interview with @kaitlancollins, as the former Fulton County prosecutor was talking about his romantic relationship with D.A. Fani Willis. pic.twitter.com/BP5KTB5aUM  TheSourceCNN (@TheSourceCNN) June 13, 2024

It is not a relevant issue in this case, he added, and I think that we should be focusing on more of the facts and the indictment in the case.

Collins clarified that the question has relevance due to Wades previous statements that hes proud of the work the office did on the case. The question, she said, is did the relationship jeopardize that work that you did in this investigation?

Wade agreed that the pending issue the court of appeals faced is important, and said that we should allow them to take a step back and allow them to take the evidence that they have and do their work to make the decision.

Collins continued to push Wade, noting he testified to the timeline about when his relationship with Willis began and ended. It just wasnt completely clear, because before it said, before the indictment  which was Aug. 15, here in Atlanta  and then later, the answer was at the end of that year. And so I think that was the clarity people were seeking of when it started, and when it ended.

Wade reiterated that he wanted to allow the court to work through the issues before them and that he would avoid saying anything that could interfere with their decisions.

When asked if his relationship with Willis was a mistake, Wade answered, Absolutely not, reiterating that their conversation was a distraction.

He added, Its a tool to stop the train, to slow down the inevitable, which is the trial of the defendants named in the election interference case.

Wade also stated that he believes the Georgia trial against Trump will take place.

The former prosecutor joined the case on Nov. 1, 2021, which was also the same day he filed for divorce from his ex-wife, who had previously accused of him of using marital funds to entertain Willis.

Wade was ordered to resign from his position after Judge Scott McAfee concluded that Willis and Wades affair didnt meet the criteria of a conflict of interest. McAfee criticized Willis for unprofessional behavior and a tremendous lapse in judgment, stating that the relationship gave her office a significant appearance of impropriety.

Wade defended the relationship in May during an interview with Joy Reid. He told the MSNBC host, I needed to be clear that, when the relationship began, my then-wife was not in the home, she had moved to Texas, and we had been separated for a period of time.

We did not have a relationship. She knew and I knew, by agreement, that as soon as our youngest child graduated high school and matriculated into college, then we would then formally file the divorce, Wade said.

The post Former Georgia Prosecutors Consultant Interrupts CNN Interview During Question on DA Fani Willis Relationship Timeline | Video appeared first on TheWrap.
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD)  A 20-year-old man accused of stealing McDonalds customers credit card information has been sentenced in Kent Countys 17th Circuit Court.

Quanta Barnes, of Kentwood, received multiple sentences Thursday, which will run concurrently.

Not lovin it: Drive-thru crew stole patrons credit card info, deputies say

For carrying a concealed weapon, Barnes was sentenced to one year and 11 months to five years in prison, with credit for about a year served. For conducting a criminal enterprise and using a computer to commit a crime, he was sentenced to three years to 20 years for each, with credit for about a year served. Finally, for the illegal use of a financial transaction device, he was sentenced to one year and five months to four years, with credit for about nine months served.

Before the judge gave the sentences, Barnes addressed the court, asking for forgiveness.

I would like to start off by apologizing to my victims and my community. During my stay here, I had a lot of time to reflect on my actions and to have mental clarity, he said. Your honor, I am currently working on my GED and, more importantly, I am working on myself. I am grateful for the time, because I was clearly off track. I have made a bad decision, and the results have landed me incarcerated.

In 2023, multiple people  including Barnes, then 19  were charged, accused of using their status as workers at multiple Grand Rapids-area McDonalds to copy customers credit cards. They racked up more than $50,000 worth of fraudulent purchases, court documents say.

Larceny charges were also filed against Barnes that year. He was accused of robbing a West Michigan man of $60,000 while the mans wife was dying in a hospital.

Widowers bank account drained in far-reaching fraud case

Attorney Kristyna Nunzio, who is representing Barnes, described him on Thursday as a very intelligent young man who just fell into a group of friends that was not good for him.

He is ashamed of what hes done. He knows its wrong. He sincerely apologizes to the victims in the case, Nunzio said. He knows what its like to work hard for money, and he knows that he robbed people of that.

She emphasized that Barnes wants to turn his life around.

Im very hopeful that this court and no other court will ever see him again, because he has taken this to heart and he knows that he has hurt so many people during this, Nunzio said.

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PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  Neil Goldschmidt, Oregons former governor whose legacy in federal, statewide and local offices was later disgraced when it was revealed he repeatedly sexually abused a teen girl starting in the 1970s, has died. He was 83.

The Oregonian/OregonLive was the first to report Goldschmidts death from heart failure on Wednesday. His family confirmed his death to Nexstars KOIN in a statement.

Goldschmidt served as Portlands mayor from 1973 to 1979 after serving as a city commissioner since 1970, during which time the city transformed. It was also during this time as mayor he began raping a 14-year-old girl, which he later confessed to publicly in 2004 in a letter in the Oregonian, as Willamette Week prepared to publish its expose.

Goldschmidt became U.S. Secretary of Transportation in 1979 under President Jimmy Carters administration as a recess appointment until the end of Carters presidency. He returned to the political arena in 1985 to launch his gubernatorial candidacy, succeeding Republican Gov. Vic Atiyeh after winning the governors race in 1986, before leaving the office in 1991.

Climate protesters tackled on field, arrested at Congressional Baseball Game

In a statement to KOIN, U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden said: Neil Goldschmidts abuse of a young girl destroyed her life, a horrific act that should make any other discussion of his political career moot. The best response to this news would be to contribute to organizations dedicated to preventing sexual abuse such as the Oregon Association for the Treatment and Prevention for Sexual Abuse.

Goldschmidts portrait continued to hang in Portland City Hall until 2019, when it was stolen from the walls and burned by an activist.

Barbara Roberts, who served as Oregons governor from 1991-1995, spoke with KOIN about Goldschmidts impact on local politics.

He was a very memorable person. He was unique. Very, very smart, she said. I was on the school board out there and we had issues that we could cross paths on and talk about. Kids, and how we made the high schools healthier and safer and better for the kids. And so we always had things to talk about because we were both very political.

However, Roberts also said people cant ignore the decisions Goldschmidt made to repeatedly sexually abuse a teen girl.

It was shocking. It was upsetting. It was disillusioning. It changed how he was seen by thousands and thousands of people in Oregon who saw him as an incredible leader, she said.

In a statement to KOIN, Goldschmidts family called him a force of personality and the patriarch of our large, blended family.

Although he battled many health issues for years, he was actively engaged with family and friends in discussions about school, business, politics and wine until the day of his passing, the statement continued. We will deeply miss his presence in our lives and hope that those mourning his passing can remember the significant positive contributions he made to our community.

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TULSA, Okla.  The former Shawnee Tribe tribal administrator was ordered to serve six months in a federal prison and pay $88,000 in restitution after pleading guilty to stealing money from the tribe.

Jodi L. Hayes, 48, of Miami, pleaded guilty in 2023 to embezzlement and theft from Indian tribal organization. At her May 30 sentencing hearing she was ordered to report to the Bureau of Prison on July 10, court records show.

After the completion of her prison term, she will be on probation for three years, according to her plea agreement.

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A former finance director for the City of South Fulton is suing the city saying she was fired in retaliation for her actions as a whistleblower.

According to a lawsuit filed in Fulton County Superior Court, Karen Slaton-Dixon says the City of South Fulton fired her because she reported a number of financial irregularities.

Slaton-Dixon worked for the city from Dec. 1, 2021 until her termination on June 12, 2023.

The lawsuit filed by Slaton-Dixon says that her employment record showed that her reported performance was excellent, and she was not disciplined until she began engaging in protected activity under the Georgia Whistleblower Act.

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More specifically, the lawsuit says that Slaton-Dixon was cooperating with an investigation into financial improprieties at the City of South Fulton conducted by the Fulton County District Attorneys Office beginning in March 2023.

Slaton-Dixons lawsuit says the city was aware she was cooperating with the DAs Office investigation, and that she had shared concerns about financial impropriety in South Fulton with City Attorney Vincent Hyman.

In March 2023, Slaton-Dixon says the city made her fire an employee who reported procurement fraud at the city, and did so only after she vehemently objected to it.

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Slaton-Dixons lawsuit also says she reported improperly paid invoices by certain city departments, which she said violated the laws, rules and regulations, and reported this to Tami Sadler-Jones, then the interim city manager, and Don Toms, the assistant city manager.

She also said the Federal Bureau of Investigation had contacted her about more than half a million dollars going missing from the City of South Fulton Police Departments confiscated asset fund, prompting her to tell Sadler-Jones, Toms, Hyman and then-interim City Manager Sharon Subadan.

Slaton-Dixon said in her court filing that after reporting the missing $525,000 from the fund, she told Subadan about reported procurement fraud by the city.

The next month, Slaton-Dixon was fired by Subadan.

Due to her termination, Slaton-Dixon is suing the City of South Fulton alleging she was fired in retaliation for reporting financial fraud as a whistleblower and for cooperating with investigations into those claims of impropriety by county and federal officials.

Slaton-Dixon said the termination not only violated Georgias protections for whistleblowers but cost her wages, benefits and other remuneration as well as damaging her professional reputation and causing mental and emotional distress. In her lawsuit, Slaton-Dixon is requesting the city pay for attorneys fees, saying the city has acted in bad faith and been stubbornly litigious, causing her to have unnecessary trouble and expense.

As a result, shes requesting back pay and fringe benefits, as well as reinstatement or front pay, with prejudgment interest and compensatory damages to be decided by a jury, in addition to legal fees.

Channel 2 Action News has reached out to the City of South Fulton and the City of South Fulton Police Department for comment on the lawsuit, and allegations of missing funds, respectively.

In response to the lawsuit, the City of South Fultons Director of Public Affairs said The City of South Fulton had justified reason for separation of employment.

However, city officials would not comment on the allegations in Slaton-Dixons lawsuit, as far as the missing $525,000 from the police departments confiscated asset fund. The South Fulton Public Affairs Director said they would not provide comment as it was part of ongoing litigation.

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IN OTHER NEWS:
Carmen Amedori, a Carroll County Republican, served in the House of Delegates from 1998 to 2002. Photo by Bryan P. Sears.

Carmen Amedori, a Republican Carroll County delegate who was a staunch advocate for gun rights, died Sunday after a lengthy battle with chronic kidney disease. She was 68.

Amedori developed a reputation as a vocal conservative with a passion for criminal and juvenile justice issues. Retired Maryland Supreme Court Chief Judge Joseph Getty, who also represented Carroll County in the House and who served on the Judiciary Committee with Amedori, remembers her as very accomplished as a legislator.

She was extremely diligent in her work on the committee, especially having served as a district court commissioner prior to her service in the House of Delegates, Getty said. She was knowledgeable about real-life situations in criminal law.

Getty said he was not surprised by her accomplishments as a legislator. She had enough legal touch points that made her a very good member, he said.

Getty said Amedoris work did not stop when the legislative day ended.

I had young children, so I liked to get back to Manchester as much as I could. When I would come in to sit on the floor at 10 a.m., Carmen filled me in with all the background stories and topics and everything that was going on in the House, said Getty, adding that Amedoris network was very intense.

Amedori battled kidney disease over the last six years. Nicole Amedori said her mom kept the nature of the condition to herself until her health rapidly declined last weekend and she entered home hospice care. She died peacefully at her home in Westminster.

Amedori was born Nov. 25, 1955, in Baltimore, the fourth of five children to Carmine Mimi Mario Amedori, who opened a Highlandtown Tavern after retiring as a foreman for a Baltimore contractor, and Delores Grace Amedori (nee Perry), a homemaker.

Former Carroll County Republican Delegate Carmen Amedori. Photo courtesy Amedori family.

She went to Franklin High School in the Reisterstown area of Baltimore County and later attended Villa Julie College, now known as Stevenson University, where she earned a degree in paralegal studies in 1975. Following graduation, Amedori worked as a paralegal in family, criminal and real estate law until 1985.

It was then that she worked briefly as a journalist, first for the Baltimore Sun and later the Carroll County Times. She won numerous awards for her reporting.

In 1991, she took a job as District Court commissioner in Carroll County.

In 1994, she served as campaign manager for her husband Jerry F. Barnes in his successful campaign for Carroll County states attorney. She was elected to the House in 1998 and re-elected four years later.

Republicans, then as now, were in the minority in the legislature. Some of Amedoris former colleagues said the Carroll County lawmaker developed a reputation as a conservative firebrand, a bomb-thrower some nicknamed Carmen Armageddon.

Bobby Zirkin, the former chair of the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee, served with Amedori on the House Judiciary Committee in 2003 when it debated legislation to allow cannabis research and create an medicinal-use defense for people charged with possession.

We have legalized cannabis now, said Zirkin. We wouldnt have that without passing a medical cannabis program and we wouldnt have had medical cannabis without passing the Darrell Putnam Compassionate Use Act. And that wouldnt have passed without Carmen Amedoris vote.

The bill, sponsored in prior years by Del. Don Murphy (R-Baltimore County), had failed. Del. Joseph Vallario, then-chairman of Judiciary, opposed the bill on the grounds that the state should not pass laws that conflict with federal laws. Zirkin said Vallario had the votes to kill the bill, and Amedori, a rule-of-law Republican, was one of them.

So, were fighting, were debating, and Carmen is very quiet, and she was a no vote, said Zirkin. I mean, she had always been a strident no vote on that.

But Getty, who was on the committee at the time, voted for the bill, citing his mothers battle with cancer. When the roll call came to Amedori, she changed her mind and voted to move the bill out of committee.

As soon as she does this, the chairman slams his hand on a book or the desk, yelling and mumbling at the same time as only he can do, Zirkin said. You couldnt quite understand what he was saying, just picking up little words like marijuana, federal law. I think he may have used some profanity but Im not 100% sure. He just stands up and says, Were done, and walks out in the middle of the vote.

Soon after, lawmakers struck a compromise that did not legalize the drug but created the medicinal use defense. That was passed and signed into law by then-Gov. Robert Erhlich.

Her daughters Nicole and Kara described their mother as a force, with Kara saying it was because of things like that that her mother earned the Carmen Armageddon nickname.

Amedori also enjoyed reading and painting, Nicole said.

Two years into her second term, she was nominated for a spot on the Maryland Parole Commission by Ehrlich, and served on the commission until 2010.

She briefly ran as a lieutenant governor candidate in 2010 on a ticket opposing Ehrlich in the GOP primary, but later withdrew and encouraged Republicans to back Ehrlich.

Carmen Amedori amassed an enviable resume in public service over the course of her professional career, Ehrlich said in a post on Facebook. She was a stellar member of the Maryland General Assembly and Maryland Parole Commission. Most importantly, she was a good friend  steadfast political competitor  and reliable advocate for conservative causes from Annapolis to Washington. She will truly be missed.

Amedori is preceded in death by her former spouse Jerry Barnes, her parents, her sister Carol Ann Amedori Long and brothers Joseph Ricci Ricardo Amedori and John Patrick Amedori I.

Beside daughters Nicole, of Baltimore, and Kara, a Florida resident, she is survived her husand, Timothy Wade Headley, and by a sister, Mariea Amedori of Ocean Pines.

A memorial service for Amedori is planned for a later date.

The post Former state Delegate Carmen Amedori dies appeared first on Maryland Matters.
Former Trump adviser says he would love to see Trump pledge to pardon Hunter Biden

David Urban, who previously served as a campaign adviser to Donald Trump, suggested the former president pledge to pardon Hunter Biden after he was convicted Tuesday on federal gun charges.

Listen, what Id like to see happen is Id like to see President Trump come out with a statement saying, Look, if Hunter Biden commits to a program of sobriety, inpatient or maybe outpatient, shows up, keeps his sobriety, Ill pardon him, Urban said Wednesday on CNNs Erin Burnett OutFront.

Id love for President Trump to say that. It would be a magnanimous offer on his part, shows humanity and, and really flip the tables on the Democrats, he added.

Urban is a CNN commentator who previously served as a senior adviser to Trumps campaign in 2016. He has weighed in on the 2024 presidential election before, saying last year that the first GOP presidential primary debate was a complete train wreck.

Hunter Biden, the son of President Biden, was found guilty by a jury of Delaware residents Tuesday of three felony gun charges stemming from a gun purchase made six years ago. He faces a maximum of 25 years in prison and $750,000 in fines, but first-time offenders are rarely handed the maximum penalty.

The president said he would accept the outcome of his sons case, emphasizing his love and support for him in a statement following the verdict this week. He has reiterated that he would not pardon his son.

The White House on Wednesday did not rule out whether President Biden would commute the sentence of his son.

I havent spoken to the president about this since the verdict came out, and as we all know, the sentencing hasnt even been scheduled yet, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said about a possible commutation.

He was asked about a pardon, he was asked about the trial specifically and he answered it very clearly, very forthright. As we know, the sentencing hasnt even been scheduled yet. I dont have anything beyond what the president said. Hes been very clear about this, she added.

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Fort Worth man dies in hospital after random shooting outside his workplace, police say

A Fort Worth man died in the hospital this week after he was shot in what police believe was a random attack while he walking to his car outside his workplace.

Lee Douglas, 36, had been hospitalized since the shooting on May 30. He died Tuesday at John Peter Smith Hospital.

A suspect, 18-year-old Decan Medeiros, of Kettle Falls, Washington, was initially arrested May 31 on four counts of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. Medeiros was booked Thursday on a murder charge after Douglas death, according to Fort Worth City Jail records.

This appears to be a random shooting from a person not from Texas who was just passing through, a Fort Worth police spokesperson said in an email Thursday.

Douglas, who worked at Refresco Beverages at 15200 Trinity Blvd., was walking to his car when he was shot about 2:30 a.m. He was shot first in the back then again in the face after he fell to the ground, according to his family and an autopsy. He died of complications from the gunshot wounds, according to the Tarrant County Medical Examiners Office.

A police report lists a second 36-year-old man as an additional victim in the case. Its unclear whether he was also shot.

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While he was walking toward his car after clocking out for a break, Douglas noticed Medeiros but assumed he might have been another employee, his family wrote on a GoFundMe page. As Douglas walked past, the gunman shot him in the back, the family said. When he fell, Douglas turned over and put his hands up, and the suspect shot him a second time in the mouth, where a bullet became lodged, the family wrote.

Lee is a father to a total of 5 children: 3 girls and 2 boys, the family wrote. His oldest daughter just graduated high school and is heading off to the Navy soon. He also has a 13-year-old daughter and 10-year-old son who are in school, and a 2-year-old daughter and 1-year-old son.

The GoFundMe, initially started for medical expenses, is now raising donations for funeral expenses.
The future success of the Metroplex depends on regional partners working collaboratively especially when it comes to high speed rail, Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker said in a statement released Thursday.

Parkers comments came a day after the Dallas City Council unanimously passed a resolution withdrawing support for an above ground high speed rail connection between Dallas and Fort Worth.

The connection would be the last leg of a route that could transport passengers from Houston to the Metroplex in as little as 90-minutes.

Dallas has expressed concerns that a proposed route would derail plans to renovate the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, and is asking for an economic impact study before lending support to the project.

Dallas-based Hunt Realty Investments, which owns the Reunion Tower, has also expressed concerns about the projects impact on a $5 billion renovation of 22 acres around the tower announced in 2023.

The proposed route would travel above ground next to the existing railroad tracks before turning west just north of the Reunion Tower and running parallel the Interstate 30, according to a presentation at the May 13 meeting of the North-Central Texas Council of Governments Regional Transportation Council.

However, the economic feasibility of the project must take into consideration the impact on the entire route, not just Dallas, Parker said in her statement.

This is a regional decision that will require the stakeholders and elected officials to collaborate and solve complex problems for the advancement of our North Texas Region, she said.

Parker noted the Metroplex is on track to become the third largest population center in the United States by 2030 while adding that a lot of that growth has centered in the regions western half.

As leaders, it is our responsibility to act with the visionary leadership needed for the soon-to-be third largest region in the nation, she said.
Foul play suspected in death after unidentified body found in North Texas, police say

Azle police are investigating after a body was found in the back yard of a home in the 100 block of Ty Lane.

Foul play is suspected in the unidentified persons death, police said in a news release.

The body was found about 4:20 p.m. Wednesday.

The Texas Rangers are assisting with the investigation.

The Tarrant County Medical Examiners Office also responded to the scene and will work to identify the person who died and determine the cause and manner of death.

Azle police asked that anyone with information contact them at 817-444.3221.

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Four men who state prosecutors say wounded and killed 23 people outside a Northwest Miami-Dade banquet hall on Memorial Day Weekend three years ago, were taken into custody during early Thursday morning raids across the county and have been charged with the crimes.

In matching 9-page arrest warrants for the suspected gunmen, Miami-Dade state prosecutors and police investigators called the shootings by members of the Bricks retaliatory. They said the focus of the 99 spent shell casings from semi-automatic gunfire that were recovered were aimed primarily at a rap artist named Foepack, whose music was showcased that evening and who belonged to the rival Back Blues out of Opa-locka.

An image of the scene outside the El Mula Banquet Hall showing the 99 shell casings littered around the parking lot. These four arrests come three years after the tragic El Mula Banquet Hall shooting on Memorial Day 2021, which resulted in three fatalities and 20 injuries.

Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle, during a Thursday afternoon press conference and with the county mayor at her side, said the brazen attack that left three people dead and 20 others injured outside the El Mula banquet hall was not a random act of violence.

It was a planned assault targeting performers and attendees, said the state attorney. It was a completely senseless act of violence and retaliation.

Miami-Dade County Mayor Levine Cava, left, gives her comments regarding the arrest of four individuals linked to the mass shooting at El Mula Banquet Hall with State Attorney, Katherine Fernandez Rundle, right. These arrests come three years after the tragic shooting on Memorial Day 2021, which resulted in three fatalities and 20 injuries.

Arrested and charged with three counts of first-degree murder, 20 counts of first-degree attempted murder and a single count of conspiracy to commit murder were Allen Gregory Chambers Jr., 30, Willie Zavon Hill, 27, Jacarree Brian Green, 30 and Eugene Anthony Holmes, 22.

Hill was also charged with evidence tampering. Prosecutors say he dumped a white Pathfinder in a canal, after it was publicly identified by police as a vehicle used in the shootings. Prosecutors have not said if they will seek death penalties for the four men. First-degree murder cases are ineligible for bond in Florida.

The warrant was authorized by Assistant Miami-Dade state prosecutor Khalil Quinan and lead Miami-Dade Police investigator Alexandra Turnes. It wasnt immediately known if any of the shooting suspects had retained attorneys.

Prosecutors say rap video glorified shootings

The mass shooting at the El Mula banquet hall in Northwest Miami-Dade - of one of the worst in decades in South Florida - shocked the community and had law enforcement scrambling during a string of high-profile shootings throughout Miami-Dade that police believed to be retaliatory attacks involving rival gangs.

That same weekend a person was killed and six others injured during a shooting at a rented party space in the popular Wynwood arts district. And a few months earlier a rapper named Wavy Navy Pooh was shot and killed while driving in Kendall, in an ambush police believed could be connected to the Opa-locka gang violence.

The four arrest warrants also claim that some of the suspected shooters took part in a rap video released on YouTube called The Pull Up. At an earlier trial related to the shooting, prosecutors claimed the video glorified the incident. It was also used as evidence to help secure the only conviction associated with the shooting, so far.

Last September, jurors convicted a 20-year-old admitted lookout named Devonte Barnes of several counts of second-degree murder and second-degree attempted murder for the shooting. He was sentenced to life in prison.

Davonte Barnes, the admitted lookout at the mass shooting of 23 people at Northwest Miami-Dades El Mula banquet hall, was the only person charged in the crime, until Thursdays arrests.

Detectives claimed Barnes told them during an interview that the shooting stemmed from a fight between senior members of opposing Opa-locka gangs. He said after a meeting with several associates near his home, a decision was made to take out Antonio Foepack Jones, a local rapper whose music was released during the El Mula party.

Barnes said the shooting stemmed from a long feud between gang member Chambers, also known as Young Savage, and Foepack. But, Barnes said, he was under the belief that Foepack would be taken to a secluded location and shot, not that the group would open fire as dozens of people were leaving the banquet hall.

Prosecutors believe that several members of The Bricks pulled into the parking lot at El Mula, 7630 NW 186th St., just before the show ended around midnight and opened fire with high-powered rifles as patrons were leaving. The arrest warrants say the gunfire came from occupants of three vehicles, a white Nissan Pathfinder, a black Nissan Altima and a black Cadillac.

The scene captured on surveillance video as the gunfire erupted was horrific, with dozens of people leaving the party diving for cover between cars and smoke rising from the blasts. Killed in the gunfire were outside El Mula were Desmond Owens and Clayton Dillard III, both 26, and Shankquia Lechelle Peterson, 32.

A suspected shooter who got away

At one point during Thursdays press conference Fernandez Rundle admitted to erring when she said prosecutors believe they now had all the shooters in custody. Thats because the first person taken into custody - not long after the shooting - was set free after an unforced error by the state attorneys office.

Warneric Anthony Buckner - who has been jailed for the past year as the suspected killer of a young 6-year-old girl known as the Tik Tok Princess, as she left a birthday party - was freed shortly after being charged with the El Mula shootings. Prosecutors determined detectives made a mistake during Buckners interrogation because he had invoked his right to counsel.

One of the prosecutors who wrote a memo to the to the judge saying Buckners statement could be subject to suppression, was Michael Von Zamft, a former senior prosecutor who earlier this year was removed from a high profile murder case by a judge who took issue with phone calls he made to an alleged jailhouse snitch.

Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Andrea Wolfson removed Von Zamft from the re-sentencing of convicted killer and John Doe gang leader Corey Smith. Von Zamft resigned from the state attorneys office not long after his removal from the case.

At Thursdays press conference, Fernandez Rundle said others who may have taken part in the crime will eventually be taken into custody.

If anyone else is involved, they will be charged, she said.
(Bloomberg) -- South Africas National Freedom Party said it has agreed to cooperate with three bigger rivals to form a government in the eastern KwaZulu-Natal province, a deal that would effectively lock out a new party led by former President Jacob Zuma, which won the most support in the region in last months elections.

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The NFP had agreed to work with the African National Congress, the Inkatha Freedom Party and the Democratic Alliance in KwaZulu-Natal, which is Zumas home province, according to its president, Ivan Barnes.

The NFP supports and subscribes to the formation of the government of national unity at the national level, and the government of provincial unity in KwaZulu-Natal, he told a briefing on Thursday. We are encouraged by the level of engagement of all the political parties, such as the IFP, ANC, the DA and ourselves.

Zumas uMkhonto weSizwe Party got 45% of the votes in KwaZula-Natal in the May 29 election, but the NFP, IFP, ANC and DA jointly secured control of 41 of the 80 seats in the provincial legislature.

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France is descending into chaos  and Macron is no latter day De Gaulle ready to save it

Emmanuel Macrons decision to call an election that he is almost certain to lose has blown apart his own party, his presidency and perhaps his countrys political system.

To paraphrase Marshal Bosquets observation on the charge of the Light Brigade: Cest magnifique, mais ce nest pas la politique.

There is a spectre haunting France: the revenge of Vichy on the Resistance. It was to forestall the revival of the authoritarian regime of Marshal Petain that Charles de Gaulle founded the Fifth Republic in 1958.

Macron has done exactly what De Gaulle would have done, a leading British historian of France told me this week, by forcing the country to choose its destiny: does it want to be a liberal democracy or not?

But the circumstances for this experiment are about as unpropitious as possible. With just a fortnights campaigning until the first round of voting on June 30, the only party that is united is the one Macron wants to keep out of power at all costs: the hard Right National Rally (RN).

Polls suggest that after the second round on July 7, Marine Le Pens party will triple their seats in the National Assembly, but may still fall short of the 289 needed for a majority.

Yet if her rivals across the political spectrum continue their internecine feuds, Le Pens lead is bound to grow.

Within days of Macrons dramatic announcement, after his defeat in last weekends European elections, French politics descended into chaos.

The Macronistes are at Macrons throat, openly accusing him of hubris. Some want the President to stay out of the election, lest he find himself in cohabitation with those he had just denounced as enemies of the Republic.

Meanwhile the centre-Right Republicans are hopelessly split, after their leader, Eric Ciotti, put out feelers to Le Pen and was promptly sacked by his own party. Macron accused him of a pact with the devil, but Ciotti has refused to accept his dismissal. A Republican collapse benefits Le Pen.

Further to the Right, Marine Le Pens even more hardline niece, Marion Marechal, has just left Reconquete (Reconquest), the anti-Muslim party founded by the maverick journalist Eric Zemmour. But Marechal also refuses to join Le Pen, whom she dismisses as a demagogue. Reconquest appears to be imploding and its voters, too, will gravitate to the RN.

On the equally fissiparous Left, there is an attempt to recreate the anti-fascist Popular Front of the 1930s. This quest for unity is vitiated by the doyen of the far-Left, Jean Luc Melenchon, 72, who refuses to yield to the more moderate rising star, Raphael Glucksmann, 40.

This son of the philosopher Andre Glucksmann wants the Left to get behind Macron, in order to see off Le Pen. But they resist his charismatic leadership because he defends Israel and Ukraine against, respectively, apologists for Hamas and Putin.

Macron has defended his decision robustly, acknowledging the anger of his compatriots, but insisting that even if Le Pen and Barbella triumph, he will not resign.

The next three weeks will witness France plunged into its greatest postwar crisis. It will be no surprise if political passions spill out onto the streets and we hear echoes of the bloodthirsty revolutionary Jean-Paul Marat: Man has the right to deal with his oppressors by devouring their palpitating hearts.

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Following a D-Day memorial ceremony on June 6, French president Emmanuel Macron announced that France would furnish Ukraine with Mirage 2000-5 multi-role jet fighters by the end of the year, and train Ukrainian pilots how to operate them in France. Training of pilots and maintainers on French soil was due to begin within days, he said.

This will almost certainly involve a transfer of munitionsparticularly, the MICA air-to-air missileas the Mirage 2000-5 isnt compatible with non-French weapons. It is particularly incompatible with the common AIM-120 and Meteor medium-long-range air-to-air missiles.

Its an overall big deal for Ukraine, given how expensive and complicated jet fighters are. But some question whether the Mirages are sufficiently advantageous given the costs of bringing them into service.

Like the F-16B/Cs that Ukraine is inducting into service, the Mirage 2000 is an agile fourth-generation jet fightercutting-edge when it debuted in the 1980s, but lacking in long-range radar and weapons by contemporary standards.

SAM YEH - Getty Images

The Mirage 2000-5F jets owned by France are second-generation (early-1990s era) upgrades of original Mirage 2000C single-seat fighters. While the 2000-5F is roughly on par with the old (but modestly upgraded) F-16 jets that Ukraine is receiving, it lacks the latters ground attack and AIM-120 air-to-air missile capabilities. That incompatibility, the smaller numbers available, and lack of ongoing production hasat least, until recentlymuted Ukrainian interest in adopting Mirage 2000s.

British air power analyst Justin Bronk stated on social media that the Mirage 2000-5, limited to MICA air-to-air [missile], lacks sufficient range to be effective against Russian fighters/strikers operating behind the very lethal Russian Surface-to-Air-Missile network. Hence, I dont think its currently worth the Ukrainian resources required to get it operational in there.



However, the Ukrainian Air Forces need to make back lossestotaling roughly 75 combat aircraft after two years of high-intensity warfaremay have changed minds despite prior lukewarm enthusiasm. Mirage 2000s might also help shoot down Russian cruise missiles and drones assailing Ukrainian cities.

How many Mirage 2000-5s are there to give Ukraine?

Macron declined to specify a definitive number of Mirages with which France would furnish Ukraine. He also declined to list names of the partner countries involved, arguing that it would be more effective to maintain the secrecy of such details. However, the partner countries bit strongly implies (without confirming) the involvement of one or more international partners in a Mirage 2000-5 transfertwo particularly likely candidates being Greece and Qatar.

SEBASTIEN BOZON - Getty Images

Frances own aerospace force, l'Armee de l'Air et de l'Espace, originally procured 124 Mirage 2000C single-seat fighters. In the 1990s, they upgraded 37 to the improved Mirage-2000-5F model. Of those aircraft, records show that eight were lost in accidents between 1999 and 2022. Today, Flight Globals World Air Forces 2024 counts 26 Mirage 2000-5Fs still in service, all under the Fighter Squadron 1/2 Cigognes (Stork) at Sauveur Air Base near Luxeuil. (The missing 3 may have been cannibalized for spare parts.)



More capable Dassault Rafales will replace the Mirage 2000-5Fs by around 2029, as is suggested by a recent order of 40 more Rafales. So, it seems likely that Macron has decided to speed up the retirement of at least some 2000-5Fs (one retired French officer speculates just 6 to 12) to enable transfer to Ukraine.

While export model Mirage 2000-5s support various precision ground attack weapons, Frances 2000-5Fs are only armed for air-to-air combat, for which theyre uniquely equipped with AIDA optical/infrared sensor pods adapted from the Rafale.

36 two-seat Mirage 2000Ds are instead configured for strike missionsand those are slated to serve in the 2030s. One report suggests, however, that Dassault will have enough time to integrate support for SCALP cruise missiles onto donated Mirages by the time theyre transferred late in 2024.

Frances s single-seat Mirages have been busy, though. On March 9 of this year, two Mirage 2000-5Fs scored the French air forces first air-to-air kill since World War IIdowning two Shahed-136 kamikaze drones launched by Houthi rebels in Yemen at the French air defense frigate Alsace. (Russia has also launched thousands of Shahed-136s at Ukraine.) 1/2 Squadron also maintains at least two Mirage 2000-5Fs on standby to protect Paris, and three in Djibouti to defend the French military base there.

To get more mileage from the overhead costs of Ukraine integrating a new aircraft type, France may seek to buy back additional Mirage 2000s from export customers.

Notably, Indonesia abruptly canceled a $790 million purchase of Qatars 12 Mirage 2000-5EDA jets in February, which France could try to buy back on Ukraines behalf. These jets reportedly integrated air-to-ground weapons, including 50 Black Pearl (a.k.a. Apache) runway cratering cruise missiles closely related to the SCALP cruise missiles France has already given Ukraine.

LOUISA GOULIAMAKI - Getty Images

Meanwhile, Greeces Hellenic Air Force operates 24 more advanced Mirage 2000-5 Mk2 fighters in its 331st Theseus Squadron at Tanagra Airbase. And its sister unit, 332nd Hawk squadron, recently exchanged its less-upgraded Mirage 2000EGMs and two-seat BGMs for RafalesGreece has been exploring the possible sale of 18 of those older Mirages to India or Cypress. As Greece has also provided military aid to Ukraine, perhaps Mirages of either subtype could find their way to Ukraine.



ARIS MESSINIS - Getty Images

Other export customers include Egypt, India, Peru, Taiwan, and the United Arab Emirates. But these states may be reluctant to anger Russia by authorizing a transfer (at least publicly), and/or face pressing security threats.

Another way to build on Ukraines Mirage acquisition is for France to eventually donate two-seat Mirage 2000D strike planesthough those are currently slated to continue service into the 2030s.

Ukraines Beyond-Visual Range Challenge

The Mirage 2000 is highly agile, with an impressive instantaneous turn rate, and excels at within-visual range (WVR) dogfighting.

But over the skies of Ukraine, WVR combat is rare, and beyond visual range (BVR) missiles, radars, and electronic self-defense prevail.

Though the Ukrainian Air Force (the PSU) has remarkably survived two years battling Russias far more advanced and numerous air arms, its 1980s-era Su-27 Flanker and MiG-29 Fulcrum fighters currently have limited ability to inflict losses on Russias newer warplanes (Su-30SM and Su-35S Flanker fighters, Su-34 Fullback fighter-bombers, and modernized MiG-31BM Foxhound interceptors) due to the inferior range of their missiles and radars.

Thats a problem, because Russia has increased use of standoff-range UMPK glide bombs released from beyond range of Ukraines ground-based air defenses (except for the occasional surprise ambush) since 2023. Despite poor accuracy, their transparent numbers and explosive power are hitting Ukraines frontline troops hard. So, the PSU needs air-to-air capabilities that put Russian glide bombers at risk in their safe zone.

But in air-too-air combat, Russian fighter pilots lean on their technical advantages by engaging Ukrainian aircraft at maximum range with radar-guided fire-and-forget air-to-air missilesnotably, the R-77-1 and the rarer hypersonic R-37M (which, in theory, has a range of up to 250 miles). Such air-to-air missiles with built-in active radar seekers are broadly codenamed Fox 3 by fighter pilots.

By contrast, Ukraines Soviet-vintage MiG-29 and Su-27 jets rely on R-27 semi-active radar-guided missiles for BVR combat, with a max range of 44-62 miles. These are Fox 1 missiles that require the launching aircraft to keep its nose-mounted radar trained on the target until the missile hits.

Libkos - Getty Images

So, Russian pilots can launch an R-77-1 missiles from further away and then race off, knowing that their missiles built-in seeker may continue homing on target. Meanwhile, opposing Ukrainian pilots must choose between abandoning their attack to evade, or charging after Russian jets in the hopes of sustaining a radar lock despite the Fox 3 heading straight towards them. Its not much of a choice.

Ukraine thus needs its new Western fighters to level the field in beyond-visual-range combat by introducing both more powerful radar and Fox-3-class missiles that at least match the R-77-1 in range. Those will also enable engaging Russian glide-bombing jets without venturing too far into Russias ground-based air defense zone.

The Mirage 2000-5 and its MICA missile partially addresses these challenges.

Can Mirages with MICA missiles defeat Russian air power?

The Mirage 2000-5F is primarily built to employ the medium-range MICA missile, which weighs 247 pounds and included a 26-pound fragmentation warhead. A Mirage can carry up to six, and launch four simultaneously at different targets using its RDY multi-beam radar.

Getty Images

MICAs can attain peak velocities of Mach 4, and use thrust-vectoring motors that can tilt their engine nozzles to execute tight turns equivalent to 50 Gs. The Ukrainian Navys future flagshipthe Turkish-built corvette Ivan Mazepa,will also be armed with the surface-MICA-VL variant.

MICA missiles are priced at 1.5 million each, and come in two air-launched variants: one with an active KU-band radar (MICA-RF) and another with an infrared homing seeker (MICA-IR). For long-range warfare (firing modes 1 or 2), these initially soar towards the predicted position of the target using inertial navigation, and possibly receive course updates via datalink from the launching fighter. However, as they close range, they switch to their own onboard seeker to complete the intercept. Thus, MICA-RF is a Fox 3 missile, while MICA-IR is an unusually long-range heat-seeker (Fox 2).

The MICA-IR can also do double-duty as a short-range weapon (thanks to its minimum range of 500 meters), and can engage enemies via a helmet-mounted sight even when the Mirages nose isn't pointing at the target.

David Monniaux (CCA-SA3) - Wikimedia Commons

However, MICA-RFs maximum range of 50 miles still falls short of the Russian R-77-1s 68 miles. So, while MICA can do fire-and-forget shots, Russian fighters will still be able to shoot first unless taken by surprise in a head-to-head.

Admittedly, the infrared-guided MICA-IR offers a unique option for stealthy attacks out to 37 miles, as IR-guided missiles dont trigger a targeted aircrafts Radar Warning Receiver. Though MICA-IRs seeker is unlikely to acquire its target at maximum range, the missile is capable of lock-on after launch.

A fighters on-board radar is as important as its weapons in BVR combat, though both Russia and Ukraine extensively leverage ground-based radars for air combat as well.

The 2000-5F uses the RDY X-Band doppler radar with a mechanically rotating flat-panel antenna that scans a 60-degree arc. It reportedly has a max range of 70-80 miles, though a 1998 report describes a specialized very-long-range mode effective out to 92 miles.

Overall, this performance is better than the radars on Ukraines Soviet jets, and possibly even the APG-66(V)2A on Ukraines F-16s. However, it falls short of those on modern Russian fighters like the Su-35Ss powerful Irbis-E radar, which has a reported range of 217-250-miles for detecting F-16-like aircraft with a focused scan.

Thus, Ukrainian F-16 or Mirage pilots would have to implement complex tactics leveraging electronic warfare, terrain masking, ground-based radars, and ground-based air defenses to temporarily/locally undermine Russias sensor-based advantages.

The Mirage 2000-5F does include a NATO standard Link 16 datalink, which should facilitate teaming up with F-16s, Western ground-based air defenses, and the GlobalEye airborne early warning radar plane Sweden plans to give Ukraine.

Could Ukraine improve its Mirage 2000s?

Notably, manufacturer MBDA will begin delivering new MICA-NG missiles with additional stored propellant made possible by miniaturization of electronics in 2026. That, combined with a new dual pulse motor, doubles MICA-NGs range to 100 miles. It will come in both active AESA radar- and infrared-imaging seeker variantsboth of which represent higher-resolution and countermeasure-resistant improvements over prior MICA seekers.

That implies a major leap in effectiveness, but not for two years. And even then, Ukraine might have to wait in line, given demand from France, Greece, and (possibly) India.

Furthermore, fully leveraging MICA-NGs 100-mile range would require an upgraded radar that can see further. Greece and the UAEs Mirages use the newer RDY-2 radar with 15% greater range (allegedly up to 87 miles for fighter-sized targets), synthetic aperture ground scanning, and tracking capabilities. So, that is droppable into a Mirage-2000but again, thats not on the base model France owns.

Likewise, support for various precision air-to-surface weapons and pods developed for export Mirages could be retrofitted into 2000-5Fs given to Ukrainebut how quickly and cheaply is unclear.

India has modified its Mirage 2000s to use Soviet R-73 short-range air-to-air missiles and American Paveway laser-guided bombs (used successfully in the 1999 Kargil war against Pakistani bunkers). Ukraine has already extensively modified its Soviet jets to use Western weapons, and may modify Mirages it acquires too.

A quick guide to the Mirage 2000 and its many variants

aviation-images.com - Getty Images

The Mirage 2000 is the ultimate member of an illustrious family of delta-wing supersonic jet fighters by Dassault Aviation. The line began with the Mirage III, which first flew in 1956 and saw intense use in Cold War air battles.

The 2000 originated from a Delta 1000 project that began in 1972 as an affordable and more versatile complement to an ambitious twin-engine G8 with swing wings. The pricy G8 got axed in 1975, leaving the Mirage 2000 to enter French Air Force service in 1983. Factories at Argenteuil, Martignas and Bordeaux would ultimately build 601 single- and two-seat Mirage 2000s, just over half (310) of which were for the French military and the remainder of which were for export customers.

Table by author - Wikimedia Commons

Roughly one-sixth (97 or 98) have been lost over four decades of operational serviceall accidents, save for one Mirage 2000N, which was downed by a Serbian Igla man-portable missile.

The Mirage 2000 evolved similarly to the contemporary American F-16 fighterboth were short-range, air-refueling capable and versatile single-engine tactical fighters leveraging then-new, fly-by-wire controls to compensate for an aerodynamically unstable but highly maneuverable airframe. Both also combined low weight with a single powerful turbofan engine to achieve high speeds or lug heavy payloads.

Specifically, the 8.25-ton Mirage 2000C could accelerate up to Mach 2.2 at high altitude, and carry nearly 7 tons of external stores. But unlike F-16s, Frances single-seat Mirage 2000Cs were delivered without support for precision-guided ground-attack weapons. Those were reserved for two-seat Mirage 2000D and 2000N strike variants. There were also Mirage 2000B two-seat trainers.

Table by author - Wikimedia Commons

The 2000Cs avionics included the Thomson RDI or RDM doppler radar (with look-down, shoot-down capability) and a self-defense suite including a SABRE jamming system and SERVAL radar warning receiver. For weapons, there was the powerful built-in DEFA-554 30-millimeter twin revolver cannon, the Magic 550 short-range air-to-air missile, and the Super 530L medium-range missile.

In the 1990s, France modernized 37 of its Mirage 2000Cs to the 2000-5F model supporting larger external fuel tanks and then-new MICA missiles. Revamped avionics include a new glass cockpit, combined throttle/stick controls (HOTAS), improved self-defenses systems, more powerful computer processors, and much improved RDY radar. Qatar and Taiwan also procured this second-generation variant.

Finally, in the early 2000s, a third-generation Mirage 2000 variant called the 2000-5 Mk2or 2000-9hit the market boasting a modern navigation system, newer ICMS-3 integrated digital electronic warfare system (including new geolocation and ELINT capabilities), and an uprated RDY-2 radar with a stealth mode and greatly improved range of ground scanning capability. New and refurbished 2000-5 Mk2s were sold to Greece, India (compatible with Israeli weapons), and the UAE, but none entered French service.

Operationally, Mirage 2000s flew combat air patrols in several armed conflicts that flared on the Iran-Pakistan and Peru-Ecuador borders, but the types only aerial kill to date came in 1996 during an ordinarily non-lethal face-off between Turkish and Greek fighters. A Greek Mirage pilot accidentally launched a Matra missile that downed a Turkish F-16D over the Aegean Sea.

Mirages have seen more combat use in the ground attack role, particularly over the former Yugoslavia, Afghanistan, the India-Pakistan border, the Middle East, and northwestern Africa (especially Chad, Libya, and Mali). French Mirage 2000s also famously flew to the rescue of a beleaguered U.S. special forces team in Niger in 2017.



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Is your friend missing? Dog found on a Washington ferry without its owner

A dog was found without its owner on a ferry in Seattle early Wednesday and Washington State Ferries is attempting to bring the lost animal home.

The agency, which is part of the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), posted on X late Wednesday morning stating ferry workers found the canine alone at Colman Dock in Seattle. Workers plan on taking care of this dog for the time being, but it will be transferred to animal control soon.

The WSDOT reposted the Washington State Ferries original X post for its 379,000 followers to see as well.

If anyone has any information about the lost dog and where it belongs, they are encouraged to reach out to Washington State Ferries.

FOUND FUR BABY: Around 2am, workers at Colman Dock found a dog w/o its human. The pup is currently at Colman Dock being taken care of by amazing ferries employees but will be transferred to animal control soon. If this is your dog, or you know the owners, please let us know!  pic.twitter.com/pFAarqGhco  Washington State Ferries (@wsferries) June 12, 2024

Steve Coogan is the lead editor of MyNorthwest. You can read more of his stories here. Follow Steve on X, or email him here.
FT: Ukraine signs first major deal with US company for LNG supplies

U.S. Venture Global company signed the first major deal to supply liquefied natural gas to Ukraine, the Financial Times (FT) reported on June 13.

The move by Washington aims to reduce Russia's energy dominance in the region and boost Ukraine's energy security as Moscow intensifies attacks on gas storage facilities and critical infrastructure.

Under the deal, DTEK, Ukraine's largest private energy company, will start purchasing an unspecified amount of LNG from Venture Global later in 2024 and throughout 2026.

Ukraine and other Eastern European countries will reportedly receive gas from Venture Global's Plaquemines plant, located on the Gulf Coast of Louisiana.

Ukraine has never purchased U.S. liquefied natural gas directly before. It is not specified how much of Ukraine's gas demand would be served by the agreement.

"With this landmark agreement, we will help bolster Ukraines security of natural gas supply, aid continued recovery and economic growth in the region, and further strengthen European energy security," said Mike Sabel, Venture Globals chief executive.

DTEK also has committed to buying up to 2 million tons of LNG per year over a 20-year period from the yet-to-be-built Venture Global's CP2 project, according to the FT.

Much of the volume in the Venture Global deal can be reportedly shipped to other countries through D Trading, DTEK's commodities trading subsidiary, which is the counterparty to the deal.

In mid-April, the European Parliament voted to pass rules allowing member states to ban imports of Russian LNG as part of Brussels' strategy to reduce the bloc's energy dependency on Moscow.

According to European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson said, the EU is also working on a proposal to limit imports of Russian LNG as part of the upcoming 14th package of sanctions.

Read also: Russian attacks pushing Ukraines energy system toward worst-case scenario, largest private energy company says

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
On Wednesday, the Fulton County District Attorneys office asked the Georgia Court of Appeals to dismiss the appeal that seeks to disqualify DA Fani Willis from the election interference case.

Earlier this week, Steve Sadow, lead defense counsel for President Trump in the Fulton County case, released a statement:

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President Trump has filed his request for oral argument in the Georgia Court of Appeals, currently calendared for October. We believe oral argument will assist the Court by highlighting and clarifying the reasons why the case should be dismissed and Fulton County DA Willis should be disqualified for her misconduct.

The appellants theory of conflict was that the District Attorney obtained a personal stake in the prosecution of this case by financially benefitting from her romantic relationship with Special Assistant District Attorney (SADA) Nathan Wade, whom she personally hired to lead the States prosecution team.

According to the court document released on Wednesday, on May 8, 2024, this Court granted Appellants petition for interlocutory appeal in the present matter.

DA Willis moved for the appeal to be dismissed due to a lack of sufficient evidence.

The order, filed in Superior Court on March 15, included motions seeking to disqualify the DA from prosecuting Trumps pending criminal case.

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According to the appeal, the appellants asserted that the DA had a conflict of interest in the prosecution due to her personal relationship with the Special Assistant District Attorney appointed to oversee the case on her behalf.

The appeal states that the problem with the Appellants theory, as detailed by the trial court in its order, is that it was not supported by the actual evidence they provided.

Trumps lawyer Steve Sadow released the following statement Wednesday night:

The States motion to dismiss the interlocutory appeal, which has already been permitted by the Court of Appeals, appears to be a last-ditch effort to stop any appellate review of DA Willis misconduct. The States motion deliberately failed to mention that Judge McAfees ruling stated an odor of mendacity remains from the hearing testimony by the DA and the States witnesses. The judge also said there were reasonable questions as to whether Willis and former prosecutor Wade testified untruthfully. The State has tried this gambit before with no success.

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While special prosecutor Nathan Wades romantic relationship with Fulton County District Attorney was bad timing, Wade said he doesnt believe it is responsible for delaying the election interference case against former President Donald Trump.

Im very proud of the things we were able to accomplish under my leadership, Wade told CNN Wednesday during an interview with the networks Kaitlan Collins. I would never have done anything I thought would jeopardize that hard work.

Wade stepped down from the case in April after Fulton Superior Court Judge Scott McAfee ruled that Willis could continue prosecuting Trump for allegedly attempting to overturn the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia only if Wade discontinued his role as special prosecutor. He resigned within several hours of the ruling.

Wade blamed Trumps defense team for using Wades relationship with Willis to delay the case.

Its an interesting trial strategy to attempt to defend your client by attacking the prosecutors involved, he said.

After a Fulton grand jury indicted Trump and 18 co-defendants last August, Willis was hoping to bring the case to trial by this summer. But the legal wrangling over a defense motion to remove Willis from the case because of her relationship with Wade has dragged on for months, making it a virtual certainty that the case wont go to trial until after voters decide whether to reelect President Joe Biden or put Trump back in the White House.

In the latest development, the Georgia Court of Appeals put the case on hold last week pending the outcome of Trumps appeal of McAfees ruling allowing Willis to remain.

On Wednesday, Wade said he believes the case could go forward after the November election even if Trump wins and becomes president again in January.

I dont believe it looks good to the rest of the world, but I dont think theres anything that would prevent that from happening, he said.

At one point, the interview was interrupted when Collins pressed Wade for details on when his relationship with Willis began and ended. He started to answer, but took off his microphone and stepped away to talk with an aide. When he returned, he referred her question to previous testimony in court hearings on the case rather than answer directly.

Wade said he and Willis remain friends and keep in close contact. However, with him no longer on the case, he said they talk about other matters, including the death threats the two continue to receive.
Ukraines supporters have agreed to move forward with a $50 billion loan to Kyiv, financed by profits from frozen Russian assets in Europe and the U.S., the leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) countries announced Thursday.

The agreement marks a significant achievement for President Biden, with the U.S. spearheading the effort to get the broad grouping of Ukraines supporters to agree on seizing Russian assets to support Kyiv and counter Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Im very pleased to share that this week  the G7 signed a plan to finalize and unlock $50 billion from the proceeds of those frozen assets, to put that money to work for Ukraine and other reminders to Putin, were not backing down. In fact, were standing together against this illegal aggression, Biden said Thursday at a press conference alongside Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Thank you Mr. President for your leadership in the G7s decision on $50 billion loan for Ukraine; its a vital step forward in providing sustainable support for Ukraine in winning this war, Zelensky said.

Russian immobilized assets should be used for defending Ukrainian lives from Russian terror and for repaying the damage the aggressor caused to Ukraine. Its fair and absolutely right.

The proposal was led by the U.S. and agreed on during the first day of the G7 summit in Italy.

G7 members froze about $280 billion in Russian assets after the invasion began in February 2022, and the proposal would use the interest generated on the frozen assets, which is about $2.6 billion to $3.6 billion a year, to pay back a $50 billion loan to provide to Ukraine immediately.

This has been something that the United States has put a lot of energy and effort into, national security adviser Jake Sullivan said in a briefing with reporters Thursday morning ahead of the days events.

We see proceeds from these assets as being a valuable source of resources for Ukraine at a moment when Russia continues to brutalize the country, not just through military action on the front end, but through the attempted destruction of its energy grid and its economic vitality.

The commitment from G7 countries comes as Russias more than two-year illegal war against Ukraine is straining unity among Kyivs military and financial backers.

That has translated into battlefield losses for Ukraine without adequate military resupplies, though Ukraine was able to largely push back Russias latest offensive around the city of Kharkiv.

Last week, in a meeting with Zelensky on the sidelines of the 80th anniversary of D-Day, the president apologized for the seven-month delay in getting a billion-dollar aid package passed in Congress.

And countries supporting Ukraine are under further pressure to lay the groundwork for long-term commitments amid shifting domestic political trends.

Theres concern among Ukraine and its supporters that former President Trump, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, would pull back U.S. commitments for Kyiv or NATO  and that it would benefit Putin.

And while far-right parties demonstrated a strong showing in European Union parliamentary elections, analysts say that theres not a major threat to European support for Kyiv in the short-term.

In particular, they point to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, the G7 host who, despite being described as right-wing, has come out as a strong supporter for Ukraine and critic of Russia. Her party demonstrated a strong return in the EU elections.

The agreement to use profits from frozen Russian assets is an important stopgap measure amid ongoing debates and disagreements over whether the frozen assets should be seized entirely. So far, each country is working out its own legal justifications for such a move.

In April, Biden signed into law the REPO Act, part of the national security supplemental package, that allows the U.S. to seize frozen Russian assets for Ukraines reconstruction.

Estonia similarly passed its own version of such a bill in May.

I think it is very critical, first, to support Ukraine with financial resources, its evident that its needed, also for the rebuilding effort and keeping the Ukrainian state going, Estonias ambassador to NATO, Juri Luik, said in an interview with The Hill in Washington last week.

Its also a very important kind of punishment for the Russian regime because its a corrupt regime  they love power but they also love money, so I think this would also be a very good move, in that direction.

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Insights from Bloomberg, the Financial Times, Politico, CNN, and The New York Times

The News

Leaders from the Group of Seven nations agreed on Thursday to send $50 billion to Ukraine by the years end, Reuters reported.

The deal, the details of which is still being finalized, will use the interest from frozen Russian assets to fund Kyiv in its war effort against Russia. An outline of the deal has been agreed, an official told Reuters.

I think we will have the major tentpoles of this decided, but some of the specifics left to be worked through by experts on a defined timetable, White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said.

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Agreement will see each nation contribute funds

Sources: Bloomberg, The Financial Times

Under the plan, each G7 nation will contribute money to Ukraine, with the profits from frozen Russian assets used to repay the loans. The approved deal is a renegotiated version of a Washington-led proposal that dominated news cycles last week and which would have seen the EU backing a loan from the US. The new agreement will see each country taking on a portion of the loans risk directly, rather than one region accepting sole ownership over any repayment plans, the Financial Times noted. Officials are confident that the agreement will be finalized before the end of the summit: At sherpa level, it is agreed and I do not expect any leaders ... to block it, one official told the FT.

Financing plan faced perilous diplomatic hurdles

Source: Politico

A spat between the US and EU nearly derailed the agreement, Politico reported earlier this week. Washington had proposed that the EU take the entirety of the risk of a loan that would fund Ukraine, angering European officials. The EU and the US agree about using immobilized Russian assets to pay back the loan  but have locked horns over who is liable to pay it back in the event that Hungary, which has been friendly to Russia, vetoes sanctions that keep assets frozen. Washingtons proposal, a European diplomat told Politico, amounted to Europe taking on the risk and the interest, while the US used the money for a US-Ukraine fund. We might be stupid but were not that stupid, one diplomat said, with another adding that if it was the other way around, they would say we are crazy.

US issued new sanctions ahead of summit

Sources: CNN, The New York Times

The Biden administration issued new sanctions against Russia before the G7 summit, targeting more than 300 financial institutions and entities that are profiting from the war. The measures aim to prevent Russia from accessing Chinese-manufactured semiconductor chips and other high-tech equipment that could advance its war effort. The secondary sanctions would allow Washington to target any financial institutions that agree to doing business with Moscow, further isolating the Kremlins war economy.
(L-R) President of the European Council Charles Michel, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, US President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, attend a working session on the sidelines of the G7 summit. Michael Kappeler/dpa

The G7 summit began on Thursday with an agreement to lend Ukraine $50 billion using money generated from frozen Russian state assets, in a major show of support for Kiev.

The war in Europe was commanding the attention of Group of Seven leaders meeting for a three-day summit in southern Italy, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky set to address the gathering later Thursday.

Diplomats said that after months of negotiations an agreement had been reached on the large loan package. Kiev is set to use the money to strengthen its defence, pay for the reconstruction of infrastructure and fund the state budget.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has not been at a G7 summit since 2014, when Moscow illegally annexed Ukraine's Crimea region. He has nevertheless cast a shadow over the annual conferences, and this year is no different.

The US government says around $280 billion of Russian central bank money has been immobilized in Western countries due to sanctions imposed since the full-scale Russian attack on Ukraine more than two years ago.

The bulk of the money is within the European Union. The bloc's member states recently approved the use of interest income generated from Russian state assets to finance aid for Ukraine.

The Brussels-based financial institution Euroclear - by far the largest holder in the EU of frozen Russian central bank assets - recently said that it had collected around 4.4 billion ($4.7 billion) in interest in 2023.

Planning for the structure of the loan package has been under way for some time. The United States had originally campaigned in favour of collecting not only the interest income, but also the frozen assets themselves and using them to provide financial support to Kiev.

But some European capitals had major reservations about this, resulting in the compromise in which the interest is used as collateral to pay off the loan.

The finance ministers of the seven advanced industrialized democracies - Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States - are now set to clarify the outstanding technical and legal details.

One of thorny issues is who would bear the credit risks if the EU sanctions on the assets could not be extended, for instance due to the veto of a member state. That would be mean that the interest could no longer be used to pay off the loan.

At the summit, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced another 242 million ($309 million) in bilateral assistance to Ukraine.

London also issued 50 more sanctions targeting Russia's financial system and suppliers for Russian military supply chains. The United States issued several hundred new sanctions on Wednesday.

US President Joe Biden and Zelensky will also sign a bilateral security agreement between the United States and Ukraine on the sidelines of the G7, the White House has said. Kiev has struck similar commitments with 15 countries, including Britain, France and Germany.

Besides Zelensky, the leaders of Turkey, Brazil and India will also be attending the Italy talks. Pope Francis will be the first pontiff to take part in a G7 summit; He was invited to address the risks posed by artificial intelligence.

The war in Gaza and tensions with China are also set to feature high on the agenda at the 28-villa luxury Borgo Egnazia resort, located to the south-east of the city of Bari in southern Italy's Apulia region. The hotel has previously played host to international celebrities such as Madonna, Justin Timberlake and the Beckhams.

International crises were not the only elements at play in Italy.

This could be Biden's final G7 summit, coming five months before he faces his predecessor and right-wing Republican rival Donald Trump in a US presidential contest that has Washington's allies on edge.

European leaders are under domestic political pressure, too.

French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will arrive after far-right parties made big gains in last weekend's European Parliament elections, raising questions about their countries' political environments.

And, after 14 years of Conservative government in Britain, Sunak is expected to suffer a stinging defeat to the opposition Labour Party in the July 4 general election.
(L-R) Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, France's President Emmanuel Macron, Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, US President Joe Biden, Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, stand for a family photo during the G7 summit. Michael Kappeler/dpa

The G7 summit began on Thursday with an agreement to lend Ukraine $50 billion using money generated from frozen Russian state assets, in a major show of support for Kiev.

The war in Europe was commanding the attention of Group of Seven leaders meeting for a three-day summit in southern Italy, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky participating.

After being welcomed by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Zelensky met with the other leaders for a working session.

Leaders said that after months of negotiations an agreement had been reached on the large loan package. Kiev is set to use the money to strengthen its defence, pay for the reconstruction of infrastructure and fund the state budget.

Financing: the devil is in the details

Planning for the structure of the loan package has been under way for some time. The United States had originally campaigned in favour of collecting not only the interest income, but also the frozen assets themselves and using them to provide financial support to Kiev.

The US government says around $280 billion of Russian central bank money has been immobilized in Western countries due to sanctions imposed since the full-scale Russian attack on Ukraine more than two years ago. The bulk of the Russian money is within the European Union.

The Brussels-based financial institution Euroclear - by far the largest holder in the EU of frozen Russian central bank assets - recently said that it had collected around 4.4 billion ($4.7 billion) in interest in 2023.

But some European capitals had major reservations about using both the principle and the interest, resulting in the compromise in which the interest is used as collateral to pay off the loan.

The bloc's member states recently approved the use of interest income generated from Russian state assets to finance aid for Ukraine.

US steps in in case politics changes the loan picture

One of thorny issues is who would bear the credit risks if the EU sanctions on the assets could not be extended, for instance due to the veto of a member state. That would mean that the interest could no longer be used to pay off the loan.

On Thursday the US declared its willingness to bear the main burden of the multibillion-dollar loan, a high-ranking US government representative said on the sidelines of the summit, where the finance ministers of the seven advanced industrialized democracies - Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States - hammered out the details.

The US is willing to provide up to $50 billion, or the total amount of the loan to Kiev - the US official said.

However, he emphasized: "We will not be the only lenders." Others would also participate. The risk would be shared, as would the will to get the project off the ground. He did not provide any specific details. However, he signalled that the sum could end up being even higher.

The US government representative stressed that the loan would be financed from Russian funds in any case. And if there was peace, Russia would have to pay reparations for the damage it had caused, he said, which would be used to repay the loan.

Putting up a united front important to the G7

"We remain determined to dispel any false notion that time is on Russias side, that destroying infrastructure and livelihoods has no consequences for Russia, or that Russia can prevail by causing Ukraine to fail economically," the summit's draft final declaration said.

At the summit, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak announced another 242 million ($309 million) in bilateral assistance to Ukraine.

London also issued 50 more sanctions targeting Russia's financial system and suppliers for Russian military supply chains. The United States issued several hundred new sanctions on Wednesday.

US President Joe Biden and Zelensky will also sign a bilateral security agreement between the United States and Ukraine on the sidelines of the G7, the White House has said. Kiev has struck similar commitments with 15 countries, including Britain, France and Germany.

Besides Zelensky, the leaders of Turkey, Brazil and India will also be attending the Italy talks. Pope Francis will be the first pontiff to take part in a G7 summit, after he was invited to address the risks posed by artificial intelligence.

The war in Gaza and tensions with China are also set to feature high on the agenda at the 28-villa luxury Borgo Egnazia resort, located to the south-east of the city of Bari in southern Italy's Apulia region. The hotel has previously played host to international celebrities such as Madonna, Justin Timberlake and the Beckhams.

International crises were not the only elements at play in Italy

This could be Biden's final G7 summit, coming five months before he faces his predecessor and right-wing Republican rival Donald Trump in a US presidential contest that has Washington's allies on edge.

European leaders are under domestic political pressure, too.

French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will arrive after far-right parties made big gains in last weekend's European Parliament elections, raising questions about their countries' political environments.

And, after 14 years of Conservative government in Britain, Sunak is expected to suffer a stinging defeat to the opposition Labour Party in the July 4 general election.

(L-R) President of the EU Council Charles Michel, Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, France's President Emmanuel Macron, Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, US President Joe Biden, Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, stand for a family photo during the G7 summit. Michael Kappeler/dpa
Group of Seven (G7) leaders on June 13 publicly confirmed an agreement on a plan to provide Ukraine with a $50 billion loan by the end of the year.

The loan should be repaid using interest from some $300 billion in frozen Russian assets.

The French presidency said already on June 12 that an agreement had been reached, concluding months of back-and-forth debates between Europe and Washington.

"(Vladimir) Putin has a plan: He wants to push the war until everyone gives up supporting Ukraine. His plan failed today," German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said.

"As the G7 we are mobilizing $50 billion for Ukraine - to defend its sovereignty. A historic step."

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni also confirmed that a political agreement has been reached to provide Ukraine with $50 billion by the end of the year.

Meloni stressed that the funds for covering the loan will not come from the confiscation of Russian assets themselves, but through profits generated by them and accumulated over time.

Speaking at the summit, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky called on G7 leaders to back the $50-billion plan but also urged the creation of a mechanism for the full confiscation of $300 billion in frozen Russian funds.

Nikkei Asia reported on June 11 that the G7 would create a fund to support Ukraine using the income generated from frozen Russian assets.

The fund will reportedly be created under an international organization such as the World Bank, with contributions in the form of "Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration" (ERA) loans.

While Western countries have frozen $300 billion in Russian assets, they can only access the income generated by these funds, approximately $3.2 billion, annually.

By setting up a fund with loans to be repaid using this income, countries can offer immediate support to Ukraine beyond this amount.

According to Reuters, technical details of the plan will be finalized in the coming weeks.

Read also: Zelensky at G7 summit: We need mechanism for confiscating $300 billion in Russian assets

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G7 leaders on Thursday agreed to lend Ukraine $50 billion this year -- backed by profits from frozen Russian assets -- to help the country's war effort and rebuilding.

This plan has been years in the making. It's a win for President Biden, who has been pushing allies to agree to the deal, amid hesitation from some European countries.

The agreement will be formalized in the communique at the end of the summit.

But there are still key details of the plan the countries need to work out. The US is willing to make a loan of up to $50 billion, though it's unclear exactly how much the U.S. will end up lending. Other counties will pitch in to share the risk.

"We're going to move with urgency," a senior administration official said on a call with reporters.

PHOTO: A family photo during a welcome ceremony on day one of the 50th G7 summit at Borgo Egnazia on June 13, 2024 in Fasano, Italy. (Antonio Masiello/Getty Images)

MORE: Biden, Zelenskyy to sign US-Ukraine security agreement at G7 summit

"Ukraine is still going to have a large financial need next year and beyond and this summit is our best chance to act collectively to close the gap This agreement is a signal from the leading democracies of the world, that we're not going to fatigue and defending Ukraine's freedom and that Putin is not going to outlast us."

Officials said that while it will take time for the funds to be disbursed, they do expect the money to begin to be disbursed this calendar year.

Funds will be used for military, budget, humanitarian, and reconstruction support.

When asked by reporters about the risks associated with the loans, the senior administration official said that it can be thought of as a"secured loan" because of the interest that is generated from the Russian assets. The official added that there are scenarios in which the income stream "may not flow," but noted that reparations could be a solution.

"How are we going to get repaid? Russia paysthe income comes from the interest stream on the immobilized asset," the official said. "The principal is untouched for now, but we have full optionality to seize the principal later if the political will is there."

The official added that "if there is a peace settlement, either the assets stay immobilized. And keep generating interest to repay the loans or Russia pays for the damage it's caused. Either way, there's a source of repayment."

When I asked how the U.S. overcame pushback from some allies, the official said that the risks of this agreement outweighed the risk of Ukraine falling short on funding to counter Russia's offensive.

"What's the alternative? And if Ukraine was insufficiently financed, to win this war, what would be the chilling effect it would cause across Europe and the rest of the world? What would be the signal to autocrats that they can redraw borders by force? Those are the costs, I think we all agreed were unacceptable, and that's why we acted," the administration official said.

G7 leaders agree to lend Ukraine $50 billion using frozen Russian assets originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
When the Group of 7 posed for its ritual family photo Thursday on the rocky Adriatic coast of Italy, the image was not of leaders at the height of their political strength.

Instead, nearly to a person, the leaders assembling at a luxury resort in Puglia find themselves weakened at home by elections, scandal or waning influence. Amid the olive trees and swimming pools, the anti-incumbent sentiments coursing through Western democracies are creating extraordinarily high stakes for global geopolitics.

Rarely has the yearly gathering of the worlds leading economies been so overshadowed by the political vulnerabilities of nearly all its members. It raises questions of how effective the steering committee of the free world, as US President Joe Bidens aides have labeled the G7, can actually be amid anger and discontent from their own populations.

Coming less than a week after far-right parties dominated in European Parliamentary elections and ahead of critical votes in France, the United Kingdom and the United States, the G7 summit will occur amid nagging anxiety about a populist resurgence.

At a state dinner held in Bidens honor at the Elysee Palace in Paris last week, French lawmakers mingling underneath crystal chandeliers spoke openly about their fears of a potential Donald Trump victory, according to an attendee. That was a day before Frances President Emmanuel Macron suffered steep losses to the far right, prompting him to dissolve the National Assembly and call snap elections.

One of the great things about the G7 is were all democracies so the leaders here dont get to pick and choose how things go politically in their country, day in, day out, Bidens national security adviser Jake Sullivan said Thursday as the summit got underway.

Sullivan said leaders facing political headwinds  be it Biden or his European counterparts  would continue to be focused on the task at hand.

(Bidens) goal is going to be to do as much as possible to reinforce the idea that the United States is best served if we are closely aligned with our democratic allies and partners, he went on.

Concerns about migration and the burden of defending Ukraine are part of what is driving the rightward shift. Those have been central issues for the G7 since Biden joined the group in 2021 and promise to again be the driving topic for this years summit.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky will attend and convene a joint news conference with Biden on Thursday. Leaders are under pressure to find ways of turning around the battlefield momentum after Russia seized the initiative amid delays in American support, for which Biden apologized to Zelensky last week.

We had trouble getting a bill that we had to pass that had the money in it from some of our very conservative members who were holding it up, he said. But we got it done, finally.

Ahead of the summit, diplomats were finalizing plans to loan Ukraine tens of billions of dollars to rebuild its devastated infrastructure, financed by interest from frozen Russian assets. The somewhat convoluted plan, which took years for the Western allies to come to consensus on, was still being hashed out as Biden was flying to Italy.

And the president was planning to present a new bilateral security pact with Ukraine, a deal that lays out a path for the US long-term security relationship with Kyiv but that could also be undone by future US administrations.

Indeed, the specter of leadership change in the United States and beyond is the uneasy backdrop to this years G7, lending a degree of urgency to their work.

This is not a normal G7, said Josh Lipsky, senior director of the GeoEconomics Center at the Atlantic Council, pointing to the series of upcoming elections and the wider group invited to this years summit. You hear this a lot when you talk to US and European officials: if we cant get this done now, whether its on China, whether its on the assets, we may not have another chance. We dont know what the world will look like three months, six months, nine months from now.

Among the G7 leaders, it is the summits host, right wing Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who appears on the most stable political ground. She emerged as the only European G7 leader bolstered by last weeks European Parliament elections.

In an attempt to broaden the G7 discussions, Meloni invited the leaders of India, Brazil, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates to join the discussions this week  a nod to non-Western economies that are assuming greater and greater political weight as the G7 countries see their own share of global influence wane.

Once a skeptic who publicly voiced his concerns about Melonis brand of right-wing populism, Biden has instead found in his Italian counterpart a somewhat unlikely ally on Ukraine. She has bucked far-right leaders elsewhere as a staunch supporter of continued aid to Kyiv.

Still, she and Biden diverge on a number of other topics. Meloni has drawn comparisons to Trump and addressed the Conservative Political Action Conference in 2022. Her party, Brothers of Italy, has post-fascist roots.

I am proud that Italy will present itself to the G7, to Europe with the strongest government of all. This is something that has not happened in the past but is happening today, it is a satisfaction and also a great responsibility, Meloni said early on Monday following the EU elections, according to Reuters.

The leaders of France and Germany are contending with very different sets of political circumstances. After a surge from the far right, Macron is now risking parliamentary elections in a few weeks that could badly damage his ability to govern over the remaining three years of his term.

In Britain, Prime Minster Rishi Sunak has called for elections in July in which his party is expected to lose power for the first time in 14 years. Canadas Justin Trudeau  now the longest-serving leader in the G7  is unpopular, with a general election required sometime next year. Japans Fumio Kishida has been beset by a party corruption scandal that has caused his approval ratings to plummet.

And Biden, who has spent his term heralding a revival of traditional alliances and a defense of the West, is running neck-and-neck with a rival whos been convicted of felonies and who Biden accuses of undermining democracy itself.

Whether it is Trump at the G7 table next year or Biden is among the great unknowable questions hanging over the gathering. Few leaders who lived through it would welcome a return the animosity that marked the summits of that era, be it battles over climate on a cliffside in Sicily, haggling on trade in the forests of Quebec or an argument over readmitting Russia at a lighthouse in Biarritz.

By the end of his term, Trump had begun questioning the utility of attending the gatherings at all, fed up with what he saw as an unpleasant and unwelcoming experience.

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President Joe Biden and key allies have struck a deal to use the profits of frozen Russian assets to back a $50 billion loan to help Ukraines war effort and economic reconstruction.

The agreement in principle, reached at the gathering of Group of Seven leaders in Italy, follows months of intense negotiations among the U.S. and European allies over how to tap the value of some $300 billion of Russias sovereign assets that were immobilized in Western financial institutions shortly after the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The deal offers the G7 the chance to lock in longer-term funding for Ukraines war effort and insulate the money from electoral politics on both sides of the Atlantic, including the outcome of the U.S. presidential election in November. It marks a win for the Biden administration, which wants to send a signal of enduring Western support for Ukraine as it battles for survival against Russia.

We have political agreement at the highest levels for this deal to happen, a senior Biden administration official told reporters on Thursday.

The agreement among the G7 nations is set to be memorialized in a declaration at the gathering, but the mechanism of how precisely the complex financing vehicle will be structured still needs to be negotiated.

The G7 intends to provide financing that will be serviced and repaid by future flows of extraordinary revenues stemming from the immobilization of Russian sovereign assets held in the West, according to the text of the declaration, which was obtained by POLITICO.

The declaration sets the end of the year as the deadline to finalize an agreement and work through the technical details.

The leaders will commit to begin disbursing the $50 billion to Ukraine this calendar year, according to the U.S. official. The financing will consist of a package of loans from individual countries that are pooled together, the official said.

The U.S. is willing to provide a loan of up to the full $50 billion amount, but the official said that share would likely be reduced by commitments from other countries. The idea here is to share risk, the official said.

The official said the Biden administration would rely on loan authority it already has through the U.S. Agency for International Development to make the U.S. portion of the loan.

Congress, as part of the foreign aid package earlier this year, authorized Biden to seize outright Russian assets held in the U.S., though that money reflects a small minority  about $5 billion  of the countrys sovereign assets that are immobilized in the West.

The compromise emerging from the G7 meeting in Italy comes after the U.S. initially was discussing the seizure of the sovereign assets parked in Western institutions, but that became a nonstarter for many European leaders concerned about the legality and threat of retaliation from Russia.

The G7 communique on Russian assets will make clear that the option to seize assets outright remains on the table, the U.S. official said.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, who has been rallying support among G7 countries on the issue for months, again argued the case for creating a reliable source of financing for Ukraine in a New York Times op-ed Thursday, calling it urgently needed.

As Russia continues to move to a permanent war footing and Ukraine faces a sizable future funding gap, Mr. Putin is betting that he can wait out the coalition until Ukraine runs out of money and bullets, she wrote.

Biden was to hold a joint press conference with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday. The U.S. and Ukraine earlier announced a security deal that commits long-term support for Kyivs defense.

Adam Cancryn, Barbara Moens, Gregorio Sorgi and Clea Caulcutt contributed to this report.
(L-R) President of the European Council Charles Michel, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, US President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, attend a working session on the sidelines of the G7 summit. Michael Kappeler/dpa

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday offered the commission's support for the peace plan for the Gaza Strip put forward by US President Joe Biden.

"President Biden's three-phase plan deserves our full support. We need an immediate ceasefire, the release of the hostages, an enduring end to this crisis," Von der Leyen said speaking at the G7 summit in Bari in Italy.

"We are ready to play our part with quick and effective action for recovery and reconstruction leading to a two State solution," she added.

The plan put forward by Biden at the end of May provides in the first phase for a full ceasefire lasting six weeks, during which a group of hostages will be released in return for the release of Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.

The second phase foresees a permanent end to hostilities and the release of the remaining hostages.

The reconstruction of the Gaza Strip will begin under the third phase.

The war in Gaza was unleashed by the unprecedented attack by Palestinian Islamist Hamas on October 7 on Israel, killing around 1,200 people and taking another 250 as hostages. Around 120 are still in the hands of Hamas, but it is feared that many are already dead.

Israel responded to the attack with a massive military offensive on Gaza, in which at least 37,232 people have been killed and many more thousands injured, according to the Hamas authorities.

Around 85% of the population in Gaza, 1.9 million people, has been forcibly displaced in the wake of the Israeli attacks, according to UN figures.

(L-R) Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, stands next to US President Joe Biden, who welcomes the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen ahead of the G7 leaders' Summit at the Borgo Egnazia resort. Michael Kappeler/dpa
G7 summit opens with deal to use Russian assets for Ukraine as Italy flexes its right-wing muscles

From left, European Council President Charles Michel, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, French President Emmanuel Macron, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, U.S. President Joe Biden, Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stand for a group photo at the G7, Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Borgo Egnazia, Italy. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

BORGO EGNAZIA, Italy (AP)  A Group of Seven summit opened Thursday with agreement reached on a U.S. proposal to back a $50 billion loan to Ukraine using frozen Russian assets as collateral, giving Kyiv a strong show of support even as Europe's political chessboard shifts to the right.

President Joe Biden said the agreement to tap into the windfall profits on some $280 billion in frozen Russian assets held in Europe would put that money to work for Ukraine.

Another reminder to (Vladimir) Putin: We're not backing down. In fact, we're standing together against this illegal aggression, Biden said at an evening news conference, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy by his side.

The agreement was hashed out hours before Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni opened the summit at a luxury resort in southern Italy, saying she wanted the message of the meeting to be one of dialogue with the global south and unity.

She compared the G7 to the ancient olive trees that are a symbol of the Puglia region, with their solid roots, and branches projected toward the future.

Beyond discussing Ukraine, the war in Gaza and China's industrial policy, Pope Francis will become the first pope to address a G7 summit, adding a dash of celebrity and moral authority to the annual gathering. Hell be speaking on Friday about the promises and perils of artificial intelligence, but is expected to also renew his appeal for a peaceful end to Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.

The G7 includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom and the United States. Italy, which is hosting the summit, has invited several African leaders  Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune, Kenyan President William Ruto and Tunisian President Kis Saied  to press Meloni's development and migration initiatives on the continent.

Along with Zelenskyy, other guests included Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, fresh off his own election, and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

With Biden, U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and now French President Emmanuel Macron also facing elections in the coming months, pressure was on the G7 to get done what it can while the status quo lasts.

Frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine

The U.S. proposal involves engineering a $50 billion loan to help Ukraine in its fight against Russia that would use interest earned on profits from Russias frozen central bank assets, most of them held in the European Union, as collateral.

It is a strong signal that we are sending to Ukraine that we will support Ukraine in its fight for freedom for as long as it takes," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. "It is also a strong signal to Putin that Putin cannot outlast us, she said.

A French official said a political decision by the leaders had been reached but that technical and legal details of the mechanism to tap into the assets still had to be worked out. The issue is complicated because if the Russian assets one day are unfrozen  for example, when the war ends  then the windfall profits will no longer be able to be used to pay off the loan, requiring a burden-sharing arrangement with other countries.

Zelenskyy listed the asset deal as one of many arrangements finalized during the summit, including a bilateral security agreement with the U.S. and Japan.

"I am grateful to our partners for their belief in us and our victory," he said in a post on the social media platform X.

Sunak, for his part, announced up to 242 million pounds ($310 million) in nonmilitary aid to Ukraine and a new round of sanctions against suppliers of munitions and other aid to Russias military located in China, Israel, Kyrgyzstan and Turkey. Washington also sent strong signals of support, with widened sanctions against Russia to target Chinese companies that are helping its war machine.

Europes new political chessboard

Meloni went into the meeting fortified at home and abroad after her far-right party had an even stronger showing in the European Parliament election than in the national general election in 2022 that made her Italys first female premier. Known for its revolving-door governments, Italy is now in the unusual position of being the most stable power in the EU.

The leaders of the G7s two other EU members, Germany and France, didn't fare nearly as well, rattled after hard-right parties made strong showings in the vote. Macron called a snap election and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz saw his Social Democrats finish behind mainstream conservatives and the far-right Alternative for Germany.

Meloni didn't hesitate to flex her far-right muscles in the opening sessions: Italian negotiators successfully removed the word abortion from the G7 final communique. The text however does reaffirm commitments made at last year's G7, where abortion rights were specified, according to a draft seen by the ANSA news agency.

I regret this, Macron said about the text, answering the question of an Italian reporter on the sidelines of the summit. He recalled that France had included a women's right to abortion in its Constitution, and that France defends this vision of equality between women and men.

Its not a vision thats shared across all the political spectrum, he said. I regret it, but I respect it because it was the sovereign choice of your people, he told the Italian reporter.

Meloni, who campaigned on a God, Family, Fatherland motto, has insisted that she won't roll back abortion rights in Italy, where they have been legal since 1978, but the center-left opposition worries she is slowly chipping away at them.

It's happening where?

The G7 summit is taking place in a sprawling luxury resort thats something of a theater set, a faux town made to resemble one of Puglias medieval white-stone hamlets but that actually only dates from 2010.

Located next to an actual archaeological park, Borgo Egnazia features narrow streets, villas, restaurants and a town square complete with a clocktower. A favorite of celebrities, it was sealed off to outsiders for the duration of the summit.

No such five-star accommodations await the 2,000-plus police and Carabinieri forces who have been brought in to provide security. Authorities on Wednesday sequestered the decommissioned cruise ship that had been housing them in Brindisis port, after the police union complained about unacceptable hygienic conditions on board.

___

Winfield reported from Bari, Italy. Associated Press writers Angela Charlton and Sylvie Corbet in Paris contributed to this report.
GA police searching for missing 17-year-old, 2-year-old not seen in more than a week

Georgia police are searching for a 17-year-old girl and a toddler who vanished more than a week ago.

Cerenydi Thornton and Zylani Thornton, 2, were last seen in Douglas, Georgia on June 7.

[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News App for alerts as news breaks]

The Coffee County Sheriffs Office said they could be in the Valdosta or Tifton areas.

TRENDING STORIES:

Cerenydi is described as 53 and 115 pounds. She has pierced ears and a tattoo on her right arm.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Coffee County Sheriffs Office 912-384-4227 or call 912-384-7675.








Attorney General Merrick Garland accused Republicans of wielding their power as a partisan weapon after all but one GOP member voted to hold him in contempt of Congress.

It is deeply disappointing that this House of Representatives has turned a serious congressional authority into a partisan weapon. Todays vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Departments need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the Committees, Garland said in a statement after the vote.

I will always stand up for this department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy.

The 216-207 vote came after Republicans pushed to censure Garland for failing to turn over audio files of President Bidens conversation with special counsel Robert Hur. Republicans already have a transcript of the conversation.

While the vote makes for a formal censure of Garland, its unlikely to yield any tangible results. Such measures serve as referrals to the Justice Department, which must then weigh whether they merit prosecution.

Biden claimed executive privilege over the tapes, something an internal Justice Department opinion obtained by The Hill ahead of the vote indicates the department considers a valid legal basis for sidestepping the subpoena.

The statement is an unusually direct rebuke from Garland, but one that comes as hes begun to take a more forceful stance against GOP attacks on his department.

In an op-ed in The Washington Post this week, Garland wrote that GOP efforts targeting his department  and even career employees  present a risk to staffers as well as democracy itself.

Garland argued that Republicans have gone beyond legitimate oversight of his department to embrace baseless, personal and dangerous attacks.

Disagreements about politics are good for our democracy. They are normal. But using conspiracy theories, falsehoods, violence and threats of violence to affect political outcomes is not normal. The short-term political benefits of those tactics will never make up for the long-term cost to our country, Garland wrote.

Continued unfounded attacks against the Justice Departments employees are dangerous for peoples safety. They are dangerous for our democracy. This must stop.

He also recently said Republican assertions the Justice Department was somehow involved in the state-level prosecution of former President Trump amounted to a conspiracy theory.

He listed the accusation as among the false claims about the department.

That conspiracy theory is an attack on the judicial process itself, Garland told lawmakers when appearing before the House Judiciary Committee last week.

The Justice Department also responded to a GOP request for all its communications with the Manhattan district attorneys office, noting that a comprehensive search found none.

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 The Hill.
German arms companies should set up in Ukraine, vice chancellor says

(L-R) Siegfried Russwurm, BDI President, Robert Habeck, Germany's Minister of Economics, and Oleksandr Kamyshin, Minister for Strategic Industries of Ukraine, arrive at the German-Ukrainian Defense Industries Forum. Joerg Carstensen/dpa

German and other European arms companies should establish branches in Ukraine to a greater extent, Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck said on Thursday during a German-Ukrainian arms industry event.

The governments should now ascertain what is needed in the form of guarantees and financial support to encourage a trend that is already under way, Habeck, who serves as German economy minister, said.

On Tuesday, German arms manufacturer Rheinmetall opened its first tank repair operation in the Ukraine in cooperation with the Ukrainian government.

The company later announced that it would soon begin manufacturing its Lynx infantry fighting vehicle in Ukraine.

Habeck said that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky had asked him at a recent meeting why the supply of military goods from Germany was going so slowly. There was no good reason for this, and more had to be done, Habeck said.

Ukrainian Strategic Industries Minister Oleksandr Kamyshin said that two other German arms companies were active in Ukraine, tank manufacturer KNDS, formerly Krauss-Maffei Wegmann, and Flensburger Fahrzeugbau, which services and repairs old tanks.

Kamyshin stressed the advantages of having German arms companies established in Ukraine, saying "it's faster, it's more efficient, and it's cheaper."

Kamyshin said servicing of large machinery systems was currently well provided for, and that the aim now was to focus on smaller systems.

(l-R) Robert Habeck, German Minister of Economics, Oleksandr Kamyshin, Minister for Strategic Industries of Ukraine, and Siegfried Russwurm, BDI President, attend the German-Ukrainian Defense Industries Forum. Joerg Carstensen/dpa
German Minister of Defense Boris Pistorius presents plans for a new form of military service at a press conference. Kay Nietfeld/dpa

Germany's Defence Minister Boris Pistorius on Thursday said his country cannot provide Ukraine with any more Patriot air defence systems than the three it is supplying already.

"There is no space for providing even more than those three systems," Pistorius told reporters in Brussels ahead of a meeting of NATO defence ministers. He said the three systems make up a quarter of Germany's stock. "Now, it's on other partners to provide systems," Pistorius said.

Pistorius and his NATO counterparts are meeting on Thursday and Friday to discuss support for Ukraine in the war against Russia, including air defence. Also high on the agenda are a NATO-coordinated training and support mission for Ukraine, as well as long-term financial commitments.

In a press conference ahead of the meeting, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg urged allies to "approve a plan for NATO to lead the coordination of security assistance and training to Ukraine."

The project is a major part of a defence package for Ukraine that the 32-member alliance wants to approve at a NATO leaders' summit in Washington in July.

The aim is to transfer responsibility for coordinating military aid for Ukraine from an informal, United States-led arrangement called the Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG) to the formal structures of NATO.

NATO ministers are meeting as the UDCG first on Thursday, and as NATO proper in the NATO-Ukraine Council later in the day and on Friday.

There are also talks ongoing between allies to seal a commitment to long-term financial support for Ukraine. Stoltenberg said in Prague last month that allies should commit to maintaining their current level of support, which he puts at 40 billion ($43 billion) per year.

Arriving at NATO headquarters on Thursday, Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair announced that his country will supply Ukraine with rockets, small arms ammunition and remote-controlled weapon mounts for vehicles - though it has no Patriots to give, he said.

"Canada will provide Ukraine with 2,300 Canadian Rocket Vehicle 7s or CRV rocket motors," Blair said. He added, "Canada will send an additional number of rounds of small arms ammunition, as well as 29 Nanuk remote systems," which are remote-controlled weapon mounts for military vehicles.

He added, "this week, Canada is beginning the shipments of a new fleet of 50 armoured vehicles to Ukraine. The first four vehicles are departing Canada this week, and they will be delivered to the Ukrainian armed forces in the coming weeks."
Various items, including a pistol, a slingshot, ammunition and axes, which were seized during a raid on a farm near Espelkamp, lie on a table. The police have been searching 15 properties in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia for drugs and other evidence since the early hours of the morning. Moritz Frankenberg/dpa

German police seized 900 rounds of ammunition, drugs, luxury watches, jewellery and 30,000 ($32,380) in cash during raids of 16 properties in two western states on Thursday, to combat organized crime.

They were also looking for evidence of links to the radical Reichsburger scene, which denies the legitimacy of the modern German state.

The raids involved specialized police units and took place in North Rhine Westphalia and Lower Saxony, with properties in Osnabruck and Hanover searched, the police and public prosecutor's office in Osnabruck said later on Thursday.

Officials said a farm in East Westphalia was actually a professional cannabis plantation. Police confiscated 160 plants, 440 seedlings and around 3 kilograms of harvested marijuana.

The officials also found numerous marijuana seedlings and plants on a neighbouring property, plus 900 rounds of ammunition, including bullets for a Kalashnikov.

There were indications that the resident belonged to the Reichsburger scene, the officials said.

Reichsburger, or "Reich Citizens," believe that the modern German republic illegitimately replaced the German Reich that was founded in 1871 and continued under the Nazi regime until 1945. They reject the legitimacy of Germany's modern federal state and its laws.

There have been repeated raids targeting the loosely organized group, which allegedly planned to violently overthrow the German government. The plot was uncovered in 2022.

Various alleged members, including suspected ringleader Prince Heinrich XIII of Reuss, are currently on trial.

At the other properties searched on Thursday, the police said they found a blank-firing revolver, forged certificates for business registrations, IT equipment, illegal knives, a Taser and a knuckleduster.

The investigators have been trailing three main suspects and nine other suspects since late last year, on suspicion that they sell drugs in Osnabruck and neighbouring areas in North Rhine-Westphalia.

The gang members are professionals who organized their operations and took precautions to avoid prosecution, a police spokeswoman said.

Police noted that the legal situation regarding drugs changed in the course of the investigation, since the legalization of cannabis in April, but that the raids were still important wihin efforts to combat organized crime.

The new laws limit the amount of cannabis that can be grown but illegal cultivation can still be very lucrative, said Alexander Retemeyer, spokesman for the Osnabruck public prosecutor's office.

Police officers stand in front of a farm near Espelkamp during a raid. The police have been searching 15 properties in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia for drugs and other evidence since the early hours of the morning. Moritz Frankenberg/dpa

Police officers stand in front of a farm near Espelkamp during a raid. The police have been searching 15 properties in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia for drugs and other evidence since the early hours of the morning. Moritz Frankenberg/dpa
Police officers stand next to their emergency vehicles. The police have been searching 15 properties in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia for drugs and other evidence since the early hours of the morning. Friso Gentsch/dpa

German police were searching 15 properties in two western states for drugs, combat weapons and evidence of links to the radical Reichsburger scene, which denies the legitimacy of the modern German state.

The raids involve specialized police units and are taking place in North Rhine Westphalia and Lower Saxony, police in the city of Osnabruck said on Thursday morning.

Properties in the cities of Osnabruck and Hanover were among those being searched.

So-called Reichsburger, or "Reich Citizens," believe that the modern German republic illegitimately replaced the German Reich that was founded in 1871 and continued under the Nazi regime until 1945. They reject the legitimacy of Germany's modern federal state and its laws.

There have been repeated raids targeting the loosely organized group, which allegedly planned to violently overthrow the German government. The plot was uncovered in 2022.

Various alleged members, including suspected ringleader Prince Heinrich XIII of Reuss, are currently on trial.

Police officers stand in front of a farm near Espelkamp during a raid. The police have been searching 15 properties in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia for drugs and other evidence since the early hours of the morning. Moritz Frankenberg/dpa

Police officers stand in front of a farm near Espelkamp during a raid. The police have been searching 15 properties in Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia for drugs and other evidence since the early hours of the morning. Moritz Frankenberg/dpa
A view of the symbol of the Ramstein Air Base of the US Air Force. Oliver Dietze/dpa

German police sounded the all-clear early on Thursday following an incident involving a kitchen knife and a cook at the Ramstein Air Base operated by the United States Air Force.

No criminal offence had taken place at the base in the district of Kaiserslautern, local police said.

The German police report said that US military police had detained the cook at the Popeyes fried chicken fast-food restaurant on Wednesday evening on suspicion of drawing a knife.

The man had apparently gone to buy a knife during his break, but his superior had not been in agreement with the use of a private knife.

A conflict had ensued and a staff member had informed the US authorities. But the information had been passed on incorrectly, blowing the incident out of proportion and resulting in a large law enforcement presence, the Kaiserslautern police said.

The cook was detained briefly and then released without further action being taken.

The Ramstein Air Base is the largest operated by the USAF in Europe and serves as the air hub for US forces in Eastern Europe and Africa.
Hendrik Wuest, Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia, takes part in a state press conference in the state parliament in Duesseldorf. Thomas Banneyer/dpa

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has been called on to make specific proposals on migration ahead of a meeting next week between the federal government and the premiers of Germany's 16 states.

"This is the last opportunity for the chancellor to show that he really will make proposals for effective control and order with respect to the migration issue," the premier of the industrial heartland state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hendrik Wust, told journalists on Thursday.

The conservative politician was speaking just days after anti-migration parties made strong gains in Sunday's European elections, including the Alternative for Germany (AfD) in Germany. The three parties in Scholz's centre-left coalition performed poorly, managing together less than a third of the vote.

"We have to put a stop to irregular migration," Wust said in the state capital Dusseldorf, calling for plans for asylum procedures outside the European Union to be speeded up.

Wust said he expected expert reports resulting from an exchange between the federal and state governments to be presented at the June 20 ministers' conference. "We really need a line from the federal government on this issue," he said.

While the federal government sets asylum policy, the states and local authorities provide the accommodation and services.
Hendrik Wuest, Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia, takes part in a state press conference in the state parliament in Duesseldorf. Thomas Banneyer/dpa

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has been called on to make specific proposals on migration ahead of a meeting next week between the federal government and the premiers of Germany's 16 states.

"This is the last opportunity for the chancellor to show that he really will make proposals for effective control and order with respect to the migration issue," the premier of the industrial heartland state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hendrik Wust, told journalists on Thursday.

The conservative politician was speaking just days after anti-migration parties made strong gains in Sunday's European elections, including the Alternative for Germany (AfD) in Germany. The three parties in Scholz's centre-left coalition performed poorly, managing together less than a third of the vote.

"We have to put a stop to irregular migration," Wust said in the state capital Dusseldorf, calling for plans for asylum procedures outside the European Union to be speeded up.

Wust said he expected expert reports resulting from an exchange between the federal and state governments to be presented at the June 20 ministers' conference. "We really need a line from the federal government on this issue," he said.

While the federal government sets asylum policy, the states and local authorities provide the accommodation and services.

A recent fatal knife attack by an Afghan migrant on a German police officer has caused public outrage and debate within Scholz's three-party coalition over whether Afghanistan should be declared safe for deporting rejected asylum seekers to.

Migration is set to be a key issue in parliamentary elections to be held by the autumn of next year, with Scholz's Social Democratic Party (SPD) lagging badly in the polls behind the opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU).

North Rhine-Westphalia is Germany's most populous state, and Wust is seen as a potential CDU candidate for chancellor.

Hendrik Wuest, Minister President of North Rhine-Westphalia, takes part in a state press conference in the state parliament in Duesseldorf. Thomas Banneyer/dpa
New sanctions against Russia were to be introduced at the beginning of the G7 summit on Thursday, 13 June, but Germany has failed to reach an agreement on restrictions in time.

Source: German media outlet T-online with reference to DPA

Details: DPA noted that the German government was blocking progress in negotiations on the next package of EU sanctions against Russia. Diplomats in Brussels said that German concerns and requests for changes were the key reason why the sanctions plans had not yet been finalised.

One EU official said recently that Germany had become the new Hungary, alluding to the fact that Prime Minister Viktor Orban's Budapest government had repeatedly delayed decisions on sanctions against Russia in the past.

The new EU sanctions package is aimed, in particular, at combating the circumvention of existing restrictions. The German government fears that German companies may be held liable for violations, so it proposes either to cancel the measure or to limit it to certain categories of goods.

Brussels is also proposing to restrict trade in Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) by banning the use of ports such as Zeebrugge in Belgium to ship Russian LNG to third countries.

In addition, Germany is in favour of easing measures aimed at restricting the use of the System for Transfer of Financial Messages (STFM), Russia's equivalent of SWIFT.

Background:

The United Kingdom, following the United States of America, expanded sanctions against the Russian Federation.

The US Department of Treasury identified more than a dozen schemes to evade sanctions against Russia's defence industry and imposed restrictions on more than 90 foreign individuals and companies, primarily from China and Turkiye.

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Germany is transferring a quarter of its air defence systems stock to Ukraine, including the third Patriot air defence system, which will be delivered soon.

Source: German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius before the start of a meeting of NATO ministers in Brussels; Ukrinform; European Pravda

The minister noted that Germany is transferring another Patriot system to Ukraine and thus providing a total of three systems for Ukraine.

Quote: "This is a quarter of our reserves of such systems, which can no longer be transferred. Others can probably give one each," Pistorius said.

Pistorius recalled that Germany had launched an initiative to strengthen Ukraine's air defence, which has already had some success, but there is room for improvement.

According to Pistorius, Germany also trains Patriot operators and transfers missiles for the system. In particular, 32 such missiles were recently transferred, and another 68 will be delivered in the coming days and weeks.

He added that these missiles were purchased as part of the joint efforts of Germany, Denmark, Norway, and the Netherlands.

Pistorius also confirmed that partners continue to explore all opportunities to increase Patriot production, negotiate with manufacturers in the United States, etc. Still, the problem is that production and delivery take time.

Background:

The Pentagon previously reported that at the 23rd meeting of the Ramstein format on Thursday in Brussels, they will discuss Ukraine's need to strengthen its air defence, particularly the need to supply Patriot air defence systems.

The media reported that US President Joe Biden approved the transfer of another Patriot missile system to Ukraine, but there was no official confirmation of this information.

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By Alimat Aliyeva

Taiwan's coast Guard detained a Chinese citizen, a retired Navy captain of the People's Liberation Army of China (PLA), who arrived on the island by motorboat and asked for asylum, Azernews reports.

According to him, on June 9, a man on a motorboat sailed to the island and entered the waters of the Danshui River. According to the coast Guard, a 9-meter boat was spotted in the morning 6 nautical miles (about 11 km) from the mouth of the river.

After the vessel entered the estuary, it collided with other vessels at the ferry terminal, in connection with which the ferry operators immediately contacted the coast guard and reported the incident.

During the interrogation, a 60-year-old detainee named Ruan said that in the past he served in the PLA Navy and holds the rank of captain. According to the agency, citing sources, he also indicated that he wanted to flee to Taiwan after posting anti-government comments on social networks. It is noted that the incident attracted special attention from the Taiwanese media and military experts, since the Danshui River leads to Taipei.

As the head of the Taiwan Ocean Affairs Council (the island's coast guard reports to him), Guan Biling, pointed out, it is currently unclear whether the man really wanted to escape to Taiwan or whether China deliberately staged a check on the island's coastal defenses in this way. According to her, over a period of just over a year, at least 18 such incidents were recorded, the participants of which said that they wanted to "escape for freedom to Taiwan." "Given the accumulated cases in the past, it is possible that this was a test," she said.
By Thomas Escritt

BORGO EGNAZIA, Italy (Reuters) - Plans by the G7 to provide additional financial support for Ukraine show that wealthy industrial nations remain committed to the country more than two years after Russia's invasion, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said on Thursday.

Speaking to reporters at the Group of Seven (G7) annual summit, Scholz said that Russian President Vladimir Putin had been misguided to expect international support for Ukraine to wane over time.

"This is a very clear commitment that should embolden the Ukrainians to do what they need to defend their independence and sovereignty," Scholz said.

"And it is also a clear signal to the Russian President, that he can't just sit this out and hope that fiscal problems in a country that backs Ukraine will one day let him win this war."

The G7 plan for Ukraine is based on a multi-year loan using profits from some $300 billion of impounded Russian funds.

"This is a very historic step we're taking today," the German leader said.

(Reporting by Thomas Escritt; Writing by Keith Weir)
A Steilacoom man driving a stolen car used a kayak to flee from law enforcement on the Chehalis River last week, the Centralia police report.

Centralia police arrested the 39-year-old man on June 6 with help from multiple agencies, according to a Thursday news release.

The man was booked into the Lewis County jail on suspicion of possessing a stolen vehicle and second-degree theft, according to the news release.

The incident began at about 8 a.m. when Centralia police received a Flock Safety alert for a stolen vehicle in the area. Multiple local agencies, including the Olympia Police Department, have recently begun to use flock cameras to automatically capture vehicle information, such as license plate numbers, on local streets.

Centralia detectives followed up on the alert and located a 2006 Scion hatchback. The driver of the hatchback pulled over but officers reported he failed to comply with commands to get out of the vehicle, according to the release.

Police say the driver fled from Cooks Hill Road onto Summerside Drive, which has no outlet. From there, they say he abandoned the vehicle and fled on foot into a steep wooded area.

A Centralia K9 dog tracked the man towards the Chehalis River and a drone pilot spotted the man running while carrying a blue kayak.

Police allege the man stole the kayak from a nearby residence on River Heights Road and used it to paddle into the middle of the river, according to the release.

A 39-year-old Steilacoom man allegedly stole a blue kayak to flee from Centralia police on the Chehalis River. Multiple agencies followed the man from the sky and riverbank.

Police say the man refused to comply with multiple commands to stop. At one point, the release says a Centralia police sergeant fired several pepper ball rounds into the water around the suspect under the Galvin Road Bridge.

While this happened, Washington State Patrol aircraft Smokey followed the man while he continued down the river. Police deployed kayaks with Riverside Fire Authority personnel to try to intercept the man.

The man eventually exited the east side of the river about a mile north of Galvin Road where he was met by a second K9 team that arrested him, the release says.

In addition to his new charges, the release says the man had multiple warrants for his arrest from neighboring counties.

Two hospitalized after crash in Mason County left vehicle engulfed in flames

More than 300 cars were stolen in Olympia last year. Whats OPD doing to reverse the trend?

Thurston Sheriff plans to pilot GPS trackers, grappler nets in pursuits this summer
ST. LOUIS COUNTY, Mo.  A Glasgow Village man made his first appearance in St. Louis County Circuit Court on Thursday after being charged with fatally shooting his older brother earlier in the week.

According to the St. Louis County Police Departments probable cause statement, the shooting happened on the evening of Tuesday, June 11, in the 10600 block of Moidart Circle. County police responded to a ShotSpotter notification just after 10:20 p.m. and found the body of J.T. Hemphill on the front lawn.

Hemphill was pronounced dead at the scene. He was 49.

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Police claim J.T. got into a fight with his brother, David J. Hemphill, earlier in the day. That evening, J.T. went to Davids home on Moidart and they continued to argue. David took out a gun and shot his brother in the front yard. J.T. was unarmed.

Investigators claim David admitted to killing his brother during questioning.

The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorneys Office charged Hemphill with second-degree murder and armed criminal action. Hemphill is being held on a $250,000 cash-only bond.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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BEDFORD, Va. (WFXR)  The Bedford Sheriffs Office arrested a Goodview man on child pornography charges on Monday, June 10.

The sheriff reports 39-year-old Richard Marshall Kluckman was arrested after an investigation with the Bedford County Sheriffs Office assigned to the Southern Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force.

Kluckman was charged with 10 total counts of Possession, Reproduction, Distribution, Solicitation, and Facilitation of Child Pornography.

Blacksburg PD makes arrest in ongoing child porn, animal investigation

The sheriff says he is currently being held without bond.

This is an ongoing investigation and for any further information about this case to call the Southern Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force at (434) 534-9521.

WFXR News will update this story as further information is released.

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House Republicans advanced plans for an $833 billion defense bill next year that once again includes limits on abortion access for troops and scales back diversity training in the ranks, controversial social stances that drew strong objections from Democratic lawmakers.

Similar amendments on the social issues were included in House Republicans appropriations bill last summer  but ultimately stripped out of the final compromise budget measure  and again in the defense authorization bill draft being debated on the chamber floor this week.

None of the provisions are likely to become law given opposition from the White House and Senate Democrats, but Republican lawmakers insisted the moves are needed to refocus defense leaders on their military missions and responsibilities.

Todays bill ensures our armed forces have the weapons and tools they need to confront any foe anywhere in the world, said House Appropriations Committee Chairman Tom Cole, R-Okla.

Junior enlisted would see only a small pay boost under Senate plan

The measure includes funding for a 4.5% pay raise for troops in 2025 and another 15% average raise for junior enlisted service members, a move which drew praise from Republicans and Democrats on the panel.

But the final 34-25 party line vote was largely a reflection of what Democratic lawmakers complained were non-defense fights in the military spending measure.

As written, this bill does more to divide us than to unite us, said Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio. It contains partisan riders unrelated to defense policy that overwhelmingly make this critical bill a tool for division, not support that our service members rightfully expect and need.

Rep. Betty Betty McCollum, D-Minn., offered an amendment to strip 24 major provisions of the bill  funding for reproductive health, LGBTQ+ rights, diversity programs, climate inclusion programs, COVID prevention programs, freedom of speech and more  that was ultimately voted down by the Republican majority.

The appropriations legislation is expected to move to the House floor in coming weeks, where it likely faces a similar path to last years bill: The addition of more conservative amendments followed by a legislative roadblock in the Senate over the social issue provisions.

When the Senate will advance its own draft of the appropriations bill remains unclear. Last year, disagreements between the two chambers delayed passage of the budget bill until six months into the new fiscal year, causing planning and accounting headaches for federal agencies.

Lawmakers have only a few weeks of legislative time left to avoid pushing the FY25 defense budget decision into next fiscal year. The House and Senate each only have seven weeks of session left in Washington scheduled between now and the November presidential election.
Olga Mendenhall/Getty Images

A coalition of Republican lawmakers want to make the AR-15, a semi-automatic firearm, Michigans state rifle, a move that concerned gun control advocates.

HB 5792, introduced by Rep. Brian BeGole (R-Antrim Twp.), the former sheriff of Shiawassee County, would make the military-grade weapon the states official rifle. The goal of the new designation is to destigmatize the AR-15, and the people who own them, according to a release from BeGole.

Millions of people across the country and thousands in Michigan own an AR-15. This distinction recognizes these law-abiding gun owners who are often vilified just for having a firearm as a hobbyist or to keep their homes and families safe, BeGole stated in the release.

But Ryan Bates, executive director of End Gun Violence Michigan, said the bill supports a trend of extremist politicians militarizing gun culture in the state.

We have to understand this as part and parcel of threats to our democracy by extremists, Bates said. This sort of symbol is an attempt to make our political discourse and debate not about how were going to make peoples lives better or improve our state but about threats and violence.

Bates said it was important to distinguish people who use guns for protection or hunting, and people who use AR-15s, which can kill a large number of people quickly. AR-15s have become a threatening symbol from the far-right, Bates said, and people working in politics or elections have been intimidated by these weapons in the last few years. Bates pointed out the example of the Jan. 6 insurrection and safety fears for poll workers.

They are, one, trying to normalize the presence of military grade hardware in our society, Bates said. Thats why you see things like open carry. And two, they are trying to militarize politics. Thats what this is about, and you cannot have a functioning democracy at the barrel of a gun.

BeGole also referenced that this bill would help halt future legislation limiting gun use. Last year, Michigan passed four major laws that limited gun access, including safe storage and background check requirements.

BeGole says that nine other states have designated their own state rifles; Alaska, Arizona, Indiana, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, Missouri, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and West Virginia.

It is highly unlikely the proposed legislation would make Michigan the 10th, as it would need to fight through a Democratic-controlled House, Senate and governors desk. The bill was introduced June 6 and assigned to the House Government Operations Committee, normally a repository for legislation with little chance of success.

The post GOP legislators seek to make AR-15 Michigans official state rifle appeared first on Michigan Advance.
The Republicans who control the Arizona Legislature passed a resolution (Senate Concurrent Resolution 1044) that will go on the November ballot and asks voters like us to give up our right to vote.

Ive got to give the schemers behind this atrocity some credit. Using the democratic process to kill an element of the democratic process is diabolically ironic.

In this case, GOP lawmakers are trying to prevent Arizona voters from dispatching Arizona Supreme Court Justices Clint Bolick and Kathryn King, who sided with Justices John R. Lopez IV and James P. Beene to restore the barbaric 19th century abortion ban.

Bolick and King come up for retention this year, as happens periodically for judges in Arizona. That means we get to decide if their votes for the abortion ban make them too extreme for our taste or not.

Unless SCR 1044 passes.

Judges would get lifetime appointments

Arizona Supreme Court Justices Clint Bolick and Kathryn H. King.

The resolution not only gives judges lifetime terms with no more periodic review from voters, but it has a provision that makes it retroactively effective to Oct. 31, 2024, meaning that any judge voted off the bench on Nov. 5, 2024, would be able to keep his, or her, job.

During the party-line vote (Republicans for, Democrats against) that passed this sham legislation, Republican Rep. Matt Gress said he was voting for the proposal because it kept the judiciary insulated from the political views of the extreme left or the extreme right and because he wanted to give the people of Arizona a choice in whether they want to retain an independent judiciary or not.

It would be nice, every once in a while, if elected officials said what they actually meant.

Bolick: Arizona needs the system that appointed me

Judges are political appointees.

Bolick and King were appointed by former Gov. Doug Ducey, who wanted to stack the court and got the Arizona Legislature to expand it from five to seven members, even though then-Chief Justice Scott Bales said that additional judges were not needed and expansion is not warranted when other court-related needs are underfunded.

Our vote is what protects us from extremes

The fact that citizens get to decide whether they want to retain judges or not is the only defense we have against the extreme left or extreme right.

So, when politicians like Gress ask you to give up that right, theyre not arguing for an independent judiciary but for a judiciary beholding only to the politician who gave them lifetime jobs.

As things stand, we get to vote on whether judges like Bolick and King are too extreme for our taste or not.

If SCR 1044 passes, whether judges are extreme left or extreme right or extreme  period  theyll have their jobs for life, and there wont be a damn thing we could do about it.

Reach Montini at ed.montini@arizonarepublic.com.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Republicans pass scheme to save anti-abortion judges
Rep. Troy Nehls (R-Texas) wants top Army officials to tell him why a military award pin he has been wearing on his lapel was revoked last year following criticism from some of his GOP colleagues for continuing to wear the designation, accusing the service of a smear campaign.

Nehls  who served 21 years in the Army Reserve and deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan  wears a Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB) on his suit jacket given to him in October 2008. But a CBS News investigation last month discovered the pin was revoked from his military record in March 2023. The designation was removed as he had served as a civil affairs officer while in Afghanistan, and the badge is meant only for infantrymen or Special Forces troops engaged in active ground combat.

In a letter sent Tuesday to U.S. Army Human Resources Command, a follow-on to another letter sent in late May, Nehls disagrees with the service pulling the pin and demands answers as to why it happened.

I further believe this is a concerted effort to discredit my military service and continued service to the American people as a member of Congress, he wrote. He also urged officials to get it right in revising his military records.

Nehls, who was awarded his CIB while serving as a civil affairs officer with the 101st Airborne Division in Afghanistan in 2008, had three main asks for Army officials: information about who HR spoke to within the 101st about his designation, whether the discrepancy was discussed with division and how many other CIB were revoked during the same missions for which he received the award.

In recent weeks, the Texas Republican has come under fire from other House members for continuing to wear the CIB while on Capitol Hill.

But Nehls told reporters Tuesday that he believes the Army is targeting him for supporting former President Trump.

What the hell is that discrepancy? he said. How many CIBs had been revoked from soldiers, or is it just Troy Nehls, Mr. MAGA guy?

He has also pushed back on the CBS News findings that only one Bronze Star medal is in his official military records rather than two.

Nehlss congressional website states that he has earned two Bronze Stars, and he also posted a photo to the social platform X in early May that showed two medals and the paperwork approving the awards in 2004 and 2008.

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Photo by Jim Small | Arizona Mirror

Arizona Republicans want voters to give lifetime appointments to state judges and make it easier to kill citizen-led ballot measures.

On Wednesday, GOP lawmakers pushed through several ballot referrals, including one that would eliminate term limits for judges across the state. Superior Court judges generally serve for a period of four years before facing reelection, while state appellate judges and Arizona Supreme Court justices hold office for six years.

Senate Concurrent Resolution 1044 would upend that, making judicial terms indefinite and dependent on good behavior, instead. The Arizona Commission on Judicial Conduct, which is made up of 11 members, including judges, lawyers and three members of the public, would be in charge of deciding when a judge violates that standard. Lawmakers would also increase the commissions size by appointing two new members. Violations that could merit consideration by Arizona voters on whether or not a judge deserves to keep their seat include a felony offense, a conviction involving fraud or dishonesty, or a declaration of bankruptcy or foreclosure. Any lawmaker would also be able to prompt an investigation into a judge by sending the Commission a written accusation that a judge is engaging in a pattern of malfeasance in office.

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Opponents have criticized the proposal as overriding the will of voters, especially in light of a provision that makes its term limit eliminations retroactive. That means that two Arizona Supreme Court Judges on the ballot in November  Justices Clint Bolick, and Kathryn King, who have both been targeted by a campaign seeking to unseat them for their votes earlier this year to revive a near-total abortion ban from 1864  will remain in office regardless of the outcomes of their reelection bids if the ballot referral succeeds. Justice Bolick is married to Sen. Shawnna Bolick, R-Phoenix, who helped greenlight the referral in the Senate.

Democrats vehemently denounced the proposal on Wednesday, saying that it unfairly eliminates voter input and pointed to the state Supreme Courts abortion law ruling as a reason to preserve that input, which drew ire from Republican lawmakers.

Rep. Judy Schwiebert, D-Phoenix, who is launching a bid for the state Senate and will likely face off with Bolick in November, criticized the ballot referral as an attempt to shield Justice Clint Bolick from electoral consequences.

While proponents (claim) that this bill would prevent further politicization, the truth is that we absolutely need an important check on the court, she said during debate on the House floor on Wednesday. Not only did the current justices rule against the people of Arizona by upholding a Civil War-era, territorial law criminalizing abortion but we see the Arizona Supreme Court make other decisions that are solely political, rather than upholding the will of Arizona voters.

Rep. Analise Ortiz, D-Phoenix, urged lawmakers not to strip from voters their ability to determine who sits on the courts, and said the proposal threatens to nullify the voices of Arizonans in the same election that will decide its fate.

SCR1044 would take away my right and the right of my constituents who want to vote to not retain those Justices who approved the 1864 abortion ban, because it says Your voice doesnt matter, were throwing out your vote. This is what authoritarianism looks like, she said, shortly before being cut off by Republicans, who used a procedural move to shorten debate.

In their final comments, GOP lawmakers defended the proposal as a way to ensure the judicial branch is protected from partisan interests.

We need an independent judiciary that is insulated from the political views of the extreme left and the extreme right, said Rep. Matt Gress, R-Phoenix.

Rep. Alexander Kolodin, R-Scottsdale, added that it would help Arizonans be better informed on judicial retention elections, by paring down the number they need to research before voting. He noted that, currently, most judicial retention elections see dismal voter participation.

It cuts down on the number of judicial retention elections to only those that the judicial performance review commission say are necessary because a judge has not met the standards of judicial conduct, he said. That way itll be a smaller, more focused list of judges that voters will actually have time to research and examine and perhaps more voters would actually be willing to fill out their ballots and weigh in on that.

The ballot referral was approved along partisan lines, by a vote of 31-29 in the House, and later approved, also with a party-line vote of 16-10, in the state Senate, with Sen. Bolick casting her vote in favor of the measure. Because it will be placed directly on the November ballot to be considered by voters, it doesnt require approval from Gov. Katie Hobbs and effectively evaded her veto stamp.

Also on Wednesday, GOP lawmakers approved Senate Concurrent Resolution 1041, which would authorize constitutional challenges to be filed against ballot measures before voters even have a chance to consider them, while campaigns are still gathering signatures to qualify for the ballot. It would allow challenges to be filed as soon as an initiative or constitutional amendment is first filed with the Arizona Secretary of States office  the first official step for any ballot measure.

Rep. Austin Smith, R-Wittman, touted the proposal as a necessary protection during a House Republican Caucus meeting, just before the entire chamber voted to pass it 31-29 along party lines.

Its an opportunity to challenge constitutional amendments, which is actually starting to happen a lot more than they used to, he said.

One high profile constitutional amendment on the November ballot is the Arizona for Abortion Access Act, which would enshrine the right to an abortion in the state constitution and nullify the states current 15-week gestational ban, which was backed by the GOP majority in 2022.

Rep. Laura Terech, D-Phoenix, warned that SCR 1041 would hinder citizen-led efforts to join the legislative process, by forcing them to shore up financial resources before making any effort to gain voter approval. And, she pointed out, ballot measures are already subject to legal challenges. The proposal only serves to increase the burden for Arizonans hoping to enact change, she said.

This is going to astronomically raise the cost of running these initiatives and I find it deeply, deeply undemocratic, Terech said.

The resolution is the latest in a string of Republican-backed proposals over the past two decades that have sought to  in many cases, successfully  weaken the citizen initiative process that allows Arizona voters to legislate at the ballot box.

Republicans in the House approved the ballot referral by a vote of 31-29, and, because no changes were made to it in the lower chamber, it will be sent directly to the November ballot.

A third proposal sent by the GOP majority to the ballot on Wednesday was Senate Concurrent Resolution 1012, which, if passed by voters, would make rules enacted by state agencies dependent on the approval of the state legislature. It would require any rule proposed by a state agency, such as the Department of Health Services, that is projected to increase regulatory costs by more than $100,000 within five years to be submitted first for review by the Arizona Office of Economic Opportunity. If the office finds costs would actually exceed $500,000 in the next five years, the legislature would need to introduce legislation to ratify the rule before they become effective.

That proposal, too, was sent directly to the November ballot by a vote of 31-29, with all Democrats in the lower chamber opposed.

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GOP's Daugherty banned again: 'They're trying to make me an example'

EVANSVILLE  Chosen by Republican voters who elected him to party positions by large margins on May 7, Michael Daugherty was banned again this week by Republican officials.

Daugherty isn't just banned from seeking any office as a Republican until 2030  he's also banned from the Indiana GOP state convention in Indianapolis this weekend.

Daugherty, the Libertarian candidate for Evansville mayor last year, says he had planned to attend the convention at the Indiana Convention Center as a guest to work for Noblesville pastor Micah Beckwith's campaign for lieutenant governor. Beckwith seeks the support of the convention's roughly 1,800 delegates in a floor contest pitting him against state Rep. Julie McGuire, the choice of Republican gubernatorial nominee Mike Braun. It's the state GOP's first competitive lieutenant governor contest in decades.

But Daugherty, who Republican voters elected to be a state delegate and a local GOP precinct committee member, isn't welcome.

More: Big changes would follow turnover in Vanderburgh GOP

"Every guest (at the convention) has to be registered," he said. "I only told two people that I was going to be there working, and they hadnt told anybody, so Im assuming my name came up on the 'registered guests' list and (the Indiana Republican Party) said, Oh, hell no, and put a stop to it."

Michael Daugherty

The news was conveyed to Daugherty by Beckwith's campaign, which offered him the chance to work a booth for the candidate outside the convention. Daugherty declined, he said, to avoid becoming a distraction.

Griffin Reid, press secretary for the state GOP, acknowledged that Daugherty won't be allowed inside the convention.

Reid sent a text message quoting a party rule saying admission to the convention comes by tickets that go to delegates, media and "guests invited by the State Committee."

"This individual (Daugherty) was recently determined to not be a Republican in good standing by the (party) officers of his congressional district, and is therefore not eligible to attend the convention this year," Reid wrote.

It's part of civil war engulfing Vanderburgh GOP

The four-member 8th District Republican Congressional Committee banned Daugherty, Ken Colbert and Cheryl Batteiger-Smith from seeking any office as Republicans until 2030 after holding a hearing in Evansville on June 3.

The committee, headed by Posey County GOP activist Brenda Goff, was acting at the behest of Vanderburgh County party chairman Mike Duckworth. Daugherty, Colbert and Batteiger-Smith are critics of Duckworth who have vowed to seek his removal and to transition the local GOP into a more lean and ideologically conservative organization.

More: Ousted candidates say they're committed to removing Duckworth as GOP chair

Duckworth had tried unsuccessfully in February to persuade the Vanderburgh County Election Board to remove Daugherty from the May 7 GOP primary election ballot as a candidate for precinct committee and convention delegate slots. His argument: Daugherty's Libertarian campaign for mayor put him in direct opposition to unsuccessful Republican nominee Natalie Rascher in violation of party rules defining a "Republican in good standing."

But the election board foiled Duckworth's attempt to remove Daugherty from the ballot, with the GOP's own representative to the board  attorney Joe Harrison Jr., a former party chairman himself  siding with Daugherty. Duckworth responded by exercising his prerogative as GOP chairman to replace Harrison on the board with Chad Sullivan, the lawyer who had represented him in his attempt to block Daugherty.

More: Vanderburgh GOP head axes election board member after Daugherty vote

Duckworth's opposition to Daugherty didn't stop Republican voters themselves from supporting Daugherty in the primary.

Daugherty beat another Republican for a precinct committee slot with 73% of the vote. He received 1,260 votes to finish fourth in a field of 24 Republicans seeking 10 seats at the state convention.

But that, in turn, did not deter Duckworth from seeking Daugherty, Colbert and Batteiger-Smith's removal at the June 3 party hearing  27 days after they had been elected in the primary.

'Bad optics'

Guest tickets for this weekend's Republican convention in Indianapolis were sold out as of at least Wednesday, according to the event's web page.

Daugherty plans to root on Beckwith from home this weekend, staying in contact with other Beckwith supporters at the convention. He said he respects the Indiana Republican Party's right to ban him from being a guest at its convention, in the process backing up Duckworth.

But that doesn't mean he thinks it's a good idea.

"I think its bad optics for the party," he said. "I think theyre trying to make me an example and strike fear into all Republicans so that they can move their agenda forward without any resistance."

This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Michael Daugherty banned from Indiana GOP state convention
Gov. Brian Kemp is taking a delegation of Georgia officials to the Republic of Korea for an international mission focused on the states economy and business partnerships.

According to the governors office, the governor and First Lady Marty Kemp are going to South Korea to focus on reinforcing strategic economic development partnerships for the state.

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The Republic of Korea was the very first country I visited when I became governor for a good reason  because of the incredible partners located there, Kemp said in a statement. Marty and I are glad to return so that we can reinforce those great friendships that are bringing historic investments and jobs to communities all across the state. Georgias connections to Korea go back decades, and this trip will further strengthen those relationships that are having a generational impact on the No. 1 state for business.

The governors office said the delegation includes the governor and first lady, President Pro Tem John Kennedy, Representative Soo Hong, and Representative Lehman Franklin, as well as representatives from the Georgia Department of Economic Development (GDEcD), Georgia Environmental Protection Division, and Georgia Ports Authority.

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The delegation is expected to meet with industries both operating in Georgia or preparing to work in Georgia with facilities under construction, including Hyundai Motor Group, Kia, CJ Foodville, LG Group, SK Group, and Hanwha Qcells.

Connectivity leads to business, and relationships build the foundations of mutual progress, GDEcD Commissioner Pat Wilson said in a statement. Meeting with the leadership of existing industries at their headquarters provides a unique opportunity to learn more about their perspective on an industry and where it is headed. By keeping the lines of communication open, we can stay ahead of the curve in industry shifts, positioning Georgia at the forefront of new opportunities.

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Residents of coastal Florida are finding themselves stuck as they're faced with leaving their homes vulnerable to increasingly strong hurricanes or granting public beach access that will allow for federal restoration.

What's happening?

Many towns are at risk of damage and flooding because of increasingly severe storms in the Gulf of Mexico, as Grist reported. While the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers typically handles restoration for these areas, it cannot haul in thousands of tons of sand to complete these projects unless property owners grant easements to their private slivers of shore. Unfortunately, many people are refusing to allow such access.

According to Grist, this has caused restoration and damage prevention efforts to come to a "near standstill."

"Our coastlines are the first line of defense against storms, and our Gulf beaches are just eroding away," Lisa Hendrickson, the mayor of Redington Shores told the outlet. "I don't know where we go with it now, or how we come together to work through it."

Why is this concerning?

Though some property owners have granted the Corps access, the agency won't move forward until it has signatures from everybody  and that's nowhere close to happening.

Grist reported that last month, Sen. Rick Scott sent the Corps a letter asking it to adjust its easement policy, writing that "further delays on these projects could cause catastrophic damage to  coastal communities."

Rene Flowers, a Pinellas County commissioner, told Grist, "When you have a break in the chain, then all of the work that you're doing is not as impactful in protecting as it would be."

What's particularly worrying is that severe weather events are increasing because of climate-related factors and global heating  and tensions such as these may foreshadow the difficulties of navigating urgent repairs in other parts of the world.

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"I'm very concerned for those homeowners out there who will be impacted because perhaps their neighbor has opted not to allow access," Flowers said.

What's being done about this?

Some people have suggested avoiding the path of the Corps-driven restoration altogether in favor of county-funded repair efforts. Other counties, including some along North Carolina's Outer Banks, have levied tourism taxes to pay for similar efforts, as WRAL reported.

Rob Young, a professor at Western Carolina University, told Grist, "For a lot of people, the privacy is more important to them than the risk of destruction." Instead, he said, "The solution is very easy  pay for your own risk."

Meanwhile, several companies have come up with creative solutions, constructing floating homes and office buildings to make coastal communities more resilient against extreme weather and hurricanes. In South Carolina, a team from the nonprofit Force Blue has installed "smart reefs" to provide real-time information about ocean conditions to protect communities from storm surges and sea level rise.

And while not every community is specifically at risk of hurricanes, nearly every city is facing increased threats from climate-intensified storms and weather events. This makes it critical to work to decrease your own footprint and slow global heating, whether by growing your own food, switching to an EV, ditching single-use plastics, or using a green bank, among many other positive climate actions.

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The U.S. Department of Education has jeopardized access to financial aid for millions of college students and their familiesall because it failed to create a functional online form.

In what is possibly the largest web-based government fumble since the rollout of HealthCare.gov in 2013, the updated Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) online form has been a glitch-filled fiasco, infuriating families and universities alike.

Students seeking federal loans and grants must use the FAFSA form, but it's also essential for those who don't intend to take federal money, since the vast majority of U.S. colleges use it to determine institutional financial aid.

The current problems stem from the 2021 Consolidated Appropriations Act, which aimed to simplify the FAFSA process. That's a wise goal, but the department's botched implementation has generated so many technical issues that millions of students have been left in the lurch.

The updated form had a "soft launch" on December 31, 2023more than two months later than the form's typical release date. Despite that delay, the department did not extend the deadline for families to complete the form. And while the new form was, in fact, shorter than previous versionsmore than half of the questions were cut by importing parents' tax data directly from the IRSthe extra time the department took did not mean it crafted a more functional process overall. It instead released a glitchy FAFSA that many families found enraging and often impossible to complete.

"At one point, the site was telling me that both my daughter and I had already started forms when in fact neither of us had," finance reporter Ron Lieber wrote in The New York Times in January. "I wish they'd waited another year and gotten this right by late in the summer, so everyone could have a full academic-year cycle to get used to the new form and formulas for determining aid."

The form was plagued by issues for months after its rollout. FAFSA's website contains a long list of technical complaints, most of which require complicated workarounds to fix.

Adding insult to injury, the department revealed in March that around 200,000 completed forms contained inaccurate information and would need to be recalculated. The error affected students who reported their own assets, such as personal savings or investments. Failure to include those assets resulted in some students being given larger financial aid estimates than they were actually eligible for.

These issues have had a significant impact on FAFSA completion rates. By mid-April, submissions were down by 36 percent. In a typical year, more than 15 million students complete the form. This drop means that millions of students who likely would have completed a FAFSA in prior years will now miss out on financial aid.

The National College Attainment Network warned of a "catastrophic drop in college enrollment this fall, potentially worse than during the COVID-19 pandemic," in a March statement, adding that there were "inexcusable and frustrating FAFSA technological problems for many students and families in January and February."

Students and families are not alone in their fury. Colleges have also been affected, as most rely on the FAFSA form to determine their own financial aid packages. The delayed FAFSA information, along with considerable errors in the data, have made it challenging for universities to offer aid to admitted students.

Marc M. Camille, president of Albertus Magnus College, told The Washington Post that the delays in getting information to students and the inaccuracy of the information the college is receiving is "getting scary."

"On the one hand, you want to take at face value that if we receive [records,] they're accurate," Camille said. "But the ones we've received to date have had errors."

Instead of streamlining the FAFSA process, the department has made it even more complicated, adding stress to an already daunting process. The financial futures of millions of students hang in the balance because the government couldn't create a functional form.

The post The Government Screwed Up College Financial Aid Applications appeared first on Reason.com.
In an effort to cut down on migrant fentanyl smuggling, California Governor Gavin Newsom has announced an increase in the deployment states National Guard across the U.S.-Mexico border.

Announced on Thursday, Newsom plans to more than double the presence of the Cal Guards Counter Drug Taskforce from 155 service members to 392.

Our top priority is the safety of our communities statewide, Newsom said in a statement. By working with state, local, and federal partners to take down transnational organizations and the illegal drugs they attempt to bring into our state, the states Counter Drug Taskforce is making a profound difference to hold smugglers accountable and take deadly drugs off our streets.

The 152% increase in service members is an attempt to curb illegal drug smuggling  including fentanyl  at several key ports along the southern border. California began deploying the Counter Drug Taskforce at the border in 2022, initially with just 30 service members.

Beginning in 2022, the CalGuards Counter Drug Taskforce deployed 30 service members to the San Ysidro, Otay Mesa, Tecate, and Calexico Ports of Entry to support our federal partners, said CalGuard Major General Matthew Beevers. Due to significant initial success, in 2023, we doubled our force across those Ports of Entry. Under Governor Newsoms leadership and broad Congressional support, our Counter Drug Taskforce has grown from 155 full-time service members to 392 today.

Newsoms office says the taskforce has seized 5.8 million pills containing fentanyl this year so far. Last year, 62,224 pounds of fentanyl were seized.

According to the office, the majority of fentanyl smuggling across border ports of entry is done by U.S. citizens  not migrants.

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A sign outside the Grand Farm Innovation Shop highlights high-level partners of the project. (Jeff Beach/North Dakota Monitor)

North Dakotas Grand Farm project on Thursday announced it will collaborate with the University of Georgia on its own Grand Farm campus.

The University of Georgia Grand Farm will be on 250 acres in Perry, Georgia, next to the Georgia National Fairgrounds and Agricenter. Its first field projects are planned for 2025.

This partnership is a great example of how Grand Farm works to advance agriculture technology and solve grower pain points across varied geographies, William Aderholdt, executive director of Grand Farm, near Casselton, North Dakota, said in a news release. Collaborating with the University of Georgia allows us to leverage their extensive research capabilities and expertise in agricultural sciences.

The North Dakota Grand Farm campus, which has benefited from $10 million in state funding, just celebrated the completion of its first building at the research site. The new Innovation Shop provides meeting and innovation space next to test plots used by agribusinesses and university researchers.

The roots of the partnership go back five years when University System of Georgia Chancellor Sonny Perdue helped inaugurate the North Dakota Grand Farm while Perdue served as U.S. secretary of agriculture.

Nick Place, dean of the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, said the collaboration will bring together Georgias Institute for Integrative Precision Agriculture with Grand Farms cutting-edge technologies, to revolutionize the way we feed and clothe the worlds population.

The post Grand Farm, University of Georgia announce collaboration appeared first on North Dakota Monitor.
Co-founders and CEOs of The Fearless Fund Arian Simone, center left, and Ayana Parsons, center right, speak to journalists outside the James Lawrence King Federal Building in Miami as they leave with their legal team following a hearing on Wednesday, Jan. 31, 2024. Rebecca Blackwell via Associated Press

Arecentfederal court ruling temporarily blocked the distribution of a grant designed to support start-ups by Black women  and honestly, we shouldnt be the only ones outraged.

The most audacious part is that the Fearless Funds Fearless Strivers Grant, designed to support Black women-led businesses with $20,000 in venture capital, was deemed discriminatory. The Fearless Fund is one of the venture capital groups targeted for its programs designed to encourage corporate diversity. Black women are currently the largest growing demographic of business owners, yet they receive less than 1% of venture capital funding, according to Reuters.

In 2023, one month after successfully dismantling affirmative action (the system put in place to address discriminatory admission practices of the past) at colleges through the conservative-leaning U.S. Supreme Court, the American Alliance for Equal Rights filed three lawsuits challenging organizations that support Black and other marginalized business owners.

For many Black entrepreneurs, the federal courts decision feels like a racist residual of the 1921 Black Wall Street massacre: An incident where white supremacists set fire to and destroyed an entire neighborhood of Tulsa where Black businesses thrived. Today, instead of overt physical violence, conservatives are using the courts to strip Black and minority-owned businesses from any shot at leveling a playing field that was built only for white Americans to thrive in  and has been fostered as such for decades.

The American Alliance for Equal Rights calls itself a non-profit membership organization whose mission is to challenge distinction and preferences made on the basis of race and ethnicity. However, its consistent attacks on laws and initiatives that aim to rectify the disenfranchisement of minorities reveal the more obvious goal  to strip Black folks of any chance at achieving any form of financial security or long overdue reparations.

According to the lawsuit against Fearless Fund, their grant violates the Civil Rights Act of 1866, enacted after the Civil War to extend the right to make and enforce contracts to all citizens regardless of race, color, and ethnicity. The slightest bit of historical context will reveal that the law was meant to extend to Black Americans only the same rights that white people already had.

While many Americans want to believe that we live in some kind of post-racial economy where the injustices of the past have been magically erased and that Black Americans no longer face discrimination  that couldnt be farther from the truth.

Black American entrepreneurs currently face several obstacles while getting their businesses off the ground. This Forbes piece points to exactly how racial bias in lending works  and why it sucks for all of us.

As of 2022, Black business owners received only 2% of $288 billion of venture capital funding. And Black women receive a small fraction of that 2%. Anyone with critical thinking skills can see the Fearless Funds mission is meant to give Black entrepreneurs a fighting chance  which is actually exactly what the Civil Rights Act of 1866 was designed to protect. Aside from this being a racist attack on Black women entrepreneurs, blocking this funding also disrupts the nations economic growth.

According to the Department of Commerce, minority-owned businesses contribute nearly $2 trillion annually to the economy and 9.43 million jobs to the job market. Yet a gaping equity gap remains between Black and brown business owners and their white counterparts.

If the American Alliance for Equal Rights and other organizations could simply recognize these disparities, they might be more inclined to stay out of Black and Brown folks business.

Related...
No charges in killing of gray wolf in Calhoun County. Experts stumped about how it got there.

(AP)  Wildlife experts have hit a dead end in their quest to determine how a gray wolf arrived in southern Michigan for the first time in more than 100 years.

The wolf was killed in January by a hunter who told investigators that he had mistaken it for a coyote. It was a shock: While gray wolves are common in Michigans Upper Peninsula  the latest estimate is more than 700  the states southern Lower Peninsula doesnt offer the proper habitat.

DNR: Gray wolf killed in Calhoun County

We just dont know how it got there, Brian Roell, wolf expert at the state Department of Natural Resources, said.

Separately, authorities who received a report about the DNRs investigation said Thursday that no charges would filed against the hunter or guide.

The conduct here appears to be based on a reasonable and honest belief they were legally shooting a coyote, Calhoun County prosecutor David Gilbert told The Associated Press.

DNR: U.P. wolf population likely at carrying capacity

The 84-pound wolf was killed roughly 300 miles (482 kilometers) south of the Upper Peninsula. The DNR said it learned through social media about someone shooting a world record coyote. But this was no coyote.

Gray wolves are protected under the Endangered Species Act and can be killed only if they are a direct threat to human life, the DNR said.

Roell said hed welcome tips if the public knows anything about the wolfs presence in southern Michigan.

It could have been natural. It could have been aided by humans, he said of the wolfs travels.

Ice forms on the Great Lakes, making it possible for certain animals to cross the Straits of Mackinac between the peninsulas, but recent winter ice conditions havent been firm, Roell said.

There also would be barriers to a wolf moving from elsewhere in the Upper Midwest to southern Michigan, he added.

State lawmakers urge DNR to decide against criminal charges in wolf incident

A possible clue: a mark on a foot showed the wolf had been recently trapped.

It just makes it more curious, Roell said.

By the time the agency got involved, the coat had been preserved and stuffed by a taxidermist. The DNR seized the mount  and the hunter wont get it back.

Because the gray wolf is an endangered species, the hunter is not be permitted to possess it, spokesperson Ed Golder said.

____

Anyone with information can call the DNR at (800) 292-7800.

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ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC)  A disturbance broke out at Outback Steakhouse in south Abilene Wednesday afternoon when a grease fire erupted.

The fire occurred at around 6:04 p.m. on June 12th. Upon arrival, crews observed smoke emanating from the buildings back door. All occupants were safely evacuated.

The investigation revealed that employees were attempting to clean the fryers when a gas line disconnected from the fryer and ignited. The vent hood suppression system and sprinkler system contained the fire to the fryer area, causing no structural damage. Damages are estimated to be $10,000.

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Group accused of kidnapping woman and her son out of jealousy, sheriff says

Deputies are still investigating after a mom and her 9-year-old son were taken by force from a South Carolina home.

The Chesterfield County Sheriffs Office said they were told on May 28 about the incident, which happened at a home in the Jefferson area.

Deputies found both the mom and her son after about eight hours, investigators said.

ALSO READ: Former SC deputies charged for falsely reporting dead bodies

Channel 9 Reporter Tina Terry learned from deputies that the motive behind the case was jealousy.

Chesterfield County deputies told Terry that the ringleader in the crime was a woman named Amy Perez, and she arranged the kidnapping because she was jealous of her husbands new girlfriend.

As of Thursday, Perez is still on the streets.

According to deputies, Perez worked on the scheme together with her 21-year-old son, Hunter Ricci, another 17-year-old son, and 36-year-old Randy Price.

Detectives said the four of them pretended to be police, and they forced their way into a house in Pageland, put bags over the victims heads, and forced them into a car.

The sheriffs office told Terry the victim managed to call her boyfriend just before the abduction. He called deputies and they rushed to the scene.

Deputies talked to a neighbor who saw the abduction and had video from surveillance cameras. The video supported everything the witness said.

Authorities were able to use cell phone location data to find the victims at an abandoned house 10 miles away.

The 9-year-old son was not physically injured ... his mother had a stab wound and had been cut with a knife, Sheriff Cambo Streater said. His mother had a stab wound and had been cut with a knife.

Perez and her son, Ricci, lived in Union County in North Carolina. They were arrested on warrants for attempted murder and kidnapping shortly after the alleged crime.

Perez was released on bond.

On Thursday, Chesterfield County deputies asked a judge to put Perez back in jail until they can secure a governors warrant to bring her to South Carolina.

She needs to be in jail, these are very serious charges, Streater said. The bond has to be high enough so she cant get out.

The sheriff says since being out of jail, Perez has threatened the victims of the crime again.

Terry spoke with officials in Union County who said warrants have been reissued for Perezs arrest. Both of her sons were in jail Thursday night, and deputies are also looking for a young woman who they believe was a part of the crime.

On June 20, authorities in Mississippi said that Perez had been arrested on outstanding warrants related to the kidnapping case. She was arrested while visiting a casino located in Tunica County.

(WATCH BELOW: Chesterfield County deputy charged with DUI after leading short chase)
How the group behind the abortion drug battle is taking its fight global

London  British anti-abortion activist Isabel Vaughn-Spruce says she wasn't protesting when she stood silently in a protected zone outside an abortion clinic near her church in Birmingham, England.

"I internally reasoned that surely my silent thoughts should still be allowed to happen inside that zone. My prayers. So I went and silently prayed outside the abortion center, initially just when it was closed, and I was arrested because of that, twice," Vaughn-Spruce told CBS News.

U.K. law establishes protected zones around abortion clinics. They are meant to shield women seeking care from protesters. The zone boundaries are marked by signs around facilities that provide abortion services.

Vaughn-Spruce said that, upon her arrest, she reached out to a legal group with American roots  Alliance Defending Freedom International  for help. In the end, she was not convicted of any offenses.

"Standing up for these issues and for freedoms, whether that's in America or any other country, essentially that's still the same. So the roots of an organization, in a way, whether it's American or English, doesn't really make any difference to me," Vaughn-Spruce said. "The work that [ADF] are doing has been absolutely tremendous."

What is Alliance Defending Freedom?

ADF International U.K. is a registered charity in Britain that is supported by donations from ADF in the United States, according to its financial disclosures.

ADF, launched in 1994 and, boasting a network of over 4,500 attorneys, describes itself as "one of the leading Christian law firms committed to protecting religious freedom, free speech, marriage and family, parental rights, and the sanctity of life."

It provides legal support to people whose cases are in line with its causes.

ADF lawyers argued on behalf of the plaintiffs who sought a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that would have restricted access to the widely used abortion pill mifepristone across the country, but the court rejected their argument in a ruling handed down Thursday, upholding access to the drug. The group also supported the Mississippi case that eventually went to the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade.

Lorie Smith, a Christian graphic artist and website designer in Colorado, center in pink, accompanied by her lawyer, Kristen Waggoner of the Alliance Defending Freedom, center bottom, walk out of the Supreme Court on Dec. 5, 2022, following arguments in a suit filed by Smith, who refused to create websites for same-sex weddings. / Credit: Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

ADF says it has played a role in at least 74 Supreme Court victories in total and represented 15 parties that won victories at America's highest court.

ADF's fast-growing international operations

"I think Americans know very, very little about what these American organizations are exporting in terms of rights-stripping policies into other countries," Heidi Beirich, founder of the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism, told CBS News. "What's happening is a very powerful, far-right movement built on targeting particular communities is emerging, and that's affecting the human rights of people all across the world."

Beirich previously worked as an expert in extremism at the Southern Poverty Law Center, which listed ADF as an anti-LGBTQ+ hate group in 2016.

The SPLC says it made that designation because ADF, "has supported the idea that being LGBTQ+ should be a crime in the U.S. and abroad and believes that [it] is OK to put LGBTQ+ people in prison for engaging in consensual sex. It has also supported laws that required the forced sterilization of transgender Europeans."

An ADF International U.K. representative told CBS News that the group rejects the hate group characterization.

ADF International has established offices in European power centers including Geneva, Brussels, Strasbourg and London.

"It brings litigation at the European Court of Human Rights. They're active in Latin America," Beirich said. "I'm talking millions of dollars are going into their efforts to, not just change the United States towards their Christian nationalist vision, but now other countries, including the United Kingdom and the EU."

According to its financial records from 2022 to 2023, ADF International's U.K. branch saw its income increase in that one-year period by 514,729 British pounds (about $655,036) to 1,068,552 ($1,360,079). Its expenditure also increased by 220,751 pounds ($280,982) over the same period to 993,118 ($1,264,090).

According to the group's financial disclosures, that money was used to provide legal analysis and briefs to several members of the U.K. Parliament, engage in public commentary, and "assist those who may be prevented from living and worshiping in accordance with Christian principles and ethics whether by, for example, engaging at a local level or with significant decision-makers."

ADF boasts ties to some of the most prominent conservative names in the American political landscape.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson is a former attorney for the group. While working for ADF, Johnson lobbied unsuccessfully for a 2004 Louisiana ballot measure that would have banned same-sex marriage, according to The Associated Press. In a 2003 op-ed for a local Louisiana newspaper, Johnson wrote that homosexuality was an "abnormal lifestyle" and "dangerous sexual conduct." In the byline of the piece, Johnson is identified as an attorney for Alliance Defense Fund, the former name of Alliance Defending Freedom.

Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett also gave at least five paid speeches between 2011 and 2015 to the Blackstone Legal Fellowship, a program for young conservative lawyers that is run and funded by ADF.

During her 2020 confirmation hearing in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Barrett was quizzed over her ties to the group. When asked when she knew that the Blackstone Legal Fellowship was run by ADF, Barrett replied: "To the best of my recollection, I learned that ADF funded the Blackstone program either when I received the honorarium for my presentation, or maybe when I saw the signature line in an email."

Barrett told the committee she had "no specific knowledge" of decades-long efforts by the ADF against LGBTQ+ rights, including opposition to same sex marriage.

ADF's global operations

ADF International originally agreed to offer a spokesperson for an interview with CBS News, but canceled twice at the last minute and then pulled out entirely. When CBS News then sent questions to the group, it responded with a four-paragraph statement that said: "Despite baseless claims from those who disagree with our values, there's nothing unusual about the money we receive  we comply with all rules set out by charity regulators."

"Our UK office is staffed by local team members working to uphold human rights in Britain  including, among others, free speech and freedom of religion," the statement said. "As a global organization, we receive funds from many different countries, as do many UK charities on both sides of the abortion debate."

Beirich said Americans should be aware of ADF's activities overseas because of how effective the group has been at helping to get laws changed through the courts in the U.S.

"This is an organization that wins, and they leverage the courts to get their policies in place," she told CBS News. "We should really be paying attention to them, because they've fundamentally changed American society already with these rulings, and the same can happen in other places."

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Groveport Madison school board on Wednesday tabled action on a resolution to join a lawsuit that aims to strike down Ohio's universal vouchers.

Groveport Madison school board meeting June 12. Second from left is Superintendent James Grube to his right is Board President Latoya Dowdell-Burger next is Vice President Seth Bower, next are members Libby Gray, John Kershner and Kathleen Walsh.

A day earlier, Upper Arlington school board voted 3-2 to join the lawsuit despite a letter from Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted, a resident of the district, urging that board not to do so.

The audience at the Groveport Madison school board meeting filled almost every seat in the room but, unlike the Upper Arlington meeting, advocates for the lawsuit were not present. Some in the audience spoke during the meeting, but about different topics  including Superintendent James Grube's recent pay rise.

The audience at the June 12 Groveport Madison school board meeting.

The Groveport Madison school board heard a presentation from the lawsuit's steering committee in April. Board member Libby Gray said she wanted more information on the topic because the presenter advocating for joining the lawsuit did not answer all of the questions asked.

Board President LaToya Dowdell-Burger said she would reach out to the coalition to hear about the suit in a future meeting.

The Vouchers Hurt Ohio lawsuit is scheduled to be heard Nov. 4 in Franklin County Common Pleas Court since state government is based in Franklin County.

More on public and private schools: Ohio lawmakers want 'apples to apples' comparison between public and private schools

Last year, lawmakers opened EdChoice Expansion voucher eligibility to all Ohio residents, which has caused a sharp increase in students using the vouchers.

The Legislative Service Commission estimated that EdChoice Expansion vouchers would cost $398 million in fiscal year 2024, but reports indicate it has gone over budget. The LSC estimated it will cost $439 million in FY 25.

EdChoice Expansion numbers up in Groveport Madison

In fiscal year 2023, 316 students in Groveport Madison Schools received EdChoice vouchers and 177 received EdChoice Expansion vouchers. EdChoice vouchers slightly increased in fiscal year 2024 to 332 and EdChoice Expansion vouchers jumped to 305, according to data from the Ohio Department of Education and Workforce.

EdChoice vouchers are based on families' area of residence while EdChoice Expansion vouchers are based on families' income. Lawmakers made it so any Ohioan is eligible for EdChoice Expansion last year with the amount they receive based on the family's yearly income.

More on Groveport: Top 5 Transfers: Groveport warehouse site sells for $56 million

Columbus-area schools in the lawsuit

Willard said more than 200 Ohio school districts have paid dues of $2 per student to fund the lawsuit, but only 156 districts are listed on the lawsuit's website because some districts have not continued to pay dues every year. Among the other local school districts who have joined the lawsuit are Columbus City Schools, the state's largest school district; South-Western City Schools, the second largest district in Franklin County and the state's fifth largest; Bexley City Schools, Gahanna-Jefferson Schools, Reynoldsburg City Schools, Westerville City Schools, Worthington City Schools and now Upper Arlington City Schools.

DHunt@dispatch.com

@donovanhunt9

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Groveport Madison school board tables joining suit over state vouchers
Guardian: Russia accused of 'deliberate' starvation tactics in Mariupol in submission to ICC

Russia used a "deliberate pattern" of starvation tactics during its three-month siege of the city of Mariupol, Donetsk Oblast, in early 2022, which could amount to war crime, according to a lawyers' analysis submitted to the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Guardian reported on June 13.

The report, submitted to the ICC by Global Rights Compliance lawyers working jointly with the Ukrainian government, says that Russia and its leaders intended to kill and harm large number of civilians.

The city came under siege by Russian forces between February and May 2022, leaving thousands dead and reducing Mariupol to rubble. According to authorities' rough estimates, at least 25,000 people could have been killed during the siege of Mariupol. The exact number remains unknown and could be much higher.

Catriona Murdoch, a partner at Global Rights Compliance, said that the purpose of the research was to "to see if there was a broader narrative" that the Russian military and its leadership deliberately denied food and other necessary services for life.

Read also: 12 never-before-seen photos from Azovstal defense

Lawyers concluded that there were four phases to the Russian assault in Mariupol, Murdoch said, including attacks on civilian infrastructure, cutting out the supply of electricity, heating and water, refusal of humanitarian evacuation, and strikes on critical infrastructure.

"Finally, in phase four, Russia engaged in strategic attacks to destroy or capture any remaining infrastructure," she said

The phased attacks on the city demonstrated that Russia planned to capture Mariupol without mercy for its civilian population, according to Murdoch.

Given the importance of Mariupol and the centralization of decision-making in Russia, responsibility for the deaths of thousands of civilians lies upon the country's leadership, she said.

"(Russian President) Vladimir Putin is to blame, and so are echelons of the Russian military leadership," Murdoch added.

The ICC issued arrest warrants on March 17, 2023, for Putin and Russian Children's Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova for the forced deportations of thousands of Ukrainian children to Russia.

The court also issued arrest warrants for two Russian military commanders a year later in March for carrying out strikes on Ukrainian electricity infrastructure during the winter of 20222023.

Lieutenant General Sergei Kobylash and Admiral Viktor Sokolov "are each allegedly responsible" for a number of war crimes, including "directing attacks at civilian sites," the ICC said.

Read also: Human rights groups call on ICC to investigate prominent Russian propagandists

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
The nations top gun control groups are awkwardly avoiding talking about Hunter Bidens gun conviction  and his widely expected appeal on Second Amendment grounds.

In the day since President Joe Bidens son was found guilty of owning a gun while being a drug user and lying about his drug use on a purchase form, POLITICO asked seven top gun control groups how they are navigating the verdict and likely appeal. Several advocates were asked directly if they believe  as the presidents son argues  that it is unconstitutional to ban drug users from possessing guns.

Not a single one commented on the case or the broader legal question, underscoring how uncomfortable the politics around the case are for the gun control groups pushing hard for Bidens reelection.

Thats all about politics, said a gun violence prevention activist, granted anonymity due to the political sensitivities. This is just: No, were not going to get in the middle of this shitstorm. Nothing good can come of it.

The tension was never more apparent than on Tuesday, when just hours after Hunter Biden was found guilty on three felony counts stemming from his 2018 purchase of a handgun, the president delivered remarks at a high-profile event for Everytown for Gun Safety to mark national gun violence prevention month.



His sons lawyers tried, to no avail, to have the charges thrown out before trial on Second Amendment grounds, and they are virtually certain to renew that argument when they appeal the conviction. They are trying to harness recent court rulings, led by the Supreme Courts conservative majority, that have taken an increasingly expansive view of gun rights.

The president, in his remarks Tuesday, did not mention his son. Instead he touted progress stemming from historic gun legislation he helped pass and a drop in crime, while reiterating previous comments that the Second Amendment does not mean anyone can own a gun no matter what.

Theres never been a time that says you can own anything you want, the president said, speaking at Everytowns Gun Sense University convening at the Washington Hilton.

The movement for tighter gun laws has seen substantive policy success under the Biden administration, progress attributable both to the shift in politics around the issue but also the presidents personal interest in combating the gun violence crisis. A coalition of major gun control groups threw their support behind Bidens reelect last fall, calling him and Vice President Kamala Harris the strongest champions for gun violence prevention to ever take residence in the White House.

The Biden administration has issued numerous executive actions restricting the purchase and possession of guns and worked with Congress to pass the first gun-related law in nearly three decades. That law toughened background checks for young gun buyers, helped states implement red flag laws and kept firearms from a wider swath of domestic violence offenders. He also launched the first-ever federal office of gun violence prevention, while making moves to further expand background checks. And on Tuesday, he reiterated his calls for additional restrictions, including a federal ban on assault weapons.



His campaign sees the issue as a fruitful one  both as a way to energize base voters and court suburban independent women. Its a messaging strategy that clashes with his sons legal advocacy for a broader view of the Second Amendment.

The centerpiece of the three felony counts that Hunter Biden was convicted of is a longstanding provision of the federal Gun Control Act that bars people from having guns if they are users of, or addicted to, any controlled substance. But the constitutionality of that law has been part of the swirl of legal questions surrounding gun restrictions since 2022, when the Supreme Court announced a new approach to the Second Amendment in a landmark case known as New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen.

In that decision, the court said restrictions on gun purchases are valid only if they are consistent with gun laws that existed at the nations founding  a decision that both gun control groups and the president decried. Bruen spawned a slew of conflicting lower-court rulings about how closely todays gun laws, including the drug-users prohibition, must mirror those from the late 1700s.

In reaction to the Bruen ruling, the president issued a statement saying he was deeply disappointed and that it contradicts both common sense and the Constitution. He added that the Second Amendment is not absolute, language that is a staple of his messaging around guns.

But the presidents son relied heavily on Bruen in seeking to have his charges tossed out before trial.

Gun control is a politically charged topic, his lawyers wrote last December. But the drug-users prohibition in the Gun Control Act is indefensible under the Bruen framework and must be struck down as unconstitutional, they argued.

Judge Maryellen Noreika, a Donald Trump appointee who oversaw the trial, rejected Hunter Bidens bid to have the provision struck down wholesale. Shortly before the trial, he mounted a modified effort for a judge-ordered acquittal on Second Amendment grounds. Noreika has not yet ruled on that long-shot motion.

Hunter Bidens best chance of success for his constitutional argument will be on appeal, where he is virtually certain to ask higher courts  including, perhaps, the Supreme Court  to declare the drug-users prohibition unconstitutional and to set aside his conviction.

Meanwhile, his team is closely watching for a Supreme Court ruling, expected by the end of this month, in another high-stakes gun rights case, United States v. Rahimi. The defendant, Zackey Rahimi, was convicted of illegally possessing a gun while under a domestic violence restraining order. He has argued that the ban is unconstitutional on similar history-based grounds that Hunter Biden and others have used to challenge the drug-users prohibition.



A ruling in favor of Rahimi would be a boon for Hunter Biden. It would be another sign of the high courts radically expansive view of gun rights, and it would portend that the drug-user prohibition may be the next gun control measure to fall. But such a ruling would also draw horror and condemnation from the president  once again pitting the White Houses policy positions against the presidents sons legal defense.

This is such a frenzied time for gun law, and we may know as soon as tomorrow what the Supreme Court has to say about at least one of the violations he was convicted of. And so I think a lot of people are anxious to see how Rahimi turns out and whether or not it gives clarity to the application of Bruen, said Thomas Chittum, the former associate deputy director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and now a law professor who teaches a course on the Second Amendment.

Second Amendment advocates have been much more vocal on the conviction than their restrictionist opponents. The National Rifle Association issued a statement obliquely praising the conviction.

The National Rifle Association has always stood for the lawful use and possession of firearms. Mr. Bidens documented lifestyle choices at the time of purchasing a firearm made him a prohibited person under current law, said Randy Kozuch, executive director of the NRA Institute for Legislative Action, in a statement to POLITICO. The NRA did not respond to a follow-up question on whether the organization believes the Second Amendment allows for bans on drug users from having guns.

Other gun rights organizations used the verdict to bolster their push for looser gun laws. The Firearms Policy Coalition reiterated an offer to aid Hunter Biden in his challenge.

Countless lives are destroyed every year under the federal governments unconstitutional and immoral regulations. We proudly work to eliminate these laws and create a free world. Just as we have in many other cases, we stand ready to assist Mr. Biden in his challenge of federal gun laws, said FPC President Brandon Combs.
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA)  An Arkansas judge sentenced an Oklahoma man to 25 years in prison on June 12, according to a news release from the U.S. Attorneys Office Western District of Arkansas.

On Aug. 3, 2023, Allen Ray Thompson, 32, was arrested in rural Boone County, near Harrison, when Arkansas State Police stopped him and a dog trained in detecting drugs alerted the troopers.

Looting arrests made in Benton County following tornadoes

Police found more than 10 pounds, or 4,934.5 grams, of methamphetamine, nearly 2,000 fentanyl pills, four firearms and one stolen firearm. Thompson is a previously convicted felon and could not lawfully possess a firearm.

Honorable Judge Timothy L. Brooks, of the U.S. District Court in Fayetteville, charged Thomspon with possession of methamphetamine and fentanyl with intent to distribute.

Thompson, a Lawton, Okla. native, was said to have text messages showing he was delivering drugs to customers in the Harrison area who had previously paid Thompson through an internet-based, peer-to-peer money transfer platform, the release said.

Tyson Foods CFO arrested for DWI, careless driving

Thompsons sentence includes $2,000 in fines and a five-year term of supervised release to follow his imprisonment.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation, State of Arkansas 14th Judicial District Drug Task Force and Arkansas State Police investigated the case.

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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD)  John Ball Zoo and Grand Valley State University are working together to monitor freshwater mussel species throughout the Grand River to ensure the ecosystem stays healthy.

According to the zoo, Michigan is home to 43 different species of mussels. Of those mussels, 32 are found in the Grand River and 13 of them are either endangered, threatened or of special concern.

Bill Flanagan, the conservation manager at John Ball Zoo, says that while mussels tend to get a bad rap, they are vital for healthy river ecosystems.

GVSU student Denise Gardner, left, and Eric Snyder, a professor of aquatic biology at GVSU, take some measurements in the Grand River. (Courtesy John Ball Zoo)

Theres a common misconception that mussels are bad, because there is lots of public information about invasive mussel species, Flanagan said. Theres a huge diversity of freshwater mussel species and having a healthy native mussel population helps improve water quality and provides an array of benefits for the entire ecosystem.

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Freshwater mussels help filter the water and are a food source for other wildlife. Mussel populations can be directly tied to the success of certain fish populations, including trout and suckers.

The two organizations are working together to update a now 20-year-old survey to measure mussel diversity within the Grand River and how the mussels have been impacted by pollution and the channelization of the river.

Researchers collected this threeridge mussel during their work in the Grand River. (Courtesy John Ball Zoo)

The new survey will be a part of Grayson Kosaks masters degree thesis at GVSU, hoping to fill in gaps in knowledge and literature in freshwater mussels.

Porcupine at John Ball Zoo dies from underlying disease

Ideally, we will be able to use the information from these surveys to develop conservation strategies to improve conditions for freshwater mussels and fish communities in the future, Kosak said. The Grand River is an amazing ecosystem, and we take great pride in the stewardship of all species, no matter how small.

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Judging from reports of Hamas counteroffer to the U.N.backed peace proposal, an end to the war in Gaza feels even more distant than it previously seemedand it seemed pretty distant.

In a Slate column on Wednesday, I wrote that the main problem with the peace talks in Cairo and Doha, Qatar, which have been going on for months, is that Israel and Hamas have conflicting aims and interests in the war, motivations that no amount of diplomatic finessing can override.

This is still the fundamental issue, but since then, intermediaries to the talks have released Hamas counteroffer to the proposal on the table, and in no way can it be seen as serious. As Secretary of State Antony Blinken said, some of Hamas changes are workable, some are not. In any case, many go beyond positions that [Hamas] had previously taken and accepted, leading one to question whether theyre proceeding in good faith or not.

Blinken didnt spell out the terms of Hamas offer, but they have since been leaked to several news organizations. According to those reports, Hamas makes many demands that, whatever ones feelings about the war, are clearly unreasonable.

For example, Hamas requires that Israeli troops withdraw from all populated areas of Gaza on the first day a deal goes into effectand that they pull out of the Philadelphi Corridor, near the EgyptGaza border, by the third day. Both demands are logistically difficult if not impossible. More to the point, a withdrawal from the Philadelphi would leave unguarded the route through which weapons have been channeled to Hamas gunmen.

Hamas also demands that by the end of Phase 1 (the first of three stages), no Israeli soldiers remain in Gazadespite the fact that it will take until the end of Phase 2 to release all the Israeli hostages.

In other articles, Hamas wants to give Israel no say in which Palestinian prisoners can be freed as part of the exchange for hostages. (Under the U.N.backed plan, Israel could exclude certain prisoners convicted on charges of murder or terrorism.)

Hamas proposes too that the reconstruction of Gaza take place during Phase 1, not Phase 3, as the U.N. version recommends. This stance is either naive or cynical, and it means that the release of all hostages, at the end of Phase 2, would be delayed until after reconstruction. No one in any diplomatic forum has put forth a plan for reconstruction, so this proposal suggests that the hostages would remain in Hamas hands indefinitely.

Finally, Hamas insists that the war not resume even if disagreements over Phase 2 are unresolved. The U.N.backed plan takes the opposite position, asserting that Israel can resume fighting if Hamas fails to abide by its obligations.

Israeli officials have deemed this counteroffer a non-starter, and they are right. Blinken has urged Hamas to stop haggling and, in his most recent trip to the region, has encouraged his Egyptian and Qatari counterparts to apply more pressure on Hamas to get a cease-fire goingthough the haggling seems to reflect deeper problems. Blinken also said he would continue to have emissaries attend the peace talksa move that keeps at least some hope alive and the Biden administrations intentions clear.

The peace proposal, which Hamas has proposed amending to the point of rejecting, was initiated by Israel, polished by U.S., Egyptian, and Qatari negotiators, then endorsed, in a 140 vote (with Russia abstaining) at the U.N. Security Council.

Since the war began eight months ago, three of my friends, all journalists with extensive background covering the Middle East, have independently told me the same joke: The problem with liberals is they think every problem has a solution. (All three friends are, to some extent, liberals.) When it comes to this war, its looking less and less like a joke.
Ending the suffering endured by ordinary Palestinians in the eight months since Hamas terrorists launched their devastating attack against Israel on October 7 has been the driving motivation behind Western efforts to resolve the conflict.

While securing the release of the estimated 120 or so Israeli hostages still being held captive by Hamas is another important consideration, trying to prevent Palestinian civilians from experiencing further bloodshed seems to have been foremost in the minds of those seeking to implement a ceasefire in Gaza.

The Biden administration, in particular, remains so invested in reaching a ceasefire that it secured backing from the United Nations Security Council prior to Secretary of State Antony Blinken undertaking yet another diplomatic mission to the Middle East, his eighth since the Gaza conflict erupted.

Previous US initiatives have invariably ended with talks breaking down, generally blamed on the intransigence of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. His insistence on continuing with Israels military campaign to wipe the terrorist organisation off the face of the earth, even if Hamas leaders were to agree to release all the remaining Israeli hostages, is constantly cited as the reason for the failure of diplomatic efforts to result in a truce.

Yet, as is now becoming increasingly evident, it is not Netanyahus uncompromising approach that is thwarting peace efforts. Its the fanaticism of Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas terrorist mastermind behind the October 7 atrocities.

The 61-year-old hardman, who once boasted of strangling one suspected Palestinian collaborator to death with his bare hands, prides himself on the profound understanding of Israels counter-terrorism mindset he acquired during the 22 years he spent in an Israeli prison for killing two Israeli soldiers and four Palestinians in the 1980s.

Known as The Butcher of Khan Yunis after the Gazan enclave where he was born, one of Sinwars key calculations when planning the October 7 attacks appears to have been that the inevitable military response it would provoke from Israel would ultimately play to Hamass advantage.

And, judging by the tranche of leaked messages Sinwar is said to have sent to other Hamas commanders in recent weeks, his ploy has worked a treat. Thanks to Sinwars weaponisation of the Gaza conflict, Israel generally attracts the lions share of global criticism for its handling of the Gaza conflict. The devious methods employed by Hamas in the interests of its own self-preservation, meanwhile, rarely attract the scrutiny they undoubtedly merit.

This is despite the fact that Hamas uses Palestinian civilians as human shields, and schools and hospitals as command and control centres. One of the more glaring examples of Hamass cynical duplicity emerged at the weekend when it was revealed that a Palestinian journalist who regularly wrote articles for the Western media condemning Israeli genocide in Gaza, himself appeared to have been using his home to hold Israeli hostages abducted during the October 7 attacks.

The willingness of Hamas commanders to indulge in the inhumane exploitation of Gazas civilian population is evident in Sinwars messages, where it is clear he is seeking to use the mounting Palestinian death toll to stall ceasefire talks.

According to details obtained by The Wall Street Journal, Sinwar believes that the Palestinian fatalities, caused in part by Hamass willingness to conduct its terrorist operations in densely populated civilian areas, are necessary sacrifices. The global criticism that is directed against Israel for its handling of the Gaza conflict means that, from Sinwars warped perspective, we have the Israelis right where we want them.

The callous disregard shown by Hamas leaders like Sinwar for the Palestinian people they are supposed to protect is instructive, and its an outlook that Western negotiators need to take on board in their efforts to agree a ceasefire.

From the start of the conflict, it is clear that Sinwars sole ambition has been to ensure that Hamas survives in some shape or form in Gaza once hostilities have ended, even if this means that only a tiny fraction remains of the estimated 24 battalions of fighters Hamas had at its disposal at the start.

This explains why, every time the likes of Blinken arrive in the region bearing new ceasefire offers, the Hamas leadership immediately resorts to its maximalist demand that it will only accept the ceasefire terms if Israel agrees to undertake a complete military withdrawal from Gaza. Not even the most conflict-averse Israelis are likely to support a deal that would enable Hamas to continue terrorising Israels southern border.

The other consideration that must be taken into account is that any ceasefire deal that enables Hamas to maintain any vestige of control in Gaza would be seen as rewarding its leaders for committing gross acts of terrorism. Certainly, now that Sinwars contemptuous attitude towards the welfare of the Palestinian people has been exposed, Western policymakers should understand that Hamas, not Israel, is the real obstacle to achieving a lasting peace in Gaza.

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Handyman admits to sexual encounter with girl he knew was 16, Joliet police say

JOLIET, Ill.  An Aurora man faces a felony charge in connection with the sexual abuse of a girl he knew was underage.

According to Joliet police, on May 7, officers were made aware of a sexual abuse allegation involving a 16-year-old girl that occurred on April 25 inside a home on Silver Ridge Drive.

WGN is not revealing the block to protect the victims identity.

Man accused of trying to kidnap 12-year-old at Joliet Township bus stop

Police say the victims parent hired 47-year-old Jose Velazquez-Flores to make repairs on the residence.

After interviewing the victim, detectives believed that Velazquez-Flores had inappropriate sexual contact with the victim, though police did not elaborate.

After Velazquez-Flores voluntarily came to the police station for questioning on Tuesday, June 11, police say he admitted to engaging in sexual conduct with the minor victim, whom he knew to be 16.

Officers placed him under arrest and booked him on aggravated criminal sexual abuse.

Read more: Latest Chicago news headlines

Police provided no further details.

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 WGN-TV.
In the event of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, Hapag-Lloyd isnt convinced the Red Sea disruptions are going to ease up any time soon.

Even if there were to be a ceasefire now, this does not mean that the Houthi attacks will stop immediately, a company spokesperson told Reuters.

More from Sourcing Journal

In the months that ocean carriers have avoided the Red Sea and the Suez Canal, vessel capacity has been put in a bind, deliveries of goods have taken longer, major global ports have seen more congestion and freight rates have escalated back to levels unseen since late 2022.

A ceasefire deal remains in limbo, with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken saying Wednesday that Israel had accepted a U.N.-backed proposal but that Hamas had proposed changes to the deal.

When news broke out of a potential easing of hostilities in the Gaza Strip, numerous container shipping firms saw stock declines Tuesday, with Hapag-Lloyd shares falling 9 percent and Maersks cooling off 7 percent. Israel-based Zim plummeted 14 percent. The quick price action is likely due to higher profit expectations in the wake of the mass vessel diversion, which had driven the industrys stock prices up from April to June.

Even after the Suez Canal opens again for transit, it would take at least four to six weeks to rearrange the schedules and for operations to return to normal, Hapag-Lloyd added.

The projection is still much more bullish than that of Alan Murphy, founder of maritime trade advisory service Sea-Intelligence, who said in late April that it would take six to 12 months before we actually have stable networks running through the Suez again even after a long-term safe resolution to the Red Sea crisis was put in place.

Lars Barstad, the CEO of oil tanker giant Frontline Management AS, agreed with the consensus in a post on X Wednesday, saying to expect owners to put their seafarers at risk passing the Red Sea/Gulf of Aden anytime soon is a bit naive. The passage takes time and any ceasefire will be vulnerable with risk of crew being caught if it breaks.

Maersk shared its own updated assessment of the Red Sea situation, reiterating in a Wednesday note that it anticipates that the disruptions will continue into the second half of 2024.

The ocean freight giant says it is seeing an average 40 percent increase in fuel costs when traveling around southern Africas Cape of Good Hope compared to normal voyages Red Sea and neighboring Gulf of Aden.

Amid the concerns of a vessel capacity crunch, Maersk added 125,000 more containers to its fleet to increase shipping reliability. The company is exploring further capacity enhancements.

According to an assessment of the Houthi attacks released Wednesday by the U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency, container shipping in the area declined 90 percent between December and February.

Alternate shipping routes around Africa add about 11,000 nautical miles, one to two weeks of transit time, and approximately $1 million in fuel costs for each voyage, the report says.

The repeated onslaught of drone and missile attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden has persisted since November, with the Iranian-backed militants claiming that the attacks are in protest of the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip and in support of Palestinians.

But the attacks have often indiscriminately targeted vessels that have no national alignments in that conflict, further questioning the impact of a potential ceasefire. And many with ties to the Department of Defense, including former Defense Secretary Robert Gates and former U.S. ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro, have said the attacks are unrelated to Israel or the Hamas conflict.

The Houthi attacks took a turn for the worse on Wednesday, with a strike on a Greece-owned bulk carrier, Tutor, killing a seafarer and leaving the ship temporarily unable to maneuver in the Red Sea. The hit stemmed from an explosive-laden, remote-controlled boat, causing severe flooding and damage to the engine room, according to an update from U.S. Central Command.

This makes Tutor the second vessel to lose a member of its crew due to Houthi-engineered assaults, after three crew members were killed on bulk carrier True Confidence in March.

The vessel was 66 nautical miles (76 miles) southwest of Hodeidah, Yemen, according to the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO).
Early voting takes place at Galleria Mall Thursday, May 30, 2024, in Henderson. (Ronda Churchill/Nevada Current)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

With dozens of races and hundreds of candidates, theres a lot to pay attention to. Here are seven takeaways from Nevadas 2024 Primary.

Lombardo-backed candidates fared well

He wasnt officially on the ballot, but Gov. Joe Lombardo was no bystander.

Lombardo issued a statement Tuesday boasting of the resounding primary victories of the seven candidates he endorsed in the contest primary races.

The first-term governor has been aggressive this election cycle in recruiting and promoting candidates for the state legislature. He is hoping to stop Democrats from securing a supermajority, which would give the party the power to override his vetoes, of which there have been dozens.

The Lombardo slate consisted of April Arndt in Assembly District 21, Annette Dawson Owens in Assembly District 29, Rafael Arroyo in Assembly District 41, state Sen. Carrie Buck in Senate District 5, Lori Rogich in Senate District 11, John Steinbeck in Senate District 18, and John Ellison in Senate District 19.

Two of the three Lombardo-backed Assembly candidates  Arndt and Arroyo  now advance to compete against Democratic incumbents. The third, Dawson Owens, is in an open district currently controlled by Democrats.

On the Senate side: Ellison will automatically win the general election (because nobody else filed to represent the safe red district), Steinbeck will face Democrat Ron Bilodeau in a district the Senate Democrats have not yet shown much interest in, Buck will attempt to defend her seat in a district the Senate Democrats have shown a lot of interest in, and Rogich will take on a Democratic incumbent.

Victories for Lombardo-backed candidates did not fully extend into Nevadas national races. Lombardo endorsed Sam Brown and John Lee, who won their respective Republican primaries for U.S. Senate and Nevadas 4th Congressional District. But he also endorsed Marty ODonnell, who placed fourth in the Republican primary for Nevadas 3rd Congressional District.

Lombardo previously backed Assemblywoman Heidi Kasama in CD3 but she dropped out of the race, saying she wanted to focus on securing state-level wins. Kasama is now running for reelection in Assembly District 2; her primary was uncontested.

Senate Democrats also fared well

Like Lombardo, Senate Democrats declared victory after primary election day, noting in a press release they won five of five contested races.

That included a decisive victory in Senate District 4, by state Sen. Dina Neal over Laura Perkins, a first-term Nevada System of Higher Education regent who some observers believed would benefit from public allegations of corruption and reports of an FBI investigation against Neal. North Las Vegas Mayor Pamela Goynes-Brown and Councilman Isaac Barron endorsed Perkins, reflecting tensions the city had with Neal on how to address the blighted neighborhood Windsor Park.

But unofficial results as of Wednesday had Neal with 72% of votes and Perkins at 28%  the widest victory margin achieved in all of the State Senate Democratic primaries.

No Republican or third party candidates filed for the SD4 seat, meaning Neal will secure an additional term once the primary results are official.

Another notable primary victory for the Senate Democrats occurred in Senate District 3, where state Sen. Rochelle Nguyen fended off a primary challenge from Geoconda Hughes, a nurse and daughter of the Culinary unions former secretary-treasurer.

Culinary targeted Nguyen specifically for her role in spearheading the passage of legislation the union opposed last legislative session.

In addition to Neal and Nguyen, the other Senate Democrats-backed candidates were: Assemblywoman Angie Taylor, who defeated Reno City Councilwoman Naomi Duerr in Senate District 15; NSHE Regent Michelee Shelly Cruz-Crawford, who prevailed over Assemblywoman Clara Thomas in Senate District 1, and Jeniffer Atlas, who won over Christian Bishop in Senate District 5.

Senate Majority Leader Nicole Cannizzaro, who was uncontested in her primary, said in a statement the caucus is now turning its full attention to the general election and to electing state senators committed to protecting Nevadans rights and building an economy that works for everyone.

The statement continued, Senate Republicans have nominated a slate of candidates who will stand in the way of more affordable housing, cheaper prescription drugs and health care, increased clean energy and who want to radically roll back reproductive rights.

Culinary didnt fare as well

The Culinary union saw mixed results with its pair of Democratic candidates  winning an open Assembly seat and losing against an incumbent senator.

In the State Assembly District 17 Democratic primary, Culinary member Linda Hunt defeated the Democratic caucus-backed candidate Mishon Montgomery. In the State Senate District 3 Democratic primary, Geoconda Hughes lost to incumbent state Sen. Rochelle Nguyen by 10 percentage points.

Building power for workers isnt about one election or one cycle but a long-term commitment, said Culinary secretary-treasurer Ted Pappageorge in a statement after the races were called, and for 89 years, win or lose, the Culinary Union has fought for workers rights to be heard and respected in this community, and we shall continue.

Democratic Socialist defeated

The Democratic Socialist who found herself the subject of attack ads that compared her to President Donald Trump lost Assembly District 10s Democratic primary. Val Thomason came in second to Venise Karris, the preferred choice of the Assembly Democratic Caucus.

Thomason, who has attempted to organize and push more progressives to run for the state office, struck an optimistic attitude about the loss.

We were only about 400 votes shy with the entire establishment against us, she posted on social media. I think after this we will get even stronger.

NLV, Nye County ballot questions

Two City of North Las Vegas ballot questions to extend 90s era property taxes that were due to expire saw strong support and will pass. One collects 23.5 cents per $100 of assessed home value, is used to build parks and fire stations and maintain streets. The other collects 20 cents per $100 to fund new police officers and support staff for police departments.

Unofficial results as of Wednesday showed both questions receiving more than 75% support from voters.

Meanwhile, voters in Nye County soundly rejected a proposal to levy an additional $0.05 per gallon tax on special fuel that includes diesel fuel for the exclusive purpose of construction and maintenance of public highways. Unofficial results as of Wednesday showed only 30% of voters supported the measure.

Post-Goodman era becomes clearer

Former Congresswoman Shelley Berkley and Las Vegas Councilwoman Victoria Seaman will face off in the City of Las Vegas mayoral race. The women led the crowded pack of 14 candidates who were seeking to succeed Mayor Carolyn Goodman, who herself succeeded husband Oscar Goodman.

Berkley was the top vote-getter, securing 35% of the vote, according to unofficial results. Seaman received 30%. Councilman Cedric Crear placed third with 19%. All other candidates received less than 5% support each.

Henderson backs incumbents

An effort to oust a trio of Henderson City Council incumbents appears to have fallen short, unofficial results show. Councilmembers Jim Seebock and Dan Stewart both secured more than 50% of votes in the primary, which means they will be declared the winner and forgo the general election.

Incumbent Dan Shaw is leading in votes but not over the 50% threshold, meaning he will likely advance into a general election runoff with Monica Doc Larsen.

The post What happened with? The Current breaks down some primary election narratives appeared first on Nevada Current.
So This Happened During Nathan Wade's Odd Interview With CNN's Kaitlan Collins

Nathan Wade suddenly broke off his interview with CNN Wednesday for a brief meeting with his media consultant. (Watch the video below.)

The bizarre moment unfolded when host Kaitlan Collins asked the prosecutor about his romance with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis. Word of their entanglement threw a wrench into the Georgia election-interference case against former President Donald Trump and resulted in Wades departure.

What is your current relationship with the district attorney? Collins asked.

Wade said hey were great friends and speak regularly, but the conversation now revolves around the threats she has faced rather than the case.

Collins then asked when the relationship started. Wade began to question the effort to arrive at exact dates and looked at someone off-camera. Getting signaled here, he said.

A man described as his media consultant entered the frame along with a crew member who removed the attorneys microphone. Wade and his adviser retreated to a bookshelf in the room for a huddle with their backs to the camera.

After about 30 seconds, Wade returned.

Everything OK? Collins asked.

The anchor kept to her mission and asked for clarification when the romantic relationship started and ended.

Wade framed the speculation as a distraction and not a relevant issue in this case. Collins later asked if the romance jeopardized the case and Wade followed with a roundabout reply.

A Georgia appeals court recently put the brakes on the case against Trump for election interference while it weighs a request by the former president and others to remove Willis.

Willis sparked conflict-of-interest accusations when one of the defendants revealed her personal relationship with Wade, a prosecutor she appointed. Willis has denied their romance had any impact on the proceedings.

Watch the moment Nathan Wades team interrupted him mid-interview with @kaitlancollins, as the former Fulton County prosecutor was talking about his romantic relationship with D.A. Fani Willis. pic.twitter.com/BP5KTB5aUM  TheSourceCNN (@TheSourceCNN) June 13, 2024

Related...
What Happened to Miya Tucker? 3 Relatives Have Been Arrested in Connection with Mysterious April Disappearance

An investigation into Miya's disappearance has led to the arrest of her parents and grandfather

Kentucky State Police Miya Tucker

Kentucky authorities have arrested several family members as they investigate the disappearance of an 8-month-old girl who was last seen in April.



Miya Tucker was declared missing by the Kentucky State Police after a welfare check in Reynolds Station, Ky., the department said in a statement on Thursday, June 6.

Authorities arrested and charged three of her family members  including her parents and her grandfather  in connection with her disappearance.

Miyas parents Tesla Tucker, 29, and Cage Rudd, 30, were arrested and charged with drug possession and child abandonment among other offenses, the June 6 statement said.



On Friday, June 7, police also arrested Miyas grandfather Ricky Smith on several charges, including child abuse, child abandonment and drug trafficking, WBKO and USA Today reported. Smith is also facing charges of possession of a weapon by a convicted felon, per WBKO.

Daviess County Detention Center Tesla Tucker, left, and Cage Rudd

Miya has not been seen since the end of April, the Courier Journal reported, citing an arrest affidavit. During the welfare check, her parents told police that she had been removed by child services, which turned out to be a false claim, according to authorities, per News 14 and K 105.



Authorities found drug paraphernalia, including methamphetamine, during the welfare check, further heightening previous concerns about Miya being exposed to drugs. When Miya was born in October 2023, her umbilical cord tested positive for methamphetamine, Kentucky State Police previously said, per News 14.

Authorities were in the process of removing Miya from her parents' care at the time of her disappearance, Kentucky State Trooper Corey King previously said, per News 14 and K 105.



Per News 14, King said there's "no evidence" that Miya is dead, but "we also dont have anything to suggest shes alive either. Adding: Weve gotten little to no information from those who should know the most.



Daviess County Detention Center Miya Tucker's grandfather Ricky Smith

Authorities arrested three other family members as they searched for Miya, including Miya's two other grandparents Taletha D. Tucker, 50, and David Tucker, 53, but those arrests are not connected to her disappearance,

The Tuckers were in charge of raising Tesla's three other children, who were removed by child services following the arrests, per the Lexington Herald-Leader, WBKO and News 14.



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.



Plea and attorney information were not available in online court records for any of those arrested in connection with Miya's disappearance. Kansas State Poice did not respond to PEOPLE's requests for further information.



As of Thursday, June 13, there is no information about Miya's whereabouts. Anyone with information regarding the missing child is urged to call Kentucky State Police at 270-826-3312.

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.org. All calls are toll-free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.



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Read the original article on People.
What happens next as Kansas mulls buying Topeka home of Vice President Charles Curtis

Topekan Charles Curtis broke down racial and cultural barriers to come within a heartbeat of the presidency.

Chandeliers, stained-glass windows and a grandfather clock are among features that adorn the interior of the stately, turreted brick house at 1101 S.W. Topeka Blvd. that was home to Curtis, the nation's only Native American vice president. He rose from humble origins to hold that office from 1929 to 1933.

The Kansas Historical Society took a step toward potentially acquiring that house to run it as a historical museum when Gov. Laura Kelly on May 16 signed the omnibus budget Kansas legislators approved earlier that month.

That budget includes setting aside $300,000 to potentially purchase the Curtis House.

An ornate staircase winds up to second floor of the Charles Curtis House, 1101 S.W. Topeka Blvd. The house may potentially be acquired by the state as a historical museum.

How will the state of Kansas determine the house's actual value?

The next step in the process involved calls for the state to determine the property's appraised value. Patrick Zollner, the historical society's executive director, is waiting for that to happen, he told The Capital-Journal on Tuesday.

Kansas statute requires the state to receive three independent appraisals of the market value of the property.

Results of those appraisals are to be used to establish how much the state may use from the $300,000 to help finance the purchase.

Who owns the Charles Curtis House?

The Curtis House has an appraised value of $240,480, according to the website of the Shawnee County Appraiser's Office.

It says the property is owned by Patty Dannenberg, Gene Cottrell and James Cottrell, who are siblings.

The three hope to sell the house and be paid for the value of the property and the value of its contents, Dannenberg told The Capital-Journal on Tuesday.

Period chairs decorate a living room area at the Charles Curtis House.

The house's owners are asking for more than $600,000, Kansas legislators were told in late April by Senate President Ty Masterson, R-Andover.

The Kansas Historical Foundation would privately raise any additional money needed to make the purchase beyond whatever reimbursement the owners might receive from the $300,000 set aside in the omnibus budget, he said.

House was in 'pitiful' shape when Jefferson County residents bought it

Dannenberg, Gene Cottrell and James Cottrell inherited the house from their parents, Don and Nova Cottrell, residents of Jefferson County who were newly retired when they bought it in 1993.

The property was in "pitiful shape" at the time, Dannenberg said.

But Don and Nova Cottrell restored the building and turned it into the Charles Curtis House Museum, which they operated as a tourist attraction.

Don Cottrell died at age 91 on December 2019, 23 days short of what would have been the couples 70th wedding anniversary.

Nova Cottrell had closed the museum because she was ill but hoped to reopen it, she told The Capital-Journal in January 2020.

However, she died at age 86 in April 2020.

Dannenberg has since continued to take care of the house and its contents, she said.

The house is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It attracted national media attention in January 2021 when Kamala Harris was inaugurated to become the nation's second vice president of color.

Patty Dannenberg shows a photograph Tuesday from The Topeka Capital-Journal featuring her mother, Nova Cottrell, giving a tour of the Charles Curtis House.

Who was Charles Curtis?

Curtis served as vice president for President Herbert Hoover from 1929 to 1933.

During that time, his official address was the house at 1101 S.W. Topeka Blvd., which was built in 1878. He had begun living there in 1907.

Curtis was born in 1860 in a log cabin in what is now part of North Topeka and was then known as Eugene.

He grew up to become a lawyer.

Books and items showcasing the history of Charles Curtis are on display at the Charles Curtis House.

A Republican, Curtis served in the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate before being elected vice president with Hoover.

Near the end of a presidential term plagued by economic depression, Hoover and Curtis lost their bid for reelection in November 1932 to Democrats Franklin D. Roosevelt and John Nance Garner.

Curtis died at age 76 in 1936. He is buried in Topeka Cemetery beside his wife, Anna.

Contact Tim Hrenchir at threnchir@gannett.com or 785-213-5934.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Appraisal next as Kansas mulls buying Topeka home of VP Charles Curtis
SEARCY, Ark.  The National Science Foundation has awarded a grant to Harding University toward increasing the number of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) teachers in Arkansas.

The $100,000 grant funds a program developed by two Harding professors to encourage STEM graduates to consider careers in K-12 education.

Arkansas Department of Education adds 11 schools to EAST initiative

A university representative said the funding would provide initial research and planning, including identifying key Harding & community stakeholders and reviewing the schools capacity. Harding will partner with the Bald Knob, Searcy and Riverview school districts to serve as resources during the projects development.

The spokesperson continued that once the initial phase is over, the university can apply for larger NSF grants to expand the program, including scholarships and stipends to STEM undergrads committed to teaching math, science and coding in Arkansas schools.

Gov. Sanders, Arkansas Office of Skills Development hand out over $20 million in grants

This award reflects Hardings longstanding commitment to addressing the teacher shortage in Arkansas, particularly in high-need areas like STEM, Harding president Mike Williams said. The project aligns perfectly with Hardings mission of serving our community and preparing undergraduates for impactful, purpose-focused careers.

The grant for the project by professors Usenime Akpanudo and James Huff was through the NSF Robert Noyce Teacher Scholarship Program. Harding now joins the University of Arkansas and UA Pine Bluff as the only schools in the state to receive Noyce grants.

Arkansas Childrens Research Institute receives $2.3 million grant from NIH for food allergy research

A spokesperson said Huff had previously received a $500,000 NSF career grant.

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 KARK.
The testimony this week of a lead State Police investigator in the Karen Read murder case was terrible and tarnishes the integrity of law enforcement, Gov. Maura Healey said Thursday while also declining to weigh in further on the closely-watched trial.

Read is accused of backing her car into her Boston police officer boyfriend, John OKeefe, and leaving him to die outside a Canton home in January 2022. Her attorneys contend she is being framed as part of a larger cover-up and the trial has attracted the attention of the media and internet sleuths from around the world.

Shame on you: Karen Reads defense attorney blasts Detective Proctor over vulgar texts

Trooper Michael Proctor was a lead investigator on the case and took the stand in Dedham District Court this week. During cross-examination, Reads attorneys had Proctor read aloud text messages he sent to other troopers and friends disparaging Read, commenting on her physical appearance using vulgar language, suggesting he had made up his mind based on evidence as to Reads guilt, and saying he wished Read would kill herself.

Its terrible ... its completely unprofessional. It does harm, frankly, to the dignity and the integrity of the work of men and women across the State Police and law enforcement. So as a former attorney general and as governor, I am disgusted by that, Healey told reporters Thursday afternoon when asked about Proctors texts.

Proctor, who is based in Norfolk District Attorney Michael Morrisseys office, is also designated as the lead officer on the Brian Walshe murder case, which involves allegations that Walshe murdered and dismembered his wife in their Cohasset home in early 2023.

Healey took only one question from reporters on the Read trial Thursday and said she could not say any more.

This is the subject of a criminal investigation and trial, and therefore its not appropriate for me to speak more to that at this time, she said.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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Heat isn't the only thing in store for Iowa Thursday. There could be severe weather too

Thursday won't just be a hot day in Iowa, but it could be a stormy one as well. The National Weather Service in Des Moines said strong to severe storms are possible, especially over much of the southern and eastern parts of the state.

Severe thunderstorm watch in effect for southern Iowa

A severe thunderstorm watch has been issued for parts of Illinois, Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska until 10 PM CDT pic.twitter.com/2A9ZAyZA4r  NWS Des Moines (@NWSDesMoines) June 13, 2024

The National Weather Service has issued a severe thunderstorm watch for 19 counties in southern Iowa until 10 p.m. Thursday.

Thunderstorms are expected to develop over the afternoon and evening. Storms are capable of producing large hail and wind gusts up to 70-80 mph.

Some severe thunderstorm warnings have been issued Thursday afternoon in southern Iowa for storms producing hail as large as tennis balls.

What does the Des Moines radar show?

Here's a look at the current Iowa weather radar from the National Weather Service in Des Moines:

Weather

Embedded content: https://radar.weather.gov/ridge/standard/KDMX_loop.gif

What's the difference between a severe weather watch and a severe weather warning?

A watch is issued when conditions are favorable for severe weather to develop. They often cover large areas.

Warnings are issued when severe weather is actually happening and Iowans need to take action.

Read more: What's the difference between a severe weather watch and a warning?

How hot will it be in Iowa today?

NWS: Heat index for in Iowa on Thursday, June 13.

Highs are expected to be in the 80s to mid 90s on Thursday in Iowa, with the warmest temperatures in the south, according to a news release from NWS.

Des Moines can expect a high of 92 degrees, with most of central Iowa experiencing high 80s to low 90s. NWS encourages Iowans to stay hydrated, wear sunscreen and limit time outside.

What is the severe weather outlook in Iowa today?

NWS Des Moines: Severe weather outlook for Thursday, June 13 in Iowa.

The primary threats for severe weather on Thursday are damaging winds and large hail, the NWS said. A tornado or two is possible. The severe weather outlook in the state ranges from marginal risk (Level 1) across north central Iowa to an enhanced (Level 3) risk in southeast Iowa.

Storm systems will progress south throughout the day, and are expected to turn into severe weather from mid to late afternoon. The highest risk is in southeast Iowa, where large hail is likely.

When will storms arrive in Des Moines and southern Iowa?

6/13/2024 11am: Here is an updated look at expected arrival time of storms this afternoon. Now is a good time to make sure you have multiple ways to receive warnings! #iawx pic.twitter.com/abEhvMy72T  NWS Des Moines (@NWSDesMoines) June 13, 2024

Storms are expected to form Thursday afternoon around the Interstate 80 corridor.

Iowans should be prepared for storms to arrive in the Des Moines metro area expected in central Iowa between 3 and 5 p.m., and track to far southeast Iowa by 6 p.m.

Victoria Reyna-Rodriguez is a general assignment reporter for the Register. Reach her at vreynarodriguez@registermedia.com or follow her on Twitter @VictoriaReynaR.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Iowa under severe thunderstorm watch for Thursday evening
A general view of a fire caused by missile and drone attacks from Lebanon into Israel. Ilia Yefimovich/dpa

The heavy rocket fire from Lebanon into Israel continued on Thursday, both sides said, with the projectiles triggering air raid sirens in northern Israel.

Hezbollah said it launched rocket and drone attacks on several Israeli army bases and positions, two days after an Israeli strike killed one of its senior commanders, Taleb Abdallah.

A Hezbollah source told dpa that the dozens of rockets were simultaneously were fired at several military barracks and described the attack as a "big operation."

During the funeral ceremony of Taleb on Wednesday senior Hezbollah official Hashem Saffieddine said, "Our answer after the martyrdom of Abdallah is that we will increase the intensity, strength, quantity, and quality of our operations, and let him wait for us in the field."

Israel in retaliation carried out dozens of airstrikes and shelled areas in the western and central sectors of southern Lebanon on Thursday.

"Following the sirens that sounded in northern Israel over the past few hours, approximately 40 projectiles were launched toward the Galilee and Golan Heights area," the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) wrote on its Telegram channel. It said numerous launches were successfully intercepted but "a number of hits" ignited fires in the area.

On Wednesday, the Lebanese Shiite Hezbollah militia fired around 200 missiles at Israel, prompting concern about a dangerous escalation of the conflict.

Israeli media reported on Thursday that a house in Kibbutz Yiron in the border region was directly hit. Rocket fragments fell in the town of Safed in northern Israel and in Katzrin on the occupied Golan Heights, where paramedics said two people were injured by rocket fragments.

Several people were injured by falling while running into shelters, and there were also several shock injuries.

Several fires broke out along the border in Israeli territory, according to Israeli media reports. The region is currently experiencing particularly hot and dry weather, making it easy for fires to spread.

The IDF has fired incendiary projectiles with what looks like a medieval-type catapult or trebuchet device across the border into Lebanon, Israeli media reported. The aim was apparently to burn dense undergrowth in the border area so that enemy fighters could not hide there, the public broadcaster Kan reported on Thursday.

A video circulating on social media showed Israeli soldiers next to the unusual unit hurling a fireball over a high wall.

Kan, quoting the IDF, said the use of the weapon was only a "local initiative" and it is not in widespread use by the army.

Israel and the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah have been fighting each other since the beginning of the war in Gaza and the fighting has become increasingly fierce. On both sides of the border, the attacks repeatedly lead to fires which spread quickly in the hot, dry weather there.

A general view of the destruction caused by missile and drone attacks from Lebanon into Israel. Ilia Yefimovich/dpa

A general view of a destroyed vehicle caused by missile and drone attacks from Lebanon into Israel. Ilia Yefimovich/dpa
Fire following over border rockets launching to Israel from Lebanon, amid ongoing cross-border hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, in northern Israel

JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Air raid sirens sounded across cities in northern Israel on Thursday and about 40 rockets had been fired from Lebanon in the afternoon, Israel's military said.

State broadcaster Kan aired footage of numerous mid-air interceptions of rockets above Israeli towns, including in Safed, some 12 km (7.5 miles) from the border.

Two people were wounded by shrapnel, Israel's national ambulance service said, and a number of wildfires were set off by rockets that landed in open areas.

"Numerous launches were successfully intercepted," the military said.

It added that five "suspicious aerial targets", an apparent reference to drones, were also identified, three of which were intercepted.

Iran-backed Hezbollah opened a second front against Israel shortly after Hamas' Oct. 7 assault on southern Israel that triggered the war in Gaza. The Israel-Lebanon border has seen increasing attacks in both directions since.

The violence escalated this week with Hezbollah firing even more rockets as part of a retaliation for an Israeli strike that killed one of its senior field commanders.

Washington on Thursday expressed concern that fighting along the Israel-Lebanon border could spiral into a full-out war and called for new security arrangements.

(Reporting by Ari Rabinovitch; Editing by Angus MacSwan and Bernadette Baum)
Hero: Hundreds show support as officer shot in face, leg is released from Boston hospital

Law enforcement officials from across Massachusetts gathered Thursday morning in a show of support as a police officer who was shot twice last week got released from a Boston hospital.

Springfield Police Officer Nestor Santos was discharged from Mass General Hospital one week after undergoing extensive emergency treatment for gunshot wounds to the face and leg, a Springfield Police Department spokesman Ryan Walsh said.

Walsh noted that about 200 police officers from an array of different departments were on hand to greet Santos.

Santos, a veteran of seven years, was left with a bullet fragment lodged in his head after gunfire erupted in the city on the evening of June 5.

Santos was on his way to work around 10:40 p.m. when he came across the scene of a shooting where another cruiser was shot about five times in the area of State Street and Hunter Place, according to police.

The shooters, who were armed with an AR-15 rifle and inside a Jeep Cherokee, then turned their attention to Santos and shot at his car, police said. Santos was rushed to Bay State Medical Center before being transferred to Boston for emergency surgery.

He has had one surgery, and doctors were able to save his eye, but he will likely lose his vision in one eye, the department wrote in a Facebook post after the shooting. He will likely need several more surgeries before he is released.

Officers had been searching for individuals in a Honda Civic who previously shot at detectives in the Springfield Police Firearms Investigation Unit when occupants in the Jeep drove by and opened fire, according to police.

The Civic was later found in the area of Riverview Terrace and three occupants were taken into custody on the Interstate 91 ramp. Police said that two Department of Transportation employees who were working nearby were struck by the driver of the Civic. One worker suffered serious injuries.

The Jeep was later located at a home on Randall Place, where four people were arrested, police said. Seven total illegal firearms were also seized during the arrests.

The suspects arrested on the I-91 ramp were identified as 18-year-old Robert Willis III, 18-year-old Alberto Torres, and a 17-year-old boy, all of Springfield. The four Springfield natives arrested at Randall Place were identified as 18-year-old Isak Font, 26-year-old Dwight Clarke, 31-year-old Jaime Griffin, and a 16-year-old boy.

All seven suspects are facing various firearms-related charges. Investigators noted that five of the suspects, including Font, had been previously arrested on firearms charges, while the 16-year-old was out on bail in connection with another shooting, and Clarke had an outstanding firearms warrant.

An investigation is ongoing.

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Wild video captured the moment a 39-year-old man was stabbed in the neck inside a Manhattan coffee shop Tuesday  leading heroic customers and staff to fight off his ruthless attackers.

The clip obtained by The Post shows the shirtless victim stumbling into Milo Coffee Shop in Washington Heights with four men racing behind him shortly before 6 p.m.

Two employees appear to prepare food as the chaos unfolds inside 2440 Amsterdam Ave.

Surveillance video captured chaos unfolding inside the Milo Coffee Shop during a stabbing.

They go inside and stab him, the coffee shop owner, who did not give his name, told NBC New York.

The coffee shop workers then jumped into action  with one employee leaping over the counter as her coworkers pushed the brutes off the cowering victim, according to the video.

Moments later, another employee and a customer grab chairs and whack two of the attackers.

One of the men is seen putting an assailant in a headlock, prompting the violent perps to finally leave the shop.

The victim was rushed to the hospital in stable condition.

The victim was rushed to Harlem Hospital in stable condition, according to police.

The owner said they helped save his life.

We step in and try to defend him. We even fight with them so they wouldnt kill the guy, he said.

Thank God nothing worse happened.

His attackers were still at large Wednesday night, police said.
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  John Ray, the New York attorney representing multiple victims in the case of alleged serial killer Rex Heuermann, released what he called surprising new important evidence involving those close to him.

Ray discussed the self-described circumstantial evidence alongside a psychology scholar at a Thursday news conference in Suffolk County, New York.

The circumstantial evidence included Tumblr posts and art allegedly created and reposted by Heuermanns 27-year-old daughter, Victoria Heuermann, depicting cannibalism and sexual violence. Ray said the digital evidence does not necessarily implicate her, but raised questions about whether she knew about the crimes her father was alleged of committing.

Ray claimed Heuermann did not lead a double life where he concealed the alleged violent crimes from his family. Rather, he implied that those close to him may have been aware of them.

Victoria Heuermann has not been charged or accused of a crime and has not been officially connected to her fathers murder case.

WFLA reached out to the Suffolk County Police Department for comment on the news conference and to confirm if anyone from their agency was in attendance.

Man charged in Gilgo Beach serial killings kept document used to blueprint crimes, prosecutors say

The news conference comes one week after Heuermann, 60, was charged with murder in the deaths of two additional women. On June 6, court documents revealed the New York architect, who was accused of murdering multiple women and leaving their corpses scattered along the Long Island coast, kept a blueprint of his crimes on his computer.

He appeared before a judge to be arraigned in the deaths of Jessica Taylor and Sandra Costilla, two young women who were long suspected of being the victims of men preying on sex workers. He had previously been charged with murdering four other women in a string of deaths known as the Gilgo Beach serial killings.

The new charges came after recent police searches of Heuermanns Massapequa Park home and a wooded area on Long Island tied to the investigation.

Taylor disappeared in 2003. Costilla was killed 30 years ago, in 1993, and her inclusion in the case indicates that prosecutors now believe Heuermann was killing women for much longer than previously thought.

Heuermann pleaded not guilty to killing Taylor and Costilla during the hearing and was ordered held without bail. His lawyer, Michael Brown, said outside court that Heuermann is obviously in a bad place in terms of the new charges.

In total, Heuermann is charged in the deaths of six women: the Gilgo Four  Megan Waterman, Melissa Barthelemy, Amber Costello and Maureen Brainard-Barnes  and now Taylor and Costilla.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra speaks during a Senate Finance Committee hearing at the U.S. Capitol on March 14. He announced a new residency program for rural areas on Thursday. File Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI

June 13 (UPI) -- The Department of Health and Human Services gave $11 million to 15 organizations to create medical residency programs in rural communities across the United States.

HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra and White House domestic policy adviser Neera Tanden announced the new funding while visiting a rural health clinic in Wisconsin Rapids, Wis., on Thursday.

The White House said one program will create the country's first obstetrics and gynecology rural track program and six others will develop new family medicine residence programs with enhanced obstetrical training in rural communities.

Residency programs are important steps for the education of physicians entering the medical profession after finishing medical school, giving them hands-on experience in their chosen practice.

"Every American should have access to high-quality healthcare no matter where they live," Becerra said in a statement. That is why the HHS is investing in programs that improve and expand access in geographic areas that have historically been underserved.

"Training more doctors in our country's rural areas is a proven strategy to recruit and retain doctors to serve rural communities."

Carole Johnson, the administrator of HHS's Health Resources and Services Administration, said rural communities have long needed more doctors and healthcare professionals and the residencies are a good way to fill that gap.

"This funding will help build pathways for rural students to become doctors and help rural communities recruit and train more doctors," Johnson said. "We are particularly pleased to support new programs aimed at training new physicians to care for pregnant women."
A building near the Atlanta University Center caught fire on Thursday morning.

Atlanta fire crews are currently working to put out flames at the historic Gaines Hall.

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NewsChopper 2 flew over the building and saw large flames coming out of the top floor of the building and a heavy amount of smoke.

The building is off of Northside Drive at Martin Luther King Jr. Drive.

There is no word on what caused the fire.

Gaines Hall also caught fire in February 2023, causing major damage to the building.

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According to the Georgia Trust for Historic Preservation, Gaines Hall was built in 1869 and was the first permanent building on the original Morris Brown College campus.

Gaines Hall has been vacant since August 2015 after a previous fire on the property. Clark Atlanta University took ownership of the property in 2017.

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IN OTHER NEWS:
A roadside marker unveiled Wednesday in Morgan Park details the communitys historic role in Baltimores development.

The Morgan Park neighborhood was designed in 1917 by Morgan State Universitys fourth president, Dr. John O. Spencer, as a place where Black school faculty and professionals could live during Jim Crow era segregation, according to the marker, which was created and installed by the Maryland Historical Trust and Maryland Department of Transportation. It was also the citys first planned Black suburb.

Former residents include civil rights activist and author W.E.B. DuBois; Baltimore Afro-American newspaper publisher Carl J. Murphy; and Rebecca Carroll, Baltimore City Public Schools first Black female deputy superintendent of curriculum and instruction. She was also the first Black woman to earn a doctorate from the University of Maryland, College Park.

Watching the marker unveiled on a hot and shadeless field by the road at a Maryland Department of Transportation ceremony Wednesday afternoon was particularly rewarding for Leonore Burts, the Morgan Park Improvement Association History Committee co-chair who wrote the language on the plaque. Burts grew up in the neighborhood in a home her parents purchased in 1949 from DuBois, who wrote The Souls of Black Folk essay collection and was a founding member of the NAACP.

Burts, who moved to Morgan Park, when she was 5, remembers her childhood there well  the sheep on the hill that meandered near her house, lunches down by the creek with the other neighborhood kids, the rotation of homes that hosted weekend morning cartoons.

Like her, many of Burts neighbors are still in the area living in their parents homes. Burts returned in 2008 when her family members who were living in the home previously had died and she wanted to make sure the house remained standing, she said.

Residents have been pleased with how the neighborhood has remained a peaceful suburban haven for both those who are and arent connected to the university. Its closeness and sense of safety harks back to decades prior, they said.

When you think about Black excellence and Black neighborhoods  a historically Black university having a historically Black neighborhood for professors and teachers to be able to actually live and commute to work  its a lot of history and a lot to be proud of, said April Martin, who was raised in Morgan Park in the 1980s and graduated from Morgan State.

The community put in significant time and energy to reach this point, Burts said, noting that its application to the National Park Services National Register of Historic Places, which preceded getting the marker, was almost 100 pages long.

That was a big project, Burts said. We just kept working.

After all that legwork, applying for the marker was fairly easy.

Part of Burts motivation to get involved in the preservation efforts came from a book former resident and historian Roland C. McConnell wrote about the area titled The History of Morgan Park: A Baltimore Neighborhood 1917-1999. McConnell documented each neighborhood house, researched its architectural style and interviewed its occupants.

We had to be true to him and continue to build on what he had done, Burts said.

Many Black neighborhoods have historical significance, but not all receive the recognition they deserve, added Melanie Martin, April Martins mother and a current Morgan Park resident.

Black history doesnt always get celebrated or there are just a few people that get celebrated, but theres a breadth and depth of Black history and this is part of it, she said.

When people drive by decades from now, Burts said, she hopes young Black people will learn a little about the sacrifices and advancements made by the areas past residents in the name of education between DuBois, Carroll and those connected to Morgan State and other academic institutions.

Morgan Park is going to be known as having always been a Black neighborhood, even if the neighborhood changes completely and anybody moves in, Burts said. Thats important to me. Thats the reason for making sure the legacy continues.
MADISON COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT)  A family from New Hope is working to bring a teenager back home after a graduation trip abroad took a scary turn.

Hayden Hill, a recent graduate of New Hope High School, fell 60 feet off of a cliff while in Italy last Thursday, sustaining multiple injuries. Now, his family is trying to figure out how to get him back to Alabama.

Unplayable field conditions move Trash Pandas road games to Toyota Field

Were just trying to figure out insurance and whats best for him and whats best for us to get him back here so that he can get the proper care he needs, Haydens older sister Hannah Hill said.

Hannah tells News 19 that it has been a rollercoaster of emotions for their family.

Im just trying to remain positive and keep my faith and my hope that its going to work out and were going to get him home soon, she said.

In his fall, Hayden sustained multiple injuries including a dislocated hip and several ankle and foot injuries. Hannah said that doctors have been able to put his hip back into its socket, but that his ankle and foot injuries will require further surgery.

AHSAA makes necessary change to stadium rotation for Super 7 football championships

Thankfully, his brain scans have come back clear.

At the time, they thought he had a small brain bleed, Hannah said. Since then hes been cleared of that, so thats amazing.

Hayden is currently recovering in a small hospital about an hour and a half outside of Rome, with his mother by his side. She was able to fly in just one day after he was hospitalized.

However, Hayden will need more medical care when he returns home.

Southern Baptists narrowly reject formal ban on churches with any women pastors

Weve already got, you know, a doctor in Huntsville Hospital waiting, waiting for him, Hannah said.

At the moment, getting home is the biggest challenge. Initially, Italian doctors said both an American nurse and a doctor would need to accompany him on his flight. However, now he just needs a nurse.

We were able to find a nurse, so now its just kind of putting all the puzzle pieces together to get him here Hannah added.

The whole situation has been tough to navigate, but Hannah says shes been touched by the outpouring of support they have received.

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We want everyone to know how grateful we are and how thankful we are that so many people have reached out and helped and just offered any information that they can to try to help us get him home.

I never thought that many people could care about someone else, but its been its been amazing, she said.

A family friend set up a GoFundMe to help with transportation and medical expenses, which Hannah said has been a huge relief.

My brother is the sweetest boy ever, so hes like, if my mom goes into debt because of me, I wont be I wont be okay,' she said. So, were trying to keep him out of that dont worry about it. We just need to get you here and we need to get you taken care of.

As of now, it looks like Hayden may return to Alabama by the end of the week. Hayden just graduated from New Hope High School in May, and Hannah said hes looking forward to starting college classes when he recovers.

You can click here to donate to the GoFundMe.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. The Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP) intends to expand the access of Azerbaijani startups to corporate venture capital, UNESCAP representative Heather Strauss told reporters, Trend reports.

She made the remark on the sidelines of the Export and Foreign Investment Readiness Training Program "Digital SMEs and Startups Ready to Scale Up" within the framework of the Investment in Digital Economy of Azerbaijan (IDEA) project in Baku.

"This week we are pulling out all the stops to back the Center for the Fourth Industrial Revolution in cahoots with the World Economic Forum and AZPROMO with a string of workshops. We kicked off SIRI, the Smart Industry Readiness Index, yesterday. Today we start a two-day face-to-face workshop followed by a series of virtual events for startups from Azerbaijan, Turkiye, and Tajikistan. The goal of the workshop is to work hands-on with startups in the expansion stage and train them on how to raise corporate venture capital. This market is worth trillions of dollars, and startups at the expansion stage can access about $3 trillion in funding. However, most startups face challenges in finding and attracting investors. Discovering, connecting with, and pitching to corporate venture capitalists is the focus of this program. This information will be useful for startups as they seek funding to grow and expand," she noted.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
HOT SPRINGS, Ark  It has been one month since an EF-2 tornado tore through the spa city damaging homes and businesses along the way.

Joses Mexican Grill and Cantina, a staple in Hot Springs has reopened after the storm.

Tornado recovery continues in Hot Springs, local restaurant damaged

In the early morning hours of May 8, an EF-2 tornado tore through Hot Springs. When Jose Soto arrived to see the damage, at first, he thought it wasnt too bad.

In the beginning, we just saw some exterior damages that we figured we could probably get fixed rather quickly, Soto said.

But the damage was more extensive than they thought. They had water leakage, destroyed AC units, vent hoods and more.



Something you never expected, Soto said.

Now the original location is welcoming customers through the doors and serving up food once again and feeling the love of their community.



Its been really nice to see all the people come together and support us, Soto said.

National Weather Service says Hot Springs hit by EF-2 tornado overnight

On the outside, the power pole that was down now has been removed and the roof has been repaired. Its almost back to being the way it once was, it just needs some finishing touches.



So, excuse our mess but the inside is ready to go, Soto said.

He says hopefully the exterior will be done in a few weeks.

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Tonight features mostly clear skies, though its not as cool with a little more moisture in the air, as low temperatures only dip into the low 60s.

Friday sees a weak front approach late in the day, which will provide isolated showers and perhaps a rumble of thunder, especially the farther north you are. One or two storms could even produce gusty winds and brief but heavy rainfall, though the threat for severe weather overall is low. Otherwise, its a summer-like day on the way with high temperatures in the mid 80s. Heat index values will approach 90 degrees in many areas, especially in our western counties where air temperatures will likely exceed 90 degrees. Behind our front, temperatures will drop back into the 50s Friday night into Saturday morning with a northwesterly breeze kicking in.

Saturday will see our temperatures drop slightly and our humidity values drop as high pressure moves in from Canada to our north. This will temporarily provide a little comfort from the heat and give us a lot of sunshine, as high temperatures drop to the low 80s. However, we will still be in a very warm air mass and as high pressure shifts east for the second half of the weekend, the true West Virginia summer feel will take effect as our humidity returns.

Fathers Day looks dry with plenty of sunshine, but as mentioned above, high pressure will shift to our northeast and that will usher in more heat and humidity, as high temperatures in the upper 80s will be commonplace. Once again, our western towns should have no issues reaching 90 degrees, with area-wide heat index values eclipsing 90 degrees being a good bet outside of the high mountain country. A reminder to stay hydrated in the heat, as this is shaping up to be the hottest day of the year so far.

Monday provides the risk for just a stray isolated storm or two during the afternoon. Its a HOT day on the way with high temperatures around 90 degrees. Dont forget to check on those with no AC and remember that hot temperatures and pavement do not mix, especially in the sunshine for your pets! Wait until the evening or during the morning outside of peak heating to take them out on walks.

Keeping cool in the hot summer heat

Tuesday provides a slightly better chance for scattered showers and storms in the afternoon as we see a little more humidity build. Storms will be widely scattered but could produce locally heavy rainfall, with highs once again near 90.

Juneteenth continues the risk for afternoon scattered showers and storms with the heat and humidity with high temperatures in the upper 80s to right around 90 degrees.

Thursday keeps the risk for a few afternoon storms in otherwise hot and humid conditions, with highs in the upper 80s.

Does a higher SPF really provide more skin protection?

Looking ahead in your extended forecast, our pattern will become a little more unsettled but typical summertime weather, albeit a bit on the hot side, as scattered showers and storms will be possible in our afternoons with a combination of heat and humidity. High temperatures look to remain in the mid to upper 80s Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

TONIGHT

Mostly clear, not as cool. Lows in the low 60s.

FRIDAY

Partly sunny with isolated showers late, especially north. Highs in the mid 80s.

SATURDAY

Mostly sunny. Highs in the low 80s.

FATHERS DAY

Mostly sunny. Highs in the upper 80s.

MONDAY

Isolated PM shower. Highs near 90.

TUESDAY

Isolated PM showers. Highs near 90.

JUNETEENTH

Scattered showers and storms. Highs near 90.

THURSDAY

Scattered showers and storms. Highs in the upper 80s.

FRIDAY

More scattered shower chances. Highs in the upper 80s.

SATURDAY

More scattered showers possible. Highs in the upper 80s.

SUNDAY

Scattered storms possible. Highs in the mid 80s.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WVNS.
(KLFY)  Well continue to enjoy lower humidity for today with northeasterly flow pushing relative humidity values into the 30-40% range. Highs will reach the lower 90s later this afternoon.

With drier air, overnight lows can fall lower, and we could be in the upper 60s to lower 70s tomorrow morning. However, high pressure will build overhead for Friday and Saturday, leading to some hot afternoons. Highs could be in the mid-upper 90s both Friday and Saturday.

High pressure will weaken and moisture will increase as our atmosphere gets more tropical starting Sunday and continuing into early next week. Deep tropical moisture will stream northwestward into the area from the southern Gulf. This increase in moisture will lead to healthy rain chances starting Sunday and continuing through mid-week next week.

TROPICS

The system across the Florida peninsula, which has produced all the flooding there, has a low chance for development as it continues to work northeastward into the southwestern Atlantic.

Global models, namely the European and GFS models, show weak tropical development across the southwestern Gulf of Mexico by Tuesday/Wednesday of next week. This would be a broad, monsoonal low pressure, which will take some time to tighten up and close off. Wind shear will be much lower across the southwestern Gulf, so slightly more favorable conditions will be present for this system to achieve this.

The National Hurricane Center is giving this area a medium chance for development through the next seven days. Any potential system looks to be a rain-maker and would likely stay to our south, moving into Mexico. Models get the tropics active through the next 10-12 days.

Latest news

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House Democrats campaign arm compared former President Trump to Scar, the villain from the Disney movie The Lion King, as the presumptive GOP nominee meets with congressional Republicans.

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) posted a picture of Scar and the hyenas from the Disney animated film in a release Thursday as part of a LIVE LOOK inside the House Republicans meeting with the felon.

The scene pictured shows Scar sitting on a rock and plotting the demise of Mufasa, the main character Simbas father  as they sing the iconic song Be Prepared.

The former president is meeting with Republicans on Capitol Hill on Thursday. He first met with House members in the morning and will visit with GOP senators in the afternoon. Its his first time meeting with lawmakers since being convicted of 34 counts of falsifying business records in his New York hush-money trial last month.

Thirty four-count felon Donald Trump is addressing vulnerable House Republicans, disseminating his orders and scheming up their plans to gut Social Security, privatize Medicare, give massive handouts to the ultrawealthy, and pass a national abortion ban, the DCCC alleged in their release.

Rep. Mark Amodei (R-Nev.) told The Hill that Trump received a few standing ovations during the House meeting, and the message of the meeting was to vote for the team rather than a focus on policy.

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WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  Representative Joe Neguse (D-Colo.) and five other Democratic lawmakers held a press conference Thursday to push for tighter gun laws.

We are ready to work with anyone in good faith, Neguse said.

The Congressional Gun Violence Protection Task Force called for universal background checks, safe storage laws and preventing the illegal trafficking of guns.

We have more mass shootings than we have days in the year, said Rep. Mike Thompson (D-Calif).

Their calls came a day after Congress paused for a moment of silence, to honor the 49 people who died in the Pulse Nightclub shooting in 2016. Wednesday marked eight years since the shooting.

On Tuesday, high school graduates in Newtown, Connecticut remembered the 20 classmates who didnt graduate, because they died in the Sandy Hook shooting in 2012.

I do feel like, for the first time, the gun violence prevention movement is stronger than the gun lobby, said Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.).

Meanwhile, last month, former president Donald Trump spoke at the NRA convention, encouraging voters who care about gun rights to vote this November.

Let there be no doubt: the survival of our Second Amendment is very much on the ballot, Trump said. If the Biden regime gets four more years, they are coming for your guns.

Democrats believe public opinion is on their side about this issue.

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U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland in a January 2023 photo. The House Wednesday held Garland in contempt for refusing to turn over audio of President Joe Biden's impeachment inquiry interview with the Justice Department, for which Garland has released full transcripts. Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

WASHINGTON  U.S. House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for his refusal to release audio recordings of President Joe Bidens interviews with Department of Justice officials.

The GOP lawmakers maintain the audio is valuable for their monthslong impeachment inquiry into Biden.

But Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-8th), ranking member of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, criticized Republicans for seeking to hold Garland in contempt over an ongoing impeachment inquiry that he described as a madcap wild goose chase. He noted that GOP lawmakers already have access to a verbatim transcript of the audio.

Do they think that the holy grail of the 118th Congress  evidence of a presidential high crime and misdemeanor  is lurking in the pauses or the background throat clearings and sneezes on the audio tape? Raskin said on the House floor Wednesday. They literally dont even know what theyre looking for anymore.

House Republicans brought the contempt citation against Garland after he agreed with Bidens assertion of executive privilege over the recordings of his interviews during special counsel Robert Hurs investigation into his handling of classified material. Hur ultimately did not recommend criminal charges against Biden.

The House voted 216-207 to pass the resolution. Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio was the only Republican to vote no.

Congress cannot serve as a necessary check on the presidency if the executive branch is free to defy duly authorized, legal subpoenas, said Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, in a statement after the vote. House Republicans rightfully held Attorney General Merrick Garland accountable today for his failure to comply with lawful subpoenas issued by the Oversight and Judiciary Committees.

Garland released a statement denouncing the vote as deeply disappointing and accusing House Republicans of turning a serious Congressional authority into a partisan weapon.

Todays vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Departments need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the committees, Garland said in the statement.

The Justice Department provided a transcript of Hurs interviews with Biden to both committees.

But GOP committee leaders subpoenaed the audio because they maintain transcripts are not sufficient.

Were in the midst of an impeachment inquiry, were entitled to the best evidence, and thats why we want the tapes, Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) said on the floor Wednesday morning during debate of the contempt resolution.

Jordan accused the White House of a history of changing transcripts, seeming to refer to a late April report by the right-wing publication the Daily Caller that highlighted transcript corrections issued by White House communications staff. The White House routinely publishes transcripts of speeches and comments by Biden.

The audio recording is the best evidence of the words that President Biden actually spoke, Jordan continued on the floor.

News organizations are also in pursuit of the audio. Several, including CNN and NBC, have sued for the recordings under the Freedom of Information Act.

House lawmakers voted along party lines in December to proceed with an impeachment inquiry into whether Biden, during his time as vice president, benefited from his son Hunters foreign business dealings.

Trump, Biden and classified documents

In response to Raskins accusation, Jordan said on the floor Wednesday that Republicans know what theyre after: Were looking for equal treatment under the law, he said.

The committees need the audio recordings to determine whether the Justice Department appropriately carried out justice by not prosecuting the president, Jordan said. They told us, Were going to operate independently of the White House  OK, maybe so, but what we do know is this: One former president is being charged. Joe Bidens not being (charged).

Trump faces federal criminal charges in Florida related to his storage of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach estate, after he lost the 2020 presidential election to Biden. The case has been postponed indefinitely by trial Judge Aileen Cannon.

In early February, Hur declined to bring criminal charges against Biden for his handling of classified information. But in his report, Hur described Biden as a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory, a comment Biden vehemently challenged.

Hur interviewed Biden in October 2023 as part of his inquiry into classified documents dating back to Bidens time as vice president. The documents were found at the presidents office at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C., and later at his private Wilmington home, respectively in November 2022 and January 2023.

Recent criminal contempt trend

Criminal contempt is a tool Congress can use as leverage to obtain compliance with subpoenas. The citation carries a penalty of a fine up to $100,000 or imprisonment of at least one month but no longer than 12 months if the Department of Justice pursues charges.

While the tool is historically rarely used in Congress, its becoming more common. Since 2019, the House has approved six such citations. So far, the Justice Department has declined to pursue charges against executive branch officials held in contempt. The statute of limitations is five years.

The Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would pursue charges against Garland, an unlikely scenario.

Garland is not the first U.S. attorney general to be held in contempt.

The Democratic-led House held former President Donald Trumps Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress in 2019 after he refused to turn over documents related to the 2020 Census and his order to a Justice employee to ignore a deposition subpoena.

The department did not pursue charges against Barr, who was held in contempt alongside then-Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder, who served in the Obama administration, was held in contempt of Congress in June 2012 for refusing to provide documents related to Operation Fast and Furious, an investigation into gun trafficking along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The department declined to prosecute Holder, who was the first-ever sitting U.S. Cabinet member to be held in criminal contempt of Congress.

Congress also held Holder in civil contempt over the botched operation, leading to a yearslong lawsuit that ended in a settlement in 2019.

The post House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in audio recording dispute appeared first on Maryland Matters.
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  The Republican-controlled House narrowly voted to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress.

Its now up to the Justice Department to decide whether the contempt resolution becomes a court case.

The Justice Department refused to hand over the recordings from President Joe Bidens special counsel interview about his handling of classified documents.

The Attorney General doesnt get to decide whether he hides the tape, said House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.).

The Justice Department released the transcript, but President Biden invoked executive privilege on the tapes blocking their release.

We have a right to know if Robert Hurs recommendation against prosecuting President Biden was warranted, said Johnson.

Ohio Republican Congressman Jim Jordan, who led the push to hold Garland in contempt, argues the recordings are the best evidence.

Thats why we have the contempt resolution. Weve assumed this is going to wind up in court, but we think our case is strong, said Jordan.

The vote effectively recommends the prosecution of Garland.

It is now up to the Justice Department to decide whether to turn the resolution into a case.

Some Republicans say they should challenge President Bidens use of executive privilege in court to force Garland to turn over the recordings but Democrats, like California Congressman Pete Aguilar, say this is really just about one person, former president Donald Trump.

They will do whatever he asks them to do. Thats been thats been very clear, said Aguilar.

Trump will return to Capitol Hill Thursday for the first time since the January 6th attack on the U.S. Capitol to meet with House and Senate Republicans

Garland became the third attorney general in U.S. history to be held in contempt of Congress. The other votes happened under the Trump and Obama administrations, but the Justice Department never took action.

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House lawmakers who support cannabis legalization had opposed the retail approach endorsed by Gov. Chris Sununu and the Senate. (Annmarie Timmins | New Hampshire Bulletin)

This story was updated on June 13 at 5:24 p.m. to include comment from the ACLU of New Hampshire.

The New Hampshire House struck down a bill to legalize cannabis Thursday, in a dramatic end for a bill that exposed deep disagreements between the House and Senate.

Voting 178-173, the chamber rejected an attempted compromise with the Senate on House Bill 1633. That bill would have legalized the use of cannabis for anyone 21 and older starting in 2026, and would have allowed the creation of up to 15 retail locations overseen by the state.

But pro-legalization supporters in the House had opposed the retail approach endorsed by Gov. Chris Sununu and the Senate, and had been frustrated when the Senate continued to pass that version. The House voted to table the bill and then later adjourned for the summer, ending all chances that the bill could be revived.

Frustrations were high. The perplexing thing about the immortality of this bill is that literally nobody in this body likes this bill, said Rep. Jared Sullivan, a Bethlehem Democrat, just ahead of the vote.

Sununu had favored a franchise model that would allow businesses to buy licenses to run cannabis stores, but would give the states Liquor Commission top-down control over store layout and advertising.

Sununu said giving the state more control was important to establish safeguards for children and the general public. But pro-cannabis House members disagreed, arguing the franchise model would create an effective monopoly over sales that would squelch innovation. They pushed for a model that would allow retail licensees more freedom over stores.

The vote to kill the legislation was a notable political turn for the House. For more than a decade, bipartisan majorities of the House have passed cannabis legalization bills, only for bipartisan majorities of the Senate to reject them.

But in May 2023, that dynamic changed when Sununu  a longtime legalization opponent  announced he would sign a cannabis legalization bill that met certain exact criteria, which included tight state controls. The governors vow prompted a yearlong effort to cobble together a bill that could do that. But members of the House bristled at the governors retail model, and the two chambers had continued to clash in the weeks ahead of Thursday.

Last week, representatives from the House and Senate tried to insert compromises. The Senate agreed to increase cannabis industry representation on a cannabis control board  which would set regulations  after House negotiators complained they did not have a seat at the table.

Negotiators also added provisions that would make it easier for the states existing alternative treatment centers  which currently dispense medical marijuana  to obtain one of the licenses for retail cannabis.

And while the full legalization of cannabis would not have kicked off until 2026, the compromise bill would have immediately raised the decriminalization limits, allowing someone to possess up to an ounce of cannabis without facing criminal penalties. Currently, up to three-quarters of an ounce of cannabis is decriminalized in New Hampshire.

Rep. Erica Layon, the original sponsor of the bill, took to the floor to support the compromise bill. While the final package was not her ideal approach, she said, We have the chance to get the ball rolling in New Hampshire.

Layon argued that because the legalization in the final package did not kick in until 2026, lawmakers had a couple of years to tweak the rollout of the bill with future bills.

But on the House floor Thursday, other advocates for legalization said that the Senate-amended bill was a nonstarter.

To Sullivan, the creation of increased powers for the Liquor Commission would be unacceptable expansion of the state government.

Does anyone in here actually believe that we will be able to reel in a newly empowered government bureaucracy after theyve spent millions of dollars? Does anyone honestly believe it will be easy to pull back power from an unelected agency once they have it?

Other advocacy groups took a different view. The American Civil Liberties Union of New Hampshire lamented the Houses vote Thursday, arguing that the body had thrown away a chance to pass legalization for all Granite Staters  regardless of the retail model used.

Pushing legalization off yet another year makes clear that lawmakers are willing to ignore the will of their own constituents and are okay with continuing to needlessly ensnare over a thousand people  disproportionately Black people  in New Hampshires criminal justice system every year, said ACLU Executive Director Devon Chaffee in a statement after the vote.

She added: Marijuana legalization is not just a political squabble about the economic benefits  the war on marijuana has real-life impacts. While politicians argue, the impacts of these arrests will continue to ruin lives.

Earlier in the day Thursday, HB 1633 had passed the Senate 14-10, with Republican Sens. Daryl Abbas of Salem, Dan Innis of Bradford, Tim Lang of Sanbornton, Keith Murphy of Manchester, and Howard Pearl of Loudon joining nine Democrats to support it. Manchester Democratic Sen. Lou DAllesandro joined nine Republicans to oppose it.

On Wednesday, Sununu stopped short of vowing to sign the latest version of the bill, but defended his approach.

You have billboards all over Massachusetts that tout marijuana, and how its easy access, he told reporters. You have locations in other states that are directly adjacent, in nearby schools, and I think thats a huge problem.

All of these are pieces that we tried to take into consideration if we were going to do it, develop the best system, not just in the region, but probably in the country.

The post House kills cannabis legalization after failed compromise with Senate appeared first on New Hampshire Bulletin.
A partnership agreement has been signed between Azerconnect Group, a key player in Azerbaijan's ICT and high technology industries, and Vodafone Group, a leading European and African telecoms company.

The agreement was signed by the Chief Executive Officer of Azerconnect, Emil Masimov and Johannes Hummer, Regional Head of Middle East, Africa, Caucasus and Central Asia, Vodafone Partner Markets at Vodafone.

The partner market agreement will enable Azerconnect Group to accelerate development in crucial areas such as digitisation, security operations centres, network technologies and commercial services. Vodafone will provide partnership to Azerconnect Group, resulting in cost optimisation and value creation.

Emil Masimov, Chief Executive Officer of Azerconnect Group, said:

"Azerconnect Group is the largest ICT company in Azerbaijan with a proven track record of success. As a Vodafone partner market we can leverage Vodafones extensive global telecoms expertise. I am confident that this collaboration will significantly accelerate the sustainable development of Azerbaijan's ICT sector."

Petr Dvorak, CEO of Vodafone Partner Markets, added:

Azerconnect Group is an innovative company and a leader within Azerbaijan. My team look forward to working with them to bring our experience in telecoms and business technology to develop the quality of service available to their customers as part of the partner markets family.

About Azerconnect

Azerconnect Group is a company that operates in the dynamically developing ICT and high technology fields in Azerbaijan. Azerconnect Group delivers advanced solutions, including Mobile, Internet, and International leased lines provisioning, alongside cutting-edge digital services in FinTech, AdTech, and Media/TV. Azerconnect Group is part of NEQSOL Holding, an international group of companies operating in various countries across the energy, telecommunications, hi-tech, and construction industries.

About Vodafone Group

Vodafone is a leading European and African telecoms company. We provide mobile and fixed services to over 330 million customers in 15 countries (excludes Italy which is held as discontinued operations under Vodafone Group), partner with mobile networks in 44 more and have one of the worlds largest IoT platforms. In Africa, our financial technology businesses serve almost 79 million customers across seven countries  managing more transactions than any other provider.

Our purpose is to connect for a better future by using technology to improve lives, businesses and help progress inclusive sustainable societies. We are committed to reducing our environmental impact to reach net zero emissions by 2040.

For more information, please visit www.vodafone.com, follow us on X at @VodafoneGroup or connect with us on LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/vodafone.
Editors note: This report has been updated to correct a quote from Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.).

The House voted Wednesday to pass a bill that is urging China to mend ties with the Dalai Lama and other Tibetan leaders.

The legislation, named Promoting a Resolution to the Tibet-China Dispute Act, received broad bipartisan support and encourages China and Tibet to resolve the long-standing dispute over Tibets governance.

The bill now heads to President Bidens desk after being passed by the Senate last month.

Tibetans, like all people, have the right to religious freedom  which includes freedom from [Chinese Communist Party] surveillance, censorship, and detention, House Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Michael McCaul (R-Texas) said in a statement.

The legislation will allow State Department officials to actively and directly counter disinformation about Tibet thats spread by the Chinese government, namely rejecting false claims that Tibet has been part of China since ancient times, the lawmakers said in their release.

It will also allow the U.S. to push for negotiations between the Chinese government and the Dalai Lama or his representatives over the future of Tibet.

The lawmakers noted that no formal dialogue between Tibetan and Chinese authorities has happened since 2010.

As the U.S. seeks to continue its diplomatic conversations with China, the legislation is a reminder that the U.S. recognizes the territory of Tibet as a country occupied by the Peoples Republic of China and said there are significant human rights issues taking place there. China often pushes back on the Western view, accusing the U.S. of interfering in its sovereign affairs.

Sen. Todd Young (R-Ind.) said in a statement that the bill will refresh the United Statess policy toward Tibet and push for negotiations to free the Tibetan people.

Congressional passage of this legislation further demonstrates Americas resolve that the [Chinese Communist Partys] status quo  both in Tibet and elsewhere  is not acceptable, Youngs statement said.

I look forward to this important effort becoming law and working with my colleagues in the Senate and with the Administration to ensure swift and effective implementation.

House Rules Committee Ranking Member Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) said he hopes the bipartisan support on the bill sends a message to the Tibetan people that America stands with them.

The ongoing oppression of the Tibetan people is a grave tragedy, and our bill provides further tools that empower both America and the international community to stand up for justice and peace, McGoverns statement said.

Updated on June 13 at 9:23 a.m. EDT

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WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  House Republicans are blasting Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg for what they call an unprecedented politicized indictment of former president Donald Trump.

Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) and other Republicans are going after Bragg.

Alvin Braggs prosecution of President Trump was personal. It was based on politics. And it was wrong, Jordan said.

Jordan calls the indictment unprecedented. He says Bragg targeted former president Donald Trump by charging him with felonies for falsifying business records, which he says is usually filed as a misdemeanor.

Thats the story. And that story is consistent with the facts, Jordan said.

Rep. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) doesnt think the verdict has legs to stand on.

So, the irony here is this is going to be vacated. And this trial was all about trying to influence an election, Massie said.

Democrats criticized Republicans for holding the hearing in the first place, and say the GOP is only focused on influencing Americans perception of the former president.

House Republicans are willing to do just about anything to protect Donald Trump from the consequences of his actions, Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) said.

Nadler called the allegations baseless, and Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) took time to make fun of Republicans who met with Trump during his visit to DC.

Show hands for anyone in the room who hung out with a felon today. Hey, guys, I want to get your hands up, Swalwell said.

This wont be the last hearing about Bragg, as he has agreed to testify in front of Congress on July 12th, the day after Trump is sentenced.

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Lets be clear about Housing Choice Vouchers: when individuals and households are approved for vouchers, they are free to take that voucher and live where they like, if it meets the minimum standards set by HUD, meaning the housing the family chooses for itself is safe, decent, and sanitary. We dont force anyone to live anywhere or stay anywhere. The goal of the Housing Choice Voucher program is that those who benefit from it have the freedom to find a home that meets their needs.

The major issue facing Lansing and every community in our state is a lack of quality, affordable housing stock. Addressing that shortage is the focus of all our efforts at MSHDA.

Regardless of housing choice voucher status with MSHDA or the LHC, if a dwelling does not meet city code and is red tagged, no one can live there. Affordable housing is a partnership between HUD, MSHDA, local housing commissions, landlords, and municipalities.

We understand the unique and pressing circumstances faced by Lansing residents and are committed to a process that does not simply evict people with no plan to keep them sheltered. We have been engaged with City of Lansing leadership on an action plan for people who are impacted by low-quality or uninhabitable homes for over a year and are committed to that work. Everyone deserves a safe, affordable place to live in the community of their choice. A safe place to call home improves your health and wellbeing, it bolsters education and career outcomes, it keeps us connected to our community and invested in the future.

We will continue to advocate for increased housing supply in every community in Michigan and the resources we need to solve this crisis.
"The world was a better place because he lived in it and wrote about it," Fineman's wife, Amy Nathan, wrote on social media

John Lamparski/WireImage Howard Fineman

Howard Fineman, a longtime political journalist and TV correspondent, died at age 75 on Tuesday, June 11, after a two-year battle with pancreatic cancer.

His wife, Amy Nathan, shared the tragic news on social media.

"I am heartbroken to share my brilliant and extraordinary husband passed away late last night surrounded by those he loved most, his family," she wrote on June 12. "He valiantly battled pancreatic cancer for 2 years."

She continued, "He couldnt have been adored more. The world was a better place because he lived in it and wrote about it."

For 30 years, Fineman worked as a reporter for Newsweek, where he served as the chief political correspondent. He was also an analyst on NBC News and MSNBC.

According to his IMDb, he appeared on 24 episodes of Hardball with Chris Matthews from 2004 to 2014 and 5 episodes of Countdown with Keith Olbermann from 2006 to 2009.

The reporter covered the 2000 presidential campaign and the presidency of George W. Bush while at the outlet. He wrote several cover stories including the then-presidents first extensive interview following the September 11 attacks.

Fineman also covered the first term of Barack Obama's presidency during his tenure at Newsweek and wrote a reflective piece in 2010, in which he said of the administration, "It could have been worse. And if we aren't careful, it probably will be," in his final piece before leaving for Huffington Post.

In the early days of his career, the late reporter appeared on PBS's Washington Week in Review from 1983 to 1995 and on CNN's Capital Gang from 1995 to 1998, per his biography on NBC News.

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President Joe Biden issued a statement on his death on Thursday, June 13, writing, For four decades, Howard Fineman was one of the great journalists of our time. His career covered much of mine, and throughout the debates over big issues and historic campaigns, I respected his reporting and insights whether I agreed or disagreed with him.

Biden also commented on Fineman's family: Above all, in the decades we knew each other, it was clear that his love of family was the greatest story he ever told. Jill and I send our love to Amy and their children Nick and Meredith."

We know what its like when cancer takes away the life of a beloved family member. But no matter where you are, he will always be with you," he added.

Fineman shared a photo with Biden on social media in 2023 and recalled the president being a guest lecturer in his seminar when he was teaching at University of Pennsylvania.



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Richmond's election office is under investigation by the city's inspector general. (Graham Moomaw/Virginia Mercury)

Human resources officials in the city of Richmond recommended an immediate departmental restructuring of the city election office after an internal investigation concluded the citys registrar and deputy registrar violated nepotism and ethics policies.

The results of the HR investigation into the Richmond election office  which is separate from a more far-reaching probe underway by Richmonds inspector general  were sent to state and local election officials on Tuesday. The Virginia Mercury obtained copies of the findings through a Freedom of Information Act request.

During the investigation, Registrar Keith Balmer verified nepotism allegations lodged against his office from three ex-employees, the documents show. It was their complaints that initiated the HR review, which produced three similarly worded investigative reports on the complaints and a summary of the findings.

The recommendation for a swift reshuffling of staff, including the proposed transfer or removal of all employees in a line of supervision that includes a family member, suggests a shakeup could be coming to the office that runs elections in Virginias capital city.

Though none of the allegations deal directly with voting or ballots, registrars are typically expected to be sticklers for following protocol given the sensitive, high-security nature of their work.

The management issues in Richmond are also bubbling up during a presidential year, when election officials around the country are at their busiest.

The Richmond controversy highlights the at-times confusing lines of supervision for registrars, who are hired and fired by unelected boards made up of appointees picked by local political parties and confirmed by judges. Though Balmer doesnt report to City Hall or Richmond Mayor Levar Stoney, the citys investigation says hes still subject to city policies.

In an interview Wednesday evening, Richmond Electoral Board Chairman John Ambrose said he and the rest of the board that oversees Balmers office had received the findings and would consider them as part of Balmers annual evaluation in July.

Since we have an election next week on June 18 and the priority for the board is the correct and transparent conduct of the June 18 primary I dont think its appropriate to take any emergency action at this time, Ambrose said.

The nepotism accusations were laid out in a document titled Nepotism Tree, which says Balmer hired his brother and one of his brothers friends to jobs in the election office. The office also contracted with a company owned by Balmers wife to provide training on how to accommodate voters with disabilities. That contract, amounting to $2,300, didnt go through the citys procurement office, according to the records.

Two grandchildren of Deputy General Registrar Jerry Richardson, the second-in-command, work in the office, as do several people connected to the grandchildren, according to the Nepotism Tree document both Balmer and Richardson confirmed as accurate to city officials.

Richardsons grandson, Christian Javins, works as the offices elections services manager. Javinss girlfriend, Kara Wilson, works as a policy analyst. A cousin of Wilsons and a longtime friend of Richardsons also work in the office, according to the records, which detail several other familial relationships among lower-level employees.

City HR officials found that people with ties to Balmer and Richardson were hired or promoted without transparent and fair recruitment processes.

Favoritism towards relatives of senior management undermined the principles of fairness, impartiality and equal opportunity for all employees, city officials wrote in reports dated May 16. The reports were signed by Employee Relations Investigator Josh Underwood and HR Division Chief Timeko Hunte-Brown.

Though the HR investigation appeared to be completed last month, the city sent a notice of investigative findings this week to state and local election officials who work with Balmer.

Balmer said Wednesday evening that he had not yet reviewed the HR findings. He noted that, apart from his brother, the other family connections in the office predate his time as registrar, which started in 2021.

I will ensure that no family member reports directly to a family member, Balmer said in an email.

City HR policies set broader limits than that, aiming to prevent employees from making decisions that could benefit a relative regardless of the working relationship.

Any employee with supervisory responsibilities shall not have a family member under their scope of responsibility, the policy says.

Both Balmer and Richardson acknowledged to HR officials that people in their office often got jobs after recommendations from existing staff, according to the records. Richardson also indicated the office didnt have a formal interview process for open positions and said it was common practice for just a conversation as an interview.

Their failure to maintain transparency in hiring practices and neglect to address employee concerns violated the trust and integrity expected from organizational leaders, the HR reports say.

The three former employees who complained about the offices management also alleged they suffered retaliatory firings after raising concerns about nepotism and other issues. City HR officials ruled those claims unfounded, while noting that registrars can hire and fire employees at will and faulting the office for being unable to provide clear documentation laying out why the workers were let go.

Balmer told officials the three employees were terminated because of issues with their performance.

Investigators ruled Balmer and Richardson violated two city administrative regulations. One is an anti-nepotism policy meant to prevent preferential treatment for relatives and ensure employees dont supervise their relatives. The other is a more general ethics policy outlining rules against using public office for personal gain and conduct that inhibits the confidence of the public in the integrity of government.

The investigation also revealed that Richardson had sold Kate Spade purses, wallets and money clips to employees during work hours to raise money for a nonprofit animal rescue organization she runs. The cost of the items ranged from $20 to more than $100.

Considering Richardsons managerial role, selling items on city time to employees that are within her chain of command may give the perception of favoritism for those who purchase from Richardson or create an environment in which employees feel purchasing the items to be obligatory, the report says.

Richmond HR officials recommended an immediate departmental restructuring to correct any nepotism, the implementation of more thorough hiring practices to ensure jobs are awarded on merit and qualifications, mandatory training on ethics and other city policies and potential discipline for those involved.

Its unclear when Richmonds Office of the Inspector General is expected to complete its investigation into the election office.

City officials suspended government credit cards issued to the registrars office after concerns were raised about improper spending, much of which has been reported by the Richmond Times-Dispatch. The inspector general is believed to be looking at that issue and others that deal with finances and accusations of improper conduct that go beyond HR rules.

The reports issued by HR officials point to some of those other allegations.

One of the ex-employees who filed a complaint also alleged his former co-workers took unused copper wire from the building that houses the elections office and sold it for scrap.

A footnote in the HR report says an investigator in the inspector generals office didnt seem too concerned about that claim because the copper wires were considered trash.

The post After HR probe, Richmond officials suggest restructuring of election office appeared first on Virginia Mercury.
Hundreds of firefighters have been putting out fire caused by Russian strike on Kyiv Oblast for more than a day  photo

A fire at an industrial facility caused by a Russian attack on the night of 11-12 June is still being put out.

Source: State Emergency Service of Ukraine

Details: The firefighters have not managed to put out the blaze after more than a day.

249 firefighters, 98 appliances and 4 fire trains are working on site.

Background:

Due to a Russian attack on Kyiv Oblast on 11-12 June a fire broke out at an industrial facility.

Ukraine's air defence shot down 29 Russian air targets out of 30 launched, including 5 missiles and 24 kamikaze drones, on the night of 11-12 June.

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Advocates are seeing hundreds of Mexican families deported daily to Mexico because their requests for asylum are being denied by U.S. Border Patrol agents after President Joe Biden's recent rule restricting asylum in between border crossings.

Around 200 Mexican nationals, mostly families with young children and many of whom are escaping violence and persecution, are being deported daily to Mexico, said Pedro De Velasco, the director of education and advocacy for the Nogales-based Kino Border Initiative.

Migrants told the Kino Border Initiative they tried to surrender to U.S. Border Patrol agents to seek asylum, but their requests were ignored.

Even after they explained to the Border Patrol agents  they are fleeing from violence and persecution, or explicitly asking for asylum, they're being summarily ignored and deported to Mexico," De Velasco said.

Pedro De Velasco, director of advocacy and education at the Kino Border Initiative, a binational humanitarian organization in Sonora, Nogales, speaks to the more than 200 migrants looking for information on crossing the border in Nogales, Sonora, on May 11, 2023.

That goes against the order that still allows people facing persecution or who show an intention to apply for asylum to take a credible fear test, he said.

According to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, the presidents executive action allows "noncitizens" who cross the southern border and are processed for expedited removal to be referred for a credible fear screening with an asylum officer if they express a fear of returning to their country or country of removal, fear of persecution or torture, or an intention to apply for asylum.

Not everybody has a valid asylum claim, but even if one person is fleeing violence or persecution, that's enough to ask that Border Patrol listens to every single one of them, De Velasco said. You cannot ignore them all, because the risk is that you're sending somebody to danger or you're sending somebody to death.

What does Biden's executive action mean for migrants?

Biden released a proclamation on June 4 to allow the U.S. Border Patrol to shut down all asylum processing under sections 212(f) and 215(a) of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act when the number of migrant crossings in between the ports of entry exceeds 2,500 per day over a seven-day period.

Processing would resume when the number of migrant crossings falls below 1,500 per day over a seven-day period. The order would not impact asylum processing at legal border crossings.

The executive action prohibits migrants who cross the southern border unlawfully or without authorization from being eligible for asylum "absent exceptionally compelling circumstances."

Compelling circumstances include an acute medical emergency, an imminent threat to life or safety, and a victim of human trafficking.

The new rule also requires migrants who want to claim asylum to apply for entry through one of 1,500 daily appointments border wide made available at the CBP One mobile app.

However, people scheduling appointments with immigration officers through the app often have to wait months for an appointment if they are lucky enough to get one, with the average person waiting four months or more for an appointment, De Velasco said.

Following the presidents executive action, that wait could get longer. De Velasco said before the executive order came out, some walk-in appointments were processed, but now everyone must apply through the app. Border officials have not increased the number of appointments available.

Kenia Jameleth, an asylum seeker from Honduras staying at a migrant shelter in San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora, Mexico, on May 12, 2023, shows a message she receives when attempting to apply for an appointment using the CBP One app. Despite staying at a shelter on the border in Mexico, the message says she is unable to ask for an appointment because she needs to be in central or northern Mexico to do so.

Nogales is seeing a surge in Mexicans returning to Mexico

The executive action has resulted in a surge in the number of Mexicans arriving daily at the repatriation office in Nogales, Sonora. The high number of arrivals means some people are forced to wait outside in 95-degree heat until they can be seen. De Velasco said at any given time there are about 50 people in the repatriation office and 20 people waiting outside in the blistering heat.

Since Bidens order came into effect, hundreds of MX families are deported daily to Nogales, Sonora, after their asylum claims are summarily ignored by BP. Theres not enough room inside the MX repatriation office, so a tent has been set up for folks to wait outside in 95 heat. pic.twitter.com/I1N3Brgg1q  Pedro De Velasco (@pedrodevelasco) June 11, 2024

The recent numbers of people returned to Mexico are significantly higher than they were before Bidens executive action. The most recent data from the Mexican government shows the number of migrants returned to Mexico through the DeConcini Port of Entry in Nogales reached 2,607 in January; 2,914 in February; 3,234 in March; and 3,517 in April.

Another change following the new rule is the lack of offering a voluntary return rather than deportation, De Velasco said. The option of voluntary departure allows people to leave without formal removal proceedings or deportation charges. Deportation bars migrants from returning to the U.S. for at least five years and could result in criminal prosecution.

We are talking about Mexican nationals who are stuck in the same country they are trying to flee from, he said. "They are being returned to the same country, returned to that same danger."

Pedro De Velasco, director of advocacy and education at the Kino Border Initiative, a binational humanitarian organization in Sonora, Nogales, speaks to the more than 200 migrants looking for information on crossing the border in Nogales, Sonora, on May 11, 2023.

Immigrant rights groups sue Biden administration over executive action

On Wednesday, immigrants' rights groups announced their intention to sue the Biden administration over the new rule, saying it puts thousands of lives at risk.

The American Civil Liberties Union, the National Immigrant Justice Center, and several other groups filed the federal lawsuit on behalf of Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center and the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services.

The groups argue the rule effectively shuts off access to asylum protections for the majority of people arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border, "no matter how strong their claims," the groups wrote in a press release. They compared the new rule to the asylum entry ban erected under former president Donald Trump's Administration.

The groups also contend the rule is inconsistent with the asylum statute enacted by Congress, which permits migrants to apply for asylum whether or not they enter at a port of entry.

"Around the world, people are fleeing persecution and torture at higher rates than ever before," said Keren Zwick, the litigation director for the National Immigrant Justice Center. "Its shameful that the U.S. government has chosen to respond by shutting out access to asylum to those who come to our border in need."

Many border town officials say they support the executive action

Biden invited numerous border town officials to attend his announcement on June 4 in Washington D.C. One of the attendees was Santa Cruz County Board of Supervisors member Manny Ruiz.

After the announcement, he and the Board of Supervisors thanked Biden.

"These actions will provide relief to our border community by limiting the overflow of migrants and supporting our agents of the Border Patrol, Ruiz said in a written statement.

Ruizs statement on the new rule reflects similar sentiments that other border town officials have expressed but is in contrast to the reactions of progressive legislators and advocates.

Ruiz told The Arizona Republic that Biden's action was precipitated by actions taken by former President Donald Trump to kill a "good" bill that garnered bipartisan support and provided more assistance to border communities. He called on Congress to work on and fix the country's "broken immigration system."

As more people are deported to Nogales, De Velasco reiterated that the Kino Border Initiative is prepared and ready to help welcome migrants back to Mexico, offer them support and help those who want to stay in Nogales integrate into the community.

We're up for this. We're ready for this. We simply ask for peoples support and for the government to do their part, De Velasco said.

Reach the reporter at sarah.lapidus@gannett.com. The Republics coverage of southern Arizona is funded, in part, with a grant from Report for America. Support Arizona news coverage with a tax-deductible donation at supportjournalism.azcentral.com.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Hundreds of Mexicans deported daily to Nogales after Biden action
Husband dies, wife in critical condition after electrocution in hot tub at Mexican resort

A Texas man has died and his wife is in critical condition after they were electrocuted in a Mexican resorts hot tub, according to local authorities.

Jorge N, 43, died Tuesday and Lizeth N was injured as a result of a possible electric discharge when both were inside the jacuzzi in their private condo at Puerto Peasco, Sonora, according to a translated Facebook statement from the General Prosecutors Office of Justice of the State of Sonora (FGJES). The resort is about 200 miles from Mexicos northwest border with Arizona

Citing FGJES, TMZ identified the pair as spouses Jorge Guillen and Lizzette Zambrano.

Per the Sonora State Attorney Generals news release, Lizzette was transported to a U.S. hospital in critical condition, according to NBC affiliate KTSM. The General Prosecutors Office said she suffered burns consistent with electric shock.

The accident occurred shortly after 8 p.m. local time Tuesday at Sonoran Sea Resort, KTSM reports.

The General Prosecutors Office also reportedly said a witness who knows the couple said she saw them in the jacuzzi and, disturbed to find them unresponsive, called for help.

A GoFundMe for the couples family has been established and has raised more than $30,000 of its $50,000 goal at the time of publication.

Our best friends have experienced a horrible accident, reads the fundraisers description. Jorge had a heart of gold and was always there for family and friends. The love they shared was one for ages. We are asking for your help to bring him home & help with medical expenses for her.

The Sonoran Sea Resort did not immediately respond to the Daily News request for comment.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. A joint meeting of the Economic Council of Azerbaijan and the Supervisory Board of the Azerbaijan Investment Holding has discussed attracting private investment in the local state-owned enterprises, a source in the Cabinet of Ministers told Trend.

According to the source, the agenda of the meeting held on June 13, chaired by Prime Minister Ali Asadov, covered the state of implementation of the directives arising from the decree of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan dated August 31, 2023, No. 4078, "On measures to attract private investments in state enterprises of the Republic of Azerbaijan".

Specifically, in accordance with the decree, the readiness of state enterprises, including the Azerkimya Production Association (Ethylene-Polyethylene Plant) under the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan, the Urea and Methanol Plants, the Azerbaijan Caspian Shipping Company and AzerGold CJSCs, the International Bank of Azerbaijan OJSC, the Baku Telephone Communications LLC under the Ministry of Digital Development and Transport of Azerbaijan, and Aztelecom LLC, for attracting private investments was discussed in detail.

The discussion also included commercial and financial analyses of state enterprises, individual roadmaps for each enterprise, necessary changes to the legislative framework for attracting private investments, business-oriented government services, and other current issues.

Besides, Minister of Economy Mikayil Jabbarov, Minister of Digital Development and Transport Rashad Nabiyev, and CEO of Azerbaijan Investment Holding Ruslan Alikhanov presented their reports.

The meeting was also attended by executives of the state enterprises.

As a result of the meeting, taking into account the opinions and proposals of the members of the Economic Council of Azerbaijan and the Supervisory Board of the Azerbaijan Investment Holding, decisions were made on the discussed issues, and appropriate instructions were given to the structures and management of the holding.

To note, investments in Azerbaijan's fixed capital amounted to 20.29 billion manat ($11.9 billion) last year, which is 9.8 percent more than the figure for 2022.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Ukraine will receive a 152 mm shell supply worth 350 million euros (around $376 million) from the International Fund For Ukraine (IFU), Ukraine's Defense Ministry reported on June 13.

The International Fund for Ukraine is a funding mechanism administrated by the U.K. Defense Ministry and also includes Australia, Denmark, Iceland, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and New Zealand.

The nine member states have contributed more than a billion euros (around $1 billion) to the fund so far.

"We are grateful to our partners for their staunch support. This decision is an important contribution to strengthening Ukraine's defense capabilities," Ukraine's Defense Ministry wrote on X.

The Dutch Defense Ministry announced it will contribute to the IFU's initiative, but it has not revealed the number of shells to be delivered due to security concerns.

The Dutch ministry yet said this supply will be one of the IFU's "largest orders" from the international arms industry.

"In previous ammunition deliveries, Ukraine so far received mostly 155 mm shells for howitzers donated by the West. However, the country also has many 152 mm guns. With the new delivery, these weapons can also be better exploited," the statement read.

The 155 mm caliber is typical for NATO weaponry, while 152 mm shells are commonly used by Soviet-era arms.

Under the outgoing prime minister, Mark Rutte, the Netherlands has been a staunch ally of Ukraine and one of the few partners to pledge F-16 fighter jets.

The Netherlands plans to deliver its first F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine already this summer, shortly after Denmark, Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren said on June 12.

In the previous month, Dutch Foreign Minister Hanke Bruins Slot said the country would not object to Ukraine using Dutch-supplied F-16 fighter jets to strike targets inside Russia as a means of self-defense.

Read also: Netherlands allocates 60 million euros for Ukrainian drone purchases

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, Democrat of Michigan, speaks at an event outside the U.S. Capitol on June 12, 2024, calling on the Biden administration to use its executive authority to protect people in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals immigration program. (Ariana Figueroa | States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON  Ashly Trejo Mejia is eager to attend medical school, but shes not sure she can pursue that dream because of an upcoming court decision that could end the Obama-era program meant to temporarily protect immigrants like her who were brought into the country illegally as children.

Youre frozen in time, she said.

The 23-year-old from Hyattsville, Maryland, was one of dozens of organizers and a handful of lawmakers outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, urging the administration to instill permanent protections for the nearly 579,000 recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program before a 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals decision that could deem the program unlawful.

Its a case that is likely to head to the Supreme Court.

Democratic lawmakers Sen. Alex Padilla of California, and Reps. Sylvia Garcia of Texas, Delia Ramirez of Illinois, and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan called on President Joe Biden to use his executive authority to enact protections for beneficiaries for the deferred action program, which then-President Barack Obama created 12 years ago this week.

The lawmakers suggested the president could grant parole or Deferred Enforced Departure status, which allows those covered to be exempt from deportation for a certain period of time.

This was a promise made by the Biden administration, that they would address this issue and we gotta keep them on this promise, Tlaib said.

Padilla acknowledged that because of the makeup of Congress, where Republicans control the House and Democrats hold a slim majority in the Senate, any action on the program, often called DACA, must come from the White House.

He has an executive authority to provide relief for caregivers, for Dreamers, for DACA recipients and the undocumented spouses of United States citizens, Padilla said.

DACA recipients are often called Dreamers, based on never-passed legislation called the Dream Act.

The White House did not respond to States Newsrooms request for comment on any executive action related to DACA.

Court challenge

A case brought by seven states threatens the program.

In the lawsuit, which Texas led along with Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, South Carolina, and West Virginia, the states argue that DACA places an undue burden on the states and that the Obama administration didnt follow proper procedures when implementing the program in 2012.

The Biden administration implemented its own final rule on DACA, but a federal judge deemed it unlawful in a September 2023 decision. The Biden administration has appealed to the 5th Circuit and is awaiting its decision.

Under the federal court order, the program remains in place for people who are already covered, but an injunction was placed to bar any future applicants, like Reyna Valdivias Solorio, from being able to apply.

Valdivias Solorio came to the U.S. when she was a year old and recently graduated from Nevada State University.

Ive been undocumented my whole life, she said. The hardest part is the emotional stress that comes from living in fear that one day, my older siblings, my parents, and I could be deported and be separated from my younger siblings in this country we call home.

There are about 94,500 pending applications for the DACA program, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services data.

Additionally, the immigration advocacy and research organization FWD.us estimates there are 400,000 eligible undocumented youth who are unable to meet DACA eligibility requirements because they came to the U.S. too recently.

The program has seen legal challenges before, including a move by President Donald Trumps administration in 2017 to rescind the program.

The move was ultimately blocked by the Supreme Court in a June 2020 decision. The high court ordered the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to accept first-time DACA applications, but the Trump administration didnt until December 2020.

Spouses

Americans with undocumented spouses have expressed their frustration with the White House.

Speakers at Wednesdays event pushed for executive action to grant relief for the more than 1.1 million Americans who fear their spouses could face deportation.

Ramirez said her husband, who is a DACA recipient, first entered the program when he was 14, and that many in the program are adults still waiting for a pathway to citizenship.

I get to call him my husband, she said. Unfortunately, this country calls him undocumented.

The post Immigrant advocates, congressional Dems press Biden for permanent protections appeared first on New Hampshire Bulletin.
U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, Democrat of Michigan, speaks at an event outside the U.S. Capitol on June 12, 2024, calling on the Biden administration to use its executive authority to protect people in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals immigration program. (Ariana Figueroa/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON  Ashly Trejo Mejia is eager to attend medical school, but shes not sure she can pursue that dream because of an upcoming court decision that could end the Obama-era program meant to temporarily protect immigrants like her who were brought into the country illegally as children.

Youre frozen in time, she said.

The 23-year-old from Hyattsville, Maryland, was one of dozens of organizers and a handful of lawmakers outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, urging the administration to instill permanent protections for the nearly 579,000 recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program before a 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals decision that could deem the program unlawful.

Its a case that is likely to head to the Supreme Court.

Democratic lawmakers Sen. Alex Padilla of California, Reps. Sylvia Garcia of Texas, Delia Ramirez of Illinois and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan called on President Joe Biden to use his executive authority to enact protections for beneficiaries for the deferred action program, which then-President Barack Obama created 12 years ago this week.

The lawmakers suggested the president could grant parole or Deferred Enforced Departure status, which allows those covered to be exempt from deportation for a certain period of time.

This was a promise made by the Biden administration, that they would address this issue and we gotta keep them on this promise, Tlaib said.

Padilla acknowledged that because of the makeup of Congress, where Republicans control the House and Democrats hold a slim majority in the Senate, any action on the program, often called DACA, must come from the White House.

He has an executive authority to provide relief for caregivers, for Dreamers, for DACA recipients and the undocumented spouses of United States citizens, Padilla.

DACA recipients are often called Dreamers, based on never-passed legislation called the Dream Act.

The White House did not respond to States Newsrooms request for comment on any executive action related to DACA.

Court challenge

A case brought by seven states threatens the program.

In the lawsuit, which Texas led along with Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, South Carolina and West Virginia, the states argue that DACA places an undue burden on the states and that the Obama administration didnt follow proper procedures when implementing the program in 2012.

The Biden administration implemented its own final rule on DACA, but a federal judge deemed it unlawful in a September 2023 decision. The Biden administration has appealed to the 5th Circuit and is awaiting its decision.

Under the federal court order, the program remains in place for people who are already covered, but an injunction was placed to bar any future applicants, like Reyna Valdivias Solorio, from being able to apply.

Valdivias Solorio came to the U.S. when she was a year old and recently graduated from Nevada State University.

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CONTACT US

Ive been undocumented my whole life, she said. The hardest part is the emotional stress that comes from living in fear that one day, my older siblings, my parents and I could be deported and be separated from my younger siblings in this country we call home.

There are about 94,500 pending applications for the DACA program, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services data.

Additionally, the immigration advocacy and research organization FWD.us estimates there are 400,000 eligible undocumented youth who are unable to meet DACA eligibility requirements because they came to the U.S. too recently.

The program has seen legal challenges before, including a move by President Donald Trumps administration in 2017 to rescind the program.

The move was ultimately blocked by the Supreme Court in a June 2020 decision. The high court ordered the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to accept first-time DACA applications, but the Trump administration didnt until December 2020.

Spouses

Americans with undocumented spouses have expressed their frustration with the White House.

Speakers at Wednesdays event pushed for executive action to grant relief for the more than 1.1 million Americans who fear their spouses could face deportation.

Ramirez said her husband, who is a DACA recipient, first entered the program when he was 14, and that many in the program are adults still waiting for a pathway to citizenship.

I get to call him my husband, she said. Unfortunately, this country calls him undocumented.

The post Immigrant advocates, congressional Dems press Biden for permanent protections appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle.
U.S. Rep. Rashida Tlaib, Democrat of Michigan, speaks at an event outside the U.S. Capitol on June 12, 2024, calling on the Biden administration to use its executive authority to protect people in the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals immigration program. (Ariana Figueroa/States Newsroom)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

WASHINGTON  Ashly Trejo Mejia is eager to attend medical school, but shes not sure she can pursue that dream because of an upcoming court decision that could end the Obama-era program meant to temporarily protect immigrants like her who were brought into the country illegally as children.

Youre frozen in time, she said.

The 23-year-old from Hyattsville, Maryland, was one of dozens of organizers and a handful of lawmakers outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, urging the administration to instill permanent protections for the nearly 579,000 recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program before a 5th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals decision that could deem the program unlawful.

Its a case that is likely to head to the Supreme Court.

Democratic lawmakers Sen. Alex Padilla of California, Reps. Sylvia Garcia of Texas, Delia Ramirez of Illinois and Rashida Tlaib of Michigan called on President Joe Biden to use his executive authority to enact protections for beneficiaries for the deferred action program, which then-President Barack Obama created 12 years ago this week.

The lawmakers suggested the president could grant parole or Deferred Enforced Departure status, which allows those covered to be exempt from deportation for a certain period of time.

This was a promise made by the Biden administration, that they would address this issue and we gotta keep them on this promise, Tlaib said.

Padilla acknowledged that because of the makeup of Congress, where Republicans control the House and Democrats hold a slim majority in the Senate, any action on the program, often called DACA, must come from the White House.

He has an executive authority to provide relief for caregivers, for Dreamers, for DACA recipients and the undocumented spouses of United States citizens, Padilla.

DACA recipients are often called Dreamers, based on never-passed legislation called the Dream Act.

The White House did not respond to States Newsrooms request for comment on any executive action related to DACA.

Court challenge

A case brought by seven states threatens the program.

In the lawsuit, which Texas led along with Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Nebraska, South Carolina and West Virginia, the states argue that DACA places an undue burden on the states and that the Obama administration didnt follow proper procedures when implementing the program in 2012.

The Biden administration implemented its own final rule on DACA, but a federal judge deemed it unlawful in a September 2023 decision. The Biden administration has appealed to the 5th Circuit and is awaiting its decision.

Under the federal court order, the program remains in place for people who are already covered, but an injunction was placed to bar any future applicants, like Reyna Valdivias Solorio, from being able to apply.

Valdivias Solorio came to the U.S. when she was a year old and recently graduated from Nevada State University.

Ive been undocumented my whole life, she said. The hardest part is the emotional stress that comes from living in fear that one day, my older siblings, my parents and I could be deported and be separated from my younger siblings in this country we call home.

There are about 94,500 pending applications for the DACA program, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services data.

Additionally, the immigration advocacy and research organization FWD.us estimates there are 400,000 eligible undocumented youth who are unable to meet DACA eligibility requirements because they came to the U.S. too recently.

The program has seen legal challenges before, including a move by President Donald Trumps administration in 2017 to rescind the program.

The move was ultimately blocked by the Supreme Court in a June 2020 decision. The high court ordered the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services to accept first-time DACA applications, but the Trump administration didnt until December 2020.

Spouses

Americans with undocumented spouses have expressed their frustration with the White House.

Speakers at Wednesdays event pushed for executive action to grant relief for the more than 1.1 million Americans who fear their spouses could face deportation.

Ramirez said her husband, who is a DACA recipient, first entered the program when he was 14, and that many in the program are adults still waiting for a pathway to citizenship.

I get to call him my husband, she said. Unfortunately, this country calls him undocumented.

The post Immigrant advocates, congressional Dems press Biden for permanent protections appeared first on Nevada Current.
Immigration advocacy groups are suing the Biden administration over President Bidens recent directive that will limit the number of migrants seeking asylum at the southern border.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and a number of other organizations filed the lawsuit on Wednesday on behalf of the Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center and the Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services.

We were left with no alternative but to sue. The administration lacks unilateral authority to override Congress and bar asylum based on how one enters the country, a point the courts made crystal clear when the Trump administration unsuccessfully tried a near-identical ban, Lee Gelernt, deputy director of the ACLUs Immigrants Rights Project, said in a statement.

The executive action means that noncitizens who cross the southern border between ports of entry will be turned away if the seven-day average of daily border crossings exceeds 2,500 between ports of entry.

The complaint alleges that Bidens directive violates existing federal immigration law that was enacted by Congress.

The United States has long sheltered refugees seeking a haven from persecution. The 1980 Refugee Act enshrined that national commitment in law, the complaint reads.

While Congress has placed some limitations on the right to seek asylum over the years, it has never permitted the Executive Branch to categorically ban asylum based on where a noncitizen enters the country.

A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said in a statement to The Hill that the new rule is lawful.

We cannot comment on pending litigation. The Securing the Border rule is lawful, is critical to strengthening border security, and is already having an impact. The challenged actions remain in effect, and we will continue to implement them, the spokesperson said.

Noncitizens without authorization should not come to our southern border. There are serious consequences for crossing unlawfully, the spokesperson added.

Bidens move on the border was met with backlash from both sides of the aisle as he attempted to take action on the highly debated issue. The White House aimed to blame Republicans for a lack of action on the border as the new rule was rolled out earlier this month.

Republican lawmakers had blocked a bipartisan deal on the border earlier this year that would have enacted a similar cap on asylum and provided more funding to Border Patrol agents and immigration judges.

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 The Hill.
Immigration group pleads for help bringing deported relatives back to the U.S.

Omar Toumbou of Maryland speaks at a press conference hosted by the Ohio Immigrant Alliance on the U.S. Capitol grounds Tuesday, June 11, 2024. (Photo by Lia Chien/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON  The Ohio Immigrant Alliance at a Tuesday press conference at the U.S. Capitol called on members of Congress to bring deported family members back home to the United States.

Present at the event were relatives of those deported asking for both Congress and President Joe Biden to reform the American immigration system and allow their loved ones to return, many of whom had lived in the U.S. for decades.

Lynn Tramonte, director of the Ohio Immigrant Alliance, and Suma Setty, a senior policy analyst at the Center for Law and Social Policy, a D.C.-based nonprofit fighting for policy solutions for low-income groups, also launched their new book, Broken Hope: Deportation and the Road Home, at the event.

I just wanted to take a minute to ask you guys to think about what if somebody told you tomorrow, you had to walk away from everybody, and everything that you had built for 20 years? said Tramonte. Thats what deportation is. Its an extreme consequence for a paperwork violation.

Wafaa Hamdi, an Ohio resident, also spoke to the gathered crowd, flanked by her young niece and nephew at her side.

Her sister, Tina Hamdi, of Dayton, Ohio, was deported in 2017 to Morocco, after serving a drug-related sentence that resulted from an abusive relationship, according to the National Immigrant Justice Center, a nonprofit that advocates for migrants and works with pro bono lawyers.

Tina came to the U.S. when she was 3 years old, and had resided under DACA status  a program for undocumented people brought to the United States as children  until her incarceration. She hasnt seen her children in eight years, Wafaa Hamdi said.

Theres a lot of kids, a lot of people in general, that have a loved one that they cannot see and that they used to go to sleep or wake up to every day and they no longer get to, said Wafaa.

Tinas son also spoke up. Im here because I miss my mom, he tearfully said.

Longtime simmering issue

Deportation in the U.S. has been a contentious issue and top priority for presidents in recent decades.

Under President Barack Obama, average annual deportations increased by over 26,000 compared to the George W. Bush administration, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse of Syracuse University, a data research center.

When former President Donald Trump took office, deportations to Africa increased by 74 percent compared to the Obama administration, according to Tramonte and Setty. Trump also enacted several travel bans from primarily African and Muslim countries during his first year in office.

This year, TRAC found that deportations are up 50% under the Biden administration compared to the Trump administration levels in 2019, according to the publication Border Report. Many of these migrants had crossed the southern border.

Omar Toumbou, a Maryland resident, spoke to the effect historical Western colonization in Africa has had on deportations. Toumbous uncle, Abdoulaye Thiaw, was deported to Mauritania.

Starting here with the will to want things to change will allow us to really start to break down these issues on a larger scale, to really understand what colonialism has truly done to the continent, and how its created such a broken, fractured structure to where countries dont even have stabilization within their own governments, said Toumbou.

Toumbou pointed to damaging effects of Western colonization, like political and economic instability, as the primary driver of Africans fleeing to the U.S. He said reformed immigration policies must take into account the systemic violence many Africans have fled.

A lot of these things are a result of decades of neglect and also decades of blatant assault on Africa as a continent, he said. We need to change the way that we actually look at the continent as a whole.

Central process advocated

The National Immigrant Justice Center launched its Chance to Come Home campaign in 2021. Its mission is for the Biden administration to establish a central process through the Department of Homeland Security for deported individuals to apply to return to America.

Biden signed a similar order in 2021 for deported veterans to apply to come back.

Democrats including Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, and Reps. Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri, Adriano Espaillat of New York and David Trone of Maryland support NIJCs campaign and urged Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to establish a central system.

Members of the Ohio delegation have also taken steps to protect those from Mauritania from deportation. Over half of Mauritanians coming to Ohio settled in Cincinnati.

In January, Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown and Reps. Mike Carey, Joyce Beatty, and Greg Landsman introduced the TPS for Mauritania Act of 2024 to grant Mauritanians in the U.S. Temporary Protected Status, which allows migrants to stay and work in the United States temporarily. Many other activist organizations called on President Biden last year to halt all deportations to Mauritania.

For now, several issues plague those facing deportation from the U.S.

Demba Ndiath, an Ohioan whose close family member was deported to Mauritania, said language barriers, inadequate translators, and a lack of financial services for legal services make it difficult for people to argue their case to stay.

Tramonte pushed for overall immigration court reform in the U.S. and called for support for NIJCs Chance to Come Home campaign.

The Ohio Immigrant Alliance also planned to meet with the Ohio congressional delegation to push for immigration justice.

The stories of those far away were top of mind for everyone at Tuesdays event. Ndiath reminded listeners that they were making a difference for their loved ones.

I wish they could see everybody whos here, he said. Standing up for them, meeting with members of Congress, advocating for them. I think were building hope for them.

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The post Immigration group pleads for help bringing deported relatives back to the U.S. appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal.
Immigration group pleads for help bringing deported relatives back to the U.S.

Omar Toumbou of Maryland speaks at a press conference hosted by the Ohio Immigrant Alliance on the U.S. Capitol grounds Tuesday, June 11, 2024. (Photo by Lia Chien/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON  The Ohio Immigrant Alliance at a Tuesday press conference at the U.S. Capitol called on members of Congress to bring deported family members back home to the United States.

Present at the event were relatives of those deported asking for both Congress and President Joe Biden to reform the American immigration system and allow their loved ones to return, many of whom had lived in the U.S. for decades.

Lynn Tramonte, director of the Ohio Immigrant Alliance, and Suma Setty, a senior policy analyst at the Center for Law and Social Policy, a D.C.-based nonprofit fighting for policy solutions for low-income groups, also launched their new book, Broken Hope: Deportation and the Road Home, at the event.

I just wanted to take a minute to ask you guys to think about what if somebody told you tomorrow, you had to walk away from everybody, and everything that you had built for 20 years? said Tramonte. Thats what deportation is. Its an extreme consequence for a paperwork violation.

Wafaa Hamdi, an Ohio resident, also spoke to the gathered crowd, flanked by her young niece and nephew at her side.

Her sister, Tina Hamdi, of Dayton, Ohio, was deported in 2017 to Morocco, after serving a drug-related sentence that resulted from an abusive relationship, according to the National Immigrant Justice Center, a nonprofit that advocates for migrants and works with pro bono lawyers.

Tina came to the U.S. when she was 3 years old, and had resided under DACA status  a program for undocumented people brought to the United States as children  until her incarceration. She hasnt seen her children in eight years, Wafaa Hamdi said.

Theres a lot of kids, a lot of people in general, that have a loved one that they cannot see and that they used to go to sleep or wake up to every day and they no longer get to, said Wafaa.

Tinas son also spoke up. Im here because I miss my mom, he tearfully said.

Longtime simmering issue

Deportation in the U.S. has been a contentious issue and top priority for presidents in recent decades.

Under President Barack Obama, average annual deportations increased by over 26,000 compared to the George W. Bush administration, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse of Syracuse University, a data research center.

When former President Donald Trump took office, deportations to Africa increased by 74 percent compared to the Obama administration, according to Tramonte and Setty. Trump also enacted several travel bans from primarily African and Muslim countries during his first year in office.

This year, TRAC found that deportations are up 50% under the Biden administration compared to the Trump administration levels in 2019, according to the publication Border Report. Many of these migrants had crossed the southern border.

Omar Toumbou, a Maryland resident, spoke to the effect historical Western colonization in Africa has had on deportations. Toumbous uncle, Abdoulaye Thiaw, was deported to Mauritania.

Starting here with the will to want things to change will allow us to really start to break down these issues on a larger scale, to really understand what colonialism has truly done to the continent, and how its created such a broken, fractured structure to where countries dont even have stabilization within their own governments, said Toumbou.

Toumbou pointed to damaging effects of Western colonization, like political and economic instability, as the primary driver of Africans fleeing to the U.S. He said reformed immigration policies must take into account the systemic violence many Africans have fled.

A lot of these things are a result of decades of neglect and also decades of blatant assault on Africa as a continent, he said. We need to change the way that we actually look at the continent as a whole.

Central process advocated

The National Immigrant Justice Center launched its Chance to Come Home campaign in 2021. Its mission is for the Biden administration to establish a central process through the Department of Homeland Security for deported individuals to apply to return to America.

Biden signed a similar order in 2021 for deported veterans to apply to come back.

Democrats including Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey, and Reps. Emanuel Cleaver of Missouri, Adriano Espaillat of New York and David Trone of Maryland support NIJCs campaign and urged Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas to establish a central system.

Members of the Ohio delegation have also taken steps to protect those from Mauritania from deportation. Over half of Mauritanians coming to Ohio settled in Cincinnati.

In January, Democratic Sen. Sherrod Brown and Reps. Mike Carey, Joyce Beatty, and Greg Landsman introduced the TPS for Mauritania Act of 2024 to grant Mauritanians in the U.S. Temporary Protected Status, which allows migrants to stay and work in the United States temporarily. Many other activist organizations called on President Biden last year to halt all deportations to Mauritania.

For now, several issues plague those facing deportation from the U.S.

Demba Ndiath, an Ohioan whose close family member was deported to Mauritania, said language barriers, inadequate translators, and a lack of financial services for legal services make it difficult for people to argue their case to stay.

Tramonte pushed for overall immigration court reform in the U.S. and called for support for NIJCs Chance to Come Home campaign.

The Ohio Immigrant Alliance also planned to meet with the Ohio congressional delegation to push for immigration justice.

The stories of those far away were top of mind for everyone at Tuesdays event. Ndiath reminded listeners that they were making a difference for their loved ones.

I wish they could see everybody whos here, he said. Standing up for them, meeting with members of Congress, advocating for them. I think were building hope for them.

The post Immigration group pleads for help bringing deported relatives back to the U.S. appeared first on Michigan Advance.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 12. The current account surplus of Azerbaijan's balance of payments amounted to $1.7 billion in the first quarter of 2024, Director of the Statistics Department of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) Samir Nasirov said during a media briefing in Baku on June 12, Trend reports.

According to him, this figure made up 10.1 percent of GDP.

To note, the CBA forecasts a current account surplus of $7 billion by the end of 2024.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Sen. Jerry Klein, left, Rep. Jon O. Nelson, center, and Rep. Robin Weisz, District 14 incumbents, smile for a group photo after announcing their reelection campaigns at NDGOP Headquarters on Feb. 15, 2024. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)

Incumbent Republicans serving in the North Dakota Legislature won decisive victories over many of their conservative challengers during Tuesdays primary election.

The wins came despite the fact that many incumbents were not endorsed at their local Republican Party district conventions.

That was the case for District 14 in central North Dakota, where incumbents attended their district convention but did not seek the partys endorsement.

Rep. Jon Nelson, R-Rugby, received 26% of the vote on Tuesday night, enough to secure his spot on the November ballot. Nelson said he felt like he had a target on his back during the campaign.

It was nice that it turned out as well as it did, across the whole state by the way, not just in District 14, Nelson said. Im just appreciative that people that came out to vote didnt buy into some of the tactics that they used to distort and misrepresent our voting records.

Other District 14 lawmakers, Sen. Jerry Klein, R-Fessenden, and Rep. Robin Weisz, R-Hurdsfield, also defeated challengers Tuesday.

Nelson said some challengers seemed more interested in telling voters how they should feel and what they should support instead of actually listening to the concerns of those voters.

It was their way or the highway and in almost every case in North Dakota, they got the highway and Im damn glad they did, Nelson said.

Nelson said he believed old-school campaigning door-to-door was part of the reason why he and his colleagues performed so well on election night.

We worked our tails off, he said. And we didnt choose to go negative.

One of Nelsons challengers, Larry Danduran, said he and his fellow grassroots Republican challengers arent going away anytime soon.

It was a learning experience for all three of us, Danduran said. Danduran received 21% of the vote on primary night, about 365 votes short of Nelsons total in a district that saw more than 7,600 ballots cast. Other challengers were Karisa Grothe and Jason Steidl.

He questioned the value of having the Republican endorsement.

Even though we were endorsed, I dont think it really means much in North Dakota as far as the NDGOP, Danduran said. We werent really getting any help from other sources.

He also pointed out that while a majority of the funds raised by the challengers were from individuals, the incumbents raised a large portion of their donations from special interest groups and political action committees.

Were optimistic that the future looks bright for our grassroots movement in the state, Danduran said. Well continue to push for that, to organize, and be ready for the next opportunity.

Bismarcks District 30 also saw incumbent legislators advance to November despite being censured at their party endorsing convention for skipping the event. Sen. Diane Larson defeated Adam Rose during the District 30 Republican primary with 40% of the vote while Reps. Mike Nathe and Glen Bosch each received 31% of votes, defeating Justis Amundson and Dave Charles.

Other examples of incumbent wins Tuesday

Republican House incumbents in District 2, Rep. Bert Anderson, R-Crosby and Rep. Donald Longmuir, R-Stanley, both tallied 29% of the vote and defeated challengers Alexa Althoff and Charles Ringwall who received 26% and 16%, respectively.

In District 6, Rep. Paul John Thomas, R-Velva, defeated challenger Zach Lessig with 64% of the vote for the districts Senate nomination for an open seat vacated by retiring lawmaker Sen. Shawn Vedaa. The district Republican House race saw incumbent Rep. Dick Anderson, R-Willow City, and Dan Vollmer defeat challengers Pat Bachmeier and Kolette Kramer with 29% and 28% of the vote, respectively.

In District 42, Rep. Claire Cory, R-Grand Forks, defeated challenger Dustin McNally with 56% of the vote for an open Senate seat vacated by Sen. Curt Kreun.

In the District 42 House race, incumbent lawmaker Rep. Emily OBrien, R-Grand Forks, and Republican challenger Doug Osowski received 29% and 42% of the vote, respectively, defeating a third challenger, Sadie Hanson, who received support on 28% of the ballots and lost to OBrien by 11 votes.

To see a complete list of primary election results, visit the Secretary of States website.

The post Incumbent Republican legislators see big wins over primary challengers across North Dakota appeared first on North Dakota Monitor.
Jeremy Sweet was sentenced to prison for being under the influence of meth when he drove his truck into a river, leading to his daughter's death

GoFundMe, FOX59 News/YouTube Emma Sweet

An Indiana man was sentenced to four decades in prison after pleading guilty to his role in the November 2021 drowning death of his 2-year-old daughter.

Jeremy Sweet of Columbus, Ind., was sentenced on Tuesday, June 11, to 30 years in prison for the felony charge of neglect of a dependent and 10 additional years as habitual offender enhancement after he pleaded guilty to his role in the drowning death of Emma Sweet, per Fox News and ABC affiliate WRTV.

Sweet and his daughter were last seen together on November 24, 2021, and were reported missing by a family member the next day, which was Thanksgiving, according to a probable cause affidavit.

Fox News reported that Emma likely died on November 25, a day before Sweet, now 41, was rescued by duck hunters after his truck accidentally fell into the White River.

Authorities believe that Sweet drove his truck into the river from an embankment 15 to 20 feet above the body of water.

Sweet told authorities he got lost on a dirt road while trying to move the truck, which eventually went over the embankment and into the river.

Emma's body was found by divers on Sunday, November 28, 2021, two days after Sweet was found and taken to the hospital for treatment.

The day after his daughter's body was found, Sweet admitted that he was "high on meth and marijuana when he drove the car into the river," per Fox News.



He initially told authorities Emma had been safely out of the vehicle when the accident occurred, but later admitted she was in the car and he'd transferred her to the roof for safety. Police found evidence that indicated someone was holding onto the windshield of the vehicle at one point.

Per the Indianapolis Star, Sweet said he last saw his daughter on the roof of his truck, yelling for her mom," before he fell asleep inside the truck.

Fox News reported that Emma's cause of death was "complications of hypothermia and asphyxia due to drowning," and per WRTV.

Sweet later charged with two felonies, per Fox News: unlawful possession of a syringe and neglect of a dependent resulting in death.

At the time of the incident, Sweet was on bond for unlawful possession of a firearm by a serious violent felon as well as possession of methamphetamine, the sheriffs office said per Fox News.

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.

During his sentencing on Tuesday, he apologized to his ex-wife for his role in his daughter's death.

"Theres nothing I can say to change what has happened, Sweet said while crying, per The Republic. But I swear to God on everything I love that Im so sorry.

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, please contact the SAMHSA helpline at 1-800-662-HELP.



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Read the original article on People.
Indiana's lieutenant governor's race  also the big draw of the Republican state convention this Saturday  is a study in contrasts.

On one end is state Rep. Julie McGuire of Indianapolis, gubernatorial nominee Mike Braun's endorsed running mate, being pitched to delegates as the COO to Braun's CEO role. She's advertised as a policy wonk who will back Braun and not seek to upstage him; a ticket focused almost exclusively on kitchen-table issues like the economy and health care.

On the other end is Micah Beckwith, an ultraconservative pastor who unapologetically brings his own agenda to the desired role, thinks the lieutenant governor should be a check on the governor's office, and is focused heavily on social issues and what he sees as the moral failings of modern culture.

Noblesville pastor Micah Beckwith and Indianapolis state Rep. Julie McGuire are running for Indiana lieutenant governor at the GOP convention in June.

Who will join U.S. Sen. Mike Braun on the November ballot is the biggest question at Saturday's biennial GOP convention in downtown Indianapolis, where 1,800 elected delegates from around the state will gather to hear about the state of the party and nominate two statewide offices, lieutenant governor and attorney general.

Attorney General Todd Rokita is running unopposed for reelection. Delegates will not vote on any changes to the party's platform, which is only done during midterm election years. Hoarding all the excitement is the lieutenant governor intrigue, as this office is almost never contested.

Related: Will Mike Braun win over delegates at the GOP convention?

The competitive lieutenant governor race drew a large tide of new delegate candidates in this year's primary, especially in Hamilton County, where Beckwith recruited heavily. There were about 2,750 Republican candidates in the primary, up from about 2,300 in 2022. In Hamilton County, some townships drew more than 50 candidates to fill 10 or so delegate seats  three times as many as in 2022.

Both camps are feeling optimistic about their chances of winning over enough delegates at Saturday's convention to cinch the nomination. But neither can be totally sure, as delegates have been known to surprise.

Nor is either side taking victory for granted. Beckwith had a year-long headstart, having announced his unusual candidacy in June 2023, and has raised roughly $125,000, mostly from small donors. Braun has pulled in more than $300,000 from large donors since announcing his endorsement of McGuire after the primary. A new nonprofit group called Hoosiers for Opportunity, Prosperity and Enterprise, incorporated by attorney Jim Bopp last year, has been targeting delegates with social media ads and texts promoting McGuire.

Both campaigns in the last few weeks have been pounding the pavement all over Indiana and calling and texting delegates relentlessly.

"Its gotten to the point where I stop answering phone calls," said Nate Lamar, an undecided delegate from Henry County who says he'll make his decision when he walks into the convention Saturday.

The Braun/McGuire pitch

Braun's pitch to delegates is very similar to his pitch when he ran against four other candidates for the gubernatorial nomination: He's a successful small-town businessman who wants to bring that entrepreneurial lens to government, with a particular focus on fixing health care. But now, he's added a workhorse of a partner who both checks the conservative boxes and will support those goals.

"When I had to cull through what made sense for a partner, it's not someone that's wanting to be maybe an influencer, their own agenda," he told a crowd of roughly 50 delegates and local government officials at a Carmel real estate office this week. "Many who wanted to be my partner, they were coming from that angle. Very few came to the forefront where they'd be your business partner."

He touts his experience working in and with the state legislature, having served there for three years before his longshot bid for Senate. The choice of McGuire as his running mate is no doubt an olive branch to the supermajority red legislature, which has more power than the governor does to change the law.

U.S. Sen. Mike Braun, who on Tuesday won Indiana's Republican gubernatorial primary, shares a laugh Wednesday, May 8, 2024, with Rep. Julie McGuire, R-Indianapolis, his recommendation for the state's next lieutenant governor.

During McGuire's one term in the Indiana House, she passed a bill adding new guidelines for when the Department of Child Services can terminate parental rights for the sake of a child's safety. She earned headlines for her bill that sought to undo the special taxing district in downtown Indianapolis that lawmakers slipped into the state budget the prior year. (She was removed from the bill by session's end and voted against it, disagreeing with the compromise that preserved the taxing district.)

House Republican leadership had backed McGuire's campaign in 2022 to unseat Rep. John Jacob, who routinely butted heads with House leadership over his no-compromise anti-abortion stance. Before that, she was a legislative policy analyst for Senate Republicans, and was the business manager for 15 years at her parish, St. Roch Catholic Church.

In talking to delegates, McGuire pitches herself as that behind-the-scenes worker who cares about well-researched policies, particularly related to health care and school choice.

"My love for public policy goes deep, and it rises above everything," she said in Carmel, as Braun stood mere feet away. "It's the whole reason I'm doing this."

Rep. Julie McGuire, R-Indianapolis, poses Wednesday, May 8, 2024, at IndyStar. McGuire is U.S. Sen. Mike Braun's, who on Tuesday won Indiana's Republican gubernatorial primary, recommendation for the state's next lieutenant governor.

Striking at the heart of the tension of this campaign, Fishers City Councilor Pete Peterson asked Braun and McGuire how they plan to combat Beckwith's messaging that the governor shouldn't be able to choose their running mate.

"The last thing I want is a bunch of infighting between my two executives in the state I'm living in, when we need to propel forward," he said.

Braun, recalling his longshot Senate race in 2018, reiterated what he's said many times: He welcomes competition.

"I think we've made our case," he said. "I think we'll see the vindication of that on Saturday, and I take nothing for granted. ... I'm never going to be one that tries to cloak things or avoid competition or a healthy discussion."

The Beckwith pitch

It's a far different scene at a Beckwith delegate gathering in Richmond, Indiana.

This group of 25, about half delegates, can complete a Bible verse from memory; they murmur "yup" and clap at Beckwith's assertions that public schools are "teaching lies to our kids" about gender identity and and systemic racism in American history.

While Braun has been focused on the economy, Beckwith sees himself as a lieutenant who would balance out the administration with his focus on social issues. He promised to go into schools to root out what he considers "nonsense."

"I think what we've missed in Indiana is someone to be a watchdog on that social, that core fundamental DNA of what makes who we are as Hoosiers," he said, "and that's what I bring to the ticket,"

Hamilton East Public Library Board Member Micah Beckwith listens to public comments during a HEPL board meeting on Thursday, Aug. 24, 2023, in Noblesville, Ind.

And fundamentally, his pitch for the lieutenant governor office is distinct from the other camp: He wouldn't want to be Braun's running mate, or anyone else's. He doesn't see the office as Braun's "to give away." He sees the office as accountable to the people and not deferential to the governor.

"I think Mike's going to do a good job," Beckwith said. "But no leader should ever say, 'I don't need a check and balance.' Even Jesus submitted to authority."

The Noblesville pastor rose to prominence in socially conservative circles through his outspoken stances on abortion, LGBTQ issues and mask and vaccine mandates during the COVID-19 pandemic. His last political campaign was for Congress in 2020; though unsuccessful, he placed third out of 15 candidates as a political newcomer.

His messaging about a society unmoored resonates among some delegates, like Rod Blanchford, who invited Beckwith to the Olde Richmond Inn to meet people.

"We don't really have principles. It's just kind of whatever is in vogue at the time," Blanchford said. "I agree with him that if we don't have agreement on basic principles, we're going to be in decline."

Whoever prevails Saturday will appear on Indiana's November ballot, along with Democrat Jennifer McCormick and Libertarian Donald Rainwater and their running mates.

Contact IndyStar state government and politics reporter Kayla Dwyer at kdwyer@indystar.com or follow her on Twitter @kayla_dwyer17.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indiana Republicans to pick next lieutenant governor candidate
FILE PHOTO: A man adjusts the spice boxes of MDH and Everest on the shelf of a shop at a market in New Delhi

By Aditya Kalra and Arpan Chaturvedi

NEW DELHI (Reuters) -India's Rajasthan state has told the federal government it found some spices of popular brands MDH and Everest "unsafe" for consumption after tests, a letter shows, as local and global scrutiny of the brands for alleged contamination intensifies.

Hong Kong in April suspended sales of three spice blends produced by MDH and one by Everest, saying they contained high levels of a cancer-causing pesticide ethylene oxide, triggering scrutiny by regulators in India and other markets.

Singapore also ordered a recall of the Everest mix. New Zealand, the United States and Australia have said they were looking into the issues. Britain has applied extra controls on all spices entering from India, the world's biggest exporter, producer and consumer of spices.

Rajasthan state checked samples of many spices and found a batch of Everest spice mix and two of MDH's unsafe, according to a private letter from a senior health official in the northwestern state, Shubhra Singh, to the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI).

MDH and Everest, whose spices are among the most popular in India and are also sold in Europe, Asia and North America, have said their products are safe for consumption.

Asked about the Rajasthan government's findings, Everest said by email that it "does not add any pesticides to spices during any stage of manufacturing and packing."

MDH did not respond to a request for comment.

State authorities of Gujarat and Haryana, where the MDH and Everest batches were made, "should be asked to take action in the matter without delay," Singh, who is the additional chief secretary for health, wrote in her letter which is not public but has been seen by Reuters.

The FSSAI and Singh did not respond to requests for comment.

While the letter did not detail its findings, Rajasthan state authorities said last week in a statement said it had seized 12,000 kilograms of various spices for alleged contamination, and Singh had written letters informing the federal body and states.

The statement added that Rajasthan collected dozens of samples of spices in May, and found that some contained a "very high level" of pesticide and insecticides.

India's domestic market for spices was valued at $10.44 billion in 2022, according to Zion Market Research.

(Reporting by Aditya Kalra and Arpan Chaturvedi; Additional reporting by Rishika Sadam; Editing by Ros Russell and Richard Chang)
The watermelon and strawberries at the produce stands that dot the roadway along the Eastern Shores portion of Route 50 are not the only things there that are red, if you ask Martin Proulx, a newer addition to the states government.

Red tape has been holding back the states agriculture industry, Proulx, the states value-added agricultural specialist who was hired last year, told the Maryland Agricultural Commission during a June 12 meeting at the Maryland Department of Agricultures Annapolis headquarters.

Weve had produce stands off of (Route) 50 on the Eastern Shore selling watermelon and strawberries, (who) want to sell yogurt in a cooler be told, they need to enclose the stand, put cement on the floor, install a septic system, and a hot water heater,  Proulx said. How many yogurts do you have to sell to make that a feasible opportunity?

At right, Martin Proulx, the state value-added agricultural specialist, speaks to the Maryland Agricultural Commission during a meeting at the Maryland Department of Agriculture headquarters in Annapolis on June 12, 2024.

Proulx, whose job was created in 2023 by the Maryland General Assembly to help farmers to increase the monetary value of their raw agricultural products, put it succinctly in his presentation to the multi-dozen member commission on Wednesday.

We should be encouraging agricultural producers to add value to their product, he said, and make it feasible so there is a market for it.

More: How agritourism boosts Maryland farmers

Agriculture, the largest commercial industry in Maryland

While Proulxs job may be new, some of the problems facing the state's Department of Agriculture are not.

During the commission meeting, Maryland Secretary of Agriculture Kevin Atticks, previously the executive director of the Maryland Wineries Association, said three or four years ago he was part of a similar presentation to the commission.

The refreshing part is (now) its coming from the state, not to the state, Atticks said after Proulxs presentation. Its very much for the first time about truly within, from within the government, cutting red tape and getting to a yes. 

In this file photo, Terry and Lisa Goodwin of Hagerstown look over native plants while at the Historic City Farmers Market in the West Church Street parking lot. It is held 3 to 6 p.m. every third Thursday from May to October. In operation since 1783, the market is the oldest continuously operating farmers market in Maryland.

Agriculture is already the largest commercial industry in Maryland, contributing over $8 billion annually, but Proulx pointed to several things holding back business, particularly its value-added aspect.

There hasnt been a lot of changes as it relates to agriculture and farm-based licenses through the (Maryland Department of Health), Proulx told the commission.

Theres no in between (license for) something temporary or something in a house and something commercially graded, he said. In Proulx's remarks to the commission, he recommended scalable regulations within state code.

In an interview afterwards, he said: What were noticing is (the licensing process is) really making it difficult for farms, especially new and beginning farmers, to scale up to a feasible business model.

REVIEW: Value-added agriculture, more on agenda for upcoming Maryland Ag Commission meeting

Maryland Agricultural Commission elects new chair, vice chair at meeting

During its meeting on Wednesday, the commission also unanimously elected John Kelly Lewis, general manager of Ruppert Nurseries in Montgomery County, as its new chair. Lewis replaces outgoing chair Kelly Dudeck, who served six years in the role.

Amy Crone, executive director of the Maryland Farmers Market Association, was elected vice-chair at the meeting.

Wednesdays multi-hour commission meeting also included commissioners sharing and receiving reports on various agriculture-related commodities, including forestry and poultry.

As for the next steps for increasing agricultural value-adds in the state, Proulx called on the commission to potentially be a forum for problem-solving and collaboration.

Fresh fruits and vegetables are sold Thursday at the Historic City Farmers Market in the West Church Street parking lot. It is held 3 to 6 p.m. every third Thursday from May to October. In operation since 1783, the market is the oldest continuously operating farmers market in Maryland.

Asked in the interview afterwards whether changing regulations would require legislative action, Proulx said: Whether or not that is simply a policy change within a department or necessarily a statutory change, thats yet to be seen.

More: Del. Chris Adams inspired by Salisbury business career in leading Eastern Shore delegation

Dwight A. Weingarten is an investigative reporter, covering the Maryland State House and state issues. He can be reached at dweingarten@gannett.com or on Twitter at @DwightWeingart2.

This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Maryland Agricultural Commission meets, elects new chair, vice-chair
From a doctor who, police say, intentionally drove his Telsa off a cliff with his family inside, to a man accused of murder while under the care of the court, there is growing concern about who is eligible to avoid a felony conviction by participating in California's Mental Health Diversion Court.

There are many success stories and studies that point to the potential for reduced recidivism among successful mental health court candidates. However, critics worry that recent changes to the law are allowing some defendants to misuse California's recently expanded Mental Health Diversion Court program.

A CBS News California investigation found that there is no reliable data to track the state-wide success of the new Mental Health "Diversion" courts. It's also difficult to determine who the most successful program candidates are and how many of the "successful" participants re-offend after having their charges dropped. The data we obtained from counties and the state was largely contradictory or incomplete.

CONTINUING COVERAGE: CBS News California Investigates Mental Health Diversion

Critics raise two primary concerns:

Public Safety: Judges have limited discretion to deny someone Diversion out of concern for public safety. There must be evidence that a defendant will commit a "super strike" (i.e., rape or murder) within the two-year program period in order for a judge to deny diversion due to public safety concerns.



Critics argue that it's nearly impossible to prove someone will commit a future crime and believe the law should be amended to give judges more discretion to deny diversion due to public safety concerns.

Accountability: State law now requires judges to automatically presume that nearly any mental illness is related to nearly any crime. Defendants no longer have to prove their crime was linked to their mental illness. As a result, common disorders (including ADHD, anorexia, marijuana dependency, and erectile disorder) are now considered eligible "mental illnesses" for people accused of felony crimes (including domestic violence, kidnapping, and attempted murder) to have their charges dismissed.



Critics argue that this change is allowing some defendants, whose disorders may not have meaningful connections to crimes, to have their charges dropped without facing accountability for their crimes or providing justice for their victims.

Cesar: A Mental Health Court Success Story

Mental Health Treatment court gave Cesar a "second chance in life."

He'd been homeless for seven years when he was arrested for assault, high on meth laced with fentanyl.

"I realized that I messed up and I could have hurt somebody. And it makes me feel bad," Cesar said.

After being arrested and serving time in county jail, Cesar got the opportunity to participate in Sacramento County's Mental Health Treatment Court.

Sacramento has been running its mental health treatment court for over a decade. It used to be exclusively a post-conviction program for people like Cesar who had already served time in jail.

Participants with a diagnosed mental illness that was a significant factor in their crime are eligible to have their conviction dismissed. They must complete a 12-18 month post-conviction program, which the probation department supervises, and comply with regular drug tests and mental health treatment, and make regular court appearances.

The court also connects defendants with support services through non-profits like Turning Point, which includes a case worker to help ensure participants make it to appointments. They may also get free or subsidized housing and employment assistance.

Now that Cesar has successfully completed the program, his conviction has been erased.

"I didn't know another life until I got arrested and I quit (drugs) cold turkey (in jail)," said Cesar on his graduation day. "Now I'm sober. Now I see how a real man feels."

However, not everyone is as successful as Cesar. California jail populations have decreased over the last decade, but both the number and percentage of inmates with mental illnesses have increased, according to research from the Public Policy Institute of California.

Changes to Mental Health Diversion Programs

In 2019, Governor Jerry Brown created a new *Pretrial* Mental Health Diversion Court program.

Unlike Cesar's program, which was post-conviction, the pretrial diversion track allows defendants to suspend their prosecution and avoid conviction altogether if they complete the 12 to 18-month treatment program.

Participation in pretrial diversion was limited in the initial years with fewer than 2,000 participants in 2021. However, a 2020 RAND study found that an estimated 61% of the Los Angeles County Jail mental health population may have been appropriate candidates for diversion programs.

To expand access and increase participation, Governor Gavin Newsom signed a revised law, which took effect in 2023.

Under the expanded Mental Health Diversion law, defendants no longer have to prove their diagnosed mental illness caused them to commit a crime. The revised law now requires judges to automatically presume that nearly any mental illness was the reason for nearly any crime unless the prosecution can prove otherwise.

At least 41 counties now offer some version of adult mental health courts and participation in statewide diversion programs increased by nearly 150% in two years.

They're not all success stories

"Folks that shouldn't be in there, because they do pose a threat to public safety are getting admitted," said Rochelle Beardsley, Sacramento County's Assistant Chief Deputy District Attorney.

Beardsley pointed to the example of Fernando Jimenez who allegedly killed a man while he was in the Mental Health Diversion program.

Jimenez was previously arrested after violently attacking his elderly female neighbor over a disagreement, investigators say, about dog waste left in the common areas of their apartment complex. Court records reveal he cracked the woman's orbital socket and was charged with "Battery with Serious Bodily Injury".

He was previously convicted of Second Degree Murder and Attempted Murder in Nevada.

Despite objection from the DA's office, Jimenez was granted Mental Health Diversion. He is now facing new murder charges in Placer County for allegedly shooting a man in the head while he was on Diversion.

Beardsley said there is little prosecutors or judges can do if they feel someone who is technically eligible for diversion might be a risk to public safety.

"I have to prove that this particular defendant is going to commit a super strike offense within the two years," Beardsley said. "That's impossible for me to be able to prove."

She also notes that common disorders like ADHD, anorexia, marijuana dependency, and erectile disorder are considered eligible "mental illnesses" for nearly any crime.

In a recent Placer County case, The People v. Shook, a doctor testified that she had reached an eligible diagnosis in every one of the hundreds of mental health diversion evaluations she had done.

The debate over diversion for attempted murder

For instance, investigators say a Pasadena doctor intentionally drove his Tesla off the cliff at Devil's Slide in Pacifica with his wife and two young kids inside. Because he says he suffers from depression, and because his family survived, he's now asking for mental health diversion instead of prosecution for attempted murder and child abuse.

Murder and sex crimes are not eligible for mental health diversion. However, if a victim survives, attempted murder and domestic violence are among the many violent crimes that are eligible.

A bill that would have made attempted murder ineligible for mental health diversion unanimously passed the Assembly Public Safety Committee this year.

However, Assembly Appropriations Chair Buffy Wicks quietly killed the bill last month by holding it in the appropriations suspense file. Neither Wicks nor Assembly Appropriations staff responded to requests for comment.

In California, any bill that is estimated to cost more than $150,000 is sent to the "suspense file" where the Democratic chair, typically influenced by party leadership, decides whether or not to kill the bill.

Notably, the Appropriations Committee staff cited an estimated cost to the state by factoring in how much it would cost to incarcerate people charged with attempted murder instead of sending them through diversion. While they cited the estimated cost of incarceration of $133,000 per inmate per year, they failed to mention the comparable annual cost to the state to put those same people through Diversion.

Publicly available state data indicates that California spent more than $67 million last year alone on people who failed to complete Mental Health Diversion Court programs. Many would have then been incarcerated anyway, incurring the additional $133k. But the total cost is likely much higher, as the $67 million only accounts for defendants deemed incompetent to stand trial.

It's not clear how many of those defendants who failed to complete the program were charged with attempted murder because counties are not tracking or publicly reporting the charges associated with Mental Health Diversion acceptance, successes or failures.

As a result, we also don't know which types of crimes are associated with the highest and lowest Mental Health Diversion success rates or what could be done to improve program success.

The available Mental Health Diversion data is largely inaccurate or incomplete

So, how successful are California's Mental Health Diversion courts? Well, that depends on who you ask. Examples like Cesar and Jimenez are just anecdotes without reliable data.

In an effort to figure out how successful Mental Health Diversion courts are, CBS News California gathered data from county courts and DA's offices across the state and compared the counties' success rate data to the county success rates listed on the state's dashboard.

We found the data was largely contradictory or incomplete. In some cases, the state cited much higher county success rates than the counties themselves.

The State Judicial Council acknowledged its data was incomplete, noting additional success-rate data could be available by July 2025.

Past studies show promising, but dated, data

A small-scale study of Sacramento's Mental Health Treatment Court  from before the new pretrial Mental Health Diversion track was created  found graduates like Cesar who got treatment after serving jail time were 25% less likely to be arrested and 75% less likely to be hospitalized than those who did not participate in post-conviction mental health treatment.

Sacramento County was used as a case study by the state when creating a model for successfully implementing the new Mental Health Diversion courts.

Sacramento was one of the few counties that provided CBS News California with data that was fairly consistent with the state's data. It showed a 66% Mental Health Diversion court graduation rate over the past three years.

A separate Rand study examined LA County's diversion and reentry programs. Like the Sacramento study, the participants were part of the legacy *post-conviction* Mental Health Diversion court programs.

The study found 14% of people who completed the program were convicted of a new felony within one year. However, it did not compare that group to a control group so it's not clear if that is higher or lower than a similar group that did not complete a Mental Health Court treatment program.

Missing Data

To determine the true success rate of California's Mental Health Diversion courts, and to identify who the best candidates are, counties would need to consistently track a variety of variables.

Notably, the programs are still small enough (a few hundred per county per year) that experts say tracking and publicly reporting this data should not be cost-prohibitive.

What we don't know about each county's Mental Health Diversion courts:

The number of Mental Health Diversion court petitions that are *both* granted and denied each quarter.The charges that each of those defendants was facing. Of the petitions granted, how many completed the program (graduated), how many were removed from the program, and how many were arrested for a new crime while on Diversion.The charges that each of those defendants was facing.Of the defendants who completed the program (graduated), how many were arrested again (in any county) within 1 year, 2 years, and 3 years of graduation? (Because they would be repeatedly eligible for diversion, tracking convictions may not be relevant.)The charges that each of those defendants faced when they were initially granted diversion, as well as their subsequent charges,

*NOTE: This data should be specific to pretrial Mental Health Diversion courts. CBS News California found some counties are combining all of their mental health court data (i.e. legacy post-conviction programs and new pretrial diversion programs).

A different view of success

After presiding over various mental health courts for over a decade, Sacramento County Judge Larry Brown has a different view of success.

"It's success the moment we connect them to a mental health provider. It's a success when we get them on medication while they're in jail," Judge Brown said.

He says he sees roughly 200 people a week, whom he gets to know through regular check-ins.

"When some graduate, like Cesar," he said, "We're truly going to miss him. He's a delight. And he's been a gentleman. That's what's great about this job," he said.

But without better statewide data, to show what's working and what's not, Judge Brown's court and Cesar are simply anecdotes with great potential.

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FILE - Rep. Jamaal Bowman, D-N.Y., is at a campaign stop in White Plains, New York, on June 11, 2024. The war between Israel and Hamas is roiling a primary election between two Democrats in New York, testing the party's position on the conflict and the larger split between its progressive and centrist wings. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, File)

TARRYTOWN, N.Y. (AP)  The war between Israel and Hamas is roiling a congressional primary election between two Democrats in New York, reflecting a divide that has splintered the party nationally since the conflict began last year.

U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman, one of several House liberals who have questioned the Biden administration's vigorous support for Israel's response to the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on civilians in southern Israel, is facing a tough challenge from centrist George Latimer, a top county official who entered the race with the backing of Jewish leaders in a mostly suburban district north of New York City.

Bowman, a former middle school principal seeking his third term, has been one of the Houses most critical voices on Israel. While he condemned Hamas' attack, he has said Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. He was also among a few members of Congress who opposed a symbolic resolution to support Israel following the Oct. 7 attack because it didnt urge a cease-fire or push to protect Palestinian civilians.

Latimer, 70, has been a political fixture in the district for more than three decades and serves as the Westchester county executive after holding posts as a local and state legislator. He said Bowmans rhetoric on Israel was just part of the reason he hopped into the race. A bigger reason, he said, was that people want a more moderate, pragmatic representative than Bowman, who has sometimes been accused of being more concerned with his national profile than the district's problems.

In a year when congressional races in New York are expected to play a pivotal role in determining who controls the House, this seat, which includes parts of the Bronx and Westchester, is expected to stay in Democratic hands regardless of who wins the June 25 primary.

Still, the result could give Democrats clues on how to frame their message in November, particularly on the war, and signal how crucial suburban districts might vote in the fall.

In an interview, Bowman defended his position on Israel.

The same way theres no way I can support or condone the horrible attacks of October 7th, theres no way I can support or condone the genocide thats happening in Gaza right now," Bowman said. So we've got to speak even louder in the U.S. because Israel is supposed to be an ally, and they're not following international law."

That stance has put him at odds with much of the Democratic establishment and has resulted in a campaign to unseat him from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a major lobbying organization that is working to oust progressives who have criticized Israel.

Bowman said the group is trying to buy this race."

They're leveraging all of their resources to try to silence me or bully me and intimidate me into doing what they want me to do, he said.

Bowman won office as a liberal insurgent in 2020, defeating U.S. Rep. Eliot Engel, who had served 16 terms and was chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee. Bowman's stance on Israel and Palestinians had been a minor issue in that race, too. Engel, who is Jewish, was a strong backer of Israel.

But Bowman, who is Black, proved to be the candidate of the moment in an election year that featured major protests against racial injustice in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd. His victory came just two years after Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's shocking upset in a nearby congressional district over U.S. Rep. Joe Crowley, who at the time was the No. 4 Democrat in the House.

In a potentially telling signal of where the Democratic Party is this year, former U.S. Rep. Mondaire Jones, a progressive Democrat who entered Congress the same year as Bowman and served one term, recently chose to endorse Latimer in the race.

Im making this endorsement to stand up for my Jewish constituents, because Representative Bowman and I have very different views on Israel, said Jones, who is trying to regain a seat in Congress after he lost his old district in a redrawing of congressional boundary lines. It is really clear that Mr. Bowman is focused on doing his thing and, I would submit, not enough on how it is impacting the environment here in the Hudson Valley."

The strategy largely mirrors the Democrats political plans for New Yorks congressional races this year. The party has tried to move toward the center to attract suburban voters who are typically more moderate.

Latimer, who has scored the endorsement of former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, is happy to rattle off the names of local officials with whom he's worked and dive into the minutia of day-to-day governing  handling potholes, restoring a lighthouse and taking meetings about an issue at the local airport.

If I go to Washington, Im not going down there to be part of the verbal food fight. Im going to try to figure out how to be a productive congressman that gets what results you can get, Latimer said in an interview.

Both candidates have supported a two-state solution and say they want peace in the region. But where Bowman is pointed on Israels actions and wants a cease-fire, Latimer is clear in his support for Israel and said negotiating with Hamas is a nonstarter  though he said he won't give Israel a blank check on everything it does.

I clearly support that there be a two-state solution and that we negotiate for peace, he said, but, "dont tell me, 'Cease fire now. Sit down, and let's negotiate,' when the guy Im negotiating with in Hamas is a terrorist organization thats committed to my destruction."

Bowman, aside from his views on Israel, raised his profile nationally when he triggered a fire alarm in a House office building as lawmakers were working on a funding bill last year. He said it was a mistake as he tried to open a locked door while rushing to vote, though House colleagues later censured him for it.

Bowman said the fire alarm comes up once every 200 conversations" when he's back home, mostly when older moms in the district, older Black women literally slap me on the wrist and say, Stay out of trouble up there.

Jimmy Hickey, a 60-year-old who lives in the district and works as a concierge at a co-op building, brought up the fire alarm unprompted when an Associated Press reporter asked about the primary  that's childish," he said. Hickey said he's a registered Democrat but thinks the party has moved too far to the left.

A guy like Latimer, hes still moderate, Hickey said. He gets into Congress, he can work with people, get things done. The other guy, I dont think so.
Israels military denied striking a designated safe zone in Gaza on Thursday after the official Palestinian news agency WAFA said a region filled with refugees was hit by land, sea and air strikes.

Al-Mawasi, a coastal region west of Rafah previously designated by Israel as a safe zone for Palestinians was bombarded early on Thursday, including by navy boats firing heavy machine guns, WAFA said.

WAFAs report did not give any details about whether there were any casualties.

The Israeli military denied carrying out any strikes on the safe zone or surrounding areas. Contrary to the reports from the last few hours, the IDF did not strike in the Humanitarian Area in Al-Mawasi, the Israel Defense Forces told CNN.

The latest report of a strike come as a ceasefire plan for the devastating eight-month war between Israel and Hamas stutters, with neither side yet publicly committing to the deal despite intense lobbying from American officials, including US President Joe Biden.

Hamas said in a statement Wednesday it has shown the necessary positivity in all stages of negotiations to reach a comprehensive and acceptable agreement based on the just demands of our people.

The statement comes after US Secretary of State Antony Blinken questioned whether the Palestinian militant group is proceeding in good faith in the ceasefire negotiations, saying Hamas had proposed a number of changes in their response to the latest deal, which go beyond positions they had previously taken.

On Wednesday, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) in Rafah said it had received information from Israeli authorities that fighting will continue in western Rafah. CNN video showed many Palestinians taking down shelters and packing up their belongings after warnings spread of a pending military operation.

An estimated 550,000 people are now in Al-Mawasi, according to a report from Oxfam, after the IDF ordered people in eastern Rafah to head to the expanded humanitarian area as it stepped up its operations in southern Gaza.

Currently just 121 toilets have been installed in the densely packed tent city, according to Oxfam, meaning every toilet is shared by more than 4,000 people.

The Al-Mawasi camp was already filled with displaced people before civilians in Rafah were ordered to move there. The United Nations has called facilities in the area unsuitable for the hundreds of thousands of Gazans uprooted by violence in Rafah and across the Gaza Strip.

More than 1 million people have fled Rafah to the nearby areas of Al-Mawasi, Deir al-Balah and Khan Younis in recent weeks, according to Oxfam. Some 1.7 million people, more than two thirds of Gazas population, are now estimated to be crammed into an area of 69 square kilometers (27 square miles)  less than a fifth of the strip.

The reports of strikes on Thursday follow an operation by Israel to rescue hostages held by Hamas over the weekend. The Israeli military rescued four hostages in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza, an operation that Gazan authorities said killed 274 people and injured almost 700 others.

The IDF has disputed those numbers, saying it estimated the number of casualties from the operation was under 100. CNN cannot independently verify either sides figures. Gazas health ministry does not distinguish between civilians and militants.

This story has been updated.

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Tents for displaced Palestinians at al-Mawasi area in the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis. The Israeli military expanded its operations in Rafah, directing over 1.5 million Palestinians to move to Khan Younis and other central Gaza areas. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) estimates that these areas now shelter approximately 1.7 million people. Omar Ashtawy/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Israel's army says it is continuing its internationally criticized operations in the city of Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip.

Casualties were again reported Wednesday, the Israeli military said on Thursday.

IDF troops carried out targeted raids in the area, located weapons and eliminated several terrorists in close combat, the army said in a statement.

Fighting also continued in the centre of the coastal area. According to the statement, people were also killed there, troops having "eliminated" more than 10 terrorists.

Among them was a Palestinian who, according to the army, was involved in the Hamas massacre on October 7 last year.

On Wednesday, "more than 45 terrorist targets throughout the Gaza Strip" were attacked from the air, the army added. Targets included armed groups, tunnels and rocket launchers.

None of the military's claims could initially be independently verified.

The Gaza war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel's history, with more than 1,200 dead, carried out by terrorists from Hamas and other extremist groups in Israel on October 7 last year.

The actions of the Israeli army have been criticized internationally - especially the operations in Rafah on the border with Egypt. Many people had sought refuge from the war there.

According to the Hamas-controlled health authority, at least 37,232 people have been killed and a further 85,037 injured in the course of the Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip. The figures, which do not distinguish between fighters and civilians, cannot be independently verified at present either.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 12. The top five leading countries in terms of remittances from Azerbaijan in the first quarter of 2024 were Turkiye, Russia, Georgia, the US, and the UK, Director of the Statistics Department of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) Samir Nasirov told Trend during today's media briefing in Baku.

According to him, the total volume of remittances to the countries amounted to $131 million.

He emphasized that $38.6 million was remitted to Turkiye, $16.2 million to Russia, $14.6 million to Georgia, $14 million to the US, and $6.8 million to the UK.

To note, the volume of remittances from individuals from Azerbaijan to foreign countries exceeded $550 million in 2023.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
By Ali Sawafta

QABATIYA, West Bank (Reuters) -Israeli forces raided a town in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, killing three Palestinians and detaining several others in what the army described as an operation to pre-empt militant attacks.

The West Bank, among territories where Palestinians seek statehood, has seen a surge in violence since the outbreak of the war between Israel and the militant Islamist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

During the raid in Qabatiya, troops surrounded a building where two gunmen were holed up, exchanging fire with them, the army said. The two Palestinians were killed and witnesses saw the body of one them being lifted out by an armoured bulldozer.

A third Palestinian was shot dead by Israeli troops elsewhere in the town, medical officials said.

There was no immediate claim of the dead men by any armed Palestinian faction. The army described the two killed in the building as "senior terrorists" without elaborating, and added that weapons were seized in the raid.

Several Palestinians were detained by troops, who also "exposed explosives planted into roads which were intended to be used to attack the forces", the army statement said.

A soldier was wounded during exchanges of fire, it added.

(Writing by Dan Williams; Editing by Frances Kerry and Alex Richardson)
By Nidal al-Mughrabi

CAIRO (Reuters) -Israeli tanks advanced deeper into the western area of Rafah, amid one of the worst nights of bombardment from air, ground, and sea, forcing many families to flee their homes and tents under darkness, residents said on Thursday.

Residents said the Israeli forces thrust towards the Al-Mawasi area of Rafah near the beach, which is designated as a humanitarian area in all announcements and maps published by the Israeli army since it began its Rafah offensive in May.

The Israeli military denied in a statement it had launched any strikes inside the Al-Mawasi humanitarian zone.

Israel said its assault aimed to wipe out Hamas' last intact combat units in Rafah, a city which had sheltered more than a million people before the latest advance began. Most of those people have now moved north towards Khan Younis and Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza Strip.

The Israeli military said in a statement it was continuing "intelligence-based, targeted operations" on Rafah, saying forces in the past day had located weapons and killed Palestinian gunmen in close-range combat.

Over the past day, the military said it had struck 45 targets across the Gaza Strip from the air, including military structures, militant cells, rocket launchers and tunnel shafts.

Israel has ruled out peace until Hamas is eradicated, and much of Gaza lies in ruins. But Hamas has proven resilient, with militants resurfacing to fight in areas where Israeli forces had previously declared to have defeated them and pulled back.

CEASEFIRE PROPOSAL

The group welcomed a new U.S. ceasefire proposal but made some amendments, reaffirming its stance that any agreement must secure an end to the war, a demand Israel still rejects.

Israel described Hamas's response to the new U.S. peace proposal as total rejection. But the efforts to secure an agreement are still continuing, according to mediators Qatar and Egypt, backed by the United States.

Since a brief week-long truce in November, repeated attempts to arrange a ceasefire have failed, with Hamas insisting on a permanent end to the war and full Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

Hamas precipitated the war when militants stormed from Israeli-blockaded Gaza into southern Israel in a lightning strike last Oct. 7, killing around 1,200 people and taking over 250 hostages back to the enclave, according to Israeli tallies.

Israel's invasion and bombardment of Gaza since then has killed at least 37,000 people, according to the territory's health ministry. Thousands more are feared buried dead under rubble, with most of the 2.3 million population displaced.

(Reporting and writing by Nidal al-Mughrabi; Additional reporting by James MackenzieEditing by Gareth Jones)
Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani announced that Italy is prepared to host and organize the Conference on the Restoration of Ukraine in 2025, according to the website of the Italian Foreign Ministry.



"The Italian government is firmly determined to support the recovery and reconstruction of Ukraine," Tajani said at the annual Conference on the Reconstruction of Ukraine, which this year was held in Berlin.



At the conference in Berlin, Italy committed 140 million euros ($150 million) for infrastructure recovery and an additional military aid package, primarily consisting of air defense systems. Tajani also mentioned that Italy and Ukraine would sign a cooperation memorandum on June 11.



According to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel), which tracks international aid for Ukraine, Italy has committed a total of 1.7 billion euros ($1.8 billion) in financial assistance to Ukraine as of April 2024.



The 2025 conference will include government officials from 77 countries, and it will host approximately 1,800 attendees.



500 companies will be invited, comprising 150 from Germany, 150 from Ukraine, and 200 from other participating countries.

Read also: G7 agrees on transfer of $50 billion in profits from frozen Russian assets to Ukraine

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
By Crispian Balmer and John Irish

BARI, Italy (Reuters) -Italy has demanded the removal of a reference to "safe and legal abortion" from the final statement of this week's Group of Seven summit, diplomats said on Thursday, drawing a rebuke from French President Emmanuel Macron.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni swiftly shot back, accusing Macron of looking to score political points ahead of national elections in France later this month.

The dispute between the two European leaders, who have very different political visions, undermined efforts to show Western unity at the annual G7 gathering, which is being held this year in southern Italy.

The 2023 G7 communique released after the leaders' summit in Hiroshima, Japan, which hosted the event last year, called for "access to safe and legal abortion and post-abortion care".

Similar or slightly tougher language was proposed by French and Canadian diplomats during the habitual negotiations that took place ahead of the 2024 meeting, which is being hosted by Italy's conservative prime minister, Giorgia Meloni.

"All the other countries backed them, but it was a red line for Meloni so it is absent from the final text," one diplomat told Reuters.

Macron later told reporters he regretted the decision.

"You don't have same sensibilities in your country," Macron told an Italian reporter. "France has a vision of equality between women and men, but its not a vision shared by all the political spectrum."

Macron stunned his nation on Sunday by dissolving parliament and ordering snap elections after his party was routed by the far-right in a European Union ballot.

"PROFOUNDLY WRONG"

Meloni heads a national conservative party that traces its roots back to a neo-fascist group, and she has clashed with Macron in the past, notably over her hard line on immigration.

On Thursday she said there was no reason to generate a controversy over the issue.

"I think it is profoundly wrong, in difficult times like these, to campaign (for an election) using a precious forum like the G7," Meloni told reporters.

A senior Italian diplomat confirmed that the word "abortion" would not appear in the final communique, but said this was only because the statement made clear the G7 continued to support the aims of the Hiroshima declaration.

"This story has been whipped up and has no substance to it," said the diplomat.

However, signalling that there had been broader discomfort over Italy's position, a senior U.S. official told reporters that President Joe Biden had also not wanted the reference to abortion to disappear from the text.

"The president felt very strongly that we needed to have at the very least the language that references what we did in Hiroshima on women's health and reproductive rights," the official said.

He confirmed that if the word "abortion" did not appear, then the 2024 communique would indeed reiterate the commitment made a year ago in Japan.

Abortion is a hugely sensitive issue in the United States, with Biden promising to create a right to abortion if he wins re-election in November, warning that his Republican opponent Donald Trump could sign a national ban on the practice.

Meloni is staunchly anti-abortion, revealing in a recent autobiography that her mother had come close to aborting her before deciding to keep her child.

Italy's ruling coalition sparked outrage in some quarters in April after it passed legislation allowing groups who "support motherhood" into abortion advice clinics to try to deter women from terminating pregnancies.

(Additional reporting by Andrea Shalal, Andrew Gray, Angelo Amante and Thomas Escrit; Editing by Alex Richardson and Angus MacSwan)
I've traveled to many of the most popular spots in Italy. Here are the 4 places I'd return to and the 2 I'd skip next time.

I've traveled to many of the most popular spots in Italy. Here are the 4 places I'd return to and the 2 I'd skip next time.

While working on an Army base in Vicenza, Italy, I got to visit many of the country's hot spots.

I'd love to return to places like Vicenza, Verona, Florence, and Cinque Terre.

However, I'm not in a rush to return to Venice or Pisa.

While working on the US Army base in Vicenza, Italy, I had the unique opportunity to visit many of the country's most popular destinations.

After getting a real taste of Italy's varied landscapes and experiences  from swimming in the Blue Grotto to hiking through Cinque Terra  I'm not surprised that Italy is such a popular travel destination. In fact, the country saw record tourism numbers in 2023.

Still, Italy has 20 regions and many cities to explore. To help you narrow down your options when planning your dream trip, here are the four places I'd return to and the two I'd skip next time.

Vicenza is a charming city with delicious local cuisine.

Vicenza was my home base during my time in Italy. imagesef/Shutterstock

Because Vicenza was my home base during my time in Italy, I had lots of opportunities to explore the city's offerings. I often found musicians playing their cellos outside and charming cafes where I'd sip a cappuccino.

I loved stopping by one of my favorite restaurants, Regina's, for delicious and authentic Italian cuisine at affordable prices.

I would definitely return to Vicenza again for the great food, warm, welcoming people, and charming atmosphere.

Verona has a lively arts scene.

Arena di Verona is an opera house in Verona. Kanuman/Shutterstock

Verona is home to a gorgeous outdoor opera house called Arena di Verona. Here, patrons can enjoy Italian vocalists, symphonic music, and ballet.

The city is also known as the setting for Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet." While in Verona, I loved visiting a popular tourist attraction called Casa di Giulietta (Juliet's House), which celebrates Shakespeare's fictional character, Juliet Capulet.

There are lots of things to do in Florence.

Florence is a beautiful city. Catarina Belova/Shutterstock

Florence is best known for Michelangelo's "David," which is located in the Accademia Gallery of Florence. Although I'd seen pictures of this iconic sculpture over the years, it was breathtaking to see in person.

The cathedrals in Florence are gorgeous, but if you'd like to visit, be mindful of the dress code. For example, bare legs and shoulders, sandals, hats, and sunglasses are not permitted inside Santa Maria del Fiore.

Cinque Terre is the perfect place for hiking and swimming.

There are 48 different hiking trails in Cinque Terre. Gaspar Janos/Shutterstock

Cinque Terre is a string of five small seaside villages in northwest Italy. The area has 48 different hiking trails connecting the five villages.

In addition to hiking, the coastline is a perfect place for swimming and enjoying the area's popular beaches.

For these reasons and more, Cinque Terre is a spot I'd definitely like to return to.

Venice is a gorgeous city, but I probably wouldn't go back.

Venice is known for its gondola rides and iconic waterways. Cristi Croitoru/Shutterstock

Known for its gondola rides and iconic waterways, Venice is undoubtedly a beautiful city. However, I found it to be overpriced and overcrowded.

In fact, in an effort to combat over-tourism, the city recently imposed an entrance fee of 5 euros ($5.40) for some day-trippers traveling to Venice at certain parts of the year.

Next time I'm in Italy, I'd rather explore new places or visit some of my favorite cities again.

Next time I visit Italy, I'll skip Pisa.

I found there wasn't much to do in Pisa. CrackerClips Stock Media/Shutterstock

Pisa is a quaint city best known for its beautiful leaning tower, which can get crowded with tourists.

However, aside from viewing the tower, I found there wasn't much else to do. For that reason, I probably wouldn't go back to Pisa.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Jackson High School's Junior Achievement company, FlameGuard, won first place in the organization's Company of the Year competition on Wednesday at the JA National Student Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C. Company officers are, from left, Matt Smith, Zach Ferguson, Justin Lackey, Joe Lattarulo and Jack Lancy.

Jackson High School's Junior Achievement company, FlameGuard, won first place in the organization's Company of the Year competition at the JA National Student Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C.

The motivating force behind the company, which sold fire safety kits, was the blaze that claimed the lives of Jeffrey Hawk, Talina Hawk and their children, Ameila, 14, and Javen, 12, in March 2023.

Hoover High School's Mission Monarch takes third place nationally

A company from North Canton Hoover High School, Mission Monarch, took third place in the same national Junior Achievement competition.

"Mission Monarch created a milkweed seed bomb that helps increase the population of the monarch butterfly," Junior Achievement of North Central Ohio spokeswoman Caroline B. Silverman wrote in an email. "Milkweed is a crucial food source for the Monarch butterflies."

This was the first time that two out of the top three winners in the national contest were from Junior Achievement of North Central Ohio, "demonstrating the exceptional talent and dedication of our students," Silverman wrote.

FlameGuard's success marks an "impressive milestone" for the school and community, district spokesman Todd Porter said in a prepared statement.

FlameGuard sold 355 items with net sales of $16,217.

Mission Monarch sold 620 items and had total revenue of $8,996. In addition to making a net profit of $4,483, its community impact included 1,647 seed bombs, 6,588 plants and 32,940 butterflies, Silverman wrote.

Hoover High School's Junior Achievement company, Mission Monarch, won third place in the organization's Company of the Year competition on Wednesday at the JA National Student Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C. Shown left to right are Nicole Snider, teacher; Carter Black, human resources; Grady Miller, chief executive officer; Tess Bucher, chief marketing officer; Mitchell Gregory, vice president of sales; and Jack Shaffer, production. Alex Boske was also part of the company.

National competition drew 15 top companies

Jackson Township: Fatal fire inspires Junior Achievement students to start fire safety company

The JA National Student Leadership Summit brought together the top 15 Junior Achievement teams from across the country, and challenged them through a series of business competitions.

"FlameGuard excelled in multiple categories, including annual report, commercial production, private interviews, trade show presentation and a live presentation," Porter said.

Jackson High School's Junior Achievement company, FlameGuard, won first place in the organization's Company of the Year competition on Wednesday at the JA National Student Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C. Shown left to right are company officers Joe Lattarulo, Justin Lackey, Jack Lancy, Zach Ferguson and Matt Smith.

'Noteworthy' achievement for Jackson

"Competing against several outstanding JA businesses, some of which held patents, FlameGuard emerged as the top team," he said. "This was Jackson High School's first time participating in the (summit), making this achievement even more noteworthy."

Students who represented FlameGuard at the leadership summit were Justin Lackey, chief executive officer; Joe Lattarulo, chief of operations; Zachary Ferguson, chief financial officer; Matt Smith, chief marketing officer; and Jack Lancy, director of sales.

Other members of the class that created and ran the company are Josh Walter, supply chain director; Jayden Wooten, sales and marketing; and Ben Sanders, sales.

March 2023: Jackson fire officials identify family killed in Skycrest fire, cause undetermined

Motto: Protect What Matters Most

The team was guided by Jackson High School business education teacher Shawn Donaldson. Mentors for the class were Robert Garner and Katie Tolin, who are business owners, volunteers and board members of Junior Achievement of North Central Ohio. Township Fire Chief Timothy G. Berczik and fire inspector Denny Tan helped FlameGuard select the items to sell.

The firm with the slogan "Protect What Matters Most" sold two fire safety kits. The one-story kit had a fire extinguisher, fire blanket, smoke alarms, burn gel, fire gloves and a respirator mask. The two-story kit included everything from the one-story kit plus a 13-foot fire escape ladder suitable for average two-story houses.

Mission Monarch was guided by Hoover teacher Nicole Snider. Members of the company were Carter Black, human resources; Grady Miller, chief executive officer; Tess Bucher, chief marketing officer; Mitchell Gregory, vice president of sales; Jack Shaffer, production; and Alex Boske.

Mentor: 'It's so inspiring to see what these kids can do.'

Tolin, who has been involved with Junior Achievement since she ran a company for two years in high school, told The Repository in January that she finds excitement and motivation among Junior Achievement participants.

"Who starts a company in three months? It's amazing," she said. "They come up with great ideas. They come up with their own logo designs. It's so inspiring to see what these kids can do."

Junior Achievement company programs at Hoover and Jackson are integrated into the curriculum as classes that meet during the school day.

Reach Nancy at 330-580-8382 or nancy.molnar@cantonrep.com. On X, formerly known as Twitter: @nmolnarTR.

This article originally appeared on The Repository: FlameGuard Junior Achievement company wins top national award
Jailed US reporter Evan Gershkovich to stand trial in Russia on espionage charges, authorities say

Evan Gershkovich, the first American journalist to be arrested on espionage charges in Russia since the Cold War, will stand trial in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg after prosecutors formally accused him of spying for the CIA.

The Russian Prosecutor Generals office said Thursday it had approved the indictment, more than a year after Gershkovich was first detained. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in prison.

Gershkovich, the US government and his employer, the Wall Street Journal, have vehemently denied the charges against him. Less than two weeks after his arrest, Gershkovich was designated as wrongfully detained by the US State Department, which called for his immediate release.

Russian prosecutors said the countrys federal security service (FSB) had established and documented that Gershkovich was acting on CIA instructions in the month he was arrested, alleging he had collected secret information about a Russian tank factory.

Gershkovich carried out the illegal actions using painstaking conspiratorial methods, it said in a statement.

US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller on Thursday said the allegations against Gershkovich have absolutely zero credibility.

We have been clear from the start that Evan has done nothing wrong. He should never have been arrested in the first place. Journalism is not a crime. The charges against him are false, and the Russian government knows that theyre false. He should be released immediately, Miller said at a State Department briefing.

In the year since his arrest, the 32-year-old journalist has been imprisoned in Moscows notorious Lefortovo Prison, and his pre-trial detention period had been extended numerous times.

On Thursday, the State Departments top hostage official confirmed as of today, Evans detention and the investigative process has ended.

Special Presidential Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens said Gershkovich was likely to be moved from Lefortovo to Yekaterinburg  more than 800 miles away before the end of June, and was then likely to stand trial in that city.

If its anything like what happened to Brittney Griner, Paul Whelan, Trevor Reed, therell be a period when he leaves Lefortovo where we wont have any contact with him, Carstens explained, referencing other Americans wrongfully detained in Russia.

Itll almost be like its gone dark, but eventually, an American or I would say, a detainee surfaces in Yekaterinburg and well have a chance to reestablish that connectivity from there, Carstens said at a congressional hearing.

Responding to Thursdays announcement, WSJ Editor-in-Chief Emma Tucker said Gershkovich is facing a false and baseless charge.

Russias latest move toward a sham trial is, while expected, deeply disappointing and still no less outrageous. Evan has spent 441 days wrongfully detained in a Russian prison for simply doing his job. Evan is a journalist. The Russian regimes smearing of Evan is repugnant, disgusting and based on calculated and transparent lies. Journalism is not a crime. Evans case is an assault on free press, Tucker said in a statement.

Reporters Without Borders, an international group promoting press freedom, denounced Gershkovichs indictment. The espionage accusations must be abandoned and Evan immediately liberated, it said in a statement.

US Ambassador to Russia Lynne Tracy, speaking after Gershkovichs pre-trial detention was extended in March, said: Evans case is not about evidence, due process, or rule of law. It is about using American citizens as pawns to achieve political ends. She called on the Kremlin to let Evan go.

Proposed swaps

Miller, the State Department spokesperson, reiterated on Thursday that the US would continue to pursue Gershkovichs release, as well that of Whelan, a former US marine who was arrested in Moscow in 2018 and sentenced to 16 years in prison on espionage charges he and the US deny.

We put a substantial offer on the table to secure the release of Evan and Paul Whelan some months ago, as we said, Miller said. Obviously, were continuing to work to secure their release. We dont talk about all the details of that publicly.

Russian President Vladimir Putin hinted earlier in the year that an agreement can be reached with the United States to release Gershkovich, as he brought up the conviction of a patriotic Russian hitman in Germany.

Speaking in a lengthy and at times ponderous interview with American right-wing pundit Tucket Carlson in February, Putin alluded to the case of Vadim Krasikov, a former colonel from Russias domestic spy organization who was convicted of assassinating a former Chechen fighter in broad daylight in Berlin in 2019.

Listen, Ill tell you: sitting in one country, a country that is an ally of the United States, is a man who, for patriotic reasons, eliminated a bandit in one of the European capitals, Putin said.

Russian government officials have previously requested that Krasikov be released as part of a proposed prisoner swap of notorious Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout for US citizens Griner and Whelan according to US officials and CNN reporting.

Griner, a professional basketball player, was freed in a prisoner exchange for Bout while Whelan remains in prison.

Speaking to CNN in Berlin to mark the year since Gershkovichs detention, Polina Ivanova  one of his closest friends and a reporter at the Financial Times  said he was doing remarkably well and passing most of his time writing letters trying to make us feel better.

When you see Putin talk about it in very clear terms that this is what they want to see happen, that they are looking for a deal, it gives you hope that at some point he will be home. He needs to be home, Ivanova said.

In recent years, Russia has detained a number of other Americans. Russian-American journalist Alsu Kurmasheva was detained in June 2023, Russian-American ballerina Ksenia Karelina was arrested in January, and American teacher Marc Fogel was arrested in August 2021.

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President Volodymyr Zelensky and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement on the sidelines of the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Italy on June 13.

The agreement follows the pledge made by the G7 during the NATO summit in Vilnius in July 2023 to commit to Ukraine's long-term defense.

Japan joins 14 other countries, including the U.K., Germany, France, Canada, the Netherlands, and others that have signed similar bilateral treaties to help Kyiv repel Russia's aggression.

Zelensky described the agreement as a "unique document with one of the worlds most economically and technologically advanced countries."

Japan will provide Ukraine with $4.5 billion in 2024 and will continue to support Ukraine throughout the next 10 years, according to Zelensky.

The two countries agreed to cooperate on cybersecurity, countering foreign interference, combatting organized crime, and ensuring maritime order, among other spheres.

Japan will continue to provide Ukraine with humanitarian aid, non-lethal equipment, treatment for injured Ukrainian service members, and support for de-mining.

Since the start of Russias full-scale invasion, Japan has contributed around $8 billion to Ukraine in humanitarian and financial assistance, according to the Kiel Institute for the World Economy.

Japan has also supported Ukraine's energy sector, which has suffered millions in damage due to Russian attacks, and shares expertise on nuclear safety.

Tokyo hosted the Japan-Ukraine Conference for Promotion of Economic Growth and Reconstruction in February, where more than 50 bilateral agreements were signed on cooperation in spheres including education, technology, and agriculture.

Read also: G7 agrees on transfer of $50 billion in profits from frozen Russian assets to Ukraine

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Argentine President Javier Milei's comprehensive reform package was narrowly approved in the Senate late on Wednesday, as protests against his measures turned violent in Buenos Aires.

Following an 11-hour debate, senators voted 3736 in favor of Milei's tax reforms and an omnibus bill. The motion was initially tied 3636, but Vice President Victoria Villarruel, the head of the chamber, cast the decisive vote.

"For those Argentines who suffer, who wait, who do not want to see their children leave the countrymy vote is affirmative," Villarruel said.

Last December, Milei introduced his extensive reform package, aimed at deregulating and reforming several sectors, including labor, commerce, real estate, and health care. The bill also proposes a declaration of "a public emergency in economic, financial, fiscal, pensions, defense, tariff, energy, health, administrative, and social matters until December 31, 2025." It seeks to privatize numerous state-owned enterprises.

However, the bill faced an uphill battle in Congress, where Milei's party is in the minority. The bill was rejected in February and was approved in a modified form in late April, reducing the number of articles from over 600 to 232.

During the Senate voting, some of the bill's elements were also removed, including the plan to privatize the state-run airline, Aerolineas Argentinas.

During his first six months in office, Milei has not managed to pass any legislation. So far, he has relied on his executive power to deregulate the Argentine economy and cut public spending. Yesterday's successful vote represents an initial legislative victory for the president.

The bill still requires voting on each individual articlea process that is expected to last through Thursday nightbefore facing a final vote in the lower house. However, at this point, its implementation is highly likely.

After the vote, the president's office released a statement claiming the reforms were a step toward abandoning "policies of failure and misery," positioning Argentina "on the path to prosperity and growth."

Meanwhile, thousands of people gathered outside the National Congress building, protesting against Milei's shock measures and urging senators to reject his proposals. The protesters chanted, "Our country is not for sale!" and "We will defend the state!"

The protests escalated into violence, with clashes between the police and demonstrators. Protesters threw sticks, stones, and Molotov cocktails at police. Others set overturned cars on fire. According to the minister of justice and security for the city of Buenos Aires, Waldo Wolff, one protester was found "with a grenade."

In response, riot police used water cannons, pepper spray, and tear gas to disperse crowds. More than a dozen protesters have been arrested.

The violence resulted in injuries, with at least 20 police officers and five opposition lawmakers receiving medical attention. The lawmakers were pepper sprayed by police during the confrontation and were transported to the hospital, according to the Peronist party Union por la Patria.

Milei's office condemned the protests, calling the demonstrators "terrorists" who were "attempting to carry out a coup d'etat" by disrupting Congress.

"The only thing the old guard knows how to do is put spokes in the wheel," Milei said on Wednesday at a conference in Buenos Aires. "We are going to change Argentina, we are going to make it the most liberal country in the world."

The post Javier Milei's Tax and Omnibus Bills Narrowly Pass Argentine Senate appeared first on Reason.com.
By Alimat Aliyeva

German utility company Uniper has won a multibillion-dollar arbitration against Russian Gazprom. This will allow it to terminate invalid gas supply contracts, Azernews reports.

The German government had to rescue Uniper in 2022 after Gazprom first cut and then halted supplies, forcing the group to buy replacement volumes at sky-high prices on the spot market.

Uniper stated that the decision of the arbitration court in Stockholm on June 7 allowed it to terminate existing supply contracts, which legally still exist, even despite the lack of gas supplies.

The tribunal also awarded the firm more than 13 billion euros in compensation for the volumes of gas that Gazprom has not supplied since mid-2022.

"This decision provides legal clarity for Uniper. Having the right to terminate, which we received in the arbitration decision, we terminate contracts with Gazprom Export," said Uniper CEO Michael Lewis.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 12. Azerbaijan repurchased issued Eurobond securities in the amount of $900 million in the first quarter of 2024, Director of the Statistics Department of the Central Bank of Azerbaijan (CBA) Samir Nasirov said during today's media briefing in Baku, Trend reports.

According to him, the deal created a portfolio investment shortfall of $903 million.

Nasirov mentioned that the expiration of securities for the specified amount was a factor contributing to the reduction of the country's external debt.

A deficit of $1.6 billion was formed in the balance of capital and financial flows due to the fulfillment of financial obligations of enterprises and organizations operating in the country. In other words, during this period, the main financial obligations of our country were reduced, he added.

To note, in March 2014, Azerbaijan for the first time placed government securities amounting to $1.25 billion (Eurobonds) in foreign currency at a rate of 4.75 percent for a period of 10 years.

As of January 1 of this year, 35 percent of Azerbaijans external public debt, or $2.3 billion, consisted of government bonds (Eurobonds) placed on the international financial market. Of this amount, $900 million (with a coupon rate of 4.75 percent) will mature in 2024, $310.7 million (with a coupon rate of 5.125 percent) in 2029, and $1.07 billion (with a coupon rate of 3.5 percent) in 2032.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Jefferson County man admits to offering alcohol, drugs to teenage girl in exchange for sex

Jefferson County man admits to offering alcohol, drugs to teenage girl in exchange for sex

JEFFERSON COUNTY, Mo.  A Jefferson County man admitted to offering alcohol, marijuana, and vaping materials to an underage girl in exchange for sex.

Kody L. Willyard, 32, of Barnhart, Missouri, pleaded guilty Thursday to one federal felony charge of coercion and enticement of a minor.

Investigators say that Willyard exchanged alcohol and drugs with the victim for sexual activity while she was 14 and 15 years old.

Driver fatally strikes child in OFallon, police investigating

According to the U.S. Department of Justice, the victims father learned of social media and digital communications between Willyard and the victim, leading to his arrest. The victim told authorities that Willyard also provided items of value to another girl in exchange for sexual acts.

Willyard is expected to be sentenced in September. His charge carries a mandatory minimum prison term of ten years.

The FBI, the St. Louis County Police Department Special Investigations Unit and the Jefferson County Sherriffs Department investigated the case.

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 2.
ROXBURY, N.J. (PIX11)  A Roxbury, New Jersey, secondhand luxury goods shop is beefing up security after being burglarized three times since March. The most recent robbery happened overnight Tuesday around 3 a.m.

Nolan Forlenza, one of the owners of Couture Traders on Route 46, said hes lost approximately $300,000 in stolen merchandise to date.

More Local News

Surveillance video shows the masked robbers smashing the stores front door and forcing their way under a metal gate.

About two minutes, they were outta here, said Forlenza. The police showed up about 30 seconds after they left.

Forlenza said the thieves target high-end designers like Chanel, Louis Vuitton and Gucci.

Luckily we have insurance, but our biggest fear is that our insurance provider is going to drop us after this, or at least increase our premiums too much to continue, said Forlenza.

Its unclear if all three robberies are connected. Roxbury police are increasing patrols in the area and keeping a closer eye on the business overnight.

The problem is unfortunately not unique to Couture Traders, which has been in business since 2016.

Weve been finding that a lot of consignment shops are also getting robbed, said Forlenza. Were not the only one.

On Monday, Millburn police said a group of five masked robbers looted the Chanel store in The Mall at Short Hills during business hours. One reportedly sprayed a fire extinguisher at a security guard, while the other four made off with pricey handbags.

Last Tuesday, thieves also stole approximately $100,000 worth of merchandise from the Balenciaga store at American Dream. New Jersey State Police said two men and two women robbed the store in the middle of the afternoon.

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 PIX11.
Jersey Shore leaders want the state to reassess juvenile detention statutes and pass new laws to punish people who plan pop-up parties. (Lori M. Nichols for New Jersey Monitor)

The Wildwood boardwalk is home to massive crowds on summer weekends, and cops say they are used to dealing with tourists and families visiting the beach. But over the last few years, younger visitors have turned more audacious, according to the citys police chief, Joe Murphy.

Murphy and other police chiefs told lawmakers during a special hearing Wednesday that young people have spit on, cursed at, and assaulted officers in their towns.

That crowd has turned extremely hostile and aggressive toward uniformed law enforcement officers, Murphy said.

In the hearing, hosted by legislative Republicans, Jersey Shore town chiefs and mayors urged the state to reassess juvenile detention statutes and pass new laws to punish people who invite hundreds to boardwalks for parties.

Officers complain they feel handcuffed by a 2020 directive from then-Attorney General Gurbir Grewal telling officers they should divert young people out of the criminal justice system whenever possible by issuing warnings or adjusting their charges in exchange for a formal promise to perform community service or pay restitution.

Officers and town officials have also complained about a provision in the states cannabis law that prohibits cops from arresting people under 21 solely for smelling like weed or refusing to give up their stash.

Wildwood Mayor Ernie Troiano said he assigns 50 officers along his 2.5-mile boardwalk, hoping their presence deters any negative activity, but it hardly helps when young people are brazen and lawless, he said.

Were doing everything we can to put police on the street. We just dont have them. I dont see them coming in in the future, the way things are going, he said.

Ocean City Police Chief Bill Campbell said police departments have had a recruitment problem since the nationwide protests following the police killing of George Floyd in 2020.

The memory of what theyve seen as far as these violent protests and demonstrations that have happened from four years ago, moving forward to these unruly juveniles and these pop-up beach parties, et cetera, are tainting the idea of young people to want to get in this profession, said Campbell.

Sen. Mike Testa (R-Cumberland), whose district includes Cape May, led the hearing. He has proposed several pieces of legislation that would address some of the town leaders concerns, including proposals to allow towns to create alcohol- and cannabis-free zones and create new crimes of mob and cyber intimidation. Testa said the Democrat-led Legislature is not interested in the bills.

Its trying to get traction from the majority party to get these things done. I wish it were not a partisan issue, its not bipartisan  its nonpartisan, said Testa. Its about tourism, which again, is the lifeblood of the economy, especially during our summer months.

The post Jersey Shore leaders, cops gripe to lawmakers about lawless young people appeared first on New Jersey Monitor.
Jewish activists get out the vote in bid to topple anti-Israel Squad Rep. Jamaal Bowman

An unprecedented Vote Shabbat campaign is underway to galvanize Jews in Westchester County to help vote out lefty anti-Israel Squad Rep. Jamaal Bowman and elect moderate County Executive George Latimer in the June 25 16th District Democratic primary.

The name of the initiative refers to the fact that early voting begins Saturday, during the Jewish Sabbath  or in Hebrew, Shabbat.

Of the Westchester Democrats who have already requested early mail-in ballots, 40% are Jewish voters, a percentage that far outstrips their proportion of the electorate, according to Teach New York Coalition Founder and CEO Maury Litwack.

A campaign from Westchester Jewish activists is working to defeat Rep. Jamaal Bowman in the upcoming Democratic primary. AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey

Teach New York Coalition Founder and CEO Maury Litwack said the high rate of Jewish voters requesting mail-in ballots shows the high interest in the primary race. Gov Kathy Hochul/Flickr

This is a moment in time for the Jewish community, Litwack told The Post, citing recent instances of public antisemitism across New York and the US.

The request for mail ballots shows high interest in the race, he added. People are itching to vote, excited to vote. Theyre not just putting it in their calendar to vote. Theyre voting and theyre telling their friends to vote.

The campaign, organized by the Jewish Orthodox Union with leaders of three dozen local synagogues, is officially non-partisan, but Litwak said local Jewish voters dont feel their voices are being heard by elected officials  a clear dig at Bowman, whose 16th District covers much of Westchester and portions of the northern Bronx.

About 40% of the Democrats in Westchester who have requested mail-in ballots are Jewish. Facebook / Teach NYS

Theres a feeling among Jewish voters that theyre not being represented and they want to be heard at the ballot box, he noted.

Rabbi Evan Hoffman, past president of the Westchester Board of Rabbis and head of the Anshe Sholom synagogue in New Rochelle, is a key figure in the voter mobilization effort.

Ill be voting for George Latimer, said Hoffman, adding that 100% of people in his orbit will do the same.

Bowman is opposed to Israel and, more subtly, to the Jews in his own district, the rabbi said.

Rabbi Evan Hoffman endorsed County Executive George Latimer. Anshe Sholom New Rochelle

Bowman, who polls show to be trailing Latimer by double-digits, has outraged Israel supporters and Jewish activists for his statements regarding the US ally and its war against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip.

The two-term incumbent, 48, has been endorsed by the anti-Israel Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), which supports the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement against the Jewish state, a drive many pro-Israel activists deem antisemitic.

During his May 26 endorsement interview with DSA, Bowman said he personally supports the BDS movement, clashing with his public position.

BDS is a nonviolent protest opportunity to hold Israel accountable, Bowman said during the interview, according to excerpts reported by the New York Times.

A recent poll found Latimer leading Bowman in the race by 17 percent. Facebook

And I think Israel needs to be held accountable, the congressman added. And so Im ready, willing and able to collaborate with you all to figure out whats the best way to do that.

Bowman also said he now opposes US funding of Israels Iron Dome air defense system, for which he voted months after taking office in 2021.

He said he initially voted for the funding to show his constituents he wasnt against the Jewish people, telling DSA members: I didnt want my no vote to be misinterpreted as I want Jews to be killed.'

But the Democrat now says Israel is committing genocide in Gaza in response to Hamas Oct. 7, 2023, attack which killed around 1,200 people  including 33 Americans.

Theres no way I could support any of that, because theres a genocide happening in Gaza, Bowman told the socialists.

During a recent debate against Latimer, Bowman argued that the phrase From the river to the sea  which is generally interpreted as a call to eradicate Israel and its people  wasnt hateful.

Latimer countered that the phrase is commonly understood as antisemitic and genocidal.

Bowman was also captured on video last November calling Israel an apartheid state and angrily claiming reports of rapes and child murders during the Oct. 7 attack were a lie.

He later walked back the sex abuse comment after being criticized for mouthing Hamas propaganda.

The Bowman campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Jewish leaders call for new NYC mask ban after explosion of antisemitic protests by mobs with hidden faces

Its time to unmask hate.

An explosion of blatant antisemitism by anti-Israel protesters in New York  nearly all of whom cover their faces to avoid being publicly identified  is leading some Jewish leaders to call for the return of an anti-mask law that was previously used to fight the hoods of the Ku Klux Klan.

In one shocking incident Monday, protesters took over a New York City subway train, all wearing Covid masks, keffiyehs, balaclavas or sunglasses to obscure their faces, and demanded that Zionists raise their hands  then warned, this is your chance to get out.

Anti-Jewish hate crimes were up 150 percent in May, according to the NYPD. Paul Martinka

Earlier in the day at Union Square, two protesters  faces also covered  unfurled a banner that read Long Live October 7.

A mask law will make a difference, Scott Richman, regional director for the Anti-Defamation League, told The Post on Wednesday.

The group first championed similar laws around the country in the 1950s, and should back them again, Richman said.

It effectively tanked the Ku Klux Klan. Nobody wanted their face to be seen, he said.

New Yorks law was on the books for nearly 200 years until it was repealed in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Demonstrators from the pro-Palestine encampment on Columbias Campus barricade themselves inside Hamilton Hall. Getty Images

Protestors gather at the gates of Columbia University, in support of student protesters who barricaded themselves in Hamilton Hall. REUTERS

Pro-Palestinian protestors chant near an entrance to Columbia University, Tuesday, April 30, 2024 in New York. AP

The call for action comes as protests against Israel this week curdled into overt displays of hate that evoked uncomfortable echoes of Germany in the 1930s to many Jewish New Yorkers.

A mob ghoulishly gathered outside an exhibit memorializing the victims of the Oct. 7 Nova Music Festival and chanted Long live the Intifada on Monday, a display that sent survivors of the attack, who happened to be inside, into panic.

Video from the Union Square protest that same day showed one anti-Israel agitator telling Jews that he wished Hitler was still here so the Nazi leader would have wiped all you out.

And New Yorkers awoke Wednesday to find that vandals tossed red paint at the homes of the Brooklyn Museums director and Jewish board members.

Jewish leaders called a recent wave of antisemitism a crisis. NY Post

Protests outside a memorial for the Oct. 7 attacks were criticized by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. FreedomNewsTV

We are experiencing and seeing the Nazi playbook come to life in 2024, Mark Treyger, head of the Jewish Community Relations Council, told The Post.

This is a crisis, an emergency. We need a comprehensive plan to stop the rising tide of antisemitism to protect Jewish New Yorkers and all New Yorkers.

Anti-Jewish hate crimes had been on the rise even before this week, jumping 150% in May from the same month last year, according NYPD crime stats.

Cops so far this year recorded 173 anti-Jewish hate crimes, compared to 101 in the same period in 2023, data shows.

But Brooklyn Republican Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, a Ukrainian-born Jew, said the NYPD needs to step up during this scary time.

We hit a crisis point for antisemitism a long time ago, she said.

Whats next? Were going to see Jews killed in the streets?

The swirling antisemitism has renewed interest in the states anti-mask law. Restoring the law would strip violent protesters ability to operate anonymously  and unpunished just as it did for the Klan, a recent Manhattan Institute brief argued.

Assemblyman Michael Reilly (R-Staten Island), already introduced legislation last month to reinstate the mask ban.

He said the bill didnt get any traction but will revisit it next year, and was pleased to hear Jewish leaders rallying behind the mask ban.

Reilly said antisemites are no different than the KKK.

Theyre a large mob wearing masks to scare and incite people. Doesnt that sound like the Klu Klux Klan? he said.

He added: The ban on masks should have never been repealed.

Matthew Schweber, a lawyer with the Columbia University Jewish Alumni Association, said two groups in particular  Students for Justice in Palestine and Within Our Lifetime  encourage anti-Israel protesters to wear masks to protect their themselves from accountability for unlawful behavior.

Schweber, whose practice has included free speech cases, added: These protests are not protected under the First Amendment, because they are engaged in targeted harassment and incitement of violence.

New York Attorney General Letitia James and the New York Civil Liberties Union both supported the mask bans repeal as health officials told people to mask up to protect against Covid.

People touched by the Oct. 7 attacks were sent into a panic by recent protests. Robert Miller

The states ban wasnt originally enacted to fight the Klan, according to an NYCLU brief. Instead, it was passed in response to rent protests in the 1800s.

New Yorks anti-mask law banned gatherings of people covering their faces  and carried a penalty of 15 days in jail.

Richman, of the ADL, said that any new mask ban should have appropriate exceptions for medical or religious purposes.
Jewish leaders compare rising antisemitism in NYC to 1930s: Nazi playbook come to life in 2024

Jewish leaders made clear that escalating antisemitism in New York is reaching a breaking point  with some comparing the city to the 1930s and the rise of Nazism.

On Wednesday morning, hateful vandals splattered red paint on the home of the Brooklyn Museum director and Jewish board members.

At least two homes were also daubed with a red triangle symbol that Hamas uses to denote targets marked for death.

You let people spray paint the homes of residents because they sit on the board of the Brooklyn Museum. What does it lead to? This is what the Nazis did in the 1930s, said Michael Nussbaum, former president of the Queens Jewish Community Council.

Jewish board members were targeted by hateful vandals on Wednesday. Paul Martinka

Mark Treyger, the head of the Jewish Community Relations Council, called the antisemitism in New York a crisis and emergency.

We are experiencing and seeing the Nazi playbook come to life in 2024, Treyger told The Post.

There is a concerted effort underway to disassociate Jews and Jewish identity from schools, curriculum, universities, museums, hospitals, organizations, and everyday life  which was a tactic employed by the Nazis in the 1930s, he added.

Matthew Schweber, a lawyer with the Columbia University Jewish Alumni Association, said actions by the pro-Palestinian movement in the city is the modern manifestation of the Ku Klux Klan.

A picture taken in Berlin shows a Jewish-run shop inscripted with Nazi antisemitic graffiti during the June 1938 antisemitic campaign. FRANCE PRESSE VOIR/AFP via Getty Images

The despicable acts have led to wide condemnation over the last few days. Paul Martinka

These protests are not protected under the First Amendment because they are engaged in targeted harassment and incitement of violence, Schweber said.

Brooklyn Councilwoman Inna Vernikov, a Republican who is Jewish, said the city hit a crisis point for antisemitism a long time ago.

Its a scary time for the Jews, she said.

While protesting is one thing, she said marchers have felt emboldened to resort to more brazen behavior.

Jewish leader Mark Treyger said we are seeing the Nazi playbook come to life in 2024. ZUMAPRESS.com

Whats next? Were going to see Jews killed in the streets? she said.

Other disturbing conduct on display this week included a pair of anti-Israel protesters unfurling a Long live October 7 in Union Square, masked anti-Israel protesters demanding any Zionist get off a subway car, and an agitator telling Jews he wished Hitler was still here because the Nazi leader would have wiped all you out.

We are experiencing and seeing the Nazi playbook come to life in 2024, Treyger told The Post. Corbis via Getty Images

Protesters unfurled a shocking banner on Monday in Union Square. FreedomNewsTV

Protesters are chanting `No Zionists. That means no Jews, Vernikov said. Jews are going to leave New York.

Theyll go to Israel, she continued. Thats why we need to support Israel. The antisemitism is now in our face and out in the open because of weak leadership.
President Joe Biden said Thursday that he would not use his executive authority to commute the prison sentence of his son Hunter Biden, who this week was found guilty of illegally owning a gun in 2018.

No, the president simply said when asked by a reporter, according to a White House press pool report.

Biden is in Bari, Italy, for the Group of 7 Summit. He made his comment about Hunter as he was leaving the stage after an event with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The two had just signed a bilateral security agreement.

In response to another reporters question, the president praised his son for having overcome an addiction.

Hes one of the brightest, most decent men I know, he said of Hunter, adding that he will abide by the jurys decision in his sons case.

Hunter Bidens daughters and son-in-law were reportedly in attendance at the event.

President Biden has previously said he wouldnt use his authority to pardon Hunter, but he stopped short of saying whether hed commute a prison sentence. (Pardons are essentially official forgiveness for a crime that can restore civil rights, such as the right to vote or own guns, while commutations reduce criminal sentences without undoing the underlying conviction.)

HuffPost had asked the White House to clarify this but had not received a response. The president has now answered the question himself.

President Joe Biden talks with his son Hunter upon arrival at Delaware Air National Guard Base in New Castle, Delaware, on Tuesday. A jury found Hunter Biden guilty earlier that day on federal gun charges. ANDREW CABALLERO-REYNOLDS/AFP via Getty Images

Republicans have been falsely accusing President Biden of using the Justice Department to protect his family from criminal investigations and interfere with his sons federal prosecution, which included the felony gun charges as well as tax charges for which Hunter Biden will stand trial in the fall.

Donald Trump, a convicted felon, has vowed to make full use of his pardon powers for his supporters if hes elected president again in November. Hes dangled full pardons for years for the criminals convicted for their roles in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. In April, he said hed absolutely consider pardons for hundreds of them.

Trump went on a pardoning spree at the end of his presidency in 2020. His eleventh-hour beneficiaries included military contractors who killed children, crooked politicians, law enforcement officers who violated civil rights and members of his family.

Related...
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) met with Senate Republicans on Wednesday to begin setting an ambitious agenda for Washington if former President Trump is reelected and Republicans win back control of the Senate and keep their House majority.

GOP lawmakers are growing increasingly confident about their prospects in the November election, given President Bidens low approval numbers and want to have a bold agenda ready to go in January.

Feeling the Senate majority is within their reach, Senate Republicans are discussing what proposals to include in a special budget reconciliation package  or multiple packages  to get around the filibuster, which requires most legislation to pass the upper chamber with 60 votes.

Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), who is running to become the next Senate GOP leader, said Johnson told senators he wants to be prepared to hit the ground running if Republicans control the White House and Congress next year.

Hes pretty clear that they want to try to go big, and that means more than just extending the tax cuts, Cornyn said.

Johnson pitched GOP senators on tax cuts, spending cuts and regulatory reforms during a lunchtime meeting in the Lyndon Baines Johnson Room just off the Senate floor.

Its six months out; weve got to prepare, Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) said of the desire among GOP lawmakers to put together an agenda in case they control the White House and both chambers of Congress in January.

Weve got to be able to think through, What are the key issues that we could do?' he said. We dont know what the makeup [of governments] going to be. The American people will decide that in November, but we should starting talking about it, starting with taxes.

Extending the Trump-era tax cuts, which expire at the end of next year, is at the top of the list, but Republican senators are also pitching a big increase in defense spending and cuts to mandatory government spending to reduce the projected federal deficit.

Cornyn pitched his colleagues on tackling mandatory spending, which is authorized outside the annual spending bills passed by Congress each year and is growing at a rate of 7 percent annually.

Weve tried to deal with spending just looking at discretionary spending. Actually, discretionary spending has not jumped up nearly as much as mandatory, he said.

Cornyn said both Biden and Trump have made it clear they dont want to cut Social Security or Medicare, but he says there are other programs that need reform.

I think its worth looking at other mandatory spending, he said. It is an entitlement and has been growing at like 7 or 8 percent a year. And so theres about $700 billion in non-Social Security, non-Medicare mandatory spending that I think we should look at it.

He is also pushing a big increase in defense spending to get around Democrats opposition to increasing funding for the Pentagon without parity for nondefense and social spending programs.

Ive been [paying] attention to what [Mississippi GOP Sen. Roger] Wicker is saying about the need to spend more for defense, Cornyn told reporters Tuesday, referring to the top Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee and his goal to increase defense spending from 2.9 percent of gross domestic product to 5 percent over the next five to seven years.

Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.), who will step down from his leadership position at the end of the year, on Wednesday called reconciliation an important tool.

The first step is we need to have a Republican president, a Republican House and Republican Senate, or there will be no reconciliation at all. It is an important tool. We hope to have an opportunity to use it, he told reporters.

Some political handicappers now see Trump as favored to defeat Biden and Senate Republicans as likely to return to the majority, given the retirement of West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin (I), who recently left the Democratic Party.

An election forecast model released by The Economist on Wednesday gave Trump a 2 in 3 chance of winning the White House. It gave Biden a 1 in 3 chance of victory.

The results are similar to a forecast model from Decision Desk HQ and The Hill released late last month. In that models most recent update, Trump holds a 56 percent chance of winning the presidency.

Meanwhile, handicappers see the battle for the House as a toss-up.

The nonpartisan Cook Political Report says there are 22 toss-up races in the House, with 11 Republican seats and 11 Democratic seats viewed as most in play.

The principle focus in the lunch was, if and when we have Republican majorities in the House and Senate, that we should hit the ground running with a positive, progrowth, projobs agenda that focuses on tax reform and regulatory reform, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said after the meeting.

But some Republican senators are trying to temper their colleagues expectations for what could be accomplished next year if Republicans control the White House and Congress.

Senate GOP Whip John Thune (S.D.) cautioned that policy-focused legislation that only has a tangential impact on the revenues, spending or the deficit would likely fail to meet the so-called Byrd Rule and would not be eligible to pass the Senate with a simple majority under budget reconciliation.

The big issue obviously, and one of the reasons hes here, is to talk about a potential budget reconciliation process, Thune told reporters.

But Senate rules limit what kinds of proposals Republicans could put into such a package to circumvent a Democratic filibuster, Thune warned.

You have to keep your expectations realistic about what you can do there. It has to be, obviously, spending and revenue, budgetary, he said. We have restrictions over here that the House doesnt have, to comply with under the Byrd Rule. Theres a lot tighter screen on what you can and cant do through the budget reconciliation process in the Senate.

Thune pointed out that the Senate parliamentarian rejected several legislative proposals Senate Democrats tried to fit into a reconciliation package when they controlled the White House, Senate and House in 2021 and 2022.

There were several things that got thrown out that the Democrats tried to do, he said.

They wanted to raise the minimum wage, they had a DACA thing in there and they had their clean power plan. All of those things got knocked out by the parliamentarian, he said, referring to ambitious plans by Democrats to give migrants who came to the country at a young age a path to citizenship and to reduce power plant emissions.

Al Weaver contributed.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Azerbaijan is one of the few countries that exemplify the principles of multiculturalism, embracing both national traditions and humanism, says an article published by the Paris-based La Gazette du Caucase, Trend reports.

With a centuries-old history and a strategic location on the Great Silk Road, diversity has always been integral to Azerbaijani society. Today, various ethnic groups live peacefully in the cities and regions of Azerbaijan, enjoying equal rights and continuing their cultural activities, the publication reads.

As the authors pointed out, a notable example of Azerbaijan's commitment to multilateralism is its successful presidency of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM).

In 2011, Azerbaijan was accepted as a full member of NAM receiving unanimous support from the member states of the Movement in Bali. In 2019, Baku hosted the 18th summit of heads of state and government of the Movement, attended by high-level representatives from 120 UN member states and 42 international organizations. During the Baku Summit, the presidency of the Movement for 2019-2022 was transferred to Azerbaijan. Later, the UN member states requested that Baku extend Azerbaijan's chairmanship of the Movement for an additional year, given the success of its presidency. Azerbaijan responded positively, extending its presidency until 2023, the article reads.

The article also mentions the atrocities committed by Armenia during the 30 years of occupation of Azerbaijani lands. For years after the war, the Armenian side has loudly proclaimed the "destruction of Armenian heritage," attempting to obstruct the restoration of historical Albanian temples. For the first time in two centuries, the Albanian-Udi community can freely visit its temples and hold prayer services in the churches built by their ancestors. They now understand they can no longer dictate the history of the region to their liking, and previous accounts will no longer stand.

Even during the worst periods of relations between the two countries, Armenian churches have continued to operate in Azerbaijan. However, when Karabakh was under Armenian occupation, Azerbaijani mosques in the occupied territories were used as barns, and historical and cultural monuments were vandalized.This comparison once again shows that Azerbaijan's principles earn it great respect in the South Caucasus, the article added.
Advocates for cannabis legalization in Pennsylvania pose for a picture on the state Capitol steps on Tuesday, June 11, 2024, for "Cannabis Day at the Capitol." (Capital-Star photo by Sarah Nicell)

Philadelphia resident Damion Smith was once arrested on his personal property for cannabis use. Then it happened again, in a new neighborhood. And after moving to another home, again.

Stories of cannabis-related incarceration against Black and Brown people led grassroots organizers to host a Joints for Justice rally in the state Capitols rotunda this week. Advocates passed out flyers and signs for Cannabis Day at the Capitol.

I pay taxes. Its a part of my culture, Smith said. It feels like an attack on my culture.

Handheld posters called for the end of mass incarceration and cannabis legalization. Others called out the racial inequity of cannabis arrests in the state. The hourlong conference was organized by several cannabis-focused organizations, including Free My Weedman and the Diasporic Alliance for Cannabis Opportunities, co-founded by longtime cannabis advocate Cherron Perry-Thomas.

I hate to sound like Paul Revere, said Perry-Thomas during her introduction. But cannabis is coming.

A bill awaiting a vote in the Senate Judiciary Committee would decriminalize cannabis in Pennsylvania. Sen. Sharif Street (D-Philadelphia) introduced the legislation.

Under the bill, Pennsylvania would join seven other states in decriminalization, categorizing cannabis use as only a civil or local infraction.

Why should you have to be penalized at all? Street asked at the conference.

Another bill supported by Street would legalize marijuana in the state. Senate Bill 846 awaits consideration in the Senate Law and Justice Committee.

Twenty-eight other states have expungement laws for cannabis-related offenses, but Pennsylvania does not. Recreational marijuana is legal in 24 states, but in Pennsylvania it is only legal for medicinal use.

Rep. Amen Brown introduced companion legislation to the state Senate legalization bill in the House. House Bill 2210 awaits action in the Health Committee and is not yet scheduled for consideration.

I have a personal experience with this issue. A lot of my friends have personal experiences with this issue, Brown said. Im here to get this done.

Several other state lawmakers spoke at Cannabis Day, including Rep. Napoleon Nelson (D-Montgomery), chair of the Pennsylvania Black Caucus. Rep. Chris Rabb (D-Philadelphia) and Rep. Donna Bullock (D-Philadelphia) also gave speeches.

Involved legislators focused on ensuring profit for marginalized communities in the cannabis industry and situating marijuana legalization in the context of racial justice.

The folks closest to the pain should experience most of the gain, Rabb said. Theres a lot of wealthy people who want to keep it amongst themselves.

The conference transitioned to the future of cannabis in its final minutes.

The Diasporic Alliance for Cannabis Opportunities announced its 2024 report, which assesses the significance of cannabis in Black communities and advocates for an adult use cannabis legalization bill in Pennsylvania.

Scheril Murray Powell, president of cannabis consulting firm Green Sustainable Strong and general counsel for Minorities for Medical Marijuana, used words rather than data to imagine the future of marijuana in the state.

The future of cannabis is equitable, Powell said. Thats what this country stands for. Thats what Pennsylvania was built off of.

(This article was updated at 2:47 p.m. on Thursday, June 13, 2024, to correctly state that legislation to legalize cannabis is pending the Senate Judiciary Committee.)

The post Joints for Justice organizers rally for cannabis legalization in Harrisburg appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
JOPLIN, Mo.  The Joplin Rotary Club is lending a helping hand to local non-profits.

During their meeting, Thursday, they gave out over $21,000 worth of grant funds to eight organizations.

Recipients include the Community Clinic of Southwest Missouri, Ozark Center, Wildcat Glades, Solace House, Lifechoices Health Network, Higher Power Garage, Area Agency on Aging  Region 10, and the South Middle School Interact Club.

The money comes from the Rotarys yearly fundraising efforts. A committee of nine members gather  each year  to make the difficult decision of which organizations receive grants.

Its a difficult thing to sort through those  because theres so many wonderful worthy causes, but we cant support them all. So, we have to sort through and decide whats the best for us at this time, said Scott Belden, Joplin Rotary Community Fund Chair.

We survive completely off the generosity of our community. All of our funding comes from local organizations like the Rotary. And so, for them to invest in us  theyre not investing as much in us as in our clients  and theyre investing in the future of our communities, said Mike Gideon, Higher Power Garage President.

Joplin Rotary Club officials say the best way to administer the funds is not by setting up a new program, but helping those that are already doing excellent work in the community.

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A Christian pastor who ran a Juarez migrant shelter was sentenced to 10 years in prison after being convicted of forcing migrants to do construction and other manual labor for her benefit, the Chihuahua Attorney General's Office said.

Pastor Velia Hernandez Gonzalez claimed she was innocent at her sentencing, saying she never threatened anyone or forced people staying at the Aposento Alto (Upper Room) shelter to work, according to La Verdad Juarez news site.

Borderland: Bodies of possible migrants found near US-Mexico border amid heat wave in El Paso region

"For me, they (migrants) are part of my family. I learned to love them, I learned to pray for them, those who came in desperate," Hernandez said in Spanish at the hearing, La Verdad reported.

Velia Hernandez Gonzalez, a pastor and former director of the Aposento Alto migrant shelter in Juarez, Mexico, was sentenced to 10 years in prison on June 10 after convicted on forced migrant labor charges.

Supporters had described Hernandez as "El Angel de la Frontera," or "The Angel of the Border," for the work she and her husband, Victor Villalobos, have done for more than 20 years providing food and a place to stay for homeless migrant children, women and men who arrived in Juarez.

Hernandez had also collaborated with Casas por Cristo, an El Paso-based ministry whose volunteers build homes for people living in extreme poverty in Juarez and other parts of Mexico and Latin America.

Immigration: El Paso District Attorney plans to appeal judge's ruling dismissing migrant 'riot' cases

The Aposento Alto shelter on Tomate Street in the Lomas de Poleo area was near the U.S. border next to Anapra in the northwestern edge of Juarez

A Mexican court found Hernandez guilty of forced labor charges after accusations that she ordered three senior-age migrants to do the manual work between October 2021 and April 2022.

The Aposento Alto migrant shelter on Tomate Street in the Lomas de Poleo area in the northwestern edge of Juarez, Mexico, was searched by Chihuahua state police on July 27, 2022, as part of an investigation into forced labor exploitation of migrants.

State prosecutors had sought a sentence of up to 90 years in prison, but a court handed down a 10-year sentence on Monday, June 10, after acquittal on three other charges. She was also ordered to pay a fine of 59,400 pesos (about $3,100 in U.S. dollars) in restitution.

Hernandez will serve her sentence at the Cereso No. 2 state women's prison in Juarez. She had been in custody for nearly two years following her arrest after state police searched the shelter in 2022.

Police search Aposento Alto migrant shelter in Juarez

Chihuahua state police investigators served a search warrant at the Aposento Alto shelter on July 27, 2022, as part of an investigation into human trafficking, exploitation and forced labor.

The state attorney general's office at the time said that authorities had received various criminal complaints over the previous year against the shelter's director, Hernandez, regarding the exploitation of migrants.

More: Preferred route picked for $79M New Mexico highway from Santa Teresa to Sunland Park

Police found 19 Guatemalan migrants  seven women, three men and nine children  staying at the shelter. They were transported to another facility.

Prosecutors accused Hernandez of exploiting vulnerable people with the threat of kicking them out of the shelter, while her defense attorney argued Hernandez had dedicated her life to helping others and had no reason to threaten anyone, La Verdad reported.

This article originally appeared on El Paso Times: Christian pastor sentenced in Mexico migrant shelter forced labor case
A Sarasota circuit judge on Wednesday approved a motion to dismiss the lawsuit against City Commissioner Kyle Battie by local activist Kelly Franklin.

Judge Stephen Walker concluded that Battie acted in his capacity as a public official at the January city meeting where he publicly accused Franklin of referring to him as a racial epithet in a Facebook post.

Franklin has maintained that Battie's evidence was a hoax and that the commissioner was involved in a plot to destroy her credibility. She sued the commissioner for defamation, conspiracy to defame and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

The nexus of the legal dispute was not to litigate whether the post was real, but if Batties comments were protected by his status as an elected official.

What did the judge say about City Commissioner Battie's comments?

Richard Harrison, Franklins attorney, told the Herald-Tribune he was not entirely surprised by the ruling. He said the next decision will be whether to file an amended lawsuit  which they have 20 days to do  or appeal to a higher court.

Harrison argued in court that a city commissioner is not some kind of racism police or morality police patrolling the city and can deal with instances of racism wherever they occur.

Judge Walker ruled that since the Sarasota city code is clear that discriminatory practices are contrary to public policy and a menace to public peace, the City Commission had a responsibility to eliminate discriminatory practices. Battie also brought up the alleged post as an agenda item at a meeting.

The court, Walker wrote, finds that the Defendant clearly acted within the scope of his official duties.

In April, Harrison told the Herald-Tribune if the court found Battie was acting within his scope as a city official, then his client would sue the city.

Kyle Scott Battie

Sarasota paying for Commissioner Battie's legal defense

After Franklin filed a lawsuit against Battie, the City Commission voted to pay $15,000 for his legal defense, with further installments subject to a vote. An invoice obtained via public records request shows the city paid $11,038 to the law firm of Battie's counsel in March.

In an email to the Herald-Tribune, Franklin maintained Battie knowingly participated in a plot to publicly defame a private citizen on completely fabricated and racially incendiary grounds.

She also said Sarasota city officials have refused to investigate or act against Battie.

Franklin and Harrison say they have evidence obtained through a public records request that vindicates them and condemns Battie.

Battie was not immediately available for comment as of Wednesday evening.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Judge finds Commissioner Kyle Battie has immunity from defamation suit
WESTBOROUGH  Earlier this month, at least four bear cubs were orphaned after their mother was shot and killed by an Athol resident when the adult bear was spotted breaking into a chicken coop, a state biologist said.

Dave Wattles, black bear biologist for the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife), said now is the busy time of year for black bears as males are searching for mates and older cubs are leaving their mothers for the first time.

Because of that, there will be more interaction between people and bears, which could lead to situations like the one on June 6 in Athol.

This bear cub is one of four that was orphaned after their mother was shot and killed as it raided a chicken coop in Athol.

'Protecting their breeding locations': State biologist warns residents to keep dogs safe from coyotes

"June is peak bear season," said Wattles. "Males are moving all over the place, looking for females that are receptive to them. The young and juvenile bears that were born the winter before last are now out on their own, as the mothers have more cubs born this past winter."

Police in Wayland, Southborough and Framingham have each reported bear sightings. Fortunately, none has resulted in a negative interaction with people.

Why are bears attracted to backyards?

Bears, Wattles said, are attracted to backyards due to food, particularly bird feeders.

"This is the biggest take-home for people: The reason the bear is there is because of the food people have outside of their homes  bird feeders," said Wattles. "Bird feeders are training bears that the easiest place to find food is in people's backyards, so instead of spending time in the forest, where it's hard to find food, they go backyard to backyard to backyard."

An additional attraction is the number of people who have taken to beekeeping or chicken coops, both of which also attract bears, he said.

What to do to not attract bears

Wattles said having bird feeders is nice but could lead to interactions between humans, their pets and bears. And that could lead to bears being shot by law enforcement.

"It's really, really key that people take this seriously and take those bird feeders in and secure their trash," said Wattles. "The public refuses to do that and then they call us and say, 'I have a bear in my backyard, and it won't leave.' It won't leave because of the food and, unfortunately, this can lead to a bear being shot."

'Days have no time frame': Animal control officer Jennifer Condon deals with animals from chickens to coons

For those who have chickens or beehives or other small livestock, MassWildlife recommends getting electric fencing; the agency provides a guide to electric fencing on its web page, Wattles said.

What to do if you encounter a bear

If you encounter a bear, Wattles said to give it space and make enough noise so as to not startle it. He said do not try to get too close or attempt to take photos.

"Give it space," he said. "If I was talking about coyotes, I'd say remove the food source, haze them, yell at them, but don't do that with a bear. They're large. They're not aggressive, but they certainly have the potential to be dangerous. Enjoy the sighting, but don't put yourself in a dangerous situation. Give them space and they'll wander away."

This is one of four bear cubs that were sent to a rehabilitator in New Hampshire after their mother was killed by an Athol homeowner because she was raiding a chicken coop.

As for the orphaned bear cubs in Athol, they've been rescued and have been sent to a wildlife rehabilitator in New Hampshire.

"It was the best outcome possible," Wattles said. "It's certainly not the best situation for those cubs. The best situation would be to be with their mother, but that's not possible anymore."

Norman Miller can be reached at 508-626-3823 or nmiller@wickedlocal.com. For up-to-date public safety news, follow him on X @Norman_MillerMW or on Facebook at facebook.com/NormanMillerCrime.

This article originally appeared on MetroWest Daily News: MassWildlife biologist explains why June is busy month for bears
NEW CITY  Arlene Clinkscale, a ceiling-shattering educator, has been honored as a Rockland County Trailblazer as part of Juneteenth celebrations.

The first Black female principal in Rockland and first Black female schools superintendent in New York state was presented the award Thursday by the county's Human Rights Commission.

Clinkscale was introduced by Barbara Williams, a longtime educator and children's advocate from Nyack, who said as a great-granddaughter of an enslaved person, it was an honor to be there for her friend of 50 years.

Arlene Clinkscale, center, is presented a Rockland County Juneteenth Trailblazer award on Thursday, June 13, 2024, by Rockland County Executive Ed Day, left, and county Human Rights Commissioner Spencer Chiimbwe, right.

"I'm only 35, Barbara," Clinkscale called out from the front row with a sly smile as she demonstrated a well-known wit.

Clinkscale, 95, was presented the award by Rockland County Executive Ed Day and Spencer Chiimbwe, the county's human rights commissioner, at the county offices in New City.

'It's not where you start; it's where you end'

Clinkscale, who as a child attended segregated schools in the Jim Crow South, started with a lesson on the significance of Juneteenth. The holiday commemorates when enslaved people in Texas finally learned of their freedom, more than two and a half years after President Abraham Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation on Jan. 1, 1863.

Noting that Juneteenth was only made a federal holiday in 2021, she reflected: "We are not as bad as we used to be, but not as good as we want to be."

In her own journey in Rockland County, Clinkscale said she found support among the schools administration and families in Pearl River and beyond. But she said she twice had to enlist the help of the state's Office of Human Rights to handle housing discrimination.

Several speakers cited a phrase Clinkscale has long been known for and that she repeated at the dais: "It's not where you start; it's where you end."

Always helping children

A graduate of what's now Hampton University in Virginia and Columbia University Teachers College, with 10 years' experience teaching, Clinkscale started her career in Rockland academics in 1960 as a first-grade teacher at Lincoln Avenue School in Pearl River.

She then went to East Ramapo, where she became a principal and took various administrative posts.

In 1981, she was named superintendent of Nyack schools, the first Black woman in the state to hold that post in any district.

In 1983, she was profiled in Ebony magazine's "Super Women of Public Education."

Clinkscale served on the SUNY Rockland Community College Board of Trustees, including as chair, in the mid 2000s. She resides in Nanuet.

She also was an adjunct professor at City University of New York.

Pearl River schools Superintendent Marco Pochintesta said he had found Clinkscale's original employment application back from when the district first hired her in 1960. When asked of her goals, she wrote: "Helping children gain love and respect for self, parents, teachers and neighbors."

It's a goal and accomplishment, Pochintesta said, that Clinkscale continued to embody, "no matter how high you climbed that educational ladder."

This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Rockland honors NY's 1st Black schools superintendent for Juneteenth
AUSTIN (KXAN)  A jury sentenced a woman to 18 years in prison for a 2022 crash that killed an officer in north Austin on Thursday.

Lindsay Smith pleaded guilty in court earlier this week and took responsibility for the crash. Jurors began deliberating to determine her sentence earlier on Thursday.

The range for a sentence was five to 99 years. If the jury had decided on 10 years or less, jurors could have opted for Smith to serve those years on probation instead of prison.

PREVIOUS: APD: Woman drank before hitting, killing off-duty police officer near The Domain

The crash killed 35-year-old Poteet police officer Jeffery Richardson. He was off duty and working lane closures in north Austin on June 29, 2022, when the crash happened, according to an affidavit. Poteet is south of San Antonio.

The crash happened on the northbound service road of MoPac Expressway near The Domain around 2 a.m. Police said a car drove through a barricade and hit Richardson. In body camera video played in court Wednesday, Smith underwent a field sobriety test, telling an APD officer she had two drinks at a restaurant and four martinis at two different bars. The officer asked her if she had any shots. In the video, Smith responds that she did but that she did not recall how many. The officer who testified as issuing the field sobriety test said she was disoriented and slurring.

The prosecution rested on Wednesday, and defense attorneys called one witness before court ended for the day. The defenses first witness was Katie Harris, the court probation officer assigned to the case. Defense attorneys asked Harris about probation being beneficial for certain individuals.

RELATED: Family of Texas officer killed by alleged drunk driver files lawsuit

According to legal experts not related to the case, the Texas penal code states the sentence range for the offense involved in Smiths case is 5 years to life. If the jury chooses a sentence of 10 years or less, jurors can also decide to probate some of those years  meaning Smith has the potential of serving her entire sentence on probation rather than in jail.

The District Attorneys Office recused itself from this case early on due to a conflict of interest, according to court records. Prosecutors with the County Attorneys Office are instead working the case on behalf of the state.

It seemed like I was trapped in a movie, and this wasnt my life, Richardsons family testifies

Jeffery Richardson was an officer with the Poteet Police Department. (Courtesy: Allan Richardson)

Richardsons brother Joe, father Allan and wife Silvia took the stand Wednesday to share their favorite memories of Jeffrey, as well as their experiences the day of Jeffreys death.

Joe, a firefighter, went first. He spoke about growing up with Jeffrey and their three other siblings. Joe was working a firefighting shift when he heard about Jeffreys crash and said he self-assigned himself to the call. On the stand, he spoke about how he made it a point that night to go tell the rest of his family in person about what happened to Jeffrey.

Jeffreys father Allan spoke about how much Jeffrey loved his five children.

Allan called Jeffrey a perfectionist, resilient, loving and successful.

He could fail today and tomorrow, I could talk to him and he would have 10 new plans, Allan said.

Both Allan and Joe talked about how much of a romantic Jeffrey was.

His wife, Silvia, was the last family member to take the stand. Her testimony began with discussing how she and Jeffrey met. Prosecutors showed her photos from her wedding day.

Silvia told the jury about what it was like at the hospital the day Jeffrey died.

It seemed like I was trapped in a movie, and this wasnt my life, she said, adding that having to talk to her children about what happened was like having someone stab me over and over [with] that kind of pain.

Richardsons family had stickers and a challenge coin made to honor Jeffery.

Smith testifies on her behalf

Smith took the stand Thursday morning to testify. She started off in tears as she introduced herself to the jury.

Her attorneys asked her about her childhood and her college and early adult careers. Smith explained how she studied business and marketing in college in Iowa  where shes from  and has aspirations to work in the sports industry.

Smith said she ultimately moved to Austin in 2021 to take a management job at a restaurant. She spoke on the stand about how working in the restaurant industry can be a slippery slope into heavy alcohol and drug use. Still, she maintained she knows she made a mistake the night she chose to drive drunk, and she cried as she apologized to the Richardson family.

Smith said she has been sober ever since, saying taking a sip of alcohol would be an act of disrespect to the Richardson family. She said she has joined support groups and is working on ways to raise awareness about alcohol abuse and the dangers of drinking and driving.

Her attorneys asked the jury to issue a sentence of 10 years or less to give Smith the opportunity for probation and the chance to continue to turn her life around and help others.

Prosecutors, however, pushed for jail time, saying that it doesnt matter what Smith has done since. The State argued she wouldnt have had to make any of these changes if the DWI crash didnt happen, emphasizing that even in jail  Smith can still speak to her family, which Richardson will never have that opportunity again.

KXAN will update this story once a verdict is reached.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin.
Justice Clarence Thomas took several more trips on the private plane of GOP megadonor Harlan Crow than were previously known, a top Senate Democrat revealed Thursday.

According to information obtained by Senate Judiciary Chairman Dick Durbin, Thomas traveled on Crows private jet during trips in 2017, 2019 and 2021 between various US states, as well as on a previously known 2019 trip to Indonesia, during which Thomas also stayed on Crows mega-yacht.

The newly revealed private plane trips add to the picture of luxury travel enjoyed by Thomas and bankrolled by friends of the justice who have ties to conservative politics.

Thomas has come under fire for his failure to include such trips on financial disclosure forms the justices release each year, though he and his defenders argue that he followed the courts disclosure rules as they were understood at the time.

The revelation was likely to add to the tension between the high court, where conservatives hold a 6-3 majority, and Democrats on Capitol Hill, who have been pushing for more than a year for tighter ethics rules. A series of ethics scandals involving Thomas and, more recently, Justice Samuel Alito, have left public approval of the court at historic lows.

Last year, amid stories by ProPublica on the justices jet-setting lifestyle, the federal judiciarys policy-making body said that travel on private planes should be reported by the justices closing a loophole that Thomas said had exempted him from reporting the personal hospitality he had received form his uber-wealthy friends. The courts critics argue that the current understanding of the disclosure rules should apply retroactively.

Thomas, through a court spokeswoman, did not respond to a CNN inquiry about the new revelations and why the trips were not disclosed.

He previously said that he was advised at the time that he was not required to disclose the hospitality he received from the Crows, but that he intended to follow the recent changes to the guidance going forward. His defenders have pointed to a 2012 letter from the Judicial Conference, which administers the regulations for judges financial disclosures, that cleared him of claims at the time that he should have been reporting his trips with Crow.

Last week, with the release of his financial disclosures for 2023, Thomas said he had inadvertently omitted from previous financial filings a hotel stay paid by the Crows during the 2019 trip to Indonesia and his accommodations that same year at a private club they are members of in Monte Rio, California.

Yet he did not disclose his travel on Crows private plane for either of those trips that was revealed by Durbin.

In addition to that trip, according to the documents released by Durbin, Thomas traveled on Crows plane from St. Louis to Montana and then on to Dallas in 2017; on a 2019 round trip from Washington, DC, to Savannah, Georgia; and on a 2021 round trip from Washington, DC, to San Jose, California.

The Senate Judiciary Committees ongoing investigation into the Supreme Courts ethical crisis is producing new information - like what weve revealed today - and makes it crystal clear that the highest court needs an enforceable code of conduct, because its members continue to choose not to meet the moment, Durbin said in a statement that pointed to Supreme Court ethics legislation put forward by Senate Democrats. A procedural maneuver by Durbin on Wednesday to pass the bill on the Senate floor was blocked by Republicans.

Elliot Berke, an attorney for Thomas, said the trips Senate Democrats called attention to on Thursday fell under the hospitality exemption. Thomas and others have previously said they understood the disclosure rules to exclude situations involving personal hospitality.

Consequently, and as Justice Thomas has already explained, he and many other federal judges were advised that they were not required to report gifts of personal hospitality from friends who did not have business before the Court, Berke told CNN.

Mark Paoletta, a former top Trump administration official and prominent Thomas ally, similarly said on X that Thomas disclosed the hotel and private club stays from the previous trips because they were not covered under the personal hospitality exemption  even before the 2023 changes to the disclosure guidance. He argued that a justices stays on a friends home, planes and boats were exempted under the rules until the 2023 revision.

Durbin and other Democrats launched probes into gifts and lavish travel Thomas received after a bombshell ProPublica report that detailed the Indonesia trip with Crow  during which Thomas and his wife Ginni Thomas stayed on Crows 162-foot yacht  and other extravagant trips that the Thomases took with Crow and Crows wife.

Crow  whom Thomas has described as among his familys dearest friends  has said that he has never talked to Thomas about matters in front of the judiciary.

Mr. Crow reached an agreement with the Senate Judiciary Committee to provide information responsive to its requests going back seven years, Crow spokesperson Michael Zona said of the information revealed Thursday.

Despite his serious and continued concerns about the legality and necessity of the inquiry, Mr. Crow engaged in good faith negotiations with the Committee from the beginning to resolve the matter. As a condition of this agreement, the Committee agreed to end its probe with respect to Mr. Crow, Zona added.

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

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UPPER WEST SIDE, Manhattan (PIX11)  New York schools will get more than $112 million to prevent young people from vaping.

It is part of a settlement secured by Attorney General Letitia James, who sued JUUL, one of the biggest vape companies.

More Local News

I have noticed that vaping has become a significant issue among my classmates, said a rising NYC high school senior who joined James for the announcement. It is a distraction and an addiction, prompting many students to leave class to vape in the bathroom and staircase.

Now, New York City and communities around the state will have new funding to combat the epidemic of vaping among young people. Of the total funding, $27 million will go directly to New York City.

These funds will be used for education, for prevention, for research and enforcement programs, to prevent kids and young adults from vaping, said James.

Mayor Eric Adams indicated that new prevention programs would be student-led.

James also said not to expect this to be the last big chunk of cash coming from a big company praying for the youth.

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SAN FRANCISCO (KRON)  A juvenile suspect was arrested in connection to a shooting that happened Tuesday night in San Francisco, the San Francisco Police Department said. The victim had non-life-threatening injuries.

The shooting happened on McAllister Street near Market Street at about 11:15 p.m. A man was hospitalized.

SF crime numbers down overall, according to mayor

A police investigation led to the suspect being identified. He was located and arrested by SFPD.

The location of the shooting is just a block away from the Civic Center/UN Plaza BART station.

The motive and circumstances surrounding the shooting have not yet been released.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Armenia's Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan openly admitted that the entire ideology of the Armenian state, its authorities, and society had been wrong.

Speaking at the parliament, Pashinyan read out to the MPs the concluding document from the 1996 Lisbon Summit, which addressed the resolution of the Karabakh conflict. Afterward, he continued his confession.

"We misunderstood, we were mistaken," he began with explanations. The PM emphasized that no one besides Armenian authorities had considered any "questions of self-determination" for Karabakh Armenians over these decades. Naturally, he also noted that all Armenian authorities had used this factor for political manipulations in their own interests over the past 30 years.

Essentially, Armenia's PM openly acknowledged that from the collapse of the USSR until 2020, until the Azerbaijani Army liberated the country's occupied territories, Armenian authorities had led their country and people astray.

It's quite commendable that the Armenian Prime Minister is finally acknowledging his government's mistakes. Now, isn't it time to start steering in the right direction?
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Educational organizations called on state lawmakers to reduce school district contributions to teacher retirement and use excess money from the fund to supplement classroom needs.

Members from associations in Michigans education sector joined a call Wednesday to voice support for SB 911, sponsored by state Sen. Kevin Hertel (D-St. Clair Shores), and HB 5803, sponsored by state Rep. Matt Koleszar (D-Plymouth). Additional K-12 education organizations signed a letter addressed to Gov. Gretchen Whitmer supporting the bills.

Joint Letter June 1140

The bills are working alongside the state Fiscal Year 2025 budget, which doesnt begin until Oct. 1, although legislative leaders hope to have it completed by July 1 so they can go on summer break, Both the House and the Senate have passed their own versions of the budget, and lawmakers are currently negotiating with Whitmer for a final plan.

A lack of funding for education and teacher salaries impacts the quality of learning for students, participants said Wednesday. Therefore, they asked for fewer financial obligations from school districts and teachers in funding retirement and healthcare in the state.

Tina Kerr, the executive director of the Michigan Association of Superintendents and Administrators, said there is an excess of $670 million in the state retirement fund for public school employees, paid for by teachers and school districts. It will be important to reduce contributions from these entities and use the available money for school districts.

Its not the states money to use, Kerr said. Its public schools money to keep. This savings have only been achieved because of the significant sacrifice of our educators and Michigan Public Schools.

Some public school teachers pay a 3% tax on their income that goes into a health care fund for retirement. The proposed bills would eliminate this tax, allowing teachers to save money annually. Eliminating the tax would help with attracting new people to the profession and retaining current teachers, Terrence Martin, the president of educator and school health care worker union AFT-Michigan, said.

Many of us experience having to pay the 3%, Martin said. Many of us are experiencing the lack of teacher service in schools all across this state, and we know that this will help to stabilize our school districts all across the state of Michigan.

Participants also asked lawmakers to reduce taxes on school districts payroll from about 21% to 14%. Chandra Madafferi, the president of the Michigan Education Association, said this tax ate into teachers salaries and exacerbated the educator shortage.

Madafferi, along with other participants, said the removal of these taxes would not eat into the retirement fund.

They also wanted to make sure that the excess money from the state retirement fund is used specifically for school aid, rather than other economic development plans.

Peter Spadafore, the executive director of the Michigan Alliance for Student Opportunity, said some school aid dollars were rerouted to other economic development plans, rather than the general fund budget.

Our proposal and the legislation introduced this week from Representative Koleszar and Senator Hertel, presents an opportunity for lawmakers to reverse the decades-long trend of using taxpayer dollars set aside for our K-12 students to balance the states budget, Spadafore said.

The post K-12 education leaders ask lawmakers to keep excess teacher retirement funds in the classroom appeared first on Michigan Advance.
Vice President Kamala Harris and Abbott Elementary star Lisa Ann Walter are teaming up for a National Call on Reproductive Freedom. Thursdays virtual conversation aims to urge voters to take action for abortion rights ahead of Novembers general election.

The two are set to discuss topics including the anniversary of Donald Trumps Supreme Court picks overturning Roe v. Wade, the danger that Trump would sign a national abortion ban if he returns to office and threats to other rights including access to birth control, a spokesperson tells TheWrap.

The comedian has long been vocal about her support for reproductive freedom. In May 2022, Walter joined a star-studded group of women for the Bans Off Our Bodies reproductive rights rally, where she stated, I cant work in Texas anymore. Walter currently serves on the ERA Coalition/Fund for Womens Equality board and as the chair of the L.A. local womens committee for Membership First.

Ahead of the second anniversary of the Dobbs decision, Harris will lead a conversation on ways to support the fight for reproductive freedom and help families affected nationwide through volunteering efforts.

In June 2022, the Supreme Court overturned a 50-year-old precedent set by Roe v. Wade that had established a constitutional right to abortion. Two years since the decision and five months out from the general election, access to abortions nationwide is becoming scarce and even dangerous, particularly in conservative states.

Amanda Zurawski is one of many women who was denied an abortion after the overturning of the 1973 landmark case. Zurawski is now suing the state of Texas for delaying her medically necessary abortion that caused her to spend three days in the ICU and nearly lose her life. She has since been forced to revert to IVF as her only means for having a child.

Zurawski and her husband will join the vice presidents conversation to discuss the need for reproductive rights nationwide. Biden-Harris campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez will be among the other guest speakers joining the virtual event.

The conversation will take place Thursday at 8 p.m. ET.

The post Kamala Harris and Abbott Elementary Star Lisa Ann Walter Partner on National Call for Abortion Rights | Exclusive appeared first on TheWrap.
TOPEKA (KSNT)  Kansas lawmakers are prepping for an upcoming special session to make a decision on the states tax plan.

Governor Laura Kelly called for a special session to get state representatives back to the capitol next week. Taxes have been the talk of the statehouse recently, because Kelly and the states legislators cant seem to agree and get a deal done.

Lawmakers have gone back and forth on bills that would reduce taxes in recent months. Now, theyre coming back for a special session to hash out a new plan.

State Senator Tom Holland  a democrat from Baldwin City  is throwing his Kumbaya plan in the mix.

Kansas school district loses $121,000 to out-of-state fraudster

It is just the constant increase in property taxes, Holland said. By 2030, youre going to have over half of the states population living in northeast Kansas. The problem is, is when you have, basically, fixed income people who want to stay in their existing house.

For him, property taxes are the focus. Slashing income taxes had been a major part of earlier drafts within the capitol. The governor vetoed a plan that passed with overwhelming bipartisan support earlier this year because she says its not sustainable.

Holland said his plan is sustainable, and it also includes some features both sides are getting behind. That includes getting rid of the food tax by October and eliminating the tax on social security.

Our budgets every year, the spending just keeps going up and up and up, Holland said. I think what we need to really figure out is get our spending under control and stabilize that, because I dont see how you do any more subsequent cuts without tanking the budget.

Is an ATV or UTV considered street legal on Kansas roads, highways?

A spokeswoman for Kellys office said theyre still in talks to negotiate a compromise that works for everyone.

On Wednesday, June 12 Senate tax chair Caryn Tyson said the tax committee, which is made up of eight Republicans and three Democrats, will meet on the afternoon of Monday, June 17 to prepare for the special session that begins on Tuesday, June 18 if a deal isnt reached.

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.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSNT 27 News.
Attorneys general for Kansas and Missouri on Thursday vowed to push forward with their legal challenge of a common abortion medication, minutes after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a group of doctors couldnt sue to ban the drug.

The Supreme Courts decision upheld, for now, nationwide access to mifepristone, one of two medications frequently used in abortions. In a unanimous decision, the high court found the doctors who had sued in federal court in Texas, challenging the FDAs decades-old approval of the drug, lacked standing to bring a lawsuit.

But Missouri and Kansas in January convinced a federal judge to allow the states, along with Idaho, to intervene in the lawsuit. The decision allows the states to potentially keep the legal challenge alive, by arguing that they  unlike the doctors  have standing to sue.

We are moving forward undeterred with our litigation to protect both women and their unborn children, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, a Republican, said in a statement.

Kansas Attorney General Kris Kobach, a Republican, said in a statement the states possess the standing that the doctors did not.

It is essential that this case continue in order to ensure that the FDA operates within the law, Kobach said.

A continuing legal challenge of mifepristone could bring seismic implications for abortion access in the United States. Since the Supreme Court ended the federal right to an abortion in 2022, more than a dozen states, including Missouri, have enacted total or near-total bans. The medication, which can be taken across state lines, have offered some individuals a way to access abortion despite state-level bans.

Even in states where abortion is legal, the medication plays a critical role. If mifepristones federal approval were rescinded, abortion access could be dramatically curtailed and more individuals would be forced to seek surgical abortions, straining clinics. Abortion medications were used in about 63% of all abortions in 2023, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a research organization that supports abortion rights.

The decision comes less than two weeks before the second anniversary of the Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade  and roughly five months before Missouri voters are expected to decide whether to overturn the states ban and protect the right to abortion in the state constitution. Kansas voters affirmed the presence of abortion rights in their states constitution in 2022.

Missourians across political backgrounds and ideologies want reproductive freedom to make their own decisions about their bodies, families, and lives  this year we have the opportunity to make Missouri the first state to overturn an abortion ban at the ballot box and enshrine a broad right to reproductive freedom in our state constitution  and we are going to win, Mallory Schwarz, executive director of Abortion Action Missouri, said in a statement.

Missouri, Kansas and Idaho had previously attempted to intervene in the lawsuit against mifepristone at the Supreme Court level. The court denied the states attempt, without offering an explanation.

It is unclear whether the states will have a strong case at the district court level, where Judge Matthew Kacsymaryk allowed them to intervene in January. If they attempt to continue the existing case, they will have to prove why Missouri, Idaho and Kansas should have a case heard in a federal district court in Texas.

The states would then face a similar hurdle the doctors faced in proving how the states are harmed by the FDAs decision, after Justice Brett Kavanaugh dismissed similar claims in Thursdays unanimous ruling by the court. During oral arguments before the Supreme Court, the doctors were represented by Erin Hawley, an attorney for the conservative legal advocacy group Alliance Defending Freedom and the wife of Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican.

In their motion to intervene in the case at the Supreme Court, the states argued that they were affected by the FDAs decision allowing abortion medication by mail because Missourians could receive the medication despite the states ban. They also argued that the states would have to contribute more to Medicaid because women could end up in the emergency room after taking the drug.

But the Biden administration has argued that the states have a worse case for standing than the doctors who brought the original case. In a filing with the Supreme Court over whether the states should be allowed to intervene in the case, the Biden administration argued that the states are relying on too much speculation to be able to bring a challenge to the FDAs decision.
Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Marla Luckert delivered the annual State of the Judiciary speech Monday to members of the 2024 Kansas Legislature. Afterward, she chatted with several people outside the Kansas House chamber

Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Marla Luckert said in a dissent the court's majority was wrong to stick by a 2014 opinion that provided a mechanism for appeals filed by people convicted of criminal acts to continue even if the defendant died during appellate proceedings. (Rachel Mipro/Kansas Reflector)

TOPEKA  Chief Justice Marla Luckert retained a lonely position as the only member of the Kansas Supreme Court convinced appeals of criminal convictions shouldnt be allowed to proceed through the judicial system after the defendants death.

The issue surfaced amid the Supreme Courts review of an appeal on behalf of the late David Moeller of Oskaloosa, who was convicted in 2021 of securities fraud in Jefferson County and died in 2022.

Jefferson County prosecutors alleged Moeller scammed Diane Brunner by convincing her to write him a check for $9,500. It was to be her seed-money investment in a Moeller company manufacturing the Blade Caddy, a case used to carry knives or blades. Evidence at trial indicated Moeller used the cash to pay a separate business debt and didnt make an effort to commercialize the Blade Caddy.

He was convicted in district court, but died before his attorney filed an appeal challenging sufficiency of the evidence. Moellers published obituary said he had been a self-employed entrepreneur and noted his hobbies included wheeling and dealing.

The Kansas Court of Appeals decided in 2023 precedent set by the state Supreme Court in the State v. Hollister a decade ago meant Moellers appeal didnt die with him. The Court of Appeals also concluded there was sufficient evidence to convict Moeller.

In response, defense counsel sought review of that decision by the state Supreme Court.

Supreme Court Justice K.J. Walls majority opinion affirmed the Court of Appeals perspective in the Moeller case. The Supreme Court declined last week to exonerate him and affirmed the death of a criminal defendant during appeal of his or her conviction didnt automatically end the case.

In a dissent, Luckert said Kansas courts didnt have standing to weigh criminal appeals if the person was deceased. She argued absence of a living defendant meant there was no longer a client to guide an attorney pursuing the appeal.

Regardless of the policy reasons for the majoritys position, without a statutory process for continuing a criminal case after the defendants death, Kansas appellate courts lack authority, or a statutory process, to consider this appeal, the chief justice said.

Since the 1890s, Kansas has been among a minority of states that allowed criminal appeals to proceed after a defendant passed away.

Walls opinion said the justices werent convinced reversal of Hollister would create a greater good, because the 2014 decision struck a balance between competing interests.

We continue to adhere to Hollister, Walls opinion said. For one, we are not clearly convinced Hollister was originally erroneous. Furthermore, we are not clearly convinced that more good than harm would come from departing from Hollister.

The Kansas attorney general opposed reversal of Hollister because that step could be harmful to crime victims, said Kris Ailslieger, deputy solicitor general in Kansas.

It maintains an opportunity for the defendant to try to clear his name, Ailslieger said. At the same time, it allows the state to pursue its interest in getting issues of statewide importance clarified, ensuring a valid conviction remains on the books. Victims have proper closure for injuries and restitution remains in place.

Randall Hodgkinson, an appellate public defender who represented Moeller, urged the Supreme Court to replace Hollister with a process that removed all proceedings in criminal cases from the court record when a defendant died before conclusion of appeals.

This court could adopt a new procedure, Hodgkinson said. This court has the inherent power within its own constitutional authority to make rules of appellate procedure.

The post Kansas Supreme Court affirms criminal case appeals may continue after offenders death appeared first on Kansas Reflector.
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW)  A Beeler, Kansas, woman was taken to the hospital in serious condition after a crash in Ford County on Wednesday.

The Kansas Highway Patrol said the crash happened around 4:45 p.m. at Jewell Road and 127 Road, nine miles east of Wright.

Wheat harvest is no comparison to last year

A woman from Beeler was driving a Ford Expedition west on Jewell Road when a pickup truck driven by a Spearville man ran the stop sign and crashed into her.

The pickup driver was not injured. The Beeler woman was taken to a hospital with suspected serious injuries.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KSN-TV.
Karen Read Murder Trial: Cop Forced To Read His Vulgar Texts About Her In Explosive Testimony

The trial of a Massachusetts woman accused of backing her SUV into her Boston police officer boyfriend and leaving him to die in the snow took an explosive turn this week as the lead investigator in the case was instructed to read aloud in court the vulgar, derogatory text messages hed sent about her.

State Police Trooper Michael Proctor, the investigator, was told Monday to read messages he exchanged with friends, relatives and co-workers about defendant Karen Read. Read, 45, is charged with second-degree murder, vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated, and leaving the scene of a collision in the Jan. 29, 2022, death of John OKeefe, 46. Proctors testimony concluded on Wednesday, and the trial then turned to Massachusetts State Police Lt. Brian Tully.

Read has pleaded not guilty to all the charges and said in interviews that she does not recall what happened while she was behind the wheel.

Proctors testimony had been much anticipated by her vocal defenders. Many of them, loosely organized under the hashtag #FreeKarenRead, claim she is the victim of a vast conspiracy among corrupt state and local law enforcement officials who they say are trying to frame her for killing OKeefe  a theory embraced by her defense team. Meanwhile, prosecutors have pushed back against the false narratives that they say have resulted in the harassment and intimidation of witnesses by Reads defenders, who include a controversial local blogger who is now himself facing criminal charges.

Karen Read reacts as trooper Michael Proctor testifies during her trial on Wednesday, in Norfolk Super Court in Dedham, Massachusetts. Read is charged with second-degree murder in the 2022 death of her police officer boyfriend, John OKeefe. via Associated Press

Reads supporters believe instead of being hit by her SUV, OKeefe was attacked by a dog and brutally beaten at a house party in the Boston suburb of Canton. The homeowner, Brian Albert, is also a police officer, and Reads defense team has argued that Proctor mishandled the investigation, and favorably treated Albert and his family because they are friends.

Proctor is the subject of a police internal affairs investigation for a potential violation of department policy, which sources told NBC10 Boston is connected to the Read case.

Proctor testified about another point of contention between prosecutors and Reads defense team: a broken taillight. He said he noticed the right taillight on her Lexus SUV was cracked when he arrived at her parents home after OKeefes death. From an evidence bag, he removed plastic fragments collected near where OKeefe was found and showed them to the jury. Prosecutors say the fragments match Reads broken taillight.

Reads attorneys, however, argued that Read damaged the taillight when she backed out of OKeefes garage and struck his car.

Later in his testimony, Proctor was instructed to read aloud the texts he sent to friends, relatives and co-workers in group chats following OKeefes death.

In one group chat with friends, Proctor called Read a whack job, and a nutbag.

He also used a disparaging word for a woman, which he spelled out in court rather than saying the word.

In response to an objection by Reads attorney, the judge asked, These are your words, Trooper Proctor? When he said yes, she instructed him to pronounce the word, c**t.

Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor testifies during Karen Read's trial on Wednesday. Greg Derr/The Patriot Ledger via AP, Pool

In other group text messages, Proctor used a slur for those with intellectual disabilities in referring to Read and her defense attorney David Yannetti, adding how much he hated them.

Hopefully she kills herself, Proctor told his sister about Read.

He also called Read a babe and joked about her body.

While he was searching Reads phone as part of the investigation, Proctor texted his friends, no nudes so far.

Proctor also called Read an ass leaker and said shes got a leaky balloon knot, which he confirmed referred to one of her health conditions, which include colitis and multiple sclerosis.

During cross-examination Wednesday, Proctor said it was a disgusting comment.

On Monday, he called his texts unprofessional and regrettable, and said he regrets writing them.

But Proctor denied the defense attorneys argument that the text messages show that he was biased in the investigation.

These unprofessional comments have zero impact on the facts and the evidence and the integrity of this investigation, Proctor said.

Related...
A Massachusetts woman is currently on trial for allegedly killing her boyfriend in Jan. 2022 when authorities say she ran over him with her SUV, leaving him to die.

Karen Read, 44, has been charged with the murder of 44-year-old John OKeefe, a Boston police officer, in a case that has sparked great media attention, spawned conspiracy theories, and even prompted protests in support of Read.

Internet blogger Turtleboy, also known as Aidan Kearney, has drawn attention to the case and publicly shown his support of the Read, but his involvement has been tainted with trouble as he currently faces charges of witness intimidation.

Since the trial began on April 16, prosecutors have presented evidence that they say pins Read to the crime, and cross-examined key witnesses like Jennifer McCabe, a friend of OKeefe, who told the court that Read allegedly asked her to search how long it would take for someone to die in the cold.

Defense attorneys for Read, however, argue that OKeefe died because of a fight that happened inside a friends home in Canton, Mass. where OKeefes body was found. Theyve also alleged that police are trying to frame Read.

Read has pleaded not guilty to all charges and is out on $100,000 bail.

Heres what to know about the case.

Who is Karen Read?

Read is facing charges for second-degree murder, manslaughter while under the influence, and leaving the scene of personal injury and deathto which she has pleaded not guilty. She was still in a relationship with OKeefe at the time of his death, though court documents have shown that the relationship was strained.

The day of OKeefes death

Read and OKeefe were out drinking at the Waterfall Bar and Grill in Canton, Mass., 20 miles outside of Boston, on Jan. 28, 2022 after a night out of drinking, according to court documents. Prosecutors say that Read then dropped OKeefe off at the then-home of retired police officer Brian Albert in Canton. (Albert sold the home in 2023.) Albert testified on May 10 that neither OKeefe or Read entered his house that night.

In the early morning hours, Read allegedly left OKeefe a voicemail saying that she hated him, according to court documents. At 4:23 a.m. Jennifer McCabe received a phone call informing her that Read was worried because OKeefe was not responding to any calls and did not come home. About a half-hour later, prosecutors say Read called another woman whose spouse was friends with OKeefe saying, What if he's dead? What if a plow hit him?

Read and two other women then went looking for OKeefe. At about 6 a.m., Read called the Canton Police Department to report that she found OKeefe lying in the snow outside of Alberts home, according to court documents. The medical examiner found that OKeefe died from blunt impact head injuries and hypothermia.

Defense claims

Reads attorneys have argued that OKeefe got into an argument with people inside Alberts home and that his beaten body was later dumped outside. They have pointed to wounds on OKeefes arms which they said were from a dog attack to try to substantiate their claims. They claim investigating officers are trying to frame Read for OKeefes death.

Police also found red tail light pieces, a shoe, and clear plastic pieces at the scene, according to court documents. The defense alleges that the broken tail light on Reads car occurred when she left her driveway and hit OKeefes vehicle. A first responder testified in court in early May that Read was distraught and shouted I hit him when asked by paramedic Katie McLaughlin if there was any trauma that OKeefe had endured, according to the Boston Globe.

The defense also attempted to shroud the case in doubt after presenting text messages sent by lead investigator on the case, Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor, that displayed the officers distaste for Read.

What did Michael Proctor say at the trial?

Proctor testified on Wednesday about inappropriate messages he sent regarding Read after OKeefes death.

During the seventh week of the trial, it was revealed that Proctor had sent a text to his sister saying that he hopes Read kills herself. Proctor claimed that the message was a figure of speech while being cross examined by defense attorney Alan Jackson during the trial. Proctor also called Read a whackjob to others and texted his bosses that he had not found any nudes so far when looking through Reads cellphone, according to court documents.

Massachusetts State Police Lt. Brian Tully said he was aware of the messages and had expressed his discontent with their unprofessional nature. Tully also reported the messages up the chain of command.

"We followed the facts and evidence which showed Ms. Read hit Mr. O'Keefe with her vehicle. Yes, at times I got emotional because of that and I said some stuff, texted some things I shouldn't have. But it was based off [of] the evidence," Proctor said in court. "These juvenile, unprofessional comments have zero impact on the facts and the evidence and the integrity of this investigation.

Proctor is currently under investigation by the Massachusetts State Policethough it is not clear why. He has said that the messages were unprofessional and regrettable.

Contact us at letters@time.com.
KENNEBUNKPORT, Maine  The Kennebunkport Police Department has a new leader.

Town Manager Laurie Smith announced Wednesday that Chris Simeoni, a 27-year veteran of law enforcement, has been appointed the town's new police chief. Simeoni has professional experience in the field of public works, as well, she added.

"We are thrilled to have Chris Simeoni take on the role of police chief," Smith said. "His extensive experience in law enforcement, coupled with his strong leadership in public works, makes him uniquely qualified to lead our Police Department.

The town of Kennebunkport announced Wednesday, June 12, that Chris Simeoni has been named the town's new police chief.

Simeoni will officially assume his role as police chief on July 1. He succeeds former chief Craig Sanford, who stepped down in May after 13 years at the departments helm. Sanford now serves as a judicial marshal for the state and is working out the York Judicial Center in Biddeford.

Simeoni began his career in law enforcement as a reserve officer with the Kennebunkport Police Department in 1997, according to a press release from the town. One year later, he officially became a police officer.

Previous story: Kennebunkport Police Chief Craig Sanford moving on after 13 years as town's top cop

Over the years, Simeoni has served as a senior patrol sergeant, where he honed his supervisory and managerial skills and developed a deep understanding of federal, state, and municipal laws, according to Smith.

Throughout his tenure, Simeoni has displayed exceptional leadership and a strong dedication to the community, Smith said. He has successfully managed large public events, handled complex internal affairs investigations, and implemented key policies and procedures to enhance the department's effectiveness and safety standards.

Simeoni also has served as the director of Kennebunkport Public Works since October 2021.

In this role, he has demonstrated strong budgetary analysis and financial planning skills, successfully managing multi-million-dollar budgets and capital projects, Smith said. His collaborative approach and ability to build positive relationships across departments have significantly contributed to improving the town's infrastructure and workplace culture.

Simeoni holds a bachelor of arts degree in criminology and an associate degree in business administration from the University of Southern Maine.

He is also certified as an active and full-time law enforcement officer by the Maine Criminal Justice Academy.

Simeoni said he is deeply honored to be appointed police chief.

"This community means a great deal to me, and I am committed to working alongside our dedicated officers to ensure the safety and well-being of all residents, he said. I look forward to building on the strong foundation established by my predecessors and continuing to advance our department's mission."

Smith said the town is grateful to the selection committee that fielded applications, held interviews, and ultimately chose Simeoni to be Sanfords successor.

We are confident that under his leadership, the department will continue to thrive and serve our community with excellence, Smith said.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Kennebunkport, Maine welcomes Chris Simeoni as new police chief
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. The Armenian Ambassador to Belarus has been summoned to Yerevan for consultations, Trend reports.

To note, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that he would never set foot in Belarus as long as President Lukashenko is in power, due to his statements in Azerbaijan.

"I have no intention of visiting Belarus as long as Lukashenko remains president there, and I believe the same goes for other Armenian officials," he said.

Earlier, at his meeting with President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Lukashenko said: "Thoughts crossed my mind about our lunchtime philosophical discourse that took place before the war, your war of liberation. At that point, we decided that the battle could still be won. It is significant. It is crucial to keep on this triumph."

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Kent police say a suspected car thief intentionally bashed into a patrol car and nearly hit someone walking nearby.

On Monday afternoon, Kent PD Officer Burns was out patrolling when a stolen car on Kent Kangley Road passed by in the opposite direction. Officer Burns spun around and the driver of the stolen car quickly diverted into a parking lot.

Burns spotted the driver and parked behind the stolen car, which had three people inside. He then called for backup and threw a device under the rear tire to deflate it if the driver tried to leave.

Police said thats exactly what the driver  a 29-year-old East Hill Kent man  tried to do. Officers said the suspect aggressively backed out of the parking space, intentionally slamming into the police car and another car.

The driver continued to back up regardless of his deflated tire and nearly hit a pedestrian as he pulled out onto the road. He then crashed into a homes yard, jumped out, and ran off along with the two other passengers from the car.

Patrol officers reportedly set up a perimeter and called for a K9. By chance, the King County Sheriffs Office Guardian 1 helicopter was out and about, so they responded to take a birds eye view.

They quickly spotted the three suspects running into a wooded area near the YMCA and directed Kent police to the spot. The two passengers, women aged 32 and 33 from SeaTac and Federal Way, gave up after officers told them to come out of hiding.

The driver kept running and jumped some fences, but eventually got tired and gave up running.

He was arrested and booked into King County Jail on possession of a stolen vehicle, malicious mischief, felony eluding, reckless driving, vehicular assault, and hit-and-run charges. Both women were charged with obstructing.

According to Kent PD, the suspect told the arresting officer that normally he just flees in stolen cars because no one chases him.
If Kentucky can't fix juvenile justice, will Washington do it? Advocates want real reform

The U.S. Department of Justices investigation into Kentuckys juvenile justice system comes at a critical moment.

The system's new commissioner has warned legislators that several new tough-on-crime laws will mean even more kids filling the states eight detention centers and one youth development center.

Those centers are the focal point of an investigation announced last month into potential violations of detainees' civil rights, including excessive use of force and isolation, and the threat of violence and sexual abuse.

Staffing has improved lately, and an unsettled leadership situation appears to have been resolved, but the state Department of Juvenile Justice is still working to implement changes after a blistering audit released earlier this year.

And at the center of it all: Hundreds of kids the DOJ said are in Kentuckys detention centers every day, with Black children about 2.5 times more likely to be detained. The state's eight detention centers housed 238 children as of May, with more than 100 others in youth development facilities and group homes.

Its a bleak situation, Kentucky Youth Advocates executive director Terry Brooks said last month. But theres a silver lining  a thorough federal investigation could bring a road map for a brighter future, he believes.

This actually is a firm verdict that Kentucky leaders got an F when it came to juvenile justice, or Washington wouldnt be here, Brooks said. I have every confidence that since Kentucky leaders couldnt do it, the DOJ will.

How we got here

In 2001, following five years under a federal consent decree, then-U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno joined lawmakers in Frankfort to celebrate Kentucky's progress in fixing the state's juvenile justice department.

Amanda Mullins Bear, a Lexington juvenile attorney, can remember the years that followed. The Department of Juvenile Justice was unyielding and felt "kind of like the enemy" in the early days of her career, she recalled last month, but strong leadership from commissioners quickly helped foster a better relationship.

Senate Bill 200, sponsored by Sen. Whitney Westerfield, R-Fruit Hill, and approved by the General Assembly in 2014, was key. That legislation sent more juvenile offenders charged with nonviolent status offenses into diversion programs instead of detention centers, saving the state significant money, and put more oversight measures in place to work with kids and track the effectiveness of programs.

State Sen. Whitney Westerfield speaks on the Senate floor in April 2024. Westerfield is co-chair of Kentucky's Juvenile Justice Oversight Council and sponsored SB 200 in 2014.

Still, a lot can change in a decade's time.

"Often, when what I would consider a good piece of legislation like that happens, there's pushback, and they try to erode it little by little," Bear said. "I've kind of seen that as a trend in the last five to 10 years  and then they started to have a really bad turnover with their commissioners."

Turnover in leadership has been frequently cited as an issue plaguing the system. The Department of Juvenile Justice's current commissioner, Randy White, took office in April and is the sixth person to hold that role since 2018. The longtime Department of Corrections leader replaced Vicki Reed, who left the role at the end of 2023 and was a frequent target of criticism as the department struggled with staffing issues and excessive force allegations.

Management of the department is an issue that obviously predates White, Westerfield said. Turnover among commissioners has played into it, but "multiple gubernatorial administrations, for a long time" have failed to prioritize fixing the juvenile justice system despite repeated warnings in front of state committees, he said.

"We've seen improper use of restraints and detention and solitary confinement, withholding of medicine and food, withholding of showers. We've seen awful things that don't have anything to do with funding or money," Westerfield, a co-chair of the legislature's Juvenile Justice Oversight Council, told The Courier Journal.

"I've got a big bone to pick with this administration, and I think they've done a terrible job, but the last administration didn't do a great job either, and the administration before that didn't do a great job, and all of them are guilty of not prioritizing it."

The problems facing the system were laid out in a 231-page audit released earlier this year by state Auditor Allison Ball, a Republican who placed the blame on Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear.

Those sentiments were echoed by several GOP lawmakers on the Senate floor after the audit's release in February, though Beshear at the time argued several points included in it were inaccurate, while pledging Kentucky officials "always want to do better."

The audit, released about three months before the DOJ announced its investigation, was scathing, with cited problems including:

Significant staffing shortages that put both kids and corrections officers at risk (staff issues are not unique to Kentucky's system, the report noted);

Excessive use of isolation as a punitive measure, with a reported 197 instances per month in 2023;

Excessive use of force without proper training, including 41 pepper spray deployments in 10 months at the high-security Adair County Juvenile Detention Center;

A lack of mental health professionals and nursing staffers;

Inconsistent, poorly implemented education services;

And a failure to heed similar warnings previously put forward in a 2017 audit.

The list of issues is long, and there have been documented cases of alleged misconduct  just last month a former juvenile corrections officer in Campbell County was arrested after failing to appear in court on charges he'd sexually abused a detainee a year ago.

But advocates say bigger issues facing the system arent a result of staff members who want to harm kids in custody. Instead, ongoing problems like low staffing, training issues and constant turnover laid the foundation for a juvenile justice system in crisis.

"I hate to always act like it's these mean guards that are just kid haters, because it's not the case," Bear said. "But when you start adding together we don't have enough staff and we don't pay them enough, so therefore we can't get enough, I think that's the obvious big problem."

Speaking earlier this month to the state legislature's Budget Review Subcommittee on Justice and Judiciary, White said progress has been made on the hiring front.

Corrections officers now earn a starting salary of $50,000 (job postings list that figure at just over $39,000, but an additional $5.23 per hour is tacked on). That's a $20,000 increase from two years ago, according to a report White presented to legislators. And in turn, the department's staffing numbers have risen from 313 positions filled at the start of 2023 to 454 at the end of last month.

"When we lost staff, we also lost experience related to the management of our offenders and an inherit knowledge of detention," White, who was not made available for an interview with The Courier Journal, told committee members. "Not only has the increase in salary hired additional staff but its also retained staff. Theyre staying with us longer. We still have challenges, but weve come a long way.

Randy White, Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice commissioner

State Sen. Chris McDaniel, R-Ryland Heights, told legislators last week that while issues exist within the system, corrections officers must feel safe at work or else they'll find a new job that doesn't involve dealing with "young men who are probably strong, who have gotten out of order and who, frankly, have resorted to violence at more than one time in their life."

"Money will go so far to get (staff) in the door, but if you have to worry about getting beat up incessantly, youre not going to stay very long," McDaniel said.

The impact of new laws

Problems within the department have been known for years, and Kentucky leaders have pushed for improvement. But some bills passed in recent years are likely to put more strain on the system.

Several were approved after the high-profile riot at the Adair County Juvenile Detention Center in late 2022, where staff and kids housed at the center were attacked by other detainees and a girl on site was allegedly sexually assaulted. One suspect in that case, Malachi Amir Price, was charged as an adult (he was 17 at the time of the riot) and is scheduled to go to trial this fall.

In 2023, House Bill 3 put money toward reopening the Louisville Youth Detention Center, which closed amid city budget issues in 2019, but called for automatic detention of kids charged with violent crimes, a clause set to go into effect next month.

Senate Bill 162, meanwhile, put more funding in the system but called for a return to a regional model where kids in custody are sent to detention centers closest to their home, a reversal of a 2022 policy change put in place by Beshear that was aimed at separating boys and girls and housing detainees based on the level of their alleged offense.

It's a costly mandate that the Justice and Public Safety Cabinet said will be "extraordinarily difficult to meet" without additional funding for two new detention facilities for girls. Sen. Danny Carroll, R-Benton, filed Senate Bill 242 this winter to fund the transition back to a regional model and build several new facilities, but it stalled in the House after passing unanimously in the Senate.

Two bills that did pass this year  House Bill 5, known as the wide-ranging "Safer Kentucky Act," and Senate Bill 20  expand the definition of violent crime and enhance penalties for some crimes while also requiring kids who use guns in a crime be charged as adults, a move that White and the cabinet believe will put more juveniles in detention centers for longer periods of time.

Failing to pass Carroll's bill was a "huge mistake," Westerfield said. But it wasn't the legislature's worst move.

"I think passing bills like Senate Bill 20 is an even bigger mistake," he said. "It is a well-intentioned, awful, uninformed piece of legislation that will result in increased detention and harsher penalties for juveniles, even when the juvenile shouldn't be treated more harshly, because of politics. That's really it. It's because of politics. That's how the bill passed, and that's why it's not going to get repealed any time soon."

Terry Brooks, executive director of Kentucky Youth Advocates, speaks at a 2021 event. Brooks expressed optimism about the DOJ's pending investigation.

The Beshear administration isn't blameless, Brooks said. The Kentucky Youth Advocates leader said collaboration between the governor's office and the legislature that had been more frequent under former Govs. Matt Bevin and Steve Beshear isn't working as well as it used to.

But he echoed Westerfield  too often, influences in local and national politics have made juvenile justice a "convenient policy for cheap political wins" in the General Assembly. Add in inadequate funding in the budget, he said, and it's easy to see cracks in the foundation.

"Just this past session there were two or three very imaginative proposals, and they didn't get traction," Brooks said. "If you look at some of the legislation in the last couple of years that has passed, it has nothing to do with research or evidence or the track record in Kentucky. It has to do with grabbing headlines that play to a particular political base"

What comes next

Where the federal investigation into Kentucky's juvenile detention centers will lead is unclear. The Justice and Public Safety Cabinet earlier this week said department leaders have met with DOJ officials once since last month's announcement.

But don't expect it to wrap up overnight. Similar investigations have taken years to complete.

The department's first investigation into Kentucky juvenile centers began in February 1995 and moved forward with a consent decree nine months later, with federal oversight ending in 2001.

In New York, a DOJ probe looking into potential civil rights violations with kids at four residential facilities led to a consent decree in July 2010 that remained in place for more than seven years.

And findings still haven't been released from an investigation into conditions at five Texas juvenile correctional facilities launched in October 2021.

Still, Westerfield feels "a bit optimistic" about the next steps. When the federal government steps in, "that typically whips people into shape  a good old-fashioned jerking-a-knot-in-your-tail reaction."

"I'm hopeful that this sort of scrutiny might lead to some real change and productive change," he said. "Not just tougher facilities and more pepper spray and more training on how to use nonlethal restraints and holds, but more staff, more programming and better facilities, and critically, facility management, so that we have a functional DJJ that not only keeps the community safe but, I think most importantly, helps these kids not become career offenders."

From Laura Landenwich's viewpoint, the Feds have their work cut out for them. The Louisville lawyer has had an up-close look at some of the department's issues in a class-action lawsuit she and two other local attorneys have filed against the Kentucky Department of Juvenile Justice and several officials with the Adair County Juvenile Detention Center, alleging kids at the understaffed center are kept in isolation too often and are frequently mistreated by guards.

It starts with training, she said. The audit found current training methods are PowerPoint-heavy, with less of an emphasis on hands-on activities, and are inconsistent between centers. Pepper spray was deployed to corrections officers last year, but corrections officers weren't trained on its use at that time.

Last week, White said all officers have since undergone training, and he's "seen the appropriate penalties levied upon staff members" who misuse it.

"Any time you put someone in a position of authority in a prison-type setting without any training, you are guaranteed that you have bad outcomes," Landenwich said. "... It's just sort of unthinkable how anyone thought that was a solution and not a bigger problem."

Bear, the Lexington juvenile attorney, hopes the investigation takes a closer look at mental health services afforded to kids in state care and ensures a mental health practitioner is assigned to each detention center.

"These are kids who are in the greatest need of having mental health services," she said. "Not only would it help the kids, but also for de-escalation purposes, because when you have a short staff and staff who aren't trained, who are not educated on how to deal with kids or de-escalation, and you have kids with all these behavioral problems, that's going to be a recipe for disaster."

Reach Lucas Aulbach at laulbach@courier-journal.com.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky juvenile justice DOJ investigation has advocates optimistic
In our Uniquely Kentucky stories, Herald-Leader journalists bring you the quirky and cool, historic and infamous, beloved and unforgettable, and everything-in-between stories of what makes our commonwealth remarkable. Read more. Story idea? hlcityregion@herald-leader.com.

Isaac Hawes was born into slavery in Clark County in 1830.

In 1864, as a still-enslaved man, he made the dangerous and difficult journey to Camp Nelson in Jessamine County where Black men could enlist in the U.S. Army. He became part of the 122nd Regiment of the U.S. Colored Troops, earning his freedom even though slavery was still legal in Kentucky.

Hawes was eventually stationed in Galveston, Texas, and he was there on June 19, 1865, when Gen. Gordon Granger issued General Order No. 3, enforcing President Abraham Lincolns 1863 Emancipation Proclamation that abolished slavery in the Confederate states.

That day became whats now the federal holiday of Juneteenth.

Hawes survived the war, and ended up dying in 1916 at a veterans hospital in Ohio. He is buried at African Cemetery #2 in Lexington along with 153 other soldiers from the U.S. Colored Troops.

(In one of those strange twists of history, Granger ended up buried just a few miles away at the Lexington Cemetery.)

Its such an amazing story  they see the moment of Juneteenth in Texas, and then they come back to Kentucky and no one is free yet, said Yvonne Giles, a local historian who restored the cemetery. She researched the many stories of men like Hawes who enlisted and trained at Camp Nelson and then were buried at a segregated cemetery in North Lexington.

Yvonne Giles looks at new headstones on Sunday, Feb. 20, 2022, she helped acquire for military veterans buried at African Cemetery #2. Many of the soldiers who enlisted at Camp Nelson for their freedom are buried there.

As Juneteenth gets underway with celebrations of the end of slavery, the story of Hawes and his fellow soldiers from Camp Nelson reminds us just how complex emancipation really was, particularly here in Kentucky.

I think Kentuckians should know that this state played a pretty central role in pushing emancipation along in this country, said Amy Murrell Taylor, a University of Kentucky history professor and the author of Embattled Freedom: Journeys through the Civil Wars Slave Refugee Camps.

Emancipation came because of determined actions of enslaved people themselves, she said. It was not given to them, and thats what Camp Nelson represents.

Camp Nelson is our Canada

Kentuckys slow and winding route to emancipation is getting more attention, thanks to Camp Nelsons rolling hills and palisades becoming a national monument site in 2018 after years of stewardship by Jessamine County officials.

The move to create the commonwealths first national monument site, pushed by Kentuckys U.S. Rep. Andy Barr and Sen. Mitch McConnell, meant that federal resources could be used to further explore the history there.

Ensuring its recognition as a National Monument helps preserve this vital piece of history, reminding us of the sacrifices made and the progress achieved, Barr said in a statement. It is an honor to support and advocate for Camp Nelson and to bring its story to the national stage.

Camp Nelson sat at a crucial junction near one of the few bridges over the Kentucky River. Enslaved people built a series of battlements around the property starting in 1863. By the next year, as racial restrictions on enlistment were lifted, they were instead coming to be trained as soldiers who were now free.

A map of Camp Nelson during the Civil War is on display at Camp Nelson National Monument.

Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863. But it only affected states in open rebellion against the United States.

In one of those impossible ironies of history, Kentucky had not joined the Confederacy, so it could still keep people in slavery and enthusiastically did so. As word spread that freedom waited at a Jessamine County military camp, more and more enslaved men, women and children made their way there, risking punishment, jail or death.

Its an amazing time, said Steve Phan, Chief of Interpretation for Camp Nelson.

People traveled in every direction they could to escape slavery, and many of them came here. Camp Nelson is our Canada, they said.

Steve Phan, chief of interpretation at Camp Nelson National Monument, speaks about the sites history in Nicholasville.

By the end of the war in 1865, more than 23,000 African Americans had joined the U.S. Army in Kentucky. That made it the second-largest contributor of United States Colored Troops from any state. More than 10,000 were either enlisted or trained at Camp Nelson.

Phan is helping design and expand the installations that explore the stories of men like Samuel Truehart, an enslaved man from Frankfort who made his way to Camp Nelson in 1864, fought in Virginia and then was part of the Exodusters, former Colored Troop soldiers who helped settle Kansas.

Or Elijiah Marrs, an enslaved man in Shelby County, who organized 27 other men armed with clubs and walked to Louisville to enlist. He was trained at Camp Nelson, and after the war, he co-founded Simmons College in Louisville. Much of the information theyve used has come directly from the descendants of those first freed soldiers, Phan said.

Information about Samuel Truehart, a private in the U.S. Colored Cavalry, is on display in the barracks at Camp Nelson National Monument.

But Phan noted its important for people to understand that for every movement forward, there was backlash.

Truehart, for example, was a member of the 5th U.S. Colored Troops who fought at the Battle of Saltville in Virginia. The U.S. Army retreated, leaving many troops behind, including members of the 5th USCC, about 40 or 50 of whom were slaughtered by Confederate troops after the battle. Its now known as the Saltville Massacre.

Many men who made their way to Camp Nelson were accompanied by women and children. The Army had not made provision in either space or resources for all the people, so it would habitually expel them.

During a bitter cold spell in November 1864, the Army sent away more than 400 Black people, most of them women and children. More than 200 people died of exposure and illness. First-person accounts of the tragedy made their way to Washington, and by March 1865, Congress had passed a law that freed wives and children of any Colored Troop soldiers.

The Army also constructed the Camp Nelson Home for Colored Refugees across the road from the camp, which was briefly led by Rev. John Fee, the founder of Berea College.

There is so much triumph and tragedy here, Phan said. But its important to remember that African-American men use the military service as an opportunity to secure their civil rights. Theyre fighting for the rights of citizenship.

A national holiday

Not even military service was enough to secure those rights fully. Black men still faced terrible danger and injustice after the war as Reconstruction gave way to Jim Crow laws.

For reasons I still dont fully understand, white slave owners in Kentucky still believed they could keep slavery going even as its collapsing everyone else, said UKs Taylor.

Theyre still buying and selling, which is a reflection of some confidence in the future. Then they are going to great lengths to pass new state laws to protect slavery  that determination of white Kentuckians to hold on does create a really volatile and dangerous environment for becoming free.

A moment for Graveyard No. 1, where soldiers and civilians were buried at Camp Nelson National Monument in Nicholasville, Ky.

But Kentucky was forced to face the reality of the 13th Amendment when it was ratified by 27 of the 36 states in December 1865. (Kentucky did not ratify it until 1976.)

For many years, Black communities celebrated the different days they became free, or learned they were free. But Texas celebration of Juneteenth became the best known, and it became a national holiday in 2021, the first new federal holiday since Martin Luther King Jr. Day was adopted in 1983.

Theres no better place for Kentuckians to celebrate Juneteenth than Camp Nelson because no other place hosted and accelerated emancipation to such a degree. The National Park Service has big plans to expand the monument site  restoring the white house off the highway that housed Camp Nelsons officers and working to explore whats left of the refugee home across the road.

Thousands of soldiers and women and children were emancipated there, said Steve McBride, a historian who helped oversee the transition of Camp Nelson to the park service.

It really began the destruction of slavery in Kentucky. It happened there.
UAW President Shawn Fain is set to speak at a press conference at the UAW Local 112 office on Friday, May 17, 2024, in Coaling, Alabama. Local Mercedes-Benz workers in Vance voted against unionizing.

Just days before workers at a Mercedes-Benz plant in Alabama began voting last week on whether to unionize, Republican Gov. Kay Ivey signed a new law that would claw back state incentives from companies that voluntarily recognize labor unions.

Alabamas move follows similar efforts in Georgia and Tennessee, where GOP leaders also have passed laws pushing against a reinvigorated labor movement.

The laws require that unions be formed only by secret ballots rather than the so-called card check process, in which employers can voluntarily recognize a union without a protracted election process. And under the laws, companies that voluntarily recognize unions risk losing state incentives, which amount to billions of dollars invested by governments to bring automakers to the region.

These new laws speak to the growing push of labor unions into Southern states  and the fierce opposition of pro-business GOP leaders there. For decades, the region has attracted investments from foreign automakers with lucrative tax breaks, low-cost labor and a lack of labor unions. Labor leaders hope that is changing now that workers at Volkswagens plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee, overwhelmingly endorsed a union in April, becoming the first foreign auto plant in the South ever organized by the United Auto Workers.

Unions such as the UAW argue their involvement can help boost wages and improve the work environment at auto plants. But GOP forces in the South view unions as an existential threat to their manufacturing economies  of even more importance now that states are increasingly competing for electric vehicle and battery plants.

Mercedes-Benz workers outside of Tuscaloosa, Alabama, last month voted against joining a union at their plant, in a setback for the labor movement. But more organizing drives are underway in Alabama and South Carolina, as well as in California.

Many Southern states where unions have begun to focus already are less friendly to organizing. They are so-called right-to-work states, where each employee in a workplace can decide whether to join and pay union dues, though all workers are represented by the union.

Seeking to capitalize on major contract wins it secured for workers last year at the nations Big Three automakers (GM, Ford and Stellantis), the United Auto Workers union announced plans to spend $40 million through 2026 to help organize workers at auto and battery plants across the country, with a particular focus on the South. The union did not respond to multiple Stateline requests for comment.

A week before Aprils monumental vote at the Tennessee Volkswagen plant, six Southern Republican governors warned that unionization would jeopardize the regions auto jobs. In addition to Ivey in Alabama, the governors of Georgia, Mississippi, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas also signed on.

And Ivey continued to rally against organized labor in auto plants last week, as she announced she had signed the states bill regarding secret ballots.

Alabama is not Michigan, Ivey said at a chamber of commerce event last week.   We want to ensure that Alabama values, not Detroit values, continue to define the future of this great state.

Its unclear how much impact the new laws will have. The vote in Chattanooga was conducted by secret ballot with nearly three-quarters of all workers who voted in the election choosing to join the UAW. Tennessee awarded Volkswagen more than $500 million in incentives to build its plant there in 2008.

To Tennessee state Rep. Yusuf Hakeem, the 2023 law regarding union elections passed in his state was yet another GOP effort to blockade union power in the South.

Its typical, in my view, for Southern states to have that kind of a mindset: to have less of a voice for workers as opposed to having an exchange between workers and employer, said Hakeem, a Democrat.

Hakeem said the UAWs landslide win in his hometown of Chattanooga exposed a political miscalculation on the part of Republicans who view economic development prospects and union organizing as mutually exclusive.

I thought it was huge, he said. They thought that scare tactics would be the winning thing for them  and the union workers demonstrated that they have a backbone.

Right to Work states

The American Legislative Exchange Council, a conservative group known as ALEC that works with lawmakers across the country, introduced model legislation similar to the laws already passed in Alabama, Georgia and Tennessee.

ALEC did not respond to a request for comment, but the organizations involvement could further push the legislative concept across red states, particularly in the South.

That expansion is likely to happen, said Vincent Vernuccio, a senior fellow at the Mackinac Center for Public Policy, a conservative think tank that worked with Tennessee Republican lawmakers on their legislation.

Were seeing a snowball effect, he said of the legislation. It is getting noticed and I fully expect it to spread.

Vernuccio said most Southern employers had been protecting their employees by calling for secret ballot elections rather than the signing of union cards in the open.

There could be peer pressure, there can be coercion and intimidation, he said, and probably even more common is the unions trying to make sure that employees  are not receiving both sides of the story on what would happen if a union organized them.

Billy Dycus, president of the Tennessee AFL-CIO Labor Council, viewed fierce GOP opposition to Chattanoogas union effort as a boon to the cause.

I think that helped more than it hurt, he said. People say, You know what, were kind of tired of the government telling us how we should run our lives.

Dycus, whose organization represents more than 60,000 union workers in the state, including teachers, steelworkers and nurses, said labor leaders have little incentive to mislead or pressure employees to join unions, especially in right-to-work states. Dycus said that because workers can choose whether to join unions, organizers must continually prove their worth to maintain membership and dues.

They think that card check means we go in and twist arms and force people to sign cards. That doesnt make any sense because youre in a right-to-work state, he said.

Opponents of the new union voting laws argue that pushing for elections through secret ballot run by the National Labor Relations Board  as opposed to card check  can subject workers to anti-union messaging from management. Such elections also might delay the inevitable, they argue, in cases where the union has identified a clear majority of support.

But pro-business Republicans portray the new laws as ways to protect the privacy of individual workers, who might feel peer pressure to sign union authorization cards in a card-check scenario.

Theres absolutely nothing in this bill that would stop anybody from being able to unionize, Georgia state Sen. Mike Hodges, a Republican who carried his states bill on the floor for Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, said in an interview.

Hodges said the new law aims to ensure a level playing field in union decisions. He noted that his father, a member of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers in Georgia, raised him and three siblings on union wages and benefits.

We didnt say we dont want unions, Hodges said. Bless your heart, if you want to unionize, unionize.

Alabama state Sen. Arthur Orr, a Republican who sponsored the legislation in his state, said the secret ballot process protects workers from both management and union leadership.

Employees are caught in a tug of war, if you will, Orr said. Having the secret ballot provides the employees the ability to say what they want to, one side or the other. But when it comes to the ultimate voting, they can do it privately.

Union expansion could hurt economic development prospects, Orr said, but workers always have the right to unionize.

If companies are not taking care of their workers  and you can define that as you will, whether its pay or whether its time, job flexibility, safety, whatever  then that makes them vulnerable to an organization effort, he said.

Legal challenges

While some labor advocates have argued the state bills could be preempted by federal labor law, Orr said he consulted with several attorneys on Alabamas legislation. He noted that Tennessees law had not been challenged in court.

Still, its a close question as to whether these laws would hold up to a legal challenge since federal laws govern most labor issues in the private sector, said Benjamin Sachs, a professor of labor and industry at Harvard Law School. Some labor advocates expect courts could strike down the state laws, finding them preempted by federal labor law.

What I can say for sure is that if its not preempted, then we are really opening up the landscape to dramatically more state and city intervention into labor relations and the rules of union organizing, he said in an interview.

In his blog, OnLabor, Sachs warned anti-union forces to be careful what they wished for: If the Southern GOP laws stand, he wrote, it could open the door to blue states passing a litany of bills with opposite aims.

If red states are entitled to tie economic incentives to a ban on card check, then blue states presumably are entitled to tie economic incentives on a requirement for card check, he added in the interview.

While the recent labor win in Tennessee shows unions in the South can still succeed with a secret ballot process, Sachs said the legislation could have a chilling effect on companies that would otherwise prefer to voluntarily recognize unions.

If it werent a big deal, they wouldnt have enacted these laws, he 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 a key labor union pushes into the South, red states push back appeared first on Michigan Advance.
We knew something was not on the level: Porter County Expo Center pulls out of balloon fest

Doug Richie, who operates two food trailers for area festivals, wondered what was up when he paid $750 via bank transfer to bring his trailers to a balloon festival scheduled for late June at the Porter County Expo Center.

He usually pays to reserve his spot by check or in person with cash. His wife found it odd that Hot Air America, Inc., wanted a bank transfer.

Looking back now, he calls it womens intuition.

Richie and his wife werent the only ones who wondered about the event. Lori Daly, director of the Porter County-owned Expo Center, also had her suspicions about Richard Garvie, the events promoter.

We knew something was not on the level. So I requested his federal Employee Identification Number, articles of incorporation, anything to show they were legitimate. He provided nothing, she said, adding the event was on the Expo Centers calendar for two weeks in April before she took it off.

I pulled it off when we started to notice issues. Then it took another month. I gave him a deadline to get me the requested documents. The day after I issued the deadline, he canceled. Which I knew he would because it was all a scam and he was caught, she said.

Despite stories in news articles from coast to coast about failed balloon festivals organized by Garvie, he steadfastly denied hes scamming anybody and claimed a competitor has been calling festival sites in advance to poison his reputation, causing the venues to cancel.

Garvie said he is providing financing to the owners, has been more involved in the past, and is no longer involved in Hot Air Americas day-to-day operations. In the same breath, he claimed the Expo Center event hadnt been canceled but moved to another venue, though he couldnt say where it was.

He also said Daly and the Expo staff were very unprofessional.

I think his definition of being unprofessional is different than mine, Daly said. I merely requested their FEIN, articles of incorporation or anything filed on behalf of the company. He provided not one document. If the event is taking place elsewhere, they have not advertised an event that is two weeks away.

Daly also requested the event be removed from Eventbrite so people couldnt purchase tickets after it was canceled.

Garvie said the Expo Center hadnt been scammed and the event hadnt been canceled.

Youre doing a story that the event isnt taking place, he told the Post-Tribune Wednesday afternoon. Youre calling up asking why an event has been canceled and as far as I know, it hasnt been canceled.

Daly said she received an email from Garvie on May 16 canceling the event.

On June 8, the Expo Center put a post on Facebook saying the festival, scheduled for June 28-30, had been canceled and asking folks not to purchase tickets through the online site Eventbrite.

On Wednesday, the Expo Center put up another post, shared by the Porter County Sheriffs Department, that said Update: SCAM ALERT, and included a link to a Tuesday story in the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, that said people purchased tickets on Eventbrite not knowing the event had been canceled and showed up at the venue, only to be disappointed.

Allegheny County Police issued a scam report and the story quoted a lieutenant with the department, though Garvie told the Post-Tribune the officer was lying.

Communities in Madison, Wisconsin, and Atlanta, Georgia, have reported similar circumstances, according to media coverage.

By Thursday morning, despite Garvies insistence that the event was going on as planned somewhere else, Hot Air America, Inc., said in a Facebook message to the Post-Tribune that the event had indeed been canceled and put the blame on Daly, among others.

The statement made a week ago by Porter County Expo that this event had been canceled was false. The statement saying that this event was a scam  remember that we had now booked two venues, paid two venue fees, received two approvals and spent significant monies promoting these events  is false, the statement noted. (Wednesday), the Porter County Expo said they themselves had been scammed. This is also entirely false and defamatory.

Hot Air America also threatened legal action against county officials and others who have been responsible for the cancellation of our events.

Tickets, according to an event website, were $25 for a general car pass and $50 for a premium car pass.

Hot Air America, Inc., said in its Facebook message to the Post-Tribune that tickets could no longer be purchased as of 8 a.m. that day and the company had 87 tickets to refund, and would refund vendors their fees as well.

Sgt. Ben McFalls, public information officer for the sheriffs department, said police are not investigating Hot Air America, Inc. at this time.

As for Richie, the vendor, he found out about the festival on Facebook in early April and reached out to the festival organizer about bringing his trailers up from Jasper County, where hes based and focuses most of his work.

The fee was supposed to be $500 per trailer but he got a break on the pricing. He found out while he was camping with family that the event had been canceled.

He reached out to Hot Air America with a Facebook message and said he wanted his money back if the festival was canceled. By Wednesday, he had been told there was a venue change.

They said they would let me know, Richie said, adding he has to hire employees to work in advance. Once I miss an event and dont have another to replace it, that revenue is gone.

As he waited for a response, Richie said even if the festival went forward somewhere else, he didnt want to do it.

They dont communicate, he said, and when they communicate, their communication is vague.

alavalley@chicagotribune.com
The allurement that men like Nigel Farage hold out to journalists is precisely the allurement that Cape Hatteras holds out to sailors; they are enormously dangerous and hence enormously exciting. To the average Right-wing columnist, doomed to banal drudgery for most of our lives, they offer the only grand hazard we have ever encountered. Thus it has become customary in recent weeks to refer to Mr Farage as the most consequential politician since Margaret Thatcher.

I understand that many Telegraph readers have succumbed to his seductive baits, but really? I knew Lady Thatcher, and to compare the two is to compare the Uffizi Gallery to a third-rate auction house.

Every generation gets the politicians it deserves, and Mr Farage is reality TVs answer to Sunak and Starmer. His career has been a vast, eye-catching way to self-medicate on the drugs of bombast and vanity.

Farage presents himself as a break with the past, but what he really offers is more chaos without substance. He is not even on the Right. Populists, whatever their claims, never are.

They are tummy ticklers and shapeshifters, who would promise a one-hour orgasm to a Turkish eunuch.

Farage has no time for free-market economics or its disciplines. He has no time for discipline, being physiologically incapable of running a team of any kind. It is instructive to remember that he has fallen out with almost every comrade he has ever had, detonated almost every alliance he has ever made, and presided over more rows than anyone in politics.

His actual achievements hardly bear scrutiny. Here is a man who has tried and failed to be elected as an MP seven times. Here is a man who didnt win Brexit, because Vote Leave did. Here is a man who the generals of Leave, including Johnson and Gove, refused to associate with because they penetrated his bunkum and saw him as a liability. Here is a man who claims that Reform UK will become the official opposition, when psephologists predict it will win one seat. Here is a man who is hoping the Conservatives may be reduced to fewer than 100 MPs, when, as a cursory glance at the texts will tell you, this has never happened in the entire history of the party.

(Any talk of a Canada scenario is piffle, as you would have to be swivel-eyed to believe the Conservatives will be left with just two seats.) Here is a man who believes he can take over the Tory party, when the majority of its MPs will never forgive him for what he has done to their electoral prospects.

Readers must know in their hearts that his motive is gainful, with no guilt accruing to it. Here is a man who seeks to give Starmer, a socialist with poisons more deadly than those of the Borgias, a majority of such proportions that the country will never recover; making Farage an enabler of tax rises, unions unleashed, VAT on private schools and the genocide of small businesses.

Here is a man who claims to be a patriot, but has named Putin as the world leader he most admires. Moscows rose. Behind the facade of frankness, Farage is as slippery as a peddlers store of unguents. Here is a man who is a master of the venomous insinuation, who knows he will always get off scot-free; hence his remark that Rishi Sunak doesnt get British culture.

Here is a man whose disciples come from where the grass grows high, and where racism and idiocy still hold their puissance. (Ten Reform UK candidates have been expelled or suspended for remarks both unsavoury and certifiable, including likening black people to baboons. An eleventh has said we should not have fought Hitler.)

Here is a man acting not from principle but from pique, because he cannot forgive Vote Leave and the Tories for shunning him and refusing him a Triumph. He is to statesmen what comedians are to great actors, a sort of reductio ad absurdum of them.

Here is man whose success may seem vast, but is hollow as well, and may yet prove to be a huge and preposterous nothing. Here is a man who is acclaimed by yelling multitudes, but who makes up these multitudes? Homo neanderthalensis. Wherever the flambeaux of bilge smokes and gutters, he sets out his traps. The Reform vote is soft and illusory, less Viagra than Wegovy, and in the week before the election, Farages party is likely to perform well below the Tories in the most reliable polls.

Margaret Thatcher would have despised him. She was vehemently against applause-seekers, and her greatest aspiration was to prevent a socialist government with a large majority from ever ruling in Britain again. I spent the election night of 1992 in her company.

Though she had been ousted by her party, she turned and said to me, when it was clear John Major had won, Thank God. She would have seen Farage as a traitor to the national interest, and a one-trick phoney at that. Indeed, in some ways, he is the Prince Harry of politics, only with cunning; perpetually delusional, perpetually vengeful. Ask yourself, would you wish your daughter to marry such a person? If the answer is no, do not vote for him. Do not listen to his siren song. For here is a man, who on July 5, is going to look like an ass.

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What we know and don't know about a Wisconsin woman linked to a botched hit job in U.K.

The British press is reporting that a former Wisconsin woman has been tied to a botched contract killing in 2019.

The woman was named in the court files for a case that saw a father and son convicted of conspiracy to murder a business rival, Birmingham Crown Court said.

According to reports from British media, a prosecutor said the former Milwaukee woman was hired to assassinate the rival, but her gun jammed and prevented the killing.

It could not be determined if she is facing charges in the case, or being sought as a person of interest, so the Journal Sentinel is not naming her.

Heres what we know and dont know about the situation:

What the British media has reported about the womans connection to the case

British media extensively detailed the trial and the Wisconsin womans alleged role in the case.

The Journal Sentinel hasnt been able to confirm with British or American officials whether the woman is a suspect.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation declined to comment.

In an email to the Journal Sentinel, the West Midlands Police, the British department investigating the crime, said efforts to locate a woman we believe to have been involved in the conspiracy continue.

The spokesperson declined to confirm the name of the woman. They also declined an interview with a police detective working the case, citing it as an ongoing investigation.

A Birmingham Crown Court official said the woman was not sent to trial, and they cannot confirm if she was or is connected to the crime.

Does the woman live in Wisconsin?

It appears unlikely she still lives in Wisconsin.

The womans last known address in Wisconsin was in West Allis, but no one in the sparsely populated neighborhood remembered her Wednesday when reporters from the Journal Sentinel knocked on doors. A British reporter who had flown in from New York was also canvassing the neighborhood.

The woman was charged with identity theft in Grant County five years ago

In Grant County, a southwest Wisconsin county on the Iowa and Illinois border, an arrest warrant was issued for the woman in early 2020. The Journal Sentinel could not confirm the woman in the case is the same as the woman named in U.K. court and media, though they share the same name and age.

That warrant came in connection to one count of identity theft and two counts of attempted identity theft in 2019, according to Wisconsin court records.

The complaint says the woman spoke with a detective in the case Sept. 12, 2019.

The criminal complaint in the case detailed how the woman allegedly used someones banking information to make credit card payments. A victim said three attempted transactions were made, with only the first, for $422 to Discover Financial Services, successful.

The victim told the detective an employee of a credit card company told him who made the fraudulent transaction. The victim googled the name and found she worked for the Brewers. He had recently bought tickets for a Brewers game.

A Grant County detective, who could not be reached Wednesday, later confirmed the suspect had worked for the Brewers.

She told a police detective she worked in telephone sales for the Brewers but that she did not handle checks in her role, the complaint said. The woman confirmed to the detective she had a Discover credit card.

Did the woman work for the Brewers?

Yes. A source Wednesday confirmed she worked as a part-time seasonal worker in the ticket office. From social media posts, it appears she last worked with the team about five years ago.

British press report on connection to conspiracy to murder

BriminghamLive, a U.K.-based media outlet, said court evidence showed the woman spent 19 days in the country as part of the attempted assassination. She was hired by Mohammed Aslam and his son Mohammed Nazir to kill Sikander Ali, a business rival they had fought with in 2018, the Daily Mail reported.

According to U.K. media, citing court proceedings:

On Sept. 7, the woman was said to have attempted to shoot and kill Sikander Ali in Birmingham, while disguised in a hijab, according to BirminghamLive. Her gun jammed and she later texted Alis father, Aslat Mahumad, Where are you hiding? and Stop playing hide and seek you are lucky it jammed, both outlets reported.

She later returned and fired three more shots at the property and texted the father Go look at your house. I will be shedding blood soon.

The woman is reported to have flown back to the States on Sept. 9. She spoke with a detective in the Grant County case three days later.

Aslam and Nazir face a sentencing hearing on Aug. 9.

The Daily Mail reported that there was "no suggestion" the woman was connected to other contract killings.

JR Radcliffe and Hannah Kirby of the Journal Sentinel staff contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: What we know about Wisconsin woman linked to U.K. hit job
What to know: Wadsworth joins Akron, Barberton, Cuyahoga Falls and others in the DORA era

Wadsworth Director of Economic Development Tom Morris shows one of the city's new DORA cups Monday in Wadsworth.

It's time to tip a plastic beverage cup to Wadsworth, which joined the growing DORA community in the Greater Akron area on Friday.

A DORA, for those not paying attention, is a Designated Outdoor Refreshment Area, a place where the state's open container laws are relaxed. That means, simply, that during designated hours in a designated area, people can visit an establishment and bring their adult beverages with them.

Wadsworth's nascent DORA had its first test run with an downtown event Friday and it went well, said the city's economic development director, Tom Morris.

It wasn't a perfect first day, but it was a success, Morris said Monday in a phone interview. Some merchants didn't have the specially-made DORA cups, but the city was able to provide a quick solution.

More: Cuyahoga Falls considering downtown DORA zone for outdoor drinking

More: Refreshment on its way: Barberton latest Summit County city to establish DORA

More: Akron, Hudson, Barberton test refreshment districts, see DORA dividends now and in future

"We were able to have it on Friday with the DORA stickers and it (was) very successful," he said.

Here a few things to know about the Wadsworth, and other, DORAs.

DORA locations are expanding

According to an Ohio Department of Commerce map, four municipalities in Summit County, two in Medina, three in Portage and seven in Stark County have DORAs.

In Summit County, Akron, Barberton, Cuyahoga Falls and Hudson have the designated districts.

Wadsworth is the latest in the area, and the idea has been talked about for years, said Morris. Council approved the DORA in April, but had to wait a couple of months until the state signed off.

What about Wadsworth's DORA?

The city has nine establishments or organizations with liquor licenses in its designated area, with six currently participating.

The DORA is in effect from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., meaning don't walk the area at midnight with your DORA cup in hand.

Who benefits from having a DORA?

For many people, a DORA enables them to enjoy concerts and other events with their favorite stout beer or pinot noir in hand.

For businesses with liquor licenses, it can help increase business that might be  especially during events  lured away by food trucks or other vendors. When an event isn't taking place, a customer can visit for an adult beverage and  who knows  they might stick around for a sandwich and appetizer.

Cities like DORAs because they're a tool to lure people a downtown area, which is a selling point for new merchants.

DORAs have helped other downtowns

Megan Harvey, executive director of Main Street Wadsworth, said she saw the effectiveness of a DORA when she worked for the Akron Civic Theatre.

"I saw how successful it was in Akron," she said. "... I think it definitely brought dollars back into our community."

Mayor Robin Laubaugh said the city looked at other cities with DORAs before deciding to implement its own.

"It seems it has been a nice boost to their downtown economies," she said. "This will be an extra tool for (us)."

Leave a message for Alan Ashworth at 330-996-3859 or email him at aashworth@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @newsalanbeaconj or Facebook at www.facebook.com/alan.newsman.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: What to know: Wadsworth joins the plastic cup league with DORA
Photo: Press Service of the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan

BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev attended the opening of the Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex in the Absheron district, Trend reports.

Fuad Naghiyev, Chairman of the State Tourism Agency of Azerbaijan, briefed the head of state on the development of the complex.

The Mud Volcanoes Tourism Complex covers an area of 12 hectares and includes an administrative building. The newly established tourism infrastructure has generated over 60 job opportunities for local residents, particularly those from surrounding areas. The Tourism Information Center at the complex features an exhibition hall and workshop.

The Nature History Exhibition Hall showcases a diverse collection, including 98 animal skeletons from Azerbaijan and around the world.

Moreover, the Minerals exhibition displays nearly 80 types of minerals found in Azerbaijan.

Additionally, a 110-seat restaurant has been constructed on the premises.
On warships in Cuba, Russia says West is deaf to Moscow's diplomatic signals

By Dmitry Antonov and Nelson Acosta

MOSCOW/HAVANA (Reuters) - Russia said on Thursday that the United States should not be nervous about Russian warships in Cuba but that the West appeared deaf to any diplomatic signals from Moscow and only took notice when the army or navy took action.

A Russian navy frigate and a nuclear-powered submarine churned into Havana harbour on Wednesday, a stopover the U.S. and Cuba said posed no threat but which was widely seen as a Russian show of force as tensions rise over the Ukraine war.

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan said there was no evidence of Russia transferring any missiles to Cuba, but that the U.S. would remain vigilant.

When asked about purported nervousness in Washington over the fear that Russia could transfer military personnel to Cuba or even create a military base on the island, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said such exercises were common practice.

"This is a normal practice for all states, including such a large maritime power as Russia," Peskov told reporters. "So we don't see any reason to worry in this case."

The Admiral Gorshkov frigate and the nuclear-powered submarine Kazan, half submerged with its crew on deck, sailed into Havana harbor on Wednesday after conducting "high-precision missile weapons" training in the Atlantic Ocean.

Cuba's foreign ministry said the vessels carried no nuclear weapons, an assertion echoed by U.S. officials.

When asked what signal Moscow was sending, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said the West never appeared to take notice when Russia sent signals through diplomatic channels.

"As soon as it comes to exercises or sea voyages, we immediately hear questions and a desire to know what these messages are about," Zakharova said. "Why do only signals related only to our army and navy reach the West?"

"Why does the West remain completely deaf, and then comes up with the most powerful campaigns to prevent Russian signals from entering its information realm?"

TOURIST ATTRACTION

The Russian warships were docked at Havana's cruise ship terminal on Thursday, just 100 miles from Key West, Florida.

Cubans and tourists on holiday viewed the ships from a distance, and dozens formed a queue under the hot Caribbean sun for the opportunity to go aboard the frigate.

"The United States need not worry," said Havana resident Ariel Vera, a 55-year-old state worker who was among the first in line. "Cuba is a country of peace and our Russian friends are coming on a friendly visit."

The Russian vessels are expected to remain in Havana until June 17, Russia's defence ministry has said.

A Canadian navy patrol vessel, the Margaret Brooke, is also expected to arrive in Havana on Friday, Cuba and Canada have said, and will be docked not far from the Russian fleet inside the harbor.

(Reporting by Dmitry Antonov; Additional reporting by Nelson Acosta, Anett Rios and Alien Fernandez in Havana; Writing by Dave Sherwood; Editing by Guy Faulconbridge and Daniel Wallis)
Thursdays Top Stories

Thursdays Five Facts

[1] NTSB: Poor maintenance contributed to BCSO helicopter crash  The NTSB says poor maintenance contributed to a 2022 BCSO helicopter crash that killed four first responders. The report names a number of factors that contributed to the crash, raising questions about whether or not the helicopter should have been in the air. In July of 2022 BCSO Metro 2 helicopter was returning from helping fight wildfires in Las Vegas. The report says the crash was likely caused by the engine losing power because of poor maintenance of the starter generator.

[2] Following a SWAT-caused fire in ABQ, owners of the home sue the city and county  In 2022 a SWAT team fired tear gas canisters into an Albuquerque home, igniting a fire which killed 15-year-old Brett Rosenau. The family who owned the home is suing the city and Bernalillo county. The ACLU says the actions of BCSO and APD resulting in the family receiving no compensation as they continue to pay for a mortgage on a home they cant live in. The city paid Brett Rosenaus family $750,000 to settle their lawsuit with the city.

[3] Record heat Thursday, before rain and cool down Friday  Temperatures will hit near-record and record highs today all across New Mexico, reaching the 90s and 100s. Skies will stay sunny through midday, but clouds, showers and storms will build over the mountains this afternoon and evening. Clouds will increase across the state tonight, and rain will move in to western NM by Friday morning. Showers and storms are expected on Friday, with the most active weather during the afternoon and evening.

[4] Suspected vandal of La Cieneguilla Petroglyphs indicted in federal court  A man has been indicted for vandalizing a monument southwest of Santa Fe. In 2022 two vandalism incidents caught the attention of the public and surrounding pueblos when the La Cieneguilla petroglyphs were spray painted. Now, Jesse Foster is indicted for defacing the site. Foster faces three counts of damage to archeological resources over $500. He pleaded not guilty and has been released pending trial.

[5] Thousands attend WNMUs annual Fiesta Latina! event  Western New Mexico University held its 7th annual Fiesta Latina! cultural event. The festival featured an artisan mercado featuring handmade work from 50 traditional artists. WNMU says there was also a fashion show, arts and crafts, mariachi, flamenco, and a documentary viewing. This years fiesta drew over 5,000 visitors.

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 KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos.
The KyivPride march will occur on June 16 in the streets of Kyiv. Around 500 participants, including activists, diplomats, and international community representatives, will participate.



The event will implement strict security measures such as pre-registration and a closed format. Only registered participants will know the location details. Law enforcement will also be aware of the route details, and the march will take place in close proximity to shelters in case of an air alert.



Originally planned for the Kyiv metro system, the march had to be relocated to the streets after the Kyiv City Council denied permission to hold it in the metro for security reasons. In a statement on June 3, Kyivs City Hall said that the metro system, which doubles as an air raid shelter during Russian aerial attacks, is a "dual-use facility and part of the city's critical infrastructure."



This will be the first LGBTQ+ pride event Kyiv will host since the start of Russias full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.



Anna Sharyhina, head of the KyivPride board, underscored the importance of holding this year's march in Kyiv despite risks.



We have a strong community of LGBTQ+ military personnel. Not all of them are open, but those who are open will also come to the march. And we want to show to Ukrainians and to the world that there are LGBTQ+ military personnel in Ukraine, Sharyhina said.



Sharyhina also highlighted the march's importance for LGBTQ+ individuals under occupation, or in captivity, and those currently unable to advocate for their rights due to their circumstances.



The theme, "Unite for equality and victory," aims to affirm that LGBTQ+ members are integral parts of Ukrainian society.



Meanwhile in Russia, the country's Supreme Court declared "the international LGBT social movement" to be "an extremist organization" on Nov. 30, 2023 and banned all its activities.

Since then, several cases have been recorded of individuals convicted of "extremism" for displaying LGBTQ+ symbols.

Read also: Switzerland encounters rise in cyberattacks and disinformation prior to upcoming Ukraine summit

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Kyiv to sign 'unprecedented' security deal with US, Japan at G7 summit, Zelensky says

Ukraine will sign bilateral security agreements with the United States and Japan on the sidelines of the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Italy, President Volodymyr Zelensky said.

The summit will be held between June 13-15 in Apulia, a southern region of Italy. At least fifteen guest countries and institutions are expected to attend, in addition to the leaders of G7.

Zelensky will join the summit and plans to hold talks with U.S. President Joe Biden, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, the prime ministers of Italy, Canada, and the U.K., European Council President, and International Monetary Fund (IMF) managing director.

He described the upcoming deal with Washington as "unprecedented."

The agreement outlines a vision of how to strengthen Ukraine's defense and deterrence capabilities and secures "commitments from Ukraine on reforms" and on "end-use monitoring" for U.S.-provided weapons, U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan Sullivan said.

When signed, the U.S. and Japan would join 14 other countries including the U.K., Germany, France, Canada, and the Netherlands, which have signed similar deals to help Ukraine repel Russia's aggression based on a pledge made by G7 at the NATO summit in Vilnius in July 2023.

"Today, as part of this declaration, we are signing the final two security agreements with G7 members. The entire Ukrainian people, including our warriors, see that the G7 will always support Ukraine," Zelensky said.

While most of the summit will focus on Ukraine's economy and defense, key topics will include the development of a fighter jet coalition, boosting the country's air defense system, and increasing long-range capabilities, according to the president.

The leaders are also expected to approve a format for using Russian assets to benefit Ukraine. The French presidency said on June 12 that the partners reached an agreement to provide Kyiv with $50 billion by the end of the year.

Read also: Can new security agreements forge Ukraines path to victory?

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Rosa Hidalgo, 32, is among the patients concerned about the upcoming closure of an outpatient psychiatric clinic at Los Angeles General Medical Center, where she's been getting care for about six years. (Genaro Molina / Los Angeles Times)

When Theresa Talavera was beset with thoughts of suicide, she turned to a familiar place in Boyle Heights.

"They took care of me right there and then," the Highland Park resident said. "And I never left."

Seventeen years later, the 73-year-old has kept going to the outpatient mental health clinic at Los Angeles General Medical Center, a public hospital run by the county.

Therapy and groups there have helped her manage her ups and downs. She has known some of her fellow patients for years, she said, as they grappled together with depression.

"Now that they're closing, I'm going through a lot," she said. "I'm in a roller coaster."

Longtime patients like Talavera have worried about moving to other sites as the Los Angeles County Department of Health Services prepares to close the outpatient psychiatric clinic July 1.

Read more: Use these mental health resources to help yourself  or anyone else

The county Department of Mental Health estimated the move would affect about 1,000 adult patients and up to 160 children and adolescents. Adults may switch to a Department of Mental Health facility less than two miles away in Lincoln Heights or its other clinics, including sites that may be more convenient for them, county officials said.

The department's chief medical officer, Dr. Curley Bonds, acknowledged the move could be more complicated for children, whose options for psychiatric care are often more limited. Still, Bonds estimated last week that over half of the children at the L.A. General clinic had already gotten appointments to continue getting care elsewhere.

County officials said the Boyle Heights clinic has long been an outlier in mental health care offered by Los Angeles County: Psychiatric services of this kind are not typically provided at county-run hospitals, but instead at facilities run by the the Department of Mental Health and its network of providers, they said.

In a joint statement, the mental health and health services departments said the move aims to "centralize outpatient specialty mental health services" under the Mental Health Department.

Doing so would give patients access to a broader range of specialized mental health professionals and resources; ensure "consistent and streamlined care" under one department; and make it easier for patients to access care through the Mental Health Department's network of clinics around the county, among other benefits, they said.

"This transition is to plug in these clinics into the existing model of care," L.A. General Chief Executive Jorge Orozco said at a Friday meeting at the hospital.

At the meeting, Bonds said the Mental Health Department was doing everything it could "to really step up to the plate to make sure that no one is left behind" during the transition. A care coordinator from the department will be embedded at L.A. General to assist with handoffs to other clinics, county officials said.

"With a transition of this magnitude, its inevitable that everything wont go perfectly," Bonds said. "But our commitment is to make sure that we address those concerns when they come up."

Orozco said that "this is a decision that has been in discussion for at least five years." But the plan is much newer to patients like Talavera, who have started to learn about the impending closure in recent weeks.

Griselda Avendano, 65, worried aloud about joining another therapy group elsewhere.

After going to the L.A. General clinic for eight years, "I'm going to start all over again?" she asked.

"I dont think so. I'll just rather stay home."

Read more: $3.3 billion available for mental health beds as Newsom jump-starts Prop. 1 spending

Kelly Muhonen, a foster parent whose children have received care at the outpatient clinic, said her family was facing a six-month wait for a psychiatrist specializing in children with developmental disabilities such as autism.

"If this has been in the works for such a lengthy period of time," Muhonen asked via Zoom during the Friday meeting, "why are we being told about it a month prior to the transition?"

Bonds said he didnt want to dismiss her concerns, but "there is a standard that 30 days is the minimum time of notification." L.A. General's psychiatry chief, Dr. Talene Keshishian, said staffers "have been trying to notify patients in real time in their appointments, via letters, via outreach, via phone calls. ... One size does not fit all."

"If we havent made it to you," Keshishian told the meeting attendees, "we will continue to reach out."

Muhonen said in an interview that even as a trauma therapist herself, "I have had to turn the world upside down to find the care that I needed for my kids," particularly in light of their developmental needs.

She drives from Arcadia to the L.A. General clinic because the care there has been "really extraordinary," she said. Among the benefits of the Boyle Heights clinic, she said, is that the mental health providers had access to other medical records for her children  including primary care  for a fuller picture of their complex needs.

As the L.A. General outpatient clinic prepares to close, "they did refer us to clinics within the community," said Benito Tambunga, 53, who said he has gone there for more than two decades.

But the advantage of the L.A. General clinic is that during a mental health episode, "you can go immediately to the hospital and they have your records available, your history," Tambunga said. "Its all in-house."

Officials from two county departments said their goal was to share health records "to give clinicians from either department a complete view" of patients' medical histories, needs and ongoing treatment, according to their joint statement. Keshishian said Friday that they aimed to provide a summary with key information including medical conditions and what medications patients are taking as they make the move to the Department of Mental Health.

Los Angeles General Medical Center's outpatient psychiatric clinic closes July 1. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

Los Angeles County Supervisor Hilda Solis, whose district includes the hospital, said she was closely monitoring the transition. "It is imperative to avoid any significant disruptions in care," she said, "and that the departments engage directly with any impacted residents to ensure quality care remains accessible."

The L.A. General clinic has also been connected to a residency program with USC that gives medical school graduates experience in psychiatry. After the transition, medical residents working with adults will be placed at the facility in Lincoln Heights, while those working with youths will be placed elsewhere, the Mental Health Department said.

In their joint statement, the two departments said moving psychiatry residents to the Lincoln Heights site "gives them greater exposure to the public mental health system" and would help with recruitment efforts at the Mental Health Department. Besides the residency program, county officials said some personnel from the L.A. General clinic would transfer to Lincoln Heights, including two psychiatrists and a registered nurse.

Rosa Hidalgo said that she struggles with any kind of change  and that no longer going to the L.A. General clinic is a big one. The 32-year-old started getting help there roughly six years ago, after becoming mired in depression. As she anticipates the move, Hidalgo said, anxiety has disrupted her sleep and given her stomach problems.

"I fell in love with that clinic because I ended up feeling at home," she said.

Hidalgo was somewhat reassured by the idea that she might see some familiar staff at the Lincoln Heights site. Still, she said, "I'm taking it pretty hard."

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Starmer's plans to boost Treasury coffers may need to go further, think tank warns - Anthony Devlin/Getty Images

Labour will raise taxes by 8.6bn to fund its spending pledges  but this could be just the tip of the iceberg, economists have warned.

Unveiling the partys manifesto at a launch in Manchester, Sir Keir Starmer promised to increase taxes on non-doms, overseas property investors and private equity bosses.

The party said it expects to raise 5.2bn by closing non-dom tax loopholes and cracking down on tax avoidance. As part of this, the party will stop current non-doms from moving their assets into offshore trusts in order to avoid paying inheritance tax, a measure Labour has previously estimated could generate 43m a year in revenue.

These proposals, it said, would help fund 40,000 more NHS operations, scans and appointments every week, as well as free breakfast clubs in every primary school.

The figures do not include Labours plans to scrap the Tory policy of giving non-doms a 50pc discount on foreign income brought into the UK in 2025-26. The party estimates that scrapping this will bring in a one-off 600m.

The manifesto also reaffirmed the partys commitment to its controversial VAT raid on private schools, which it says will pull in 1.5bn for the Treasury. This money has been earmarked for hiring 6,500 teachers, opening more than 3,000 nurseries and providing mental health support in every school.

It added that a 1.2bn-a-year windfall tax on oil and gas giants would fund the creation of a new public-owned Great British Energy as well as a National Wealth Fund for investment in the partys growth and clean energy missions.

In addition, the party is pledging to increase taxes for private equity executives by scrapping the so-called carried interest loophole.

However, there was no mention of increases to capital gains tax, council tax and other levies such as fuel duty, which Sir Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves have previously refused to rule out.

It has fuelled speculation that Labour could use its first Budget to reveal further tax increases that will rake in the billions of pounds needed for its ambitious growth plans.

The Institute for Fiscal Studies think tank described the tax rises outlined in Labours manifesto as trivial, considering the large spending promises made in the document. These included slashing NHS waiting lists, stamping out crime and transforming Britain into a clean energy superpower  all pledges that the think tank said would require big spending.

It added that, if the economy fails to grow at the anticipated pace, taxes will rise under a future Labour government.

Paul Johnson, director of the IFS, said: This is a manifesto that promises a dizzying number of reviews and strategies to tackle some of the challenges facing the country.

But delivering genuine change will almost certainly also require putting actual resources on the table. And Labours manifesto offers no indication that there is a plan for where the money would come from to finance this.

Raising capital gains, council tax or fuel duty would cost taxpayers billions extra, according to official forecasts.

Figures from HM Revenue and Customs show increasing the higher rate of capital gains tax by just one percentage point would raise 290m in the first three years, while increasing the lower rate by five percentage points would raise an additional 145m  bringing the total up to 435m.

Council tax would rise by 2.3bn next year, assuming Labour permits councils to raise town hall levies by the maximum 5pc. Council tax is currently forecast to cost households a total 46.9bn this year, according to the Office for Budget Responsibility.

Previous comments made by Ms Reeves have led to speculation the levy could be reformed if the party is voted in. Writing in a 2018 pamphlet called the Everyday Economy, the shadow chancellor said council tax is at the very least long overdue a re-evaluation and revision of existing bands and floated the idea of replacing it with a property tax on property owners. Welsh Labour is currently reviewing council tax valuations.

Sir Keir has also refused to rule out reversing the temporary 5p fuel duty freeze instigated by the Conservatives. Figures from the Office for Budget Responsibility show that the levy on petrol and diesel is expected to raise 24.7bn this year, and that removing the current 5p cut, currently in place until 2025, could raise 2.5bn in a single year.

Labours other tax pledges included vowing not to raise income tax, National Insurance or VAT, as well capping corporation tax at the current level of 25pc.

It is also aiming to reduce the number of foreigners buying up UK property with a one percentage point stamp duty increase for purchases of residential-property by non-UK residents. This, it says, will bring in a further 40m to fund the appointment of 300 new planning officers.

The Party said it expects to raise 5.2bn by closing non-dom tax loopholes and cracking down on tax avoidance  with the latter making up the bulk of this, at 4.8bn.

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Flat owners accuse council of robbery as theyre charged 23,000 each for new lifts

Matthew Denby, 29, will now have to cough up nearly 700 a month to Lambeth Council - Rii Schroer

A Labour-run council is charging flat owners nearly 23,000 each for two new lifts after delaying works for six years and letting the bill more than double.

Matthew Denby, 29, is one of five leaseholders living in Normanton House  a 1930s-built council block in Lambeth, London  where the local authority still owns the freehold.

Mr Denbys family bought the flat on the open market 10 years ago after it had changed hands under the Right to Buy scheme.

Six years ago, residents raised the alarm over broken lifts and were told by the council  which has accrued debts approaching 1bn  that repair works would cost 8,500 each.

However, after delaying the work, Lambeth  a borough with a Labour majority last month raised the bill to 22,905. The council then gave leaseholders like Mr Denby an ultimatum  pay the entire bill now and get a 5pc discount, or pay an additional 365 a month over the next five years.

Monthly, including the current service charge and council tax, Mr Denby will now have to cough up nearly 700 a month to the authority.

Other leaseholders are having to pay as much as 25,000, according to the council, based on the rateable values of their properties.

Across two blocks on Oaklands estate, including Normanton House, residents and the council have spent nearly 650,000 on four new lifts.

Mr Denby said: It feels like daylight robbery. While it does look less like youre walking into the Tower of Terror at Disneyland, Im being asked to pay 23,000  for that price, youd expect it to talk to you or to be served a drink on the way up.

I would usually be in favour of a Labour council but everything is a shambles. We have emails dating back over six years complaining to them about the leaking roof in the hallway. When I open the front door theres a swimming pool. It feels like they [the council] have abandoned us.

The lifts in Normanton House have been broken for six years, which has let the bill more than double - Rii Schroer

Lambeth Homeowners Association, a campaign group made up of over 100 leaseholders, said the council has a history of granting out-of-court rebates to flat owners who challenge service charge or major works bills  but only if flat owners agree to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA).

A Freedom of Information request shared with The Telegraph showed that between 2019 and 2023, Lambeth has rebated 1.8m across 119 NDAs. The average rebate per leaseholder was 15,000, but the association claims some have reached 50,000.

Chairman Antony Wynn said: The overcharging comes from a lack of proper contractor management, cost control and auditing.

Mr Wynn claims that the council have never pursued contractors who have been proved to have overcharged. The Telegraph put this claim to Lambeth Council but it did not deny it.

Martin Boyd, chair of trustees at campaign group Leasehold Knowledge Partnership, said costs facing leaseholders in council blocks can be very high  and are often made worse by delays to fixing long-term problems such as roof leaks.

Mr Boyd, who also chairs LEASE, the Governments Leasehold Advisory Service, added: Most people would assume these extra costs would fall on the landlord, but often they are charged to the leaseholders.

Mr Boyd said it is very important that leaseholders check their contract on service charge fees: If it says they agree or accept the service charge costs, the landlord may well argue this stops them going to the tribunal at a later date to challenge the costs if they think they are unreasonably high.

The Conservatives promised to stop the sale of new leasehold homes in 2019, but have so far failed to deliver on this pledge. Earlier this year, Labour dropped its pledge to abolish leasehold within 100 days. This week, the Liberal Democrats said they would abolish residential leasehold  but gave no timeframe.

Fourteen findings of severe maladministration in six months

As well as the long-standing leak in his buildings roof, leaseholder Mr Denby also showed The Telegraph pictures of broken windows which Lambeth Council had re-attached with sellotape.

More recently, the estates bicycle lock-up was broken into after someone drove their car into it. Leaseholders such as Mr Denby have flagged this to the council, but say the locks remain unfixed.

Lambeth told The Telegraph the damaged bike store will now be removed because it doesnt have any replacement doors.

Lambeth Council has tried to re-attach broken windows with sellotape - Rii Schroer

Mr Denby said: My heart goes out to the council tenants. At least Im making okay money and can fix problems in the flat, like the persistent mould in the bathroom. They have no choice.

In January, the Housing Ombudsman published a report into complaints over the quality of Lambeth Councils housing stock. It said that in the second half of 2023 alone, it issued 59 determinations on cases and made 14 findings of severe maladministration.

The report told the council too many of its residents still received an unacceptable service, highlighting how poor many residents experiences had been due to the local authority not prioritising complaint handling.

Indeed, the frustration of some residents was palpable at the public meeting the landlord hosted for the Ombudsman, the report read.

In May, residents living in another of the local authorities housing estates, Tulse Hill, staged a protest outside Lambeth Town Hall in Brixton. Over 160 of them have since signed a petition calling for an independent inspection of buildings on the estate.

Parents told news outlet MyLondon that their children are having to sleep in their living rooms because the mould in their bedrooms is making them sick.

Tom Kennedy, of Tenants Advice, said his organisation has seen numerous cases in Lambeth where residents have used solicitors to take action against the council for outstanding repairs.

He added: Lambeth has in the past agreed to particular time frames to complete repair works  but on many occasions has missed or completely failed to carry them out.

This is causing both council tenants and leaseholders to live in incredibly unhealthy conditions for longer and is costing the council more money in legal costs.

Mr Kennedy said: Leaseholders bills often have no breakdown, raising uncertainty and concern among leaseholders. They often contact our service frustrated and feeling fobbed off that they are being treated unfairly compared to council tenants in the block.

'My heart goes out to the council tenants. At least I'm making okay money and can fix problems' - Rii Schroer

A spokesman for Lambeth Council said under the terms of their lease agreements, leaseholders  as well as the council  are required to pay a share of the costs of any repairs.

They added: We work hard to ensure that all the work is carried out as professionally and economically as possible. The contract to install the two new lifts at Normanton House was awarded to the bidder who submitted the lowest-priced tender.

All leaseholders were sent a notice of the proposed work in July 2020 and then confirmation of their estimated contribution in April 2021, although the council paid the majority of the cost.

As part of our commitment to helping residents handle the costs of this work we have offered leaseholders the option to spread their repayments over a longer period of time.

While leaseholders were sent estimates in 2021, Mr Denbys estimate climbed by another 1,200 after that.

Last year, Lambeth Council addressed its use of NDAs  saying there is a dispute and legal action is likely.

It added: Confidentiality is one of the cornerstone principles of mediation and is a service offered nationally by both the Courts & Tribunal Services and the Council to limit the time and costs of a protracted legal dispute.

In very specific cases, settlement agreements help the Council maintain good relationships with leaseholders, reduce the burden on the court system and avoid unnecessary costs while ensuring that we can collect any money owed.

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Largest evangelical group in the US condemns IVF in vote, gearing up campaign battle

On Wednesday, the Southern Baptist Convention  a denomination with nearly 13 million members  voted to condemn the use of in-vitro fertilization. This marks the first time one of the largest conservative religious organizations in the country has officially formed a position on the reproductive care process.

The nearly 10,000 delegates at the groups annual meeting voted to affirm a right to life of every human being, including those in an embryonic stage, going so far as to include language to advocate for government regulation on IVF, per the New York Times.

The vote wasnt without dissent. While delegates from across the country shared their firsthand positive experiences with the treatment, the group ultimately voted in favor of the language, which marks a turning point in the largest evangelical bodys position. Evangelical groups, especially the SBC, are amongst the most powerful voices in conservative politics.

Author and religious right expert Annika Brockschmidt blasted the move, warning that its merely one of many attacks on reproductive rights and sexual freedom.

Christian Nationalists [are] coming for abortion rights, gender affirming care, IVF. We were right. Contraception and no-fault divorce are next on their chopping block, she wrote on X.

Democratic lawmakers took the vote as a sign that the GOP intends to trample IVF rights in the future, after an Alabama Supreme Court ruling effectively ended the practice on the grounds of extrauterine personhood.

They have already come after reproductive freedom. They are coming after contraception. They are coming after IVF. They will not stop, Hawaii Democratic Senator Brian Schatz wrote in a post on X.

Democrats are expected to hold a floor vote on a bill to preserve the right to IVF at a nationwide level on Thursday.

President Joe Biden has been vocal in his support of IVF and his opponent, Donald Trump, previously championed the right to the procedure in a Truth Social post. Whether the Southern Baptist position will influence his own is unclear, but he used a speech at the Danbury Institute earlier this week, which coincided with the conference, to urge Baptists not to vote for Democrats.
LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  The father charged in his 2-year-old sons death alongside the boys mother previously faced a domestic violence charge involving the then-pregnant woman, documents said.

Police suspect Jacoby Robinson Jr. died Thursday, June 6, before his mother, Diaja Smith, 23, allegedly put his body in the dumpster near Lewis Avenue and 15th Street, documents said.

Police arrested Smith on a charge of open murder late Friday. She also faces a charge of child abuse resulting in substantial bodily harm.

Jacobys father, Jacoby Robinson Sr., 24, initially faced child abuse charges however, his charges were upgraded Monday to include open murder.

Jacoby Robinson Jr. (Jalisia Robinson/KLAS)

Robinson Sr. pleaded no contest to domestic battery last year, records said. Because it was his first offense, a judge required him to attend domestic violence counseling and pay a fine.

On April 6, 2023, a person called police saying a man, later identified as Robinson, was hitting a pregnant woman, documents said. The woman was identified as Smith. According to the witness, Robinson was yelling at Smith and pushed her to the ground, which caused her pants to rip, documents said.

While taking Robinson into custody, Smith allegedly tried to interfere with Robinsons arrest, police said.

Records show Robinson failed to show up for a court date last December, leading the judge to issue a warrant for his arrest. Police arrested him on that warrant Thursday.

Smith lost custody of her children two years ago, police said. She received custody again in May. Smith told police she had not seen Robinson Sr. in more than a year and a half. In reality, Robinson told police he was homeless, but Smith allowed him access to her apartment.

Police said Jacobys body showed significant signs of physical injury to [his] head, torso and buttocks, documents said. His cause and manner of death remained pending Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Clark County coroners office said.

Another child, Jacobys twin, also had severe injuries, including a brain bleed. Police said that the child was listed in critical condition at the time of the parents arrest. The childs condition on Wednesday was not known. A third child was released into CPS custody.

A judge ordered both Robinson and Smith to be held without bail. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for July.

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LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  A judge will be publicly censured and must take a course on judicial and social ethics after posting a photo of herself in a hot tub with public defenders and making comments about police.

Clark County District Court Judge Erika Ballou admitted she violated several ethics rules in an agreement and order of public censure with the Nevada Commission on Judicial Discipline filed June 11. The commission filed a formal statement of charges against Ballou earlier this year.

As the 8 News Now Investigators previously reported, some of the charges centered around social media posts, one where Ballou appeared to state that cases where defendants are not in custody should be tossed out and another in which she posed with two individuals from the Clark County Public Defenders office in a hot tub and referred to t***.

The commission also referred to an Instagram post from Sept. 19, 2021, with the caption, Life is STILL beautiful, despite the fact that Billie Eilish doesnt start for 30 minutes and I have an 8:30 calendar tomorrow. Ballou also posted the hashtags, Vacatethe[Expletive]OuttaOutofCustodyCases and WhereInTheWorldisCarmenSanDiego.

The Nevada Supreme Court ordered Clark County District Court Judge Jerry Wiese to remove Judge Erika Ballou from a criminal case. Ballou did not follow two previous orders from Nevadas high court regarding the same case. The May 3 order pointed to the district courts failure to comply. (KLAS)

The commission said Ballou violated three rules requiring a judge to promote public confidence and avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety, to put duties of the judicial office before their personal and extrajudicial activities, and to show that they can remain impartial.

According to the order filed Tuesday, Ballou said her social media posts were intended to be private and did not influence her work. Another post from earlier this year, involving Cardi B lyrics, was not addressed.

Another count involved comments Ballou made during hearing about police. In July 2022, the Las Vegas Police Protective Association, the union representing Metro police officers, called for Ballous resignation as well as an ethics investigation after she made comments about police officers.

Youre the one making the decisions not to walk away from cops. Youre a Black man in America. You know you dont want to be nowhere where cops are, Ballou said. You know you dont want to be nowhere where cops are cause I know I dont, and Im a middle-aged, middle-class Black woman. I dont want to be around where the cops are because I dont know if Im going to walk away alive or not.

As the 8 News Now Investigators first reported, the Nevada Supreme Court ordered Clark County District Court Chief Judge Jerry Wiese to remove Ballou from a criminal case on May 3. Ballou had not followed two previous orders from Nevadas high court regarding the same case. The May 3 order pointed to the district courts failure to comply.

In late May, Clark County District Attorney Steve Wolfson filed a petition with the court, asking a judge to remove Ballou from all criminal cases the office prosecutes. In his motion, Wolfson referred to Ballous behavior as egregious, and wrote, The stakes are extraordinarily high for Judge Ballou since one potential outcome of this ethics complaint could be her removal from judicial office.

In her response, Clark County District Court Judge Susan Johnson said Wolfson needed to file an affidavit laying out the facts for his request and present the document to the judge. Johnson said she was randomly assigned the petition and that Wiese was the correct party to determine case reassignment.

As part of the agreement, Ballou must attend an online course about judicial and social media ethics, documents said.

The response to the ethics complaint on the judges Facebook account. The commission did not address the post in its complain, saying it decided not to amend the initial charges. (KLAS)

As part of the agreement, Ballou must attend an online course about judicial and social media ethics, documents said.

Ballou served as a public defender for more than 15 years before being sworn into the bench in 2021. Her current term ends in 2027.

A district court spokesperson has repeatedly said Ballou was unavailable for comment. Wolfson can refile his request for Wiese to remove Ballou from criminal cases.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Minsk quietly assesses the impulsive statements of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Counselor of the Belarusian Embassy in Russia Alexander Shpakovsky wrote on Telegram channel, Trend reports.

According to him, the Republic of Belarus does not interfere in the internal political processes in Armenia, as well as in the sphere of Yerevan's foreign policy, but, based on the principles of reciprocity, the country awaits similar approaches from its partners and allies.

"However, the choice of partners and allies is a sovereign matter for official Minsk, and in this case, the "either-or" approach is unacceptable for us. We have interacted and will continue to interact with brotherly Azerbaijan in all spheres, including military-technical," the publication reads.

To note, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated that he would never visit Belarus as long as President Lukashenko is there due to his statements in Azerbaijan.

''Neither I nor any other Armenian official will visit Belarus as long as Lukashenko is president there," he said.

Meanwhile, earlier at a meeting with President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Lukashenko particularly stated:

Earlier, at his meeting with President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Lukashenko said: "Thoughts crossed my mind about our lunchtime philosophical discourse that took place before the war, your war of liberation. At that point, we decided that the battle could still be won. It is significant. It is crucial to keep on this triumph."

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LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  A man is accused of running from police twice after stealing two diamond necklaces amounting to over $100,000 from a Las Vegas jewelry store, according to an arrest report.

Akram Zerhouni, 23, of Las Vegas faces charges of grand larceny over $100,000, escape of a felony prisoner, resisting a public officer, obstructing a public officer, and burglary of a business, records showed.

Akram Zerhouni, 23, (LVMPD/KLAS)

On June 4 around 2 p.m., police said Zerhouni walked into a jewelry store near the Las Vegas Strip and asked an employee to see two diamond necklaces. When the employee took the necklaces out, Zerhouni grabbed them and ran out of the store, police said.

An employee chased him southbound down Las Vegas Boulevard and then lost sight of him. They continued to look for him as they called the police and later found him inside a Starbucks and he took off running again, the report said.

Two officers were driving northbound on Las Vegas Boulevard when they saw Zerhouni running out of the front of the Starbucks who was followed by the employee. Detectives followed him as he ran through a parking lot and southbound toward Warm Springs, according to police.

Zerhouni then walked into the Las Vegas South Premium Outlets where detectives followed him in. The officers identified themselves and Zerhouni began to run again. Officers were able to grab him and as he attempted to break away he was taken into custody, the report said.

He was walked out of the store and as he was standing in front of the patrol car in handcuffs, he took off running toward a parking lot, across Warm Springs, and toward South Haven Street where he was taken into custody, police said.

Police said the two stolen necklaces totaled $118,243.

He was taken to the Clark County Detention Center and is scheduled to appear in court on Monday.

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KANSAS CITY, Mo.  A 17-year-old boy died after an overnight shooting in Lawrence on Thursday.

The Lawrence Police Department says officers were called to Alabama Street between W. 24th and W. 25th just after 1:15 a.m. The officers first on the scene found the victim with multiple gunshot wounds and began performing life-saving aid until paramedics with Lawrence-Douglas County Fire Medical arrived.

Independence bank robbed twice within 24 hours

According to LPD, additional officers then began securing the scene as witnesses and family members began to gather.

Paramedics took the victim to the hospital where he later died. Investigators identified him as Isaiah Neal.

LPD says investigators worked throughout the night and are continuing to track leads. There have been no arrests yet.

Anyone with information is asked to call police dispatch at 785-832-7509 or Crime Stoppers of Lawrence and Douglas County at 785-843-TIPS if you would like to remain anonymous.

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LAWRENCE (KSNT)  Police in Lawrence say a local teen is dead following an overnight shooting on Thursday.

The Lawrence Police Department announced on social media officers were called around 1:15 a.m. on June 13 to the 2400 block of Alabama Street on gunshot reports. Officers arriving at the scene found a teen suffering from multiple gunshot wounds and began life-saving measures until paramedics arrived.

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Lawrence police began searching the scene as witnesses and family members gathered in the aftermath of the shooting. The 17-year-old shooting victim was taken to a local hospital where he was declared dead. The victim is being identified as Isaiah Neal of Lawrence.

Police arrest Manhattan man after he allegedly tried to take child by force at local saloon

Police continue to investigate this recent shooting and have made no arrests yet. If you have any information to share with law enforcement, call 785-832-7509 or get in touch with Lawrence-Douglas County Crime Stoppers to submit anonymous tips.

For more crime 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

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Lead Investigator in Karen Read Case Admits on Stand He Texted that He Wanted Her to Die by Suicide

Karen Read's defense attorneys claim Massachusetts State Trooper Michael Proctor helped to frame Read after the 2022 death of her police officer boyfriend

John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Karen Read and John O'Keefe

The lead investigator in the Karen Read murder case admitted on the stand that he texted about the woman he was investigating, calling her vulgar names and saying he wanted her to die by suicide.

Hopefully she kills herself, Massachusetts State Police Trooper Michael Proctor, who headed the investigation into the 2022 death of Boston Police Officer John OKeefe, texted to his sister  words Reads defense lawyers made him read aloud in court, CBS News reports.

Read, 44, is charged with second-degree murder for allegedly backing her SUV into her boyfriend, OKeefe, 46, and leaving him to die in the early morning hours of Jan. 29, 2022, after she says she dropped him off at a house party at the Canton, Mass., home of retired Boston police officer Brian Albert.

Read and her lawyers allege that O'Keefe got into a fight with someone at the party, was beaten up and carried into the yard.

Read's attorneys allege that Albert and others know what happened inside the house that night and that Read is the victim of a massive coverup among local and state law enforcement officials and others who have closed ranks to protect their own.

Reads lawyers have accused Proctor of helping to frame Read; they claim he planted evidence of a broken taillight at the scene to protect people at the house that night, with whom he has personal ties.

Related: Karen Read Murder Trial Is a Circus, Says Friend Who Slams Claim She Killed Police Trooper Boyfriend (Exclusive)

On the night of Jan. 29, 2022, hours after OKeefe died, when Proctor was texting with longtime friends, one of them wrote, I'm sure the owner of the house will receive some s---," the Boston Herald reports.

Proctor texted back, "Nope, homeowner is a Boston cop, too," NBC Boston reports.

Proctor is the subject of an internal investigation by the Massachusetts State Police into a potential violation of Department policy, which jurors have not been told about, NBC Boston reports.

On Monday, Reads lawyers had Proctor read aloud the derogatory messages he sent to fellow troopers about her, CBS News reports.

The texts are part of a federal investigation into the handling of the case, CBS News reports.

She's a whack-job," he texted. He then texted a vulgar word for a woman, which he spelled out on the stand.

The judge intervened, saying, "These are your words, Trooper Proctor," and had him state the word, "c---," out loud, NBC Boston reports.

Proctor called the texts unprofessional and regrettable, Boston 25 News reports.

For more on the Karen Read trial, subscribe now to PEOPLE, or pick up this week's issue, on newsstands Friday.

Asked about the text in which he hopes Read takes her own life, Proctor testified, "So my emotions got the best of me with that figure of speech, Boston.com reports.

Reads attorneys alleged that Proctor helped frame Read. They say Proctor's sister texted him after to say she'd been in touch with Julie Albert, Brian Alberts sister-in-law. Referencing Julie Albert, Proctor's sister wrote, "When this is all over, she wants to get you a thank you gift."

Proctor wrote back, "Get Elizabeth one," referring to his wife.

Asked about this, Proctor testified that, "I never received a gift, I never asked for a gift, my wife never received a gift, my wife never asked for a gift.

Everyone has forgotten that a person lost his life, OKeefes friend, Sean Hickey, tells PEOPLE. Never mind the good person that he was.



If you or someone you know is considering suicide, please contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988, text "STRENGTH" to the Crisis Text Line at 741741 or go to 988lifeline.org.

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Read the original article on People.
Joe Biden last week announced new executive orders to address the immigration crisis at our nations southern border, but unfortunately his actions are far too little and way too late. The announcement is a desperate move by a president whose approval rating is under water and a reelection campaign that has slim chances this November.

While Bidens executive orders are more smoke and mirrors, the crisis at Americas southern border is very real.

Rep. Jason Shoaf at the southern border.

Ive seen it with my own eyes. A few weeks ago, I joined a handful of other state legislators from across the nation to tour the U.S. Mexico border in Texas. I saw violence, crime and drugs flowing through the border at a rapid pace. The illegal immigrants are overwhelming the system, threatening our families, and spreading lethal substances throughout our communities.

I believe that ensuring the safety of our communities is one of the most important roles of government. That requires the federal government to secure our borders and enforce the law. But the Biden administration has done just the opposite.

During my time at the border, I felt as though I was transported to a third world country and witnessing a horror scene. We visited Eagle Pass, one of the busiest border points, where last year as many as 4,000 unauthorized encounters were recorded daily.

We took a helicopter tour over the Rio Grande and witnessed families trekking through waist deep water to reach American soil. Our guides showed us how the cartel monitors our defense systems and identifies the weaknesses where they can slip harmful drugs through to their network of criminals across the nation.

It was heartbreaking to think of my own family pursuing this difficult journey to find freedom and build a better life. But the reality is a large portion of the migrants coming through do not have pure intentions. Last year, border patrol arrested more than 35,000 of them who had criminal convictions or outstanding warrants nationwide. Hundreds of them were members of gangs.

Themigrants crossing the border are not just from Mexico and Latin America. But other continents, too. Data shows that 24,000 Chinese nationals were apprehended at the border last year. So far this year, more than 22,000 Chinese nationals crossed over.

And the drugs. Last year, our border patrol seized more than 27,000 pounds of fentanyl coming across the Southern border. Thats enough to kill 6 billion people. Federal officials estimate they are only able to seize 5% to 10% of illegal drugs smuggled across the border.

The failure to secure our borders is putting our families in danger. It is contributing to a deadly drug epidemic. And I cant even fathom the risks to our national security with buses full of military-style Chinese nationals entering through the border and fanning out across the nation.

Our state is doing its part. Florida has invested significant resources to send Florida Highway Patrol troops, Florida State Guard troops and Florida Fish & Wildlife officers to be stationed at the border. They are working with our allies in Texas to keep our communities safe and stop the flow of fentanyl into our country. During my visit, I thanked them all for their commitment and sacrifice to this effort. But this job should not have to fall on states like ours.

It is a serious national crisis, and it requires a real federal solution. If President Biden is not capable and willing to manage it, its time we have a president and Congress who can and will.

Rep. Jason Shoaf listens to remarks presented by Speaker Paul Renner during the opening day of the 2024 Legislative Session on Tuesday, Jan. 9, 2024.

Jason Shoaf is a Republican member of the House of Representatives. He serves in House District 7, which includes Dixie, Franklin, Gulf, Hamilton, Lafayette, Liberty, Suwannee, Taylor, Wakulla and parts of Jefferson, Leon counties.

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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Jason Shoaf: What I learned during my visit to the U.S.-Mexico border
Debris reportedly belonging to a drone, which was shot down by Myanmar resistance fighters, in southeastern Myanmar

Debris reportedly belonging to a drone, which was shot down by Myanmar resistance fighters, in southeastern Myanmar

(Reuters) -Myanmar's resistance fighters notched decisive breakthroughs last year by relying on a scattered fleet of drones in battles against one of Southeast Asia's most feared militaries.

But as the civil war grinds on, the rebels increasingly find their familiar weapons - Chinese-made commercial drones modified to carry arms - in the unfamiliar hands of the country's ruling junta, according to seven people with knowledge of the matter.

"The battle is changing now as drones are being used by both sides," said a 31-year-old rebel fighter in the country's southeast, identifying himself by the nom de guerre of Ta Yoke Gyi.

He said the junta began using armed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to attack the rebels at around the turn of the year and that his unit recently shot down a drone, which they identified as Chinese from its components and had been modified for combat. Two rebel fighters in other parts of Myanmar also described similar skirmishes to Reuters.

The news agency interviewed four resistance fighters, two analysts and an official from a country in the region who tracks the conflict. They described for the first time specifics about the junta's use of Chinese-manufactured drones that are jerry-rigged to carry explosives. Some of them spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.

Some resistance fighters have been injured by the junta's drones, said Ta Yoke Gyi. "They've become better at using them."

The junta started procuring thousands of Chinese commercial UAVs at the start of the year that it is modifying to arm with locally-manufactured munitions, said Min Zaw Oo, executive director of the Myanmar Institute for Peace and Security think-tank.

He said he obtained information on junta drones from military officials and people with knowledge of weapons production.

A junta spokesman did not respond to calls seeking comment. The military has not spoken publicly about its recent use of UAVs. Regime leader Min Aung Hlaing said last year that rebels had dropped over 25,000 bombs using drones during a major October offensive on military posts, some of which had to be abandoned.

In response to a Reuters question, Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said: "China has always adopted a prudent and responsible attitude in the export of military products and dual-use items."

A spokesperson for the shadow National Unity Government, part of the anti-junta resistance, did not return a request for comment.

Myanmar's military also ordered about 12 armed CH-3 UAVs from China around 2013, according to an estimate by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute's arms transfer database.

But the junta isn't using such aircraft during offensives, instead deploying multi-rotor commercial drones - including ones designed for agriculture - in the latest sorties, the resistance members said.

Four rebel fighters told Reuters they had only seen a handful of junta drones at a time on the frontline in recent months, suggesting the military hadn't deployed all the newly procured aircraft.

Reuters could not independently establish why the CH-3s were not being used for offensive operations or why the junta does not appear to have engaged in mass deployment of the Chinese-made commercial drones.

More than three years since its dawn coup abruptly ended Myanmar's tentative experiment with civilian democracy, the junta is at its weakest, having lost vast territories to an opposition comprising new armed groups and established ethnic armies.

While is hard to predict the trajectory of the civil war in the coming months, the resistance appears to have lost its early advantage of being the main fighting force using drones, said the Myanmar Institute's Min Zaw Oo, a view supported by another analyst and Ta Yoke Gyi.

INSTAGRAM INSTRUCTIONS

Commercial drones emerged as a game changer during the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, when Kyiv's forces used them to rapidly build large fleets deployed for battlefield purposes.

In Myanmar, Ta Yoke Gyi wasn't thinking about weapons until a few years ago. Before the junta unseated the elected government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021, he was a long-distance bus driver.

Angered by the junta's crackdown on the ensuing protests, Ta Yoke Gyi joined thousands of other young people in taking up arms against the military.

He now heads a unit called the Angry Bird Drone Rangers, part of a rebel force that began deploying small UAVs made by China's DJI for reconnaissance missions shortly after the coup.

DJI didn't return a request for comment.

The unit subsequently built larger drones that it modified to carry domestic-produced bombs, using instructions gleaned from experts on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube.

"We bought the components part by part and started testing the drones for about four to five months," said Ta Yoke Gyi.

The three other resistance members described similar methods of building larger armed UAVs. Several components of such drones are available on regional e-commerce platforms, according to a Reuters review of the websites.

The rebels use the drones to scout junta positions, before sending them on bombing runs that are followed by ground assaults, the four people said.

Until recently, Myanmar's junta had relied on artillery and conventional aerial support to hold on to strategic outposts in the borderlands, where the bloodiest fighting is taking place, said Min Zaw Oo.

Additional troops were rushed in when necessary, but the junta lacked adequate reserve forces to reinforce positions across multiple frontlines, he said.

The swarms of rebel drones disabled artillery positions and resistance ground troops cut off nearby military bases, said the analyst, who previously worked on ceasefire negotiations involving the military and ethnic armies.

The most significant demonstration of rebel drone warfare came during Operation 1027, a major offensive led by an alliance of three ethnic armies last October, according to two analysts.

Fighters from the rebel Three Brotherhood Alliance "just sent wave after wave after wave of drones to drop explosives onto these bases," said Morgan Michaels, a Myanmar expert at the International Institute for Strategic Studies think-tank.

But in the following months, the resistance started being attacked by the junta's drones.

"I think that Operation 1027 and the way that drones were used against the regime was definitely a wake-up call," said Michaels, who follows the battleground closely. "Now they appear to be substantially expanding their use of drones in an offensive capacity."

Two resistance fighters told Reuters that they had shot down drones that appeared to be originally designed for spraying crops. One of them, based in eastern Myanmar, said that a drone brought down by his unit had "Boying" written on it in English.

China's Boying, which manufactures flight controllers for UAVs mainly used for agriculture, declined to comment.

An expanding UAV attack fleet is welcomed by demoralised junta forces that are now relying on conscription to replenish shrinking frontline battalions, said Min Zaw Oo.

As the military takes time to retrain and refit, it will likely maintain a defensive posture, he said. "But at the same time, they will harass the opposition's positions with the use of drones."

(Reporting by Reuters staff, Chanchinmawia in ZOKKHAWTHAR and Panu Wongcha-um in BANGKOK; Additional reporting by Casey Hall in SHANGHAI and Liz Lee in BEIJING; Writing by Devjyot Ghoshal; Editing by Katerina Ang)
Franco-German consortium KNDS has rolled out a new version o its Leopard 2 tank with an uncrewed turret that can be armed with an a 140mm main gun and a host of other new features.

Franco-German defense conglomerate KNDS has rolled out a new version of its popular Leopard 2 tank with a completely uncrewed turret that can be armed with a big 140mm main gun . KNDS plans to offer the tank for sale, but also expects it to be a key stepping stone to a next-generation tank for France and Germany.

KNDS provided new details about what it has dubbed the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0 in a press release today ahead of the Eurosatory defense exposition, which opens next week in Paris, France. The tank, which also features a remote weapon station armed with a 30mm cannon expressly said to be capable of engaging drones, a threat that has now fully emerged thanks to the war in Ukraine, first broke cover yesterday. The design, which also has a built-in anti-tank guided missile launcher and is lighter than current-generation variants of the Leopard 2, is broadly reminiscent in some ways of the AbramsX that U.S. firm General Dynamics Land Systems unveiled last year.

KNDS

As already noted, the most significant new feature on the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0 is its new turret, which is a modular design. KNDS says that this means the tank could be armed with existing 120mm main guns (currently the default for Western tanks), as well as future 130mm and 140mm types it has been working on for years now, depending on the customer's preference.

Earlier this week, KNDS separately announced the successful completion of another round of testing of its Ascalon gun system, which is also capable of being readily converted from 120mm to 140mm (as well as 130mm) and back again, as required. The company says the swap can be made in just one hour.

An Ascalon gun being test fired. KNDS

The plan now is to test Ascalon installed on an actual tank. KNDS press release today says it will be displaying its previously unveiled Enhanced Main Battle Tank (EMBT) demonstrator fitted with an uncrewed ADT 140 turret armed with a 140mm version of Ascalon at Eurosatory alongside the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVCCsjS1N6Q

Since its turret has nobody inside, Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0 will use an autoloader to feed ammunition into whatever type of main gun is installed. KNDS says the vehicle will be able to fire three rounds in 10 seconds. The ammunition storage system is modular to further accommodate the different caliber options.

Compared to existing Leopard 2s and their four-person crew, which includes a dedicated loader, the new turret means the A-RC 3.0 version will need only three people to operate the tank. Those individuals will also all be situated together in a compartment in the hull, which KNDS says will reduce their overall vulnerability by 30 percent.

A Leopard 2A7, an example of a current-generation variant of the tank with a traditional crewed turret. KNDS

The uncrewed turret is also flatter than the crewed ones used on the existing Leopard 2 variants, giving the A-RC 3.0 a lower profile. That looks to be unchanged by the addition of the pop-up anti-tank guided missile launcher, which appears to stow flush in the turret when not in use. KNDS says that the launcher can accommodate various line-of-sight and non-line-of-sight missile types. Though not expressly noted, it is possible that the turret-mounted launch system on the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0 could also be used to deploy drones or loitering munitions.

Another view of the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0. The pop-up launcher is visible on top of the turret. KNDS

The Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0's new 30mm cannon-armed remote weapon station, which also has built-in smoke grenade launchers, does prominently stick up above the turret's roof. KNDS explicitly touts the counter-drone capabilities of this secondary weapon system.

The ongoing conflict in Ukraine has fully exposed how even well-protected modern Western tanks are vulnerable to weaponized drones , especially small and highly maneuverable first-person view kamikaze types . The need for added defenses against uncrewed aerial threats is clear and is only set to become an absolutley critical aspect of future armored vehicle design .

The next-generation Leopard 2 concept also has an active protection system installed on the turret. This looks to be a version of the Israeli-designed Trophy, which KNDS has been integrating onto newer variants of the Leopard 2. The combat-proven Trophy system consists of an array of small radars along with launchers that are pre-loaded with multiple 'hard-kill' projectiles. The radars detect incoming threats and cue the launchers to engage them.

A close-up look at the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0's turret showing what look to be elements of the Trophy active protection system, including radar antennas on the front and effectors on either side on top. KNDS

The projectiles that Trophy's launchers fire are primarily intended to destroy or at least disrupt anti-tank guided missiles and other kinds of infantry anti-armor weapons, such as shoulder-fired rockets and rocket-propelled grenades, by physically smashing into them. The War Zone has previously explored in detail how hard-kill active protection systems like Trophy could give tanks and other armored vehicles another valuable layer of protection against drones. There is also a growing field of relatively small radar-assisted counter-drone systems , including ones that with guns as their effectors, raising the question of whether the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0's remote weapon station could be linked to the active protection system's radars.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gmvx430HJlo

The pictures KNDS has shown so far of the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0 design also show it fitted with arrays of explosive reactive armor on the front and portions of the sides of the hull.

KNDS says that the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0's design has other advanced features including a sensor suite optimized in part for future crewed-uncrewed teaming and highly automated fully digital fire control and other systems, including drive-by-wire functionality. This feature could lend itself to an uncrewed capability sometime in the future.

A page from an KNDS brochure outlining various key features of the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0. KNDS

On top of everything else, the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0 is expected to be notably lighter than existing variants of the Leopard 2. KNDS says the tank's total weight could be as low as 60 tons depending on its exact configuration. The Leopard 2A7+, one of the most advanced production variants available now, tips the scales at around 72 tons. A major reduction in weight would give the new version improved mobility and transportability, and could offer additional benefits in terms of fuel economy.

Basic specifications for the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0 from a KNDS brochure. KNDS

There is no indication, at least so far, that the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0 will include a new propulsion system, or the option to install one. The aforementioned AbramsX demonstrator notably has a hybrid propulsion system that provides a significant boost in fuel efficiency and has a silent operating mode that offers immense tactical advantages. AbramsX is expected to serve as the basis for a new variant or derivative of the Abrams for the U.S. Army, which is currently referred to as the M1E3 .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcfuyyxFtgQ

Altogether, KNDS assesses the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0 not only as a bridge solution until [the] introduction of the next-generation land combat system MGCS, but also as a decisive technological precursor to MGCS, according to the press release put out today.

The Franco-German Main Ground Combat System (MGCS) program, which kicked off in 2017, includes plans for a new main battle tank, as well as a 'system of systems' of other crewed and uncrewed vehicles. The tank component is expected to ultimately replace Germanys existing Leopard 2s, as well as Frances Leclercs . KNDS says it will also be displaying a new Leclerc Evolution variant with a crewed turret armed with a 120mm Ascalon gun at Eurosatory.

A French Leclerc tank. US Army

KNDS announced earlier this year that it would be establishing a new joint company with Germanys Rheinmetall and Thales in France specifically to work on MGCS.

Rheinmetall notably unveiled its own next-generation KF51 Panther tank back in 2022. The KF51 has a 130mm main gun in a more traditional crewed turret that also has a built-in launcher for missiles or drones and the option to install a remote weapon station on top. You can read more about the Panther's design and capabilities here .

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTBA5tQsDbE

German media reports had previously suggested that Rheinmetall was dissatisfied with its place within the MGCS program. As such, Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0, looks set to immediately find itself in direct competition with the KF51, especially for sales outside of France or Germany. A KF51 variant for Hungary, which is a current Leopard 2 operator, is already in the works and Ukraine could also be in line to acquire the type. Rheinmetall said just this week that it is still planning to establish an armored vehicle production facility in Ukraine to make Lynx infantry fighting vehicles and potentially KF51s in the future.

KNDS has said that existing Leopard 2 variants can be brought up to the new A-RC 3.0 standard, which could be an attractive option for current operators of the type depending on the exact cost and complexity of that conversion.

KNDS, as well as Rheinmetall, both face competition from outside of Europe. General Dynamics Land Systems has made a number of significant new sales of Abrams variants in recent years. South Koreas Hyundai Rotem has very actively pitching versions of its K2 tank , including in Europe. Poland, which operates Leopard 2s , has notably acquired a fleet of Abrams and is now in the process of receiving K2s as a part of a massive military modernization effort. Leopard 2 variants and Abrams tanks have gone to Ukraine, too, where they have been actively seeing combat .

More details about the Leopard 2 A-RC 3.0, as well as KNDS plans for Leclerc and the Ascalon gun, all of which are feeding into the continued push toward a new Franco-German next-generation tank design, are expected to come next week at Eurosatory.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan, Head of the Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration Hikmet Hajiyev discussed the current state and future prospects of the Azerbaijan-NATO partnership during a political dialogue in the NATO+Azerbaijan format with allied states at NATO headquarters as a part of his visit to Belgium on June 1213, Trend reports.

Hajiyev covered a lot of ground during the event, including Azerbaijan's climate and "green" solidarity agenda, the preparations for COP29, the regional transport connections of the country and its vital role in Europe's energy security, the normalization of relations with Armenia, and the promotion of the peace agenda.

The meeting participants expressed support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan and highly valued Azerbaijan's partnership with NATO, as well as the country's contributions to NATO missions and operations, and humanitarian support to Ukraine.

At the same time, the important role of Azerbaijan in regional transport connections and Europe's energy security was emphasized, and the country's efforts in transitioning to green energy and combating climate change were welcomed, in line with support for Azerbaijan's chairmanship of COP29.

There was unanimous support for the process of normalization and the peace agenda between Azerbaijan and Armenia, and the recent agreement on the delimitation of the state border between the two countries was welcomed.

During the visit, Hajiyev also held meetings with NATO Deputy Assistant Secretary-General for Innovations, Hybrid Technologies, and Cybersecurity James Appathurai, NATO Secretary-General's Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia Javier Colomina, and Turkiye's Permanent Representative to NATO Zeki Levent Gumrukcu.

To note, this year marks the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Partnership for Peace (PfP) framework document, which became the foundation of the Azerbaijan-NATO partnership.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Letters to the Editor: Biden is wiser because he's old. Did that ever occur to anyone?

President Biden finishes remarks on former President Trump's New York conviction at the White House on May 31. (Evan Vucci / Associated Press)

To the editor: I am saddened to see so many negative articles being written about age and the assumption that as we age, we lose value. Whatever happened to age being associated with wisdom? ("Biden is old. Trump is too. But only one of them would trash the Constitution," column, June 10)

As an active woman in my mid-80s, I value what I have learned over many decades. I was fortunate to learn from very wise, older family members, teachers, writers, friends and others  all of whom were, and are, wise because they know how to process true facts and work toward solving challenges.

My challenge to reporters covering the election is to be more responsible in the way they portray the characteristics of aging in both former President Trump and President Biden. Its wisdom that should be the focus, and there is no comparison between that of Biden and Trump.

In the 1970s, Vivian Clayton, a geriatric neuropsychologist, developed a definition of wisdom. After conducting her research, she determined there are three key components to wisdom: cognition, reflection and compassion.

I challenge reporters, as well as elected leaders and the public, to assess the importance of electing leaders who possess that wisdom, no matter their age.

Susan Cambigue Tracey, Pacific Palisades

..

To the editor: I disagree vehemently with columnist Doyle McManus analysis of Time magazine's recent interview of the president.

McManus claims: "On matters of substance, he was entirely cogent, often at a detailed level." I found the presidents remarks extremely hard to follow. Just one example:

"You tell me if I want to, if an American corporation wants to invest in China, it has to give 50% ownership, 51% ownership to a Chinese operator. And that goes on from there. And I said, so you're gonna do that to us? (unintelligible)"

I felt my stomach drop as I read through the whole thing. We're staking the fate of American democracy on this?

Steven James Peterson, Irvine

..

To the editor: As a nonagenarian, I grew up during World War II. My, how the country has changed since then.

Today, the best the country has to offer are two old men: one 81, the other just shy of 78. One is a perpetual liar, a contemptible man. The other has provided weaponry that has helped kill more than 37,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip and destroyed their territory.

We have a Supreme Court that has lost its way and is devoid of any effective ethical standards. We have a House speaker who has invited the leader of a government that's massacring Palestinians to speak to Congress. This speaker claims that all one has to do is believe in the Bible, but evidently he forgets that the Ten Commandments say thou shalt not kill.

Finally, we have become the most materialistic country in the world, where the richest 1% own more wealth than the bottom 50%. I thank God I am 93, but I feel for my children and grandchildren. They deserve better.

Bob Murtha, Santa Maria

..

To the editor: Voters need to remember that we are not just electing a president, were electing the presidents party and platform.

Electing Biden means that you care about the environment, women's rights, healthcare, fair immigration standards, fair judicial appointments and student loan assistance. Our international status will again crash to the bottom if Biden is not our president.

This is no time to be a one-issue voter. There's a lot more at stake than Israel and the Palestinians, even though the war in Gaza is a travesty.

But if you leave our international status in the hands of Trump, we will surely crash and burn again.

Linda Bradshaw Carpenter, Los Angeles

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
WILLIAMSPORT, LYCOMING COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU)  Officials say a Lewistown man is behind bars after being charged with attempting to entice a minor into sexual activity.

In a release sent out on Wednesday, the United States Attorneys Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced 51-year-old Gregory A. Wilson from Lewistown was sentenced to 102 months in prison followed by 10 years of supervised release by Chief District Court Judge Matthew W. Brann on the charge of attempted enticement of a minor.

PA Most Wanted: Man accused of raping 14-year-old

Wilson was also ordered to pay a $500 fire and a special assessment of $5,100, the release explained.

On November 8, 2023, according to United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam, Wilson knowingly tried to persuade, induce, and entice a minor to engage in sexual activity and prostitution.

The release goes on to say the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Pennsylvania State Police, investigated the case and the Centre County District Attorneys Office Assistant US Attorney Alisan V. Martin prosecuted the case.

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 PAhomepage.com.
AUSTIN (KXAN)  The flag pole in front of the Austin Police Departments downtown headquarters has a colorful new addition this month.

Police are flying the rainbow LGBTQ+ Pride flag in front of their tall, brick building along the southbound Interstate 35 frontage road near East Eighth Street. A spokesperson confirmed Wednesday this is the first time the department is doing this, too, at all of its buildings.

Pride flag repeatedly stolen from outside Cedar Park church

KXAN asked why Austin police decided to make such a public display of support this year to recognize LGBTQ+ Pride month, which is normally observed across the U.S. during June. However, Austin usually holds its own parade to celebrate the local LGBTQ+ community later in the summer during August. A police spokesperson pointed out a memo indicating that city departments are putting up these flags this month at all of their public-facing facilities based on a past action taken by city leaders.

The LGBTQ+ Pride flag can be seen flying outside the Austin Police Department headquarters this month in downtown. (KXAN photo/Morganne Bailey)

The Austin City Council approved a resolution on Aug. 31, 2023 directing the city manager to display and fly the Progress Pride flag at city-owned facilities throughout the month of June each year. In addition to the standard six rainbow-colored stripes, this particular flag also has bands of white, pink and light blue to represent the transgender community as well as black and brown stripes to reflect people of color and those living with or lost to HIV/AIDS. Theres also a yellow triangle with a purple circle to represent the intersex community.

The director of the citys building services department put out a memo in May to share some helpful information about how to comply with the resolution. He wrote, Department Directors shall at a minimum display the Pride Flag at their department headquarters buildings and use discretion in determining the appropriate display of the Pride flag at other locations in alignment with the resolution. Flags may be displayed rather than flown in cases where a flagpole is unavailable. Displays may include being hung against a wall or in the air of an atrium. Displays should be in an area where a member of the public could reasonably view the flag and in alignment with established flag guidance and norms.

For instance, drivers may notice the Pride flag is not flying on the flagpoles outside of Austin City Hall on West Cesar Chavez Street by Guadalupe. Instead people will be able to see a couple of the flags displayed inside in the lobby.

Two Progress Pride flags are displayed inside Austin City Hall for the month of June. (KXAN photo/Grace Reader)

These actions taken by the City of Austin follow what Travis County already started doing four years ago. County leaders agreed to begin raising the rainbow flag in June outside the Travis County building in downtown Austin. Another ceremony is planned on June 25 to commemorate the fourth annual flag raising.

Pride celebrations are happening at a time when Equality Texas, the largest LGBTQ+ advocacy organization in the state, recently shared a troubling report. The group shared it responded to an uptick in anti-LGTBQ+ incidents each month in 2023 compared to 2022. Its leaders expect to take in more reports about these kinds of incidents during Pride Month since the LGBTQ+ community becomes much more visible at this time.

LGBTQ+ advocates are also anticipating for Texas lawmakers to introduce even more bills impacting their community during next years regular legislative session, which begins in January. Those debates will come on the heels of the 2023 session when lawmakers put forward a record number of proposals related to the LGBTQ+ community.

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 KXAN Austin.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  A dump truck with a lifted bed caused approximately $100,000 in damage to a Vancouver intersection on Monday when the driver plowed into overhanging traffic signals at 192nd Ave. and 1st Street near the Camas Costco, causing a traffic pole to crash onto the street below.

Vancouver Police Department spokesperson Kim Kapp told KOIN 6 News that a truck owned by the Nutter Corporation was performing construction work in the area when the driver crashed through the intersection shortly before 5:30 p.m.

The dump truck bed was still in a partially lifted position when the driver went through the intersection, causing damage to the traffic signal, Kapp said. According to the report, the driver indicated the truck was not equipped with the alarm which alerts when the bucket portion of the truck is not fully lowered.

Photos of the affected intersection provided by the City of Vancouver.

Vancouver crash

Vancouver crash

Vancouver crash

15 people affected after fire rips through Tigard apartment complex

Video of the crash, which was captured by an unknown person, was shared to a local Facebook group on Monday. The driver did not receive any traffic citations as a result of the crash. The local construction company declined to comment on the crash.

Temporary stop signals are set at the intersection as the City of Vancouver works to replace the downed traffic signals. Vancouver Public Works spokesperson Nicole Walters told KOIN 6 News that the intersection is expected to operate as a four-way stop sign for one week.

We are evaluating both near-term and permanent options for the replacement of the signal, Walters said.  The permanent replacement will take several months to procure materials and install.

Oregon State Police shot at Amber Alert suspect in self-defense, DA says

Detours are set up in the area to deal with the added traffic caused by the downed signal. Drivers are encouraged to avoid this intersection, which is situated between Shahala Middle School and two major shopping centers.

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 KOIN.com.
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  The sentencing trial for convicted murderer Zephen Xaver entered its fourth day on Thursday.

Xaver faces the death penalty or life in prison after he entered a Suntrust bank in Sebring and fatally shot five women in 2019. He said the voices in his head told him to do it.

The trial began Monday with prosecutors playing a 911 call between Xaver and a dispatcher, who took the stand and explained how she spent 45 minutes on the phone attempting to keep him from taking his own life in the back room of the bank.

Jurors heard emotional testimony from a former bank teller on Tuesday who was on his lunch break and escaped to a nearby home to report the shooting. They also heard from a man who walked up to the bank shortly after the women were murdered.

On Wednesday, emotions boiled over when a witness stared down Xaver, causing Judge Angela Cowden to stop the trial and remove the jury before reprimanding the witness.

You were staring someone down and you do not have the right to do that. You need to stop that. The jury does not need to see any witness doing that kind of behavior, Judge Angela Cowden said to witness Marshall Blackmon, who unknowingly sold Xaver the gun used in the murders.

WFLA

As the trial resumed Thursday, the jury is hearing from Imani Davis, a Connecticut woman who met Xaver on the website Spells of Magic between 2014 and 2015.

The pair dated long distance off and on until 2018. Davis said they bonded over a mutual interest in serial killers and murder investigations.

Davis said she was more interested in why a serial killer commits murder, while Xaver was more interested in how.

Xaver reportedly texted Davis about killing people before he entered the bank. Davis was in high school at the time.

This is a developing story. Stay up to date on the latest from News Channel 8 on-air and on the go with the free WFLA News Channel 8 mobile app.

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 WFLA.
The Naples Daily News is monitoring the weather today in Collier County. Here's what to know:

Naples roads impassable, closed due to flooding

Several Naples roads were closed Thursday afternoon after they became impassable due to flooding, the Naples Police Department posted in an update on Facebook.

Closed

US-41: From Goodlette Frank RD to 4th Avenue South (both East and Westbound lanes)

10th St South: From 3rd Ave South to US-41

Southbound US41 from just south of 3rd Ave. S to 5th Ave. S - right lane closed.

Southbound US41/5th Ave. S from 9th St. S to Goodlette-Frank Rd. - right lane closed.

Northbound US 41 from Goodlette-Frank Rd. to 9th St. S - right 2 lanes closed.

Impassable

8th Ave S east of 9th St S is flooded and vehicles cannot drive through

Gordon South of Kings Town is too deep to travel

5TH Ave S/10TH St S, 5TH Ave S/11TH St S - under water, cars are having trouble passing through

Rum Row is impassable

8TH Ave S & 11 St S

10TH St S & Central

Flooded intersections

5TH Ave S/Gulf Shore

2ND Ave S/Gulf Shore

NWS extends flood advisory for Collier County

A flood advisory for Collier County was extended to 8 p.m., the National Weather Service alerted.

A Flood Advisory is issued when flooding is not expected to be bad enough to issue a warning but could cause significant inconvenience, including situations that may threaten life or property.

According to NWS, between 1 and 3 inches of rain fell from slow-moving thunderstorms and an additional 1-3 inches are expected over the next few hours. The additional rain will result in minor flooding.

If more rain falls than forecasted, a flash flood warning may be issued, the weather service said.

Collier County locations that may experience flooding include:

Everglades City

Chokoloskee

Plantation Island

Carnestown

Big Cypress National Preserve

Everglades National Park

Collier County, Florida weather alerts

Flood advisory issued for Collier County

The National Weather Service has issued a flood advisory for Collier County until 4:15 p.m.

Possible impacts include minor flooding in low-lying and poor drainage areas, water over roadways and overflowing poor drainage areas.

A Flood Advisory is issued when flooding is not expected to be bad enough to issue a warning but could cause significant inconvenience, including situations that may threaten life or property.

According to NWS, locations that will experience flooding include:

Naples

Golden Gate Estates

Vineyards, Orangetree

Golden Gate

North Naples

Big Corkscrew Island

Naples Park

Quail Creek Estate

Corkscrew Swamp Sanctuary

Pelican Bay

NWS alerts to possible 'catastrophic flooding' on I-75

The National Weather Service issued a high risk of excessive rainfall for the I-75 corridor Thursday.

Widespread flooding is expected with local "catastrophic" flash flooding possible, according to the NWS.

Probability of exessive rainfall leading to rapid onset flooding in southern Florida.

Collier County under flood watch until 8 p.m.

The National Weather Service has issued a flood watch for Collier County until 8 p.m. Thursday.

Flooding caused by excessive rainfall continues to be possible in coastal and inland Collier County, the NWS said.

Collier County weather radar

Special weather statement for Collier County (11:49 a.m.)

The National Weather Service issued a special weather statement for Collier County at 11:49 a.m.

Meteorologusts were tracking strong thunderstorms along a line extending seven miles east of Venus to near Bonita Springs.

These areas may experience winds with speeds of more than 40 miles per hour. The heavy winds may knock down tree limbs or blow unsecured objects around.

Immokalee is one of the affected areas.

How much rain did Naples get yesterday?

Naples had 4 to 5 inches of rain Wednesday and could get 4 to 8 more today.

Eastern Collier had 12.9 inches and Everglades City had 6.7 inches.

Are schools closed because of the weather?

Localized flooding in Collier County has led to CCPS deciding to close summer school and school age child care.

CCPS says flooding at bus stops and on streets causes hazardous conditions for students, staff, and parents.

Summer school and school age child care will start again on Monday June 17.

Is Collier still under a flood watch?

Collier County is still under a flood watch, but the flood warning expired this morning. This means flooding could still occur and to watch for it, but the imminent danger of floods is no longer.

What's the difference between a flood watch and a flood warning?

A flood watch is issued when flooding might happen.

A flood warning is issued when flooding is imminent or occurring.

Uh-oh: The Weather Channel has arrived in Florida. Correspondent reporting live in Naples

Thursday's weather forecast: How much more rain will we get in Naples, Marco Island, Florida?

According to AccuWeather:

THIS MORNING: Heavy showers and thunderstorms from tropical rainstorm; areas of flooding and difficult travel likely.

THIS AFTERNOON: Showers and heavy thunderstorms; cloudy and humid. Areas of flooding with difficult travel likely.

FLOOD ADVISORIES/WARNINGS: Check the National Weather Service for conditions where you live.

Photo gallery: Everglades City's streets are flooded

4 links to weather-related stories for you: flooding, safety tips and more

FINDING YOUR FLOOD ZONE-COLLIER COUNTY: Here

WHAT'S CLOSED, CANCELED, POSTPONED: Here

TAX-FREE SUPPLIES INFO: Here

AIRPORT STATUS: Here

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Thursday recap: Naples, Collier County flooding, rainfall totals
Lloyd Austin does not see Russia making major gains in Kharkiv

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (L) chairs the meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group during a meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence, at NATO Headquarters. -/NATO/dpa

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin believes a Russian breakthrough in the eastern Ukrainian region of Kharkiv is unlikely.

"A couple of weeks ago, there was concern that we would see a significant breakthrough on the part of the Russians," Austin said on the sidelines of a NATO defence ministers' meeting in Brussels.

"I don't think we'll see that going forward."

The Ukrainians had done a lot to strengthen their defence positions in the eastern border region and were making good use of the weapons and ammunition provided to them.

"And more of that will continue to flow in, the defence minister of Ukraine's strongest supporter said. However he acknowledged "it will take some time" for the additional support to play out on the battlefield.

However Austin, when asked, said he had nothing to say about whether the US would supply Ukraine with another Patriot air defence system, as reported by several US media.

Russia launched an offensive on the Kharkiv region in mid-May, occupying several Ukrainian border villages. Although there has been no major breakthrough so far, the regional capital, also called Kharkiv, continues to be subjected to massive shelling.

Several Western allies - including the United States and Germany - recently allowed Ukraine to attack targets on the Russian side of the border with weapons supplied by them to defend Kharkiv.

"I don't have any announcements on Patriot batteries today," Austin said.
Climate activist Stephanie Martinez appeared at a rally in Newark on June 13, 2024, to demand lawmakers support a proposed business tax to fund NJ Transit. (Sophie Nieto-Munoz | NJ Monitor)

Humberto Mendoza has taken NJ Transits 780 bus from his Passaic home to Hackensack daily for the last 26 years.

The bus rarely arrives on time, he said, but its his only way to get to work. With just a few weeks until the start of double-digit fare hikes, Mendoza said hell have to choose between paying more for inconsistent transit service or buying food to feed his family.

It will be too much. We cannot take another increase in price, said Mendoza, a member of immigrant rights group Make the Road New Jersey.

Local activists and mayors gathered in front of Newark Penn Station Thursday to demand legislative leaders include a new business tax in the upcoming budget to boost the financially struggling transit agency. They also plan to deliver a letter to top Trenton officials signed by dozens of mayors calling it imperative to fund public transportation.

While our constituents face rising costs for transportation and basic necessities, it is unjustifiable that wealthy, multinational corporations continue to receive tax breaks that further exacerbate the financial burden on our towns and cities, reads the letter, signed by mayors of Newark, Jersey City, Montclair, Trenton, Red Bank, and more.

The new tax was proposed by Gov. Phil Murphy as a transit tax to fill the $106.6 million budget gap that NJ Transit is facing in the fiscal year that begins July 1. Under the governors plan, there would be a 2.5% surtax imposed on businesses with more than $10 million in profit. It is expected to generate $800 million annually.

In April, the NJ Transit board approved fare hikes of up to 15% that will go into effect July 1, along with a 3% increase every year after. Without more revenue, NJ Transit could face major service cuts, agency officials have said.

Business groups oppose the new tax, saying it would make the state less competitive in attracting and retaining employers. The New Jersey Business and Industry Association released a list of 40 reasons why the transit tax would be bad policy.

The state Chamber of Commerce says the transit tax is just a veiled attempt to rebrand a previous business tax surtax that sunset in 2023, one that placed a 2.5% surcharge on corporations with more than $1 million in annual profits. Tom Bracken, the chambers president and CEO, urged the Legislature to reject the proposed tax, saying theres no way to predict how much money it would generate every year since it hinges on companies staying in New Jersey.

One thing is for certain, implementing the fee would give the state the dubious distinction of having the nations highest Corporation Business Tax rate for large companies, which would tarnish New Jerseys business reputation and undermine the governors own business attraction and retention efforts, Bracken said.

Some activists worry officials might try to redirect some of the expected revenue to other projects in backdoor deals during the budget-writing process.

What happens in Trenton in the next few weeks is going to be a litmus test for the state Legislature to make sure that we prioritize the people that elected them to serve in Trenton, said Hoboken Mayor Ravi Bhalla.

Senate President Nicholas Scutari and Assembly Speaker Craig Coughlin have not said whether they support the proposed transit tax. Murphy must sign the budget before July 1 to avoid a state government shutdown.

Activists said on Thursday they would prefer to bring back the business tax surcharge that expired last year, which affected 3,000 businesses (the proposed transit tax will only hit 300 businesses). They also stressed that NJ Transit faces a budget gap next year that exceeds $700 million.

Funding NJ Transit means we fund the local economy, where I can get to my local supermarket, access fresh foods, and live a healthy lifestyle. People can get to their jobs safely on time because the working class makes this world go around, said climate activist Stephanie Martinez.

The post Local activists, mayors urge passage of new business tax to fund NJ Transit appeared first on New Jersey Monitor.
Part of the Okanogan wildfire complex flares up on August 21, 2015 in the hills near Omak. The fires, which killed three firefighters and critically injured another, threatened homes and communities throughout the area. (Photo by Stephen Brashear/Getty Images)

The last time the state Building Code Council crafted rules for protecting homes from the threat of wildfire, city and county officials criticized them as confusing, expensive and overreaching.

Those rules are gone. As the state looks at drawing new wildfire risk maps and implementing new codes, local governments want more say in hopes of producing regulations that are understandable, affordable and help the communities most at risk.

There should be opportunities for the public, subject matter experts and local jurisdictions to weigh in on this process, said Brad Medrud, planning manager at the City of Tumwater. It shouldnt just be the county and [Department of Natural Resources] deciding what this should be moving forward.

Lawmakers on the state House Local Government committee heard this week from officials of state agencies and local governments, including Medrud, about what must be done to implement new wildland urban interface, or WUI, building codes, and what a new law will mean for cities and counties.

A 2018 law directed the state Building Code Council to write new regulations requiring homes on the edge of forests and other wildfire-prone landscapes to be built with certain fire-resistant materials, less surrounding vegetation and more accessible driveways.

Under that law, the Department of Natural Resources was charged with mapping the states wildland urban interface. The final map required most of the state to follow at least some of the new code, sparking criticism from counties and cities that it overstates wildfire risks in some places and could make homes less affordable at a time when the state has a growing shortage.

Lawmakers passed a law this year requiring the department to draw a new map and limiting which parts of the code, already approved by the state Building Code Council, could go into effect. On the day that law went into effect, the council scrapped its new rules altogether.

Now, everyone is trying to figure out where to go from here.

New maps, more input

That new map is the main task. It must be based on wildfire risks across the state, keeping in mind terrain, climate and vegetation.

Loren Torgerson of the Department of Natural Resources told lawmakers Monday they are looking at using an existing risk assessment developed by the U.S. Forest Service as a foundation, although the exact criteria for at-risk communities is still being determined. DNR is on track to finalize the map elements by Dec. 1 and award a contract to create the map by March 1, 2025, Torgerson said.

Medrud urged the department to look at what other states have done to create their risk maps and to talk to local communities that may have a better idea of their risks.

Tumwater is in no way similar to Richland, he said.

Paul Jewell, at the Washington State Association of Counties, said many counties have risk maps that are likely much more accurate than a state-level map could be.

He urged state officials to talk with leaders in those communities about including some of their findings in the state map or allowing them to determine which codes make the most sense for their communities. For example, some counties already have stricter wildfire protection codes in place.

Counties just need to know the rules and they need to understand them, Jewell said.

Significant departure from other processes

Once the map is completed, the state will implement new codes. But under the law passed earlier this year only specific codes can go into effect, basically scrapping work the Building Code Council did in recent years to write new rules.

The council is trying to figure out where they fit into the new process.

On Monday, Todd Beyreuther, Building Code Council vice chair, reiterated the councils criticism that the law takes away their authority and is a significant departure from the previous rulemaking processes for writing state building codes.

The way the law is written, the council can only adopt parts of the International WUI Code as is, or nothing at all, said Dustin Curb, managing director at the Building Code Council. And theres no ability for the state council to amend those codes to meet Washington-specific needs.

This dramatically reduces the ability of the state Building Code Council to enter the public process with subject matter experts to amend, Beyreuther said.

Curb said lawmakers should consider passing a fix next session that adopts some portions of the codes but still gives the council some authority to amend them.

Jewell, however, said the current policy is the best one moving forward, given its flexibility for local governments.

The post Local governments want say in crafting Washingtons new wildfire protection rules appeared first on Washington State Standard.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Assistant to the President of Azerbaijan, Head of the Foreign Policy Affairs Department of the Presidential Administration Hikmet Hajiyev discussed the current state and future prospects of the Azerbaijan-NATO partnership during a political dialogue in the NATO+Azerbaijan format with allied states at NATO headquarters as a part of his visit to Belgium on June 1213, Trend reports.

Hajiyev covered a lot of ground during the event, including Azerbaijan's climate and "green" solidarity agenda, the preparations for COP29, the regional transport connections of the country and its vital role in Europe's energy security, the normalization of relations with Armenia, and the promotion of the peace agenda.

The meeting participants expressed support for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of Azerbaijan and highly valued Azerbaijan's partnership with NATO, as well as the country's contributions to NATO missions and operations, and humanitarian support to Ukraine.

At the same time, the important role of Azerbaijan in regional transport connections and Europe's energy security was emphasized, and the country's efforts in transitioning to green energy and combating climate change were welcomed.

Support for Azerbaijan's chairmanship of COP29 was also expressed.

There was unanimous support for the process of normalization and the peace agenda between Azerbaijan and Armenia, and the recent agreement on the delimitation of the state border between the two countries was welcomed.

During the visit, Hajiyev also held meetings with NATO Deputy Assistant Secretary-General for Innovations, Hybrid Technologies, and Cybersecurity James Appathurai, NATO Secretary-General's Special Representative for the Caucasus and Central Asia Javier Colomina, and Turkiye's Permanent Representative to NATO Zeki Levent Gumrukcu.

To note, this year marks the 30th anniversary of the signing of the Partnership for Peace (PfP) framework document, which became the foundation of the Azerbaijan-NATO partnership.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Rep. Dave Joyce (R-Ohio), the lone Republican to vote against a resolution to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress, says his colleagues move only serves to further politicize our judicial system.

As a former prosecutor, I cannot in good conscience support a resolution that would further politicize our judicial system to score political points. The American people expect Congress to work for them, solve policy problems, and prioritize good governance, Joyce said in a statement after the vote.

Enough is enough.

While Joyce was the only member to oppose the measure, which was adopted 216-207, several Republicans privately expressed hesitation about backing the measure.

House Republicans filed a contempt resolution after Garland refused to turn over audio of President Bidens conversation with special counsel Robert Hur.

Although House impeachment investigators claimed it could prove useful for their impeachment investigation, they already have the transcript of the conversation, which shows their lines of inquiry were not discussed.

Biden also claimed executive privilege over the tapes, a move that limits prosecution of those who fail to provide information sought by subpoena.

Garland resisted turning over the tapes, arguing it could harm the Justice Departments ability to score cooperation from witnesses who may not want their conversations shared with Congress.

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 The Hill.
More than 100 people marched form Thompson Recreation Center and down High Street in Columbus on Feb. 18, just days after a mistrial was declared in the trial of Michael Jason Meade.

Columbus police accused a longtime local activist of two crimes during a protest earlier this year, but she and her fellow activists say police and city prosecutors are targeting her.

Elizabeth Andromeda, 31, was among a group of marchers on Feb. 18 calling for a retrial of former Franklin County Sheriffs Deputy Jason Meade two days after a jury could not reach a verdict in his trial for fatally shooting Casey Goodson Jr.

Now she faces two misdemeanor charges related to the protest after police accused her of shining a strobing flashlight in a commander's face and jaywalking. Andromeda told The Dispatch she was innocent and that the electric wheelchair she used was street-legal.

Andromeda was scheduled to go on trial this week in Franklin County Municipal Court on two misdemeanor charges, including obstructing official business, but the trial was postponed to July 1.

Activists accuse Columbus police of retaliation

Some fellow activists say the charges are retaliation for Andromeda's participation in a federal civil rights lawsuit against the Division of Police alleging excessive force during the summer 2020 protests. Those activists are calling on Columbus City Attorney Zach Klein's office to drop the charges related to the February protest.

Pete Shipley, a spokesperson for Klein, said the office received 37 calls and emails this week about Andromeda's case. Shipley said the office intends to proceed with the case and is "unaware of any evidence that supports allegations that (Columbus Division of Police) retaliated against Ms. Andromeda."

"Any decision to file criminal charges are based in facts and the law, not the identity of any protester at the time of arrest or citation," Shipley said. "To our knowledge, none of the cases involving Ms. Andromeda strayed from this practice. In fact, other individuals were also criminally charged at a number of the same protest events."

Spokespersons for the Division of Police did not return requests for comment Thursday.

Andromeda alleges in the federal lawsuit that police struck her wheelchair with wooden bullets and a tear gas canister, which got lodged in her wheelchair and burned her leg. She's among nearly a dozen protesters who originally signed on as plaintiffs in 2022 in that ongoing lawsuit.

In a Facebook post on Wednesday, Kaitlin Marie told people to contact Klein's office, pointed to the federal lawsuit and said Andromeda "is frequently targeted by police, leading to the current charges."

Andromeda: 'I don't doubt I'm being targeted'

"I don't doubt I'm being targeted," Andromeda told The Dispatch. "Especially because I was arrested in Zach Klein's front yard."

Police arrested Andromeda and four others in August 2022 for protesting homeless encampment sweeps by camping on city officials' front yards. She pleaded guilty in 2022 to disorderly conduct in that case, was fined $50 and ordered to perform community service.

Andromeda said she intends to take the outstanding case related to the February protest to trial if charges are not dropped.

According to court records, a city prosecuting attorney offered Andromeda the opportunity to plead guilty to obstructing official business in exchange for dropping the jaywalking charge. As part of the plea deal offered last month, the prosecution would agree to recommend a sentence of a fine or 24 hours of community service.

"I have no money to pay a fine and no physical ability to do community service because of my declining health," Andromeda said. "I'm also not guilty."

Connecting these charges to the federal lawsuit, Andromeda told The Dispatch that attorneys for the city taking her deposition in the federal lawsuit asked her about the February incident.

Attorneys for the city filed notice in federal court they would depose Andromeda on March 21 but according to Andromeda, the city canceled at the last minute. A week after that, Columbus police filed charges against Andromeda in the Municipal Court.

"I finally had the deposition two weeks ago, where they tried to ask me under oath about February, and I plead the Fifth to their questions."

Police did not arrest Andromeda during the February protest but told her she would receive a court summons later.

Andromeda said this is likely because "it's a logistical nightmare (to arrest her), and the jail isn't equipped to handle my level of medical needs." When officers arrested Andromeda in Klein's yard in 2022, she said they separated her from her wheelchair against the division's policy and, at one point, damaged the chair when they tried to fit it in a police vehicle.

"They then took me in an ambulance to (the Franklin County jail on) Jackson Pike and my wheelchair in a separate fire department unit, only for the jail nurse to reject me at intake," she said. "They then took me to Grant Hospital where I was released several hours later on a summons because Grant couldn't hold me since there were not any emergency medical issues that needed treated."

jlaird@dispatch.com

@LairdWrites

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Columbus activist alleges police targeting in latest charges
Bryant Mangum stands next to the car he was driving when Los Angeles police pulled him over Aug. 20, 2019. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)

Four years ago, after George Floyd was murdered in Minneapolis, reform advocates in Los Angeles called for an end to the city's reliance on police. Some urged city leaders to start by taking sworn officers out of traffic enforcement.

They cited persistent racial disparities in stops, searches and arrests, the result of what some said were failed crime-suppression strategies in South L.A. that alienated generations of Black and brown Angelenos. They called on the city to limit how often police pull people over for low-level offenses and to start imagining a future in which unarmed city workers would take over most traffic duties.

This week, the City Council authorized a study to figure out how to do just that  while adding more speed bumps, roundabouts and other street modifications to reduce speeding and unsafe driving.

"I think the city of Los Angeles can lead the nation," said Councilmember Marqueece Harris-Dawson, one of the proposal's early champions.

In a 13-0 vote, the council directed city transportation staff and other departments to come back within 90 days with feasibility reports about the cost and logistics of a series of proposals including: creating unarmed civilian teams to respond to certain traffic issues and investigate accidents; limiting fines in poorer communities; and ending the use of stops for minor infractions such as having expired tags or air fresheners hanging from the rear-view mirror.

Wednesday's vote was met with wary optimism by advocates from Push L.A. coalition  which includes the Community Coalition, Catalyst California and Black Lives Matter Los Angeles  who said it was a long-awaited moment. But they also said they worried about a long road ahead, full of bureaucratic hurdles that stifled past attempts at reform.

Before the council meeting, several dozen organizers held a news conference and rally outside City Hall, holding signs and chanting slogans such as "The People united, will never be defeated." Activists such as Leslie Johnson of Community Coalition vowed to keep pressure on public officials to ensure the study results don't get buried.

They were in downtown L.A. to celebrate a hoped-for victory "but also to let the council know that we're watching," said Johnson, whose South L.A. group pushes for grassroots change. Some speakers invoked Keenan Anderson and others who died in traffic encounters with local police, or gave testimonials about the devastating effects of being pulled over.

Read more: LAPD officers involved in Keenan Anderson death found out of policy

The city's interim chief, Dominic Choi, said Wednesday he was waiting to see what changes the council might propose before evaluating them. But, he said the traffic stops are a good tool to help solve violent crime in the community  if conducted properly and constitutionally.

"Our job is public safety, and we're going to use the tools that are given to us in the best way we can to improve public safety," he said. "So if restrictions are put on us, I'm going to visit roll calls, and I'll talk about this policy change or this law and encourage our officers."

The debate over what role police should have in enforcing traffic safety comes amid an alarming yearlong rise in road deaths and injuries. Some transportation safety advocates say persistent traffic incidents, particularly involving pedestrians and bicyclists and in low-income neighborhoods, show the city needs to crack down harder on reckless driving.

Some council members said during Wednesday's meeting that they saw the proposal as a win-win: addressing road safety while freeing officers to address more serious crimes.

The city's streets continue to be among the deadliest in the country.

According to Los Angeles Police Department data, traffic deaths reached a record high last year with 336 people killed in crashes citywide  up from 312 in 2022  more than the number who died in homicides. Thats the highest number since the city started keeping statistics more than two decades ago. More than half of those killed, 179, were pedestrians. Serious injury incidents have also been on the rise in recent years.

Although experts say speed is a factor in many serious collisions, police wrote 28% fewer citations to dangerous drivers between 2021 and 2022, in part due to lower staffing, according to an LAPD application for more traffic enforcement funding from the Office of Traffic Safety.

In a statement, Los Angeles Department of Transportation spokesman Colin Sweeney said the agency "looks forward to continuing our work with the Mayor, City Council, and partner agencies to advance these recommendations and ensure the safety of our streets for all Angelenos."

In L.A., as in many other U.S. cities, Floyd's 2020 murder inspired calls for wholesale policing reforms, as officials pledged to begin looking for ways to embrace new strategies to keep communities safe. The city's transportation department was ordered to produce a report on alternatives to traffic enforcement  a precursor to any legislation.

But after years of delays, the initial optimism gave way to worry, then anger, as activists and some council members raised concerns that the window for radical change was closing, and L.A. was falling further behind other cities that have already studied the issue.

When the study was finally released last year, it made the case for what many advocates had long argued: L.A. could follow in the steps of cities such as Philadelphia and Berkeley, which have scaled back police enforcement of many traffic violations, but only in tandem with major infrastructure upgrades that improve road safety.

From our perspective, having another feasibility study is not necessary; theres numerous cities around the country that have already adopted a variety of these reforms," Chauncee Smith of advocacy group Catalyst California said in an interview this week. "Were focusing on changing the conditions, as opposed to punishing a person for something that they did or did not do.

He and other advocates cited mounting research in other cities that showed road improvements along high-injury street corridors were more effective at changing driver behaviors, and ultimately reducing the number of traffic-related deaths and serious injuries, than the threat of being ticketed. Instead of paying for more traffic officers, they said, the city should invest in upgrades such as narrower streets, dedicated bike lanes and more clearly marked pedestrian crosswalks.

At the same time, advocates say, the city should consider a sliding means-based fee model  such as vouchers mailed to motorists to help cover repairs for, say, broken taillights  that would help improve safety, without unnecessarily criminalizing traffic violators or sending them into spiraling debt.

Read more: Minor police encounters plummet after LAPD put limits on stopping drivers and pedestrians

Johnson, Smith and others also argued for a less punitive approach that doesnt repeat the harm of past efforts and an outright ban on so-called pretextual stops, in which police use a minor violation as justification to stop someone in order to investigate whether a more serious crime has occurred.

The department has reined in the practice in recent years under intense public pressure but never abandoned it. But further changes could require legislation and are likely to face stiff opposition from police unions such as the Los Angeles Police Protective League.

The league, which represents the city's rank-and-file officers, released a list of low-level calls that it didn't think needed a police intervention: traffic duty was not one of them. Although top LAPD officials have in the past signaled a willingness to relinquish certain traffic duties, other law enforcement experts have dismissed similar proposals as fanciful, especially at a time when sometimes risky behaviors such as street takeovers and illegal racing have increased.

A 2022 Loyola Marymount University survey of Los Angeles residents showed public opinion was largely split on the issue of using unarmed traffic officers or another alternative approach, such as a civilian response team, to handle traffic issues.

City News Service contributed to this report.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Starting July 1, Hoosiers wanting to access adult content websites, like PornHub, will be required to upload age-verification documents online thanks to a new Indiana law aimed at protecting minors. (Screenshot from website)

Pornography video-sharing website Pornhub says itll block access to Hoosier users as Indiana prepares to enact a recently approved age verification requirement. Its exit is planned for June 27.

And its warning users directly.

You will lose access to Pornhub in 13 days, a website pop-up read Thursday.

Did you know that your government wants you to give your drivers license before you can access Pornhub? it continued. As crazy as that sounds, its true.

It comes days after Pornhub  joined by other explicit content providers and a free speech group  sued the state in an attempt to block the law.

Pornhub parent company Aylo said it has publicly supported age verification for years but added, the way many jurisdictions worldwide have chosen to implement age verification is ineffective, haphazard, and dangerous.

Senate Bill 17 requires that adult-oriented websites hosting explicit materials  such as pornography or other material harmful to minors  verify a users identity before allowing access. That could be by scanning a drivers license or registering with a third-party verification service.

The user notice pop-up on Pornhub. (Screenshot of website)

Lawmakers tussled over the legislation in committee and on the floor. Despite that, they overwhelmingly voted to pass the law, according to the Legislatures bill action tracker.

We have children who have seen hardcore content before they have their first kiss, bill author Sen. Mike Bohacek, R-Michiana Shores, said in January.

Senate Minority Leader Greg Taylor, D-Indianapolis  the bills most outspoken opponent  held that the legislation lacked information privacy guardrails. He raised concerns about how securely the proof of age documents will be handled.

Thats an argument Pornhub is making directly to its users.

In its pop-up, Pornhub said it doesnt want minors accessing its website, but that putting everybodys privacy at risk wont achieve that.

Rather than attempt to verify Hoosier users ages, Pornhub plans to close up shop in Indiana.

Parent company Aylo said Pornhub was one of the few sites to comply with Louisianas age verification law when it took effect in early 2023.

Since then, our traffic in Louisiana dropped approximately 80%. These people did not stop looking for porn, Aylo said. They just migrated to darker corners of the internet that dont ask users to verify age, that dont follow the law, that dont take user safety seriously, and that often dont even moderate content.

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In practice, the laws have just made the internet more dangerous for adults and children, Aylo continued.

The company has instead advocated for device-based age verification, and said it was happy to collaborate with government, technology companies and other partners to work on a solution.

Critics have said the approach, which uses a devices built-in features to verify a users age, doesnt protect children who use a parents phone or other device. Aylo also suggested people use existing parental control features.

The safety of our users is our number one concern, Aylo concluded. We will always comply with the law, but we hope that governments around the world will implement laws that actually protect the safety and security of users.

Indianas law goes into effect July 1  unless a judge blocks it.

Pornhub and the other plaintiffs filed suit on Monday, alleging that the law is unconstitutional  violating the First Amendment  and unenforceable. They asked a federal judge in Indianapolis to issue a preliminary injunction against the law.

Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita defended it Tuesday as a commonsense way to protect children.

The post You will lose access: Pornhub warns Hoosier users of exit as age verification law takes effect appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle.
Louisiana's spending on death penalty defense will stay largely over the next year, despite a major shakeup in public defender management. (Canva image)

Louisiana will continue to spend millions of dollars on private contracts with attorneys to represent people facing the death penalty, despite Gov. Jeff Landrys high-profile overhaul of public defense management.



The newly formed Public Defender Oversight Board voted Wednesday to keep indigent defense operations largely similar to the way they function now. Its members overruled Landrys handpicked State Public Defender Remy Starns on two key issues  capital defense spending and district defender pay.



Landry and Starns pushed lawmakers in February to change public defense laws to empower Starns, as the state public defender, to have more control over the system. Public defenders represent more than 146,000 people per year, approximately 88% of all criminal defendants in the state.



At the governors urging, lawmakers agreed to dissolve a previous public defender board deemed too powerful and to reconstitute a new version that must show more deference to Starns. The new board, which met Wednesday, is still supposed to help him oversee a sprawling network of 35 local public defender offices and more than 850 attorneys.

But Starns is already running into roadblocks with the new oversight board much in the same way he did with its predecessor.



He did not propose major cuts to the states multimillion dollar death penalty defense contracts, a decision the new public defender board members questioned this week.

[Lawmakers] made it clear that they were not happy, as has the governor, with the amount weve spent on [defending the death penalty], said Frank Thaxton, a board member and retired state judge from Caddo Parish.



State lawmakers have complained for years that the private, nonprofit law firms who defend those condemned to death in Louisiana cost too much money. They would like to see more of that funding spent on public defenders who handle day-to-day cases in local courts.



This fiscal year and next, Louisiana will spend $6.2 million on private attorneys for death penalty trials, appeals and post-conviction processes, according to financial documents Starns prepared for the board. Another $1.6 million will go to private attorneys handling non-death penalty appeals and post-conviction innocence cases.

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In the next budget cycle, the state will no longer be sending $265,000 to the Louisiana Center for Childrens Rights in New Orleans to represent minors accused of crimes, though that contract was canceled under the old public defender board last year. Starns also declined to put more money into some expert witness funds used by the death penalty defense teams and others.

But Starns said its difficult for him to cut the private attorney contracts directly because very few local public defenders are certified to handle capital cases, and a robust defense against the death penalty is constitutionally required.

Board members, however, seemed skeptical the outside lawyers needed to be paid as much as they are currently.

Quite frankly, I believe it is incumbent on the board to make every effort to reduce the amount we paid [to attorneys from death penalty cases] from last year, said board member Ted Hernandez.

While there are no cuts to spending on defense attorneys, Starns had proposed funneling the spending through local public defender offices instead of giving it out directly from his staff, as happens now.

Letting the local district defenders handle death penalty defense agreements might encourage private attorneys to pick up some life-without-parole cases, which can overwhelm local staff, Starns said.

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Starns said one nonprofit defense team, the Baton Rouge Capital Conflict Office, had already successfully merged with the public defender office in the 19th Judicial District in East Baton Rouge Parish to combine resources. He wanted three other similar partnerships  in Lafayette, St. Tammany and Caddo parishes  to take place.



The board rejected Starns proposal, however, saying it would rather have the state handle the death penalty defense contracts instead of local offices. Board members were responding, in part, to remarks from Michelle AndrePont who runs the Caddo Parish Public Defender Office.

AndrePont told the board she wouldnt feel comfortable handling a $400,000 contract with the Louisiana Capital Assistance Center (LCAC) from the Caddo public defender office, as Starns had proposed. The groups death penalty cases arent coming from her judicial district, and the organization would also only commit to picking up a couple of life-without-parole cases, which wouldnt significantly help with her staffs caseload.

Im being presented with a contract for a very large sum of money to LCAC for cases that have nothing to do with my district, AndrePont said. Im supposed to send them $400,000 per year for capital work that is between them and the Office of the State Public Defender that has nothing to do with me.



The board also rejected another Starns plan to rework the pay scale of district defenders. AndrePont and other district defenders said his proposal would cut their annual pay by tens of thousands of dollars per year.



Starns has repeatedly described the district defenders current pay scale, which was implemented by the previous public defender board, as an abomination that will cost the system too much money.



The former board raised the pay of the states 35 district defenders collectively by almost $1 million annually in 2023. Thaxton, who served on the previous board, said the pay hikes were necessary because some district defenders hadnt received raises in several years.



Under Starns plan, at least 20 district defenders would receive a pay cut, said Trisha Ward, the district defender for the 13th Judicial District in Evangeline Parish. She would personally see a salary reduction of $42,500 annually, she told board members at this weeks public meeting.

Brett Brunson, district defender in the 10th Judicial District in Natchitoches Parish, said he was hired 18 years ago for a little over $100,000 per year and never received an increase until the new pay scale went into effect last fall. It gave him an extra $10,000 annually.

Under Starns plan, Brunsons income would have been cut $30,000, meaning he would have made less than when he was initially hired almost two decades ago.



I know there is a draconian cut to some of the chiefs in other small districts, under Starns plan, Brunson told the board.

Instead of adopting Starns strategy, the board said it would come up with its own compensation proposal over the next year. Until then, the current pay scale will remain in place.

The post Louisianas death penalty spending stays the course, despite public defense shakeup appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Blue tarps cover roofs in Larose six weeks after Hurricane Ida. Louisianas fortified roof grant program is expected to open again in fall 2024 with a new round of money. (Photo: Wes Muller/Louiisiana Illuminator)

Louisianas fortified roof grant program is expected to accept applications for a second year with a new round of money to distribute this fall and at a pace exceeding that of Alabama, where a comparable program was first launched.

State lawmakers allocated $15 million to the Louisiana Fortify Homes Program this year. The Louisiana Department of Insurance, which manages the program, plans to combine that money with funds left over from last year and open a new application round this fall, Deputy Insurance Commissioner John Parker Ford said.

The program offers grants of up to $10,000 to eligible homeowners for new roofs built with improved techniques and materials that can stop leaks and withstand winds of up to 150 mph. Having a fortified roof can lower the risk of storm damage, leading to lower homeowner insurance costs.

The program began last year as a response to the states ongoing insurance crisis. Premiums soared after the 2020 hurricane season brought five named storms to Louisianas coast. A dozen insurance companies covering properties in the state went bankrupt and at least 11 more stopped adding new customers. Some of the remaining insurers have hiked rates so high that residents have been forced out of their homes.

The Fortify Homes Program began with $30 million last year, and the Louisiana Department of Insurance received a total of 3,150 roof grant applications.

Roughly $9 million has been granted, and exactly 900 new roofs have been completed as of Wednesday. Another 187 roofs have been installed and are awaiting final inspection before the grants are paid. An additional 1,414 are at some stage of the evaluation or construction process.

Unlike loans, grants are monetary gifts that recipients do not have to pay back. Applicants who receive the money are responsible for any roofing job costs that exceed $10,000.

Of the 3,150 grant applications, 649 either did not qualify or withdrew for some other reason. Ford said some homeowners realized they couldnt afford the amount the grant money didnt cover.

Replacing a roof is just something you dont have to do very often  so theres probably a little bit of a sticker shock there for some folks, Ford said.

As a result, the program could have $5 million or more left to add to this years roof grant pool.

Ford said the insurance department is working on some improvements to make the application process more equitable and trying to find nonprofits that can help homeowners who need financial assistance.

With nearly 1,100 roofs built and an additional 1,400 pending in the first year, Louisianas fortified roof program is already on pace to exceed the state that came up with the idea  Alabama, which took years to reach those numbers.

Alabama began its roof grant program in 2011 and has fortified 6,000 roofs as of May 2023, according to an Alabama Department of Insurance press release. Thats an average of about 500 per year.

To qualify for a Louisiana roof grant, homeowners have to get a state-approved evaluator to inspect their home. They must then obtain bids from at least three insurance department-approved contractors who can do the work. The departments website lists approved evaluators and approved contractors.

For more information, contact the Louisiana Department of Insurance by calling (225) 342-5900 or visiting www.ldi.la.gov/fortifyhomes.

Correction: The amount state lawmakers allocated to the roof grant program in 2024 was $15 million, and the program is not available to business owners. A previous version of this article misstated those two points.

The post Louisianas roof grant program heads into second year at solid pace appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Lt. Governor Mark Robinson vows to end Diversity, Equity and Inclusion at a Moms for Liberty rally. (Photo: Ahmed Jallow)

North Carolina Republican gubernatorial nominee Lt. Governor Mark Robinson made an unusual public appearance in Raleigh on Wednesday at a legislative day sponsored by the conservative advocacy group Moms for Liberty. During a brief talk on the lawn outside the Legislative Building, Robinson told a group of activists that he is proud to stand up for what is right and pledged to end Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs in schools and government if elected in November.

Echoing whats become a theme for conservative politicians and candidates across the country in the runup to the 2024 election, Robinson said, DEI  it sounds nice, but we all know its wrecking systems all across the nation, all across the state.

My version of DEI is not diversity, equity and inclusion. My version of DEI is something this nation, this state, our institutions need to bring back, he said. Its what we used to search for in this country  discipline, excellence and intelligence.

Supporters say DEI initiatives help ensure that people who belong to groups traditionally treated as second class Americans  women, racial minorities, LGBTQ+ people, and people with disabilities  gain inclusion in workplaces and educational institutions.

Robinson, who has condemned LGBTQ+ people and homosexuality in the past, said on Wednesday that he is not against any particular group, but that certain subjects and topics  an apparent reference to LGBTQ+ people and their lives and lifestyles  have no place in school. These agendas need to be removed from our schools. They need to be removed from our government.

Moms for Liberty was founded in Florida in 2021 and gained prominence for its opposition to COVID-19 school closures and mask mandates.

It is now a national organization with chapters in 48 states, including 20 in North Carolina. The group has shifted its focus to curriculum content and calls for limitations on discussions of gender, sexuality, and DEI in schools. The group also calls for the removal of books they believe are inappropriate for certain age groups.

Brooke Weiss, Chair of the Mecklenburg County Chapter, told reporters that the group was in Raleigh to advocate for a civics examination requirement for all public high school graduates, similar to the test immigrants are required to take before becoming citizens. People are taking an oath of office that have never read the Constitution and dont even understand what it is, Weiss said. Every American should be able to answer the same questions that we asked immigrants to answer.

North Carolina high school students are currently required to take courses on civics and U.S. history to graduate.

Robinsons sighting at the Legislative Building was relatively unusual. Though the Lt. Governor officially serves as President of the state Senate, Robinson, unlike his predecessors in recent decades, has rarely presided over Senate sessions during his three-and-a-half years in office.

As he has on other occasions in recent months, Robinson used part of his brief speech on Wednesday to criticize what he said has been inadequate outrage over antisemitic statements allegedly made by student protesters demonstrating against the Israel-Hamas conflict on campuses across the state.

They did nothing while at the same time the same folks, that same ilk, called moms who went down to school boards simply to demand that their children werent being fed pornography and werent being indoctrinated in their schools and demanded to know what their children were learning were called domestic terrorist.

The comments were the latest in what has been a sustained effort by Robinson in recent months to distance himself from (and make amends for) past remarks of his own that have been widely condemned as antisemitic.

As Newsline reported in October of 2023, Robinson has said he regretted the wording he used in Facebook posts that promoted antisemitic conspiracy theories, denied the reality of the Holocaust, claimed a character in the Black Panther movie was created by an agnostic Jew, and then in the same Facebook post used a Yiddish pejorative for Black people Schvartze, and an antisemitic term for Israeli currency shekels.

Robinsons opponent in November, Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein would, if elected, be the states first Jewish governor.

A very different event

Sen. Lisa Grafstein (left) and Rep. Julie Von Haefen (right) address those attending Equality NC's advocacy day

Soon after the Moms for Liberty event concluded, a very different group of advocates assembled outside the Legislative Buidling as representatives and supporters of Equality NC, an LGBTQ+ advocacy organization, held a press conference to kickstart its advocacy day. Speakers included a pair of Democratic lawmakers, Sen. Lisa Grafstein and Rep. Julie Von Haefen of Wake County and multiple advocates.

None of the speakers at the event mentioned Robinson or Moms for Liberty by name, but they highlighted the potential effects on the LGBTQ+ community of policies championed by the group and Robinson.

Grafstein, who is the only out LGBTQ+ member of the North Carolina Senate, said when she first ran for office in 2022, her focus was on public education, affordable housing, and disability rights.

Naively, I believe that thats what I came here to work on, said Grafstein. When I got here, I found that, in fact, there was a culture war happening right hereevery single day, a culture war happening thats not about any of the issues that affect peoples lives, but that its about politics, that its about gaining political advantage, and that its about demonizing and marginalizing people for political gain.

On the eighth anniversary of the Pulse nightclub massacre that left 49 people dead in Orlando, Florida, Grafstein said threats against LGBTQ communities still loom large.

Theres still danger, theres still hatred, theres still violence directed at the queer community. What we also know is that that kind of violence is fueled by the ways in which people are talked about in public forums, by the ways that our elected representatives talk about the LGBTQ community, by the policies that are enacted that are marginalizing and that are harmful to our lives.

Rep. von Haefen expressed similar sentiments. She said she ran for office to fight for public schools and teachers. But all that Ive been able to do since Ive been here is to fight against really horrible pieces of legislation that are continuing to attack our kids, that are continuing to attack the most vulnerable kids in our schools.

Von Haefen said she was devastated when North Carolina passed the Parents Bill of Rights legislation into law last year. I knew what we were doing was literally harming the very kids that we were supposed to be elected to protect. In that building.

The law makes it illegal to talk to students about sexuality and gender identity in kindergarten through fourth grade. It also requires schools to tell parents if a student changes their pronouns.

I think of the survivors of Pulse, I think of the young trans kids across the country who have experienced the hateful, relentless bullying fueled by the attacks from elected officials who should be protecting them, said Rhys Chambers, of Human Rights Campaign, also an LGBTQ+ advocacy group.

Every family and every child deserve the same protections as everyone else. The youth of North Carolina deserve better. They deserve to live their lives with safety, dignity, privacy and freedom from discrimination. We deserve leaders who will fight for all of us this violence and vitriol against our community, perpetuated and bolstered by misinformation, disinformation and stigma, all of which we are seeing right now, from state houses to Congress to major media outlets.

Wednesdays competing events come during a legislative session in which, unlike 2023, Republican legislative leaders who control the General Assembly have advanced little in the way of culture war legislation and have thus far left most debates over issues related to civil and human rights to competing candidates and campaigns.

The post Lt. Gov. Robinson touts end of DEI as LGBTQ+ advocates seek protections, equity appeared first on NC Newsline.
Let no one say that the two most conservative Supreme Court justices, Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito, married meek women. Or partners with inscrutable political views.

This week, we learned from a conversation secretly recorded by a lefty activist  a perfect stranger who sidled up to Martha-Ann Alito at a black-tie dinner, dropping compliments and f-bombs  that she hopes to spend her golden years indulging certain well-tended vendettas.

First, against the media. And not only for recent reporting that the Alitos have flown two overtly pro-Trump flags outside their homes, both of them connected to Donald Trumps Stop the Steal movement and to Jan. 6 insurrectionists. This just as the court was considering a case involving the 2020 election and is considering Trumps claims of immunity from criminal prosecution for his attempts to overturn the results of that vote.

Mrs. Alitos animus towards the press apparently goes back to when Washington Post fashion critic Robin Givhan cut her clothes apart in print after the Alitos arrived in D.C. in 2006. Of course, reading that one of your ensembles reminded a writer of a baby blanket, and that another outfit seemed to have been patterned after a La-Z-Boy recliner, does not sound fun at all. But neither does eagerly waiting for the day when you can, as she put it, get them. Im gonna be liberated, and Im gonna get them.  Come on, come on, Ill get you, come on.

She also looks forward to sticking it to her neighbors across the lagoon from their beach house in New Jersey, who are not to be confused with the other neighbors she doesnt like, on their street in Northern Virginia.

Lauren Windsor, the woman goading the justices wife with feigned sympathy and outrage at that recent dinner, works in the same vineyard as Project Veritas founder James OKeefe, the right-wing activist who before he was fired from his own operation for spending an excessive amount of donor funds on personal luxuries specialized in hidden camera sting operations.

Windsor also taped her conversation with Justice Alito, who agreed with her that there was no compromising with liberals because one side or the other is going to win. So cases before the Supreme Court of the United States arent decided neutrally, based not on our current political passions but on the U.S. Constitution? Not to hear the Alitos tell it.

Unburdening herself to someone shed just met, Mrs. Alito said that as soon as were free of this nonsense  presumably referring to her husbands service on the highest court in the country  shell be flying lots of flags. And all of them, she hopes, will send messages that will upset her neighbors across the water just as much as their pride flag bothers her.

Mere snippets of this five-minute conversation with Windsor about her bitter dream of a retirement spent getting even do not fully capture Mrs. Alitos rage and aggrievement, but here are a few samples anyway: Feminazis believe that he should control me. So theyll go to hell; he never controls me.  Dont get angry, get even.  Look at me. Look at me. Im German, from Germany. My heritage is German. You come after me, Im gonna give it back to you. And there will be a way  it doesnt have to be now  but there will be a way they will know. Dont worry about it.

When Windsor says that to make our country more godly and moral, conservatives just have to f---ing win, Mrs. Alito responds, You know what I want? I want a Sacred Heart of Jesus flag, because I have to look across the lagoon at the pride flag for the next month. And hes like, Oh, please dont put up a flag. I said, I wont do it because Im deferring to you, but when you are free of this nonsense, Im putting it up and Im gonna send them a message every day. Maybe every week Ill be changing the flags. 

Theyll be all kinds. I made a flag in my head. This is how I satisfy myself. I made a flag. Its white and it has yellow and orange flames around it. And in the middle of it is the word vergogna. Vergogna in Italian means shame. Vergogna. V-E-R-G-O-G-N-A. Vergogna. Shame, shame, shame on you.

Heres where I do agree with Mrs. Alito: Vergogna is a great word, much more satisfying to unfurl and let fly  yes, like a flag  than its English equivalent.

But coming back to this agita from the 80th D-Day anniversary in Normandy, where the flags I saw were American, French, British and Canadian, all flying together, in displays meant to unify and pay homage, is a deflating reminder of where we are right here and now. Which is a place so angry that even the wife of a member of our highest court is looking for payback and longing to fly flags meant to shame.

Martha-Ann Alito could herself have a big future on the conservative circuit, along with a whole line of red hot vergogna merch. In fact, having already been liberated by sharing her views with Lauren Windsor, she neednt even wait for her husbands retirement.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. The Armenian lobby, traditionally strong in France, has launched a large-scale campaign against Azerbaijan in the local press. Benefiting from the Emmanuel Macron-caused crisis in relations between Baku and Paris, articles slandering Azerbaijan and making outlandish accusations are practically daily published in Armenian-language media outlets. It is encouraging that among this anti-Azerbaijani howl in the French press, there are also voices telling the truth about what is happening in our region.

Thus, Paris-based La Gazette du Caucase published an article in which reporters refuted a provocative article by the French-language Armenian publication Armenews, which managed to accuse Baku of "destroying the Armenian heritage in Karabakh".

"Even during the worst periods of relations between the two countries, Armenian churches continued to function in Azerbaijan. However, when Karabakh was under Armenian occupation, Azerbaijani mosques in the occupied territories were used as warehouses or animal stalls, and historical and cultural monuments were vandalized. Hundreds of cultural and religious monuments in Karabakh were destroyed - but these monuments were Azerbaijani and destroyed by Armenians," La Gazette du Caucase emphasizes.

The publication notes that ethnic, confessional, and cultural diversity has always been a kind of "business card" of Azerbaijan.

"Azerbaijan and its principles deserve great respect. Due to its centuries-old history and strategic location on the Great Silk Road, diversity has always been an integral part of Azerbaijani society. Nowadays, different ethnic groups live peacefully in cities and regions of Azerbaijan, enjoy equal rights, and develop," the reporters write.

As for the accusations of destroying heritage, the Paris-based newspaper emphasizes that it is the Armenian side that has been rewriting the history of the South Caucasus for many years, filling it with fakes.

"For many years, the Armenian side loudly declared about the alleged "destruction of Armenian heritage" on the territory of Azerbaijan, trying to prevent the restoration of historical Albanian temples. However, now, after the liberation of Karabakh, for the first time in two centuries, the Albanian-Udin community can freely visit their temples and hold prayer services in the churches built by their ancestors. Armenians can no longer rewrite the history of the region at will," the publication of La Gazette du Caucase notes.

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Insights from Le Monde, The Nation, and Politico

The News

French President Emmanuel Macron urged voters to reject extremist fever in favor of the middle ground as the countrys main center-right partys leader forged a clandestine deal with the far-right ahead of a snap election later this month.

Les Republicains voted to oust Eric Ciotti as leader after saying he held secret negotiations to unite with Marine Le Pens National Rally without consulting party members. Ciotti meanwhile insisted on Thursday that he was still the party leader.







SIGNALS

Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories.

Le Pen had been waiting to fuse the far-right and right

Sources: Le Monde, European Council on Foreign Relations , Politico

Ciottis alliance claim marked a dangerous surrender to the far-right, which Marine Le Pen has been waiting for, Le Monde argued. But Macron may also be to blame: His decision to call an election when the NR was at its strongest and Les Republicains comparatively weak created the conditions of [the center-rights] death sentence. This could be Frances so-called Brexit moment, where Macrons gamble will unleash a new Eurosceptic dawn for France, a professor of European studies argued in the European Council on Foreign Relations. But the Brexit comparison is a little false, a former Paris correspondent wrote in Politico, because although Britains departure did some damage to the EU, a French de facto defection under Le Pen could be mortal.







The left is trying to organise, but internal squabbling persists

Sources: The Financial Times , The Nation

Frances left-wing parties are usually fractured, but their success in hashing out a new alliance, Front Populaire  named after the short-lived interwar coalition of French leftist factions that won an election in 1936 but dissolved two years later  is a sign of the times, the Financial Times reported. Yet behind its show of unity lurk fundamental disagreements on key geopolitical issues, and unrest is brewing over the prospect of controversial far-left France Unbowed leader Jean-Luc Melenchon taking a pivotal role in the alliance. If the left manages to survive this uphill battle, however, it could provide a much-needed boon of electability and enthusiasm, and puncture the illusion that French voters have only Macron and the National Rally to choose between, a columnist argued in The Nation.
Macron unclear on if he backs von der Leyen for top European post

(L-R) Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, President of the EU Council Charles Michel, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron and US President Joe Biden watch parachutists, at the G7 summit. Michael Kappeler/dpa

French President Emmanuel Macron was noncommittal when asked about whether he is supporting Ursula von der Leyen's candidacy for a second term as president of the European Commission following the European elections.

Macron said the appointment of EU leaders would be discussed in an organised manner, in comments to journalists at the G7 summit in southern Italy on Thursday.

That procedure also applies to the posts of council president, eu foreign affairs commissioner, commission vice-president and the candidates for the presidency of the European Parliament.

The top posts in the EU are due to be filled following the European elections held until Sunday. Some 360 million people across the 27 EU member states were eligible to cast their ballots over four days.

Given the clear victory of the centre-right, pro-European EPP alliance, it is seen as likely that the party's candidate, von der Leyen, will win a second term.

However, she requires the support of other party families such as the Social Democrats and Liberals to win in the European Parliament vote.

In return, they are likely to expect to be allowed to fill other top posts.

The issue is due to be discussed by EU member state leaders at a special summit in Brussels on Monday evening.

Former Portuguese prime minister Antonio Costa is currently seen as a possible candidate for the post and Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas as a possible candidate for Foreign Affairs Commissioner.

Costa belongs to the Socialist and Social Democrat party group, while Kallas, like Macron, is a member of the Liberals.

Macron's failure to position himself was noted mainly as he proposed von der Leyen for the presidency of the European Commission in 2019, after preventing Germany's Manfred Weber from getting the post

It was initially unclear whether there had been discussion of the issue on the sidelines of the G7 summit currently under way in Italy.

Macron met with Scholz and von der Leyen on Thursday evening in the Borgo Egnazia hotel, though no information was given about the topics discussed.

(L-R) Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, President of the EU Council Charles Michel, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron watch parachutists, at the G7 summit. Michael Kappeler/dpa
MADERA, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE)  A special meeting was held in Madera to discuss the future of the citys main sewage lines rehabilitation after the two sinkholes opened up along Avenue 13.

The meeting results indicated that City Council found SAK Construction, LLC, to be the lowest qualified, responsible, and responsive bidder, accepting their bid.

The City Council approved an agreement for the project for $8,328,452 with SAK Construction, LLC. The Council also authorized construction contingencies of up to 20% as approved by the City Engineer. The total project budget, including the contract with SAK, project contingency, and other related services is $10,826,987.

This Resolution is effective immediately upon adoption.

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 YourCentralValley.com | KSEE24 and CBS47.
Magic mushrooms may soon be used for therapy in San Diego County

Magic mushrooms may soon be used for therapy in San Diego County

SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI)  A psilocybin, or magic mushroom, treatment bill was introduced by a pair of California lawmakers last week.

If passed, the psychedelic therapy would become available for military veterans and first responders in San Diego County, along with San Francisco and Santa Cruz counties.

Known as the Heal Our Heroes Act, state senators Brian Jones and Josh Becker proposed the legislation, which is referred to as Senate Bill 803.

As explained in the bill, the Psychedelic-Assisted Facilitation Pilot Program would authorize public health officers to approve entities to establish and operate up to five psychedelic-assisted facilitation centers per county.

Those who meet the specified criteria, including being a veteran or first responder over 21 years of age who has passed a suitability screening, would be offered an opportunity to undergo psilocybin therapy as a means to treat mental health issues.

As a dedicated advocate for veterans and first responders, I firmly believe it is our duty to support and heal the brave individuals who served our country and communities, Sen. Jones stated in press release regarding the measure. To be clear, Im not calling for the widespread legalization of psychedelic drugs. Rather, Im championing a targeted medical treatment aimed specifically at aiding veterans and first responders in their recovery.

Date-rape drug testing kits coming to San Diego bars and nightclubs

According to the bill, an average of 16.8 veterans die by suicide daily, something that tends to follow traumatic experiences that can lead to conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and anxiety.

SB 803 is an entirely new and innovative effort that is the result of comprehensive discussions on how the state can best support our veterans and first responders with a viable treatment for work-induced post-traumatic stress disorder, said Sen. Becker. We have a responsibility to do everything possible to provide quality care to these heroes, and I am proud to joint author this bipartisan effort that will have a real impact on the people who serve our state and country.

According to the bill, emerging research suggests that psilocybin, when used in a controlled and facilitated setting, may offer significant benefits in treating mental health disorders, particularly those related to trauma and stress.

Whether or not the bill passes remains to be seen. Nonetheless, the push for psychedelic therapy continues to be a reoccurring topic when it comes to addressing mental health issues among veterans.

If it does move forward, research from this program will help lawmakers make more informed decisions about policies related to psychedelics in the future.

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June 13 (UPI) -- A couple magnet fishing in a New York waterway reeled in a safe containing about $100,000 -- and they are now trying to preserve the cash before it disintegrates.

James Kane and Barbi Agostini said they were at Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens earlier this month when the magnet on the end of their rope latched onto something heavy.

The couple said the incident was not the first time they had reeled in a safe while magnet fishing, but it was the first time such a container turned out to contain treasure -- about $100,000 in water-damaged $100 bills.

The New York Police Department told the couple the cash was theirs to keep as investigators were unable to find any evidence connecting the safe or its contents to a crime.

"This is the most significant find in poor-people treasure-hunting history," Kane told The New York Times.

Kane and Agostini took a bus to Washington, D.C., with the most salvageable-seeming cash from the safe in the hopes of having it cataloged and replaced at the U.S. Treasury Department's Bureau of Engraving and Printing. They said the cash was badly damaged and getting worse by the day.

A Treasury employee estimated there appeared to be $50,000-$70,000 worth of recoverable cash in the plastic bag brought in by the couple.

The man told Kane and Agostini that the money would be counted and replaced with fresh cash, which they would be able to take home tax-free. The process is expected to take about nine months.

"America the beautiful," Kane said.

The couple, who took up magnet fishing as an outdoor activity during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, said their previous discoveries include a grenade, multiple guns, a drone and an entire motorcycle.
Dale McCormick, founding president of the Maine Lesbian Gay Political Alliance, now EqualityMaine, (center) talks about strategies for successful organizing at the Equality Community Center in Portland on June 11. (Emma Davis/ Maine Morning Star)

In September 1973, eight students gathered inside the Memorial Union at the University of Maine Orono to start what would become the Wilde-Stein Club. The club, named after gay literary figures Oscar Wilde and Gertrude Stein, was the first LGBTQ+ student group officially recognized in Maine.

The Wilde-Stein Club established another first, the Maine Gay Symposium, a statewide conference launched in 1974 that brought together LGBTQ+ Mainers and seasoned activists from around the country who saw Maine as a battleground state nationally.

What had been an atomized population here in Maine was being organized, said Steven Bull, co-founder of the club and Symposium.

As organizers today continue efforts to create a more just Maine for the LGBTQ+ community, Bull and other early movement pioneers gathered Tuesday evening at the Equality Community Center in Portland to share lessons learned from past activism to help guide future progress.

In many ways, Maine led the country in protections for LGBTQ+ people.

Within a few weeks of the first Symposium, the Maine Democratic Party passed a gay rights plank during the state conventiononly the second in the country. In 2005, when the majority of states lacked discrimination protections, lawmakers added protections for the LGBTQ+ community to the Maine Human Rights Act. Maine was the first state to legalize same-sex marriage by a statewide referendum in 2012  three years before the Obergefell v. Hodges U.S. Supreme Court decision made marriage equality a reality nationwide.

However, before many of these advancements toward equal protections came numerous failed attempts  and changing laws did not mean attacks and discrimination ceased.

Lesson 1: Meeting people where they are

The campaign for marriage equality in Maine took seven years  and a shift in messaging.

Betsy Smith, who served as executive director of EqualityMaine at the time, said she and other organizers heading the initial effort centered messaging around fairness and equality, knowing that the state had just approved non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ people.

We felt like Mainers who were voting on this ultimately, and legislators, would be moved if we said, We just want the same rights and protections, Smith explained, such as jointly filing taxes and inheritance rights.

Betsy Smith, former executive director of EqualityMaine, talks about her work on the campaign for marriage equality at the Equality Community Center in Portland on June 11. (Emma Davis/ Maine Morning Star)

But, Mainers did not back that effort. Organizers began questioning why that framing didnt resonate, seeking answers through nationwide polling. What they found: most people felt same-sex couples should have those rights, but marriage for most people was not about rights. It was about love and commitment.

Betsy explained that when organizers went out to have conversations with Mainers during the second, ultimately successful, campaign, instead of starting out with why we think they should support marriage, we started out by asking them, So, are you married?

It was in finding common ground  a shared desire to spend their lives or raise a family with the person they loved  that the campaign finally saw success. And, Smith said, then we would say, So do we.

The campaign shifted from Maine wont discriminate to Mainers united for marriage.

We finally started to learn this lesson about meeting people where they are, Smith said.

Lesson 2: Separated, we fall back

When Bull, co-founder of Symposium, began organizing 50 years ago, he and other LGBTQ+ people were in many ways alone, ostracized from society or deemed threats, so it was by necessity and survival that we had to develop as many allies as possible, Bull said.

While societal attitudes have shifted some, Bull continues to find allyship to be pivotal in the fight for equal protections. The safety found in establishing community with those who share an identity offers power, too, he explained.

For 25 years, the Symposium series provided this, a safe space for networking and addressing whatever challenges the growing movement faced, Bull said. A monthly newsletter developed by a coalition of LGBTQ+ groups, the Maine Gay Task Force, also helped serve as a way to organize in a geographically expansive state.

Maine Gay Task Force Newsletter from December 1974, as archived by the University of Southern Maine Digital Commons.

At the event in Portland, Bull and other early leaders highlighted the role of intersectionality in sustained success, noting the need to combine LGBTQ+ activism with efforts for economic and racial justice.

My point here is that democratic rights are indivisible, Bull said. That separated, we fall back, but united, we can go forward. Allies are crucial.

Lesson 3: Dance with the person that brought you

Another lesson came in the wake of the 1986 gubernatorial election. The Maine Lesbian Gay Political Alliance, now known as EqualityMaine, had formed two years prior and was ready to start endorsing candidates, explained Dale McCormick, who helped found the group and became the first openly gay member of the Maine Legislature in 1990.

MLGPA decided not to back either of the major parties candidates but instead threw support behind independent Sherry Huber because she was pro-choice.

After the endorsement, McCormick recalled, all hell broke loose.

For several years prior, MLGPA lobbied Democratic lawmakers to vote yes on the Civil Rights Bill. They had put themselves out on a limb, McCormick said, of the partys eventual support for the bill.

Ultimately, McCormick decided the endorsement was a mistake. Not that Sherry Huber isnt wonderful and was good on our issues, McCormick clarified, but we had forgotten this even bigger moral truth, which is that you should say, Thank you. That you should dance with the person that brought you.

It took years for MLGPA to recover from that politically, she said.

Lesson 4: Being true

After being diagnosed with AIDS, Tom Antonik moved back to Maine from New York City in 1987 thinking he would live out his final years in the state in which he grew up. He also began working with AIDS and HIV service and advocacy organizations and pushing for LGBTQ+ causes, which he has continued to do for the nearly 40 years since.

Antonik recalled the first time he spoke at a public event about his experience living with AIDS.

I got up to share my personal story and, when I did, there was a silence in the room that I just did not expect, Antonik said. They listened to every word I had to say, and it was that revelation to me that just by telling my story, by being true, by being honest, that I can make a difference.

Being honest about who he is has since been a guiding principle for him and has also helped define his identity amid an often unkind world. When marching in a Pride parade in New York City years ago, he recalled protesters chanting outside St. Patricks Cathedral.

Im listening to all these slurs and really horrific things and something shifted, Antonik explained. None of it landed. That wasnt me, he said, they were just using me as a symbol.

However, Antonik cautioned that the solution is never as simple as not internalizing hate  given the potential for danger that can accompany such aggression. For example, he said he thought twice about wearing the pearl necklace he had on when walking to the Equality Community Center for the event, despite understanding Portland to be a safe and welcoming city.

Part of the reason he has advocated for LGBTQ+ rights, he said, is because people went ahead of me in times that were much more difficult to make it safe so that I could do what I could do to make it a little bit safer for who came along next.

As one young participant shared at the center Tuesday evening, I cant wait to be shown how much more is possible.

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The post Maine LGBTQ+ leaders reflect on legacy of progress, lessons to guide fight ahead appeared first on Maine Morning Star.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. On June 13, at 19:50, the Armenian armed forces units using small arms subjected to fire the Azerbaijan Army positions stationed in the direction of Yukhari Buzgov settlement of Babak region of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, Trend reports, citing the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry.

Azerbaijan Army Units took retaliatory measures in the mentioned direction.
Hunter Biden, the troubled son of President Joe Biden, was convicted this week of three charges related to illegally purchasing a gun while suffering from drug addiction. It is fair to ask whether prosecutors should have brought these charges in the first place; Reason's Jacob Sullum described the violated law in question as "widely flouted, haphazardly enforced, and constitutionally dubious."

Republican Rep. Thomas Massie (RKy.) wrote on X: "Hunter might deserve to be in jail for something, but purchasing a gun is not it. There are millions of marijuana users who own guns in this country, and none of them should be in jail for purchasing or possessing a firearm against current laws."

One interesting feature of the trial was the delivery mechanism for the evidence used by the state to prove that Hunter Biden was indeed addicted to drugs at the time of the gun purchase. That evidence came from photos and messages that were obtained from his laptop, which he abandoned at a Delaware repair store in April 2019.

The contents of the laptop, readers may recall, fell into the hands of government investigators, Republican operatives, and eventually, the media. On October 14, 2020just weeks before the presidential electionthe New York Post published a story about the laptop's contents, arguing that it demonstrated corruption and influence peddling involving the Biden family.

The rest is history: Mainstream media figures smeared the laptop story as misinformation, national intelligence experts described it as part of a potential Russian influence campaign, and social media sites suppressed it. Joe Biden himself dismissed the story as fake during a debate with then-President Donald Trump, citing the assessments of the intelligence community.

It is notable, then, that years later, the accuracy of the information on the laptop is no longer questioned; claims of Russian malfeasance are utterly unfounded. One can disagree with the New York Post's conclusions about the relevance of the information, but it's abundantly clear that it was Hunter Biden's laptop and it was discarded at a repair shop.

Many conservatives are rightly taking a victory lap. Sean Hannity delivered a thunderous monologue this week: "In other words, you were lied to on a very high level just before an election by numerous people and entire institutions. You were lied to by Hunter Biden himself. You were lied to by his father, your president, Joe Biden. You were lied to by NBC News, fake news CNN, NPR. Well, let's just say pretty much everybody in the media mob."

One can quibble with the term liebut it's inarguable that the aforementioned institutions and individuals did in fact get the laptop story totally wrong.

Never Let Go

Enter The Washington Post's Philip Bump, who somehow thinks the media's conduct is worth defending and conservative critics have gone astray. In a recent column, he stubbornly insists that concerns about the laptop story were valid and chides Hannity et al. for taking a victory lap.

He writes: "The issue at the time of the New York Post report was in part that the material might not be authentic. In part, though, it was that it was authenticand being released in October 2020 as part of a foreign effort to influence the outcome of the presidential race."

It's unclear why he thinks this helps his case, since both of these pointsthat the information might be inauthentic or that it might be authentic but Russian-derivedwere wrong. The information is authentic, and no evidence has ever surfaced that Russia had something to do with it.

Bump subsequently wastes a great deal of ink explaining why he believes those concerns about Russian intervention were well-founded. Again, this is beside the point. It is now definitively proven that they were not well-founded. Twitter and Facebookwhich at the time faced incredible pressure to actsuppressed the story on a fraudulent basis.

He's right that the intelligence officials who proclaimed the laptop had all the "classic earmarks of a Russian misinformation operation" were more cautious in their assessment than the media acknowledged; indeed, it was Politico that ran with the inaccurate headline "Hunter Biden story is Russian disinfo, dozens of former intel officials say." But nowhere in his column does Bump chide Politico for exaggerating the factson the contrary, he is making excuses for exactly this kind of thing.

All has not been well at The Washington Post lately. Management fired top editor Sally Buzbee earlier this month, with Chief Executive Will Lewis admitting candidly that the paper had lost $77 million in 2023 amid a staggering 50 percent audience decline since 2020. In a recent staff meeting, Lewis angered some by bluntly stating: "People are not reading your stuff. I can't sugarcoat it anymore."

If the problem is that the paper has lost its readers' trust, editors might think carefully about why that is the case.

This Week on Free Media

I am joined once again by Amber Duke to discuss the media's reaction to the Hunter Biden verdict, why MSNBC thinks Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is "damaged," what's going on with the undercover recording of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito, and more.

Worth Watching

Sunday is the day! HBO's House of the Dragon finally returns. Expect some live commentary from me on X.

The post The Mainstream Media Is Still in Denial About Hunter Biden's Laptop appeared first on Reason.com.
The majority of likely U.S. voters said they are concerned about federal employees using Microsoft and that the company should stop receiving hefty government contracts after security breaches by foreign entities, according to a poll exclusively shared Thursday with The Hill.

The poll about trust in Microsoft and the governments use of the tech giants tools was conducted Wednesday, one day ahead of a House hearing about Microsofts breaches featuring testimony from the companys Vice Chair and President Brad Smith.

Overall, 66 percent of polled likely U.S. voters said they have a favorable view of Microsoft. But 68 percent of respondents said they were not aware of hacks into Microsofts internal servers by Chinese and Russian state actors in the last year.

When asked if Microsoft should continue to receive billions of dollars in federal cybersecurity contracts, given the news of the breaches, 60 percent responded no.

An even larger majority  84 percent  of the likely voters said in the survey they are concerned that 90 percent of federal employees use Microsoft email accounts following the foreign hacks.

The poll surveyed 613 likely general election voters Wednesday by internet panel. The margin of error is 4 percentage points.

A report released in April by the Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB) said a cascade of security failures at Microsoft allowed a security breach by a China-backed actor to occur. The breach compromised the emails of organizations and individuals, including U.S. government representatives working on national security matters, such as Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo.

In April, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency confirmed another breach into Microsoft: Russian-linked hackers tapped into correspondence between federal agencies and Microsoft.

During Thursdays hearing, Smith will testify that Microsoft accepts responsibility for each and every one of the issues cited in the CSRBs report, according to a copy of his prepared remarks. Without equivocation or hesitation. And without any sense of defensiveness. But rather with a complete commitment to address every recommendation and use this report as an opportunity and foundation to strengthen our cybersecurity protection across the board.

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(Bloomberg) -- The Czech government took a step toward redressing the disproportionately low share of women in management positions.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Prime Minister Petr Fialas cabinet approved draft legislation required by the European Union that would force some large companies to promote greater gender balance in their top ranks. Measures like that might help trim the 18% income gap between Czech men and women, the third-biggest in the EU, according to the Eurostat.

The bill approved late on Wednesday now goes to parliament, which recently rejected a proposal to legalize same-sex marriages and blocked the adoption of the 2011 Istanbul Convention on combating domestic violence.

Fialas administration is asking private corporations to lead gender-equality efforts that have largely failed in the public sector.

The strongly secular Czech Republic has never had a female prime minister or president, and only one woman sits in the 18-member cabinet. The countrys central bank has a better track record, with two female board members out of seven.

The government now wants to improve the gender balance on the executive and supervisory boards of traded businesses, pointing out that women account for only 21% of members, compared with an EU average of 32%. All 11 companies in the Prague Stock Exchanges PX Index have male chief executive officers.

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

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Man, 85, scammed out of $4K by man he met in Petaluma Trader Joes parking lot

(KRON)  A man was arrested for allegedly scamming an elderly man out of $4,000 in Petaluma in May, the Petaluma Police Department said Wednesday. The suspect, 25-year-old Florian Matei out of Sacramento, has been connected to similar behavior in the past, police said.

Police began investigating the situation after receiving a missing persons report for the 85-year-old victim. He disappeared after leaving home to go to Trader Joes.

The mans car was left abandoned in the parking lot. His family told police they were on the phone with him before he disappeared, and they heard another voice in the background trying to sell him jewelry.

VIDEO: Man jumps counter, attacks Pinole city employee at police building

Officers pinged the victims phone and discovered it was in Cotati. His last bank transaction was at a local casino.

The victim came back to his car about an hour later and was immediately contacted by police. PPD said a man approached him offering to sell gold jewelry.

The suspect drove the victim to several banks and a casino in an attempt to get him to withdraw cash. He withdrew $4,000 in total and gave it to the suspect before being taken back to the Trader Joes parking lot. The jewelry was determined to be fake.

Police took surveillance video from the casino and identified the suspects vehicle. Matei was found to be the suspect. He was contacted by the Daly City Police Department for similar behavior in December.

PPD secured a warrant for Mateis arrest. He was located at the Plaza shopping center on June 7 and arrested.

Police later learned that Matei was using an alias and his identity was verified with a fingerprint system. He was on the run from authorities in Fairfax, VA, where he had open warrants for abduction by force and robbery by force.

Matei was booked into Sonoma County Jail for felony financial elder abuse.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4.
TRAVIS COUNTY, Texas (KXAN)  A man was arrested and charged after police said he sold suspected fentanyl pills to a woman who was later found dead in her northeast Austin apartment in December 2023, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.

Curtis James Habbit, 66, was charged with manufacture/delivery of a controlled substance causing death or significant bodily injury.

KXAN reached out to Habbits attorney for a statement and said there was no comment on the case at this time.

Curtis James Habbit, 66 | Courtesy Austin Police Department

On Dec. 4, 2023, around 5:15 p.m., the Austin Police Department responded to a check welfare call at an apartment complex on Dessau Road. Police arrived to find a 56-year-old woman dead, according to the affidavit.

While on the scene, officers found a glass pipe that was on an end table next to the couch in the apartment, as well as a clear plastic sandwich baggie with a small blue pill inside near the couch, court records said.

It was not until Feb. 13 that the womans boyfriend contacted her family member and said he had her cellphone, which he later gave to the family member. That is when the family member saw a text message exchange between the woman and Habbit to pick up blue M-30 pills, according to the affidavit.

Blue M-30 pills are commonly known as counterfeit street drugs that are sold in the Austin area, court records said. Those pills are designed to imitate pharmaceutical-provided Oxycodone. Furthermore, the counterfeit pills, like M-30 pills, may contain lethal amounts of fentanyl, according to the affidavit.

The exchange

On Dec. 3, 2023, Habbit and the woman met up between 7:30 p.m. to 8:10 p.m., court records said.

In that text message exchange, Habbit told the woman, Im still doing you a big favor. These are way harder to get than you know. And also, if you get them anywhere else, you risk having fentanyl in them. These are the real deal and guaranteed no fent, according to the affidavit.

The womans boyfriend took her to meet up with Habbit at a gas station on Farm to Market Road 969, and purchased two pills from him, court records said.

Based off the exchange between Habbit and the woman, they both knew each other well.

After the drug exchange, the womans boyfriend drove her back to her apartment in northeast Austin, dropped her off and then went to H-E-B. When he came back, he said her door was locked to her apartment, and he rented a hotel for the night. When he went back the next morning, he said the apartment door was still locked, and thats when he became concerned and forced entry into the apartment where he found her dead, according to the affidavit.

A family member of the woman spoke with Habbit via text message after the woman died. In a voice message to the family member, he said this was not the first time she purchased pills from him, the affidavit said.

I been doing this 30 years, Habbit said in the voice message according to court records. I swear to God. I never had no fentanyl. I wouldnt ever do that to her. I loved [her]. I loved the woman and did more for her than you will ever know.

Habbit was booked into the Travis County Jail on June 10, where he remained in custody on a $50,000 bond, according to online court records.

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 KXAN Austin.
Man arrested in New York City with a gun, 8 loaded magazines, an NYPD vest and other weapons, police say

(CNN)  The New York Police Department is investigating whether a Queens man who was arrested Wednesday had plans to carry out an attack before he was pulled over and found with a gun, eight loaded magazines and other weapons, according to police officials with knowledge of the investigation.

Officers stopped Judd Sanson after noticing a blacked-out license plate on the Black Ford Explorer he was driving around 1:30 a.m., according to NYPD. The officers ended up finding a large cache of weapons, handcuffs, NYPD uniform items and a New York City transit vest, NYPD Chief of Department Jeffrey B. Maddrey told reporters Wednesday.

Sanson, 27, was taken into custody and now faces charges of criminal possession of a weapon  a loaded firearm, criminal possession of a weapon, unlawful possession of ammo feed device, and an obscured license plate, the NYPD told CNN in an email.

In court Thursday, his lawyer entered a not guilty plea and Sanson was remanded into custody. His next hearing is set for Monday.

During their search of Sansons car, officers also found a 9-millimeter Glock, 100 rounds of ammunition, a stun gun, multiple knives, a weighted whip, an expandable baton, heavy body armor and two axes, Maddrey said.

The man allegedly had a bullet-proof vest with an NYPD patch on the front as well as an orange MTA vest typically worn by workers in New York City subways, according to police officials with knowledge of the investigation. Police displayed the items at a news conference on Wednesday, including the Guy Fawkes mask made popular by the movie V for Vendetta.

According to an affidavit released Thursday, police found an expandable baton with the words left me no choice, you gon learn today (sic) and astaghfirullah written in marker. That latter phrase is Arabic for I seek forgiveness in God, the affidavit states.

Sanson also told an officer, in sum and substance, Sorry, Ill take it off. Theres a lot of drunk people nowadays, according to the affidavit.

Questions about motive

After the court hearing Thursday, Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said investigators would look through all of Sansons social media accounts to find out his true motives.

When someone is driving around with 11 different weapons, all of this ammunition, language on the baton that sounds threatening, transit uniforms that can be used almost anywhere in our subway system or in our transit system, we have reason to be concerned, Katz said.

A day earlier, Maddrey said its still too early in the active investigation to determine if the incident is related to terrorism.

Were going to be very thorough with this investigation, Maddrey said. It will be investigated by the detective bureau along with our intel unit to just see what else we can learn about this arrest.

Police sources said investigators from the NYPDs Intelligence Division and the Joint Terrorism Task Force were brought in because of the number and types of weapons, the gun, the amount of ammunition and vests with police and transit symbols.

Investigators are also examining writings found in the car and on social media, the police sources said.

Members of this department make gun arrests, weapons arrests, arrests for knives every day. But an arrest of this magnitude  the amount of ammunition, NYPD paraphernalia in the car, was significant, Maddrey said Wednesday.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said officials take the case very seriously, but could not say whether the man was plotting an attack.

There is no tolerance for this behavior, this is criminal, and I have confidence in our system that this individual will be prosecuted and handled to the fullest extent of the law, Hochul told CNNs Laura Coates Wednesday night.

This is unacceptable in the State of New York, its frightening but its important to know that the police are on top of this and more will be reported as we are able to disclose this to the public, she said.

CNNs Mark Morales and Eric Levenson contributed to this report.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
(WHTM)  A New York man has been charged with defrauding a Harrisburg resident out of thousands of dollars in gold.

The United States Attorneys Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced that Kuldeep Jaggi, 39 of Huntingdon Station, was indicted for conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

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The Justice Department alleges that Jaggi was a member of a conspiracy that operated a fraud scheme that targeted victims with pop-up windows on their personal computers. The pop-ups would falsely state the computer was infected with a virus and instruct the user to call a phone number for assistance.

During a phone call with a Harrisburg resident, the Justice Department says the victim was told their computer was used in a crime and they would have to pay money. The victim was told theyd have to hand deliver cash or gold to an agent sent to their home.

Pennsylvania police officers being trained to draw blood from suspected impaired drivers

Jaggi is alleged to be one of the agents who traveled to Harrisburg to collect $64,000 in gold from a victim on October 3, 2023. Hes also alleged to have traveled to Massachusetts, Idaho, and Texas to collect approximately $129,000 from three victims.

The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Investigations

and the Swatara Township Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph J. Terz is

prosecuting the case.

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CHICAGO  A man was critically injured in a shooting in the citys Gold Coast neighborhood.

The shooting happened around 12:53 a.m. Thursday in the 1600 block of North Astor Street. Police said a man in his 20s was walking when someone fired shots in the area.

The man was shot in the left thigh and buttocks and transported to Northwestern Memorial Hospital in critical condition.

3 children among 5 injured in Rogers Park hit-and-run; driver sought

No one is in custody. Area Three Detectives are investigating.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WGN-TV.
Man who died at 110 was 'always inquisitive.' Now scientists will study his brain.

Clarifications and corrections: An earlier edition of this story misstated the role of the NIH. The federal agency works with researchers all over the world to provide the tissue needed for their studies.

Judith Hansen took awhile to tell her father's story, but that was understandable: Morrie Markoff, who died June 3, lived to the age of 110. And what a life he'd led.

Born in a New York tenement to Jewish immigrant parents, Markoff had just an eighth grade education, but was nonetheless a lifelong learner. Trained as a machinist, he moved West, married his wife, Betty, in 1938 and started a business.

During their 80-plus years of marriage, the Markoffs raised two children, traveled the world (including trips to Mexico, China, Japan and what was then the Soviet Union) and walked 3 miles a day together into their ninth decade before Betty died in 2019 at the age of 103.

"Were all very aware of how lucky we were to have him around," Hansen said. "Hes very much in our minds  he was quite the character."

Markoff's mind was quite something as well: He sculpted. He blogged. He authored a book at the age of 99. He held onto an innate intellectual curiosity his whole life, discovering and diving into Wikipedia and its vast store of information.

And now, thanks to his family, Markoff's brain will be studied by scientists seeking to learn more about the aging process  and why some people slide into dementia and cognitive decline but others, like Markoff, remain sharp to the end.

Morrie Markoff, who died recently at 110, wrote, sculpted and kept himself engaged in the world. His daughter said keeping mentally active was one of the keys to his longevity.

Studying brains that stop working and those that never do

Tish Hevel, CEO of the Brain Donor Project, said that while it's useful for scientists to study brains of people who've suffered from Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, CTE and other neurodegenerative conditions, healthy brains are necessary, too.

"People think it's just for those who have these diseases, but you need a control for comparison," she said. "There are a lot of studies being done about aging and people we call 'super agers,' and scientists want to know why some people are super agers."

The Brain Donor Project was founded in 2018 in honor of Gene Armentrout, Hevel's father, who died of Lewy Body Dementia, to raise awareness of brain donation.

Opting to be an organ donor does not mean one's brain can be donated to science, Hevel said. For one thing, brains can't be transplanted like kidneys, corneas, hearts or other tissue; they're used only for scientific study. The life-saving potential of organ harvesting means that takes precedence when someone dies unexpectedly.

"A lot of people don't know it's a separate procedure to donate the brain, and a very small percentage of us die in a way that organs are usable for transplant," Hevel said. "In some ways, the brain has a better chance of satisfying the deceased's wishes" for their body to benefit others.

Morrie Markoff, pictured with his grandson Thomas Markoff, died recently at 110. His brain has been donated to science and his family hopes the donation can help shed light on aging and mental acuity.

The Brain Donor Project helps people start the process of donating their brain to science; the U.S. National Institutes for Health NeuroBioBank works with researchers all over the world to provide the tissue needed for their studies.

Brains, of course, aren't like kidneys, livers or even hearts, Hevel said.

"The brain is the source of personal identity," she said. "It's incredibly intimate, and that's what's really thrilled me, that so many people are motivated to donate."

Families who lose loved ones have told her that post-mortem examinations are the only diagnosis they've received, a posthumous explanation for conditions they could only guess without a look at brain tissue.

"(Donors) are so altruistic," she said. "They donate because they don't want another family to go through what theirs did. They're so giving and unselfish, and it's such a powerful gift to give to us all."

Morrie's mind never stopped working

Markoff wasn't shy about why he remained vital into his 100s, and his daughter, 81, said she and her brother, Steven, grew up with two parents who never stopped being active, engaged and interested in the world around them.

The Markoffs traveled extensively and Morrie photographed all their destinations. Though neither had much formal education, they hosted friends in lively discussions about politics and current events.

After their children were grown and they became grandparents and even great-grandparents, Morrie and Betty walked around a lake near their Los Angeles home, holding hands, Hansen said. A heart attack when he was 99 took away his photography hobby so Markoff began writing instead.

After Betty died, Markoff was helped by a caregiver, Rosario Reyes, whom Hansen, who lives in Seattle, credits with keeping him healthy and happy, calling her "an angel."

During the pandemic, Hansen was caring for her husband as he was dying from Lewy Body Dementia, while making sure her father was also being looked after. Reyes, she said, made sure he could read the Los Angeles Times on an iPad when he could no longer read it in print.

Morrie and Betty Markoff were married for more than 80 years. Betty died in 2019, and Morrie, whose brain has been donated to science, died recently at 110 years old.

"I firmly believe it was being involved with the world," Hansen said when asked why she thought her dad's cognitive abilities held fast for so long.

"So many people make their circle very small (when they grow old). But with Mom and Dad both it wasnt just the family, it was the world. ... They were both very attuned to the world and what was happening. They were always curious and inquisitive."

After a stroke, Markoff was in hospice care for a short period before he died. Hansen was able to see him before he died, and shortly before he passed, she thought about his remarkable mind. When she read about the Brain Donor Project, she reached out to Hevel personally.

"He would have been so happy (to know his brain was going to be studied)," Hansen said. "He really believed in science.

"I had joked with him about donating organs. I said, well, 'Pap, I dont think theyll want yours because theyre so old.'"

But that's precisely why Morrie Markoff's brain is so worth studying.

Contact Phaedra Trethan by email at ptrethan@usatoday.com, on X (formerly Twitter) @wordsbyphaedra, or on Threads @by_phaedra

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 110-year-old's brain will be donated, studied
Man held without bond after allegedly killing other man at Las Cruces apartment

Man held without bond after allegedly killing other man at Las Cruces apartment

EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)  A 60-year-old man was held without bond Thursday morning, June 13, in Dona Ana County District Court after allegedly stabbing and killing another man earlier this month at an apartment in Las Cruces, according to the Third Judicial District Attorneys Office for the State of New Mexico.

Man arrested after allegedly fatally stabbing other man at Las Cruces apartment

Gary Allyn, 60, was initially held without bond earlier this month after he was arrested and charged with an open count of murder for allegedly stabbing and killing another man on Wednesday, June 5, at an apartment located on the 1600 block of Missouri Avenue.

The Third Judicial Attorneys Office says Allyn was held without bond Thursday and is being charged with one count of first-degree murder.

The Third Judicial Attorneys Office says Allyn has no prior criminal records. However, the court deemed him dangerous when he used a deadly weapon to take the life of another.

Allyn also claimed veteran status and the court discussed services possibly available to him, according to the Third Judicial Attorneys Office.

The Third Judicial Attorneys Office also identified the victim as Timothy White, 61.

As we have previously reported, just after 6 p.m. that Wednesday, Las Cruces Police were dispatched to the report of a stabbing at an apartment located on the 1600 block of Missouri Avenue.

Officers arrived and found White inside the apartment with multiple stab wounds. He died at the scene, according to police.

Allyn was also in the apartment with blood on his hands, legs, and shorts, according to police.

According to court documents, when Allyn was asked by a witness if he had killed the other man, he stated, I did. When the witness asked Allyn what he used, he replied Everything and anything.

Court documents also state that Allyn was possibly intoxicated at the time of the incident.

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By Fatime Letifova

The signing of the Shusha Declaration by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and the President of Turkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Shusha on the alliance relations between the two countries has a special political and historical significance.

The signed Declaration of Alliance elevates the relations between the two countries to a high level. Thus, Azerbaijan-Turkiye relations have now reached their highest peak. The fact that the peoples have the same ancestry, language, religion, culture and many other mutual ties has always made the countries close to each other, and the two Turkish peoples were by each other's side in all times.

In a comment on the topic for Azernews, Turkish reserve general Yucel Karauz said that the Shusha Declaration is the most strategic agreement in the world.

"There are political and economic cooperation agreements between countries in the world. However, an agreement covering political, military, and cultural fields to this extent is just the Shusha declaration," the expert said.

Karauz drew attention to the military cooperation between the two countries.

"If we look at it from the point of view of security, as per Article 5 of NATO, any attack against Azerbaijan and Baku is considered as an attack against Ankara and Turkiye. Similarly, an attack against Turkiye is considered as an attack against Azerbaijan," the military expert stressed.

From this point of view, both military combat work and defense industry work have started to improve. In this context, issues such as the joint production of Bayraktar, raiders, ATAK helicopters of TAI, HURKUSH, HURJET and Kaan aircraft have been brought up.

The expert spoke about the exchange of military experience between the two countries. He said that Azerbaijan has transitioned to the army model of the Turkish Armed Forces.

"Within the framework of military education events, activities such as student exchange, increasing the number of unit commander exchange exercises, creating a common airspace between Turkiye and Azerbaijan, and creating an air-tactical landscape were carried out, and the Azerbaijani army moved to the army model of the Turkish Armed Forces. Besides, as a result of the establishment of commando units and the National Defense University, the Azerbaijani army has moved to the army model of NATO's second and the world's eighth strongest army," Karauz added.

The general also touched upon the military exercises between Azerbaijan and Turkiye following the declaration.

"During the 3 years following the signing of the declaration, a joint meeting of the national security councils, as well as the joint activities of intelligence organizations, and then their members, were carried out," the expert said.

Yucel Karauz announced that Azerbaijan and Turkiye have made a great contribution to the understanding of the Turkic world.

"Another important point is that this declaration is an agreement that ensures the coming together, strengthening and encouragement of new cooperation between the two Turkish states. Within the framework of this agreement, Turkey and Azerbaijan have almost switched to the philosophy of one nation, two states, and state institutions have begun to perform complementary and supporting functions in a coordinated manner.

Yucel Karauz said that it is possible to divide the relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey into two parts, before the Shusha Declaration and after the Shusha Declaration.

"Although Turkish-Azerbaijani relations have a long history, the relations between the two countries should be evaluated separately before and after this declaration. Because, as I mentioned earlier, it is a limited model of cooperation in world political history," the military expert said.

The general spoke about President Erdogan's upcoming visit to Shusha.

"The signing of the peace agreement between Azerbaijan and Armenia forces Azerbaijan and Turkey to act together, show common sense and a decisive position. This week Mr. President Ilham Aliyev and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan discussed this in Ankara. Therefore, Turkey and Azerbaijan, especially now, are one breath, one heart," the military expert concluded.
Elkhan Pashayev, a renowned entrepreneur in the fashion industry in Azerbaijan, the founder and creator of many modeling projects, and the director of Best Model of Azerbaijan, has recently came to the agenda with new statements.

Elkhan Pashayev announced that he is currently working on new projects and promised to once again attract widespread attention.

My involvement in the fashion industry began when I started my modeling career 9 years ago. The most important thing for me in this field is to master it in its entirety down to the smallest details, to execute everything professionally in accordance with global standards. Undoubtedly, protecting the national and spiritual values of our country in the projects we work on is also one of our main goals. We are working on making our projects more professionally organized based on standards. Currently, we are in the initial stage of selection for Best Model of Azerbaijan 2024. Intensive work is being done in this direction. Most likely, the selection will take place in the summer, the opening will be in September, and the grand finale will be in December.

As you also know, Azerbaijan will host COP29 this year. Within the framework of this project, I would very much like to participate in introducing foreign guests to Azerbaijan in all spheres. In this regard, it is in my plans to organize a showcase of Azerbaijani national clothing and patterns reflecting our national ornaments, as well as the works of our national designers. I am currently working on this project. I hope that both projects will be realized as we envision and thus set the agenda.

Recently, the fashion expert has also given advice to those wishing to make a mark in this field.

In our country, there are sufficient conditions for the development of both small and large businesses. As for our industry, we always support the organization of such projects in a manner befitting our country, and I have adhered to this ideology in my work. I feel disappointed when I see a number of unsuccessful and weak projects that I've encountered in this field. Perhaps in the failure of such projects, inexperience plays a role. I want to advise them to improve themselves. When I entered this industry, I didn't receive support from anyone, so I believe that anyone can achieve something if they work on their potential. Every small detail should be based on professionalism.

The fashion phenomenon also stated that he does not see any competitors in his field at all.

When I took my first steps in this field, the goal I set for myself was to become the author of the best work that could be done in the fashion industry in the country. Naturally, I have done enough work to develop this field. These include modeling schools, the implementation of various projects in this field, educating young enthusiasts, advising them on choosing a direction and other issues. I will continue to do this with the same enthusiasm as before. At present, I do not see any competitors in the fashion industry. At least, the success I have achieved as the director of the most prestigious and popular project in the country, Best Model of Azerbaijan, gives me a reason to say so. Not to mention other areas. I even believe that in various fields, there is no second such large, prestigious organization, no second such person who would love his job and do his job professionally as I do..

Elkhan Pashayev noted that it was not easy to gain his current status and he sacrificed a lot.

I graduated from the National Aviation Academy with honors and worked for 5 years at Azerbaijan Airlines as a leading marketing specialist. I sacrificed my profession for the sake of this field that I love. My current sphere of activity has changed many things in my life. I built my career for direct communication with people, cooperation with major companies to take certain steps for Azerbaijan, and so on, and I absolutely do not regret it. I am 31 years old, and by this age, I have achieved various successes in my beloved field and managed to turn the name Elkhan Pashayev into a brand. I believe I will achieve even greater success in the future. I deserve it, and I believe in it..

Elkhan Pashayev stated that he will once again assert himself as the director of the Best Model of Azerbaijan project, emphasizing the significant importance of this project for the country.

The best ones are always subject to discussion, and that's normal. The Best Model of Azerbaijan project is the most discussed, recognized, and the only contest ensuring participation at the international level. From an organizational standpoint, this project has the greatest organizational potential. In 2021, we held very large finals at the Olympic Stadium, in 2022 at the Crystal Hall, and in 2023 at the Flame Towers, which set the agenda and caused a resonance in the country. Our project is quite interesting in terms of audience appeal and also attracts the attention of major companies. Domestic and foreign designers consistently speak highly of the project every year. The presence of Azerbaijan's name in the project has a completely different and significant meaning for me. Regarding this year's project, I want to say that I wish for a worthy representative to be selected, and I promise that we will do everything possible to conduct the opening ceremony, press conference, and final according to international standards. I believe that, like in previous years, we will once again be in the spotlight and leave our mark..

The professional fashion expert also touched upon the discussions on social media surrounding the winners of Best Model of Azerbaijan. He noted that while he agrees that there can be differences in tastes, in this field, the opinion of professionals does not always align with that of the audience.

The fashion industry is such that clothing, style, conversational speech, and other similar topics are always open to discussion. Anyone can express their critical opinions on these matters. While tastes may differ, it's important not to forget that the main issue here is professional standards. We also operate in accordance with these standards. Since I became the director of Best Model of Azerbaijan, we have achieved results that brought Azerbaijan first and second places in the world, followed by third and fourth places. These are quite significant achievements. Indeed, tastes are not up for debate, but we also strive to consider the tastes and views of everyone.
Man who killed three soldiers in attack on Indias Red Fort to be hanged after president rejects mercy plea

Pakistani man Mohammad Arif (C) is escorted by Indian policemen as he walks out of the Karkardooma court in New Delhi in 2005 (Getty Images)

A convicted Pakistani national is set to face the death penalty in India after the president in New Delhi rejected his mercy petition over involvement in a deadly terrorist attack on popular monument Red Fort.

The man, Mohammed Arif aka Ashfaq, was confirmed to be a member of Pakistani terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba and was awarded death sentence on 31 October in 2005.

Indian president Droupadi Murmu rejected his mercy petition seeking relief from the execution sentence on 27 May, reported Indian news daily Hindustan Times. The mercy petition was sent to her on 15 May, officials aware of the matter said.

The attack, which took place a few days short of Christmas in December 2000, killed three Indian army personnel of 7 Rajputana Rifles unit. The armed forces personnel were guarding the pro Mughal-era monument from the inside when the terrorists entered the area. They later fled the spot by scaling the monuments walls.

Indian police officials had said two men with automatic weapons had entered the Red Fort at about 9.40pm local time while a party for army families was being held inside. They reportedly fired indiscriminately.

Ashfaq was held four days later by the Delhi polices special cell unit. He is currently lodged in Indias biggest prison facility  Tihar Jail  inside a high-risk cell. His mercy review petition was sent to Indias apex Supreme Court, after being rejected in lower Indian courts, but was rejected on 3 November 2022.

The Supreme Court upheld the death sentence and said there were no mitigating circumstances in Ashfaqs favour. It underlined that the attack on the Red Fort posed a direct threat to the countrys unity, integrity, and sovereignty.

According to a former Indian civil servant who supervised the investigation into the attack, Ashfaq had camouflaged himself in India as a resident of Himalayan province Jammu.

He was arrested from Delhis eastern Ghazipur area where he was living as an Indian citizen, said Ashok Chand, the retired Indian Police Service officer told HT.

The attack on Red Fort was an attack on the countrys most important installations, he said.

Details of Ashfaqs execution on Indian soil have not been officially released.

The attack came a day after the Indian government extended its unilateral ceasefire in Kashmir by a month.

After Indias announcement of the extension, Pakistan declared a partial withdrawal of its troops from along the ceasefire line dividing the Himalayan province. The ceasefire announced by India was dismissed by the terrorist group as an attempt to "hoodwink" the world over alleged violations in Kashmir.

Lashkar-e-Taiba, whose name means "Army of the Pure", had launched a number of similar attacks against Indian army installations in the Indian-administered part of Kashmir.
FILE - A person stands on the porch of the international headquarters of the Satanic Temple in Salem, Mass., Oct. 24, 2016. An Oklahoma man accused of throwing a pipe bomb at The Satanic Temple headquarters in April 2024, pleaded not guilty during his arraignment in federal court Thursday, June 13. (AP Photo/Elise Amendola, File)

BOSTON (AP)  An Oklahoma man accused of throwing a pipe bomb at the Massachusetts headquarters of a group called The Satanic Temple pleaded not guilty Thursday at his arraignment in federal court in Boston.

Sean Patrick Palmer, of Perkins, Oklahoma, has been charged with using an explosive to damage a building following an attack in April on the headquarters, which is also used as an art gallery.

The Salem-based group says on its website that it campaigns for secularism and individual liberties and that its members dont actually worship Satan.

Palmer is due back in court on July 30 and agreed to remain in custody. If found guilty, he could face up to 20 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

The Satanic Temple says on its website that it doesnt believe in the existence of Satan or the supernatural.

A lawyer representing Palmer did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment.

Investigators said surveillance cameras showed a man walking up to the building soon after 4 a.m. on April 8, wearing a face covering, tactical vest and gloves. The man then ignited an improvised explosive device, threw it at the main entrance and ran away. The bomb partially detonated, resulting in some minor fire damage, authorities said.

The bomb appeared to be made from a piece of plastic pipe, authorities said, and they were able to extract a DNA sample from a single hair on the bomb.

The U.S. Attorneys Office said investigators found a six-page note in a flowerbed near the attack addressed to Dear Satanist and urged repentance. Authorities said Palmer had posted similar comments on social media.

The Attorneys Office also said surveillance footage showed a black Volvo registered to Palmer driving erratically in the area before and after the incident.
Editors Note: This article contains language that may not be suitable for some readers. Viewers discretion is advised.

SAN ANGELO, Texas (Concho Valley Homepage)  A San Angelo man is behind bars after allegedly threatening a San Angelo police officer with a knife, causing the officer to unholster his firearm Wednesday morning, June 12.

Mugshot: Norman Harris 6-12-2024 courtesy Tom Green County Sheriffs Office

Norman Harris was booked in the Tom Green County Sheriffs Office on June 12 for aggravated assault against a public servant, arson class c, evading detention or arrest and interfering with public duties.

According to records filed in Tom Green County, officers were dispatched to the area of Northwest Drive and Arden Road for a grassfire at around 9:50 a.m.

Man indicted for aggravated kidnapping is known risk to public safety, flight risk

Upon arrival, the officer went to investigate smoke coming from behind a brushed area when he located Harris near the fire with a knife in his left hand. Harris became verbally aggressive towards the officer, causing the officer to unholster his issued gun.

Records state that the officer gave Harris verbal commands to drop the know. As the officer did this, Harris began to walk towards the officer with the knife in his right hand in a threatening and aggressive manner.

The officer continued to de-escalate the situation when Harris raised the knife and told the officer multiple times, You are going to have to f***ing kill me! Harris walked away from the officer only to re-engage and continue to make threats to the officer.

After evading officers on the scene, Harris was taken into custody and booked into the Tom Green County Detention Center. Harriss bond is set at $80,152.

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KANSAS CITY, Mo.  An Independence man already serving a prison sentence in Kansas for raping a Johnson County sheriffs deputy pleaded guilty to one count of rape in Jackson County, Missouri.

Brady Newman-Caddell, 29, was sentenced to 30 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections for the 2016 rape of Taylor Hirth.

In 2019, Newman-Caddell was sentenced to 55 years in the Kansas Department of Corrections, the maximum possible punishment, for kidnapping and raping the sheriffs deputy.

Investigation underway for how thieves accessed lockbox of Grandview home for sale

Hirth testified about being raped by Newman-Caddell in February of 2016, eight months before the deputy was attacked. Newman-Caddell was charged with raping Hirth in December of 2016.

Hirths attack happened in front of her 2-year-old daughter when she and Newman-Caddell were neighbors in the same apartment building. William Luth was also sentenced in both rapes.

In 2019, Hirth addressed her vulnerability after the rape when she said she got the sense that investigators did not believe her nor take her case seriously. Thats until DNA from the rape of a Johnson County deputy linked Luth to her case.

Chiefs rally shooting victims continue to wait on KC Strong fund money

In 2019, a judge said Newman-Caddell has psychopathic traits and shes convinced he would attack women again if he was not locked away.

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On May 7, Eric Walter Gray was released from state prison. On May 8, he did everything he could to get sent back, prosecutors say.

One day after his release from [San Quentin Rehabilitation Center], this defendant allegedly chose to return to crime by taking three victims hostage while he robbed a bank, United States Attorney Martin Estrada said in a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

At that bank, a BMO branch in Anaheim, Gray, 53, loitered for a long time inside, then allegedly jumped over the teller counter, stated that he had a gun, and demanded money from the teller, the release said.

Gray took money from the teller drawers, but that didnt seem to be enough, as he ordered the manager and two employees into a storage room so they could be held hostage, prosecutors allege.

Though the two employees were let out, the manager was a hostage for about an hour before Gray gave himself up, officials said.

Law enforcement later found cash and narcotics hidden inside Grays body, court papers allege, the release added.

Gray was taken to a hospital for a scan and, while there, allegedly repeatedly tried to escape and also fought with police officers, resulting in multiple injuries to the officers involved.

Gray is being held without bond by federal authorities, who received him from state custody on June 5. He was initially charged by the Orange County District Attorneys Office, though local prosecutors dismissed their case so he could be tried federally.

His arraignment is scheduled for June 24 in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana.

If convicted of his charge  one count of bank robbery and forced accompaniment  Gray faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a max of 20 years.

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(KTLA)  On May 7, Eric Walter Gray was released from state prison. On May 8, he did everything he could to get sent back, prosecutors say.

One day after his release from [San Quentin Rehabilitation Center], this defendant allegedly chose to return to crime by taking three victims hostage while he robbed a bank, United States Attorney Martin Estrada said in a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

At that bank, a BMO branch in Anaheim, California, Gray, 53, loitered for a long time inside, then allegedly jumped over the teller counter, stated that he had a gun, and demanded money from the teller, the release said.

Gray took money from the teller drawers, but that didnt seem to be enough, as he ordered the manager and two employees into a storage room so they could be held hostage, prosecutors allege.

Woman picks up dropped envelope with $8K inside

Though the two employees were let out, the manager was a hostage for about an hour before Gray gave himself up, officials said.

Law enforcement later found cash and narcotics hidden inside Grays body, court papers allege, the release added.

Gray was taken to a hospital for a scan and, while there, allegedly repeatedly tried to escape and also fought with police officers, resulting in multiple injuries to the officers involved.

Gray is being held without bond by federal authorities, who received him from state custody on June 5. He was initially charged by the Orange County District Attorneys Office, though local prosecutors dismissed their case so he could be tried federally.

His arraignment is scheduled for June 24 in U.S. District Court in Santa Ana, California.

If convicted of his charge  one count of bank robbery and forced accompaniment  Gray faces a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in federal prison and a max of 20 years.

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(PUEBLO, Colo.)  According to the Pueblo County Sheriffs Office (PCSO), Steven Hollingsworth, 54, was sentenced to 24 years on Tuesday, June 12, for the December 2023 shooting at the KOA Campground north of Pueblo.

PREVIOUS COVERAGE: KOA shooter pleads guilty to 2nd-degree attempted murder

According to PCSO, Hollingsworth pled guilty in April to second-degree attempted murder in the shooting that seriously injured a 30-year-old man. The two had gotten into an argument, ending in Hollingsworth shooting the man multiple times.

Hollingsworth has been in the Pueblo County Jail since his December arrest and will be transferred to the Colorado Department of Corrections to serve his sentence.

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PLYMOUTH, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU)  Police have sentenced a man for his involvement in a Plymouth crash that killed a 86-year-old man.

The Plymouth Borough Police Department arrested Jose Calo, 59, of Nanticoke, in October 2022 for his involvement in a crash that resulted in the death of 86-year-old James Mahon.

In June 2022 officers responded to a crash at Turkey Hill on Main Street in Plymouth.

Once arriving on the scene officers said they saw a red Ford Explorer flipped onto its roof and a man lying unresponsive on the ground, later identified as Calo.

Animal abuse investigation underway in Luzerne County

Officers stated they quickly responded to a different man, later identified as Mahon, stuck under the tire of a car on East Main Street. Mahon was pronounced dead at the hospital after being hit by a car.

As stated in the affidavit, video surveillance showed Calos car traveling into oncoming traffic nearly hitting an SUV head-on. Carlo then stopped on a curb and multiple people pulled over and approached his vehicle to get his attention, police stated.

According to investigators, Carlo is seen driving again hitting one car that stopped, then driving up a sidewalk, hitting Mahons car, where he is seen trying to get out of the way. Police say Mahon fell to the ground after being hit by Carlos car. Carlo is then seen running over Mahon twice, as stated in court papers.

President Judge Vough sentenced Jose Calo to 10-20 years of prison on the charges of homicide by a vehicle while driving under the influence and other related offenses.

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A man convicted of murdering an elderly unhoused man and stuffing his body with sticks was sentenced to life in state prison Wednesday.

The man, Marco Antonio Cota Jr., was also ordered to register as a sex offender  a decision that left him audibly reeling.

On Feb. 13, after about two days of deliberations, a jury convicted Cota, 45, of murdering 64-year-old Rick Fowler. The crime occurred Nov. 21, 2021, when the two were both unhoused and camping in the creekbed near the interchange at Highway 101 and Madonna Road.

Cota was also found guilty of mutilation of human remains and was ordered to register as a sex offender because after the killing, he inserted sticks into the rectum area of the mutilated body.

As Judge Timothy Covello read the last part of the sentence of Cota having to register as a sex offender, Cota yelled, For what?

Cotas attorney James Askew argued against the order, saying Cota inserting sticks into the rectum area was just a continuation of mutilation and that there was no evidence of sexual offense during the trial.

Fowlers body was found in the dry creekbed near the intersection of Highway 101 and Madonna. Photos showed Fowlers head beaten to the point it was misshapen. His body was found lying face-down in the dirt with his pants pulled down below his buttocks, with sticks protruding from his eyes and rectum.

Another stick was also found lodged in Fowlers neck, a retired San Luis Obispo County Sheriffs Office coroner detective testified during the trial. The sticks were inserted into Fowler at the time of death or after, witnesses testified.

The prosecution argued Cota murdered Fowler while in a rage, while the defense asserted Cota killed Fowler in self-defense after the later basically ambushed Cota and challenged him to fight.

Cota told a detective that he forced sticks into Fowlers body to show you motherf--kers what evil looks like, San Luis Obispo County Deputy District Attorney Melissa Chabra told jurors during her opening statements.

The jury ultimately agreed with the prosecution, and found Cota guilty of first-degree murder.

San Luis Obispo Superior Court Judge Timothy Covello hears the murder case against Marco Antonio Cota Jr. in San Luis Obispo Superior Court on Feb. 1, 2024.

Defense attorney argues evidence did not support first-degree murder conviction

In April, Askew filed a motion for a new trial claiming there was insufficient evidence to convict his client of Fowlers murder. The motion continued to assert Cota killed Fowler in self-defense, alleging that Fowler attacked Cota.

It was dark, in the middle of the night with no lights in the area, the motion read. Cotas statements to law enforcement state that he fought back and they were engaged in a dog fight. It was during this fight that Cota killed Fowler.

The motion asserted there was no evidence that showed Cota killed Fowler with premeditation, deliberation or planning or had an intention to kill him at the time  requirements for a first-degree murder charge. A person can also be convicted of first-degree murder if they kill someone in the process of committing a felony.

There exists ample evidence that Cota caused the death of Fowler, the motion said. However, there is lack of evidence to support murder in the first degree.

Defense attorney James Askew gives opening statements in the murder case against his client Marco Antonio Cota Jr. in San Luis Obispo Superior Court on Feb. 1, 2024.

The motion claimed the only evidence of what happened during the fight was Cotas interrogations with law enforcement, adding that there was no direct evidence that showed Cota had an intent to kill him.

What was shown were sticks  sticks in Fowlers eyes and in his anus, the motion said. These photos were shown numerous times to the jury and were up front and present at the Peoples closing arguments.

While it is not suggested that showing such admitted evidence is wrong in any sense, it does suggest that such inflammatory photos did just that ... inflame the jury to the horrendous nature of Fowlers body and the deprived actions that one human is capable of doing to another, the motion continued.

The motion said while Cotas actions were reprehensible, they do not warrant a life sentence.

Askew also asked the judge to not consider Cotas previous strike offenses in his sentencing. Californias Three Strikes law guarantees a 25-year-to-life sentence in state prison for the third strike  the same minimum sentence for first-degree murder.

Cotas previous strike crimes included a 1998 conviction for robbery in Tulare County, convictions for criminal threats in 2014 and assault with a deadly weapon in 2016, both in San Luis Obispo County, a previous news release from the District Attorneys Office said.

Ultimately, Covello denied Askews motion for a new trial and to reduce Cotas sentence to second-degree murder.

Before reading the sentence, the judge said this was one of the most disturbing cases he ever saw. He said given the degree of violence inflicted upon Fowler without any provocation, it would be exceedingly dangerous to shorten the sentence.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. The Commissioner for Human Rights (Ombudsperson) of Azerbaijan Sabina Aliyeva has reacted to the French government's biased attitude towards a media representative, Trend reports.

An Azerbaijani journalist, who visited Germany to participate in an event organized by the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change Secretariat in Bonn, was detained at the Cologne/Bonn Airport on June 11 and informed that his entry into the Schengen area was blocked by France.

An examination by the appropriate German authorities showed that there were no legal reasons for the entrance prohibition, thus, the Azerbaijani journalist who had been invited to the event was permitted to enter the country after being detained at the airport for several hours.

"Such treatment of an Azerbaijani journalist violates international law norms and principles, particularly the right to free expression, media, and access to information, and adds to restrictions on journalists' free activities.

According to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, everyone has the right to freedom of religion and its free expression, the freedom to hold beliefs without interference, and the freedom to seek, receive, and impart information and ideas through any media and regardless of frontiers.

At the same time, France acted contrary to the provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the European Convention on Human Rights, to which it's a party.

Considering that this year Azerbaijan will host the 29th session of the Conference of the Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP29), it's unacceptable to hinder the participation of an Azerbaijani media representative in an event dedicated to the climate change topic in such a manner.

The fact that France obstructs a journalist's professional activity due to political views and unfounded prejudices, and takes steps aimed at restricting freedom of movement, should be condemned by relevant international organizations, and this issue should be properly analysed," Aliyeva added.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
A man was shot during a Downtown Seattle gunfight early Monday morning.

Police were called to 2nd Avenue South and South Main Street around 2 a.m. where crowds of people were fleeing from gunfire.

Everyone involved also ran. A handgun and shell casings were left behind.

Within minutes police learned a 22-year-old man had been dropped off at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. He was shot in the leg. Police are not aware of any other victims.

No arrests have been made.

Seattle police are asking anyone with information to call the SPD Violent Crime Tip Line at (206) 233-5000, or Crime Stoppers: 1-800-222-TIPS.
Man and woman rescued from cars as floods hit Spain

Spanish rescue workers tore open the roof of a convertible car so a man could be winched to safety by helicopter as floods devastated the east of the country.

Videos released on social media showed water surging through the streets of Murcia, the capital of an area popular with British holidaymakers.

In 10 minutes of rainfall earlier this week, 32 litres per square metre was recorded in the area, swelling to 43 litres after 20 minutes.

A woman had to be rescued after her car was dragged off the road by the storm on the outskirts of the city, with a helicopter called in to take her away for medical attention.

One video showed how rescue workers ripped open the top of a convertible car to extract a male driver amid fast-flowing water near the Mar Menor beach resort.

The man was winched away to an ambulance waiting on dry ground nearby.

Videos on social media showed water surging through the streets of Murcia, the capital of an area popular with British holidaymakers

In Molina de Segura, also in the Murcia region, rescue services saved four people from stranded cars, including a woman and her eight-year-old daughter.

The heavy rain also caused flash floods in the neighbouring provinces of Alicante and Albacete.

In total, emergency services responded to 589 calls for help, including 40 cases where people had to be rescued from floodwaters.

Majorca, off Spains east coast, has also been hit by heavy rainfall this week. On Tuesday, Majorca airport had to suspend flights when the runway flooded.

Officials at the airport said that 100 of flights scheduled to operate on Tuesday, including many from British travel hubs such as Gatwick, Luton and Bristol, had been affected by the storms.

The storm also brought strong winds, with two trees falling in Murcia and blocking a branch of the citys tramway.

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Marijuana was supposed to help Thailand. Why is the country planning to ban it again?

Marijuana shops are seen throughout Khaosan Road on May 22, 2024, in Bangkok.

Two years ago, soon after Thailand became the first Asian nation to decriminalize cannabis, Sarunyu Toprasert and three friends joined a rush of pot entrepreneurs and launched the Channel Weed Store.

They opened their third location last month, pouring $27,000 into the operation and bedecking the storefront with a neon light in the shape of a marijuana leaf and a poster advertising prices as low as $4 a gram.

Days later, the countrys prime minister announced that the government was reversing course and would ban recreational marijuana by the end of the year.

It was a shock, said Sarunyu, 33. There were rumors of this happening before, but this time they sounded serious.

Signs advertising the sale of cannabis along Khaosan Road in Bangkok.

As in California , legalization here hasnt worked out as planned. Promises of economic salvation for poor farmers have not materialized. There are growing concerns that marijuana is harming children and making the already chaotic roads even more dangerous.

And a growing worry about methamphetamine  which remains illegal  has made drugs in general an appealing target for politicians. In parliamentary elections last year, most political parties campaigned against the recreational use of pot.

Read more: 'The War on Drugs Part II: California taxes, rules are killing small legal weed farms

"Drugs are a problem that destroys the future of the country, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said last month. Many young people are addicted. We have to work fast.

He said medical use will be allowed to continue, but details have been sparse, leaving Sarunyu to wonder whether his business has any future.

Behind the counter, which displayed packets of watermelon-flavored weed gummies claiming to be the worlds strongest, his friends rolled joints to be sold individually.

It is all uncertain at this point, he said. But it is better to do the best that we can now rather than regret it later.

::

Marijuana wasnt always so controversial in Thailand.

The plants use in traditional food and medicine dates back centuries. And just a couple of generations ago, farmers in the rural northeast used cannabis to relax after a long day in the fields.

But in 1979, the Thai government caved to U.S. pressure to crack down and passed a comprehensive narcotics act that imposed harsh penalties for smoking, possessing or selling the plant.

A highly publicized war on drugs  which included extrajudicial killings of suspected dealers  followed in the early 2000s. Methamphetamine was the primary target, but the crackdown also deepened the stigma against cannabis.

Tourists walk past Plantopia, a large indoor cannabis-themed mall on Bangkok's Khaosan Road.

When the country legalized marijuana for medical use in 2018, cultivation was closely supervised by the government while standards for prescriptions were strict.

Not that there was much concern about wider use  polls suggested there was little demand for recreational weed.

Driving the push for broader legalization were concerns about overcrowding in the countrys prisons, where more than 70% of inmates are held on drug charges. The plans architect, Anutin Charnvirakul, who was health minister at the time, also touted exporting cannabis and hemp products as a way to help Thailands pandemic-stricken economy and its poor farmers.

Read more: Forget California and Amsterdam: Thailand wants to become the new king of weed

In June 2022, the government removed marijuana from its list of banned narcotics, and with minimal regulation, the pot industry immediately took off in a way that few anticipated.

More than a million Thais have registered to grow cannabis at home, while more than 12,000 cannabis dispensaries across the country are operating on three-year licenses from the Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicines.

The industry is now projected to be worth around $1.2 billion by the end of 2025, according to the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce.

Staffers at the Four Twenty farm harvest cannabis in Bangkok. Lauren DeCicca / For The Times A staff member at the Four Twenty dispensary prepares cannabis for a customer in Bangkok. Cannabis from the Four Twenty farm. Big, a staff member at the Four Twenty cannabis dispensary, prepares different cannabis strains for sale in Bangkok.

On Khaosan Road, Bangkoks landmark backpacker haunt, cannabis sales now make up as much as 20% of all revenue, according to Sanga Ruangwattanakul, a dispensary owner and president of the local business association. Customers are often from places where pot is illegal.

A lot of people from South Korea, Singapore, Hong Kong, he said. They come here and want to smoke openly.

He said that his dispensary brings in $16,000 to $19,000 a month and that he keeps at least 60% of that  in large part because the government does not tax pot sales.

By comparison, the typical profit margin for dispensaries in California is 15%.

As the industry grew, the demand for workers has driven up salaries.

Almost everyone in cannabis pays above average, said Tai Taveepanichpan, the owner of the franchise Four Twenty, which employs more than 80 people at seven separate companies, including a cannabis cultivation consultancy and a hydroponics equipment supplier.

Pre-rolled joints are sold at the Four Twenty cannabis dispensary in Bangkok. Bongs are sold at the Four Twenty cannabis dispensary. Different cannabis strains are readied for sale at a dispensary in Bangkok.

At his indoor cannabis farm in Bangkok last month, workers in white jumpsuits were busy trimming his harvest of White Runtz, a strain developed in Los Angeles. Hunched over trays of the buds, which smelled faintly like cheese, they worked their tiny scissors in silent concentration.

Its a skill in high demand these days, and his employees make $800 a month, about 36% more than the average national pay. But even that isnt enough to stop competitors from poaching them.

Tai marveled at what his country had created in such a short time: This is the most fair and open cannabis market there is in the world right now by far.

::

It wasnt long before the pot boom started to raise concerns about public health.

In the first year of legalization, a quarter of adults reported using cannabis, up from 2.3% in 2019, according to surveys by Chulalongkorn Universitys Center for Addiction Studies.

The rise has alarmed some doctors, who argue that cannabis can lower childrens IQs and increase car accidents, suicides and mental health episodes.

It is undeniable that cannabis poses health risks, both mentally and physically, especially for young people and pregnant women , the Royal College of Physicians of Thailand said in a June statement.

The government has been collecting reports of cannabis-related incidents from hospitals, and there was a marked increase after decriminalization, according to Anunchai Assawamakin, a pharmacologist at Mahidol University and an advisor to the Office of the Narcotics Control Board, one of Thailands drug agencies.

There were 20,804 cannabis-linked psychosis cases in the 12 months after the change, up from 10,619 in the 12 months leading up to it.

But Anunchai cautioned that more study is needed.

Korean tourists pose with a statue of Ronald McDonald in front of Plantopia, a cannabis-themed mall in Bangkok.

Even at this stage, the effects of cannabis legalization are not fully understood, he said. We also have a meth problem that is difficult to separate from cannabis since users often take them together.

In recent years, methamphetamine has been entering the country in record quantities from Myanmar , where political instability has allowed drug cartels to ramp up production. More than 150,000 people were treated for methamphetamine abuse last year, up from about 90,000 in 2022, according to the government.

In October 2022, a 34-year-old former police officer who had been fired for possession of meth stormed a day-care center in Nong Bua Lamphu province and fatally shot or stabbed 36 people  most of them children.

The killings had a profound effect on attitudes about drugs. For many Thais  and the media here  the distinctions among various narcotics are lost.

The news will say cannabis caused someone to attack an elderly man, but then it turns out that person was using other substances as well, said Sarunyu, the dispensary owner. This kind of sensational news coverage has been constant.

A tailor displays a mannequin wearing a cannabis suit at his shop in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

In such a climate, politicians are under pressure to appear tough on drugs. And at a time when several other policy failures have put the prime minister on the defensive, the cannabis controversy represents an opportunity to score easy political points, given that it was his Pheu Thai Party that was behind the war on drugs 20 years ago.

Pheu Thai won a lot of votes on their anti-drug policy in the last 20 years, said Atthachai Homhuan, an attorney specializing in cannabis cases. So if this policy of reclassifying cannabis as an illegal narcotic fails, there will be no more votes for the prime minister next semester.

More than 75% of Thais currently back the plan to reclassify cannabis as a narcotic, according to one recent poll. Among the plans supporters is Narong Promjitta, a 55-year-old beer vendor at a marketplace in the southern island of Phuket.

Like many Thais his age, he dislikes the smell of pot smoke and the mass intrusion of dispensaries along the beaches. He fears the effect this will have on the students who hang out at the market after school.

I am worried about laws for other drugs like meth being relaxed, he said. We dont need weed tourism. Phuket can grow its economy in other ways.

::

In California, the marijuana industry has been beset by illegal operations, worker abuses and a failure to live up to its economic promise  issues widely attributed to heavy taxation and poor enforcement of regulations. In Thailand, there are almost no regulations to enforce.

The proponents of legalization here never intended to create a market that was so freewheeling.

Read more: The reality of legal weed in California: Huge illegal grows, violence, worker exploitation and deaths

Back in early 2022, before removing cannabis from the illegal narcotics list, the then-ruling Bhumjaithai Party proposed a bill known as the Cannabis and Hemp Act that would have confined recreational use to select tourist areas and required dispensaries to have traditional medicine doctors on their premises.

But the bill ran aground in the National Assembly.

We prepared everything, but there was internal maneuvering to prevent the cannabis side from succeeding, said Anunchai, who worked on the legislation.

The government pushed ahead with decriminalization anyway, allowing the weed industry to grow in what Anunchai describes as a vacuum that has dragged on for over two years.

Staff members stock the shelves at the Four Twenty dispensary in Bangkok.

Other than a handful of provisional measures, such as those against selling cannabis to people younger than 20 or smoking in public, regulations and enforcement are scant. Many vendors openly sell joints from illegal street stalls. There are no rules that prevent licensed dispensaries from opening near schools.

Noah Levit-Ades, a former commercial grower from Los Angeles who moved to Bangkok in the winter to oversee the countrys first hospital-run cannabis farm, said he has been alarmed by the lack of oversight in the recreational market.

Because his crop will be used to manufacture pain or end-of-life care medicines for immunocompromised cancer patients in Thailand and abroad, the indoor facility is certified under the European Unions accreditation scheme for manufacturing and agricultural standards.

But accreditation is voluntary for cultivators supplying dispensaries. And given the absence of a central tracking system for Thailands commercial cannabis inventory, there is no way for authorities to recall products tainted with heavy metals, pesticides or other contaminants.

The Four Twenty cannabis dispensary sells different cannabis strains.

Describing his experience at the dispensaries lining Sukhumvit Road, a tourist zone known for its strip clubs and massage parlors, Levit-Ades said: Ninety-eight percent of these shops I've been to, all the weed has mold. You pop it open and there it is.

As for the farmers who grow it, the economics havent worked in their favor.

In the early days, 2 pounds of dried cannabis buds could fetch about $11,000. Now cultivators can barely get $1,000 for some varieties.

Making matters worse, Thailand is now being flooded with weed illegally imported from California, where the market is also facing a glut .

Read more: Inside California's pot legalization failures: Corporate influence, ignored warnings

One weed smuggler in Phuket, a Thai national who asked not to be named, estimated that up to 70% of the regions dispensaries are selling imported cannabis, the majority of it low-quality overflow that was either illegally grown or failed testing in California. He said it is flown in by Thai or American backpackers and sold to local dispensaries at cut-rate prices.

I bring in about 100 kilograms a month, he said. Its very low risk. Once we had a whole plane working for us.

Many Thai cultivators, facing bankruptcy, are turning to exports of their own, sending pot to countries where it is illegal.

A view of the outdoor growing area at the Artemis 98 cannabis farm in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The cannabis harvested from the Artemis 98 farm. A view of the outdoor growing area at the farm.

Its now really, really difficult to move cannabis because of the prices, said one grower in the northern province of Chiang Mai who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was afraid of retaliation from his business partners.

Like many other farms in the area, he regularly offloads much of his inventory to a local wholesaler at heavily discounted rates.

They process it into brick weed and ship it to Malaysia, Laos, Korea, Taiwan, he said. A lot of growers use dispensaries as a storefront to showcase their products. But their sales are actually coming from wholesale.

::

Given the problems and the politics, even the former health minister who led the drive to decriminalize pot has grudgingly pledged his support for undoing that decision.

We cant take a personal attitude towards this, Anutin, who has since joined the current government as interior minister, recently told local media.

But making cannabis illegal again is unlikely to go down easily.

Farmers clean up weeds and grass in a cannabis growing area at the Artemis 98 farm in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

The more than a million people who registered their growing activities might wake up one morning as potential criminals. Many of the 3,000 marijuana offenders who were released from prison just two years ago could suddenly find themselves back behind bars. The illegal market would probably bounce back bigger than ever.

Cultivators and dispensary owners have said that they would sue the government for damages.

Some people have used their entire savings to invest in the business, said Rattapon Sanrak, a weed activist and the founder of Thailands first legal dispensary in 2022. There are at least 60,000 jobs at stake. Imagine if those people lost their jobs immediately.

Prasitchai Nunual, head of the advocacy group Writing Thailands Cannabis Future, said the solution is the Cannabis and Hemp Act  which remains stuck in the National Assembly.

Read more: Dying for your high: The untold exploitation and misery in Americas weed industry

A proper regulatory framework, he said, could include measures to assuage public concerns, such as stricter zoning to keep dispensaries away from children, as well as a better commercial licensing system to stabilize the market and protect small businesses.

Everyone agrees that it needs to be controlled, he said. But government agencies lack the data to make informed decisions regarding cannabis regulation.

If that means taxes on his sales, Sarunyu, the dispensary owner, is happy to pay.

But the government needs to show us how it benefits the public, he said. For example, the tax revenue from alcohol funds public television.

Tai Taveepanichpan, a consultant for Canna Grow Technology and the owner of Four Twenty, a chain of cannabis shops with retail locations in Bangkok and Phuket, inspects the harvest at his farm.

Seated across from a shelf filled with shiny new bongs was his only customer, a bespectacled, middle-aged man.

After a brief consultation at the counter, he decided to roll his own rather than buying one of the ready-made joints on offer. The loose cannabis grounds proved to be unwieldy, defying his attempts to corral it with the paper, spilling out in every direction.

He succeeded after several minutes, anointing the joint with a quick stroke of the tongue before lighting up and taking two quick puffs. He flashed a satisfied smile.

He had never tried marijuana before. But after hearing about the impending ban, he had wanted to smoke his first joint while it was still legal.

Special correspondents Poypiti Amatatham in Bangkok and Nattha Thepbamrung in Phuket contributed to this report.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Former Baltimore States Attorney Marilyn Mosby will begin her year of home detention June 20, according to court filings in her federal criminal case.

The year of electronic monitoring is the first phase of Mosbys sentence for perjury and mortgage fraud. U.S. District Judge Lydia Kay Griggsby also gave Mosby three years of probation at her sentencing last month, rejecting a request from prosecutors and federal sentencing guidelines that called for prison time.

Before beginning home detention, Mosby received permission from the court to travel to Boston because of the June 2 death of her grandmother. Mosby is permitted to stay in Boston through June 18, according to an order from Griggsby.

Prosecutors did not object to the request.

After her return, Mosby will be placed on electronic monitoring and will be restricted to her residence at all times except for work, education, religious services, medical treatment, child care or other activities approved by her probation officer. She will be allowed to use communal spaces at her apartment complex, Griggsby clarified after a request from Mosbys defense team.

In November, a federal jury found that Mosby lied about suffering an adverse financial consequence because of the coronavirus pandemic, which she claimed in order to withdraw about $80,000 early from her city retirement account under a federal COVID-19 economic relief law.

The indictment also charged that Mosby lied when she used the money to put down payments on a pair of vacation properties in Florida worth almost $1 million combined: an eight-bedroom house near Disney World and a condo on the Gulf Coast. Mosby faced one count of mortgage fraud per property.

A jury in February acquitted Mosby on one count of mortgage fraud, clearing her of most of the alleged false statements, but convicted her on the other count. Jurors found Mosby lied about a gift letter she composed saying that her then-husband Nick Mosby gave her enough money to close on the condo.

Mosby is appealing her convictions and has asked the judge to pause the governments seizure of her condo. (She previously sold the house near Disney.)

Griggsby ruled at Mosbys sentencing that the government can take the condo, which prosecutors argued was the proceeds of crime.

Griggsby ordered the government to return Mosbys down payment on the property, which amounted to about 10% of the cost, plus 10% of the condos appreciated value since she bought it. According to estimates from defense attorneys, the property nearly doubled in value to almost $890,000.

In a motion to stay the forfeiture filed Monday, Mosbys lawyers argued that she is likely to win before the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. The lawyers will argue on appeal that prosecutors failed to prove venue, or that Mosby signed or sent the gift letter from the District of Maryland. The unusual argument did not succeed when the defense raised it earlier in the case.

Mosbys team also will argue on appeal that the jury at her second trial was improperly allowed to consider the perjury convictions from the first trial as evidence against Mosby, according to the motion.

The 4th Circuit also will be asked to weigh whether the seizure of the Gulf Coast condo is an unconstitutional excessive fine or whether prosecutors provided enough evidence that Mosby could not have purchased the property without the false gift letter, the lawyers wrote.
Masses of pilgrims in Saudi Arabia circle the Kaaba ahead of the official beginning of the Hajj

Pilgrims leave after offering prayers outside at the Grand Mosque, during the annual Hajj pilgrimage in Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Thursday, June 13, 2024. Hajj is the annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia that is required once in a lifetime of every Muslim who can afford it and is physically able to make it. Some Muslims make the journey more than once. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)

MECCA, Saudi Arabia (AP)  Masses of Muslim pilgrims in the Saudi city of Mecca on Thursday circled the Kaaba, Islams holiest site, a day before heading to the nearby desert area of Mina to officially open the Hajj, the annual Islamic pilgrimage that takes the faithful along a route taken by the Prophet Muhammad.

The area around the Grand Mosque in Mecca was overcrowded by midday, with the faithful going back and forth to the holy site to pray and make the circumambulation, or Tawaf in Arabic.

More than 1.5 million pilgrims had arrived in the country as of Tuesday, according to Saudi authorities. More are expected, and hundreds of thousands of Saudis and others living in Saudi Arabia will also join them when the pilgrimage officially begins on Friday.

Since their arrival in Mecca, the pilgrims have performed the circumambulation. The large crowds circling the Kaaba will last into Friday, the Hajjs first day, when pilgrims move to Mina, a desert plain outside the city.

They will then head to the Mountain of Arafat for a daylong worship. Afterwards, they will move to Muzdalifah, a rocky plain area a few miles away. There, pilgrims collect pebbles to be used back in Mina, in the symbolic stoning of pillars representing the devil.

One of the worlds largest religious gatherings, the Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam. All Muslims are required to undertake it at least once in their lives if they are physically and financially able to do so.

Those in the Hajj view the pilgrimage as an opportunity to strengthen their faith, wipe out old sins and start anew.
After massive barn fire kills at least 44 horses in Ohio, donors raise $350,000 for victims

The cause of a barn fire that killed at 44 horses and seriously injured a man in northwest Ohio remained under investigation Thursday. Meanwhile, online donations from three fundraisers had topped nearly $350,000 to help those affected in the deadly blaze.

The fire broke out over the weekend in Logan County, about 70 miles northwest of Columbus.

The fire was reported to the Logan County Sheriff's Office at 12:15 p.m. Saturday, a dispatcher for the agency told The Columbus Dispatch, part of the USA TODAY Network.

The fire destroyed a barn and at least 43 horses were known dead.

According to information from the Richmond Township Fire Department, the fire destroyed a barn used by two Logan County performance-horse businesses.

"We are waiting on the cause of the fire to be determined by the state fire marshals' office," Fire Chief Dustin Plikerd told USA TODAY Thursday. The origin of the fire also remained under investigation, the chief said, adding foul play was not suspected.

Resort electrocution: Man dies in apparent hot tub at Mexico beach resort

Crews from three counties responded to massive barn blaze

Assistant Fire Chief Jason Johns, who works for the department in Belle Center, said firefighters from three counties responded to Brant Performance Horses, along State Route 638.

"It was too far gone when we got there," Johns said of the 60,000-square-foot-barn with stalls, a performing arena, and living quarters for employees, who lost their belongings.

Johns said crews remained on scene until about 11:30 p.m. Saturday.

E. coli cluster reported: Children swimming in Virginia lake hospitalized after E. coli, gastrointestinal illness

Business owner injured trying to save horses from blazing barn

Eric Priest, who operates Priest Performance Horses of Belle Center, was trying to save his clients' horses from inside the burning barn when he was injured, according to Jamie Miller, who organized an online fundraiser to help Priest with medical bills and more.

Priest suffered second-degree burns to his arms, back and head from rushing in to try and free as many horses as possible, Miller wrote. She said Priest was expected to be hospitalized for about two weeks.

As of Thursday, more than $50,000 had been donated to that fundraiser.

Country star mourns loss of pets: Miranda Lambert grieves loss of her 2 rescue dogs

Two other fundraisers created to help after Ohio barn fire

Another fundraising page set up by Kelsey Huffman for Brant Performance Horses owners Brandon and Cathy Brant, listed as the owners of the property, raised more than $280,000 as of Thursday morning.

At that same time, a third fundraiser, created by Jen Bishop, Support Priest Performance Horses After Barn Fire, established by Jen Bishop, had raised more than $8,100.

Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund. Reach Bob Vitale at rvitale@dispatch.com.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Man seriously burned, at least 44 horses die in Logan County barn fire
Massive Union Promenade offers nearly 350 new homes, pickleball, eateries | Going Up

Real estate in Greater Cincinnati is booming. Here at The Enquirer, we aim to bring you in-depth real estate coverage about the developments and neighborhood issues you care about the most.

Thats why our Going Up series provides details behind the design and construction of some of the region's most interesting projects. Feel free to pitch us what we should cover next.

Construction is underway on luxury apartments at 19Nineteen Promenade apartments that will eventually have nearly 300 units for rent.

Submit suggestions to sfranklin@enquirer.com or tag @Enquirer on social media. Please include the address or cross streets of the project you want us to look into.

The basics of the Union Promenade

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Address: 9641 Union Promenade Drive, Union, KY 41091.

Building types: Mixed-use development that includes apartments, townhouses for rent and sale, commercial buildings, office space and other amenities  such as a dog park, pool and pickleball courts  for residents.

Developer/contractor/architect/consultants: Partnership of Thomas J. Ackermann Co. and Meierjohan Building Group; master planning and architecture by Bob Koch of FK Architecture of Winter Park, Florida.

T.J. Ackermann, president and CEO of the Thomas J. Ackermann Co., said the Union Promenade will likely be completed in 2027.

Size: 62 acres and 93,700 square feet of lease space.

Estimated cost: More than $200 million overall investment.

Heres what to know about each mixed-use area:

New restaurants and conveniences

At the Union Promenade, single-story commercial space runs along U.S. Route 42, across from a Kroger and other businesses.

The commercial spaces will run along U.S. Route 42 in Boone County, across from a Kroger and other business. The development will also be connected via walkways to a cluster of homes at the Villas of Fowler's Creek so those residents can also walk to restaurants and stores.

Bars and restaurants:Jake's Cigar and Bourbon Lounge (5,500 square feet), El Asadero Mexican Grill (6,000 square feet), McAlisters Deli (3,450 square feet).

The Enquirer got a sneak peak into other restaurants that might come to the development, but the three above are the ones who have signed on the dotted line.

Conveniences: Elite Med Spa (3,600 square feet), Glamour Nails (3,775 square feet), United Dairy Farmers convenience store and gas station (6,000 square feet).

Nearly 350 new places to live

Developer T.J. Ackermann said all the 19Nineteen Promenade apartments include sunroom-style windows so residents have views that make them feel like they're living in closed-in apartments.

The residential apartments and townhomes are in one of the wealthiest ZIP codes in Kentucky and they're built to reflect that high-end market.

"We're trying to create a premier community both from a retail and a living standpoint, and the finishes in here, the square footage, the layout, the size, all kind of speak to that," developer T.J. Ackermann said.

The gated community will include 282 units in the multistory apartment building and 15 rental townhouses.

All the apartment units include large sunroom-style windows so an outside view can immediately be seen when entering an apartment. The units on the back side of the apartment buildings include balconies that look onto open fields that are part of nearby horse farms.

Apartments at 19Nineteen Promenade

Luxury apartments are being built on just over 16 acres in 13 buildings.

The apartment buildings will have one to three bedrooms and cost between $1,320 and $3,141 per month. Size will range from 600 to 1,543 square feet.

The units were designed to take advantage of larger square footage with live-work arrangements, Ackermann said, noting work areas or nooks that are separate from living spaces in the apartments.

Amenities include a 6,000-square-foot clubhouse, fitness center, pool, walking trail, pickleball courts, gated dog park and courtyard.

Horses can be seen from apartments on the back side of the 19Nineteen Promenade apartments.

Townhomes

The Union Promenade will have 59 townhomes  15 two-story rentals and 44 single-story townhomes for sale.

All the rentals will include a garage, three bedrooms and two and a half baths.

The townhomes for sale at Retreat at Union Promenade will be on a total of about seven acres. They range from $300,000 to $435,000, and will be 1,396 to 2,525 square feet, according to the Drees Homes website.

Cincinnati Childrens medical building, offices

Cincinnati Children's initial investment in the development was about $22.5 million. It bought the 6.4-acre lot at the Union Promenade for around $3 million.

The site will include medical offices, a pediatric primary care facility, a lab test facility and access to subspecialty care clinics.

The new Cincinnati Children's medical building is named the Brandon and Kelly Janszen Union KY Building after a Northern Kentucky couple who made the lead donation to the facility.

The hospital said in a news release the combination of services is the first of its kind in Northern Kentucky for Cincinnati Childrens.

The first phase of the construction includes about 27,000 square feet, but theres room for expansion up to around 80,000 square feet.

The new building is named the Brandon and Kelly Janszen Union KY Building after a Northern Kentucky couple who made the lead donation to the facility.

What else you need to know

Residents are expected to start moving into the 19Nineteen Promenade apartments in September.

There has been some community pushback about proposed parts of the development.

The Enquirer reported when nearby residents showed up in droves to object to a zoning variance that would have allowed an Aldi grocery store to be built at the site.

Residents felt misled about the direction of the project, which was pitched as a high-end walkable addition to the community.

The Union City Commission voted against the variance.

Ackermann told The Enquirer he'd worked hard to be a good neighborhood to the nearby community.

For instance, when residents along Sweet Harmony Lane complained about the volume of the digital ads at the gas pumps at night, developers worked with UDF to make sure those ads were turned off after hours.

Ackermann doesn't anticipate any other major changes or proposals at the site because "pretty much everything is done and approved here."

More: Here's how a proposed Aldi became controversial in Union

Here's whats ahead

The entire project will likely wrap up in 2027 after about a decade of work, but parts of it will open by this fall.

Tenants will be able to move into the 19Nineteen Promenade apartments by September. Several units were already leased by the end of May.

The first project on the site, a UDF, opened in January. Elite Med Spa is also up and running. Glamour Nails is slated to open in July.

The restaurants and bars will likely open in the first half of 2025.

The United Dairy Farmers convenience store and gas station is the flagship store for the development. It includes its Homemade Brand ice cream, hot food, and indoor and outdoor seating.

Jolene Almendarez reports on Northern Kentucky issues. You can email her at jolenea@gannett.com and follow her on X, formerly known as Twitter, @jolenea1. She's on Threads @jalmendarez57.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: What is Union Promenade in Northern Kentucky?
Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) on Thursday spoke and shook hands with former President Trump during a meeting at the National Republican Senatorial Committee, the first time the two leaders have spoken since their falling out in 2020.



We had a really positive meeting. He and I got a chance to talk a little bit, shook hands a few times, McConnell told reporters after the meeting.



It was an entirely positive meeting, he added. I cant think of anything out of it to tell you that was negative.



McConnell and other senators said Trump received several standing ovations.



Senators said McConnell sat close to Trump at the meeting, giving him ample opportunity to chat with the likely Republican nominee for president.

Sen. Roger Wicker (R-Miss.), who attended the meeting, said Trump spoke favorably about McConnell and praised the Senate GOP leaders efforts to keep the Republican conference as unified as possible.

It was very cordial, very unifying, Wicker told The Hill. We talked about a number of issues and there was a real good feeling.

Wicker said McConnell was sitting right next to Trump.

The president spoke favorably about Mitch, about all the work he did to try to hold the conference together though a couple people would stray every now and then, he said. He was very complimentary.

Another Republican senator who attended the meeting and requested anonymity said Trump went out of his way to praise McConnell or mention his name several times during the lunch.

The senator said Trump was making a point to project a positive attitude toward Mitch and never made reference to any disagreement.

Relations between Trump and McConnell have been strained since McConnell recognized Joe Biden as the president-elect after the vote of the Electoral College in mid-December 2020.

McConnell opposed Trumps effort to block the certification of Bidens victory in Congress on Jan. 6, 2021, the same day a mob of Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol in a failed attempt to stop the proceeding.

The Senate GOP leader excoriated Trumps actions in the leadup to the attack on the Capitol when he denounced him on the Senate floor in February of 2021 as practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of that day.

Trump has regularly taken shots at McConnell in recent years, mocking him as old crow and disparaging his wife, former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, as Coco Chow and his China-loving wife.

McConnell nevertheless endorsed Trump for president in March after he clinched the GOP nomination for president after Super Tuesday.

He reminded reporters on Tuesday that he had said weeks after the 2021 attack on the Capitol that he would support the partys nominee for president, even if it turned out to be Trump.

I said three years ago, right after the Capitol was attacked, that I would support our nominee regardless of who it was  including him, McConnell said earlier this week. Ive said earlier this year, I support him  hes earned the nomination by the voters all across the country.

Al Weaver contributed.

This story was updated at 3:40 p.m.

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 The Hill.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Bahruz Bahramov has been appointed deputy executive director of the State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ), a source in SOFAZ told Trend.

Bahramov has been an advisor to the executive director of SOFAZ since 2020.

Previously, he held various positions in the risk management and investment departments of SOFAZ, including deputy director of the risk management department from 2014 to 2016, and director of the risk management department from 2016 to 2020.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Media: Slovenia secretly provided Ukraine with military supplies during US aid delay

Slovenia had secretly provided Ukraine with various military equipment when the U.S. aid had been stalled for months, the Slovenian media outlet 24UR reported on June 13.

The supplies were not publicly announced as 24UR said it had learned the information through "unofficial" channels.

After six months of political infighting and delays, the U.S. passed a long-awaited $61 billion aid package in April, with much of it covering military aid.

During the six-month break in funding, Ukraine lost the key front-line city of Avdiivka in February amid a severe ammunition shortage.

While Kyiv was waiting for the approval of the U.S. bill, Slovenia sent 20 armored fighting vehicles armed with a 12.7 mm caliber weapon, six armored fighting vehicles armed with a 3x20 mm caliber weapon, three infantry fighting vehicles, and a shipment of drones to Ukraine, according to the outlet.

The Slovenian government also supplied Ukraine with additional rifles, helmets, and ammunition during that period.

In March, the country joined Czechia's initiative to supply artillery shells for Ukraine. Slovenia was planning to allocate 1 million euros ($1.08 million) to the initiative, Radio Prague International reported, citing Slovenian news agency Sta.

Read also: Blinken: No doubt there has been cost in months-long delay of aid for Ukraine

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Since the war in Gaza began in October 2023 , there has been no shortage of dramatic combat footage from both sides, much of it both harrowing and astonishing. But a video showing Israeli troops using a flamethrowing trebuchet  a catapult-like siege engine popular in the Middle Ages  is perhaps the most bizarre so far.

The brief video, which began to circulate on social media yesterday, shows Israel Defense Forces (IDF) soldiers using the trebuchet, which is mounted on a wheeled trailer, to launch incendiaries across the border and into Lebanon. The clip shows the device lobbing one of the flaming projectiles over the border wall in a scene that could have been transplanted from a medieval siege and which, at first glance, appears entirely at odds with one of the most modern and well-equipped armies anywhere in the world. Only at second glance is it obvious that this is not a historical reenactment but the front line of a present-day conflict.

The border fence separating northern Israel from southern Lebanon, on October 21, 2023. Photo by YURI CORTEZ/AFP via Getty Images

As for the IDF trebuchet, this is little-changed from the ancient weapon, although much smaller than some of the better-known medieval versions. Whatever the size, these devices essentially comprise a rotating arm with a sling attached to one end to launch a projectile. A counterweight at the other end serves to swing the arm. The result is a weapon that can launch heavier projectiles than a traditional catapult and propel them over longer distances.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cs8gamnMIS0\u0026t=1s

At first, there was some speculation that the IDF troops may have been taking part in some kind of prank. On multiple occasions in recent months, Israeli troops have filmed battlefield practical jokes, some of questionable taste, and some of dubious legality , and posted them to social media.

An explanation for the use of this bizarre weapon was provided by the Israeli military, which clarified that the purpose of the trebuchet was indeed to set fires on the other side of the border.

The flaming projectiles  the nature of which are not immediately clear  are designed to burn through the dense vegetation on the Lebanon side of the border area, removing cover that could be used by Hezbollah fighters to launch attacks on the IDF or infiltrate into Israel. This should be especially effective now its summer and this foliage will be dry.

One particular concern for the IDF is Hezbollahs use of the Iranian-made Almas anti-tank missile, the arrival of which along the Lebanese-Israeli border you can read about in this past TWZ report. Last week, Hezbollah released a video that appeared to show a launcher for Israels Iron Dome air defense system , only a few miles from the border, apparently being struck for the first time, likely by an Almas. While the results of that attack are open to debate , it underscored the threat posed by the Almas and other weapons along the Lebanese border. Removing vegetation in this area would help locate Hezbollah firing positions.

According to the Israel Hayom newspaper, earlier in the conflict, IDF reservists had attempted to use Molotov cocktails to set vegetation ablaze on the other side of the border. The same report says that Lebanese sources have also reported the use of white phosphorus , which starts fires, as well as incendiary drones.

Imagery of Molotov cocktails being used by IDF soldiers has also emerged, although its unclear how recent this is. This extemporized solution involves using compressed gas to fire a bottle from a tube.

After the appearance of the flamethrowing trebuchet, another video appeared, this time showing an IDF soldier using a bow and arrow to launch a flaming projectile over the border fence and into Lebanon. This also relatively ancient application would seem to provide a more rapid means of setting fires, albeit delivering smaller projectiles over reduced ranges.

Overall, however, the suggestion is that using more conventional, modern weapons to achieve the same effect  likely either some form of artillery or air-launched munitions  is overly expensive and wasteful.

There is also the possibility that other types of incendiary weapons might have a disproportionate effect as well as being seen as overly heavy-handed in what is a delicate situation on the border.

Israeli soldiers patrol an area near the northern kibbutz of Kfar Blum close to the border with Lebanon after Hezbollah said its fighters carried out an aerial attack with two drones against an Israeli air defense system site in the border region on January 25, 2024. Photo by JALAA MAREY/AFP via Getty Images

Removing cover that could be used to the enemys advantage is a battlefield tactic thats even older than the trebuchet. In the past, it has also led to some unorthodox methods being used, including the notorious Agent Orange defoliant deployed over Vietnam.

While there does not appear to be an immediate precedent in modern warfare for using a trebuchet in a similar role, there are examples of Syrian militia using ad-hoc trebuchets to launch Molotov cocktails against enemy positions during that countrys civil war.

https://www.twitter.com/clashreport/status/1801142150874169816

The IDF confirmed that the trebuchet was developed locally by IDF troops as an expedient to respond to the growing threat of Hezbollah attacks, but is not in widespread use.

As to the nature of the threat from Hezbollah, earlier this week the Lebanese militants launched their biggest salvo of rockets at Israel since the war in Gaza began. The IDF said that more than 170 projectiles were fired from Lebanon in three barrages. While several rockets were intercepted, others struck inside Israel, causing fires in parts of the north.

Rockets fired from southern Lebanon are intercepted by an IDF Iron Dome air defense system over the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights on May 17, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. Photo by JALAA MAREY/AFP via Getty Images

The Hezbollah rocket attacks were retaliation for Israels killing of a senior field commander, Taleb Abdallah. He was killed along with three other Hezbollah operatives by an Israeli airstrike on the village of Jouaiya in southern Lebanon on Tuesday.

These latest developments bring Israel and Hezbollah closer to all-out conflict, something that has been a fear since the start of the Gaza war, and which would also threaten to draw Iran further into the fighting.

A picture taken from Kiryat Shmona in northern Israel shows an Israeli F-16 fighter dropping a flare over southern Lebanon on May 16, 2024, amid ongoing cross-border clashes between Israeli troops and Hezbollah fighters. Photo by MENAHEM KAHANA/AFP via Getty Images

While Hezbollah began firing rockets and mortars against Israel a day after Hamas launched its October 7 attack , this has been lower intensity conflict rather than a full-scale one.

There are now signs that could be about to change.

We will increase the intensity, strength, quantity, and quality of our attacks, the senior Hezbollah official Hashem Safieddine said at Taleb Abdallahs funeral yesterday.

https://www.twitter.com/manniefabian/status/1801213736805388761

Last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatened an extremely powerful response to Hezbollahs ongoing attacks, which have also included drone strikes.

The flare-up in aggression has so far killed 71 Lebanese civilians and around 500 members of Hezbollah, 18 Israeli soldiers, and 10 Israeli civilians.

With tensions around the border with Lebanon at their worst since October 7 and growing fears of an all-out war between Israel and Hezbollah, it is perhaps not surprising that IDF troops have been calling upon innovative  albeit antiquated  methods to ensure they have the upper hand.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com
Meet Alabamas only full-time shark fishing boat  and the shark population is exploding

BON SECOUR, Ala. (WKRG)  The Orca out of Bon Secour is Alabamas only federally and state-permitted commercial shark fishing vessel.

In only four hours on Tuesday, the boat had already caught its limit of sharks.

Experts explain reasons for increase in shark sightings along the Gulf Coast following recent attacks

Fishing less than three miles off the coast of Dauphin Island, Apex Shark Fishing Charters uses a two-mile bottom-long line with 125 hooks.

It allows us to fish a lot of gear off a long period of water, and the Orca found her limit quickly.

This is the only shark fishing boat that does it full time in the state of Alabama, Lew Childre with Apex Shark Fishing said. The oversight that has kept quotas down so low for so long. There is more than enough sharks to go around.

Pillans Middle School principal contract not renewed: MCPSS

Childre said that is one of the reasons the shark population has exploded.

You have seen an increase in the shark population increase on the beach just due to the lack of fishing pressure and the presence of people, so there is more time interaction with people and the sharks that are there, he said.

Sharks are migrating this time of year. Fifty species of shark call the Gulf of Mexico home. More than two dozen are common along the Alabama coast.

On a typical trip, the Orca lands a mixed bag of sharks: blacktips, spinners, finetooth, hammerheads and occasionally a bull shark.

$45,000 in materials stolen from Foley construction site, police say  what we know

During the summer, Capt. David Stiller can fish five days a week. In the fall, they move to federal waters catching as many sharks as the law allows.

Still, Childre says, there are plenty of sharks out there.

They shouldnt be afraid of them, he said. They should see them as a resource and a wonderful example of biology and ecology that we have.

Once the catch is back at the docks, they are processed and all that shark meat is sold to markets in Canada and New York.

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 WKRG News 5.
Hunter Biden's wife, Melissa Cohen-Biden, publicly reaffirmed her support for her husband by appearing in court with him, drawing stark comparisons to the tense and opposite scene that unfolded between Donald Trump and his wife, Melania Trump.

Trump was found guilty on all 34 counts of falsifying business records to hide hush money payments to former adult film star Stormy Daniels.

While some of Donald Trump's family members occasionally appeared in court during his trial, Melania Trump completely ghosted the courtroom and never shared a statement to defend him.

Melania Trump's Trial Absence Gets Compared To Melissa Cohen-Biden's Supportive Court Appearances

MEGA

The President's son was found guilty on federal charges regarding his purchase of a gun in 2018, as he was alleged to have lied on documents about his drug use.

According to Newsweek, his wife displayed marital solidarity throughout his court appearances, entering the courtroom holding his hands.

Hunter and Melissa's display during his trial was a huge contrast to that of Trump and Melania, as the former first lady snubbed him in court throughout his New York hush money trial.

MEGA

The billionaire politician has now made history as the first U.S. president to be convicted of a crime. However, his wife Melania has chosen not to speak on his ordeals or publicly share a remark in his support.

Trump's daughter, Ivanka, has also noticeably distanced herself from the trial, opting not to appear in court or share a comment.

Melissa Cohen-Biden's Courtroom Appearances Were Lauded On Social Media

MEGA

Melissa's actions were also noted on social media, as some netizens praised her for supporting her husband through the legal procedure.

One X user wrote, "Hunter Biden's wife Melissa Cohen is a world-class hottie & unlike Melania, Melissa is standing by her man at his farcical gun application form trial."

Another person noted, "I love that Hunter Biden's wife not only shows up to court, but she also called a MAGA who's been harassing her man a 'Nazi piece of sh-t' and said that he didn't have any right to be there. In a world of Melania Trumps, be a Melissa Cohen-Biden."

The Biden Family Showed Support For Hunter Through Out His Trial

MEGA

In the Delaware courtroom, Hunter was supported not only by his wife but also by other members of his family, both nuclear and extended.

Melissa sat as she watched his ex-wife and past lovers testify on his drug use, but that didn't deter her from showing up in court throughout the trial.

His stepmother and first lady, Dr. Jill Biden, also appeared in court for most of the trial and was seen hugging and stroking his cheek at some point during a short recess.

She was only absent from the trial on Thursday when she traveled to France with President Biden to commemorate D-Day. She returned to the U.S. and appeared in court the next day.

MEGA

Biden, on his part, did not appear in court as he's been away on official business but was seen hugging Hunter as he stepped off of Marine One late Tuesday afternoon.

He previously issued a public statement in support of his son, saying, "I am the President, but I am also a Dad. Jill and I love our son, and we are so proud of the man he is today."

Biden added, "As the President, I don't and won't comment on pending federal cases, but as a Dad, I have boundless love for my son, confidence in him, and respect for his strength."

Other supporters in court included President Biden's sister, Valerie Biden Owens, brother, James and his wife Sara Jones Biden, and long-time friend, lawyer Kevin Morris. Hunter's daughter, Naomi, also appeared in court and Testified about his drug use.

Hunter Biden Was Found Guilty On All Charges

MEGA

As reported by The Blast, Hunter was found guilty on all three federal felony gun charges, making him the first family member of a sitting president to be convicted of a crime during their father's term in office.

The date for his sentencing remains unscheduled, but the judge stated that it's usually set for 120 days after a verdict is reached. This means it'll likely happen before the November elections when President Biden faces his Republican rival, Donald Trump.

In a statement shared after his conviction, Hunter said he is "more grateful for the love and support" of his family than he is "disappointed by the outcome," while President Biden expressed support for his son in a statement and said he would "respect the judicial process."

He faces up to 25 years in jail with a fine of up to $750,000, although it's unlikely he'll get the maximum sentencing since he's a first-time offender.

Donald Trump's Camp Reacts To Hunter Biden's Conviction

MEGA

Trump's campaign team has since reacted to Hunter's conviction, labeling it a "distraction."

"This trial has been nothing more than a distraction from the real crimes of the Biden Crime Family, which has raked in tens of millions of dollars from China, Russia, and Ukraine," Karoline Leavitt, the Trump campaign national press secretary, said in a statement.

"Crooked Joe Biden's reign over the Biden Family Criminal Empire is all coming to an end on November 5th, and never again will a Biden sell government access for personal profit," she added.
Melinda French Gates welcomed the Supreme Courts decision Thursday upholding access to the abortion medication mifepristone, but she noted that it marks only a minor victory in the greater fight for reproductive rights.

French Gates, a philanthropist and the ex-wife of Microsoft founder Bill Gates, is a major reproductive rights advocate and committed $1 billion to womens causes last month.

Todays Supreme Court decision is welcome news, but the fight for reproductive rights is far from over, she wrote on the social media platform X. Someone else will file a lawsuit. Another state will pass legislation restricting womens options.

The only way to stop these attacks on womens autonomy is to make sure that women have the political power to set their own agenda, instead of having their fundamental rights depend on someone elses, she continued. We all have a role to play in this fight. Raise your voice. And vote in November. Your health and your future should be in your hands.

Supreme Court upholds access to mifepristone abortion pill in unanimous decision

Last month, French Gates said her philanthropic organization, Pivotal Ventures, would invest specifically in womens issues, including sexual violence in conflict zones abroad, the role of women in government and maternal health. She specifically outlined a need to work against maternal mortality in the U.S. and toward reproductive freedom.

Women in 14 states have lost the right to terminate a pregnancy under almost any circumstances, she wrote in The New York Times last month. We remain the only advanced economy without any form of national paid family leave. And the number of teenage girls experiencing suicidal thoughts and persistent feelings of sadness and hopelessness is at a decade high.

When we allow this cause to go so chronically underfunded, we all pay the cost, she continued. As shocking as it is to contemplate, my 1-year-old granddaughter may grow up with fewer rights than I had.

The courts mifepristone ruling was considered a victory for reproductive rights advocates, with the issue likely to take center stage in the 2024 election. Abortion rights ballot measures are set for votes in multiple states, including multiple key swing states such as Arizona and Florida.

Democrats have hoped that an emphasis on the issue could pull independent and moderate voters to their side at the ballot box, especially women voters. A record high 32 percent of voters said they would only vote for a candidate who agreed with their stance on abortion rights in a new poll released Thursday.

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 The Hill.
Insights from the European Centre for Development Policy Management, Ecco, and African Arguments

The News

The Italian government is priming a new climate and foreign policy initiative focused on sustainable food at this weeks G7 summit in Puglia.

Prime Minister Giorgia Melonis Apulia Food Security Initiative  the specifics of which arent yet available  would prioritize food security in Africa by investing in sustainable farming and agriculture. The plan is based on similar proposals from last years United Nations COP28 climate conference that acknowledged the carbon footprint of food production for the first time.

The initiative could give Meloni a greater hand in global affairs, but domestic political and financial headwinds threaten its implementation.

SIGNALS

Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories.

To lead Europes foreign policy, Meloni must include Africa

Sources: Al Jazeera, Ecco, African Arguments

With her growing influence in Europe, Meloni has positioned Italy to be the new European face in Africa, as firms take increasing interest in the mineral and resource-rich continent, according to a researcher at the European Council on Foreign Relations. But her approach so far seems centered on investment rather than development, Al Jazeera noted. At COP28 last year, Meloni said that redefining the Italian-Africa relationship had to go beyond charity. To do that, African farmers must be treated as equal project partners rather than mere beneficiaries, an analyst wrote for the Italian think tank Ecco, since African agriculture is among the most at risk from climate change.

Europes sustainable food initiatives crumble under far-right pressure

Sources: European Centre for Development Policy Management, Politico, NPR

While re-centering the conversation on Africa is the right step for the world as a whole, its not that European food systems are fully sustainable, ECDPM analyst Cecilia DAlessandro at the European Centre for Development Policy Management think tank told Semafor. Its not that the EU hasnt tried but many of its initiatives have been scrapped after huge farmer protests shook countries across the continent. The few policies that remain  like satellite monitoring of crop production  still anger farmers who may be swayed to the far right, NPR noted.

Agricultural investment isnt as risky as some banks make it seem

Sources: Istituto Affari Internazionali, European Centre for Development Policy Management

Financing Melonis project will be one of the biggest challenges for the G7, analyst Cecilia DAlessandro wrote for the Istituto Affari Internazionali. To get financial institutions and banks on board, its a matter of showing them that [agriculture] is not as risky as they think it is, she told Semafor. Banks are concerned about their financial return, which is why they tend to be more eager to fund a few big infrastructure projects as opposed to several small-to-medium size farms. The G7 needs to convince financial institutions that long-term social and environmental returns  such as avoiding climate catastrophes  are equally, if not more, important than short-term financial gains, DAlessandro said.
Fred Daibes, an Edgewater developer, right, leaving the Daniel Patrick Moynihan Courthouse in Manhattan after pleading not guilty to federal corruption charges on Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2023. (Aristide Economopoulos for New Jersey Monitor)

Sen. Bob Menendezs corruption trial is going on a two-day break after one of his co-defendants, Fred Daibes, tested positive for COVID-19.

Daibes, a real estate developer and bank founder from Edgewater, was coughing throughout Wednesdays proceedings, which were largely focused on his role in the wide-ranging corruption case.

Judge Sidney H. Stein that Daibes canceled court for Thursday and Friday, scheduling testimony to resume Monday at the Daniel Patrick Moynihan federal courthouse. The trial is already in its fifth week of testimony.

Prosecutors have said Daibes paid Menendez cash and gold bars in expectation of New Jerseys senior senator using his political powers to derail his bank fraud investigation.

U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger told jurors Wednesday that Menendez, in offering to suggest he be nominated as New Jerseys U.S. attorney, complained to him in 2020 that Daibes was being treated unfairly by the U.S. Attorneys Office and asked him to look at it (Daibes case) carefully once he became U.S. attorney.

Sellinger instead told Menendez, a Democrat, that he likely would be recused from the case, because he once handled a lawsuit in which Daibes was an adverse party and hed have to reveal that as a potential conflict of interest to his supervisors at the federal Department of Justice. Menendez subsequently chose a different candidate and ended his friendship with Sellinger, Sellinger testified. Sellinger got the job anyway a year later, after Menendezs pick fell through.

Sellinger was scheduled to return to court Thursday for cross-examination.

Jurors also were expected to hear Thursday from several witnesses about prosecutors claims that Daibes also bribed Menendez to help him land a lucrative investment from a member of Qatars royal family.

Menendez did so by praising the Qatari government in an August 2021 press release  first using an encrypted messaging app to secretly share the announcement with Daibes so the developer could share it with the investor and a Qatari government official, according to the indictment. He also ushered a resolution praising Qatar through the powerful Senate Foreign Relations Committee, which he chaired at the time, prosecutors say.

The trial, which was expected to last until the end of June, is behind schedule. Stein earlier this week fretted about the trial continuing too far into July and interfering with jurors summer plans. He directed prosecutors and defense attorneys to cooperate more and speed up their questioning.

The post Menendez corruption trial briefly suspended due to developers illness appeared first on New Jersey Monitor.
Indiana Division of Mental Health and Addiction representatives Jay Chaudhary and Lindsay Potts give a presentation at the 2024 Indiana Mental Health Roundtable Summit on June 12, 2024 at the Hyatt Regency Indianapolis. Chaudhary and Potts shared that mobile crisis teams are now responding to mental health crises in 59 Indiana counties. (Mia Hilkowitz/Indiana Capital Chronicle)

Non-police mobile crisis teams are now responding to mental health crises in 59 Indiana counties, increasing access to mental health care and relieving the burden on medical providers and law enforcement officers across the state.

What were doing is creating another provider type, said Lindsay Potts, a state mental health and addiction division director. Youve got fire, EMS, law enforcement, and now you have mobile crisis teams.

Appearing in front of a crowd of educators, business executives and health care leaders at the 2024 Indiana Mental Health Roundtable Summit on Wednesday, state officials with the Indiana Division of Mental Health and Addiction shared how the state has increased the presence of mobile crisis teamsa team of behavioral health professionals who can provide specialized mental health care to those in crisis.

If you or someone you know is currently experiencing thoughts of suicide or a mental health crisis, call 988 to reach a trained crisis specialist 24/7.

They also highlighted the growth of Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics (CCBHCs) statewide since Senate Enrolled Act 1 went into effect in May 2023. The 24/7 clinics provide mental health and addiction services to all Hoosiers regardless of diagnosis, insurance, residence or age.

SEA 1 aimed to improve Hoosiers access to mental health care. The law required the Indiana Division of Mental Health and Addiction to maintain the 988 suicide and crisis hotline, mobile assessment teams and crisis stabilization units. It also reauthorized the Indiana Behavioral Health Commission (IBHC).

Before SEA 1 went into effect, mobile crisis teams were responding to mental health crises in just 16 Indiana counties. Potts said Indiana also now has four call centers and one text center to respond to 988 crisis hotline calls.

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Legislators allocated $100 million for the program in the 2023 state budget but the IBHC estimated the project to cost around $130 million a year when it fully matured. On June 4, however, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services accepted Indiana into its CCBHC Medicaid Demonstration Program, which will provide reimbursement through Medicaid for the costs clinics incur treating patients without insurance or other form of payment.

We dont spend time in a crisis trying to figure out what insurance you have, said Jay Chaudhary, the director of the Indiana Division of Mental Health and Addiction. This is all a lot different than the regular way the medical system works.

Chaudhary said his department hopes the eight clinics participating in the federal pilot program will start offering expanded services in January 2025.

Big picture, it will allow us and our providers to design behavioral health care systems that meet the needs of communities kind of as they are, as opposed to responding to payment structures, Chaudhary told the Indiana Capital Chronicle.

Addressing youth mental health

Chaudhary also emphasized during the panel that the federal funding would help youth who receive Indiana Medicaid coverage, connecting to the focus of Wednesdays mental health summit.

Wednesday was the second time the Indiana Mental Health Roundtable, founded by Indiana Lt. Gov. Suzanne Crouch in 2021, has hosted a summit. It partnered with Riley Childrens Health to organize Wednesdays event. The day-long event featured more than a dozen speaker and breakout sessions. The topics of these sessions ranged from how educators could incorporate new resources into their schools to a breakdown of Medicaids reimbursement for mental health care.

Crouch said the roundtable decided to focus on youth mental health after seeing how young Indiana residents have struggled with anxiety and depression since the COVID-19 pandemic.

They are the future of Indiana and we want to be sure that the conversation is about how we can prepare them for that future, Crouch told the Indiana Capital Chronicle. So this is an issue we have to take on.

Crouch said that while extra funding, such as that provided under the medicaid demonstration program, is helpful to provide more resources, the state should also look at how its using the resources it currently hassomething the summit encourages people to do.

Its not a question of money, its really a question of how we deliver, Crouch said. Its important that we have these kinds of conversations and bring these kinds of experts in to talk about our delivery of service and how we are actually getting services to people.

The post Mental health summit highlights growth of mobile crisis teams appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Azerbaijan and Greece agreed on a two-year Action Plan defining a roadmap for cooperation in all spheres during the fifth session of the Joint Commission on Economic, Industrial, and Technological Cooperation between the Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Government of the Hellenic Republic, the statement of the Azerbaijani Energy Ministry said, Trend reports.

Furthermore, the Protocol of the 5th meeting of the Joint Commission on Cooperation in the economic, industrial, and technological spheres of Azerbaijan and Greece, as well as the Memorandum of Understanding between the Export and Investment Promotion Agency of the Republic of Azerbaijan (AZPROMO) and Enterprise Greece, were signed.

Additionally, it was reported at the meeting that the trade turnover between the two countries amounted to $1.4 billion last year.

Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Greece Kostas Fragogiannis noted that the development and promotion of cooperation in various fields (including trade and investment, transportation, agriculture, energy, technology, healthcare, and tourism) have prospects.

In general, the 5th meeting of the joint intergovernmental commission laid the foundation for continuous, constructive, effective dialogue and the exchange of ideas between Greece and Azerbaijan.

"The Greek side was informed about the favorable investment environment in Azerbaijan, the Free Economic Zone "Alat," industrial zones and agro-parks, as well as opportunities for cooperation on the Trans-Caspian International Transport Corridor "East-West"," the statement of the Azerbaijani Ministry of Energy said.

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Mexico finds the remains of some of the 63 miners who died 18 years ago

FILE - Pedestrians walk by a sculpture of a bright red number 65 that pays homage to the coal miners killed in the 2006 Pasta de Conchos mine accident, in Mexico City. Authorities announced on Wednesday, June 12, 2024, the discovery of the skeletal remains of some of the 63 miners who have remained missing for almost two decades. Sixty-five miners died in the explosion, but authorities only found two of the miners' bodies. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte, File)

MEXICO CITY (AP)  Mexican authorities announced Wednesday that they found the remains of some of the 63 miners who were trapped 18 years ago in a coal mine in northern Mexico.

The accident occurred at the Pasta de Conchos mine in the state of Coahuila, which borders Texas, on Feb. 19, 2006. Of the 73 miners on duty, eight survived with serious burns, and two bodies were recovered.

The Interior ministry said Wednesday that after years of searching they were able to locate the first human remains in one of the mines chambers, but they did not specify when the remains were recovered.

The accident is considered one of the biggest mining tragedies in the country.

It wasnt until 2020 when President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador made a promise to recover the bodies that the process began. Three consecutive governments opted not to try for the rest, saying it would be too dangerous and costly, with no guarantee of success. But victims relatives continued to press authorities on the issue over the years.

Lopez Obrador put the Federal Electricity Commission, the nations public utility known as the CFE, in charge of the dig  mining and burning coal to reach the long-buried miners.

In the chamber where remains were found there were 13 miners working the day of the accident, according to the Interior ministry.

The government indicated it has not yet determined if an explosion caused the mine's collapse.

The Coahuila state prosecutor's office, in collaboration with the National Search Commission and the National Institute of Genomics Medicine, will begin analyzing the remains for identification and try to determine the cause of the accident.

___

Follow APs coverage of Latin America and the Caribbean at https://apnews.com/hub/latin-america
After New Mexico heat kills migrant, a Mexican national sentenced to 10 years in prison

DONA ANA COUNTY, N.M. (KRQE)  In the summer of 2023, Border Patrol found several migrants traveling in the desert in Dona Ana County. One died of heat exposure, and now 40-year-old Rafael Radillo-Bernal has received a federal prison sentence for his role in the incident.

Law enforcement found Rafael Radillo-Bernal, a Mexican national, traveling with several migrants in the New Mexico desert after Texas Department of Public Safety Officers received a tip from a group of undocumented individuals. After questioning, two witnesses claimed that Radillo-Bernal was a foot guide helping smuggle the migrants, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) says.

Gallup woman to serve 5 years probation after drunk driving crash killed son

Eventually, Radillo-Bernal pled guilty to transporting an illegal alien resulting in death. Now, a federal judge has given Radillo-Bernal a 10-year prison sentence.

After he serves his prison sentence, Radillo-Bernal will face deportation proceedings, the DOJ says. Another individual, Estrada-Velasquez, also pled guilty to a role in the event and received a 36-month prison sentence.

New Mexico lawmakers in Congress want to offer $30,000 grants for first-time homeowners

Those involved in human smuggling operations, including foot guides, drivers, and coordinators, face severe legal consequences if caught and prosecuted, the DOJ said in a press release. Human smuggling is a federal crime under U.S. law, with penalties that can include hefty fines and lengthy prison sentences, especially in cases involving death, serious injury, or other aggravating factors.

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(Bloomberg) -- Mexico paid off a dollar bond due next year in a bid to calm a selloff triggered by the ruling partys sweeping victory in this months election.

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The government called the $894 million outstanding on a note due April 2025, part of $4 billion worth of refinancings it is carrying out for upcoming maturities, according to a statement from the Finance Ministry. Deputy Finance Minister Gabriel Yorio wrote in an X post that the government would also refinance local debt coming due in next year.

Were monitoring markets to continue with financial operations that benefit liquidity, Yorio wrote in the X post.

A lopsided victory for President-elect Claudia Sheinbaum and the Morena Party has riled markets since June 2 as investors grow concerned the government will seek to quickly move forward with a series of constitutional reforms that are perceived to weaken institutions, such as by allowing judges to be elected by popular vote.

The peso has lost more than 10% of its value against the US dollar and stocks and bonds have also fallen.

The 2025 prepayment allows the government to clear its main dollar-denominated obligations coming due next year, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. The move appears to be part of a series of government steps that seek to curb volatility, including statements from Sheinbaum that the economy is solid and the confirmation that Finance Minister Rogelio Ramirez de la O will remain in his post.

In transition years the outgoing government tends to leave things a smooth as possible for the incoming administration, and prepayments are one of the ways to do that, said Claudia Ceja a strategist at BBVA Mexico.

(Recasts with context and ministry statement throughout.)

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HILLSDALE  The four candidates hoping to succeed Michigan District 35 Rep. Andrew Fink took the stage Thursday to convince the Hillsdale Board of Realtors their campaign would best represent the conservative views of Branch and Hillsdale counties for the next two years.

Amy Taylor, field director with the Michigan Realtors, moderated the Michigan House District 35 candidate forum Thursday at Hillsdales Dawn Theater.

Even Democrat Don Hicks of Coldwater presented conservative fiscal values along with the three facing each other in the Aug. 6 Republican primary, Tom Matthew, Adam Stockford, and Jennifer Wortz.

Amy Taylor, field director with the Michigan Realtors, hosted and moderated the 90 minute event at Hillsdale's Dawn Theater, asking questions of all four.

District 35 covers both counties and the city of Hudson in Lenawee County.

Adam Stockford

Adam Stockford, 43, is married with four children and has served as Hillsdale mayor for 10 years.

A Hillsdale Colege graduate, Stockford believes in listening to constituents and taking responsibility for the good and bad.

"I can promise you I will vote the values of this district in Lansing. And if you call me on the phone, I will return your phone call. I will be accessible." Stockford said.

Jennifer Wortz

Wortz, 44, and her husband have owned the Central Grace Farms near Quincy since 2016. They raise 600,000 chickens a year under contract with Miller Poultry.

The mother of four, now a grandmother, is the fifth generation of a Hillsdale Waldron Gary Leininger family and now serves as manager of the Branch County Conservation District.

The Michigan State University graduate in agriculture and education taught in Camden-Frontier schools until she left to home-school her children.

As head of Moms for Liberty, which opposed COVID-19 restrictions, Wortz promised, "I will work to defend the rights of the youngest to the oldest and to hold true to our constitutional rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

Tom Matthew

Tom Matthew, 77, appointed to the Branch County Commission in 2020, serves Hillsdale, Branch, and St. Joseph County Health Agency, as well as commissioner for accreditation for state health agencies.

Matthew said he came to the United States in 1968 with $8 and a Bible.

The father and grandfather who moved to Coldwater Lake said, "I am a compassionate person." His experience comes from being a social worker, parent coordinator, and Headstart Program Director in Chicago.

Matthew said, "My ultimate goal is to serve you."

Don Hicks

Don Hicks, 60, who qualified as a Democrat but has yet to register as one, taught government and economics at Bronson High School for 34 years before retiring. "Public service is a high calling. To have the ability to impact people in a positive way is deeply gratifying," he said.

The father of five said he wanted people to have a choice in the November general election.

Hicks told the audience, "I don't like the tone of politics today, the vilification, the name calling, the political theater that goes on. I find it is really outrageous. That's not what this country was founded on. We were founded on compromise. We can disagree without being disagreeable."

Here are a few of the topics they discussed:

Hillsdale Relators with participation from Branch County hosted a candidate forum Thursday at Hillsdales Dawn Theater.

Should the state have taken away local control for solar and wind turbine generation?

Stockford: "I think that 99% of the decisions that affect you and affect me should be made at the local government level. If you feel like your rights are being stomped on, you have access to the officials who can do something about it."

He signed and circulated the petition to put the issues on the November ballot.

Wortz: "Local Control helps keep those checks and balances in place. It helps the township decide what's the best use of the land in our district for solar." Wortz supports a program banning using the most fertile ground for solar farms.

Matthews: "I have served since 2020 on the Michigan Association of Counties agriculture, tourism and environment committee. I do understand the subject. I support local intervention."

Hicks: "Government should be from the grassroots up and not the other way around."

"Teachers can't teach, students aren't learning. What are your views on how to help educate our children?

Hicks: "I beg to differ, teachers are teaching. There are obstacles." He questioned why anyone would go into teaching after college if the top salary after 35 years was $62,000, even with a shortage of teachers.

"It's the amount of red tape that we had to go through. The red tape came from the state and the federal government. It was overwhelming and incredibly time consuming."

Matthew: "I think teachers should teach. When I was in school, they taught the three R's. Now they are teaching other subjects which I never heard of. I would make sure that religion should be taught, real religion, God in our schools."

Stockford: "People who really want to see our kids succeed, our parents and teachers, those two ought to be essentially running the school districts along with the elected school boards."

Wortz: After her youngest stressed out in first grade, she home-schooled her children, teaching them the basics while they were younger. The oldest is now a business owner with a family. "We have a daughter who was valedictorian of her class at Reading and is at Liberty University."

Her youngest attends Quincy High School, where Wortz served on the school board.

 Contact Don Reid: dReid@Gannett.com

This article originally appeared on Coldwater Daily Reporter: Michigan House District 35 candidates face off in Hillsdale Realtor's forum
Michigan surpasses California as the top cannabis market in the U.S. by sales volume

California's cannabis market, which has long been considered the dominant cannabis market in the U.S., has some competition.

As Michigan approaches its fifth anniversary of legal recreational marijuana sales in the state, it has overtaken California as the largest cannabis market in the U.S., according to some metrics that have not been widely reported but are tracked by the cannabis market intelligence firms and were shared with the Detroit Free Press.

For example, since December 2022, Michigan has sold more total grams of flower and units of other cannabis products (called equivalent unit sales) in both the recreational and medical market compared with California, according to data from BDSA, a cannabis market intelligence firm that tracks sales via point-of-sale data from a panel of participating cannabis retailers.

Customers browse the wide selection of cannabis products at Noxx Friday, Oct. 7, 2022, in Grand Rapids.

Another cannabis market intelligence firm, Headset, shows Michigan selling more units than California (defined as a single item that a customer buys, such as a pre-rolled joint, a multipack of pre-rolled joints, a jar of flower or a pack of gummies) since June 2023. Its data shows that in May, Michigan sold 24.2 million units, while California sold 17.3 million units.

These numbers have not been widely reported because most comparisons look at the size of the market in terms of dollar sales. By that metric, California is still a larger market than Michigan. California sold $5.1 billion in recreational marijuana products in 2023, while Michigan sold about $3 billion in recreational marijuana products.

The reason for this is that prices for cannabis products are much cheaper in Michigan compared with California, so even if consumers buy more products in Michigan, the total amount they spend is less than what consumers buying fewer products in California spend in total.

"There are a lot of issues on the ground in California  its always been expensive to do business there," Michael Arrington, a principal analyst at Colorado-based BDSA, said on a BDSA market forecast update webinar in March, citing issues in California that include fairly high taxes.

State officials in California acknowledge that illicit cannabis is a major competitor to legal cannabis sales in that state as well, likely because many municipalities don't allow recreational marijuana businesses in their communities and illicit cannabis is often cheaper compared with legal marijuana.

In Michigan, prices for legal cannabis have dropped significantly since recreational marijuana sales started because of an oversupply of cannabis, which has led to lower prices for consumers but slimmer margins for retailers.

More on Michigan's pricing dynamics: Plummeting Michigan cannabis prices are good news for consumers but not for small sellers

More on the impact of low prices: Michigan cannabis companies struggle to survive in increasingly competitive market

That means Michigan consumers can buy more cannabis products for less money compared with what the average consumer in California might spend on legal weed, which is reflected in the data.

Michigan sold 56.8 million equivalent units of cannabis products in April, compared with 44.6 million in California that same month, according to BDSA data.

BDSA figures for unit sales (defined as a single packaged cannabis product) paint a slightly different picture compared with the data Headset provided, but still show Michigan selling more units of cannabis products than California in certain recent months, such as in February and March. Michigan's unit sales first passed California's in December, BDSA data shows.

Not only is this data notable considering that Michigan's recreational cannabis industry is younger than California's industry, but also because Michigan's population is about a quarter of the size of California's population.

Michigan has the highest per capita sales in the U.S. at $132.41, according to data provided by Headset, which is about triple California's $44.21 per capita sales, Headset data showed.

Still, BDSA expects California will continue to have a bigger recreational marijuana market than Michigan in terms of dollar sales for at least the next few years.

Arrington said as issues in California "begin to settle," the market will grow at a moderate rate to about $6.1 billion in 2028. Michigan, meanwhile, is forecast to be a $4 billion market that year.

Contact Adrienne Roberts: amroberts@freepress.com.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan overtakes California as top cannabis market by sales volume
Microsoft Vice Chair and President Brad Smith sought to ease government scrutiny during a House hearing Thursday by acknowledging the companys shortcomings in allowing a recent China-backed hack to take place.

As the sole witness at a House Homeland Security Committee hearing, Smith faced pointed questions from both sides of the aisle about a hack that compromised emails of organizations and people, including U.S. government representatives working on national security matters.

Smith, in his opening statement and in response to the House panel, doubled down on Microsofts acceptance of its flaws and its commitment to improve.

The hearing followed a Cyber Safety Review Board (CSRB) report released in April that found a cascade of failures at Microsoft allowed the breach to occur.

Smith said Microsoft has included everything the review board has asked for.

[I] came here today and we acted as a company with a real spirit, I hope you will see, of humility, of accepting responsibility, of avoiding being defensive or defiance, Smith said.

He also urged Congress to help Microsoft to encourage that spirits of responsibility in order to improve.

We know our adversaries will get better, so we have to get better, too, Smith said.

Lawmakers underscored the need to hold Microsoft accountable, especially given how much of the government is using Microsofts services, and reliant on the company to address risks.

Committee Chair Mark Green (R-Tenn.) said the U.S. depends upon Microsoft every day to carry out an array of critical missions.

Microsoft is deeply integrated into our nations digital infrastructure. A presence that carried heightened respond and heightened responsibility, he said.

Ranking member Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) acknowledged Microsofts cooperation but said it is critical for Congress to work toward ensuring accountability.

It is incumbent on this committee to hold Microsoft, one of the federal government most prominent IT vendors and security partners, accountable for the findings and recommendations in the report. Microsoft deserves credit for cooperating with the boards investigation but make no mistake, its congresss expectation that Microsoft, or any similarly situated company would, do just the same, Thompson said.

The heat facing Microsoft during the hearing was amplified by a ProPublica report published Thursday morning about the Russian-backed SolarWinds hack of 2020. Former Microsoft employee Andrew Harris said his warnings about a flaw that worried could especially leave the federal government at risk were dismissed, ProPublica reported.

Harris left Microsoft in August 2020, and just months later U.S. officials confirmed reports that a state-sponsored team of Russian hackers carried out SolarWinds, one of the largest U.S. cyberattacks to date, ProPublica reported.

Smith pushed back on questions about the report and said he had not had time to read it.

This is classic, article published morning of hearing, and a week from now, Ill have a chance to learn about everything in it, Smith said.

In a statement to ProPublica, Microsoft did not dispute the reports findings and said protecting customers is always our highest priority.

Our security response team takes all security issues seriously and gives every case due diligence with a thorough manual assessment, as well as cross-confirming with engineering and security partners. Our assessment of this issue received multiple reviews and was aligned with industry consensus, the spokesperson added, according to ProPublica.

During the hearing, Smith said Microsoft is going to work harder than everyone else to earn the trust of our government and other allied governments every day.

[We are] making the changes we need to make, learning the lessons we need to learn, holding ourselves accountable. We will be transparent. I hope people will look at what weve done and say this is something they want to do with us. We know we have to earn their trust every day, Smith said.

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MIDWEST CITY, Okla. (KFOR)  The Mid-Del Public Schools Foundation announced on Wednesday on Facebook it is partnering with Blu School Supplies to purchase a clear backpack for the 2024-2025 school year.

The clear backpack will cost $10. All 6th-12th grade students will be required to have a clear backpack this school year.

State Supreme Court: OSDE does not have authority over public school library books

To guarantee your backpack will arrive before school starts, school officials are asking parents to please order by Friday, July 5, 2024.

Use the following link to make a purchase or to donate backpacks to a school. https://www.flipcause.com/secure/cause_pdetails/MjEwMjQ3

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KFOR.com Oklahoma City.
MIDDLEBORO  The First Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled against Liam Morrison, the Middleboro student who was sent home for wearing a shirt that read "there are only two genders" to the town's public middle school.

Morrison and his family, who are represented by lawyers from two conservative organizations, the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) and the Massachusetts Family Institute (MFI), are now considering appealing his case to the Supreme Court, Massachusetts Family Institute attorney Sam Whiting said in a written statement.

While we are disappointed in this decision, we arent done fighting yet. Along with our partners at Alliance Defending Freedom, we are reviewing all legal options, including appealing to the United States Supreme Court, Whiting wrote.

Middleboro, Massachusetts, middle schooler Liam Morrison, right, speaks at a press conference outside of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in Boston on Thursday morning, Feb. 8, 2024, following oral arguments in his appeal of a lower court ruling that said he does not have a First Amendment right to wear a "There are only two genders" T-shirt to school. His attorney, David Cortman, left, is senior counsel and vice president of U.S. litigation at Alliance Defending Freedom.

Alliance Defending Freedom Senior Counsel and Vice President of U.S. Litigation David Cortman wrote that the organization is "likely to appeal" the decision, taking the case all the way to the Supreme Court.

Morrison and his family originally filed a lawsuit against the school last May when school officials asked Morrison, then a seventh grader, to change out of a T-shirt that read there are only two genders.

Last August, Morrison and Alliance Defending Freedom attorneys filed a notice of appeal after the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts ruled against Morrison in a preliminary injunction.

On June 9, Whiting said the Massachusetts Family Institute received word that a federal judge had upheld their previous ruling that the school had enough grounds to ask Morrison to change his shirt, citing its potential to cause psychological distress to other students.

Attorneys from the Massachusetts Family Institute and Alliance Defending Freedom have expressed disappointment over the court's decision, claiming the First Circuit erred in its decision by denying Morrison his freedom of speech.

The courts decision is not only a threat to the free speech rights of public school students across the country, but a threat to basic biological truths, Whiting said. "By holding that Liam could not 'deny the self-conceptions of other students,' this decision paves the way for schools to silence all dissent against the radical agendas they are pushing on students like Liam, he said.

Students dont lose their free speech rights the moment they walk into a school building," Cortman said. "This case isnt about T-shirts; its about a public school telling a middle-schooler that he isnt allowed to express a view that differs from their own," he said. "Our legal system is built on the truth that the government cannot silence any speaker just because it disapproves of what they say."

This article originally appeared on The Enterprise: Middleboro Liam Morrison genders T-shirt case: Court appeal lost
ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, June 13. Turkmenistan confirmed its readiness to develop cooperation with the Malaysian Petronas oil and gas company, Trend reports.

According to an official source, this commitment was confirmed by Chairman of the People's Council of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov during a meeting with the CEO of PETRONAS Carigali (Turkmenistan) Sdn Bhd by Ismadi Bin Ismail.

The meeting's participants took note of the expanding nature of trade and economic links between the two nations.

In this regard, the significant contribution of Malaysian companies to the expansion of the partnership in this industry was highlighted.

At the same time, it was emphasized that one of the promising areas of Turkmen-Malaysian relations is the fuel and energy complex, where Berdimuhamedov highly appreciated the fruitful nature of the partnership established between Turkmenistan and PETRONAS.

Meanwhile, the Turkmengaz State Concern estimates the nation's hydrocarbon resources at over 71 billion tons of oil equivalent. This volume includes more than 20 billion tons of oil and more than 50 trillion cubic meters of natural gas.
Mifepristone can continue to be mailed to patients without an in-person visit with a doctor after the US Supreme Court rejected a lawsuit that challenged regulation of the abortion pill.

Mifepristone was approved by the US Food and Drug Administration decades ago and has been shown to be safe and effective.

Anti-abortion advocates have claimed that the drug is not safe and that the FDA didnt study it enough to approve it. A lawsuit was brought by anti-abortion doctors and medical organizations alleged that the FDA violated the law in how it regulated mifepristone. If a 5th Circuit ruling had been upheld, it could have ended availability of mifepristone for medication abortion via telehealth, which would have affected abortion access  even in states where its legal.

The Supreme Court ruled Thursday that the doctors and anti-abortion groups that had challenged access to the drug did not have standing to sue. The courts reasoning could still allow other mifepristone challenges in the future.

How mifepristone works

Along with misoprostol, mifepristone is one of the drugs used for an abortion via medication, as opposed to surgery.

Mifepristone is marketed under the brand names Mifeprex and Korlym, and its sometimes known as RU-486.

Mifepristone blocks a hormone called progesterone, which helps the body maintain the inside of the uterus so a pregnancy can continue. A healthy uterine lining is what supports a fertilized egg, embryo and fetus.

Without progesterone, the uterus will expel its contents.

Someone having a medication abortion takes mifepristone and then, after 24 to 48 hours, takes misoprostol. That drug helps empty the uterus through heavy bleeding and muscle contractions.

The medications can be taken as soon as someone learns that they are pregnant and up to 70 days or less since the first day of their last period.

This method is effective 99.6% of the time when used to end a pregnancy, studies show.

How safe is mifepristone?

Data from hundreds of studies and 23 years of approved use has shown that mifepristone is highly safe and effective, according to 12 of the countrys most respected medical associations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association, that signed an amicus brief in the Texas case.

This medicine combination for abortion is also available in more than 60 other countries.

Since its approval in the US in 2000, there have been 5 deaths associated with mifepristone for every 1 million people who used it, according to the FDA. That means the death rate is 0.0005%.

Mifepristones safety is on par with those of common over-the-counter pain relievers like ibuprofen and acetaminophen, studies show.

Data analyzed by CNN shows that mifepristone is even safer than some of the most common prescription medications. The risk of death from penicillin, an antibiotic used to treat bacterial infections like pneumonia, for example, is four times greater than it is for mifepristone. The risk of death after taking Viagra  used to treat erectile dysfunction  is nearly 10 times higher.

Side effects of mifepristone

Mifepristone usually doesnt have many side effects, doctors say, but as with any drug, there can be short-lived ones.

Side effects of mifepristone may include dizziness, weakness, vomiting, headache, diarrhea, nausea, and fever or chills, according to the FDA.

Major adverse events like blood loss, hospitalization or a significant infection are exceedingly rare, happening in less than 0.3% of patients, according to the medical associations amicus brief.

How often is mifepristone used?

The mifepristone-misoprostol combination is the most common abortion method in the US.

Data from the Guttmacher Institute, a research and policy organization focused on sexual and reproductive health that supports abortion rights, shows that this option has become steadily more common over the two decades its been available, rising from less than 10% of all abortions in the US in 2001 to 53% in 2020 and 63% in 2023.

Misoprostol on its own

No matter the status of mifepristone, misoprostol would still be available and could be used for a medication abortion on its own.

The only use of misoprostol thats approved by the FDA is for the prevention and treatment of gastric ulcers. But some doctors use it off-label by itself for an abortion; it can also have other off-label obstetric or gynecologic uses such as inducing labor.

Studies show that misoprostol alone is effective and safe for an abortion and is a reasonable option for people who want an abortion in the first trimester, according to a 2019 review of multiple studies, but the two-drug regimen is considered more effective.

This review said that across all studies of people who took only misoprostol, about 78% had complete abortions, and a viable pregnancy was terminated in more than 93% of the cases. At most, 0.2% of cases had serious complications that required a transfusion or hospitalization.

People who take misoprostol on its own for an abortion typically need to take more for it to work, and the side effects can be more intense, Dr. Melissa L. Wong, an obstetrician/gynecologist and a fellow with Physicians for Reproductive Health, previously told CNN.

Misoprostol still works very well and is very safe, Wong said. Mifeprestone typically does not cause any side effects as it stops the pregnancy hormone. With misoprostol, some people may tolerate it a bit less because of some side effects like nausea, vomiting, sometimes things like diarrhea or a transient fever. Those are still safe and expected side effects, but they are still uncomfortable for anyone.

CNNs Devan Cole and Ariane de Vogue contributed to this report.

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The FDA approved mifepristone under the brand-name Mifeprex in 2000, and an abortion-drug regimen that has seen few deaths and a low rate of adverse events in more than two decades of use. (Photo by Peter Dazeley/Getty Images)

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Florida Republicans who oppose abortion rights were largely silent about the U.S. Supreme Courts decision Thursday not to restrict access to the abortion drug mifepristone. Democrats cheered the development but remained suspicious of the conservative-dominated court.

Neither Gov. Ron DeSantis nor Attorney General Ashley Moody, Republicans who, respectively, signed Floridas restrictive abortion laws and defended them in court, went on record in response to the unanimous high court ruling. Moody and other state attorneys general previously argued in a brief that making mifepristone widely available erodes states rights.

Neither has responded yet to request from the Phoenix for comment.

Neither have state House Speaker Paul Renner, Senate President Kathleen Passidomo issued any public comment.

Florida Senate Democratic Leader Lauren Book, however, declared the decision a win for reproductive freedom  although she added: The fight is far from over.

Extremists continue their efforts to control womens choices and freedoms, Book said in a written statement. Here in Florida, we must pass Amendment 4 to overturn current bans and enshrine abortion rights in our state Constitution. Vote YES on 4 this November and get involved at FloridiansProtectingFreedom.com.

Floridians will vote in November whether to establish a state constitutional right to abortion before fetal viability.

Anti-abortion groups had urged the high court to make it more difficult to receive mifepristone.

Six weeks ban

Abortion in Florida is outlawed after six weeks gestation with exceptions for victims of rape or to save the life of the patient. The pill is legal to take in Florida until that threshold, although a pregnancy often is not identified before six weeks. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration, which approved mifepristone 2000, and other medical authorities deem mifepristone safe.

The six-week abortion ban in Florida outlaws sending abortion pills through the mail.

Rep. Anna Eskamani, a Democrat and former volunteer and employee at Planned Parenthood, said the courts decision shows how extreme anti-abortion extremists have become that even a majority of conservative justices wont go along with their cruel agenda.

Decisions about the safety and effectiveness of medicines should be left up to the FDA, and I am glad to see the Supreme Court agrees, Eskamani said in a statement. Freedom is the ability to make decisions about your body, life, and future. Mifepristone helps make that a reality. It must remain FDA-approved and available.

State Rep. Rita Harris, a Democrat from Orange County, wrote that she was relieved to hear about the ruling. However, we must remain diligent. This is good news, but we keep moving onward to protecting access to reproductive health care! she added

Joanne Terry, a Democrat seeking a rematch against Space Coast Republican U.S. Rep. Bill Posey in November, said the ruling was basically a technicality.

DO NOT REST EASY! Extremists will try again with a stronger case! We MUST elect Reps to State Houses & Congress that will protect access to Reproductive HealthCare. #AbortionIsHealthcare, she posted to X.

At least one Florida Republican offered a take: U.S. Rep. Daniel Webster had written to the FDA in January 2023 calling for a rescission on dangerous problematic abortion pill regulations.

Im disappointed by the Supreme Courts decision today that continues to allow access to dangerous mail-order abortion drugs. Life is our most precious gift, and I will not waiver in my fight to defend the rights of the unborn.  Daniel Webster (@RepWebster) June 13, 2024

The post Mifepristone ruling draws muted reaction from FL GOP; Dems cautiously optimistic appeared first on Florida Phoenix.
Donald Trumps comment trashing Milwaukee, the site of this years Republican National Convention, has understandably not gone over well in the city.

Mayor Cavalier Johnson, asked about Trump calling Milwaukee a horrible city in a closed-door meeting with House Republicans on Thursday, clapped back at the former president.

If Donald Trump wants to talk about things that he thinks are horrible, all of us lived through his presidency, so right back at you, buddy, Johnson said.

Look, obviously Donald Trump is wrong about something, yet again, he continued. I find it kind of perplexing, I find it kind of strange that he would insult the largest city in Wisconsin because hes running for president, he obviously wants to win Wisconsin, win the election, and so to insult the state thats hosting your convention, I think its kind of bizarre, actually, kind of unhinged, in a way.

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson responding to Trump reportedly calling Milwaukee "a horrible city" weeks before the start of the Republican National Convention in MKE: "All of us lived through his presidency, so right back at ya, buddy." pic.twitter.com/9iQfGlK0jp  Matt Smith (@mattsmith_news) June 13, 2024

Johnson wasnt the only Wisconsin politician to get in a few jabs at Trump. Milwaukee makes the greatest beer, brats, and motorcycles in the world. Its home to some of our most vibrant communities, hardest workers, and is a part of what makes Wisconsin the best state in the nation. Donald Trump wouldnt understand even if a jury told him so, Senator Tammy Baldwin tweeted, referring to Trumps recent hush-money conviction.

Representative Gwen Moore of Wisconsins 4th district, which includes Milwaukee, also chimed in. Once hes settled in with his parole officer, I am certain he will discover that Milwaukee is a wonderful, vibrant and welcoming city full of diverse neighborhoods and a thriving business community, she posted.
House Majority Leader Jamie Long (left), House Speaker Melissa Hortman (center) and Rep. Kaohly Her (right) at a Capitol press conference on Thursday, May 16. Photo by Nicole Neri/Minnesota Reformer.

Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman, DFL-Brooklyn Park, was first elected to the Legislature in 2004 and became speaker in 2018. Her influence expanded significantly after voters delivered Democrats a trifecta over state government two years ago, and she played a central role in deciding which bills Democrats would prioritize.

In 2023, she helped pass the largest budget in state history, and presided over a more modest agenda this last legislative session, which adjourned on May 20.

Hortman says shes now solely focused on the November election  where all 134 House seats are on the ballot  to maintain the Democrats slim five-seat majority.

The Reformer recently asked Hortman to reflect on the DFL trifectas record and why she believes Minnesotans lives are better now than they were two years ago. She cited the DFLs headline-grabbing accomplishments over the biennium and said she believes right-wing Republicans have given Democrats an opportunity to garner more support in greater Minnesota.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Can you reflect on where Minnesota stands now compared to where the state was before the DFL trifecta took control about two years ago?

Minnesota is a much better place for workers, families and children. The real through-line from the 23 session to the 24 session is really protections for workers. We believe that when you go to work everyday and youre working a full-time job, you should have a decent standard of living to be able to support your family. You should have reasonable time off, and you should have a reasonable opportunity at economic success.

We made that possible. The most rewarding piece of legislation we passed  for me  is paid family and medical leave. An average person can take time, whether its to take care of somebody who has cancer or to take care of a new baby. People shouldnt have to choose between a job and recovering from illness.

Right up there with that is the earned safe and sick time legislation. When I think of big accomplishments, the conditions that weve changed for workers are really key. This year we did the worker misclassification bill. There are too many employers who take advantage of workers and they dont call them employees and improperly treat them as independent contractors. We took a strong stand against worker misclassification  thats one of the things the Republicans were filibustering at the very end. They were working really, really hard to let those cheating employers keep cheating.

From the word go, you can see that children were top of mind. Gov. Tim Walz gave a very inspiring state of the state address in 2023. He was very clear that his administration was focused on reducing childhood poverty. The DFL House and the DFL Senate said Governor, we are right there with you.

We passed free lunches and free breakfasts, the child tax credit to reduce childhood poverty by one-third, mental health supports for students in school and really substantial increases in voluntary pre-K slots and early childhood education scholarships  just a lot more investment in children.

I could go on and on. We took climate action because we dont have a divided government. You dont have to try to convince Republicans that climate change is real and we ought to do something about it, you can just go ahead and do it.

And then gun violence prevention, which is like the big duh to everybody whos not in elected office. We clearly have a gun violence problem in this country, and there are things we can do about it and we did them.

One thing thats top of mind for many people is reproductive freedom. We had a speaker at a recent Women Winning luncheon, and a woman from Texas  now a surrogate for the Biden campaign  had to just about die in Texas to terminate a pregnancy that was not viable.

It was a very wanted pregnancy and she had to go into septic shock before she could get that health care. Im very proud of what Minnesota has done to protect reproductive freedom.

Also, protecting democracy. We have a person running for the highest office in the land who feels that the criminal laws of the country do not apply to him. Our democracy is at risk, and we did a lot to protect it through pre-registration for 16 and 17 year olds, tougher penalties on intimidating election workers or interfering with elections  all of it matters when it comes to protecting this 200-year experiment.

What lessons have you learned since the DFL trifecta took over?

I think what we have to do is play in every single district. Were seeing some districts where even the Republicans are creeped out by the people who are running and getting elected. I think that there are some very red districts that have gotten really Trump-y that are starting to endorse and send people to St. Paul who fundamentally dont believe in government.

We saw those emboldened, fringe-y first-termers really stand up and get in the way of getting the work done, and I dont think that they were people that Senate Minority Leader Mark Johnson, R-East Grand Forks, and House Minority Leader Lisa Demuth, R-Cold Spring, want to be doing what they were doing. Nonetheless, those folks were laying down on the railroad tracks.

Ive been going out to districts to give gratitude to the folks who are running in seats that are harder to win. It just reminds me how important it is that in every district, we articulate what the Democrats are doing in St. Paul and why they are doing it. There are a lot of people out there who dont know how hard we are working for them, because they dont always have an opportunity to campaign for and vote for a Democrat.

We need to keep communicating where we are winning and we need to also communicate where were not winning and build up a broader geographic coalition.

I have no desire for us to be a predominately suburban- and city-based party. Im used to being part of a party organization thats a whole state party and Im committed to keeping it that way and representing agricultural regions and the Iron Range, in addition to the cities and suburbs.

Are you disappointed about anything failing to pass this session?

People could say that it would have been great for us to get a bonding bill done. Ive come to peace about that. Republicans decide whether theres going to be a bonding bill or not. As long as theyre in the minority, theyre going to decide whether or not to provide their votes.

Every time Ive been in the minority, my team has been willing to put the votes up there to help the majority party pass a bonding bill in the best interests of the state of Minnesota. I cant control the behavior of other people. I can do everything in my power to extend the hand of compromise and work together, but ultimately, Republicans have to decide whether theyre going to do it or not.

Also, we had a record-breaking $2 billion bonding bill in 2020, and a record-breaking $2.6 billion bonding bill in 2023.

There were a bunch of corrections to last years bonding bill that we got through right away, and we could have held those hostage. There were a bunch of Republican projects that needed corrections because they took so long to make a deal with us last year. It was predominantly their projects where they hadnt done their homework, where they had like boulevard instead of street in the address, and so their projects couldnt get built.

We went ahead and did a corrections bill on the good-faith understanding that we were all working to get a bonding bill done together. Other leaders would have held that hostage to force Republicans to the table. I did a lot of things for the Republicans that I didnt demand a counter payment for. I resolved their concerns over a religious exemption in the changes to the Minnesota Human Rights Act. I did the bonding corrections. There were other things that I did because they would ask me to and I would just take care of them and not make a trade.

Am I going to be more transactional in the future? I just dont think thats a way to run a state. My hope would be that Republicans would notice that it was a missed opportunity to be part of another bonding bill and theyll choose to participate in the future.

The post Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman reflects on DFL trifecta appeared first on Minnesota Reformer.
Newly discovered species found in Ecuador lives up to its name, A. miraculum

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On the western slopes of the Andes in Ecuador, John L. Clark, a research botanist at Floridas Marie Selby Botanical Gardens, happened upon what he calls a miracle.

In an area of formerly lush cloud forest known as Centinela devastated by clearing, Clark spotted a tiny, 2-inch-high (5-centimeter) plant with delicate white petals and spiky, iridescent leaves in 2022.

That he could see it at all, nestled there on a moss-covered rock in a remnant patch of untouched land, was impressive. That it was a never-before-documented species was even better. But the best part of all was the hope it gave Clark.

That area was sort of written off as just agricultural wasteland, he said. The diminutive flower told another story.

A lot of the things that we thought were gone, theyre still there. And then on top of what we thought was gone, we found this, said Clark, lead author of a paper describing the finding, published Tuesday in the journal PhytoKeys.

Back in the lab, Clark and his team confirmed that the little plant was a species new to science, and he and his team named it Amalophyllon miraculum.

The 2-inch-high plant's deeply serrated leaves and purple-green iridescence stand out in forest fragments that remain after years of widespread clearing in the Centinela region. - John L. Clark

To find extant and undescribed species, in a degraded area that others may overlook, makes the research especially exciting, said Laurence Skog, curator emeritus in botany at the Smithsonian Institutions National Museum of Natural History in Washington, DC. He was not involved in the research. What other areas of the world are we overlooking and need to visit for new discoveries?

In the decades after World War II, western Ecuador lost more than 95% of its forests below 3,280 feet (1,000 meters), according to Martin Schaefer, head of the Jocotoco Conservation Foundation, which collaborated on the new study.

First came the loggers, then growing cities and clearing for cattle, palm oil and banana plantations. By the 1980s, deforestation reached Centinela, perched on an Andean ridge.

The situation was already dire with very few forest fragments still surviving, Schaefer said. Each of these forest fragments protects highly threatened species and species found nowhere else.

The devastation was documented in a 1991 study called Biological Extinction in Western Ecuador. A biodiversity hot spot seemingly had been extinguished. The renowned late naturalist E.O. Wilson coined the term Centinelan extinction to refer to the loss of entire species before they are even known and scientifically described due to wholesale habit loss.

But in the bits and pieces of forest that remain  mostly thanks to landowners who have chosen to preserve wild habitat on their properties  life, as it turns out, persists.

The tiny plant clings to mossy rocks in the formerly lush cloud forest. Its a miracle that the forests are still there. Thats why we decided to call it miraculum, research botanist John L. Clark said. - John L. Clark

Clarks research focuses on primarily tropical and subtropical flowering plants in the family Gesneriaceae, so hes adept at spotting them in the wild. With a combination of a keen eye and good fortune, he saw a tiny bloom clinging to a mossy rock near a waterfall. The plants deeply serrated leaves and purple-green iridescence made it stand out to him immediately.

I told my assistant, Oh my gosh, hold the camera here. You gotta get this on recording, because this thing is amazing, Clark said. (The recording is on Clarks Instagram page. To an untrained eye, its nearly impossible to see the plant about which hes so excited.)

Its a miracle that the forests are still there. Thats why we decided to call it miraculum, Clark said, crediting the farmers who chose not to cut down the trees on their land. Theyre heroes.

The nonprofit Jocotoco works with landowners to help them get government funding for preserving forests on their properties. Recent botanical research such as Clarks impelled the foundation to expand into Centinela.

By now, some of our reserves have become the largest contiguous forests in their provinces, said Schaefer, who has worked in Ecuador since 2002. They are like Noahs ark, ensuring the survival of thousands of species. This is what we will do for Centinela as well.

Clark said he is excited for the support. The foundation typically touts the preservation of habitat for birds and other charismatic species, but in Centinela its promoting conservation of the forest for the benefit of plants  such as Amalophyllon miraculum.

Perhaps more miracles are in store. Nature heals itself  if we allow it, Schaefer said.

Amanda Schupak is a science and health journalist in New York City.

For more CNN news and newsletters create an account at CNN.com
Hamilton County residents: Money might be waiting for you at the Ohio Department of Commerce's Division of Unclaimed Funds.

The Ohio Department of Commerce announced Wednesday that Hamilton County ranks third among counties with the largest amount of unclaimed funds safeguarded by the state of Ohio. Of the approximately $4 billion currently in possession, more than $267 million belongs to Hamilton County residents and businesses.

Here's how to check if you have missing money and how to claim it.

Hamilton County ranks third among counties with the largest amount of unclaimed funds safeguarded by the state of Ohio.

What are unclaimed funds?

Unclaimed funds are lost or forgotten money that businesses and banks report to the division after accounts become inactive, typically 3-5 years. The money comes from inactive checking and savings accounts, refund/credit balances, uncashed cashiers checks, stocks and bonds, forgotten utility deposits or last paychecks.

The state of Ohio attempts to return the funds to its rightful owners through various means, and it manages these funds through the Ohio Department of Commerces Division of Unclaimed Funds.

How do I check to see if I have unclaimed funds?

Residents can go to missingmoney.com to find out if they have any unclaimed funds. The division also posts legal ads annually in newspapers across the state listing the names of people, businesses and entities in those publications' circulation areas who have unclaimed funds.

In addition, the division also sets up kiosks at various events across the state, such as the Ohio State Fair, where people can stop by and receive help to see if they have unclaimed funds.

How do I get my unclaimed funds?

The Ohio Department of Commerce's Division of Unclaimed Funds website explains how to search to see if you have unclaimed funds, how to claim them and how to submit a formal claim form to obtain the funds.

Depending on the type of funds the state is holding, you may be required to provide proof of address, proof of identification, a social security number or a W-9 tax form. If the claim is over $1,000, you may also need it notarized.

People claiming funds can upload their forms on a division webpage to submit the claim form and supporting documents on the division website, or people can also choose to mail them to its Columbus office.

Claims can take up to 120 days for review, and if claims do not provide the necessary forms, it could delay or potentially stop the process.

You can also check the status of your claim on the division webpage.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Missing money? Hamilton County No. 3 in Ohio for most unclaimed funds
WASHINGTON  Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) appeared to bury the hatchet with former President Donald Trump on Thursday, giving him a warm reception as he spoke on Capitol Hill with Senate Republicans about the GOP agenda and the 2024 election.

The two men even shook hands, a remarkable turn of events given their icy relationship after Trump sought to overturn his 2020 election loss, culminating in a violent insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.

We had a really positive meeting, McConnell told reporters afterward. He and I got a chance to talk, we shook hands a few times. He got a lot of standing ovations, it was an entirely positive meeting ... I cant think of anything to tell you out of it that was negative.

.@realDonaldTrump is greeted by Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Ky. and Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., as he enters the room to meet with Senate GOP members at the National Republican Senatorial Committee. pic.twitter.com/tnzE3bbpFA  Doug Mills (@dougmillsnyt) June 13, 2024

The meeting, which was held at the National Republican Senatorial Committee near the Capitol, is the first time McConnell has spoken with Trump since December 2020, prior to the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the Capitol.

McConnell publicly tore into the former president for inciting a mob to march on Congress. Trump responded by launching dozens of attacks against McConnell, calling him a dumb son of a bitch and even going after his wife, former Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao, by using racist nicknames.

On Thursday, however, Trump was well-mannered and gracious toward McConnell, praising his vote-counting abilities as longtime Senate GOP leader, a position he is relinquishing after the November elections.

There were no barbs, there was no kind of like, I told you so, Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) said.

He said several times, I know some of you, weve had our disagreements in the room, but we have those and we work them out. He said, I really support all of you. It was very, very genial, Hawley added.

Several of Trumps GOP critics also attended the meeting, including Sens. Mitt Romney (Utah), Bill Cassidy (La.) and Todd Young (Ind.).

Romney, who voted to convict Trump in both of his impeachment trials, declined to comment afterward. Cassidy, who voted to convict Trump over his role in the Jan. 6 attack, said he planned to work with Trump if he is elected president.

Its my job to work for my state and for the country, and whoever the president is, Im going to work my darndest to make sure that weve worked together for my state and our country, Cassidy told HuffPost.

Trumps visit to Capitol Hill was his first since the Jan. 6 insurrection and follows his conviction in New York over falsifying business records in order to hide payments to an adult film star.

Former Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.), who investigated Trumps role in the Jan. 6 attack, ripped McConnell over his meeting with Trump on Thursday, saying that history will remember the shame of people like the Kentucky senator.

But Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio), a top Trump ally and possible vice presidential running mate, said that the fact that several of the presumptive Republican nominees critics joined the meeting showed how the GOP is united behind him.

No real Republican with any credibility in the party is still blaming him for the Jan. 6 riot, Vance told reporters. Frankly, some of his critics were in the room and were supportive and are supportive. So I think its a good thing, and the Republican Party is in a good place.

Related...
Miya Rudd: More arrests in search for missing 8-month-old infant in Ohio County

Miya Tucker, 8-months, was reported missing from Reynolds Station, Kentucky after police conducted a welfare check on June 6, 2024. Troopers have now arrested five people including the child's grandmother and parents in connect to her disappearance.

Multiple people have been arrested as part of the investigation into missing 8-month-old Miya Rudd from Reynolds Station in Owensboro, Kentucky, after officers could not locate her while serving a search warrant and welfare check, according to a release from the Kentucky State Police.

Arrests in connection with the case include Miya's parents and grandparents.

Kentucky State Police troopers have been looking for Miya since June 6. Trooper Corey King with the Kentucky State Police Post 16 told The Courier Journal that the Kentucky State Police has used cadaver dogs for at least two days, Friday and Tuesday, and searched the primary residence and nearby areas, including a cemetery.

Miya had not been seen by her family "since the end of April," according to an arrest citation, The Courier Journal previously reported. She has brown hair and green eyes.

Wednesday, troopers arrested Miya's grandparents, Taletha D. Tucker, 50, and David Tucker, 53, on unrelated warrants and seized electronics while searching their home in the 1300 block of Leitchfield Road. Miya's parents, Tesla Tucker and Cage Rudd, along with Smith, were arrested on June 6, King told The Courier Journal.

Tesla Tucker's three children, who were living with their grandparents, were taken by the Cabinet of Community Based Services to another location.

Billie J. Smith, 49, Miya's grandmother, was also arrested Sunday while troopers were searching for the baby. She faces a second-degree assault charge in connection to an unrelated domestic violence warrant.

Timothy L. Roach, 37, of Owensboro was taken into custody by troopers Sunday while they were entering the Smith residence. They believe he threw "unprescribed Suboxone" under his vehicle.

Anyone with information regarding the case can call the Kentucky State Police at 270-826-3312.

Opinion: Gerth: With LMPD Chief Gwinn-Villaroel, the answer is simple: Fire her, Mayor Greenberg

Breaking News Reporter Leo Bertucci contributed to this article.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Miya Rudd investigation: Who all has been arrested?
Rossville Public School, c. 1915. The school was established in 1872 and is no longer standing today. Two of the original bricks are preserved at the National Afro-American Museum and Cultural Center in Wilberforce, Ohio

State Representative Dontavius Jarrells, D-Columbus, is a member of the Ohio State House of Representatives, representing District 1, and serves as the assistant minority leader.

As the fundamental freedoms that would shape America were being drafted, our Founding Fathers declared that the People were endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

That declaration was not just a vision for their time, but a mandate for all generations to come.

The democracy our founders envisioned was never meant to be completed; it was to be an ongoing endeavor.

Today, as responsible citizens and leaders, it is our duty to continue this work. This requires acknowledging our failures, learning from them, and forging ahead together. Among our greatest failures, Americas original sin has been and remainsthe enduring legacy of slavery.

Helen Gilmore was a descendant of York Rial and the founder and director of the Rossville Museum and Cultural Center, which she ran out of York Rials historic home. Here, she continued the tradition of family reunions her ancestors began at the turn of the 20th century. In this photo, she stands next to fellow descendant James P. Humphrey, whose ancestors were Carter and Phoebe Lee. Humphrey was a graduate of Central State College, WWII veteran, and a member of the NAACP. He became Sidneys first Black mayor in1981 after serving as city councilman.

Every so often, we are given an opportunity to confront this legacy and correct historys greatest wrong. One such opportunity has presented itself through the story of the Randolph Freedpeople, a chapter of Ohio history that remains largely untold but is crucial to our collective understanding and growth.

Randoph Freedpeople denied promised land

In 1833, John Randolph of Roanoke, Virginia, freed his roughly 400 slaves, expressing deep regret for having owned them.

Randolph provided these freed individuals, known as the Randolph Freedpeople, with approximately 3,200 acres of land and the means to relocate. After a prolonged legal battle over his will, the Randolph Freedpeople began their exodus from Virginia to Mercer County, Ohio, in June 1846.

This text was printed in the October 8, 1846 edition of the Defiance Democrat under the headline "Let Ohio Look to Her INTEREST IN TIME! and the sub headlines "Bebb and the Nigger Laws." and "The Unconditional Repeal of the Black Laws."

Their journey was met with resistance.

Upon learning of their arrival, white landowners in Mercer County resolved to prevent the Freedpeople from settling, even threatening violence. When the Randolph Freedpeople arrived, they were met by armed mobs and forced to turn back, despite having a legal right to the land.

Denied their promised land, the Randolph Freedpeople were left to wander, eventually settling in parts of Shelby and Miami County, with many making Piqua their new home.

Our View: We must remember, work against 'Americas original sin' this long weekend

For generations, they and their descendants have contributed significantly to their communities, to Ohio, and to America. Yet, the promise of freedom and opportunity that Ohio was supposed to represent was denied to them.

Correcting a grave error

This historical episode, unfolding in the years leading up to the Civil War, starkly illustrates that the freedom promised to slaves in the North was far from guaranteed. Ohio turned its back on the Randolph Freedpeople, and now is the time for us to acknowledge this failure, learn from it, and move forward.

With the help of the descendants of the Randolph Freedpeople and other local leaders, we have an opportunity to right this wrong.

We are looking at options to address the injustices faced by the descendants of the Randolph Freedpeople. Ohio lacked the courage to do the right thing then, but I believe we have the courage today.

This is our opportunity to continue the work started by our Founding Fathers. We can recognize this dark chapter in Ohios past and write a new one that brings hope, closure, and the promise of a better future. The America we live in today does not have to reflect the injustices of the past. By seizing opportunities like this, we can build a more perfect union, for all of us.

State Representative Dontavius Jarrells, D-Columbus, is a member of the Ohio State House of Representatives, representing District 1, and serves as the assistant minority leader.

State Rep. Dontavius Jarrells is a member of the Ohio House of Representatives, representing District 25, which includes portions of Columbus, Clinton Township and Mifflin Township.

Excerpt from Dontavius Jarrells letter to Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine on behalf of descendants of the Randolph Freedpeople delivered June 13:

"Upon his death in 1833, John Randolph of Roanoke, Virginia, freed his roughly 400 slaves, stating in his will that he 'give and bequeath to all my slaves their freedom, heartily regretting that I have ever been the owner of one.'

Randolph also provided the freedpeople, known as The Randolph Freedpeople, with land and the means to relocate. After a prolonged legal battle over his will, the Randolph Freedpeople finally began their exodus from Roanoke, Virginia, in June 1846 to what was to be their new home in Mercer County, Ohio.

After several weeks of travel, the Randolph Freedpeople arrived in Cincinnati, where they took boats north on the Miami Erie Canal toward their final destination. However, word had spread to the white landowners in Mercer County that the former slaves were traveling to their new home legally inherited by them. The residents of Mercer County resolved, 'we will not live among negroes, and as we have settled here first, we have fully determined that we will resist the settlement of blacks and mulattos in this country, to the full extent of our means, the bayonet not excepted.'

This was hardly in line with the dream of unalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all.

When the Randolph Freedpeople finally made it to the shores of Mercer County, they were met by mobs of white residents and their bayonets. Left with the choice of staying and risking their lives, the Randolph Freedpeople turned their boats around and headed south along the canal.

Like Moses leading the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, the Randolph Freedpeople were denied entrance to their promised land and forced to wander.

Randolph descendants Sammy Robert Johnson and Eddie Bennet were veterans of World War I and sent a postcard home to Springfield while overseas in France.

They eventually settled in parts of Shelby and Miami County, with many making Piqua, Ohio, their new home. For generations now, they have contributed to their community, to Ohio, and to America.

Considering this all happened in the years leading up to the Civil War, with a nation divided, the freedom promised to slaves in the North was anything but guaranteed. How Ohio handled this situation is a prime example.

Despite being given their freedom, Ohio turned its back on the Randolph Freedpeople. Now is the time for Ohio to acknowledge its failure, learn from it, and move forward.

In 1988, Randolph descendant Mary Gillem Rosa was honored by the city of Piqua on her 101st birthday. At that time, she was the oldest living descendant of the Randolph Freedpeople.

With the help of descendants of the Randolph Freedpeople and other local leaders, I am exploring legal and just means to right this wrong and finally give what they legally inherited almost 200 years ago. And I seek your support.

I am not advocating for reparations or eminent domain. I propose identifying state-owned land in Mercer County and returning it to the descendants of the Randolph Freedpeople."

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Descendants of freed Blacks chased from Ohio land deserve property now
Modesto has launched a program to support residents whove been arrested or convicted of a cannabis-related crime in starting their own businesses.

The Modesto Cannabis Equity Program offers local grants and educational resources, including technical guidance and help with regulatory compliance and obtaining startup capital. Its goal is to lower barriers to entry into the regulated cannabis sector.

The program, supported mostly by $350,000 in state grants and loans, aims to help people whove had trouble getting regular loans.

Our goal is to give an opportunity for those who have been affected by cannabis to learn how to open their own cannabis business now the correct way, post-2016, said Community and Economic Development Director Jessica Hill. That November, California voters approved Proposition 64, which legalized recreational cannabis for adults 21 and older.

A consultant will conduct a series of educational workshops for those participating in the program. These workshops, slated to start June 22, will cover crucial aspects of the cannabis industry, including market dynamics, financial management, regulatory compliance and operational strategies.

A lot of individuals have trouble actually securing credits to help open their business. This was there to assist with that, Hill said.

The grants are for dispensaries and anyone who wants to cultivate, manufacture, deliver or distribute cannabis.

The city allows up to 10 cannabis dispensaries and has no limit on the number of non-dispensary businesses.

The Modesto City Council decided not to allow more dispensaries in the city because there are already eight approved. However, Hill said this could change in the future.

Eligibility for the program is contingent upon meeting three criteria:

Proof of cannabis-related arrest or conviction of the applicant or a family member

Residency in designated ZIP codes (95355, 95354, 95350, 95351) prior to Nov. 8, 2016

An income level below 80% of the area median income.

The ZIP codes were selected because the residents of those areas experienced the greatest historical impacts of cannabis prohibition. They are where people and neighborhoods were disproportionately affected by past cannabis criminalization policies in Modesto.

Applications opened May 6 and will close June 17. Go to www.modestogov.com/2848/Cannabis-Equity-Program.

The six-week workshop series will culminate in the opening of grant applications from July 29 to Aug. 16, with the intention of awarding about four grants up to $70,000 each.

Hill acknowledged that additional funding may be required to adequately support entrepreneurs in establishing businesses. $70,000 wont open a business for you, she said.

Modestos history of cannabis criminalization

The Brenda Davis Law Group conducted a report examining how cannabis criminalization and the war on drugs affected Modestos communities. It highlights the significant impact of these policies, within the city.

In the early 1980s, Modesto served as a key hub for cannabis cultivation transportation. These routes were largely dominated by Mexican drug-trafficking organizations.

In 1999, the Central Valley received a designation as a High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. Before this, Modesto was primarily known for its agriculture industry.

The HIDTA designation enabled the region to access up to $2.5 million in annual federal funding, along with extra law enforcement resources to combat drug-related issues.

According to the report, the additional funds from HIDTA positioned Modesto to disproportionately target communities of color, resulting in lengthier and more severe sentences.

Because of the increase[d] criminalization and the mandatory minimum. I was never given a second chance on life, when I was released back into [the] community, read a quote from one resident interviewed for the report. The cannabis possession was a felony, and it was my identity that I was unable to escape. Every application I had to identify and check the box that I was previously convicted.

From 2000 to 2016, Modesto experienced a surge of over 300% in cannabis-related arrests.

Additionally, the study revealed that arrest rates for cannabis and other drugs were disproportionately higher in Hispanic and Black communities compared to the general population.

In Modesto, Black individuals were three times more likely to be arrested for cannabis-related offenses compared to their white counterparts. Despite comprising less than 5% of the citys population, they accounted for 29% of such arrests.

Similarly, within Stanislaus County, although Black residents constituted only 3.4% of the population in 2016, they represented 11% of marijuana-related convictions between 1980 and 2016  more than three times their population share.

The negative impact of criminalization on housing, employment, family stability, and access to supportive services is ongoing. We learned from community feedback that it continues to be amplified among Black and Hispanic populations in the 95350, 95351, and 95355 zip codes, read the report.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Supplies of Azerbaijani gas to Greece via the Southern Gas Corridor over its 3.5 years of operation accounted for 10 percent of the total volume of gas transported to Europe from Azerbaijan during this period, Trend reports.

This figure was announced at the fifth meeting of the Joint Commission on Economic, Industrial, and Technological Cooperation between the governments of Azerbaijan and Greece on June 13 in Baku.

"The contribution of Azerbaijani gas to the diversification of supplies and decarbonization of Europe through the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) and the Greece-Bulgaria Interconnector (IGB) was pointed out.

Energy Minister Parviz Shahbazov said that more than 3.6 billion cubic meters, or 10 percent of the 36.8 billion cubic meters of gas supplied to Europe during the 3.5 years of the Southern Gas Corridor's operation, went to Greece," a statement of the Azerbaijani Ministry of Energy (headed by the co-chairman of the commission from Azerbaijan) reads.

The statement also pointed out that last year, approximately 18 percent of Greece's gas needs were met by Azerbaijani gas.

In 2024, Greece may receive 1.2 billion cubic meters of Azerbaijani gas.

Deputy Foreign Minister of Greece (co-chairman of the intergovernmental commission from the Greek side) Kostas Fragogiannis mentioned that energy is one of the priority topics, along with discussions on development prospects and other issues.

Meanwhile, Shahbazov underscored that Azerbaijan, a reliable supplier of energy resources to Europe and successfully implementing a 'green growth' policy, will host COP29 in November 2024 and is proud of the great trust and respect it enjoys on the international stage.

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. The 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 Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn.

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TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  A nearly 900-page document reveals new details about the February murder of Madeline Soto.

Stephan Sterns, Sotos mothers boyfriend, is accused of raping and murdering the 13-year-old.

State will seek death penalty in Madeline Soto murder

On the night she disappeared, Madelines mother, Jenn Soto, told officials Sterns had dropped her daughter off at school that morning.

According to a document obtained by WFLA, Sterns told officials he dropped Soto off at school around 8:30 a.m.

A video timestamped at 7:35 a.m. showed Sterns discarding items in a trash compactor at his apartment. The items included a tire, a white trash bag containing Sotos backpack, a purple Hawaiian shirt and white Crocs.

Surveillance footage showed Soto in the front seat of a vehicle with her head slumped over while Sterns entered a gated complex around 8:19 a.m.

At 8:31 a.m., he was seen leaving through the rear gate, as the girls body was now completely slumped over, the document said.

Video shows what Madeline Sotos mother, Stephan Sterns told deputies on night of her disappearance

Sterns drove around for several hours with Sotos body in the car, the document said.

Surveillance video from a Holiday Inn in Orlando captured Sterns in a parking garage opening the passenger door of the car and carrying what appeared to be a limp body to the trunk of the vehicle, the report said.

On March 1, a witness who watched a news conference was able to tell officials where Sterns vehicle was located. They said they saw him changing a tire on the side of a road in St. Cloud.

Deputies went to the property where the vehicle was located and with permission from the owner, they were able to get past the gates.

Madeline Soto case: 60 new charges filed against mothers boyfriend

Tucked behind a line of bamboo trees, officials discovered what appeared to be a lifeless human body, covered by hay and articles of clothing, and surrounded by flies.

Sterns was also accused of sexually abusing the teen before her death. Investigators said they found pictures and videos of the abuse on his phone.

Sterns was charged with first-degree murder in April. On Monday, the state announced that they would seek the death penalty against him.

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 WFLA.
LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  Out of the four Clark County School District Board of Trustee races from Tuesdays primary election, one race is still undecided on which candidates will move on and Moms for Liberty candidates made a strong showing at CCSDs trustee races.

Three candidates for the District E seat are nearly in a tie: Kamilah Bywaters, Lorena Biassotti, and Ryan Kissling.

Biassotti and Lydia Dominguez are part of the Moms for Liberty candidates. The groups Clark County chapter ran four candidates in the primary election, one for each trustee seat that was up for grabs.

Dominguez received enough votes in District B to qualify for a runoff. Biassotti is separated by about 50 votes from first place, which belongs to Bywaters. Kissling is 206 votes away from tying Biassotti.

Since none of the dozens of school board candidates who ran received more than 50% of the vote, only the top two moved on to the November general election. However, it may take days before the public knows who are the top vote-getters for District E, due to the fact that mail-in ballots are still being counted.

As incumbents withdraw, 4 of 7 school board seats head to Nov. run-off

Nationwide, chapters of Moms for Liberty have been criticized for seeking to ban books members deem inappropriate. For the most part, these books focus on race/racism and LGBTQ+ topics.

The group has spoken outwardly during public comment at CCSD school board meetings, accusing the district of sexualizing children.

We have felt heavily criticized by going to school board meetings, Biasotti said on Sept. 9, 2023, during a Politics Now interview. She and Dominguez appeared on the program.

Moms for Liberty candidates (KLAS)

We have lessons introducing sexual concepts to very young children, Cristiane Mersch, who is the groups chapter chair, told CCSD trustees.

Some of these books just do not belong in the classroom. They dont belong in the libraries, Dominguez, voiced.

According to the non-profit Pen America, around 3,300 books were banned in US public schools from July of 2022 to June of 2023. Thats an increase of more than 1,100 books compared to the previous school year.

Voters will have a chance to decide ultimately who occupies both trustee seats in November.

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 KLAS.
'Monster' Ex-Officer Who Killed Teen Girl and Dumped Body in Words Makes Short Statement Before He's Sentenced

The family of Susana Morales also addressed the court after the verdict

GoFundMe, Gwinnett County Sheriff's Office Susana Morales, left, and Miles Bryant

A former Georgia police officer who killed a teenage girl and dumped her body was found guilty of kidnapping and murder and was sentenced to life in prison.

Miles Bryant was found guilty of malice murder, felony murder, kidnapping and false report of a crime by a jury on Wednesday, July 12, according to reports from Fox 5 Atlanta, 11Alive and WSB-TV. He was found not guilty of criminal attempt to commit rape.

Bryant was convicted of killing 16-year-old Susana Morales, who was reported missing in July 2022. Her remains were eventually found in February 2023, and Bryant was arrested weeks later, PEOPLE previously reported.

Related: Prosecutors Claim Internet Searches Prove Former Police Officer Murdered 16-Year-Old Girl

Before a judge sentenced Bryant, the former Doraville Police Department officer, to life in prison without parole, he made a brief statement to the court.

"I just want to apologize to everybody, to the victim's family, that's it, Bryant said, according to Fox 5s report.

Special prosecutor Brandon Delfunt asked the judge to impose a maximum sentence, calling Bryant a monster, WSB reported.

Also speaking in court Wednesday was Susanas family.

All I ever wanted was justice for what happened to her, Susanas younger sister told the court, per Fox 5. I want to thank you for that.

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.

Susanas mother, speaking through an interpreter, spoke to the judge.

"Every night I can't sleep without thinking about her," her mother, Maria Bran said, according to the outlet.

During the trial, several internet searches that Bryant made were shown to the court. They included how long does it take a body to decompose? and How are you id by dental records?, 11Alive reported.

He was identified as a suspect after his gun was found near her body, the outlets reported.



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Read the original article on People.
During a 2019 snowstorm in her hometown of Lame Deer, Montana, Crystal Hiwalker suffered a ruptured ectopic pregnancy. Her heart stopped beating and she lost nearly all her blood. During the 2.5-hour drive to the advanced trauma center in Billings, Crystals husband, William, helped perform CPR on her and was in the ambulance when she flatlined. It took him a few years to recover from that, Hiwalker says. (Jessica Plance for KFF Health News)

Crystal Hiwalker wonders if her heart and lungs would have kept working if the ambulance crew had been able to give her a transfusion as the blood drained from her body during a stormy, 100-mile ride.

Because of the 2019 snowstorm, it took 2.5 hours to drive from her small town of Lame Deer, Montana, to the advanced trauma center in Billings.

Doctors at the Billings Clinic hospital revived Hiwalker and stopped the bleeding from her ruptured ectopic pregnancy. They were shocked that she not only survived after her heart stopped beating and she lost nearly all her blood, but that she recovered without brain damage.

The Montana State Trauma Care Committee, which works to reduce trauma incidents and to improve care, later realized the ambulance that carried Hiwalker had passed near two hospitals that stocked blood. What if Hiwalker had access to that blood on her way to Billings, committee members asked.

That realization, and question, inspired committee members to create the Montana Interfacility Blood Network, which they say is the first program of its kind in the U.S. The network allows ambulance crews to pick up blood from hospitals and transfuse it to patients on the way to the advanced care they need.

We kind of came up with the idea of having a blood handoff  like driving through a fast-food restaurant drive-thru  and picking up blood on the way, said Gordon Riha, a trauma surgeon at the Billings Clinic trauma center, where Hiwalker was treated. Riha said timely blood transfusions can prevent death or permanent brain injury.

The network is aimed at rural patients, who face elevated rates of traumatic injuries and death, said Alyssa Johnson, trauma system manager for the state of Montana.

We have to get more creative. We dont have a blood bank on every corner, and we dont have a Level 1 trauma center on every corner, Johnson said.

Network leaders say the program has helped at least three patients since it launched in 2022. They hope it will be used more in the future.

Hiwalker is excited about the program.

Im so glad that something like this got started, because it would save a lot of lives from where I live, she said.

Hiwalker said she has heard about people bleeding to death after car crashes, gunshot wounds, and stabbings in her rural community. Johnson said work injuries, cancer, gastrointestinal problems, and childbirth can also cause serious bleeding.

The Montana trauma committee began discussing the blood network a few months after Hiwalkers brush with death. First, it created a map of 48 facilities with blood banks. Then, it created guidelines for how hospitals, blood banks, ambulances, and labs must communicate about, package, transport, document, and bill for the blood.

The network is used only during emergencies, which means theres no time to test patients blood types. So it uses only type O red blood cells, which can be transfused safely into most patients.

The receiving hospital  not the one that provided the blood  is responsible for billing patients insurance for the blood. The cost depends on how much blood patients need but typically ranges from several hundred dollars to more than a thousand, said Sadie Arnold, who manages the blood bank at Billings Clinic.

Arnold said blood must be stored in a lab and managed by professionals with specific degrees, clinical experience, and board certifications.

Some rural hospitals lack space for a lab or money to recruit these specialists, Arnold said. Or they may not need blood often enough to justify storing a product that can expire and  especially during the current national blood shortage  is needed elsewhere. The network uses blood that has a maximum shelf life of 42 days.

Rural hospitals that do store blood may have only small amounts on hand. A rural Montanan with severe bleeding experienced that firsthand when he went to the nearest hospital, which had only one unit of type O blood, according to a report on the blood network. But thanks to the new program, ambulance medics picked up more blood from a hospital halfway through an 80-mile drive to the trauma hospital.

Ideally, rural patients with serious bleeding would be transported by medical helicopters or airplanes outfitted for transfusions. But, as in Hiwalkers case, flying can be impossible during bad weather. That can mean hours-long ambulance rides. Some towns in northeastern Montana, for example, are more than 250 miles away from the nearest advanced trauma center.

This was truly designed for kind of that last-ditch effort, Johnson said. When were out of options, weve got to get the patient moving towards a larger center, and we cant fly.

The blood handoff may involve the ambulance stopping at the second hospital, Johnson said. But during one incident, a police officer picked up the blood and delivered it to the ambulance at a highway exit, she said.

Ambulances may also pick up a paramedic or nurse to provide the transfusion along the way, since many rural ambulance crews are staffed by emergency medical technicians, who in Montana arent authorized to do so.

Medics in other cities and states, including ones with rural areas, have started performing blood transfusions in ambulances and helicopters, said Claudia Cohn, chief medical officer of the national Association for the Advancement of Blood & Biotherapies.

She said researchers are also interested in the potential of using frozen and freeze-dried blood products, which could be helpful in rural areas since theyre easier to store and have longer shelf lives.

Johnson said the Montana Interfacility Blood Network is the only program she knows of specifically aimed at rural patients and involving ambulances picking up blood from hospitals along their routes. She said the network is gaining interest from other states with large rural regions, including Oregon.

Hiwalker said receiving a blood transfusion in the ambulance could have prevented her near-death experience and the trauma her husband faced from seeing her suffer as he rode in the ambulance with her. Shes glad her ordeal led to an innovation that is helping others.

KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF  the independent source for health policy research, polling, and journalism.

The post Montana creates emergency Drive-Thru blood pickup service for rural ambulances appeared first on Daily Montanan.
BRUSSELS  At last years NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, 11 member countries pledged to train Ukrainian pilots to fly the F-16 fighter jet. It was a major decision, one that enabled the eventual choice to send the jets themselves, an upgrade to Ukraines air force that officials in Kyiv had wanted for more than a year.

But almost a year later, and only weeks before the next NATO summit, in Washington, those F-16s have yet to arrive. In fact, despite a commitment that those planes will start reaching Ukraine by the end of this summer, issues with their delivery are becoming clearer  from the number of pilots who will be able to fly them to crews ready to keep them working.

The training pipeline on the F-16s is pretty meager, said a senior U.S. defense official, speaking with reporters on the condition of anonymity to talk candidly.

F-16s hold the promise to firm up Ukraines self-defense. The fighters would bring its air force closer to NATO-style tactics and systems, making it easier to work with the alliance overall. And they could lengthen Ukraines range at a moment when other countries are dropping restrictions on what targets its military can choose.

It gives them some options, said CQ Brown, Americas top military officer, in a short interview this week.

And yet, its not sure how much of an option those fighters will be in the near-term. These are the two sides of delivering F-16s to Ukraine. One one hand, they could begin a long-term transformation of its airpower. But on the other, actually getting them there has proven frustratingly long-term as well.

This is a huge undertaking, said Jens Stoltenberg, secretary general of NATO.

The pipeline, the pilots

Stoltenberg spoke to a group of reporters near the doors of NATOs headquarters in Brussels, shortly before a meeting of countries that gather each month to coordinate support for Kyiv.

Earlier in June, Ukrainian President Volodomyr Zelenskyy met with Americas Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin in Singapore. And according to a post on Zelenskyys social media, the two discussed the group of countries supplying F-16s.

The Netherlands and Denmark are leading that effort, though other states like Norway and Belgium are also involved. The number of planes committed this year totals around 60, and Ukraine should start receiving those by the end of the summer.

That said, there have been multiple kinks in the process to deliver them, and make sure theyre useful.

The first is training. Between Europe and the U.S. there are only a dozen or so Ukrainian pilots learning to fly the planes right now, said the American defense official.

Thats just a handful of pilots, and thats just the pilots, the official said.

Almost as crucial are the other members of the crew, such as maintainers, who keep the plane working. Brown made a similar point in the interview, saying that Ukraine will only be able to use as many planes as it has crews.

Training at Morris Air National Guard Base in Tucson, Arizona began last fall, and the first round of Ukrainian pilots graduated only weeks ago in late May. But finding spots for new ones has been difficult. Theres a small pool of Ukrainian pilots eligible for the training, which requires deep experience, and theres already a queue of non-Ukrainian pilots in line as well.

A week before the meeting, Ukrainian officials told Politico that they had 30 or so pilots waiting for spots to start training but that none were available.

In a later press conference at NATO, Brown pushed back on the argument that European and American trainers are capped out.

There is capacity, he said.

The other issues are the length of the course itself  made more difficult by the highly technical English language training required  and finding a place to store them. Their usefulness will also depend on the stocks of munitions available to fire, which for other large weapons has been an issue throughout the war.

Wouldnt want to rush it

These issues aside, some analysts and defense officials are optimistic about what the jets could do for Ukraines force.

In a recent paper for the Center for Strategic and International Studies, U.S. military officers temporarily at the think tank argued that F-16s would threaten more Russian targets and help make Ukraines air force operate on standards similar to NATOs  one of many goals as Kyiv pursues a spot in the alliance.

George Barros, who leads the Russia team at the Institute for the Study of War, told Defense News that the jets could be more useful considering the recent, if limited, policy change that allows Ukraine to fire across the border with Russia.

Weve written off the possibility of Ukrainians using air power in any meaningful way to this point in the war, Barros said.

That could change, he argued, especially if the U.S. loosened its policy on striking into Russia even further.

In the interview on the way to Brussels, Brown was more cautious.

He, like other senior leaders in the Pentagon, urges people to think about how weapons and tactics work together rather than the effect of any one new piece of equipment.

Just because they have the F-16s its not going to all of a sudden magically make things successful, he said.

And that certainly wont be the case, the other defense official argued, if the process moves faster than Ukraine can keep up with. Asked whether any planes would arrive by the Washington summit in July, the official said it would be better to wait if that meant they were more useful upon arrival.

I wouldnt want to rush it, the official said.
Salvage ships last week removed the last of the Francis Scott Key Bridge wreckage from the Patapsco River, allowing for the reopening this week of the shipping channel to the Port of Baltimore. Photo courtesy U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Recovery efforts at the site of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapse reached a new milestone Wednesday, as officials led by Gov. Wes Moore (D) celebrated the reopening of a shipping lane that restores full operations to the Port of Baltimore.

It comes 11 weeks after a heavy-laden cargo ship collided with the bridge. The resulting collapse killed six workers, cut off a vital link between the east and west banks of the Patapsco River and all but halted work at the port.

Were now thankful that this morning, we can tell you that three of the four objectives have really come to a measure of completion and frankly, in a speed that I think that people can and should be very proud of, Moore said on a call with reporters.

In March, Moore said the state would focus on four priorities: Assisting the families of the six killed in the accident, including recovering their remains; supporting affected businesses, port workers and first responders; reopening the federal shipping channel; and rebuilding the bridge.

By working together, we have achieved the first three of our four directives. But in this administration, we dont settle for almost. We finish the work we start, Moore said during the event Wednesday afternoon at the port.

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The reopening of the 700-foot-deep, 50-foot-wide shipping lane called the Fort McHenry Federal Channel clears the way for full operations to resume at the port.

The 47-year-old span over the Patapsco collapsed in the early hours of March 26. The Dali, a 978-foot cargo ship that weighs 95,000 tons when empty, lost power and ran into a bridge pier. The bridge collapsed within seconds, killing six of eight highway workers who were on the bridge at the time.

The incident remains under investigation by the National Transportation Safety Board. It is also expected to be the subject of lengthy litigation between the state and the shipping company.

Moore and other officials said Wednesday that clearing the channel in less than three months did not seem probable in late March when steel trusses, concrete, asphalt and the Dali choked off the channel.

Salvage crews removed 50,000 tons of wreckage from the river, the final pieces last week. State officials said nearly all of the $60 million in emergency recovery funds allocated by the federal government after the collapse has been spent on clearing portions of the river outside the federal channel, including several shallower, alternate passages that allowed some ships into the port.

State and federal officials rushed financial aid to port workers and related businesses to prevent closures or mass layoffs.

And while the port was never completely closed, business has been affected. Roll-on, roll-off shipping traffic remains at precollapse levels, according to state officials, but container ships have had to be routed to other ports for the last three months. Officials expect it will take one to two months to return to previous levels.

Over the next month, we are expecting 97 vessel calls with operations at preclosure levels by mid-July, said Mark Schmidt, vice president and general manager of Ports America Chesapeake. The marine terminal operator said it expects business at the Baltimore port to return to previous levels.

Port officials told reporters Wednesday morning they are still trying to quantify the exact fiscal impact of the collapse on the port. And as they work to rebuild operations, Moore and federal officials say they are looking forward to a rebuild of the Key Bridge.

On the day of the collapse, President Joseph Biden promised full federal funding for a replacement. But a bill to fulfill that promise is currently stalled in Congress. If it does not pass, the federal government would pick up 90% of the project and leave the balance for Maryland officials.

We can look out onto the Patapsco and see that the Dali is gone and the wreckage has been cleared, Moore said. I will not be satisfied until I can look out on the Patapsco River from this spot and see the Key Bridge standing tall again. That is the push. That is the promise. And by moving in partnership, we will make it reality.

The post Moore, officials celebrate shipping channel reopening appeared first on Maryland Matters.
More than 50 displaced and 1 injured from mobile home fires in west Phoenix

More than 50 people were displaced and one person was injured after five mobile homes caught fire in the Lazy Daze Mobile Home Community in Phoenix on Wednesday afternoon.

Phoenix Fire Department crews were dispatched just before 3 p.m. for reports of a structure fire near 43rd Avenue and Van Buren Street, the department said. On arrival, firefighters saw multiple mobile homes with flames and smoke coming from inside.

More than 70 personnel were on the scene.

One person was transported to the hospital with minor burn injuries, officials said. No firefighters sustained injuries.

Smoke exits from a mobile home in Phoenix. Over 50 residents were displaced after fire destroyed five homes.

Evacuated residents were sent to Moya Elementary School for help from the community assistance program. Five mobile homes were destroyed and over 50 people were displaced, officials said.

The Salt River Project outage map showed an outage in the area starting at 3:19 p.m., stating power lines were down. The map estimated 98 customers were affected.

Phoenix firefighters respond to a structure fire in the Lazy Daze Mobile Home Community in Phoenix.

The Phoenix Fire Investigations Task Force is investigating the cause of the fires.

Neighboring resident Angel Olivas, 22, said he woke up to a call that trailers were on fire close to his home. When he went to the scene, he saw two homes and a car on fire.

"There was definitely a family there that had probably inhaled too much smoke," Olivas said. "They were crying and trying to breathe."

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Mobile home community fire displaces 50 and injures one
The Louisiana Supreme Court reverse itself on an earlier ruling about child abuse cases. It will allow more lawsuits to come forward. (Wes Muller/Louisiana Illuminator)

Adults abused as children decades ago will be able to sue over the mistreatment under a Louisiana Supreme Court ruling released Wednesday.

Justices overturned their decision from March that declared a lookback window for lawsuits over older child abuse allegations unconstitutional. Now such cases can move forward.



The new ruling likely creates greater liability for the Catholic Church and other organizations accused of systemic child exploitation over decades. It could also affect individual schools, summer camps and other institutions that tolerated misconduct toward minors.



I am thankful that the Court saw the error in its original opinion and was willing to reconsider this matter and find the Lookback Window to be constitutional, Frank Lamothe, a New Orleans attorney who represents child abuse survivors in lawsuits against the Catholic Church, said in a written statement. This is a victory for the survivors of child sex abuse.



The courts change of heart is also a political victory for Attorney General Liz Murrill, who put the justices under public pressure to reconsider the initial ruling. In April, she asked for a rehearing on the issue.



These child victims of sexual abuse deserve their day in court, Murrill said in a written statement Wednesday after the new ruling. Its very rare for the Supreme Court to grant rehearing and reverse itself. Im grateful to the Court for giving such careful attention to an issue that is so deeply troubling and personal for so many victims of abuse.

A case brought against the Catholic Diocese of Lafayette led to the justices ruling. A group of plaintiffs sued over alleged abuse at the hands of a priest in the 1970s. The diocese maintained the accusations were too old to be pursued.

The Legislature voted in 2021 to let adult survivors of child abuse file claims for damages for three years  from June 14, 2021 to June 14, 2024  if the deadline to do so had previously expired.

This was expected to allow people abused prior to the early 1990s, but who had never come forward with a legal challenge, to do so.

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The Lafayette diocese pushed back on the law, saying legislators never intended to allow old allegations dating back to the 1970s to be examined. They also argued allowing older accusations to come forward would be a violation of due process, because witnesses and documents related to abuse claims might longer be available.

The Legislature disagreed. It unanimously passed a clarifying law in 2022, stating its intent to allow for civil lawsuits over decades-old abuse. Earlier this year, lawmakers also unanimously approved a resolution, sent to each Supreme Court justice, restating their desire to see older abuse allegations be brought forward in court.



In the ruling released Wednesday, justices writing for the majority acknowledged as much.

[T]he conclusion is unassailable: the legislature intended retroactive application of the law, Chief Justice John Weimer said in his opinion.

Weimer also agreed with the lawmakers reasoning for establishing a three-year lookback period. Many victims take years to come to terms with their mistreatment as youth.



Child sexual abuse is a unique tort in which the average victim does not come forward until they are 52 years old, Weimer wrote. For many victims of child sexual abuse, the revival provision represents their first and only opportunity to bring suit. Providing that opportunity to those victims is a legitimate legislative purpose.

Justices Weimer, John Crain and Jay McCallum voted in favor of upholding the lookback window twice, in March and this week. Justices Scott Crichton and Piper Griffin reversed themselves, initially throwing out the lookback period in March but voting to reinstate it this week.

Justices James Genovese and Jeff Hughes opposed the lookback window both times, saying the Legislature was overstepping its bounds by passing the law.



I am very concerned about this majority ruling on rehearing granting unbridled authority to the legislature to enact legislation which supersedes and tramples our constitution, Genovese wrote.



The confusion over the 2021 law prompted the Legislature to make yet another legal change this year. Last month, they unanimously passed an extension to the lookback window, which will allow abuse survivors to file lawsuits until June 14, 2027.

Advocates for child abuse victims said some people have held back on filing lawsuits while the court deliberated whether the lookback period would stand.

The post More child abuse victims can sue after Louisiana Supreme Court reversal appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
More rain in the forecast after flooding cripples parts of South Florida, state of emergency declared

A channel of moist air will continue to tumble over Florida through at least Friday with as much as 8 more inches of rain possible in some areas but especially focused in spots south of Palm Beach County where the worst flooding occurred Wednesday.

National Weather Service meteorologists in Miami said to expect two more days of multiple rounds of showers and thunderstorms although chances for tornadoes have lessened.

An EF-1 tornado with winds as high as 95 mph hit Hobe Sound and Jupiter Island on Wednesday, uprooting trees and tossing debris along a 1.7-mile-long swath near Bridge Road, according to the NWS office in Melbourne.

Record rainfall wreaks havoc: South Florida experiences "life threatening" flooding, stalled cars, delayed flights

Although no injuries were reported, a pick-up truck was pushed onto railroad tracks along Dixie Highway, Jupiter Island was briefly inaccessible, and Hobe Sound Elementary School temporarily lost power, according to TC Palm.

Near Bridge Road, David Anderson's home suffered damage that included a blown-in garage door and the roof collapsed.

It's leaking all over the place," TC Palm quotes Anderson as saying. "It destroyed the whole nursery behind us."

The highest rainfall amounts in Palm Beach County from early Tuesday through Thursday morning were measured northeast of Lion Country Safari in Loxahatchee with 9.5 inches tallied by the NWS.

Other areas with high rainfall included Boca Raton (7.65 inches), Delray Beach (6.86 inches), Lantana (6.25 inches), Wellington (5.93 inches), West Palm Beach (5.09 inches), Lake Worth (5.04 inches), Jupiter (4.81 inches) and Palm Beach Gardens (4.49 inches).

In Broward County, the highest rainfall was in Hallandale Beach, where 19.39 inches of rain fell in about a 48-hour period through early Thursday.

"In this situation, conditions may deteriorate quickly," said NWS Miami meteorologist Tony Reynes on Thursday. "There may be some sunshine this morning but it can change. We want to keep a very close eye on the vulnerable areas over the next 24 hours."

Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport was open Thursday morning but travelers were asked to check with their airlines for flight updates.

Our terminal and airport exit roadways are clear, the airport said on social media, noting, however, that a section of East Perimeter Road was closed because of flooding.

The heavy rainfall and flooding triggered a state of emergency declaration by Gov. Ron DeSantis for Broward, Collier, Lee, Miami-Dade and Sarasota counties. DeSantis also ordered the Florida National Guard and Florida State Guard activated "as needed."

The declaration frees agencies from red tape in responding to the emergency and allows local governments to access money in the state's Emergency Preparedness and Response Fund.

2024 hurricane season: 5 tips to stay sane and safe in face of frightful forecast

Mike Jones and Joshua Ross, both of Boynton Beach, walk off the William O. Lockhart Pier as rain fell in Lake Worth Beach, Fla., on June 12, 2024.

Through Thursday morning, State Farm reported it had already received about 300 auto claims associated with the torrential downpours.

FOX Weather hurricane specialist Bryan Norcross likened the weather pattern over Florida to the atmospheric rivers that are common along the west coast of the United States.

A channel of moisture flows in from the south over Florida on Thursday, June 13, 2024 continuing days of rain that caused life threatening flooding in Broward and Miami Dade counties on June 12, 2024.

It's a relatively narrow band of moisture squeezed between two competing weather systems, Norcross said in his Hurricane Intel blog. The warmer-than-normal waters to the south are undoubtedly enhancing the amount of moisture flowing over South Florida.

The National Hurricane Center is watching two areas for potential tropical development. An area of low pressure that is helping pull moisture into the state is now in the Atlantic Ocean off the east coast of Florida. It has a 20% chance of becoming a named storm over the next two days.

A second area of low pressure in the Bay of Campeche is expected to form this weekend or early next week and has a 40% chance of becoming a tropical cyclone.

The first two names on the 2024 hurricane list are Alberto and Beryl.

The National Hurricane Center is watching two areas for development. The first, dubbed 90-L has low chances of forming off the southeast cost of the U.S. The second was given a 40% chance of developing over the next seven days.

At this point, AccuWeather lead hurricane forecaster Alex DaSilva said he doesnt expect the spot in the Bay of Campeche to impact Florida. He said its more likely going to cause heavy rain in Mexico and possibly in Texas as far north as Houston.

DaSilva said in addition to record warm sea surface temperatures, the depth of the ocean heat in the Gulf of Mexico is concerning. When water is deeply warm, it means a tropical cyclone wont churn up cooler water from below which can limit its growth.

In the western Caribbean, there are areas right now where the 80-degree temperature line extends as deep as 300 to 400 feet below the surface, DaSilva said. That is something we would expect to see in August.

Tropical cyclones generally need water temperatures of 80 degrees or higher to form.

Kimberly Miller is a journalist for The Palm Beach Post, part of the USA Today Network of Florida. She covers real estate and how growth affects South Florida's environment. Subscribe to The Dirt for a weekly real estate roundup. If you have news tips, please send them to kmiller@pbpost.com. Help support our local journalism, subscribe today.

TC Palm reporter Will Greenlee contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: State of emergency declared with more rain expected in South Florida
ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, June 13. Turkmenistan is ready to consider the relevant proposals of Turkiye's Calik Holding on joint projects in the oil and gas sector, Trend reports.

According to an official source, this was confirmed by Chairman of the People's Council of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, during a meeting with Chairman at Calik Holding A.S. Ahmet Calk.

During the meeting, he noted the mutual cooperation between Turkmenistan and Turkiye in various fields, including energy, the textile industry, construction, and other industries.

Berdimuhamedov stressed that the socio-economic programs implemented in Turkmenistan and the favorable investment environment create opportunities for expanding partnerships, where large companies of the friendly state, including Calik Holding, play an important role.

At the same time, the Chairman of the People's Council of Turkmenistan added that the 1,574 megawatt power plant under construction by Calik Holding on the Turkmen coast of the Caspian Sea will facilitate the supply of Turkmen electricity to neighboring countries, including Turkiye and other destinations.

Meanwhile, the development of cooperation between Turkmenistan and Turkiye's companies is a strategically important process that contributes to strengthening economic ties and a mutually beneficial exchange of experience and resources.

Joint projects, such as the construction of gas pipelines and infrastructure facilities, stimulate economic growth and promote job creation, which ultimately contributes to the long-term prosperity of both countries.
Moscow criticizes G7 call to use income from Russian assets for Kiev

(L-R) President of the EU Council Charles Michel, Germany's Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, France's President Emmanuel Macron, Italy's Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, US President Joe Biden, Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, stand for a family photo during the G7 summit. Michael Kappeler/dpa

Russia criticized the G7 countries' billion-euro loan to Ukraine, which is to be financed using the interest income from frozen Russian state assets.

"Using the funds effectively stolen from Russia for the warlike adventures of the Kiev regime is criminal and cynical and represents a further blow to international law," said Russian Foreign Office spokeswoman Maria Zakharova at a press briefing.

She threatened that the Russian reaction would be "painful" for Brussels.

The G7 states' plan would have fatal consequences, Zakharova said, adding such initiatives further undermine the global financial system and lead to destructive crises.

The plan will also have direct consequences for European companies in Russia, she said. "There is enough European property and capital, as you know - spokesmen of our government have spoken about this several times," she said, hinting at expropriations.

The Kremlin initially responded more cautiously. Russia will follow the G7 summit extremely closely, said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, without commenting on the possible decisions rumoured in advance.

The G7 summit began on Thursday with an agreement to lend Ukraine $50 billion using money generated from frozen Russian state assets, in a major show of support for Kiev.
Fifty years ago, President Richard Nixon, facing three articles of impeachment over the Watergate break-in and wiretapping scandal, resigned from office. Pardoned just a month later, Nixon would spend the rest of his years in quiet retirement, always tainted by Watergate.

Thirty years ago, a special counsel was appointed to review President Bill Clintons involvement in the failed Whitewater real estate project; scandals for Clinton snowballed from there, as Paula Jones and Monica Lewinsky came into the public eye for their alleged affairs with the President. Clinton remained defiant and successfully withstood a Senate impeachment trial. He went on to set up a multi-billion-dollar charitable foundation, and former First Lady Hillary Clinton went on to become a U.S. Senator, Secretary of State, and the 2016 Democratic presidential nominee.

Merritt Hamilton Allen

In the current era, Donald Trump, a Democrat until 2009, burst onto the political scene in 2015 as a dark horse and quickly eliminated his Republican primary competitors, clinching the 2016 GOP nomination despite bombastic rhetoric where he mocked the handicapped, weathered the emergence of previous wildly inappropriate remarks about women, and made many other provocative statements that either delighted or horrified voters. He won the election handily with 304 electoral votes but lost the popular vote by nearly 3 million votes.

On May 30, 2024, former President Trump was convicted by a Manhattan jury of 34 charges to illegally influence the 2016 election by paying $130,000 in hush money to silence a porn actress who said they had sex.

There is nothing in the Constitution preventing a convicted felon from running for President. The legacies of Nixon and Clinton and hyperpolarization of politics have made voters increasingly numb to Presidents behaving badly.

As with all things Trump, the Manhattan verdict is generating a lot of emotion on both sides. No one is denying the hush money payment was made, particularly as former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen was charged in 2018 for making the payment for the campaign, reached a plea deal, and served time.

At this point, days after the verdict, several things seem obvious. First, Trump will not see prison time for some time, if at all. While it is technically on the table, Trump has no prior offenses, and the judge already opted to merely fine Trump for his inappropriate behavior during the trial, where regular citizens acting similarly would have been jailed. And of course, this verdict will be tied up for years in appeals. Its even possible the appeals process could outlive the defendant.

Second, the verdict will have a minimal impact on the election. As I wrote last week, the Americans who will decide the 2024 election  those voting in swing states  appear to be voting with their wallets, not over policy or ethics.

The verdict has become the GOPs newest litmus test, and that is a shame. Former Maryland governor Larry Hogan, now running for the Senate, posted on X about respect for the rule of law. A Trump campaign staffer responded, You just ended your campaign.

With nothing else to offer voters but Trump  no real platform or issues  the Republican Party is hamstringing itself yet again when it comes to gaining more GOP registrants or new Congressional seats. The Republican House had the opportunity to orchestrate a win with the GOP Senate on border security earlier this year; instead they opted to leave it to Trump.

In the meantime, the White House is expected to issue this week an executive order effectively sealing the border to asylum seekers when daily border traffic reaches 2,500 (basically meaning immediately). The Trump gamble for key legislation isnt a winner for GOP legislators (it may not be a winner for President Biden who still has abysmal approval ratings over the economy and immigration).

Finally, the New York verdict all but guarantees across-the-board legal retaliation from Republicans. The GOP coined the term lawfare and it will be willing to wage it in return, beginning with Donald Trump in a second term in the White House.

I am not a lawyer, and I am not going to spend column space parsing whether the Manhattan district attorney was correct in determining that pursuing the felony prosecution was appropriate. I will instead note that Alvin Bragg campaigned for his job on the assertion that he was the right attorney to prosecute Donald Trump.

The Stormy Daniels case, while seedy and beneath the dignity of the Presidency, pales in significance to the Federal case in Florida alleging that Trump used classified government documents as personal trophies, the Georgia case charging Trump and 14 co-defendants with trying to overturn the 2020 election (4 co-defendants have pled guilty), and the second Federal case also charging Trump with trying to overturn the 2020 election (augmented by evidence turned over to the Department of Justice from the Congressional January 6 hearings). These cases directly challenge Trumps fitness for office.

Like many Americans, I wish to see Donald Trump held accountable for his actions. Its just not clear to me that the hush money verdict comes anywhere close to addressing the breathtaking liberties Trump has taken with the American system of government.

Merritt Hamilton Allen is a PR executive and former Navy officer. She appeared regularly as a panelist on NM PBS and is a frequent guest on News Radio KKOB. A Republican, she lives amicably with her Democratic husband north of I-40 where they run one head of dog, and two of cat. She can be reached at news.ind.merritt@gmail.com.

This article originally appeared on Las Cruces Sun-News: The most inconsequential of felony convictions
Mother of boys hit and killed by socialite Rebecca Grossman dismayed by light sentence

LOS ANGELES (KTLA)  The mother of two boys hit and killed by California socialite Rebecca Grossman is expressing her disappointment in Grossmans recent sentencing.

Grossman, 60, was found guilty in February of two counts of second-degree murder, two counts of vehicular manslaughter with gross negligence and one count of hit-and-run driving resulting in death in connection with the collision that killed Jacob, 8, and Mark Iskander, 11, on Sept. 29, 2020.

The co-founder of the Grossman Burn Foundation and wife of prominent plastic surgeon Dr. Peter Grossman had written a letter to the judge from jail ahead of her sentencing pleading for mercy.

On Monday, Grossman was sentenced to 15 years to life in prison. She could be eligible for parole in as little as nine years.

Rebecca Grossman, left, and her daughter head to Van Nuys Courthouse West Van Nuys on Feb. 14, 2024. (Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Prosecutors had sought the maximum sentence, which was more than twice what she received.

The surprising sentence reopened old wounds for the boys mother, Nancy Iskander.

It was the hardest day of the whole trial, Iskander said. I would compare Monday to September 29, 2020, almost to the same extent of pain.

In an interview at the family home Wednesday, Iskander told Nexstars KTLA that the sentence handed down by the judge was not severe enough and did not honor the life of both her boys.

He counted them both as one, Iskander said. They were two, I promise. They were two.

Mourners gathered at a makeshift memorial on Sept. 30, 2020, for two boys who died after being struck by a vehicle in Westlake Village. (KTLA)

All I can say about that is that I hope nine years is enough time for her heart to change. Im not sure, Iskander said.

Through a four-year legal ordeal, Grossman has never admitted guilt for running down 11-year-old Mark and 8-year-old Jacob.

Still, through all the trauma and heartbreak, Iskander says she has love for the person who upended her life.

I serve a God who teaches me to love and I love her, I love her family, I love her kids, shes a human being, she said.

Iskander says the woman responsible for the death of her sons has offered to establish a building near her husbands burn hospital and name it after them.

Nancy says that is not something she is willing to entertain.

That is not something I would accept from her at all, Iskander said. She does not get to honor their memory. Im sorry, that I cannot allow.

Instead, the Iskander family has created their own foundation to honor Jacob and Mark; Nancy hopes it will be a fitting tribute and do some justice in honoring their memory.

It goes through my mind every day, are they proud? Are they looking down and proud of me? Or no? Its so important, and I cant ask them, she 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 Queen City News.
DENVER (KDVR)  A woman pleaded guilty to three charges ahead of a jury trial scheduled for later this year, leading to her sentencing on Wednesday in her 5-year-old daughters death.

The girls remains were found in an Aurora apartment in 2023.

Alexus Nelson, 28, was found guilty of second-degree murder, tampering with a deceased body and attempting to influence a public servant. She was sentenced on Wednesday to 48 years, 24 years and 12 years for those charges, respectively, and the sentences will run consecutively.

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Two charges were dropped due to a plea, according to court documents: child abuse knowingly causing death, and first-degree murder of a victim under 12 and in a position of trust. Because Nelson agreed to plead guilty under a plea agreement, she is not eligible for an appeal.

This mother knew about available adoption programs that could have cared for this 5-year-old but instead, she chose murder, District Attorney John Kellner said in a release. While there is no way to fully comprehend what turned this mother into a monster, she deserves to spend several decades behind bars for the unspeakable crime she committed.

Case began with welfare check in 2023

The case began in May 2023 when the 5-year-old girls grandmother asked the Aurora Police Department to conduct a welfare check on her granddaughter and Nelson after hearing that Nelson may have given the child up for adoption. According to an arrest affidavit, Nelson told officers that she had completed a closed adoption through a Colorado adoption agency.

Officers contacted two agencies that Nelson could have used to facilitate an adoption, but no legal adoption records could be found. At that time, Nelson also allowed detectives to look through the photographs on her phone, but it became immediately apparent that there were no pictures of (the child) in her phone, according to the affidavit.

There are many resources and legal ways for parents to surrender their children in the event they are unable to care for them, Senior Deputy DA Kathleen Tierney said in a release. Its both heartbreaking and appalling that a mother would kill her own child and then make up a bogus adoption story so family would believe the child is alive and well.

After that, officers obtained a search warrant for the apartment and found that the unit was completely empty and the carpet was extremely dirty with various stains of unknown origin, according to the arrest affidavit. Officers also reported they found a closet with various childrens items and a large shopping bag that contained a plastic bag inside.

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They also obtained a search warrant for Nelsons phone which had searches from earlier that month reading can you overdose from melatonin? and can you overdose from Xanax? Detectives also said that there were videos including the child on her camera roll where she seemed to be saying goodbye to family.

After investigating the contents of the bag, investigators found that they were charred human remains. They also found bone fragments inside the fireplace of Nelsons apartment unit.

According to the affidavit, the last time anyone saw the 5-year-old alive was on May 2, 2023, in video phone calls with Nelsons family.

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 FOX31 Denver.
Mother says shes praying for man accused of fatally shooting her son downtown

MEMPHIS, Tenn.  The mother of the victim who was killed downtown in May says her son was not just homeless  he was struggling with a disease.

Shaun Rhea, originally from Long Beach, Mississippi, was shot to death outside the Courtyard Marriott on Main Street on May 31. He left behind a 10-year-old daughter.

Suspect in fatal downtown shooting allegedly shot man in front of hotel security

Shaun was a wonderful person when it came to meeting other peoples needs and serving. He left many family and friends behind, said his mom, Belinda Rhea-Tipton.

Tipton said Shaun had been clean for four years, but he was struggling. He fought with addiction since 2006. He ended up selling everything and found himself at the homeless shelter.

Shauns sponsor, Willie Payno, told WREG about their last conversation. [I said], Shaun  I believe theres something you need to tell me. He said, Yes Willie, I had a relapse.'

Three months later, Rhea was allegedly shot by Karl Louck.

Memphis Police said Loucks walked up to Rhea and pepper sprayed him. That is when Rhea threw his hoverboard at the suspect.

Several minutes later, Loucks reportedly returned from his apartment with a rifle and shot Rhea in front of a security guard.

What did my son do to deserve to be shot? Tipton asked.

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Many people in the community believe Loucks, who is an Army veteran, would attack those experiencing homelessness for his enjoyment.

Loucks is being held without bond for attempted first-degree murder.

I pray for him. He has a family too. A mom too, like Shaun did, said Tipton.

Shaun Rhea was laid to rest in Long Beach, Mississippi. Karl Loucks is scheduled for his preliminary hearing on July 9.

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.
RAMONA, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI)  A motorcyclist was killed in a crash last week in Ramona, authorities said.

The collision occurred on Friday around 12:10 p.m. on State Route 78 westbound, east of Casner Road, Office Jared Grieshaber with the California Highway Patrol said in a news release Tuesday.

A 54-year-old man was riding a black and red 2023 Kawasaki motorcycle at an unknown speed in the aforementioned location when the rider crossed onto the south shoulder and crashed into a tree near the intersection of Casner Road, according to law enforcement.

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The rider, of San Marcos, died due to his injuries.

The cause of the crash is under investigation.

Anyone who may have additional information about the crash is encouraged to contact the California Highway Patrol at 619-401-2000.

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.
Motorcyclist severely injured after crash on U.S. Highway 18 in Wisconsin

BRIDGEPORT, Wis. (WFRV)  A motorcyclist was severely injured after being involved in a crash with another vehicle on U.S. Highway 18 last Friday.

According to a release from the Crawford County Sheriffs Office, deputies were notified of a motorcycle and motor vehicle crash at the intersection of U.S. Highway 18 and Vineyard Road in Bridgeport on June 7, shortly before 1:00 p.m.

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A preliminary investigation revealed that 35-year-old Russell Bessel from Prairie du Chien was operating a motorcycle on U.S. Highway 18, and 72-year-old Sheldon Stotmeister from Platteville was operating the motor vehicle.

Crash on U.S. Highway 18 in Bridgeport. (Crawford County Sheriffs Office)

Stotmeister entered the intersection, making a left-hand turn. As he crossed into the southbound lanes, Bessel collided with the passenger side of the vehicle with his motorcycle.

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Bessel was ejected from the motorcycle and was seriously injured. The Crawford County Sheriffs Office did not say his current condition. As for Stotmeister, he escaped without injury.

Both vehicles suffered heavy damage during the crash, which the Crawford County Sheriffs Office is still investigating. No additional details were provided.

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 WFRV Local 5 - Green Bay, Appleton.
MS has little appetite for changing difficult way it restores voting rights for felons

Kenneth Almons told a group of about 16 state lawmakers inside crowded Room 113 at the state Capitol earlier this year that if he could ever regain his right to vote, he could actually demonstrate the importance of voting to his children.

But until that happens, he will carry a massive albatross around his neck over a mistake he made over 30 years ago, he said.

If you cant vote, youre nobody, Almons said. And in the publics eye, Im a nobody.

The cold, hard truth is that most Mississippi legislators havent shown any desire to change Almons mind or taken any significant steps to show him they dont consider him a nobody.

A 51-year-old Jackson resident, Almons was convicted of armed robbery when he was 17 years old and was released from the Mississippi State Penitentiary, commonly known as Parchman, when he was 23.

For the last 28 years, he hasnt been convicted of a speeding infraction, much less another felony, he told the state officials. Instead, hes run his own business, currently works for the city of Jackson, has raised three children and has, by most standards, been a picture-perfect example of what legislators would consider being rehabilitated back into society.

Youve been more productive than people who have never even seen the inside of a prison, House Minority Leader Robert Johnson III said to Almons during an April 17 hearing.

But because he was convicted of armed robbery and aggravated assault as a teenager, he still cannot cast a vote in a Mississippi election and, despite paying taxes for decades, has no direct say in who represents him in government.

An election worker wears a voting sticker at Orange Grove Community Center, a voting precinct in Harrison County, on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023.

This is because the Mississippi Constitution imposes a lifetime voting ban on people convicted of 10 types of crimes. An Attorney Generals opinion expanded that list to 22 specific crimes.

Not every felony crime is a disenfranchising crime  only certain felonies. This is largely because the racist framers of the Jim Crow-era 1890 constitution selected disenfranchising crimes that they believed were more likely to be committed by Black people.

Thousands of people like Almons have only two ways to get their voting rights back. Both paths are up to elected state officials.

A governor could restore someones voting rights, but a governor has not issued such a pardon since Republican Gov. Haley Barbour left office in 2012.

The other way for someone to get their voting rights back is for two-thirds of the lawmakers in both chambers to agree on restoring suffrage. But this process is incredibly burdensome and subject to the political whims of the day.

For starters, not every person knows a lawmaker who can introduce a suffrage bill on their behalf, and not every lawmaker is willing to introduce a suffrage bill. If those disenfranchised felons are unhappy with the lawmaker who wont introduce a suffrage bill, they have no way to vote their local legislator out of office because they cant vote.

The other reality is suffrage restoration bills are not voted on until the final days of the legislation session, which is usually the time when lawmakers are fighting with each other and are ready to leave Jackson.

While any lawmaker can introduce a suffrage restoration bill for anyone, legislative leaders in both chambers have adopted unofficial rules that virtually prohibit lawmakers from considering suffrage restoration measures for people convicted of violent felony offenses, no matter how long ago the crime was or if a person has ever committed another felony.

Republican Sen. Walter Michel of Ridgeland told reporters earlier this year that he would never agree to restore voting rights to someone who used a weapon to commit a crime, such as Almons armed robbery conviction.

Somebody thats willing to put a gun to somebodys head or steal a car or steal their personal property, Im not interested in having them vote on laws or vote on people, Michel said. Thats just my opinion on that.

With violent crimes out of the question, that only leaves nonviolent offenses up for consideration. But the two chambers of the Capitol cant even agree on a plan to streamline the suffrage restoration process for people convicted of nonviolent felony offenses.

The GOP-majority House this session overwhelmingly passed a proposal that created an automatic process for people previously convicted of some nonviolent felony offenses to have their voting rights restored.

Voting stickers at Hancock County Library in Bay St. Louis, a voting precinct, on Election Day, Tuesday, Nov. 7, 2023.

It wouldnt have given Almons his suffrage back, but it would have been a small step forward in streamlining the convoluted process that Mississippi uses to restore voting rights.

Republican Lt. Gov. Delbert Hosemann double referred the House measure to the Constitution Committee and Judiciary B Committee. Senate Constitution Committee Chairwoman Angela Burks Hil refused to bring the bill up for debate and killed the measure.

Hill, a Republican from Picayune, has not publicly articulated why she killed the measure other than offering a cryptic explanation that the Constitution speaks for itself.

Hosemann told reporters during the final days of the session that he personally supports efforts to restore voting rights to nonviolent felons who have completed all the terms of their sentences. However, he believes most of the Senate wouldnt agree to the House proposal.

Just giving a blanket is pretty hard, Hosemann said. My senators want to vote individually and go through them one at a time.

House Speaker Jason White, a Republican from West, told reporters last month that he believes the House will continue to push for felony suffrage reform partly because he believes it would reduce the states recidivism rate and give people a second chance at a successful life

White, an attorney, said he often has clients who approach him asking how they can get a crime expunged from their record or get their voting rights restored. All of those clients, he said, are people who have made a deliberate effort to rehabilitate their lives and are looking to have their dignity restored.

Ive never once had a career criminal drug dealer who is still in the middle of crime activity wanting to clean up and get his voting rights restored, White said. The people that show up are the people that have totally cleaned up their life and  want to take part in their community.

If the House passes a similar version during the 2025 session, Hosemann could use his legislative power to simply refer it to the Judiciary B Committee, which has jurisdiction over the criminal code, and not allow the Constitution Committee to consider it.

But if Hosemanns comments about the Senates beliefs are accurate, Mississippi will be stuck with one of the most convoluted, processes for granting voting rights back to convicted felons unless those senators change their minds.

This article first appeared on Mississippi Today and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.
ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, June 13. Turkmenistan discussed promising areas of long-term cooperation with Dragon Oil, owned by the Emirates National Oil Company (ENOC), Trend reports.

According to an official source, these issues were discussed during a meeting between the Chairman of the People's Council of Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov, and the Chief Executive Officer of Dragon Oil, Ali Rashid Al-Jarwan.

During the meeting, the parties discussed promising areas of long-term cooperation, taking into account the vast experience of joint work and large-scale plans for the development of the fuel and energy complex.

They noted that Turkmenistan and the UAE are among the richest countries in the world in terms of natural gas and oil reserves and have extensive experience in the development of the oil and gas industry.

The parties stressed that the strategy for the development of the oil and gas sector is aimed at producing products necessary for the national economy as well as exporting them using local raw materials. In this regard, emphasis was placed on projects implemented by large UAE companies in the fuel and energy sector of Turkmenistan.

Speaking about the economic development programs being implemented in the country, the ongoing reforms in the industrial sector, and the availability of favorable conditions for doing business, Berdimuhamedov stated his readiness to further expand productive cooperation with Dragon Oil.

Meanwhile, in January of this year, the Turkmenistan State Concern and Dragon Oil signed a Memorandum of Understanding under which the Dubai oil business will begin developing three prospective fields near Turkmenistan.

Dragon Oil has been carrying out oil and gas cooperation with Turkmenistan on the basis of a Production Sharing Agreement since 2000, and its main activity is the extraction of hydrocarbon resources in the Caspian Sea, in particular in the Cheleken contract zone.
The Tennessee Department of Education has released third- and fourth-grade scores for the English Language Arts section of the Tennessee Comprehensive Assessment Program tests. And scores for Memphis-Shelby County Schools students in both grades increased, though there is still significant room for improvement.

According to the state, 26.6% of third graders scored proficiently or higher on the ELA section, while 28.5% of fourth graders did the same. In the 2022-23 academic year, 23.6% of third graders and 26.7% of fourth graders reached this mark. Statewide, 40.9% of third graders and 46.9% of fourth graders hit the proficiency mark.

"Literacy is the anchor to the success that our 110,000 students deserve to experience," said Superintendent Marie Feagins in a press release. "Thus, these data further support the need to direct more district resources directly to classrooms with a targeted emphasis on a comprehensive literacy approach at every grade level."

For MSCS, the increases come after a heavy focus on strategies like high-dosage tutoring, and the third-grade proficiency rate this year is just shy of the 29% target the district had set. By 2030, the district wants that number to be 52%.

The new scores come about a year after the implementation of a reading retention law that still has implications for third- and fourth-grade students today.

In 2023, a statewide law focused on third-grade reading rates took effect. It stipulated that third graders who didnt earn a proficient score on the ELA portion of TCAP tests would be held back if interventive measures werent taken.

Thursday's data release does not factor in the accountability measures that make adjustments for English language learners, special education students, and students who were enrolled in MSCS less than 50% of the year. Those adjustments usually improve MSCS scores.

Students who earn an approaching score  the category just beneath proficiency  had to attend summer classes and show 5% improvement on a posttest to move forward. If they didnt meet that mark, they could still go to the fourth grade, but they would be expected to receive year-round tutoring. And students who earned a below score  the bottom category  had to attend summer school and agree to year-round tutoring to move on to fourth grade.

Third-grade students at Scenic Hills Elementary watch the solar eclipse and make eclipse-related art projects on Monday, April 8, 2024 in Memphis, Tenn.

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Last year, about 40% of third graders in Tennessee scored proficiently, which meant that roughly 44,000 of the states third graders were at risk of being retained. Ultimately, just 898 third graders were held back, thanks to the tutoring options and other exemptions.

During a Memphis media check-in on June 4, Feagins said that about 2,000 third graders this year are required to attend the MSCS Summer Learning Academy  the summer school equivalent  per the state law, and nearly 5,000 had signed up. At the time, she expected more to sign up.

The retention law also has implications for fourth graders this year, as 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 dont, 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 support in place.

All TCAP student test results are expected to be made available to families in mid-July.

John Klyce covers education and children's issues for The Commercial Appeal. You can reach him at John.klyce@commercialappeal.com.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: MSCS English TCAP scores released for third- and fourth-grade students
By Hyunjoo Jin, Ross Kerber, Akash Sriram

(Reuters) -Tesla shareholders approved CEO Elon Musk's $56 billion pay package, the electric vehicle-maker said on Thursday, a big thumbs-up to his leadership and an incentive to keep his focus on his biggest source of wealth.

The approval underscores the support that Musk enjoys from Tesla's retail investor base, many of whom are vocal fans of the mercurial billionaire. The proposal passed despite opposition from some large institutional investors and proxy firms.

Onstage at the annual shareholder meeting in Austin, Texas, Musk described himself as pathologically optimistic. "If I wasn't optimistic this wouldn't exist, this factory wouldn't exist," Musk said to applause. "But I do deliver in the end. That's the important thing."

He had tipped off late on Wednesday that the proposals were garnering huge support.

The approval does not, however, resolve a lawsuit on the pay package in a Delaware court, which some legal experts think could stretch out for months. The judge invalidated the pay package in January, describing it as "unfathomable."

Musk may also face fresh lawsuits on the package, which would be the largest in U.S. corporate history. Shareholders had voted for this package in 2018.

"This thing is not over," said Brian Quinn, a professor at Boston College Law School. The Delaware judge will scrutinize the vote and require Tesla to prove the process was not coerced or improperly influenced by Musk, he said.

The judge had criticized Tesla's board as "beholden" to him, saying the plan was proposed by a conflicted board with close personal and financial ties to its top executive.

On Thursday, shareholders also approved a proposal to move the company's legal home to Texas from Delaware. They also approved other proposals including the re-election of two board members: Musk's brother Kimbal Musk and James Murdoch, son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch.

Shareholders did increase the level of investor control by passing proposals in favor of shortening board terms to one year and lowering voting requirements for proposals to a simple majority, despite board opposition to both.

'DEAL IS A DEAL'

Tesla on Thursday did not disclose the voting tallies, which are expected to be revealed in coming days. At least a half-million viewers watched the meeting on the livestream on social media platform X, and about 40,000 watched on YouTube.

"This is, firstly, a message that Tesla's retail shareholders do approve of what's going on. It will be interesting to see what the exact percentages of the votes are," said Lindsey Stewart, a director at Morningstar Sustainalytics.

Story continues

Shareholder approval for the compensation serves as both an endorsement of Musk's tenure and an acknowledgment that investors do not want to risk the company's future.

"They are brushing aside essentially key man risks, where Tesla has become even more dependent on Musk going forward," said Jason Schloetzer, a business professor at Georgetown University with expertise in corporate governance.

In January, Musk threatened to build AI and robotics products outside of Tesla if he failed to gain enough voting control.

He shifted the company's focus to robotaxis, shelving cheaper mass-market electric cars, to the concern of some investors who feared the autonomous technology will be hard to perfect.

In an update on Tesla's performance, Musk said on Thursday that the company recently shipped a record 1,300 Cybertrucks in a week and that plans for volume production of its Semi trucks were in place. He talked at length about plans for autonomous cars, though he gave no time frame for a launch of self-driving vehicles.

Tesla's share price has dropped about 55% from its 2021 peak as EV sales have slowed and Musk's attention has wavered between Tesla and other companies he runs. The stock closed up 2.9% on Thursday.

"Shareholders once again endorsed the terms of the contract, sending a strong signal that 'a deal is a deal' and Musk deserves to be rewarded for meeting the lofty thresholds of an entirely incentive-based contract," said Garrett Nelson, analyst at CFRA Research.

"The news lifts a major overhang on the shares, although we wouldn't be surprised by a "sell the news" reaction on Friday following big gains over the past two trading sessions as the likely outcome became clearer."

The board had said that Musk deserves the package because he hit all the ambitious targets on market value, revenue and profitability. Large investors including the California Public Employees' Retirement System had called the pay package "excessive."

PRESSURE

"Elon Musk and Chair (Robyn) Denholm have made this about CEO loyalty and presented the votes as a decision about whether the company can keep Musk," said Ivan Frishberg, chief sustainability office at Amalgamated Bank.

"That is a lot of pressure but it doesn't change the fact that good governance is good for the bottom line of a company, and the Tesla board is consistently and clearly deficient on that front."

While Musk is undoubtedly Tesla's driving force, and is credited with much of its success, the company's sales and profit have slowed. There are concerns that he is spreading himself too thin.

Musk has added two more companies to his roster since the pay package was approved in 2018. He now runs or owns six firms, including rocket-builder SpaceX, social media giant X - formerly Twitter - and the artificial-intelligence firm xAI, which Musk created in 2023.

(Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin and Abhirup Roy in San Francisco, Ross Kerber in Boston, Greg Roumeliotis in New York, Abinaya Vijayaraghavan and Akash Sriram in Bengaluru, Juby Babu in Mexico City and Noel Randewich in Oakland, California; Writing by Sayantani Ghosh; Editing by David Gaffen, Miral Fahmy, Mark Potter, Peter Henderson and Matthew Lewis)
MyCitations tool lets you pay your traffic tickets online: Superior Court of Kern County

BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET)  The Superior Court of Kern County announced its new website allowing members of the Kern community to pay traffic ticket fines Thursday.

The online tool called MyCitations is live and allows Kern residents to pay fines resulting from traffic infractions without having to make the drive out to court, court officials said through a news release.

Bakersfield Fire Department reminds community of fire safety

The tool will allow residents to do the following:

Request fine reductions

Request a payment plan

Request extended time to pay

Community service

Some court errands however, will still require you to show in person. The tool cannot be used to:

Contest a traffic ticket.

If you have proof of correction and would like a dismissal or reduction of those charges.

If your offense is a misdemeanor violation.

To sign up for traffic school. If you wish to attend traffic school, you will have to contact the court first.

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 KGET 17.
Myrtle Beach area swimmers to see rough ocean. Heres what conditions will be this weekend

Beachgoers in the Myrtle Beach area can expect rough ocean conditions Thursday and Friday, according to the National Weather Service in Wilmington.

A low pressure system moving off the coast of Florida into the Atlantic Ocean will bring rough surf conditions to northeast South Carolina and southeast North Carolina into the first part of the weekend. Those conditions can bring a chance for rip currents and waves of 2 to 3 feet, according to Adam Weiner, meteorologist with the NWS in Wilmington.

Weiner said the weak system is churning up the water and will increase the (ocean) current activity ... in the Grand Strand area.

The weather service issued an advisory for Horry County Thursday saying that strong currents can sweep swimmers and surfers into rip currents, piers and jetties. North Myrtle Beach has issued a red flag for swimmers Thursday. A red flag means a high hazard for high surf or currents.

Myrtle Beach is reporting waves of 2 to 3 feet Thursday.

Weiner said the system is setting well off shore, which should remain the case. The Myrtle Beach area will not receive any precipitation, but there will be higher wave activity along the coast through Friday and the first part of the weekend.

Beachgoers are advised to check beach forecasts before heading to the beach.
Various organizations across the state are responding to the South Carolina Department of Educations latest decision to not include AP African American Studies for the 2024-25 school year. Earlier this month, SCDE officials confirmed that their decision was based on a two-year pilot program.

In response, multiple organizations held a press conference addressing the decision on Tuesday morning. Members from the ACLU of South Carolina, American Association of University Professors of SC, Avery Institute and E3 Foundation attended. Members of the Gullah Geechee Chamber of Commerce, National Action Network of Columbia and South Carolinas NAACP were also there. In addition, the South Carolina Education Association (SCEA) and students of the district were in attendance.

To no longer offer this course is not only insulting to the Black community but also to the students who have a passion for learning, one student said at the press conference, according to Fox Carolinas report. It is a disservice to those like myself and my peers in my class who are interested in exploring deeper into the again the harsh yet very real realities of African-American history.

Josh Malkin, Advocacy Director of the ACLU of South Carolina told Fox that the state is taking away Black history.

Black history is South Carolina history. By their actions, leaders in the South Carolina Department of Education are sending a message that the state does not want students learning their own history, with all its tragedies and triumphs, Malkin said.

Marilyn Hemingway, the Gullah Geechee Chamber of Commerce CEO and founder, told Fox that the decision is hypocritical.

South Carolina proudly promotes a multi-billion-dollar tourism industry showcasing beautiful places and beautiful faces, yet by not providing AP African American History Studies prevents turning a multi-billion dollar potential into reality, even while numerous studies indicate the growing global interest in African American and Gullah Geechee Heritage, she said.

As a spokesperson for the College Board told ABC News, the organization supports districts that teach the course. African American AP courses will be authorized if those courses meet college-level standards as verified by the AP programs standard process.
As the federal corruption trial of Sen. Bob Menendez continues, the status of a few of his co-defendants will have to wait a bit longer.

In a Wednesday pre-trial conference, U.S. District Judge postponed the start the trial for the senators wife and co-defendant, Nadine Arslanian Menendez, to Aug. 5.

Arslanian Menendez was initially scheduled to appear beside her husband but a breast cancer diagnosis led to her trial's postponement.

Manhattan, NY  October 18, 2023 -- Nadine Menendez, wife of Senator Robert Menendez enters the Federal Courthouse in lower Manhattan for a hearing on corruption charges.

Uribe's sentencing postponed, too

Another co-defendant, Jose Uribe, was charged alongside both Menendezes but entered a guilty plea after making a plea deal with federal prosecutors.

Uribe spent several days this week on the stand as a witness for the prosecution and admitted to bribing the senator.

He was scheduled for sentencing on Friday but according to a spokesperson for the Southern District of New York, that was postponed and no new date has been set.

Jose Uribe is shown after exiting U.S. District Court, in the Southern District of New York, as he tries to avoid journalists, Wednesday, September 27, 2023.

Uribe changed his not guilty plea to guilty on seven charges in March, including conspiracy to commit bribery and wire fraud.

According to a plea agreement, Uribe could face up to 95 years in prison, though he could win leniency by cooperating and testifying against the other defendants, which hes agreed to do.

Related: Menendez defense team blasts prosecutions star witness Jose Uribe as a very good liar

Arslanian Menendez figures in Menendez's defense

Arslanian Menendez's trial was postponed after the court was notified in April of a "serious medical condition."

During Menendez's attorney's opening statement, he painted a picture of Arslanian Menendez and Menendez leading separate lives full of secrets and betrayal.

The very next day, while the senator sat in a Manhattan courtroom, his office sent out a press releasing announcing that Arslanian Menendez was suffering from breast cancer.

Nadine is suffering from Grade 3 breast cancer, which will require her to have mastectomy surgery, the statement from Menendez said. We are of course, concerned about the seriousness and advanced stage of the disease. She will require follow up surgery and possibly radiation treatment.

Arslanian hid financial challenges from her husband before they met and during their time together, Menendez's lawyer, Avi Weitzman, said in his opening remarks  less than 24 hours before Menendez announced his wife's medical diagnosis. Weitzman also pointed out that the now-infamous gold bars were found in Arslanians locked closet, not Menendez's.

"Whenever you see a document that says Nadine or Hana or Daibes, ask yourself, 'Where's Bob?' " Weitzman said.

Lara Pomerantz, a federal prosecutor trying the case, told jurors Wednesday that New Jersey's senior senator used his wife as a go-between for the schemes and business dealings that resulted in their receiving cash and gold bars.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Nadine Arslanian Menendez trial postponed to start Aug. 5
Naples has secured $31.5 million for a trio of projects in next year's state budget.

The budget, signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis on Wednesday, includes:

$25 million for a new coastal stormwater management system

$5 million for the rebuild of Naples Pier

$1.5 million for lake restoration

Rendering of new Naples Pier.

City manager Jay Boodheshwar shared the good news via email, saying the city is "extremely grateful to the governor" for approving the funding.

However, he noted the city didn't get all of its projects approved, which came as a disappointment.

Jay Boodheshwar, Naples city manager

The governor vetoed funding for two of the city's projects, as part of his larger efforts to trim the budget state lawmakers sent him.

Across the board, DeSantis cut about $1 billion in projects and programs from the budget, reducing it to about $116.5 billion.

In the city Naples, the cuts included:

$1 million to address flooding issues and improve water quality by replacing existing septic systems with centralized wastewater systems

$3 million to help improve resiliency against sea level rise and to reduce the threat of storm surge for the River Park East community, including Anthony Park.

The projects the city received appropriations for will have a big impact, not only on Naples, but Southwest Florida, by improving water quality, increasing beach safety and promoting tourism, Boodheshwar said.

The new coastal stormwater management system would answer the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's directive to remove stormwater outfall pipes from Naples beaches. The city has designed and already permitted a project that improves water quality, flood protection and resiliency to climate change. While the project has been awarded state money, the city requested more financial help after costs ballooned.

Pipes like these will be removed from the beach with the construction of a new coastal stormwater management system.

Design plans are completed for the Naples Pier, ravaged by Hurricane Ian, and the project is out for construction bids. The window for bids ends on June 27.

While the city expects to receive a reimbursement check from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, it wouldn't cover the entire cost of rebuilding the iconic pier, cherished by residents and tourists alike. The cost is estimated at more than $22 million.

More: Is Naples Pier being affected by this week's weather? Answers and construction update

With the money received for lake restoration, the city of Naples plans to dredge and treat lakes to remove accumulated pollution and to implement new practices in and around its lakes to improve stormwater treatment over the next decade.

The city is "very appreciative" of the efforts made by Senate President Kathleen Passidomo, a Naples resident, and others to get its projects included in next year's budget, Boodheshwar said.

In case you missed it: Collier County secures more than $86.5 million in state budget for local projects, programs

The budget lawmakers approved included more than $167 million in funding for projects and programs in Collier, Lee and Hendry counties, fought for by local delegates.

In an email, Passidomo said "80% of my requested budget items were funded."

The few that were vetoed, she said, were "mainly water projects," which could still receive grant funding through the state's Department of Environmental Protection.

"So, I'm not too concerned," Passidomo said. "I'm happy with how the budget turned out, as it pertains to my district."

Collier County's appropriations include: $10 million for a veterans' nursing home, $4.5 million for a public utility renewal in Naples Park, and $3.6 million for a new fire station.

The county will also get $3 million for a utility renewal in Palm River, the amount the Legislature approved, but far short of the $7.5 million it requested.

This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Trio of projects in Naples makes cut in the state's budget next year
FILE PHOTO: A satellite image shows an overview of the International Space Station with the Boeing Starliner spacecraft

SINGAPORE (Reuters) - NASA accidentally broadcast a simulation of astronauts being treated for decompression sickness on the International Space Station (ISS) on Wednesday, prompting speculation of an emergency in posts on social media.

About 5:28 p.m. U.S. Central Time (2228 GMT), The National Aeronautics and Space Administration's (NASA) live YouTube channel broadcast audio that indicated a crew member was experiencing the effects of decompression sickness (DCS), NASA said on its official ISS X account.

A female voice asks crew members to "get commander back in his suit", check his pulse and provide him with oxygen, later saying his prognosis was "tenuous", according to copies of the audio posted on social media. NASA did not verify the recordings or republish the audio.

Several space enthusiasts posted a link to the audio on X with warnings that there was a serious emergency on the ISS.

"This audio was inadvertently misrouted from an ongoing simulation where crew members and ground teams train for various scenarios in space and is not related to a real emergency," the ISS account post said.

"There is no emergency situation going on aboard the International Space Station," it added.

DCS, which is caused by nitrogen or other gas bubbles in the bloodstream due to a change in atmospheric pressure, can affect the central nervous system and is potentially fatal. It is commonly known as "the bends".

Crew members on the ISS were in their sleep period at the time of the audio broadcast as they prepared for a spacewalk at 8 a.m. EDT on Thursday, the ISS post said.

NASA's ISS YouTube channel - at the time the audio was accidentally broadcast - now shows an error message saying the feed has been interrupted.

(Reporting by Joe Brock; Editing by Gerry Doyle)
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Preliminary negotiations on climate finance are underway at the 60th session of the Subsidiary Bodies of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in Bonn, Trend reports.

Around 200 countries are striving to agree on a new global goal for climate finance ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference COP29, which will be held in Baku this November.

Climate finance involves major economies helping poorer countries invest in projects to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and cope with the worsening extreme weather conditions caused by climate change.

In 2009, developed countries agreed to contribute $100 billion annually to relevant funds from 2020 through 2025.

The goal for participants in the Bonn session is to increase the inflow of funds into these resources.

The worsening climate situation and the lack of investment in clean energy in developing countries mean that the required amounts must sharply increase once states agree on the first climate finance goal.

According to an independent 2023 report cited by the UN, developing countries, excluding China, will need $2.4 trillion in annual investments by 2030 to meet their climate goals and protect societies from the impacts of climate change, which is more than four times the current level of investment.

The Arab Group, including Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt, proposes a UN goal of $1.1 trillion annually, with $441 billion to come directly from developed countries' governments in the form of grants.

India, African countries, and small island states also stated that over $1 trillion is needed for these purposes, but there are disagreements about how much of this financing should come from the public sector.

Currently, only a portion of wealthy countries are obligated to provide climate financing.

This list of donor countries was determined during the UN climate negotiations in 1992 and has not changed since.

The EU and US officials believe that the list is outdated and propose adding new donors, including China, with the world's second-largest economy, as well as high GDP per capita countries like Qatar, Singapore, and the UAE, while Beijing is firmly against this.

At the COP29 conference in Baku, the main topic will be which countries should provide financing.

Issues to be discussed at this event include taxes on fossil fuels and the defense sector, as well as debt swap processes, where part of a country's debt is forgiven in exchange for additional investments in climate action.

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. The 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 Berlin, and its secretariat is located in Bonn.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Nathan Wade believes Trump can still be prosecuted in Georgia even if he wins the White House

Former special prosecutor Nathan Wade says he believes former President Donald Trump will be tried in Georgia even if he wins the 2024 election.

I do believe that he can. I dont believe that it looks good to the rest of the world. But certainly, I dont think that theres anything that would prevent that from happening, Wade said in an interview with CNN on Wednesday.

Wade expects prosecutors and defense attorneys to confront the unprecedented scenario if Trump wins re-election.

Wade resigned from the Georgia election interference case in March, over allegations of an improper relationship with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.

In a new filing, Willis has asked the Georgia Court of Appeals to dismiss Trumps appeal of Fulton County Superior Court Judge Scott McAfees order that allowed her to stay on the case, saying it lacked sufficient evidence.

RELATED STORIES:

Wade pushed back on criticism that his relationship with Wills ultimately delayed Trumps trial here in Georgia.

I dont believe my actions played a role at all. I believe in the indictment. Certainly, I would never have done anything that would have jeopardized that work. I do think the timing of the personal relationship I had was bad, Wade said. This prosecution has nothing to do with the voters and their opinion as to whether or not this indictment is proper or not proper. It has everything to do with the rule of law.

If it denies Willis latest motion, the appeals court is expected to hear arguments over the Willis ruling on Oct. 4.

RELATED NEWS:
Former Fulton County special prosecutor Nathan Wade said he expects former President Trump to head to trial in the Georgia election interference case even if he is reelected in November.

Wade said during an interview with CNNs Kaitlan Collins late Wednesday he saw no reason why a sitting president could not face a trial in the case.

I do believe that he can, Wade said when asked if Trump could go to trial during a second term.

I dont believe that it  looks good to the rest of the world. But certainly I dont think that theres anything that would prevent that from happening, he added.

Wade resigned from his position as special prosecutor in March after allegations that he previously had a romantic relationship with Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis (D) came to light.

Wade stepped down from his role in response to a ruling from Judge Scott McAfee, who said the romantic relationship created an appearance of a conflict of interest and said he would allow Willis to remain on the case if Wade resigned.

Trump and several other co-defendants later filed an appeal to have Willis removed from the case. The appeals court froze Trumps criminal trial proceedings last week as it takes up his appeal. It could hear arguments in October for Trumps request, meaning the trial likely will not get started before the November election.

Wade also said on CNN that he didnt believe his actions played a role at all in delaying the election interference case.

I believe in the indictment. Certainly, I would never have done anything that would have jeopardized that hard work. But do I believe my actions caused this delay? No, no. I do believe though the timing of a personal relationship I had was probably bad. It was bad timing, he added.

Collins continued to press Wade about his relationship with Willis throughout the interview, with Wade at one point describing her as a great friend. When asked for specifics about when his relationship with Willis began, a media consultant for Wade interrupted the interview to pull the former special prosecutor aside before Wade responded to the question.

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 The Hill.
CNN

Former Fulton County prosecutor Nathan Wade, who had been leading the case against Donald Trump and his allies in Georgia until his resignation earlier this year after his relationship with District Attorney Fani Willis came to light, claimed Wednesday that even if the former president won re-election, he could still be tried and imprisoned if convicteda belief that elicited skepticism from CNNs Kaitlan Collins.

When Collins asked Wade if it would be constitutional for a sitting president to be put on trial and then potentially jailed, Wade at first suggested that it would be.

So lets look at the question in reverse, he replied. Are you asking me if theres anyone whos above the law at any point in time in their life?

No, but I dont think its been litigated about a sitting president going on trial. Weve never seen that, the anchor of The Source replied.

A Department of Justice memo from 2000stating that such an indictment or prosecution would be unconstitutionalseems to be the extent of the government weighing in on the matter. Trump was not indicted during his four years as president.

Nathan Wade Describes Parade of MAGA Threats Hes Faced

Wade then acknowledged how unique prosecuting Trump would be should he regain the presidency.

This is a new animal, but if he wins the election, then certainly there are lawyers out there who will be charged with figuring out that issue and maneuvering around it, he said.

I do believe that he can, he added more definitively moments later after Collins clarified whether Wade believed Trump could be prosecuted.

I dont believe that it looks good to the rest of the world, but certainly I dont think theres anything that would prevent that from happening, he continued. If hes convicted, then just like any other defendant who is convicted, then you go through the sentencing process.

Collins appeared doubtful.

But I dont think people think a sitting president would actually be sent to jail. I mean, it would create a moment like weve never seen in this country with the Secret Service, with whos enforcing that, and, of course, he would be the head of a federal branch of government, as Collins put it.

So now thats a much different question, Wade responded. We know that the sentencing thing is totally up to the trial court judge thats sitting there now. Hes charged with making those types of decisions with special prosecutors on that.

With Trumps Georgia case on hold until an appeals court decides whether Willis should be removed, any trial proceedings are still months away.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Rep. Janelle Bynum, D-Clackamas, works on the House floor at the Oregon state Capitol in Salem on Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2023.

Janelle Bynum, pictured on Feb. 28, 2023 on the state House floor, is among the contenders for Oregon's 5th Congressional District. (Amanda Loman/Oregon Capital Chronicle)

A national Republican group will launch its first ad targeting Democratic congressional nominee Janelle Bynum on Thursday, signaling that Republicans see Bynums legislative work on police reform as a weakness in a key swing district.

The National Republican Congressional Committees ad, which will air on digital platforms, calls Bynum Oregons most pro-criminal politician and includes audio of her on a podcast from Portland-based publication Street Roots praising 2020 racial justice protests. While the protests, which continued for months, were largely peaceful, some days turned into riots where people were injured, millions of dollars worth of property was damaged and a counter protester was shot to death.

The protests in Portland and nationally that followed George Floyds murder by a white police officer in Minneapolis also spurred the Oregon Legislature to pass a set of nine police reform laws in 2021. Bynum, who at the time was the chair of the House Judiciary Committee, sponsored several of the bills and played a key role in shaping and shepherding each of them.

Most of those laws passed with widespread bipartisan support. They limited officers abilities to arrest protesters or journalists covering protests for failing to follow orders, required more police training, required officers in larger cities to wear their name, badge number or other identifying information on their uniforms and clarified that police have discretion to arrest people at protests deemed unlawful assemblies.

As the Judiciary Committee chair and the only Black woman in the Oregon House, Bynum became the face of the Legislatures police reform efforts. Three years later, as she runs for Congress against freshman Republican Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer, the NRCC and other Chavez-DeRemer backers hope to use that legislative record to paint her as soft on crime in the closely divided 5th Congressional District. Republican groups used similar talking points against 2022 Democratic nominee Jamie McLeod-Skinner, running ads claiming she wanted to defund the police.

The new ad targeting Bynum chides her for voting for a budget bill that it says gave millions to defund the police groups and for joining other legislators in calling on then-Gov. Kate Brown to release hundreds of medically vulnerable Oregonians from prison early in the COVID pandemic.

It also includes audio of her appearance on a February 2021 episode of the Street Roots podcast, saying, It was pleasing to see the protests and We pass legislation in concert with protests.

NRCC spokesman Ben Petersen called her in a statement the ringleader of the far-left circus that turned Portland into a crime-ridden wasteland.

Bynum teaming up with defund the police protestors and carrying water for their radical agenda in Salem shows she cannot be trusted to keep Oregonians safe, he said.

The post National Republicans begin targeting CD5 candidate Bynum over police reform efforts appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (C) chairs the meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group during a meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence, at NATO Headquarters. -/NATO/dpa

NATO countries on Thursday approved a plan for a security assistance and training mission for Ukraine, alliance sources told dpa.

The mission, called NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU), would see military aid provided to Ukraine under official NATO structures for the first time. Until now, NATO countries have coordinated this aid through an informal, United States-led group called the Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG).

The shift of responsibility is one element of a broader proposal - still under discussion - for NATO allies to make a long-term commitment to support Ukraine. That proposal will be discussed further at a NATO leaders' summit in Washington in July.

Thursday's agreement does not include any specific financial commitments, but establishes that joint aid will at least be coordinated by NATO proper.

At a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Prague last month, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg he wanted allies to "commit to a multi-year financial pledge for Ukraine" of 40 billion ($43 billion) per year. The point, he said, was to show Russia "that it cannot wait us out."

NATO defence ministers are meeting in Brussels on Thursday and Friday to discuss their support for Ukraine. The defence ministers met as the UDCG met first on Thursday, followed by NATO proper later in the day, joined by Ukrainian defence minister Rustem Umerov.

In a press conference after the UDCG meeting, US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin said air defence was "Ukraine's top priority."

He hailed efforts by NATO countries to bolster Ukrainian air defence - such as a Dutch initiative to assemble a Patriot air defence system and Sweden's provision of early warning and control aircraft. Italy is also providing surface-to-air missiles, he said.

Austin added that Ukraine and the US will sign a bilateral security treaty on Thursday.

Germany is providing three Patriot systems to Ukraine. However, German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius ruled out the possibility of his country providing any more, as he arrived at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Thursday.

"There is no space for providing even more than those three systems," Pistorius told reporters. He said the three systems make up a quarter of Germany's stock. "Now, it's on other partners to provide systems," Pistorius said.

Shortly before, Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair announced that his country will supply Ukraine with rockets, small arms ammunition and remote-controlled weapon mounts for vehicles - though it has no Patriots to give, he said.

"Canada will provide Ukraine with 2,300 Canadian Rocket Vehicle 7s or CRV rocket motors," Blair said. He added, "Canada will send an additional number of rounds of small arms ammunition, as well as 29 Nanuk remote systems," which are remote-controlled weapon mounts for military vehicles.

He added, "this week, Canada is beginning the shipments of a new fleet of 50 armoured vehicles to Ukraine. The first four vehicles are departing Canada this week, and they will be delivered to the Ukrainian armed forces in the coming weeks."

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (L) chairs the meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group during a meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence, at NATO Headquarters. -/NATO/dpa

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (C) chairs the meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group during a meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence, at NATO Headquarters. -/NATO/dpa
On 13 June, NATO member states adopted the operational plan for enhanced support to Ukraine, which provides for a bigger role for NATO in the armament supply and training of Ukrainian soldiers.

Source: DPA agency with reference to sources in NATO; European Pravda

Details: According to the NATO-approved plan, in the future, the Alliance will be responsible for the international coordination of armament supply and training for the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

Among other things, the plan provides for the creation of an analogue of the Security Assistance Group-Ukraine (SAG-U) by NATO, which operates under the European Headquarters of the US Armed Forces in the German city of Wiesbaden and includes about 300 soldiers.

The document was adopted through a written procedure on the sidelines of the meeting of the defence ministers of NATO member states in Brussels. It will be made public on 14 June after an official approval by the ministers.

As it is known, the adoption of the operational plan was blocked by Hungary for a long time, provided that NATO adopts all decisions after a consensus. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban referred to the fact that the Alliances initiative could lead to a "direct confrontation" with Russia.

But earlier, Orban said that he had agreed with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg that Hungary would not block decisions in the Alliance regarding Kyiv, but it would not participate in supporting Ukraine, either.

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NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (C) chairs the meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group during a meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence, at NATO Headquarters. -/NATO/dpa

NATO countries on Thursday approved a plan for a security assistance and training mission for Ukraine, alliance sources told dpa.

The mission, called NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU), would see military aid provided to Ukraine under official NATO structures for the first time. Until now, NATO countries have coordinated this aid through an informal, United States-led group called the Ukraine Defence Contact Group.

The shift of responsibility is one element of a broader proposal - still under discussion - for NATO allies to make a long-term commitment to support Ukraine.

Thursday's agreement does not include any specific financial commitments, but establishes that joint aid will at least be coordinated by NATO proper.

At a meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Prague last month, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg he wanted allies to "commit to a multi-year financial pledge for Ukraine" of 40 billion ($43 billion) per year. The point, he said, was to show Russia "that it cannot wait us out."

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (C) chairs the meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group during a meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence, at NATO Headquarters. -/NATO/dpa

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (L) chairs the meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group during a meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence, at NATO Headquarters. -/NATO/dpa
BRUSSELS  NATOs top official said he welcomed the choice by many countries in the alliance to let Ukraine fire across the border into Russia, arguing that the former restrictions in place ignored Ukraines right to protect itself.

The right of self-defense includes also striking legitimate military targets on the territory of the aggressor: Russia, said Jens Stoltenberg, the secretary general of NATO.

Stoltenberg spoke to a crowd of reporters near the entrance of the alliances headquarters in Brussels. Behind him, American and European officials entered ahead of a meeting of countries that gather each month to coordinate support for Kyiv.

In opening remarks shortly after, U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin updated the list of numbers showing Russias costs incurred during the war: 350,000 casualties, 24 ships sunk or damaged, 2,600 armored vehicles destroyed.

This is the first such meeting since the U.S., following others in the alliance, loosened the rules on some of the weapons its sending Ukraine. To this point in the war, America hasnt allowed Ukrainian forces to fire any munitions its provided into Russia, fearing escalation with a nuclear-armed adversary.

Russian advance on Kharkiv has slowed a bit, US defense chief says

That policy changed in late May, when the administration made a carve-out for targets around Kharkiv, Ukraines second-largest city. Russia opened a new offensive around the city earlier that month, which forced Western countries to rethink their restrictions.

The border and the front line is more or less the same near Kharkiv, which sits close to Russia, Stoltenberg said. If the Russian forces  the artillery, the missile batteries  were safe as soon as they were on the Russian side of the border, it would become extremely difficult for Ukrainians to defend themselves.

Ukraine has since taken advantage of the policy change to hit Russian forces across the border  one of the reasons U.S. officials have said the front lines near Kharkiv have steadied.

Earlier this week, Ukraines General Staff reported hitting Russian air defense batteries in Crimea, a Ukrainian peninsula Russian forces seized in 2014. The range of the strikes would likely have required western weapons, such as the longer-range Army Tactical Missile System, or ATACMS, which can fire up to around 200 miles.

The U.S. still doesnt allow Ukraine to fire these longer-range weapons into Russia. Ukrainian officials, including President Volodomyr Zelenskyy, have chafed at that restriction, saying theyre at once grateful for the policy shift but think its insufficient.

One of the reasons is a target still outside Ukraines reach. Russian bombers parked on airfields farther back have been pounding Ukrainian cities for the last year.

American officials have two concerns about lifting the remaining restrictions.

One is to make sure Ukraine makes the best use of the weapons provided, which involves concentrating the fires as much as possible. And another is the concern over escalation. Russia has the worlds largest nuclear arsenal and has threatened their use multiple times during the war.

Stoltenberg, who publicly supported lifting the earlier restrictions before the U.S. did so, argued that the burden shouldnt be on Ukraine or its allies to avoid escalation, given that Russia started this war to begin with.

Ukraine has the right to strike military targets on Russian territory, part of the right to self defense, and we have the right to support them in defending themselves, he said.

The question will grow more pressing later in the summer when Ukraine receives F-16 fighter jets, an effort the Netherlands and Denmark are leading as Ukrainian pilots complete training in the U.S.

On the flight to Brussels, Gen. CQ Brown, Americas top military officer, said in a short interview that those planes would lengthen Ukraines range of fire and support the countrys defense. He declined, though, to say whether they should be able to fire across the border, deferring the question to policymakers.

U.S. officials often urge the public not to focus on any one weapon or rule as a breakthrough during the war, and Brown too mentioned the broader set of equipment being provided as more important.

It all comes together to give them just added capability to defend themselves, he said.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, center, and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Charles Brown, right, speak with Ukraine's Defense Minister Rustem Umerov during a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group in the format of NATO defense ministers at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Thursday, June 13, 2024. NATO defense ministers gathered Thursday hoping to agree on a new plan to provide long-term security assistance and military training to Ukraine, after Hungary promised not to veto the scheme as long as it's not forced to take part. (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo)

BRUSSELS (AP)  NATO defense ministers gathered Thursday hoping to agree on a new plan to provide long-term security assistance and military training to Ukraine amid Russia's full-scale invasion, after Hungary promised not to veto the proposal as long as its not forced to take part.

The ministers are meeting over two days at NATO headquarters in Brussels in the last high-level talks before a summit hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden in Washington on July 9-11, where the military organizations leaders are expected to announce financial support for Ukraine.

Ukraines Western allies are trying to bolster their military support as Russian troops launch attacks along the more than 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line, taking advantage of a lengthy delay in U.S. military aid. European Union money was also held up by political infighting.

NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, who is chairing Thursdays meeting, said that Ukraines beleaguered armed forces need longer-term predictability about the kinds of weapons, ammunition and funds they can expect to receive.

The whole idea is to minimize the risk for gaps and delays as we saw earlier this year, Stoltenberg told reporters. The hold-up, he said, is one of the reasons why the Russians are now able to push and to actually occupy more land in Ukraine.

Since Russias full-fledged invasion in February 2022, Ukraines Western backers have routinely met as part of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, run by the Pentagon, to drum up weapons and ammunition for Kyiv. A fresh meeting was held at NATO headquarters on Thursday.

Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair said that his country would send Ukraine 2,300 rocket motors, and that 80,000 more of the devices are being tested. "Pending the results of those tests, we intend to ship more packages of these motors to our Ukrainian partners in the future, he told reporters.

But no progress was made on tracking down the Patriot guided missile systems that Ukraine so badly needs and has been requesting for months. A key advantage of the U.S.-made systems, apart from their effectiveness, is that Ukrainian troops are already trained to use them.

I continue to work this, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told reporters after chairing the meeting. Were going to do everything we can to make sure they have the capability they need.

While the contact group meetings have resulted in significant battlefield support, they have been of an ad-hoc and unpredictable nature. Stoltenberg has spearheaded an effort to have NATO take up some of the slack.

The idea is for the 32-nation military alliance to coordinate the security assistance and training process, partly by using NATOs command structure and drawing on funds from its common budget.

Stoltenberg said he hopes Biden and his counterparts will agree in Washington to maintain the funding level for military support they have provided Ukraine since Russia launched its full-fledged invasion in February 2022.

He estimates this at around 40 billion euros ($43 billion) worth of equipment each year.

On Wednesday, Hungary announced that it would not veto the plan as long as its not forced to take part.

I asked the Secretary-General to make it clear that all military action outside NATO territory can only be voluntary in nature, according to NATO rules and our traditions, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said. Hungary has received the guarantees we need.

The worlds biggest security alliance does not send weapons or ammunition to Ukraine as an organization, and has no plans to put troops on the ground. But many of its members give help on a bilateral basis, and jointly provide more than 90% of the countrys military support.

The other 31 allies see Russias war on Ukraine as an existential security threat to Europe, but most of them, including Biden, have been extremely cautious to ensure that NATO is not drawn into a wider conflict with Russia.

NATO operates on the basis that an attack on any single ally will be met with a response from them all.
ASTANA, Kazakhstan, June 13. KazMunayGas (KMG), Kazakhstan's national oil and gas company, and Japan have discussed the development of low-carbon projects at the Atyrau oil refinery as part of an interstate agreement signed last autumn, Trend reports.

According to the KMG, the issue was addressed during a meeting between KazMunayGas Chairman Askhat Khassenov and the leadership of the Japanese Marubeni Corporation.

It was noted that KMG and Marubeni are awaiting the results of a study on the feasibility of implementing an environmental optimization project for the ELOU-AT-2, ELOU-AVT-3 units, and catalytic cracking units at the refinery. The study is being conducted by the Japanese Yokogawa Corporation.

The implementation of advanced decarbonization and CO emission reduction solutions at the Atyrau refinery is expected to be achieved through the Joint Crediting Mechanism (JCM). If successful, this experience is planned to be replicated at the Pavlodar and Shymkent refineries.

Marubeni Corporation, founded in the late 19th century, ranks among Japan's top five comprehensive trading companies, with a strong presence in the electrical and industrial plant sectors.
A NATO official has said that Russia currently maintains a quantitative advantage over Ukraine in ammunition, personnel and equipment.

Source: NATO official, speaking on condition of anonymity, as reported by European Pravda from Brussels

Details: The official noted that Russia has the capacity to recruit up to 30,000 new soldiers every month.

"They [the Russians  ed.] are likely recruiting about 30,000 new troops every month, so they can likely continue to cover their huge losses," the official said.

He added, however, that Russian forces still lack the ammunition and manoeuvrable units necessary to successfully conduct large-scale offensive operations.

"And the Russian command is now trying to organise and maintain morale," the official said.

Background:

Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin said earlier that at least 350,000 Russian troops have been killed or wounded since the start of the full-scale invasion.

UK Defence Intelligence estimates that the total number of Russian losses (killed and wounded) since the beginning of the full-scale invasion has likely reached 500,000.

The Ukrainian General Staff's data as of 13 June indicate that Russian losses amounted to 522,810 military personnel.

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A Navy chief in Florida died last week during a surface rescue swimmer refresher course at Naval Air Station Jacksonville, officials confirmed.

Chief Naval Aircrewman Peter Lagosh, 41, was on an intermediate stop at NAS Jacksonville en route to a permanent change of station move to Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 12 in Japan at the time of his death Tuesday, June 4, according to the Navy.

Officials declined to provide further details on what happened, citing an ongoing Naval Criminal Investigative Service probe.

Lagosh was attending a course for training Navy rescue swimmers.

We offer our deepest condolences and sympathies to the family, friends and shipmates of the Sailor during this difficult time, Naval Air Force Atlantic said in a statement. Grief counseling services and support are available through the appropriate chains of command and through chaplains.

Lagosh enlisted in 2007 and became a chief in 2020.

A GoFundMe account that states it is raising money to support Lagoshs widow and children says the chief had recently come off a tour as a Navy recruiter in Virginia and had volunteered for the Japan assignment.
A U.S. Navy submarine has arrived in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in a show of force as a fleet of Russian warships gather for planned military exercises in the Caribbean.

U.S. Southern Command said the USS Helena, a nuclear-powered fast attack submarine, pulled into the waters near the U.S. base in Cuba on Thursday, just a day after a Russian frigate, a nuclear-powered submarine, an oil tanker and a rescue tug crossed into Havana Bay after drills in the Atlantic Ocean.

Russian warships enter Cuban waters ahead of Caribbean exercise

The stop is part of a routine port visit as the submarine travels through Southern Commands region, it said in a social media post.

Other U.S. ships also have been tracking and monitoring the Russian drills, which Pentagon officials say do not represent a threat to the United States.

This is not a surprise. Weve seen them do these type of port calls before, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said Wednesday when asked about the Russian drills. We of course take it seriously, but these exercises dont pose a threat to the United States.

The exercises, however, come less than two weeks after President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to use U.S.-provided weapons to strike inside Russia to protect Kharkiv, Ukraines second-largest city. Russian President Vladimir Putin then suggested his military could respond with asymmetrical steps elsewhere in the world.

Singh said it wouldnt be a surprise to see more Russian activity around the United States in such global exercises. The drills are in international waters, and U.S. officials expect the Russian ships to remain in the region through the summer and possibly also stop in Venezuela.

Russia is a longtime ally of Venezuela and Cuba, and its warships and aircraft have periodically made forays into the Caribbean.

Russian ships have occasionally docked in Havana since 2008, when a group of Russian vessels entered Cuban waters in what state media described as the first such visit in almost two decades. In 2015, a reconnaissance and communications ship arrived unannounced in Havana a day before the start of discussions between U.S. and Cuban officials on the reopening of diplomatic relations.
NC voters could weigh in on a number of constitutional amendments this fall, top Republican says

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN)  North Carolina voters could weigh in on several proposed constitutional amendments this fall, as Republican Senate leader Phil Berger confirms there are talks about a number of them.

House Republican leaders are already backing an amendment that would change the wording of the state constitution regarding who is eligible to vote.

Currently, the constitution reads that every person born in the United States and every person who has been naturalized, 18 years of age, is eligible.

The proposed amendment would change that to read, Only a citizen of the United States who is 18 years of age can vote.

House Speaker Tim Moore (R-Cleveland) argues the change is needed to add clarity to the constitution.

I think as long as we get that and get that to the people to be able to vote on it, is very important. I think the Constitution needs to be very clear that only citizens vote in our elections, said Moore.

However, Ann Webb, policy director of Common Cause North Carolina, said the move is unnecessary.

Were talking about an amendment that is clearly designed to be a vehicle for anti-immigrant dog-whistle messaging during this election cycle, she recently told CBS 17. What this is driving is an extremist narrative that there are noncitizens voting in some numbers that could affect this election and ultimately that is just false.

To put a proposed amendment on the ballot requires a three-fifths vote of the General Assembly. The governor cannot veto proposed amendments. It then would require a simple majority of voters to approve the change.

Sen. Berger would not confirm what other potential amendments are under consideration but acknowledged there are discussions about including more than the citizens-only voting amendment.

I dont know that I can say which ones we might actually take up. But, we have had some conversations about a number, Berger said. I really dont want to say which ones because then all of a sudden that becomes the story. The Senates thinking about doing this one or that one or something else. Id rather wait until weve made a decision before we talk about that.

David McLennan, an expert on state politics, said a move to include proposed amendments on the ballot could be an effort to help drive turnout in November, saying some of the issues involved are highly emotional.

A rerun is never as popular as the original, so we might not see as high of turnout. So, this could be trying to get it up to that level that we saw in 2020, for example, he said. Donald Trump, even among Republicans, is not as popular as he once was. And, Mark Robinson is controversial. So, this could be a way of driving turnout, particularly on the Republican side to overcome some candidates with issues.

Possible amendments

New polling released Thursday by the conservative Carolina Partnership for Reform offers ideas of what could be under consideration.

The group asked voters about five potential amendments.

The first would reduce the maximum allowable income tax rate in North Carolina from 7 percent to 4 percent. In 2018, voters approved lowering the cap to 7 percent. The current personal income tax rate is 4.5 percent and is already slated to be cut to 4.25 percent in 2025 and then to 3.99 percent in 2026.

In the poll, 71 percent said they favored lowering the cap to 4 percent compared to 20 percent who said no.

Pollsters also asked voters about the citizens-only voting proposal, which 68 percent said they support compared to 27 percent who oppose.

A third question asked voters if they would support requiring voters to provide photo identification before voting without exceptions. Voters chose to amend the constitution in 2018 to require photo ID to vote. The law the General Assembly passed after that, which is still subject to litigation, does allow for exceptions, such as if a person is the victim of a natural disaster. In the poll, 70 percent said they support the strict ID requirement compared to 29 percent who said no.

A proposal to adopt term limits for the NC Supreme Court also had widespread support. The pollsters asked about limiting state Supreme Court justices to two 12-year terms. They currently run for eight-year terms with no limit. In the poll, 73 percent said they support that compared to 18 percent who said now.

Jim Blaine, a Republican political consultant and former chief of staff to Sen. Berger, posted on X, The judicial term limit amendment would assure NCGOP control of the NC Supreme Court through the next redistricting cycle.

The last potential amendment in the poll would repeal the literacy test from the state Constitution. It was used during the Jim Crow era to keep Black people from voting but became unenforceable under the Voting Rights Act.

This amendment had the smallest margin of support, with 50 percent saying they would vote to eliminate it compared to 39 percent who said no.

The same question was put to voters in 1970, and the effort to repeal it failed. Theres been bipartisan support in the legislature for trying again.

Sen. Berger has raised concerns about whether the effort would be successful this time if voters werent aware of the history of the literacy test and why theyre being asked to remove it.

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.
Nearly 30 more women come forward to accuse twin real-estate heirs of rape: attorney

In the wake of a pair of explosive lawsuits claiming the wealthy real estate-heir Alexander brothers raped two women several years ago, about 30 more alleged victims have come forward with similar claims, according to the lawyer representing the plaintiffs.

Ive spoken to approximately 15 people who say to me they were raped by the Alexander brothers, one [brother] or more, at various times, in New York City, South Beach and in other states as well, attorney Evan Torgan told The Real Deal, which first reported on the suits.

High-powered twins Oren and Alon Alexander attend NASCAR legend Jeff Gordons retirement party in Miami in 2015. Aaron Davidson

Torgan later told The Post he doubled the number because more and more women are coming to him with kindred accounts about the 36-year-old twins, Oren and Alon Alexander of Miami Beach, Florida.

Im talking to new victims every day, Torgan said.

Its the latest twist in the shocking story of the brothers sudden fall from grace, which began over the weekend when The Real Deal reported on damning lawsuits brought by alleged victims Kate Whiteman and Rebecca Mandel.

The multimillionaire brothers are accused of committing heinous acts that were extreme and outrageous to such an extent that the action was atrocious and intolerable in a civilized society, according to court filings.

The twins get in the patriotic spirit at Sir Ivans Castle in the Hamptons on July 3, 2011. Steven Henry

In her suit, Whiteman alleged the brothers abducted her in 2012 and brought her to a Hamptons party palace in Water Mill, Long Island, thats owned by the flamboyant, cape-wearing, banking heir-turned-recording artist Ivan Wilzig.

There, the brothers allegedly dragged her into a large bedroom where she was sexually assaulted, abused, raped, pinned, groped, harassed, battered, and fondled by defendants Alon and Oren.

In the second suit, Mandel claimed Alon allegedly spiked her drink after she met the twins in 2010 at a now-shuttered club in the Meatpacking District when she was just 18 years old, according to court documents.

Dozens of women have come forward with new allegations against the brothers, the attorney for the plaintiffs said. Matthew Peyton

The brothers later raped her in their apartment after luring her there under false pretenses, her lawsuit alleges.

I am proud of what we are doing here, Torgan added in a statement to The Post. And proud of all the people who have come forward with their story  especially Kate Whiteman and Rebecca Mandel who did it with great bravery.

Alon and Oren Alexander, Oren Alexander at the 22nd Annual Watermill Center Summer Benefit and Auction. Patrick McMullan/PatrickMcMullan

Sir Ivan Wilzig performs at his flamboyant birthday party at his equally extravagant Long Island home in 2016. Jerritt Clark

Kate Whiteman alleges she was assaulted by the Alexander brothers in 2012 at Sir Ivans Castle. Jerritt Clark

The Alexander brothers attorney, Jim Ferraro, has denied the allegations and painted the lawsuits as a blatant money grab.

We are confident this matter will be resolved in [their] favor given an extensive collection of powerful evidence including, phone records, text messages, emails and other documents whose content clearly debunks these claims, he said in an earlier statement to The Post.

But Ferraro has not responded to further requests for comment, including a Wednesday inquiry.

Oren Alexander celebrates the return of The Raleigh, a Rosewood Hotel and Residences, at The Carlyle in Manhattan on May 8, 2024. Darian DiCianno/BFA.com/Shutterstock

Despite the denials, there have already been concrete consequences for at least one of the men.

On Tuesday, one of the brothers stepped away from the company he co-founded because of the allegations, which the firm described in an internal email obtained by The Post as extremely disturbing.

The lawsuits were filed under the New York Adult Survivors Act, which has let alleged survivors of sexual assault to seek justice regardless of when the assaults occurred.

So far, no one else has filed a lawsuit against the twins, who live in Miami Beach and hail from a real estate dynasty led by their father, Shlomy Alexander.

But additional claims have apparently landed on The Real Deals Instagram page, which is laden with comments from accounts claiming they were either attacked by the Alexanders or know people who were, the outlet said.
Former governors Vic Atiyeh (seated left), Mark Hatfield (standing left), Neil Goldschmidt (standing center left) and Barbara Roberts (standing center right), joined Gov. John Kitzhaber (seated right) and governor-elect Ted Kulongoski (standing right) before a memorial service for Gov. Bob Straub in 2002.

Former Oregon Gov. Neil Goldschmidt, one of the states most powerful figures before revelations that he had sexually abused a teenager, died Wednesday, two days before he would have turned 84.

As the young mayor of Portland in the 1970s, Goldschmidt was an electrifying figure. While many American cities were falling apart, he presided over a flurry of innovation in the City of Roses. He helped kill a freeway and launch a light rail. Under his watch, inner-city neighborhoods were lavished with money and attention. Buses sped passengers for free through a downtown transit mall.

Portland historian Carl Abbott said Goldschmidt showed early in his political career that he was a consummate power broker: Unlike some other people who think they are dealmakers, he could actually see common points among disparate interests and see how you could pull them together  find something they could all agree on.

Goldschmidt vaulted to national prominence as President Jimmy Carters transportation secretary. He returned to Oregon and won the governorship in 1986 and eventually morphed into a powerful behind-the-scenes consultant.

By the early 2000s, he was asked to take charge of efforts to remake Oregons system of higher education. And he was the front man for a Texas firms audacious deal to buy Portland General Electric  the states largest utility.

Read the entire story here.

This article originally appeared on Salem Statesman Journal: Former Oregon Gov. Neil Goldschmidt dies
Survivors of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting share their thoughts on high school graduation before a rally against gun violence on Friday, June 7, 2024 in Newtown, Conn. (AP Photo/Bryan Woolston)

NEWTOWN, Conn. (AP)  It was an emotional graduation ceremony for high school seniors in Newtown, Connecticut, who observed a moment of silence for their 20 classmates who were shot to death at Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Principal Kimberly Longobucco read the names of the first graders who were killed on Dec. 14, 2012 along with six educators as the class of 2024 and their families looked on Wednesday, Hearst Connecticut Media reported.

We remember them for their bravery, their kindness and their spirit, Longobucco said. "Let us strive to honor them today and every day.

Newtown Schools Superintendent Chris Melillo told the 335 graduates, Life is too short to do something that doesnt ignite your soul  something that doesnt fill you with purpose and meaning. Never settle for anything less than what sets your heart afire.

About 60 of the Newtown High graduates attended Sandy Hook Elementary School and are survivors of one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history.

Wednesday's graduation ceremony was closed to the media except for two local news organizations.

Sandy Hook survivors who spoke to The Associated Press in advance of their graduation said their fallen classmates were in their thoughts.

I am definitely going be feeling a lot of mixed emotions, said Emma Ehrens, 17. Im super excited to be, like, done with high school and moving on to the next chapter of my life. But Im also so ... mournful, I guess, to have to be walking across that stage alone.  I like to think that theyll be there with us and walking across that stage with us.

Some Sandy Hook survivors have spoken of their community as a bubble protecting them from the outside world.

Class salutatorian Grace Chiriatti said during the ceremony that part of her wishes that things could stay the same because of the level of comfort we have as graduating seniors.

Everything seems so perfect surrounded by people I love its difficult to leave just as I have everything figured out, Chiriatti said. But by starting something new we dont have to start over.
CONCORD  After a long and rocky road, legal cannabis in New Hampshire is dead.

After being passed by the Senate 14-10 in the morning, the New Hampshire House of Representatives tabled the bill to legalize cannabis in the state by just 5 votes, 178-173, effectively killing it.

The New Hampshire House voted to table HB 1633, which would've legalized cannabis in New Hampshire, by just five votes Thursday, June 13, 2024.

The final House Bill 1633 called for a state-controlled franchise model of cannabis stores, an approach pushed by the Senate that Gov. Chris Sununu has supported. It had some compromises from both sides, the New Hampshire Bulletin reported: it included the Senate-proposed 15% tax on cannabis sales and wouldve allowed cannabis industry representation to a control board that would make the rules and regulations around growing, testing, and selling, something pushed by the House. If passed and signed, possession of up to an ounce of cannabis wouldve been legalized immediately.

On Wednesday, Gov. Chris Sununu said he would take a strong look at the bill if it came to his desk, saying that he didnt see any huge red flags and that theyve tried to develop a system that is built around the concept of safety. But he also said he wasnt sure if it would actually get to him.

The bill has faced steady opposition in the House, as many Democrats opposed the franchise model.

I seriously want to legalize cannabis sales in New Hampshire, but the fact is, despite the recent tweaks, this remains a terrible bill, said Rep. Jared Sullivan, D-Bethlehem, on the House floor Thursday. One that massively increases the size of government by allowing it to take over an entirely new industry and opens the door to the possibility of rampant corruption and cronyism as the well-connected vie for an extremely limited number of licenses.

The bills original sponsor, Erica Layon, R-Derry, said this bill could make history as well as get the ball rolling in New Hampshire. She said that they could work on some of the concerns of the bill next year.

But Sullivan said he doesnt think they will be able to fix the bill in the future.

Does anyone in here actually believe that we will be able to reel in a newly empowered government bureaucracy after theyve spent millions of dollars? Does anyone actually believe it will be easy to pull back power from an unelected agency once they have it? Sullivan asked. The logic that we can fix something next year is counterintuitive because if next year we have the ability to pass a new bill to fix this terrible one, then we should just pass a good bill next year.

Rep. Jared Sullivan, D-Bethlehem, speaks against HB 1633 at the New Hampshire Statehouse Thursday, June 13, 2024.

Rep. John Hunt, R-Rindge, attempting to overturn the tabling motion, said this could be the moment to send the message that we can pass this bill.

It wasnt, and so the fight to legalize cannabis is now over for the 2024 legislative session.

American Civil Liberties Union-New Hampshire stated pushing off legalization shows lawmakers are willing to ignore the will of their own constituents" and the drug's continued illegality will continue to "needlessly ensnare" people in New Hampshire's criminal justice system.

Despite a unique window of opportunity and growing excitement about legalization, today, New Hampshire lawmakers failed to pass legislation to legalize marijuana, said Devon Chaffee, executive director of the ACLU-New Hampshire. Marijuana legalization is not just a political squabble about the economic benefits - the war on marijuana has real-life impacts. While politicians argue, the impacts of these arrests will continue to ruin lives.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: NH House kills legal cannabis bill as compromises go up in smoke
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)  The Otero County Sheriffs Office is asking for the publics help in locating a 72-year-old woman.

Annette Meyerhoff, 72, was last seen at 1 p.m. Tuesday, June 11 at her residence in Timberon, New Mexico, according to the New Mexico State Police (NMSP).

Meyerhoff is described as: 5-foot-4; 137 pounds; grey hair and green eyes. She was last seen wearing a sweater and jeans.

NMSP said she may be in a 2015 Buick with NM plate BPKF73.

Anyone with information is asked to call the Otero County Sheriffs Office at (575) 437-2210 or dial 911.

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 KTSM 9 News.
BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, June 13. The parliament of Kyrgyzstan has approved a bill lifting the ban on uranium and thorium mining in the country, Trend reports.

The parliament gave the bill the green light, effectively throwing out the 2019 law that put a lid on any activities connected to geological exploration, prospecting, and development of uranium and thorium deposits in Kyrgyzstan. In the second and third readings, 70 deputies gave it the thumbs up, while merely 8 gave it the thumbs down.

Kyrgyzstan's Cabinet of Ministers initiated the bill. To reduce the environmental effect of mining operations, the state will examine contemporary uranium and thorium extraction technologies in tandem with the passage of the law. Should such technology be found, state authorities will mandate that mining businesses adopt it.



The bill is meant to develop titanomagnetite reserves, not uranium and thorium deposits, stressed Cabinet of Ministers Chairman Akylbek Japarov.

To note, a moratorium on these activities was introduced in Kyrgyzstan in 2019. In February 2024, President Sadyr Japarov discussed plans to develop the Kyzyl Ompol deposit with residents of the Tong and Kochkor districts.
Democrats offered a muted celebration to the Supreme Courts ruling Thursday upholding access to a common abortion medication, warning that the Trump-led Republican campaign against reproductive rights is far from over.

This case brought on by Donald Trumps allies was only one tactic in a broader relentless strategy to strip away access to reproductive freedom everywhere in this country, Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez told reporters on a press call shortly after the ruling. If Trump regains power in November, Trumps allies will be ready to deploy their plans to ban abortion access nationwide without the help of Congress or the court.

In a statement, President Joe Biden painted a dire picture of women being turned away from emergency rooms and facing additional challenges with accessing reproductive care, particularly in states with blanket abortion bans.

The Supreme Court ruled unanimously that a collection of anti-abortion doctors and groups lacked standing to challenge decisions made by the Food and Drug Administration facilitating access to the drug mifepristone. The move  which is the courts first ruling on abortion since overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022  allowed the high court to essentially sidestep the issue and was a disappointment for abortion opponents.

Democrats may welcome the news that the abortion pill continues to be widely accessible to the public, but it does deflate the possibility that the Supreme Court hands down another unpopular ruling in an election year. The Dobbs decision is credited with powering Democratic wins, and Thursdays ruling removes the potential for another motivating flashpoint for voters who rank abortion access as a top issue.

But that wont stop Democrats from centering abortion as a campaign issue. Chavez Rodriguez added that Biden plans to focus on reproductive rights during his debate with the former president at the end of the month.

Were going to be reminding Americans of all thats at stake for reproductive freedom not just today, but on the debate stage, and every single day leading up to the election, Chavez Rodriguez said. President Biden is going to make Donald Trump answer for the state of reproductive rights in this country.

Earlier in the day, Trump met with Republicans on Capitol Hill and urged them to frame abortion as a states rights issue.

The Supreme Court has unanimously decided 9-0. The matter is settled, Danielle Alvarez, a senior adviser to Trump, wrote in a statement to POLITICO. This election is about correcting the weakness, failures and dishonesty of the Biden crime family.

Thursdays ruling also sparked a wave of Democratic lawmakers and governors lamenting their fear of continuing threats to access to abortion medication. In remarks on the Senate floor, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said that while he was relieved by the ruling, no one should be celebrating it  particularly because of how it was decided.

Let us not forget: This decision was based not on the merits, but on the lack of standing  we are not yet out of the woods, said Schumer, who, with other Senate Democrats, spearheaded a vote Thursday on a bill that would guarantee access to in vitro fertilization nationwide. Senate Republicans blocked the bill.

Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.), who is locked in a tough reelection race against GOP businessperson Dave McCormick, warned in a statement that extreme politicians would continue to seek a national abortion ban and rescind the right to contraception. Casey has been hitting McCormick on abortion on the campaign trail; the Republican opponent has said that he is pro-life with exceptions and would not support a national abortion ban.

While emphasizing that mifepristone remains available in states where abortion is legal, Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) wrote on X that threats against medication abortion led by Trump and Republicans have not gone away. Majority Whip Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) expressed support for the Supreme Courts decision but cautioned in a post on X that Radical right-wing judges and extremist Republicans will still try to strip women of their reproductive freedoms.

We will fight back, Durbin wrote.

Several blue-state governors also voiced their apprehension. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker  who personally funds a nonprofit that seeks to protect abortion access at the state level through ballot initiatives  described the ruling as a limited victory in a broader fight that requires voters to stop MAGA extremists from taking power and further restricting abortion rights. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul pledged in a statement that her state would continue to be a safe harbor for reproductive freedom.

Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey, who joined an amicus brief with 21 other state executives urging the court to protect abortion medication access, said in remarks to reporters, Theres no comfort to take in this decision.

Kelly Garrity contributed to this report.
No more Pornhub in Kentucky? Worlds biggest porn site reacts to new state ID law

Above is a screenshot of a statement to users from the pornographic website PornHub.

The worlds largest pornographic website is starting to warn Kentuckians: You will lose access.

That comes from the website Pornhub in response to the impending effective date of House Bill 278, which requires websites with content deemed harmful to minors to collect documents proving the users adulthood before allowing them access.

The bill was passed late this years legislative session after a push from the Republican caucuses Liberty wings to add the age verification component to it.

Once on the floor, it sailed through both chambers without a single no vote and was signed into law by Democratic Gov. Andy Beshear.

The bill will take effect July 15, the effective date for all legislation passed this year without an emergency clause.

Pornhub indicated to users that it will pull the plug on Kentucky on July 10.

Did you know that your government wants you to give your drivers license before you can access PORNHUB, the site told users in a statement topped with the Kentucky state flag. As crazy as that sounds, its true. As of July 10, youll be required to prove you are 18 years or older such as by uploading your government ID for every adult content website youd like to access.

We dont want minors accessing our site and think preventing that from happening is a good thing. But putting everybodys privacy at risk wont achieve that.

A spokesperson for Aylo, the parent company of Pornhub, did not directly respond to a Herald-Leader inquiry on whether or not they will eventually create a mechanism to verify Kentucky users age based on documents. They said the issue was not that there was no way for them to process government IDs, its just that doing so puts user safety and privacy in jeopardy.

Aylo has publicly supported age verification of users for years, but we believe that any law to this effect must preserve user safety and privacy, and must effectively protect children from accessing content intended for adults. Unfortunately, the way many jurisdictions worldwide have chosen to implement age verification is ineffective, haphazard, and dangerous. Any regulations that require hundreds of thousands of adult sites to collect significant amounts of highly sensitive personal information is putting user safety in jeopardy, a spokesperson for Aylo wrote.

Its statement to users indicates that it wants to use device-based age verification methods instead of relying on documents.

In an earlier statement to the Herald-Leader, the company referenced a similar law passed by Louisiana last year.

Since it took effect, Pornhub traffic has fallen by about 80% as it complied with the law, the Aylo statement said.

These people did not stop looking for porn, Aylo said. They just migrated to darker corners of the internet that dont ask users to verify age, that dont follow the law, that dont take user safety seriously and that often dont even moderate content.

In practice, the laws have just made the internet more dangerous for adults and children.

Its possible that legal challenges on freedom of speech grounds against the bill could occur.

Sen. Gex Williams, R-Verona, was the legislator who added the age verification portion to House Bill 278.

He told the Herald-Leader during session that he believed the bill would fare well in court.

In his opinion, its less likely that the state will get sued because the bill codifies a private right of legal action as opposed to banning the practice of not having age verification on such websites.

But if it is challenged in court, Williams said it will join several similar cases that could find their way in front of the highest court in the land.

I think the internet, in general, is ripe for another Supreme Court review, Williams said.

He also celebrated the possibility of sites like Pornhub leaving Kentucky, as it is signaling it will do now.

I think it will be a good day for Kentucky kids when Pornhub and sites like it pull out, Williams said.

The bill also creates a method for a child or the childs parents to sue for $10,000 per incident where a pornographic website doesnt verify a users age as the bill requires. Additionally, websites that retain users identifying information for more than 24 hours after verifying their ages are liable for damages of $1,000 per day, in addition to court costs and attorneys fees.

Websites that fall under the requirement include any that distribute material that is more than one-third harmful to minors.

The Free Speech Coalition, the trade association for the adult industry, has previously told the Herald-Leader bills like this effectively remove anonymity from the internet and expose millions of everyday citizens to the threat of hacking, identity theft and government surveillance.

There are more effective solutions that dont require government censorship or put internet users at risk, Mike Stabile, director of public affairs for the coalition, wrote in an email to the Herald-Leader.
Say 'no, thank you' to becoming a stoner. 'Pauls Pot Shop' bad news for Ohio.

Stay away from 'Pauls Pot Shop'

Recreational dope is coming to Pauls Pot Shop near you and it is ok just to say 'no, thank you' to becoming a stoner.

May 15, 2024; Yellow Springs, Ohio, USA; Cresco Labs grows its first marijuana crop for Ohio's new adult recreational use program.

Who needs a drug that zaps your enthusiasm, makes you lethargic and put pounds on you due to getting munchies? Using grass is not cool unless it is medically necessary and just because something is legal doesnt mean it is a smart thing to do.

Where you can't buy recreational weed. 54 Ohio towns will ban sales despite legalization of marijuana.

Nancy Reagan preached "Just Say No," and she was correct.

Michael Oser, Columbus

When are we going to hold the VA accountable?

I write you today after years of watching my loved one suffer at the hands of the Columbus VA.

My husband is considered 100% disabled, which means the government has agreed his injuries, which were sustained in combat, are severe enough they will take care of his health care for the rest of his life.

When he received his 100% rating we breathed a sigh of relief. That relief quickly turned to anger and frustration as I watched him suffer at the hands of the Chalmers P. Wylie VA staff.

He has been wrongfully denied access to community care, his patient rights have been violated, hes been made fun of by doctors and staff have stonewalled and verbally abused him.

He has written appeals, called a senator and fought valiantly just to be turned down.

We asked these men and women to fight for our county and they fulfilled their part of the contract. When are we going to hold the VA accountable? Creating intentional barriers to care is keeping our veterans sick and suffering.

As you enjoy your July 4 parades and BBQs, remember something must be done to protect our veterans; they cannot fight alone any longer.

Hannah Dingman, Columbus

An amoral, self-dealing, lying, cheating hypocrite runs for office

When someone says that they like Trumps policies, I say this: Since the day Trump came down the golden escalator, he has proven himself to be an amoral, self-dealing, lying, cheating hypocrite.

Based on his attacks against our democracy, our Constitution, our institutions and our rule of law, in my opinion, he is also treasonous. He is an adjudicated sexual abuser, an adjudicated business fraud and now he is a convicted felon.

These are all labels he has invited upon himself, many he and his minions claim proudly. What depths of depravity are we going to allow him to reach?

Such a person cannot be a good president. Such a party is not capable of working in the best interests of the country as a whole.

The only way this country is going to have a government that functions effectively is for all its citizens is to decisively vote this bad man and his MAGA party into the dust bin of history.

Please get registered and make your voice heard.

Richard D. Back, New Albany

Jail investigation worth price of Dispatch

Investigative stories like the recent reports of deaths in our jails are why I find the Dispatch well worth the cost of a subscription.

Gov. Mike DeWine: Jail deaths should be investigated by an outside agency, not sheriffs

Most news is widely available, but your investigations are invaluable.

Thank you. Well done.

Marjorie Menaul, Columbus

Letters to the Editor

What's on your mind? How to submit a letter to the editor for The Columbus Dispatch

Unconstitutional and immoral treatment of inmates

Great editorial June 6 on the shameful deaths of innocent individuals, and the need for humane treatment, in Ohio jails.

The editorial reported more people have died in Ohios jails over the past four years than the number of inmates on death row, even though 166 of the jail inmates had not been convicted of any crime.

Our view: Ohio jails shouldnt be death sentences for those with drug, mental health issues

The editorial further reported that one inmate, Isaiah, begged for his meds, saying, if I have meds, itll [self-injurious behavior] stop. Isaiah was apparently not given his medication, and he died.

Unfortunately, that refusal of medicine was not unique, since the editorial reported jail personnel often . . . withheld life-saving medicine and equipment.

Special Investigation: In Ohio's jails 220 inmates have died in 4 years

Depriving pretrial detainees of their medication is unconstitutional, not simply immoral.

Indeed, in Cudnik v. Kreiger (N.D. Ohio 1974), the District Court ruled that depriving a pretrial detainee of her medication deprived the jail inmate of her constitutional rights: policy of withholding medicine thus constitutes punishment imposed without a finding of criminal culpability and, as such, is violative of fundamental due process rights."

To prevent jail deaths, the Ohio General Assembly should enact legislation requiring medical care for jail inmates and not be satisfied with only after-the-fact investigations.

Douglas Rogers, Bexley

Biden trial proof legal system not flawed

Donald Trump supporters lost a talking point June 11, not that it, like nearly all of its talking points, was ever a valid one, when Hunter Biden was found guilty on three federal felony counts.

Cries that there are two justice systems, one that President Joe Biden is using simply to get Trump, guilty on 34 charges, now ring even hollower.

Biden, with zero say in state matters, had nothing to do with Trumps charges, filed by a grand jury consisting of Republicans, Democrats and Independents, nor with his son's convictions, found by a jury also consisting of a similar group.

Conversely, although Joe Biden could have gotten involved in his sons federal case, he not only did not, except to show, along with his wife and family, their love and support for him, but he also stated that he would not grant Hunter a pardon if convicted, unlike what Trump has promised to do with the Jan. 6 insurrectionists who stormed the Capitol and assaulted police officers with our nations flag.

We have only one system of justice. We simply need good men and honorable politicians like Joe Biden to show us the way in exemplary fashion.

Greg Ward, Dublin

Politicians will say anything to keep power. We should repeat lies.

Re "Don't spread lies about Trump trial," June 12: I have always loved teaching and caring for children.

One of the pleasures I have is watching them interpret the world as they grow.

A 3-year-old I care for told me I was being disrespectful because I wouldnt let her have/do something she wanted.

Obviously, her parents had admonished her for being disrespectful in the past, but in this case she was either misunderstanding the meaning of the word or trying to manipulate me. She was a very smart girl.

Donald Trump's conviction was justice. Lying about it dangerous to our fragile democracy.

I equate this with the actions I am seeing many adults exhibit these days. They seize on terms and phrases they dont completely understand (critical race theory, ballot harvesting, "Stop the Steal," "Make America Great Again"), and run with without enough information.

Zach Kleins June 8, guest column addresses this and how dangerous it can be.

The legal system is corrupt is a popular phrase lately being bandied about. Why would we believe that? Like a 3-year-old, because it isn't the outcome we want.

We need to take some time to understand these words and phrases before we repeat and act on them. We also need to understand many current politicians will say anything to remain in power.

Holly Richard, Columbus

We are destroying ourselves

Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them: Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand."

We are at that point now in this country.

Don't think that we can go on like this and survive. It happened to many "kingdoms" in the past.

We are destroying ourselves internally with all the drugs, hate, murders, thieving, homelessness, egocentric leaders, abortions, plethora of guns out of control, absentee fathers, immorality, authoritarian leaders and many other weaknesses.

We are on a sandy foundation instead of rock like when our leaders tried to work together. We need to look into our heart.

Consider what did I do today to make this world a better place, not just what did I do to make myself more comfortable.

Andy Rudy, Upper Arlington

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Marijuana will zap Ohioans' enthusiasm. Stay clear of 'Pauls Pot Shop.'
Nonprofits asking people to consider donating for World Blood Donor Day

ALABAMA (WHNT)  June 14 is World Blood Donor Day, and Blood Assurance and LifeSouth are encouraging everyone to donate and advocate.

According to a letter sent to Congress by Americas Blood Centers  including Blood Assurance and LifeSouth  only 3% of Americans donate blood each year, despite the FDA expanding the pool of eligible donors.

Blood donation also tends to dwindle during the summertime, while the need for blood remains.

UAH celebrating 55 years of service

Blood donors must be 17 years old or 16 with parental permission, weigh a minimum of 110 pounds and be in good health to donate blood. A photo ID is also needed.

LifeSouth Community Blood Centers, which serves many local hospitals, are encouraging people to donate as the communitys blood supply is at emergency levels, especially type O blood.

LifeSouth donors are eligible to receive a $25 e-gift card when they give, and people donating platelets or double red cells can receive an additional $20 e-gift card. Those giving at a donor center may also receive a hat, while supplies last.

News 19 has compiled a list of LifeSouth donor centers that you can visit to give blood below.

Albertville

8626 Highway 431

Albertville, AL 35950

Athens Donor Center

22051 US Highway 72 East

Unit A

Athens, AL 35613

Decatur

2349 Danville Rd., SW Suite 120

Decatur, AL 35603

Madison- County Line Rd.

12060 County Line Rd.

Suite F

Madison, AL 35756

Madison- Madison Blvd.

8190 Madison Blvd.

Madison, AL 35758

Shoals

307 Veterans Drive

Florence, AL 35630

(256) 765-7038

South Huntsville Donor Center

8404 Memorial Parkway SW

Unit A

Huntsville, AL 35802

Blood Assurance is a nonprofit, full-service regional blood center that serves hospitals in North Alabama, and it will be hosting two donation events in DeKalb County for World Blood Donor Day.

Huntsville Botanical Garden hosting new, free to attend farmers market

The first event will be at the DeKalb County Sheriffs Office, located at 2801 Jordan Road Fort Payne, AL 35967, on Thursday, June 13 from 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The second will be held at the Foodland in Rainsville, which can be found at 318 McCurdy Avenue North Rainsville, AL 35986, on Friday, June 14 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Every donation has the potential to save up to three lives, and we encourage everyone who is eligible to consider making a blood donation, said Garry Allison, SVP of Operations at Blood Assurance.

Additionally, Blood Assurance said it will be giving away $20 E-gift cards for all O-negative donors through this Friday. Anyone who gives blood during June will receive a color-changing cup and a towel with a United We Give design  while supplies last.

To see if Blood Assurance has a donor center near you or schedule an appointment, click here.

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.
Since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, the use of masks for public health has become a controversial and increasingly partisan issue. A number of viral social media posts claim North Carolina Republicans are pushing legislation that would ban people from wearing masks in publiceven if necessary for their health.

North Carolina Republicans just voted to advance a bill that would ban anyone from wearing a mask in publiceven for health reasons. It would even apply to cancer patients and people with weakened immune systems, one Threads post reads. A Reddit post last month made a similar claim, stating that individuals would no longer be able to wear masks in public for health or safety reasons.

The bill in question, however, does not prohibit the wearing of medical masks in public. The new legislation, which has not yet been signed into law, enhances sentences for felony or misdemeanor crimes if the perpetrator wore a mask or face covering to conceal their identity. It does not prevent law-abiding citizens from wearing masks in their daily lives.

Earlier this week, the North Carolina state legislature passed House Bill 237 targeting protesters and rioters who conceal their identities while committing criminal acts. The legislation, which initially stalled in the state Senate more than a year ago, received a second life after anti-Israel protests broke out on college campusesincluding the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hillthis spring.

The initial draft of the bill, first filed on March 1, 2023, included narrow language specifically targeting those attempting to conceal their identity when committing a misdemeanor or felony. If a person is convicted of a misdemeanor or felony and it is found as provided in this section that the person wore a mask, hood, or other clothing or device that concealed or attempted to conceal the persons identity at the time of the offense, it reads, then the person is guilty of a misdemeanor or felony that is one class higher than the underlying misdemeanor or felony for which the person was convicted.

Concerns that the legislature would outlaw masking for health reasons originated in May when GOP legislators in the state Senate proposed an amendment that would have repealed a 2020 health and safety exemption to the states longstanding ban on masks, hoods, and other devices designed to conceal identities. When the COVID-19 pandemic began, North Carolina legislators quickly amended a 1953 law that banned the wearing of masks in public, which was passed to combat the Ku Klux Klans use of hoods to conceal the identity of its members.

The Senates proposed changes were rejected by the state House and put under review after Republican representatives expressed concerns that it may restrict people who wear masks for health reasons from doing so. Lawmakers reached a compromise earlier this month that left the provision in place, altering its language slightly to exempt any person wearing a medical or surgical grade mask for the purpose of preventing the spread of contagious disease. Other longstanding exemptions to the 1953 restriction, such as those for holiday costumes and theatrical productions, were unchanged.

House lawmakers approved a final version of HB 237 on June 12, sending the legislation to the desk of Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper, who has not yet signed or vetoed it. Cooper is reportedly skeptical of an unrelated provision in the bill that would loosen a campaign finance restriction, but it could become law even if Cooper vetoes it. State Republicans gained a supermajority in April 2023 when Democratic Rep. Tricia Cotham switched parties, giving the GOP the 72 votes needed to override a gubernatorial veto.

If you have a claim you would like to see us fact check, please send us an email at factcheck@thedispatch.com. If you would like to suggest a correction to this piece or any other Dispatch article, please email corrections@thedispatch.com.

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North Port readies referendum to ask voters to allow city to borrow without asking public

NORTH PORT  North Port city staff will start crafting a referendum to ask voters to loosen the purse strings to allow the officials to borrow some money without a public approval.

Voters would still have to approve borrowing through bonds backed by property taxes.

In addition to voting to direct city staff to bring an ordinance back to set the referendum, the City Commission also wants to see a debt management plan similar to those used by some other governments to outline how much North Port can safely borrow and repay through bonds, as well as short-term loans.

North Port is the only known municipality in Florida that does not have that ability to borrow without voter approval.

Currently the city is facing about $1.8 billion in unmet infrastructure needs.

The most publicized recent need  a new police station that could be as large as 108,000 square feet or more  carries a projected price tag of $122.7 million. More recently, a revenue bond financed by gate receipts from Warm Mineral Springs has been suggested as a way to restore three iconic buildings there and develop other park amenities for public use.

Why cant North Port issue revenue bonds without a referendum?

General Development Corp. created that provision 65 years ago, when the city was incorporated as North Port Charlotte in 1959.

Other cities started by GDC, such as Deltona, Palm Bay, Palm Coast and Port St. Lucie, once had similar city charter prohibitions but can all now borrow money up to a certain amount without a referendum.

Counties enjoy the same ability. For example, Sarasota County  which has a debt management plan  can borrow up to $28 million per project without voter approval.

North Port officials initially envisioned a similar per project cap but now favor tying the limit it to the debt management plan, which will likely be developed by PFM Financial Advisors LLC, the citys financial advisor, with input from the citys bond counsel.

Such a plan would tie the citys ability to borrow more tightly to its creditworthiness and bond rating and give the commission control over how much it could borrow and for which projects.

Vice Mayor Phil Stokes considered that policy a key for both his support and voter approval of the proposed referendum.

It sends a clear direction to our citizens as to how we are going to operated and how exactly we are going to manage our debt, Stokes said,

Though a per-project cap will not be included in the ballot language staff will present to the commission, one could be inserted before final approval.

An official debt management plan would be adopted prior to any future spending.

Why is the city of North Port asking for the power to borrow now?

Two words: Hurricane Ian. The wind and water damage created by that Category 4 storm crippled so many aspects of the citys infrastructure  breaching canals, shattering roadway and damaging buildings  that required immediate repairs.

North Port City Hall

Assistant Public Works Director Tricia Wisner told the commission that since the citys borrowing capacity was tied to the voter referendum process, it was impossible to apply for some short term, low-interest state and federal loan programs.

We were unable to take advantage of, potentially, free money, Wisner said.

What type of revenue bonds may be issued?

The current draft referendum language would ask for the ability to borrow funds to offset the impact of a declared emergency or disaster, as well as safety and public health projects and essential services and sanitation.

Those could be paid for out of enterprise fund revenues or sales tax funds and other fees, but not property taxes.

Ballot questions are limited to 75 words, so there will likely be several edits and efforts to explain things concisely.

The ordinance that would place the referendum to change the city charter must still be subject to two public hearings and sent to the Supervisor of Elections office by Aug. 6 to make the Nov. 5 general election ballot.

Should that referendum ultimately be approved, city officials  or likely a private business partner willing to champion the cause  will have to spend a lot of time explaining to voters the specific borrowing authority they will have.

We dont fully understand what were giving away to you, Robin San Vicente said. Its not really clear, its not spelled out and its not defined and its not delineated enough to give you our vote.

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: North Port officials to seek authority to borrow without public vote
Norway sends almost 42 million worth of grenade launcher ammunition to Ukraine

Norway will provide Ukraine with grenade launcher ammunition worth an estimated 42 million.

Source: Norwegian news platform NRK, citing an announcement by Defence Minister Bjrn Arild Gram, as reported by European Pravda

Details: The minister noted that at Ukraine's request, Norway will send a batch of grenade launcher rounds worth about NOK 480 million (almost 42 million) to meet the current needs of the Armed Forces.

"Ukraine is in great need of all types of ammunition and has asked specifically for what we are now delivering," Gram said in a comment to NRK.

He added that Norway has also recently provided a batch of hand grenades worth NOK 50 million (4.7 million) and ammunition for sniper weapons worth NOK 3 million (260,000).

Background:

This week, it was announced that Norway would fund the reinforcement of Ukraine's air defence by 240 million, of which 125 million will be used to jointly supply hundreds of interceptor missiles for the Patriot system with other allies.

On Tuesday, the Norwegian parliament approved a long-term plan for the development of the Norwegian Armed Forces up till 2036, which includes a record increase in defence expenditure.

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CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  At a time when violence remains a top priority for law enforcement, community organizations and local politicians, health care centers in Charlotte have begun to play a larger role in breaking the cycle of violence.

In early January, Novant Health officially launched its violence intervention specialist program.

Its similar to programs implemented at hospitals across the state, including Atrium Health in Charlotte.

Close to six months into the program, and the violence interruption specialists have already connected with more than 100 families.

NC juvenile crime bill could send young offenders straight to adult court

Id rather save one person, then save nobody, intervention team member Damion Lewis said.

Lewis served in a similar role in Rochester, New York, for roughly a decade.

He moved to Charlotte for this specific job and said hes seen similarities between the two cities violence trends.

Both include having tough conversations on some of the toughest days of peoples lives.

Those tougher conversations couldve prevented tougher lives, he explained.

As a specialist, each day he connects with trauma victims who were admitted due to injuries they sustained from an assault.

Lewis says most patients have returned to a normal lifestyle, or have reported taking steps to address the negative influences on their lives.

He has tried to get to the root of the issue which may have led to their injury.

We may have a patient that is working full-time, they may just have been in the wrong place at the wrong time, he explained. Compared to that young man whose possibly drug-addicted who will need a lot more resources than the person who will just go back to work.

Lewis spent his childhood in situations which were eerily similar to the places many of the targeted victims have found themselves in.

Ive seen friends shot and killed, and I want to help them see that theres a better way to deal with their anger to avoid retaliation, he explained. I have the opportunity to actually fix someone. I always wanted to be fixed when I was their age.

The job also comes with daily follow-ups with patients to ensure they have access to proper care and information they need for a successful recovery.

City Council funding for two CMPD gear proposals, third for vests removed

Lewis shared this note he received for a patient:

I just wanted to reach out and say thank you so much for the support and continued support you have shown myself and [omitted]. Its really important to have someone like you to ensure a great recovery process. The day we entered Novant you were there, coming to visit, making sure the ICU nurses were giving him the care he needs; Even playing a couple of games on the PS5 to keep her spirits up. I really appreciate you helping me reach out to his school to make sure they were properly informed of the incident. You even helped him with the email for his appeal with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools. I would have had no idea that there was a program to assist with medical bills, lost wages, etc., if it wasnt for you. Keep up the great work you are doing and continue to be a voice for those who need it.

Out of the more than 100 patients Lewis has seen, he stressed none have been readmitted for assault wounds.

He also said most have returned to a normal lifestyle, or have reported taking steps to address the negative influences on their lives.

However, he reported a small percentage have refused his help.

The program will be funded by the state for at least two years, before it is up for renewal.

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 Queen City News.
FLORISSANT, Mo.  The Army Corps of Engineers held a public meeting in Florissant to discuss nuclear waste cleanup Wednesday evening. Residents have expressed their concerns over the waste for years and feel the cleanup process has gone too slowly and lacks transparency.

Before the meeting was underway, affected residents gathered with politicians and other activists for a press conference outside. The group called for the Army Corps of Engineers to be more transparent and to spend more time listening to the concerns of the community.

Col. Andy Pannier, the Army Corps Commander for the St. Louis District, made a concession during Wednesday nights meeting.

First off, yes, we were wrong in some of the things we communicated, and I do apologize for that, he said. Lets stand up if we did something wrong and say it, and move on.

In the last 10 years, theyve gone from $11 million to $40 million for the St. Louis cleanup, according to Pannier.

Alleged drug pipeline from Mexico to St. Louis uncovered in federal case

Cleanup of nuclear waste in the area comes with several limiting factors. Pannier said one of them is that all the contaminated material from across the area goes to one location near the St. Louis Airport before being shipped off on railcars.

There are currently 700 employees working on remediation across the St. Louis area at different sites and the cleanup is extremely technical work.

The other issue at play is the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, or RECA. Funding for St. Louisans affected by these toxic materials recently expired. Missouri U.S. Senator Josh Hawley passed a bill in the Senate to reinstate those funds, but it has not made it to the floor of the house for a vote. Hawley calls it unacceptable.

They have got to get off their backside and do something. The senate now has twice passed my bill with huge bipartisan majorities, Hawley said. The house needs to pass it. Thats the long and the short of it. Its not complicated.

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BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, June 13. The Kyrgyz Parliament (Jogorku Kenesh) passed a bill banning the use of e-cigarettes in the first reading, the statement of Kyrgyzstan's Parliament said, Trend reports.

The deputies considered and passed the bill on amendments to the law "On protection of the health of citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic from the consequences of tobacco consumption, nicotine, and exposure to ambient tobacco smoke and aerosol" in the first reading.

"Violation of the ban on the use of electronic cigarettes shall entail a fine of 400 calculation indices for individuals and 600 calculation indices for legal entities. Violation of the ban on the sale of electronic cigarettes shall entail a fine of 500 calculation indexes for individuals and 650 calculation indexes for legal entities. The importation of electronic cigarettes is punishable by a fine of 1,500 to 2,000 calculation indices or imprisonment for a term of one to two years," the statement reads.

Furthermore, it is noted that the purpose of the bill is to ensure the health and well-being of young citizens by deterring them from using e-cigarettes to protect against stunted body development and addiction to the negative habit.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Nursing homes are left in the dark as more utilities cut power to prevent wildfires

(Getty Images)

This story was originally published by KFF Health News.

When powerful wind gusts created threatening wildfire conditions one day near Boulder, the states largest utility cut power to 52,000 homes and businesses  including Frasier, an assisted living and skilled nursing facility.

It was the first time Xcel Energy preemptively switched off electricity in Colorado as a wildfire prevention tool, according to a company official. The practice, also known as public safety power shut-offs, has taken root in California and is spreading elsewhere as a way to keep downed and damaged power lines from sparking blazes and fueling the Wests more frequent and intense wildfires.

In Boulder, Frasier staff and residents heard about the planned outage from news reports. A Frasier official called the utility to confirm and was initially told the homes power would not be affected. The utility then called back to say the homes power would be cut, after all, said Tomas Mendez, Frasiers vice president of operations. The home had just 75 minutes before Xcel Energy shut off the lights on April 6.

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Staff rushed to prepare the 20-acre campus home to nearly 500 residents. Generators kept running the oxygen machines, most refrigerators and freezers, hallway lights, and Wi-Fi for phones and computers. But the heating system and some lights stayed off as the overnight temperature dipped into the 30s.

Power was restored to Frasier after 28 hours. During the shut-off, staff tended to nursing home and assisted living residents, many with dementia, Mendez said.

These are the folks that depend on us for everything: meals, care, and medications, he said.

Not knowing when power would be restored, even 24 hours into the crisis, was stressful and expensive, including the next-day cost of refilling fuel for two generators, Mendez said.

Were lucky we didnt have any injuries or anything major, but it is likely these could happen when there are power outages  expected or unexpected. And that puts everyone at risk, Mendez said.

As preemptive power cuts become more widespread, nursing homes are being forced to evaluate their preparedness. But it shouldnt be up to the facilities alone, according to industry officials and academics: Better communication between utilities and nursing homes, and including the facilities in regional disaster preparedness plans, is critical to keep residents safe.

We need to prioritize these folks so that when the power does go out, they get to the front of the line to restore their power accordingly, said David Dosa, chief of geriatrics and professor of medicine at UMass Chan Medical School in Worcester, Massachusetts, of nursing home residents.

Restoring power to hospitals and nursing homes was a priority throughout the windstorm, wrote Xcel Energy spokesperson Tyler Bryant in an email. But, he acknowledged, public safety power shut-offs can improve, and the utility will work with community partners and the Colorado Public Utilities Commission to help health facilities prepare for extended power outages in the future.

When the forecast called for wind gusts of up to 100 mph on April 6, Xcel Energy implemented a public safety power shut-off. Nearly 275,000 customers were without power from the windstorm.

Were lucky we didnt have any injuries or anything major, but it is likely these could happen when there are power outages  expected or unexpected. And that puts everyone at risk.

 Tomas Mendez, vice president of operations at Frasier assisted living facility

Officials had adapted after the Marshall Fire killed two people and destroyed or damaged more than 1,000 homes in Boulder and the neighboring communities of Louisville and Superior two and a half years ago. Two fires converged to form that blaze, and electricity from an Xcel Energy power line that detached from its pole in hurricane-force winds was the most probable cause of one of them.

A preemptive shutdown is scary because you dont really have an end in mind. They dont tell you the duration, said Jenny Albertson, director of quality and regulatory affairs for the Colorado Health Care Association and Center for Assisted Living.

More than half of nursing homes in the West are within 3.1 miles of an area with elevated wildfire risk, according to a study published last year. Yet, nursing homes with the greatest risk of fire danger in the Mountain West and Pacific Northwest had poorer compliance with federal emergency preparedness standards than their lower-risk counterparts.

Under federal guidelines, nursing homes must have disaster response plans that include emergency power or building evacuation. Those plans dont necessarily include contingencies for public safety power shut-offs, which have increased in the past five years but are still relatively new. And nursing homes in the West are rushing to catch up.

In California, a more stringent law to bring emergency power in nursing homes up to code is expected by the California Association of Health Facilities to cost over $1 billion. But the state has not allocated any funding for these facilities to comply, said Corey Egel, the associations director of public affairs. The association is asking state officials to delay implementation of the law for five years, to Jan. 1, 2029.

Power and supply deficiencies

Most nursing homes operate on a razors edge in terms of federal reimbursement, Dosa said, and its incredibly expensive to retrofit an old building to keep up with new regulations.

Frasiers three buildings for its 300 residents in independent living apartments each have their own generators, in addition to two generators for assisted living and skilled nursing, but none is hooked up to emergency air conditioning or heat because those systems require too much energy.

Keeping residents warm during a minus-10-degree night or cool during two 90-degree days in Boulder are the kinds of things we need to think about as we consider a future with preemptive power outages, Mendez said.

Federal audits of emergency preparedness at nursing homes in California and Colorado found facilities lacking. In Colorado, eight of 20 nursing homes had deficiencies related to emergency supplies and power, according to the report. These included three nursing homes without plans for alternate energy sources like generators and four nursing homes without documentation showing generators had been properly tested, maintained, and inspected.

For Debra Saliba, director of UCLAs Anna and Harry Borun Center for Gerontological Research, making sure nursing homes are part of emergency response plans could help them respond effectively to any kind of power outage. Her study of nursing homes after a magnitude 6.7 earthquake that shook the Los Angeles area in 1994 motivated LA County to integrate nursing homes into community disaster plans and drills.

Too often, nursing homes are forgotten during emergencies because they are not seen by government agencies or utilities as health care facilities, like hospitals or dialysis centers, Saliba added.

Albertson said she is working with hospitals and community emergency response coalitions in Colorado on disaster preparedness plans that include nursing homes. But understanding Xcel Energys prioritization plan for power restoration would also help her prepare, she said.

Bryant said Xcel Energys prioritization plan for health facilities specifies not whether their electricity will be turned off during a public safety power shut-off  but how quickly it will be restored.

Julie Soltis, Frasiers director of communications, said the home had plenty of blankets, flashlights, and batteries during the outage. But Frasier plans to invest in headlamps for caregivers, and during a town hall meeting, independent living residents were encouraged to purchase their own backup power for mobile phones and other electronics, she said.

Soltis hopes her facility is spared during the next public safety power shut-off or at least given more time to respond.

With weather and climate change, this is definitely not the last time this will happen, she said.

This article was produced by KFF Health News, a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF  the independent source for health policy research, polling, and journalism.

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.

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If you want to understand why the massive, multi-billion-dollar congestion pricing toll plan to fix New York Citys transit system crashed in a giant bureaucratic heap last week, its helpful to turn back the clock to a Thursday 17 months ago.

Jan. 19, 2023 was an otherwise ordinary day except for the two men who met for a joint press conference on a rain-soaked corner in Fort Lee, New Jersey.

Rep. Josh Gottheimer, a New Jersey Democrat, and Rep. Mike Lawler, a New York Republican, were on opposite sides of Americas often impenetrable political fence, not to mention residents of states that dont always work well together. But on that January day, with the steel towers of the George Washington Bridge in the background, a billboard advertising everything orthopedic looking down and a tractor trailer delivering Asian Food passing by at one point, they seemed like old friends.

Congressman Josh Gottheimer visited Emerson on April 15, 2024, to discuss his work to lower taxes for Jersey families.

Gottheimer's home in Wyckoff, New Jersey, is a mere 11 miles from Lawlers in Pearl River, New York. They conceded they shared a strong common bond that transcended partisan politics or state boundaries. Both represented large suburban Congressional districts with plenty of New York City-bound commuters. Huddling under matching blue umbrellas in Fort Lee that day, both announced they were joining forces to block a plan to impose a special toll on anyone trying to drive into midtown Manhattan.

It was the beginning of the end for the multi-billion-dollar plan known as congestion pricing that would impose as much as an extra $15 toll per trip on commuters cars.

There are many ways to view the collapse of the congestion pricing plan. But examining this set of complicated issues through the eyes of Gottheimer and Lawler offers a unique  and perhaps instructive  perspective.

Rep. Mike Lawler talks with his constituents during his Mobile Office Hours event at Haverstraw Village Hall Feb. 22, 2024.

'Indefinite pause'

In a stunning reversal last week, New Yorks Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat who bills herself as a practical politician with her ear to the ground and its occasional groundswells of voters, ordered transit officials to indefinitely pause the extra commuting tolls, which were scheduled to begin on June 30. Which means the issue is likely to be resurrected at some point. For now, it's in limbo, though.

Hochul, who had championed the plan as a way to raise $1 billion to underwrite a $15 billion borrowing plan to pay for desperately needed upgrades in New York Citys subways, explained that after careful consideration I have come to the difficult decision that implementing the planned congestion pricing system risks too many unintended consequences.

The sound you heard across New Jersey, New York and even Connecticut and Long Island and New York City itself was a loud: What?

Explaining her change of mind, Hochul cited that she had come to believe that congestion pricing tolls  estimated at as much as an extra $5,000 a year for some commuters  would be a heavy financial burden on working-class families. In addition, she suggested that the tolls would add even more pressure on New York Citys economy, which was just barely beginning to recover from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

Lets be real, Hochul said, a $15 charge (per car) may not seem like a lot to someone who has the means, but it can break the budget of a hardworking middle-class household.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul waves to the crowd at the Milton J. Rubenstein Museum of Science & Technology in Syracuse, NY on Thursday, April 25, 2024.

In their first meeting on that Fort Lee sidewalk in January 2023, Gottheimer and Lawler both cited these kinds of kitchen-table concerns. It took time, but it seems Hochul finally listened and agreed.

As much as cold, hard cash in the pockets of budget-conscious workers seemed behind Hochuls reversal, another factor she didnt mention was clearly cold, hard politics. The powerful police and teachers' unions  with their voters  voiced loud disapproval of congestion pricing, claiming it would overly burden them as they drove to jobs in midtown Manhattan.

Whats more, Hochul faced the prospect of battling eight bitterly politicized lawsuits, ranging from one brought by New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy to others by coalitions of truckers and small businesses in midtown Manhattan who claimed they would have to pay extra costs for deliveries.

For Hochul  and apparently other Democrats  a clear worry from congestion pricing was the possibility of angering suburban voters represented by Gottheimer, whose district includes parts of Bergen, Passaic and Sussex counties, and Lawler, who represents all or parts of Rockland, Westchester, Putnam and Dutchess counties. With the suburbs potentially dominating the outcome of the fall elections, Hochul reportedly did not want to take any chances of losing support for her party.

But in playing such a political wild card  and doing it as the clock ticked stridently toward the commuter toll hikes  Hochul essentially threw into chaos a decades-long effort to raise new funds for subway upgrades and other mass transit fixes as well as dramatically reduce the number of cars and pollution in Manhattan.

In just a few brief sentences of a dry, bureaucratic statement, Hochul managed to raise the collective tempers of environmentalists, transit advocates, city planners and economists.

Not Gottheimer and Lawler, though. In separate interviews this week, both cheered Hochuls decision  with a note of caution that the battle over congestion pricing tolls is not entirely over.

The power of suburban votes trumps infrastructure investment

Which brings this story back to that meeting between Gottheimer and Lawler on the rain-soaked corner in Fort Lee in January 2023.

Both men are ambitious. Both want to offer significant leadership in their respective political parties. Both are articulate. And both are core members of the bipartisan House coalition known as the Problem Solvers Caucus, which bills itself as trying to fashion practical compromises to break legislative gridlock in Washington, D.C.

In some ways, the defeat of congestion pricing is an outgrowth of their bipartisan work. But in another way, its also a reminder of how difficult it can be now in America to pull together the political, civic, financial and legal support needed for major infrastructure projects.

Its also a reminder of the power of suburban voters  especially in the middle-class towns that dot the landscape of northern New Jersey where Gottheimer draws his political strength and the New York communities of Rockland, Westchester, Dutchess and Putnam counties where Lawler has become a formidable force since his election to the House in 2022.

Both Gottheimer and Lawler cited economics  and the worry over wasteful spending  as key factors in their opposition to congestion pricing. Indeed, both pointed to the fact that the Metropolitan Transit Authority has projected this year that it will lose $700 million in revenue on the nearly 14% of subway and bus riders who refuse to pay fares. With that sort of lax budget management, both questioned why the MTA should be given a $1 billion cash infusion from congestion pricing just to begin its subway upgrade program?

I am sympathetic to the demands for mass transit, Gottheimer said. I believe deeply in mass transit. But at the same time, you have to run your shop well. Dont look to others to clean up your messes.

Lawler called the MTAs efforts to impose congestion pricing a cash grab that is opposed by 80% of voters in his House district. He labeled the MTA corrupt and blamed it for squandering billions in taxpayer money.

More: NYC congestion pricing advocates plan lawsuit to keep Hochul from halting toll

Lets start with $700 million in fare jumping, Lawler said.

'A whole different world'

Such is just one piece of the opposition that Gottheimer and Lawler raised in questioning the MTAs financial management.

Another is the fact that New York Citys transit officials essentially ignored the needs  in some cases, pleas  of the suburbs when the congestion pricing scheme was hatched.

For example, while New Jersey commuters would pay heavily for driving into Manhattan  for work or just to attend a Broadway show  New Jerseys mass transit system would receive no funding from congestion pricing.

The lack of a wider approach to mass transit upgrades was not lost on the analysts from the highly respected Regional Plan Association.

In an interview with The Record and the USA Today Network after Hochuls decision to postpone the start of congestion pricing, the associations executive vice president, Kate Slevin, said that while she preferred a region-wide approach to transit planning that included massive upgrades to service in Upstate New York, Long Island, New Jersey and Connecticut, she nevertheless saw congestion pricing revenues as the start of a much-needed influx of cash to New York Citys century-old subways.

Congestion pricing makes sense, Slevin said. It raises revenue and reduces air pollution and manages traffic.

But she cautioned: The reason something controversial like congestion pricing is being implemented is because there are not a lot of alternatives. There are only so many sources of revenue  from federal and state governments, from new taxes and new fees.

In the end, the drawbacks to congestion pricing became a massive political burden.

We had to get this right, said New York Mayor Eric Adams in remarks this week about the plan that seemed more like a hope for the future as much as a comment on the past.

I was very clear from the start: We have to get it right, Im still with that, Adams added. We should deliberate and make sure we get it right.

So, what exactly is right?

What Adams and Hochul now face is a reality that Gottheimer and Lawler seemed to sense as they examined the impact of congestion pricing in January 2023. Its expensive. Its burdensome to anyone who needs to drive a car or a truck. That includes teachers and nurses driving to work in New York City as well as those who deliver food to restaurants.

But the COVID-19 pandemic changed New York City economy  to the point that the city is still struggling to lure office workers back to empty buildings. At the same time, congestion pricing has succeeded in reducing traffic and increasing revenue in London and Singapore.

So why not New York City?

Maybe the answer to that question lies in the kinds of suburbs that Gottheimer and Lawler represent.

At Long Islands Hofstra University, where he runs the National Center for Suburban Studies, Lawrence Levy says the solution will come from those who understand how the political and economic landscapes have changed.

Congestion pricing is real, Levy said. It works in terms of reducing congestion and generating revenue for alternatives to the automobile. Theres no question about that. But congestion pricing was approved before the pandemic. Were now in a whole different world.

That new world has put the brakes on congestion pricing.

For now, anyway.

Mike Kelly is an award-winning columnist for NorthJersey.com, part of the USA TODAY Network, as well as the author of three critically acclaimed nonfiction books and a podcast and documentary film producer. To get unlimited access to his insightful thoughts on how we live life in the Northeast, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: kellym@northjersey.com

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: NYC congestion pricing plan upended by suburban voters
NYC woman who stabbed father to death claimed he was an abusive cult member: police

Anna Cavat will face murder charges for allegedly killing her father in Queens earlier this month.

The woman who allegedly stabbed her dad to death inside his Queens home earlier this month was set to be extradited to New York City Wednesday to face murder charges  as she told police that her old man was in a cult and had abused her.

Anna Cavak, 30, allegedly fled the home on 109th Avenue in Ozone Park after she stabbed her father, Peter Cavak, to death during some sort of confrontation, according to NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny.

Hes trying to kill me! Cavak screamed to her mom, Maria Clement, about her dad on the morning of June 5, Kenny said.

Moments before the fatal knifing, Anna Cavak yelled to her mom that her father was going to hurt her, NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said. Peter Gerber

Clemente rushed downstairs and busted into the bedroom, where she saw her 70-year-old husband on the floor  and her daughter on top of him, holding a rectangular object cops later found out was a stun gun, the chief added.

When detectives arrived, Maria told them she saw Anna on top of Peter, who was covered in blood, Kenny said.

Anna fled after the killing, but cops tracked her car across the river, he added. She was later picked up by the New Jersey State Police and arrested.

Anna later claimed to authorities her dad was in a cult and abusive, Kenny said. And she also claimed his behavior also led to the death of her sister, who she said committed suicide by overdose, he added.

Peter Cavak died inside his Queens home after the stabbing, and his daughter is now in custody. Peter Gerber

Peter Cavak was stabbed several times to the torso and his wife discovered the grisly scene at their Ozone Park home on 109th Avenue and 114th Street, according to cops and the sources. Peter Gerber

It was a fairly recent report reporting some instances of abuse when she was a child, Lt. John Russo of the NYPDs Detective Bureau said. I dont want to get too much into it.

Cavak had no criminal history  nor did her father, Kenny said.

Peter was named in one domestic incident tied to his daughter, in which she accused him of a criminal sex act, Kenny said.

He was also named in an earlier complaint of child abuse and sex abuse in which his daughter was the alleged victim, the chief said.

Anna Cavak alleged that Peter had abused her in the past. Peter Gerber

Peter Cavak was a retired MTA bus driver with a history of trauma, his stepson said. Peter Gerber

James Clement, Peters 38-year-old stepson and Annas half-brother, told The Post in a recent interview outside the family home that his stepdad  a retired bus driver for the MTA  worked hard to provide for his family, but suffered from a history of trauma and physical and emotional abuse himself.

And even though Anna had a litany of mental health issues, he was inclined to believe her accusations about ongoing sexual abuse.

Peters stepson, James Clement, with his mom Maria. Brigitte Stelzer

All this stuff didnt happen by coincidence, it didnt just happen because [Anna] woke up one day and did what she did, he told The Post. I think it was an accumulation of neglect from when she was a child, up until she was 30.  [but] what she did was uncalled-for.

Its hard for me to say what her plan was, because it was an extreme act, and it wasnt planned out, Clement continued. I think she had a psychotic break.
NEW YORK (PIX11)  Women who serve in the NYPD who have also served in the military were singled out for honors at police headquarters on Wednesday in an inaugural event to mark a historic milestone.

June 12th was an opportunity to salute the 300 women, 200 of them uniformed, in the NYPD who have also served their country in the military.

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A special salute was offered by Police Commissioner Edward Caban. Today and every day we salute your bravery and patriotism, he declared in a video presentation. And he added, We thank you for your service to our nation and the city.

Patriotic fervor filled the room as two retired officers were honored for their long-time dedication to the department and for their service to the nation. Angela Green had more than a dozen years on the job, and she served in the Army in Iraq.

She reminisced, It made me a better person for both jobs I had. To be honored it just shows you that people recognize when you work hard and you just do things for people. Also recognized for her years of service in both the NYPD and military was Yahaida Ruiz.

These women expressed the pride they felt having the opportunity to serve both our country and the city. Detective Karlina Cortes who spent four years in the Navy said, Serving in the military helped me grow up as a woman. It also opened many doors. Becoming a cop was one of them. Im proud that I served our country and our city.

Female veterans take steps toward home ownership goals

In his tribute, Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey noted, These are people who are already disciplined. They understand service, they understand dedication and commitment. So when they come into the department and they bring their previous training, it ultimately serves the department an benefits the community.

Beneficial indeed, with the gratitude of a nation and a city for their service. Todays event was a first of its kind at police headquarters. The women veterans who took part are hopeful it will now become an annual 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 PIX11.
NEW YORK (PIX11)  The NYPD is searching for suspects in connection to several Pro-Palestinian vandalism incidents across New York City.

The incidents involve suspects smearing paint to simulate blood on private property with Pro-Palestinian messaging, although its not clear if all of the vandalism is related, according to authorities.

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Mayor Eric Adams shared photos on X of red paint smearing the entry to the residence of Brooklyn Museum director Anne Pasternak, who is Jewish, with the words White supremacist Zionist.

Adams called the vandalism overt, unacceptable anti-semitism. The incident is being investigated as a hate crime, according to the NYPD.

Another incident in the string of vandalism includes the discovery of a cloth canvas reading this person has blood on their hands on Douglass Street in Brooklyn, sources told PIX11 News.

AIR11 also spotted fake blood and papers in the street near the Palestinian Mission building on the Upper East Side on Wednesday.

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 PIX11.
NEW YORK CITY (PIX11)  A high-ranking NYPD official tried to evade drunk driving charges in 2022 by getting a Manhattan bar to delete security camera footage after he downed a dozen drinks inside, according to Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg.

Now, NYPD Deputy Inspector Paul Zangrilli, faces a slew of charges related to the attempted cover-up, including operating a motor vehicle while intoxicated, falsifying business records and tampering with physical evidence.

Woman picks up dropped envelope with $8K inside in the Bronx: NYPD

Zangrilli has been suspended without pay, according to the NYPD.

Prosecutors said Zangrilli drove his unmarked department-issued vehicle after having five shots and seven beers at a bar near Penn Station in 2022. He had jumped in the drivers seat after his girlfriend, who was also drinking, crashed the car into a cab on Tenth Avenue and West 30th Street, according to the district attorneys office.

The cab driver followed Zangrilli, eventually got a cops attention, and told the officer that Zangrilli and his girlfriend were drunk and had fled the crash, prosecutors said. The responding officer told the cabbie to submit an accident report and left the scene as Zangrilli repeatedly offered to pay the cab driver cash rather than exchanging information, prosecutors said.

When the cab driver called 911, Zangrilli repeatedly lied to officers at the scene, saying he had pulled over after the collision and was not drinking, according to prosecutors. Zangrilli went to the 5th Precinct to report for duty, and then left for his girlfriends apartment so inspectors couldnt find him at his house to check whether he was drunk, according to Bragg.

But prosecutors eventually got their hands on the bars surveillance camera footage.

Zangrilli started at the department in 2005 as a police officer, city records show. He then rose through the ranks as a sergeant, lieutenant, captain and became deputy inspector in 2021. He has been honored a few times for outstanding police duty, city records show. He was suspended without pay after the crash, according to the New York Daily News.

Zangrilli is expected back in court in September, court records show.

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.

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 PIX11.
WOODBRIDGE TOWNSHIP, N.J. (PIX11)  Two police officers were shot and a suspect was killed during an investigation in Woodbridge Township, New Jersey, overnight Thursday, officials said.

Police and the suspect exchanged gunfire at the Raritan Hotel at 1050 King Georges Post Rd. in Fords, according to New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin.

More Local News

Edison police got information from a license plate reader on June 12 that a car wanted in connection to a shooting in New York City that left a person with life-threatening injuries was in the area, Platkin said. The NYPD said that the suspect was wanted in an attempted murder on June 7 in Upper Manhattan.

Edison and Woodbridge police then found the car at the Raritan Hotel and notified the NYPD, according to Platkin.

While police were interviewing a civilian inside the hotel on June 13, the hotels elevator doors opened and the suspect, holding multiple bags, walked out around 12:21 a.m. The suspect dropped the bags, reached into a black backpack and pulled out a gun, Platkin said.

Thats when shots were fired between the suspect and police. The suspect, an NYPD detective and a Woodbridge police officer were all shot during the exchange, according to officials.

The suspect was pronounced dead at the scene. Police recovered the gun used by the suspect in the shooting, Platkin said.

The officers shot have been released from the hospital, according to officials.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy said he has been briefed on the shooting in a statement to X.

I have been briefed on the shooting of a Woodbridge PD and NYPD officer overnight. Tammy and I are praying for the swift and full recovery of these officers. Our law enforcement officers bravely put their lives on the line every day to keep us safe, Murphy said.

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.

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 PIX11.
New York Times columnist Bret Stephens this week suggested that President Biden should step aside to allow a rising Democrat to take his place in the presidential race.

In an op-ed published Tuesday, Stephens argued that the only option left for Biden to clinch a win for the country would be to drop out of the race and let either Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) or Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer (D) take the reins. Shapiro, 50, and Whitmer, 52, are two of Bidens top reelection campaign surrogates as the president hopes to secure victories in their respective states.

President Biden, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, and Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.

It all leaves the president with one option that can be a win for America and, ultimately, his place in history. He can still choose not to run, to cede the field to a Democrat who can win  paging Josh Shapiro or Gretchen Whitmer  and do the hard and brave things it will take to secure security and peace for the free world, Stephens wrote.

Theres still time, if only just. It would be a courageous, honorable and transformative legacy, he added.

Stephens also wrote that Biden needs some wins both domestically and internationally to appeal to voters. He argued in the op-ed, headlined The Most Courageous Thing That Joe Biden Can Do, that the presidents only option is to allow another Democrat to take his place in the election.

Biden is sleepwalking to defeat against a felonious adversary who three years ago incited violence to overturn an election, Stephens wrote, pointing to Bidens low approval ratings.

Stephens wrote that Biden desperately needs some wins  real, not cosmetic, ones.

He criticized the president over his handling of the wars in Ukraine and Gaza. He suggested that Biden needs to approve sending more U.S. weapons to war-torn Ukraine, including the F-16s promised last year, to secure a win.

He also said that a cease-fire in the Israel-Hamas war would not be a real win for Biden and instead suggested that Biden reaching a deal with Saudi Arabia could rescue the situation.

Biden and former President Trump are headed toward a rematch of the 2020 election in what is expected to be a close race. The Hill/Decision Desk HQs national polling average shows Trump with a narrow 1-point lead over Biden. However, neither candidate has more than 50 percent support, according to the polling average.

Stephens in a December 2021 column urged Biden not to run for reelection.

The Hill has reached out to Bidens campaign for comment on the most recent column.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to The Hill.
(FOX40.COM)  The Oakdale Police Department is warning residents to be wary of scammers after receiving reports of suspicious phone calls.

The police department said a scammer is calling residents and posing as the Oakdale Chief of Police to demand money.

Man sentenced in Sacramento for nationwide Target gift card scam

Like most other law enforcement agencies, the Oakdale Police Department said it would never ask for money over the phone.

The Sacramento Police Department warned residents of the capital city of a similar scam earlier this year.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX40.
Photo: The press service of the President of Kyrgyzstan

BISHKEK, Kyrgyzstan, June 13. A state visit of the President of Kyrgyzstan Sadyr Zhaparov to Uzbekistan is planned for the near future, said the Deputy Minister of Economy and Commerce of Kyrgyzstan Sanzhar Bolotov, Trend reports via the Ministry of Economy and Commerce of Kyrgyzstan.

Bolotov made the remark at the opening of the Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Business Forum in Bishkek today.

"The upcoming meeting between the two presidents will be an important moment in strengthening the friendly ties between our countries, embodying a shared commitment to developing neighborly and mutually beneficial relations," the official pointed out.

He reminded that the presidents of Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan have set the goal of increasing trade turnover between the countries to $2 billion.

"This is an ambitious but achievable goal. We must work together, using all available tools and mechanisms, to achieve this target. I am confident that with joint efforts, we can not only reach but surpass this benchmark," Bolotov added.

To note, in 2023, the trade turnover between Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan amounted to 694 million dollars, an increase of 15.8 percent compared to 2022.

Specifically, exports amounted to $290.8 million (a growth of 22.9 percent), and imports increased by 11.2 percent to $403.2 million.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Obama Artist Kehinde Wiley Responds to a Mounting Number of Sexual Assault Allegations Against Him

New York-based Obama portrait artist Kehinde Wiley has been accused of sexual assault and rape by a mounting number of men.

Earlier this week, activist Derrick Ingram alleged that Wiley raped him and sexually assaulted him in 2021. United Kingdom-based artist Nathaniel Lloyd Richards accused Wiley of inappropriate touching and groping during in 2019 and Terrell Armistead has accused Wiley of rape.

Last month, Ghanaian artist Joseph Awuah-Darko stated that Wiley assaulted him twice at an event in Ghana in 2021.

Wiley took to Instagram Tuesday to insist that all of these accusations are all untrue.

I need to set the record straight about false claims made against me, Wiley wrote regarding Awuah-Darko. My accusers disturbing allegations are baseless and defamatory. And, while Ive largely stayed silent, I must bring the truth about how he has pursued me over the years to light.

We had a one time encounter. Everything was consensual, Wiley continued. He stated that Awuah-Darko was aggressively pursuing him for years and even flew from the UK to Nigeria to attend his birthday party. Wiley painted Awuah-Darko as seemingly obsessive and stated that his claims were unhinged and false.

Wiley also addressed the rest of his accusers in the post.

What is motivating these individuals to hurl these disgusting accusations? Money? Fame? An insatiable need for attention? Who knows. We live in a world where a single false social media post can destroy someones life, where people are tried and convicted online without regard for the truth.

This is dangerous and wrong, Wiley said. I encourage all who read this post to take a closer look at my accusers and their motivations. Wileys lawyer, Jennifer Barrett, said that her client intends to pursue every avenue available to him, legal and otherwise, to defend his reputation.

For the latest news, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Occidental Colleges Board of Trustees voted this week not to divest from companies with ties to Israel, saying the move would further divide the campus and limit freedom of expression.

In a letter to students, faculty and staff on Monday, Occidental Board of Trustees Chair Lisa H. Link acknowledged the devastating effects of the Israel-Hamas war but said that taking a position on a complex geopolitical situation could alienate certain members of the community and undermine its diversity.

The diversity of community members opinions was a compelling reason to refrain from acting on the proposal, as the Board believes a decision in favor of the proposal would be divisive and damaging to the College community, she said.

The divestment proposal set forth by leaders of the Occidental chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine in May called for the college to identify and disclose any investments in four manufacturing companies that have provided arms and equipment to the Israeli military.

The board said Occidentals endowment does not include direct investments in any of the four companies.

Indirect investments in the Israel-linked companies make up less than 0.1% of the colleges endowment assets and are managed by third parties that restrict the colleges ability to divest from specific parts of a fund, Link said.

The Board believes it is not in the best interests of the College, or our current and future students, to jeopardize the endowment by divesting from managed funds that have minimal exposure to certain companies, she said in the letter.

Read more: Divestment from Israel roils universities. Would it work? Some are dubious

The boards vote on the divestment proposal hinged on students taking down their pro-Palestinian encampment, not impeding commencement and not returning to occupy a space on campus without prior approval.

The board held the vote after Occidentals school year ended in early June.

Matthew Vickers, a co-organizer of the encampment and spokesperson for Occidentals Students for Justice in Palestine, said he was disappointed by the boards decision but not surprised.

Based off of the pressure from Zionist parents and off-campus organizations such as the Brandeis Center and [the Anti-Defamation League] and personal political biases of the Board of Trustees, they caved in to rejecting divestment, he said.

The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law and the Anti-Defamation League filed complaints with the U.S. Department of Educations Office for Civil Rights in May against Occidental and Pomona College, accusing the universities of permitting discrimination and harassment of Jewish students on their campuses.

Occidental Hillel directed inquiries to Director for Religious and Spiritual Life Susan Young, who declined to comment on the boards decision not to divest and the alleged antisemitism on campus.

Read more: UC rejects calls for Israel-related divestment, boycott driving pro-Palestinian protests

Although the boards vote came after many students had vacated campus for the summer, Vickers said students who are still in L.A. are planning to hold actions on and off campus to protest the boards refusal to divest.

On UCLAs campus, students continue to stage pro-Palestinian protests into the summer, erecting a new encampment on Monday that resulted in about two dozen arrests.

People are still galvanized and willing to continue the struggle, Vickers said.





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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
OCPSs half-penny sales tax will appear on November ballot, Gilzean says

Orange County Commissioners and School Board members said on Wednesday the new Supervisor of Elections could risk two initiatives from making it on the November ballot.

Meanwhile, the DeSantis-appointee, Glen Gilzean, is denying all allegations from commissioners, school board members, and the Orange County School District.

On Wednesday, school board members and the district told 9 Investigates their half-penny sales tax is under legal review by Gilzeans office.

Gilzean said the schools half-penny sales tax referendum is not under legal review and that it will be on the November ballot.

Meanwhile, commissioners claim theyre having other issues with the Office.

Read: Osceola County unveils tribute to 49 lives lost, survivors in Pulse nightclub shooting

Commissioners said Gilzean hasnt set a deadline for the rural boundaries referendum but has suggested the deadline be moved to this Friday.

Gilzean told 9 Investigates his office is working with Orange County to get the rural boundary issue on the ballot.

The Election Supervisors Office said in a press release Wednesday it processed the School Districts request to place the question on the ballot June 6 and began drafting the ballot ahead of November.

The Office provided us with a copy of the draft ballot below.

OCPSs half-penny sales tax will appear on November ballot, Gilzean says

Controversy over Half-Penny Sales Tax Ballot Initiative

The swirling controversy played out at a League of Women Voters of Orange County meeting Wednesday where Elections Supervisor candidates demanded transparency from the office.

We havent heard a clear answer. I wish Glen would answer it, said Dan Helm, about the office not setting a deadline for Orange Countys rural boundary referendum.

No person, let alone someone appointed should make a decision for 800,000 Orange County voters, said Wes Hodge about the concerns with the ballot initiatives.

The School Districts half-penny sales tax question, if passed, could bring in $4 billion dollars worth of revenue.

The School District told 9 Investigates Glen Gilzean himself informed County Communications Officer Scott Howat that question is under legal review by his office.

The conversation happened while at prayer breakfast at Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church in Eatonville last Wednesday.

Read: Orlando remembers 49 Pulse victims through remembrance ceremony

School board members said it is not the Supervisor of Elections role to conduct a legal review on a ballot initiative, and it has never happened before.

The district said Howat questioned Gilzean on why it was under legal review since the Supervisors General Counsel, Nick Shannin, previously confirmed it would be on the ballot.

Howat was told by Gilzean that circumstances have changed since Shannin was no longer serving as general counsel, the district said.

Shannin confirmed he is now longer general counsel but that he is on retainer with the office.

Again, Gilzean denied all allegations and said the initiative will be on the ballot.

Its just not true. Im the biggest supporter of schools, as a former school board member, and its unfortunate that theres lies going around about our office, Gilzean said.

Read: Sheriff: Motorcyclist shoots bicyclist to death in Osceola County

Commissioners question last-minute discussion over referendum deadline

Gilzean says there is nothing out of the ordinary in the process to get one of the Board of County Commissions questions on the ballot.

From what I understand, its always been that way. So, for this to be political, its just unfortunate, Gilzean said, talking about negotiating with the county on when the deadline will be.

Last week, commissioners voted to add the rural boundary issue to the ballot. It would add protections for rural land and curb development. This is after the Florida Legislature tried to block the controversial

Read: Kissimmee police officer accused of soliciting a minor

Monday, 9 Investigates reported on how commissioners were concerned it wouldnt make the November ballot after Gilzean allegedly told a commissioner the deadline would be this Friday, June 14 at noon.

Historically, the deadline for commissioners to submit the ballot referendum to the Election Supervisors Office is mid-to-late August.

Gilzean said he plans to meet with County Administrator Byron Brooks this week to set a deadline. The County Attorney has requested the deadline date be August 29th.

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AUSTIN (KXAN)  The Office of Police Oversight (OPO) will provide the public with updates and present new data at a Thursday night meeting.

OPOs third quarterly Police Oversight Implementation Workgroup meeting will be held at 6 p.m. Thursday over Zoom. Its open to the public, and those interested in participating can register online.

OPO will share complaints data and other updates during this virtual session as directed by Resolution 99, according to a release.

The meeting will be in both English and Spanish, as well as American Sign Language (ASL). Additional interpretation services and accessibility accommodations are available upon request.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin.
WATERTOWN, Wis. (WFRV)  Officers say that charges are forthcoming against a southeastern Wisconsin YMCA staff member after suspicious injuries to an infant were determined to happen at a local daycare center.

According to the Watertown Police Department, officers were called around 6:15 p.m. on June 5 to investigate suspicious injuries to an infant who was being treated at a local hospital.

After an investigation was concluded, officers reportedly determined that the injuries to the infant allegedly happened while the child was at the YMCA Daycare Center in Watertown.

Winnebago County man on parole for OWI conviction arrested for 7th offense, uncooperative with officer

Officers say that the YMCA staff fully cooperated with the investigation.

The release noted that charges against one of the YMCA staff members will be referred to the Jefferson County District Attorneys Office.

No additional information was provided. Local 5 will update this story when more details are released.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFRV Local 5 - Green Bay, Appleton.
U.S. Attorney Philip Sellinger said Sen. Bob Menendez repeatedly griped to him about a federal case against his friend Fred Daibes, above. (Photo by Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images)

The U.S. Attorney for New Jersey told jurors in Manhattan Wednesday that Sen. Bob Menendez complained to him about the criminal prosecution of his friend and asked him to look at it carefully.

Philip Sellinger is the second top enforcement official from New Jersey to testify during Menendezs corruption trial, which is now in its fifth week, that the senator asked for special treatment in a specific criminal matter. Former state Attorney General Gurbir Grewal testified last week that the three-term Democrat asked him about an insurance fraud investigation threatening to ensnare a friends company.

Sellinger told jurors he was a private attorney angling to become New Jerseys new U.S. attorney at the time of his December 2020 conversation with Menendez in the senators Washington, D.C., office.

New Jerseys senior senator told Sellinger that his friend Fred Daibes was being treated unfairly, according to Sellinger.

Sen. Menendez hoped that if I became U.S. attorney, I would look at it carefully, Sellinger told jurors.

Daibes name didnt ring any bells, so Sellinger assured the senator he would regard all cases carefully as U.S. attorney, he testified. But he called the three-term Democrat the next day to inform him that he discovered hed been involved in a 2017 lawsuit against the borough of Edgewater that implicated Daibes, a real estate developer and bank founder there. If he became U.S. attorney, he told Menendez, hed have to alert his bosses at the Department of Justice about it as a potential conflict of interest and they would decide if he should recuse himself from the case, he testified.

That didnt end the matter. Sellinger recounted in court several other calls and meetings  by Menendez and his associates  where they brought up the Daibes case.

Sellinger said the senators ask was unusual. The U.S. attorney is the top federal law enforcement official in New Jersey, overseeing all operations, including 1,500 criminal and 2,500 civil cases a year, as well as investigations and appeals, Sellinger told jurors. That means the person in that position rarely gets personally involved in specific cases, he added.

Sometime later, Menendez told Sellinger that he wouldnt suggest President Biden nominate him to be New Jerseys next U.S. attorney, saying the White House had requested multiple candidates to consider. Menendez instead named Esther Suarez  now Hudson Countys prosecutor  as his pick.

When her appointment later fell through, Sellinger reached back to Menendez to tell him he was still interested, and by December 2021, he had the job. On his first day as U.S. attorney, he reviewed the offices major cases and alerted his new supervisors of four cases where potential conflicts of interest might warrant his recusal  including Daibes, he testified.

The next week, Sellingers bosses ordered him off the Daibes case.

A friendship ended

Sellinger told jurors he first met Menendez about 20 years ago, when he began supporting his campaign fundraisers. They became so close that Sellinger attended the Menendezes October 2020 wedding, and the two couples socialized.

But it didnt take long after Sellingers recusal from Daibes case for him learn the senator was irked, testimony showed. Sellinger told jurors he called Menendez in March 2022 to see if hed speak at the formal ceremony recognizing his appointment.

He said, Im going to pass. The only thing worse than not having a relationship with the United States attorney is people thinking you have a relationship with the United States attorney, and you dont, Sellinger testified.

Prosecutor Lara Pomerantz asked Sellinger what he thought the senator meant.

That we no longer had a relationship, Sellinger responded.

Prosecutors have accused Daibes of giving the Menendezes cash and gold bars in exchange for his help in squashing his criminal troubles. Daibes has long been accused of using money to expand his influence in Edgewater, schemes the State Commission of Investigation revealed last year.

As Wednesday wound to a close, defense attorney Avi Weitzman began his cross-examination. He focused on Sellingers reputation and self-perception as someone whose integrity and good name are of paramount importance. Weitzman asked: Had he made those core values known to Menendez?

I never believed him to be asking me to do something unethical or improper, Sellinger said.

Jose Uribe cross continued

Earlier Wednesday, defense attorneys finished cross-examining Jose Uribe, the failed insurance broker who became the prosecutions star witness when he agreed to plead guilty and testify against his co-defendants.

Uribe has said he gave Nadine $15,000 for a down payment for a new Mercedes-Benz convertible and paid her monthly $900 payments for almost three years in a deal that required her to connect him with the senator, who he expected to stop and kill all investigation.

The New Jersey Attorney Generals Office, at that time, had indicted Uribes friend Elvis Parra and Uribe worried investigators continuing, expanding probe would reach a company, Phoenix Risk Management, that he was running illicitly after he was barred from the business because of his own 2011 insurance fraud conviction.

Through questioning by defense attorney Adam Fee, Uribe acknowledged that he never mentioned money or the Mercedes to Sen. Menendez, spelled out the terms of his deal with Nadine Menendez to the senator, or discussed details about the senators calls and meeting with Grewal.

While Fee spent Tuesday trying to depict Uribe as a chronic liar and criminal, he spent Wednesday morning attacking his memory, accusing Uribe of regular intoxication and Xanax use.

Sir, have you driven drunk before? Fee asked Uribe, prompting an objection from prosecutors that Judge Sidney H. Stein sustained.

Uribe denied he was drunk or otherwise incapacitated when he met with Menendez.

I am not sitting with a U.S. senator to discuss a serious matter when I am intoxicated, he said.

Wednesday also brought some ping-ponging testimony from prosecutors and defense attorneys about some of the more salacious moments of Uribes testimony.

Fee suggested during cross-examination that Uribe made up his super weird claim that Menendez rang a little bell to summon Nadine when the men needed paper so Uribe could write down the names of the people and companies he wanted the senator to inquire about.

But Pomerantz showed jurors a text Nadine sent Fred Daibes in August 2019 that read: I am looking for the perfect bell. I have not found it yet, but I will.

Earlier, Fee tried to cast doubt on Uribes claim that Menendez told him in Spanish during a dinner when Nadine Menendez had disappeared to the bathroom: I saved your little a** not once but twice.

Pomerantz then showed jurors a text Menendez sent his wife during that dinner that read: Can you go to bathroom.

Also on Wednesday, Stein held a closed-door hearing about Nadine Menendezs trial date, which had been scheduled for July 8. He pushed it to Aug. 5 but requested additional information from her doctors about the state of her breast cancer, her prognosis, and a projection for when she might be able to assist in her defense in hopes of setting a more realistic trial date.

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Earlier Thursday morning the University of Florida received an unexpected visitor  and no, it wasn't a Florida Gator.

A bear was spotted in a tree across from the UF Cancer and Genetics Research Complex on Mowry Road Thursday morning, prompting agents from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) to arrive on scene.

UPD Public Information Officer Latrell Simmons said officials are unsure of how the bear got there, but that a concerned resident called it in and officers were dispatched to the area.

Police roped off the sidewalk directly in front of the tree the bear was sitting in, and UPD vehicles, along with an FWC vehicle, also were used to block the area. About a dozen people stood across the street, camera phones in hand.

A black bear is seen in a tree Thursday afternoon on Mowry Road on the University of Florida campus in Gainesville.

An FWC contractor arrived late Thursday afternoon to place a trap for the bear, however, it managed to avoid the tempting treats placed inside the cage.

Around 7:30 p.m., the bear climbed down from the tree and lingered in the nearby woods for about an hour, Simmons said. It eventually emerged from the wood line, bypassing the trap, and crossing Mowry Road before entering the wood line between the Genetics and IFAS buildings.Despite officers patrolling the area and monitoring the trap throughout the night, no further sightings of the bear were reported, he said. The original plan was to humanely trap the bear and relocate it to the Ocala National Forest.

Simmons said that while he doesn't have firsthand knowledge of an incident like this previously occurring on UF campus, several people mentioned to him that a similar situation has happened before.

The FWC has removed the trap and UPD officers will continue to patrol the area.

Onlookers take pictures of a black bear sitting in a tree across the street Thursday afternoon on Mowry Road on the University of Florida campus in Gainesville.

This article originally appeared on The Gainesville Sun: Black bear spotted on University of Florida campus in Gainesville
Officials pull missing 8-year-olds body from water after he fell off Florida pier

Officials pull missing 8-year-olds body from water after he fell off Florida pier

BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. (WFLA)  A missing 8-year-old was pulled from a waterway after he fell off a Florida pier Thursday morning.

According to NBC affiliate WPTV, the child fell into the Boynton Inlet, located in the 6900 block of North Ocean Boulevard in Boynton Beach while fishing with his father around 6 a.m.

NHC watching 2 disturbances, including 1 that could become a tropical depression

WPTV said the dad immediately called 911, prompting Palm Beach fire crews, deputies, and the U.S. Coast Guard to begin intense recovery efforts.

Around 10:30 a.m., WPTV reported that the childs body was found following hours of recovery efforts.

My son was so important to me, the boys father told WPTV. His passion was fishing. We would be at home and he would beg for me to take him fishing. Its something we did every day.

With the recovery mode, usually what happens  because of the time and been under the water for that amount of time  the chance for a successful rescue is very diminished, Capt. Tom Reyes with Palm Beach County Fire Rescue said during the search.

With many areas of Florida experiencing severe weather this week, agencies are utilizing helicopters and divers due to the strong currents in the waterway.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.
Officials urge people to catch and eat fish species invading waters and threatening property values: 'The biggest threat to our ecosystem'

Invasive carp in Tennessee are causing officials to turn to various methods to slow their spread.

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency suggested people eat the fish. It is also working on labeling standards, which would indicate that purchasing the fish helps conserve natural resources, to make the product more attractive to consumers.

There are government subsidies, sonic transmitters, sound barriers, and more dedicated to keeping the carp from taking over the Volunteer State's waters.

The problem goes back decades. Carp from the Yangtze and Amur River systems in China were brought to the United States in the 1970s, and they spread from aquaculture ponds during flooding around the Mississippi River Delta in the 1980s and 1990s, per the TWRA.

There are four kinds of carp in Tennessee: silver, bighead, black, and grass. The invasive species affect the ecosystem, fishing industry, recreation, and even potentially home prices.

Just like other invasives, carp outcompete native species for food sources and space, and some can grow to 100 pounds. The silver carp can injure boaters, as they leap as high as 8 feet out of the water. This is particularly dangerous if they've reached their maximum weight of 60 pounds.

The TWRA says commercial fishing is "the most practical method to reduce the abundance of invasive carp in Tennessee waters" and could remove millions of pounds of the fish each year.

An incentive program for wholesale fish dealers and commercial fishers has led to 30.5 million pounds of carp being caught since its inception in 2018, and a 12-hour bowfishing tournament that year netted 17,000 pounds of carp.

The U.S. Geological Survey and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are studying how underwater sound can prevent carp from traveling upstream via locks; less-sensitive native fish could continue to do so. This effort was incorporated with the TWRA and other state agencies' sonic tagging and tracking work, which could also help contain the fish.

One teen is doing what he can to spread the word with a yearslong awareness campaign about the silver carp. For his efforts, Trace Nystrom was named Tennessee Wildlife Federation Youth Conservationist of the Year.

"The biggest threat to our ecosystem here in East Tennessee is the invasive carp that are currently in Middle Tennessee and working their way up the Tennessee River," he told WBIR Channel 10. "If the Asian carp were able to spread all the way up into the Tennessee River up here, the property values on the lake  would shoot down."

His goal is to keep the carp, which are plentiful in the Mississippi River and Middle Tennessee, out of East Tennessee.

"I don't think I'll be proud until 10 years down the road from now, there are still no invasive carp here in Fort Loudoun Lake," he said.

"... Stop reproducing, stop swimming. We need y'all to go belly up, man. We've had enough of you."

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ASHGABAT, Turkmenistan, June 13. Turkmenistan and Pakistan discussed further development of inter-parliamentary cooperation, Trend reports.

According to the official source, these issues were discussed during the meeting of the Speaker of the Parliament of Turkmenistan, Dunyagozel Gulmanova with the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Pakistan in Ashgabat Ahsan Wagan.

During the meeting, the sides exchanged views on the main directions for the development of parliamentary cooperation on a bilateral basis between Turkmenistan and Pakistan.

They noted that the regular organization of meetings and meetings of relevant committees, women's and youth parliamentary groups within the framework of international parliamentary organizations, as well as on a bilateral and regional basis, creates favorable conditions for the exchange of experience in the field of legislative activity.

The Ambassador spoke about the effective development of interstate and international cooperation, the ongoing reforms in Turkmenistan, and the importance of the events organized in honor of the 300th anniversary of the Turkmen writer Mahtumkulu Firaki.

Meanwhile, the development of cooperation between Turkmenistan and Pakistan, especially in the field of inter-parliamentary cooperation, plays a key role in strengthening diplomatic relations and exchanging experience in the legislative sphere.

Strengthening interparliamentary cooperation between Turkmenistan and Pakistan contributes not only to deepening cooperation at the state level, but also provides a foundation for the development of multifaceted strategic partnerships that contribute to stability and progress in Central Asia and South Asia.
Councilwoman Nikki Nice says a few words to open the United Eid Festival in April at the Loves Travel Stops Great Lawn at Scissortail Park.

After Tuesday's primary election, the Democratic lawmaker for state Senate District 48 could either be a community advocate new to the Capitol or one who had once already occupied the seat.

Ward 7 Oklahoma City Councilwoman Nikki Nice and former state Sen. Connie Johnson are running for a legislative seat most prominently representing the city's northeast side.

But it's not as if either candidate is a stranger to the area. Both candidates hold long-standing, deep roots with northeast Oklahoma City, home to the metro's historically Black community, and earned degrees through the state's historically Black university.

Both women can also boast progressive bona fides. Nice, 43, was first elected to the Oklahoma City Council in 2018 and won reelection unopposed in 2021. Johnson, 72, won a special election in 2005 and continued serving the district through 2014, before running statewide for U.S. Senate and then governor.

To the voter, then, what might be the biggest difference?

Connie Johnson visits with demonstrators gathered in 2022 at the Oklahoma Capitol to protest as the U.S. Supreme Court appeared poised to overturn long-standing abortion protections.

"We need new, fresh opinions, we need some fresh ideas, and we need people that can have longevity, and those are the things that I bring to this seat," said Nice. "I follow a list of very important people that have done this work, so I stand on the shoulders already of Ward 7 giants and people that have served within our city and our local government. And I look forward to standing on the shoulders of those that came before for this Senate race as well."

But Johnson argued the community would best be served by someone with experience in the Legislature. After incumbent state Sen. George Young announced earlier this year his intention to resign in November, his departure will represent "a dearth of institutional knowledge" that Johnson said she was more than capable of providing.

"I believe that that space is not one where we as a community can afford the time that it takes for a person who knows nothing about this system to learn the ropes," Johnson said. "And Im the anomaly because I have the legislative background, staffing knowledge  I know the process like the back of my hand. I know the issues, and I feel blessed to be who I am for such a time as this."

Nice, who rose to prominence as a radio and television personality in Oklahoma City before winning the city council seat, has been running a campaign built around "Keeping Community First" and moving "Forward Together."

In many ways, her campaign stresses the issues that she has put front and center during her time as a councilmember, emphasizing "all of the ways that our community has been impacted by economic development, women's rights, our seniors, education and our health care system," she said.

"Just being able to transfer the skills Ive learned and policies and procedures at this local level to the state level," Nice said. "These are the priorities that are important for me to take to the state Senate."

Nice has learned a lot during her work on the city council, which she said has still been enjoyable despite not being easy. She advocated vocally for her ward's representation in the city's latest MAPS program revitalization efforts, which have historically focused on downtown, and has encouraged her residents to engage with the city on issues and decisions that might adversely impact them. Nice acknowledged that, despite the city's nonpartisan elections, this often meant voting in the minority on the council, but she is proud of the work she has done for her ward.

"I've loved working at the local level, and its around the same time I would have been looking at running for reelection for my current seat, so it wasnt an easy decision," Nice said. "But it was a necessary decision for me to make in order to work toward bettering not just my community but looking at how we better the district as well as the state of Oklahoma."

Councilmembers: Despite state's initial efforts, Black leaders are helping OKC communities grow

The retiring incumbent Young, with whom she has developed a good working relationship, has warned her, however, about the hyperpartisan nature of Oklahoma's political machine, which leans overwhelmingly conservative and Republican. Young, also a pastor, cited the state's divisive politics in his resignation letter as the chief motivating factor in his decision to step away.

"He said, This is a different animal, as far as the state level is concerned," Nice remembered. "But we have seen partisan decisions happen on the local level, so again, that is not something that Im not used to because peoples thoughts and values exist regardless of the decisions that they make."

"So, being on the local level was a good way for me to learn how to navigate through that nonpartisan structure to know how now to work better in a partisan structure. I think that those are things that help me to be able to be more prepared for this state seat.

Johnson believes, however, that she is better prepared to reoccupy that seat. What has essentially been a re-election campaign for her has focused on a platform of issues and policy ideas that she has advocated for decades, including the abolition of the death penalty, marijuana policy reform, women's reproductive rights, lifting up the rights of those with disabilities, and addressing veterans' suicides.

"And its been alluded to that Im retired, but Ive never retired," Johnson said. "I simply went to another arena. I never stopped working in my community, which is why I know that many of these issues are going unaddressed. And I do know that I also have this capacity because of my knowledge to work with people that are different from me."

Johnson pointed to what is likely her most well-known moment from her past in the state Senate when she led the defeat of a controversial "personhood" bill by attaching a satirical amendment. The amendment was even featured in its own "Daily Show" segment, but she remembered it as a moment where women on both sides of the abortion issue came together to defeat what she described as an absurd and backward piece of legislation.

"I have relationships on not only both sides of the aisle but both sides of the rotunda that I believe are valuable that will serve my community well," Johnson said. "And, again, that we can not afford to start over with someone who just doesnt know."

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma elections: Nikki Nice, Connie Johnson battle for state seat
UPDATE 4:15 p.m.  OKCFD Chief Scott Douglas has confirmed this is a body recovery. Chief Douglas says the call came in from a gentleman on a bicycle driving by the pond who noticed the body in the water. OKCPD is on scene investigating, waiting on the medical examiners office to get there before the retrieval.

No further information has been released at this time.

Original Story

OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR)  The Oklahoma City Fire Department says, fire officials are on the scene in Southeast Oklahoma City after a body has been found in a pond.

Firefighters have confirmed the individual is adult male who has died. Authorities say a swift water and dive team were on the scene. Fire crews and police were waiting for the medical examiners to arrive.

KFOR has a team headed to the scene.

This story is developing.

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.
FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: Former U.S. President Donald Trump attends a Turning Point USA event at the Dream City Church in Phoenix

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Voters over age 50 in the key battleground state of Arizona strongly favor Donald Trump in November's election rematch, a new poll from the U.S.'s largest organization for older Americans shows, highlighting a potential new weakness in Democrat Joe Biden's support.

Arizona voters overall favor Republican Trump over Biden by 45% to 37%, with 11% of support going to independent candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the American Association of Retired Persons (AARP) poll released on Wednesday shows.

Trump's lead is greatest among voters ages 50 and older, at 49% to 39%, the poll shows, showing a fresh weakness for Biden, whose support among voters without college degrees, young voters and Black voters has dropped since 2020. Among women voters only age 50 and older, Biden is tied in Arizona, the AARP poll shows.

Exit polls by NBC News after the 2020 election showed Arizona voters over 50 favored Trump by a margin of 52% to 47% for Biden; CNN exit polls showed Arizona voters aged 50 to 64 favored Trump 55% to 45%, while those over 65 favored him by just 50% to 49%.

Biden won Arizona by less than 11,000 votes in 2020.

Biden's weakness in the AARP poll isn't reflective of a broader party split. Arizona voters overall favor Democrat Ruben Gallego over Republican Kari Lake 48% to 45% in the state's race for a U.S. Senate seat, while the two candidates are tied with over-50s.

On Thursday, Biden's campaign kicks off "Seniors for Biden-Harris" in Arizona with bingo events in Arizona. First lady Jill Biden is traveling to Arizona on Saturday to speak to seniors.

Biden has lowered costs for insulin and other prescription drugs, passed rules that make hearing aids cheaper, and pledged to protect funding for Social Security, the U.S. government pension program.

In March, the Biden campaign said it would attack Trump over Republican threats to cut Social Security and Medicare in the key states of Michigan, Arizona, Nevada, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania, with an advertising campaign and several press conferences.

(Reporting by Heather Timmons and Nandita Bose; Editing by Leslie Adler)
A view of the scene in Hoboken after an explosion early morning. Three floors of the building have collapsed. Emergency services are on site, conducting searches for individuals beneath the rubble. At least six people have been reported injured. Dirk Waem/Belga/dpa

One person was killed and five were injured in an explosion in a residential block in the city of Antwerp, the Belgian news agency Belga reported on Thursday.

Emergency services were continuing to search for other possible victims in difficult conditions, as the multi-storey building was rendered unstable by the blast, the cause of which was unclear.

Two storeys are reported to have collapsed while people were inside. The victim was a 44-year-old man who lived in the house.

A view of the scene in Hoboken after an explosion early morning. Three floors of the building have collapsed. Emergency services are on site, conducting searches for individuals beneath the rubble. At least six people have been reported injured. Dirk Waem/Belga/dpa

A paramedic and his dog are seen at the scene after an explosion early morning. Three floors of the building have collapsed. Emergency services are on site, conducting searches for individuals beneath the rubble. At least six people have been reported injured. Dirk Waem/Belga/dpa
Updated: One released from hospital after explosion at Franklin County manufacturer

Update: A Pennsylvania State Police report provided some details about the explosion at Johnson Controls. The "small explosion" damaged only the equipment involved; the building was not affected, police said. The three people injured sustained serious, moderate and minor injuries, respectively; the injuries were not life-threatening.

Previous:

One of the three people injured in the explosion at Johnson Controls in Waynesboro earlier this week has been released from the hospital, according to company spokesperson Melissa Talbott.

The incident, which was reported at about 7:30 a.m. Tuesday at the manufacturing facility at 100 Cumberland Valley Avenue, is under investigation. No other updates are available, Talbott said Wednesday.

"The safety and well-being of our employees is our top priority, and we are actively assessing the situation and working with local response teams. We will provide more information as appropriate as we learn more," Talbott wrote in an email.

The Johnson Controls facility in Waynesboro.

Of the three people injured, two were flown to hospitals with trauma centers. The third was taken by ambulance to Meritus Medical Center near Hagerstown, Md.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating the incident, according to regional director Lenore Uddyback-Fortson.

The agency has six months to conduct the investigation and release findings.

The Waynesboro Fire Department, which was the lead agency at the scene on Tuesday, did not return a voicemail.

Previous reporting: 3 injured in explosion at Franklin County manufacturer

Grant boosted growth at Johnson Controls plant

The Waynesboro plant of Johnson Controls makes heating and cooling products that are sold under the Frick brand, which was established in 1852 and is one of the oldest industries in town.

The plant recently received part of a more than $66 million grant from the Department of Energy. A matching grant, Johnson Controls provided half. The grant was divided among the company's plants in Waynesboro, Texas and Kansas.

The investment to ramp up electric heat pump production was expected to add 100 to 200 engineering, HVAC, digital applications, mechanical, plumbing and electrical jobs to the plant's previous roster of 320.

Amber South can be reached at asouth@publicopinionnews.com.

This article originally appeared on Chambersburg Public Opinion: Johnson Controls explosion: OSHA investigating in Franklin County
One Seattle school to lock down students cellphones this fall; others expected to follow

Students at one Seattle middle school may be feeling out of touch when they return to class this fall.

Thats when Hamilton International Middle School will require cellphones to be locked away in sealed pouches, according to a news release from the schools PTSA.

The plan was approved by Hamiltons principal Thursday morning. Other Seattle schools are expected to do the same.

The goal is to decrease bullying, improve student performance and help with staff retention.

When a student enters school, their phone will be put into an individual canvas bag that requires an unlocking base to reopen. It will then be given back to the student, but they wont be able to use their phone until the bag is unlocked at the end of the day. Find more information in this document.

According to the company that makes the pouches, Yondr, one million students use the pouches each school day, including one other school in Washington state.

The company says the schools using its pouches report:

83% increase in student engagement in the classroom.

74% improvement in student behavior.

65% increase in academic performance.

Though Hamilton already has a phones away for the day rule, it was often up to teachers to enforce it, HIMS principal Dr. Eric Marshall said in a meeting with the school community.

The PTSA will raise funds to pay the one-time fee for the program.

Seattle Public Schools is in an ongoing lawsuit against the companies that own TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and Snapchat, claiming their social media platforms cause significant harm to students social, emotional, and mental health, the school district said in a news release.
The Supreme Court of the United States is about to decide whether cities can make it a crime to be a person without housing.

In City of Grants Pass v. Johnson, the high court will soon determine whether it's legal for a city to ticket, fine, or arrest people for sleeping in public places with as little as a pillow, blanket, or piece of cardboard. The decision, expected any day now, will be the most significant court ruling on the rights of homeless people in decades.

Unfortunately, a decision in either direction will do nothing to help solve homelessness.

If the court finds in favor of Grants Pass, a city in Oregon, it will make the problem significantly worse. Cities will effectively have permission to make it illegal to be unsheltered. Mayors and city councils across the country  already under immense pressure to address the crisis  will likely use the court's ruling to impose even more restrictions on where unsheltered people are allowed to exist.

Criminalization clearly isn't working on a national level. All but two states have anti-homelessness laws on the books. Yet last year, U.S. homelessness shot up another 12%, hitting its highest point since the federal government started keeping track.

There are proven ways to end homelessness. Trying to police it out of existence isn't one of them. Forcibly removing people from public spaces offers local politicians a high-visibility way to make it look like they're doing something to address the growing crisis. But arresting people sleeping outside makes it harder for them to secure work or housing and pushes them further into poverty. Raids and sweeps cause people to lose their personal possessions, like ID cards they need to get social services like counseling or job help. And a criminal record only makes it harder for a person to secure work and housing from reluctant employers and landlords. In fact, formerly incarcerated people are four to six times more likely to be unemployed. If cities don't move people into shelters or permanent housing, arrests and fines will perpetuate a cycle of displacement.

If the Supreme Court rules in favor of Grants Pass, it will be harder for cities to reduce homelessness. But even a ruling in favor of Gloria Johnson, the plaintiff experiencing homelessness, wouldn't make things any better. It would simply leave the dysfunctional status quo in place. To end homelessness for good, we need an entirely different approach.

First, cities need to collect quality data on their homeless populations. That's not the norm. Right now, cities conduct a count of people experiencing unsheltered homelessness just once a year, in January. But outreach organizations need to know individuals' names, health conditions, histories, and last dates and locations of contact. This information lets cities tailor housing and support services to people's needs, track whether homelessness is actually reducing, and change processes if their efforts aren't working.

Second, the lack of affordable housing plays a major factor in the rise of homelessness. According to Pew research spanning 2017 to 2022, metro areas where rents increased faster than the national average also experienced sharp increases in homelessness. Yet too many cities still have antiquated and discriminatory zoning laws on the books, which severely limit how much low-cost housing can be built. In many U.S. cities, more than 75% of land zoned for residential use is earmarked exclusively for detached single-family homes.

Governments need to incentivize developers to build more affordable housing. Legislation making its way through Congress, for example, would increase tax credits for building low-income housing enough to add 200,000 new affordable units in just two years.

We've seen cities make tremendous progress in solving homelessness with these approaches. Houston  the nation's fourth largest city  reduced homelessness by 63% from 2011 to 2023 by collecting real-time data and moving 25,000 people into housing. Since starting a housing-first program in 2015, Milwaukee has decreased the number of residents experiencing unsheltered homelessness by 92 percent. Cincinnati reduced chronic homelessness by 54% between 2021 and 2023. Mississippi's Gulf Coast region  spanning six counties with 450,000 residents  reduced unsheltered homelessness by more than 40% since 2018, thanks in part to using by-name data and working with police to move from criminalization tactics to more effective solutions.

These are the kinds of investments local officials should make, rather than undertaking showy crackdowns that merely move the problem from point A to point B and back again.

The Supreme Court case won't solve our spiraling homelessness crisis. But it can spark a national conversation about what to do. We have clear-cut evidence that data-driven housing investments are the answer. Now we just need the political will to provide it.
DOVER, Tenn. (WKRN)  More and more people are continuing to fall victim to online predators, with a dramatic increase in online child sexual exploitation over the last four years.

It can happen to anyone, anywhere. But, according to Dover Councilman Alex Berta, predators are increasingly setting their sights on another vulnerable population: young adults who have been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder.

While he has served on the city council since December 2022, Berta has spent the majority of his career working in cybersecurity. Many of his investigations have led him to the dark web, where he began noticing the troubling trend around the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Homeland Security and Scouting America partner up to end online child exploitation

We were seeing communities standing up like we hadnt seen before on different dark web forms and in chats where it was, Lets not target the child, lets target the 18 plus autistic young adult, he said. And I was like, this isnt right. This needs to be stopped.

Months ago, Berta began working to draft a bill hes calling the Autism Spectrum Online Protection Act. Under the bill, it would be illegal for anyone to use an online platform to engage in grooming, sexting, exploitation, sextortion, trafficking or sexual manipulation of a young adult with autism who is under a conservatorship.

Dover Councilman Alex Berta talks about the Autism Spectrum Online Protection Act during an interview. (Photo: WKRN)

Berta said the language of the bill specifically applies to young adults, ages 18 to 25, who are under a conservatorship because thats something he and other investigators were seeing online predators mention over and over in a lot of their form posts and chats on the dark web.

A young adult that is under conservatorship may not be able to take care of themselves. Theyre going to have a parent or guardian and that predator will put themselves in a place of trust, he said. So, they become a trusted part of the family, as a family friend, when theyre really manipulating and theyre grooming everybody.

Rutherford County Schools join national social media lawsuit

The Act would also require online platforms to implement and enforce policies to prevent, protect and report any such activities that target young adults with autism. The concept has been a major talking point lately, with several Tennessee schools recently joining a lawsuit against multiple social media companies, asking them to do more to protect children.

Berta said the people who are targeting young adults with disabilities on these platforms have it down to a formula. Young adults who are on the autism spectrum can be particularly vulnerable as they go online to find a sense of community.

They want to be friends with everybody, and the predators were like, Ill be friends with them, Berta said. In a lot of these guides that we were seeing on dark web places, they have it step by step of like, This is what you need to do if youre going to approach somebody with autism.

While research on the intersection of sexual victimization and autism is still in its infancy, some studies have shown that autistic individuals are also much more vulnerable to sexual abuse.

Study finds kids with autism are expelled from preschool at alarming rate

A 2022 investigation by the Autism Research Institute found that 75.4% of participants out of 110 people reported sexual harassment, and almost 60% reported experiences of sexual violence compared to 56.4% and 28.2% reported by non-autistic participants.

In his line of work, Berta said hes noticed that a surprising number of people dont seem to realize the dangers that are lurking just around the corner on the internet.

When I first started teaching and talking about this, a lot of people were like, This doesnt happen in my town, he said. But it happens all over the country, and it happens in every single neighborhood. Its not just specific to one area. It happens everywhere.

Theres been several cybersecurity cases Bertas worked where he said there was no justice for the victims but had something like the Autism Spectrum Online Protection Act been in place, the outcome might have been different.

New Tennessee law lets students, staff carry naloxone in schools

While it is intentionally written broadly at this time, the punishment for those who violate the Act would likely be similar to the punishment for the offense of sexual exploitation of a minor via electronic means, which is a Class E felony in Tennessee.

In crafting the bill, Berta sought input from the Nashville Anti-Human Trafficking Coalition and We Fight Monsters, a nonprofit out of Memphis, along with law enforcement officers, congressmen, senators and even some lawmakers in Washington D.C.

Hes currently working with Sen. John Stevens (R-Huntingdon), with hopes of soon seeing the bill become a state law.

Were working through that progress, Berta said. And then this fall, we have a lot of work ahead of us.

 Read todays top stories on wkrn.com

Should it become a law, Berta said he wants to track the bill over a 12-month period to see how it impacts Tennessee. With positive results, he sees the Act as potentially being something that could be elevated to a federal level as it could apply to many people across the nation.

Its something that we have to worry about because every child, every young adult, every person is connected to the internet one way or another and we see it in younger adults and children, he said. I mean, you could go to your local grocery store and just walk around. Every kid and young person is heads down looking at their phone.

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 WKRN News 2.
Signage for the restrooms at the Utah Capitol in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Jan. 24, 2024. In recent years, several European countries, including the more progressive nations of Scandinavia, have pulled back on allowing gender-related treatments for minors because some doctors have serious concerns about the risks. | Megan Nielsen, Deseret News

When it comes to transgender medical treatments for children, parts of Europe have taken an enviable approach that relies on science rather than politics, advocacy or emotion. The results have been telling.

In recent years, several European countries, including the more progressive nations of Scandinavia, have pulled back on allowing gender-related treatments for minors because some doctors have serious concerns about the risks. As U.S. News reported last year, these changes are being driven by healthcare policymakers and medical professionals, not by lawmakers. This has led to calmer and more rational discussions than what often takes place in the hyper-partisan United States.

In the UK, a report by Hillary Cass, chair of the Independent Review of gender identity services for children and young people, authored a report to the National Health Service that documented several flaws to how young people with gender confusion are being treated. Among her findings is that The rationale for early puberty suppression remains unclear, with weak evidence regarding the impact on gender dysphoria, mental or psychosocial health. The effect on cognitive and psychosexual development remains unknown.

Beyond that, she said, a medical pathway for such distress may not be the best way to proceed for a majority of such young people.

These changes lend credence to voices within the U.S. that are calling for a halt to some gender-related treatment for minors. Most recently, a coalition of health policy and conservative groups known as the American College of Pediatricians and Doctors Protecting Children issued a strongly worded statement opposing the progressive-driven policies of associations such as the American Academy of Pediatrics and the American Medical Association.

The coalition says U.S. medical associations  including the American Academy of Pediatrics, the Endocrine Society, the Pediatric Endocrine Society, American Medical Association, the American Psychological Association and the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry  should follow the science the way many in Europe are doing.

This would mean to immediately stop the promotion of social affirmation, puberty blockers, cross-sex hormones and surgeries for children and adolescents who experience distress over their biological sex, the group said.

Instead, these organizations should recommend comprehensive evaluations and therapies aimed at identifying and addressing underlying psychological co-morbidities and neurodiversity that often predispose to and accompany gender dysphoria.

The website for Doctors Protecting Children includes references to several academic studies. Among these is one from the Dutch University of Groningen, which followed 2,772 children as they grew from 11 to 22-26 years of age. At the beginning, 11% reported being unhappy with their reported gender. By about age 26, only 4% expressed such concerns, demonstrating, as the group contends, that most thoughts and feelings that are at odds with a persons gender at birth resolve themselves over time.

The group also believes a persons sex is an innate trait that occurs at fertilization. This genetic signature is present in every nucleated somatic cell in the body and is not altered by drugs or surgical interventions.

But of course, this affirmation, together with the call for a reduction in gender-related treatments among minors, has been lost in much of the American political spectrum that, for too many people, takes precedence over science, or over what science currently suggests in other developed countries.

Everyone ought to agree on one thing, however, and that is that we cant afford to get this matter, which affects the lives of so many children, wrong. Science is clear that the brain, while full-sized by early adolescence, continues to form and mature until a person is well into his or her 20s. The National Institute of Mental Health says the prefrontal cortex is the last part to mature. This area is responsible for skills like planning, prioritizing, and making good decisions, its website says. Recognizing this, a host of laws and policies keep people from making certain decisions, or being able to engage in certain behaviors, until they reach a certain age. Certainly, life-changing decisions concerning gender should wait until such maturing takes place.

Utah lawmakers passed a bill last year that outlawed gender-reassignment surgeries for those under the age of 18, and that placed an indefinite moratorium on hormonal treatments for children and teens not already undergoing treatment for gender dysphoria. So far, 25 states have passed such laws. To no ones surprise, lawsuits have arisen. And while the U.S. Supreme Court recently issued a ruling allowing Idaho to enforce its ban on treatments for minors, it didnt rule on the constitutionality of such bans. Some experts believe a case challenging Tennessees ban may provide some clarity. That case involves a 15-year-old transgender girl and two other families who have filed anonymously. However, the high court has yet to decide whether to hear the case.

Not all European countries are adopting policies limiting gender treatments, and because many countries are relying on health-care policies, and not laws, to guide medical decisions, it would be inaccurate to say they have banned the practice. Research is ongoing and may further change these policies. The attitude in Sweden is typical of this approach.

The National Board of Health and Welfare in Sweden allows treatments for minors only within a research context and for exceptional cases. It adds that the risks of puberty suppressing treatment  and gender-affirming hormonal treatment currently outweigh the possible benefits.

Much of that concern is based on the results of a 2022 study commissioned by the government.

U.S. News reported that Mikael Landen, a professor and chief physician at the University of Gothenburg in Sweden and co-author of the report, wrote in an email, From the lack of evidence follows that a conservative approach is warranted.

Policymakers in the United States should at least acknowledge the need for more data. Children deserve as much.
TASHKENT, Uzbekistan, June 13. Russian Ural Airlines started operating direct scheduled flights from Domodedovo airport to Samarkand, Trend reports.

According to the airline, the flights are scheduled 4 times a week on Mondays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays on Airbus liners.

Earlier in January this year, Ural Airlines resumed regular flights between Russia and Uzbekistan. The airline operates flights to five destinations in Uzbekistan's Samarkand, Namangan, Tashkent, Qarshi and Urgench.

The flights are conducted on Airbus A320 and Airbus A321 aircraft.

In November 2023, Uzbekistan's Tashkent and Russia's Moscow signed a Memorandum of Cooperation in the field of tourism, which presupposes an increase in the number of tourists in both directions, up to 1 million people, the organization of tourist and cultural festivals, as well as media coverage of national tourist routes and destinations.
Far-right populist parties performed exceptionally well in the European Parliament elections, finishing first in France, Italy, and three other countries. They won nearly a quarter of the seats in the Parliament, just behind the center right.

With Europe already reeling from Russia's war in Ukraine, the threat of a second Donald Trump presidency in the United States, stagnant living standards, strained welfare systems, and extreme weather events, nationalists pose a severe threat. These parties are often sympathetic to Russian President Vladimir Putin and downright hostile to green policies, migrants, and European Union institutions.

Mainstream pro-European parties have three broad options for responding: complacency, co-optation, or counterattack. Lets start with the case for business as usual. Many Europeans believe  incorrectly  that EU elections are inconsequential. Turnout is much lower than in national elections, and many people cast protest votes, often against governing parties.

Even so, pro-EU parties will still command a majority in the next Parliament. The center-right European Peoples Party (EPP), led by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, actually gained seats.

Read also: Opinion: 8 lessons from Russias war in Ukraine

Moreover, far-right parties are deeply divided. They are split between two rival parliamentary groups, and some are unattached. They disagree on the Ukraine war, economic policy, LGBTQ rights, and, crucially, whether to work within the EU system or against it. Inevitably, such rifts dilute their influence.

But complacency is dangerous. The center held only because it is defined ever more broadly, encompassing not only the EPP and the Socialists and Democrats (S&D), but also the classical and social liberals of Renew Europe and the Greens. Von der Leyen seemingly has enough votes in Parliament to be re-elected as Commission president  but only just. And anything can happen in a secret ballot. This hardly suggests a strong and stable pro-EU center, especially because the EPP gained ground partly by campaigning against the blocs green agenda.

More worryingly, the elections reordered the political landscape in key member states. Despite neo-Nazi tendencies and questionable ties to Russia and China, the extremist Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) finished second in Germany, ahead of Chancellor Olaf Scholzs Social Democrats (SPD). In France, National Rally won 32% of the vote, more than double that of President Emmanuel Macrons centrist allies  a crushing defeat that led Macron to call a snap election. Europes two most powerful leaders are thus severely weakened, leaving the bloc potentially rudderless in the face of immense economic, security, and climate challenges.

The second option, then, is to accommodate the far right, a common outcome at the national level. Many center-right parties adopt the far rights language and policies, notably on migration (as do some center-left ones). In several member states, they even govern together.

Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) federal chairpeople Alice Weidel (M) and Tino Chrupalla (Center R) cheer at the AfD party headquarters during the forecast for the European elections in Berlin, Germany, on June 9, 2024. (Jorg Carstensen/picture alliance via Getty Images)

At the EU level, pragmatists argue that some far-right parties can be brought into the conservative mainstream. Witness von der Leyens wooing of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who has fashioned herself as a traditional conservative, despite the neo-fascist roots of her Brothers of Italy (FdI) party, and raised her profile by working with, rather than against, EU institutions. (This is an old trick: after a showdown with EU authorities that almost led to Greeces ejection from the eurozone in 2015, its hard-left Syriza government was eventually enticed into the pro-EU camp.)

The risk is that the far right co-opts the center right, rather than vice versa. Consider how the EUs approach to asylum-seekers has shifted from then-German Chancellor Angela Merkels welcoming policy in 2015 to near-universal hostility now. Moreover, far-right parties can gain strength as their views become normalized, as evidenced by the victory of Geert Wilderss Party for Freedom (PVV) in last years Dutch general election.

Above all, embracing the far right can backfire spectacularly. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbans Fidesz party, for example, once sat in the EPP; now he is a pro-Putin renegade who treats the rule of law and democratic rights with contempt. And while Meloni may be palatable to some centrists, no one seems eager to work with Frances National Rally, much less Germanys AfD.

That leaves the third option: fight the far right. Macron has opted to pursue this course by calling a snap legislative election. This is widely viewed as a high-stakes gamble, given Macrons unpopularity and the electorates hostile mood. France could conceivably elect a far-right prime minister in a run-off vote next month. In that case, Macron would become a lame duck for his remaining three years in office.

Read also: Opinion: NATO states should send non-combat troops to Ukraine

But his position was severely weakened in any case, and his governing coalition, which lacks a parliamentary majority, was at risk of losing a no-confidence vote. By dissolving the National Assembly, Macron has regained the initiative, creating two possible paths for defeating the far right.

For one, the campaign may focus voters attention on the far-right threat, which could help Macron cobble together a parliamentary majority comprising left and right parties united in their desire to keep the National Rally at bay. Given Macrons unpopularity, this seems somewhat unlikely.

More plausibly, Macron could set up the far right to fail. Populists tend to perform best when they are outsiders challenging established parties, not wielding responsibility. Observe how Conservatives in the United Kingdom, having delivered on their Brexit promise, have been skewered by the reality of it, while the popularity of Wilders PVV has already dipped now that it is in government.

If the National Rally wins a majority, or ends up leading a broader right-wing coalition, it would likely struggle with the harsh responsibilities of governing  such as difficult fiscal decisions, and whether and how to cooperate with EU institutions. Moderating its hardline policies could erode its anti-establishment edge; enacting them could plunge the country into crisis. Either way, this could undermine the popularity of its leader, Marine Le Pen, ahead of her likely presidential run. Better a far-right prime minister in 2024 than a far-right president in 2027.

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.

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This article was originally published in The Conversation.

Florida updated its school safety dashboard in April 2024, and it is now one of the most comprehensive in the nation. F. Chris Curran is an education policy professor at the University of Florida who partnered with Safe Schools for Alex, a nonprofit created by Max Schachter following the murder of his son Alex in the Parkland massacre in 2018, to release the new version of the dashboard. The Conversation asked him how parents and schools can benefit from the dashboard and what other states might learn from it as well.

What can this dashboard show parents about how safe a school is for their child?

Parents can use the Safe Schools for Alex dashboard to compare safety metrics in their childs school with district and state averages as well as with other similar schools. The dashboard includes all public K-12 schools in Florida and over 50 indicators of school safety  ranging from fights and weapons to school bus crashes. Parents can also see information on school responses and resources, such as whether school staff are trained in suicide prevention and the ratio of counselors to students.

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Access to this data lets parents and parent-teacher associations know what questions to ask of their teachers and school leaders to help them contribute to school improvement plans. It can also help parents better support their own children at home by talking about and addressing issues they see in the dashboard. For example, parents might talk to their kids about bullying or hazing, using the statistics in the dashboard.

With numerous measures of school safety at their fingertips, parents can look for the indicators that meet the needs of their individual child. For example, a parent with a child dealing with anxiety or depression might compare the mental health resources available at different schools.

A view of the Safe Schools for Alex School Safety Dashboard with different charts

How can schools use the dashboard?

School districts and educators can see their school safety data in relation to other schools and districts  and how such data relates to standardized test scores, community violence and other indicators. So, for example, a school might see an increasing trend in its community of students in poverty or living without health insurance and focus on connecting families with external social support resources. In contrast, a school that sees increases in school incidents despite improving community indicators might instead focus on improving school engagement and disciplinary responses.

In partnership with Safe Schools for Alex, my team also developed training that uses the dashboard to start conversations about school safety and find solutions. School leaders can use the dashboard to identify areas of concern in their own school  such as an increasing pattern of fights. The dashboard and the training then facilitate conversation about root causes of the issue. The dashboards list of resources provides evidence-based approaches to developing and implementing solutions. For example, school leaders might find a new bullying prevention program to implement or identify another school with decreasing fights to reach out to and learn from.

Teen sits on sofa looking stressed

Could there be unintended consequences?

Unfortunately, research has shown that data dashboards can result in a stigma toward certain schools and lead to more affluent families leaving those schools. Public rankings of schools have been linked to increases in economic, racial and educational segregation. Lower-ranked schools, in turn, can lose enrollment and resources as wealthier parents opt for higher-ranked schools.

The Safe Schools for Alex dashboard purposefully avoids ranking or labeling schools as safe or unsafe for this reason. The dashboard includes a range of indicators so educators and parents can avoid a simplistic view of a school as safe or not. While parents often want a single indicator of a schools performance, such indicators often misrepresent safety or achievement, as they tend to be more indicative of other factors, such as the poverty level of students served.

What does the dashboard reveal about violence in schools today?

Schools nationwide have reported increases in student misbehavior over the past several years. The dashboard shows this increase too. However, while some of the increase in safety-related incidents is due to violence such as fights, a large part is driven by nonviolent incidents  particularly vaping.

The data also shows that while rates of some incidents are increasing, so are state resources such as funding for school safety and mental health. Specifically, state funding per student for mental health has doubled from about $24 per student to $48 per student in Florida over the past five years. Meanwhile, funding for implementing security practices such as hiring school police officers has increased by about 15%.

Ultimately, the dashboard reveals that there is a lot of variation across schools and districts. Some have high and some have low rates of violence; some are increasing and some are decreasing.

People attend a memorial service on the fifth anniversary of the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School mass shooting

Whats next?

School safety is a top priority of students, parents and educators. Just as schools have embraced the use of data to improve academic instruction, the use of data to ensure school safety is also growing. Yet, we have found that a quarter to a third of states currently do not make school safety or discipline data publicly available.

Along with the Florida dashboard, Safe Schools for Alex has dashboards for Kentucky, Pennsylvania, New Hampshire and Virginia. These other dashboards are in the process of being enhanced to include more data and features like the Florida one.

A number of other states, including Georgia, have their own dashboards that similarly include wide-ranging data points and interactive features. And some states, such as Kentucky, have integrated such measures into their broader school report cards.

These dashboards do not have all the answers, but they can help parents and school leaders know what questions to ask and where to find resources to make schools safer, fairer and more conducive to learning.

The Conversation

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
Hate arrived in Brooklyn Heights at 4 a.m. Wednesday in the form of at least two masked figures who passed through the early morning darkness wielding canisters of red spray paint.

This neighborhood of elegant brownstones and stately apartment buildings just on the other side of the Brooklyn Bridge from Lower Manhattan has in years past been home to literary greats such as Walt Whitman, W.H. Auden, and Norman Mailer. Its current firmament includes a host of A-list actors, including Matt Damon, Adam Driver, and Paul Giamatti.

The masked figures slipped onto Hicks Street and entered the courtyard of a six-story luxury co-op where Lena Dunham of the HBO show Girls lived until 2017. The present residents include a figure from the art world who should be celebrated by all those who experienced the horror of the most monstrous hate crime in the citys history: the attack on the World Trade Center.

In the aftermath of 9/11, the public art nonprofit Creative Time, headed by Anne Pasternak, commissioned a project called Tribute in Light that marked the six-month anniversary of the attack with twin beams described as the most powerful shafts of light ever produced from Earth. They shot four miles into the night sky from ground zero and to see them was to feel at once how much was lost because of blind hate and how much survived despite it. The lights shone again on the first anniversary and have every year afterward.

Pasternak went on to become director of the Brooklyn Museum, which has of late been targeted by pro-Palestine activists whose grievances with the institution seem more antisemitic pretext than legitimate protest.

Brooklyn Museums Jewish Leaders Homes Targeted by Vandals: Unacceptable Antisemitism

Just read the nonsense the organization Within Our Lifetime offered on its website to explain a demonstration it staged outside the museum last week:

Despite its claim to be a progressive cultural institution, we know that through its leadership, trustees, corporate sponsors and donors, this museum is deeply invested in and complicit in the ongoing colonization, ethnic cleansing and genocide of the Palestinian people.

During the protest, a number of people were arrested after they barged into the museum.

As the group tells it, the Brooklyn Museums complicity in this genocide was met with ongoing escalation.

If you take peace from the people, we take peace from you, the group declared afterward, without offering much in the way of a concrete connection to the ongoing conflict.

At 4 a.m. Wednesday, the super in the co-op building where Pasternak resides was awakened by a resident who had been on her way to the gym when she saw that vandals had sprayed the exterior with red paint. They had stenciled the message blood on your hands on the walkway and painted two inverse red triangles by the entryway. Such triangles are used by Hamas to mark Israeli military targets. They also hung a banner across the entrance.

Anne Pasternak

Brooklyn Museum

White-Supremacist

Zionist

Police responded and the superwho would only identify himself to The Daily Beast as Danielshowed the officers video from surveillance cameras that flank the courtyard. The footage captured the full 90 seconds of the attack, but masks concealed the suspects faces.

Daniel reported that Pasternak was away at the time of the attack. He took down the hateful banner and hired a company that normally cleans up after fires to address the red paint.

Everybody should be outraged, he told The Daily Beast.

He failed to see any connection between Pasternakor the Brooklyn Museumand Gaza.

What does this have to do with whats going on? he asked.

A neighbor named Stacy Manko also paused to survey the scene while walking her dog, Wesley. She told The Daily Beast she has lived in Brooklyn Heights for 30 years and only encountered antisemitism for the first time several days ago. She was wearing a Jewish star on the way home from Trader Joes when she passed a man in a keffiyeh.

I felt something wet, she recalled. He had spit on me.

A neighbor from nearby Furman Street who would only give her name as Katie came by with her 5-year-old daughter. Katie reported her own recent encounter with antisemitism.

Did I Witness a Hate Crime in Manhattans Liberal Melting Pot?

Somebody took our mezuzah, she said, adding that it had been given to her husband by his grandparents in Minnesota and it had been by their door since they married.

Thats very upsetting, Manko said.

Katie and her daughter continued on up the tree-lined street to an apartment that no longer had a mezuzah in a neighborhood known more for celebrities than hate. The crew kept at the red paint outside the building of an admirable celebrity of another kind.

Pasternak did not respond to phone and email messages for comment from The Daily Beast. But she did issue a statement.

For two centuries, the Brooklyn Museum has worked to foster mutual understanding through art and culture, and we have always supported peaceful protest and open, respectful dialogue, she said. Violence, vandalism and intimidation have no place in that discourse.

The residences of three members of the museums board have also been vandalized.

Only the Jewish ones, Manko noted as she stood outside Pasternaks home, where hate had come to the Heights.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Opinion: If you love the Second Amendment like me, you know how important Hunter Bidens appeal is

Editors Note: Shermichael Singleton is a CNN political commentator, host of a nationally syndicated radio show on SiriusXM and principal of Global Impact Strategies, a political consulting firm. He has worked on three Republican presidential campaigns. He co-owns GunsOut, a firearms production company whose clients include gun manufacturers and advocacy groups (including Gun Owners of America). The views expressed in this commentary are his own. Read more opinion at CNN.

I vividly remember the first time I shot a firearm with my brother and cousins; it was an old Winchester rifle that belonged to my grandfather. We were out in the Louisiana country, surrounded by the smell of wet moss and the infamous magnolias. As the sunlight hit the grass and birds began to chirp, you could smell what my grandfather called morning air.

Shermichael Singleton - Courtesy Shermichael Singleton

We were all very young at the time, and I was no older than 7 or 8 years old. However, my grandfather had deemed it time, as his grandfather had done with him, for the boys to understand the importance of hunting, a deeply held southern tradition that affirmed the right to keep and bear arms.

I remember my grandfather telling us how, in his day, a firearm was the only way a Black man could protect himself and his family against racists who wanted to teach Blacks a lesson. He would say, When they realized we had guns and knew how to use them too, they wouldnt bother us.

That experience with my grandfather never left me, and it was then that I realized firearms, regardless of their caliber or capacity, are not just weapons of war, as President Joe Biden stated about assault weapons (semi-automatic rifles) in his Tuesday speech to Everytown for Gun Safety Action Funds annual conference in Washington, DC. It was also a means to protect and equalize the playing field against any racist or bigot who dared think they had the power and right to trample the rights and liberties of anyone they believed they were superior to.

Once I became an adult, I ventured into competitive shooting, a sport I truly love and enjoy, and I continue to hunt with my close friends, keeping the practices and traditions my grandfather taught me alive. I now co-own a firearms production company that produces top-tier educational and entertaining content focusing on firearms operations, ownership and fostering a deeper understanding of gun culture. My business partner John and I have had the opportunity to work with some of the largest firearms manufacturers and gun rights advocacy groups in the country.

The flourishing firearms community has been including more women and people of color who are believed to be the fastest-growing groups of gun owners in the United States. It is with this passion, experience and knowledge of this community, the Second Amendment and firearms that I am opposed to Tuesdays verdict against Hunter Biden, which I believe is a violation of the Second Amendment.

I am vehemently opposed to President Bidens continued encroachment on the Second Amendment and the actions of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) under his administration. I am an advocate for the Second Amendment and its importance for all Americans  including the presidents son.

Biden spoke to the Everytown for Gun Safety conference shortly after his son Hunter was found guilty of three charges in a federal firearms case, effectively becoming a felon, and the image couldnt be starker. While President Biden spoke about enhancing federal background checks on prospective gun buyers, two of Hunters felony convictions were connected to lying about his drug use on the ATFs Form 4473, which a federally licensed firearms seller uses to run a background check on a buyer. This is ironic, to say the least.

Nevertheless, Hunter Biden should have never had to answer the drug use question on that form in the first place. The US Supreme Court must provide guidance regarding his case, which centers around a gun restriction that I believe is unconstitutional.

A similar case was overturned in 2023 by the 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals. The panel reversed the conviction of Patrick Darnell Daniels, Jr., who was sentenced to four years in prison for a firearm-related offense. After pulling Daniels over for a traffic violation, the police officer discovered two marijuana butts and two loaded firearms in the vehicle. While Daniels drug of choice (marijuana) differs from that of Hunter Biden (who abused crack cocaine), the law targeted them for the same reason: They possessed a firearm while recently being an unlawful user of or addicted to any controlled substance.

In overturning Daniels conviction, the court wrote: Throughout American history, laws have regulated the combination of guns and intoxicating substances. But at no point in the 18th or 19th century did the government disarm individuals who used drugs or alcohol at one time from possessing guns at another. A few states banned carrying a weapon while actively under the influence, but those statutes did not emerge until well after the Civil War.

The 5th Circuit found that historical precedent supporting some limits on whether an intoxicated person can carry a weapon does not justify disarming a sober citizen based exclusively on his past drug usage. And traditions of disarming dangerous persons dont support this restriction on nonviolent drug users, the court added.

This was reflected in New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen (2022), which challenged restrictions on obtaining concealed carry permits. In a 6-3 ruling in favor of gun rights, conservative Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that to justify a firearm regulation the government must demonstrate that the regulation is consistent with the Nations historical tradition of firearm regulation.

The failure of the federal government to meet that burden in Daniels case led to the 5th Circuit reversing his conviction, and I strongly believe that if the Bruen decision is followed, the 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals will do the same when Hunter Biden appeals.

I think about how many of men of color have had similar experiences to Daniels: pulled over for a simple traffic violation, got arrested for having a controlled substance in their possession and ultimately were charged with a felony after the discovery of a firearm. Many of those men are either imprisoned or have to live their lives as a felon, unable to find work or vote, as they are forced to struggle with barriers to being productive members of society.

The irony is that it may be Hunter Bidens case that goes to the Supreme Court and gives the court a say on what I fervently believe is an unconstitutional violation of the Second Amendment  and a ruling on gun rights for those who have used drugs could provide a pathway for those men to have their cases reviewed and statuses changed.

Despite President Bidens continued weaponization of the Second Amendment and infringement upon this uniquely American right, he may ultimately have the Second Amendment to thank  at least in this case  if it reverses his sons status as a convicted felon.

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Editors Note: Joe Lockhart is the managing director at strategic communications firm Rational 360 and served as White House Press Secretary for former President Bill Clinton. The views expressed in this commentary are his own. View more opinion on CNN.

Former President Donald Trump held a pre-sentencing interview Monday with a probation officer after being convicted last month of falsifying business documents concerning hush money paid to conceal an alleged affair. In the aftermath of the trial, Democrats have struggled with delivering a consistent response to the verdict and taking advantage of moments like Mondays probation interview.

Beatriz Moritz

President Joe Biden started to stake out the right response last week when he referred to his opponent as a convicted felon  but didnt mention Stormy Daniels, the porn star who alleged the affair (which Trump denies), and the hush money payout to catch and kill the story so it wasnt made public during the 2016 campaign.

We need to move on from these details because the public isnt convinced these facts, no matter how sordid, disqualify him from office. Its not the crime thats powerful in this case, its the punishment, as were observing with Trump having to meet (albeit virtually) with a probation officer Monday.

In other words, its not about Stormy Daniels or payoffs; instead, the conviction should be the centerpiece of a campaign arguing that Trump is unfit, not because of infidelity or shady business practices, but because he is a convicted criminal. Though some Americans dont see this case as being as serious as the others pending against him, its one in which he was still found guilty. We need to go big here, and the conviction is a small piece in a sordid life of a man who has no business leading our country or the free world.

With all due respect to my old boss and the best political mind of a generation, Bill Clinton, I disagreed with his contention that successful campaigns are ones that focus on the future. I believe in this case we must use the conviction of the former president as a launching pad to remind voters of everything Trumps done both before he took office and while he was president.

There is a very strong case against Trump based on what his second term will look like. There have been reports that Trump has fundamental changes in our government in store, such as gutting the civil service in favor of political operatives loyal to Trump. There have also been reports that some seeking employment at the Republican National Committee were asked to state whether they thought the 2020 campaign results were illegitimate.

But a much richer vein for Democrats is going after the past. Many will argue voters have already factored in all of Trumps malfeasance in their current level of support and repeating it for them wont have any impact. I couldnt disagree more.

In 2016, voters rationalized a vote for Trump saying It wont be as bad as everyone thinks. Hell have smart people around him and there will be other safeguards. Today its just the opposite. Essentially: It really wasnt that bad, was it? Both are completely wrong. The Biden campaign must remove any and every justification that allows voters to reluctantly vote for Trump.

Its not only voters who have forgotten or glossed over the carnage that was the Trump presidency. I recently talked with a group of seasoned political professionals about the impact of Gaza on the campaign. Several argued Biden would have trouble with Arab Americans, particularly in Michigan. I countered by asking how they could vote for the man who banned people from seven Muslim-majority countries from entering the country. I was dumbfounded when several people claimed Trump had never done that. (He did.)

Voters need a daily reminder of every aspect of Trumps malfeasance. Trump as a convicted criminal validates the coming attacks as more than just partisan attacks using a rigged system. And it doesnt stop with the New York conviction. The conviction actually gives new life and extra weight to the federal documents indictment and the election interference cases in Georgia and Arizona. While its all but certain neither will be adjudicated until after the election, and Trump denies wrongdoing in all the cases, the allegations carry much more weight this week than they did before the verdict.

In fact, everything Trump has been accused of in the past should carry extra weight now. Attacking Trump for not paying taxes and defrauding business partners, for example, are much more believable now that a jury of his peers has deemed him a criminal. All the things that just didnt stick in 2016 are more likely to weigh him down in 2024.

The case must be made that the essence of Trump is a criminal and someone unfit to lead. In this country, being convicted of a crime carries a heavy stigma. That stigma politically can extend to Trump, making the litany of attacks on him more powerful. Trump has engaged in racism. Trump has cheated. Trump is xenophobic. Trump is a serial liar. Trump praises Russia and China, while calling American veterans  our heroes  losers. Trump has been impeached twice. Trump was found by a civil jury to have committed sexual assault.

The list goes on and on. These attacks should both energize the Democratic base and chip away at the reluctant swing Trump voter.

Trump can and should be criticized for what he is planning. But hell be defeated by what hes already done. The Biden campaign is right that once voters focus on the choice of Biden or Trump, they will come around to voting for Biden, even if its with great reluctance.

Finally, heres the kicker and what might be the most powerful argument. America is a proud country with an arrogance that is well earned on the battlefield, the halls of diplomacy and the leadership in economic and technological progress.

There is no better way to energize that pride than to paint Trump as a danger to everything that makes us exceptional. The message is America has been great and remains great, lets not let Trump and his MAGA cap squander nearly 250 years of well-earned power and respect.

We are what former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright famously called the indispensable nation. The world, whether theyll admit it or not, depends on the United States to both forge alliances and deter opponents. Our democracy stands as a model copied around the world. This is not the country that can be led by a convicted criminal  thats what happens in countries that dont follow the rule of law. We are better than that.

Thats a message all Democrats can and should get behind.

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Opinion: Do we really want to do more random tipping?

A tip is left by a customer at Linda's Place Restaurant in St. Clair Shores, Mich., Thursday, June 19, 2008. Former President Donald Trump promised a crowd in Las Vegas that he would exempt all tips from taxes on wages. | Paul Sancya

You dont like being asked to tip people everywhere you go. Polls are clear about that.

But if former President Donald Trump is reelected and keeps a promise he made recently in Las Vegas, you might have to do a whole lot more of it.

A poll by the Deseret News and the Hinckley Institute of Politics last year found that people dont mind tipping at restaurants, but 65% said it wasnt appropriate at fast-food restaurants and 69% didnt find it appropriate for takeout food.

But this goes way beyond food. I recently bought a shirt online and was asked if I wanted to add a tip to show appreciation to the designer.

Uh, no thanks. Unless, that is, you want to tip me for writing this.

Today, the ubiquitous electronic screens, offering you various options for percentages to add to your bill, seem to pop up everywhere. Thats why Trumps promise seemed so odd.

Speaking to a campaign crowd in Las Vegas, one presumably made up mostly of service-sector workers, the former president said, For those hotel workers and people that get tips, youre going to be very happy, because when I get to office, we are going to not charge taxes on tips. Were going to do that right away first thing in office because its been a point of contention for years and years and years, and you do a great job of service.

First of all, he couldnt do that without Congress. But more importantly, this would unleash unintended consequences. As the old saying goes, if you want more of something, tax it less. Make tips tax-free, and watch as more of the economy becomes tip-based.

Or, as The Wall Street Journal put it, An auto-body shop could restrain its prices and wages and strongly encourage tipping as a way to get untaxed income to workers.

Piano teachers will ask parents to designate a percentage before letting their children go.

Suddenly, jobs that can reasonably expect tips (an expanding category) would be valued above other low-income jobs because they would make the worker free from a lot of state and federal income taxes, as well as taxes for Social Security and Medicare.

Of course, those workers would have to find ways to dissuade customers from pressing the no tip button on those screens.

Come to think of it, however, consumers who hate being asked to tip may suddenly find they like the new, voluntary pick-your-own-price economy. They may also like the newfound incentive for workers to do an exceptional job in order to earn a larger gratuity.

But they wont be happy when they watch the national debt rise even faster than it does now.

The conservative Reason Magazine admitted it sounds great to let workers keep their earnings away from the grubby hands of the government. But the end result would be to increase what we all owe Uncle Sam for overspending.

In 2018, the latest year for which the IRS has complete data, about 6.1 million Americans reported a combined $38 billion in income from tips, Reason said. But, unless the former president has a plan to reduce federal spending by that amount, the loss of revenue would put another hole in a federal budget that already requires money printers to work overtime.

But its worse than that. People would likely begin reporting much more of their income as tips, which would cost Washington even more.

No, we dont need a tax gimmick that would further distort an overcomplicated tax structure, just as we dont need President Joe Bidens fixation with forgiving student loans. What we need is a clear-eyed reckoning with the tax code and runaway debt.

Recently, I reported on a study by the Penn Wharton Budget Model at the University of Pennsylvania, which estimated that when the nations debt reaches about 200% of its economic output, the fiscal walls will collapse around us. Thats when investors will stop believing the U.S. can pay its debts. At that point, no amount of future tax increases or spending cuts could avoid the government defaulting on its debt whether explicitly or implicitly, the Wharton report said.

That day is about 20 years away.

We need politicians who tell it to us straight. How do we reform Social Security, cut programs and raise taxes to keep that day of reckoning from coming?

Or, better yet, maybe we need politicians who will cut their own salaries to zero and give us the option, next April, to mark on our income tax forms what sort of tip we think they have earned.
Editors Note: Casey Michel is the author of the forthcoming book Foreign Agents: How American Lobbyists and Lawmakers Threaten Democracy Around the World. The views expressed in this piece are his own. View more opinion on CNN.

The past few years have seen unprecedented interest and concern, on both sides of the political aisle, about the pernicious influence of foreign funding and foreign influence on the White House. While much of that concern has devolved into partisan rancor, a new, potentially momentous bill proposes to bridge that partisan gap  and tackle the issue head-on.

Casey Michel - Courtesy Versha Sharma

The new bill, dubbed the Presidential Ethics Reform Act, would force all current and future presidents and vice presidents, as well as their immediate family members, to disclose all foreign payments they receive, as well as notable gifts and loans.

To be sure, the bill isnt a panacea, as it doesnt bar this kind of deal-making from presidents or their family members, but only forces them to disclose such financial arrangements. But it is a significant step forward in terms of financial transparency in the executive branch  a topic that has surged in importance for Americans in recent years.

Needless to say, the risks of such entanglements are myriad. Not only do they provide foreign governments a way to finance American politicians, but they allow officials of those nations to far more easily access and lobby presidents and their family members. And without any transparency, the American public is left in the dark about these financial flows  or what foreign governments may be getting out of them.

Indeed, it is a shame that a bill like this is necessary in the first place. As I discovered in researching my forthcoming book, for the first two centuries of the American republic, there were few, if any, foreign funding connections to the White House or the presidents family members, even after previous presidents left office. That began changing toward the end of the 20th century, when figures like President Jimmy Carters brother, Billy Carter, began lobbying on behalf of foreign regimes in places like Libya.

Foreign entanglements picked up in the decades after, especially in the 21st century. Following President Bill Clintons departure from office in 2001, he and his wife, Hillary Clinton, oversaw the creation of the Clinton Foundation, a nonprofit that soon began taking in millions of dollars from governments around the world, including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and Oman, with significant sums also coming from a Ukrainian oligarch  and even from a Russian oligarch now sanctioned by the US.

Most obliquely, such funding helped Clinton Foundation revenues spike when Hillary Clinton first became secretary of state  and then collapse when her path to the White House disappeared.

While none of these regimes or figures explicitly said these donations were for currying influence with the Clintons, experts on governmental transparency clearly saw a pattern. The fact that foundation donors received special access to the secretary of state isnt surprising, nor is the fall in foundation funding after her 2016 election loss, said Scott Amey, general counsel for the Project on Government Oversight (POGO), one of the countrys leading anti-corruption watchdogs. [I]t really looks like they were cozying up to who they thought was going to be the future president.

While the George W. Bush and Barack Obama administrations largely steered clear of foreign financial entanglements, former President Donald Trump brought the topic back to clear relevance, in ways never previously seen in American history.

Whether it was hosting Nigerian and Malaysian politicians at his Washington hotel, or signing deals in places like Azerbaijan or Indonesia, or selling condos to leading figures in places like Haiti and Congo-Brazzaville, Trumps financial ties presented an unparalleled array of foreign links. While some of these links were made public by Trump and his business partners, the details of others  such as the Malaysian government splurging at Trumps hotel during his presidency  only came out because of congressional investigations.

With the new bill, both sides of the political aisle are getting something they want. The bills co-sponsors, California Democratic Rep. Katie Porter and Kentucky Republican Rep. James Comer, likely authored it for starkly divergent reasons.

For Democrats like Porter, Trumps return to the center of the political stage presented a clear, obvious opportunity to highlight the threat of foreign funding to American politicians, their family members and their businesses. Trumps political rise, after all, presented an unprecedented introduction of financial entanglements, which also included figures like his son-in-law, Jared Kushner. Following his tenure as a White House senior adviser, Kushner signed financial deals with the Serbian government, along with national sovereign wealth funds in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Meanwhile, for Republicans like Comer, who is currently the chairman of the House Oversight Committee, the bill is a way to salve some of the wounds of their recent failed efforts to impeach President Joe Biden. The ham-fisted impeachment effort, led by Comer, flamed out  but it kept the business dealings of Bidens son, Hunter Biden, in the news.

While Hunter, unlike Kushner, was never a public official, he nonetheless mirrored Kushners efforts in working with multiple foreign firms in places like China and Ukraine. And while theres no evidence Hunter ever influenced his fathers policies, he nonetheless capitalized on his connections and his last name to open new financial streams  highlighting just how easily family members of leading American politicians could take advantage of their links.

Thankfully, congressional officials on both sides of the aisle appear to finally be stepping up to solve the issue. As Porter correctly said, These reforms will help restore Americans trust in government and strengthen our democracy. Should this bill pass, its possible, and perhaps even likely, that the best days of foreign regimes trying to access and sway the White House and presidential family members will be behind us.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. The French police raided the headquarters of the opposition People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran in Paris, Trend reports.

However, Iranian authorities are in the dark about the reason behind the raid.

The head of Iran's People's Mojahedin Organization, Maryam Rajavi, has since been hospitalized due to serious health issues.

The media also recalled that last year, Albanian police kicked the hornet's nest by raiding the headquarters of the opposition People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran, located in Tirana.

To note, the People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran is a paramilitary Islamist-leftist association. This organization was born in 1965 and took up arms against the powers that be in Iran, both during the reign of the Shah and in the aftermath of the Islamic Revolution.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Editors Note: Lia Buffa De Feo is a writer and infertility advocate. She is a mother through IVF who lives in New York City, and she writes the weekly newsletter Fly Bravely. The views expressed in this commentary are hers. View more opinion at CNN.

Growing up in an Italian-American home where family was everything, Id always wanted to be a mother. Theres a hidden compartment in my jewelry box that, for as long as I can remember, has held pieces with sentimental value  my first locket, the Pinocchio watch I learned to tell time on and my half of the BFF necklace I shared with my elementary school friend. Id kept them for decades because I had always hoped that one day I would give them to my daughter. Motherhood was a part of my identity even before I met my husband. My daughter wouldnt be here today without access to IVF, as we are one of the millions of families that required assistance to conceive and bring a child into this world.

Lia Buffa De Feo - Resolve.org

Thats why this week, I traveled from my home state of New York to Washington, DC, where I shared my story and advocated in support of the Right to IVF Act, which Senate Republicans blocked in a vote on Thursday. The act would have established a clear and enforceable nationwide right to receive or provide IVF services. It would also have made IVF treatment more affordable by mandating insurance coverage under employer-sponsored insurance and certain public plans while expanding coverage for millions of Americans, including veterans and those serving in the military. Access to IVF is a lifeline for countless Americans who want to build their families, as it was for me.

Chances are you or someone you know has experienced infertility  roughly one in six people worldwide do. Despite the widespread need for medical assistance to build a family, access to affordable care is inconsistent and unattainable for many. My own path to motherhood was a tremendous struggle, both emotionally and financially. But its not only a highly personal matter; its critical to the future of our country. The United States birth rate is declining at an alarming rate, down 2% last year. Birth statistics show babies are being born to older mothers. Many people are delaying starting their families until after they have established their careers, and fertility declines as women enter their 30s. An aging and shrinking population raises concerns about a sufficient workforce to support elder care and pay into Social Security.

Infertility impacts Americans on both sides of aisle and the ability to access this medical assistance should be met with bipartisan support, particularly given the widespread backing for IVF and insurance coverage for fertility treatments. And yet Senate Republicans opposed the Right to IVF Act, deeming it unnecessary overreach and a political show vote.

Some GOP lawmakers argue that life begins at conception. This is the same premise that underpinned the Alabama Supreme Court ruling that embryos used in IVF are children and that those who destroy them can be held liable for wrongful death  a decision that threw fertility patients in limbo before the swift backlash led Republican lawmakers in the state to back a law aimed at protecting IVF patients. But this line of thinking is still common among certain groups. Just yesterday, Southern Baptists voted to condemn IVF procedures.

Republican lawmakers should instead listen to their constituents and join Democratic Sens. Cory Booker of New Jersey, Tammy Duckworth of Illinois and Patty Murray of Washington  who introduced the Right to IVF Act  to provide more support for IVF.

As of 2023, only 21 states and Washington, DC, had enacted laws requiring at least some insurance coverage for infertility services. Most plans that include coverage have limitations. In my home state of New York, coverage is only mandated for large corporate plans. Tricare, the plan that provides health insurance for military members and their families  covering more than 10 million people  doesnt cover assisted reproductive technology services, including IVF. The Affordable Care Act defines 10 essential health benefits that must be covered, including pregnancy, maternity and newborn care. However, assisted reproductive care is excluded.

We should support Americans who want children, and no one should have to choose between financial security and building a family. I know firsthand how difficult it can be. My husband and I went through several rounds of IVF, which drained our savings account because it wasnt covered by our corporate health care plan at the time. By our fourth round of IVF, I had a new job with a company based out of Seattle that offered IVF coverage. Its because of that coverage that we were able to try one more time. That last round brought us our daughter, Carolina, who will be 6 years old next month.

If youre someone, especially a Republican, who cares about this matter, I urge you to reach out to your elected representatives and express your support for the Right to IVF Act. Give your fellow Americans the joy of hearing the four words that mean everything to me: I love you, Mommy.

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PORTLAND, Ore. (PORTLAND TRIBUNE)  Oregon political leaders were reacting Thursday, June 13, after the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously upheld access to mifepristone, a widely available abortion drug.

The decision written by Justice Brett Kavanaugh carefully sidestepped the issue of future court challenges to the Food and Drug Administrations approval of mifepristone. The decision, released Thursday, only rules that the plaintiffs in this case  anti-abortion doctors  dont have standing to sue because they do not prescribe the drug themselves.

Motorcyclist dies after crash in Gresham

Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum praised the unanimous ruling in the case of FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine.

The Supreme Court did the right thing this morning to reject the  lawsuit, she wrote. This does not mean that the legal battles over access to abortion medication are over. Our unwavering coalition of state attorneys general is committed to defending access to safe and effective medications used for abortion and miscarriage management  like mifepristone  and will continue to do so in the courts and in our states.

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Rosenblum was among the speakers at a rally on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court in March, when justices heard oral arguments in this case.

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Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum announced an agreement with Johnson & Johnson to settle a lawsuit about its marketing tactics. (Courtesy of Ellen Rosenblum)

Oregon will receive $15 million from Johnson & Johnson to settle allegations that the pharmaceutical and medical company marketed unsafe baby powder products to consumers.

The settlement is part of a national $700 million agreement that 43 attorneys general made with the New Jersey-based company. Its tied to allegations that Johnson & Johnson sold baby powder and body powder products with talc, which plaintiffs alleged is linked to serious health problems that include ovarian cancer and mesothelioma, a cancer tied to asbestos exposure.

As part of the settlement, Johnson & Johnson admitted no wrongdoing, court documents show. But Johnson & Johnson stopped distributing and selling the baby powder products, sold for more than a century, when states started investigating.

For decades, Johnson & Johnson misled consumers about the potential harms of its talc powder products, Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum said in a statement . Worse, they doubled down on the safety of those products, attacked credible scientific studies, refused to include warning labels on their products, and, at every turn, put profits ahead of lives. These decisions overwhelmingly harmed women.

As part of the agreement, Johnson & Johnson agreed to stop manufacturing and selling its baby powder and other products that contain talc in the U.S.. The lawsuit also alleged the company targeted African American and Hispanic women in its marketing efforts to reverse declining sales.

Four organizations will receive $4.7 million of the settlements proceeds for womens health programs.

Planned Parenthood will receive $4 million, with $2 million for Planned Parenthood Columbia Willamette in Portland and $2 million for Planned Parenthood Southwestern Oregon in Eugene.

The two groups will use the money for outreach and access to health care, with an eye on eliminating disparities among marginalized communities.

Virginia Garcia Memorial Health Center, which provides care for nearly 52,000 patients in Yamhill and Washington counties, will receive about $350,000 to increase access to ultrasounds for ovarian cancer screenings and offer more Hepatitis B vaccines.

The Oregon Health & Science University Foundation will receive $275,000 for outreach and cancer screenings for tribal communities.

And finally, the Ovarian Cancer Alliance of Oregon and Southwest Washington will get $55,750 to aid patients with ovarian cancer.

The remaining $10.3 million will go to an Oregon Department of Justice fund that the agency has discretion to use in different ways for its work, court records show. The departments fund helps pay for various investigative, consumer protection and consumer education efforts.

Oregon 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. Oregon Capital Chronicle maintains editorial independence.

The post Oregon to receive $15 million in settlement over baby powder lawsuit appeared first on Daily Montanan.
Osceola County unveiled its version of a Pulse tribute to several families of victims and survivors called Wings of Rainbow.

The tribute is in collaboration with the County Commission Chair Cheryl Grieb and artist JEFRE.

The sculpture will sit in Brownie Wise Park on Lake Tohopekaliga.

JEFRE told Eyewitness News Wednesday that the sculpture symbolizes remembrance, diversity, and hope.

This is really trying to make something whole and provide soul to a city, said JEFRE, artist of Wings of Rainbow.

Read: Orlando remembers 49 Pulse victims through remembrance ceremony

During a brief slideshow presentation, JEFRE explained that the sculpture is not a memorial but a tribute and will not take away from the memorial in Orlando.

What I was really excited about, was to have it in a place where the event didnt happen. The idea is that its not about tragedy or days of event. Its about celebrating their lives, said JEFRE.

The tribute will feature wings in rainbow-colored glass where the names of those who died will be placed.

The project will also have multi-colored glass stones surrounding the sculpture that family members will permanently place items inside that represent their loved ones.

Artist JEFRE, in collaboration with the Osceola County Board of County Commission Chair Cheryl Grieb, unveiled conceptual illustrations for Wings of the Rainbow.

Artist JEFRE, in collaboration with the Osceola County Board of County Commission Chair Cheryl Grieb, unveiled conceptual illustrations for Wings of the Rainbow.

Artist JEFRE, in collaboration with the Osceola County Board of County Commission Chair Cheryl Grieb, unveiled conceptual illustrations for Wings of the Rainbow.

Artist JEFRE, in collaboration with the Osceola County Board of County Commission Chair Cheryl Grieb, unveiled conceptual illustrations for Wings of the Rainbow.

Artist JEFRE, in collaboration with the Osceola County Board of County Commission Chair Cheryl Grieb, unveiled conceptual illustrations for Wings of the Rainbow.

Artist JEFRE, in collaboration with the Osceola County Board of County Commission Chair Cheryl Grieb, unveiled conceptual illustrations for Wings of the Rainbow.

Photos: Osceola County unveils tribute to 49 lives lost, survivors in Pulse nightclub shooting

JEFRE said the simple yet intricate design will also be interactive for visitors to digitally write letters to the victims that will go to a cloud server.

It will all sit inside a heart-shaped trail that people can walk around.

Commissioner Grieb said that over the last few years, several families have come to her asking for something that represents the people who lived in the county.

The county said more than 20% of the 49 who died called Osceola home.

In May, Grieb said the county planned to allocate up to $250,000 in unused American Rescue Plan funds for the project.

The announcement has faced backlash from Osceola County residents who have spoken out on social media.

We want something that we can go to and have conversations with their family members and tell them whats been happening the last eight years, said Cheryl Grieb, County Commission Chair.

Read:

Eyewitness News spoke with Andrea Drayton, the mother of Pulse victim Deonka Drayton. She said watching the unveiling come to reality was a bit of relief after eight years.

Weve done it, finally have something to represent our children, said Drayton.

Drayton told us how her daughter was the life of the party and full of love and commanded the room. She said Wings of Rainbow reflects who her daughter was.

Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
The Pa. GOP has rallied against statehood for Puerto Rico. Except when courting Latino voters.

Former governor of Puerto Rico Luis Fortunoat the podium, alongside David McCormick, Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, Berks County Commissioner Michael Rivera, and Pennsylvania Republican Party Vice Chairwoman Bernie Comfort (left to right) at the Latino Americans for Trump office opening in Reading June 12, 2024 (Capital-Star photo by John Cole)

Former governor of Puerto Rico Luis Fortunoat the podium, alongside David McCormick, Republican candidate for U.S. Senate in Pennsylvania, Berks County Commissioner Michael Rivera, and Pennsylvania Republican Party Vice Chairwoman Bernie Comfort (left to right) at the Latino Americans for Trump office opening in Reading June 12, 2024 (Capital-Star photo by John Cole)

In Pennsylvania this year, Republicans have spoken out against statehood for Puerto Rico. Pennsylvania Republican National committeeman Andy Reilly said at an April rally in Delaware County that electing David McCormick to the U.S. Senate would help prevent statehood for both Puerto Rico and Washington, D.C.



But during a Wednesday appearance in Reading, the city with the largest Latino population in the commonwealth, the issue was notably absent from the stump speeches and responses to reporters.

How many states are in the United States, U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst (R-Iowa) said on Tuesday to a crowd of McCormick supporters in Bucks County. Weve got 50 states.

Under the Democrats, if they get the sweep, they are going to make Puerto Rico a state and Washington D.C. a state, she added. And you know what? Theyre not going to have red Senators, either. We will never control the Senate again.

Speaking to reporters following his speech on Wednesday at the opening of the Latino Americans for Trump office in Reading, McCormick was asked about Ernsts comments opposing statehood for Puerto Rico and if it will resonate with voters in Pennsylvania.

On the campaign trail, Im not talking about Puerto Rican statehood as the primary issue at the moment because the things that are taking our country in the wrong direction are affecting all Pennsylvanians, including the Latino community and those are the issues that they are raising most with me, he said.

The point Ernst was making, he said was that if the Democrats have control of the House, the Senate, and the White House, then some very radical things could happen, the ending of the filibuster, adding additional Supreme Court justices, thats the scenario that she was guarding against.

A reporter asked McCormick to elaborate on his position about Puerto Rican statehood.

Its not something that Im willing to say is something that Im advancing as a policy priority now, McCormick responded. But it is something I was just talking to a number of people about it its something I want to learn more about as we have a huge Puerto Rican community in Pennsylvania. As you know, its a big part of our Latino community and its something I want to learn more about.

McCormick has not used the issue of Puerto Rican statehood during stump speeches on the campaign trail, but did reference it during an interview on TalkRadio 1210 WPHT Philadelphia in April.

Imagine a world, which is possible, where Joe Bidens in the White House, where we lose the House, just imagine that possibility and you have a Democratic Senate, McCormick said during that interview. I mean, so long to the filibuster, and hello statehood for Puerto Rico and Washington DC. You can imagine the kinds of justices we would get on the Supreme Court. I mean, it will be irrecoverable.

The issue of statehood for Washington D.C. and Puerto Rico has not been a part of U.S. Sen. Bob Caseys stump speeches this year. However, Casey has previously expressed support for D.C. statehood.

Other speakers at the Trump campaign office opening in Reading expressed different views on the issue.

Berks County Commissioner Michael Rivera was born in Pottstown, but grew up in Puerto Rico.

Thats a good question, Rivera said, after being asked by reporters if he supports statehood. I think it would be good, everything has its pros and its cons, we would have to see.

Rivera added that he would leave the issue up to the people of Puerto Rico to make the choice of whether they want to be a commonwealth, state, or independent.

He said he did not think the GOP opposing statehood for Puerto Rico would hurt the party politically.

If youre not living in Puerto Rico, or if you have family there, it may impact, but I dont think it will have a huge impact on the election, he said.

Luis Fortuno, the former governor of Puerto Rico, was also in attendance at the Reading event. Hes supported statehood for Puerto Rico for over a decade.

Like other states across the nation, Pennsylvanias Latino population is growing. It currently makes up roughly 7.5% of the states voting population.

According to the 2020 Census, Philadelphia has the second-largest stateside Puerto Rican population among U.S. cities, only trailing New York City. Allentown is the city with the eighth highest population of Puerto Ricans in the nation and it is the largest segment of the Lehigh Valleys Hispanic population.

Just under 500,000 Puerto Ricans lived in Pennsylvania as of 2019, according to the Center for Puerto Rican Studies, making it the state with the 3rd largest concentration in the nation.

While Hispanic/Latino voters have primarily backed Democrats in previous cycles, the gap appears to be narrowing. In 2020, 69% of Hispanic/Latino voters voted for Joe Biden in Pennsylvania, while 27% voted for Trump, according to NBC News exit polling. That was lower than the 2016 results, when Democrat Hillary Clinton received 74% of the Latino vote and Trump received 22%.

An NBC News poll in April showed 49% of Latino voters supporting Biden, while Trump had 39%.

Latinos do play and will continue to play an increasingly important role in the determining of the outcome of elections and this office will help lead us to victory in November, Rivera said on Wednesday.

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The post The Pa. GOP has rallied against statehood for Puerto Rico. Except when courting Latino voters. appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
Two chum salmon show the distinctive stripes that emerge after they enter freshwater to spawn. (Photo provided by NOAA)

Two chum salmon show the distinctive stripes that emerge after they enter freshwater to spawn. When the Northern Bering Sea, Chukchi Sea and Beaufort Sea warm together, conditions are right for Pacific salmon to swim all the way to the Western Canadian Arctic, research shows. (Photo provided by NOAA)

As the climate warms, more Pacific salmon from Alaska are showing up in the Western Arctic waters of Canada.

But residents in those Arctic Canadian communities are not catching salmon every year, which led them to ask why.

Now a study by scientists from Canada and Alaska has described the ocean gateway that must open to bring salmon from the Bering Sea to those far-north sites.

Conditions must line up over vast stretches of ocean for salmon to make the journey through the Bering Strait, across the Chukchi Sea and into the Canadian Beaufort Sea and the freshwater bodies upstream from it, the scientists found.

What appears to need to happen is you need a warm late springtime Chukchi sea, said Joe Langan of the University of Alaska Fairbanks, one of the lead authors of the study, published in the journal Global Change Biology. Those conditions probably correlate with a warm Northern Bering Sea, he said, adding that beyond the Chukchi, a warm coastal Beaufort Sea is also necessary.

In the past, those different seas have often followed different patterns, with some cold while the others are warm. As sea ice melts earlier, water temperatures rise and ice forms up later, the seas warm conditions are more likely to converge, Langan said, allowing the ocean gateway for salmon movement north to be open more consistently.

For now, the appearance of Pacific salmon in Canadian Arctic waters is hard to predict, even mere months in advance, he said. Its going to be volatile in the near term, he said.

Recent years are examples of that volatility.

In 2019, a record-warm year in which ocean waters off Alaska were uniformly warm, there were abundant Pacific salmon swimming into the Canadian Arctic and harvests were high, Langan said. Three years later, when waters had turned cold, no Pacific salmon were caught in those Canadian Arctic communities, he said. Passage through the Bering Strait, Chukchi Sea and Beaufort Sea are just part of what it takes for salmon populations to become established in waters that far north, said Karen Dunmall of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, another lead author.

Frankie Dillon holds a chum salmon caught in 2023 near Aklavik in Canadas Northwest Territories. (Photo by Colin Gallagher/Fisheries and Oceans Canada)

An earlier study she led, published in 2022, described the first documented discovery of a juvenile chum salmon in waters flowing into the Beaufort Sea  proof that, at least in that year, Pacific chum salmon had successfully reproduced in their new Arctic territory. That young chum salmon was found in 2017 in Jago Lagoon, near the Inupiat village of Kaktovik and near the Alaska-Canada border on the Arctic coastline.

Since then, there have been related discoveries. Last year, a UAF research team found about 100 chum salmon that were spawning in tributaries of the Colville River, a major river on Alaskas North Slope that flows into the Beaufort Sea. While spawning is not necessarily followed by successful reproduction, that was another significant discovery about the northward spread of Pacific salmon.

Although they are harvesting this Pacific salmon when it appears, residents of Canadian Arctic communities, some of them contributors to the new study, have some concerns about the new arrival in these waters, Dunmall said.

People who have depended on more Arctic species have questions about possible disruptions, she said. Will the salmon take over the rivers? Whats going to happen to the char? Do they spawn in the same places? Are they eating the same things?

Even along the Mackenzie River and similar spots, where salmon harvesting is a tradition, the appearance of different salmon can be unsettling. There is still concern about salmon, but more from a perspective of that theyre an example of a changing climate, a changing Arctic, Dunmall said.

She and her colleagues are continuing to investigate the impacts of salmon emerging that far north.

One focus is the interaction with Dolly Varden, a species that, like salmon, spawns in freshwater and migrates to saltwater. While the Arctic is warming fast, it is still cold in the winter, and while the discovery of that sole juvenile chum salmon shows that reproduction that far north is possible, a lot of hurdles must be overcome for that to happen, Dunmall said.

Salmon come in and spawn in the fall. The eggs incubate. They have to do that at a suitable temperature so that they can emerge at the right time where there is food available and then access to the ocean or other habitats, she said.

Other ongoing research is examining the food that salmon are eating in their new territory and whether there is enough for all the species. She and her colleagues are also investigating whether the newly arriving salmon might be bringing disease pathogens to the Arctic territory.

On the west side of the Bering Sea, pollock and Pacific cod are making their way up through the Bering Strait and across the Bering Sea into the East Siberian Sea, a newly published Russian study says.

Pollock and Pacific cod are among six species that are on the move north, either from the Pacific side or from the Atlantic side, into Siberian waters that now have less ice as the climate has warmed, said the study, published in the journal Progress in Oceanography. Other species with movements described in the study are northern wolffish, beaked redfish, Greenland halibut and glacier lanternfish.

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The U.S. Supreme Court is seen on June 21, 2023. (Photo by Quentin Young/Colorado Newsline.)

WASHINGTON  U.S. House Democrats echoed Senate colleagues recently in calling for U.S. Supreme Court Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel Alito to recuse themselves from Jan. 6 cases, and for congressional Republicans to support passing an enforceable ethics code for the entire bench.

Reps. Jamie Raskin, ranking member of the U.S. House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, and vice ranking member Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez brought together fellow progressive Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse with experts and advocates for a roundtable discussion on the ethics crisis facing the nations highest court.

Recent revelations of flags sympathetic to the Stop the Steal movement flown outside Alitos home have reignited simmering concerns over justices conflicts of interest as they decide politically divisive issues. This year, justices are set to rule on access to the abortion pill and whether former President Donald Trump enjoys immunity from criminal charges alleging 2020 election interference, among other cases.

Raskin and Ocasio-Cortez delivered searing remarks, admonishing decades of court actions beginning with the 5-4 decision in 2000s Bush v. Gore that ultimately decided the presidential victory for George W. Bush. The lawmakers continued on to recent events that Ocasio-Cortez characterized as corruption that is almost comical.

The Supreme Court as it stands today is delegitimizing itself through his conduct, the New York Democrat continued in her opening statement. Americans are losing fundamental rights in the process  reproductive health care, civil liberties, voting rights, the right to organize clean air and water because the court has been captured and corrupted by money and extremism.

Raskin, of Maryland, said the highest court in the land today has the lowest ethical standards.

In his opening statement, Raskin characterized the court as the judicial arm of the Republican Party, drawing a throughline from Bushs appointments to the bench of Chief Justice John Roberts and Alito to Trumps appointments of conservative Justices Neil Gorsuch, Brett Kavanaugh and Amy Coney Barrett.

Now this right-wing corporate court, carefully designed to destroy Roe v. Wade and marry right-wing religion to untrammeled corporate power, has been demolishing womens abortion rights and contraceptive rights, civil rights law, voting rights law, civil liberties, environmental law, workers rights and consumer rights, enshrining government power over people and corporate power over government, Raskin said.

Raskin and Ocasio-Cortezs roundtable came less than a week after progressive House Reps. Pramila Jayapal of Washington and Hank Johnson of Georgia rallied with activists outside the Supreme Court urging an ethics overhaul.

That same day, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky posted to X: As the Supreme Court term ends, the Left is once again bullying Justices who refuse to take orders from liberal Senators. The Court should take any action it deems appropriate to reprimand unethical conduct by members of its Bar. And Justices should continue to pay this harassment no mind.

Keep the pressure on

Whitehouse told Democratic members of the Oversight and Accountability Committee that Senate Democrats are shining a heavy spotlight on the mischief.

The Rhode Island Democrat has championed an ethics bill titled the Supreme Court Ethics, Recusal and Transparency Act, which advanced out of committee along party lines in July 2023 but has not received a floor vote.

We need to keep the pressure on until they join the rest of the government in having a real ethics code with real fact finding and some prospects for comparing the facts that are found to the rules, Whitehouse said.

The bill was introduced during the fallout from a 2023 ProPublica investigation revealing that Justice Clarence Thomas received gifts from and traveled with a major Republican donor.

A recent analysis by watchdog group Fix The Court illustrated that over the last 20 years the value of gifts received and likely received by Thomas dwarfs that of his colleagues.

Whitehouse again pressed the court in May after the New York Times published that an upside-down U.S. flag hung outside Alitos Alexandria, Virginia, home just days after former Trumps supporters breached the Capitol. The Times later revealed another flag carried by Jan. 6 insurrectionists flew outside the justices New Jersey beach house.

Along with Sen. Dick Durbin, who chairs the Senate Committee on the Judiciary, Whitehouse requested a meeting with Roberts to urge Alito to recuse himself from cases related to the Jan. 6 attack. Roberts declined, and Alito responded to the senators, declaring he would not recuse himself.

Thank you Sen. Whitehouse for always flying the flag right side up, Raskin said.

The court will decide all of this for all of us

Kate Shaw, University of Pennsylvania law professor, told the lawmakers that the court is conducting itself in ways that are fundamentally inconsistent with basic separation-of-powers principles that are a core feature of our democracy.

This is crystal clear right now, as it is every June, as the country waits with bated breath to learn whether and how the court will upend huge swaths of American law, she continued.

This year questions include whether and how the court could further erode the capacity of agencies to regulate in ways that protect our health and safety and well being, and major firearms decisions, Shaw said.

The court will also decide whether laws on the books will be used to hold accountable individuals charged with the attack on the Capitol, including the former president, Shaw said. And the court is asserting that it and essentially it alone will decide all of this for all of us.

Over two dozen opinions are expected from the Supreme Court by the end of June.

Two decisions related to two Jan. 6 cases remain pending  one involving a former police officer who breached the Capitol and is seeking to have an obstruction charge dropped. The decision could affect hundreds of Jan. 6 defendant cases, and the 2020 election interference case against Trump, who faces the same obstruction charge.

The court is also set to decide whether Trump is immune from four federal criminal counts alleging he schemed to overturn the 2020 presidential election results and knowingly spread false information that whipped his supporters into rioting on Jan. 6.

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The post Pair of U.S. House Dems add to chorus calling for Alito, Thomas recusals appeared first on Ohio Capital Journal.
By Mahmoud Essa

BEIT LAHIA, Gaza Strip (Reuters) - The al-Kahloot family is living on memories in Gaza after being displaced by Israeli bombardment and then returning to live in a large tent pitched atop the rubble of their home.

We are staying in this tent because this is our place and home. Its our house, we cant abandon it, it has our dreams and memories," said Umm Nael al-Kahloot, whose son was killed earlier in the Hamas-Israel war.

"We had good memories in this house, Im trying to heal our pain and find a place to stay. We cant stay away from our home, even if there are fierce (Israeli) strikes, we'd leave for a day or two then wed be back in our place.

Many Palestinian families share their plight as Israeli air strikes and heavy shelling has killed tens of thousands of people and reduced much of the Gaza Strip to ruins since Hamas carried out a cross-border attack on Israel on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostage.

Many homes like that of the al-Kahloots have been pulverised, displacing families, some of whom have returned in hope that at least part of their dwellings might have survived air strikes and shelling.

The al-Kahloots' house, part of a vast swathe of concrete rubble in the densely built-up northern Gaza town of Beit Lahia, consisted of five floors, which all collapsed. But the family remain attached to their home, clinging to the destruction.

"Despite all of this struggle that we are going through and the tragedies we have witnessed, we have roamed around, and we couldnt live anywhere else but here," said Ismail al-Kahloot, Umm Nael's husband.

"Five families eat, sleep, and stay in this tent you see here."

Umm Nael hangs clothes to dry on a rope and waters her plants. She sorts food pots and places them on an open fire.

"Why all this suffering? What did we do wrong to deserve all of this? We are helpless, we dont have any hand in all of this (war)," she said.

"We couldnt save anything from the house, from the work (studio) or from the furniture, everything went under the rubble. These are old items. I'm cleaning them up as much as I can."

(Writing by Michael Georgy; editing by Mark Heinrich)
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Tel Aviv  Since this weekend, when Israeli special forces carried out the mission to rescue four hostages  Andrey Kozlov, Shlomi Ziv, Almog Meir, and Noa Argamani  dramatic video of the raid shared by the Israeli military has been seen around the world. What's been less visible, however, is the aftermath of that operation, and the Palestinian civilians who survived it.

CBS News' team in Gaza met eyewitness Abedelraof Meqdad, 60, who walked us through his bullet-ridden home, just across the street from where one of the Israeli military vehicles broke down under heavy Hamas gunfire.

The commandos burst into his family apartment, he says, and blindfolded and bound the hands of the men before interrogating them.

Where things stand on an Israel-Hamas cease-fire deal

"There were sound grenades. Women and children were screaming. I told them, 'Why are you shouting? You are scaring the children.' He said, 'shut up or I will shoot you and them.'"

Abedelraof Meqdad, 60, gestures as he speaks with CBS News inside his home in the central Gaza Strip, June 13, 2024, five days after he says Israeli special forces burst in and interrogated him and his family amid a raid to rescue hostages. / Credit: CBS News

Meqdad told CBS News the Israeli forces then dragged him to the living room, demanding to know if there were fighters or weapons in his home.

"I told them there are no fighters here and no weapons, I am just a merchant," he said.

When it was all over, two of Meqdad's grandsons had been shot.

CBS News found one of them, 16-year-old Moamen Mattar, as doctors reconstructed his mangled arm in a hospital.

He told us his brother didn't survive.

Doctors treat 16-year-old Palestinian Moamen Mattar at a hospital in central Gaza for a gunshot wound his family says he sustained during Israel's June 8, 2024 operation to rescue four hostages, on June 13, 2024. / Credit: CBS News

"He was shot right next to me, in the stomach and the leg," Mattar said. "He was 12."

The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry says 274 people were killed in the rescue operation, and many hundreds more wounded. Israel disputes that number and says casualties are the fault of Hamas, for surrounding the hostages with civilians.

James Elder, the spokesperson for the U.N.'s children's charity UNICEF, is in Gaza this week and he told CBS News he saw the grisly scenes after the raid at the hospital himself.

"Walking in this hospital, absolutely heaving with people, little 3-year-olds, 7-year-olds with these grotesque wounds of war  head injuries and the burns," he said. "It's the smell of burning flesh  it's very hard to get out of one's head."

According to the most recently reported data, about 47% of Gaza's overall population is under 18, accounting for the high proportion of child deaths reported in this conflict.

The prospect of a cease-fire in the war remains in limbo, meanwhile. A frustrated Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that Hamas had "waited two weeks and proposed changes" to the current U.S.-backed proposal on the table  which he said Israel had also accepted. "As a result, the war Hamas started will go on."

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PANAMA CITY  The days are officially numbered for a more than 60-year-old building along Saint Andrew Bay.

In a meeting on Tuesday, Panama City commissioners voted to award Break-N-Ground LLC, a contractor based in Southport, with a $498,780 contract to demolish the Marina Civic Center. The center has sat unused since it was heavily damaged in October 2018 by Category 5 Hurricane Michael.

The Marina Civic Center has been unused since it was heavily damaged in October 2018 by Category 5 Hurricane Michael. Panama City estimated it would cost $33 million to $70 million to renovate the facility.

Although city officials tried to find ways to save the building, the cost to renovate it was more than the city could afford on its own. It was estimated to cost between about $33 million and $70 million, both of which are out of the city's budget.

Officials have said they were advised that it would be easier to raise funds for a new amenity once the center is torn down.

The demolition of the building was approved 4-1 by commissioners during a meeting on May 28. At that time, they said their plan was to demolish the center and then build a semi-permanent facility, such as an amphitheater.

This would give the community an amenity to use while the city explores more fundraising options to build a future performing arts and events facility.

According to the agenda from Tuesday's meeting, Break-N-Ground was one of seven companies that filed bids with the city for the center's demolition. Its proposal was the lowest.

Last meeting: 'A barrier to move': Panama City Commission votes to demolish Marina Civic Center

The others were Total Wrecking & Environmental, which bid $637,716; Virginia Wrecking Company, which bid $643,399; Donlyn Environmental, which bid $778,769; PAW Material, which bid $858,869; Cross Environmental, which bid $989,785; and All Phase Services, which bid $1,061,139.

This article originally appeared on The News Herald: Panama City commissioners award contract to demolish Civic Center
The union representing nurses at Riverside Community Hospital has been ordered to pay more than $6 million to the hospital for damages caused by a 2020 strike. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

The union representing nurses at Riverside Community Hospital has been ordered to pay more than $6 million to the hospital for the fallout from a 2020 strike.

The unusual financial penalty was imposed by an arbitrator who found the 10-day work stoppage during the pandemic violated the terms of the labor agreement signed by HCA Healthcare, which operates the hospital, and Service Employees International Union Local 121RN. The $6.26-million fine, the arbitrator determined, was necessary to compensate the hospital for the cost of replacing workers who walked off the job during the strike, according to a statement released Wednesday.

Nurses walked off the job in June 2020 in an effort to force the hospital to increase staffing and improve safety as COVID-19 infections surged, the union said at the time. But hospital officials argued that because nurses also voiced complaints about shortages of personal protective equipment, the reasons for the strike were too expansive to be allowed under the collective bargaining agreement the two sides had signed.

Our contract was clear, and the union showed reckless disregard for its members and the Riverside community by calling the strike, said Jackie Van Blaricum, president of HCA Healthcares Far West Division, who was the hospitals chief executive during the strike. We applaud the arbitrators decision.

SEIU 121RN Executive Director Rosanna Mendez objected to the arbitrator's findings, saying nurses were permitted under their contract to go on strike. She called the arbitrator's decision "absurd and outrageous."

"It is absolutely shocking that an arbitrator would expect nurses to not talk about safety issues," Mendez said, adding that the union was exploring its options to contest the arbitrator's decision.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Paradise, California  Extreme weather has ravaged main streets across America, and in the last five years, at least five towns in four states have been nearly erased from the map, all after Paradise in Northern California fell.

"At first I thought we were just going to, you know, maybe evacuate for a day or two, and then come back home," Justin Miller told CBS News.

Justin Miller's childhood home in Paradise was among the nearly 20,000 homes and businesses destroyed by the 2018 Camp Fire, which killed 85 people. He's one of the many who chose not to return, and now makes his home in nearby Oroville.

"At first, we were thinking, you know, after the lot was cleared off, we could rebuild there," Miller said. "Butthen we realized that the town would take a while to rebuild, so it would just be easier to move someplace like here in Oroville."

Just last year, extreme weather forced about 2.5 million Americans from their homes, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Research from Realtor.com released in March found that 44% of all American homes are threatened by climate change.

"Paradise was that place in the nineties for my family where they could afford their own small house," said Ryan Miller, older brother of Justin and a Ph.D. candidate in geography now studying climate migration.

"Why were we in a situation where the affordable place was also the place that had this huge hazard?" Ryan asks. "And so, it made me really start to view Paradise through the lens of these broader issues around housing affordability and exposure to climate driven risks."

Ryan and his team from the University of California, Davis, used postal records to track where people moved after the Camp Fire. What they found was that in many cases, a move didn't solve the problem, but put people back in harm's way, with households moving into areas also threatened by other kinds of disasters, such as hurricanes and tornadoes.

"Maybe we're in a situation where, increasingly, people are finding that in their search for affordable housing, they sort of have to live in an area that's exposed to one of these climate-driven hazards," Ryan said.

"We're going to see more potential Paradises happening, where we have these communities exposed to this threat that the community might not be prepared to face," Ryan adds.

Paradise residents Kylie Wrobel, and her daughter Ellie, remained in Paradise after the Camp Fire, largely picking up the pieces on their own by clearing dead trees and vegetation from their property as they applied for and waited to receive federal aid.

They say home now has a new meaning for them.



"Home for me was kind of a place you live in, but home will always be wherever my mom is," Ellie said.

Five years on, Paradise families have scattered, the fabric of this small town torn. But don't tell that to the Wrobels, pioneers of a new American community they hope is resilient to climate-fueled storms.

"Seeing the town grow and build, my heart needed this," Kylie said. "A lot of people don't want to come back here. I had to stay here."

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TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  A Pasco County man was given prison time Wednesday for his actions during the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

Ryan K. Yates, 37, of Holiday, was sentenced to six months in prison, three months of home detention and two years of supervised release. He was also ordered to pay $2,000 in restitution.

Yates unlawfully entered the Capitol building by pushing away barricades before moving to the House side where a group of rioters was trying to enter the House floor, officials said.

Prosecutors said Yates joined the rioters as they moved forward and pushed against police to try and enter the Rotunda to disrupt the certification of the 2020 presidential election results, in which Joe Biden defeated then-President Donald Trump.

Yates was eventually escorted out of the building but remained in a restricted area.

Yates was arrested on Sept. 26, 2023.

More than 1,450 people from all 50 states have been charged for alleged actions during the riot. More than 500 of them have been charged with assaulting or impeding law enforcement, which is a felony.

Trump has also been charged, both federally and in Georgia, for his alleged efforts to overturn the 2020 election results.

The Supreme Court is expected to release its opinion on Trumps argument that he should be immune from prosecution before the end of June, which could impact if the cases move forward.

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 WFLA.
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW)  Jonathan Platt is living a life of service. The U.S. Air Force veteran had a 24-year military career. For the last three decades, he has led his own church.

A Master Sergeant and a pastor.

Courtesy: Jonathan Platt

Platt was at Booker T. Washington High School in Tulsa when he made the decision to be in the Air Force. Two weeks after graduation in 1970, Platt joined the Air Force during a peak in the Vietnam War.

I had a desire to come in and serve my country even though it was during the Vietnam War, said Platt.

These days, Pastor Platt leads from this seat at Tabernacle Church of God in Christ. However, back in 1970, he was a voluntary recruit during basic training at Lackland Air Force Base in San Antonio. His training continued at Columbus Air Force Base.

A lot of people go to training, but I was able to go direct duty. So, I was an apprentice, a beginner in Columbus, Mississippi. And so I learned the trade on the job, he said. The 1948 COMM Squadron in Columbus, Mississippi.

His next assignment was at Keesler Air Force Base.

And then shortly after that, I went to Taegu Air Force Base in Korea. First time overseas. Quite a quite a shellshock, Platt admitted. From there, I was assigned to go back to the States. I went to Blytheville Air Force Base in Blytheville, Arkansas.

Blytheville was a Strategic Air Command (SAC) base that served as the home for SACs B-52 ground alert team.

102-year-old WWII Veteran returns to Europe to commemorate 80th anniversary of D-Day

From there, I got assignment to go to Utapao, Thailand, Platt said.

Platt worked in the post office. He processed airmen coming in or leaving the base. While there, in 1975, the Cambodians seized Platts ship.

The Marines went in and got our ship back. Took the people that had been captured or kept hostage, and they ended up releasing the ship, he said.

When the U.S. began pulling out of the Vietnam War in 75, Platt continued to work in Thailand. He put in a request to stay overseas and moved to Clark Air Force Base in the Philippines.

Courtesy: Jonathan Platt

I just wanted to stay overseas, and Ive never been out of the country except for Thailand and Korea. And so, I just wanted to just travel, Platt said.

He returned to the States in 1977 and travel back to Arkansas to get married to the love of his life, Bobbie, and then he was off on a three-year tour to England, where he was assigned to a classified unit called Silk Purse. The squadron used jet-powered Boeing EC-135 airborne command posts.

And we flew in the back end of the plane. I ended up flying for about nine months during that time, Platt recalled.

In 1980, Platt had a choice to make a joint task force operation in Tampa or a job in Wichita. He took the position with Boeing in Wichita. It was with a new unit that flight-tested the B-52 Offensive Avionics System.

Then he went across the street at McConnell Air Force Base to work with the 381st Strategic Missile Wing, which operated the intercontinental ballistic missiles, including the 17 Titan II missile sites surrounding the Wichita area. That was from 1981 to 83.

His last military stop was at Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska, in 1983. Its SAC headquarters, where he filled a number of positions before finally deciding to retire in 1994.

Well, it was about time, Platt laughed.

Wichita U.S. Army Veteran built bridges during Vietnam

It marked the end of a 24-year career.

I thought it was an amazing career. As I look back now, what a marvelous career serving the U.S. Air Force in all those locations. I was able to travel. See the world, Platt said.

About a year after he left the Air Force, Platt started a church in Belleview, Nebraska. After seven years there, he was appointed to Wichitas Tabernacle Church of God In Christ on 17th Street near Interstate 135.

Platt and his wife have served their church for 21 years.

Courtesy: Jonathan Platt

Platts father served in the U.S. Army during the Korean War. Three of his four brothers also served in the Army, Navy, and the Marines. Platt and his wife are also the proud parents of a pair of grown-up, successful daughters.

If you want to nominate a veteran for our Veteran Salute, email KSN reporter Jason Lamb at jason.lamb@ksn.com.

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 KSN-TV.
Editors Note: This article has been updated to reflect that the incident involved an alleged fraudulent skill game voucher, not a Pennsylvania Lottery ticket, according to Old Forge police.

OLD FORGE, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU)  Police are looking for two suspects who allegedly cashed in a fraudulent skill game voucher.

According to the Old Forge Police, officers are investigating a fraud case involving the two men caught on camera.

Old Forge Police

Animal abuse investigation underway in Luzerne County

Police say the suspect went to a store and cashed a fraudulent skill game voucher.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Old Forge Police Department at 570-342-9111 or 570-457-7441.

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 PAhomepage.com.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Since June 12, Russian coal has been transited through the territory of Iran for the first time, said Miad Salehi, deputy minister of Roads and Urban Development and CEO of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Trend reports.

According to Salehi, the transit of coal is carried out through the eastern direction of the International North-South Corridor within the framework of the agreement reached between Iran and Russian railroads.

Salehi noted that on 12 June, two trains with 59 wagons belonging to Russia transported coal from Russia's Bardino railroad station to Iran's Sarakhs railroad station and were loaded into Iranian wagons. This cargo will be delivered to Bandar Abbas station after covering a distance of 1,600 kilometers through the territory of Iran and will be shipped to India by sea.

Meanwhile, coal is a strategic product that Russia constantly exports to India. So far, this product has been transported by sea. The transit of Russian coal through Iran may lead to a significant increase in Iran's rail transportation.

A total of 1.57 million tons of product was transported by Iranian railroads during the last Iranian year (from March 21, 2023, through March 19, 2024). Transit of products through Iran's railroads increased by 10 percent compared to the previous year (from March 21, 2022, through March 20, 2023).

To note, the length of railway lines in Iran is currently 14,984 kilometers. A total of 993 locomotives, 29,950 freight wagons, and 2,178 passenger cars are operating on Iran's railroad lines.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Nancy Pelosi, the Democratic former House speaker, mounted a forceful denunciation of Thursdays first visit to the US Capitol by Donald Trump since he incited a mob to attack it on January 6 2021, accusing him of returning with the same mission of dismantling our democracy.

In remarks that triggered a fresh war of words between the pair, Pelosi said the former presidents visit to discuss strategy with congressional Republicans in advance of the election amounted to a symbolic return to the scene of a crime that he deliberately initiated.

Today, the instigator of an insurrection is returning to the scene of the crime, Pelosi said in a statement. January 6 was a crime against the Capitol, that saw Nazi and Confederate flags flying under the dome that Lincoln built.

Related: Perilous for democracy, good for profits: is big business ready to love Trump again?

She added: It was a crime against the constitution and its peaceful transfer of power, in a desperate attempt to cling to power. And it was a crime against members, heroic police officers and staff, that resulted in death, injury and trauma that endure to this day.

Pelosi, whose office was overrun and defiled by invading Trump supporters in the assault, as rioters ran through the halls of Congress calling her name, added: With his pledges to be a dictator on day one and seek revenge against his political opponents, Donald Trump comes to Capitol Hill today with the same mission of dismantling our democracy. But make no mistake  Trump has already cemented his legacy of shame in our hallowed halls.

Her furious broadside may have provided the fuel for outlandish comments attributed to Trump in his Thursday morning meeting with House Republicans.

Jake Sherman, a reporter for the website Punchbowl, posted on X that Trump had digressed to talk about an imagined romantic relationship between Pelosi and himself, which he said had been suggested by one of the former speakers daughters, whom he did not identify by name.

Nancy Pelosis daughter is a wacko  her daughter told me if things were different Nancy and I would be perfect together. Theres an age difference, though, Sherman quoted Trump as saying, adding that his words were close to an exact quote.

The reported comments provoked an angry response from one Pelosi daughter, Christine Pelosi, also on X.

Speaking for all 4 Pelosi daughters  this is a LIE, she wrote. His deceitful, deranged obsession with our mother is yet another reason Donald Trump is unwell, unhinged and unfit to step foot anywhere near her  or the White House.

The Hill quoted a spokesman for Pelosi as saying: That guy has clearly lost his marbles. Not that he had many to begin with.
The daughter of former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) hit former President Trump over what she characterized as a deranged obsession with her mother.

His deceitful, deranged obsession with our mother is yet another reason Donald Trump is unwell, unhinged and unfit to step foot anywhere near her  or the White House, Christine Pelosi wrote on the social platform X.

Christine Pelosi was responding to reported comments made by Trump during his morning meeting with House Republicans on Thursday.

He reportedly said, Nancy Pelosis daughter is a whacko, her daughter told me if things were different Nancy and I would be perfect together, theres an age difference though, according to a tweet from Punchbowls Jake Sherman, who noted the comment he posted was close to an exact quote.

Speaking for all 4 Pelosi daughters  this is a LIE, Christine Pelosi wrote in her post on X.

A spokesperson for Nancy Pelosi responded to the reported comments in a statement to The Hill.

That guy has clearly lost his marbles. Not that he had many to begin with, the spokesperson said.

The former Speaker targeted Trump earlier in the day over his visit to Capitol Hill, which marks his first since Jan. 6, 2021, when rioters stormed the building to protest the results of the 2020 election.

She said in a statement earlier Thursday that the instigator of an insurrection is returning to the scene of the crime, referring to the former president.

With his pledges to be a dictator on day one and seek revenge against his political opponents, Donald Trump comes to Capitol Hill today with the same mission of dismantling our democracy, Nancy Pelosi said. But make no mistake  Trump has already cemented his legacy of shame in our hallowed halls.

The Hill has reached out to Trumps campaign for comment.

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 The Hill.
Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) lambasted former President Trumps slated visit to Capitol Hill on Thursday, alleging he is on a mission of dismantling our democracy.

Today, the instigator of an insurrection is returning to the scene of the crime. January 6th was a crime against the Capitol, that saw Nazi and Confederate flags flying under the dome that Lincoln built, Pelosi said in a statement shared with The Hill on Thursday.

It was a crime against the Constitution and its peaceful transfer of power, in a desperate attempt to cling to power, she continued. And it was a crime against Members, heroic police officers and staff, that resulted in death, injury and trauma that endure to this day.

Trumps expected visit to the Capitol will mark his first since the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection, in which hundreds of rioters stormed the Capitol in protest of the 2020 election results and President Bidens win.

Pelosi, a staunch critic of Trump, pointed to the former presidents dictator remarks, in which he suggested last year he would be a dictator for one day if he wins reelection.

With his pledges to be a dictator on day one and seek revenge against his political opponents, Donald Trump comes to Capitol Hill today with the same mission of dismantling our democracy, Pelosi said. But make no mistake  Trump has already cemented his legacy of shame in our hallowed halls.

Politico Playbook was the first to report Pelosis comments.

The former president will be in Washington for a discussion hosted by the Business Roundtable, and will meet with a group of Senate Republicans for a policy-focused conversation ahead of the November election.

He will also address the House Republican Conference to discuss growing the House Republican majority and the 2025 legislative agenda, a spokesperson for Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told The Hill.

Pelosi has repeatedly warned of the dangers of a second term for Trump, the GOPs presumptive presidential nominee, after having a highly contentious relationship with the former president during her tenure as Speaker.

Under her leadership, the House voted twice to impeach Trump. She also pushed for a probe into the Jan. 6 attack, ultimately selecting the members who would serve on the committee.

The Hill reached out to the Trump campaign for further comment.

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 The Hill.
(Getty Images)

Pennsylvanias public defenders are so underfunded and overburdened that the commonwealth violates the constitutional rights of more than 100,000 criminal defendants every year, the state chapter of American Civil Liberties Union claims in a lawsuit filed Thursday.

For decades, Pennsylvania has left counties to pay for attorneys to defend people facing criminal charges who cant afford to pay for a lawyer themselves. The result is an inconsistent patchwork in which public defenders are forced to contend with unmanageable caseloads that leave them unable to properly represent clients, the lawsuit says.

The suit was filed in Commonwealth Court on behalf of 17 people, many of whom have been jailed while awaiting trial for six months or longer, claiming public defenders have failed to properly represent them and that the state has neglected its constitutional duty to provide representation.

The inconsistent and insufficient funding of indigent defense in Pennsylvania makes us less safe, ACLU of Pennsylvania Executive Director Mike Lee said in a news release about the lawsuit. Lee added that with the exception of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is tied with Mississippi for the lowest funded state public defender system on a per-resident basis.

The U.S. and Pennsylvania constitutions both provide the right to counsel for anyone charged with a crime and facing jail time, ACLU of Pennsylvania Legal Director Witold Walczak said.

That right means more than a warm body with a law degree at your side; it requires an effective professional who has the time and resources to prepare a defense, Walczak said. Pennsylvanias grossly under-funded system leads to overwhelming caseloads that make effective representation practically impossible, even for the most dedicated lawyers.

The 152-page suit details the experiences of the plaintiffs and others in criminal cases where they lacked timely and adequate representation from public defenders. Most have only spoken to their attorneys once or twice and one plaintiff claims he only met his attorney because they happened to walk past while he was cutting grass outside the jail, the suit claims.

In one example, a Northampton County man sat in jail for nearly three months on charges of driving an unregistered vehicle without proof of insurance until a public defender argued for a reduction in his bail.

The suit, which is a proposed class-action on behalf of the 17 plaintiffs and others in similar situations, names Gov. Josh Shapiro, state Senate Pro Tempore Kim Ward, and House Speaker Joanna McClinton as defendants. A spokesperson for Ward said she has not received a copy of the suit and would need time to review it before commenting.

Spokesperson Nicole Reigelman noted that McClinton began her career as a public defender, and knows firsthand the value that indigent defense plays in the judicial system.

Since being elected in 2015, she has used her experience as a defender to inform her policy agenda and has been an outspoken champion of legislation to improve access to legal counsel for indigent clients. Speaker McClinton celebrated when funding for indigent defense was finally included in the 2023-24 state budget and continues to advocate for additional dollars, Reigelman said in a statement.

The current state budget included $7.5 million for indigent defense, the first time the state has provided funding for public defenders. In his February 2023 budget address, Shapiro noted that Pennsylvania is one of only two states that didnt provide funding for public defenders, which he called a shameful distinction.

https://penncapital-star.com/civil-rights-social-justice/the-need-is-great-for-money-to-pay-public-defenders-shapiro-says-after-proposing-10m-increase/

The suit notes that amount falls far short of providing adequate funding. It also states that every county in Pennsylvania, with the exception of Philadelphia, falls below the national average of $19.82 per resident spent on indigent defense.

Pennsylvania counties spent a total of $125 million on their public defenders offices in 2020, while similarly-sized Michigan is budgeted to spend $319 million in 2024. Massachusetts, which is considerably smaller, budgeted $331 million.

And because counties are limited in their ability to generate tax revenue, they could not provide adequate funding without significant tax increases. The suit notes that the same factors that limit revenues, such as high unemployment, poverty and limited higher education, are also indicators of higher crime rates.

The ACLU also argues that Pennsylvania agencies have been warning for decades that the states delegation of funding for public defenders to the counties results in the systemic denial of counsel to criminal defendants.

A state Supreme Court study in 2003 found that sparse resources and exploding and unmanageable caseloads allow public defenders little time, training or assistance in communicating with clients in a meaningful way or to conduct pre-trial investigations, secure expert testimony or otherwise prepare for hearings and trials.

The report recommended that Pennsylvania institute a statewide system for funding and overseeing indigent defense. The state failed to act on the recommendation. Nearly a decade later, a legislative commission reached a similar conclusion. And in 2020 the Pennsylvania Interbranch Commission for Gender, Racial and Ethnic Fairness warned that the underfunding of indigent defense services cost the state hundreds of thousands of dollars a year to incarcerate and retry defendants due to failure of public defenders to represent them effectively.

In connection with the funding for public defenders as part of the 2023-24 budget, the General Assembly created the Indigent Defense Advisory Committee.

As one of its first official acts, one of the Committees two proposed standards recognized that [t]he responsibility to provide indigent defense representation rests with the state; accordingly, there should be adequate state funding and oversight of Indigent Defense Providers, the lawsuit notes.

The post Pennsylvanias inadequate funding of public defenders is unconstitutional, ACLU suit claims appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
Pentagon extends its deal with Musk's company to use Starlink in Ukraine

The US Department of Defense has extended the contract with Elon Musks SpaceX to provide Starlink Internet services in Ukraine for another six months.

Source: Bloomberg, as reported by European Pravda

Details: According to Space Systems Command spokesperson Bonnie Poindexter, the US Space Force has renewed its contract with SpaceX for US$14.1 million until 30 November.

Quote: "The contract provides access to the Starlink constellation, hardware, and customer support under negotiated terms and conditions," she said.

Following Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the US military praised the Starlink terminals, which provide high-speed Internet connectivity for both critical military communications and civilians.

That is a small share of the US$2.5 billion in contracts SpaceX has won through its military satellite launch project.

The Pentagon states that it prevented the Russian military from using unauthorised Starlink internet terminals, operated by Elon Musk's SpaceX, on the battlefield in the war with Ukraine.

In February, the Ukrainian military noticed that the Russians had begun using Elon Musk's SpaceX Starlink terminals at their positions. Later, this information was confirmed by Ukrainian military intelligence, which stated that Russia was buying terminals in Arab countries.

As a result, Democrats in the US House of Representatives launched an investigation into SpaceX.

Previously, in September 2023, the US Senate Armed Services Committee began studying national security issues caused by Elon Musk's decision to block his private Starlink satellite network near occupied Crimea.

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The Pentagon has no new announcements on a possible supply of an additional Patriot missile system to Ukraine, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin said on June 13 during a Ramstein-format meeting, adding that Washington continues to work on boosting Ukraine's air defenses.

The statement came shortly after the New York Times reported that the U.S. is planning to deliver another Patriot battery to Ukraine. The outlet claimed that this should concern a system placed in Poland, which Warsaw denied.

"I don't have any announcements on Patriot batteries today, but what I can tell you is I continue to work (on) this, I'm in constant contact with my Ukrainian counterpart (Rustem Umerov), and we're gonna do everything we can to make sure that they have the capability they need," Austin said at a press briefing following a Ramstein group meeting in Brussels.

"Air defense has been on top of my agenda for a long time... (As) you know, we've provided a Patriot to them already," Austin noted, adding that Washington has also been encouraging other partners to provide missiles and other systems like NASAMS and SAMP/T.

Ukraine operates at least two Patriot systems supplied by Germany and one sent by the U.S. The Netherlands previously supplied two launchers and founded an initiative to jointly supply a full new system in cooperation with other partners.

Berlin also pledged its third Patriot, which is bound to arrive in Ukraine within the coming months, but German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius denied rumors about providing a fourth system.

"We already provided three (Patriot) systems, which means a quarter of our capacities. So, there is no space to provide even more than those three systems," Pistorius said in Brussels on June 13.

Another system confirmed to soon arrive in Ukraine is a SAMP/T air defense battery, pledged by Italy in addition to the one supplied by Paris and Rome in 2023.

Kyiv has been repeatedly appealing to its partners to provide additional air defenses as Russian forces continue to hammer the country's energy infrastructure and population centers with drones and missiles.

Read also: Romania considers supplying Ukraine with Patriot system, Romanian PM says

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
ABILENE, Texas (KTAB/KRBC)  If youve owned or rented a residence for any amount of time youre likely no stranger to the occasional door-to-door solicitor. While most will give their pitch and move on to the next house, it can be difficult to discern what intent that person might have beyond making the sale. But did you know Abilene has an ordinance on the books which, since 2019, has laid out the rules for how, when, and who can knock on your door?

Is that door-to-door solar panel salesperson legit? City of Abilene, accredited business explains red flags

City of Abilenes ORDINANCE NO. 12-2019 covers in part, the proper procedure for door-to-door solicitors to follow which include limiting acceptable sales hours from 9:00 a.m. through 7:00 p.m., as well as requiring organizations that conduct such interactions to obtain a permit which must be maintained on an annual basis. The permits require a background check which is intended to, as the ordinance states, protect against criminal activity, including fraud and burglary protect the privacy of the citizens of the city, and to otherwise preserve the public health, safety,

and welfare.

Right now only 17 local organizations are listed as having that permit on the city website. This ordinance only applies to organizations that do door-to-door interactions which may result in a financial transaction. So, religious organizations are exempt but scouting troops are required to have a permit.

Local business owner and operating manager of PLI Lighting & Irrigation Jason Donnelly is one such permit holder. Donnelly told KTAB/KRBC those kinds of interactions are a key component of his companys success and potential for growth.

We spend a lot of time talking to customers, getting to know what theyre looking for, and sometimes going around talking to people door-to-door. [It] gives us an opportunity to produce a new product Some people are really uncomfortable when people come to their door, and when I come I want to make them feel comfortable, Donnelly explained.

While his approach may be cordial, he will be the first to tell you that operating by the rules is a prerequisite for all his employees, as well as a matter of safety for himself and his customers.

Homeowners have the right to feel safe. If someone comes to your door and you dont feel like they should be there, ask them who they are, and who theyre with, then ask them to show their sellers permit; and if they dont you have the right to call the law and the law will make them leave, advised Donnelly.

Weighing in, Abilene Attorney Chad Williams told KTAB/KRBC about the legal standing of, and reasoning for the ordinance.

Its legal and the city has their reasons. It could prevent somebody from casing the house to commit a crime. It could prevent child predators from just saying theyre selling something, Williams added.

Williams said many other communities also require solicitors permits and similar guidelines.

Sweetwater requires solicitor permits

The ordinance provides clear language so that any resident has a place to turn if ever in doubt of a salespersons credibility. If a seller fails to provide proof of permit or is found to be operating outside the permitted sales hours, residents are encouraged to call the Abilene Police Departments non-emergency line at (325) 673-8331 to 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 KTAB - BigCountryHomepage.com.
PETA calls for federal probe into escape of camels from petting zoo at Cedar Point

The escape of a pair of adventurous camels from the petting zoo at Cedar Point this week may have been amusing to those who witnessed the spectacle, but it has prompted a call by an animal rights group for a federal investigation.

PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) has asked the U.S. Department of Agriculture  that oversees such petting zoos  to investigate Kentucky-based Honey Hill that supplies the camels and other animals that call Cedar Point's Barn Yard home.

"No one should be surprised that distressed camels panicked and ran away, hoping to escape a near-constant, chaotic barrage of excessive handling, noisy roller coasters, and screaming parkgoers," said PETA Foundation Senior Director of Captive Animal Welfare Debbie Metzler in a statement. "PETA is calling on federal authorities to hold Honey Hill Farm accountable for failing to protect these frightened animals  and members of the public who were endangered during their attempts to flee."

Cedar Point's resident camels Sampson and Artie decided to take a stroll through Frontier Trail on Tuesday night.

Honey Hill, which also supplies animals for similar attractions at other amusement parks including Michigans Adventure, Worlds of Fun and Camden Park, had not yet responded publicly to the complaint or a request for comment.

The farm did post a picture of a pair of camels in jail uniforms with the title "Bad boys, bad boys. Whatcha gonna do" on its Facebook page.

In its formal complaint, PETA is asking federal investigators to visit the park and ensure the camels are in good health and weren't injured in the mishap.

The park's two resident camels  Sampson and Artie  took an unauthorized stroll along Frontier Trail on Tuesday night.

Several videos were posted in social media showing stunned parkgoers watching the pair walk along the Frontier-themed area.

Park officials say the mischievous camels were corralled by workers and no one was hurt during the escape.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: PETA calls for investigation after camels escape at Cedar Point
A Phoenix mother whose boyfriend kept videos of her children being physically punished on his phone was sentenced on Monday to 18 years in prison in connection with the death of her 8-year-old daughter.

Chaimara Washington pleaded guilty to child abuse of Marlai Smith, who died from multiple injuries that caused internal bleeding.

Both Washington and her boyfriend, Brandon Cooper, were arrested by police in September 2020 after Washington called 911 because Marlai stopped moving.

Washington told police that Marlai had fallen. Washington said she had been punishing Marlai by making her exercise and that Marlai had hit her head on a door knob.

But there were bruises all over Marlai's body, according to court records.

Chaimara Washington

Maricopa County Attorney's Office prosecutor Shawn Steinberg told the court at Monday's sentencing that there was no way that Marlai's injuries came from falling or hitting a door knob once.

Steinberg told the court that the injuries suggested a history of abuse.

"This little girl had bruises all over her body. She also had open wounds, and they were up and down her body," Steinberg said.

Washington also has two younger children. The two other children said Washington punished them, Steinberg said.

"All the children, all of them describe that their mother, the defendant, 'Will pop us, whup us, and give us a beat-beat.' Those were their words," Steinberg said.

At the sentencing, Steinberg played a video of Washington harming the other children.

Cooper had multiple videos on his phone of the kids being physically punished, according to court records.

The Arizona Department of Child Safety had been called to investigate Washington's family twice, once in 2018 and again in February 2020, according to the department's statement of death.

The south building of the Maricopa County Superior Court in Phoenix.

Both cases revolved around claims that the children were being given marijuana. The department closed both cases without finding evidence to support the allegations.

When Cooper and Washington were first arrested, they were charged with first-degree murder and child abuse.

The two other children were taken to their biological father's, according to Department of Child Safety records.

Washington and Cooper both blamed the other for Marlai's death, according to Steinberg.

"Co-defendant Cooper blames Washington, Washington blames Cooper and, honestly, the prior prosecutor that offered this plea, maybe that concerned him, I don't know. So we ended up here with a failure to protect," she said.

Cooper accepted a child abuse plea agreement and was sentenced to 18 years in prison in March. Washington accepted her plea agreement in April.

Washington spoke in court on Monday, saying that she was sorry for all the harm she had caused her children and for what happened to Marlai.

She said that Cooper had been the cause of Marlai's death and that she had failed to protect her children because she feared him.

"I made mistakes. I admit my wrongdoings. I failed to protect them. Because I was afraid of what could have been the result if I chose to go against him. It has ultimately led to the loss of my firstborn daughter," she said.

Marlai's younger sister, now 10, wrote a letter to the court, which Steinberg read. It was short; she wrote that she remembers sitting with her sister in bed, talking about what they would name their own kids.

"Funny how I said I was going to name my kid her name. I miss my sister. Words can't prove how much I miss her," her letter read.

Reach the reporter at miguel.torres@arizonarepublic.com.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix mother to serve 18 years in 8-year-old daughter's death
A damning new report from the Justice Department released Thursday has concluded that the Phoenix Police Department has engaged in a "pattern or practice of conduct" that "deprives people of their rights under the Constitution and federal law."

A DOJ investigation found "systemic problems" within the department's policies, training, supervision and accountability systems that were "perpetuated" for years.

In its report, the Justice Department found a spate of civil rights violations, including "unjustified deadly force," discrimination in traffic and other enforcement, and unlawful detention, citations and arrests of the homeless.

PHOTO: PIn this March 18, 2014, file photo, a police car blocks an avenue in downtown Phoenix. (STOCK IMAGE/Getty Images)

MORE: DOJ opening investigation into Phoenix Police Department, city of Phoenix

'Excessive force'

The Phoenix Police Department has the highest rate of shootings of any major city, according to the report.

The DOJ report claims Phoenix officers often fire weapons at people who aren't an immediate threat and often inappropriately escalate the violence. In addition to being "reckless," officers are accused of delaying rendering emergency aid after a shooting.

City police frequently rely on neck and compression restraints that could put people at risk for injury of suffocation, according to the report.

"PhxPD officers use these dangerous compression restraints against people experiencing a behavioral health crisis who do not present a risk to officers or others. In one incident, officers knelt for several minutes on the neck of a suicidal man who claimed to have stabbed himself with a nail file," according to the report. In another instance in 2021, the report cited, an officer squeezed his neck with both hands as he was attempting to get his ID.

'Enforcement discrimination'

In Phoenix, Hispanics were 12 times more likely to get a minor traffic violation than their white counterparts. Black people are cited or arrested three times as often as white people for traffic-equipment related offenses, according to the report.

The Justice Department's top civil rights attorney called the findings of the report "severe" and said that citizens of Phoenix deserve equal treatment under the law.

"Our investigation found that the police department discriminates against Black, Hispanic and Native American people in its enforcement activities," Kristen Clarke, the head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division told reporters on a virtual press conference. "Police officers have an obligation to enforce the law fairly and equally, but in Phoenix, officers are disproportionately targeting communities of color."

For example, she said, black drivers in Phoenix are 144% more likely than white drivers to be arrested or cited for low level moving violations, and Hispanic drivers are, for them, more likely to be arrested or cited for the same thing.

DOJ also found that the Phoenix police intolerant of those who offered criticism and questioned how officers dealt with protesters.

"We found officers used indiscriminate force against protestors, falsified allegations to arrest protest leaders, retaliated against people critical of the police, and prevented people from lawfully recording police conduct," the report says.

Furthermore, the Department of Justice said that while officers were on duty and responding to protests, officers made malicious and demeaning statements about protestors, cheered the use of force, and celebrated their success in suppressing speech.

PHOTO: In this March 6, 2014, file photo, the Phoenix police department logo is shown in Phoenix, Arizona. (Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports, FILE)

'Challenges in dealing with people with mental health crisis and minors'

Regarding the Phoenix Police Department's response to people experiencing a behavioral health crisis, the DOJ said "too frequently, they dispatch police alone when it would be appropriate to send behavioral health responders."

"Officers act on the assumption that people with disabilities are dangerous and rarely modify their approach," according to the report. "Officers resort to using force rather than de-escalation tactics that would likely help a person with behavioral health disabilities follow directions. As a result, people with behavioral health disabilities suffer harm such as force, trauma, and criminal consequences, rather than receiving emergency mental health care."

The police department has also had concerning contact with minors, the DOJ said.

"In 2022, officers handcuffed and used neck restraints on a 13-year-old boy with autism who had walked out of school without permission. An officer spotted the boy walking alongside a road near the school and told him to stop. The boy kept walking, and the officer ran after him, grabbing his arms from behind, tackling him, and holding him down. With the officers knee in his back and hand on his neck, the boy pleaded to be let go: My moms right there. I cant breathe. Im just trying to get home," the report found.

In August 2021, the Justice Department opened an investigation into the police department after complaints about excessive force.

The Justice Department interviewed hundreds of officers, supervisors, commanders and current and former city officials during the process of compiling the report.

"The release of todays findings report is an important step toward accountability and transparency, and we are committed to working with the City of Phoenix and Phoenix Police Department on meaningful reform that protects the civil rights and safety of Phoenix residents and strengthens police-community trust," Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.

The City of Phoenix said in a statement the City will take the necessary time to review the findings in detail before responding.

We are taking all the DOJs findings seriously and are planning to review this lengthy report with an open mind, City Manager Jeff Barton said in a message to City employees. Self-reflection is an important step in continuous improvement, and our Police Department has demonstrated a commitment to continuous improvement by making enhancements to policy, internal investigations and training.

Phoenix Police Department engaged in civil rights violations, DOJ finds originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 8. Mastercard will soon present a new service on the artificial intelligence (AI) platform in Azerbaijan, Emil Zeynalov, Mastercard's regional manager in Azerbaijan, told Trend.

"Artificial intelligence is not only new, but also a very popular and rapidly developing trend," Zeynalov pointed out.

The regional manager mentioned that Mastercard is integrating AI into technologies, including those being introduced to the Azerbaijani market as well.

"In the near future, we plan to introduce new services based on artificial intelligence platforms to our users. These services will be aimed at combating cyber security, cyber crime, and fraud in card transactions. Our partners will be able to use scoring to assess the security of transactions and provide a high level of protection for cardholders," he added.

To note, Mastercard is an international payment system that provides financial services, including credit, debit and prepaid cards.

It allows its holders to make cashless payments at millions of points of sale around the world.

Mastercard also provides technology solutions for banks, merchants, and other financial institutions.

Mastercard cards are accepted in many countries and are used for a variety of transactions, including in-store purchases, online transactions, cash withdrawals from ATMs, and other financial transactions.
Pike County Murders: George Wagner IV is asking for a new trial, citing errors at trial level

George W. Wagner IV, serving a life sentence in the 2016 Pike County murders, is asking for a new trial.

>> WATCH: Camels escape from petting zoo in Ohio

Attorney Louis Grube, in papers filed with the Ohio 4th District Court of Appeals, argues that the trial court committed 33 errors, some of which include:

* Failing to dismiss charges from activities in Scioto and Adams counties

* Abusing its discretion by failing to transfer the case to another county because of pretrial publicity in Pike County

* Failing to suppress statements acquired through a wiretap

* Denying additional opportunities to bump prospective trial jurors, according to the Ohio Revised Code

* Sentencing George Wagner to prison without parole eligibility even though he had not shot any of the victims

Grube said all the errors raised from the three-month-long trial should get a full hearing because of the credibility battle between defendant Wagner, who denied his involvement in a murder plot, and the Wagner family members who implicated him.

>> RELATED COVERAGE: George Wagner IV gets life without parole in Pike County murders

The Pike County killings is the states largest and most expensive homicide case the state has ever had. Those who were found dead in their four homes or nearby on April 22, 2016, include Christopher Rhoden Sr., 40, Dana Rhoden, 37, Hannah Hazel Gilley, 20, Christopher Rhoden Jr., 16, Clarence Frankie Rhoden, 20, Gary Rhoden, 37, Hanna May Rhoden, 19, and Kenneth Rhoden, 44.

Wagner was sentenced to life without parole on eight counts of aggravated murder. A Pike County jury convicted him on 22 counts, including the multiple counts of aggravated murder, for his role in the murder of eight family members.

George Billy Wagner, the last suspect in the case, is to be tried in 2025. His attorneys have said medical reasons interrupted their trial preparation.

>> RELATED COVERAGE: Wagner family patriarchs trial delayed until 2025

Six members of the Wagner family were arrested in 2018, more than two-and-a-half years after the killings.

In 2021, Jake and Angela Wagner accepted plea deals. They testified against George Wagner at his 2022 trial as part of their plea agreements. Jake and Angela are to testify at George Billy Wagners trial.

Prosecutors dismissed charges against one of the defendants, Fredericka Wagner.

Another defendants, Rita Newcomb, accepted a plea deal.

Fredericka Wagner and Newcomb were the mother and grandmother of the other four people involved.




New plan: Goodbye to 1,000-acre Castleton Lyons horse farm & hello new housing?

A historic Fayette County horse farm started in 1793 by a future U.S. attorney general could soon be divided up and likely sold for housing, according to documents filed with Lexington officials.

Castleton Lyons, which is owned by the family of Dr. Tony Ryan, an Irish millionaire who made his fortune by co-founding Ryanair, filed plans May 31 to subdivide more than 1,000 acres of the Iron Works property into 16 different lots.

The lot sizes range from 40 to more than 80 acres and oriented toward Mount Horeb Pike, according to the plans. Castleton Lyons is on Iron Works Pike and fronts portions of Mount Horeb Pike.

The majority of the lots are more than 40 acres.

Because the farm is outside the citys growth boundary, there are restrictions on what can be built on agricultural property.

Each of the 16 lots can have one home on it and at least one additional home for farm workers, called a farm tenant home. Each home must also have a septic system, which must be approved by the Lexington-Fayette County Health Department, according to city officials.

No other type of development is allowed on property zoned agriculture outside of the growth boundary.

Castleton Lyons Farm is located on Iron Works Pike near Interstate 75 and the Kentucky Horse Park.

Susan Straub, a spokeswoman for the city, said the plans first review should be a July 3 Urban County Planning Commission subdivision subcommittee meeting. The full planning commission will review the plans at a July 11 meeting.

Castleton Lyons officials were not available for comment Thursday morning.

Castleton Lyons was purchased by Dr. Tony Ryan in 2001, according to Fayette County Property Value Administration records. He died in 2007.

Shane Ryan, his son who is an Irish citizen, was running the farm in 2017.

A proposal to spend $5 million in local tax money to preserve the farm through the Purchase of Development Rights program was ultimately nixed in 2017. That program uses matching federal dollars to buy development rights, which keeps the land from being developed.

However, the federal program prohibits foreign-born or not U.S. taxpaying citizens from receiving federal money. Shane Ryan and Castleton Lyons did not qualify for matching federal funds.

The Purchase of Development Rights program had proposed using local money to purchase the development rights. The $5 million would be roughly twice what the city allocates to the Purchase of Development rights program each year.

The cost was ultimately too much, city officials decided. The program has protected more than 285 farms and more than 31,00 acres from development since its inception in 2000.

Prior owners include scions of Kentucky political family

The Iron Works Pike farm has a long and storied history in Fayette County.

It was purchased by John Breckinridge, a Virginia native, in 1793. Breckinridge later went on to become a U.S. senator and U.S. attorney general under President Thomas Jefferson.

John C. Breckinridge, a former vice president who also served in the U.S. Confederate government, was Breckinridges grandson.

The farm was then passed to a daughter who married David Castleman who renamed the farm Castleton. It is believed Castleman built the Greek revival mansion on the property. Fayette County PVA records show the mansion was built in 1850.

Its not clear what will happen to the home.

Aerial view of Castleton Lyons Farm, 2469 Ironworks Pike, August 12, 2016.

John Keene eventually purchased the property and turned it into a well-known thoroughbred farm. It was sold in the 1920s due to financial constraints, according to a 2009 history of the farm published by the Fayette Alliance, a local land preservation group.

It had a series of owners before Frederick and Frances Van Lennep purchased the property.

The farm later became known for its show horse and standard-bred operations during the Van Lenneps ownership, according to the alliances website.

Tony Ryan purchased the property from the Van Lenneps trust in 2001 for $14 million, according to PVA records. It was renamed Castleton Lyons at the time the Ryan family purchased the property.
CHICAGO  An expected plea deal for a former Chicago Public Schools dean charged with sexually assaulting a student was vacated Wednesday amid a discrepancy in the terms of sentencing.

Brian Crowder, 41, began to plead guilty to charges related to the sexual assault of a former student but walked back his decision before the judge could sign off due to confusion over the length of time he would be required to register as a sex offender.

Crowder was charged two years ago after a former student, now 25 years old, alleged she was groomed and sexually abused while she was a student at Little Village Lawndale High School. The woman attended the school between 2013 and 2016.

Under the deal, Crowder would have pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated criminal sexual abuse, a Class 2 Felony. The other six charges he is facing in the case would have been dropped, including the most serious charge, aggravated criminal sexual assault.

As the parties were discussing the terms of the agreement, an assistant states attorney, filling in for the one typically on the case, said Crowder would be required to register as a sex offender for life. However, Crowders attorney argued they were under the impression the registration period was for 10 years, not life.

Prosecutors also recommended Crowder be sentenced to 30 months of probation. The charge to which he would have pleaded guilty can carry a sentence of anywhere between four and 15 years, if convicted, Judge Mary Anna Planey said.

Crowder and his attorneys asked for a continuance in the case and Planey, filling in for Judge Stanley Sacks, who presides over the case, set a status hearing for early August.

Under the now-vacated plea bargain, Crowder would have also been required to comply with several other terms, including that he undergoes medical testing for sexually transmitted diseases and provide a blood sample to Illinois State Police.

Prosecutors allege Crowder impregnated the former student for the first time when she was 15 years old and took her to get an abortion, falsely signing consent forms under the guise that he was her parent. The same situation happened about a year later, prosecutors said.

Attorneys representing the victim had an impact statement she wrote that they were preparing to read in court on her behalf. They said the woman was disappointed by Wednesdays outcome, but that they will be back in court later this summer when the matter is revisited.

Sex offenders have the highest recidivism rates, and thats why its important you dont just put them out as a sex offender for 10 years, attorney Martin Gould said. We hope that he will accept responsibility for the crimes committed and there will be some closure for this victim, at least in this part of the case.

Gould is representing the victim in a lawsuit filed earlier this year against Chicago Public Schools, alleging that school staff did nothing to stop the abuse after she reported it.

The young woman came forward to authorities in 2021, about eight years after she allegedly told a teacher at the school about the abuse, and nothing was done.

A May statement from CPS said the district prioritizes the safety and well-being of students and takes seriously the responsibility to ensure all employees act in the best interest of students.

Crowders next court hearing was scheduled for August 6.

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Hi Tacoma! My name is Amber Ritson, and Im the visual intern at The News Tribune for the summer.

Words can not describe how excited I am to live and work in your fantastic city. While its only technically my second week in Tacoma, Ive thrown myself into every adventure that comes my way in an attempt to get to know Tacoma and Pierce County better. Most recently, Ive spent hours exploring tide pools along the beach, searching for crabs, starfish and other sea creatures.

Some things you should know about me: I was born and raised in Apopka, Florida, a small city known for growing indoor plants and its proximity to Disney World. Within the last year or so, I earned my bachelors degree in journalism from Temple University. Before moving to Tacoma, I worked as a staff photographer during a six-month fellowship for LancasterOnline, a regional daily newspaper in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Im dedicated to the belief that no story is ever too big or too small for me to cover. I also believe that photography is the most accessible way to learn and tell the truth. Those principles have guided me through some incredible and challenging stories, touching on topics such as workers rights, agriculture, race and gender.

Since college, Ive been working on a passion project detailing the challenges faced by farmers in different parts of the country. While the project has been focused on urban farmers on the East Coast, Im looking forward to exploring and telling the stories of Pierce County farmers and the issues they might face due to the climate, local and national politics, and location.

When Im not working, Im likely exploring used bookstores and record shops or creating playlists for friends and family back home. A fun fact about me: According to my Spotify Wrapped, I was in the top 3 percent of listeners worldwide in 2023, with a total of 69,271 minutes!

During my time at The News Tribune, I aim to build meaningful relationships with readers and cover every story with passion, determination and care.

Got a tip? Im always open to new ideas and perspectives. Please dont hesitate to reach out to aritson@thenewstribune.com or to @amberritsonphotography on Instagram.
Poacher shoots pregnant deer with arrow, leaves it to die slowly, Washington cops say

A poacher shot a pregnant deer with an arrow and left it to die slowly and painfully in Washington, police said.

Now, police are trying to find the person who killed the animal.

The doe was killed on or before May 29 in the Suncrest area of Stevens County, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife Police said in a June 11 Facebook post.

It was shot out of season and with an arrow that had a tip thats not usually used to hunt deer, police said.

The use of this arrow tip caused the deer an unnecessarily slow and painful death, police said.

It was found dead off north Suncrest Drive near State Route 291, but police said it could have been shot elsewhere in the area.

Authorities are looking for the person responsible for the deers death

Reports can be made online, by calling 877-933-9847 or emailing reportpoaching@dfw.wa.gov.

Anonymous tips can be reported by texting 847411 and entering WDFWTIP, followed by a space, and then entering your report.

Anyone who has information that leads to the persons conviction could get a cash reward or hunting bonus points, police said.

Accused poacher bragged about kills on social media, WA officials say. Hes sentenced

Man poisons 18,000 fish with bleach at Oregon hatchery, officials say. Senseless

Hunter shoots deer from vehicle and threatens to kill property owner, TN officials say
Poland does not agree to transfer the American Patriot system located on its territory to Ukraine.

Source: Cezary Tomczyk, Deputy Head of the Polish Defence Ministry, on Thursday on X (formerly Twitter); European Pravda

Earlier, The New York Times reported that the United States allegedly thought to send to Ukraine an American Patriot system stationed in Poland.

The Patriot system is currently stationed in Poland and protects a logistics hub in Rzeszow. Through it, Ukraine receives a significant part of military aid. The NYT did not specify whether we are talking about transferring the entire system (eight launchers with radars and other equipment), or only about its elements.

On Thursday, Cezary Tomczyk, Deputy Head of the Polish Defence Ministry, tweeted that the Patriot would be replaced with a system from another part of the world.

Quote: "Poland did not agree to the transfer of the Polish system. Polish Patriots protect the Polish sky, and this will not change," Tomczyk wrote.

For his part, Jacek Siewiera, the head of the Polish National Security Bureau, said that the American Patriot systems stationed in Poland should not be transferred to Ukraine.

He noted that he asked to talk about this with his counterpart in the United States, Jake Sullivan, because the information spread in the media "is cause for concern".

Quote: "We are a country through which most of the military aid passes, where cruise missiles have violated the airspace three times over the past two years, which cost the lives of two citizens, a country that is not only of key importance for the supply of Ukraine but also for the entire deterrent system and preparation of possible defence on the eastern flank," Jacek Siewiera said. Radio Zet.

Background:

Polish President Andrzej Duda has previously explained that his country does not have the ability to give Ukraine Patriots, as it is just starting to receive the ordered systems.

Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Poland has no reserves to transfer a Patriot system to Ukraine but promised to help with other means to strengthen air defence.

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Police Say 13-Year-Old Boy with Down Syndrome Was Starved to Death by His Mother Inside Hotel Room

Police are looking for the mother, Serena Starkey, who is charged with murder

Getty

In the hours after the 13-year-old boy died in March, Alabama police began investigating the suspicious circumstances surrounding his death.

Birmingham police are now searching for the boys mother, Serena Starkey, 53, who is charged with murder in connection with his death.

Around 7:20 a.m. Saturday, March 2, police say first responders were dispatched to an Extended Stay America in Birmingham, Ala., where Starkey and her teenage son, Aston Starkey, were then living.

Aston, who police say had Down syndrome, was pronounced dead at a local hospital. There, homicide detectives launched an unclassified death investigation.

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.



Separately, Shelby Countys Department of Human Resources  an umbrella agency over Child Protective Services  also began investigating the childs death, the Birmingham Police Department confirmed in a press release to PEOPLE.

Then, earlier this month Astons autopsy report came back revealing that he had died as a result of malnutrition and dehydration, complicated by neglect. The manner of his death was deemed homicide.

Living in Birmingham, Ala. in the year before Astons death, the mother and son moved often, AL.com reports.

The 13-year-old  who was born in Florida  was not attending school in Birmingham and may never have been examined by a doctor, the outlet reported, citing authorities.

Starkey has been on the run since the murder warrant was issued earlier this month, police allege.



Those with information about Astons death or the whereabouts of his mother, Serena Starkey, may call the Birmingham Police Department's Homicide Unit at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.

If you suspect child abuse, call the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-Child or 1-800-422-4453, or go to www.childhelp.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.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. A conflict broke out between Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan and police at a rally in Yerevan, Trend reports.

According to the information, the relevant footage was circulated on social networks.

In response to a police representative's warning to Galstanyan not to provoke clashes and provocations, he stated twice: "I'm doing the "right thing, I'm doing the right thing."

Meanwhile, this morning, protesters have already gathered in Republic Square, near the Government House in Yerevan. Police barriers are also in place.

As was reported yesterday, demonstrators near the Parliament building in Yerevan were attacked by police using light and noise grenades. A protester's hand was severed.

Protests in Armenia have been taking place since mid-April. The movement is named "Tavush in the Name of Motherland", its participants, led by Archbishop Bagrat Galstanyan started marching to Yerevan. Galstanyan also announced that the opposition was launching impeachment proceedings against Pashinyan.

The prime minister himself called the church an agent of influence back in May and threatened to resolve the issue in the coming months.

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Kentucky State Police made additional arrests Tuesday during the search for an 8-month-old baby who reportedly hasnt been seen for more than a month.

Police arrested the babys grandparents, Taletha and David Tucker, after serving a search warrant at their home in Owensboro on Tuesday, according to a news release.

However, police did not find the baby, Miya Rudd, at their Western Kentucky residence.

Taletha and David Tucker are the parents of Tesla Tucker, Miyas mother.

Tesla Tucker and Cage Rudd, the babys father, have been charged with abandoning her.

Police have searched for 8-month-old Miya without success locating her for several days. A state police spokesman reportedly told WHAS-TV that her parents have not cooperated in efforts to find her.

Grandparents charged in missing child case

State police arrested Taletha D. Tucker, 50, on a charge of being a fugitive from Indiana. David Tucker, 53, was arrested on a warrant charging him with non-payment in an earlier case, according to state police.

Troopers seized electronic devices during the search, the news release said.

Tesla Tuckers other three children were living with her parents. State social workers took those three children to another location after arresting the parents, according to state police.

Timeline of events in Miya Rudd case

The search for the baby began after state police were asked to check on her.

Tesla Tucker told her mother that social workers had taken the baby from their home in Ohio County on May 1, but investigators confirmed that child-welfare workers and police had not removed the baby, according to an arrest citation in the case.

The citation said family members have not seen Miya since late April.

Police found the babys parents, Tucker and Rudd, at a motel in Owensboro. The two didnt know where Miya was, the citation said.

Tucker and Rudd allegedly had a large amount of drugs with them.

In addition to child abandonment, they are charged with possession of fentanyl; trafficking in methamphetamine; first-degree child abuse; trafficking in marijuana; trafficking of legend drugs; and engaging in organized crime.

Police have arrested several other people as they tried to find the baby, including her other grandfather, Ricky Smith, 56, who was charged with first-degree child abuse, abandonment of a minor, engaging in organized crime and several drug offenses.

Police arrested the Miyas other grandmother, Billie Smith, 49, on an outstanding assault warrant unrelated to the baby when they went to her house to search.

Police also arrested Timothy Roach, 37. Officers said as they pulled in at Smiths house, they saw Roach throw a drug that had not been prescribed to him under a vehicle.

Police also have used dogs to search for Miya.

Anyone with information about the case has been asked to contact state police at (270) 826-3312.
LAS VEGAS (KLAS)  Las Vegas police arrested two people in a deadly shooting that left two dead in the east Las Vegas valley.

On Tuesday, Metro police arrested 54-year-old Guillermo Lastre and 33-year-old Dianelys Fernandez on two charges of open murder with a deadly weapon.

Guillermo Lastre, 54, faces two counts of open murder with a deadly weapon (LVMPD/KLAS)

Dianelys Fernandez, 33, faces two counts of open murder with a deadly weapon (LVMPD/KLAS)

Police said on June 5 around 9:40 p.m., officers responded to the 4900 block of South Droubay Drive near Wetlands Park after a report of two people who were dead inside a home.

Police said a citizen went to check on his neighbor when he found the bodies of the two victims inside. When officers arrived they found the two victims and they were pronounced dead at the scene.

Fernandez is scheduled to appear in court on June 17.

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 KLAS.
Police arrest Manhattan man after he allegedly tried to take child by force at local saloon

MANHATTAN (KSNT)  Police in Manhattan arrested a local man after he allegedly tried to kidnap a child Wednesday.

The Riley County Police Department (RCPD) announced in a press release that officers were called around 1 p.m. on June 12 on a reported attempt of child abduction outside of a local saloon in the 1100 block of Moro Street. Officers arriving at the scene were pointed towards the suspect, a 43-year-old Manhattan man, who witnesses said aggressively claimed a child did not belong to the childs guardian.

The man allegedly tried to take the seven-month-old child by force, harming the child in the process. The RCPD detained the man and arrested him on a probable cause offense of attempted aggravated kidnaping.

Lawrence teen dead after being shot multiple times

Ashley Tokoi, a spokeswoman for the RCPD, told 27 News in a written statement the suspect and victim were not known to each other.

The investigation into the incident is ongoing. If you have any information to share regarding this incident, you can call the RCPD at 785-537-2112 or make an anonymous report to Manhattan-Riley County Crime Stoppers by clicking here.

Is an ATV or UTV considered street legal on Kansas roads, highways?

For more crime 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

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 KSNT 27 News.
Police called to shooting in Grand Rapids Baxter neighborhood

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD)  Police confirm there was a shooting in Grand Rapids Baxter neighborhood Wednesday night.

Officers with the Grand Rapids Police Department were called to a shooting on Sigsbee Street SE near Diamond Avenue SE around 9:20 p.m.

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Its not clear what led up to the shooting or if anyone was seriously injured.

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GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD)  A 37-year-old man barricaded himself inside a Grand Rapids home for hours after he reportedly held his ex-girlfriend at knifepoint, according to police.

Around 5:40 p.m. Wednesday, officers with the Grand Rapids Police Department were called to a home on Poinsettia Avenue near Van Auken Street SE for a domestic situation.

The victim had complained of being held at knifepoint from her ex-boyfriend, explained Captain Terry Dixon with the Grand Rapids Police Department.

When officers arrived, the victim and her 2-year-old son were able to escape the home unharmed, Dixon said.

The suspect, a 37-year-old man who police did not name, remained inside.

After about four hours of attempting to negotiate or talk to the suspect, we eventually had to make entry and he ended up surrendering without incident inside the home, Dixon said.

Police blocked off a road in a neighborhood near Ken-O-Sha Park Wednesday night for what they called a barricaded subject.

Police blocked off a road in a neighborhood near Ken-O-Sha Park Wednesday night for what they called a barricaded subject.

Police blocked off a road in a neighborhood near Ken-O-Sha Park Wednesday night for what they called a barricaded subject.

The suspect was unharmed, he said.

We are very happy that this incident ended without harm or any type of injury to anyone, said Dixon.

There was no threat to the immediate neighborhood during the standoff, according to GRPD. Police blocked off streets in the area.

Dixon said around 2:30 a.m. Wednesday, police had been called to the home for violation of a personal protection order but the suspect left before police arrived. He said police have responded to the home at other times for domestic situations involving the same people.

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We certainly encourage those victims of domestic abuse to seek help right away. There are multiple agencies and services available to victims and we would encourage any victim of domestic assault or abuse to seek that help. They dont have to live in fear, Dixon said.

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WOODBRIDGE TOWNSHIP, N.J. (PIX11)  Two police officers were shot on Thursday during an NYPD investigation in Woodbridge Township, New Jersey, sources told PIX11 News.

The shooting happened at the Raritan Hotel at 1050 King Georges Post Rd. in Fords, sources said.

The police officers were attempting to locate a suspect wanted in a homicide, according to New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin. The investigation was related to an incident that occurred in Manhattan on June 6, sources said.

More Local News

Shots were fired between the suspect, NYPD officers and Woodbridge police just after midnight, sources said. An NYPD detective was shot in the foot, and a Woodbridge detective was struck in the shooting, according to sources.

The suspect was shot and killed at the scene, according to Platkin.

Both officers are recovering from their injuries, Platkin said.

AIR11 was over the scene, where investigators looked at two articles of clothing that could be either a vest or jacket with the words police written across them. A box that appears to hold a gun or rifle, along with ammunition, was also seen.

Marked and unmarked NYPD cruisers were seen at the scene, along with local New Jersey police. A white SUV was towed from the scene around 5 a.m.

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.

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A 24-year-old Boise man was arrested on a felony aggravated battery charge after an incident that occurred Tuesday on the 4000 block of W. Fairview Avenue, according to a news release from the Boise Police Department.

Shortly before 6 p.m., police found a victim at the scene who had been stabbed multiple times. It was determined that there had been an altercation between two drivers that escalated, and the two fought after exiting their vehicles.

The victim was treated for his injuries at the scene but declined to be transported to the hospital by paramedics. He later took himself to the hospital and was treated for serious injuries, police said.

Officers located the alleged perpetrator as he was walking near 11th and Main streets in downtown Boise, and police said he was arrested and booked into the Ada County Jail.
FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE)  A man is in stable condition Thursday morning after he was shot in southeast Fresno, according to the Fresno Police Department.

Police say around 3:40 a.m. officers responded to a call of a person who had been shot near Peach and Olive avenues.

Investigators say another call was made of a gunshot victim being dropped off at Community Regional Medical Center.

The victim a man in his 30s told police he was shot near Adler and Olive avenues.

The man was shot in his arm and is said to be in stable condition, according to police.

No suspect information is available at this time. If you have any information contact the Fresno Police Department at (559) 621-7000.

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AUSTIN (KXAN)  The Austin Police Department is asking for the publics help identifying a suspect detectives believe is connected to a series of burglaries that happened in east Austin earlier this month.

APD said the burglaries happened on June 7 around 5 p.m. in the 1600 block of Chatham Avenue.

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Police said during one of the burglaries, the suspect broke into a home in the area holding a knife. Preliminary investigation revealed he may live near the Windsor Park area.

The suspect is described as a Hispanic man in his 20s, approximately 56 to 58 in height. He has distinctive tattoos on both arms, according to APD.

APD is searching for the suspect accused in burglaries that happened on June 7 around 5 p.m. in the 1600 block of Chatham Avenue. (Photo courtesy: Austin Police Department)

APD is searching for the suspect accused in burglaries that happened on June 7 around 5 p.m. in the 1600 block of Chatham Avenue. (Photo courtesy: Austin Police Department)

APD is searching for the suspect accused in burglaries that happened on June 7 around 5 p.m. in the 1600 block of Chatham Avenue. (Photo courtesy: Austin Police Department)

APD is searching for the suspect accused in burglaries that happened on June 7 around 5 p.m. in the 1600 block of Chatham Avenue. (Photo courtesy: Austin Police Department)

APD is searching for the suspect accused in burglaries that happened on June 7 around 5 p.m. in the 1600 block of Chatham Avenue. (Photo courtesy: Austin Police Department)

APD is searching for the suspect accused in burglaries that happened on June 7 around 5 p.m. in the 1600 block of Chatham Avenue. (Photo courtesy: Austin Police Department)

Anyone with any information should contact APDs Burglary unit at 512-974-6941. You may also submit your tip anonymously through the Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program by visiting austincrimestoppers.org or calling 512-472-8477.

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Police in Los Angeles are seeking additional victims of an armed robbery suspect accused of using social media marketplaces to identify and target his victims, authorities announced Wednesday.

Moses Valentino Solis, an L.A. County resident, was taken into custody on April 11 in connection with multiple armed robberies, an LAPD news release stated.

Detectives with the departments Newton Division say Solis used the online marketplaces to post a vehicle for sale and then rob interested parties.

The victims responded to the ad, made arrangements with Solis to purchase the vehicle, and met at a given location on the street, police said. Solis then robbed the victims at gunpoint of money and personal property.

Police seeking victims of armed robbery suspect in SoCal

Authorities have released Solis photograph in the hope that any additional unreported victims or witnesses will come forward to report the crimes.

Brutal road-rage stabbing on Southern California freeway ends in arrest

The LAPD reminds community members to use caution when completing online transactions at a residence, curbside, or on the street, the release noted. We recommend using your local police station to ensure a safe transaction.

Anyone with information related to additional crimes committed by the suspect is urged to contact LAPDs Newton Robbery Detectives at 323-318-3559. During non-business hours or on the weekends, calls should be directed to 877-527-3247.

Those wishing to remain anonymous can call the L.A. Regional Crime Stoppers Hotline at 800-222-8477 or leave tips online at lacrimestoppers.org.

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BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. The next logical step will be to withdraw from the CSTO, said Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Trend reports.

He mentioned that the Armenian authorities will decide the exact timing of this step.

Pashinyan previously stated that the CSTO no longer functions as a mechanism that member countries, including Russia, Armenia, and others, can rely on.

"And this is evidenced by the CSTO's reaction and the statements from some member countries. Our society is asking: why do you continue to remain a member of the CSTO? Frankly, I have no answer to this question," he said.

In May of this year, the Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced that Armenia would refrain from participating in the financing of CSTO activities in 2024.

"The Republic of Armenia will refrain from joining the CSTO Collective Security Council's decision of November 23, 2023, 'On the CSTO budget for 2024,' and from participating in financing the organization's planned activities, while not objecting to the adoption of this decision in a limited format," noted the Armenian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Secret tapes of Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito released publicly Monday have plunged the conservative justice and the high court into deeper controversy, exposing a conversation that saw Alito endorsing ultra-conservative hot-takes.

The audio, obtained and first reported by Rolling Stone, came just weeks after reports of far-right-aligned flags being flown outside Alito's home sparked widespread backlash. The reports follow a year of ethics scandal-exposes involving both him and Justice Clarence Thomas. The newly revealed recordings have similarly prompted harsh rebuke of the justice, with legal experts decrying Alito's boosting of Christian nationalist rhetoric on the tapes as unethical.

"Justice Alitos recorded comments arent so much revealing as they are confirming," James Sample, a Hofstra University constitutional law professor, told Salon. "They reinforce what we already know: that Justice Alito sees his raison detre as being more of an ideological culture warrior more than a jurist. And hes indisputably winning the wars he is waging."

The bevy of revelations have also intensified public scrutiny of the Supreme Court in the wake of a series of contentious decisions in recent years, including eliminating federal protections for abortion care and gutting race-based affirmative action, and have led ethics watchdogs and government officials to declare that an externally enforced ethics code be imposed on the justices, a call that Senate Democrats renewed by seeking to pass a binding-ethics code proposal Wednesday in light of the new tapes.

These new tapes mark "yet another self-inflicted wound on the part of the Supreme Court," according to David Schultz, a professor of legal studies and political science at Hamline University.

"We've seen this gradual deterioration of support for the courts, and it's clearly collapsed after the Dobbs opinion. I mean, none of this is going to turn it around," Schultz told Salon, adding: "It's just going to further erode support for the judiciary. And I hate to say this at a time where you've got [former president Donald Trump] attacking the court system and where you really need people to be defending the courts."

Alito's conversation occurred during the Supreme Court Historical Society's annual dinner earlier this month and was recorded by liberal documentary filmmaker Lauren Windsor, who describes herself as an "advocacy journalist" and has a reputation for secretly recording conservatives.

Windsor, who attended the event under her real name and peppered Alito with questions aligned with far-right ideology, got the justice to offer up his perspective on the opinions she touted. At one point in their exchange, she received an endorsement from the justice of her argument that ending the nation's political polarization by negotiating with the political left not possible, and that it's a matter of "winning" rather than compromise.

I think youre probably right, Alito told Windsor. On one side or the other  one side or the other is going to win. I dont know. I mean, there can be a way of working  a way of living together peacefully, but its difficult, you know, because there are differences on fundamental things that really cant be compromised. They really cant be compromised. So its not like you are going to split the difference.

In another instance, Alito said he agreed with her position that the country's Christian population has "got to keep fighting" to return our country to a place of godliness.

EXCLUSIVE UNDERCOVER AUDIO:

Sam Alito x John Roberts x The Undercurrent 



1/ Justice Alito admits lack of impartiality with the Left, says: One side or the other is going to win. pic.twitter.com/b5nmxToZ9z  Lauren Windsor (@lawindsor) June 10, 2024

Schultz argued that the problems with the exchange are three-fold. First, it presents "almost an apocalyptic vision of American politics" of "dual-contending forces" that Alito appears to hint the resolution to aligns more with a "Christian vision." The second arises from his articulation of this vision, which flies in the face of the "myth" that these "justices are apolitical" and supposed to avoid "abandoning the neutrality."

Third, Alito's statements on the recording also appear to "reinforce both the appearance and the reality that he's voting ideology," that he's not "reading the Constitution neutrally," Schultz continued.

Windsor also secretly taped a conversation Chief Justice John Roberts at the dinner, but his responses to a line of questioning similar to what his colleague received appeared to come in sharp contrast to Alito's, ringing more neutral.

Roberts, according to The New York Times, instead, pushed back against Windsor's assertion that the court had to return the county to a more "moral path."

Would you want me to be in charge of putting the nation on a more moral path? Roberts rebutted. Thats for people we elect. Thats not for lawyers.

When Windsor expressed views that the U.S. is a "Christian nation" and the Supreme Court "should be guiding us in that path," the chief justice also disagreed, offering a more pluralistic counterpoint.

I dont know if thats true," he said, adding: I dont know that we live in a Christian nation. I know a lot of Jewish and Muslim friends who would say maybe not, and its not our job to do that.

2/ Chief Justice Roberts denies that America is a Christian nation. pic.twitter.com/hb3iFa5Jnv  Lauren Windsor (@lawindsor) June 10, 2024

While Schultz said Roberts still shouldn't have addressed the questions, the chief justice's responses reflected a "more classic view" in terms of acknowledging the array of perspectives in the nation even with his orientation as a conservative justice.

"Roberts looks like he's a Chief Justice trying to defend the institution of the Supreme Court by at least coming across and looking somewhat more neutral," Schultz said. By comparison, Alito "looks like he's an advocate now," Schultz argued, adding: "He's the politician with robes."

"Chief Justice Roberts and Justice Alito often reach similar results on the merits," Sample added. "The difference is the extent to which they respect judicial norms."

Want a daily wrap-up of all the news and commentary Salon has to offer? Subscribe to our morning newsletter, Crash Course.

Charles Geyh, a scholar of judicial ethics and law professor at Indiana University's Maurer School of Law, told Salon that, while he was still "troubled" by Alito's responses  calling Alito's rejection of political compromise disheartening  he finds the justice's comments to reflect a different interpretation of Windsor's questioning from that of Roberts.

Alito appeared to answer the questions, not in an official capacity, but as a conservative with matching views, Geyh said, whereas Roberts seemed to interpret the questioning from the perspective of his role as chief justice and the aims of the court.

"From a judicial ethics standpoint, I would have been deeply troubled if [Alito] had made it clear that he was saying the court needs to be turning us in a more godly direction, that the court needs to assert moral authority and move us to a particular place, that he, as a justice, sees it as his role to interpret the First Amendment  more specifically, the Freedom of Religion clause, the Establishment Clause  in a way that turns us to a godlier nation," Geyh, told Salon. "Then, I'd be flinging flares in the air. But I don't interpret him answering the question that way."

A 2002 Supreme Court decision, Republican Party of Minnesota v. White, held that state Supreme Court justices have a First Amendment right to voice their personal opinions on issues in the context of running for a judgeship, Geyh explained, arguing that the same thing applies here insofar as judges having opinions that they're entitled to.

While allowing his personal views to guide his decision-making on the bench is one of the ethics abuses critics have accused Alito of, especially in the wake of his recent scandals, Geyh argued that Alito's responses on the tape don't offer enough information about how he approaches his role to indicate that his personal beliefs do more than influence his read of the law in close cases as opposed to usurping his approach to his duties and decision making.

"Even if Alito thinks that we need a godlier nation, that doesn't automatically mean that he's going to disregard the First Amendment," said Geyh, who also previously served as counsel to the House Judiciary Committee.

While the justice's remarks do offer insight into his belief and how they may inform his legal views, Geyh continued, it "leads us down a path that's illegitimate if he basically is saying, 'Law be damned, I'm going to impose my personal views.' But if what we're saying is, 'The law is ambiguous. It's unclear how this case should be resolved under the establishment clause or the freedom of religion clause, and I am doing my best to interpret it as it should be understood, and my views inevitably influence the way I think about what outcome's best,' that's not illegitimate. That's just the way the world works in close cases."

Still, Geyh said, in a political climate when activists like Windsor are "arguably playing gotcha games" and the court's legitimacy is suffering in the public eye, in part, because of beliefs "bipartisan politics and agendas" drive the justices' decisions, the recent incidents signify the importance of judges being "cautious" and "ever-mindful of how their conduct has been politicized, and they have politicized their conduct themselves," especially in the case of a "political lightning rod" like Alito.

"It's not openly, affirmatively unethical for them to do what he did, but I think the preferred course is to stay under the radar, to do what you can to preserve your open mindedness as best you can and not lock yourself in in public statements that imply that you've got an ax to grind," he explained, referencing canon two of the ethics code the Supreme Court adopted last year.

The Supreme Court Historical Society's executive director, James Duff, condemned Windsor's "surreptitious recording of Justices at the event" as "inconsistent with the entire spirit of the evening" in a statement Monday. Our policy is to ensure that all attendees, including the Justices, are treated with respect," Duff said.

Windsor, however, has defended her actions, explaining that she felt she had no other means of reporting on the justices' true thoughts.

We have a court that has refused to submit to any accountability whatsoever  they are shrouded in secrecy, Windsor said, per The Times. I dont know how, other than going undercover, I would have been able to get answers to these questions.

On Tuesday night, Windsor dropped another undercover audio of Alito, recorded by a colleague at the same June 3 dinner.

In the latest tape, the justice appeared to blame partisan funding for the coverage of the Supreme Court's undisclosed lavish gifts and travel, specifically citing ProPublica, which published a series of bombshell reports in the last year on Alito and Thomas' failure to report the gifts on annual disclosures.

Asked why the Supreme Court is being "so attacked" and "targeted by the media these days," Alito responded plainly.

They dont like our decisions, and they dont like how they anticipate we may decide some cases that are coming up. Thats the beginning of the end of it, he said, according to Rolling Stone. There are groups that are very well-funded by ideological groups that have spearheaded these attacks," he added. "Thats what it is.

EXCLUSIVE UNDERCOVER AUDIO feat. the debut of my colleague @Ally_Sammarco:

Alito v @ProPublica



Justice Alito rants on ProPublica and minimizes Justice Thomas extraordinary ethics breaches as any little thing they can find" pic.twitter.com/HXFlaxRpWm  Lauren Windsor (@lawindsor) June 12, 2024
(NewsNation)  The nations second-in-command is struggling to find support among American voters, a new POLITICO/Morning Consult poll revealed.

Data found 52% of people view Vice President Kamala Harris unfavorably, and most dont think she could win an election as the Democratic nominee.

Senate Republicans block bill on womens right to IVF as Democrats make push on reproductive care

While 60% of Democrats think she could take top office, only a quarter of independents feel the same.

When it comes to leadership, only 42% of respondents identified the vice president as a strong leader. Her party backed her in this aspect, with three-quarters of Democrats vouching for her leadership compared to the one-third of independents who agreed.

Its a challenge for any vice president to break out of the shadow of the person who is in the Oval Office, said Jesse Byrnes, senior editor for The Hill. Harris is no different.

Takeaways from Supreme Court ruling: Abortion pill still available but opponents say fight not over

Harris isnt alone  her low polling numbers mirror running mate President Joe Bidens. The pairs overall favorability was underwater.

Biden tallied 43% favorable and 54% unfavorable, followed by 42% favorable and 52% unfavorable for Harris.

But there are bright spots for the former California senator. She polled well on key issues like abortion and outperformed Biden with Black voters, even sweeping ahead of other potential Democratic nominees.

House GOP votes to hold AG Merrick Garland in contempt

Thats a metric pertinent to the race, with some concerned over the age of Americas two front-runners. Come Election Day, Biden will be 81, and Donald Trump will be 78.

Really, theres a tell in terms of the Republican attacks. Weve seen a lot of Republicans say that Trump is not going up against Biden in November; hes going up against Harris, Byrnes said. They understand that Harris also struggles with her favorability numbers, and they want to put a spotlight on it.

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NORTHEAST OKLAHOMA  Craig and Delaware County voters will decide on several county positions Tuesday.

In addition to county positions, voters in Bernice and Langley have a proposition on their ballots. Bernice voters will decide to extend a sales tax and Langley voters will decide on whether the communitys Board of Trustees can appoint the city clerk/treasurer.

Voting is until 7 p.m. tonight.

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VANDALIA, OHIO - NOVEMBER 07: Former U.S. President Donald Trump and Republican candidate for U.S. Senate JD Vance greet supporters during the rally at the Dayton International Airport on November 7, 2022 in Vandalia, Ohio. Trump campaigned at the rally for Ohio Republican candidates including Republican candidate for U.S. Senate JD Vance, who is running in a tight race against Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH). (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

This story originally appeared on Ohio Capital Journal.

Following the lead of former President Donald Trump, some Ohio Republicans are saying that undocumented migrants are bringing the deadly scourge of fentanyl with them.

Several experts say such statements are highly misleading. And anti-hate groups say such statements paint yet another target on the backs of a population thats already been victimized by racist violence.

Trump has been conflating undocumented migrants and crime since he announced his candidacy in 2015, when he said people crossing the border from Mexico are bringing crime. Theyre rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.

Trump and his allies relentlessly whip up anger over individual, horrific crimes committed by the undocumented. But research shows that the group commits crime at substantially lower rates than the native born.

Isolated incidents are magnified, Michael Debruhl, a former Border Patrol chief, said during a recent press conference hosted by the National Immigration forum. Things are said over and over, so I dont blame people for thinking theres a migrant crime wave. Unfortunately, there are crimes committed by migrants. But when you look into the facts regarding migration and crime, that (notion of a) migrant crime wave just does not hold up.

Heedless of the facts, Trump persists in his attacks on migrants, which many observers say are part of a larger, authoritarian bent that increasingly dominates his rhetoric.

In 2022, he called to terminate the Constitution, and in December he said he would be a dictator on his first day in office if hes reelected. Last November, Trump seemed to echo Adolph Hitler when in a speech he called his political opponents vermin.

Many also heard such echoes last December, when in a speech in Iowa Trump told his followers that immigrants crossing the southern border were poisoning the blood of the United States. Trump said he didnt know that his rhetoric on immigration echoes that of Hitler.

Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, who is said to be in the top tier of candidates to be Trumps vice presidential pick, also denied the Hitler connection. Vance said the former president  and current convicted felon  wasnt mimicking Germanys genocidal maniac, he was referring to a crisis that has killed hundreds of thousands of Americans.

First of all, he didnt say immigrants were poisoning the blood of this country, Vance told the Washington, D.C. news organization The Hill after Trump made the remarks. He said illegal immigrants were poisoning the blood of this country, which is objectively and obviously true to anybody who looks at the statistics about fentanyl overdoses.

Problem is, thats misleading, according to several experts.

A lot of people think that all the drugs are being brought in by migrants, but the truth is that between 92% and 94% of all the drugs that come into the country come through the ports of entry, Debruhl, the former Border Patrol official, said.

That makes sense when you consider that people smuggling narcotics are are 97% less likely to be stopped at ports of entry than are undocumented migrants crossing between them, Cato Institute analyst David J. Bier reported in 2022.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection reports that 98% of private vehicles and 83% of commercial vehicles are currently coming through the ports of entry unscanned. It hopes to reduce those figures to 60% and 30%, respectively, once advanced scanning equipment is installed by 2026.

In addition, the vast majority of people convicted of fentanyl trafficking are American citizens  86.3% in 2021, Bier said.

In addition, Bier said in a May press conference hosted by the Immigration Forum that in all their encounters with migrants in 2023, Border Patrol Agents found fentanyl just 0.009% of the time.

It doesnt make sense to put a backpack (of fentanyl) on a bunch of people and send them across the border, Bier said.

Thats not to say, however, that no drugs are crossing between the ports of entry, or that none are on the backs of the undocumented. The Drug Enforcement Agency in 2021 said theyre predominantly coming through the ports in vehicles, but in 2024 some were coming overland and through tunnels.

John Modlin, Chief Patrol Agent for the Tucson Sector in early 2023 told the House Oversight Committee that agents in his sector in 2022 seized 364 pounds of fentanyl that had been backpacked across the border.

Vance has taken a pass this year when he had a chance to vote for two pieces of legislation that purported to help stop fentanyl from coming over the southern border

One was the FEND off Fentanyl Act, which was introduced by Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, and cosponsored by Vance. Vance said he couldnt support final passage because it became part of a package that included funding for Ukraine.

Another was the bipartisan border security bill, that included funding for additional customs officer and new technology. It was poised to pass, when Trump tanked it by telling Republicans not to give President Joe Biden a political win by voting for it.

The consensus among experts is that the great majority of illicit fentanyl is coming in vehicles driven through the ports of entry  and most of it is being driven by U.S. citizens. But some on the right are trying to blame the evolving opioid crisis on migrants  and to hammer Biden.

1.2 million undocumented illegal immigrants have slipped through CBP under the Biden Admin, Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose said on X last year. Fentanyl overdose deaths continue to rise, including in our Ohio communities. We cant have immigration reform expect to curb fentanyl overdoses until we secure our southern border.

Falsely blaming migrants for Ohios opioid epidemic could subject them and others who look like them to violence, such as the 2019 massacre at an El Paso Walmart that killed 23.

The Dangerous Speech Project studies how rhetoric can whip up violence between groups of people. It says that speech that incites fear is especially dangerous. And its not hard to see how loading blame for the presence of dangerous drugs onto the backs of migrants might incite fear.

A defining feature of dangerous speech is that it often promotes fear, as much as it expresses or promotes hatred, the group says on its website. For example, one can assert that another group is planning to attack ones own group without expressing hatred, yet that message might easily convince people to condone or commit violence, ostensibly to fend off the attack. Violence would seem defensive, and therefore justified.

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Pope Francis shakes hands with then-U.S. Vice President Joe Biden as he celebrates a special audience with participants at a congress on the progress of regenerative medicine and its cultural impact in the Paul VI hall in Vatican City on April 29, 2016. Pope Francis will attend the G7 summit in Italy this week. | NurPhoto via Getty Images

This years G7 summit is set to kick off tomorrow with leaders from the worlds largest economically strong countries in attendance. This year they will also have a special guest: Pope Francis, leader of the Catholic church. And he will be there to talk about artificial intelligence.

What is the G7 summit?

The G7, or Group of Seven, summit is an annual gathering of the leaders from seven of the worlds largest advanced economies. That includes Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States.

At the G7, leaders discuss and coordinate their policies on a wide range of global issues, including: economic policy, climate change, international security and technology.

The G7 was originally formed in the 1970s so that world leaders could discuss economic issues.

When and where is this years G7 summit?

This years G7 summit is being held at the Borgo Egnazia hotel in the southern Puglia region of Italy.

The summit will run June 13-15.

Why is Pope Francis attending the G7 summit?

Pope Francis is attending the G7 summit at the invitation of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, who will chair the summit, per the National Catholic Register. It will be the first time a pope has attended the summit, and Pope Francis will attend a session dedicated to discussing artificial intelligence.

In recent years, the Vatican has actively participated in the discourse on artificial intelligence ethics, organizing high-level discussions with scientists and tech executives on the topic in both 2016 and 2020.

And since 2020, the Vaticans Pontifical Academy for Life, which advocates for Catholic moral teachings on bioethics, has been promoting the Rome Call for AI Ethics, a document that outlines six principles for AI ethics, including transparency, inclusion, responsibility and impartiality, per CNN.

The Vatican is also seeking support from major tech companies and governments. To date, Rome Call for AI Ethics has been signed by Microsoft, IBM and Cisco Systems, as well as the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, Italys innovation ministry, and numerous religious leaders.

In his remarks at the G7, Pope Francis is expected to speak about the ethics of AI and call on world leaders to step up in regulating it for the good of people across the world, per NPR.

Brian Green, director of technology ethics at the Markkula Center for Applied Ethics at Santa Clara University, was involved in an AI report that the Vatican released in 2023. He believes the pope will take a moral stance in his comments.

As a religious leader, the only thing he really has is his moral authority, which means that he cant really come with a big political agenda to something like this. He cant come with a huge economic agenda, but he can come with a moral agenda, Green said, per NPR.

Church of Jesus Christ leaders introduce guiding principles for AI

Pope Francis and the Catholic church arent the only ones concerned about AI. In March, leaders of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints held a worldwide training for church employees to introduce them to guiding principles on how to use AI.

Speaking during the training, Elder John C. Pingree Jr., a General Authority Seventy, said, The moral and ethical considerations that come with the use of AI require spiritual discernment and wisdom, per Church News.

Elder Gerrit W. Gong of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles invited employees to consider how best to use AI while being prayerful. We can be realistic both of opportunity and challenge, he said. Overall, I am optimistic about our ability to use these AI technologies wisely and effectively, and to protect Church members and friends from the deceitful spread of falsehoods or untruth.

Elder Gong and Elder Pingree then went on to share several principles that help guide the use of AI within the church, per Church News. They included spiritual connection, transparency, privacy and security, and accountability.
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  In the near future, local book lovers wont need to stop at a brick-and-mortar store to grab an in-flight read. Powells is returning to the Portland International Airport.

On Wednesday morning, Port of Portlands Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a seven-year lease with the worlds largest independent bookstore.

Bend business replaces lawn sign that went missing from worlds last Blockbuster

Powells previously ran an airport store from 1988 to 2020, when the company president Emily Powell announced the location would permanently close due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Weve continued to hear that a bookstore is the item that passengers want that we dont have here at PDX, so were very happy this will fill that need, PDX Senior Manager of Concessions Kaitlin Hunter said at the meeting.

In April 2023, the Port revealed the 21 concessionaires that would operate in the airports terminal which is currently under renovation. The list featured well-known local businesses such as Straightaway Cocktails, pasta restaurant Grassa and beer hall Loyal Legion.

Badlands Portland, new LGBTQ+ space revives old Embers location

Some businesses had to go through the extensive Request for Proposals process to secure a spot in PDX, while airport leaders engaged in direct negotiations with others  like the bookstore.

Port Chief Aviation Officer Dan Pippenger said the bookstore wasnt quite ready to commit to a new retail space last year. But now, its slated to open a 1,940-square-foot space in January 2026.

Rendering of PDXs Powells Books storefront. (Courtesy Powells)

Weve had a couple of walkthroughs of the space and it is beautiful, Powells CEO Patrick Bassett told KOIN 6. This is going to be a world-class airport. Its always been one of the top-rated airports in the U.S. and I think this just elevates it to another level.

VIDEO: Tillamook Sheriff cadet rescues stranded fawn from hungry coyotes

Before the full store opens in PDXs South Hall, Powells will run a kiosk just after the security checkpoint at Concourses B and C starting in September. The airport inventory will resemble what customers typically see in bookstores.

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(KRON)  The University of California Police Department is investigating a possible incident of arson on the Berkeley campus Thursday. According to a notification from the university, UCPD received a report of arson outside of Koshland Hall just after midnight.

Santa Clara County seizes most guns in California from residents

Located on the northwest corner of campus next to Barker Hall, Koshland houses labs from the universitys Department of Molecular & Cell Biology and the Department of Plant & Microbial Biology.

Police declined to release many details related to Thursdays incident, other than that it is under investigation.

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If we want to be on the right side of history, then America  the city of Tulsa  needs to make it right, Tiffany Crutcher, a native of the Oklahoma city that was the site of a deadly race massacre more than a century ago, recently told Capital B.

But things wont be made right anytime soon. The remaining survivors of the 1921 assault suffered another slap in the face on Wednesday.

The Oklahoma Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit from the survivors of the attack on the Greenwood district known as Black Wall Street that killed as many as 300 people and plunged the once-thriving area into a state of disrepair. Upholding a district court ruling from last July, the justices decided 81 that the plaintiffs arent eligible for reparations under the public nuisance statute.

Wednesdays news devastated and infuriated the survivors and their legal team, whove been locked in this battle for years. They have promised to file a petition for rehearing, asking that the court reconsider its decision in the case, which is likely the survivors final opportunity to win restitution.

The massacre happened 103 years ago, but it remains a vivid memory of [Lessie Benningfield Randle and Viola Ford Fletcher], who as young girls saw their community destroyed in the worst act of domestic terrorism in U.S. history, the legal team explained in a statement. As Mother Fletcher celebrated her 110th birthday last month and Mother Randle will celebrate the same birthday later this year, time is of the essence for this investigation to begin.

Fletchers younger brother, Hughes Van Ellis, died of cancer last October at 102 years old. In 2021, on the centennial of the attack, the survivor and World War II veteran testified to Congress, declaring that he didnt want to leave this earth without obtaining justice.

Read More: Inside the Battle to Preserve Black Wall Street

Oklahoma isnt the only state where reparations have become a contested political issue. The countrys appetite for grappling with racial inequality seems to have dwindled in the years since George Floyds murder in 2020.

Just last month, a conservative activist group called Judicial Watch filed a lawsuit challenging a first-of-its-kind government program providing cash reparations to Black residents of Evanston, Illinois. The initiative was established in 2021 in order to address racist housing practices that were in place from 1919 to 1969.

Judicial Watch claims that the program violates the 14th Amendments Equal Protection Clause because it supposedly discriminates against white residents. Its argument reflects a far wider trend: Since the U.S. Supreme Court gutted affirmative action in higher education last June, conservative actors have insisted that the high courts decision should apply more broadly.

And in April, Tennessees Republican-led House of Representatives tabled a bill that would ban local governments from studying or funding reparations, essentially spiking the GOP-backed proposal for the rest of the year. A companion bill had already passed the Tennessee Senate, which Republicans also control.

Rep. Justin J. Pearson, who along with his Democratic colleague Rep. Justin Jones was briefly expelled from the Tennessee House last April, told Capital B earlier this year that the momentum behind the states anti-reparations bill wasnt surprising.

This is the legislating of white supremacy and racism that we deal with here, he said, highlighting that the legislation was a terrible yet also accurate reflection of Tennessee and its politics. The push by the Republican Party in our state against reparations is really an effort to live in an ahistorical way  to not understand the past and its ramifications for the present day.

The Rev. Earle J. Fisher, an advocate and a longtime resident of Memphis, Tennessee, who organized a petition against the bill, expressed a similar sentiment.

He told Capital B that when you are passing legislation to stop people from studying something, as a legislative body, it communicates that not only are you committed to injustice and inequity, but you are anti-truth.

As heartbreaking as Wednesdays decision was, the survivors and their legal team are determined to exhaust all possible avenues in their pursuit of justice.

No one has ever been held accountable for the massacre, and there are calls for the U.S. Department of Justice to intervene and open an investigation under the Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act of 2007.

The federal government has a duty, while my clients are still alive, Damario Solomon-Simmons, an attorney for the survivors, told Capital B last year, to come in and use its awesome powers to give this community some form of relief.

The post Possibly the Final Insult in a Yearslong Reparations Fight appeared first on Capital B News.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has insulted President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko, Trend reports.

He stated that he would never set foot in Belarus as long as President Lukashenko is in power, due to his statements in Azerbaijan.

'I have no intention of visiting Belarus as long as Lukashenko remains president there, and I believe the same goes for other Armenian officials,' he said.

To note, at his meeting with President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Lukashenko said: "Thoughts crossed my mind about our lunchtime philosophical discourse that took place before the war, your war of liberation. At that point, we decided that the battle could still be won. It is significant. It is crucial to keep on this triumph."

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Republican Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, a leading candidate to be Donald Trumps vice president, liked tweets in 2016 and 2017 that harshly criticized Trump and his policies  including one speculating that Vance could serve in former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clintons administration.

Other tweets liked by Vance said Trump committed serial sexual assault, called him one of USAs most hated, villainous, douchey celebs, and, in a since-removed set of tweets, harshly criticized Trumps response to the deadly 2017 White nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia  something Vance now defends Trump over.

Vances past anti-Trump stances have been well-documented, but these new examples, unearthed by an extensive review of Vances past social media activity, demonstrate they were more widespread and scathing than previously known.

Their discovery also comes as Vance has solidified his standing in Trumps inner circle as a frequent defender of the former president and is among a handful of people under consideration to be Trumps vice-presidential pick.

As CNNs KFile previously reported, Vance deleted past anti-Trump tweets ahead of his announcement in July 2021 that he would run for the open Ohio Senate seat. Vance once privately wondered whether Trump was Americas Hitler in February 2016, and a few months later wrote in The Atlantic that Trump was cultural heroin.

Vance also said he even contemplated voting for Clinton, but ultimately said he would vote for independent candidate Evan McMullin for president in 2016.

Once regarded as a Trump whisperer for his understanding of the aggrieved White working class and a self-described Never Trump Republican, Vance shot to fame over his memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, published in June 2016. Vance was a frequent guest on cable news programs and later became a CNN contributor in 2017.

His subsequent transition from vocal Trump critic to staunch supporter has been widely scrutinized. Vance has become a key surrogate for the former president and routinely defends Trump on television, including during his hush money trial in New York last month. Vance also helped orchestrate Trumps June 6 fundraiser in San Francisco with tech industry donors. Trump is expected to meet with congressional Republicans in Washington, DC, on Thursday.

In a statement to CNN, Vance cited Trumps many successes in office and claimed that realizing the corporate media and Deep States coordinated efforts to undermine Trump changed his perspective.

Im proud to be one of his strongest supporters in the Senate today and Im going to do everything in my power to ensure President Trump wins in November - the survival of America depends on it.

Prior to the publication of this story, Vances communications director sent along two supportive statements from Donald Trump Jr. and Jason Miller, a senior advisor to the Trump campaign.

Trump Jr. criticized news outlets for repeatedly covering Vances past anti-Trump comments writing, Were 100% confident that JD is America First to the core and no one in the Senate has been a stronger supporter of my father. Trump Jr. added they were long past all of this, saying they had discussed it with him at length.

Miller wrote, Its important to keep in mind that politics is ultimately politics, and likened Vances past criticism to criticism by Kamala Harris of Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential primary over his past opposition to desegregation busing in the 1970s.

In an interview published Thursday, Vance told New York Times columnist Ross Douthat about his political conversion to a pro-Trump Republican.

Like a lot of other elite conservatives and elite liberals, I allowed myself to focus so much on the stylistic element of Trump that I completely ignored the way in which he substantively was offering something very different on foreign policy, on trade, on immigration, Vance said.

Anti-Trump social media activity from 2016

CNN reviewed Vances past likes on Twitter, the platform now known as X, before X changed its policy to make users likes private and hidden from others.

In this April 2022 photo, J.D. Vance shakes hands with former President Donald Trump during a rally hosted by the former president at the Delaware County Fairgrounds on in Delaware, Ohio. - Drew Angerer/Getty Images

A majority of the newly uncovered social media activity dates from the last five months of the 2016 presidential campaign. They include Vance liking a number of anti-Trump posts on Twitter, including those criticizing Trumps immigration policies, acknowledging antisemitism from Trump supporters, questioning the integrity of voting for Trump over Clinton and even raising concerns over Trump having access to the countrys nuclear codes as president.

In February 2016, Vance liked a tweet featuring a photo of Trump, two women and O.J. Simpson with the caption, Here is an old picture of one of USAs most hated, villainous, douchey celebs. Also in picture: OJ Simpson.

Vance also liked tweets from August 2016 that praised his book and envisioned a role for him in a potential Clinton administration and another tweet suggesting he could provide Clinton with the seeds to a plan to defeat Trump. But Vance soon began liking several tweets with the hashtag #NeverHillary through October 2016.

While promoting his memoir and appearing on news programs in 2016, Vance liked a series of tweets calling then-candidate Trump a monster and a nemesis of the GOP. He also liked a tweet acknowledging threats and derogatory terms Trump supporters hurl at Jews. He even liked a tweet from CNN anchor Jake Tapper criticizing Trumps tweet about a womans appearance amidst then-first lady Melania Trumps campaign against cyberbullying.

He also liked a tweet that read, Does any dad (or future dad) want to look his daughter in the eye and explain why he voted for Trump instead of 1st woman president?

Among the harshest tweets Vance liked was one that called out Trump after the Access Hollywood tape surfaced, capturing previously unaired lewd and sexually aggressive remarks by the presidential nominee. Maybe the Central Park 5 could take out a full-page ad to condemn the coddling of thug real estate barons who commit serial sexual assault, the tweet read.

Other tweets Vance engaged with criticized signature Trump policies, including Trumps hardline position on immigration and the tax cuts from 2017.

In August 2017, Vance criticized Trumps response to the White supremacist violence in Charlottesville earlier that year, linking in a since-deleted tweet to a TV segment that called Trump a coward for his response, and then liked a tweet indicating he did not consistently support the GOP or Trump.

There is no moral equivalence between the anti-racist protestors in Charlottesville and the killer (and his ilk), Vance wrote, while also criticizing left-wing violence.

You may not like @JDVance1s view - but its hard to pin him down as consistently supporting views of either Trump or GOP, read the tweet Vance liked.

Pro-Trump pivot

Despite his earlier harsh criticism of Trump, by 2021, Vance dismissed left-wing condemnation of Trumps comments  where Trump equated White nationalist protestors and counter-protestors as fine people on both sides as the ridiculous race hoax in Charlottesville.

Ahead of his Senate campaign that year, Vance apologized for previously calling Trump reprehensible, in tweets first uncovered by CNNs KFile.

Like a lot of people, I criticized Trump back in 2016, Vance told CNN in 2021. I regret being wrong about the guy, Vance said, adding he thought Trump was a good president.

In a previously unreported blog post Vance wrote in April 2010 under his previous legal name, J.D. Hamel, he wrote in support of legal immigration, advocating to massively increase the number of migrants allowed into the country.

Border security is a good start, but if we plan to control the border, then we must also plan to massively increase the number of legal migrants allowed into the country, Vance wrote. The day that America no longer welcomes decent, hardworking foreign nationals is the day that our nation loses something very central to its character and its economic diversity.

Vance told CNN, It was a stupid opinion from 15 years ago when I was in my twenties. All anyone needs to do is check my voting record as a Senator to see that I have consistently opposed increased immigration levels into America.

Vance said in September 2016 that Trumps immigration policies were overly simplistic.

At the heart of Trumps immigration message is that if we had less immigration, we would have much better jobs, he said. I think its a lot more complicated than that. My own sense is that Trump definitely simplifies these problems. I dont think if you build a great Mexican wall, all of a sudden, all of these steel mill jobs are going to come back to southern Ohio, but it at least gives people something to latch onto.

Three months ago, Vance reiterated his support for Trumps immigration policies. In an interview on Fox Business Vance said, If we dont get control of the southern border  tens of millions of illegal aliens are now in our country, tons of fentanyl killing over 100,000 people  we dont have a country anymore if we dont get control of that border.

This story has been updated with more information.

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Stigma against predators and what their presence means has prompted a string of wolf-poisonings in Oregon in the past year alone. (Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife)

Predators and carnivores: These two words are getting increasingly difficult to use in wildlife conservation and policy without triggering a perception that is steeped in fear of conflict.

This has come into sharp focus in Oregon with a string of wolf poisonings. The most recent wolf-targeted poisoning in eastern Oregon, which caused wildlife carnage killing multiple species including a cougar, a coyote and golden eagles, shines a spotlight on a devastating response to this fear. Another suspected poisoning case occurred in April in Wallowa County and in a third incident, one was found shot in late May.

Predators have always had to battle extreme prejudice. Carnivores are natural predators, driven by the need for food and to protect their territory or young ones. Unlike its definition in the context of human societies, being a predator in the animal world doesnt imply malicious intent, lack of compassion or any such cognitive inference  these are all human traits that we unfortunately project onto animals doing what they must to survive.

Yet, conservationists often are forced to tiptoe around these words to avoid upsetting political tides. Wildlife policies in Oregon that use the word predator do so with perceived or implied negative impact such as human-wildlife conflicts. For example, the predatory animal classification in Oregon statute is about species that can cause agricultural losses (ORS Chapter 160). Rarely do we hear a positive story about wolves  most news about wolves in the media talk about predation on livestock and question the place of predators on the landscape.

This us versus them perspective on predators has severed our ecology of kinship with them  one that acknowledges and celebrates the interdependence of human and natural communities. By managing the population size of their prey such as deer and elk, carnivores help maintain the health of forests, grasslands and rivers for other wildlife and for us. And as Oregon explores policies to prevent chronic wasting disease from gaining a foothold in the state, it is important to remember that predators such as wolves cull the sick and cause herd animals to form smaller groups, helping prevent disease spread. Healthy wolf populations even reduce wildlife-vehicle collisions.

In his 1945 essay, Thinking Like a Mountain, Aldo Leopold wrote: The cowman who cleans his range of wolves does not realize that he is taking over the wolfs job of trimming the herd to fit the range. He has not learned to think like a mountain. Hence, we have dustbowls, and rivers washing the future into the sea.

But social stigma against predators and what their presence means has led us to witness multiple horrific wolf-poisoning cases in Oregon in the past year alone. With this latest incident and death of companion dogs, it has become an issue of human safety. And this is not just an Oregon problem  the recent case out of Wyoming where a wolf was tortured in unthinkable ways before being shot to death is another example.

We have to stop vilifying animals for simply trying to survive on the landscape. Unless we change the narrative on what it means to be a predator in the animal world; unless we start framing predators as assets that are important to the health of an ecosystem instead of spotlighting only negative impacts, we will not change social tolerance and human behavior toward animals whose worlds we have changed. It is time we take back the word predator for wildlifes sake.

The post Predators and carnivores are not four-letter words appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle.
A Publix Super Markets pharmacy manager retrieves a a medication in Miami. Photo by Joe Raedle | Getty Images

As an independent pharmacy owner of more than 18 years, I started my business with one goal in mind: to help patients. Our commitment to patient care is just one of the many reasons that dealing with price-gouging middle men, better known as pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, has been one of the most frustrating and harmful aspects of the profession.

Perhaps most frustrating is that policy solutions at the State Legislature already exist, they just havent been given a fair shot at a hearing or a vote by Republican leadership at the Capitol.

PBMs are third-party companies that function as intermediaries between insurance providers and pharmaceutical manufacturers to negotiate drug prices and control which medications insurers will cover. Independent pharmacy owners like myself have taken to using the term PBM abuse to describe our experiences working with them.

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Over time, PBMs have changed the rules to enhance their profits at the expense of community pharmacies and patients everywhere.

PBMs boast about their ability to streamline and expedite payment processing for smaller community pharmacies, but the reality looks more like small businesses getting strong-armed into toxic contracts that leave them and their patients with wildly inflated costs  with few to no options for recourse.

These inflated costs arent always represented in copays for medications. Insurers often compensate for paying higher prices to pharmaceutical companies on the back end by raising premiums for patients, creating multiple avenues to protect their profits, all at the expense of sick people seeking health care.

I paid hundreds of thousands of dollars in excessive and abusive Direct and Indirect Remuneration fees, all to ensure maximum profit for the PBMs and insurers. Such fees are driving independent pharmacies out of business and having a detrimental impact on public health.

As many rural areas rely on independent pharmacies, people in these communities are disproportionately harmed, as theyre forced to travel longer distances and pay higher costs to fill their prescriptions. More than a quarter of Arizonans reported having stopped taking prescriptions due to cost alone. This is inhumane: No one should be forced to choose between essential medications and having money for bills or putting food on the table.

Three major PBM corporations have consolidated with some of the countrys largest health insurers to dominate almost 90% of the health care market by vertically integrating with some of the largest pharmacy chains and medical care provider networks in the country.

Our elected officials already have a number of tools at their disposal to help patients and small business owners alike avoid the financial strain and exploitation that happens at the hands of these greedy corporations. Policies have been passed to address these abuses before, but they havent been successful at curbing the issue as there isnt a regulatory body enforcing compliance.

I was proud to appear alongside Gov. Katie Hobbs and state Sen. Eva Burch in January to speak about my experiences, and to support the plans already in motion at the State Capitol to help lower prescription drug costs for all Arizonans.

Under Governor Hobbs plan, pharmaceutical companies will be required to provide justifications for price increases, and the newly established Prescription Drug Affordability Division will play a pivotal role in capping prices on commonly used drugs such as insulin  preventing outrageous price hikes that disproportionately burden patients  and protect independent pharmacy owners from being strong-armed by corporations.

The crucial safeguards that would have been implemented by SB 1532 and SB 1533 could prevent Arizonans from being blindsided by unexpected costs and allow them to make informed decisions about their health care.

Working to somehow implement these solutions to protect patients and small business owners is not a partisan issue  its a win for everyone involved. Its time for our legislators to put petty political differences aside and ensure that every Arizonan can access affordable medication without sacrificing their health or financial stability.

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State Rep. Brandon Prichard, left, trails Rep. SuAnn Olson in the District 8 primary. He will likely be close enough to request a recount, but says he will not. (Photos provided by the North Dakota Legislative Assembly)

Legislative races in two North Dakota districts are close enough to warrant possible recounts, including District 8, where controversial Republican Rep. Brandon Prichard finished third, likely keeping him off the November ballot and removing him from the Legislature.

The other district where there may be a recount is District 26 in western North Dakota, where Rep. Kelby Timmons finished third on the Republican ballot.

Prichard, known for pro-Christian and anti-LGTBQ views, told the North Dakota Monitor he would not ask for a recount.

State Rep. Jeremy Olson. (Photo provided by the North Dakota Legislative Assembly)

Rep. Jeremy Olson, the top vote-getter in District 26, said seeing Prichard being ousted would be particularly satisfying.

Hes the reason for so much negativity, Olson said, pointing to attack ads on social issues funded by a political action committee led by Prichard, the Citizens Alliance of North Dakota.

If the results from Tuesday hold, Prichard will be replaced by Mike Berg, who lost to Prichard in the primary two years ago. There were no Democratic-NPL Party candidates in District 8, which runs from north of Bismarck to the South Dakota state line.

Conservative Republicans were playing offense everywhere, so losses dont change our current foothold in the Legislature, Prichard told the North Dakota Monitor in a text. There is a lot of good to look at and a lot to learn.

Recount rules

An automatic recount is triggered when two candidates are within 1% of the votes of the top vote-getter. In the District 8 case, 1% of Bergs total is 16 votes.

Candidates can ask for a recount, at their own expense, if the margin is between 1% and 2% of the top vote-getter. In District 18, that would be 33 votes, with Prichard trailing Rep. SuAnn Olson by 30 votes.

But those percentages and vote margins can change as absentee votes come in. Absentee votes that were postmarked by June 10 can be counted up to the county canvassing meeting on June 24. If the margin is between 1% and 2% that day, candidates have four days to request a recount.

North Dakota Secretary of State Michael Howe said Wednesday there were 97 absentee ballots in District 8 that had been requested, but had not arrived by Election Day. Not all the ballots may arrive.

Timmons trails Roger Maki by 24 votes, less than 2% of Jeremy Olsons total as unofficial winner in the district. There are 227 outstanding absentee ballots in District 26, which includes McKenzie and Dunn counties.

Calls and text messages seeking comment from Timmons and Maki on Wednesday were not returned.

Attack ads

Candidates in both districts pointed to attack ads as affecting the results.

Its very disappointing, Rep. SuAnn Olson, R-Baldwin, said of the results. The tremendous negative campaigning had to take a toll.

She pointed to ads coming from the Brighter Future Alliance that targeted Prichard.

Jeremy Olson said the Citizens Alliance group led by Prichard used innuendo and lies, to discredit candidates. Not just in my district but a lot of other districts, he said.

SuAnn Olson said the same could be said about the Brighter Future Alliance.

One complaint from SuAnn Olson was that Bergs campaign handed out materials that identified him as Rep. Mike Berg when he was not an office holder.

Mike Berg (Provided by campaign)

Berg said there were multiple examples of Prichard-backed candidates using the same tactic, and when someone complained to his campaign, it switched to different materials.

Pat Finken of Brighter Future Alliance said, Brandons misdeeds have come back to haunt him.

Finken said that when a candidate only tells part of a story, an organization such as Brighter Future owes it to voters to provide them with the rest of the story.

The District 8 race was the only legislative race the nonprofit group was active in for the 2024 primary. Finken said it also was active in the U.S. House race with ads about Rick Beckers background.

Prichard is the subject of a Federal Election Commissions complaint in part because of his work with Citizens Alliance of North Dakota that raises money to support far-right conservative candidates.

Jeremy Olson said Republicans need to work together and put some pretty dirty stuff from the primary behind them.

Its all about the healing process now, he said.

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The post Prichard to decline recount, likely losing House seat appeared first on North Dakota Monitor.
WOODBRIDGE, Va. (DC News Now)  The Prince William County Police Department (PWCPD) was investigating a shooting that happened in Woodbridge Thursday afternoon.

PWCPD said the shooting happened in the 14500 block of Piccolo Ln. where officers found a man who had been shot.

DNA links man to cold case sex crimes in Fairfax County

Police did not know the extent of his injuries as of 4 p.m.

The police department said people who live in the area should expect a noticeable police presence while officers investigated the cirucmstances of the shooting.

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PRINCETON, WV (WVNS)  On Wednesday, June 12th, Princeton Police Department released a statement about the deadly shooting on Kee Street on Saturday.

Police Chief Tim Gray told 59News the investigation is still active.

Twin girls die after overdose, mother arrested and charged

Investigators said the victim, Shaileshbhai Patel, was shot in the chest.

Officers called for medical help from the Princeton Rescue Squad and Princeton Fire Department.

Chief Gray said the investigation is progressing thanks to help from the community.

Dump truck drives into Mercer County home

I do want to thank the neighborhood for all help they have given us during this time. We do have a couple leads that we are still working, said Chief Gray to 59News.

Patel was sent to the West Virginia State Medical Examiners Officer for an autopsy.

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 WVNS.
Battalion commander Dmytro Kukharchuk speaks quietly but firmly. Holding his tattooed hands behind his back, he tells the men  all convicts  about his experience fighting for Ukraine in Bakhmut and Avdiivka.

Kukharchuk, 34, is at a prison in central Ukraine, trying to recruit physically strong, healthy and motivated prisoners into his unit, the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade.

More than two years on from Russias full-scale invasion, Ukraine is struggling to replenish its depleted military ranks. To address this, the government introduced a new law last month permitting the recruitment of convicts. It allows individuals who meet certain conditions to be granted conditional early release if they sign a contract to serve in the military.

Kukharchuk doesnt promise the prisoners much. It wont be easy. But when you come to us, you come to a family, he tells the men, explaining that the brigade will not have any special penal units. Instead, he says, the recruited prisoners will be integrated into the existing battalions.

Some of the men listen attentively, others smirk.

But even those who smirk start paying attention when Kukharchuks colleague starts speaking. The man, who asked CNN to identify him only by his call sign Dato because of privacy concerns, is one of them.

He has spent much of his life behind bars. Convicted of various crimes, he escaped from prison three times and was paroled in February 2022 after serving 31 years. He joined the Ukrainian army just hours after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.

Members of the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade seek to recruit convicts in a prison in central Ukraine. - Daria Tarasova-Markina/CNN

Dato, 58, commands respect from his audience. His voice cuts through the yard and when he pauses, the silence is heavy. Dozens of prisoners hang on his every word. Some are standing outside in the yard; others are leaning out of the windows of their cells. His speech is peppered with prison slang. He speaks of honor, duty, and reputation. This is your chance to rehabilitate yourself in the eyes of your children, he tells them.

Recruiters from several brigades have already visited this prison of 700 men, and about 100 inmates have already signed contracts with different units.

The new law does not allow the recruitment of people convicted of crimes against the foundations of national security of Ukraine, or of particularly serious corruption offenses. Those who committed the most violent offenses are also excluded. People convicted of two or more premeditated murders, of crimes committed with cruelty, or of murders combined with rape or sexual violence, are barred from signing up.

According to the Ministry of Justice, 5,000 inmates have applied to join the military since the law was signed. Some are already undergoing basic training at a training ground in central Ukraine. - Daria Tarasova-Markina/CNN

How exactly the law will work in practice remains to be seen. After it was passed, Ukraines Justice Ministry said the inmates, who must sign up of their own free will, would serve in separate units. But Kukharchuk and Dato, representing the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade, would like to have the prison recruits serve with regular infantry.

Kukharchuk told CNN the soldiers from his brigade have no issues with fighting alongside convicts. How can you have a special attitude towards people who come to you, who will sit in the same trench with you, who will participate in assault operations with you and have your back? he said.

But other commanders, while supportive of convicts recruitment, are not so sure about integration. Prisoners should fight in separate units. And they need very good people to lead them, one commander, who goes by the call sign Teren and is fighting in Avdiivka, told CNN. The artillery reconnaissance commander with the 110th Mechanized Brigade asked for his real name not to be used for security reasons.

I am not against prisoners fighting at all. Im surprised that we didnt use this idea at the beginning of the war. There are always a lot of casualties among the infantry, and if the convicts want to (risk their lives) to go to fight in the infantry, its a good decision, he added.

The push to recruit inmates into the military appears at first glance to parallel a campaign of prison recruitment by Russias mercenary company Wagner early in the war, and continued by the Ministry of Defense since last year. The lives of thousands of Russian convicts have been expended in so-called meat grinder assaults, particularly in the fighting for the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut.

But Ukraines Minister of Justice Denys Maliuska, speaking to CNN in Kyiv, rejected the comparison.

In Ukraine, motivation is largely based on patriotism. Our prisoners join the army voluntarily. In Russia, it was voluntary and forced. I personally saw (Russian) prisoners who were forced to join Wagner, he said, adding that in Russia, inmates were recruited into the notoriously brutal private military company, whereas in Ukraine, they are joining the Armed Forces of Ukraine.

This is a regular state military service with all the guarantees: salary, social insurance, payments in case of injury, death, and so on. This is a completely different story in terms of motives and mechanisms.

Shaking off the ex-prisoner label

The convict recruits will be allowed the same family leave as other soldiers and will be entitled to the same salary but wont receive the annual leave that is standard for other troops, according to the law.

According to the Ministry of Justice, 26,000 people are currently in prison in Ukraine. Since the law came into effect, 5,000 male inmates have applied to join the military, the ministry says. Nearly 2,000 have already passed their medical examination and been released from prison into the military by the courts. The first tranche of prisoner recruits is already in basic training, according to Maliuska.

The minister said he expected more convicts to sign up. Many are waiting to see what happens to the first round of recruits, he said, but the initial reaction has been positive.

Maliuska believes many prisoners see the program as a chance to shake off the ex-prisoner label that tends to stick to people even after their release.

There are definitely risks. But the morale and mood of those who are released from prison are much higher than that of those who were mobilized somewhere on the street, he told CNN.

A person forcibly mobilized who did not want to go to the army sees it as a tragedy, and a deterioration in his living conditions. And you can expect desertion from this category (of soldiers) much more than from a person for whom it is a rise in the social ladder, income, lifestyle, and respect. For prisoners, it is a rise in the social ladder.

The minister told CNN the government knows that prisoners might present challenges to commanders on the ground, but he said the law can be tweaked as needed depending on how things look in practice. A lot will depend on unit commanders and their ability to establish discipline in the prisoner units, he said.

Dmytro, 28, a convict recruit whose wife and two kids were killed by a Russian strike in the eastern city of Izium in April 2022, joined the army as soon as he was given the opportunity. - Daria Tarasova-Markina/CNN

I will now protect other families

At a training ground in central Ukraine, a group of prisoners is already into the second week of basic training. Among them is 28-year-old Dmytro, whose wife and two young children were killed by a Russian strike in the eastern city of Izium just weeks into the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, while he was serving a four-and-a-half-year term in prison. He asked CNN not to publish his last name for security reasons.

Dmytro told CNN he knew he wanted to fight from the moment the war started. When the recruiters visited his prison, he was among the first to sign up.

I had a wife and children, and I knew someone had to protect them. But since I couldnt, I will now protect other families who want to live and have children, he told CNN.

Dmytro told CNN that he grew up as an orphan and started stealing when he was young. He said that he believes prison teaches people how to survive in a tough environment, which means that former prisoners might be able to handle the pressures of the front lines better than ordinary civilians.

He told CNN that when his family was killed, he wanted revenge. He cannot bear to talk about those he lost now, but dreams of the day he might be able to start afresh and have children who would be proud of him.

I have a year and five months left of my sentence. That is not much. I could stay in prison and not go to war. But I am motivated. I dont want other people to go through this, he said, referring to the loss of his family.

Back at the prison, Kukharchuk and Dato select their recruits carefully. Sitting across from them in an interview room, they ask each of the volunteers about their background and their motivation. The brigade does not accept those who are over 50 years old, have any serious health problems or are physically unfit. Orphans, on the other hand, are immediately favored.

Kukharchuk told CNN that orphans who have had a difficult childhood and are used to surviving and coping with difficulties tend to do well in the military. After each interview, the prisoners shake hands with the recruiters. Those selected fill out paperwork then await further instructions.

Of the 17 inmates who wanted to join on the day CNN visited the prison, the 3rd Separate Assault Brigade recruited 12. Kukharchuk said that was a very good number. The brigade is one of the most highly sought-after units and it usually rejects more than half of the convicts wanting to join it.

There are exceptions to the rules. One of the prisoners has poor eyesight and Dato and Kukharchuk at first hesitate to recruit him. After a short chat though, the man is accepted.

Eyesight can be corrected. Motivation is more important than eyesight, says Dato.

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Pro-Palestinian protesters cleared from Cal State, L.A., building after barricading themselves in with staff still inside

Pro-Palestinian protesters who entered and barricaded themselves in a building at California State University, Los Angeles, on Wednesday cleared out by early Thursday, a spokesperson for the school told CNN.

Most protesters left the Student Services Building of their own accord around 1:15 a.m. local time and returned to an unauthorized encampment on campus. No arrests were made, university spokesperson Erik Frost Hollins said.

A small group remained inside but the universitys Department of Public Safety officers entered the building and asked them to leave, and they complied, Hollins said.

University President Berenecea Johnson Eanes, whose office is in the building, according to the universitys website, was among dozens of employees who remained inside during the takeover. She and other administrators were safely escorted out after midnight Thursday, Hollins said.

The group of 50 to 100 protesters barricaded the exits on the first floor on Wednesday and blocked off areas around the building, Hollins told the Los Angeles Times. The university asked employees on the upper floors to shelter in place, Hollins said.

Video from CNN affiliate KABC showed protesters moving furniture on the first floor of the building with signs on windows and plywood spray-painted with the messages, The time to escalate is now! and CSU stop funding genocide.

Demonstrators dont want folks inside the building, a protester told KABC, saying, This is not a hostage situation. The university called the Los Angeles Police Department to assist, CNN affiliate KCAL/KCBS reported.

Significant damage including broken glass and graffiti was observed on the interior and exterior of the building, primarily the first four floors, according to Hollins.

All classes and operations at the universitys main campus will be held remotely until further notice, according to a message posted on its website.

Please do not come to main campus, the Protest Action Alert reads. Meanwhile, operations on Cal States downtown campus will remain normal, the alert said.

An assessment will be done to determine the overall cost of the damage and when the building, which houses services like financial aid and student support, will reopen.

It will take time to recover and to provide these services in the same way that we were able to before, and thats deeply unfortunate, Hollins said.

On Thursday, Eanes ordered the encampment that has been on the campus for the past 40 days to be dismantled following what she referred to in a statement as violence and destruction that unfolded Wednesday night, according to the university.

Know that we will recover from this, but also know that I am committed to doing everything we can to ensure this will never be allowed to repeat, the universitys president said. The Encampment has crossed a line. Those in the Encampment must leave.

Eanes did not give a timeline of when the encampment will be dismantled or if the university would request assistance from law enforcement.

Three employees and a student were reportedly assaulted during the protest  one person was assaulted as the protesters entered the university building, another as they were leaving, one was accosted on a walkway and another who was looking at damage, said Eanes, who did not say if they were injured.

The demonstrations escalated due to frustration with university officials who sent a message regarding encampments, which reiterated something  said 20 days ago, a protester told KABC.

The protesters actions at Cal State, Los Angeles, come as some American campuses continue to be convulsed by pro-Palestinian demonstrations denouncing Israels handling of its war against Hamas in Gaza.

Protests late this spring gripped schools across the country, but they have persisted in some places, including at UCLA  some 20 miles west of Cal State, Los Angeles  where 27 people were arrested Monday after setting up multiple pro-Palestinian encampments that police said were unlawful.

Additionally, at least six University of California Police Department personnel and other safety officers were injured in confrontations with the protesters, including one person with a head injury, Rick Braziel, UCLAs associate vice chancellor for campus safety, said in a news release Tuesday.

Of those arrested at UCLA, 18 were students, and two were faculty, police said. Another was a former student, while the rest were not affiliated with the university.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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A group of 50 to 100 pro-Palestinian protesters at California State University, Los Angeles blocked entrances and exits of the student services building, reportedly trapping a handful of university employees inside the building Wednesday night.

Aerial footage of the demonstration captured by Sky5 showed protesters, some wearing face coverings and kaffiyehs fashioning a barricade of toppled golf carts and picnic tables with umbrellas around the perimeter of the building earlier in the day.

In front of one of the buildings entrances, several demonstrators sat in chairs chained to cement columns.

Another individual was seen spraying a fire extinguisher at the building over what appeared to be red-colored paint on the ground.

Demonstrators had established an encampment on another part of the universitys campus where they have been for some 40 days, according to reporting from the Los Angeles Times.

Pro-Palestinian protesters at Cal State L.A. seen barricading the student services building on June 12, 2024. (KTLA)

Pro-Palestinian protesters at Cal State L.A. seen barricading the student services building on June 12, 2024. (KTLA)

Pro-Palestinian protesters at Cal State L.A. seen barricading the student services building on June 12, 2024. (KTLA)

Pro-Palestinian protesters at Cal State L.A. seen barricading the student services building on June 12, 2024. (KTLA)

Pro-Palestinian protesters at Cal State L.A. seen barricading the student services building on June 12, 2024. (KTLA)

Pro-Palestinian protesters at Cal State L.A. seen barricading the student services building on June 12, 2024. (KTLA)

Pro-Palestinian protesters at Cal State L.A. seen barricading the student services building on June 12, 2024. (KTLA)

University spokesperson Erik Frost Hollins told The Times that they received an email from the group CSU LA Gaza Solidarity Encampment informing them that they planned a sit-in at the student services building despite the fact the school had gone out of its way to provide an area for non-violent, peaceful demonstrations.

Unfortunately, this action went in a different way today, the university told The Times.

By 10 p.m., officers with the Los Angeles Police Department along with campus police were visible on campus from Sky5, though its unclear how long police maintained a presence.

This demonstration comes on the heels of recent pro-Palestinian encampments at UCLA and USC.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTLA.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has insulted President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko, Trend reports.

He stated that he would never set foot in Belarus as long as President Lukashenko is in power, due to his statements in Azerbaijan.

'Neither I nor any other Armenian official will visit Belarus as long as Lukashenko is president there,' he said.

To note, at his meeting with President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Lukashenko said: "I was thinking, I remembered our conversation before the war, before your war of liberation, when we had a philosophical discussion over lunch. Then we came to the conclusion that it is possible to win the war. It's important. It is very important to hold on to this victory."

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Scores of pro-Palestinian protesters occupied, barricaded and vandalized a Cal State Los Angeles student services building  with several administrators inside  for almost eight hours Wednesday. Although no one was arrested, university officials said the activists crossed a new line.

"A trust we had in the [Gaza Solidarity] Encampment to practice non-violence has been violated," Cal State L.A. President Berenecea Johnson Eanes said in a statement Thursday afternoon. "I cannot and would not protect anyone who is directly identified as having participated in last nights illegal activities from being held accountable."

The building, which houses Eanes' office and is not far from the pro-Palestinian encampment, was deemed a crime scene by authorities Thursday, with yellow police tape cordoning off the protester-made blockades.

Tables, hard-shelled umbrellas and rope still blocked many of the building's entrances. Multiple windows, walls and walkways were defaced with messages in red paint, including "Free Palestine" and "Your grandkids will study your silence."

Erik Frost Hollins, a spokesperson for the school, said all protesters left the building voluntarily by early Thursday, and the administrators who stayed in the building as the protest escalated did so of their own accord.

It wasn't immediately clear if arrests were expected, but Hollins said law enforcement officials were continuing to investigate.

In her statement, Eanes said the group had destroyed offices, stolen property and left "significant damage."

"Campus community: Know that we will recover from this, but also know that I am committed to doing everything we can to ensure this will never be allowed to repeat," Eanes said. "The Encampment has crossed a line. Those in the Encampment must leave."

As of Thursday afternoon, the camp  which was established in early May  remained fortified, with people inside, even as the rest of campus was eerily quiet. After the building takeover Wednesday, university officials moved classes online indefinitely and canceled campus events. A few people who exited and entered the encampment Thursday declined to speak to The Times, but on social media the group said they remained steadfast.

Overturned furniture displays pro-Palestinian messages at Cal State Los Angeles. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

"WE WILL NOT BACK DOWN!!" Students for Justice in Palestine at CSULA posted on Instagram on Thursday morning. The group reiterated that no one was held hostage or trapped inside the student services building Wednesday, saying they offered to escort out anyone who wanted to leave. They said the action began as a sit-in to raise awareness about their main demand, which is "to end Cal State L.A.s complicity in genocide," according to a news release from the group.

Hollins said a group of 50 to 100 people descended on the eight-story building about 4 p.m. Wednesday, when university officials told staff there to shelter in place. Around 60 employees remained there for roughly two hours before security officers established a safe exit. About a dozen staff members  including Hollins and Eanes  voluntarily stayed behind.

That was by choice, to manage the situation, said Hollins, who uses they/them pronouns. That group left around midnight without issue.

Most of the group who barricaded the building left voluntarily by 1 a.m. Thursday, they said, and the remaining holdouts left after police entered and ordered a dispersal shortly after.

Eanes said three employees and one student reported having been assaulted during the incident, but she did not elaborate on the extent of any injuries.

Hollins said there was significant damage on the first four floors of the student services building, including extensive graffiti and paint, as well as damage to equipment, walls and pipes. They said the majority of the upper floors, where the president's office is located, was not affected.

The university did not provide an estimate for the cost of the damage.

Messages are displayed near the pro-Palestinian encampment at Cal State Los Angeles. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

The damage to the student services building "will affect student-facing services: including admissions, records, accessible technology, basic needs, new student and family engagement, Dreamer resources, and educational opportunity programs," Eanes said. "It will take time to restore all those spaces and divert significant resources that would otherwise go to academics, student services, or operations."

With in-person classes and events canceled, the East L.A. campus was almost deserted after the chaos from just hours earlier.

"We have secured all buildings on campus," Hollins said, "and I think we have committed to staying remote as long as we need to, to actually be sure that this is fully resolved."

At the encampment Thursday, a barrier constructed of plywood, wooden pallets, tables and sheet metal reached several feet high in some spots around it.

The group posted on social media, "[W]e want our demands met," which include the university divesting from defense companies, removing law enforcement from campus and making a statement supporting an immediate and permanent cease-fire in Gaza, among others.

Eanes "has refused to continue negotiations or make meaningful progress toward meeting the demands of the student body," the groups said in a news release. "Delaying negotiations past the end of the spring semester at a commuter campus shows clear bad faith and an attempt to wait out students instead of actively working to reach an agreement."

But Eanes argued that she had been in "ongoing formal and informal communication" with the group and its advisors, including visiting the encampment twice.

"I made significant commitments on transparency, respectful conversations, and mental health support," the president said in her statement. "These are all within my authority and aligned with our first principles as a university. So long as the Encampment remained non-violent, I was committed that the university would continue to talk."

A few others at the university on Thursday weren't aware of what had recently transpired or that events had been canceled, such as an incoming freshman who was supposed to have orientation. Another woman was there to work an event, then found out it had been canceled.

Furniture used as a barricade blocks a pathway to the student services building at Cal State Los Angeles. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

Emily Samperio, a graduate student studying materials science, knew her lab was closed Thursday but came to take photos of the aftermath from the previous night.

She hasn't been involved with the encampment or protests but has watched the movement grow on campus.

"I'm proud of them," the 27-year-old said. "It's cool to see all these schools stand together for something they believe in."

This is the first time, though, that her work or classes have been interrupted. She noted that she wouldn't be able to do her research while buildings remained closed.

"Maybe there are more important things than experiments," she said. Operations at Cal State L.A.'s downtown campus were not affected by the protest and closures.

It wasnt clear what steps the university or protesters would take next to find a resolution. Eanes said Wednesday's actions had changed how the university would proceed. However, neither she nor Hollins elaborated on what that would entail.

The encampment's barrier remained covered in art and words and flags, including spray-painted messages such as, The time to escalate is now! and CSU stop funding genocide.

The group has been there for about 40 days, Hollins said.

It wasn't immediately clear how many of those involved Wednesday night or staying at the encampment were Cal State L.A. students, Hollins said. But the spokesperson noted that the group who barricaded the student services building was significantly larger than the group that had been at the encampment these last few weeks.

The university worked to provide space for peaceful, nonviolent protest, Hollins said.

"Unfortunately, this action went in a different direction," they said.

Read more: California college campuses become lightning rods for pro-Palestinian protests

A police officer stands watch outside the student services building at Cal State Los Angeles. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
UNION SQUARE, Manhattan (PIX11)  Pro-Palestinian protesters took over a crowded subway train in Manhattan on Monday, asking riders, Raise your hand if youre a Zionist, according to a video.

The incident happened on the No. 5 train in the Union Square subway station at around 8:10 p.m., according to the NYPD. Many of the protesters were clad in masks and scarves before one of the men in sunglasses yelled, Raise your hand if youre a Zionist and This is your chance to get out, a Storyful video shows.

When the riders ignored his request, the man said, Ok, no Zionists. Were good.

Within Our Lifetime, a pro-Palestinian organization, rallied on New York City streets, and subways, and shut down the Nova exhibit on Wall Street Monday. The group called it a day of rage, according to its post on X.

More Local News

Three of the protesters were arrested for disorderly conduct and fare evasion, police said. They were given summonses.

The NYPD is investigating a rash of recent antisemitic incidents, including the building of Brooklyn Museum director Anne Pasternak, who is Jewish. The entry was vandalized with red paint with the words White supremacist Zionist  on Wednesday.

Mayor Eric Adams shared photos on X and called the vandalism overt, unacceptable antisemitism. The incident is being investigated as a hate crime, according to the NYPD.

Nerdeen Kiswani, one of the organizers of Within Our Lifetime, responded to the mayor, claiming she was tackled during a protest at the Brooklyn Museum in Brooklyn.

Actually this is pretty peaceful compared to what the Brooklyn museum did to peaceful protesters by bringing in the cops who tackled me and left others bloodied. And this is definitely peaceful compared to the bloodshed in Gaza that their board actively supports, according to a post on X.

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 PIX11.
Proposal calls for construction of nearly 60 townhomes near Blanchard Woods Park

Columbia County government's mapping software shows the parcel of land where developers propose to build a 58-unit first phase of townhomes. Washington Road runs along the top of the picture. Blanchard Woods Park is at the bottom.

Developers have submitted to Columbia County a final plat for a proposed neighborhood of townhomes near Blanchard Woods Park.

The 21-acre property at 4874 Washington Rd., Evans, is on the southern side of the road between Washington's intersections with Hardy-McManus and Halali Farm roads. Augusta Transport and Land Clearing Inc. requested plat approval.

Another townhome community, Villages of Greenbrier, sits next door.

Families living in this neighborhood would be zoned for Riverside Elementary, Riverside Middle and Greenbrier High schools.

Country living: Here's where a Columbia County developer is proposing a subdivision with 5-acre lots

The first phase of the proposed Copperidge community includes 58 townhouse residential units with a minimum lot size of 2,366 square feet and an average lot size of 2,912 square feet.

The first phase will take up about 14 acres, bordering a tributary of Uchee Creek on the property. The balance of the acreage will be left as open space.

The final plat also lists a suggested second phase of the project whose main road would cross Uchee Creek to approach or possibly even connect with Blanchard Woods Park.

This article originally appeared on Augusta Chronicle: Final plat shows 58 proposed townhomes near Blanchard Woods Park
Steve Lawson was part of pretrial conferences for the murder of Crystal Rogers in Nelson Circuit Court Thursday. Feb. 8, 2024

Deleted phone calls, white lies and new allegations of a third accomplice in Crystal Rogers' disappearance were the points of discussion at a court hearing Thursday, where prosecutors and defense attorneys argued over an immunity deal gone sour.

Steve Lawson, who told police he moved Rogers' car at the behest of her then-boyfriend around the time of her disappearance, argued in Nelson Circuit Court that his charges should be dropped because prosecutors failed to keep a promise of immunity.

Prosecutors, meanwhile, said that deal fell through after Steve Lawson continually changed key parts of his testimony and minimized his role in Rogers' disappearance.

Rogers, a 35-year-old mother of five children, went missing around July 3, 2015, from Bardstown, Kentucky. Her car was soon found abandoned on the Bluegrass Parkway with her keys, phone and purse inside. While her body has never been found, she is presumed dead by investigators.

Rogers' case finally received a break in recent months, when her boyfriend Brooks Houck and a father and son pair, Steve and Joseph Lawson, were separately arrested.

Steve Lawson, 53, is charged with conspiracy to commit murder as well as tampering with physical evidence.

At Thursday's hearing, prosecutor Shane Young said Steve Lawson was the first person to come forward and tell investigators he was involved in Rogers' disappearance.

"There was no bigger fan of the defendant than me," Young said.

In those early talks with police, Young said there was an immunity deal on the table for Steve Lawson, as long as he told the total truth and had not directly hurt Rogers or participated in her murder.

According to Young, investigators brought up the necessity of Steve Lawson telling the complete truth 27 times, just in a single interview.

While his cooperation was initially promising and led to the indictments of Houck and Joseph Lawson, Steve Lawson's son, Young said investigators began to see Steve Lawson "was telling a story where he was trying to minimize his role, which led to him providing untruthful statements."

Steve Lawson's defense attorney Theodore Lavit said his client did not lie in any of his statements and argued investigators led Lawson in the interviews in order to hear what they wanted.

During the hearing, the prosecution played a series of interview excerpts between Steve Lawson and investigators, where the defendant's testimony featured inconsistencies with his previous statements or other evidence.

In a major revelation, Young said investigators believe Steve Lawson's then-wife was involved in Rogers' disappearance, based on cell phone records placing her on Bluegrass Parkway at the same time as her husband. Investigators believe the Lawsons were moving Rogers' car at this time.

During police interviews, Steve Lawson was seen telling officers his wife, who is now deceased, was not with him or anywhere near the area at that time.

In another instance, Steve Lawson gave conflicting statements to police as to whether or not he knew of a plan to move Rogers' car to Bluegrass Parkway ahead of time. Another point of contention was the role and location of a skid-steer loader, or a bobcat, that prosecutors believe was used in some capacity of the crime.

If Steve Lawson's defense could prove he never lied to investigators, Young said, "I'll hold up my part of the agreement."

Lavit said all of Steve Lawson's statements were either truthful or that Lawson did not deliberately tell a lie. Any minor inconsistencies shouldn't void the immunity deal, which was never committed to writing, because his testimony led to the indictments of Houck and Joseph Lawson, according to Lavit.

"(The immunity agreement) was all governed by the Commonwealth. It was all led by the Commonwealth. It was all promoted by the Commonwealth," Lavit said. "They had complete control over what that agreement was."

Lavit also presented the judge a flash drive he said contained police interviews with Steve Lawson, where the actual wording used in each reference to the immunity's terms changed and did not always assert the necessity of complete honesty. Lavit did not play any excerpts of those interviews and did not reference specific examples of the wording's alleged changes when the judge asked.

In advance of Thursday's hearing, Houck's defense submitted a 40-page motion rebuffing prosecutor Young's request to consolidate the three defendants' cases into a joint trial, which shared previously unreleased details about Steve Lawson's testimony to investigators.

Houck's motion provided excerpts of transcribed interviews that allegedly took place between Steve Lawson and police, in which Steve Lawson said he called Houck at midnight around the time of Rogers' disappearance to tell him "the job" of moving her car was completed.

On Thursday, Lavit said that phone call was actually about a residential property and had nothing to do with Rogers, which Young interrupted and said contradicts Lawson's testimony to the grand jury.

Separately, if Steve Lawson's charges are not dismissed, Lavit made a motion to strike all of his interviews with police as well as grand jury testimony during the time that talks of immunity were still active. Young said he agreed to have those police interviews stricken but argued Steve Lawson's grand jury testimony should be admissible as evidence in the trial.

Simms has yet to make a ruling on either motion.

Reach reporter Rachel Smith at rksmith@courierjournal.com or @RachelSmithNews on X, formerly known as Twitter.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Prosecutors allege third accomplice in Crystal Rogers disappearance
The Orange-Osceola State Attorneys office has released nearly 900 pages of new documents that detail the last hours of Madeline Sotos life.

Her mothers boyfriend, Stephan Sterns, is charged with Maddies murder and more than 60 other crimes.

The documents suggest that the video helped give deputies some crucial information.

It is clear from the documents that detectives were suspicious of Sterns story from the beginning.

Read: Madeline Soto case: State to seek death penalty against Stephan Sterns

According to the report, video helped investigators find that Sterns never dropped Maddie off at school, but instead drove around for hours with Maddies body in his car.

Documents show that on Feb. 26, investigators obtained surveillance video that shows a trash compactor where Sterns is not only seen throwing her backpack and laptop away but also the tire from his car.

The video then shows him driving away from the neighborhood in Kissimmee.

The Orange County Sheriffs Office said Friday evening that Madeline Sotos body has been found. Investigators said Osceola County deputies found the missing 13-year-old girls body at about 4:30 p.m. in a wooded area along Hickory Tree Road.

Detectives believe Stephan Sterns killed 13-year-old Madeline Soto on Monday morning at a Kissimmee apartment complex.

Investigators discovered the body of 13-year-old Madeline Soto on Friday afternoon.

Investigators discovered the body of 13-year-old Madeline Soto on Friday afternoon.

Investigators discovered the body of 13-year-old Madeline Soto on Friday afternoon.

Sources say that Maddies body was found in rural St. Cloud near Hickory Tree Road.

Police and deputies canvassed the area of Osceola County for 13-year-old Madeline Soto.

The Kissimmee Police Department will handle the search for Madeline Soto, said Chief Betty Holland.

The sheriff said the efforts will now shift to recovering her body.

Sheriff John Mina said he is confident that she is dead, and recovery efforts will continue.

Members of the community will gather to pray for 13-year-old Madeline Soto.

Deputies in Orange County said 13-year-old Madeline Soto has been missing since Monday morning. And now, her mothers boyfriend is in jail on charges of sexual battery and possession of child sex abuse material. Stephan Sterns was supposed to go before an Orange County judge Thursday morning but refused to be in court.

More than 50 members of the Orange County Emergency Response Team looked for the 13-year-old in various areas as our detectives continued their investigation.

More than 50 members of the Orange County Emergency Response Team looked for the 13-year-old in various areas as our detectives continued their investigation.

Madeline Soto

Madeline Soto

Madeline Soto

Madeline Soto

Madeline Soto

Madeline Soto

Madeline Soto

Madeline Soto

Madeline Soto

The Orange County Sheriffs Office on Friday confirmed that the body of Madeline Soto, 13, has been located.

In this video, a female was seen in the front passenger seat. Investigators believe this was Madelines dead body.

Just after 9 a.m., Sterns car was found on surveillance footage turning into the parking garage of Holiday Inn Club Vacations on South John Young Parkway in Orlando.

According to the documents, he drove up to the top level of the parking garage and got out of his car at around 9:42 a.m.

Read: Heinous, atrocious or cruel: Former prosecutor explains this revealing legal classification

A man matching Sterns description was seen opening the trunk, walking to the passenger seat, opening the door and carrying what appeared to be a limp female body to the trunk of the vehicle.

Two minutes later, he drove away.

On March 1, her body was found in a wooded area miles from her home, right near where Sterns was seen by a passerby changing a flat tire.

Read: Madeline Soto: Bodycam videos show Stephan Sterns 1st interactions with deputies

It remains unclear at this time how Madeline died.

The medical examiners office has declined to release Madelines autopsy report, citing the investigation and state law.

Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
Protege who beheaded CEO boss planned birthday for girlfriend despite knowing he wouldnt get away with alleged $400K theft: witness

A protege who beheaded his tech CEO boss knew hed get caught but still planned the most memorable birthday for the French exchange student who took his virginity, an expert testified at his trial Wednesday.

Dr. Barry Rosenfeld, a clinical forensic psychologist who teaches at Fordham University, testified about the romantic relationship between Tyrese Haspil, 25, and his then-girlfriend, Marine Chaveuz, who he dated for two years and was living in New York City at the time.

Its the first person he ever had sex with, Rosenfeld said, recalling Haspils confession after speaking with him in Manhattan Supreme Court.

Tyrese Haspil, 25, is on trial for allegedly murdering his former boss Fahim Saleh. James Messerschmidt

He decided very quickly  this is the love of my life. [He] cant live without this woman, she means everything to [him].

Haspil had allegedly stolen $400,000 from his employer and worked to keep up a faux high-profile lifestyle with his girlfriend.

Rosenfeld, who interviewed Haspil three times, testified as the defenses expert witness in their attempt to prove that Haspil hacked up 33-year-old Fahim Saleh at his Lower East Side apartment in July 2020 as a crime of passion due to extreme emotional disturbance.

To prove the insanity plea, Rosenfeld was brought in to detail Haspils tumultuous upbringing and shed light on his relationship which Chaveuz.

According to Rosenfeld, Haspil  who never met his father  said he was repeatedly told by family members that he was the product of rape and was sexually abused by his uncle multiple times while they watched anime cartoons together.

The expert said that Haspil lived a life of abuse, stemming from his childhood with a schizophrenic mother, to bouncing around homes and shelters and even finding himself sleeping on a bench at one point in his teens.

Haspil was seen walking with an unidentified woman days after he allegedly killed Saleh.

Haspil kept this a secret to himself, and was never able to settle down in any relationship in his life before he started dating Chaveuz in 2018, which is why he was so terrified of losing her, Rosenfeld said.

He certainly doesnt have any confidence that she will be with him if he isnt who he seems to be, Rosenfeld explained, detailing the inner mechanics of Haspils thinking.

Their relationship was a little rocky at the start when the two briefly broke up after a month of dating when Chaveuz complained to Haspil that he worked too much and wasnt giving her enough attention, the psychologist testified, which left Haspil miserable.

A tech CEOs personal assistant claims he beheaded his boss in a crime of passion, his attorney argued at trial. AP

He then became consumed with making time for her but it comes at a cost  he continued to embezzle from Saleh, a venture capitalist and the CEO of Nigeria-based motorbike startup Gokada  who once complained to Haspil that their working relationship was falling apart due to Haspil not working enough, the witness claimed.

Haspil thought that his romance with Chaveuz was going to end in May 2019 when she was supposed to head back to France, but she secured an internship which bought her another year in the Big Apple.

However, that meant Haspil had to keep up with his charade of milking his bosss profits, and he eventually knew that was going to land him in trouble, Rosenfeld testified.

Police remove boxes of evidence from Fahim Salehs apartment in 2020. Taidgh Barron/NY Post

It was revealed that Haspil once footed the bill for Chaveuz and her friends to spend a weekend at a concert in Florida all on Salehs tabs, according to the defenses expert, who also said that Haspil once stole $20,000 from a restaurant he worked at to fund a semester at Hofstra University.

Haspils attorney, Sam Roberts, said in his opening arguments that Haspil was worried he would be abandoned by Cheveuz if she found out he stole $400,000 from his boss, which prosecutors allege was the motive behind the gruesome 2020 Covid-19 murder.

At one point in the trial, jurors were shown receipts of purchases allegedly made by Haspil after the murder which included receipts from Louis Vuitton.

A beige Christian Louboutin shopping bag and a box of shoes were recovered at his loft-like spy-pad rental on Crosby Street, located across the block from Salehs $2.4 million apartment, according to evidence.

Haspil has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder charges which carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years to life behind bars if he is convicted. Steven Hirsch

Haspil has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder charges which carry a mandatory minimum sentence of 20 years to life behind bars if he is convicted.

His attorneys are hoping that a jury convicts him on manslaughter due to his emotionally disturbed defense, which carries a lighter sentence of five to 25 years.

He wanted to get through Marines birthday. The phrase he used was he needed runway, he needed to get a little more time with Marine to get through the birthday, and thats all that matters, Rosenfeld added.

Shes supposed to go home a couple weeks after that anyway but he says, and I believe him, that he was convinced hed get caught.

His ex has since returned to France.

The expert will continue his testimony Thursday.
LAFLIN BOROUGH, LUZERNE COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU)  Could local police departments be a thing of the past? Thats the question hundreds of residents are asking all across our area after Pennsylvania State Police (PSP) have stepped up to respond to more calls.

With PSP covering more real estate and fewer cadets signing up for training, the pressure is on to be everywhere theres trouble.

It may come down to money, as more smaller communities are not able to afford their own police department.

For as long as Linda Kocher has been a Laflin Borough resident, she has known what it feels like to live in a town without a police department.

Its scary. No one will come immediately, Kocher said.

Its been that way since 2014 when Laflin Borough disbanded its police department. State police have been the go-to first responder ever since.

Now they gotta take care of what theyre doing and then come over here if theres a tragedy or something. This is all we have. We have to wait for the State Police to come, Kocher explained.

There are 36 boroughs and 36 townships in Luzerne County. Close to a third of them are covered solely by state police.

If theres ever an area or municipality that doesnt have police coverage, we are going to step up and cover them, said PSP Troop P Trooper William Evans.

Trooper Evans serves Luzerne County out of Wilkes-Barre, Troop P.

The expansion of coverage and increase of calls has without a doubt presented its challenges.

If we only have one car available, we may be covering one corner of the county to the other it may take an hour and a half to get to one call to another, Trooper Evans added.

Response time is a large concern for Kocher and Laflin Borough Council President Mark Malvizzi, who wished to remain off camera.

Malvizzi says the decision to disband the police department in 2014 was financial.

It wouldve cost around $300,000 to fund while the total budget was less than $1,000,000.

He believes the small borough, made up of a little more than 1,500 people has so far made out okay and the state police are doing a fine job.

As a resident, Im very satisfied with the protection that they deliver, but I would also understand that you cant have the same expectation of a police department, Malvizzi said.

More coverage means more troopers, but the number of applicants has dropped significantly.

In the 90s, there were 10,000 applicants per class. In 2019, it dropped down to 8,000. In 2023, its only 1,800.

We need to remain competitive, said Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro.

Tractor-trailer crash leaks liquid chocolate on I-81

Governor Shapiro addressed the dire need for more state police troopers last August and made efforts to see those numbers rise.

A 2023-2024 budget plan that includes $16,400,000 for four new state trooper cadet classes, which hire and train 384 new troopers.

It also called for a cut in college credit requirements.

We have definitely seen the number of applications increase since then thats for sure, Trooper Evans explained.

The 60 college credit we felt was a barrier, PSP Colonel Christopher L. Paris said.

Colonel Paris sat down with 28/22 News to discuss the impact these changes have made on his academies and the 4,000-plus troopers.

I still believe there are people out there who want to enter into law enforcement its a noble profession, Colonel Paris stated.

A profession that should come as a priority and be seen as a necessity.

Its a job that needs to be done. Its a job that we are certainly committed too and endeavored to doing in the future and I believe that there are young people out there who want to make a difference, Colonel Paris continued.

Whether its highway patrol, investigating crime or responding to a call in a local neighborhood, theres one thing that these first responders say will never change.

We hope that they can count on us. We hope that they can trust us. We have a lot of thankless troopers particularly patrol that work very hard, said Trooper Evans.

I mean they are only human. Theyre doing what they have to do, Kocher said.

State police are always in need of cadets and if youre interested, you can go online for more 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 PAhomepage.com.
JONESBOROUGH, Tenn. (WJHL)  Washington County residents can comment on a proposed 21% property tax increase when the Washington County Commission meets about the issue at 5 p.m. Thursday.

TBI investigating fatal officer-involved shooting in Sullivan County

The owner of a $200,000 house would see an annual tax bill $151 higher if the county passes the increase, compared to the current rate. Citizens must sign up before the meeting to offer public comment, which is limited to three minutes per person.

For each $100,000 in home value, Washington County, Tenn. property taxes would increase by about $75 a year if the county commission approves a proposed 21% tax increase. (Photo: WJHL)

County commissioners voted 13-2 last week to begin the process of approving a tax increase from the $1.4071 per $100 of assessed value that the State of Tennessee set following last years countywide reappraisal. Commissioners will consider an intent to exceed that state-set rate by just over 30 cents per $100 of assessed value, raising the rate to $1.71.

The state sets the rate after a reappraisal to equalize the amount of money that will come in to a local government, making it the same as before the reappraisal and the increased values that result.

County commissioners have approved a budget that would require the higher rate but must take at least two more votes on the matter before it becomes official. The increase would yield more than $16 million in additional revenue and would mark the first time the Washington County Commission has increased the tax rate since 2015.

A home valued at $200,000 would have an $855 county property tax bill if the increase is approved, compared to $704 if the county kept the rate at what the state set.

Most residential property owners are also seeing their taxes increase from before the reappraisal regardless of a rate change. Residential values rose an average of 68%, compared to an average of 27% for commercial property, making the overall increase 54%.

How much more will I pay? Washington County tax hike

A homeowner whose appraisal increased by the exact residential average of 68.48% is already facing a 10% higher Washington County property tax bill.

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 WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather.
Over 300 staff members from Quad City police and fire agencies teamed up at Davenport Central High School this week for training on active killer threat responses, Rescue Task Force (RTF) procedures and incident command strategies. The training drew resources from emergency response agencies across the Quad Cities to improve readiness and coordination when managing violent incidents, including active killer scenarios. The primary goal is maximizing victim survival.

(Photo by Gabe Zwierzynski)

Instructors walked public safety personnel through incident command principles, response tactics for active killer situations, RTF protocols and emergency medical best practices in the training sessions. The interdisciplinary training promoted a cohesive approach to facing high-stakes emergencies. Staff from Davenport, Bettendorf, Moline, East Moline, Rock Island, the Scott County Sheriffs Office, Rock Island County Sheriffs Office, the Scott Emergency Communications Center, QComm911 and the Rock Island Arsenal attended the training sessions. The Davenport Community School District provided the training facility, with school staff serving as liaisons

(Photo by Gabe Zwierzynski)

Conducting this multi-agency, bi-state training allows Quad City first responders to build upon their department training to be even more prepared for complex situations such as active killer events, said Troy Said, Bettendorf Fire Chief. Operating under common response guidelines is crucial to providing the best outcome for the community and citizens we serve.

(Photo by Gabe Zwierzynski)

As first responders, our number one priority is public safety, said Lieutenant Nicholas Shorten of the Davenport Police Department. This is the second year that this has been conducted as a collaborative Quad City-wide large-scale training. This regional training initiative underscores the commitment of Quad City emergency personnel to ensuring the safety and security of our community. By training together, we are better prepared to respond swiftly and effectively to complex active killer situations.

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 WHBF - OurQuadCities.com.
Quahog commission recommends transplants and seeding the Bay  but how much will it cost?

PROVIDENCE  The final report from a legislative commission studying the decline of quahog harvests in Narragansett Bay recommends transplanting more of the hard-shelled clams from tainted areas to cleaner waters, expanding a program to seed the Bay with babies, and exploring the idea of building a shellfish hatchery to augment wild stocks.

The report does not recommend what the commercial shellfishermen who were on the commission want: changes to 20-year-old nitrogen restrictions on discharges from sewage treatment plants that they believe have led to a shortage of microscopic algae that quahogs need for food.

But the commission didnt slam the door shut on their idea.

Quahogs harvested from Narragansett Bay by shellfisherman David Ghigliotty.

Report asks for study of changes on sewage treatment plant discharges

The report asks the state Department of Environmental Management to potentially develop a plan to modify the nitrogen cap for effluent from the three biggest treatment plants that empty into the Upper Bay, one in Providence and the other two in East Providence.

Planning would begin later this year or next and include input from the plant operators, regulators at the DEM, shellfishermen and scientists.

I didnt feel confident that we should have legislated it at this point, said Rep. Joseph Solomon, the Warwick Democrat who co-chaired the commission. What was clear was that more study was needed.

James Boyd, one of four quahoggers who sat on the commission, said the report has a lot of positives for the shellfish industry, including the study on nitrogen releases.

Without the data, they cant justify doing it, said Boyd, a board member of the Rhode Island Shellfishermans Association. Well see what happens.

Report follows nine months of work by scientists, regulators and quahoggers

The report's contents come as no surprise. Over eight hearings that began last September and wrapped up a month ago, the 13 members of the commission were unable to reach consensus on the impact of the wastewater treatment regulations that were enacted after a historic fish kill in Greenwich Bay in 2003.

While the shellfishermen all argued that the nitrogen reductions had caused a drop-off in phytoplankton production that has left quahogs without enough food to filter out of the water, marine scientists, state officials and environmental advocates said their contention lacked iron-clad evidence.

The doubters contended that warming winters and other climate change impacts are also responsible for the changes in plankton growth in New England's largest estuary, and that loosening nitrogen rules could start to reverse recent improvements in water quality.

The report describes the Bay ecosystem as "highly complex and multifaceted" and says there are many potential reasons for the reduced quahog harvest.

But it also lends credence to the notion that nitrogen reductions are playing a role in the trend in catches, which dropped 56% between 2012 and 2022, saying the two "may be more closely correlated" rather than "a coincidental decline."

Aim of raising nitrogen levels is to increase food supply for quahogs

The shellfishermen are pushing to raise the cap on nitrogen discharges in the winter, an idea that was first put forward by University of Rhode Island oceanographer Candace Oviatt, a foremost expert on Narragansett Bay.

Nitrogen is the key ingredient in fertilizer, and it acts in the water just as it does on land by feeding the growth of plant life. Shellfishermen say that by strategically increasing nitrogen flows from the treatment facilities in winter, quahogs would have more food to eat when they need it most, and their numbers would increase as a result.

The change would be limited to the cold-weather months only. The cap would be lowered again in time for summer, when the threat increases for uncontrolled algae growth, which can lead to large blooms that deplete oxygen levels in the water, creating the types of conditions that can cause fish kills.

But there is concern about unwanted consequences

While adjusting nitrogen levels sounds straightforward, the proposal has met with skepticism from treatment plant operators, who say that it wouldnt be easy to modify the biological process that break down nitrogen compounds produced by human waste.

The DEM has also resisted modifying nitrogen levels out of fear of hypoxia. Oxygen levels in the Bay have improved, but they still arent meeting standards in all areas, according to the agency.

When asked about the request in the report to look at adjusting the nitrogen cap, Amanda Cantrell, a spokeswoman for the DEM, said the agency will remain open-minded but has no immediate plans to make changes.

Instead, RIDEM will focus its efforts on the other recommendations in the report, including, but not limited to, seeking funding for a sustained quahog seeding and transplant program and establishing additional spawner sanctuaries, said Cantrell, chief of staff at the agency. DEM will evaluate potential changes to the WWTFs nitrogen limits in accordance with EPA requirements of the federal Clean Water Act when these permits are reissued.

Stakeholders plan to continue to work together

Solomon said that while there isnt money in the current budget proposal to expand transplants or seeding, he hopes to secure funding next year.

In the meantime, hes asked stakeholders to come up with estimates for what those efforts would cost. He also said hell consider legislation in the next General Assembly session to create a permanent quahog advisory board, another recommendation in the report.

I'm proud of the work of the commission members, he said. I think getting everyone in a room together showed how much progress can be made. Were going to push for more coordination going forward.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Quahog commission recommends seeding, transplants; seeks nitrogen data
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. The Belarusian Ambassador to Armenia will soon leave for Minsk, Trend reports.

"If someone decided to divert attention from internal problems by the image of an external enemy, it is a very shortsighted position," the statement of the official representative of the Belarusian Foreign Ministry, Anatoly Glaz reads.

Glaz also emphasized that Belarus is not going to worsen relations with Armenia, no matter how much the Armenian leadership is pushed to do so by external players.

To note, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated earlier that he would never visit Belarus 'as long as Lukashenko is president there' because of his statements in Azerbaijan.

'Neither I nor any other Armenian official will visit Belarus as long as Lukashenko is president there,' he said.

Earlier, at his meeting with President of the Republic of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev, Lukashenko said: "Thoughts crossed my mind about our lunchtime philosophical discourse that took place before the war, your war of liberation. At that point, we decided that the battle could still be won. It is significant. It is crucial to keep on this triumph."

Stay up-to-date with more news on Trend News Agency's WhatsApp channel
Seen here is a generic version of Truvada, a combination of two older antiretroviral drugs, tenofovir and emtricitabine. Truvada was the first PrEP drug approved in the U.S. Its taken orally once daily. (Alexander Castro/Rhode Island Current)

Prescription drugs that prevent HIV could become easier to access in Rhode Island after the General Assembly OKd legislation Tuesday eliminating out-of-pocket costs and insurance obstacles.

Complementary bills by Rep. Rebecca Kislak, a Providence Democrat and Sen. Melissa Murray, a Woonsocket Democrat, remove the possibility of prior authorization for the preventative drugs collectively known as PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis). They build on Murrays legislation, which took effect Jan. 1, 2024, and guaranteed coverage to eligible patients for these drugs. Prior authorization is an approval process used by health insurance companies that can delay the continuation or start of certain treatments.

Murray said in a statement Tuesday that PrEP and PEP are the most effective tools to prevent transmission globallyThis is why there is such a critical need to ensure no-cost, swift access. Otherwise, we risk sacrificing the progress made in combating the HIV epidemic over the past 30 years.

When taken as directed, PrEP has high rates of preventing HIV; commonly cited figures show a 99% lower chance of contracting HIV from unprotected sex. Injection drug use sees a 74% reduction in HIV contraction. A more recent intervention called PEP, is used within 72 hours of possible HIV exposure, not only from unprotected sex but also in workplace settings, where health care providers might come in contact with HIV-positive blood. Both drugs are used by sexually active people, especially men who have sex with men or people who have multiple sex partners.

According to 2022 data from the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, PrEP was prescribed to 36% of people who might benefit from it. The CDC wants to see that number increased to 50% by 2025. But in May, the CDC announced it needed to retool its PrEP surveillance data, as past years numbers may have been erroneous. The CDC expects it will release new data on PrEP coverage nationwide in June 2025.

Data from the Rhode Island Department of Health suggests the impact an increasing array of HIV medications  a group comprised largely of antiretroviral drugs  has had on the once much-deadlier virus. Since 2008, the number of new HIV infections in the state has dropped by about half, and more people are living HIV-positive because available medications prevent the virus from advancing to the more aggressive AIDS.

A years worth of generic, daily PrEP in pill form cost about $360 in 2022. But the new legislation could also save the health care system money by preventing the need for costlier HIV treatments. A 2022 report from the HIV+Hepatitis Policy Institute estimated that, over 10 years, PrEP could prevent enough infections to save $2.27 billion in patient treatment costs.

The legislation encountered some resistance from the insurance industry. Testimony submitted to the House Committee on Health and Human Services by Prime Therapeutics, the pharmacy benefit manager used by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Rhode Island, argued that removing the ability to have utilization management tools in place puts patients at risk.

That criticism didnt persuade lawmakers, who see the drugs as a public health issue. Kislak, in a statement, underlined the import of an affordable way to prevent an illness that, while more treatable than in decades past, can still change ones life.

This legislation is an important step forward in preventive care and will make sure that no one faces roadblocks to protecting themselves from HIV, Kislak said in a statement. PrEP and PEP are incredible tools that are saving lives from a virus that devastated a generation, and the critical importance of access to them cannot be overstated.

The bill now goes to Gov. Dan McKee. Olivia DaRocha, a spokesperson for the governors office, said Wednesday that the bill was still being reviewed. No update was immediately available Thursday afternoon.

The post R.I. General Assembly passes legislation to help expedite access to HIV prevention meds appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
The severe rain bomb that triggered an exceedingly rare flash flood emergency  meant for catastrophic showers  in multiple South Florida cities shut down universities, government agencies and transit systems on Wednesday.

The National Weather Service issued the emergency alert for portions of southern Broward and northern Miami-Dade Counties. Four flash flood warnings are still active for various areas across the region.

Aside from a slew of closures due to flooding, power outages are impacting residents, too. According to FPL, Miami-Dade had more than 10,000 outages at one point, with Broward exceeding 1,000. As of 8 p.m., the states largest power utility company reported a little under 300 outages in both counties.

Christian B. and his two friends Claudia and Barbara tried to pull his car with a rope to keep it from crashing in the neighboring car to no avail in Miami Beach, Florida on Wednesday, June 12, 2024.

Whats closed in Miami-Dade?

Miami-Dades transit system warned riders Wednesday afternoon that the deluge was causing delays on most routes, including for Metrorail and Metromover.

Eastbound and westbound county transit buses have been delayed since 3:30 p.m. Additionally, Tri-Rail operations have been partially halted as the tracks between the Metrorail Transfer and Miami Central stations were shut down.

Amid the closures, Tri-Rail officials are advising commuters to take the Metrorail between those stations.

Brightline shares the same tracks with Tri-Rail, making the intercity rail route susceptible to similar shutdowns. The Miami Herald confirmed that Brightline service between its Miami and Aventura stations has been suspended because of the torrential rain. The high-speed train company is arranging bus services for passengers to traverse between the two stations.

Travelers posted videos of water on the tracks on X.

All southbound @GoBrightline trains are terminating at Aventura and turning around due to water over the tracks between Aventura & Miami#FLrain #FLwx pic.twitter.com/scPrILpERh  Jonathan Hopkins (@JHopLovesTrains) June 12, 2024

As of 4:40 p.m., Miami International Airport canceled 221 flights and delayed 165 others, which is 53% of all the flights at the airport Wednesday, said Greg Chin, communications director for the Miami-Dade Aviation Department.

Beyond transportation systems, Miami-Dade College and Florida International University canceled their evening classes, citing inclement weather. FIU also has closed several campuses, including the one in Biscayne Bay.

What about Broward?

All Broward County libraries and a few government services, such as animal care and the medical examiners office, have been closed.

The county has not said whether buses or other transit have been halted.

Some major Broward cities, including Fort Lauderdale and Hollywood, have also closed administrative offices completely or partially.

The deluge forced the closure of Interstate 95 at Griffin Road, causing hours of traffic as commuters entered rush hour seeking alternative routes that also experienced flooding.

READ MORE: Miami, Fort Lauderdale airports see hours-long delays as heavy rain swamps the region

At Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport, as of 6:11 p.m., there have been 158 delays and 273 cancellations., according to FlightAware, a flight tracker.

Broward College announced its evening classes were canceled, and at least one campus was closed.

Miami Herald Douglas Hanks contributed to this report.
Yellowstone National Park is home to some remarkable sights, and visitors earlier this month got quite a surprise when they came across an extremely rare juvenile white buffalo. It turns out that its presence has a connection to a Lakota legend.

Arvol Looking Horse, the spiritual leader of the Lakota, Dakota, and Nakota Oyate in South Dakota, spoke about the prophecy with The Associated Press. "The birth of this calf is both a blessing and warning. We must do more," he said.

The calf was reportedly born on June 4 in the Lamar Valley portion of the park. It was captured on camera by a visitor shortly after it was born. The sighting comes after a rough winter in 2023 that drove thousands of buffalo to lower elevations. Another 1,500 were killed, sent to slaughter, or given to other tribes.

The Lakota legend details how the people were struggling with dwindling food sources and disappearing bison about 2,000 years ago when a mysterious woman appeared to two travelers. She presented them with a pipe engraved with a buffalo and a bundle of sagebrush and told them the pipe could be used to bring buffalo to the area that they can use for food. As she departed, the womanknown as Ptecincala Ska Wakan Winan, or White Buffalo Calf Womanturned into a white buffalo calf.

According to Looking Horse, the woman promised to "return and stand upon the earth as a white buffalo calf, black nose, black eyes, black hooves" in the future "some day when the times are hard again." Looking Horse himself is the 19th keeper of the Sacred White Buffalo Calf Pipe and Bundle and, as an outspoken opponent of the Dakota Access Pipeline, believes the animal's birth is a sign to protect the land and the bison population in the area.

They've already held a naming ceremony for the calf but are keeping the moniker private. A ceremony celebrating its birth is set for June 26 at the Buffalo Field Campaign headquarters in West Yellowstone.
A real-estate investor accused of running an Airbnb was fined $180,000. He says his tenant is to blame for renting it out.

A Las Vegas homeowner accused of running an unauthorized Airbnb for years says his renter is to blame. James Marshall/Getty Images

A real-estate investor was fined $180,000 by the city of Las Vegas over an illegal Airbnb.

Xin Tao, an Oregon engineer, said he bought the house as an investment property to rent out longer term.

Tao said his tenant rented it out on Airbnb, and the city didn't tell him daily fines were adding up.

In November, the city of Las Vegas issued a $180,000 fine against a homeowner who officials say ran an unauthorized Airbnb near the Las Vegas strip.

The homeowner, however, told Business Insider he believed he was the victim of a scam run by the tenant renting his house at the time.

In June 2021, Xin Tao purchased a five-bedroom, two-bathroom property in Las Vegas for $378,000.

Tao, an engineer who lives in Oregon full time, said he bought the house as an investment property. While he did initially consider listing it on Airbnb, he added, he abandoned that plan when he signed a lease with a long-term tenant in September 2021. (BI viewed a copy of the lease.)

Shortly after, multiple neighbors called the city with complaints about the property, complaining about an overflow of cars parked in the driveway and that activity at the house "regularly disturbs" neighbors, according to enforcement logs from the city of Las Vegas.

On two separate occasions in October 2021 and February 2022, Las Vegas city officials knocked on the door, according to government logs. The people who answered said they were renting the property through Airbnb, the logs say.

Tao was issued $2,132 in fines from the February 2022 incident  $500 a day for the four days the alleged Airbnb guest said they were staying in the home, plus additional fees, according to city records.

Tao said he believed that, after the February 2022 incident, his tenant had stopped renting out his property on Airbnb and that the issue was resolved. He said he was unable to confront the tenant directly because he was managing the property remotely from Oregon.

The tenant vacated the property in September 2023, and a cleaner was sent to the premises to tidy up, Tao said. Stuck to the window was a notice of a $180,000 fine.

"I was shocked. I didn't know what was going on. I thought it might be fraud," Tao told Business Insider. "How do we go from $2,000 to $180,000?"

Las Vegas is cracking down on Airbnb hosts

In January, Tao asked the Las Vegas City Council to reconsider the fine, but lawmakers unanimously upheld the decision by a vote of 7-0, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported.

In 2019, Las Vegas instituted sweeping regulations of short-term rentals, including banning out-of-state investors from owning Airbnbs, amid outcry from local residents who complained of an influx of "parties, prostitution, and drugs into residential communities," the Las Vegas Sun reported.

Some Sin City residents are still frustrated by short-term rentals in their neighborhoods.

"I am constantly getting texts, emails, calls, pulled aside in the grocery store about short-term rentals," Councilman Brian Knudsen told the local outlet Fox 5 in January. "If we continue to erode laws by not enforcing the fees and fines associated with them, we continue to lose the dignity of our neighborhoods."

The city arrived at the $180,000 fine based on a $500-a-night penalty for each of hundreds of nights it tracked as booked at Tao's property, according to documents submitted to the City Council.

Tao told BI he'd continue to fight the fine, saying that was partly because the city didn't notify him properly that charges continued to accrue after February 2022.

He added that the current fine would have devastating effects on his family.

"We have a mortgage and car payments," he said. "One hundred eighty thousand dollars is definitely something I cannot afford."

Read the original article on Business Insider
Recent string of Crimea strikes can help 'dismantle' Russian air defenses before F-16s arrive, expert says

The recent string of Ukrainian strikes against occupied Crimea may help degrade Russian air defenses in the area and decrease the threat to Ukrainian tactical aviation, said Federico Borsari, a Leonardo Fellow at the Center for European Policy Analysis (CEPA), in a comment for the Kyiv Independent on June 12.

"The goal is to dismantle (the) Russian A2/AD (anti-access/area denial) bubble in Crimea before the arrival of Western fighter jets, especially F-16," Borsari said, adding the strikes also impose "serious capability losses and costs that are difficult to replenish and absorb."

Ukraine's military reported on a number of attacks against the peninsula in recent days, allegedly scoring successful hits against Russian S-300 and S-400 air defense systems.

Ukrainian forces reportedly destroyed two radars of S-300 and S-400 air defense systems near the Belbek military airfield and Sevastopol overnight on June 12.

Only two days earlier, Kyiv claimed yet another successful hit against S-400 and S-300 anti-aircraft missile systems in several areas in occupied Crimea.

Air defense losses apparently made Moscow nervous enough to move elements of the latest S-500 system to the peninsula, Ukraine's military intelligence chief Kyrylo Budanov said. Russian officials have not commented on the claim.

According to Borsari, the strategic benefit of these attacks consists of the "degradation of Russian air and missile defense envelope over Crimea and the adjacent Black Sea area, partly diminishing the threat to Ukrainian tactical aviation operating near the southern front line."

It can also open "more windows of opportunity for missile and drone strikes against targets in Crimea and beyond."

Read also: Russias move on Kharkiv has bogged down. But was it a failure?

Two weeks ago, Ukraine reported several strikes against the Kerch ferry crossing that connects the peninsula to the Russian mainland.

Moscow actively used the ferry crossing to supply Russian troops in the occupied peninsula and defended it with Russian Pantsir, Tor, and S-400 Triumph air defense systems, the Ukrainian military said.

Though Kyiv does not always provide all the details on these attacks, including the weaponry used, the Ukrainian military reportedly received up to 100 long-range ATAMCS missiles from the U.S. less than two months ago.

In at least one attack during recent weeks, Ukraine acknowledged striking Crimea with ATACMS, while other strikes were reportedly carried out with domestic-made Neptun missiles or drones.

The Russian Defense Ministry often claims its forces are regularly shooting down scores of ATACMS over the peninsula, usually alleging no damage. These statements cannot be independently verified, and reports of damage often emerge shortly after.

Read also: Ukraine war latest: Ukraine destroys Russian air defense radars in occupied Crimea, military says

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Temperatures continue to climb this week with record high temperatures possible Thursday afternoon. Rain and thunderstorms return Friday, briefly cooling down high temperatures.

Hotter and drier weather continues to move into New Mexico Wednesday. A few isolated storms are still developing today, mainly in eastern New Mexico. These storms will be ending this evening. Temperatures are anywhere from a couple degrees to nearly 20 hotter than Tuesday afternoon as we get closer to the hottest day of the week and the hottest day so far this year.

High pressure moves over New Mexico Thursday, bringing record and near-record high temperatures across the state with most of New Mexico climbing into the 90s and 100s. Cloud cover may keep high temperatures a few degrees cooler than previously forecast, as some dry thunderstorms may also develop Thursday afternoon over the mountains.

A storm system moves into New Mexico Friday, bringing isolated to scattered rain and storm chances through Friday night to much of New Mexico. This will also keep temperatures much cooler for the northwest part of the state, but still very hot in southern New Mexico. The rain and storms move out by early Saturday morning as drier weather quickly returns. Temperatures will be getting hotter too through the weekend, back into the 90s and 100s for most by Fathers Day.

The heat will continue into the middle of next week with dry weather. Breezy winds will be possible early next week as well.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRQE NEWS 13 - Breaking News, Albuquerque News, New Mexico News, Weather, and Videos.
Watch Dan Plantes report for KUSI in the video above.

SAN DIEGO (KUSI)  Another murky red tide has rolled into San Diegos coast over the last few days, bringing with it waves so discolored it almost looks like chocolate milk.

The tide, which is known for its dark reddish brown coloring, is a natural phenomenon that is closely tied with electric, nighttime bioluminescent displays. However, they are not inextricably linked.

Scientists with Scripps Institution of Oceanography say a red tide just describes a period of time when certain microscopic organisms begin to grow, creating the appearance that the water is discolored in the sunlight.

VIDEO: Boat radiates neon blue in waters near Scripps Pier

Any plankton, which is the microscopic algae in the water, when they grow and bloom  just like wild plants do on the land  they can turn the water red, Clarissa Anderson, a researcher with Scripps, told KUSI on Wednesday. It just means that theres a lot of something there.

Sometimes the composition of the algae bloom can include the particles need to create the neon blue waves, but scientists have not observed that with this go around.

Besides the bioluminescence, red tides are associated with a slew of other impacts, mostly to other marine life.

A study published last month by Scripps examined this very issue during a historic two-month-long red tide back in 2020. According to the study, the tide led to mass mortality among fish and other marine organisms due to changes in oxygen levels below the surface.

As far as humans go, Anderson said there is not a lot of evidence to suggest the red tide is all that harmful, but she noted some swimmers have reported experiencing routine respiratory issues or rashes during the event.

New study details downside of bioluminescence along SoCal coast

The red tide is often associated more with changes to recreational activities like diving. Ocean Enterprises diving instructor Emily Strand described it as doing a night dive during the day.

Generally when the red tide is here, once you get a little deeper, you get under it, she said, but when you get deeper, what that does is its blocking out the sunlight that we usually can see so its just always going to be a darker dive at this time.

As of Wednesday, the red tide already looks to be pulling back from the coast in La Jolla, but it was still quite present in Pacific Beach. Exact timing for how long it will stick around can be hard to predict, but Anderson said it may be here for a little while longer.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News.
Reichert works to fend off Democrats claims hed try to restrict abortion as governor

Republican former congressman Dave Reichert, pictured here in a screenshot of a new campaign ad that will air this summer, is trying to blunt Democratic attacks claiming that he'd try to restrict abortion rights if elected governor. (Reichert campaign)

Republican Dave Reichert says he will uphold Washingtons abortion law if elected governor. A top Democratic Party leader and abortion rights activist said Wednesday they dont believe him.

Reichert, in an ad posted online last week, says he wont change a law put in place by voters in 1970, that made abortion legal up to the point where a fetus is viable.

I do not believe any politician regardless of personal belief has the right to make that decision for any woman, he says in the 30-second spot that will air more widely this summer.

But Shasti Conrad, chair of the state Democratic Party, called the ad extremely misleading and an attempt to distract from Reicherts anti-abortion record while serving in Congress.

Jennifer Allen, chief executive officer of Planned Parenthood Alliance Advocates, called it a cynical ploy because he knows his views are out of step with a majority of the states voters.

The tussle spotlights a huge challenge facing the leading GOP candidate in the race to succeed retiring Democratic Gov. Jay Inslee, whose tenure saw Washington emerge nationally as a haven for those seeking abortions and providing reproductive care services.

On Tuesday, Inslee bolstered that reputation with a directive to ensures medical providers continue to perform emergency abortion services for patients.

The ad is Reicherts most visible attempt to counteract unrelenting attacks from Democrats who claim he will follow a path blazed by Republican leaders in GOP-led states and work to unwind Washingtons existing protections.

Bob Ferguson, the attorney general and leading Democrat in the race, launched his first salvo a year ago, calling Reichert anti-choice and a profound threat to reproductive freedom.

On a seemingly daily basis, Fergusons campaign is on social media or raising money with a pitch that anti-choice extremists will never be satisfied until the right to choose is eliminated everywhere.

Reichert, in his commercial, accuses Ferguson of trying to spread fear by saying things that I dont believe and will not do.

On Wednesday, Jeff Harvey, his senior campaign advisor, said, Ferguson and his allies are purposely misleading voters on this issue because they cant defend the failed policies Bob would continue to champion that have left people feeling less safe in their communities and are making Washington unaffordable.

But this issue is very tricky for Reichert given his history.

Hes personally opposed to abortion. In his seven terms in Congress, he supported bills to eliminate federal funding for it and create a national abortion ban at 20 weeks of pregnancy.

Allen said when she lobbied Reichert in Congress he repeatedly told her he cared about abortion rights, then voted to weaken them.

Actions speak louder than words, she said. He would say one thing to me and then vote a different way when he got to the floor. I actually dont feel like theres any evolution in his duplicity or in my expectations of him.

On Wednesday, Ferguson did not respond to requests for comment on the ad.

Semi Bird, the endorsed GOP candidate of the Washington State Republican Party, scoffed at Reichert and Ferguson, saying each adopts policies to suit the audience of the moment in pursuit of votes.

I have been consistent in my position to value life, adhere to the constitution, and enforce the laws of Washington State, he said in a statement.

The abortion discussion has been weaponized for far too long. It has divided and distracted Washington citizens from the fact that these career politicians lack the ability to address the current high cost of living, broken public education system, homelessness, and lawlessness, Bird added.

Democrat Mark Mullet, a state senator, said Republicans can be pro-choice and get elected to statewide office  pointing to former governor Dan Evans and former secretary of state Kim Wyman as examples.

This issue is really simple. Either youre pro-choice or pro-life. Voters in this state want to support someone who is pro-choice, he said. Im pro-choice.

Editors note: This story was updated to correct Jeff Harveys title.

The post Reichert works to fend off Democrats claims hed try to restrict abortion as governor appeared first on Washington State Standard.
MANHATTAN, N.Y. (PIX11)  The New York City community honored the victims of the Pulse nightclub shooting Wednesday night, marking eight years since the tragedy in Orlando, Florida.

The mass shooting remains one of the deadliest attacks on the LGBTQ community in history. New Yorkers honored the victims with action as they push for gun reform legislation.

More Local News

With heavy hearts, members of the organization Gays Against Guns stood as representations of the 49 souls lost at Pulse during the New York City vigil Wednesday. Each person was dressed in white and carried pictures of the victims, embodying a life gone too soon.

This year especially, its important to remember that hate kills, said Gays Against Guns President Jay W. Walker. The kind of bigotry that a lot of these people out there are espousing leads to violence against LGBTQ people, and thats what happened at Pulse.

The somber vigil culminated in a silent procession at Christopher Street Pier just steps away from the historic site of the Stonewall Inn riots. Organizers paid tribute to the victims of the horrific act of violence in Orlando that killed 49 people and injured 53 others in 2016. Virginia Vitzthum is a member of Gays Against Guns, which formed days after the mass shooting out of grief and outrage.

We saw an intersection of attacks on gay people and gun violence, Vitzthum said. That queer people are killed more by a gun than other people, and it made sense for gay people to be a voice in the gun violence protection fight.

The vigil was more than just a moment of remembrance but also a rallying cry for continued advocacy in the fight for gun reform legislation.

To make sure that people who have been diagnosed with tendencies towards violence are not able to get access to guns, Walker said. Theres a lot that needs to be done.

Organizers are hoping the vigil can be a testament to the strength and unity of the LGBTQ community as they work towards a future where senseless gun violence has no place.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to PIX11.
KANSAS CITY, Mo.  A new library has opened in Riverside at the corner of NW Gateway and Vivion avenues.

Voters agreed to a new property tax levy eight years ago, which provided funds to cover the cost of renovating or rebuilding all 34 branches of the Mid-Continent Public Library system. The Riverside branch represents the last build paid for with Prop L money.

While the previously existing Riverside MCPL branch was supposed to be renovated, the building was falling apart. This prompted city officials to step up with an extra $2 million to help build a new library.

Independence bank robbed twice within 24 hours

Construction broke ground last spring, and the Riverside MCPL location is now open to the public.

The completion of the library is an emotional occasion for Riverside Mayor Kathy Rose.

My mother used to bring me to the library when I was a small child, said Mayor Rose.

And my mother was the mayor prior to me and she was a huge library advocate. She has passed now, but she is smiling at today as we are standing here.

The Riverside library opened to the public on June 11. The official ribbon cutting is set to be held Friday, June 14. There will be a festival with food trucks, music and art held Saturday, June 15 to celebrate the newest MCPL location. Click on the following link for more information about the new MCPL location in Riverside.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 4 Kansas City WDAF-TV | News, Weather, Sports.
BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 13. US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a security agreement, Trend reports.

According to information, the agreement between Washington and Kiev was signed within the framework of the G7 summit held in Italy.

The parties consider this agreement as a bridge to Ukraines possible membership in NATO, the document says.

It is noted that the United States intends to provide support to Ukraine in connection with military products, intelligence information, military exercises and the development of the military-industrial complex.
As more states require schools to out transgender students to their families, a new study links involuntary disclosure of sexual orientation or gender identity to heightened rates of depression and anxiety.

One-third of LGBTQ youth outed to their families were more likely to report major symptoms of depression than those who werent, according to the University of Connecticut research. Transgender and nonbinary youth who were outed to their parents reported both the highest levels of depression symptoms and lowest amount of family support.

The first research to link teens nonconsensual disclosure of sexual orientation or gender identity to poor mental health, the report also found 69% said the experience was extremely stressful. Forcibly outed youth also reported low levels of family support.

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Since 2022, eight states have passed laws requiring schools to out transgender students to their families, potentially affecting more than 17,000 young people: Idaho, North Dakota, Iowa, Indiana, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina and Alabama. Proponents say the measures are necessary to uphold parents right to information about their kids. LGBTQ and mental health advocates counter that the laws violate students privacy rights and can put them in danger of being abused or thrown out of their homes.

Forced outing is a relatively common experience, and we need to understand more about it, says Peter McCauley, a doctoral candidate at UConn. People should be coming out under their own terms.

The data, McCauley says, bolsters research on why queer students who are victimized in school often dont seek help. According to research cited in the new report, 44% of LGBTQ youth say they have not reported harassment to an adult at school out of fear their parents would learn their identity. A majority of sexual-minority teen boys were threatened with outing by peers.

The new report used data from a survey of some 9,300 queer youth ages 13 to 17 collected in 2017 by the Human Rights Campaign and the universitys Department of Human Development and Family Sciences. Two-thirds of respondents identified as cisgender, and 70% said their LGBTQ status was not involuntarily disclosed to their families. Of those not outed, 36% said their parents did not know they were not heterosexual. Nearly half of gender-nonconforming students said they were not out to their families.

The survey found no significant racial differences in the stress of being outed. Youth whose parents had postgraduate degrees reported few depressive symptoms and high family support.

Previous surveys by The Trevor Project, GLSEN and other advocacy groups consistently find that nearly all LGBTQ youth say they are harassed at school  which many nonetheless say is a more supportive environment than home. Fewer than four in 10 queer youth say their homes are LGBTQ-affirming.

Related

Data Show LGBTQ Students Report Bullying and Attacks from Kids  and Teachers

There is evidence that people who disclose their sexual and gender identities in adolescence experience less depression and greater life satisfaction in adulthood. But not all teens who come out do so to their families. Some share with friends or trusted adults other than their parents. Youth are often reluctant to come out because they have heard their caregivers talk negatively about LGBTQ people or issues.

In addition to the eight states that mandate outing, Florida, Arizona, Utah, Montana and Kentucky  which collectively are home to a quarter-million LGBTQ youth  have new laws that critics say encourage involuntary disclosure of students sexual orientation or gender identity. These measures mandate discipline for educators who encourage or coerce children to withhold information from their families, stop schools from discouraging or prohibiting parental notification about pupils well-being and grant caregivers broad access to mental health and other records.

Related

The Kids Hiding in Plain Sight: Advocates Push to Collect Data on LGBT Students

Fights over forced outing are also playing out at a local level throughout the country. In at least six states, families who believe student privacy protections violate their parental rights have sued districts. So far, none of the suits has succeeded.

A Houston Landing investigation found that during the first two months after mandatory parental notification went into effect in August 2023 in Texas Katy Independent School District, 19 students were outed. After the story was published, the U.S. Department of Education opened a Title IX investigation into the districts actions, which local advocates had complained discriminated on the basis of gender.

At least six California districts require schools to disclose a range of information. In January, California Attorney General Rob Bonta warned districts that parental notification policies violate the states constitution and education laws. The admonition came after a judges October 2023 order temporarily halting the enforcement of an outing rule in Chino.

As legislation seeking to restrict LGBTQ students rights has swept statehouses in recent years, the number of states fully administering the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System  the nations chief survey of young peoples welfare  has fallen. Some states, such as Florida, stopped participating altogether, while others refuse to ask questions about sexual orientation, gender identity, mental health and suicidality.
Report: Texas ranks second to last for maternal health care access

AUSTIN (KXAN)  A new report by ValuePenguin found more than 30% of women giving birth dont have access to adequate postnatal care.

KXANs Erica Brennes sat down with Divya Singh from Lending Tree to discuss the numbers.

Brennes: Joining me today is Divya Singh with Lending Tree, were going to be discussing a recent report that found that Texas is the second to last worst state when it comes to prenatal and maternal care in the country. Personally, as a mom in Texas, this is a tough thing to learn.

Singh: When you look at our stats, Texan doctors score quite well in terms of the quality of care they provide. The issue in Texas is access. The problem in Texas is theres a huge number of women who are of pregnancy age that are 18 to 44, who dont have insurance coverage. In fact, the uninsured rate in Texas is the highest in the country. And this actually impacts the quality of care they are going to receive.

Brennes: Is it important to have primary care? Or is it sufficient to have an OB-GYN?

Singh: Yeah, you can definitely work only within OBGYN, but in many cases, women may not even be aware theyre pregnant, they just may feel some symptoms that they will go to their primary care doctor to get it confirmed. But the fact that so many women dont have a primary care provider or an OB-GYN is extremely scary.

Brennes: What do these numbers mean for women when it comes to actual impact on their lives and their health?

Singh: A huge part of why access is an issue in Texas is the size of the state. And also the fact that there are huge swaths of Texas that are rural. In fact, 46.7% of Texas counties are considered maternity deserts where women have low or no access to quality pregnancy care.

Brennes: In a big metro like Austin, I think its easy to forget how big Texas is. And how many people do live in small towns that might not have an OB-GYN.

Singh: Short of the Texas government making it easier for rural hospitals to be built by providing them more funding. There really isnt much a pregnant woman can do. But I just wanted to throw in a caveat If you have insurance, it will definitely be a big boon. Because your insurance company can actually help you find providers in your area that you can visit to get care. And this includes non-traditional pregnancy healthcare providers like doulas, or nurses, who may not traditionally be considered, you know, pregnancy providers, like an OB-GYN doctor, but they can always help you.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KXAN Austin.
HOWELL  Nearly six months after Howell City Council requested Gov. Gretchen Whitmer remove a trustee from the Howell Carnegie District Library Board, they received their answer: No.

In December, councilmembers voted to request Whitmer remove Trustee Anthony Kandt over comments made toward councilwoman Jan Lobur in October.

After the library boards meeting Oct. 10, Howell Downtown Development Authority Director Kate Litwin wrote an email to the city, calling Kandt's depiction of an email from Lobur, which he read aloud, and other comments "misogynistic." Lobur was not present at the meeting.

Nearly six months after Howell City Council requested Gov. Gretchen Whitmer remove a trustee from the Howell Carnegie District Library Board, they received their answer: No.

In November, the council voted to find Kandt unfit to represent the city on a local board or commission."

The email read aloud centered on a controversial plot of land the city hoped to purchase from the library. In the end, just this week, council voted instead to purchase nearby land from the state of Michigan to meet parking needs.

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A letter to city attorney Dennis Perkins, dated May 10, informed council of Whitmer's decision, as first reported by The Livingston Post, whose co-founder, Maria Stuart, sits on the library board.

I am writing to notify you that the request has been denied, wrote Michigan Deputy Legal Counsel Daniel Osher. The denial of the request by no means indicates a condoning of the conduct alleged in the request. Rather, it means only that legal limitations on the governors removal authority preclude removal under these circumstances.

 Contact reporter Tess Ware at tware@livingstondaily.com.

This article originally appeared on Livingston Daily: Whitmer denies Howell's request to remove library trustee
A lab tech uses equipment employed for in vitro fertilization in this undated photo. (Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britts efforts to pass legislation that would block Medicaid funding from going to states that ban in vitro fertilization were unsuccessful Wednesday when Democrats blocked the bill from advancing.

Britt, who introduced the legislation earlier this year alongside Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, said during brief debate the bill would assuage concerns about couples losing access to IVF, though Democrats said the measure fell short of providing real protections.

Debate took place shortly after the Southern Baptist Convention, the United States largest Protestant religious organization and one with significant influence in conservative politics, voted to condemn IVF.

It also came one day before the entire U.S. Senate is set to vote on a bill from Democrats that would provide nationwide protections for IVF. That measure also lacks the bipartisan backing needed to advance to final passage.

For the millions of Americans who face infertility every year, IVF provides the hope of a pathway to parenthood, Britt said on the floor. We all have loved ones  whether theyre family members or friends  who have become parents or grandparents through IVF.

Britt said that ensuring access to IVF is fundamentally pro-family and that the legislation should provide couples with certainty and peace of mind that IVF will remain legal and available in every single state.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said the Britt-Cruz bill would still allow states to enact burdensome and unnecessary regulations on IVF that could lead to the kind of legal uncertainty and risk that forced IVF clinics in Alabama to close temporarily earlier this year.

Even though it is an inherent part of the IVF process that families will make more embryos than they need, Murray said. This bill does absolutely nothing  not a single thing  to ensure families who use IVF can have their clinics dispose of unused embryos without facing legal threats for a standard medical procedure.

Murray said GOP senators were completely ignoring the issue of what happens to frozen embryos and using the bill as a PR tool.

The stone-cold reality is that you cannot protect IVF and champion fetal personhood, Murray said.

State access

The Britt-Cruz legislation would prevent a state from receiving Medicaid funding if it barred access to IVF, though the bill didnt say anything about states that define life as beginning at fertilization.

The Alabama state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that frozen embryos constituted children didnt explicitly ban IVF, but all of the states clinics stopped operating until the legislature provided civil and criminal protections.

Cruz sought to pass the bill using the unanimous consent process, where any one senator can ask for approval and any one senator can block that legislation from moving forward. Murray blocked Cruzs request.

Unanimous consent requests dont include a recorded vote.

The legislation had three additional co-sponsors  Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Roger Marshall of Kansas.

Democrat bill

The Senate is set to take a procedural vote as soon as Thursday on legislation from Democrats that would bolster protections for IVF, though that bill isnt expected to get the GOP support needed to move forward.

That bill is more detailed and broader than the Britt-Cruz bill, which has received criticism from Democrats as being insufficient.

New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker said Wednesday during a press conference that access to IVF shouldnt be turned into a political issue and called on GOP senators to back the bill.

We cant make this seem like a left-right issue. Its absolutely not, Booker said. This is an issue thats overwhelmingly supported in America by Republican families, Democratic families and independent families. And so trying to make this into some kind of typical political debate in Washington is just wrong.

Booker said protecting access to IVF is, instead, about protecting fundamental rights, expanding opportunity, taking care of our military families.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the bills lead co-sponsor who has been open about using IVF to have her two daughters, threw cool water on working with Republicans on a bipartisan bill when asked about the possibility during the press conference.

Well, theyre welcome to join ours and make it bipartisan. Weve got 47 co-sponsors thus far and its a very simple piece of legislation, Duckworth said. I cant see why they wouldnt join it.

In contrast, 90% of Republicans have not signed on to Senator Britts bill, Duckworth added.

Southern Baptists resolution

Senate debate on in vitro fertilization is taking place the same week the Southern Baptist Convention meets in Indiana for its annual convention.

During that two-day gathering more than 10,000 Baptists, called messengers, voted on official policies of the SBC, which included objecting to how IVF is practiced now.

The SBC wrote in its resolution that IVF most often engages in the destruction of embryonic human life and increasingly engages in dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting, based on notions of genetic fitness and parental preferences.

The resolution on IVF resolved that members of the SBC should only utilize reproductive technologies consistent with that affirmation as well as several other affirmations within the document.

The resolution was titled, On the Ethical Realities of Reproductive Technologies and the Dignity of the Human Embryo.

Kristen Ferguson, from 11th Street Baptist Church in Upland, California, who announced the resolution before the vote, opposed an amendment that would have made several changes to the text.

Ferguson said during a brief debate the committee that wrote the resolutions for the SBC to vote on wanted to make sure it addressed IVF with the utmost sensitivity.

She added that members of the resolutions committee did not take this topic lightly and we want to make sure that were speaking carefully about it.

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The post Republican IVF bill fails in U.S. Senate appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Embryologist Ric Ross holds a dish with human embryos at the La Jolla IVF Clinic February 28, 2007 in La Jolla, California. (Photo by Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britts efforts to pass legislation that would block Medicaid funding from going to states that ban in vitro fertilization were unsuccessful Wednesday when Democrats blocked the bill from advancing.

Britt, who introduced the legislation earlier this year alongside Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, said during brief debate the bill would assuage concerns about couples losing access to IVF, though Democrats said the measure fell short of providing real protections.

Debate took place shortly after the Southern Baptist Convention, the United States largest Protestant religious organization and one with significant influence in conservative politics, voted to condemn IVF.

It also came one day before the entire U.S. Senate is set to vote on a bill from Democrats that would provide nationwide protections for IVF. That measure also lacks the bipartisan backing needed to advance to final passage.

For the millions of Americans who face infertility every year, IVF provides the hope of a pathway to parenthood, Britt said on the floor. We all have loved ones  whether theyre family members or friends  who have become parents or grandparents through IVF.

Britt said that ensuring access to IVF is fundamentally pro-family and that the legislation should provide couples with certainty and peace of mind that IVF will remain legal and available in every single state.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said the Britt-Cruz bill would still allow states to enact burdensome and unnecessary regulations on IVF that could lead to the kind of legal uncertainty and risk that forced IVF clinics in Alabama to close temporarily earlier this year.

Even though it is an inherent part of the IVF process that families will make more embryos than they need, Murray said. This bill does absolutely nothing  not a single thing  to ensure families who use IVF can have their clinics dispose of unused embryos without facing legal threats for a standard medical procedure.

Murray said GOP senators were completely ignoring the issue of what happens to frozen embryos and using the bill as a PR tool.

The stone-cold reality is that you cannot protect IVF and champion fetal personhood, Murray said.

State access

The Britt-Cruz legislation would prevent a state from receiving Medicaid funding if it barred access to IVF, though the bill didnt say anything about states that define life as beginning at fertilization.

The Alabama state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that frozen embryos constituted children didnt explicitly ban IVF, but all of the states clinics stopped operating until the legislature provided civil and criminal protections.

Cruz sought to pass the bill using the unanimous consent process, where any one senator can ask for approval and any one senator can block that legislation from moving forward. Murray blocked Cruzs request.

Unanimous consent requests dont include a recorded vote.

The legislation had three additional co-sponsors  Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Roger Marshall of Kansas.

Democrat bill

The Senate is set to take a procedural vote as soon as Thursday on legislation from Democrats that would bolster protections for IVF, though that bill isnt expected to get the GOP support needed to move forward.

That bill is more detailed and broader than the Britt-Cruz bill, which has received criticism from Democrats as being insufficient.

New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker said Wednesday during a press conference that access to IVF shouldnt be turned into a political issue and called on GOP senators to back the bill.

We cant make this seem like a left-right issue. Its absolutely not, Booker said. This is an issue thats overwhelmingly supported in America by Republican families, Democratic families and independent families. And so trying to make this into some kind of typical political debate in Washington is just wrong.

Booker said protecting access to IVF is, instead, about protecting fundamental rights, expanding opportunity, taking care of our military families.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the bills lead co-sponsor who has been open about using IVF to have her two daughters, threw cool water on working with Republicans on a bipartisan bill when asked about the possibility during the press conference.

Well, theyre welcome to join ours and make it bipartisan. Weve got 47 co-sponsors thus far and its a very simple piece of legislation, Duckworth said. I cant see why they wouldnt join it.

In contrast, 90% of Republicans have not signed on to Senator Britts bill, Duckworth added.

Southern Baptists resolution

Senate debate on in vitro fertilization is taking place the same week the Southern Baptist Convention meets in Indiana for its annual convention.

During that two-day gathering more than 10,000 Baptists, called messengers, voted on official policies of the SBC, which included objecting to how IVF is practiced now.

The SBC wrote in its resolution that IVF most often engages in the destruction of embryonic human life and increasingly engages in dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting, based on notions of genetic fitness and parental preferences.

The resolution on IVF resolved that members of the SBC should only utilize reproductive technologies consistent with that affirmation as well as several other affirmations within the document.

The resolution was titled, On the Ethical Realities of Reproductive Technologies and the Dignity of the Human Embryo.

Kristen Ferguson, from 11th Street Baptist Church in Upland, California, who announced the resolution before the vote, opposed an amendment that would have made several changes to the text.

Ferguson said during a brief debate the committee that wrote the resolutions for the SBC to vote on wanted to make sure it addressed IVF with the utmost sensitivity.

She added that members of the resolutions committee did not take this topic lightly and we want to make sure that were speaking carefully about it.

The post Republican IVF bill fails in U.S. Senate appeared first on Utah News Dispatch.
Washington Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray speaks during a press conference on in vitro fertilization outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Also pictured are supporters of Senate Democrats IVF access bill as well as New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker and Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

Washington Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray speaks during a press conference on in vitro fertilization outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Also pictured are supporters of Senate Democrats IVF access bill as well as New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker and Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON  Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britts efforts to pass legislation that would block Medicaid funding from going to states that ban in vitro fertilization were unsuccessful Wednesday when Democrats blocked the bill from advancing.

Britt, who introduced the legislation earlier this year alongside Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, said during brief debate the bill would assuage concerns about couples losing access to IVF, though Democrats said the measure fell short of providing real protections.

Debate took place shortly after the Southern Baptist Convention, the United States largest Protestant religious organization and one with significant influence in conservative politics, voted to condemn IVF.

It also came one day before the entire U.S. Senate is set to vote on a bill from Democrats that would provide nationwide protections for IVF. That measure also lacks the bipartisan backing needed to advance to final passage.

Senate Democrats said a Republican measure to block Medicaid funds from going to states that ban in vitro fertilization didnt go far enough and would allow states to enact burdensome and unnecessary regulations.

For the millions of Americans who face infertility every year, IVF provides the hope of a pathway to parenthood, Britt said on the floor. We all have loved ones  whether theyre family members or friends  who have become parents or grandparents through IVF.

Britt said that ensuring access to IVF is fundamentally pro-family and that the legislation should provide couples with certainty and peace of mind that IVF will remain legal and available in every single state.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said the Britt-Cruz bill would still allow states to enact burdensome and unnecessary regulations on IVF that could lead to the kind of legal uncertainty and risk that forced IVF clinics in Alabama to close temporarily earlier this year.

Even though it is an inherent part of the IVF process that families will make more embryos than they need, Murray said. This bill does absolutely nothing  not a single thing  to ensure families who use IVF can have their clinics dispose of unused embryos without facing legal threats for a standard medical procedure.

Murray said GOP senators were completely ignoring the issue of what happens to frozen embryos and using the bill as a PR tool.

The stone-cold reality is that you cannot protect IVF and champion fetal personhood, Murray said.

State access

The Britt-Cruz legislation would prevent a state from receiving Medicaid funding if it barred access to IVF, though the bill didnt say anything about states that define life as beginning at fertilization.

The Alabama state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that frozen embryos constituted children didnt explicitly ban IVF, but all of the states clinics stopped operating until the legislature provided civil and criminal protections.

Cruz sought to pass the bill using the unanimous consent process, where any one senator can ask for approval and any one senator can block that legislation from moving forward. Murray blocked Cruzs request.

Unanimous consent requests dont include a recorded vote.

The legislation had three additional co-sponsors  Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Roger Marshall of Kansas.

Democrat bill

The Senate is set to take a procedural vote as soon as Thursday on legislation from Democrats that would bolster protections for IVF, though that bill isnt expected to get the GOP support needed to move forward.

That bill is more detailed and broader than the Britt-Cruz bill, which has received criticism from Democrats as being insufficient.

New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker said Wednesday during a press conference that access to IVF shouldnt be turned into a political issue and called on GOP senators to back the bill.

We cant make this seem like a left-right issue. Its absolutely not, Booker said. This is an issue thats overwhelmingly supported in America by Republican families, Democratic families and independent families. And so trying to make this into some kind of typical political debate in Washington is just wrong.

Booker said protecting access to IVF is, instead, about protecting fundamental rights, expanding opportunity, taking care of our military families.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the bills lead co-sponsor who has been open about using IVF to have her two daughters, threw cool water on working with Republicans on a bipartisan bill when asked about the possibility during the press conference.

Well, theyre welcome to join ours and make it bipartisan. Weve got 47 co-sponsors thus far and its a very simple piece of legislation, Duckworth said. I cant see why they wouldnt join it.

In contrast, 90% of Republicans have not signed on to Senator Britts bill, Duckworth added.

Southern Baptists resolution

Senate debate on in vitro fertilization is taking place the same week the Southern Baptist Convention meets in Indiana for its annual convention.

During that two-day gathering more than 10,000 Baptists, called messengers, voted on official policies of the SBC, which included objecting to how IVF is practiced now.

The SBC wrote in its resolution that IVF most often engages in the destruction of embryonic human life and increasingly engages in dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting, based on notions of genetic fitness and parental preferences.

The resolution on IVF resolved that members of the SBC should only utilize reproductive technologies consistent with that affirmation as well as several other affirmations within the document.

The resolution was titled, On the Ethical Realities of Reproductive Technologies and the Dignity of the Human Embryo.

Kristen Ferguson, from 11th Street Baptist Church in Upland, California, who announced the resolution before the vote, opposed an amendment that would have made several changes to the text.

Ferguson said during a brief debate the committee that wrote the resolutions for the SBC to vote on wanted to make sure it addressed IVF with the utmost sensitivity.

She added that members of the resolutions committee did not take this topic lightly and we want to make sure that were speaking carefully about it.

The post Republican IVF bill fails in U.S. Senate appeared first on Tennessee Lookout.
Washington Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray speaks during a press conference on in vitro fertilization outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Also pictured are supporters of Senate Democrats IVF access bill as well as New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker and Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON  Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britts efforts to pass legislation that would block Medicaid funding from going to states that ban in vitro fertilization were unsuccessful Wednesday when Democrats blocked the bill from advancing.

Britt, who introduced the legislation earlier this year alongside Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, said during brief debate the bill would assuage concerns about couples losing access to IVF, though Democrats said the measure fell short of providing real protections.

Debate took place shortly after the Southern Baptist Convention, the United States largest Protestant religious organization and one with significant influence in conservative politics, voted to condemn IVF.

It also came one day before the entire U.S. Senate is set to vote on a bill from Democrats that would provide nationwide protections for IVF. That measure also lacks the bipartisan backing needed to advance to final passage.

For the millions of Americans who face infertility every year, IVF provides the hope of a pathway to parenthood, Britt said on the floor. We all have loved ones  whether theyre family members or friends  who have become parents or grandparents through IVF.

Britt said that ensuring access to IVF is fundamentally pro-family and that the legislation should provide couples with certainty and peace of mind that IVF will remain legal and available in every single state.

This is an issue thats overwhelmingly supported in America by Republican families, Democratic families and independent families.

 Sen. Cory Booker

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said the Britt-Cruz bill would still allow states to enact burdensome and unnecessary regulations on IVF that could lead to the kind of legal uncertainty and risk that forced IVF clinics in Alabama to close temporarily earlier this year.

Even though it is an inherent part of the IVF process that families will make more embryos than they need, Murray said. This bill does absolutely nothing  not a single thing  to ensure families who use IVF can have their clinics dispose of unused embryos without facing legal threats for a standard medical procedure.

Murray said GOP senators were completely ignoring the issue of what happens to frozen embryos and using the bill as a PR tool.

The stone-cold reality is that you cannot protect IVF and champion fetal personhood, Murray said.

State access

The Britt-Cruz legislation would prevent a state from receiving Medicaid funding if it barred access to IVF, though the bill didnt say anything about states that define life as beginning at fertilization.

The Alabama state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that frozen embryos constituted children didnt explicitly ban IVF, but all of the states clinics stopped operating until the legislature provided civil and criminal protections.

Cruz sought to pass the bill using the unanimous consent process, where any one senator can ask for approval and any one senator can block that legislation from moving forward. Murray blocked Cruzs request.

Unanimous consent requests dont include a recorded vote.

The legislation had three additional co-sponsors  Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Roger Marshall of Kansas.

Democrat bill

The Senate is set to take a procedural vote as soon as Thursday on legislation from Democrats that would bolster protections for IVF, though that bill isnt expected to get the GOP support needed to move forward.

That bill is more detailed and broader than the Britt-Cruz bill, which has received criticism from Democrats as being insufficient.

New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker said Wednesday during a press conference that access to IVF shouldnt be turned into a political issue and called on GOP senators to back the bill.

We cant make this seem like a left-right issue. Its absolutely not, Booker said. This is an issue thats overwhelmingly supported in America by Republican families, Democratic families and independent families. And so trying to make this into some kind of typical political debate in Washington is just wrong.

Booker said protecting access to IVF is, instead, about protecting fundamental rights, expanding opportunity, taking care of our military families.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the bills lead co-sponsor who has been open about using IVF to have her two daughters, threw cool water on working with Republicans on a bipartisan bill when asked about the possibility during the press conference.

Well, theyre welcome to join ours and make it bipartisan. Weve got 47 co-sponsors thus far and its a very simple piece of legislation, Duckworth said. I cant see why they wouldnt join it.

In contrast, 90% of Republicans have not signed on to Senator Britts bill, Duckworth added.

Southern Baptists resolution

Senate debate on in vitro fertilization is taking place the same week the Southern Baptist Convention meets in Indiana for its annual convention.

During that two-day gathering more than 10,000 Baptists, called messengers, voted on official policies of the SBC, which included objecting to how IVF is practiced now.

The SBC wrote in its resolution that IVF most often engages in the destruction of embryonic human life and increasingly engages in dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting, based on notions of genetic fitness and parental preferences.

The resolution on IVF resolved that members of the SBC should only utilize reproductive technologies consistent with that affirmation as well as several other affirmations within the document.

The resolution was titled, On the Ethical Realities of Reproductive Technologies and the Dignity of the Human Embryo.

Kristen Ferguson, from 11th Street Baptist Church in Upland, California, who announced the resolution before the vote, opposed an amendment that would have made several changes to the text.

Ferguson said during a brief debate the committee that wrote the resolutions for the SBC to vote on wanted to make sure it addressed IVF with the utmost sensitivity.

She added that members of the resolutions committee did not take this topic lightly and we want to make sure that were speaking carefully about it.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Republican IVF bill fails in U.S. Senate appeared first on New Jersey Monitor.
Washington Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray speaks during a press conference on in vitro fertilization outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Also pictured are supporters of Senate Democrats IVF access bill as well as New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker and Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt / States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON  Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britts efforts to pass legislation that would block Medicaid funding from going to states that ban in vitro fertilization were unsuccessful Wednesday when Democrats blocked the bill from advancing.

Britt, who introduced the legislation earlier this year alongside Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, said during brief debate the bill would assuage concerns about couples losing access to IVF, though Democrats said the measure fell short of providing real protections.

Debate took place shortly after the Southern Baptist Convention, the United States largest Protestant religious organization and one with significant influence in conservative politics, voted to condemn IVF.

It also came one day before the entire U.S. Senate is set to vote on a bill from Democrats that would provide nationwide protections for IVF. That measure also lacks the bipartisan backing needed to advance to final passage.

For the millions of Americans who face infertility every year, IVF provides the hope of a pathway to parenthood, Britt said on the floor. We all have loved ones  whether theyre family members or friends  who have become parents or grandparents through IVF.

Britt said that ensuring access to IVF is fundamentally pro-family and that the legislation should provide couples with certainty and peace of mind that IVF will remain legal and available in every single state.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said the Britt-Cruz bill would still allow states to enact burdensome and unnecessary regulations on IVF that could lead to the kind of legal uncertainty and risk that forced IVF clinics in Alabama to close temporarily earlier this year.

Even though it is an inherent part of the IVF process that families will make more embryos than they need, Murray said. This bill does absolutely nothing  not a single thing  to ensure families who use IVF can have their clinics dispose of unused embryos without facing legal threats for a standard medical procedure.

Murray said GOP senators were completely ignoring the issue of what happens to frozen embryos and using the bill as a PR tool.

The stone-cold reality is that you cannot protect IVF and champion fetal personhood, Murray said.

State access

The Britt-Cruz legislation would prevent a state from receiving Medicaid funding if it barred access to IVF, though the bill didnt say anything about states that define life as beginning at fertilization.

The Alabama state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that frozen embryos constituted children didnt explicitly ban IVF, but all of the states clinics stopped operating until the legislature provided civil and criminal protections.

Cruz sought to pass the bill using the unanimous consent process, where any one senator can ask for approval and any one senator can block that legislation from moving forward. Murray blocked Cruzs request.

Unanimous consent requests dont include a recorded vote.

The legislation had three additional co-sponsors  Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Roger Marshall of Kansas.

Democrat bill

The Senate is set to take a procedural vote as soon as Thursday on legislation from Democrats that would bolster protections for IVF, though that bill isnt expected to get the GOP support needed to move forward.

That bill is more detailed and broader than the Britt-Cruz bill, which has received criticism from Democrats as being insufficient.

New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker said Wednesday during a press conference that access to IVF shouldnt be turned into a political issue and called on GOP senators to back the bill.

We cant make this seem like a left-right issue. Its absolutely not, Booker said. This is an issue thats overwhelmingly supported in America by Republican families, Democratic families and independent families. And so trying to make this into some kind of typical political debate in Washington is just wrong.

Booker said protecting access to IVF is, instead, about protecting fundamental rights, expanding opportunity, taking care of our military families.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the bills lead co-sponsor who has been open about using IVF to have her two daughters, threw cool water on working with Republicans on a bipartisan bill when asked about the possibility during the press conference.

Well, theyre welcome to join ours and make it bipartisan. Weve got 47 co-sponsors thus far and its a very simple piece of legislation, Duckworth said. I cant see why they wouldnt join it.

In contrast, 90% of Republicans have not signed on to Senator Britts bill, Duckworth added.

Southern Baptists resolution

Senate debate on in vitro fertilization is taking place the same week the Southern Baptist Convention meets in Indiana for its annual convention.

During that two-day gathering more than 10,000 Baptists, called messengers, voted on official policies of the SBC, which included objecting to how IVF is practiced now.

The SBC wrote in its resolution that IVF most often engages in the destruction of embryonic human life and increasingly engages in dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting, based on notions of genetic fitness and parental preferences.

The resolution on IVF resolved that members of the SBC should only utilize reproductive technologies consistent with that affirmation as well as several other affirmations within the document.

The resolution was titled, On the Ethical Realities of Reproductive Technologies and the Dignity of the Human Embryo.

Kristen Ferguson, from 11th Street Baptist Church in Upland, California, who announced the resolution before the vote, opposed an amendment that would have made several changes to the text.

Ferguson said during a brief debate the committee that wrote the resolutions for the SBC to vote on wanted to make sure it addressed IVF with the utmost sensitivity.

She added that members of the resolutions committee did not take this topic lightly and we want to make sure that were speaking carefully about it.

The post Republican IVF bill fails in U.S. Senate appeared first on Source New Mexico.
Washington Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray speaks during a press conference on in vitro fertilization outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Also pictured are supporters of Senate Democrats IVF access bill as well as New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker and Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth. (Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britts efforts to pass legislation that would block Medicaid funding from going to states that ban in vitro fertilization were unsuccessful Wednesday when Democrats blocked the bill from advancing.

Britt, who introduced the legislation earlier this year alongside Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, said during brief debate the bill would assuage concerns about couples losing access to IVF, though Democrats said the measure fell short of providing real protections.

Debate took place shortly after the Southern Baptist Convention, the United States largest Protestant religious organization and one with significant influence in conservative politics, voted to condemn IVF.

It also came one day before the entire U.S. Senate is set to vote on a bill from Democrats that would provide nationwide protections for IVF. That measure also lacks the bipartisan backing needed to advance to final passage.

For the millions of Americans who face infertility every year, IVF provides the hope of a pathway to parenthood, Britt said on the floor. We all have loved ones whether theyre family members or friends  who have become parents or grandparents through IVF.

Britt said that ensuring access to IVF is fundamentally pro-family and that the legislation should provide couples with certainty and peace of mind that IVF will remain legal and available in every single state.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said the Britt-Cruz bill would still allow states to enact burdensome and unnecessary regulations on IVF that could lead to the kind of legal uncertainty and risk that forced IVF clinics in Alabama to close temporarily earlier this year.

Even though it is an inherent part of the IVF process that families will make more embryos than they need, Murray said. This bill does absolutely nothing  not a single thing  to ensure families who use IVF can have their clinics dispose of unused embryos without facing legal threats for a standard medical procedure.

Murray said GOP senators were completely ignoring the issue of what happens to frozen embryos and using the bill as a PR tool.

The stone-cold reality is that you cannot protect IVF and champion fetal personhood, Murray said.

State access

The Britt-Cruz legislation would prevent a state from receiving Medicaid funding if it barred access to IVF, though the bill didnt say anything about states that define life as beginning at fertilization.

The Alabama state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that frozen embryos constituted children didnt explicitly ban IVF, but all of the states clinics stopped operating until the legislature provided civil and criminal protections.

Cruz sought to pass the bill using the unanimous consent process, where any one senator can ask for approval and any one senator can block that legislation from moving forward. Murray blocked Cruzs request.

Unanimous consent requests dont include a recorded vote.

The legislation had three additional co-sponsors  Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Roger Marshall of Kansas.

Democrat bill

The Senate is set to take a procedural vote as soon as Thursday on legislation from Democrats that would bolster protections for IVF, though that bill isnt expected to get the GOP support needed to move forward.

That bill is more detailed and broader than the Britt-Cruz bill, which has received criticism from Democrats as being insufficient.

New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker said Wednesday during a press conference that access to IVF shouldnt be turned into a political issue and called on GOP senators to back the bill.

We cant make this seem like a left-right issue. Its absolutely not, Booker said. This is an issue thats overwhelmingly supported in America by Republican families, Democratic families and independent families. And so trying to make this into some kind of typical political debate in Washington is just wrong.

Booker said protecting access to IVF is, instead, about protecting fundamental rights, expanding opportunity, taking care of our military families.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the bills lead co-sponsor who has been open about using IVF to have her two daughters, threw cool water on working with Republicans on a bipartisan bill when asked about the possibility during the press conference.

Well, theyre welcome to join ours and make it bipartisan. Weve got 47 co-sponsors thus far and its a very simple piece of legislation, Duckworth said. I cant see why they wouldnt join it.

In contrast, 90% of Republicans have not signed on to Senator Britts bill, Duckworth added.

Southern Baptists resolution

Senate debate on in vitro fertilization is taking place the same week the Southern Baptist Convention meets in Indiana for its annual convention.

During that two-day gathering more than 10,000 Baptists, called messengers, voted on official policies of the SBC, which included objecting to how IVF is practiced now.

The SBC wrote in its resolution that IVF most often engages in the destruction of embryonic human life and increasingly engages in dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting, based on notions of genetic fitness and parental preferences.

The resolution on IVF resolved that members of the SBC should only utilize reproductive technologies consistent with that affirmation as well as several other affirmations within the document.

The resolution was titled, On the Ethical Realities of Reproductive Technologies and the Dignity of the Human Embryo.

Kristen Ferguson, from 11th Street Baptist Church in Upland, California, who announced the resolution before the vote, opposed an amendment that would have made several changes to the text.

Ferguson said during a brief debate the committee that wrote the resolutions for the SBC to vote on wanted to make sure it addressed IVF with the utmost sensitivity.

She added that members of the resolutions committee did not take this topic lightly and we want to make sure that were speaking carefully about it.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post Republican IVF bill fails in U.S. Senate appeared first on Maine Morning Star.
Washington Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray speaks during a press conference on in vitro fertilization outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Also pictured are supporters of Senate Democrats IVF access bill as well as New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker and Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth.

Washington Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray speaks during a press conference on in vitro fertilization outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Also pictured are supporters of Senate Democrats IVF access bill as well as New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker and Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth. (Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON  Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britts efforts to pass legislation that would block Medicaid funding from going to states that ban in vitro fertilization were unsuccessful Wednesday when Democrats blocked the bill from advancing.

Britt, who introduced the legislation earlier this year alongside Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, said during brief debate the bill would assuage concerns about couples losing access to IVF, though Democrats said the measure fell short of providing real protections.

Debate took place shortly after the Southern Baptist Convention, the United States largest Protestant religious organization and one with significant influence in conservative politics, voted to condemn IVF.

It also came one day before the entire U.S. Senate is set to vote on a bill from Democrats that would provide nationwide protections for IVF. That measure also lacks the bipartisan backing needed to advance to final passage.

For the millions of Americans who face infertility every year, IVF provides the hope of a pathway to parenthood, Britt said on the floor. We all have loved ones  whether theyre family members or friends  who have become parents or grandparents through IVF.

Britt said that ensuring access to IVF is fundamentally pro-family and that the legislation should provide couples with certainty and peace of mind that IVF will remain legal and available in every single state.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said the Britt-Cruz bill would still allow states to enact burdensome and unnecessary regulations on IVF that could lead to the kind of legal uncertainty and risk that forced IVF clinics in Alabama to close temporarily earlier this year.

Even though it is an inherent part of the IVF process that families will make more embryos than they need, Murray said. This bill does absolutely nothing  not a single thing  to ensure families who use IVF can have their clinics dispose of unused embryos without facing legal threats for a standard medical procedure.

Murray said GOP senators were completely ignoring the issue of what happens to frozen embryos and using the bill as a PR tool.

The stone-cold reality is that you cannot protect IVF and champion fetal personhood, Murray said.

State access

The Britt-Cruz legislation would prevent a state from receiving Medicaid funding if it barred access to IVF, though the bill didnt say anything about states that define life as beginning at fertilization.

The Alabama state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that frozen embryos constituted children didnt explicitly ban IVF, but all of the states clinics stopped operating until the legislature provided civil and criminal protections.

Cruz sought to pass the bill using the unanimous consent process, where any one senator can ask for approval and any one senator can block that legislation from moving forward. Murray blocked Cruzs request.

Unanimous consent requests dont include a recorded vote.

The legislation had three additional co-sponsors  Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Roger Marshall of Kansas.

Democrat bill

The Senate is set to take a procedural vote as soon as Thursday on legislation from Democrats that would bolster protections for IVF, though that bill isnt expected to get the GOP support needed to move forward.

That bill is more detailed and broader than the Britt-Cruz bill, which has received criticism from Democrats as being insufficient.

New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker said Wednesday during a press conference that access to IVF shouldnt be turned into a political issue and called on GOP senators to back the bill.

We cant make this seem like a left-right issue. Its absolutely not, Booker said. This is an issue thats overwhelmingly supported in America by Republican families, Democratic families and independent families. And so trying to make this into some kind of typical political debate in Washington is just wrong.

Booker said protecting access to IVF is, instead, about protecting fundamental rights, expanding opportunity, taking care of our military families.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the bills lead co-sponsor who has been open about using IVF to have her two daughters, threw cool water on working with Republicans on a bipartisan bill when asked about the possibility during the press conference.

Well, theyre welcome to join ours and make it bipartisan. Weve got 47 co-sponsors thus far and its a very simple piece of legislation, Duckworth said. I cant see why they wouldnt join it.

In contrast, 90% of Republicans have not signed on to Sen. Britts bill, Duckworth added.

Southern Baptists resolution

Senate debate on in vitro fertilization is taking place the same week the Southern Baptist Convention meets in Indiana for its annual convention.

During that two-day gathering more than 10,000 Baptists, called messengers, voted on official policies of the SBC, which included objecting to how IVF is practiced now.

The SBC wrote in its resolution that IVF most often engages in the destruction of embryonic human life and increasingly engages in dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting, based on notions of genetic fitness and parental preferences.

The resolution on IVF resolved that members of the SBC should only utilize reproductive technologies consistent with that affirmation as well as several other affirmations within the document.

The resolution was titled, On the Ethical Realities of Reproductive Technologies and the Dignity of the Human Embryo.

Kristen Ferguson, from 11th Street Baptist Church in Upland, California, who announced the resolution before the vote, opposed an amendment that would have made several changes to the text.

Ferguson said during a brief debate the committee that wrote the resolutions for the SBC to vote on wanted to make sure it addressed IVF with the utmost sensitivity.

She added that members of the resolutions committee did not take this topic lightly and we want to make sure that were speaking carefully about it.

The post Republican IVF bill fails in U.S. Senate appeared first on Kansas Reflector.
Beadblasted titanium 100-piece edition, for all sporty challengers

Chopard annually presents new Mille Miglia chronographs to celebrate the eponymous race  regularly referred to as "the most beautiful race in the world"  for which it has been world sponsor and official timekeeper since 1988. Produced in a 100-piece limited series, the Mille Miglia GTS Chrono Limited Italian Edition 2024 benefits from the lightness and strength of grade 2 titanium, an innovative and sporty metal. Aesthetically, this new timepiece brilliantly combines different shades of black and grey, thanks to its crown and pushers in DLC (Diamond Like Carbon) steel, its frosted grey dial with black counters as well as its 100% recycled SEAQUAL yarn strap. Technically, it beats to the rhythm of a chronograph movement with chronometer-certified precision and a 48-hour power reserve. On roads and circuits as well as in the city, this new model is the indispensable ally for all sporty challengers.

The 2024 edition of the 1000 Miglia  organisedfrom June 11th to 15th  will mark the 42nd historical re-enactment of the "most beautiful motor race in the world". The original edition took place in 1927, at the initiative of a group of car enthusiasts from Brescia in reaction to the Italian Grand Prix being relocated to the city of Monza.

Mille Miglia GTS Chrono Limited Italian Edition 2024  Chopard

A sporty, innovative look

The Mille Miglia GTS Chrono Limited Italian Edition 2024 exudes a strong visual identity, designed in a sporty black and grey colour scheme with a few touches of red.

Made from grade 2 titanium in a beautiful dark grey colour, its 44 mm case benefits from the advanced properties of a light metal that is highly resistant to both shocks and corrosion: indispensable assets in the extreme conditions typical of motor races. The use of titanium reflects Chopard's quest to use innovative materials in the production of its timepieces, as well as the sporting identity of the Mille Miglia collection. This metal derived from medical research is also highly hypoallergenic, making it more comfortable to wear.

The contemporary case is complemented by an equally innovative strap, crafted from SEAQUAL yarn made with upcycled plastic waste recovered from the Mediterranean. In keeping with Chopard's commitment to sustainable luxury, this type of material helps to keep the seas clean. Its black rubber lining ensures great flexibility of use thanks to its resistance to water and perspiration, its excellent durability and its comfortable feel on the wrist.

The galvanically treated grey dial features a frosted finish. The famous red arrow symbolising the 1000 Miglia points to the semi-instantaneous date display that is readable thanks to the built-in magnifier. Finally, the hands and hour-markers are coated with Super-LumiNova to ensure that the indications are legible by day and night  an essential feature when driving in the heat of competition.

Finally, the black aluminium bezel is inspired by the dials and gauges of classic cars. The case-back is engraved with a chequered flag, the 1000 Miglia arrow logo and the inscription "Brescia > Roma > Brescia", recalling this watch collections indestructible ties with the world of racing.

Mille Miglia GTS Chrono Limited Italian Edition 2024  Chopard

A watchmaking engine with certified precision

Like every model in the collection, the self-winding Mille Miglia GTS Chrono Limited Italian Edition 2024 is a reliable and sporty creation. Its movement delivers COSC-certified chronometer accuracy, a guarantee dear to the heart of Chopard's Co-President, Karl-Friedrich Scheufele. An amateur driver himself, he recognises the importance of being equipped with a high-precision chronograph when taking part in events such as the 1000 Miglia, where a few fractions of a second can make the difference between success and failure in a time trial.

When racing, drivers will appreciate the movement's 4Hz frequency, 48-hour power reserve, stop-seconds function, tachymeter scale as well as the lay-out of the 12-hour and 30-minute counters along with the small seconds counter.

This model is clearly intended for at drivers seeking to surpass themselves  much in the spirit of the Maisons legendary ambassadors, Jacky Ickx and Romain Dumas.
Washington Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray speaks during a press conference on in vitro fertilization outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Also pictured are supporters of Senate Democrats IVF access bill as well as New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker and Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth. (Photo by Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON  Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britts efforts to pass legislation that would block Medicaid funding from going to states that ban in vitro fertilization were unsuccessful Wednesday when Democrats blocked the bill from advancing.

Britt, who introduced the legislation earlier this year alongside Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, said during brief debate the bill would assuage concerns about couples losing access to IVF, though Democrats said the measure fell short of providing real protections.

Debate took place shortly after the Southern Baptist Convention, the United States largest Protestant religious organization and one with significant influence in conservative politics, voted to condemn IVF.

It also came one day before the entire U.S. Senate is set to vote on a bill from Democrats that would provide nationwide protections for IVF. That measure also lacks the bipartisan backing needed to advance to final passage.

For the millions of Americans who face infertility every year, IVF provides the hope of a pathway to parenthood, Britt said on the floor. We all have loved ones  whether theyre family members or friends  who have become parents or grandparents through IVF.

Britt said that ensuring access to IVF is fundamentally pro-family and that the legislation should provide couples with certainty and peace of mind that IVF will remain legal and available in every single state.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said the Britt-Cruz bill would still allow states to enact burdensome and unnecessary regulations on IVF that could lead to the kind of legal uncertainty and risk that forced IVF clinics in Alabama to close temporarily earlier this year.

Even though it is an inherent part of the IVF process that families will make more embryos than they need, Murray said. This bill does absolutely nothing  not a single thing  to ensure families who use IVF can have their clinics dispose of unused embryos without facing legal threats for a standard medical procedure.

Murray said GOP senators were completely ignoring the issue of what happens to frozen embryos and using the bill as a PR tool.

The stone-cold reality is that you cannot protect IVF and champion fetal personhood, Murray said.

State access

The Britt-Cruz legislation would prevent a state from receiving Medicaid funding if it barred access to IVF, though the bill didnt say anything about states that define life as beginning at fertilization.

The Alabama state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that frozen embryos constituted children didnt explicitly ban IVF, but all of the states clinics stopped operating until the legislature provided civil and criminal protections.

Cruz sought to pass the bill using the unanimous consent process, where any one senator can ask for approval and any one senator can block that legislation from moving forward. Murray blocked Cruzs request.

Unanimous consent requests dont include a recorded vote.

The legislation had three additional co-sponsors  Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Roger Marshall of Kansas.

Democrats bill

The Senate is set to take a procedural vote as soon as Thursday on legislation from Democrats that would bolster protections for IVF, though that bill isnt expected to get the GOP support needed to move forward.

That bill is more detailed and broader than the Britt-Cruz bill, which has received criticism from Democrats as being insufficient.

New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker said Wednesday during a press conference that access to IVF shouldnt be turned into a political issue and called on GOP senators to back the bill.

We cant make this seem like a left-right issue. Its absolutely not, Booker said. This is an issue thats overwhelmingly supported in America by Republican families, Democratic families and independent families. And so trying to make this into some kind of typical political debate in Washington is just wrong.

Booker said protecting access to IVF is, instead, about protecting fundamental rights, expanding opportunity, taking care of our military families.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the bills lead co-sponsor who has been open about using IVF to have her two daughters, threw cool water on working with Republicans on a bipartisan bill when asked about the possibility during the press conference.

Well, theyre welcome to join ours and make it bipartisan. Weve got 47 co-sponsors thus far and its a very simple piece of legislation, Duckworth said. I cant see why they wouldnt join it.

In contrast, 90% of Republicans have not signed on to Senator Britts bill, Duckworth added.

Southern Baptists resolution

Senate debate on in vitro fertilization is taking place the same week the Southern Baptist Convention meets in Indiana for its annual convention.

During that two-day gathering more than 10,000 Baptists, called messengers, voted on official policies of the SBC, which included objecting to how IVF is practiced now.

The SBC wrote in its resolution that IVF most often engages in the destruction of embryonic human life and increasingly engages in dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting, based on notions of genetic fitness and parental preferences.

The resolution on IVF resolved that members of the SBC should only utilize reproductive technologies consistent with that affirmation as well as several other affirmations within the document.

The resolution was titled, On the Ethical Realities of Reproductive Technologies and the Dignity of the Human Embryo.

Kristen Ferguson, from 11th Street Baptist Church in Upland, California, who announced the resolution before the vote, opposed an amendment that would have made several changes to the text.

Ferguson said during a brief debate the committee that wrote the resolutions for the SBC to vote on wanted to make sure it addressed IVF with the utmost sensitivity.

She added that members of the resolutions committee did not take this topic lightly and we want to make sure that were speaking carefully about it.

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The post Republican IVF bill fails in U.S. Senate appeared first on Kentucky Lantern.
Washington Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray speaks during a press conference on in vitro fertilization outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Also pictured are supporters of Senate Democrats IVF access bill as well as New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker and Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth. (Jennifer Shutt/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON  Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britts efforts to pass legislation that would block Medicaid funding from going to states that ban in vitro fertilization were unsuccessful Wednesday when Democrats blocked the bill from advancing.

Britt, who introduced the legislation earlier this year alongside Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, said during brief debate the bill would assuage concerns about couples losing access to IVF, though Democrats said the measure fell short of providing real protections.

Debate took place shortly after the Southern Baptist Convention, the United States largest Protestant religious organization and one with significant influence in conservative politics, voted to condemn IVF.

It also came one day before the entire U.S. Senate is set to vote on a bill from Democrats that would provide nationwide protections for IVF. That measure also lacks the bipartisan backing needed to advance to final passage.

For the millions of Americans who face infertility every year, IVF provides the hope of a pathway to parenthood, Britt said on the floor. We all have loved ones  whether theyre family members or friends  who have become parents or grandparents through IVF.

Britt said that ensuring access to IVF is fundamentally pro-family and that the legislation should provide couples with certainty and peace of mind that IVF will remain legal and available in every single state.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said the Britt-Cruz bill would still allow states to enact burdensome and unnecessary regulations on IVF that could lead to the kind of legal uncertainty and risk that forced IVF clinics in Alabama to close temporarily earlier this year.

Even though it is an inherent part of the IVF process that families will make more embryos than they need, Murray said. This bill does absolutely nothing  not a single thing  to ensure families who use IVF can have their clinics dispose of unused embryos without facing legal threats for a standard medical procedure.

Murray said GOP senators were completely ignoring the issue of what happens to frozen embryos and using the bill as a PR tool.

The stone-cold reality is that you cannot protect IVF and champion fetal personhood, Murray said.

State access

The Britt-Cruz legislation would prevent a state from receiving Medicaid funding if it barred access to IVF, though the bill didnt say anything about states that define life as beginning at fertilization.

The Alabama state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that frozen embryos constituted children didnt explicitly ban IVF, but all of the states clinics stopped operating until the legislature provided civil and criminal protections.

Cruz sought to pass the bill using the unanimous consent process, where any one senator can ask for approval and any one senator can block that legislation from moving forward. Murray blocked Cruzs request.

Unanimous consent requests dont include a recorded vote.

The legislation had three additional co-sponsors  Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Roger Marshall of Kansas.

Democrat bill

The Senate is set to take a procedural vote as soon as Thursday on legislation from Democrats that would bolster protections for IVF, though that bill isnt expected to get the GOP support needed to move forward.

That bill is more detailed and broader than the Britt-Cruz bill, which has received criticism from Democrats as being insufficient.

New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker said Wednesday during a press conference that access to IVF shouldnt be turned into a political issue and called on GOP senators to back the bill.

We cant make this seem like a left-right issue. Its absolutely not, Booker said. This is an issue thats overwhelmingly supported in America by Republican families, Democratic families and independent families. And so trying to make this into some kind of typical political debate in Washington is just wrong.

Booker said protecting access to IVF is, instead, about protecting fundamental rights, expanding opportunity, taking care of our military families.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the bills lead co-sponsor who has been open about using IVF to have her two daughters, threw cool water on working with Republicans on a bipartisan bill when asked about the possibility during the press conference.

Well, theyre welcome to join ours and make it bipartisan. Weve got 47 co-sponsors thus far and its a very simple piece of legislation, Duckworth said. I cant see why they wouldnt join it.

In contrast, 90% of Republicans have not signed on to Senator Britts bill, Duckworth added.

Southern Baptists resolution

Senate debate on in vitro fertilization is taking place the same week the Southern Baptist Convention meets in Indiana for its annual convention.

During that two-day gathering more than 10,000 Baptists, called messengers, voted on official policies of the SBC, which included objecting to how IVF is practiced now.

The SBC wrote in its resolution that IVF most often engages in the destruction of embryonic human life and increasingly engages in dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting, based on notions of genetic fitness and parental preferences.

The resolution on IVF resolved that members of the SBC should only utilize reproductive technologies consistent with that affirmation as well as several other affirmations within the document.

The resolution was titled, On the Ethical Realities of Reproductive Technologies and the Dignity of the Human Embryo.

Kristen Ferguson, from 11th Street Baptist Church in Upland, California, who announced the resolution before the vote, opposed an amendment that would have made several changes to the text.

Ferguson said during a brief debate the committee that wrote the resolutions for the SBC to vote on wanted to make sure it addressed IVF with the utmost sensitivity.

She added that members of the resolutions committee did not take this topic lightly and we want to make sure that were speaking carefully about it.

The post Republican IVF bill fails in U.S. Senate appeared first on Nebraska Examiner.
Washington Democratic U.S. Sen. Patty Murray speaks during a press conference on in vitro fertilization outside the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Also pictured are supporters of Senate Democrats IVF access bill as well as New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker and Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth. (Jennifer Shutt | States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON  Alabama Republican Sen. Katie Britts efforts to pass legislation that would block Medicaid funding from going to states that ban in vitro fertilization were unsuccessful Wednesday when Democrats blocked the bill from advancing.

Britt, who introduced the legislation earlier this year alongside Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, said during brief debate the bill would assuage concerns about couples losing access to IVF, though Democrats said the measure fell short of providing real protections.

Debate took place shortly after the Southern Baptist Convention, the United States largest Protestant religious organization and one with significant influence in conservative politics, voted to condemn IVF.

It also came one day before the entire U.S. Senate is set to vote on a bill from Democrats that would provide nationwide protections for IVF. That measure also lacks the bipartisan backing needed to advance to final passage.

For the millions of Americans who face infertility every year, IVF provides the hope of a pathway to parenthood, Britt said on the floor. We all have loved ones  whether theyre family members or friends  who have become parents or grandparents through IVF.

Britt said that ensuring access to IVF is fundamentally pro-family and that the legislation should provide couples with certainty and peace of mind that IVF will remain legal and available in every single state.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said the Britt-Cruz bill would still allow states to enact burdensome and unnecessary regulations on IVF that could lead to the kind of legal uncertainty and risk that forced IVF clinics in Alabama to close temporarily earlier this year.

Even though it is an inherent part of the IVF process that families will make more embryos than they need, Murray said. This bill does absolutely nothing  not a single thing  to ensure families who use IVF can have their clinics dispose of unused embryos without facing legal threats for a standard medical procedure.

Murray said GOP senators were completely ignoring the issue of what happens to frozen embryos and using the bill as a PR tool.

The stone-cold reality is that you cannot protect IVF and champion fetal personhood, Murray said.

State access

The Britt-Cruz legislation would prevent a state from receiving Medicaid funding if it barred access to IVF, though the bill didnt say anything about states that define life as beginning at fertilization.

The Alabama state Supreme Court ruling earlier this year that frozen embryos constituted children didnt explicitly ban IVF, but all of the states clinics stopped operating until the legislature provided civil and criminal protections.

Cruz sought to pass the bill using the unanimous consent process, where any one senator can ask for approval and any one senator can block that legislation from moving forward. Murray blocked Cruzs request.

Unanimous consent requests dont include a recorded vote.

The legislation had three additional co-sponsors  Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming, Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Roger Marshall of Kansas.

Democrat bill

The Senate is set to take a procedural vote as soon as Thursday on legislation from Democrats that would bolster protections for IVF, though that bill isnt expected to get the GOP support needed to move forward.

That bill is more detailed and broader than the Britt-Cruz bill, which has received criticism from Democrats as being insufficient.

New Jersey Democratic Sen. Cory Booker said Wednesday during a press conference that access to IVF shouldnt be turned into a political issue and called on GOP senators to back the bill.

We cant make this seem like a left-right issue. Its absolutely not, Booker said. This is an issue thats overwhelmingly supported in America by Republican families, Democratic families and independent families. And so trying to make this into some kind of typical political debate in Washington is just wrong.

Booker said protecting access to IVF is, instead, about protecting fundamental rights, expanding opportunity, taking care of our military families.

Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, the bills lead co-sponsor who has been open about using IVF to have her two daughters, threw cool water on working with Republicans on a bipartisan bill when asked about the possibility during the press conference.

Well, theyre welcome to join ours and make it bipartisan. Weve got 47 co-sponsors thus far and its a very simple piece of legislation, Duckworth said. I cant see why they wouldnt join it.

In contrast, 90% of Republicans have not signed on to Senator Britts bill, Duckworth added.

Southern Baptists resolution

Senate debate on in vitro fertilization is taking place the same week the Southern Baptist Convention meets in Indiana for its annual convention.

During that two-day gathering more than 10,000 Baptists, called messengers, voted on official policies of the SBC, which included objecting to how IVF is practiced now.

The SBC wrote in its resolution that IVF most often engages in the destruction of embryonic human life and increasingly engages in dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting, based on notions of genetic fitness and parental preferences.

The resolution on IVF resolved that members of the SBC should only utilize reproductive technologies consistent with that affirmation as well as several other affirmations within the document.

The resolution was titled, On the Ethical Realities of Reproductive Technologies and the Dignity of the Human Embryo.

Kristen Ferguson, from 11th Street Baptist Church in Upland, California, who announced the resolution before the vote, opposed an amendment that would have made several changes to the text.

Ferguson said during a brief debate the committee that wrote the resolutions for the SBC to vote on wanted to make sure it addressed IVF with the utmost sensitivity.

She added that members of the resolutions committee did not take this topic lightly and we want to make sure that were speaking carefully about it.

The post Republican IVF bill fails in U.S. Senate appeared first on West Virginia Watch.
The U.S. House of Representatives voted 216 to 207 to hold Merrick Garland in contempt on Congress on Wednesday, a largely symbolic move sparked by Republican ire over the attorney generals refusal to turn over subpoenaed recordings.

The audio in question is an interview that President Joe Biden gave to the special counsel investigating his handling of classified documents. (The prosecutor, Robert Hur, declined to seek criminal charges against Biden in February.)

Just one Republican, Rep. David Joyce of Ohio, crossed the aisle to vote no alongside the chambers Democrats. Joyce, a former prosecutor, said afterward that he could not support a resolution that would further politicize our judicial system to score political points. Seven Democrats and one Republican did not vote on the measure.

House Speaker Mike Johnson told reporters that he was pleased with the outcome of the vote. Asked by CNN if he felt Garland should be prosecuted for failing to comply with the subpoena, the speaker said he believed the House had sent an important message, adding, Well see what happens next.

The resolution will see the matter referred on to the U.S. Attorneys Office for the District of Columbia for investigation and possible criminal prosecution, which will almost certainly not occur.

Garland, for his part, said it was deeply disappointing that this House of Representatives has turned a serious congressional authority into a partisan weapon.

Todays vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Departments need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the Committees, he continued in a statement. I will always stand up for this Department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy.

In an op-ed for The Washington Post on Tuesday morning, Garland said that his office would not be intimidated by Republican showmanship.

It is absurd and dangerous that public servants, many of whom risk their lives every day, are being threatened for simply doing their jobs and adhering to the principles that have long guided the Justice Departments work, he wrote.

It marks the third time in a dozen years that a sitting attorney general has been found in contempt by the House, most of them over politically charged cases.

Republicans, who dominate the House, have argued that the Hur recordings are necessary to their impeachment inquiry into the president, which has yet to produce any concrete evidence of wrongdoing and is largely running on fumes.

The Justice Department, which turned over transcripts of the Biden interview, has stood behind its decision not to turn over the audio, arguing that to do so would set a dangerous precedent. Biden asserted executive privilege last month to block House investigators from accessing the audio. Hours later, furious Republicans announced they would recommend Garland be held in contempt.

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Virginia Sen. John McGuire takes part at a campaign event in Charlottesville, Va., June 5, 2024. Bob Good is fighting a two-front battle to hold his seat in Virginias 5th Congressional District and with it his role as leader of the conservative House Freedom Caucus  and that doesn't even count McGuire, his opponent in the Tuesday, June 18, GOP primary election. (AP Photo/Matthew Barakat)

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. (AP)  Bob Good is fighting a two-front battle to hold his seat in Virginias 5th Congressional District and with it his role as leader of the conservative House Freedom Caucus. And that doesn't even count his opponent in the June 18 GOP primary, state Sen. John McGuire.

Good, who played a key role in the ouster of former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, has drawn the ire of establishment Republicans, who are bankrolling a campaign to oust him.

More significantly, he's also lost the support of former President Donald Trump, who is endorsing McGuire. Good fell out of favor with Trump when he endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for the 2024 presidential nomination.

Good switched his endorsement to Trump after DeSantis dropped out, but that failed to assuage the former president. On social media, Trump called Good BAD FOR VIRGINIA, AND BAD FOR THE USA." Trump acknowledged that Good eventually gave him an endorsement, but it was too late: "The damage has been done.

Trump has escalated the attacks in recent days. He issued a video endorsing McGuire and warning that Good will stab you in the back like he did me.

McGuire has echoed the attacks, calling Good a never Trumper, putting Good on the defensive.

Good, for his part, says he considers Trump the best president of my lifetime. He says he endorsed DeSantis because he wanted a candidate who could serve two terms, and Trump is constitutionally eligible to serve only one more term.

He attacks McGuire as a serial campaigner who always has his eye on the next job.

McGuire ran for the state Senate in 2023, and within a week of winning a four-year term there announced he was running for Good's seat in Congress. In 2022, he ran for Congress in another district, the 7th, but later withdrew. In 2021, he ran for the House of Delegates and won. In 2020, he lost a primary race for the 7th District.

He's literally a perpetual candidate in search of a race, Good said.

Good, on the other hand, has a relatively short political resume. He served on the Campbell County Board of Supervisors, and then took on incumbent Republican congressman Denver Riggleman in 2020. He defeated Riggleman at a nominating convention as Riggleman faced blowback among social conservatives for officiating a same-sex wedding.

Good is facing payback for his efforts in McCarthy's ouster. The Republican political action committee Defending Main Street, which almost always spends money to support GOP incumbents, launched a $450,000 ad campaign against 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 groups president and CEO.

Good said he believes the massive ad campaigns against him are the only reason the race is close but that voters dont care he voted for McCarthys ouster.

He said McCarthy is on his revenge tour now, and Im his biggest target.

It might have seemed inconceivable that an incumbent with the conservative record of Good could be vulnerable in a primary, but Alex Keena, political science professor at Virginia Commonwealth University, said the race has just captured the dynamics in the Republican Party right now really well.

He said Good has put himself on an island, alienating mainstream Republicans by ousting McCarthy. And he lost the Trump voters because, I guess he betrayed Trump, which is really easy to do.

Good put it simply: McGuire, he said, is not running to the right of me. Hes running to the Trump of me.

McGuire and his campaign did not respond to multiple calls and emails seeking an interview.

The race has splintered the far-right Freedom Caucus, for which Good serves as chairman. Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz has come to the district to support Good, while Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene campaigned for McGuire.

At a rally last week in Charlottesville  the most liberal part of the district  a few dozen McGuire supporters were outnumbered by 75 to 100 protesters who swarmed around McGuire and Greene when they got off a campaign bus.

Any efforts by McGuire and Greene to speak were drowned out by protestors chanting Go Home! and waving signs that said No hate in our state.

Neither McGuire nor Greene seemed to mind, with McGuire smiling through the chaos and Greene blowing kisses to her detractors as they responded with middle fingers.

McGuire, asked what he made of the scene, smiled and said, Freedom! as he retreated back to his bus.

McGuire supporters at the rally indicated that their support for the candidate stems primarily from their disappointment with Good.

Good is a backstabber," said Nelson County resident Kerry Williams Thornton. I was with Good two years ago. ... But you cannot go with DeSantis and think that Trump is going to have your back."
Former President Donald Trump, who is not exactly known for his restraint, let a room full of House Republicans know his thoughts on the RNCs host city on Thursday.

According to Punchbowl News, Trump told the group that Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city.

Trump spokesperson and former Trump administration official Steven Cheung called Punchbowls reporting total bullshit in an X post. He never said it like how its been falsely characterized as. He was talking about how terrible crime and voter fraud are, he said.

On Fox News, House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) said he didnt hear it and I was sitting right next to him.

Wisconsin lawmakers who were in the room all told vastly different stories: Evidently they did not get the same memo.

Rep. Glenn Grothman (R-WI) and Rep. Scott Fitzgerald (R-WI) corroborated that Trump was referring to the election integrity and crime rate in Milwaukee, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Rep. Bryan Steil (R-WI), meanwhile, claimed Trump didnt make the comment at all.

I was in the room. President Trump did not say this. There is no better place than Wisconsin in July. https://t.co/MJUpqyAt4G  Bryan Steil (@RepBryanSteil) June 13, 2024

However, Steil fell in line with the rest of his colleagues later in the day, changing his story on a WISN 12 News appearance.

He wasnt talking about the city. He was talking about specific issues in the city, Steil said.

GOP Rep. Bryan Steil on Trump's Milwaukee comments: "He wasn't talking about the city. He was talking about specific issues in the city."



"I don't think that's the context at all. I'm saying we were talking about specific issues, not the city of Milwaukee." pic.twitter.com/KKPKpWCisE  Matt Smith (@mattsmith_news) June 13, 2024

Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) had his own story too, claiming that Trump was referring to the CRIME RATE in Milwaukee. Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-WI) disputed Van Orden, telling the Journal Sentinel, I think he kind of lumps all those things together, that there were some real improprieties [with the election] in Wisconsin, and cites Milwaukee as a result of it.

Milwaukees Democratic Mayor Cavalier Johnson did not hold back, pointing out that there are nearly 50,000 registered Republicans in Milwaukee.

You are calling their home horrible, Johnson told reporters Thursday afternoon. If Donald Trump wants to talk about things that he thinks are horrible, all of us lived through his presidency, so right back at ya, buddy.

President Joe Biden even got in on the fun, posting to his X account a picture of him with a Biden Milwaukee Bucks Jersey alongside the team from earlier this year, captioned I happen to love Milwaukee.

I happen to love Milwaukee. pic.twitter.com/QRfgwbETV7  Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) June 13, 2024

Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) also jeered Trump, writing an X post: Milwaukee makes the greatest beer, brats, and motorcycles in the world. Its home to some of our most vibrant communities, hardest workers, and is a part of what makes Wisconsin the best state in the nation. Donald Trump wouldnt understand even if a jury told him so.

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WASHINGTON  House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for defying a subpoena  including three who defied their own congressional subpoenas over their roles in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection.

GOP Reps. Scott Perry (Pa.), Jim Jordan (Ohio) and Andy Biggs (Ariz.)all blew off subpoenas in May 2022 from the bipartisan House select committee investigating the riot at the U.S. Capitol. The panel had previously asked them to appear voluntarily to answer questions about Donald Trumps attempt to overturn his 2020 election loss, which culminated in his supporters attack on Congress as both houses met to certify the Electoral College results that day. They all declined.

They gave a variety of nonsensical reasons for ignoring their subpoenas at the time. Jordan said his had no legitimate legislative purpose and broke House rules. Biggs said his didnt count because it was part of a baseless witch hunt. Perry, whose phone records were seized by the FBI as part of a probe into his role in the Jan. 6 Capitol attack, similarly defied his subpoena because he said it was part of a political witch hunt.

They seemed to forget all about this on Wednesday when they voted to rebuke Garland  who, unlike them, took meaningful steps to comply with the GOPs requests.

Republicans had demanded Garland hand over all materials related to President Joe Bidens October 2023 interview with former special counsel Robert Hur, about the investigation of Bidens past mishandling of classified information.

The Justice Department made a transcript of the full interview public and provided some documents, but Republicans said they also wanted the audio recording of the interview to ensure its accuracy. The Justice Department declined, warning of the precedent it would set for the department being required to provide audio recordings in future investigations.

Republicans responded by holding Garland in contempt of Congress in what was essentially a symbolic vote.

The American People deserve the Hur tapes, Perry wrote on social media. We have no other option.

Merrick Garland doesn't get to decide what's appropriate for the Legislative Branch - the People's branch - to have. WE will determine that.



The American People deserve the Hur tapes. We have no other option - I voted to hold him in contempt of Congress.  Rep. Scott Perry (@RepScottPerry) June 12, 2024

Russell Dye, a spokesperson for Jordan, dismissed the idea that Jordan had defied his subpoena. He blamed the House Jan. 6 committee for not convincing him to comply.

Mr. Jordan never ignored his subpoena, the January 6th Committee stopped replying to him about his cooperation, Dye said in an email. Any inclination otherwise is lazy and without basic knowledge of the facts.

Aides to Perry and Biggs did not respond to requests for comment.

Democrats resoundingly dismissed Garlands vote as a stunt.

This is the first time somebodys been held in contempt by the U.S. Congress for basically complying with everything Congress has asked for, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), who was a member of the Jan. 6 select committee, told reporters after the vote.

The fairly shocking thing to me was that you had members of Congress actually speaking out on the contempt motion who themselves had completely violated subpoenas that were issued to them by the Jan. 6 Select Committee and never rendered one minute of testimony and never rendered a single document on Jan. 6, Raskin said.

Arthur Delaney contributed reporting.

Related...
Senate Republicans are introducing a bill that would support alternatives to in vitro fertilization (IVF) by promoting medical services that attempt to address causes of infertility among women.

The Reproductive Empowerment and Support through Optimal Restoration Act, or RESTORE Act, was announced Thursday and co-sponsored by GOP Sens. Cindy Hyde-Smith (Miss.) and James Lankford (Okla.). The purpose of the bill appears to be to reduce the use of IVF services among people trying to have children.

The legislation would do so by promoting awareness and access to what is called restorative reproductive medicine, which the International Institute for Restorative Reproductive Medicine defines as any scientific approach to reproductive medicine that seeks to cooperate with or restore the normal physiology and anatomy of the human reproductive system.

The bill specifically cites conditions such as endometriosis, adenomyosis, polycystic ovary syndrome, uterine fibroids and blocked fallopian tubes as common causes of infertility. It would also prohibit discrimination against health care providers who dont provide assisted reproductive technology, such as IVF.

Funds from Title X awards would also be made eligible to potential grant recipients engaged primarily in restorative reproductive medicine, per the release.

IVF became a hot-button topic in the national reproductive rights conversation this year after the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos created through IVF could be considered children under state law pertaining to the wrongful death of a minor.

I strongly support treatments such as IVF, which have helped so many families experience the miracle of life, Hyde-Smith said in a statement. Healing the actual causes of infertility will only help increase the success rate for couples trying to conceive.

Its time that we look at paying serious attention helping women and couples affected by infertility by treating the underlying conditions that make it hard, if not impossible, to have a baby, she added.

The Alabama Supreme Court ruling halted IVF services in the state as providers deemed the legal risk too great. The Alabama Legislature later passed a bill providing civil and criminal immunity to providers less than a month after the states Supreme Court ruling.

The issue put Republicans in a tough spot as they both supported the courts ruling to consider embryos the same as children while denouncing the fallout of that decision, limiting access to a treatment that enables patients to become parents.

At the core of the conversation was the disposal of frozen embryos that are ultimately not used for pregnancy. Lankford cited this issue when speaking to NOTUS, who were the first to report the introduction of the RESTORE Act.

There are so many embryos created and frozen that are then abandoned, that becomes an issue for someone  just a moral, ethical issue, Lankford said.

Both the Oklahoma Republican and RESTORE Act emphasized there is no opposition to IVF services. He said he was introducing the bill with Hyde-Smith because we want the people to also think about the bigger issue of infertility while were talking about IVF.

Democrats and Republicans in the Senate currently have two competing IVF protection bills. Democrats on Wednesday blocked the GOPs bill arguing that it does not nearly go far enough to protect IVF access.

The Senate will vote Thursday on the Democrats IVF bill, the Right to IVF Act.

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Republicans push bill to ban DEI programs from federal agencies and stop schools using federal funds for them

Ohio Senator JD Vance has introduced a bill that would dismantle all forms of diversity and inclusion initiatives in the federal government (Getty Images)

Senate Republicans are targeting diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs with the federal government through a new bill that seeks to remove and prohibit any agency from funding programs, offices or leaders related to DEI  including in higher education.

On Thursday, far-right Ohio Senator JD Vance introduced the Dismantle DEI Act of 2024, legislation that targets DEI programs which he asserts is a destructive ideology that breeds hatred and racial division.

A section of the bill explicitly prohibits colleges and universities from using federal funding to maintain offices, officers or training courses related to DEI and accessibility.

Proponents of affirmative action hold signs during a protest at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, on July 1, 2023. (AFP via Getty Images)

The bill specifies higher education institutions cannot, develop, implement, distribute, publish or purchase a course or substantially similar course related to critical race theory, sexual orientation, gender theory, sexual identity, intersectionality and more.

It has no place in our federal government or anywhere else in our society, Vance said in a press release.

He added: Americans tax dollars should not be co-opted to spread this radical and divisive ideology  this bill would ensure they are not.

It is the latest move among conservatives to remove DEI programs that they have argued are discriminatory and promote liberal ideology. Last year, the Supreme Court overturned affirmative action in higher education institutions in a case brought by a conservative legal group.

DEI programs, which have been around since the 1960s, are meant to promote equal opportunity and fair treatment for all people in companies, schools and organizations. Oftentimes, that includes adopting an office dedicated to educating and promoting diversity through training programs.

But over the last few years, right-wing individuals have attacked DEI initiatives as liberal indoctrination or reverse racism. At least 20 states have attempted to limit DEI in schools or workplaces. Those attempts have become law in Idaho, Florida, Texas and Indiana.

Now, Vance, joined by 20 other members of Congress, is seeking to eradicate DEI initiatives from the federal government as a whole by revoking all executive orders related to diversity, removing all offices or officers dedicated to DEI and clawing back all funding to DEI programs.

Its unlikely the bill will successfully pass the Senate given Democrats have the majority. Even if it did, President Joe Biden would most certainly veto it.

This article was ammended on July 13 to better clairfy how school could be impacted. The bill only calls for schools to lose funding for DEI programs, not other parts of the academic program.
House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress after he declined to turn over subpoenaed audio of President Bidens interview with special counsel Robert Hur.

The 216-207 vote is a win for the House GOP, after numerous members privately voiced concern over backing the measure, leaving the Republican priority lingering for nearly a month. With Republicans razor-thin House majority, they could afford to lose only two votes if every member was present.

Rep. Dave Joyce (R-Ohio) was the lone GOP no vote.

Republicans already have the transcript of the conversation, and while the president discussed no items relevant to their impeachment investigation, the GOP has nonetheless connected the issue to their probe.

House Oversight and Accountability Committee Chair James Comer (R-Ky.) kicked off debate Wednesday by accusing the Justice Department of trying to cover up President Bidens wrongdoing.

They also see the audio as a vehicle for exploring Hurs comments that Biden had a poor memory.

Democrats meanwhile argued the move was an effort to aid an imploding impeachment probe, with Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) calling Garland collateral damage for [this] failed effort to impeach the president of the United States.

While the vote makes for a formal censure of Garland, its unlikely to yield any tangible results. Such measures serve as referrals to the Justice Department, which must then weigh whether they merit prosecution.

President Biden has claimed executive privilege over the tapes, and an internal Justice Department opinion obtained by The Hill ahead of the vote indicates the department considers that a valid legal basis for sidestepping the subpoena.

It is deeply disappointing that this House of Representatives has turned a serious congressional authority into a partisan weapon. Todays vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Departments need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the Committees, Garland said in a statement after the vote.

I will always stand up for this Department, its employees, and its vital mission to defend our democracy.

Joyce likewise said it was a politicized move.

As a former prosecutor, I cannot in good conscience support a resolution that would further politicize our judicial system to score political points. The American people expect Congress to work for them, solve policy problems, and prioritize good governance. Enough is enough, he said in a statement after the vote.

During debate Wednesday, Republicans argued the audio they sought could be key to their investigations.

House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) suggested Biden may have kept classified information to help him write his memoir. Hur determined there was not enough evidence to support a claim that the president intentionally held onto the records found at his office and home and noted the book does not contain classified information.

President Biden had strong motivations to ignore proper procedures for safeguarding the classified information in his notebooks. He had decided months before leaving office to write a book, a book for which he got paid $8 million, Jordan said before referencing former President Trumps legal battles.

One former president is being charged, Joe Biden is not being, and we think were entitled  actually, we know were entitled  to all the evidence.

At another point during debate, Comer asked, What is the Biden administration trying to hide?

Attorney General Merrick Garlands refusal to produce this evidence establishes a clear pattern of obstruction by the DOJ to cover up President Bidens wrongdoing, he said.

They were mocked by Democrats, however, for suggesting there was any such detail to be unearthed in a conversation already memorialized in a 250-page transcript.

In case youve lost the thread of this madcap wild goose chase, America, remember this is an impeachment investigation. Do they think that the holy grail of the 118th Congress, evidence of a presidential high crime and misdemeanor, is lurking in the pauses or the background throat clearings and sneezes on the audio tape? Well, of course not, Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.), the top Democrat on the Oversight panel, said during debate.

Theyre hoping that in the five hours of President Bidens testimony, they can find a mispronounced word or phrase or a brief stammer which they can then turn into an embarrassing political TV attack ad.

And former House Judiciary Chair Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) cast it as red meat for the MAGA base, noting that Trump will soon face sentencing following his conviction by a New York jury on 34 counts related to falsifying business records to conceal hush money payments to an adult film start ahead of the election.

This resolution may boost Donald Trumps spirits before his sentencing, but it will almost certainly not convince the Department of Justice to produce the one remaining file in question, he said.

Republicans had said they needed the tape to verify that the transcript they have is accurate.

But the Justice Department in a court filing in a separate legal battle to obtain the audio certified the transcript was accurate, noting that filler words like um or uh were not included nor were repeated words I, I.

The transcripts accurately capture the words spoken during the interview on the audio recording with no material differences, the department said.

Updated at 5:13 p.m. EDT

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Famous Ukrainian chef Yevhen Klopotenko spoke frankly about why he did not join the Armed Forces of Ukraine since the beginning of the full-scale invasion. He believes that he would be much more useful staying where he is.

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The restaurateur, who is the founder of several restaurants in Kyiv and Lviv, sees his mission as supporting Ukrainians through food, but he complies with the rules of the current legislation by updating his data in the TCC. He spoke about this in an interview with TyKyiv.

Since the beginning of the war, Yevhen Klopotenko has seen no reason to change his activities, as he believes that he can do much more in the usual conditions.

"From the first days of the invasion, I tried to take care of the safety of my family and my team. Besides, I was outside the city at the time and, for example, I didn't see any point in joining the terrorist defense in a small village. I also realized that I would do more good in my place. After all, from the first day of the great war, my team and I supported Ukrainians through food. I was actively engaged in gastro-diplomacy and talked about the events in Ukraine in the global information space. For a long time, I was focused only on this," the chef said.

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He also noted that he updated his military service record on the first day of the mobilization law.

As a public figure, the restaurateur decided that he could better help people in need through his profession rather than on the battlefield.

"When I came to the city of Lviv in the first days of the invasion and saw the number of people evacuating in desperation, often without things and resources for a normal life, I decided that I had to help in some way. This is how the Other Cafe was born. My partner Inna Popereshniuk and I opened it in five days. This was our response to people's requests and the challenges of the times," said Yevhen Klopotenko.

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Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UATelegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
As the secretive Israeli rescue operation began at 11 a.m. on Saturday in Gaza, hostage Andrey Kozlov first heard the gunfire and wondered whether he was in mortal danger, his girlfriend, Jennifer Master, told ABC News.

As intense gunfire rang out, the first Israeli commandos Kozlov saw were dressed like women, Master said, recalling what Kozlov told her upon his return to Israel.

The soldiers were wearing a costume of a woman," she went on, recalling what Kozlov told her upon his return to Israel.

"And he looked at them, and they're like, 'Andrey. Andrey. We love you. This is [Israel Defense Forces.] This is the soldiers. We love you. Come, come, come with us,'" added Master, was born in New York and is a U.S. citizen.

The secretive Israeli military operation in Nuseirat, a refugee camp in central Gaza, resulted in the rescue of four Israeli civilians from two separate apartments, IDF officials said.

Rescued along with Kozlov, 27, were Almog Meir Jan, 22; and and Shlomi Ziv, 40. Noa Argamani, 25 was rescued from another building nearby. All four had been abducted from the Nova music festival during the surprise Hamas terror attack in Israel on Oct. 7.

MORE: Israeli special forces dressed as Palestinian refugees for hostage rescue: Sources

The operation in Nuseirat has since come under scrutiny from international observers. Human rights officials with the United Nations said on Tuesday that Israel's actions during the raid may amount to war crimes. The IDF said it launched airstrikes after its troops came under fire from Hamas from multiple directions.

"The manner in which the raid was conducted in such a densely populated area seriously calls into question whether the principles of distinction, proportionality and precaution -- as set out under the laws of war -- were respected by the Israeli forces, a spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights said on Tuesday.

Those officials also said armed Palestinian groups may also have committed war crimes by holding the hostages and keeping them in densely populated areas.

Officials with the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said about 274 Palestinians were killed during the operation, with hundreds of others injured. Israeli officials dispute that number, saying about 100 were killed.

PHOTO: Andrey Kozlov's girlfriend, Jennifer Master, spoke to ABC News about Kozlov's rescue. (ABC News)

Kozlov has in the days since his rescue repeated that he was "born again" during the raid, his girlfriend said. She said he's mentioned that those tense moments have been replaying in his mind over and over, although some of it has already become a blur.

Kozlov thought when he initially heard the shots ringing out that he was about to be killed, Master said.

Then he realized that it was the Israeli military and they saved his life, she said.

"They saved our lives. We love them," she added.

Master also said Kozlov had been physically and psychologically tortured in captivity.

And as a dual Russian-Israeli national, Kozlovs captors treated him more harshly, she said.

The fact that he is Russian and, Russia is close to Hamas  didn't help him at all, Master added.

The terrorist, the guards, always, like, told him. Why did he come to Israel? Don't you know that this is an occupied state?

Rescued hostage's 1st contact was IDF soldiers dressed as Palestinian women, girlfriend says originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Thick stands of roseau cane have died across the Louisiana coast in recent years. The sturdy, erosion-resistant reed is often replaced with weaker plants, such as water hyacinth, seen in the upper left of this photo, or shallow water. (Photo courtesy of the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries)

Scientists say they have a new culprit for the mysterious mass die-off of a hardy plant that protects swaths of Louisianas fragile coast.

A study led by researchers at Louisiana State University indicates that increased exposure to saltwater has killed vast stretches of roseau cane, a towering reed that binds together large sections of south Louisiana, especially the lower Mississippi River Delta.

Scientists had previously pinned much of the blame on a tiny Asian insect that preys exclusively on roseau and appeared in the state around the time the plant began dying. But the bug, known as the roseau cane scale, only weakens the plant, according to the study published recently in Nature Communications.

The real killer may be a multipronged attack driven by climate change.

In the Gulf of Mexico, sea levels are rising at twice the global average, leading to prolonged inundation of coastal roseau wetlands. This extended submersion overwhelms the plants, exposing their roots to excessive salt levels that they cant withstand, the study says.

The marshes are swamped with seawater to a greater depth [and] a greater percentage of the time, said Tracy Quirk, an LSU wetland scientist who led the study. That makes them inherently more susceptible to acute disturbances, such as a drought, which allows saltwater to move in closer to the coast.

While climate change is overdosing roseau with saltwater, its also starving it of freshwater. Roseau needs a mix of the two, but recent droughts have dramatically reduced river flows that would normally push out the stale saltwater.

Adding to roseaus suffering are hurricanes that are hitting the Gulf Coast with more force, throwing salty surges across already weakened wetlands.

The scale, which sucks roseaus sap, compounds the plants problems. But the insect likely isnt the root cause of the plant dying off at an unprecedented rate in recent years, according to Quirk.

About the size of a grain of rice, the scale likely came to Louisiana aboard a ship from China, where the insect preys on various strains of roseau, known by scientists as phragmites. The scale spread fast over the past eight years, popping up in all of Louisianas coastal parishes and parts of Texas and Mississippi.

Scale infestation causes a reduction in productivity but does not cause an increase in mortality, the study said.

An LSU roseau cane research team visit a roseau restoration trial site in the Pass a Loutre Wildlife Management Area in Plaquemines Parish. (Joshua Snook/LSU AgCenter)

Disappearing roseau marshes may impede Mississippi River shipping, degrade habitat for redfish, crab and other coastal species and expose hundreds of oil wells to waves and storms, state officials say.

Roseau is critically important to Louisianas quickly unraveling coast because it both holds land in place and helps build new ground over time. The plants thick roots anchor the soil, helping it withstand erosion, while its densely packed stalks comb out river sediment, accumulating it to form new marshland.

In the roseau-dominated wetlands of Plaquemines Parish south of Venice, land has been reduced to open water in a matter of months. The die-off has been especially pronounced in the states Pass a Loutre Wildlife Management Area and the neighboring Delta National Wildlife Refuge, which are a combined 165,000 acres. About 80% of land in both wildlife areas has suffered severe roseau weakening or mortality between 2016 and 2018, according to state wildlife managers.

Its unclear how much roseau marsh has disappeared, but some areas retreated by about 1,000 feet over a 16-month period, an analysis by the state Department of Wildlife and Fisheries found.

Using 16 years of data from a coastwide network of monitoring stations, the new LSU study showed roseau dying off in areas that went from being flooded with saltwater 43% of the year to 75% between 2007 and 2022.

While drought-induced high salinities and soil saturation triggered a significant dieback event, the chronic increase in inundation is causing a longer-term decline in cover, more widespread losses, and reduced capacity to recover from acute stressors, the study said.

The prognosis for roseaus recovery isnt good. Low rainfall in the upper Midwest caused two consecutive years of historically low water levels in the Mississippi. Such extremes are likely to become the norm as the global temperatures rise, according to LSU researchers.

Extreme summer droughts are predicted to become more frequent in the future in response to climate warming, the study said.

Quirk believes the resilience of roseau marshes could be improved by elevating marsh beds with redistributed river sediment, potentially via channels cut in levees. The states $3 billion Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion, which broke ground last year, would function in this manner, but is too far north to help the hardest-hit roseau stands at the Mississippis mouth.

Another option would be to dredge sediment and add it directly to marshes  a strategy state and federal agencies employ on the coast, but not at a scale that matches the rate of land loss.

In order to be more resilient, you have to deal with the flood stress and the only way to do that is to add sediment to these deteriorating marshes, Quirk said.

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This article first appeared on Verite News and is republished here under a Creative Commons license.

The post New research blames climate change, not foreign bugs, for killing critical marsh grass appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
New research suggests that there may be a link between tattoos and cancer. But the findings have proved controversial, with experts pushing back against the authors' conclusions, which they characterize as exaggerated.

The study, published last month in the journal eClinicalMedicine, surveyed close to 12,000 people in Sweden, examining every subject 20 to 60 years old that was diagnosed with a form of cancer called lymphoma between 2007 and 2017. When compared to a control group of random people who never had lymphoma, the researchers found that people that had at least one tattoo were 21 percent more likely to have developed the cancer.

The study only demonstrates that there's an association, not a definitive link. Still, 21 percent would constitute a pretty significant risk, especially for a form of cancer that's considered somewhat rare. What's more, it appears that the number or size of tattoos the subjects had didn't matter: so long as they had at least one tattoo of any size, they were seemingly at risk as much as someone who had multiple.

"We do not yet know why this was the case. One can only speculate that a tattoo, regardless of size, triggers a low-grade inflammation in the body, which in turn can trigger cancer," co-author Christel Nielsen, an associate professor in the Division of Occupational and Environmental Medicine at Lund University, said in a statement about the work "The picture is thus more complex than we initially thought."

Many experts, however, are skeptical that there's even an association, let alone a link.

"If I were writing that paper, if I were the editor, I would have said the conclusion is, there is no evidence for a strong association," Timothy Rebbeck, an epidemiologist at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, told CNN, calling the findings "overstated."

Lymphoma causes infection-fighting white blood cells in the lymph system, a network of organs and vessels that form a critical part of the body's immune response, to divide uncontrollably. The problem with identifying a link  or even just an association  with the cancer is that scientists don't actually know what causes it. And according to Rebbeck, lymphoma's main risk factors aren't found in tattooing, either.

Due to the limited nature of the study, it's also unclear if there's other lifestyle factors at play that could explain the uptick in lymphoma among the tattoo recipients. Obvious cancer risks like smoking and age were controlled for, but there could be other factors at play that aren't being addressed here.

That isn't to exonerate tattooing completely. Any practice that draws blood is bound to come with its health and hygiene risks, and there's some fears that certain forms of tattoo ink may contain possible carcinogens. But by and large, tattooing is considered safe. So as long as you trust your artist, you should be alright.

"I don't believe that anybody who has a tattoo should freak out right now," Erwin Grussie, a hematologist and oncologist at Providence St. Joseph's Medical Center, told ACB7. "I don't think it means somebody who has a tattoo will develop lymphoma. We should wait for more data."

More on cancer: Thousands of Patients to Be Given World's First Cancer Vaccine
Residents desperate for answers while officials remain silent about life-threatening active coal mine beneath homes: 'Even a little more information would help things tremendously'

In Adger, Alabama, residents are caught between a rock and a hard place  and it's in a way that's more than just the expression. Beneath their homes lies an active coal mine, and a recent tragic explosion has left the community shaken to its core.

What's happening?

According to Inside Climate News, in March, a devastating explosion claimed one life and critically injured another when they were inside their home. Since then, the mine has racked up 107 federal safety violations. Despite these red flags, state officials have been silent, leaving residents frustrated and anxious about what might happen next.

The explosion highlights the immediate dangers residents face. Kathy Love, the director of the Alabama Surface Mining Commission, said she's never heard of an above-ground blast like this one.

"So it just blows my mind," Love told ICN. "It's very unusual."

Why is the lack of mining oversight concerning?

These families live with constant fear of potential disasters beneath their homes. The lack of transparency and communication from the mining company and state officials leaves residents in a state of uncertainty and anxiety.

"Even a little more information would help things tremendously," resident Charlie Utterback told Inside Climate News. "Just so we actually know."

This situation hinders the community's desire for a safe future, as residents are forced to contend with the threat of structural damage  or worse.

Beyond the immediate danger of the mine, continuing to rely on coal mining for energy prolongs the move toward clean, sustainable energy sources that can help cool the planet and safeguard communities.

Recent reports have brought to light several alarming instances when insufficient regulations have led to hazardous conditions. For example, new research shows that hazardous chemical incidents happen almost daily in the United States, posing significant threats to public health and safety.

The Environmental Protection Agency is working to address these concerns by finalizing new precautionary rules that aim to enhance emergency preparedness and increase public access to information about hazardous chemicals.

What's being done about the lack of mining oversight?

While federal regulators have cited the nearby Oak Grove Mine for numerous safety violations, state officials have yet to take decisive action. The community is calling for more transparency and accountability from both the mining company and state authorities.

Residents are advocating for accessible information about the mining operations and potential risks. Increased public pressure on local and state officials could lead to stricter regulations and oversight, ultimately preventing further tragedies and fostering a safer living environment.

Join our free newsletter for easy tips to save more, waste less, and help yourself while helping the planet.
The controversial and delayed appointment of retired police officer Byron Hickey to the Columbus Council was poised to take a step toward completion Thursday. Instead, its still delayed  with a bit more controversy.

The Columbus Consolidated Governments pension board gathered Thursday in a called meeting to consider a proposed amendment that would resolve conflicting parts of local law, preventing Hickey from completing the swearing-in process.

The city charter considers councilors to be part-time employees, and they are paid like it, earning around $22,000 per year. But they have the option to participate in the citys health insurance plan, and about 8% of their pay automatically goes in the citys pension plan because the plan considers councilors to be full-time employees.

Nobody mentioned that conflict when, in a 6-3 vote May 28, the council appointed Hickey to succeed the late Jerry Pops Barnes and fill the remaining two years of the four-year term. Barnes, who died April 14 at age 80 from an undisclosed illness, was the District 1 representative on the 10-member council for 17 years.

A week after he was appointed, and the same day the citys probate court judge swore him into office, Hickey received an email from CCG human resources director Reather Hollowell informing him that his city pension would be suspended while he served on the council because the citys pension ordinance considers councilors as full-time employees, despite the charter treating councilors as part-time employees.

Thats why Hickeys other half of the swearing-in process, the one that was supposed to be conducted by a superior court judge at the June 4 council meeting, was indefinitely postponed. But nobody would explain why at that point.

At Tuesdays council meeting, two of Barnes children vehemently criticized the six councilors who voted to appoint Hickey. They refuted the narrative that Barnes was mentoring Hickey to be his successor.

Fast forward to Thursday, when an attempted solution was delayed.

After about 40 minutes of discussion, the consensus of the pension board was to not vote on the proposed amendment and to not make a recommendation to the council.

The added controversy came when pension board members asked why the proposed amendment narrowly was written to carve out an exception for only retired city employees who are appointed or are elected to the council, rather than any public office.

City Manager Isaiah Hugley, a pension board member, noted he received the proposed amendment only 54 minutes before Thursdays called meeting was scheduled to start.

This is being done hurriedly, he said.  Im not comfortable voting on this matter today.

Pension board member Dusty Wilson asked why the amendment provides an exception for only appointed or elected councilors and not all public officials.

Were trying to make the appropriate changes going forward, where anybody in this city would have the opportunity to serve without their pension being suspended, replied Councilor Glenn Davis of District 2, who requested the pension plan amendment.

Hugley wasnt satisfied.

Its not an equal or level playing field, he said. Quite frankly, its not equal treatment.  Leave it to the elected officials, the city council, to vote on this matter.

Mayor Skip Henderson, who chairs the pension board, agreed with Hugley.

Thats where I think were seeing this belong, in the political arena, discussing whether or not its what we want to do with the pension for our government, Henderson said.  Let the council handle it.

Wilson added, If youre going to amend the plan, amend it for all elected officials, not just councilors. I agree that theres very good people out there who have a lot of experience and would like to raise their hand and become part of the council or another elected position.
Eight European Union foreign ministers called on the EU to ban Russian diplomats from moving freely around the bloc and restrict them to countries where they are accredited, Reuters reported on June 13, citing a letter it had obtained.

The call comes amid news of an uptick in sabotage operations in Europe that seems to be a part of Russia's effort to undermine assistance for Ukraine.

"Free movement of holders of Russian diplomatic and service passports, accredited in one host state, across the whole Schengen area is easing malign activities," Reuters said, citing a letter to EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.

Intelligence, propaganda, "or even preparation of sabotage acts are the main workload for a large number of Russian 'diplomats' in the EU," read the ministers' letter, dated June 11.

The ministers insisted that the EU follow the "reciprocity principle," restricting the movement of Russian diplomats and the members of their families to the territory of a state of their accreditation only.

"This measure will significantly narrow operational space for Russian agents," the letter added.

The letter was signed by ministers from the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, and Romania, according to Reuters.

Poland previously announced it would impose restrictions on the movement of Russian diplomats in response to Moscow's "hybrid warfare."

"We hope that the Russian Federation will treat this as a very serious warning," Polish Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said on May 27.

Over the past six months, the Polish authorities have arrested 18 people on suspicions of pursuing hostile activities or sabotage in collaboration with Russia or Belarus, according to the Polish Interior Ministry.

Several other suspects have been arrested in recent months in Germany, Austria, Denmark, and Estonia for allegedly spying for Russia or other forms of collaboration with Russian intelligence.

Read also: Estonian PM Kallas: Russia is conducting shadow war on West

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
He held his meetings in Nashville churches, in Black houses of worship that underscored his commitment to God and to godliness. His pupils were largely students, kids from local colleges, some with names  Diane Nash, John Lewis, C.T. Vivian  that would eventually be recorded in the annals of the modern Civil Rights Movement.

Many of them were out-of-towners whod descended on Middle Tennessee to attend its historically Black schools  Fisk, Tennessee A&I, et al  and become part of a rich Black community that had always been present, even as it was continually pushed to the margins.

These students brought differing perspectives to the matter of race and race relations in Middle Tennessee. Some, from further south, viewed Nashvilles racism as a more mellow sort; others, from up north, were appalled by how willingly Black folks seemed to adhere to an oppressive racial "etiquette." Ultimately, everyone understood that a follow-up to the Montgomery bus boycott was needed to maintain Movement momentum. They agreed Nashville as the ideal location to launch those efforts, both to secure local wins and catalyze national action.

But it was the proposed nonviolent approach that garnered skepticism.

Embracing a philosophy of nonviolence meant denying oneself

This, the teacher understood. Hed traveled the same road to enlightenment himself. Hed once been a young boy enraged by an ugly slur, shaken when the word sliced into his chest and wrapped vice-like tentacles around his heart.

The Rev. James Lawson is moved during the unveiling of his portrait at Benton Chapel on the campus of Vanderbilt University on Nov. 13, 2008.

Hed given in to his flesh that day  the aching, burning flesh that demands an eye for an eye, your pain for mine. He smacked that smirking kid clean across his face, the retribution sweet, if short-lived.

What good did that do? his mother asked later, while standing at the kitchen stove. His flesh had cooled by thenthe pleasure of payback is always too fleetingand the boy didnt have an answer.

Because of this, he could, years later, guide his students as they embarked on their journeys. They learned about others whod denied their flesh  Mohandas Gandhi, Jesus  before making the courageous decision to deny their own.

There is no 'both-sidesing' racism

Later, the teacher would say that he was scared to death before they took seats at the segregated lunch counters of downtown Nashville. Their target had been chosen by the Black women among them, those impacted by both gender and racial oppression. Still, even the men knew that the most well-designed workshop exercises would pale next to the real-time ache from a white cops billy club, or the burn when an white civilian pressed a lit cigarette into bare skin.

Metro policemen grabbed John Lewis, center, one of the leaders of the civil rights demonstrators at Morrison's Cafeteria on West End Avenue on April 29, 1964. Lewis was the first person of many to be arrested by the police.

The nonviolent strategy had been as brilliant as it was harrowing and Divine. The approach didnt just bolster the participants belief in their own humanity, or their belief in a God who would faithfully defend it. It introduced that humanity to others, to people all around the country  nay, the world  who watched in slack-jawed horror as white Nashvillians hurled themselves at innocents who refused to respond with their own vitriol.

There would be no both-sidesing this issue.

Even white moderates whod been content to let racial tensions work themselves out (or not) began to realize there was only one side, and it was evil. The bombing of the home of Nashville civil rights attorney Z. Alexander Looby on April 19, 1960, only confirmed this.

Within months, Nashville became the first southern city to desegregate public spaces. It is for this reason that, on the evening of April 19, Martin Luther King, Jr. declared the sit-ins the best organized and most disciplined in our Southland during a speech at a speech at Fisk. Its also one of the prevailing reasons we celebrate and honor James Lawson, the architect of those demonstrations.

Far removed from the boy who was called the n-word and sought his own vengeance, Lawson became a shining example of principle and discipline. He shared his faith and lived it daily, placing peoplehumanityabove our collective sins.

But now, following his death on June 9, we must mourn Lawson. And as we do, we must remember.

Was the nonviolent movement of the 1960s a failure? Not quite

Something happened in the years following those first cracks in Nashvilles segregated veneer: The city, aware as it was of its image on the national stage, sought to save face.

Black leaders march down Jefferson Street at the head of a group of 3000 demonstrators on April 19, 1960, and heading toward City Hall on the day of the Z. Alexander Looby bombing. In the first row, are the Rev. C.T. Vivian, left, Diane Nash of Fisk University, and Bernard Lafayette of American Baptist Seminary. In the second row are Kenneth Frazier and Curtis Murphy of Tennessee State A&I, and Rodney Powell of Meharry College.

Nashville, in the rolling green hills of Middle Tennessee, is a city of colleges and churches, read The Tennessean on May 21, 1963, and one thing it cannot abide is unpleasantness. It values peace and quiet as Birmingham, to the south, values separate water fountains and defiance.

Never mind that integration had been uneven and incomplete, that local courts were still teeming with lawsuits attempting to prevent Black kids trapped in the worst schools in the city, that Black men and women were still locked out of the citys best jobs.

In fact, C.T. Vivian, one of Lawsons early students, would go as far as saying that the Movement of the 1960s was largely a failure.

We would achieve the removal of some discriminatory legislation, only to find that discrimination continued," he wrote in his book Black Power and the American Myth. "We would win the passage of a new law, only to see it go unenforced."

I pointed out data showing Nashvilles public education deficiencies. Critics got angry

I dont think Lawson wouldnt use the world failure. He would, however, say that the Movement's efforts were incomplete. They were incomplete then, and theyre certainly incomplete now.

Today, injustice doesnt look like dynamite bombings and men in white hoods, colored only water fountains and whites-only swimming pools. But In Nashville (and far beyond), we need only look around us  at the education gap, the health gap, the wealth gap, and all the other gaps still separating white and Black  to understand that it remains.

And, hopefully, to remember.

If we are to truly honor Lawson, we must remember to not return pain for pain, rebuke for rebuke. The fight for must justice must evolve, just as injustice, itself has evolved. Nonviolence, though far from a passive endeavor, must be met with deliberate action, including collaboration, resource pooling, and, most important, a courage to call out injustice right where it its.

Then, in the searing heat of hate, we need only stand firm in our humanity, and our convictions.

We need only to lead with love  and trust that evil will make itself known.

Andrea Williams is an opinion columnist for The Tennessean and curator of the Black Tennessee Voices initiative.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: James Lawson, teacher of nonviolent action, needs us to keep working
Reward increased for info on mother, 4-year-fatally shot on Florida Turnpike

Reward increased for info on mother, 4-year-fatally shot on Florida Turnpike

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  A reward for information on a mother and her 4-year-old daughter who were killed in a homicide on the Florida Turnpike last week has been increased.

The Broward Sheriffs Office said the reward is now at $10,000.

Beatrice Saintvil, 27, and her daughter, Janelle Souffrant, were fatally shot on Friday near mile-marker 49 south of Hollywood Boulevard, deputies said.

Courtesy: Broward Sheriffs Office

Anyone with information is asked to call the sheriffs office at 954-321-4247 or Broward Crime Stoppers at 954-493-TIPS.

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 WFLA.
PROVIDENCE  The state Senate on Thursday approved Gov. Dan McKees nomination of Wayne T. Salisbury Jr. as director of the state Department of Corrections.

The full Senate voted 32 to 4 in favor of Salisbury to lead the department.

He is well qualified to continue leading the Department of Corrections, said Sen. Dawn Euer, chairwoman of the Senate Commission on the Judiciary.

She noted that he has 30 years in law enforcement and served in the U.S. Air Force, emphasizing his commitment to reducing recidivism and rehabilitation of the men and women in his care.

More: Corrections officers file ethics complaint against RIDOC director over travel. What to know.

Sen. Louis DiPalma told of approaching Salisbury about bringing The Last Mile program to the Adult Correctional Institutions to teach men there how to write software and computer coding. The national program first started at San Quentin prison to teach coding and computer skills for a better chance at getting a job after release.

DiPalma, D-Middletown, recalled Salisbury responding Im all in.

Sen. Mark McKenney, D-Warwick, who also sits on the committee, referenced the large volume of letters and correspondence lawmakers had received and reviewed both for and against the appointment. He said he had detailed discussions with Salisbury and the corrections union about their concerns.

In the end, I was satisfied with the responses I got, he said of Salisbury.

Acting Rhode Island Corrections Director Wayne T. Salisbury Jr. encourages a coding class at the ACI to make the most out of the program.

Bruising opposition from the corrections officers union

McKees selection of Salisbury, 57, garnered bruising opposition from the Rhode Island Brotherhood of Correctional Officers, which has reported an increase in violence, gang activity and drug trafficking at the Adult Correctional Institutions under his tenure.

More: The fight to keep Wayne Salisbury from leading RIDOC just turned nasty. Here's how.

Richard Ferruccio, president of the union, implored the state Senate Committee on the Judiciary Tuesday not to approve his selection.

The Brotherhood is disappointed that both the Senate and Governor McKee failed to conduct any kind of meaningful vetting of Wayne Salisbury and refused to lead a national search for the corrections director position like the one our neighbors in Massachusetts are leading. We remain concerned about increases in violence, drug trafficking, drug use, fights, and use of force under Director Salisburys leadership," Ferruccio said in a statement after the vote.

"While we believe that Salisbury has shown disdain for the men and women who work every day to maintain safe and orderly prisons during his time as interim, we hope that as Director he will show a new willingness to work with correctional officers and listen to our concerns about officer and inmate safety, prison staffing, and correctional policy," the statement continued.

Salisbury's law enforcement career

Salisbury has been with the state Department of Corrections for eight years and served as the interim director since early last year.

Prior to that, Salisbury worked 12 years at the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in Central Falls, where he rose to become warden.

Salisbury served as warden of the facility from 2004 to 2010 during a fraught period that was marked by an immigrant detainee's death of undiagnosed and untreated cancer.

He was fired as warden in 2007 but rehired later that year under new management before being fired again in February 2009.

Salisbury told the judiciary committee Tuesday that the second firing came after a change in the prisons governing board after Wyatt could no longer fill its beds due to federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement removing 153 immigration detainees.

In December 2012, a federal judge approved a multimillion-dollar settlement on behalf of the family of Hiu Lui "Jason" Ng, a 34-year-old Chinese detainee and father of two who died in 2008 while in the custody of immigration officials at Wyatt, according to the American Civil Liberties Union of Rhode Island.

A corrections spokesman has emphasized that the case was settled with no assignment of guilt or fault to any party.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: RI Senate overwhelmingly approves Salisbury as DOC director
A School Board of Manatee County seat left vacant by Richard Tatem two years early will be filled by an appointment made by Gov. Ron DeSantis, despite calls to leave the decision up to voters during the November election.

Tatem tendered his resignation from the School Board on May 30 to run for the Florida House District 72 seat but said the departure would take effect on Nov. 5, leaving questions about the fate of his District 5 school board seat up to legal interpretation.

More District 72: Republicans running for Florida House District 72 debate at political forum

Also: DeSantis appoints Manatee County Commissioner James Satcher as elections supervisor

Legal questions over fate of District 5 school board seat

A file photo of Florida House District 72 candidate Richard Tatem speaking at a forum hosted by the Lakewood Ranch Republican Club.

According to the state constitution, if the remainder of a Tatem's school board term is 28 months or longer, then the unexpired portion of the term shall be filled during the next general election. If the remainder of the term is less than 28 months, then the seat would be filled through appointment by the governor's office.

League of Women Voters of Manatee County co-presidents Alice Newlon and Ruth Harenchar emailed a letter to Supervisor of Elections James Satcher on May 7 to argue his office has a legal obligation to hold an election for the District 5 school board position. They argue the remainder of the term should be calculated from May 30 based on a 2006 Florida Supreme Court opinion and that the seat should be put on the general election ballot.

"The 'remainder of the term' for elected county officials should be calculated from the date the resignation is tendered, not the date the incumbent intends to vacate the office," the two women wrote. "There are more than 28 months left in Tatem's term on the school board. So, although he does not intend to vacate the office until November 5, the FL Supreme Court opinion indicates that the position should be included in the August/November election cycle in Manatee County."

Satcher  who was recently appointed to the position by DeSantis  issued a statement on Tuesday indicating that Tatem's seat will be filled by an appointment.

He argues that Florida's Resign to Run law was amended in 2021 to clarify that an office is deemed vacant upon the effective date indicated in the resignation, and not the date it is tendered.

"The Florida Constitution provides for the vacancy to be filled by appointment," Satcher's office wrote. "This office has no leeway to disregard the Resign-to-Run law as amended in 2021 and to place the school board office on the 2024 election ballot."

Tatem aims to fulfill the will of the voters by holding his seat until November

Tatem said he chose to remain on the school board until November to fulfill the will of the voters for as long as he could.

"One way or another, whether I win the house seat or I do not win the house seat, on the 5th of November, I will no longer be a school board member," Tatem said. "What the governor chooses to be on that day, assuming it's an appointment, it's up to him. If there is going to be an election, then the supervisor of elections office or the secretary of state will figure that out. It's truly still up in the air."

This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Fate of Richard Tatem's School Board of Manatee seat up in the air
Famous Australian actress Rebel Wilson admitted that she has not yet met the parents of her fiancee, designer Ramona Agruma. Her future father and mother-in-law live in Latvia, a country that is not very friendly to the LGBT+ community.

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Rebel, who gave birth to her daughter two years ago with the help of a surrogate mother, still hopes that she will soon meet Ramona's family. The actress said that the lovers are going on vacation to Europe, according to the Dailymail.

"Ramona was born in Latvia, and this country is not as LGBTQ+ friendly as other countries. There are still parts of the world that are not as accepting of such communities," said Rebel Wilson.

The 44-year-old Bridesmaids star, who began dating Ramona Agruma in June 2022 before the couple got engaged, expressed her hope that she would be able to meet her lover's parents during their family trip to Europe. The actress also dreams of introducing her 19-month-old daughter Royce Lillian to her relatives.

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Rebel Wilson hopes that meeting her future relatives will go well, because they are educated people. "I will be very happy to meet them because I know they are very smart. Ramona's mom is a doctor," said The Voice star.

Rebel admitted that she feels "happy" because her family agreed to her unconventional relationship. Even her grandparents, who are in their 90s, are very supportive of their granddaughter's choice. So the actress hopes for a similar reaction from Ramona's family.

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Rebel Wilson also shared her memories of the first time she told her lover that she wanted to use a surrogate.

"When I was planning to use a surrogate mother to have a baby, I did several rounds of IVF and transferred one embryo. Unfortunately, it didn't work. Almost immediately, when I met Ramona, I was planning a second embryo transfer and told her: "Baby, I don't know how to tell you this, but I'm going to have a baby sometime in November." Ramona just looked at me and said: 'Well, I love you, and if you have a baby, I'm going to love your baby just the same,'" Wilson said.

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!

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Rights groups urge Thailand not to extradite Vietnamese activist, saying he's at risk if sent home

FILE - A flag of Vietnam is seen as a soldier watches from a top of a building neighboring Government Guesthouse and a hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam, on Feb. 24, 2019. Human rights groups urged Thailand on Thursday, June 13, 2024, not to extradite a Vietnamese activist detained in Bangkok, saying that he could be at risk if handed back to Vietnam. (AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe, File)

BANGKOK (AP)  Human rights groups urged Thailand on Thursday not to extradite a Vietnamese activist detained in Bangkok, saying he could be at risk if handed back to Vietnam.

Y Quynh Bdap, who had United Nations refugee status in Thailand, was picked up by local police on Tuesday, the day after he had met with Canadian Embassy officials as he pursued asylum there, according to the Peace Rights Foundation, a Thai organization that had been in contact with him.

The co-founder of the Montagnards Stand for Justice group was convicted in absentia in Vietnam in January on allegations that he was involved in organizing anti-government riots in Vietnam's central highland province of Dak Lak last June.

Vietnamese authorities had been making inquiries in Thailand about him, with Thailands assistance, which sent him into hiding six months ago, Bdap said before his arrest in a video statement.

In the June 7 video, provided to The Associated Press by Kannavee Suebsang, a Thai opposition lawmaker who is active in human rights issues, Bdap said he had absolutely nothing to do with that violent incident.

I am a human rights activist fighting for religious freedom and advocating for people's rights, said the 32-year-old Bdap, who fled to Thailand in 2018.

My activities are peaceful, consisting only of collecting and writing reports on human rights violations in Vietnam.

Thai immigration authorities told the AP they would look into the case, but then never provided any information or comment.

Bdap is now being held in a Bangkok prison awaiting an extradition hearing, which could take about a week, according to Human Rights Watch.

UNHCR, the U.N. agency for refugees, said that it couldn't comment on individual cases, but that it actively engages with Thailand's government to ensure fundamental international obligations are honored, including not forcibly returning refugees to a country where they are likely to be subject to persecution.

States have the primary responsibility to provide protection and safety to persons on their territory, including refugees and asylum-seekers and people whose lives could be at risk if they were returned, spokesperson Liana Bianchi said.

Calls to the Vietnamese Embassy in Thailand went unanswered.

Vietnam has long been criticized by rights groups and others for its treatment of the country's Montagnard minority, a term loosely used to refer to many predominantly Christian ethnic groups that live in the central highlands and neighboring Cambodia.

Human Rights Watch has said many have been driven to seek asylum in Cambodia and Thailand as Vietnamese authorities have subjected their communities to intimidation, arbitrary arrests and mistreatment in custody.

Y Quynh Bdap would be at real risk if returned to Vietnam," said Bryony Lau, deputy Asia director for Human Rights Watch.

"Thai authorities should immediately release this prominent religious freedom advocate and refugee. Returning him to Vietnam would be a violation of Thailands obligations under Thai and international law.

The organization has been critical of Thailand for its record on sending home dissidents from Cambodia, Vietnam, Laos and China to uncertain fates, in what they said in a recent report was a quid-pro-quo form of transnational repression, in which those countries sent home dissidents wanted by Thailand.

The country has ratified the International Convention for Protection of all Persons from Enforced Disappearance, which took effect Thursday, but it's unclear whether Bdap's case will fall under its purview.

Cooperation between states in locating persecuted opposition groups is a concerning situation for human rights, Kannavee said.

He cited examples of Thai activists turning up dead in Laos and Cambodian opposition groups being rounded up in Thailand.

This is happening all over, Kannaveee said.

Transnational repression really does happen and the exchanges of these dissidents happens regularly, whether in secret or in full view of the public.

Bdap was convicted in January on terrorism charges and sentenced in absentia to 10 years in prison for his alleged involvement in the Dak Lak riots, at a time when he was in Thailand.

Overall, about 100 people were tried for alleged involvement in the violent riots at two district government offices in which nine people were killed, including four police officers and two government officials. Fifty-three were convicted on charges of terrorism against the people's government, state-run Vietnam News reported.

Days after the verdicts, Vietnamese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Pham Thu Hang rejected criticism that Vietnam had used the trial as an opportunity to crack down on ethnic minorities, saying the government needed to strictly deal with terrorism according to international law, the Vietnam News reported.

All ethnicities living in a territory of Vietnam are equal, she said.

Unlike Uyghur refugees indefinitely detained by Thai authorities, Bdap faces a more credible threat of extradition since he has been criminally convicted in his homeland, Peace Rights Foundation said.

In the video entreaty Bdap recorded before being apprehended, he pleaded for the help of the United Nations, NGOs, and governments of democratic countries.

Please protect me, he said.
Liberalism has faced criticism since it emerged in the late 18th century, whether from socialists who thought it downplayed solidarity, fraternity, and equality, or from conservatives who considered it harmful to traditional institutions like the family, the local community, and the Church. But by the end of the 20th century and into the 21st, liberalism had seemingly defeated its opponents. Almost everyone in the West defended liberal institutions. Take the 2012 U.S. presidential election: Mitt Romney was no illiberal right-winger, and Barack Obama was never a socialist. They both wereto different degrees, certainlyliberals.

Things changed in 2016. Suddenly, immigration restrictions and aggressive right-wing approaches to the culture war became influential, if not dominant, in many liberal democracies. Culture trumped economics. In the U.S., questions of identity took over the national conversation that health care reform had occupied a few election cycles prior. The political rightnow content with a large welfare state and eschewing fiscal disciplinestarted winning elections.

These political changes brought in a new generation of anti-liberals, including some who offered radical alternatives to the liberal order. First among these post-liberals were the Catholic integralists, a group who, among other things, holds that the Church can authorize and direct the state to support it with certain policies, even to the point of backing up Church law with civil penalties.

While the first integralists were located in Europe, by 2016 American integralistsmost prominently academics like Patrick Deneen, Gladden Pappin, and Adrian Vermeuleran the show. They wrote prominent books, developed theories radically modifying basic functions of government, and tapped into the frustrations of a young generation of conservatives.

Nevertheless, this radical and once-energetic element of the post-liberal movement has collapsed in the last few months. Thats not to say that fusionists cant learn from their declining popularity (or that integralists cant make a comeback). But in order to begin speculating about the lessons the integralist moment can offer, its important to first try to grasp what integralists believe.

Integralisms British origins.

Right-leaning post-liberals certainly existed during the era of liberal dominance. They espoused a right-leaning communitarian critique of liberalism, albeit with social democratic sympathies. Starting in the mid-2000s, though, several traditionalist Catholic intellectuals intensified these critiques.

Specifically, this group of Catholics grew skeptical of the Churchs doctrine of religious liberty, blaming it for the decline of Western European and American Catholicism. Led by the British philosopher Thomas Pink and Father Edmund Waldstein, they pushed back against traditionalist opponents of the Second Vatican Council and sought to sync Catholic theology with the councils new teachings. Pink in particular reinterpreted the councils leading liberal document on religious liberty, Dignitatis Humanae, to understand its teachings as continuous with the 19th-century popes more traditionalist views about church-state relations. Pink, Waldstein, and others called this integralism.

According to integralism, God authorizes the Church and the state with distinct divine missions. The Church is responsible for the supernatural/spiritual good of the baptized and the Great Commission (Jesus Christs mandate to spread the Gospel to all nations), while the state promotes the temporal common good among the people. Though many Christians affirm these two doctrines, a third condition sets integralism apart: Since God ordained the Church and state, there must be some proper unity or integration between them. They must generally respect each others sovereignty and work together, but the state must defer to the Church in some cases of conflict or disunity.

The British integralists understood that no organization can flourish without disciplining wayward members. The same goes for the Church. But the Church had stopped doing that with its own law. It no longer held its members accountable for sin, reducing and even eliminating penances. The punitive element in Catholic spiritual life had collapsed. To renew itself, the Church should use canonical penalties against the faithful, reviving its historical practices, they argued.

But the British integralists also ran too far with this sensible point. Indeed, they also called on Christian states to impose civil penalties for ecclesiastical crimes in some cases. The Church could integrate with the state so that both institutions advanced the salvation of their members. That would really demonstrate that the Church takes sin seriously.

These integralists knew that the Church and the state could not reintegrate today. So rather, they aimed to show other Catholics who the Church was and how the Church must reform. Despite their political claims, they were not especially politically active.

It would be a different story for the American integralists.

The rise and fall of American integralism.

The election of Donald Trump changed the movement. While British integralists continued their largely academic work, American integralists saw an opportunity to make integralism political. Some of them, such as University of Dallas Professor Gladden Pappin, regarded Trump as a blunt tool to defeat secular liberalism andaccording to interviews I conducted for my recent book on Catholic integralism and similar religious, anti-liberal doctrinesencouraged fellow travelers to become more politically engaged. Sohrab Ahmari, a young and charismatic journalist, became Catholic and joined their ranks. Most importantly, the integralists converted Adrian Vermeule, a professor at Harvard Law School who single-handedly gave the movement some clout.

This new generation of right-integralists began a state-facing project. They aimed to hasten the end of liberal government and build an integralist state in the ashes. Their reputation spread (though not always positively) and their numbers expanded.

What drove them? Conservative Catholics felt blindsided by the LGBT movements rapid progress. The 2015 Supreme Court Obergefell decision (and the 2020 Bostock ruling later on) shook them. An increasingly radical defense of abortion rights dismayed them, worsened by the limitation of religious exemptions. The Little Sisters of the Poor, a group of nuns that served the needy, came in for governmental scrutiny when the Department of Health and Human Services issued a contraception mandate under the 2010 Affordable Care Act. The mandate contained religious exemptions, but it failed to protect the Little Sisters freedom not to provide contraception to its members.

So, these Catholics responded with more openness to radical diagnoses. They offered radical solutions, especially by recommending the creation of an integralist state. Vermeule developed a transition plan toward integralism in a series of articles. Liberalism, these integralists predicted, was bound to collapse, and a Catholic confessional state could replace it. However, that could only occur if integralists took positions of power in the executive and judicial branches of the federal government.

They soon rebranded and grew. They abandoned the integralist label and adopted the vague and seemingly less radical post-liberal moniker instead. Post-liberal came to describe integralist or near-integralist positions and centralized state strategies. After the success of his 2018 book Why Liberalism Failed, Notre Dame political theorist Patrick Deneen joined their ranks. The integralists also formed new digital institutions, most prominently the Postliberal Order Substack and The Josias blog.

Following what many saw as a defeat in the 2020 election, post-liberals shifted their attention toward constitutional interpretation. In particular, Vermeules common good constitutionalism, in contrast to conservative originalism, argued that judges should draw on substantive moral values in ambiguous cases (though not progressive values). For instance, in free speech law, considerations of the common good might allow for more speech restrictions than current U.S. law allows. Additionally, if the administrative state better serves the common good when it can operate relatively free from Congressional interference, then that too should guide judicial interpretation.

These ideas have spread even under the Biden administration. They have exploded among young people in particular, as Ive seen both in my own classroom and in conversations with fellow professors. In the following years, perhaps thousands identified as integralists and formed online communities.

However, the integralist reorientation to policy change left integralist theory behind. Many new integralists meant something vaguer by the term. In discussions with my undergraduate students, I have found that some might call themselves Catholic post-liberals but do not adopt the pure integralist view, the indirect power. The integralist rebrand succeeded, but young people lost their sense of its radicalism. That meant reduced intellectual energy.

Despite its rapid success, post-liberal thought declined steeply and then seemed to collapse in early 2024. Rather than energizing the movement, Deneens 2023 book Regime Change was widely panned. Common good constitutionalism had better intellectual credentials, but it faced headwinds too: The Dobbs decision overturning Roe delivered a major conservative victory on abortion via the older, originalist judicial paradigm. Pappin gained a position in a state-run research institute in Hungary by appointment from Viktor Orban, but his new diplomatic post prohibited outward radicalism. Ahmari seemed to focus almost on economic issues, pivoting away from being a defeat the enemy and enjoy the spoils new right advocate to someone who defends the partial democratization of the workplace. By early 2024, this once-cohesive cohort seems to have splintered.

But more importantly, the integralists also suffered a grave intellectual defeat: They lost control of their ideas as critics outlined integralisms intellectual challenges. One can find online article after article from integralists attacking classical liberalism. However, none of the active American integralists has published a peer-reviewed article defending their philosophya notable difference from the British integralists.

When I published a book on integralism, I began to talk about these issues nationwide. My interlocutors and I would hash out problems at academic conferences. The American Catholic Philosophical Association has hosted us. We would discuss topics following lectures where leading integralists workedbut the American integralists arent there. Even their chief intellectual outlet, The Josias blog, has dramatically reduced its output.

The integralist research program seems to have ground to a halt. Despite the energy the movement galvanized a short time ago, the Catholic post-liberals today appear to be in decline.

Lessons for a new fusionism.

Which is not to say integralism couldnt return. Its leaders could reemerge with vigor, revamping their coalition and forming new alliances. Someone could write a new, influential integralist treatise. If Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, a friend of Patrick Deneens, became vice president in a second Trump administration, the movement could get an intellectual boost.

But what might fellow traditional fusionists learn from the rise and fall of the American integralists?

To start, fusionists should consider why post-liberalism garners youthful passion. Why does it have the energy that fusionism has lost? One reason is that many answered post-liberalisms attacks on Conservatism, Inc. via old formulations of the main ideas. We didnt try hard enough to parse through what was right and wrong in the fusionist intellectual milieu. The result? Fusionists often appear out of touch and cannot light new fires in the minds of young conservatives.

The fusionist movement thrived when responding to the severe challenges of international communism. Three vibrant intellectual movements (libertarianism, Christian conservatism, and anti-communist foreign policy) mostly made common cause. Yet, each of those movements had leaders with tremendous intellectual energy and patience, as seen alone in the volume of their writingssuch as Milton Friedman and F. A. Hayek, Russell Kirk, and John Finnis, and broader anti-communist works from reformed leftists, like Whittaker Chambers down through Irving Kristol.

Each of the various subgroups of the fusionist coalition can refocus its efforts today. Libertarians should focus less on their internal culture war and more on preserving free institutions from decay by statist ideologues. Social conservatives should devote their energy to reevangelizing the country and persuading people of their views, especially on abortion. And those concerned with American military power and international influence must understand that figures like Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping have become more aggressive because they see the U.S. as falling apart and at war with itself.

But more fundamentally, for a new fusionism to arise today, its members will have to coalesce around a new common threatand in our moment, its one not from outside the United States but from within. The greatest threat to liberalism and our constitutional order today arises from declining social and institutional trust and from an extreme, unproductive political polarization. The new fusionism must therefore better understand the moral principles and social science that shapes political polarization. It should seek how to improve institutional and social trustworthiness and remove the incentives that lead to more polarized institutions. Why? Because its hard to feel comfortable allowing others to be free if we think they are untrustworthy radicals.

To their credit, post-liberals understand that the country is in a cold civil war between progressive and conservative elites. However, our current mass psychological attitudes are not inevitable but the result of a host of interlocking and often opaque social dynamics. As I have argued, this conflict is partly an illusion created by mistrust and polarization. But post-liberals are right about how conflictual things seem.

Many conservatives propose some kind of new angle on old attitudes as a way to overcome the post-liberal moment. But whatever the path forward for fusionism, it would benefit from recognizing that the nation turned against itself is the real enemy, and that the hard work of understanding our political divisions and proposing reforms to bridge divides cannot be ignored.

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.
Rita M. Rookstool, who served 14 years as Shawnee County treasurer, died Wednesday after being trapped beneath a utility task vehicle in southwest Shawnee County, the county sheriff's office said. She was 73.

Deputies were called just after 10 a.m. to the scene in the 3200 block of S.W. 93rd, where Rookstool was pronounced deceased, Sheriff Brian Hills office said on its Facebook page.

"While assisting a friend that was backing up a side-by-side, an adult female was struck and became trapped under the UTV," that page said. "The friend immediately called 911. Deputies and fire personnel arrived and removed the UTV from the womans body."

The sheriff's office was continuing to investigates the circumstances of Rookstools death, that page said.

The sheriffs office initially gave Rookstools last name as Cline but a spokeswoman for that office sent media outlets an email Thursday correcting that and apologizing.

Rita Rookstool died Wednesday after being trapped beneath a utility task vehicle.

'For a shorter line, vote for Cline'

Rookstool was known for being one of the more colorful elected officials in this community's history.

Her last name was Cline when she won election as county treasurer in 1988 after promising to eliminate long lines of taxpayers waiting to have vehicle registration paperwork processed at the treasurer's office in the county courthouse.

She campaigned using the slogan, "For a shorter line, vote for Cline."

Without prior approval from the county commission, she opened a treasurers annex at what was then White Lakes Mall.

She won re-election in 1992, 1996 and 2000.

She also battled with the American Civil Liberties Union over a sign she posted in her office that said "In God We Trust." The sign stayed up as long as she stayed in office.

She was elected to all four of her terms as a Democrat but became a Republican before resigning in 2003 after then-District Attorney Robert Hecht filed an ouster petition alleging she misused public funds.

Hecht agreed not to file criminal charges against her regarding a situation in which she resigned after paying Kate Carty, a former office manager at the treasurer's White Lakes Center annex, about $22,000 from a special motor vehicle account as a buyout of her employment contract.

The two had opened a franchise of Comfort Keepers, which provided nonmedical, in-home services, in Springfield, Missouri.

The Shawnee County Sheriffs Office responded Wednesday morning to the scene after a woman became trapped beneath a tractor south of Topeka.

Democrat Larry Wilson replaced Rookstool as treasurer. Complaints about long lines outside the treasurer's office re-emerged during Wilson's tenure, then died down under the current treasurer, Democrat Larry Mah.

Rookstools last name changed from Cline to Rookstool after she left office, as she was divorced, then remarried.

She sought the Republican nomination in the August 2008 primary election for the District 3 seat on the Shawnee County Commission but failed to get onto the November general election ballot after placing third in the Republican primary.

Incumbent Democrat Ted Ensley won re-election to that seat two months later.

Rookstool then told The Capital-Journal in July 2012 that she was running as a write-in candidate on the Republican ticket for county treasurer. That bid also proved unsuccessful.

Rookstool said in July 2012 that she was working full-time for the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co., was a cancer survivor and exercised every day, including riding her horse.

She promised, if returned to office, to put back up the sign that said "In God We Trust."

Ever since they took that sign down, the office has gone to pot, she said.

Contact Tim Hrenchir at 785-213-5934 or threnchir@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Rita Rookstool, former Shawnee County treasurer, dies in UTV accident
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET)  A Riverside County man is in police custody after Delano police found a hidden compartment in a seat containing methamphetamine and oxycodone pills.

On March 4, Delano police officers pulled a Hyundai Sonata over at 9th Avenue and Ellington Street and found the driver, Modesto Nava Osuna, had an active arrest warrant in Riverside county for drug charges.

Deputys restraining order delayed as criminal investigation continues

Officials searched the Hyundai and found a compartment that was built into one of the vehicle seats that could only be opened by remote-controlled latches. The hidden compartment contained two pounds of methamphetamine and over 100 grams of counterfeit oxycodone pills, Delano police said through a news release.





Photos provided by courtesy of Delano Police.

Osuna was booked and arrested on felony warrant and multiple other drug charges.

A few days later, officers obtained a search warrant for the vehicle and found more narcotics. DPD did not specify how much or what additional drugs were found.

On June 11, a court ordered the vehicle be destroyed for violating health and safety codes.

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 KGET 17.
WETUMPKA  A busy stretch of a key road in Elmore County is expected to be closed for six weeks, leading to delays and detours.

A culvert on Rifle Range Road, near the Dozier Road intersection, is being replaced. Detours went into effect Tuesday, and the work is expected to take six weeks.

This area south of Wetumpka is one of the fastest-growing areas in a fast-growing county. The road connects Tallassee and Wetumpka and also gives access to Emerald Mountain and large neighborhoods in the area.

Im not looking forward to it, but at least they waited until school was out to do the work, said Mack Hanson, who lives in the area and works in downtown Montgomery. I just hope six weeks means six weeks.

The Rifle Range Rd. detour runs along Redland Road, near Wetumpka, Ala., as seen on Wednesday June 12, 2024.

Alternate routes include Emerald Mountain Expressway, which crosses the Tallapoosa River via a toll bridge, and a detour using Dozier Road to Redland Road.

The Alabama Department of Environmental Management is paying for the project using American Rescue Act funds, to help end flooding in the area.

Rifle Range Rd., near Wetumpka, Ala., is closed for culvert work and detours are set up as seen on Wednesday June 12, 2024.

More: State seeks approval for nitrogen gas execution of Carey Dale Grayson

Contact Montgomery Advertiser reporter Marty Roney at mroney@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Montgomery Advertiser: Road work causes detours, delays on Rifle Range Road in Elmore County
ROGERS, Ark. (KNWA/KFTA)  The Rogers City Council approved an ordinance on June 11 that allows businesses like a local pediatric clinic to operate out of an alternative location that may not normally be allowed by the citys development code.

Mayor Greg Hines of Rogers recognized the challenges faced by businesses in the aftermath of the tornado outbreak that tore through Northwest Arkansas on Memorial Day weekend. In response, the local government passed an ordinance to provide support and flexibility during the rebuilding process.

Under the ordinance, permits for temporary operations will be valid for a year with no extensions, emphasizing the urgency of recovery efforts while also offering a lifeline to businesses grappling with the aftermath of natural disasters.

Carter Bramlett, a registered behavior technician at Pediatrics Plus in Rogers, said that he found himself inside a closet as tornadoes passed through Northwest Arkansas over the Memorial Day weekend.

We just bundled up in the closet and waited for it to pass, Bramlett said. And then we heard what the damage was like in other places, and we started figuring out how we could go help people.

Bramlett, like many others, turned to social media to assess the extent of the damage. It was then that he received word about the state of the building housing Pediatrics Plus.

Rogers City Council passes two resolutions aimed at storm cleanup assistance

Damage was just pretty substantial internally, Bramlett explained. The outside of the building looks good, windows were broken, and some doors had shattered, but it looked good from the outside. The back wall, a large portion of the back wall was caving in and pretty unsafe.

Despite the devastation, Bramlett and his team immediately sprang into action, determined to continue serving their patients. Even if it meant providing services in unconventional settings or through in-home visits.

Fortunately, their call would be answered.

Within days, they were offered a temporary space inside First Baptist in Rogers.

Full transparency, Bramlett said. I texted our site director and I said Do they know what theyre agreeing to? Do they know what were bringing? We have a lot of staff and kids.'

Meaghan Tipton, a board-certified behavior analyst at Pediatrics Plus, second Bramletts sentiments, expressing gratitude for the gesture made by First Baptist in Rogers.

Its very exciting, Tipton said. All the kids very much enjoy having a very long hallway to run down. That was not a feature that we had in our previous building and not a feature in most homes. So, they have enjoyed it immensely, and were just very thankful that First Baptist in Rogers opened up their doors and allowed us to continue our services seamlessly.

If you would like to request a permit click here.

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 KNWA FOX24.
ROUND ROCK, Texas (KXAN)  Mayra Mathis stands in the dark dispatch center inside Round Rock High School, pointing to a map of the districts 56 schools.

Before discussing changes the district is making to get its police officers to campuses quicker, she explains how she and other dispatchers learn of 911 calls at their schools.

An internal investigation into Round Rock ISD police describes a toxic environment

Round Rock ISD campuses span four jurisdictions, including the City of Austin and Travis County. Mathis explains that 911 calls automatically go to one of four 911 centers or Public Safety Answering Points (PSAP) in the region first. The PSAP first routes the call to Williamson Countys Dispatch Center and then to Round Rock Independent School Districts dispatchers and police officers.

There is a bit of a delay, just naturally, Mathis explains.

The delay is largely undefined. Round Rock ISD is withholding data showing its average police response times. Unlike some other school districts in the area, its legal team cites a 2020 Texas attorney general ruling that allows agencies to withhold that information if they believe it could jeopardize public safety.

We dont share average response times so that bad actors cant take advantage of vulnerabilities, a district spokesperson said in a statement to KXAN.

Records show an internal investigation from October 2023 mentioned issues with the radios and dispatch office were frustrating to some officers. The report suggested there were issues with the radios and a fear among officers that the new dispatch center may not be able to handle severe security issues quickly.

Round Rock ISD Superintendent Hafedh Azaiez tried to describe the problem. He said there was no way to reduce police response times without making changes, particularly around police radios and 911 calls. Many of the districts changes were made under the districts previous police chief, Dennis Weiner, who has since been placed on administrative leave.

State agency confirms investigation of Round Rock ISD police leadership

According to district officials, 911 centers or PSAPs in the area of Round Rock ISD schools still route the districts calls to the Williamson County dispatch center first, but district officials said they have changed how they communicate internally. Non-life-threatening calls will go directly to the districts self-dispatch center during regular business hours.

When we asked Williamson County about that process, it said 911 calls from the districts campuses should come directly to the county, not the other PSAPs. County officials said it contacted the district to have its phone systems configuration corrected.

Testing police radios

Azaiez said there is also an ongoing problem with its police radios dropping out in certain parts of its school buildings. At times, and depending on where they are, officers struggle to hear the radios Williamson County provides.

Round Rock ISD Superintendent Hafedh Azaiez answers questions about the districts public safety. (KXAN Photo/Richie Bowes)

They have to walk a couple of feet down to an area where there is better coverage, Azaiez said.

The district purchased new push-to-talk radios that use Wi-Fi and a federally funded cellular network to solve the radio coverage issue. Azaiez said officers will still carry the radios theyve used for years, but the new technology will be a redundancy to ensure they are covered. However, the changes have drawn criticism from the districts main partner, Williamson County.

Williamson County leaders, including the sheriff and senior director of Emergency Services, signed their name to a letter last August stating that there are serious security risks [in] using such devices. In a statement to KXAN this week, the county said the push-to-talk radios do not interface with the Greater Austin/Travis County Regional Radio System or GATTRS.

It will not be suitable for mission-critical communications. Currently, Williamson County Emergency Communications cannot monitor the push-to-talk devices, nor can other first responders, Williamson Countys Chief Information Officer Richard Semple said.

But at least one other PSAP within the same jurisdiction as some of the districts schools said it tested the technology successfully. The City of Austin said it tested to see if voice traffic could be heard between the push-to-talk radios and the Greater Austin/Travis County Regional Radio System, or GATTRS, and validated it could be done.

After the technologys feasibility was validated, the district signed an interlocal agreement with the City of Austin. The city said it expects a final signature on the agreement this month.

I think the goal is to improve our response. How quickly we get to things, Azaiez said. We are not going to sit here and say we are perfect. We still have a lot of things that we are working on.

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 KXAN Austin.
Teacher Goes in for Routine Shoulder Surgery, Wakes Up with Brain Injury: 'Something Went Wrong in the O.R. That Day'

Scott Munro suffered a brain injury, which his family says was caused by his oxygen levels going unchecked during a routine procedure

KGW News/Youtube Vancouver teacher Scott Munro returns home after a traumatic brain injury.

A beloved Vancouver teacher is finally returning home after he suffered a traumatic brain injuryduring a routine shoulder surgery, which his family believes was caused by unchecked oxygen levels.

Last September, Scott Munro went in for elective orthopedic outpatient surgery, according to a GoFundMe set up by his daughter Katherine.

He did not wake up for days, the GoFundMe says. For reasons still unknown, during the surgery he suffered a loss of oxygen to his brain, and he was in the ICU for a month. He now has significant brain damage; the doctors called it a hypoxic-anoxic brain injury.

As the Brain Injury Association of America explains, hypoxic injury occurs when the brain is still able to receive some amount of oxygen, but does not get enough. An anoxic injury occurs when oxygen is cut off completely from the brain.

The injury left Munro, who for nearly 30 years had been an educator with the Evergreen School District, in a coma, and he spent a month in the ICU, KGW-8 reports.

I think it's important to share that we know something went wrong in the O.R. that day. Someone or some machine, maybe more than one person, maybe more than one machine, was not doing its job," his wife, Katrina, told KGW-8.

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She said that for four minutes during the surgery, his oxygen levels were not monitored.

Hes spent the past 8 months at rehab centers in Chicago and Omaha, relearning how to walk and talk, as the GoFundMe explains. He has also had to relearn basic tasks that will help him live independently.

Related: 22-Year-Old Graduates from College After Surviving Brain Tumor, Two Major Surgeries: 'I'm Finally Moving On' (Exclusive)

Dad has been much more consistent with using a strong voice and projecting! In physical therapy hes continuing to work on assisted walking with the harness and treadmill, as well as standing up with assistance, and sitting up straight, his daughter Katherine wrote in January.

In occupational therapy theyre starting to focus more on movement of his left arm. He's getting better at self-care such as brushing his teeth, shaving, and putting lotion on with decreasing assistance.

Related: Emilia Clarke Says She Feared Dying on Live TV amid Brain Surgeries: 'It Alters Your Sense of Self'

And Wednesday, he finally returned home, arriving to cheers from family and friends at the Portland International Airport.

'Cause of all these people, more than anything else, family and friends, being able to see them in person, being able to see my dad, Scott told KGW.

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.

The outlet reports that he will stay in an assisted living community while his home is outfitted to accommodate his needs.

It's very emotional and it also feels right, it feels like we've kind of come full circle, his wife, Katrina, told KGW-8. And now we're finally back.



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Read the original article on People.
Sebastine Kava Liliu met Princess Anne last year during a passing out parade at HMS Raleigh - Solent News and Photo Agency

The Royal Navys first sailor from the Solomon Islands scouted a nightclub for drunk women before raping his victim in the bushes, a court has heard.

Sebastine Kava Liliu raped his 19-year-old victim just yards from the nightclub out of which he had lured her.

Portsmouth Crown Court heard the predatory sailor had spent two and a half hours scouting out the club on his own to try to identify lone, drunk females.

He bought his particularly vulnerable victim a double tequila despite her already being extremely drunk and convinced her to leave the club with him in the early hours of Feb 11 in Portsmouth.

Opportunistic

Kava Liliu then lured the woman to a secluded spot on a street just yards away and raped her on the ground in the bushes.

After the attack Kava Liliu took a taxi back to his ship in the naval city.

The sailor was photographed in April last year meeting Princess Anne during a passing out parade at HMS Raleigh, the Navys basic training facility in Torpoint, Cornwall.

He was selected to meet the Princess as the first person from the Solomon Islands to join the Navy and it was heard he had a glowing service record.

However, on Thursday, a judge branded Kava Liliu opportunistic and jailed him for six years.

Judge Michael Bowes KC ruled Kava Liliu targeted the woman and caused her severe psychological harm.

Particularly vulnerable victim

Addressing Kava Liliu, Judge Bowes KC said: On February 11 [the victim] went out for a night out to The Astoria with her friends, [she] had a lot to drink and was drunk.

I make it absolutely clear, she is not to be blamed in any way for that.

There came a stage where you did approach her and talk to her as you knew she was drunk and vulnerable. Shortly after, you took her outside and close by in a bush you raped her.

What you did that night has had a very profound effect on [the victim].

As well as the physical damage, you have caused severe psychological harm that will remain with her for many years and quite probably for the rest of her life.

The judge added: Ive found that you did cause severe psychological harm and she was particularly vulnerable due to her personal circumstances.

I found that your offence, while extremely serious, was opportunistic rather than the result of significant planning.

The judge said he took into account Kava Lilius Royal Navy service report, which spoke well of him.

In a statement read out at an earlier hearing, Kava Lilius victim said she had lost her dignity after the attack.

Kava Liliu, who admitted one count of rape, will be released after four years and serve the last two years of his sentence on licence.

It is understood he plans to return to the Solomon Islands.

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The G7 leaders' summit in Italy will discuss the securitization of frozen Russian assets, which could provide Ukraine with concessional financing worth about $50 billion from 2025. If the plan is approved, it will cover Ukraine's need for external financing for 2025 and provide a guarantee of funding regardless of political changes.

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This was announced by the head of the Committee on Finance, Taxation and Customs Policy, Danylo Hetmantsev (Servant of the People). On Thursday, June 13, a three-day summit of G7 leaders began in the Italian region of Puglia, where one of the main topics to be discussed at the initiative of the United States will be the securitization of Russian assets . This event is extremely important for Ukraine, as it is about the possibility of obtaining concessional financing worth about $50 billion starting in 2025.

The essence of securitization of Russian assets

The plan envisages the issuance of securities (bonds) secured by the income from the frozen assets of the Bank of Russia in the long term. Mr. Getmantsev notes that there are still many unresolved issues as to how the future deal will be structured. Some of them include:

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Which countries will provide funding and in what proportion ?

will provide funding ? How will guarantees be provided that the assets, most of which are located in the EU, will remain frozen for a long time and generate cash flow?

for a long time Will the funding be provided in the form of a concessional loan or a non-repayable grant?

What will be the administrative structure for the financing (preliminary agreements point to the creation of a fund to be administered by the World Bank)?

According to Danylo Hetmantsev, if this plan is approved, it will be an important milestone for Ukraine in the coming years . He notes that such a decision will cover the need for external financing for 2025, which the Ministry of Finance currently estimates at $32 billion. Ukraine will receive a guarantee of receiving such funding regardless of political cycles, including the US elections.

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France's position and support from G7 leaders

Another positive signal was the news from Bloomberg, which cited France as saying that it had agreed to allocate $50 billion for Ukraine through the use of proceeds from frozen assets. The first deputy head of the committee, Yaroslav Zheleznyak (Holos), emphasized that this was especially important given France's skeptical position.

He expressed optimism that the main political decision to follow the US plan would be made. Mr. Zheleznyak agreed that there are still many unresolved issues . Despite the positive news, there are still some challenges that need to be further negotiated:

When will the funds be available (according to reports, funds will be disbursed by the end of the year, but the amount remains unclear)?

unclear)? Who will administer the funding (the EU or the World Bank)?

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What are the conditions for disbursement and use of the funds (can they be used for military expenditures)?

(can they be used for military expenditures)? For how long will the funding be provided?

"All these details will be agreed upon for a long time after the G7 Summit, and there will definitely be risks. But so far, it seems that the main political decision to follow the US plan will be made tomorrow," he said.

As OBOZ.UA reported earlier, the United States is pushing its partners from the Group of Seven (G7) to provide Ukraine with $50 billion in macro-financial assistance, which will be repaid with the proceeds from Russia's frozen assets. Part of the funds may be provided in advance to provide assistance in the short term.

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Mount Redoubt, an active volcano, is seen across Cook Inlet from Skilak Lake Road on the Kenai Peninsula on March 17, 2021. (Photo by Lisa Hupp/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

Mount Redoubt, an active volcano, is seen across Cook Inlet from Skilak Lake Road on the Kenai Peninsula on March 17, 2021. A state oil and gas lease sale for the Cook Inlet basin drew only three bids, all for onshore tracts on either side of the inlet, according to results released by the Alaska Division of Oil and Gas. (Photo by Lisa Hupp/U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service)

A state oil and gas auction that offered royalty-free leases in the Cook Inlet basin as an incentive for new exploration drew only three bids, according to results released Wednesday by the Alaska Division of Oil and Gas.

The annual areawide Cook Inlet sale featured special terms for the 725 tracts covering 3 million offshore and onshore acres in the basin: A set $40-per-acre price and a requirement that buyers share the profits from any future production in exchange for a complete elimination of state royalties that are typically set at 12.5%.

Hilcorp Alaska, LLC, the dominant operator in the inlet, was the sole bidder in the lease sale. The three bids submitted by the company totaled $177,636.40, according to the division.

It was the second attempt by the Division of Oil and Gas to lure Cook Inlet lease sale bidding by eliminating royalties. A sale held in December of 2023 with the same terms drew six bids.

The head of the Department of Natural Resources conceded in a statement that this years sale fell flat.

While the State of Alaska is disappointed by the low level of interest in this sale, it is encouraging to see Hilcorp continuing to invest in oil and gas leases in Southcentral Alaska, Department of Natural Resources Commissioner John Boyle said in the statement.

Gov. Mike Dunleavy and some members of the Legislature have pushed for royalty reductions or eliminations to encourage more oil and natural gas production in Cook Inlet. The idea is one of the responses to a looming shortfall of deliverable natural gas to Anchorage and the surrounding Southcentral region. The region has for decades depended on natural gas for heat and generation of electricity.

A bill that would reduce royalties for both oil and gas passed the Alaska House in May but failed to reach the Senate floor before adjournment. Key senators said they saw little evidence that slashing royalties would make a difference for Cook Inlet natural gas production.

Senate Majority Leader Cathy Giessel, R-Anchorage, was among the skeptics during the session. On Wednesday, she said the Cook Inlet lease sale results add to evidence supporting that skepticism.

Im not convinced that royalty relief is the answer, she said during a brief interview at the Resource Development Council for Alaska annual luncheon in Anchorage.

Giessel pointed to the analysis of a hired consulting firm, GaffneyCline, that listed numerous factors as disincentives to Cook Inlet oil and gas investment. Among the factors GaffneyCline cited are the isolated and relatively small market, the aged infrastructure, the lack of support service and some difficult environmental conditions.

Theres a lot of other factors that keep people from seeing Cook Inlet as economic, Giessel said.

But Boyle said he still believes in royalty reductions for Cook Inlet and that the administration continues to support the idea.

I think Cook Inlet royalty relief is absolutely essential to making Cook Inlet economic and seeing more Cook Inlet oil and gas production, he said in a brief interview at the RDC event.

The administrations push for royalty cuts on existing leases and units is different from the royalty elimination used in the annual lease sale, and thus would have more impact, Boyle said.

We already have existing leases and existing units where theres known resources but theres not development or the required amount of investment to bring that into development, he said.

A lesson from the latest lease sale, he said, is that there is little to no appetite for exploration or leasing that goes well beyond whats known in the Cook Inlet at this time.

Of the three tracts that drew Hilcorp bids, the largest is located on the west side of the inlet, near existing onshore natural gas units. The other two tracts are also onshore, near what used to be the federally administered Sterling Unit, also an historic gas producer.

The state also held a concurrent lease sale that offered 1,004 tracts covering 5 million acres on the Alaska Peninsula. That lease sale drew no bids, extending a long streak for oil and gas auctions in that part of the state.

The Alaska Peninsula was added to the states areawide leasing program in 2005, and the sale that year drew 37 bids, mostly from Shell. The only other years in which companies bid for Alaska Peninsula leases were 2007, when a single bid was submitted, and 2014, when three bids were submitted.

The Division of Oil and Gas will continue to evaluate all available areas, including the Alaska Peninsula, for annual lease sales, said Lorraine Henry, a spokesperson for the Department of Natural Resources.

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Rudy Giuliani and Steve Bannon are once again facing handcuffs and jail cells, and boy do they want people to think they are ecstatic about it.

After a judge declined to indulge more of his delay tactics and ordered Bannon to start his prison sentence on July 1, the former top Trump aide took to his popular "WarRoom" podcast to bloviate at pomposity levels heretofore unimaginable. "The purpose of this is to shut down this show because this show has become such a powerful platform for MAGA and President Trump," he declared, with maximum self-drama. Journalist Jennifer Senior described Bannon's performance for The Bulwark: "He plumped like a sponge in front of the cameras," performing "how pleased he was" at the prospect of playing up his MAGA martyrdom.

When Giuliani was finally forced to appear in Maricopa County, Arizona this week to be booked on charges related to his efforts to steal the 2020 election for Trump, the former New York City mayor provided the mug shot photographer with a demented grin.

JUST IN: Rudy Guilianis Arizona mug shot.



Giuliani was indicted in connection with an alleged conspiracy to overturn the 2020 election results in Arizona for Trump.



He was required to show up in person for booking.



Credit: Maricopa County Sheriffs Office pic.twitter.com/XD82pzyFGV  MSNBC (@MSNBC) June 10, 2024

As Margaret Hartmann at New York magazine wrote, Giuliani has turned himself into "a real-life Batman villain." When a reporter asked if he regrets his alleged crimes (Giuliani is charged with a scheme to steal Arizona's electoral votes and replace them with fake ones) he was gleeful. "Im very, very proud of it!"

Want more Amanda Marcotte on politics? Subscribe to her newsletter Standing Room Only.

Both Bannon and Giuliani tried multiple methods to evade law enforcement, suggesting they aren't as pleased as they claim to be. In fact, Bannon is still filing long-shot appeals, trying to avoid prison.

Reporter: Do you have any regrets about what you did in Arizona after the election?



Giuliani: No. Im very very proud of it. pic.twitter.com/PFUZrDApPj  Acyn (@Acyn) June 11, 2024

As with the Republican chorus of faux-outrage over Trump's 34 felony convictions in Manhattan, there's very little effort to deny the facts of the crimes in question. This is not really about convincing anyone they're innocent. Instead, it's about celebrating their criminality. As Maggie Haberman and Jonah Bromwich recently wrote in the New York Times, Trump wants to brand himself an "outlaw" by surrounding himself with fellow criminals. For instance, Trump brought former Hell's Angels leader Chuck Zito to trial with him, even though Zito has done time for organized crime and was accused of attempted murder. At a New York City rally during the trial, Trump campaigned on stage with a rapper indicted for attempted murder. "Thats why the Black people like me," Trump infamously said of his Fulton County mug shot.

Most Americans, polls show, do not think being a proud criminal is cute, with only 37%  Trump's immoveable base of support  believing he should stay in the presidential race post-conviction. But the reason Bannon and Giuliani behave this way is obvious: MAGA eats it up. There is no quicker way to get in the good graces of Trump's loyal supporters than to act like a cartoon bad guy. As I've written about before, many Republicans even go so far as to dress like they're the wicked witches and comic book killers you'd see in a Disney or Marvel movie. Others emulate James Bond antagonists, going on lengthy public monologues about all their evil machinations. We see this with Trump aide Stephen Miller gloating about how rounding up millions of immigrants for concentration camps and mass deportation will be "spectacular." Christian nationalist leader Christopher Rufo takes special delight in bragging on Twitter about his plans for book-banning and targeted harassment of academics.

MAGA mistakes immorality for strength. This is a common refrain with fascists and authoritarians who love to talk a big game about how they need to break some rules  and break some skulls  to get things done. That's why Gov. Kristi Noem, R-S.D., was so excited to tell that disturbing story about shooting her own dog. She portrayed it as "another unpleasant job needed to be done," as if she should be lauded for making "hard" choices that supposedly weaker people can't make.

The mistaking of cruelty for strength is perhaps the most enduring delusion of the MAGA world. This was illustrated in a recent GOP pollster Frank Luntz focus group and published in the New York Times. As one GOP-friendly participant said, he views Trump as "the antihero, the Soprano, the 'Breaking Bad,' the guy who does bad things, who is a bad guy but does them on behalf of the people he represents."

Of course, that guy either didn't actually watch those shows or didn't understand them, because the "antiheroes" on them are actually just selfish murderers who put their families and friends at risk. Nor does he understand Trump, who repeatedly threatens the life and safety of his own followers. People died from COVID-19 because they believed Trump when he said it was a "hoax" they need not take precautions against. People are in prison because they let him encourage them to commit crimes like storming the Capitol. Trump doesn't do anything on "behalf" of anyone else, ever. He only acts to get power and money for himself.

That's why I flinch at the term "strongman" to describe authoritarian leaders. Yes, it's a term of art to describe their self-presentation, but as a practical matter, the opposite is true: So-called "strongmen" are weak and self-serving. Gullible people tell themselves that because fascistic leaders are loud-mouthed and cruel, they must somehow also be efficient and effective. In truth, that belligerence is a cover for incompetence, as we saw with Trump during the pandemic. Or with Noem, who shot her dog because, ultimately, she is not smart or patient enough to train the animal.

Similarly, the claims to be transgressing for a greater cause are simply lies. Most of the time, these authoritarians are just plain old criminals, motivated by greed. We see this with Bannon, who was only spared a likely conviction in another case because of a last-minute pardon from Trump. His alleged crime was defrauding his own followers, taking their money with promises to "build the wall" but then spending it on his luxurious lifestyle. Trump uses the "I'm fighting for you" line constantly in his fundraising appeals, but that money is going strictly to paying his lawyers and helping him secure more power, which he will use to take away rights and benefits from the credulous people who support him.

Greed and incompetence go hand-in-hand. Authoritarians are too focused on self-dealing to care about things like making the trains run on time. The Republican majority in the House of Representatives is a perfect illustration. Because so many of their members are press-hungry and/or backstabbers, they had a showy and pointless ouster of their Speaker, only to realize they had no one suitable to replace him. While they all claim to want "tough" immigration policies, when they had a chance to pass such a bill, Republicans deliberately tanked it. Why? Because Trump thought doing so would serve his political interests. Over and over, they show they're incapable of governing because they're too busy trying to steal from the cookie jar to actually do the hard work of legislating.

Not that MAGA loyalists will ever notice the pattern. As I argued in this week's newsletter, the trick to Trump's hustle is appealing to people who think they're savvy but are, in fact, intellectually lazy. They want to believe that it's just "hard-nosed" and "realistic" to back lawless and corrupt fascists. But they won't even see how they're being used and discarded by the villains and criminals they admire.
About the Rumor McDonald's Is Considering Leaving California Due to State's Minimum Wage Increase

On June 12, 2024, Snopes received an email from a reader asking, "Is McDonald's considering leaving California?" The reader attached to the email a screenshot of an article credited to the DailySparkUp blog. The headline of that story read, "Is Fast Food Becoming A Luxury? McDonald's Might Exit California As 80% Of Americans Struggle To Afford Fast Food."

An online article claimed McDonald's was reportedly leaving California due to the minimum wage hike to 20 dollars an hour enacted by a new law in the state.

DailySparkUp.com originally published this article on June 11. The reader's screenshot displayed the story as republished on MSN.com. Some of the more than 100 users commenting on the MSN.com article appeared to believe McDonald's truly was considering closing all of its more than 1,200 restaurants in California.

However, Snopes' review of this rumor found no evidence from any credible source confirming McDonald's planned to close all California restaurants and leave the state. The rumor was apparently an attempt to capitalize on clicks from Republican voters who harbor a dislike of the politics in the Golden State and its Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom. Further, the DailySparkUp article bore signs of inauthentic journalistic practices and the use of artificial-intelligence (AI). We will delve into those matters later in this story.

We contacted both McDonald's Corporation and the DailySparkUp blog to ask about this rumor and article but have not yet received any responses.

Is McDonald's Really Considering Leaving California?

DailySparkUp's headline asked if fast food was "becoming a luxury" and mentioned 80 percent of Americans purportedly struggling to afford fast food. The headline apparently referenced a LendingTree.com survey published in May 2024. According to LendingTree.com, part of that survey found 78% of American consumers "view fast food as a luxury because it's become increasingly expensive."

The DailySparkUp article began as follows:

California is notorious for its progressive laws, recently implementing a $20 minimum wage hike that has made even budget-friendly McDonald's consider leaving the state, as 80% of Americans now find fast food a luxury. In response to California's new minimum wage law, which raised hourly pay to $20 starting April 1, fast food restaurants across the state have significantly increased their menu prices. According to a report from Kalinowski Equity Research, Wendy's and Chipotle Mexican Grill have adjusted their prices upwards by approximately 8% and 7.5% respectively. ... Amid these adjustments, McDonald's is reportedly considering a drastic measureexiting the California market altogether.

The story's author, displayed as "Kate Smith," wrote that McDonald's was "reportedly" considering leaving California. The word "reportedly" usually indicates the existence of publicly-available reporting from another source. However, the author cited no other reporting as a source for this claim.

The article's mention of "a $20 minimum wage hike" referenced California's new law establishing a $20 minimum wage for some restaurants, which went into effect on April 1.

The Author 'Kate Smith' and AI

DailySparkUp.com features a photo and bio for "Kate Smith," the purported author of the McDonald's article. A Google search found no information for "Smith" outside of DailySparkUp's website.

The bio did not contain any background details or other identifying information. According to the DailySparkUp Facebook page's "page transparency" tab, the website's owner or owners reside in Hungary.

The bio for "Smith" read: "Kate Smith, a self-proclaimed word nerd who relishes the power of language to inform, entertain, and inspire. Kate's passion for sharing knowledge and sparking meaningful conversations fuels her every word."

An online article claimed McDonald's was reportedly leaving California due to the minimum wage hike to 20 dollars an hour enacted by a new law in the state.

The image for "Smith" displayed signs of possibly being generated by AI. The very specific type of blurry shapes in the background, the facial alignment of the eyes and mouth and the overall look of the image resembled a number of images containing fake faces reviewed in past Snopes investigations.

A scan of the "Smith" image with the deepfake-detection tool on Sensity.ai resulted in a "report status" of "suspicious" with a 99.9 percent "confidence" rating that a StyleGAN2 model generator was used to create the image. (StyleGAN2 refers to the generative adversarial network (GAN) image modeling software created by Nvidia.)

In our email outreach to DailySparkUp.com, we asked about their source claiming McDonald's was "reportedly" leaving California. We also asked about the author and the author's image, as well as whether AI was used to generate part or all of the article's text. We will update this story if we receive any future responses.

Additional Notes

A Google search for "McDonald's leaving California" (without quotation marks) displayed other recent results showing the story on DailySparkUp was not the first iteration of this rumor.

For example, on May 31, SFGate.com reported about an article published by the UnitedLiberty.com blog. The headline of the UnitedLiberty.com story reading, "McDonald's on the verge of CLOSING in California After $20 Minimum Wage." Like the article that appeared on DailySparkUp, MSN.com republished the UnitedLiberty.com story. Further, the article featured an author who may or may not be a real person and possibly used one or more AI tools to aid in writing the piece.

Sources:

Beam, Adam. "New California Law Raises Minimum Wage for Fast Food Workers to $20 per Hour, among Nation's Highest." The Associated Press, 28 Sept. 2023, https://apnews.com/article/california-minimum-wage-increase-fast-food-newsom-69c26b7f07f2647149c37677446cea30.

Chea, Terry, and Adam Beam. "New $20 Minimum Wage for Fast Food Workers in California Is Set to Start Monday." The Associated Press, 31 Mar. 2024, https://apnews.com/article/california-fast-food-minimum-wage-a04c2e559b09cbcd26dd5702e0755a83.

Karoff, Timothy. "The California McDonald's Rumor Is Coming from a Digital Ghost." SFGate.com, 31 May 2024, https://www.sfgate.com/sf-culture/article/mcdonalds-leaving-california-rumor-source-19488843.php.

Liles, Jordan. "These Pro-DeSantis Facebook Groups Appear Inauthentic. Here's What We Found." Snopes, 19 Oct. 2022, https://www.snopes.com//news/2022/10/19/desantis-downton-abbey/.

"Nearly 80% of Americans Now See Fast Food as a 'luxury,' Survey Says." ABC7 Los Angeles, 29 May 2024, https://abc7.com/post/80-americans-now-fast-food-luxury-new-lendingtree/14888208/.

"Number of McDonald's Stores by State US 2023." Statista, Statista Research Department, 26 Feb. 2024, https://www.statista.com/statistics/631235/number-of-mcdonald-s-us-by-state/.

Schulz, Matt. "Nearly 80% of Americans Say Fast Food Is Now a Luxury Because It's Become So Expensive." LendingTree, 20 May 2024, https://www.lendingtree.com/debt-consolidation/fast-food-survey/.

Sensity AI: Best All-In-One Deepfake Detection Software 2024. https://sensity.ai/.

"StyleGAN2." GitHub, NVlabs, https://github.com/NVlabs/stylegan2.
A group of international human rights lawyers has accused Russia of intentionally starving the civilians of Mariupol as a method of warfare during its 85-day siege of the Ukrainian city in early 2022.

A 76-page dossier published Thursday by the Starvation Mobile Justice Team of the human rights organization Global Rights Compliance looks in detail at the siege, which it described as hell on earth for the port citys residents, through the lens of the war crime of starvation as a calculated strategy.

It found that Russian forces systematically attacked objects indispensable to the survival of the civilian population, while at the same time cutting off evacuation routes and blocking the delivery of humanitarian aid.

Ukrainian civilians were cut off from water, electricity and gas and forced to drink from puddles, radiators and melted snow.

The findings didnt come as a surprise to Nikolai Osychenko, who described living through the siege as a Stone Age experience.

The Russians bombed the substation that supplied electricity to Mariupol on March 2 and we lost electricity, and at the same time, we also lost the water supply and heating, he told CNN, adding that the city started running out of food almost immediately, because without electricity, much of it has gone bad.

We all realized that flour is the best thing to have. If you have water and flour, you can cook something. But without water, you cant do anything, he said.

The Mariupol resident spent two weeks living in one apartment with nine other people, rationing food and scraping together any water they could find. They would spend two days melting buckets of snow with their hand, only to get a few inches of dirty water. Osychenko told CNN that at one point, he drank the water from his radiators, boiling it 20 times over to purify it.

Deliberately causing starvation and deprivation constitutes a war crime under international law. The group is in the process of submitting their latest report to the International Criminal Court (ICC) as part of a larger dossier on Russias use of starvation.

According to their website, the organization is funded by the governments of the EU Commission, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States.

CNN has reached out to Russias Ministry of Defense for comment.

Mariupol, a port city on the Sea of Azov, was encircled and captured by Russian forces at the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Local officials estimate that as many as 22,000 people were killed in the battle for the city, which is located in Ukraines Donetsk Oblast and has been under direct Russian control since May 2022.

Hell on earth

It was in Mariupol that Russian forces carried out some of their most notorious strikes, including an attack on a maternity hospital and the bombing of a theater in which up to 1,300 civilians had sought refuge, according to local officials.

The report, entitled, The Hope Left Us: Russias Siege, Starvation, and Capture of Mariupol City explores how peaceful Mariupol was turned into hell on earth in February 2022. It uses open-source research to analyse over 1.5 billion square meters of satellite imagery, as well as photographs, videos, official public statements, and other digital data collected between May 2022 and February 2024.

Its several hundred thousand residents were forced to find alternative coping strategies during Russias siege, amid dwindling supplies and the obstruction of humanitarian aid. This included the establishment of ad hoc distribution points for food, water and other basic necessities.

Women walk past a destroyed apartment building in Mariupol in May 2022. - Alexei Alexandrov/AP

These distribution points, however, including the Mariupol Drama Theater and Neptun Swimming Pool Complex, became targets for the Russian army.

Sustained attacks against Mariupol City forced the distribution of essential items to become largely mobile in order to mitigate risks of shelling, though a significant number of both mobile and stationary distribution points were still shelled, repeatedly exposing vulnerable and hungry residents to significant risk to their lives and means of securing basic necessities, the report found.

It also found several instances where the delivery of vital humanitarian aid was allegedly denied or deliberately obstructed by Russian forces, while civilians were unable to evacuate from the city.

Despite Russian forces command failing to halt hostilities in order to allow and facilitate rapid and unimpeded passage of humanitarian relief for civilians in need, aid delivery was also directly blocked by pro-Russian forces operating at checkpoints erected around evacuation corridors between Mariupol and Zaporizhzhia.

85-day offensive

Osychenko said he and his family survived the ordeal thanks to his wifes and nieces careful planning.

They were in charge of food and they divided the food very clearly: so much porridge, so much this and so much that for the day. Once I caught them not eating at all. They cooked for us but they didnt eat because they knew that there was nowhere to get food, and there was less and less of it, he said.

Yousuf Syed Khan, a senior lawyer with law firm Global Rights Compliance, told CNN he believes there was no doubt that the siege of Mariupol amounted to a war crime.

They [the Russian army] did not allow for international organizations to provide civilian evacuations even though the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as well as the United Nations attempted numerous times to evacuate civilians.

Number two is that they did not allow the entry of humanitarian aid. So not once through the 85-day offensive was there any pause in which they allowed humanitarian aid to enter Mariupol.

Khan continued: On top of that, they were attacking indispensable objects. They were attacking electricity, they were attacking water. They were attacking food distribution points.

There were numerous opportunities for Russian forces to alleviate civilian suffering, he said, but they failed to do so.

Osychenko said that with each day, the situation was getting more and more desperate. Mothers that had small children, many of them lost milk from the stress and hunger, there was no formula, no children food, he said.

The destroyed Mariupol theater building pictured in April 2022. - Pavel Klimov/Reuters

When Russian troops took over the city, they tried to take advantage of the desperate situation.

When Russia came to the city, when they started delivering food to people in basements, giving candies to children, even if you hate Russia, you will go out to them and take it. Because you have nothing to eat, your kids have nothing to drink. Its brutal, he said.

Khan said the way Moscow approached the siege was part of a broader strategy that Russian and pro-Russian forces have used regularly in the past eight years. He pointed to sieges laid by pro-Russian forces across Syria, including those in eastern Aleppo City and Ghouta, as examples of heavy-handed Russian tactics.

Ukrainian authorities and some international officials have previously accused Russia of robbing the country of grain and other commodities in areas it occupied. Accusations that Russia is using food as a weapon of war have been mounting ever since the first reports emerged in the spring of 2022 of grain being stolen by Russian troops.

The ICC has jurisdiction over war crimes committed in Ukraine. It has so far issued four arrest warrants related to Ukraine, including for Russian President Vladimir Putin over the alleged deportation of Ukrainian children.

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How the US and Europe Argued Their Way to a Russian Assets Deal

(Bloomberg) -- Since the early days of Vladimir Putins invasion of Ukraine, about $300 billion of his central banks money has been earning income in accounts in places like Belgium.

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With the war dragging well into its third year and questions surfacing about how long the US and its allies can keep up the flow of aid to Ukraine, the G-7 have agreed to put the money to use to help fund Kyivs fight. After months of debating whether to seize the cash, the compromise will generate about $50 billion  for now.

The US had pushed to take the Russian assets outright, but European officials rejected that, fearing potential fallout given that the majority of the money is held on their turf. The US then suggested a complex cocktail of financial engineering that calls for granting a loan to Ukraine secured by the future interest the Russian assets will earn.

The G-7 leaders are set to approve a version of that this week, with final details to be worked out so that Ukraine can start receiving the funds by the end of the year.

Even this approach would have seemed unthinkable a year ago because of the precedent it would set and the risks it would carry.

Now officials say it could be a first step toward bolder actions in the future. Still, the Western allies differences over just how far to push their might in global finance and trade have exposed the fault lines of financial warfare, complicating attempts to raise pressure on the Kremlin.

As a result, after more than two years of the toughest financial assault the West has ever mounted, Russias economy is still growing. The Kremlin has found ways around sanctions with the help of friendly countries like China. Its war machine is in many areas outproducing those of Ukraines allies.

Its not the nosedive that I predicted two years ago, Daleep Singh, the White Houses deputy national security adviser for international economics told Bloombergs Voternomics podcast. But I would not mistake Russias rebound for resilience.

The US announced new restrictions this week, targeting the financial channels Russia uses to evade the existing restrictions. The EU is set to follow shortly.

But while there are signs the Kremlin is having a harder time sourcing key technologies and that the cost of the war is straining its budget, the squeeze so far doesnt seem to have changed Putins calculus.

For Ukraine and its allies, the deal to tap at least some of the value locked in the frozen reserves is an important signal that Kyiv has a source of financial support  one tied directly to Russia, which started the conflict  for years to come, no matter what the political winds in the US and Europe.

Washington is still holding out the possibility it might in future seize some of the cash  a view some in Europe also share  but it took months of testy transatlantic negotiations to get even the current deal. Most of the money is in Europe after Putin pulled the bulk of his central banks assets out of the US in 2018 following earlier waves of sanctions.

Policymakers did not have a coordinated objective or end state in mind when they decided to freeze these assets, said Kim Donovan, a former Treasury official now at the Atlantic Council. They were likely hoping the shock and awe of freezing sovereign assets combined with other economic measures would compel Putin to end his invasion of Ukraine.

Why Using Russian Assets to Fund Ukraine Is Fraught: QuickTake

Nuclear Option

Freezing central bank reserves had been considered the nuclear option in the arsenal of Western economic warfare  rarely tried and potentially too destructive to use. Other countries willingness to hold their cash in dollars, euros, yen and pounds was a sign of their confidence in the US-led financial system.

The US was not always leading the charge. It took a call in late February 2022 from then-Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi to reassure US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen that the move was the right one. The two had gotten to know each other as heads of the European Central Bank and Federal Reserve respectively. Other US officials worried the move would crush the Russian economy, sending shock waves into Europe and beyond.

In fact, it took the Russian central bank only a few weeks to steady the ruble and contain the damage.

It was months before the US and its allies found out that most were stuck in Euroclear, a Belgium-based clearinghouse. There was little appetite to consider anything beyond leaving them there. Yellen said seizing them would violate US law at the time.

By last summer, the situation had changed.

Ukraines western-backed counteroffensive was failing to deliver a breakthrough and Russia was managing to avoid many sanctions by rerouting trade through countries who chose not to observe them.

Earlier this year, a vital $61 billion aid package to Ukraine was stuck in the US Congress. EU nations started exploring whether there was something they could actually do with the frozen assets.

Seizure was illegal, the blocs experts concluded, but there was a way to squeeze some value out of them without having them change hands.

Breakthrough on Profits

The Europeans settled on an approach that stretched the limits of what many thought possible: taking the profits earned on the assets in Euroclear  estimated to be worth between 3 billion to 5 billion annually  and giving them to Ukraine. Yellen gave the nod in September, signaling US backing for the EU plan.

But Washington kept looking for a way to get Ukraine more money from the reserves sooner.

The White House quietly put its support behind a bill that would give it the authority to seize the assets held in its jurisdiction. US officials then mounted a push for G-7 action, mobilizing international law experts to make the case that seizure was legal.

By February, the US campaign was in full swing. Working groups held weekly calls on legal issues, risks and how the money would be spent, as top Treasury officials lobbied allies from Tokyo to Berlin.

Moral Case

Ahead of a meeting of Group of 20 finance ministers in Sao Paulo, Yellen argued there is a strong international law, economic and moral case for moving forward.

Her push was met with a cool reception from European counterparts and finance ministers of other countries in attendance, who raised concerns about the US and other major economies weaponizing their currencies.

Washingtons full-court press also irritated European officials, who said the US should focus on getting the stalled aid through Congress, rather than pushing a potentially risky plan that affected assets mostly in Europe.

Faced with opposition from the likes of France, Germany and the European Central Bank, the US backed off the idea of outright seizure, turning to financial engineering. Yellen kept up the lobbying behind the scenes.

Deal Reached

By late April, Congress had approved the long-awaited assistance package to Ukraine as well as the law giving the US authority to seize the assets.

A new US proposal was circulating in European capitals and, for the first time, the response of the key holdouts was not a resounding no. As G-7 finance ministers gathered in mid-May, discussions had shifted to the details of making the approach work.

The plan called for a loan to Ukraine that would in effect pull forward the future profits on the Russian assets, without seizing the underlying holdings. That would raise enough to cover some of Kyivs needs into 2025 and beyond, and show Putin that the allies are committed to supporting it for as long as it takes.

This week, as G-7 leaders gathered in Italy for their annual summit, an agreement had formed around a structure for the lending. It will be based on the size of participants economies and provide Ukraine with about $50 billion of fresh aid starting to flow by the end of the year, according to people familiar with the matter.

We will have the major tent poles of this decided, but some of the specifics left to be worked through by experts on a defined timetable, Jake Sullivan, US National Security Advisor, said on Thursday in Italy. Thats how I anticipate this will all play out.

--With assistance from Saleha Mohsin and Jennifer Jacobs.

(Adds detail on profits earned.)

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2024 Bloomberg L.P.
Russias deliberate plan to starve civilians in the siege of Mariupol - Ukraine: The Latest

A theatre destroyed in the course of Ukraine-Russia war in the southern port city of Mariupol, Ukraine April 10, 2022 - STAFF/REUTERS

Today, we bring you the latest military updates from the front lines and discuss a recent report that alleges Russia deliberately starved civilians during the siege of Mariupol.

Listen to Ukraine: the Latest, The Telegraphs daily podcast, using the audio player at the top of this article or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or your favourite podcast app.

War in Ukraine is reshaping our world. Every weekday The Telegraphs top journalists analyse the invasion from all angles - military, humanitarian, political, economic, historical - and tell you what you need to know to stay updated.

With over 70 million listens, our Ukraine: The Latest podcast is your go-to source for all the latest analysis, live reaction and correspondents reporting on the ground. We have been broadcasting ever since the full-scale invasion began.

Ukraine: The Latests regular contributors are:

David Knowles

David is Head of Audio Development at The Telegraph, where he has worked for over three years. He has reported from across Ukraine during the full-scale invasion.

Dominic Nicholls

Dom is Associate Editor (Defence) at The Telegraph, having joined in 2018. He previously served for 23 years in the British Army, in tank and helicopter units. He had operational deployments in Iraq, Afghanistan and Northern Ireland.

Francis Dearnley

Francis is Assistant Comment Editor at The Telegraph. Prior to working as a journalist, he was chief of staff to the Chair of the Prime Ministers Policy Board at the Houses of Parliament in London. He studied History at Cambridge University and on the podcast explores how the past shines a light on the latest diplomatic, political, and strategic developments.

They are also regularly joined by Telegraph reporters and correspondents around the world, including Joe Barnes (Brussels Correspondent), James Kilner, (Foreign Correspondent and Editor of the Central Asia & the South Caucasus Bulletin), Sophia Yan (Senior Foreign Correspondent), Roland Oliphant (Senior Foreign Correspondent), Colin Freeman (Foreign Correspondent), Danielle Sheridan (Defence Editor), and Tony Diver (US Editor).

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.
Russia to interfere in US elections to weaken States and undermine support for Ukraine  Bloomberg

Bloomberg has reported that an increasing number of US adversaries, led by Russia, have been attempting to influence the 2024 presidential elections through hired commercial firms and the use of generative AI.

Source: Bloomberg with reference to US officials

Quote: "Russia poses the most serious threat in this election cycle, according to Office of the Director of National Intelligence officials, who asked not to be identified discussing non-public assessments.

Moscow likely views the election as an opportunity to pursue its broader goals of undercutting support for Ukraines war effort, eroding confidence in democratic institutions and undermining trust in the US more broadly, the officials said."

Details: The intelligence community expects that Russia will exploit social divisions in the US, including protests in college campuses where people support Palestinians in the Gaza conflict.

Sources believe that Iran wants to act as an agent of chaos in the 2024 elections by sowing internal discord and even encouraging violence.

Meanwhile, according to officials, China is taking a more cautious approach as it is aware of the potential consequences of interfering in the elections.

The Foreign Malign Influence Center at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, which began operations in September 2022, will attempt to counter these threats through media analysis. Specifically, the centre aims to establish whether media is being created synthetically or controlled by foreign agents.

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Anna, a Russian patriot who loves her homeland in the Netherlands, complained about the poor treatment she received because of the war in Ukraine. The Russian woman, who has been living abroad for 25 years and is looking for a "first-class life for her children," was suddenly outraged that Russian citizens in the civilized world are treated "like animals," while Ukrainians are protected at all levels.

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As Anna told the propagandists, the IDPs from Ukraine have not lost their sense of pride and avoid communicating with Russians in a foreign country. She sees this as "discrimination on the basis of nationality."

A Russian woman in the Netherlands lives well on disability benefits, but she regularly faces reproaches from locals for paying taxes for her maintenance. At the same time, she is outraged that she has to put up with price increases and pay to the state that helps Ukrainians.

Anna has a daughter. She and her husband once moved from Russia to give her a better life - a decent education, travel, and the opportunity to earn good money. The Russians expected to be welcomed in the Netherlands with open arms, but they faced a harsh reality.

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As soon as Russia went to war in Ukraine and Russian officials began threatening the Netherlands with a nuclear strike, the mood of the locals changed. Suddenly, Anna, her husband and daughter had to hide their nationality.

"For the past two years, I have stopped understanding what is happening because my child is afraid to speak Russian. My husband and I also speak only Dutch with each other on the street because I am afraid to communicate with him in my native language. The atmosphere of Russophobia has spread like a cobweb. Any manifestation with the word RUS is rejected, cut off with anger and pain," the Russian woman said.

The emigrant said that she feels "disadvantaged" because she is looked at "like an animal."

She also emphasized that Ukrainians refuse to cooperate with Russians. For example, one Ukrainian woman opened her own cleaning company abroad and hired compatriots, but when they received an order from Russian-speaking clients, she rudely refused. A similar situation occurred at a service station. Proud immigrants from Ukraine refused to help Russians for any money.

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In the end, Anna summarized that the police, court, government and press in the Netherlands mostly side with Ukrainians in conflict situations, so Russians feel fear and uncertainty in a foreign country. Nevertheless, they also do not want to return home, so they simply hide their pro-Russian position and shamefully pretend to be ethnic residents.

Earlier, OBOZ.UA wrote that the civilized world does not welcome tourists from a terrorist state, so Russians are coming up with "worthy" alternatives. One of them is Venezuela, the country with the highest crime rate.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!

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The widows of Russian men killed fighting in Ukraine are increasingly counting on the troops frozen sperm to posthumously bear their children, according to a new report.

Olga Anufriyeva, 44, visited an IVF clinic in Russias Buryatia republic just a week after her husband, Yevgeny, was buried following his gruesome death in Ukraines Kharkiv region in June 2022, the People of Baikal journal reports.

They said they couldnt even change his clothing, they just put his clothes there [in the coffin]. They buried him on June 13, but I dont remember that day at all, Anufriyeva said.

In her grief, she said she visited a local temple, where a Buddhist monk advised her exactly when to undergo the final step of the IVF procedure so that her deceased husband will be reborn into a child.

She did as the monk suggested and gave birth to a daughter almost a year to the day after her husband died, on June 7 2023. Now shes planning to use the last remaining embryo to have another child, admitting that she knows she will be alone until the end of life, since in her town there are no men left, theyre all at war.

Several other widows have said they plan to use IVF to give their late husbands children, with one in the Sverdlov region saying she felt compelled to do so because he always dreamed of a child.

And in at least one case, a mother talked her unmarried son into donating his sperm before he headed off to the battlefield so that shed have the chance to one day have grandchildren.

The mother, Svetlana, said shes now trying to find a surrogate to carry her sons child after he died in the war.

While theres been a push to create a sperm bank for all troops involved in Vladimir Putins so-called special military operation, those plans may have been hampered by Western sanctions imposed over the war.

Panicked Russia Is Now Telling Reluctant Soldiers They Will Be Resurrected

Artyom Zuyev, a medical lawyer, told the journal that certain equipment requiredlike refrigeration units using liquid nitrogenis simply off limits with the current sanctions.

He said there also seemed to be something cynical about authorities enthusiasm for troops preserving their sperm: I see in such an initiative only the need of the authorities to give the men going to the front an additional incentive. As a certain factor that reduces the fear of death. That is, the state gives you the opportunity not only to die, but also to reproduce even after death. And its even a little funny.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Russian aircraft has dropped almost 100 high-explosive bombs over last few months  media

Belgorod on 4 May after a Russian FAB glide bomb fell on the city. Photo: Vyacheslav Gladkov, the governor of Russias Belgorod Oblast

Russian media reports that Russian aircraft bombed Belgorod Oblast in Russia and Ukrainian occupied territories at least 93 times over the last four months.

Source: ASTRA with reference to sources in emergency services of Belgorod Oblast

Details: At least five aerial bombs were detected in Belgorod Oblast in Russia on 11-12 June: in the village of Nekludove, in the village of Batratskaya Dacha, in the village of Novostroevka, near the village of Leninskoe and in the village of Tsepliaevo-Druhe.

In all five cases no people were injured.

On 4 May a Russian aircraft dropped a FAB-500 aerial bomb on the city of Belgorod, which resulted in 7 people being injured, and 31 households and 10 cars being damaged.

The local authorities hid the fact of the strike, just like the fact that it was a Russian bomb.

Thus, the Russian Air Force has accidentally bombed Belgorod Oblast and the occupied territories of Ukraine at least 93 times over the past four months.

Almost 40 more aerial bombs dropped on the occupied part of Donetsk Oblast cannot be removed for fear of detonation, journalists say.

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Editor's note: The article was updated with additional information on the number of casualties and damage.

A Russian attack against the city of Novomoskovsk in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast on June 13 injured around five people, including a three-year-old girl, Governor Serhii Lysak reported.

The girl suffered a blast injury, burns, and cuts. She has been hospitalized and is in a condition of moderate severity, the governor said.

Another girl, aged 12, suffered shock and will be recovering at home, Lysak added.

The attack damaged 91 houses, five education institutions, and a gas infrastructure facility. Emergency services extinguished a fire that started by the attack, Lysak said.

Novomoskovsk, a town with a pre-war population of over 60,000, lies on the northern outskirts of the regional center, Dnipro. Dnipropetrovsk Oblast in central-eastern Ukraine suffers regular strikes by Russian missiles and drones.

An attack on the residential area of the city of Kryvyi Rih on June 12 killed nine people and injured 32, including five children, said Oleksandr Vilkul, the head of the city's military administration.

Read also: Russian attacks against Ukraine kill 10, injure 38 over past day

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Russian attacks against Ukraine killed 10 people and injured 38 over the past day, regional authorities said on June 13.

Russia targeted a total of nine Ukrainian oblasts  Chernihiv, Sumy, Poltava, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia, Kherson, Dnipropetrovsk, Kharkiv, and Donetsk. Casualties were reported in the latter three regions.

A Russian attack on the residential are of the city of Kryvyi Rih in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast killed nine people and injured 32, including five children, said Oleksandr Vilkul, the head of the city's military administration.

A total of 13 people were reportedly hospitalized, five of them in serious condition and one in critical condition.

The aftermath of Russia's attack on the city of Kryvyi Rih on June 12, 2024. (Ihor Klymenko/Telegram)

Russian forces also attacked a residential area and infrastructure in the Nikopol district with drones and artillery, according to Dnipropetrovsk Oblast Governor Serhii Lysak. A 17-year-old boy suffered shrapnel injuries and was hospitalized, he said.

The attack reportedly damaged six houses, two five-story buildings, cars, power line and several outbuildings.

In Kharkiv Oblast, Russia's attacks damaged two houses in the village of Staryi Saltiv, injuring two men and a woman, Governor Oleh Syniehubov reported.

Two men suffered injuries in the Kupiansk district after Moscow troops attacked the village of Kurylivka, the governor said.

One person was killed in the village of Hostre in the Pokrovsk district, Donetsk Oblast, regional Governor Vadym Filashkin said.

Russian troops also reportedly attacked the Bakhmut and Kramatorsk districts, damaging eight high-rise buildings and eight houses.

Read also: Ukraine war latest: Ukraine destroys Russian air defense radars in occupied Crimea, military says

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
A Russian warship that just sailed into Cuba can carry Putin's new prized hypersonic missiles

A Russian warship that just sailed into Cuba can carry Putin's new prized hypersonic missiles

One of the Russian warships docked in Cuba can carry Putin's prized hypersonic missiles.

Russian leadership has touted the Zircon as a fast, highly maneuverable, and unbeatable weapon.

The missile's actual capabilities are questionable, but Russian hypersonic missiles are a concern.

A Russian warship docked off the coast of Cuba can carry advanced strike capabilities, specifically new hypersonic missiles.

The Zircon scramjet-powered hypersonic cruise missiles, relatively new weapons in Moscow's arsenal, have been touted by the Kremlin as being unbeatable and unrivaled by any other system, though questions remain about their actual capabilities.

The Russian frigate Admiral Gorshkov arrived in Cuba on Wednesday ahead of a Caribbean air and maritime exercise after conducting drills in the Atlantic earlier in the week. The ship  along with two other vessels and a stealthy, nuclear-powered submarine that's especially concerning to the US and NATO  will remain in Cuba for a five-day official visit.

Russian navy frigate Admiral Gorshkov launching a Zircon hypersonic missile in White Sea, Russia, on July 19, 2021. Russian Defense Ministry Press Service via AP, File

The visit and training are quite routine for Russia and Cuba. US officials have noted that they're monitoring the situation and don't anticipate any threat.

But the arrival of the Admiral Gorshkov, a first-in-class vessel commissioned in 2018 and the first ship to carry the Zircon, and the Kasan make the visit nonetheless notable. It is currently unclear if the frigate is carrying the missiles, as it also carries Kalibr cruise missiles.

The Zircon, sometimes spelled Tsirkon, was first tested on the Admiral Goshkov in October 2020. At the time, Russia's Defense Ministry said it flew at speeds of Mach 8 before hitting a target nearly 300 miles away. Subsequent testing has also occurred, and last year, the ship sailed into the Atlantic with the weapons on board.

The new weapon is capable of being used against targets on land and at sea.

Hypersonic missiles are fast, highly maneuverable, and fly unpredictable flight paths and patterns that can make intercepting them extremely difficult. The missiles fly low and can change direction in an instant, and their direction and altitude make them harder to track and kill than, for example, a ballistic missile on a parabolic flight path.

But while Putin has touted the Zircon's capabilities as unbeatable, unrivaled, and unlike any other weapon in the arsenals of the world's militaries, it remains to be seen if it can actually live up to those grand claims. Other Russian weapons haven't.

Experts have said that although the missile shouldn't be underestimated, its ability to travel at blinding speeds and hit moving targets, as Putin has claimed, may not be entirely true.

Russian navy frigate Admiral Gorshkov docked in the port in Richards Bay, South Africa on February 22, 2023. GUILLEM SARTORIO/AFP via Getty Images

Along with Russia, China has also developed a hypersonic missile, designated the DF-ZF, which it claims can travel five times the speed of sound and hit targets at a distance of 3,400 miles.

The US is working on its own hypersonic missiles, but there are notable concerns that the development and fielding of these weapons continue to trail behind America's rivals. The US is also working with Japan on new air defense systems that can intercept hypersonics.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Russia's Ministry of Defence has announced that during an exercise of non-strategic nuclear forces, the Russian military delivered training nuclear warheads to storage points and to an airfield, where they were loaded onto bombers.

Source: Radio Liberty

Details: The 12th Main Directorate of the Russian Ministry of Defence, which protects, maintains and transports Russia's nuclear weapons arsenal, said in a statement that the exercise would be "analysed for improvement".

Quote: "The Nuclear Directorate ensured the delivery of training nuclear munitions to the field storage points of the missile brigade's position area and the operational airfield of the attack aircraft. Together with our Belarusian colleagues, we prepared and delivered missiles in special equipment and suspended aircraft munitions from carrier aircraft.

Based on the results of the exercise... areas for further improvement of training of non-strategic nuclear forces will be identified in order to guarantee the fulfilment of tasks under different scenarios of the military-political situation."

Background:

On 11 June, the Russian Ministry of Defence announced the start of the second stage of exercises of non-strategic nuclear forces with the participation of Belarus.

According to the statement, at this point the Russian and Belarusian military should work out joint preparation for the combat use of non-strategic nuclear weapons.

During the first stage of the exercise, which began on 21 May, the Russian military practised the use of Iskander systems and their covert movement to the area of missile launches. Belarus began testing tactical nuclear weapons on 7 May.

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Russians kill one resident of Donetsk Oblast over past day

A civilian was killed in the village of Hostre on 12 June in Russian attacks on Donetsk Oblast.

Source: Vadym Filashkin, Head of Donetsk Oblast Military Administration

Quote: "Russia is killing civilians! The Russians killed one resident of Donetsk Oblast in Hostre on 12 June."

Details: It was noted that the number of casualties of Russian attacks in Donetsk Oblast was mentioned without taking into account the occupied cities of Mariupol and Volnovakha.

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On June 13, the Group of Seven leaders' summit starts in Italy, with Russia's war against Ukraine and the armed conflict in the Middle East as the main topics. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy will also attend the event, and he plans to meet with White House Chief of Staff Joe Biden.

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Also during the summit, politicians will finally decide on the fate of Russian assets frozen after Russia attacked Ukraine. OBOZ.UA found out what our country should expect from the meeting in Italy.

In addition to the leaders of the G7 countries  Italy, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, and Japan  Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Brazilian and Argentine Presidents Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and Javier Milei are expected to attend the summit.

President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen said that the G7 summit in Italy is intended to demonstrate unity in the most turbulent times. According to her, this unity is needed primarily for the sake of Ukraine's freedom.

"We are working on further financial support. Unity for a peaceful and stable Middle East and a three-step plan. Unity in a free and open Indo-Pacific," the European Commission President said in a statement.

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President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has already arrived at the summit. The Head of State had a chance to talk to the Prime Minister of Italy George Meloni, the Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau, and the President of the European Council Charles Michel.

Russia's war against Ukraine is at the center of attention of the G7

Russia's war in Ukraine is the main topic on the agenda of the G7 summit. During his consultations with the G7 leaders, the Ukrainian president is expected to once again emphasize the need for the Armed Forces to repel Russian aggression. Zelenskyy is likely to ask his partners for more long-range weapons, ammunition, and even more air defense capabilities.

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It is worth noting that on the eve of the summit, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz promised to provide Ukraine with additional air defense systems. At the same time, other European countries, including those with Patriot air defense systems, which Ukraine needs, are delaying the delivery of weapons systems.

Before the opening of the summit, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the main topics for Ukraine would be the development of a coalition of fighter jets, accelerated pilot training, and accelerated delivery of aircraft. Attention will also be focused on the development of the Ukrainian air defense system based on the most powerful Western systems and the increase of long-range capabilities. In addition, the head of state expects the G7 leaders to approve a format for using Russian assets in favor of Ukraine.

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Zelenskyy also said that bilateral security agreements would be signed at the summit not only with the United States but also with Japan. The president emphasized that the document with the United States would be unprecedented, as befits leaders who support Ukraine.

United States Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said that support for Ukraine's air defense remains a priority. At the same time, in addition to Patriot air defense missile systems, other systems should be transferred.

"As for Patriot. You know that air defense is a priority. We emphasize every time that we need to provide Ukraine with additional Patriot systems. But not only that, we spend a lot of time urging other countries to provide not only Patriots but other air defense systems to Ukraine," Austin said.

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He noted that there are currently no new announcements regarding Patriot, but all efforts are aimed at providing Ukraine with additional capabilities as soon as possible.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on the sidelines of the G7 summit that the partners "will show unity for a free Ukraine and a peaceful Middle East."

"In turbulent times, the strongest message we can send is unity. Unity for the sake of Ukraine's freedom. We are working for further financial support," she said.

The President noted that the G7 summit had reaffirmed clear support for Ukraine, international law, and a just peace.

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"Every day we strengthen our positions and add strength to our defense of life. Every meeting is for the sake of Ukraine getting new opportunities for victory. I am grateful to all our partners!" he added.

Sending NATO troops to Ukraine

In addition, the issue of deploying Western military forces to Ukraine is likely to be raised during the G7 summit in Italy. To date, the G7 countries have not reached a consensus on this issue. France remains the most active, as President Emmanuel Macron has repeatedly said that he is ready to send his troops to Ukraine.

The United Kingdom is also open to sending its military to Ukraine, but so far it is only about instructors and advisors who can train Ukrainian soldiers. At the same time, Germany, Italy, and the United States are categorically against sending Western troops to Ukraine.

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Multibillion-dollar support for Ukraine

The chairman of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on Finance, Taxation, and Customs Policy, Danylo Hetmantsev, said that the G7 summit in Italy would be very important for Ukraine in financial terms, as one of the main topics to be discussed at the meeting at the initiative of the United States will be the securitization of Russian assets.

According to him, it is a question of issuing securities backed by income from the frozen assets of the Russian bank in the long term. Through the sale of these securities, it is planned to provide Ukraine with concessional financing worth about $50 billion starting in 2025. At the same time, Hetmantsev emphasized that there are still many unresolved issues regarding how the deal will be structured. In particular, it is not yet known which countries will provide funding and in what proportion, and how guarantees will be provided that the assets, most of which are in the EU, will remain frozen for a long time and generate cash flow.

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Mr. Hetmantsev is confident that if the issue of financing is approved, it will be a very important milestone for Ukraine in the coming years. According to him, this will help to cover the need for external financing for 2025, which the Ministry of Finance estimates at $32 billion. The parliamentarian also emphasized that Ukraine will be able to receive a guarantee of such funding regardless of political cycles, including the US elections.

The G7 countries have agreed to allocate $50 billion from the proceeds of frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine's defense, economy, and recovery. The money will be available closer to 2025. Final technical details of the agreement will be agreed upon after the summit. The aid can be used to support Ukraine's defense, economy, and recovery. The G7 leaders have repeatedly stated that the assets will remain blocked until Russia agrees to pay for Ukraine's reconstruction.

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According to Bloomberg, the loan Ukraine will receive will be repaid from the profits generated by Russia's blocked assets. The deal is expected to provide critical support for Kyiv in the medium term. In particular, it will help cover the country's financial needs until 2025 and beyond.

At the same time, the proceeds from Russia's frozen assets are estimated at 3 to 5 billion euros ($3.24 to $5.39 billion).

However, the repayment of the loan will depend on how long Russia's assets remain frozen. G7 leaders have repeatedly stated that assets will be blocked until Russia agrees to pay for Ukraine's recovery.

Zelenskyy and Biden meet on the sidelines of the G7

On the eve of the G7 summit in Italy, the White House announced bilateral talks between US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. John Kirby, Strategic Communications Coordinator at the US Security Council, said that the heads of state would meet to discuss "strong support for Ukraine, both now and in the future." Kirby also promised that Biden and Zelenskyy would hold a press conference following the meeting.

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The White House promises that during the G7 summit, bold steps will be taken to show dictator Vladimir Putin that time is not on his side and he will not be able to wait out the US support in the fight for the freedom of the Ukrainian people. The White House spokesman also emphasized that Russian aggression not only threatens democracy in Ukraine but affects security in the whole of Europe.

In addition, according to media reports, Zelenskyy and Biden intend to sign a bilateral agreement on security guarantees during the talks. According to the US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, by signing such an agreement, the United States will make it clear that its support for Ukraine will continue for a long time in the future.

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Pope to hold bilateral talks with world leaders at G7 summit

The press service of the Holy See has announced that Pope Francis will take part in the G7 Summit, which is currently taking place in Borgo Eniazia, Puglia, Italy. In particular, he will speak at a session dedicated to artificial intelligence (AI).

The Pope will also hold his first series of bilateral meetings with Kristalina Georgieva, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund; President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy; President of France Emmanuel Macron; and Prime Minister of Canada Justin Trudeau.

The Pope is scheduled to deliver a speech at 14:15 local time in the Sala Arena, followed by a group photo at 17:30 after the other speeches.

The second series of bilateral meetings will be followed by the Pope's meetings with President of Kenya William Samoei Ruto; Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India; U.S. President Joseph Biden; Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, President of Brazil; Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of Turkey; and President of Algeria Abdelmadjid Tebboune

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Earlier it was reported that the leaders of the G7 countries reached an agreement to allocate $50 billion for Ukraine through the use of frozen Russian assets. The decision will be made at the G7 summit scheduled for June 13-15.

Earlier, Washington said that U.S. President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron support the use of profits from frozen Russian assets to help Ukraine.

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Sacramento-based nonprofit leader returned home to Ethiopia to help his village. I need to do something

It wasnt until 2005 when Seifu Ibssa traveled back to his hometown of Acheber, Ethiopia.

In the same pond he would fetch water from as a child was a young boy doing the same. Wandering hyenas and cattle contaminated the water shared among the village.

Its during that time my eyes opened to how miserable the situation is in my village. People lack education. People did not have a place to deliver babies, Ibssa said.

Eight months after that trip, he returned to Acheber, this time with the supplies to build his village a spring to provide fresh water. They called it the Kerebign Water Project.

During the same trip, he asked for land to build a school for the village. This became Ajo Preschool, the first of many schools Ibssa would operate.

These were the debut acts of Ibssas organization, East African Village Outreach, or EAVO, the Sacramento-based nonprofit he co-founded alongside his eldest brother and others. While EAVO was created out of a need for change and a desire to help, it was Ibssas own experiences as a child, and later as an adult, that led him down this path.

A village boy in Acheber

In a mountainous village, deep in the brisk Ethiopian countryside, a young Ibssa watched as the women in his community struggled to diagnose his mothers sickness. There was no hospital, no clinic and no doctors to guide them. All they could do was harvest various herbal plants and pray one of them would heal her.

These plants had no effect, and at the age of three or four, he lost his mother. His age is an estimate because in his village, you dont keep track of someones age, just the date they were born.

By the age of 11 or 12, his stepmother, wanting him to have a better life, persuaded his father to allow Ibssa to travel to the capital city of Addis Ababa, where he could attend school, an opportunity unavailable in his village.

Ibssa, being the son of a shepherd, had never left his village, and was fascinated by the new sights and sounds.

He stayed with one of his older sisters in the city, but she had no money to spare for even a pair of pants for him to wear. His oldest brother, Hailu, gave her a $10 Ethiopian birr, with which Ibssa was able to start his journey toward education.

I was so hungry for education, he said.

Not only was Ibssa hungry for education, he was also malnourished. His sister was poor and Ibssa was always, always hungry. Eventually, he said he moved in with his eldest brother and sister-in-law, but there he faced even worse treatment by his sister-in-law.

No matter what, I always continued my education  I was determined to be like my older brother, Ibssa said.

A new life in the U.S.

In 1982, Ibssa immigrated to the United States with the help of his older brother, who he saw as a father figure.

While the move allowed him to experience many wonderful things, the novelty died quickly. After four months, he felt the pangs of hunger again, and Ibssa was desperate to go home.

This time, however, Ibssa had another person he could rely on. He had been attending a local American Baptist Church in Inglewood on Sundays, and whenever the hunger would become unbearable, Ibssa would walk to the church and tell the pastor he was hungry. The pastor would take out one of his business cards and write on the back feed this man whatever he wants and I will pay you back. A nearby restaurant would accept the card and Ibssa would eat his fill.

The day before he was set to go back to Ethiopia, it was that same church and pastor that told him they had set aside $5,000 for him to attend community college.

This aid propelled him to Santa Monica College which would eventually lead him to graduate with a bachelors in business administration from San Jose State in 1992.

With his degree he was able to obtain a full-time accounting position and balanced his work with being a husband and father to four sons.

EAVOs journey from 2006

If I did not have that background of growing up in the countryside where theres no education, if I didnt go through those rough times with my sister in law, if I didnt go through the rough times in Los Angeles being hungry, I dont think I would have the heart to be sensitive to other people or even to start this organization, said Ibssa.

EAVO, officially launched in 2006, has helped countless children just like him have access to education, clean water and more.

Since its beginnings, the organization has built five springs in Acheber, nine schools in the region and sponsored 98 students to pursue university.

More than 90 are now employed with positions such as teachers, bankers and nurses.

One of the graduating students from 2023 had attended Ajo Preschool when he was a child and was supported by EAVO throughout his education journey. Now, he works for one of the top national banks in Ethiopia.

Another was abandoned by her parents because of a deformity. She went to the organization and asked for them to give her a chance, now shes one of the head teachers at EAVOs Lana Reese school.

EAVO also contributes to other aspects of the people of Achebers lives, including donating 68 mosquito nets. In that region of Ethiopia, malaria is still the leading killer disease of children below 10 years and expectant mothers in Africa, according to its website.

Ibssas desire to help extends to his community in the United States, too. Solomon Ketema, a member of the Bethel Evangelical Ethiopian Church that Ibssa attends, is just one of many that he has helped.

When Ketema was preparing for his wife and kids to immigrate to the U.S., he wanted to buy a car but knew nothing about credit cards or loans.

Ibssa loaned him $4,000 so that he could purchase the car and be ready for his familys arrival, said Ketema.

Its very hard to find somebody like Seifu, Ketema said.

Whats next for EAVO

Now age 65 or 66, Ibssa said helping others succeed is what gets him moving, I never get tired of this work.

He has many goals for EAVOs future, the most important one is focusing his efforts on educating the young girls of Acheber.

The springs was a major help to get more girls to school, since they can run to school, not the river, Ibssa said. But he believes more can be done.

Though EAVO relies on donations and grants, limiting the funding, Ibssa is committed to helping in any way that he can.

If I become a millionaire thats what I would do, he said.

Ibssa said he is not a wealthy person, but what he can provide the children of Acheber is something he was not able to have at their age: an education.
One week after a Sacramento homeless shelter evicted Brittany Anderson and her two young sons, she managed to take her older child to school.

Every drop-off and pickup since the eviction had been an ordeal. But the smiley Britain, who was 4 when they were forced out of the shelter in February, loved his pre-K program at Suy:u Elementary School in Fruitridge Manor. With no place to stay and everything going wrong, Brittany, 36, was clawing to keep something steady for her little boy.

During the Anderson familys year-long stay at the city-funded hotel, she could easily take Britain to class in the morning: They had a steady place to stay, right near campus. Yes, it was infested with roaches, but they could get a decent nights sleep.

In February, she was kicked out of the program. She was told she had violated the rules. A spokesman for the city, Tim Swanson, said that all evicted families received multiple notifications and warnings prior to the exit decision. Brittany said her rules violation occurred when she tried to break up a fight in the hotels common space and was punched in the face.

Suddenly, she and her kids had no stable place to live.

Brittany Anderson, 36, rests on a curb with sons Britain, 5, and Brandon, 9 months, in May. She was living in an overcrowded apartment and the owner had several dogs and she didnt know how much longer she could remain there. Her son Britain had been expelled from school for missing too many days. It could be detrimental to people who dont have a good mindset, she said about being homeless. Especially those that have postpartum depression  it can take a really big toll on us.

After the eviction, Brittany bought an inexpensive car so at least she and the boys would have a solid roof and walls. It immediately broke down. Britain started missing school because Brittany, wandering around all night or working graveyard shifts at a part-time concierge job she was desperate to hold on to, often had no way to get him there.

The mother was exhausted. On Feb. 15, she was slumped at a Taco Bell so cold you could see her breath, nodding off in her chair despite the chill. Britain and the baby, Brandon  then almost 6 months old  had spent the previous night with a friend of Brandons father. The friend didnt have space for Brittany, though, so she spent that winter night walking around Elk Grove trying not to freeze. That was the second night in a row she hadnt slept. The night before, she worked a graveyard shift.

She had nowhere to go. She could barely keep her eyes open. And it was almost time to pick up her 4-year-old from school.

She took a deep breath and stood up. She trudged to the low-slung building where Britain was a student. The cheerful boy skipped out of his class and played outside the schools front office, where Brittany had left her phone to charge. Britain hopped onto a brick bench. He chirped about his day.

Brittany Anderson, 36, picks up Britain, her 4-year-old from Suy:u Elementary school in Fruitridge Manor on Feb. 15, 2024. The school was close to the city-run shelter where she used to live along with her 5-month-old. Now evicted she said she wasnt sure how to keep Britain in school.

That evening, the little boy could go back to the family friends place along with his baby brother. But Brittany wasnt sure where  or whether  she would sleep that night.

The uncertainty took a toll on her and the boy. A few months after they were kicked out of the shelter, Britain was expelled from the school he loved for missing too many days.

The Andersons are just one family that was churned out of the Sacramento shelter system and back onto the streets. When the shelters evict parents, their children become collateral damage.

A tale of three families

The Sacramento Bee followed three families evicted from city shelters in February: Brittany and her two sons; Tanika Williams, her husband, Michael, and their two daughters, now 18 and 3; and Jessica Rose, her husband, Stewart, and their 11-year-old daughter, Faith.

Months after the evictions, all three families were still homeless, and all three bounced between hotels and the street with minimal support from social services. Along with Brittanys son, Tanikas teenager left school.

Their stories reveal the complications of assessing homelessness in Sacramento.

The most recent federal homeless count, using a methodology that differs from previous counts, found a 41% drop in unsheltered homelessness in Sacramento compared to 2022. Several local service providers and advocates said the reported decrease was unbelievable, but officials celebrated the results.

The steady course we set seven years ago to address this state and national crisis is working, Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said at a news conference.

Tanika, however, said the citys approach to homelessness was a failure. And her family, along with Brittanys and Jessicas, showed that even when the city gets people indoors, they may end up back on the streets. Tanika said she hadnt seen many people make it out of the shelter and into something good.

Tanika Williams eyes swell with tears as she and her husband Michael try to figure out how they can manage to stay another night in a Motel 6 with their family in Sacramento in February. So what am I even going to do tomorrow? City council members, housing navigators, 311, 211, and nobody responds, said Williams.

The city motel program, Tanika said, was supposed to be for people to get on their feet with income, permanent housing, some kind of direction, or whatever services that they offer, she said. That didnt happen.

That is borne out in data the city provided to The Bee to highlight the success of the motels. Sacramento funds six former hotels that shelter up to 200 families each night. Julie Hall, a spokeswoman for the city, said that in the past year, 1,283 individuals were served in city motels, and 193 moved into permanent housing  15% of the participants. An additional 46 individuals, she said, left for positive destinations.

Other motel residents, like the Williams family, left for less positive destinations.

Ill tell you, some of the participants that were there with us are still on the street, Tanika said. And theyre doing worse than we are.

Sacramento spokesman Swanson said in February, If an involuntary exit is unavoidable because a participant has violated the agreed-upon guidelines multiple times, the city will work with them to find alternative shelter, especially if children are involved.

In accordance with that policy, two of the families received and accepted offers for temporary shelter from the city after the evictions.

But they said that when they did accept shelter, the families were sickened  in one case, literally  by the conditions. Brittany felt dehumanized when she had to take her then-4-year-old to the bathroom in an outdoor toilet in the dead of winter. Faith caught RSV when the family was essentially given three cots in a shelter foyer.

All of the parents were fraying.

Tanika Williams holds up her cellphone with a picture of the filthy condition of the shower at The Greens Hotel during a February press conference where she appeared with her daughter Makaila, 2. Her family was locked out of their room at the city-run homeless shelter.

Leave the Barbies behind

On Feb. 16  the day Jessica had to vacate her cottage in North Sacramento  she was frantic. Standing outside the little home, she grimaced as she apologized for the disarray.

Normally, she is obsessed with order, but there was nothing normal about Feb. 16. Until that morning, Jessica said, she hoped that because she found a new home for the beloved pet bunny who was one ostensible rules violation, the family would be allowed to stay in the shelter where they had lived for a year.

Jessica Rose wipes tears as she scrambles to pack her familys belongings at Arden Acres, a shelter funded by the city of Sacramento, where she and her husband and daughter were being evicted on Feb. 16. She was focused on trying to pack the belongings of her teenage daughter Faith, who has autism, while she played outside with friends. Police had come earlier that morning and told her she had until 1 p.m. to pack her things and leave.

She was wrong. A property manager who was by turns exasperated and sympathetic



told her the police would arrive at 1 p.m. to make sure Jessica and her family were off the premises.

In her rush to pack, she couldnt take everything. Jessica had to triage: Which clothes would they abandon? What art, and what kitchen supplies? Which of her daughters toys were important, and which could they leave tucked under the twin bed?

Faith, her 11-year-old daughter, was playing on the property with a friend while Jessica tried not to panic.

My kid is resilient, she said. I told her, I promise Ill keep her in her school. Thats what shes worried about, is school. She kind of avoids conflict, or avoids when somethings going on like this. She gets quiet, and shell just play.

Jessica looked at her childs toys. The Barbies could stay behind, she decided. The L.O.L. dolls would come with them. Faith loved those.

Jessica Rose walks with her daughter Faith, 11, who suffers from autism, while being evicted from a city-funded shelter in Sacramento on Feb. 16. Her daughters pet rabbit had been placed with some friends and Rose was worried she would not be able to get it back. She had been riding the bus daily to take her daughter to and from school. The family does not own a car so she wasnt sure how she could get her daughter to school now.

Eviction-level violations include a bunny and a piece of mail

Jessica kept extensive records of the conditions in Arden Acres. I know that people wouldnt believe the story, so I just out of habit document everything, she said. But it never really pays off.

She took multiple photos of large mold patches on walls and ceilings and submitted formal complaints to the program over several months.

She also showed The Bee written notices she received for her familys alleged rules violations.

On Sept. 15, she received a notice of a violation for not moving out of her unit promptly enough. On Sept. 19, she received a write-up for leaving items on the porch (she said she did leave her items outside, but only because she was waiting for the unit to be treated for a roach infestation). On Oct. 20, she was written up for her bunny hopping around the property (she said it was another residents bunny).

Jessica Rose walks past her bicycles and a Sacramento police vehicle after throwing some of her belongings in the trash while being evicted with her 11-year old daughter and husband in February. She was allowed to store a few items on the property for three weeks until she could save enough money to get a storage unit.

The strangest notice came on Oct. 5: She violated the rules when she received a piece of mail at the property.

The envelope had contained a bill for the ambulance that took Faith to the hospital when she started having trouble breathing.

After the eviction, while the family holed up in a motel near the McClellan Industrial Park, Jessica also collected screenshots documenting her apartment search. The screenshots show she made inquiries to 61 apartments and applied to 23 in the six weeks after she was exited  the term that city officials prefer  from the tiny cottages. Jessica secured an emergency hotel voucher, but the voucher expired. She said she received a short extension because she had been trying so hard, but then that extension ended, too. Despite all her efforts, she still had no home.

Jessica considered it a blessing that a friend agreed to sell her a gold Acura for a few hundred dollars  the family of three, she knew, would have to sleep in the SUV.

Jessica Rose talks about buying a used RV $300 from a friend while staying at the Sacramento Inn & Suites in March. She was worried she wouldnt find an apartment in 30 days and might have had to sleep in the van with her husband and daughter. I call 211 and nothing  where is all this money going? Rose said.

Jessica Rose returns to her hotel room with her new puppy at the Sacramento Inn & Suites in March. They had gotten the puppy after losing possession of their pet rabbit when they were evicted. She said if they were going to be street homeless, they wanted a dog. After moving into the Roseville Road shelter, the puppy ran into the street where it was fatally hit by a car.

She said when they couldnt pay for the motel anymore, they moved into the car. They lived on Roseville Road briefly, where their tiny puppy bolted outside and got hit by a car. On April 19, she said it had been hell.

A week later, after spending too much time in the car and feeling it get smaller and smaller, Jessica was planning for the future by trying to acquire a tent.

Its like the harder I try, the more I work, the more Im let down and pushed aside, she said. The saddest part is, my daughter sees it, too. She has more hope in Cal Lotto than these programs.

Faith had been needling her mom to buy lottery tickets.

Jessica could not be reached for a comment in mid-June. Previously, she had said it was almost unbelievable how many hurdles she had to clear, just to end up back on the side of the road. The system, she said, had been cruel.

A mother in despair

Brittany  between caring for her baby and battling postpartum depression  could barely keep food on the table. The future was a luxury she could hardly imagine, much less afford.

In May, she sat on the curb outside the overcrowded apartment where she was staying with a friend. He didnt really have room for her and the boys, and she wasnt sure how long their stay would last. Britain fussed with her phone nearby while she described her own hopelessness.

I feel like Im stagnant, she said. And I am. Im just getting by for the next day.

Brittany Anderson, 36, who said she is suffering from postpartum depression, cries inside a Taco Bell restaurant where the homeless mother was waiting to pick up her 4-year-old son from school in February. She had been evicted from The Greens Hotel, a city-run shelter, along with her 5-month-old baby. She said she had wandered around Elk Grove all night trying not to freeze.

The mother felt abandoned. She said that she had been in sporadic touch with her case worker at CalAIM  a Medi-Cal program that, with a broader view of health, addresses poverty. But she added that local government representatives had not contacted her in months.

Other than loved ones, she said, the only people who had checked in on her were Bee reporters.

She was trying so hard to get back on her feet  to get back the $1,100 monthly cash assistance that was canceled because she couldnt get her mail when she was living on the street and she missed a renewal notification; to make more money; to achieve some kind of balance in her life. She yearned to somehow make enough income to get an apartment of her own, where she and her boys could have a little peace.

In the overcrowded unit with her friend, his roommate and her sons, she was falling into despair.

Ive been needing to cry sometimes, and I have to just  she sat up straight, quickly sucked in air and closed her mouth tight. She had to hold it in because I cant cry in front of the kids. Then my son gonna be like, Mom, whats wrong?

She lowered her voice, and said the answer to the question was I feel like jumping off of the roof right now.

A demand for a clean room, a rule violation

The Williams family read on a document that they were terminated from the shelter program on Dec. 5, 2023, though Tanika said she didnt realize it at the time. Like all residents in the motel, they had to move to a new room every 21 to 28 days. After dealing with moldy, cockroach-infested rooms, Tanika said, they asked more strongly that the new room be deep-cleaned before they moved into it.

The city said that it investigated complaints about the motels habitability and found only minor maintenance problems that were quickly rectified. Tanika said that in addition to mold and roaches, her heater broke in the middle of winter and wasnt fixed promptly, leaving her, her husband, their teenage daughter and their then-2-year-old, Makhila, freezing.

So, in December, they hunkered in their room and waited to hear about the deep cleaning.

On Feb. 14, they were kicked out of the motel where they had lived since June.

They had a van, which was more than some people had. It was raining the night the cops showed up to escort them off the property, and Sgt. Zachary Eaton said the Sacramento Police Department paid for the family to stay in a Motel 6. Their belongings were still locked in the room, as was the fish, Bluez. They returned the next day to retrieve their things, some of which had been dumped outside. Someone had unplugged the fish tank and left Bluez on a little table by the door, possibly overnight, Tanika worried.

Tanika Williams, 38, arrives on Feb. 15 with daughter Makhila Williams, almost 3, to see if their beloved betta fish Bluez was alive after property managers had left the fish tank outside overnight at The Greens Hotel, a city-run homeless shelter. They had owned the fish over a year and had kept it as they searched for housing.

Tanika Williams, 38, gets ready to load her familys belongings that The Greens Hotel workers had bagged up and locked inside their room on Feb. 15. After the family was escorted off the grounds by police the night before they were given a voucher for a night in a Motel 6. They returned the following morning to retrieve their things.

Michael Williams, 52, carries a fish tank on Feb. 15 that had been left outside overnight by property managers at The Greens Hotel with their beloved pet betta fish Bluez. The family of four had been locked out of the room the night before. All their belongings were still locked inside the room including his medication for chronic pulmonary disease. In the background his wife searches a garbage bin for their belongings.

He was lethargic, but alive.

Tanika and Michael did not want to enter a congregate shelter: Michael has chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and their now-3-year-old, Makhila, has sickle cell disease, putting both of them at higher risk for illnesses that can spread in crowded settings.

The police only paid for one night in the Motel 6. Over the weeks after the eviction, the family scrambled to find vouchers or to pay for motels.

Despite everything, Amaya, the teenage daughter, was going to Sacramento City College and working at a restaurant. The girl was ambitious. She was using her paycheck to help her family scrape by.

For a few weeks, the family made it work in motels. On March 1, Amaya was sitting in the van outside a Quality Inn in Elk Grove, doing her homework.

Tanika Williams eldest daughter Amaya Martin, 18, who was attending Sacramento City college and working as a hotel hostess to help support the family, pretends to have a spa day with her father Michael Williams, 52, and sister Makhila, almost 3, at a Quality Inn in March. They had been sleeping in their van, and in hotels when they could afford it.

Tears stream down the face of Tanika Williams, 38, who stepped away from her family in the Quality Inn lobby because she didnt want them to see how upset she was in March. She was running out of options for housing in Sacramento and trying to sort out where to go next. She and her family left later in the month for San Bernardino, hoping to find better services.

Three weeks later, she had quit her job and left school. The family drove to San Bernardino County, where Tanika said an NAACP advocate told them they might have a better shot at getting services. Their car broke down on the way, and they lost their one makeshift shelter.

The city of Sacramento, Tanika said, had failed her. The Williamses have spent most of the last three months living in the spare bedroom of a good Samaritan who knew they had spent a few days sleeping on a sidewalk in San Bernardino County.

Tanika had been optimistic when she moved into the Greens on Stockton. She and her husband had lost their jobs and their housing early in the pandemic. They moved to California to be closer to his family. They were able to work, Tanika said, if the rest of their lives could get in order.

Especially as a two-parent household, Tanika said, my family should have been out of the system a long time ago. ... You cant keep shuffling people around. Youre not housing nobody.

The system, it seemed to her, had warehoused them and thrown them out with nothing to show for it. On a few days this spring, she had no way to give her baby girl a bath.

She had a word for what the shelter system had done to her family. She called it fraud.
Mary Ponder recently moved to an affordable apartment in downtown Sacramento, an area of the city where shes found a lively atmosphere with frequent events and many people moving about.

Her move downtown has been good, Ponder said. But she never goes out at night, even if her daughter and granddaughter are with her. She doesnt know what exactly makes her cautious, but its there.

Sometimes I feel like a little vibe, like it shouldnt be there, Ponder said about what she encounters in downtown Sacramento. I do go out in the daytime, but not at night.

She shared her safety concerns Wednesday evening during an informal brainstorming session of community members working with police to reduce violence as the summer begins  a time of year when crime in the capital city typically rises along with the heat.

Those who attended the brainstorming session offered their ideas to Sacramento Police Chief Kathy Lester, who said her officers usually sees an increase of calls for service in the summer. More people tend to stay outside later into the evening; theres more public events. She said that also comes with a spike in violence.

We pay really close attention, not just to the summer but to the holiday weekends, Lester said. We know that when alcohol gets involved in certain situations, that can be an issue. We also know that tensions can be heightened.

More activities for youth encouraged

Shiloh Baptist Church Pastor Anthony Sadler, who acted as moderator for the event, said the warmer weather and summer break for schools means more young people will be out in the neighborhood. He said now is the time for communities to come together and create safe places for them.

We want to explore ways tonight where we can work together as a community and make for a safer summer for our young people and our communities at large, Sadler said before the event began. We hope to walk away not only united in a collaborative way, but have some action steps on how we can move forward and carry this through the summer.

About a dozen people attended Wednesdays session at the Oak Park Community Center on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. Residents from the Oak Park, Natomas and Pocket neighborhoods, along with one woman from Elk Grove, were there.

They spoke about increasing partnerships with neighborhood associations, community groups and faith-based organizations and they said more safe youth activities were needed in the summer evenings.

Making sure that our youths have more access to the community centers throughout our city, Sadler said. Giving them safe places to come together and have fun.

Lester also spoke about the Police Departments recent successes and how community groups have helped reduce violent crime in the city.

Homicides have dropped since Lester took over

Lester became Sacramentos new police chief in January 2022, as homicides were on an upward trend, from 36 in 2018 to 58 in 2021, the most the city had seen since 2006, according to Police Department statistics.

Even in 2022, a year in which Sacramento saw a slight drop in homicides, downtown Sacramento experienced a mass shooting that killed six people and wounded 12 others.

We saw a really heightened level of violence. I mean spikes in homicides, spikes in shootings, Lester said Wednesday. I think everyone felt like the world was just really out of control and very scary.

Lester and her officers have already been developing a strategy to reduce gun violence, a plan driven by intelligence gathering while working closely with community groups targeting root causes of crime, such as poverty and drug and alcohol abuse, with intervention and prevention services.

Last year, Sacramento had a significant decline in the number of homicides, dropping to 38 in 2023 from 54 in 2022, 58 in 2021 and 43 in 2020. The overall violent crime rate, including aggravated assaults, reported rapes and robberies, also trended downward.

Sacramento Police Chief Kathy Lester discusses ways to reduce violent crime this summer with residents on Wednesday at the Oak Park Community Center in Sacramento.

New focus for police: Intelligence over suppression

Sgt. Michael Severi, a member of the agencys violent crime reduction team, explained how their strategy has changed in the past couple of years. He said they used to be called the gang enforcement team with a primary directive of enforcement to find criminals.

Now, his team focuses on investigating violent crimes that occurred, using intelligence gathering to lead them to suspects instead of blanketing the neighborhood with suppression operations. And Severi said the officers on his team carry out the investigations themselves instead of waiting for detectives who are busy investigating homicides.

At this time last year, the officers on his team working cases in the east part of Sacramento conducted 467 traffic stops as part of their investigations, Severi said at Wednesdays event. The same officers have made the same amount of arrests so far this year, but have only had to pull over 31 vehicles. Severi said that shows how their investigations are now more focused, targeting the small amount of people responsible for violent crime.

What we do now is a strictly focused investigation, Severi said. So everybody that we are going after has committed a crime.

Lester has pointed to community groups as a key driver in the citys violent crime reduction.

Dr. Nicole Clavo, manager for the citys Office of Violence Prevention, who also spoke at Wednesdays event, said there are community groups in the Oak Park neighborhood, each with an expertise that leads to violence reduction. She said they host workshops at high schools, help people obtain their drivers licenses, offer mentorship programs for Black youths and provide intervention services to thwart violence.

She said these community groups work specifically with people with known street gang affiliations that we know, nine times out of 10, have a weapon on them or have been already found to have a weapon.

And theyre trying to help them, give them resources, redirect that energy and give them something positive to look forward to, Clavo said.
U.S. Sens. J.D. Vance of Ohio and Tommy Tuberville of Alabama showed their support for former U.S. President Donald Trump by attending his his trial in New York City and standing behind him as he spoke to media. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

This commentary originally appeared in the Kentucky Lantern.

Donald Trump was an extraordinary politician even before becoming the only former U.S. president to be convicted of a crime.

Trumps crime, however, is not extraordinary. Its basically the same thing that landed former Kentucky Democratic Party chair Jerry Lundergan in prison.

Both Lundergan and Trump concealed political spending that by law should have been disclosed in campaign finance reports.

Lundergan falsified documents to hide that his company had bankrolled services, including a bus, for his daughters 2014 campaign. Alison Lundergan Grimes, then Kentuckys secretary of state, was challenging Republican Mitch McConnell for his seat in the U.S. Senate.

Trump falsified documents to conceal that his company bankrolled payments to keep his tawdry trysts hidden from voters. If Stormy Daniels had gone public, his campaign likely would have tanked and the United States would have elected a woman president before Mexico did.

Heres where the similarities end: You did not hear Lundergan or other Democrats protest that the justice system had been weaponized or rigged against the family of a McConnell challenger, or that anyone was conflicted, even though the prosecutor and judge had connections to McConnell.

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Nor did Democrats complain that the prosecution was partisan, a witch hunt or election interference  in sharp contrast to the outpourings of outrage from Republicans after Trumps conviction.

The U.S. attorney who won the guilty verdict against Lundergan, Robert M. Rob Duncan Jr., is the son of a prominent Republican fundraiser, Robert M. Mike Duncan, who has served on the Republican National Committee, including as its chairman. The elder Duncan is close to McConnell and has served as a director of McConnells super PAC. Rob Duncan is now deputy to Kentucky Attorney General Russell Coleman.

U.S. District Judge Gregory Van Tatenhove, who sentenced Lundergan to 21 months in prison and two years of supervised release, is a former McConnell staffer. While Lundergan was awaiting sentencing, it was reported that Van Tatenhoves wife had given $250,000 to the McConnell Center, cofounded by McConnell, at the University of Louisville.

At the time of the sentencing, Rob Duncan said, This case should underscore the fundamental principle that breaking the law has consequences.

Also, These are important laws that regulate the integrity of our elections.

The judge received 89 letters on behalf of Lundergan, including one from former U.S. President Bill Clinton. Van Tatenhove said he was convinced that Lundergan had done good in his life, the Lexington Herald-Leader reported, but said a loss of liberty was required to hold Lundergan accountable under the jurys verdict.

Lundergan appealed, as Trump will, but his appeals failed, and he served time in federal prison and a halfway house.

We dont know what sentence awaits Trump, but his conviction wont shake his MAGA supporters loyalty; theyve excused a mountain of sleaze to stand by their Trump.

Still, the zeal with which elected Republicans rushed to his defense, marching in rhetorical goose-step, er, I mean, lockstep is dismaying. They could have just remained silent like Kentucky Republican Secretary of State Michael Adams. It seemed as if they felt they had to make a display of loyalty to Trump. (And some are auditioning to be his running mate.)

Especially rich are the cries of election interference from people  like Appalachian imposter and U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio  who defend the Trump followers who interfered big time in an election by violently attacking the U.S. Capitol and Congress.

Even Kentuckys top law enforcement official, Rob Duncans boss, Attorney General Coleman, tweeted: Its politics  not the law  behind New Yorks prosecution of President Trump. The American people want to focus on the issues that matter and will render their own verdict on November 5th.

Im not a lawyer, but Colemans statement strikes me as odd coming from someone who has sworn an oath to uphold the Constitution.

I do have a feeling Coleman is correct when it comes to Nov. 5. The American people will have to be the ones who, in the words of Jerry Lundergans prosecutor, underscore the fundamental principle that breaking the law has consequences and uphold the integrity of our elections.

The party of law and order sure isnt doing it.

Kentucky Lantern is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Kentucky Lantern maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Jamie Lucke for questions: info@kentuckylantern.com. Follow Kentucky Lantern on Facebook and Twitter.

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San Francisco has declared itself a sanctuary city for transgender and non-binary people (Alamy/PA)

San Francisco has declared itself a sanctuary city for transgender and non-binary people.

The citys Board of Supervisors unanimously voted Tuesday in favor of the sanctuary status, making San Francisco one of the first major cities in the nation to do so.

The declaration means the city is now officially a place of safety for transgender, nonbinary, gender nonconforming and Two-Spirit people  an umbrella term used to describe Indigenous and Native individuals who possess both a masculine and feminine spirit  to seek transitioning health care.

We have seen an influx of refugees, not just from other countries, but from other states who are seeking care and seeking sanctuary, San Franciscos director of the Office of Transgender Initiatives, Honey Mahogany, said.

The pronouncement comes as 40 states across the country are considering anti-LGBTQ legislation, nearly half of which targets transgender youth, according to the resolution.

Dozens of states are making moves to limit access to gender-affirming care, with just over 600 bills intended to target transgender rights considered in 2023, according to the Trans Legislation Tracker, while nearly 600 have been considered so far in 2024.

Lawmakers in Tennessee passed a bill in April criminalizing adults who help minors get transgender procedures.

Meanwhile, in Florida, Republican Governor Ron DeSantis signed a measure banning transgender treatments for minors, though a federal judge recently ruled key parts of that law unconstitutional.

Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, who represents the Castro  one of the first gay neighborhoods in the country  told The San Francisco Chronicle that the measure was directly inspired as a rebuke to conservative attacks on transgender people.

A majority of these laws specifically target transgender people, including youth, he said. As other cities and states turn up the hate, places like San Francisco need to turn up the love.

With this resolution, we are reaffirming that our City has been and will continue to be a sanctuary and a beacon for our transgender and gender non-conforming siblings, he continued.

Mahogany added that due to an unprecedented level of attacks on trans rights and bodily autonomy, more and more people will be flocking to places like San Francisco.

We are already seeing the impact of these policies lead to an increase in demands for services.

San Francisco has a long history with the LGBTQ community. It has been home to one of the first gay neighborhoods in the country, The Castro District, since the 1960s. It is also home to the countrys first transgender cultural district, known as Comptons Transgender Cultural District. The district was founded by three black trans women in 2017, including Mahogany, and honors the site of a 1966 riot against police violence towards transgender people.

Sacramento and West Hollywood have also declared themselves sanctuaries for transgender people.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors declared the city a sanctuary for transgender and nonbinary people Tuesday, making it the largest city in the country to make the distinction.

The declaration comes as conservative states ramp up efforts to limit transgender rights and access to gender-affirming care. It affirms that San Francisco will provide a place of safety for that community and providers of gender-affirming care.

The unanimous resolution follows the citys famous sanctuary city policy for immigration, which bars city law enforcement from cooperating with federal immigration agents. That policy, adopted in 1985, quickly spread to cities around the country and has sparked its own conservative backlash.

The Bay Area and San Francisco specifically have a long history with the LGBTQ community. The Castro district of the city is one of the first gay neighborhoods in the country, first coming to prominence in the 1960s.

San Francisco is also home to the countrys first transgender cultural district, honoring the site of a 1966 riot against police violence toward transgender people.

Supervisor Rafael Mandelman, who represents the Castro, told The San Francisco Chronicle that the measure was directly inspired as a rebuke to conservative attacks on transgender people.

A majority of these laws specifically target transgender people, including youth, he said. As other cities and states turn up the hate, places like San Francisco need to turn up the love.

With this resolution, we are reaffirming that our City has been and will continue to be a sanctuary and a beacon for our transgender and gender non-conforming siblings, he added.

More than a dozen states have moved to limit access to gender-affirming care in the last two years as transgender rights have become a hot-button political issue.

The Trans Legislation Tracker, a research site dedicated to listing state bills intended to target transgender rights, found just more than 600 such bills considered in 2023, as well as nearly 600 so far in 2024.

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Individually wrapped sandwiches from Classic Delight were potentially contaminated with listeria, prompting the Ohio-based company to issue a voluntary recall.

The affected sandwiches were produced between May 11, 2023, and June 6, 2024, the company announced through a U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) news release.

Classic Delight and the FDA are working together to conduct the recall, which was initiated after environmental samples tested positive for listeria monocytogenes, according to the release.

"The production of these products has been suspended while the FDA and the company continue to investigate the source of the problem," Classic Delight said.

As of Monday, there have been no reports of illness or adverse reactions due to the consumption of the recalled sandwiches, according to the company.

Pictured is a turkey sandwich with swiss cheese, lettuce and tomato.

What is listeria monocytogenes?

Listeria monocytogenes is a bacteria that can cause "serious and sometimes fatal infections in young children, frail or elderly people, and others with weakened immune systems," the FDA said.

When exposed to listeria, healthy people may experience short-term symptoms such as high fever, severe headaches, stiffness, nausea, abdominal pain and diarrhea, according to the federal agency. Pregnant women infected by listeria can suffer miscarriages and stillbirths, the FDA added.

Listeria is often found in refrigerated and ready-to-eat foods, including meat, poultry, seafood and dairy unpasteurized milk and milk products or foods with unpasteurized milk, according to the FDA.

What is Classic Delight?

Classic Delight is a St. Mary, Ohio-based manufacturer that sells a wide range of products, including deli sandwiches, meal kits and pizza. The products are typically found in school cafeterias and convenience stores.

"Since its founding over three decades ago, Classic Delight has been a trusted provider of ready-to-eat sandwiches," according to the company's website. "From humble beginnings, we went from producing just a few sandwiches to a product line with over 60+ items in the first 25 years of operation."

What Classic Delight sandwiches were recalled?

Several Classic Delight sandwiches, shipped to distributors in Arkansas, California, Maryland, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Texas, should be tossed out, according to the release. People can also return the items to the place of purchase for a full refund.

The Classic Delight sandwiches affected by the recall include:

Classic Delight Twin Chili Cheese Dog

Classic Delight Turkey Ham and Cheese Sub

Classic Delight Turkey Cheese Sub

Classic Delight Turkey Cheese Round

Classic Delight Twin Breaded Chicken Sliders

Classic Delight Breaded Chicken Waffle

Nutrisystem Turkey Sausage and Egg Muffin

Wakefield Pretzel Bacon Angus Cheeseburger

Wakefield Southern Chicken Biscuit

Wakefield Spicy Hawaiian Sliders

Wakefield Bacon Egg and Cheese Bagel

Wakefield Sausage Egg and Cheese Biscuit

Wakefield Sausage Egg Pancake

Wakefield Charbroiled Cheeseburger

Wakefield Ham Cheddar Pretzel Croissant

Wakefield Chorizo Egg Ciabatta

Wakefield Ham Egg Cheese Muffin

Wakefield Ham Egg Cheese Croissant

Wakefield Bacon Egg and Cheese Bagel

Wakefield Sausage Egg and Cheese Biscuit

Wakefield Sausage Egg and Cheese Muffin

Wakefield Bacon Cheeseburger

Wakefield Blazin Chicken

Wakefield Charbroiled Cheeseburger

Wakefield Chicken and Cheese

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Classic Delight sandwiches recalled for possible listeria contamination
Its hard to believe this, but kids who survived the Sandy Hook shooting 12 years ago are getting ready to graduate.

60 of the 330 kids who will graduate from Newtown High School this year will walk across the stage carrying the burden of having survived one of the deadliest school shootings in U.S. history  and knowing many of their former classmates should be there with them. When they were first graders, 20 of their classmates and six of their teachers were killed in the shooting on Dec. 14, 2012.

I think were all super excited for the day, Lilly Wasilnak, a 17-year-old senior who was down the hall from the classrooms where her peers were killed that day, told NPR. But I think we cant forget  that there is a whole chunk of our class missing. And so going into graduation, we all have very mixed emotions  trying to be excited for ourselves and this accomplishment that weve worked so hard for, but also those who arent able to share it with us, who should have been able to.

Emma Ehrens, one of 11 children from Classroom 10 who was able to survive by running away while the gunman was reloading, added, I am definitely going be feeling a lot of mixed emotions. Im super excited to be, like, done with high school and moving on to the next chapter of my life. But Im also so  mournful, I guess, to have to be walking across that stage alone.  I like to think that theyll be there with us and walking across that stage with us.

NPR spoke to many seniors from Newtown who have become anti-gun violence activists in their teen years. Now, on the cusp of their graduation, they talk about wanting to become therapists, lawyers, and lawmakers so they can help prevent the same violence that happened to them from happening to more children in the future.

It really puts it into perspective how much theyve endured with so little actionable change as a resultnow that the children affected by that awful day are becoming adults and vowing to do something about gun control themselves. Grace Fischer, another Sandy Hook survivor, told ABC News she believed the biggest change needed was regulations on AR-style assault weapons.

The most recent and all-encompassing set of gun safety laws passed by Congress was in 2022, with Sandy Hook campaigners at the forefront of years of pressure for more change. While the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act accomplished many things, such as strengthening background checks and closing the loophole that allowed partners with a history of domestic violence to obtain firearms, many argue the new law did not go far enough. Joe Biden and his administration have repeatedly urged Congress to require background checks for all gun transactions and/or ban assault-style weapons, which the legislation did not do.

Ehrens and Fischer were among six Sandy Hook survivors invited to the White House on 7 June, National Gun Violence Awareness Day, to meet with the vice-president, Kamala Harris, who recently became the head of the newly created federal Office of Gun Violence Prevention.

Putting my voice out there and working with all of these amazing people to try and create change really puts a meaning to the trauma that we all were forced to experience, said 18-year-old Ella Seaver, who plans to study psychology in college. Its a way to feel like youre doing something. Because we are. Were fighting for change and were really not going to stop until we get it.

Wasilnak added, For me, I knew I wanted to do something more since I was younger when the tragedy first happened. I wanted to turn such a terrible thing into something more, and that these children and educators didnt die for nothing. Of course it was awful what happened to them, and it should have never happened. But I think that for me, something bigger needed to come out of it, or else it would have been all for nothing.
Architectural ruins located in Tamaya Kwii Kee Nee Puu. (Photo courtesy of Santa Ana Pueblo)

An area of high desert hills and prairie near Albuquerque which was once called Alamo Ranch will again be known by its original name: Tamaya Kwii Kee Nee Puu.

The 60,000 acres represent ancestral farming and hunting grounds of the Tamayame, the original Keres word for the people of the land. Spanish conquistadors later renamed the place after the Catholic patron Saint Anne.

The people renamed by colonizers on Wednesday officially reacquired more than 100 square miles of the ancestral land where Santa Ana Pueblo citizens will continue to live with the land to hunt, produce clay for pottery and minerals for other ceremonial uses, said Jay Garcia, a former lieutenant governor and council member with the tribe.

Pueblo officials bought the land from the family of former New Mexico Gov. Bruce King in 2016, the Associated Press reported. The King family used it as a cattle ranch, but realized the Pueblo had ancestral ties to the land, and would be the correct stewards of it, Garcia said.

The sale was historic, he said, in the sense that a tribe had the means and ability to purchase back ancestral land. They didnt need a loan or to beg anyone for the money to pay for it, Garcia said.

Eight years later, the Pueblo and the federal government signed the land into trust, meaning it cannot be sold again in the future.

It means that its returned to us forever, versus just owning the property where it could be sold, or future generations could have a different idea for it, he said. It means we can continue full force with our conservation efforts.

On Wednesday morning, Santa Ana Pueblo officials were joined by the Southwest Regional Office of the U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs to host a fee to trust signing ceremony at the Prairie Star Restaurant, according to a news release.

Our Land reports the Pueblo is using traditional knowledge and western science to heal the land after it was aggressively grazed for more than a century.

After the sale and even before the land was put into trust, its name wasnt the only thing that changed.

The elk have returned, the deer has returned, the antelope have returned, the bobcats, the mountain lions have returned, Garcia said. Theyre not competing for the grass anymore.

The area includes two mesas where Tamayame lived, architectural ruins, and springs where water comes up from the earth, Garcia said.

There are many Non-Pueblo trespassers who want to ride all-terrain vehicles and dump trash on the land, Garcia said. The trust gives the Pueblo authority to protect it without having to wait for the Sandoval County Sheriffs Office, he said.

We have established conservation law enforcement, as well as tribal police, so now we can police our own property, and enforce it within tribal court, he said.

Looking to the future, Garcia said the Pueblo will leave the land in its natural state while working to develop and protect it so that members and animals can use it.

We have no plans for any economic development  were not going to build houses out there, were not going to put a casino out there, he said. Whether its five, 10, 20, 50, 100 years from now, we will keep it in pristine condition.

The post Santa Ana Pueblo takes back ancestral land, declares conservation efforts, trespassing enforcement appeared first on Source New Mexico.
(KRON)  Santa Clara County seizes more guns from dangerous, disturbed, and suicidal people than anywhere else in California, according to a new State Attorney Generals report.



The county has become the vanguard in using Gun Violence Restraining Orders (GVRO)  which allows law enforcement to temporarily take away weapons from people who a court agrees are likely to commit a mass shooting, murder, or suicide, the District Attorneys Office wrote on Thursday.

Of the 2,719 GVROs issued in California last year, 24% were issued in Santa Clara County.

Santa Clara County issued 645 GVROs last year. In one case, a man communicated that he was going to get guns and commit a school shooting at a local high school. Quick action by the San Jose Police Department in obtaining a GVRO made it illegal for him to buy weapons.

In another case, an armed man threatened to hurt himself and his wife. Police obtained a GVRO to seize three firearms before he was arrested.

Dozens of guns seized, San Jose man arrested

District Attorney Jeff Rosen recently attended a national conference in New York City hosted by Prosecutors Against Gun Violence Conference.

Rosen said, Guns are dangerous  and divisive. However, all of us agree on some important things. We agree that someone who is threatening a mass shooting should not have a gun. We agree that someone who threatens to kill his wife or girlfriend should not have a gun. We agree someone who is suicidal should not have a gun. We have to build on this consensus and the commonsense use of Californias red flag law to get guns out of the hands of dangerous people.

More than 40,000 Americans die from gunshot wounds every year, according to the California Attorney General.

Of the 8,988 GVROs issued statewide from 2016-2023, 44% were issued in just two of Californias 58 counties: San Diego (2,490) and Santa Clara (1,481), the AGs report writes. The numbers reflect impacts of local protection order training and implementation programs trailblazed by the Santa Clara District Attorneys Office and San Diego officials, the report states.

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U.S. Permanent Representative to NATO Julian Smith said that Washington's position on Ukraine's membership in the bloc has remained unchanged. This means that the United States is confident that Kyiv should become a member of the Alliance, but that some work needs to be done.

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This is how Smith commented on President Joe Biden's statement that peace in Ukraine should be such that Russia can never attack again, and this does not mean NATO membership. Her words were quoted on the website of the US State Department on Wednesday, June 12.

Smith reminded that NATO leaders at the 2023 summit confirmed that Ukraine would become a member of the Alliance. However, the country needs to implement a number of reforms and meet certain criteria.

"I think what the president was referring to in that particular interview was the fact that we, the United States, believe that the Ukrainians still have some work to do to meet the criteria and implement the reforms that are necessary for NATO membership," she added.

The diplomat emphasized that Washington welcomes the progress that Ukraine has already made on its path to membership in the North Atlantic Alliance.

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"The goal remains the same. The commitments remain unchanged. And that's why you'll hear us talking a lot at the summit about building a bridge to membership for our friends in Ukraine," Smith summarized.

As reported by OBOZ.UA, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that Ukraine's victory in the war with Russia is a minimum condition for the country's membership in the Alliance. To help Kyiv regain all the territories seized by Russian troops, the countries of the bloc will agree on an increase in immediate military assistance at the summit in Washington.

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Sarah McBride opponent withdraws, possibly clearing way for first transgender rep

Delaware Democrats are rallying around House candidate Sarah McBride, setting the stage for her to potentially become the first openly transgender member of Congress.

McBrides primary opponent in the race, former Delaware State Housing Authority Director Eugene Young, suspended his campaign this week, nearly a year after launching his bid.

In a post on the social platform X, McBride, 33, stressed her deep respect for Young.

Service is in Eugenes heart, and he continues to dedicate his life to empowering and uplifting others, she said.

Young said in his announcement that he made the decision after careful consideration and deep reflection. He had trailed McBride by double digits in polls on the race.

Rep. Lisa Blunt Rochester (D), who has held Delawares lone at-large House seat since 2017, is running for the Senate seat left open by retiring Sen. Tom Carper (D).

Delaware Democratic Party Chair Betsy Maron praised Young for his dedication and announced the state party is solidly behind McBride.

Sarah has been a leader in the Delaware Democratic Party and a true change maker as a State Senator, Maron said in a statement.

McBride would likely face Republican Donyale Hall, who has declared candidacy in the race, but the nonpartisan Cook Political Report and other analysts say the seat is solidly Democratic.

McBride, who formerly served as national press secretary for the Human Rights Campaign, became the first openly transgender state senator in the country in 2020.

Delaware primaries are set for Sept. 10.

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Sarasota man dead after car crashes through ditch, across roadway, and into parked car

Sarasota man dead after car crashes through ditch, across roadway, and into parked car

SARASOTA, Fla. (WFLA)  A man whose vehicle ran through two properties, a ditch, and a roadway in Sarasota has died, the Florida Highway Patrol said.

The unidentified 48-year-old Sarasota man was driving a 2016 Ford vehicle on Antoinette Street when he ran off the road and entered the property at 5400 Antoinette Street, crashing into a landscape bed and the water line.

DeSantis declares state of emergency for Sarasota, other counties due to flooding

FHP said the vehicle then ran through the south side ditch before crossing the road and entering the property at 5317 Antoinette Street, where it crashed into a 2015 Honda parked in the homes carport.

The collision caused the Honda to damage the residence. The driver was transported to Sarasota Memorial Hospital and was later pronounced dead. The homeowner was not injured.

FHP says the crash remains under investigation.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.
Satellite gun permit event to be held in Monroeville

The Allegheny County Sheriffs Office and Monroeville Police Department are hosting a satellite gun permit event.

It will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, June 15 at the Monroeville Municipal Building, 2700 Monroeville Boulevard.

A completed application, $20 cash and a valid Pennsylvania ID are required.

The event is part of the continuing effort by Sheriff Kevin Kraus to bring government services to the community and make it more convenient for people to get a new permit or renew their existing permit.

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Saudi Arabia is seeking billions in Chinese investment for Neom. But it comes with a massive risk.

Saudi Arabia is seeking investment for its Neom megacity project from China.

In recent years, China has signed various tech deals with Saudi Arabia.

But the US is warning of consequences if the Saudis draw too close to China.

At a recent exhibition in Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia showcased its futuristic vision for its planned Neom megacity.

Among the exhibits were designs for The Line, a sprawling residential structure consisting of two skyscrapers that were originally intended to house nine million people.

It also showcased plans for a network of underground tunnels that residents could use to travel between different regions and a desert ski resort in the mountains.

It was part of Saudi Arabia's drive to secure billions in new investment for the project, which is the centerpiece of Saudi ruler Mohammed bin Salman's Vision 2030 strategy.

Vision 2030 is meant to reorient the kingdom's economy away from fossil fuels and toward innovation and technology.

But the vast scale and cost of the project, which reports say could spiral to more than a trillion dollars, is posing difficulties even for Saudi Arabia, despite its reserves of oil wealth.

Chinese President Xi Jinping holds talks with Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud at the royal palace in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Dec. 8, 2022. Yue Yuewei/Xinhua via Getty Images

A growing alliance

The exhibition helped make Neom "less mysterious," but reactions were "mostly neutral," Leonard Chan, chair of the Hong Kong Innovative Technology Development Association, told AFP.

There remain hopes in Saudi Arabia, however, that China will invest billions in the project.

One of the main areas of recent cooperation between the states has been technology, with Saudi Arabia working with China on AI and surveillance tech projects as it seeks to transform itself into a tech superpower.

Robert Mogielnicki, an analyst at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, told Business Insider that Chinese investors likely see opportunities in Neom in sectors including construction, renewable energy, telecommunications, and smart city-related services.

"Chinese economic actors interested in Neom likely see a longer-term project pipeline with various opportunities to generate profits," said Mogielnicki.

But it's an alliance of growing concern to Saudi Arabia's main geopolitical ally, the US.

Sunset reflection on Riyadh Tower, Saudi Arabia. Abdullah Al-Eisa via Getty Images

A shared authoritarian vision

One of the main tools China's leader Xi Jinping is using to broker alliances globally, particularly with nations ambivalent about the West's insistence on human rights, is the prospect of access to China's sophisticated surveillance technology.

China has developed AI-enabled face recognition software that allows officials to monitor citizens in real time and access data on aspects of their private lives, including health, employment, and financial histories.

It's a tool with an obvious appeal for Crown Prince Mohammed, who is accused of brutally persecuting dissidents and critics.

China sees Saudi Arabia as not just a business opportunity but a way of undercutting the influence of its longtime Saudi ally, the US.

In April, Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund-subsidiary Alat signed a deal with Dahua Technology, one of China's most important surveillance technology firms. The US has sanctioned Dahua Technology over national security concerns.

People walk below surveillance cameras in Tiananmen Square in Beijing on September 6, 2019. GREG BAKER via Getty Images

The creation of surveillance cities

Unlike Western firms, which have policies to protect data, Chinese companies have fewer compunctions about sharing the information they collect, Camille Lons, an analyst at the European Council on Foreign Relations, told BI.

"Gulf countries are indeed significant clients of Chinese surveillance technologies," said Lons. "The fact that Chinese companies are more open to share the collected data than their Western counterparts makes them attractive partners to the Gulf states."

It's an aspect of China's involvement in Neom that's alarmed some critics.

Neom is being designed as a "smart city," whose services will be regulated by data collected from residents through smart phones or surveillance cameras. Last year, analysts told BI that data collected about Neom residents through Chinese technology could be used as part of a mass surveillance program.

"They're being marketed as 'eco cities' or 'smart cities,' we call them surveillance cities," said Marwa Fatafta, an analyst with digital rights organisation Access Now, of cities such as Neom whose infrastructure uses Chinese data services and surveillance technology.

Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at a 2022 event discussing plans for the futuristic city of Neom. NEOM.

But there are risks for the Saudis

Saudi Arabia's increasingly close ties with China are of growing concern to the US.

The Biden administration is seeking to broker a normalization of relations between Saudi Arabia and Israel and is offering the Saudis potential access to valuable nuclear technology. An alternative deal would offer the Saudis enhanced US security guarantees.

But as a condition for any agreement, the US is demanding that the Saudis restrict their new tech alliance with China.

"The main risk today to Saudi Arabia's tech cooperation with China is the growing China-US tech war. The US is increasingly putting Riyadh under pressure over its cooperation with Chinese companies in the tech sector," said Lons.

The US is concerned that China could seek to exploit its relationship with Saudi Arabia to steal US tech secrets, with chips used to power AI systems among the areas of concern, The New York Times reported.

"US companies are now making clear that if Saudi Arabia wants to access advanced US technologies, it will need to make a choice and prove that it won't serve as a backdoor to China to access those technologies," said Lons.

But with Saudi Arabia reportedly considering scaling back some of its flagship Neom projects amid funding concerns, it will likely continue walking the tightrope between closer ties to China and potential US repercussions as it seeks to supercharge its Vision 2030 plans.

Read the original article on Business Insider
ST. LOUIS  A man from Sauget, Illinois, reached a plea agreement with the St. Louis prosecutors on Tuesday and admitted to killing a man in Soulard last year.

The murder happened just after 2:10 a.m. on Jan. 7, 2023, at a gas station in the 1300 block of Gravois Avenue.

Police found the victim, Jesse Lopez, unconscious in the parking lot. Hed been shot multiple times and was pronounced dead at the scene. Lopez was 24.

8-year-old girl dies after emergency aboard flight to Chicago

Investigators reviewed the stations surveillance video and saw Lopez try and steal Brett Kress SUV. Kress went after Lopez and shot him three times as Lopez fled.

Kress, 28, was scheduled to face trial next week for first-degree murder, unlawful possession of a firearm, and armed criminal action. However, the St. Louis Circuit Attorneys Office agreed to amend the murder charge in exchange for Kress guilty plea.

A St. Louis Circuit Court judge sentenced Kress to 15 years in state prison.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2.
What can save imperiled Tangier Island? Here's what's in works now

The imperiled Tangier Island was the location for a meeting of federal, state and local entities who gathered to outline solutions for one of the communities most at risk from sea level rise.

The officials visited sites by boat where land is being lost due to sea level rise and erosion, followed by a discussion that explored challenges and solutions for the island. Tangier Island has lost about two-thirds of its land since the 1850s, and research finds that much of the rest of the island could be lost within 50 years.

Partners like the Chesapeake Bay Foundation discussed working with the Tangier community to develop a state-certified resilience plan for the Tangier Island system, including neighboring Port Isobel Island. The plan would help the community secure funding and implement projects to protect this unique place.

More on Bay oyster recovery Oyster numbers see big rebound in Chesapeake bay as Maryland harvest also hits new record

Tangier Island: Ground zero for sea level rise concerns

The Tangier Sound Sept. 27, 2022, on the way to Smith Island, Maryland.

Nowhere is the ever-present threat of climate change felt more strongly than on Tangier Island. Now is the time to stand with Tangier and all the coastal communities along the Chesapeake Bay facing unimaginable change," said Hilary Harp Falk, the foundation's president.

An existing partnership between the foundation and Old Dominion Universitys Institute for Coastal Adaptation and Resilience is working to support Tangier in pursuing this plan.

The island visits included representatives from Tangier, the Virginia state government, the Accomack-Northampton Planning District Commission, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Norfolk District, and academic institutions and nonprofit organizations.

Im very encouraged. To accomplish something, its vital to get different groups working together on the same page," said Tangier Island Mayor James "Ooker" Eskridge.

More on Baltimore bridge reconstruction Maryland moves to starting line for bridge rebuild process. Public meeting scheduled.

How to save a sinking island

The Tangier Sound Sept. 27, 2022, on the way to Smith Island, Maryland.

According to the goals outlined following the meeting, the next steps for the future of of the island include:

Working with the Tangier community to develop a certified resilience plan;

Identifying federal, state and private funding opportunities for projects to protect the island;

Investing in an engineering study for mitigation and resiliency strategies for Tangier Island;

Beginning implementation while community infrastructure on Tangier can still be saved;

Assessing the viability of using beneficial dredge spoils to protect the island;

Including nature-based coastal adaptation strategies, including living shorelines of marsh grasses and oysters that protect shorelines from erosion while creating wildlife habitat and reducing pollution;

Sharing strategies and outcomes with other coastal communities throughout the watershed and across the country.

According to the foundation, work on the Tangier Island resiliency plan can serve as a model for nature-based practices for climate change mitigation and adaptation along the Chesapeake Bay and beyond.

With a clear plan and the right investment, we can preserve Tangier and neighboring Smith Island for at least another generation. These islands are a fantastic place to demonstrate solutions for what responsible climate adaptation can look like, Falk said.

The foundation currently has an environmental education center near Tangier on Port Isobel Island that includes a living laboratory that would also provide the opportunity to educate the next generation about innovative, large-scale restoration efforts to protect the Bay and its communities in the face of climate change.

More on the county fire agreement woes Salisbury-Wicomico stalemate over fire service continues as firefighters voice concerns

This article originally appeared on Salisbury Daily Times: Solutions to help imperiled Tangier Island in works now. What to know.
Public school students across South Carolina will be barred from using their cellphones during the school day under a clause legislators agreed to add to the state spending plan Thursday, June 13, 2024. (File/Getty Images)

COLUMBIA  Public school students across South Carolina will be barred from using their cellphones during the school day under a clause legislators agreed to add to the state spending plan Thursday.

Education officials and teachers backed the proposal. For years, teachers have been asking the state for help controlling student cellphone use, said Sherry East, president of the South Carolina Education Association.

Cellphones are a mega distraction, said East, who also teaches high school science. Its hard to teach with kids on their cellphones.

The clause was one of a number of funding stipulations that a committee of three House members and three senators approved during days of negotiations on the states more than $13.8 billion budget.

To continue receiving state funds, public school districts must adopt the statewide policy, which the state Board of Education will write.

How the state board plans to enforce the policy, ensuring schools and districts are actually keeping phones out of students hands, remains to be seen. There are also questions over whether to allow certain exceptions for safety situations.

We think cellphones are a huge distraction in the classroom, East said. We are happy to see something being done about it, but its all going to be down to implementation.

For example, some parents have questioned whether they would be able to reach their children in case of an emergency, state Superintendent Ellen Weaver said during a board meeting last month. That concern will need to factor that into the final policy, she said.

While we certainly dont want to ever deny a parent access to their child, at the same time, I think we have to balance these very real safety and instructional concerns that cellphones create, Weaver said.

Varying policies

The goal is to improve students mental health and reduce bullying both in-person and online, Weaver said. While social media has some benefits, it can also hurt young peoples mental health, according to the U.S. Surgeon General.

In some cases, students use their cellphones for legitimate learning purposes. Peter Lauzons biomedical sciences class in Lexington-Richland School District Five often takes photos of nature as part of their assignments, which they submit online.

The problem is when students use their phones as a distraction, Lauzon told the SC Daily Gazette.

If youre competing with their favorite show on Netflix, thats not always an easy thing to do, Lauzon said. But there is use for phones.

Nationwide, about 77% of schools banned students from using their phones during school hours except for instructional purposes during the 2019-2020 school year, according to the latest available data from the National Center for Education Statistics.

Across South Carolina, policies vary. Greenwood School District 50 trustees voted this week to ban phones during the school day. Charleston County School District only allows students to use their phones during certain parts of the day, such as at lunch. Richland School District One bans phones during class time. Other districts have no policy at all.

House Ways and Means Chairman Bruce Bannister initially questioned whether the state needed an overarching rule, considering many districts already have their own rules about cellphones.

Shouldnt independently elected school boards weigh in on that? Bannister said during budget debates Wednesday.

But going statewide will allow education officials to standardize policies across districts, Weaver said. That will likely involve working with superintendents who already have policies in place, making sure that there is a benchmark for uniformity across the state, Weaver said.

While the idea is popular among teachers, who have been calling for a solution for years, it may not be so popular among students.

Im willing for us to be the bad guys at the state level, if necessary, because I think this is just the No. 1 most common-sense thing we can do to start to get ahold of some of the discipline and mental health issues that our students are facing in school, Weaver said.

The House and Senate both already had passed proposals limiting students cell phone use. But the two chambers differed on times those limits should be in place  all day or just during class time. On Thursday they agreed to a full-day ban, as the Senate proposed.

Other measures

Also on the list of special budget rules agreed to Thursday were two controversial measures from the Senate. One will require libraries to get parental permission before allowing children and teenagers to check out books with sexual content or risk losing state funding. The other will require students to use bathrooms and locker rooms aligned with their biological sex at birth.

While the Republican senators who proposed the measures said they will protect children from inappropriate content or boys pretending to be girls to go in the wrong locker room, some Democrats pushed back.

Sen. Tameika Isaac Devine, D-Columbia, argued restricting library books will penalize small libraries. She also argued requiring students use certain bathrooms will open up the state to lawsuits, as well as hurt transgender students who want to use the bathroom aligned with their gender.

Both proposals passed the Senate along party lines. The six-legislator committee agreed to add them to the final spending proposal.

The post SC budget to ban cellphones in K-12 schools appeared first on SC Daily Gazette.
Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) sought to make a statement about former President Trumps criminal conviction Thursday, repeating the word guilty 34 times in a row, once for each of the former presidents guilty counts in the Manhattan hush money case.

The move by Schiff came at the beginning of his line of questioning during the House Judiciary Committees hearing on Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Braggs (D) office and its investigation into Trumps hush money scheme during the 2016 election.

After being recognized by Judiciary Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) during the hearing, Schiff said, I want to begin by quoting the jury in the Manhattan hush money payment trial.

Guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, guilty, he said. This was what the jury pronounced, unanimously on every count.

Trump was found guilty of 34 felony counts of falsifying business records late last month, making him the first former U.S. president to be criminally convicted.

The charges were in connection with reimbursements made to Michael Cohen, Trumps former fixer and onetime attorney, for a $130,000 payment made to adult film star Stormy Daniels in exchange for her silence about an alleged past affair with Trump, which he has denied.

Republicans in Congress were quick to lambast the trial and conviction as a fundamentally unfair trial that was politically motivated.

Thursdays hearing, spearheaded by the GOP-led committee, brought that argument to the forefront, with the committee writing in a statement: With his unprecedented, politicized indictment of President Trump, Manhattan District Attorney Bragg has opened the door for politically motivated prosecutions of federal officials by state and local prosecutors.

Schiff pushed back on the claims but quipped that Republicans did not directly argue against the charges.

My Republican colleagues dont really contest Donald Trumps guilt; this is the fascinating thing, Schiff, who is running for the California Senate seat left open by the late Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D), said. Their argument is essentially he should have never been prosecuted, or they falsely claim it was a political prosecution, or they falsely claim it should have been a misdemeanor, not a felony.

But they dont contest  not really  that Donald Trump was making hush money payments to a porn star to hide their affair from voters, the lawmaker continued. What theyre really saying is theyre more than comfortable electing  nominating and electing as the president of the United States  someone making hush money payments to a porn star.

He added, The party, formally of the moral majority, is now, I suppose, trying to fashion some kind of immoral majority to reinstate Donald Trump as president.

Thursdays hearing heard testimony from Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey, Federal Election Commissioner James Trey Trainor III, attorney Elizabeth Price Foley and Norman Eisen, the former U.S. ambassador to the Czech Republic.

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The Canadian government has announced that it will start supplying decommissioned CRV7 rocket engines to Ukraine. The "initial tranche" will be about 2000 rocket engines.

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This is reported by The Canadian Press. In total, the Federal Conservatives are asking Ottawa to transfer 83,303 engines to Ukraine, and Ukrainian Ambassador Yuliia Kovaliv said that her country could use the decommissioned weapons to fight the Russian invasion.

Canada will also donate 29 surplus "Nanuk" remote weapon systems and more than 130,000 rounds of small arms ammunition.

Defense Minister Bill Blair announced in Brussels at a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contracts Group, which includes about 50 allies led by the United States.

In a statement, the government said the missiles were tested "to make sure they are viable." Meanwhile, Canada's Ministry of Defense Research and Development and Magellan Aerospace and Defense Research are testing "additional samples" of rocket engines.

"As soon as the results of further tests are available, Canada will evaluate the possibility of transferring additional CRV7 engines," the government added.

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The delivery of the engines is expected to begin in the coming weeks.

Yuliia Kovaliv told a Senate committee in late May that Ukraine has learned how to repair the transferred weapons.

"We have limited resources, so we are asking the Ministry of National Defense... if there is something that needs to be decommissioned  even if you think it is in a bad condition for your Canadian soldiers  we are ready to accept it. We have a choice: either people who have nothing on the front line can be killed, or we can repair this equipment and use it for really good purposes," she said.

To recap, US President Joe Biden approved the transfer of another Patriot missile system to Ukraine. The decision was made last week: the system is located in Poland.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber . Do not fall for fakes!

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That's a no for me. Audience members make the feelings clear about Gov. Bill Lee's school voucher plan. (Photo: John Partipilo)

That's a no for me. Audience members make the feelings clear about Gov. Bill Lee's school voucher plan. (Photo: John Partipilo)

While Gov. Bill Lees universal school voucher proposal is clearly a key issue this election year, there is less agreement on where Tennessee voters stand on the contentious education policy, incentivizing many state legislative candidates to avoid discussing the matter.

Numerous voter polls have generated wildly different results this year, depending on which organization was behind the survey and how the questions were asked.

As a result, rural Republican candidates, whose legislative votes would be pivotal in deciding the issue, arent generally trumpeting their positions on what would amount to a major policy change.

And when they do comment, the candidates are choosing their words carefully by using the language of school choice over vouchers, even though theyre essentially the same thing when it comes to letting parents use taxpayer money to send their children to private schools.

The divergent poll results, based on representative samplings of voters, underscore that vouchers remain a hot-button education issue as Tennesseans try to understand a complex idea that was the most divisive of the recent legislative session.

Supporters say the statewide voucher proposal, which the governor vowed to bring back to lawmakers next year after it failed to reach the Senate and House floors in April, would put parents in charge of their childrens education by giving them more choices. Critics say it would destabilize public education, bust the states budget, and further segregate schools by race, income, and students with special needs.

Now in his second term, Lee has characterized GOP support across Tennessee as solidly favoring his proposal, which is especially important in a red state where the winner of the Republican primary typically wins the general election.

The Republican governor, who campaigned on the promise of giving parents more education choices for their children, recently told Fox News that school choice is a very popular idea among Republican primary voters. He added that voters support it by an overwhelming margin.

Legislators understand that; they know their voters want this, Lee said.

But while vouchers have steadily gained support through the years, surveys of voter attitudes dont necessarily bear out Lees claim.

Three pro-voucher groups  The Beacon Center, Americans for Prosperity, and the American Federation for Children  released findings early this year declaring broad support for expanding school vouchers in Tennessee as they sought to build momentum ahead of critical voucher votes in the General Assembly.

During the same period, the Tennessee Education Association, the states largest teachers organization and a voucher opponent, released results of its own poll showing only 30% of Republican primary voters supported the governors plan.

Most recently, Vanderbilt Universitys poll found Tennessee voters evenly split on the matter.

When asked if they approve of the policy, 45% were in favor of vouchers, 46% opposed them, and 9% said they neither supported nor opposed the idea.

These results show that vouchers remain a controversial issue, said John Geer, the Vanderbilt polls co-director and a distinguished professor of political science.

It is a complex and complicated topic, he added. That makes the issue difficult to measure in a poll.

The uneven findings of various polls stem, in part, from how the questions were framed.

For instance, Americans for Prosperity asked voters: Governor Lee is proposing a school choice program that will enable parents to take back control over $7K of their education tax dollars to educate their child in a private or home school environment if they choose to, giving parents more control over how and where their children are educated. Do you agree with the program Governor Lee is proposing?

More than 70% responded yes.

By contrast, the TEAs survey asked a series of questions delving into the structural and financial impacts that universal vouchers would have on the states public education system.

Among them: Other states that have enacted statewide vouchers saw that 95% of students who benefitted were from wealthy families who had the resources to send their children to private schools or already attended private schools, mostly in rural areas, instead of providing resources to middle-income families and students from across the state. Does knowing this make you more or less likely to support school vouchers?

More than 70% responded that they were less inclined to support the policy.

The Vanderbilt poll, which also examined issues such as abortion, vaccines, and gun control, was conducted this spring, soon after the legislature adjourned.

On vouchers, Vanderbilt pollsters asked: Do you support, neither support nor oppose, or oppose Tennessee giving all parents tax-funded vouchers they can use to help pay for tuition for their school-age children to attend private or religious schools of their choice, instead of attending local public schools?

We dont have an ax to grind, so we tried to be as straightforward as we could, said Geer.

About 49% of responding voters also said they were likely to use vouchers if they became available, and 50% said they would not. By a wide margin, Republicans who support former President Donald Trump were the group most likely to use them, while only 26% of Democrats said they would take advantage of the option.

The outcome of the poll on vouchers was very partisan in nature, Geer said.

That partisan lens, he added, was more significant than whether the voter lived in a rural, urban, or suburban district, where access to private schools varies significantly.

I think its another statement about our political climate and the polarization of our country. We really werent able to get past the partisanship, he said.

This years uneven polling results may help explain why many rural Republican candidates arent discussing vouchers or promoting where they stand on the issue when seeking to secure their partys nomination. In suburban and urban districts, which are home to more private schools, both Republican and Democratic candidates are more likely to weigh in or use vouchers as a campaign issue.

Rural Republican legislators got some pushback over the governors voucher proposal, so I can understand why they would skirt the issue with primary voters, Geer said. I can understand why they would just say: Im for public education because thats whats important to my rural district.

Debby Gould, president of the League of Women Voters in Tennessee, said legislative candidates can easily cloak their voucher stance by saying they support public education, especially since the Houses 2024 voucher bill bundled the creation of a statewide voucher program with public school reforms.

That muddied the waters a bit, but voters deserve a clear answer to whether they plan to vote yes or no on universal vouchers, Gould said.

Vouchers arent a secondary election issue, she added. Gov. Lee has said its a priority for his administration, so it will be front and center next legislative session.

All 99 seats in the state House and half of the Senates 33 seats are on the ballot this year. Aug. 1 is Tennessees primary election day, with early voting July 12-24. The general election will be on Nov. 5.

You can find more voter information on the Secretary of States website.

Marta Aldrich is a senior correspondent and covers the statehouse for Chalkbeat Tennessee. Contact her at maldrich@chalkbeat.org.

Sign up for Chalkbeat Tennessees free daily newsletter to keep up with statewide education policy and Memphis-Shelby County Schools.

Chalkbeat is a nonprofit news site covering educational change in public schools.

The post School voucher voter polls vary wildly in Tennessee as many legislative candidates skirt the issue appeared first on Tennessee Lookout.
A successful island restoration project that repopulated tens of thousands of brown pelicans will be re-created 16 miles from Houma.

The island will be a re-creation of the Queen Bess Island at the mouth of the Houma Navigational Canal, beginning in September. Queen Bess is a 37-acre island that was clawed back from the Gulf at a cost of about $20 million. For reasons unknown to scientists, it is a prime breeding ground for Louisiana's state bird, the brown pelican. The bird and its habitat are a good petri dish for studying the effects of land loss and how to combat it, scientists said.

As a small boat of scientists puttered toward the lone Gulf island, a wall of darkness rose from its shore, blackening the sky with beaks and feathers. Before the boat reached the island, the wind wafted a rotten stench of shrimp and other sea life over the boat.

"That's the sweet smell of success," Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Program Manager John Wiebe said.

Thousands of brown pelicans call Queen Bess Island their summer retreat, June 11. The island was restored from 5 acres to 37 acres over a three year period, 2017-2020. Scientists are unsure why the bird uses the island as a prime roosting location to raise their young.

It was the smell of droppings from more than 20,000 birds that call Queen Bess Island their summer love nest. They estimate about 10,000 are brown pelicans. The island is lush with many hues of green. Hermit crabs scuttle along the shore in droves. Seagulls, brown pelicans, egrets, herons and more sit or float along its coast. The birds have no predators on the island, and nests are plentiful, beginning mere steps from the shore.

"You can't explain it, it's just something you have to see," Wiebe said. "When you are going through it, walking through it, there's just layers of nests."

A baby brown pelican attacks a sprig of Matrimony Vine on Queen Bess Island, June 11. The island was restored from 5 to 37 acres for about $20 million over a three-year-period, 2017-2020. Now, four years later, the population is recovering.

Wiebe has been assigned to the project since its beginning in 2017 when there was only 5 acres remaining, and while the project was completed in 2020, the island must be maintained and studied so scientists can learn from it to replicate the efforts elsewhere. These lessons will be employed for a $34-million project to restore a Houma Navigational Canal Island. When complete, it will be 34.5-acre island at the mouth of the canal.

Wiebe was joined by CPRA Scientist and Project Manager Katie Freer. Together they explained how scientists had to plan out the perfect habitat for the pelicans to want to settle down and breed.

Clippings were taken from the natural vegetation of the island and then layered out across the rebuilt land. Standing on the oldest portion of the island CPRA Project Manager Todd Baker pointed to the newer areas, highlighting each layer of vegetation. Lines of slightly different plant life, like waves of subtly different shades of green, were the only indication to an untrained eye. From a distance, Baker knew each plant species by name.

The vegetation had a twofold importance: it both anchored the land to stave off erosion and provided nesting material for the birds. Matrimony Vine appeared to be a favorite of the pelicans. The branches of the bush could be found bent and twisted into a circle with an adult pelican standing on it, shielding its chicks from the sun's rays.

Pelicans, Baker said, have a high mortality rate in their first year of development, often dying in the winter chill. To combat this and ensure the species' survival, it's a matter of success by volume. More babies ensure more make it past that first year. After that, the species is very successful, he said.

Three fledgling brown pelicans gather around a small puddle on Queen Bess Island, June 11. The island was restored from 5 to 37 acres for about $20 million over a three-year-period, 2017-2020. Now, four years later, the population is recovering.

"Those cold, muddy temperatures send the fish deep, and these birds, in their first year, don't know how to feed, so they literally starve to death in big numbers throughout year one," he said. "However, after year one, their survival rate is outstanding."

Baker often raised his binoculars to look at the birds swooping overhead, and the three scientists would identify different pelicans by their bracelets. The bird bling came in two varieties: state and federal. Many of the pelicans are tagged so that scientists can document their movement. They have found the pelicans roosting here travel to areas like Florida and Central America.

Baker said the pelicans are Louisiana's version of a canary in a coal mine. Every major issue plaguing Louisiana's coast affects their roosting habitat first. Erosion, subsidence, oil spills and more tear away at their habitats, as well as issues that reduce the mainland's coast. For example, when the BP oil spill hit, Barataria Bay had six to eight pelican colonies, Baker said.

"And now, as we stand here today, this is the only one left," he said.

He pointed to a pelican baby pelican nipping at a branch. "They're on the decline," he said. "Everything that affects our coastal Louisiana and our residents, these guys are on the front line of it."

All the data collected from the project is open source and can be found through the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration website here: https://www.gulfspillrestoration.noaa.gov/restoration-areas/louisiana. Type the project name in the search bar and click the result to pull up all the information.

This article originally appeared on The Courier: Scientists bringing successful island restoration project to Houma
SEABROOK  The town has reached a deal with the owners of The Brook casino to allow them to construct up to 264 housing units on 75 acres off Route 1.

The towns Zoning Board of Adjustment will host a public hearing on the consent decree reached on June 26.

The decree apparently would resolve the appeal filed with the New Hampshire Housing Appeals Board against the town of Seabrook by Nevada-based RMH NH, LLC, a company linked to The Brook operator Eureka Casinos. The appeal was filed in 2022 after the ZBA denied variances needed to build 330-plus housing units on the southwest corner of The Brooks acreage.

RMH NH, LLC, a company linked to The Brook operator Eureka Casinos, wants to construct a housing complex on the site of the former greyhound racing track.

According to the ZBA agenda, the decree authorizes construction of up to 230 multi-family housing units and 17 duplexes (34 units) at 319 Route 107, subject to Planning Board approval and certain other conditions.

The agreement, according to the agenda, will be filed with the state's Housing Appeals Board to resolve the case. The Housing Appeals Board is a three-member panel appointed by the states Supreme Court that hears appeals of decisions made by municipal boards, committees, and commissions on land use issues related to housing.

North Beach development: Restaurant, retail, condos to replace charred remains in Hampton

Seabrook Zoning Board had twice rejected Brook housing project

The Brook filed the appeal with the states relatively new Housing Appeals Board after the towns Zoning Board denied several variances needed to move forward with their project to build 334 housing units. Variances were needed for height and wetland setback issues, and because the lots involved are in Rural Zone 1 and Industrial Zone 3, neither of which allow multi-unit housing according to Seabrooks zoning ordinances.

The appeal was put on hold while The Brook CEO Andre Carrier filed a new plan with the towns Zoning Board for a scaled-down project to address abutter concerns that called for 223 housing units.

Carrier told ZBA members at the time the changes made to the plan were from informal meetings with Seabrooks Planning Board and his desire to be a good neighbor to abutters.

The new proposal consisted of 34 two-bedroom, freestanding duplexes, 119 units in a four-story building (43 one-bedroom and 76 two-bedroom apartments), and 81 senior housing units in a multi-story building for those aged 55 years or older. The complex was not affordable or section 8 housing," Carrier said, but did include 20 units designated as workforce housing, though the remaining units were to rent at market rate.

The board in January 2024, however, rejected that proposal as well, reviving The Brooks original appeal to the Housing Board of Appeals.

More: Hampton Beach landmark, ex-Ron's Landing property, under agreement for sale

ZBA to hold public hearing on deal reached with The Brook

Copies of the consent decree were not provided by the town. Town officials said the proposed consent decree is not currently available for public inspection and is exempted from the state's Right-to-Know law and protected by attorney-client privilege.

However, the settlement will be reviewed during the public hearing on the June 26 Zoning Board meeting at 7 p.m. on the second floor of Town Hall.

Officials said they would not comment on the agreement until the public hearing.

More: What if? Ex-'Tonight Show' writer Jon Rineman reimagines Celtics history in new book

What is the New Hampshire Housing Appeals Board?

Since its establishment by statute on July 1, 2020, the New Hampshire Housing Appeals Board has heard more than 100 cases concerning land use and housing development.

A three-person board appointed by the state Supreme Court, its members must consist of those with an understanding and experience in land-use law and housing development. Members must include a New Hampshire attorney and a professional engineer or land surveyor.

The Housing Board of Appeals has the legal authority to hear and affirm, reverse, or modify, in whole or in part, appeals of final decisions, made by local boards, committees, or commissions on issues regarding housing developments. Commercial developments are not within its purview unless they are made up of both housing and commercial uses in a mixed-use format.

Although parties can still appeal local decisions to the Superior Court, as has been the custom for decades, the Housing Appeals Board adds an option some believe is a more cost-effective and time-efficient process.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Seabrook, The Brook reach deal on casino's 264-unit housing project
90-year-old central PA man found dead about a week after he was reported missing, family says

June 14 update: Bob Oliver was found dead in his vehicle along Deibler Road, his nephew Earl Lake told the Centre Daily Times about 11:35 a.m. Friday. On the social platform X, state police wrote that Oliver was located but have not publicly released additional information. A state police spokesperson told the CDT that its still an active investigation.

Original story:

A man who was reported missing Saturday was believed to be heading toward Boalsburg for dinner with his daughter, his nephew told the Centre Daily Times on Thursday.

Bob Oliver, 90, was seen about 4:05 p.m. Saturday on a security camera leaving his Huntingdon County home, Earl Lake said. He was driving a tan 2005 Buick LeSabre, state police at Huntingdon posted on the social platform X.

Oliver was familiar with the nearly 20-minute drive along state Route 45. A father of two, he drove to his daughters for dinner on a near daily basis, Lake said.

But Lakes belief is that his uncle did not make it to Pine Grove Mills. He was not seen on security cameras in the area, Lake said. Instead, his belief is that Oliver either did not make it far from his home or ended up on Marengo or Whitehall roads.

Lake said Olivers daughter reported him missing within hours of what was supposed to be dinner together. Oliver is white, 5 feet, 9 inches tall, about 140 pounds and has blue eyes. He was last seen wearing a red and blue plaid shirt, blue jeans and a blue hat.

Disbelief, Lake said when asked about receiving the phone call that told him his uncle was missing. Im just calling it bizarre. I cannot come up with any solution. Of course, were at the point in time now where I dont think theres any good ending, but itd be nice to get some closure.

Robert Oliver, 90, of Huntingdon County, has been missing since Saturday. He was headed toward Boalsburg for dinner with his daughter, his nephew said Thursday.

A central Pennsylvania native, Lake said his uncle is a farmer who loves wrestling. He often went to Penn State wrestling meets.

Oliver is also a lifetime member of Upper Spruce Creek Presbyterian Church, is involved with the Huntingdon County Fair and a cemetery association. Given only three hours of notice Wednesday, Lake said about 70 people joined a search party in the area of Olivers home.

Oliver, he said, is well known up through the valley and well respected.

I was blown away when that many people showed up last evening on three hours notice, Lake said.

He was complimentary of the search being carried out by the state police, describing them as cooperative and dedicated. Lake said one trooper told him the search is about all theyve done since Saturday.

Itd just be nice to have some closure, Lake said.

Anyone with information about Oliver is asked to call 911 or Pennsylvania State Police at Huntingdon at 814-627-3161.

MEPA Update: Oliver is operating a tan 2005 Buick LeSaber with a dark top, bearing PA registration GDK0704. Updated vehicle photo attached. https://t.co/3loC9Zakeu pic.twitter.com/H1W8i86IX9  PA State Police (@PAStatePolice) June 12, 2024
A Seattle City Council committee expanded the use of automated license plate readers (ALPR) across the Seattle Police Departments (SPD) entire fleet Tuesday, encompassing over 350 patrol cars and other vehicles. However, the expansion raises questions about the use and retention of the data the readers collect, including the date, time, and location of the plate read.

The City Council initially approved limited use of ALPRs in 2021 for 11 SPD vehicles, leading to the recovery of 622 stolen vehicles, according to the SPD. The trade-offs between privacy, data security, and retention versus SPDs request to hold data longer to help solve crimes were hotly debated for nearly 90 minutes at Tuesdays Public Safety Committee meeting.

Council Bill 120778, which authorizes the expansion of ALPRs and sets restrictions regarding who has access to the collected data, was under scrutiny. Former King County Superior Court Judge and current council member Cathy Moore expressed deep concerns about the publics ability to use the states Public Records Act to request potentially hundreds of thousands of scans performed by ALPRs.

The main issue here is how do we protect individuals who are coming to the state of Washington to access reproductive care or gender-affirming care? Moore asked. How do we protect them from being criminalized and prosecuted in non-protected states?

Under the current proposal, data not tied to an active investigation would be retained for 90 days. For active investigations, the data would be retained indefinitely. Data collected by ALPR technology is considered public record under Washington States Public Records Act and can be requested by the public. Additionally, there are concerns about external entities attempting to compel data disclosure from the third-party vendors managing the data.

Public comments earlier in the meeting underscored these issues, reflecting a community divided on balancing public safety and privacy rights. Moore prefers data not involved in an investigation be retained for only 48 hours, reducing the likelihood of disclosure requests from the public or other states.

SPD official speaks out at the meeting

Brian Maxey, Chief Operating Officer for SPD, stated a 48-hour retention period would severely limit the potential for investigating other crimes.

We know that most stolen vehicles these days are not stolen for joyriding or some random purpose. They are stolen specifically to use in other crimes, Maxey told the City Council. If we have a hit on a vehicle that is not on our list but we now know was involved in a crime, having that 90-day buffer lets us look back in time to see what other crimes that car was associated with.

Currently, there are 9,000 stolen vehicles in Seattle that have not been recovered, Maxey noted. The buffer will help solve these crimes and other cases, including missing persons.

This technology just tells you where a car has been. It does not tell you who was driving it or what happened when the person exited that vehicle. It simply provides the location of a vehicle, Maxey said.

The committee approved an amendment Moore offered, solidifying SPDs current practice of not publicly disclosing ALPR data that links specific license plates to particular times, dates, and locations. This non-disclosure practice would remain in effect unless altered by court order or changes in applicable law. Should such changes occur, the amendment mandates that SPD promptly notify the City Council.

However, Moore abstained from the vote for final passage, stating she plans to introduce new legislation that caps retention at 48 hours for data not involved with an active SPD case. The City Councils decision on this ordinance will have significant implications for both law enforcement capabilities and civil liberties in Seattle.

The Committee passed the expansion 4-0 with Moore abstaining. A full Seattle City Council is expected next week.
Editors note: The above video originally aired on May 8, 2024.

SOHO, Manhattan (PIX11)  A second suspect was nabbed in the shooting death of a 16-year-old boy who was trying to break up a fight in a SoHo courtyard last month, authorities said.

The boy, also 16, was arrested Wednesday in Newark and charged with murder in the second degree in connection to the killing of Mahki Brown on May 7, according to the NYPD. The suspect was arraigned in Supreme Court and is being held without bail, according to a spokesperson for the Manhattan District Attorneys Office.

More Local News

Brown was fatally shot in Urban Plaza, a courtyard located across from 233 Spring St. between Varick Street and Sixth Avenue in SoHo, at around 2:30 p.m., police said.

The teen and the suspected shooter, Henry Thomas, 19, arrived at the courtyard on a CitiBike and fled the scene on the bike, police said. Thomas was arrested in May and charged with murder.

Thomas allegedly shot Brown in the head and leg when the teen stepped to be a peacemaker during an argument between two groups of teenage girls who had an ongoing beef, according to police. The students attend Broome Street Academy Charter High School.

There were about 30 people in the courtyard during the fight, according to NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny. Brown was not the intended target.

He was the kind of guy that would have stepped in to help anybody, Kenny previously 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 PIX11.
After his conviction on three felony firearm charges, Hunter Biden departed federal court in Delaware with the Secret Service detail he is provided as the son of a sitting president.

Hunter Bidens Secret Service protection will remain unchanged despite todays judicial outcome, Anthony Guglielmi, chief of communications for the U.S. Secret Service, told The Daily Beast.

The Secret Service is not required to protect the children of a sitting president who are over 16, but has traditionally done so. Hunter Bidenwhose Secret Service codename is Captainwill almost certainly still have the detail when he returns to court for sentencing, which is expected to be in about 120 days. And if he gets time in federal prison, the Secret Service will be faced with the question of how to protect someone who is behind bars.

This may be a first, depending on the sentencing of Donald Trump in the New York State Supreme Court on July 11. If both men get jail time and the particular sentences overlap, the history of the Office of Protective Operations of the Secret Service could conceivably be protecting two inmates, one a former Republican president, and the other the son of a sitting Democratic president, in separate prisons.

If you asked me, even five years ago, let alone 25 years ago, would I ever see this happen, the answer would have been a hard no, a former Secret Service supervisor told The Daily Beast.

Joe and Hunter Biden Share Emotional Embrace After Conviction

Should Biden lose the upcoming election while his son is incarcerated, Hunter could lose his detail, though the former supervisor figures that Trump would likely extend the protection, any grudges aside. The Secret Service will remain obligated to protect Trump as a former president no matter what the outcome.

The problem of protecting a former president in jail was already pondered by the Secret Service during the hush money trial, when Judge Juan Merchan said that he might, reluctantly, have to jail Trump if he continued to defy a gag order.

At the time, the Secret Service and New York Corrections officials told The Daily Beast that they figured Trump could be lodged in a holding cell behind the courtroom if the judge just wanted to chastise him for a few hours. Anything longer presented a more complicated problem.

The matter became moot when the threat proved sufficient to muffle Trumps tantrums. But the incarceration issue will again arise if Merchan sentences Trump to jail time.

On Monday, Trump was given a pre-sentencing interview by the Department of Probation, which will prepare a report for the judge. Such interviews are usually in person and one-on-one for more than an hour. Security concerns explain why Trumps was conducted virtually. But there was no immediate explanation why it lasted less than half an hour, with his lawyer and several other people present.

I dont know why that was, former New York City Department of Corrections Commissioner Martin Horn told The Daily Beast.

Horn noted that the reports provide a convicted person an opportunity to persuade the judge to give them a break.

But you have to give the judge a reason, Horn said.

Should Trump get jail time, Horn and others say the most likely place for him to be held would be the West Facility on Rikers Island. Inmates currently lodged there include Allen Weisselberg, the onetime Trump moneyman who is doing five months for perjury and is due to receive the second of three $250,000 payments from the Trump Organization in exchange for not cooperating with law enforcement.

Trump Is Still Paying Hush Moneyto His Loyal Bean-Counter

Formerly the Contagious Disease Unit, the West Facility has a number of separate buildings with a half-dozen cells. The Secret Service could use one building to house Trump and his detail while keeping him separate from other inmates, including Weisselberg.

One complaint is a prohibition against firearms on Rikers Island that includes even corrections officers. The Secret Service would almost certainly insist on being armed.

Its a Terra Nova situation for everybody, the former Secret Service supervisor said. I think thered have to be some sort of carve out for that.

As for Hunter in a federal correctional facility, the supervisor figures the Secret Service and the Bureau of Prisons could form a joint task force.

Unlike sitting presidents, former officeholders can decline Secret Service protection. Richard Nixon did that in 1985, following the example of his wife, Pat, who opted out the year before to spare the government the expense.

Family members of sitting presidents can decline at any time, but Hunter Biden has given no indication that he plans to do so. He has received protection since his father assumed office, and at one point the Secret Service was obligated to pay $30,000 a month to rent a house near his residence in Malibu, California.

Unless he decides otherwise, Hunter will still have his detail when he arrives for sentencing in the months ahead. A prison term would land the agents behind bars along with him. And that would be a firstunless Trump and his detail have already made woeful history.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Seems like Big Brother to me: Find out if your name has been searched by ex-Ballwin police chief

Seems like Big Brother to me: Find out if your name has been searched by ex-Ballwin police chief

BALLWIN, Mo.  Hundreds of peoples names were run through a criminal justice database in the last few years without probable cause, according to Ballwin law enforcement.

A Ballwin police report accuses former Chief Douglas Shaeffler of sometimes searching without a legitimate law enforcement reason in the Regional Justice Information System (REJIS).

A heavily redacted police report gives clues about who was searched. The clues are in small pieces surrounding mostly blacked-out details. Those clues include a citizens ex-wife, someones daughter, husband and wife Hispanic business owners, and a friend with owner of Circle 7 Ranch restaurant.

Citizens Matthew Conlon and Michael Scott found out they were searched after showing up at council meetings.

Why am I being searched? What criminal activity have I done? It seems like Big Brother to me, Conlon said.

New Illinois laws go into effect on July 1, including drivers licenses for noncitizens

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Scott added, I didnt know until recently to even ask. The thought never occurred to me that Id be a victim.

Scotts name was reportedly searched after he asked about the police drone program.

I wanted to know what constitutes justified, because thats really easy to abuse that, he said. It seems like now I was pretty much on the money.

Former Alderman Kevin Roach was searched at least twice, according to the Ballwin police report, adding, Roach is also a participant in the Missouri Safe at Home Program so that his address is kept confidential. The police report continues, (Former Chief) Schaeffler had stated several times he was attempting to learn where Roach moved.

The former alderman told us, Doug Schaeffler was on the job in Ballwin for 955 days. We know from the police report that 1,236 people were run by him in the criminal justice database. Thats more than one person every day.

Roach hired Clayton attorney Mark Pedroli, who filed a class action petition against Ballwin and the former chief, to get more answers.

The bigger concern is all the other residents of Ballwin, Conlon said.

You should be able to freely speak your mind, as long as you do it in a proper fashion, Scott said.

The City of Ballwin responded on social media with a statement that says, in part, At no point was former Chief Doug Schaeffler directed to perform any illegal searches by city staff or city officials. These potentially illegal searches were one of several reasons why the former chief was terminated

Schaeffler is now suing Ballwin, alleging wrongful discharge and saying he was denied due process. Weve reached out to his attorney for further comment and have not heard back.

Ballwin has sent its investigation to prosecutors. To avoid a possible conflict of interest, the case is now in the hands of the St. Louis Circuit Attorneys Office for consideration of possible criminal charges. If you call Ballwin directly, a representative can find out for you if your names been run, but the easiest way to check is to email your inquiry to cityclerk@ballwin.mo.us.

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 2.
Ukraine's air defense was a priority in the partners' discussions at the 23rd Ramstein meeting on June 13. Allies were urged to provide not only Patriot systems but also other systems.

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This was stated by U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin at a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group. The public part of the event was broadcast online.

"Regarding Patriot. You know that air defense is a priority. We emphasize every time that we need to provide Ukraine with additional Patriot systems. But not only that. We spend a lot of time urging other countries to provide not only Patriot but also other air defense systems to Ukraine," the Pentagon chief said.

He stated that he had no new announcements regarding the Patriot air defense missile systems after the meeting. However, Austin said that work on providing Ukraine's defenders with additional capabilities continues.

Austin also commented on the information that Poland refused to move the Patriot to Ukraine.

"I've seen the press reports. What I want to say is. There will be no change in our Patriot coverage in Poland. I know it has been reported, but there are no changes regarding Poland. To give Ukraine what it needs, we are working with other countries," explained the head of the US Defense Department.

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As a reminder, the head of the National Security Bureau of Poland, Jacek Siewiera, earlier informed that his country would not transfer its Patriot air and missile defense systems to the Ukrainian Armed Forces, as Poland itself needs protection.

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
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Semafor Co-Founder & Editor in Chief, Ben Smith announced today that John Burgess Everett, former Congressional Bureau Chief at POLITICO, has been appointed Semafors first-ever Congressional Bureau Chief. Based in Semafors Washington D.C bureau, Everett will be responsible for breaking news on the Hill and delivering nuanced analysis of U.S politics and government in this pivotal election year.

The announcement is part of Semafors strategic investment in Washington and follows the appointment of Bennett Richardson as General Manager & Global Head of Public Affairs, responsible for driving commercial growth in policy capitals around the world.

As a veteran of the Hill, Everett has covered the 100 unique figures of the Senate and the battle for power for over a decade. He reports on the intersection of politics, policy, and personality. Everett has established himself as the preeminent reporter of the U.S. Senate at a moment when the institution is playing a key role in Americas political turmoil. He will become a driving force in its coverage of Capitol Hill and take a prominent role in Semafors live journalism activities. Everett will also be integral in the companys Washington-focused newsletter, Principals, which continues to triple its subscriber base year-over-year.

Earlier this year the company held its flagship event, The 2024 World Economy Summit in Washington featuring over 80 speakers, including 20 Fortune 500 CEOs, 10 current administration officials, and 7 current and former cabinet secretaries. The tentpole event returns this fall.

Everett starts in September.

The View From Ben

Burgess is one of a handful of elite Washington reporters, and Ive been trying to hire him since well before we launched Semafor. I take his arrival as a vote of confidence, and an opportunity to keep raising our game. - Ben Smith, Co-Founder and Editor-in-Chief, Semafor

The View From Burgess

Im impressed with Semafors fair, thoughtful approach to journalism and its commitment to Washington, and Im eager to let the reporting speak for itself. - Burgess Everett

Know More

Burgess Everett is a longtime congressional journalist specializing in the Senate, politics and Congresss relationship with the White House. Hes covered Congress for more than a decade at Politico, including as congressional bureau chief, breaking news on everybody from Ted Cruz to Bernie Sanders and writing regularly about the 100 unique figures in the chamber, the biennial battle for Senate control and the intersections of politics, policy and personality. Prior to covering the Senate for Politico, he covered transportation policy and worked as a producer for Politico, and also spent time at The Gazette (Md.) and Portland Press Herald (Maine) before that.

About Semafor

Launched in October 2022 by veteran media executives Justin B. Smith and Ben Smith in both the U.S. and sub-Saharan Africa, Semafor is the worlds fastest growing independent news platform committed to delivering intelligent, independent, and transparent journalism to global leaders. With a suite of nine essential newsletters, including Flagship for daily insights, Principals for Washington insiders, Africa for analysis from the continent, Business and Media, Semafor is redefining the news experience by pioneering journalistic innovations from Semaform to Signals. The company brings its news to life with a rapidly-growing live journalism business, producing news-making events including The World Economy Summit and The Semafor Media Summit. In 2024, Semafor was named to Fast Companys Annual List of the Worlds Most Innovative Companies for rewriting the story on international reporting.
Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin said during a Zoom press call that she "would much prefer that [her GOP colleagues] join us and join me in codifying Americans right to start a family on their own terms. (Screenshot via Zoom press call)

Ahead of U.S. Senate Republicans move Thursday to block a bill protecting access to in vitro fertilization, Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin said of her GOP colleagues, I would much prefer that they join us and join me in codifying Americans right to start a family on their own terms.

Baldwin said that after the U.S. Supreme Courts Dobbs decision ending federally protected abortion rights, Democrats were accused of being alarmist when they warned that the ramifications of the Dobbs decision would go far beyond abortion care.

Look no further than the state of Alabama to see that we were not being alarmist, Baldwin said. She said U.S. Senators had a chance with the IVF bill to show people that they believe every family should be able to decide when, how and whether to build a family. She added that she supported the bill because she supports women and families rights to make those decisions without interference from the government.

During the call, two IVF patients from Wisconsin emphasized the importance that the treatment has had for them in trying to build families.

Jamie Haynes, a Waterford resident, said IVF is the only reason she has been able to have two children. Her first child was conceived in 2019 after she underwent a fourth round of IVF using donor eggs. During this process, she became pregnant with twins, but they lost one of them.

[My son] was worth every bit of heartbreak that wed been through. He is truly a dream come true, Haynes said. She and her husband had their second child in 2021, also through IVF.

Without science and IVF, they would not be here, Haynes said. Its also my dream that all families have access to IVF and fertility coverage. Until your family or your friends go through infertility, its hard to imagine the toll that this takes on someone.

Juliann Whirry of Poynette, Wisconsin, said children were always in the plan for her and her husband, but she struggled with infertility when trying to have their first child. After being told by her doctor that IVF would be their best option, she said they saved to be able to afford to receive IVF treatment at a clinic in New Jersey. She had her child in July 2021. Her family is now trying again for their second child using IVF.

We still have a hole in our hearts We want to provide a sibling for our child to lean on when were no longer here, Whirry said, adding that shes had some unsuccessful cycles already.

They are currently in the early stages of another attempt.

Each of these unsuccessful cycles is devastating to us, Whirry said. But after each cycle, I thank God for three things: my beautiful healthy son, the medical science that made him and future babies possible and the insurance coverage that will allow us to try again.

The post Sen. Baldwin meets with IVF patients to promote reproductive rights appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner.
Noah Kinikini and Roxann Christopherson feel a diseased pig lung and a healthy pig lung, respectively, at Hawthorn Elementary School in Salt Lake City on Thursday, Feb. 6, 2020. Marcia Peterson, with Salt Lake County Health Departments Health in Education program, used the pig lungs to teach students in Deborah Schmocks fifth grade class about the dangers of vaping, nicotine and tobacco products. | Steve Griffin, Deseret News

Utah Sen. Mike Lee said he sees the epidemic of youth addiction to e-cigarettes as a real problem.

Those who try to get our kids hooked on nicotine should be ashamed of themselves, said Lee, R-Utah, on Wednesday at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing titled Combatting the Youth Vaping Epidemic by Enhancing Enforcement Against Illegal e-Cigarettes. He pointed to studies showing that young e-cigarette users are more likely to consume marijuana and other drugs.

The federal government has said that it wants to be tough on tobacco, and in saying that its issued a bunch of regulations for legal approval, only then to sit on those applications for legal products in the U.S. produced by U.S. companies while turning a blind eye to illegal Chinese imports. Small businesses selling products are left with little to no guidance as to whats legal and whats illicit, said Lee.

The Utah senator noted, Between 2019 and 2020, there was a 1,000% increase in high school students use of disposable e-cigarettes, adding, Thats a very significant jump.

Directing his question at Arun Rao, the deputy assistant attorney general at the Justice Departments Consumer Protection Branch, Lee questioned the lack of civil enforcement action taken by his agency, despite the troubling statistics and an estimated $3.5 billion market.

Rao said the Consumer Protection Branch is working with law enforcement partners, including the U.S. Marshals Service, for the seizure of these products.

Lee isnt the only Utah congressional leader urging the Justice Department to act. The House Caucus to End the Youth Vaping Epidemic, of which Rep. Celeste Maloy is a member, sent a letter to the Consumer Protection Branch on April 10, asking about the lack of enforcement in prosecuting illegal flavored vaping products.

FDA, to date, has not authorized a flavored vaping product. Yet unauthorized vaping products, the majority of which come from the Peoples Republic of China, have flooded the market and continue to contribute significantly to underage vaping rates, the letter said. It asked a series of questions about the DOJs investigations into illegal vape devices in the last three years, requesting a response by May 30.

The DOJ didnt issue an official response, which isnt unusual. But, as Maloys office noted, the DOJ and the FDA launched a multiagency task force to curb the distribution and sale of illegal e-cigarettes on June 10.

Enforcement against illegal e-cigarettes is a multipronged issue that necessitates a multipronged response, said Dr. Brian King, director of the FDAs Center for Tobacco Products. This All Government approach  including the creation of this new Task Force  will bring the collective resources and experience of the federal government to bear on this pressing public health issue.

The Food and Drug Administrations National Youth Tobacco Survey found cigarette and cigar use is at an all-time low while e-cigarettes continue to be a popular product among students  almost 9 out of 10 use flavored e-cigarettes.

Back in 2020, the FDA outlawed flavored cartridge-based reusable e-cigarettes. But the regulation said nothing about disposable devices, a loophole that manufacturers use to continue profiting off of youth-enticing flavors like cotton candy and watermelon bubble gum, according to the Deseret News.

But that doesnt mean states cant take action. Nearly all have restricted the sale of these products to minors. In addition to this, retailers in Utah need a license to sell disposable vapes.

Utah also doesnt allow indoor vaping and imposes a tax and nicotine-strength limitations on e-cigarettes. More recently, in March, Gov. Spencer Cox banned the sale of flavored e-cigarettes. This will go into effect on Jan. 1, 2025.

The findings from the Utah Department of Health and Human Services point to a decline from 12.4% of teens who vape in 2019 to 7.4% in 2023. The report attributed the success to the support young students have received from their parents and schools.
Sen. Joe Manchin, I-W.Va., listens as Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen responds to a question by Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., during a Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Financial Services and General Government hearing, Tuesday, June 4, 2024, on Capitol Hill in Washington. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

WASHINGTON (AP)  President Joe Biden's grip on a key federal energy commission will last beyond his first term, giving a boost to the Democrat's push for renewable energy regardless of the election results in November.

The Senate ensured that political reality as lawmakers approved three new members of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, including two Democrats.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said confirmation of the three nominees allow FERC to "keep its quorum and continue its mission of providing Americans with affordable, reliable, safe energy.''

The five-member commission oversees natural gas pipelines and other energy infrastructure, including transmission of electricity across state lines, hydropower and interstate transportation of oil and natural gas.

The panel approved a long-awaited rule last month making it easier to transmit renewable energy such as wind and solar power to the electric grid  a key part of Bidens goal to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions economy-wide by 2050. The rule is aimed at boosting the nations aging power grid to meet surging demand fueled by huge data centers, electrification of vehicles and buildings, artificial intelligence and other uses.

Earlier this week, the agency approved a request by the nearly $8 billion Mountain Valley Pipeline to send natural gas across rugged mountainsides in West Virginia and Virginia, despite longstanding objections from environmental groups, landowners and some elected officials.

On Wednesday, the Senate confirmed the nominations of Democrat David Rosner and Republican Lindsay See for three and four-year terms, respectively, on the commission. Senators on Thursday confirmed Democrat Judy Changs nomination to a five-year term. Chang replaces Democrat Allison Clements, whose term expires June 30.

The votes give Democrats a 3-2 majority on the commission until at least June 2026, when the term of Democratic Chairman Willie Phillips is set to expire.

A fully seated, bipartisan FERC provides more opportunity for advancing long-lasting, sensible energy infrastructure policy,'' said West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin, a Democrat-turned-independent who chairs the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee.

When it comes to fairly assessing all interests, five heads are better than one,'' Manchin said Wednesday. Bringing together five different people, with five different life experiences and perspectives, helps ensure that all affected interests will be heard and fairly considered and assessed'' by the energy commission.

Rosner, See and Chang are very different people, from very different backgrounds,'' said Manchin, who supported all three nominees. "What matters most is their willingness to work with one another, to consider and assess fairly different interests and points of view, and to put partisan passions aside in favor of the public interest.''

Rosner, a former FERC staffer, has spent the past two years on Manchin's Democratic staff on the energy committee. See, who serves as solicitor general for the state of West Virginia, argued the state's case challenging a major U.S. Environmental Protection Agency rule on power plant pollution before the Supreme Court. Chang, of Massachusetts, is a former undersecretary of energy and climate solutions for the state government.

Manchin said he knows Rosner well: "I have seen firsthand his expert knowledge on energy issues, his fairness, his nonpartisan approach to every problem weve had, and his ability to work with both sides on these issues, and hes done that tremendously.''

Manchin, a political moderate who plays a crucial role on energy issues, called See a very capable and experienced lawyer who is "well-qualified to serve on the commission.''

Chang, who now teaches at Harvard's Kennedy School, led energy policy under Republican Gov. Charlie Baker. I can think of no better preparation for serving on a bipartisan commission than working for a Republican administration in a very blue state,'' Manchin said.

Rosner's nomination was approved, 67-27, while See won approval, 83-12. Chang was confirmed by a vote of 63-33.

Democratic Sen. Tim Kaine of Virginia opposed Rosner and See, saying he continued to be unhappy about federal approval of the Mountain Valley Pipeline, a longtime Manchin priority.

I voted no on rubber-stamping the same old people to FERC, Kaine said in a statement.

Americans for a Clean Energy Grid, an advocacy group that supports expansion and modernization of the electric grid, hailed the Senate votes, saying FERC "operates most effectively with a full slate of commissioners.''

Christina Hayes, the group's executive director, said she was pleased that all three new commissioners recognize the need to address growing power demand and strengthen grid reliability. We are also encouraged by all three nominees acknowledgement that interregional transmission is one important solution" to protect the grid from extreme weather events exacerbated by climate change, she said.
Senate Democrat: I just get sick thinking about GOP colleagues getting behind Trump

Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) said he was disappointed in his Senate GOP colleagues for meeting with former President Trump on Thursday, calling Trump a danger to American democracy.

I just get sick thinking about my Republican colleagues in the Senate, many of whom I consider to be friends, many of whom I know that support American democracy, watching them get behind this candidate that they know to be a danger to American democracy, Murphy said in a CNN interview.

Trump met with House Republicans on Thursday morning, in what Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) described as a pep rally, and was meeting with Senate Republicans in the afternoon.

It marks the first time Trump has traveled to Capitol Hill since the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot and also comes as GOP members rally behind the former president two weeks after his conviction on 34 felony counts in his hush money trial in New York.

For their part, Republicans in both chambers have started to plot an ambitious agenda if Trump is reelected in November and they control both the House and Senate starting next year.

Murphy maintained Thursday that Trump is openly endorsing violence in our politics and said the former presidents rhetoric makes him concerned about the future, including a scenario where President Biden wins election again but Trump supporters protest the results.

Im deeply worried about what happens if Joe Biden wins the election, Murphy said.

Rep. Mark Amodei (R-Nev.) said the feeling in the House meeting Thursday morning was less of a policy discussion and more of encouraging members to vote with the team, adding there were multiple standing ovations for the former president.

Trump also emphasized the importance of the abortion rights issue for the 2024 election, multiple sources in the House meeting told The Hill. The former president said that exceptions to abortion bans are necessary, and that the issue is too important to ignore this fall.

His meeting with Senate Republicans on Thursday afternoon marks the first time he and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) will be in the same room since late 2020, with the pair since having a tense relationship.

Both meetings featured Republicans considered to be on the shortlist to be Trumps vice presidential pick, including Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) and Reps. Byron Donalds (R-Fla.) and Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.), among others.

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Ed. Note: Nicole Lafond will be back to helming Where Things Stand soon.

After a parade of stories centered on Justice Samuel Alitos demonstrations of his right-wing partisanship, Senate Democrats have executed their big response: a show vote on a bill that would impose an ethics code on the Supreme Court.

The would-be requirements in the bill themselves are fairly modest: a binding ethics code, improving transparency when a justice is connected to a party or amicus before the Court, requiring justices to explain why if they recuse themselves.

Its among the most modest Supreme Court reform ideas, sharing a crowded stage with term limits, court expansion and jurisdiction removal. But the relatively minor ethics code bill faced overwhelming GOP opposition and Senate rules that allow a single senator to block it. That reality was anticipated a day earlier by Senate Judiciary Chair Dick Durbin (D-IL), who sought unanimous consent late this afternoon to pass the legislation amid fury from the left that such a stream of Supreme Court scandals has resulted in so little action from the Senate committee tasked with its oversight.

I think I know the outcome, but were going to go through the exercise to make sure that both parties are on the record, Durbin told reporters on Tuesday.

On the floor Wednesday, Durbin cited, among other things, Justice Clarence Thomas and Alitos acceptance of lavish gifts and the flags flown at Alitos homes  which Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) quipped were MAGA battle flags  as casting a dark shadow on the Court. Sen. Peter Welch (D-VT) called the justices acceptance of gifts self-serving and gross.

Durbin and Welch also criticized Chief Justice John Roberts for refusing to enforce a robust ethics and recusal code himself.

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) made a direct appeal to Roberts from the Senate floor to endorse the legislation to ensure the enduring credibility of the Court. He also called for further reforms, including an inspector general as part of the Judicial Conference, and a measure to shed light on the Courts increasingly used shadow docket.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC), the ranking Republican on the committee, had already said that hed object, ending the short-lived exercise in accountability. He took particular issue Wednesday with the transparency of amici provision, saying it would chill speech from people afraid that the would be destroyed by the media.

A series of Senate Judiciary Republicans, very pleased with the work of the right-wing Supreme Court, took to the floor to decry the undermining of the supposedly nonpartisan body. Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA), who took the floor after Graham, said the bill was not really about ethics but about abortion. Sen. Mike Lee (R-UT) claimed that the bill was crafted to threaten justices that dont toe the woke line. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) intoned that the ethics code was Democrats attempt to control a whole branch of government.

To this point, Durbins most significant move was to send letters to Alito, asking him to recuse from cases related to the Jan. 6 insurrection (in a shocking turn of events, he said no) and to Roberts, asking him to come to the Hill to talk things over (ditto).

While the filibuster does present a problem to Democratic senators eager to perform robust Supreme Court oversight  Republicans would likely block subpoenas of, say, Alito and Thomas  Durbin cant been roused to hold hearings and doesnt sound enthused about more out-of-the-box ideas either. Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD), ranking member of the House Oversight Committee, recently wrote an op-ed arguing that the Department of Justice can compel justices to recuse themselves. Durbin told reporters this week that, while hes exploring the idea out of respect for the former longtime constitutional law professor, its a reach.

Perhaps the best indication of Senate Democrats appetite for oversight (or lack thereof) came from Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), typically a crusader for Supreme Court accountability: I hope and pray that the time will come when the House is issuing subpoenas that are not subject to the Senate filibuster, he said, per Politico.

Senate Democrats game plan to hold the conservative justices to account, maybe getting some political mileage from doing battle with a historically unpopular high court directly opposed to their policy interests in an election year? Hope their party flips the House.

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Republicans from Kansas and Missouri on Thursday blocked a bill offering federal protections for in-vitro fertilization, as Democrats are ramping up their efforts to pin Republicans down on abortion rights ahead of the November election.

The bill, which failed 48-47 with all but two Republicans voting against it, would have preempted any state law that forbids the use of IVF.

Democrats expected the vote to fail, using it as part of a larger messaging campaign accusing Republicans of trying to restrict womens rights. Last week, the Democrats offered legislation to grant federal protections for access to birth control that also failed to pass the Senate.

Sen. Josh Hawley, a Missouri Republican running for reelection, characterized the bill as part of a larger messaging push by Democrats to focus on an issue they think helps turn out voters.

Im not gonna vote for the Democrats version because itll have all of this abortion related language in it, Hawley said ahead of the vote. Im for IVF and we ought to leave it alone and certainly not get rid of it. In Missouri IVF is widely available, protected in law, thats how it should be.

Democrats have aggressively campaigned on abortion rights in the aftermath of the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that eliminated federal protections for abortion as Republicans, who once eagerly campaigned on the issue, have struggled to come up with a consistent message.

Republicans like Hawley, who is up for reelection this November, have repeatedly said they believe the abortion rights are best left up to voters in the states. But that message has been complicated by anti-abortion advocates who continue to push for federal limits.

Hawley has co-sponsored a bill that would ban the procedure after 15-weeks, saying he believes there is national consensus on when the procedure should be banned. And he was in the Supreme Court to support his wife, Erin Morrow Hawley, as she argued a case that would limit the use of mifepristone, a commonly used abortion medication.

Democrats have also seized on an Alabama Supreme Court ruling in February declaring fertilized embryos are people and throwing access to IVF in the state into question. While the Alabama legislature quickly passed a law to protect IVF, Democrats have continued to use the courts ruling to highlight how far some Republicans would go in the name of limiting abortion.

Lucas Kunce, Hawleys likely Democratic opponent, immediately criticized Hawley after the vote. He said the federal protections are necessary because Missouri has a similar law that says life begins at conception, which could be used to limit IVF.

Josh claims to be 100% pro-IVF but hes really just 100% full of (expletive) , Kunce said.

The vote came the same day the Supreme Court protected access to mifepristone, ruling that a group of doctors didnt have the legal standing to overrule the Food and Drug Administrations decision to allow the abortion medication to be prescribed without an in-person doctor visit and for the pills to be sent in the mail.

The White House issued a statement from President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris after the ruling, saying the lawsuit against medication abortion is part of a larger attempt to ban the procedure across the country.

Todays decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues. It does not change the fact that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, and women lost a fundamental freedom, the statement said. It does not change the fact that the right for a woman to get the treatment she needs is imperiled if not impossible in many states.

How they voted

Heres how members voted on a procedural vote on S. 4445, a bill that would offer federal protections for in-vitro fertilization. A yes vote means the lawmaker wanted to move forward with the legislation. A no vote means the lawmaker wanted to block the legislation from being considered. The bill needed 60 votes to move forward.

Kansas

Sen. Roger Marshall  No

Sen. Jerry Moran  No

Missouri

Sen. Josh Hawley  No

Sen. Eric Schmitt  Not voting
Sen. Chris Garten at a Nov. 14, 2023 State Budget Committee meeting. Garten wrote a letter to the Indiana Hospital Association in March disparaging certain actions from the 2024 legislative session. (Whitney Downard/Indiana Capital Chronicle)

A high-ranking senator accused the states leading hospital lobbying organization of being responsible for the gradual breakdown of trust between lawmakers and hospital systems after the most recent legislative session, as documented in a four-page letter shared with the Indiana Capital Chronicle.

Sen. Chris Garten, a Republican from Charlestown, wrote that some legislators had described the Indiana Hospital Association (IHA) as arrogant and disingenuous.

The letter, addressed to the IHAs board of directors, named former organization president Brian Tabor, who stepped down earlier this year. In a statement, Tabor maintained that his decision predated the March letter and wasnt related to Gartens comments.

The sometimes brash Senate majority floor leader has built a reputation for grilling various state agencies and others on regulatory details and project costs, most notably with the Indiana Gaming Commission. More recently, he questioned licensing delays and welcome center expenses during a lengthy State Budget Committee meeting.

In an interview, however, Garten struck a more conciliatory tone. Both sides were quick to emphasize a continued commitment to working together.

But the exchange casts a shadow on the 2025 legislative session.

Lawmakers plan to tackle health care pricing, ongoing Medicaid expenses and potentially the oft-debated Hospital Assessment Fee. Hospitals would like to alter the fees current structure, which offsets Healthy Indiana Plan 2.0 expenses, in a way that they say will benefit both health systems and state government.

An excerpt from a March 8, 2024 letter from Sen. Chris Garten to Indiana Hospital Association leadership.

Contents of the letter

Garten has spearheaded several legislative efforts related to hospitals and also chaired the interim Health Care Cost Oversight Task Force, which relied upon and utilized testimony from IHA. He was the Senate sponsor on a disputed proposal that he cited in his letter.

House Enrolled Act 1004 in 2023, tracking hospital pricing compared to Medicare prices, elicited pushback from Tabor and others.

My colleagues and I met weekly with representatives from different hospitals and/or IHA to discuss their concerns about the policy we were implementing. Amidst the multiple versions of the bill and several amendments, I consistently gave IHA the opportunity to review language before it was shared with my legislative colleagues to provide your organization with time to submit feedback because I believe their intentions to be pure, despite that fact that conversations between IHA and other members of my caucus had grown contentious, Garten wrote in the letter.

Brian Tabor, with the Indiana Hospital Association, asks senators to reconsider a 2023 site of service bill. (Whitney Downard/Indiana Capital Chronicle)

Garten said people on both sides of the issue made concessions but he was taken aback by IHAs mass emails and public messaging following the bills ultimate passage.

Though the organization has consistently downplayed research from the RAND Corp. ranking Indianas hospital prices as among the nations most expensive, Garten said IHA has used RAND research to support other causes.

For many in my caucus, this was indicative of the type of games they had seen IHA play in the past, but for me, it was the first real signal of organizational insincerity  I absolutely took note, he wrote.

Gartens letter indicates that the perceived hypocritical messaging on RAND was a topic of a candid conversation between he and Tabor on August 7, 2023, prior to meetings of the health care costs task force.

Both parties committed to moving forward on a good note, Garten wrote, which he said he demonstrated by granting early access to committee agendas and limiting the publication of certain data related to hospital reporting.

The final committee report seeded four bills during the 2024 session, one of which became law: Senate Bill 9. The unsuccessful proposals include Senate Bill 257, Senate Bill 258 and House Bill 1327.

Senate Bills 257 and 258 were shared in advance with IHA staff, Garten said, adding that a staffer worked behind the scenes to ensure bills werent heard in committee without consulting Garten.

The proposals would have given third party administrators and pharmacy benefit managers a fiduciary duty to insurance sponsors and prohibited physician compensation for in-system referrals, respectively. House Bill 1327 would have required health care entities to report a breakdown of their ownership data.

On Senate Bill 9, Garten said he accommodated many of their requests in bill amendments, including defining health care entity and acquisition alongside confidentiality requirements. The underlying bill, which passed, requires health systems notify the Office of Attorney General of a planned merger or acquisition.

I believed that these edits  would extend across the hallway when SB 9 was in the House, and yet IHA spearheaded a coordinated effort to kill the bill once they felt my attention was diverted elsewhere. This is disingenuous behavior and bad business, Garten wrote. Let me be clear, I have no issue with IHA (or any other group) voicing opposition for legislation that they feel is counterproductive to the success of their industry. In fact, I welcome it  stakeholder input directly correlates to better bills for Hoosiers. That is not the issue here.

Instead, he said that his experience with IHAs representatives was not uncommon among lawmakers but that such repeated instances prevented the two parties from having honest, productive conversation for the betterment of Hoosiers and those who choose to do business in our great state.

There is a deep divide between legislators and hospitals because of the way IHA continues to conduct itself, and it would go a long way toward mending that relationship if the board and each hospital would discourage this type of behavior, Garten wrote.

He concluded by emphasizing a commitment to working with hospitals to lower health care costs, saying that he had great conversations with individual hospitals.

Three months later

Garten said in an interview that the legislatures relationship with IHA has improved since sending the letter.

As I continue to navigate the health care space, I found it more and more difficult to really have a very candid conversation with folks on the other side of some of these issues  For me, thats key, Garten said.  I remain open and optimistic about 2025 and the upcoming session and, frankly, the already improved communication between legislation and hospitals and the leadership at Indiana Hospital Association.

I think we all share the same goals: we want to deliver good quality health care to Hoosiers at the most competitive prices possible. And you know, maybe were going to have some debates along the way on how we get there, but I think the goals are shared goals.

An IHA statement from current leadership noted the role it plays in crafting legislative proposals related to hospitals and voicing concerns about potential actions.

IHA and the 170 hospitals we represent have a long-standing mission of providing high quality care to all Hoosiers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, board chair Steve Holman said. Holman is also the president and CEO of Union Health in Terre Haute.

We value our relationship with the Indiana General Assembly and are committed to maintaining a high degree of trust with our elected officials. As we transition to new leadership, we look forward to an open, constructive dialogue with lawmakers as we work together to protect access to care and improve the health of Hoosiers, the statement concluded.

Implications for 2025

The biggest change for the 2025 legislation session, slated to begin in January, will be the absence of Tabor, who has served as president of the association since 2016. His previous policy roles with IHA  as well as the Indiana General Assembly and the Indiana Association of REALTORS  made him a long-standing presence at the Indiana Statehouse.

My decision to step away from my role as president was made before the end of the 2024 session. It took weeks of developing a transition timeline with our leadership before IHA announced it, but I had already shared my plans with many close to me long before it became public, Tabor said in a statement.

The 2025 session will likely be a tough initiation for Tabors eventual successor, as the General Assembly revisits hospital regulations, pricing concerns and anti-monopoly efforts.

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Garten emphasized the importance of legislative action in the health care space, calling it a topic that transcends politics and touches every Hoosier household.

It doesnt matter if youre a Democrat, Republican, independent, liberal, conservative  it makes no difference, Garten said in an interview. At some point, youre going to need health care in Indiana.

Different factions dont agree on the best way to address the states high costs and provider shortages. Federal regulations on insurance plans and opaque drug pricing negotiations handled by Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs) further complicate the health care space  not to mention that Indiana will have a new governor with their own health care priorities.

The reality is, health care costs arent going down and hospitals arent solely to blame for that. Theres a very long pipeline of integrated health care entities top to bottom, Garten said.  This pipeline is wrought with, I think, a lot of opportunity to really improve the system, improve outcomes in the health care space  but also improve price as well. And I think we do that through free market principles and competition  with creating a little more transparency in this space.

The post Senators letter critical of hospital association casts shadow on 2025 health care discussions appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle.
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  Senate Republicans and Democrats agree they need to deal with what they call a vaping epidemic impacting kids in the U.S.

If they could just hook a child at a young age, they had a customer for life, Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.) said.

Durbin is furious. He says the FDA and the Justice Department are not cracking down on illegal e-cigarettes.

23 e-cigarette brands have been authorized for sale in the United States. Yet, there are more than 6000 e-cigarette brands on the market today, Durbin said.

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) challenged a witness from the FDA after Durbin showcased a picture: a shelf filled with e-cigs without authorization. The store the picture came from is right near the FDAs headquarters.

I cant go through every single product on that chart, Brian King, FDA Tobacco Chief, said.

The point here is this is a shelf full of potentially dangerous substances in a store in the shadow of the FDA building, Tillis said.

According to a CDC report, e-cig usage went down among high school students between 2022 and 2023 but lawmakers know many kids are already addicted to vaping.

I couldnt spend quality time with my friends without thinking about when we were going to get our next hit, high school student Josie Shapiro said.

Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) is concerned about the overwhelming number of e-cigs sold in the U.S. that are marketed toward kids and come from China.

They pose a threat? Could they pose a threat? Booker asked. Would say that any of the products, regardless of whether theyre coming from China, or not could, King answered.

The FDA says it has a system to review whats in the e-cigs that come from abroad but is overwhelmed by millions of applications for product approval.

Were making progress getting the applications done, ramping up enforcement. We need more resources and we need more people at the table, King said.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Russian occupation forces are already experiencing strikes by the Ukrainian Defense Forces with Western weapons on their territory. It makes no sense for the Russians to prepare for such attacks, as they are already happening and will continue to happen.

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This was stated by Kyrylo Budanov, Head of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine, during a telethon on Wednesday, June 12. According to him, the permission to use Western weapons against Russia will definitely ease the situation at the front, but "no less, no more."

The Chief of the Defence Intelligence of Ukraine emphasized that the Russians are already feeling the blows on their territory, and it is too late for them to prepare for them. "As they say, it's too late to drink Borjomi," Budanov said.

He also said that the Russian army is trying to strengthen the air defense system in the temporarily occupied Crimea. The occupiers have deployed the latest elements of the S-500 anti-aircraft missile system there.

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"The Russian air defense system is being strengthened. This is quite obvious and understandable. The newest elements of the S-500 have arrived. In principle, this will be their experimental use, but they have already appeared there (in Crimea - Ed.)," the head of the DIU noted.

Budanov added that Russian troops also continue to use the illegally built Kerch Bridge. Most often, they transport personnel there.

"The Kerch bridge is always in use... The main cargo is transported through it, but first of all, it is personnel," the DIU chief added.

As OBOZ.UA previously reported, according to Budanov, the frontline is currently going through a difficult period. In particular, the summer counteroffensive of the Russian aggressor country's troops has begun.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!

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2 hurt, all lanes back open, after motorcycle crash on I 675 NB in Washington Township

UPDATE @ 11:41 p.m.

Two people are hurt after a motorcycle crash on I-675 Northbound in Montgomery County on Wednesday night.

>>Motorcycle-car collision in Miami County leaves 1 dead, 1 injured

Deputies and medics were dispatched just after 9 p.m. to I-675 NB near State Route 725 on initial reports of an injury crash, according to the Montgomery County Sheriffs Office.

All lanes were closed but are back open, dispatchers told News Center 7.

A preliminary investigation revealed that a motorcycle was traveling at a high rate of speed and hit a vehicle going northbound on I-675.

Medics transported the motorcycle driver and a passenger from the other vehicle to area hospitals, the sheriffs office said.

The crash remains under investigation.

INITIAL REPORT

A serious motorcycle accident on I-675 North, just north of Yankee Street in Washington Twp., has prompted the Montgomery County Sheriffs Office to shut down all three lanes of the interstate for at least the next hour.

>> Motorcycle-car collision in Miami County leaves 1 dead, 1 injured

The sheriffs office, in a post to social media Wednesday night, is asking drivers to seek alternative routes because of the crash, which was reported just after 9 p.m., according to a Montgomery County sheriffs dispatch sergeant.

Deputies have asked the Ohio State Highway Patrol to help with traffic in the area.

No details about the crash have been released.

We will update this developing report as we learn more.
Several states that had planned to attend the Peace Summit in Switzerland have decided not to go there after the draft decision was changed in favour of Ukraine.

Source: the article Kyiv's allies save Ukraine from accepting unfavorable conditions during Peace Summit in Switzerland by European Pravda (English translation coming soon)

Details: As of 5 June, Switzerland officially announced that it had "received more than 80 confirmations of attendance at the level of heads of states and governments", and the total number of confirmed attendees, as reported by officials, exceeded 100.

However, in the following days, this phrase had to be removed from the event's website, and now it reads that "around 90 states have confirmed their participation in the Summit on Peace in Ukraine, most of them at head of state or government level".

Several states are still waiting for the final draft of the summit decision, while others are being pressured by Russia. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has been travelling worldwide in recent weeks, encouraging countries to join the summit.

Sources of European Pravda reported that, in reality, about 15 countries have "paused" their attendance.

In addition, the number of those who have signalled a demotion from the presidential or prime ministerial level to the level of ministers or even their deputies is in the dozens.

Switzerland rejected the final document of the Peace Summit, which could have had undesirable consequences for Ukraine  the decision's text has been changed in recent days.

"Although it is obvious that due to the recent changes, the summit will be attended by fewer states than initially anticipated by Bankova Street [where the Ukrainian President's Office is located] eight days ago, it is better to have a summit of like-minded people than to make concessions on issues that are critical for the state," the article noted.

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Israeli forces remove a body of a man killed during a military operation in the West Bank town of Qabatiya. Mohammed Nasser/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa

Several Palestinians were killed in clashes during an Israeli military operation in the West Bank on Thursday, according to Israeli and Palestinian reports.

The Israel Defense Forces reported two deaths during a counter-terrorism operation in a village near the town of Jenin. The Ministry of Health in Ramallah confirmed one death, saying the 21-year-old man was shot in the head. Palestinian media reported that a total of three people were killed in the army raid.

Israeli soldiers fired rockets at a house and then destroyed it with a bulldozer, according to WAFA Palestinian news agency. Clashes broke out and the Israeli forces fired live rounds.

Israeli media said the Israeli security forces exchanged fire with Palestinian militants and that the two people who were killed were wanted by Israel, though no reason was stated.

The Israeli army repeatedly carries out raids in Jenin, seen as a stronghold of Palestinian militancy.

Since the war in Gaza began in October, more than 520 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli military operations, confrontations or attacks of their own in the West Bank, according to the Ministry of Health.

There has also been a surge in Israeli settler violence against Palestinians since the outbreak of the conflict.

Israeli forces remove a body of a man killed during a military operation in the West Bank town of Qabatiya. Mohammed Nasser/APA Images via ZUMA Press Wire/dpa
(KRON)  In an update on the installation of new automated license plate reader cameras (ALPR), San Francisco Mayor London Breed shared that the city is experiencing an overall decrease in crime, including a 13% reduction in violent crime and a 33% reduction in property crime overall compared to last year. The most recent report of these crime stats includes numbers through the end of this May, the mayors office announced on Wednesday.

SFUSD exceeds literacy rate goal for underserved communities: report

Among the share of continued improvements in crime, other numbers included:

38% reduction in homicides

18% reduction in robberies

8% reduction in assaults

18% reduction in burglaries

19% reduction in vehicle thefts

51% reduction in car break-ins

The mayor credits much of the reduction in crime to the installation of the citys new automatic license plate reader cameras (ALPR). This shows the impact that technology can have in assisting our officers in doing their work and is sending an important message to those who think they can come to our city and commit crimes, Breed said.

The mayors office said 100 of the 400 cameras have been installed so far, with the remaining 300 to be installed by July this year.

In praise of the safety cameras, the mayor shared the following crimes that were located using them:

Organized Retail Theft: On May 13, a woman on a no-bail warrant for organized retail theft was picked up on an ALPR camera in the Mission District.

Carjacking: On May 3, police identified a car involved in a carjacking at SF State. Police spotted the vehicle, deployed spike strips and arrested three suspects.

Robbery: On May 13, a vehicle used in a robbery entered San Francisco from Oakland and was captured on multiple cameras. Officers located the car in the Bayview and took the driver into custody.

Sexual Assault: On June 8, San Jose police contacted other agencies across the region for help locating a sexual assault suspect. The suspects car was picked up by the cameras in the Taraval Police District, and officers took the suspect into custody.

I want to thank our officers for their outstanding work. Looking forward, we will be integrating our ALPR network with our other technologies, including technologies voters approved in March under Proposition E, like drones and public safety cameras, SFPD Chief Bill Scott said.

Mayor Breeds proposed budget, which is currently before the Board of Supervisors Budget committee for review, includes $3.7 million to implement voter-approved technology. With this new funding, SFPD can expand on its plans to install public safety cameras and use of drones.

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RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN)  When Robert F. Kennedy Jr. failed to get enough signatures to run as an Independent for president in North Carolina he mulled over whether to run as a Libertarian. But instead, he formed We the People.

After turning in the number of signatures to potentially be recognized as an official party in the state, the Democratic PAC Clear Choice Action claims the petition should be rejected by the N.C. State Board of Elections.

Pro-RFK Jr. group reports single donor represented almost half the funds it raised

In a formal complaint obtained by CBS 17, attorneys allege RFK Jr. created a sham political party while wrongfully telling voters they were directly putting Kennedy on the ballot. The 72-page filing includes statements from people who say they were indeed misled when they signed the petition.

Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. visits the First Baptist Church Food Pantry on February 17, 2024 in New York City. (Photo by John Nacion/Getty Images)

In part, the formal complaint says:

The Petition is an unlawful effort by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to evade the requirements for an unaffiliated candidacy by creating a sham political party while wrongly telling voters that they are placing Mr. Kennedy directly on the ballot. If Mr. Kennedy wanted to run as an unaffiliated candidate, he needed to file a different petition, earlier. And by telling voters that signing the petition would place Mr. Kennedy on the ballotwhen in reality it would create a new political party that should hold a nominating conventionWe The People violated the statutory requirement to inform signers of the general purpose and intent of the new party. Mr. Kennedys gambit makes a mockery of North Carolinas petitioning requirements, misleads voters, and violates North Carolina law.

JFKs grandson calls RFK Jr.s White House bid an embarrassment, endorses Biden

NC State political scientist Steven Greene said, Its not a political party, its not a political party. Its Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Greene also said many third-party attempts in this political era are about one person.

The reality is that, I dont know if I want to say a vanity campaign, but theyre an individualized, personalized campaign. And this is entirely about Robert F Kennedy Junior, not any nominal party that may be backing him, Greene said.

The complaint also claims the wrong address was used on the petition for Kennedys state chairperson, breaking state law and invalidating enough signatures to keep Kennedy off the ballot.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks to supporters during a campaign stop, Monday, May 13, 2024, in Austin, Texas. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

In the next few weeks, the state elections board must make a decision about whether to recognize We The People as a party. Professor Greene said the ballot question probably isnt Kennedys only concern.

Its essential that he gets on enough ballots in order for him to be able to participate in the debates and I think thats going to be a real make or break issue with just how how much impact his campaign may have that he is able to be on the debate stage or not, he said.

It may also be about running out the clock for those who want to keep RFK Jr. off the ballot.

Whether right, wrong, illegitimate thats politics and law, right? And and part of it is when you can use the legal system to your political benefit, said Green.

CBS 17 asked the Kennedy campaign for a comment. A representative for Team Kennedy said they were working on a press release. CBS 17 has received no response in its request for comment from the law firm representing Clear Choice Action.

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Extreme weather is having a negative impact on the orange industry in Brazil and Florida. The problems are hurting harvests and pushing prices higher, the Guardian reported.

What's happening?

Brazil accounts for about 70% of all orange exports. The country has now experienced its third problematic harvest in a row.

A combination of extreme heat and drought has produced a disease feared by farmers called citrus greening. This incurable disease, made worse by a warming world, has hampered Florida farmers as well. The Sunshine State has also been hit by hurricanes that have damaged oranges.

"The global orange juice industry is in crisis," Francois Sonneville, a senior beverages analyst at Rabobank, told the Guardian. "The Florida industry has all but disappeared, and Brazilian groves are plagued by disease, rising costs, and unfavourable growing conditions, leaving global orange juice supplies at their lowest point in decades."

Because of this, the Guardian reported, the International Fruit and Vegetable Juice Association said it's "considering lobbying for a rewrite of UN-level food regulations so that orange juice can contain other citrus fruits, as well as pursuing rule changes at the country level."

That means it may not be long before the orange juice you buy at the store may contain some other juices to "backfill" for the orange shortage, so to speak.

Why are poor orange harvests important?

According to the Guardian report, wholesale prices have "gone bananas" in Brazil. Prices of orange fruit concentrate recently rose to a new high of nearly $5 a pound. Consumer demand for oranges has dropped, forcing orange juice makers to find alternative fruits to use, like mandarins.

There are more than two million farms in the United States, and more than half the land is used for agricultural production. What is happening in Florida is a microcosm for agricultural problems across an overheating planet. Agriculture is very sensitive to changes in weather and climate.

As heat-trapping gases build up in our atmosphere, there is more extreme weather that can damage harvests around the world. Temperature and precipitation changes brought on by a warming Earth can "very likely expand the occurrence and range of insects, weeds, and diseases," according to the Environmental Protection Agency. This could mean a greater need for farmers to use weed and pest control.

What's being done about a warming world's impact on farming?

There is hope for farmers who are facing challenges from a warming planet. A recent example is a win-win for both farmers and our environment. Wind turbines installed on farmland are helping generate a clean, renewable source of energy and, at the same time, providing a source of much-needed revenue for farmers.

NASA has been using artificial intelligence and satellite imagery to modernize farming. These efforts will address food security and help rebuild local agriculture.

We can all help reduce the amount of heat-trapping gases added to our atmosphere by changing how we buy, cook, eat, and reuse food.

Join our free newsletter for cool news and actionable info that makes it easy to help yourself while helping the planet.
DEKALB COUNTY, Ala. (WHNT)  A Georgia man has been arrested and charged with the electronic solicitation of a child in DeKalb County, according to the sheriffs office.

According to the DeKalb County Sheriffs Office (DCSO), the Criminal Investigation Division got a report in February about a 12-year-old girl who had been the victim of sexual solicitation through Snapchat by an unknown adult man.

Following an investigation, the man was identified as 21-year-old Jehad Noman Saloum, of Augusta, Ga. A warrant was issued for Saloum and both the DCSO and Georgia law enforcement made attempts to find him.

The sheriffs office says he was arrested in Hillsborough County, Florida, in May and the extradition process to return him to DeKalb County began.

On June 7, Saloum was booked in the DeKalb County Detention Center on charges of electronic solicitation of a child. He is being held on a $150,000 bond.

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Sheriff seizes 120 pounds of marijuana and other illegal drugs in Shawnee County

SHAWNEE COUNTY (KSNT)  Deputies with the Shawnee County Sheriffs Office seized a large amount of illegal drugs last week following a traffic stop.

The sheriffs office announced on Friday, June 7 a deputy pulled a vehicle over for a traffic violation around 9:50 a.m. on Thursday, June 6 on eastbound Interstate 470 Highway near Southwest Burlingame Road. Deputies searching the vehicle found numerous illegal drugs.

Deputy Shayna Anderson with the sheriffs office confirms law enforcement seized 120 pounds of marijuana, six pounds of psilocybin mushrooms, one pound of THC wax and 100 edible psilocybin bars.

Lawrence teen dead after being shot multiple times

The driver of the vehicle, a 46-year-old Indiana man, was arrested and booked into the Shawnee County Department of Corrections. His charges included possession of a hallucinogenic drug with intent to distribute and felony possession of drug paraphernalia.

For more crime 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.

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Newly released law enforcement body camera footage shows the moments after a nearly 14-foot-long alligator killed a 41-year-old Florida woman in September.

The footage, obtained from the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) by Fox 13, shows first responders arrive at a roadside canal in Largo, Florida, and fatally shoot the gator with a rifle.

A bystander, Jamarcus Bullard, was the first to discover the grim scene, alerting law enforcement when he saw a gator with what he believed were body parts in its mouth.

"I noticed it had a body in its mouth, like a lower torso, so once I saw that, I ran straight to the fire department and got them, they confirmed it was a body," Bullard told the station of the incident at the time.

The victim was later identified as Sabrina Peckham, an unhoused woman who had been living at a makeshift campsite less than 50 feet away from the canal in Pinellas County. Her family had last seen her the day before the fatal encounter.

An aerial view of the alligator that killed 41-year-old Sabrina Peckham, in Largo, Florida, in September of 2023 (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission)

Up over here is the camp where her ID was found, an FWC officer can be heard saying on the footage as he inspects the trash-strewn campsite. There doesnt appear to be any signs of an alligator having come up in here.

Officers hauled the gator out of the canal with ropes and chains and had to cut it open to retrieve some of Peckhams remains.

The fatal encounter took place in McKay Creek, which connects Ridgecrest Lake and Taylor Lake.

Body camera footage shows the campsite where Sabrina Peckham, 41, lived before an alligator ate her in September of 2023. (Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission)

At the time, the latter was drained as a part of a maintenance project.

In 2022, an alligator killed a man who was diving in Taylor Lake to retrieve a frisbee.

Fencing and signs now surround the area where Peckham was killed.

Lethal encounters between humans and alligators are rare. In Pinellas County, the reptiles have killed three people, including Peckham, since the 1970s, according to the FWC.
The aggressor state of Russia publicly states that it does not recognize the Peace Summit in Switzerland, but in fact, the Russians would like to attend it very much. Participation in the event would give them the opportunity to promote the new Minsk Agreements to freeze the war in Ukraine, but not in the quadripartite Normandy format, but on a global scale.

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This was stated by President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky in a documentary about the war in Ukraine and the creation of the Peace Formula. According to the head of state, Russians are trying to do everything possible to diminish the legitimacy of the Peace Summit because they were not invited.

"They are now working on the fact that there are leaders, and there are many of them, who are asking questions: "So will the Russians be there or not?". And the Russians need them to be there. They say they do not recognize this summit, but they need them to be there. In order to block it. To make Minsk as big as the whole world," Zelensky said.

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The head of the President's Office, Andriy Yermak, noted that the leaders of many countries are asking why Russians were not invited to the Peace Summit, as it is allegedly impossible to talk about peace without Russia. However, he emphasized that Ukraine and Russia should not be equated, as Russia is the aggressor.

"To understand this, we need to move on to a rough but obvious example. It is as if today you were establishing responsibility for a crime by putting both the criminal and his victim at the same table. You cannot put equality between us," he said.

It should be noted that the Peace Summit will be held on June 15-16 in the Swiss city of Burgenstock. The day before, the media reported that the exact number of countries and organizations participating in the event has not yet been determined. European diplomats told reporters that 93 representatives were going to attend the Summit, but as of June 11, this figure dropped to 78.

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As reported by OBOZ.UA, top EU diplomat Josep Borrell said that the Peace Summit in Switzerland is not a platform for direct negotiations between Ukraine and Russia. Its goal is to develop common parameters for peace based on international law and the UN Charter.

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Whats happening

Over the past few months, Chicagos progressive Mayor Brandon Johnson has been at odds with some of his citys most prominent leaders over the future of ShotSpotter, a controversial gunshot detection system used by more than 100 law enforcement agencies across the United States.

Chicagos contract with ShotSpotter is set to end later this year. Johnson wants to let it expire, but the City Council recently voted to keep it. At the moment, its unclear which side will ultimately get its way.

Similar debates have played out across the country. Over the past few years, dozens of cities have eagerly inked deals with ShotSpotter in hopes that it will benefit public safety. But concerns about its accuracy and how its utilized by police have inspired other cities to get rid of it or decline to install it in the first place.

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Heres how ShotSpotter works: An array of strategically placed audio sensors listen for the sounds of gunshots in a certain area. When one of them picks up something that may be gunfire, it sends the audio to ShotSpotters review center where human workers listen to it and notify local police and emergency services if they determine that the system did accurately identify gunfire. According to the company, the process from the bullet being fired to authorities being alerted typically takes less than a minute.

Why theres debate

ShotSpotter says that its tech accurately recognizes gunshots 97% of the time and independent research shows that it can lead to police arriving at the scene of a shooting more quickly. But a lot of research suggests that  even if its not being fooled by other loud noises like fireworks or cars backfiring  its effect on public safety is limited.

In Chicago, for example, a review by the city government found of the 41,000 times that police responded to a ShotSpotter alert over an 18-month span, they discovered evidence of a gun-related crime only 9% of the time and followed up with an investigatory stop just 2% of the time. Separate studies have also found that the presence of ShotSpotter has no impact on rates of gun violence.

Despite its limitations, many police and elected officials in many cities still argue that ShotSpotter is a valuable tool for public safety. They argue that the technology allows authorities to respond more quickly to gun violence in which mere minutes can make the difference between catching a suspect or providing a victim with lifesaving care. Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said last month that ShotSpotter had led to countless instances of lives being saved.

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Advocates also say that although it may not reduce crime on its own, ShotSpotter provides invaluable data that allows communities to know when and where gun violence is occurring. They say thats information they cant get in any other way, because  research suggests  that the vast majority of shootings are never reported to the police.

But Johnson and other opponents say ShotSpotter isnt just ineffective but is actively harmful. Beyond the cost, which can run into millions of dollars per year in big cities, theres also evidence that police can spend so much time chasing dead-end leads prompted by ShotSpotter alerts that they actually become less responsive to legitimate emergency situations.

Leaked data also shows that ShotSpotter tends to be concentrated in low-income communities of color, which critics say feeds overpolicing or even potential abuse by law enforcement. Others say the system is dangerous because it puts police in the mindset that they should expect a firefight when responding to an alert, with potentially deadly consequences.

Whats next

The debate over crime in Chicago, in general, and ShotSpotters role in public safety, more specifically, will likely continue to garner national attention over the next two months in the lead-up to the Democratic National Convention scheduled to be held there in mid-August.

Perspectives

ShotSpotter saves lives and helps police solve crimes

"The first thing to establish about ShotSpotter is that it works.  This technology alerts [police] immediately to shots fired, enabling them not only to respond themselves but also  crucially  to direct emergency medical care there as well. Oftentimes, the alternative is simply dying in the street.  Jeffrey Blehar, National Review

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Cities should spend their money on public safety tools that actually work

Demanding a technology proves its effectiveness before we purchase it does not mean we are any less outraged about the gun violence in our city. It means we very rationally would rather allocate funds towards something with demonstrable efficacy.  Marcus Harrison Green, Seattle Times

ShotSpotter makes police bias against poor people of color even worse

This technology is very intentionally being deployed in these hotspots and if you just scratch beneath the surface, it just usually translates to where poor Black and Latino people are, where violence is concentrated.  Abene Clayton, gun violence researcher, to CNN

ShotSpotters shortcomings arent an excuse to abandon it altogether

If Chicago is going to reverse its slide into anarchy and decline, then we need police to enforce the laws, using whatever technology can help them. Being human, the police will inevitably make mistakes. A bigger mistake is to use that as an excuse to not even let them try.  Neil Steinberg, Chicago Sun-Times

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ShotSpotter creates life-and-death situations unnecessarily

Its alerts sometimes result in the deployment of armed police who are expecting armed resistance to a location where there is none, but where innocent residents could become targets of suspicion as a result.  Matthew Guariglia and Jason Kelley, Electronic Frontier Foundation

Cities cant combat gun violence if they cant track where its happening

In the neighborhoods in which we work, hardly anyone calls in to report a gunshot. Without ShotSpotter  we may not know about these instances of violence and would be unable to deploy to the scene to intervene and break the cycle of gun violence in our communities.  Wayne E. Rawlins, community activist, South Florida Sun Sentinel

No piece of tech is good or bad, what matters is how its utilized

ShotSpotter is a technological tool, no more and no less, and what really matters here is what human police officers actually do when they respond to its alarms.  Editorial, Chicago Tribune

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ShotSpotters critics on the left dont want the police to be successful

ShotSpotter is, essentially, a surveillance tool, and those are the enemy of progressives. So is the idea that crime-fighting technology be placed in areas that experience gun violence.  Editorial, Boston Herald
ALLEGAN, Mich. (WOOD)  Ahead of severe weather forecast for Thursday, Allegan County Emergency Management is cautioning residents that warning sirens may not work as expected.

During a test in the southeast part of Allegan County last Friday, outdoor warning sirens did not activate as expected, according to the countys emergency management.

The problem traces back to the Otsego VHF equipment site, according to emergency management. Tele-Rad, the company that owns and operates a digital two-way radio system in West Michigan, is working to figure out the problem but its unclear when it might be fixed.

Strong to severe storms possible Thursday

The malfunction comes as severe weather is forecast Thursday afternoon and evening. As of Wednesday evening, Storm Team 8 had put the southeast portion of Allegan County at a slight risk for severe weather with thunderstorms, damaging wind gusts and large hail.

Allegan County Emergency Management advised residents in the southeast area of Allegan County to have multiple methods to get emergency methods and turning on settings to receive emergency notifications from local news as well as National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Weather Radio and mobile alert apps.

Download the free Storm Team 8 weather app

Allegan County understands the importance of timely and effective warning systems, particularly in the face of severe weather threats. Our priority is the safety and well-being of all residents, and we are working diligently to resolve this issue as quickly as possible, Allegan County Emergency Management said in a release.

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HULL  The town has agreed to pay former superintendent of schools Michael Devine $700,000 to settle a federal anti-gay discrimination case filed in 2021. The settlement was reached after Devine testified during the second day of trial in United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts in Boston.

In the agreement, which Hull released Wednesday, June 12, the town and members of the school committee who fired Devine in April 2020 denied liability in Devine's allegations of discrimination and breach of contract.

Of the $700,00, $300,000 will be paid by the town's insurer and the rest will be paid directly by Hull, with $250,000 coming from the school department's budget and $150,000 from the general budget, the agreement states.

The town's official statement on former Superintendent Devine 'wishes him well'

In addition to the monetary payment, Hull agreed to send a statement to the school community via email and on its school website. The statement includes the following:

"The Town of Hull thanks Michael Devine for his years of honorable public service first as Principal of Hull High School and then as Superintendent of the Public Schools and wishes him well on his future endeavors."

What Hull said: See the full official statement

Hull agreed to pay $700,000 to settle an anti-gay discrimination case filed in federal court by former superintendent Michael Devine.

The school committee will also give Devine a letter of recommendation for future employment.

"Should any prospective employer inquire about Devine's employment with the Town, the School Department shall provide Devine's dates of employment, positions and the Letter of Recommendation," the settlement agreement states.

What is in the letter of recommendation for Hull's former superintendent

The letter of recommendation, which is included in the settlement agreement, lists honors and achievements of Hull public schools under Devine's leadership, including increased numbers of Advance Placement students and higher Advanced Placement exam scores, a dramatic reduction of dropout rates and a National Blue Ribbon awarded by the U.S. Department of Education.

A letter of recommendation provided by Hull to former superintendent Michael Devine as part of the settlement agreement in Devine's discrimination case against the town.

Why Devine sued the town of Hull

The case stemmed from a series of texts between Devine and a former student in September 2019. The student, who was 21 at the time of the text exchange, said Devine inappropriately pursued a sexual relationship and took advantage of the trust they developed when he was a student and Devine was principal of Hull High School.

In her opening statement, Devine's attorney India Minchoff said the school board's decision to fire Devine was motivated by homophobia and informed by anti-gay tropes. Deborah Ecker, defense attorney for the Hull school board, said Devine took advantage of the student, who had been neglected by his parents, suffered from homelessness and mental health issues and had turned to Devine as a father figure.

After the trial ended in a settlement, the former student told The Patriot Ledger he thought it unwise to give Devine the opportunity to work in education again. He said he wished he had the chance to testify.

What will Devine do next?

Devine, who told The Patriot Ledger he's worked as a dishwasher and bartender since losing his job as Hull's superintendent, said that he has won his reputation back through the settlement and looks forward to resuming his career in education.

"My plan is absolutely to start applying for positions this summer," Devine said in an interview. "If I had my way I would be back in school come the first day of school in September. I've devoted my whole life to being an educator. That's who I am. I'm an educator."

Peter Blandino covers Quincy for The Patriot Ledger. Contact him at pblandino@patriotledger.com.

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This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Town of Hull was sued: How much is the settlement, what the town says
(Bloomberg) -- Slovak Prime Minister Robert Ficos government approved heightened security measures nearly a month after an assassination attempt targeted the premier, including providing life-long protection to high-level officials and restricting protests near their homes.

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The eastern European nation is still reeling from the May 15 shooting that gravely injured Fico, only the second such attempt on a European leaders life in more than two decades. The prime minister was shot four times at close range after a government meeting northeast of Bratislava.

Defense Minister Robert Kalinak, a deputy premier who is stewarding the government as Fico recovers, pledged that the measures wont impede on the right to protest.

Local authorities and the police will not disrupt peaceful assemblies, he told reporters in Bratislava Wednesday after the cabinet approved the measures. The package must win a majority in parliament.

Despite calls from leaders to dial back political attacks, tensions have intensified in one of the most politically polarized member states of the European Union. The prime minister appeared for the first time since the attack in a video on June 5, in which he echoed the rhetoric of his allies in blaming the opposition and the media for creating the conditions for the shooting.

The restrictions on protests near politicians homes will have an effect on Fico. Locals have repeatedly protested outside his home during his previous terms in office. The prime minister returned to office last year on a campaign to halt military aid to Ukraine and for more spending on social programs.

According to the new measures, premiers and parliamentary speakers who have served multiple terms  a condition tailored to Fico  will receive a life-long payment and security protection. Top officials including opposition leaders will also be better protected.

Ficos ruling coalition also has ambitions to curb what it perceives to be hostile and anti-government coverage in several independent media outlets.

Later this month, it plans to approve an overhaul of the nations television and radio broadcasters, moving them under government control. Employees of both institutions have protested the plans.

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Son accused of killing his mother arrested for murder 17 years later

After 17 years there has been a new development in the cold case murder of a Dayton mother and business owner.

Jeffrey Young is being held on suspicion of murder and felenious assault, according to online court records.

Investigators confirmed to News Center 7s Cheryl McHenry the charges were in connection to the death of Patricia Peck, his mother.

News Center 7 previously highlighted Pecks case in Miami Valley Murder Mysteries in 2023.

Peck was last seen alive in February 2007.

I had seen her on the Friday night before she went missing just for a few minutes. She told me she had plans with her son, Ron Rohling, a close friend of Peck told McHenry during Miami Valley Murder Mysteries in 2023.

He knew immediately something was wrong when he learned Peck didnt show up for work the next day.

>> PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Miami Valley Murder Mysteries: Who killed Patricia Peck?

Nearly two weeks later, on March 8, 2007, someone spotted Pecks car in a parking lot at Dayton International Airport.

Parked legally in a transient lot. Nobody paid it any attention. Retired Dayton Police Homicide Detective Doyle Burke told McHenry during Miami Valley Murder Mysteries.

Inside the car was her body, covered with blankets and a towel, and stuffed on the rear seat floor.

Burke said, She was strangled and blunt force trauma to the head, so she was beaten and strangled. He is now working with the Cold Case Unit to take a fresh look at her murder and said he believes it was a crime of passion.

She was 62 years old; shes not going to put up that much of a fight, especially if shes caught off-guard, strangled, Burke said.

The most intriguing clue that was found was an imitation rose wrapped in plastic that was found on top of Pecks body.

In my mind, that had to be laid there by her assailant, Burke said.

Investigators told News Center 7 during the Miami Valley Murder Mystery that they found DNA evidence that could help lead them to Pecks killer.

News Center 7 will continue to follow this story.
Tom*, a Cambridge University graduate in his mid 20s, fondly remembers the night that a 40-something tutor at his college tried to pick him up.

We met at a formal dinner and had probably five or six hours of friendly conversation, and it was all quite flirty back and forth, says Tom, who was 19 at the time.

She was very attractive and in great shape, and I knew what was going on, but didnt feel like she was out looking for younger guys in particular, he says. At the end of the night, she asked me which way I was walking and, at that point, I politely declined to go home with her because I had a girlfriend at the time, Tom says. But if I was single I absolutely would have wanted to see where things went.

A few weeks later, it transpired that the woman was a tutor for Toms friend, also 19. For some reason he brought me up in a supervision, and the tutor asked if I was the handsome student she met at dinner, he recalls. She said she had a really nice time with me at the dinner and would have loved for it to go further.

Such things were so common as to be the norm, says Sophie*, 25. One high-profile professor in my faculty was known for his Tinder escapades and often matched with students on the app for casual sex or short-term flings, she says.

Social interactions between academics and students are not uncommon at Cambridge - pinggr/iStockphoto

One of my coursemates sometimes slept with him, and said it was a fun, equal relationship, which he found fulfilling partly because of their shared interests in literature and travel. Another professor in my college was married to one of his former masters students, who was about 15 years younger than him, and was generally quite flirtatious with his female students, Sophie says. He didnt do anything inappropriate, to my understanding, and was very popular in the college.

Harmless fun, or problematic pattern? Tom admits that he isnt sure how hed feel if a friend told him the same story, particularly if the genders were reversed, though Sophie still doesnt see a problem three years on from her graduation. But their alma mater has now drawn a clear line in the sand: Cambridge students have been told to stop flirting with academic staff under a new policy, which bans relationships between staff and the students theyre directly responsible for.

Staff are warned that pursuing or entering into an intimate relationship with any student for whom they have any direct or indirect academic responsibilities is now forbidden and that any behaviour from students that could be interpreted as flirtatious should be reported to HR. While there will still be no formal ban on staff having relationships with students they dont teach, dons are encouraged to act in a way which safeguards student welfare, which probably precludes trying it on with them at a dinner or matching with them on dating apps.

Cambridge follows Oxford in implementing such a policy, as well as University College London and Nottingham and Exeter universities. A Cambridge spokesman told the Varsity student newspaper that the new policy on staff and student relationships follows an extensive consultation across the university involving staff and student representatives, departments and colleges, and also takes into consideration the views of the regulator, the Office for Students and Universities UK.

But at Cambridge in particular these relationships are ubiquitous, and the reasons for that are clear. The close-knit community nature of the Cambridge colleges makes it very easy for students and academics to meet informally, says Sarah*. Often, academics live permanently in the same staircases or college accommodation as the students, or you have supervisions in their room.

The close-knit nature of the colleges at Cambridge makes it very easy for students and academics to meet informally - Issaurinko/iStock Editorial

Its part of Cambridge culture to mix socially with your teachers over wine or sherry in the evenings from time to time, or to have dinner together in a formal hall, where everyone drinks huge amounts before going to the bar after, Sarah adds.

Tom, for instance, recalls the notorious Adonian Society, a private dining club that would host invitation-only dinners for male academics and students in the 13th-century dining hall of Peterhouse College.

He claims: Ive been told that the point of the club was made clear to everyone who attended, which was for older academics to meet young male students to have sexual relationships with.

Though he never attended himself, a friend relayed that the seating arrangements would be changed halfway through the dinner so that the academics could sit next to students they particularly fancied.

Another recent graduate who attended an Adonian Society dinner as a teenage student declined to confirm the arrangement, but said that the event he attended was very good fun.

Unlike most attendants the young man is heterosexual, and went along to the dinner on the invitation of a friend (as opposed to the sponsorship of a tutor, the other route to entry) because it was a nice dinner with a bunch of intelligent people, who like me tended to be socially conservative  just not when it comes to sex, he said.

I dont think it was much of a novelty to the people who did go for sexual purposes, says the graduate, as they all tended to be liberal in that way.

Peterhouse put a soft stop on the Adonian Society in 2017 by refusing its dinner reservations, says Sam Hudson, a current Cambridge student who writes for the Varsity newspaper. The society hasnt found another college willing to play host to its gatherings as private dining clubs in general have become an embarrassment at Oxford and Cambridge, he says.

But I still hear rumours about the wild things that happened there not so long ago, he adds.

The Adonians may have been squashed but such things are still seen as normal in homosexual and straight interactions alike, says another Cambridge student, who asked for his name not to be used. One of my own tutors has a reputation for sleeping around with students, and told me that an all-out ban would be unreasonable because staff and students occupy the same dating scenes, as we all live and work in the same place, the anonymous student says.

That in itself is the problem, says Bethan Moss, 24, who graduated from Cambridge last year. Two years ago, she and two other writers for Varsity took a stand against the issue and ran an investigation into dating-app dons. The team recruited a handful of male and female students, who adjusted their age ranges on the dating app Tinder to make them visible to all users.

Within a couple of hours, we had 30 or 40 matches from academics, some of which were very senior within colleges or the university, Moss says. Some of them were matching with multiple students, who were only 18 or 19. In the end, Varsity managed to verify 12 accounts linked to university academics who showed interest in students, all of whom were men, though we did swipe right on female academics we saw on the app; they just didnt like the students back, Moss says.

The profiles could be explicit, with some academics advertising themselves as kinky. One entrepreneur, professor and designer at Cambridge described himself as the guy your mother warned you about. Yet what shocked Moss most was how blatant these academics were, she says. The ones we spotted didnt hide their associations at all, and in fact they were advertising them, she says. Maybe some of them did choose to hide it  we only looked at the ones who didnt.

Some staff at the university are active on dating apps and regularly pair up with undergraduates on them - Poohz/iStockphoto

There was talk of a ban around the time of the investigation. There was a certain type of academic who would say that we were all adults, and that its infantilising to put limits on what we can do, says Moss. But we thought the state of things was outrageous and other staff members definitely took our side.

Yet two years on, as flings between staff and students with direct relationships are to be outlawed, dons on Tinder (and other dating apps such as Hinge, Grindr and Feeld) are still easy to spot, says Hudson. I definitely still hear rumours about people seeing and matching with academics on dating apps, he says. Its particularly rife on Grindr and its still seen as more acceptable for male academics to pursue male students.

A ban only on relationships between students and their own tutors still doesnt go far enough, argues Dr Ann Olivarius KC, a lawyer specialising in cases of sexual harassment  which she says are too often linked to staff-student relationships at universities. If I was a vice-chancellor at a university then Id totally outlaw relationships between staff and students, and Id fire any professor who engaged in a relationship with a student, whether they taught them or not, Dr Olivarius says.

These relationships are all about power and too often, they ruin students lives, says the lawyer. Bans such as the one at Cambridge are starting to come in because universities have a long, sordid history of professors having their pick and choice of students they work with, and they havent policed it properly in the past, and now, theyre realising that a ban is a good idea, she says.

As Dr Olivarius points out, such policies are becoming common in non-academic workplaces too, because relationships with large power differentials set a certain workplace tone that lots of companies dislike, she says.

Some companies will bear the risk, but others, like McDonalds, which fired its CEO for having a relationship with a more junior employee, just wont have it.

What does recent graduate Sophie make of that? Adults in consenting relationships should be allowed to make their own romantic and sexual choices, and almost all students at university are over 18, she says.

People bond in the intense and intellectually demanding environment of the university over shared interests and similar ways of looking at the world. Personally I dont see this as a problem, unless the academic is directly involved in the students grades and academic attainment.

When asked for a response, a Cambridge spokesperson said: Intimate relationships will be prohibited between staff and students in instances where the staff member has any professional responsibility for that student. The new Policy on Staff and Student Relationships has been developed following an extensive consultation across the collegiate University, Universities UK and the Office for Students. Whilst these views did not support a complete ban, the Policy significantly strengthens existing rules. Clear internal policies on such issues are good practice across academic institutions.

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Three groups are circulating petitions in Nebraska to amend the state constitution on the issue of abortion. (Courtesy of Getty Images)

LINCOLN  Nebraska voters who want to weigh in this November on the future of abortion in the state have three petitions to consider signing.

One group that is circulating petitions wants to make abortion a state constitutional right. Two other groups circulating petitions both oppose abortion. But their petitions approach the path to further restrictions differently.

Organizers of all three petition initiatives have until July 3 to turn in signatures from 10% of Nebraska registered voters, or about 123,000 people, to the Secretary of States Office. Of those, signatures are required from at least 5% of registered voters in at least 38 counties.

The Nebraska Examiner spoke recently with lawyers and legal experts, reproductive rights advocates and advocates for restricting abortion about each proposed amendment.

This is a summary of the language in each of the petition efforts, what each would do, what complications each might cause and some common criticisms of them.

Protect the Right to Abortion petition

What the language says: Article I of the Nebraska Constitution shall be amended by adding a new section 31 as shown: All persons shall have a fundamental right to abortion until fetal viability, or when needed to protect the life or health of the pregnant patient, without interference from the state or its political subdivisions. Fetal viability means the point in pregnancy when in the professional judgment of the patients treating health care practitioner, there is a significant likelihood of the fetus sustained survival outside of the uterus without the application of extraordinary medical measures.

What it would do: Codify the right to an abortion in the Nebraska Constitution similar to how the U.S. Supreme Court decided Roe v. Wade in 1973, before the court overturned Roe with the Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health case in 2022. Most medical experts set the age of fetal viability between 22 and 24 weeks gestation.

What it might cause: Any state restrictions or laws passed on abortion-related care since Roe could be overturned by the courts, and no new state restrictions could be passed. This could jeopardize parts of state law addressing abortion-related care, including the state requirement that women be shown an ultrasound before having an abortion and the requirement that parents be notified if a minor is pursuing an abortion.

Common criticisms: Some worry that abortion-care clinics and providers could use the law to allow abortions later than 22-24 weeks by discounting fetal viability. They argue the flexibility of interpretation would rest almost entirely with medical providers. Others question whether a mandated 24-hour waiting period before having an abortion could be put at risk.

Notable supporters: Planned Parenthood, ACLU Nebraska, Nebraska Appleseed Action, I Be Black Girl, Womens Fund of Omaha, former Omaha Mayor Jim Suttle, University of Nebraska Regent Barbara Weitz and her daughter, nonprofit president Katie Weitz.

Protect Women and Children petition

What the language says: Article I of the Nebraska Constitution shall be amended by adding a new section 31 that states as follows: Except when a woman seeks an abortion necessitated by a medical emergency or when the pregnancy results from sexual assault or incest, unborn children shall be protected from abortion in the second and third trimesters.

What it would do: Put into the state constitution a maximum limit or cap on how long into a pregnancy an abortion could be legal. It would outlaw most abortions after the first trimester. Most medical experts set that timing between 12 and 14 weeks gestational age. Lawmakers could not revert, for instance, to the states former 20-week ban.

What it might cause: The language of this amendment would allow the Legislature to restrict abortion further. Lawmakers were a single vote away in 2023 from passing a ban tied to when an ultrasound can detect fetal cardiac activity, at about six weeks. The filibuster that prevented that measures passage could be changed.

Common criticisms: Some have argued that the amendment language is confusing on purpose and that some organizers seek to convince signers that it would protect Nebraskas current law when it would not. Nebraska currently restricts abortion to 12 weeks gestational age, or about 10 weeks after conception.

Notable supporters: Nebraska Catholic Conference, Nebraska Right to Life, Nebraska Family Alliance, U.S. Sen. Pete Ricketts, Sandhills Publishing owner Tom Peed and his son and fellow business owner Shawn Peed.

Now Choose Life petition

What the language says: Article I of the Constitution of Nebraska shall be amended by adding a new section 31 as shown: A preborn child at every stage of development is a person. Wherever under Nebraska law the term person is used or implied, it shall include such a child.

What it would do: The personhood amendment would grant the legal status of a child or person to every fetus at all stages of development. That means any protection granted to people in state criminal and civil law would apply to a fetus. It would outlaw all abortions, with no exceptions.

What it might cause: It could spur criminal prosecution of women who have abortions. It could lead to child support payments for fetuses. It could create legal questions over which life the law would value more, a mother or a fetus. Local prosecutors would have to weigh how to apply the law.

Common criticisms: Some argue it could lead to potential prosecution for miscarriages. Others have expressed concerns that the Legislature would have to pass a law to clarify that in vitro fertilization was still legal.

Notable supporters: Rose Kohl, Dr. Jeanne Friesen and Dr. Robert Smith, the listed sponsors of the petition effort.

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The post Sorting through Nebraskas abortion ballot initiatives appeared first on Nebraska Examiner.
When Connie Morgan moved into her Navarre area home on the Santa Rosa Sound 48 years ago, she shared her section of U.S. Highway 98 with a lone Tom Thumb store about a quarter mile down the road, and could anticipate the arrival each year of thousands of sting rays eager to mate in the shallow waters behind her home.

It was only about three years ago that the rays stopped coming. Morgan and her neighbors believe red clay, specifically red clay being dumped into the Sound by contractors working to develop a subdivision called Soundside Hollow, drove them away.

"With all the clay in the water they can't move the sand to bury themselves," Morgan said.

The developers of Soundside Hollow subdivision have been fined at least once before for failing to properly contain erosion and allowing red clay to enter nearby Santa Rosa Sound. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection found them again to be seriously out of compliance with environmental ordinances following a June 4 inspection of the property.

Construction of the 17-home subdivision began approximately four years ago, Morgan said, and since that time residents say it has proven to be an environmental nightmare. Residents residing on either side of the development have begun to refer to it as Soundside Horror.

The developers of the property are a group operating under the business name Soundside Partners LLC. Steve Riggs, Christopher Burch and Amanda Bradford are listed as managing partners.

Riggs told the News Journal Tuesday that Soundside Partners is working with the state and county to remediate issues at the site and prevent any future problems.

Still, some neighbors claim the development group has put down so much red clay on the subdivision site it now qualifies as one of the highest points in South Santa Rosa County. Nearby residents chuckle ironically when they say the property is now more a hill than a hollow.

"You have to go to Fort Walton Beach or Destin to find higher ground," Morgan said.

Poor planning and shoddy efforts to control erosion on the property, the neighbors say, has already had a costly impact on the waterway behind the subdivision, and Phil Anderchuk is convinced the worst is yet to come. He recently pointed out where a thick wooden piling on a sea wall holding back all of the clay had splintered under the weight of the dirt.

"That wall was not made to retain 35-foot of clay wall coming down on it," he said.

The developers initially went to the county seeking to build 25 homes on the approximately 3-acre parcel. In order to accommodate that many lots, contractors deposited red clay as close to the sound as was possible. They failed, however, to take some necessary steps to prevent erosion, so, in 2021, when a powerful storm came along, an entire sea wall was breached and silt fences collapsed. Red clay ran unabated into the Sound.

"They were trying to maximize the development and created this enormous hill that washed away. All that dirt that was going to hold four lots went out and down," Anderchuk said. "Now at least 500 yards of red clay is in the water."

County Code Enforcement fined the developer $300 for an illicit discharge violation and a violation of erosion control requirements. That was the maximum fine available to the county at that time.

The developers of Soundside Hollow subdivision have been fined at least once before for failing to properly contain erosion and allowing red clay to enter nearby Santa Rosa Sound. The Florida Department of Environmental Protection found them again to be seriously out of compliance with environmental ordinances following a June 4 inspection of the property

In an email sent to Anderchuk after the initial blowout, then County Code Enforcement Director Chris Phillips revealed that he'd found additional violations at the site. Those included construction of a retaining wall that had not been designed or permitted through the county building inspections division and underground utilities that had been installed but never inspected for compliance to county code.

"All of these deficiencies will be sent to the Engineer of Record," Phillips' email, dated April 15, 2021, said. "There is a code allowance to provide an engineers affidavit signed by a registered Florida engineer stating these items have been installed according to code. Considering the current condition of all of those items, I cant believe any engineer would sign an affidavit unless major repairs were conducted prior."

Phillips acknowledged to Anderchuk that he had also been made aware of issues with litter blowing off of the site and other possible code violations. He urged him and his neighbors to "document, document, document" further incidents.

"We have reacted swiftly once we knew what was going on. We will continue to follow up," the email from Phillips said. "We cant station someone there daily. Were here to work for you and all of the citizens in the county the best we can with the tools we have been given."

The fine was not apparently sufficiently stiff to force the developers to change their ways. When nearly 13 inches of rain fell on South Santa Rosa County earlier this month, Soundside Hollow's neighbors were again forced to watch as red clay from the construction site washed into the waters behind their homes.

"It's just astounding that three years later we've got the same problem," Anderchuk said.

Both the county and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection sent inspectors to Soundside Hollow following the weekend storms that created the unanticipated deluge in Santa Rosa County.

DEP conducted its inspection June 4, spokeswoman Kathryn Craver said, "during which non-compliance issues were observed, including lack of erosion control measures known as best management practices."

One of the violations included the on-site contractor's failure to obtain permits showing it was in compliance with National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System requirements for preventing storm water from running off the construction site.

More: DEP issues warning letter to Santa Rosa resident charged with illegal land clearing

DEP also found that the perimeter silt fencing required to prevent erosion runoff was either not installed properly or not well maintained at several locations on site. Inspectors found silt fence had fallen down, gotten buried under sediment or been torn off support sticks.

State agents also discovered inlet protection devices had not been installed on the Soundside Hollow property and "the site had large areas of un-stabilized soil" where heavy erosion had occurred during the storm.

"There was significant sediment loss from the site into the Santa Rosa Sound," the inspection report said.

Additionally, it was noted the contractor had not filed a required Stormwater Pollution Prevention Plan and due to that could not produce a notice of inspection or file weekly inspection reports.

DEP, Craver said in an email, has instructed Soundside Partners to immediately repair the failed erosion fencing and install additional best management practice devices to prevent further storm water discharges from the site.

The agency has also issued a warning letter that Craver said, "is usually the first step towards formal enforcement."

"This letter helps DEP collect the necessary and appropriate facts to complete its regulatory review and is used to determine appropriate actions and potential penalties," she said.

Riggs said no one could have foreseen the massive amount of rain that fell over the weekend of June 1.

"It was a massive rain. We had a blowout. It was reported to us and we've fixed it," Riggs said Tuesday. "We've done everything the state and the county have asked us to do. It had been stabilized for years and then what happened happened."

More: A contractor pumped muddy water into Perdido Bay, twice. What is the state doing about it?

He said the development group is working with the state and county to make things right.

"We're responsible for fixing it. We've brought in more bales of hay, added more berms," he said. "We're not running from anything. We're accepting responsibility and making it so it never happens again. We're doing everything the county and state have ordered us to do with no arguments."

The contractor at the Soundside Hollow development site is not the same one that the county cited in 2021, according to Kim Gallagher, an inspector with Santa Rosa county's Environmental Code Enforcement. She said the county is working with the developer "to stabilize the site and prevent any additional erosion."

"The process is still underway and the case remains open," Gallagher said in a recent email.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: Navarre area neighbors fight pollution near Santa Rosa Sound homes
(Bloomberg) -- South Africas biggest political rivals are close to clinching a deal to form a new government two weeks after a shock election result stripped the African National Congress of its parliamentary majority for the first time in three decades.

Most Read from Bloomberg

The ANC and the Democratic Alliance have resolved key obstacles to an accord that will allow Cyril Ramaphosa to be reelected as president by lawmakers, according to people familiar with ongoing talks between the two parties who asked not to be identified as the discussions are private. Markets are likely to react positively to a tie-up involving the business-friendly DA, which would bolster Ramaphosas efforts to rein in state debt and tackle power cuts and logistics snarl-ups that have hobbled the economy.

Talks are likely to continue throughout Thursday, with the ANCs leadership expected to hold a briefing after a meeting of its national executive, which is scheduled to end at 7 p.m. in Cape Town. The new parliament will vote for president a few hours after its first session begins at 10 a.m. on Friday.

The discussions are progressing even after the ANCs negotiating team postponed a meeting with the DA on Wednesday, spooking some members of the main opposition party. The officials had to attend a meeting of the ANCs top seven leaders, and shouldnt be read as an indication that they would renege on any agreement, the people said. One issue that still needs to be addressed is the DAs insistence that any deal be put in writing, they added.

The rand erased a loss to trade little changed at 18.3903 per dollar by 11:44 a.m. in Johannesburg, bringing its gain this week to 2.8%. Government bonds gained, with the yield on benchmark 2035 securities falling four basis points to 11.74%, the lowest on a closing basis in more than three months.

The ANC, which has held power since apartheid ended in 1994, invited all of the countrys main parties to join a broad alliance to form the next administration in a so-called government of national unity.

In addition to the DA, which espouses free-market principles, the business-friendly Inkatha Freedom Party has signaled it will join the government, as has the Patriotic Alliance, the sixth-largest party. Former President Jacob Zumas uMkhonto weSizwe Party and the leftist Economic Freedom Fighters have so far declined to join the next administration.

The DA and the ANCs national executive structures will hold their final meetings on Thursday before Fridays vote, where a speaker and deputy speaker of parliament will be elected before the vote for the president.

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If Ramaphosa is unopposed, hell be declared president. The EFF has threatened to field its own candidate, which would trigger a vote for the position by secret ballot, though Ramaphosa is still likely to be reelected because the ANC and DA jointly have a majority in the legislature, the people said.

How positions in the cabinet and parliament will be shared by the coalition partners is only expected to be addressed in detail after Fridays vote. The DA, which came in second in the election, has proposed that positions be handed out in proportion to the parties electoral support.

You can follow Bloombergs reporting on Africa on WhatsApp. Sign up here.

--With assistance from Robert Brand and Neil Munshi.

(Updates with market reaction in fifth paragraph.)

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The defense forces are making efforts to weaken Russian air defenses, including by targeting such facilities in the temporarily occupied Crimea. If successful, this tactic could allow Ukraine to make more effective use of Western aircraft in the long term.

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However, success may largely depend on whether the partners are inclined to support strikes on the deep rear of the Russian Armed Forces. This is the opinion of analysts at the Institute for the Study of War (ISW).

The day before, the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine reported that Ukrainian forces attacked one S-300 and two S-400 air defense batteries in the area of the temporarily occupied Belbek and Sevastopol (Crimea) on the night of June 11-12. As a result, at least two Russian S-300/S-400 radar systems were destroyed, which led to further detonation of ammunition and, apparently, enemy combat losses.

The geo-referenced photos also show damaged and destroyed Russian S-300 systems north of the temporarily occupied Yevpatoriya and a destroyed Russian S-400 radar south of Dzhankoy, confirming reports of strikes a few days ago.

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Some Russian sources have suggested that the Ukrainian Armed Forces used ATACMS missiles for the strikes, but ISW did not speculate on which systems were actually used by the Ukrainian forces.

On June 12, Kraken special forces commander Konstantin Nemichev confirmed that the Defense Forces used HIMARS to destroy four Russian S-300 systems in the Belgorod region of Russia on an unspecified date. The Suspilne media outlet cited his statement as the first official Ukrainian confirmation of strikes on a Russian S-300 battery near Belgorod on June 1 or 2.

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It is noted that Ukrainian previous strikes prompted the Russian command to move air defense assets from Crimea to the Belgorod region of the Russian Federation in early June 2024 and worsened Russian air defense coverage around the peninsula. GUR representative Andriy Yusov also clarified that Ukrainian UAV strikes on the Akhtubinsk airfield in Astrakhan region of the Russian Federation between June 7 and 8 damaged two Russian Su-57 aircraft instead of one, as previously reported.

"The S-300/S-400 air defense systems and Su-57 fighters are important means of Russian air defense and aviation, which deprive Ukraine of the ability to use aircraft near the front line and repel Russian offensive operations," ISW emphasized.

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They speculate that Ukrainian forces may try to actively weaken Russian air defense before they receive a significant number of Western aircraft to create conditions for their future use closer to the frontline. In particular, on the eve of the expected deliveries of F-16 fighters, which will begin in small numbers in the summer and fall of 2024.

"They may eventually be able to develop a concept of operations that combines aviation to support ground operations if they receive enough fighters, their Western partners train enough trained pilots, and if Ukraine manages to weaken Russian air defense capabilities," the report said.

Ukrainian and Western officials have previously indicated that it will take considerable time to adequately train enough Ukrainian pilots and equip the army with the approximately 150 F-16s needed to achieve air superiority. They also stated that F-16s and other aircraft could be used to limit Russian air operations. However, Ukrainian Air Force spokesman Illia Yevlash noted that even two squadrons of these aircraft (approximately 18 planes) would be enough to significantly affect the situation in Ukrainian airspace.

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"This should not fundamentally limit Ukraine's ability to use aviation on a large scale in the long term, but if Western partners are inclined to support Ukrainian airspace and the potential for a deep strike (probably on the territory of the Russian Federation - Ed.)," ISW stated.

As reported by OBOZ.UA, military expert Oleksandr Kovalenko noted that by destroying Russian air defense, the Defense Forces are creating a zone for flights over Crimea. He spoke about the facts of the destruction of air defense systems and indicated how many of them the enemy still has.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Southern Baptists condemn it, many states are debating it. The battle over IVF in 2024.

Nearly two years after the Supreme Court overturned the right to an abortion, access to in vitro fertilization could be at risk.

IVF is the process of combining a sperm and egg in a laboratory and transferring them to a uterus, commonly used to aid conception for someone with fertility issues. Advocates for the treatment were worried that access to the treatment could come under threat after the Dobbs decision in June 2022.

That fear was somewhat realized in February when the Alabama Supreme Court decided embryos had the legal status of children in a landmark case. Since then, IVF has taken the spotlight in the fight for reproductive rights.

Here is a look back at key moments for IVF access this year:

More: Supreme Court preserves access to widely used abortion medication mifepristone

WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 12: Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-IL) speaks alongside Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) during a news conference on access to in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments outside of the U.S. Capitol Building on June 12, 2024 in Washington, DC. The Senate will take up the "Right to IVF Act" later this week.

Why is IVF controversial?

Approximately 2% of births in the U.S. each year come from IVF pregnancies, and it can be a life changing procedure for people experiencing infertility who want to start a family.

But the procedure is opposed by some religious groups, many conservative Christians, who argue that life begins the moment an egg is fertilized and that humans should leave procreation to God not science.

When the first IVF baby was born in 1979, a coalition of anti-abortion groups spoke out against the procedure. But that was after the Roe v. Wade decision, so embryos were treated as private property that the respective egg and sperm donors could decide if they wanted to implant, destroy or pass on the embryo without consequence.

Southern Baptists condemn IVF

On Wednesday, Delegates at the Southern Baptist Convention approved a resolution condemning IVF.

It is a non-binding proclamation that calls on followers to only support reproductive methodologies that affirm the "unconditional value and right to life of every human being, including those in an embryonic stage."

Debate on the floor about the measure was fraught, but the vote could signal similar measures throughout other conservative denominations.

More: Southern Baptists condemn use of IVF in high-profile debate over reproductive rights

Alabama Supreme Court ruled embryos are 'extrauterine children'

The Southern Baptists resolution comes in the wake of a February decision from the Alabama Supreme Court that frozen embryos could be legally treated as children.

The court sided with two couples who sued after their frozen embryos stored in liquid nitrogen were accidentally destroyed. The Alabama high court invoked Christian faith and the Alabama Constitution in their decision which determined they were "extrauterine children." Justices acknowledged the decision could reshape or halt IVF, and major providers temporarily stopped providing the procedure.

The Alabama legislature later passed a bill to protect IVF patients and providers.

But the decision stoked concerns over fetal personhood arguments, which carried into other states despite outcry from both Democrats and Republicans.

Fetal personhood arguments in other states failed

According to the Guttmacher Institute, 23 bills seeking to ban abortion by establishing fetal personhood were introduced in 13 different states in 2024 so far, but none passed even one chamber.

One of those bills in Florida would have allowed a parent to sue for damages in a wrongful death suit of an "unborn child." The bill was sidelined in the wake of Alabama's decision, as the bill sponsor acknowledged there was still "work that needs to be done."

Here are other states where abortion bans by fetal personhood were introduced in 2024:

Colorado

Florida

Iowa

Illinois

Indiana

Kansas

Massachusetts

Missouri

New York

Oklahoma

South Carolina

Virginia

West Virginia

U.S. Senate Democrats push effort to protect IVF

Ten states, including Alabama, introduced bills to protect IVF providers and patients after the Alabama decision, according to a report by the Guttmacher Institute.

In the weeks after the Alabama ruling, Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith, R-Miss., objected to a federal bill brought forward by Sen. Tammy Duckworth D.-Ill., which would have protected access to the procedure. At the time, Duckworth said in the House floor she would not have been able to have her kids if not for IVF.

But Hyde-Smith said the bill was a "vast overreach."

Democrats tried again, pushing Thursday to hold a vote on IVF protection, which failed again.

Contributing: Liam Adams, John Kennedy, Trevor Hughes, Riley Beggin, USA TODAY NETWORK

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: IVF ban, reproductive rights get new focus amid Southern Baptist vote
INDIANAPOLIS  Lynn Richmond and Phil Baker are among a small crew who refashioned an empty and expansive convention center into the two-day home of the nations largest Protestant denomination.

But they dont see their work coordinating setup for the Southern Baptist Conventions annual meeting in grandiose terms. Its partly because they have it down to a science.

I really never felt overwhelmed or like Im shouldering a lot, said Richmond, convention manager employed by the Nashville-based SBC Executive Committee. I like to say that when I get here, my work is done.

Richmond and Baker arrived last week to start the work of turning a 53-foot-long trailer filled with equipment into the event that would capture national headlines.

I work harder here than at any other time in this 10-day period, Baker, facilities manager for executive committee, said in an interview. But I get the most satisfaction here.

As Richmond and Baker finished last-minute set-up Monday night, a spirit of accomplishment and peacefulness filled the room of nearly 15,000 empty chairs. It was hard to imagine the next couple days would exhibit the opposite.

The Nashville-based denomination left its annual business meeting here deeply divided over a host of issues with questions remaining about how the SBC will be able to handle them in the years to come.

A proposed measure to enshrine a ban on women pastors failed to garner the two-thirds vote needed for ratification. Still, the SBC continued to take a strong doctrinal stand against churches that diverge from the denomination's official stance on women in ministry.

Voting delegates, known as messengers, condemned the use of in vitro fertilization, even though many conservative evangelical Christians support the medical practice or are unsure about their stance. The decision thrust Southern Baptists squarely into the middle of the nation's ongoing debate over reproductive rights and fetal personhood.

Last, an abuse reform task forces expiration has left the work of abuse reform to other SBC channels, leaving questions unanswered about the denomination's ongoing commitment to survivors and accountability.

Political conflict and bureaucratic inefficiency aren't new for the SBC but this week's work in Indianapolis exacerbated those issues and could push this corner of American evangelical Christianity to new breaking points. The decisions here raise questions about how prepared the machinery of the SBC is to respond to these historic crises.

Systems are resistant to change, they are resistant to reform North Carolina pastor Josh Wester, chair of the now-expired SBC Abuse Reform Implementation Task Force, said in a news conference Tuesday night.

Westers task force achieved far less than its members hoped when it was formed two years ago in response to a historic abuse investigation. In a presentation to the convention on Tuesday night, Wester called out other SBC leaders for creating unforeseen hurdles that further hindered the task force's work.

The reality of our system is that any task force is going to be relatively at the mercy of the various apparatus that makes up the SBC, Wester said in his report to the convention.

In contrast, the narrow defeat of a constitutional ban on women pastors  commonly called the Law Amendment after its original petitioner Virginia pastor Mike Law  was an affirmation for those who opposed the change and felt the SBC already had a sufficient way to address disputes over women in ministry.

We have an effective mechanism," North Carolina pastor Spence Shelton said in speaking out against the constitutional change. "It allows us to act with conviction and unity when it comes to this issue.

Stephen Childress bows his head in prayer during the Southern Baptist Convention, Tuesday, June 11, 2024 at the Indiana Convention Center.

Which legacies to retain and which to reject

A common thread throughout the many reports and legislative decisions this week was the shifting ways in which this large and opinionated group of believers addressed its collective needs.

Now, were kind of assessing of who we are and who were supposed to be, said New Orleans pastor Jay Adkins, who led an SBC task force that audited a 2010 initiative that restructured key parts of the SBC in response to declining baptisms.

Texas pastor Jared Wellman shared similar reflections from his work as chair of a different task force that studied how the denomination affiliates with local churches going forward.

Called the SBC Cooperation Group, Wellmans 20-member committee determined a 2014 constitutional change requiring churches to closely identify with the denominations doctrinal statement to affiliate with the SBC should remain in place. The full convention adopted four recommendations from the group that sought to bolster that existing "closely identifies with" requirement.

As organizations continue to exist  were 179 years now  a new generation comes to lead, Wellman said in the news conference Tuesday. And as a new generation comes to lead, the question is what kind of knowledge has been passed on?

But when it comes to abuse reform, the opposite attitude is necessary going forward, said leaders of the abuse reform task force and abuse survivors.

Celeste Bonner, center, joins others in song during the Southern Baptist Convention, Tuesday, June 11, 2024 at the Indiana Convention Center.

During an event on Monday, author and survivor Christa Brown reminded the audience of the significance of the SBC gathering in Indianapolis this year. The last time the convention met here in 2008, SBC leaders rejected a legislative proposal that Brown advocated for to create an early version of a database of ministers accused of abuse.

Now under a nonprofit called the Abuse Response Commission  comprised of current and former leaders of the abuse reform task force  a version of that database listing 100 names is expected any day now.

But due to the SBCs unwillingness and inability to take this action earlier, in these intervening 16 years, countless more kids and congregants have had their lives decimated, Brown said.

Division over standards for unity leaves questions for existing infrastructure

The debate over the Law Amendment headed into this years annual meeting and the final vote muddied the conversations over which traditions the SBC should retain and which to reject.

Proponents of the measure invoked the long struggle to promote complementarianism among Southern Baptist churches, but said a new constitutional change was necessary to protect that shared view. Complementarianism refers to a belief that men and women have certain assigned roles.

That framing of the Law Amendment as a necessary extension of Southern Baptists commitment to biblical inerrancy broadly and specifically to certain scriptural passages on womens authority in the church appealed to many rank-and-file messengers. Yet it still wasnt enough to clear a high bar for constitutional amendments, leaving questions about whether the 61%-38% divide will be a source of future division.

Ballots for voting are kept ready during the Southern Baptist Convention, Tuesday, June 11, 2024 at the Indiana Convention Center.

But that prospect didnt seem to worry SBC President-elect Clint Pressley.

It (Law Amendment) is not necessary for our convention of churches to maintain a real sense of complementarianism, Pressley said during a news conference Wednesday. Were still just as complementarian as we were before that vote ever came into play.

Pressley, a North Carolina pastor, won the presidential election after three rounds of voting between Tuesday and Wednesday. The original six candidates positions on the Law Amendment, of which Pressley supported, was a key in helping messengers determine who to vote for.

Describing his hopes for his tenure as the conventions highest-ranking elected official, Pressley focused on the primary duties associated with the position  to preside over the business of the SBC annual meeting and to appoint committees. With addressing other needs, Pressley is confident about the existing infrastructure to step up.

I think our mechanisms are strong, Pressley said. Weve seen them work well even this week.

Liam Adams covers religion for The Tennessean. Reach him at ladams@tennessean.com or on social media @liamsadams.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: SBC confronts future change after heated debates on women, IVF
This week in Indianapolis, 61% of Southern Baptist Churches voted to exclude women from serving in pastoral leadership. The vote required 66% to pass. The 39% that voted down the measure are by no means picking up pom-poms in support for women in the pastorate, but recognized a deeper risk for Baptists: When individual churches relinquish their power to call whomever they see fit to be their own Pastor, they effectively vacate the time-honored Baptist tenant of autonomy of the local church.

Still, seven churches were disfellowshipped from the SBC because they have women in pastoral leadership. This is not the first or last time codified complementarianism will rear its head in the SBC.

If you live outside of the Baptist world, you may have presumed that male leadership was already a linchpin of Baptist thinking.

Its not.

In fact, the Baptist faith was founded on religious freedom. In the movements earliest breaths, its heartbeat was to encourage individuals to interpret scripture for themselves, based on freedom of thought, imagination, and experience apart from the influence of priest, presbyter, bishop or government. The separation of Church and State is echoed in other denominations, but historically and presently, Baptists believe that a government should neither influence nor force any religion (including Christianity) on its people. Otherwise, it is not ones personal faith, but coerced, empty actions.

The Southern Baptist Church's actions are foundationally non-Baptist

Heather Deal, left, and Nikki Hardeman, with the Baptist Women in Ministry, protest for the right for women to be clergy, while standing outside the Southern Baptist Convention, Tuesday, June 11, 2024.

My love of the Baptist tradition rests on the idea that Scripture is a living document and continues to draw us individually into conversation with the Divine. Our faith does not necessitate a mediator to interpret the scriptures to or for us; nor do we require a Creed to dictate what to believe. Still, the Pastor and preacher requires careful study, both of context and history, so we may catch the glimmer of the Holy Spirit and follow her lead.

Americans are leaving church behind. They're giving up a lot more than faith.

Decisions made over the last few decades to narrow the churchs understanding of scripture are fundamentally non-Baptist. The leaders of the SBC have effectively given a foundationally non-creedal people  a Creed. By mistakenly believing they can narrow who God calls, they have shown the world more of what it presumed about the Southern Baptist Church: Fear has driven out love.

Rest assured, there are plenty more flavors of Baptist than the increasingly unpalatable SBC; my church has not been a part of the SBC since 1992. Several churches throughout Louisville and the south left the denomination when the organizational language began to take a more doctrinal flare in declaring, you must believe __. This year, its not just a belief statement  they voted churches out.

Many have lost hope in the SBC. I am ministering them.

While I greet many who are new to faith, I find a lot of my ministry is to be with those who lost hope when the Southern Baptist Church lost its way some decades ago.

I am ministering to people who left SBC churches, some who worked or volunteered for decades within them, who were puzzled how the grace-giving God they knew personally and the narrow-minded God that preachers preached could be the same God.

I walk alongside folks who couldnt find God inside church walls any longer when their loved ones were shown the door after they came out as gay, divorced, fell into the disease of addiction or voted outside of prescribed party lines.

I am bisexual and Christian. I dream of a world where both my identities can coexist.

I experience healing among people whose doubts were muffled, whose questioning of the churchs manmade-concrete-statements warranted the label of sinner.

I laugh with congregants who swore a lifetime ago that theyd never step into a Baptist church again, yet find themselves here.

I rejoice with congregants as they find freedom in untethered curiosity about Gods presence in this world, whose holiest answers to big theological questions may simply be, I dont know. I believe we are most open to experiencing the Holy when we can say, I dont know.

Women have been pushed aside by the Southern Baptist Church

Even without a 66% vote, the Southern Baptist Church has attempted to devalue the very women who God has called to further the Gospel. Instead of believing women, or even offering a humble I dont know, the Southern Baptist Church has said, We know. (And its not you.)

Rev. Molly Shoulta Tucker

I wonder how many gifted and called women have left the church, or will leave the church, because their call was stifled with an ill-timed and earth-shattering: Not you.

I wonder how deeply the lie that womens voices, stories, and callings dont matter will settle in the psyches of girls and boys and continue to perpetuate environments for spiritual, mental, physical, emotional or sexual abuse.

I pray for the little girl in those cold SBC pews, whose experience of Gods call does not match the limiting words she hears proclaimed. I pray for the women who have yet to hear: I believe you. (I believe you.) I pray the church that doesnt let women speak will inevitably instill in their children the willpower of Ruth, the bravery of Deborah, the thick-skin of Mary, and the craftiness of the unnamed women disciples who carried forward Jesus ministry.

Even in our theological disagreements, I am positive we can agree on one thing: whether in the pulpit or at the piano, in the secretarys office or the Pastors study  women always have and always will carry the love of Jesus forward to the next generation. That, we know.

Rev. Molly Shoulta Tucker is a Louisville native, and a graduate of Georgetown College and Duke Divinity School. She pastors Ridgewood Baptist Church (40258). She is the oncoming Board Chair of Baptist Women in Ministry and the Moderator of Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of Kentucky.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Baptist ban on women pastors rightly failed. SBC doesn't speak for us
Southern Baptists Vote to Oppose IVF and Urge U.S. Government to 'Restrain' the Practice

The approved resolution states that embryos are human beings that could be destroyed during IVF

Doug McSchooler/AP

Southern Baptists, the countrys largest denomination of Protestant Christians, voted to oppose the use of in vitro fertilization (IVF) during a national convention on Wednesday.

On June 12, more than 10,000 delegates gathered in Indianapolis for the Southern Baptist Convention and voted to approve a resolution On the Ethical Realities of Reproductive Technologies and the Dignity of the Human Embryo.

During the convention, several delegates with varying viewpoints gave emotional speeches about their personal experiences with IVF prior to the vote.

The approved resolution states that IVF participates in the destruction of embryonic human life and increasingly engages in dehumanizing methods for determining suitability for life and genetic sorting.

It also urges delegates to reaffirm the unconditional value and right to life of every human being, including those in an embryonic stage, and to only utilize reproductive technologies consistent with that affirmation, especially in the number of embryos generated in the IVF process.

This vote is not a ban and will have no effect on families pursuing fertility treatments. However, the resolution encourages people to advocate for the government to restrain actions inconsistent with the dignity and value of every human being, which necessarily includes frozen embryonic human beings.

Related: Mothers IVF Journey Halted Due to Alabama Ruling: 'Our Sadness Turned to Complete Anger' (Exclusive)

Ted Horowitz/Getty

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In vitro fertilization is a medical procedure that provides a possible solution for women who have difficulty getting pregnant. It involves retrieving eggs from the ovaries and combining them with sperm in a lab to create fertilized embryos. The embryos can then be transferred into the uterus in an attempt to create a pregnancy. IVF is done in cycles and one full cycle takes about two to three weeks.

The Southern Baptist Conventions vote follows the Alabama Supreme Court's February 16 ruling that frozen embryos are now legally considered children in the state. The decision came as a result of a wrongful death lawsuit brought by couples whose frozen embryos were destroyed at a fertility clinic in December 2020 when a patient entered a cryogenic nursery storage unit and removed several embryos.

Due to the decision, no healthcare provider will be willing to provide treatments if those treatments may lead to civil or criminal charges, American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM) said in a statement condemning the ruling.



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(NewsNation)  Southern Baptists voted Wednesday to oppose the use of in vitro fertilization.

The nonbinding proclamation calls on members of the countrys largest evangelical denomination to only support reproductive technologies that affirm the value and right to life of every human being from the moment of conception.

The vote came from 10,000 Southern Baptist Convention delegates, known as messengers, who are meeting at the denominations annual conference this week in Indianapolis.

On Wednesday, messengers approved the IVF measure, which encourages Southern Baptists to only use reproductive methods that affirm the unconditional value and right to life of every human being, including those in the embryonic stage.

VIDEO: Christian couples wrestle with in vitro fertilization

Wednesdays vote came a day after messengers voted to expel a Virginia church from the denomination for subscribing to the belief women can serve as pastors within the Southern Baptist church.

Despite Tuesdays move involving the Virginia congregation, messengers voted to reject a formal ban on women clergy, although the denomination informally does not allow women to serve in that role.

Trump to Christian advocacy group: Youre going to make a comeback if I win

As with the measure involving female church leaders, the IVF proclamation does not formally ban those within the denomination from using the reproductive technology. Those who choose to pursue IVF treatments will not face any punishment from the denomination, the measure concludes.

Rather, the amendment expresses empathy for couples experiencing infertility and says that all children are a gift from God, no matter the circumstances of their conception.

Wednesdays vote marked the first time that Southern Baptists have addressed the topic of IVF technology, The New York Times reported. However, in 2021 Southern Baptists at the annual meeting passed a resolution declaring unequivocally that abortion is murder.

Before the vote, the debate exhibited the divisions that exist within Southern Baptists on the issue of IVF technology. Although the vast majority of evangelicals are morally opposed to abortion, many are open to the use of IVF technology,

Gender identity, abortion divisive subjects for US voters: Survey

Those at the Indianapolis conference who opposed the resolution said that the measure could prove harmful to some Southern Baptists.

This resolution would castigate and condemn the entirely moral and ethical actions of these two friends of mine calling their faithful sacrifice, struggle, and blessing a wicked thing, Michigan messenger Daniel Taylor said, according to The Tennessean. It would also unnecessarily make it more difficult for all of us to reach those who have gone through IVF as parents or children.

In passing the measure, messengers also called on their fellow Southern Baptists to advocate for the government to restrain actions inconsistent with the dignity of every human being, which necessarily includes frozen embryonic human beings, The New York Times reported.

The report said that last month, the denominations public policy arm sent a letter to U.S. senators, asking lawmakers to clamp down on the use of IVF. The newspaper reported that the authors of the resolution that was passed Wednesday said that the topic of IVF technology is still debated among anti-abortion Christians.

I want to do more than nudge Republicans who are against us on this. I want to call them out for their error and inconsistency, R. Albert Mohler Jr., president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, told the Times this week.

Wednesdays vote comes four months after the Alabama Supreme Court ruled that embryos are children  a ruling that halted the states IVF clinics from operating. The Alabama court decision came after grievances were filed by multiple IVF patients whose embryos were taken out of freezing, dropped on the floor and destroyed.

The ruling declared that frozen embryos are legally considered children and are, therefore, protected under Alabamas Wrongful Death of a Minor Act.

Immediately after the high courts decision, former President Donald Trump, the presumptive Republican nominee for president, said he would strongly support IVF availability.

Trump has also declined to support a national ban on abortion, saying each state should have its own laws.

Earlier this week, Trump told anti-abortion Christian groups to stand up for innocent life. In recorded remarks, the former president said that everyone needs to pull together to preserve their values, including religious liberty, free speech, innocent life and Americas heritage and traditions.

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 Queen City News.
A computer rendering of the International Space Station. The crew aboard the station is safe, after a scare yesterday. Credit - Getty Images/Science Photo Libra; Science Photo Library

Among the most dreaded people at NASA are the folks known as the simsups. Simsup is short for simulation supervisor and the people who hold that job are the ones who devise and conduct elaborateand harrowingflight simulations, putting both engineers in Mission Control and astronauts in simulators through make-believe breakdowns and emergencies to test their moxie and mettle and prepare them for crises during real missions. Simulations are no easy thing, and in his fine autobiography, Flight: My Life in Mission Control, Chris Kraft, the original Director of Flight Crew Operations during the earliest days of the space program, evocatively described controllers at their consoles sweating real sweat as they fought to save astronauts from a make-believe crisis that felt every bit the real deal.

AS NPR reports, yesterday, June 12, there was a lot more sweating going as space followers listening in to the air-to-ground traffic between Houston and the International Space Station (ISS) on NASAs website heard the alarming call that an astronaut was suffering from DCS, or decompression sickness. DCS is a very real risk on the ISS, which is filled with air at a sea level pressure of 14.7 pounds per square inch, keeping astronauts safe from the vacuum outside. There is no shortage of seams and fittings aboard the station, any one of which could spring a leak and threaten the lives of the crew aboard. Since 2019, NASA and Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, have been monitoring a very slow leak aboard the Russian Zvezda module, which has never proved life-threatening, but has defied efforts at a fix nonetheless.

The announcement about a DCS emergency put the Zvezda leak front of mind for listeners on the NASA loop, but ISS officials quickly sounded the all-clear, announcing on X, formerly Twitter, that the call was just the work of the simsups, the controllers, and an astronaut crew training at the SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, Calif., who were running a simulation and inadvertently crossed their transmissions with the air-to-ground line.

There is no emergency situation going on aboard the International Space Station, the X post read. At approximately 5:28 p.m. CDT, audio was aired on the NASA livestream from a simulation audio channel on the ground indicating a crew member was experiencing effects related to decompression sickness (DCS). This audio was inadvertently misrouted from an ongoing simulation where crew members and ground teams train for various scenarios in space and is not related to a real emergency. The International Space Station crew members were in their sleep period at the time. All remain healthy and safe, and tomorrows spacewalk will start at 8 a.m. EDT as planned.

SpaceX also rushed up a post. This was only a test, it read. The crew training in Hawthorne is safe and healthy as is the Dragon spacecraft docked to the @space_station.

Space station activities are proceeding more or less as planned today, though the spacewalk, involving NASA astronauts Tracy C. Dyson and Matt Dominick, was postponed. As of 10:40 AM EDT, NASA had not announced the cause of the postponement, but the errant DCS emergency does not appear to have been the reason.

Write to Jeffrey Kluger at jeffrey.kluger@time.com.
'Speak up or remain silent': New details shared on secret recording of LMPD meeting

An attorney for Maj. Shannon Lauder, a senior officer with the Louisville Metro Police Department, has shared more details of a secretly recorded meeting he says led to the suspension of Chief Jaquelyn Gwinn-Villaroel.

Lawyer Jared Smith said Lauder voiced concerns about working with Maj. Brian Kuriger during a May 22 meeting between Gwinn-Villaroel and members of her command staff.

In that meeting, which Lauder attended virtually, she told the chief that Kuriger, "has sexually harassed me and attacked me. I cannot work with him," according to a recording of the meeting shared with The Courier Journal. The recording has not been independently verified.

After, seconds of silence follow the major's allegation before Gwinn-Villaroel resumes one minute later, when she announces the promotion of Kuriger to lieutenant colonel.

"We'll have to revisit on the status moving forward," Gwinn-Villaroel is heard in the audio telling Lauder.

During a press conference Thursday morning, Lauder's attorney, Smith, described the chiefs tone in that meeting as aggressive and threatening. Additionally, he said it was clear the environment of that meeting was not welcoming or safe.

It evidences, he said, "poor leadership."

He did not provide additional details indicating whether the alleged assault was related to the alleged sexual harassment, though he did say he is investigating allegations that span the last four years. He said he was retained by Lauder prior to the May 22 meeting.

By coming forward with the allegations and the recording of the chiefs response to the allegations, Smith said, Lauders goal is to hold LMPD leaders accountable and to spark real, long-standing change, within the department.

There is potential for a lawsuit being filed, Smith said.

If at the conclusion of my own investigation, if the facts  turn out to be actionable and it is my clients ultimate desire to pursue a lawsuit, then I will certainly file a lawsuit on her behalf, he said.

Mayor Craig Greenberg announced late Wednesday that Gwinn-Villaroel had been suspended following concerns over how she handled a workplace sexual harassment allegation. However, he has not named the officers involved or verified the suspension was connected to the May 22 meeting.

"I will not tolerate sexual misconduct in Louisville Metro Government, including in LMPD," Greenberg said when announcing the suspension. "Rules and policies are in place for a reason and they need to be followed."

Smith said he was encouraged with the steps that Mayor Greenberg has taken thus far.

Lauder had not taken her concerns to the chief prior to the May 22 meeting, Smith said.

"While Major Lauder was exploring ways to report the complaint in a confidential way, she felt compelled to makeher statement in front of her colleagues, due to the way she was put on the spot by the chief," Smith said in a written statement sent out ahead of Thursday's press conference.

"Speak up or remain silent were her choices," he continued. "The latter is an all-too-common occurrence among women who are harassed in the workplace."

Lauder is a 16-year veteran of LMPD according to her attorney, and leads the departments 1st Division, which covers downtown and part of the West End.

She previously oversaw LMPDs Special Victims Unit, which includes the departments Sex Crimes Squad.

Asked about her current status on the force and if she was working, Smith said: Maj. Lauder is processing everything thats happened and is considering her options.

Kuriger did not immediately respond to an email and LinkedIn message sent by The Courier Journal. An automatic reply email from his Louisville Metro Government email account said he was out of the office from June 8 through June 16.

Contact reporter Krista Johnson at kjohnson3@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Shannon Lauder lawyer outlines what led to her speaking up at meeting
Sir Keir Starmer has said he will impose 20pc VAT on private school fees 'straight away' if his party is elected on July 4 - Stefan Rousseau/PA Wire

Parents with special needs children could still be hit by Labours VAT raid on private schools because of long wait times for paperwork that would exempt them.

Labour has said children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) at private schools will be exempt from the tax rise where their fees are paid by councils under so-called education, health and care (EHC) plans.

Many pupils with the EHC plans are taught in the dozen specialist private schools across Britain that cater for students diagnosed with conditions like dyslexia, dyspraxia and autism.

But just 7,600 pupils at private schools receiving SEND support currently have EHC plans, while 103,000 do not, according to the Independent Schools Council (ISC), an industry body for private schools.

And more than half of applications to councils for the plans that fund places take longer than 20 weeks to be processed, government data shows.

Meanwhile, Sir Keir Starmer has promised to force private schools to pay 20pc VAT on fees straight away with the tax coming into force as soon as September if his party is elected on July 4.

Michelle Catterson, headmaster at Moon Hall School, a private school in Reigate for SEND children with 200 pupils, said: Children with a specialist education needs should not be penalised.

My wish is for the Labour party to listen to parents with children with SEND and make sure those children are not penalised.

She estimated EHC applications could take between 18 months and two years to process.

This means there would be absolutely no chance that parents who apply now for EHC plans could expect to have their funding finalised by the next academic year, when cost of private education is expected to surge.

Moon Hall School, where fees are 25,000 a year, has 60 children who are not on EHC plans.

Mrs Catterson added that if the school was forced to pay VAT on their fees it would have to make cuts to its overall service.

John Stevenson, chairman of the governors at Frewen College, a special education school in East Sussex, said the schools stretched finances would not be able to absorb the cost of VAT and keep prices the same for parents.

Frewen College costs 28,000 a year for day school and 40,000 for boarding and offers specialist teaching in classes of no more than eight.

Of its 130 pupils 52 do not have EHC plans.

An EHC plan describes a child or young persons special needs and sets out criteria to help meet these requirements.

It can be used to obtain funding from local authorities for places at private schools which offer tailored support to children with SEND not typically available at most state schools.

Local authorities are required to cover all of the costs associated with special educational needs.

In January of last year there were just over 517,000 EHC plans in circulation. In that year there were 114,482 requests for the plans made to local authorities and 66,706 new plans issued.

Julie Robinson, chief executive of the ISC, warned that Labours plans could lead to an influx of new applications for EHC plans that would overwhelm local authorities.

She said: We are calling for a full impact assessment of Labours plans to tax education to look at this and other unintended consequences that will affect state schools.

A Labour Party spokesman said: The next Labour government will break down the barriers to opportunity by investing in all of our state schools and recruiting over 6,500 new teachers through ending the tax breaks for private schools.

He added: Places that are funded by Education Health and Care Plans for children with special educational needs will not have a higher cost as a result of VAT.

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Special Forces of the Department of Cyber Security together with their colleagues from the Defense Forces have hit the Russian counter-battery radar station "Zoo" with several FPV drones. The cost of such a radar is $25 million.

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This was reported by the Security Service of Ukraine. The agency also released a video.

In order to mislead the Ukrainian military, the occupiers camouflaged the radar station well and placed several models nearby. But this did not save their "Zoo".

According to the SBU, this complex is quite rare in the enemy army.

The Zoo radar complex for reconnaissance and fire control (counter-battery radar) is used by the Russian occupiers to detect our MLRS, air defense systems, and other firepower, as well as to detect drones.

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As reported by OBOZ.UA, the Ukrainian Defense Forces launched a group missile attack on Russian air defense in the occupied Ukrainian Crimea on the night of June 12. An S-300 anti-aircraft missile division and two S-400 anti-aircraft missile divisions near Belbek and Sevastopol were attacked.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and in Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Spikes, seat dividers, even Baby Shark  camping bans like the one under review at SCOTUS are part of broader strategies that push out homeless people

Individual rules against activities such as camping or just resting on a ledge may not seem like a big deal. But taken together, they make life more difficult for people without shelter. Robert Rosenberger

Should cities be allowed to outlaw sleeping in public, even when there are no beds available in local shelters? This is what the U.S. Supreme Court will decide in its review of the case Grants Pass v. Johnson.

Lower courts have ruled that arresting someone for sleeping outside when there are no free shelter beds in the area is a violation of the Eighth Amendment, which protects against cruel and unusual punishment. In other words, its cruel to punish people who are sleeping in public if they have nowhere else to go, because sleeping is a normal and necessary human behavior. Now the Supreme Court justices will determine whether this ruling can stand.

Advocates for unhoused people argue these kinds of anti-camping laws effectively make homelessness a crime. If the Supreme Court overturns the ruling, this could intensify cities efforts to treat the unhoused as criminals.

As a professor of philosophy who studies homelessness, I believe it is important to understand camping bans as part of wider efforts to displace unhoused people. Cities do many things to assist people experiencing homelessness, providing everything from shelters to food pantries. Yet cities also use a variety of tactics to push unhoused people out of public view.

Perhaps the most revealing is hostile architecture, a focus of my research. This term is often used for public spaces designed in ways that discriminate against specific vulnerable populations. The most common examples are objects that present a physical barrier to everyday activities for people without housing.

Hostile design

One common example are spikes added to ledges to deter people from leaning or sitting. Since spikes are often quite noticeable, however, and their purpose is obvious, they occasionally elicit controversy.

Spikes on a ledge in San Francisco. Robert Rosenberger

Another pervasive but less attention-grabbing form of hostile architecture are benches that have been redesigned to make them difficult or impossible to use as sleeping spaces. This is accomplished through a variety of design schemes that prevent people from lying down, from bucket seating or seat dividers to armrests.

Any number of other hostile physical obstructions can be found. Garbage cans are often fitted with hood designs, as well as external cases with built-in locks, to deter trash-picking.

Other designs alter the landscape itself. Bollards or boulders can be brought in to break up potential camping spaces. Fencing can be used to block off sheltered areas such as highway underpasses.

A fenced-off underpass in Charlotte, S.C. Robert Rosenberger

Hostile design isnt always about objects; sometimes it involves actions, too.

Businesses and churches have been accused of regularly spraying water on potential sleeping spaces, sometimes via automatic sprinkler systems. Noise pollution can be another strategy, blasting loud music or annoying sounds to clear potential loitering places. Such was the case of a park in West Palm Beach, Florida, where the cloying childrens song Baby Shark was played along with other kids tunes each night.

Legal scholar Sarah Schindler argues that these kinds of hostile designs should be recognized as a form of regulation. As she puts it, Regulation through architecture is just as powerful as law, but it is less explicit, less identifiable, and less familiar to courts, legislators, and the general public.

Like the law, hostile architecture can have the effect of regulating peoples behaviors. But unlike the law, instances of hostile architecture are not subject to any kind of official oversight and often go unnoticed.

Whats there  and whats not

Once you learn about hostile architecture, you start to see examples everywhere. But perhaps even more importantly, you also begin to notice the absence of certain items and services in public spaces.

A sidewalk bench with armrests in New York City. Robert Rosenberger

Rather than add armrests to a bench, the bench can be simply taken away. Trees can be removed to prevent loitering in the shade. Whole regions of cities are devoid of public restrooms, with options in private establishments available to paying customers only. Public space researcher Cara Chellew has come to refer to these conspicuously absent expected things as ghost amenities.

Hostile architecture, however, is only the tip of the iceberg. Just below the surface are the variety of laws that target particular behaviors: storing personal items in public space, loitering, panhandling and vagrancy. There are laws against sitting or lying down in public  so-called sit/lie laws. Anti-camping laws often apply not just to tents but to using any kind of covering at all, such as a blanket.

Even giving food to unhoused people is outlawed in some cities, if the individual or organization does not have a permit.

Trash and recycle cans with rain hoods and padlocked casings in Philadelphia. Robert Rosenberger

The National Homelessness Law Center has been charting the increase in these kinds of laws across the United States. In a review of 187 cities from 2006-2019, the center found a 78% increase in sit/lie laws and a 103% increase in laws against vagrancy, loafing and loitering. There was also a 92% increase in camping bans.

Informal policies can also serve as de facto bans on homelessness, such as when police pressure unhoused people to move along.

Many shelters, where they exist, are not open during daytime hours, leaving people without housing no choice but to loiter or continue moving throughout the day.

At times, shelters themselves present roadblocks that discourage people from using their services, such as patterns of discrimination against LGBTQ+ patrons or policies that ban pets.

Stakes at SCOTUS

On their own, many of these laws or objects may seem unobjectionable, or at least not a big deal. How much should we care about a bench with armrests, or a park with rules prohibiting sleeping?

When taken in the aggregate, however, these things can function together to exclude the unhoused from public space entirely. None of them literally make homelessness a crime  but in critics eyes, these laws and patterns of design have the same effect. The courts decision on Grants Pass v. Johnson will determine whether treating unhoused people as criminals is constitutional.

This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit, independent news organization bringing you facts and trustworthy analysis to help you make sense of our complex world. It was written by: Robert Rosenberger, Georgia Institute of Technology

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Robert Rosenberger is currently serving as President of the Society for Philosophy and Technology.
(KRON)  Masses of spotted lanternfly eggs were intercepted at the California state line earlier this spring, according to the California Association of Winegrape Growers. The egg masses were intercepted at the Truckee Border Protection Station in late March on a shipment originating in New York and bound for Sonoma County.

Spotted lanternflies (SLF) are an invasive planthopper species native to Asia. First discovered in Pennsylvania in 2014, the flies feed on the sap of grapevines while leaving behind a sticky honeydew residue on clusters and leaves.

Their activities stress the plants, decrease vine health, and in some cases, can lead to plant death, said Natalie Collins, president of the California Association of Winegrape Growers.

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The egg masses intercepted in March were found on a 30-foot-tall metal art installation. Inspectors found 11 viable egg masses on the art piece and refused the shipment entry into California. The rejected shipment returned to Nevada and officials further inspected the artwork, finding 30 more egg masses.

(AP Photo, File)

The art piece was hot power washed with detergent under the supervision of officials. The shipment returned to Truckee station and was released with a Warning Hold Notice to allow further inspection.

On April 4, the owner of the sculpture allowed county staff to open hollow beams and use cranes to move parts of the artwork for further inspection. Three more egg masses were discovered at that time.

If other spotted lanternfly egg masses made it into California undetected, they could produce adult SLFs in the coming weeks, officials said. Peak populations of the pests are expected in late summer or early fall, with the potential to impact the winegrape industry.

The adult SLF is typically visible from July to November. They have the ability to fly, but not very far. At rest, with their wings folded, the flies are a dull tan-gray color with black spots. When they take flight, the adults wings open to reveal a bright red, black and white pattern.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KRON4.
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  Another wet winter in the Rocky Mountains has runoff flowing into the Colorado River increasing water levels at Lake Powell.

According to the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the water level at the nations second-largest reservoir, which meanders across the Utah-Arizona border, was at 3,575 feet above sea level as of Tuesday  about six feet higher than it was at the start of the month.

Following pandemic surge, visitor numbers leveling off at Utahs Mighty 5 parks

While the inflow marks a boon for the summer boating season, its also led officials to issue a warning about rising shorelines, as they can jump up to two feet per day.

Property left near the shoreline can quickly become submerged in mud and/or water, wrote officials with Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, which encompasses Lake Powell.

Visitors are advised to park 300 to 400 feet away from the waters edge, as a vehicle left too close to the water could be inundated amid the rising shoreline.

Additionally, boaters are urged to approach the shore carefully.

Boat operators need to use extreme caution while navigating the lake, as large debris may be present, officials said, in a Facebook post. Boaters are advised to follow the main channel buoys which mark good water.

Unlike other reservoirs in Utah, which are mostly full following back-to-back wet winters, Lake Powell is only at 38% capacity.

For decades, drought in the American Southwest and water withdrawals have led to the long-term decline of the lake. In the spring of 2022, it was at its lowest level (3,522 feet) since it was filled in 1963.

Last year, the lake saw a significant rise in water level during the spring runoff, and more than 5 million tourists flooded in to enjoy it.

This marked a visitation record for Glen Canyon National Recreation Area, and it was the first time more people visited Lake Powell than Zion National Park, the busiest of Utahs Mighty Five parks.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to ABC4 Utah.
SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI)  What seems like a growing population of ground squirrels has been seen running around near the San Diego waterfront over the last few weeks.

A viewer who frequents the park land surrounding Liberty Station and the San Diego International Airport wrote to FOX 5/KUSI about the heightened ground squirrel activity, saying he has seen more of the furry rodents as of late.

Unlike tree squirrels, these critters are also known to burrow into the ground, where they sleep, rest, rear young, store food and avoid danger  something that the viewer said was increasingly prevalent throughout the waterfront park.

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Ground squirrels have always been quite active across San Diego, including in Liberty Station, according to the San Diego Humane Society. The rodents are the most common species of squirrel that can be found in the region.

However, Humane Society experts say locals may notice more ground squirrel activity over the next few weeks at Liberty Station and in other areas where they are known to frequent.

That is because the ground squirrels are currently in their mating and baby season, which typically occurs twice a year. With a gestation period of about one to two months, squirrels will usually give birth to their litter of kits in early spring or late summer.

According to the Humane Society, once they are born, baby squirrels can be seen running around outside their burrow more as they develop life skills.

But that is not to say nothing is being done about the critters: In a statement to FOX 5/KUSI, a spokesperson for the citys Parks and Recreation Department said staff are keeping an eye on all areas of Liberty Station park space that fall under the City of San Diegos jurisdiction for population growth of the ground squirrels.

According to the spokesperson, staff are on the ground regularly, filling in holes as they appear and conducting other maintenance activities through the Integrated Pest Management program.

The program, which focuses on the long-term management of the equilibrium in our environment, uses myriad techniques like education, habitat modification and eradication, if population numbers require it. Chemical management practices are used when all other options have been exhausted, the spokesperson noted.

The Parks and Recreation Department also has a certified vendor who identifies areas of overpopulation and performs necessary abatement services as needed, according to the city, especially in areas where burrowing into fragile ground could cause destabilization and erosion.

Should parkgoers come across some of these rodents in the meantime, the Humane Society urges people to leave the squirrels alone and find ways to coexist. The only circumstances where the nonprofit suggests interacting with the critters is if a baby appears to have been abandoned or if an adult squirrel is sick or injured.

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More details on how to handle squirrels in case of these issues can be found on the Humane Societys website.

For homeowners who want to be mindful of squirrels near their property during the mating season, the Humane Society has a few recommendations:

Block all holes or entry points with wood or wire mesh to prevent a squirrel from getting into a building  they will take up residence inside if it is easily accessible.

Install only free-standing bird feeders in places a squirrel cannot get access, like on a metal pole at least six feet high. Keep them away from shrubs and overhanging tree limbs.

Take care to prune overhanging tree limbs, shrubs or vines in a backyard space that might provide access to an attic or other parts of a building. Also cover telephone and electric wires near a house with long plastic tubing, which makes it harder for them to climb.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 5 San Diego & KUSI News.
ST. LOUIS  A St. Louis County man appeared in federal court on Wednesday and denied committing a drug robbery while armed with a machine gun.

Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Missouri said Walter C. Moore, 19, was indicted on June 5 on charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm, possession of a machine gun, robbery, and possession of a machine gun in furtherance of a crime of violence.

According to the St. Louis County Police Departments probable cause statement, the theft occurred on April 25. Police did not provide a location or time of day.

The victim told police she was driving her 2014 Mazda 6 in an area and had gotten lost. She noticed Moore on the sidewalk, who flagged her down and asked for a cigarette.

County police claim the victim let Moore sit in the front seat of her car and that Moore asked her for drugs. He then pulled out a pistol from a black bag and ordered the woman out of the car.

Police claim Moore got in the drivers seat and left while the victim ran to a nearby home to seek help.

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The victims phone was still in the Mazda, which police used to locate the vehicle. Police claim Moore tried to run away on foot but was apprehended after a brief chase.

Moores black bag contained narcotics, a Glock pistol, and a switch or auto sear device, which renders a semi-automatic firearm into a fully automatic weapon. The pistol was also equipped with an extended magazine and a laser sight.

If convicted in federal court, the possession of a machine gun charge carries a mandatory minimum of 30 years.

On March 18, 2024, Moore was convicted for unlawful use of a weapon, first-degree harassment, tampering with a motor vehicle, and resisting arrest. Hes been held in jail since.

In the aforementioned case, Moore drove a stolen car to his girlfriends home in University City and fired a gun into the air outside the residence. He led police on car chase, which he streamed on Instagram, and texted a death threat to his girlfriend. After being arrested and booked, police said Moore called a friend and said that hed kill his girlfriend once he got out of jail.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2.
ST. LOUIS  A St. Louis man appeared in federal court on Wednesday and admitted producing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) involving at least eight victims.

Prosecutors with the U.S. Attorneys Office for the Eastern District of Missouri said Tracy Jenkins, 59, made videos of sexual abuse of minors and circulated that material online.

Jenkins admitted making videos as early as 2013. He admitted sexually abusing five children and recording the abuse. According to Jenkins plea agreement, at least three other victims have since been identified.

One of the victims was 6 years old when the abuse began, and another was 11. Prosecutors said Jenkins provided food, money, clothing, and other items to some of his victims.

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The FBI previously stated that investigators first became aware of the videos in 2017 and had been working to identify the victims ever since. Other videos had been circulating online since at least 2022.

The FBIs Crimes Against Children and Human Trafficking Unit successfully identified one of the victims and notified the St. Louis FBI office.

On Feb. 23, 2023, FBI agents received information about the identity and location of one of the victims. An interview with that individual led authorities to four other victims, all of whom identified Jenkins as the man who abused them over the years and recorded those encounters.

The following day, federal agents went to Jenkins home with a search warrant. They found a hard drive containing more than 200 videos that not only matched the videos found online but had other incidents with victims who had not yet been identified. Jenkins was taken into custody that day.

FBI agents also discovered a Sarsilmaz 9mm pistol in Jenkins home. The gun had been reported stolen in St. Louis County.

According to court documents, Jenkins has a prior conviction for misdemeanor sexual misconduct in a 1997 case in St. Louis City. As such, hes barred from possessing a firearm.

Jenkins pleaded guilty to one count of production of child pornography and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm.

Jenkins will be sentenced in December. The U.S. Attorneys Office will ask the judge for a sentence of 40 years in federal prison.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX 2.
The nonprofit St. Paul Downtown Alliance wants to expand its privately funded downtown improvement district into the Lowertown neighborhood, a move that would double the group's budget needs for street cleaners, safety ambassadors and other services aimed at shoring up the capital city's hub.

The existing district, which launched in 2021, would stretch to cover all of downtown, from the Xcel Energy Center to CHS Field. Thanks to a law passed by the Legislature last year, residential property owners would also start getting assessed for the services.

But for that to happen, the Downtown Alliance needs to drum up support. If owners subject to 35% of the proposed service charges file objections, the proposal is vetoed.

"We really feel we can make some improvements down here," Joe Spencer, president of the Downtown Alliance, said to a crowd of about 30 downtown residents gathered at the Buttered Tin last month. "We really think we can deliver some good value."

By this point, Spencer's pitch was well-rehearsed. The existing district has seen a 40% drop in what St. Paul police call "quality of life" crimes and calls for service, he said, for issues like graffiti, vandalism, disorderly conduct and panhandling. Over the same time period, Lowertown saw the same types of calls increase by 25%.

"Making half of downtown better isn't enough," Spencer said. "People don't know where these imaginary lines are."

The boundaries of the current district were drawn to bypass downtown St. Paul's largest property owner, Madison Equities, which refused to back the concept in 2021. After the company's longtime owner, Jim Crockarell, died earlier this year, his wife listed Madison Equities' entire downtown office portfolio for sale.

Representatives for Madison Equities did not respond to requests for comment. Spencer said the company makes up about 15% of the proposed new district, meaning it cannot single-handedly veto the expansion.

Property assessments would be calculated based on a building's square footage, street frontage and use. Residential properties would get rates discounted by 40% and combine to contribute close to a quarter of total assessments. Income-restricted housing is exempt under state law.

Government buildings are also exempt, but the city and county would voluntarily chip in a combined $678,000 next year, according to the Downtown Alliance's proposed $2.7 million budget for the expanded district.

If approved, the expansion would allow the district to add safety ambassadors with better training and equipment, Spencer said. The additional funds would also pay for a city attorney exclusively dedicated to pursuing chronic offenders and quality-of-life issues downtown.

The existing district, which is overseen by a board of property owners, contracts the Downtown Alliance to manage operations like its safety communications center, where a dispatcher helps coordinate communications between private security teams, police and social service agencies. With a camera-sharing program and live communication channel, officials in the center are able to see and spread real-time safety information.

Olaf Minge, who bought a condo near Mears Park last fall, said he notices the impact of the street ambassadors weekly when he volunteers to pick up litter. Blocks within the current district will be spotless, he said, while others will have plenty to clean.

The average condo owner would pay $65.50 a year to the new district, which "doesn't hurt the pocketbook," he added.

Minge said he thinks most neighbors support the idea. Alicia Hinze, who's owned the Buttered Tin for 11 years, noticed similar sentiment among the group asking questions at her restaurant.

"I agree that it can't always be put on government to correct all the things," Hinze said. "The private sector and citizens have to do our part as well  not just pay taxes and assume everything is going to be taken care of."

Hinze said she leases her space, meaning she would not be directly assessed for the district. But she assumes the fees will eventually trickle down to most downtown tenants.

However, longtime Lowertown commercial property owner David Brooks said he's lost most of his office tenants in the wake of the pandemic. He already received a notice in the mail saying if the district is approved, he would owe about $3,000 in assessments for one of his four buildings.

"There are enough taxes without creating a special interest district," Brooks said. "We clean our own sidewalks. We take care of graffiti. We have guards."

He added that he thinks the proposed expansion will be vetoed by property owners. That's what happened along W. 7th Street last year, when the Downtown Alliance attempted to extend its services to the area.

City Council Member Rebecca Noecker, who represents downtown, said the purpose of an improvement district is to provide services "above and beyond what the city would do on its own."

"For better, for worse, we've had the chance to have sort of a controlled experiment," she said. "It's in some ways proving its value just by the very fact that we only have it in a portion of downtown right now."

Spencer said he expects the proposal to be introduced to the City Council in the coming weeks. If the council gives its approval, there will be a 45-day window for property owners to register objections. Property owners will also have future opportunities to file objections once a year during the city's budgeting process.

"This is a tough moment for downtown," Spencer said. "If we don't get the clean and safe piece right, the rest doesn't matter. If people don't feel safe, people won't come. If people won't come, the investors won't come, the developments won't come. This is kind of essential."
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (WFLA)  A St. Petersburg police employee is facing charges for her involvement in a crime.

According to officials, Robin Conyers, 59, who worked as a civilian employee with the department, accessed confidential databases to give information to a man, who used that to commit a crime.

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Police said Conyers gave a man, Delon Walton, information about a deceased owner of a vehicle. Walton used that information to fraudulently transfer the title of the car to his company.

Walton was charged in May on several charges, officials said.

It was Conyers supervisor who noticed the non-work related entirely during their routine quarterly audit. They turned their discovery over to the Office of Professional Standards for investigation.

In addition to violating department policies, Conyer also committed a crime.

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She is charged with misuse of confidential information, offenses against computer users and the unlawful use of a two-way communication device.

Conyers was booked into the Pinellas County Jail on Thursday and placed on administrative leave without pay, pending the outcome of the charges.

This is an ongoing investigation.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.
Will Stanislaus County drive-in theater ever show movies again? Heres what happened

Uniquely is a Modesto Bee series that covers the moments, landmarks and personalities that define what makes living in the Central Valley so special.

Remember watching movies from the comfort of your car in Stanislaus County? Propping up your pillows as the smell of popcorn wafted in the air?

The Ceres Drive-In, also known as the Ceres Cruise-In, was a Central Valley institution for more than 50 years.

Moviegoers flocked to the drive-in theater at 1651 Whitmore Ave. off Highway 99 to watch films ranging from American Graffiti to Finding Nemo.

What happened to the Ceres Drive-In? Will it ever show movies again?

Heres what The Modesto Bee discovered.

Mark Stotzer is working to re-open the Ceres Drive-In theater in Ceres, Calif., on Friday, Sept. 4, 2020.

What was the Ceres Drive-In movie theater?

The Ceres Drive-In opened its doors in 1948.

Over the decades, the drive-in theater showed hit movies ranging from Gunga Din starring Cary Grant to the hit Adam Sandler comedy Click.

Clipping from The Modesto Bee in March 1950.

Clipping from The Modesto Bee, 1992.

The Ceres Drive-In offered double features during warm weather months.

The property owners had tried to convince city officials to let them operate year-round to boost business, The Bee reported in a March 2009 article. But concerns over air pollution caused by car heaters and idling motors nixed that idea.

We use to go here all the time, especially when I was a kid, Carlos C. of San Jose wrote on popular view site Yelp in 2011. So many memories!

He recalled watching Bad Boys and Friday in 1995, when it cost $5 to $7 per car load to get in.

We used to pack everybody (and their) momma in the damn car! the Yelp reviewer wrote. Hell, we even stuffed the trunk with a cousin or two.

The drive-in was charging $12 per vehicle in 2007.

Clipping from The Modesto Bee in 1997.

When did Stanislaus County movie theater close?

The Ceres Drive-In ceased operations in 2008 when the propertys owners put the 14-acre site up for sale at $2.5 million.

From 2008 to 2020, the property was used as a flea market and industrial yard.

Mark Stotzer is working to re-open the Ceres Drive-In theater in Ceres, Calif., on Friday, Sept. 4, 2020.

Why did the drive-in reopen?

The Ceres Drive-In reopened in 2020 at the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Ripon resident Mark Stotzer decided to revive the Whitmore Avenue property as a drive-in movie theater, advertising it as a safe gathering spot for families and movie lovers.

The Ceres Drive-In retained its original infrastructure, including a 100-foot metal screen. Stotzer and his team refurbished the structure, repairing holes and removing graffiti to bring it back to its former glory.

The drive-In reopened Sept. 25, 2020, charging $30 per carload and showing movies Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights.

The rebuilt drive-in had space for more than 200 guests, as well as a concession stand offering popcorn, candy, hot dogs and other snacks, and permanent restroom facilities.

Mark Stotzer is working to re-open the Ceres Drive-In theater in Ceres, Calif., on Friday, Sept. 4, 2020.

The reopened Ceres Drive-In initially featured screenings of classic films, such as American Graffiti and themed movie nights, including Halloween-themed events.

It eventually added first-run movies, such as superhero blockbuster Black Widow, according to the drive-ins Facebook account.

In October 2020, Airielle M. of Modesto wrote on Yelp that Stotzer and his team did a truly great job on revamping this for our community!

My family and I have always had the best experience! Yelp reviewer Giselle A. of Ceres wrote said in a five-star review in May 2021. Employees are always so nice and welcoming.

Mark Stotzer is working to re-open the Ceres Drive-In theater in Ceres, Calif., on Friday, Sept. 4, 2020.

Is Ceres Drive-In still showing movies?

Despite initial success, the Ceres Drive-In officially closed its doors again in 2021, according to the business Facebook account.

We had a good time until we didnt, company representatives wrote in a Facebook post from October 2021.

Once COVID-19 restrictions were lifted, the drive-in couldnt find enough employees to work there because of rude customers.

People came with bad attitudes and negative posts, so we decided to close, Ceres Drive-In representatives said in the Facebook post. We had many good patrons, but without employees it wasnt worth it.

You guys just had bad customer service, Facebook user Yvette Magana-Garcia said in a comment on the post, adding that it seemed like a teenager is answering all emails.

Another commenter, Jamshid Sami, complained about being overcharged.

The Ceres Drive-In website says there will be no more movies at the site.

Instead, the Whitmore Avenue site has become a paved area for RV parking called Ceres Paved and Secure RV Parking, according to the Ceres Drive-In website.

Thanks for the support, Ceres Drive-In representatives wrote on Facebook.

The Bee reached out to Ceres city officials to see if theres a chance of the drive-in showing movies again, but they had not responded as of Wednesday afternoon.

What do you want to know about life in Modesto? Ask our service journalism team your top-of-mind questions in the module below or email servicejournalists@modbee.com.
(Bloomberg) -- Labour Leader Keir Starmer set out his partys plan for government focused on economic growth and security, a crunch moment for Britains would-be prime minister ahead of the general election on July 4.

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Today we can turn the page, Starmer said at Labours manifesto launch in Manchester, northwest England on Thursday. Today we can lay a new foundation of stability and on that foundation, we can start to rebuild Britain.

Starmer is trying to preserve his partys poll lead of more than 20 points over Rishi Sunaks Conservatives, and publishing Labours manifesto without any major blow back is perhaps the last major stumbling block between him and 10 Downing Street. The 133-page document reiterated his pledge not to raise taxes on working people, and emphasized plans to build new homes, improve access to childcare and turbo-charge job creation in greener industries.

Labour has maintained its advantage in the three weeks since Sunak called a snap election, and the manifesto  by design  contained no major surprises. The serious tone leaned heavily on the idea that Britain faces a long road to recovery. On a day when National Health Service data showed waiting lists going up, one of the speakers was a cancer sufferer who set out how the delayed start to his treatment meant his condition is now terminal.

Labours first steps for change are a down payment on our long-term plan for the country - an immediate repair job on the damage that has been caused under 14 years of Conservative chaos and decline, Starmer said.

But it wasnt all downcast. Asked why Labours manifesto contained no rabbits or surprise policies to excite voters, Starmer took aim at Nigel Farage: the leader of the populist Reform UK party, whose sudden decision to run in the seaside town of Clacton has shaken up the campaign.

If you want politics as pantomime, I hear Clacton is nice this time of year, Starmer said. Im running as a candidate to be prime minister, not a candidate to run the circus, the Labour leader said later.

Starmers focus as Labour leader has been on rebuilding trust on the economy and wooing business after the socialist leadership of Jeremy Corbyn, who led the party to an historic election defeat in 2019.

On Thursday, Starmer made economic growth a central part of his manifesto pitch, saying it would be his number one priority.

Starmer has had to fight this election campaign batting away traditional Tory attacks that Labour would hike takes if it comes to power. He and Rachel Reeves, who will be Britains first female Chancellor of the Exchequer if Labour wins, have repeatedly said Labour has no plans to raise levies beyond what theyve already announced.

Those tax pledges include charging VAT on private school fees, abolishing the special tax status for so-called non-doms in the UK and extending the current windfall tax on oil and gas companies.

Labours manifesto also confirmed the pledge to close the loophole that allows private equity fund managers to pay capital-gains tax on their investment returns, rather than the higher rate of income tax. When the party first announced the policy in 2021, it estimated it would rake in an additional 440 million for the Treasury. Its manifesto costings now indicate they expect to raise 565 million a year by the 2028-29 tax year, with much of that income directed toward expenditure on recruiting additional mental health staff in the National Health Service.

Another pledge is to increase stamp duty on purchases of residential property by overseas buyers by 1%, which Labour says would raise 20 million. The sum of tax pledges in the manifesto would raise 8.5 billion, according to the party.

The manifesto also included:

Cap corporation tax at 25%

Create a new national wealth fund

Great British Energy to encourage investment in clean power

Reform planning rules and build 1.5 million homes

Replace the business rates tax system

Open an additional 3,000 nurseries

Reform workers rights

Create a new industrial strategy including for AI, to build data centers and infrastructure

In a statement, Conservative Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt called Labours plans a tax trap manifesto.

But Starmer hit back at the Tories record in office, as he pitched himself as the change candidate. He said Labour wouldnt return to austerity in public spending but warned that he faced a difficult inheritance if he wins power.

We know we cant wave a magic wand and pretend that everything will be fixed overnight, he said.

--With assistance from Irina Anghel and Alex Morales.

(Updates with revised estimate of revenue from closing carried interest loophole in 12th paragraph.)

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China, which is planning to skip the Peace Summit in Switzerland on June 15-16, is promoting its alternative plan to other governments. This was reported by 10 diplomats, one of whom called Beijing's campaign a "hidden boycott" of the global meeting in Switzerland.

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This was reported by Reuters. The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs claims that 45 countries have already supported Beijing's peace plan.

While ninety countries have registered to participate in the Peace Summit in Switzerland. Russia, which was not invited to the Peace Summit in Switzerland, said that this meeting would be useless. China, which has close ties with Russia, said it would not participate in the conference because it did not meet Beijing's requirements for the participation of both sides of the conflict.

During conversations with developing countries, China did not openly criticize the Swiss summit and did not directly ask them to refrain from participating, Beijing diplomats said.

However, informed sources said Beijing told developing countries that the meeting would only prolong the war. Two diplomats familiar with the matter added that China has told Western powers that many developing countries share its views on the conference.

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The Chinese Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment on its lobbying efforts. Last week, spokesman Mao Ning said: "China sincerely hopes that the peace conference will not turn into a platform for creating a bloc confrontation. Not attending it does not mean not supporting peace."

Diplomats also said that on the eve of the Peace Summit, China stepped up its information campaign through meetings with foreign officials, phone calls, and messages to foreign missions on the Chinese platform WeChat.

Last month, Beijing's special representative for Eurasian affairs, Li Hui, visited Turkey, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates and met with representatives of developing countries at their embassies in Beijing.

In explaining its refusal to attend the summit, China sought to attract developing countries to support its six-point peace plan, which was presented jointly with Brazil in May. The plan calls for an international peace conference "at an appropriate time that is recognized by both Russia and Ukraine, with equal participation of all parties and honest discussion of all peace plans."

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Beijing's proposal was supported by 45 countries, and more than 20 countries have either joined or are "seriously considering" the possibility.

"Reuters was unable to independently determine what impact China's lobbying had, but the number of registered participants at the Lucerne summit was down from the 107 that Zelenskyy's office said were confirmed in early June," the article says.

In Asia, US allies the Philippines and Japan, as well as Thailand, Singapore, and East Timor, confirmed their participation in the Peace Summit. At the same time, Malaysia said it would abstain, as did Cambodia, which has close economic ties with China. Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen denied that he was pressured by Beijing to avoid the conference. Indonesia will send its ambassador to Bern for the conference. Vietnam also did not express a clear position.

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As reported by OBOZ.UA:

 China has announced that it will not participate in the Global Peace Summit to be held in Switzerland this summer. They claimed that the event allegedly did not meet Beijing's requirements that a representative of the aggressor country Russia should participate.

 Soon after, China responded to President Zelenskyy's accusations of attempts to disrupt the Peace Summit. Beijing said that China has never "fanned or stoked the flames" of the Russian-Ukrainian war.

Only verified information on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!
Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss bans on abortion bans and interstate travel to access abortion care after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner.
Anti-abortion and abortion rights activists protest during the 50th annual March for Life rally in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on January 20, 2023, in Washington, D.C.

the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to take the case, making Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine v. U.S. Food and Drug Administration the high Anti-abortion and abortion rights activists protest during the 50th annual March for Life rally in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on January 20, 2023, in Washington, D.C. (Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Courtesy of Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on Nebraska Examiner.
Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on Maine Morning Star.
Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

 Lauren Miller, testifying about leaving Texas to obtain abortion care

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on Tennessee Lookout.
Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle.
Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on South Dakota Searchlight.
Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a Wednesday hearing of a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee held to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on Missouri Independent.
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 12: Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens as O. Carter Snead, a professor at Notre Dame University speaks during a hearing with the Senate Judiciary subcommittee on Capitol Hill on June 12, 2024 in Washington, DC. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and travel to access them after the Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization Supreme Court ruling. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy, Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on Oklahoma Voice.
Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

SUPPORT NEWS YOU TRUST. DONATE

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg spoke about his meeting with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. The politicians agreed that Budapest would not block the decisions of the upcoming NATO summit in Washington, but their views differed on support and training for the Ukrainian military.

ADVERTISIMENT

They discussed NATO's leading role in coordinating these processes. Stoltenberg said this on Wednesday, June 12, at a press conference in Brussels before a meeting of NATO defense ministers, reports European Truth.

"Orban said that Hungary would not participate in these initiatives. I stated that I accept this position," the Secretary General said.

Stoltenberg added that Budapest also promised to honor all NATO commitments and continue to finance the Alliance's joint budget.

The NATO Secretary General also said that at the meeting with Orban, he stated that NATO's goal is peace, and the Alliance "is dedicated to preventing wars and conflicts - but to do so through credible deterrence and preventing Moscow or other enemies from miscalculating our ability to defend all our allies."

"I am also quite confident that Hungary will agree with the statements that will be made at the NATO Summit, reaffirming NATO's core values and objectives," he said.

ADVERTISIMENT

As a reminder, Hungary has reconsidered its position and withdrawn its objections to the creation of a military assistance fund for Ukraine. Instead, NATO agreed not to involve Budapest in this initiative.

As reported by OBOZ.UA, Jens Stoltenberg said that military assistance to Ukraine should become mandatory for NATO member states. These states are currently making voluntary contributions to our country's defense capabilities.

Only verified information is available on our Telegram channel OBOZ.UA and Viber. Don't fall for fakes!
Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on Kentucky Lantern.
Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on North Dakota Monitor.
Lauren Miller, who was denied access to an abortion in Texas, listens during a hearing with a U.S. Senate Judiciary subcommittee on June 12, 2024. The subcommittee held the hearing to discuss abortion bans and interstate travel to access them after the 2022 Supreme Court ruling that overturned the right to an abortion. (Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  When Lauren Miller flew from her home state of Texas to Colorado two years ago she felt a moment of relief when the plane took off  not because she had been delayed for hours or because she needed a vacation, but because she was about to meet with doctors who would be able to treat her complicated pregnancy with twins.

Miller, whose family has been in the Lone Star State for eight generations, testified Wednesday before a U.S. Senate panel about the struggles she faced after learning in 2022 one of the twins brains wasnt developing correctly and was about half fluid.

One of our twin sons was going to die. It was just a matter of how soon, Miller testified. And every day that he continued to grow, he put his twin and myself at greater and greater risk.

The fear was complicated by Texas strict restrictions on abortion, which forced Miller to seek out treatment options without her doctors assistance.

Miller testified that, thankfully, she had a longtime friend she could trust who was an OB-GYN, who understood the landscape of abortion laws and knew doctors who could help address her diagnosis.

She fortunately knew an OB-GYN in Colorado, in a safe state, Miller testified. And Ill never forget getting on the phone with him and his first words were, My feet are on the ground in Colorado, and I can answer anything you ask.

Miller said the best option for her and her family was to have a single fetal reduction, but that was technically an abortion and she couldnt get it in Texas.

While discussing how to travel, she and her husband debated leaving their cell phones at home and only using cash out of fear of being tracked or facing prosecution for traveling for the procedure. But they ultimately took a flight instead of driving due to how sick she was at the time.

We didnt tell anybody what had happened, Miller said Wednesday. We didnt tell anybody what we had done because we were so scared.

Bill on interstate travel

The hearing on interstate travel was held by the Senate Judiciary Committees subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse, the panels chairman, said Congress should pass legislation from Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto that would reaffirm that people have a right to travel between states for reproductive health care.

Cortez Masto testified before the committee on Wednesday that her home state has seen a drastic increase in patients traveling for abortion care during the last two years and that the bill would protect those people and their doctors.

Our legislation reaffirms that women have a fundamental right to interstate travel and makes it crystal clear states cannot prosecute women or anyone who helps them for going to another state to get the critical reproductive care they need, Cortez Masto said. The Freedom to Travel for Healthcare Act would also protect healthcare providers in pro-choice states like Nevada, who help these women traveling from out of state.

The right to travel is already fundamental throughout the United States, but several GOP states have begun looking for ways to block their residents from traveling for abortions.

Right to travel

Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women and Families in Washington, D.C., testified during the hearing that attempting to bar travel is highly problematic, inconsistent with long-standing constitutional protections and Supreme Court precedent, and would bring even more disruption to our healthcare system.

Frye told senators that the right to travel between the states is one of the bedrock foundations of the United States that was included in the Articles of Confederation, which were approved before the Constitution, though the right is also found in that document.

The efforts to really impede the right to travel, really go to the heart of our Constitution and our democracy. Frye said. And, you know, even in a world where people disagree on a lot of things, our ability to go from state to state of our own accord is a fundamental principle.

Frye also referenced Supreme Court Associate Justice Brett Kavanaughs concurring opinion in the case that overturned the constitutional right to an abortion, where he affirmed that people seeking abortions have a right to travel between states.

Kavanaugh wrote: For example, may a State bar a resident of that State from traveling to another State to obtain an abortion? In my view, the answer is no based on the constitutional right to interstate travel.

The post State abortion bans forcing interstate travel, U.S. Senate panel hears appeared first on West Virginia Watch.
Four community colleges across Iowa will use state grants to launch and expand their career academies, serving high school students. (Photo by Kathie Obradovich/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

Four community colleges will use grants provided by the state to launch or expand career academies for students to get a head start in a high-demand career.

Gov. Kim Reynolds and the Iowa Department of Education awarded $1 million each to Eastern Iowa Community Colleges, Iowa Western Community College and Iowa Valley Community College District, and almost $618,000 to Iowa Central Community College through the Career Academy Incentive Fund, according to a news release.

The Career Academy Incentive Fund is an innovative, results-based program that provides high school students with opportunities to gain valuable experience and helps build a strong talent pipeline in our local communities, said Gov. Kim Reynolds in the release. I applaud Eastern Iowa Community Colleges, Iowa Valley Community College District, Iowa Western Community College and Iowa Central Community College for their work to grow career academies that prepare students for in-demand careers here in Iowa.

Since 2019 the Career Academy Incentive Fund has provided grants to support partnerships between community colleges and school districts, who collaborate on programs for students to learn technical and educational skills and earn high school and college credits, as well as job credentials. It is funded through Secure an Advanced Vision for Education, a statewide penny sales tax for school infrastructure, the release stated.

Iowa Western Community College will offer career academies in cybersecurity, robotics, precision agriculture and mass digital communication to students from five school districts with the creation of a new regional center in Glenwood, supported by the grant.

Eastern Iowa Community Colleges will utilize its grant funds to develop new lab space at its Muscatine Industrial Technology Center, the release stated, supporting career academies in computer numerical control engineering, digital modeling for manufacturing, engineering technology and welding. The center works with six area school districts.

Iowa Valley Community College Districts automotive repair technician career academy, located in Grinnell, will also see expansion through the grant. The district will also work to grow enrollment from six local school districts in other academies, including health sciences, manufacturing and business administration.

Iowa Central Community College will purchase new health science equipment for its North Central Career Center, serving four area school districts.

We commend the awardees for their leadership in realizing our shared priority to empower all students with multiple pathways to postsecondary success, changing lives and strengthening communities, said Department of Education McKenzie Snow in the releases.

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The post State grants go to four community colleges to support career academies appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch.
State officials say air quality in central Arkansas may be unhealthy for some people

LITTLE ROCK, Ark.  Arkansas state officials are warning that the air quality in the central part of the state may be unhealthy for some residents.

For the first time this year, officials with Arkansas Energy & Environment declared an Ozone Action Advisory for Thursday for central Arkansas.

Climate records keep getting shattered. Here is what you need to know

According to the Division of Environmental Qualitys forecast, outdoor activities may be unhealthy for active children, adults and people in sensitive groups.

Residents with respiratory problems, such as asthma, emphysema and bronchitis are vulnerable to the effects of air pollution and should limit outdoor activities, state officials said. Officials are encouraging these individuals to reduce health-risks associated with ozone exposure.

State officials are also encouraging public agencies, private business, and the public to take voluntary actions to reduce ground-level ozone formation.

EPA delays new ozone pollution standards until after 2024 election

Below are a few code orange tips and precautions:

Refuel cars and lawnmowers after 7:00 pm, avoid fuel spills, and do not top off tanks

Carpool or use mass transit

Combine errands instead of separate vehicle trips

Do not drive unnecessarily, especially during peak commuting hours or during the hottest part of the day

To stay up to date on the daily ozone forecasts for Arkansas, visit the Arkansas Department of Energy and Environments website.

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 KARK.
Wisconsin Superintendent Jill Underly, pictured in 2021, said a corrective action plan by MPS is an important first step.

Milwaukee Public Schools is on its way to regaining suspended state aid, as state officials have approved a plan for the district to complete overdue financial reports and address serious flaws in the district's accounting practices.

The district's corrective action plan was also approved by the Milwaukee School Board Thursday night.

The state Department of Public Instruction withheld a $16.6 million payment from the district this month because MPS has yet to complete a financial audit that was due at the end of last year. The department had planned to withhold another payment June 17 if the district did not have an approved plan.

With the approved plan, state officials will make that June 17 payment, according to a letter sent to MPS on Thursday. The release of the $16.6 million payment and future payments, however, depends on the district "making adequate and sufficient progress towards implementation" of the plan.

Separately, due to errors in the district's financial reporting, MPS stands to be docked about $35 million to $50 million in state aid for the next school year, according to preliminary estimates that could change. That aid reduction cannot be recouped.

State Superintendent Jill Underly said in a statement Thursday that she was confident the school board would approve the plan as a "first step" in strengthening its schools.

I remain committed to always doing what is best for the kids of Milwaukee and all of Wisconsin. I know leadership in Milwaukee and people across the state share this commitment; Milwaukee school leadership needs to live up to this expectation as well," Underly said in a statement.

Three top officials have departed MPS since the accounting problems came to light: Superintendent Keith Posley, Chief Financial Officer Martha Kreitzman and Comptroller Alfredo Balmaseda. A new coalition is seeking to recall four school board members.

Additionally, Gov. Tony Evers is hiring auditors to take a close look at MPS operations and academic practices.

The district's corrective action plan approved Thursday included some revisions by DPI after MPS submitted a draft plan Tuesday. That draft plan illustrated how staff vacancies and turnover in the district's finance office, combined with a lack of training on key software, caused confusion and errors. It also identified solutions, including replacing the district's CFO, hiring a dozen finance staff and reinstating a chief auditing executive.

Matthew Chason, senior director of the district's Office of Accountability and Efficiency, told board members Thursday that he felt the changes to the draft by DPI were "well advised."

Among the revisions DPI made to the plan: MPS will be required to create a second action plan to meet future "financial filing and data integrity requirements." That plan would outline how the district will make sure it submits future reports on time and with accuracy. A draft of the plan is due July 8.

Contact Rory Linnane at rory.linnane@jrn.com. Follow her on X (Twitter) at @RoryLinnane.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: State officials approve action plan for MPS but require more progress
State police looking for suspects after $550 in merchandise stolen from Indiana County Walmart

Pennsylvania State Police are looking to identify two suspects after $550 in merchandise was stolen from Walmart in Burrell Township.

The suspects were in the Walmart along Resort Plaza Drive on Monday at 9:15 a.m.

Police are looking for a man with dark hair and a beard, he was wearing a dark shirt and a ballcap with the letter S on the front. The woman with him was wearing a white T-shirt with an Adidas logo on the front.

State police said they took vehicle audio equipment.

They fled in a gray Toyota Corolla with Pennsylvania plate KFX8303 which was last seen on Route 22.

Anyone with information is asked to call Trooper Ramsden at 724-357-1960.

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Pharmacist George Tadross takes care of a customer at MAC Pharmacy in Cleveland in May 2024. Insurance companies, and the pharmacy benefit management companies that handle prescriptions for them, often refuse to cover a specific drug until after the patient has tried cheaper alternatives, a process known as step therapy. (Sue Ogrocki/The Associated Press)

Cassidy Yermal, 32, began experiencing debilitating migraines when she was 17 years old. As a teenager growing up in northeastern Pennsylvania, she saw numerous neurologists and tried a variety of medications before finding one that provided relief.

In 2022, her new insurer asked her to prove it.

Yermal now lives in Marlboro, Maryland, where shes a sales representative at a furniture store. She is married and receives health care coverage through her husbands employer. In 2022, their new insurer told Yermal that it wouldnt pay for her medication unless she tried several less expensive drugs first  or could prove that she already had.

I was like, I dont know why theyre asking for this documentation now. My other insurance company didnt ask for it, Yermal told Stateline. It was really frustrating to me to have to dig up the kind of things that I knew didnt work.

Millions of Americans have experienced similar frustrations under protocols known as step therapy, or fail-first policies. Insurance companies, and the pharmacy benefit management companies that handle prescriptions for them, often refuse to cover a specific drug until after the patient has tried cheaper alternatives. Insurers argue that step therapy  taking drug treatment one step a time  prevents wasteful spending by directing patients to less expensive, but still effective, treatments.

But patient advocacy groups and physicians say doctors, not insurers, are best qualified to know which drug or treatment is likely to be most effective. Delaying the implementation of that decision, they say, often harms patients.

At least 36 states  including Maryland, where Yermal lives  have laws that are supposed to limit insurers use of step therapy. But most only apply in certain cases, and enforcement has been spotty. Most important, states do not have the power to regulate the self-funded insurance policies that large employers typically offer to their workers  and 65% of Americans are covered that way.

Only Congress has the power to curb the use of step therapy in self-funded plans; a bill that would do just that is pending on Capitol Hill. In the meantime, legislatures in several states, including Illinois, Kentucky and New Mexico, this year approved measures designed to close loopholes in their step therapy laws and extend protections to more people. The Kentucky and New Mexico bills are now law.

States are really where the action is on health care. Changes and reforms depend on the state.

 Kaye Pestaina, vice president and director of patient and consumer protections at KFF

The Illinois measure, which is awaiting the signature of Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker, is especially far-reaching: It would ban any insurers regulated by the state, including Medicaid, from using step therapy. But because states cant regulate self-funded insurers, many Illinois residents wouldnt be covered.

Knowing that our hospitals have hundreds of employees on staff just to deal with the insurance companies really says something, Democratic state Rep. Anna Moeller, chief sponsor of the bill, told Stateline. Nobody should be turned away in the middle of a mental health crisis or spend months potentially failing on other drugs while the doctors know they wont work. No one should have to go through that.

Illinois Democratic state Sen. Laura Fine, another sponsor of the bill, acknowledged that forcing large insurance companies to abide by the ban would be a challenge.

Our Department of Insurance is going to have to come in. This is where we are going to have to make rules. How do we make sure that these laws are being carried out as written? she said.

Nevertheless, Fine said, the ban almost certainly would be a huge improvement over the current step therapy law in Illinois. That law is so weak, she said, that for most people subjected to step therapy rules, you could complain about it, but there was nothing that could be done about it.

Now, were saying, No, this is not [allowed], Fine said. And so, you can complain about it, and something can get done.

In Maryland, Yermal had to wait two months for her insurer to approve her preferred migraine medication, Emgality, which has no generic form and can cost more than $700 for the once-a-month dose. During that time, she suffered pounding headaches; it was hard to live my life, and it was hard to do basic things, she said.

She also said that taking medications that dont work can have long-lasting effects. More than a decade later, she said, she is still feeling the impact of her time on a migraine drug that didnt help her.

I still cant think straight. I used to be a really fast learner and pick up on stuff really quickly, Yermal said. I took that medication over 10 years ago and I still feel that I never recovered.

Increasing use

Insurers argue that by preventing excessive spending, step therapy yields savings for consumers in the form of lower insurance premiums and less expensive prescriptions for everyone on the plan.

James Swann, a spokesperson for AHIP, a trade group formerly known as Americas Health Insurance Plans, said step therapy protects patients from potentially harmful or unnecessary care, and that legislation to restrict it would lead to clinically inappropriate care and could raise costs for all consumers and purchasers.

Swann also suggested that insurers have a holistic perspective on the health care system that even doctors lack.

But Dr. Jack Resneck, former president of the American Medical Association, rejected that idea.

I would make an argument that physicians who have gone to medical school and have the patients entire medical record can help keep patients way more safe, Resneck said. [Insurers] are often recommending things to me that are frankly unsafe.

He added: Is it true that we have seen some drug prices go up astronomically? Absolutely. The solution is to fix drug pricing. Its not to tell patients that the drug theyve been on thats been great for them is one they cant be on anymore.

Recent research suggests that the use of step therapy by insurance companies and pharmacy benefit managers is increasing  and that it is often divorced from clinical evidence.

In a study published earlier this year in the journal Health Affairs, researchers looked at about 10 years worth of Medicare Part D plan data and found that insurers increasingly imposed restrictions on patient access to medications. They did so through step therapy, requiring doctors to get insurers permission before prescribing a drug, or by excluding drugs from coverage.

The percentage of drugs restricted by the policies increased from 32% in 2011 to 44% in 2020.

While plans justify the use of these tools as a means to control costs, restricting access to an increasing number of drugs raises concerns that these policies may adversely affect patients health, Geoffrey Joyce, chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical and Health Economics at the University of Southern California and an author of the study said in an interview.

A study published in Health Affairs in 2021 found that 17 of the largest commercial health plans applied step therapy policies about 40% of the time for treatments related to 10 diseases. The researchers found that there was wide variation among the companies use of step therapy, and that the policies requirements often departed from clinical guidelines. The protocols were more rigid than clinical guidelines at least half the time for patients with hepatitis C, multiple sclerosis and psoriatic arthritis. For psoriasis, the step therapy protocols were stricter more than 99% of the time.

James Chambers, an associate professor at the Tufts Medical Center Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies and an author of the study, told Stateline that the inconsistency maybe raises a red flag about how these protocols were developed and for what reason.

From experience, we see very different step therapy protocols across plans for the same drugs for the same uses, Chambers said. Its not just subtle differences, but impactful differences for patients.

Existing laws limited

The loopholes in existing state laws  and the fact that the laws dont apply to people with the most common form of insurance  frustrate patient advocacy groups. Dozens of them have been involved in lobbying for tougher state rules and the stalled federal bill.

We have a ton of inflammatory arthritis and autoimmune patients in our network. And this population typically has to undergo step therapy, which causes major delays in treatment, said Zoe Rothblatt, director of community outreach at the Global Healthy Living Foundation, which advocates for patients with chronic diseases such as migraines, arthritis, osteoporosis and psoriasis.

Patients can spend a lot of time  months  in pain, not able to work, Rothblatt said. They could have disease progression.

Joyce said it wont be easy to further restrict the use of step therapy, either at the state or the federal level. He noted the country is spending more than $4 trillion annually on health care, and the reason its so hard to change things is because that money is somebodys income  whether its yours, or a doctors or a pharma companys.

And the health care companies, he said, dont want reform.

They all fight it tooth and nail, and they all have lobbyists in Washington fighting for their interests, he said.

Kaye Pestaina, vice president and director of patient and consumer protections at KFF, a health research organization, said innovative approaches to regulating insurance companies are more likely to occur on the state level, and that civil lawsuits are a powerful enforcement tool.

States are really where the action is on health care. Changes and reforms depend on the state, Pestaina told Stateline. The state law says how much the civil penalty is, what the circumstances are, when a government investigates, what makes something a violation and what doesnt.

Fine, the Illinois senator, said the measure set to be signed by the governor is evidence of a growing legislative appetite to regulate insurers, a change that is shifting state government.

I feel our Department of Insurance now is very consumer-focused, Fine told Stateline. For a long, long time, everything was sort of slanted towards industry. And now, you know, the scale is kind of changing. And were slanting towards, How is this helping the consumer?

Yermal, meanwhile, says shes doing fine now, although she still suffers from some headaches. Shes happy she can at least get the medication she needs to deal with them, 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 States struggle to help patients navigate insurance hurdle known as step therapy appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
Pharmacist George Tadross takes care of a customer at MAC Pharmacy in Cleveland in May. Insurance companies, and the pharmacy benefit management companies that handle prescriptions for them, often refuse to cover a specific drug until after the patient has tried cheaper alternatives, a process known as step therapy. (Sue Ogrocki/The Associated Press)

Cassidy Yermal, 32, began experiencing debilitating migraines when she was 17 years old. As a teenager growing up in northeastern Pennsylvania, she saw numerous neurologists and tried a variety of medications before finding one that provided relief.

In 2022, her new insurer asked her to prove it.

Yermal now lives in Marlboro, Maryland, where shes a sales representative at a furniture store. She is married and receives health care coverage through her husbands employer. In 2022, their new insurer told Yermal that it wouldnt pay for her medication unless she tried several less expensive drugs first  or could prove that she already had.

I was like, I dont know why theyre asking for this documentation now. My other insurance company didnt ask for it, Yermal told Stateline. It was really frustrating to me to have to dig up the kind of things that I knew didnt work.

Millions of Americans have experienced similar frustrations under protocols known as step therapy, or fail-first policies. Insurance companies, and the pharmacy benefit management companies that handle prescriptions for them, often refuse to cover a specific drug until after the patient has tried cheaper alternatives. Insurers argue that step therapy  taking drug treatment one step a time  prevents wasteful spending by directing patients to less expensive, but still effective, treatments.

But patient advocacy groups and physicians say doctors, not insurers, are best qualified to know which drug or treatment is likely to be most effective. Delaying the implementation of that decision, they say, often harms patients.

At least 36 states  including Maryland, where Yermal lives  have laws that are supposed to limit insurers use of step therapy. But most only apply in certain cases, and enforcement has been spotty. Most important, states do not have the power to regulate the self-funded insurance policies that large employers typically offer to their workers  and 65% of Americans are covered that way.

Only Congress has the power to curb the use of step therapy in self-funded plans; a bill that would do just that is pending on Capitol Hill. In the meantime, legislatures in several states, including Illinois, Kentucky and New Mexico, this year approved measures designed to close loopholes in their step therapy laws and extend protections to more people. The Kentucky and New Mexico bills are now law.

The Illinois measure, which is awaiting the signature of Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker, is especially far-reaching: It would ban any insurers regulated by the state, including Medicaid, from using step therapy. But because states cant regulate self-funded insurers, many Illinois residents wouldnt be covered.

Knowing that our hospitals have hundreds of employees on staff just to deal with the insurance companies really says something, Democratic state Rep. Anna Moeller, chief sponsor of the bill, told Stateline. Nobody should be turned away in the middle of a mental health crisis or spend months potentially failing on other drugs while the doctors know they wont work. No one should have to go through that.

Illinois Democratic state Sen. Laura Fine, another sponsor of the bill, acknowledged that forcing large insurance companies to abide by the ban would be a challenge.

Our Department of Insurance is going to have to come in. This is where we are going to have to make rules. How do we make sure that these laws are being carried out as written? she said.

Nevertheless, Fine said, the ban almost certainly would be a huge improvement over the current step therapy law in Illinois. That law is so weak, she said, that for most people subjected to step therapy rules, you could complain about it, but there was nothing that could be done about it.

Now, were saying, No, this is not [allowed], Fine said. And so, you can complain about it, and something can get done.

In Maryland, Yermal had to wait two months for her insurer to approve her preferred migraine medication, Emgality, which has no generic form and can cost more than $700 for the once-a-month dose. During that time, she suffered pounding headaches; it was hard to live my life, and it was hard to do basic things, she said.

She also said that taking medications that dont work can have long-lasting effects. More than a decade later, she said, she is still feeling the impact of her time on a migraine drug that didnt help her.

I still cant think straight. I used to be a really fast learner and pick up on stuff really quickly, Yermal said. I took that medication over 10 years ago and I still feel that I never recovered.

Increasing use

Insurers argue that by preventing excessive spending, step therapy yields savings for consumers in the form of lower insurance premiums and less expensive prescriptions for everyone on the plan.

James Swann, a spokesperson for AHIP, a trade group formerly known as Americas Health Insurance Plans, said step therapy protects patients from potentially harmful or unnecessary care, and that legislation to restrict it would lead to clinically inappropriate care and could raise costs for all consumers and purchasers.

Swann also suggested that insurers have a holistic perspective on the health care system that even doctors lack.

But Dr. Jack Resneck, former president of the American Medical Association, rejected that idea.

I would make an argument that physicians who have gone to medical school and have the patients entire medical record can help keep patients way more safe, Resneck said. [Insurers] are often recommending things to me that are frankly unsafe.

He added: Is it true that we have seen some drug prices go up astronomically? Absolutely. The solution is to fix drug pricing. Its not to tell patients that the drug theyve been on thats been great for them is one they cant be on anymore.

Recent research suggests that the use of step therapy by insurance companies and pharmacy benefit managers is increasing  and that it is often divorced from clinical evidence.

In a study published earlier this year in the journal Health Affairs, researchers looked at about 10 years worth of Medicare Part D plan data and found that insurers increasingly imposed restrictions on patient access to medications. They did so through step therapy, requiring doctors to get insurers permission before prescribing a drug, or by excluding drugs from coverage.

The percentage of drugs restricted by the policies increased from 32% in 2011 to 44% in 2020.

While plans justify the use of these tools as a means to control costs, restricting access to an increasing number of drugs raises concerns that these policies may adversely affect patients health, Geoffrey Joyce, chair of the Department of Pharmaceutical and Health Economics at the University of Southern California and an author of the study said in an interview.

A study published in Health Affairs in 2021 found that 17 of the largest commercial health plans applied step therapy policies about 40% of the time for treatments related to 10 diseases. The researchers found that there was wide variation among the companies use of step therapy, and that the policies requirements often departed from clinical guidelines. The protocols were more rigid than clinical guidelines at least half the time for patients with hepatitis C, multiple sclerosis and psoriatic arthritis. For psoriasis, the step therapy protocols were stricter more than 99% of the time.

James Chambers, an associate professor at the Tufts Medical Center Institute for Clinical Research and Health Policy Studies and an author of the study, told Stateline that the inconsistency maybe raises a red flag about how these protocols were developed and for what reason.

From experience, we see very different step therapy protocols across plans for the same drugs for the same uses, Chambers said. Its not just subtle differences, but impactful differences for patients.

Current laws limited

The loopholes in existing state laws  and the fact that the laws dont apply to people with the most common form of insurance  frustrate patient advocacy groups. Dozens of them have been involved in lobbying for tougher state rules and the stalled federal bill.

We have a ton of inflammatory arthritis and autoimmune patients in our network. And this population typically has to undergo step therapy, which causes major delays in treatment, said Zoe Rothblatt, director of community outreach at the Global Healthy Living Foundation, which advocates for patients with chronic diseases such as migraines, arthritis, osteoporosis and psoriasis.

Patients can spend a lot of time  months  in pain, not able to work, Rothblatt said. They could have disease progression.

Joyce said it wont be easy to further restrict the use of step therapy, either at the state or the federal level. He noted the country is spending more than $4 trillion annually on health care, and the reason its so hard to change things is because that money is somebodys income  whether its yours, or a doctors or a pharma companys.

And the health care companies, he said, dont want reform.

They all fight it tooth and nail, and they all have lobbyists in Washington fighting for their interests, he said.

Kaye Pestaina, vice president and director of patient and consumer protections at KFF, a health research organization, said innovative approaches to regulating insurance companies are more likely to occur on the state level, and that civil lawsuits are a powerful enforcement tool.

States are really where the action is on health care. Changes and reforms depend on the state, Pestaina told Stateline. The state law says how much the civil penalty is, what the circumstances are, when a government investigates, what makes something a violation and what doesnt.

Fine, the Illinois senator, said the measure set to be signed by the governor is evidence of a growing legislative appetite to regulate insurers, a change that is shifting state government.

I feel our Department of Insurance now is very consumer-focused, Fine told Stateline. For a long, long time, everything was sort of slanted towards industry. And now, you know, the scale is kind of changing. And were slanting towards, How is this helping the consumer?

Yermal, meanwhile, says shes doing fine now, although she still suffers from some headaches. Shes happy she can at least get the medication she needs to deal with them, she said.

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The post States struggle to help patients navigate insurance hurdle known as step therapy appeared first on Oklahoma Voice.
Ukrainian soldier Roman, the father of 9-year-old girl Valeria, who disappeared in Germany, hopes that his daughter is still alive. He has not seen the child for two years and hoped to see her this summer.

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Roman is still in Ukraine, although the command of the Armed Forces of Ukraine granted him a leave of absence and permission to travel abroad in connection with the information about his daughter's disappearance. It's a matter of time, and in a few days Roman will be in Debelle, Germany.

"I am sure she is alive. I have seen my children for two years only through my phone screen," said the girl's father.

According to Roman, his ex-wife promised to bring Valeria back to Ukraine when the holidays begin. In general, Roman is surprised by the behavior of his ex-wife, who sent her child to school alone and, while having two phones and a smartwatch, did not allow her daughter to take them to school.

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As OBOZ.UA previously reported, 9-year-old Valeria was found dead in Germany. The child's body was found in the woods three kilometers from her home in Debelle. The cause of death was presumed to be murder. The police have already contacted Roman, but he does not believe his daughter is dead.

"The police said they found someone. But I feel that it is not her, I hope she is alive," Roman says.

According to him, his ex-wife had "a very bad relationship with Lera".

"I think she was preventing mom from building a new life," Roman said.

"We have another younger daughter, and she is now with my ex-wife, and I think it's not safe. I hope to bring both my daughters home, but I don't know how to do it right yet," added the girl's father.

Roman divorced his daughter's mother in 2023.

Only verified information is available on the OBOZ.UA Telegram channel and Viber. Do not fall for fakes!

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Statesville businesses targeted in string of break-ins

STATESVILLE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  Statesville Police officials report dozens of local businesses are targets in a rush of commercial breaking and entering cases.

Authorities report 38 break-ins within the first six months of 2024. They said seven businesses were burglarized in the past two weeks.

Investigators are still working to find out if any of the crimes are related.

Thieves targeted a variety of businesses including discount stores, crafting shops and cafes.

Iredell Community Outreach Associations Hidden Gem Variety Store was broken into on Saturday, June 1.

Executive Director of Iredell COAST Joshua McCrary said someone smashed their front door and grabbed the money in the cash register.

We pulled camera footage and they didnt mean to break the front door, he said They were trying to pry the door open and it shattered the glass. It shattered all over them.

McCrary said the damage to the door totaled around $2,000. They took nearly $1,000 in cash.

Typically, $1,000 will restock our food pantry for a month. So, were talking about a month of outreach for our clients that come in, he said. We do food, we do clothing, we do household essentials. And so thats 30 days worth of funds that are that are gone now.

The culprit broke into the store at 833 N. Center Street. The organization is in the process of opening a second store at 1662 E. Broad Street.

McCrary said while there is never a good time to be a victim of a crime, the few weeks before opening is a difficult time to deal with added expenses.

Police sent out a press release Monday morning recommending businesses up their security measures by adding things like camera and alarm systems.

We had cameras. We did not have an alarm system. We do now, said McCrary. That just goes back to being a nonprofit and having to spend funds on things that you wouldnt really want to spend money on.

McCrary said the investigation does not seem to be a priority to Statesville Police. He said he called a few days after the break-in to see if an investigator had been assigned to the case.

I spoke to the officer that helped us with the report. He was extremely helpful, but he didnt even realize that there hadnt been an investigator assigned. Still, as far as I know to this day, more than two weeks out, there still hasnt been an investigator assigned to this particular case, he said.

Queen City News reached out to police for an update on the cases and did not hear back Wednesday evening.

McCrary said, in the meantime, hes focused on cleaning up and moving on.

He said he hopes the culprit understands the extent of the damage they are doing.

Youre doing way more damage than its worth, especially to small businesses that are trying to make a difference for the community. You know, in our case, if this particular person came into our store and said, Hey, Im in need, we would help them. Thats what we do, said McCrary.

He said he is very thankful the community has given them and other impacted businesses a lot of support in the wake of the break-ins.

They are really rallying behind us, McCrary said. I hope that that continues and grows, especially with the second location where we are excited about our location, a second location thats serving a completely different side of Statesville, a side of Statesville that is a need. So were looking forward to closing the gap there with those needs.

McCrary said the second location will open as scheduled on July 6.

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 Queen City News.
Richard Vedder, George Dent and Hal Arkes are retired professors of economics, law and psychology, respectively, at Ohio University, Case Western Reserve University and Ohio State University. They serve on the board of the Ohio chapter of the National Association of Scholars.

American higher education is in trouble.

In Ohio, enrollment in universities is lower today than a decade ago, and in just the last few months Notre Dame College and Eastern Gateway Community College announced they were closing.

Nationally, often violent, anti-Israeli campus protests this spring demonstrated vicious anti-Semitism and a disregard for the rule of law, sometimes preventing other students and campus administrators from performing their duties.

Diversity, equity and inclusion a threat to the nation

Jun 14, 2023; Columbus, Ohio, USA; Students practice protest chants in opposition to Senate Bill 83 at the Ohio Statehouse. Senate Bill 83 is a higher education bill and would substantially alter how college campuses function with changes to collective bargaining agreements, diversity equity and inclusion policies and programs, and policies about controversial beliefs, among others.

We are retired professors at three prominent Ohio universities  the Ohio State University, Case Western Reserve University and Ohio University. Somewhat reluctantly, we have concluded that our universities need some outside adult supervision.

Attempts by massive diversity, equity and inclusion bureaucracies to push state schools to adopt a radical left ideology and stifle intellectual diversity have been appalling; for example, over 100 DEI bureaucrats work at Ohio State alone.

Man vs. Bear vs Drag Queen: I'd rather be stuck in the woods with a drag queen than most Ohio lawmakers

Jerry Cirino: Senate Bill 83 'firestorm' clouds fact that it will rein in college tuition costs

Traditional parts of general education curricula, such as teaching about our history and the development of civic institutions arising from our federal and state constitutions, have been downplayed or even eliminated on many campuses.

Speaker blocking progress

Accordingly, we, all members of the Ohio chapter of the National Association of Scholars, testified before the Ohio legislature in favor of Senate Bill 83, introduced by Sen. Jerry Cirino, which dealt with the issues mentioned above such as by prohibiting forcing members of state university communities to sign diversity statements pledging support of a left political agenda.

The legislation proposes several other positive things such as prohibiting irresponsible faculty strikes during the middle of an academic term, which damages the education of tuition-paying students. It shortened the excessive (nine-year) terms for the state university boards of trustees, and regulated the potential misuse of faculty tenure.

Hal Arkes

S.B. 83 handily passed in the Ohio Senate, and cleared the higher education committee in the Ohio House of Representatives.

However, Speaker Jason Stephens has blocked consideration of the bill by the entire House, ostensibly because he doesnt think the votes are there to pass it.

Cirino disagrees.

As The Columbus Dispatch recently reported, Gov. Mike DeWine acknowledges the need for some legislative action.

Richard Vedder

Ohio should follow lead of North Carolina, Florida and Texas

We implore Stephens to let the democratic process unfold and allow the House to vote on this needed reform.

Many other states have enacted restrictions on DEI activities. Several prominent universities, for example, the Universities of North Carolina, Florida and Texas have moved to completely shut down or severely restrict DEI efforts that enforce an authoritarian leftish ideology on members of the campus community, usually in response to gubernatorial or legislative pressure.

Stephens, we beg you: Allow the political process to assess, and likely approve, efforts to curtail the heretofore largely successful efforts of a woke supremacy to curtail the freedom of expression and intellectual diversity that's so essential to operating a vibrant system of state universities.

George Dent

Richard Vedder, George Dent and Hal Arkes are retired professors of economics, law and psychology, respectively, at Ohio University, Case Western Reserve University and the Ohio State University. They serve on the board of the Ohio chapter of the National Association of Scholars.

This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: DEI is destroying Ohio universities. Stop Appalling leftist push.
Gov. Kevin Stitt answers questions from the media on May 10 at the Oklahoma State Capitol. Stitt approved the budget for fiscal year 2025 on Wednesday. (Photo by Janelle Stecklein/Oklahoma Voice)

OKLAHOMA CITY  Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a $12.5 billion budget package Wednesday.

He praised House and Senate leadership for the transparency involved in the budget process this year.

This was the most transparent budget process in state history, and that is something to be proud of, Stitt said.

Senate President Pro Tem Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City, made transparency of the budget process a top priority for his final session. Oklahomans had the opportunity to watch the budget process through live streams of the legislators negotiating.

I am proud the Senate showed true leadership in the budget transparency process and pleased the governor decided to sign it into law, while backing down from a tax cut that would have put the state on an unsustainable financial path for future legislators, Treat said in a statement.

In a statement from House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, he thanked Stitt for signing the agreement and praised the legislature for lowering spending by 5.3% from last fiscal year.

We appreciate Gov. Stitt honoring his commitment to sign and support a strong budget made possible due to the economic environment created by Conservative leadership in the House, McCall said.

Highlights of the spending package include a $25 million increase in formula funding for the Department of Education among other items.

Millions were allocated for higher education and career technical school funding, including $27.6 million to CareerTech to address waiting lists and admit more students as well as a $240 million allocation to the states two flagship universities for new engineering and science facilities.

The Oklahoma Health Care Authority received $30 million to increase long-term care provider rates. The Department of Public Safety will complete a new training facility in Lincoln County with $74 million from the budget and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigations received $27.5 million for new headquarters.

A further $350 million was set aside for deferred maintenance and $45 million in disaster relief funding was allocated to counties recently impacted by tornadoes.

The agreement also included a $50 million increase on the $150 million cap for a tax credit program provided to Oklahomans sending their children to private schools. Sen. Julia Kirt, D-Oklahoma City, said this gave bigger increases to private schools than public schools.

The grocery tax cut was also celebrated as a victory by Republican leadership.

Im also proud to have co-authored the largest tax cut in state history in eliminating the state portion of the grocery tax. Once it goes into effect, it will represent more money in the pockets of all 4 million Oklahomans, said Treat in a statement.

Stitt called the tax cut the largest single tax cut delivered to taxpayers in state history and thanked Treat and McCall for leaving a legacy of transparency behind as they leave office.

I look forward to working with their successors and expanding on those relationships and the progress made this year, Stitt said.

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The post Stitt signs $12.5 billion budget, praises transparency appeared first on Oklahoma Voice.
Gov. Kevin Stitt listens to Senate President Pro Tem Greg Treat in May during the governor's budget conference with the Senate and House leaders at the Oklahoma Capitol.

Following weeks of public debate and arguments over tax cuts, Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt has signed the $12.5 billion budget passed by the state Legislature into law. The measure allocates funds for fiscal year 2025, which begins July 1.

In a media statement announcing his decision, Stitt said the budget, which eliminated the state's portion of the grocery sales tax, gave taxpayers the largest single tax cut in state history.

"This budget authorized state expenditures at a reduced level relative to last year while delivering on strategic investments in infrastructure and efforts to further the Governors pro-business, pro-family policies," the governor's statement said.

The centerpiece of a difficult and arduous legislative session, the budget  detailed in Senate Bill 1125  earmarks $12.47 billion in state spending, including $20 million for non-formula teacher pay increases and funding for phase two of a tactical training center for the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety. The budget also allocates $20 million to a fund from which the governor can draw money for economic development and related infrastructure to locate a high-impact business in the state. Pay for district judges  but not appellate judges or justices  was increased by 7%, and $3.823 billion was appropriated for the state's common education system.

The budget also includes an appropriation of $18.84 million for the Center for the Advancement of Science and Technology and $7.17 million in funding for the Oklahoma School of Science and Mathematics. In addition, lawmakers set aside $27.6 million for CareerTech to address its waitlist and admit more students; $20 million for an animal diagnostics lab at OSUs College of Veterinary Medicine; and $1.5 million to support educational initiatives that increase awareness about the Oklahoma City bombing and its impact.

Stitt: budget process something to be proud of

Stitt praised the budget process, calling it "the most transparent budget process in state history."

"That is something to be proud of," the governor's statement said. "Every Oklahoman had the opportunity to have a front row seat to the negotiations that took place and to see how their tax dollars were spent. The state has taken a step forward today, but our work is unfinished. I will continue to fight for more tax cuts and keeping a lid on the growth in government in Oklahoma."

House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Atoka, thanked the governor for signing the bill. "We appreciate Gov. Stitt honoring his commitment to sign and support a strong budget made possible due to the economic environment created by Conservative leadership in the House," McCall said in a statement issued after Stitt signed the budget Wednesday evening.

Under the new budget, McCall said overall spending is down 5.3% compared to last year, while only exercising 89% of overall budget authority. He said the House was "proud to have championed, for a third straight year," a personal income tax cut and a path to zero as future revenues rise, in addition to the repeal of the state's grocery tax. "We appreciate Gov. Stitts support of these efforts, as well, and hope to see them prioritized in the future," the speaker said.

Unlike last year, governor signs FY 2025 budget bill

Stitt's signature on this year's budget is far different from the way he handed the FY 2024 budget. Last year, the governor let the budget bill go into effect without his signature. At that time, Stitt said he was concerned the Legislature had spent $12.96 billion dollars in taxpayer money and relied upon one-time revenue to support recurring expenditures that exceed recurring revenues by roughly $220 million dollars.

"They have also drawn down the states savings from about $6.2 billion dollars to $4.2 billion dollars. Because this approach is neither sustainable nor fiscally wise, I have not signed House Bill 1004x," the governor said last year. "Nevertheless, subject to objections to the unique process by which the bill made its way to my desk, the bill will become law without signature."

Wednesday evening, the governor praised the speaker and the Senate pro tempore for their work on the budget. "As Speaker McCall and Pro Tem Treat wrap up their final year in office, I want to commend them on their efforts to leave a legacy of transparency. I look forward to working with their successors and expanding on those relationships and the progress made this year."

For his part, Treat  the architect of the Senate's budget transparency initiative  praised his fellow senators for their work on the budget.

"I am proud the Senate showed true leadership in the budget transparency process and pleased the governor decided to sign it into law, while backing down from a tax cut that would have put the state on an unsustainable financial path for future legislators," Treat said in a media statement. "Im also proud to have co-authored the largest tax cut in state history in eliminating the state portion of the grocery tax. Once it goes into effect, it will represent more money in the pockets of all 4 million Oklahomans.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma Gov. Stitt signs $12.5 billion budget, praises transparency
STOCKTON, Ala. (WKRG)  A suspect in the deadly Stockton shooting is being held without bond due to the Aniahs Law.

25-year-old Mack Aurthur Adams had an Aniahs Law hearing Thursday, where he was not given bond.

Aniahs Law makes it harder for people charged with violent crimes to be eligible for bail and places the decision of bail eligibility into the judges hands.

UPDATE: Jury recommends death sentence for man convicted of killing pregnant woman in 2019

Adams was arrested on June 7 and charged with two counts of murder. These two charges are for the murders of Michael Anderson and Chiquita Ewing, according to the Baldwin County Sheriffs Office.

A mugshot of Mack Adams (Baldwin County Sheriffs Office).

The May 11 shooting injured 19, and three of those people died.

They didnt know they were taking away a legend: Family, former football coach mourn the loss of Southern Miss football player

Previously, 19-year-old Tyquan French was arrested and charged with Christian Bradleys murder. 24-year-old Robert G. Brown, Jr. was also arrested in connection to the mass shooting.

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 WKRG News 5.
During an online meeting with representatives of the agrarian policy ministries of the United Kingdom and the Republic of Lithuania, the deputy ministers of agrarian policy and food of Ukraine discussed the application of a system that can determine the origin of grain supplied by Russia to world markets.

Source: Ministry of Agrarian Policy

Details: It was stated that the system of chemical analysis of grain was being developed in the UK.

"And Lithuania, for its part, has already expressed interest in using such analysis to be able to identify Ukrainian grain stolen by Russia and prevent its transportation through Lithuanian ports," the ministry's press service said.

During the meeting, the parties discussed technical issues of the grain origin determination system and mechanisms for its implementation in practice.

Background: Ukraines National Resistance Center noted that the Russians had taken at least 30,000 tonnes of agricultural products from the occupied territories of Kherson Oblast.

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SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI)  The sun made an amazing appearance over San Diego Wednesday afternoon after days of marine layer gloom, heating up the region as low clouds retreated from the beaches during the morning.

Low clouds will fill in again Wednesday night into Thursday morning for beaches and inland areas, leading to patchy drizzle again.

Inland valleys should be clear for the afternoon, but a bit of the marine layer looks to linger along the coast making for a partly sunny day.

$37M set to upgrade stormwater system in Mission Beach

A weak low-pressure system will move inland across Southern California later Thursday, resulting in a dip in temperatures for most areas. Mountain and desert communities should expect periods of gusty westerly winds up to 45 miles per hour.

However, the cooling trend will be brief as another high pressure system creeps over the area Friday into Saturday. This will bump our daytime highs slightly above average west of the mountains and bring high heat risk to the desert region.

An Excessive Heat Watch will go into effect for San Diego and Riverside County deserts on Friday morning due to widespread temperatures above 100 degrees. The Heat Watch will expire Saturday night.

Thursday temperatures will top out in the upper 60s to low 70s at the coast, upper 70s to low 80s inland valleys and mountains and around 105 degrees for deserts.

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.
SUNLAND PARK, N.M. (KTSM)  The Sunland Park Fire Department (SPFD) finds itself extremely busy as temperatures rise to dangerous levels prompting heat exposure calls out in the desert from migrants crossing the border.

The SPFD has recorded 13 deaths in the desert since March, due to the scorching temperatures.

Once they cross that border wall, its a desert, its literally desolate, Fire Chief Daniel Medrano said. Even though we are very close to the border and civilization, housing, businesses or whatever, its very easy to get lost. And thats what were finding.

Medrano said most heat-exposure calls come in during the hottest portions of the day, specifically between 4 and 7 p.m.

When crews respond and make contact with a patient, their primary goal is to cool down the patients body temperature before even taking them to a hospital.

SPFD often works with U.S. Border Patrol agents to conduct these rescues.











People suffering from heat exposure will often fall into one of three categories:

Fire cramps

Fire exhaustion

Fire stroke

Rescue crews first use a frozen blanket to try and cool down the patient, but if their temperature is at 104 degrees or more, they have to perform an ice bath to save the patients life.

These rescues become very common during the summer for SPFD, and they face unique challenges as a fire department.

Just a week and a half ago, we had four of these within like four to six minutes, said SPFD Battalion Chief Ramiro Rios. So, for example, wed be here with this patient, and two minutes later we had another patient, and then two minutes later another patient, and thats when we flew one of them out.

The SPFD has a mutual aid agreement with other fire departments across the Borderland in case they have to respond to multiple heat rescues that strain their resources.

Its resource intensive. If were looking for a potential alive person in the desert that was reported as a search and rescue, Im using my whole shift, my entire department to do that, Medrano said.

The department currently has 25 people on staff.

That can be very taxing on the guys because they did three ice baths that day on three patients. They flew one out and then they ground-transported two patients to the hospital. But three out of the five had life-threatening injuries. So it gets to the point where there is a lot of stress on our crews trying to mitigate every single incident that we have going on, Rios said.

The SPFD doesnt have specialized units like other fire departments across the Borderland to respond to situations like these and, therefore, depends on the firefighters they have on staff.

If a call comes in after the sun has set, Rios said its most likely a body rather than a person in need of rescue.

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 KTSM 9 News.
Scientists from the University of Exeter have confirmed the massive migration of millions of insects through a pass measuring just 30 meters in the Pyrenees mountains, on the border between Spain and France. According to a study published in Proceedings of the Royal Society B, more than 17 million arthropods cross every year through Bujaruelo, a Pyrenean pass in Huesca at 2,273 meters of altitude between Taillon Peak (3,144 meters) and Pic Entre Les Ports (2,476 meters). A wide variety of species migrate through this spot, from large dragonflies to tiny flies.

What we found was truly extraordinary, says Will Hawkes, lead author of the study and researcher at the University of Exeter, who claims that some days they recorded more than 3,000 flies per meter and minute. As the scientist explain by email, this Bujaruelo pass is important because it constitutes the easiest route for flying insects as they travel through the high Pyrenees. However, he explains this pass is likely to be one of the many routes that insects follow to cross the mountains. Insects are channeled through the steep mountain valleys and then through the hills, since they are much lower than the peaks, says Hawkes. There are probably many more passes, all with millions of insects migrating each fall.

Fly of the 'Episyrphus balteatus' species. Will Hawkes

The first time the massive migration of insects was detected at this site was in the autumn of 1950, more than 70 years ago, when ornithologists Elizabeth and David Lack came across an incredible spectacle of insect migration at the Bujaruelo pass, says Hawkes. This was the first recorded case of fly migration in Europe. While there was a high number of the species Episyrphus balteatus, there were many other insects other than flies, such as butterflies and dragonflies. To analyze this phenomenon, the Exeter researchers took data from the site every autumn for four years, monitoring a large number and variety of diurnal flying insects heading south.

The findings from this single pass suggest that billions of insects cross the Pyrenees each year, making the mountain range a key location for many migratory species. Normally, insect migration studies are limited to specific taxa such as butterflies, moths or dragonflies. Works that document joint migrations with very different species are rare. This is because the small insects that migrate are usually invisible in an extensive landscape, requiring specialized equipment such as entomological radars or nets supported by balloons for their detection, explains Hawkes. However, there are some sites, such as Bujaruelo pass, which are migratory bottlenecks due to their topographical conditions. By focusing on this site, the massive migration of arthropods could be studied much more completely.

As Hawkes details, in 2018 they returned to Bujaruelo to check if the migration detected by Elizabeth and David Lack was still happening and to record the number of individuals and variety of species. More than 70 years later, the passage of arthropods continued to produce a fascinating spectacle. Over the next four autumns, the researchers used a video camera to count small insects, a visual count to quantify butterflies, and a flight interception trap to identify migrating species. According to the results, of the 17 million insects counted, the vast majority (89%) were dipterans such as flies, but a large number of butterflies or dragonflies were also observed. These insects would have started their journey further north into Europe and continued south to Spain and perhaps beyond during the winter, says Hawkes. These small migratory insects that make incredible journeys are vital for the planet, both in terms of pollination and the transfer of nutrients.

The Bujaruelo pass, in the Aragonese Pyrenees. Will Hawkes

Seeing so many insects moving decisively in the same direction at the same time is one of the great wonders of nature, says Karl Wotton, another of the researchers who participated in the study. According to the study, insect numbers peaked when conditions were warm, sunny and dry, with low wind speeds and headwinds to keep the insects low over the pass so they could be counted.

Enrique Murria Beltran, an entomologist expert in lepidopterans, points out that migratory insects usually fly north in spring, explaining that the British researchers investigated their return in the fall. The scientific work is very good, I knew that the pass of Bujaruelo was an important pass for butterflies, but I didnt know that it was so special, he says. The only shame is that these studies have to be done by foreigners, because here [in Spain] we small researchers are on the brink of unemployment.

Constanti Stefanescu, coordinator of the Catalan Butterfly Monitoring Scheme (CBMS), a biodiversity monitoring network that collects data on butterflies, also says that the work is very innovative. We are in the 21st century, and we didnt know anything about this, for the first time the groups of insects that cross through that pass have been quantified, he says. The author did other similar work in Cyprus and both studies show that there is an impressive seasonal movement towards higher latitudes in spring and summer to find optimal places to breed, while in late summer and autumn they go to lower latitudes.

Although quantitatively there are millions of tons in motion, the insects that undertake these journeys are a small part of the species that exist. In the case of butterflies, for example, of the 240 diurnal species that exist in Spain, no more than a dozen are involved in these migratory movements, explains Stefanescu.

For him, whats important is recognizing that there are millions of individuals of species, some very common, that travel great distances. And all that moving biomass serves as food for predators, other insects and birds. In addition, these flies are pollinators and can transport pollen many kilometers, which allows the genetic diversity of plants to increase, adds Stefanescu. He also warns that some of these species may be agricultural pests. It is an open field, and there is much to do. This study focuses on the movement of populations from the center and north to the south, but it is not yet known what happens in spring, when the journey is likely to be the other way around, he explains.

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Superintendent relocating kids at WV school because she cannot leave them  sitting on that chemical waste site

PADEN CITY, W.Va. (WTRF)  A recent decision to close a high school in West Virginia prompted some of the local parents to protest outside the Wetzel County Board of Education building on Wednesday morning.

The school is the heart of our town, Rodney McWilliams, a local activist, told Nexstars WTRF. We realize that once a town our size loses its school, it loses our identity and there is much more to be lost. And we cant risk that.

The superintendent of Wetzel County Schools, however, says Paden City High School is closing for good reason: Its located atop an EPA-designated Superfund site, Superintendent Cassandra Porter said.

Map shows the contaminated Superfund sites closest to your home

A Superfund site is an area that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) suspects to be so contaminated, hazardous or polluted  or are at risk of becoming so polluted  that they have been deemed a national cleanup priority.

There are currently over 1300 sites on the EPAs National Priorities List, with 14 located in West Virginia. The Superfund site in Wetzel County is known as the Paden City Groundwater Superfund Site, and its located directly under the high school.

(WTRF)

The contaminated groundwater is believed to be the result of operations at the former Band Box Dry Cleaning Facility, the EPA noted.

The site consists of soil and groundwater plumes contaminated with the solvent tetrachloroethylene (PCE) and its breakdown products, reads the EPAs webpage for the Paden City Groundwater site. PCE is commonly used in commercial and industrial operations such as dry cleaning.

The public water supply is impacted by the contamination, the EPA says, though the water currently meets all local and federal standards after treatment. Still, officials continue to assess the safety of the towns air, soil and water.

These are the most polluted beaches in the United States

Porter told Nexstars WTRF she cant risk the health of her students.

My goal for the last 31 years in public education in the state of West Virginia is always to do what is best for kids. So in my heart, I cannot leave them down there, eight-plus hours a day, sitting on that chemical waste site, she said.

As of this week, plans were still in effect to transfer Paden City students to two schools just north of town in New Martinsville.

This move goes into effect July 1, according to the Wetzel County Board of Education.

Nexstars Alix Martichoux and Michael Bartiromo 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 Queen City News.
The Supreme Court on Thursday sided with Starbucks in a labor dispute over seven employees who were fired after they attempted to unionize one of the coffee chains stores in Memphis.

The decision could make it harder for the National Labor Relations Board to temporarily halt what it views as unfair labor practices, including dismissing workers involved with organizing efforts. The NLRB is a federal agency charged with protecting workers rights.

Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the opinion for the majority, which included all nine justices at least in part. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote an opinion partly concurring and partly dissenting.

Thomas argued that the standard the National Labor Relations Board had sought would make it too easy for the government to win in every conflict with an employer.

In fact, Thomas wrote, it is hard to imagine how the Board could lose under the reasonable-cause test if courts deferentially ask only whether the Board offered a minimally plausible legal theory, while ignoring conflicting law or facts.

Known as the Memphis 7, the employees at the center of the case became a nationwide symbol for labor supporters.

But the legal question for the justices was a technical one: How deeply federal courts must review the allegations of a labor dispute before deciding to temporarily block a companys action.

The case arrived at the court during a period of significantly more organizing and strike activities by the nations unions. Some high-profile companies have complained that the NLRB is abusing its powers.

During oral arguments in late April, the government argued federal law requires courts to give deference to the NLRBs read on such a dispute between employers and employees. But several of the justices  members of both the conservative and liberal wings  balked at that interpretation.

At one point during the arguments, Chief Justice John Roberts quipped that the court could, dispose of this in a short opinion.

In August 2022, a federal judge agreed with the NLRB, stating the Starbucks workers needed to be rehired. The Cincinnati-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit affirmed that decision last year and Starbucks appealed to the Supreme Court.

The case landed at the high court amid a broader legal battle between employers and the NLRB. Several companies have been asking federal courts, often with conservative judges, to stop the agency from standing behind the more aggressive organization efforts.

This story is breaking and will be updated.

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In a unanimous ruling on June 13, the U.S. Supreme Court determined that anti-abortion activists and doctors do not have legal standing to challenge the FDA's access to mifepristone

Phil Walter/Getty Abortion pill mifepristone

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Thursday, June 13, that it won't restrict access to abortion pill mifepristone for the time being, determining in a unanimous ruling that anti-abortion doctors and activists do not have the legal standing to challenge the Food and Drug Administrations regulations.



The case stems from an anti-choice advocacy group who argued that FDA rules implemented since 2016 had made access to the drug too easy, in that the federal government allowed access to mifepristone by mail, without an in-office doctor's visit, and by women who were up to 10 weeks pregnant.

Prior to making its way to the Supreme Court, the case had been argued in appeals courts, with a federal appeals court in Texas ruling in 2023 that the drug could not be sent via mail and could only be available to women who were up to seven weeks pregnant, instead of 10.

Related: Texas Appeals Court Preserves Access to Abortion Pill but Tightens Rules for Use

In the ruling issued Thursday, the Supreme Court rejected the challenge to how the government regulates mifepristone.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote that the anti-abortion activists' "desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue. Nor do the plaintiffs' other standing theories suffice."

"Here, the plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate that FDAs relaxed regulatory requirements likely would cause them to suffer an injury in fact. For that reason, the federal courts are the wrong forum for addressing the plaintiffs concerns about FDAs actions," Kavanaugh wrote.

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The ruling doesn't necessarily defend mifepristone, or signal that the abortion pill fight is over, however. In the future, if a group could establish proper legal standing, they could potentially revive this case, posing future challenges to abortion medication.

The mifepristone case follows the court's previous landmark decision to overturn Roe v. Wade  which ended the constitutional right to abortion  in June 2022.



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The Supreme Court on Thursday turned down a California attorney's bid to trademark the phrase "Trump Too Small" for his exclusive use on T-shirts.

The justices said trademark law forbids the use of a living person's name, including former President Trump.

The vote was 9-0.

Read more: In final round of gig drivers' fight over Prop. 22, California Supreme Court to decide if it stays

Trump was not a party to the case of Vidal vs. Elster, but in the past he objected when businesses and others tried to make use of his name.

Concord, Calif., attorney Steve Elster said he was amused in 2016 when Republican presidential candidates exchanged comments about the size of Trumps hands during a debate. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, whom Trump had mocked as Little Marco, asked Trump to hold up his hands, which he did. "You know what they say about guys with small hands," Rubio said.

After Trump won the election, Elster decided to sell T-shirts with the phrase Trump Too Small, which he said was meant to criticize Trumps lack of accomplishments on civil rights, the environment and other issues.

Legally he was free to do so, but the U.S. Patent and Copyright Office denied his request to trademark the phrase for his exclusive use.

Read more: Letters to the Editor: Alito's upside-down flag demands his recusal from 2020 election cases

When he appealed the denial, he won a ruling from a federal appeals court which said his "Trump Too Small" slogan was political commentary protected by the 1st Amendment.

The Biden administrations Solicitor Gen. Elizabeth Prelogar appealed and urged the Supreme Court to reject the trademark request.

She acknowledged that Elster had a free-speech right to mock the former president, but argued he did not have the right to assert property rights in another persons name.

For more than 75 years, Congress has directed the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to refuse the registration of trademarks that use the name of a particular living individual without his written consent, she said.

Writing for the court, Justice Clarence Thomas said Thursday: "Elster contends that this prohibition violates his 1st Amendment right to free speech. We hold that it does not,"

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
The Supreme Court on Thursday rejected a lawsuit challenging the Food and Drug Administrations approach to regulating the abortion pill mifepristone with a ruling that will continue to allow the pills to be mailed to patients without an in-person doctors visit.

The ruling is a significant setback for the anti-abortion movement in what was the first major Supreme Court case on reproductive rights since the courts conservative majority overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022.

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the opinion for a unanimous court.

The court ruled that the doctors and anti-abortion groups that had challenged access to the drug did not have standing to sue. Though technical, the courts reasoning is important because it might encourage other mifepristone challenges in the future.

We recognize that many citizens, including the plaintiff doctors here, have sincere concerns about and objections to others using mifepristone and obtaining abortions, Kavanaugh wrote. But citizens and doctors do not have standing to sue simply because others are allowed to engage in certain activities  at least without the plaintiffs demonstrating how they would be injured by the governments alleged under-regulation of others.

The challenge to the drug had been vehemently opposed by the pharmaceutical industry, which warned that a ruling that second-guessed the regulations for mifepristone could open the door to legal challenges targeting all sorts of medications.

Under the Constitution, Kavanaugh wrote, a plaintiffs desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue.

Citizens and doctors who object to what the law allows others to do may always take their concerns to the Executive and Legislative Branches and seek greater regulatory or legislative restrictions on certain activities, he wrote.

Much of Kavanaughs opinion covered the various legal thresholds a plaintiff must reach to make it appropriate for courts to intervene in a dispute. Turning to the anti-abortion doctors and medical groups that sued the federal government over the current regulatory regime for the drug, Kavanaugh wrote that the plaintiffs suffered neither the monetary nor the physical injuries that could have established standing. He noted that federal law already protects individual health care providers who have objections to performing abortions for moral reasons.

In short, given the broad and comprehensive conscience protections guaranteed by federal law, the plaintiffs have not shown  and cannot show  that FDAs actions will cause them to suffer any conscience injury, Kavanaugh wrote.

Justice Clarence Thomas wrote a concurrence to bring up other issues he had with the anti-abortion groups standing claims.

Attorney General Merrick Garland said that the Justice Department was gratified that the ruling ensures that mifepristone remains available for women across the country on the terms approved by the Food and Drug Administration.



Danco, a mifepristone manufacturer that had intervened to also defend access to the drug, said it was pleased with the Supreme Courts decision in this incredibly important case.

The ruling, Danco spokesperson Abigail Long said, maintained the stability of the FDA drug approval process, which is based on the agencys expertise and on which patients, healthcare providers and the US pharmaceutical industry rely.

The decision also safeguards access to a drug that has decades of safe and effective use, Long said in the statement.

The Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative legal group that brought the lawsuit on behalf of the anti-abortion doctors, said it was disappointed that the Supreme Court did not reach the merits of the FDAs lawless removal of commonsense safety standards for abortion drug, while alluding to the fact that the legal fight over the rules could continue with other plaintiffs.

Ingrid Skop, an anti-abortion OB-GYN and member of one of the medical groups suing the FDA, said it was deeply disappointing that the FDA was not held accountable today for its reckless decisions.

Originated in Texas with Trump-appointed judge

At the outset of the case, the anti-abortion doctors and medical organizations who challenged the FDA rules sought to pull mifepristone off the market entirely, arguing it was unsafe  a claim that has been refuted by mainstream medical organizations.

That effort came against a backdrop of conservative state laws that severely limited abortion in much of the country. As those bans helped propel the demand for medication abortion, mifepristone became a logical target for the anti-abortion movement. Medication abortions account for nearly two-thirds of all abortions in the US, according to some estimates.

A federal judge in Texas nominated by former President Donald Trump, Matthew Kacsmaryk, sided with the anti-abortion groups, but his ruling never went into effect.

The 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals reversed part of that ruling, holding the drugs two-decade-old underlying approval would stand. But the appeals court sided with the doctors who challenged subsequent decisions by the agency that expanded access to the drug, including the ability to dispense it through the mail.

None of those lower court rulings went into effect because the Supreme Court intervened last year and ordered that the status quo around mifepristone remain in place until the justices reviewed the case. The Supreme Court heard arguments in March.

In the meantime, a group of GOP-led states intervened in the case at the trial judge-level, signaling that the legal fight over abortion pill access could continue even as the Supreme Court has rejected the lawsuit brought by the anti-abortion doctors.

Steve Vladeck, a CNN Supreme Court analyst and professor at the University of Texas School of Law, said that Thursdays ruling doesnt cut off the possibility of future challenges to mifepristone, as he pointed to the efforts by those Republican states.

But the reasoning of the case should make those challenges less likely to succeed, because those plaintiffs (and others) will have a hard time showing that they were harmed by the FDAs actions, Vladeck said.

The FDA approved mifepristone in 2000 as part of a two-drug regimen to end a pregnancy. Over the course of two decades, the agency loosened restrictions it initially placed on the drugs use. In 2016, it allowed women to take the drug later into a pregnancy, to 10 from seven weeks of gestational age. It also permitted non-physicians, such as nurse practitioners, to prescribe it. During the Covid-19 pandemic, the FDA announced it would no longer enforce the in-person dispensing requirement.

Last year, after the doctors lawsuit was filed, the FDA formalized that decision, allowing the drug to be dispensed through the mail.

Both the FDA and several medical groups, including the American Medical Association, told the Supreme Court that mifepristone is safe.

But the doctors, many of whom have long been associated with the anti-abortion movement, claimed that they faced the risk of being forced to treat patients dealing with complications from the drug, such as heavier-than-expected bleeding. They claimed that triaging those women had a substantial impact on their practices. And some said they had been called on to perform post-medication abortion procedures they said violated their beliefs.

At the Supreme Court hearing earlier this year, several justices  including members of the conservative bloc  expressed doubt that the doctors had overcome a procedural threshold known as standing, which requires plaintiffs to show that they had been harmed by the governments actions.

None of the doctors who submitted declarations to a lower court actually prescribe mifepristone and none pointed to an instance when they were personally required to complete an abortion for a patient who had complications after taking the drug.

The lead medical group in the suit, the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, was incorporated in Amarillo, Texas, months before it filed the lawsuit  allowing it to choose a court where it was guaranteed to be assigned to Kacsmaryk, who was appointed to the bench by former President Donald Trump.

The Biden administration, along with a mifepristone manufacturer that intervened to defend the FDA, argued that since the anti-abortion doctors were not prescribing the drug, it wasnt appropriate for them to challenge the regulations.

The decision landed in the middle of a presidential election that has already been heavily swayed by the Supreme Courts abortion jurisprudence. The 2022 ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Womens Health Organization ended the constitutional right to abortion that Roe established in 1973. The decision prompted conservative states to enact strict limits on the procedure, which prompted additional litigation and helped rally Democrats. President Joe Biden has repeatedly blasted the decision on the campaign trail this year.

The mifepristone appeal was one of two abortion cases the high court was considering this month. The other deals with a strict ban on the procedure in Idaho. The Biden administration sued the state over that prohibition, arguing that a federal law requires hospitals that receive Medicare funding to provide stabilizing care in emergency rooms, including abortions, when the health of the pregnant woman is at stake.

This story has been updated with additional details.

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CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS)  Justices of the highest court are heading into the final few weeks of deliberations, and nearly half of their caseloads havent been heard.

The judges are still weighing whether former President Trump is immune to criminal prosecution in the election interference case against him.

If a president can be charged, put on trial, and imprisoned for his most controversial decisions as soon as he leaves office every current president will face de facto blackmail and extortion by his political rivals, said D. John Sauer, Attorney for former President Trump.

The framers did not put an immunity clause into the constitutionNot so surprising they were reacting against a monarch who claims to be above the law, said Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan during oral arguments in April.

Marijuana could be legalized on NC tribal land by August

The timing of this ruling will be crucial in determining if Trump will face another trial before election day.

In March, justices heard oral arguments on whether to restrict access to a key abortion medication, Mifepristone, used in more than half of all U.S. abortions and first approved by the Food and Drug Administration in 2000.

The Supreme Courts ruling in the 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson case ended federal protections for abortion set by Roe v. Wade.

Just last week, lawmakers in DC held a vote on the Right to Contraception Act. It did not pass a vote.

Here we are in a situation where today, Republican colleagues voted against protecting our freedom to make our own decisions about birth control, said Michigan Democrat Senator Debbie Stabenow.

Texas Republican Senator John Cornyn argues birth control access is not in jeopardy from Republicans or anyone else.

Contraception is available in every state in America, and theres no legitimate effort to change that, he said.

Furnace falls off of 18-wheeler, damages vehicle in Burke County

Another case we could see a ruling on is related to whether doctors are required by federal law to perform abortions in life-or-death situations.

A law in Idaho requires doctors to prove that a mother could die if she gave birth. Federal officials argue that if a hospital receives federal funding, doctors are required to perform the procedure, no matter their states laws on abortion.

The court will issue rulings on a federal bump stock ban. Theres also a case on whether the Biden Administration can put limits on social media posts.

Justices face a decision on whether Donald Trump and the January 6th rioters can be charged with obstructing the certification of the 2020 election.

29 cases are still waiting for discussion. The high court will release rulings tomorrow and every week until their term ends, traditionally by the first week in July.

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 Queen City News.
The Supreme Court building is seen on Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

WASHINGTON (AP)  The Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously ruled against a man who wants to trademark the suggestive phrase Trump too small.

The justices upheld the governments decision to deny a trademark to Steve Elster, a California man seeking exclusive use of the phrase on T-shirts and potentially other merchandise. It is one of several cases at the court relating to former President Donald Trump, including major cases related to the violent attack on the Capitol in 2021. Earlier this term, the court laid out standards for when public officials can be sued for blocking critics from their social media accounts. These cases were also related to Trump.

The Justice Department supported President Joe Bidens predecessor and presumptive opponent in the 2024 election. Government officials said the phrase Trump too small could still be used, just not trademarked because Trump had not consented to its use. Indeed, Trump too small T-shirts can already be purchased online.

Elsters lawyers had argued that the decision violated his free speech rights, and a federal appeals court agreed.

At arguments, Chief Justice John Roberts said that if Elster were to win, people would race to trademark Trump too this, Trump too that.

Although all nine justices agreed in rejecting Elster's First Amendment claim, they used differing rationales that stretched over 53 pages of opinions.

Twice in the past six years, the justices have struck down provisions of federal law denying trademarks seen as scandalous or immoral in one case and disparaging in another.

Elster's case dealt with another measure calling for a trademark request to be refused if it involves a name, portrait or signature identifying a particular living individual unless the person has given written consent.

The phrase at the heart of the case is a reference to an exchange Trump had during the 2016 presidential campaign with Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, who was then also running for the Republican presidential nomination.

Rubio began the verbal jousting when he told supporters at a rally that Trump was always calling him little Marco but that Trump  who says he is 6 feet and 3 inches tall  has disproportionately small hands. Have you seen his hands? ... And you know what they say about men with small hands, Rubio said. You cant trust them.

Trump then brought up the comment at a televised debate on March 3, 2016.

Look at those hands. Are they small hands? And he referred to my hands  if theyre small, something else must be small. I guarantee you theres no problem. I guarantee you, he said.

___

This story has been corrected to reflect that the court earlier this term, rather than last week, laid out standards for when public officials can be sued for blocking critics from their social media accounts.
A California attorneys bid to trademark Trump too small ended Thursday when the Supreme Court tossed his free speech challenge to his rejected application.

Steve Elster, the attorney, had hoped to trademark the reference to a suggestive, infamous 2016 Republican debate moment to sell on T-shirts and other merchandise.

In a majority opinion authored by conservative Justice Clarence Thomas, the Supreme Court instead sided with the Biden-era Justice Department, which defended the federal trademark offices refusal to accept Elsters application. Trump was not a party to the case.

Elsters application was rejected under a provision of federal law prohibiting the registration of marks that identify a living person without their consent.

Elster contends that this prohibition violates his First Amendment right to free speech. We hold that it does not, Thomas wrote.

Elsters slogan references the 2016 Republican presidential debate moment in which Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) made fun of Trumps hand size. The personal tit for tat came after Trump dubbed Rubio as Little Marco during the campaign.

He referred to my hands, Trump said during the debate. If theyre small, something else must be small. I guarantee you theres no problem. I guarantee.

In paperwork filed in during his attempted registration, Elster in 2018 wrote that his mark was political commentary about the smallness of Donald Trumps overall approach to governing as president of the United States and the smallness of his approach to specific issues as president.

He ultimately brought his fight to court, winning before the District of Columbia U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals by contending the restriction violated his free speech protections under the First Amendment. The Justice Department then appealed to the Supreme Court.

Elster said in a statement he was disappointed by the outcome but would continue to sell his shirts.

The decision was disappointing but not unexpected given the oral arguments, Elster said in a email after the opinion was handed down. Trump previously weaponized his own trademarks by intimidating other anti-Trump t-shirt sellers, so any concerns about a trademark being misused to chill political speech with empty legal threats already exists and continues unabated with this decision.

Though all nine justices agreed the provision was constitutional, the Supreme Courts decision was fractured, with various justices joining portions of the four different opinions.

Much of the disagreement concerned whether history and tradition can establish that prohibitions like the one at hand are constitutional. Thomass majority opinion identified a longstanding tradition of restricting the use of anothers name in a trademark.

This is wrong twice over, conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who only joined portions of Thomass opinion, wrote separately.

First, the Courts evidence, consisting of loosely related cases from the late-19th and early-20th centuries, does not establish a historical analogue for the names clause, Barrett continued, joined by the courts three liberal Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Ketanji Brown Jackson and Elena Kagan.

Second, the court never explains why hunting for historical forebears on a restriction-by-restriction basis is the right way to analyze the constitutional question.

Thursdays decision follows two cases in which the high court went the other way and struck down neighboring provisions of federal law that similarly placed restrictions on what could be trademarked. In those cases, the justices found the provisions discriminated against speakers viewpoints.

President Bidens administration argued the provision at the center of the case was viewpoint-neutral, insisting the restriction doesnt need to clear the same legal hurdle as a result. Instead, the Justice Department said the provision should be treated as a condition on a government benefit, not a simple restriction on speech.

The Biden administration was backed by the International Trademark Association and consumer advocacy group Public Citizen. Elster was backed by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a free speech group that focuses on college campuses, and Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank.

Updated 12:50 p.m.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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One hundred years ago, antibiotics revolutionized medicine. Bacterial infections were wreaking havoc, and the emergence of a drug capable of annihilating microbes led to an unprecedented improvement in life expectancy. Since then, the massive  and sometimes negligent  use of antibiotics has allowed bacteria to adapt to its attacks and antibiotic resistance is threatening to devalue medicines that have saved millions of lives. Now, the study of the intestinal microbiota, an ecosystem of microorganisms that coexist inside us in a complex balance, is making new treatments for infections possible.

This is the case with MBK-01, the code name of a drug to treat Clostridium difficile infections, which affects 124,000 hospitalized people in Europe every year. The drug is a pill made from the fecal transplants of healthy donors that manages to fight bacteria in a method different to the antibiotic. Instead of killing the organism that causes diarrhea, and along with it, the many other bacteria that are needed for good intestinal health, it introduces the balanced microbiota of a healthy patient. All these beneficial organisms counteract the excess C. difficile and restore health without wiping out the bacterial ecosystem. As a result, the patient is less prone to relapses.

The drug, developed by a small company called Mikrobiomik from the Spanish city of Derio, has passed a Phase 3 trial (the last in humans before approval), with positive results. In this study, which involved 92 patients with C. difficile from 21 centers in Spain, the pill showed no safety problems and was 15% more effective than fidaxomicin, the antibiotic usually used to treat this infection. Whats more, the trial also showed that people who took the fecal transplant pill had a lower recurrence of the condition than those who received the antibiotic.

In the United States, two microbiota therapies are already marketed for similar infections, one developed by Seres Therapeutics, which was the first approved fecal microbiota transplant pill in the world, and another developed by Rebiotix, which is introduced by colonoscopy. In both cases, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved their use for people with C. difficile, but only for patients who had already suffered relapses after taking antibiotics. The trial developed by Mikrobiomik would allow the pill to be used as a first option. It is the first non-antibiotic antibiotic, summarizes Juan Basterra, CEO of the company.

C. difficile is a bacterium that is difficult to kill. The bacillus forms spores that are able to survive for years in water or on the floor of a hospital, waiting for the right moment to find a host where it can thrive. In the body, the same thing happens. Even if the antibiotic kills the bacterial community, the spores can resist and trigger a relapse. In a work published in 2013 in The New England Journal of Medicine it was shown that to combat C. difficile, rather than eliminating it with antibiotics, it was better to separate it, to make it become subdominant, explains Francisco Guarner, digestologist and member of the scientific committee of the International Human Microbiome Consortium. The problem with transplantation is that you put in a lot of unknown things, and [in 2019] one person died and another became very sick from one of these transplants. This triggered alarm and drew attention to the need to properly resolve the safety issues, he adds.

Freeze-dried fecal microbiota transplantation, in pill format, could revolutionize access and convenience for the treatment of C. difficile infections, says Majdi Osman, a professor at Harvard University and medical director of OpenBiome, an organization working to improve the accessibility and safety of fecal microbiota transplants. For Osman, if the product is effective, a pill would make the treatment easier  not only because the method of administration is easier, but because it could be stored at room temperature.

However, the professor also points out that, for more severe cases, administration by colonoscopy is still more effective than pills. Still, Osman notes that in people with severe infections, who may need several treatments, there may be an initial role for colonoscopy treatment and then doing the subsequent ones by oral capsule. More research is needed to understand the best route and the best dose, he concludes.

After completing this Phase 3 trial, we are very close to bringing it to the market. The EMA [European Medicines Agency] has already classified our product as an active substance, he points out. In Spain, in addition to the participants in the companys clinical trials, 40 people have taken the medicine, within the compassionate use of medicines program of the Spanish Agency for Medicines and Health Products (AEMPS), which allows patients in need to use a drug, even if it is not approved, and they are not in a clinical trial. Now, Microbiomik is looking for capital to expand its production capacity and workforce.

For the future, Mikrobiomik is testing its technology in diseases of the liver, intestine and as an aid in the treatment of colon cancer. Although the field of research is relatively new, there are already indications that fecal transplants could be useful in treating depression and a link has also been observed between the microbiome and some cardiovascular or degenerative diseases. After the revolution that improved the lives of millions by killing the bad microbes, a new transformation may be in the making thanks to pills that restore health by helping the good microbes.

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A California attorneys bid to trademark Trump too small ended Thursday when the Supreme Court tossed his free speech challenge to his rejected application.

Steve Elster, the attorney, had hoped to trademark the reference to a suggestive, infamous 2016 Republican debate moment to sell on T-shirts and other merchandise.

In a majority opinion authored by conservative Justice Clarence Thomas, the Supreme Court instead sided with the Biden-era Justice Department, which defended the federal trademark offices refusal to accept Elsters application. Trump was not a party to the case.

Elsters application was rejected under a provision of federal law prohibiting the registration of marks that identify a living person without their consent.

Elster contends that this prohibition violates his First Amendment right to free speech. We hold that it does not, Thomas wrote.

Elsters slogan references the 2016 Republican presidential debate moment in which Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) made fun of Trumps hand size. The personal tit for tat came after Trump dubbed Rubio as Little Marco during the campaign.

He referred to my hands, Trump said during the debate. If theyre small, something else must be small. I guarantee you theres no problem. I guarantee.

In paperwork filed in during his attempted registration, Elster in 2018 wrote that his mark was political commentary about the smallness of Donald Trumps overall approach to governing as president of the United States and the smallness of his approach to specific issues as president.

He ultimately brought his fight to court, winning before the District of Columbia U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals by contending the restriction violated his free speech protections under the First Amendment. The Justice Department then appealed to the Supreme Court.

Elster said in a statement he was disappointed by the outcome but would continue to sell his shirts.

The decision was disappointing but not unexpected given the oral arguments, Elster said in a email after the opinion was handed down. Trump previously weaponized his own trademarks by intimidating other anti-Trump t-shirt sellers, so any concerns about a trademark being misused to chill political speech with empty legal threats already exists and continues unabated with this decision.

Though all nine justices agreed the provision was constitutional, the Supreme Courts decision was fractured, with various justices joining portions of the four different opinions.

Much of the disagreement concerned whether history and tradition can establish that prohibitions like the one at hand are constitutional. Thomass majority opinion identified a longstanding tradition of restricting the use of anothers name in a trademark.

This is wrong twice over, conservative Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who only joined portions of Thomass opinion, wrote separately.

First, the Courts evidence, consisting of loosely related cases from the late-19th and early-20th centuries, does not establish a historical analogue for the names clause, Barrett continued, joined by the courts three liberal Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Ketanji Brown Jackson and Elena Kagan.

Second, the court never explains why hunting for historical forebears on a restriction-by-restriction basis is the right way to analyze the constitutional question.

Thursdays decision follows two cases in which the high court went the other way and struck down neighboring provisions of federal law that similarly placed restrictions on what could be trademarked. In those cases, the justices found the provisions discriminated against speakers viewpoints.

President Bidens administration argued the provision at the center of the case was viewpoint-neutral, insisting the restriction doesnt need to clear the same legal hurdle as a result. Instead, the Justice Department said the provision should be treated as a condition on a government benefit, not a simple restriction on speech.

The Biden administration was backed by the International Trademark Association and consumer advocacy group Public Citizen. Elster was backed by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a free speech group that focuses on college campuses, and Manhattan Institute, a conservative think tank.

Updated 12:50 p.m.

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 Queen City News.
The Supreme Court sided with Starbucks on Thursdayin a decision that could make it harder for labor prosecutors to win court injunctions against employers they believe to have broken the law.

The case, McKinney v. Starbucks, revolved around the firings of seven baristas amid a union organizing campaign at a store in Memphis, Tennessee. The National Labor Relations Board secured an injunction in federal court requiring Starbucks to temporarily hire the baristas back while the underlying union-busting allegations were being litigated.

Starbucks had maintained that the firings were justified, and argued before the Supreme Court that the criteria the federal court used to evaluate the injunction request were too lax. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the 8-1 decision for the court. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote a partial dissent.

The case is unlikely to have a dramatic impact on labor law because of its relatively limited scope. But the decision fits into a broader pattern, as the courts right wing has sided with corporations and sought to limit the power of federal agencies to intervene on behalf of consumers, workers or the environment.

Lynne Fox, the president of Workers United, the union organizing Starbucks, said in a statement on the decision that workers have so few tools to defend themselves when employers break the law.

That makes todays ruling by the Supreme Court particularly egregious, Fox said. It underscores how the economy is rigged against working people all the way up to the Supreme Court.

The NLRB is an independent federal agency responsible for enforcing collective bargaining rights in the private sector. Its prosecutors bring cases against employers and unions when workers rights have been violated, with a five-member board in Washington that hears cases on appeal.

Were not going to stop our investigations or our litigation or [union] elections because of these challenges.Jennifer Abruzzo, NLRB general counsel

But when prosecutors believe the normal process cant adequately protect workers, they sometimes ask federal judges to issue temporary injunctions to stop allegedly illegal labor practices. NLRB lawyers pursued such an order against Starbucks in the Memphis case, arguing that the ouster of several union supporters was illegal and could do irreparable damage to an active organizing campaign if it wasnt quickly rectified.

Courts have been split on which factors should be used to determine whether an injunction is warranted. The federal judge in the Starbucks case applied a lower level of scrutiny than what the Supreme Court endorsed, meaning the labor board will need to satisfy a higher standard in order to get future injunctions against businesses.

The Starbucks case is part of the Supreme Courts larger shift against deference to federal agencies. In a separate case this term, the court is re-examining whats known as the landmark Chevron doctrine, which gives federal agencies latitude to interpret laws and issue regulations where Congress may have been ambiguous.

In oral arguments the conservative bloc seemed poised to overturn the Chevron precedent. Such a decision would make it harder for agencies to enact regulations and give courts greater power to strike them down  a blow to any progressive administration hoping to tackle pressing issues like climate change through regulatory power.

The NLRB went to court seeking an injunction to put seven fired Starbucks baristas back to work. Kevin Dietsch via Getty Images

Patrick Muldowney, a management-side labor attorney at the firm BakerHostetler, said he viewed the Starbucks case as a companion to the bigger Chevron case, since the former hinged on how much courts should defer to the expertise of NLRB officials seeking injunctions.

I think this is sort of part of a larger movement by the court, Muldowney said in an interview before the Supreme Court issued the Starbucks decision. They are looking at agency deference with a jaundiced eye at this point.

The NLRB has turned out to be one of the most progressive agencies in the federal government under President Joe Biden. The general counsel, Biden appointee Jennifer Abruzzo, has applied a broad reading of workers rights and aggressively brought cases against employers for trying to snuff out organizing campaigns, angering business groups as well as congressional Republicans.

Abruzzo has said in memos outlining her agenda that she wants to ramp up the use of injunctions because she wants to stop illegal behavior before it gets worse. She instructed offices to investigate alleged threats as soon as possible to figure out whether an injunction might be called for.

I think this is sort of part of a larger movement by the court... They are looking at agency deference with a jaundiced eye.Patrick Muldowney, attorney

In an interview with HuffPost following oral arguments in the Starbucks case, Abruzzo called the injunctions one of the most important tools available to us. She noted that workers whove been fired for organizing dont have a private right of action to sue the employer for damages  their only tool for rectifying injustice is the labor board.

We are it for workers, and weve got to aggressively pursue section 10(j) relief in appropriate cases, Abruzzo told HuffPost, referring to the law that allows the NLRB to seek injunctions. Its a very painstaking review . We dont do it lightly, but we do need to do it in certain cases.

The boards pursuit of injunctions is indeed rare, according to agency data. The NLRB has only litigated a total of 135 injunction cases since 2012, or less than a dozen a year on average. The board has succeeded in winning an injunction 74% of the time, and happens to have done better under the more stringent test in court than the more lax one.

But Muldowney said it was hard to see Abruzzo expanding the use of injunctions if the bar is set higher.

I think the idea is if the court comes down in favor of Starbucks you wont see an acceleration in terms of [injunctions], he said.

Starbucks isnt the only company to challenge the way the board operates. SpaceX, the aerospace company owned by Elon Musk, has filed a lawsuit in federal court arguing that the NLRBs structure itself is unconstitutional, and therefore the agencys union-busting charges against SpaceX are illegitimate. If the company were to succeed, the case could upend labor relations.

Abruzzo vowed that none of these cases would deter the board from enforcing the law.

Were not going to stop our investigations or our litigation or [union] elections because of these challenges, Abruzzo said. Its just not going to happen.
The Supreme Court ruled for Starbucks on Thursday and limited the power of judges and the National Labor Relations Board to protect union organizers.

In a 9-0 decision, the court overturned a ruling by a federal judge in Tennessee who sided with the NLRB and ordered Starbucks to rehire the so-called "Memphis Seven."

In doing so, the justices set a higher legal standard to prevent judges from deferring to the labor board in pending disputes.



Justice Clarence Thomas said judges should follow the traditional rules before intervening to give a temporary victory for the workers and the NLRB.

"A preliminary injunction is an 'extraordinary' equitable remedy that is never awarded as of right," he said in Starbucks vs. McKinney.

Read more: Supreme Court rejects California man's attempt to trademark Trump T-shirts

AFL-CIO president Liz Shuler denounced the decision and said the court had "sided with corporate power over Starbucks baristas today in a direct attack on the fundamental freedom to organize a union on the job. This decision sets a higher threshold for courts to reinstate workers who have been unfairly fired. In a system that is already stacked against workers, this will make it even harder for them to get back their jobs."

But the National Federation of Independent Business said it was pleased the justices ruled the NLRB "does not receive special treatment" in court. Preliminary injunctions are not a benign, administrative procedure. They are a considerable intrusion on a business, said Beth Milito, executive director of NFIBs Small Business Legal Center.

Judges in different parts of the nation had followed differing approaches in these cases, and the court sided with those who said judges should be reluctant to intervene and issue a temporary injunction.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson dissented in part, saying she did not think judges were exercising too much power in these cases and should generally defer to the labor board.

"I am loath to bless this aggrandizement of judicial power where Congress has so plainly limited the discretion of the courts, and where it so clearly intends for the expert agency it has created to make the primary determinations about both merits and process," she wrote.

Starbucks has been aggressive in fighting against union organizers. The coffee company said it took the Memphis case to the high court seeking to "level the playing field" in these labor-management battles.

At issue was what the company called a union-friendly legal standard that allowed judges to intervene early and to rule against the employers.

"Getting an injunction is often the whole ballgame," said Washington attorney Lisa Blatt on behalf of the company in Starbucks vs. McKinney.

The NLRB says these temporary injunctions are needed to protect workers who were fired in violation of the labor laws. But the companies say they should not be forced to rehire employees who broke their work rules.

In February 2022, Starbucks fired seven baristas in Memphis who were seeking to organize a union. The company said the dismissals arose from "significant violations" of their safety and security policies. They said the employees had remained in the store after closing hours and invited local media to interview them.

Starbucks Workers United called this "union busting" and filed a complaint with the NLRB contending the workers were fired in retaliation for their organizing efforts.

Read more: Supreme Court upholds FDA's approval of abortion pills for early pregnancies

M. Kathleen McKinney, a regional director of the NLRB, petitioned a federal judge to issue an order protecting the workers while the board considered their complaint. U.S. District Judge Sheryl Lipman agreed there was "reasonable cause" to believe the workers had a valid claim, and she ordered Starbucks to rehire the seven employees.

Starbucks said the NLRB leans in favor of workers in these disputes and regularly wins orders from judges who force employers to rehire workers while their claims are pending for months or years before the labor board. Their lawyers argued that in other non-labor cases, judges rarely issue such temporary injunctions and do so only if they are convinced the suing parties are likely to win in the end.

Lynne Fox, president of the Workers United, said the unionizing efforts will not be deterred.

Regardless of large corporations machinations at the Supreme Court, workers are continuing to organize. Just last week, workers at 20 Starbucks stores filed petitions to join Starbucks Workers United. And there are nearly 450 union Starbucks stores across the country. Workers momentum is unstoppable and they will not let the Supreme Court slow them down," he said.

Starbucks said in a statement that the ruling had upheld the principle of "consistent federal standards" across the country.

"Partners are the core of our business, and we are committed to providing everyone who wears the green apron a bridge to a better future. We will continue to focus on making progress toward our goal of reaching ratified contracts for represented stores this year," the company said.





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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
The Supreme Court on Thursday tossed a lower courts ruling ordering Starbucks to reinstate seven Memphis-based employees terminated amid a unionization drive.

The decision makes it more difficult to immediately block alleged unfair labor practices as they are litigated in a sometimes years-long administrative process. Justice Clarence Thomas wrote the majority opinion on behalf of eight justices, while Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson partially dissented.

The case arose from the Memphis Seven, seven Starbucks employees who were terminated from the coffee giant in 2022 during a unionization effort. They had publicly posted a letter addressed to the companys CEO and sat down in the store with a television news crew to discuss the organizing efforts.

Starbucks said it lawfully terminated the employees for breaking the companys policies the day of the television interview, including by going behind the counter while off-duty and unlocking a door to allow an unauthorized person to enter the store.

Lower courts had split on the standard for when to issue the so-called 10(j) injunctions, which can force companies to reinstate employees, keep facilities open and pause corporate policy changes as the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) processes complaints against them.

The Supreme Courts ruling rejects a more lenient test leveraged when requiring Starbucks to reinstate the seven employees, instead demanding courts use a more stringent, four-factor test applied in other contexts.

Nothing in 10(j) displaces the presumption that those traditional principles govern, Thomas wrote in his majority opinion. We therefore conclude that district courts must use the traditional four-part test when evaluating the Boards request for a preliminary injunction under 10(j).

The NLRB only seeks the temporary injunctions in a handful of cases each year, but the ruling now raises the bar for the burden that must be cleared when going to court to seek such an order.

Jackson agreed the lower ruling should be wiped but dissented in part and said the majority was ignoring the choices Congress has made when establishing the NLRB.

I am loath to bless this aggrandizement of judicial power where Congress has so plainly limited the discretion of the courts, and where it so clearly intends for the expert agency it has created to make the primary determinations about both merits and process, Jackson wrote.

In a statement, the Starbucks union called the Supreme Courts ruling egregious.

Working people have so few tools to protect and defend themselves when their employers break the law. That makes todays ruling by the Supreme Court particularly egregious. It underscores how the economy is rigged against working people all the way up to the Supreme Court, said Lynne Fox, president of Workers United, which represents unionized Starbucks workers at hundreds of stores.

The NLRB declined to comment on the Supreme Courts ruling, but in April, its general counsel said the differences between the tests are terminology, not substantive and that the board has been successful using either.

Starbucks said in a statement it would continue to work toward reaching a ratified contract amid the ruling.

Partners are the core of our business, and we are committed to providing everyone who wears the green apron a bridge to a better future, Starbucks said in a statement. We will continue to focus making progress toward our goal of reaching ratified contracts for represented stores this year. Consistent federal standards are important in ensuring that employees know their rights and consistent labor practices are upheld no matter where in the country they work and live.

Updated at 12:17 p.m. ET

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 The Hill.
The Supreme Court decided Thursday that an anti-abortion group does not have legal standing to sue the Food and Drug Administration over mifepristone, guaranteeing national access to abortion medication under U.S. law.

A coalition of anti-abortion doctors and activists challenged access to mifepristone in November 2022, alleging that the FDA had overstepped its role by taking several steps that expanded access to the drug in 2016. The plaintiffs, represented by the right-wing Christian organization Alliance Defending Freedom, sought to overturn the FDAs approval and have mifepristone pulled from the market.

In a unanimous opinion, the court ruled that the group had no standing to sue the federal agency and that it had failed to demonstrate how it was personally harmed by the drugs existence on the market.

Under Article III of the Constitution, a plaintiffs desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue. Nor do the plaintiffs other standing theories suffice. Therefore, the plaintiffs lack standing to challenge FDAs actions, Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote, later specifying that citizens and doctors do not have standing to sue simply because others are allowed to engage in certain activitiesat least without the plaintiffs demonstrating how they would be injured by the governments alleged under-regulation of others.

Mifepristone and misoprostol comprise the two-step prescription referred to as the abortion pill. Together, they account for more than half of all the abortions in the United States, according to a 2022 report by the Guttmacher Institute.

The case, FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, was the biggest challenge to national reproductive access since the courts conservative supermajority overturned Roe v. Wade in June 2022. The battle truly kicked off in April the following year, when a Trump-appointed judge in Texas halted access to the drug.

Four months later, the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with the plaintiffs, ruling that while the pill was safe for market, the FDA had improperly approved expanded access. Those steps included allowing women to access mifepristone 10 weeks into pregnancy instead of seven, lowering the standard dosage, and allowing the prescription to be accessed via telemedicine.

To be clear, the Supreme Courts decision hinges on the legality of the case, not on whether people have a right to bodily autonomy. The high court ruled that the Fifth Circuits decision failed to find a basis in the U.S. Constitution.

The plaintiffs have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to elective abortion and to FDAs relaxed regulation of mifepristone, Kavanaugh wrote. But under Article III of the Constitution, those kinds of objections alone do not establish a justiciable case or controversy in federal court. Here, the plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate that FDAs relaxed regulatory requirements likely would cause them to suffer an injury in fact. For that reason, the federal courts are the wrong forum for addressing the plaintiffs concerns about FDAs actions.

Instead, Kavanaugh suggested that the plaintiffs take their issues to the president, setting up another fight to maintain abortion access should Donald Trump win in November.

By and large, most Americans support abortion access. In a 2023 Gallup poll, just 13 percent of surveyed Americans said that abortion should be illegal in all circumstances. Meanwhile, 34 percent said it should be legal under any circumstances, and an additional 13 percent said it should be legal in most circumstances.

This story has been updated.
It is hard to get nine random Americans to agree with each other on abortion. It is even more difficult if those nine Americans happen to serve on the Supreme Court. But right-wing legal groups and lower court judges have now done the impossible: They got a unanimous ruling from the high court on Americans access to mifepristone, the most widely used abortion drug in the country.

The only problem for them is that they lost. The Supreme Court rejected a two-year push to get the federal courts to overturn or limit the Food and Drug Administrations approval of the most commonly used abortion drug in the country on Thursday. The 90 ruling preserves the status quo for most Americans. Justice Brett Kavanaugh, writing for the court in FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, said that the anti-abortion doctors who filed the lawsuit had no grounds to do so.

The plaintiffs do not prescribe or use mifepristone, he wrote. And FDA is not requiring them to do or refrain from doing anything. Rather, the plaintiffs want FDA to make mifepristone more difficult for other doctors to prescribe and for pregnant women to obtain. Under Article III of the Constitution, a plaintiffs desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue.

The ruling is a major defeat for the right-wing legal groups that organized the case. It is also another rebuke of the lower court judges who allowed it to proceed at all. The Supreme Court is increasingly unwilling to let the Fifth Circuit Court of Appealsand the district court judges in its jurisdictioncommandeer national policy on legally indefensible grounds.

This particular case began in the courtroom of Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, who happens to be the only federal judge assigned to the Amarillo division of the federal court in the Western District of Texas. That administrative quirk means that a plaintiff can effectively guarantee that their case will be heard by him if they file a lawsuit in Amarillo. This option is particularly attractive for conservative Christian legal groups since Kacsmaryk, who was appointed by Trump in 2019, formerly served as general counsel for one of them.

In 2022, the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, a pop-up coalition of anti-abortion doctors, sued the FDA to overturn the agencys original approval of mifepristone 20 years earlier. They were represented by Alliance Defending Freedom, one of the countrys most prominent right-wing legal groups. The doctors argued that the FDAs original approval of mifepristone in 2002 violated the Administrative Procedures Act, as did subsequent rule changes in 2016 and 2021 that made the drug easier to obtain.

Before addressing the merits of a lawsuit, courts must always decide whether the plaintiff or plaintiffs could bring it in the first place. The Constitution requires that courts hear only cases and controversies, meaning that they cant hand down mere advisory opinions. In general terms, a plaintiff has to show that they suffered some sort of injury and that the court can actually remedy it.

As Justice Scalia memorably said, Article III requires a plaintiff to first answer a basic question: Whats it to you? Kavanaugh wrote. For a plaintiff to get in the federal courthouse door and obtain a judicial determination of what the governing law is, the plaintiff cannot be a mere bystander, but instead must have a personal stake in the dispute.

The anti-abortion doctors argued that mifepristone had a risk of complications and adverse side effects. (This is true for any drug.) They do not prescribe it for conscience reasons. Nor did they claim to take it themselves as patients. Instead, they argued that they suffered legal injuries because other people took it and that their usage of it might have downstream effects on their own conscience rights if they treat those people as patients.

This is not how standing works, to put it mildly. The plaintiffs essentially argued that the FDAs approval of mifepristone means that the doctors might encounter patients who took it, and that those patients might suffer some sort of complications from the drug, and that the doctors might have to violate their consciences by treating them. These are hypotheticals upon hypotheticals upon hypotheticals, creating a chain of causation that was too tenuous for the Supreme Courts standards.

Kavanaugh noted that virtually every drug approved by the FDA had some risk of side effects and complications. Adopting the plaintiffs theory of standing would lead to chaos. The plaintiffs loose approach to causation would also essentially allow any doctor or healthcare provider to challenge any FDA decision approving a new drug, he wrote. But doctors have never had standing to challenge FDAs drug approvals simply on the theory that use of the drugs by others may cause more visits to doctors.

He also noted that this approach would extend to other professions as well, with far-reaching consequences. Firefighters could sue to object to relaxed building codes that increase fire risks, he wrote. Police officers could sue to challenge a government decision to legalize certain activities that are associated with increased crime. Teachers in border states could sue to challenge allegedly lax immigration policies that lead to overcrowded classrooms. Kavanaugh concluded that this path would seemingly not end until virtually every citizen had standing to challenge virtually every government action that they do not like.

This is familiar ground for Kavanaugh. Twelve years ago, he heard a case brought by a vaccine-skeptic group while serving on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals. The Alliance for Mercury-Free Vaccines had sued the FDA to stop the use of a mercury-based preservative that is found in most (but not all) vaccines. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other public health agencies say that the preservative poses no health risks to humans.

Writing for a three-judge panel, Kavanaugh rejected their argument on standing grounds because the groups members were not actually affected by its presence in some vaccines. The groups members had access to vaccines without the preservative, he wrote, and therefore would only be suing to deprive others of it. Plaintiffs may, of course, advocate that the legislative and executive branches ban all thimerosal-preserved vaccines, he wrote. But because plaintiffs are suffering no cognizable injury as a result of FDAs decision to allow thimerosal-preserved vaccines, their lawsuit is not a proper subject for the judiciary.

What was obvious to Kavanaugh as a D.C. Circuit judge 12 years ago was more elusive for federal judges in Texas in this case. Kacsmaryk accepted the dubious standing arguments and struck down mifepristones original approval in 2002, threatening to take the drug off the market throughout the entire country. The Supreme Court stayed his order shortly thereafter while litigation continued.

On review, the Fifth Circuit allowed the drugs original approval in 2002 to survive because the statutory time limits to challenge it had expired. But it adopted the plaintiffs standing theories to reverse more recent rule changes that made mifepristone more easily obtainable for most Americans. The three-judge panel held that the doctors hypothetical conscience injuries sufficed to provide standing. To reach that conclusion, the panel claimed that the Justice Department was inconsistent on whether federal conscience protections applied to the doctors.

Kavanaugh dispelled that illusion by relying upon Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogars assurances during oral arguments. As the Solicitor General succinctly and correctly stated, EMTALA does not override an individual doctors conscience objections, he said, referring to the Emergency Medical Treatment and Active Labor Act, the federal law governing emergency-room cases. We agree with the Solicitor Generals representation that federal conscience protections provide broad coverage and will shield a doctor who doesnt want to provide care in violation of those protections. This conclusion may have implications in another pending case on whether EMTALA supersedes Idahos near-total abortion ban.

When the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, Kavanaugh emphasized in a concurring opinion that he meant to remove the federal courts from the abortion sphere as much as possible. After todays decision, the nine members of this court will no longer decide the basic legality of pre-viability abortion for all 330 million Americans, he wrote. That issue will be resolved by the people and their representatives in the democratic process in the states or Congress. He cast the courts ruling as a matter of representative democracy, with Roe representing its antithesis.

In this particular case, Kavanaugh stayed true to his word. As a parting blow, he rejected suggestions from some parties that surely someone must have standing to challenge mifepristone. Even if no one would have standing, he wrote, this court has long rejected that kind of if not us, who? argument as a basis for standing. He concluded that some issues may be left to the political and democratic processes. This is a useful reminder for many Americansand an essential one for the Fifth Circuit. The Supreme Court has had to devote a significant amount of its time and energy in recent years to fixing that courts breezy approach to standing, which gets in the way of its desire to act as a junior-varsity SCOTUS.

Last year, the justices overturned a Fifth Circuit ruling against President Joe Bidens student-loan debt-relief order because the two plaintiffs who received relief were obviously not injured by it. Two years ago, they saved the Indian Child Welfare Act from the Fifth Circuits mangling of it by holding that the challengers had effectively sought an unenforceable advisory ruling to demolish the law. The court quashed an attempt by Texas and Louisiana to commandeer federal immigration policy after a federal judge in Texas sided with the states and the Fifth Circuit declined to stop it. And those are just the standing-related cases: There are also recent reversals on the shadow docket and on the merits.

The Framers of the Constitution did not set up something in the nature of an Athenian democracy or a New England town meeting to oversee the conduct of the national government by means of lawsuits in federal courts, Kavanaugh wrote, quoting from prior Supreme Court rulings. When the justices send a copy of their ruling back to the Fifth Circuit, they should bump up the font size on this part a few levels and put it in bold. Maybe this time it will finally stick.
Insights from The New York Times, The Washington Post, and Politico

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The US Supreme Court decided in favor of Starbucks on Thursday in a case involving workers who were fired while trying to unionize a Starbucks store. The decision could make it harder for the US labor watchdog, the National Labor Relations Board, to intervene in labor organizing fights.

In this case, Starbucks said the workers were fired for violating company policy, but the NLRB successfully sought a court injunction to have them reinstated in their jobs.

The Supreme Court found that the legal test used to issue the injunction was too broad and inconsistent with other courts. Eight justices supported the majority opinion, and Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote a separate opinion that concurred with the overall judgment but dissented on several points.

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Decision could encourage more legal challenges to National Labor Relations Board

Sources: The New York Times, The Washington Post

Injunctions won by the NLRB are a powerful deterrent against firing workers trying to unionize, The New York Times wrote, but this ruling could give companies greater license to crack down on union efforts. That means the decision could open the door to an onslaught of challenges to the NLRBs authority, attorney Christopher Foster said, particularly because the agency has taken a more aggressive stance in support of union efforts during the Biden administration. This vindicates the strategy of [companies] going to the courts and not accepting the NLRBs decision in any given matter, Foster said.

Ruling could chill union efforts across the US

Sources: The Washington Post, NPR

The decision could have a chilling effect on labor organization efforts, legal experts said. Labor law challenges often take years to resolve, which may be discouraging for workers trying to organize; hence, injunctions to reinstate fired workers can be sought to address that concern. But this ruling will make it harder for the board to force a company to reinstate a worker, which experts said could dissuade other workers from organizing. However, the federal circuit courts that hear the most injunction petitions already used a legal test Starbucks preferred, a lawyer told NPR. That could mean the decisions impact on organizing efforts more broadly isnt so damaging as some fear, he said.

Decision aligned with broad legal movement to rein in federal powers

Sources: The Independent, Politico

This was one of several cases before the Court this year aimed at shifting power away from federal agencies, a long-time goal for the conservative legal movement. Conservatives want to rein in the broad authority held by federal regulators such as the NLRB, and the Court could further weaken those powers by striking down a precedent known as the Chevron deference in a future decision. Overturning the Chevron deference would have the potential of being one of the most destabilizing decisions that this court has issued, if it chooses to go there, said James Goodwin, an analyst at the Center for Progressive Reform, a leftwing think tank.
Supreme Court Police officers stand on duty outside of the Supreme Court building on Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

WASHINGTON (AP)  The Supreme Court on Thursday made it harder for the federal government to win court orders when it suspects a company of interfering in unionization campaigns in a case that stemmed from a labor dispute with Starbucks.

The justices tightened the standards for when a federal court should issue an order to protect the jobs of workers during a union organizing campaign.

The court unanimously rejected a rule that some courts had applied to orders sought by the National Labor Relations Board in favor of a higher threshold, sought by Starbucks, that must be met in most other fights over court orders, or injunctions.

The NLRB had argued that the National Labor Relations Act, the law that governs the agency, has for more than 75 years allowed courts to grant temporary injunctions if they find requests just and proper. The agency said the law doesnt require it to prove other factors and was intended to limit the role of the courts.

Following the decision, Starbucks said, Consistent federal standards are important in ensuring that employees know their rights and consistent labor practices are upheld no matter where in the country they work and live.

But Lynne Fox, president of the union representing the workers, said Starbucks should have dropped the case as part of its more conciliatory attitude toward union organizing efforts. Working people have so few tools to protect and defend themselves when their employers break the law. That makes todays ruling by the Supreme Court particularly egregious," said Fox, president of Workers United.

The case began in February 2022, when Starbucks fired seven workers who were trying to unionize their Tennessee store. The NLRB obtained a court order forcing the company to rehire the workers while the case wound its way through the agencys administrative proceedings. Such proceedings can take up to two years.

A district court judge agreed with the NLRB and issued a temporary injunction ordering Starbucks to rehire the workers in August 2022. After the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld that ruling, Starbucks appealed to the Supreme Court.

Five of the seven workers are still employed at the Memphis store, while the other two remain involved with the organizing effort, according to Workers United, the union organizing Starbucks workers. The Memphis store voted to unionize in June 2022.

As as the case proceeded, animosity between Workers United and Starbucks began to fade. The two sides announced in February that they would restart talks with the aim of reaching contract agreements this year, and they held their first bargaining session in nearly a year in late April.

Workers at 437 company-owned U.S. Starbucks stores have voted to unionize since late 2021, according to the NLRB, but none of those stores has secured a labor agreement with Starbucks.

Starbucks said it's pursuing its goal reaching ratified contracts for those stores this year.
A widely used abortion drug will remain on the market after the US Supreme Court tossed a legal challenge from anti-abortion activists.

Justices unanimously rejected arguments from an influential conservative Christian legal group that challenged the federal governments approval of the drug mifepristone, which is also used to treat miscarriages.

A ruling on Thursday found that the group lacked standing, meaning a legal right to sue, but conservatives on the high court left the door open for anti-abortion activists to challenge the drug.

The plaintiffs have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to elective abortion and to FDAs relaxed regulation of mifepristone, Justice Kavanaugh wrote for a unanimous court.

But those objections are not enough to establish a justiciable case or controversy in federal court, he wrote.

Here, the plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate that FDAs relaxed regulatory requirements likely would cause them to suffer an injury in fact, he added.

Plaintiffs should instead present their objections to Congress or the FDA itself, not the courts, and they may also express their views about abortion and mifepristone to fellow citizens, including in the political and electoral processes, Kavanaugh added.

Republican officials in several states are still pushing litigation with the hopes of taking it off the market altogether.

In this photo illustration, packages of Mifepristone tablets are displayed at a family planning clinic on April 13, 2023 (Getty Images)

The case marked the first major abortion rights decision at the high court in the wake of its 2022 decision to revoke a constitutional right to care.

Months after that ruling to overturn Roe v Wade, Alliance Defending Freedom filed a federal lawsuit targeting mifepristone from Amarillo, Texas, on behalf of a group of anti-abortion physicians incorporated as the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine.

US District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk  who was appointed by Donald Trump  later issued a ruling to suspend the FDAs approval of the drug, triggering appeals that were kicked up to the nations highest court.

The lawsuit argued that the Food and Drug Administration wrongfully approved mifepristone for use up to 10 weeks of pregnancy, and then improperly eliminated requirements that the drug should only be dispensed in person.

In 2021, the FDA under President Joe Biden permanently lifted the in-person requirement for medication abortion prescriptions, allowing patients to access the drugs via telehealth appointments and online pharmacies so patients can take the drugs at home.

In the years that followed, anti-abortion state legislators have filed more than 100 bills to restrict the availability and distribution or abortion drugs, or sought to ban them altogether. After the Supreme Courts decision in Dobbs v Jackson Womens Health Organization, more than a dozen states have effectively outlawed all abortions in most circumstances.

Abortion-rights activists holds a signs as they protest outside of the Supreme Court during a rally, March 26, 2024 (AP)

There is no credible dispute about mifepristones safety, said Julia Kaye, senior staff attorney with the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project.

When other courts have heard these folks testify, time and again they have discredited them, she told reporters ahead of the courts ruling.

Republican attorneys general from several states have latched on to the Amarillo lawsuit, and abortion rights advocates are anticipating copycat lawsuits if their challenge fails.

And if elected, Trump could appoint a commissioner to the FDA that could roll back evidence-based approval of mifepristone and revoke its approval, Kaye said.

Trumps allies also are promoting a plan to invoke the 150-year-old Comstock Act to ban abortion nationwide, without any new action from Congress. Dozens of Republican members of Congress also wrote to the Supreme Court to argue that Comstock should ban abortion drugs.

Their interpretation of Comstock is entirely wrong, but that is not going to stop these extremists, Kaye said.

President Joe Biden administration and others have also warned that a Supreme Court decision that targets the FDAs approval process could open the door for other right-wing-fuelled legal challenges to other drugs, including HIV prevention medication, gender-affirming care, contraception and Covid-19 vaccines.

Thursdays decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues, Biden said in a statement after the ruling.

Threats to medication abortion are part of Republican elected officials extreme and dangerous agenda to ban abortion nationwide, he added.

Women are being turned away from emergency rooms, or forced to go to court to plead for care that their doctor recommended or to travel hundreds of miles for care, he said. Doctors and nurses are being threatened with jail time, including life in prison, for providing the health care they have been trained to provide. And contraception and IVF are under attack.

The ruling is not a win for abortion, according to Nancy Northup, president of the Center for Reproducrive Rights, which has led challenges to anti-abortion laws and defended abortion access in litigation across the US.

It just maintains the status quo, which is a dire public health crisis in which 14 states have criminalized abortion.
More than 200 rotting corpses of murder victims, many of them unidentified and others unclaimed by anyone, have collapsed the morgue in the city of Guayaquil, the economic engine of Ecuador. Three different sources confirmed this to EL PAIS, which also collected photographic evidence of the authorities attempt to remedy this crisis. The smell of death has flooded the surroundings of the Forensic Medicine facilities in Guayaquil, the city of Ecuador with the highest number of homicides. Six months ago, one of the containers that housed these bodies stopped working and they were moved to the only one that was still operational. Now, this space has become overloaded and the corpses no longer fit. The liquids produced by decay have begun to seep through the cracks.

At the door of the container, officials have been collecting body parts that came out of their forensic covers, and stored them in bags. They have used light towers to illuminate the back of the container, where human arms, heads and loose torsos were piled up. Family members have been suffering from this institutional inability to care for the corpses of their loved ones. Daniel has been asking for months for the body of his cruelly murdered daughter to be returned to him. Her body came in for an autopsy and has not yet come out. They dont see our pain, we wont even be able to hold a wake over her body, because it has been here for too long, says the father. Officials give other relatives excuses not to hand over the bodies: They are not ready yet, Come back tomorrow. And when they get tired of lying, they tell them the truth: The corpse is lost. Where was it lost? The bodies are lost in the same place where the State keeps them, where evidence is sought to identify the cause of death.

The containers outside the morgue in Guayaquil, on Wednesday. Vicente Gaibor

So far this year, more than 1,300 crimes have been reported in Guayaquil, but corpses from many more places reach these laboratories. It is here that the bodies of people who were shot, asphyxiated and mutilated in the nearby locations of Duran, Posorja, Playas, Tenguel, Samborondon and Daule are brought for examination. When the medical examiner finishes the autopsy, the bodies are stored in individual niches inside a cold room with a capacity for 15 corpses, where they remain until a relative comes to claim them. However, prison massacres have led to an accumulation of charred human body parts that have yet to be identified. And instead of storing one corpse, two or even three bodies are squeezed into each niche.

The bodies have continued to pile up with the surge in violence. In some cases, the advanced state of decay makes it impossible to obtain fingerprints, which means that to determine their identity, experts require a genetic profile and a family member to compare it to. But many bodies are not claimed by anyone and end up being classified as NN (unidentified). These corpses began to fill two containers measuring 12 meters in length each, the same ones that were provisionally used to preserve the bodies of Covid-19 victims in the first months of the pandemic. Six months ago, however, one of these containers was damaged. According to the sources consulted for this story, there are around 200 bodies rotting in the only container still available.

The Legal Medicine and Forensic Sciences Service, responsible for the administration of the morgues, alluded to the crisis through a statement in which it said that on June 8, one of the damaged refrigerated containers went back into operation. But the bodies have not yet been transferred there because the staff has not been given the necessary biosafety equipment to avoid diseases resulting from decay, which makes it impossible for them to enter the container, despite the desperation of the authorities to resolve the crisis.

The exterior of the morgue, whose official name is the Criminalistics and Forensic Sciences Laboratory. Vicente Gaibor

Despite the figures displayed by the government to prove that violence has been reduced, the National Legal Medicine Service recognizes that due to the increase in criminal violence in the country, there is now a greater number of NN corpses. That is, bodies that have not been identified or claimed by their relatives. The number of forensic doctors has not increased despite the high demand for autopsies. The bodies arrive by the dozens every day at the forensic center, where only four employees carry out all the work. They must handle more than 15 corpses in an eight-hour shift, when the protocol estimates that the examination procedure, which includes taking photographs and samples, can take between three and six hours for each body. Now, this procedure does not take more than 30 minutes.

The situation at the morgue is critical, according to testimonies. The evidence that could be collected from the corpses is lost due to the urgency with which autopsies are performed. There are cases of shooting victims in which, by the time they reach the doctors table, it is no longer possible to determine which is the bullet entry or exit hole because the maggots have eaten the edges of the holes made by the projectiles. The most difficult thing to determine is whether a person was killed by strangulation or whether it was a suicide by hanging, since the marks wear off when the body begins to decompose.

Amid all the bullet-ridden and stabbed corpses, there are also the bodies of women who were victims of femicide. In a fresh body, nail swabs can be taken to collect cells that might allow experts to identify the alleged aggressor, but if the body arrives in a state of decay, the nails fall off. Nor can samples of vaginal fluid be taken in the case of rape, which is an aggravating factor in the event of a court conviction against the aggressor. The government, however, assures that femicides have also decreased by 17%.

Late on Wednesday afternoon, the Forensic Medicine Service set up an operation to remove the bodies from the container. At this time the staff did have biosafety protective gear. Two and up to three people moved the black bags from the collapsed container to transfer it to the newly enabled one. The morgue crisis, however, remains intact.

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The Supreme Court unanimously rejected calls to restrict access to mifepristone, one of the two drugs used in medication abortion, in a Thursday morning ruling.

The ruling is a win for abortion-rights groups, who believe the case was brought to the Supreme Court by a politically motivated anti-choice group that had no scientific-based evidence for rolling back access to mifepristone.

The ruling in FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, written by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, rejected the plaintiffs on standing. Justice Clarence Thomas filed a concurring opinion.

Several pro-life doctors and associations sued FDA, arguing that FDAs actions violated the Administrative Procedure Act. But the plaintiffs do not prescribe or use mifepristone. And FDA is not requiring them to do or refrain from doing anything, Kavanaugh wrote.

Rather, the plaintiffs want FDA to make mifepristone more difficult for other doctors to prescribe and for pregnant women to obtain, he continued. Under Article III of the Constitution, a plaintiffs desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue. Nor do the plaintiffs other standing theories suffice. Therefore, the plaintiffs lack standing to challenge FDAs actions.

The ruling is not surprising given what happened during March oral arguments. A majority of the justices, including some conservatives, appeared highly skeptical of whether Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine could even bring the case.

Plaintiffs are required to show theyve suffered real harm in order to obtain standing to sue, and from the moment arguments began, the justices homed in on whether the group  and specifically, the doctors cited as examples in its briefs  met that bar. Many of the questions asked during arguments suggested that even the courts most conservative justices saw the alliances standing argument as tenuous at best.

Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, a collection of five anti-abortion medical groups, had claimed that the Food and Drug Administration overlooked safety issues when it loosened the rules for prescribing the abortion drug in 2016 and again in 2021, amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The anti-abortion group wanted to prohibit mifepristone from being sent through the mail or distributed at large pharmacy chains, among other restrictions.

We recognize that many citizens, including the plaintiff doctors here, have sincere concerns about and objections to others using mifepristone and obtaining abortions, the ruling states. But citizens and doctors do not have standing to sue simply because others are allowed to engage in certain activities  at least without the plaintiffs demonstrating how they would be injured by the governments alleged underregulation of others.

Although the ruling is a win for pro-choice groups, the ruling does not outright protect mifepristone. The decision still leaves the door open for future attacks on medication abortion, either through copycat lawsuits or continued litigation in U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryks courtroom.

Kacsmaryk, a far-right Donald Trump appointee well-known for his anti-abortion views, is the federal judge who ruled last year that the FDA unlawfully approved mifepristone when it first went to market over two decades ago. After the Supreme Court took the case, Kacsmaryk allowed attorneys general from Idaho, Kansas and Missouri to be added as plaintiffs to the case. Those officials have suggested they will continue litigating the case.

President Joe Biden released a statement in response to the ruling, writing that mifepristone and medication abortion remain available and approved across the country. Todays decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues, Biden wrote. It does not change the fact that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, and women lost a fundamental freedom. It does not change the fact that the right for a woman to get the treatment she needs is imperiled if not impossible in many states.

The president also committed to calling on Congress to restore federal abortion protections.

Democrats and pro-choice groups were relieved by the courts decision, but cautioned not to celebrate the ruling as a huge win.

This decision was based not on the merits but the lack of standing  we are not yet out of the woods. This shouldnt be a decision women are forced to fear year after year, case after case, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said in a statement.

Nancy Northup, the president and CEO at the Center for Reproductive Rights, said she is both relieved and angry about the courts decision because it simply maintains the status quo.

This case has no basis in fact or law and the lower courts should never have let it go forward. The FDAs rulings on medication abortion have been based on science, Northup said in a statement. Unfortunately, the attacks on abortion pills will not stop here  the anti-abortion movement sees how critical abortion pills are in this post-Roe world, and they are hell bent on cutting off access. In the end, this ruling is not a win for abortion  it just maintains the status quo, which is a dire public health crisis in which 14 states have criminalized abortion.

In 2022, the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, setting off a wave of abortion bans across the U.S. But abortion rates have generally stayed the same in large part because these bans did not stop people from ordering pills through the mail.

Mifepristone is prescribed as part of a two-drug regimen alongside misoprostol for abortion and miscarriage care. The drug is also used to treat other medical conditions, including Cushing syndrome and hyperglycemia, or high blood glucose, as well as other diseases. The FDA approved mifepristone in 2000, and the medication has since been used by nearly 6 million people in the U.S., according to the department.

The COVID-19 pandemic led to government regulators loosening rules around mifepristone prescriptions in 2021, sparking the rise of online pharmacies in the U.S. that ship abortion pills directly to patients homes. Since the repeal of Roe, nearly 20 states have enacted abortion restrictions, making access to abortion pills via mail critically important.

Mifepristone and misoprostol are more than 95% effective and pose fewer risks than Tylenol, and over 100 studies have corroborated their safety and effectiveness. Medication abortion accounts for 63% of abortion care in the U.S., according to a study from the reproductive rights group the Guttmacher Institute.

Major medical groups have repeatedly said that mifepristone should be accessible to patients across the country. The drug is a safe, effective and important component of treatment and management for early pregnancy loss ... and induced abortion, the American Medical Association and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists wrote in a letter to the FDA, in response to the initial Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine lawsuit filed in 2022.

This case was a near miss for the science and medicine community and it wont be the last attack, Haydee Morales, interim president at the National Institute for Reproductive Health, said in a statement. This should be a warning to all of us: if anti-abortion operatives came this close to undermining long-standing approvals for mifepristone, what will come next?

Related...
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  In a victory for abortion rights advocates, the Supreme Court rejected a legal challenge to the abortion pill mifepristone.

The decision protects access to the drug for now, but its future remains uncertain.

Erin Hawley, with the Alliance for Defending Freedom, represented the plaintiffs and argued against the FDA regulations that allow easy access to the drug.

The decision based on a legal technicality, allows the FDA to continue its reckless disregard for womens health, Hawley said.

The justices didnt rule on the arguments merits, instead saying the plaintiffs dont have the legal right to sue.

That leaves the door open for a future plaintiff to make a challenge and hopefully win on the merits, Heritage Foundation expert Melanie Israel says.

Israel calls the drug dangerous and says it lacks important safety standards.

The status quo of frankly, the wild, wild west of abortion pills, is not good for women and girls, Israel said.

Abortion rights advocates argue mifepristone is safe and effective. However, they arent really thrilled about the ruling either.

Vice President Kamala Harris argues too many women still lack access to abortions.

This is not a cause for celebration, because the reality is certain things are still not going to change, Harris said. Two-thirds of women of reproductive age in America live in a state with a Trump abortion ban. This ruling is not going to change that.

Senator Mark Warner (D-Va.) says Republican lawmakers are working to roll back access even further.

The assault on womens healthcare and reproductive rights is still front and center, Warner said.

Abortion opponents agree that the battle isnt over.

We live to fight another day, and this is absolutely not going to be the last word, Israel said.

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Fact checked by Nick BlackmerFact checked by Nick Blackmer





Key Takeaways

The Supreme Court rejected a lawsuit that aimed to restrict mifepristone, a key medication abortion drug.

The ruling maintains nationwide access to the pill, including through telehealth and mail order.

The lawsuit challenged the FDAs regulatory process and could have upended the way drugs are approved in the U.S.







The Supreme Court on Thursday unanimously rejected a lawsuit that questioned the Food and Drug Administrations process in approving mifepristone. The ruling ensures that Americans can continue to access the abortion medication without an in-person visit with a healthcare provider.

The Courts decision in FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine reverses a Texas appeals court order that blocked the FDA approval of mifepristone and required in-person prescribing of medication abortion.

The decision also maintains the Food and Drug Administrations authority to regulate medicines through its approval process.







Explainer

Mifepristone, known by its brand name Mifeprex, is one part of a two-drug medication abortion regimen which is commonly called the abortion pill. Mifepristone stops a pregnancy from progressing by blocking the hormone progesterone. A second drug, called misoprostol, then empties the uterus.







This was the Supreme Courts first case on reproductive rights since the conservative-majority court overturned the right to access abortion care under Roe v. Wade.



The doctors and anti-abortion groups who brought forth the lawsuit, represented by the Alliance Defending Freedom, said they had a right to sue because the use of mifepristone goes against their beliefs and they could experience harm by having to care for people who experience complications from the medication, even if they are not the ones to prescribe or use it.

In the Supreme Court opinion, Justice Brett Kavanaugh said the plaintiffs did not have the standing to sue because there are already federal laws stating doctors are not required to provide abortions or other medical care that goes against their religious beliefs or moral convictions. The plaintiffs, he said, had to prove that they were directly harmed by the governments under-regulation of other people.



In short, given the broad and comprehensive conscience protections guaranteed by federal law, the plaintiffs have not shownand cannot showthat FDAs actions will cause them to suffer any conscience injury, Kavanaugh wrote. Federal law fully protects doctors against being required to provide abortions or other medical treatment against their consciencesand therefore breaks any chain of causation between FDAs relaxed regulation of mifepristone and any asserted conscience injuries to the doctors.



What This Means for Drug Regulation

Mifepristone has been available in the U.S. since 2000 for medication abortion and miscarriage management. The drug has been available through telehealth and mail order since 2021.



Related: Mail-Order Abortion Access Transcends State Lines

Medications like mifepristone go through a rigorous approval process, and the FDA has tracked the safety of the medication in real-world use since it became available.



If the ruling had stood, it would have been the first time that the use of a drug was limited based on a court order.



The pharmaceutical industry warned that upholding a ruling that challenges regulations for mifepristone could open the door to more legal challenges against other medications.



Danco Laboratories, the manufacturer of Mifeprex, applauded the courts decision.



[The judges] maintained the stability of the FDA drug approval process, which is based on the agencys expertise and on which patients, healthcare providers, and the U.S. pharmaceutical industry rely, Abby Long, Vice President of Marketing and Public Affairs at Danco, said in a statement.



Meanwhile, the Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative legal group that brought the lawsuit on behalf of the anti-abortion doctors, said it was disappointed that the Supreme Court did not reach the merits of the FDAs lawless removal of commonsense safety standards for abortion drug.



Upholding the Safety of Mifepristone

Mifepristone is the first pill taken in the two-drug medication abortion regimen. It is approved by the FDA for use through 10 weeks of pregnancy. Abortion providers in the U.S. can legally prescribe it through 12 weeks of pregnancy because the World Health Organization says the drug can be safely given up to that point.



Major medical organizations, including the American Medical Association and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, filed an amicus brief discussing the safety of mifepristone. They said that less than 0.32% of patients experience adverse events related to the drug and that the risk of death is almost non-existent.



Few drugs have been so extensively studied after their approval by FDA and can boast such a clear and compelling record of safe use, the authors wrote.









Takeaway

There have been more than 630 clinical trials, including 420 randomized controlled studies, involving mifepristone.







Unnecessarily restricting mifepristone would exacerbate existing inequities in maternal health for women of color, low-income women, and those living in rural areas, they wrote. Restricting access to mifepristone will not only jeopardize health, but worsen racial and economic inequities and deprive women of the choices that are at the very core of individual autonomy and wellbeing.



In February, the medical publisher Sage Publications retracted three studies that found safety issues related to mifepristone use. The Texas judge who initially ruled in favor of the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine case cited two of those studies in his decision. The publisher said the studies were retracted due to possible defects in the data selection and potential conflicts of interestsome of the authors didnt disclose their affiliations with anti-abortion advocacy organizations.



How You Can Get the Pill Now

Since the overturn of Roe v. Wade, the use of medication abortion has grown. By some estimates, it accounts for nearly two-thirds of all abortions.



When this litigation began in 2022, only 1 in 4 adults knew abortion pills existedtoday, that number has doubled, Kiki Freedman, CEO of Hey Jane, a telehealth clinic that offers medication abortion, said on Instagram.



If there is one silver lining to this politically motivated effort to curtail access to mifepristone, its that even more people are now aware that medication abortion is a safe, effective, discreet, and common option for accessing abortion care, she added.

Since the fall of Roe v. Wade, 14 states have imposed abortion bans with limited exceptions, and other states have restricted access to abortion. The use of telehealth services to prescribe and mail abortion pills has improved abortion care access, even for some people living in states with abortion bans. Shield laws in seven states that support abortion allow providers to mail the pills out of state.



Despite todays ruling, the challenge to mifepristone access may not yet be over. Three statesIdaho, Kansas, and Missouritried to intervene in the case against the FDA, but the court didnt allow them to do so. Those states may attempt to challenge the mifepristone approval through other cases.

The Supreme Court is also hearing another major case about whether emergency rooms in hospitals are required to provide abortions if a womans life is in jeopardy and in other urgent situations.







What This Means For You

You can still access mifepristone so long as your state allows it. Several telehealth clinics allow you to get a prescription for medication abortion without going to a doctors office, or you can seek a prescription from your health provider. You can find a breakdown of state restrictions on medication abortion here.







Read the original article on Verywell Health.
The Supreme Court ruled in a unanimous decision Thursday that a group of anti-abortion doctors does not have any legal basis to challenge access to mifepristone, one of the two common drugs used in medication abortion.

As a result, access to mifepristone wont change.

The opinion, written by Justice Brett Kavanaugh, sided with the Biden administration and Danco, the manufacturer of the branded version of mifepristone. It reversed a lower court decision that would have made it more difficult to obtain the drug, which is used in about two-thirds of U.S. abortions.

The ruling didnt address the underlying regulatory or safety issues the plaintiffs raised, instead deciding the case only on standing. The justices found the conservative doctors in the lawsuit did not show they had personally been harmed by the governments actions regulating mifepristone.

Under Article III of the Constitution, a plaintiffs desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue, Kavanaugh wrote.

The drug will remain available to people up to the 10th week of pregnancy and will still be available through the mail. The decision is a victory for the Biden administrations efforts to maintain access to abortion, but it also is a victory for the Food and Drug Administrations (FDA) authority to regulate drugs.

Leading up oral arguments, pharmaceutical companies and FDA law experts urged the court not to second-guess the agencys expertise and side with the plaintiffs. A ruling against the administration could have undermined the entire drug approval process, they argued.

We are pleased with the Supreme Courts decision in this incredibly important case. By rejecting the Fifth Circuits radical, unprecedented and unsupportable interpretation of who has standing to sue, the justices reaffirmed longstanding basic principles of administrative law, said Abigail Long, a spokesperson for Danco. The decision also safeguards access to a drug that has decades of safe and effective use.

Still, mifepristone remains illegal in the more than a dozen states that ban abortion.

The case centered on whether federal regulators overstepped their authority by loosening restrictions to make mifepristone easier to access. The FDA first approved mifepristone in 2000 for abortion up to seven weeks of pregnancy, but then made a series of changes in 2016 and 2021.

Those changes included increasing the gestational age at which mifepristone can be used to up to 10 weeks of pregnancy, allowing the medication to be mailed to patients, lowering the dosage, allowing telehealth prescribing, and permitting providers other than physicians to prescribe the drug.

The FDA has repeatedly found that mifepristone is safe and that a medication abortion regimen that includes mifepristone and a second drug, misoprostol, is a safe and effective alternative to surgical abortions.

But anti-abortion groups contend the drugs are dangerous. A coalition of anti-abortion doctors and associations sued the administration, and a federal district judge in Texas ruled in their favor, invalidating the drugs entire approval.

The Biden administration appealed, and a ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit found the drug was legally approved but that the FDAs actions to loosen restrictions were not constitutional.

At oral arguments before the Supreme Court in March, the doctors contended that as a direct result of the FDAs actions, pregnant women will suffer complications from mifepristone, so they may be required at some point  against their consciences  to render emergency treatment completing an abortion or providing other abortion-related treatment.

But Kavanaugh wrote that federal conscience protection laws definitively protect doctors from being required to perform abortions or to provide other treatment that violates their consciences.

Erin Hawley, a senior attorney for the conservative group Alliance Defending Freedom who argued the case at the Supreme Court, said the opinion was disappointing, but told reporters the explicit mention of conscience protections was a victory.

The Supreme Court was crystal clear that pro life doctors do have federal conscience protections, even in emergency situations, Hawley said. So thats a huge win for the pro-life cause. The Supreme Court clearly said that our doctors are entitled to those federal conscious protections that are based on their religious beliefs.

Since the Supreme Court eliminated the nationwide right to abortion in 2022, more people have been using medication to terminate pregnancies. Medication abortion accounted for 63 percent of all abortions in the formal health care system in 2023, according to the Guttmacher Institute, an abortion-rights research group.

Abortion-rights advocates breathed a sigh of relief but noted the case wont be the last time abortion access is challenged.

This case should never have made it to the Supreme Court in the first place. Anti-abortion operatives brought this case with one goal in mind  to ban medication abortion and they failed. This case was a near miss for the science and medicine community and it wont be the last attack, said Haydee Morales, interim president of the National Institute for Reproductive Health.

This should be a warning to all of us: if anti-abortion operatives came this close to undermining long-standing approvals for mifepristone, what will come next? Morales added.

Anti-abortion groups have indicated the decision was only a temporary setback, and they are confident they can find another way to challenge the drugs.

For instance, the same district court in Texas that originally ruled against the FDA said a group of three red statesMissouri, Idaho and Kansas can intervene in the lawsuit.

I would expect the litigation to continue with those states raising different standing arguments than made by our doctors, Hawley said.

Updated at 2:30 p.m.

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The Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed a conservative Christian group's claim that the abortion medication used by more than 5 million American women is unsafe and should be withdrawn from the market.

In a 9-0 decision, the justices said these antiabortion activists had no standing to sue. And they said conservative judges in Texas had no grounds for overturning the Food and Drug Administration's regulations that allow for the mifepristone pills to be delivered by mail.

But because the court dismissed the case on standing, the decision does not prevent other antiabortion advocates from filing a similar lawsuit against the FDA, with different plaintiffs.

Read more: Supreme Court rejects California man's attempt to trademark Trump T-shirts

"The plaintiffs have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to elective abortion and to FDAs relaxed regulation of mifepristone," Justice Brett M. Kavanaugh wrote for the unanimous court. "But under Article III of the Constitution, those kinds of objections alone do not establish a justiciable case or controversy in federal court. Here, the plaintiffs have failed to demonstrate that FDAs relaxed regulatory requirements likely would cause them to suffer an injury in fact. For that reason, the federal courts are the wrong forum for addressing the plaintiffs concerns about FDAs actions."

Last year, justices by a 7-2 vote blocked lower court rulings that would have made it harder for women to obtain the pills. Justices Neil M. Gorsuch, Amy Coney Barrett and Kavanaugh, the three appointees of Donald Trump who had voted to strike down the right to abortion, refused to join the antiabortion doctors who sought to restrict use of the abortion pills.

Justices Clarence Thomas and Samuel A. Alito Jr. dissented last year, but they joined Thursday's ruling holding that the antiabortion doctors had no standing to sue.

The antiabortion doctors who sued do not prescribe abortion pills, and they do not perform abortions. They alleged, however, they should have standing because they might be required to perform an abortion if they were on duty in an emergency room when a patient arrived in distress after taking the abortion medication.

Kavanaugh said this concocted example did not reflect reality.

"Not only as a matter of law but also as a matter of fact, the federal conscience laws have protected pro-life doctors ever since FDA approved mifepristone in 2000," he wrote. "The plaintiffs have not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience."

Abortion rights advocates said they were relieved by the outcome.

I have both relief and anger about this decision," said Nancy Northup, president of the Center for Reproductive Rights. "Thank goodness the Supreme Court rejected this unwarranted attempt to curtail access to medication abortion, but the fact remains that this meritless case should never have gotten this far."

"We are relieved the Supreme Court didnt take this bait, but unfortunately we know that this is far from the end of the line," said Jennifer Dalven, director of the ACLU Reproductive Freedom Project. "Although the court refused to allow these particular people to bring this case, antiabortion politicians are waiting in the wings to attempt to continue pushing this case before an extremist judge in Texas in an effort to deny people access to medication abortion care."

National medical groups also applauded the outcome.

The American Medical Assn. said the "efforts to second guess the FDAs scientific judgment and roll back access to mifepristone were based on a sham case that ... relied on speculative allegations and ideological assertions to undermine decades of rigorous scientific review proving the drug is highly safe and effective for both termination of pregnancy and for medical management of miscarriage."

The National Right to Life said the decision did not resolve concerns over the safety of the medication.

"Women remain unprotected from common complications with the abortion drug such as hemorrhage, infection, and failure to identify rupturing ectopic pregnancies in a timely manner," said Carol Tobias, the group's president. "While the abortion pill remains legal, we hope this battle to reinstate safety precautions will continue."

It is not clear who might have standing to sue, but lawsuits against a drug or other medication usually begin with patients who complain they suffered severe and unexpected complications.

In 2000, the FDA approved the use of mifepristone as safe and effective for ending an early pregnancy. The pills are typically used in combination with a second drug, misoprostol.

In recent years, the agency relaxed its regulations for dispensing the pills. It did so based on studies that showed that serious complications were "exceedingly rare." Under the new rules, pregnant women could obtain a prescription through telemedicine and receive the pills from a pharmacy or through the mail. And they could use the medication through 10 weeks of a pregnancy, up from seven weeks before.

The Guttmacher Institute reported that abortion medication was used in 63% of U.S. abortions last year.

Thursday's decision does not change the law in states where abortions are illegal.

Shortly after the Supreme Court repealed the right to abortion in Dobbs vs. Jackson Womens Health Organization, the Alliance Defending Freedom, a conservative Christian group, filed a lawsuit in Amarillo, Texas, seeking the repeal of the FDA's approval of mifepristone. The plaintiffs were doctors and other healthcare activists from across the nation who oppose abortion and contend the drugs are unsafe.

Usually, plaintiffs have to show they were personally harmed by a federal law to have standing to sue. These doctors did not perform abortions or dispense the drugs, but they maintained that at least a few of the group's members could be on duty in the future in an emergency room when a patient arrived suffering from complications after taking the abortion pills.

The group sued in Amarillo, knowing the case would come before U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, a Trump appointee and Christian legal activist before his appointment.

Read more: Q&A: The FDA says the abortion pill mifepristone is safe. Here's the evidence

As predicted, Kacsmaryk handed down a broad ruling last year. He ruled the antiabortion activists had standing to sue, and he ordered the FDA to suspend its approval of the drugs.

A few weeks later, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit agreed to limit Kacsmaryks ruling. By a 2-1 vote, the appeals court said it was too late to unravel the approval of the drug in 2000, but not too late to overturn the FDAs regulations that since 2016 have made it easier for women to obtain the pills.

Biden administration Solicitor Gen. Elizabeth B. Prelogar appealed to the Supreme Court and called the case a first.

She said it marks the first time any court has restricted access to an FDA-approved drug by second-guessing FDAs expert judgment about the conditions required to assure that drugs safe use.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
U.S. Supreme Court justices pose for their group portrait at the Supreme Court in Washington

By Nate Raymond

(Reuters) - Conservative Justice Clarence Thomas called on the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday to reconsider a precedent established in 1977 that has allowed advocacy groups, trade associations and other organizations to routinely bring court challenges to government policies on behalf of their members.

Thomas laid out his position in an opinion that concurred with the Supreme Court's 9-0 ruling rejecting efforts to restrict access the abortion pill mifepristone, used in more than 60% of U.S. abortions.

The court held that four anti-abortion medical associations and several individual doctors lacked the necessary legal standing to pursue their case challenging the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's approval of pill and subsequent actions facilitating access to it.

The legal fight over the drug may not be over, though, as a federal judge in Texas, where the case was originally filed, has since allowed three Republican-led states that ban abortion to join the case as plaintiffs.

Thomas, a member of the court's 6-3 conservative majority, agreed with Thursday's ruling, saying it correctly found the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine and other plaintiffs had not established that the FDA's actions had harmed them, which is necessary to be able to bring a case in court.

But Thomas wrote separately to highlight what he said were "constitutional concerns" and "serious problems" posed by a legal doctrine in which an association can sue on behalf of its members and claim standing on those grounds.

Thomas said Texas-based Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine's attempt to use that doctrine to claim standing illustrated the problem with it. The group is an association of other groups of doctors and sought to claim standing based on alleged harms to those physicians.

"In an appropriate case, we should explain just how the Constitution permits associational standing," Thomas wrote.

Thomas essentially attacked a long-recognized legal doctrine relied upon by associations ranging from the nation's biggest business lobby - the U.S. Chamber of Commerce - to environmental groups and gun rights advocacy organizations to challenge government policies by suing on behalf of their members.

Just last year, a group called Students for Fair Admissions that sued on behalf of its members convinced the Supreme Court to curtail the consideration of race in college admissions.

Thomas said the Supreme Court so far as he could tell had not even contemplated such a doctrine until the late 1950s, citing a civil rights-era case involving the NAACP civil rights advocacy group.

The Supreme Court later recognized the ability of membership associations to do so in a 1977 ruling in a case called Hunt v. Washington State Apple Advertising Commission, so long as their members would otherwise have standing to sue in their own right.

But Thomas said that doctrine "seems to run roughshod" over the traditional requirement under Article III of the U.S. Constitution - the constitutional provision laying out the authority of the U.S. government's judicial branch - that plaintiffs must show a violation of their own rights to have a claim considered in court.

"If a single member of an association has suffered an injury, our doctrine permits that association to seek relief for its entire membership - even if the association has tens of millions of other, non-injured members," Thomas wrote.

(Reporting by Nate Raymond in Boston; Editing by Will Dunham and Alexia Garamfalvi)
Thomas participates in taking a new family photo with fellow justices at the Supreme Court building in Washington

By John Kruzel

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas took at least three additional trips funded by billionaire benefactor Harlan Crow that the conservative justice failed to disclose, the Democratic chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee said on Thursday.

Crow, a Texas businessman and Republican donor, disclosed details about the justice's travel between 2017 and 2021 in response to a Judiciary Committee vote last November to authorize subpoenas to Crow and Leonard Leo, another influential conservative figure, according to Senator Dick Durbin.

Thomas has previously come under criticism for failing to disclose gifts from Crow. Thomas on June 7 revised his 2019 financial disclosure form to acknowledge that Crow paid for his "food and lodging" at a Bali hotel and at a California club.

But the filing by Thomas failed to disclose that Crow had paid for his travel by private jet related to the Bali and California trips, and an eight-day excursion on a yacht in Indonesia - omissions revealed on Thursday in a redacted document that Durbin's office said contained travel itineraries for which Crow had provided the justice with transportation.

The document shows private jet travel in May 2017 between St. Louis, Montana and Dallas; private jet travel in March 2019 between Washington and Savannah, Georgia; and private jet travel in June 2021 between Washington and San Jose, California.

Crow reached an agreement to provide information requested by the committee dating back seven years, Crow spokesperson Michael Zona said. As a condition of this, the committee agreed to end its probe into Crow, Zona added.

"Despite his serious and continued concerns about the legality and necessity of the inquiry, Mr. Crow engaged in good faith negotiations with the committee from the beginning to resolve the matter," Zona said.

A Supreme Court spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"The Senate Judiciary Committee's ongoing investigation into the Supreme Court's ethical crisis is producing new information - like what we've revealed (Thursday) - and makes it crystal clear that the highest court needs an enforceable code of conduct, because its members continue to choose not to meet the moment," Durbin said.

Under pressure from criticism over ethics, the Supreme Court last November adopted its first code of conduct.

Critics and some congressional Democrats have said the code does not go far enough to promote transparency, continuing to leave decisions to recuse from cases to the justices themselves and providing no mechanism of enforcement.

(Reporting by John Kruzel; Editing by Will Dunham)
Sure, Missouri AG Andrew Bailey knows politically motivated prosecutions. He does them | Opinion

If youre looking for Americas foremost expert on the New York legal system, you dont have to go very far: Andrew Bailey is your man.

You know. The unelected attorney general of (checks notes) Missouri.

Granted, that doesnt seem like the kind of credential that qualifies one to have an informed view of the way Empire State law does and should work, yet there Bailey was on Thursday morning, testifying before a Republican-controlled congressional committee about Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Braggs political prosecution of President Trump.

His testimony was a barn-burner, as you can imagine.

To put it plainly, the left hates President Trump more than they love this country, Bailey said in opening remarks.

Bailey also mentioned the Jewish billionaire George Soros six times in his written remarks. So theres that.

But to be fair, Missouris unelected attorney general did say one thing in the opening testimony that I thought made a great deal of sense.

Prosecutors across the have a legal and moral duty to seek justice, act fairly, and avoid even the appearance of impropriety, Bailey said in his written remarks. Taken together, these admonitions explicitly forbid politically motivated prosecutions.

And you know what? Fair.

Thats just not really how Andrew Bailey operates, is it?

Planned Parenthood, false KC Chiefs rally shooter ID

Lets just look at his track record from the last few weeks.

This week, he went to court against Planned Parenthood, accusing the organization of trafficking minors across state lines for abortions without parental consent  all this based on a video from the right-wing hidden camera prankster group Project Veritas. Theres a problem? There is no allegation that any child, any minor, has been taken across state lines, Planned Parenthoods attorney told the court.

Thats not stopping Bailey. It is time to eradicate Planned Parenthood once and for all to end this pattern of abhorrent, unethical, and illegal behavior, he wrote on social media.

He also went to court last week against the lefty media watchdog Media Matters. Bailey launched an investigation of the group last year after it did an expose of Nazi-themed activity on Elon Musks social media platform X. That expose ended up causing some advertisers to flee the site, which has become home to right-wing extremists since Musks purchase.

Normally, Media Matters activities would be protected by the First Amendment. Bailey is casting his investigation as a defense of free speech. Radicals are attempting to kill Twitter (the pre-Musk name of X) because they cannot control it, and we are not going to let Missourians get ripped off in the process, Bailey said in December.

And all of that came a few weeks after Bailey announced his office would defend three Republican Missouri state senators in a defamation case filed after the trio posted false allegations on X that an innocent man was responsible for the fatal shooting at the Kansas City Chiefs rally in February. That was too much even for Baileys patron, Gov. Mike Parson, who contends that taxpayers shouldnt have to pay for the senators defense. We are not gonna target innocent people in this state, Parson said.

These are just three recent examples. There are more. And honestly, its amazing Bailey has time to do legal work given all his appearances on right-wing media  hes registered hits on Fox News, The First, National Rifle Association ex-spokesperson Dana Loeschs show and something called The Real AF podcast all in the last week.

It must be exhausting.

The picture that emerges  that Bailey himself energetically creates through his actions, media appearances and posts on social media  is not of an evenhanded public servant working on behalf of all Missourians.

Nah. Hes a pure partisan warrior.

Missouris attorney general has made it his mission to use the power of government to punish the rights enemies and defend Republicans from the consequences of their own actions.

So Bailey might be right that politically motivated prosecutions are terrible. Of course they are. Hes just not the man to make the case.
Protesters take to the streets March 26, 2024, outside the U.S. Supreme Court, where justices questioned attorneys about broad changes in access to mifepristone.

Protesters take to the streets March 26, 2024, outside the U.S. Supreme Court, where justices questioned attorneys about broad changes in access to mifepristone. (Sofia Resnick/States Newsroom)

The U.S. Supreme Court likely had no idea of the furor it would unleash when it overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago. You could see the justices take a tentative step backward Wednesday when they unanimously voted to preserve access to abortion pill drug mifepristone.

As the ruling was a technical one, based on standing, we can debate whether the court actually has changed its opinion on reproductive freedom, but its clear that our nations top court had second thoughts about pushing the anti-choice agenda further.

For that, the entire nation can thank Kansas.

It can be easy to forget the onetime conventional wisdom about the Kansas ballot measure that would have removed abortion care as a state constitutional right. The Value Them Both amendment had long seen as a shoo-in by supporters. It may have been so if it had appeared on the ballot before the overturning of Roe v Wade. Instead, it came to voters on Aug. 2, 2022  less than two months after the shocking decision.

Even then, the conventional wisdom had only shifted to predicting a close outcome.

But when push comes to shove, voters understood what was at stake. Voters saw that removing the right to choose in Kansas could lead  most probably would lead  to a total abortion ban in the state.

They didnt want that. They dont want that. And they will not want that in the future.

The supposedly tight vote instead was a blowout for pro-choice forces. Nearly 60% of Kansas voters rejected the amendment. Some 40% voted for it. That roughly 20 percentage point margin has been one of the most surprising and heartening results in all my years watching Kansas politics.

Other statewide votes followed. Resident of California, Kentucky, Michigan, Vermont and Ohio have all weighed in. More will have an opportunity to do so on election ballots this November. They will have the wind of Wednesdays decision at their backs.

The Supreme Court affirmed the most basic principle of the American legal system today: hypothetical scenarios dont make for actual legal claims, said Emily Wales, president and CEO of Comprehensive Health of Planned Parenthood Great Plains.

Anti-abortion activists tried and failed to block patients from exercising their rights even in states where abortion remains legal, she continued. We know this fight isnt over and that attempts to prevent care and stigmatize patients will continue, but its a relief to know that we can continue to provide medication abortion the way it has been offered for years: safely, effectively, and without out-of-state activists dictating care here at home.

Im not sure exactly what anti-abortion forces expected to happen after the demise of Roe. For that matter, Im not sure that the pro-choice forces knew what to expect. Abortion rights had been part of our nations settled political landscape for half a century. Both sides probably expected some version of the past to be prologue. That is, the issue would be seen as a roughly 50-50 one, with anti-choice forces holding an edge in voter enthusiasm.

Instead, the exact opposite transpired.

Pro-choice forces racked up a string of political wins beginning here in Kansas. Abortion opponents are on their back heels and casting about for a new strategy: At this point, it appears to be attacking abortion-rights supporters. That approach hasnt worked over the past two years, and Im not sure why they expect it to work now.

Regardless, the Supreme Court surely knew that outlawing or severely curtailing access to mifepristone at this stage would induce an even larger and angrier backlash.

So they swatted down the issue.

In overruling Roe two years ago, Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito wrote that women are not without electoral or political power.

The good justice, when hes not living in a home with an upside-down American flag or claiming that one side must emerge victorious from the culture wars, has a point. Women do wield political power. They have shown they know how to use it.

But that shouldnt obscure the grievous harm done to women and all Americans from ending Roe. It cannot obscure all the work that supporters of reproductive freedom have ahead of them.

Kansas showed the way after Roe. But there is still an awfully long path ahead.

Clay Wirestone is Kansas Reflector opinion editor. Through its opinion section, Kansas Reflector works to amplify the voices of people who are affected by public policies or excluded from public debate. Find information, including how to submit your own commentary, here.

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At the end of 2023, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) estimated the number of forcibly displaced persons worldwide at 117.3 million. By May 2024, that figure had risen to 120 million. It is a trend that has been steadily increasing for the past 12 years and which in 2024 has been exacerbated by new wars, such as those in Sudan and Gaza, but also by others such as the frozen conflicts in Syria or Myanmar. This is the main denunciation of the latest annual report on global trends in forced displacement published Thursday by UNHCR, and which calls for a solution as simple to propose as it is difficult to achieve: peace.

Raouf Mazou, UNHCRs deputy high commissioner for operations, sums up in just a few sentences how humanity has reached this point: We are seeing more and more conflicts. They are being resolved less and less because the mechanisms that exist to resolve them do not work. As a result, the numbers of forced displacement are increasing, he says during a video interview.

Forcibly displaced persons Internally displaced Refugees (under UNHCR mandate) Asylum seekers Palestinian refugees (under UNRWA mandate) Other persons in need of international protection Cumulative figure each year 118.6 120 million people 100 80 60 40 20 0 2014 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Source: UNHCR. Forcibly displaced persons Internally displaced Refugees (under UNHCR mandate) Asylum seekers Palestinian refugees (under UNRWA mandate) Other persons in need of international protection Cumulative figure each year 120 million people 118.6 100 80 60 40 20 0 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 Source: UNHCR.

As far as the number of armed conflicts is concerned, the data attest to this increase: in 2023, the world reached the highest peak since World War II, with 56 active conflicts and 92 countries involved, according to the latest data from the Institute for Economics and Peace, published Tuesday. The frequency, scope, duration, and intensity of conflicts are closely related to the number of people forced to flee each year, both internally and to other countries.

If these 120 million refugees, internally displaced persons, asylum seekers, and other people in need of international protection were brought together in one country, they would form the 12th largest in the world, with a population similar to that of Japan or twice that of France. And it would be a very young country: 40% of its population would be aged under 18.

Forcibly displaced persons World population Men Women 3% 4% 60+ 6% 8% 27% 26% 18-59 28% 28% 20% 20% 0-17 15% 14% 40% of forcibly displaced persons are under 18 years of age (29% of the world's population is in that age range) Forcibly displaced persons World population Men Women 3% 4% 60+ 6% 8% 27% 26% 18-59 28% 28% 20% 20% 0-17 15% 14% 40% of forcibly displaced persons are under 18 years of age (29% of the world's population is in that age range)

The UNHCR report details the numbers of different population groups that have had to flee their homes through force majeure, mainly due to violence and conflicts but also climatic disasters. The largest group is that of internally displaced persons: 68.3 million people who moved within their own countries due to war-related causes alone, mainly in Sudan, and 76 million if those who did so due to natural disasters are added. Refugees at the end of the year numbered 43.4 million, also mainly from Sudan. Another 5.8 million were in need of international protection, predominantly Venezuelans. Also included in the tally are six million under the mandate of UNRWA, the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, and 4.4 million stateless people.

The UNHCR report also reveals that the number of new individual asylum applications increased over the past year to 3.6 million. However, there was a 17% drop in the total number of those seeking international protection in 2023 to 5.6 million, mainly due to fewer refugees from Ukraine applying for and being granted temporary protection, mostly in European countries. The total number of asylum seekers awaiting a decision at the end of the year increased by 26% to 6.9 million, as new individual asylum applications outnumbered resolutions.

Climate threat Displaced population Low Severe 10 million Moderate Extreme 5 million 500,000 High Conflict Displaced population Conflict Climate threat Low Severe 10 million Moderate Extreme 5 million 500,000 High

The United Nations appeals to the responsibility and solidarity of all countries to support the financial cost of protecting these people, especially the more developed countries, which only host 25% of the worlds refugee population. The other 75% have either remained within their own borders or in neighboring countries because they hope to return home as soon as possible. The result is that, in the end, it is the low-income countries that receive the most refugees, because that is also where the largest number of armed conflicts are flaring up. When you receive refugees, you receive them on behalf of the rest of the world, so the whole international community has to contribute, including the richer countries, Mazou points out.

The Sudan crisis is the prime example: more than 7.1 million new internal displacements and more than 1.9 million outward displacements have been recorded since April 2023. By the end of 2023, a total of 10.8 million Sudanese people had been displaced within and outside the country, and neighboring nations with their own crises such as South Sudan have received much of those flows. There have been numerous international appeals and conferences, but South Sudan has only received 16% of the funding it needs to care for the displaced population, says the UNHCR representative, who also calls for aid not only for urgent humanitarian assistance, but also for the future development of displaced communities. If you are displaced after five years, you dont want to continue receiving humanitarian assistance. You have to provide means for people to be able to feed themselves and have a normal life. Whatever they were doing or whatever work they were doing, they should be able to continue doing it in the country that received them. That is where solidarity is needed, he says.

For UNHCR High Commissioner Filippo Grandi, it is time for the parties to the conflicts to respect international law and the basic rules of war. The reality is that without greater cooperation and joint efforts to address conflict, human rights violations or the climate crisis, displacement numbers will continue to rise, bringing with them more suffering and costly humanitarian responses, he said during the press conference to launch the report.

Seven crises behind the numbers 1. Palestine: At the end of 2023, two months after the start of the Israeli offensive, there were six million Palestinian refugees under UNRWA mandate, of which 1.7 million were in Gaza. UNRWA estimates that 75% of the inhabitants of the Strip were forcibly displaced in 2023. 2. Syria: The largest displacement crisis in the world, with 13.8 million forcibly displaced people inside and outside the country, of which 7.2 million remain inside Syria, many of them in a critical humanitarian situation. Another 6.5 million Syrian refugees and asylum seekers are scattered throughout the rest of the world. 3. Sudan: The armed conflict that began in April 2023 has caused one of the world's largest humanitarian crises. More than 7.1 million people have been forcibly displaced, and 1.9 million more have fled to other countries. 4. Myanmar: One of the deepest and most complex humanitarian crises in the world since the military took power in 2021. Three million people are displaced within Myanmar, and 1.3 million have fled overseas. Nearly one million people are stateless Rohingya. They live as refugees in Bangladesh and are mostly dependent on humanitarian aid. 5. Afghanistan: The economic, humanitarian, and human rights situation deteriorated significantly after the return of the Taliban regime in 2021, particularly for women and girls. More than 10 million Afghans remain displaced and nearly half of the country's population of 40 million faces severe acute food insecurity. 6. Ukraine: Two years after the Russian invasion, attacks and shelling continue to destroy homes and claim lives. Some 6.5 million Ukrainian refugees remain far from their homes, and 3.7 million are internally displaced. 7. DR Congo: The resurgence of fighting in the east of the country has exacerbated the humanitarian crisis; 7.9 million Congolese remain displaced, most in a critical humanitarian situation.

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A suspect has been arrested for hurling a rock that hit a pro-Israeli protester in the face outside Columbia University in April as two other activists ripped an Israeli flag from the victims grasp and set it on fire, cops said Thursday.

Zuhdi Ahmed, 20, of Ossining is facing hate crime assault and other hate crime charges for the April 20 attack as pro-Palestinian protesters pitched a tent city and held protests on campus.

Victim Jonathan Lederer wrote in a first-person account for the Free Press website that he and his friends held a pro-Israeli counterrally by the sundial on campus. The protest, he wrote, was a much-needed ode to the hope and perseverance to the Jewish people in the face of enemies who seek our destruction.

Pro-Palestinian protesters chased Lederer out of the campus. Once they were out on the street, one of the protesters snatched the Israeli flag Lederer was carrying.

Lederer was chasing the thief when Ahmed allegedly threw the rock at him, striking him in the face.

The flag was handed off to another man in the crowd, who set it on fire, police said.

On May 1, James Carlson, 40, of Park Slope, Brooklyn, was arrested on criminal mischief and arson charges for allegedly being caught on video setting the flag on fire.

Carlson was released without bail and is due to answer the charges in Manhattan Criminal Court later this month.

A third man is still being sought, police said.

Ahmed was granted supervised release at his Thursday arraignment at Manhattan Criminal Court. The incident marked his first arrest in New York City, police said.

There has been a steady stream of protests in the city and across the nation since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, sparking a ferocious war in Gaza.

The pro-Palestinian demonstrations at Columbia ended on April 30, when, after protesters took over Hamilton Hall, cops in riot gear descended on the building, arresting more than 100 protesters.

Early Wednesday pro-Palestinian protesters vandalized the homes of Brooklyn Museum director Anne Pasternak and several Jewish board members. The NYPD has labeled the vandalism a hate crime and Mayor Adams and Gov. Hocul were quick to denounce the activists involved, who have not been caught.
MEMPHIS, Tenn.  Two West Memphis men were arrested and are now facing multiple charges in connection to the crash-and-grab burglary of a pharmacy earlier this month.

Erwin Bedford, 42, and Lawarren Holloway, 44, are accused of crashing their car into the Arkansas Care in Parkin, entering the pharmacy department, and taking prescription medication from the business on June 3.

The Crittenden County Sheriffs Office executed search warrants on both of their homes. Deputies allegedly found evidence linking both men to the burglary. Bedford and Holloway were then taken into custody.

The sheriffs office says that the two men are also facing various other charges related to the search of their homes.

Man robs 71-year-old who was having car trouble, police say

Bedford was also charged with failure to comply with registration requirements of a convicted sex offender, felon in possession of a firearm, tampering with physical evidence, theft by receiving, and simultaneous possession of drugs and firearms.

His bond was set at $225,000, and a hold was placed on him for Cross County charges.

Holloway was charged with theft by receiving, possession of a controlled substance, and parole violation. A hold was also placed on him for Cross County on the burglary-related charges.

Im proud of the assistance of a tip from a citizen through Crittenden County Crime Stoppers and the excellent Detective work from both agencies to clear this Crime. Thanks to all for a job well done, said Sheriff Mike Allen in a statement.

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Switzerland changes final decision of Peace Summit which was not favourable for Ukraine

Switzerland has changed the troublesome provisions of the final document of the Peace Summit, which could have had undesirable consequences for Ukraine.

Source: the article Kyiv's allies save Ukraine from accepting unfavorable conditions during Peace Summit in Switzerland by European Pravda (English translation coming soon)

Details: A compromise version of the final communique of the summit, which had been discussed with Kyiv's representatives, was sent from Bern to all capitals of the participating countries on 28 May. That draft, however, turned out to be dangerous for Ukraine.

The key ideas for which the summit was organised in the first place were stripped out. European Pravda explained this in detail in the article Swiss Peace Summit could end up harming Ukraine as nothing is going to plan

The next day after the article was published, on 6 June, Kyiv was forced to issue a public statement saying that "Ukraine will not back down from the Peace Formula", and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made a number of statements about the inadmissibility of backing down from the Peace Formula, including in Berlin on Tuesday.

Meanwhile, work on mistakes began, and on 9 June, Switzerland sent out a new draft joint communique to all countries, in which it unexpectedly backed down from many of the positions it had promoted.

The May draft decision of the Peace Summit did not mention the word "aggression", and now the text refers to "the aggression of the Russian Federation against Ukraine".

The previous draft decision of the summit, proposed by Switzerland, created a legal window to include Ukraine's abandonment of part of its territory in the conditions of "sustainable peace with Russia", if necessary.

Now the draft decision clearly states that the basis for sustainable peace will be only "a solution based on the principle of respect for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of all states".

Another key problem with the previous draft was that it blurred the meaning of the Peace Formula and opened up space for international discussion of all alternative visions of peace, such as the Chinese-Brazilian one, which envisages a halt to the strengthening of Ukraines Armed Forces and a cessation of hostilities.

The new wording states that only peace proposals that comply with international law (i.e. an unconditional return of the 1991 borders, unless revised by Ukraine itself) and the UN Charter (in particular, Ukraine's unconditional right to continue repelling Russian aggression and liberating the occupied territories) will be taken into account.

In addition, in the new draft, the Swiss agreed not to mention Russia at all in the provision on peace talks, instead referring to "all parties".

There is no longer a weakened requirement for "confidence-building measures", but instead "specific actions" are required. And most importantly, the references to a "second peace summit" that hinted at a commitment to invite Russia to participate have been removed.

Currently, the draft is not yet final: there is still a possibility of point changes on 13-14 June. However, European Pravda's sources are inclined to believe that the updated content of the decision will remain.

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Tacoma landlord says new tenants rights are a disaster. If only it was that simple | Opinion

Its been six months since a controversial slate of tenant protections, narrowly approved by Tacoma voters last November, became the law of the land.

Its been almost a year since the Tacoma City Council, faced with a brutal housing market thats displacing scores of lower-income residents, took its swipe at bolstering renters rights, adding requirements and regulations to the citys Rental Housing Code designed to even the playing field between vulnerable tenants and their landlords.

In the background, the state Legislature has pushed the plight of renters statewide  including passing a law in 2021 that guarantees free legal representation for low-income tenants facing eviction.

Paul Patino? Well, hes seen more than enough. Hes ready to call it.

At least in Tacoma, its a disaster, according to Patino, a 56-year-old condo-owner-turned-fuming-landlord.

We will never be landlords in Tacoma again, I will tell you that, he proclaimed, speaking with pent-up frustration.

Everything is just geared to protect and shield bad actor tenants from any responsibility, Patino told The News Tribune.

Theres no good reason to be a small landlord in Tacoma at this point. Theres no way to make it worth it.

For those who followed the divisive, bare-knuckle fight that culminated in the passage of Tacomas Landlord Fairness Code Initiative, the sentiments Patino holds so strongly are hardly new. If anything, they serve as no-duh confirmation of what many local landlords have claimed all along: that the new protections go too far, and instead of improving the prospects in Tacoma for renters, theyll make matters worse by driving decent property owners out of the business.

Thats what Patino considers himself: one of the good guys, a landlord who did everything right and still got left holding the bag.

He has a point, its worth noting. But theres a significant caveat.

What Patino says hes experienced since late last year, including ten months of headaches, minor indignities and missed rent, shouldnt happen to anyone playing by the rules.

Whether its as simple as many landlords suggest, however  and whether new tenant protections in Tacoma and across the state are entirely to blame for the hardships hes endured  is a more complicated question to answer, at least according to local attorneys and housing justice proponents.

Tacoma will debate it all fiercely over the next year and a half; by law, the City Council cant touch the Landlord Fairness Code Initiative until December 2025.

Working with a team of academics from the University of Washington Tacoma and a cross-section of local rental housing providers and tenants advocates, former Tacoma Housing Authority Executive Director Michael Mirra and The News Tribune recently launched an effort to study and assess changes related to the passage of Tacomas Landlord Fairness Code Initiative.

The City Council of Tacoma will have a chance to review and possibly amend the (tenants rights) ordinance in a year and a half, and in the meantime (the city) is conducting an experiment, said Mirra, who expects the study to be completed by fall 2025.

The study is meant to help the city understand the effect of the ordinance on a wide range of issues, he added.

Otherwise, decisions will be made based on a haphazard collection of information.

In the meantime? Its worth digging into horror stories like Patinos, at least in my book  as long as we take them for what they are: small, anecdotal pieces of a much larger picture that also includes various ripple effects and renters whove stayed in their homes or avoided evictions altogether thanks to the new protections.

According to data provided by the Pierce County Superior Court Clerks Office, in the two years prior to the 2020 COVID pandemic, the court received an average of 236 new unlawful detainer eviction cases a month. Throughout the pandemic, including the 20-month statewide ban on evictions between March 2020 and November 2021, the number plummeted, predictably.

By 2023, the average number of eviction cases filed each month in Pierce County court had rebounded to roughly 240, the data shows.

To date in 2024, Pierce Countys average is closer to 300 new eviction cases a month.

Disheartening and sickening

Two years ago, Patino and his wife relocated to North Carolina, the longtime sales representative recently explained.

Patino followed a job that promised greater long-term security and better benefits, he said, but Tacoma  and specifically the $500K condo along Stadium Way with a view of the water he purchased with his wife in 2020  was always supposed to be the couples long-term home after retirement.

Working with a local property management company, Patino put the two-bedroom, 1400-square-foot property on the market. Before long, he had tenants. The rent  roughly $3000 a month  was drawn up so the couple could break even on their mortgage, he said.

Then, things went south. The job fizzled and Patino and his wife decided to return home. In September, his renters were informed that they would need to be out by the end of the year, satisfying the 90-day notice requirement included in state law since 2021.

Thats when the rent stopped coming, Patino said. Soon, the months ticked by.

Come January, Patinos tenants had yet to vacate. Same thing in February, by which time an eviction case had been filed and was slowly working its way through Pierce County Superior Court, documents in the case show.

Two months became four, then five. Patinos tenants finally hauled away the last of their belongings this month, he said, with Pierce County Sheriffs deputies on site to carry out a writ of restitution issued by a Pierce County Superior Court Judge in early April.

To add insult to injury, Patino and his wife have been back in Tacoma since January, he explained, renting a condo in the same building  living one floor below the tenants who just wouldnt leave.

Attempts to reach the condos former tenants were unsuccessful.

Patino  who mostly blames recent state laws and Tacomas contentious tenants rights initiative for the lengthy ordeal  now hopes to move back into the unit in July.

Its just disheartening and sickening, Patino told The News Tribune.

Patino provided a list of damages hes been left to deal with and a running total of incurred costs exceeding $30,000. His tally included back rent and fees, the $2400 rent he and his wife have been forced to fork over while they wait to return to the condo theyre still paying a mortgage on, and repairs ranging from fixing holes in the wall to replacing broken cabinets and kitchen appliances.

Were grateful theyre gone, but absolutely heartsick at the state of our home, Patino said.

Theres no weapon, but we were still robbed.

Overwhelmed courts

Mark Morzol, managing attorney at the Housing Justice Project, bears witness to the other side of stories like the one Patino told me.

Leading a nonprofit legal aid program contracted to provide free representation to lower-income Pierce County renters facing eviction, Morzol said his office has recently been referred between 250 and 300 eviction cases a month, describing it as a dramatic spike that dates back to September of last year.

Under current state law, Morzol estimated that 90% of tenants facing eviction in Pierce County qualify for free legal representation. The law stipulates that s tenants who receive public assistance or have incomes at 200% or below the federal poverty level are eligible.

Court records show that Patinos tenants met the criteria for the program and were assigned free legal counsel in late February.

More than any new tenant protection, however, Morzol attributes the recent increase in Pierce County unlawful detainer eviction cases to the high cost of housing and widespread economic desperation in the area, heightened by the evaporation of COVID-era assistance programs.

At the same time, Morzol validated some of Patinos anger: The local eviction system is bogged down, he said, and the delays that have resulted carry real-life consequences.

Back in 2021, when Washington became the first state to guarantee legal representation to low-income tenants facing eviction, the Housing Justice Project was fully staffed with 18 attorneys and assigned to somewhere between 120 to 140 Pierce County cases a month, Morzol told The News Tribune.

During this golden period, as Morzol described it, when the Housing Justice Project was assigned a client during their first court hearing, it often required only a one-week continuance to mount a defense, he said.

Today, facing more than twice as many cases, the Housing Project has nine attorneys on staff. The court continuances granted tend to be closer to a month, Morzol indicated.

The nonprofit is struggling like many employers to recruit and retain qualified candidates, he said.

Morzol also underscored the importance of providing tenants with representation during eviction proceedings, regardless of whether it slows down the process  from the view of someone whos seen the consequences when legal defense is a luxury few can access.

Its about accountability for the entire system. There are a number of tenant protections in place  across the state of Washington and in the city of Tacoma  but if you talk to any given tenant, they dont know what their rights are. They have no idea, because its gotten so complicated in this area of law, Morzol said.

Without having an attorney to step in and review a case, you simply dont know if its a lawful eviction or not, he added.

You also dont know if the landlord is complying with local regulations and ordinances.

Giant backlog

The slowdown doesnt end in Pierce County Superior Court.

According to Pierce County Sheriffs Department spokesperson Darren Moss, even after a judge issues a writ of restitution eviction order  directing a tenant to vacate the property and authorizing local law enforcement to step in if they dont  it often takes more than a month before a Sheriffs deputy is available to act on it.

In Patinos case, thats exactly what happened.

Across Pierce County, the Sheriffs Department is responsible for serving and executing any eviction order issued by a judge, including in Tacoma.

A look at the departments data helps illuminate what Moss describes as another giant backlog in the local eviction process.

So far in 2024, Moss said PCSD has received an average of 219 court-ordered writ of restitution eviction orders a month. Throughout the pandemic, when most evictions were banned, it was closer to 70, but in 2022 the numbers began to creep up.

Last year, PCSD received an average of 259 eviction orders a month.

To put those numbers in perspective, Moss noted that, when fully staffed, PCSD has four deputies assigned to evictions and other, often more important court-related matters, like serving protection orders.

Its hardly enough deputies to handle the recent spike in evictions, Moss said.

Earlier this month, there was a 42-day backlog between the time a judge issues an eviction order and when PCSD can serve it, he indicated.

Moss also acknowledged that the department has far more pressing holes to fill, and not many lawmakers or elected officials seem keen on the idea of providing more money for cops to serve evictions.

Moss attributed the delay to multiple factors, including staffing challenges and what he described as an overwhelming number of eviction orders processed after Tacomas new ban on cold-weather evictions ended in April.

Data provided by Pierce County Superior Court doesnt show a massive bump in the number of eviction cases filed in April  in fact, there were roughly 30 fewer filings than in March  but the 330 cases filed in May represent the highest single number of filings in any month since at least January 2018, the earliest figures requested by The News Tribune.

Its just too expensive to live right now for a lot of people, so the evictions have been high, Moss said.

Nobody is pushing for more people so we can do evictions faster, he added.

The summers going to be busy.

Balancing interests and regulations

Not every unlawful detainer eviction case culminates in a writ of restitution eviction order.

Sometimes, tenants leave before they receive their day in court.

Other times, the two sides reach an amicable settlement, an outcome thats often in the best interest of tenants and landlords, according to Ann Dorn, a volunteer member of Tacoma For All, the grassroots organization responsible for the successful passage of Tacomas tenants rights initiative.

There have been an average of 292 unlawful detainer eviction cases filed each month, Superior Court data shows, suggesting that slightly more eviction filings have resulted in something other than a court-ordered writ of restitution carried out by PCSD deputies every month this year compared to 2023.

Dorn has experienced eviction firsthand, she indicated  describing herself as a single mom displaced with just 20 days notice back when such things were legal.

Six months after Tacomas Landlord Fairness Code Initiative took effect, Dorn is largely encouraged, she said.

During Tacoma For All canvasing events, Dorn has spoken with scores of local tenants, she said, all of whom are grateful for the new protections. Shes also encountered plenty of landlords who voted for it.

Recently, Dorn met a local father who fell $500 behind on rent, she indicated. Even after pulling extra shifts to make up for what he owed, his landlord refused to accept it and proceeded to file for an eviction, she explained.

Tacomas ban on evictions gave him the time he needed to save up enough money to move into a new place, Dorn believes.

If you want to blame anything for the state of rental housing in Tacoma  and the sudden plight of local landlords struggling to contend with new regulations enacted to protect their tenants  point a finger at the system itself, she said.

You have to balance the interests of landlords against the rights of working people, and you have to acknowledge theres a tension there. We have to decide as a community, are we going to protect working people? I think thats really the fundamental question in front of us, Dorn said.

Industries change. Regulations change. What people are willing to accept changes.  I think you are seeing a growing movement of people who are no longer willing to accept the price that working people pay when it comes to housing, she added.

When it comes to landlords, what were seeking to protect is their wallet. When it comes to working families, what were seeking to protect is their lives. These two things are not the same, and we need to start from that understanding and recognition.
Taiwan's President Lai Ching-te at DPP headquarters on Oct. 24, 2023. Credit - Lam Yik Fei for TIME

As political transitions go, the ascent of Lai Ching-te to the presidency of Taiwan had pretty much everything. On May 15, the outgoing President signed off amid a riot of yellow spandex and feather boas as Nymphia Wind, winner of the latest season of RuPauls Drag Race, led drag queens through the Presidential Office Building. Two days later, a real riot erupted in Taiwans legislature as lawmakers traded insults and punches over a bill that would heighten scrutiny powers over the government, and tens of thousands protested in the street. When Lai, who also goes by the anglicized name William, finally took office, on May 20, his inauguration speech so riled Beijing that it dispatched fighter jets and warships in punishment exercises designed to demonstrate its ability to seize power.

So it has been a very smooth transition, Lai tells TIME, with a straight face, in his first interview as President. So far so good.

A stoic embrace of peril and pandemonium is perhaps essential for the leader of a vibrant, febrile democracynot least one perched beside an authoritarian superpower determined to bring it to heel. Taiwan became politically self-ruling in 1949 at the end of Chinas civil war. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has never controlled the island of 23 million, which still officially uses the archaic title Republic of China (ROC). But Chinese President Xi Jinping considers it a renegade province whose reunification is a historical inevitability and has repeatedly threatened force to achieve it.

Read More: Chinas Punishment Military Drills Concern Even Taiwans Beijing-Friendly Party

The Peoples Republic of China (PRC) sent 1,709 warplanes through Taiwans air-defense identification zone last year. For Lais saying in his address that the governments of Beijing and Taipei are not subordinate to each other, the Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) launched Joint Sword-2024A drills that saw at least 35 aircraft cross an unofficial median line in the Taiwan Strait that until recently Beijing had largely respected.

Chinas ambition to annex Taiwan is part of their national policy, Lai says. To achieve it, Beijing has set about diplomatically isolating Taiwan, which is barred from the U.N. or World Health Organization, and is officially recognized by just 12 governments; tiny Nauru peeled off 48 hours after Lais January election victoryan unprecedented third straight for the China-skeptic Democratic Progressive Party (DPP). If our diplomatic allies decide to switch allegiance and choose the PRC, we wish them well, Lai says, magnanimously.

Official recognition, after all, is not all the world sees. Lais inauguration was attended by 51 international delegations, including the U.S., U.K., Australia, Japan, and Canada. Not long after, the U.S. Congress sent a bipartisan delegation. Speaking to TIME, House Foreign Relations chair Ben Cardin called Taiwan a beacon of democracy and good governance, which is confronting an existential threat from one of the worlds most authoritarian countries. This threat directly impacts the security of the United States and our allies.

Taiwan has little choice but to strengthen bonds with the only democracy capable of facing down Beijing. Its a key reason Lai tapped Hsiao Bi-khim, Taipeis de facto ambassador in Washington, to serve as Vice President. A self-professed Jersey girl, Hsiao attended high school in America, and her mothers family can be traced back to the Mayflower. There is no scenario in which Taiwan defends itself without the United States, says Oriana Skylar Mastro, author of Upstart: How China Became a Great Power.

Lai and, at right, Hsiao Bi-khim, his choice for Vice President, at an election-night rally on Jan. 13 Daniel CengEPA-EFE/Shutterstock

Read More: Heres How China Has Responded to Countries Congratulating Taiwans Election Winner

But the stronger the ties between Taipei and Washington, the more pressure Beijing puts on the island, and the greater the danger of finally exploding a Cold War conflict that has smoldered for 75 years. And as Novembers U.S. election approaches, candidates of all stripes will vie to appear tough on China, and the potential return of the famously transactional Donald Trump portends another wobble of uncertainty for Taiwans tightrope. One of William Lais biggest problems is going to be America, says Kerry Brown, director of the Lau China Institute at Londons Kings College. Enough politicians want to play around with Taiwan to get back at China. The era in which America was a predictable partner is over.

Hsiao is keen to paint a different picture, saying she has worked delicately and diligently to make sure that Taiwan  doesnt become an issue of political competition, that both [American] parties can share ownership in a sign of unity and support. What isnt up for debate are the stakes: Taiwan produces 90% of the worlds most advanced semiconductors, and the global cost of a war over the island could reach $10 trillion, estimates Bloomberg Economics. Thats some 10% of global GDP, far more than the shock from the war in Ukraine or the COVID-19 pandemic.

The job of staving off such a catastrophe falls to a 64-year-old bubble-tea fanatic sporting 90s throwback hair and loathed by Beijing as a dangerous separatist. And thats fine by Lai. I invite President Xi, he says, to jointly shoulder with us the responsibility of maintaining peace and stability, building regional prosperity, and advancing world peace.

Lai grew up poor in a tumbledown, two-story house in the coal-mining hamlet of Wanli set amid mist-swathed hills north of Taipei. He was still a baby when a work accident claimed the life of his father, leaving his mother to raise six children alone. He walked an hour each way to elementary school in a childhood punctuated by the sight of sobbing widows clutching funereal white cloths by collapsed mine shafts.

The deprivations of Wanli gave Lai a determination and awareness of social injustice that propelled him first to medical school, then to work as a kidney doctor in the southern city of Tainan. When I was little, I hoped to become a doctor so as to take care of the sick, relieve suffering, and save lives, he says. But during the process of Taiwans democratization, many young people devoted themselves to politics, including myself.

Read More: How China Could Play a Key Role in the Israel-Hamas Warand Why Its Not

Lin Chun-hsien, a lawmaker representing Tainan, first met Lai when they were both junior campaigners for the DPP. Although nobody doubted Lais intelligence and social conscience, there was an obstacle. When people encouraged William to step into politics, Lin laughs, he said he had to get permission from his mother. She valued the security of a medical career. My mother told me, If people support you, then you should run for election; if not, then you should continue as a doctor, Lai recalls with a smile. In other words, my mother felt that I probably would not pursue politics for very long!

Photograph by Lam Yik Fei for TIME

After four terms in the national legislature, Lai ran for mayor of Tainan. Our campaign meetings would end at 10 p.m., Lin recalls. Afterwards William would go straight into policy meetings, which would only be wrapping up when I returned early the next morning.

In seven years in office, Lai eschewed populist policies in favor of tough choices. A project to ease gridlocked traffic involved relocating more than 300 homes. The mayor went door-to-door to persuade residents to vacate and was frequently chased away. But his most transformative achievement was persuading TSMC to establish a $40 billion foundry in Tainan, where today the semi-conductor colossus produces its most advanced 3nm chips for firms such as Apple and Qualcomm.

The project helped entrench Taiwan both in global supply chains and in todays simmering tech competition between the U.S. and China. The U.S. CHIPS and Science Act includes $39 billion in subsidies to bring chip manufacturing back to the U.S., including $6.6 billion for new Arizona operations of TSMC, whose key clients such as Nvidia and AMD are barred by U.S. export controls from selling their most advanced chips to Chinese firms. In this era of smart technologies, semiconductors have become crucial, says Lai.

Read More: Taiwans Election Isnt a Disaster for Xi JinpingUnless He Makes It One

The worlds reliance on Taiwans semiconductor industry has been dubbed a silicon shield that renders the price of any conflict too high for China, the worlds No. 2 economy and largest trading nation. If U.S. efforts to stymie Chinas access to cutting-edge chips risks weakening that shield, President Joe Biden has offered a genuine one, dispatching billions of dollars in high-tech weaponry, and in a recent interview with TIME he didnt rule out using U.S. military force to defend the island. Clearly, the delicate status quo over Taiwan is shifting. We have to be careful not to suggest U.S. policy is to keep Taiwan out of the hands of the PRC no matter what, even if its done peacefully, cautions Mastro. That could turn a war of choice into a war of necessity for China.

The risk is that with Taiwanese identity at a historic high, and U.S. backing for the island never stronger, Beijing may feel compelled to act. It shows evidence of preparing to. In the past three years, the PLA has added over 400 advanced fighter aircraft and more than 20 major warships, while more than doubling its ballistic and cruise-missile inventory. Former U.S. Indo-Pacific Command chief Admiral Phil Davidson testified to Congress in 2021 that China wanted the capability to seize Taiwan within six yearsa timeline that has since been backed by other U.S. military figures and, if true, would fall within Lais first term.

Lai, once again, projects calm. While admitting geopolitical changes will continue to impact the dispersion of semiconductor companies, he does not believe that this will increase the risk of conflict.

Kinmen is a rocky island that lies just three miles off the coast of mainland China yet remains administered from Taipei. When the Nationalist forces of Generalissimo Chiang Kai-shek first fled to Taiwan, Kinmen was fiercely defended as a vital staging post for eventually reclaiming China. Deep tunnels were hewed from its rock and defensive ramparts erected on its powder white beaches.

Kinmen was also where U.S. support for Taiwan first became explicit. When in 1954 Mao Zedong unleashed an artillery blitzkrieg on it, President Eisenhower felt obliged to set aside reservations about Chiangs authoritarian project and signed a mutual defense treaty between the U.S. and the ROC. Even after President Nixon switched official recognition to Beijing in 1979, Congress demonstrated its steadfast support for Taipei with the Taiwan Relations Act, which obligates the U.S. to sell the island weapons for its own defense.

Watching Lais inaugural address on May 20 in a restaurant on the Taiwanese island of Kinmen. I-Hwa ChengAFP/Getty Images

Ever since, Kinmen has been a barometer of cross-Strait relations. In times of high tension, shells fly and residents hunker in fortified foxholes. And when relations eventually warmed, Kinmen was at the heart of the rapprochement; direct people-to-people, trade, and postal connections opened between Kinmen and the neighboring Chinese city of Xiamen in the early 2000s. But by early 2020, Chinas strict zero-COVID measures had severed the links, and political tensions have prevented their full restoration. A nadir was reached in February after a fatal boat collision claimed the lives of two Chinese nationals off Kinmen, prompting Beijing to reject a tacitly respected prohibited-waters line. Deteriorating relations are difficult for locals reliant on cross-border trade. Lai Ching-te is dangerous, says elderly resident Xu Fei, shucking oysters outside her swallowtail-eaved shophouse in Kinmen. Xi Jinping is Chinas new emperor, and we have to live with him.

Chinas recent economic woesrising youth unemployment, a stock market in free fall, and spiraling debtcould provide a new opportunity. (China accounted for 83.8% of Taiwans foreign investment in 2010; last year, it was only 11.4%.) Both of Taiwans main opposition parties advocate restarting negotiations on a Cross-Strait Service Trade Agreement, which stood to boost economic integration between China and Taiwan but stalled after being targeted by student-led protests in 2014.

Lai is fine with the status quo, arguing that the time for this has long passed and citing substantive differences opening up between Taiwans economy and Chinas present economic structure. So determined is the DPP to sideline China that after an earthquake hit the Taiwanese city of Hualien on April 3 and the PRC offered to donate 100 prefabricated homes to victims, the offer was rebuffed. It was not what the people affected by the Hualien earthquake required at the time, Lai says.

Read More: The Best Way to Preserve Peace Is to Be Able to Fight a War: Taiwans Foreign Minister on Resisting Chinese Aggression

Lai also demurs on the blandly named 1992 Consensus, a political fudge agreed to by Beijing and a former Nationalist (KMT) government in Taipei stating that both sides concur they belong to the same nation, even if they bicker over which is the legitimate government. But Lais DPP does not recognize the Consensus, and a September poll suggests 76.7% of respondents see themselves as Taiwanese, rather than Chinese or some mix. The 1992 Consensus is a fairy tale, says Brown. But people need fairy tales, and without it theres no common framework to talk and make sure neither side does something dumb.

Lai disagrees, insisting that any interactions should be mutually beneficial and reciprocal, with tourists and students flowing in both directions or not at all. Moreover, he adds, the PRC should recognize that the Republic of China exists.

That plain speaking goes a long way toward explaining why Lai is singularly despised in Beijing. He has been to the PRC only once, in 2014, on a cultural exchange as mayor. It wasnt a success. Speaking with faculty and students at Shanghais Fudan University, Lai was asked if the DPP would amend its goal of independence to mend ties with China. Instead of dodging the question, Lai candidly replied that a desire for independence was a consensus among Taiwans people. In 2017, Lai went further, describing himself as a pragmatic worker for Taiwan independencea phrase that has dogged him ever since despite repeated efforts to walk it back.

The bar is higher for Lai than for any other recent Taiwan leader. He correctly points out his not subordinate statement had been uttered by both outgoing President Tsai Ing-wen and her KMT predecessor Ma Ying-jeou, but not at their inaugurations. We were surprised that President Lai would bluntly spell out that the sovereignty across the Taiwan Strait is not overlapping, says Alexander Huang, director of international affairs for the KMT. He did not give any room for the flexibility or constructive ambiguity that have existed for 20 years.

Lai tells TIME, What I said was the truth. According to international law, we are already a sovereign and independent country. My goal is to bring the people of Taiwan together.

Yet divisions are what have defined Lais first few weeks in office. Crucially, in the same election that lifted Lai to the presidency, the DPP lost control of the legislature to the KMT and the similarly China-friendly Taiwans Peoples Party. And indeed the legislature provided Lai his first major test. On May 28, it passed an amendment that obligates military, government, and even private citizens to answer questions and provide any information requested by lawmakers, among other enhanced scrutiny powers. Opponents see Chinas fingerprints on the measure, pointing out that 17 KMT lawmakers traveled to Beijing in late April and met with CCP No. 4 and chief ideologue Wang Huning.

The [CCP] has now infiltrated our Congress, says Robert Tsao, a billionaire former semiconductor mogul who has donated $100 million to efforts to curb Beijings influence in Taiwan. Its so obvious. Asked whether he agrees, Lai offers a measured reply: Political parties should put national interests above their own.

As the bill was being passed, tens of thousands gathered outside the legislature, brandishing placards saying democracy is dying and welcome to xi jinpings evil empire. Inside, DPP lawmakers waved lights, shouting, Brush your teeth, your breath stinks at their KMT peers, who clutched sun-shaped balloons and chanted, Let sunlight into the legislature. Huang of the KMT denies that the CCP lies behind the amendment, whose intention is simply to rebalance executive and legislative checks and balances, he says. Its not closed-door or unjustified in terms of procedure.

The bill stands to slow Lais ambitious domestic agenda, which includes raising the minimum wage, building a Taiwanese space industry, and enhancing social welfare. The task before Lai is to stay the course without getting frustrated, says Chong Ja Ian, an expert on Taiwan politics at the National University of Singapore. Because if he makes a mistake, not only will his domestic opponents seize on it, but the PRC will as well.

Living precariously is as much a part of Taiwans identity as colorful protest, bubble tea, and drag queens in the corridors of power. And today more than ever, the job of preserving the freest place in the Chinese-speaking world involves choices that ripple across the globe. My responsibility, says Lai, is to deepen Taiwans democracy and enable hard-working people from all walks of life to realize their ideals and contribute to our country.

Write to Charlie Campbell at charlie.campbell@time.com.
Takeaways from Supreme Court ruling: Abortion pill still available but opponents say fight not over

The Supreme Court building is seen on Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Washington. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

WASHINGTON (AP)  The Supreme Court unanimously upheld access to a drug used in the majority of U.S. abortions on Thursday, though abortion opponents say the ruling won't be the last word in the fight over mifepristone.

The narrow decision came two years after the high court overturned the nationwide right to abortion. Rather than fully dive into the issue, the high court found that anti-abortion doctors lacked the legal right to sue.

That could leave an opening for anti-abortion states or other opponents to keep up the fight.

Some takeaways from the decision:

What does this say about the Supreme Court and abortion?

Not necessarily very much. Justice Brett Kavanaugh, who was part of the court majority two years ago to overturn Roe, employed a minimalist approach in the opinion that seemed designed to sidestep disagreements and arrive at a unanimous outcome.

The court found that the abortion opponents couldn't sue because they weren't actually injured by the medication, in part because federal laws protect doctors from performing abortions if they object.

The court did not address whether the FDA ultimately adhered to the law when it made changes to relax access to mifepristone, including allowing telehealth prescribing and mail delivery to patients. It said opponents could go elsewhere with their arguments, like to the president or the FDA.

Not a word was written about the Comstock Act, a 19th-century law that some abortion opponents think can be used to prevent mifepristone from being sent in the mail and was mentioned by two conservative justices during oral arguments.

The courts ability to reach a unanimous decision was also surely made easier by the aggressive lower-court rulings that embraced much of the abortion opponents lawsuits and strayed from how courts typically decide whether someone can sue. This term, the Supreme Court is weighing several appeals of novel rulings by the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Kavanaugh delivered a rebuke in the form of a brief but pointed civics lesson, saying a federal court is not a legislative assembly, a town square, or a faculty lounge.

What happens next?

The legal fight over mifepristone doesn't seem to be over.

Erin Hawley, the lead attorney for the abortion opponents, said she expects states who previously joined the lawsuit to continue the case. They could argue that while doctors may not have legal standing to challenge the drug, states do.

The attorney general in one of those states, Kris Kobach of Kansas, sounded a similar note, saying it is essential the case continues.

One potential problem for the states is that the justices refused to let them intervene in the Supreme Court case.

Abortion rights advocates have also said they expect the push to restrict mifepristone to continue.

What does this mean politically?

Thursday's ruling sidesteps immediate seismic political effects, but the issue will still be center stage this election year.

Democrats said the Supreme Court made the right call on abortion medication, but warned that the ruling wouldn't end GOP threats to abortion rights. Vice President Kamala Harris said former President Donald Trumps allies would still try to halt access to medication abortion and enact further restrictions, including a nationwide ban.

Patient Kaniya Harris, 21, said she was deeply relieved the medication allowed her to self-manage her abortion in Bethesda, Maryland, during her junior year in college in March 2023. She later demonstrated in front of the court to support access to the drug.

We still have a ways to go, she said. Were still pushing for abortion access ... . But at least this is a step in the right direction.

Currently, only about half of states allow full access to the drug under the FDAs framework, though statistics show people in restricted states have continued to receive the drug by mail.

Most Republican officials and candidates weren't as vocal. Trump, the presumed Republican nominee, has previously said hed announce a position on medication abortion but hasnt done so. He said in April that abortion should be left up to states, though this week he also urged an anti-abortion Christian group to stand up for innocent life.

Abortion will also be directly on the ballot in at least four states where voters are being asked to approve constitutional amendments that would assure abortion access. Similar measures could be before voters in several other states, too.

Is the Supreme Court done with abortion?

No. It's not even the last abortion case this term. The Supreme Court is also expected to hand down a decision in the next few weeks on whether federal law protects emergency abortions in states with strict bans.

The Biden administration argues that abortion care must be allowed in cases where a woman's health is at serious risk. It sued the state of Idaho, which maintains that its exception for life-saving care is enough.

Kavanaugh mentioned the high court's other abortion case in Thursday's ruling, as he pointed out that the Justice Department has acknowledged that doctors who are opposed to abortion don't have to take part under federal conscience laws.

The reference doesn't hint at how the court might rule in the case, said Sara Rosenbaum, a health policy professor at George Washington University. The fact that the court didn't release a decision in that case along with the mifepristone case could signal that the emergency abortion ruling is going to be a much more difficult decision.

____

Associated Press writers Mark Sherman and Amanda Seitz in Washington, Geoff Mulvihill in Cherry Hill, N.J., and Christine Fernando in Chicago contributed to this report.
Video above: DeSantis signs Focus on Floridas Future budget in Tampa

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis slashed about $1 billion from the $116.5 billion 2024-25 budget he signed into law Wednesday, which includes millions in proposed projects for the Tampa Bay area.

While many local lawmakers saw their proposed projects get funding, dozens ended up on the chopping block. Here are just some of the projects DeSantis vetoed in the Tampa Bay area, including infrastructure improvements, affordable housing and school safety initiatives.

The largest veto in the Tampa Bay area was for a Bradenton project that requested $5 million. The city was also denied funding for a $2,200,000 sewer improvement project.

Gov. DeSantis signs new $116.5 billion Florida budget in Tampa

In Pinellas County, the cities of Madeira Beach, Oldsmar and Safety Harbor collectively lost out on millions in road and water projects. The countys request for $1 million to replace emergency generators was also denied.

The governor also slashed a $3,000,000 Affordable Homeownership Initiative for Pinellas and Pasco counties.

DeSantis vetoed some items related to safety improvements. Hillsborough County requested $500,000 for ZeroEyes School Safety, a program that uses A.I. and surveillance cameras to identify visible guns and alert police. In St. Petersburg, Temple Beth-El requested $200,000 for a security initiative, but it was vetoed.

The University of South Florida secured tens of millions as part of its budget increase. However, a $3.9 million project that would research opioid abuse and work to lower drug use and overdose rates was slashed by DeSantis.

Additional examples of projects that were cut include a Hillsborough County Hunger Relief and Food Security Project that requested just $66,842, a Zephyrhills Septic to Sewer project costing $1.55 million, and a Parkway Boulevard sidewalk project in Pasco County that requested about $585,000 in funding.

In Polk County, Polk State College and Southeastern University lost out on funds for building renovations and for a SEU program supporting students with intellectual disabilities, respectively.

DeSantis said in a news conference Wednesday that he vetoed some items because the local governments and organizations could access another source of funding. For the rest, he said he just did not support certain projects.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to WFLA.
SULLIVAN COUNTY, Tenn. (WJHL)  The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) is investigating an officer-involved shooting that left one person dead Wednesday evening in Sullivan County.

The TBI confirmed to News Channel 11 that the shooting happened along Pine Hill Road in Bluff City.

Wise Co. pursuit ends in head-on crash leaving 1 dead

According to the TBI, deputies with the Sullivan County Sheriffs Office were called to a home in the 400 block of Pine Hill Road shortly after 9 p.m.

Deputies reportedly responded to a request for a welfare check and found William Kevin Guinn, 54, armed with a gun.

For reasons still under investigation, the deputy fired shots, striking the man, the TBI stated in a news release.

Guinn was pronounced dead at the scene. No deputies were injured, the TBI stated.

The TBI will continue to investigate the shooting and will turn over its findings to the district attorney general for review.

This story is currently developing. Stay tuned on-air and online for updates.

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 WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather.
President Biden and former President Trump are gunning for an endorsement from the Teamsters union, but the labor organization is keeping the presumptive nominees on their toes.

The Teamsters president has asked to speak to both parties at their national conventions, a spokesperson confirmed to The Hill  a rare move as suspense builds over to whom the influential group will throw its support.

The pro-labor community is confused by the Teamsters request. Many see Biden and Democrats as the natural choice, noting the presidents record in the White House. Fears that labor leaders may back Trump have also grown as polling shows a consistently close race less than five months until Election Day.

Its going back to a time when the Teamsters endorsed Nixon, said one labor movement leader in a swing state.

President Sean OBriens request to appear at the marquee events for both Democrats and Republicans  a development that was first reported by The New York Times  has challenged conventional wisdom that the major unions would ultimately back Biden.

I dont think he likes Trump, the union organizer said about OBrien. Its more, we all see the competition model as vital to getting the Democrats to do the right thing.

And if the Republicans want to help, we are welcoming it and building bridges, the source added.

A spokesperson for the Teamsters said the union typically waits until after the conventions to make a formal endorsement.

Still, OBriens desire to address opposing crowds is notable.

Its not that often that a union president asks to speak at both conventions, said Bob Bussel, director of the Labor Education and Research Center at the University of Oregon.

Teamsters officials have expressed interest in playing ball with many types of candidates this cycle. Officials met with Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Cornel West last year as third-party contenders. They also met with Trump back in January. The unions PAC donated $45,000 to the Republican National Committee shortly after, Federal Election Commission filings show, though the group contributes substantially to Democrats as well.

Trump has been trying to cut into Bidens hard-earned support from organized labor since 2020, when both contenders competed for the workers vote.

Biden, meanwhile, sat down with leadership and Teamsters members in March, but its not clear if he got what he wanted out of it. OBrien came out of that meeting noncommittal about who his union would back, knowing he had some time to make a final call. The Teamsters have long been in Democrats column and backed Biden against Trump in 2020.

Other unions have already promised their support to Biden, including the prominent United Steelworkers and North Americas Building Trades Unions, and many in the community feel optimistic about his prospects.

Labor activists and organizers dont necessarily anticipate a stamp of approval for Trump, but the waiting game has created some uncertainty.

Polls in battleground states including Michigan and Pennsylvania show the gap in support between the two candidates within the surveys margin of error. Any major movements that impact working constituencies could cause more fluctuation.

I would be surprised if there was a Trump endorsement, but its not to say that its not beyond the realm of possibility, Bussel said, adding that a Trump endorsement would be a stub of the toe for Biden as he works to compensate for ongoing deficiencies with other voting blocs.

National union leaders say they have taken steps to inform their members about the progress Biden has made in office, including banning noncompete agreements, improving overtime protections and rallying behind picketing autoworkers. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law was also considered a major boon to organized labor.

Our unions perspective is Joe Biden has been the most pro-union president in generations if not ever and our union is fully behind his reelection, said Sal Rosselli, president emeritus of the National Union of Healthcare Workers.

All the unions here that were involved with are fully behind Biden and dont see the need for a both sides approach, Rosselli said when asked about OBriens request to hear from the two presidential contenders.

About 24 percent of our membership is Republican, for example, but we have no member desire, no communications to me or from our members that we should consider supporting Donald Trump, he said. The opposite is true.

Some say OBrien could be responding to a demand from his membership  a vast 1.3 million workers  to engage with both sides of the aisle. Unions dont typically have a say over who employers or other members hire, and may have an ideologically diverse rank and file. He could also be simply stress-testing both parties agendas.

Bussel suggested OBrien is doing due diligence by attempting to reach across party lines, but he added that the Teamsters leader is also likely trying to play this for maximum leverage.

Its almost like being a nonaligned country during the Cold War, Bussel said. You really try to get the maximum benefit out of your strategic position.

Eddie Vale, a Democratic strategist with long-standing ties to the AFL-CIO, argued many underestimate the number of Republicans who are union members.

Vale said the leaders attempt at bipartisanship comes off as an interesting gambit to try to see if the Republicans are serious about reaching out to union members.

Kevin Munoz, a spokesperson for the Biden campaign, didnt comment on whether the Democrats plan to consider a speaking slot for OBrien. But the campaign is working to win over the union by highlighting Bidens biggest accomplishments.

Theres only one candidate in this race fighting for American workers and creating good-paying union jobs here at home, and thats President Biden, Munoz told The Hill.

Donald Trump has spent his entire life fighting against workers rights, and now Trump is proudly running to ship union jobs abroad  just like he did in his first term. Joe Biden fights every single day for unions and workers across the country, and will continue to work to earn the Teamsters support.

The Trump campaign did not respond to a request for comment.

Polling shows interest among both Democratic and Republican voters for the union vote. NBC News polling from February indicated Biden is still beating Trump among union households, but by a closer margin than 2020.

Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania will probably decide the election, said Steve Rosenthal, a Democratic strategist and the head of a consulting firm that works with labor unions.

All three are states with a huge union history and a huge base, he added.

The competition is fiercer than in the past, Rosenthal suggested, with both candidates needing to do more to capture support than what theyre offering at this point in the race. As a result, the big-ticket endorsements are more coveted.

The union household vote right now is not where it needs to be in order to win these states, he said. The union endorsements are really, really valuable right now.

Waiting to offer an endorsement until after Republicans July convention in Milwaukee and Democrats August convention in Chicago means less time for whichever side the Teamsters support to capitalize on that name-brand approval. That timeline is not great from the candidates perspective, but would still leave time, strategists said, for the Teamsters to pull out all the stops for its candidate between Labor Day and Election Day.

Bidens record on union issues has been beyond anything that anybody imagined, Rosenthal said. Its hard for me to imagine a union not endorsing him.

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 The Hill.
A 17-year-old boy was killed in an overnight shooting in Lawrence sometime between Wednesday night and Thursday morning.

Police responded to a home on Alabama Street in Lawrence around 1:15 a.m. Thursday, according to a news release from the Lawrence Police Department. Officers discovered Isaiah Neal, 17, with multiple gunshot wounds.

Neal was pronounced deceased at a Lawrence hospital early Thursday morning. The shooting had multiple witnesses, according to police.

Neal attended high school in the Lawrence Public School District. Several of his former teachers posted condolences to his family on social media Thursday.

No arrests have been made. Lawrence police are asking anyone with information or evidence come forward to assist the investigation.
Mirjana Spoljaric, 51, was born in Croatia, in the town of Ludbreg, but she also has Swiss nationality, an essential requirement to preside over the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), which is based in Geneva. That and the fact that Spoljaric brought together two of the experiences best suited to lead an organization called to protect the victims of war from neutrality  the Swiss diplomatic corps and the United Nations agencies  led to her appointment in October 2022.

She is very cautious in her words and says protecting humanity is the key to achieving peace. She prefers not to talk about Israels accusations against the U.N. agency for the Palestinians (UNRWA), where she herself worked a little over a decade ago. But she is clear that humanitarian assistance has become a target in conflicts in one way or another, and not only in the Middle East.

Seventy-five years have passed since the signing of the Geneva Conventions, the core of international humanitarian law or, in other words, the rules of war, which the ICRC tries to monitor. The current situation is less than encouraging. Spoljaric warns: If we throw these mechanisms that were created after the Second World War under the bus now, we will not be able to recreate them.

Question. In the interview I did a couple of years ago with your predecessor, Peter Maurer, we also started by talking about Gaza. Is it the most difficult conflict for the ICRC?

Answer. What we have been observing over the last 10 to 12 months is a fast escalation of large-scale, very complex, very high-intensity conflicts. Sudan started before Gaza, but then Gaza came after Ethiopia. Then there was an earthquake falling on 10 years of protracted conflict in Syria, a fast escalation in Myanmar. Gaza is a paradigm shift because of the high intensity, the high level of destruction and the active impediment of humanitarian assistance. But what we measure in Gaza is higher per capita than in other places, in terms of damage and suffering and loss. What we have to acknowledge in Gaza is that all this is happening under the watch of the international community, and still, the situation continues to deteriorate in horrific ways. You see people suffering more and more every day, and less and less capability of preserving dignity, apart from a lack of security, lack of water, lack of nutrition, lack of health, lack of shelter

It will haunt us for quite some time to come. There are two lessons learned in Gaza: one is when theres no compliance with international humanitarian law, you see the damage increase, you see civilian loss increase. But what we also learn is that without the direct influence of the state parties to the Geneva Conventions [which regulates the treatment of non-combatants in a war] humanitarian actors lose weight, authority, security, and ultimately credibility. What you have heard throughout this conflict is, oh, the humanitarians need to do more. Oh, we have to step up humanitarian assistance. But how can we, if opening the borders is linked to political negotiations? Weve come under attack repeatedly. Many humanitarians have lost their lives. You cannot separate humanitarian assistance from political negotiations anymore. And that makes our work extremely more complex

Q. Did you expect more from the international community?

A. Yes, I expect the international community to declare compliance and implementation of international humanitarian law their political priority. We have to invest much more upfront, in compliance with the law, in accountability systems, to prevent lawlessness when conflict arises, because conflict is not a lawless space. The Geneva Conventions were created precisely is to avoid war at all costs and with all possible means. You cannot dehumanize and completely destroy the other side without questioning the legal system that was created on the basis of the experience of the Second World War.

Q. The ICRC is synonymous with neutrality and credibility, but it is also the target of disinformation. Has there ever been a campaign against your organization like the one in Gaza?

A. What we observed in Ukraine was a high intensification of misinformation with regards to humanitarian actors generally, but then specifically with the ICRC. Much of this happens through social media campaigns and with the support of artificial intelligence. This has amplified during the conflict between Israel and Hamas. Its becoming a serious issue for us because our offices were vandalized during the protests. There are hate campaigns against individuals, including myself. The security of our personnel is at stake, and this is not something we can neglect anymore. Theres nothing worse than creating false stories about those who are unarmed, who go unarmed into a situation of conflict to help other people. Without confidentiality, [the ICRC] cannot remain fully neutral. Attacking these two criteria is also not the right way to go because without our neutrality we lose the credibility and the legitimacy to operate in situations of our conflict. We lose the possibility to fulfill a mandate that was given to us by all states through the Geneva Conventions.

Q. The role of the ICRC is fundamental in Ukraine. Is access to prisoners of war your biggest challenge?

A. We work with the Ukrainian Red Cross to provide water, food, cash assistance. We also work to re-establish family links. There is a growing number of missing people. We work on exchange of bodies, on accessing prisoners of war in general. And we work with the sides on how they can ensure better protection of civilians. The parties need to recognize that it is in their interest to work with the ICRC to ensure protection of civilians and adequate treatment of prisoners of war. Ultimately, it serves them if on the other side the same treatment is granted to their own nationals. International humanitarian law is not transactional. Obligations are always obligations. If the sides uphold these minimum standards, it will be easier to return to the negotiation table.

Q. But can you access prisoners of war from both sides?

A. We never have full access to exercise our mandate as is written. In every conflict that you see in the media, our work has become increasingly more difficult.

Q. There are wars that dont appear in the media as often, such as the one in Sudan. In a recent statement, you said that humanitarian action there is politicized. What did you mean?

A. What we increasingly see is that humanitarian assistance is being instrumentalized to put pressure on the other party to a conflict. This is nothing new. It happens in every conflict. What we see now is that this is systematically a pattern that hampers our work. We are becoming deliberately subject to military strategies. We are forced to bend our rules in the eyes of the parties to conflict so that they can continue to pursue their military objectives. What you see is a deprivation of access to certain populations, a dehumanization of the other populations saying, oh, they are all combatants, which is then making it very difficult for us to operate because our colleagues are in danger.

Mirjana Spoljaric, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross. in Madrid. Alvaro Garcia

Q. The role of artificial intelligence in war is of concern to the ICRC. It is calling on governments to regulate its use. What response have you received?

A. What we are looking at specifically is so-called autonomous weapon systems. I issued a joint call with the U.N. Secretary General last year calling for a normative framework to regulate autonomous weapon systems. There are specific weapon systems that we think should be prohibited. They are unpredictable, using integrated forms of machine learning that learn about the target as they are already launched and weapon systems that autonomously target humans. What constitutes a big challenge for us is the loss of human control and accountability over the employment of weapons. You cannot export that decision-making to a machine or a computer or a software. What we also fear is that as you support military operations with artificial intelligence-based tools, you lose control over the human cognitive capacity to absorb the level of information needed in a short period of time to make decisions. What we also observe is a loss to distinguish between human harm and material harm, as well as the risk of something being programmed in the wrong direction and not being able to be reversed.

Q. Seventy-five years after the Geneva Conventions, which established the work of the ICRC, the number of civilians killed in conflicts remains extremely high. If the law is clear, where is the problem?

A. We work more on the preventive side than on the actual conflict, and we dont work on the court side. Its primarily the national state that has to prevent these violations by implementing these international agreements and being ready for times of conflict to avoid civilian casualties. The ICRC wasnt designed to prevent conflict; it doesnt quantify acceptable civilian casualty levels. A politician, a lawmaker, will always find interpretations of the law that allow them to say, we are in full compliance [with the Geneva Conventions]. We are at a crossroads. Im calling on the politicians to ask themselves, are you content with the letter of the law? Or do you want to prevent the moral failure that is unprecedented? The universal principle of protecting humanity, enshrined in the Geneva Conventions, is the pathway back to peace. States will have to come back to the negotiation table. The big powers have something in common to start with: the humanitarian principle. That is what they agreed on after the Second World War. And nobody has broken that promise yet, even though the reality looks much different.

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ST. LOUIS, Mo. A teen was shot in the Vandeventer neighborhood early Thursday morning.

The shooting occurred just before 3 a.m. on West Finney Avenue.

Police say the 19-year-old man was shot in the thigh and back. He is conscious and breathing.

There is no word from the shooter.

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 2.
The school district will have to undertake eight different reforms, including hiring new staff to manage reports of racism.

The school district will have to undertake eight different reforms, including hiring new staff to manage reports of racism. Photograph: Stella/Getty Images/fStop

A school district in Tennessee has agreed to implement reforms to its practices after a federal investigation found evidence of racist harassment, which included a Black student called racial slurs and subjected to a mock slave auction where he was sold to his white peers.

In a settlement with the Hawkins county school district in eastern Tennessee, the US Department of Justice said it had secured significant changes to school policies after it found the district was deliberately indifferent to known race-based harassment in its schools, violating the equal protection rights of Black students.

The justice departments investigation, launched last year, found that white students repeatedly used the N-word and held a monkey of the month campaign to ridicule Black students. One Black student, known as KR, suffered repeated abuse, including an incident in which he walked into a bathroom to find a white student holding a staged slave auction in which he was sold to the highest bidder.

Related: US school teacher suspended for holding mock slave auction in class

Other incidents included students passing around a drawing of Ku Klux Klansmen and adding a Black student to a group chat that contained racist slurs. According to the mother of a Black student, of which there are fewer than five among 400 students at the school, the district did not act on complaints about the students behaviour.

No student should endure mock slave auctions or racial slurs meant to invoke a shameful period in our countrys history when Black people were treated as subhuman, said Kristen Clarke, assistant attorney general of the justice departments civil rights division.

Clarke said that the justice department would ensure that Hawkins county takes steps to end racial discrimination at its schools.

Under the settlement, the school district will have to undertake eight different reforms, including hiring new staff to handle complaints of racism, teacher training and processes to inform students and parents on how to report racist harassment.

Our school system is  and always has been  dedicated to serving and protecting all students, regardless of race, said Matt Hixson, director of schools at Hawkins county, AP reports.

Therefore, we entered into the agreement with DoJ to continue pursuing those same goals, and we look forward to working with the department regarding the same in the future.
Federal agents arrested eight men with suspected ties to ISIS last weekend in Los Angeles, New York, and Philadelphia. There is still much we dont know about the counterterrorism operation, and its possible that information in the first news reports isnt entirely accurate. But it is also possible that the arrests are highly significantan indication that the terrorist threat to Americans at home is growing once again, as FBI Director Christopher Wray warned in recent congressional testimony.

According to CBS News, the eight men are natives of the Central Asian country of Tajikistan who entered the U.S. through the southern border sometime since the beginning of 2023. They were allowed to stay in the country after passing initial background checks. Subsequent intelligence revealed they may have connections to ISIS-K (or ISIS-Khorasan), a branch of ISISs international network based in Afghanistan that orchestrated deadly mass casualty attacks in Iran and Russia earlier this year. The FBI reportedly wiretapped the men and discovered that at least one of them was discussing bombs. The FBI and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement then coordinated the arrests, and the men are being held on immigration charges as the investigation continues.

The arrests are potentially significant for several reasons. First, ISIS and ISIS-K have repeatedly relied on jihadists from Central Asian countries, especially Tajikistan, to carry out international terrorist operations. Since the beginning of the year, Tajik ISIS terrorists have killed more than 200 people in Iran and Russia.

Second, the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan left the Taliban (al-Qaedas most important ally) in control of a country teeming with transnational threats. Even though ISIS-K and the Taliban are enemies, the Taliban has been unable or unwilling to cut off ISIS-Ks international tentacles.

Third, the arrests could exacerbate the political tensions over Americas border. At least one of the arrested men reportedly used the Biden administrations Customs and Border Patrol (CBP) One app to gain entry to the U.S. The CBP One app is intended to allow asylum-seeking migrants to set up appointments for vetting and potential entry into the country. But, if accurate, then the reporting on use of the One app is another indication that suspected terrorists are trying to exploit this system for their own nefarious purposes.

Fourth, U.S. officials have long argued that the main terrorist threat to Americans inside the U.S. comes from lone individualsextremists with no formal allegiances or ties to organizations based overseas. But if the Tajiks arrested over the weekend were indeed colluding on behalf of ISIS, the threat is evolving once againto include organized cells that could be far more lethal than individual actors.

Even if there is less to the reporting on these detentions than it first appears, the threat posed by ISISs Central Asian contingents is clearly growing.

Tajiks play a significant role in ISISs international plotting.

Tajik jihadists have long played a role in ISISs international operations. In July 2018, for instance, five young ISIS recruits drove their vehicle into foreign cyclists touring Tajikistan then jumped out of the car and stabbed the cyclists. They killed four people, including two Americans. At the time, combining vehicular assaults with stabbing attacks was a common ISIS technique, employed by ISIS loyalists everywhere from Ohio to London. ISIS promoted the attack in Tajikistan by releasing a video of the five ISIS youths swearing their allegiance to the so-called caliphates then-ruler, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

The attack in Tajikistan was an indication of ISISs growing ability to attract recruits from there. In July 2019, a United Nations expert monitoring team reported that a prominent Tajik jihadist, Sayvaly Shafiev (also known as Mauaviya), served on the shura (leadership) council for ISIS-K. The U.N. team explained that Shafiev led a contingent of approximately 200 fighters from Central Asia in eastern Afghanistan, where he was recruiting more Tajik fighters and raising funds using online propaganda in the Tajik language.

Even as ISIS was recruiting Tajiks inside Afghanistan, it was seeking ways to deploy them abroad.

In April 2020, German authorities arrested four Tajik members of ISIS. The men were allegedly plotting attacks against American servicemembers and the U.S. Air Force. The Germans said the Tajiks were acquiring weapons, including bomb components, at the time of their arrest. Importantly, the Germans also claimed that the cell was receiving direction from ISIS leaders in Afghanistan and Syriaunderscoring the global connectivity and reach of ISISs network.

On January 3 of this year, an ISIS-K cell carried out near-simultaneous suicide bombings in Kerman, Iran, that killed about 100 people. At least one of the suicide bombers was a Tajik national. The terrorists struck during a memorial service for Qassem Soleimani, the Islamic Revolutionary Guards commander (IRGC) who was killed in a U.S. drone strike in Iraq in 2020 and who had overseen countless terrorist operations of his own during his decades serving the Iranian regime. The Iranian government tried to blame America and Israel for the bombings, even though the U.S. government warned the Iranians beforehand that ISIS-K was planning an attack.

The ISIS-K bombings in Kerman were not the first time ISIS has struck inside Iran. The Iranian regime has long maintained cozy relations with the Taliban, and has also harbored senior al-Qaeda leaders for more than two decades. However, ISIS has sought to distinguish itself from its Sunni jihadist rivals in both of those groups by killing Shiite civilians inside Iran and elsewhere around the globe. Since 2011-12, the Iranian regime has also deployed paramilitary forces and militias to Syria, where they have often clashed with ISISs men while seeking to buttress Bashar al-Assads regime. This is another reason ISIS seeks to target Iranians inside their own country.

Elsewhere, on January 28, two masked ISIS gunmen opened fire at the Santa Maria Roman Catholic Church in Istanbul, killing one person and wounding another. Turkish authorities identified one of the gunmen as a Tajik and the other as a Russian.

Then, on March 22, a cell of four Tajik ISIS gunmen stormed the Crocus City Hall near Moscow, killing more than 140 people and wounding hundreds more. In the aftermath of the attack, the Russian government reportedly arrested 11 to 12 Tajiks and one Russian citizen, accusing them of acting as a support network for the terrorists. As was the case before the attack in Iran, the U.S. government reportedly warned Russian officials that ISIS-K was planning a terrorist attack inside Russia, and even identified the Crocus City Hall as a potential target. ISIS has been at war with al-Assads regime in Syria for more than a decade. And throughout much of that period, Vladimir Putin has provided vital military and other assistance. By terrorizing Russian civilians inside their home country, ISIS and ISIS-K likely sought to punish the Kremlin. The Russian government is also allied with the Taliban, which ISIS-K opposes, providing another pretext for the group to seek targets inside and near Moscow.

A growing threat inside the U.S.

The ISIS attack in Moscow prompted renewed fears of a large-scale attack inside the U.S. Testifying before Congress in April, FBI Director Christopher Wray warned there was an increasingly concerning  potential for a coordinated attack here in the homeland, akin to the ISIS-K attack we saw at the Russia Concert Hall a couple weeks ago.

Wrays use of the phrase coordinated attack is noteworthy. U.S. officials have warned for years that the principal threat to Americans here at home comes from lone extremists or terrorists who could strike without any real operational assistance from their ideological compatriots abroad. Now, ISISs growing transnational capabilities have American officials concerned about the possibility of a bigger, coordinated attack orchestrated from abroad once again.

Its not yet clear how the arrests this past weekend fit into this threat matrix. But as Wrays testimony suggests, it is clear the jihadists threat to the homeland has not been extinguished.

Read more at The Dispatch

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Tesla shareholders are suing CEO Elon Musk and members of the automakers board of directors over Musks decision to start xAI, which they say is a competing AI company, and then divert talent and resources from Tesla to the new startup.

The lawsuit is one of the most direct challenges to Musks decision to start xAI, and it comes on the heels of his threat to develop AI outside of Tesla unless he is awarded more voting control over the company.

The suit was also filed just a few hours before Tesla is scheduled to host its annual meeting, where shareholders will likely vote to re-ratify the $56 billion compensation package that was struck down by a judge earlier this year.

Musk has long claimed that Teslas real value is that its not just a maker of electric vehicles, but that its actually an AI company. That claim is one reason why Teslas stock is priced as high as that of a tech company, and more valuable than all four top automakers combined.

This new complaint was filed Thursday by Cleveland Bakers and Teamsters Pension Fund in Delaware Chancery Court, Daniel Hazen and Michael Giampietro on behalf of Tesla itself. In it, they allege that Musk and members of Teslas board breached fiduciary duties to shareholders and unjustly enriched Musk by allowing the CEO to launch a competing company.

The plaintiffs in the case also say that Musk violated Teslas code of business ethics by creating and leading xAI, and that the board has allowed Musk to continue to violate this code unimpeded. They are asking the court to force Musk to disgorge his stake in xAI and hand it over to Tesla.

The notion that the CEO of a major, publicly traded Delaware corporation could  with the evident approval of his board  start a competing company, and then divert talent and resources from his corporation to the startup, is preposterous, the complaint reads. It compares Musks actions to a hypothetical situation involving the CEO of Coca-Cola starting a rival soft-drink company and sending ingredients to it.

Musk launched xAI in 2023 and recently pulled in $6 billion in funding for the startup that aims to compete with rivals like OpenAI, Microsoft and Alphabet.

The plaintiffs note that, soon after, Tesla began diverting talent and resources from Tesla to xAI. The lawsuit says at least 11 employees have joined xAI directly from Tesla, and points to how Tesla has reportedly been providing xAI access to its AI-related data.

The plaintiffs also point to CNBCs reporting that Musk diverted a sizable shipment of AI processors from Nvidia that had been reserved for Tesla to his social media company X, formerly known as Twitter. Musk had posted on X a few weeks prior that Tesla would spend $10 billion this year in combined training and inference AI, and hes also said that Nvidias pricey chips would be needed to help Tesla grow into a leader in AI & robotics.

Musk admitted to diverting the chips to X, claiming that Teslas new data center in Texas was still under construction and didnt have room to store them.

The Board has allowed Muskthe CEO and largest stockholder of Teslato found and lead another AI company; to plunder resources from Tesla and divert them to xAI; and to create billions in AI-related value at a company other than Tesla, the plaintiffs write. Consistent with its long history of obsequiousness to Musk, the Tesla Board has utterly failed to even attempt to meet its unyielding fiduciary duty to protect the interests of Tesla and its stockholders in the face of Musks brazen disloyalty.

Earlier this week, other Tesla shareholders filed a separate suit against Musk, claiming he made billions of dollars by selling the automaker's stock in 2021 and 2022 by using insider information.
A Texas National Guard soldier stands guard next to concertina wire along the U.S.-Mexico border in El Paso, as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, on May 27, 2024. Credit: Paul Ratje for The Texas Tribune

Two immigrants' rights groups in Texas sued the federal government Wednesday over a new presidential order that temporarily stopped granting asylum to migrants in virtually most circumstances.

President Joe Bidens order, issued a week ago, largely suspends noncitizens entry into the country whenever the number of migrants entering the country illegally is high.

President Bidens recent executive order flies in the face of our entire asylum system and has no cognizable basis to support it, said Jennifer Babaie, director of advocacy and legal services for El Paso-based Las Americas Immigrant Advocacy Center, one of the groups behind the lawsuit. By doing this, the president has managed to further penalize vulnerable individuals and families seeking protection and violated our laws.

According to the order, the limit on asylum requests will be lifted two weeks after the average daily number of migrant encounters between all official ports of entry has dropped below 1,500 for seven days in a row. The restrictions will resume when that number goes above a daily average of 2,500 encounters for seven consecutive days. The threshold was met immediately when the order was issued a week ago.

Wednesdays lawsuit alleges the new rule violates statutes that permit migrants to apply for asylum whether or not they arrive at an official port of entry.

The suit also says the policy blatantly violates the plain language of federal government code that says a migrant who is physically in the U.S. may apply for asylum. The order excludes an entire group of asylum seekers from access to that protection because of where they entered the country, the suit says.

In addition, the suit alleges the new rules create illegal regulations regarding the screening of migrants.

Immigration officers previously screened noncitizens to determine if they intended to apply for asylum and then determined if the person had a credible fear of torture or persecution. Now a migrant can be quickly removed unless they manifest a fear of persecution or torture  without being asked if they have a fear. The new rules screening standard requiring a reasonable probability of torture or persecution instead of the previous significant possibility standard is more stringent, according to the suit.

In practice, noncitizens who have just crossed the border, and may be hungry, exhausted, ill, or traumatized after fleeing persecution in their home countries and danger in Mexico, are likely to be intimidated by armed, uniformed Border Patrol officers, and are thus unlikely to manifest their fear of return, the suit states. Experience shows that, when in the past a manifestation of fear standard or similar directives not to ask about fear of removal were imposed, asylum seekers fear of return has gone unrecognized.

The lawsuit alleges that the exception criteria to Bidens proclamation is too narrow. People exempted from the policy include permanent U.S. residents, unaccompanied children, trafficking victims and migrants who secure an appointment with U.S. officials. Migrant rights advocates have criticized the phone app used to make those appointments saying its already overwhelmed.

The suit was filed in Washington D.C. on behalf of Las Americas and the San Antonio-based Refugee and Immigrant Center for Education and Legal Services. They are being represented by several law groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union  which last week vowed to challenge the order in court  and the Texas Civil Rights Project.

A legal challenge to Bidens order was widely expected. In Texas, the proclamation was condemned by members of both parties. Some Democrats said the order went too far; Republicans blasted the order for being too late and called it an attempt to provide political cover in an election year largely being defined by immigration issues.

The suit names a dozen agency and administration officials  including the Department of Homeland Security and its secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas  as defendants.

Just in: Former U.S. Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyoming; U.S. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pennsylvania; and Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt will take the stage at The Texas Tribune Festival, Sept. 57 in downtown Austin. Buy tickets today!
Texas Man Dead, Woman in Critical Condition After Being Electrocuted in Jacuzzi at Mexico Resort

The incident happened on June 11 at a complex of private condominiums in Puerto Penasco, Sonora, authorities confirmed

GoFundMe Jorge Guillen and Lizette Zambrano

A 43-year-old man has died after reportedly being electrocuted in a jacuzzi in Mexico.

The incident occurred at around 8:30 p.m. local time on Tuesday, June 11, at a complex of private condominiums in Puerto Penasco, Sonora, per a translated statement shared on Facebook by the General Prosecutor's Office of Justice of the State of Sonora.

The statement identified the man as Jorge "N," and said he'd been in the jacuzzi with Lizeth "N." The statement added that the man died and the woman suffered injuries due to a "possible electric discharge."

An investigation is underway, and authorities will now look to "determine the origin of the electric failure," per the statement.

According to outlets including KTSM, NBC News, and CBS4, the man was from El Paso, Texas.

GoFundMe Jorge Guillen and Lizette Zambrano

CBS4 said family members confirmed the couple involved in the incident was Jorge Guillen and Lizette Zambrano. Per the outlet, Zambrano, 35, remains in critical condition and is being treated in the hospital. According to KTSM, she's now been transported to the U.S.

Per the publication, the incident took place at the Sonoran Sea Resort. The resort did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.

Google Maps A photo of the Sonoran Spa Resort

A witness is said to have told authorities that she attempted to help the couple in the jacuzzi, but she was shocked as soon as she tried to get into the water, according to KTSM.

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Nurse Sara Gaitan-Perez, from Goodyear, Arizona, was staying at the resort when the incident happened, per the Arizona Daily Star. The outlet stated Gaitan-Perez had said the couple were the only two people in the hot tub when the shock occurred.

We had just come up from the pool, and my husband and son were in that very same [hot tub] about an hour before, the nurse, who performed CPR on the couple, told the outlet.

Peter Bischoff/Getty A stock image of Puerto Penasco, Mexico

The wife ended up becoming responsive and was breathing on her own by the time she was taken by gurney to the ambulance, Gaitan-Perez added, according to the publication.



A GoFundMe has been created on behalf of the couple's families has raised over $27,000 as of Thursday, June 13.

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Read the original article on People.
EL PASO, Texas (KTSM)  A man from El Paso, Texas, has died after being electrocuted in a hot tub at a private resort in Mexico on Tuesday evening, according to the General Prosecutors Office of Justice for the State of Sonora.

The General Prosecutors Office for the State of Sonora said the victim, identified as Jorge N., 43, was in a hot tub at the Puerto Penasco resort when he was electrocuted due to a possible failure in the wiring.

The victims wife, identified as Lizzette N., 35, was also in the hot tub and suffered life-threatening injuries.

Lizzette was transferred to a hospital in Mexico and told that her burns were consistent with electric shock, according to the General Prosecutors Office. She was transported to the United States, where she was in critical condition as of Wednesday.

This country will require Americans to show their bank statements to visit

The General Prosecutors Office says a witness familiar with the couple said she noticed the couple was in the hot tub and were not moving.

The witness told agents at the scene that she tried to enter the hot tub after the couple was non-responsive. However, as she tried to enter the water, she was shocked. The witness then called for help.

Video shared by Nexstars KTSM appears to show a crowd gathering around the hot tub after the incident, some of whom sounded to be screaming.

Mexican officials are currently investigating the incident.

Family friends have since created a GoFundMe page to cover the cost of Jorges transportation and Lizzettes medical bills.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Texas power grid in better shape than last year. How likely are rolling blackouts?

In Reality Check stories, Star-Telegram journalists dig deeper into questions over facts, consequences and accountability. Read more. Story idea? RealityCheck@star-telegram.com.

As summer heats up and memories of last years streak of 105 degrees days come rushing back to North Texas residents, the idea of losing power in August may seem a bit frightening.

Fears of that possibility popped up after Texas power grid operator ERCOT warned in a report published last week that it may have to force rolling blackouts as energy demand rises in August.

ERCOT may need to order controlled outages during peak hours of energy consumption, which will be most likely at around 9 p.m. This, according to the report, is the time at which the power grid will be most vulnerable to low electricity generation from wind energy.

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ERCOT points to worst case scenarios of electricity generation

Rolling blackouts are not completely out of the realm of possibility, but they are unlikely, according to energy and power grid experts. Still, ERCOT is erring on the safe side.

Theyre very conservative in terms of generation availability, said Tom Seng, an assistant professor of professional practice in energy finance at TCU. They look at worst case scenarios.

When crunching the numbers for its Monthly Outlook for Resource Adequacy report, ERCOT lowers its projected output capacity by as much as 10% just to be on the safe side, he said.

Joshua Rhodes, a mechanical engineering researcher at UT Austin who focuses on the bulk energy system, agreed, saying that ERCOT has been putting out more kind of extreme scenarios than they have in the past.

So while he did not completely rule out the possibility of rolling blackouts come August, he did say that they are not as likely as some headlines might make them seem.

I dont think well see blackouts this summer, he said. But theres always a chance things could happen. If its much hotter for much longer than normal, and if we have a lot of power plants offline, then its possible to happen, but I dont think its likely to happen.

 Here's what else we've Reality Checked:

 Is AI 'manipulating' your thermostat?

 Are American Airlines flight attendants really going to strike?

 True or false: Snakes can swim up your toilet

Demand has indeed increased from previous years, but so has the grids readiness to deal with that demand, Seng said. This is thanks to the expansion of renewable energies like solar and wind.

From the standpoint of resources, were in better shape than we were a year ago, he said.

Do renewables put Texas electricity output at risk?

Marshall Watson, chair of the petroleum engineering department at Texas Tech University, said that renewables and the focus of government subsidies on them has caused coal and natural gas plants in West Texas to decrease production or stop functioning altogether.

He emphasized that his expertise lies in oil and gas production, and not power grid distribution, but said that this lack of incentive to expand dispatchable energy sources like coal and natural gas combined with capricious weather conditions could create an unreliable electricity supply situation once Texas moves into the less windy months of summer.

I dont care how much you build, if you dont have any wind youre not going to generate wind energy, he said. Our windy months are obviously March through June, and then late in the summer, early fall, it kind of dies off a little bit.

Wind power accounted for around 3.4% of Texas total electricity generation on Wednesday, according to ERCOTs Grid and Market Conditions dashboard. Solar accounted for 21%.

While its true that blustery spring days are about to be replaced by the sweltering and stagnant air of summer, there will be no lack of sunlight in the coming months, as Rhodes, of UT Austin, pointed out.

The same sun that heats up buildings, that drives air conditioning use, thats responsible for more than half of peak demand, is the same sun that makes electricity with solar panels, he said. Were not going to have a fully cloudy, windless, 110-degree day across the state, because thats not a physical possibility.

Texans now depend on renewables in order to keep the A/C blowing, he added.

ERCOT is reliant on renewables, we need renewables to show up at some level to be able to match supply and demand, he said. We cant meet full peak demand with just coal, natural gas and nuclear or energy storage.

The grid still needs dispatchable energy sources to make up for times when the wind isnt blowing and after the sun goes down, but thats becoming less of an issue as we deploy more batteries, Rhodes said.
AUSTIN (Nexstar)  New Texas laws met to promote transparency in election results are having some unintended consequences, a top state election official told lawmakers Wednesday.

In 2023, Texas lawmakers passed House Bill 5180, which allows the public to access public election records 61 days after an election. Republicans said it was necessary to promote transparency in elections  which became increasingly important to GOP lawmakers nationwide after former President Donald Trump promoted theories about widespread voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election.

The Texas House Elections Committee held an interim meeting Wednesday to discuss concerns amid the states push for election data transparency and open records. It comes after an independent news site, Current Revolt, published an image of what it says is former Republican Party Chairman Matt Rinaldis ballot from Mays primary election. Nexstar did not confirm the ballot.

During Wednesdays hearing, Christina Adkins  the election division director at the Texas Secretary of States Office  reiterated her testimony from a meeting last month with the Senate Committee on State Affairs. Adkins said that the record and image of a ballot is publicly available but all personally identifiable information on the ballot that could be used to tie an individual back to their vote should be redacted.

Revealing how somebody votes after an election, holding up their ballot and saying, this is an individuals vote selections, that act itself is not criminal, she said. Its what you do with that information that could constitute criminal activity.

Now, election officials are worried that as ballot transparency increases, information about a voter could be easier to discover by analyzing a combination of information available.

Joshua Blank  the research director of the Texas Politics Project at UT-Austin  says that voters can only be identified under specific circumstances, such as when they are voting in a sparsely populated district.

Anything having to do with the secrecy of the ballot is likely to cause a lot of concern and consternation among voters and elected officials, Blank said. But so far, theres no evidence that the ability to access how individuals voted in the state of Texas is widespread or seriously problematic yet at this point.

In the case of Rinaldi, finding what is presumed to be his ballot was possible by identifying and cross-referencing several variables that are public information. There was no personally identifiable information on the ballot published by Current Revolt, and Rinaldi has not commented on whether it is his.

Where ballots have been identified, theyve been identified in precincts with very few voters, Blank said. And thats what allows for the combination of this unique information to then be made into a positive identification of an individual voter.

Adkins, along with others who testified at a Senate State Affairs Committee hearing in late May, also said they were concerned about their ability to identify fraud and fake votes if Texas were to revise its policy on transparency.

Currently, 83% of Texans use county-wide voting, a system in which voters can cast their ballot at any location in their county rather than the one assigned to them. Lawmakers are considering ending this system and returning to traditional pencil and paper voting to provide more protection against fraud and prevent people from voting twice.

At the end of the hearing, Adkins said that ballot secrecy issues could be solved by reconsidering precinct distribution and the way in which results are reported. When these two factors are combined in a district with a small enough population and voter turnout, it can be easy to identify who a ballot belongs to.

Any changes to the law would not likely happen before Novembers presidential election, as state lawmakers do not meet for the next legislative session until January 2025.

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 KXAN Austin.
Texts show how NYC Mayor Adams tried to pacify Bling Bishop Lamor Whitehead in feud with top adviser

NEW YORK  For years, Mayor Eric Adams went to extraordinary lengths to privately pacify Lamor Whitehead, as the ex-con-turned-pastor picked fights with Adams' top adviser, Ingrid Lewis-Martin, and pressed him for financial and political help, a trove of text messages exchanged between the two men reveal.

The texts were seized by federal prosecutors as part of their case against Whitehead, a self-described Adams mentee who was convicted in March on charges that he defrauded several people and banks, including by falsely telling a businessman in 2022 the mayor could secure government favors for them. The mayor wasnt accused of wrongdoing in the case.

The texts, which span from 2016 through 2022, were referenced during Whiteheads trial, but most of them have never been previously reported. The New York Daily News this week obtained the full 67-page cache of texts seized by the Manhattan U.S. attorneys office, which prosecuted Whitehead.

The messages show how Adams was willing to even criticize Lewis-Martin, his trusted chief adviser at City Hall, in a bid to calm Whitehead down.

The two of you have anger management issues and need to grow up, Adams texted Whitehead on Aug. 30, 2018, referring to him and Lewis-Martin. The reason you two dont get along is because you both are immature and need to grow up. I have too much to do to entertain it.

Lewis-Martin, who started working for Adams in the early 2000s and served as his deputy Brooklyn borough president before City Hall, has publicly earned nothing but praise from him.

His 2018 text about Lewis-Martin came after Whitehead had called her a bh in a text and claimed she had prevented him from trying to make money off of a concert series Adams, who then served as Brooklyn borough president, was helping host at the time.

In direct response to that expletive-riddled missive, Adams, who was at the time laying the groundwork for his 2021 mayoral run, texted Whitehead he was about to meet with potential donors and did not have time at this point to deal with personality clashes between him and Lewis-Martin.

Asked about the texts, Adams spokeswoman Kayla Mamelak said Wednesday the mayor considers Lewis-Martin a sister and has nothing but the utmost respect and love for her.

These texts are a response to one specific incident and in no way speak to the mayors real feelings about Ingrid, Mamelak added.

Whitehead, whos in jail pending his sentencing, didnt return a request for comment via his lawyer.

The texts obtained by the Daily News show Whitehead griped for years to Adams about Lewis-Martin sidelining him from making money off of Brooklyn concert series.

I bust my a to make sure this concert worked and now Im finding out that Ingrid  has F-D ME!!!!  I have busted my a !! And Im the only one not getting St !!!!  Everyone eating on my connect, he texted Adams in summer 2017 about another event.

Adams, who was traveling in China at the time, wrote Whitehead, I cant manage the situation from China and I am not going to try.

Months earlier, Adams had asked Whitehead to dial down his tone.

Life is not a prison yard where all disagreements must in (sic) with a Shank, Adams texted on Aug. 26, 2016. The most powerful lesson I learned from my mentor is one must have the discipline to walk away when you want to smack the st out of someone.

Whitehead also asked Adams for political advice as he was trying to mount an ultimately unsuccessful campaign to succeed him as borough president.

You win the race by raising money. We went over this already, Adams texted Whitehead on Aug. 17, 2018 after he asked how to win the BP race. Have to raise money. Everything else is fluff.

There were other times when Adams told Whitehead to stop publicly indicating he had his political support.

You are not my candidate for Boro President, Adams texted on May 2, 2018 after Whitehead had publicly suggested he had Adams backing. You a good friend but you have to be ready. This is not a game.

Three years later, on June 11, 2021 Whitehead texted a poster for his BP campaign that claimed Adams had endorsed him.

I am not endorsing in the BP race  Dont put me in a position where the press gets this flyer and ask am I endorsing you. Then your opponents will right (sic) a story saying you are misleading, responded Adams, who won the 2021 Democratic mayoral primary days later.

Whitehead, whos known as the Bling Bishop due to his penchant for flashy clothing, initiated what he has described as a mentorship with Adams in the early 2010s.

According to sources, Adams first met Whitehead, who had spent time in prison years earlier on other fraud charges, in connection with events honoring Whiteheads father, Arthur Miller, a businessman killed by police in 1978.

Whitehead is currently at Brooklyns Metropolitan Detention Center, awaiting sentencing. Prosecutors have asked that he receive 12 years in prison.

The feds stressed as part of Whiteheads prosecution that Adams wasnt aware of the pastors use of his name to advance his scheme, which included him extorting a Bronx businessman for a $500,000 real estate investment he falsely claimed had the mayors support.

After becoming mayor, Adams stopped interacting regularly with Whitehead, the texts show.

Ive been calling you for over 2 months now trying to meet with you however you are meeting with everyone else but me. I guess Im not in your vision, Whitehead texted him on Feb. 16, 2022. I wouldve never thought you would treat me this way!

_____
Activists in favor of abortion, on March 26 before the Washington Supreme Court, on the day in which the hearing on mifepristone was held.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday gave a long-awaited respite to the pro-choice movement with a ruling that, for the first time, maintains unrestricted access to mifepristone, a drug that is used, along with misoprostol, in 63% of pregnancy terminations performed in the country, according to data from the Guttmacher Institute.

The unanimous ruling came as no surprise to those who were following the hearing, where the justices implied that they were leaning towards this decision. It comes nearly two years after the Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade, the landmark precedent that established the constitutional right to abortion in 1973. That ruling opened a new era in U.S. womens reproductive freedom and health by giving states the power to legislate on abortion: so far, at least 21 have banned or severely restricted access.

With their ruling on Thursday, the nine justices (three liberals and six conservatives, three of whom were appointed by Donald Trump) overturned a New Orleans appeals court ruling that banned the mail distribution of mifepristone. If the justices had decided otherwise, mifepristone would have been banned federally  even in the states where the right to abortion is expressly protected. The ruling, however, does not mean that the drugs can be used in the 14 states that have a total abortion ban.

In the 34-page ruling, drafted by Trump appointee Brett Kavanaugh, the justices argued that the plaintiffs  an association of anti-abortion Christian doctors that was created expressly to launch the case against the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)  lacked the legal right to sue. For that, a plaintiff must demonstrate (i) that she has suffered or likely will suffer an injury in fact, (ii) that the injury likely was caused or will be caused by the defendant, and (iii) that the injury likely would be redressed by the requested judicial relief, the ruling states.

The Supreme Court ruled that the plaintiffs did not demonstrate these points, although it recognized that many citizens, including the plaintiff doctors here, have sincere concerns about and objections to others using mifepristone and obtaining abortions.

The ruling  which includes a concurring opinion by Clarence Thomas, perhaps the most right-leaning justice on the bench  can also be seen as a victory for the FDA and its autonomy to decide what drugs to approve for general use. It can also be seen as a brake on the current trend of the Supreme Court  the most conservative since the 1930s  to undermine the power of federal agencies. This was seen last year when the court ruled against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The mifepristone case  known as FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (AHM)  stems from a lawsuit filed in November 2022 against the FDA. AHM chose to launch its legal battle in Amarillo, Texas, confident that the ultra-conservative Christian judge, Matthew Kacsmaryk, would handle the case and that his decision would be reviewed by an appeals court, the Fifth Circuit, which also has a history of favoring its interests.

The plaintiffs initial goal was to prohibit full access to mifepristone, which, along with misoprostol, is used in a growing number of pregnancy terminations, a percentage that increased after Roe was overturned. The first drug stops the production of progesterone and interrupts gestation; the second causes contractions in the patient and provokes the expulsion of the fetus.

Five million women

The FDA, which approved the use of mifepristone more than 20 years ago, estimates that more than five million women have used it since then, and that no negative side effects have been reported beyond those seen in common drugs, such as ibuprofen.

Kacsmaryk fully supported the plaintiffs in Amarillo, but the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, which has jurisdiction over Texas, Louisiana and Mississippi, only agreed with part of their argument that blamed the FDAs 2016 and 2021 decisions  which expanded access to the abortion pill by allowing prescriptions to be given in telehealth consultations and the drug to be sent in the mail  for an alleged increase in problems stemming from that more widespread use.

Since the end of Roe v. Wade, at least 21 states have banned or severely restricted abortion rights. In those states, which cover roughly half the country and now the entire U.S. South, women have been turning to mifepristone to save themselves the long and costly trips to states where access to abortion is not restricted.

The anti-abortion movement has shown no signs that it will give up on its campaign to get mifepristone and misoprostol banned. The latest effort was seen in Louisiana, a state that is seeking to have the drugs legally designated as controlled and dangerous substances. The goal is for the abortion pills to end up on the same list as fentanyl or cocaine. In Louisiana, it is already illegal to use the drugs for an abortion; but if the rule succeeds, possession will also be illegal, carrying possible fines or prison sentences of up to five years.

Before the end of June, the Supreme Court is also set to hear another case that affects abortion rights. The case is Idaho v. United States, in which the justices must decide whether a federal law, EMTALA  which establishes the duties and powers of emergency physicians  prevails over the anti-abortion rule of Idaho, which has one of the toughest laws in the country. According to critics, Idahos strict rules put physicians and nurse in an impossible situation when it comes to helping a pregnant patient whose life is at risk. If they perform an abortion to save the patient, they risk losing their license or even ending up in jail. But if they do not help her, they are violating EMTALA, which obliges hospitals offering emergency services to intervene if the womans health is at stake.

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Texts show how NYC Mayor Adams tried to pacify Bling Bishop Lamor Whitehead in feud with top adviser

For years, Mayor Adams went to extraordinary lengths to privately pacify Lamor Whitehead, as the ex-con-turned-pastor picked fights with his top adviser, Ingrid Lewis-Martin, and pressed him for financial and political help, a trove of text messages exchanged between the two men reveal.

The texts were seized by federal prosecutors as part of their case against Whitehead, a self-described Adams mentee who was convicted in March on charges that he defrauded several people and banks, including by falsely telling a businessman in 2022 the mayor could secure government favors for them. The mayor wasnt accused of wrongdoing in the case.

The texts, which span from 2016 through 2022, were referenced during Whiteheads trial, but most of them have never been previously reported. The Daily News this week obtained the full 67-page cache of texts seized by the Manhattan U.S. attorneys office, which prosecuted Whitehead.

The messages show how Adams was willing to even criticize Lewis-Martin, his trusted chief adviser at City Hall, in a bid to calm Whitehead down.

The two of you have anger management issues and need to grow up, Adams texted Whitehead on Aug. 30, 2018, referring to him and Lewis-Martin. The reason you two dont get along is because you both are immature and need to grow up. I have too much to do to entertain it.

Lewis-Martin, who started working for Adams in the early 2000s and served as his deputy Brooklyn borough president before City Hall, has publicly earned nothing but praise from him.

His 2018 text about Lewis-Martin came after Whitehead had called her a bh in a text and claimed she had prevented him from trying to make money off of a concert series Adams, who then served as Brooklyn borough president, was helping host at the time.

In direct response to that expletive-riddled missive, Adams, who was at the time laying the groundwork for his 2021 mayoral run, texted Whitehead he was about to meet with potential donors and did not have time at this point to deal with personality clashes between him and Lewis-Martin.

Asked about the texts, Adams spokeswoman Kayla Mamelak said Wednesday the mayor considers Lewis-Martin a sister and has nothing but the utmost respect and love for her.

These texts are a response to one specific incident and in no way speak to the mayors real feelings about Ingrid, Mamelak added.

Whitehead, whos in jail pending his sentencing, didnt return a request for comment via his lawyer.

The texts obtained by The News show Whitehead griped for years to Adams about Lewis-Martin sidelining him from making money off of Brooklyn concert series.

I bust my a to make sure this concert worked and now Im finding out that Ingrid  has F-D ME!!!!  I have busted my a !! And Im the only one not getting St !!!!  Everyone eating on my connect, he texted Adams in summer 2017 about another event.

Adams, who was traveling in China at the time, wrote Whitehead, I cant manage the situation from China and I am not going to try.

Months earlier, Adams had asked Whitehead to dial down his tone.

Life is not a prison yard where all disagreements must in [sic] with a Shank, Adams texted on Aug. 26, 2016. The most powerful lesson I learned from my mentor is one must have the discipline to walk away when you want to smack the st out of someone.

Whitehead also asked Adams for political advice as he was trying to mount an ultimately unsuccessful campaign to succeed him as borough president.

You win the race by raising money. We went over this already, Adams texted Whitehead on Aug. 17, 2018 after he asked how to win the BP race. Have to raise money. Everything else is fluff.

There were other times when Adams told Whitehead to stop publicly indicating he had his political support.

You are not my candidate for Boro President, Adams texted on May 2, 2018 after Whitehead had publicly suggested he had Adams backing. You a good friend but you have to be ready. This is not a game.

Three years later, on June 11, 2021 Whitehead texted a poster for his BP campaign that claimed Adams had endorsed him.

I am not endorsing in the BP race  Dont put me in a position where the press gets this flyer and ask am I endorsing you. Then your opponents will right [sic] a story saying you are misleading, responded Adams, who won the 2021 Democratic mayoral primary days later.

Whitehead, whos known as the Bling Bishop due to his penchant for flashy clothing, initiated what he has described as a mentorship with Adams in the early 2010s.

According to sources, Adams first met Whitehead, who had spent time in prison years earlier on other fraud charges, in connection with events honoring Whiteheads father, Arthur Miller, a businessman killed by police in 1978.

Whitehead is currently at Brooklyns Metropolitan Detention Center, awaiting sentencing. Prosecutors have asked he receive 12 years in prison.

The feds stressed as part of Whiteheads prosecution that Adams wasnt aware of the pastors use of his name to advance his scheme, which included him extorting a Bronx businessman for a $500,000 real estate investment he falsely claimed had the mayors support.

After becoming mayor, Adams stopped interacting regularly with Whitehead, the texts show.

Ive been calling you for over 2 months now trying to meet with you however you are meeting with everyone else but me. I guess Im not in your vision, Whitehead texted him on Feb. 16, 2022. I wouldve never thought you would treat me this way!
I thought I'd have to get my driver's license to move out of NYC until I visited this car-free neighborhood in Arizona

Culdesac Tempe is a car-free neighborhood offering apartments and amenities near Phoenix.

Residents use walking, biking, and public transit with a complimentary mobility package.

Phoenix plans to expand its public transportation, making car-free living more feasible.

I'm 28 years old and still don't have my driver's license. Frankly, cars scare me, and getting behind the wheel is a responsibility I still can't confidently accept.

Luckily, I live in NYC, where a car-free lifestyle is attainable. There are plenty of ways to get around without a license, from efficient public transportation systems to walkable neighborhoods and ride-share apps.

But I don't want to live in the Big Apple forever. For years, I've dreaded learning to drive before eventually moving elsewhere in the US.

The anxiety ate away at me until a recent trip to Arizona, where I visited a car-free neighborhood in Tempe called Culdesac.

A walkable neighborhood in a city suburb

Retailers and apartments at Culdesac. Joey Hadden/Business Insider

Culdesac opened in 2023 and currently has 172 units and 200 residents, a company representative told Business Insider.

The 17-acre block 10 miles from Phoenix has shaded courtyards, apartments, a restaurant, and amenities, including a two-story fitness center, oversize games, and a weekly night market with vendors.

Culdesac also has 11 micro-retailers on-site, including a market, a laundromat, a medical spa, an art studio, a plant shop, and a thrift store.

The plaza in the heart of Culdesac. Joey Hadden/Business Insider

Getting around without a car

Culdesac has visitor parking, but residents are not allowed to park a car within 0.25 miles of the block.

Some residents, like Culdesac CEO and cofounder Ryan Johnson, don't even own a car.

Others, like 24-year-old Brad Biehl, who moved in earlier this year, park their vehicles elsewhere in Tempe.

"It's a road trip machine because I never use it to get around town," Biehl said of his car. "Walking is pretty much my primary mode of transportation, biking is a secondary mode, and public transit is the third mode."

Electric bikes parked at Culdesac. Joey Hadden/Business Insider

Biehl expressed that while the block is walkable, surrounding streets are not. Another Culdesac resident previously told BI that this can make living without a car difficult.

But Culdesac makes navigating streets built for cars a little easier. Residents get a mobility package worth almost $3,000 a year, including a Valley Metro pass for public transportation and discounted rides with apps like Lyft and the self-driving taxi service Waymo , according to the company's website .

Culdesac has a stop on the Valley Metro's light-rail system that connects Phoenix, Mesa, and Tempe. The block also has on-site Bird Scooters, 1,000 bike parking spots, and car rental services by day.

The Culdesac stop on the light rail. Courtesy of Culdesac.

Biehl said weekly errands like grocery shopping are easy to do with the mobility package.

"Every other week, I go to a big grocery store, either by a ride share or, if I have the time, I walk," Biehl said. "Then I walk or bike to Trader Joe's for smaller things each week."

Biehl said stores like Sprouts, Fry's, Safeway, Trader Joe's, and Target are easily accessible by bike, light rail, or a roughly 30-minute walk.

Places residents get to on foot, bikes, and scooters or with public transportation. Joey Hadden/Business Insider

A car-free future

With plans to eventually have 1,000 residents, 760 units, and more local shops, Culdesac is still growing  and so is the area's public transportation system.

BI previously reported that Phoenix plans to expand the light-rail system, bus services, bike lanes, and crosswalks by 2050, making it easier for Culdesac residents to get to and around the state capital.

Resident Brad Biehl meets with Tempe Mayor Corey Woods at Culdesac. Courtesy of Brad Biehl

Visiting Culdesac and learning about the area's public transportation systems made me realize that a car-free lifestyle in the US is possible outside mega-cities like New York.

Perhaps if I move to this Arizona neighborhood, I may never have to get my driver's license.

Read the original article on Business Insider
(Getty Images)

A company that makes tests for lead poisoning has agreed to resolve criminal charges that it concealed for years a malfunction that resulted in inaccurately low results.

Its the latest in a long-running saga involving Massachusetts-based Magellan Diagnostics, which will pay $42 million in penalties, according to the Department of Justice.

While many of the fault-prone devices were used from 2013 to 2017, some were being recalled as late as 2021. The Justice Department said the malfunction produced inaccurate results for potentially tens of thousands of children and other patients.

Doctors dont consider any level of lead in the blood to be safe, especially for children. Several U.S. cities, including Washington, D.C., and Flint, Michigan, have struggled with widespread lead contamination of their water supplies in the last two decades, making accurate tests critical for public health.

Its possible faulty Magellan kits were used to test children for lead exposure into the early 2020s, based on the recall in 2021. Heres what parents should know.

What tests were affected?

The inaccurate results came from three Magellan devices: LeadCare Ultra, LeadCare II, and LeadCare Plus. One, the LeadCare II, uses finger-stick samples primarily and accounted for more than half of all blood lead tests conducted in the U.S. from 2013 to 2017, according to the Justice Department. It was often used in physician offices to check childrens lead levels.

The other two could also be used with blood drawn from a vein and may have been more common in labs than doctors offices. The company first learned that a malfunction in its LeadCare Ultra device could cause inaccurate lead test results  specifically, lead test results that were falsely low in June 2013 while seeking regulatory clearance to sell the product, the DOJ said. But it did not disclose that information and went on to market the tests, according to the settlement.

The agency said 2013 testing indicated the same flaw affected the LeadCare II device. A 2021 recall included most of all three types of test kits distributed since October 27, 2020.

The company said in a press release announcing the resolution that the underlying issues that affected the results of some of Magellans products from 2013 to 2018 have been fully and effectively remediated, and that the tests it currently sells are safe.

What does a falsely low result mean?

Children are often tested during pediatrician visits at age 1 and again at age 2. Elevated lead levels can put kids at risk of developmental delay, lower IQ, and other problems. And symptoms, such as stomachache, poor appetite, or irritability, may not appear until high levels are reached.

Falsely low test results could mean parents and physicians were unaware of the problem.

Thats a concern because treatment for lead poisoning is, initially, mainly preventive. Results showing elevated levels should prompt parents and health officials to determine the sources of lead and take steps to prevent continued lead intake, said Janine Kerr, health educator with the Virginia Department of Healths Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program.

Children can be exposed to lead in a variety of ways, including by drinking water contaminated with lead from old pipes, such as in Flint and Washington; ingesting lead-based paint flakes often found in older homes; or, as reported recently, eating some brands of cinnamon-flavored applesauce.

What should parents do now?

Parents can contact their childs pediatrician to determine if their child had a blood lead test with a LeadCare device and discuss whether a repeat blood lead test is needed, said Maida Galvez, a pediatrician and professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York.

During an earlier recall of some Magellan devices, in 2017, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended that patients be retested if they were pregnant, nursing, or children younger than 6 and had a blood lead level of less than 10 micrograms per deciliter as determined by a Magellan device from a venous blood draw.

The 2021 recall of Magellan devices recommended retesting children whose results were less than the current CDC reference level of 3.5 micrograms per deciliter. Many of those tests were of the finger-stick variety.

Kerr, at the Virginia health department, said her agency has not had many calls about that recall.

The finger-stick tests are not that widely used in Virginia, said Kerr, adding that we did get a lot of questions about the applesauce recall.

In any case, she said, the best course of action for parents is to talk with a health care provider.

The post Thousands of children were tested for lead with faulty devices appeared first on Virginia Mercury.
In 1960, there were 12,000 Indian immigrants in the country. Now there are 5 million, according to census data.

In a significant demographic shift, Indian-Americans have now overtaken Chinese-Americans to become the largest 'Asian-alone' group in the U.S. The 2020 US Census reveals that a staggering 4.4 million people identified as 'Indian-alone,' marking a substantial 55% increase over the past decade. This data underscores the pressing need for proportional representation in the government.

Despite the increase, only five of the 535 members of Congress are Indian Americans. Additionally, individuals such as Vivek Ramaswamy, Nikki Haley, Bobby Jindal, and Kamala Harris have faced criticism at various times for not appearing to be "Indian American enough."

ABC News' Zohreen Shah interviewed Democratic Reps. Raja Krishnamoorthi, of Illinois, Shri Thanedar, of Michigan, and Pramila Jayapal, of Washington state, to discuss the need for Indian American representation in government.

PHOTO: Three Indian-American members of Congress want more representation in politics. (ABC News)

ABC NEWS: Let's rewind a bit. 1960. There were 12,000 Indian immigrants in this country. Now there's 5 million. You have a half-Indian vice president; five Indian American members of Congress. There's a lot of people who are watching your growth and wondering how this happened.

KRISHNAMOORTHI: Well, I think it's the natural journey of immigrant groups in this country. I think first, they establish their financial security, then they help their local not for profits, their mandirs, their mosques. And they help, you know, other people in need just like themselves. And then they, I think, get involved in the civic affairs of the country.

THANEDAR: At one point I felt that I achieved my American dream. But I want to go help others achieve their American dream, especially living in Detroit. Seeing how American dream is not accessible to many people. Opportunities are just not there. I said, the best way for me to help, would be to be in public service

ABC NEWS: We have seen a surge in undocumented Indian immigrants, different from how you guys came here, grow 70% in the last 15 years or so. Why do you think that surge is happening right now?

KRISHNAMOORTHI: Our legal immigration system is totally messed up that it makes people desperate. I mean, the legal immigration issue and the undocumented immigration issue are connected to each other. It doesn't necessarily justify people coming in illegally, but it helps to explain that when, for instance, someone coming from India today applying for an H-1B visa and receiving one, it would take them 100 years. I'm not making that number up -- 100 years to matriculate into a green card.

ABC NEWS: We're here at the IA Impact Summit. This is a big conference for Indian Americans. It happens every year. Why is this so important and why do you think it's so important this year in particular?

JAYAPAL I mean, I think it's really important because we've got a real opportunity to increase our numbers for Indian Americans.

ABC NEWS: Potentially double is what Im hearing.

JAYAPAL Double, here in Congress. And I think that when you have that representation, several things happen. You change the way other people see their opportunities. You really engage people to vote more in our democracy, and you get better policy.

THANEDAR: Even the population of Indian Americans, I feel that five members is not sufficient representation. And we need to strive for more. Indian Americans have done so well economically, in every other field. But we haven't built that political muscle and we need to build that.

ABC NEWS: Let's talk about TikTok really quick. Is there going to be someone here in this country who buys TikTok at this moment in time. Does it look like there will be?

KRISHNAMOORTHI: Yes. Um, I have not yet met a single person who wants their TikTok controlled by the Chinese Communist Party versus a TikTok that's not. And that's the aim of this bill. It's not a ban. It's meant-

ABC NEWS: But if it's not sold in 12 months, within 12 months it will be banned, right?

KRISHNAMOORTHI: It won't be available until it gets sold.

ABC NEWS: How big of a concern do you think can be found before November?

JAYAPAL: A very big one. I think that there's there's a very small number of people that could take it over. And frankly, some of those people, I would have just as many concerns in terms of controlling the content on TikTok as I do of the Chinese government. And so I think that there is a bigger concern here around how we address all of our social media platforms and communication on social media platforms and I do think it may have a negative impact on the election, but I don't think it's going to be the determinative impact. I mean, I think, I think there are lots of things out there that young people care about. That may be one of them.

ABC NEWS: Vivek Ramaswamy, Nikki Haley, Bobby Jindal, Kamala Harris have all received a lot of criticism at many different times for not being Indian American enough.

KRISHNAMOORTHI: Look, I don't fault anybody for being who they are, but don't change who you are to try to fit some kind of conventional notion of what a presidential candidate should be, or who the American people will embrace. Because it turns out the American people are very sophisticated and savvy.

ABC NEWS: You talk about looking at the world. You talk about your parents still being in India. Are you concerned right now about American Indian relationships?

JAYAPAL: Yeah, I have been concerned and I have spoken out about this. And, you know, I've been criticized by Indian Americans. This is one of the ways that I'm told that I'm not Indian enough. Even though I have family that lives there, I've lived in villages all over India.

I do believe that um, religious freedom, freedom of communication, freedom of the press, is really, really important to me. And it's one of the dear values that I treasure of Indian democracy. And I have been concerned about um, some of what I've seen happening, particularly the anti-Muslim sentiment in India and the way in which the press has been cracked down on, uh, by this prime minister and the reports about extrajudicial killings, um, and attempted assassinations right here in this country, which I know the DOJ is investigating right now.

At the same time, I see the value of India, the tremendous opportunity that India as a country has to really power the world for better.

ABC NEWS: Quick rapid fire: Favorite Indian food or snack that you know you should stay away from, but you can't?

JAYAPAL: pakora

ABC NEWS: Samosas?

KRISHNAMOORTHI: Naan, samosas and naans

JAYAPAL: I'm pudding polly.

ABC NEWS: Who should play you in a biopic? Bollywood star or Hollywood Indian?

THANEDAR: Shah Rukh Khan.

ABC NEWS: Number of years before we have an Indian American president.

THANEDAR: Any time now.

JAYAPAL: Soon.

Three Indian American members of Congress say more representation needed in government originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Lai Ching-te in Taipei on Aug. 25, 2023. Credit - Wiktor Dabkowskipicture-alliance/dpa/AP

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te sat down with TIME in the Presidential Office Building in Taipei on May 30 for his first interview since being sworn in 10 days earlier as leader of the island of 23 million.

For over an hour, Lai, who also goes by William, talked candidly about Taiwans relations with the Peoples Republic, his attempts to strengthen ties with the U.S., geopolitical frictions over trade and technology, as well as how his modest upbringing influences his values.

Lai spoke with TIME correspondent Charlie Campbell in Chinese, and the below has been translated and lightly edited for clarity and length.

Read TIMEs cover story based on the interview with Lai here.

Photograph by Lam Yik Fei for TIME

Thank you so much for sparing us the time today and congratulations on your election victory. How are you settling into the new job? I know youve just moved one level down from where you were previously, but I hope that your access to bubble tea has not been adversely impacted?

My interest in bubble tea has not changed [laughs]. The transition into my new job has also been steady, having just moved from the fourth to the third floor. I had previously served as a legislator, premier, and was Vice President for four years, so I have a clear understanding about national policies and the direction of President Tsai Ing-wens past governance. So far so good. Thank you.

Obviously, youve had four months now since your election victory to prepare for this role. How have you spent that time and what advice has President Tsai given you about taking the most important job in Taiwan?

Over the past four months, the most important task was the transition process with President Tsai. This included foreign affairs, national defense, cross-strait affairs, and key domestic issues. Some of this took place in meetings at the Presidential Office and some at military facilities and different government agencies.

I also worked to assemble a cabinet, inviting Cho Jung-tai to be premier. Cheng Li-chiun was invited to serve as vice premier, and former National Development Council Minister Kung Ming-hsin as secretary general of the Executive Yuan. Premier Cho has invited talented people across political affiliations to form the cabinet. So far, the public response has been positive.

As for advice and encouragement from President Tsai, she emphasized to me that the Presidents first job is to safeguard the country and uphold the constitutional system of freedom and democracy. Second, we must listen to public opinion and take care of the people. Third, faced with difficult challenges, we should collectively discuss a course of action forward. This way there will be less headwind.

Speaking of headwinds, it was just 48 hours after your election victory that Beijing announced that one of Taiwans diplomatic allies, Nauru, was now going to switch recognition to Beijing. This seems to be quite a clear signal to you before youd even stepped into office or made any policy decisions or anything. How concerned are you by Taiwans dwindling recognition on the world stage?

We cooperate with our diplomatic allies in a sincere way, holding to the principles of mutual benefit and reciprocity. We cherish the friendships with our diplomatic allies and thank them for voicing support for Taiwan in the international community, as well as creating greater international space for us. We also greatly value the cooperation projects we have with our diplomatic allies because these help the people of both countries.

Taiwan has always held firm to these principles, regardless of which political party is in power. In the case that our diplomatic allies decide to switch allegiances to the Peoples Republic of China, while we wish them well, such harmful actions by the PRC will not affect Taiwans status as a beacon of freedom and a bastion of democracy in the world. So, [on this issue of recognition], we are not deeply worried.

You chose Hsiao Bi-khim to be your Vice President and she left Washington, D.C., where she was serving as your de facto ambassador to the U.S. Does that signify that U.S.-Taiwan relations are going to take on newfound importance for your administration?

During Vice President Hsiaos term as ambassador to the United States, she performed exceedingly well. Taiwanese society has recognized her as amongst the very best within our ambassadors to the U.S. The international community, including the U.S., has also recognized her outstanding performance. Now as Vice President, she can support the new administration in furthering trusted channels with the U.S., which will advance our bilateral cooperation. With Bi-khims support, we will engage in more substantive cooperation on national security and defense, the economy, and other substantive exchanges. I trust that we will make much progress as Bi-khim has been instrumental in bridging Taiwan together with the U.S.

In your inauguration speech, you called for resumption of cross-strait dialogue, trade, and educational exchanges and caveated that on dignity and equivalence. What exactly do you mean by dignity and equivalence with the PRC?

First, the PRC should recognize that the Republic of China exists. They should be sincere in building exchanges and cooperation with the popularly-elected legitimate government of Taiwan. Second, each issue should be mutually beneficial and reciprocal. For example, if Taiwan allows tourists to go to China, they should allow tourists to visit Taiwan. And if we let our students go to China, their students should be allowed to come. Third, as we conduct exchanges and cooperate with one another, we should share a common conviction to enhance the well-being of people on both sides of the Taiwan Strait, working toward an objective of peace and mutual prosperity.

Also, in your speech, you said that the ROC and the PRC are not subservient to each other. That obviously provoked a reaction from Beijing. We saw the military drills but also some of your political opponents here have said that this undermines the strategic ambiguity which has been the bedrock of peace and stability. How do you counter that? Do you think that you were unnecessarily provocative in hindsight?

What I said was the truth. Moreover, I was not the first person to express this truth. My intention was not to provoke. During her 2021 National Day Address former President Tsai said as part of her Four Commitments that the ROC and PRC are not subordinate to each other. Former President Ma Ying-jeou had also once said the ROC is a sovereign and independent state and that neither side of the strait is subordinate to the other. Third, I stated this in accordance with Articles 2 and 3 of the ROC Constitution, given that on Taiwan we have our own people, land, sovereignty, and government. According to international law, we are already a sovereign and independent country. My goal is to bring the people of Taiwan together.

In April, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken traveled to Beijing and met Xi Jinping. From diplomatic sources, he became quite animated when discussing the status of Taiwan and U.S. support for Taiwan. Do you worry that President Xi is becoming emboldened and impatient about resolving the so-called Taiwan issue?

Peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait are indispensable elements of global peace and prosperity. In my inaugural address, I told the international community that I would uphold President Tsais Four Commitments. We will neither yield nor provoke. We will maintain the status quo and fulfill our responsibilities. I also urge President Xi to understand that conflict in the Taiwan Strait and disruptions to peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region will not be accepted by the international community. I invite President Xi to jointly shoulder with us the responsibility of maintaining peace and stability, building regional prosperity, and advancing world peace.

Since we last spoke, Chinas economic problems continue to mount. Do you feel that this makes Taiwan more vulnerable, or is it an opportunity for further engagement for each other benefit?

I have always believed that a stable China leads to a safer Taiwan. A prosperous Taiwan can also bring about progress in China. Therefore, I do not wish to see growing difficulties in Chinas economy, or its society become more unstable. Indeed, economic relations between Taiwan and China are the result of divisions of labor within global supply chains. In the past, China was the worlds factory as well as the worlds market. Further to Taiwan, many countries invested in manufacturing in China and sold products manufactured at home via China to the entire world.

But today things have changed because Chinas business environment has worsened. China has placed ever stricter controls on the free market. They have adopted a policy of placing state-owned businesses first, at the expense of the private sector. Chinas intellectual property rights protection has also long fallen short of international expectations.

In addition, Chinas military expansionism in the East and South China Seas has impacted regional peace and stability. This is why capital investment from Taiwan and other countries is no longer heading to China at the pace it was in the past. Taiwanese companies have pulled out of Chinas manufacturing sector en masse, favoring countries in the Indo-Pacificincluding Japanthe United States, and Europe.

In 2010, investments in China accounted for 83.8% of Taiwans total foreign investment. During the same period of time, over half of Taiwans foreign trade was dependent on China. Parts and equipment produced in Taiwan were sent to China for assembly or used in the production of other goods, and then the finished products were sold internationally.

Last year, investment in China accounted for only 11.4% of Taiwans total foreign investment. Taiwans foreign trade with China also fell from its previous high of over 50%, totaling 35.5% in 2023. Despite this, Taiwans economic growth rate has averaged 3.15% over the past eight yearsranking first among the Four Asian Tigers. During former President Tsais eight-year term, the stock market grew by 155.5% and its value increased 1.8-fold. When former President Tsai first assumed office, the stock market was a little over 8,000 points; it has now surpassed 20,000 points. In other words, even as Chinas economy has continued to decline, Taiwans economy has continued to grow and has not been affected by China. Taiwans new government is willing to assist China and advance peace and prosperity across the Taiwan Strait.

Taiwan is central to global supply chains when it comes to semiconductors, producing 90% of the most advanced chips. But U.S. export restrictions are preventing those chips from going to China. You mentioned that Taiwanese investment in China is plummeting. At the same time, Taiwan companies like TSMC are benefiting from billions of dollars from the U.S. CHIPS Act. Do you fear that key players in Taiwans business industrial base moving closer to the U.S. and being kept apart from China is increasing the risk of conflict?

In this era of smart technologies, semiconductors have become crucial industrial products. In the future, if all aspects of lifeincluding food, clothing, housing, and transportationare to be technologically advanced and intelligent, semiconductors will be indispensable. The industry runs on a global division of labor. From research and development, design, manufacturing, raw materials, and equipment, it is a worldwide industrial chain. Taiwan is involved in integrated circuit design, wafer manufacturing, and end-of-line packaging and testing, but raw materials are distributed across other countries. For example, components, equipment, and technology are sourced from the United States, Japan, and the Netherlands. As we can see, this is an industry with a global division of labor.

Although Taiwan has an advantage in the semiconductor industry, Taiwan also has a responsibility to promote global prosperity and development. Consequently, if semiconductor companies, including Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), decide to expand in the United States, Japan, Europe, or other countries consistent with their own business interests, the government will respect their decisions.

Geopolitical changes will continue to impact the dispersion of semiconductors companies. Given that the restructuring of global supply chains is not specific to any single country, I do not believe that this will increase the risk of conflict.

Your only trip to China was in 2014 when you were serving as mayor of Tainan. I understand that you had some quite open and frank discussions with students in Shanghai about Taiwanese aspirations for independence. What did you learn from that interaction?

In 2014, I visited Shanghai because the Tainan City government organized a traveling art exhibition to commemorate the 120th anniversary of Chen Cheng-pos birth. During my interactions with the Shanghai Municipal government and Fudan University, I made it clear that both sides of the Taiwan Strait should seek common ground and set aside differences to promote mutual understanding. Through exchanges and cooperation, we should promote mutual understanding, empathy, reconciliation, and peaceful development.

You won the election with over 40% of the vote, but the DPP lost control of the legislature, and so you need to work across the aisle with opposition parties to get your domestic agenda across. Its not been a very harmonious time in Legislative Yuan. Weve seen brawls and a lot of sniping over the new bill to increase scrutiny of executive branch. How confident are you that you can overcome these differences to have a constructive relationship with the opposition parties?

I remain fully confident about the future development of Taiwan. This is because of our democracy. After decades of collective effort, as well as the numerous sacrifices and contributions of many people, the vitality and values of democracy are deeply imbued within the Taiwanese people. These democratic values are an important foundation as I promote future national policy priorities.

In my inaugural address, I mentioned that a divided legislature is the will of the people. This provides an opportunity for each party to share their ideas and jointly bear the responsibility of serving the nation. At the same time, if any one party does not live up to public expectations, I trust that people will respond accordingly so that the country can still move forward.

In my address, I also pointed out Taiwan will continue to move in the direction of democracy, peace, and prosperity, linking us with the international community. I will pursue policies that further entrench Taiwans democracy, maintain regional peace, and allow Taiwan to engage with the international community to enhance global prosperity and development. This roadmap will benefit both our country and its people. I do not think opposition parties will strongly oppose bills related to this roadmap.

Some of your DPP colleagues have pointed out that 17 [opposition Nationalist (KMT) party] lawmakers went to China recently and met with [CCP number four and chief ideologue] Wang Huning and they have openly accused the KMT of being a fifth column for CCP in trying to disrupt your administration. Is that an opinion that you share?

In a democratic society, the interests of the people should take precedent; this is the principle of democracy at work. As a result, political parties should put national interests above their own. As Taiwan faces different forms of pressure from China, everybody, regardless of party affiliation, should put the people first and prioritize national interests. They should not let themselves be influenced by any authoritarian country.

The CCP has refused to engage with your administration or the DPP. Is it beneficial for the KMT to have trips to China and engagements with China whether its [former President] Ma Ying-jeou on an unofficial basis or KMT lawmakers?

The people of Taiwan and all political partiesregardless of affiliationshould recognize and respond to the PRCs core objectives of annexing Taiwan. Only by coming together domestically and strengthening our global linkages can we maintain our sovereignty, freedom, and democratic way of life. By doing so, we will have the capacity and opportunity to determine our own future. No political party should sacrifice national sovereignty for political gain.

Following the devastating Hualien earthquake just a month ago, China offered to send aid to Taiwan but was rebuffed. You hadnt taken office [as President] at that point. But do you feel that was the right decision? Do you think it could have been an opportunity to mend bridges across the strait?

Taiwan very much cherishes the expressions of concern and support it received from the global community. International assistance creates a positive feedback loop that helps us come together at times of need. This helps support global development and stability.

With this being said, at the time, China had offered 100 prefabricated homes, which was not what the people affected by the Hualien earthquake required at the time. When central Taiwan was struck by a strong earthquake on September 21, 1999, the government had provided such homes to alleviate housing shortages at the time. However, over the past 20 or 30 years, Taiwan has accumulated greater experiences and capacities with search and rescue and post-disaster reconstruction. We have moved past the a period of requiring prefabricated housing.

Some in the opposition want to restart negotiations for the cross-strait service trade agreement [CSSTA] for close economic integration with China. Why do you oppose such a move?

In short, the time for this has long passed. As I said, many Taiwanese businesses have left China. Looking ahead, we can see substantive differences opening up between Taiwans economy and Chinas present economic structure.

If the CSSTA were passed, Chinese business owners could come to Taiwan and set up shop with as little as six million NT dollars. And it is not just a matter of the ownersthey could also bring employees over. This would greatly affect Taiwans local economy.

Beijing is aggressively courting the Global South to back its claim over Taiwan with 28 nations, according to recent reporting, firmly supporting Chinas push for reunification. How important is it to win the argument over Taiwans right for autonomy amongst the international community, especially those of the Global South?

I hope that all countries will respect the choice of Taiwans people. The will of the people should not be subject to decisions made by a majority or show of hands [in international fora]. Neither should our people be threatened by violence or the threat of war.

China is presently engaged in lawfare, which is affecting support for Taiwan internationally. While Taiwan will do its best to speak up for our own rights and interests, I hope that the international community will also continue to assist, understand, and support Taiwan. This is because if Chinas attempts at lawfare were to succeed, this would affect Taiwans global backing, be it in times of peace or war.

Domestically in Taiwan, a lot of people are struggling with a growing but slow economy, rising prices, and stagnated wages. What is your plan to try to help the average Taiwanese person?

I have been deeply focused on supporting the salaries and lives of our grassroots workers. I also prioritize reducing the gap between the rich and poor, as well as efforts to give our young people a brighter future. I will faithfully implement the Minimum Age Act that was passed under President Tsai Ing-wen. With this act, minimum wage increases will be based on how the GDP or prices increase. More importantly, we must help our industries upgrade and our economy transform.

In my inaugural address, I said that economic development will take a threefold approach. First, we will have a clear vision for a smart, sustainable future. In other words, we must use technology to address climate change and respond to the global era of smart technologies. We will have an innovative economy and create a new Taiwan that is both smart and sustainable.

Second, we will expand the space industry, exploring the future by developing medium- and low-orbit satellites and drones. We will also use our strengths as a maritime nation to explore the ocean, helping related industries grow and develop in many directions.

Third, we will help our enterprises expand their presence and markets internationally. We will improve Taiwans investment environment and take care of our small and medium-sized businesses while helping our industries deploy all over the world. This will grow Taiwans economy, leading to development and creating an environment conducive to higher wages. During my election campaign, I put forward a National Project of Hope. With this, we will invest more in our society, take better care of both young and elderly people, as well as all those who need care. We will alleviate the wealth gap, while supporting the peoples welfare and the future of our young people.

President Lai, thank you. Youve been very generous with your time. But just to end off, we spoke before how you grew up in a poor family and your father died when you were very young. You worked very hard to become a doctor and your mother wasnt very keen about you taking a [detour] into politics. Now youve reached the very top of the political ladder in Taiwan, do you think that your mother would be proud, that she would have forgiven you for defying her?

My mother was just an ordinary person and, like many mothers in Taiwans society at that time, worked hard, took care of the family, and hoped that their children would grow up safe and sound. What probably mattered most to my mother was that I was safe and healthy. It did not matter to her whether I became a politician or not, just as I had no expectation that one day I would sit here in the Presidential Office.

In fact, when I was little, I hoped to become a doctor so as to take care of the sick, relieve suffering, and save lives. But during the process of Taiwans democratization, many young people devoted themselves to politics, including myself. I had no idea that I would continue down this path, much less be here today.

My mother told me: If people support you, then you should run for election; if not, then you should continue as a doctor. In other words, my mother felt that I probably would not pursue politics for very long. We were from the countryside and did not come from a political family.

However, I attribute my success to Taiwans democratization. If it were not for the sacrifices, contributions, and achievements of countless individuals up until now, I could not have been afforded the opportunity to sit here. My responsibility is to further deepen Taiwans democracy and enable hard-working people from all walks of life to realize their ideals and contribute to our country.

Write to Charlie Campbell at charlie.campbell@time.com.
A timeline of the Pamela Smart case in the killing of her husband

A forbidden relationship between a teacher and her student started with an affair and ended in the 1990 killing of the teachers husband.

Pamela Smart, then 22, was a high school media director when she began an affair with 15-year-old Billy Flynn. In her trial, prosecutors said Smart then coaxed Flynn into carrying out the murder plot with two teenage friends. Flynn admitted to killing Gregg Smart, along with two accomplices, and all three worked out plea bargains.

Smarts trial  one of the first in the US to allow cameras in the courtroom  riveted the world with its mixture of sex, adultery and the story of the intimate relationship between an adult and a juvenile. More than 20 years later, the story is back in focus with Smart, who is serving life in prison, accepting responsibility for her husbands killing for the first time.

Heres a timeline of Pamela Smarts murder conspiracy plot, the resulting legal cases and convictions.

The shooting

May 1, 1990: On this evening, teenager Flynn said, he and a friend ambushed Gregg Smart, Pamelas husband, as he arrived home to his condo in Derry, New Hampshire. The husband was on his knees, begging for his life, according to prosecutors. Flynn fired a bullet into Smarts head in a hallway where his wife later found his body. The teenagers made the scene look like a break-in.

Pamela Smarts storyline was part of the inspiration for Joyce Maynards 1992 novel To Die For, which was later adapted into a 1995 movie starring Nicole Kidman and Joaquin Phoenix.

August 1, 1990: Smart was arrested three months after the shooting. Her mother, Linda Wojas, said she was never told her daughter was a suspect at the time, she told CNNs Larry King in 1991.

Police are seen outside of Pamela Smart's home in March 1991. - WMUR

A riveting trial

January 28, 1991: Flynn, 17, and two accomplices, Patrick Randall, 17, and Vance Lattime Jr., 18, pleaded guilty to the shooting death of Gregory Smart, according to the Associated Press.

All were facing first-degree murder charges but pleaded guilty to charges related to second-degree murder and were given lighter sentences in exchange for testimony against Smart, CNN reported.

That same night, Raymond Fowler, 19, was arrested in connection with the plot, according to the AP. Police said the charges were from a separate attempt on Gregory Smarts life before the actual murder.

March 4, 1991: Oral arguments began in Smarts murder conspiracy trial in the Rockingham County Superior Court in Exeter, New Hampshire. Smart was on trial on suspicion of plotting the murder of her husband just before their first wedding anniversary.

Prosecutors alleged Smart was after her husbands $140,000 life insurance policy. Smart allegedly seduced Flynn and threatened to stop having sex with him unless he killed her husband, prosecutors said.

The trial drew a lot of attention  people lined up and had to have tickets to enter the courtroom. People who couldnt get in watched from TV monitors in another room, while television crews and reporters crammed into the press room.

Convictions

March 22, 1991: Smart was convicted of being an accomplice to first-degree murder, conspiracy to commit murder and tampering with a witness. She was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

August 20, 1992: Flynn was sentenced to 28 years to life in prison for second-degree murder as part of his negotiated plea deal, according to CNN affiliate WMUR. Flynn had sobbed on the witness stand during Smarts trial, saying he didnt want to lose her, who he called his first love, so he went forward with her plan, as reported by CNN.

William Flynn, 17, is shown the gun he used at Pamela Smart's trial on March 12, 1991. Flynn told jurors how he, with the help of his girlfriend Smart, killed her husband. - Jim Cole/AP

August 23, 1992: Randall, one of the accomplices, was sentenced to 40 years to life in prison with 12 years of the minimum sentence deferred for second-degree murder, according to WMUR. His sentence was later reduced.

The getaway car driver, Lattime, was sentenced to 18 years to life in prison, as part of his plea deal, according to WMUR. Fowler, a passenger in the car, was sentenced to 15 to 30 years in prison as part of his plea deal.

The appeals

July 2005: The states Executive Council denies Smarts request for a pardon hearing, according to WMUR.

May 15, 2019: The Executive Council voted to deny Smart of a commutation hearing, according to WMUR. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu agreed with the councils decision.

March 23, 2022: The Executive Council rejected Smarts third request, according to the AP. Smart went to the state Supreme Court, which dismissed the petition.

Freedom for some

March 12, 2015: After serving 25 years in prison, Flynn was paroled, according to WMUR. It was his 41st birthday.

Flynn and Randall were released on parole on June 4, 2015, according to WMUR. And Fowler and Lattime were out on parole the year prior.

Accepting responsibility

June 11, 2024: For the first time, Smart accepted full responsibility for the death of her husband in a videotaped statement Tuesday, according to the AP. The video was released as a part of her most recent request for a sentence reduction. Smart asked Gov. Sununu and the states Executive Council for a commutation hearing, as she has exhausted her other court appeals options.

Smart is serving life in prison at Bedford Hills Correctional Facility in Westchester County, New York.

CNNs Hayley Wilson and Gary Tuchman contributed to this report.

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ORLANDO, Fla.  Eight years to the day since the mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer gathered for the solemn bell-ringing ceremony that is an annual tradition.

About 80 people attended Wednesday afternoons gathering at First United Methodist Church of Orlando.

During the ceremony, select family members read each victims name echoed by a soft bell that rang 49 times  once to honor each person killed June 12, 2016, when a lone gunman entered the LGBTQ club on Latin night. In addition to those slain, 53 were injured.

Speakers included Luis Martinez of the citys office of multicultural affairs and Tatiana Quiroga, executive director of the organization, Come Out with Pride Orlando, which hosts the citys annual Pride festival.

By reading the names  listening to the bells, together well remember, Quiroga said.

The bell ceremony preceded an evening remembrance event at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts.

After the ceremony, Dyer told a small group of journalists that he understands the public is wary of the Pulse memorial process because of how it was handled in the past.

Theres a lot of distrust that is coming out because of the failure of the onePulse Foundation, he said.

On Friday, Dyer called for applicants for an advisory board that will oversee plans for a memorial  a project the city now shoulders after the onePulse Foundation originally responsible dissolved in December.

On Saturday, the eighth annual CommUNITY Rainbow Run drew thousands to City Hall Plaza. Profits from the 4.9k run to the Pulse site and back will go toward developing the memorial.

Dyer said Wednesday the advisory board will include 10 to 15 victims, family members, first responders and landscape professionals. Though there isnt a timeline in place for the memorial, Dyer said that the city will work as transparently as possible.

The timeline in the initial part is when we can get it done and do it in a manner that everybody feels like theyre included, he said.

onePulse was partially founded in 2016 by the nightclubs owner, Barbara Poma. For years, Poma promised a Pulse museum, but with minimal funding and extreme criticism from the community, she stepped down as executive director then left the organization altogether last year.

Now under the citys care, Dyer said he expects to finish the project by December 2027.

The only confirmed detail about the memorial is it will be at the site of the Pulse nightclub.

_____
Eight years to the day since the mass shooting at the Pulse nightclub, Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer gathered for the solemn bell-ringing ceremony that is an annual tradition.

About 80 people attended Wednesday afternoons gathering at First United Methodist Church of Orlando.

During the ceremony, select family members read each victims name echoed by a soft bell that rang 49 times  once to honor each person killed June 12, 2016, when a lone gunman entered the LGBTQ club on Latin night. In addition to those slain, 53 were injured.

Speakers included Luis Martinez of the citys office of multicultural affairs and Tatiana Quiroga, executive director of the organization, Come Out with Pride Orlando, which hosts the citys annual Pride festival.

By reading the names  listening to the bells, together well remember, Quiroga said.

The bell ceremony preceded an evening remembrance event at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts.

After the ceremony, Dyer told a small group of journalists that he understands the public is wary of the Pulse memorial process because of how it was handled in the past.

Theres a lot of distrust that is coming out because of the failure of the onePulse Foundation, he said.

On Friday, Dyer called for applicants for an advisory board that will oversee plans for a memorial  a project the city now shoulders after the onePulse Foundation originally responsible dissolved in December.

On Saturday, the eighth annual CommUNITY Rainbow Run drew thousands to City Hall Plaza. Profits from the 4.9k run to the Pulse site and back will go toward developing the memorial.

Dyer said Wednesday the advisory board will include 10 to 15 victims, family members, first responders and landscape professionals. Though there isnt a timeline in place for the memorial, Dyer said that the city will work as transparently as possible.

The timeline in the initial part is when we can get it done and do it in a manner that everybody feels like theyre included, he said.

onePulse was partially founded in 2016 by the nightclubs owner, Barbara Poma. For years, Poma promised a Pulse museum, but with minimal funding and extreme criticism from the community, she stepped down as executive director then left the organization altogether last year.

Now under the citys care, Dyer said he expects to finish the project by December 2027.

The only confirmed detail about the memorial is it will be at the site of the Pulse nightclub.
COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH)  An iconic Columbus pizzeria is shutting the doors to its location on Ohio States campus after over four decades of service.

Tommys Pizza is closing its 174 W. Lane Ave. shop near OSUs campus on Friday, it announced on its website. The pizzeria  which also has Upper Arlington and Dublin locations  was started in 1952, with the campus location operating for the past 45 years.

It has been a pleasure serving multiple generations of families and students alike. Thank you Central Ohio for your support over the years, the company wrote on its website.

The Upper Arlington and Dublin locations of the pizzeria will keep the Tommys Pizza name alive in Columbus. Those are located at 1350 W. Lane Ave. and 4279 W. Dublin-Granville Road.

We look forward to continuing the tradition for you at our Upper Arlington and Dublin locations, the website said.

Originally founded by Thomas Iacono, a first-generation American whose family immigrated from Italy, the pizzeria was originally named Tommys Restaurant. Eventually, the name changed as the pizza business started to take off.

With over 60 years in business, Tommys Pizza is the second oldest pizza restaurant in the city, according to its website.

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 NBC4 WCMH-TV.
PETERSBURG  The city school system has chosen a top education official from Atlanta to be interim superintendent.

By unanimous voice vote Wednesday afternoon, the School Board approved the appointment of Yolonda C. Brown to temporarily fill the systems top spot while a permanent replacement is found. Brown, chief academic officer for Atlanta public schools, will follow another interim into the office in Dr. John Farrelly.

Farrelly, the Petersburg City Public Schools chief of staff who took over when former superintendent Dr. Tamara Sterling resigned, announced Tuesday he was stepping down to become finance director for the Caroline County school system.

In a statement issued by PCPS shortly after the board vote, Brown said she was deeply honored and humbled to take the helm in Petersburg.

It is clear that the Petersburg City Public Schools community is focused on academics and creating a safe and caring environment that enables every student to grow socially, emotionally, and physically, Brown said in the statement. Across 30 years as an educator, that same pursuit has remained my north star.

The exact details of her contract were not immediately available. Farrelly gave a 30-day notice, so that means the earliest she will start is July.

In that same statement, PCPS board chair Kenneth Pritchett said Browns appointment gives promise of transforming Petersburg into a high-performing school division.

I am confident we will see waves of change within the walls of every school, he added.

The school system seems willing to give Brown as much time as necessary on the job before finding a permanent replacement. Prior to her appointment, the board voted to essentially tap the brakes on accepting applications for the position.

Who is the new leader?

Brown, who holds a bachelors degree from Clemson University and a masters degree from Mercer University, has spent her entire career with Atlanta schools.

Brown

She started as a middle-school teacher in 1993. In 1999, she was named a district model teacher leader and facilitator, and stayed in that job for six years.

She spent 11 years as a principal at two Atlanta elementary schools before taking over as the systems associate superintendent. She has been chief academic officer since 2020.

With 87 schools and almost 50,000 students, Atlanta Public Schools is the second-largest public school system in Georgia, behind only neighboring Gwinnett County with 140 schools and 182,000 students.

What is her track record?

Brown brings impressive credentials from Atlanta to Petersburg.

According to PCPS, under Browns leadership, Atlanta saw steady growth in its four-year graduation rates over the past three years, from 83.1% in 2021 to 84.01% in 2022 and 86.6% last year  the first time it ever surpassed the states graduation rate.

Students in grades 3-5 had year-over-year gains in proficiency on English and Math skills, while skills in Algebra 1 had Georgias largest year-over-year gains for the past nine years.

High marks from Virginia officials

The Virginia Department of Education  which Pritchett said worked shoulder to shoulder with Petersburg  had high praise for the choice.

State Board of Education president Grace Turner Creasy called Brown the right leader at the right time for Petersburg. Virginias superintendent of public instruction also had good things to say.

Petersburg City Public Schools has added an incredible asset with the appointment of Yolonda Brown, Lisa Coons said in a statement. Ms. Brown is a lifelong educator whose career has been marked by successfully developing and leading the academic strategy for one of the largest school districts in Georgia  one that has faced similar challenges as Petersburg. She is a leader who knows how to deal with hard things and get hard things done. I am excited for the future of Petersburg schools and the opportunities that lie ahead for all students in the school division.

Search on hold?

While the exact details of Brown's contract have not been finalized, the School Board plans to take a long look at what she accomplishes here. Prior to her appointment, the board voted unanimously to suspend its contract with BWP Associates, an Illinois-based recruting firm it hired last month to vet applications and recommend candidates for interviews.

There was no comment from the system about the possibility of Brown taking the reins full-time.

The announcement is the system's latest effort to move away from Sterling, whose 15 months in the city were marred by accusations of financial improprieties such as travel-expense extravagance and a willingness to allow overpayment of salary to 30 education personnel. Sterling walked off the job last February, claiming she had voluntarily left; however, the School Board maintained she was placed on administrative leave.

The board and Sterling mutually announced parting of ways about a month later, but the system refused The Progress-Index's Freedom of Information Act requests for a copy of her resignation letter. When she left, then-chief of staff Farrelly was named acting superintendent.

Bill Atkinson (he/him/his) is an award-winning journalist who covers breaking news, government and politics. Reach him at batkinson@progress-index.com or on X (formerly known as Twitter) at @BAtkinson_PI.

This article originally appeared on The Progress-Index: Georgia school official named interim Petersburg superintendent
KYODO NEWS - Jun 13, 2024 - 04:50 | All, World

A senior official of the South Korean presidential office said Wednesday that Russian President Vladimir Putin may visit North Korea "in a few days," Yonhap News Agency reported.

A Russian newspaper reported Monday that Putin plans to visit North Korea and Vietnam in the next few weeks, while an online news site that covers North Korea said Wednesday that signs of Pyongyang making preparations for a visit by Putin as early as this week were confirmed at an airport in the country.

According to Yonhap, the South Korean official told reporters that Putin's visit to North Korea will occur within the coming days, in comments made in Kazakhstan during President Yoon Suk Yeol's current visit.

The report also quoted the official as saying South Korea and China plan to hold a bilateral strategic dialogue on diplomacy and security involving high-level officials around the same time as Putin's possible visit to North Korea.

Yoon and Chinese Premier Li Qiang agreed last month to launch the so-called two-plus-two bilateral talks.

Related coverage:

North Korea airport shows signs of preparations for Putin visit: report

Japan to sanction Russian groups over North Korean arms procurement
Adel Hagekhalil, general manager of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, visits the Weymouth Water Treatment Plant in La Verne in April 2023. (Brian van der Brug / Los Angeles Times)

The board of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California voted to place General Manager Adel Hagekhalil on leave Thursday while the agency investigates accusations of harassment against him by the agencys chief financial officer.

Chief Financial Officer Katano Kasaine made the allegations in a confidential letter to the board, which was leaked and published by Politico. She said Hagekhalil has harassed, demeaned and sidelined her and created a hostile work environment.

MWD Board Chair Adan Ortega Jr. announced the decision after a closed-door meeting, saying the board voted to immediately place Hagekhalil on administrative leave and to temporarily appoint Deven Upadhyay, an assistant general manager, as interim general manager.

"This board is determined to act with unity and swiftness in order to protect everybody," Ortega said. "My hope is that under Deven's leadership in the coming months, that we will find some common purpose, that we will realize the urgency of the policies and the tasks that confront us."

Ortega said in an interview after the meeting that there are "several investigations" underway. He declined to comment on the other investigations, and said Hagekhalil will be on administrative leave for up to 90 days.

"We're calculating that that's the amount of time it will take to complete the investigations," Ortega told The Times.

Ortega began the meeting by announcing that the board had decided earlier this week to open an investigation. He called a vote allowing him to publicly discuss confidential matters discussed during that Tuesday meeting, and he criticized the release of the letter.

"The person who released this sensitive document knows that we as a board and as individuals are constrained by law not to reveal closed-session proceedings and related documents," Ortega said. "They were trying to take advantage of that. But I'm not letting them. At minimum, by releasing the document, that person has tried to set a narrative that is potentially harmful to the general manager, the chief financial officer, this board and this agency, and they know it."

Ortega said the board acted to start the investigation "in order to avoid the leak that happened anyway." He said he and other board members believe that both Hagekhalil and Kasaine "deserve the due process prescribed by law."

Thursday's special meeting was scheduled while Hagekhalil was traveling in Singapore for a water conference. According to the board meeting agenda, the closed session included a review of Hagekhalils performance as well as a discussion of potential discipline or dismissal. On those two items, Ortega said, there were "no reportable actions" during the closed meeting.

Board members voted unanimously to place Hagekhalil on administrative leave, with one abstention and several board members absent.

Kasaine said in her letter that throughout 30 years of government work, "I have encountered toxic work environments, but none as hostile and dysfunctional as Metropolitan.

Despite my tireless dedication and outstanding performance ratings, it has become incredibly stressful to even show up for work. I am constantly scrutinized, sidelined, and demeaned for standing up against issues that are not in Metropolitan's best interest," Kasaine said in the May 27 letter, which following the leak was released by the district.

Read more: Southern Californias water doctor pushes for transformation to adapt to climate change

Hagekhalil responded to the accusations in a text message, denying any wrongdoing.

Ive always treated our MWD staff with complete respect, professionalism and kindness. Always," Hagekhalil said. "I stand by my record of reforming the agencys workforce policies and creating a healthy, supportive and inclusive work environment. Any investigation of these unsubstantiated claims will reveal that they are false, and I look forward to returning to my work at MWD to serve our staff and our community as soon as possible.

He said the claims are "disagreements on management decisions.

When I started at MWD, I increased Katanos responsibilities on an interim basis, and as CFO, she has had an important leadership role in recent MWD actions, including overseeing the agencys adoption of a two-year budget and development of a long-range financial plan, Hagekhalil said.

MWD is the nations largest wholesale supplier of drinking water, serving cities and agencies that supply 19 million people across Southern California.

Ortega lamented that with the release of the letter, "the confidentiality that they were to enjoy in order to correct matters, has now been compromised for the benefit of an undeclared individual who, depending on our silence, thought that they could deceive the press."

"Thus, the person who released the document should not be considered a whistleblower, but should be questioned by those listening to him or her about their motives and the personal gain they would like to achieve by violating the rights of others and trying to taint our agency," Ortega said, reading from a prepared statement. "While I can't reveal the extent of our continuing deliberations today, or guarantee outcomes, on behalf of the board, I want to assure our workforce that we will continue to act in a transparent way to bring security, harmony and protection of rights for everyone who works here so we can do the work of bringing water to Southern California."

Several people spoke at the meeting, expressing support for Hagekhalil and calling for a fair and impartial investigation.

"Due process has been tainted in a major, major way," said Mark Gold, director of water scarcity solutions for the Natural Resources Defense Council. "Its a personnel issue that you need to investigate and keep private as much as possible."

Gold also said Hagekhalil "lives and breathes water in this agency more than anyone Ive ever seen."

Read more: Water recycling gets a boost in Southern California with new federal funding

Hagekhalil has led the agency at a time of major challenges, including negotiations aimed at addressing shortages of Colorado River water, plans for building the country's largest wastewater recycling facility, and the MWD board's consideration of Gov. Gavin Newsom's plan to build a $20-billion water tunnel in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta.

Hagekhalil previously worked for the city of Los Angeles leading programs focusing on sewers and streets. He was appointed MWD's general manager in 2021 after a bitter power struggle among board members. He earns $503,942 a year as general manager and chief executive, leading more than 1,900 employees and overseeing more than $2.2 billion in annual spending.

Hagekhalil has said he is seeking to transform the district to make the region's water supplies resilient to the effects of climate change.

"This is at a time when MWD is at a crossroads," said Bruce Reznik, executive director of Los Angeles Waterkeeper, who has supported Hagekhalil's efforts at MWD. "The old way of doing business, the old model for water, doesn't work in our climate change reality, and I know MWD is wrestling with these very challenging issues. And I think Adel and his team have done an amazing job of starting to tackle that."

Some of Hagekhalil's supporters questioned why the matter was brought to the board while he was traveling, and suggested the public airing of grievances appeared to be a calculated ambush.

Kasaine wrote in the letter that she has been "maligned, harassed, bullied, and sidelined from my core responsibilities." She said Hagekhalil's "preference for male colleagues/staff over me has continued to sow the seeds of sexism and belittling."

She also criticized Hagekhalil's hiring of a team of trusted, highly paid consultants, calling it "an entire shadow leadership team, wielding more power than those holding official titles."

Kasaine said Hagekhalil has told her that she will no longer have oversight responsibilities leading the district's human resources and diversity, equity and inclusion offices.

"Taking these core services from me without any justification or reason is highly suspect and leads me to believe it is retaliation for speaking up on key concerns," Kasaine wrote in the letter.

During Thursday's meeting, many speakers said the matter demands a thorough and impartial investigation.

Ellen Mackey, chair of the employee union's women's caucus, told the board that as the situation stands, "we dont have facts, just accusations."

Read more: Newsom wants to build a $16-billion water tunnel. Will it destroy California's delta?

Some environmental advocates said they suspect a link between the surfacing of allegations against Hagekhalil and his work leading efforts to take the district in a new direction by developing a climate adaptation plan, investing in local water sources and revamping MWDs financial model.

Charming Evelyn, who chairs the Sierra Clubs water committee in Southern California, said Hagekhalil has brought positive changes to the MWD, and that has put him in conflict with the districts old guard.

The California Water Impact Network, an advocacy group, said in a press release that the possibility that Hagekhalil's efforts might lead the board to eventually vote against the proposed Delta Conveyance Project has led to an attempted mutiny" by supporters of the tunnel among the district's board members and staff.

The group noted that Kasaine currently serves as treasurer of the Delta Conveyance Design and Construction Authority, the entity that was created to finance the tunnel project.

Max Gomberg, a board member of the California Water Impact Network, charged that the move against Hagekhalil appears to be a political power play designed to push through the tunnel project.

Leaders of Indigenous tribes and other environmental groups also voiced concerns.

Krystal Moreno of the Shingle Springs Band of Miwok Indians said that while the accusations should be independently investigated, "we also ask that the investigation include the questionable and concerning timing of these allegations and the boards swift attempt to remove Adel without any investigation while he has been out of the country."

Barbara Barrigan-Parrilla, executive director of the group Restore the Delta, which opposes the tunnel project, said the allegations and the timing of the claims are "equally problematic."

"Both deserve a thorough and fact based investigation with transparent findings and due process," she said.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
SACRAMENTO, California  California Gov. Gavin Newsoms growing discomfort with a proposed ballot initiative sponsored by leading health care groups is spilling out into the public amid tense discussions over the November ballot and state budget.

Jim DeBoo, a top consultant in Sacramento and a former chief of staff to Newsom, confirmed to POLITICO on Thursday that hes stepped away from his leadership role on the campaign to use a tax on some health insurance to fund improvements in Medi-Cal.

The MCO tax measure, as its known, is a major priority for doctors, hospitals, Planned Parenthood and health insurers. Newsom has proposed using money from the tax to cover the states gaping budget deficit. At the same time, the related ballot measure would require the state to instead use the money to increase doctor pay in Medi-Cal, the states Medicaid health care program.

The ballot measure coalition is upset with Newsom for reneging on last years budget deal, which would have protected the money. And those harsh feelings have bled into the ballot fight  where some supporters of the measure are anxious about Newsoms private problems with the initiative ballooning into outright opposition.

DeBoo stressed that he didnt want to be associated with a proposal that Newsom has expressed concerns over  and thats driving a wedge between close political allies and even severing ties between personal friends.

DeBoo said he took the step out of loyalty to the governor and his staff, noting that hed been in the negotiating position himself as the chief of staff and remains very close to Newsom and his top advisers.

My agreement with the coalition from last March was always [that] if the Administration and coalition couldnt reach an accord, I wouldnt continue working on the measure, DeBoo said in a text message.

DeBoo and others in Newsoms inner circle were irked by rumors  including a post on social media late Wednesday, that the governor pressured DeBoo to step away. DeBoo said his reasons were entirely his choice, and he pushed back on the allegation made by Jarrod McNaughton, the CEO of Inland Empire Health Plan, that Newsom forced him to resign.

The accusation from someone Ive never met that the Governor forced me to do anything is offensive to me as a professional, DeBoo said.

A spokesperson for the Inland Empire Health Plan declined to comment.

Taking over the campaign is Brandon Castillo, another top ballot measure expert in Sacramento, whom coalition members said had been working alongside DeBoo.

Dustin Corcoran, CEO of the California Medical Association and leader of the ballot initiative coalition, downplayed the significance of DeBoo leaving, chalking it up to a staffing issue.

Were moving into the last phase of this which is a distinct and particular part of the campaign and it makes sense for there to be one clear general consultant, Corcoran said. We cant have two people doing media buys.

Corcoran said theres no daylight between the coalitions goals of improving Medi-Cal and Newsoms, they just differ on how to get there. Regardless, he said Newsom is not pressuring anyone to leave.

He never made any commitment to support the ballot measure so hes not broken any commitments or promises at all, Corcoran added.

The standoff between the governor and some of his closest allies in Sacramento has surprised many in the close-knit Capitol political community and could put others in a difficult position. Anthony York, a former senior adviser to Newsoms office, also is working for the MCO ballot measure, as a spokesperson.

York did not immediately return a call for comment. Representatives for the governor declined to comment.
This article has been removed while the newsgathering process used to produce it is reviewed.

The post Editors Note appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner.
Six female Topeka Correctional Facility inmates, including five convicted murderers, filed suit last week alleging Kansas Secretary of Corrections Jeff Zmuda and TCF Warden Donna Hook have shown deliberate indifference to their safety and health by exposing them to fungus, toxins, sewer gas and mold without adequate ventilation.

The handwritten lawsuit complaints filed June 5 by inmates Kora Liles, Kimberley Younger, Barbara Frantz, Micaela Spencer, Sharon Huddleston and Jennifer Lockett also allege the state and its food provider, Aramark Food Service, have shown deliberate indifference to their health and safety by serving them food that causes "personal injury."

Six Topeka Correctional Facility inmates filed suit last week alleging the state showed deliberate indifference to their safety and health.

The inmates acted as their own attorneys in filing the complaints while asking that they be certified as a class action lawsuit covering all the 900-plus inmates incarcerated at TCF, the state's women's prison at 815 S.E. Rice Road.

Class action suits allow for the claims of all class members  whether they know they have been damaged or not to be resolved in a single proceeding through the efforts of the named plaintiffs and their legal counsel.

The only lawsuit document that appeared to give a specific dollar amount being sought was one filed by Lockett, who specifically asked for "5,000" in "declaratory relief."

The Kansas Department of Corrections doesn't comment about pending litigation, its public information officer, David Thompson, said Wednesday morning.

Topeka Correctional Facility inmate Micaela Spencer is among plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed last week against defendants who included Kansas Secretary of Corrections Jeff Zmuda.

Suit alleges policy is to 'paint over areas of mold'

The complaints, which are each 12 pages long, allege the inmates' claims of exposure to mold, fungus, sewer gas and toxins can be demonstrated through prior safety inspection reports, asbestos surveys, photos of the cafeteria, showers and certain walls and ceilings and a recent report of mold at a time when buildings were shut down.

"The class requested reports but they are denied since the (policy) is a staff-only read; therefore, pictures or a lay person can clearly recognize these issues (which is how class members are confident they exist)," the complaints said.

Topeka Correctional Facility inmate Kora Liles is among plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed last week against defendants who included Kansas Secretary of Corrections Jeff Zmuda.

Regarding ventilation, the complaints say: "In fact, windows do not open, vents are never cleaned inside the rooms and outside the rooms, clear and obvious signs show that air is not filtered or cleaned at all. TCF's policy is enforced by Zmuda and Hook to paint over areas of mold."

Poor ventilation increases exposure from "various drugs" that are brought in, the complaints say.

"Some of these drugs are so dangerous that individuals can die from these drugs and are dying outside of prison," they say.

Topeka Correctional Facility inmate Jennifer Lockett is among plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed last week against defendants who included Kansas Secretary of Corrections Jeff Zmuda.

Complaints say inmate meals were sometimes served frozen

The complaints allege TCF and Aramark serve meals cold, including sometimes frozen or raw, amid unsanitary conditions characterized by rodents, toxins, mold and leaking plumbing.

The meals cause stomach issues, physical pain and nausea to the inmates, they say.

"These were not isolated events but instead a widespread violation," the complaints say.

Topeka Correctional Facility inmate Sharon Frantz is among plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed last week against defendants who included Kansas Secretary of Corrections Jeff Zmuda.

The meals served do not meet the inmates' nutritional needs, the complaints add.

Each inmate except for Lockett also submitted filings asking that they be allowed to pursue the lawsuit in the character or manner of a pauper.

Topeka Correctional Facility inmate Sharon Huddleston is among plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed last week against defendants who included Kansas Secretary of Corrections Jeff Zmuda.

What happened with TCF complaints made last year?

U.S. District Judge John W. Lungstrum last November threw out a lawsuit by former TCF inmate Katelynn Fowler, who said she was denied access to showers after working for hours in a rat-infested kitchen that had backed-up plumbing.

Fowler acted as her own attorney. Her case was dismissed after she failed to respond to Lungstrum's order calling upon her to fix deficiencies he found with her original complaint.

Lungstrum's order said the suit was dismissed for failure to state a claim upon which relief could be granted and, in the alternative, for failure to comply with a court order.

What happened with a complaint last year alleging TCF staff abuses?

The corrections department announced last October it had terminated two employees and disciplined six others for their conduct related to the alleged Sept. 7 abuse of a female inmate at TCF.

"It has been determined that staff performed in a manner that is unacceptable, violated agency policy and procedures and was not in keeping with the values of the organization," Thompson said.

Topeka Correctional Facility inmate Kimberley Younger is among plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed last week against defendants who included Kansas Secretary of Corrections Jeff Zmuda.

Why are the plaintiffs in the lawsuit being held?

Lawsuit plaintiff Younger, 58, is serving life in prison without the possibility of parole for the capital murder of two people in 2018 in Barton County.

Liles, 38, was sentenced to serve at least 107 years for crimes that include three counts of first-degree murder committed in 2017 in Topeka.

Frantz, 58, is serving time for first-degree murder committed in 2017 in Leavenworth County and could be released at the earliest in 2042, according to the corrections department website.

It says Spencer, 29, is serving time for crimes that include first-degree murder in 2019 in Sedgwick County. She could be released at the earliest in 2069.

Huddleston, 69, is serving time for first-degree murder in 2000 in Sedgwick County and could be released at the earliest in 2035, the corrections department website says.

It says Lockett, 48, is serving time for forgery, theft, drug crimes and an offender registration violation committed between 2018 and 2022 in Sedgwick County. She could be released at the earliest in November 2025.

Contact Tim Hrenchir at threnchir@gannett.com or 785-213-5934.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: Topeka prison inmates allege exposure to fungus, toxins and mold
Topeka police found an empty bottle of Fireball, a box of beer with missing cans and a loaded handgun during the drunken driving arrest of Rep. Carl Maughan, according to a newly released affidavit.

Maughan, a Wichita-area lawmaker, is charged in Shawnee County District Court with two misdemeanor crimes and two traffic infractions stemming from his arrest for allegedly driving under the influence.

District Magistrate Judge Christopher Turner ordered the release of the affidavit last week in response to requests from The Topeka Capital-Journal and another media outlet.

Maughan's defense attorney Tom Lemon didn't immediately respond to an email request for comment, but he did object to the court releasing the affidavit.

After his DUI arrest in Topeka, Rep. Carl Maughan, R-Colwich, said he isn't campaigning for reelection even though his name will still be on the ballot in the August primary.

What did Topeka police allege in Carl Maughan affidavit?

Maughan was arrested March 4 after a police officer pulled him over on S.W. Topeka Boulevard near S.W. 29th Street, according to the narrative of a police affidavit detailing the allegations.

Officer Brian Willyard wrote in the affidavit that it was at 12:36 a.m. that he observed a car fail to maintain the lane while traveling northbound on Topeka Boulevard. He said "the vehicle traveled outside of its lane, traveling over the single solid yellow line on the left side of the inside northbound lane."

He also noted that the car was traveling 33 mph in a zone with a 40 mph speed limit before it accelerated through the intersection at 29th Street while changing lanes from left to right without signaling. Willyard then initiated a traffic stop, and Maughan pulled over.

"When I contacted him, I observed inside the vehicle an open cardboard box of beer missing multiple cans and there was an odor of an alcoholic beverage on Carl's breath," Willyard wrote. "There was also an open / empty 100 ML bottle of Fire Ball and two unopened containers in a blue duffle bag in the passenger seat located in the same luggage compartment / zipper as a loaded Silver Taurus PT-111 9MM semi-automatic handgun."

Willyard said Maughan refused a standardized field sobriety test and a preliminary breath test. He initially consented to providing a breath sample but withdrew consent after being taken to the Law Enforcement Center.

He also refused to consent to providing a blood sample, Willyard said, so Maughan was taken to the St. Francis campus of The University of Kansas Health System while police worked on a warrant.

Shawnee County Chief Judge Steven Ebberts approved the search warrant at 3:03 a.m. The test results were still pending as of when Willyard wrote the affidavit, which was filed with the court at 10:50 a.m. Maughan was then booked into the Shawnee County Jail.

More: Kansas lawmaker charged with DUI and gun crime in Topeka may have law license suspended

Judge rejected arguments to seal Carl Maughan affidavit

Turner, the magistrate judge, ordered the public release of a redacted version of the affidavit on June 4.

Under Kansas law, anyone can request that the court disclose any affidavits or sworn testimony in support of probable cause. But lawyers can ask for redactions or to seal the entire affidavit, and the law provides 10 possible reasons to do so.

Turner indicated that Lemon, the defense attorney, and deputy district attorney Jason McIlrath with the Shawnee County District Attorney's Office both filed responses to the media requests for release of the affidavit. Those responses were filed under seal, meaning the contents aren't public.

Turner's order did note some of the contents of those responses.

He wrote that the prosecutor asked for some redactions, which he approved. It appears that the only redactions were Maughan's date of birth and an identification number for the 2015 Hyundai Sonata he was driving. State law provides for such personal information to be redacted.

Meanwhile, the defense objected to the release of the affidavit and filed a motion to seal it, which would have barred public access.

Turner wrote that the defense argued that "1) Releasing the affidavit, upon the Defendant being found not guilty, would constitute an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy; 2) Releasing the affidavit would endanger the life or physical safety of the Defendant; 3) Releasing the affidavit would jeopardize the physical, mental or emotional safety of the Defendant; and 4) Releasing the affidavit would cause irreparable harm if the defendant were proven not guilty."

"The Court finds sealing the affidavits is not necessary to protect against the concerns raised by the defendant and authorized by statute," Turner wrote.

He wrote that "all defendants are innocent unless and until proven guilty," and that releasing affidavits "always pose the risk of unwanted publicity and damage to a defendant," but that is not a legal justification for sealing it.

While the law does allow for sealing or redacting information that could risk the defendant's safety, "the Defendant has not provided any factual basis" to support that argument, Turner wrote. He also noted that the legal justification related to physical, mental or emotional safety doesn't apply to defendants.

What is Carl Maughan charged with?

Maughan faces charges of two misdemeanor crimes and two traffic infractions.

Possession of a firearm while under the influence.

Driving under the influence; first offense.

Failure to signal lane change.

Failure to maintain single lane.

On the gun charge, prosecutors allege Maughan illegally possessed a loaded weapon while under the influence of alcohol or drugs "to such a degree as to render such person incapable of safely operating a firearm."

Prosecutors didn't specify in the complaint whether the DUI charge involves alcohol, drugs or both, or whether they will seek to prove it using a blood alcohol concentration, for which the legal threshold is 0.08.

A court hearing is scheduled for June 26.

Maughan is no longer campaigning for reelection

Maughan, a Republican legislator from Colwich, had filed to run for reelection to the Kansas House after his arrest.

After challengers filed to run in the race, Maughan said he was withdrawing.

"For personal and family reasons, I will be terminating my campaign for re-election as State Representative for District 90," Maughan said in a May 30 post to social media. "It has been an honor and privilege to serve the citizens of the 90th. I will complete my term and remain active in politics in order to continue to serve our state and nation in whatever small way that I can."

However, Maughan will still be on the ballot for the August primary.

He said in a June 11 post that the Secretary of State's Office informed him he couldn't be removed from the ballot because the filing deadline had passed.

"Accordingly, despite the fact that I will not be seeking the nomination my name will remain on the ballot," Maughan said in the post. "Please do not let this cause confusion. I have terminated my campaign in this primary election."

Jason Alatidd is a Statehouse reporter for The Topeka Capital-Journal. He can be reached by email at jalatidd@gannett.com. Follow him on X @Jason_Alatidd.

This article originally appeared on Topeka Capital-Journal: What Topeka police found during Kansas Rep. Carl Maughan's DUI arrest
ROGERSVILLE, Tenn. (WJHL)  The Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration (TOSHA) has issued two serious citations that include $8,000 in total fines to a Rogersville facility after a fatal incident on Jan. 27.

TOSHA investigating fatal workplace accident in Rogersville

HDK Industries Inc., located at 100 Industrial Park Drive, received the following citations, TOSHA announced:

Citation One  $4,000

29 CFR 1910.176(a): Where mechanical handling equipment was used, sufficient safe clearances were not allowed for aisles and wherever turns or [passages] were made. Aisles and passageways were not kept clear and in good repair, with no obstruction across or in aisles that could create a hazard. Permanent aisles and passageways were not appropriately marked.

In that four employees were exposed to struck-by hazards due to abrupt interactions between powered industrial trucks (PIT) and pedestrians caused by the storage and stacking of large plastic bins (a.k.a. core totes) at a blind corner in the B building area of the factory.

Citation Two  $4,000

29 CFR 1910.178(n)(4): Driver did not slow down and sound the horn at cross aisles and other locations where vision is obstructed.

In that four employees were exposed to struck-by hazards due to abrupt interactions between powered industrial trucks (PIT) and pedestrians caused by an operator failing to sound their horn at a blind corner in the B building area of the factory.

The citations come after the January incident that hospitalized a 66-year-old female employee. She died due to her injuries nine days later, TOSHA reports.

According to the report by TOSHA, the employee was hit by a forklift after she stepped out into an aisle from a blind corner. After she was struck, the victim fell to the concrete floor and hit her head.

Photo: An employee was struck by a forklift at this intersection in HDK Industries in January 2024. (Courtesy of TOSHA)

Photo: Storage bins were stacked at the corner of the intersection where an HDK Industries worker was hit by a forklift. (Courtesy of TOSHA)

Another worker nearby saw the victim and forklift approaching one another at the corner and shouted in an attempt to warn her; however, TOSHA reported it was too late and the woman was hit by the forklift.

The woman was conscious and had no visible injuries immediately after the incident, but others nearby had seen her head strike the floor multiple times and called emergency medical services. While awaiting medical personnel, other workers noticed the victims awareness was declining.

She was transported to a nearby hospital where she ultimately passed away nine days later.

The operator of the forklift told TOSHA that he had used the horn roughly 15 feet from the intersection where the incident occurred, but the report notes he told his employer immediately after the incident that it may have been as much as 30 feet away.

TOSHA noted large 4-foot tall and 4-foot wide plastic bins were stacked two-high at the corner of the intersection where the fatal accident occurred.

Scott Keeler, vice president of sales and marketing and former general manager of HDK, previously told News Channel 11 that the victim had worked for the company for 30 years.

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 WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather.
A Spanish environmental group has published a report singling out the worst beaches in Spain for pollution, plastic waste and environmental destruction, with popular holiday resorts featuring on the list.

The report by Ecologists in Action includes two popular beaches in Ibiza. Talamanca Beach is singled out for illegal anchoring, which damages underwater plants, and wastewater contamination from a nearby treatment plant. While Cala Xarraca is listed for the incomprehensible development of a megahotel next to the beach.

A beach in Alcoa on Spains north coast is affected by a so-called red sludge pond due to hazardous waste dumping, while various locations on the Costa Brava are flagged up for the impact of private boats, which they say erode the natural environment and damage marine biodiversity.

Just north of Alicante, Amerador beach is singled out due to two recent instances of faecal discharges (in March and April) from a nearby pumping station, and the popular Playa Blanca beach in Lanzarote also received a black flag due to a sewage spill which led to the beachs temporary closure in May 2024.

On the south coast, the Castell de Ferro beach in Granada is highlighted for the development of a beach bar, which involved the uprooting of vegetation and palm trees, while the Malaga coast is black-listed for the dumping of plastic containers and packaging during the annual San Juan festival (this years will occur on Sunday, June 23), during which thousands of revellers light firecrackers and bonfires on the beach.

The annual Black Flag Report, which follows an 5,000-mile inspection of the Spanish coast, singles out two flags per province or city, but Ecologists in Action say the list could be longer: Unfortunately there could be many more flags that we award year after year.

The group blames touristification and urbanisation as the biggest problems affecting the Spanish coastline, and claims Spanish policy makers are supporting a suicidal and limitless race [...] for the exclusive benefit of business interests.

The report goes into detail on the effects of tourism in the Canary Islands, describing tourist activity as highly intensive in the requirement of large quantities of materials and energy which in turn generates enormous quantities of waste and pollutants.

They say the Canary Islands has an ecological footprint equivalent to a territory 27 times its size, and that Tenerife dumps the equivalent of 17 Olympic-sized swimming pools of polluted water into the sea every day.

La Tejita beach in Tenerife - Alamy

Some specific hotels are singled out in the 167-page report. The Oliva Beach and Tres Islas hotels, owned by RIU in Fuerteventura, are listed for being developed in the middle of [...] the Dunes of Corralejo. The report says that the Government of the Canary Islands has taken the side of the offending company, rather than defending the common good of the islanders.

The environmental group also singles out La Tejita and Cuna del Alma hotels in Tenerife for failing to comply with environmental laws, Corralejo Pier and the Dreamland project in Fuerteventura for occupying protected spaces, and two 2,000 bed-plus resorts that have been approved on the islands of El Hierro and La Palma.

The ecological report singles out plastic waste as a major problem across Spanish beaches, and highlights two industrial spillages in recent months. It refers to an environmental incident earlier in 2024, where millions of tiny plastic pellets washed up on the Galician coast, and also points to an incident where plastic pellets were discharged from the Camp de Tarragona petrochemical plant onto the beaches of the Costa Dorada, which is described as almost more plastic than sandy.

Spain is not the only European country with polluted waters. While most of the beaches along Frances Cote dAzur enjoy high water quality, the stretch around Cap dAntibes and particularly the Plage de la Gravette is highlighted as poor by European Environment Agency  in 2023, tourists were banned from swimming there due to high levels of dangerous bacteria found in sewage discharge.

In Sicily, the beaches around the city of Palermo have deteriorated in recent years, with the Messina Marine and Lido Olimpo now rated as poor by the EEA. There are frequent bathing bans at these spots due to faecal bacteria in the water.

Meanwhile, in Portugal, the environmental NGO, ZERO, warned that the beaches across the country are becoming more dangerous for swimmers: in 2022 there were 21 do not swim notices, but that rose to 28 beaches in 2023.

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Tourists were zip-tied and robbed in an L.A. short-term rental. Should it even have been open?

A short-term rental where an armed robbery took place last week on North Heliotrope Drive in Los Angeles. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)

The site of an armed home invasion in East Hollywood where six tourists were zip-tied and robbed was listed on Airbnb and other sites in apparent violation of the citys short-term rental ordinance, according to public records.

On June 4, a caller summoned officers to the 400 block of North Heliotrope Drive to report a robbery. There, the occupants told police that five men wearing ski masks and dark clothing had entered the residence armed with rifles and handguns, robbed them and fled before police arrived, according to Los Angeles Police Department Officer David Cuellar.

The person who called police said they were with their family and staying at an Airbnb, Cuellar said. The thieves stole cash from the victims, zip-tied them and taped their mouths shut, Cuellar said. No one was injured and no one had been arrested in the case as of Tuesday.

The armed robbery took place at 429 North Heliotrope Drive, according to news video of police officers at the property. The Heliotrope building, which contains four units, is rent-controlled under Los Angeles Rent Stabilization Ordinance, according to the citys Zone Information and Map Access System, which provides zoning information for properties. That means the building cant be used as a short-term rental under city rules, nor can any of its units be rented for 30 days or less.

The citys Home-Sharing Ordinance dictates that hosts for short-term rentals must be registered with the citys Planning Department, have paid the necessary fees and register only their primary residence, where they live for more than six months out of the year.

Read more: Six tourists zip-tied, robbed in Hollywood home invasion, reports say

According to the ordinance, hosts can list only one unit at a time as a short-term rental and are prohibited from listing units that are rent-controlled, have been removed from the long-term market because of the Ellis Act or qualify for affordable housing covenants. The ban also extends to accessory dwelling units built in Los Angeles after 2016.

Temitayo Timmy Gidado was named on three short-term rental sites as the host of the four units at the North Heliotrope property, with Abby Blise listed as a co-host on Airbnb. The listings displayed registration numbers that belonged to a different property, and the hosts did not make the North Heliotrope property their primary residence, in violation of the ordinance, according to L.A. public records. The pair operate a rental management company, called Tag Group , that includes photos of what appears to be the North Heliotrope building on its website.

Blise and Gidado didnt respond immediately to The Times requests for comment. The citys Planning Department referred media inquiries to the LAPD.

A spokesperson for Airbnb said the robbery has no connection to Airbnb  the property in question had not been booked out on our platform at the time that incident happened.

Blise and Gidado listed units in the Heliotrope property at least three times on Airbnb , once on Booking.com and once on VRBO . All of the listings display registration numbers that belong to another property about one mile away at 953 N. Normandie Ave., according to the citys Home-Sharing Public Records Portal. As of Wednesday, all of the Airbnb listings had been removed.

VRBO and Booking.com could not be reached immediately for comment.

Read more: Hijacked: A renter turned L.A. home into an illegal Airbnb from 5,000 miles away, lawsuit says

The registration numbers for 953 N. Normandie Ave. arent under Blise and Gidados names, according to the records portal. Together, Blise and Gidado have 22 Airbnb listings across Los Angeles.

Better Neighbors, a coalition of workers, businesses and housing advocates that formed in 2020, provides city officials and regulators with data and recommendations to toughen enforcement of the city's Home-Sharing Ordinance, which was adopted by the City Council in December 2018. The group seeks to crack down on short-term rentals that don't comply with L.A. rules.

Despite these restrictions, hosts regularly flout the rules. According to an analysis of Airbnb and registration data by Better Neighbors, about 34%, or 1,369, of 4,013 Airbnb listings on an average month between November 2021 and October 2022 didn't comply with the Home-Sharing Ordinance.

The rent control one is black-and-white," said Randy Renick, an attorney with Hadsell Stormer Renick & Dai and executive director of Better Neighbors. "If its rent-controlled, it cannot be a short-term rental.

On Tuesday, Renick presented the city with findings on the property on North Heliotrope Drive, requesting that the Planning Department investigate the rentals and impose fines on the hosts for allegedly violating the ordinance.

Crimes that take place at Airbnb rentals, Renick said, tend to happen at ones that are not the listing person's primary residence and are illegally listed. He cited a 2022 ambush shooting at a house party in Inglewood, which killed four people and reportedly took place at an Airbnb that did not comply with local rules. Two people were also shot earlier this year during a Super Bowl party at a Hollywood Hills mansion.

Read more: Crackdown on Airbnb and other short-term rentals likely coming to unincorporated L.A. County

In 2022, Airbnb banned all parties and events at its rentals, but critics say enforcement has been spotty.

"You essentially have a chaperone in a hosted unit, which makes things a lot safer," Renick said. "The other shootings have gone down at party houses."

Researchers have found that short-term rentals have taken 2,500 homes off the rental market in Los Angeles and increased rents $810 per year for the average L.A. household. They're also responsible for more people becoming homeless in L.A. each night.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Ben Goldsmith was 'shocked' to be told he was one of the most chemically polluted individuals in the study - Andrew Crowley

Toxic forever chemicals have been found in the hair and blood of MPs, peers and environmentalists at levels that could be a risk to their health.

Parliamentarians including the Conservative Philip Dunne and Labours Alex Sobel as well as environmentalists had hair and blood samples tested for a range of substances.

They found levels of forever chemicals used in items such as waterproof clothing and food packaging, in all participants. This included three over levels of concern for specific chemicals, as defined by the Human Biomonitoring Commission in Germany.

Per- and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS), known as forever chemicals because they do not break down naturally in the environment, is the umbrella term for over 4,000 different compounds.

They have been linked to immune system disruption and named as possible carcinogens and have previously been found in drinking water sources and soils across the UK.

Parliamentarians including the Conservative Philip Dunne had hair and blood samples tested for a range of substances - David Jones/PA

All of the subjects also tested positive for hormone-disrupting substances such as those found in cosmetics and paint, and heavy metals including those found in tooth fillings.

The study was commissioned by charity Wildlife and Countryside Link, which is calling for the Government to tighten regulations on chemical use.

Ben Goldsmith, a financier and former adviser to Defra, had both his hair and blood tested, and said he was shocked to be told that I was one of the most chemically polluted individuals in the study.

On PFAS forever chemicals alone I was over what are deemed levels of concern, which could create increased health risks, he said. Mr Goldsmith added that avoiding toxic chemicals is pretty much impossible, it turns out.

These are now in everything, in our food, our water and consumer goods such as toiletries, cosmetics, food packaging and even the pans we cook in.

Wildlife and Countryside Link wants the Government to phase out PFAS, ban endocrine disruptors, remove heavy metals from use in dentist fillings and limit pesticide use.

It said chemical cocktails that have been found in more than 1,600 UK river and groundwater sites were contributing to the decline of wildlife and aquatic environments.

It also warned that British wildlife including insects, birds of prey, and dolphins are being harmed by toxic chemicals, with effects such as reduced reproduction, growth and development.

PFAS chemicals have been widely used since the 1950s when they were discovered to have waterproof and non-stick properties, and went on to a wide variety of household and industrial uses.

The charity said that while the sample size was too small to be conclusive, the findings suggest British citizens could potentially face higher levels of contamination from some pollutants than other countries.

It found that chromium, mercury, and multiple phthalate and BPS everywhere chemicals were found at considerably higher levels compared to studies in other countries.

We usually cant see, smell or taste them, but toxic chemicals are a growing threat to the health of UK rivers, the food industry, public health and the natural world, said Dr Richard Benwell, CEO of Wildlife and Countryside Link. The incredible scale of chemical contamination makes this the sleeping giant of pollution, with this research a startling reminder of the worrying level of chemical contamination in our bodies.

He added: The Government should take the most harmful chemicals off the shelves and out of our lives and stop the build-up of toxic chemicals in our environment.

Why consumers have no choice on chemical pollution

By Ben Goldsmith



I like to think Ive led a pretty healthy lifestyle  trying to eat the right things, exercise, spend time in nature and so on. But in spite of my generally healthier consumer choices, Ive just discovered that the goods I use, food I eat and water I drink, have likely had a significant role in filling my body with nasty chemical pollutants.

I recently took part in a study by Wildlife and Countryside Link on chemical contaminants in hair and blood. Having submitted to a small blood test (I was brave) and handed over some of my hair, I was shocked a while later to be told that I was one of the most chemically polluted individuals in the study.

The tests showed I have high levels of PFAS forever chemicals, hormone disrupting chemicals and heavy metals in my system. On PFAS forever chemicals alone I was over what are deemed levels of concern, which could create increased health risks  because these chemicals are linked to a range of health problems ranging from increased cholesterol, liver, immune and hormone problems to some cancers.

The thing that has particularly worried me about these findings has been a new understanding of quite how much chemical pollution is making its way from our food and other consumer products to our bodies. Avoiding toxic chemicals is pretty much impossible, it turns out. These are now in everything, in our food, our water and consumer goods such as toiletries, cosmetics, food packaging and even the pans we cook in. Why should we accept this hidden cocktail of toxins? Why arent regulators protecting us?

Like the majority of Brits, I expect, I have always assumed that policy-makers do prioritise public health over vested interests when it comes to the consumer goods we buy every day. I dont expect my food, the water from my tap, the toys my children play with, the toiletries I use to wash my hair or the packaging around my shopping to contain chemicals which could harm me. But the current regulatory system is far too weak to prevent these risks.

We need political leaders who will stand up on this growing issue. Yet the UK is going in the other direction, falling further and further behind other countries, with hazardous chemical bans and tougher standards on food packaging and drinking water contamination in the EU and even in the US that are far better than those we have in the UK.

Its vital that the most harmful chemicals, including many PFAS and hormone disruptors, are taken off our shelves immediately and that we impose controls to avoid them being replaced with other harmful substances. Its time to give consumers choice over chemical pollution.

Ben Goldsmith is a financier and environmentalist

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KYODO NEWS - Jun 12, 2024 - 13:34 | All, Japan

Japan's parliament enacted Wednesday a law to promote competition in smartphone app stores by restricting tech giants Apple Inc. and Google LLC from limiting third-party companies from selling and operating apps on their platforms.

The law will prohibit the providers of Apple's iOS and Google's Android smartphone operating systems, app stores and payment platforms from preventing the sale of apps and services that directly compete with the native platforms' own.

The change is aimed at stopping the dominant players from gatekeeping and forcing them to engage in price competition with smaller challengers in hopes of benefiting consumers and promoting innovation.

The law will also prohibit the tech giants from giving priority to their own services in internet search results.

Violations of the new law will bring a penalty of 20 percent of the domestic revenue of the service found to have breached the rules. The fine can increase to 30 percent if the companies do not cease the anticompetitive practices.

The new penalty is more than triple the existing fine under the antimonopoly law, which imposes fines of 6 percent of revenue gained through services deemed to be using an anticompetitive edge.

The new law, expected to take effect by the end of 2025, follows a similar regulation introduced by the European Union in March.

The technology giants, which will be designated by the Fair Trade Commission, are to be required to submit regulatory compliance reports and will be monitored by the commission to ensure they are following the rules.

The legislation, which was approved by the House of Representatives in May, was enacted after being passed by the House of Councillors on Wednesday.

Related coverage:

Japan Cabinet OKs bill to challenge Apple-Google app store duopoly

Meta sued in Japan for investment ads with fake celebrity endorsement
Catherine Cobb moved to her home in Ellabell just a few years ago. She said she enjoys a peaceful and serene view of the countryside on her private road. That picturesque setting, however, may be all but gone soon.

During a Bryan County Commissioners meeting on June 11, the property adjacent to her was approved for rezoning from agricultural to industrial.

Applicant Northpoint Development Inc. proposed constructing three buildings that would comprise 2.5 million square feet of warehouse space.

More than 4 million square feet of warehouse space was added in the third quarter of 2023 in Bryan, Chatham, Effingham and Liberty counties in Georgia, and South Carolinas Jasper County, according to market research firm CBRE.

As of November 2023, vacancy rates for warehouse and distribution facilities in the region climbed from less than 1% in the first quarter to more than 7% for the third quarter, according to the report by CBRE.

More: Effingham County, City of Rincon teaming up to create East-West Corridor to ease traffic

The new development would be 100 feet from Cobb's home.

Multiple residents came forward to express concern over the location of the proposed warehouses and its proximity to the Ogeechee River, a cherished waterway community members said they want to preserve.

I think it is really tragic for all the people that live in that area, said Cobb. Some of us are trying to escape areas of very irresponsible comprehensive planning. We are going to either put up with it or pick up and move. The saddest part is what it is going to do the wildlife and the river.

More: Dutch king and queen visit Savannah. Here's where they stopped and what happened

Rezoning of the land was rejected last month by the Bryan County Planning and Zoning Department. Alex Floyd, vice chairman of the Planning and Zoning Commission, said he did not like the idea of adding warehouses in that area.

I have the same concerns with this that I did with the Haiseal Tract on Old Cuyler Road, said Floyd during the planning and zoning meeting in May. Ive never been in favor of developments east of Eldora Road because of the proximity to the river. I am pretty sure I was against it, I would have to go back and look, but I think we made a big mistake putting industrial and conservation slap up against each other with no transition in between. I dont like it guys. Im going to make a motion to deny.

Ben Kirsch, legal director for the Ogeechee Riverkeeper, said warehouses pose several threats to the body of water, such as an increased risk in flooding and stormwater runoff.

More: Savannah Bananas opponent, the Party Animals, introduce new mascot at Grayson Stadium

Grading and paving sites speeds water and prevents it from soaking into the ground, increasing the risk of flooding, said Kirsch. It also removes trees from the site, which help to improve nearby water quality. Stormwater runoff, especially from industrial sites, contain pollutants that can find their way into waterways. If stormwater features, like retention ponds, cannot handle and process increasingly strong storms, those pollutants may not be properly treated or slowed down enough before entering nearby waterways. Wetlands act as natural stormwater features by slowing and processing runoff and providing some pollution filtration. Filling wetlands removes those natural stormwater services in addition to removing important aquatic habitat.

Jeffrey Williamson, manager of JLW Investments, LLC, is the manager of Slater Place Farms LLC, the entity that owns the track of land. Williamson said he was born and raised in Bryan County and is the former chairman of the Ogeechee Riverkeeper, Inc. Williamson said in an email that the parcel of land has not been sold to Northpoint Development.

Williamson went before the commissioners and spoke in support of the development.

What you have before you is a piece of property that is going to be developed one way or the other, said Williamson. I have partnered with Northpoint because they are going to do it in the most sustainable and environmentally sound way possible. I can stand before you and say I have had a plethora of calls from developers to do various things on this site and I selected Northpoint because of their track record, history and team. This development comports with your plan.

Latrice Williams is a general assignment reporter covering Bryan and Effingham County. She can be reached at lwilliams6@gannett.com. John Deem contributed to this story.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: More than 200 acres rezoned to industrial for warehouses in Ellabell
A jury trial date has been set for Lyndell Mays, 23, one of the men accused of murder in the mass shooting at the Chiefs Super Bowl rally in February.

The Raytown man has been charged with second-degree murder, along with unlawful use of a weapon and two counts of armed criminal action. He was indicted by a Jackson County grand jury in March.

Mays trial has been set for September 29, 2025. It is expected to last upwards of ten days, according to court records. The jury pool will consist of 250 people.

Mays is one of three adults to be charged in the Feb. 14 shooting, which left 43-year-old Lisa Lopez-Galvan dead. Twenty-two others, half of whom are children under 16, were left with gunshot injuries, and another 18 were injured in the stampede that followed.

Dominic M. Miller, 18, and Terry Young, 20, face identical charges to Mays. Both have been indicted by grand juries for second-degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon and two counts of armed criminal action.

A jury trial for Young, who was arrested a month after Miller and Mays, has been set for March 2025.

Three juveniles have also appeared in court on charges including unlawful use of a weapon and resisting arrest. A Jackson County judge ruled Wednesday that one, a 16-year-old who allegedly fired a gun, will not be tried as an adult.

A certification hearing for another juvenile charged in the shooting is expected to start July 25. A third teen was detained on gun-related charges that do not rise to the level to be tried as an adult.

Who is Lyndell Mays? Charges detail argument that sparked Chiefs rally shooting

Jackson County prosecutors have said the shooting stemmed from an argument between two groups, in which Miller and Mays were on opposite sides.

Both Miller and Mays were shot in the confrontation. Mays was shot nine times, including in the face, and has been in and out of the hospital during court proceedings.

Prospectors alleged Mays pulled his handgun first, but it was Miller who struck and killed Lopez-Galvan, the Star previously reported. Under Missouri law, someone can be charged when someone is killed during the commission of a dangerous felony, even when they didnt pull the trigger themselves.

What caused mass shooting at KC Super Bowl rally? Staring, fighting and being stupid

Miller pled not guilty on all counts on June 10. He will next appear in court July 1 for a pretrial conference.

Mays is being held in the Jackson County Detention Center on a million-dollar bond. A motion in April to reduce the amount of his bond was denied by a Jackson County judge.

Previous reporting by the Stars Bob Cronkleton, Natalie Wallington, Eric Adler, Andrea Klick and Nathan Pilling was used in this story.
Editors Note: This story contains information about alleged sexual assaults of children. If you know or suspect that anyone under 18 is being sexually or physically abused, call the Texas child abuse hotline at 1-800-252-5400. To learn more about how to identify signs of child abuse or neglect visit dfpx.state.us/Child_protection.

Anthony Ryan Pattersons trial on child sex charges will start Nov. 4.

Seventy-eighth District Court Judge Meredith Kennedy set the date at a hearing on Friday.

Kennedy said jury selection will start Oct. 29.

Anthony Patterson sits inside the 78th District Court at the Wichita County Courthouse on Thursday, June 13, 2024.

Patterson, a former automobile dealer, was free Thursday from Wichita County Jail on over $2 million in bail for several charges, according to online jail records.

He was first arrested in February 2021 on charges of indecency with a child and trafficking of a person in connection with allegations that a Vernon woman had brought her cousins, aged 8 and 10 at the time, to Pattersons home in Wichita Falls in 2017 for sexual purposes.

In April 2023, charges were added of aggravated sexual assault of a child and sexual performance of a child, all related to the same girls. By May, employment harmful to children was added to the list, and he was also charged with sexual assault of a child related to another alleged victim who came forward.

Jail records indicate Patterson has been jailed and released five times on the sex charges and has paid more than $2 million in bail to remain free while awaiting trial.

Anyone charged with a crime is considered innocent unless convicted in a court of law.

More: Anthony Patterson: A timeline

The hearing on Friday was on a request by Pattersons attorneys to have independent testing done on DNA samples from the clothes of one of the girls.

Three items of clothing were turned over by the girls mother in 2017 but were not tested at a Texas Department of Public Safety Laboratory until 2023.

A defense witness, forensic DNA expert Dr. Angie Ambers, testified that a delay of testing by six years can cause a lot of degradation.

The prosecution and defense agreed that the clothing will be sent to a private lab in Salt Lake City where more advanced testing can be done.

Ambers said the DPS testing eliminated Patterson from one stain on a T-shirt.

Anthony Patterson leaves court Tuesday, Oct. 31, 2023, after jury selection for his trial was recessed at the Tim Curry Criminal Justice Center in Fort Worth.

Despite sample degradation, she said, We still have workable data.

She said it will take about 75 days to get results back from the lab.

Jandreani Dashimella Bell, his accused co-conspirator, is expected to testify against him in the trial, according to allegations in court records.

The trial was moved to Fort Worth after defense attorneys argued Patterson couldnt get a fair trial here because of adverse publicity. It was originally set to start in October 2023 but has been beset by delays

Patterson has been indicted on 13 counts. Some are for first degree felonies, which means he could be sentenced to life in prison if convicted.

This article originally appeared on Wichita Falls Times Record News: New trial date set for Anthony Patterson's child sex crimes trial
Tribal members divided about banning Noem, united in need for better public safety

Intersection of Split Tail Hawk Street and Yellow Hawk Avenue in Lower Brule, SD. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight)

EDITORS NOTE: This story is the fourth in a series exploring the influence of drug cartels in South Dakota, on and off the states reservations. The first story can be found at this link; The second can be found at this link. The third story can be found here.

Drug cartels werent top of mind for Crow Creek Tribal Chairman Peter Lengkeek on May 17.

That day, as Gov. Kristi Noem held a press conference in Pierre about drug cartels in Indian Country, Lengkeek was thinking of Rikki Rae Voice.

Voice was a 36-year-old tribal member and Air Force veteran who died May 1 in her Box Elder home, three hours from the Crow Creek headquarters in Fort Thompson.

Lengkeek shut down tribal government on the afternoon of May 17 to prepare for the funeral, which came a day after Voices wake and two before her burial at the Black Hills National Cemetery in Sturgis.

Voices death is under investigation by Pennington County. So far, authorities have said only that theres no indication of foul play.

Lengkeek isnt sure he believes that, and he doesnt trust the countys conclusions. Too many tribal members have died or gone missing without justice, he said, both on and off the reservation.

We fight and fight on our reservations for investigators to look into some of these deaths that they rule Oh, its just a drunk Indian, or It was a suicide, Lengkeek said.

Drug cartels dont have a physical presence in Crow Creek, he said. But theres no shortage of concern for missing and murdered Indigenous people.

Thats what he thinks about when he thinks about underfunded law enforcement in his community.

If I were a serial killer, I would hang out on a reservation, Lengkeek said. I would have a heyday because of the lack of resources, because of the lack of genuine involvement and compassion for our people from the Bureau of Indian Affairs, which is a government law enforcement agency. Thats all we have to rely on.

Playground in Fort Thompson, SD on the Crow Creek reservation. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight)

Crow Creek security task force

Noems event was live streamed from the state Capitol, about two hours from Fort Thompson. There were comments from Noem, her tribal relations secretary and tribal law enforcement liaison, and state lawmakers, and photos of alleged cartel affiliates. The governor showed a video clip from Pine Ridge, filmed by Chris Hansen, the former host of the reality show To Catch A Predator. The segment is part of a project called Merchants of Death for TruBlu, Hansens video streaming service.

The funeral in Fort Thompson on the day of that press conference highlights the disconnect between the governors rhetoric on crime and drug cartels, and what tribal leaders say they need in their own communities. Among community members on the Crow Creek Reservation and its neighboring Lower Brule Reservation, opinions are divided about the tribes ban of Noem and her suggestions for bolstering law enforcement.

Noem and tribal leaders agree that the federal government has failed to uphold its treaty obligations to provide for public safety on tribal lands.

Noem is pushing for the states nine tribes  the governments of which have all voted this year to banish her from their lands  to sign agreements to let state officers enforce tribal law.

But Lengkeek doesnt want that. The state Highway Patrol works in Crow Creek for 72 hours a year during the tribes powwow, he said, but he doesnt trust that outside officers are the answer to the day-to-day issues facing his reservation.

Crow Creek lacks its own police force and instead depends on the federal Bureau of Indian Affairs to police the reservation. Lengkeek declared a public safety emergency and authorized the creation of a security task force last summer after a young man named Garrett Hawk was killed in a shooting at a known drug house. No one has been arrested for the slaying.

Cody Dion, leader of the Crow Creek Sioux Tribe Security Task Force. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight)

That was the tribe taking matters into its own hands, Lengkeek said.

The tribe also held a gun buy-back last year, handing out $500 payments for sawed-off shotguns and assault-style rifles. The tribe collected around 50.

Im a staunch supporter of the Second Amendment, Lengkeek said. I will die for that. But illegally possessing firearms, and the gunplay that happens with the brandishing of weapons, I cant defend that.

Since the tribe doesnt have its own police force, the work of the task force is funded by proceeds from the tribes cannabis operation  medical for everyone and recreational for members of any Native American tribe  and its 20,000 acres of farmland, where commodities like corn and soybeans are grown.

There may be a point in the future at which the security force morphs into a full-scale tribal police department, similar to departments operated by the Rosebud and Oglala Sioux tribes, but the group hasnt moved in that direction or sought federal support at this point.

As for Mexican drug cartels, task force member Cody Dion said the only time he hears Spanish is from visitors who show up to go fishing at the Missouri River that borders the reservation, and that it would be all but impossible to hide out in Fort Thompson. Outsiders cant escape attention for long enough to operate on the reservation in the ways Noem is alleging, he said.

I think if she was worried about the cartels, she should focus that effort on where they live at, Dion said. If theyre in South Dakota, they aint here on the reservation. Theyre probably in the major cities.

Lower Brule: Cooperation cant start with law enforcement

The Lower Brule Reservation sits just across the Missouri River from the Crow Creek Reservation. Chairman Clyde Estes said there are plenty of issues where the state and tribes ought to work together before discussions of inking a law enforcement agreement can take place.

He wants to see economic development, entrepreneurship and returns on tribal investment.

Ive been requesting economic data studies so we can go to the drawing board and say, Well, this is where we are, and how are we missing out on capitalizing on building our economy? Estes said. Right now, the tribe is the biggest employer.

Estes said hed like to see proof that tribal leaders are personally benefiting from drug cartels, as Noem said at a March town hall. At Noems May 17 press conference, her Tribal Relations Secretary David Flute read a comment received by the governors office. The anonymous comment said tribal council members are some of the biggest drug dealers on the reservation.

Clyde Estes, chairman of the Lower Brule Sioux Tribe. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight)

There have been corruption cases filed against tribal leaders for misuse of tribal funds in recent years, but no tribal council members or tribal presidents have been charged with drug distribution in the state.

In 2016 and 2017, leaders of the Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe banished tribal members convicted of selling methamphetamine.

I understand that theres always going to be people who make accusations, Estes said. And my thing is, if they have that evidence, go to law enforcement with it.

Residents split on ban, united in opposition to state policing

There are plenty of opinions in Lower Brule and Fort Thompson  about Gov. Noem, as well as about tribal council members.

Alvin Grassrope, of Lower Brule, told South Dakota Searchlight that he agrees with Noems calls for comprehensive audits of federal funding for tribes, which Noem says ought to be directed toward public safety. Grassropes grandson, Daniel Goodface, doesnt like the governors rhetoric but doesnt agree with banning her.

The drug problems are real and serious, he said, and Noem should be able to come around to talk about it.

Goodface recently posted a YouTube video titled the Poorest Place in the Nation: Pine Ridge Reservation to his Facebook page. The 41-minute video came from content creator Tommy G, who travels the country visiting rough neighborhoods. In it, he tours Pine Ridge, learning about methamphetamine addiction, bootleg alcohol and a host of other social ills through conversations with residents.

I was like, Its like that on every rez, Goodface said. You know, people might say its not or hide and bullsh*t, but its drugs and alcohol. Its meth. Its an epidemic.

The governors office shared the same video with media outlets recently.

Even so, Goodface doesnt necessarily want to see the state Highway Patrol enforcing tribal law. Hed rather see them catch drug couriers on the state highways leading onto the reservation.

Were supposed to be sovereign, right? Goodface said. In some ways, we do need the state to help, but it would be nice to catch them coming onto the rez, because they have to cross state lines either way to get here. This is not a reservation problem. Its a state problem.

Floyd Hawk Wind, of Lower Brule, doesnt agree with the ban, either. He doesnt like what the governor has said and doesnt see cartel members in Lower Brule, but hed like Noem to visit and learn.

Instead of banning the governor, they should invite her here, he said.

Jennifer Wounded Knee, of Fort Thompson, lives next door to the house where Garrett Hawk was killed in 2023. Hawks slaying sparked the creation of the security task force. Years ago, Wounded Knee was a law enforcement officer with the military police and the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department.

Road sign near Fort Thompson, SD. (John Hult/South Dakota Searchlight)

Drug activity was common in her neighborhood for five years before something was done, Wounded Knee said, and she begged the tribe to deal with the issue. She applauded the creation of the security task force, but said it felt like too little, too late after so many years of trouble.

They broke my window out, they slashed my daughters tires, Wounded Knee said. They were throwing needles in my yard, throwing trash in my yard.

Wounded Knee doubts an outsider with cartel ties could hide out in the small town without being noticed, but she agrees with Noem on the need for more attention from law enforcement.

When it comes to the idea that drugs and violence have gotten bad enough that tribes can handle themselves, she said, the governor may be right.

Something needs to be done, or somebody needs to not be in leadership thats allowing meth to be sold around here, Wounded Knee said.

She would like Lengkeek to work with the governor.

Hes good, but what hes doing is hes trying to stay out of it, right or wrong, Wounded Knee said. And thats not right, either.

Terry Middletent, who also lives in Fort Thompson, agrees with the Noem ban.

Middletent has little patience for talk of cartels, drugs and violence on reservations.

You have that everywhere, Middletent said. Its not just here.

Middletent sees the governors approach to the issues as divisive, not helpful.

For her to make those types of comments, he said, shes just destroyed that relationship between the two nationalities.

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The post Tribal members divided about banning Noem, united in need for better public safety appeared first on South Dakota Searchlight.
A trio accused of faking nomination petition signatures will stand trial in Macomb County Circuit Court after a Warren district judge bound them over Thursday following a joint preliminary exam held over numerous days and months beginning in January.

Shawn and Jamie Wilmoth, both of Warren, and their business partner  Willie Reed, of Florida  each faced more than two dozen charges in 37th District Court in Warren before Judge John Chmura. Their pretrials are set for June 24 in the circuit court.

They are accused of operating a criminal enterprise that charged several campaigns more than $700,000 for valid signature collection, then delivered thousands of forged signatures on nomination petitions to eight of the campaigns.

Shawn and Jamie Wilmoth and Willie Reed, sitting next to each other behind a row of attorneys, appear for their preliminary exams Jan. 10, 2024 in 37th District Court in Warren. They are accused in a fraudulent nominating petition signature case for 2022 candidates.

Seven candidates, including five GOP gubernatorial candidates in 2022 who were provided with fraudulent signatures, were disqualified from appearing on the ballot and one candidate withdrew, prosecutors with the Michigan Attorney General's Office previously said.

The Wilmoths and their attorneys appeared in court when Chmura gave his approximately 45-minute-long oral opinion on the bind-over. Reed and his attorney appeared via Zoom. Chmura said this was one of the more interesting cases he has had in his 28 years on the bench.

While the defendants might not agree with his decision, Chmura said, this took longer to decide because of the arguments the three defense attorneys presented. Neither the assistant attorney general nor the defense attorneys for the Wilmoths had comment after the hearing. Reed's attorney told the court that while he didn't agree with Chmura's decision, he appreciated the court's time and effort on the matter.

Chmura said the testimony showed there was enough evidence pointing to some fraud based on what validators hired by the Wilmoths and Reed saw and testified to in court and that the trio knew the signatures were fraudulently obtained as they were made aware of this concern from the validators.

The trio's preliminary exam began in January, lasting three days before continuing Feb. 29 for Ryan Kelley, former Republican gubernatorial candidate, to testify after being released from federal prison. Kelley served a 60-day sentence after pleading guilty to a federal misdemeanor charge for participating in the Jan. 6, 2021, riot at the U.S. Capitol.

The trio allegedly provided Kelley's campaign with no signatures at all, state prosecutors said.

Kelley testified via video that his campaign paid Petition Reeds LLC $15,000 to get 3,000 valid signatures from voters for the 2022 gubernatorial race. He said he talked with Shawn Wilmoth and that Reed's signature was on the contract in addition to emails back and forth he had.

Kelley said around March 2022 the campaign was told there were 1,000 or 1,200 signatures and that they were working to collect more. Closer to the time the petitions were due, Kelley testified the campaign started to "get the cold shoulder" and realized no signatures would be provided.

"We did not receive anything from them, no," Kelley testified.

Upon cross-examination, Reed's attorney, Wright Blake, asked whether Kelley asked for the money back. Kelley testified that he didn't believe the campaign asked for a refund.

The exam wrapped up in March with closing arguments. Michigan Assistant Attorney General Chris Kessel asked Chmura to bind over all of the defendants on all the charges.

"These victims relied on the promises made by these defendants," he said, adding that "from the jump" there was fraud going on.

Kessel said it was "crystal clear" the trio worked together to sign the contracts and deceive the victims. The victims then got "ghosted" by the defendants when the victims were removed from the ballot and tried to reach out to the defendants.

Judge John Chmura of the 37th District Court in Warren listens to testimony during preliminary exams for Shawn and Jamie Wilmoth and Willie Reed on Jan. 10, 2024. The Wilmoths and Reed are charged in a fraudulent nominating petition signature case.

Defense attorneys argued there was no probable cause to bind over their clients during their closings.

Noel Erinjeri, assistant public defender for Shawn Wilmoth, said prosecutors lacked evidence against his client and that 37 people were suspected by the state Bureau of Elections of submitting false signatures, but were not interviewed.

Susan Dunn said most of those who testified said they had no contact with her client, Jamie Wilmoth, and there was no evidence that her client talked with the victims, got any money or uttered a promise to anyone.

Blake said "this is an industry built on error," and that most of those who testified said they had no contact with Reed and he didn't say that he ever told anyone to forge a signature.

Prosecutors previously said Shawn Wilmoth is owner/operator of First Choice LLC and co-owner of Mack Douglas LLC, and Reed is owner/operator of Petition Reeds LLC and co-owner of Mack Douglas.

Many of the candidates who hired the firms and two validators who worked for the trio were among those who testified. The validators testified they were told to "push" through signatures if the information matched or to "mark it good" despite concerns they raised.

More than a dozen witnesses testified for the Attorney General's Office, which filed the charges in June 2023.

The trio is accused of defrauding the 2022 gubernatorial campaigns of former Detroit Police Chief James Craig, Donna Brandenburg, Perry Johnson, Michael Brown and Michael Markey, and judicial candidates John Cahalan, Tricia Dare and John Michael Malone.

The forgeries were detected by the Michigan Bureau of Elections and it was determined the campaigns of Craig, Brandenburg, Johnson, Brown, Markey, Dare and Malone had not met the qualifications to appear on the ballot.

The Michigan Department of State referred the matter to the Attorney General's Office in June 2022.

Contact Christina Hall: chall@freepress.com. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter: @challreporter.

Support local journalism. Subscribe to the Free Press.

Submit a letter to the editor at freep.com/letters.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Trio to stand trial in Macomb County in fake nomination petition signatures case
Troopers injured in arrest of Newfane man who allegedly fired BB gun at residence

NEWFANE, N.Y. (WIVB)  New York State police have arrested a Newfane man who allegedly fought with them after they said he fired a BB gun at a neighboring residence.

Police responded to the scene on East Avenue Wednesday around 2:45 p.m. There, they said Anthony Zarrillo, 33, had been firing shots, leading the homeowner of the neighboring residence to confront him.

Authorities were called after threats were allegedly made. As troopers attempted to interview Zarrillo, they said he became combative.

Zarrillo was arrested, but he and the officers were injured in the process, police said.

Troopers sustained sprained shoulder, contusions and lower back strain. Zarrillo had a broken clavicle, New York State police said.

Zarrillo and the officers were taken to Lockport Memorial Hospital for treatment.

Charged with resisting arrest, reckless endangerment, obstruction of governmental administration, criminal mischief and two counts of assault, Zarrillo was taken to the Niagara County Jail pending arraignment.

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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.

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Driver cited for furnace hitting bridge, falling off 18-wheeler in Burke County

A truck driver in Burke County has been cited after a 4.5-ton furnace came off his trailer when it hit a bridge.

It happened Wednesday on Old NC Highway 10 near Icard.

ALSO READ: Only on 9: Family wants justice after rock thrown through windshield kills loved one

The furnace struck the Interstate 40 bridge that runs over the highway. The impact caused the furnace, which was being hauled away for scrap, to come off the big rig and slam into an SUV headed in the opposite direction.

Troopers said the SUV was heavily damaged. They said the driver was taken to the hospital but has since been released.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation plans to inspect that bridge to ensure it isnt damaged.

The driver of the 18-wheeler was cited with an over-height and a permit violation.

VIDEO: Only on 9: Family wants justice after rock thrown through windshield kills loved one




By Andrea Shalal and Thomas Escritt

BORGO EGNAZIA, Italy (Reuters) -Leaders of the Group of Seven major democracies agreed on an outline deal on Thursday to provide $50 billion of loans for Ukraine using interest from Russian sovereign assets frozen after Moscow invaded its neighbour in 2022.

The political agreement was the centrepiece of the opening day in southern Italy of the annual summit of G7 leaders, attended for a second successive year by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.

He signed a new, long-term security accord with U.S. President Joe Biden after signing a 10-year security accord with Japan, with Tokyo promising to provide Kyiv with $4.5 billion this year -- underlining continued strong backing from the West.

Calling the frozen asset agreement a "significant outcome", Biden told reporters it was "another reminder to (Russian President Vladimir) Putin that we're not backing down."

The G7 plan for Ukraine is based on a multi-year loan using profits from some $300 billion of impounded Russian funds, the bulk of which are blocked in the European Union.

The technical details will be finalised in the coming weeks, with the new cash expected to reach Kyiv by the end of this year thanks to contributions from all G7 states -- the United States, Canada, Britain, France, Germany, Japan and Italy.

"This is a very clear commitment that should embolden the Ukrainians to do what they need to to defend their independence and sovereignty," said German Chancellor Olaf Scholz.

The aim of the deal is to ensure it can run for years regardless of who is in power in each G7 state - a nod to concerns that U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump may be much less sympathetic to Kyiv if he beats Biden in November's election, according to a person close to the talks.

Russia regards attempts by the West to take income from its frozen assets as criminal, foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said on Thursday, adding that Moscow's response would be very painful for the European Union.

STRUGGLES AT HOME

Many of the G7 leaders are struggling at home but looked to project confidence on the world stage as they confront an array of problems, including China's economic ambitions, the growth of artificial intelligence and turmoil in the Middle East.

The leaders expressed their concerns about the situation on the Israel-Lebanon border and endorsed U.S. efforts to secure a ceasefire in the Gaza war, according to a draft communique due to be released following the summit.

In addition, they called on Israel to refrain from a full-scale offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, "in line with their obligations under international law".

Western nations are also expected to voice both unanimous concern over China's industrial overcapacity, which they say is distorting global markets, and their determination to help African states develop their economies, diplomats said.

The G7 may have a very different complexion next year.

Biden faces an uphill battle to win re-election in November, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak looks certain to lose power in a national election next month, while French President Emmanuel Macron dissolved his country's parliament on Sunday after his party was trounced in the European vote.

All smiled broadly as they greeted Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni under a blazing Mediterranean sun at the entrance to the Borgo Egnazia resort where the summit is being held.

However, the display of unity was undermined late in the day, when Macron clashed with the anti-abortion Meloni over a push by Italy to remove any direct reference to abortion rights in the final communique.

More than a dozen outsiders will join the discussions on Friday, including the leaders of India, Brazil, Argentina, Turkey, Algeria and Kenya, while Pope Francis is due to speak about the risks and potential of artificial intelligence.

($1 = 0.9256 euros)

(Reporting by Crispian Balmer, Angelo Amante, Andrew Gray, Andrea Shalal, Thomas Escritt and John Irish; Writing by Crispian Balmer and Keith Weir; Editing by Christina Fincher, Ros Russell, Mark Heinrich and Daniel Wallis)
KYODO NEWS - Jun 13, 2024 - 21:24 | All, Japan, World

A Japanese summary court on Thursday fined a former counselor at the Singapore Embassy 300,000 yen ($1,900) after he secretly took images of a naked schoolboy at a public bath in Tokyo earlier this year.

Sim Siong Chye, a 55-year-old former counselor who had been asked by police to return for questioning after he left Japan, was fined for entering the bathhouse and violating the Tokyo government ordinance against public disturbances.

He had been referred to prosecutors earlier in the day for allegedly violating laws related to taking sexual images and the production of child pornography.

Sim has mostly admitted to the allegations and was quoted by police as saying he could not control his voyeuristic urges. He also said he reflected on his conduct and came to Japan to speak from the standpoint of a civilian, according to police and other sources.

It is rare for a diplomat to comply with a police request to come back to Japan for questioning over criminal allegations after returning to their country.

He is suspected of using his smartphone to capture images of the junior high school student in a bathhouse dressing room in Tokyo's Minato Ward on Feb. 27 while he was serving as a counselor at the embassy, the police said.

A staff member at the bathhouse reported him to the police who asked him to undertake voluntary questioning but he rejected the request, despite admitting that he took the images. As a diplomat, he was immune to arrest while in Japan.

Police said what are believed to be non-consensual photos were found on the former counselor's smartphone. He also said he had secretly taken photos several times at multiple facilities, including the public bath.

Sim, currently an official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Singapore, returned home in mid-April after the tenure for his posting ended.

Related coverage:

Japan police seek to question Singapore diplomat over voyeurism
Trump will be able to cancel security agreement that Biden and Zelenskyy plan to sign the  WP

The Washington Post, citing US officials, has reported that since the 10-year security agreement between Ukraine and the US, which Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and his US counterpart Joe Biden plan to sign, will not be ratified by Congress, any future US president will be able to cancel it.

Source: European Pravda, citing The Washington Post

Details: Zelenskyy and Biden plan to sign a 10-year security agreement on Thursday that will commit Washington to providing Kyiv with a wide range of military assistance.

The agreement aims to commit future US administrations to supporting Ukraine.

It will form the basis for long-term US efforts to help build up Ukraine's Armed Forces.

At the same time, officials acknowledged that Donald Trump or any other future president would be able to withdraw from the legally binding executive agreement, as it is not a treaty and will not be ratified by Congress.

If Trump wins the election, the future of the agreement remains unclear.

Trump has at times expressed scepticism about his support for Ukraine, claiming that if elected president, he could end the war between Russia and Ukraine within 24 hours.

Trump has insisted that Europe has to shoulder a greater financial burden in supporting Kyiv, but he eventually signalled his agreement to congressional approval of aid to Ukraine this spring.

Jake Sullivan, US National Security Advisor, confirmed that Kyiv and Washington would sign a bilateral security agreement on Thursday, 13 June.

Background: The White House confirmed a meeting between Joe Biden and Volodymyr Zelenskyy at the G7 summit in Italy.

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Donald Trump may be the first American president convicted of a felony, but he has no plans to let his conviction stand  and hes enlisting congressional Republicans to help him undermine the case.

According to a report from Politico, shortly after his May 31 conviction, an enraged Trump called House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) and treated him to an expletive-filled rant about the verdict.

We have to overturn this, Trump reportedly said between f-bombs.

Johnson  already in a tenuous position with certain hardline members of his party  has attempted to stave off efforts for his removal by positioning himself as a close ally to the former president. Johnson was one of a slew of House Republicans who made the pilgrimage to Manhattan to lambast the trial on Trumps behalf, and the newly reported phone call likely set the tone for Johnsons public statements in the aftermath of the verdict.

The House speaker told Fox News shortly after the conviction that he believed the Supreme Court should step in on the matter of Trumps criminal verdict. I think that the justices on the court  I know many of them personally  I think they are deeply concerned about that, as we are. So I think theyll set this straight, Johnson said. This will be overturned, guys, theres no question about it; its just going to take some time to do it.

As previously reported by Rolling Stone, Trump has lobbied House Republicans to pass a law that would effectively shield presidents  both current and former  from nonfederal prosecutions. Last year, Rep. Russell Fry (R-S.C.) introduced the No More Political Prosecutions Act of 2023, a law that would allow presidents and vice presidents to move state or civil cases against them to federal court. Johnson is one of the primary co-sponsors of the bill.

I think its common sense that you cant have the president sitting in the Oval Office worried about whether some lawyer or some local DA somewhere is going to go after him, the speaker told Politico in May.

Trump will visit the Capitol on Thursday to talk to Republican lawmakers about his plans for a second term in office. It will be Trumps first time in Congress since the Jan. 6 insurrection, and Johnson was asked on Wednesday if he plans to speak with the former president about not fomenting another attack and committing to respecting the peaceful transfer of power. Of course, he respects that, Johnson replied, and we all do.

More from Rolling Stone

Best of Rolling Stone
Trump-backed Maine candidate wins right to challenge Rep. Jared Golden for U.S. House

AUGUSTA, Maine  Maines state primary Tuesday set the stage for a race in the 2nd Congressional District that could help determine which party controls the U.S. House and Senate next year.

Representative Jared Golden, a Democrat running for his third term, will face Donald Trump-backed state Representative Austin Theriault, R-Fort Kent, in the general election in November.

In a deep red district that has twice voted for Trump, Golden is particularly vulnerable to a Republican challenge. The Cook Political Report has rated the 2nd district race as a toss-up. It encompasses all of Maine except the southernmost areas.

Theriault, 30, is a former NASCAR driver who received endorsements from both Trump and U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson. The day before the primary, Trump encouraged Mainers to vote for Theriault in a post on Truth Social. Theriault beat out state Representative Michael Soboleski, R-Phillips, in the Republican primary Tuesday, 66.2% to 33.8%.

Austin Theriault, seen celebrating a victory in his auto racing days in 2017, won a Republican primary in Maine Tuesday, June 11, 2024.

This the honor of my life  being selected by the people of the state that I love so much, Theriault said in a post on X Tuesday night. I deeply appreciate the support and want folks to know: I am running to fight for you. Its time to put People over Politics.

Golden, who served in Iraq and Afghanistan while in the Marines, publicly changed his views on gun laws after the mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine, in 2023. He remains a Second Amendment defender but now favors ending the sale of AR-15-style rifles.

Chellie Pingree to face Ronald Russell

Maines 1st district, on the other hand, leans heavily Democratic. Veteran Ronald Russell won the primary, advancing to the November general election to face Representative Chellie Pingree, a Democrat who has served in Washington since 2009 and was unopposed in the primary.

Russell, who won the Republican primary against Andrew Piantidosi 56.1% to 43.9%, will have an uphill battle against the long-time congresswoman.

Who will run against Angus King?

Republican Demi Kouzounas and Democrat David Allen Costello both won their respective primaries, running unopposed.

They will be running against popular independent Senator Angus King, who has represented Maine in the U.S. Senate since 2013. As an independent, he did not have a primary, instead qualifying for the ballot by petition with over 5,000 signatures.

Jason Cherry, an independent and political newcomer from Unity, will also be on the general election ballot in November.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Trump-backed candidate wins Maine primary, to face Rep. Jared Golden
The Trump campaign opens a new outreach office in a heavily Latino part of Pennsylvania

Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump motions to the crowd after speaking at a campaign rally Sunday, June 9, 2024, in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/John Locher)

READING, Pa. (AP)  The pastor opened with a prayer in Spanish, asking that the Lord's spirit and guidance direct the proceedings without offering an English translation. Most of the around 50 attendees were white and weren't appearing to follow along, though they knew enough to sing out Amen! at the end.

Thus began former President Donald Trump 's campaign teaming up with the Republican National Committee and Pennsylvania GOP to open a Latino Americans for Trump office Wednesday in the town of Reading.

We believe in the American Dream and the only way to obtain the American Dream is working hard, Luis Fortuno, the former governor of Puerto Rico, told the same crowd. For the smaller group of Spanish speakers present, he followed with remarks that leaned heavily on the theme of Necesitamos cambio  Spanish for We need change.

Trump and top Republicans are looking to boost their support among Hispanic voters in a swing state that could well decide the election. Having shuttered many party offices that specialized in minority outreach, they are betting that promises to prioritize entrepreneurship and smaller government can resonate with a voting bloc that historically has favored Democrats.

Reading is perhaps best known as the namesake for the Reading Railroad from the Monopoly gameboard. A town of about 95,000 around 65 miles northwest of Philadelphia, Reading is 67% Latino, according to U.S. Census figures, and home to high concentrations of people of Dominican and Puerto Rican heritage.

Bidens approval rating has dropped among Hispanic adults in national polls, but it remains unclear if Trump can capitalize.

The Reading office opening comes a week after Trumps campaign established its first Pennsylvania office at a site in northeast Philadelphia. That event was billed as a Blacks for Trump gathering and featured Republican Texas Rep. Wesley Hunt and other prominent Black Republicans.

Both in Philadelphia and in Reading on Wednesday, most of the attendees were white.

Trump himself held a rally meant to energize Latino support on Sunday in Las Vegas, where he quipped: We need every voter. I dont care about you, I just want your vote. The former president also said immigrants were turning the U.S. into a dumping ground and vowed, Were not going to let them destroy our country.

President Joe Biden s campaign says Trump is dealing in dangerous and racist stereotypes and has dismissed his campaign's office openings as superficial patronizing of minority voters.

Biden's reelection campaign, together with the Pennsylvania Democratic Party, has opened 24 offices and has 100-plus staffers across the state, and has spent months organizing house parties and other voter mobilization efforts. It has been spending on ads in Pennsylvania since late last summer with a special emphasis on voters of Puerto Rican or Caribbean heritage.

Yrene Rodriguez, 46, an accountant at Reading Community College who said she and her whole family are Biden supporters, dismissed Wednesday's efforts by Trump's backers as just propaganda.

They just want to get people to say nice things about him, Rodriguez said.

Luis Rodriguez, who owns a real estate wholesaling and rehabbing business with offices in Pennsylvania, addressed the Trump office opening and talked about the importance of extending the U.S.-Mexico border wall, a signature promise from Trump's first campaign that he pursued in office.

Asked after the event about concerns Trump's harsh personal rhetoric might alienate some Hispanics, Rodriguez, who isnt related to Yrene, said such suggestions don't have "any backing or validity.

Michael Rivera, a commissioner in Berks County, which encompasses Reading, spoke at the office opening in English and Spanish and said more effort to reach out to Hispanic voters "demonstrates the Republican Party's understanding of the power of diversity among the American people.

Located in a red-brick building across from a downtown CVS, the campaign office was indistinguishable from most corporate spaces, except for the placards in the front window reading Latino Americans for Trump," Stop Illegal Voting and Joe Biden, Youre Fired.

Attracting more attention was a table of Trump merchandise set up for the event on the sidewalk outside. Some people walking by rolled their eyes or voiced their objections, but others were delighted with the display.

I only want the true king. The true king of America!" bellowed one man, loud enough to be heard inside the office. That's Trump.
A lot of things happened. Here are some of the things. This is TPMs Morning Memo. Sign up for the email version.

About The House GOP Attack On Merrick Garland

I wrote yesterday about the House GOP eschewing any pretense of governing for this entire term in favor of using the levers of power to advance its own electoral interests via a relentless disinformation campaign against Joe Biden and his administration.

The vote yesterday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress  for sticking to well-established precedent and not coughing up an audio recording of Special Counsel Robert Hurs interview with President Biden  is just the latest example of that disinformation campaign at work.

I also mentioned how the House GOP uses journalistic conventions to run its disinformation campaign not just on the backs of friendly right-wing propaganda outfits, but also directly through witless mainstream news outlets.

Heres an easy example of what that looks like: Politico reduces it all to gamesmanship, score-keeping, and horse-race coverage. Under a headline that reads House GOP gets a political win for Trump, the lede is:

House Republicans landed a big political punch against President Joe Biden on Wednesday, just hours before theyre set to welcome Donald Trump to the Hill. They almost certainly cant do more before November.

Well done, everybody.

A final point on all this: Its clear to anyone paying a whit of attention that the House GOP is the forward operating base for Trumps campaign of retribution. He has set out to avenge all of the perceived slights, attacks, and legal accountability directed at him in part because hes characterologically incapable of anything else. But he also does it because it makes a strength out of a weakness and further inoculates him from the political damage of his criminal trials, especially with the kind of coverage he gets for it, even from non-propaganda outlets.

Holding Merrick Garland in contempt is just a small part of that larger revenge agenda.

Trump Returns To The Scene Of The Crime

Republicans welcome Donald Trump to the Hill today, his first visit since he, as president, instigated the Jan. 6 attack on the countrys legislative branch. But why let a violent armed mob sicced on the nations Capitol get in the way of letting bygones be bygones.

Also, This 

Trump is obsessed with getting Congress to somehow overturn his conviction  or at least exact revenge on those involved. See, e.g., Garland contempt of Congress vote above.

What Happened To The Proud Boys?

TPMs Josh Kovensky reports: Through a series of prosecutions, federal law enforcement effectively decapitated the Proud Boys leadership. Its left an organization that is vulnerable, unclear in its organization, more prone acting at the local level, far weaker than it was at the end of the Trump administration, but still resilient and capable of inflicting harm.

Lindsey Graham Kills Modest SCOTUS Reform Bill

Under pressure from nearly everyone left of center, Senate Democrats mustered a messaging bill on Supreme Court reform. It wasnt the most ambitious set of reforms, and they knew Republicans would kill it. Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) did the honors for Republican senators and refused to provide unanimous consent for the bill to proceed.

Quote Of The Day

I didnt expect her to meow several times. Lauren Windsor, the activist who posed as a conservative Catholic and secretly recorded Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito and his wife Martha at an event last week

The Supreme Court As Trumps Shamans

As we await the Supreme Courts decision on Trumps claims of presidential immunity, some sharp analysis beautifully executed by Yale historian Timothy Snyder:

The legal theory of Trumps coup attempt, made explicit in argument before the Supreme Court, is that the chieftain is immune to law. There is magic around the chieftains person, such that he need respond only to himself. The words presidential immunity are an incantation directed to directed to people in black robes, summoning them to act as the chieftains shamans and confirm his magical status. Some of the people in black robes, Supreme Court justices, like being shamans. Our shamans are allowed to take bribes from those who support the chieftain, and also allowed to claim that as magicians, people unlike others, they are unaffected by them. If there is any doubt, our shamans tell us, they can be trusted to be judges in their own case.

The full essay is here.

Senate GOP Expands Election-Year Blockade On Biden Noms

Some Senate Republicans are using Donald Trumps conviction as an excuse to do something they probably would have done (or at least wanted to do) anyway: Slow roll the confirmation of Biden nominees between now and the election. That same group expanded the blockade yesterday.

The hook here, of course, is that these senators are pitching in on the disinformation campaign that falsely claims President Biden engineered Trumps Manhattan hush money conviction.

On The IVF Front 

Senate Republicans are expected to filibuster today a Democratic bill to protect IVF access nationwide. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer set up the election year vote to put Republicans on the spot about their support for Dobbs and their lack of support for IVF.

TPMs Emine Yucel was on the Hill yesterday and filed this dispatch on Senate Republicans squirming and their tactics to try to flip the script on IVF.

The Southern Baptist Convention voted to oppose IVF as inconsistent with the dignity of every human being, which necessarily includes frozen embryonic human beings.

Quite A Trick

If Im reading this right, the extremist track record of Mark Robinson, the GOP nominee for governor in North Carolina, is so controversial that state Republicans are altering campaign finance laws to make it easer to make anonymous campaign contributions. So youll be able to contribute to Robinsons campaign without fear of being tarred by association with him!

End Of A Long Road

With so much time having elapsed, the last remaining survivors of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre had to rely on somewhat novel legal theories to seek reparations for the attack, and yesterday the Oklahoma Supreme Court rejected those arguments.

With All Due Respect Never Contained So Little Respect

Its nice to see someone not indulge Louisiana Republican Sen. John Kennedys overlarded bumpkin schtick. Jocelyn Frye, president of the National Partnership for Women & Families, is mesmerizing in this snippet of testimony. With her use of her voice, her body language, and the substance of her answer, she takes Kennedy apart at the molecular level:

At my hearing on the freedom to travel for abortion care, Senator Kennedy asked our witnesses to respond to a sensationalized, highly unrealistic hypothetical aimed at stoking fear.



Ms. Fryes response says it all. pic.twitter.com/UOXlyN1ly4  Sheldon Whitehouse (@SenWhitehouse) June 13, 2024

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The News

House Republicans sang Happy Birthday to Donald Trump to kick off their meeting Friday morning. What followed was a winding, hour-long discussion that saw the 78-year-old presumptive GOP nominee take shots at a king swing state city and possibly suggest a plan to eliminate personal income tax.

It was the first face-to-face meeting between Trump and Hill Republicans since the Jan. 6 riots, and began a day of gatherings meant to showcase his status as the partys leader.

As he presided at the Capitol Hill Club, the former president touched on the recent turmoil within the House GOP, jokingly telling Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga. to be nice to Speaker Mike Johnson, whom she tried and failed to topple earlier this year. It got a good laugh, said Nebraska Rep. Don Bacon.

Trump also reportedly called Milwaukee, the site of the upcoming Republican National Convention, a horrible city. As the comment quickly spread across the internet, some Republicans suggested it had been taken out of context, though they seemed to disagree on what, exactly, the context had been. Various members suggested it was a remark about elections, crime, or simply insisted hed never said it at all.

Regardless, the Biden re-election campaign quickly assailed the comment. Milwaukee  deserves better than a convicted felon, racist, and wannabe dictator who hates us and our values, Wisconsin Democratic Coordinated Campaign Manager Garren Randolph said in a statement.

On policy, Trump brought up a recent proposal to eliminate taxes on tips, per House Republicans in the room. But he also appeared to float replacing the personal income tax with tariffs, according to Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky.

If so, it was a retro idea: Import duties were the main source of federal revenue until the income tax was established in the early 20th century. Trump reportedly suggested during the meeting he was a big fan of former President William McKinley, a Republican known for his support of tariffs  though there appeared to be some uncertainty about Trumps message.

He talked about how we did our taxes up until World War One. It was all tariffs, Bacon told Semafor. So he mentioned that but...I dont know if he was suggesting we go back to that. He added Trump broadly talked about imposing tariffs as a tool to protect domestic industry.

Know More

Trump met with Republican senators later in the day at the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Some prominent skeptics of the former president were in attendance: Sens. Todd Young of Indiana; Mitt Romney, R-Utah, and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell.

Republican senators said Trump was cordial and didnt take shots at his critics. Sen. John Thune, the second-ranked GOP senator waging a bid to replace McConnell, told Semafor the meeting had a good tone and a good message.

Thune added that Trump addressed 2024 Senate races, and argued he could help expand an already favorable landscape for Republican senators. I think he clearly today wanted to deliver a message that was both in terms of substance and tone, a very unifying one and I think it was incredibly well received, he said.

The relationship between Trump and McConnell has been particularly frigid. The pair havent spoken since Dec. 2020, and McConnell said Trump was morally responsible after the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. The pair shook hands, and McConnell called the meeting positive afterwards.

Other GOP senators critical of Trump also struck a deferential tone towards their partys expected standard-bearer. Im here to work for my state. Im here to work for my country, Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La, who hasnt endorsed Trump, told reporters. So its not awkward to work with someone who polls show will be the next president.

It shows that he is absolutely the leader of the party, Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., told reporters. You had people who have vociferously opposed him, who were sitting right next to him in the room.
Trump Rolled The Dice Taking His Hush Money Case To Trial And Lost. Now He Might Lose Again.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump departs the courtroom after being found guilty on all 34 counts in his hush money trial at Manhattan Criminal Court on May 30, 2024 in New York City. Pool via Getty Images

A long-standing, unwritten rule that evolved to avoid clogging up the criminal justice system could now work to sentence newly convicted felon Donald Trump to prison when he appears before a New York City judge next month.

The former president, legal experts say, has put himself on the wrong side of a process that rewards those who do not force the state to expend the time and money for a jury trial  and punishes those who do. Any normal defendant who pleaded not guilty and then lost their trial, these experts note, would likely see the harsher end of the sentencing range.

If you spare the government the expenditure of resources and accept responsibility and plead guilty early in the process, you get some credit for that, said Rebecca Roiphe, a former state prosecutor in Manhattan and now a professor at New York University School of Law. Trump obviously didnt do that.

Trump also spent the entirety of the trial, from jury selection through his verdict and beyond, personally attacking the judge, the district attorney, the witnesses against him and the legitimacy of the entire nations justice system  something the vast majority of criminal defendants avoid doing.

I can assure you, if his name was not Donald John Trump, this is exactly the person and the case where a judge would give a stiff prison sentence, said Karen Agnifilo, also a former Manhattan prosecutor who is now a defense lawyer.

Neither Trumps lawyers nor his campaign staff replied to HuffPost queries about his July 11 sentencing.

Everyone accused of a crime in America has a right to a trial by jury. But jury trials are labor-intensive and time-consuming for prosecutors, public defenders, judges and court staff. Further, the volume of criminal cases in most jurisdictions means it would be physically impossible to take every case to trial without a manyfold increase in the number of taxpayer-funded lawyers, judges and courtrooms.

Over the decades, the workaround that has been almost universally adopted results in the vast majority of prosecutions being resolved with plea agreements  or bargains  that allow the accused to admit to the charged crime or a lesser crime in exchange for a reduced jail term or, depending on the severity of the offense, even just probation.

But for those who insist on taking a case to trial and end up getting convicted by a jury, particularly when the facts underlying the charges are well-established, the end result is often a sentence much closer to the maximum allowed under the law.

I can say generally that, across jurisdictions, prosecutors typically rely on the prospect of harsh alternatives to incentivize pleading, said Lee Kovarsky, a University of Texas law professor.

The basic facts of Trumps case had been well-known since 2018, when Trumps former lawyer and fixer, Michael Cohen, pleaded guilty to violating federal campaign finance laws and former National Enquirer publisher David Pecker signed a no-prosecution agreement with federal prosecutors.

Both explained during Trumps trial the circumstances that led Cohen to pay porn actor Stormy Daniels $130,000 to keep her story about a sexual encounter with Trump out of the headlines in the days leading up to the 2016 election.

Pecker told prosecutors that he refused to get involved in the Daniels payoff after the National Enquirers top lawyer advised him that the tabloids earlier $150,000 payment to a Playboy model who had a similar story about Trump would become a federal crime if he accepted a reimbursement for it from Trump.

The payment to Daniels by, according to Cohens plea, was an illegal campaign contribution that Trump arranged and then reimbursed Cohen for.

At that time, Trump was the sitting president and Department of Justice policy barred prosecutions against him.

Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg pursued a state prosecution of Trump on those same underlying facts but charged him for falsifying business records to hide the illegal campaign contribution. Rather than taking a plea, though, Trump insisted that he had done nothing wrong.

Late last month, a Manhattan jury agreed that Bragg was right and that Trump had, in fact, falsified 34 such records for that purpose.

While Trump faces three other indictments, including two based on his Jan. 6, 2021, coup attempt, at the time of his scheduled sentencing on July 11 he will be a first offender in a non-violent crime  a category that, had Trump pleaded guilty, would have almost certainly given him no time behind bars.

That ship has sailed, Roiphe said, adding that all of Trumps outside-the-courtroom behavior that judge Juan Merchan prevented the jury from considering in its deliberations was now fair game in his sentencing decision, including his conduct during the trial and around the trial and his disrespect for the process.

Agnifilo said that Trumps attacks on and attempts to intimidate witnesses should weigh heavily in Merchans decision.

A defendant should be rewarded for taking responsibility for their actions and sparing witnesses and victims from this arduous and often painful process. Here, Trump still has never taken responsibility, shows no remorse, continues to deny it and, if he could, would attack the witnesses, she said.

Each of the 34 felonies Trump was convicted on carries a maximum sentence of one and one-third to four years in state prison, although multiple felonies arising from the same criminal act  there were 11 separate payments to Cohen  generally result in a single sentence. Merchan could further let all Trumps sentences run concurrently, could give the former president house arrest or even just give him probation and fines.

Most importantly for Trump, he could delay any sentence of incarceration until after Trump has pursued an appeal  a courtesy often granted in non-violent offenses. That would almost certainly mean that Trump, the presumptive 2024 GOP presidential candidate, would remain free in the final months leading up to the November election.

Trumps continued attacks on the justice system  and his refusal to express even a modicum of remorse  could make it hard for Merchan to find a way to avoid giving Trump at least some period behind bars without acknowledging that Trump is getting special treatment, Roiphe said.

It almost makes it difficult for the judge to be as lenient as the defense might want, she said.

If convicted on the Jan. 6 charges in either federal or Georgia state court, Trump could receive decades in prison. A separate federal prosecution based on his refusal to turn over secret documents he took with him to his South Florida country club upon leaving the White House could also result in decades in prison time.

If Trump manages to win back the White House, however, he could order the Justice Department to dismiss any federal charges against him that remain unresolved and likely win a delay of the Georgia state prosecution until he is no longer in office.

Related...
Trump claims Nancy Pelosis daughter said the two would be perfect together - an assertion her family denies

Republican presidental frontrunner Donald Trump told his partys members that Democrat Nancy Pelosi sdughter said the two would be perfect together - a comment that drew the immediate ire of her family.

Nancy Pelosis daughter is a whacko, Trump allegedly said on Capitol Hill on Thursday while speaking to House Republicans. Her daughter told me if things were different Nancy and I would be perfect together.

The 77-year-old added: Theres an age difference though.

????? -- FROM TRUMP to House Republicans -- close to exact quote.



'Nancy Pelosis daughter is a whacko, her daughter told me if things were different Nancy and I would be perfect together, theres an age difference though.'



I dont know what this means, really. But this is what  Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) June 13, 2024

Nancy Pelosi is just seven years older than Trump. Meanwhile, Trump is 23 years older than his wife Melania.

Pelosis daughter, Christine Pelosi, immediately jumped on the claim, tweeting: Speaking for all 4 Pelosi daughters  this is a LIE.

His deceitful, deranged obsession with our mother is yet another reason Donald Trump is unwell, unhinged and unfit to step foot anywhere near her  or the White House, she added.

Pelosis spokesperson echoed this, writing in response to Trumps quote: This man is not well.

A representative from Pelosis office declined to comment on the matter.

Trump and Pelosi, who served as House Speaker during Trumps term, famously did not get along.

Trump looks on as he arrives to deliver a campaign speech during a Turning Point USA event at the Dream City Church in Phoenix, Arizona on June 6 (REUTERS)

The former president visited Capitol Hill on Thursday to meet with House and Senate GOP lawmakers behind closed doors on Thursday, marking his first return to the site since the Capitol riot on January 6, 2021.

The California Democrat slammed his planned visit ahead of his arrival, telling The Hill: Today, the instigator of an insurrection is returning to the scene of the crime.

January 6th was a crime against the Capitol, that saw Nazi and Confederate flags flying under the dome that Lincoln built, she continued.

It was a crime against the Constitution and its peaceful transfer of power, in a desperate attempt to cling to power, Pelosi said. And it was a crime against Members, heroic police officers and staff, that resulted in death, injury and trauma that endure to this day.

Pelosi arrives to attend an official state dinner as part of US President's state visit to France on June 8, 2024 (AFP via Getty Images)

Social media users were quick to pounce on the claim.

One user joked: Well an age gap has never been an issue for trump.

7 years. Which would make their age difference the closest Trump has had since his first divorce, another similarly said.

Another wrote, He obviously has a crush on Nancy. Who wouldnt?

Oh my god, he was fantasizing a romcom thing between him and Pelosi while he was in office, another chimed in.
Despite the Supreme Court unanimously rejecting an attack on abortion pills this week, pro-choice advocates are cautioning against calling the decision a win  and for good reason.

The ruling rejected the anti-abortion plaintiffs on standing, not on the merits of the case, which simply maintains the status quo of abortion access in the U.S. The decision does not offer additional protections to mifepristone, the abortion drug at the center of the case, and the door is wide open for continued attacks.

There are a few ways Donald Trump could circumvent the courts and Congress to ban mifepristone across the country if he wins the presidency in November. Trumps anti-abortion allies have outlined the presumptive GOP presidential nominees second-term agenda in Project 2025, a wish list of extreme policy proposals that would reshape the federal government. There are at least three ways Trump can use executive action to ban abortion nationwide, including in states where abortion care is currently protected.

He has a literal blueprint to expand the chaos and cruelty hes already created nationwide, even in states where abortion is currently legal, Julie Chavez Rodriguez, the Biden-Harris campaign manager, told reporters in a call on Thursday.

Trump's second-term agenda threatens women in all 50 states.Julie Chavez Rodriguez, Biden-Harris campaign

Donald Trumps anti-reproductive freedom agenda is not just a threat to red states, she continued. Trumps second-term agenda threatens women in all 50 states, and its extremely dangerous for womens health care and our families.

As president, Trump could replace the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration and direct them to revoke the agencys approval of mifepristone. Mifepristone is prescribed as part of a two-drug regimen alongside misoprostol for abortion and miscarriage care  which together are used in more than 60% of abortions in the U.S. The drug was approved by the FDA in 2000 and has since been used safely and effectively by nearly 6 million Americans, according to the agency.

Trumps ability to appoint a new FDA commissioner would take mifepristone out of circulation, effectively implementing an abortion ban in both red and blue states. Recalling mifepristone would have devastating effects on abortion care in the U.S., as well as care for other medical conditions that are treated with mifepristone, like Cushing syndrome and hyperglycemia.

The other proposal outlined in Project 2025 includes enforcing the Comstock Act, a 150-year-old law that criminalizes sending obscene materials in the mail, including anything intended for producing abortion. Around 20 states enacted abortion bans after the Supreme Court repealed Roe v. Wade in 2022  forcing some pregnant people to travel out of state to get care, or else continue with an unwanted or unsafe pregnancy.

But abortion rates have generally stayed the same in large part because people can still access abortion pills by mail. The Comstock Act would prohibit sending pills by mail to any state in the country, creating a backdoor abortion ban overnight.

The Comstock Act is a dangerous weapon for anti-abortion groups, and they know it. Jonathan Mitchell, an attorney representing Trump in his own case before the Supreme Court, has said that Republicans dont need a nationwide abortion ban because the Comstock Act exists.

We dont need a federal ban when we have Comstock on the books, Mitchell told The New York Times in February. Mitchell is also the architect of the Texas abortion bounty hunter law, which banned abortion in the state over a year before Roe v. Wade was repealed.

He added about Trump: I hope he doesnt know about the existence of Comstock, because I just dont want him to shoot off his mouth. I think the pro-life groups should keep their mouths shut as much as possible until the election.

Former president Donald Trump speaks at an event in Phoenix on June 6, 2024. Justin Sullivan via Getty Images

Awareness of the Comstock Act is alarmingly low: Two in three Americans do not know about the Comstock Act and its implications, according to recent polling from Navigator Research and Global Strategy Group. Seven in 10 Americans opposed the enforcement of the law after learning about it.

The way that these anti-abortion extremists want to misuse the Comstock Act is entirely wrong from a legal perspective, Julia Kaye, senior staff attorney at the ACLUs Reproductive Freedom Project, told reporters during a Thursday press call. They are defying the consensus of the federal appellate court, the U.S. Postal Service, Congress and the Department of Justice.

The third way Trump could ban abortion nationwide comes back to this weeks Supreme Court case. There will likely be continued litigation because the case was not dismissed but remanded back to Judge Matthew Kacsmaryks courtroom.

Kacsmaryk is the far-right Trump appointee, well-known for his anti-abortion views, who ruled last year that the FDA unlawfully approved mifepristone in 2000. After the Supreme Court took the case, Kacsmaryk allowed attorneys general from Idaho, Kansas and Missouri to be added as plaintiffs. Those officials have suggested they will continue litigating the case  either by continuing in Kacsmaryks Amarillo courtroom or by filing copycat lawsuits in other federal district courts.

The lawsuit that was in front of the Supreme Court should not be allowed to continue in Amarillo based on legal precedent, Kaye said. But if it does move forward in Amarillo or through copycat suits, a Trump Justice Department could stop defending the FDA and its evidence-based mifepristone regulations.

Mitchell, the attorney betting on enforcing the Comstock Act, is reportedly on Trumps short list for attorney general.

The bottom line is that these attacks on medication abortion and on all abortion nationwide are absolutely going to continue despite the relief of todays decision, Kaye said.

Related...
Trump has confounded modern voting trends to come within striking distance of Joe Biden among young voters in several polls - John Locher/AP

Donald Trump could become the first Republican presidential candidate in a generation to win the youth vote, polls suggest, as he proposed ending taxation on tips.

Trump, 77, has confounded modern voting trends to come within striking distance of Joe Biden among young voters in several polls, even beating the Democratic president in some surveys.

A major New York Times/Siena College poll of likely voters in April found Mr Biden had just a two-point lead over Trump among 18 to 29-year-olds, 47 per cent to 45 per cent.

Trump was marginally ahead of Mr Biden  48 per cent to 47 per cent  among registered voters aged between 18 and 34 in a recent Quinnipiac University survey.

Democratic strategists have been alarmed by the data, and suggested concerns over the 81-year-old presidents age, and his support for Israel in its war in Gaza, are to blame.

Millennials and Gen Z overwhelmingly backed Mr Biden in 2020 by a margin of 24 per cent.

An erosion in support among the group could be catastrophic for his hopes of winning a second term.

Despite the presidents efforts to keep them on side, with large spending on cancelling student debt, and aggressively championing abortion rights, there are signs young people are warming to the Republican Party.

A Reuters/Ipsos poll in March found a higher proportion of 18 to 29-year-olds now identifies as Republican, going from 24 per cent in 2016 to 28 per cent this year.

While pollsters have cautioned that surveying young voters is notoriously difficult, if the trend is reflected on election day on Nov 5, it would represent a major generational shift.

No Republican presidential nominee has won young voters since George HW Bush in 1988.

Trumps outreach to Americas youth has been reflected in a number of policy proposals at odds with his partys stance.

They include his surprise opposition to a ban on the platform TikTok, something he once embraced, and which has bipartisan support in Congress, particularly from GOP senators eager to take an aggressive stance on China.

Trump has also embraced digital currencies, and the use of digital assets such as non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

At a recent fundraiser in Silicon Valley, Trump promised to be a crypto president as he presented himself as a champion for cryptocurrency and contrasted Democrats attempts to regulate the sector.

His most overt outreach to Americas younger generations came over the weekend, with his promise to end taxation on income derived from tips.

When I get to office, we are going to not charge taxes on tips, he said at a rally near the Las Vegas strip in Nevada, a battleground state that is heavily dependent on the hospitality industry.

He narrowly lost Nevada in 2020 and 2016, and the state is seen as closely competitive again this November.

Trump, who owns service-industry businesses himself, promised the crowd in Las Vegas that the citys hotel staff were going to be very happy.

He added: Were going to do that right away, first thing in office, because its been a point of contention for years and years and years.

However, the tax change would require approval from Congress, and would likely reduce federal revenue by tens of billions of dollars annually.

Analysts also said the policy would create an incentive for employers, who are required to pay taxes on both tips and wages, to keep wages low and pressure customers to tip more.

Trumps policy proposal on tipping may also boost his support among Hispanic voters, a critical constituency in Nevada and several other battleground regions, and whom polls suggest are abandoning Mr Biden.

Despite Trumps inroads with Americas youth, polls also suggest a shift at the other end of the electorate, with Mr Biden leading overall among voters aged 65 and older in the Quinnipiac study.

If the polls are true, it would suggest an age inversion, with no Democratic presidential candidate carrying the senior vote since Al Gore in 2000.

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KYODO NEWS - Jun 13, 2024 - 11:49 | All, World, Japan

Canadian police said Wednesday they have arrested a 32-year-old man on suspicion of murder in connection with the fatal stabbing of Japanese chef Wataru Kakiuchi in Vancouver a week earlier.

Police do not believe Kakiuchi and the suspect, Timothy Isborn, who was arrested Monday afternoon, knew each other, the Vancouver Police Department said in a news release.

The department launched an investigation after Kakiuchi was found injured near the city's Chinatown at around 3:30 a.m. local time on June 5. He had been stabbed and died prior to being transported to hospital, the police said.

According to media reports, Kakiuchi began working in Vancouver at a Japanese-style izakaya restaurant from around 2015 and had expressed his desire to remain in Canada for the long term.

Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim has offered his condolences to Kakiuchi's family and colleagues, describing the victim as "more than a talented chef" who was "a positive presence and a cherished friend to many."

Kakiuchi came from Iruma in Saitama Prefecture, according to his social media account.

Related coverage:

Japanese chef Kakiuchi stabbed to death on street in Vancouver

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Doctor at scene of Akihabara mass killing recalls pain of lives lost
On 13 June, Donald Trump criticised the US$60 billion Ukraine aid package in a private meeting with Republican Party officials at the Capitol.

Source: Reuters with reference to the participants of the meeting, as reported by European Pravda

Details: At a closed-door meeting, the US ex-president stated that he would seek to increase the Republican majority in the House of Representatives and urged party members to put aside internal disagreements.

Trump also discussed real political moves, such as abandoning the concept of prohibiting abortion at the federal level, lowering taxes on tip money to secure the votes of service workers, and backing tariffs to safeguard the US steel sector.

Don Bacon, a spokesman for the far-right side of Republicans, also stated Trump criticised Ukraine's US$60 billion aid package, which received bipartisan approval.

"He's like, if Ukraine wins, what will be the benefit?" said Bacon.

Trump has often boasted that if elected, he could negotiate a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine within 24 hours. However, he has repeatedly refused to publicly specify how he would do so.

There have been reports in the media that Trump supposedly seeks to push Ukraine to make concessions to Russia and transfer Ukrainian territories, in particular Crimea and Donbas, under its control.

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Donald Trump vocalized his support for Bitcoin  and for bringing mining operations for the digital currency to the United States  in a Truth Social post, weeks after championing the crime-linked coin at the Libertarian National Convention, to boos.

The post, put up minutes before midnight Eastern time on Tuesday, reads VOTE FOR TRUMP! Bitcoin mining may be our last line of defense against a CBDC, or a central bank digital currency, a digital form of currency that a bank like the Federal Reserve could hypothetically implement.

Though he rallied against the niche potential currency, Trump also demonstrated his lack of digital fluency in the post, arguing that making, or mining, all Bitcoin in the United States will help us be ENERGY DOMINANT. Bitcoin mining is among the most energy-intensive computer processes, and there is no link between energy production and the invented currency.

Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, which reached an all-time value high this March, have grown significantly in popularity over the past several years, but it's unlikely that Trumps attempt to court the crypto-bro vote will be a decisive factor in the election, with a 2023 Pew poll finding that the vast majority of Americans reject the currency as a safe and reliable store of value.

Trump also attacked "Bidens hatred of Bitcoin," claiming that he was helping foreign powers by not embracing the inherently worthless tokens.

While the Biden administration has been mostly quiet on the issue of Bitcoin, and the Biden campaign reportedly even considered accepting the digital commodity in donations, Democrats in the Senate advanced a bill through the intelligence select committee which would place more scrutiny on cryptocurrency transactions, worrying some traders.

The highly-volatile digital coins have been linked to numerous illicit activities, including drug and human trafficking, scams, and terrorism. The coins use of a blockchain, which anonymizes the exchange process, makes them ideal for crime. Cryptocurrency exchange boss Sam Bankman-Fried landed 25 years in prison after defrauding customers and investors to the tune of nearly $10 billion.
Whos the Black guy?: Evangelicals want Trump to pick an anti-abortion running mate. They care less who it is.

INDIANAPOLIS  Eight years ago, needing a running mate to vouch for him among skittish evangelicals, Donald Trump turned to Mike Pence, tossing an olive branch to Republicans wary of the thrice-married real estate mogul who once said he was very pro-choice.

Its a different story now: To those same voters this year, according to interviews with nearly two dozen religious leaders gathered here for the annual meeting of the Southern Baptist Convention, Trumps selection is bordering on a forgettable formality  less interesting to them because theyve already made up their minds to back him, even if begrudgingly so.

I think evangelicals will generally, by and large, vote for him regardless of who he picks, said Kevin McClure, a member of a Baptist church in Louisville, Kentucky, who spoke as he waited for Trump himself to beam into a meeting held on the sidelines of the convention. Because the Republican platform currently, in the very least, has a place for pro-life priorities, even if theyre not as strong as many of us would want.

Or as Mike Spradlin, a delegate to the convention from Memphis, Tennessee, put it: I don't really know that it moves the needle one way or the other.

Its not that the vice presidential pick is irrelevant to the faithful. Many evangelicals here say they want Trump to pick someone who is sufficiently anti-abortion, or even to Trumps right on the issue  both because that person could press their cause inside the West Wing and because he or she could be in line to inherit the MAGA movement.



Albert Mohler, a prominent evangelical theologian and president of Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, argued that Trumps vice presidential pick could mean the difference between on-the-fence voters staying home or turning out to the polls come November. Mohler said Trump should pick someone who not only says the right things on abortion but hopefully has a track record of defending them.

But who, exactly, Trump picks from his shortlist is of far less concern. To most evangelicals here, the people Trumps considering  at least the ones they know  seem to pass that litmus test.

Whos the Black guy? asked Bonnie Fitch, of Carter Creek Missionary Baptist Church in Greenville, Kentucky.

Asked whether she was referring to South Carolina Sen. Tim Scott, the former presidential candidate who is known for his evangelical faith, she and her husband lit up. I just like the way hes been speaking, said Bonnies husband, Sid.

Trumps campaign is said to be vetting eight potential candidates: Scott, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Florida Rep. Byron Donalds, New York Rep. Elise Stefanik, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, Arkansas Sen. Tom Cotton and former Housing and Urban Development Secretary Ben Carson. His pick will likely be announced close to the partys convention in Milwaukee beginning on July 15.

Trump is entering a very different kind of veepstakes now than he was in 2016. His governing style is clearer now than it was then.

We took a risk on what he said he would do, and he came through and he delivered in that case, said Scott Colter, the CEO of the Danbury Institute, which wants to eradicate abortion, as he introduced Trumps pre-recorded video message to a room full of Southern Baptists. And so we can debate all day long the merits of who Donald Trump is and his personality and all of those different things. But he did what he said he would do.  And Im tremendously grateful for that.

But who he should pick to run with him resonated less here. Mohler declined to say who he would like to see the former president pick. And other evangelicals  while namechecking Rubio most, followed by Scott  didnt have an overwhelming favorite. Many couldnt name more than even a few.

Several of those interviewed specifically pointed to Rubios youth  in addition to his conservative bona fides  as one of his assets. At 53, he is not the youngest candidate under consideration  Vance is 39. But they expressed concerns about the ability of Trump, who is 77, to complete a second term.



I really like Rubio because I think he has the fortitude to carry on as president after Trump, said Daryl Poe, who attends Mt. Carmel Baptist Church in Cincinnati, Ohio. The young man from Ohio, J.D. Vance, seems to be more politically aligned with Trump than anyone else, but I dont think he has enough time nationally to be that well known.

Evangelicals are also aware that Trumps MAGA base is predominantly white, and some said he should pick a running mate like Scott or Rubio to appeal to voters of color.

A diversity candidate would be great because Trump is for everybody. I feel like thats a common misconception that hes just for white people, but hes for everybody, said Bryan Gotcher, a pastor at Oakhill Baptist Church in Evansville, Indiana. Theres a lot of ethnic people who are rallying to him, so thats really encouraging.

And then theres the issue of abortion. On Tuesday, one attendee at the convention who is to Trumps right on the issue spent 40 minutes over lunch sharing insights with pastors about how important it is to be a voice for evangelical causes in the public square. I honestly think we havent come to the end of the debate over life: Weve come to the end of the beginning, the attendee said.

Heads nodded.

But asked by a reporter whether he had a favorite candidate or advice for whomever Trump would pick, the attendee, who drove here from his residence about 30 minutes away, didnt have much to say.

The man, former Vice President Mike Pence, smiled at the question. And then he slipped out the exit.
After a jury found him guilty on 34 felony counts, Donald Trump knew exactly who to call for a solution: House Speaker Mike Johnson.

In a conversation reportedly laced with F-bombs, Trump urged the Louisiana Republican to find a political solution for his legal comeuppance, Politico reported Thursday.

We have to overturn this, Trump told a sympathetic Johnson, according to Politico.

Johnson already believed that the House had a role to play in overturning Trumps conviction, but since that call, hes practically done backflips to make it happen. During an interview on Fox and Friends last month, Johnson urged the Supreme Court to step in and overturn the jurys verdict.

I think that the justices on the courtI know many of them personallyI think they are deeply concerned about that, as we are. So I think theyll set this straight, Johnson said, before effectively promising to viewers that the nations highest court would step in to make the ruling go away. This will be overturned, guys, theres no question about it; its just going to take some time to do it.

The House Speaker is looking to unravel Trumps other criminal charges, as well. Johnson is reportedly examining using the appropriations process to target special counsel Jack Smiths probe, and is already in talks with Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan to do so. Its a near reversal of a position he took early last month, when Johnson told Politico that a similar idea proposed by Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene would be unworkable.

That country certainly sees whats going on, and they dont want Fani Willis and Alvin Bragg and these kinds of folks to be able to continue to use grant dollars for targeting people in a political lawfare type of way, Jordan told the publication.

But other Republicans arent exactly on board with the idea of defunding the special counseleven if they disagree with the case against Trump.

I dont think its a good idea unless you can show that [the prosecutors] acted in bad faith or fraud or something like that, Idaho Representative Mike Simpson told Politico. Theyre just doing their jobeven though I disagree with what they did.

Another, unnamed Republican went even further in torching the effort, claiming that attacking Smiths case would completely undermine their calls against Democrats for weaponizing the justice system to their political benefit.
Former President Donald Trumps White House Deputy Press Secretary Hogan Gidley speaks at a news conference about cleaning up the states voter roll on June 12, 2024. (Photo: Anna Liz Nichols)

Former President Donald Trumps White House deputy press secretary, Hogan Gidley, on Wednesday joined Republican lawmakers on the Michigan Capitol lawn to push for cleaning up the states voter rolls.

Gidley, who now serves as vice chair of the Center for Election Integrity for the Trump-affiliated America First Policy Institute, talked about concerns conservative groups have that Michigan has more people listed as qualified voters than there are qualified voters, condemning Democratic leadership for weakened election integrity.

Our goal at the Center for Election Integrity is very simple: Make it easy to vote and hard to cheat, Gidley said. People on the political right and left have been complaining about elections in this country for decades  People have been concerned about the validity and the outcome of our elections.

Gidley spoke before state Rep. Rachelle Smit (R-Martin) and former Secretary of State and current state Sen. Ruth Johnson (R-Holly), who organized the event. Both lawmakers railed against changes to the states election laws under the Legislatures Democratic leadership and called for tighter laws for voting, just as they did at a similar event last week. Reps. Alicia St. Germaine (R-Harrison Twp.) and Gina Johnsen (R-Odessa Twp.) were also at the press conference.

The Michigan Secretary of States Office reports that about 69% of the population eligible to vote was registered to vote in 2020, just over 8 million people. However, Gidley said theres 27 counties in Michigan with registration rates at or above 100% for eligible registrants.

This data raises the obvious question which is: Are all the people on the voter rolls here in Michigan, actually eligible to cast ballots and vote? You think the answer is yes? Take into consideration please, tens of millions of people flooding into this country illegally with no checks and balances from the government whatsoever and of course, when you dont require voter ID to cast ballots, you get serious issues that you open yourself up needlessly to ineligible voters casting ballots and elections, Gidley said.

Trump and Republicans across the country have been using the issue of undocumented people voting as a campaign issue this year.

However, voting by noncitizens in federal elections is very rare and attempts by noncitizens to vote are identified, according to numerous studies and audits performed by different groups in different states.

According to The Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank, less than 100 cases of voter fraud have been connected to noncitizens since 2002, as of a March count by The Washington Post.

The assertion that theres more people registered to vote in some counties than there are eligible voters is one the Republican National Committee (RNC) has taken to court in Michigan in March. The filing says there are 76 counties out of Michigans 83 counties where voter registration is unreasonably high and the state does not maintain accurate voter rolls, threatening rightful voters right to vote.

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) responded to the lawsuit in May saying that the RNCs math uses voter registration rates from 2024 to compare to 2022 census population data.

The Brennan Center For Justice put out a statement in April denouncing the RNCs actions saying its seeking a stop to the lawsuit that threatens to disenfranchise Michigan voters.

The statement says that federal law requires states to make reasonable efforts to remove ineligible voters from the voter roll once theyve died or move to another state and Michigan delivers on that requirement.

Michigans list maintenance programs more than meet this bar. Nevertheless, the RNC is relying on a debunked methodology to claim that Michigans voter rolls have too many registrants and the state must purge them more aggressively, the Brennan Center For Justice statement said.

People on both sides of the political spectrum have lost faith in elections, Gidley said, noting that Michigan has seen prosecutions for ballot tampering and forged signatures. And whether its by ignorance or malice, laws are being broken, he said, and it needs to stop.

Republican voters are significantly less confident in election processes than their Democratic counterparts, according to an October 2022 Pew Research Center survey. The survey found that 44% of Republican voters reported they believed elections in November 2022 would be run not too well or not at all well, whereas 12% of Democrat voters reported sharing those feelings.

Gidley said he and the Republican lawmakers present will be delivering a packet of information and concerns to the offices of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson, Attorney General Dana Nessel, House Speaker Joe Tate (D-Detroit) and the president of the state Senate, likely meaning Senate Majority Leader Winnie Brinks (D-Grand Rapids. All are Democrats.

As we began to kind of comb through this data and information, we realized just how bloated these voter rolls are, Gidley said. We wanted to make sure that the elected officials could not claim ignorance on the matter.

The post Trumps former deputy press secretary calls for a clean up of Michigan voter rolls appeared first on Michigan Advance.
Trump humiliates Marjorie Taylor Greene, telling her to be nice to Speaker Johnson after her push to oust him

Donald Trump tried to quell divisions within the House Republican conference on Thursday when he stopped by Washington DC to attend meetings with the full House and Senate Republican caucuses.

But he did so in a very Trumpian way  by publicly humiliating one of his own allies, Georgia Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene.

The ex-president was reported by Politicos Olivia Beavers to have singled out the outspoken conservative gadfly during his remarks to Republicans in the lower chamber.

Pointing to Mike Johnson, the speaker of the House who recently survived an effort led by Greene to remove him, Trump called out Greene: Hello Marjorie... are you being nice to him?

Separately, he is said to have praised Johnson as having done a great job in the less than one year he has served in the speakers chair. Johnson took over last fall after the chambers Republican majority scrambled for weeks to elect a new speaker in the wake of a rebellion by conservatives that ousted Kevin McCarthy, Johnsons predecessor. McCarthy would go on to resign from the House altogether, having served less than a year in the role of speaker.

Greene confirmed the account in an interview with CNN after the meeting.

He saw me...he said Hello, Marjorie  hes always so sweet  recognizes me, and he says, Are you being nice? He was joking: Are you being nice to Speaker Johnson?

And I said, Ehhh, Greene continued, explaining that she had indicated otherwise: And he said, OK, be nice to him. And I nodded my head.

Johnson and Greenes conflict stems from an issue on which the Georgia congresswoman is firmly in the minority: Ukraine. Despite opposition from his partys right wing, Johnson relented to pressure from the Senate and Democrats in the House to bring a bill providing military assistance to Ukraine to the floor of the House, where it passed easily, in April. The speaker had spent months avoiding doing so; the Senate passed Ukraine aid as part of a larger bill in February.

By calling the vote on Ukraine aid, Johnson spurred Greene into filing a motion to vacate the speakership. She had publicly warned him as early as January that she would do so if the speaker allowed aid to pass the chamber, unwilling to accept the will of a majority vote.

Greene was joined by two other Republicans in her effort to oust Johnson, but failed after Democrats in the House announced that theyd join with Republican to protect Johnson, lacking the numbers to elect one of their own and willing to extend and olive branch given Johnsons willingness to relent on the issue of Ukraine.

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) and Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) speak to members of the press on the steps of the House of Representatives after a meeting with Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) at the U.S. Capitol on May 7, 2024 in Washington, DC (Getty Images)

This wasnt the first time Trump had sought to give Johnson a boost as he faced criticism from conservatives, with Greene leading the charge.

As the Georgia congresswoman was threatening the motion to vacate this spring, Trump called the House speaker down to Mar-a-Lago where the two unveiled a bill aimed at preventing undocumented immigrants from voting in US elections.

(AP)

The ex-presidents arrival in Washington was met by protesters who lined the sidewalks outside of the building where Trump met with his Republican allies. Now under 34 felony convictions, Trumps influence was most recently felt in Washington earlier this year when he pressured Republicans to kill a piece of compromise legislation around the issue of border security hammered out by Democrats and members of his own party in the Senate.

His visit to the capital was also a reversal of the dynamic that has played out in recent months over the course of his criminal trial in Manhattan. Johnson and other Republicans including Lauren Boebert, Eli Crane and Matt Gaetz have trekked to New York to join Trump as he sat through weeks of criminal trial proceedings which led to his guilty conviction on all counts of falsifying business documents  charges which related to a hush money scheme he tried to conceal during the 2016 presidential election.

Trumps visit to Washington comes as he is set to accept the Republican Partys nomination for president next month at the partys convention in Milwaukee. He won a primary against rivals Nikki Haley, Ron DeSantis and others earlier this year with a commanding majority of the Republican voting base behind his candidacy.
Former President Trump is headed to Capitol Hill to strike a unified tone ahead of November with congressional Republicans  including a number of senators he doesnt always see eye to eye with.

At the top of the list is Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), whom Trump has repeatedly feuded with since leaving office. The two are set to be in the same room together for the first time since 2020 and their infamous fallout, which has been semirepaired in recent months as the GOP leader officially endorsed Trumps campaign.

Now, its all about unity, and that starts at the top with those two.

I imagine itll be a big bear hug, Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.) quipped about the duo. Theyre both adults. I imagine theyll be cordial and listen attentively.  Theyve both been leaders.

Its a grand opportunity for us all to get together, he said.

The visit will be one of three stops on the day for the ex-president, who is also set to address House Republicans and the Business Roundtable. It comes at a crucial time in the cycle as he holds a slim lead over President Biden in battleground states, and Senate Republicans have grown bullish that they will win back the upper chamber after four years in the minority.

For Republicans, the hope is Thursday will help get them on the same page as they head toward next months Republican National Convention, and as Trump deals with the fallout from his felony conviction in New York two weeks ago.

Division only helps our opposition, said Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas), a top McConnell ally who is running to succeed him atop the conference. So unity is really important, and I think President Trump understands that.

Part of McConnells calculus for supporting Trump was giving all of his members a boost for their Senate bids, including in a pair of red states where the former president is popular, and to help usher through the partys preferred primary candidates.

That was on display over the weekend, as Trump backed Sam Brown in Nevada after much cajoling from party leaders. Brown easily won his primary Tuesday with 60 percent of the vote.

Trump and McConnell also have an interest in getting in tune ahead of November, one source noted: If Trump runs well at the top of the ticket, it could bolster down-ballot candidates who hold the keys to the Senate majority.

That would allow Trump to push through a slew of policy priorities, while McConnell would end his tenure as Republican leader having helped usher in a new GOP majority.

Theyre going to have to all be on the same page, and Trump is going to be the one to tell them exactly how to do it, said one GOP strategist who is friendly with the Trump campaign.

McConnell on Wednesday declined to say what he plans to say to Trump the following day, including regarding their shared bad blood. He added only that he has said multiple times since Jan. 6, 2021, that he would support the GOP presidential nominee and that he backs Trump.

And of course, Ill be at the meeting tomorrow, McConnell said.

A senior Trump campaign official told The Hill the meeting will be focused on setting a policy agenda that could be quickly enacted if Republicans win control of Congress and the White House in November.

That includes efforts to extend the 2017 tax cuts, which are set to expire in 2025, as well as immigration and border policy.

This would mark the second policy-related conversation Senate Republicans have had in as many days after Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) met with them over lunch to discuss possible budget reconciliation options if the GOP hits the trifecta in November.

I hope we do get into a little bit of policy, actually. You talk about uniting factors  policy is where were pretty united, Cramer said. I think it would be good politics as well.

But officials close to the Trump campaign acknowledged the meeting, and Trumps trip to Washington in general, serves a broader purpose to assert the former presidents control over the party and demonstrate a show of force with the first debate against President Biden on the horizon.

Its a direct and obvious signal that Donald Trump and no one else is the head of the Republican Party, one Trump ally said.

But one thing that is certain is that all of the Senate GOP conference will not greet Trump with open arms when they meet at the National Republican Senatorial Committee, including a number who are hostile toward the ex-president.

At least three Senate Republicans  Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Susan Collins (Maine) and Mitt Romney (Utah)  said they will not be in attendance and said they have conflicts.

Two Senate Republicans, Todd Young (Ind.) and Bill Cassidy (La.), are also up in the air. Young has declined to answer all Trump-related questions this week, while Cassidy said that he was trying to finagle his schedule accordingly.

Murkowski, Collins, Romney and Cassidy all voted to convict Trump in his impeachment trial over trying to overturn the election. Romney also voted to convict Trump in his first impeachment trial related to Ukraine.

But for those attending who have been in these sorts of meetings with the ex-president, the one thing they know to expect is the unknown.

You have no idea what Trumps going to talk about, Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) said. Its just totally unpredictable.

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 The Hill.
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  Donald Trump is returning to Capitol Hill Thursday to meet with both House and Senate Republicans.

The visit marks Trumps first return since the January 6th Capitol riot.

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) says lawmakers are anxious to exchange ideas with the presumptive Republican nominee for president.

Republicans say they feel confident they can win the House, Senate and White House this November.

Change is comingNovember cannot get here soon enough, said Johnson.

Johnson says Republicans are prepared to advance a series of bills and executive orders within the first hundred days to reverse President Joe Bidens policies.

Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who endured a public spat with Trump, says he will attend Thursdays Senate meeting with Trump.

Casey Burgat, the Legislative Affairs Program Director at George Washington, says he expects Trump will quickly sign executive orders reversing Biden-era policies on immigration, energy, oil and trade deals.

Burgat says it remains unclear how effective a Republican Congress will be.

Its one thing to agree on a bumper sticker, but to actually agree on all the details that are required to do big legislative overhauls thats a very different calculation, says Burgat.

Congressional Democrats are brushing off Trumps visit.

Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-Calif.) said the visit is, just another example of House Republicans bending the knee to Donald Trump.

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 Queen City News.
After becoming the first former president to face criminal charges, Donald Trump faces another historic first next month: He could become the first former president in U.S. history to be ordered to prison when he's sentenced in his New York hush money case.

Several experts told ABC News that the odds are against the former president serving any time behind bars before the 2024 election, after a jury in May found him guilty on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to an effort to illegally influence the 2016 presidential election.

But it's possible that the nature and circumstances of Trump's alleged criminal conduct -- in addition to his lack of remorse and behavior during the trial -- could provide Judge Juan Merchan justification to impose a sentence that includes prison time, some experts told ABC News.

MORE: Trump cites Bidens 'disturbing grin' in effort to terminate limited gag order in hush money case

Of the 14 lawyers and law professors who spoke with ABC News, five believed an incarceratory sentence was likely, two described the decision as a toss-up, and seven believed a prison sentence was unlikely due to a combination of the logistical challenges, a lack of precedent supporting incarceration for first-time offenders, and the political implications of such a sentence.

Regardless of the punishment, experts broadly agreed that Trump's sentence will most likely be stayed pending his appeal -- a process that could take anywhere from months to a year -- meaning the former president would likely avoid serving any part of a sentence until after the 2024 election.

Ahead of the July 11 sentencing, Judge Juan Merchan faces the unprecedented question of how to punish the former president for crimes that prosecutors framed in the sharpest terms -- a "subversion of democracy" and "election fraud, pure and simple" -- but that were charged using the least severe class of felonies in New York.

"There is no more serious falsification of business records case that I can remember in the history of supervising and prosecuting many of these cases," said Karen Friedman Agnifilo, who previously served as the chief assistant district attorney in the Manhattan district attorney's office.

PHOTO: In this June 9, 2017, file photo, President Donald Trump is shown at the White House in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images, FILE)

Compared to judges in federal court -- whose sentences are normally guided by a point system created by the United States Sentencing Commission -- Merchan has fewer reference points when sentencing Trump. New York's penal law limits prison sentences for Class-E felonies to four years, and probation officials will prepare a report with a recommendation for Trump's sentence, which Merchan can consider when weighing the nature and circumstances of the crime along with Trump's history and character.

"On behalf of New Yorkers -- that's who Judge Merchan is speaking up for -- how big a breach of the social trust was this compared to all the other crimes that he and other judges sentence every day?" said Justin Levitt, a constitutional law professor at Loyola Law School. "There is literally no case that has been remotely similar to the criminal prosecution conviction of a former chief executive of the country."

Here are six questions that will likely shape how the judge forms his decision.

How have similar defendants been sentenced?

While the Manhattan district attorney frequently charges defendants with falsifying business records -- there were 437 such charges by the office in the decade before Trump's indictment, according to a court filing last year -- Merchan might struggle to find relevant precedent in those cases, experts said.

Manhattan DA Alvin Bragg brought his case using a novel legal theory that Trump falsified business records to conceal a violation of a New York election law that prohibits conspiracies to influence an election using unlawful means.

"This isn't a run-of-the-mill falsifying business records case," former Manhattan assistant district attorney Jeremy Saland told ABC News.

While first-time offenders convicted of falsifying business records normally avoid prison time, similar cases related to campaign contributions or public officials suggest incarceration is a possibility.

Richard Brega, a New York bus mogul who pleaded guilty to one count of falsifying business records related to illegal campaign contributions, received a one-year prison sentence in 2018. Former New York Comptroller Alan Hevesi, who pleaded guilty to receiving a reward for official misconduct -- a class-E felony -- related to a pay-to-play scheme involving New York's pension fund, was sentenced in 2011 to one-to-four years in prison.

"Ultimately, this is a case that stands alone, and that is going to be extremely difficult for the judge to come up with a sentence that is fair and appropriate," said Robert Mintz, a former federal prosecutor.

What factors could lessen Trump's sentence?

Trump's status as a first-time offender, the nonviolent nature of his crime, his advanced age, and a lack of a flight risk are mitigating factors that could lighten his sentence, according to Pace University School of Law professor Bennett L. Gershman.

However, Gershman cautioned that while Trump might be 78 years old at the time of his sentencing, many white-collar defendants receive prison time in spite of their advanced age.

"I would be shocked if he didn't impose some time in jail," Gershman said. "Merchan imposes tough sentences. He's a tough judge from his history on the bench."

Has Trump shown remorse?

Trump's lack of remorse or admission of wrongdoing could work against the former president at sentencing, where Merchan can consider Trump's overall history and character. Trump has also frequently targeted Merchan with personal attacks related to his daughter's political work and compared the judge to a "tyrant" and "devil."

Merchan also held Trump in criminal contempt ten times during the trial for knowingly making comments about witnesses and jurors in violation of the case's limited gag order.

"I think that most judges would feel that some kind of jail time is needed to basically affirm the need for a defendant to have respect for the court," said George Washington University professor Stephen Saltzburg.

Would a prison sentence be a deterrent?

In addition to any purported rehabilitative or retributive purpose, prison sentences are often used by judges to deter the defendant or the broader public from committing similar crimes in the future.

Some experts ABC News spoke with were skeptical that Merchan could justify a prison sentence based on individual deterrence -- i.e., discouraging Trump himself from committing a similar crime again.

"It's not necessarily clear to me that this is a situation that will arise again that could be specifically deterred," said former federal prosecutor Jarrod Schaeffer. "Looking at Trump's behavior and his track record, I'm not sure that the judge will hold out hope that his sentence in this case will have a strong deterrent effect on him."

MORE: Trump's probation officials meeting was cordial, routine: Sources

Yet the sentencing could provide an opportunity for general deterrence for the public, including other public officials, according to Jeffrey Cohen, a Boston College Law Associate professor.

"When you have a high-profile defendant, you want your punishment to discourage other people from doing this sort of thing," Cohen noted.

What other options does Merchan have for Trump's sentence?

Merchan could opt to sentence Trump to a period of probation or a conditional discharge.

If sentenced to probation, Trump would have to report to a probation officer and meet certain conditions, including potential travel restrictions or curfews that could be enforced with the use of an ankle monitor, according to former federal prosecutor Michael Zweiback. However, enforcing the terms of Trump's probation in the middle of his presidential campaign could be challenging, according to New York Law School professor Anna Cominsky.

"The more restrictions on someone's movement sometimes makes it more difficult for them to live their lives and do their jobs," Cominsky said. "So when it comes to Trump, part of his job is right now campaigning and traveling around the country. He has to be able to do that."

MORE: What potential grounds does Donald Trump have to appeal his hush money conviction?

Trump alternatively could be sentenced to a conditional discharge where Judge Merchan himself would oversee that Trump meets the conditions of his release, rather than a probation officer.

The conditions of Trump's release could include paying a fine, performing community service, and avoiding future arrests.

"He could be creative here, and I think that's sort of the wildcard, is that the judge does have a lot of discretion in fashioning a sentence," said former federal prosecutor Joshua Naftalis.

How would the sentence impact the election -- and does it matter?

Trump's sentencing comes just four days before the Republican National Convention, and the former president faces the possibility of serving part of his sentence while running for the presidency.

The political undercurrent adds another layer of complexity to the already thorny sentencing, as the former president continues to allege without evidence that the prosecution against him was politically motivated.

While Merchan could opt to disregard the political implications of the sentencing entirely, the broader ramifications of the sentence could play into Merchan's decision about the most effective punishment for the former president.

"There are political issues around sentencing him to a term of incarceration just before the convention, and that's feeding into a narrative that this prosecution was really to keep him from campaigning and keep him from regaining the office of president," said Bader.

Will Trump go to prison for felony hush money conviction? Experts are split originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
KYODO NEWS - Jun 13, 2024 - 07:02 | All, World

The U.N. Security Council held a session on the human rights situation in North Korea on Wednesday, but it only served to highlight the huge gap over the issue between the panel's influential members.

The United States along with Japan and South Korea, both of which are Washington's key allies in East Asia, requested the council session to urge Pyongyang to improve people's lives rather than continue to develop technology for a nuclear weapon and ballistic missiles.

But Russia and China, veto-wielding council members that provide political and economic support to North Korea, challenged the move at the meeting's outset.

Moscow's top envoy to the United Nations Vassily Nebenzia said, "This is a matter which does not fall within the mandate of the council."

Meanwhile, Chinese ambassador Li Song said, "Pushing the council to intervene in the human rights issue of the DPRK will not help to ease tensions on the Korean Peninsula."

DPRK is the acronym of North Korea's formal name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

The session went on with the backing of a majority of the council.

Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the U.S. ambassador, told the session, "Today, the DPRK continues to deny individuals their rights to freedom of expression, thought, conscience, and religion or belief."

"The efforts by both Russia and China to block this meeting today is another effort to support the DPRK, and is also emboldening their actions," she said.

The Security Council held open sessions regarding the issue of rights in North Korea from 2014 to 2017, but discussed the matter behind closed doors in 2018 and after at the request of Moscow and Beijing. An open format for meetings on the issue resumed in August last year.

The panel has failed to take any united action against North Korea since 2018 due to opposition from Russia and China, even though Pyongyang has repeatedly launched ballistic missiles and satellite-carrying rockets in defiance of past Security Council resolutions.

Related coverage:

South Korea expects Putin to visit North Korea "in a few days": report

South Korea fired warning shots after North Korean soldiers crossed border

North Korean missile facilities updated to raise morale: think tank
Donald Trump makes his first visit to Capitol Hill since leaving the presidency Thursday morning, meeting with Republican lawmakers in what is being billed as a resolutely forward-looking session focused on a potential 2025 legislative agenda.

In fact, Trump has bigger, more immediate legislative priorities.

He has been obsessed in recent weeks with harnessing the powers of Congress to fight on his own behalf and go to war against the Democrats he accuses of weaponizing the justice system against him.

Its a campaign he orchestrated in the days after his May 31 conviction on 34 felony counts in New York, starting with a phone call to the man he wanted to lead it: Speaker Mike Johnson.

Trump was still angry when he made the call, according to those who have heard accounts of it from Johnson, dropping frequent F-bombs as he spoke with the soft-spoken and pious GOP leader.

"We have to overturn this, Trump insisted.



Johnson sympathized with Trumps frustration. Hed been among the first batch of Republican lawmakers to appear alongside Trump at the Manhattan trial. Hed been harping on Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Braggs case and the alleged broader abuse of the justice system since before he took the gavel.

The speaker didnt really need to be convinced, one person familiar with the conversation said: Johnson, a former attorney himself, already believed the House had a role to play in addressing Trumps predicament. The two have since spoken on the subject multiple times.

But sympathy can only go so far. With a slim majority and skittish swing-district members, Johnson is already finding it difficult to deliver for Trump.

Republicans have all but abandoned their effort to impeach President Joe Biden, as Trump wants. Wednesday's contempt vote against Attorney General Merrick Garland squeaked by only after an intense whipping effort. And now a series of proposals targeting what Republicans call rogue prosecutors (i.e., those investigating Trump) appear to have a wobbly future.



House GOP leaders, for instance, spent yesterday afternoon whipping a bill written by Rep. Russell Fry (R-S.C.) that would allow presidents charged at the state level to move those cases to federal court  effectively nullifying the power of officials like Bragg and Fani Willis, Trump's prosecutor in Fulton County, Georgia. The bill was filed in April 2023 and reported by the Judiciary Committee in last September; only now is it being readied for possible floor action.

Johnson has also been in talks with Judiciary Committee chair and Trump ally Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) about using the appropriations process to target special counsel Jack Smiths probe. Its an apparent softening of his position: He said in a POLITICO interview last month that he found a similar idea by Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) unworkable; now, hes actually looking into it.





That country certainly sees what's going on, and they don't want Fani Willis and Alvin Bragg and these kinds of folks to be able to continue to use grant dollars for targeting people in a political lawfare type of way, Jordan told us.

The problem, of course, is that these proposals dont yet have the votes to pass. One senior appropriator, Rep. Mike Simpson (R-Idaho), said the idea of defunding Smith was stupid.

I dont think its a good idea unless you can show that [the prosecutors] acted in bad faith or fraud or something like that, he said. They're just doing their job  even though I disagree with what they did.

We accuse Democrats of weaponizing the Justice system, said another skeptical senior Republican who was granted anonymity to speak with fear of MAGA blowback. Thats exactly what wed be doing.



Johnsons leadership team isnt giving up just yet. Off the House floor yesterday, Fry  who said hes not spoken to Trump about his proposal  said theres an education effort underway inside the House GOP.

His argument: Federal lawmakers, executive officials and judges currently have the ability to try to move their local cases to federal court. Why shouldnt the leader of the free world? (One difference, of course, is that unlike those federal officials, Trump isn't currently in office.)

In my experience so far, the more [House members] have heard about it, the more comfortable they are with it, he said. It's not a unique concept.

What to expect Thursday

The plan for Trump's meetings  9:30 a.m. meeting with House Republicans at the Capitol Hill Club and a 12:30 p.m. lunch with GOP senators at NRSC headquarters  doesnt explicitly include discussions of Trumps legal matters and how they might be addressed. (That, of course, is no guarantee that Trump wont bring them up.)

Instead, the visit is being cast as a chance for Hill Republicans to unite behind their party leader heading into a contentious election season and to also talk about what comes next should Republicans manage to win a governing trifecta in November.

A person close with Trump said the former president will: (1) express his desire to protect seniors by not allowing cuts to Social Security or Medicare; (2) reiterate his intention to crack down on the border; (3) lay out a broad vision for economic policy, including cutting taxes and bringing down prices, and (4) preview a U-turn on Bidens foreign policy priorities.

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Residents of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, are probably cheesed off at Donald Trump after he called the site of next months Republican National Convention a horrible city.

The convention begins July 15, but the former president reportedly insulted the Midwestern city during a meeting on Thursday with House and Senate Republicans, according to journalist Jake Sherman.

Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city, is how Trump reportedly expressed his displeasure to the GOP members of Congress.

TRUMP TO HOUSE REPUBLICANS:



"Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city."  Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) June 13, 2024

Trumps reported diss of Milwaukee comes amid speculation that he might not attend the GOP convention in person and instead hold convention-related events from Mar-a-Lago.

Wisconsin Republicans tried to defend Trumps honor after Shermans initial tweet but didnt seem to agree on the proper spin.

Dan Shafer, a Wisconsin-based political reporter, noted at least three different excuses for the comments were suggested.

One Cheese State Republican claimed Trump was griping about the citys crime rate, while another claimed he was worried about election fraud, and a third said the former president never said the words.

Three Wisconsin Republican congressmen with three different stories about Trump calling Milwaukee a horrible city. pic.twitter.com/wEzcXddAbt  Dan Shafer (@DanRShafer) June 13, 2024

Trump adviser Steven Cheung also claimed the reported Milwaukee insult was about how terrible crime and voter fraud are.

Wrong. Total bullshit. He never said it like how its been falsely characterized as. He was talking about how terrible crime and voter fraud are. https://t.co/BH0Q7exswB  Steven Cheung (@TheStevenCheung) June 13, 2024

However, social media users poked holes in Cheungs defense by noting that other top Trump advisers are claiming it never happened, while another pointed out that the fact there are no less than four completely different spin jobs going around on what he meant is proof the cleanup panic scramble is on.

The Trump campaign later sent out a statement debunking the comments but offering the same three different spin jobs previously mentioned as evidence.

Wisconsin Democrats quickly responded to Trumps Milwaukee insult with a statement by Democratic coordinated campaign manager Garren Randolph:

If Donald Trump thinks Milwaukee is so horrible, then he shouldnt come to our city. Milwaukee  our states largest and most diverse city and home to more than 577,000 people, the Bucks and Brewers, and the countrys best beer  deserves better than a convicted felon, racist, and wannabe dictator who hates us and our values,

Wisconsin Sen. Tammy Baldwin also sang Milwaukees praises and said Trump wouldnt understand why the city is so great even if a jury told him so.

Milwaukee makes the greatest beer, brats, and motorcycles in the world. It's home to some of our most vibrant communities, hardest workers, and is a part of what makes Wisconsin the best state in the nation.



Donald Trump wouldnt understand even if a jury told him so. https://t.co/eHjLi4d6YN  Tammy Baldwin (@tammybaldwin) June 13, 2024

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson was also apparently unhappy with Trumps comments and went on the attack during a press conference.

I find it kind of perplexing, I find it kind of strange, that he would insult the largest city in Wisconsin because hes running for president. He obviously wants to win Wisconsin, go win the election. And so to insult the state thats hosting your convention, I think is kind of kind of bizarre, actually kind of unhinged, in a way.

Other people suggested insulting Milwaukee might backfire on Trump since thousands of residents voted for him in 2020.

135,000 Milwaukee County voters supported Donald Trump in 2020. https://t.co/R1hhTf8fOm   .  (@StevenJDuffield) June 13, 2024

Others piled on:

I happen to love Milwaukee. pic.twitter.com/QRfgwbETV7  Joe Biden (@JoeBiden) June 13, 2024

He actually said this today. Lets do the billboard. https://t.co/tLqBQPT6eppic.twitter.com/jstJoFPoKh  Claude Taylor (@TrueFactsStated) June 13, 2024

Hey, Milwaukee! Lets turn out in massive numbers and give Trump another fat L in Wisconsin! https://t.co/jTZqOzbptu  rolandsmartin (@rolandsmartin) June 13, 2024

.@UWMadison political scientist Katherine Cramer's work on rural resentment would suggest that Trump's slamming Milwaukee could help him w/ rural voters in WI. One caution I'd have though is that WI doesn't have as steep an urban-rural divide as states like Ohio do. https://t.co/Mc3HGIA2BX  David Darmofal (@david_darmofal) June 13, 2024

Milwaukee has a ton of heart and a ton of culture. Crooked Trump should call off his hate tour, go to one of the summer festivals by the lake, and keep his damn mouth shut. https://t.co/wSWwzyGhBD  Rajan Narang (@rdnarang) June 13, 2024

Although Trumps reported comments about Milwaukee were rude, hes not the only Republican who has been giving the city short shrift.

Until a few weeks ago, the background image on the GOP convention website showed Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, not Milwaukee.

CORRECTION: A prior version of this story misspelled the name of Milwaukees mayor.

Related...
Donald Trump made a rare appearance in Washington on Thursday to lay out his second-term agenda to Republican lawmakers as he continues to stress party unity in the wake of his historic felony conviction and a month from becoming the party's official nominee.

The former president spent the day just blocks away from the U.S. Capitol to attend a slate of meetings with GOP allies.

First, he huddled with House Republicans at the Capitol Hill Club. The meeting was behind closed doors, but multiple sources told ABC News the former president praised House Speaker Mike Johnson as doing a "good job."

Trump also criticized the Department of Justice as "dirty bastards" as he aired grievances about his legal challenges.

MORE: 'It's a disgrace': Trump's VP hopefuls come to his defense following conviction

PHOTO: Former President Donald Trump arrives to the Capitol Hill Club, June 13, 2024, in Washington. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)

The meeting unfolded as the Supreme Court handed down a major decision preserving access to the abortion pill mifepristone. Sources told ABC News Trump did not mention the decision directly, but did discuss his view that abortion access should be decided by the states. He also insisted he believed in three exceptions to abortion restrictions: rape, incest and to save the life of the mother.

Politically, Trump told Republicans they could have a 40-seat majority in the House if they weren't so "afraid" of the issue, according to sources.

He also went after Democrats like former Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former Rep. Liz Cheney, sources said. Both Pelosi and Cheney, despite being on opposite sides of the aisle, are staunch critics of the former president.

Later on Thursday, Trump met with Senate Republicans at the National Republican Senatorial Committee headquarters. After the meeting, he touted party unity in on-camera remarks but took no questions from reporters.

"This is an outstanding group of people. I'm with them 1,000%, they're with me 1,000%. We agree just about on everything and if there isn't, we work it out," Trump said.

PHOTO: Former President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump speaks to the media following meetings with Republicans on Capitol Hill, at the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) headquarters in Washington, D.C.., June 13, 2024. (Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters)

In a show of force, Trump was joined by a large group of senators, including Sens. Rick Scott, Josh Hawley, Lindsey Graham, Ted Cruz, Marsha Blackburn, and many others. Sens. Tim Scott and J.D. Vance, two vice presidential hopefuls, were also there to support Trump.

"We want to see just success for our country," Trump said. "And we don't have success right now."

Trump has stayed off the U.S. Capitol campus entirely since he left office shortly after the Jan. 6, 2021, attack.

His return on Thursday prompted President Joe Biden and Democrats to highlight the riot. The Biden-Harris campaign released a new advertisement claiming Trump is trying to "burn it all down" with footage of the Capitol riot.

The former president said while Democrats accuse Republicans of being "a bad example of democracy," they're the ones who "are getting away with murder."

PHOTO: Capitol police officers hold back media and protesters as former President and Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump arrives at the House Republican Conference in Washington, DC, on June 13, 2024. (Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images)

The Senate Republican discussion marked the first time since 2020 that Minority Mitch McConnell and Trump met face-to-face.

McConnell and Trump have a rocky relationship, heightened after McConnell recognized President Joe Biden's victory in the wake of Trump's efforts to overturn the 2020 election.

But McConnell, walking back to the U.S. Capitol building afterward, called it a "positive meeting."

"He and I got a chance to talk a little bit and shook hands a few times," McConnell said. "He got a lot of standing ovations. It was an entirely positive meeting. Mitt Romney was there as well."

MORE: Trump, McConnell to meet face-to-face for 1st time in nearly 4 years

Johnson has more openly embraced Trump, who was crucial in supporting him when he faced the threat of being ousted by conservative GOP House hard-liners, saying coordination with Trump is important heading into November's election and a potential second Trump presidency.

"I think it's important for the country, to have us, to have close coordination," Johnson said at a news conference on Wednesday. "I believe he'll have, can be, the most consequential president of the modern era, because we have to fix effectively every area of public policy."

At that news conference, Johnson also told ABC News he supports a bill that would allow current or former presidents to move state charges against them into federal court -- a measure aimed at showing support for Trump after being found guilty in his hush money trial in a New York state court.

"I think that's an idea that makes sense. It makes sense to most Republicans, and I think almost everyone will be in favor of that."

PHOTO: Former President Donald Trump departs after delivering remarks at a House Republicans Conference meeting at the Capitol Hill Club, June 13, 2024, in Washington, D.C. (Nathan Howard/Getty Images)

After the Thursday morning meeting, Johnson said that Trump "didn't bring up that specific piece of legislation."

"He did talk about his concern about the lawfare that's been waged against him -- and we all know it -- and I made the point in my introduction that it's backfired fantastically," Johnson said. "President Trump has become a symbol of pushing back against corruption, the deep state of the weaponization of judicial system and that's a very encouraging development. So, I think that he made the point every time they indicted him, his polls went up."

MORE: Will Trump go to prison for felony hush money conviction? Experts are split

However, not every Republican fully welcomed back Trump when he came to the nation's capital.

Sens. Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski, who have been vocal Trump critics, blamed previous conflicts as a reason for why they couldn't attend the meeting with Trump.

The two voted with Democrats to impeach Trump for his actions related to Jan. 6.

As he was in Washington, Trump also participated in a moderated discussion at a quarterly meeting of the Business Roundtable, a group consisting of more than 200 CEOs. Business Roundtable spokesman Michael Steel said the group invited both presumptive presidential nominees, but with Biden overseas to attend the G7 summit, White House chief of staff Jeff Zients joined the meeting in his absence.

Some of the country's top executives attended the meeting, including Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan, JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla, FedEx CEO Raj Subramaniam, Edison International CEO Pedro Pizarro and Phillips 66 CEO Mark Lashier, according to the executives' representatives or ABC News' observations outside the roundtable building.

According to a spokesperson for the Business Roundtable, roughly 100 executives out of more than 200 members of the roundtable attended the meeting, which the spokesperson said was normal for their quarterly meetings like this.

During his meeting with business leaders, Trump talked about tax cuts for corporations, as well as not taxing tip wages, according to people familiar with the meeting.

Overall, those familiar with the meeting with Trump described it as "business-like" and that "there wasn't a lot new from him today."

ABC News' John Parkinson, Benjamin Siegel and Mariam Khan contributed to this report.

Republicans, including detractors, embrace Trump in return to Washington after Jan. 6 originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
WASHINGTON (NEXSTAR)  Former President Donald Trump returned to Capitol Hill to meet with House and Senate Republicans. The visit comes as lawmakers gear up for elections in the fall.

This was former President Trumps first visit to Capitol Hill since leaving office.

It comes as most polls show trump tied with President Joe Biden in the race for the White House.

Theres tremendous unity in the Republican party, said Trump.

He spoke behind closed doors with House and Senate Republicans about the upcoming election and legislative priorities, from immigration to tax policy.

Were going to bring back common sense to the government, said Trump.

Even though a New York jury convicted the former president, who still faces a number of other charges, congressional Republicans have embraced him as their presumptive nominee.

We are 100 percent unified behind his candidacy, said Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.).

Congressional Democrats say the meeting comes as no surprise.

House Republicans have capitulated and done the bidding of former president Trump every day for the past 18 months, said Rep. Joe Neguse (D-Colo.).

The White House is pushing back on Trumps plan to cut taxes for the wealthy and corporations.

Benefiting those disproportionately at the top of the income distribution and making the rest of us fit the bill, said Heather Boushey of the Council of Economic Advisors.

House Speaker Mike Johnson says hes going down to Mar-a-Lago on Monday to talk more with Trump about House races.

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 DC News Now | Washington, DC.
Trump says Taylor Swift shouldn't endorse Biden because he 'doesn't know how to get off a stage'

Donald Trump questioned why Taylor Swift would support President Joe Biden.

The former president made his comments during what was billed as a policy discussion with House Republicans.

Swift endorsed Biden in 2020. She hasn't made an endorsement in the 2024 race.

Former President Donald Trump is starting to get a reputation for commenting on Taylor Swift.

On Thursday, Trump joined House Republicans for what was billed as a policy discussion to plan for the GOP's agenda if the former president wins in November. The gathering repeatedly went off the rails, according to multiple reports. One of the digressions was Trump's lingering resentment of Swift's support for President Joe Biden.

"Why would she endorse this dope," Trump said, CNN reported. "He doesn't know how to get off a stage."

In meeting with House Rs, Trump attacked DOJ as dirty no good bastards and questioned Taylor Swifts support for Biden.



Why would she endorse this dope, Trump said, per members in room. He doesnt know how to get off a stage.  Melanie Zanona (@MZanona) June 13, 2024

Swift endorsed Biden in 2020. She has yet to endorse any candidates in the 2024 cycle. The pop star previously avoided commenting on politics but became increasingly vocal, starting with Republican Sen. Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee's successful candidacy in 2018. Swift's desire to weigh in on the race is detailed in her "Miss Americana" documentary.

Trump, according to Politico, also noted that while in office, he signed a law geared toward helping songwriters. Trump was probably referring to the Music Modernization Act, a 2018 bipartisan law that changed royalties and licensing in light of the streaming era. Artists had pushed to update music copyrights for years.

This is far from the first time Trump has commented on the world's biggest pop star. According to a forthcoming book about Trump's time as a reality-TV star, the former president repeatedly gushed that Swift was "beautiful."

"I think she's beautiful  very beautiful! I find her very beautiful. I think she's liberal," Trump told the author, Ramin Setoodeh, according to an early excerpt from "Apprentice in Wonderland: How Donald Trump and Mark Burnett Took America Through the Looking Glass."

Trump couldn't be accused of being a Swiftie, though. Setoodeh said he had to explain that Swift was no longer focused on country music after the former president questioned how a country star could be liberal.

"She probably doesn't like Trump. I hear she's very talented," Trump said. "I think she's very beautiful, actually  unusually beautiful!"

Tree Paine, Swift's longtime publicist, didn't immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Related video: Whats next for Donald Trump?

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA)  With the 2024 election around the corner, a new poll shows shrinking leads held by two republican candidates, potentially setting the stage for Florida to reclaim its status as one of the nations largest swing states.

The poll of Florida voters, conducted by the FAU Political Communication and Public Opinion Research Lab (PolCom Lab) and Mainstreet Research, shows that former President Donald Trump and current Sen. Rick Scott have lost some ground in their respective races.

Trump still has a solid lead on Biden

President Biden and former President Trump

President Biden has managed to tighten the presidential race in Florida, but former the former president and now-convicted felon  still holds a six-point advantage, 43% to 37%.

Trumps lead shrunk by 3% after holding a 49% to 40% lead during similar polls in April.

While Trump is still in front, these numbers suggest Biden has made modest gains and kept the race competitive in the nations largest swing state, said Dukhong Kim, Ph.D., associate professor of political science at FAU.

10% of Florida voters said they preferred Robert Kennedy Jr., and 6% were undecided on their preferred presidential candidate, the poll shows.

Biden needs strong youth, minority turnout in Florida

Younger voters  ages 18 to 49  reportedly are more open to third-party candidates (18%) than those 50 and over (3%).

The poll shows Biden performing strongest with black voters (68%), while Trump sees more support from white voters without college degrees (57%) versus those with degrees (47%).

The demographic patterns were seeing suggest that Bidens campaign needs to catch up among the traditional Democratic party coalition partners  women, younger voters, Black voters, and Hispanic voters, Kim said. But Trump is holding onto his base among white voters, especially those without college degrees.

Rick Scotts lead is less secure than Trumps

The Florida Senate race between Scott and Democratic challenger Debbie Mucarsel-Powell has tightened up, according to the PolCom Lab poll.

What was once a 17-point lead in April has now shrunk to a narrow 45% to 43% difference, which FAU says is within the polls margin of error.

Mucarsel-Powell was largely unknown in earlier surveys, said Luzmarina Garcia, Ph.D., assistant professor of political science at FAU. However, as voters have been introduced to her, she has been gaining in the race. If this trend holds, it could be close in November.

Florida voters top issues

The economy (38%), immigration (25%), abortion (15%), and crime (6%) were the top issues Florida voters cited in their responses.

Among Republican voters, immigration was the second biggest concern behind the economy, while Democratic voters instead focused on abortion rights, which will be on the ballot in Florida in 2024.

These issue priorities reflect the national messaging battle being waged by both parties heading into 2024, said Aaron Veenstra, Ph.D., associate professor in the School of Communication and Multimedia Studies at FAU. Economic factors like cost of living still weigh more heavily than hot-button cultural issues.

The full 42-page polling breakdown can be found here.

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 WFLA.
A startling claim that former President Donald Trump allegedly made Thursday about yearslong political enemy Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and her family received a swift debunking from one of the former House speakers daughters, who called the presumptive GOP candidate unwell, unhinged and unfit.

Trump privately met with Washingtons Republican lawmakers in what was labeled a policy meeting, where House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) hoped to lay out the partys legislative vision for 2025 should the former president retake the White House.

At the meeting, Trump called Pelosis daughter a whacko who allegedly told him that her mother and the former president would be perfect together in different circumstances, according to reporting from Punchbowl News. The candidate did not appear to specify which of Pelosis daughters he was referring to.

There is an age difference, though, the GOP candidate reportedly said of Pelosi, who is six years older than him. Trump is currently married to a woman who is 24 years his junior.

Trumps alleged remarks drew immediate backlash online from Christine Pelosi, the former speakers daughter who serves as a Democratic political strategist.

Speaking for all 4 Pelosi daughters  this is a LIE, Christine Pelosi posted on social media. His deceitful, deranged obsession with our mother is yet another reason Donald Trump is unwell, unhinged and unfit to step foot anywhere near her  or the White House.

Speaking for all 4 Pelosi daughters  this is a LIE. His deceitful, deranged obsession with our mother is yet another reason Donald Trump is unwell, unhinged and unfit to step foot anywhere near her  or the White House. https://t.co/RkHP0uQbRw  Christine Pelosi (@sfpelosi) June 13, 2024

A spokesperson for the Trump campaign did not immediately respond to HuffPosts request to confirm Punchbowls reporting or to comment on Christine Pelosis response.

Trump and Nancy Pelosis disdain for each other has long been out in the open, particularly during the former presidents time in the White House when she served as speaker of the House. The former president  who was just convicted on 34 felony counts of falsifying business records related to hush money payments  also has a history of attacking the California Democrats family, including when a man broke into her San Francisco home and assaulted her husband.

Trumps alleged comment on Thursday comes just days after Nancy Pelosi publicly accused the former president and his allies of engaging in revisionist history regarding the deadly attempted coup carried out by his far-right followers at the Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021. Trump has repeatedly and falsely accused Nancy Pelosi of being responsible for the delayed National Guard response to the riot, despite her not having that power.

Today, the instigator of an insurrection is returning to the scene of the crime, Nancy Pelosi said Thursday in a statement. January 6th was a crime against the Capitol, that saw Nazi and Confederate flags flying under the dome that Lincoln built.

It was a crime against the constitution and its peaceful transfer of power, in a desperate attempt to cling to power.

This story has been amended to clarify that Trump was convicted on multiple felony counts.
Former President Donald Trump appeared to endorse former Gov. Larry Hogan in the Maryland Senate race on Thursday, just days after Hogan said he would urge all Americans to respect Trumps guilty verdict in the New York hush money case.

I'd like to see him win. I think he has a good chance to win.  I know other people made some strong statements, but I can just say from my standpoint, I'm about the party, and I'm about the country. And I would like to see him win, Trump told Fox News Aishah Hasnie in an interview that has yet to air.

Hogan drew the wrath of the former presidents team after he refused to defend Trump following his conviction on May 30. You just ended your campaign, Trump co-campaign manager Chris LaCivita wrote on X in response to Hogan at the time. Republican National Committee Co-Chair Lara Trump also said at the time that Hogan doesnt deserve the respect.

National Republican Senate Committee Chair Sen. Steve Daines, however, previously defended Hogan, saying that the former Maryland governor is running for Senate in Maryland, not Mississippi.



Trumps support for Hogan, ironically, could end up hurting the former two-term governor, who is running in a state where Trump received just 32 percent of the vote in the 2020 election.

Hogan, a longtime Trump critic, has repeatedly refused to endorse Trump, saying that he does not back him or Biden. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee on Thursday afternoon released a statement saying: Donald Trump wants Republican Larry Hogan in the Senate.

News of Trumps endorsement came the same day that the former president visited with GOP senators in Washington, where they said he pushed an agenda of unity and pledged to campaign against Sens. Jon Tester of Montana and Sherrod Brown of Ohio, two of the most vulnerable incumbent Democrats.

Trump on Thursday also endorsed Florida GOP Rep. Laurel Lee, who had previously endorsed Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis for president. She eventually endorsed Trump after DeSantis dropped out of the presidential race.

But Lees initial endorsement of DeSantis drew Trumps ire, and he called on Republicans to mount a primary challenge to her.

Any great MAGA Republicans looking to run against Laurel Lee in Floridas 15th Congressional District? IF SO, PLEASE STEP FORWARD! Trump posted on Truth Social at the time.

But on Thursday, he changed course, stating that Lee is an incredible representative for the fantastic people of Florida's 15th Congressional District, adding: Laurel Lee has my Complete and Total Endorsement!
(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump promised to lower the corporate tax rate to 20%, further reducing the income levy on the largest US companies that he already slashed while president, according to people familiar with the remarks.

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The presumptive Republican presidential nominee pitched his support for cutting the business tax rate during a private meeting in Washington Thursday with roughly 100 chief executive officers of some of the biggest American companies, including JPMorgan Chase & Co.s Jamie Dimon and Tim Cook of Apple Inc.

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The current corporate tax rate is 21%, but even a small reduction represents a tax cut worth billions of dollars each year for profitable US companies. Trump called the 20% figure a nice, round figure, according to two sources briefed on his comments.

Trump vowed to make permanent the Republicans sweeping 2017 tax law and urged renewal of key portions of the bill, including tax cuts for individuals and small businesses, which expire next year. He also advocated to exempt tipped earnings from federal taxes, an idea he first previewed at a rally on Sunday in Las Vegas.

The former president also promised the executives he would slash regulations if he won a second term. He also disparaged the permitting process for energy projects and other purposes as yet another form of regulation or taxation.

Trump offered up his thoughts on the US economy during a fireside chat with Larry Kudlow, his former National Economic Council Director, at a quarterly meeting of CEOs hosted by Business Roundtable, a corporate advocacy group led by former White House chief-of-staff Joshua Bolten.

The former president followed a similar discussion between the group and White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients, who charted the economic priorities of a second term for President Joe Biden in a discussion with the corporate leaders.

Zients told the executives that Biden was committed to working with the private sector to grow the economy, and detailed the subsidies and infrastructure projects that would come on line over the next few years from legislation passed since Biden was elected.

He stressed that the president would protect pillars of the American economy  including the rule of law, the nations reputation on the world stage, and predictability  in an implicit contrast with some of the policies advocated by Trump, according to a person familiar with the discussion.

Bidens chief of staff was asked about immigration  saying that passing a bipartisan agreement to address undocumented migrants and grow legal immigration was a top second term priority. Responding to a question about China, he said the president did not seek a trade war, but would take targeted action along with allies to protect US industry. He committed to pursue permitting reform to speed infrastructure projects and pointed out that Biden wanted to address the group but was traveling to the Group of Seven meeting in Italy.

Leaders there, Zients said, were asking US officials if the country would remain a player on the world stage, suggesting possible consternation over Trumps isolationist policies.

Zients also recognized corporate executives in the room he had worked with on issues including artificial intelligence and lowering prices  shouting out Cook and Walmart Inc.s Doug McMillon.

--With assistance from Joshua Green.

(Updates to include details of Zients discussion, starting in seventh paragraph.)

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(Bloomberg) -- Donald Trump railed against President Joe Bidens electric vehicle policies in a meeting with House Republicans Thursday and said he would undo them if he takes the White House in November, according to lawmakers who attended the private meeting.

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Trump told assembled lawmakers at the Capitol Hill Club that the whole mandate toward battery and electric is crazy, Representative Russ Fulcher, an Idaho Republican, said in an interview, paraphrasing Trumps comments.

He said the policy would be entirely reversed, Fulcher said. He made it very, very clear that hes opposed to the policies weve got.

Trumps comments, in his first Washington meeting since his criminal conviction in New York last month, came even as one of Bidens key EV policies was challenged in court. Oil and ethanol industry groups sued Thursday to block new air-pollution limits issued by the Environmental Protection Agency in March that they say would illegally force automakers to sell electric cars.

Biden has made the shift to battery-powered cars one of his top climate and industrial policies and has set a goal of having 50% of all new vehicle sales be electric by 2030, offering consumers up to $7,500 in tax credits to buy them. Trump, in contrast, has made no secret his disdain for electric vehicles, claiming they dont work and will benefit China and Mexico while hurting American autoworkers.

Trump, during his meeting, complained Biden was forcing people to buy EVs, said Representative Morgan Griffith, a Virginia Republican.

He said that was crazy, Griffith said in an interview, paraphrasing Trumps remarks. Hes going to do something about it.

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KYODO NEWS - Jun 13, 2024 - 13:51 | All, Japan, World

Japan and North Korea held a secret meeting in Mongolia in mid-May, a South Korean newspaper reported Thursday, despite Pyongyang's rejection of any talks while Tokyo continues to pursue the issue of Japanese nationals abducted decades ago.

The Japanese delegation at the meeting near Ulaanbaatar included a politician, while the North Korean side comprised three people, including an individual related to the Reconnaissance General Bureau, North Korea's intelligence agency, the JoongAng Ilbo reported, citing multiple sources.

In Tokyo, Japan's top government spokesman Yoshimasa Hayashi said he was aware of the report but declined to comment due to "the nature of the matter."

The newspaper said the meeting could be seen as an attempt by North Korea to explore a "breakthrough economically and diplomatically."

It also reported that Japan and North Korea were expected to meet last week in China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region but quoted a separate source as saying, "It is unclear whether (the contact) was made as planned."

In the hope of resolving the abduction issue, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida committed in May 2023 to advancing "high-level discussions" under his direct command toward realizing a summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

In February this year, Kim's sister Kim Yo Jong, a senior official in North Korea's ruling Workers' Party of Korea, said in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency there "may come a day" when Kishida visits Pyongyang if Japan does not make the abduction issue an "obstacle" between the two countries.

But she issued another statement in March saying North Korea will "reject any contact and negotiations with the Japanese side," criticizing Tokyo for "clinging to the unattainable issues which can never be settled."

On May 11, at a rally demanding the immediate return of the abductees, Kishida pledged to "further intensify" his efforts toward realizing a summit.

Japan and North Korea have no official diplomatic ties. Tokyo, which officially lists 17 Japanese as having been abducted by North Korea in the 1970s and 1980s, rejects Pyongyang's claim that the issue has already been resolved.

Five abductees were returned to Japan in 2002 after then Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi met in Pyongyang with Kim Jong Il, in the first-ever summit of the countries' leaders.

Related coverage:

Japan PM mulls Mongolia trip to ask support for North Korea talks

Families of Japanese abducted by North Korea call for U.S. support

Kin of Japanese abducted by North Korea departs for U.S. to seek support
Republican presidential candidate and former President Donald Trump speaks during a rally on Wednesday, May 1, in Waukesha, Wisconsin. (Scott Olson | Getty Images)

In a closed door meeting with Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives, Donald Trump reportedly called Milwaukee, the location of this summers Republican National Convention, a horrible city.

Trumps comments were reported by Punchbowl News Jake Sherman.

Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city, Trump is reported to have said on Thursday.

The former president visited Wisconsin in May, holding a rally in Waukesha. During that visit, he talked about the RNC coming to Milwaukee, making fun of Democrats  who planned to hold the 2020 Democratic National Convention in the city but canceled it due to the COVID-19 pandemic  for not showing up to the city.

Wisconsins House Republicans responded to the report with varying stories about what happened. Rep. Glenn Grothman told reporters Trump was talking about election integrity in large urban centers, Rep. Derrick Van Orden said the report was a lie and that Trump was talking about the citys crime rate and Rep. Bryan Steil denied that Trump made the comment at all.

In response to the comment, Democrats said if Trump doesnt like Milwaukee, he doesnt need to come.

If Donald Trump hates Milwaukee so much, we have one message for him: dont come, we wont miss you  your campaign is barely here in the first place, Democratic National Committee spokesperson Addy Toevs said in a statement. In November, Wisconsinites will show Trump how the dislike is mutual and will reject him again once and for all.

Other Democrats touted Milwaukees beer, food and sports teams while connecting the comments to regular Republican attacks against Wisconsins largest and most diverse city.

Donald Trump attacking the great city of Milwaukee as a horrible city exactly one month before he shuffles out on stage at the Fiserv reflects the backward, twisted man Donald Trump has always been, Wisconsin Democratic Party Vice Chair Felesia Martin said. With entertainment, recreation and a quality of life that is unparalleled  to say nothing of a great basketball team  I am blessed to call Milwaukee home. Were used to Republican politicians like Donald Trump showing nothing but contempt for Milwaukee and the folks who live here: they know our power, and theyre afraid of the city we are building here, together. Once again, Trump has demonstrated why he should not be elected to the highest office in the land. He does not possess the discipline, respect, thoughtfulness, nor the maturity necessary to lead our country.

Trump is expected to visit southeastern Wisconsin again next week, for a planned rally in Racine on Tuesday.

The post Trump tells House Republicans Milwaukee is a horrible city appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner.
(Bloomberg) -- The US Supreme Court ruled against a man who said he has a First Amendment right to seek federal trademark protection for the mocking phrase Trump too small.

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The high court said the US government didnt violate Steve Elsters constitutional rights when it refused to let him place the phrase on a federal trademark registry. Elster can still use the phrase on T-shirts insulting former President Donald Trump, but the ruling means he wont get exclusive rights to it.

Although the outcome was unanimous, the justices divided sharply in their legal reasoning. The decision upheld a decades-old legal provision that bars registration of trademarks that identify a living person without their consent.

Writing the courts lead opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas said the restriction squared with the history and tradition of US trademark law.

Our courts have long recognized that trademarks containing names may be restricted, Thomas wrote on behalf of five conservative justices. He said the court need look no further in this case.

The courts three liberal justices  Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Ketanji Brown Jackson  faulted Thomas for focusing on history rather than relying on the courts First Amendment precedents. The court has taken a similar history-based approach in other areas of constitutional law, including gun rights.

I am reluctant to go further down this precipice of looking for questionable historical analogues to resolve the constitutionality of Congresss legislation, Sotomayor wrote for the group.

Another conservative, Justice Amy Coney Barrett, also faulted the courts reliance on history as the exclusive means of deciding whether the provision is constitutional.

Tradition is not an end in itself  and I fear that the court uses it that way here, Barrett wrote. She said trademark restrictions, whether new or old, are permissible so long as they are reasonable in light of the trademark systems purpose of facilitating source identification.

Trumps Hands

Trump, who is campaigning to return to the White House in the November presidential election, wasnt involved in the suit. The disputed phrase alludes to a discussion during a 2016 Republican presidential debate over the size of then-candidate Trumps hands  and, by implication, his manhood.

Elster argued that in practice the restriction amounted to unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination because getting such consent from an individual is easier when a phrase flatters rather than mocks a subject.

Elsters lawyer, Jonathan E. Taylor of Gupta Wessler LLP, didnt immediately respond to a message seeking comment.

A federal appeals court had ruled that the disputed provision violates the First Amendment when the trademark includes criticism of a government official or public figure. The high court reversed that finding.

Federal registration gives trademark owners protections on top of those they already have under state law. Registration can confer exclusive rights in locations where no one was already using the name or image, help owners win lawsuits and put would-be competitors on notice that a trademark is legally protected.

The Justice Department backed the decision by the US Patent and Trademark Office. That put President Joe Bidens administration in the unusual position of arguing against an effort to belittle his likely reelection opponent.

Elster filed his registration application with the US Patent and Trademark Office in 2018, while Trump was still president. The office rejected the application in 2019, and the Biden administration eventually inherited the legal fight.

The case is Vidal v. Elster, 22-704.

(Updates with excerpts from Sotomayor, Barrett opinions.)

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Former President Trump holds a 2-point lead over President Biden among registered voters across the country as the two prepare for a rematch this November, according to a new survey.

The Reuters/Ipsos poll, released Thursday, found about 41 percent of registered voters said they would vote for Trump if the election took place today, while 39 percent picked Biden. About 20 percent of voters said they have not picked a candidate, were leaning toward third-party options or might not vote in the election.

This is a flip-flop from a previous Reuters/Ipsos poll, conducted May 31 to June 1, which showed the incumbent with a 2-point lead over the former president  41 percent to 39 percent.

The latest two-day poll was conducted earlier this week and closed Tuesday, nearly two weeks after Trump was criminally convicted in New York in his hush money case, Reuters noted. The steady support for the former president follows various other polls over the past two weeks suggesting the guilty verdict is not impacting some voters choices.

About 61 percent of registered voters in the latest survey said Trump being found guilty on all 34 felony counts of falsifying business records in an attempt to cover up an alleged past affair ahead of the 2016 election, has not affected their voting plans, pollsters said.

Meanwhile, the presidents son, Hunter Biden was found guilty in a federal gun case this week, making the commander in chief the first sitting U.S. president with a criminally convicted child.

The poll, which closed on the same day as Hunter Bidens conviction, found 80 percent of surveyed adults said the outcome was unlikely to change their vote.

Adding independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. into the mix, about 10 percent of respondents said they would choose him if he was on the ballot with Trump and Biden, per the survey.

The Reuters/Ipsos poll was conducted nationally among 903 registered voters Monday and Tuesday. Trumps lead for the survey had a margin of error of roughly 3 percentage points.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Former President Trump touted that he has a great relationship with Republican members of Congress following meetings he held on Capitol Hill with GOP representatives and senators.

Trump said in brief remarks to reporters following those meetings that he and the Republican lawmakers agree on just about everything and work out what they differ on.

Ive had a great relationship with just about everybody here, with everybody here, just about all of the senators, and if it wasnt fantastic, it gets worked out, he said.

Trump met with House members in the morning and senators in the afternoon Thursday in his first time visiting Capitol Hill since the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection. Those who were present in the meetings have said the focus was on unity and the need to vote for the team.

Notably, the meetings included a few Republicans who have previously criticized the former president, like Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and Sens. Bill Cassidy (La.) and Mitt Romney (Utah).

McConnell sharply criticized Trump in the aftermath of the Capitol riot as responsible for provoking the attack, and Cassidy and Romney both voted to convict Trump in his second impeachment trial accusing him of inciting the insurrection.

The Senate Republican leader has since endorsed Trump and said he would vote for him in 2024, while Cassidy and Romney have indicated they will not support Trump.

But the overwhelming majority of the GOP in the House and Senate, including senators who were present with Trump during his remarks, are behind Trump as the presumptive Republican nominee.

Trump said his meeting with the Senate was great and the GOP has tremendous unity and common sense. He said the meeting with the House showed the same unity.

We have one thing in mind, and thats making our country great, he 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 The Hill.
Donald Trump visited Capitol Hill Thursday to meet with Republicans in Congress and supposedly discuss strategy, but it didnt take long for him to go off on tangentsand dump on the site of this years Republican National Convention, Milwaukee.



Tweet screenshot Jake Sherman: TRUMP TO HOUSE REPUBLICANS:

Republican members of Congress from Wisconsin scrambled to respond to the comments, offering several different explanations to cover for the former president and convicted felon, including one representative who said the whole thing never happened. Unfortunately, three others said it definitely did.

Twitter Screenshot Lawrence Andrea: Wisconsin Rep. Glenn Grothman told me Trump made these comments when speaking about the election. Grothman said Trump was

Tweet screenshot Adam Rife: GOP appears to be scrambling to spin. A convention spokesperson told me Trump

Tweet screenshot Derrick Van Orden: Another classic example of shitty reporting by a Democratic Party shill pretending to be a journalist. Lies busy omission. @realDonaldTrump was specifically referring to the crime the CRIME RATE in Milwaukee. Tweet accompanies an article that reads

Tweet screenshot Lawrence Andrea: An aide to Rep. Scott Fitzgerald backs Grothmans claim and tells me Fitzgerald said Trumps comments were about election integrity.

Tweet screenshot Representative Bryan Steil: I was in the room. President Trump did not say this. There is no better place than Wisconsin in July.

Why would Trump criticize the city, especially since Wisconsin is a swing state that he narrowly lost in the 2020 election? The answer may very well be racism. Milwaukee is very often criticized by the rural and suburban politicians in the rest of the state, who use racist dog whistles, yell socialism, or rely on more overt bigotry. Myths of rampant crime continue to plague the city, even as its crime rate has dropped. Meanwhile, its sizable Black population, which has historically tipped the state blue, has slightly tempered its support for Democrats. In 2020, Trumps allies responded to his election loss by trying to write off Milwaukees votes and overturn the states election results.



Recently, Wisconsin has been a source of bad news for the GOP, from a liberal candidate successfully winning a state Supreme Court seat to Democrats successfully throwing out one of the most gerrymandered legislative maps in the country. Perhaps Trump sees the writing on the wall and is (presumptuously) writing off the state for 2024, or he has another frightening plan to interfere in the states results if they dont go his way. Or, maybe he hates Milwaukee for the same reasons he hates Chicago and Harrisburg.



One member of Congress who actually represents Milwaukee, had a healthier response to Trumps comments.

Twitter screenshot Representative Gwen Moore: Once he's settled in with his parole officer, I am certain he will discover that Milwaukee is a wonderful, vibrant and welcoming city full of diverse neighborhoods and a thriving business community. (Quote tweeting Jake Sherman: TRUMP TO HOUSE REPUBLICANS:

This article has been updated.


Donald Trump paraded his way to Capitol Hill on Thursday and graciously gave congressional Republicans a chance to smooch his felonious posterior. While doing so, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee made the unusual political calculation of insulting the swing-state city that will host next months Republican National Convention, calling Milwaukee horrible.

This proved, once again, that Trump has zero loyalty and that theres no person or thing he wont debase. "Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city," Trump said, several lawmakers confirmed to the USA TODAY Network. The remark was first reported by Punchbowl News.

Look, Im from Chicago, and disliking Milwaukee and Wisconsin at large is a requirement for residency here. The state directly to my north is a region riddled with cheese-obsessed Green Bay Packers fans, and nobody in their right mind wants to go there. (An exception might be carved out for the touristy Wisconsin Dells, assuming youre into water slides and being around lots of people who have regrettable tattoos. But thats it.)

Former President Donald Trump departs after delivering remarks at a House Republicans Conference meeting at the Capitol Hill Club on June 13, 2024, in Washington, D.C.

Convicted-felon Donald Trump calls Milwaukee 'horrible'? Whatever you say, boss.

Still, even I wouldnt label Milwaukee a horrible city. Its a nice place with good restaurants and bars and its right on Lake Michigan, which is beautiful.

The only thing I see thats presently making it horrible is the fact that the city has plans next month to host a big political convention celebrating a convicted felon who Republicans think should be president of the United States.

Why isn't Biden afraid of sharks? How long will feckless Joe Biden ignore the grave threat of sharks and electric boats?

And now that convicted felon has taken it upon himself to slam the very city that was nice enough to welcome him and his very weird political party.

Thats definitely horrible.

Wisconsin lawmakers rush to defend ... Trump, not Milwaukee

Former President Donald Trump raises his fist as he departs the Capitol Hill Club after meeting with congressional House Republicans on June 13, 2024, in Washington, D.C.

Rather than defend the honor of their states most populous city, GOP lawmakers from Wisconsin tried to make excuses for the words that fell out of Dear Leaders mouth.

Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden wrote on social media that Trump was specifically referring to the CRIME RATE in Milwaukee.

Republicans compare Trump to Jesus: Marjorie Taylor Greene compares Trump to Jesus. Which Bible is she reading?

U.S. Rep. Glenn Grothman told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, part of the USA TODAY Network, that Trump was concerned about the election in Milwaukee.

And Rep. Bryan Steil posted on social media: I was in the room. President Trump did not say this.

Which is it, boys? And did each of you get a pat on the head from the MAGA king during Thursdays meeting?

Trump's Milwaukee insult is just a microcosm of his larger loathsomeness

The downtown Milwaukee skyline along Lake Michigan on June 30, 2023.

Ill let the good people of Milwaukee  it was hard for me to type good, but its actually true  defend their own honor against the always-rude presidential candidate with the 34 felony convictions and the clownish party that has picked him as its avatar.

But what mattered from Thursdays buffoonery on Capitol Hill wasnt just Trump slagging the city where he will likely become the first-ever convicted felon picked as a major partys presidential nominee. And it wasnt the embarrassingly fawning GOP lawmakers who have traded their backbones for a red MAGA hat and a spot on the wrong side of history.

Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., arrives for a news conference at the Republican National Committee after meeting with former President Donald Trump and the House Republican Conference on June 13, 2024.

It was the whole thing.

A twice-impeached, insurrection-fomenting convicted felon who lost the presidency after one term demanding absolute fealty while showing us all he doesnt give a damn about anyone or anything other than himself.

Maybe steer clear of Milwaukee in July. A felon will be roaming the streets.

Rep. Steil did note in his post: There is no better place than Wisconsin in July.

Id quibble with that, but one thing is certain: All that will be making Milwaukee a horrible city in July will be the shameful presence of one Donald J. Trump.

Follow USA TODAY columnist Rex Huppke on X, formerly Twitter, @RexHuppke and Facebook facebook.com/RexIsAJerk.

You can read diverse opinions from our USA TODAY columnists and other writers on the Opinion front page, on X, formerly Twitter, @usatodayopinion and in our Opinion newsletter.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump calls Milwaukee 'horrible.' He's right about the RNC host city
Advocates hoped to see "justice in their lifetime" after the Oklahoma Supreme Court dismissed a lawsuit brought by survivors of the Tulsa Race Massacre. The suit sought reparations for survivors of one of the worst single acts of violence against Black people in American history.

Here's what to know about the lawsuit, the massacre, and advocates' efforts for recognition.

What was the Oklahoma massacre?

On May 31, 1921, a young Black man named Dick Rowland was accused of assaulting a white woman named Sarah Page. According to the 2001 Tulsa Race Riot Commission, the pair likely knew each other, and an investigation by the commission found Page made no allegations of assault against Rowland.

Photograph of an African-American man with a camera looking at the skeletons of iron beds which rise above the ashes of a burned out block after the Tulsa Race Massacre, June 1, 1921. Courtesy of the Oklahoma Historical Society

An aggressively written article and out-of-control rumors spurred a confrontation between armed mobs. The sheriff had barricaded Rowland inside the top floor to keep the mobs away from him. When shots rang out, people began to retreat.

Overnight, white rioters looted and turned 35 city blocks to smoldering rubble and ash. The burning that took place in Tulsa in 1921 destroyed 1,256 homes and 191 businesses.

Official counts at the time only recorded 36 deaths, but historians now believe the toll to be closer to 300. The Red Cross reported that more than 10,000 people were left homeless. This marked the first time that bombs were dropped on American soil.

What happened with the Tulsa Race Massacre survivors' lawsuit?

The lawsuit, filed in 2020, stated that the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre represented an "ongoing public nuisance," to survivors Viola Fletcher, Lessie Benningfield Randle, and Hughes Van Ellis Sr. The lawsuit also said the destruction of what had been America's most prosperous Black business community continues to affect Tulsa.

Van Ellis died last year at 102 and his estate represents him on the case.

Ike Howard, left, looks at his grandmother, Mrs. Viola Ford Fletcher, 109, as she and Mrs. Lessie Benningfield Randle, 108, right, are introduced during the House General Government Committee meeting at the Oklahoma Capitol Thursday, Oct. 5, 2023.

In the original suit, survivors alleged that they "continue to face racially disparate treatment and City-created barriers to basic human needs" because of unjust actions carried out by the city of Tulsa, police and military after the massacre, according to the original suit.

Survivors also alleged that the defendants took the name "Black Wall Street" and used it as marketing and tourism material for the City of Tulsa without giving anything back to the community.

Tulsa County District Court Judge Caroline Wall dismissed the lawsuit last year, and survivors appealed to the states high court.

On Wednesday, the Oklahoma Supreme Court affirmed Wall's decision in an 8-1 vote, effectively ending any further attempts by survivors' attorneys to seek reparations..

With respect to their public nuisance claim, though Plaintiffs' grievances are legitimate, they do not fall within the scope of our State's public nuisance statute, Vice Chief Justice Dustin P. Rowe wrote.

What is Black Wall Street? Is it nationally recognized?

Today, a movement pushes forward to recognize the Greenwood District as a national monument and memorialize its history. Black Wall Street was the moniker given to the Greenwood District after its residents found success in the oil industry. It was one of the most affluent Black communities in the country. U.S. Sen. James Lankford authored a bill for the national recognition of the site.

More: From Black Wall Street to George Floyd, the echoes of trauma shape Black Americans' reality

What's next?

The survivors' legal team released a statement stating that the "suit seeks to remedy wrongful acts perpetrated by a white mob against Black people  the court system is the very place where such harms are meant to be remedied."

The team hopes to file a petition for rehearing by the court. Under the 2007 Emmett Till Unsolved Civil Rights Crime Act, they plan to ask for an investigation into the massacre itself.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Tulsa Race Massacre lawsuit: What happened? What's next
By Keita Nakamura, KYODO NEWS - Jun 14, 2024 - 10:01 | All, Japan, World, G7

Leaders of the Group of Seven countries agreed Thursday to provide at least $50 billion in loans for Ukraine, using interest from Russian sovereign assets frozen since Moscow launched a full-scale invasion of its neighbor more than two years ago, senior U.S. and Japanese officials said.

In addition to Ukraine's future, a major topic on the first day of their summit in Fasano, southern Italy, was the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas in the Gaza Strip, with the G7 members having endorsed a cease-fire plan presented by the United States.

The G7 loan deal was struck amid concern over "Ukraine fatigue," with doubts persisting about how long the United States and other like-minded partners can stand together in supplying Kyiv with weapons and helping it to rebuild destroyed infrastructure.

U.S. President Joe Biden said the Russian invasion that started in February 2022 is "a test" for the world, posing the question of whether it can unite "for sovereignty, freedom, and against tyranny."

"The United States, the G7 and countries around the world have consistently answered the question by saying, 'Yes, we will.' We will say it again. Yes, again and again and again, we're going to stand with Ukraine," Biden said at a joint press conference with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who was invited to the summit as a guest.

The United States has committed to the extension of up to $50 billion in loans, a senior Biden administration official said, adding it will "not be the only" lender.

"This will be a loan syndicate. We're going to share the risk because we have a shared commitment to get this done," the official said.

According to a Japanese official, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida explained to his G7 counterparts that his nation's funding will not be used for military purposes given its war-renouncing Constitution.

The official, however, refrained from providing details on the new lending scheme. He said the leaders "are planning to make some kind of announcement" related to the plan in their communique expected to be released Friday.

The G7 has imposed a series of economic sanctions on Moscow, including asset freezes, since the invasion began. The U.S. official, who previewed the deal on condition of anonymity, did not disclose which G7 members will be part of the new initiative.

A G7 source said Japan, Britain and Canada are expected to join the U.S.-led scheme, while France, Germany and Italy are unlikely to participate for the time being as the European Union already has a similar support plan.

Ukraine will not have to repay up to $50 billion of the loans, which it will start receiving this year from the group of the world's leading industrialized democracies, as Russia will ultimately end up shouldering the cost, according to the U.S. official.

The G7, along with Australia, has frozen about $280 billion of Russian sovereign assets, as well as around $58 billion of those belonging to individuals, companies and organizations of the nation, according to the Japanese government.

Kishida's government has focused on providing support for Ukraine's reconstruction within the scope of Japan's Constitution, such as demining cooperation and the provision of nonlethal defense equipment.

At the summit's opening session, Kishida emphasized the significance of maintaining a free and open international order based on the rule of law, as well as bolstering relations with developing and emerging countries in the "Global South," Japan's Foreign Ministry said.

Both "have become increasingly important as we face new challenges, including Russia's continued aggression against Ukraine and heightened tensions in the Middle East," Kishida was quoted by the ministry as saying.

Regarding Ukraine, Kishida said Japan is considering imposing sanctions on foreign companies and groups over the export of products to Russia via third countries that could be diverted to military use, according to the ministry.

The measure would be carried out with specific entities based in China, India, Kazakhstan, the United Arab Emirates and Uzbekistan in mind, it said.

The World Bank has estimated the cost of rebuilding Ukraine at $486 billion over the next decade, which Ukraine is likely to fund through loans, representing business opportunities for companies from Japan and around the world.

As for the prolonged conflict between Israel and Hamas, Biden made public a three-stage cease-fire plan to end the war in late May, saying it had been proposed by Israel, traditionally supported by the United States.

The U.N. Security Council endorsed the plan earlier this month, but U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday that Hamas had proposed numerous changes, describing some as unworkable.

International pressure has been mounting on Israel to stop its military campaign in Gaza, which has displaced many Palestinians and caused severe shortages of food, water and energy.

The G7 has condemned the "terrorist" attacks conducted by Hamas on Oct. 7 that triggered the ongoing Israeli offensive in the Gaza Strip, while avoiding criticizing Israel directly.

Related coverage:

G7 to achieve "good outcome" on how to aid Ukraine: U.S. official

PM Kishida to lead session on China, Indo-Pacific at Italy G7 summit

North Korea airport shows signs of preparations for Putin visit: report
ST. LANDRY PARISH, La. (KLFY) Two women were arrested after authorities executed a search warrant at the Green Spa in Opelousas; authorities had received multiple complaints alleging the women at the business were involved in a prostitution operation.

According to Sheriff Bobby J. Guidroz, During the last several months, the St. Landry Parish Sheriffs Office had received numerous citizen complaints regarding the business identified as Green Spa located at 628 Creswell Lane Opelousas, Louisiana. The complainants advised female employees were engaging in sexual acts for money.

St. Landry Parish law enforcement officials executed a search warrant at the Green Spa, located at 628 Creswell Lane, and arrested two females identified as 44-year-old Xiaoxia Li A.K.A Yuang Yong and 55-year-old Luyanxing Couras. A man who was questioned at the location, but he was later released.

Authorities seized two $2487.00, two DVRS, seven cellular telephones, an external hard drive, one iPad, two checkbooks for someone who was not at the spa, one handwritten ledger, numerous business and occupational documents and one ATM.

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The investigation showed that the women disguised the massage parlor as a house of prostitution. Authorities the two women were offering sexual favors for money, and after conducting interviews with customers, detectives discovered the women were soliciting customers to perform various sexual acts for cash.

The ATM was conveniently placed in the lobby of the business for customers to get cash to pay for the sexual acts, according to the St. Landry Parish Sheriffs Office.

Law enforcement officials said the two suspects were not very cooperative and claimed to speak very little English. Both women are being charged with money laundering, operation of places of prostitution and inciting prostitution, with bonds set at $10,000. The suspects later bonded out after their arrests.

Anyone with additional information regarding the Green Spa is urged to contact the SLPSO at 337-948-6516.

This is an ongoing investigation and additional arrests are possible.

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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 KLFY.com.
Two dead after plane crash near South Lake Tahoe, sheriff says. Investigation underway

A plane crash in Northern California killed two people aboard, authorities said Thursday.

The Alpine County Sheriffs Office was notified of an overdue single-engine plane about 1 a.m. Thursday and tracked it to Willow Creek Road near Luther Pass, sheriffs officials said in a social media post. The mountainous area is between Alpine and El Dorado counties, about 10 miles south of South Lake Tahoe.

Both people were declared dead at the scene. There were no other passengers aboard, deputies said.

The two victims identities have not been released pending notification of family.

The National Transportation Safety Board said on social media it is investigating after a Luscombe 8A crashed.
A car hits a puddle as it travels down Tamiami Trail as rain falls in Naples on Tuesday, June 11, 2024.

Florida Highway Patrol says two motorists died in a weather-related crash in Immokalee on Wednesday morning, hours before Gov. Ron DeSantis declared a weather emergency in Collier County and others linked to possible flooding.

According to a news release, a vehicle driven by a 33-year-old Immokalee man was headed west on Immokalee Road near Platt about 11:35 a.m. A second vehicle driven by a 21-year-old Immokalee man was headed east on Immokalee also approaching Platt.

More: Live weather updates: Naples roads closed. More rain, flooding expected in Collier County

Troopes said the older driver applied his brakes, losing control of the vehicle because of the roadway conditions. The vehicle rotated, crossing the center line and into the path of the second vehicle, which hit the passenger side.

A passenger in the older Immokalee driver's car, a 35-year-old Immokalee woman, died at the scene, a second passenger, a 25-year-old Immokalee man died at the hospital.

Both drivers were taken to the hospital with "non-incapacitating injuries" and a 27-year-old Immokalee woman, who was passenger in the second car had incapacitating injuries, troopers said.

The National Weather Service reported about 4 p.m. that between 3 and 5 inches of rain had fallen, with an additional rainfall amounts of 2 to 4 inches possible.

The state of emergency was declared for Sarasota, Broward, Collier, Lee, and Miami-Dade counties as a storm moves through Southwest Florida. It began Tuesday and is expected to drop inches of rain in the coming days.

The Collier County Sheriff's Office urged motorists to drive slowly and turn on your headlights in the rain, as well as reporting streets flooding.

"Remember, if you cant see the roadway, its not safe to drive on," the sheriff's Facebook page said about 3 p.m.

Troopers said the crash remains under investigation.

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Florida Highway Patrol: two die in weather-related crash in Immokalee
Two men praised for helping family shot on interstate: There is still some good in Memphis

Two men praised for helping family shot on interstate: There is still some good in Memphis

This story has been updated to accurately reflect the spelling of Diamond Holders name.

MEMPHIS, Tenn.  Two men who dodged bullets to help a family of five who were shot on a Memphis interstate Tuesday are telling their story to WREG.

That incident yesterday actually should let Memphis know, Memphis still got hope. Like there is still some good in Memphis, Marcus Ross said.

Previous Story: 4 kids, 1 adult shot on I-240; 2 detained after chase with shots fired

It was a chaotic scene Tuesday afternoon on Interstate 240 at Poplar, as a gunman opened fire on a car, riddling it with bullets and sending four young children and a 30-year-old father to hospitals in critical condition.

Despite the tragedy, two brothers, Diamond Holder and Marcus Ross, are being praised as heroes for their quick action in getting the victims to a nearby hospital.

Next thing you know we just start hearing gunshots, Im talking about back to back to back, so first thing we do is tell the kids to get down in the car, Ross said.

Ross said they sprang into action after a man got out of a car in front of them.

Heartbreaking, family member of interstate shooting victims says

He was like, My son got shot. His son had fell on the ground and thats when my brother Diamond had picked up the little boy, Ross said.

Holder said the man didnt understand what was going on at first.

And then he realized, he was helping, he was like, My kids, just help me get my kids,' Holder said.

They then drove the family to a hospital.

Grabbed the kids out the car, rushed to the hospital, Ross said. Im screaming, Kids and dad got shot!  Somebody move!'

Both men say while they were helping the family, they couldnt help think of their own children.

I just, I dont know it was like a shock, but man we got to get it done, Holder said.

Ross and Holder both say that, while they are being praised as Good Samaritans, it was a team effort.

With this situation alone, even though it was a bad incident, good still saved the day, giving people hope, they said. Memphis came together yesterday like it didnt matter what color, no race, whatever.

Court records say the father was trying to merge onto the I-240 from Mount Moriah but couldnt because a gray SUV refused to allow him. Once the victim finally merged, police say the suspect started driving erratically towards the victims vehicle.

The suspects allegedly made their way to the passenger side of the victims vehicle and someone inside opened fire.

The four children hurt in the shooting  ages 2, and 8, and two twins who are 3  are being treated at Le Bonheur Childrens Hospital. One of the children was shot five times. At last check, police say they were in critical condition.

Doctor calls increase in children treated for gunshots an alarming trend

Two suspects, Kendrick Ray, 21, and Lorenzo Watson, 18, were captured and arrested after police found them at Wolfchase Galleria and chased them into Raleigh, where they crashed their vehicle and allegedly fired at officers as they tried to escape on foot.

Both are facing numerous charges, including six counts of attempted first-degree murder.

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.
Two people found dead in missing aircraft in the Sierra Nevada

(FOX40.COM)  A missing airplane in the Sierra Nevada was discovered to have crashed with two people found dead inside Thursday afternoon, according to the Alpine County Sheriffs Office.

The plane was reported overdue at 1 a.m. and the planes GPS transponder mapped it in the area of Luther Pass along State Route 89.

Ex-UC Davis water polo coach pleads guilty to child pornography charges

Responding deputies found the single-engine aircraft crashed near Willow Creek Road where two people were found onboard and later pronounced dead at the scene.

The identities of the passengers is being withheld from the public until the next of kin has been notified.

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.
(WJBF)  As the races for Richmond County Sheriff and Superior Court Judge resulted in a run-off, the community is hosting opportunities for the public to hear what the candidates have to say before voting again.

In the May 21 election, incumbent Sheriff Richard Roundtree received 49.11% of the vote and Richmond County Marshals Sergeant Eugene Gino Rock Brantley with acquiring 27.82%. In the Superior Court Judge race, Charles Lyons received 44.60% of the vote and received Matt Matson received 29.86%.

Operation Voter Turnout is hosting a candidates forum for the Richmond County Sheriff runoff candidates this evening from 5 p.m. until 6 p.m. at Hudson Memorial CME Church at 2 Taylor Street near downtown Augusta.

The West Augusta Alliance will hold a candidate forum the same evening for both the Richmond County Sheriff and Superior Court Judge run-off races. It will begin at 6:30 p.m. in the Mission Activities Center at First Baptist Church of Augusta located at 3500 Walton Way.

ALSO ON WJBF: Early voting numbers for Augusta run-offs way up from primary

Candidates will be given a brief opportunity to introduce themselves and present their platforms and agendas. The event will be moderated, and the audience will have the chance to submit questions for the candidates.

Organizers encourage residents to attend and participate in the discussion.

Voters return to the polls on Tuesday, June 18, though several voters have already cast their ballot, taking advantage of early voting.

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 WJBF.
Tyler Boebert finally has a lawyer in his theft case

Tyler Boebert in his booking photo after his February 27 arrest. Garfield County Sheriff's Office

Rep. Lauren Boebert's son, Tyler Boebert, has hired an attorney for his Colorado criminal case.

The teen previously told a judge he was having trouble affording a lawyer.

Tyler Boebert faces multiples charges in connection to car break-ins and thefts in Colorado.

Lauren Boebert's teenage son, Tyler Boebert, has finally hired an attorney for his Colorado criminal theft case after months without any representation.

Dressed in a dark-colored suit and tie, the 18-year-old son of the high-profile Republican congresswoman appeared in the Garfield County Courthouse Thursday with his newly hired attorney, William Trent Palmer.

Tyler Boebert had been without an attorney during his last two court appearances, first telling the judge that he was having trouble affording a lawyer.

The teen informed Ninth Judicial District Judge John Neiley during an April 11 appearance, "We are working to hire an attorney, but it's just been kind of hard with the prices, but we are working on it."

At an appearance on May 9, he told Neiley that he only sent in the paperwork to sign up for a public defender days earlier, drawing disappointment from the judge.

"I wish you'd turned in that application a little sooner," Neiley told Tyler Boebert at the time.

But Tyler Boebert did not go with a public defender, after all.

Palmer runs his own private practice based in Carbondale, Colorado.

On Thursday, Palmer asked the judge to continue Boebert's case until July 25.

The judge checked with Boebert if that date worked for him and the teenager confirmed it did.

"We're going to continue the case then so that you and Mr. Palmer can have some discussions and then continued discussions with the DA as well," Neiley said.

Police say Tyler Boebert was spotted in a Colorado store where a stolen credit card was used. Garfield Combined Courts

Palmer did not immediately respond to a request for comment by Business Insider on Thursday.

The courthouse clerk told BI that Palmer officially entered his appearance into Tyler Boebert's case on May 26.

Public records show Palmer works at the law firm WTP LAW.

"Through experience, WTP | LAW has developed adept strategies to defend even the most serious allegations, including drugs and weapons charges, burglary and theft, domestic violence related offenses, and others," the firm's website says.

Boebert was arrested by the Rifle Police Department in February in connection to a string of car break-ins and property thefts in Rifle, Colorado. He faces more than a dozen charges, including several felony charges for criminal possession of ID documents.

According to an arrest affidavit, the teen is one of four people accused of breaking into four cars in the city of Rifle, Colorado, and stealing wallets to make purchases at businesses including McDonald's, Starbucks, and gas stations.

At the time of his arrest, Lauren Boebert said in a statement to BI that her son should be "held accountable for poor decisions just like any other citizen."

The congresswoman has not shown up for her son's court appearances, but she did support former President Donald Trump at his recent criminal hush-money trial in New York City.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Tyson Foods has suspended the company's chief financial officer, John R. Tyson, after he was arrested for allegedly driving while intoxicated.

University of Arkansas police in Fayetteville, Arkansas, arrested Tyson, 34, early Thursday for driving under the influence, according to police records. Other charges included careless driving and making an illegal turn. He was released from custody the same day on a $1,105 bond and is scheduled to appear in court on July 15.

Tyson is the great-grandson of the company's founder, John W. Tyson, and son of the food giant's current chairman, John H. Tyson.

"We are aware that John Randal Tyson, Chief Financial Officer of Tyson Foods, was arrested for an alleged DWI. Tyson Foods has suspended Mr. Tyson from his duties effective immediately and named Curt Calaway as interim Chief Financial Officer," Springdale, Arkansas-based Tyson Foods said in a statement

The incident is the second time in recent years that Tyson, a former investment banker who joined Tyson Foods in 2019, has been arrested. He was previously arrested in 2022 on charges of public intoxication and criminal trespassing after allegedly entering a Fayetteville woman's home and falling asleep in her bed. The woman did not know who Tyson was and called the police, KNWA Fox 24 reported at the time.

Tyson pleaded guilty to both charges and settled them by paying fines and court fees. He also apologized in a companywide memo and said he was getting counseling for alcohol abuse.

A fourth-generation member of the family that controls the $19 billion meat-processing company, Tyson was named CFO in September of 2022. Tyson Foods, founded in 1935, has 139,000 employees and reported 2023 sales of $52.8 billion.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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U.S. Army Contracting Command to celebrate Change of Command ceremonies

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT)  Redstone Arsenal is set to celebrate & promote two members to the top two leadership positions for Army Contracting Command.

Major General Douglas S. Lowrey and Command Sergeant Major Rachel Harris will join the U.S. Army Contracting Command on Friday, June 14. The Change of Command and Change of Responsibility ceremonies will be held at the Army Material Command parade field on Redstone Arsenal.

WW2 Veterans receive heroes welcome home following trip to Normandy

Maj. Gen. Lowrey began his career as a second lieutenant and Infantry Officer. He was part of the Army ROTC program at Northeastern State University in Oklahoma in 1994.

His assignment before landing at Redstone was the commanding general for the U.S. Army Mission and Installation Contracting Command at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston, Texas.

Maj. Gen. Lowreys military awards and decorations include:

Legion of Merit with an oak leaf cluster

Bronze Star Medal

Defense Meritorious Service Medal

Meritorious Service Medal with three oak leaf clusters

Joint Service Commendation Medal

Inductee of the Order of St. Maurice

Joint Service Achievement Medal

Army Achievement medal with two oak leaf clusters

Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal

Iraq Campaign Medal

Global War on Terrorism Service Medal

Authorized to wear the Combat Action Badge, Expert Infantrymans badge and Airborne Wings

Maj. Gen. Lowrey will assume the position of Commanding General from Brigadier General Christine A. Beeler.

Command Sgt. Maj. Harriss career began in 2000 when she attended basic training at Fort Jackson in South Carolina where she was assigned to the 3rd Battalion, 13th Infantry Regiment on Fort Jackson.

She received the military occupational specialty of an administrative specialist and was later re-classified as a supply sergeant. Later she re-classified again as a contracting noncommissioned officer. Command Stg. Maj. Harris completed her most recent deployment in Qatar from October 2021 to March 2022.

Command Sgt. Maj. Harriss awards and achievements include:

Contingency Contracting Officer (CCO) Award of Excellence awarded by the Secretary of the Army and the Army Contracting Command Covenant CCO Medallion

Legion of Merit

Bronze Star Medal

Defense Meritorious Service medal

Meritorious Service Medal (4th award)

Army Commendation Medal (6th award)

Army Achievement Medal (4th award)

Army Good Conduct Medal (7th award)

Afghanistan Campaign Medal

Iraq Campaign Medal (5 campaign stars)

Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal

Global War on Terrorism Service Medal

Korean Defense Service Medal

Overseas Medal (numeral 7)

NCO Professional Development Ribbon (numeral 6)

North Atlantic Treaty Service Medal

Drill Sergeant Identification badge

Senior Army Instructor Badge and the Parachute Badge

Honorary member of the prestigious Sergeant Morales Club

Command Sgt. Maj. Harris will assume responsibility from Command Sergeant Major Julie Saorrono.

AHSAA makes necessary change to stadium rotation for Super 7 football championships

The Change of Command for Maj. Gen. Lowrey will be before the Change of Responsibility for Command Sgt. Maj. Harris.

The Army Contracting Command will host a cake-cutting in honor of the Armys 249th birthday during a reception after the ceremonies.

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.
KYODO NEWS - Jun 14, 2024 - 07:03 | All, World, Japan, G7

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed an agreement for Tokyo to provide long-term support for Kyiv amid Russia's prolonged war against its neighbor as they met in Italy on Thursday, Japan's government said.

The 10-year deal stipulates that Japan will continue providing support for Ukraine, such as by supplying "nonlethal equipment and goods" and "treatment of injured Ukrainian service members," among other efforts, in accordance with Tokyo's war-renouncing Constitution and related legal requirements and regulations.

Kishida also revealed a plan to host an international meeting next year to discuss how to deal with landmines being laid in Ukraine, with Zelenskyy promising "utmost cooperation" on the gathering, according to the Japanese government.

Japan has offered support to Ukraine, but it has been limited to nonmilitary assistance due to self-imposed restrictions on providing weapons under the Constitution. Meanwhile, Western countries have supplied various weapons such as missile interceptors, battle tanks and fighter jets.

Kishida and Zelenskyy met on the sidelines of a three-day Group of Seven summit in Fasano in southern Italy through Saturday. It is the second consecutive year that Zelenskyy has been invited to attend the G7 summit in person as a guest.

In the agreement, Japan pledges to "work to actively contribute to Ukraine's economic recovery and industrial modernization," while Ukraine vows to "continue its ambitious reform path" in areas such as its judicial system and anti-corruption efforts.

The two governments would also hold consultations within 24 hours, at the request of either, "in the event of a future Russian armed attack against Ukraine" to "determine appropriate next steps," according to the deal.

The agreement between Japan and Ukraine followed a joint declaration by the G7 leaders issued in July 2023, in which they promised to work with Ukraine "on specific, bilateral, long-term security commitments" and other supportive measures.

Over 30 countries in total have taken part in the declaration, and 15 nations, including five G7 members -- Britain, Canada, France, Germany and Italy -- have each signed a deal with Ukraine, according to the Japanese Foreign Ministry.

Since Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Japan and other G7 members as well as like-minded nations have condemned the aggression while boosting support for Kyiv and imposing strict economic sanctions on Moscow.

In February, Japan hosted a conference in Tokyo on the reconstruction of Ukraine, pledging 15.8 billion yen ($100 million) in grant aid to help with the restoration of electricity and other energy infrastructure, among other recovery projects. Japan and Ukraine also signed 56 memorandums of cooperation in seven areas, including agriculture and digitalization, at the event.

Kishida and Zelenskyy last held in-person bilateral talks in May 2023 on the fringes of the G7 summit in Hiroshima, western Japan.
The U.S. Attorney for New Jersey told jurors in Manhattan on Wednesday that Sen. Bob Menendez complained to him about the criminal prosecution of his friend and asked him to look at it carefully.

Philip Sellinger is the second top enforcement official from New Jersey to testify during Menendezs corruption trial, which is now in its fifth week, that the senator asked for special treatment in a specific criminal matter. Former state Attorney General Gurbir Grewal testified last week that the three-term Democrat asked him about an insurance fraud investigation threatening to ensnare a friends company.

Sellinger told jurors he was a private attorney angling to become New Jerseys new U.S. attorney at the time of his December 2020 conversation with Menendez in the senators Washington, D.C., office.

New Jerseys senior senator told Sellinger that his friend Fred Daibes was being treated unfairly, according to Sellinger.

Sen. Menendez hoped that if I became U.S. attorney, I would look at it carefully, Sellinger told jurors.

Daibes name didnt ring any bells, so Sellinger assured the senator he would regard all cases carefully as U.S. attorney, he testified. But he called the three-term Democrat the next day to inform him that he discovered hed been involved in a 2017 lawsuit against the borough of Edgewater that implicated Daibes, a real estate developer and bank founder there. If he became U.S. attorney, he told Menendez, hed have to alert his bosses at the Department of Justice about it as a potential conflict of interest and they would decide if he should recuse himself from the case, he testified.

That didnt end the matter. Sellinger recounted in court several other calls and meetings  by Menendez and his associates  where they brought up the Daibes case.

Sellinger said the senators ask was unusual. The U.S. attorney is the top federal law enforcement official in New Jersey, overseeing all operations, including 1,500 criminal and 2,500 civil cases a year, as well as investigations and appeals, Sellinger told jurors. That means the person in that position rarely gets personally involved in specific cases, he added.

Sometime later, Menendez told Sellinger that he wouldnt suggest President Joe Biden nominate him to be New Jerseys next U.S. attorney, saying the White House had requested multiple candidates to consider. Menendez instead named Esther Suarez  now Hudson Countys prosecutor  as his pick.

When her appointment later fell through, Sellinger reached back to Menendez to tell him he was still interested, and by December 2021, he had the job. On his first day as U.S. attorney, he reviewed the offices major cases and alerted his new supervisors of four cases where potential conflicts of interest might warrant his recusal  including Daibes, he testified.

The next week, Sellingers bosses ordered him off the Daibes case.

A friendship ended

Sellinger told jurors he first met Menendez about 20 years ago, when he began supporting his campaign fundraisers. They became so close that Sellinger attended the Menendezes October 2020 wedding, and the two couples socialized.

But it didnt take long after Sellingers recusal from Daibes case for him learn the senator was irked, testimony showed. Sellinger told jurors he called Menendez in March 2022 to see if hed speak at the formal ceremony recognizing his appointment.

He said, Im going to pass. The only thing worse than not having a relationship with the United States attorney is people thinking you have a relationship with the United States attorney, and you dont, Sellinger testified.

Prosecutor Lara Pomerantz asked Sellinger what he thought the senator meant.

That we no longer had a relationship, Sellinger responded.

Prosecutors have accused Daibes of giving the Menendezes cash and gold bars in exchange for his help in squashing his criminal troubles. Daibes has long been accused of using money to expand his influence in Edgewater, schemes the State Commission of Investigation revealed last year.

As Wednesday wound to a close, defense attorney Avi Weitzman began his cross-examination. He focused on Sellingers reputation and self-perception as someone whose integrity and good name are of paramount importance. Weitzman asked: Had he made those core values known to Menendez?

I never believed him to be asking me to do something unethical or improper, Sellinger said.

More: Menendez defense team blasts prosecutions star witness Jose Uribe as a very good liar

Jose Uribe cross continued

Earlier Wednesday, defense attorneys finished cross-examining Jose Uribe, the failed insurance broker who became the prosecutions star witness when he agreed to plead guilty and testify against his co-defendants.

Uribe has said he gave the senator's wife, Nadine Arslanian Menendez, $15,000 for a down payment for a new Mercedes-Benz convertible and paid her monthly $900 payments for almost three years in a deal that required her to connect him with the senator, who he expected to stop and kill all investigation.

Manhattan, NY  October 18, 2023 -- Jose Uribe involved in the bribery case involving Senator Robert Menendez enters the Federal Courthouse in lower Manhattan for a hearing on corruption charges.

The New Jersey Attorney Generals Office, at that time, had indicted Uribes friend Elvis Parra and Uribe worried investigators continuing, expanding probe would reach a company, Phoenix Risk Management, that he was running illicitly after he was barred from the business because of his own 2011 insurance fraud conviction.

Through questioning by defense attorney Adam Fee, Uribe acknowledged that he never mentioned money or the Mercedes to Sen. Menendez, spelled out the terms of his deal with Nadine Menendez to the senator, or discussed details about the senators calls and meeting with Grewal.

While Fee spent Tuesday trying to depict Uribe as a chronic liar and criminal, he spent Wednesday morning attacking his memory, accusing Uribe of regular intoxication and Xanax use.

Sir, have you driven drunk before? Fee asked Uribe, prompting an objection from prosecutors that Judge Sidney H. Stein sustained.

Uribe denied he was drunk or otherwise incapacitated when he met with Menendez.

I am not sitting with a U.S. senator to discuss a serious matter when I am intoxicated, he said.

Wednesday also brought some ping-ponging testimony from prosecutors and defense attorneys about some of the more salacious moments of Uribes testimony.

Fee suggested during cross-examination that Uribe made up his super weird claim that Menendez rang a little bell to summon Nadine when the men needed paper so Uribe could write down the names of the people and companies he wanted the senator to inquire about.

But Pomerantz showed jurors a text Nadine sent Fred Daibes in August 2019 that read: I am looking for the perfect bell. I have not found it yet, but I will.

Earlier, Fee tried to cast doubt on Uribes claim that Menendez told him in Spanish during a dinner when Nadine Menendez had disappeared to the bathroom: I saved your little a** not once but twice.

Pomerantz then showed jurors a text Menendez sent his wife during that dinner that read: Can you go to bathroom.

Also on Wednesday, Stein held a closed-door hearing about Nadine Menendezs trial date, which had been scheduled for July 8. He pushed it to Aug. 5 but requested additional information from her doctors about the state of her breast cancer, her prognosis, and a projection for when she might be able to assist in her defense in hopes of setting a more realistic trial date.

Editor's note: This story was originally published by the New Jersey Monitor, for which Dana DeFilippo is a staff writer. The New Jersey Monitor is part of States Newsroom, the nations largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Philip Sellinger says Bob Menendez asked he look at Fred Daibes case
The United States on Wednesday condemned the recent detention of 13 U.N. workers in Yemen by the Iran-backed Houthis. File Photo by Yahya Arhab/EPA-EFE

June 12 (UPI) -- The United States "strongly condemns" the Houthis' recent detention of more than a dozen United Nations workers, the State Department said Wednesday.

A total of 13 Yemeni employees of United Nations agencies have been detained over the last week by the Iran proxy militia that has been attacking vessels transiting the Red Sea in the Gulf of Aden amid Israel's war against another Tehran-backed group, Hamas, in Gaza.

The United Nations has identified the detained employees as six workers from the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, two from UNESCO and one each from the U.N. Development Program, U.N. Children's Fund, the World Food Program, World Health Organization and the Office of the Special Envoy.

At least 11 civil society workers were also arrested, it said.

The Houthis have claimed that the detained were part of "an American-Israeli spy network" that has operated in the country for decades.

Maj. Gen. Abdel Hakim Al Khaiwani said in a televised address carried by Houthi Al Masirah media on Monday that the spy network had operated from the American embassy until it closed in 2015. After which "the elements of the espionage network continued to implement the same sabotage agenda under the cover of international organizations."

State Department spokesman Matthew Miller rejected the accusations, saying in a statement Wednesday that the Houthis "are seeking to use disinformation to shift blame to the United States and other outside actors for their own failures."

"These Houthi actions reflect a blatant disregard for the dignity of the Yemeni people and individuals who -- contrary to the Houthis' lies -- have dedicated themselves to their country's betterment," he said.

"Their efforts stand in stark contrast to the actions of the Houthis who have held them without justification for more than two-and-a-half years."

The United Nations has said that it is working to secure the immediate release of their detained personnel, with its secretary-general, Antonio Guterres condemning all arbitrary detention of civilians.

"I demand the immediate and unconditional release of all detained U.N. personnel," he said Tuesday in a statement.

Yemen has been submerged in civil war since 2014 when the Houthis seized the capital of Sana'a. Since then, the Houthis have been fighting the internationally recognized government of Yemen and the Saudi-led coalition forces.

It has turned its attentions to Israel as the Middle Eastern country wages war against Hamas, attacking military and shipping vessels in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden. The militia says the attacks are in solidarity with the Palestinian people.

Human Rights Watch states that the Houthis have "disappeared, arbitrarily detained and torture" hundreds of civilians, including U.N. and nongovernmental agency workers, since the start of the conflict.

"The Houthis should immediately release any U.N. employees and workers for other independent groups they have detained because of their human rights and humanitarian work and stop arbitrarily detaining and forcibly disappearing people," Niku Jafarnia, a Yemen and Bahrain researcher at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.

"Such detentions not only attack the rights of these individuals but also undermine essential humanitarian and human rights work in Yemen at a time when the majority of Yemenis do not have adequate access to basic necessities like food and water."

The United Nations said Tuesday that the Houthis detained four additional U.N. staff members between 2021 and 2023 who have been held incommunicado.
U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department to announce the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate the discovery of classified documents held by President Joe Biden at an office and his home on Jan. 12, 2023 in Washington, D.C.(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for his refusal to release audio recordings of President Joe Bidens interviews with Department of Justice officials.

The GOP lawmakers maintain the audio is valuable for their monthslong impeachment inquiry into Biden.

House Republicans brought the contempt citation against Garland after he agreed with Bidens assertion of executive privilege over the recordings of his interviews during special counsel Robert Hurs investigation into his handling of classified material. Hur ultimately did not recommend criminal charges against Biden.

The House voted 216-207 to pass the resolution. Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio was the only Republican to vote no.

Congress cannot serve as a necessary check on the presidency if the executive branch is free to defy duly authorized, legal subpoenas, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, said in a statement following the vote. House Republicans rightfully held Attorney General Merrick Garland accountable today for his failure to comply with lawful subpoenas issued by the Oversight and Judiciary Committees.

Garland released a statement denouncing the vote as deeply disappointing and accusing House Republicans of turning a serious Congressional authority into a partisan weapon.

Todays vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Departments need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the committees, Garland said in the statement.

The Justice Department provided a transcript of Hurs interviews with Biden to both committees.

But GOP committee leaders subpoenaed the audio because they maintain transcripts are not sufficient.

Were in the midst of an impeachment inquiry, were entitled to the best evidence, and thats why we want the tapes, Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said on the floor Wednesday morning during debate of the contempt resolution.

Jordan accused the White House of a history of changing transcripts, seeming to refer to a late April report by the right-wing publication the Daily Caller that highlighted transcript corrections issued by White House communications staff. The White House routinely publishes transcripts of speeches and comments by Biden.

The audio recording is the best evidence of the words that President Biden actually spoke, Jordan continued on the floor.

News organizations are also in pursuit of the audio. Several, including CNN and NBC, have sued for the recordings under the Freedom of Information Act.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, ranking member of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, criticized Republicans on the floor Wednesday for seeking to hold Garland in contempt over an ongoing impeachment inquiry that he described as a madcap wild goose chase.

House GOP lawmakers already have access to a verbatim transcript, the Maryland Democrat said.

Do they think that the holy grail of the 118th Congress  evidence of a presidential high crime and misdemeanor  is lurking in the pauses or the background throat clearings and sneezes on the audio tape? Raskin continued.  They literally dont even know what theyre looking for anymore.

House lawmakers voted along party lines in December to proceed with an impeachment inquiry into whether Biden, during his time as vice president, benefited from his son Hunters foreign business dealings.

Trump, Biden and classified documents

In response to Raskins accusation, Jordan said on the floor Wednesday that Republicans know what theyre after: Were looking for equal treatment under the law, he said.

The committees need the audio recordings to determine whether the Justice Department appropriately carried out justice by not prosecuting the president, Jordan said.

They told us were going to operate independently of the White House  OK, maybe so, but what we do know is this: One former president is being charged. Joe Bidens not being (charged), Jordan continued on the floor.

Trump faces federal criminal charges in Florida related to his storage of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach estate, after he lost the 2020 presidential election to Biden. The case has been postponed indefinitely by trial Judge Aileen Cannon.

In early February, Hur declined to bring criminal charges against Biden for his handling of the classified information. Hur described Biden in his report as a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory, a comment Biden vehemently rebuked.

Hur interviewed Biden in October 2023 as part of his inquiry into classified documents dating back to Bidens time as vice president. The documents were found at the presidents office at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C., and later at his private Wilmington home, respectively in November 2022 and January 2023.

Recent criminal contempt trend

Criminal contempt is a tool Congress can use as leverage to obtain compliance with subpoenas. The citation carries a penalty of a fine up to $100,000 or imprisonment of at least one month but no longer than 12 months if the Department of Justice pursues charges.

While the tool is historically rarely used in Congress, its becoming more common. Since 2019, the House has approved six such citations. So far, the Justice Department has declined to pursue charges against executive branch officials held in contempt. The statute of limitations is five years.

The Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would pursue charges against Garland, an unlikely scenario.

Garland is not the first U.S. attorney general to be held in contempt.

The Democratic-led House held former President Donald Trumps Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress in 2019 after he refused to turn over documents related to the 2020 Census and his order to a Department of Justice employee to ignore a deposition subpoena.

The Department of Justice did not pursue charges against Barr, who was held in contempt alongside then-Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder, who served in the Obama administration, was held in contempt of Congress in June 2012 for refusing to provide documents related to Operation Fast and Furious, an investigation into gun trafficking along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Department of Justice declined to prosecute Holder. Holder was the first-ever sitting U.S. Cabinet member to be held in criminal contempt of Congress.

Congress also held Holder in civil contempt over the botched operation, leading to a yearslong lawsuit that ended in a settlement in 2019.

The post U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording appeared first on North Dakota Monitor.
U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department to announce the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate the discovery of classified documents held by President Joe Biden at an office and his home on Jan. 12, 2023 in Washington, D.C.(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for his refusal to release audio recordings of President Joe Bidens interviews with Department of Justice officials.

The GOP lawmakers maintain the audio is valuable for their monthslong impeachment inquiry into Biden.

House Republicans brought the contempt citation against Garland after he agreed with Bidens assertion of executive privilege over the recordings of his interviews during special counsel Robert Hurs investigation into his handling of classified material. Hur ultimately did not recommend criminal charges against Biden.

The House voted 216-207 to pass the resolution. Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio was the only Republican to vote no.

Congress cannot serve as a necessary check on the presidency if the executive branch is free to defy duly authorized, legal subpoenas, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, said in a statement following the vote. House Republicans rightfully held Attorney General Merrick Garland accountable today for his failure to comply with lawful subpoenas issued by the Oversight and Judiciary Committees.

Garland released a statement denouncing the vote as deeply disappointing and accusing House Republicans of turning a serious Congressional authority into a partisan weapon.

Todays vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Departments need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the committees, Garland said in the statement.

The Justice Department provided a transcript of Hurs interviews with Biden to both committees.

But GOP committee leaders subpoenaed the audio because they maintain transcripts are not sufficient.

Were in the midst of an impeachment inquiry, were entitled to the best evidence, and thats why we want the tapes, Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said on the floor Wednesday morning during debate of the contempt resolution.

Jordan accused the White House of a history of changing transcripts, seeming to refer to a late April report by the right-wing publication the Daily Caller that highlighted transcript corrections issued by White House communications staff. The White House routinely publishes transcripts of speeches and comments by Biden.

The audio recording is the best evidence of the words that President Biden actually spoke, Jordan continued on the floor.

News organizations are also in pursuit of the audio. Several, including CNN and NBC, have sued for the recordings under the Freedom of Information Act.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, ranking member of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, criticized Republicans on the floor Wednesday for seeking to hold Garland in contempt over an ongoing impeachment inquiry that he described as a madcap wild goose chase.

House GOP lawmakers already have access to a verbatim transcript, the Maryland Democrat said.

Do they think that the holy grail of the 118th Congress  evidence of a presidential high crime and misdemeanor  is lurking in the pauses or the background throat clearings and sneezes on the audio tape? Raskin continued.  They literally dont even know what theyre looking for anymore.

House lawmakers voted along party lines in December to proceed with an impeachment inquiry into whether Biden, during his time as vice president, benefited from his son Hunters foreign business dealings.

Trump, Biden and classified documents

In response to Raskins accusation, Jordan said on the floor Wednesday that Republicans know what theyre after: Were looking for equal treatment under the law, he said.

The committees need the audio recordings to determine whether the Justice Department appropriately carried out justice by not prosecuting the president, Jordan said.

They told us were going to operate independently of the White House  OK, maybe so, but what we do know is this: One former president is being charged. Joe Bidens not being (charged), Jordan continued on the floor.

Trump faces federal criminal charges in Florida related to his storage of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach estate, after he lost the 2020 presidential election to Biden. The case has been postponed indefinitely by trial Judge Aileen Cannon.

In early February, Hur declined to bring criminal charges against Biden for his handling of the classified information. Hur described Biden in his report as a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory, a comment Biden vehemently rebuked.

Hur interviewed Biden in October 2023 as part of his inquiry into classified documents dating back to Bidens time as vice president. The documents were found at the presidents office at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C., and later at his private Wilmington home, respectively in November 2022 and January 2023.

Recent criminal contempt trend

Criminal contempt is a tool Congress can use as leverage to obtain compliance with subpoenas. The citation carries a penalty of a fine up to $100,000 or imprisonment of at least one month but no longer than 12 months if the Department of Justice pursues charges.

While the tool is historically rarely used in Congress, its becoming more common. Since 2019, the House has approved six such citations. So far, the Justice Department has declined to pursue charges against executive branch officials held in contempt. The statute of limitations is five years.

The Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would pursue charges against Garland, an unlikely scenario.

Garland is not the first U.S. attorney general to be held in contempt.

The Democratic-led House held former President Donald Trumps Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress in 2019 after he refused to turn over documents related to the 2020 Census and his order to a Department of Justice employee to ignore a deposition subpoena.

The Department of Justice did not pursue charges against Barr, who was held in contempt alongside then-Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder, who served in the Obama administration, was held in contempt of Congress in June 2012 for refusing to provide documents related to Operation Fast and Furious, an investigation into gun trafficking along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Department of Justice declined to prosecute Holder. Holder was the first-ever sitting U.S. Cabinet member to be held in criminal contempt of Congress.

Congress also held Holder in civil contempt over the botched operation, leading to a yearslong lawsuit that ended in a settlement in 2019.

The post U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording appeared first on SC Daily Gazette.
U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department to announce the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate the discovery of classified documents held by President Joe Biden at an office and his home on Jan. 12, 2023 in Washington, D.C.(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for his refusal to release audio recordings of President Joe Bidens interviews with Department of Justice officials.

The GOP lawmakers maintain the audio is valuable for their monthslong impeachment inquiry into Biden.

House Republicans brought the contempt citation against Garland after he agreed with Bidens assertion of executive privilege over the recordings of his interviews during special counsel Robert Hurs investigation into his handling of classified material. Hur ultimately did not recommend criminal charges against Biden.

The House voted 216-207 to pass the resolution. Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio was the only Republican to vote no.

U.S. Rep. James Comer speaks during the 143rd Fancy Farm Picnic, Aug. 5, 2023. (Kentucky Lantern photo by Austin Anthony)

Congress cannot serve as a necessary check on the presidency if the executive branch is free to defy duly authorized, legal subpoenas, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, said in a statement following the vote. House Republicans rightfully held Attorney General Merrick Garland accountable today for his failure to comply with lawful subpoenas issued by the Oversight and Judiciary Committees.

Garland released a statement denouncing the vote as deeply disappointing and accusing House Republicans of turning a serious Congressional authority into a partisan weapon.

Todays vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Departments need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the committees, Garland said in the statement.

The Justice Department provided a transcript of Hurs interviews with Biden to both committees.

But GOP committee leaders subpoenaed the audio because they maintain transcripts are not sufficient.

Were in the midst of an impeachment inquiry, were entitled to the best evidence, and thats why we want the tapes, Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said on the floor Wednesday morning during debate of the contempt resolution.

Jordan accused the White House of a history of changing transcripts, seeming to refer to a late April report by the right-wing publication the Daily Caller that highlighted transcript corrections issued by White House communications staff. The White House routinely publishes transcripts of speeches and comments by Biden.

The audio recording is the best evidence of the words that President Biden actually spoke, Jordan continued on the floor.

News organizations are also in pursuit of the audio. Several, including CNN and NBC, have sued for the recordings under the Freedom of Information Act.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, ranking member of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, criticized Republicans on the floor Wednesday for seeking to hold Garland in contempt over an ongoing impeachment inquiry that he described as a madcap wild goose chase.

House GOP lawmakers already have access to a verbatim transcript, the Maryland Democrat said.

Do they think that the holy grail of the 118th Congress  evidence of a presidential high crime and misdemeanor  is lurking in the pauses or the background throat clearings and sneezes on the audio tape? Raskin continued.  They literally dont even know what theyre looking for anymore.

House lawmakers voted along party lines in December to proceed with an impeachment inquiry into whether Biden, during his time as vice president, benefited from his son Hunters foreign business dealings.

Trump, Biden and classified documents

In response to Raskins accusation, Jordan said on the floor Wednesday that Republicans know what theyre after: Were looking for equal treatment under the law, he said.

The committees need the audio recordings to determine whether the Justice Department appropriately carried out justice by not prosecuting the president, Jordan said.

They told us were going to operate independently of the White House  OK, maybe so, but what we do know is this: One former president is being charged. Joe Bidens not being (charged), Jordan continued on the floor.

Trump faces federal criminal charges in Florida related to his storage of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach estate, after he lost the 2020 presidential election to Biden. The case has been postponed indefinitely by trial Judge Aileen Cannon.

In early February, Hur declined to bring criminal charges against Biden for his handling of the classified information. Hur described Biden in his report as a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory, a comment Biden vehemently rebuked.

Hur interviewed Biden in October 2023 as part of his inquiry into classified documents dating back to Bidens time as vice president. The documents were found at the presidents office at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C., and later at his private Wilmington home, respectively in November 2022 and January 2023.

Recent criminal contempt trend

Criminal contempt is a tool Congress can use as leverage to obtain compliance with subpoenas. The citation carries a penalty of a fine up to $100,000 or imprisonment of at least one month but no longer than 12 months if the Department of Justice pursues charges.

While the tool is historically rarely used in Congress, its becoming more common. Since 2019, the House has approved six such citations. So far, the Justice Department has declined to pursue charges against executive branch officials held in contempt. The statute of limitations is five years.

The Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would pursue charges against Garland, an unlikely scenario.

Garland is not the first U.S. attorney general to be held in contempt.

The Democratic-led House held former President Donald Trumps Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress in 2019 after he refused to turn over documents related to the 2020 Census and his order to a Department of Justice employee to ignore a deposition subpoena.

The Department of Justice did not pursue charges against Barr, who was held in contempt alongside then-Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder, who served in the Obama administration, was held in contempt of Congress in June 2012 for refusing to provide documents related to Operation Fast and Furious, an investigation into gun trafficking along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Department of Justice declined to prosecute Holder. Holder was the first-ever sitting U.S. Cabinet member to be held in criminal contempt of Congress.

Congress also held Holder in civil contempt over the botched operation, leading to a yearslong lawsuit that ended in a settlement in 2019.

The post U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording appeared first on Kentucky Lantern.
U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department to announce the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate the discovery of classified documents held by President Joe Biden at an office and his home on Jan. 12, 2023 in Washington, D.C.(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for his refusal to release audio recordings of President Joe Bidens interviews with Department of Justice officials.

The GOP lawmakers maintain the audio is valuable for their monthslong impeachment inquiry into Biden.

House Republicans brought the contempt citation against Garland after he agreed with Bidens assertion of executive privilege over the recordings of his interviews during special counsel Robert Hurs investigation into his handling of classified material. Hur ultimately did not recommend criminal charges against Biden.

The House voted 216-207 to pass the resolution. Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio was the only Republican to vote no.

Congress cannot serve as a necessary check on the presidency if the executive branch is free to defy duly authorized, legal subpoenas, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, said in a statement following the vote. House Republicans rightfully held Attorney General Merrick Garland accountable today for his failure to comply with lawful subpoenas issued by the Oversight and Judiciary Committees.

Garland released a statement denouncing the vote as deeply disappointing and accusing House Republicans of turning a serious Congressional authority into a partisan weapon.

Todays vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Departments need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the committees, Garland said in the statement.

The Justice Department provided a transcript of Hurs interviews with Biden to both committees.

But GOP committee leaders subpoenaed the audio because they maintain transcripts are not sufficient.

Were in the midst of an impeachment inquiry, were entitled to the best evidence, and thats why we want the tapes, Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said on the floor Wednesday morning during debate of the contempt resolution.

Jordan accused the White House of a history of changing transcripts, seeming to refer to a late April report by the right-wing publication the Daily Caller that highlighted transcript corrections issued by White House communications staff. The White House routinely publishes transcripts of speeches and comments by Biden.

The audio recording is the best evidence of the words that President Biden actually spoke, Jordan continued on the floor.

News organizations are also in pursuit of the audio. Several, including CNN and NBC, have sued for the recordings under the Freedom of Information Act.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, ranking member of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, criticized Republicans on the floor Wednesday for seeking to hold Garland in contempt over an ongoing impeachment inquiry that he described as a madcap wild goose chase.

House GOP lawmakers already have access to a verbatim transcript, the Maryland Democrat said.

Do they think that the holy grail of the 118th Congress  evidence of a presidential high crime and misdemeanor  is lurking in the pauses or the background throat clearings and sneezes on the audio tape? Raskin continued.  They literally dont even know what theyre looking for anymore.

House lawmakers voted along party lines in December to proceed with an impeachment inquiry into whether Biden, during his time as vice president, benefited from his son Hunters foreign business dealings.

Trump, Biden and classified documents

In response to Raskins accusation, Jordan said on the floor Wednesday that Republicans know what theyre after: Were looking for equal treatment under the law, he said.

The committees need the audio recordings to determine whether the Justice Department appropriately carried out justice by not prosecuting the president, Jordan said.

They told us were going to operate independently of the White House  OK, maybe so, but what we do know is this: One former president is being charged. Joe Bidens not being (charged), Jordan continued on the floor.

Trump faces federal criminal charges in Florida related to his storage of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach estate, after he lost the 2020 presidential election to Biden. The case has been postponed indefinitely by trial Judge Aileen Cannon.

In early February, Hur declined to bring criminal charges against Biden for his handling of the classified information. Hur described Biden in his report as a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory, a comment Biden vehemently rebuked.

Hur interviewed Biden in October 2023 as part of his inquiry into classified documents dating back to Bidens time as vice president. The documents were found at the presidents office at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C., and later at his private Wilmington home, respectively in November 2022 and January 2023.

Recent criminal contempt trend

Criminal contempt is a tool Congress can use as leverage to obtain compliance with subpoenas. The citation carries a penalty of a fine up to $100,000 or imprisonment of at least one month but no longer than 12 months if the Department of Justice pursues charges.

While the tool is historically rarely used in Congress, its becoming more common. Since 2019, the House has approved six such citations. So far, the Justice Department has declined to pursue charges against executive branch officials held in contempt. The statute of limitations is five years.

The Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would pursue charges against Garland, an unlikely scenario.

Garland is not the first U.S. attorney general to be held in contempt.

The Democratic-led House held former President Donald Trumps Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress in 2019 after he refused to turn over documents related to the 2020 Census and his order to a Department of Justice employee to ignore a deposition subpoena.

The Department of Justice did not pursue charges against Barr, who was held in contempt alongside then-Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder, who served in the Obama administration, was held in contempt of Congress in June 2012 for refusing to provide documents related to Operation Fast and Furious, an investigation into gun trafficking along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Department of Justice declined to prosecute Holder. Holder was the first-ever sitting U.S. Cabinet member to be held in criminal contempt of Congress.

Congress also held Holder in civil contempt over the botched operation, leading to a yearslong lawsuit that ended in a settlement in 2019.

The post U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department to announce the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate the discovery of classified documents held by President Joe Biden at an office and his home on Jan. 12, 2023 in Washington, D.C.(Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for his refusal to release audio recordings of President Joe Bidens interviews with Department of Justice officials.

The GOP lawmakers maintain the audio is valuable for their monthslong impeachment inquiry into Biden.

House Republicans brought the contempt citation against Garland after he agreed with Bidens assertion of executive privilege over the recordings of his interviews during special counsel Robert Hurs investigation into his handling of classified material. Hur ultimately did not recommend criminal charges against Biden.

The House voted 216-207 to pass the resolution. Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio was the only Republican to vote no.

Congress cannot serve as a necessary check on the presidency if the executive branch is free to defy duly authorized, legal subpoenas, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, said in a statement following the vote. House Republicans rightfully held Attorney General Merrick Garland accountable today for his failure to comply with lawful subpoenas issued by the Oversight and Judiciary Committees.

Garland released a statement denouncing the vote as deeply disappointing and accusing House Republicans of turning a serious Congressional authority into a partisan weapon.

Todays vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Departments need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the committees, Garland said in the statement.

The Justice Department provided a transcript of Hurs interviews with Biden to both committees.

But GOP committee leaders subpoenaed the audio because they maintain transcripts are not sufficient.

Were in the midst of an impeachment inquiry, were entitled to the best evidence, and thats why we want the tapes, Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said on the floor Wednesday morning during debate of the contempt resolution.

Jordan accused the White House of a history of changing transcripts, seeming to refer to a late April report by the right-wing publication the Daily Caller that highlighted transcript corrections issued by White House communications staff. The White House routinely publishes transcripts of speeches and comments by Biden.

The audio recording is the best evidence of the words that President Biden actually spoke, Jordan continued on the floor.

News organizations are also in pursuit of the audio. Several, including CNN and NBC, have sued for the recordings under the Freedom of Information Act.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, ranking member of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, criticized Republicans on the floor Wednesday for seeking to hold Garland in contempt over an ongoing impeachment inquiry that he described as a madcap wild goose chase.

House GOP lawmakers already have access to a verbatim transcript, the Maryland Democrat said.

Do they think that the holy grail of the 118th Congress  evidence of a presidential high crime and misdemeanor  is lurking in the pauses or the background throat clearings and sneezes on the audio tape? Raskin continued.  They literally dont even know what theyre looking for anymore.

House lawmakers voted along party lines in December to proceed with an impeachment inquiry into whether Biden, during his time as vice president, benefited from his son Hunters foreign business dealings.

Trump, Biden and classified documents

In response to Raskins accusation, Jordan said on the floor Wednesday that Republicans know what theyre after: Were looking for equal treatment under the law, he said.

The committees need the audio recordings to determine whether the Justice Department appropriately carried out justice by not prosecuting the president, Jordan said.

They told us were going to operate independently of the White House  OK, maybe so, but what we do know is this: One former president is being charged. Joe Bidens not being (charged), Jordan continued on the floor.

Trump faces federal criminal charges in Florida related to his storage of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach estate, after he lost the 2020 presidential election to Biden. The case has been postponed indefinitely by trial Judge Aileen Cannon.

In early February, Hur declined to bring criminal charges against Biden for his handling of the classified information. Hur described Biden in his report as a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory, a comment Biden vehemently rebuked.

Hur interviewed Biden in October 2023 as part of his inquiry into classified documents dating back to Bidens time as vice president. The documents were found at the presidents office at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C., and later at his private Wilmington home, respectively in November 2022 and January 2023.

Recent criminal contempt trend

Criminal contempt is a tool Congress can use as leverage to obtain compliance with subpoenas. The citation carries a penalty of a fine up to $100,000 or imprisonment of at least one month but no longer than 12 months if the Department of Justice pursues charges.

While the tool is historically rarely used in Congress, its becoming more common. Since 2019, the House has approved six such citations. So far, the Justice Department has declined to pursue charges against executive branch officials held in contempt. The statute of limitations is five years.

The Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would pursue charges against Garland, an unlikely scenario.

Garland is not the first U.S. attorney general to be held in contempt.

The Democratic-led House held former President Donald Trumps Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress in 2019 after he refused to turn over documents related to the 2020 Census and his order to a Department of Justice employee to ignore a deposition subpoena.

The Department of Justice did not pursue charges against Barr, who was held in contempt alongside then-Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder, who served in the Obama administration, was held in contempt of Congress in June 2012 for refusing to provide documents related to Operation Fast and Furious, an investigation into gun trafficking along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Department of Justice declined to prosecute Holder. Holder was the first-ever sitting U.S. Cabinet member to be held in criminal contempt of Congress.

Congress also held Holder in civil contempt over the botched operation, leading to a yearslong lawsuit that ended in a settlement in 2019.

The post U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording appeared first on Missouri Independent.
U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department to announce the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate the discovery of classified documents held by President Joe Biden at an office and his home on Jan. 12, 2023 in Washington, D.C.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department to announce the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate the discovery of classified documents held by President Joe Biden at an office and his home on Jan. 12, 2023 in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for his refusal to release audio recordings of President Joe Bidens interviews with Department of Justice officials.

The GOP lawmakers maintain the audio is valuable for their monthslong impeachment inquiry into Biden.

House Republicans brought the contempt citation against Garland after he agreed with Bidens assertion of executive privilege over the recordings of his interviews during special counsel Robert Hurs investigation into his handling of classified material. Hur ultimately did not recommend criminal charges against Biden.

The House voted 216-207 to pass the resolution. Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio was the only Republican to vote no.

Congress cannot serve as a necessary check on the presidency if the executive branch is free to defy duly authorized, legal subpoenas, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, said in a statement following the vote. House Republicans rightfully held Attorney General Merrick Garland accountable today for his failure to comply with lawful subpoenas issued by the Oversight and Judiciary Committees.

Garland released a statement denouncing the vote as deeply disappointing and accusing House Republicans of turning a serious Congressional authority into a partisan weapon.

Todays vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Departments need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the committees, Garland said in the statement.

The Justice Department provided a transcript of Hurs interviews with Biden to both committees.

But GOP committee leaders subpoenaed the audio because they maintain transcripts are not sufficient.

Were in the midst of an impeachment inquiry, were entitled to the best evidence, and thats why we want the tapes, Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said on the floor Wednesday morning during debate of the contempt resolution.

Jordan accused the White House of a history of changing transcripts, seeming to refer to a late April report by the right-wing publication the Daily Caller that highlighted transcript corrections issued by White House communications staff. The White House routinely publishes transcripts of speeches and comments by Biden.

The audio recording is the best evidence of the words that President Biden actually spoke, Jordan continued on the floor.

News organizations are also in pursuit of the audio. Several, including CNN and NBC, have sued for the recordings under the Freedom of Information Act.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, ranking member of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, criticized Republicans on the floor Wednesday for seeking to hold Garland in contempt over an ongoing impeachment inquiry that he described as a madcap wild goose chase.

House GOP lawmakers already have access to a verbatim transcript, the Maryland Democrat said.

Do they think that the holy grail of the 118th Congress  evidence of a presidential high crime and misdemeanor  is lurking in the pauses or the background throat clearings and sneezes on the audio tape? Raskin continued.  They literally dont even know what theyre looking for anymore.

House lawmakers voted along party lines in December to proceed with an impeachment inquiry into whether Biden, during his time as vice president, benefited from his son Hunters foreign business dealings.

Trump, Biden and classified documents

In response to Raskins accusation, Jordan said on the floor Wednesday that Republicans know what theyre after: Were looking for equal treatment under the law, he said.

The committees need the audio recordings to determine whether the Justice Department appropriately carried out justice by not prosecuting the president, Jordan said.

They told us were going to operate independently of the White House  OK, maybe so, but what we do know is this: One former president is being charged. Joe Bidens not being (charged), Jordan continued on the floor.

Trump faces federal criminal charges in Florida related to his storage of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach estate, after he lost the 2020 presidential election to Biden. The case has been postponed indefinitely by trial Judge Aileen Cannon.

In early February, Hur declined to bring criminal charges against Biden for his handling of the classified information. Hur described Biden in his report as a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory, a comment Biden vehemently rebuked.

Hur interviewed Biden in October 2023 as part of his inquiry into classified documents dating back to Bidens time as vice president. The documents were found at the presidents office at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C., and later at his private Wilmington home, respectively in November 2022 and January 2023.

Recent criminal contempt trend

Criminal contempt is a tool Congress can use as leverage to obtain compliance with subpoenas. The citation carries a penalty of a fine up to $100,000 or imprisonment of at least one month but no longer than 12 months if the Department of Justice pursues charges.

While the tool is historically rarely used in Congress, its becoming more common. Since 2019, the House has approved six such citations. So far, the Justice Department has declined to pursue charges against executive branch officials held in contempt. The statute of limitations is five years.

The Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would pursue charges against Garland, an unlikely scenario.

Garland is not the first U.S. attorney general to be held in contempt.

The Democratic-led House held former President Donald Trumps Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress in 2019 after he refused to turn over documents related to the 2020 Census and his order to a Department of Justice employee to ignore a deposition subpoena.

The Department of Justice did not pursue charges against Barr, who was held in contempt alongside then-Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder, who served in the Obama administration, was held in contempt of Congress in June 2012 for refusing to provide documents related to Operation Fast and Furious, an investigation into gun trafficking along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Department of Justice declined to prosecute Holder. Holder was the first-ever sitting U.S. Cabinet member to be held in criminal contempt of Congress.

Congress also held Holder in civil contempt over the botched operation, leading to a yearslong lawsuit that ended in a settlement in 2019.

The post U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording appeared first on Kansas Reflector.
U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department to announce the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate the discovery of classified documents held by President Joe Biden at an office and his home on Jan. 12, 2023 in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for his refusal to release audio recordings of President Joe Bidens interviews with Department of Justice officials.

The GOP lawmakers maintain the audio is valuable for their monthslong impeachment inquiry into Biden.

House Republicans brought the contempt citation against Garland after he agreed with Bidens assertion of executive privilege over the recordings of his interviews during special counsel Robert Hurs investigation into his handling of classified material. Hur ultimately did not recommend criminal charges against Biden.

The House voted 216-207 to pass the resolution. Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio was the only Republican to vote no.

Congress cannot serve as a necessary check on the presidency if the executive branch is free to defy duly authorized, legal subpoenas, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, said in a statement following the vote. House Republicans rightfully held Attorney General Merrick Garland accountable today for his failure to comply with lawful subpoenas issued by the Oversight and Judiciary Committees.

Garland released a statement denouncing the vote as deeply disappointing and accusing House Republicans of turning a serious Congressional authority into a partisan weapon.

Todays vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Departments need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the committees, Garland said in the statement.

The Justice Department provided a transcript of Hurs interviews with Biden to both committees.

But GOP committee leaders subpoenaed the audio because they maintain transcripts are not sufficient.

Were in the midst of an impeachment inquiry, were entitled to the best evidence, and thats why we want the tapes, Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said on the floor Wednesday morning during debate of the contempt resolution.

Jordan accused the White House of a history of changing transcripts, seeming to refer to a late April report by the right-wing publication the Daily Caller that highlighted transcript corrections issued by White House communications staff. The White House routinely publishes transcripts of speeches and comments by Biden.

The audio recording is the best evidence of the words that President Biden actually spoke, Jordan continued on the floor.

News organizations are also in pursuit of the audio. Several, including CNN and NBC, have sued for the recordings under the Freedom of Information Act.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, ranking member of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, criticized Republicans on the floor Wednesday for seeking to hold Garland in contempt over an ongoing impeachment inquiry that he described as a madcap wild goose chase.

House GOP lawmakers already have access to a verbatim transcript, the Maryland Democrat said.

Do they think that the holy grail of the 118th Congress  evidence of a presidential high crime and misdemeanor  is lurking in the pauses or the background throat clearings and sneezes on the audio tape? Raskin continued.  They literally dont even know what theyre looking for anymore.

House lawmakers voted along party lines in December to proceed with an impeachment inquiry into whether Biden, during his time as vice president, benefited from his son Hunters foreign business dealings.

Trump, Biden and classified documents

In response to Raskins accusation, Jordan said on the floor Wednesday that Republicans know what theyre after: Were looking for equal treatment under the law, he said.

The committees need the audio recordings to determine whether the Justice Department appropriately carried out justice by not prosecuting the president, Jordan said.

They told us were going to operate independently of the White House  OK, maybe so, but what we do know is this: One former president is being charged. Joe Bidens not being [charged], Jordan continued on the floor.

Trump faces federal criminal charges in Florida related to his storage of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach estate, after he lost the 2020 presidential election to Biden. The case has been postponed indefinitely by trial Judge Aileen Cannon.

In early February, Hur declined to bring criminal charges against Biden for his handling of the classified information. Hur described Biden in his report as a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory, a comment Biden vehemently rebuked.

Hur interviewed Biden in October 2023 as part of his inquiry into classified documents dating back to Bidens time as vice president. The documents were found at the presidents office at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C., and later at his private Wilmington home, respectively in November 2022 and January 2023.

Recent criminal contempt trend

Criminal contempt is a tool Congress can use as leverage to obtain compliance with subpoenas. The citation carries a penalty of a fine up to $100,000 or imprisonment of at least one month but no longer than 12 months if the Department of Justice pursues charges.

While the tool is historically rarely used in Congress, its becoming more common. Since 2019, the House has approved six such citations. So far, the Justice Department has declined to pursue charges against executive branch officials held in contempt. The statute of limitations is five years.

The Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would pursue charges against Garland, an unlikely scenario.

Garland is not the first U.S. attorney general to be held in contempt.

The Democratic-led House held former President Donald Trumps Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress in 2019 after he refused to turn over documents related to the 2020 Census and his order to a Department of Justice employee to ignore a deposition subpoena.

The Department of Justice did not pursue charges against Barr, who was held in contempt alongside then-Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder, who served in the Obama administration, was held in contempt of Congress in June 2012 for refusing to provide documents related to Operation Fast and Furious, an investigation into gun trafficking along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Department of Justice declined to prosecute Holder. Holder was the first-ever sitting U.S. Cabinet member to be held in criminal contempt of Congress.

Congress also held Holder in civil contempt over the botched operation, leading to a yearslong lawsuit that ended in a settlement in 2019.

The post U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording appeared first on West Virginia Watch.
U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department to announce the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate the discovery of classified documents held by President Joe Biden at an office and his home on Jan. 12, 2023 in Washington, D.C.

U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland speaks during a news conference at the Justice Department to announce the appointment of a Special Counsel to investigate the discovery of classified documents held by President Joe Biden at an office and his home on Jan. 12, 2023 in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. House Republicans voted Wednesday to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for his refusal to release audio recordings of President Joe Bidens interviews with Department of Justice officials.

The GOP lawmakers maintain the audio is valuable for their monthslong impeachment inquiry into Biden.

House Republicans brought the contempt citation against Garland after he agreed with Bidens assertion of executive privilege over the recordings of his interviews during special counsel Robert Hurs investigation into his handling of classified material. Hur ultimately did not recommend criminal charges against Biden.

The House voted 216-207 to pass the resolution. Rep. Dave Joyce of Ohio was the only Republican to vote no.

Congress cannot serve as a necessary check on the presidency if the executive branch is free to defy duly authorized, legal subpoenas, Rep. James Comer, R-Ky., chair of the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability, said in a statement following the vote. House Republicans rightfully held Attorney General Merrick Garland accountable today for his failure to comply with lawful subpoenas issued by the Oversight and Judiciary Committees.

Garland released a statement denouncing the vote as deeply disappointing and accusing House Republicans of turning a serious Congressional authority into a partisan weapon.

Todays vote disregards the constitutional separation of powers, the Justice Departments need to protect its investigations, and the substantial amount of information we have provided to the committees, Garland said in the statement.

The Justice Department provided a transcript of Hurs interviews with Biden to both committees.

But GOP committee leaders subpoenaed the audio because they maintain transcripts are not sufficient.

Were in the midst of an impeachment inquiry, were entitled to the best evidence, and thats why we want the tapes, Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said on the floor Wednesday morning during debate of the contempt resolution.

Jordan accused the White House of a history of changing transcripts, seeming to refer to a late April report by the right-wing publication the Daily Caller that highlighted transcript corrections issued by White House communications staff. The White House routinely publishes transcripts of speeches and comments by Biden.

The audio recording is the best evidence of the words that President Biden actually spoke, Jordan continued on the floor.

BREAKING  The House just voted to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress for defying a legitimate Congressional subpoena for the audio tapes of Joe Bidens interview with Special Counsel Hur. We will uncover what theyre trying to hide.  Steve Scalise (@SteveScalise) June 12, 2024

News organizations are also in pursuit of the audio. Several, including CNN and NBC, have sued for the recordings under the Freedom of Information Act.

Rep. Jamie Raskin, ranking member of the House Oversight and Accountability Committee, criticized Republicans on the floor Wednesday for seeking to hold Garland in contempt over an ongoing impeachment inquiry that he described as a madcap wild goose chase.

House GOP lawmakers already have access to a verbatim transcript, the Maryland Democrat said.

Do they think that the holy grail of the 118th Congress  evidence of a presidential high crime and misdemeanor  is lurking in the pauses or the background throat clearings and sneezes on the audio tape? Raskin continued.  They literally dont even know what theyre looking for anymore.

House lawmakers voted along party lines in December to proceed with an impeachment inquiry into whether Biden, during his time as vice president, benefited from his son Hunters foreign business dealings.

Trump, Biden and classified documents

In response to Raskins accusation, Jordan said on the floor Wednesday that Republicans know what theyre after: Were looking for equal treatment under the law, he said.

The committees need the audio recordings to determine whether the Justice Department appropriately carried out justice by not prosecuting the president, Jordan said.

They told us were going to operate independently of the White House  OK, maybe so, but what we do know is this: One former president is being charged. Joe Bidens not being (charged), Jordan continued on the floor.

Trump faces federal criminal charges in Florida related to his storage of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach estate, after he lost the 2020 presidential election to Biden. The case has been postponed indefinitely by trial Judge Aileen Cannon.

In early February, Hur declined to bring criminal charges against Biden for his handling of the classified information. Hur described Biden in his report as a sympathetic, well-meaning elderly man with a poor memory, a comment Biden vehemently rebuked.

Hur interviewed Biden in October 2023 as part of his inquiry into classified documents dating back to Bidens time as vice president. The documents were found at the presidents office at the Penn Biden Center in Washington, D.C., and later at his private Wilmington home, respectively in November 2022 and January 2023.

Recent criminal contempt trend

Criminal contempt is a tool Congress can use as leverage to obtain compliance with subpoenas. The citation carries a penalty of a fine up to $100,000 or imprisonment of at least one month but no longer than 12 months if the Department of Justice pursues charges.

While the tool is historically rarely used in Congress, its becoming more common. Since 2019, the House has approved six such citations. So far, the Justice Department has declined to pursue charges against executive branch officials held in contempt. The statute of limitations is five years.

The Justice Department did not respond to requests for comment on whether it would pursue charges against Garland, an unlikely scenario.

Garland is not the first U.S. attorney general to be held in contempt.

The Democratic-led House held former President Donald Trumps Attorney General William Barr in contempt of Congress in 2019 after he refused to turn over documents related to the 2020 Census and his order to a Department of Justice employee to ignore a deposition subpoena.

The Department of Justice did not pursue charges against Barr, who was held in contempt alongside then-Secretary of Commerce Wilbur Ross.

Former Attorney General Eric Holder, who served in the Obama administration, was held in contempt of Congress in June 2012 for refusing to provide documents related to Operation Fast and Furious, an investigation into gun trafficking along the U.S.-Mexico border.

The Department of Justice declined to prosecute Holder. Holder was the first-ever sitting U.S. Cabinet member to be held in criminal contempt of Congress.

Congress also held Holder in civil contempt over the botched operation, leading to a yearslong lawsuit that ended in a settlement in 2019.

My statement on holding Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress: pic.twitter.com/iys5UU3y2g  Speaker Mike Johnson (@SpeakerJohnson) June 12, 2024

The post U.S. House GOP votes to hold attorney general in contempt in dispute over audio recording appeared first on Louisiana Illuminator.
A person shows stamps marking the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Malaysia and China in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, May 31, 2024. (Photo by Chong Voon Chung/Xinhua)

* Around a decade ago, bilateral relations received a significant boost when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited New Zealand, elevating their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

* Reflecting on history, China and Australia have long been forging ahead side by side. Diplomatic ties were established in December 1972 and were elevated to a comprehensive strategic partnership in November 2014.

* Over the past 50 years, China and Malaysia have always treated each other with sincerity, supported each other in solidarity, and sought development together. This mutual respect and trust have consistently placed China-Malaysia relations at the forefront of regional cooperation.

by Xinhua writers Tian Dongdong, Ye Shan, and Feng Qidi

BEIJING/HONGKONG, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Around 2024, the diplomatic ties between China and New Zealand, Australia, and Malaysia have all crossed the half-century mark. Throughout this journey, China has shown unwavering dedication to collaboration, even amid challenges.

In the ever-shifting geopolitical dynamics of the Asia-Pacific region, China's ties with New Zealand, Australia, and Malaysia are expected to showcase the influential role of diplomacy rooted in mutual respect and mutual understanding. This will contribute to injecting greater sustainability and stability into the region.





Tourists take selfies in front of a dragon-shaped installation to welcome the Chinese Lunar New Year at Hagley Park in Christchurch, New Zealand, Feb. 9, 2024. (Photo by Meng Tao/Xinhua)

FRUITFUL COOPERATION

From June 13 to 20, Chinese Premier Li Qiang will pay official visits to New Zealand, Australia and Malaysia.

Fostered by pioneers like Rewi Alley, a dedicated New Zealander who spent six decades living and working in China until his passing in Beijing in 1987, the relationship between China and New Zealand has steadily grown since they established diplomatic ties about 52 years ago.

During this period, the two countries have created many "firsts." New Zealand was one of the first Western countries to establish diplomatic relations with China and the first developed nation to sign and implement a bilateral free trade agreement with China. Additionally, it was also the first Western developed country to recognize China's full market economy status.

"It's a reflection of the New Zealand culture, as well as its political position of being strongly independent without having to follow necessarily the strong influence from other countries. To recognize China in these 'first ways' is a showing of strength and independent thinking," John Cochrane, chairman of the New Zealand China Trade Association, told Xinhua on Wednesday.

Around a decade ago, bilateral relations received a significant boost when Chinese President Xi Jinping visited New Zealand, elevating their ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership.

As a result of their cooperation featuring win-win results, China has become New Zealand's largest trading partner and export destination. Notably, New Zealand has long enjoyed a surplus for goods and services with China, with only three quarterly goods deficits in the five years ending June 2023.

"I cannot help but use the word 'vital' when I think about the importance (of New Zealand's relationship with China). It is a vital relationship not only just in trade, but in all matters whether it's a national security, whether it's on education, people exchanges, cultural exchanges, artistic exchanges, and so on," said Cochrane.

Characterized by mutual respect and win-win cooperation, the sustained momentum in their bilateral ties has served as a stabilizing force in the ever-changing global landscape.

China's rapid development presents vast opportunities and is beneficial to many countries including New Zealand. "China shows a model that it (development) can be accomplished," said Cochrane.

"The cooperation between China and New Zealand is in a good condition. The relationship between the two countries is ready now for us to start that next level of success," he added.





Visitors and an exhibitor communicate during the AliExpo 2024 in Sydney, Australia, March 15, 2024. (Xinhua/Ma Ping)

WARMING-UP TIES

Australia marks the second stop of Premier Li's trip.

Reflecting on history, China and Australia have long been forging ahead side by side. Diplomatic ties were established in December 1972 and were elevated to a comprehensive strategic partnership in November 2014.

However, during the recent six-year period of strained bilateral relations, some within the Australian political sphere adopted unfavorable policies toward China, influenced by external factors. This led to a series of unfriendly actions, including supporting Taiwan to be included in the World Health Assembly and joining the AUKUS alliance with the United States and Britain.

It was not until 2022, when President Xi met with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Indonesia, that bilateral relations gradually returned to a right track.

Through consultations and negotiations, many trade disputes have been resolved. In April, Australia terminated its anti-dumping measures against Chinese wind towers after the World Trade Organization ruled that Australian duties on Chinese steel products were flawed, and China has lifted anti-dumping measures on Australian barley and wine, as well as lifted bans on several Australian beef and lamb exporters.

The economic structures of China and Australia are highly complementary, and there is huge potential for economic and trade cooperation, said Chinese Ambassador to Australia Xiao Qian.

Since 2009, China has been Australia's largest trading partner, export market and import source for 15 consecutive years. In 2023, the bilateral trade in goods increased 4.1 percent year by year, while Australian investment in China increased 11.7 percent compared to the previous year, and the number of Australian-funded enterprises established in China surged by 40.2 percent.

"Facts have proven that strengthening China-Australia economic and trade cooperation will bring tangible benefits to the business communities of both countries, effectively promote steady economic growth and benefit the two peoples," Xiao said.

"Economic complementarity lies at the heart of the bilateral relationship. A focus on areas of common beneficial interest is conducive to a positive atmosphere for dialogue to continue to broaden and enhance the bilateral relations," said Warwick Powell, adjunct professor at the Queensland University of Technology.

Echoing this sentiment, Daryl Guppy, an international financial technical analysis expert and a former national board member of the Australia-China Business Council, said, "The Chinese and Australian economies are complementary, and bilateral trade cannot be separated from the steady growth of the Chinese economy."





This photo shows the launching site of the East Coast Rail Link project, a mega rail project in Malaysia being built by the China Communications Construction Company (CCCC), in Kuantan, Malaysia on Dec. 11, 2023. (Photo by Chong Voon Chung/Xinhua)

LONG-TIME FRIENDS

China and Malaysia are neighbors with a millennium-old friendship.

In the 15th century, during the time of the Malacca Sultanate and the Ming Dynasty, the ships from China arrived at the port of Malacca. They brought not only silk and porcelain but also the promise of friendship. This historic exchange laid the foundation for the ties between the Chinese and Malaysian people.

As China and Malaysia celebrate the 50th anniversary of their diplomatic relations in 2024, the echoes of that ancient trade resonate strongly. "Malaysia and China are connected by history, trade, and cultural contacts over thousands of years," said Dato' Abdul Majid Ahmad Khan, former Malaysian ambassador to China.

Over the past 50 years, the two nations have always treated each other with sincerity, supported each other in solidarity, and sought development together. This mutual respect and trust have consistently placed China-Malaysia relations at the forefront of regional cooperation.

Economic collaboration remains a cornerstone of this partnership. Last year, bilateral trade reached an impressive 190 billion U.S. dollars, securing China as Malaysia's largest trading partner for the 15th consecutive year.

Signature projects under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), such as the East Coast Railway Link and the Malaysia-China "Two Countries, Twin Parks," have significantly strengthened regional connectivity and economic integration between China, Malaysia, and ASEAN as well. "The Belt and Road Initiative has elevated our partnership," noted Majid, highlighting the transformative impact of these projects.

Recent years have seen even greater advancements in bilateral cooperation. The recent visa-free travel waiver has significantly boosted people-to-people exchanges. "We are positive about reaching over 5 million tourists from China," said Tourism Malaysia Director-General Manoharan Periasamy in April.

Malaysia has also attracted substantial investment from China in solar module manufacturing, electric vehicles and the digital economy. Cooperation with China in those fields is crucial, said Majid.

In 2023, President Xi and visiting Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim reached a significant consensus on jointly building a China-Malaysia community with a shared future in Beijing, marking a new historical stage in bilateral relations. This deep-rooted friendship has consistently placed China-Malaysia relations at the forefront of regional cooperation, fostering mutual trust and respect.

On the South China Sea issue, the Malaysian prime minister has called for "aggressive" diplomatic engagement to resolve disputes, rejecting interference of external parties. Reiterating that the issue must be resolved among ASEAN member countries and China, he said earlier this month, "there should not be involvement with other parties because it will be deemed to be more complex and will complicate the matter."

Commenting on the relationship, Nurul Izzah Anwar, vice president of Malaysia's People's Justice Party, told Xinhua in a recent interview, "It's more than just trade ties. It's more than economic linkages. It's an appreciation that we speak to common ideals, common aspirations, and a shared future for the betterment of not just economy and GDP per capita alone, but the betterment of people-to-people connection."

(Xinhua reporters Zha Wenye in Hong Kong, Guo Lei and Li Huizi in Wellington, Zhang Jianhua in Canberra, Liang Youchang and Wang Qi in Sydney, and Mao Pengfei and Wang Yi in Kuala Lumpur also contributed to the story.)




Razor wire along the Rio Grande on the Texas side of the U.S.-Mexico border. Photo by Ariana Figueroa/States Newsroom.

EL PASO, Texas  Seventeen-year-old Karina Parababire gently rocked her three-month-old daughter as they waited in a migrant shelter before a Friday night bus ride to Chicago.

I want my daughter to have everything that I didnt have, Parababire, who traveled up the extremely dangerous route of the Darien Gap while pregnant, said in Spanish.

The Venezuelan, who is traveling with her family, had to stop in Honduras to give birth to her daughter, Avis, before continuing to the United States. Once in Mexico, she and her family were granted an appointment through the CBP One app  a tool the Biden administration uses to grant migrants a meeting with an asylum officer.

She had been at the Sacred Heart Church shelter with her family for four days. They planned to continue on to Chicago, where theyll be met by her cousin. Parababire hopes that after she gets to the Windy City, she can go back to high school and possibly enter college.

Parababire and her relatives arrived in the U.S. just before President Joe Biden issued an executive order that partly bans asylum claims when unauthorized crossings exceed a daily threshold. Because the family was admitted using the CBP One app, they were allowed to continue their journey.

As for other migrants at the U.S.-Mexico border, local leaders said this week they are anticipating the effects of the order to be somewhat beneficial in limiting unauthorized crossings, though there was also plenty of skepticism.

Immigration advocates expressed deep concern the order  issued after Congress failed to take action on sweeping immigration legislation  would lead to more harm to already vulnerable people.

Ive come here today to do what Republicans in Congress refuse to do, take the necessary steps to secure our border, Biden said in announcing the order, referring to a bipartisan border security deal Republicans walked away from earlier this year. This action will help us gain control of our border.

Uncertainty about a new policy

The shelter at Sacred Heart Church that housed Parababire currently has a relatively low number of migrants  about 70 compared to a capacity of 120.

The director, Michael DeBruhl, said its unclear how the order will affect the number of migrants who arrive not only at the shelter, but at the many ports of entry along the southern border.

The thing is that the Border Patrol is going to take the brunt of this executive order and that they will have to process everybody, he said. The difference is going to be that there are nuances regarding how everything can apply to asylum, so theyre going to make it more difficult for you to apply to asylum.

The big question, DeBruhl said, is how exactly they are doing that.

Youre gonna have all these Border Patrol agents making these decisions, all these nuances, of a policy thats just been implemented, he said.

A Customs and Border Protection official declined to comment on the effects of the new executive order, but noted it would change the processing of noncitizens at the southern border.

Local officials saw some positives. This is a start, but its just the beginning, the mayor of El Paso, Oscar Leeser, said during a Wednesday presentation to journalists with local border officials.

Leeser was one of the several Texas mayors who attended the White Houses announcement of this weeks executive order.

Leeser said he believes the order will stop unauthorized border crossings because the consequences are greater now and thats the difference.

Presidential campaign

The order, which is Bidens most drastic crackdown on immigration during his administration, comes five months before a presidential election in which its a top issue for voters and for his GOP rival, former President Donald Trump.

The order is currently in effect because daily unauthorized crossings have reached a threshold of more than 2,500 encounters with migrants each day for a week at the southern border.

Simply put, the Departments do not have adequate resources and tools to deliver timely decisions and consequences to individuals who cross unlawfully and cannot establish a legal basis to remain in the United States, or to provide timely protection to those ultimately found eligible for protection when individuals are arriving at such elevated, historic volumes, according to the text of the interim final rule from the executive order.

The order goes away once government officials determine that fewer than 1,500 people a day have crossed the border in a weeks time span. Unaccompanied children are exempt, along with victims of human trafficking, people with visas, people with medical emergencies or those who report serious threats to their lives.

Those migrants who arrive at ports of entry to claim asylum once the cap is reached and do not establish a reasonable probability of persecution or torture in the country of removal, will be removed and subjected to a five-year ban from applying for asylum in the U.S., according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Returning to Mexico or home countries

Leeser said the order will help manage high numbers of arrivals of migrants at ports of entry because it will allow the Biden administration to return those migrants either to their home countries or elsewhere in Mexico if their home country is deemed too dangerous.

Leeser said because of this, he expects migrants to use more legal pathways, such as the CBP One app, through which appointments can be made with an immigration official to claim asylum.

Through the CPB One app, more than 1,400 migrants are processed for appointments each day with an immigration official. The wait time for an appointment can take about five to eight months, according to a May report by the Robert Strauss Center for International Security and Law at the University of Texas at Austin, which documents asylum claims at ports of entry.

But Juan Acereto Cervera, the adviser to the mayor of Juarez, Mexico, which borders El Paso, expressed skepticism that the new White House policy will stop people from trying to cross the border to claim asylum.

Nothings going to stop this migration, he said. Its because something is happening in their other countries that make these people to try to find the best country in the world, that is the United States. Thats the truth.

Jorge Rodriguez, the coordinator for the El Paso City & County Office of Emergency Management, said that its common for the number of migrants that arrive in El Paso to fluctuate, based on immigration policy changes from the White House.

With time  what well see is how this one will ultimately play out, he said.

Legal action looms

Under U.S. immigration law, for a noncitizen to claim asylum, they have to reach U.S. soil and then make that claim. They can stay in the U.S. and receive due process if they have a fear of persecution based on their race, religion, nationality, membership in a particular social group or political opinion.

The American Civil Liberties Union, which was at the forefront of many legal cases against the Trump administrations immigration policies  including ones that restricted asylum  has already stated it plans to sue the Biden administration over its executive order.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, whose district includes El Paso, said in a statement that she was disappointed that the Biden administration focused its executive order only on enforcement.

It is my sincere hope that administrative actions on immigration relief, like parole in place for the spouses of US citizens and designations of Temporary Protected Status for vulnerable populations, will also happen, she said.

A very dangerous place

Immigration advocates and attorneys in El Paso said during a separate Wednesday panel with journalists they fear for the impact the executive order could have on migrants.

I think we do kind of know whats going to happen  it creates a backlog, said Imelda Maynard, an attorney at Estrella Del Paso Legal Aid.

Maynard said she can easily see how the executive order will be misinterpreted by migrants who will think the 2,500 threshold is a quota to allow people into the U.S.

What the government is trying to do, right, lessen the amount of irregular entries, I think thats going to increase, she said.

Father Rafael Garcia, a priest who serves Sacred Heart Church, said he expects the executive order will cause more migrants to wait in Mexico, which could burden Mexico and leave those migrants in dangerous situations.

Its hard to know how this is gonna play out, but it doesnt look too good, Garcia said.

The director of Sacred Heart Church, DeBruhl, said that he thinks it will take a few weeks to see the full impact of the executive order.

The conservatives are saying that its not going to make any difference the (Biden) administration is saying this is going to have a specific (effect), and be quite impactful, he said. I dont think anybody really knows how this is going to play out.

Aimee Santillan, a policy analyst at the Hope Border Institute, which advocates for solidarity and justice across the borderlands, said that the order will require many migrants to wait in Mexico, and right now, Mexico is a very dangerous place for migrants to be in.

We think that this might exacerbate the situation, or push people to  find other routes of entering the country that are less controlled, have less services, have less people receiving them and giving them assistance, she said.

This story was reported through an El Paso-based fellowship on U.S. immigration policy organized by Poynter, an institute for the professional development of journalists, with funding from the Catena Foundation.

The post On the U.S.-Mexico border, hopes and fears after Bidens order limiting asylum appeared first on Minnesota Reformer.
U.S. And Russian Nuclear Submarines Visit Cuba At The Same Time

The Los Angeles class fast attack nuclear submarine USS Helena arrived in Gitmo as one of Russia's most advanced nuclear subs made a Havana port call.

With a Russian Navy task force is docked in Havana, Cuba, the nuclear-powered Los Angeles class fast attack submarine USS Helena has arrived in Guantanamo Bay , on the southeastern coast of the island nation.

Though tensions are mounting between Moscow and Washington over the war in Ukraine, U.S. officials say Helena's port call is unrelated to the presence of one of Russia's most advanced nuclear submarines in Cuba.

The visit is part of a routine port visit as it transits the U.S. Southern Command geographic area of responsibility while conducting its global maritime security and national defense mission, SOUTHCOM said Thursday in a Tweet. The vessel's location and transit were previously planned.

The U.S. Navy Los Angeles class nuclear fast attack submarine USS Helena. Via Twitter

Still, the submarine's appearance in Guantanamo Bay seems incredibly coincidental, if that is indeed the case.

U.S. officials rarely publicize the locations of its submarines, but the SOUTHCOM statement was likely either meant to diffuse tensions or send a message after Russias Yasen-M class nuclear-powered, cruise-missile firing submarine Kazan arrived in the Cuban capital Havana on Wednesday.

The Russian nuclear-powered submarine Kazan, part of the Russian naval detachment visiting Cuba, arrives at Havana's harbour, June 12, 2024. Photo by YAMIL LAGE/AFP via Getty Images

Kazan is one of a group of four Russian naval vessels sent to the Caribbean, which had been closely shadowed by U.S. and allied warships and aircraft. The Project 22350 frigate Admiral Gorshkov , the heavy ocean-going tug Nikolai Chiker (also sometimes written Nikolay Chiker), and the Project 23130 replenishment oiler Academic Pashin also sailed into the port of Havana Wednesday. The Gorshkov was greeted by a 21-gun salute, which you can see below.

On its way to Cuba, the Russian flotilla took part in simulated anti-ship missile strikes against mock enemy naval targets while sailing in the Atlantic, according to the Russian Defense Ministry (MoD). However, no missiles were live-fired. This video below show an example of that.

The Russian naval task force might make additional Caribbean port calls on its long-distance deployment, Russian Navy boss Admiral Alexander Moiseev said . U.S. officials have speculated it might visit Moscow ally Venezuela, with additional Russian Navy visits near U.S. waters.

It certainly wouldn't come as a surprise to us if we see more activity around the United States, Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh told reporters Wednesday . And, you know, they do have a global exercise that will, I think, likely culminate this fall.

The U.S. military is always, constantly going to monitor any foreign vessels operating near U.S. territorial waters, she added. We of course take it seriously, but these exercises don't pose a threat to the United States.

Guantanamo Bay is located on the southeastern tip of Cuba. Google Earth image

U.S. nuclear submarine port calls to Gitmo are not unheard of. Last July, a visit by the Los Angeles class submarine USS Pasadena sparked outrage in Havana.

The Cuban Foreign Ministry called that visit a "provocative escalation, ABC News reported at the time .

"The Ministry of Foreign Affairs strongly rejects the arrival of a nuclear-powered submarine in Guantanamo Bay on July 5, 2023, that stayed until July 8 at the U.S. military base located there, which is a provocative escalation of the United States, whose political or strategic motives are not known," the Cuban Foreign Ministry statement at the time read.

A U.S. Navy spokesperson told ABC News the Gitmo port call was a "scheduled logistics stop" as the submarine transits to Colombia to participate in a multinational maritime exercise.

The USS Pasadena returns to Naval Base Point Loma, San Diego, Mar. 30, 2017 after a six-month deployment to the Western Pacific. Petty Officer 1st Class Benjamin Lewis/U.S. Navy, FILE

Considering the response last summer to Pasadena's visit, clearly doing the same when a Russian flotilla is docked in Havana would not have gone unnoticed.

Still, the Russian Navy ships arrived in Cuba as friction grows between Moscow and Washington. Thats been exacerbated by the U.S . and other nations allowing weapons to strike Russian territory . Earlier this month, Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened that his nation could supply long-range weapons to "regions" around the world where they could be used for strikes against Western targets.

It remains to be seen if the U.S. Navy moves any other assets to the region beyond those that have been shadowing the Russian Navy task force. While the arrival of a U.S. nuclear submarine at Gitmo seems to be a coincidence, there is a lot of naval firepower in that part of the world at a very tense time.

Contact the author: howard@thewarzone.com
U.S. Senate Republicans blocked a Democratic bill Thursday to bolster protections for in vitro fertilization. (Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. Senate Democrats attempts to bolster reproductive rights failed again Thursday when Republicans blocked a bill guaranteeing access to in vitro fertilization from moving forward.

The 48-47 procedural vote came just one day after Republicans tried unsuccessfully to pass their own IVF access bill and one week after GOP senators prevented legislation from advancing that would have bolstered protections for access to contraception. Senate rules require 60 votes to proceed on most legislation.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, both Republicans, broke with their GOP colleagues to support the IVF measure moving toward a final vote. The two also voted for cloture on the contraception access bill last week.

During both debates, the vast majority of Senate Republicans said the bills went too far or were too broad, a characterization that Democrats vehemently rejected, calling the GOP stance on certain reproductive rights out of step with most Americans.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said during floor debate the bill would ensure patients have a right to access IVF and that doctors have a right to provide that fertility treatment, as well as require more health insurance companies to cover IVF.

The package included additional provisions that would help more veterans and service members, who have trouble conceiving, get the critical fertility services they need to start their families, including IVF, Murray said.

This is something Ive long been pushing for, for years now, and it is long overdue, Murray said. All these men and women, who fought to protect our families, we owe it to them to make sure they have the support when they come home to grow theirs.

Murray said advancing the bill should not be controversial, especially if Republicans are serious about supporting access to IVF.

As we saw in Alabama, the threat to IVF is not hypothetical, it is not overblown and it is not fear mongering, Murray said.

A show vote

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy spoke out against the bill during floor debate, saying it was not a serious effort at legislating and that no state currently bans access to IVF.

I have been sitting here listening to this and I cant help but notice my Democratic fellow senators have chosen to disrespect and deceive the American people as they politicize a deeply personal issue for short-term political gain, he said.

Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said that had Democrats been serious about moving this bill, they would have put it up for debate in committee before bringing it to the floor.

He also criticized the legislation for requiring private insurance companies to provide unlimited fertility treatments, but setting a cap on how many treatments a veteran could receive from a Veterans Affairs clinic.

Republicans, Cassidy said, are so open to working with Democrats on a sincere, bipartisan effort. But this is a show vote.

Todays vote is disingenuous  pushing a bill haphazardly drafted and destined to fail does a disservice to all who may pursue IVF treatments, Cassidy said.

GOP bill

The Senate vote came one day after Alabama Sen. Katie Britt and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, both Republicans, attempted to pass their IVF bill through a fast-track process called unanimous consent.

Their legislation would have blocked Medicaid funding from going to any state that bans IVF, though Democrats argued the measure wouldnt actually have guarded against states classifying frozen embryos as children.

Britt said during debate on her bill Wednesday that she strongly supported nationwide access to IVF.

Across America, about 2% of babies born are born because of IVF  that is about 200 babies per day, Britt said. So think about the magnitude of that number and the faces and the stories and the dreams it represents. In recent decades, millions of people have been born with the help of IVF.

Murray blocked the Britt-Cruz bill from passing the Senate on Wednesday after Cruz asked unanimous consent to approve the measure. There was no recorded vote.

Protecting access

Senate Democrats IVF access bill was introduced by Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, Murray and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker earlier this month.

The 64-page bill would have provided a right for people to access IVF and for doctors to provide that health care without the state or federal government enacting harmful or unwarranted limitations or requirements.

The measure included provisions that would have bolstered access to IVF for members of the military and veterans as well as spouses, partners, or gestational surrogates.

The legislation defines fertility treatment as preserving human oocytes, sperm, or embryos for later reproductive use; artificial insemination; genetic testing of embryos; use of medications for fertility; and gamete donation.

The bill defines assisted reproductive technology as including in vitro fertilization and other treatments or procedures in which reproductive genetic material, such as oocytes, sperm, fertilized eggs, and embryos, are handled, when clinically appropriate.

Duckworth tried to pass a similar bill through unanimous consent back in February. But Mississippi Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith blocked approval through the fast-track unanimous consent process. There was no recorded vote at the time.

Personal experience

Duckworth has talked openly about her struggles to start a family and use of IVF throughout her time as a senator, including this year after the Alabama state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos constituted children under state law.

During floor debate Thursday, she spoke again about her own experiences with IVF, which she said is the reason she gets to put her 6-year-olds drawings up on her Senate office wall and get tackled by her 9-year-old on Mothers Day.

I didnt know it at the time back then, but infertility would become one of the most heartbreaking struggles of my life, Duckworth said of her 23 years in the military that included a helicopter crash in which she lost her legs. My miscarriage, more painful than any wound I ever earned on the battlefield.

Duckworth said Republican opposition to the bill shows a lack of common decency and common sense.

Excuse me if I find it a bit offensive when a bunch of politicians, whove never spent a day in med school, hint that those of us whove needed the help of IVF to become moms should be sitting behind bars rather than lulling our babies to sleep in rocking chairs.

The post U.S. Senate Republicans reject Democrats bill on IVF protections appeared first on Kentucky Lantern.
U.S. Senate Republicans blocked a Democratic bill Thursday to bolster protections for in vitro fertilization. (Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. Senate Democrats attempts to bolster reproductive rights failed again Thursday when Republicans blocked a bill guaranteeing access to in vitro fertilization from moving forward.

The 48-47 procedural vote came just one day after Republicans tried unsuccessfully to pass their own IVF access bill and one week after GOP senators prevented legislation from advancing that would have bolstered protections for access to contraception. Senate rules require 60 votes to proceed on most legislation.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, both Republicans, broke with their GOP colleagues to support the IVF measure moving toward a final vote. The two also voted for cloture on the contraception access bill last week.

During both debates, the vast majority of Senate Republicans said the bills went too far or were too broad, a characterization that Democrats vehemently rejected, calling the GOP stance on certain reproductive rights out of step with most Americans.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said during floor debate the bill would ensure patients have a right to access IVF and that doctors have a right to provide that fertility treatment, as well as require more health insurance companies to cover IVF.

The package included additional provisions that would help more veterans and service members, who have trouble conceiving, get the critical fertility services they need to start their families, including IVF, Murray said.

This is something Ive long been pushing for, for years now, and it is long overdue, Murray said. All these men and women, who fought to protect our families, we owe it to them to make sure they have the support when they come home to grow theirs.

Murray said advancing the bill should not be controversial, especially if Republicans are serious about supporting access to IVF.

As we saw in Alabama, the threat to IVF is not hypothetical, it is not overblown and it is not fear mongering, Murray said.

A show vote

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy spoke out against the bill during floor debate, saying it was not a serious effort at legislating and that no state currently bans access to IVF.

I have been sitting here listening to this and I cant help but notice my Democratic fellow senators have chosen to disrespect and deceive the American people as they politicize a deeply personal issue for short-term political gain, he said.

Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said that had Democrats been serious about moving this bill, they would have put it up for debate in committee before bringing it to the floor.

He also criticized the legislation for requiring private insurance companies to provide unlimited fertility treatments, but setting a cap on how many treatments a veteran could receive from a Veterans Affairs clinic.

Republicans, Cassidy said, are so open to working with Democrats on a sincere, bipartisan effort. But this is a show vote.

Todays vote is disingenuous  pushing a bill haphazardly drafted and destined to fail does a disservice to all who may pursue IVF treatments, Cassidy said.

GOP bill

The Senate vote came one day after Alabama Sen. Katie Britt and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, both Republicans, attempted to pass their IVF bill through a fast-track process called unanimous consent.

Their legislation would have blocked Medicaid funding from going to any state that bans IVF, though Democrats argued the measure wouldnt actually have guarded against states classifying frozen embryos as children.

Britt said during debate on her bill Wednesday that she strongly supported nationwide access to IVF.

Across America, about 2% of babies born are born because of IVF  that is about 200 babies per day, Britt said. So think about the magnitude of that number and the faces and the stories and the dreams it represents. In recent decades, millions of people have been born with the help of IVF.

Murray blocked the Britt-Cruz bill from passing the Senate on Wednesday after Cruz asked unanimous consent to approve the measure. There was no recorded vote.

Protecting access

Senate Democrats IVF access bill was introduced by Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, Murray and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker earlier this month.

The 64-page bill would have provided a right for people to access IVF and for doctors to provide that health care without the state or federal government enacting harmful or unwarranted limitations or requirements.

The measure included provisions that would have bolstered access to IVF for members of the military and veterans as well as spouses, partners, or gestational surrogates.

The legislation defines fertility treatment as preserving human oocytes, sperm, or embryos for later reproductive use; artificial insemination; genetic testing of embryos; use of medications for fertility; and gamete donation.

The bill defines assisted reproductive technology as including in vitro fertilization and other treatments or procedures in which reproductive genetic material, such as oocytes, sperm, fertilized eggs, and embryos, are handled, when clinically appropriate.

Duckworth tried to pass a similar bill through unanimous consent back in February. But Mississippi Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith blocked approval through the fast-track unanimous consent process. There was no recorded vote at the time.

Personal experience

Duckworth has talked openly about her struggles to start a family and use of IVF throughout her time as a senator, including this year after the Alabama state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos constituted children under state law.

During floor debate Thursday, she spoke again about her own experiences with IVF, which she said is the reason she gets to put her 6-year-olds drawings up on her Senate office wall and get tackled by her 9-year-old on Mothers Day.

I didnt know it at the time back then, but infertility would become one of the most heartbreaking struggles of my life, Duckworth said of her 23 years in the military that included a helicopter crash in which she lost her legs. My miscarriage, more painful than any wound I ever earned on the battlefield.

Duckworth said Republican opposition to the bill shows a lack of common decency and common sense.

Excuse me if I find it a bit offensive when a bunch of politicians, whove never spent a day in med school, hint that those of us whove needed the help of IVF to become moms should be sitting behind bars rather than lulling our babies to sleep in rocking chairs.

The post U.S. Senate Republicans reject Democrats bill on IVF protections appeared first on Nebraska Examiner.
U.S. Senate Republicans blocked a Democratic bill Thursday to bolster protections for in vitro fertilization. (Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. Senate Democrats attempts to bolster reproductive rights failed again Thursday when Republicans blocked a bill guaranteeing access to in vitro fertilization from moving forward.

The 48-47 procedural vote came just one day after Republicans tried unsuccessfully to pass their own IVF access bill and one week after GOP senators prevented legislation from advancing that would have bolstered protections for access to contraception. Senate rules require 60 votes to proceed on most legislation.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, both Republicans, broke with their GOP colleagues to support the IVF measure moving toward a final vote. The two also voted for cloture on the contraception access bill last week.

During both debates, the vast majority of Senate Republicans said the bills went too far or were too broad, a characterization that Democrats vehemently rejected, calling the GOP stance on certain reproductive rights out of step with most Americans.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said during floor debate the bill would ensure patients have a right to access IVF and that doctors have a right to provide that fertility treatment, as well as require more health insurance companies to cover IVF.

The package included additional provisions that would help more veterans and service members, who have trouble conceiving, get the critical fertility services they need to start their families, including IVF, Murray said.

This is something Ive long been pushing for, for years now, and it is long overdue, Murray said. All these men and women, who fought to protect our families, we owe it to them to make sure they have the support when they come home to grow theirs.

Murray said advancing the bill should not be controversial, especially if Republicans are serious about supporting access to IVF.

As we saw in Alabama, the threat to IVF is not hypothetical, it is not overblown and it is not fear mongering, Murray said.

A show vote

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy spoke out against the bill during floor debate, saying it was not a serious effort at legislating and that no state currently bans access to IVF.

I have been sitting here listening to this and I cant help but notice my Democratic fellow senators have chosen to disrespect and deceive the American people as they politicize a deeply personal issue for short-term political gain, he said.

Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said that had Democrats been serious about moving this bill, they would have put it up for debate in committee before bringing it to the floor.

He also criticized the legislation for requiring private insurance companies to provide unlimited fertility treatments, but setting a cap on how many treatments a veteran could receive from a Veterans Affairs clinic.

Republicans, Cassidy said, are so open to working with Democrats on a sincere, bipartisan effort. But this is a show vote.

Todays vote is disingenuous  pushing a bill haphazardly drafted and destined to fail does a disservice to all who may pursue IVF treatments, Cassidy said.

GOP bill

The Senate vote came one day after Alabama Sen. Katie Britt and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, both Republicans, attempted to pass their IVF bill through a fast-track process called unanimous consent.

Their legislation would have blocked Medicaid funding from going to any state that bans IVF, though Democrats argued the measure wouldnt actually have guarded against states classifying frozen embryos as children.

Britt said during debate on her bill Wednesday that she strongly supported nationwide access to IVF.

Across America, about 2% of babies born are born because of IVF  that is about 200 babies per day, Britt said. So think about the magnitude of that number and the faces and the stories and the dreams it represents. In recent decades, millions of people have been born with the help of IVF.

Murray blocked the Britt-Cruz bill from passing the Senate on Wednesday after Cruz asked unanimous consent to approve the measure. There was no recorded vote.

Protecting access

Senate Democrats IVF access bill was introduced by Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, Murray and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker earlier this month.

The 64-page bill would have provided a right for people to access IVF and for doctors to provide that health care without the state or federal government enacting harmful or unwarranted limitations or requirements.

The measure included provisions that would have bolstered access to IVF for members of the military and veterans as well as spouses, partners, or gestational surrogates.

The legislation defines fertility treatment as preserving human oocytes, sperm, or embryos for later reproductive use; artificial insemination; genetic testing of embryos; use of medications for fertility; and gamete donation.

The bill defines assisted reproductive technology as including in vitro fertilization and other treatments or procedures in which reproductive genetic material, such as oocytes, sperm, fertilized eggs, and embryos, are handled, when clinically appropriate.

Duckworth tried to pass a similar bill through unanimous consent back in February. But Mississippi Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith blocked approval through the fast-track unanimous consent process. There was no recorded vote at the time.

Personal experience

Duckworth has talked openly about her struggles to start a family and use of IVF throughout her time as a senator, including this year after the Alabama state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos constituted children under state law.

During floor debate Thursday, she spoke again about her own experiences with IVF, which she said is the reason she gets to put her 6-year-olds drawings up on her Senate office wall and get tackled by her 9-year-old on Mothers Day.

I didnt know it at the time back then, but infertility would become one of the most heartbreaking struggles of my life, Duckworth said of her 23 years in the military that included a helicopter crash in which she lost her legs. My miscarriage, more painful than any wound I ever earned on the battlefield.

Duckworth said Republican opposition to the bill shows a lack of common decency and common sense.

Excuse me if I find it a bit offensive when a bunch of politicians, whove never spent a day in med school, hint that those of us whove needed the help of IVF to become moms should be sitting behind bars rather than lulling our babies to sleep in rocking chairs.

The post U.S. Senate Republicans reject Democrats bill on IVF protections appeared first on Rhode Island Current.
U.S. Senate Republicans blocked a Democratic bill June 13, 2024 to bolster protections for in vitro fertilization. (Photo via Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. Senate Democrats attempts to bolster reproductive rights failed again Thursday when Republicans blocked a bill guaranteeing access to in vitro fertilization from moving forward.

The 48-47 procedural vote came just one day after Republicans tried unsuccessfully to pass their own IVF access bill and one week after GOP senators prevented legislation from advancing that would have bolstered protections for access to contraception. Senate rules require 60 votes to proceed on most legislation.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, both Republicans, broke with their GOP colleagues to support the IVF measure moving toward a final vote. The two also voted for cloture on the contraception access bill last week.

During both debates, the vast majority of Senate Republicans said the bills went too far or were too broad, a characterization that Democrats vehemently rejected, calling the GOP stance on certain reproductive rights out of step with most Americans.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said during floor debate the bill would ensure patients have a right to access IVF and that doctors have a right to provide that fertility treatment, as well as require more health insurance companies to cover IVF.

The package included additional provisions that would help more veterans and service members, who have trouble conceiving, get the critical fertility services they need to start their families, including IVF, Murray said.

This is something Ive long been pushing for, for years now, and it is long overdue, Murray said. All these men and women, who fought to protect our families, we owe it to them to make sure they have the support when they come home to grow theirs.

Murray said advancing the bill should not be controversial, especially if Republicans are serious about supporting access to IVF.

As we saw in Alabama, the threat to IVF is not hypothetical, it is not overblown and it is not fear mongering, Murray said.

A show vote

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy spoke out against the bill during floor debate, saying it was not a serious effort at legislating and that no state currently bans access to IVF.

I have been sitting here listening to this and I cant help but notice my Democratic fellow senators have chosen to disrespect and deceive the American people as they politicize a deeply personal issue for short-term political gain, he said.

Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said that had Democrats been serious about moving this bill, they would have put it up for debate in committee before bringing it to the floor.

He also criticized the legislation for requiring private insurance companies to provide unlimited fertility treatments, but setting a cap on how many treatments a veteran could receive from a Veterans Affairs clinic.

Republicans, Cassidy said, are so open to working with Democrats on a sincere, bipartisan effort. But this is a show vote.

Todays vote is disingenuous  pushing a bill haphazardly drafted and destined to fail does a disservice to all who may pursue IVF treatments, Cassidy said.

GOP bill

The Senate vote came one day after Alabama Sen. Katie Britt and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, both Republicans, attempted to pass their IVF bill through a fast-track process called unanimous consent.

Their legislation would have blocked Medicaid funding from going to any state that bans IVF, though Democrats argued the measure wouldnt actually have guarded against states classifying frozen embryos as children.

Britt said during debate on her bill Wednesday that she strongly supported nationwide access to IVF.

Across America, about 2% of babies born are born because of IVF  that is about 200 babies per day, Britt said. So think about the magnitude of that number and the faces and the stories and the dreams it represents. In recent decades, millions of people have been born with the help of IVF.

Murray blocked the Britt-Cruz bill from passing the Senate on Wednesday after Cruz asked unanimous consent to approve the measure. There was no recorded vote.

Protecting access

Senate Democrats IVF access bill was introduced by Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, Murray and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker earlier this month.

The 64-page bill would have provided a right for people to access IVF and for doctors to provide that health care without the state or federal government enacting harmful or unwarranted limitations or requirements.

The measure included provisions that would have bolstered access to IVF for members of the military and veterans as well as spouses, partners, or gestational surrogates.

The legislation defines fertility treatment as preserving human oocytes, sperm, or embryos for later reproductive use; artificial insemination; genetic testing of embryos; use of medications for fertility; and gamete donation.

The bill defines assisted reproductive technology as including in vitro fertilization and other treatments or procedures in which reproductive genetic material, such as oocytes, sperm, fertilized eggs, and embryos, are handled, when clinically appropriate.

Duckworth tried to pass a similar bill through unanimous consent back in February. But Mississippi Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith blocked approval through the fast-track unanimous consent process. There was no recorded vote at the time.

Personal experience

Duckworth has talked openly about her struggles to start a family and use of IVF throughout her time as a senator, including this year after the Alabama state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos constituted children under state law.

During floor debate Thursday, she spoke again about her own experiences with IVF, which she said is the reason she gets to put her 6-year-olds drawings up on her Senate office wall and get tackled by her 9-year-old on Mothers Day.

I didnt know it at the time back then, but infertility would become one of the most heartbreaking struggles of my life, Duckworth said of her 23 years in the military that included a helicopter crash in which she lost her legs. My miscarriage, more painful than any wound I ever earned on the battlefield.

Duckworth said Republican opposition to the bill shows a lack of common decency and common sense.

Excuse me if I find it a bit offensive when a bunch of politicians, whove never spent a day in med school, hint that those of us whove needed the help of IVF to become moms should be sitting behind bars rather than lulling our babies to sleep in rocking chairs.

The post U.S. Senate Republicans reject Democrats bill on IVF protections appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch.
A lab tech uses equipment employed for in vitro fertilization in this undated photo. (Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. Senate Democrats attempts to bolster reproductive rights failed again Thursday when Republicans blocked a bill guaranteeing access to in vitro fertilization from moving forward.

The 48-47 procedural vote came just one day after Republicans tried unsuccessfully to pass their own IVF access bill and one week after GOP senators prevented legislation from advancing that would have bolstered protections for access to contraception. Senate rules require 60 votes to proceed on most legislation.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, both Republicans, broke with their GOP colleagues to support the IVF measure moving toward a final vote. The two also voted for cloture on the contraception access bill last week.

During both debates, the vast majority of Senate Republicans said the bills went too far or were too broad, a characterization that Democrats vehemently rejected, calling the GOP stance on certain reproductive rights out of step with most Americans.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said during floor debate the bill would ensure patients have a right to access IVF and that doctors have a right to provide that fertility treatment, as well as require more health insurance companies to cover IVF.

The package included additional provisions that would help more veterans and service members, who have trouble conceiving, get the critical fertility services they need to start their families, including IVF, Murray said.

This is something Ive long been pushing for, for years now, and it is long overdue, Murray said. All these men and women, who fought to protect our families, we owe it to them to make sure they have the support when they come home to grow theirs.

Murray said advancing the bill should not be controversial, especially if Republicans are serious about supporting access to IVF.

As we saw in Alabama, the threat to IVF is not hypothetical, it is not overblown and it is not fear mongering, Murray said.

A show vote

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy spoke out against the bill during floor debate, saying it was not a serious effort at legislating and that no state currently bans access to IVF.

I have been sitting here listening to this and I cant help but notice my Democratic fellow senators have chosen to disrespect and deceive the American people as they politicize a deeply personal issue for short-term political gain, he said.

Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said that had Democrats been serious about moving this bill, they would have put it up for debate in committee before bringing it to the floor.

He also criticized the legislation for requiring private insurance companies to provide unlimited fertility treatments, but setting a cap on how many treatments a veteran could receive from a Veterans Affairs clinic.

Republicans, Cassidy said, are so open to working with Democrats on a sincere, bipartisan effort. But this is a show vote.

Todays vote is disingenuous  pushing a bill haphazardly drafted and destined to fail does a disservice to all who may pursue IVF treatments, Cassidy said.

GOP bill

The Senate vote came one day after Alabama Sen. Katie Britt and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, both Republicans, attempted to pass their IVF bill through a fast-track process called unanimous consent.

Their legislation would have blocked Medicaid funding from going to any state that bans IVF, though Democrats argued the measure wouldnt actually have guarded against states classifying frozen embryos as children.

Britt said during debate on her bill Wednesday that she strongly supported nationwide access to IVF.

Across America, about 2% of babies born are born because of IVF  that is about 200 babies per day, Britt said. So think about the magnitude of that number and the faces and the stories and the dreams it represents. In recent decades, millions of people have been born with the help of IVF.

Murray blocked the Britt-Cruz bill from passing the Senate on Wednesday after Cruz asked unanimous consent to approve the measure. There was no recorded vote.

Protecting access

Senate Democrats IVF access bill was introduced by Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, Murray and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker earlier this month.

The 64-page bill would have provided a right for people to access IVF and for doctors to provide that health care without the state or federal government enacting harmful or unwarranted limitations or requirements.

The measure included provisions that would have bolstered access to IVF for members of the military and veterans as well as spouses, partners, or gestational surrogates.

The legislation defines fertility treatment as preserving human oocytes, sperm, or embryos for later reproductive use; artificial insemination; genetic testing of embryos; use of medications for fertility; and gamete donation.

The bill defines assisted reproductive technology as including in vitro fertilization and other treatments or procedures in which reproductive genetic material, such as oocytes, sperm, fertilized eggs, and embryos, are handled, when clinically appropriate.

Duckworth tried to pass a similar bill through unanimous consent back in February. But Mississippi Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith blocked approval through the fast-track unanimous consent process. There was no recorded vote at the time.

Personal experience

Duckworth has talked openly about her struggles to start a family and use of IVF throughout her time as a senator, including this year after the Alabama state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos constituted children under state law.

During floor debate Thursday, she spoke again about her own experiences with IVF, which she said is the reason she gets to put her 6-year-olds drawings up on her Senate office wall and get tackled by her 9-year-old on Mothers Day.

I didnt know it at the time back then, but infertility would become one of the most heartbreaking struggles of my life, Duckworth said of her 23 years in the military that included a helicopter crash in which she lost her legs. My miscarriage, more painful than any wound I ever earned on the battlefield.

Duckworth said Republican opposition to the bill shows a lack of common decency and common sense.

Excuse me if I find it a bit offensive when a bunch of politicians, whove never spent a day in med school, hint that those of us whove needed the help of IVF to become moms should be sitting behind bars rather than lulling our babies to sleep in rocking chairs.

The post U.S. Senate Republicans reject Democrats bill on IVF protections appeared first on North Dakota Monitor.
In vitro fertilization process close up. Equipment on laboratory of Fertilization, IVF. Embryo biotechnology fertility treatment. Selective focus

WASHINGTON  U.S. Senate Democrats attempts to bolster reproductive rights failed again Thursday when Republicans blocked a bill guaranteeing access to in vitro fertilization from moving forward.

The 48-47 procedural vote came just one day after Republicans tried unsuccessfully to pass their own IVF access bill and one week after GOP senators prevented legislation from advancing that would have bolstered protections for access to contraception. Senate rules require 60 votes to proceed on most legislation.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, both Republicans, broke with their GOP colleagues to support the IVF measure moving toward a final vote. The two also voted for cloture on the contraception access bill last week.

During both debates, the vast majority of Senate Republicans said the bills went too far or were too broad, a characterization that Democrats vehemently rejected, calling the GOP stance on certain reproductive rights out of step with most Americans.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said during floor debate the bill would ensure patients have a right to access IVF and that doctors have a right to provide that fertility treatment, as well as require more health insurance companies to cover IVF.

The package included additional provisions that would help more veterans and service members, who have trouble conceiving, get the critical fertility services they need to start their families, including IVF, Murray said.

This is something Ive long been pushing for, for years now, and it is long overdue, Murray said. All these men and women, who fought to protect our families, we owe it to them to make sure they have the support when they come home to grow theirs.

Murray said advancing the bill should not be controversial, especially if Republicans are serious about supporting access to IVF.

As we saw in Alabama, the threat to IVF is not hypothetical, it is not overblown and it is not fear mongering, Murray said.

A show vote

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy spoke out against the bill during floor debate, saying it was not a serious effort at legislating and that no state currently bans access to IVF.

I have been sitting here listening to this and I cant help but notice my Democratic fellow senators have chosen to disrespect and deceive the American people as they politicize a deeply personal issue for short-term political gain, he said.

Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said that had Democrats been serious about moving this bill, they would have put it up for debate in committee before bringing it to the floor.

He also criticized the legislation for requiring private insurance companies to provide unlimited fertility treatments, but setting a cap on how many treatments a veteran could receive from a Veterans Affairs clinic.

Republicans, Cassidy said, are so open to working with Democrats on a sincere, bipartisan effort. But this is a show vote.

Todays vote is disingenuous  pushing a bill haphazardly drafted and destined to fail does a disservice to all who may pursue IVF treatments, Cassidy said.

GOP bill

The Senate vote came one day after Alabama Sen. Katie Britt and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, both Republicans, attempted to pass their IVF bill through a fast-track process called unanimous consent.

Their legislation would have blocked Medicaid funding from going to any state that bans IVF, though Democrats argued the measure wouldnt actually have guarded against states classifying frozen embryos as children.

Britt said during debate on her bill Wednesday that she strongly supported nationwide access to IVF.

Across America, about 2% of babies born are born because of IVF  that is about 200 babies per day, Britt said. So think about the magnitude of that number and the faces and the stories and the dreams it represents. In recent decades, millions of people have been born with the help of IVF.

Murray blocked the Britt-Cruz bill from passing the Senate on Wednesday after Cruz asked unanimous consent to approve the measure. There was no recorded vote.

Protecting access

Senate Democrats IVF access bill was introduced by Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, Murray and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker earlier this month.

The 64-page bill would have provided a right for people to access IVF and for doctors to provide that health care without the state or federal government enacting harmful or unwarranted limitations or requirements.

The measure included provisions that would have bolstered access to IVF for members of the military and veterans as well as spouses, partners, or gestational surrogates.

The legislation defines fertility treatment as preserving human oocytes, sperm, or embryos for later reproductive use; artificial insemination; genetic testing of embryos; use of medications for fertility; and gamete donation.

The bill defines assisted reproductive technology as including in vitro fertilization and other treatments or procedures in which reproductive genetic material, such as oocytes, sperm, fertilized eggs, and embryos, are handled, when clinically appropriate.

Duckworth tried to pass a similar bill through unanimous consent back in February. But Mississippi Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith blocked approval through the fast-track unanimous consent process. There was no recorded vote at the time.

Personal experience

Duckworth has talked openly about her struggles to start a family and use of IVF throughout her time as a senator, including this year after the Alabama state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos constituted children under state law.

During floor debate Thursday, she spoke again about her own experiences with IVF, which she said is the reason she gets to put her 6-year-olds drawings up on her Senate office wall and get tackled by her 9-year-old on Mothers Day.

I didnt know it at the time back then, but infertility would become one of the most heartbreaking struggles of my life, Duckworth said of her 23 years in the military that included a helicopter crash in which she lost her legs. My miscarriage, more painful than any wound I ever earned on the battlefield.

Duckworth said Republican opposition to the bill shows a lack of common decency and common sense.

Excuse me if I find it a bit offensive when a bunch of politicians, whove never spent a day in med school, hint that those of us whove needed the help of IVF to become moms should be sitting behind bars rather than lulling our babies to sleep in rocking chairs.

The post U.S. Senate Republicans reject Democrats bill on IVF protections appeared first on Wisconsin Examiner.
U.S. Senate Republicans blocked a Democratic bill Thursday to bolster protections for in vitro fertilization. (Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. Senate Democrats attempts to bolster reproductive rights failed again Thursday when Republicans blocked a bill guaranteeing access to in vitro fertilization from moving forward.

The 48-47 procedural vote came just one day after Republicans tried unsuccessfully to pass their own IVF access bill and one week after GOP senators prevented legislation from advancing that would have bolstered protections for access to contraception. Senate rules require 60 votes to proceed on most legislation.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, both Republicans, broke with their GOP colleagues to support the IVF measure moving toward a final vote. The two also voted for cloture on the contraception access bill last week.

During both debates, the vast majority of Senate Republicans said the bills went too far or were too broad, a characterization that Democrats vehemently rejected, calling the GOP stance on certain reproductive rights out of step with most Americans.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said during floor debate the bill would ensure patients have a right to access IVF and that doctors have a right to provide that fertility treatment, as well as require more health insurance companies to cover IVF.

The package included additional provisions that would help more veterans and service members, who have trouble conceiving, get the critical fertility services they need to start their families, including IVF, Murray said.

This is something Ive long been pushing for, for years now, and it is long overdue, Murray said. All these men and women, who fought to protect our families, we owe it to them to make sure they have the support when they come home to grow theirs.

Murray said advancing the bill should not be controversial, especially if Republicans are serious about supporting access to IVF.

As we saw in Alabama, the threat to IVF is not hypothetical, it is not overblown and it is not fear mongering, Murray said.

A show vote

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy spoke out against the bill during floor debate, saying it was not a serious effort at legislating and that no state currently bans access to IVF.

I have been sitting here listening to this and I cant help but notice my Democratic fellow senators have chosen to disrespect and deceive the American people as they politicize a deeply personal issue for short-term political gain, he said.

Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said that had Democrats been serious about moving this bill, they would have put it up for debate in committee before bringing it to the floor.

He also criticized the legislation for requiring private insurance companies to provide unlimited fertility treatments, but setting a cap on how many treatments a veteran could receive from a Veterans Affairs clinic.

Republicans, Cassidy said, are so open to working with Democrats on a sincere, bipartisan effort. But this is a show vote.

Todays vote is disingenuous  pushing a bill haphazardly drafted and destined to fail does a disservice to all who may pursue IVF treatments, Cassidy said.

GOP bill

The Senate vote came one day after Alabama Sen. Katie Britt and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, both Republicans, attempted to pass their IVF bill through a fast-track process called unanimous consent.

Their legislation would have blocked Medicaid funding from going to any state that bans IVF, though Democrats argued the measure wouldnt actually have guarded against states classifying frozen embryos as children.

Britt said during debate on her bill Wednesday that she strongly supported nationwide access to IVF.

Across America, about 2% of babies born are born because of IVF  that is about 200 babies per day, Britt said. So think about the magnitude of that number and the faces and the stories and the dreams it represents. In recent decades, millions of people have been born with the help of IVF.

Murray blocked the Britt-Cruz bill from passing the Senate on Wednesday after Cruz asked unanimous consent to approve the measure. There was no recorded vote.

Protecting access

Senate Democrats IVF access bill was introduced by Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, Murray and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker earlier this month.

The 64-page bill would have provided a right for people to access IVF and for doctors to provide that health care without the state or federal government enacting harmful or unwarranted limitations or requirements.

The measure included provisions that would have bolstered access to IVF for members of the military and veterans as well as spouses, partners, or gestational surrogates.

The legislation defines fertility treatment as preserving human oocytes, sperm, or embryos for later reproductive use; artificial insemination; genetic testing of embryos; use of medications for fertility; and gamete donation.

The bill defines assisted reproductive technology as including in vitro fertilization and other treatments or procedures in which reproductive genetic material, such as oocytes, sperm, fertilized eggs, and embryos, are handled, when clinically appropriate.

Duckworth tried to pass a similar bill through unanimous consent back in February. But Mississippi Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith blocked approval through the fast-track unanimous consent process. There was no recorded vote at the time.

Personal experience

Duckworth has talked openly about her struggles to start a family and use of IVF throughout her time as a senator, including this year after the Alabama state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos constituted children under state law.

During floor debate Thursday, she spoke again about her own experiences with IVF, which she said is the reason she gets to put her 6-year-olds drawings up on her Senate office wall and get tackled by her 9-year-old on Mothers Day.

I didnt know it at the time back then, but infertility would become one of the most heartbreaking struggles of my life, Duckworth said of her 23 years in the military that included a helicopter crash in which she lost her legs. My miscarriage, more painful than any wound I ever earned on the battlefield.

Duckworth said Republican opposition to the bill shows a lack of common decency and common sense.

Excuse me if I find it a bit offensive when a bunch of politicians, whove never spent a day in med school, hint that those of us whove needed the help of IVF to become moms should be sitting behind bars rather than lulling our babies to sleep in rocking chairs.

The post U.S. Senate Republicans reject Democrats bill on IVF protections appeared first on Pennsylvania Capital-Star.
A staff member reacts with a robot at the fifth World Intelligence Congress at Tianjin Meijiang Conference and Exhibition Center in north China's Tianjin, May 23, 2021. (Xinhua/Sun Fanyue)

TIANJIN, June 12 (Xinhua) -- The 2024 World Intelligence Expo, scheduled to be held in Tianjin from June 20 to 23, aims to aggregate AI-related resources both nationwide and worldwide, according to a news conference on Wednesday.

The expo will be co-hosted by north China's Tianjin Municipality and southwest China's Chongqing Municipality, combining two events formerly known as the World Intelligence Congress in Tianjin and the Smart China Expo in Chongqing.

The AI event aims to create a global platform for academic innovation, exhibitions, competitions and investment promotion in the field of intelligent technology. It will attract leading enterprises, renowned research institutions and top universities.

With an exhibition area of 100,000 square meters, the event will include 10 themed exhibition areas covering the fields of AI, intelligent connected vehicles, intelligent manufacturing and robotics. Multiple international organizations and institutions will participate in the event, competing in robotics and intelligent driving challenges.

Both Tianjin and Chongqing have stepped up efforts to boost their AI industries in recent years. Tianjin saw the revenue of its AI industry exceed 300 billion yuan (about 41.4 billion U.S. dollars) in 2023. And in Chongqing, industries related to intelligent connected vehicles and new energy vehicles are rapidly forming trillion-yuan clusters, according to local authorities.

The two municipalities will alternate to host the World Intelligence Expo in the future. 
A close-up image of fertilizing an egg through in vitro fertilization. (Antonio Marquez lanza/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. Senate Democrats attempts to bolster reproductive rights failed again Thursday when Republicans blocked a bill guaranteeing access to in vitro fertilization from moving forward.

The 48-47 procedural vote came just one day after Republicans tried unsuccessfully to pass their own IVF access bill and one week after GOP senators prevented legislation from advancing that would have bolstered protections for access to contraception. Senate rules require 60 votes to proceed on most legislation.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, both Republicans, broke with their GOP colleagues to support the IVF measure moving toward a final vote. The two also voted for cloture on the contraception access bill last week.

During both debates, the vast majority of Senate Republicans said the bills went too far or were too broad, a characterization that Democrats vehemently rejected, calling the GOP stance on certain reproductive rights out of step with most Americans.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said during floor debate the bill would ensure patients have a right to access IVF and that doctors have a right to provide that fertility treatment, as well as require more health insurance companies to cover IVF.

The package included additional provisions that would help more veterans and service members, who have trouble conceiving, get the critical fertility services they need to start their families, including IVF, Murray said.

This is something Ive long been pushing for, for years now, and it is long overdue, Murray said. All these men and women, who fought to protect our families, we owe it to them to make sure they have the support when they come home to grow theirs.

Murray said advancing the bill should not be controversial, especially if Republicans are serious about supporting access to IVF.

As we saw in Alabama, the threat to IVF is not hypothetical, it is not overblown and it is not fear mongering, Murray said.

A show vote

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy spoke out against the bill during floor debate, saying it was not a serious effort at legislating and that no state currently bans access to IVF.

I have been sitting here listening to this and I cant help but notice my Democratic fellow senators have chosen to disrespect and deceive the American people as they politicize a deeply personal issue for short-term political gain, he said.

Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said that had Democrats been serious about moving this bill, they would have put it up for debate in committee before bringing it to the floor.

He also criticized the legislation for requiring private insurance companies to provide unlimited fertility treatments, but setting a cap on how many treatments a veteran could receive from a Veterans Affairs clinic.

Republicans, Cassidy said, are so open to working with Democrats on a sincere, bipartisan effort. But this is a show vote.

Todays vote is disingenuous  pushing a bill haphazardly drafted and destined to fail does a disservice to all who may pursue IVF treatments, Cassidy said.

GOP bill

The Senate vote came one day after Alabama Sen. Katie Britt and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, both Republicans, attempted to pass their IVF bill through a fast-track process called unanimous consent.

Their legislation would have blocked Medicaid funding from going to any state that bans IVF, though Democrats argued the measure wouldnt actually have guarded against states classifying frozen embryos as children.

Britt said during debate on her bill Wednesday that she strongly supported nationwide access to IVF.

Across America, about 2% of babies born are born because of IVF  that is about 200 babies per day, Britt said. So think about the magnitude of that number and the faces and the stories and the dreams it represents. In recent decades, millions of people have been born with the help of IVF.

Murray blocked the Britt-Cruz bill from passing the Senate on Wednesday after Cruz asked unanimous consent to approve the measure. There was no recorded vote.

Protecting access

Senate Democrats IVF access bill was introduced by Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, Murray and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker earlier this month.

The 64-page bill would have provided a right for people to access IVF and for doctors to provide that health care without the state or federal government enacting harmful or unwarranted limitations or requirements.

The measure included provisions that would have bolstered access to IVF for members of the military and veterans as well as spouses, partners, or gestational surrogates.

The legislation defines fertility treatment as preserving human oocytes, sperm, or embryos for later reproductive use; artificial insemination; genetic testing of embryos; use of medications for fertility; and gamete donation.

The bill defines assisted reproductive technology as including in vitro fertilization and other treatments or procedures in which reproductive genetic material, such as oocytes, sperm, fertilized eggs, and embryos, are handled, when clinically appropriate.

Duckworth tried to pass a similar bill through unanimous consent back in February. But Mississippi Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith blocked approval through the fast-track unanimous consent process. There was no recorded vote at the time.

Personal experience

Duckworth has talked openly about her struggles to start a family and use of IVF throughout her time as a senator, including this year after the Alabama state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos constituted children under state law.

During floor debate Thursday, she spoke again about her own experiences with IVF, which she said is the reason she gets to put her 6-year-olds drawings up on her Senate office wall and get tackled by her 9-year-old on Mothers Day.

I didnt know it at the time back then, but infertility would become one of the most heartbreaking struggles of my life, Duckworth said of her 23 years in the military that included a helicopter crash in which she lost her legs. My miscarriage, more painful than any wound I ever earned on the battlefield.

Duckworth said Republican opposition to the bill shows a lack of common decency and common sense.

Excuse me if I find it a bit offensive when a bunch of politicians, whove never spent a day in med school, hint that those of us whove needed the help of IVF to become moms should be sitting behind bars rather than lulling our babies to sleep in rocking chairs.

The post U.S. Senate Republicans reject Democrats bill on IVF protections appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle.
U.S. Senate Republicans blocked a Democratic bill Thursday to bolster protections for in vitro fertilization. (Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  U.S. Senate Democrats attempts to bolster reproductive rights failed again Thursday when Republicans blocked a bill guaranteeing access to in vitro fertilization from moving forward.

The 48-47 procedural vote came just one day after Republicans tried unsuccessfully to pass their own IVF access bill and one week after GOP senators prevented legislation from advancing that would have bolstered protections for access to contraception. Senate rules require 60 votes to proceed on most legislation.

Maine Sen. Susan Collins and Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, both Republicans, broke with their GOP colleagues to support the IVF measure moving toward a final vote. The two also voted for cloture on the contraception access bill last week.

During both debates, the vast majority of Senate Republicans said the bills went too far or were too broad, a characterization that Democrats vehemently rejected, calling the GOP stance on certain reproductive rights out of step with most Americans.

Washington Democratic Sen. Patty Murray said during floor debate the bill would ensure patients have a right to access IVF and that doctors have a right to provide that fertility treatment, as well as require more health insurance companies to cover IVF.

The package included additional provisions that would help more veterans and service members, who have trouble conceiving, get the critical fertility services they need to start their families, including IVF, Murray said.

This is something Ive long been pushing for, for years now, and it is long overdue, Murray said. All these men and women, who fought to protect our families, we owe it to them to make sure they have the support when they come home to grow theirs.

Murray said advancing the bill should not be controversial, especially if Republicans are serious about supporting access to IVF.

As we saw in Alabama, the threat to IVF is not hypothetical, it is not overblown and it is not fear mongering, Murray said.

A show vote

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy spoke out against the bill during floor debate, saying it was not a serious effort at legislating and that no state currently bans access to IVF.

I have been sitting here listening to this and I cant help but notice my Democratic fellow senators have chosen to disrespect and deceive the American people as they politicize a deeply personal issue for short-term political gain, he said.

Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, said that had Democrats been serious about moving this bill, they would have put it up for debate in committee before bringing it to the floor.

He also criticized the legislation for requiring private insurance companies to provide unlimited fertility treatments, but setting a cap on how many treatments a veteran could receive from a Veterans Affairs clinic.

Republicans, Cassidy said, are so open to working with Democrats on a sincere, bipartisan effort. But this is a show vote.

Todays vote is disingenuous  pushing a bill haphazardly drafted and destined to fail does a disservice to all who may pursue IVF treatments, Cassidy said.

GOP bill

The Senate vote came one day after Alabama Sen. Katie Britt and Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, both Republicans, attempted to pass their IVF bill through a fast-track process called unanimous consent.

Their legislation would have blocked Medicaid funding from going to any state that bans IVF, though Democrats argued the measure wouldnt actually have guarded against states classifying frozen embryos as children.

Britt said during debate on her bill Wednesday that she strongly supported nationwide access to IVF.

Across America, about 2% of babies born are born because of IVF  that is about 200 babies per day, Britt said. So think about the magnitude of that number and the faces and the stories and the dreams it represents. In recent decades, millions of people have been born with the help of IVF.

Murray blocked the Britt-Cruz bill from passing the Senate on Wednesday after Cruz asked unanimous consent to approve the measure. There was no recorded vote.

Protecting access

Senate Democrats IVF access bill was introduced by Illinois Democratic Sen. Tammy Duckworth, Murray and New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker earlier this month.

The 64-page bill would have provided a right for people to access IVF and for doctors to provide that health care without the state or federal government enacting harmful or unwarranted limitations or requirements.

The measure included provisions that would have bolstered access to IVF for members of the military and veterans as well as spouses, partners, or gestational surrogates.

The legislation defines fertility treatment as preserving human oocytes, sperm, or embryos for later reproductive use; artificial insemination; genetic testing of embryos; use of medications for fertility; and gamete donation.

The bill defines assisted reproductive technology as including in vitro fertilization and other treatments or procedures in which reproductive genetic material, such as oocytes, sperm, fertilized eggs, and embryos, are handled, when clinically appropriate.

Duckworth tried to pass a similar bill through unanimous consent back in February. But Mississippi Republican Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith blocked approval through the fast-track unanimous consent process. There was no recorded vote at the time.

Personal experience

Duckworth has talked openly about her struggles to start a family and use of IVF throughout her time as a senator, including this year after the Alabama state Supreme Court ruled that frozen embryos constituted children under state law.

During floor debate Thursday, she spoke again about her own experiences with IVF, which she said is the reason she gets to put her 6-year-olds drawings up on her Senate office wall and get tackled by her 9-year-old on Mothers Day.

I didnt know it at the time back then, but infertility would become one of the most heartbreaking struggles of my life, Duckworth said of her 23 years in the military that included a helicopter crash in which she lost her legs. My miscarriage, more painful than any wound I ever earned on the battlefield.

Duckworth said Republican opposition to the bill shows a lack of common decency and common sense.

Excuse me if I find it a bit offensive when a bunch of politicians, whove never spent a day in med school, hint that those of us whove needed the help of IVF to become moms should be sitting behind bars rather than lulling our babies to sleep in rocking chairs.

The post U.S. Senate Republicans reject Democrats bill on IVF protections appeared first on Missouri Independent.
Packages of Mifepristone tablets are displayed at a family planning clinic on April 13, 2023 in Rockville, Maryland. (Photo illustration by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a much-anticipated decision Thursday that mifepristone, one of two pharmaceuticals used in medication abortion, can remain available under current prescribing guidelines.

The high court unanimously rejected attempts by anti-abortion groups to roll back access to what was in place more than eight years ago, writing that they lacked standing to bring the case.

Those limits would have made it more difficult for patients to get a prescription for mifepristone, which the Food and Drug Administration has approved for up to 10 weeks gestation and is used in about 63% of U.S. abortions.

Erin Morrow Hawley, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, who argued the case in front of the court on behalf of the legal organization, doesnt believe this is the end of efforts to challenge access to mifepristone.

She said on a call shortly after the ruling was released the three states that intervened in a lower court  Idaho, Kansas and Missouri  could still advance their arguments against mifepristone and potentially hold standing, the legal right to bring a case.

I would expect the litigation to continue with those three states, Hawley said.

Kavanaugh writes opinion

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the opinion in the united ruling from the Supreme Court, with Justice Clarence Thomas writing a concurring opinion.

Plaintiffs are pro-life, oppose elective abortion, and have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to mifepristone being prescribed and used by others, Kavanaugh wrote.

The four anti-abortion medical organizations and four anti-abortion doctors who originally brought the lawsuit against mifepristone have protections in place to guard against being forced to participate in abortions against their moral objections, he noted.

Not only as a matter of law but also as a matter of fact, the federal conscience laws have protected pro-life doctors ever since FDA approved mifepristone in 2000, Kavanaugh wrote. The plaintiffs have not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience.

Nor is there any evidence in the record here of hospitals overriding or failing to accommodate doctors conscience objections, he added.

Alliance Defending Freedom has not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience since mifepristones 2000 approval, the opinion said.

Kavanaugh might have also included hints on how the court will rule later this session on a separate abortion access case that addresses the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act, known as EMTALA.

EMTALA does not require doctors to perform abortions or provide abortion-related medical treatment over their conscience objections because EMTALA does not impose obligations on individual doctors, Kavanaugh wrote.

Thomas agrees but questions who can sue

Thomas wrote a concurring opinion in the case, saying that he agreed with the courts unanimous decision, which he did join, but brought up concerns with how a certain type of standing is used by the Court.

Applying these precedents, the Court explains that the doctors cannot establish third-party standing to sue for violations of their patients rights without showing an injury of their own, Thomas wrote.

But, there is a far simpler reason to reject this theory: Our third-party standing doctrine is mistaken, Thomas added. As I have previously explained, a plaintiff cannot establish an Article III case or controversy by asserting another persons rights.

Reaction pours in

Politicians, anti-abortion groups and reproductive rights organizations all reacted to the ruling within hours of its release, often pointing to Novembers elections as a potential next step.

President Joe Biden released a written statement saying the decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues.

It does not change the fact that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, and women lost a fundamental freedom, Biden added. It does not change the fact that the right for a woman to get the treatment she needs is imperiled if not impossible in many states.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican Partys presumptive nominee, was in meetings most of Thursday with U.S. House Republicans and then separately with Republican U.S. Senators.

Neither Trump nor his campaign released a statement by early Thursday afternoon addressing the Supreme Courts ruling.

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, wrote in a statement that the justices didnt actually address the merits of the case.

The Court did not weigh in on the merits of the case, but the fact remains this is a high risk drug that ends the life of an unborn child, Cassidy wrote. I urge FDA to follow the law and reinstate important safeguards.

President of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Stella Dantas related a statement saying the ruling provides us with long-awaited relief.

We now know that patients and clinicians across the country will continue to have access to mifepristone for medication abortion and miscarriage management, Dantas wrote. Decades of clinical research have proven mifepristone to be safe and effective, and its strong track record of millions of patient uses confirms that data.

Hawley from Alliance Defending Freedom wrote in a written statement the organization was disappointed that the Supreme Court did not reach the merits of the FDAs lawless removal of commonsense safety standards for abortion drugs.

While were disappointed with the courts decision, we will continue to advocate for women and work to restore commonsense safeguards for abortion drugslike an initial office visit to screen for ectopic pregnancies, Hawley wrote. And we are grateful that three states stand ready to hold the FDA accountable for jeopardizing the health and safety of women and girls across this country.

Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, wrote in a statement she had both relief and anger about this decision.

Thank goodness the Supreme Court unanimously rejected this unwarranted attempt to curtail access to medication abortion, but the fact remains that this meritless case should never have gotten this far, Northup wrote.

The FDAs rulings on medication abortion have been based on irrefutable science, Northup wrote. Unfortunately, the attacks on abortion pills will not stop here  the anti-abortion movement sees how critical abortion pills are in this post-Roe world, and they are hell bent on cutting off access.

Maine leaders welcome decision

Maine Gov. Janet Mills said the Supreme Court was right in its decision to reject this legally and scientifically meritless case. She was joined by Maine Attorney General Aaron Frey, who called the ruling a big win.

I join the many Maine people who today are breathing a sigh of relief that mifepristone will remain legal and accessible across our state and nation, Mills said in a statement released Thursday.

Though Mills and Frey celebrated the courts decision, they both also said that it doesnt mean the fight for reproductive rights is over. In the statement, Mills pledged to continue pushing back against attempts to undermine reproductive rights in Maine, which she said remain under direct and constant attack.

Similarly, Frey said his office will remain vigilant for the anti-abortion movements next attempt to roll back reproductive freedom.

Nicole Clegg, CEO of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England, reiterated that medication abortion remains legal in Maine for now. In a statement, Clegg said the government made it clear in the case that medication abortion is safe and effective.

This case was built on lies about science, but its clear the plaintiffs real objection was to our autonomy and freedom, Clegg said.

However, Clegg also noted that the decision came from the same justices that revoked federal protections for abortion nearly two years ago with the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Planned Parenthood of Northern New England said the group will continue to offer all abortion care options to patients throughout Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont.

We are relieved by this unanimous decision clarifying that the availability and use of this medication does not violate the rights of those who do not want to use it, said ACLU of Maine Executive Director Molly Curren Rowles, in a statement.

Scientific evidence argued

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case in March, during which Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar argued the FDAs guidelines for prescribing mifepristone were based on reputable scientific evidence and years of real-world use.

Only an exceptionally small number of women suffer the kinds of serious complications that could trigger any need for emergency treatment, Prelogar said. Its speculative that any of those women would seek care from the two specific doctors who asserted conscience injuries. And even if that happened, federal conscience protections would guard against the injury the doctors face.

Hawley of ADF told the court that conscience protections in federal law didnt do enough to protect anti-abortion doctors from having to possibly treat patients experiencing complications from medication abortion.

These are emergency situations, Hawley said. Respondent doctors dont necessarily know until they scrub into that operating room whether this may or may not be abortion drug harm  it could be a miscarriage, it could be an ectopic pregnancy, or it could be an elective abortion.

The case reached the Supreme Court within two years of ADF originally filing the lawsuit in the District Court for the Northern District of Texas, where ADF wrote the FDA exceeded its regulatory authority when it originally approved mifepristone in 2000.

ADF filed the case on behalf of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American College of Pediatricians and Christian Medical & Dental Associations, as well as four doctors from California, Indiana, Michigan and Texas.

Kacsmaryk ruling started journey to high court

Judge Matthew Joseph Kacsmaryk essentially agreed with the anti-abortion groups, in a ruling in April 2023, where he wrote he did not second-guess FDAs decision-making lightly.

But here, FDA acquiesced on its legitimate safety concerns  in violation of its statutory duty  based on plainly unsound reasoning and studies that did not support its conclusions, Kacsmaryk wrote.

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay at the request of the Justice Department, which put the district courts ruling on hold until the appeal process could work itself out.

The Justice Department also appealed the district courts ruling to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in Louisiana, where a three-judge panel heard the case in May 2023.

The panel  composed of Jennifer Walker Elrod, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, as well as James C. Ho and Cory T. Wilson, who were both appointed by former President Donald Trump  issued its ruling in August 2023.

The appeals court disagreed with the district courts ruling that mifepristones original approval should be overturned, though it said that the FDA erred in making changes to prescribing guidelines in 2016 and 2021.

It failed to consider the cumulative effect of removing several important safeguards at the same time. It failed to consider whether those major and interrelated changes might alter the risk profile, such that the agency should continue to mandate reporting of non-fatal adverse events, the appeals judges wrote. And it failed to gather evidence that affirmatively showed that mifepristone could be used safely without being prescribed and dispensed in person.

That ruling didnt take effect under the Supreme Courts earlier stay.

The Department of Justice wrote to the high court weeks later in September, urging the justices to take up an appeal of the 5th Circuits decision.

The loss of access to mifepristone would be damaging for women and healthcare providers around the Nation, the DOJ wrote in the 42-page document. For many patients, mifepristone is the best method to lawfully terminate their early pregnancies. They may choose mifepristone over surgical abortion because of medical necessity, a desire for privacy, or past trauma.

Briefs filed with court

Dozens of abortion rights organizations and lawmakers filed so-called amicus curiae or friend of the court briefs to the Supreme Court calling on the justices to keep access to mifepristone in line with the FDA guidelines.

A group of more than 16 medical organizations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association, wrote that restricting access to mifepristone will not only jeopardize health, but worsen racial and economic inequities and deprive women of the choices that are at the very core of individual autonomy and wellbeing.

Anti-abortion groups and lawmakers opposed to mifepristone wrote numerous briefs as well.

Attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming sent in a 28-page brief.

They wrote that the availability of mifepristone undermined states rights, since some of their states had sought to restrict abortion below the 10 weeks approved for mifepristone use or had sought to bar access to medication abortion.

The FDAs actions undermine these laws, undercut States efforts to enforce them, and thus erode the federalism the Constitution deems vital, the attorneys general wrote. Given these harms to federalism, this Court should view the FDAs actions with skepticism.

During oral arguments in March, several Supreme Court justices brought up conscience protections that insulate health care workers from having to assist with or perform procedures they have a religious objection to, like abortion.

Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said she was worried that there is a significant mismatch in this case between the claimed injury and the remedy thats being sought.

The obvious, common-sense remedy would be to provide them with an exemption that they dont have to participate in this procedure, Jackson said.

Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch said the case seemed like a prime example of turning what could be a small lawsuit into a nationwide legislative assembly on an FDA rule, or any other federal government action.

AnnMarie Hilton contributed to this report.

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The post U.S. Supreme Court rejects attempt to limit access to abortion pill appeared first on Maine Morning Star.
Packages of Mifepristone tablets are displayed at a family planning clinic on April 13, 2023, in Rockville, Maryland. (Photo illustration by Anna Moneymaker | Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a much-anticipated decision Thursday that mifepristone, one of two pharmaceuticals used in medication abortion, can remain available under current prescribing guidelines.

The high court unanimously rejected attempts by anti-abortion groups to roll back access to what was in place more than eight years ago, writing that they lacked standing to bring the case.

Those limits would have made it more difficult for patients to get a prescription for mifepristone, which the Food and Drug Administration has approved for up to 10 weeks gestation and is used in about 63 percent of U.S. abortions.

Erin Morrow Hawley, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, who argued the case in front of the court on behalf of the legal organization, doesnt believe this is the end of efforts to challenge access to mifepristone.

She said on a call shortly after the ruling was released the three states that intervened in a lower court  Idaho, Kansas, and Missouri  could still advance their arguments against mifepristone and potentially hold standing, the legal right to bring a case.

I would expect the litigation to continue with those three states, Hawley said.

Kavanaugh writes opinion

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the opinion in the united ruling from the Supreme Court, with Justice Clarence Thomas writing a concurring opinion.

Plaintiffs are pro-life, oppose elective abortion, and have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to mifepristone being prescribed and used by others, Kavanaugh wrote.

The four anti-abortion medical organizations and four anti-abortion doctors who originally brought the lawsuit against mifepristone have protections in place to guard against being forced to participate in abortions against their moral objections, he noted.

Not only as a matter of law but also as a matter of fact, the federal conscience laws have protected pro-life doctors ever since FDA approved mifepristone in 2000, Kavanaugh wrote. The plaintiffs have not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience.

Nor is there any evidence in the record here of hospitals overriding or failing to accommodate doctors conscience objections, he added.

Alliance Defending Freedom has not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience since mifepristones 2000 approval, the opinion said.

Kavanaugh might have also included hints on how the court will rule later this session on a separate abortion access case that addresses the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act, known as EMTALA.

EMTALA does not require doctors to perform abortions or provide abortion-related medical treatment over their conscience objections because EMTALA does not impose obligations on individual doctors, Kavanaugh wrote.

Thomas agrees but questions who can sue

Thomas wrote a concurring opinion in the case, saying that he agreed with the courts unanimous decision, which he did join, but brought up concerns with how a certain type of standing is used by the Court.

Applying these precedents, the Court explains that the doctors cannot establish third-party standing to sue for violations of their patients rights without showing an injury of their own, Thomas wrote.

But, there is a far simpler reason to reject this theory: Our third-party standing doctrine is mistaken, Thomas added. As I have previously explained, a plaintiff cannot establish an Article III case or controversy by asserting another persons rights.

Reaction pours in

Politicians, anti-abortion groups and reproductive rights organizations all reacted to the ruling within hours of its release, often pointing to Novembers elections as a potential next step.

President Joe Biden released a written statement saying the decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues.

It does not change the fact that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, and women lost a fundamental freedom, Biden added. It does not change the fact that the right for a woman to get the treatment she needs is imperiled if not impossible in many states.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican Partys presumptive nominee, was in meetings most of Thursday with U.S. House Republicans and then separately with Republican U.S. Senators.

Neither Trump nor his campaign released a statement by early Thursday afternoon addressing the Supreme Courts ruling.

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, wrote in a statement that the justice didnt actually address the merits of the case.

The Court did not weigh in on the merits of the case, but the fact remains this is a high risk drug that ends the life of an unborn child, Cassidy wrote. I urge FDA to follow the law and reinstate important safeguards.

President of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Stella Dantas related a statement saying the ruling provides us with long-awaited relief.

We now know that patients and clinicians across the country will continue to have access to mifepristone for medication abortion and miscarriage management, Dantas wrote. Decades of clinical research have proven mifepristone to be safe and effective, and its strong track record of millions of patient uses confirms that data.

Hawley from Alliance Defending Freedom wrote in a written statement the organization was disappointed that the Supreme Court did not reach the merits of the FDAs lawless removal of commonsense safety standards for abortion drugs.

While were disappointed with the courts decision, we will continue to advocate for women and work to restore commonsense safeguards for abortion drugs  like an initial office visit to screen for ectopic pregnancies, Hawley wrote. And we are grateful that three states stand ready to hold the FDA accountable for jeopardizing the health and safety of women and girls across this country.

Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, wrote in a statement she had both relief and anger about this decision.

Thank goodness the Supreme Court unanimously rejected this unwarranted attempt to curtail access to medication abortion, but the fact remains that this meritless case should never have gotten this far, Northup wrote.

The FDAs rulings on medication abortion have been based on irrefutable science, Northup wrote. Unfortunately, the attacks on abortion pills will not stop here  the anti-abortion movement sees how critical abortion pills are in this post-Roe world, and they are hell bent on cutting off access.

Scientific evidence argued

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case in March, during which Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar argued the FDAs guidelines for prescribing mifepristone were based on reputable scientific evidence and years of real-world use.

Only an exceptionally small number of women suffer the kinds of serious complications that could trigger any need for emergency treatment, Prelogar said. Its speculative that any of those women would seek care from the two specific doctors who asserted conscience injuries. And even if that happened, federal conscience protections would guard against the injury the doctors face.

Hawley of ADF told the court that conscience protections in federal law didnt do enough to protect anti-abortion doctors from having to possibly treat patients experiencing complications from medication abortion.

These are emergency situations, Hawley said. Respondent doctors dont necessarily know until they scrub into that operating room whether this may or may not be abortion drug harm  it could be a miscarriage, it could be an ectopic pregnancy, or it could be an elective abortion.

The case reached the Supreme Court within two years of ADF originally filing the lawsuit in the District Court for the Northern District of Texas, where ADF wrote the FDA exceeded its regulatory authority when it originally approved mifepristone in 2000.

ADF filed the case on behalf of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American College of Pediatricians and Christian Medical & Dental Associations, as well as four doctors from California, Indiana, Michigan and Texas.

Kacsmaryk ruling started journey to high court

Judge Matthew Joseph Kacsmaryk essentially agreed with the anti-abortion groups, in a ruling in April 2023, where he wrote he did not second-guess FDAs decision-making lightly.

But here, FDA acquiesced on its legitimate safety concerns  in violation of its statutory duty  based on plainly unsound reasoning and studies that did not support its conclusions, Kacsmaryk wrote.

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay at the request of the Justice Department, which put the district courts ruling on hold until the appeal process could work itself out.

The Justice Department also appealed the district courts ruling to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in Louisiana, where a three-judge panel heard the case in May 2023.

The panel  composed of Jennifer Walker Elrod, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, as well as James C. Ho and Cory T. Wilson, who were both appointed by former President Donald Trump  issued its ruling in August 2023.

The appeals court disagreed with the district courts ruling that mifepristones original approval should be overturned, though it said that the FDA erred in making changes to prescribing guidelines in 2016 and 2021.

It failed to consider the cumulative effect of removing several important safeguards at the same time. It failed to consider whether those major and interrelated changes might alter the risk profile, such that the agency should continue to mandate reporting of non-fatal adverse events, the appeals judges wrote. And it failed to gather evidence that affirmatively showed that mifepristone could be used safely without being prescribed and dispensed in person.

That ruling didnt take effect under the Supreme Courts earlier stay.

The Department of Justice wrote to the high court weeks later in September, urging the justices to take up an appeal of the 5th Circuits decision.

The loss of access to mifepristone would be damaging for women and healthcare providers around the Nation, the DOJ wrote in the 42-page document. For many patients, mifepristone is the best method to lawfully terminate their early pregnancies. They may choose mifepristone over surgical abortion because of medical necessity, a desire for privacy, or past trauma.

Briefs filed with court

Dozens of abortion rights organizations and lawmakers filed so-called amicus curiae or friend of the court briefs to the Supreme Court calling on the justices to keep access to mifepristone in line with the FDA guidelines.

A group of more than 16 medical organizations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association, wrote that restricting access to mifepristone will not only jeopardize health, but worsen racial and economic inequities and deprive women of the choices that are at the very core of individual autonomy and wellbeing.

Anti-abortion groups and lawmakers opposed to mifepristone wrote numerous briefs as well.

Attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia, and Wyoming sent in a 28-page brief.

They wrote that the availability of mifepristone undermined states rights, since some of their states had sought to restrict abortion below the 10 weeks approved for mifepristone use or had sought to bar access to medication abortion.

The FDAs actions undermine these laws, undercut States efforts to enforce them, and thus erode the federalism the Constitution deems vital, the attorneys general wrote. Given these harms to federalism, this Court should view the FDAs actions with skepticism.

During oral arguments in March, several Supreme Court justices brought up conscience protections that insulate health care workers from having to assist with or perform procedures they have a religious objection to, like abortion.

Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said she was worried that there is a significant mismatch in this case between the claimed injury and the remedy thats being sought.

The obvious, common-sense remedy would be to provide them with an exemption that they dont have to participate in this procedure, Jackson said.

Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch said the case seemed like a prime example of turning what could be a small lawsuit into a nationwide legislative assembly on an FDA rule, or any other federal government action.

The post U.S. Supreme Court rejects attempt to limit access to abortion pill appeared first on New Hampshire Bulletin.
Mifepristone is one of two medications used for an abortion.

Mifepristone is one of two medications used for an abortion. (Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a much-anticipated decision Thursday that mifepristone, one of two pharmaceuticals used in medication abortion, can remain available under current prescribing guidelines.

The high court unanimously rejected attempts by anti-abortion groups to roll back access to what was in place more than eight years ago, writing that they lacked standing to bring the case.

Those limits would have made it more difficult for patients to get a prescription for mifepristone, which the Food and Drug Administration has approved for up to 10 weeks gestation and is used in about 63% of U.S. abortions.

Erin Morrow Hawley, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, who argued the case in front of the court on behalf of the legal organization, doesnt believe this is the end of efforts to challenge access to mifepristone.

She said on a call shortly after the ruling was released the three states that intervened in a lower court  Idaho, Kansas and Missouri  could still advance their arguments against mifepristone and potentially hold standing, the legal right to bring a case.

I would expect the litigation to continue with those three states, Hawley said.

Kavanaugh writes opinion

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the opinion in the united ruling from the Supreme Court, with Justice Clarence Thomas writing a concurring opinion.

Plaintiffs are pro-life, oppose elective abortion, and have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to mifepristone being prescribed and used by others, Kavanaugh wrote.

The four anti-abortion medical organizations and four anti-abortion doctors who originally brought the lawsuit against mifepristone have protections in place to guard against being forced to participate in abortions against their moral objections, he noted.

Not only as a matter of law but also as a matter of fact, the federal conscience laws have protected pro-life doctors ever since FDA approved mifepristone in 2000, Kavanaugh wrote. The plaintiffs have not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience.

Nor is there any evidence in the record here of hospitals overriding or failing to accommodate doctors conscience objections, he added.

Oregon officials respond to ruling

Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum: The Supreme Court did the right thing this morning to reject the AHM lawsuit. This does not mean that the legal battles over access to abortion medication are over. Our unwavering coalition of state attorneys general is committed to defending access to safe and effective medications used for abortion and miscarriage managementlike mifepristoneand will continue to do so in the courts and in our states. Let me be clear: The injunction we obtained last year from the federal court in Washington state maintaining the status quo for mifepristone remains in place and protects all Oregonians!

Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Oregon: This decision is good news for women across the country, but unfortunately it wont be the last time mifepristone is the target of the far-rights crusade against this pillar of reproductive freedom. The Supreme Court dismissed this bogus case on standing, not whether or not mifepristone should remain on the market altogether. The next case conservatives bring before the Court will undoubtedly be more airtight and pose an even bigger threat to mifepristone access nationwide. Ill keep doing everything in my power to stop them in their tracks.

Sen Jeff Merkley, D-Oregon: Mifepristone has been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) since 2000 and has been used safely and effectively for decades. Today, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that extremist groups trying to block access to this essential medication lacked standingwelcome news that preserves access to mifepristone. This is a win for reproductive freedom across America. This case was pushed by anti-abortion extremists who were ultimately found to have no legal standing to challenge access to this essential medication. While todays decision did not undermine a federal agencys science-based approval process, reproductive care remains under attack in states across America, and nothing is stopping other extremists from bringing similar cases before the Court. With Americans rights and freedoms at stake, Ill keep fighting to protect access to the care all people needincluding abortionin Oregon and the rest of the nation.

Rep. Val Hoyle, D-Oregon: Todays decision reaffirms that a womans health care decisions should be up to her and her medical provider  NOT judges and politicians. Anti-choice extremists are attempting to use the judicial process to undermine womens autonomy and promote misguided ideology that ignores science. Women deserve broad access to essential healthcare services  including abortion  regardless of where they live.

While this ruling is a bright spot, we must remember that those behind this lawsuit will not stop until they succeed in completely eliminating reproductive freedom for all women across the country, and the U.S. Supreme Court is still considering another crucial decision that could impact womens access to abortion services.

Alliance Defending Freedom has not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience since mifepristones 2000 approval, the opinion said.

Kavanaugh might have also included hints on how the court will rule later this session on a separate abortion access case that addresses the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act, known as EMTALA.

EMTALA does not require doctors to perform abortions or provide abortion-related medical treatment over their conscience objections because EMTALA does not impose obligations on individual doctors, Kavanaugh wrote.

Thomas agrees but questions who can sue

Thomas wrote a concurring opinion in the case, saying that he agreed with the courts unanimous decision, which he did join, but brought up concerns with how a certain type of standing is used by the Court.

Applying these precedents, the Court explains that the doctors cannot establish third-party standing to sue for violations of their patients rights without showing an injury of their own, Thomas wrote.

But, there is a far simpler reason to reject this theory: Our third-party standing doctrine is mistaken, Thomas added. As I have previously explained, a plaintiff cannot establish an Article III case or controversy by asserting another persons rights.

Reaction pours in

Politicians, anti-abortion groups and reproductive rights organizations all reacted to the ruling within hours of its release, often pointing to Novembers elections as a potential next step.

President Joe Biden released a written statement saying the decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues.

It does not change the fact that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, and women lost a fundamental freedom, Biden added. It does not change the fact that the right for a woman to get the treatment she needs is imperiled if not impossible in many states.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican Partys presumptive nominee, was in meetings most of Thursday with U.S. House Republicans and then separately with Republican U.S. Senators.

Neither Trump nor his campaign released a statement by early Thursday afternoon addressing the Supreme Courts ruling.

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, wrote in a statement that the justice didnt actually address the merits of the case.

The Court did not weigh in on the merits of the case, but the fact remains this is a high risk drug that ends the life of an unborn child, Cassidy wrote. I urge FDA to follow the law and reinstate important safeguards.

President of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Stella Dantas related a statement saying the ruling provides us with long-awaited relief.

We now know that patients and clinicians across the country will continue to have access to mifepristone for medication abortion and miscarriage management, Dantas wrote. Decades of clinical research have proven mifepristone to be safe and effective, and its strong track record of millions of patient uses confirms that data.

Hawley from Alliance Defending Freedom wrote in a written statement the organization was disappointed that the Supreme Court did not reach the merits of the FDAs lawless removal of commonsense safety standards for abortion drugs.

While were disappointed with the courts decision, we will continue to advocate for women and work to restore commonsense safeguards for abortion drugslike an initial office visit to screen for ectopic pregnancies, Hawley wrote. And we are grateful that three states stand ready to hold the FDA accountable for jeopardizing the health and safety of women and girls across this country.

Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, wrote in a statement she had both relief and anger about this decision.

Thank goodness the Supreme Court unanimously rejected this unwarranted attempt to curtail access to medication abortion, but the fact remains that this meritless case should never have gotten this far, Northup wrote.

The FDAs rulings on medication abortion have been based on irrefutable science, Northup wrote. Unfortunately, the attacks on abortion pills will not stop here  the anti-abortion movement sees how critical abortion pills are in this post-Roe world, and they are hell bent on cutting off access.

Scientific evidence argued

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case in March, during which Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar argued the FDAs guidelines for prescribing mifepristone were based on reputable scientific evidence and years of real-world use.

Only an exceptionally small number of women suffer the kinds of serious complications that could trigger any need for emergency treatment, Prelogar said. Its speculative that any of those women would seek care from the two specific doctors who asserted conscience injuries. And even if that happened, federal conscience protections would guard against the injury the doctors face.

Hawley of ADF told the court that conscience protections in federal law didnt do enough to protect anti-abortion doctors from having to possibly treat patients experiencing complications from medication abortion.

These are emergency situations, Hawley said. Respondent doctors dont necessarily know until they scrub into that operating room whether this may or may not be abortion drug harm  it could be a miscarriage, it could be an ectopic pregnancy, or it could be an elective abortion.

The case reached the Supreme Court within two years of ADF originally filing the lawsuit in the District Court for the Northern District of Texas, where ADF wrote the FDA exceeded its regulatory authority when it originally approved mifepristone in 2000.

ADF filed the case on behalf of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American College of Pediatricians and Christian Medical & Dental Associations, as well as four doctors from California, Indiana, Michigan and Texas.

Kacsmaryk ruling started journey to high court

Judge Matthew Joseph Kacsmaryk essentially agreed with the anti-abortion groups, in a ruling in April 2023, where he wrote he did not second-guess FDAs decision-making lightly.

But here, FDA acquiesced on its legitimate safety concerns  in violation of its statutory duty  based on plainly unsound reasoning and studies that did not support its conclusions, Kacsmaryk wrote.

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay at the request of the Justice Department, which put the district courts ruling on hold until the appeal process could work itself out.

The Justice Department also appealed the district courts ruling to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in Louisiana, where a three-judge panel heard the case in May 2023.

The panel  composed of Jennifer Walker Elrod, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, as well as James C. Ho and Cory T. Wilson, who were both appointed by former President Donald Trump  issued its ruling in August 2023.

The appeals court disagreed with the district courts ruling that mifepristones original approval should be overturned, though it said that the FDA erred in making changes to prescribing guidelines in 2016 and 2021.

It failed to consider the cumulative effect of removing several important safeguards at the same time. It failed to consider whether those major and interrelated changes might alter the risk profile, such that the agency should continue to mandate reporting of non-fatal adverse events, the appeals judges wrote. And it failed to gather evidence that affirmatively showed that mifepristone could be used safely without being prescribed and dispensed in person.

That ruling didnt take effect under the Supreme Courts earlier stay.

The Department of Justice wrote to the high court weeks later in September, urging the justices to take up an appeal of the 5th Circuits decision.

The loss of access to mifepristone would be damaging for women and healthcare providers around the Nation, the DOJ wrote in the 42-page document. For many patients, mifepristone is the best method to lawfully terminate their early pregnancies. They may choose mifepristone over surgical abortion because of medical necessity, a desire for privacy, or past trauma.

Briefs filed with court

Dozens of abortion rights organizations and lawmakers filed so-called amicus curiae or friend of the court briefs to the Supreme Court calling on the justices to keep access to mifepristone in line with the FDA guidelines.

A group of more than 16 medical organizations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association, wrote that restricting access to mifepristone will not only jeopardize health, but worsen racial and economic inequities and deprive women of the choices that are at the very core of individual autonomy and wellbeing.

Anti-abortion groups and lawmakers opposed to mifepristone wrote numerous briefs as well.

Attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming sent in a 28-page brief.

They wrote that the availability of mifepristone undermined states rights, since some of their states had sought to restrict abortion below the 10 weeks approved for mifepristone use or had sought to bar access to medication abortion.

The FDAs actions undermine these laws, undercut States efforts to enforce them, and thus erode the federalism the Constitution deems vital, the attorneys general wrote. Given these harms to federalism, this Court should view the FDAs actions with skepticism.

During oral arguments in March, several Supreme Court justices brought up conscience protections that insulate health care workers from having to assist with or perform procedures they have a religious objection to, like abortion.

Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said she was worried that there is a significant mismatch in this case between the claimed injury and the remedy thats being sought.

The obvious, common-sense remedy would be to provide them with an exemption that they dont have to participate in this procedure, Jackson said.

Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch said the case seemed like a prime example of turning what could be a small lawsuit into a nationwide legislative assembly on an FDA rule, or any other federal government action.

The post U.S. Supreme Court rejects attempt to limit access to abortion pill appeared first on Oregon Capital Chronicle.
Packages of Mifepristone tablets are displayed at a family planning clinic on April 13, 2023 in Rockville, Maryland. (Photo illustration by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a much-anticipated decision Thursday that mifepristone, one of two pharmaceuticals used in medication abortion, can remain available under current prescribing guidelines.

The high court unanimously rejected attempts by anti-abortion groups to roll back access to what was in place more than eight years ago, writing that they lacked standing to bring the case. Indiana Republican Sen. Tyler Johnson, a physician from Leo, is one of the plaintiffs in the case and shared a statement with the Indiana Capital Chronicle.

I am disappointed by the ruling but I am thankful this case brought about the awareness of the FDAs decades long disregard for the health of our patients, acknowledgment of the risks associated with abortion drugs and the cementing of the idea that physicians are afforded federal conscience protections, Johnson said.

Those limits would have made it more difficult for patients to get a prescription for mifepristone, which the Food and Drug Administration has approved for up to 10 weeks gestation and is used in about 63% of U.S. abortions.

Erin Morrow Hawley, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, who argued the case in front of the court on behalf of the legal organization, doesnt believe this is the end of efforts to challenge access to mifepristone.

She said on a call shortly after the ruling was released the three states that intervened in a lower court  Idaho, Kansas and Missouri  could still advance their arguments against mifepristone and potentially hold standing, the legal right to bring a case.

I would expect the litigation to continue with those three states, Hawley said.

Kavanaugh writes opinion

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the opinion in the united ruling from the Supreme Court, with Justice Clarence Thomas writing a concurring opinion.

Plaintiffs are pro-life, oppose elective abortion, and have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to mifepristone being prescribed and used by others, Kavanaugh wrote.

The four anti-abortion medical organizations and four anti-abortion doctors who originally brought the lawsuit against mifepristone have protections in place to guard against being forced to participate in abortions against their moral objections, he noted.

The nine justices of the U.S. Supreme Court. Seated from left are Justices Sonia Sotomayor, Clarence Thomas, Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., and Justices Samuel A. Alito and Elena Kagan.

Standing from left are Justices Amy Coney Barrett, Neil M. Gorsuch, Brett M. Kavanaugh, and Ketanji Brown Jackson. (Fred Schilling, Collection of the Supreme Court of the United States)

Not only as a matter of law but also as a matter of fact, the federal conscience laws have protected pro-life doctors ever since FDA approved mifepristone in 2000, Kavanaugh wrote. The plaintiffs have not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience.

Nor is there any evidence in the record here of hospitals overriding or failing to accommodate doctors conscience objections, he added.

Alliance Defending Freedom has not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience since mifepristones 2000 approval, the opinion said.

Kavanaugh might have also included hints on how the court will rule later this session on a separate abortion access case that addresses the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act, known as EMTALA.

EMTALA does not require doctors to perform abortions or provide abortion-related medical treatment over their conscience objections because EMTALA does not impose obligations on individual doctors, Kavanaugh wrote.

Thomas agrees but questions who can sue

Thomas wrote a concurring opinion in the case, saying that he agreed with the courts unanimous decision, which he did join, but brought up concerns with how a certain type of standing is used by the Court.

Applying these precedents, the Court explains that the doctors cannot establish third-party standing to sue for violations of their patients rights without showing an injury of their own, Thomas wrote.

But, there is a far simpler reason to reject this theory: Our third-party standing doctrine is mistaken, Thomas added. As I have previously explained, a plaintiff cannot establish an Article III case or controversy by asserting another persons rights.

Reaction pours in

Politicians, anti-abortion groups and reproductive rights organizations all reacted to the ruling within hours of its release, often pointing to Novembers elections as a potential next step.

President Joe Biden greets attendees after speaking at a campaign event on April 16, 2024 in Scranton, Pennsylvania. (Eduardo Munoz Alvarez/Getty Images)

President Joe Biden released a written statement saying the decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues.

It does not change the fact that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, and women lost a fundamental freedom, Biden added. It does not change the fact that the right for a woman to get the treatment she needs is imperiled if not impossible in many states.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican Partys presumptive nominee, was in meetings most of Thursday with U.S. House Republicans and then separately with Republican U.S. Senators.

Neither Trump nor his campaign released a statement by early Thursday afternoon addressing the Supreme Courts ruling.

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, wrote in a statement that the justice didnt actually address the merits of the case.

The Court did not weigh in on the merits of the case, but the fact remains this is a high risk drug that ends the life of an unborn child, Cassidy wrote. I urge FDA to follow the law and reinstate important safeguards.

President of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Stella Dantas related a statement saying the ruling provides us with long-awaited relief.

We now know that patients and clinicians across the country will continue to have access to mifepristone for medication abortion and miscarriage management, Dantas wrote. Decades of clinical research have proven mifepristone to be safe and effective, and its strong track record of millions of patient uses confirms that data.

Hawley from Alliance Defending Freedom wrote in a written statement the organization was disappointed that the Supreme Court did not reach the merits of the FDAs lawless removal of commonsense safety standards for abortion drugs.

While were disappointed with the courts decision, we will continue to advocate for women and work to restore commonsense safeguards for abortion drugslike an initial office visit to screen for ectopic pregnancies, Hawley wrote. And we are grateful that three states stand ready to hold the FDA accountable for jeopardizing the health and safety of women and girls across this country.

Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, wrote in a statement she had both relief and anger about this decision.

Thank goodness the Supreme Court unanimously rejected this unwarranted attempt to curtail access to medication abortion, but the fact remains that this meritless case should never have gotten this far, Northup wrote.

The FDAs rulings on medication abortion have been based on irrefutable science, Northup wrote. Unfortunately, the attacks on abortion pills will not stop here  the anti-abortion movement sees how critical abortion pills are in this post-Roe world, and they are hell bent on cutting off access.

Scientific evidence argued

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case in March, during which Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar argued the FDAs guidelines for prescribing mifepristone were based on reputable scientific evidence and years of real-world use.

Only an exceptionally small number of women suffer the kinds of serious complications that could trigger any need for emergency treatment, Prelogar said. Its speculative that any of those women would seek care from the two specific doctors who asserted conscience injuries. And even if that happened, federal conscience protections would guard against the injury the doctors face.

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Hawley of ADF told the court that conscience protections in federal law didnt do enough to protect anti-abortion doctors from having to possibly treat patients experiencing complications from medication abortion.

These are emergency situations, Hawley said. Respondent doctors dont necessarily know until they scrub into that operating room whether this may or may not be abortion drug harm  it could be a miscarriage, it could be an ectopic pregnancy, or it could be an elective abortion.

The case reached the Supreme Court within two years of ADF originally filing the lawsuit in the District Court for the Northern District of Texas, where ADF wrote the FDA exceeded its regulatory authority when it originally approved mifepristone in 2000.

ADF filed the case on behalf of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American College of Pediatricians and Christian Medical & Dental Associations, as well as four doctors from California, Indiana, Michigan and Texas.

Kacsmaryk ruling started journey to high court

Judge Matthew Joseph Kacsmaryk essentially agreed with the anti-abortion groups, in a ruling in April 2023, where he wrote he did not second-guess FDAs decision-making lightly.

But here, FDA acquiesced on its legitimate safety concerns  in violation of its statutory duty  based on plainly unsound reasoning and studies that did not support its conclusions, Kacsmaryk wrote.

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay at the request of the Justice Department, which put the district courts ruling on hold until the appeal process could work itself out.

The Justice Department also appealed the district courts ruling to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in Louisiana, where a three-judge panel heard the case in May 2023.

The panel  composed of Jennifer Walker Elrod, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, as well as James C. Ho and Cory T. Wilson, who were both appointed by former President Donald Trump  issued its ruling in August 2023.

The appeals court disagreed with the district courts ruling that mifepristones original approval should be overturned, though it said that the FDA erred in making changes to prescribing guidelines in 2016 and 2021.

It failed to consider the cumulative effect of removing several important safeguards at the same time. It failed to consider whether those major and interrelated changes might alter the risk profile, such that the agency should continue to mandate reporting of non-fatal adverse events, the appeals judges wrote. And it failed to gather evidence that affirmatively showed that mifepristone could be used safely without being prescribed and dispensed in person.

That ruling didnt take effect under the Supreme Courts earlier stay.

The Department of Justice wrote to the high court weeks later in September, urging the justices to take up an appeal of the 5th Circuits decision.

The loss of access to mifepristone would be damaging for women and healthcare providers around the Nation, the DOJ wrote in the 42-page document. For many patients, mifepristone is the best method to lawfully terminate their early pregnancies. They may choose mifepristone over surgical abortion because of medical necessity, a desire for privacy, or past trauma.

Briefs filed with court

Dozens of abortion rights organizations and lawmakers filed so-called amicus curiae or friend of the court briefs to the Supreme Court calling on the justices to keep access to mifepristone in line with the FDA guidelines.

A group of more than 16 medical organizations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association, wrote that restricting access to mifepristone will not only jeopardize health, but worsen racial and economic inequities and deprive women of the choices that are at the very core of individual autonomy and wellbeing.

Anti-abortion groups and lawmakers opposed to mifepristone wrote numerous briefs as well.

Attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming sent in a 28-page brief.

They wrote that the availability of mifepristone undermined states rights, since some of their states had sought to restrict abortion below the 10 weeks approved for mifepristone use or had sought to bar access to medication abortion.

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The FDAs actions undermine these laws, undercut States efforts to enforce them, and thus erode the federalism the Constitution deems vital, the attorneys general wrote. Given these harms to federalism, this Court should view the FDAs actions with skepticism.

During oral arguments in March, several Supreme Court justices brought up conscience protections that insulate health care workers from having to assist with or perform procedures they have a religious objection to, like abortion.

Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said she was worried that there is a significant mismatch in this case between the claimed injury and the remedy thats being sought.

The obvious, common-sense remedy would be to provide them with an exemption that they dont have to participate in this procedure, Jackson said.

Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch said the case seemed like a prime example of turning what could be a small lawsuit into a nationwide legislative assembly on an FDA rule, or any other federal government action.

The post U.S. Supreme Court rejects attempt to limit access to abortion pill appeared first on Indiana Capital Chronicle.
UltraViolet advocates are seen at the American Pharmacists Association Annual Conference at the Phoenix Convention Center on March 25, 2023, in Phoenix, Arizona. Advocacy group UltraViolet was urging pharmacists to reaffirm that Mifepristone, a medication abortion drug, is safe, effective and essential. (Chris Coduto/Getty Images for UltraViolet)

UltraViolet advocates are seen at the American Pharmacists Association Annual Conference at the Phoenix Convention Center on March 25, 2023, in Phoenix, Arizona. Advocacy group UltraViolet was urging pharmacists to reaffirm that Mifepristone, a medication abortion drug, is safe, effective and essential. (Chris Coduto/Getty Images for UltraViolet)

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a much-anticipated decision Thursday that mifepristone, one of two pharmaceuticals used in medication abortion, can remain available under current prescribing guidelines.

The high court unanimously rejected attempts by anti-abortion groups to roll back access to what was in place more than eight years ago, writing that they lacked standing to bring the case.

Those limits would have made it more difficult for patients to get a prescription for mifepristone, which the Food and Drug Administration has approved for up to 10 weeks gestation and is used in about 63% of U.S. abortions.

Erin Morrow Hawley, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, who argued the case in front of the court on behalf of the legal organization, doesnt believe this is the end of efforts to challenge access to mifepristone.

She said on a call shortly after the ruling was released the three states that intervened in a lower court  Idaho, Kansas and Missouri  could still advance their arguments against mifepristone and potentially hold standing, the legal right to bring a case.

I would expect the litigation to continue with those three states, Hawley said.

Kavanaugh writes opinion

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the opinion in the united ruling from the Supreme Court, with Justice Clarence Thomas writing a concurring opinion.

Plaintiffs are pro-life, oppose elective abortion, and have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to mifepristone being prescribed and used by others, Kavanaugh wrote.

The four anti-abortion medical organizations and four anti-abortion doctors who originally brought the lawsuit against mifepristone have protections in place to guard against being forced to participate in abortions against their moral objections, he noted.

Not only as a matter of law but also as a matter of fact, the federal conscience laws have protected pro-life doctors ever since FDA approved mifepristone in 2000, Kavanaugh wrote. The plaintiffs have not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience.

Nor is there any evidence in the record here of hospitals overriding or failing to accommodate doctors conscience objections, he added.

Kavanaugh might have also included hints on how the court will rule later this session on a separate abortion access case that addresses the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act, known as EMTALA.

EMTALA does not require doctors to perform abortions or provide abortion-related medical treatment over their conscience objections because EMTALA does not impose obligations on individual doctors, Kavanaugh wrote.

Thomas agrees but questions who can sue

Thomas wrote a concurring opinion in the case, saying that he agreed with the courts unanimous decision, which he did join, but brought up concerns with how a certain type of standing is used by the Court.

Applying these precedents, the Court explains that the doctors cannot establish third-party standing to sue for violations of their patients rights without showing an injury of their own, Thomas wrote.

But, there is a far simpler reason to reject this theory: Our third-party standing doctrine is mistaken, Thomas added. As I have previously explained, a plaintiff cannot establish an Article III case or controversy by asserting another persons rights.

Reaction pours in

Politicians, anti-abortion groups and reproductive rights organizations all reacted to the ruling within hours of its release, often pointing to Novembers elections as a potential next step.

President Joe Biden released a written statement saying the decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues.

It does not change the fact that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, and women lost a fundamental freedom, Biden added. It does not change the fact that the right for a woman to get the treatment she needs is imperiled if not impossible in many states.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican Partys presumptive nominee, was in meetings most of Thursday with U.S. House Republicans and then separately with Republican U.S. Senators.

Neither Trump nor his campaign released a statement by early Thursday afternoon addressing the Supreme Courts ruling.

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, wrote in a statement that the justices didnt actually address the merits of the case.

The Court did not weigh in on the merits of the case, but the fact remains this is a high risk drug that ends the life of an unborn child, Cassidy wrote. I urge FDA to follow the law and reinstate important safeguards.

President of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Stella Dantas related a statement saying the ruling provides us with long-awaited relief.

We now know that patients and clinicians across the country will continue to have access to mifepristone for medication abortion and miscarriage management, Dantas wrote. Decades of clinical research have proven mifepristone to be safe and effective, and its strong track record of millions of patient uses confirms that data.

Hawley from Alliance Defending Freedom wrote in a written statement the organization was disappointed that the Supreme Court did not reach the merits of the FDAs lawless removal of commonsense safety standards for abortion drugs.

While were disappointed with the courts decision, we will continue to advocate for women and work to restore commonsense safeguards for abortion drugslike an initial office visit to screen for ectopic pregnancies, Hawley wrote. And we are grateful that three states stand ready to hold the FDA accountable for jeopardizing the health and safety of women and girls across this country.

Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, wrote in a statement she had both relief and anger about this decision.

Thank goodness the Supreme Court unanimously rejected this unwarranted attempt to curtail access to medication abortion, but the fact remains that this meritless case should never have gotten this far, Northup wrote.

The FDAs rulings on medication abortion have been based on irrefutable science, Northup wrote. Unfortunately, the attacks on abortion pills will not stop here  the anti-abortion movement sees how critical abortion pills are in this post-Roe world, and they are hell bent on cutting off access.

Scientific evidence argued

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case in March, during which Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar argued the FDAs guidelines for prescribing mifepristone were based on reputable scientific evidence and years of real-world use.

Only an exceptionally small number of women suffer the kinds of serious complications that could trigger any need for emergency treatment, Prelogar said. Its speculative that any of those women would seek care from the two specific doctors who asserted conscience injuries. And even if that happened, federal conscience protections would guard against the injury the doctors face.

Hawley of ADF told the court that conscience protections in federal law didnt do enough to protect anti-abortion doctors from having to possibly treat patients experiencing complications from medication abortion.

These are emergency situations, Hawley said. Respondent doctors dont necessarily know until they scrub into that operating room whether this may or may not be abortion drug harm  it could be a miscarriage, it could be an ectopic pregnancy, or it could be an elective abortion.

The case reached the Supreme Court within two years of ADF originally filing the lawsuit in the District Court for the Northern District of Texas, where ADF wrote the FDA exceeded its regulatory authority when it originally approved mifepristone in 2000.

ADF filed the case on behalf of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American College of Pediatricians and Christian Medical & Dental Associations, as well as four doctors from California, Indiana, Michigan and Texas.

Kacsmaryk ruling started journey to high court

Judge Matthew Joseph Kacsmaryk essentially agreed with the anti-abortion groups, in a ruling in April 2023, where he wrote he did not second-guess FDAs decision-making lightly.

But here, FDA acquiesced on its legitimate safety concerns  in violation of its statutory duty  based on plainly unsound reasoning and studies that did not support its conclusions, Kacsmaryk wrote.

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay at the request of the Justice Department, which put the district courts ruling on hold until the appeal process could work itself out.

The Justice Department also appealed the district courts ruling to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in Louisiana, where a three-judge panel heard the case in May 2023.

The panel  composed of Jennifer Walker Elrod, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, as well as James C. Ho and Cory T. Wilson, who were both appointed by former President Donald Trump  issued its ruling in August 2023.

The appeals court disagreed with the district courts ruling that mifepristones original approval should be overturned, though it said that the FDA erred in making changes to prescribing guidelines in 2016 and 2021.

It failed to consider the cumulative effect of removing several important safeguards at the same time. It failed to consider whether those major and interrelated changes might alter the risk profile, such that the agency should continue to mandate reporting of non-fatal adverse events, the appeals judges wrote. And it failed to gather evidence that affirmatively showed that mifepristone could be used safely without being prescribed and dispensed in person.

That ruling didnt take effect under the Supreme Courts earlier stay.

The Department of Justice wrote to the high court weeks later in September, urging the justices to take up an appeal of the 5th Circuits decision.

The loss of access to mifepristone would be damaging for women and healthcare providers around the Nation, the DOJ wrote in the 42-page document. For many patients, mifepristone is the best method to lawfully terminate their early pregnancies. They may choose mifepristone over surgical abortion because of medical necessity, a desire for privacy, or past trauma.

Briefs filed with court

Dozens of abortion rights organizations and lawmakers filed so-called amicus curiae or friend of the court briefs to the Supreme Court calling on the justices to keep access to mifepristone in line with the FDA guidelines.

A group of more than 16 medical organizations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association, wrote that restricting access to mifepristone will not only jeopardize health, but worsen racial and economic inequities and deprive women of the choices that are at the very core of individual autonomy and wellbeing.

Anti-abortion groups and lawmakers opposed to mifepristone wrote numerous briefs as well.

Attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming sent in a 28-page brief.

They wrote that the availability of mifepristone undermined states rights, since some of their states had sought to restrict abortion below the 10 weeks approved for mifepristone use or had sought to bar access to medication abortion.

The FDAs actions undermine these laws, undercut States efforts to enforce them, and thus erode the federalism the Constitution deems vital, the attorneys general wrote. Given these harms to federalism, this Court should view the FDAs actions with skepticism.

During oral arguments in March, several Supreme Court justices brought up conscience protections that insulate health care workers from having to assist with or perform procedures they have a religious objection to, like abortion.

Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said she was worried that there is a significant mismatch in this case between the claimed injury and the remedy thats being sought.

The obvious, common-sense remedy would be to provide them with an exemption that they dont have to participate in this procedure, Jackson said.

Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch said the case seemed like a prime example of turning what could be a small lawsuit into a nationwide legislative assembly on an FDA rule, or any other federal government action.

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Packages of Mifepristone tablets are displayed at a family planning clinic on April 13, 2023 in Rockville, Maryland. (Photo illustration by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

Policy, politics and progressive commentary

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a much-anticipated decision Thursday that mifepristone, one of two pharmaceuticals used in medication abortion, can remain available under current prescribing guidelines.

The high court unanimously rejected attempts by anti-abortion groups to roll back access to what was in place more than eight years ago, writing that they lacked standing to bring the case.

Those limits would have made it more difficult for patients to get a prescription for mifepristone, which the Food and Drug Administration has approved for up to 10 weeks gestation and is used in about 63% of U.S. abortions.

Erin Morrow Hawley, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, who argued the case in front of the court on behalf of the legal organization, doesnt believe this is the end of efforts to challenge access to mifepristone.

She said on a call shortly after the ruling was released the three states that intervened in a lower court  Idaho, Kansas and Missouri  could still advance their arguments against mifepristone and potentially hold standing, the legal right to bring a case.

I would expect the litigation to continue with those three states, Hawley said.

Kavanaugh writes opinion

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the opinion in the united ruling from the Supreme Court, with Justice Clarence Thomas writing a concurring opinion.

Plaintiffs are pro-life, oppose elective abortion, and have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to mifepristone being prescribed and used by others, Kavanaugh wrote.

The four anti-abortion medical organizations and four anti-abortion doctors who originally brought the lawsuit against mifepristone have protections in place to guard against being forced to participate in abortions against their moral objections, he noted.

Not only as a matter of law but also as a matter of fact, the federal conscience laws have protected pro-life doctors ever since FDA approved mifepristone in 2000, Kavanaugh wrote. The plaintiffs have not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience.

Nor is there any evidence in the record here of hospitals overriding or failing to accommodate doctors conscience objections, he added.

Alliance Defending Freedom has not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience since mifepristones 2000 approval, the opinion said.

Kavanaugh might have also included hints on how the court will rule later this session on a separate abortion access case that addresses the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act, known as EMTALA.

EMTALA does not require doctors to perform abortions or provide abortion-related medical treatment over their conscience objections because EMTALA does not impose obligations on individual doctors, Kavanaugh wrote.

Thomas agrees but questions who can sue

Thomas wrote a concurring opinion in the case, saying that he agreed with the courts unanimous decision, which he did join, but brought up concerns with how a certain type of standing is used by the Court.

Applying these precedents, the Court explains that the doctors cannot establish third-party standing to sue for violations of their patients rights without showing an injury of their own, Thomas wrote.

But, there is a far simpler reason to reject this theory: Our third-party standing doctrine is mistaken, Thomas added. As I have previously explained, a plaintiff cannot establish an Article III case or controversy by asserting another persons rights.

Reaction pours in

Politicians, anti-abortion groups and reproductive rights organizations all reacted to the ruling within hours of its release, often pointing to Novembers elections as a potential next step.

President Joe Biden released a written statement saying the decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues.

It does not change the fact that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, and women lost a fundamental freedom, Biden added. It does not change the fact that the right for a woman to get the treatment she needs is imperiled if not impossible in many states.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican Partys presumptive nominee, was in meetings most of Thursday with U.S. House Republicans and then separately with Republican U.S. Senators.

Neither Trump nor his campaign released a statement by early Thursday afternoon addressing the Supreme Courts ruling.

Nevada Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen issued a statement applauding the decision as good news for reproductive freedoms, but added the Supreme Court has not fully closed the door on future attempts to further restrict abortion access across our nation. We know the anti-choice extremists who pushed to overturn Roe v. Wade wont stop until they succeed in banning womens access to abortion care. We cannot allow that to happen, which is why it is more critical than ever to restore Roe and protect reproductive rights in federal law.

While today is a victory for womens reproductive health care, anti-choice politicians across the country are continuing to threaten womens rights, said Nevada Democratic Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto in statement. Ill keep doing everything I can to protect womens reproductive freedom, and that includes ensuring access to mifepristone nationwide.

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, wrote in a statement that the justice didnt actually address the merits of the case.

The Court did not weigh in on the merits of the case, but the fact remains this is a high risk drug that ends the life of an unborn child, Cassidy wrote. I urge FDA to follow the law and reinstate important safeguards.

President of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Stella Dantas related a statement saying the ruling provides us with long-awaited relief.

We now know that patients and clinicians across the country will continue to have access to mifepristone for medication abortion and miscarriage management, Dantas wrote. Decades of clinical research have proven mifepristone to be safe and effective, and its strong track record of millions of patient uses confirms that data.

Hawley from Alliance Defending Freedom wrote in a written statement the organization was disappointed that the Supreme Court did not reach the merits of the FDAs lawless removal of commonsense safety standards for abortion drugs.

While were disappointed with the courts decision, we will continue to advocate for women and work to restore commonsense safeguards for abortion drugslike an initial office visit to screen for ectopic pregnancies, Hawley wrote. And we are grateful that three states stand ready to hold the FDA accountable for jeopardizing the health and safety of women and girls across this country.

Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, wrote in a statement she had both relief and anger about this decision.

Thank goodness the Supreme Court unanimously rejected this unwarranted attempt to curtail access to medication abortion, but the fact remains that this meritless case should never have gotten this far, Northup wrote.

The FDAs rulings on medication abortion have been based on irrefutable science, Northup wrote. Unfortunately, the attacks on abortion pills will not stop here  the anti-abortion movement sees how critical abortion pills are in this post-Roe world, and they are hell bent on cutting off access.

Scientific evidence argued

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case in March, during which Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar argued the FDAs guidelines for prescribing mifepristone were based on reputable scientific evidence and years of real-world use.

Only an exceptionally small number of women suffer the kinds of serious complications that could trigger any need for emergency treatment, Prelogar said. Its speculative that any of those women would seek care from the two specific doctors who asserted conscience injuries. And even if that happened, federal conscience protections would guard against the injury the doctors face.

Hawley of ADF told the court that conscience protections in federal law didnt do enough to protect anti-abortion doctors from having to possibly treat patients experiencing complications from medication abortion.

These are emergency situations, Hawley said. Respondent doctors dont necessarily know until they scrub into that operating room whether this may or may not be abortion drug harm  it could be a miscarriage, it could be an ectopic pregnancy, or it could be an elective abortion.

The case reached the Supreme Court within two years of ADF originally filing the lawsuit in the District Court for the Northern District of Texas, where ADF wrote the FDA exceeded its regulatory authority when it originally approved mifepristone in 2000.

ADF filed the case on behalf of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American College of Pediatricians and Christian Medical & Dental Associations, as well as four doctors from California, Indiana, Michigan and Texas.

Kacsmaryk ruling started journey to high court

Judge Matthew Joseph Kacsmaryk essentially agreed with the anti-abortion groups, in a ruling in April 2023, where he wrote he did not second-guess FDAs decision-making lightly.

But here, FDA acquiesced on its legitimate safety concerns  in violation of its statutory duty  based on plainly unsound reasoning and studies that did not support its conclusions, Kacsmaryk wrote.

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay at the request of the Justice Department, which put the district courts ruling on hold until the appeal process could work itself out.

The Justice Department also appealed the district courts ruling to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in Louisiana, where a three-judge panel heard the case in May 2023.

The panel  composed of Jennifer Walker Elrod, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, as well as James C. Ho and Cory T. Wilson, who were both appointed by former President Donald Trump  issued its ruling in August 2023.

The appeals court disagreed with the district courts ruling that mifepristones original approval should be overturned, though it said that the FDA erred in making changes to prescribing guidelines in 2016 and 2021.

It failed to consider the cumulative effect of removing several important safeguards at the same time. It failed to consider whether those major and interrelated changes might alter the risk profile, such that the agency should continue to mandate reporting of non-fatal adverse events, the appeals judges wrote. And it failed to gather evidence that affirmatively showed that mifepristone could be used safely without being prescribed and dispensed in person.

That ruling didnt take effect under the Supreme Courts earlier stay.

The Department of Justice wrote to the high court weeks later in September, urging the justices to take up an appeal of the 5th Circuits decision.

The loss of access to mifepristone would be damaging for women and healthcare providers around the Nation, the DOJ wrote in the 42-page document. For many patients, mifepristone is the best method to lawfully terminate their early pregnancies. They may choose mifepristone over surgical abortion because of medical necessity, a desire for privacy, or past trauma.

Briefs filed with court

Dozens of abortion rights organizations and lawmakers filed so-called amicus curiae or friend of the court briefs to the Supreme Court calling on the justices to keep access to mifepristone in line with the FDA guidelines.

A group of more than 16 medical organizations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association, wrote that restricting access to mifepristone will not only jeopardize health, but worsen racial and economic inequities and deprive women of the choices that are at the very core of individual autonomy and wellbeing.

Anti-abortion groups and lawmakers opposed to mifepristone wrote numerous briefs as well.

Attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming sent in a 28-page brief.

They wrote that the availability of mifepristone undermined states rights, since some of their states had sought to restrict abortion below the 10 weeks approved for mifepristone use or had sought to bar access to medication abortion.

The FDAs actions undermine these laws, undercut States efforts to enforce them, and thus erode the federalism the Constitution deems vital, the attorneys general wrote. Given these harms to federalism, this Court should view the FDAs actions with skepticism.

During oral arguments in March, several Supreme Court justices brought up conscience protections that insulate health care workers from having to assist with or perform procedures they have a religious objection to, like abortion.

Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said she was worried that there is a significant mismatch in this case between the claimed injury and the remedy thats being sought.

The obvious, common-sense remedy would be to provide them with an exemption that they dont have to participate in this procedure, Jackson said.

Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch said the case seemed like a prime example of turning what could be a small lawsuit into a nationwide legislative assembly on an FDA rule, or any other federal government action.

The post U.S. Supreme Court rejects attempt to limit access to abortion pill appeared first on Nevada Current.
Albert Calibet, a retired police officer, went missing on June 12, two days after Mosleys body was found on the island of Symi

Municipality of Amorgos Albert Calibet

An American tourist has gone missing in Greece just days after television doctor Michael Mosley was found dead as a heatwave impacts the region.

Albert Calibet, 59, went missing on Tuesday, June 11, two days after Mosleys body was found on the island of Symi, according to CNN and the BBC.

The retired police officer was reported missing after he did not return from a hike on the island of Amorgos, per the BBC, citing local officials.

Calibet has been traveling to Amorgos almost every year for the last 10 years, Amorgos deputy mayor of tourism Popi Despotidi told CNN.

It is strange because he is not a person who walked the route for the first time, Despotidi told international news organization Greek Reporter. He knows Amorgos better than me.

Related: Michael Mosley's Wife Reacts After His Body Is Found: 'We Had an Incredibly Lucky Life Together'

A friend who was vacationing with Calibet at the time of his disappearance told authorities that the ex-cop left for the hike to Katapola Amorgos around 7 a.m. local time, according to the outlet. He contacted local authorities when he was unable to contact Calibet, who had not reached his destination shortly before 3:30 p.m. that same day.

His last known contact was reportedly with his sister, whom he sent a photo of a trail sign. He is believed to have two phones, but has not answered either of them.

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Andia/Universal Images Group via Getty Images The island of Amorgos, where an American man disappeared on Tuesday, June 11

His disappearance comes as the island of Amorgos faces a severe high temperature warning, with high temperatures expected to last through Thursday, June 13, according to The Telegraph.

Authorities said a 74-year-old Dutch tourist has also been missing since Sunday, this time on the island of Samos, according to CNN.

Similar to Calibet and Mosley, the Hellenic Rescue Team of Samos said the missing man went for a hike in the Marathokampou area of the island, but has not been seen since.

S Meddle/ITV/Shutterstock British television doctor Michael Mosley, who was found dead on a Greek island on Sunday, June 9

Police spokesperson Konstantia Dimoglidou told CNN on Thursday that first responders and volunteers are on the search for both men. Unfortunately, so far we have no news about either of them, she explained.

Mosley was reportedly found dead on Sunday, four days after he was reported missing on Wednesday, June 5.

Related: 'Beloved' Wife and Mother Who Went Missing While Hiking in Arizona Heat Found Dead

The 67-year-old British national was found lying face-up against a fence above a beach in Agia Marina, and appeared to have fallen down a steep slope, Symi mayor Lefteris Papakalodoukas said, per the Associated Press.

An initial post-mortem examination reportedly determined Mosley died of natural causes.



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U.S., Ukraine sign decade-long security pact. But what does it mean?

President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy shake hands after signing a security agreement on the sidelines of the G7, Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Savelletri, Italy. The bilateral pact will not guarantee that the U.S will come to Ukraines defense if attacked. | Alex Brandon

President Joe Biden signed a 10-year security agreement with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as he and other leaders of the Group of Seven wealthy democracies announce a $50 billion loan to support Ukraines defense and reconstruction efforts amid the ongoing conflict with Russia.

He cannot wait us out, Biden said of Russian President Vladimir Putin. He cannot divide us.

Zelenskyy said the agreement demonstrated the credibility of American support for our Ukrainian independence, per news reports.

Here are the latest developments at the G7 summit:

The 10-year bilateral security agreement

On the sidelines of the G7 summit, Biden signed a 10-year security agreement, which he said signals American commitment to the future of Ukraine, The New York Times reported.

Biden patterned this agreement to be equivalent to Israels long-term security accord, guaranteeing provisions to train and equip Ukraines forces, provide modern weapons and help build a self-sufficient military industry, per The New York Times.

But the bilateral pact will not guarantee that the U.S will come to Ukraines defense if attacked, The Guardian reported.

Comparison to past agreements: Ukraine has had bitter experiences with similar agreements and often refers to the Budapest memorandum in 1994 where Ukraine was in need of defense after Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.

The new accord, according to The New York Times, requires the U.S. to consult with Ukraine within 24 hours in the event of future Russian attacks.

The Guardian reported that Ukraine has signed 15 bilateral security agreements with other countries since the Russian attack began in 2022.

The two presidents planned a press conference later on Thursday to talk about differences regarding a timetable for Ukraine to join NATO. The bilateral security agreements have been seen in Ukraine as temporary help while it works toward its NATO membership, per The Guardian.

The pledge is less formal than a treaty and is not binding for future presidents, according to CNN. Former President Donald Trump has not said whether or not he would continue to support this agreement if he wins in November.

The Guardian reported U.S. national security adviser Jake Sullivan said: By signing this, well also be sending Russia a signal of our resolve. If Vladimir Putin thinks that he can outlast the coalition supporting Ukraine, hes wrong. He just cannot wait us out, and this agreement will show our resolve and continued commitment.

The financial loan at the G7 summit

The large G7 economies agreed to give Ukraine a $50 billion loan to help buy weapons and contribute to reconstruction amid ongoing conflict with Russia, per The New York Times.

The Associated Press reported that the U.S. will guarantee most of the loan.

Potential additional funding could increase the loan with contributions of other European countries, according to a French official.

The loan is expected to be backed by interest earned on approximately $300 billion in frozen Russian assets, according to The New York Times.

The Associated Press reported the plan is to get Ukraine the loan as quickly as possible. The move to unlock the assets already comes after a long delay by Washington to approve military aid for Ukraine.
BEIJING, June 12 (Xinhua) -- The European Union's anti-subsidy probe into Chinese electric vehicles is typical protectionism, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian said on Wednesday, urging the EU to act on its commitment to supporting free trade and opposing protectionism.

Lin made the remarks at a regular press briefing when answering a query concerning the investigation and planned additional tariffs on the electric vehicles imported from China.

Lin said that to levy additional tariffs violates market economy principles and international trade rules, disrupts China-EU economic and trade cooperation and the global automotive industrial and supply chains, and will eventually hurt Europe's own interests.

According to Lin, senior officials and business leaders in multiple European countries recently stated opposition to the European Commission's probe and said that imposing more tariffs on Chinese EVs to protect the European industry would be a wrong approach.

"We urge the EU to act on its commitment to supporting free trade and opposing protectionism, and work with us to uphold the overall economic and trade cooperation between the two sides," Lin said, noting that protectionism has no future, and open cooperation is the right way forward.

"China will take all measures necessary to firmly defend our lawful rights and interests," the spokesperson said. 
The University of California, Los Angeles announced Wednesday that Julio Frenk would be taking over as the schools chancellor.

Frenk, formerly the president of the University of Miami, will succeed Gene Block, who is retiring after 17 years of service.

At this crucial moment for higher education, returning to the public sector to lead one of the top research universities in the world  including one of the 10 largest academic health systems  is an exciting opportunity and a great honor for me, said Chancellor-designate Frenk.

Frenk previously also worked as the dean of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and as the national health secretary of Mexico.

His new tenure comes as UCLAs campus is a tumultuous moment from the pro-Palestinian protests.

The campus saw some of the more violent scenes during the school year as counterprotesters attacked the pro-Palestinian activists in May and hundreds were arrested at the school.

And the activists have not ended their demonstrations just because it is the summer, with more than two dozen arrested this week after the pro-Palestinian protesters tried to set up encampments on campus.

I look forward to adding my lifelong commitment to public service in education and health care to the vibrant, diverse and cosmopolitan community that is Los Angeles, Frenk 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 The Hill.
UK to announce more than $300 million in aid at G7 summit

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will announce 242 million pounds ($309 million) in aid to Ukraine at the G7 summit in Italy.



This funding aims to address urgent humanitarian and energy needs and support long-term socio-economic recovery and reconstruction in Ukraine.



Sunak will also prioritize working with international partners to utilize frozen Russian assets, valued at $285 billion in G7 jurisdictions, to provide aid.



Nikkei Asia reported on June 11 that the G7 will create a fund to support Ukraine using the income generated from frozen Russian assets.

The fund will reportedly be created under an international organization such as the World Bank, with contributions in the form of Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration (ERA) loans.

The U.K. has also introduced legislation to maintain sanctions on Russia until it compensates for the damage caused.

"We must be decisive and creative in our efforts to support Ukraine and end Putin's illegal war at this critical moment, Sunak said. The U.K remains at the forefront of the international response, as it has been from the start. We must move beyond as long as it takes to whatever it takes if we want to end this illegal war."

The government press service highlighted that the U.K. has provided nearly 12.7 billion pounds ($16.2 billion) in military, humanitarian, and economic aid to Ukraine so far.

Read also: US to sign bilateral security agreement with Ukraine at G7

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UK to announce over $300 million in aid for Ukraine at G7 Summit

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will announce a 242 million (approximately US$309 million) aid package for Ukraine at the G7 summit in Italy.

Source: UK government website

Quote from the message: "At the Summit, the Prime Minister will announce up to 242 million in bilateral assistance to Ukraine, to support immediate humanitarian, energy and stabilisation needs, and lay the foundations for longer term economic and social recovery and reconstruction."

Details: The government emphasised that this funding demonstrates "the UKs continued international solidarity with Ukraine, and our flexibility in responding to immediate needs created by Russian aggression".

In particular, the UK government highlighted that "critical energy infrastructure, for example, has suffered from an intense Russian missile and bombing campaign over the past few months".

The press release stressed that the prime ministers priority at the summit will be working with partners to agree on ways to use frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine.

It was noted that the total value of assets located in G7 jurisdictions amounts to US$285 billion.

In addition, it was reported that the UK had become the first country to introduce legislation allowing sanctions to remain in place until Russia pays for the destruction it has caused.

Quote from Sunak: "We must be decisive and creative in our efforts to support Ukraine and end Putins illegal war at this critical moment. The UK remains at the forefront of the international response as we have been from the outset. We must move from 'as long as it takes' to 'whatever it takes' if we are to end this illegal war."

Details: The government press service reiterated that the UK has allocated nearly 12.7 billion (US$16.2 billion) for military, humanitarian and economic support to Ukraine and has often been the first to provide critically needed lethal aid  from Challenger 2 tanks to Storm Shadow cruise missiles.

Background: Earlier, it was reported that the leaders of the G7 countries meeting on 13-14 June in the Italian province of Apulia would discuss support for Ukraine and holding Russia accountable for the full-scale aggression it has unleashed against Ukraine.

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The campus of the University of Kentucky, where trustees are set to give final consideration to controversial internal governance changes on Friday. (Photo by Mark Cornelison | UK Photo)

Changes that faculty warn would end their decision-making power in academic matters are set to come before the University of Kentucky Board of Trustees Friday for a final vote.

UK President Eli Capilouto, who says the changes are needed to streamline governance processes, has revised his controversial original proposal in response to feedback from students, faculty and staff, UK spokesperson Jay Blanton said Wednesday.

UK President Eli Capilouto (Photo by Mark Cornelison | UK Photo)

Among the revisions made by Capilouto is one strengthening the definition of academic freedom, Blanton said.

Capilouto also rejected some suggestions from campus groups, which, Blanton said, is precisely how the process is supposed to work.

Indeed, this process of feedback and counsel was even more comprehensive as President Capilouto added conversations with hundreds of community members across the campus, Blanton said in an email. From those conversations, a proposal was made to the Board to include more voices and people at the table, to streamline our often-confusing rules and regulations and to return more decision-making authority to colleges and units, closer to where the expertise resides.

The UK board in April voted 19-1 in favor of Capiloutos proposal.

In response, during its final meeting of the 2023-24 school year, the University Senate approved a resolution of no confidence against Capilouto. While it did not affect his status as president, the resolution was an expression of opposition to his leadership and the proposed changes. The University Senate is made up of faculty, staff and student representatives.

If the boards final approval of the proposal comes Friday, it will be at a time when many stakeholders are away from campus, as the spring semester ended in May and most students and many faculty return to campus in late August.

While the University Senate has approved multiple resolutions against the proposed governance changes, the Staff Senate and Student Government Association (SGA) have passed resolutions supporting Capiloutos plan.

Members of the University Senate have warned that the changes would pave the way for faculty to lose decision-making power over academic decisions, such as admission standards for students.

The University Senate also has expressed a willingness to make concessions to staff and students.

The University Senate is open to evaluating and assessing our current processes, the University Senates website says. We are willing to evaluate and determine whether there are better ways to incorporate the perspectives and expertise of staff members and students, whose input we have always valued and integrated into our procedures.

Defining academic freedom

The University Senate shared its suggestions and comments on the proposals in an email to faculty at the end of May. They include further clarifying the definition of academic freedom, removing the president from setting rules to elect trustees who are not appointed by the governor, and specifying in greater detail the role of a proposed Presidents Council, which would be made up of leaders of the faculty, staff and students to advise the president.

Blanton, the university spokesperson, said in an email to the Lantern that in the revisions the board will review Friday, President Capilouto incorporated many of the proposals made by our shared governance groups, which included students, staff and faculty. The revisions include clarifying curriculum that faculty has primacy over involves both credit-bearing and non-credit bearing courses as well as programs within an academic college.

Blanton said other revisions include strengthening the definition of academic freedom to include all instructional space and not just physical classrooms as well as making the important point, offered by faculty leaders, that instructional spaces led by faculty will be places that often challenge students and can at times be uncomfortable. Thats how learning takes place.

While the governor appoints most UK trustees, some board members are elected by faculty, staff, students and alumni. Blanton said the revisions clarify the boards role in elections while also acknowledging that there must be ways to change those processes to ensure that these elections are held in accordance with state laws. He added that the General Assembly recently outlawed ranked choice voting, which allows voters to rank multiple candidates for an office based on their preference rather than selecting one candidate. Elected trustee positions are governed by statute.

Two of our shared governance bodies  faculty and students  have utilized that mechanism before, so there will be times when we must go to the board to make changes in election processes, Blanton said.

Capilouto also responded to proposals made by faculty, staff and students about adding important areas of primacy, the policy areas that shared governance groups will consult regularly on with the administration, Blanton said.

Suggestions from the University Senate rejected by Capilouto include removing a reference to the Board of Trustees as the peoples representatives or to abolish recognition of a graduate faculty on our campus.

UK Board of Trustees Chair Britt Brockman said in a statement to campus after the resolution was approved that the board unequivocally supports President Eli Capilouto.

The University Senate has also received outside support from the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) and the University of Southern Mississippi Faculty Senate President Joshua Bernstein. Both sent letters expressing concerns about the changes.

As you likely know, the proposal violates AAUP standards and long-established academic norms, according to which faculty have primary say over what is taught at the university, Bernstein wrote to Capilouto and the Board of Trustees. These standards are crucial for ensuring that learning is not politicized or subject to meddling. What happens in Kentucky could be replicated elsewhere to the detriment of learning across the country.

Blanton said Capilouto agreed with the overwhelming majority of our Board that approved the proposed changes in April as a way to streamline and clarify our rules to enable us to be even more responsive to the states needs.

Along with other efforts underway  from thoughtfully growing enrollment to expanding care to more people, from undertaking an initiative to study housing needs across the state to new proposals to help us recruit and retain an outstanding workforce  we are following the direction the Board has given us: to find ways to accelerate our progress in advancing Kentucky, Blanton said. Thats what all these efforts are about  doing better so we can do more for Kentucky.

The post UK facultys role in decision-making expected to shrink when trustees vote Friday appeared first on Kentucky Lantern.
The United Kingdom on June 13 unveiled sanctions against 50 entities, individuals, and vessels in order to crack down on Russia's war machine.

The sanctions were introduced in coordination with Group of Seven (G7) partners during Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's visit to the G7 Leaders Summit in Italy.

The restrictions aim to "bear down on Russia's ability to fund and equip its war machine and show the U.K.'s steadfast support for Ukraine," the British government's statement read.

The U.K. imposed sanctions on the Moscow Stock Exchange in coordination with the United States, which announced a new round of restrictive measures against Russian financial institutions a day earlier.

After the U.S. sanctions were introduced, the Moscow Exchange released a statement suspending the trade with dollars and euros starting June 13.

The U.K. also imposed its first sanctions on vessels in Russia's shadow fleet, which has been used to circumvent Western sanctions and continue trading in Russian oil.

"Russia's oil exports are (Vladimir) Putin's most critical revenue source for funding his illegal war in Ukraine. Tax on oil production collected by the Kremlin in 2023 amounted to 8.9 trillion rubles (over $100 billion) or 31% of Russia's total federal revenues," the statement read.

"Today's (June 13) sanctions aim to disrupt and increase the costs of Russia's efforts to bypass U.K. and G7 sanctions through its shadow fleet."

Apart from the financial system and shadow fleet, new targets include suppliers of munitions, machine tools, microelectronics, and logistics to Russia's military, including entities based in China, Israel, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkey, along with ships that transport military goods from North Korea to Russia.

The U.K. has sanctioned over 2,000 individuals and entities in total under the Russia sanctions regime, according to the statement.

British sanctions have deprived Russia of over $400 billion worth of assets and revenues since February 2022, which is equivalent to four more years of funding for the invasion, London said.

Western countries have imposed extensive economic restrictions against Moscow over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, seeking to curb its state revenue and prevent it from obtaining key technologies needed for the war effort.

Russia has sought to dodge these sanctions via various third-party entities in China, Central Asia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and elsewhere.

Read also: US issues new sweeping sanctions against Russia  will they make a difference this time?

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BRUSSELS, Belgium  Ukraine and its Western supporters are at loggerheads over the speed and scale of fighter pilot training, with Kyiv pressing U.S. and European partners to expand the program and the allies countering that Ukraines pilots arent yet ready to start flying its incoming F-16 jets in large numbers.

Ukrainian officials insist they have 30 pilots ready to start training on the aircraft and complain that there arent enough spots available at training facilities in the U.S. and Denmark. They argue that they urgently need more pilots trained to fly the jets as soon as they arrive in order to help counter Russian forces on the frontlines.

But U.S. and European officials gathered here to coordinate the transfer of weapons to Ukraine said they are working deliberately to sync up the number of pilots and maintainers graduating from training with the number of aircraft arriving in Ukraine this summer. The aircraft will arrive in tranches, they said. The schoolhouse in Arizona is able to train only 12 pilots at a time.

When they field these capabilities, you want them to be able to field them in an effective way. An F-16 is no good if its eliminated on the first day, said one senior Defense Department official, granted anonymity to speak about sensitive discussions.

The pilot argument marks the latest hurdle in Ukraines drawn-out quest for modern fighter jets. Kyiv began asking for the U.S.-made F-16s shortly after the invasion, but President Joe Biden was reluctant to give the green light. Finally last year he approved the third-party transfer of aircraft from Norway, Belgium, Denmark and the Netherlands, but the training program has been plagued by logistical challenges.

The DOD official pushed back on Kyivs claim that it has 30 pilots waiting to start training, adding that the pilots already in the pipeline are struggling with English language skills and the flying program.

The training pipeline on F-16s is pretty meager, the official said.

Western officials in Brussels Thursday said they are confident in their schedule for training enough Ukrainian fighter pilots to fly the first batch of new F-16s arriving in-country. They stressed the need to gradually ramp up the program to ensure Ukraine can operate and maintain the aircraft, including pilots, maintainers, and the infrastructure to support them.

Its not just the pilots you have to have, Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. C.Q. Brown, a career F-16 pilot, told reporters after a meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contract Group. Maintenance is also a key part of that, and training the maintainers.

You want to have the complete package: That means the team, the number of airframes, weapons to go with it, spare parts. You have to have everything, said Kajsa Ollongren, defense minister for the Netherlands, on the sidelines of the meeting.

Denmark, Norway, the Netherlands and Belgium have pledged to send Ukraine more than 60 U.S.-made F-16s overall, but officials have not provided details about the timeline. The goal is to start delivering the jets to Ukraine this summer, Brown said.

Illya Yevlash, a spokesperson for the Ukrainian air force, said the training program requires additional places for pilots to learn the aircraft.

"There is a great need to train Ukrainian specialists, both pilots and engineers. Of course, all this requires additional efforts, including retraining, learning from scratch, and modernization of aircraft systems, Yevlash said. A number of bureaucratic procedures and technical nuances remain. We are waiting for the planes as soon as possible.

But a second senior DOD official also pushed back on Kyivs claim that the training program is too limited. Western officials want to avoid graduating too many pilots before Ukraine has received enough jets for them to continue training on, the official explained to reporters on the plane to Brussels. If pilots do not get enough flying hours, their skills begin to atrophy.

If you dont have an aircraft to continue to train on its kind of wasted energy, said the second senior DOD official, noting that the current pipeline is appropriate.

The partners are looking at eventually expanding training to other locations as Kyiv receives additional aircraft, including French Mirage and Swedish Gripen jets, Ollongron said. But thats part of the long-term strategy.

They are transforming the whole Ukrainian air force into 100 percent NATO standard, she said.
Ukraine's Special Operations Forces (SOF) attacked Russia's newest R-416GM digital radio relay communication station for the first time since the beginning of the all-out war, the military reported on June 13.

The R-416GM is a station designed to improve the efficiency of radio relay units in the field. Russia began using it in 2018.

Operators from the third SOF regiment reportedly spotted the station on the frontline and hit it with one of their newest weapons. The SOF did not disclose the location of the impacted equipment.

As a result of the attack, communication between the command post and Russia's army units was disrupted, the military said. No further details on the attack or the damage were provided.

The day before, Ukrainian forces reportedly destroyed two radars of S-300 and S-400 air defense systems near the Russian Belbek military airfield and Sevastopol in occupied Crimea.

This appears to be the second attack on Russia's air defenses in Crimea in a week. Ukraine reportedly hit one S-400 anti-aircraft missile unit near Dzhankoi, and two more S-300 anti-aircraft missile units were attacked near occupied Chornomorske and Yevpatoria overnight on June 10.

Read also: Russias move on Kharkiv has bogged down. But was it a failure?

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The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (L) and Ukrainian Minister of Defense Rustem Umerov speak during a press conference on the sidelines of the meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence at NATO Headquarters. -/NATO/dpa

Defence ministes from NATO countries and Ukraine on Thursday endorsed a "roadmap" for long-term cooperation, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said on Thursday.

"Today, we have endorsed the first ever NATO-Ukraine Innovation Cooperation Roadmap," Stoltenberg said in a press conference, following a meeting of the NATO-Ukraine Council.

NATO countries have been coordinating support to Ukraine through an informal, United States-led group called the Ukraine Defence Contact Group (UDCG). But now NATO countries are discussing ways to shift that responsibility to the formal structures of NATO.

Stoltenberg added that NATO defence ministers are expected to endorse a new training facility for Ukraine in Poland on Friday. He said they are also expected to give the nod to a plan for a mission called NATO Security Assistance and Training for Ukraine (NSATU) - which was already approved at a lower level on Thursday, alliance sources told dpa.

NSATU would see NATO officially coordinate military aid to Ukraine for the first time.

"More than 99% of all military support to Ukraine is provided by NATO allies. So it makes sense that NATO takes on a greater role in these efforts," Stoltenberg said.

Stoltenberg is also urging NATO allies to make a long-term financial commitment worth 40 billion ($43 billion) per year - which Stoltenberg says would maintain the current level of funding over time.

"Since Russia's full-scale invasion, allies have provided around 40 billion worth of military support each year. I have proposed that we sustain this level of support as a minimum for as long as it takes, and that allies share this burden actively," he said on Thursday, echoing comments he made at a foreign ministers' meeting in Prague last month.

"The longer we plan and the longer we commit, the sooner Ukraine can have peace. Because a credible long-term commitment shows Moscow that they cannot wait us out," Stoltenberg said.

He said that NATO countries' GDP would serve as the basis for determining the fair "burden sharing" of the 40 billion target.

"The US GDP is roughly 50% of NATO's total GDP. So then the US will then be responsible for 50% of that commitment,and then the rest will be divided between European allies and Canada," Stoltenberg said. Only military aid will count towards the commitment, he said.

The current agreement on NSATU does not include any specific financial commitments, but establishes that joint aid will at least be coordinated by NATO proper.

Stoltenberg's proposals will be discussed further at a NATO leaders' summit in Washington in July.

The UDCG met on Thursday before the NATO-Ukraine Council later the same day.

In a press conference after the UDCG meeting, US Secretary of Defence Lloyd Austin said air defence was "Ukraine's top priority."

He hailed efforts by NATO countries to bolster Ukrainian air defence - such as a Dutch initiative to assemble a Patriot air defence system and Sweden's provision of early warning and control aircraft. Italy is also providing surface-to-air missiles, he said.

Austin added that Ukraine and the US will sign a bilateral security treaty on Thursday.

Germany is providing three Patriot systems to Ukraine. However, German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius ruled out the possibility of his country providing any more, as he arrived at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Thursday.

"There is no space for providing even more than those three systems," Pistorius told reporters. He said the three systems make up a quarter of Germany's stock. "Now, it's on other partners to provide systems," Pistorius said.

Shortly before, Canadian Defence Minister Bill Blair announced that his country will supply Ukraine with rockets, small arms ammunition and remote-controlled weapon mounts for vehicles - though it has no Patriots to give, he said.

"Canada will provide Ukraine with 2,300 Canadian Rocket Vehicle 7s or CRV rocket motors," Blair said. He added, "Canada will send an additional number of rounds of small arms ammunition, as well as 29 Nanuk remote systems," which are remote-controlled weapon mounts for military vehicles.

He added, "this week, Canada is beginning the shipments of a new fleet of 50 armoured vehicles to Ukraine. The first four vehicles are departing Canada this week, and they will be delivered to the Ukrainian armed forces in the coming weeks."

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg (L) meets with Ukrainian Minister of Defense Rustem Umerov on the sidelines of the meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence at NATO Headquarters. -/NATO/dpa
Fu Bao, the first giant panda born in the Republic of Korea (ROK), met the public on Wednesday after returning to China's Sichuan Province, the hometown of pandas. #pandamania
The Netherlands has announced the shipment of 152-mm shells to Ukraine, costing more than 350 million, which will be funded by the International Fund for Ukraine (IFU).

Source: Ministry of Defence of the Netherlands, as reported by European Pravda

Details: The Dutch Defence Ministry stressed that the exact number of 152-mm shells and delivery time will not be reported for security reasons.

"But this is one of IFU's largest orders from the international arms industry," it added.

According to the Dutch Ministry of Defence, Ukraine acquired primarily 155-mm howitzer ammunition within the boundaries of earlier deliveries, but it also has a large number of 152-mm cannons.

The International Fund for Ukraine is an additional financial mechanism for Ukraine led by the UK Ministry of Defence, with participation from Australia, Denmark, Iceland, Lithuania, New Zealand, Norway, Iceland, Lithuania, and Sweden.

These nine countries contributed over a billion euros to the IFU in total, with the Netherlands contributing 125 million.

Read also: "We can find 1.5 2 million shells for Ukraine within a year. I don't understand why there isn't money for this"

In February, Czech President Petr Pavel said that Czechia had found a way to acquire 800,000 (122mm and 155mm) shells for Ukraine outside the European Union and NATO structures.

The Armed Forces of Ukraine will receive 50,000-100,000 large-calibre artillery shells a month under the Czech initiative.

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Ukraine says without more air cover there won't be enough power for winter

By John O'Donnell

BERLIN (Reuters) - Ukraine needs more air defences within weeks to allow repairs to the half of its power infrastructure destroyed by Russian attacks, or it will not be able to meet demand in the winter, the country's energy minister told Reuters.

German Galushchenko said Russia was intensifying its attacks on power systems, making repairs difficult and choking supplies.

Russian missile and drone attacks on Ukraine's energy sector have intensified since March, cutting out half of its generating capacity, resulting in rolling blackouts, including in the capital Kyiv.

"We have five months before the winter. If we won't be able to protect now ... we cannot do repairing. 50% alone is not enough to get through the winter," said Galushchenko.

"They still have time to attack us again and again before the winter," he added. "Even to repair something or to restart some units without air defence, it doesn't help you a lot because they will destroy it again."

The winter is when power demand in Ukraine is at its highest as temperatures drop far below zero.

Ukraine has been lobbying in particular for U.S.-made Patriot missile defences which have proved vital for Kyiv's chances of shooting down Russia's ballistic and hypersonic missiles.

Galushchenko said Ukraine needed seven to nine such systems and they were needed within weeks.

"We're living with restrictions now, even in the summer, because we cannot cover ... this destroyed generation," he said. "We cannot cover this by imports."

Galushchenko said Russia had also struck renewable energy sites, including a solar station.

He made his remarks on the sidelines of a conference in Berlin, where Ukraine sought to reinvigorate flagging Western support.

Switzerland hosts a summit this weekend to seek a path to peace in Ukraine, but it has been shunned by China and dismissed as a waste of time by Russia, which was not invited.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who attended the Berlin conference, also addressed the German parliament, where his speech was boycotted by two parties including the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD), whose support surged in recent European elections.

Galushchenko said Europeans who voted for pro-Russian parties had failed to grasp the threat posed by Russia.

"There is probably the expectation that would allow you to feel safe and peaceful here," he said.

"But that's a big mistake. Sometimes, it appears that it's ... far from us. Be sure that you will be next. The aggressors ... would never stop."

So far this year, Ukraine has been on the back foot as it faced delays in military aid from the United States, intensified attacks on its infrastructure and Moscows push to expand the frontline, 27 months after its full-scale invasion.

(Additional reporting by Tom Balmforth in Kyiv; Editing by Mark Potter)
Ukraine to set up venture with US-based company to repair American armored vehicles

The state-owned Ukrainian Defense Industry company signed a memorandum with U.S.-based Amentum Services on plans to set up a joint enterprise to restore and maintain American-made armored vehicles, the company said on June 13.

Amentum Services, Inc is a U.S. government and commercial services contractor located in Virginia. The company's representatives have reportedly visited Ukrainian Defense Industry enterprises and assessed their existing capabilities, technical base, and potential.

The memorandum was signed this week by Herman Smetanin, head of the state-owned Ukrainian Defense Industry company, and Amentum Services, Inc's President Joe Dunaway at the Ukraine Recovery Conference in Berlin.

Ukrainian armorers are waiting for help in obtaining technical documentation, equipment and spare parts needed to repair and maintain armored combat vehicles, Ukrainian Defense Industry, also known as Ukrboronprom, said.

Kyiv aims to establish joint defense production with a number of countries, including the U.S.

In December 2023, Kyiv and Washington signed a statement of intent on the co-production of weapons.

The agreement between the two nations will reportedly contribute to the construction of production facilities in Ukraine to supply the military with arms, in particular air defense equipment and ammunition, as well as repair and maintenance services.

Read also: Ukraine to directly sign contracts with global arms producers

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On Thursday, 13 June, on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Italy, a bilateral security agreement between Ukraine and Japan is expected to be signed, in addition to the agreement with the United States, which media already reported about.

Source: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Telegram; European Pravda

Details: Zelenskyy said that a security agreement is expected to be signed with the US and Japan. These agreements will complete the signing of such bilateral documents with the G7 countries, continuing the so-called Vilnius G7 declaration on the sidelines of the NATO summit on security guarantees for Ukraine.

Quote: "During our meetings with US President Joseph Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, we will sign bilateral security agreements. The document with the United States will be unprecedented, as befits leaders of support for Ukraine," Volodymyr Zelenskyy said.

He thanked his partners for their faith in Ukraine and its chances of winning the war.

Background:

Jake Sullivan, the United States National Security Advisor, confirmed yesterday that Kyiv and Washington will sign a bilateral security agreement on Thursday, 13 June.

However, the United States admits that any future president could withdraw from the security agreement with Ukraine since it does not provide for ratification by Congress.

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Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine, and Fumio Kishida, Prime Minister of Japan, signed a bilateral security agreement on 13 June on the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Italy.

Source: Zelenskyy on Twitter (X), as reported by European Pravda

Details: Zelenskyy states that in 2024, Japan will provide Ukraine with US$4.5 billion and "will continue to support us throughout the agreements entire 10-year term".

"This includes security and defence assistance, humanitarian aid, technical and financial cooperation, as well as joint efforts on the Peace Formula," he specified.

Zelenskyy added that the agreement provides for the sanctions against the aggressor state and the efforts to hold the aggressor accountable, as well as for Japans cooperation with Ukraine in reconstruction and recovery.

"For Japan, this type of agreement and this level of support is a breakthrough. We see this and thank Japan for its unwavering solidarity with our country and people, as well as for its dedication to protecting life and international law," Zelenskyy summed up.

Zelenskyy announced the signing of the security agreement with Japan earlier, ahead of his arrival at the G7 summit in Italy.

Jake Sullivan, Advisor to the US President for National Security, confirmed earlier that Kyiv and Washington would sign a bilateral security agreement on Thursday, 13 June.

However, the US admits that any future US president would be able to potentially leave the security agreement with Ukraine since it does not require ratification by Congress.

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US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement on 13 June aimed at strengthening Kyiv's defence capabilities.

Source: Reuters, as reported by European Pravda

Details: The agreement, signed on the sidelines of the Group of Seven summit in Italy, should be a step towards "Ukraines eventual membership in the NATO alliance" and reaffirms the United States' support for Kyiv in protecting its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Quote: "To ensure Ukraines security, both sides recognise Ukraine needs a significant military force, robust capabilities, and sustained investments in its defence industrial base that are consistent with North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) standards," the text of the treaty says.

It also states that the United States intends to provide long-term materiel, training, and advisory, technical, intelligence, security, defence-industrial, institutional, and other assistance to "develop Ukrainian security and defence forces that are capable of defending a sovereign, independent, democratic Ukraine and deterring future aggression."

According to the agreement, in the event of an armed attack on Ukraine or the threat of such an attack, American and Ukrainian authorities will meet within 24 hours to consult and determine what extra defence necessities Ukraine has.

After Japan, the United States became the 16th country with which Ukraine signed a bilateral security agreement and the final Group of Seven country to do so.

However, the United States recognises that potentially any next president of the United States can withdraw from a security agreement with Ukraine since it does not provide for ratification by Congress.

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Key developments on June 13:

Ukraine signs bilateral security agreement with US, Japan

Ukraine hit Russia's newest communication station for first time, military says

Media: Slovenia secretly provided Ukraine with military supplies during US aid delay

Guardian: Russia accused of 'deliberate' starvation tactics in Mariupol in submission to ICC

Media: Russia suffered 'astronomical' losses on Kharkiv front, NATO source suggests

President Volodymyr Zelensky signed two separate security agreements with the U.S. and Japan on the sidelines of the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Italy on June 13.

The agreements follow the pledge made by the G7 during the NATO summit in Vilnius in July 2023 to commit to Ukraine's long-term defense.

U.S. President Joe Biden said that the agreement with Kyiv lays out a vision for a strong and resilient Ukraine, a just peace, economic recovery, and the restoration of Ukraine's energy infrastructure.

The agreement "clearly states that America supports Ukraine's efforts to win this war," Zelensky said, describing the deal as a "bridge" to Ukraine's future NATO membership.

The text states that the U.S. "commits to support Ukraine in developing a modern, NATO-interoperable force that can credibly deter and, if necessary, defend against future aggression," including developing Ukraine's air and missile defense, cybersecurity, and maritime capabilities.

The U.S. also commits to working toward procurement of squadrons of modern fighter aircraft, "including, but not limited to, F-16s," according to the text.

"It is very important that the agreement addresses the issue of Russia's responsibility," Zelensky added, noting that the text emphasizes that Ukraine should be provided with "fair compensation for damage caused by Russian strikes."

The agreement states that the U.S. "intends to hold Russian sovereign assets in United States jurisdiction immobilized until Russia pays for the damage it has caused to Ukraine."

Additionally, the agreement details commitments from Ukraine on reforms and on end-use monitoring for Western-supplied weapons.

Zelensky described the agreement with Japan as a "unique document with one of the worlds most economically and technologically advanced countries."

Japan will provide Ukraine with $4.5 billion in 2024 and will continue to support Ukraine throughout the next 10 years, according to Zelensky.

The two countries agreed to cooperate on cybersecurity, countering foreign interference, combatting organized crime, and ensuring maritime order, among other spheres.

As well as signing the agreements, Zelensky held meetings with G7 leaders including British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

Read also: UK imposes new sanctions against Russia, targeting oil fleet, financial sector, military suppliers

Ukraine hit Russia's newest communication station for first time, military says

Ukraine's Special Operations Forces (SOF) attacked Russia's newest R-416GM digital radio relay communication station for the first time since the beginning of the all-out war, the military reported on June 13.

The R-416GM is a station designed to improve the efficiency of radio relay units in the field. Russia began using it in 2018.

Operators from the third SOF regiment reportedly spotted the station on the front line and hit it with one of their newest weapons. The SOF did not disclose the location of the targeted equipment.

As a result of the attack, communication between the command post and Russia's army units was disrupted, the military said. No further details on the attack or the damage were provided.

The day before, Ukrainian forces reportedly destroyed two radars of S-300 and S-400 air defense systems near the Russian Belbek military airfield and Sevastopol in occupied Crimea.

This appears to be the second attack on Russia's air defenses in Crimea in a week. Ukraine reportedly hit one S-400 anti-aircraft missile unit near Dzhankoi, and two more S-300 anti-aircraft missile units were attacked near occupied Chornomorske and Yevpatoria overnight on June 10.

Read also: Recent string of Crimea strikes can help dismantle Russian air defenses before F-16s arrive, expert says

Media: Slovenia secretly provided Ukraine with military supplies during US aid delay

Slovenia had secretly provided Ukraine with various military equipment when the U.S. aid had been stalled for months, the Slovenian media outlet 24UR reported on June 13.

The supplies were not publicly announced as 24UR said it had learned the information through "unofficial" channels.

After six months of political infighting and delays, the U.S. passed a long-awaited $61 billion aid package in April, with much of it covering military aid.

During the six-month break in funding, Ukraine lost the key front-line city of Avdiivka in February amid a severe ammunition shortage.

While Kyiv was waiting for the approval of the U.S. bill, Slovenia sent 20 armored fighting vehicles armed with a 12.7 mm caliber weapon, six armored fighting vehicles armed with a 3x20 mm caliber weapon, three infantry fighting vehicles, and a shipment of drones to Ukraine, according to the outlet.

The Slovenian government also supplied Ukraine with additional rifles, helmets, and ammunition during that period.

In March, the country joined Czechia's initiative to supply artillery shells for Ukraine. Slovenia was planning to allocate 1 million euros ($1.08 million) to the initiative, Radio Prague International reported, citing Slovenian news agency Sta.

Read also: Argentina joins Ramstein format in support of Ukraine

Guardian: Russia accused of 'deliberate' starvation tactics in Mariupol in submission to ICC

Russia used a "deliberate pattern" of starvation tactics during its three-month siege of Mariupol in early 2022, which could amount to a war crime, according to a lawyers' analysis submitted to the International Criminal Court (ICC), the Guardian reported on June 13.

The report, submitted to the ICC by Global Rights Compliance lawyers working jointly with the Ukrainian government, says that Russia and its leaders intended to kill and harm a large number of civilians.

The city came under siege by Russian forces between February and May 2022, leaving thousands dead and reducing Mariupol to rubble. According to authorities' rough estimates, at least 25,000 people could have been killed during the siege of Mariupol. The exact number remains unknown and could be much higher.

Catriona Murdoch, a partner at Global Rights Compliance, said that the purpose of the research was to "see if there was a broader narrative" that the Russian military and its leadership deliberately denied food and other necessary services for life.

Lawyers concluded that there were four phases to the Russian assault in Mariupol, including attacks on civilian infrastructure, cutting out the supply of electricity, heating and water, refusal of humanitarian evacuation, and strikes on critical infrastructure.

"Finally, in phase four, Russia engaged in strategic attacks to destroy or capture any remaining infrastructure," she said

The phased attacks on the city demonstrated that Russia planned to capture Mariupol without mercy toward its civilian population, according to Murdoch.

Given the importance of Mariupol and the centralization of decision-making in Russia, responsibility for the deaths of thousands of civilians lies upon the country's leadership, she said.

"(Russian President) Vladimir Putin is to blame, and so are echelons of the Russian military leadership," Murdoch added.

The ICC issued arrest warrants on March 17, 2023, for Putin and Russian Children's Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova for the forced deportations of thousands of Ukrainian children to Russia.

The court also issued arrest warrants for two Russian military commanders a year later in March for carrying out strikes on Ukrainian electricity infrastructure during the winter of 20222023.

Lieutenant General Sergei Kobylash and Admiral Viktor Sokolov "are each allegedly responsible" for a number of war crimes, including "directing attacks at civilian sites," the ICC said.

Read also: Updated: Russian attack on Dnipropetrovsk Oblast city injures 5, including 3-year-old girl

Media: Russia suffered 'astronomical' losses on Kharkiv front, NATO source suggests

Russia suffered "astronomical" losses while attempting to advance in Kharkiv Oblast, European Pravda reported on June 13, citing a NATO official who spoke on condition of anonymity during a NATO defense ministers meeting in Brussels.

Russia launched a new offensive on May 10 in northern Kharkiv Oblast in a push that involved as many as 30,000 troops, according to a Ukrainian official.

Russian forces have so far advanced less than 10 kilometers into Ukrainian territory and have not managed to seize control of Vovchansk, a city with a pre-2022 population of around 17,000.

"I would also add that the gains in Kharkiv Oblast seem to have come at a rather high price for Russia," European Pravda cited the NATO official.

"Russia likely suffered losses of almost 1,000 people a day in May, which is quite an astronomical figure," the official reportedly said, referring to the number of fatalities.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said in an interview published on May 25 that Russia's losses during the offensive were eight times higher than those suffered by Ukraine's Armed Forces.

According to Ukrainian figures, Russian losses in Ukraine passed the grim milestone of 500,000 on May 25. The figure could not be independently verified.

Read also: Canada introduces sanctions against Russian military-industrial complex, propaganda network

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Ukraine's Foreign Minister: Given whining of Russian propaganda, new US sanctions hit where it hurts most

Ukraine's Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba has welcomed a new broad set of US sanctions against Russia and anyone who is willing to help Russia in its military actions.

Source: Kuleba said this on Twitter (X), European Pravda reports

Details: The minister said that "given the loud whines of the Russian regime's top propagandists, these measures strike right where it hurts."

Quote: "We particularly applaud tough measures against Russia's defence-industrial base and its access to technology and resources abroad. Suffocating Putin's war machine is critical for global security. Every weapon that Russia is unable to produce due to resource constraints is a life saved," the minister said.

Any organisation that assists Russia in the production of weapons should be subjected to the most severe pressure, Kuleba stressed.

Quote: "Ordinary Russians must realise that the problems they face are a direct result of Moscow's decisions. Beginning with the illegal war against Ukraine and ending with meddling in other countries' affairs," the minister added.

Background:

The US Treasury announced an expansion of the secondary sanctions mechanism against Russia, as well as sanctions against more than 90 foreign companies and individuals that help Moscow avoid sanctions.

In addition, the US announced sanctions against the Moscow Exchange and more than 100 Russian defence companies.

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WELLINGTON, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang here on Thursday called on China and New Zealand to always stay as partners for common development.

In his meeting with New Zealand's Governor-General Cindy Kiro, Li said China and New Zealand share similar development concepts, cultural values and international propositions, adding that the two countries have benefited from each other's development over the years. 
Ukraine's wheat exports to drop to 10-year low, US Agriculture Department says

Ukraine's wheat exports in the marketing year 2024-2025 are expected to amount to 13 million metric tons, the lowest figure in the past decade, the U.S. Agriculture Department said in its June report.

The authors linked this development to a drop in production and to Russia's disruption of Black Sea shipping lanes, which have traditionally been Ukraine's key export routes.

The report also estimated Ukraine's wheat production in the upcoming marketing year at 19.5 million metric tons, a 3.5-million decrease compared to last year's harvest.

Ukraine is one of the world's leading agricultural producers and has been a major supplier of grain and other products to countries in Africa and Asia.

Russia's full-scale war against the country and its attempted blockade of the Black Sea forced Ukrainian exporters to seek alternative routes and markets, which in turn led to clashes between Ukrainian and European producers.

The EU implemented a free trade regime with Ukraine in 2022 to alleviate its economy, but subsequent import bans and border blockades in eastern member states forced Brussels to implement additional "safety mechanisms" to protect local farmers.

Ukraine's losses are further compounded by the destruction wrought by Russia's war and by the occupation of parts of its territory, where Moscow continues to loot local resources, including grain.

Russia, the world's leading wheat exporter, is widely believed to be stealing Ukrainian grain and selling it off on global markets as its own product.

The U.S. Agriculture Department's report showed a significant rise in Russian wheat exports in the past 10 years, but the volumes are expected to drop in 2024-2025 to 48 million metric tons from 52 million during the previous period. This was mainly linked to a poor harvest caused by harsh weather conditions.

Read also: Fortifications put strain on already struggling farmers in Sumy Oblast

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Ukrainian forces have been making efforts to weaken Russian air defence systems. If successful, this could allow Ukraine to more effectively utilise manned aircraft in the long term, the Institute for the Study of War believes.

Source: Institute for the Study of War (ISW)

Details: ISW reported that Ukrainian forces conducted strikes on the night of 11-12 June, targeting one S-300 air defence battery and two S-400 batteries near the occupied settlements of Belbek and Sevastopol in Crimea.

ISW also noted that geolocated images published on 12 June show damaged and destroyed Russian S-300 assets north of occupied Yevpatoriia and a destroyed Russian S-400 radar system south of occupied Dzhankoi, supporting earlier reports from the Ukraines General Staff on 10 June about strikes against Russian air defence assets in these areas.

Kostiantyn Nemichev, founder of the Kraken Regiment of Defence Intelligence of Ukraine (DIU), confirmed on 12 June that Ukrainian forces deployed HIMARS to destroy four Russian S-300 systems in Belgorod Oblast without specifying a date.

As reported, this action led to the deployment of Russian air defence assets from Crimea to Belgorod Oblast in early June 2024, resulting in decreased Russian air defence coverage around Crimea.

DIU spokesperson Andrii Yusov clarified on 12 June that Ukrainian drone strikes against Akhtubinsk air base in Astrakhan Oblast between 7 and 8 June had damaged two Russian Su-57 fighter aircraft, correcting earlier reports about only one aircraft. S-300/S-400 air defence systems and Su-57 fighters are critical Russian assets that restrict Ukrainian air operations near the front and support Russian offensive efforts in Ukraine.

Quote from ISW: "Ukrainian forces may seek to actively degrade Russian air defences before Ukraine receives a significant number of aircraft in order to set conditions for Ukraines future use of manned fixed-wing airpower closer to frontline areas. Ukrainian forces may be attempting to degrade Russian air defences ahead of anticipated F-16 fighter jet deliveries to Ukraine, which reportedly will begin in small quantities in summer and fall 2024."

ISW believes that Ukrainian military operations might eventually integrate fixed-wing aircraft to support ground forces if Ukraine acquires sufficient fighter jets, Western partners train enough pilots and if Ukraine successfully weakens Russian air defences.

Meanwhile, ISW reiterated that Ukrainian and Western authorities have previously stated that Ukraine needs a significant amount of time to train enough pilots and equip the country with approximately 150 F-16s, which are important to achieve air superiority for effective ground support operations.

"Ukrainian officials have also identified their envisioned use of F-16s and other fixed-wing aircraft to constrain Russian aviation operations, and Ukrainian Air Force Spokesperson Ilya Yevlash noted that only two F-16 squadrons, roughly 18 aircraft, would be enough to significantly impact the situation in the Ukrainian airspace," ISW added.

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Ukrainian and Russian forces clashed almost 40 times across war zone today, mainly on Kurakhove front

Ukrainian and Russian forces have clashed 37 times across the war zone since the beginning of Thursday, 13 June. The Russians have delivered 12 airstrikes using 17 combat aircraft and targeted Ukrainian positions and populated areas over 580 times.

Source: General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine on Facebook, information as of 10:00 on 13 June

Details: For comparison, the Russians launched four missile strikes, using 11 missiles and 38 airstrikes, in particular dropping 56 guided aerial bombs, and launched 3,500 attacks yesterday, 12 June.

On the Kharkiv front, the Russians mounted two unsuccessful attacks on Ukrainian positions near the settlements of Hlyboke and Tykhe.

On the Kupiansk front, Russian forces attempted one assault near the settlement of Stelmakhivka. They failed and retreated. Fighting continues near the settlements of Synkivka and Petropavlivka. The situation is under Ukrainian control.

On the Lyman front, Ukrainian defenders repelled a Russian attack near the village of Hrekivka. Ukrainian forces lost no positions.

The Russians attempted an assault on Ukrainian defensive lines near the settlement of Verkhnokamianske on the Siversk front, but to no avail.

Ukrainian and Russian forces have clashed five times on the Kramatorsk front since the beginning of the day. Ukrainian defenders repelled three Russian attacks in the vicinity of Andriivka. Two combat engagements continue near the settlement of Ivanivske. The situation is tense.

On the Pokrovsk front, Russian forces attempted eight assaults on Ukrainian positions. Ukrainian defenders repelled six Russian attacks near the settlements of Novoselivka Persha and Novooleksandrivka. Fighting continues near the village of Kalynove.

The Kurakhove front witnessed the largest number of combat engagements since the beginning of the day. The Russians have stepped up their efforts and are trying to break through Ukrainian defences near the settlements of Krasnohorivka, Heorhiivka and Paraskoviivka. Ukrainian defenders repelled five Russian attacks. Seven assault operations are still underway. The situation is under the control of Ukraine's Defence Forces.

On the Orikhiv front, the Russians attempted to force Ukrainian troops out of their positions near Mala Tokmachka twice. A combat engagement is taking place.

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Ulster man sentenced up to five years for January police standoff

ROME TWP, Pa. (WETM)  A Bradford County man was sentenced in June on charges related to a police standoff in January in Rome Township.

According to the Bradford County District Attorneys Office, 26-year-old Sebastian Lee Shults was sentenced to a minimum of 18 months to a maximum of five years in a Pennsylvania State Correctional Institution.

Shults was convicted on the charges of possessing a firearm with an altered serial number, a felony in the second degree, and terroristic threats, a misdemeanor in the first degree.

Original Post  PSP: Man arrested for threats and standoffs in Bradford County

The charges stem from a standoff incident where police say Shults had made several threats toward people on Battlecreek Road in Rome Township in January of 2024.

During the standoff, its said Shults had escaped from the residence and was on the run for three weeks before he was found and arrested on Feb. 14.

Police said that before his arrest, Shults was found on State Line Road in Windham Township in Bradford County.

According to the sentencing, Shults will be on probation for two years after his prison time, if he fails to comply with the terms of the probation the probation can be revoked and he could be re-sentenced to harsher punishment, including more time in state prison.

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Delegates attend the annual interim conference in Bonn in preparation for the World Climate Conference. Christoph Driessen/dpa

A 10-day UN climate conference in the German city of Bonn has failed to achieve a breakthrough when it comes to the issue of funding to help countries cut global warming.

Since 2009, industrialized countries have been set the target of providing billions of dollars in aid to assist poorer countries with global warming mitigation measures. This was confirmed in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement and extended to 2025.

The targeted amount of $100 billion annually was achieved for the first time in 2022. The question now is how to proceed after 2025, with a concrete decision to be taken at COP 29 in the Azerbaijani capital.

The Bonn conference was intended to prepare the ground for the November summit.

Industrialized countries are calling for the oil-rich states of the Middle East to contribute, on the grounds that they contribute more to global warming by extracting oil, for example, and also because they are rich enough to help others.

"The tireless attempts of the industrialized countries to soften their existing obligations for supporting poorer countries was cause for concern," Oxfam climate expert Jan Kowalzig said in Bonn on Thursday as the conference ended.

Talks will now have to proceed at ministerial level to arrive at a draft resolution for Baku. "If the Azerbaijani COP presidency acts too late here, Baku could fail on the issue of financing," Kowalzig said.
Delegates attend the annual interim conference in Bonn in preparation for the World Climate Conference. Christoph Driessen/dpa

A 10-day UN climate conference in the German city of Bonn has failed to achieve a breakthrough when it comes to the issue of funding to help countries cut global warming.

Since 2009, industrialized countries have been set the target of providing billions of dollars in aid to assist poorer countries with global warming mitigation measures. This was confirmed in the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement and extended to 2025.

The targeted amount of $100 billion annually was achieved for the first time in 2022. The question now is how to proceed after 2025, with a concrete decision to be taken at COP 29 in the Azerbaijani capital.

The Bonn conference was intended to prepare the ground for the November summit.

Industrialized countries are calling for the oil-rich states of the Middle East to contribute, on the grounds that they contribute more to global warming by extracting oil, for example, and also because they are rich enough to help others.

"The tireless attempts of the industrialized countries to soften their existing obligations for supporting poorer countries was cause for concern," Oxfam climate expert Jan Kowalzig said in Bonn on Thursday as the conference ended.

Talks will now have to proceed at ministerial level to arrive at a draft resolution for Baku. "If the Azerbaijani COP presidency acts too late here, Baku could fail on the issue of financing," Kowalzig said.

Germanwatch climate expert David Ryfisch added: "The progress in talks on the new climate financing target is evidently too slow to reach even a minimal compromise at the world climate summit."

New data published during the Bonn conference showed that for the past year, each month has turned out to be the warmest on record for that month.

May this year was 1.52 Celsius degrees warmer than May in the 1850-1900 period, and the average 12 month temperature up to May 2024 was 1.63 degrees above the level in that period.
It's been a whirlwind year or so for mifepristone, part of a two-drug regimen commonly prescribed to induce abortions and one whose legal status was thrown into question by an Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine (AHM) lawsuit. But a Supreme Court decision released today puts an end to the uncertainty (for now), ruling that the group did not have standing to bring the case.

"The plaintiffs do not prescribe or use mifepristone. And FDA is not requiring them to do or refrain from doing anything," noted Justice Brett Kavanaugh in the Court's opinion, which was unanimous.

"Rather, the plaintiffs want FDA to make mifepristone more difficult for other doctors to prescribe and for pregnant women to obtain," pointed out Kavanaugh. "Under Article III of the Constitution, a plaintiff's desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue. Nor do the plaintiffs' other standing theories suffice. Therefore, the plaintiffs lack standing to challenge FDA's actions."

Mifeprex, a brand-name version of mifepristone, was approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in 2000. The AHM and four doctors challenged both this initial approval and the FDA's later approval of generic equivalents, as well as the FDA's more recent loosening of rules for their prescription.

In 2023, U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk ruled in the group's favor, but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit only upheld his ruling with regard to the prescription policies, not approval of Mifeprex or its generic equivalents overall. The Biden administration and Mifeprex maker Danco Laboratories appealed the 5th Circuit's ruling, which brought the matter to the Supreme Court case before us today.

"We are relieved the Supreme Court didn't take this bait, but unfortunately we know that this is far from the end of the line," Jennifer Dalven, director of the American Civil Liberties Union's Reproductive Freedom Project, said in a statement. "Although the Court refused to allow these particular people to bring this case, anti-abortion politicians are waiting in the wings to attempt to continue pushing this case before an extremist judge in Texas in an effort to deny people access to medication abortion care."

Some have argued that if the AHM and the specific doctors in this case lack standing to sue, no one will have standing to sue.

"It is not clear that no one else would have standing to challenge FDA's relaxed regulation of mifepristone," wrote Kavanaugh. "But even if no one would have standing, this Court has long rejected that kind of 'if not us, who?' argument as a basis for standing.Rather, some issues may be left to the political and democratic processes."

The post Unanimous Supreme Court Rejects Abortion Pill Challenge appeared first on Reason.com.
UNC Asheville will discontinue four academic departments and curtail another as the liberal arts university faces a significant budget shortfall for the fiscal year and a years-long pattern of declining enrollment.

Chancellor Kimberly van Noort announced the proposed cuts Thursday. Her proposal comes after the university conducted a review of its academic offerings, called an academic portfolio review, beginning last month.

Four academic departments and the degrees they offer will be phased out as a result of the review, van Noort announced, meaning that current students with majors housed in the departments will be able to continue their studies and graduate, but future admissions will not be accepted. Those departments are:

Ancient Mediterranean studies

Drama

Philosophy

Religious studies

The languages and literatures department will be curtailed by eliminating its existing concentrations in French and German. The concentration in Spanish will remain.

With five of the universitys 27 undergraduate academic programs affected, van Noorts proposal is more limited than a recommendation from First Tryon Advisors, an outside consultant the university hired for the review, which suggested the university review 14 programs. Van Noort told the Asheville Watchdog, a local news outlet, that she would consider additional data, aside from First Tryons recommendations, in making her final proposal.

In the spring semester, 72 students were majoring in degrees offered in the affected departments, accounting for 3.5% of current students who have declared majors, van Noort said in her announcement. Between 2020 to 2023, the departments graduated, on average, a total of 25 students per year, accounting for about 3% of the universitys total graduates over that period.

Van Noorts proposal will be submitted to the UNC System Board of Governors and President Peter Hans for approval at the boards July meetings.

A plan will then be created giving students, faculty and staff a timeline by which the programs will be discontinued. Tenured and tenure-track faculty set to lose their jobs as a result of the cuts will be given six- to 12-months notice, while other affected faculty will receive notice or severance in accordance with UNC System policy.

Reducing program offerings is a painful step, and this is difficult for all of us, van Noort said in a campus message Thursday. The University remains steadfast in its commitment to the entire community and will fully support all students in the impacted programs and all impacted faculty members as we move forward.

Budget shortfall, enrollment declines

The portfolio review and its resulting cuts are one piece of a larger effort van Noort and UNC Asheville are making to address a $6 million budget shortfall for the current fiscal year, a deficit that is driven largely by declining enrollment at the small, liberal arts university over the past several years.

According to UNC System data, the universitys total enrollment has dipped by about 24% over the past six years. Last fall, the university enrolled about 2,900 students, down from more than 3,800 in 2017.

The Board of Governors, which sets policy for the states public university system, in 2022 revised the systems funding model for campuses  tying funds to schools performance instead of their ability to grow enrollment. But campuses still receive state funds based on students credit hours.

Van Noort on Thursday said a sustainable enrollment for the university would be between 3,800 and 4,000 students by 2030.

In addition to the portfolio review, the university in April laid off 12 employees, with the chancellors office among the three university departments affected, and limited employee travel, among other efforts. The university also expects 12 faculty to participate in the UNC Systems Faculty Realignment Incentive Program, van Noort said Thursday. That program allows retirement-eligible faculty to retire with severance packages, freeing up funds for other uses.

UNC Asheville is not alone in facing such enrollment declines and deficits, in North Carolina or nationwide.

UNC Greensboro, which has also experienced enrollment declines and budget deficits, conducted a similar academic portfolio review this academic year that resulted in 20 programs being cut from the universitys offerings. UNCG Chancellor Frank Gilliam summarized enrollments impact on campus funding by stating in a March campus message: Enrollment equals budget.

Winston-Salem State University is facing a roughly $3 million budget shortfall and eliminated 55 employment positions last month, Triad Business Journal reported.

All universities in the UNC System will be required to review their academic offerings at least every seven years, if not more often, under a revised policy on academic planning approved by the Board of Governors last month.
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Unique mugwort bouquets proved a hit with shoppers at the bustling shopping district in Chongqing Municipality, southwest China, during the just-concluded Dragon Boat Festival holiday.

In many parts of China, it is traditional to hang certain plants, including mugwort and calamus, over doors during the festival.

The bouquets combined classic festive plants with other auspicious components such as gourds, which symbolize good fortune, bells and greeting cards. Such creative arrangements made these bouquets some of the hottest items of the holiday, and they even trended on social media multiple times.

Zhang Bingning, a tourist from neighboring Sichuan Province, said she found the bouquet arrangement "very refreshing" as it features fashionable elements while staying true to tradition.

Dragon Boat Festival, also known as Duanwu Festival, traditionally falls on the fifth day of the fifth month in the Chinese lunar calendar. It was celebrated on Monday this year.

During the festival, people enjoy activities such as dragon boat races or eating Zongzi (sticky rice dumplings) to commemorate the patriotic poet Qu Yuan, who was also a minister of the State of Chu during the Warring States Period (475 BC-221 BC).

As an inheritor of a scented sachet technique that has been listed as a provincial-level intangible cultural heritage item in Hunan, Dai Yunyi and her team recently released a new product featuring verses written by Qu.

"We have embroidered lines of the verses and plant patterns onto the sachets, and filled them with fragrant plants mentioned in the verses that carry auspicious meanings. We want to celebrate Qu Yuan culture and showcase the beauty of his verses," said Dai.

The product proved a success, with a surge in orders pouring in from across the country.

During the three-day holiday, a rich variety of cultural and tourism activities incorporated traditional culture into holiday spending opportunities for the public.

As one of the most important customs on the day, dragon boat races were held in provinces such as Guangdong, Hunan, Zhejiang, Guizhou and Yunnan, which helped boost local tourism markets.

Data from online travel platform Ctrip showed that holiday travel bookings to the cities of Yueyang and Xuancheng, which both hold grand dragon boat races, rose 52 percent and 32 percent respectively from the same period last year.

In the city of Changsha, Hunan Province, visitors to a cultural center had the opportunity to learn how to make Zongzi, sachets and other handicrafts.

In Chongqing, a performance that combined opera and poetry transported the audience to Qu Yuan's world in a collective tribute to the poet.

Experts believe that a deeper integration of traditional culture with tourism development through closer coordination between the cultural, museum and tourism sectors will help further unleash the potential of consumption. 
Under the Dome: House budget due out next week

Good morning!  The state budget is coming! Well  a budget.

House Speaker Tim Moore announced Wednesday that the Houses budget proposal will be filed sometime Monday night. Itll then go through committees on Tuesday before being voted on on Wednesday and Thursday.

This comes after negotiations between the House and the Senate broke down, prompting Moore to move forward with his chambers proposal and put the ball in the Senates court.

Heres what else you need to know about North Carolina politics today from our team and correspondent Stephanie Loder.

 Kyle Ingram

Kelly Daughtry to help lead Republican judicial victory fund

Kelly Daughtry, who dropped out of her congressional runoff last month after former President Donald Trump endorsed her opponent, will now work to help Republican judges get elected in November.

The North Carolina GOP announced Wednesday that Daughtry will serve as the finance chair for its Judicial Victory Fund, which is running a slate of four Republican candidates for statewide judicial offices.

Ensuring we have conservative judges who follow the constitution and defend the rule of law is critical to the future of our courts, Daughtry said in a press release. Im ready to join that fight.

Susan Mills, the current vice chair of the NCGOP, will chair the fund.

At the top of the judicial ticket is the Supreme Court race, which pits Republican Court of Appeals Judge Jefferson Griffin against sitting Democratic Justice Allison Riggs.

Riggs was appointed to the high court last year by Gov. Roy Cooper after Justice Michael Morgan stepped down to run for governor.

 Kyle Ingram

Senators vote to give themselves say over DMV leader

The state Senate Transportation Committee approved a bill Wednesday that would give the Senate the final word over who runs the state Division of Motor Vehicles.

The committee approved a bill that would require the governor to appoint the DMV commissioner subject to senatorial advice and consent. Currently, that person is chosen and appointed by the secretary of transportation.

Republican lawmakers have been critical of the agencys management in recent years and especially of the current DMV commissioner, Wayne Goodwin, who took office two years ago. Goodwin is a former state insurance commissioner who also headed the North Carolina Democratic Party for four years.

Some Democrats on the committee voted against the bill, which now goes to the Senate rules committee.

Richard Stradling

Advocates gathered at NCs Freedom Park to call on lawmakers to take action on the child care funding cliff.

DAY CARE CENTERS FATE DANGLES ON FUNDING CLIFF

North Carolina is on the edge of the child care cliff, and on Wednesday, more than 60 people from advocacy groups, faith communities and day care centers gathered at Freedom Park in Raleigh and urged lawmakers to take action.

Day care centers statewide relied on stabilization grants provided by Congress to stay open and staffed for working parents during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Funding from those grants is set to run out at the end of the month. According to a survey of the states child care programs, without the grant money:

29% of child care centers expect to close.

1,535 programs could close.

91,660 child care slots would be taken away as a result of programs closing.

The Rev. Rob Stephens, NC Repairers of the Breach organizing committee coordinator, said lawmakers should use some of the states projected $1 billion budget surplus to fund child care when the grant money runs out.

Get the full story from Luciana Perez Uribe Guinassi here.

Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, who is running for governor, speaks at a Moms for Liberty rally outside the Legislative Building in Raleigh, N.C., Wednesday, June 12, 2024.

MARK ROBINSON TO MOMS FOR LIBERTY: DEI MUST GO

North Carolinas Republican Lt. Gov. Mark Robinson, a candidate for governor, on Wednesday told Moms for Liberty he wants to eliminate DEI.

Republicans have already targeted diversity, equity and inclusion, starting with the UNC System, forcing the elimination of DEI programs.

But Robinson wants to go further.

He received cheers from the crowd after he told the conservative group outside of the North Carolina Legislative Building that he wants to end DEI in government and schools.

The campaign for Democratic Attorney General Josh Stein, who is running against Robinson in the November, fired back. Get the full story from Dawn Baumgartner Vaughan and T. Keung Hui here.

NC TO DECIDE ON NEW HIGH SCHOOL SUSPENSION RULES

The N.C. Senate education committee on Wednesday approved legislation that would require public schools to allow high school students to appeal suspensions.

House Bill 207, sponsored by Davidson County Republican Sen. Steve Jarvis, follows the suspension of student Christian McGhee at Central Davidson High School in Lexington.

The bill also would let high school students expunge short-term suspensions from their records.

McGhees three-day suspension garnered national attention after he addressed his teacher using the words illegal aliens and saying they need green cards.

The family filed a lawsuit in May in U.S. District Court claiming a violation of their sons rights to free speech.

The bill, which has received bipartisan support, heads to the Senate rules committee.

Get the full story from T. Keung Hui here.

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Underage and overserved: Prosecutor says law goes easy on bartenders

PORTAGE, Mich. (WOOD)  Police in Kalamazoo County wanted to charge a bartender with a 10-year felony for selling $220 worth of alcohol to a 19-year-old, who then died in a fiery crash.

But Kalamazoo County Prosecutor Jeff Getting said he was surprised to learn that while state law would allow him to charge the host of a graduation party with a felony, those who sell alcohol for a living, including bartenders, are protected.

He charged the bartender at Long Lake Tavern in Portage with a misdemeanor, carrying up to 60 days in jail, for serving 19-year-old Wyatt Taylor in November.

I cant charge the felony, but if it was you at your home who was providing the minor with alcohol, I could charge you with the felony, Getting said. I think its very frustrating.

Frankly, I dont see why you would treat the bartender differently than you would treat the host of a graduation party, he continued. That is their job; theyre a professional. I think they should be held at least to the same standard.

Police reports show that Taylor drank at the Long Lake Tavern and kept drinking until he was drunk.

He was a good kid who did a dumb thing, and he paid his price, his mom Tonya Taylor said. Im not saying my son didnt consume the booze. Im not. But at some point a 19-year- old who doesnt drink and isnt accustomed to the effects of alcohol  This wasnt like an uncle giving him his first beer, or sneaking beer out of someones liquor cabinet, or somebody even giving him two beers.

They served him until he was so drunk he probably didnt know what he was doing when he left, his dad Andrew Taylor said.

Police reports obtained by Target 8 show their sons bar tab from when it was opened just after 11 p.m. Nov. 25 until just before 1:30 a.m. In two and a half hours, he bought two shots of Seagrams, one shot of Captain Morgan rum, three cans of Busch Light, one bottle of Bud Light, two shots of Western Sons vodka, two shots of 1800 Silver tequila, two shots of Glenlivet whiskey and 18 Jager bombs  shots of Jagermeister liqueur dropped into energy drinks.

Also an order of hot pepper cheese balls. The tab: $220.46, plus a $110 tip.

Eighteen Jager bombs, four or five beers, a bunch of mixed drinks, some other shots, and they sold it all to a 19-year-old kid, his dad said.

Somebody reduced his life to a $110 tip, his mom said. Thats how I feel. Thats not fair.

They wonder if he bought some of those drinks for friends, though police reports dont indicate that.

Theres no way he could have drank all that, his dad said.

I dont think he could have drank it all, his mom added, but on the other hand, how does a 265-pound kid get to a BAC of .204 four hours after?

An undated photo of Wyatt Taylor.

Wyatt Taylor was their only son, the youngest of two children.

He was a good kid, hard-working kid, his dad said.

He was 12 when he plowed driveways with dads four-wheeler, making enough to buy his own 44.

He was driven, said his mom. He had two trucks, snowmobile, snowmobile trailer, dirt bike. He paid for all that, at 19.

He was working as an apprentice tin knocker, doing duct work for W. Soule at Pfizer. He planned to save $100,000 for a down payment on his own house.

He was my best friend, his dad said tearfully. Its hard for me to talk about.

They say that as far as they knew, the only drinking he did was with them at home.

He would drink here once in a while, have a beer or two, according to his dad.

His parents said Wyatt Taylor had gone to the Long Lake Tavern that night with his dad and sister, then decided to stay after they left. Reports show his sister argued with him after seeing him with a beer at the bar.

She was, Dont be drinking brother, dont be stupid, come home. Im right behind you sister,' the mom said.

At 11:39 p.m., he sent a photo on Snapchat from the bar, with two cans of Busch Light in front of him.

Just before 7 a.m. the next day, about five hours after closing and after sleeping in his car in the bar parking lot, he headed home  still drunk.

A camera captured the car he was driving, a Toyota, leaving the bar. Seconds later and a mile to the north, another camera picked up a Ford Freestyle headed north on Sprinkle Road in Portage, then Taylors car speeding behind it.

He slammed the Ford into a utility pole. The other driver suffered a broken arm and minor head injury.

The Toyota caught fire with Taylor inside.

1 killed, 1 hurt in fiery crash in Portage

Tests showed he was driving up to 118 mph just before the crash, with a blood alcohol content level of .203  more than double the legal limit.

The parents got a call from the hospital.

Before I answered the phone, I said, Somethings wrong with Wyatt. I didnt hear him come home,' his mom recalled.

On their way to the hospital, they looked left and saw the flashing lights down the road.

We kind of had a feeling, his dad said.

I was expecting them to come in and say, Your son is in surgery. Hes got some broken bones,' his dad said. But that was not the case.

The worst part was when they put us in there, we couldnt touch him because there was a police investigation, his mom said. Your knee-jerk reaction is to run in and grab your baby. Thats always going to be my baby.

The parents said they want somebody other than just their son to pay.

I would like to see the bar lose their liquor license, Taylors dad said. They shouldnt have a liquor license. At some point, theres a responsibility. I understand the person who goes in there and drinks, its their responsibility, too, but you cant serve someone till theyre blackout drunk.

When police asked the bartender if Taylor was in the tavern that night, she responded: Do I need a lawyer?

I dont want to see her spend like her life in jail, shes just a young girl, made a mistake, but on the other hand shes got to realize that shes responsible for those people, Taylors dad said.

The bartenders attorney, Don Sappanos, a former bar owner himself, said the woman plans to turn herself in for arraignment.

Certainly, she feels horrible about it, Sappanos said.

He said its not clear why she served him.

Im not sure if he had a fake ID or any of that, or she just didnt card him. In any way, it still falls on her. Its her responsibility, the attorney said.

Police report shows the parents later went through their sons wallet and belongings and found no fake ID.

The bartenders attorney was told that Taylors friends walked him out and hid his keys so he couldnt drive.

Should they have gone farther? Should the bar have gone farther? Im sure theyll look at that in the future, he said.

The Michigan Liquor Control Commission has filed a complaint against the bar, accusing it of serving a minor. A hearing is scheduled for late June.

Long Lake Tavern has a short history of violations: fines in 1999 for selling three times to minors and in 2018 for a gambling infraction.

State records show the bar is licensed to Linbo ventures and that Lisa Goff is the president, treasurer, secretary and director. Goff told police she was holding it for sale and had no ownership stake after the owner, Robert Sanders, died three years ago.

I dont want em to make any money off that liquor license, Taylors dad said.

The parents said they want their sons case to send a message.

Call an Uber, the mom said.

If youre a bartender and somebody is obviously intoxicated, try to help them, try to get em a cab, instead of just sending them on their way, his dad said. Its like giving a depressed person a gun and saying, Have a nice day.'

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KANSAS CITY, Mo.  University Health Medical Center is asking for help identifying a patient who was brought in to the emergency room earlier this month.

The hospital said the patient was brought in on June 3 and has no personal belongings, documentation, or ID cards to help hospital staff identify him.

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University Health said the patient has also not been able to communicate his personal information to staff.

The patient is believed to be around 45 years old and is described as a possible Hispanic man with dark brown hair and a gray beard. He has no tattoos or other distinct physical markings that were found.

University Health said the patient does have old lacerations on his face and marks on his chest from an EKG, which suggests he may have been recently hospitalized.

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University of Iowa students protested in support of Palestine and lowering fees for graduate workers at the Iowa Board of Regents meeting. (Photo by Brooklyn Draisey/Iowa Capital Dispatch)

Protestors waited in silence, holding signs calling for a free Palestine and for the University of Iowa to end its mandatory fees for graduate workers, while the Iowa Board of Regents conducted its meeting Wednesday.

The protesters had gathered outside before walking up the stairs of the Levitt Center, their chants echoing throughout the building before they filed into the boards meeting room.

Once it was time for public comment, Nicole Yeager began speaking to board members by posing one question: Do you know what its like to be hungry?

Yeager was referring to the manner in which UI graduate workers struggle to pay for food and rent while collecting low wages and paying for rising mandatory fees imposed by the university  an issue that members of the graduate workers union spoke about during the public comment period of Wednesdays meeting.

Other UI students spoke out about the war in Gaza and told the board that it and the university should break ties with companies like Lockheed Martin and Collins Aerospace.

Graduate workers are having to work on the frontlines of public education while wondering and worrying about expenses, Yeager said. Other universities provide sign-on bonuses, stipends for moving, and initiatives to cover health care costs and fees, while mandatory fees at UI are set to go up by $49 this fall, if approved by the board at Thursdays meeting.

The Campaign to Organize Graduate Students, or COGS, has been campaigning for lower fees and pay raises for graduate workers since its last board-meeting protest in September. In March, the union called for a boycott of UIs One Day for Iowa fundraising day, saying that until the university can make education more affordable and accessible, no one should give their dollars to it.

Other students joined Yeager in sharing their concerns about being able to afford living expenses and an education while paying for health care and university fees. Doctoral student Noah Neiber said the university needs to think of the students who  especially the international students who have to pay additional fees  when deciding what students will have to pay next year.

Protestors also threw red paint on the Levitt Center sign Wednesday morning while the board was in closed session, posting it on social media with the caption UNIVERSITY OF IOWA HAS BLOOD ON THEIR HANDS  and now the Levitt Center for University Advancement does too.

The post went on to say that the university only advances apartheid and genocide, and people must demand that the university disclose its ties to Israel and divest itself from those partnerships. The sign was cleaned up soon after.

UI students and others on campus began protesting the war in Gaza and calling for an end to the Palestinian genocide earlier in the school year, urging the university to support a ceasefire in Gaza and sever its ties to companies connected to Israel. Protestors rallied during graduation ceremonies and attempted to set up an encampment in Hubbard Park, which was disbanded by police.

According to Reuters, the Israeli military has killed at least 37,000 Palestinians since the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, which killed around 1,200 people.

Emma Denney, who graduated with her doctorate this spring, said the University of Iowa and others are complicit in the genocide when they refuse to divest from their Israeli connections and when they suppress dissenting voices such as hers.

She said she sees a connection between the two topics brought up during the meeting, arguing that the boards willingness to work with police in opposing those who speak out is tied to larger campaigns against pro-Palestine protests.

The university would want to pretend that it doesnt have a profit motive but deeply and fundamentally it does, especially when funding from the state keeps going down and down and down and down, Denney said.

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The post University of Iowa students protest at Iowa Board of Regents meeting appeared first on Iowa Capital Dispatch.
University of Minnesota students will pay more in tuition next school year after regents in a divided vote Thursday approved the largest increase in more than a decade.

Minnesota residents taking undergraduate classes on the Twin Cities campus will pay $15,148 in tuition next school year, a 4.5% increase. Increases on other campuses range from 1.5% to 4.5%.

The increases were included in a $5 billion budget package that also calls for spending cuts and pay raises for some faculty who presented regents with data showing their wages are no longer competitive with other universities. Some areas of the university will eliminate positions when employees leave or hire new employees at lower cost. Others intend to reduce budgets for supplies, food or travel, or host fewer events.

Regents described it as a difficult budget year, and many who supported the proposal said they were trying to strike a balance that allows the U to retain instructors and provide high-quality services for students.

"I think nobody wants to raise tuition here," Regent Tadd Johnson said. "We have a responsibility to keep the university going, and we have a fiscal responsibility to make sure that it keeps moving in a good way."

Three of the 12 regents  James Farnsworth, Robyn Gulley and Bo Thao-Urabe  voted against the proposal. Some said they were hesitant to raise tuition, particularly in the face of enrollment declines on some campuses.

Thao-Urabe said she wanted to support portions of the budget proposal "and, yet, I'm really struggling with what feels to me like the significant increase for students."

Tuition rates vary based on the type of program and the location where classes are held. Undergraduate tuition for Minnesota residents attending the Duluth campus will rise 1.5% to $12,958, while tuition at the Rochester campus will increase 4.5% to $13,854. Some campuses have higher tuition for students who live in other states.

U administrators wrote in budget documents that the tuition increases were "larger than originally planned and proposed," in part because they did not receive the additional $45 million in state funding they requested this year.

They also said they hope changes to financial aid programs will help offset some of the increases for students most in need. Minnesota is launching a North Star Promise program that covers tuition for residents who attend a public school in the state if their families make less than $80,000 per year.

Assistant Budget Director Koryn Zewers told regents Thursday that the U will also use $1.4 million to help offset anticipated decreases in state aid for students whose families make between $80,000 and $120,000.

Niko Vasilopoulos, a student on the Twin Cities campus who serves as a representative to the Board of Regents, thanked U leaders for adding that aid.

"Tuition increases plus increases in housing and groceries affect students across the state," he said. "There is still work to be done, but I just wanted to highlight that addition."
A US attack submarine and one of Russia's most formidable subs are in Cuba at the same time

A US Navy fast-attack submarine just arrived in Cuba, shortly after a Russian sub showed up there.

The Los Angeles-class USS Helena is in Guantanamo Bay, while the Yasan-class Kazan is near Havana.

US and Western officials have long expressed concerns over Russia's Yasan-class boats.

A US Navy nuclear-powered attack submarine arrived in Cuba on Thursday, the Pentagon revealed, putting the American combat vessel in the Caribbean nation at the same time as one of Russia's most formidable subs.

US Southern Command said the fast-attack submarine USS Helena is presently in Guantanamo Bay as part of a routine port visit while conducting a "global maritime security and national defense mission" through SOUTHCOM's area of responsibility.

"The vessel's location and transit were previously planned," the military wrote in a statement.

The Helena is a Los Angeles-class submarine, a class of nuclear-powered boats that make up the backbone of the Navy's sub force. It was commissioned in the late 1980s and can be armed with torpedos, Tomahawk land-attack cruise missiles, and Harpoon anti-ship missiles.

The Los Angeles-class attack submarine USS Helena transits the Atlantic Ocean. US Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Rafael Martie/Released

Meanwhile, more than 500 miles away on the other side of Cuba, in waters near Havana, is a flotilla of Russian naval vessels that arrived this week ahead of maritime exercises in the Caribbean.

One of these vessels is the Kazan, a Yasan-class nuclear-powered cruise missile submarine.

US and other Western officials have long expressed concerns about Yasan-class subs like the Kazan because of their strike and stealth capabilities. These vessels are relatively new  the first in the class was commissioned just over 10 years ago  and they can be heavily armed to conduct attacks against targets on land and at sea.

A spokesperson for SOUTHCOM said that the Helena's arrival in Cuba was not a direct response to the Russian naval vessels. "Russia's activities pose no threat or concern to the United States, and we see no reason to alter previously planned, routine activity in response to Russian activity in the region," they said.

The Russian nuclear-powered submarine Kazan arrives at Havana's harbor on June 12. ADALBERTO ROQUE/AFP via Getty Images

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov on Thursday called the visit a "normal practice" and said Moscow doesn't see any reason to be concerned. The naval activity has been seen by some, however, as an attempt by Russia to flex its naval power after losing a string of warships in the Black Sea to Ukrainian missiles and drones, but if it's intended to project power, it's limited.

The visit comes amid elevated tensions between Washington and Moscow over the Ukraine war. The US recently lifted some restrictions on the Ukrainians, allowing Kyiv to strike Russian territory with American-made weapons, a move that was met with anger by the Kremlin.

Sabrina Singh, the deputy Pentagon spokesperson, said the US has been tracking the Russian naval movement and described the port call as a "routine" visit that does not come as a surprise.

"We're always constantly going to monitor any foreign vessels operating near US territorial waters," Singh said during a Wednesday briefing. "We, of course, take it seriously, but these exercises don't pose a threat to the United States."

Read the original article on Business Insider
By Tom Balmforth and Jonathan Landay

KYIV/WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United States, Britain and Canada accused Russia on Thursday of carrying out a plot to sway the outcome of the Moldovan presidential election in October and incite protests if a pro-Moscow candidate should lose.

Russia is working to exacerbate societal tensions and foment negative perceptions of the West and the incumbent team of Moldova's pro-Western President Maia Sandu through disinformation and online propaganda, they said in a statement issued by the State Department in Washington.

"We are taking this step to warn our democratic partners and allies that Russian actors are carrying out a plot to influence the outcomes of Moldova's fall 2024 presidential election," they said.

The plot, they said, is part of wider attempts by Moscow to subvert democratic elections to "secure results favorable to the Kremlin."

The threat is especially relevant this year as hundreds of million of voters in Europe and North America cast ballots in national, regional and local elections, the statement said.

The Russian embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean said on social media platform X that he was grateful for support from the three allies and vowed that the "Kremlins attempts to undermine our sovereignty and incite unrest will not succeed."

Moldova, a former Soviet republic of 2.5 million people, has fiercely condemned Russia's invasion of neighboring Ukraine, accused Moscow of plotting the Moldovan government's overthrow and expelled Russian diplomats.

Russia, the allies said, is backing presidential candidates in Moldova and unidentified pro-Russia actors are "actively using disinformation and propaganda online, on the air and on the streets to further their objectives."

These actors are fanning criticism of Sandu and her Party of Action and Solidarity to incite protests and plan to spread lies about her character and "supposed electoral irregularities."

The allies issued the statement a day after the United States imposed sanctions on Evgenia Gutul, the pro-Russia governor of Moldova's Gagauzia region.

Gutul faces criminal allegations of channelling funds from Russia to finance the now-banned Shor Party set up by Ilan Shor, an exiled pro-Russia businessman convicted of fraud in Moldova.

She denies the allegations as fabricated.

During a visit by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to Chisinau last month, Sandu accused the Kremlin of using criminal groups in Gagauzia to bring in Russian money to finance de-stabilizing activities and attempts "to bribe the elections."

In the joint statement, the allies said they shared Sandu's concerns that the Kremlin is using criminal groups to finance political activities.

Moscow's political interference, they said, dates back years, and they cited as an example "direct support" that employees of Russia's state-funded RT media network have provided to Shor.

(Reporting by Tom Balmforth in Kyiv and Jonathan Landay in Washington; additional reporting by Simon Lewis in Washington; Editing by Toby Chopra, Chizu Nomiyama and Rod Nickel)
Insights from Kan, Breaking Defense, Foreign Policy, Center for Strategic and International Studies, and The Wall Street Journal

The News

The US is trying to steer Israel away from an escalating conflict with Hezbollah, after Israel killed a senior Hezbollah commander on Wednesday, leading the militant group to respond with its largest rocket attack on Israel since the current round of violence started in October 2023.

The Biden administration fears a full-scale war could break out, and American officials have warned how another conflict could jeopardize the security of the entire Middle East, Axios reported.

We dont want this to escalate to a broad regional conflict and we urge de-escalation, a Pentagon spokesperson said Tuesday.

SIGNALS

Semafor Signals: Global insights on today's biggest stories.

Israel-Lebanon border is like a warzone

Sources: The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, Kan, Breaking Defense

Regular rocket attacks on northern Israel mean that at least 60,000 Israelis who left their homes in October remain displaced, The Wall Street Journal reported. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly said he will ensure that they will be able to return home, and he is under pressure from the right to push Hezbollah back from the border, The New York Times reported. Polls by Israels national broadcaster found 55% of respondents believe Israel should expand its attacks on Hezbollah. On the Lebanese side of the border, a further 90,000 people are displaced, and frequent Israeli strikes have decimated many villages, leaving only debris and ruins left, Breaking Defense reported.

Hezbollah is 10 times stronger than Hamas

Sources: Anadolu Agency, Center for Strategic and International Studies, Arab Center Washington DC

Israels Defense Minister said last year that Hezbollah is 10 times stronger than Hamas. If Israel expands its conflict with Hezbollah, it would face a much more prepared, well-armed adversary than it has in Gaza, and Hezbollah is estimated to have roughly three times as many fighters as Hamas. Hezbollahs tactical proficiency, combat experience, and will to fight make it a much deadlier threat than Hamas  and even other regional militaries, experts at the Center for Strategic and International Studies argued. Hezbollah has become confident in its ability to win the next conflict against Israel, even if this is likely to lead to widespread devastation, civilian casualties, and displacement in Lebanon, one expert wrote.

Hezbollah and Israel have avoided war so far

Sources: Foreign Policy, Bloomberg

Despite the tit-for-tat sparring, most analysts believe that both parties want to avoid all-out war. Hezbollah knows that Lebanon would be destroyed, with thousands of casualties. But Israel is also aware that what it faced in Gaza over these past months, without achieving its full objectives, would be nothing compared to a war with Hezbollah, an expert wrote in Foreign Policy. Even so, Israeli officials have warned that if Hezbollah continues to attack, it may be forced into a war. So far, diplomacy has failed, with Hezbollah saying it is unwilling to negotiate until a ceasefire is reached in Gaza.
President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, left, shake hands after signing a security agreement on the sidelines of the G7, Thursday, June 13, 2024, in Savelletri, Italy. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

FASANO, Italy (AP)  President Joe Biden and Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a 10-year security agreement Thursday that they hailed as a milestone in relations between their countries, but that alone was not enough to stop Zelenskyy from wondering how much longer he could count on America's support.

Zelenskyy also said his country urgently needed additional air defense systems to protect Ukrainians and the nation's infrastructure from Russia's continued bombardment.

The leaders signed the agreement on the sidelines of the annual Group of Seven summit, held this year in Italy, and Biden said the goal "is to strengthen Ukraine's defense and deterrence capabilities.

Zelenskyy said at a joint news conference that the signing made for a truly historic day, but he also wondered about the durability of support from the United States and other allies.

Ukraine's president said the right question to ask is for how long the unity in the world will remain? The unity in the U.S., together with European leaders" and how it will be influenced by the outcome of elections this year in many of those countries.

Topping that list is voting in the U.S. in November in a campaign that could see the return of Republican Donald Trump to the presidency. Trump has been skeptical of providing additional military aid to Ukraine, at one point criticizing the endless flow of American treasure. He more recently has expressed openness to lending money instead and has said Ukraines independence is important to the United States.

Biden said the U.S. has commitments from five countries that he did not name to provide Patriot missile and other air defense systems to Ukraine. He said countries that have been expecting the same weapons from the U.S. have been told they will have to wait because everything we have is going to go to Ukraine until their needs are met.

Zelenskyy said he urgently needed seven Patriot systems. Biden then told him, Youll have some relatively quickly.

Germany is one of the five countries that have promised an additional Patriot system for Ukraine.

Zelenskyy went on to deliver a stark warning about Russian aggression, saying that if Ukraine does not withstand, the democracy of many countries, I am sure, won't withstand either.

The U.S. and European countries also agreed to keep sanctioned Russian assets locked up until Moscow pays reparations for its invasion of Ukraine, clearing the way for a $50 billion loan package for Ukraine. Combined with new sanctions against Russia announced earlier in the week, Biden said the series of actions to support Ukraine show Putin that he cannot wait us out. He cannot divide us.

The highly anticipated agreement will leverage interest and income from more than $260 billion in frozen Russian assets, largely held in Europe, to secure a $50 billion loan from the U.S. and additional loans from other partners. Ukraine will receive the first payments sometime this year, a U.S. official said. The official spoke on the condition of anonymity to preview the agreement, which will be included in the G7 leaders' statement on Friday.

Ukraine will be able to spend the money in several areas, including military, economic, humanitarian and reconstruction needs, the official said.

The leaders statement on Friday will also preserve the option of confiscating the Russian assets entirely, for which the allies have yet to secure the political will, largely citing legal and financial stability concerns.

Biden and Zelenskyy met Thursday for the second time in two weeks to discuss the security agreement as the group of wealthy democracies has been looking for new ways to bolster Ukraine's defenses against Russia.

The agreement on using frozen Russian assets to benefit Ukraine comes several months after the White House broke through a logjam in Congress that had stalled approval of some $60 billion in U.S. aid for Ukraine. The delay gave Russia time to make up ground on the battlefield. Biden publicly apologized to Zelenskyy for the holdup when they met last week in France.

The security agreement does not commit U.S. troops directly to Ukraines defense against Russia. Biden does not want the U.S. to be pulled into a direct conflict with nuclear-armed Moscow.

The pact, which would remain in effect for 10 years, does not offer Ukraine any new money but includes a commitment by the U.S. to work with Congress on a source of sustainable funding for the future. Text of the agreement released by the White House also describes how the U.S. will coordinate with Ukraine and other U.S. allies and partners to make sure Ukraine has the military, intelligence and other means necessary to defend itself and deter Russian aggression.

The U.S. and Ukraine would also consult at the highest levels in the event of a future armed attack by Russia against Ukraine. Either side can terminate the agreement in writing with six months notice, which means a future U.S. president, including Trump if elected in November, could cancel the arrangement.

Scores of countries and organizations are set to meet over the weekend in Switzerland to discuss peace for Ukraine. Biden is not attending the summit, which has disappointed Zelenskyy. Vice President Kamala Harris will represent the U.S. instead while the Democratic president attends a campaign fundraiser in Los Angeles.

It wasnt just Ukraine that occupied the allies attention.

Biden announced that Italy was joining a G7 initiative to provide development assistance to Africa, which is meant as a bulwark against growing Chinese influence on the continent. Biden said $60 billion mobilized by the U.S. and the G7 is proof democracies can deliver, as the U.S. and its allies warn that Chinas investments come attached with geopolitical and economic demands.

The annual summit opened Thursday in Italy's picturesque Puglia region in the south, with leaders meeting in private to discuss the wars in Gaza and Ukraine and other mutual concerns.

The Group of Seven industrialized democracies  the U.S., Britain, Canada, France, German, Italy and Japan, plus European governing bodies  meets annually. Italy holds the rotating presidency this year, and Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is hosting her counterparts.

-

Superville reported from Fasano, Italy. Associated Press writers Chris Megerian and Zeke Miller in Washington contributed to this report.
Chinese Premier Li Qiang arrives in Wellington, New Zealand, June 13, 2024, for an official visit to New Zealand. Li will also pay official visits to Australia and Malaysia, and will co-chair the ninth China-Australia Annual Leaders' Meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. (Xinhua/Li Tao)

WELLINGTON, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang arrived here Thursday for an official visit to New Zealand, the first leg of his three-nation tour from June 13 to 20.

Li said upon arrival that he looks forward to having in-depth exchanges of views with New Zealand leaders and people from all walks of life on China-New Zealand relations and issues of common concern, to further deepening exchanges and cooperation in various fields, and to updating the China-New Zealand comprehensive strategic partnership.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to New Zealand, as well as the establishment of the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and New Zealand, Li said, noting that his visit to New Zealand is intended to continue traditional friendship, promote mutually beneficial cooperation, and drive common development.

Although China and New Zealand are separated by vast oceans, their friendly exchanges have a long history, and they have a deep understanding and affection for each other, Li said.

Over the more than 50 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, under the strategic guidance of the leaders of both countries, the relationship between China and New Zealand has consistently been at the forefront of China's relations with developed countries, Li added.

Noting that the two countries have achieved fruitful results in cooperation in trade, investment, tourism, science and technology, and cultural exchanges, Li said that their cooperation has set a model of mutual benefit and win-win cooperation between countries with different social systems, historical cultures, and stages of development.

Li expressed his belief that with the joint efforts, China-New Zealand relations will surely usher in an even brighter future, bringing greater benefits to the people of both countries and contributing more to world peace, stability, development, and prosperity.

During his stay, Li will hold in-depth exchanges of views with Governor-General Cindy Kiro, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and other officials on China-New Zealand relations as well as international and regional issues of common concern.

Li will also pay official visits to Australia and Malaysia, and will co-chair the ninth China-Australia Annual Leaders' Meeting with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. 
US officials are publicly and privately urging their Israeli allies to avoid escalating the back-and-forth strikes that have been taking place for months between the IDF and the Lebanese militant movement Hezbollah, arguing the fighting could turn an already deadly two-party war in Gaza into an even worse regional conflict.

"We are concerned about an increase in activity in the north. We dont want this to escalate to a broad regional conflict and we urge de-escalation," Pentagon deputy spokeswoman Sabrina Singh told reporters on Wednesday.

On Tuesday, Israeli forces killed a senior Hezbollah commander, Taleb Sami Abdullah, known as Abu Taleb, near the Lebanon-Israel border. The strike prompted the Iran-backed militia and political movement to fire over 200 missiles into Israel today in response, its largest attack since the October 7 conflict between Israel and Hamas began.

Our response after the martyrdom of Abu Taleb will be to intensify our operations in severity, strength, quantity and quality, senior Hezbollah official Hachem Saffieddine said during a funeral for the slain militant on Wednesday. Let the enemy wait for us in the battlefield.

Israel, in turn, reportedly conducted heavy bombing raids in southern Lebanon on Wednesday.

The conflict could quickly pull in other regional actors if not contained, according to experts, due to the complex web of alliances and rivalries across the region.

Iran backs a variety of governments and militia groups from Yemen to Lebanon to Syria, all of whom have hostile relationships with Israel, and all whom, to varying degrees, are already involved in the Israel-Hamas war.

In April, a suspected Israeli strike demolished Irans consulate in Syria, killing two Iranian generals. Later that month, an international military coalition including the US, the UK, and France supported Israel as it repelled an unprecedented Iranian attack involving hundreds of drones and missiles.

Throughout the war, Yemens Iran-backed Houthi militants and an Iran-aligned group in Iraq have targeted ships passing through the busy Red Sea shipping corridor, in protest of the Israeli war effort in Gaza.

The US and UK navies have deployed to the region and targeted the Houthis with additional strikes.

Taken together, according to Mohanad Hage Ali, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut, its a recipe for instability.

So a war with Lebanon would lead to an engagement from the Houthis in Yemen, further attacks from Iraq, from Syria and perhaps some US involvement at some point, he told NPR. And that would drag in some other actors and players and would lead to further instability.

Tensions have been ratcheting up this month between Israel and Lebanon. A series of Hezbollah attacks last week set off massive forest fires in Northern Israel, and Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu promised a very strong action in response.

Hezbollah fighters carry the coffin of their comrade, senior commander Taleb Sami Abdullah, 55, known within Hezbollah as Hajj Abu Taleb, who was killed late Tuesday by an Israeli strike in south Lebanon, during his funeral procession in the southern suburbs of Beirut, Lebanon, Wednesday, June 12, 2024 (AP)

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, speaking on Wednesday from Qatar, one of the nations brokering negotiations between Israel and Hamas, argued that a ceasefire between the two sides would help calm the tension between Israel and Lebanon as well.

Now, theres no doubt in my mind that the best way to empower a diplomatic solution to the north, Lebanon, is a resolution of the conflict in Gaza and getting the ceasefire, he told reporters. That will take a tremendous amount of pressure out of the system.

Theres still considerable daylight between Israel, Hamas, and the US, over a proposed ceasefire deal.

The US has publicized a ceasefire plan, which it says Israel backs, which would begin with a six-week ceasefire and hostages-for-prisoners swap, then be followed by a three-stage rebuilding process in Gaza and further negotiations towards a political settlement.

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, has yet to publically endorse the plan, and is under considerable domestic pressure from his right-wing coalitition to fully destroy Hamas before accepting any ceasefire.

The Palestinian group submitted its response to negotiators late Tuesday. Senior Hamas official Osama Hamdan told AFP it is seeking to add provisions guaranteeing "a permanent cease-fire and complete withdrawal" by the IDF, demands Israel has rejected.
FILE PHOTO: Police block protesters during a visit by U.S, President Donald Trump to the Dream City Church in Phoenix

By Sarah N. Lynch

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The U.S. Justice Department on Thursday took aim at the Phoenix Police Department, accusing its officers of systemically violating peoples' civil rights and using excessive and at times "unjustified deadly force" against city residents.

In a new investigative report, the Justice Department Civil Rights Division said it has reasonable cause to believe that police in Phoenix routinely discriminate against Black, Hispanic and Native Americans, and unlawfully detain homeless people and dispose of their belongings.

The report also found that the police frequently violate people's protected free speech, discriminate against people with behavioral disabilities and use aggressive tactics with children that could have a "lasting impact" on their wellbeing.

In a letter to Justice Department officials, Phoenix city attorney Julie Kriegh said that the city and its police department today are "materially different than the department" that was investigated.

"The Phoenix City Council has consistently, through meaningful dialogue with community members, invested in substantial public expenditures and proposed and approved significant projects," she wrote, citing the use of body-worn cameras and initiatives addressing homelessness and mental health.

The department's findings end a nearly three-year-long investigation, first announced in August 2021, that examined whether the Phoenix Police Department engaged in a "pattern or practice" of civil rights abuses.

"In the years leading up to our investigation, PhxPD officers shot and killed people at one of the highest rates in the country," the report found.

"PhxPD relies on dangerous tactics that lead to force that is unnecessary and unreasonable. PhxPD has taught officers a misguided notion of de-escalation. Rather than teaching that de-escalation strategies are designed to eliminate or reduce the need to use force, PhxPD has misappropriated the concept and teaches officers that all forceeven deadly forceis de-escalation," the report said.

The report also found that police frequently retaliated against their own critics.

In one example, police created a so-called "challenge coin" that depicted the image of a protester whom an officer had shot in the groin.

The coin had a star over the image of the man's groin with the words: Good night, left nut.

On the back, the coin read, Making America Great Again  One Nut at a Time.

"Police officers abused their power to silence people asserting their constitutional rights to free speech and assembly," said Kristen Clarke, the head of the department's Civil Rights Division, during a virtual press conference.

The Justice Department's findings could possibly be met with some resistance by Phoenix city officials, who have declined prior requests by the department to enter into a court-monitored consent decree.

Some of the Justice Department's other high-profile civil rights investigations into police departments in Minneapolis and Louisville were spurred by police killings of unarmed Black citizens. The probe into Phoenix, by contrast, was not prompted by any single incident.

However, the report noted that in the years leading up to the investigation, Phoenix Police shot and killed people at one of the highest rates in the nation.

Thursday's report by the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division was delivered to Phoenix without any agreement between the parties on how to implement policing reforms.

In a January 2024 letter to Justice Department officials, the city's outside counsel Michael Bromwich accused the department of a "lack of transparency" and failing to share any of the tentative conclusions from the investigation.

He added that the city was already implementing policing reforms and asked the Justice Department to consider an alternative approach to a consent decree.

Clarke on Thursday called the department's findings "severe."

She said the department is prepared to sit down with the city to identify a "mutually beneficial path" toward reform.

"This is one instance where we can't count on the police to police themselves," she said.

Phoenix City Manager Jeff Barton, in a message to employees, said the city was taking the findings seriously and will review the report "with an open mind."

"Self-reflection is an important step in continuous improvement," he wrote.

(Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Josie Kao)
The US fines Middle Eastern airline Emirates $1.8 million for flights that passed too low over Iraq

FILE - An Emirates plane taxis to a gate at Dubai International Airport at Dubai International Airport in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, March 22, 2017. The U.S. Transportation Department said Thursday, June 13, 2024, that it fined Middle Eastern airline Emirates $1.8 million for flights in regions off-limits to U.S. airlines while it allowed JetBlue Airways to sell seats on the planes. (AP Photo/Adam Schreck, File)

WASHINGTON (AP)  The Transportation Department said Thursday that it fined Middle Eastern airline Emirates $1.8 million for flights in regions off-limits to U.S. airlines while it allowed JetBlue Airways to sell seats on the planes.

The fine involves a significant number of flights from December 2021 to August 2022 that passed over Iraq on their way between the United States and the United Arab Emirates.

UAE-based Emirates was fined $400,000 in 2020 for similar flights and agreed not to repeat the same violation.

JetBlue and Emirates had an arrangement called code-sharing in which the New York-based carrier sold seats on Emirates flights as if they were its own planes. The United States lets foreign airlines operate flights sold under the name or code of a U.S. airline if they obey Federal Aviation Administration restrictions when they do.

The FAA had prohibited U.S. airlines from flying over Iraq at less than 32,000 feet for safety reasons.

According to a consent order, Emirates said the flights were planned to stay above 32,000 feet and only flew lower when ordered to do so by air traffic controllers.

Under the consent order, $300,000 of the fine will be dropped if Emirates avoids violating U.S. restrictions for a year.

Emirates and JetBlue ended their code-sharing partnership in October 2022, a few months before Emirates started a similar deal with United Airlines.
US reporter Evan Gershkovich, jailed in Russia on espionage charges, to stand trial, officials say

FILE - Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich stands in a glass cage in a courtroom at the First Appeals Court of General Jurisdiction in Moscow, Russia, April 23, 2024. Gershkovich, who has been jailed for over a year in Russia on espionage charges, will stand trial in the city of Yekaterinburg, authorities said Thursday June 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko, File)

MOSCOW (AP)  U.S. journalist Evan Gershkovich, who has been jailed for over a year in Russia on espionage charges, will stand trial in the Ural Mountains city of Yekaterinburg, where he was detained, authorities said Thursday.

An indictment of The Wall Street Journal reporter has been finalized and his case was filed to the Sverdlovsky Regional Court in the city about 1,400 kilometers (870 miles) east of Moscow, according to Russias Prosecutor Generals office. There was no word on when the trial would begin.

Gershkovich, 32, is accused of gathering secret information on orders from the CIA about Uralvagonzavod, a facility in the Sverdlovsk region that produces and repairs military equipment, the Prosecutor Generals office said in a statement, revealing for the first time the details of the accusations against him.

Gershkovich was detained while on a reporting trip to Yekaterinburg in March 2023 and accused of spying for the United States. The reporter, his employer and the U.S. government denied the allegations, and Washington designated him as wrongfully detained.

Russias Federal Security Service, or FSB, alleged after arresting Gershkovich that he was acting on U.S. orders to collect state secrets but provided no evidence to back up the accusations.

The U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller slammed the development, saying there was absolutely zero credibility to those charges" and adding that the U.S. government would continue to work to bring Gershkovich home.

Evan has done nothing wrong. He should never have been arrested in the first place. Journalism is not a crime," Miller said. "The charges against him are false. And the Russian government knows that theyre false. He should be released immediately.

The Biden administration has sought to negotiate his release, but Russias Foreign Ministry said Moscow would consider a prisoner swap only after a verdict in his trial.

Russias latest move toward a sham trial is, while expected, deeply disappointing and still no less outrageous, a statement by Almar Latour, Dow Jones CEO and publisher of the Journal, and Emma Tucker, the Journal's editor in chief, said.

They added that the charges against Gershkovich were false and baseless.

"The Russian regimes smearing of Evan is repugnant, disgusting and based on calculated and transparent lies. Journalism is not a crime. Evans case is an assault on free press," the statement said. We had hoped to avoid this moment and now expect the U.S. government to redouble efforts to get Evan released.

Roger Carstens, the Biden administrations special presidential envoy who serves as the U.S. governments top hostage negotiator, said that though he had been hopeful about striking a deal to get Gershkovich home before this point, the latest development doesnt slow or stop us down.

The bottom line is, this was not unexpected, he said.

Uralvagonzavod, a state tank and railroad car factory in the city of Nizhny Tagil, about 100 kilometers (60 miles) north of Yekaterinburg, became known in 2011-12 as a bedrock of support for President Vladimir Putin.

Plant foreman Igor Kholmanskih appeared on Putins annual phone-in program in December 2011 and denounced mass protests occurring in Moscow at the time as a threat to stability, proposing that he and his colleagues travel to the Russian capital to help suppress the unrest. A week later, Putin appointed Kholmanskikh to be his envoy in the region.

Putin has said he believed a deal could be reached to free Gershkovich, hinting he would be open to swapping him for a Russian national imprisoned in Germany, which appeared to be Vadim Krasikov, who is serving a life sentence for the 2019 killing in Berlin of a Georgian citizen of Chechen descent.

Asked last week by The Associated Press about Gershkovich, Putin said the U.S. is taking energetic steps to secure his release. He told international news agencies in St. Petersburg that any such releases arent decided via mass media but through a discreet, calm and professional approach.

And they certainly should be decided only on the basis of reciprocity, he added in an allusion to a potential prisoner swap.

Gershkovich faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

He was the first U.S. journalist taken into custody on espionage charges since Nicholas Daniloff in 1986 at the height of the Cold War. Gershkovichs arrest shocked foreign journalists in Russia, even though the country had enacted increasingly repressive laws on freedom of speech after sending troops into Ukraine.

The son of Soviet emigres who settled in New Jersey, Gershkovich was fluent in Russian and moved to the country in 2017 to work for The Moscow Times newspaper before being hired by the Journal in 2022.

Since his arrest, Gershkovich has been held at Moscows Lefortovo Prison, a notorious czarist-era prison used during Josef Stalins purges, when executions were carried out in its basement.

U.S. Ambassador Lynne Tracy, who regularly visited Gershkovich in prison and attended his court hearings, has called the charges against him fiction and said that Russia is using American citizens as pawns to achieve political ends.

Since sending troops to Ukraine, Russian authorities have detained several U.S. nationals and other Westerners, seemingly bolstering that idea.
The United States will send another Patriot missile system to Ukraine as the country struggles with continued Russian bombardment on its cities and energy infrastructure.

President Biden approved the systems deployment last week after several high-level meetings, The New York Times first reported.

Washington has since informed some allies of its decision to send Ukraine the additional battery, which will come from an airfield in southeastern Poland used by the U.S. military to send weapons and supplies to Kyivs forces, The Washington Post later reported.

Speaking to reporters from Brussels on Thursday, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin would not confirm reports but said air defense for Ukraine remains a top priority.

Air defense has been at the top of my agenda for a long time, Austin said after a meeting with the Ukraine Defense Contact Group, a U.S.-led coalition of more than 50 countries aimed at arming Ukraine in its more than two year war with Russia.

I dont have any announcements on Patriot batteries today, but what I can tell you is that I continue to work this, and Im in constant contact with my Ukrainian counterpart, and were going to do everything we can to make sure they have the capability that they need and that we get it there as quickly as we can, he continued.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky for months has pressed the U.S. for more air defenses as his country continues to face regular attacks from Russian forces.

U.S. forces have kept multiple Patriot batteries at the staging location in Poland since the start of the conflict in February 2022. Washington plans to backfill the system moved to Ukraine with another Patriot from elsewhere in the world, according to the Post.

Ukraine views the Patriot as especially important as its the only system that has been able to shoot down hypersonic missiles Moscow has aimed at the country. The Patriot also is particularly valuable in protecting troops, cities and power facilities as Moscow continues to lob missiles and drones at those targets.

On Wednesday alone, Russia sent cruise missiles and drones across Ukraine, with air defense units successfully downing 29 of 30 incoming targets, according to the countrys air force.

And hours later, Moscow launched another missile attack on Kryvyi Rih, Zelenskys hometown. At least nine people were killed in that barrage.

Every day and every hour, Russian terror proves that Ukraine must strengthen its air defense with the support of our partners, Zelensky wrote on social platform X afterward. Modern air defense systems can ensure maximum protection for our people, cities, and positions. We need them urgently.

Outside of the U.S., Germany has delivered two Patriot systems to Ukraine and has announced plans to soon deliver a third. The Netherlands also pledged to build a Patriot system for Kyiv.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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President Volodymyr Zelensky and U.S. President Joe Biden signed a long-awaited bilateral security agreement between Ukraine and the U.S. on the first day of the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Italy on June 13.

The agreement lays out a vision for a strong and resilient Ukraine, a just peace, economic recovery, and the restoration of Ukraine's energy infrastructure, Biden said after the signing.

The agreement "clearly states that America supports Ukraine's efforts to win this war," Zelensky said, describing the deal as a "bridge" to Ukraine's future NATO membership.

The text states that the U.S. "commits to support Ukraine in developing a modern, NATO-interoperable force that can credibly deter and, if necessary, defend against future aggression," including developing Ukraine's air and missile defense, cybersecurity, and maritime capabilities.

The U.S. also commits to working toward procurement of squadrons of modern fighter aircraft, "including, but not limited to, F-16s," according to the text.

"It is very important that the agreement addresses the issue of Russia's responsibility," Zelensky added, noting that the text emphasizes that Ukraine should be provided with "fair compensation for damage caused by Russian strikes."

The agreement states that the U.S. "intends to hold Russian sovereign assets in United States jurisdiction immobilized until Russia pays for the damage it has caused to Ukraine."

Read also: G7 confirms agreement on $50 billion loan for Ukraine backed by Russian assets revenue

Additionally, the agreement details commitments from Ukraine on reforms and on end-use monitoring for Western-supplied weapons.

Ukraine and the U.S. held multiple rounds of negotiations on the agreement, which follows the pledge made by the G7 during the NATO summit in Vilnius in July 2023 to commit to Ukraine's long-term defense.

President Volodymyr Zelensky described the deal earlier on June 13 as "unprecedented."

U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told the press on June 12 that as a result of the agreement, the U.S. benefit from Ukraine's "insights and experience, its battlefield innovations, and its lessons learned from the front."

The U.S. joins 15 other countries, including the U.K., Germany, and France, that have signed similar bilateral treaties to help Kyiv repel Russia's aggression.

Zelensky and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida signed an agreement between Ukraine and Japan hours earlier on June 13.

Read also: US issues new sweeping sanctions against Russia  will they make a difference this time?

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Russia's Kazan nuclear-powered submarine arrives at the port of Havana, Cuba, Wednesday, June 12, 2024. A fleet of Russian warships reached Cuban waters on Wednesday ahead of planned military exercises in the Caribbean. (AP Photo/Ariel Ley)

WASHINGTON (AP)  A U.S. Navy submarine has arrived in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, in a show of force as a fleet of Russian warships gather for planned military exercises in the Caribbean.

U.S. Southern Command said the USS Helena, a nuclear-powered fast attack submarine, pulled into the waters near the U.S. base in Cuba on Thursday, just a day after a Russian frigate, a nuclear-powered submarine, an oil tanker and a rescue tug crossed into Havana Bay after drills in the Atlantic Ocean.

The stop is part of a routine port visit as the submarine travels through Southern Command's region, it said in a social media post.

Other U.S. ships also have been tracking and monitoring the Russian drills, which Pentagon officials say do not represent a threat to the United States.

This is not a surprise. Weve seen them do these type of port calls before, Pentagon spokeswoman Sabrina Singh said Wednesday when asked about the Russian drills. We of course take it seriously, but these exercises dont pose a threat to the United States.

The exercises, however, come less than two weeks after President Joe Biden authorized Ukraine to use U.S.-provided weapons to strike inside Russia to protect Kharkiv, Ukraines second-largest city. Russian President Vladimir Putin then suggested his military could respond with asymmetrical steps elsewhere in the world.

Singh said it wouldn't be a surprise to see more Russian activity around the United States in such global exercises. The drills are in international waters, and U.S. officials expect the Russian ships to remain in the region through the summer and possibly also stop in Venezuela.

Russia is a longtime ally of Venezuela and Cuba, and its warships and aircraft have periodically made forays into the Caribbean.

Russian ships have occasionally docked in Havana since 2008, when a group of Russian vessels entered Cuban waters in what state media described as the first such visit in almost two decades. In 2015, a reconnaissance and communications ship arrived unannounced in Havana a day before the start of discussions between U.S. and Cuban officials on the reopening of diplomatic relations.
FILE PHOTO: Republican U.S. presidential candidate Trump shows off the size of his hands as Fox News Channel moderators Baier and Kelly look on at the U.S. Republican presidential candidates debate in Detroit

By Andrew Chung

(Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court barred on Thursday a federal trademark for the phrase "Trump Too Small" - an irreverent criticism of former President Donald Trump - rejecting a California lawyer's claim that the trademark denial violated his constitutional free speech rights.

The justices unanimously overturned a lower court's decision that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's rejection of Steve Elster's application to register the trademark to exclusively use it on T-shirts violated the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment.

The case centered on a provision in a 1946 federal trademark law that bans the registration of any trademark that uses a living individual's name without their written consent. At issue was whether free speech protections for criticism of public figures outweigh the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office's concerns over Trump's rights, as the lower court found.

The justices unanimously agreed that the "names clause" provision at issue is constitutional, but differed in their reasons for reaching that conclusion.

"Restrictions on trademarking names have a long history," conservative Justice Clarence Thomas wrote for a majority of the justices. "Such restrictions have historically been grounded in the notion that a person has ownership over his own name, and that he may not be excluded from using that name by another's trademark."

Biden's administration had asserted that the law is a permissible condition on a government benefit and does not illegally stifle free speech because it bars registrations regardless of the viewpoint conveyed. Elster argued that allowing public figures to trademark their own positive messages while precluding registrations that criticize them verges on viewpoint discrimination.

Elster applied for the trademark in 2018 to place on shirts - along with a mocking hand gesture illustration - invoking an exchange between Trump and U.S. Senator Marco Rubio during a debate among candidates for the 2016 Republican presidential nomination. Trump earlier had insulted Rubio as "Little Marco." Rubio retorted that Trump had disproportionately small hands.

"Look at those hands. Are they small hands?" Trump asked at the debate. "If they're small, something else must be small. I guarantee you, there's no problem. I guarantee it."

Elster said that "Trump Too Small" expressed his opinion about "the smallness of Donald Trump's overall approach to governing." Trump was president when the application was made.

Trump, the Republican candidate challenging Democratic President Joe Biden in the Nov. 5 U.S. election, was not personally involved in the case and has not commented on it.

The trademark office rejected Elster's application. But the Washington-based U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit sided with Elster, finding that the government's interest in protecting the privacy and publicity rights of public figures did not supersede Elster's right under the First Amendment to criticize them.

Elster's application remained on hold at the agency pending the Supreme Court's ruling.

The Supreme Court in recent years has struck down two trademark laws, citing free speech concerns. It ruled in favor of Asian-American rock band The Slants in 2017 against a ban on trademarks that "disparage," and in favor of artist Erik Brunetti against a prohibition on "immoral" or "scandalous" trademarks in a dispute over his "FUCT" brand in 2019.

(Reporting by Andrew Chung in New York and Jogn Kruzel in Washington; Editing by Will Dunham)
By Andrew Chung

(Reuters) -The U.S. Supreme Court rejected a bid by anti-abortion groups and doctors to restrict access to the abortion pill, handing a victory on Thursday to President Joe Biden's administration in its efforts to preserve broad access to the drug.

The justices, two years after ending the recognition of a constitutional right to abortion, ruled 9-0 to overturn a lower court's decision to roll back U.S. Food and Drug Administration steps in 2016 and 2021 that eased how the drug, called mifepristone, is prescribed and distributed. The decision was authored by conservative Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

The pill, given FDA regulatory approval in 2000, is used in more than 60% of U.S. abortions.

The justices ruled that the plaintiffs, who sued in Texas in 2022, lacked the necessary legal standing to pursue the case, which required that they show they have been harmed in a way that can be traced to the FDA.

The Supreme Court, which has a 6-3 conservative majority, in 2022 overturned its 1973 Roe v. Wade precedent that had legalized abortion nationwide, prompting 14 states to enact measures banning or sharply restricting the procedure.

Biden, a Democrat seeking a second term in office in the Nov. 5 U.S. election, took aim at Republican officials behind such bans, saying they want to outlaw abortion nationwide and that Thursday's ruling "does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues."

"It does not change the fact that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, and women lost a fundamental freedom. It does not change the fact that the right for a woman to get the treatment she needs is imperiled if not impossible in many states," Biden added.

Kavanaugh wrote that even though the plaintiffs, led by a group called the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, do not prescribe or use mifepristone, they wanted the FDA to make it harder for other doctors to prescribe it and women to receive it.

"Under Article III of the Constitution, a plaintiff's desire to make a drug less available for others does not establish standing to sue," Kavanaugh wrote, referring to the constitutional provision laying out the authority of the U.S. government's judicial branch.

Kavanaugh rejected the argument made by the plaintiffs that the FDA's actions will force them to provide abortions, violating their consciences, because federal law already protects them.

A ruling in favor of the plaintiffs could have threatened the regulatory authority of the FDA over drug safety.

The plaintiffs targeted FDA regulatory actions in 2016 and 2021, including allowing for medication abortions at up to 10 weeks of pregnancy instead of seven, and for mail delivery of the drug without a woman first seeing a clinician in-person. The suit initially had sought to reverse FDA approval of mifepristone, but that aspect was rebuffed by a lower court.

Biden and other Democrats have sought to make abortion rights a central theme against Republicans in the election. Biden said he will continue to urge Congress to codify abortion rights in federal law. Biden noted that some state abortion bans include no exceptions for rape or incest.

"Women are being turned away from emergency rooms, or forced to go to court to plead for care that their doctor recommended or to travel hundreds of miles for care," Biden said. "Doctors and nurses are being threatened with jail time, including life in prison, for providing the health care they have been trained to provide. And contraception and IVF (in vitro fertilization) are under attack."

The Supreme Court by the end of June is expected to rule on the legality of Idaho's strict Republican-backed abortion ban that forbids terminating a pregnancy even if necessary to protect the health of a pregnant woman facing a medical emergency.

In the 14 states that have banned abortion with limited exceptions, medical providers cannot prescribe or dispense mifepristone under state law. Patients in those states might continue to take the legal risk of ordering the pills online from providers in other states or they might travel out-of-state to legally obtain the pills.

THE FIGHT OVER MIFEPRISTONE

Erin Hawley, a lawyer with the Alliance Defending Freedom conservative Christian legal group representing the plaintiffs, expressed disappointment with the ruling, but said it was on a "legal technicality" and not the merits of the legal arguments.

The plaintiffs argued that the FDA acted contrary to its mandate to ensure that medications are safe when it eased restrictions on mifepristone. The plaintiffs accused the FDA of violating a federal law governing the actions of regulatory agencies.

Hawley said she expects the litigation to continue given that three states - Idaho, Missouri and Kansas - already have intervened in it.

"We are very hopeful that the federal courts will have a chance to hold the FDA accountable for its unlawful actions in removing these long-standing safeguards for women," Hawley said.

Mifepristone is taken with another drug called misoprostol to perform medication abortions.

The FDA has said that after decades of use by millions of women in the United States and around the world, mifepristone has proven "extremely safe," and that studies have demonstrated that "serious adverse events are exceedingly rare."

Abortion rights advocates and Democratic lawmakers expressed mixed emotions concerning Thursday's ruling.

"I have both relief and anger about this decision. Thank goodness the Supreme Court rejected this unwarranted attempt to curtail access to medication abortion, but the fact remains that this meritless case should never have gotten this far," Center for Reproductive Rights President Nancy Northup said.

Former U.S. President Donald Trump, the Republican candidate challenging Biden, pledged in April to disclose how his administration would regulate the abortion drugs if he is elected, but has yet to do so. His campaign did not address the issue directly when responding to Thursday's court's decision.

"President Trump has been very clear - he supports the rights of states to make decisions on abortion, supports exceptions for abortions in cases of rape, incest and life of the mother, and also strongly supports protecting access to contraception and IVF," said Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt.

U.S. District Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk broadly sided with the plaintiffs in a 2023 decision that would have effectively pulled the pill off the market.

After the administration appealed, the New Orleans-based 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals did not go as far as Kacsmaryk but still ruled against the FDA's decisions in 2016 and 2021 widening access to the pill. The 5th Circuit's ruling was placed on hold pending Supreme Court review.

In a May Reuters/Ipsos poll, 50% of respondents said they supported an in-person doctor visit requirement for abortion medication, while 33% said they opposed that rule. Some 57% of respondents in the poll said abortion should be legal in all or most cases, up from 46% in Reuters/Ipsos polls conducted a decade ago, while 31% of respondents said abortion should be illegal in most or all cases, down from 43% in 2014 polls.

(Reporting by Andrew Chung in New York; Additional reporting by Gabriella Borter and Jim Oliphant; Editing by Will Dunham)
Chinese Premier Li Qiang holds talks with New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon in Wellington, New Zealand, June 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

WELLINGTON, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang met with New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon here on Thursday, agreeing to expand the scope of bilateral trade and investment and deepen personnel exchanges.

During their talks, Li said his visit coincides with the 10th anniversary of President Xi Jinping's official visit to New Zealand and the establishment of China-New Zealand comprehensive strategic partnership.

Over the past 10 years, no matter how the international landscape changes, China and New Zealand have consistently adhered to mutual respect, inclusiveness, cooperation and joint development, promoting bilateral relations to achieve substantial progress, and creating multiple "firsts" in bilateral cooperation, he said.

China is willing to work with New Zealand to continue their traditional friendship, enhance the spirit of "striving to be the first," jointly stimulate growth, and make efforts to upgrade the China-New Zealand comprehensive strategic partnership to bring more benefits to their people, Li added.

Li said that the respective development of China and New Zealand is an opportunity for each other rather than a challenge, calling on the two countries to continue as partners of mutual respect, mutual trust and mutual benefit that learn from each other and foster unity and coordination.

China stands ready to work with New Zealand in continuously expanding trade, exploring cooperation potential in sectors including digital economy, green economy, new energy vehicles and creative industry, and jointly promoting regional economic cooperation, said the Chinese premier.

He also called on New Zealand and China to eliminate non-economic disruptions in their economic and trade relations to provide businesses with stable expectations and a favorable business environment, adding that China welcomes more investment from New Zealand enterprises.

Noting that China is willing to deepen cultural and people-to-people exchanges with New Zealand, Li said China will include New Zealand in the list of unilateral visa-free countries and expressed the hope for New Zealand to facilitate easier travel for Chinese citizens visiting the country.

China and New Zealand are both firm supporters of multilateralism, free trade and an open world economy, Li said, calling on the two nations to strengthen communication and coordination in multilateral fields, and promote all parties to stick together through thick and thin for win-win cooperation.

For his part, Luxon said that since the establishment of the comprehensive strategic partnership 10 years ago, New Zealand and China have witnessed robust development in bilateral economic and trade relations and close personnel exchanges, benefiting the people of both countries.

He said New Zealand firmly adheres to the one-China policy and is willing to strengthen high-level dialogue and communication at various levels with China, further deepen cooperation on agriculture, food, creative industries and environmental protection, promote people-to-people exchanges and push for sustained and in-depth development of bilateral relations.

New Zealand stands ready to strengthen law enforcement cooperation with China, enhance coordination and cooperation within multilateral frameworks such as APEC, and jointly tackle climate change and other global issues, Luxon said.

Li and Luxon agreed that the development of China-New Zealand relationship has achieved satisfactory results. Both sides will continue to view and manage the relationship from a strategic and long-term perspective, expand bilateral trade and investment cooperation, deepen people-to-people exchanges between the two countries, and work together to safeguard multilateralism and free trade to promote sustained, healthy and stable development of China-New Zealand relations.

The two countries agreed to initiate negotiations on service trade negative list. After the meeting, Li and Luxon witnessed the signing of bilateral cooperation documents on service trade, business environment, export of agricultural and food products to China, science and technology, patent examination and migratory bird protection, among others. They also jointly met the press.

A joint statement of outcomes of the China-New Zealand leaders' meeting was issued. 

Chinese Premier Li Qiang holds talks with New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon in Wellington, New Zealand, June 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao)
Packages of mifepristone tablets are displayed at a family planning clinic on April 13, 2023, in Rockville, Md. Photo illustration by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

WASHINGTON  The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in a much-anticipated decision Thursday that mifepristone, one of two pharmaceuticals used in medication abortion, can remain available under current prescribing guidelines.

The high court unanimously rejected attempts by anti-abortion groups to roll back access to what was in place more than eight years ago, writing that they lacked standing to bring the case.

Those limits would have made it more difficult for patients to get a prescription for mifepristone, which the Food and Drug Administration has approved for up to 10 weeks gestation and is used in about 63% of U.S. abortions.

Erin Morrow Hawley, senior counsel at Alliance Defending Freedom, who argued the case in front of the court on behalf of the legal organization, doesnt believe this is the end of efforts to challenge access to mifepristone.

She said on a call shortly after the ruling was released the three states that intervened in a lower court  Idaho, Kansas and Missouri  could still advance their arguments against mifepristone and potentially hold standing, the legal right to bring a case.

I would expect the litigation to continue with those three states, Hawley said.

Kavanaugh writes opinion

Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote the opinion in the united ruling from the Supreme Court, with Justice Clarence Thomas writing a concurring opinion.

Plaintiffs are pro-life, oppose elective abortion, and have sincere legal, moral, ideological, and policy objections to mifepristone being prescribed and used by others, Kavanaugh wrote.

The four anti-abortion medical organizations and four anti-abortion doctors who originally brought the lawsuit against mifepristone have protections in place to guard against being forced to participate in abortions against their moral objections, he noted.

Not only as a matter of law but also as a matter of fact, the federal conscience laws have protected pro-life doctors ever since FDA approved mifepristone in 2000, Kavanaugh wrote. The plaintiffs have not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience.

Nor is there any evidence in the record here of hospitals overriding or failing to accommodate doctors conscience objections, he added.

Alliance Defending Freedom has not identified any instances where a doctor was required, notwithstanding conscience objections, to perform an abortion or to provide other abortion-related treatment that violated the doctors conscience since mifepristones 2000 approval, the opinion said.

Kavanaugh might have also included hints on how the court will rule later this session on a separate abortion access case that addresses the Emergency Medical Treatment & Labor Act, known as EMTALA.

EMTALA does not require doctors to perform abortions or provide abortion-related medical treatment over their conscience objections because EMTALA does not impose obligations on individual doctors, Kavanaugh wrote.

Thomas agrees but questions who can sue

Thomas wrote a concurring opinion in the case, saying that he agreed with the courts unanimous decision, which he did join, but brought up concerns with how a certain type of standing is used by the Court.

Applying these precedents, the Court explains that the doctors cannot establish third-party standing to sue for violations of their patients rights without showing an injury of their own, Thomas wrote.

But, there is a far simpler reason to reject this theory: Our third-party standing doctrine is mistaken, Thomas added. As I have previously explained, a plaintiff cannot establish an Article III case or controversy by asserting another persons rights.

Reaction pours in

Politicians, anti-abortion groups and reproductive rights organizations all reacted to the ruling within hours of its release, often pointing to Novembers elections as a potential next step.

President Joe Biden released a written statement saying the decision does not change the fact that the fight for reproductive freedom continues.

It does not change the fact that the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade two years ago, and women lost a fundamental freedom, Biden added. It does not change the fact that the right for a woman to get the treatment she needs is imperiled if not impossible in many states.

Former President Donald Trump, the Republican Partys presumptive nominee, was in meetings most of Thursday with U.S. House Republicans and then separately with Republican U.S. senators.

Neither Trump nor his campaign released a statement by early Thursday afternoon addressing the Supreme Courts ruling.

Louisiana Republican Sen. Bill Cassidy, ranking member on the Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee, wrote in a statement that the justice didnt actually address the merits of the case.

The Court did not weigh in on the merits of the case, but the fact remains this is a high risk drug that ends the life of an unborn child, Cassidy wrote. I urge FDA to follow the law and reinstate important safeguards.

President of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Stella Dantas related a statement saying the ruling provides us with long-awaited relief.

We now know that patients and clinicians across the country will continue to have access to mifepristone for medication abortion and miscarriage management, Dantas wrote. Decades of clinical research have proven mifepristone to be safe and effective, and its strong track record of millions of patient uses confirms that data.

Hawley from Alliance Defending Freedom wrote in a written statement the organization was disappointed that the Supreme Court did not reach the merits of the FDAs lawless removal of commonsense safety standards for abortion drugs.

While were disappointed with the courts decision, we will continue to advocate for women and work to restore commonsense safeguards for abortion drugslike an initial office visit to screen for ectopic pregnancies, Hawley wrote. And we are grateful that three states stand ready to hold the FDA accountable for jeopardizing the health and safety of women and girls across this country.

Nancy Northup, president and CEO of the Center for Reproductive Rights, wrote in a statement she had both relief and anger about this decision.

Thank goodness the Supreme Court unanimously rejected this unwarranted attempt to curtail access to medication abortion, but the fact remains that this meritless case should never have gotten this far, Northup wrote.

The FDAs rulings on medication abortion have been based on irrefutable science, Northup wrote. Unfortunately, the attacks on abortion pills will not stop here  the anti-abortion movement sees how critical abortion pills are in this post-Roe world, and they are hell bent on cutting off access.

Scientific evidence argued

The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case in March, during which Solicitor General Elizabeth Prelogar argued the FDAs guidelines for prescribing mifepristone were based on reputable scientific evidence and years of real-world use.

Only an exceptionally small number of women suffer the kinds of serious complications that could trigger any need for emergency treatment, Prelogar said. Its speculative that any of those women would seek care from the two specific doctors who asserted conscience injuries. And even if that happened, federal conscience protections would guard against the injury the doctors face.

Hawley of ADF told the court that conscience protections in federal law didnt do enough to protect anti-abortion doctors from having to possibly treat patients experiencing complications from medication abortion.

These are emergency situations, Hawley said. Respondent doctors dont necessarily know until they scrub into that operating room whether this may or may not be abortion drug harm  it could be a miscarriage, it could be an ectopic pregnancy, or it could be an elective abortion.

The case reached the Supreme Court within two years of ADF originally filing the lawsuit in the District Court for the Northern District of Texas, where ADF wrote the FDA exceeded its regulatory authority when it originally approved mifepristone in 2000.

ADF filed the case on behalf of Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, American College of Pediatricians and Christian Medical & Dental Associations, as well as four doctors from California, Indiana, Michigan and Texas.

Kacsmaryk ruling started journey to high court

Judge Matthew Joseph Kacsmaryk essentially agreed with the anti-abortion groups, in a ruling in April 2023, where he wrote he did not second-guess FDAs decision-making lightly.

But here, FDA acquiesced on its legitimate safety concerns  in violation of its statutory duty  based on plainly unsound reasoning and studies that did not support its conclusions, Kacsmaryk wrote.

The U.S. Supreme Court issued a stay at the request of the Justice Department, which put the district courts ruling on hold until the appeal process could work itself out.

The Justice Department also appealed the district courts ruling to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in Louisiana, where a three-judge panel heard the case in May 2023.

The panel  composed of Jennifer Walker Elrod, who was appointed by former President George W. Bush, as well as James C. Ho and Cory T. Wilson, who were both appointed by Trump  issued its ruling in August 2023.

The appeals court disagreed with the district courts ruling that mifepristones original approval should be overturned, though it said that the FDA erred in making changes to prescribing guidelines in 2016 and 2021.

It failed to consider the cumulative effect of removing several important safeguards at the same time. It failed to consider whether those major and interrelated changes might alter the risk profile, such that the agency should continue to mandate reporting of non-fatal adverse events, the appeals judges wrote. And it failed to gather evidence that affirmatively showed that mifepristone could be used safely without being prescribed and dispensed in person.

That ruling didnt take effect under the Supreme Courts earlier stay.

The Department of Justice wrote to the high court weeks later in September, urging the justices to take up an appeal of the 5th Circuits decision.

The loss of access to mifepristone would be damaging for women and healthcare providers around the Nation, the DOJ wrote in the 42-page document. For many patients, mifepristone is the best method to lawfully terminate their early pregnancies. They may choose mifepristone over surgical abortion because of medical necessity, a desire for privacy, or past trauma.

Briefs filed with court

Dozens of abortion rights organizations and lawmakers filed so-called amicus curiae or friend of the court briefs to the Supreme Court calling on the justices to keep access to mifepristone in line with the FDA guidelines.

A group of more than 16 medical organizations, including the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Medical Association, wrote that restricting access to mifepristone will not only jeopardize health, but worsen racial and economic inequities and deprive women of the choices that are at the very core of individual autonomy and wellbeing.

Anti-abortion groups and lawmakers opposed to mifepristone wrote numerous briefs as well.

Attorneys general from Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming sent in a 28-page brief.

They wrote that the availability of mifepristone undermined states rights, since some of their states had sought to restrict abortion below the 10 weeks approved for mifepristone use or had sought to bar access to medication abortion.

The FDAs actions undermine these laws, undercut States efforts to enforce them, and thus erode the federalism the Constitution deems vital, the attorneys general wrote. Given these harms to federalism, this Court should view the FDAs actions with skepticism.

During oral arguments in March, several Supreme Court justices brought up conscience protections that insulate health care workers from having to assist with or perform procedures they have a religious objection to, like abortion.

Associate Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson said she was worried that there is a significant mismatch in this case between the claimed injury and the remedy thats being sought.

The obvious, common-sense remedy would be to provide them with an exemption that they dont have to participate in this procedure, Jackson said.

Associate Justice Neil Gorsuch said the case seemed like a prime example of turning what could be a small lawsuit into a nationwide legislative assembly on an FDA rule, or any other federal government action.

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The U.S., U.K., and Canada issued a joint statement on June 13, warning of Russian interference in the leadup to the Moldovan presidential election in October.

Moldova will hold both an election, in which pro-European president Maia Sandu will seek a second term, and a referendum on Moldova's accession to the EU on Oct. 20.

Moldovan officials have repeatedly accused Russia of election interference and destabilization attempts, even of allegedly fomenting an attempted coup, since February 2022.

"We share President Sandu's strong concerns about the Kremlin's use of criminal groups to finance political activities and undermine Moldova's democratic institutions," the joint statement said.

"We commend Moldova's leaders for continuing to capably manage these threats, build resilience, and maintain peace and security, while driving forward democratic reforms and reviving the countrys economy."

The countries condemned Russia for "exacerbating societal tensions" in Moldova and using "disinformation and propaganda" to further its objectives.

"If Russia's election meddling proves unsuccessful in Moldova, there is reason to believe Moscow will work to incite protests," the statement said.

The U.S., U.K., and Canada issued the statement to warn allies "that Russian actors are carrying out a plot to influence" the results of the election, and to show the Kremlin that "its attempts to meddle and undermine democratic processes" will not be tolerated.

Tensions between Moscow and Chisinau have been mounting since the start of the full-scale invasion of Ukraine amid fears that the war may spill into Moldova via Transnistria, an unrecognized breakaway territory that has illegally hosted Russian troops since 1991.

The joint statement follows reports earlier in June that the former chief of the General Staff of Moldova's army had allegedly been an informant for Russia's military intelligence agency.

Days later, Moldovan President Maia Sandu approved changes to the country's treason laws, allowing some wartime treason laws to apply to peacetime, as well as extending punishments and creating a new category of laws for assisting a foreign state.

Read also: US sanctions pro-Russian Moldovan governor

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
By Andrea Shalal

BORGO EGNAZIA, Italy (Reuters) -U.S. President Joe Biden and Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement on Thursday aimed at bolstering Ukraine's defense against Russian invaders and getting Ukraine closer to NATO membership.

The deal, signed on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Italy, aims to commit future U.S. administrations to support Ukraine, even if former President Donald Trump wins Novembers election, officials said.

"Our goal is to strengthen Ukraine's credible defense and deterrence capabilities for the long term," Biden said at a joint news conference with Zelenskiy.

He said the G7's message to Russian President Vladimir Putin is "You cannot wait us out. You cannot divide us." The group of rich nations also agreed to a $50 billion loan for Ukraine backed by profits from frozen Russian assets.

The U.S.-Ukraine security deal is a framework for a long-term effort to help develop Ukraines outdated armed forces and serve as a step towards Ukraine's eventual NATO membership, according to the text.

The Ukraine president called the agreement historic, saying it is a bridge toward his country's eventual NATO membership. "This is an agreement on security and thus on the protection of human life," he said.

Zelenskiy has long sought NATO membership but the allies have stopped short of taking that step. The Western alliance regards any attack launched on one of its 32 members as an attack on all under its Article Five clause.

In the event of an armed attack or threat of such against Ukraine, top U.S. and Ukrainian officials will meet within 24 hours to consult on a response and determine what additional defense needs are required for Ukraine, the agreement says.

Under the agreement, the United States restates its support for Ukraine's defense of its sovereignty and territorial integrity, amid a renewed push by Russia on Ukraine's eastern front.

It also outlines plans to develop Ukraine's own defense industry and expand its military.

Ukraine needs a "significant" military force and sustained investments in its defense industrial base consistent with NATO standards, the text says.

It will allow the two countries to share intelligence, hold training and military education programs and combined military and exercises.

With Trump leading Biden in many election polls, the future of the agreement remains unclear.

Trump has expressed skepticism of Ukraines continued fight, saying at one point that he would end the conflict in his first day in office. Trump has also pushed for Europe to take on more of the burden of supporting Kyiv.

Zelenskiy, asked about what could happen for his country if there is a change in leadership in the United States and in other allied nations, said people stood with Ukraine because they have shared values and empathize with the Ukrainian people.

He said he does not think that popular support will change.

If the people are with us, any leader will be with us in this struggle for freedom, he said.

Biden recently shifted his policy against allowing Ukraine to use American weapons for attacks inside Russia, permitting Kyiv to fire long-range U.S. missiles against Russian targets near the embattled Ukrainian city of Kharkiv.

At the news conference, Biden made clear he would not permit Ukraine to expand its use of U.S. missiles inside Russia.

"It makes a lot of sense for Ukraine to be able to take out or combat what is going across that border. In terms of long range weapons ... we have not changed our position on that," Biden said.

(Writing by Steve Holland; Editing by Heather Timmons, Chizu Nomiyama and Alistair Bell)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky waves after delivering a speech at the German Parliament (Bundestag). Zelensky is in Berlin for the International Ukraine Reconstruction conference in Berlin. Bernd von Jutrczenka/dpa

The presidents of the United States and Ukraine have signed an agreement laying out Washington's long-term security relationship with Kiev on the sidelines of the G7 in southern Italy on Thursday.

US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed the bilateral deal that comes after 15 countries concluded similar long-term security agreements with Kiev including Britain, France and Germany.

Biden's National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Wednesday that the agreement would not include the obligation for Washington to deploy US troops to Ukraine, nor would it contain commitments to supply specific weapons systems.

The agreement broadly regulates cooperation between the two countries at all possible levels, including with regard to military equipment, training and manoeuvres.

At the same time, Ukraine is called upon to implement various reforms in the areas of justice, law enforcement and fighting corruption, but also in military capabilities and structures to achieve NATO standards in the future.

As expected, the agreement does not contain any commitments to deploy American armed forces for the defence of Ukraine. Biden has always categorically ruled this out - despite recent appeals from French President Emmanuel Macron to send military trainers there.

Washington says the aim is rather to enable Ukraine to continue to defend itself. The agreement also makes no promises to supply specific weapons systems.

The US government interpreted the agreement with Kiev as a message to Moscow, notably that it is committed to continued and longer-term support for Ukraine.

Russia invaded Ukraine at the end of February 2022 and has been waging a large-scale war of aggression against the neighbouring country ever since.

The US is Kiev's most important ally in the defence campaign. Both sides had been negotiating the bilateral security agreement for some time.

Zelensky had expressed the hope of making it the strongest of all agreements. And indeed, the promises made by the US military power are of particular value to Ukraine.

Earlier, the summit in southern Italy began with an agreement to lend Ukraine $50 billion using money generated from frozen Russian state assets, in a major show of support for Kiev.

Group of Seven leaders said an agreement had been reached on the large loan package. Kiev is set to use the money to strengthen its defence, pay for the reconstruction of infrastructure and fund the state budget.

Financing: the devil is in the details

Planning for the structure of the loan package has been under way for some time. The United States had originally campaigned in favour of collecting not only the interest income, but also the frozen assets themselves and using them to provide financial support to Kiev.

The US government says around $280 billion of Russian central bank money has been immobilized in Western countries due to sanctions imposed since Russia began its full-scale attack on Ukraine more than two years ago. The bulk of the Russian money is within the European Union.

The Brussels-based financial institution Euroclear - by far the largest holder in the EU of frozen Russian central bank assets - recently said that it had collected around 4.4 billion ($4.7 billion) in interest in 2023.

But some European capitals had major reservations about using both the principle and the interest, resulting in the compromise in which the interest is used as collateral to pay off the loan.

US steps in in case politics changes the loan picture

One thorny issue is who would bear the credit risks if the EU sanctions on the assets could not be extended, for instance due to the veto of a member state. That would mean that the interest could no longer be used to pay off the loan.

On Thursday the US declared its willingness to bear the main burden of the multibillion-dollar loan, a high-ranking US government representative said on the sidelines of the summit.

The US is willing to provide up to $50 billion, or the total amount of the loan to Kiev - the US official said, though he emphasized: "We will not be the only lenders," adding others would also participate.

Moscow angry at loan for Ukraine

Russia criticized the loan to Ukraine. "Using the funds effectively stolen from Russia for the warlike adventures of the Kiev regime is criminal and cynical and represents a further blow to international law," said Russian Foreign Office spokeswoman Maria Zakharova at a press briefing.

She threatened that the Russian reaction would be "painful" for Brussels.

The G7 states' plan would have fatal consequences, Zakharova said, adding such initiatives further undermine the global financial system and lead to destructive crises.

The plan will also have direct consequences for European companies in Russia, she said. "There is enough European property and capital, as you know - spokesmen of our government have spoken about this several times," she said, hinting at expropriations.

US President Joe Biden joins G7 leaders as they gather to watch a parachute drop at San Domenico Golf Club in Fasano. Christopher Furlong/PA Wire/dpa
US and Ukraine sign long-term security agreement at G7

US President Joe Biden joins G7 leaders as they gather to watch a parachute drop at San Domenico Golf Club in Fasano. Christopher Furlong/PA Wire/dpa

The presidents of the United States and Ukraine have signed an agreement laying out Washington's long-term security relationship with Kiev.

US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky signed the bilateral deal on the sidelines of the G7 in southern Italy on Thursday.

Fifteen countries have already concluded similar long-term security agreements with Ukraine, including Britain, France and Germany.

Biden's National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said on Wednesday that the agreement would not include the obligation for Washington to deploy US troops to Ukraine, nor would it contain commitments to supply specific weapons systems.

The deal is not a treaty that has been ratified by Congress, meaning if Donald Trump is elected president in November he could scrap it.

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky waves after delivering a speech at the German Parliament (Bundestag). Zelensky is in Berlin for the International Ukraine Reconstruction conference in Berlin. Bernd von Jutrczenka/dpa
UT to end remote work for almost all employees in fall. Why union members are 'horrified'

The University of Texas is ending remote work for almost all staff members in August, UT President Jay Hartzell announced Wednesday.

The University of Texas is ending remote work for almost all staff members in August, UT President Jay Hartzell announced in an email Wednesday.

Staff members can most effectively serve our students, faculty, fellow staff members, and other stakeholders when working together in an environment that fosters collaboration, innovation, availability, and reliability, Hartzell said. Our vibrant campus community helps distinguish our great University, and as members of our staff, you contribute to that vibrancy each day.

Hartzell tasked campus leaders with making a plan for changes by July and fully implementing them one week before the fall semester begins.

A small number of jobs can stay remote if they are characterized by observable productivity, are internal or transactional, or require large amounts of individual work, Hartzell said. Individual supervisors would make that call and could also approve occasional remote work as needed.

We are here because of our students, and your consistent presence will help provide a more complete and engaging learning experience for students throughout campus, Hartzell continued.

Anne Lewis, a UT faculty member and member of the Texas State Employees Union executive board for Central Texas, said members of the union are horrified by the decision.

It is a very serious economic matter for a great many of our staff, but the other real issue is, what about these populations that really do need to work virtually? Lewis asked.

Lewis raised concern for individuals with disabilities or mobility challenges. UT spokesperson Mike Rosen told the American-Statesman that UT will consider American Disability Act and other accommodations through existing policies.

Lewis expressed concern that some staff members might quit because of the decision. She also worries that supervisors will determine remote work unevenly.

I know we have very kind, thoughtful supervisors sometimes, but sometimes we dont, Lewis said.

Rosen said the guidelines were implemented to ensure consistency across UT, and many staff members are already in-person full-time.

"We have provided clear guidelines for implementation while recognizing that local leaders are in the best position to make decisions in specific cases," Rosen said in response to Statesman questions.

UT staff pay concerns

The end of remote work comes after the Texas State Employees Union delivered a petition to Hartzell in March asking for a $10,000 across-the-board pay raise for all employees. Lewis said the union has not received a response to the petition, which she said had more than 2,000 signatures.

"We are continuing to review the total rewards package for employees relative to market competitiveness and are confident that we will still be able to attract and retain the highest-level talent," Rosen told the Statesman. "Many employees have been working on-site full-time."

Some full-time UT staff members currently make $15 an hour, according to the university's pay plan profiles. The living wage as of October 2023, as determined by the city of Austin, is $20.80 per hour.

Though employees can ride city buses for free with their UT ID, some staff members cant afford to live within bus routes, Lewis said, making for long commutes. UT does not reimburse all employees for commuting expenses or pay for parking, though the university introduced a new annual $200 subsidy program last year to help with transportation costs for its lowest-income employees.

Return to work

Staff members have asked about remote work at Staff Council meetings this year. In February, Roger Cude, vice president of People and Talent, told staff in response to questions that UT was creating guidance in consultation with other senior leaders and looking at other universities and studies for direction, according to meeting minutes.

When asked if the Staff Council was consulted, Rosen said it was aware of the decision.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, many companies and institutions have shifted to allowing some remote work. Though some employers have gradually issued return-to-office mandates, employees who have the chance to work from home will likely do so, USA Today reported.

Owl Labs' 2023 "State of Work" report found that one of the biggest reasons employees choose to work from home is the cost of being on-site. But institutions have seen an increase in return-to-office mandates following the trend of other companies and arguing for the benefits of in-person work, including collaboration, productivity and culture.

Certainly, we should have more choice in determining the conditions of our employment, Lewis said.

Isabela Ocampo contributed to this report.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to add information about UT's commuting subsidy for eligible staff.

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: University of Texas to end remote work for almost all staff in August
Wang Huning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), meets with a delegation of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) led by Nguyen Trong Nghia, member of the Political Bureau and secretariat of the CPV Central Committee, as well as head of the CPV Central Committee's Commission for Information and Education in Beijing, capital of China, June 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Yao Dawei)

BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- China's top political advisor Wang Huning met with a delegation of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) led by Nguyen Trong Nghia, member of the Political Bureau and secretariat of the CPV Central Committee, as well as head of the CPV Central Committee's Commission for Information and Education in Beijing on Thursday.

Wang, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), urged China and Vietnam to adhere to the strategic guidance of the general secretaries of the two parties and promote the building of a China-Vietnam community with a shared future.

He noted that the CPPCC is ready to contribute positively to this end.

Vietnam sincerely appreciates China's valuable support for its revolution and construction, adheres to the spirit and principle of "comrades-plus-brothers" and "top priority" to advance the relations between the two parties and two countries, and firmly pushes forward the building of a community of shared future that carries strategic significance between Vietnam and China, Nguyen said. 

Wang Huning, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), meets with a delegation of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) led by Nguyen Trong Nghia, member of the Political Bureau and secretariat of the CPV Central Committee, as well as head of the CPV Central Committee's Commission for Information and Education in Beijing, capital of China, June 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Yao Dawei)
SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4)  A Utah man was indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday for federal drug crimes after FBI agents seized a variety of narcotics, including nearly 200,000 fentanyl pills.

Francisco Jesus Bravo, 34, of West Valley City, became part of a criminal investigation in April by the FBI Wasatch Metro Drug Task Force after he allegedly intended to distribute large quantities of narcotics into the Beehive State, the Utah District Attorneys Office said.

READ NEXT: Police seize 23 lbs. of suspected meth after traffic stop in southern Utah

In May, as part of the investigation, the DAs office said agents seized approximately 19,802 grams (package weight) of field-tested positive fentanyl that is estimated to be approximately 190,000 pills, and a digital scale from Bravos storage unit in West Valley City.

Agents also seized approximately 2,968.5 grams (package weight) of field-tested positive methamphetamine; approximately 624.72 grams (package weight) of field-tested positive fentanyl that was estimated to be approximately 6,000 pills; approximately 295.77 grams (package weight) of field-tested positive heroin; and a digital scale at Bravos residence in West Valley City, the DAs office said.

Additionally, at a residence in Kearns, Utah, agents reportedly seized 860.28 grams (package weight) of field-tested positive heroin.

Bravo was arrested and is charged with possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, possession of fentanyl with intent to distribute, and possession of heroin with intent to distribute, the DAs office said.

Charges are allegations only. All arrested persons are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

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 ABC4 Utah.
People experiencing homelessness hang out in the median on 400 West in Salt Lake City on Saturday, May 25, 2024. (Photo by Spenser Heaps for Utah News Dispatch)

A panel discussion with Utahs top homeless official, a lawmaker and a homeless service provider on Monday applauded recent efforts from state and local leaders to improve Utahs homeless system  but also spotlighted where more work and funding is needed, especially to provide more deeply affordable supportive housing.

The panel, hosted by the University of Utahs Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute, explored what comes next for Utahs evolving homeless system  while also highlighting the role a powerful group of philanthropists (called the Utah Impact Partnership) has played to improve Utahs homeless system.

Earlier this year, the 2024 Utah Legislature appropriated about $50 million toward bolstering the states emergency shelter system. After lawmakers and Gov. Spencer Coxs administration negotiated to secure the funding  which was a fraction of the $128 million the governor initially sought as part of his budget recommendation  the Utah Impact Partnership agreed to match $15 million more.

Of that funding, $25 million was set aside for a new low barrier (or easily accessible) emergency shelter, at the time described as one that would include 600 to 800 beds. It will be the states largest homeless facility since the downtown shelter, previously operated by the Road Home, shuttered in 2019.

Wayne Niederhauser, a former Utah Senate president who now serves as State Homeless Coordinator (the point person in Coxs administration orchestrating state actions around homelessness) told Utah News Dispatch in an interview after Wednesdays panel that hes still working to site the new large shelter, with no set timeline on when its location will be announced.

However, he expects it to be located somewhere in Salt Lake County  and he said its possible, depending on the property, that it could be even larger, perhaps 800 to 1,200 beds.

Wednesdays panel discussion, however, did not focus on that major next step for Utahs homeless system. Rather, moderator Natalie Gochnour asked panelists Niederhauser, Sen. Kirk Cullimore, and Carol Hollowell, executive director of homeless service provider Switchpoint, to detail what lawmakers have already done to improve coordination with local governments and service providers, as well as what other macro-level policies or investments are needed to restore dignity and improve the lives of Utahns experiencing homelessness.

Niederhauser gave Utah News Dispatch an update on whats next for the new large emergency shelter hes still trying to site  and said its possible it could be a matter of years, depending on the property, before it could open its doors.

Status of new emergency shelter?

As part of the $50 million funded this year for homelessness, the Utah Legislature set aside $25 million for a new low barrier emergency shelter, pitched during the legislative session as one that would include 600 to 800 beds.

Niederhauser has been working to pick a location for the shelter  and he said the need is growing, so if state leaders are able hes hoping to find a facility that could maybe even shelter a minimum of 800 people and possibly up to 1,200 people.

Asked about the status of the shelter in an interview after Wednesdays panel, he told Utah News Dispatch its still a work in progress and he declined to provide details about what properties hes been eying other than saying its expected to be sited somewhere in Salt Lake County because thats where the need is.

Weve been looking at a lot of different options, he said, adding, it is a frustrating process because land is so expensive and were trying to find the right place that will have the least amount of conflict and impact on a surrounding community.

Niederhauser said an estimated 800 to 1,200 people are in need of emergency shelter. Over the winter, state and local partners set up about 800 winter overflow beds to provide more capacity (in addition to Salt Lake Countys three homeless resource centers and other permanent shelters across the state).

This year, state leaders have kept about 450 of those winter overflow beds, but the closure of those other 350 or so beds meant those people went back on the street, he said.

It really kind of pains me that were having to look for more shelter, because we need to be focused on supportive housing. Id rather have more shelter and more supportive housing, but theres no other choice, he said, because Utahs existing emergency shelters have already been functioning for years at essentially max capacity.

Pressed for a timeline on the new emergency shelter, Niederhauser would not provide specifics but said, I hope soon.

I just cant emphasize (enough) how difficult it is to site a facility like this, he said. Were not letting grass grow under our feet. Were working on it. Feverishly.

However, Niederhauser acknowledged its possible, depending on the property thats chosen and what it will take to make the facility functional, it could be a matter of years before it opens.

It may be something that wont actually be built or come to fruition for a year or maybe two years because it has to be built, Niederhauser. What are we going to do in the meantime? Thats also on our minds.

Its possible state leaders will need to find an interim facility or facilities to help fill the needs in the meantime, much like what state and local leaders and homeless providers have done during recent winters to provide overflow beds. He said state leaders will be working with the Homeless Services Board to make those decisions.

More permanent supportive housing

When asked what theyd do if they could wave a magic wand to fix anything in Utahs homeless system, Hollowell, the Switchpoint executive director, urged policymakers, providers and other stakeholders to work on building more permanent supportive housing to help move people out of homelessness. Much more  perhaps 10,000 units, she said.

It really does come down to housing, Niederhauser agreed in his answer to the same question, though he added, Its not just housing. Its supportive housing. And sometimes that support may be lifelong support.

Cullimore emphasized the need for more supported services, in addition to permanent supportive housing, to help people move on into society when theyre ready.

All of that will take much more funding.

When the panel fielded audience questions, Sren Simonsen, executive director of the Jordan River Commission (a body that aims to protect, restore and plan development for the Jordan River corridor, which has for years grappled with unsanctioned camping by people experiencing homelessness), noted that the 2024 Utah Legislature funded only a fraction of the proposed state funding to execute the governors proposed improvements to the states homeless system.

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How do we anticipate implementing the plan when were providing somewhere between a half to a third of the funding that we know that we needed? Simonsen asked. I know the philanthropic community is stepping up, but there is still a huge gap in completing that plan.

Cullimore said the Utah Legislatures involvement in recent years has been historic and unprecedented, noting in the past the state has largely left the issue up to city and counties to tackle on their own. He said state leaders are working on getting commitments from counties to add additional funding as the state continues to invest more.

Niederhauser, as a former Senate president, said he knows its hard to balance all of the needs for state spending. He credited philanthropists for sparking more commitment and investments.

We got more funding than weve ever (received) before, Niederhauser said, adding that state leaders, along with the newly revamped Utah Homeless Services Board, are taking the steps that we need to in order to establish more accountability and performance measure to support more state investment in the future.

I think people will start to see the success and say, We want to continue to support that. But if we dont have the outcomes at the end of the day, its going to be hard to raise the funds you need to make these things happen, Niederhauser said.

In his interview with Utah News Dispatch after Wednesdays panel discussion, Neiderhauser said the most important thing the new Utah Homeless Services Board can do to improve Utahs homeless system is to unify around common goals towards getting people treatment, housing and preventing homelessness from occurring in the first place.

One of the boards first hefty tasks is to set new performance and accountability measures on homeless providers to track whether theyre helping rehabilitate people out of homelessness rather than warehousing them. Last week, the governor put homeless providers on notice, saying if they dont produce results showing theyre helping the state toward its goal to reduce homelessness, they could lose public funding.

We need to know whats working and whats not working, Niederhauser said. Thats part of what the boards mandate is, but it is pretty broad and really high-level. Getting us all coordinated and unified and making sure we are getting those outcomes, when we have the capacity to address the causes of homelessness.

Niederhauser said the boards executive committee will start meeting next week to hash out out the nitty gritty details, then in coming months theyll bring those proposals to the full board to discuss publicly.

One of the things were going to start off with right now is were going to take the different responses to homelessness, like emergency shelter, permanent supportive housing  and were going to talk about, Well what should the outcomes be? What are the expectations? he said. We need to start there, with what the outcomes should be and what the expectation should be.

Then, Niederhauser said the board will bring the providers in and discover how were going to meet those outcomes, meet those expectations.

Asked about how soon the board aims to set these performance measures, Niederhauser said its something board members hope to accomplish in coming months and within the next year.

Were energizing getting something done now, he said. I think the more we can show the greater resources are going to be available (from) the Legislature (and) through the philanthropic community.

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The post Utahs next steps for homeless: State still working to site new 800-bed shelter appeared first on Utah News Dispatch.
The University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh at Fox Cities will shutter at the end of next school year, marking the sixth UW campus to close because of budget problems and declining enrollment.

UW-Oshkosh Chancellor Andrew Leavitt called the closure a "difficult but responsible decision." He said the problems facing the campus were "not of our own making," but reflective of the headwinds facing higher education.

Enrollment at the Menasha campus has plummeted from 1,629 in 2018 to 555 last fall, a 65% drop in just five years, according to UW System data. A UW-Oshkosh anaylsis projected fewer than 100 students enrolled at the campus by 2032.

Thats simply not financially sustainable for us," UW-Oshkosh Provost Ed Martini told reporters Thursday.

UW-Platteville Richland, UW-Milwaukee at Washington County, UW-Oshkosh Fond du Lac and UW-Green Bay Marinette closed this school year. UW-Milwaukee at Waukesha will close at the end of 2024-25.

Leavitt rejected the idea that the Fox Cities campus closure will limit future students' access to higher education. He said there are 11 public, private and technical college sites within 50 miles of the Fox Cities.

Marc Sackman, who has taught music on the campus for 19 years, feels differently. Not every student wants or can afford to start a four-year university. Among two-year options, technical colleges focus on preparing students for the workforce. Branch campuses offered fine arts programming and hired instructors with terminal degrees, offering students a different experience.

"No one really understood what we did," Sackman said. "We were always underfunded. As soon as the merger was announced, we knew it would be the end of us."

UW branch campuses struggled for more than a decade

The UW System is made up of 13 four-year universities. It also had the UW Colleges, which were 13 additional campuses offering associate degrees that were a popular starting point for students in rural areas, from low-income backgrounds or those wanting to start college in a smaller campus setting.

But these campuses, often called "two-years" or "branch campuses," have been in a precarious position for a while. Tuition was frozen for 15 years. A state budget cut in 2015 led to a gutting of staff and a "regionalization" strategy that put one dean in charge of multiple campuses.

The UW System in 2018 dissolved UW Colleges and placed each campus under the oversight of a four-year university. UW Fox Cities became UW-Oshkosh at Fox Cities. The Fond du Lac campus, which closed this spring, was also under the oversight of UW-Oshkosh.

UW-Oshkosh has had its own share of financial problems. The university reported a projected $18 million deficit for the 2023-24 school year among its three campuses. In response, UW-Oshkosh laid off 140 employees, lost another 76 through retirements and closed 35 unfilled positions.

Even with the substantial cuts, UW-Oshkosh still faces a $7.6 million deficit this year. The university cannot use its unrestricted reserves, which is discretionary money that can be used to plug budget holes, because it has fully depleted the fund. It's the first time in UW System history that a university has exhausted its reserves.

The UW System is stepping in with a loan it expects to be paid back with interest.

Leavitt said the Fox Cities closure is "driven completely" by enrollment decline and not related to the university's broader financial problems. The budget to operate the campus next school year is about $7 million.

UW-Oshkosh plans to absorb the 16 faculty from the Fox Cities campus, Leavitt said. It's unclear how many, if any, of the 64 staff positions will be transferred to the main campus.

Outagamie County executive blasts UW's lack of transparency

Outagamie County and Winnebago County have jointly operated the campus in partnership with the UW System since 1960.

Outagamie County Executive Tom Nelson, a former Democratic legislator and congressional candidate, criticized Leavitt and UW System President Jay Rothman for their handling of the closure and "sitting" on the news since April. The university analysis recommending closure is dated April 30. He said his questions and public records request have gone unanswered.

"Let down, disappointed, frustrated  all the above," he said in reaction to the news announced Thursday. "You invest a lot of time, a lot of money into that facility, and this is wrong. It is especially wrong how they have handled this. I mean, it's just been really, really, really poor leadership."

Leavitt rejected Nelson's criticisms, saying the university has communicated with the counties in recent years about the possibility of closure. He said UW-Oshkosh only received notice of Rothman approving the closure Monday afternoon.

UW Oshkosh is working to ensure it has a bright future, which requires tough decisions now," Rothman said in his own statement responding to the criticism. "Unfortunately, the analysis is that the market and enrollment cannot sustain the Fox Cities Campus moving forward.

UW System fulfilled Nelson's May 21 records request Thursday, spokesperson Ethan Schuh said.

Winnebago County Executive Jon Doemel called the closure "inevitable" but nonetheless heartbreaking. He studied there, joined student government and met his wife on campus.

Doemel's assistant, Ethan Hollenberger, said Doemel urged the Legislature's budget-writing committee to release the $10 million set aside for communities with closed campuses to redevelop the land. He said it's too soon to say what the counties will do with the 45-acre campus, including the planetarium, science museum and children's center. But its location alongside State 441 creates opportunities for redevelopment.

There's no plans to close the child care center before the end of next school year, UW-Oshkosh spokesperson Alex Hummel said.

"The right decisions are not always the most popular," Doemel said in a statement. "The closure of the Fox Cities Campus is the epitome of this reality."

Level of UW funding also blamed

Nelson also blamed the Republican-controlled Legislature for the string of campus closures.

"We are in this situation because the (UW) System has been underfunded for the last quarter century," Nelson said.

The three Republican lawmakers whose districts currently include the campus or did so recently until new maps were signed into law  State Rep. Michael Schraa of Oshkosh, Sen. Dan Feyen of Fond du Lac, and Sen. Rachael Cabral-Guevara of Appleton  either did not respond to requests for comment or declined to comment.

The closest transfer options for students include UW-Oshkosh, less than a half-hour drive away, or UW-Green Bay. They could also enroll at Fox Valley Technical College, which has its Appleton campus just 10 minutes from the UW-Fox Cities campus.

Like other technical colleges, Fox Valley receives local property taxes in addition to tuition revenue and state funding. The state Technical College System is one of the best-funded in the country, according to a report by the nonpartisan Wisconsin Policy Forum last year.

Meanwhile, the UW System ranked in the bottom 10 states for per-pupil funding.

This story may be updated.

Contact Kelly Meyerhofer at kmeyerhofer@gannett.comor 414-223-5168. Follow her on X (Twitter) at @KellyMeyerhofer.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh closing UW-Fox Cities campus
Weve got to be worried about Russian warships, submarine arriving in Cuba: former KGB spy

(NewsNation)  Russia sent three warships and a nuclear submarine to Cuban waters Tuesday for routine military exercises, a show of strength that has some worried.

Vladimir Putin is again up to his own tricks. He likes to scare people, former spy Jack Barsky said in an appearance on NewsNations The Hill Wednesday.

Russian military drills in Cuba message to US, world: Wesley Clark

Barsky was recruited by the KGB and sent to the United States, where he spent a decade spying for the Soviet Union. He then left the KGB and lived in the U.S. for decades under an assumed identity before he was discovered by the FBI.

The author of Deep Undercover: My Secret Life & Tangled Allegiances as a KGB Spy in America, Barsky offers unique insight into Russias motivations in Cuba and elsewhere.

Youve got to be worried about this kind of stuff. You cant look at this as just a routine exercise. It has to be seen against the background where Putin is stating that hes actually fighting the West in the Ukraine, Barsky said.

Several people watch a ship belonging to the Russian Navy flotilla arrive at the port of Havana, June 12, 2024, in Havana, Cuba. (Photo by Yander Zamora/Anadolu via Getty Images)

The Pentagon remains unconcerned with Russias deployments. The agency said the visit is part of routine naval activity and poses no threat to the United States, despite the ships being located just a few hundred miles from the coast of Florida.

Everything that Putin does is sending messaging, particularly threatening ones, Barsky said.

Former NATO Supreme Allied Commander Gen. Wesley Clark shared similar sentiments on NewsNations The Hill Tuesday, though he believes this visit to Cubas waters does not signal war.

I dont think its anything that will erupt in violence, Clark said. But does [Vladimir Putin] send a message to the United States and the world? Sure.

A Russian nuclear-powered submarine is one of four vessels that arrived in Havana, Cuba, on Wednesday ahead of military exercises. (Adalberto Roque/AFP via Getty Images)

No direct threat as US tracks Russian warships in Cuba

Barsky compared Russias presence in the Caribbean to the Cuban missile crisis when the fear of nuclear war paralyzed America for nearly two weeks.

With this kind of tension that we have, theres always the possibility of an accidental launch, Barsky said. Im worried about that.

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TOPEKA (KSNT)  What started as service to the country turned into a life-changing injury, shifting Sergeant Gerald Appelhans perspective on his purpose in the world, and the difference he could make for others.

For the Appelhans siblings, the military was seen as a way out of poverty.

My oldest brother was in the Army, Appelhans said, my next brother was in the Air Force, and then my other brother was in the Navy, and then I was in the Marine Corp.

In weapons and demolitions, Appelhans was trained in bazookas, machine guns, flamethrowers and mortars. Attached to a rifle squad, his day-to-day focused on giving them support wherever the mission took them.

We were a fleet landing team, he said. What our job was, wherever there was a hot spot in Vietnam they would either fly us in or we would make an amphibious landing and go to that hot spot until the hot spot was cooled, and then theyd fly us back or take us back to the ship.

Is the Kansas Avenue bridge in Topeka closed to traffic?

Running those missions, Appelhans was put into a life changing situation.

I was hit with an artillery shell, the fragments of the artillery shell, he said. It actually hit so close to me, the ground opened up and the blast got me before the shrapnel did.

Sent to hospitals across Dong Ha Vietnam, a navy ship and Guam, one thing stood out to him.

I would go down to what was a physical therapy room and I would workout, he said. There was a room there but they didnt have a physical therapist. When I was in Guam, when I started rehabbing there was a physical therapy department, but no physical therapist.

The marine thought back to his country trips with the military before arriving in Vietnam.

Going across the mountains down to Ponce, I saw a lot of people walking along the roads, he said. They had twisted arms and were crippled. I kept asking whats the deal, why are these people like that? The answer was they didnt have anybody to help them. If they broke something that was the way it stayed.

With the thought of all those hurt people making it through without help, and his experience with self recovery, the sergeant knew his service to others wouldnt end alongside his time in the military.

When I came out, the first thing I searched for was how you become a physical therapist, Appelhans said. The good lord had a plan for me. Because of that, for the next 41 years I was a physical therapist.

Veteran Salute: Vietnam helicopter pilot returns decades later for a different mission

For a decade-and-a-half, Appelhans worked for the Baptist Memorial Hospital out of Memphis, until bringing his healing touch to the Capital City, working at Stormont Vail for 26 years.

For more Veteran Salute stories, 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.

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Vice President Kamala Harris is making a visit to Atlanta on Friday, but her office is now announcing shell come back next week.

The vice president will return to Atlanta on Tuesday, marking her second visit in less than a week.

She will join Migos rapper and metro Atlanta Quavo to discuss preventing gun violence at the inaugural Rocket Foundation Summit.

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Fellow Migos rapper, and Quavos nephew, Takeoff was shot and killed in Houston in November 2022. The summit and moderated panel featuring Vice President Harris is scheduled for Takeoffs birthday.

This will mark the vice presidents fifth visit to Georgia this year and her 14th visit since being sworn in.

The White House confirmed her Friday visit is part of her Economic Opportunity Tour. During her visit, she will participate in a panel at the 100 Black Men of America, Inc. annual conference.

TRENDING STORIES:

She first visited Atlanta in January then Savannah a month later in February. Harris returned to Atlanta in April to highlight a $158 million grant the city received toward The Stitch.

The project looks to reconnect neighborhoods split apart by the construction of the downtown connector.

After her most recent visit, Georgias Republican party chair Josh McKoon sent a statement: No amount of visits to Georgia will erase the damage done by their policies. Georgians are looking forward to a second Trump administration and a return to an economy that works for everyone.

With Georgia expected to be a battleground state once again, visits from the campaigns for President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will certainly pick up over the next few months.

Biden and Trump agreed to meet in Atlanta on June 27 for a presidential debate at CNN Studios in midtown Atlanta.

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Trains have carried people in and around Chicago since Oct. 25, 1848, when the Galena and Chicago Union Railroad dispatched the locomotive Pioneer from a station on Kinzie Street just north of the Chicago River. In future decades Chicago would become a rail hub for the entire nation.

But by the early 1970s, the regions mass transit agencies were in poor financial shape  with many on the verge of collapse. With rising operating expenses and lower ridership, many of these agencies could not continue to exist on their own. Thats why voters in six counties  Cook, Kane, Will, Lake, DuPage and McHenry  took to the polls on March 19, 1974, to decide if an umbrella organization should be created to coordinate the services of the Chicago Transit Authority, eight commuter railroads and suburban bus companies in these areas.

Voters in the city approved this referendum proposal by a 2 to 1 margin but others in DuPage, Will, Lake, McHenry and Kane counties rejected it handily. Many suburbanites said they voted that way because they believed the new Regional Transportation Authority would not benefit them and because they thought it would only serve to bail out the deficit-ridden Chicago Transit Authority.

After hitting its peak in 1980, commuter rail ridership was decimated when an RTA financial crisis that forced a doubling of fares the next year. Passengers abandoned the system in droves and, by 1983, ridership had fallen below 60 million.

But passage of legislation that same year reorganized the RTA, provided a new source of state funding and created service boards for three key operations: Chicago Transit Authority (which retained authority over mass transit); Suburban Bus Board (which would later be known as Pace); and Commuter Rail Service Board (which would later be known as Metra).

Heres a look back at how Metra has changed in the past 40 years.

CTA, Metra and Pace could launch day pass to be used across all three transit systems

June 1984: Commuter Rail Service Board formed

Lawyer Jeff Ladd  who regularly commuted via train from his McHenry County home to the Loop  was appointed to the board and elected its chairman. At the time, the rail lines and infrastructure Metra took over were in such disrepair that longtime agency officials say they could see the tracks through rusted-out holes in the train cars.

Under Ladds leadership, Metra bought new train cars, upgraded its poorly maintained bridges and infrastructure, started service to Antioch and extended rail lines and increased capacity. It also passed a special fare increase in 1989, dedicated exclusively to capital projects. In 1996, the agency started the North Central line between the Loop and Antioch. Two years later, it secured federal authorization to double the runs on the North Central line and extend the Union Pacific West and the SouthWest lines. All three projects were completed in early 2006.

But Ladds tenure was also marked by controversies that pegged him as a hothead. He once suggested the punishment for a driver who caused a fatal train accident in 1994 should be a trip to Singapore for caning. He angered south suburban officials who were pushing for the Suburban Transit Access Route (STAR) line to link Joliet to the economically depressed south suburbs. Metra, he said, wasnt a social welfare agency. Besides ruffling feathers, Ladds temper got him in trouble with the law. In 1997 he was convicted of disorderly conduct in what prosecutors called a road rage incident.

Ladd stepped down from the post in June 2006. He surfaced in the 2008 trial of Antoin Tony Rezko who was a key fundraiser and adviser for former Gov. Rod Blagojevich. Ladd testified under a grant of immunity from prosecution about his dealings as a lobbyist in 2004 with the Illinois Health Facilities Planning Board, which Rezko and political insider Stuart Levine controlled.

July 12, 1985: Agency gets a new name  Metra  chosen for its pizazz

A marketing firm produced a list of 150 possible new monikers before its was whittled down to four finalists:

CORD (Commuter Rail Division)

METRA (Metropolitan Rail)

CORTA (Commuter Rail Division of the RTA)

TRAC (Total Rail Access)

The new royal-on-blue Metra logo (which originally included the words Metropolitan Rail) was soon added to stations, signs and commuter rail cars and locomotives. The first locomotive to be painted in blue and orange was the Kane County, which debuted in August 1985.

April 13, 1992: Great Chicago Flood evacuees engulf Union Station

Although the flood was mainly out of sight, lurking 40 feet below the citys streets, it wreaked visible havoc.

The Great Chicago Flood paralyzed downtown  shutting down power and prompting an evacuation that would affect financial markets and bring business to a halt for days. Those who were there vividly recall that spring day when 124 million gallons of water from the Chicago River flowed into the citys maze of underground freight tunnels and building basements, turning the Loop into a ghost town.

Metra says so long to its rail saloons

Commuters, evacuated from their flooded office buildings, began the outbound rush hour before noon. An unscheduled Metra Milwaukee west line train was dispatched from Union Station at about 11:40 a.m., and the agency (whose own headquarters at 547 W. Jackson Blvd. was inundated with water) decided shortly thereafter to abandon its normal schedule, opting to send trains from downtown as soon as they were filled.

Aug. 18, 1996: First new commuter line in Illinois in 70 years embarks

A total of 1,000 passengers rode the Antioch to Chicago route during its inaugural day. With three morning rush-hour trains and another three in the afternoon and evening, the North Central lines stops along the 52-mile journey included OHare International Airport and 10 other destinations before arriving at Union Station.

Metra now operates 11 lines.

May 7, 2010: Metra CEOs death leaves questions

Just a few hours before Metras executive board was scheduled to hear about the financial irregularities that occurred under his watch, Metra Executive Director Philip Pagano stepped onto the railroad tracks near his Crystal Lake home and was hit by an inbound train carrying two dozen passengers. Pagano was killed instantly. Authorities found at the scene Paganos wallet and a copy of Metras procedures for a service disruption after a suicide, sources told the Tribune.

Pagano had been a key player at the agency since it was created, serving as its executive director for 20 years. Under his control, Metra thrived, developing record ridership on 11 lines built from a piecemeal network, including the bankrupt Rock Island and the broken-down Illinois Central Gulf railroads. But he had also been placed on administrative leave in late April 2010, as a probe began alleging he received an unapproved $56,000 bonus on top of his $269,625 annual salary. The investigation found Pagano improperly took $425,000  $225,000 for cashing out vacation pay from 2007 to 2010, and $250,000 between 1999 and 2006.

Pagano claimed a document signed by former Metra Chairman Ladd authorized him to be awarded additional vacation time, but no original version of the Ladd certificate could be found, according to special counsel James Sotos report.

February 2012: Riders experience huge fare hike

Some commuters  including the vast majority of riders with monthly passes and 10-ride tickets  saw their ticket prices skyrocket as much as 35%. But because the cost of gasoline and parking in the city was higher, many said they had little choice but to dig deeper into their wallets and pay up. The last major fare hikes by the agency were a 10% increase in 2008. Metra also raised fares 5% in 2006.

Before approving the fare hike in late 2011, Metras board of directors spent months pondering service cuts and other options. Finally, board members decided not to cut service.

Metra CEO and Executive Director Alex Clifford, who spent most of his first year on the job warning of the hike, said the increase is necessary to put Metra on a stable financial course. Without naming his predecessor, Clifford blamed Metras previous management for kicking the can down the road and failing to address Metras deficit shortfall  previously estimated to be as high as $100 million  sooner. The additional revenue would help close a $53.6 million budget gap in 2012, officials said.

Metra, which provided 300,000 trips a day at the time, blamed spiking diesel fuel prices, the demands of meeting new federal regulations, higher insurance premiums and other rising costs.

June 21, 2013: Paganos replacement ousted

Metras board ousted Clifford  a former Marine and head of the transit district in Santa Cruz, Calif., who was brought in to clean up the agency after the scandal and suicide of Pagano  after he threatened to file a whistleblower lawsuit alleging political patronage involving House Speaker Michael Madigan, among others, and interference by some board members.

The costs associated with Metras controversial 2013 settlement with Clifford totaled about $1.3 million, with about half going to outside lawyers, officials said. Clifford was given a more than $700,000 severance package, which included a secrecy clause that bars both sides from talking about certain aspects of it.

A bruising report from the Regional Transportation Authority suggested Metra officials repeatedly misled the public when they insisted that an unusually large severance package for Clifford saved taxpayers millions of dollars in potential litigation costs.

Nov. 4, 2016: Busiest day ever

Almost 470,000 passengers  40% more than an ordinary November Friday  took Metra to the Chicago Cubs World Series celebration and parade, setting a single-day record for the agency. CTA also had its highest one-day rail total with 1.15 million riders.

The previous record for Metra was 430,488 passengers on July 3, 2007, for a Grant Park fireworks show. The Blackhawks victory parade on June 28, 2013, saw 425,241 passengers.

March 2020: COVID shut down means commuters stay home

Use of public transportation slowed to a trickle since much of the economy shut down at 5 p.m. on March 21, 2020.

Metra, CTA and Pace have reported increased ridership since the start of the pandemic, but even as residents got vaccinated and much of the city reopened, none of the three transit agencies has seen ridership numbers return to pre-pandemic levels. And none is projecting that will happen in the next three years. A long-term loss of those riders could force the agencies to rethink what their services look like.

Riders have been slow to return to CTA and Metra. What will it take to get them back?

And with the number of riders still down, transit agencies in Chicago and across the country have been leaning on federal COVID-19 relief money to get by.

But the money is set to run out in 2025, and that has Chicago-area agencies staring down a $730 million budget hole, a gap the regional transit agency says is too big to fill with service cuts and fare hikes alone. Failing to address the situation could have economic and social consequences for a city thats working to orchestrate a post-pandemic comeback, planners and experts said.

April 2024: Consolidation considered

Just months after Metra completed its new fare structure, lawmakers in Springfield weighed during the final days of the spring legislative session whether the Chicago Transit Authority should be consolidated with Metra and Pace into one agency as the agencies face a combined $730 million budget hole as soon as 2025.

Changes coming for Metra riders, including new fares, low-income program and bike policy

The legislation came as complaints have mounted over the CTAs struggles to provide frequent, reliable and safe service, and days after Gov. J.B. Pritzker called for an evolution of the leadership at the CTA. But it is linked to an earlier report laying out recommendations about what Chicago-area transit could look like in the future, and marks a decision to pursue the more comprehensive of two options outlined in the report to overhaul oversight of public transportation.

CTA President Dorval Carter blasts criticism amid calls for resignation: I have been turned into a caricature

The proposal would replace the Regional Transportation Authority with a new Metropolitan Mobility Authority, which would oversee the operation of buses, trains and paratransit, rather than having the CTA, Metra and Pace each operate their own services.

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After multiple children became sick after visits to Lake Anna State Park, the Virginia Department of Health began investigating and found evidence of a weekend outbreak of E. coli. Photo by Petr Kratochvil/Public Domain Pictures

June 13 (UPI) -- The Virginia Department of Health is investigating a Memorial Day weekend outbreak of E. coli illnesses. Multiple children became sick after visits to Lake Anna State Park.

There were 20 cases reported as of Wednesday, apparently caused by Shiga toxin-producing E. coli bacteria. There also are five cases of hemolytic uremic syndrome. Other cases are still under investigation.

Some people were hospitalized with E. coli infections and gastrointestinal distress that caused cramps, vomiting and diarrhea.

"We hope that those hospitalized continue to recover and can return home to their families soon," said Rappahannock Health District Health Director Dr. Olugbenga O. Obasanjo in a statement. "This is an ongoing investigation with the health department, and we will likely continue to learn about the situation in the coming days."

For severe cases of E. coli infection, kidney damage can occur.

The Virginia Health Department is investigating an E. coli outbreak that happened over the Memorial Day weekend at Lake Anna. Rappahannock Health District Dr.Olugbenga O. Obasanjo said the investigation is ongoing and he hopes those hospitalized by the outbreak continue to recover. Photo courtesy of Virginia Department of Health

According to the state health department, all the people who got sick confirmed swimming or other water exposures in Lake Anna.

Water testing is being conducted to evaluate current concentrations of bacteria in the lake.

The health department urged people swimming and boating in natural waters to take several precautions, including never drinking untreated water, not swimming if skin has cuts or open wounds and frequent hand-washing after using bathrooms and before preparing and eating food.

If green film is spotted in the water people should not go into the water. It could indicate an algae bloom.

The health department said harmful alga bloom isn't suspected in the Lake Anna illnesses.

Health officials are urging anyone who was in Lake Anna over Memorial Day weekend and experienced gastrointestinal illness to contact their local health departments.
Volusia and Flagler county sheriffs' deputies are accused of negligence and carelessness in a high-speed pursuit of a stolen car whose fleeing driver drove the wrong way on Interstate-95 and crashed into another vehicle, killing two siblings and injuring two others, according to three lawsuits filed in Volusia County Circuit Court.

Daniel Milis and Tina Milis, the parents of Domynick Donald Milis, 21, and Danycka Rose Marie Milis, 18, filed the first lawsuit in 2022. The brother and sister from Wisconsin were killed in the December 2020 crash. The crash also seriously injured a 13-year-old sibling and a 17-year-old female cousin.

Two additional lawsuits were filed in 2023. The parents filed a similar lawsuit on behalf of the minor sibling, identified as D.M. in the complaint. The other lawsuit was filed by a Kyley Larsen, the cousin who was a backseat passenger along with D.M. in the vehicle.

Deputies were negligent in their conduct of the chase, which violated the pursuit policies of both agencies, according to the lawsuits by attorneys Jesse Stern and Melanie Penagos.

All three lawsuits named as defendants Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly and Volusia County. The 2022 lawsuit initially named Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood as a defendant, but was later amended to remove Chitwood because the incident occurred before the Volusia Sheriff's Office became an independent constitutional office.

A lawsuit is accusing the Volusia Sheriff's Office and the Flagler County Sheriff's Office of negligence in a pursuit that ended when a driver fleeing from deputies crashed into another vehicle, killing two siblings from Wisconsin on Dec. 29, 2020.

Also killed in the crash was Reginald Lamar Harris, who was driving a stolen 2017 Nissan Altima the wrong way on I-95 as he tried to flee from deputies.

Volusia Sheriff Mike Chitwood said in a press conference after the crash that Harris was a 47-year-old career violent criminal from Orlando who had stolen the car from a pizza delivery driver in that city.

Both Volusia County and the Flagler County Sheriffs Office denied the allegations of negligence and point to Harris as the cause of the deaths. They also state that, as government agencies, they have sovereign immunity from the lawsuit.

Circuit Judge Mary Jolley during a brief hearing Wednesday set Jan. 27 as the date for a one-week trial.

Jolley also granted a request by the Milis' attorneys to consolidate all three lawsuits in one case, a decision all sides agreed to.

Staly offered a settlement in the case in August 2023 but no details about the offer were contained in the court records.

The Milis siblings were following their parents, who were in another car, after the family had seen the Christmas light display at Daytona International Speedway.

Deputy spots stolen car at Walmart in Palm Coast

The chase began shortly after Flagler County Sheriffs Deputy Kathryn Gordon and other deputies discovered a stolen Nissan driven by Harris on Dec. 29, 2020, in the Walmart parking lot in Palm Coast, the lawsuit stated.

Gordon and the other deputies only guarded three of the four exits to the Walmart, according to the lawsuit.

As a result, Harris was allowed to drive away from the Walmart parking lot through the unblocked exit and enter the roadway, heading for Interstate-95 without utilizing any headlights or taillights, the lawsuit stated.

That led to a high-speed chase in the southbound lanes of Interstate 95. Once the chase crossed into the county line, Volusia Sheriffs deputies became involved. Later, Harris made a U-turn and headed northbound in the southbound lanes of Interstate 95.

Volusia Sheriffs deputies began stopping traffic on southbound lanes of 95 but made no such effort to stop vehicles from entering I-95, according to the lawsuit.

Harris tried to exit the interstate by driving northbound in the southbound entrance ramp. The Milis siblings were in a Nissan Rogue traveling southbound about 7:07 p.m. on the same entrance ramp when their vehicle was struck by Harris wrong-way vehicle.

The Volusia Sheriffs Office did not shut down the high-speed chase, the lawsuit stated.

Rather, pursuant to specific orders from Sergeant Mather, (Volusia) Deputy Brett Whitson was the deputy actively pursuing Reginald Lamar Harris traveling northbound in the southbound lanes of I-95, the lawsuit stated.

This active pursuit included following Reginald Lamar Harris while he attempted to exit I-95 via the southbound on-ramp, the lawsuit stated.

Lawsuit: Chase occurred in a 'negligent and careless manner'

The chase deviated from reasonable and accepted standards of care of law enforcement agencies, the lawsuit stated.

The crimes committed prior to the start of the pursuit did not warrant the risk of putting other motorists in danger, according to the suit.

Deputies knew the make, model and license plate of the car Harris had stolen. They had a physical description of Harris who had been identified by Gordon in the Walmart parking lot.

Vehicles reached 127 mph during the pursuit on I-95.

Deputies knew that Harris was operating the vehicle without headlights or tailights.

For part of the pursuit, Whitson did not activate his lights or sirens, according to the lawsuit.

Lawsuit: Policies violated

The lawsuit states that Whitson violated a Volusia Sheriffs Office general order regarding pursuits which states that deputies will not pursue or assist in pursuits of motor vehicles for property crimes or misdemeanors or if the suspect is identified and is expected to be apprehended within a reasonable amount of time.

The Volusia Sheriffs Office was negligent for causing fatal injuries of the two Milis siblings "by allowing and permitting their deputies to negligently and carelessly initiate and maintain a high-speed chase of Reginald Lamar Harris and creating a foreseeable zone of danger to other motorists, according to the lawsuit.

The lawsuit states that Flagler Sheriffs Office Deputy Gordon's actions in chasing Harris violated that agency's general orders. The lawsuit also stated that during any vehicle apprehension, there must be due regard for the safety of all persons.

The Flagler County Sheriffs Office was negligent by failing to guard against the escape of an alleged criminal leading to a high-speed chase of Harris and creating the danger to the Milis siblings, the lawsuit stated.

Volusia and Flagler deny wrongdoing

Both Volusia County and the Flagler County Sheriff's Office denied wrongdoing in the case and asserted they are government agencies entitled to sovereign immunity from the lawsuits.

Volusia County also responded that it cannot be found liable in part "because the pursuit was not so reckless or wanting in care as to constitute disregard of human life, human rights, safety or the property of another" according to the response filed by Deputy County Attorney Kevin Bledsoe.

At the time the pursuit was initiated the officer reasonably believed the person fleeing had committed a forcible felony and the pursuit was done pursuant to a written policy on high-speed pursuits, according to the Volusia response.

The Volusia Sheriffs Office also responded that it will seek to have any fault apportion among anyone responsible, including Harris who made an unlawful U-turn and drove recklessly and aggressively on the wrong side of the road while under the influence of cocaine.

Flagler County Sheriff Staly denied the allegations and stated that the damages were caused by the negligence and carelessness of Harris, who did not use his headlights or taillights, drove against oncoming traffic, drove at high speed and tried to flee from law enforcement, according to a response filed by his attorney, Bruce Bogan. Stalys response also stated that he is entitled to statutory immunity and sovereign immunity.

On Thursday, Staly emailed the following statement to The News-Journal: First, we extend our deepest sympathy to the families. It is important to remember this tragic incident occurred because of the actions of fleeing felon trying to avoid arrest. The crash which resulted in the tragic deaths occurred over 20 miles inside Volusia County. FCSO deputies followed agency policies and procedures and the attempt to apprehend the subject was terminated at the Flagler County line. Any additional questions may be directed to Florida Sheriffs Risk Management Fund as this is still active litigation.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Volusia, Flagler sheriffs' offices sued for chase that killed siblings
TOKYO, June 13 (Xinhua) -- A long queue in front of the China Cultural Center in Tokyo, panda lovers, wearing with panda elements, gathered to celebrate the 7th birthday of Xiang Xiang, a Japan-born panda who returned to China last year.

A birthday party for Xiang Xiang was held on Wednesday, attracting nearly 200 giant panda lovers who expressed sincere wishes to the Xiang Xiang family.

The female giant panda Xiang Xiang was born in June 2017 to mother Shin Shin and father Ri Ri at Ueno Zoo in Tokyo. In February last year, the celebrity panda returned to southwest China's Sichuan Province, known as the hometown of giant pandas, and many Japanese fans have been missing their beloved Xiang Xiang.

Yuhei Nishida, who traveled from Saitama prefecture to attend the birthday party, was lucky enough to get a place to see Xiang Xiang when she made her public debut in Japan. Nishida was immediately attracted by Xiang Xiang's cute posture and visited her every week at Ueno Zoo.

"I hope Xiang Xiang will live a healthy life forever," Nishida said, adding he also plans to visit Xiang Xiang in Sichuan.

Fumiko, who just visited Xiang Xiang in Sichuan this April, was fascinated by Xiang Xiang's cute and naughty character. "I hope she will grow up and become a graceful 'young lady' and build a bridge of friendship between Japan and China," Fumiko told Xinhua.

"I hope princess Xiang Xiang will grow up healthily with love and care of the Japanese and Chinese people. I will visit you in China every year," said Ito, who has already visited Xiang Xiang in Sichuan three times in just over a year.

Asako Kobayashi and Mariko Abe, wearing T-shirts with giant panda prints, "Happy 7th Birthday of Xiang Xiang" and baby portrait of Xiang Xiang on bags, are devoted panda lovers. They said that at first, they liked Xiang Xiang, and later they were interested in Chinese culture.

Abe told Xinhua that because of Xiang Xiang she fell in love with Sichuan Opera face-changing, and now she likes Sichuan Opera even more, adding she "looks forward to going to China to experience Chinese culture."

Kobayashi and Abe said that now Xiang Xiang has been able to understand some commands in Chinese, they have started to learn Chinese and look forward to communicating with Xiang Xiang in Chinese when they meet again.

Head of the Panda Protection Institute of Japan Toshimitsu Doi said that he hopes more Japanese people will fall in love with giant pandas and travel to China, the hometown of giant pandas, to enhance their understanding of China.

Addressing the birthday party, Ouyang An, director of Tokyo office of the China National Tourism Office, expressed his hope that through the celebration, giant pandas, ambassadors of friendship between China and Japan, can play a positive role in enhancing mutual understanding between the two peoples and promoting China-Japan friendship. 
What voters need to know about participating in SCs primary runoffs

Poll workers arrange stickers to read "Thanks" at Stiles Point Elementary School on Election Day in on Nov. 3, 2020, in Charleston, South Carolina. (File/Michael Ciaglo/Getty Images)

COLUMBIA  South Carolinas primary elections are not over yet, with 13 Statehouse and congressional run-offs scheduled for June 25.

The runoffs will decide who wins contests in the 3rd Congressional District, seven seats in the state Senate or four in the state House.

If youre a registered voter in any of those districts, you can participate in the runoff regardless of whether you voted in the June 11 primary. But if you havent already registered to vote, its too late. That deadline was the same as for the primary, and it expired a month ago.

Just as in the primary, voters can cast a ballot by mail or early in person, but the window for both options is compressed.

The deadline to request an absentee ballot is 5 p.m. Friday. Early voting begins June 19 and runs through June 21, from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day.

Some counties may use different or fewer early voting locations, according to the state Election Commission. So, double check your options before you go, either on the state agencys website or your county website.

On June 25, polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Because voters in South Carolina do not register by party, they can vote in either. But voters who cast a ballot in the primary cant vote in a different partys run-off. In other words, if you voted in the Democratic primary, you cant vote in a GOP runoff  and vice-versa.

Voters who did not vote in the primary can still vote in either partys run-off.

For more information, visit the State Election Commission website.

Recounts coming

Two Statehouse races are also headed for an automatic recount. Thats mandatory in South Carolina whenever the difference between the two candidates vote count is less than 1 percentage point. But state election officials say the outcome is usually the same.

It is very, very rare  very rare that a recount changes the result for any type of office, said South Carolina Election Commission spokesman John Michael Catalano.

These mandatory recounts of ballots are tabulated the same way they are counted on election night, Catalano added.

Recounts include the Lowcountry race between incumbent state Sen. Sandy Senn, R-Charleston, and her challenger, freshman state Rep. Matt Leber, R-Johns Island.

According to unofficial results, Leber led by just 33 votes out of 7,845 cast.

Also, a race for an open seat in Greenville County to replace Rep. Ashley Trantham, R-Pelzer, saw retired pastor Chris Huff gather the most votes in a five-way GOP primary. But he didnt reach the necessary threshold of 50%-plus-one-vote to win the contest outright.

And the difference between the next two candidates, Kerri Smith, a regional credit union president, and Allen Kellett, a farmer and former county Farm Bureau president, was just seven votes in the unofficial results. That triggered a recount for who will face Huff in the run-off.

As is typical with primary elections, turnout across the state was low Tuesday  13.6% of registered voters cast a ballot, according to preliminary results. And turnout in runoffs is usually even less.

The SC Small Business Chamber of Commerce and Better Ballot SC used the run-offs to call for South Carolina to implement instant run-offs, where voters could choose not only a single candidate but rank any candidate they wanted. They argued that the system, already used for overseas military voters registered in South Carolina, would save money and avoid the drop-off in participation.

The taxpayers pay for two elections with very few voters participating in the second, Frank Knapp Jr., president of the Small Business Chamber said in a statement. The result is higher costs and a winning candidate who very few people voted for.

Races in a runoff

U.S. House 3rd District Republican  Sheri Biggs and Mark Burns

State Senate 6 (Greenville) Republican  State Rep. Jason Elliot and Ben Carper

State Senate 10 (Greenwood, Saluda, Lexington counties) Republican  State Sen. Billy Garrett (incumbent) and Charles Bumgardner

State Senate 12 (Greenville and Spartanburg) Republican  Former state Sen. Lee Bright and state Rep. Roger Nutt

State Senate 22 (Richland) Democratic  State Rep. Ivory Thigpen and Richland County councilman Overture Walker

State Senate 23 (Lexington) Republican  State Sen. Katrina Shealy (incumbent) and Carlisle Kennedy

State Senate 26 (Calhoun, Lexington, Richland) Republican  Chris Smith and Jason Guerry

State Senate 35 (Richland, Kershaw, Lee, Sumter) Democratic  City Councilor Jeffrey Graham and Austin Floyd, Jr. Republican  Mike Jones and Richland District 2 School Board member Lindsay Agostini

State House 9 (Anderson) Republican  Former West Pelzer mayor Blake Sanders and James Galyean

State House 28 (Greenville) Republican  Chris Huff and Kerri Smith or Allen Kellett (recount)

State House 34 (Spartanburg) Republican  Sarita Edgerton and JoAnne LaBounty

State House 93 (Calhoun, Orangeburg, Lexington) Democratic  Former state Rep. Jerry Govan and Johnny Felder



The post What voters need to know about participating in SCs primary runoffs appeared first on SC Daily Gazette.
Hundreds of demonstrators took to the White House in Washington, D.C. for the Free Leonard Peltier 79th Birthday Action on September 12, 2023. (Jourdan Bennett-Begaye, ICT)

This story was originally co-published by the Rapid City Journal and ICT, through a news partnership that covers Indigenous communities in the South Dakota area.

RAPID CITY, S.D.  By July 1, a decision will be made regarding what could be Anishinaabe AIM activist and now elder Leonard Peltiers last shot at freedom.

The Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians citizens parole hearing lasted about seven hours on June 10. This was Peltiers first parole hearing in over a decade. His last hearing in 2009 ended in rejection, as did a 2017 request to President Barack Obama for clemency.

Peltier is currently serving two consecutive life sentences at Coleman Maximum Security in Florida after being convicted of aiding and abetting in the murder of two FBI agents on June 26, 1975, at the Jumping Bull Ranch in South Dakota.

Peltier is 79 years old and has been struggling with health concerns for years. Hes had trouble managing his diabetes while incarcerated, experienced the loss of vision in one eye, had open heart surgery, an aortic aneurysm, and is dealing with the lingering effects of contracting COVID-19.

Often referred to as a political prisoner, Peltier was the only one out of three AIM members charged in the murders of the two FBI agents who was not acquitted of the charges. Two other AIM members who were present, Robert Robideau and Dino Butler, were both acquitted following a trial in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

After fleeing to Canada and being extradited back to the United States, Peltier was tried in Fargo, North Dakota, and found guilty of both murders. Federal prosecutors later changed his charges to aiding and abetting in the two murders.

Peltier has already served a longer sentence than most principals in murder convictions.

After fleeing to Canada and being extradited to the United States, Peltier was convicted and sentenced in 1977 to life in prison, despite defense claims that evidence against him had been falsified.

A long list of people, tribes, and organizations that have called for Peltiers freedom including the former prosecutor in the case, members of Congress, Amnesty International USA, Pope John Francis, the Dalai Lama, the National Congress of American Indians and dozens of tribal nations, Peltiers own tribe, the Turtle Mountain Band of Chippewa Indians has also called for his release.

On June 7, FBI Director Christopher Wray released a letter he penned to Patricia Cushwa, acting chair of the U.S. Parole Commission in opposition of paroling Peliter.

Over the past 45 years, no fewer than 22 federal judges have evaluated the evidence and considered Peltiers legal arguments, Wray said in the letter. Each has reached the same conclusion: Peltiers claims are meritless, and his convictions and sentence must stand. Despite the overwhelming and consistent court rulings, Peltier has refused to accept any responsibility for his violent crimes and persists in advancing spurious claims that judges have repeatedly examined and exposed as false.

The FBI Agents Association, which represents active agents, also sent a letter to the parole commission claiming that paroling Peltier would be a cruel act of betrayal.

Prayers nationwide

Across the United States and beyond, Indigenous activists held prayer ceremonies for Peltiers release.

Jean Roach, a Mnicouju Lakota woman who was 14 during the Jumping Bull Ranch shootout, remembers the day vividly.

You know how prairie is, there was nothing, so some of those bullets came pretty close to us, Roach said. At one moment I froze up running up the hills, I threw myself to the ground because the bullets they were all around me. I looked up and I saw Dino Butler and he waved for me to go.

Hundreds of rounds of ammunition had been fired during the shootout. In that time, Roach said she jumped up and ran as fast as she could away from the area until she got somewhere that she and her brother could hide.

By the time the shootout ended three men were dead  FBI Agents Ronald Arthur Williams and Jack Ross Coler and 23-year-old AIM member Joseph Bedell Schultz, a citizen of the Couer dAlene Tribe. Williams and Coler were dead within the first 10 minutes of the shootout.

There were 11 of us that escaped, Roach said. When we ran from the wooded area where we were camped at by the sweat lodge we had to go maybe a mile to the tree tops of the pines to get out of the area they were surrounding. We hid in the trees along lakeside road and we were watching the cops fly by. They had no idea we were up there in those trees watching them until after they left.

Roach, who now works with the International Leonard Peltier Defense Committee, said she held a prayer ceremony on June 10 in Phoenix with the Phoenix AIM division. While she said shes holding out hope for Peltiers release, she worries nothing will change.

Were holding prayer that he will be released because anybody thats been in prison really has a hard time dealing with it, Roach said. I cant imagine being in prison for 49 years, not being able to see your loved ones, your children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Hes been suffering for a long time.

In South Dakota, Oglala Lakota elder Norma Rendons nonprofit organization Where All Women Are Honored held a ceremony at Bear Butte State Park, a sacred site.

Bear Butte was an excellent place to have the prayer vigil because of the ancestors there, Rendon said. We prayed that they watch over him and guide the hearts and minds of the people making the decisions.

During the event, longtime AIM leader Bill Means spoke about Leonard and the struggles hes faced while incarcerated.

He (Peltier) is a political prisoner, Rendon said. Theres been so much evidence that he did not commit those murders. He should have never been charged for that.

Rendon said over 30 individuals came to Bear Butte on the afternoon of June 10 for prayer and a meal.

If parole is granted, Peltier will begin the process for release. If denied, he could file an appeal to a federal district court.

The commission has until July 1 to make a decision.

The post The wait begins for Leonard Peltier appeared first on North Dakota Monitor.
In a setback to Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, the Russian prosecutor's office announced Thursday he will stand trial on espionage charges, officially ending any future pre-detention appeals.

"The Prosecutor General's Office of the Russian Federation has approved an indictment in the criminal case against US citizen Evan Gershkovich," the office said in a statement. "The criminal case has been sent to the Sverdlovsk Regional Court for consideration on the merits."

It continued, "The investigation established and documented that the American journalist of The Wall Street Journal, Gershkovich, on the instructions of the CIA in March 2023, collected secret information in the Sverdlovsk region about the activities of the defense enterprise JSC NPK Uralvagonzavod for the production and repair of military equipment."

MORE: Biden, top lawmakers denounce Russia's yearlong detention of Evan Gershkovich

Gershkovich has denied he was involved in any espionage and the U.S. State Department has declared him to be wrongfully detained.

The statement Thursday marks the first time prosecutors have publicly accused Gershkovich of working for the CIA, alleging without evidence that he was collecting "secret information" on a tank factory in the Sverdlovsk region. Gershkovich, The Wall Street Journal, the U.S. government and Gershkovich's many colleagues all vehemently dispute he was working as a spy and say that he was doing his job as a reporter.

PHOTO: Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, left, stands in a glass cage in a courtroom at the First Appeals Court of General Jurisdiction in Moscow, Russia, Tuesday, April 23, 2024. (Alexander Zemlianichenko/AP, FILE)

Gershkovich was on a reporting trip in Yekaterinburg, the capital of the Sverdlovsk region, when he was arrested in March 2023.

Previously, prosecutors have alleged Gershkovich was working for a foreign intelligence service without specifying which one.

"Evan Gershkovich is facing a false and baseless charge," Almar Latour, Dow Jones CEO and Wall Street Journal publisher, and Emma Tucker, Wall Street Journal editor in chief, said in a joint statement published in The Wall Street Journal. "Russia's latest move toward a sham trial is, while expected, deeply disappointing and still no less outrageous."

They added, "Evan has spent 441 days wrongfully detained in a Russian prison for simply doing his job. Evan is a journalist. The Russian regime's smearing of Evan is repugnant, disgusting and based on calculated and transparent lies. Journalism is not a crime. Evan's case is an assault on free press."

MORE: Parents of reporter Evan Gershkovich speak out 1 year into his Russian detainment: Exclusive

In March, Gershkovich's parents had told ABC News they were optimistic about progress in their son's case.

"We know that the U.S. government is taking Evan's case very seriously," his mother, Ella Milman, told "Good Morning America" co-anchor George Stephanopoulos in an exclusive sit-down interview.

"I think if you let the pessimism in ... the game is over," she said. "And our saying in the family is we're moving forward. Moving forward."

PHOTO: Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich stands in a glass cage in a courtroom at the Moscow City Court, in Moscow, Dec. 14, 2023. (Dmitry Serebryakov/AP, FILE)

Russian President Vladimir Putin made his first comments on Gershkovich's detention in months on June 5.

"I know that the United States administration is really taking energetic steps for his release. This is true. But such issues are not resolved through the media," Putin said. "They love such a quiet, calm professional approach and dialogue between the intelligence services."

He added, "You know, you believe that he is innocent, and Russian law enforcement agencies and special services believe that he committed illegal actions, which are called espionage. I will not go into details."

Gershkovich most recently appeared in court in Moscow for a pretrial hearing on April 23 as part of an appeal against the spying charges. His appeal was denied and he was ordered held through at least June 30.

MORE: WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich's detention in Russia extended to June 30

The reporter smiled and gave a thumb's up when asked by ABC News inside the courtroom how he was doing.

"He has one more appeal that he can make, appealing his detention, but what's most likely going to happen before the 30th of June is Evan will be moved from Lefortovo, where he is currently held in prison, to instead Yekaterinburg, and when he gets out to Yekaterinburg, that's when the trial process most likely will start," U.S. Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs Roger Carstens said Thursday during a hearing on Capitol Hill.

Carstens continued: "I will tell you, if it's anything like what happened to Brittney Griner, Paul Whelan, Trevor Reed, there will be a period when he leaves Lefortovo where we won't have any contact with him. It'll almost be like it's gone dark."

The U.S. has been negotiating the release of both Gershkovich and Paul Whelan since not long after their detentions. Whelan, a former U.S. Marine, was also accused of spying in 2018 and convicted in June 2020. Like Gershkovich, he has been declared wrongfully detained by the U.S. government.

"We're going to continue to try to pursue his release," State Department spokesperson Matt Miller said Thursday of Gershkovich. "We put a substantial offer on the table to secure the release of Evan and Paul Whelan some months ago, as we said publicly, we're continuing to work to secure their release. It's one of the secretary's and the president's highest priorities."

ABC News' Shannon K. Crawford, Will Gretsky and Mark Osborne contributed to this report.

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich to stand trial in Russia on espionage charges originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
The News

Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich will stand trial in Russia on espionage charges, Russian authorities said Thursday.

Gershkovich, who was first arrested in March 2023 and has been imprisoned in Moscows notorious Lefortovo Prison, is accused of gathering secret information for the CIA about a military production and repair facility in the Sverdlovsk region.

Russia has presented no evidence to support the allegations, and The Wall Street Journal and US officials have repeatedly rejected the charges as baseless.

He faces up to 20 years in prison if convicted. The date of the trial has not been specified.

Know More

Gershkovich is the first American journalist to be arrested on espionage charges by Russia since US News and World Report correspondent Nicholas Daniloff in 1986 who was held for two weeks in the same infamous czarist-era prison as Gershkovich. Lefortovo is the most isolated place to be, and this is the torture, Marina Litvinenko, the wife of murdered former Russian spy Alexander Litvinenko told The Wall Street Journal in 2023.

Russians foreign ministry has said it would consider a prisoner swap for Gershkovich, but only after a verdict in his trial. In February, Russian President Vladimir Putin appeared to hint that Gershkovich could be exchanged for Vadim Krasikov, who is serving a life sentence in Germany for the 2019 killing of a Russian regime opponent.
Washington Post CEO and publisher Will Lewis attempted to play clean-up this week in private, conciliatory meetings with staffers, ultimately offering few answers for them after lashing out and playing defense last week.

Multiple staffers told The Daily Beast that, in private Q&A sessions where staffers peppered him with questions about the papers future, Lewis directly expressed regret for his outbursts over multiple reports indicating he tried to kill stories on his alleged role in covering up the U.K. tabloid phone-hacking scandal.

He told staffers he could have been a better communicator, extending the quasi-apology he released late Friday evening.

The comments were made in several of the Say It sessions Lewis hosted this week for staffers to grill him on his plans to reinvigorate the Posts business, which he said lost $77 million in a year. Last week, Lewis overhauled the newsroom by pushing out executive editor Sally Buzbee and installing his former colleagues Matt Murray and Rob Winnett to lead a restructured editorial operation. Lewis last month unveiled his Build It business plan, which includes a mysterious third newsroom, among other gambits, as a way to turn the newspaper around.

Staffers who spoke with The Daily Beast relayed that Lewis connection to the hacking scandal was not a hot topic, especially considering the publisher has repeatedly denied wrongdoing. Instead, these WaPo sources said, the focus was on his plans for saving the newspaper.

We all want him to be able to talk to us and answer our questions, one Post staffer told The Daily Beast. No one is trying to take him down. One staffer said the meetings were cordial, with staffers laughing at comments made by Lewis and executive editor Murray.

Lewis did not offer staffers many specific insights into how the third newsroom, dedicated to service and social media journalism, would function, according to staffers who spoke with The Daily Beast. He did, however, suggest the creation of new products as a way to lure readers to the main Post coveragethough he didnt lay out what those would look like either. A Post spokesperson declined to comment.

While Lewis seemed to provide little in the way of concrete answers, he did further outline his plan for leadership structure going forward. After last weeks announcement that Winnett would take over the main newsroom from Murray after the 2024 election, Lewis said this week that the Telegraph deputy would move to Washington, D.C. in August and begin shadowing reporters in September. He would then shadow Murray in October before taking over the core newsroom in November. Murray would then transition into editing the third newsroom.

Lewis assured staffers that Winnett, a tabloid vet, would adhere to the Posts rigorous editorial standards, according to multiple staffers. The commitment came after The Daily Beast reported on Winnetts reporting methods in the U.K., which included dispatching a Sunday Times reporter to go undercover within the U.K. Cabinet Office and leak information; and the paying of a source for information while at the Telegraph. Those practices run counter to both the Posts policies and the Society of Professional Journalists code of ethics.

Lewis reception within the newsroom has constantly shifted since Jeff Bezos installed him atop the newspaper. When he began in November, staffers reportedly found him charming and affable. But the situation has since devolved after a series of public missteps and internal outbursts. Those included Lewis labeling NPR media correspondent David Folkenfilk an activist, not a journalist after Folkenfilk claimed Lewis offered him an exclusive interview if he dropped a story on Lewis alleged role in covering up News U.K.s phone hacking scandal.

Ultimately its unclear whether this weeks meetings will have been enough to turn around the newsrooms mood. Everyone is extremely concerned, a Post staffer told The Daily Beast.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

Get the Daily Beast's biggest scoops and scandals delivered right to your inbox. Sign up now.

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PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN)  Sunny skies and warmer weather will move into western Oregon and Washington Thursday.

The warmest temperatures of the week are expected to push Portland area thermometers back into the mid to upper 70s throughout the early evening hours. Clear skies are expected to fade late in the day. This latest system will help cool temperatures and bring the chance of rain back to the region this weekend.





2 hikers rescued from snowy Mt. Hood trail in painstaking mission

Temperatures will fall back into the low 70s by the weeks end. Below-average highs are expected to drop temperatures into the 60s through the holiday weekend. Fathers Day Sunday could see a few light rain showers, but not soaking conditions.

Cooler and potentially wetter weather expected for Fathers Day weekend around Portland

Portlands thunderstorm potential will increase slightly Saturday and could linger into Sunday, but will not be widespread. No severe weather is expected, but a few heavier rain showers or downpours with embedded hail and lightning are possible in some isolated areas.

VIDEO: Tillamook Sheriff cadet rescues stranded fawn from hungry coyotes

KOIN 6 Meteorologist Josh Cozart shares Portlands cooling weather pattern as rain returns to the forecast this weekend

A drying and warming trend is expected to take shape over the Pacific Northwest by the start of next week. The timeline for the potential thunderstorm activity remains unclear. So, be sure to stay with the KOIN 6 Weather Team for the latest updates as the weekend approaches.

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 KOIN.com.
WASHINGTON COUNTY, Tenn. (WJHL)  Local organizations in Washington County, Tennessee received $241,480 in grant funding from the Tennessee Arts Commission to support various arts and cultural activities.

State Representatives Rebecca Alexander (R-Jonesborough), Tim Hicks (R-Gray) and State Senator Rusty Crowe (R-Johnson City) announced on Thursday the following organizations received funding:

Pepsi Independence Day Fireworks Celebration returns to Johnson City

Art Transforms $6,600 to support arts learning programs preparing underserved and underrepresented youth for success $4,900 to support projects that demonstrate creative and innovative arts learning programming in community settings

City of Johnson City $4,260 to help build stronger communities through the arts for positive

economic and community outcomes $3,400 to support qualified arts organizations headquartered and chartered

in Tennessee

ETSU Slocumb Galleries $9,990 to support qualified arts organizations headquartered and

chartered in Tennessee

First Tennessee Development District $52,360 for arts projects focusing on community

priorities

Johnson City Symphony Orchestra $4,400 to support projects that demonstrate creative and innovative arts learning programming in community settings $22,700 to support arts projects and activities across all disciplines that focus on community vitality and engagement in urban counties

Mountain Empire Childrens Choral Academy $10,000 to support qualified arts organizations chartered in one of Tennessees urban counties

National Storytelling Association dba International Storytelling Center $112,200 to support well-established arts organizations headquartered and chartered in Tennessee with a history of significant year-round arts programming

Town of Jonesborough $7,170 to support qualified arts organizations headquartered and chartered in Tennessee

Umoja Unity Committee, Inc. $3,500 to support qualified arts organizations chartered in one of Tennessees urban counties



Tennessee is fortunate to have elected leaders who understand the positive impact arts and culture have on Tennesseans and their communities, Tennessee Arts Commission Executive Director Anne B. Pope said in a news release. Arts and culture are vital tools for attracting and retaining businesses and help build stronger communities by enhancing the distinctive character of Tennessee places.

The selection process consisted of a review by citizen advisory panels with expertise in various arts disciplines and a review by the full Tennessee Arts Commission, the release said.

The states nonprofit arts and culture industry reportedly generates $1.4 billion in annual economic activity.

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 WJHL | Tri-Cities News & Weather.
A coyote in the front yard of a Southern California home was eyeing a cat that was peering outside behind a baby gate and screen door.

After a few moments, the predator decided to pounce and ran straight into the baby gate and bounced off. The coyote retreated but gave it another go, again ramming into the baby gate and being thwarted.

The coyote repeatedly approached the front door before deciding to move on.

The encounter in Mission Viejo was captured on a doorbell camera. KTLA posted the video on YouTube.

One of the reasons we like to keep that screen door and baby gate there is she likes to sit on the rug and look out here because we have a lot of bunnies, squirrels and lizards, Cindy Stalnaker, referring to her cat, Maddy, explained to NBC. But at night, its bunny time, so she likes to watch them.

Sunday night around 11, Stalnaker and her husband were watching TV when they heard a loud bang.

My husband was like, What the heck was that? Stalnaker told NBC.

The doorbell camera showed the coyote lurking around the front door before futilely attempting to break into the house to get the cat.

He came around just a shot and pow, pow, pow into that metal baby gate, Stalnaker told NBC. He wasnt just walking up and [tapping]. He backed up on the sidewalk and got a running start.

One wonders what might have happened had the baby gate not been behind the screen door.

Story originally appeared on For The Win
The Israeli military has used a medieval-style trebuchet to lob incendiaries across the northern border into Lebanon.

A video that first emerged on social media on Thursday appeared to show Israel Defence Forces (IDF) soldiers loading the wooden siege engine with flaming projectiles and launching them into Lebanese plantations.

The military responded that the use of the contraption was a local initiative and not a tool that is widely used, reported Israeli state broadcaster KAN News.

The ancient artillery weapon was used during the Middle Ages in sieges of castles and other fortified locations.

Trebuchets were used a lot in medieval times to breach castle walls and fortifications - iStockphoto

In this case, the device may have been used to clear dense vegetation in the border area which could help the army prevent terrorists infiltrating Israel, suggested Emanuel Fabian, the Times of Israel military correspondent, who initially posted the video.

The footage comes at a time of heightened hostilities between the IDF and the Hezbollah terrorist group, which has been intensifying its barrage of rockets, anti-tank missiles and explosive drones into northern Israel in support of Hamas throughout the Gaza war.

On Tuesday, the IDF killed Sami Taleb Abdullah, the most senior Hezbollah commander to die since the October 7 attacks.

The airstrike prompted the Lebanon-based group to launch a volley of some 250 rockets into the north of Israel, reaching as far south as the area of Tiberias.

Some 60,000 Israelis and 100,000 Lebanese residents are believed to have been displaced from both sides of the border.

Public outcry over dramatic bushfires sparked by incoming missiles in recent weeks spurred Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, last week to threaten an extremely powerful response and strong action to restore security to the north.

The US military on Wednesday urged a de-escalation in rising tensions between Israel and Lebanon. We dont want to see a wider regional conflict and we do want to see a de-escalation of tensions in the region, Pentagon spokesperson Sabrina Singh said.

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.
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- China's trade promotion body has expressed strong opposition to the plan of the European Union (EU) to add duties on imports of Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), describing it as "notably unfair" and "typical double standards."

The European Commission (EC) on Wednesday proposed the provisional additional tariffs ranging from 17.4 to 38.1 percent in its preliminary ruling on anti-subsidy probe into Chinese EVs.

A spokesperson with the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade said Thursday the EC persisted in imposing the tariffs in disregard of the fact that the European EV industry actually came to no harm, did not ask for any investigation, and has even repeatedly voiced objections.

The investigation blatantly violated rules of the World Trade Organization (WTO) as its unfair procedure prevented the participation of Chinese carmakers, the spokesperson said, adding that Chinese industries and businesses would defend their legal rights under WTO regulations.

The spokesperson accused the EU of having double standards as it has provided substantial subsidies to its own EV and battery industries.

Moreover, China's EV industry, deeply integrated into the global supply chain, has contributed significantly to the world's EV development, carbon emission reduction and green development through international cooperation and technological innovation, the spokesperson said.

The EC's abuse of WTO trade remedy rules undermined market principles and disrupted global supply chain stability and security, the spokesperson said.

While urging the cancellation of the anti-subsidy tariff measures, the spokesperson highlighted the vast potential for China-EU cooperation in the EV industry and called for dialogues to resolve disputes, win-win cooperation to reduce emissions, and integrated development to achieve green goals. 
Jake Markris has lived along the eastern shore of Mobile Bay on Alabamas Gulf Coast all his life. Its a renowned saltwater fishery, and one of only two places on Earth where anglers can witness an incredible shallow-water phenomenon known as a jubilee. These summertime occurrences are caused by a lack of oxygen in the water, which forces all kinds of bottom-dwelling fish into the shallows where they congregate along the beach and are easily targeted by local fisherman. Markris, a 52-year-old resident of Fairhope, has witnessed dozens of jubilees over the years. But he says the one he experienced and filmed on Wednesday was one of the best hes seen. He says he was planning fishing the bay that morning, but then he got a call from a friend who told him there was a jubilee occurring near Point Clear. .embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; } I knew wed be wasting our time fishing because a jubilee is [caused by] oxygen depletion in the water, and the trout werent going to be where I expected them to be in the bay, Markris tells Outdoor Life. So, we loaded up and headed to the Point Clear area, and it was unreal. Flounder, shrimp, croakers, spots, even sheepshead and some trout were in inches of water, trying to get oxygen. A few other family members met Markris and his son on the beach, where they each gigged a limit of five flounder in just minutes. The family didnt even put a dent in the number of flounder, and they werent the only ones harvesting fish along the beach. Video footage that Markris captured shows the staggering number of fish, shrimp, and other marine critters that were gathered in the shallow water. Many of them seemed to struggle for air as they slowly milled around, which is typical with these events. Jubilees are caused primarily by up-wellings or upward movement of oxygen-poor bottom waters, forcing bottom-type fish and crustaceans ashore, according to the experts at Auburn University and Alabama A&M. Due to the lack of oxygen, these jubilee-affected fish and shellfish cannot carry out normal muscular activities, such as swimming. They move slowly and seem reluctant to swim even to escape capture. Markris emphasizes that hes no authority on jubilees. But he and his family have observed them for generations, studying weather patterns and discussing their theories with other fishermen. Markris estimates that hes seen around 50 different jubilees over the years, and his parents have witnessed even more. Read Next: How to Catch Big Bass in Small Creeks He explains that jubilees typically begin in June along the eastern shore of Mobile Bay. (Tokyo Bay is the only other location in the world where these events take place, according to the City of Fairhope.) Normally there will be one in June, a few in July and August, and they can sometimes extend into September and October. Each event affects the fish differently, and sometimes its just shrimp, crabs, and other crustaceans that are forced into the shallows. Other times it affects nearly all the bottom-dwellers in the bay, including rays, flounder, and other finfish. Markris says hes seen them localized along 100 yards of shoreline, while others have extended for a mile or more. Markris likens the even to a forest fire. He says the fish sense the oxygen levels dropping and run ahead of it. Theyll head to areas with more dissolved oxygen, like the mouths of feeder creeks, and Markris says there are several of these areas along the eastern shore of Mobile Bay. It all depends on bay conditions, and you can just sense when one is going to happen. It must be hot and very calm, with no wind. And it normally begins before dawn with an incoming tide, Markris says. No wind, and an incoming tide during a few days of hot weather is prime conditions. People along the bay know this, and theres a network of folks who spread the word when it happens. Its just part of the eastern shore life here. And it has been for some time. Coastal Alabamians have been recording jubilees since before the Civil War, and before modern fishing regulations came about, old-timers would eagerly await the shallow water free-for-all. Read Next: Watch: First Ever Swordfish Landed from a Jet Ski in the Gulf Back in the old days there were large bells along the eastern shore and when a Jubilee was underway, theyd ring the bells and people would head to the bay to pick up fish, shrimp, crabs, and more, Markris says. He still recalls a story his dad tells him about one of the jubilees he experienced as a kid. It lasted for several days, and his dad used a flounder gig to take full advantage of the opportunity. After that fourth day of getting so many flounder from the jubilee, my dads mom told him that if he brought home another flounder, something bad was gonna happen to him.

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President Biden is slated to sign a bilateral security agreement Thursday with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky, sending what a top White House official called a signal of our resolve to Russia almost 2 1/2 years into the war.

The two leaders will sign the pact, which will pledge continued defense and security cooperation, during a sit down at the Group of Seven summit in Italy.

Biden is scheduled to hold a joint press conference following their discussions.

The event is scheduled to begin at 1:45 p.m. EDT.

Watch the video above.

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KANSAS CITY, Mo.  The Nashua Elementary School building is coming down this week. The Kansas City elementary school stood for 72 years on Northeast 114th St.

Students at the North Kansas City School District elementary school have had the unique experience of watching their brand-new school being built from the ground up, as the new building is currently being built adjacent to the old building.

The new Nashua Elementary School building will be completed to welcome students and staff in Fall 2024.

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.
U.S. Rep. Debbie Lesko, a Republican from Arizona, speaks Wednesday at a press conference opposing earmarks. (Lia Chien/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON  A group opposed to wasteful government spending and a handful of U.S. House Republicans warned at a Wednesday press event that project-specific spending known as earmarks was contributing to an increase in the national debt.

The event to discuss the Citizens Against Government Wastes latest annual report, titled the 2024 Congressional Pig Book and released Wednesday, highlighted congressional earmarks and called on lawmakers to rein in government spending.

Leaders of the nonpartisan organization, which works to oppose waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement in government, according to its website, were joined by Republican House members and a live potbelly pig to address earmarks and rising debt limits.

The organizations annual pig book highlights earmarks, often called pork. An earmark is a project-specific funding allocation approved by Congress through the annual appropriations process.

The group identified 8,222 earmarks for fiscal year 2024, totaling $22.7 billion. Thats 13% less than fiscal year 2023 but still the fifth-highest spending year for earmarks since the CAGW began releasing its annual report in 1991.

Republicans ended the controversial spending practice in 2011 after winning control of the House. A decade later, Democrats and Republicans voted to allow earmarked spending again.

Defenders of the practice say it allows members of Congress, who know the needs of their states and districts, to respond with specific funding. The projects comprise a small portion of total federal spending. And lawmakers have a chance to vote on them as part of appropriations bills.

But some Republicans continue to oppose them. Four members on Wednesday gave a similar rationale Wednesday as Republicans did when they eliminated earmarks in 2011, calling them a form of wasteful government spending thats adding to a rising national debt.

Rep. Bob Good, a Republican from Virginia, stressed how much debt the country continues to accumulate.

Here we are with $35 trillion in debt, he said. After it took us about 200 years to accumulate the first trillion, now were accumulating a trillion every four months or so.

Data from the U.S. Department of the Treasury and a CNBC analysis confirms these amounts.

Good, the chair of the far-right House Freedom Caucus, criticized his party for passing a 2023 law to suspend the debt limit. The measure allowed Congress to appropriate as much as we can joyfully, gleefully spend together, Good said.

Speakers at the event, which included Reps. Debbie Lesko of Arizona, Ralph Norman of South Carolina and Tom McClintock of California as well as Good, shared the sentiment that permanently ditching earmarks would help restore Republicans reputation as the fiscally responsible party.

Republicans cannot reclaim the mantle of fiscal responsibility until we end once and for all this reckless and self-indulgent practice, McClintock said.

Maine and Alaska benefit

Members also spoke to the disproportionate allocation of earmarked spending in Congress.

CAGW President Tom Schatz opened Wednesdays event by highlighting who in Congress received the most funding in earmarks this fiscal year. Earmarks are required to have a sponsor in the House and Senate.

Sen. Susan Collins, a Republican from Maine and ranking member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, took home the most bacon this year with 231 earmarks totaling $576 million.

That total was almost 24% more than the legislator with the second-highest number of earmarks, Sen. Lisa Murkowski, a Republican from Alaska who is also on the Appropriations Committee. Murkowskis 185 earmarks amounted to $466 million.

Members of the appropriations committees in the House and Senate, which write the annual spending laws, gained much more in earmarks than the average member, the report notes.

Earmarks continue to provide the most benefit to the most powerful legislators, Schatz said.

The rest of the top five were Sen. Angus King of Maine, Democratic Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii and Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. King caucuses with Democrats, though he is an independent.

Together, these five senators received 10.3% of all earmark spending in fiscal 2024, but make up less than 1% of all members of Congress.

Senators generally won more earmarked spending than their House counterparts, with 37 of the top 40 lawmakers by dollar amount coming from the Senate.

Schatz also spoke to the differences between the parties. Nearly all  99.6%  congressional Democrats took advantage of the spending practice, while only 62.4% of Republicans did.

The CAGW president also noted an uneven distribution of funding among states and territories.

States with smaller populations receive more pork per capita, with Alaska taking the top spot at $645 in earmark spending per person. Maine, with $434 per person, and Hawaii at $336, followed.

The bottom three jurisdictions included Indiana at $4.32 per person, Puerto Rico at $3.67 per person and North Dakota, which received no earmarks.

Legalized bribery

McClintock pointed to earmarks as a cause of corruption in Congress. He said if a project is worthy of funding, it will receive the money under open, competitive bidding.

Worthy projects in open, competitive bidding dont need earmarks, he said. They rise or fall on their merits.

Good further supported McClintocks claim of corruption, saying earmarks entice members to vote on legislation to benefit their districts.

Make no mistake about it, Good said. Earmarks are used to buy bad votes for bad bills.

He added that committee chairs often find earmarks much more rewarding. Appropriations subcommittee chairs can add earmarked funds into spending bills to entice their colleagues to pass a bill, Good said.

Folks, this is nothing but legalized bribery, Norman said.

Lesko said celebrating legislators that bring home earmarks makes government spending increase.

The people like Tom [McClintock] and I and others that actually want to reduce government spending, so its responsible, arent celebrated at all, she said.

She pointed the finger at her fellow Arizona representative, Democrat Greg Stanton, after he secured a $700,000 earmark to renovate an economics and business finance program for fourth, fifth and sixth graders.

Now, is this coming from his bank account? said Lesko. No, its coming from your bank account.

Asked Wednesday about Leskos comment, a spokesperson for Stanton replied with a written statement from last months earmark announcement.

In the release, Stanton said the funding is an investment in the future of Arizonas children.

McClintock closed the press conference by advocating to once again put an end to earmarks.

He referred to former House Speaker John Boehner, an Ohio Republican who was instrumental in banning earmarks in 2011.

It can be done, he said. It has been done, it will need to be done again.

The post Watchdog group, Republican U.S. House members blast reckless earmark spending by Congress appeared first on Washington State Standard.
New Mexico officials tell lawmakers the state needs more money invested in water infrastructure

From left, State Engineer Mark Hamman, Environment Secretary James Kenney, and Rebecca Roose, senior infrastructure advisor to the Governor, present Senate Bill 292, a bill to create a strategic water supply program, to the Senate Conservation Committee, Wednesday, February 14, 2024. Roose said the proposal is a top priority for the 2025 session. (Eddie Moore / Albuquerque Journal)

The confluence of money and water appeared before a panel of New Mexico lawmakers who hold the purse strings of state government.

State officials said in order to strengthen the states water, lawmakers will need to invest more money in 2025.

But that applies not just to the basics, like requests to buy monitoring wells for a fuller picture of the hidden waters underground.

As promised, the governor is again seeking lawmakers approval to spend at least $500 million for the unprecedented project to act as a middleman in a new market for oil and gas wastewater, and the salty water from deep aquifers.

Rebecca Roose, the infrastructure advisor for the governors office, said a 2025 priority will be reintroducing a request in the 2025 session.

The promises of the project, called the Strategic Water Supply, range from ambitious to lofty.

Roose says the new endeavor will support New Mexico moving away from fossil fuels, make money for the state, develop clean energy jobs, and ease strain on freshwater sources.

Its critical that we figure out how to meet our economic development needs and advance our energy transition without further stressing our water resources, Roose said.

Environmental and Indigenous groups have raised objections to the proposal, saying that it uses public money to offer the oil and gas industry a solution to a rising problem of wastewater disposal, and is putting too much emphasis on creating a market for the water, before ensuring it can be safely cleaned, extracted or transported.

Pei Xu, a researcher at New Mexico State University, does work for the public-private Produced Water Research Consortium, which is investigating how to use oil and gas wastewater  called produced water  off of the oilfields.

Xu told the lawmakers that the public has asked for more research in two areas: the movement of contaminants through soil and groundwater, and the human health and environmental risk factors.

These are our priority research areas, we just do not have the money to do it, but with your help, I think we can continue to do work in these areas, Xu told lawmakers.

Oil and gas money still flowing in

Presentations before the interim Legislative Finance Committee earlier in the day showed that oil and gas extraction generated more than $15.2 billion for the state, funding government from schools to state agencies.

Even as revenues have quadrupled in the last five years, experts say its vital to establish more independence from oil and gas, to protect against the financial shocks during boom-and-bust cycles.

But the consequences of New Mexicos production are not just financial. Hotter and drier weather due to our fossil fuel use and production is straining the whole system.

New Mexicos rivers and aquifers are experiencing both increased demand from people, crops and ecosystems that rely on them while shrinking supplies from human and climate changes.

Dearth of data for aquifers

Theres a lot about New Mexicos aquifers that remain unknown, said Stacy Timmons, the associate director of hydrogeology at the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources.

In order to characterize the major and minor aquifers of the state by 2037, the bureau would need $800,000 per year going forward, and an additional $1.25 million to hire personnel and buy software.

That would allow the state to drill 100 monitoring wells to better understand the shape, depth and amount of water underground  which is still unknown.

$175 million is the concept that we have, its 12 years to get 100 wells and detailed information so we can more carefully plan and manage our groundwater resources, Timmons said.

Timmons pointed out that the Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources is the only agency dedicated to research, unlike the New Mexico Environment Department or the New Mexico Energy Minerals and Natural Resources Department, which is also required to regulate industries.

Focus for 2025: Strategic Water Supply

Much of the presentation focused on the Strategic Water Supply, a plan floated by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham in the 2024 session, that failed after a bill substitution and a Hail Mary resurrection in the sessions last days.

Roose said the project would connect industry  like solar and wind manufacturing, for example  to sources of treated brackish and produced water.

The state would set aside the money and buy treated brackish or produced water from a water treatment company once it meets certain water quality specifications under a contract, she said.

There are currently no state treatment standards for either category of water.

Roose added that the state isnt getting in the business of buying or storing large volumes of water, but acting as an intermediary.

She asked the rhetorical question of why the state would get itself involved.

Simple reason for that is because then we as a state get to steer that newly available treated water resource to certain kinds of projects that are priorities for the state of New Mexico, she said.

Sen. Nancy Rodriguez (D-Santa Fe) asked Roose how much the program is expected to cost.

Roose said the state will ask lawmakers for two rounds of $250 million over two years. However, she said the cost estimates could change this summer, after the results of an economic analysis are published.

As we get further in the interim session, it very likely could change because we will have even more robust data, Roose said.

Lawmakers expressed a range of support.

Rep. Susan Herrera (D-Embudo) said she supported more funding for aquifer data studies.

We know we have some of the most beautiful, clean, deep aquifers in the state, she said.

But we really dont know whats happening with them, how fast theyre being depleted.

Rep. Nathan Small (D-Las Cruces) asked if the legislature should be more aggressive.

Is it your sense that we should consider $1 billion plus, all the way up to $1.5 billion in a comprehensive potential water-focused investment as we look towards the next session? he asked.

Roose replied that those numbers were within the ballpark.

That really means more investments than the legislature and the state has made in recent years, she said.

Sen. Pat Woods (R-Clovis) asked if the state government has already put forward the process for regulations around the Strategic Water Supply.

Roose said the state government was still in the rule-making process, which will continue through August.

Currently the rule would not allow for discharges outside of oilfields, but she said it would create a pathway for uses of produced water that would complement the Strategic water supply.

It sounds like we need to put some more money towards water, so to speak, Woods concluded.

The post New Mexico officials tell lawmakers the state needs more money invested in water infrastructure appeared first on Source New Mexico.
TechCrunch

Arne Schepker, the CEO of the popular Berlin-based language learning platform Babbel, is stepping down, and the company's co-founder and former CEO Markus Witte is stepping back in to lead the company "into a new phase while searching for Arnes successor with patience," the company said. Witte will not claim the CEO role for the time being, but instead will be executive chairman and managing director. After almost exactly five years as the sole CEO  and a few months prior as co-CEO together with Witte, who had held the position in the preceding years  Schepker decided not to renew his contract, he told me.
Former Rep. Anthony Weiner (D-N.Y.) joined NewsNation Wednesday, where he spoke about various political scandals  including his own  and said he doubts hed ever run again.

Weiner resigned from Congress in 2011 after admitting he had been sending lewd photos to women online, and he made an unsuccessful bid for mayor of New York City two years later. He later served 21 months in prison after pleading guilty in 2017 to transferring obscene material to a minor.

Weiner argued on Dan Abrams Live that Americans are still willing to give politicians second chances amid scandals.

I think fundamentally still Americans are forgiving people, he said.

Weiner said he believes there are certain consistent themes that people must follow in order to be accepted again, including the complete acceptance of responsibility and the ability to show that a real lesson has been learned.

The former lawmaker highlighted several other controversies: former President Trump, former Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.), Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.), former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) and Hunter Biden.

He said in todays technological world, there is a build up and tear down cycle that is much faster than it used to be.

All it takes is a relatively minor mistake or relatively small collection of facts that someone learns about your private life for you to get buried, Weiner said.

Dan Abrams asked Weiner if the American people had forgiven him and if he was going to run again for office.

Im apparently so forgiven I can even appear on Dan Abrams Live, he said, later adding that he doubts hed run again.

I had my moment. I basically did the equivalent playing shortstop for the New York Yankees, Weiner continued. I was a member of Congress, a middle-class guy with a job that was in the Constitution. I have no complaints; Ive got many blessings in my present life.

NewsNation is owned by Nexstar Media Group, which also owns The Hill.

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A weird legacy of the Falklands War could get Ukraine 5 fighter jets: report

A weird legacy of the Falklands War could get Ukraine 5 fighter jets: report

Argentina is holding talks to send five fighter jets to Ukraine, Argentine media reported.

Its Super Etendard jets are inoperable due to a Falkland War-era embargo, local outlet Infobae said.

France could fit ejection seat cartridges as part of a weapons swap with Argentina, per the outlet.

An unusual legacy of the Falklands War could help Ukraine get a new set of fighter jets.

Argentine news outlet Infobae reported on Tuesday that the country is holding talks with NATO, the US, and France to provide Ukraine with five Super Etendard fighter jets.

The jets have been out of use and stored at an air-naval base since Argentina acquired them in 2019, due to a Falkland War-era embargo the UK imposed on Argentina, according to the outlet.

The Falklands War, a ten-week undeclared war between the UK and Argentina, took place in 1982 over control of the Falkland Islands.

Under existing UK sanctions, the South American country can't get cartridges needed to enable the pilot's seat to eject in case of emergency, the outlet reported, making the jets inoperable.

Argentina is now holding talks with France to swap the jets for other military gear, such as drones and helicopters, it said.

According to the outlet, the plan, approved by Argentina's President Javier Milei, would allow France to then fit the ejection seat cartridges and make them operable for use in Ukraine.

Argentina's foreign and defense ministries and the Elysee Palace in France didn't immediately respond to requests for comments.

According to the outlet, Argentina's foreign minister, Diana Elena Mondino, discussed the issue in a meeting held at NATO headquarters in Brussels with her French counterpart, Stephane Sejourne, and during an unannounced visit with US national security advisor Jake Sullivan at the White House.

It didn't specify when these talks took place or what role the US and NATO are playing.

Earlier this month, President Emmanuel Macron said France would send Mirage 2000 fighter jets to Ukraine.

The jet  a multi-role fourth-generation fighter manufactured by French company Dassault Aviation  is a combat-proven aircraft like the F-16, having flown sorties in conflicts in the Middle East and the Balkans.

But its effectiveness is limited by its air-to-air missiles, Justin Bronk, an airpower and technology expert at the UK-based Royal United Services Institute think tank, told BI last week.

Meanwhile, an unnamed Ukrainian military source told Reuters in May that F-16s are expected to start arriving in Ukraine in either June or July.

They could play a vital role in helping Ukraine reclaim Crimea, Frederik Mertens, a strategic analyst at the Hague Centre for Strategic Studies, told BI last month.

Read the original article on Business Insider
DENVER (KDVR)  A Weld County DNA analyst will not face charges after an investigation into her work found five anomalies among thousands of data entries, according to the Weld County District Attorneys Office.

The DNA analyst worked for the Weld County Sheriffs Office at the Northern Colorado Regional Forensic Lab. The Weld County District Attorneys Office reviewed an investigation into the analysts work and found a lack of probable cause demonstrating the analyst had committed a crime.

Supreme Court upholds access to mifepristone abortion pill in unanimous decision

It is not clear who performed the investigation.

The district attorney said in a statement that the comprehensive review of all evidence and circumstances made it clear that the anomalies found in her work do not meet the legal threshold for criminal charges. The Weld County District Attorneys Office said that prosecutors must prove both that the criminal act occurred and that defendant had criminal intent, and could not prove that the analyst intentionally implemented the anomalies.

These anomalies could be seen as intentional acts to avoid additional work required by CBIs standard operating procedures. However, during an interview on May 23, 2024, (the analyst) denied intentionally altering or deleting the data, attributing any discrepancies to potential mistakes in using Excel, the Weld County DA said in a release.

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The analyst told investigators that there would be no reason for her to intentionally change the data, noting that she had performed the necessary DNA amplification required by standard operating procedures. That point was corroborated by the Colorado Bureau of Investigations, which stated that these anomalies did not impact any DNA identification or elimination in criminal cases.

According to the Weld County District Attorneys Office, the Weld County analysts actions fell into three categories:

Alleged deletion of data that indicated a small amount of male DNA

Alleged addition of the word undetermined to a speadsheet cell block

Alleged alteration of data values related to potential contamination to a smaller number

The agency did not clarify in its release how or why these measures could have impacted the casework and prosecution.

DNA analysts under scrutiny

The CBI is facing its own difficulties with an analyst: An internal affairs report recently released detailed at least a decade of concern surrounding an analyst. Her coworkers said she cut corners, but was the golden child and that management thought her to be amazing.

Report: Ex-CBI scientist cut corners but did not falsify DNA matches

However, the CBI analyst reportedly failed to perform the necessary DNA amplification work properly, and thus could have affected numerous cases. Her work has already been linked to one case that led to a plea deal for the murder suspect instead of a jury trial.

The CBI analyst retired after she was placed on administrative leave in October 2023.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to FOX31 Denver.
Hrvoje Prpic, president of the Croatian Electric Vehicle Drivers Association, said EU tariffs on Chinese EVs would fail to help European industry keep up with Chinese car manufacturers and, moreover, the end users in Europe would front the increased cost. #GLOBALink
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET)  A man already serving life without parole for two murders in the Los Angeles area was sentenced Thursday to an additional life term in prison for attacking another inmate at North Kern State Prison in Delano.

Patrick Watkins, 60, was sentenced to 27 years to life plus 13 years in prison for attacking an inmate with a makeshift weapon on the morning of Aug. 25, 2022, according to the District Attorneys Office.

The victim was treated for multiple slash wounds.

Nicknamed the Western Bandit, Watkins committed a series of crimes between 2011-14 near Western Avenue in the Los Angeles area  including murder and robbery.

Watkins was convicted in 2021 of two murders and additional shootings and robberies. He was linked to 23 crimes.

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For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KGET 17.
The News

In the eyes of immigration advocates, New Jersey Sen. Bob Menendezs legal troubles couldnt have come at a worse moment.

For decades, the once-powerful Democratic senator was seen as a critical ally who used his sway to push for legalization of the undocumented and prevent the deportations of Dreamers.

But thanks to a corruption trial that has sapped his influence in the upper chamber and kept him away from the US Capitol, Menendez has been largely AWOL from the immigration debate as the White House has leaned hard into border enforcement policies many Democrats not long ago would have considered unthinkable.

Its devastating to lose Menendez, one advocate from an immigrants rights group, who was provided anonymity to speak candidly, told Semafor. He was the only one willing to go hard to fight for things.

Weve taken a hit, a second advocate told Semafor. He was such a strong champion, and its hard to replicate his ability to push his priorities in the Senate.

Menendez, who recently filed to run for reelection as an independent, has consistently maintained his innocence and blamed overzealous prosecutors for his troubles. He missed scores of votes throughout May, and the New Jersey Globe reported last week that hes now managing his own campaign with no staff. In the latest departure from his office, Menendez chief of staff Jason Tuber is taking a job in the private sector after nearly two decades with the senator.

Menendezs office did not respond to a request for comment.

Step Back

Menendez was key in prodding the Obama administration to suspend deportations of young undocumented immigrants in June 2012 through the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program  aka DACA  and played a part of the so-called Gang of Eight in 2013 that yielded an immigration reform bill that would have paired a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants along with tougher border enforcement.

Ive seen him in action and involved in every single immigration fight at the highest level, Angelica Salas, the executive director of the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights, told Semafor. So of course hes missed in the voting and in the day to day, but I also believe his staff is involved. We need more champions, not fewer champions.

In the spring of last year, Menendez offered a list of executive actions to the Biden administration that he argued would help deal with the migrant crisis at the Southern border in a more humane way, while publicly worrying that the president might become the asylum denier-in-chief.

But when President Biden finally issued an executive order limiting asylum last week, Menendez took until the next day to release a relatively short, critical statement. I am deeply concerned with how the Presidents executive order drastically limits access to asylum for those fleeing violence and persecution, he said.

With Menendez trying to fend off federal corruption charges in a New York courtroom, immigration advocates and progressives increasingly view Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., as the new leader on immigration reform in the Senate.

As far as Im concerned, Senator Padilla is the strongest voice for our community that we have in the Senate and in Congress, Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., told Semafor. Hes super serious, and hes super smart.

Immigrant advocates that spoke to Semafor credited Padilla with keeping up the push for immigration reform in an unforgiving political landscape. But theres some concern he may not be as confrontational as Menendez.

Frustrated over bipartisan border negotiations that excluded Latino lawmakers last year, Menendez blasted the Biden administration and placed holds in December on a pair of agriculture-related nominees and derailed their speedy consideration in the Senate. (Both were ultimately confirmed at the end of February.)

The reason that Menendez had been effective being the bully pulpit on this is because he was actually willing to fight leadership and the White House, the first immigrant advocate said. Padilla has not yet shown that hes willing to pick a fight with leadership, demand things and force votes on good immigration policies.

Padilla aides pushed back and said the California senator has been increasingly outspoken in his condemnation of Bidens executive order. When it comes to immigration, hes going up against leadership, Schumer and President Biden, calling him out very publicly, a Padilla aide said. I wouldnt describe that as non-combative. I think he definitely has a different style but when push comes to shove, he does fight.

Room for Disagreement

Menendezs absence deprives immigration advocates of an ally they often relied on in the Senate. But the arc of immigration politics is bending towards enforcement, and its unclear that the presence of a more pugnacious advocate would change the Biden administrations approach right now.

Some also insist Menendez is still a key player on immigration, even if hes spending less time in the Capitol these days. Sen. Menendez continues to take the lead on these issues and has been outspoken, Sen. Ben Ray-Lujan, D-N.M., told Semafor.
NEW BEDFORD  Graduation season is always an exciting time in school districts, as students prepare to embark on their first steps after high school. In New Bedford, there's some extra cause for celebration this year, as Whaling City Jr./Sr. High School  New Bedford's so-called "alternative" high school  commenced its largest graduating class ever.

"'Alternative' has such a negative connotation," said Whaling City Principal John Tweedie. "Really, in my mind, it makes more sense to call us a 'pathway school.'"

And this year's 47 Whaling City grads seem to have their post-high school pathways well situated: According to guidance department data, 14 plan to attend two-year college with the option to finish degrees at a four-year college, 13 have work plans, three have four-year college plans, two are military-bound, and one is headed to trade school. Another 14 will continue on career pathways already started during their time as Whaling City students, through community partnerships the school has with local employers.

"Bianca is one young lady who's on a career path at St. Luke's Hospital, doing patient services," Tweedie said of one of his 2024 graduates, Bianca Fernandes-Rezende. She first came to Whaling City in 2022 as a sophomore ELL (English language learner) student, Tweedie said. "It's a foot in the door that's exposing her to all these different things  from there she might say, hey, I want to be an X-ray technician, or a nurse."

See what's new: 'Some green space here now': New Bedford's Ashley Park reno a welcome sight for neighbors

Did Whaling City set a state record?

While it won't be officially recognized until the state releases its student population data in the fall, New Bedford Public Schools estimates this year's Whaling City graduation rate will stand at around 75%. This would reflect a steady continuation of the success realized last year, when the grad rate jumped from 40.6% in 2022 to 70.8% in 2023.

As can be seen in the following table, prior to 2023, Whaling City High's graduation rate stayed consistently well below half the senior class:

Year Rate (%) Number of students 2024 75 estimated 60 estimated 2023 70.8 48 2022 40.6 32 2021 22.2 27 2020 29.4 51 2019 23.1 39 2018 11.6 43 2017 20.4 49 2016 11.4 35 2015 15.4 39 2014 20 50 2013 24.2 33 2012 13 23 2011 41.7 12

While there's little to no doubt that this year's Whaling City grad cohort is a new local record, it won't be officially recognized until the state releases its student population data in the fall, Tweedie and NBPS Superintendent Andrew O'Leary explained. However, O'Leary suspects it's likely that Whaling City's class of 2024 will be found to have "one of the highest, if not the current highest" graduation rate among alternative high schools in all of Massachusetts, he said.

Whaling City Jr./Sr. High School 2024 graduates are seen at their commencement ceremony on Wednesday, June 5. The grads had the option to also walk at the New Bedford High School graduation on Saturday, June 8, at Keith Middle School.

"Since the mid 2000s Massachusetts has seen numerous alternative high schools and programs, such as Lawrence RISE, Fall River's Resiliency Prep, etc. However, Whaling City has left the pack," O'Leary said in reference to the school's high success rate of the last two years. He also noted these accomplishments were made with Whaling City High's credit requirement matching that of New Bedford High, which he called "an almost uniquely high bar" among Mass. alternative schools.

Who attends Whaling City High?

Whaling City Jr./Sr. High opened in the 2008-2009 school year, as an alternative option for NBPS' middle-to-high school students; while the district's former alternative school, West Side High, became Trinity Day Academy. The latter now stands as the district's designated option for students with individualized education plans, or IEPs, that call for a "public day setting," Tweedie said, enabling Whaling City to focus more pointedly on students with behavior-based issues.

"Yeah, they do come in with some behaviors but you have to understand there are reasons behind them," he said.

What has changed at Whaling City?

While Tweedie only became principal at Whaling City four years ago, he says he was already well-acquainted with the population the school served and the circumstances that often brought them there, and to West Side High before that, having been a New Bedford juvenile court liaison for 18 years before becoming an educator.

"Back in those days, it was really looked at as a consequential placement; You acted up enough times at New Bedford High and now they said that's it, you're going to Whaling City," Tweedie said.

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What's different now, Tweedie continued, is that more Whaling City students are there by choice, thoughtful recommendation, or both.

"There's a lot of students now who historically wouldn't have been transferred here, but with me working directly with New Bedford High School, I might say listen, this kid keeps skipping and is more than likely going to flunk classes and drop out," Tweedie said. "So let's nip it in the bud and move this kid here, where there's limited distractions, it's harder to skip, and it'll be easier to focus.

"There's kids who have an opportunity to go back to New Bedford High and they may try it out then end up back with me like, 'Nope, too big; I found my place in the world right here."

Tweedie said it's also not out of the question for parents to become interested in what Whaling City High has to offer and opt to come in for a tour.

"I think the stigma around Whaling City has changed a lot," he said.

Digital platforms hybridize learning

As of last academic year, Tweedie says the addition of digital learning platforms has enabled Whaling City to make schedules more flexible, which has proven invaluable in making graduation more attainable in the often complicated lives of his students.

"It's more for my upperclassmen who may be in a situation where they have some real responsibilities, like listen, Tweedie, I gotta go to work, bro; I can't miss my Tuesday and Thursday shifts," he said. "And we say that's OK; as long as there's parental agreement, we can work it out so you just come in on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays...."

Tweedie also noted after school help is available for all students Monday through Thursday, which he says often comes in handy when a student is having trouble with a concept through one of the online platforms. The in-person help is offered in addition to on-screen tutoring available anytime online, Tweedie said.

Finding the right path

Tweedie says Whaling City's emphasis on "pathways" starts in the classroom through career-based coursework. "We do sort of a student interest inventory as part of that," he said. "Then from there we have the actual application of that work, where we're getting them into jobs and they're getting academic credit for it."

Tweedie said job placements through Whaling City High include a number of local nursing homes like Brandon Woods and Alden Court, manufacturers like Precix Inc. and Titleist, and a diverse range of others representing an array of industries.

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"Not like there's anything wrong with jobs like working at a pizza place or something like that, but our thing is getting them on these career paths where they might have to wear scrubs or learn certain equipment," Tweedie said.

Class Valedictorian Jada Tarkpor, who is headed to Bristol Community College to study early education, found her area of interest while mentoring elementary-age students at Carney Academy, Tweedie said.

"That experience was huge for her," he said.

Tweedie also noted that, in addition to its main academic program, Whaling City Jr./Sr./ High School also offers state HiSET programming.

This article originally appeared on Standard-Times: Whaling City High class of 2024 sets a new bar
Embryologist Ric Ross holds a dish with human embryos at the La Jolla IVF Clinic February 28, 2007 in La Jolla, California. (Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images)

Two years have passed since Missouri outlawed abortion nearly completely.

Missouris life-begins-at-conception law also seems to outlaw in vitro fertilization (IVF), the medical process that enables many infertile couples to conceive and bear children. If citizens of Missouri wish to protect this procedure then there will need to be a new law.

How is IVF related to the states ban on abortion? Lets start with a simple question: When Missouri law proclaims that life begins at conception, does that mean that fertilized eggs are persons? The Alabama Supreme Court said yes, shocking families whose doctors are helping them become pregnant through IVF. Likewise, when the U.S. Supreme Court in the Dobbs case held there is no constitutional protection for reproductive decisions, does that mean that destruction of fertilized eggs could be considered homicide under the laws of these states such as Missouri?

The Dobbs decision in 2022 turned these questions over to the states, subject only to federal statutes (which do not apply to IVF or abortion, so far), so the wording of states laws now really matters.

What should happen in a working democracy is that state legislators would change the laws before rulings strike down access to IVF or patients with ectopic pregnancies die waiting to be treated. Changes in laws are difficult in the current extremist era.

States like Missouri, where voters can change the constitution, can protect access to care. But Congress, if extremists prevail, could enact federal laws to limit or bar state protections, even state constitutions.

Words have meaningand their meaning doesnt change, said the late Justice Antonin Scalia. We should take Scalias advice as a caution when politicians throw words around to assure us falsely that all is well with IVF and womens emergency health care.

After Dobbs, we must read carefully what state legislators have enacted for us that fully apply. We need also to be aware that nationwide legislation has been proposed in Congress to trump state law and ban or severely restrict abortion.

Lets look at the words: In vitro fertilization (IVF) is the process of fertilizing a womans egg outside the womb (in a test tube, as youve heard) with a mans sperm. The fertilized egg is then implanted in the womb with the hope a child is born at the end of the pregnancy. Fertilized eggs can be frozen, stored for later use. In some cases, these eggs are discarded inadvertently or on purpose.

Is there a distinction between fertilization and conception? Some may equate conception with pregnancy, which occurs when a fertilized egg is implanted in the womans womb. Not so, according to Missouri law, which equates fertilization and conception by defining conception as the fertilization of the ovum (egg) of a female by the sperm of a male. Missouri law plainly says that the life of each human being begins at conception and the term unborn children or unborn child shall include all unborn child or children or the offspring of human beings from the moment of conception until birth at every stage of biological development. It is not necessary that the fertilized egg be implanted in a womb to be considered an unborn child.

So, does that make accidental discarding of fertilized eggs manslaughter, or the intentional discarding of those eggs murder?

A 1992 Missouri Supreme Court case upheld the conviction for manslaughter of a negligent intoxicated driver who injured a pregnant woman in a collision that killed her unborn child. The court cited the definition of an unborn child in the life-begins-at-conception law which plainly says the laws of this state shall be interpreted and construed to acknowledge on behalf of the unborn child at every stage of development, all the rights, privileges, and immunities available to other persons, citizens, and residents of this state, subject only to the Constitution of the United States, and decisional interpretations thereof by the United States Supreme Court and specific provisions to the contrary in the statutes and constitution of this state.

Under current Missouri law, which considers fertilized eggs as persons, criminal punishments for women and doctors who discard fertilized eggs are possible unless legislators change the law or voters enact a proposed Missouri constitutional change likely to be on the ballot this November.

Some IVF proponents may take comfort from a pre-Dobbs 2-1 ruling in 2016 by the Missouri Court of Appeals that fertilized frozen embryos are not persons but are property of special character. The majority opinion was on solid ground when Roe v. Wade was the constitutional law of the land. But Roe is no longer law, so for any future ruling on this topic, we should look to the court of appeals dissent, also well-reasoned, which said that under Missouris law embryos are persons not property. In the recently concluded Missouri legislative session, a House bill to protect IVF was introduced but not referred to committee until the last day of the session, dead on arrival.

What about ectopic pregnancies, which result when fertilized eggs become implanted outside the womb, posing a serious risk to the womans life or health?

Medical care that ends these pregnancies may violate Missouri law which bans all abortions except in life-threatening emergencies or where there is serious risk of substantial and irreversible physical harm. Women will not be prosecuted, but a health care provider (not the state prosecutor) will have to prove that a womans life or physical health was in danger before the abortion care was provided. We will continue to have news reports of women denied care until they are clearly in danger of death or irreversible damage to their reproductive organs. Doctors, nurses, and midwives who practice obstetrical care will probably continue leaving states with such laws, especially where (as in Missouri) they must prove their innocence.

Whats the solution?

The anxiety resulting from the decisions stripping away the constitutional protection of the Roe v. Wade line of cases could readily be dispatched by a law from Congress to protect IVF as proposed by Senator Tammy Duckworth, or to more broadly protect reproductive healthcare, as proposed by Senator Tammy Baldwin. But so far, that has not happened. Legislative efforts in most states with restrictive laws, as weve seen in Missouri, are also blocked.

Which leaves these questions exactly where the U.S. Supreme Court put them  in the hands of voters in Missouri  who will decide whether to protect reproductive health care in our state constitution  and voters across the country who will decide whether Congress will have a working majority to override state laws.

The post Wheres the future of IVF and abortion care? In the hands of voters appeared first on Missouri Independent.
A senior White House official said that Republicans plans to extend or expand the temporary tax cuts put in place in 2017 would likely come at the expense of ordinary Americans.

Although congressional Republicans havent specified how theyll finance this round of tax cuts, every major Republican tax cut for the wealthy or corporations in recent decades has put the burden on middle- and low-income Americans, and this time will be no different, Lael Brainard, director of the White Houses National Economic Council, said Wednesday.

Brainard was speaking during a teleconference with reporters, ahead of a scheduled meeting Thursday between presumptive GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump and congressional Republicans. Trump is expected to discuss legislative priorities in the event that he wins and Republicans control Congress.

Republicans on Capitol Hill have already discussed how they would use a process called budget reconciliation to bypass the filibuster in the Senate and push through some possible priorities.

According to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, about $4.6 trillion in tax cuts  mostly in the form of lower individual tax rates and more generous deductions enacted by Republicans in 2017  are set to expire in 2025. Brainards NEC has put the tab higher, at $4.9 trillion.

Republicans would like to extend the temporary tax cuts, and Trump has talked about lowering corporate tax rates even further. But its not clear how, or even if, those changes would be paid for to keep the budget deficit from growing.

Brainard told reporters there are four likely ways the GOP would try to offset at least some of the costs. She said they could use revenues from the 10% across-the-board tariff Trump has proposed on imported goods; they could cut entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare; they could cut annual spending by federal agencies and programs excluding defense; or they could simply borrow, adding the costs of the tax cuts to the public debt.

The tariffs, Brainard said, would cost a typical household about $1,500 annually in higher prices as importers passed on the costs of the tariffs to consumers. Cutting annual agency budgets would mean spending reductions of at least 50%, she said.

One way or another, the American people will pay the price for the congressional Republican approach, she said.

President Joe Biden has said he would keep tax cuts for households earning less than $400,000 annually. Brainard said Biden would raise revenues by allowing the other temporary tax cuts to expire as scheduled for people over the $400,000 threshold, and that he would raise taxes on corporations and beef up IRS enforcement, which would also raise revenues.

Brainard said that letting some of the tax cuts expire would have an economic impact, but not a big one.

We think the effect on the economy would be benign, she said.

Related...
Gov. Gretchen Whitmer signs an executive directive in preparation of enacting Proposal 3, which enshrines abortion rights in Michigan's state constitution, on Dec. 14, 2022. (Andrew Roth/Michigan Advance)

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Lt. Gov. Garlin Gilchrist are both hailing a Thursday decision from the U.S. Supreme Court allowing a widely used abortion pill to remain on the market.

Mifepristone will remain safe, legal, and available to Michiganders, despite another attempt by partisan, out-of-touch extremists trying to strip away reproductive freedom, said Whitmer, a Democrat. The plaintiffs filed this lawsuit in hopes of finding a sympathetic audience in the same Supreme Court that repealed Roe, a decision that has already led to more than a third of American women losing their abortion rights.

Thursdays unanimous decision in FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, means that mifepristone, one of two pharmaceuticals used in medication abortion, can remain available under current prescribing guidelines.

The high court unanimously rejected attempts by anti-abortion groups to roll back access to what was in place more than eight years ago, writing that they lacked standing to bring the case.

While applauding the decision, Whitmer said a nationwide assault on abortion remains ongoing, targeting all forms of reproductive health care, including birth control and in vitro fertilization (IVF).

We must remain vigilant. Extreme state governments, organizations, and their allies will stop at nothing to limit or outright ban reproductive rights nationwide. They will not rest, and neither will we, she said.

Gilchrist joined in the cautionary approval of the ruling.

We know that this is a small win in a longer journey and that the fight to defend reproductive freedom is not over, he said. Republican calls for a national abortion ban pose an existential challenge to reproductive freedom in Michigan and across the country. We will keep standing tall for reproductive freedom and defending every persons right to make their own decision to start or grow their family.

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved mifepristone for up to 10 weeks gestation and it is used in about 63% of U.S. abortions.

The post Whitmer applauds SCOTUS ruling on mifepristone, while cautioning vigilance appeared first on Michigan Advance.
Why Was a 3-Year-Old Boy Set For Adoption Sent Back to a Mother Who Killed Him?

Whats going on with parents killing their own children? Just days after a Minnesota Black boy died while trying to protect his mother from his father, an Ohio Black woman admitted to killing her 3-year-old son.

According to the boys family, he wouldnt have been in harms way, save for the court system.

Curtis Lee James Witcher, was found unconscious sitting in a stroller at a Family Dollar store in the Cleveland area. He was later pronounced dead after being taken to a nearby hospital, according to WKYC. The medical examiner determined that Curtis died from blunt-force trauma.

His mother, Timmeka Eggleton, 31, was charged with two counts of murder, one count of aggravated murder, one count of felonious assault, and one count of endangering children. A week before she was set to stand trial, Eggleton pleaded guilty to the charges; due to the plea deal, the charge of aggravated murder was dropped.

Eggleton killed Curtis just four months after Judge Allison Floyd removed him from his foster parents, who cared for him since he was seven days old and were attempting to adopt him. Floyd determined that Eggleton was fit to retain custody following time spent in an inpatient mental health facility, according to Fox 8.

The Cuyahoga County Medical Examiners Office ruled that Curtis death was a homicide and that his injuries were caused by blunt force trauma. Local police arrested Eggleton after she allegedly lied about what occurred.

Per the report from WKYC, Eggletons case was delayed for some months after she was ordered by Judge Brendan J. Sheehan to be sent to a mental health facility. But in February, Sheehan determined that she was sane when her son was killed.

More from FOX 8:

Witcher-Mosley said her brothers son, Curtis, was in foster care for 2 1/2 years and doing well. In March of 2023, Judge Allison Floyd terminated supervision and gave Curtis back to his biological mother permanently, even though an attorney hired to represent the child expressed concerns. Four months later, the child was killed.

When speaking to FOX 8, Curtis foster parents (who were not identified) shared that they had taken care of the boy since he was seven days old and wanted to adopt him prior to him being given back to the mother.

Our son should be alive today, the foster mother told Fox 8. He brought so much joy.

Eggleton faces life in prison and will be sentenced on July 22.



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Elon Musk, the father of 11 children, thinks that declining population is a crisis and the world needs more babiesparticularly those with his DNAor there will be a catastrophe. For example, he recently proclaimed: Population collapse due to low birth rates is a much bigger risk to civilization than global warming.



Billionaire Jeff Bezos echoed the idea, promoting the fallacy that more people means more Einsteins. He said: I would love to see, you know, a trillion humans living in the solar system. If we had a trillion humans, we would have at any given time a thousand Mozarts and a thousand Einsteins. Our solar system would be full of life and intelligence and energy.

The fact is, though, that countries with huge populations generally are more likely to have more slum dwellers than scientists or musicians. Its only when people have widespread prosperity, so theres time for a creative middle class to form, that such extraordinary people have the time to develop their talents.

This literally cancerous ideathat continual population growth is a good thinghas been with us for about 2,000 years, and, while it has arguably accounted for some of the positive aspects of modern civilization, it has also left our world in a shambles.

Nonetheless, its official doctrine within the Catholic Church, a tiny slice of orthodox Jews and Hindus, and major parts of Islam. Because Christianity and Islam are evangelical, they are constantly trying to spread their influence, the primary means by which they grow their political and economic power.

Close behind evangelism to accomplish that larger army is the doctrine that its the duty of families to be as large as possible, relegating conservative ideal women to broodmare status. Barefoot and pregnant. Kitchen and bedroom only.

The origin of this ideology dates back to the earliest times of warfare, when families, tribes, local baronies, or nation-states went to war. The biggest factor that determined who won a battle was which side had the larger army. And aggressively working against birth control and advocating fecundity is a great way to increase the pool of entrants to your army.

So, really, Musk and Bezos are just echoing a thought virus that has infected much of humanity since the early days of evangelical religion and warfare.

But that time of continuous human population growth is nearly over, and, billionaire eccentrics aside, populations are now declining in many parts of the world. Wed be seeing population decline here in the United States too, if it werent for immigration, both legal and otherwise.

Its become a conservative tenet of faithdrawing from Catholicism, Islam, evangelical Christianity, and crackpot economicsthat this decline in population is a bad thing. The biggest army and all that.

It also seems to have captured the mainstream media as if it were conventional wisdom. Its very rare that you see reporting about population declines that doesnt position themoften with headlines announcing a population crisisas failures or disasters.

But there are significant advantages to population declines when theyre done thoughtfully and are not the result of disaster. These include economic, environmental, and social benefits that are substantial.

The first is that wages generally rise as populations decline because there is more competition among employers than among employees. Conservatives and, weirdly, the mainstream press present this as a bad thing, although they rarely talk about insurance, banking, or private equity executives walking off with over a billion dollars as something we should know or care about.

We saw this play out in a huge way at a particularly unique moment of history: the Black Plague. When it decimated fourteenth-century Europe, killing a third to half of all the people in just a few short years, the labor force of survivors became so small thateven though kings and usually their barons had literally the power of life or deathworkers could negotiate with their employers and demand good pay, fewer working hours, and meaningful benefits.

The result was a flowering of civilization, arts, music, and literature; suddenly, working-class people were paid well enough that they could be creative in their spare time. We called that era the Renaissance, and it was an example of the first truly middle class in the history of the postagricultural revolution world.

The main gift of the Renaissance to future generations was that it birthed the first guilds, the prototype for todays modern unions.

As working-age population declines, unions will get stronger, which has always, historically, had a positive effect on society.

Its also better for business: Studies show that unionization reduces worker turnover, which is both expensive and dangerous in many industries. When companies treat workers fairly, workers treat their employers back fairly.

We saw this in the era from 1945 until 1980, when unions were so powerful that CEOs rarely took more than 30 times what the top worker made, while working-class wages were rising faster than any time in American history.

This was, of course, the time before the Reagan Revolution, when an average worker with a single income could buy a home, raise a family, put their kids through college, buy a new car every two years, and take a vacation every summer. Ask any Boomer.

Strong unions reduce economic inequality primarily by lifting up out of poverty an entire middle class. Thats what happened in this country during that roughly 40-year period, until Reagan and the billionaires who own the GOP took a meat ax to it all.

A smaller number of people in the workplace also makes it much harder for businesses to maintain historic and rigid racial and gender hierarchies and pay scales. The workplace becomes more diverse, more interesting, and more innovative. Reducing population is thus also the ultimate womens equality move.

Theres also less need for extensive infrastructure, like building new office buildings, housing, and shopping centers. This allows the resources of a society to be redirected toward making sure everybody has full access to quality health care and education, and to rebuild the physical, economic, and social infrastructure of the nation.

These dont just benefit everybody, they also generate overall, nationwide economic prosperity.

As technology continues to advance and replace humans, everything from computers to supermarket checkouts to artificial intelligence is reducing the need for human laborers. A smaller population balances for this, so the impact of automation is also diminished while its benefits are enhanced.

There are also substantial environmental benefits to declining populations. Theres less of a strain on natural resources, less deforestation, and lower greenhouse gas emissions.

Smaller human populations produce smaller populations of our food animals, which represent about 60 percent of all mammalian flesh on earth. The worlds biodiversity can then be enhanced, wildlife and wild spaces protected, ecosystems repaired, and ecological balance restored.

Catholic and evangelical ideologues continue portraying population decline as a bad thing. But theyre fighting an uphill battle; women all over the world are choosing fewer babies (where they can), sperm counts are collapsing, and infertility is rampant (both, apparently, because weve poisoned our environment and food supply trying to meet the needs of eight billion people).

That wont stop Republicans on the Supreme Court and in Congress, however, from pandering to those groups with their anti-abortion and antibirth control legislative and judicial attacks on womens rights.

But, as Dwight Eisenhower once wrote about a couple of oil baron brothers and their followers, Their number is negligible and they are stupid.
SEOUL, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Six local and foreign carmakers in South Korea will voluntarily recall some 36,900 vehicles for manufacturing defects, the transport ministry said Thursday.

Kia Corp. will recall 19,291 units of Forte for poor durability in hydraulic electronic control unit and 11,896 units of Bongo 3 for defects in LPG tanks and high-pressure engine pumps, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport.

Porsche Korea will recall 3,087 units of eight different models, including Cayenne, to fix error in the driving assistance system software.

Renault Korea will repair the poor luminosity of auxiliary turn signals from 1,830 units of its Master van model, while Toyota Motor Korea will recall 524 units of three models, including Avalon Hybrid, for faulty sensor circuit board in front passenger seats.

GM Korea will take corrective action on 159 units of Traverse SUV due to defective reflectors, while Hyundai Motor will fix the faulty high-pressure engine pumps in 110 units of Porter 2 trucks.

Vehicle owners can visit repair and service centers to replace faulty parts free of charge. 
The Face of War by Salvador Dali - dali.uffs.net

Its easy to think that were living through a period of increasing warfare around the world. Ukraine and Russia, Israel and Gaza, the sabre-rattling of North Korea, Iran and even China; conflict in Yemen, in too many African states, anarchy in Haiti. So it goes on, yet really it has been ever thus. As Richard Overy points out, there wasnt a single year in the 20th century in which there wasnt a war going on, and there is evidence of violence and warlike behaviour since the emergence of Homo sapiens. But why does this occur? Its a simple enough question and one that has led him to write a richly absorbing book as he delves into his quest for answers.

As he admits, he is a historian, and one of modern conflict, not a scientist, yet he is a man of ample intellect and well able to make a sideways slip into science here. And it is science to which he turns first, looking at biology, psychology, anthropology and ecology in turn to investigate whether these disciplines help provide answers as to why humankind  and especially men  have always felt compelled to go to war. Nature keeps her human orchard healthy by pruning, noted the biologist Sir Arthur Keith in 1931, war is her pruning book.

Yet Overy finds few answers in biology nor Freudian psychoanalysis, although psychology is different matter. After all, psychological factors have to come in to play to ensure the in group can sufficiently dehumanise the out group to persuade themselves to commit unspeakable violence against others without feeling any sense of moral guilt  and often even a sense of virtue, whether it be Hutus against Tutsis, French Catholics against Protestant Hugenots, or, of course, the Nazi state against Jews and Slavs. Ecology, too, has played its part, through climate change, droughts, or especially harsh winters. These are moments when acquiring food  and thus survival  has been challenging without taking it from others. In one of the wondrous nuggets of information that are sprinkled through this book, Overy tells us that in 1,000 years of Chinese history, for example, the 453 cold phases produced a total of 603 wars but that the 459 years of warmer climate led to only 296 wars, and that climate change arguably led to the collapse of three of Chinas major dynasties. At the end of the last ice age, the global population was just 4.6 million; now it is nearly 8 billion.

Richard Overy, author of Why War? - Pelican

A brief word of warning: the Biology chapter is a little hard work at times, which is unfortunate as its the first in the book. Do not be put off, however, as Overys narrative and arguments rapidly gather pace thereafter. The book really hits its straps once he gets into the chapters on Resources, Power, Security, and especially Belief, arguably the most compelling in the book. There are brilliantly recounted yet pithy summaries of the Crusades, the French Wars of Religion and even the emergence of the modern jihadists, Al Qaida and ISIS. The range of his studies is remarkable, especially for a shortish book: ancient Sintashta to Carthage and Rome, the Aztecs and Native American tribes, Nazi Germany and Putins Russia. It is also a history of the study of war  all the way from Scipio, Pope Urban II and Thomas Hobbes right through to modern thinkers.

The novelist LP Hartley famously claimed the past was a foreign country, but reading this fascinating book its hard not to be struck by the long threads of history and a sense of continuum. The differences between the motives for the First Crusade, Hitlers war of conquest and the aims of ISIS are, for example, in terms of a powerful belief underpinning those conflicts, paper thin. History does not repeat itself but patterns of human behaviour clearly do, whether it be individual greed for power  Alexander the Great, Napoleon, Hitler, Putin  or whether it be outside factors threatening the security of certain peoples, or differences in culture that persuade one group that it is acceptable to destroy another. As Overy convincingly argues, there are lessons here that stretch all the way back into deep history. These patterns can help us look to the future too.

Richard Overy is unquestionably one of our finest living historians, especially of 20th-century warfare. For some reason, he is perhaps not as lauded as he should be despite seminal works such as The Road to War and his superb The Bombing War. He concludes, perhaps predictably, that there are many reasons why humankind has gone to war and will undoubtedly continue to do so; yet there is wisdom a-plenty in this small tome, and much to set the mind whirring. If war has a very long history, he ends prophetically, it also has a future. Lets hope those of us who crave lasting peace can be ready for what may lie around the corner.

James Hollands latest book is The Savage Storm: The Brutal Battle for Italy 1943. Why War? is published by Pelican at 22. To order your copy for 18.99 call 0808 196 6794 or visit Telegraph Books

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This is part of Opinionpalooza, Slates coverage of the major decisions from the Supreme Court this June. Alongside Amicus, we kicked things off this year by explaining How Originalism Ate the Law. The best way to support our work is by joining Slate Plus. (If you are already a member, consider a donation or merch!)

The Supreme Court handed down an 81 decision on Thursday that will help employers quash union-organizing campaigns. Given the storm of other cases dropping from the court this month, its important not to overlook the significance of this latest anti-union blow.

When workers try to form a union, its common for their employer to retaliate against or fire them in order to stop the union effort in its tracks. In Starbucks v. McKinney, the court made it harder for the government to quickly force an employer to rehire or stop retaliating against those workers. The decision, written by Justice Clarence Thomas over a partial concurrence and partial dissent by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, will impede the governments ability to swiftly address the most severe cases of employer lawbreaking in union campaigns. It underscores the need for stronger labor laws and fully funded enforcement agencies.

For Supreme Court watchers, the surprising part of todays ruling is that Justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor joined Thomas majority decision. Before exploring that development, though, lets consider what was at stake.

The case involves seven union supporters terminated by a Starbucks store in Memphis, Tennessee. Inspired by the Starbucks workers in Buffalo, New York, who formed the first union at the company in late 2021, employees in Memphis began organizing a union in early 2022. Starbucks responded by disciplining a leader of the organizing effort and ramping up managerial oversight of the store. Then, in February, the chain fired seven union activists, including five of the six members of the stores organizing committee. The firings had the intended effect of spreading fear and frustrating the organizing effort in Memphis and other cities. The firings were part of a nationwide anti-union campaign by the corporation: Starbucks has committed more than 400 violations of labor law, according to federal authorities, including firing at least 59 union leaders and supporters.

Employers frequently fire or otherwise retaliate against workers during union campaigns; theyre charged with violating federal law in more than 40 percent of union election campaigns. These violations, which are called unfair labor practices, often have a stark multiplier effect: Reprisals against just one or two people send a strong message to co-workers, chilling them from exercising their rights and often nipping a campaign in the bud.

In a tiny group of cases, the National Labor Relations Board, the federal agency that enforces employees right to form unions, determines that a particularly egregious and impactful illegal act must be reversed immediately, before a broader overall case is resolved, in order to protect employees. In those cases, the NLRB can seek a temporary court order, called a 10(j) injunction, requiring the employer to rehire workers or otherwise fix the unfair labor practice.

Despite the frequency of employer retaliation, it is very rare for the NLRB to seek this kind of injunction. As Jacksons partial dissent pointed out, of the approximately 20,000 unfair labor practice charges filed last year, the board pursued temporary injunctions in just 14 cases.

When the NLRB sought this relief in the Memphis Starbucks case, a district court agreed, ordering reinstatement of the workers and preventing the premature suffocation of the union campaign. Since then, hundreds of Starbucks stores have unionized across the country.

For the NLRB to protect workers rights, it must have the ability to seek such relief, even if the agency invokes it infrequently. If the board cant stop severe violations until its too late, it would be merely a paper tiger. Although retaliation is illegal, employers often calculate that its worthwhile to break the law: The silencing effect of firing even one or two workers can crush a unionization effort.

Meanwhile, an employers potential consequences are minimal and wont be imposed for months or years. The National Labor Relations Act contains zero monetary penalties. The available remedies include reinstatement, which can be long delayed and are sometimes no longer desired by former employees who have moved on; restitution, including back pay but minus any wages earned in the interim; and, most toothless of all in deterring violations, a notice posted by the employer promising to follow the law in the future.

The legal issue in the Starbucks case was about the test a trial court should apply in evaluating the boards request for a temporary injunction. The NLRB and worker advocates supported a test taking into account the importance of these injunctions in protecting workers rights, as well as the fact that Congress assigned labor enforcement not to the courts but to the NLRB.

Instead, the court treated rare NLRB requests for temporary injunctions to reverse unfair labor practices the same as any generic case in which a private party seeks an injunction for any reason at all, making it much harder to get them. Thomas decision Thursday is characteristically contemptuous about the careful process the NLRB follows to determine when to seek those injunctions, calling it an agencys convenient litigating position and the views of in-house attorneys rather than acknowledging that it is the result of a multistep procedure of consideration and approvals by experts and the NLRB itself.

Jackson, by contrast, rejected the all-or-nothing binary of the majority opinion. She argued for an approach that, while incorporating the traditional factors for granting injunctions, applies them in a way that acknowledges the context of this statutory structure and the NLRBs expert function. She astutely noted that the majoritys opinion constitutes a power grab for the courts, writing, I am loath to bless this aggrandizement of judicial power where Congress has so plainly limited the discretion of the courts, and where it so clearly intends for the expert agency it has created to make the primary determinations about both merits and process.

Why didnt Kagan and Sotomayor join Jacksons more nuanced analysis? Its hard to say for sure, but here are some hypotheses. Are they now choosing their battles with fellow justices, finding common cause when they can to preserve collegiality and their internal credibility? (The very small number of cases in which the NLRB seeks this relief each year might have made the damage seem somewhat limited.) Did they implicitly adopt a sympathy toward management that federal judges have often shown? Research indicates that this is especially true of judges who have worked as prosecutors or corporate lawyers. Is it possible that Kagan and Sotomayor were making a strategic move to try to get another justices vote in a different case? Finally, theres a saying among lawyers that bad facts make bad law. The fired Starbucks workers allowed a TV crew into the store to interview them, a detail that seemed to unsettle the liberal justices at oral argument. Did their negative gut reaction to the facts have an outsize impact?

We dont know. What we do know is that this decision will weaken the NLRB and harm workers.

In the end, the Starbucks ruling is unsurprising, since it involves two things the courts far-right supermajority cant stand: workers rights and a government agency that protects them. The majoritys pattern of ruling for corporate interests and disdain for administrative agencies made the outcome hereif not the acquiescence of two progressive justicesfeel foreordained, but its terrible for workers nonetheless.

The United States is in a moment of worker activism unprecedented in recent history, at Starbucks, in Hollywood, and even in the previously seemingly impenetrable South, where the United Auto Workers resoundingly won a union election at a Chattanooga Volkswagen plant. But the challenges workers must face when they try to form a union are still too high, and Thursdays decision creates one more excessive hurdle.
Nearly a year has passed since Russias notorious mercenary boss Yevgeny Prigozhin died in a fiery plane crash widely seen as a Kremlin-sanctioned hit, but sightings of the dead warlord keep making waves.

The latest, circulated by Wagner-linked social media channels earlier this week, centered on a blurry photograph of a middle-aged white man spotted wearing jeans and a blue button-up shirt in Bangui, the capital of the Central African Republic, where Russian mercenaries have long had a foothold.

Witnesses inform that in Africa they supposedly saw Prigozhin! He was supposedly present to lay flowers for Dmitry Utkin, one pro-Wagner Telegram channel declared. Attached was a 22-second video from a ceremony marking the 54th birthday of Utkin, the neo-Nazi commander from whom the group got its name who was killed alongside Prigozhin in the crash in Russias Tver region last August. Members of the republics armed forces could be seen lining up to lay flowers at a monument while a man vaguely matching Prigozhins description stood in the background.

In Africa while flowers were laid [for Utkin], they noticed a person resembling Yevgeny Prigozhin, another Wagner-linked channel claimed.

The video reignited wild rumors that the ex-convict turned mercenary boss had somehow staged his own death, with Wagner fanatics celebrating the supposed proof of life.

Yevgeny Viktorovich, stop giving yourself away, one commentator quipped. Another proclaimed that Prigozhin is still alive, Im sure of it.

The latest supposed sighting came just a few weeks after a similar video circulated in late May, this time from the Republic of Chad, with apparently the same stocky-looking man described as possibly being Prigozhin back from the dead due to his manner, gestures, gait and overall appearance. Conveniently, his face is either blurred or never fully within view of the camera.

Relatives of Wagner mercenaries, likewise, have run rampant with speculation that Prigozhin is still alive in private chats. In one recent exchange in a Telegram group for Wagner families, a woman said Prigozhins death came after shed prayed to God for him to be punished for using prison inmates as cannon fodder. But some who responded corrected her, suggesting it was unwise to believe he was really dead: Well see who is right and who is not. If Prigozhin is alive or not.

The U.S. Felon Succeeding Putins Notorious Chef

I think hes alive, its just a matter of time when hell resurface, another woman wrote.

Russias handling of the investigation into the crash that killed both Prigozhin and Utkin has not helped matters. The Kremlin refused to allow an international probe into the disaster on board the Brazilian-made Embraer jet when Brazils aircraft investigation authority offered one last year. Vladimir Putin then claimed Russian investigators had found grenade fragments in the bodies of the dead passengers, and perhaps to further muddy the waters, lamented that toxicology tests had not been done to check those on board for the presence of drugs or alcohol.

Russian investigators have not revealed their final conclusions, if they are in fact attempting to make any. In the interim, Wagner has been able to capitalize on the mystery surrounding Prigozhins final moments.

And perhaps thats the point.

In part, there is a genuine sense of loss amongst the turbo-patriots who hung onto Prigozhins coattails, and an eagerness to believe he could still be around. But there is also the cynical pursuit of clicks by outlets which monetize themselves through engagement; there is still considerable interest in everything to do with Prigozhin, amongst both those who revere and those who despise him, said Mark Galeotti, an expert on Russian security issues and author of a new book about Prigozhin, Downfall, co-written with Russian-American journalist Anna Arutunyan.

Keeping the myth alive is good business! Galeotti told The Daily Beast.

Sean McFate, an expert on mercenaries and professor of strategy at the National Defense University and Georgetown Universitys School of Foreign Service, said its possible Prigozhins trolls are spreading rumors and/or some of his mercenaries are.

If Prigozhin is alive, I doubt he would be hanging out in Africa. More likely on a yacht somewhere, McFate said. Its hard to know for sure about Prigozhins death since the Kremlin prevented third parties from confirming it.

Read more at The Daily Beast.

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Why Ukrainian families are risking everything to flee their Russian occupiers

Tatiana (left) was desperate to stop the Russians educating her children, Margarita and Bogdan (right) - David Rose

Tatiana found she was running out of excuses to deflect the Russians occupying her town.

She and her family tried to lay low and avoid interactions, but the prying official questions were mounting.

Why were her children not attending the new Russian-run school?

Why had she not accepted the Russian citizenship and passport which was being aggressively rolled out across all occupied Ukrainian territory?

She could scarcely tell the truth: that she did not want her children indoctrinated with Russian propaganda, and she wanted to stay Ukrainian.

More than that, the Russians were unaware that her children actually were being educated, but in secret and online, by their old Ukrainian teachers from across the front line.

As scrutiny from the occupiers got heavier, the situation got more difficult.

Yulia and her daughter, Irina, travelled with family to escape Russian-occupied territory - David Rose

It was hard for us. We didnt want to get Russian documents and the Russians were around and said, how come your kids dont go to school?, She told The Telegraph.

I didnt want to send the kids to a Russian school, because its full of propaganda.

Pressure mounted and she came to the realisation she could not remain. For the sake of her children, Margarita, 14, and 13-year-old Bogdan, she would have to depart to Ukrainian territory.

Tatiana fled this week, along with her sister-in-law Yulia, across a humanitarian corridor which is the closest thing the war in Ukraine has to a Checkpoint Charlie.

While the adversaries face off across hundreds of miles of fortified front line and sealed border, near the northern city of Sumy there is a path of pitted, weed-filled tarmac across 2,000 yards of no mans land which represents the only official border crossing point still open.

This is the route taken each day by a trickle of Ukrainians wanting to leave Russian territory.

The crossing is one-way: only for Ukrainians departing. After making their way across, they are picked up and taken to a registration and screening centre in Sumy.

Tatianas arrival on Tuesday night ended a 36-hour odyssey which had seen her and her children set off from their home near Hola Prystan, in Kherson, to travel hundreds of miles via Mariupol and Rostov.

The family and around a dozen fellow arrivals reached Sumy bleary eyed, and dazed by fatigue.

Yulia said she and her sister-in-laws family had spent the first year of the occupation largely sheltering in the basement. Hola Prystan is close to the Kherson front line and is often shelled. Then a year ago, the Kakhovka Dam was breached in an act of suspected Russian sabotage, sending huge quantities of water downstream and flooding Hola Prystan.

Sumy is the only humanitarian corrider left for Ukrainians to cross from Russian-held areas - Pluriton/David Rose

When the Russians first occupied the area, teachers at the school attended by Tatianas children fled, but were able to set up online lessons for the children left behind.

It was these secret lessons that allowed them to continue their education and avoid the Russian school.

Yet as time has gone on, the Russian state has strengthened its administrative grip on the occupied territory in a determined effort to remove Ukrainian identity.

Yulia says: The Russians are trying to introduce more and more rules in the occupied territory.

Russia is imposing its passports and citizenship on the residents by making it impossible to survive without them. A Russian passport is needed to prove property ownership and keep access to health care and retirement income. Refusal can result in losing custody of children, jail  or worse. Passport holders can also be forced into the Russian army.

Those who have successfully made the trip tell of how the Russians are tightening their grip on civilians - David Rose

Moscow has tried to add administrative incentives, such as a stipend to leave the occupied territory and move to Russia, humanitarian aid, pensions for retirees, and money for parents of newborns  with Russian birth certificates.

The pressure to take a Russian passport and put themselves at the mercy of the Russian state was the reason most of those arriving on Tuesday said they had left.

Rita, who came across with her 77-year-old mother Anna, was setting foot in Ukrainian-controlled territory for the first time since 2014, when her native Donetsk was taken over by Russian-backed militia. She was later shelled out of her house and the pair have more recently been living in the Russian city of Belgorod.

She said she had decided to leave because she did not want to deal with Russians.

She said: I was born in Ukraine and I wanted to come back to Ukraine. I was offered a Russian passport, but I refused to get one. The Russian course doesnt correspond to my views.

In Belgorod, they have a lot of Russian propaganda against Ukraine.

When we passed through Russian customs, they were rude to us and tried to persuade us not to leave. They said Ukrainian customs would treat us badly.

The biggest reason for people to stay in occupied territory is often uncertainty about what will happen to their property if they leave, officials say. Russian forces have seemed to let people stay in their homes, but if they depart, they find troops billeted in their houses.

Humanitarian groups say that those left behind are becoming the 'property of the Russian federation' - Pluriton/David Rose

Currently, somewhere between 20 to 80 people cross, between Kolotilovka on the Russian side and Pokrovka on the Ukrainian side, each day.

Travellers must make their own way across, helped if necessary by volunteers with wheelchairs and stretchers.

We never speak with the Russians, explains one volunteer, called Yevgeny.

On arrival in Sumy travellers are given food, SIM cards and helped onwards. They are also questioned by the police and security officials.

Traffic across the border surged last year, when Moscow insisted that anyone in the occupied territories who did not accept Russian citizenship would be considered stateless and required to register with Russias internal affairs ministry.

The combination of coercion and enticement is now so strong that few left in the occupied territories have held out against taking Russian citizenship, according to Ukrainian human rights officials.

The corridor was at its busiest last year, says Vitali, who helps the cross-border travellers as evacuation coordinator for a Ukrainian charity called Pluriton.

At first, many in occupied territory held out hope that the situation was temporary, especially after Ukrainian troops liberated territory in 2022. But as it became clear the liberation was slower and more difficult, people began to realise the occupation would be long.

He said: They realised how difficult it was to live under the Russians, so they decided to leave.

Last year, we had a surge of 200 people daily, because the Russian state was forcing people to get a Russian passport.

It doesnt only mean having Russian citizenship. You belong to them. After receiving the Russian passport, they become the property of the Russian federation.

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A Wife Is Accused of Killing Husband Next to Cemetery. Did a McDonald's Cup Crack Case 4 Years After Killing?

Casandra Hult was arraigned on first-degree reckless homicide charges years after her husband's death in 2020

Milwaukee County Sheriff's Office Cassandra Hult

An observant runner and a McDonalds cup may have helped police in Wisconsin solve a 2020 homicide case.

Per the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Cassandra Hult was arraigned on first-degree reckless homicide charges in Milwaukee County court on Monday, June 10, in connection with the 2020 death of her husband, Jose Santiago.

Santiago was found dead in March 2020 after a jogger who regularly ran past St. Adalbert Cemetery in Milwaukee called authorities after noticing the same car outside the cemetery two days in a row, the Journal Sentinel reported, citing a criminal complaint.

When police arrived on the scene, they found Santiago, 27, dead with two gunshot wounds to the back of his head.

Authorities questioned Hult in 2020, who said she was in Santiago's car on the morning of his death on March 22, 2020, and they'd argued over texts she found on his phone before he kicked her out of the car, according to the complaint. Subsequently, she said she went to a family member's house, the complaint states.

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According to the complaint, Hult had claimed that she left the car at about 10 a.m. But authorities found a McDonald's receipt in the car reflecting a purchase at 12:29 p.m. that day,

ABC affiliate WISN 12 reports. Detective Jake Puschnig testified in court on June 10 that forensic testing and DNA on a cup showed that Hult had used it, which according to authorities, contradicted Hult's timeline.

According to the Journal Sentinel, police said Hult never mentioned going to McDonald's.

The criminal complaint against Hult further alleges that she left the state of Wisconsin after Santiago's death and reportedly confessed to murdering him to two different witnesses.

PEOPLE was not able to immediately reach Hult's attorney. It's not clear if she has entered a plea to the charges against her.



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This image provided by the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management shows smoke from the Rose Fire burning southeast of Wickenburg, Ariz., Wednesday, June 12, 2024. Officials say the fire destroyed several homes, prompted evacuations and forced the temporary closure of a highway while crews battled the flames. (Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management via AP)

PHOENIX (AP)  A wildfire near a historic old Arizona mining town destroyed at least six homes, prompted overnight evacuations and closed the main highway between Phoenix and Las Vegas for nearly 23 hours, but an army of firefighters was working Thursday to stem the flames, a fire official said.

No injuries were reported after the fire spread quickly after 4 p.m. Wednesday just south of Wickenburg through Hassayampa River greenery and across U.S. 60, said Tiffany Davila, spokesperson for the Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management. An investigation team was probing the cause of the fire, which Davila said had not been determined.

The Arizona Department of Transportation reported at least one lane of the freeway-style four-lane divided highway reopened by mid-afternoon with restrictions. Davila said evacuation orders for residents were lifted before noon, following an aerial survey that showed 166 acres (67 hectares) burned.

Davila said cooler nighttime temperatures, a rise in humidity and the arrival of about 200 local, state and federal firefighters helped quell the fire, along with aircraft scooping water from a nearby reservoir to drop on flames.

There was no immediate containment estimate, but Davila said officials reduced the number of homes deemed threatened from 100 late Wednesday to about 25 on Thursday.

As temperatures warm, we could see fire activity increase, she said.

Wickenburg is an Old West mining and railroad town founded in 1863 on the sometimes dry Hassayampa River. It has about 7,500 residents.

The fire comes as heat warnings remain in effect after several days of record high temperatures across a broad swath of the U.S. Southwest. The National Weather Service predicts that it could be early July before monsoon rains arrive to provide relief from hot, dry weather.

In Phoenix, 52 miles (83.6 kilometers) southeast of Wickenburg, forecasters warned Thursday of excessive heat and "dangerously hot weather through Sunday, with daytime temperatures expected to reach up to 112 Fahrenheit (44.4 Celsius).
The battle for global supremacy between the United States and China comes down to one sector: Semiconductor chips. That contest is "entering a new phase," Bloomberg said, as the American government pumps $100 billion into subsidies for tech firms and China builds dozens of new facilities to strengthen its own supply chain. China is the "largest global supplier" of older "legacy chips," but the Biden administration is aiming to use its investment to help control nearly 30% of the overall chip market by 2032.

China isn't standing pat. Beijing has authorized its own "massive barrage" in the so-called "chip war," Forbes said. It created a new fund, valued at $47.5 billion, to help make China "self-sufficient in producing and advancing semiconductor technology" and even to "assume a dominant role" that will allow it to sideline Taiwan  a chip-manufacturing powerhouse that also sits at the center of U.S.-China tensions . The stakes are high. Maneuvers in the chip war "will reverberate in every high-tech boardroom and war room worldwide."

What did the commentators say?

Right now the electronics industry depends on a "fragile semiconductor supply chain" that stretches from Europe to Asia, said The Economist. "The chip war threatens to bludgeon it." A world "divided into two semiconductor blocks" in the United States and China would try to replicate and replace the current "cat's cradle of relationships" that makes possible our current tech-driven lives. That won't be easy. And it's frustrating to tech executives around the world. "Many in the industry understand America's desire to thwart China," but they're not so sure the aim is noble: It looks to them more like America is acting on a "selfish desire to preserve its economic dominance."

Chinese leader Xi Jinping "needs the smallest and fastest chips to fulfill his dream of transforming China into a technology powerhouse," Michael Schuman said at The Atlantic. Despite its lead in legacy chips, the country needs America and its allies to share technology to make progress in more advanced semiconductor manufacturing. That "tells us a lot about the true balance of power between the U.S. and China," Schuman said. His verdict: "China is losing the chip war."

What next?

"Now comes the hard part" for U.S. manufacturers, said The Wall Street Journal. Money from the government is giving the sector a "big boost" and putting the American chip industry "back on a more stable path." But there are limits to what can be accomplished  other countries in Europe and Asia are also increasing their investment, "underscoring how the global race to produce more of the most advanced semiconductors is expanding and accelerating."

That race has produced a worldwide total of $1.2 trillion in commitments to semiconductor manufacturing outside of China, said Quartz. If all that manufacturing doesn't take place in the United States, one expert said, there will still be benefits. "The more capacity we build outside of China, and frankly, outside of Taiwan, the better off we'll be in reducing China's ability to threaten us and reduce our dependence on China."
(WFRV)  The Wisconsin State Patrol has announced it will conduct aerial speed enforcement over a busy highway on Friday, June 14.

According to a release from the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, the Wisconsin State Patrol will monitor the Madison Beltline (U.S. Highway 12/18) in Dane County.

Motorcyclist severely injured after crash on U.S. Highway 18 in Wisconsin

We want drivers to slow down on the Beltline to keep the highway safe for all travelers, Wisconsin State Patrol Superintendent Timothy Carnahan said. Our troopers have been out in greater presence patrolling the Beltline since April. The view from the sky gives us one more tool to spot dangerous driving along the entire beltline quickly.

The State Patrol says its primary mission is public safety, which includes enforcing traffic laws to ensure drivers reach their destinations safely.

Aerial enforcement is one way to enhance public safety efforts. From the air, its much easier to spot drivers who are speeding or driving aggressively. When pilots observe a violation, they communicate with ground-based units to initiate a traffic stop.

University of Wisconsin Oshkosh officially announces closure of UW-Fox Cities campus in Menasha

Many aerial enforcement missions are announced publicly to reinforce the State Patrols goal to improve public safety through voluntary compliance with traffic laws, not simply to stop or cite drivers.

As a reminder, drivers should pull over to the right side if stopped by law enforcement. Do not stop in the Flex Lane, even if the lane is closed. If there is no safe place to pull over immediately, move your vehicle to the right lane, turn on the emergency flashers, and reduce your speed to signal to law enforcement that you are aware of their presence until you reach the nearest safe area to stop your vehicle.

Copyright 2024 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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HILLSORO, Ala. (WHNT)  3-year-old Dawson Strickland loves dinosaurs, trucks, trains and all kinds of outdoor activities, but there is nothing the child enjoys more than the water.

Any water puddle you found, hes going to stomp in it. He loves water, he always has, mom Virginia Strickland said. Bath time, swimming, anything that involves water.

Make A Wish: Teagans story

The family installed a pool a few months ago, and they say they cannot keep him away.

If were outside, thats the first place he goes, Virginia said.

While Dawson is thrilled to get time in the pool, his parents, Virginia and Dylan say, they want to blow his mind by taking him to the beach, so he can see the ocean for the first time. Theyre asking Make-A-Wish Alabama to help make it happen.

I want somewhere we can just relax and let him play and just be a kid so [Make-A-Wish coordinators] suggested Orange Beach and I was like, weve never been there so that sounds awesome!' Virginia said.

Make A Wish: Braylyns story

Dawson was approved for a wish amid his diagnoses of epilepsy, Lennox-Gastaut Syndrome and mild cerebral palsy. All of these, are a result of events that took place the day he was born.

He had an injury at birth. When he was born, he was not alive at all. He had stopped breathing, his heart had stopped, everything. They had to do CPR on him in the room where I had him and he went a good portion of the time without oxygen in his brain, Virginia said.

The lack of oxygen caused seizures within just a few hours of Dawsons birth. He was put on a ventilator and swept to the ICU.

Virginia and Dylan were just 19 at the time. Since Dawson was born during the pandemic, none of their family members could be there as the two navigated the days ahead.

News 19 and Make-A-Wish Alabama partner up for Wake up for Wishes telethon!

[Doctors] did an MRI then and said there was damage all over his brain, there wasnt a significant area or anything. At that point, he was still on the vent and we didnt know if he was going to make it off the vent at all, she said.

Then his parents tried skin-to-skin contact.

The next morning after we did skin-to-skin he came completely off the vent. He had come, he had done so much better to take it off, and he just kept kind of going up from there but [doctors and nurses] were like, we dont know if hes going to be able to walk, we dont know if hes going to be able to talk.

Dawson has defied the odds, walking, talking, playing and swimming all by age 3.

He does physical therapy and occupational therapy and speech therapy. We go one day a week for that and hes had to have some tubes put in. Virginia said.

Dawson still has dozens of seizures each day. His parents say they are doing all they can to get them under control, but they say at his age and weight, it could take years until a medicine or mechanism can be found that consistently stabilizes their boy. Dawson has an implant in his chest that connects up to his vagus nerve and sends vibrations. Those pulses help deter seizures.

None of this, they say stops him from doing what he loves. His parents say they have no plans to stop pushing him to do all that he wants to do.

We just want a normal life for him, thats what we want. Whatever that is, whatever normal that is.

The next step towards normalcy: a vacation. Virginia said a trip to the beach will be a full-circle moment for the family.

I was pregnant with [Dawson] and we went 4th of July. I was BIG pregnant because he was born in September, she said. We have a picture of me and [Dylan] and my big belly and fireworks going off behind me and hes giving me a kiss. So [Dawson] has been, he just wasnt aware that he was there.

Now, its all about waiting for that wish to be granted by the folks at Make-A-Wish Alabama.

Im excited, I think hes going to love it. I think hes going to barrel right in, as soon as his eyes lock to the water, hes going to be gone, Virginia said. The only thing Im worried about is him getting the saltwater in his eyes, Dylan echoed.

News 19 is thrilled to partner with Make-A-Wish Alabama to help raise money for wishes just like Dawsons. Every dollar donated through our Wake Up for Wishes telethon stays right here in Alabama. It takes about $10,000 to grant just one wish, so it will truly take a village to help as many of the nearly 100 children waiting for their wishes to be granted right here in North Alabama.

You can be the reason children like Dawson make lifelong memories with those they hold dearest. For more information about the fundraiser and to donate, click here or text WISHES to 243725.

Thank you for your support of children in the Make-A-Wish program here in Alabama.

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.
Chinese Ambassador to Syria Shi Hongwei (R) and Syria's Minister of Culture Lubanah Mshaweh (C) browse a collection of books donated by the Chinese Embassy to the Al-Assad National Library in Damascus, Syria, June 12, 2024. The Chinese Embassy in Syria on Wednesday donated a vast collection of Chinese books, translated into both English and Arabic, to the Al-Assad National Library, the largest public library in Syria. (Photo by Ammar Safarjalani/Xinhua)

DAMASCUS, June 12 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese Embassy in Syria on Wednesday donated a vast collection of Chinese books, translated into both English and Arabic, to the Al-Assad National Library, the largest public library in Syria.

The donation event took place at the library in the capital Damascus in the presence of Chinese Ambassador to Syria, Shi Hongwei, and Syria's Minister of Culture, Lubanah Mshaweh, highlighting the growing cultural exchange between China and Syria.

The donated books cover a wide range of subjects, including Chinese history, literature, and contemporary culture, providing Syrian readers with a comprehensive view of China's rich cultural heritage.

Shi expressed hope that the new section dedicated to Chinese literature would become a valuable resource for the Syrian public.

"We hope that this section for Chinese books could serve as a window for the Syrian people to get to know China," he said.

"We see that the Assad Library is one of the most important and largest Arab libraries, and hopefully, we will have more cooperation with the Assad Library to provide more of the new books or to have more cooperation in the near future," he said.

Mshaweh, for her side, emphasized the importance of cultural exchange in her remarks at the event.

"The cultural window is the most beautiful window through which people enter towards each other, getting to know their customs, traditions, and understanding each other," Mshaweh said.

"Ignorance dissipates, fears vanish, and each learns about the other and how friendships can be established with this country, in addition to close cooperation in all aspects of life," she added. 
Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich, who has been held in Russia for over a year on false espionage charges, was indicted today and set to be tried.

Russias latest move toward a sham trial is, while expected, deeply disappointing and still no less outrageous, WSJ publisher Almar Latour and editor-in-chief Emma Tucker said in a statement Thursday.

The statement further read, Evan Gershkovich is facing a false and baseless charge  Evan has spent 441 days wrongfully detained in a Russian prison for simply doing his job. Evan is a journalist. The Russian regimes smearing of Evan is repugnant, disgusting and based on calculated and transparent lies.

Latour and Tucker concluded with, Journalism is not a crime. Evans case is an assault on free press.

The Biden administration has been trying to secure Gershkovichs release, as well as that of a fellow U.S. citizen, former Marine Paul Whelan.

We have been clear from the start that Evan has done nothing wrong and never should have been arrested in the first place, a senior administration official told the WSJ on Thursday.

Journalism is not a crime. We expect Russian authorities to continue to provide consular access to Evan and Embassy Moscow will make efforts to attend any future proceedings. Russia should stop using individuals like Evan Gershkovich or Paul Whelan as bargaining chips. They should both be released immediately, the official continued.

Roger Carstens, the chief U.S. hostage diplomat, said on Thursday that the administration is not deterred by Russias actions against Gershkovich. This doesnt stop or slow us down, he said.

Gershkovich is kept in his cell at Lefortovo prison in Moscow for 23 hours a day, being let out only to meet with his lawyers.

According to the WSJ, the trial is expected to be held privately as it involves classified information. Its likely to take place in Yekaterinburg, where Gershkovich was first arrested. He was on a reporting assignment for the Journal when Russian authorities accused him of working for the CIA.

The post Wrongfully Imprisoned WSJ Journalist Evan Gershkovich Indicted and Set for Trial in Russia appeared first on TheWrap.
WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich sentenced to 16 years in Russian prison on espionage charges. Here's how we got here.

A Russian court convicted Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich on espionage charges Friday and sentenced him to 16 years in a maximum-security prison.

The American journalist, the Journal and the U.S. all deny the espionage charges.

The trial proceedings took place behind closed doors in Yekaterinburg, a city about 1,200 miles east of Moscow, where Gershkovich was first apprehended by Russian security agents while he was on a reporting assignment in March 2023. The Journal says Gershkovich was working under accreditation from Russias Foreign Ministry at the time of his arrest.

According to a June indictment, the American journalist was accused of gathering secret information on behalf of the CIA regarding a Russian facility that produces and repairs military equipment.

At no point during the trial did the prosecution present any evidence publicly to support the espionage charges, the New York Times reports. The expedited and secretive trial could signal a potential prisoner exchange between Moscow and the U.S., the Associated Press reports.

This disgraceful, sham conviction comes after Evan has spent 478 days in prison, wrongfully detained, away from his family and friends, prevented from reporting, all for doing his job as a journalist," Almar Latour, publisher of the Wall Street Journal, and the paper's Editor in Chief Emma Tucker said in a statement Friday following news of the verdict.

"We will continue to do everything possible to press for Evans release and to support his family. Journalism is not a crime, and we will not rest until hes released. This must end now."

How has the U.S. responded?

President Biden said after Gershkovich was convicted on Friday, "As I have long said and as the UN also concluded, there is no question that Russia is wrongfully detaining Evan. Journalism is not a crime ... Additionally, since the very first day of my Administration, I have had no higher priority than seeking the release and safe return of Evan, Paul Whelan and all Americans wrongfully detained and held hostage abroad. Evan has endured his ordeal with remarkable strength. We will not cease in our efforts to bring him home."

On Dec. 5, 2023, the State Department said that the Biden administration made a new offer to secure the release of both Gershkovich and Paul Whelan, another American detained in Russia, but Moscow rejected it. The State Department didnt reveal the details of the offer or why Moscow might have rejected it.

Following Putins remarks on Dec. 14, State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said, We would welcome them engaging seriously with us to obtain the release of Evan Gershkovich and Paul Whelan, but so far we have seen them refuse to take us up on our proposals, and we hope that they will change the way theyve handled this going forward.

Who is Evan Gershkovich?

Gershkovich at an earlier Moscow court hearing, Oct. 10, 2023. (Evgenia Novozhenina/Reuters)

Gershkovich, 32, is a reporter for the Wall Street Journal and was accredited to work as a journalist by the Russian Foreign Ministry, according to the Journal.

He was detained by the country's Federal Security Service on March 29, 2023, while on assignment in Yekaterinburg, just a day after he co-authored an article on Russias declining economy following its invasion of Ukraine.

At the time Gershkovich was accused of espionage, Russian authorities didn't provided detailed evidence to support the accusation. He is being held in Moscow's Lefortovo Prison, infamous for its harsh conditions.

Who is Paul Whelan?

Paul Whelan, right, a former U.S. Marine accused of espionage by Russia, June 15, 2020. (Kirill Kudryavtsev/AFP via Getty Images)

Whelan, a former U.S. Marine, is a corporate security executive from Michigan who holds U.S., Canadian, British and Irish citizenships. He has been detained by Russian authorities for over five years  since Dec. 28, 2018  and was imprisoned on espionage charges for his alleged involvement in an intelligence operation. He, his family and the U.S. have said the allegation is false. Whelan said he was in Moscow to attend a friends wedding.

In 2020, Whelan was sentenced to 16 years in a remote prison labor camp in Mordovia, where he has been detained ever since. If I had known that there would be any sort of problem, I would never have come here, Whelan told CNN via phone from the prison camp in December.

Whelan also called on President Biden to please use every resource available to secure my release as you would do if your own son had been taken hostage.

Whats happening with Whelans case?

Back in July 2022, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said a proposal was made to Moscow for the release of Whelan and WNBA star Brittney Griner. Griner was released in a prisoner swap in December 2022, but Whelan wasnt part of the deal.

Whelan told the BBC last December that he feels like the U.S. has left him behind.

"A serious betrayal. It's extremely frustrating," Whelan said. "I know that the U.S. has come up with all sorts of proposals  serious proposals  but it's not what the Russians are after. So they keep going back and forth. The only problem is, it's my life that's draining away while they do this."
LEWISBURG, WV (WVNS)  A toolkit exemplifying some of the successes of the West Virginia School of Osteopathic Medicines (WVSOM) Center for Rural and Community Health (CRCH) is now available to other organizations involve3d in community-engaged research work that incorporates the input of community members into research will impact the community in question.

Speakers from the National Institutes of Healths (NIH) Community Engagement Alliance Consultative Resource (CEACR)  a program of the NIHs Community Engagement Alliance  made the announcement during a June 6 event WVSOMs campus in Lewisburg.

Mylynda Massart, M.D., Ph.D., and Emily Finley are among the directors of CEACR, which serves as a channel for NIH-supported research teams interested in applying best practices of community-focused approaches to the address health disparities and ensure inclusion in research programs.

Celebrate West Virginias birthday in Downtown Lewisburg

Massart and Finley spoke to an audience of employees of WVSOM and other higher education institutions, local health professionals and community leaders, explaining that the NIH wanted to compile success stories of WVSOMs CRCH into a publicly accessible resource.

We were impressed by the work being done here. Were telling your story to uplift examples of trust-building partnership and collaboration between local communities and an academic institution to address health inequities, to disseminate approaches to integrating community voices and leadership into health research programming, to highlight ways institutions can invest resources in support of sustainable, community-led infrastructure, and to demonstrate how community partnerships are uniquely suited to address social determinants of health. Mylynda Massart, M.D., Ph.D. | Community Engagement Alliance Consultative Resource (CEACR)

Senator Manchin announces more than $1 million for arts and music initiatives in West Virginia

Massart said that the CEACR program aims to help research teams that face challenges in research that engages marginalized communities.

The toolkit highlights two of the many projects in which the WVSOM CRCH participated: its assistance with emergency task forces that assembled disaster relief following flooding in Greenbrier County in 2016 and hosted vaccine clinics during the COVID-19 pandemic; and the Greenbrier County Health Alliances Community Ambassador Program, which aims to improve health in remote areas of the county without easy access to resources and support systems.

It also emphasizes that participation in programs like these creates a foundation of reciprocity in community members, which promotes future community-focused research. It expresses that the WVSOM CRCH learned that trust can be built through activities such as establishing partnerships before research is conducted, prioritizing serving the community, leaning on community expertise and dedicating funding for community projects.

Brian Hendricks, Ph.D., the executive director of the CRCH, said WVSOMs success stories will be useful to academic institutions and other organizations that may need help in learning how to engage rural or underserved communities.

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I think of this as the CRCHs introduction into the world of community-engaged research. Its our opportunity to share strategies weve successfully implemented with people who may be struggling to engage with communities elsewhere. Its also a way to let the world know that we are experts in this area and ready to collaborate. Brian Hendricks, Ph.D. | Executive Director, CRCH

Hendricks said the NIH started providing funding opportunities to community teams that may not have qualified for funding in the past, and that toolkits such as WVSOMs can be a valuable asset.

The National Institutes of Health has previously funded health research at academic institutions, hospitals and other larger allied health agencies. However, NIH is also now offering funding to smaller, community-engaged organizations. This toolkit is nationally published and may serve as a frame of reference for anyone wanting to conduct NIH-funded, community-focused research. Brian Hendricks, Ph.D. | Executive Director, CRCH

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 WVNS.
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WHNT)  Three World War II veterans who were honored overseas in Normandy during the commemoration of the 80th D-Day anniversary got a well-deserved heroes welcome home Wednesday evening.

During their journey to France, Howard Polin, Otis Branon, and Arthur Hullet along with many others were commended for their service in playing roles in one of the most pivotal battles in history.

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Honoring Veterans Legacies is the local group that helped make the veterans trip together possible.

We have less than one percent of our World War II veterans still around so being able to have them have the trip of a lifetime and welcoming them back is very special, said Elaine Oakes with Honoring Veterans Legacies.

As they came off the plane, those heroes were met with appreciation and gratitude at the Huntsville International Airport.

A group of WWII veterans at the American Cemetary in Normandy (Courtesy of Honoring Veteran Legacies)

WWII Veterans returned to Huntsville Wednesday after a trip to France for the anniversary of D-Day

Veterans like Arthur Hullett say the love and support they received from around the world was an experience like no other.

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Coming here to see what I saw today, is a great feeling, Hullett said. Looking at all the veterans who died at Normandy, I wish they could feel what I feel.

American flags along with posters in support of the veterans were held high as they were welcomed back home.

For veterans like Howard Polin, the visit to Normandy was much different this time around in what was a journey filled with many firsts.

I got to meet the president of France, he was telling me how thankful he was for guys like me who liberated France, Polin told News 19.

Polin explained how it was humbling for people from around the world to tell him just how thankful they were. He says he along with many others put their lives on the line for democracy.

They treated me like I personally saved France, but there were a lot of other guys there who sacrificed and gave the ultimate sacrifice, Polin said.

Those heroes say they wish those who didnt make it back home from Normandy got the same amount of love and appreciation as they did. Theyre hoping people will understand that freedom comes at the cost of others.

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.
Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) launched an investigation Wednesday into former President Trumps son-in-law, Jared Kushner, and his investment firm, Affinity Partners, over details regarding its investments in Saudi Arabia.

In a letter to Affinity Partners Chief Financial Officer Lauren Key, Wyden said its concerning that several Middle Eastern governments, including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, are using funds managed by the company and creating significant conflicts of interest and potential counterintelligence risks.

These arrangements also raise concerns that Affinitys exclusively foreign funded private investment funds are being exploited as a loophole by Mr. Kushner and other former U.S. government officials as a means to avoid complying with the Foreign Agents Registration Act and other U.S. laws requiring U.S. persons to disclose payments form foreign governments, Wyden wrote in the letter.

The chair is asking for the company to provide a list of all investors in funds managed by Affinity since its inception in 2021. For each investor, Wyden asked for Affinity to disclose the amount invested in funds it manages, total amount of fees the investment firm has been paid, and the annual rates of return, as well.

Building off a report by The New York Times that found Affinity disclosed that 99 percent of its assets were attributable to non-U.S. people or entities, Wyden is asking why that is the case.

One of Wydens asks specifically names Kushner, requesting the company detail how much Affinity paid him from 2021 to 2023, in not only salary but bonuses, other compensation, dividends and other distributions associated with the company.

The senator also asked for a list of all the shareholders and the number of shares each person owns, among several other requests he made.

During his time in the Trump administration, Kushner oversaw Middle East policy. He secured a $2 billion investment from Saudi Arabia six months after leaving the White House and has come under criticism for the potential political influence.

Kushner has defended himself and his firms action about the allegations of conflict of interest.

The Hill has reached out to Affinity and the attorneys representing Kushner for comment.

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 The Hill.
Ye seems to hate stairs so much that he tried to dismantle the ones inside the now-gutted, $39 million Malibu home by architect Tadao Ando

Ye seems to hate stairs so much that he tried to dismantle the ones inside the now-gutted, $39 million Malibu home by architect Tadao Ando

Ye, formerly Kanye West, apparently has an ongoing beef with stairs.

One lawsuit against Ye included allegations that the artist is "reportedly" afraid of stairs.

Ye also tried to replace the stairs inside his concrete Malibu home with a ramp, per The New Yorker.

Ye's apparent bad blood with staircases appears to run so deep that the rapper, formerly known as Kanye West, tried to replace the stairs inside a rare Malibu home designed by a famed Japanese architect.

For months, Ye has been trying to sell his beachfront property on Malibu Road in Southern California.

The home  one of a handful of residential properties in the US designed by the iconic Japanese architect Tadao Ando  is the subject of an ongoing lawsuit filed by Tony Saxon.

Saxon was the project manager Ye commissioned in 2021 to oversee the house's redesign. He is accusing the artist of putting him in dangerous working conditions and failing to pay his wages.

Ye's attorney did not respond to a request for comment.

Since he was hired, Saxon received a number of demands from Ye, including stripping the property of its windows, plumbing, and other amenities, according to the lawsuit.

Tony Saxon was a fulltime caretaker of Ye's Malibu beach house. Tony Saxon

A video provided to The New Yorker shows Saxon's coworker smashing the home's glass balustrade with a hammer.

Another request from Ye was to replace the home's concrete staircase with a ramp or a slide, Saxon told The New Yorker.

Saxon had proposed to the artist a slide made of stainless steel while Bianca Censori, Ye's wife, sent her husband three renderings of a concrete ramp, according to The New Yorker.

Ye has publicly shared his curious disdain for staircases.

In a 2022 interview with Alo Yoga cofounder Danny Harris, Ye said he was "really big on outlawing stairs" and that all homes should be designed to cater to older adults.

"We can have up-ramp but not upstairs," he said. "Everything should be designed like an old-folks home."

Ye's fraught view of stairs has even been mentioned in a lawsuit filed by former staff members of Donda Academy, Ye's secretive private school.

The ex-employees alleged in the suit that Donda Academy students were not allowed to have class on the second floor because the artist was "reportedly afraid of stairs."

The lawsuit accused Ye of seven labor code violations and discrimination. A trial is scheduled for April 2025.

Despite the artist's vision for universally designed homes, The New Yorker's Ian Parker, who reported on Ye's Malibu home and visited the property, wrote that the ramps that Ye proposed "appeared to be at least four times as steep as any allowed by the Americans with Disabilities Act."

Parker also wrote that the ramps ended near the edge of the home's terrace that lost its barrier or railings during the demolition process.

"Someone descending the ramp from the primary bedroom on, say, a skateboard, could expect to shoot off the edge and land some thirty feet below, on the beach," Parker wrote.

Ye's incomplete work on the home has essentially made the home uninhabitable due to the lack of power and plumbing.

The Malibu home was first listed last year with the Oppenheim Group real estate firm for $53 million. The asking price has since been reduced to $39 million.

Jason Oppenheim of Oppenheim Group told The New Yorker that a full renovation would cost at least $5 million.

A spokesperson for Oppenheim Group did not immediately return a request for comment.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Events celebrating Israeli Memorial Day and Israeli Independence Day at two New York City colleges were canceled last month after school officials cited security concerns over planned protests, according to a legal letter sent last week by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), a First Amendment nonprofit, to the City University of New York (CUNY).

In May, Baruch College's chapter of Hillel, a Jewish campus organization, had planned to hold an Israeli Memorial Day and Independence Day event in the Hillel building's second-floor lobby. But when other students planned to protest the event, the Baruch College administration suggested alternate locations for the event, instead of offering additional security. Rather than change locations, the students decided to cancel the event.

At Kingsborough Community College (KCC), school officials went so far as to unilaterally cancel a similar event slated for May 13. The event, organized by the KCC Hillel chapter, was supposed to feature a virtual talk from a former Israeli soldier and cybersecurity expert, as well as a memorial service. When other students planned to protest the event, Hillel asked for additional security. But instead of providing it, school administrators abruptly canceled the event just hours before it was set to begin. According to FIRE's letter, KCC's president later claimed that, because the speaker was not slated to attend in person, the cancellation wasn't a "repression of freedom of speech."

"Public institutions, including CUNY campuses, may not stand idly by and allow one group of students to strip another of their First Amendment right to host an expressive event, including by using the threat of disruption to do so," FIRE Senior Program Officer Zach Greenberg wrote in the letter to CUNY, under whose authority both Baruch College and KCC fall. "If CUNY continues to allow hecklers' vetoes, it will not be long before the only speakers able to speak on its campuses will be those whose ideas are sufficiently uncontroversial in the eyes of would-be hecklers of all political stripes."

This is far from the first time that university events have been canceled in recent months over security concerns related to protests over the Israel-Hamas war. In March, Indiana University officials asked another Hillel branch to postpone an event following "concerns for the safety of speakers and attendees." In October of last year, University of Vermont officials cited safety concerns when canceling a lecture from a Palestinian writer. Several colleges, including the University of Southern California and Columbia, canceled their main commencement ceremonies, citing security risks after large anti-Israel protests.

"Students must know that CUNY will protect their right to hold expressive events, without fear of them being canceled or moved due to other students' protected expression," Greenberg wrote. "If others would like to protestso long as it is not disruptiveadministrators must also allow them to move forward."

The post New York Community College Abruptly Cancels Jewish Student Event appeared first on Reason.com.
YORK, Pa. (WHTM)  The United States Attorneys Office for the Middle District of

Pennsylvania announced that a York County man has been sentenced to 13 months in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

United States Attorney Gerard M. Karam said that 29-year-old Tanner Uffelman was charged with submitting multiple fraudulent unemployment applications to states in order to receive compensation under the guise that his unemployment was due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

From 2020 to 2021, Uffelman and his conspirators submitted false claims using the identifications of numerous innocent victims in Massachusetts, Maryland, North Carolina, and California, according to a news release.

Uffelman pled guilty to the crime in January 2024, and admitted that the fraud scheme stole over $40,000 from the various states.

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While he was committing his federal offenses, Uffelman was on supervision with York County authorities for a 2018 incident involving the corruption and unlawful communication with a 14-year-old girl when he was 23.

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 ABC27.
(WJET/WFXP) A federal grand jury in Pennsylvania has accused a New York man of being part of a wire fraud scheme spanning across the country to steal money and gold from at least four victims.

The United States Attorneys Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania announced Thursday that 39-year-old Kuldeep Jaggi of Huntingdon Station, New York was indicted on conspiracy to commit wire fraud and allegedly scammed a Pennsylvania resident out of tens of thousands of dollars in gold.

Teen driver who killed Yonkers police sergeant gets 2 years probation

The scheme allegedly involved using pop-up windows saying the persons computer was infected with malware and giving them a number to call to get it removed.

The person taking the calls would then pose as a government agent or employee who would tell the victim their computer was used to commit crimes and they would be charged. Additionally, victims were allegedly told they would have to hand deliver cash or gold to get the malware removed.

NYPD, Woodbridge officers shot in NJ; suspect killed: officials

Jaggi was named as one of the actors who would collect the funds even allegedly taking $64,000 in gold from a Harrisburg, PA man between September 26, 2023, and October 3, 2023, and another $129,000 from one victim each in Massachusetts, Idaho and Texas.

Jaggi now faces up to 20 years in prison, supervised release, a fine and special assessment if convicted with the actual sentence being based on federal sentencing guidelines and statutes.

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 PIX11.
It was a routine of mine, to drive from my home in Leawood up to Kansas City and back to the empty roads south of my house. I borrowed this pastime from my older brother, who often did the same thing. This was part boredom  after school and homework, I couldnt do much else but drive around with friends and look at the sunset on the fields  and part my age.

I felt too young to do anything of substance and too old just to sit at home.

This was a trend for us in Blue Valley North High School, being old enough to want to do impactful and exciting things but never getting taken seriously. I remember during the height of the March for Our Lives movement, a group of students in my high school planned a walkout in solidarity against gun violence in schools.

This happened in high schools across the nation, but it felt like here, we were doing nothing. From the preplanned take-home assignments the teachers made or the changes to accommodate the walkout, I didnt feel it was being taken as seriously as it should have.

Ive lived in the Kansas City area for 20 years, while most of the last three years were spent at college in Evanston, Illinois, at Northwestern University. Ive witnessed dozens more forms of activism on my college campus. Whether it was an encampment with tents supporting Palestine or a small table advocating for bird protection, everything seemed to be taken more seriously than the school-wide walkout planned in high school.

I couldnt help but wonder if it was because we were a couple years older that my peers and I were finally being listened to, or if it was the change in our environment.

At college, everyone was the same age and we were judged primarily by our peers. Our age became the motivation and pathway to speak on certain topics, not a hindrance, and I wondered if this is what made us frustrated with the news as young adults. Are we listened to or is this another high school walkout situation?

The pro-Palestine encampment at my college campus lasted more than a week, similar to the events on Columbias campus in New York City and here, in Kansas and Missouri. The conflict between the students at the encampment at my school and the administration attracted Chicago news outlets and resulted in an agreement to increase transparency about university investments and increase support for all students affected by the conflict on campus.

Even the smaller activists were seeing success on campus. The bird activists succeeded as the university put dots on our glass library to protect birds from flying into the building. I watched a group of men for a couple of days putting sheets of dots on the windows and wondered if this had been anywhere on the administrators minds before the students advocated for the change.

I decided to come home for the first summer in three years this year, to work with The Kansas City Stars Opinion team. As I read and learned more about opinion pieces, I realized this side of the news was a way young adults could comment and bring up new and overlooked topics, such as the birds.

My age is one of my most important identities. Age can mean experience as you grow older but young people have the opportunity and experiences to provide a new perspective on what is important to see in the news. We care about different things and can connect with an entirely new population of people, looking at our community with fresh eyes.

Incorporating younger perspectives in the news and opinion pieces is what can revitalize news audiences and more effectively create change in things that matter to us.

Divya Gupta is a Kansas City Star Opinion intern. She is a Leawood native and a journalism and economics student at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
ADEN, Yemen, June 13 (Xinhua) - A vital road linking the cities of Taiz and Sanaa reopened on Thursday after being closed for nearly a decade due to Yemen's ongoing conflict, local mediators announced.

The blocked Hawban-Madina section of the road in the Taiz province was made passable again after dirt barriers, barricades, and landmines were cleared through cooperative efforts there in recent days, Samir Al-Sabai, a member of the local mediation committee, told Xinhua.

The road reopened to passenger traffic following the cooperation of the concerned parties, namely the Houthis and government forces, according to Al-Sabai.

Hawban is a Houthis-controlled area on the outskirts of Taiz, the capital of the namesake province, while Madina is in the Taiz city where government troops are stationed.

Citizens in the government-controlled areas of Taiz can now travel without restrictions to the Houthi-controlled Hawban and then to other provinces including the country's capital Sanaa.

Fighting between the two sides severed the main road link in early 2015, forcing travelers to take circuitous mountain routes that stretched a 10-minute drive into an over six-hour journey.

Al-Sabai said reopening the road was built upon more than five years of communication and meetings to alleviate suffering for local families and travelers.

Meanwhile, the pro-government Yemeni army confirmed the groundbreaking reopening of the vital road.

"Citizens are moving freely from the city of Taiz (under government authority) to the Hawban area (under Houthi control)," according to a military statement.

Residents circulated pictures on social media showing large groups of travelers crossing from the city of Taiz to the Hawban area.

The conflict between the internationally recognized government and the Houthi militant group has cut off multiple main transit routes across the war-ravaged Arab nation since late 2014. 
It was a routine of mine, to drive from my home in the suburbs up to Kansas City and back to the empty roads south of my house. I borrowed this pastime from my older brother, who often did the same thing. This was part boredom  after school and homework, I couldnt do much else but drive around with friends and look at the sunset on the fields  and part my age.

I felt too young to do anything of substance and too old just to sit at home.

This was a trend for us my high school, being old enough to want to do impactful and exciting things but never getting taken seriously. I remember during the height of the March for Our Lives movement, a group of students planned a walkout in solidarity against gun violence in schools.

This happened in high schools across the nation, but it felt like here, we were doing nothing. From the preplanned take-home assignments the teachers made or the changes to accommodate the walkout, I didnt feel it was being taken as seriously as it should have.

Ive lived in the Kansas City area for 20 years, while most of the last three years were spent at college in Evanston, Illinois, at Northwestern University. Ive witnessed dozens more forms of activism on my college campus. Whether it was an encampment with tents supporting Palestine or a small table advocating for bird protection, everything seemed to be taken more seriously than the school-wide walkout planned in high school.

I couldnt help but wonder if it was because we were a couple years older that my peers and I were finally being listened to, or if it was the change in our environment.

At college, everyone was the same age and we were judged primarily by our peers. Our age became the motivation and pathway to speak on certain topics, not a hindrance, and I wondered if this is what made us frustrated with the news as young adults. Are we listened to or is this another high school walkout situation?

The pro-Palestine encampment at my college campus lasted more than a week, similar to the events on Columbias campus in New York City and nearer to home in Kansas and Missouri. The conflict between the students at the encampment at my school and the administration attracted Chicago news outlets and resulted in an agreement to increase transparency about university investments and increase support for all students affected by the conflict on campus.

Even the smaller activists were seeing success on campus. The bird activists succeeded as the university put dots on our glass library to protect birds from flying into the building. I watched a group of men for a couple of days putting sheets of dots on the windows and wondered if this had been anywhere on the administrators minds before the students advocated for the change.

I decided to come home for the first summer in three years this year, to work with The Kansas City Stars Opinion team. As I read and learned more about opinion pieces, I realized this side of the news was a way young adults could comment and bring up new and overlooked topics, such as the birds.

My age is one of my most important identities. Age can mean experience as you grow older but young people have the opportunity and experiences to provide a new perspective on what is important to see in the news. We care about different things and can connect with an entirely new population of people, looking at our community with fresh eyes.

Incorporating younger perspectives in the news and opinion pieces is what can revitalize news audiences and more effectively create change in things that matter to us.

Divya Gupta is a Kansas City Star Opinion intern. She is a Leawood, Kansas, native and a journalism and economics student at Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois.
Solomon Choi "will be remembered as the worlds best husband and daddy, his obituary read

Solomon Choi/ Instagram Solomon Choi

Solomon Choi, an entrepreneur known for founding the self-serve frozen yogurt chain 16 Handles, has died. He was 44.

In a March 2023 Instagram post, Choi revealed that he sold the business during the pandemic in 2022.

Following news of his death, current 16 Handles owner and CEO Neil Hershman, released a statement on Choi's passing.

We are deeply saddened by the unexpected passing of 16 Handles founder and former CEO Solomon Choi, Hershman said in a statement obtained by PEOPLE.

He was a visionary who came to New York City in his 20s and founded this iconic frozen dessert brand. 16 Handles is where I got my personal start in franchising and I owe so much to Solomon for the opportunities, education, mentorship and friendship he provided me throughout the years.

Part of the mission statement for 16 Handles is to create moments of happiness, and Solomon truly embodied this in his personal and professional life, always sporting a big smile and optimistic outlook, the statement continued.

Solomon Choi/ Instagram Solomon Choi

Related: Fla. Entrepreneur Who Successfully Pitched Startup on 'Shark Tank' Dies in Surfing Accident

Our hearts go out to his family, friends and all those who loved him and worked with him during this incredibly difficult time.

According to Chois LinkedIn profile, he was scheduled to participate in a panel for QSR Summits The Future of Digital Transformation in the Fast Casual & QSR Industry on Tuesday, June 11.

The account lists him as the CEO of Jabba Brands and puts his place of residence as New York.

Per his obituary, Choi died on June 7. A cause of death was not listed.

Solomon Choi/ Instagram Solomon Choi

Before launching 16 Handles, the Seoul, South Korea-born entrepreneur attended the University of Southern California Marshall School of Business, graduating with a B.S. in Business Administration in 2002.

Choi is survived by his wife Hannah Chang-Choi, their children 7-year-old Jubilee and 4-year-old Joshua, his parents and two sisters.

The couple met in 2015 and were engaged within 85 days of meeting one another.

Related: Famed Makeup Entrepreneur AJ Crimson Dies: 'There Are No Words,' His Family Says

Solomon Choi/ Instagram Solomon Choi

Just six months after they met, Choi and Chang-Choi were married.

Solomon was an outstanding example of a man driven by his purpose and faith in God and passionate about sharing the love of Christ with others. He led a Christian mens group and was committed to supporting and challenging those around him to be the best versions of themselves, per his obituary.

His loved ones said his legacy will live on forever, and made note of his relentless optimism, his discipline & fearlessness, and his Michael Jackson dance moves.

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.

He was committed to loving his wife and children to the best of his ability and will be remembered as the worlds best husband and daddy, the obituary said.

Services for Choi will be held at Promise Church on Saturday, June 14, at 5 p.m.



For more People news, make sure to sign up for our newsletter!

Read the original article on People.
Young Thugs lawyer will not have to report to jail this weekend after being granted bond

Young Thugs attorney Brian Steel will not have to report to jail this weekend.

This comes after the Georgia Supreme Court granted his emergency motion for bond.

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On Wednesday, Steel filed an emergency motion for supersedeas bond in the Court of Appeals after Judge Ural Glanville ordered him to spend the next 10 weekends in jail after being held in contempt of court on Monday.

In a report from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Ashleigh Merchant, an attorney for Steel, said she is glad Steel doesnt have to report to jail by 7 p.m. Friday.

We are thrilled that Brian will be home with his family for Fathers Day this weekend, she said. We appreciate how quickly and thoughtfully our appellate courts handled this unfortunate situation.

Channel 2 Action News was in the courtroom on Monday when Brian Steel was taken into custody after he refused requests to answer how he heard about a secret meeting between prosecutors, the judge, and a key witness in the YSL trial, Kenneth Copeland, on Monday morning.

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Judge Glanville gave Steel five minutes to disclose the source of information about the meeting.

He refused.

After the judge ordered Steel to spend time in jail, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that many Atlanta attorneys were angry and felt the sentence was unjustified.

Steel, who asked the judge if he could serve those days in Cobb County with his client Young Thug, appealed Glanvilles ruling and requested that his sentence be halted.

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IN OTHER NEWS:
Jeffery "Young Thug" Williams, and his lawyer Brian Steel at the Fulton County Superior Court in Atlanta. (Miguel Martinez/Atlanta Journal-Constitution via AP)

Rapper Young Thug's lawyer avoided jail time Wednesday, thanks to the Georgia Supreme Court, after he was held in contempt by a Georgia judge in the high-profile RICO case against his famous client. Prosecutors have accused the rapper of leading an Atlanta-based street gang to commit acts of murder and robbery, among others.

The charge against Brian Steel, who has been representing the Grammy-award-winning artist in Georgias high-profile case, is the latest development in a case that has been marred with setbacks, adding another layer to what is said to be the longest trial in state history.

Heres what to know about Young Thugs complex criminal trial.

 Whats happening with Young Thugs lawyer?

On June 7, Judge Ural Glanville held Steel in criminal contempt after he accused Glanville and prosecutors of having an unconstitutional closed-door meeting with Kenneth Lil Woody Copeland  the prosecutions star witness  and refused to tell the judge who told him about the meeting.

Copeland is accused of being an associate of YSL, Young Thug's record label. Copeland says that YSL stands for Young Stoner Life, but prosecutors say YSL also stands for Young Slime Life, a violent street gang.

That same day, Copeland, who had been granted immunity, did not take the stand after asserting his Fifth Amendment privilege, and was taken to jail.

However, Copeland came back and testified on June 10 about his connections to Young Thug and YSL.

Steel told Glanville in court that if a closed-door meeting happened, what this is is coercion, witness intimidation, ex parte communications that we have a constitutional right to be present for.

Glanville had ordered Steel to serve the next 10 weekends in the Fulton County Jail starting this weekend, but on June 12, the Georgia Supreme Court granted an emergency request for bond. Steel will not report to jail on Friday, and will remain free while his contempt of court charge is being appealed.

 Whats the trial about?

Young Thug at Lollapalooza, Aug. 1, 2021. (Vashon Jordan Jr./Chicago Tribune/Tribune News Service via Getty Images)

In May 2022, a Fulton County grand jury indicted rapper Jeffrey Young Thug Williams on conspiracy to violate the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, otherwise known as RICO. The rapper was also charged with gang, drug and gun crimes.

The rapper, charged along with 27 other people, is standing trial with five co-defendants. Several of those listed in the indictment either took a plea deal, did not have some sort of legal representation, had their cases separated from Young Thugs trial or had not been arrested.

Among the gang activities listed in the indictment are murder, attempted murder, armed robbery, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and vehicle hijacking. In August 2022, additional counts were added to include drug and gun charges for Young Thug. The RICO charge and his two gang charges carry a five to 20-year prison sentence.

Fulton County prosecutor Adriane Love accused members of YSL of moving like a pack, with Young Thug leading them and their associates.

"For 10 years and counting, the group calling itself Young Slime Life dominated the Cleveland Avenue community of Fulton County," Love said during opening statements in November. She also accused YSL of creating a crater in the middle of Fulton County's Cleveland Avenue community, that sucked in the youth, the innocence and even the lives of some of [its] youngest members.

All defendants on trial have pleaded not guilty.

Steel told the New York Times in 2022 that the rapper "came from an incredibly horrible upbringing, and he has conducted himself throughout his life in a way that is just to marvel at. Hes committed no crime whatsoever.

 What makes the trial so complex?

Since the trial began in November 2023, at least 17 specific sets of lyrics from Young Thug and YSL that were mentioned in the indictment have been submitted as evidence. Prosecutors say the lyrics represent "overt acts in furtherance of the conspiracy" to violate the RICO Act.

The lyrics include: You wanna be slime? Go catch you a body, from YSLs song "Really Be Slime" and I never killed anybody, but I got something to do with that body  I get all types of cash, Im a general, from Young Thugs 2018 song, Anybody.

However, the defense has argued that admitting the lyrics as evidence was racist.

Using these lyrics/poetry/artistry/speech against Mr. Williams is racist and discriminatory because the jury will be so poisoned and prejudiced by these lyrics/poetry/artistry/speech as the same is unlawful character assassination, Young Thugs lawyer said in a motion.

Young Thug's trial is one of two high-profile cases the office of Fulton Count District Attorney Fani Willis is prosecuting. In 2023, she indicted former President Donald Trump and more than a dozen of his allies on RICO charges for allegedly conspiring to attempt to overturn Georgias 2020 presidential election results.

The complex trial has also been weighed down by a series of events that have slowed down the judicial process including:

 What happens next

Glanville has denied Young Thug bond multiple times, claiming that the rapper was a threat to witnesses, had the potential to flee and is a danger to the community.

The trial could continue into 2025.
KYIV (Reuters) - Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy asked the leaders of the G7 group of countries on Thursday to approve a "Marshall Plan" for Ukraine's reconstruction after the damage caused by Russia's invasion.

"We need a clear plan for the recovery of Ukraine. Similar to what the Marshall Plan was for Europe after the war," he told the G7 leaders according to a readout of his speech posted on the presidential website.

The Marshall Plan was a multi-billion dollar programme of economic aid delivered by the United States to its European allies after the Second World War, and is credited for revitalising those economies after the conflict's devastation.

The World Bank has estimated that rebuilding Ukraine will cost nearly $500 billion.

The full-scale war started nearly 28 months ago when Moscow sent tens of thousands of troops into Ukraine and shows no signs of ending soon, with Russia making slight territorial gains this year.

Zelenskiy also said that the recent lifting of restrictions on the use of Western weapons on targets inside Russia had given Ukraine added protection from air strikes, particularly in the eastern city of Kharkiv.

"However, we are still in search of additional Patriot (air defence systems) and we need more of the same powerful steps that were taken (to enhance) our long-range strike capabilities," he said.

(Reporting by Max Hunder and Yuliia Dysa, editing by Andrew Heavens, Kirsten Donovan)
President Volodymyr Zelensky arrived at the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Italy on June 13 and was welcomed by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni.

The summit is expected to address the group's further support for Kyiv as it continues to face Russian aggression.

Zelensky's visit, coming shortly after the trip to Berlin for the Ukraine Recovery Conference and ahead of the Switzerland peace summit, will include bilateral talks with world leaders, namely U.S. President Joe Biden.

Zelensky said earlier today that he would sign bilateral security agreements with the U.S. and Japan during the summit.

A key point on the agenda of the meeting of the world's wealthiest democracies is the use of frozen Russian assets for the benefit of Ukraine.

After months of back-and-forth discussions between Washington and Europe, G7 leaders appear to have reached an agreement on Russian funds.

The French presidency reportedly said on June 12 that the bloc has agreed to provide Ukraine with $50 billion by the end of the year using profits from frozen Russian assets.

The fund will reportedly be created under an international organization such as the World Bank, with contributions in the form of "Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration" (ERA) loans.

While Western countries have frozen $300 billion in Russian assets, they can only access the income generated by these funds, approximately $3.2 billion, annually.

By setting up a fund with loans to be repaid using this income, countries can offer immediate support to Ukraine beyond this amount.

Read also: G7 agrees on transfer of $50 billion in profits from frozen Russian assets to Ukraine

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Zelensky at G7 summit: We need mechanism for confiscating $300 billion in Russian assets

Ukraine and the Group of Seven (G7) nations must create a mechanism for confiscating $300 billion in frozen Russian assets, President Volodymyr Zelensky said on June 13 during a G7 summit in Italy.

"We need to make the states that support terror understand that they will pay for it," the president added.

In his address to the meeting of the world's wealthiest democracies, Zelensky urged support for Ukraine's security, defense, recovery, and Kyiv's peace formula and called for a plan to confiscate Russian assets.

Leaders of the U.S., Italy, France, Germany, Canada, Japan, the U.K., the EU, and other invited countries gathered for a two-day meeting in Fasano in Italy to discuss Russia's war in Ukraine and other common topics.

After months of back-and-forth discussions between Washington and Europe, G7 leaders reached an agreement on providing Ukraine with $50 billion by the end of the year using profits from frozen Russian assets, AFP reported on June 12.

Read also: Japan, Ukraine sign bilateral security agreement

"I ask you to support the plan to use Russian assets, which will quickly provide Ukraine with $50 billion," Zelensky said at the summit.

"You are all aware of the details. This is a completely operational plan. And this is money that should work to support both defense and reconstruction," the president noted, reiterating the need for a mechanism to confiscate all the $300 billion immobilized on Western accounts.

Zelensky also thanked the G7 leaders for the security declaration made last July and for the bilateral security agreements based on this pledge. The president signed such an accord with Japan during the summit and is scheduled to sign another with the U.S. later the same day.

"Secondly, we have to make our cooperation in providing specific assistance to our soldiers perfect already now," the president said. He thanked for air defenses and the recent permission to strike inside Russia with Western-supplied weapons but also called for faster F-16 training for Ukrainian pilots and additional Patriot air defense systems.

"And I have one message from our military  they are grateful for all the military support packages you have provided and ask you to deliver them to Ukraine, to our soldiers, as soon as possible."

Referencing the Ukraine Recovery Conference that took place in Berlin earlier this week, Zelensky said that the partners must develop "a clear plan for recovery, similar to the Marshall Plan for Europe after (World War II)."

"Friends, let's draw up such a recovery plan together and confirm it with a joint G7-plus declaration  a recovery declaration," the president said.

As his final point, Zelensky thanked the G7 leaders for their support for Ukraine's peace formula and the global peace summit that will take place in Switzerland later this week.

While Kyiv's partners voiced full backing for the summit, some, like German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, tempered expectations from the meeting, while U.S. President Joe Biden will skip it completely, sending Vice President Kamala Harris in his stead.

Russia has not been invited to the summit, which led to many ostensibly "neutral" countries like China or Saudi Arabia refusing to attend.

Read also: G7 agrees on transfer of $50 billion in profits from frozen Russian assets to Ukraine

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Zelenskyy: Agreement with US contains provisions for supply of Patriots and F-16 jets

The bilateral security pact with the United States includes provisions for providing military aid to Ukraine, including air defence systems and fighter jets.

Source: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a press conference after signing an agreement with US President Joe Biden on 13 June, as reported by European Pravda

Details: According to Zelenskyy, the security pact includes a "legally binding part," which refers to the dependability of American help, but he did not elaborate further.

Furthermore, the president of Ukraine stated that the agreement provides for the United States' backing of Ukraine "to win this war," which will continue in peacetime.

Quote: "The deal contains good provisions on weapons for our defence, particularly Patriot systems, as well as the transfer of fighter squadrons to Ukraine, primarily the F-16s. We worked very hard for this," he emphasised.

Among other terms of the security pact, Zelenskyy emphasises cooperation between Ukraine's defence sector and the United States, actions to hold Russia accountable, including sanctions and export control, and support for Ukraine's potential NATO membership.

US President Joe Biden and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed a 10-year bilateral security agreement on 13 June aimed at strengthening Kyiv's defence capabilities.

After Japan, the United States became the 16th country with which Ukraine signed a bilateral security agreement and the final Group of Seven country to do so.

However, the United States recognises that potentially any next president of the United States can withdraw from a security agreement with Ukraine since it does not provide for ratification by Congress.

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President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrived at the G7 summit on 13 June; this summit is dedicated to the situation in Ukraine and its further support from the West.

Source: European Pravda with reference to Rai News

Details: Zelenskyy was met by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at the G7 summit venue, the Borgo Egnazia hotel in southern Italy's Puglia.

Zelenskyy and Meloni.

Photo: 

Zelenskyy is taking part in the first part of the G7 summit dedicated to the war in Ukraine. According to local media reports, it began around 16:00 Kyiv time.

Zelenskyy at the G7 summit.

Photo: Rai News

Background:

On the eve of the G7 summit, which starts in Italy on 13 June, the leaders of the countries agreed to provide a US$50 billion loan to Ukraine through the use of frozen Russian assets.

At the G7 summit in Italy, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will announce bilateral aid to Ukraine in the amount of up to 242 million (almost US$300 million).

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GENEVA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Forced displacement surged to a historic high of 120 million by May 2024, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)said here Thursday.

According to the UNHCR's 2024 Global Trends Report, the figure also marked the 12th consecutive annual increase.

By the end of last year, the war in Gaza had displaced up to 1.7 million people, comprising 75 percent of the population, with most being Palestine refugees, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) estimates. Meanwhile, Syria continues to be the world's largest displacement crisis, with 13.8 million people forcibly displaced both within and outside the country.

Additionally, by the end of 2023, 10.8 million Sudanese remained uprooted. In the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Myanmar, millions were internally displaced last year due to vicious fighting.

According to the Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, the largest increase in displacement figures was among those fleeing conflict within their own countries, reaching 68.3 million people, an almost 50 percent rise over the past five years.

The number of refugees and others in need of international protection, including those under the mandates of UNHCR and UNRWA, rose to 43.4 million. The refugees are mostly hosted in neighboring countries, with 75 percent residing in low- and middle-income nations that together generate less than 20 percent of the world's income.

Filippo Grandi, the UNHCR chief, emphasized that the increasing displacement numbers reflect numerous human tragedies and should prompt the international community to urgently address the root causes of forced displacement.

He stressed the importance of warring parties respecting international laws and highlighted that without better cooperation and efforts to resolve conflicts, human rights violations, the climate crisis and displacement will continue to rise, leading to further suffering and costly humanitarian responses.

Meanwhile, the report revealed that over 5 million internally displaced people and 1 million refugees globally returned home in 2023, indicating some progress towards longer-term solutions. 
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has agreed that China can develop its own "peace plan" if it does not adhere to the universal ideals outlined in the Ukrainian Peace Formula.

Source: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy at a press conference following the signing of an agreement with US President Joe Biden on 13 June, as reported by European Pravda

Details: Zelenskyy recalled that the Ukrainian Peace Formula is based on the UN Charter and contains such principles as territorial integrity, sovereignty, nuclear and food security at its core.

Quote: "If China has a different perspective on this, it can devise an alternate peace formula. If we have common views on this, as well as, I believe, with the rest of the world  if they share this route to peace, we will find a solution," he added.

Reuters reported on 13 June that China, which will not attend this weekend's Peace Summit in Switzerland, is lobbying world governments ahead of the Swiss meeting to promote its peace plan.

Read also: Ukraine Peace Summit turns hard on Russia. How leaders amended the final decision under criticism

The Chinese proposal envisages holding an international peace conference "at a proper time that is recognised by both Russia and Ukraine, with equal participation of all parties as well as fair discussion of all peace plans".

Switzerland rejected the final document of the Peace Summit, which could have had undesirable consequences for Ukraine  the decision's text has been changed in recent days.

After that, several states that had planned to attend the Peace Summit in Switzerland have decided not to go.

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AUSTIN (KXAN)  For more than half a century, Zilker Park Boat Rentals has been a mainstay for outdoor recreation on Barton Creek. Now, the business is rallying community support amid contract uncertainties with the City of Austin.

Laura Massengale serves as co-owner of Zilker Park Boat Rentals, a business started in 1969 by her father, Howard Barnett. Massengale recounted how her father  a writer at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine at the time  wanted to create a space where people could explore the natural beauty of Austins waterways.

Barnett brought his proposal to the Austin Parks and Recreation Department (PARD), and city officials approved the idea. What began as a dream paired with nine used canoes has since burgeoned into a 55-year business, Massengale said.

Its grown over the years and weve added some boats, and were aiming to keep it the way it is and not make it super commercial, she told KXAN. We want to keep the vibe.

The business current lease with the city ends in February 2025. Massengale said the business future was first in limbo when the Zilker Park Vision Plan was under consideration, claiming city officials didnt want to make any long-term commitments in light of the then-proposal.

Now, she said shes still seeking answers for future contract opportunities. Massengale said the business has requested a legacy business contract or a historic landmark preservation status to ensure it isnt caught up in any growing pains.

Zilker Park Boat Rentals launched a petition June 8 in support of continued business operations and to help compel city leadership to negotiate a new contract; as of Thursday afternoon, its attracted approximately 1,300 signatures.

[The response has] been off the charts. People are very supportive of our business and of saving something in Austin, because a lot of things have been taken away, she said. You have to really honor the old as well as bring in something new. It doesnt all have to be a clean slate.

In a statement to KXAN, a City of Austin spokesperson said staff continue to review contractual options for Zilker Park Boat Rentals.

Zilker Park Boat Rentals, under various agreements overseen by the Parks and Recreation Department, has served the Austin community for 55 years, the statement read. Their current contract to operate the site extends through February 2025, nine months away. City staff are in discussions with company representatives to review contractual options going forward.

Massengale said the last contact she had with PARD was back in December, when Zilker Park Boat Rentals received a one-year contract extension. Since, she said city officials have told her the contract is no longer being handled by PARD, but its exact status is unknown.

I dont really want to be blindsided, she said. Im trying to be proactive and find out whats happening, and thats the reason behind the petition.

While Austin might be known as the Live Music Capital of the World, its also noted for its nature and outdoor recreation, Massengale said. She estimated approximately 70% of Zilker Park Boat Rentals customers are visitors from out of town; when they think Austin, they think of the opportunity to paddleboard on Lady Bird Lake.

We are a city contract, but were also a very important cultural icon to Austin, she said, adding: I think the legacy contract would just honor our commitment to the park and recognize that we are dedicated to being business owners in the park and were dedicated to the Zilker Park community and everybody who comes there.

She said the issue at hand isnt a matter of being resistant to change. Austins growth has afforded so many opportunities to residents and established the region as a major metropolitan contender.

But in the same vein, she said there needs to be a balance and concerted effort by city leaders to preserve the history and community that Austin is known for.

Its very important to honor where weve come from, and to not just erase it, she said.

More details on the petition are available online.

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 KXAN Austin.
BROOKLYN, N.Y.  Police are investigating after the homes of leaders of one of New York City's longstanding art museums were vandalized this week with red paint and a statement targeting the museum's Jewish director.

The front entrance of the luxury apartment building where Brooklyn Museum Director Anne Pasternak lives was on Wednesday smeared with red paint and adorned with a hand-painted banner calling out the museum by name and referring to Pasternak as a "white supremacist Zionist."

Homes where museum board of directors members live were also targeted this week, but the board members are not Jewish, only Pasternak is, Brooklyn Museum Director of Public Relations Taylor Maatman told USA TODAY.

"We are deeply troubled by these horrible acts targeting leaders connected to the museum," Maatman said.

Pro Palestinian demonstrators protest outside the Brooklyn Museum in Brooklyn, New York on May 31, 2024.

Attempts to reach Pasternak on Thursday were unsuccessful. Pasternak was not available for comment, Maatman said.

NYPD investigating; Mayor Eric Adams calls incident antisemitism

The New York City Police Department are investigating the vandalism, Mayor Eric Adams said Wednesday on X, formerly Twitter.

Adams said he is sorry leaders at the Brooklyn Museum "woke up to hatred like this" outside their homes.

"This is a crime, and it's overt, unacceptable antisemitism," Adams said.

The New York City Police Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the incident.

New York City Comptroller Brad Lander also called out the vandalism on social media, calling the suspect "cowards" who acted "way over the line into antisemitism."

Lander also defended the Brooklyn Museum's work and role in the city as a hub for cultural expression.

"Few museums have done more to grapple with hard questions of power, colonialism, racism and the role of art," he said.

This is not peaceful protest or free speech. This is a crime, and it's overt, unacceptable antisemitism.



These actions will never be tolerated in New York City for any reason. I'm sorry to Anne Pasternak and members of @brooklynmuseum's board who woke up to hatred like this.



I pic.twitter.com/vi17PumBoM  Mayor Eric Adams (@NYCMayor) June 12, 2024

What is the Brooklyn Museum?

The exhibits at the Brooklyn Museum focus on art and culture and the museum is one of Brooklyn's most popular, and one of the oldest and largest art museums in the country. It's located next to Brooklyn's expansive Prospect Park.

On Thursday, Maatman noted the museum has for two centuries "worked to foster mutual understanding through art and culture, and we have always supported peaceful protest and open, respectful dialogue."

"Violence, vandalism, and intimidation have no place in that discourse," Maatman said, referring to the vandalism that targeted the homes of museum leaders.

Pro-Palestinian protests in NYC call for divestment

The Brooklyn Museum was a site of mass pro-Palestinian protests last month demanding the institution divest money away from Israel, the same demand protesters at college universities have called for.

On May 31, more than 30 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested at the museum after protesters occupied areas outside the building.

According to the Anti-Defamation League, antisemitic incidents have increased dramatically across the U.S since the start of the war in Gaza after Oct. 7, when Hamas fighters rampaged into southern Israel killing more than 1,200 people and seizing more than 250 as hostages.

New York City has seen one of the sharpest spikes in antisemitic incidents, the league found. Reports of antisemitic incidents in the city shot up by more than 500% during October, November and December compared to previous quarterly totals.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Home of Brooklyn Museum's Jewish director Anne Pasternak vandalized
From the Techne on The Dispatch

Welcome back to Techne. A small fern, Tmesipteris oblanceolata, from the island of New Caledonia was found to have the largest genome of any organism in the world. Apparently it has 50 times more DNA in each cell than humans!

Notes and Quotes

Last week, U.S. antitrust authorities struck a deal to investigate Microsoft, OpenAI, and Nvidia (i.e., the largest chip manufacturer in the world). The Department of Justice will investigate whether Nvidias chip manufacturing dominance has violated antitrust laws and the Federal Trade Commission will examine OpenAI and Microsofts conduct.

Apple announced Apple Intelligence, a major foray into the world of artificial intelligence (AI) that includes a major deal with OpenAI. As the New York Times reported, The system will prioritize messages and notifications and will offer writing tools that are capable of proofreading and suggesting what users have written in emails, notes or text. It also will result in a major upgrade for Siri, Apples virtual assistant. The Private Cloud Compute part of this package will allow iPhones to offload complex tasks to specialized secure devices in the cloud. Dean Ball walks through what this announcement means.

The EV company Fisker Inc. is facing potential bankruptcy after delivering only a few thousand Ocean SUVs. According to reporting from Tech Crunch, the companys downfall was not solely due to the vehicles mechanical and software shortcomings but also as a result of unchecked hubris and internal power struggles within the company.

A new report from the Information Technology & Innovation Foundation outlines 82 techno-economic policy priorities for the incoming administration, notably proposing a National Competitiveness Council within the White House to bolster productivity, innovation, and U.S. industrial competitiveness.

Imagine building homes with the same efficiency as the auto industry produces cars. In Sweden, the family-owned Lindbacks construction company does just that through modular building. This is enabled by the governments performance-based building codes that set safety goals while giving builders flexibility in achieving them (unlike the prescriptive codes mandating specific materials and methods that we have in the U.S.). Ironically, Swedens approach derives from Operation Breakthrough, a 1960s U.S. project exploring industrialized housing production.

A $21 million grant aims to solve the mystery behind an underwater freshwater aquifer stretching from Marthas Vineyard to New Jersey. Scientists will drill to test the theory that it originated from melting ice sheets and a receding coastline. Confirmation could guide scientists to locate more such aquifers in previously glaciated areas, though similar aquifer discoveries in Israel, Hawaii, New Zealand, and elsewhere imply there may be other mechanisms at play.

How does our body adapt to an extra thumb? Quickly, apparently: An emerging area of future technology is motor augmentation  using motorised wearable devices such as exoskeletons or extra robotic body parts to advance our motor capabilities beyond current biological limitations. Relatedly, this is a good a time as any to read up on proprioception, the sense of self-movement and body position that all animals have. Proprioception is constructed through proprioceptors, neurons located within muscles, tendons, and joints. These neurons link to the central nervous system and merge with information from other sensory systems, like the visual system, to develop a complete picture of body position, movement, and acceleration.

This catchy headline got me: The US military has a plan to turn the Taiwan Strait into an unmanned hellscape if China invades, top admiral says. But it alerted me to the DoDs Replicator Initiative, which is focused on fielding thousands of autonomous systems across multiple domains within the next 18 to 24 months.

The Department of Commerce has announced nearly $30 billion in grants and $25 billion in loans to chip manufacturers, attracting $450 billion in private investment as part of the CHIPS Act. However, the CHIPS Act is still facing a big problem: workers.

Steven Teles and Rob Saldin walk through what the Abundance Agenda means to Democrats and the left. If you recall, I kicked off this newsletter talking about abundance in America. While Im not completely convinced of everything Teles and Saldin write, this piece is packed with insight and worth the read.

The Economics of AI and the Impending Robot Takeover, Part II

A couple weeks back, Tim Lee, the author of the Understanding AI Substack, put out the following plea on X: I really wish there were more economists involved in discussions of the implications of superintelligence. He added, The most obvious example is people predicting mass unemployment without thinking through the impact of high productivity on fiscal and monetary policy.

In our previous Techne, I decided to take on Lees plea and began by looking at the past. This week, I want to share some thoughts about how Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT might shape the future.

I want to be clear about where I stand: AI can revolutionize our world without causing explosive growth. A mere simple doubling of productivity would be groundbreaking. And even in that world, I see a future where AI changes everything and we still muddle through.

AIs short-term changes.

Last week, I discussed the diverse ways technologies enhance and augment both labor and capital. If youre not fully caught up, these were three big takeaways.

First, compensating pressures like the Baumol effect help to create and restore employment even when technology displaces labor over the long term. Jobs that dont experience productivity gains still see wage increases because they must compete for workers with jobs that do have productivity gains and can offer higher wages. Increased incomes tend to shift demand toward services.

Second, new technologies take time to proliferate. Electricity, for example, started in the 1890s, overtook steam power around 1920, and completed the transition by the 1940s50 years in total. The farm tractor was first used in the 1920s in the Wheat Belt but it took another 20 years to be widely adopted in the Corn Belt. Hand-operated telephone switchboards took nearly a century to be replaced by automatic machines.

Third, the impact of a technology varies greatly, even for companies in the same industry. ATMs increased the number of branch offices for banks. Computerized machine tools replaced semi-skilled manufacturing workers, leading to factory automation but also higher spend on capital and higher labor productivity. Total employment increased as well.

Still, I dont want to dismiss ChatGPT, LLMs, and the rest of the lot as just some other technology like an ATM. What we are experiencing is a flowering of innovation in machine learning. ChatGPT is one part of it, but it is not all of it. Large models are also driving innovation in drug design and diagnostic tools, music production, and video production. But ChatGPT remains the face of machine learning because of its potential.

Most impressively, GPT-4 seems to be doing pretty well at passing the baryes, as in the test lawyers must pass to practice law. The most impressive estimates have it scoring in the 90th percentile. Thats probably a bit off (for context, those estimates include repeat test-takers, who generally score lower). However, in a more competitive pool of candidates for the bar, GPT-4s performance against first-time test takers puts it at the 62nd percentile overall and in the 42nd percentile for the essay. And its not the only standardized test it can do well on.

So how is that capability affecting people who are using the tech? At least for now, LLMs seem to be speeding up response times for everyone while also boosting the capabilities of users on the lower end. Jonathan H. Choi, Amy Monahan, and Daniel Schwarczs Lawyering in the Age of Artificial Intelligence is likely the first randomized controlled trial of AI assistance in legal analysis. In the study, law students were asked to perform various tasks and research problems with or without GPT-4. The study showed that while GPT-4 marginally and inconsistently improved the quality of legal analysis, it consistently and significantly increased the speed of task completion.

The lowest-skilled participants saw the most evident improvements in quality. All participants, regardless of their initial speed, saw increased time savings.

ChatGPTs effect on writing tasks is consistent with research that shows the tech boosts those with weaker skills. In one recent study, the productivity effects of ChatGPT was tested by assigning occupation-specific writing tasks to 453 college-educated professionals, with half receiving AI assistance. The experiment revealed that ChatGPT significantly boosted productivity, cutting task time by 40 percent and enhancing quality by 18 percent. It also reduced worker inequality and temporarily increased feelings of concern and excitement about AI.

Italys decision to ban ChatGPT in April 2023 serves as an informative case study. Researchers collected data on the daily coding output and quality from over 36,000 GitHub users there and across other European countries to make equal comparisons. They found that less experienced Italian users saw a short-term improvement in output quantity and quality, while experienced users faced a decline in productivity for routine tasks.

At least for now, AI assistance seems to level the playing field, improving the performance of less experienced individuals significantly while offering consistent time-saving benefits across the board. This is what we should expect from any productivity-enhancing technology.

Of course, some will argue this time is different because AI systems are racing toward becoming human-competitive at general tasks. It wont take long, they worry, until these advanced systems will be better than any given person.

Explosive growth.

At the most extreme end of this process is the notion of explosive growth. Ege Erdil and Tamay Besiroglu define explosive growth as an order of magnitude increase over historic rates, or a 30 percent annual growth rate in global GDP. Such growth would be unprecedented because it would mean massive increases in consumption of food, energy, housing, and the rest.

And such growth would be unprecedented because the baseline view suggests that GDP is likely to decline at some point in the future. Over time, if the global population declines instead of stabilizing, living standards may stagnate for a dwindling population. Economic growth models, economist Charles Jones writes, assume a constant or growing population, and for understanding economic growth historically, that is clearly appropriate. The demographic evidence, however, suggests that this may not be the case in the future.

Explosive growth would mean a substantial break from the past. Here is how Matt Clancy explains it,

GDP per capita grew at roughly 2% per year over the 20th century, so if we jump to 20% per year for 10 years, thats about 90 years of technological progress (at 2% per year) compressed into a decade. Ninety years of progress was enough to go from covered wagons to rocket ships! And your definition also encompasses even faster growth persisting for even longer! Frankly, Im not sure our models of economic growth are up to the task of extrapolating that far outside of historical experience. The economy is so complicated that economists have to make a large number of simplifying assumptions. We try to focus on simplifications that arent decisive so that greater complexity and realism wouldnt much change the models takeaway. But the more you take a model outside of the context it was designed to explain, the more uncertain you have to be that one of those simplifications might no longer be innocuous.

In follow-up work, Charles Jones comes to that exact conclusion when working out what would happen if AI could automate the discovery of new ideas and fully automate human labor in production:

If we replace all labor with capital in the task modelin both goods production and idea productionthen there are increasing returns to factors that can be accumulated because of the nonrivalry of ideas. Growth explodes, and simple math reveals a singularity in which knowledge and incomes go to infinity in finite time.

In other words, explosive growth breaks the models, and it is important to understand what that means: Explosive growth requires frictionless adoption of all AI systems. It means that data centers dont take time to get permitted. It means businesses switch to new production methods immediately. It means that businesses can automatically adapt. It means that consumers can automatically adapt. That seems like an unlikely world to me.

Suspending disbelief for a moment, Anton Korinek and Donghyun Suhs Scenarios for the Transition to AGI games out what would happen as technology makes ever more complex tasks amenable to automation. In essence, the effects on wages depend on the race between automation and capital accumulation. If automation proceeds sufficiently slowly, then there will always be enough work for humans and wages may rise forever. By contrast, if the complexity of tasks that humans can perform is bounded and full automation is reached, then wages collapse. That is a strong set of incredibly unlikely assumptions, as economists Philip Trammell and Anton Korinek explain. (For a dive into these models, check out Sam Hammonds The limits to (explosive) growth.)

All of this is to say, there is a wide difference between a world of explosive growth and a world where AI fundamentally changes everything but we still adapt.

The cost of an AI switchover.

I expect that artificial general intelligence will be invented in my lifetime. By this I mean that a system that solves complex tasks with generalized human cognitive abilities is not far away. But Im skeptical that these systems will be adopted without cost and without friction. It takes time to redo businesses with new techoften decades, but sometimes centuries to create the productivity gains that explosive growth demands. And when we assume that AI is completely substitutable for labor, then everything goes wonky anyway.

Ive cited the novelist Richard Powers on this point in the past for good reason, because I think he captures a sentiment that is common in technology:

The reason why the public is seduced by virtual reality, why it has embraced this fantasy of the disembodied self, is the desire for the ahistorical, the disembodied will. There is something in us that loves the idea of placing ourselves into immortal space, where our wishes can be met without the drag and impediment of stuff.

The drag and the impediment of stuff cannot be simply wished away. It is a fundamental aspect of integrating any new technology, and overcoming it requires time, effort, and adaptation. Once we do, we are beyond our own sightlines.

Theres more to this story. Next week, Im going to dive into the quick pace of AI regulation in the U.S. (Colorado passed a bill recently, as did Connecticut). Ill give it context next week.

Until then,

 Will

AI Roundup

I had an article in Mays Congressional Digest on regulating artificial intelligence.

Mike Rundle revealed in a tweet that QuickBooks seemingly automatic receipt processing and expense categorization previously relied on workers in the Philippines rather than true AI. Some AI delays were actually caused by workers being asleep.

This piece by Jack Clark explores new ways of thinking about consciousness and AI as he reflects on five years with LLMs.

Microsoft is cutting up to 1,500 more jobs, citing its AI-centric strategy. This comes after laying off 10,000 employees last year (including draining the entire AI Ethics and Society division) following a $10 billion investment in OpenAI.

Research and Reports

A new study by Pablo Fajgelbaum and Amit Khandelwal highlights the surge of over 1 billion de minimis shipments valued under $800 imported duty-free to the U.S. in 2023, totaling around $50 billion and primarily originating from China. Notably, these tax-exempt parcels were predominantly received by low-income zip codes, potentially reducing American inequality.

This is somewhere between AI and research: A 150-page review paper on the applications of machine learning in finance.

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.
Paul F. deLespinasse

Seventy years ago, the Supreme Court held that segregated public schools were unconstitutional. The unanimous opinion in Brown v. Board of Education was read in the courtroom by its author, Chief Justice Earl Warren.

Thanks to information received from John Q. Barrett, law professor at St. Johns University and expert on Justice Robert H. Jackson (1941-54), I recently listened to a recording of Warren announcing the court's decision in 1954. This would be unremarkable had not recorders been forbidden in the court then.

And no one could have snuck in a tiny recorder, which didn't exist yet in the pre-transistor age.

"Recordings" like this can be wonderful educational tools. But the technology which produced it also has dangerous possibilities.

A transcript of what Warren actually said, not exactly tracking the text of the Court's opinion, was available. Recordings of Warren speaking in other situations existed. Someone read the transcript aloud, and an artificial intelligence (AI) program converted the recording into Warren's own voice.

Thurgood Marshall  later the court's first Black member  was the plaintiffs' lead attorney. The same AI process was used to "record" the oral arguments of his team before the court.

The virtual "resurrection" of Earl Warren and Thurgood Marshall is a fascinating development with legitimate uses. However, this technology also has serious downsides.

It could make it impossible to be sure that what we hear is genuine. In an age of photoshopping, seeing is no longer believing, and now AI may also undermine our confidence in the reality of what we hear.

Maybe ways to ascertain whether a recording is genuine will be found, but AI programs could then figure out how to evade them. Legislation requiring the equivalent of watermarks in AI recordings might help, but wouldn't protect us from people willing to break the law.

Imagine what faked recordings might do to political campaigns! An AI faked voice of Joe Biden was already used in robocalls discouraging voter turnout in the 2024 New Hampshire Democratic primary.

At the personal level, telephone scammers pretending to be relatives who have gotten into trouble and need money  fast!  are already using AI technology.

Fortunately, we can protect ourselves if we get such a call. We must avoid panicking. We should ask the caller questions that only the person they are claiming to be could answer. These questions should not be obvious ones like birthdays, information that is often widely available.

This should help even with scammers who are not using AI technology, one of whom recently called me, saying, pathetically, "Hello, Grandpa."

I asked "Is that you, David?" Astoundingly, he admitted to being David. Unfortunately for this crook, I have no grandson named David.

AI having brought Earl Warren back to "life," it may be a good time to review his involvement in Brown v. Board of Education. Looking back 70 years later, we may feel that its unanimous finding was inevitable, but the truth is more complicated.

When the case was first argued, the chief justice was Fred Vinson, a conservative southerner, who some feared would convince the court to uphold segregation. But Vinson died unexpectedly at age 63 before the court could decide the case. President Dwight Eisenhower then appointed Earl Warren to replace him.

Warren didn't have a great record on racial matters. As California's governor during World War II, he had supported forcing all Japanese-Americans from West Coast states into "relocation" camps.

But Justice Felix Frankfurter considered Warren to be a great improvement. Commenting privately on Vinson's death, Frankfurter said, "This is the first indication I have ever had that there is a God."

Warren later regretted supporting the "relocation" of Japanese-Americans, and as chief justice he led the Supreme Court to its unanimous decision striking down segregated schools.

Vinson actually had a decent record in previous civil rights cases. Whether Brown would have been different if he had survived is still being debated.

Paul F. deLespinasse is a retired professor of political science and computer science at Adrian College. He can be reached at pdeles@proaxis.com.

This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Paul deLespinasse: AI lets Earl Warren speak from beyond the grave
By Daniel Wiessner

(Reuters) -Apple on Thursday was hit with a proposed class action accusing the tech giant of paying more than 12,000 female employees in California less than men with comparable jobs.

The lawsuit filed in state court in San Francisco by two women who have worked at Apple for more than a decade claims the company systematically underpays female workers in its engineering, marketing, and AppleCare divisions.

Apple bases workers' starting pay on their salaries at previous jobs or on their "pay expectations," which results in lower pay rates for women, according to the complaint. The lawsuit also claims that Apple's performance evaluation system, which it uses to set raises and bonuses, is biased against women.

Cupertino, California-based Apple in a statement said it is committed to inclusion and pay equity.

"Since 2017, Apple has achieved and maintained gender pay equity and every year we partner with an independent third-party expert to examine each team members total compensation and make adjustments, where necessary, to ensure that we maintain pay equity," the company said.

Eve Cervantez, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, said Apple's practices perpetuate and widen existing gender pay gaps.

This is a no-win situation for female employees at Apple, Cervantez said in a statement.

The plaintiffs are represented by class action law firms Outten & Golden, Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll and Altshuler Berzon. The firms have brokered massive settlements in other sex bias cases, including a $215 million deal with Goldman Sachs last year and a $175 million settlement with Sterling Jewelers in 2022. Those companies denied wrongdoing.

California has since 2018 prohibited employers from asking job applicants about their salary history with the goal of eliminating pay gaps based on sex and race.

According to Thursday's lawsuit, Apple instead relies on applicants' pay expectations to set their salaries. But because most workers provide a figure that is slightly higher than what they earned at their last job, the practice has the same effect of perpetuating wage disparities, the lawsuit says.

Apple also rewards employees who are deemed to have "talent" by paying them more but disproportionately grants that designation to men, the plaintiffs claim.

The lawsuit accuses Apple of violating California's Equal Pay Act, which bars sex discrimination in pay, and state laws prohibiting workplace sex bias and unfair business practices.

One of the plaintiffs, Justina Jong, also claims that Apple refused to transfer her to a different team after she complained about sexual harassment by a coworker. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages and penalties.

(Reporting by Daniel Wiessner in Albany, New York; Editing by Aurora Ellis, Alexia Garamfalvi and Josie Kao)
Elon Musk. Taylor Hill/Getty Images

Tesla shareholders say Elon Musk has been diverting AI resources away from the company.

They allege in a new lawsuit that Musk has treated the company with "brazen disloyalty."

Tesla's board, they argue, has done nothing to stop him.

Some Tesla shareholders allege Elon Musk has been draining the company's AI talent dry in an act of "brazen disloyalty" to his company.

The group of shareholders  the Cleveland Bakers and Teamsters Pension Fund, Michael Giampietro, and Daniel Hazen  filed a lawsuit Thursday on behalf of Tesla itself against Musk and Tesla in Delaware, where the company is incorporated.

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In it, the shareholders accuse Musk of diverting critical AI talent and resources away from Tesla and into his new AI-focused company, xAI.

They also allege that Tesla's board hasn't tried to stop him.

Representatives for Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The plaintiffs allege in the suit that Musk has recently touted Tesla as more of an artificial-intelligence company than simply an electric-car maker.

He has, for example, repeatedly said that building out AI capabilities is essential to Tesla's growth and success, doubling down on this commitment both to investors and in Securities and Exchange Commission filings, the lawsuit says.

During Tesla's quarterly earnings report in April, the company gave investors a sneak peek at its plans for a robo-taxi fleet, sending the stock soaring despite posting weak financial data.

But the plaintiffs say that ever since he founded xAI in 2023, Musk has poached AI-focused employees from Tesla and into his startup. At one point, in response to a suggestion that a major AI researcher should work for Tesla, Musk publicly commented that he should join xAI instead, the lawsuit says.

It's not just AI talent that Musk is accused of pilfering from Tesla  the shareholders also allege that Musk has redirected critical Nvidia graphics processing units from Tesla to xAI, despite previously saying that the car company would gobble up the hardware as fast as Nvidia could deliver it.

Story continues

And Musk has flirted with focusing his AI efforts outside Tesla unless he gets a bigger stake in the company.

In January, Musk posted on X: "I am uncomfortable growing Tesla to be a leader in AI & robotics without having ~25% voting control. Enough to be influential, but not so much that I can't be overturned. Unless that is the case, I would prefer to build products outside of Tesla." The shareholders referenced that post in their lawsuit.

As for Tesla's board of directors, the shareholders allege it's just bowing down to Musk.

"Consistent with its long history of obsequiousness to Musk, the Tesla Board has utterly failed to even attempt to meet its unyielding fiduciary duty to protect the interests of Tesla and its stockholders in the face of Musk's brazen disloyalty," the suit says.

The shareholders demand that Musk and Tesla's board answer for what the suit says is their "disloyalty" and return what it describes as the value that Musk has pulled away from Tesla.

Quite a lot of company value has been lost from Tesla of late, though it's unclear whether that's solely due to Musk's actions around talent.

Tesla's stock has dropped more than 25% this year; some critics have argued Musk is being distracted by other projects.

The sharp decline in Tesla stock has even affected Musk's proposed pay package, dropping it from an estimated $55 billion to $45 billion.

Read the original article on Business Insider
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The normal economic and trade interactions between China and Russia should not be used as a tool to smear and contain China, and China urges the United States to immediately stop slapping illegal unilateral sanctions and play a constructive role in ending the Russia-Ukraine conflict and restoring peace, a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Thursday.

Spokesman Lin Jian made the remarks at a regular press briefing in response to a media query concerning a new U.S. anti-Russia sanctions package that includes more than 300 companies, banks and dozens of individuals from Russia and other countries, including China.

Lin said the mutually beneficial cooperation between China and Russia is inherently logical and highly resilient, and is in the interests of both countries.

"China firmly opposes all unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction. The normal economic and trade interactions between China and Russia should not be interfered with or disrupted, still less be used as a tool to smear and contain China," Lin said.

On the Ukraine crisis, it is quite clear to the international community who is calling for dialogue and striving for peace, and who is fueling the fight and inciting confrontation, Lin said.

The United States on the one hand continues to pour weapons and munition into Ukraine, yet on the other shifts the blame of undermining peace and protracting the crisis to other countries, Lin said, adding that it even sees the crisis as an opportunity to slap sanctions and suppress others.

"All of it reveals Washington's calculations, hypocrisy and what a bully it is," he added.

The U.S. unilateral sanctions have created victims all over the world, severely undermined other countries' sovereignty and security, caused humanitarian tragedies and disrupted industrial and supply chains, Lin said.

He said since the escalation of the Ukraine crisis, the United States has even doubled down on sanctions. Wielding the big stick of sanctions does not solve problems, Lin said, adding it will only be a major source of risks for the world.

"China did not create and is not a party to the Ukraine crisis, and we will not accept smears, pressuring or blame-shifting," Lin added.

He said China will take all necessary measures to firmly safeguard the lawful rights and interests of Chinese companies and citizens. 
Former SpaceX employees allege Elon Musk and execs appeared in a video joking about spanking coworkers

Former SpaceX employees allege Elon Musk and execs appeared in a video joking about spanking coworkers

Eight former SpaceX employees are suing the company and Elon Musk.

They say they were fired after speaking up about a hostile work environment.

The lawsuit alleges Musk treated women as "sexual objects" and used lewd banter.

Eight former SpaceX employees have sued the company and its CEO, Elon Musk, alleging they were wrongfully fired for speaking out against a hostile work environment in 2022.

The suit, filed in California, notes employees wrote an open letter to SpaceX management about their concerns. Musk then personally ordered their terminations, the suit alleges.

The complaint alleges Musk "runs his company in the dark ages  treating women as sexual objects to be evaluated on their bra size, bombarding the workplace with lewd sexual banter, and offering the reprise to those who challenge the 'Animal House' environment that if they don't like it they can seek employment elsewhere."

The lawsuit accuses Musk and other upper management of appearing in a video that made light of sexual misconduct, which was screened at an employee holiday party.

One scene shows VP of human resources Brian Bjelde "having an employee demonstrate how to spank him in the 'correct' manner," according to the suit.

SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

"Filing this suit marks an important milestone in our quest for justice, for holding leadership accountable, and for implementing responsible changes in workplace policies," one of the plaintiffs, Paige Holland-Thielen, said in a statement.

The lawsuit accuses SpaceX of creating a hostile work environment, retaliation, failure to prevent harassment, gender discrimination, whistleblower retaliation, and wrongful termination.

The same group of former SpaceX employee previously filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board alleging they were targeted for retaliation.

But that case has been tied up after SpaceX sued the agency and said its enforcement processes violated the US Constitution. In May, an appeals court granted Musk's firm a temporary block that keeps the NLRB from pursuing its case.

Separately, the Wall Street Journal published a report on Wednesday alleging Musk had inappropriate interactions with female SpaceX employees, including a sexual relationship with a former intern.

The refreshed allegations of sexual misconduct come at a complicated time for Musk. On Thursday, Tesla shareholders will vote on Musk's contentious $55 billion pay package, potentially handing the billionaire a massive boost in wealth.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Here's why Arm Holdings wants Qualcomm to destroy ALL Copilot+ PCs one week before they ship to customers

What you need to know

Copilot+ PCs with Snapdragon X processors are set to start shipping on June 18, 2024.

Arm has called on Qualcomm to destroy and stop using Snapdragon X chips and any processors derived from Nuvia designs.

Qualcomm purchased Nuvia for $1.4 billion in 2021, and Arm later sued Qualcomm for Qualcomm's use of Nuvia technology in creating PC chips.

Copilot+ PCs with Snapdragon X processors are set to ship next week, but there's a chance, albeit a small one, that all of those PCs will be destroyed before they ever reach consumers, according to a new report from Reuters.



Arm Holdings and Qualcomm have been in a legal battle surrounding technology used in Qualcomm's latest processors for nearly two years. Arm claims that Qualcomm has a "contractual obligation to destroy and stop using the Nuvia designs."

The people behind Apple's A-series chips founded Nuvia. Qualcomm then purchased Nuvia for $1.4 billion in 2021, hoping to compete with Apple's Arm-based processors. That vision is nearly realized through the Snapdragon X Elite and Snapdragon X Plus chips that power Copilot+ PCs from Acer, ASUS, Dell, HP, Lenovo, Microsoft, and Samsung.

However, an ongoing legal battle surrounds those chips set for trial in a federal court in Delaware in December 2024.

Read more

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Without having access to the contracts that are key to this legal battle, it isn't easy to piece together every detail of the Qualcomm vs Arm case. But here's a quick rundown of the core elements:

Before being acquired by Qualcomm, Nuvia had a license with Arm to design cores for server CPUs. Arm claims that the repurposing terminated previous licensing agreements and that Qualcomm needs to stop using and destroy all chips designed based on the Nuvia cores initially designed for server CPUs.

To counter, Qualcomm claims that it has a broad license that covers PC chips.

"Arm's claim against Qualcomm and Nuvia is about protecting the Arm ecosystem and partners who rely on our IP and innovative designs, and therefore enforcing Qualcomm's contractual obligation to destroy and stop using the Nuvia designs that were derived from Arm technology," said an Arm spokesperson to Reuters.

In late 2022, Qualcomm's general counsel Ann Chaplin said, "Arm's complaint ignores the fact that Qualcomm has broad, well-established license rights covering its custom-designed CPUs, and we are confident those rights will be affirmed."

Surface Laptop 7

The demand by Arm seems logistically challenging. Qualcomm has partnered with several PC manufacturers to make computers with Snapdragon X chips inside. Those PCs are set to ship on June 18, 2024, less than one week away. To destroy all Nuvia designs, the shipment of at least a dozen types of PCs would have to be stopped in the next six days.

Another layer of complexity is that the trial will take place in a federal court in Delaware in December 2024, several months after the first wave of Snapdragon X-powered PCs enter the hands of consumers.

This legal battle isn't just about the Snapdragon X Elite and Snapdragon X Plus. In fact, it isn't limited to PC processors. Qualcomm has publicly stated it will use its Nuvia-derived technology to make chips that appear in smartphones, cars, augmented reality devices, and other pieces of hardware. Arm will do everything it can to get licensing fees it is happy with for using those chips to make up for the fact Qualcomm doesn't need Arm Holdings for new chip designs any longer.

Looking at this situation from Arm's perspective, the company would likely negotiate a very different licensing deal with Qualcomm if the chips in question were designed without the Nuvia license and Qualcomm's acquisition of Nuvia. Arguably, Arm may not approve a licensing agreement at all.

Given that this case has been going on for two years and there is no injunction on Qualcomm, it seems unlikely that Copilot+ PC shipments will be stopped. If I had to make a prediction, I foresee a settlement between Qualcomm and Arm rather than Qualcomm destroying all chips derived from Nuvia cores. Arm and Qualcomm still work together on several fronts, and both companies will have much money to make in the future. The dispute between the tech giants will likely focus on how the profits are divided between the companies.
Meet Gwynne Shotwell, the woman who really runs SpaceX for Elon Musk

Gwynne Shotwell seems to run the show at Elon Musk's SpaceX.

She oversees most of the rocket company's central business, per an org chart from The Information.

Here's everything we know about the SpaceX president and COO.

SpaceX president and chief operating officer Gwynne Shotwell appears to be calling the shots at Elon Musk's company.

While Musk is the CEO and public face of the aerospace company, Shotwell handles nearly every team internally, according to an org chart reviewed by The Information.

Shotwell has 21 direct reports to Musk's four and oversees most of SpaceX's central business, including the teams working on Starlink, Falcon, and Starship.

One former SpaceX employee, Vincent Peters, told Business Insider that Shotwell "is the singular most important person within SpaceX outside of Elon."

"She moves the needle for employee morale and customer confidence in SpaceX and serves as an azimuth within the company as priorities evolve," he added.

Shotwell was one of SpaceX's earliest employees. Here's everything we know about the powerful SpaceX president.

Early life

Shotwell was born in 1963 and raised in Illinois. She is the daughter of a brain surgeon and an artist and has two sisters, according to an interview with the Los Angeles Times.

An A-student in high school, she later gained an MSc in mechanical engineering and applied mathematics from Northwestern University.

She told the LA Times she developed an early interest in machines. This evolved into a career in the automotive field before moving into the aerospace industry.

One of the first SpaceX employees

Shotwell was the 11th person hired by SpaceX.

She joined the company in 2002 as vice president of business development following a stint at spacecraft developer Microcosm.

Shotwell told the LA Times in 2013: "I knew early on if these guys [at SpaceX] couldn't make it in the space industry, nobody will. If we hadn't achieved success, I was willing to leave the aerospace industry altogether and go sell real estate or something. Fortunately, that didn't happen."

Over her 22 years at SpaceX, Shotwell has risen through the ranks to become COO and president, making her one of the most important figures.

A SpaceX facility in Florida. Eva Marie Uzcategui

Secret to SpaceX's success

Shotwell has long been rumored to pull the strings at SpaceX.

For much of her time at the company, she has overseen its operations and sales while Musk has focused on developing the technology. Investors have praised the pair's partnership and credit it with much of SpaceX's success.

Peters, founder of Inheritance AI, told BI that Shotwell was the "cornerstone of consistency and continuity at SpaceX" amid "Elon's involvement in his entities outside of SpaceX."

He said Shotwell's leadership style was "between transformational leadership and democratic leadership," adding she was extremely approachable to all employees.

SpaceX has about 13,000 employees in California, Texas, and Florida.

The COO has 21 direct reports, while Musk has only four. Shotwell also oversees most of SpaceX's central business, including the teams working on Starlink, Falcon, and Starship.

According to Forbes, Shotwell has an estimated stake in SpaceX of less than 1%.

It seems she enjoys getting hands-on at times:

Astronaut and personnel safety is SpaceXs highest priority, which is why I had to personally test the new slide  https://t.co/6B3BecfNjm  Gwynne Shotwell (@Gwynne_Shotwell) March 20, 2024

Relationship with Elon Musk

Shotwell has said she enjoys working for Musk and previously praised the billionaire's management style.

"I love working for Elon," she said in a 2018 TED Talk.

"He's funny, and fundamentally, without him saying anything, he drives you to do your best work. He doesn't have to say a word. You just want to do great work," she told the audience.

Elon Musk near a Falcon 9 rocket at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California in 2018. David McNew/Getty Images

Shotwell has come to Musk's defense on numerous occasions, most recently over claims about his conduct with female SpaceX workers.

In response to some of the claims in a Wall Street Journal report, she said: "I continue to be amazed by what this extraordinary group of people are achieving every day, even amidst all the forces acting against us. And Elon is one of the best humans I know."

Shotwell was also mentioned in the Journal report after one employee claimed the COO had accused her of having an affair with her husband.

Representatives for SpaceX did not immediately respond to a request for comment from BI.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Credit - Artur WidakNurPhoto/Getty Images

Meta Platforms Inc. was hit with a Norwegian complaint over its plans to use the images and posts of users on Facebook and Instagram to train artificial intelligence models.

The process to opt-out breaches strict E.U. data protection rules and has been made deliberately cumbersome by using deceptive design patterns and vague wording, the Norwegian Consumer Council said in a statement Thursday.

Meta has faced complaints in Europe for allegedly failing to get proper consent before collecting user data in order to target the ads users see. The tech giant was also warned by the E.U.s top court that public information on sexual orientation should be safeguarded from being used for personalized advertising.

We are urging the Data Protection Authority to assess the legality of Metas practices and to ensure that the company is operating in compliance of the law, Inger Lise Blyverket, head of the Norwegian Consumer Council, said in the statement.

The legal complaint was written by the European Center for Digital Rights and will be submitted to the Norwegian Data Protection Authority and other European data protection authorities. The Irish Data Protection Commission is the lead authority for Meta due to its E.U. base in Dublin.

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OceanGate investigators see no signs that the crew was warned about fatal implosion

OceanGates Titan submersible was lost during a dive to the Titanic in June 2023. (OceanGate Photo)

The chairman of the Coast Guard investigation panel for last years loss of OceanGates Titan submersible says his team has found no evidence that crew members knew about their peril.

In the wake of the tragedy, a purported transcript of communications during Titans final dive included increasingly desperate references to an alarm aboard the sub. But Jason Neubauer, the chairman of the Coast Guards Marine Board of Investigation, told The New York Times that the document was made up.

That conclusion is based on a review of the actual messages between Titan and its mothership as the sub descended toward the wreck of the Titanic in the North Atlantic on June 18, 2023. Although that true transcript has not yet been released, Neubauers comments support the view that the five crew members died virtually instantaneously in the violent implosion of Titans carbon composite hull.

Neubauer told the Times that he hoped the truth would console relatives of the crew who may have worried that their loved ones suffered in their last moments. The crew included pilot Stockton Rush, co-founder and CEO of Everett, Wash.-based OceanGate; Titanic expert P.H. Nargeolet; Hamish Harding, a British aviation executive and citizen explorer; and Pakistani-born business executive Shahzada Dawood and his son, Suleman.

The original source of the fake transcript is not known, but it was widely distributed in the weeks after the tragedy.

For nearly a year, Neubauer and his fellow investigators have been sifting through records as well as evidence recovered from the bottom of the sea to reconstruct the events leading up to Titans loss, determine the causes of the tragedy and recommendations for further action.

OceanGate suspended all exploration and commercial operations two weeks after Titans loss was confirmed, and appointed a new CEO  veteran Seattle tech executive Gordon Gardiner  to oversee the companys shutdown.

In other developments:

The Coast Guard memo setting up the investigative board called for a final report to be filed within a year. However, Neubauer told the Times that the OceanGate inquiry is unusually complex, due to the nature of the evidence and the jurisdictional complexities. He suggested that it might take two or three years to complete the report. Investigators are due to discuss their findings at a public hearing, but the timing of that hearing hasnt been set.

An investigative report based on previously undisclosed email records and published by Wired traces the technical problems that OceanGate encountered during Titans development  problems that were largely hidden from public scrutiny. The report touches on the roles that Boeing and the University of Washington played during OceanGates early years, and details how OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush glossed over the vessels shortcomings.

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Human technology like cell phones and broadcast towers constantly radiate radio waves into space , and astronomers estimate this tell-tale signature of humanity has swept across 75 nearby star systems , signaling to any watchful alien civilization that Earth hosts a technologically advanced species. And, while scientists have listened to the incessant radio chatter from our planet for a long time, in late February, they heard it from the moon for the first time .

A small radio telescope onboard the Odysseus spacecraft, the first commercial vehicle that successfully landed on the moon on Feb. 22, recorded radio waves beamed from Earth for 1.5 hours. The experiment, named ROLSES, made its observations from Odysseus' landing spot near the Malapert A crater, which sits roughly 185 miles (297 kilometers) away from the moon 's south pole.

Astrophysicist Jack Burns of the University of Colorado Boulder, who is the co-investigator of ROLSES, described the moment as the "dawn of radio astronomy from the moon." By studying Earth as an exoplanet , astronomers hope to search for similar fingerprints coming from planets around other stars , which would be a potential sign of intelligent life.

Speaking on Monday (June 10) at the 244th meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Wisconsin, Burns pulled up an image on screen in which tiny white dots appeared sprinkled over a jet-black background, mostly forming horizontal lines."That's the Earth," he said.

The white specks are radio signals from transmitters on Earth as recorded by the ROLSES experiment's four antennas. It is "a really good 'frequency selfie' of the Earth [...] that's unparalleled to date" in terms of looking at Earth in radio wavelengths, Burns added.

Related: Intuitive Machines' private Odysseus moon lander has 'permanently faded' on lunar surface as historic mission ends

During its historic landing on Feb. 22, the 14-foot (4.3-meter) Odysseus spacecraft descended faster than planned and tipped over on its side, likely because it fractured one or two of its landing legs after striking a piece of lunar terrain, Tim Crain, Intuitive Machines co-founder and CTO, previously said . As a result of this unexpected orientation, the spacecraft's antennas weren't pointed back at Earth, reducing the rate at which data could be sent by a lot.

Perhaps due to these issues, the ROLSES instrument recorded data for a total of two hours instead of the eight days astronomers were hoping for, Burns said on Monday. The reduced time would affect the signal-to-noise ratio of the collected data, he added. It was not immediately clear whether the researchers would be able to decode the transmissions to determine the content of those radio waves.

a grey image of the surface of the moon from high above. A blue rectangle is magnified on the right.

The researchers also gathered a serendipitous 20 minutes of data when one of Odysseus antennas slightly overheated and popped out of its secure place on the lander. So we took advantage of that, turned on our radio spectrometer, and we got some data, said Burns.

After a week of operations on the moon , Odysseus went silent on Feb. 29 after sundown hit its landing site, which was expected given the spacecraft wasn't designed to survive the cold lunar night. When sunlight once again shone on Odysseus' solar panels on March 20, Intuitive Machines , the Houston-based company that built the spacecraft, listened for but failed to hear its wake-up signal. Three days later, the company declared "Odie has permanently faded after cementing its legacy into history as the first commercial lunar lander to land on the moon."

Astronomers including Burns are now looking ahead to the launch of another small radio telescope that is expected to launch to the moon's far side in 2026. The Lunar Surface Electromagnetics Experiment-Night, or LuSEE-Night for short, is being designed to detect radio waves from 13.4 billion years ago, a mysterious era when the universe and its first stars and galaxies were cloaked in a primordial fog of hydrogen. Astronomers refer to this epoch as the cosmic Dark Ages , which the James Webb Space Telescope has only recently begun probing.
Startup finds revolutionary way to extract more power from energy source beneath our feet: 'The right technology to unleash the potential of geothermal energy'

California's XGS Energy has found a way to access untapped geothermal heat under the Earth's crust using a "special mud," as TechCrunch detailed.

It's part of the company's goal to expand the sustainable energy source that, for various reasons, hasn't accelerated like wind and solar. Geothermal produces less than half a percent of U.S. electricity, per government statistics.

"XGS has brought together the right team with the right technology to unleash the potential of geothermal energy," XGS Chairman of the Board Craig Barrett said in a press release from early this year, announcing a $9.7 million financing round the company landed.

Geothermal tech generally involves drilling into the Earth to access heat. Shallower depths provide a stable temperature to warm and cool homes. Other methods involve drilling far deeper (up to 12 miles or more in at least one case) to leverage extreme heat from below the surface.

XGS targets depths that provide temperatures of at least 482 degrees Fahrenheit. That ultimately heats water that is returned to the surface.

Geothermal systems frequently pump water underground and then pull it to the surface to provide electricity, often by powering a turbine. But over time, the heat-holding underground cracks can close, or take in too much water, causing the well to fail, per TechCrunch.

"The history of geothermal has been this notion of degradation," XGS CEO Josh Prueher told the publication. "This is happening all over the world."

The company's patented process uses what TechCrunch describes  based on discussion with Prueher  as a "specialized mud" that could remedy the problem. Better yet, the process can salvage old wells or work for new drill sites.

Proprietary thermally conductive material is injected around the wellbore, filling the fissures, and pulling heat to the shaft, as XGS describes it. The "mud" is made in part from minerals that are good at conducting heat.

A special well casing lines each hole, collecting the warmth, which heats water that's running through the system as part of a closed-loop setup. This prevents lost water, degradation, and other problems that have plagued the sector.

A big advantage to the process is that it reuses the same water repeatedly, making the technique viable in dry places. The company notes that other operations can use millions of gallons of water a day.

The result for XGS is a less-costly method that includes a more than 30-year warranty.

"We know within 30 days where we're going to be in 30 years" regarding power production, Prueher said in the TechCrunch report.

Geothermal has the potential to provide nearly unlimited energy without harmful air pollution. The U.S. Energy Information Administration reports that in 2022, electricity production from "all energy sources" made 1.82 billion tons of carbon dioxide pollution.

XGS could help to open up geothermal as part of an energy transformation that eliminates the exhaust. Less air pollution has a range of benefits, even limiting the risk of extreme weather that NASA links to planet-warming gases.

TechCrunch reports that XGS recently landed another $20 million to help build a commercial-scale prototype this summer in California as part of its next phase, all backed by top experts.

"Our team is composed of the best and brightest minds with hundreds of years of cumulative experience in materials science," XGS boasts on its website.

Join our free newsletter for weekly updates on the coolest innovations improving our lives and saving our planet.
Tesla shareholders voted to approve Elon Musk's pay package. Taylor Hill/Getty Images; Chelsea Jia Feng/BI

Tesla announced investors approved Elon Musk's pay package.

The package, initially approved in 2018, was voided by a Delaware judge in January.

Tesla is hoping the shareholder ratification will make the judge's ruling moot, but it's not guaranteed.

It's official  Tesla investors voted to approve Elon Musk's pay package.

The carmaker announced the results of the shareholder vote during the company's annual meeting on Thursday.

Musk did a victory dance as he took the stage amid cheers from on-site investors.

"I just want to start off by saying: "Hot damn! I love you guys," Musk said.

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Tesla shares held after-hours gains of more than 1% after the vote.

Investors had initially approved the compensation plan in 2018, but a Delaware judge voided it in January after a shareholder filed a lawsuit alleging the agreement was "beyond the bounds of reasonable judgment."

In January, Delaware Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick said she had decided to strike down the pay package because she believed Musk had undue influence over the agreement and its approval due to his close ties to several board members, one of which is his brother.

Tesla has yet to appeal the decision, but the company hopes to use the shareholder approval to argue that the ruling is moot now  the question now is whether the Delaware court will agree. The company said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday that it will seek to reverse the ruling and will use an affirmative vote to do so.

When the compensation package was voided, it was estimated to be worth around $55 billion  making it the largest pay package to ever be awarded to a CEO.

Musk does not receive a salary from Tesla. His pay was determined by his ability to hit a series of financial goalposts. It consists of a 10-year grant comprising 12 sets of stock options. These options become available to Musk when Tesla achieves the specific goals. Each time a milestone is met, Musk receives stock equivalent to 1% of Tesla's outstanding shares at the time of the grant. By 2023, Tesla said it had successfully reached all 12 milestones.

Story continues

Tesla has argued that the pay package is both fair and necessary to maintain Musk's focus on the car company. And the company went all out in its efforts to promote Musk's pay package, paying for advertisements and even offering shareholders who voted a chance to win a tour of the Texas gigafactory alongside Musk.

Some Tesla fans took to social media to promote the proposal, joining with some of the company's notable shareholders, such as Ron Baron of Baron Funds and Cathie Wood of Ark Investment Management, who were quick to rally around Musk.

"Elon is the ultimate 'key man' of key man risk. Without his relentless drive and uncompromising standards, there would be no Tesla," Baron wrote in an open letter last week.

One big reason investors are rallying around Musk: they are afraid of losing him  or at least his attention. The CEO has threatened to take his plans for AI and robotics elsewhere, saying that unless he had about 25% of voting control, he would "prefer to build products outside of Tesla."

"He is putting a knife at the throat of the company: 'You don't pay me what I want, then I am going to compete,'" Anat Alon-Beck, a corporate law expert at Case Western Reserve University, told BI.

During the annual meeting, Tesla announced that a proposal to move Tesla's state of incorporation to Texas had been approved. Earlier this year, Musk moved SpaceX's state of incorporation from Delaware to Texas as well.

Additionally, shareholders approved a proposal to reelect Tesla board members Kimbal Musk and James Murdoch.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Do you work for Tesla or have a tip? Reach out to the reporter via a non-work email and device at gkay@businessinsider.com or 248-894-6012.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Toppenish man gets more than 13 years in federal prison for 2020 robbery of La Milpa store
by Naim-Ul-Karim

DHAKA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- With Eid al-Adha just around the corner, millions of Bangladeshis are packing bus and train stations and airports as they head to their hometowns to celebrate the festival of animal sacrifice and enjoy family reunion.

In Dhaka, long-distance bus stations, ferry terminals and train stations were seen overflowing with hundreds of thousands of home-bound passengers after work hours on Thursday, the last workday of the week before the Eid holidays.

While passengers crowded ferry, train and bus terminals, other city residents who had their own cars or hired vehicles were making their last-minute shopping and business transactions before their long road trip home.

Bangladeshi Muslims will celebrate Eid al-Adha on June 17 with the spirit of sacrifice, marking one of the major festivals in the South Asian nation. The festival is celebrated on the 10th day in the month of the lunar Islamic calendar after the holy Hajj.

The Bangladeshi government has already declared a three-day holiday of Eid vacation on June 16-18.

According to some estimates, about one-third of Dhaka's 20 million residents usually leave the capital city twice a year on Eid al-Fitr, the end of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, and Eid al-Adha.

Every Muslim who has financial means sacrifices animals and distributes the meat to family members and the poor.

Cattle markets in the city were seen Thursday flooded with customers and a large number of cows, goats, sheep, camels and buffalo from across the country.

Authorities have approved at least 16 cattle markets to help Dhaka residents purchase sacrificial animals in designated spots.

This year, authorities estimated a demand for 10.7 million sacrificial animals nationwide, while over 12.9 million animals are available for the ritual.

Bangladeshi Fisheries and Livestock Minister Abdur Rahman told media recently that there will be no shortage of sacrificial animals during the upcoming Eid al-Adha.

Authorities are fully prepared to handle the supply and management of sacrificial animals, with an expected supply of 12,980,367 animals this year, an increase of 444,034 from the previous year. 
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The European Commission on Wednesday revealed a list of protectionist duties on imports of battery electric vehicles (EVs) from China, a shortsighted piercing into the tire of global free trade, the EU carmakers' competitiveness and consumers' welfare amid global challenges toward green transition.

Such protectionist measures ignore the facts and WTO rules, and disregard the appeals and discouragement of the governments and industries of many EU member states.

Such a move not only violates the legitimate rights and interests of China's EV industry but also wreaks havoc on the global automotive supply chain, including within the EU. The EU's politicization and weaponization of economic and trade issues will sabotage the atmosphere of economic and trade cooperation between China and the EU, harm the interests of EU consumers, and undermine its green transformation and global cooperation on climate change.

The EU's new tariff plan will poke another leak in the tire of global free trade. Since the industrial and supply chains of the auto industries of China and the EU are deeply integrated, EU policymakers should understand that in a globalized economy, imposing tariffs on EVs will further distort the market and fragment global supply chains, ultimately damaging its auto industry in the long term.

The EU's new tariff plan is also putting the brakes on its carmakers' innovation and competitiveness. Some EU policymakers hold the mistaken belief that tariffs can shield its automakers from overseas competition. However, industry insiders and executives from leading European automakers argue that higher tariffs do little if anything in their favor.

EU policymakers should acknowledge that the success of China's EV industry stemmed from open cooperation rather than protectionism. Farsighted carmakers like Volkswagen and Stellantis have already perceived new growth momentum after launching joint ventures with Chinese EV enterprises.

The EU's new tariff plan comes at the expense of its consumers. Made-in-China EVs thrive in the EU because of their competitive prices, outstanding performance, and excellent service networks. The EU's new tariff will ultimately be shouldered by its consumers. The possible EU tariffs on imports of Chinese EVs would backfire with a "noticeable impact on bilateral trade and production in Europe" and result in "noticeably higher prices for end consumers," forecasted the Kiel Institute for the World Economy in a recent report.

The EU's new tariff plan is impeding advancement toward a global green transition. China's EV industry not only supports its own emission reduction goals but also plays a crucial role in reducing carbon emissions in the EU and across the globe. As one of the most vocal advocates of global carbon neutrality, the EU should be reminded that its tariff against Chinese EVs would only dent its reputation in the global green drive.

The EU policymakers should consider for themselves whether they pursue protectionist measures leading to a dead end or embrace opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation. 
WELLINGTON, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Thursday called on New Zealand and China to eliminate non-economic disruptions in their economic and trade relations, so as to provide businesses with stable expectations and a favorable business environment.

Li made the remarks during his talks with New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. 
According to a recent draft government decree, hybrid cars will no longer be able to receive a new green number plate from September 1.

In addition, owners of these cars will have to return their existing green plates by November 30, 2026, at the latest.



The government stated that it wishes to restrict the benefits of the green number plates to purely electric and zero-emission cars.



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NATO accepts Hungarys position under which the country does not wish to participate in military or financial efforts towards supporting Ukraine, while Hungary would not block such NATO efforts, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said after talks with Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest on Wednesday.

Stoltenberg said he was expecting an agreement at NATOs July summit in Washington, DC, under which the organisation could take a leading role in coordinating and promoting security support and training for Ukraine.



Stoltenberg said he hoped NATO would take a long-term financial commitment to provide military support to Ukraine, adding that it would ensure NATOs predictability and reliability for Ukraine.



He referred to Orban stating that Hungary would not participate in those NATO efforts, adding: I accept this position.



Stoltenberg welcomed that he and Orban had made an agreement ensuring ways for Hungarys non-participation in NATOs support for Ukraine. He confirmed that no Hungarian personnel would take part in those NATO activities and no Hungarian funds would be used for such purposes.



The NATO chief said Orban had assured him that Hungary would continue to meet its NATO commitments in full.



He said Hungary had always been a highly esteemed NATO ally in the past 25 years and highly appreciated the Hungarian prime minister stating that Hungary would remain a loyal and committed NATO ally.



Stoltenberg noted that Hungary was leading a multinational NATO unit and also hosted an important multidivision headquarters while it also supported stability in the Western Balkans and participated in KFORs peace-keeping operations in Kosovo.



He added that since the start of Russias brutal war against Ukraine Hungary had continued to accommodate Ukrainian refugees and helped in the rehabilitation of injured soldiers. All those efforts have contributed to common security, the NATO chief said.



Defmin: NATO Ministers Confirm Hungary's Non-Participation in Ukraine Mission

Defence ministers of NATO have confirmed in a meeting in Brussels that Hungary could stay away from participating in the organisations NATO mission in Ukraine, Defence Minister Kristof Szalay-Bobrovniczky said.



Hungary will continue to be a committed, loyal, and appreciated member of NATO, the minister said in a video on Facebook.



Referring to a recent agreement between Prime Minister Viktor Orban and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, the minister said Hungary would stay out of the mission NATO is planning to launch in connection with the war in Ukraine, with 31 countries participating.



Hungary will not contribute money, arms, or troops to that cooperative effort but will not bloc it, either, he added.



Szalay-Bobrovniczky said he had told his Ukrainian counterpart, who had attended the meeting, that the Hungarian minority is actively participating in the war  several of them have made the biggest sacrifice, giving their lives for Ukraine.



Therefore it is justified to expect that all earlier rights are restored to the Hungarian minority, he added.



PM: Hungary Not to Send Money, Troops to Ukraine

Hungary will not be obliged to participate in military actions outside its territory or send money or troops to Ukraine, Prime Minister Viktor Orban said after meeting NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.



Hungary is a loyal and committed member of NATO, Orban told a joint press conference, noting that the country currently had 1,300 troops participating in NATO missions.



He added that Hungary was one of the not too many countries that performed all their commitments to NATO with its defence spending exceeding 2% of GDP and the country also meeting the 20% capability development goal.



Orban praised Stoltenberg as a NATO leader highly appreciated in Hungary, adding that under his leadership cooperation between Hungary and NATO had strengthened.



Orban said he acknowledged the significant weight and number of positions differing from Hungarys on the war.



He said he had made it clear during the talks that Hungary would not block NATO decisions which could differ from the rational decisions based on our assessment of the situation but which other member states share and support.



Hungary has received the required guarantees from Stoltenberg that any military operation outside the organisations territory can only be performed on a voluntary basis, Orban said.



Szijjarto: Most NATO Members View War in Ukraine 'Differently' from Hungary

The position of the majority of NATO member states concerning the war in Ukraine and the possibility of peace is entirely different from that of Hungary, the foreign minister said on Wednesday.



NATO is preparing to launch a mission concerning Ukraine which Hungary deems dangerous and unnecessary, but since NATOs 31 other members have a different view we cannot prevent that, Peter Szijjarto said on Facebook.



He said the Hungarian governments most important goal and task was to secure a guarantee that Hungarian troops should not be obliged to participate in the planned mission, that Hungarian taxpayers money should not be used for its financing and that there should be no military event taking place in Hungarys territory, Szijjarto said.



The threat of the wars escalation is now bigger than ever, he said, adding that continued efforts are expected to be made to maintain Hungarys security and to ensure that the country is not involved in the war.



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WAMP stands for 'Where Art Meets People', and this regular and popular design fair will next be held in the Neo-Renaissance Garden of Varker Bazar on the 16th of June between 10:00-18:00, with free entry!

Here you can get hand-made gifts by Hungarian designers for your loved ones, and yourself Also available are gastro specialties along with designer clothes, jewelry, accessories and more.



You can also participate in creative workshops, or check out local storybooks with your children in a reading corner. The most famous Hungarian design fair is also well known for being dog and family friendly, say the organisers.



How to get there: we recommend to use public transport as the event is easily accessible by foot! By attending the event, you agree to its policy and that photos of the event will be taken and used on WAMP's own surfaces.



More:

wamp.hu



Address:

Varkert Bazar

1013 Budapest, Ybl Miklos ter 4



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This photo taken on April 24, 2024 shows a new energy vehicle (NEV) assembly line of BYD, China's leading NEV manufacturer, at the plant of BYD in Zhengzhou, central China's Henan Province. (Xinhua/Li Jianan)





BEIJING, June 12 (Xinhua) -- Despite China's repeated and earnest calls for resolving trade friction through dialogue, the European Commission unveiled on Wednesday its plan to levy provisional additional tariffs of up to 38.1 percent on Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs), a move that is almost certain to undercut the momentum of bilateral economic cooperation.

Although the EU spent several months mulling over the tariff issue and delayed the announcement for several days, the decision is still far from being wise, given the crucial nature of China-EU relations and their extensive economic and trade collaborations.

The European Commission chose to announce the decision after the conclusion of the European Parliament elections, revealing the nature of the anti-subsidy probe as a politically motivated move. Leading European automakers have repeatedly voiced their opposition against the additional tariff plan.

Prominent European political figures, including German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, also opposed the tariff hikes, calling for free trade. The EU, which often falls victim to trade protectionist measures from countries like the United States, has claimed itself to be a strong advocate of open and fair trade. However, its decision today is nothing but self-contradictory.

As major open markets and proponents of globalization, China and the EU have industrial, supply and value chains that are intricately interwoven, rendering them mutually indispensable. This is vividly illustrated in the automotive sector. European car brands enjoy considerable favor among Chinese consumers. Meanwhile, Chinese automakers have, after years of investment and technology upgrading, garnered an advantage in electric vehicles, and have gained trust, popularity and admiration among European consumers.

The EU should have respected the prowess of the Chinese EV industry, whose integrity and expertise cannot be denied. Self-interested actions would ultimately defeat their own purpose. The burden of protectionism advocated by a few politicians would ultimately fall on ordinary citizens, increasing their financial strain and lowering their quality of life. It will also disrupt the EU's green transformation agenda and global collaboration efforts in tackling climate change. Such outcomes are undesirable for all parties involved.

China and the EU are the world's second- and third-largest economies. They are each other's second-largest trading partners, with trade volume translating to an exchange of about 1.5 million U.S. dollars per minute.

Disputes and frictions may be inescapable between different economies. But in light of their economic structure and sheer size, China and the EU are best served by teaming up on major economic and trade issues. It would be more cost-effective for the EU to draw on China's advantages in order to develop its own EV industry.

The trade and economic relations between the EU and China are at an important crossroads, and it is crucial for the EU to demonstrate a strategic and long-term vision. The regional bloc seemed to have left some room for the two sides to continue their consultations to find a proper solution and avoid the worst scenario. It is hoped the EU will make some serious reconsideration and stop going further in the wrong direction. 
Our country was founded on the principle that everyone should receive equal justice under the law. Its part of who we are. Its why equal justice under law is engraved above the entrance to the Supreme Court in Washington, D.C. Its also why Equality before the law is Nebraskas state motto. This founding idea makes America special. It allows Americans to trust that our justice system is working as intended. Regardless of income, status, race, or political affiliation, were supposed to all be treated the same. Shamefully, some have turned their backs on this core American principle, but I believe we each have a role to play in protecting it.

The weaponization of our justice system for political gain is one of the current threats we need to face. The recent trial against Donald Trump in New York is one such example. The case was brought by Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg, who campaigned on his record suing Trumps businesses. Bragg concocted a novel theory to charge Trump with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records, even though the crime is actually a misdemeanor in New York. From the gag orders to his jury instructions, the presiding judge played a major role in the direction of the case. The judge had donated money to President Bidens campaign. This contribution clearly violated a rule banning New York judges from making any political contributions. Alternatively, weve seen much less complex cases against President Bidens family members move slowly or not at all. This inequality sets a dangerous precedent. Prosecuting the political opposition while protecting allies is a tactic found in authoritarian regimes like Putins Russia, not America.

The Trump and Biden cases are not the only examples of the politicization of our justice system. We saw it when the Department of Justice issued a memo implying concerned parents going to school board meetings was domestic terrorism. Weve seen it with the vigorous prosecution of pro-life Americans while failing to give the same attention to the attacks on pro-life womens resource centers. Weve also seen it with progressive prosecutors and sanctuary cities that refuse to enforce laws against crimes like theft, drugs, or illegal immigration. This kind of judicial activism undermines the trust that holds our justice system together.

This selective application of justice is not a coincidence. It stems from a blatant disregard for the rule of law by liberal activists who refuse to accept limits on their power. As President Biden said recently: The Supreme Court blocked me, but it didnt stop me. Time and again, the Supreme Court has struck down a Biden regulation, only for the Biden administration try to force it on the American people anyway. Weve seen it with the Waters of the United States rule, the ban on coal plants, and the student loan bailout. The Supreme Court has already declared these regulations illegal. Bidens bureaucrats continue to push them forward anyway. Its one thing to disagree with a decision of the Court. To openly defy it is an attack on the rule of law.

I believe equal justice under the law makes America special. We must fight to protect it. To do that, we must support and elevate officials who uphold equal justice under law. In Nebraska, we have many who faithfully execute that duty. People like District Attorneys Don Kleine and Pat Condon and Sheriffs Aaron Hanson and Terry Wagner work tirelessly to apply our laws fairly. When I was Governor, I made sure the Nebraska Supreme Court Justices and lower court judges I appointed had that mindset. President Trump also made that a priority with federal Justices and judges appointed during his term. To save Americas system of justice, we must support officials who prioritize equal justice and reject those pushing for lawfare or judicial activism. I will keep fighting to do just that.

My team and I are here to serve you. Contact us anytime by phone at 202-224-4224. You can also view my website at www.ricketts.senate.gov/contact.
The Delhi government is planning to build a fourth inter-state bus terminal (ISBT) in the national capital near the Tikri border to cater to buses coming from Haryana, officials said on Wednesday.

Delhi has three ISBTs -- Anand Vihar, Sarai Kale Khan, and Kashmere Gate.

The project to build the fourth ISBT is at a nascent stage with the government identifying a piece of land for the purpose, said an official.

"Haryana-bound buses also traverse through Kashmere Gate but if a bus terminal is built at Tikri border, it will ease the burden on Kashmere Gate and also provide relief to commuters," he added.

The government initially has plans to build a small bus terminal for the purpose of ensuring facilities for five to six buses and then expand it for more buses, he added.

Another official said that a terminal in outer Delhi will also help when Delhi's pollution levels rise in winter months.

He said that buses from states not complying with norms can be directed to be stationed there.

The Delhi government had notified that the entry of buses, barring CNG, BSVI diesel and electric ones, will be automatically banned in the city whenever restrictions under the final stage of the Centre's air pollution control plan are invoked.

Stage IV is the final stage of the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP).

In October last year, the Delhi government had directed that all buses entering the national capital from Haryana will have to run on electricity, CNG or BS-VI diesel. Buses entering from the NCR regions of Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan also need to follow these norms.
New Delhi: OpenAI is projected to earn 3.4 billion dollars in annual revenue, CEO Sam Altman reportedly told staff in a meeting. According to a report by The Information, most of this revenue around 3.2 billion dollars comes from OpenAIs products and services. The company is expected to generate about 200 million dollars by providing access to its AI models through Microsoft Azure.

The Information was the first to report the 3.4 billion dollars revenue figure. The outlet previously noted that OpenAIs annualised revenue was 1.6 billion dollars in late 2023. This news comes after OpenAI completed a tender offer valuing the startup at 86 billion dollars. ChatGPT has become a driving force in AI development and the company is increasing revenue from its AI products by selling services to enterprise customers. (Also Read: Twitter Layoffs: Elon Musk Asks Employees To Justify Their Roles, Rate Colleagues)

OpenAI has focused on boosting revenue from its AI products by selling services to enterprise customers in recent months. The company has started training a more powerful AI model to stay ahead of well-funded rivals competing for the same users and businesses. (Also Read: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Says He 'Doesn't Fire' Employees, Rather Torture Them Into)

OpenAI has started training a more powerful AI model to stay ahead of growing competition. The company also hired Sarah Friar, former CEO of Nextdoor Holdings Inc as its new chief financial officer. We are delighted to be working with Microsoft and Oracle. OCI will extend Azures platform and enable OpenAI to continue to scale, Sam Altman said in a statement.
New Delhi: Elon Musk purchased Twitter in 2022 and later rebranded it as X. The company has undergone various changes since its acquisition which includes laying off around 6,000 employees which is roughly 80 percent of its workforce.

After the tech billionaire took over Twitter in 2022, Musk made the company private which reduced the transparency of his decisions. Shortly after he acquired Twitter for 44 billion dollars he fired half the staff. Musk warned the remaining employees to prepare for extremely hardcore working hours with high intensity. He also brought in Steve Davis and James Musk to evaluate whether the remaining employees were providing good value for money. (Also Read: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang Says He 'Doesn't Fire' Employees, Rather Torture Them Into)

Twitter employees had to justify their roles and even assess whether their colleagues should be retained. The job cuts impacted various departments which includes diversity and inclusion, product development and design. Even Twitters content moderation team was not spared from the layoffs. (Also Read: Zerodha Investors Made Rs. 50,000 Crore Profit In Four Years, Announces CEO Nithin Kamath)

In October 2022, reports surfaced that Elon Musk planned to cut Twitters workforce. Around the same time Brad Gerstner, an investor at Altimeter Capital wrote to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg stating, "It is a poorly kept secret in Silicon Valley that companies ranging from Google to Meta to Twitter to Uber could achieve similar levels of revenue with far fewer people."

After Twitters layoffs, other major tech companies like Meta, Amazon and Google also reduced their workforces. According to layoffs.fyi, these tech giants laid off 165,269 employees in 2022, 263,180 in 2023, and 96,551 so far this year.
Nagpur: Six workers including five women were killed and three injured in a blast at an explosives manufacturing factory near Nagpur city on Thursday afternoon, police said.The incident took place around 1 pm at Chamundi Explosive Pvt Ltd at Dhamna village under Hingna police station limits, around 25 km from here.

A total of nine injured persons were brought to two private hospitals in the city, said Nagpur police commissioner Ravindra Singhal. Of them, five women and a man died during treatment, he told mediapersons.

Most of the victims were working in the factory's packaging unit when the explosion took place, another police official said. Further probe was on, he added. Union minister and Nagpur MP Nitin Gadkari took to X to express condolences for the deceased.

The BJP leader also appealed local party workers to cancel a program organised here in the evening to welcome him to the city after he again took oath as Union road transport minister following the Lok Sabha elections, his office said in a statement.

NCP (SP) MLA from Katol and former Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh visited the blast site. The factory is located in the Katol assembly constituency. The owner and manager of the factory were missing and no ambulances were available after the explosion took place, he claimed, adding that his supporters arranged ambulances for the victims.
Bengaluru: In a POCSO case, a Bengaluru court on Thursday issued a non-bailable arrest warrant for senior BJP politician and former chief minister B S Yediyurappa. Yediyurappa was previously called in for interrogation by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which was conducting investigation into the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act (POCSO) complaint against him. But he had requested more time to appear before the CID's investigating officer. The BJP veteran, who is also a member of the party's parliamentary board, is presently in Delhi, and he is likely to join the probe after he returns, sources close to him have said.

According to police, Yediyurappa has been booked under the POCSO Act and Section 354 A (Sexual harassment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) based on a complaint by the mother of a 17-year-old girl who alleged that he sexually assaulted her daughter during a meeting on February two this year, at his residence in Dollars Colony here.

On March 14, hours after the Sadashivanagar police registered the case, the Karnataka Director General of Police Alok Mohan issued an order transferring it to the CID for further investigation with immediate effect.

The 54-year-old woman, who had leveled the charge against Yediyurappa, died at a private hospital here last month, due to lung cancer. The 81-year-old Yediyurappa has denied the charge and said he would fight the case legally.

In April, the CID collected the voice sample of Yediyurappa after summoning him to the office. The government, meanwhile, has appointed Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) Ashok H. Nayak to represent the CID in the case.

Yediyurappa has moved the court seeking quashing of the FIR.
New Delhi: Minister Atishi and AAP MP Raghav Chadha announced on Thursday that they met with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who is lodged in the Tihar jail. The leaders were directed to take immediate action to address the ongoing water and power issues in Delhi. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) convener is being held in the second jail in Tihar in connection with a money laundering case related to excise policies.

"Today I met Kejriwal ji, who is lodged in Tihar jail in a fake case by the central government. But, he still worries about the people of Delhi, more than himself. "He inquired about the issues related to the power and water and he told me that he watched the water crisis in Delhi on television in Tihar," Atishi told media outside the Tihar jail.

She said Kejriwal has directed them to take all necessary steps and arrangements that could be made to overcome the water crisis as soon as possible. "He has directed all the AAP legislators to go on the ground and take all possible steps to provide water to the people in their areas," she said.

Atishi further said Kejriwal inquired about the power cuts in Delhi which had occurred due to a fire incident in Uttar Pradesh two days ago. "He told us to hold the meetings with the concerned department officials to prevent the power crisis from happening in the future," she said.

The minister of education went on to say that, while being in jail, Kejriwal exclusively considers the issues facing the people of Delhi. Atishi and Chadha met Kejriwal for thirty minutes in the visitor's chamber (Mulakati Jangla) in Tihar, according to sources from Tihar.

Kejriwal's wife Sunita and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann paid him a visit in Tihar on Wednesday.
Latest Updates On Kuwait Building Fire: More than 40 Indians - some reports say 42 - died in a fire that engulfed a building housing foreign workers in Kuwait on Wednesday. Following the incident, Prime Minister Narendra Modi convened a high-priority meeting last night with a team from the Ministry of External Affairs and other ministers concerned. To ensure the assistance of Indians affected by the fire incident and to take stock of the situation, the Union Minister of State for External Affairs, Kirti Vardhan Singh, visited Kuwait today.

The Union Minister of State for External Affairs, arrived in Kuwait and promptly visited Jaber Hospital to check on the well-being of Indians injured in the fire incident in Mangaf area the previous day. He personally met with six injured Indians receiving treatment at the hospital.

19 Victims Identified From Kerala; 5 From TN

Tamil Nadu Minister Gingee KS Masthan said based on information from Tamil associations five Tamils died in the fire incident in Kuwait, reported PTI.

According to PTI, Kerala Government on Thursday said that 19 people from the State have so far been identified among those who lost their lives in the major fire that broke out in Kuwait's Mangaf area. The Cabinet decided that Health Minsiter Veena George and an IAS officer will immediately go to Kuwait. The decision was taken in an emergency cabinet meeting this morning. The meeting was chaired by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The State government has also announced Rs 5 lakh for the families of the deceased and one lakh rupees for those injured.

Two of the victims included Lucose (48) and Sajan George (29), both from Kollam city. Lucose was working as a supervisor at NBTC Company in Kuwait for 18 years. While, George went to Kuwait after getting a job a month ago and worked as a junior mechanical engineer. Earlier, 30-year-old Shameer, hailing from Sooranad village in Kerala's Kollam district, was identified among the deceased.

Union Minister Reveals Details

Before departing for Kuwait to ensure the repatriation of those killed in the devastating fire, Kirti Vardhan Singh stated that some bodies were charred beyond recognition. "The rest of the situation will be clear the moment we reach there," Singh said. Speaking to ANI at the Delhi Airport before flying for Kuwait, the MoS said, "We had a meeting last evening with the Prime Minister; that is the last update we have about this very sad tragedy. The rest of the situation will be clear the moment we reach there.

He further told the agency that a DNA test is underway to identify the burn victims. The MoS mentioned that an Air Force plane is on standby and will bring the bodies back once they are identified and the families are informed. He added that the latest casualty figures from the previous night indicate around 4849 deaths, with 42 or 43 believed to be Indians.

#WATCH | Kuwait fire incident | Delhi: MoS MEA Kirti Vardhan Singh leaves from his residence. He is travelling to Kuwait today.



He says, "The incident in Kuwait is unfortunate. All of us including the PM are very concerned. I am going there and see the situation. People from pic.twitter.com/SV6fLnaacm  ANI (@ANI) June 13, 2024

PM Modi Chairs Review Meeting

PM Modi chaired a high-level meeting and announced an ex-gratia relief of Rs 2 lakh for the families of deceased Indians in the Kuwait incident. Expressing deep sorrow over the unfortunate incident, Prime Minister Modi extended condolences to the families of the deceased and wished for the speedy recovery of the injured. He assured that the Indian government would provide all possible assistance.

Minister of External Affairs S. Jaishankar was present in the meeting along with Minister of State for External Affairs Kirtivardhan Singh, PM's Principal Secretary Pramod Kumar Mishra, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, and other senior officials, reported ANI.

Links To Overcrowding

Local officials said the blaze appeared to be linked to code violations, as reported by the Associated Press. Interior Minister Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah confirmed the death toll and ordered the arrest of the buildings owner during his visit to the site, as reported by local media.

According to AP, Al-Sabah said, We will address the issue of labour overcrowding. Im now going to see what violations were committed here, and I will deal with the owner of the property.
Kuwait Fire Tragedy: India sent a military transport aircraft to Kuwait on Thursday to retrieve the mortal remains of over 40 Indians killed in a devastating fire in a building housing foreign workers in southern Kuwait. Kuwaiti authorities said they identified the bodies of 45 Indians and three Filipinos who died in the fire. The fire claimed the lives of at least 49 migrant workers and injured another 50.



According to officials in Delhi, the Indian Air Force's C-130J transport aircraft will bring back bodies on Friday, landing first in Kochi because the majority of the deceased Indians were from Kerala. The aircraft is expected to arrive in Delhi because some of the Indians killed were from a few north Indian states.

Several Arrested Including Kuwaiti Citizen

A Kuwaiti citizen and several foreigners were arrested on Thursday on charges of manslaughter and causing injuries as a result of negligent security and safety measures following a fire in the Gulf Kingdom that killed 49 people, including 45 Indians.



On Wednesday, a fire broke out at the seven-story building where 196 migrant workers were staying in the southern city of Mangaf, killing at least 49 and injuring 50 more.



"The Public Prosecution has mandated the provisional detention of a Kuwaiti citizen and several expats in connection with charges of manslaughter and causing injuries due to negligence in security and safety measures, following a fire incident in the Al-Mangaf area," the Arabic-language daily Arab Times reported.

Short Circuit Behind Kuwait Fire Tragedy

According to the Kuwaiti Fire Force, the deadly fire was caused by a "electrical circuit". The conclusion was reached following an examination of the incident scene, Kuwaiti news agency KUNA reported.



Sheikh Fahad Al-Yousuf Al-Sabah, the First Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of Interior, and Minister of Defence, stated that authorities have identified 48 bodies, 45 of which are Indian and three of which are Filipino, according to the English-language daily Arab Times.



Minister of State for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh arrived in Kuwait this morning and met with the country's foreign minister, Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya, Al-Sabah, and health minister, Ahmad Abdelwahab Ahmad Al-Awadi.

Prime Minister Modi met with NSA Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary Vinay Kwatra, PM PK Mishra's principal secretary, S Jaishankar, and other officials last night to discuss the situation. After the meeting, the prime minister instructed the government to provide all assistance possible and announced ex-gratia relief of Rs 2 lakh to the families of the Indian nationals who had died.



Over the phone, the minister of external affairs urged Abdullah Ali Al-Yahya, his counterpart in Kuwait, to expedite the repatriation of the deceased individuals' mortal remains.
Kuwait Building Fire: Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a meeting with the team of the Ministry of External Affairs and other officials concerned on Wednesday evening regarding the tragic fire incident in Kuwait, in which over 40 people were killed and more than 30 Indian workers were injured.

The External Affairs team will leave for Kuwait on Thursday to take stock of the situation and see those injured currently being treated in hospital.

"...We stand with the victims of the Kuwait fire incident, we express our sympathy to them. We had a meeting with PM Modi and tomorrow morning we are travelling to Kuwait. We will take stock of the situation and those who are admitted to the hospital," Union Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs Kirti Vardhan Singh told ANI.

PM Modi held a meeting on Wednesday in the national capital to review the fire incident in Kuwait that took the lives of over 40 people and injured 30 Indian workers.

He further said that the identification of the casualties is underway and the injured people are being taken care of properly.

"We have been reported that the injured have been taken care of properly. The identification process of those who have died is underway...," he said.

Moreover, the MoS highlighted that the maximum Indian workers belong to Kerala and other parts of South India.

"The maximum people are from Kerala and other parts of South India and the identification process is underway...," he said, adding, "We will stay there as long as we are needed."

A fire broke out in a building housing workers in the city of Mangaf in southern Kuwait early on Wednesday. Earlier today, Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed grief over the fire incident in Kuwait which took place early Wednesday.

PM Modi expressed his sadness over the fire mishap in Kuwait City adding that his thoughts are with the family and close ones of the victims of the incident.

He further assured that the Indian embassy in Kuwait is closely monitoring the situation and working with the concerned authorities for further assistance.

Earlier in the day, the Indian ambassador to Kuwait, Adarsh Swaika visited the Al-Adan hospital where over 30 Indian workers are being treated.

Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Fahad al-Yousuf al-Sabah paid a visit to the site and ordered the arrest of the building's owner, according to Al Jazeera.
JAKARTA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Indonesia has broadened its economic ties with Chile through the initiation of investment negotiations for the Indonesia-Chile Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (IC-CEPA) on Thursday in Jakarta.

The agreement's launch was officiated by Indonesia's Vice Minister of Trade Jerry Sambuaga and Chile's Vice Minister of International Economic Relations Claudia Sanhueza.

Sambuaga emphasized the mutual benefits of the agreement, expressing his hope that it would bolster investment collaboration between the two nations, which has been primarily focused on the service, tourism, hotel, and housing sectors.

Sanhueza highlighted the significance of Chile-Indonesia economic relations in addressing global challenges like food security and climate change. She also showcased Chile's extensive mining and agricultural sectors as attractive opportunities for foreign investment.

The IC-CEPA, which was ratified in 2017, has already enhanced trade performance between Indonesia and Chile. In 2023, the Indonesia-Chile trade balance showed a surplus of 139.2 million U.S. dollars, with exports amounting to 312.6 million dollars and imports totaling 173.4 million dollars, as reported by Indonesia's Ministry of Trade. 
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Thursday assumed office in his chamber in the first block at secretariat in Amravati. Before arriving at the secretariat to take charge, he offered prayers at the Sri Venkateswara temple at nearby Tirumala, accompanied by family members. The newly elected Andhra CM accused the outgoing YSRCP government led by Jagan Mohan Reddy of commercialising the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD). He accused the government of gross miss management in the administration of the famous Hindu shrine.

"They (former state govt) commercialised Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD). Prasadam should be of good quality, rates shouldn't be increased and tickets for 'Darshan' should not be sold in the black market," he said.

The TDP chief accused the previous Andhra government of turning the religious place into a centre of 'marijuana, liquor and non-vegetarian food' and said that his government will start the cleansing from the Tirupati Temple.

Naidu Family Visits Tirupati Temple

Chandrababu Naidu, his wife Bhuvaneswari, son and Minister Nara Lokesh, daughter-in-law Brahmani, and grandson Devansh all offered thanksgiving prayers. The Chief Minister and his family arrived in Tirumala late on Wednesday and had an early morning darshan. They took part in various rituals led by temple priests.



When they arrived at the temple, they were greeted by Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) officials, who oversee the affairs of the famous hill shrine. After the darshan, the priests blessed the Chief Minister and his family members and gave them Theertha Prasadam.



Chandrababu Naidu broke coconuts on Akhilandam, a platform in front of the temple, as a symbol of gratitude for fulfilling his wish.



A large crowd of Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leaders and supporters had gathered at the temple to meet the Chief Minister. The TDP president took his oath as Chief Minister on Wednesday in Vijayawada. A total of 24 ministers, including Lokesh, were sworn in.



The TDP supremo led the NDA to a landslide victory in the recently held Assembly and Lok Sabha elections. The alliance won 164 seats in the 175-member Assembly, as well as 21 of 25 Lok Sabha seats. The TDP won 135 Assembly and 16 Lok Sabha seats.


NEET-UG Results Row: Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Thursday refuted any allegations of paper leaks in NEET UG 2024 examinations. He said that there is no evidence of paper leak in the medical entrance exam.

Talking to the reporters, Pradhan said, "NEET-UG has not shown any indication of a document leak. The NTA is a very credible body; the allegations of corruption against it are unfounded."

He further added that as the matter is in the Supreme court the apex body we will abide by its decision. Pradhan claimed that he will ensure that no student is at disadvantage.

Meanwhile, an SC-monitored investigation into the NEET UG matter was demanded by the Opposition. Congress leader and MP Gaurav Gogoi expressed the party's stance, criticizing the BJP government's handling of the ongoing NEET issue as irresponsible and insensitive.

He highlighted the need for an impartial inquiry into the scandal, which has impacted 24 lakh aspirants, stating that an investigation conducted by the NTA would lack objectivity and suggesting the removal of its chairperson. Gogoi made these remarks at a press conference held at the AICC headquarters in Delhi.

The Centre on Thursday informed the Supreme Court that it has decided to invalidate the scorecards of 1,563 NEET-UG 2024 candidates who were given grace marks. This decision comes in response to allegations of unfair means during the examination process.

The Centre also said that an option will be given to only these students to take re-test on June 23. For candidates opting out of the re-examination, results will be recalculated based on their original scores without grace marks.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced on Thursday that India will prioritise energy, artificial intelligence, Africa, and the Mediterranean at the G7 summit outreach session in Italy. Modi emplaned for Italy in his first foreign trip after taking office for the third time as prime minister. In addition to attending the outreach session on Friday, he has appointments to have one-on-one meetings outside of the summit with several international leaders. A meeting between US President Joe Biden and Modi is possible. Modi said in his departure statement that the outreach session will also cover matters important to the Global South.

"At the invitation of Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, I am travelling to Apulia region in Italy to participate in the G7 Outreach summit on June 14," said Modi. The prime minister expressed satisfaction that his first visit in his third consecutive term would be to Italy for the G7 summit.



"During the discussions at the Outreach session, the focus would be on artificial intelligence, energy, Africa, and the Mediterranean," said Modi. "It will be an opportunity to bring greater synergy between the outcomes of the G20 Summit held under India's Presidency and the forthcoming G7 Summit, and deliberate on issues which are crucial for the Global South," he stated.



Modi will hold a bilateral meeting with Meloni. "Prime Minister Meloni's two visits to India last year were instrumental in infusing momentum and depth in our bilateral agenda," he said. "We remain committed to consolidate the India-Italy strategic partnership, and bolster cooperation in the Indo-Pacific and the Mediterranean regions," he said.

The prime minister is likely to hold a number of bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the summit. "I am also looking forward to meeting other leaders participating in the Summit," he said. The G7 comprises the US, the UK, France, Italy, Germany, Canada and Japan. Italy is holding the current presidency of the G7 (Group of Seven) and is hosting the summit in that capacity.
Fasano (Italy): A day ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Italy to attend the G7 Summit, where India has been invited as an Outreach Country, the Indian ambassador to Italy, Vani Rao said that

PM Modi will play an important role in one of the global platforms, to engage with other world leaders present at the G7 Summit on issues of importance to India, as well as to the Global South.

Speaking to ANI, Envoy Vani Rao said that PM Modi will also follow up on some of the key issues that were there during India's G20 presidency.

"It is an important visit. Firstly, it is an opportunity for the prime minister to play an important role in one of the global platforms. It also marks continuity because he had participated in the G7 summit last year," the ambassador said.

PM Modi is set to visit Italy to participate in the annual summit of G7 advanced economies, marking his first international trip since beginning his third consecutive term in office. The G7 summit will take place at the luxurious Borgo Egnazia resort in Italy's Apulia region from June 13 to 15.

India's participation at this G7 Summit acquires particular salience in the context of India's recently held, not so recent, presidency of the G20, where India took a leading role in building global consensus on several contentious issues. India has so far organized two sessions of the Voice of the Global South Summit, which have been aimed at bringing the interests, priorities, and concerns of the Global South on the global stage.

"It allows the prime minister to also follow up on some of the key issues that we had in the G-20 presidency, which he had chaired last year. It's an invitation to the prime minister from the Italian prime minister. India has been selected as a partner for the G7 summit. If I'm not mistaken, India is the only Asian country to be selected as a partner. It is an opportunity also to speak on some of the issues like food security, energy, clean technologies, AI, and other aspects, which are very important to the Global South, " she said.



This will be India's 11th participation in the G7 Summit and Prime Minister Modi's fifth consecutive participation at the G7 Summit. On the sidelines of the G7 Summit in Italy, PM Modi is also expected to hold bilateral meetings and discussions with the leaders of the G7, as well as the Outreach Countries and the international organizations.

The ambassador emphasised that issues including food security, energy, clean technologies and AI will be discussed.

"Issues like food security, energy, clean technologies, AI and other aspects, will be an important agenda item here for the prime minister to share his views and thoughts," she told ANI.

Responding on whether there will be any bilateral agreements signed during the bilateral meeting with Italian PM Meloni, the ambassador said that "definitely", there will be some progress in the bilateral collaboration and agenda.

"It would be very premature for me to mention what are the outcomes of that meeting. But definitely, the high-level meeting itself is a big signal that the two leaders are invested in the relationship and the two countries want to elevate their cooperation in many domains, " Rao said.

Highlighting whether the Russia-Ukraine war and the Middle East conflict will be on the agenda during the G7 Summit, the Indian ambassador stressed that as the meeting is going to be held amid these global developments, these issues will also be on the agenda.

"The G7 and the partners will engage on a variety of issues. One is, the key economic issues that are on the table right now, which include food security, climate change, sustainable development, the role of artificial intelligence, energy security and others. These will be one set of issues," she said.

The ambassador added, "But obviously because the meeting itself is taking amid very key global and regional developments, they will also be on the agenda of the leaders. And India's position on many of these issues is well known and the prime minister would be articulating his thoughts on how to address these issues," she added.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to leave for Italy on Thursday to participate in the 50th G7 Summit.

Addressing a special briefing on PM Modi's upcoming visit, Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra said, "At the invitation of Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be travelling to Apulia, Italy tomorrow to participate in the 50th G7 Summit which is to be held there on June 14 where India has been invited as an Outreach Country."

During the Summit, PM Modi is also expected to hold a bilateral meeting with Giorgia Meloni.

"They last met during the COP28 Summit in Abu Dhabi in December 2023," Kwatra said.

In the meeting, the two Prime Ministers are expected to review the entire gamut of bilateral ties and give directions for next steps, he said.

Italy is the Chair of G7 this year and is hosting the Summit of the informal grouping of seven of the world's advanced economies which also includes Canada, France, Germany Japan the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as the European Union.
Doda Terror Attacks: The Jammu and Kashmir region is experiencing an uptick in violence, marked by three notable attacks: the Reasi terror attack, the Kathua terror attack, and the Doda terror attack. A fresh encounter erupted on Tuesday when terrorists attacked a joint checkpoint manned by the 4 Rashtriya Rifles and police at Chattergalla in Bhaderwah, and on Wednesday, they targeted a search party in the Gandoh area of the district, injuring seven security personnel, including a policeman.

Following these incidents, the J&K police on Wednesday released sketches of four militants and announced a reward of Rs 20 lakh for sharing their information with the police. These four men were reportedly involved in two terror attacks in Doda district.

According to PTI, a police spokesperson said, "Jammu and Kashmir Police has released sketches of four terrorists who are believed to be in the upper reaches of Bhaderwah, Thathri, and Gandoh and carrying out terror-related activities."

The local police have urged the people to provide any information to aid in the probe; a Rs 5 lakh reward for information about each of the terrorists has also been declared.

On Sunday, militants opened fire on a 53-seater bus carrying pilgrims travelling from the Shiv Khori temple to the Mata Vaishno Devi shrine in Katra, near Teryath village in the Poni area.

Following the firing, the bus carrying pilgrims from Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Delhi plunged into a deep gorge, resulting in the deaths of nine people and injuring 41 others.
New Delhi: The Centre on Thursday informed the Supreme Court that it has decided to invalidate the scorecards of 1,563 NEET-UG 2024 candidates who were given grace marks. This decision comes in response to allegations of unfair means during the examination process. The Centre also said that an option will be given to only these students to take re-test on June 23. For candidates opting out of the re-examination, results will be recalculated based on their original scores without grace marks.

The results will be declared prior to June 30 so that counselling which is set to begin on July 6 stays unaffected.

The Centre issued a statement to the court, announcing that it will offer these 1,563 students the opportunity to participate in a re-test. This action aims to uphold fairness and integrity in the examination process.

Talking to news agency ANI, advocate Shwetank said, "We filed PIL regarding the NEET Exam issue and our main issue was regarding the paper leak and other malpractices by the NTA. The Court has directed that a re-examination will be conducted on 23rd June."

Declaring dissatisfaction with the SCs decision, CEO of Physics Wallah, Alakh Pandey, who is a key petitioner in the matter, said that this marks the first step towards justice, as today the NTA admitted to the Supreme Court that awarding grace marks to students was a mistake.

NTA agreed in front of the SC that the grace marks they awarded were wrong. The question is if NTA has other discrepancies that we are unaware of. So, there is a trust issue with NTA. The issue of paper leak is open and hearing on that will continue," reported ANI quoting Pandey.

The Centre explained how they handled the problem. They convened a committee on June 10th, 11th, and 12th to look into the accusations. After reviewing the committee's suggestions, they decided to cancel the scores of the students involved and arrange for them to retake the exam.

In another development, the Supreme Court reiterated that it will not stay the counselling of NEET-UG, 2024. Reported ANI quoting the apex court that, Counselling will go on and we will not stop it. If the exam goes then everything goes in totality so nothing to fear.
Mumbai: Amidst the ongoing controversy surrounding the actor-turned-politician Kangana Ranaut's alleged assault by Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) constable at Chandigarh airport, filmmaker Karan Johar on Wednesday was asked to express his views about the same at the trailer launch of his film 'Kill'.

Responding to a question asked by a Mumbai-based reporter about the incident, Karan simply said, "I do not support or condone any form of violence, verbal or physical."

Earlier, veteran actors Anupam Kher and Shabana Azmi also reacted to the incident. "I have no love lost for Kangana Ranaut. But I can't find myself joining this chorus of celebrating 'the slap'. If security personnel start taking the law into their hands, none of us can be safe," Shabana said in a post on X.

Speaking to a paparazzi at an event last week, Anupam Kher came out in support of Kangana.

He said, "Mujhe bada afsos hua. Ek mahila ke saath ek mahila ke dwaara jo apne position ka fayeda uthakar is tarah ki harkat ki, bilkul galat hai. Iski kanooni karwaayi honi chahiye. Unka koi bhi rosh hai, main yeh nahi keh raha hoon k inka rosh nhi ho sakta jisne aisa kiya, but yeh apne audhe ka ya position ka fayeda uthakar nahi karna chahiye (I deeply regret it. The way a woman slapped another woman by taking power of her position is wrong. This should be legally investigated. She can have grievances, but it shouldn't be done by taking advantage of one's power. It's very sad and unfortunate. Any kind of violence towards anyone is not right)."

The incident occurred at Chandigarh airport on June 6 around 3:30 pm when Kangana was about to board a flight to Delhi to attend a meeting of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA).

Kangana was allegedly slapped by a CISF woman constable while she was headed to Delhi for the NDA meeting. An FIR has been lodged against the constable under IPC sections 321 and 341, but no arrest has been made.

Hours after the incident, Kangana released a video on her official Instagram page, where she narrated the details and expressed concern over "rising terrorism and extremism in Punjab."In the video, Kangana said, "I am getting a lot of phone calls from the media and my well-wishers. Firstly, I am safe, I am perfectly fine. The incident that took place at Chandigarh airport with security staff. The moment I came out after the security check, a security staff member in another cabin came from the side and hit me on my face and started abusing me."

"When I asked her (CISF jawan), why did she do this, she said that she supported the farmers' protest. I am safe but my concern is that jo aatankwad aur ugarwad Punjab mai bad raha hai (the terrorism and extremism that is rising in Punjab), how do we handle that?" she asked.

On the day of the incident, another video went viral, where the constable said that her mother was among the farmers holding a sit-in protest against the farm laws, which have now been repealed.

She was heard saying, "Isne (Kangana) byan diya tha na 100-100 Rs ke liye baith ti hai waha pe, ye baithi thi wha pe? Meri Maa baithi thi us time jab isne byan diya tha. Maa ki insult sehan nai huyi (She had given a statement that women farmers were sitting at the farmers' protest for Rs 100 each. My mother was also sitting there when she gave this statement. I could not tolerate the insult of my mother)."
New Delhi: Bollywood actress Sonakshi Sinha and beau Zaheer Iqbal are all set to tie the knot on June 23 in Mumbai, according to several media reports. The buzz is strong that this hush-hush wedding will see only family and close friends in attendance. The couple will reportedly have a registered court marriage on June 23.

As per media reports, the invitations have been sent on the couples behalf to their dear ones as well.

WHO IS ZAHEER IQBAL?

Zaheer Iqbal Ratansi made his Bollywood with Notebook in 2019 with Pranutan Bahal. Later, he was seen in Double XL. He starred with ladylove Sonakshi in Ammy Virk & Asees Kaur's Blockbuster music video. Zaheer and Sona are often seen hanigng out together with their gang of friends in and around the city. The duo, however, has never really spoken about dating each other in public.

ZAHEER IQBAL'S SALMAN KHAN CONNECTION

Zaheer's father is a jeweller/businessman and mother is a homemaker. He did his schooling from Scottish School in Mumbai, and interestingly, Ranbir Kapoor was his senior. Zaheer's sister, Sanam Ratansi, is a celebrity stylist and his younger brother is a computer engineer by profession.

Zaheer's family has close ties with Salman Khan and as per some reports, he met Sona at one of the parties hosted by Khan. A childhood photo of Zaheer with Salman recently went viral on Instagram. Bhaijaan also mentored Zaheer before he decided to enter the showbiz world.
New Delhi: If you are looking to upgrade to the Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max, perhaps now is the time you could contemplate. The Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max is available at just Rs Rs 91,105 on Flipkart, using exchange and other bank card options.

Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max will be available on a hefty discount of Rs 57,795 on Flipkart, thus bringing the effective price of the phone at Rs 91,105.

Here is the complete price break up of how to get Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max At Rs 91,105

Using all the exchange offers and other discounts

Original Price of Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max Without Exchange = Rs 1,48,900

Exchange Offer On Apple iPhone 15 Pro = Rs 50,000 (using iPhone 14 Pro Max)

Flipkart Axis Credit Card Cashback Offer = Rs 4,795

Additional Exchange Bonus = Rs 3000

Total discount = Rs 57,795

Effective price of Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max on Flipkart = Rs 91,105

Do use your pincode to check if stock is available for exchange in your area or not.

According to Counterpoint Research, published in May this year, Apples iPhone 15 Pro Max was the best-selling smartphone of the first quarter (Q1) of 2024.

Apple and Samsung dominated the top 10 best-selling smartphones list for Q1, each grabbing five positions and leaving no spot for other brands.

"The Pro Max variant achieved the top position for the first time in Apples non-seasonal quarter, reflecting an increasing trend of consumer preference for high-end smartphones," the analysts said.

"All four iPhone 15 variants and the iPhone 14 were among the top 10 bestsellers. Further, the iPhone 15 line-up secured the top three spots," they added.

With IANS Inputs
New Delhi: Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk had recently threatened to ban iPhones from all his companies over the integration of ChatGPT into iPhones and other Apple devices.

If Apple integrates OpenAI at the OS level, then Apple devices will be banned at my companies. That is an unacceptable security violation, Musk posted on X.

In a series of tweets, Musk explains the reason behind banning iPhones in his company for the usage of OpenAI

If Apple integrates OpenAI at the OS level, then Apple devices will be banned at my companies. That is an unacceptable security violation.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 10, 2024

And visitors will have to check their Apple devices at the door, where they will be stored in a Faraday cage June 10, 2024

Its patently absurd that Apple isnt smart enough to make their own AI, yet is somehow capable of ensuring that OpenAI will protect your security & privacy!



Apple has no clue whats actually going on once they hand your data over to OpenAI. Theyre selling you down the river.  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 10, 2024

Musk also shared a hillarious Indian meme on how the 'Apple Intelligence Works'

The meme is a viral retake on the 2017 Tamil movie 'Thappattam' poster that has two people drinking coconut water using a straw that passes from another one's mouth. However, Musk cleverly used the meme to show how privacy will be compromised with the iPhone ChatGPT deal.

Happy with the meme, for now making it known across the world, movie producer Adham Bava has thanked Musk. Bava wrote on X, "My thanks to Elon Musk for making my movie "Thappattam" poster world-famous."

My thanks to Elon Musk for making my movie thappattam poster world famous..___@elonmusk https://t.co/LRQ7teFgzn pic.twitter.com/pg9DRMImFa  Adham Bava (@adham_bava) June 11, 2024

At its World Wide Developers Conference (WWDC 2024), Apple announced that it is going to integrate ChatGPT with Siri. Apple said that it is integrating ChatGPT access into experiences within iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia, allowing users to access its expertise  as well as its image- and document-understanding capabilities  without needing to jump between tools.

"Siri can tap into ChatGPTs expertise when helpful. Users are asked before any questions are sent to ChatGPT, along with any documents or photos, and Siri then presents the answer directly," the company said.

Also, ChatGPT will be available in Apples systemwide Writing Tools, which help users generate content for anything they are writing about.
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- China has issued an orange alert for mountain torrents in Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, with authorities advising preparations against natural disasters.

In a joint statement, the Ministry of Water Resources and the China Meteorological Administration on Thursday evening warned of high possibilities of disasters triggered by mountain torrents in northern Guangxi, highlighting specific areas in particular.

Mountain torrents may also occur in other areas due to heavy rainfall over a short period of time, the statement said.

All localities are advised to take preventive measures such as real-time monitoring, issuing flood prevention warnings, and undertaking relocation work to ensure safety.

China has a four-tier weather warning system for floods, with red representing the most severe warning, followed by orange, yellow and blue.

In a separate update, the National Meteorological Center on Thursday evening reissued a yellow alert for severe convective weather, forecasting thunderstorms, gales and hail in many parts of the country. This is expected to affect some parts of Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, Shanxi, Hebei, Beijing, Tianjin, Shandong, Henan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Fujian, Guizhou, Guangxi and Guangdong. 
The World Blood Donor Day is observed on June 14 of every year all over the world. It is a crucial event established by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC) to promote awareness about the need for safe blood and blood products.

History:

In 1940, a scientist called Richard Lower performed a blood transfusion between two dogs without any ill effects. This breakthrough allowed the development of modern blood transfusion techniques and made blood donation and transfusion a regular procedure in the healthcare sector.

The date was chosen to honor the birth anniversary of Karl Landsteiner, the Nobel Prize-winning Austrian immunologist who discovered the ABO blood group system, which revolutionized blood transfusion practices. From that day onwards, the day has been celebrated as World Blood Donor Day.

Theme:

Each year, the celebration is marked by a specific theme that highlights different aspects of blood donation, the theme of this year is "20 years of celebrating giving: thank you, blood donors!. The theme is to get more individuals to routinely donate blood and to express gratitude and support to the volunteers for giving freely of their blood in exchange for gifts that can save lives. On this day, people are inspired to give blood, save lives, and spread awareness of the advantages of doing so.

Significance:

According to WHOs official website The 20th anniversary of World Blood Donor Day is an excellent and timely opportunity to thank blood donors across the world for their life-saving donations over the years and honour the profound impact on both patients and donors. It is also a timely moment to address continued challenges, and accelerate progress towards a future where safe blood transfusion is universally accessible.

Around the world, events are planned to honor this day. Hospitals, blood banks, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) organize blood donation drives to promote and facilitate donations. To reduce transfusion-transmitted illnesses, public health initiatives strive to debunk myths, inform the public about the advantages of blood donation, and encourage safe donation practices. Recognition events celebrate the lives they have saved by honoring seasoned and consistent donors.

A major factor in the success of World Blood Donor Day is community involvement. Events like conferences, workshops, and social media campaigns aid in message dissemination and audience engagement. All levels of participation are welcome, from lone contributors to local groups and governmental entities.

People can participate in World Blood Donor Day by giving blood at nearby facilities or drives, raising awareness on social media, volunteering for charitable causes, and teaching others about the value and advantages of blood donation. People throughout the world can ensure that safe blood is available whenever and wherever it is required by banding together for this cause, strengthening a feeling of common humanity and global solidarity.

On World Blood Donor Day, everyone is urged to support this life-saving initiative by highlighting the critical role that blood donation plays in saving lives.
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The following is the full text of the Joint Statement of Outcomes of the China-New Zealand Leaders' Meeting released on Thursday.

Joint Statement of Outcomes of the China-New Zealand Leaders' Meeting

1. At the invitation of Rt Hon Christopher Luxon, Prime Minister of New Zealand, His Excellency Li Qiang, Premier of the State Council of the People's Republic of China, undertook an official visit to New Zealand from 13-15 June 2024. The visit marked 10 years since the signing of the 2014 Joint Statement on the Establishment of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between China and New Zealand.

2. During the visit, Premier Li met with Her Excellency Governor-General The Rt Hon Dame Cindy Kiro. Premier Li and Prime Minister Luxon held talks during which both leaders exchanged perspectives on the China-New Zealand relationship, as well as regional and global issues of close interest to both countries.

3. The two sides reaffirmed the importance of the 1972 Joint Communique on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between China and New Zealand. New Zealand reaffirmed its commitment to its one-China Policy. Ten years on from the establishment of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, both sides acknowledged the positive development in the relationship. They undertook to deepen cooperation in line with respective national positions, such as equality, fairness, mutual respect, and mutual benefit, while continuing to manage differences and build greater understanding in the bilateral relationship, including through regular dialogue between leaders, ministers, and officials.

4. To this end both sides recommitted to regularly holding discussions on foreign affairs, trade and economics, agriculture, consular issues, law enforcement, defence, the Pacific, and human rights. They welcomed the upcoming Ministerial Climate Change Dialogue, set to take place this year. Both sides welcomed ongoing cooperation in the areas of food safety, customs, agriculture, and trade facilitation and other areas including green economy. They welcomed the importance of people-to-people exchanges to the bilateral relationship, including exchanges in education, tourism, culture, sports, science and innovation, and through Track II dialogues. They welcomed steps to facilitate further people-to-people exchanges, with China announcing a unilateral visa exemption policy to New Zealand.

5. China and New Zealand reaffirmed the importance of the United Nations (UN) Charter, and of the need for greater dialogue and consultation to address regional and global challenges. The two sides reaffirmed the importance of the rules-based multilateral trading system with WTO at its core. They also acknowledged their joint commitment to working together in relevant multilateral and regional fora and architecture including the UN, APEC, EAS, RCEP, and ASEAN-centred fora.

6. New Zealand noted China's application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) and reiterated that CPTPP remains open to accession by economics that can satisfy the three Auckland Principles. New Zealand noted the ongoing Accessions Working Group discussions in China's DEPA accession progress.

7. Prime Minister Luxon and Premier Li welcomed progress on initiatives to strengthen cooperation in areas of shared interest, including:

 Exchange of Letters on the Commencement of the Trade in Services Negotiations Based on a Negative List Approach under the China-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement;

 Export Plan Concerning Phytosanitary Requirements for the Export of Fresh Kiwiberry from New Zealand to China;

 Memorandum of Arrangement on Infant Formula Cooperation;

 Memorandum of Arrangement Concerning Cooperation on Business Environment Optimisation;

 Memorandum of Arrangement on the Patent Prosecution Highway Pilot Programme;

 Memorandum of Arrangement on Cooperation to Promote the Exchange of Bird Banding Data for Migratory Shorebirds and Seabirds;

 Exchange of Letters Confirming the Ninth Round New Zealand-China Strategic Research Alliance Recipients;

8. New Zealand side welcomed and appreciated the invitation of the Chinese side for New Zealand leaders to visit China at a mutually convenient time. 
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Song Tao, a senior Taiwan affairs official, on Thursday called on the United States to work with China to maintain cross-Strait peace and stability, oppose "Taiwan independence" and support China's reunification.

Song, head of both the Taiwan Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, made the remarks when meeting with John Thornton, co-chair of the Board of Trustees of the Asia Society, in Beijing.

Noting that the Taiwan question is the first red line that must not be crossed in China-U.S. relations, Song urged the U.S. side to be fully aware of the dangerous nature of the separatist attempts made by Taiwan's Democratic Progressive Party authorities.

Furthermore, Song said that the United States should adhere to the one-China principle and the three joint communiques between the two countries.

Thornton said that peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait align with the common interests of both the United States and China.

The two sides should enhance dialogue and mutual understanding and better manage risks, he said, pledging that the Asia Society will continue playing its role in promoting stable development of U.S.-China relations. 
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The Taiwan business community is widely anticipating strengthened industrial cooperation across the Taiwan Strait, according to a Taiwan business delegation during a visit to the Chinese mainland.

A delegation of the Third Wednesday Club visited Beijing, Tianjin and Xiong'an New Area in Hebei Province, from Monday to Thursday. The delegation was led by Lin Por-fong, chairman of the club.

Song Tao, head of both the Taiwan Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, met with the delegation in Beijing on Tuesday.

Song stressed that recognizing the one-China principle and acknowledging the fact that both sides of the Strait belong to one country and the same Chinese nation are the precondition of maintaining peace and stability across the Strait. They also constitute the basis for deepening cross-Strait exchanges and cooperation and provide guarantee for improving the wellbeing of Taiwan compatriots.

Song said the mainland will as always show respect and care for Taiwan compatriots and deliver benefits to them.

Preferential policies for Taiwan compatriots and enterprises will be improved to deepen cross-Strait integrated development in various fields, and stronger measures will be rolled out to help Taiwan youth pursue personal development on the mainland, Song added.

Lin expressed support for the peaceful development of cross-Strait relations and called for promoting economic, trade, cultural and people-to-people exchanges across the Strait on the political basis of the 1992 Consensus.

"The Taiwan business community has broad expectations for strengthening cross-Strait industrial cooperation, and we will stay confident in seeking development on the mainland," said Lin.

During their visits in Tianjin and Xiong'an, the delegation had in-depth communications with representatives from local high-tech and industrial parks, pilot free trade zone and Taiwan-funded enterprises on promoting cross-Strait innovation cooperation, deepening industrial integrated development and helping Taiwan-funded enterprises participate in local development.

Enterprises on both sides of the Strait can have more cooperation in the fields of economy, trade and sci-tech innovation, Lin said, adding that member companies of the club look forward to deepening cross-Strait industrial cooperation and delivering mutual benefit and win-win results.

Founded in 1999, the Third Wednesday Club has been committed to cross-Strait industrial exchanges and cooperation. Currently, it has 79 business conglomerates from Taiwan as its regular members. 
Mo Dianjin sells jasmine potted plants via livestream at a jasmine planting base in Hengzhou, south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, May 10, 2024. (Xinhua/Zhao Huan)

NANNING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The iconic Chinese folk song Jasmine Flower begins with the lyric "Beautiful jasmine flower." In Hengzhou City, known for cultivating 60 percent of the world's jasmine flowers, visitors are greeted with banners reading "Beautiful Hengzhou jasmine flower."

The beautiful white flowers, propelled by the surge of e-commerce that seamlessly connects cultivators with consumers, have created a thriving industry for the city in south China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region. Additionally, the industry has enticed young locals to return and start businesses in their hometown.

Hengzhou, dubbed the "hometown of jasmine in China," boasts over 80 percent of the country's total output of both jasmine flowers and jasmine tea. It's home to over 330,000 jasmine flower farmers and over 130,000 mu (about 8,666.67 hectares) of jasmine fields. Amid the rapidly evolving e-commerce landscape, livestreaming has emerged as a new driver for the sales of jasmine products.

In a cosy 12 square meter room, Mo Dianjin stood surrounded by blooming jasmine potted plants. In front of a cellphone camera, he meticulously presented each plant he held, providing detailed explanations to his livestream viewers.

"The fresh and fragrant scent of jasmine makes it a beloved home adornment. Through livestreaming, I can sell nearly 20 pots of jasmine a day. This has been made possible thanks to our stable customer base," said Mo, a senior student from Guangxi Economic and Trade Vocational Institute majoring in e-commerce. He is currently interning at a jasmine planting base in Hengzhou.

Thanks to the expansive reach of e-commerce and robust consumer demand, the jasmine industry in Hengzhou has diversified from the traditional duo of flowers and tea. It now offers a wide array of products that have boosted its added value, including potted plants, jasmine related foods and medicinal items.

Bi Donghai, general manager of the jasmine planting base Mo interns at, sources premium jasmine seedlings and old roots from local farmers, cultivating and processing them into jasmine potted plants and bonsai. Through livestreaming and online platforms, jasmine potted plants can be distributed nationwide.

A livestreamer can achieve sales exceeding 1,000 yuan (about 140.58 U.S. dollars) per day, with top performers earning a monthly income exceeding 10,000 yuan, said Bi, adding the promising financial prospect has attracted young locals to work in the industry and even drawn back those previously seeking employment outside Hengzhou.

Chen Rilian is one of the returned businessmen. "During my time working in the city Hangzhou, the frontrunner in China's e-commerce landscape, I stumbled upon this industry. So I decided to leverage e-commerce to expand the reach of jasmine flowers and tea in my hometown," said Chen, now the owner of a tea company in Hengzhou, reflecting on his decision to venture into e-commerce upon returning to Hengzhou in 2011.

Chen acknowledged that the early days of his entrepreneurial journey were tough due to the limited awareness of e-commerce at that time. "As they watched me purchase numerous sets of computers, my friends and family thought I was about to start an internet cafe."

However, through perseverance, Chen has made great progress, to the extent where he now runs his own tea processing factory and has established his own brand.

To aid more farmers in transitioning and diversifying their sales channels, Hengzhou organized various training activities to cultivate young e-commerce talents for rural industrial development and promote local products.

The number of e-commerce businesses in Hengzhou has now surpassed 6,500, an increase of over 100 compared to the same period last year. Huang Zhenwu, a local official responsible for the e-commerce business, noted that this surge has infused new vitality into rural economic development.

In 2023, the city witnessed a whopping 6.695 billion yuan in e-commerce transactions, marking a year-on-year increase of 12.17 percent. Notably, online retail sales hit 2.73 billion yuan, creating jobs and business start-ups for over 19,000 people.

The robust expansion of the e-commerce business has also spurred the enhancement of express logistics networks. In March 2023, the city's logistics express joint distribution center commenced operations. Through closer collaboration with express logistics platforms, the transportation costs of agricultural produces have continued to fall.

"We are currently promoting the use of AI digital human livestreaming technology across our entire jasmine industry chain. This not only reduces labor costs, but also improves operational efficiency," said Huang. 
UNITED NATIONS, June 12 (Xinhua) -- China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, Geng Shuang, on Wednesday urged all parties involved to refrain from actions that could further escalate tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

"The priority at this moment is for all parties to stay calm, exercise restraint, and act and speak thoughtfully," Geng told the UN Security Council briefing on the human rights issue of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), emphasizing the need for "concerted efforts" to maintain peace and stability on the Peninsula.

Geng expressed regret over the Security Council's decision to focus on the DPRK's human rights issues, noting that such actions could further complicate the already delicate situation.

"The UN Charter clearly provides that the Security Council bears the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. China has always maintained that the council is not the proper place to address human rights issues, and it should not intervene in country-specific human rights issues," he added.

"We have always opposed the politicization of human rights issues or using human rights issues as a pretext to exert pressure on other countries," the envoy said.

"Pushing the council to consider the DPRK human rights situation as a means to politicize and instrumentalize the human rights issue would only fuel the tensions and aggravate animosity," he said.

Geng criticized the United States and other countries for their roles in heightening the tensions through provocative behaviors and unilateral sanctions that affect the DPRK's humanitarian situation.

He called for a reduction in military activities and pressure tactics that undermine peace efforts.

"China stands ready to stay in close engagement with all parties to play a constructive part in advancing the political settlement of the Peninsula issue and achieving long-term peace and stability," Geng said.

The ambassador also responded to the statement from the U.S. representative claiming readiness for unconditional dialogue with the DPRK, urging the United States to match its words with actions that genuinely reflect a commitment to peace. 
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The Taiwan business community is widely anticipating strengthened industrial cooperation across the Strait, said a Taiwan business organization during a visit to the mainland.

A delegation of the Third Wednesday Club visited Beijing, Tianjin and Xiong'an New Area from Monday to Thursday. The group was led by Lin Por-fong, chairman of the club.

Song Tao, head of both the Taiwan Work Office of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Taiwan Affairs Office of the State Council, met with the delegation in Beijing on Tuesday.

Song said the mainland will as always show respect and care for Taiwan compatriots and deliver benefits to them.

Preferential policies for Taiwan compatriots and enterprises will be improved to deepen cross-Strait integrated development, and stronger measures will be rolled out to help Taiwan youth pursue personal development on the mainland, Song added.

Lin expressed support for the peaceful development of cross-Strait relations and called for promoting economic, cultural and people-to-people exchanges across the Strait on the political basis of the 1992 Consensus.

"The Taiwan business community has broad expectations for strengthening cross-Strait industrial cooperation, and we will stay confident in seeking development on the mainland," said Lin. 
Rebeca Grynspan, secretary-general of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), speaks during an interview with Xinhua in Geneva on June 10, 2024.(Xinhua/Lian Yi)

GENEVA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The Global Development Initiative (GDI) is conducive to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), said Rebeca Grynspan, secretary-general of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

The GDI is an excellent framework that aligns with the UN mission to deliver on the SDGs, especially in areas such as green development, food security and infrastructure, Grynspan told Xinhua in a recent interview in Geneva.

The GDI advocates infrastructure that "will be tailored to the needs of the population to achieve the SDGs," she noted.

As UNCTAD celebrates its 60th anniversary this year, Grynspan called for widening and deepening international cooperation. "The GDI is a contribution to that goal," she added.

UNCTAD has been a voice for strengthening development in the developing world, and it will dedicate its efforts in the future to building a more inclusive, more equitable and more sustainable international framework for the developing world, she said.

Grynspan saluted the long-standing cooperation between UNCTAD and China. "We believe in open trade; we believe in the contribution of trade and investment to development."

UNCTAD sees China as "a very important example of development in the 20th and 21st century," and "learns from China's experience," she said.

Last year, Grynspan attended the first edition of the China International Supply Chain Expo. The event shows "China's commitment to open trade" and to making trade "inclusive for the whole world," she said.

"We need to make trade and investment more inclusive, greener and more sustainable," she stressed.

Grynspan hailed China's important contributions to UNCTAD's technical cooperation programs, which help countries in digitization and trade facilitation, "so that they can participate in a more meaningful way in the international economy."

UNCTAD is one of the main organizations that support countries in cooperating in areas including trade and trade facilitation, which are important for "healthy competition and deeper cooperation," she said.

As a member-state-based organization, UNCTAD needs its members' engagement in responding to different voices and diverse situations, she said.

Grynspan also called for dialogues between the Global South and the Global North.

Headquartered in Geneva, UNCTAD was established in 1964 as an intergovernmental organization to promote the interests of developing states in world trade. 
Exhibits of Li brocade are pictured in the cultural center of Wuzhishan City, south China's Hainan Province, May 23, 2024. (Xinhua/Cheng Xiao)

HAIKOU, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Sitting on the floor, Liu Xianglan holds the traditional hand-loom in position. With the aid of long sticks, she begins weaving, passing colorful threads back and forth to create the delicate patterns of the Li brocade.

The Li brocade is a traditional textile of the Li ethnic group in the southern island province of Hainan. Dubbed the "living fossil" of the textile industry, it boasts a history of more than 3,000 years. The entire process of the Li brocade tradition includes spinning, dyeing, weaving and embroidery, and was included in the World Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2009.

Liu, 55, still remembers the first time her mom taught her how to weave, more than four decades ago.

"I was fascinated by the bright colors and vivid patterns of the brocade my mom produced, and hoped that someday I could weave those beautiful textiles myself," recalled the woman from the city of Wuzhishan, Hainan. She started learning the craft at the age of 13.

While pursuing her dream, Liu found that the number of people with this skill was falling, and only the elderly people were adept at the craft. "We shouldn't let this traditional skill get lost," she said.

In 2013, she established a center in her village dedicated to the study and practice of Li brocade weaving, with local women encouraged to join the effort of preserving this intangible cultural heritage.

The following year, she started her own company selling Li brocade products, including clothes, tapestries and bed runners, among other items.

"Many of our staff used to be farmers toiling in the fields," Liu said. "Now they have inherited these traditional skills, while boosting their incomes and living standards."

The company currently has 63 workers, 28 of whom were from impoverished families but have now shaken off poverty.

In her spare time, Liu also teaches at some vocational and primary schools. "If the children can learn about the traditional culture at an early age, it will help with continuing the inheritance of Li brocade skills," she said.

While Liu is endeavoring to preserve the tradition, 31-year-old Chen Mengli is aiming to revitalize Li brocade through innovation.

Growing up in Wuzhishan, the woman from the Li ethnic minority studied textiles technology and trade at university, before returning to her hometown to start a studio in 2014. The studio was named Bulibushe, which literally means "the house of Li brocade" but sounds like "never leave or forsake" in Mandarin.

To appeal to the younger generation, she integrated Li brocade elements into fashion designs, while keeping the prices more affordable. For instance, she has designed bags and scarves that have proved popular with young people. On Douyin, the Chinese version of TikTok, one video featuring a fashion show of Li brocade-themed dresses has attracted numerous likes.

Her studio has launched more than 100 types of creative cultural products, such as umbrellas and accessories. "The combination of Li brocade elements and current fashion trends not only retains the precious cultural heritage of our ethnic group, but also enhances the vitality of the art."

According to Liu Liting, head of Wuzhishan's cultural center, there are a total of 64 city-level inheritors of Li brocade weaving. To promote the traditional technique, the city has supported training in various forms.

In recent years, Hainan has invested heavily in opening training institutes to teach the techniques of Li brocade to local people. Since 2012, Li brocade has been introduced as a course in primary and secondary schools in the province. Local authorities have also formulated a raft of measures to strengthen the systematic protection and innovative development of Li brocade, striving to help the traditional skills survive over time.

Besides, Li brocade has appeared in the Boao Forum for Asia Annual Conference for many years in a row and has been presented as a national gift to guests at home and abroad.

"We have collaborated with an Italian institute, and the foreign teachers from there gave us lessons on the latest fashion ideas and trends," she said, adding that without innovation to keep the Li brocade in step with current fashion trends, it would be difficult for the traditional art to thrive.

Wuzhishan has sent a total of 78 people in six batches to countries including Italy, Singapore and Japan for Li brocade art demonstrations. Liu Xianglan was one of them, and looking back, she is still excited by the experience.

"Cultural exchanges like this have inspired me a lot," she said.

"My life was changed due to Li brocade," added the woman. "I will try my best to promote the skills, so as to ensure more people understand the Li culture and take the cultural heritage further." 

Chen Mengli (L) exchanges Li brocade techniques with Liu Xianglan in Wuzhishan City, south China's Hainan Province, in 2021. (Xinhua)

Liu Xianglan demonstrates Li brocade weaving techniques in Maona Village, Wuzhishan City, south China's Hainan Province, May 22, 2024. (Xinhua/Cheng Xiao)
This photo taken on June 13, 2024 shows a view in the campus of Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province. Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) is an international province-state friendship project jointly established by Wenzhou University in China's Zhejiang Province and Kean University in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Since its establishment in 2014, the WKU has exchanged more than 1,700 students with Kean University, providing opportunities for young people from both sides to explore cultural differences, break down silos and foster bilateral friendship. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

This photo taken on June 13, 2024 shows a view in the campus of Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province. Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) is an international province-state friendship project jointly established by Wenzhou University in China's Zhejiang Province and Kean University in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Since its establishment in 2014, the WKU has exchanged more than 1,700 students with Kean University, providing opportunities for young people from both sides to explore cultural differences, break down silos and foster bilateral friendship. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

Students have a class in Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, June 13, 2024. Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) is an international province-state friendship project jointly established by Wenzhou University in China's Zhejiang Province and Kean University in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Since its establishment in 2014, the WKU has exchanged more than 1,700 students with Kean University, providing opportunities for young people from both sides to explore cultural differences, break down silos and foster bilateral friendship. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

A foreign teacher of the College of Business and Public Management gives a lecture in Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, on June 13, 2024. Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) is an international province-state friendship project jointly established by Wenzhou University in China's Zhejiang Province and Kean University in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Since its establishment in 2014, the WKU has exchanged more than 1,700 students with Kean University, providing opportunities for young people from both sides to explore cultural differences, break down silos and foster bilateral friendship. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

An aerial drone photo taken on June 13, 2024 shows buildings in the campus of Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province. Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) is an international province-state friendship project jointly established by Wenzhou University in China's Zhejiang Province and Kean University in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Since its establishment in 2014, the WKU has exchanged more than 1,700 students with Kean University, providing opportunities for young people from both sides to explore cultural differences, break down silos and foster bilateral friendship. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

An aerial drone photo taken on June 13, 2024 shows the buildings in the campus of Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province. Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) is an international province-state friendship project jointly established by Wenzhou University in China's Zhejiang Province and Kean University in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Since its establishment in 2014, the WKU has exchanged more than 1,700 students with Kean University, providing opportunities for young people from both sides to explore cultural differences, break down silos and foster bilateral friendship. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

A foreign teacher of the College of Business and Public Management gives a lecture in Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province, on June 13, 2024. Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) is an international province-state friendship project jointly established by Wenzhou University in China's Zhejiang Province and Kean University in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Since its establishment in 2014, the WKU has exchanged more than 1,700 students with Kean University, providing opportunities for young people from both sides to explore cultural differences, break down silos and foster bilateral friendship. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

An aerial drone photo taken on June 13, 2024 shows buildings in the campus of Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province. Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) is an international province-state friendship project jointly established by Wenzhou University in China's Zhejiang Province and Kean University in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Since its establishment in 2014, the WKU has exchanged more than 1,700 students with Kean University, providing opportunities for young people from both sides to explore cultural differences, break down silos and foster bilateral friendship. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

A student does experiment in a biological research laboratory in Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province on June 13, 2024. Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) is an international province-state friendship project jointly established by Wenzhou University in China's Zhejiang Province and Kean University in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Since its establishment in 2014, the WKU has exchanged more than 1,700 students with Kean University, providing opportunities for young people from both sides to explore cultural differences, break down silos and foster bilateral friendship. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

This photo taken on June 13, 2024 shows a view in the campus of Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province. Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) is an international province-state friendship project jointly established by Wenzhou University in China's Zhejiang Province and Kean University in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Since its establishment in 2014, the WKU has exchanged more than 1,700 students with Kean University, providing opportunities for young people from both sides to explore cultural differences, break down silos and foster bilateral friendship. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

This photo taken on June 13, 2024 shows a view in the campus of Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province. Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) is an international province-state friendship project jointly established by Wenzhou University in China's Zhejiang Province and Kean University in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Since its establishment in 2014, the WKU has exchanged more than 1,700 students with Kean University, providing opportunities for young people from both sides to explore cultural differences, break down silos and foster bilateral friendship. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)

This photo taken on June 13, 2024 shows a signpost in the campus of Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) in Wenzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province. Wenzhou-Kean University (WKU) is an international province-state friendship project jointly established by Wenzhou University in China's Zhejiang Province and Kean University in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Since its establishment in 2014, the WKU has exchanged more than 1,700 students with Kean University, providing opportunities for young people from both sides to explore cultural differences, break down silos and foster bilateral friendship. (Xinhua/Huang Zongzhi)
Chinese Premier Li Qiang holds talks with New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon in Wellington, New Zealand, June 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Rao Aimin)

WELLINGTON, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang met with New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon here on Thursday, agreeing to expand the scope of bilateral trade and investment and deepen personnel exchanges.

During their talks, Li said his visit coincides with the 10th anniversary of President Xi Jinping's official visit to New Zealand and the establishment of China-New Zealand comprehensive strategic partnership.

Over the past 10 years, no matter how the international landscape changes, China and New Zealand have consistently adhered to mutual respect, inclusiveness, cooperation and joint development, promoting bilateral relations to achieve substantial progress, and creating multiple "firsts" in bilateral cooperation, he said.

China is willing to work with New Zealand to continue their traditional friendship, enhance the spirit of "striving to be the first," jointly stimulate growth, and make efforts to upgrade the China-New Zealand comprehensive strategic partnership to bring more benefits to their people, Li added.

Li said that the respective development of China and New Zealand is an opportunity for each other rather than a challenge, calling on the two countries to continue as partners of mutual respect, mutual trust and mutual benefit that learn from each other and foster unity and coordination.

China stands ready to work with New Zealand in continuously expanding trade, exploring cooperation potential in sectors including digital economy, green economy, new energy vehicles and creative industry, and jointly promoting regional economic cooperation, said the Chinese premier.

He also called on New Zealand and China to eliminate non-economic disruptions in their economic and trade relations to provide businesses with stable expectations and a favorable business environment, adding that China welcomes more investment from New Zealand enterprises.

Noting that China is willing to deepen cultural and people-to-people exchanges with New Zealand, Li said China will include New Zealand in the list of unilateral visa-free countries and expressed the hope for New Zealand to facilitate easier travel for Chinese citizens visiting the country.

China and New Zealand are both firm supporters of multilateralism, free trade and an open world economy, Li said, calling on the two nations to strengthen communication and coordination in multilateral fields, and promote all parties to stick together through thick and thin for win-win cooperation. 

Chinese Premier Li Qiang holds talks with New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon in Wellington, New Zealand, June 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao)
SYDNEY, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Two police officers have been charged after assaulting a 92-year-old man in Sydney's southwest earlier this year.

Australia's New South Wales (NSW) Police Force issued a statement on Thursday, confirming that officers responded to reports of a domestic incident at a property at Campbell Street in Picton after 8:45 p.m. local time on Jan. 21.

The 92-year-old man received injuries, including a fracture to his right elbow and significant bruising to his head and arms, as a result of an interaction with the officers.

A male senior constable and a male constable were served court attendance notices for assault occasioning actual bodily harm, with the latter also facing an additional charge of assault.

One of the officers is expected to face a local court in July, while the other will appear at a court in August.

During a press conference held on Thursday afternoon, NSW Police Commissioner Karen Webb revealed that the 92-year-old male was injured when officers tried to arrest him with handcuffs.

"The very next day, an internal investigation was commenced. As a result of that investigation, it has culminated in those charges last night. Those officers are now before the court and are currently suspended from duty," said Webb.

The commissioner also noted that the wife of the 92-year-old man appeared to suffer from dementia, but it was "too hard to say" whether a domestic violence matter occurred inside the home. 
President of Xinhua News Agency Fu Hua meets with Paul Bascobert, president of Reuters, in New York, the United States, June 12, 2024. Fu Hua on Wednesday met here with Paul Bascobert on promoting cooperation and topics of mutual interest. (Xinhua/Li Rui)

NEW YORK, June 13 (Xinhua) -- President of Xinhua News Agency Fu Hua on Wednesday met here with Paul Bascobert, president of Reuters, on promoting cooperation and topics of mutual interest.

Building upon bilateral cooperation in nearly 70 years, the two sides have seen frequent high-level exchanges and new developments in cooperation in recent years, said Fu, who heads a delegation in the United States.

Fu expressed his hope that the two organizations reinforce mutually beneficial cooperation on the utilization of emerging technologies, international news services, and others.

Bascobert said the two sides jointly built the World Media Summit, which became a very important conference for the media industry, and he looks forward to sharing the latest developments of artificial intelligence in the industry at the next World Media Summit.

Bascobert noted the importance of working together and helping to guide different cultures toward mutual understanding.

The two sides also exchanged ideas on artificial intelligence, video services, and opportunities in tourism promotion. 
Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with New Zealand's Governor-General Cindy Kiro in Wellington, New Zealand, June 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao)

WELLINGTON, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Chinese Premier Li Qiang on Thursday called on China and New Zealand to always stay as partners for common development.

In his meeting with New Zealand's Governor-General Cindy Kiro, Li said China and New Zealand share similar development concepts, cultural values and international propositions, adding that the two countries have benefited from each other's development over the years.

Conveying cordial greetings from President Xi Jinping to Kiro, Li noted that the friendship between the two countries has remained vibrant and bilateral ties have made significant progress since the establishment of diplomatic ties 52 years ago.

This visit, coinciding with the 10th anniversary of the China-New Zealand comprehensive strategic partnership, is a trip of friendship and cooperation, said Li.

China is ready to work with New Zealand to jointly update the comprehensive strategic partnership and bring more benefits to the people of the two countries and the world, he added.

China is willing to further strengthen the bonds of cooperation with New Zealand, enhance people-to-people exchanges in such areas as education and culture, expand personnel exchanges, and support the people of both countries in creating more stories of friendly interactions, said Li.

Requesting Li to convey her sincere regards to Xi, Kiro said New Zealand is willing to continuously deepen cooperation with China in various fields, enhance cultural exchanges, further promote the friendship between the two peoples, and jointly address global issues such as climate change. 

Chinese Premier Li Qiang meets with New Zealand's Governor-General Cindy Kiro in Wellington, New Zealand, June 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Ding Haitao)
SEOUL, June 13 (Xinhua) -- South Korea's financial regulator on Thursday decided to extend a ban on stock short-selling for nine months in a bid to wait for the establishment of a computerized monitoring system on illegal short sales.

The prohibition of short-selling on all the listed stocks, which was launched in November 2023 and was originally scheduled to expire at the end of June, will be extended until March 30, 2025, according to the Financial Services Commission (FSC).

The FSC said in a statement that if stock short-selling is resumed without the establishment of a computerized monitoring system, large-scale illegal short sales could be repeated.

The financial watchdog uncovered naked short-selling orders worth 211.2 billion won (153.8 billion U.S. dollars) that had been made before the launch of the short-selling ban.

Short-selling refers to sale of stocks by borrowing them in anticipation of price fall, before repaying the borrowed shares when the price goes down. It has been seen as one of main culprits for the stock market rout.

Naked short-selling is considered illegal here as it gives selling orders without borrowing stocks.

The financial authorities planned to encourage institutional investors to develop its own monitoring system on stock short sales by the end of this year.

The authorities will build the Naked Short-Selling Detecting System, which allows the bourse operator Korea Exchange to monitor the stock short-selling by institutional investors by the end of March 2025. 
BRUSSELS, June 13 (Xinhua) -- An explosion devastated an apartment building in Belgium's third largest city of Antwerp Thursday morning, killing at least one people and injuring six others, according to Antwerp police.

The cause of the explosion, which rocked a four-story building and completely blew away the top two floors, remains unknown for now. Firefighters are continuing to search for victims.

Due to the damage caused by the explosion, the tram line is out of service for the entire day and buses cannot circulate either. Additionally, the building is unstable, impeding the rescue efforts. 
SOFIA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The coalition of the GERB Party and Union of Democratic Forces (GERB-UDF) won Bulgaria's early parliamentary elections, according to results published by the country's Central Election Commission (CEC) on Thursday evening.

According to the results, GERB-UDF will have 68 seats in the 240-member National Assembly after Sunday's elections. In second place, the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF) gained 47 seats, the CEC said.

Five more political formations have managed to enter the legislature. They include We Continue the Change - Democratic Bulgaria (PP-DB) coalition, which will have 39 seats, Revival party (38 seats), BSP for Bulgaria coalition (19 seats), There Is Such People (ITN) party (16 seats), and the Greatness party (13 seats.)

Under Bulgaria's Constitution, the country's president should appoint a prime minister-designate nominated by the largest parliamentary group to form a new government.

The government is elected by a majority of more than half of the present members of the parliament (MPs).

If negotiations fail, the constitution allows two further attempts to form a government by the second-largest group, and by one of the others.

The previous parliamentary elections were held in April 2023.

After former Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov's resignation on March 5 this year, the failure to form a new government led to the parliamentary elections on June 9. 
JUBA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The African Development Bank Group (AfDB) announced on Thursday that it has approved an 8.6-million-U.S. dollar grant for South Sudan to enhance non-oil revenue mobilization.

The funding will be provided through the African Development Fund (ADF), with 6.62 million dollars from the ADF's concessional window and 1.98 million dollars from the ADF's Transition Support Facility.

The project aims to procure IT equipment for the tax authorities, with officials receiving technical assistance and on-the-job support from embedded advisors.

Themba Bhebhe, the bank's country manager for South Sudan, said that the second phase of the non-oil revenue mobilization and accountability project (NORMA II) will strengthen the capacity of South Sudan's National Revenue Authority (SSRA) in revenue mobilization and accountability. This phase complements the ongoing Bank-supported NORMA I project and the institutional support project for enhancing economic governance in South Sudan.

Key interventions under NORMA II include developing the SSRA's IT systems to improve revenue administration, tax collection, and tax compliance.

The project also aims to enhance tax audits and investigations, including studies of taxpayer perceptions. Additionally, NORMA II seeks to expand the implementation of existing tax policies and explore new areas to broaden the tax base, including value-added tax, hotel tax, and property tax.

Furthermore, the bank said the project will consolidate training for project personnel from the first phase. South Sudan's National Revenue Authority and the Ministry of Finance and Planning will also receive technical assistance to enhance their ability to mobilize non-oil revenue and acquire equipment for internal training. 
KIGALI, June 13 (Xinhua) -- About 1,000 military and police personnel from four partner states of the East African Community (EAC) regional bloc on Thursday began a two-week joint military training exercise in eastern Rwanda.

The 13th edition of the EAC Armed Forces Field Training Exercise, code named Ushirikiano Imara, was launched at Rwanda Military Academy in Gako in Bugesera district under the theme, "Strengthening the security sector integration and harnessing common interests consistent with EAC regional peace and stability."

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Rwandan Minister of Defense Juvenal Marizamunda called for collaborative efforts within the region in view of contemporary security challenges.

"The importance of security in regional integration cannot be overstated. Indeed, no country can confront contemporary security challenges single-handedly. It is therefore essential for countries to come together as a region to address these security challenges collectively," he said.

He noted that the exercise presents an opportunity to bolster partnerships and interoperability, enabling the region to effectively respond to any potential threats.

The participants are from Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda. The training to run through June 26 will also be conducted in Rubavu district in western Rwanda for the maritime exercise.

Col. Deng Mayom Manyam, the defense liaison officer of the South Sudanese People's Defense Force at the EAC, who represented the bloc's secretary general at the ceremony, said that the areas of cooperation are entrenched in the protocol, focusing on four pillars including military training, joint operations, technical cooperation, visits and exchange of information.

The annual exercise aims to enhance the state of readiness and interoperability of the EAC partner states' armed forces, police, civilian components and other stakeholders in responding to complex and multidimensional security challenges, according to the Rwandan Ministry of Defense. 
LUSAKA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Zambia's state-run power utility has selected Chinese firm PowerChina International Group Limited to build a 100-megawatt solar photovoltaic project in the country's central district of Chisamba.

The project, undertaken by Kariba North Bank Extension Power Corporation, aims to enhance Zambia's power generation capacity and unlock economic opportunities for the region.

According to a statement posted on the company's Facebook page, the Chinese firm has already begun work on-site following successful environmental assessments by the Zambia Environmental Management Agency. They have completed primary clearing of 106 hectares and are currently progressing with secondary clearing and ground leveling using machinery. All project designs are finalized, awaiting final document approval from suppliers.

Minister of Energy Peter Kapala recently announced that the Zambian government is implementing short and long-term measures to mitigate the negative impact of the electricity deficit the country is facing. Among these measures is the solar project in the central part of the country, which is scheduled for completion by December this year.

Zambia is currently experiencing a power deficit due to poor rains affecting water levels in its hydropower plants. About 80 percent of the country's electricity is sourced from hydro, and the current available average generation is about 900 megawatts, significantly below the average demand of 2,400 megawatts, resulting in a power deficit of 750 megawatts as of May. 
Leaders of the G7 pose for a group photo with the skydiving flag performers at Borgo Egnazia, near the town of Fasano in Apulia Region, Italy, on June 13, 2024. The three-day 2024 Group of Seven (G7) summit kicked off Thursday in Borgo Egnazia, a resort near the town of Fasano in southern Italy's Apulia region, amid protests. (Xinhua/Li Jing)

FASANO, Italy, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The three-day 2024 Group of Seven (G7) summit kicked off Thursday in Borgo Egnazia, a resort near the town of Fasano in southern Italy's Apulia region, amid protests.

The crises in Ukraine and the Middle East and the relations with the Global South top the agenda of the summit. The management of artificial intelligence (AI), issues facing Africa and climate change are also included in the key sessions.

Italy is holding the G7 rotating presidency this year. In addition to the G7 leaders, heads of state from over ten other countries and international organizations were invited to attend the conference.

On the first day, the group discussed a draft deal for a 50-billion-U.S. dollar loan to Ukraine, using frozen Russian assets as guarantees.

In her latest response Thursday, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that G7's plans will not benefit the West and may result in new economic crisis.

The United States and Japan each signed security agreements with Ukraine, making them the last two G7 members to sign such pacts.

Protests against the G7 summit are taking place in many places near the venue.

On the opening day, in Brindisi, a city 60 km away from the venue, protesters held Palestinian flags and displayed banners with slogans such as "Boycott the G7," "Stop Destroying the Planet," and "No More War." They criticized the G7 for failing to play a positive role in environmental protection, social justice, and maintaining peace.

Lukas Hufert, an art student from Germany, traveled to participate in the protest. He told Xinhua that the G7's handling of international affairs is "full of hypocrisy," likening it to a Trojan horse that appears grand but is filled with selfish schemes inside, "offering no help to the world's vulnerable groups."

The G7 comprises Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, and Japan. 

Leaders of the G7 pose for a group photo with the skydiving flag performers at Borgo Egnazia, near the town of Fasano in Apulia Region, Italy, on June 13, 2024. The three-day 2024 Group of Seven (G7) summit kicked off Thursday in Borgo Egnazia, a resort near the town of Fasano in southern Italy's Apulia region, amid protests. (Xinhua/Li Jing)
CAIRO, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Violence raged in Gaza on Wednesday as U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrapped up a disappointing Middle East tour to broker a truce between Israel and Hamas with little outcomes.

Blinken's visit followed U.S. President Joe Biden's new ceasefire proposal presented on May 31. However, more hurdles emerged for the proposal after the U.S. top diplomat failed to bridge the differences between the warring sides during his eighth trip to the region since the outbreak of the conflict.

PRESSURE ON HAMAS FAILS

Before leaving Egypt on Monday, Blinken asserted that Israel had accepted the ceasefire proposal, supported by regional countries, even though Israel has not publicly confirmed this. Blinken emphasized that the immediate priority was to pressure Hamas to accept the proposal, calling Hamas "the only obstacle" to a ceasefire.

On Tuesday, Hamas responded through mediators in Qatar and Egypt, proposing modifications. This angered Israel, which claimed Hamas's response was a rejection. In Doha on Wednesday, Blinken acknowledged some of Hamas's amendments as feasible but labeled others "unworkable."

Hamas later denied suggesting new ideas, stating, "all we did was to reaffirm our commitment to what was presented on May 5 by the mediators, and we did not discuss any new ideas or proposals."

"Blinken's visit evaded real issues and aimed to pressure Palestinians. It is merely a reaffirmation of U.S. support for Israel, continuing its role as a disruptor," Palestinian political analyst Hussam Al-Dajani told Xinhua.

LACK OF JUSTICE

Analysts argue that Washington's lack of neutrality undermines its role as an effective mediator in the conflict. As the U.S. ceasefire proposal faces fallout, Blinken is quick to blame Hamas.

In Qatar, the final stop of his visit, the U.S. top diplomat continued his criticism of Hamas during a joint press conference with Qatar's Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani.

"I think it will be clear to everyone around the world, that it's on them and that they will have made a choice to continue a war that they started," said Blinken.

Al-Thani diverged from Blinken's stance, suggesting that pressures should be applied to both sides. He cited Israeli actions over the past month, including the Rafah offensive and inconsistent statements from Israeli officials, as hindrances to ceasefire efforts.

Mokhtar Ghobashy, secretary general of the Al-Farabi Center for Political Studies in Egypt, contends that forcing Hamas into an agreement with Israel, whose government seeks to eliminate the Palestinian faction under U.S. protection, is unfair.

"The problem with the U.S. initiative is that it does not clearly commit to a ceasefire, a complete Israeli withdrawal from Gaza, or a precise timeline for Gaza's reconstruction," Ghobashy said.

Analysts also highlight that Biden, Blinken, and other U.S. officials praised Israel's rescue of four hostages on June 8, which resulted in the deaths of over 200 Palestinian civilians, which complicated ceasefire efforts as it emboldened Israel and solidified the biased stance Washington is taking.

"What exacerbates the situation is the U.S. bias towards Israel, disregarding Palestinian casualties to support its ally. The Palestinians cannot rely on the United States to act as an impartial mediator in these negotiations," Palestinian analyst Al-Dajani said.

CONFLICT RAGES ON

As Blinken visited the region, the conflict continued to escalate. On Tuesday, an Israeli strike killed a top Hezbollah commander, described by a Lebanese military source as the armed group's "most important" fighter killed since the Gaza conflicts began.

In retaliation, Hezbollah launched hundreds of rockets and missiles into northern Israel on Wednesday, causing fires but no casualties, according to the Israeli military. Hezbollah also claimed responsibility for over 10 other attacks on the Israeli military, including one involving drones.

The Israeli-Palestinian conflict that broke out on Oct. 7, 2023, has killed over 37,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The conflict has led to severe shortages of food, medicine, and other supplies in Gaza, with UN agencies warning that over 1 million people could face starvation by mid-July.

On Monday, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 2735, calling for an "immediate, comprehensive, and thorough" ceasefire in Gaza to end the eight-month conflict. However, the implementation of this resolution remains uncertain.

Palestinian political analyst Talal Okal noted that Israel did not immediately support Biden's ceasefire proposal nor respond to the Security Council resolution, suggesting that even the U.S.-submitted resolution might not be enforced.

Eyal Zisser, vice-rector of Tel Aviv University and professor of Middle Eastern and African History, stated that Israel's goal is to dismantle Hamas's military and governance capabilities, so the conflict is unlikely to end until this goal is achieved. 
HELSINKI, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Seven solar park projects in Finland have been granted a total of 27.5 million euros (29.5 million U.S. dollars) of aid from Luxembourg through the European Union's Renewable Energy Financing Mechanism (RENEWFM), according to Finnish Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment on Thursday.

This funding aims to support the construction of seven solar park projects across Finland, enhancing the nation's renewable energy infrastructure and contributing to Luxembourg's renewable energy targets, said the ministry.

Luxembourg, functioning as a "contributing country" under RENEWFM, will receive 80 percent of the renewable energy production from these projects for 15 years via statistical transfers. Finland, as the "hosting country," will oversee the projects' implementation and benefit from the energy generated, aligning with both nations' legislative frameworks.

The agreement on participation in RENEWFM signed by Finland and Luxembourg at the end of February 2023 was the first of its kind in the European Union. 
People take photos of the products on display at the China Brand Fair 2024 in Budapest, Hungary on June 13, 2024. China Brand Fair 2024 kicked off here on Thursday. The three-day event featured more than 270 companies from ten Chinese provinces and cities, showcasing a diverse range of products. (Photo by Attila Volgyi/Xinhua)

BUDAPEST, June 13 (Xinhua) -- China Brand Fair 2024 kicked off here on Thursday. The three-day event featured more than 270 companies from ten Chinese provinces and cities, showcasing a diverse range of products.

Gergely Fabian, state secretary for industrial policy and technology at Hungary's Ministry for National Economy, spoke about the longstanding economic ties between Hungary and China. "China's investment in Hungary has propelled innovation and growth across various sectors," he said.

Fabian also drew attention to the strategic importance of Hungary as a gateway to the European Union, providing access to 450 million consumers.

Chen Yiwei, minister counselor from the Chinese Embassy to Hungary, said this year's China Brand Fair will inject new momentum into Sino-Hungarian economic and trade cooperation.

Erno Peto, president of Hungarian-Chinese Chamber of Economy, highlighted the presence of EU-certified intelligent electric vehicle (EV) chargers and smaller electronic cars at the fair.

"This is the seventh time the China Brand Fair has been organized," Peto said, noting the substantial development in Chinese products. "This has become the biggest exhibition in Central Europe with the most extensive selection of Chinese brands."

Antal Musz, a 44-year-old Hungarian entrepreneur, attended the fair primarily to find business partners. He added that he is interested in finding opportunities in manufacturing within the automotive and electronics sectors. 

A man tries an electric motorbike on display at the China Brand Fair 2024 in Budapest, Hungary on June 13, 2024. China Brand Fair 2024 kicked off here on Thursday. The three-day event featured more than 270 companies from ten Chinese provinces and cities, showcasing a diverse range of products. (Photo by Attila Volgyi/Xinhua)

A man watches a drone on display at the China Brand Fair 2024 in Budapest, Hungary on June 13, 2024. China Brand Fair 2024 kicked off here on Thursday. The three-day event featured more than 270 companies from ten Chinese provinces and cities, showcasing a diverse range of products. (Photo by Attila Volgyi/Xinhua)

People watch an electric motorbike on display at the China Brand Fair 2024 in Budapest, Hungary on June 13, 2024. China Brand Fair 2024 kicked off here on Thursday. The three-day event featured more than 270 companies from ten Chinese provinces and cities, showcasing a diverse range of products. (Photo by Attila Volgyi/Xinhua)

Guests attend the opening ceremony of the China Brand Fair 2024 in Budapest, Hungary, June 13, 2024. China Brand Fair 2024 kicked off here on Thursday. The three-day event featured more than 270 companies from ten Chinese provinces and cities, showcasing a diverse range of products. (Photo by Attila Volgyi/Xinhua)

People queue at the entrance of the China Brand Fair 2024 in Budapest, Hungary on June 13, 2024. China Brand Fair 2024 kicked off here on Thursday. The three-day event featured more than 270 companies from ten Chinese provinces and cities, showcasing a diverse range of products. (Photo by Attila Volgyi/Xinhua)
UNITED NATIONS, June 13 (Xinhua) -- A high-level UN fact-finding mission to the Central Sahel wound up its Niger visit on Friday, and a UN spokesman announced a 9.5 million U.S. dollar investment in the country.

Farhan Haq, the deputy spokesman for UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, said a delegation of UN regional directors, led by Under-Secretary-General Abdoulaye Mar Dieye, the UN's special coordinator for development in the Sahel, concluded the first leg of a high-level mission to the Central Sahel.

Haq said the mission was in Niger from June 9-13, and will visit Mali next week, with a subsequent visit to Burkina Faso planned.

He said the UN delegation, including Yacoub El-Hillo, the regional director for Africa at the UN Development Coordination Office, met with Nigerien Prime Minister Ali Lamine Zeine and held substantive meetings with senior officials.

"The UN Development Programme announced an investment of 9.5 million U.S. dollars to improve access to energy in Niger, aiming to strengthen the country's energy infrastructure to meet the growing demand for sustainable and reliable energy," Haq said. 
TEHRAN, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Police have killed two main members of the Jaish al-Zulm "terrorist" group in the southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchestan during security operations in the past seven days, the official news agency IRNA reported.

The "terrorists," who sought to carry out suicide operations in Iranshahr County, were killed by the provincial police forces before being able to perpetrate any "act of terror," IRNA quoted Sistan and Baluchestan's Police Commander Doostali Jalilian as saying in an address to reporters on Thursday.

According to Jalilian, six "terrorists" have been killed by security and police forces in the province since the beginning of the current Iranian calendar year, which started on March 20.

The commander added that the provincial security and police forces had also arrested six members of "terrorist" groups involved in armed attacks on military centers in Chabahar and handed them over to judicial officials.

Jaish al-Zulm, designated as a terrorist entity by Iran, has been involved in many attacks against Iranian security forces and civilians in recent years. 
ABUJA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Dozens of suspected gunmen, including a notorious bandit leader, were killed in a recent raid by Nigerian troops in the northern state of Kaduna, the government said Thursday.

The troops raided the hideout of suspected bandits in the Idasu forest, located between Giwa and Sabuwa local government areas, and they engaged in a fierce gunfight with dozens of criminals, said Samuel Aruwan, the commissioner for internal security and home affairs in Kaduna, without specifying when the incident occurred.

"The infamous terrorist Buharin Yadi, one of the deadliest bandit leaders terrorizing northern Nigeria in the past decade, has met his bitter end at the hands of security forces," the statement said, noting that the troops rained down fire on the bandits during the gunfight, killing at least 36 of them.

The covert operation on the movement of the suspected bandits from the northwestern state of Katsina followed credible intelligence.

Yadi and his fighters had been terrorizing locals for years, the statement said, adding that the bandit leader was involved in large-scale cattle rustling, arms trading and drug trafficking.

"He had led his gang in the pillaging of communities and the slaughter and kidnapping of thousands of citizens in Kaduna and neighboring states. The merciless bandit was also known to have links with deadly terrorist groups in the northeast and northwest regions," the statement said, adding that the successful operation had brought an end to a manhunt by security forces that lasted more than five years. 
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The Second China-U.S. Track 1.5 Dialogue was held in Beijing on Thursday under the theme of "sharing perspectives and finding solutions on key and urgent issues".

Some 30 representatives from both China and the United States, including John Thornton, co-chair of the Board of Trustees of the Asia Society, attended the dialogue and had candid, in-depth and constructive exchanges.

Both sides agreed that the stable development of China-U.S. relations is in line with the interests of the two peoples and the general expectations of the international community. Both China and the United States should adhere to peaceful coexistence, avoid conflicts and confrontations, and strengthen communication and dialogue to enhance mutual understanding and trust.

The two sides should also deepen cooperation in areas such as economy, trade, climate change, health, and artificial intelligence, and expand people-to-people exchanges, especially among the youth.

Both sides recognized the need to strengthen risk management and properly handle differences, to shoulder their responsibilities as major countries in jointly addressing global challenges.

Both sides agreed to continue deepening dialogue and communication, and make efforts to promote the stable and healthy development of China-U.S. relations.

The dialogue was co-hosted by the International Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and the Asia Society of the United States. 
ADEN, Yemen, June 13 (Xinhua) -- A commercial ship flying the flag of Palau came under attack by Houthi missiles in the Gulf of Aden off Yemen's interim southern capital on Thursday, a Yemeni naval forces official told Xinhua.

An official from the pro-government naval forces, speaking anonymously, stated that the ship, MV Verbena, was hit by at least two missile projectiles while transiting the Gulf of Aden. The strike triggered a fire aboard the vessel.

The ship subsequently sent out a distress call reporting damage sustained from the missile attack, while no casualties were reported, the official confirmed.

The British Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) also received notification of the incident around 98 nautical miles east of Aden. "The Company Security Officer reports the merchant vessel has been hit by two unknown projectiles, which has resulted in a fire onboard," the UKMTO stated.

The UKMTO advised vessels operating in the area to exercise caution during transit and report any suspicious activities to authorities. The British maritime agency noted that an investigation into the attack is currently underway.

No immediate statement was issued by the Houthi militant group regarding the missile strike on the commercial vessel.

The incident came a day after the Houthis claimed to have targeted another commercial ship in the Red Sea on Wednesday using a drone boat, drones, and ballistic missiles. The group alleged the vessel sustained severe damage and was at risk of sinking.

Since November 2023, the Houthis have escalated military operations in the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb Strait, targeting ships they accuse of being Israeli or bound for Israel amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

In response to the Houthi group's increased naval attacks, the United States and Britain jointly launched a military operation on Jan. 12, conducting airstrikes and missile strikes against Houthi targets in areas under their control in Yemen.

The Houthis have vowed retaliation against the coalition operation and expanded their target to include American and British commercial and military vessels navigating the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden regions. 
MALE, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu met with Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference Bater here on Thursday.

Bater said that China and the Maldives are close neighbors that enjoy traditional friendship, stressing that China attaches great importance to the development of ties with the Maldives and is willing to work with the Maldives to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, deepen the China-Maldives comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership, and build a China-Maldives community with a shared future.

Muizzu thanked China for its long-term and valuable support for the Maldives' economic and social development, and said that the Maldives firmly adheres to the one-China principle and is committed to strengthening joint construction of the Belt and Road and practical cooperation in various fields with China. 
ALGIERS, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Algerian energy giant Sonatrach and the U.S. Chevron FEA International Ventures Ltd., on Thursday signed an agreement on developing hydrocarbon resources in the Algerian oil and gas basins of Ahnet and Berkine.

The agreement was signed in the presence of Sonatrach CEO Rachid Hachichi and Chevron's Vice President of Global Exploration Liz Schwarze, Sonatrach said in a statement.

The agreement constitutes a platform for discussion on the development of hydrocarbon resources in the two basins, with an emphasis on operational efficiency, cutting-edge techniques as well as the best practices of environment preservation and sustainability, according to the statement.

During the signing ceremony, Hachichi said that the agreement "paves the way for promising prospects in the development of the national mining sector and reflects our shared ambition to develop our country's hydrocarbon resources responsibly and sustainably."

For her part, Schwarze said Chevron is excited by the prospective synergies and partnership with Sonatrach, describing the agreement as "an important milestone" and a step towards collaboration to develop hydrocarbon resources in Algeria. 
WELLINGTON, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The north lawn of the governor-general's residence reverberated with the rhythmic chanting and powerful stamping of the Maori haka on Thursday.

Dressed in traditional attire, Maori dancers displayed prowess and strength, their synchronized movements and facial gestures creating a vibrant spectacle to welcome Chinese Premier Li Qiang, who is on an official visit to New Zealand, the first leg of his three-nation tour from June 13 to 20.

At the residence, Li met with New Zealand's Governor-General Cindy Kiro, emphasizing shared development concepts, cultural values, and international perspectives pivotal to bilateral relations.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to New Zealand and the establishment of a comprehensive strategic partnership between China and New Zealand.

Nurtured by pioneers like Rewi Alley, a dedicated New Zealander who spent six decades living and working in China until his passing in Beijing in 1987, the relationship has steadily strengthened over the past decade despite challenges in the international political landscape.

During talks with New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, Li noted that over the past 10 years, despite changes in the international landscape, China and New Zealand have consistently adhered to mutual respect, inclusiveness, cooperation, and joint development, promoting bilateral relations to achieve substantial progress and creating multiple "firsts" in bilateral cooperation.

New Zealand's positive stance is evident in being among the first Western countries to establish diplomatic ties with China and the first developed nation to sign and implement a bilateral free trade agreement with China. It also took the lead among Western developed countries in recognizing China's full market economy status.

"It's a reflection of the New Zealand culture, as well as its political position of being strongly independent without having to follow necessarily the strong influence from other countries. To recognize China in these 'first ways' is a showing of strength and independent thinking," said John Cochrane, chairman of the New Zealand China Trade Association.

Building on the spirit of "striving to be the first," China has solidified its position as New Zealand's largest trading partner and key export destination. Notably, New Zealand has long maintained a surplus in goods and services with China, encountering only three quarterly deficits in the five years ending June 2023.

To sustain this positive momentum, Li urged both countries to ensure stable expectations and a conducive business environment. He also expressed China's openness to increased investment from New Zealand. During discussions with Luxon, agreements were made to initiate negotiations on service trade negative list.

Meanwhile, cultural and people-to-people exchanges are integral to enhancing mutual understanding and fostering friendships between countries. During the talks, Li reaffirmed China's commitment to strengthening these connections with New Zealand and said China will include New Zealand in the list of unilateral visa-free countries and expressed hope for it to facilitate easier travel for Chinese citizens visiting the country.

Furthermore, China and New Zealand are staunch supporters of multilateralism, free trade, and an open global economy. Building on this shared commitment, Li called on the two nations to enhance communication and coordination in multilateral fields and to encourage all parties to jointly address challenges and opportunities, foster win-win cooperation.

"New Zealand must be an international trading nation. The more that there are open borders, and the more that there are exchanges of goods and services and technologies that can be openly traded, the better off we will all be. Open border benefits in both directions," said Cochrane.

After the meeting, Li and Luxon witnessed the signing of bilateral cooperation documents on service trade, business environment, export of agricultural and food products to China, science and technology, patent examination, and migratory bird protection, among others.

Besides New Zealand, Li will also pay official visits to Australia and Malaysia. 
TEHRAN, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Iran and Azerbaijan on Thursday held their first joint military drill in Poldasht County in the northwestern Iranian province of West Azarbaijan.

The one-day military exercise was aimed at countering terrorism and ensuring the lasting security of the Aras River, which straddles the two countries' common border and is subject to possible attacks by terrorist groups, Iran's official news agency IRNA reported.

Commenting on the drill, Deputy Commander of the Iranian Army's Ground Force for Operations Karim Cheshak said the exercise involved one battalion comprising the two countries' special and rapid reaction forces.

Cheshak said the drill consisted of four operational stages, including reconnaissance operations involving drones and helicopters, military patrol operations, ambush operations and planned heavy artillery and air strikes.

He added that the drill's most important message was to ensure regional peace and stability. 
SANAA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Houthi group on Thursday claimed responsibility for missile attacks against three ships in the Arabian Sea and the Red Sea.

"The first attack targeted the vessel Verbena in the Arabian Sea, causing damage and a fire on board," Houthi military spokesman Yahya Sarea said in a televised statement, adding the other two attacks struck Seaguardian and Athina ships in the Red Sea.

"All attacks were carried out with several ballistic and naval missiles and drones and achieved their goals successfully," he noted.

Since last November, the Houthi group, which controls much of northern Yemen, has initiated the launch of anti-ship ballistic missiles and drones targeting what it said were Israeli-linked ships transiting the Red Sea, to show solidarity with the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

In response, the U.S.-British naval coalition stationed in the area has since January conducted air raids and missile strikes against Houthi targets to deter the group, which, however, only led to an expansion of Houthi attacks to include U.S. and British commercial vessels and naval ships. 
Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee, co-chair the chairman's meeting of the China-Indonesia High-Level Dialogue Cooperation Mechanism with Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Indonesia's coordinator for cooperation with China and coordinating minister of maritime affairs and investment, in northeast China's Jilin Province, June 13, 2024. (Xinhua/Pang Xinglei)

CHANGCHUN, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Wang Yi, director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, co-chaired the chairman's meeting of the China-Indonesia High-Level Dialogue Cooperation Mechanism with Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, Indonesia's coordinator for cooperation with China and coordinating minister of maritime affairs and investment, in China's Jilin Province on Thursday.

Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, said that next year marks the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and Indonesia, and the development of bilateral relations faces new important opportunities.

China is ready to work with Indonesia to make full use of the mechanism and set a fine example for developing relations between major developing countries with high-level strategic mutual trust, complementarity in various fields, and all-round and coordinated development, Wang said.

Noting that China and Indonesia should continue to firmly support each other's core interests and major concerns, Wang said the two sides should make efforts to ensure that the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway remains a shining example of Belt and Road cooperation, advance the construction of two flagship projects, namely the Regional Comprehensive Economic Corridor and the "Two Countries, Twin Parks," expand cooperation in the three key areas of digital economy, green development and improving people's livelihoods, and push for new achievements in maritime cooperation.

Reiterating that Indonesia attaches great importance to relations with China and firmly abides by the one-China principle, Luhut said that the Indonesian side is willing to dovetail the Global Maritime Fulcrum and the Belt and Road Initiative, operate the Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway in a good manner, and strengthen bilateral cooperation in marine, fishery and other fields.

The two sides also conducted in-depth communication on international and regional issues of mutual interest. 
KIGALI, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Rwandan President Paul Kagame made a Cabinet reshuffle Wednesday night, dropping some ministers and appointing new ones.

According to a statement released by the Office of the Prime Minister, Olivier Nduhungirehe, Rwandan ambassador to the Netherlands, was named the new minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation, replacing Vincent Biruta, who was appointed minister of interior.

Yusuf Murangwa, director general of the National Institute of Statistics of Rwanda (NISR), was named the new minister of finance and economic planning. Jeanne d'Arc Mujawamariya, minister of environment, was appointed minister of public service and labor, while Valentine Uwamariya, minister of gender and family promotion, was appointed minister of environment.

The reshuffle also saw the president appoint a new minister of gender and family promotion, a new prosecutor general, a new commissioner general of the Rwanda Revenue Authority, and a new director general of the NISR. Alfred Gasana, minister of interior, was proposed as the Rwandan ambassador to the Netherlands.

Kagame made this Cabinet reshuffle ahead of the Rwandan presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for July 14 to 15. 
KAMPALA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Uganda has intensified evictions of people encroaching on wetlands as the country strives to protect these specific ecosystems and reduce the effects of climate change.

William Lubulwa, senior public relations officer of the National Environment Management Authority (NEMA), a state-owned environmental watchdog, told Xinhua in an interview late Wednesday that the agency has started demolishing structures built in wetlands.

Lubulwa said a major operation took place Wednesday at Lubigi Wetland in the central Ugandan district of Wakiso. "We gave them notices for a month, and some people vacated the place, and others refused to go. And for those who refused to leave, the NEMA helped them remove their structures," he said.

He said the NEMA will soon embark on restoring the wetland, which is critical to the ecosystem of Lake Victoria, Africa's largest freshwater body.

Joshua Karamagi, manager of the Environment Protection Force (EPF) at the NEMA, said the operation to stop people from encroaching on the wetlands is ongoing countrywide. "I urge all the wetland encroachers in Uganda to start vacating them before we reach their sites."

The EPF, launched last week, will perform functions such as 24-hour environmental monitoring, and detection and investigation of environmental crimes.

Uganda's wetland coverage has reduced to 8 percent from 13 percent of the country's land surface, according to the Ministry of Water and Environment.

Conservation experts have said because of the depletion of wetlands, parts of the country are experiencing long dry spells, leading to the destruction of crops, and weather conditions are becoming more unpredictable, leading to loss of life and property. 
KINSHASA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- At least 30 people were killed late Wednesday in an overnight attack blamed on Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels, who have recently launched a series of deadly incursions into the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a military spokesman confirmed on Thursday.

ADF rebels launched an attack in the village of Mayikengo, Lubero Territory, North Kivu Province, Mak Hazukay, the DRC military spokesman for Beni Territory, told Xinhua, confirming the ADF's first presence in Lubero Territory.

According to local sources, most of the victims, including women and children, were killed by machetes.

This attack came days after several deadly incursions by ADF rebels into the neighboring Beni Territory, which killed at least 57 on June 3-8, according to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs.

The ADF, an affiliate of the Islamic State in Central Africa, has been notorious for its violent activities in North Kivu and Ituri provinces, which have been under a state of siege since May 2021, with military and police authorities replacing the civilian administration.

Hazukay said the resurgence of ADF rebel attacks against civilians was the result of heavy operational pressure exerted jointly by the Congolese and Ugandan militaries. 
JOHANNESBURG, June 13 (Xinhua) -- South Africa's National Department of Health on Thursday announced another laboratory-confirmed case of monkeypox, also known as mpox, marking the second death linked to the disease in the country less than 24 hours after the first death was reported.

This brings the total number of monkeypox cases in South Africa to six, with two deaths in the last five weeks during the current outbreak. All cases of monkeypox have been confirmed in the provinces of Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, with the latest case occurring in KwaZulu-Natal.

Foster Mohale, the spokesperson for the department, said the latest patient who succumbed to the disease was a 38-year-old man who tested positive for mpox Wednesday after being admitted to a local hospital in KwaZulu-Natal with extensive lesions, lymphadenopathy, headache, fatigue, oral ulcers, muscle aches, and sore throat.

"The patient was unfortunately demised in KwaZulu-Natal the same day his test results came back positive," Mohale said, adding that the patient was living with HIV.

The department said it has already initiated an investigation to trace the latest cases and deaths to combat further spread.

Mpox is an infectious disease caused by the monkeypox virus. Symptoms include an unexplained acute rash and back pain, swollen lymph nodes, acute onset of fever, headache, muscle and body aches, and low energy.

The department urged those diagnosed with monkeypox to avoid contact with pregnant women, children, and immunocompromised individuals, as they may be at risk of infection. 
African National Congress (ANC) Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula (R) briefs the media after a meeting of the ANC's National Executive Committee in Cape Town, South Africa, on June 13, 2024. South Africa's ruling African National Congress (ANC) looks forward to the establishment of a government of national unity, said the party's Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula on Thursday. (Photo by Xabiso Mkhabela/Xinhua)

CAPE TOWN, June 13 (Xinhua) -- South Africa's ruling African National Congress (ANC) looks forward to the establishment of a government of national unity, said the party's Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula on Thursday.

Mbalula made the remarks on the eve of the first sitting of the National Assembly, lower house of parliament, on Friday to elect the South African president for the next five years.

"The ANC looks forward to the commencement of the seventh democratic parliament and the establishment of the government of national unity," Mbalula told a press briefing after a meeting of the ANC's National Executive Committee on Wednesday evening in Cape Town, the legislative capital of South Africa.

Mbalula said his party's negotiation team has over the past week held multiple engagements and discussions with political parties which will receive seats in the parliament, including the main opposition party Democratic Alliance, the Inkatha Freedom Party and several other small groups.

"We have reached a breakthrough on the common agreement that we need to work together, whether others call this government of national unity or they call it any other thing for that matter," he noted. "But we have agreed with these political parties that we need to gravitate to the center."

The ANC secretary-general also stressed that his party is "not going to retreat on the concept of the government of national unity, because we believe that the government of national unity, to us, represents the outcome of the elections."

"We did not get outright majority," Mbalula said. "We are in no position to govern this country alone."

"The ANC is humbled by the fact that the spirit of the engagement with all South Africa's political parties has been characterized by the common commitment to put the interests of the people first, and to ensure that our country comes together to address the common challenges it faces," he added.

In the general elections held on May 29, the ANC secured 159 out of the 400 seats in the National Assembly, for the first time falling below the 50 percent needed to maintain its 30-year-old unchallenged majority in the lower house of parliament. 

African National Congress (ANC) Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula briefs the media after a meeting of the ANC's National Executive Committee in Cape Town, South Africa, on June 13, 2024. South Africa's ruling African National Congress (ANC) looks forward to the establishment of a government of national unity, said the party's Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula on Thursday. (Photo by Xabiso Mkhabela/Xinhua)
CANBERRA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Donations and gifts to politicians, political candidates and political parties would be banned under world-leading laws proposed by the Premier of South Australia (SA).

Peter Malinauskas on Wednesday night announced plans to introduce electoral reforms that would ban electoral donations from state politics in SA.

Under the proposed laws, those found in breach of the ban would face up to 10 years in prison and a 50,000 Australian dollar (33,311 U.S. dollars) fine.

In a speech at a University of South Australia (UniSA) event, Malinauskas conceded the laws could be subject to a challenge in the High Court on constitutional grounds but said the proposal would make SA a world leader in ending the nexus between money and political power.

"We want money out of politics. We know this is not easy. These reforms may well face legal challenges," he said.

"But we are determined to deliver them, with this bill to be introduced in the parliament in the near future."

Loans to politicians, candidates and registered political parties would also be banned unless they come from a bank or other financial institution.

Funding to allow parties and candidates to contest elections, run campaigns and promote political ideas would come from the state.

New political parties and candidates would be allowed to receive donations worth up to 2,700 AUD (1,799 USD) to ensure they are not disadvantaged against established opponents.

Party membership fees will also be allowed to continue but will be capped at a maximum of 100 AUD (66.6 USD) per year.

Malinauskas promised to outlaw political donations in the lead-up to his victory in the 2022 South Australian election, saying at the time that it was a necessary move to restore trust in democracy. 
COLOMBO, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The "Palestine Aa Eku Dhivehin" telethon, organized by the Public Service Media (PSM) under Maldivian President Mohamed Muizzu's directives, has collected nearly 10 million Maldivian rufiyaa (about 650,000 U.S. dollars) in aid by the end of Wednesday, the PSM said on Thursday.

The telethon ran for 15 hours, the PSM said, adding that they received 9,390,647 rufiyaa and 31,732 dollars from various state-owned enterprises, state organizations, schools, companies and individuals.

The fund will be handed over to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East. 
This photo taken on June 13, 2024 shows the Myanmar National Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Medical Training Center in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar. The Chinese government-aided Myanmar National Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Medical Training Center was officially handed over to Myanmar on Thursday. (Photo by Myo Kyaw Soe/Xinhua)

NAY PYI TAW, Myanmar, June 13 (Xinhua) -- The Chinese government-aided Myanmar National Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Medical Training Center was officially handed over to Myanmar on Thursday.

Speaking at a handover ceremony in Nay Pyi Taw, Chinese Ambassador to Myanmar Chen Hai congratulated the completion and handover of the project, saying that the China-aided Myanmar National Center for Disease Control is a landmark project of China-Myanmar friendly cooperation and the largest aid project from China to Myanmar in recent years.

Noting that China and Myanmar have always understood and respected each other, Chen said China adheres to the people-centered development concept and will continue to adhere to the friendly policy towards Myanmar for all the Myanmar people, strengthen political mutual trust with Myanmar and deepen practical cooperation to ensure that friendly cooperation between the two countries further benefits the two peoples.

On behalf of the Myanmar government, Secretary of the State Administration Council Lt-Gen Aung Lin Dwe thanked China for the CDC project.

With the joint efforts of both countries, the China-aided CDC project has helped Myanmar's national health capacity to meet international standards and effectively improved Myanmar's ability to respond to public health challenges, he said.

Myanmar will properly maintain and operate the center and maximize its role in emergency response, training and scientific research, Aung Lin Dwe said, adding that Myanmar is willing to further deepen the comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership with China and jointly build a Myanmar-China community with a shared future.

The China-aided Myanmar National Center for Disease Control and Medical Training Center, covering an area of 40,000 square meters and a construction area of 18,000 square meters, also includes Myanmar's only biosafety level 3 laboratory. 

This photo taken on June 13, 2024 shows the Myanmar National Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Medical Training Center in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar. The Chinese government-aided Myanmar National Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Medical Training Center was officially handed over to Myanmar on Thursday. (Photo by Myo Kyaw Soe/Xinhua)

Secretary of Myanmar's State Administration Council Lt-Gen Aung Lin Dwe speaks during the handover ceremony of the Myanmar National Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Medical Training Center in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar, June 13, 2024. The Chinese government-aided Myanmar National Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Medical Training Center was officially handed over to Myanmar on Thursday. (Photo by Myo Kyaw Soe/Xinhua)

The handover ceremony of the Myanmar National Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Medical Training Center is held in Nay Pyi Taw, Myanmar, June 13, 2024. The Chinese government-aided Myanmar National Center for Disease Control (CDC) and Medical Training Center was officially handed over to Myanmar on Thursday. (Photo by Myo Kyaw Soe/Xinhua)
TOKYO, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Major tourism-related institutions from China and Japan have held a seminar on tourism cooperation in the Japanese city of Nagoya, seeking to further strengthen the cultural and tourism cooperation between the two countries in the future.

At the seminar held on Tuesday, China's Jiangsu Province and Dunhuang City and Japan's Aichi Prefecture, Ishikawa Prefecture and Gifu City introduced their local tourism and cultural resources. More than 180 people attended the event, including representatives of tourism-related enterprises and institutions of China and Japan and people from bilateral friendship groups.

Yang Xian, Chinese consul general in Nagoya, said in her speech that cultural and tourism exchanges between China and Japan are an important form of mutual learning among civilizations and an important bridge to promote the building of China-Japan relations that meet the requirements of the new era.

The seminar reflected the expectation of the central region of Japan and the local provinces and cities in China to strengthen exchanges and cooperation, Yang said, adding it is hoped that the event would enhance the mutual understanding between the two peoples and promote deeper people-to-people exchanges and mutually beneficial cooperation in a wider range of fields.

Ouyang An, director of Tokyo office of the China National Tourism Office, said that through cultural and tourism exchanges, Chinese and Japanese people can visit each other's countries and not only experience different cultural histories, but also feel the warmth and friendliness of the people.

Japanese guests including Aichi Governor Hideaki Omura and Yoshinobu Ota, tourism director at Chubu District Transport Bureau of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, attended the seminar. They said the central region of Japan has long attached great importance to relations with China, and the two sides have frequent friendly exchanges, active cultural exchanges and close economic and trade cooperation, noting central Japan is willing to actively leverage its local advantages to further strengthen friendly exchanges with various parts of China, deepen cultural and tourism cooperation, and expand personnel exchanges.

Representatives from Japan's travel agencies also said that the richness and quality of China's tourism resources are among the best in the world, and they are exploring how to make good use of social media to showcase the charm of modern China to Japanese young people. 
WELLINGTON, June 13 (Xinhua) -- New Zealand is committed to working closely with Timor-Leste to support its prosperity and resilience, as this year marks the 25th anniversary of New Zealand sending peacekeepers to Timor-Leste, New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said on Thursday.

New Zealand has remained a close friend and partner of Timor-Leste for 25 years, and "continues to find ways to seriously promote security and prosperity in the country," said Peters, also deputy prime minister, while visiting the Timorese capital of Dili.

The visit was the first trip made by a New Zealand foreign minister in a decade.

"As our relationship matures, we look forward to deepening our commitment to the country's future prosperity and security," said Peters who announced in Dili investments by New Zealand in climate change adaptation and English language training.

Timor-Leste is the final of Peters' four-country trip to Southeast Asia, following Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines. 
BEIJING, June 13 (Xinhua) -- A Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson said on Thursday that the anti-subsidy investigation against Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) initiated by the European Commission will only boomerang, urging the EU to stop politicizing economic and trade issues.

Spokesperson Lin Jian made the remarks in response to opposing voices from Germany, Hungary, and major European automobile companies after the European Commission announced on Wednesday an increase of provisional duties levied on EV imports from China by up to 38.1 percent starting July 4.

Lin pointed out that regarding the preliminary findings released by the European Commission about the anti-subsidy investigation, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Commerce has stated China's solemn position. Chinese industry and business associations also expressed their firm opposition.

Lin emphasized that the investigation is a typical protectionist move, which ignores objective facts and disregards WTO rules in reverse of the historical trend. This will only harm others and boomerang on oneself.

"We urge the EU side to listen carefully to the objective and rational voices of all sectors, immediately correct its wrong practices, stop politicizing economic and trade issues, properly handle economic and trade frictions through dialogue and consultation, and avoid undermining mutual trust and dialogue and cooperation between China and the EU," said Lin. 
LOS ANGELES, June 13 (Xinhua) -- California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA) has urged students and staff to shelter in place after a group of pro-Palestinian protesters took over the university's student services building on Wednesday.

The protesters have been engaged in unauthorized protest activity on the lower floors of the building and barricaded the building, said Erik Frost Hollins, a university spokesperson.

President of Cal State LA Berenecea Johnson Eanes, who was appointed last year and took office this January, is stuck sheltering in place in her office on the eighth floor of the building, reported local KABC television station.

Some social media posts show protesters fortifying their barricades outside the building as they wait for Eanes to negotiate with them.

The protest came two days after 25 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested Monday by police at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Students set up a "Gaza Solidarity Encampment" at Cal State LA on May 1, calling for the university and its partners to divest from doing business with Israel.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrations have been spreading at colleges and universities across California and the country amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza. 
OTTAWA, June 13 (Xinhua) -- Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday announced 5 billion Canadian dollars (3.6 billion U.S. dollars) in funding as the country's contribution to G7 Extraordinary Revenue Acceleration (ERA) Loans, an initiative of using frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine.

At the G7 (Group of Seven) summit in Apulia, Italy, the G7 reached consensus to launch G7 ERA Loans for Ukraine in order to make approximately 69 billion Canadian dollars (50 billion U.S. dollars) in additional funding available to Ukraine by the end of the year, Trudeau said in a press release.

"Canada has long advocated for new and innovative ways to support Ukraine," said Trudeau. "Through this initiative, G7 countries would intend to bring forward the future revenues from frozen Russian sovereign assets."

According to the release, the G7 intends to provide financing that will be serviced and repaid by future flows of extraordinary revenues stemming from the immobilization of Russian sovereign assets held in the European Union and other jurisdictions.

Trudeau first proposed freezing the assets of Russia's central bank at the G7 leaders' meeting on Feb. 24, 2022, and in Budget 2022, Canada introduced the world's first legislation to allow the seizure and forfeiture of sanctioned Russian assets.

According to local media reports, the Canadian police has frozen 140 million Canadian dollars (102 million U.S. dollars) in Russian assets in Canada since February 2022, and Global Affairs Canada said it ordered the seizure of a Russian plane and a company believed to be tied to a Russian oligarch. 
Photo taken on June 12, 2024 shows barricades set up by pro-Palestinian protesters in front of the Student Services Building at California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA), in Los Angeles, California, the United States. A group of pro-Palestinian protesters took over the university's student services building, which includes the office of the university's president, on Wednesday afternoon. Some school administrators were reportedly trapped inside the building after the university urged employees to shelter in place. (Xinhua)

LOS ANGELES, June 13 (Xinhua) -- California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA), in the western U.S. state of California, announced on Thursday that all classes and operations on the university's main campus will be held remotely until further notice after a night of demonstrations over the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict in Gaza.

"Please do not come to main campus," the Los Angeles school noted in a protest action alert on its website.

A group of pro-Palestinian protesters took over the university's student services building, which includes the office of the university's president, on Wednesday afternoon. Some school administrators were reportedly trapped inside the building after the university urged employees to shelter in place.

Social media posts showed protesters fortifying their barricades outside the building at night as they waited for President of Cal State LA Berenecea Johnson Eanes to negotiate with them.

By Thursday morning, the group had dispersed from the building, but they left behind significant damage outside and inside the building, reported local KABC television station, adding that pro-Palestinian graffiti covered many windows on the ground floor, and video from inside showed shattered windows, more graffiti and debris scattered throughout.

The protest came two days after 25 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested Monday by police at the University of California, Los Angeles.

Students set up a "Gaza Solidarity Encampment" at Cal State LA on May 1, calling for the university and its partners to divest from doing business with Israel.

With 23 campuses enrolling almost 458,000 students and 53,000 faculty and staff, California State University is the largest public university system in the United States. It is one of three public higher education systems in California, which also includes the University of California and the California Community Colleges, according to the university's website. 

A person is seen near barricades set up by pro-Palestinian protesters in front of the Student Services Building at California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA), in Los Angeles, California, the United States, on June 13, 2024. A group of pro-Palestinian protesters took over the university's student services building, which includes the office of the university's president, on Wednesday afternoon. Some school administrators were reportedly trapped inside the building after the university urged employees to shelter in place. (Xinhua)

A pro-Palestinian protester sets up barricades in front of the Student Services Building with large furniture, office electronics and equipment at California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA), in Los Angeles, California, the United States, on June 13, 2024. A group of pro-Palestinian protesters took over the university's student services building, which includes the office of the university's president, on Wednesday afternoon. Some school administrators were reportedly trapped inside the building after the university urged employees to shelter in place. (Xinhua)

A person stands by barricades set up by pro-Palestinian protesters near the Student Services Building at California State University, Los Angeles (Cal State LA), in Los Angeles, California, the United States, on June 12, 2024. A group of pro-Palestinian protesters took over the university's student services building, which includes the office of the university's president, on Wednesday afternoon. Some school administrators were reportedly trapped inside the building after the university urged employees to shelter in place. (Photo by Zeng Hui/Xinhua)
For the first time in over two centuries, wild horses have galloped across the Golden Steppe of Kazakhstan, marking a historic reintroduction effort led by the Prague Zoo.

In early June, the Prague Zoo orchestrated two 18-hour airlifts of seven Przewalski's Horses from Europe to Kazakhstan. These horses, named Tessa, Wespe, Umbra, and Sary, have acclimated well to their new home on the plains, according to their caretakers.

Miroslav Bobek, director of the Prague Zoo, expressed his joy, stating, "[The mare named] Tessa was the first to run out of the transport box into the pen, then Wespe, followed by Umbra, and Sary brought the foursome to a close." He emphasized that their return to their ancestral homeland is the culmination of generations of conservation work.

Przewalski's Horse, the last remaining wild horse species, derives its name from Russian explorer Nikolai Przewalski, who first identified the species for the European scientific community. Millennia ago, these horses roamed the steppes of Central Asia but were taken to Europe and North America in the 19th and 20th centuries.

The horses that have now been reintroduced in Kazakhstan are descendants of those kept in zoos in Munich and Prague. Historical records indicate that people in northern Kazakhstan were riding and using these horses for food at least 2,000 years before the first records of domesticated horses in Europe.

Mr. Bobek highlighted the significance of this reintroduction, saying, "The seven horses that we transported here by two Czech Army planes represent the first individuals of this species in central Kazakhstan in hundreds of years."

Since World War Two, the Prague Zoo has played a central role in international efforts to save Przewalski's Horses, overseeing the "international studbook" of the breed. Unlike feral horses like the American mustang or Australian brumby, Przewalski's Horses are considered the last true wild horse species.

The reintroduction operation in Kazakhstan was meticulously planned by the Prague Zoo since 2022. The six mares and one stallion selected from various European programs were housed together in Tierpark Berlin - Berlin Zoo - for several months before their journey began.

Military airplanes transported the horses over a 6,000km route, including stopovers in Turkey and Azerbaijan, before landing at Arkalyk Airport in Kazakhstan. From there, an eight-hour drive took them to the Altyn Dala, the Kazakh name for the Golden Steppe, where they were released.

"Our goal is to slowly bring at least 40 individuals here to establish a viable population," Mr. Bobek explained. The mares and stallion were released separately to ensure genetic diversity, with the hope that they will form harems and contribute to the breeding efforts. Mr. Bobek expressed his satisfaction with achieving the zoo's long-standing dream: "Hardly anything could be a better demonstration of the purpose of modern zoos than the return of the Wild Horses."

This successful reintroduction is a testament to the dedication of conservationists and marks a significant step towards restoring biodiversity in Kazakhstan's landscapes.

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Amid a backdrop of mixed global economic signals, Germany's DAX index has shown resilience, modestly climbing by 0.32% this past week. This stability in the market underscores the potential value of investing in growth companies with high insider ownership, which often signals strong confidence from those most familiar with the company's prospects and operations.

Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In Germany

Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth pferdewetten.de (XTRA:EMH) 26.8% 75.4% Deutsche Beteiligungs (XTRA:DBAN) 35.4% 31.6% YOC (XTRA:YOC) 24.8% 22.2% NAGA Group (XTRA:N4G) 14.1% 58.1% Exasol (XTRA:EXL) 25.3% 107.4% Alelion Energy Systems (DB:2FZ) 37.4% 106.6% Stratec (XTRA:SBS) 30.9% 22% elumeo (XTRA:ELB) 25.8% 99.1% Your Family Entertainment (DB:RTV) 17.5% 116.8% Friedrich Vorwerk Group (XTRA:VH2) 18% 30.4%

Click here to see the full list of 18 stocks from our Fast Growing German Companies With High Insider Ownership screener.

Underneath we present a selection of stocks filtered out by our screen.

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Brockhaus Technologies AG operates as a private equity firm with a market capitalization of approximately 307.16 million.

Operations: Brockhaus Technologies AG generates revenue primarily through its Security Technologies and Financial Technologies segments, with contributions of 39.43 million and 153.43 million respectively.

Insider Ownership: 26.6%

Earnings Growth Forecast: 74.2% p.a.

Brockhaus Technologies, a German growth company with significant insider ownership, recently reported a shift in financial performance. In Q1 2024, revenue increased to 39.97 million from 33.89 million year-over-year, yet the firm faced a rising net loss of 1.38 million compared to 0.488 million previously. Despite these challenges, Brockhaus anticipates strong revenue growth for 2024 (between 220 million and 240 million), reflecting an optimistic outlook on organic expansion and potential profitability within three years. Additionally, the initiation of a dividend suggests confidence in sustained future earnings.

XTRA:BKHT Ownership Breakdown as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Deutsche Beteiligungs AG is a private equity and venture capital firm that focuses on direct and fund of fund investments, with a market capitalization of approximately 523.16 million.

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Operations: The company generates revenue primarily from two segments: Fund Investment Services (47.85 million) and Private Equity Investments (55.15 million).

Insider Ownership: 35.4%

Earnings Growth Forecast: 31.6% p.a.

Deutsche Beteiligungs AG, a German company with high insider ownership, has demonstrated robust growth with earnings increasing by 130.1% over the past year. It trades at 73.1% below its estimated fair value and analysts predict a significant price rise of 53.5%. Expected to outpace the German market, its revenue and earnings are forecasted to grow annually at 24.7% and 31.6%, respectively. However, its dividend coverage is weak, and return on equity is expected to be low at 17.5%. Recently, the firm initiated a share repurchase program valued at 25 million, underscoring management's confidence in its valuation.

XTRA:DBAN Ownership Breakdown as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Redcare Pharmacy NV is an online pharmacy operating across the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Switzerland, Austria, and France with a market capitalization of approximately 2.40 billion.

Operations: The company generates revenue primarily through two segments: the DACH region, contributing 1.62 billion, and other international markets, adding 0.37 billion.

Insider Ownership: 17.7%

Earnings Growth Forecast: 46.9% p.a.

Redcare Pharmacy NV, a German growth company with high insider ownership, reported a substantial increase in first-quarter sales to 560.22 million from 372.05 million year-over-year, reducing its net loss to 7.81 million from 10.22 million. Despite trading at 40.8% below its fair value and experiencing high share price volatility recently, the company is expected to grow revenue by 17% annuallyoutpacing the German market's 5.2%. Forecasted to become profitable within three years, Redcare's earnings could rise by nearly 47% per year, although it has seen some shareholder dilution over the past year.

XTRA:RDC Ownership Breakdown as at Jun 2024

Key Takeaways

Unlock our comprehensive list of 18 Fast Growing German Companies With High Insider Ownership by clicking here.

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Discover a world of investment opportunities with Simply Wall St's free app and access unparalleled stock analysis across all 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 XTRA:BKHT XTRA:DBAN and XTRA:RDC.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
Pinkypills / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Many airlines reward your loyalty with status upgrades, and reaching the highest rung can grant you access to a number of perks that can save you time and money  or just make your overall flying experience more enjoyable.

Heres a look at some of the money-saving perks you can access when you achieve elite status with your airline of choice.

See Now: 8 Tips To Fly Business Class for the Price of Economy

Up Next: How To Get $340 Per Year in Cash Back on Gas and Other Things You Already Buy

SeventyFour / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Free Seat Upgrades

Elite access often grants you free upgrades to first class, and some airlines  including Alaska  will even upgrade your travel companion for free.

Check Out: 3 Places To Travel That Are Like Hawaii but Way Cheaper

Avoid These: 9 American Travel Brands To Stay Away From

abalcazar / Getty Images

Free Checked Bags

You dont have to pay checked bag fees if you achieve elite status, which can save you a hefty amount on every flight. The number of bags you can check for free will depend on your status tier. For example, those who achieve MVP status with Alaska Airlines get two free checked bags, while those who achieve MVP Gold 100K status get three free checked bags. United offers three free checked bags to both Premier Platinum and Premier 1K status members.

Expert Advice: Barbara Corcoran: Heres Why I Never Fly First Class

kristian sekulic / Getty Images

Discounted or Free Lounge Access

Your elite status can grant you free day passes to the airport lounge and/or a discounted lounge membership with certain airlines, including Alaska.

Elena Elisseeva / Shutterstock.com

Discounts on CLEAR Plus

Some airlines offer discounts on CLEAR Plus memberships to their elite status members. For example, Alaska Airlines offers $10 off membership to all of its MVP flyers and Delta Airlines offers $40 off to those with Platinum Medallion Status.

Shutterstock.com

Free Wi-Fi

You never have to pay for Wi-Fi if youre a VIP flyer on certain airlines. For example, MVP Gold 100K members get free Wi-Fi on every Alaska Airlines flight.

BraunS / iStock.com

Free Food and Drinks

Even if you dont score a free seat upgrade, many airlines, including American Airlines, will provide free food and drinks to elite status members seated in the main cabin.

More From GOBankingRates

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: 6 Incredible Money-Saving Perks You Can Access With Elite Airline Status
Amid a fluctuating global economic landscape, the Netherlands market remains a focal point for investors seeking stability and potential growth. Recent trends in the Euronext Amsterdam have shown resilience, making it an opportune time to consider dividend stocks that can offer both yield and security in this environment.

Top 5 Dividend Stocks In The Netherlands

Name Dividend Yield Dividend Rating Acomo (ENXTAM:ACOMO) 6.55%  ABN AMRO Bank (ENXTAM:ABN) 9.57%  Randstad (ENXTAM:RAND) 4.89%  Signify (ENXTAM:LIGHT) 6.17%  Koninklijke KPN (ENXTAM:KPN) 4.36%  Koninklijke Heijmans (ENXTAM:HEIJM) 4.31% 

Click here to see the full list of 6 stocks from our Top Euronext Amsterdam Dividend Stocks screener.

Let's review some notable picks from our screened stocks.

Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: 

Overview: ABN AMRO Bank N.V. offers a range of banking products and financial services to retail, private, and business clients both in the Netherlands and globally, with a market capitalization of approximately 12.96 billion.

Operations: ABN AMRO Bank N.V. generates revenue primarily through Personal & Business Banking (4.07 billion), Corporate Banking (3.50 billion), and Wealth Management (1.59 billion).

Dividend Yield: 9.6%

ABN AMRO Bank's dividend yield stands at 9.57%, ranking in the top 25% of Dutch dividend payers. Despite its high yield, the bank has a history of unstable dividends over its 8-year payout period, with volatile payments and an unreliable growth trajectory. However, dividends are currently well-covered by earnings with a payout ratio of 47.9%, projected to remain stable at 48.5% over the next three years. Recent strategic moves include discussions to sell a stake in Neuflize Vie and form partnerships potentially enhancing financial stability but expected to only marginally impact profitability.

ENXTAM:ABN Dividend History as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: 

Overview: Koninklijke Heijmans N.V. is a Dutch company involved in property development, construction, and infrastructure projects both domestically and internationally, with a market capitalization of approximately 534.37 million.

Operations: Koninklijke Heijmans N.V. generates revenue from several key segments, including Real Estate (411.79 million), Van Wanrooij (124.76 million), Infrastructure Works (800.03 million), and Construction & Technology (1.08 billion).

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Dividend Yield: 4.3%

Koninklijke Heijmans N.V. has a dividend yield of 4.31%, which is lower than the top quartile of Dutch dividend payers at 5.47%. The company's dividends are supported by earnings and cash flows, with payout ratios of 37.1% and 59% respectively, indicating reasonable coverage. However, Heijmans' dividend history over the past decade has been unstable due to significant volatility in payments and unreliable growth patterns despite a general increase in dividends over the period. Recent corporate actions include a stock split scheduled for May 7, 2024, reflecting potential strategic adjustments ahead of its Q1 earnings report on April 25, 2024.

ENXTAM:HEIJM Dividend History as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Dividend Rating: 

Overview: Signify N.V. operates globally, offering lighting products, systems, and services across Europe, the Americas, and other regions with a market capitalization of approximately 3.16 billion.

Operations: Signify N.V. generates 0.56 billion in revenue from its conventional lighting segment.

Dividend Yield: 6.2%

Signify's dividend yield of 6.17% ranks in the top 25% of Dutch dividend payers, offering an attractive return compared to the market average of 5.47%. Despite a less than decade-long history and volatility in its dividend payments, recent financials show dividends are well-supported by both earnings and cash flows, with payout ratios at 88.1% and 32.4%, respectively. However, profit margins have declined from last year's 6.2% to current 3.4%, indicating some potential concerns on sustained profitability amidst aggressive share buyback programs totaling 11 million for employee share plans as announced on April 29, 2024.

ENXTAM:LIGHT Dividend History as at Jun 2024

Make It Happen

Click this link to deep-dive into the 6 companies within our Top Euronext Amsterdam Dividend Stocks screener.

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.

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.

Companies discussed in this article include ENXTAM:ABN ENXTAM:LIGHT and

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
HOLLAND  LG Energy is continuing to move closer to construction on its third phase.

Representatives from the company appeared before the Holland Planning Commission on Tuesday, June 11, to request the rezoning of six parcels  including 5320, 5304, 5298, 6266 and 5252 147th Ave. and a portion of another unaddressed parcel.

The company acquired the properties, and about 30 acres of land, over the last year. The house at 5298 147th Ave. is the oldest surviving house in Holland: the Old Wing Mission.

The company again reiterated their intent to preserve the home, despite rezoning, which alters the properties from Low Density Residential to Industrial. After planning commission approval, the decision now heads to Holland City Council.

An early look inside the new $1.7 billion expansion of Holland's LG Energy Solution.

Representatives also, for the first time Tuesday, gave specifics about LG's third phase project as part of a site plan review.

According to documents, the new project would add about 1.7 million square feet to the Holland campus across 15 new buildings. The new main building would be approximately 1 million square feet.

The buildings are meant to accommodate the continued expansion of the companys battery manufacturing program.

LG Holland, located off 146th Avenue near I-196, opened in 2010. In early 2022, the company announced a $1.7 billion, second phase expansion meant to create 1,000 skilled, well-paying jobs by 2025 over 1 million square feet of new space.

An early look inside the new $1.7 billion expansion of Holland's LG Energy Solution.

While construction on phase two is nearing completion, and plans for phase three are underway, the company is also starting another major project  renovations to its original 240,000-square-foot building. That project would introduce new technology and increase production capacity, for a total investment of $81,898,076.

The public voiced no shortage of concerns Tuesday, including possible runoff into local streams and drinking water, the safety of children in the area, and the impact on local roadways.

A traffic study was completed to identify any necessary improvements to surrounding roads. The study concluded only minor changes are needed.

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Residents also worry about the aesthetic of the building, which is set to be over 80 feet tall. Some would like to see the company use dirt to construct a berm "so we don't have to look at this."

Commissioners were unable to reach a set conclusion on a berm, based on elevations in the area. Despite a staff recommendation to table the matter until LG could address concerns, commissioners voted unanimously in favor of the site plan, contingent on several similar factors.

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 Contact reporter Austin Metz at ametz@hollandsentinel.com.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Additional 1.7 million-square-foot expansion plans shaping up for LG
ASHEVILLE- In its second and final vote, Asheville City Council approved a downtown Business Improvement District June 11 amid impassioned  and often frustrated  dissent. A small crowd gathered on the street to protest before the meeting, accompanied by a marching band whose drums could be heard from the meeting room.

After the vote, the sound crested from the downtown street below in a drowning, furious blare.

Jen Hampton, lead organizer with Asheville Food and Beverage United, a coalition that supports local service workers, said she couldn't shake a phrase from the initial proposal that directed those hired by the BID to address any activities deemed "out of the ordinary."

"That's kind of Asheville," she said during public comment, urging City Council to vote against the BID. "We are out of the ordinary. We are a town of creative weirdos and I hope that we can keep it that way."

Jen Hampton, of Asheville Food and Beverage Workers United, during a May Day rally at Pack Square, May 1, 2024.

What exactly did council approve?

At the meeting, council approved a resolution to guide the request for proposals for a contractor to run the BID.

The BID vote passed 6-1, with only council member Kim Roney opposing. It sets the BID boundaries and establishes the tax rate. Council adopted the resolution along the same divide. BIDs, or Municipal Service Districts, as defined by state statute, are a mechanism to supplement city services within a defined area.

It will leverage an 8-cent tax (per $100 of assessed value) on downtown property owners to fund additional services for the city's central business district. The BID is estimated to generated a $1.25 million budget, which will be approved annually by City Council.

There are 66 BIDs with a "placemaking focus" in North Carolina, according to Jason Epley, executive director of the N.C. Downtown Development Association.

For some, it felt like a foregone conclusion that the vote would pass following the 5-1 approval in the first required vote a month earlier (council member Sheneika Smith was absent).

"When the initial vote passed ... we kind of knew," said Sarah Fiori, business administrator at Crafted Edge, a downtown shop home to local knife-makers, selling artisan-made kitchen ware.

It feels like a detriment at this point, she said. Attempts to get more involved with the process  or pursue eventual representation on the board that will guide the BID  have gone mostly unanswered, she said.

Sarah Fiori, left, Sam Garner and Lucie Tremblay with shop dog Pate at The Crafted Edge on Eagle Street in Asheville, May 1, 2024.

All nearly 20 public commenters at the June 11 meeting spoke in opposition to the BID. Concerns were similar to those heard throughout the process: displacement of the city's homeless populations, uncertainty about what shape the BID would ultimately take, reluctance to see another unelected board wield taxpayer dollars and further "privatization" of public spaces.

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Despite new parameters set in the resolution, speaker Barron Northrup said the unanswered problems within the proposal "compound."

"The reason this resolution is wrong for the BID is because this BID is wrong for Asheville," Northrup said.

Before the discussion, Mayor Esther Manheimer said members of the steering committee, which helped to build the proposal, along with the Chamber of Commerce and Asheville Downtown Association and other organizations, were in support but would not be there to speak after a committee member's car was vandalized last week.

The taskforce is obviously not feeling safe and so will not be here tonight to speak on this item, she said.

People walk up Patton Avenue in Asheville, May 14, 2024.

Where did the proposal come from?

The initial BID proposal was brought by the Asheville Downtown Association and Chamber of Commerce, with "clean and safe" the slogan at its center. The Chamber contracted with an outside firm, Progressive Urban Management Associates, to conduct a feasibility study and to prepare the statutorily required BID operational plan.

BID calls were amplified, and a feasibility study funded, in spring 2023, a time that also marked escalating outcry from downtown business owners around what many felt was increasing crime in downtown.

Asheville Police Department crime data, presented in January, said citywide crime fell from 2022 to 2023, with violent crime seeing an 18% decrease and property crime down 13%.

In an April 23 presentation to a council committee, APD reported numbers continue to drop, with citywide violent crime down 9% from Jan. 1 to March 31 compared to the same time last year, and property crime down 6%.

Zach Wallace, vice president of public policy with the Chamber, said the Chamber and ADA intend to jointly respond to the RFP request.

"We are appreciative of the positive vote and the final ordinance (and) resolution," Wallace told the Citizen Times in a June 12 email. "We put forth a proposal understanding that it was a starting point and believe that the final product reflects the goals that community stakeholders have expressed throughout this process."

BID's are a "proven tool," he said, and one that "Asheville can now add to maintain and build upon the decades of investment and pride in a downtown that belongs to all of Western North Carolina."

Lucie Tremblay, shop manager at The Crafted Edge on Eagle Street, sands a cutting board, May 1, 2024, in Asheville.

'Window dressing'

The proposal's first formal visit to City Council was a public hearing held in April.

That's where Susan Griffin first spoke out. She's a downtown resident and a fierce proponent of the city's last push for a Business Improvement District in 2012. Though the district was created, the effort eventually stalled for lack of funding.

But this BID doesn't have her support.

Susan Griffin, a 20 year resident of downtown Asheville, April 24, 2024.

The biggest problem with the current proposal, she told the Citizen Times June 12, is that it's "top-down" rather than "bottom-up."

Its being imposed on the community, not brought forth by the community, really," she said. Griffin called it "window dressing," and said without stronger baselines services, it won't effect any change.

This whole process has really ignored the needs of the people who are paying for this. By that I mean downtown residents and tenants who have no one to pass the costs onto," she said.

The BID approval came the same night as that City Council passed its $250.9 million budget, which included a .63-cent property tax increase. Buncombe County's proposed budget also includes a 5% property tax hike, or 2.55 cents.

"It's a lot coming all at once," Griffin said. "At some point, youre making downtown very difficult to live in. When do we get a say?"

What does the resolution do?

The resolution was drafted by council member Maggie Ullman in the month since the initial vote. It was created with input from other council members and community stakeholders, she told the Citizen Times June 12.

Much of it, she said, is intended to ensure "public accountability." This means provisions that would ensure the BID service provider complies with all public record and open meetings laws.

It can be looked at as pressure washing and litter cleanup, she said, but also as having a more active presence downtown.

"There's people with boots on the ground you can connect with," she said of the "dedicated unarmed Community Stewards," or ambassadors, who the resolution said would receive anti-racist, mental health first-aid, de-escalation and equity training.

Motorists travel on Charlotte Street in Asheville, near the Buncombe County Courthouse, left, and City Hall, center, June 4, 2024.

"Community Stewards will provide a highly visible presence; proactively engage with the public; provide directions and assistance; offer safety escorts on an on-call basis; and connect members of the unhoused community to resources like the Community Responders, Community Paramedics, homeless service providers, etc.," the resolution said.

The original proposal floated a board weighted toward large property owners. The new resolution proposes a committee of 17 voting members to serve three-year terms:

4 Commercial Property Owners

4 Business Renters

3 Residential Property Owners

3 Residential Renters

1 Representative from the Block, the historically Black business district.

1 Representative from the Continuum of Care, a collaborative planning body leading the city's response to homelessness.

1 At-Large

Along with safety, hospitality and cleaning services, it names "special projects" among its services, including beautification, capital improvements, parking infrastructure and landscaping, Ullman said.

To me, this is a way to complement existing services to support a weird and welcoming, clean and safe downtown," she said. "By doing this, the BID gives the city dedicated funds to enhance downtown. And were doing that through public/private partnerships.

And if it isn't working? Council will be responsible for voting on both the tax rate and budget. The service provider will be required to report to council at least annually.

"If the BID is not working out as well as we hoped, it could effectively be canceled by any future council," council member Sage Turner said at the June 11 meeting. "I don't want you all to think this is forever. There is going to be chances to alter this, to improve it, to grow upon it, whatever that may look like."

More: 'Clean and safe' for who? Asheville council hears anxieties around proposed BID

More: Downtown Asheville BID approved by City Council in 5-1 vote; 1st of 2 required votes

Sarah Honosky is the city government reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times, part of the USA TODAY Network. News Tips? Email shonosky@citizentimes.com or message on Twitter at @slhonosky. Please support local, daily journalism with a subscription to the Citizen Times.

This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Asheville City Council creates downtown Business Improvement District
By Rodrigo Viga Gaier

RIO DE JANEIRO (Reuters) - The chief executive of TIM Brasil, Alberto Griselli, said on Thursday that its parent company Telecom Italia's agreement to sell its physical network could provide an additional boost for its business in Brazil.

"Brazil is the group's priority; the crown jewel," he told Reuters on the outskirts of an innovation and technology event in Rio de Janeiro.

TIM Brasil is Telecom Italia's main business, generating around 35% of its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, a percentage that will increase, according to Griselli, after U.S. investment firm KKR obtained in late May EU approval to buy Telecom Italia's fixed-line network.

TIM invests an average of 4.5 billion reais ($837.8 million) in Brazil every year and, with the possibility of having fewer restrictions from its parent company, it could have more room to invest.

"The sale overseas makes our controller deleverage; as they deleverage, we have more flexibility in our capital structure here and thus more room for maneuver," said Griselli.

On Wednesday, Moody's raised Telecom Italia's credit rating to Ba3 and maintained a positive outlook following the deal's antitrust approval.

($1 = 5.3713 reais)

(Reporting by Rodrigo Viga Gaier in Rio de Janeiro; writing by Luana Maria Benedito; Editing by Lisa Shumaker)
SINGAPORE, June 13, 2024--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Reference is made to the stock exchange announcement made by BW LPG Limited ("BW LPG" or the "Company", OSE ticker code: "BWLPG.OL", NYSE ticker code "BWLP") on 21 May 2024 regarding the notice of a court sanctioned meeting of shareholders of the Company (the "Scheme Meeting") for eligible shareholders to vote on the scheme of arrangement (the "Scheme") between the Company and its shareholders pursuant to Section 99 of the Bermuda Companies Act 1981 as amended in order to effect a discontinuance of the Company from Bermuda and continuance to Singapore and adopt the constitution of the Company which will take effect upon continuance in Singapore (the "Redomiciliation").

The Scheme Meeting was held on 12 June 2024, with the Scheme being approved by the Companys shareholders at the meeting.

There will be a subsequent court hearing on 20 June 2024 at 9:30 a.m. (Bermuda time) at which the Company shall petition the Supreme Court of Bermuda (the "Court") to sanction the Scheme (the "Sanction Hearing"). If the Scheme is sanctioned by the Court, then the Scheme will become binding on the Company and its shareholders once a copy of the court order is filed with the Registrar of Companies in Bermuda.

Shareholders of the Company are entitled to appear at the Sanction Hearing. Shareholders who wish to appear in court are encouraged to adopt one of the procedures noted on pages 14 and 15 of the Explanatory Statement of the Company in relation to the Scheme dated 21 May 2024.

The Company expects that the Redomiciliation will come into effect on or around 1 July 2024, subject to the sanction by the Court, the filing of the court order, the final approval by the Singapore Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority and the satisfaction or waiver of all conditions to the Scheme as set out in the Scheme.

About BW LPG

BW LPG is the worlds leading owner and operator of LPG vessels, owning and operating Very Large Gas Carriers (VLGC) with a total carrying capacity of over 3 million CBM. With five decades of operating experience in LPG shipping, an in-house LPG trading division and a growing presence in LPG terminal infrastructure and distribution, BW LPG offers an integrated, flexible, and reliable service to customers along the LPG value chain. More information about BW LPG can be found at https://www.bwlpg.com.

BW LPG is associated with BW Group, a leading global maritime company involved in shipping, floating infrastructure, deepwater oil & gas production, and new sustainable technologies. Founded in 1955 by Sir YK Pao, BW controls a fleet of over 490 vessels transporting oil, gas and dry commodities, with its 200 LNG and LPG ships constituting the largest gas fleet in the world. In the renewables space, the group has investments in solar, wind, batteries, biofuels and water treatment.

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This information is subject to disclosure requirements pursuant to Section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240613803163/en/

Contacts

Samantha Xu

Chief Financial Officer

E-mail: investor.relations@bwlpg.com
The introduction and rapid adoption of digital banking alternatives has transformed the way that Canadians conduct their banking.

Digital banking has become the norm in terms of how people do most of their banking. More than 4 in 10 Canadians say their use of apps and online banking has been increasing in recent years.

87% have banked online in the last year, but online banking behaviours appear to be migrating towards more app-based banking over time.

70% have used an app to do their banking, up from 65% in 2021. On average, the number of reported uses of mobile app per month is 7.4 times.

Young adults (age 18-29) are more likely to be app-centric while older adults (age 70+) do more online banking.

Phone banking has been declining. Roughly a quarter of consumers use in-person services according to the Canadian Bankers Association report.

The average number of reported bank branch visits per month dropped from 1.8 in 2021 to 1.3 in 2024.

ATMs are still in use, but frequency of use may be declining. Reported withdrawals from ATMs are, on average, 2.7 times per month in 2023. This is up from the pre-pandemic level of 2.4 times per month in 2018.

Canadians are highly satisfied with banking services

Exceptionally large numbers of Canadians are satisfied with the banking services they access from banks in Canada. 97% say that they are satisfied with online banking. 96% say that they are happy with app-based banking. Meantime, 95% are satisfied with ABM banking.

Satisfaction with these types of banking have all improved in recent years. The use of e-transfer has almost doubled in 6 years, to an average of 4 times per month in 2023.

Other key findings

40% said they will increase the use of e-transfer over the next 5 years;

Almost everyone expects to be using credit and debit cards 5 years from now;

Close to a third expect to be using some form of digital or crypto currency, down 4% from 2021, and

70% believe they will no longer be using cheques, up from 62% in 2018.

Canadian channel preferences

Banking app use has seen the biggest increase, from 9% in 2014 to 30% in 2023. Only 41% of consumers say their use of online banking has increased in recent years, compared with 46% in 2021. 48% of consumers say they have increased their use of an app in the last few years. This compares to 37% in 2021.

The reported frequency of use of tap and pay with credit and debit cards remains strong, with apparent rise in the use of debit cards from 2021. The average Canadian reports using Tap & Pay 10 times a month. Credit card and debit cards are used 8.7 times and 9.6 times a month, respectively. The use of e-transfer has increased to 4 times a month from 2.9 times in 2021.

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Online banking continues its leading position as the most common form of banking for most Canadians. But some consumers are shifting towards primarily using an app.

Online banking is the go-to channel for Canadians aged 60 and older (59% for consumers aged 60-69 and 66% for those over 70).

For those over 70, only 9% said they use an app to conduct their banking transactions.

For the age group of 18-29, 39% use an app to conduct the majority of their banking transactions. This is followed by 37% for people aged between 30 and 44.

In 2024, 70% said that they have used an app to conduct banking. Some 30% say they use an app for the majority of their banking, up from 23% in 2018.

The branch remains an important banking channel

61% of Canadians used in-branch banking in 2024, up from 57% in 2021. However, the level has not gone back to pre-pandemic levels of 67% in 2018. It is likely that it will not go back to that level.

Only 12% of customers do most of their banking at the branch. 27% plan to decrease their bank branch visits over the next five years.

Use and interest in digital currencies is down

The use of digital currencies has not advanced much in the last few years. 9% say they use cryptocurrency now, compared to 13% in 2021. 32% say that they will use alternative currency five years from now, down from 36% in 2021. 10% say they will use cryptocurrency in the future, compared to 14% in 2021. Half say they will never use cryptocurrency, up from 43% in 2021.

"How Canadians bank: Canadian Bankers Association highlights that digital banking has become the norm" 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.
Employees at a Cargill meat manufacturing site in Calgary, Canada, have unanimously agreed to strike if a sufficient pay deal is not put on the table.

100% of workers, represented by the local branch of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union (UFCW 401) have agreed to down tools.

According to the union, workers have called for new employment contracts "that address their needs in this economy" as many grapple with "an affordability crisis that has working families to make ends meet".

The next scheduled talks between the parties will take place on 20 and 21 June, Cargill told Just Food.

In a statement, the agri-food giant added that it had "worked closely with the union representing Calgary employees to negotiate an agreement".

"We have yet to reach an agreement and union members voted to authorise a potential labor disruption if one is not reached after future negotiations. This is a common part of the collective bargaining process", it said.

"We remain optimistic an agreement will be reached at those meetings, or soon after."

The endorsement of industrial action follows more than 12 months of talks to establish a new contract, according to UFCW 401.

In a statement, Thomas Hesse, UFCW 401 president said: "As one of the largest privately-owned companies in the world and an agri-business giant that posted $177bn in revenues in 2023, Cargill can certainly afford to do the right thing.

"In this affordability crisis, every hour and every dollar counts for our members," Hesse added.

"That's why reasonable wage increases and a guarantee of hours are important enough to our Cargill Case Ready members to vote this strongly for strike action."

Hesse added: "We genuinely hope Cargill will take advantage of the opportunity to do the right thing and show that they care about employees who have just sent them a very clear message about their needs".

The meatpacking factory processes private-label poultry, pork and beef products for retail customers in Canada.

UFCW 401 was asked to confirm how many Cargill case ready plant employees it represents. Cargill declined to provide further details.

Last month, strikes commenced at another Canadian Cargill case ready meats plant in Ontario.

Close to 1,000 workers staged a walkout at the Dunlop plant after 82% voted against an pay offer made by Cargill.

A company spokesperson at the time said the proposal "included a wage increase in each year of the four-year settlement, with over a 9.3% increase in year one alone, retroactive pay dating back to 1 Jan 2024, benefit enhancements and a signing bonus.

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Besides the Ontario and Calgary facilities, Cargill also owns a case ready site in Quebec in the Chambly region.

"Cargill workers back strike action at Canada meat plant" was originally created and published by Just Food, 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.
Mayor Shammas Malik discusses plans for improvements to Cascade Plaza on Wednesday in Akron. The city is set to receive $5 million in funding from the state to refurbish the parking deck beneath the plaza.

A $5 million state funding boost for Akron's Cascade Plaza will help to make the block a "hub of downtown's comeback," Mayor Shammas Malik said Wednesday.

The city is receiving money for the project from what some lawmakers have called the "super duper fund"  a one-time $700 million local project fund through which Ohio lawmakers can identify and fulfill grant requests. The fund, divided equally between both houses of the state legislature  that was created from federal money that Ohio amassed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Ohio House of Representative approved $2.5 million for Cascade Plaza in February, and the state Senate followed suit by approving a matching amount that was announced Monday.

The funds will go toward repairs to the parking structure that sits beneath the four tower buildings on the downtown plaza.

Malik told the Beacon Journal the project is an essential part of rejuvenating the city's core.

For Akron," he said, "this funding represents a significant investment in downtown redevelopment as we expand residential and retail uses, while maintaining and growing commercial office usage."

The parking structure, he noted, serves offices, residential buildings and "cultural amenities"  Akron Civic Theatre and its Knight Stage, Lock 3, Cascade Plaza and festivals on Main Street.

"The deck provides space for density to help downtown feel more lively and accessible," he said. "By making needed improvements to the deck, it will enhance its efficiency and experience. This will allow us to continue supporting growth, activity, and density in this critical corridor of downtown."

Who helped Akron secure its slice of Ohio Senate funds?

The exterior of 1 Cascade Plaza in Akron.

Malik said state Sens. Kristina Roegner (R-Hudson) and Vernon Sykes (D-Akron) championed the city's proposal in the Senate, and he thanked them for their support.

I am delighted to see that the City of Akron is receiving this crucial funding to redevelop the Cascade Plaza," Roegner said via email. "As Downtown Akron continues to experience revitalization, this project will help the entire region prosper and grow.

Sykes, also responding via email, said the project meets the special fund's objective "to invest in innovative and/or transformational projects that will maximize community development."

"The development of Cascade Plaza exceeds this objective," he added. "Its rehabilitation will provide infrastructure that will prove instrumental in the future development of our central business district.

In a release Monday, Senate Finance Committee Chairman Matt Dolan, R-Chagrin Falls, said projects selected throughout the state "return taxpayers their money through community projects" and "enhance our quality of life."

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Cascade Plaza rehab is part of plan for downtown Akron's 'comeback'

Akron Mayor Shammas Malik speaks Wednesday on plans for refurbishing Cascade Plaza, which is getting a $5 million boost through state funding.

Speaking at Cascade Plaza on Wednesday, Malik said securing the funding is a critical step for the city.

"There's tremendous opportunity, especially with the investments we've made in Main Street, (and) some of the other investments we're making, for this really to become a hub of downtown's comeback," he said.

Malik said the hope is that the redevelopment of the plaza will lead to long-term benefits for downtown.

"This investment into the foundation or superstructure can support the overall redevelopment goals of the city," he said.

The USA TODAY NETWORK Network Ohio State Bureau contributed to this report. Contact reporter Derek Kreider at DKreider@Gannett.com or 330-541-9413

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Akron's Cascade Plaza redevelopment getting $5 million from state
LONDON (Reuters) -Chery Auto, China's largest automaker by export volume, expects its planned production in Europe to help offset the impact of European Union tariffs on imports of China-made electric vehicles, a senior executive said on Thursday.

Having local production "should help us mitigate some of the impact" of duties, Charlie Zhang, vice president of Chery Auto and president of its European business, told media a day after the EU said it would impose additional tariffs of up to 38.1% tariffs on Chinese EV imports.

Under the EU's proposal, Chery's imports will incur tariffs of 21%.

In the briefing, Zhang said the company expected to start EV production at its recently-acquired Barcelona factory in Spain - its first manufacturing site in Europe - by the end of the year.

Chery and its rivals BYD and Great Wall Motor are looking to set up manufacturing and assembly plants in Europe as they aim to ramp up sales of lower-cost cars in the region to rival their European competitors amid slowing demand at home.

The Barcelona site will not be big enough to meet Chery's medium- and long-term plans for Europe, Zhang said, adding the company was looking at options for a second site. He declined to give details.

Zhang said Chery, one of several Chinese carmakers seeking a bigger footprint in Europe, was very "determined" to move ahead with its expansion plans there despite the tariffs.

The company said in March it would start selling Omoda and Jaecoo brand cars in Italy in the third quarter, making it the Chinese group's second European market.

(Reporting by Nick Carey and Josephine Mason; Editing by Jason Neely and Mark Potter)
Credit: SMIC

China's semiconductor exports are growing, but today's success might not be the clear victory that state media makes it out to be. Industry analysts believe that China's chip sector may be reaching overcapacity and that supply will dwarf demand in the coming months. That could mean we see predictions of a price war and a chip glut spurred by China's overproduction of domestically produced mature node process nodes come to fruition.

DigiTimes Asia reports on the General Administration of Customs of China's recent reports on semiconductor imports and exports, highlighting growth in both segments. In May alone, China imported $30 billion worth of integrated circuits, adding to a total of 213 billion units imported since January 2024. These units are worth an estimated $148 billion, marking a 14.9% year-over-year increase in the country's chip imports.

On the inverse, China exported 25.3 billion integrated circuits worth $12 billion. With a total export value of $62 billion since January, China's semiconductor exports have grown 21.2% year-over-year. Beyond just chips, China's computer and computer component export value has increased 6.1% year-over-year in the same period.

Chinese state media heralds these import and export increases as a major win for the Chinese tech sector. This is especially true for SMIC, which is now the world's second-largest pure-play foundry. However, a closer look at SMIC reveals some concerns for China's chip future: SMIC's most recent earnings report reveals revenue growth but falling profits. This could be attributed to increased R&D costs as SMIC breaks into new technologies, but many non-Chinese media outlets identify the cause of the decline as overcapacity.

A look at China's neighboring countries sheds more context on China's chip market's economic standing. South Korean chip exports grew to $11.4 billion in May, marking a 54.5% year-over-year increase. The United States, China's largest chip trade rival, is also growing its chip capabilities and is expected to produce 30% of the world's leading-edge chips by 2032. China's market growth is more tame compared to these actual numbers and predictions, and a recent pivot by China to legacy chip production may contribute to the possible overcapacity.

China is finding itself unable to compete on leading-edge processes. Zhang Pingan, CEO of Huawei Cloud Computing, recently spoke to this concern, saying: "The reality is that we can't introduce advanced manufacturing equipment due to U.S. sanctions, and we need to find ways to effectively utilize the 7nm semiconductors." Chinese chip production has trended much older than 7nm  China's output of legacy chips grew 40% in Q1 2024. China's money is being made off of the chips it can safely produce, but there are valid concerns that this focus is causing overcapacity as the world's industries thirst for bleeding-edge tech.

Growing Chip War sanctions and tariffs from the US are threatening China's export game more and more. The Biden administration has announced a 50% tariff on Chinese semiconductors and is considering a 25% tariff on Chinese-made GPUs and motherboards, potentially seriously hurting brands such as Asus and MSI, and Chinese exports at large. If U.S. sanctions and tariffs continue to increase, Chinese manufacturing will find itself out of safe places like legacy chip production to run to  perhaps turning overcapacity fears into stark reality.
BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese automaker Geely on Thursday expressed "great disappointment" in the European Union's decision to increase tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles, vowing "all necessary measures" to safeguard its legitimate rights.

"We call on the European Commission to carefully consider its decision, listen to the concerns of all parties, and work together to find a solution that promotes fair competition, whilst creating a constructive environment for long-term sustainable development," it said in a statement.

Geely would be subject to a 20% additional duty rate from next month as Brussels decided on additional tariffs ranging from 17.4% for BYD to 38.1% for SAIC , on top of the existing 10% car duty.

(Reporting by Beijing newsroom; Editing by Tomasz Janowski)
Escalating trade tensions in the electric vehicle (EV) sector are set to create new hurdles for Chinese carmakers. Fitch Ratings anticipates these manufacturers will respond by boosting investment in alternative markets and diversifying production to sustain growth and profitability in a shifting global environment. Increased capital expenditure and equity investments in partnerships are expected to strain cash flows.

The growing headwinds for EV exports could also intensify domestic competition, accelerating the shift towards EVs within China. This would further erode the market share of internal combustion engine vehicles (ICEVs) and hurt profitability for some Fitch-rated Chinese carmakers and their global joint venture (JV) partners.

On 12 June, the European Commission pre-disclosed provisional countervailing duties on battery electric vehicles (BEVs) imported from China, effective 4 July. This decision follows an anti-subsidy investigation initiated in October 2023.

Definitive measures may be implemented within four months and could remain in place for five years. Three Chinese automakers  BYD, Geely, and SAIC  would face countervailing duties of 17.4%, 20%, and 38.1%, respectively, in addition to the ordinary 10%. Other BEV producers might incur duties of 21% or 38.1%, depending on their cooperation with the investigation. Tesla may receive an individually calculated rate at the definitive stage.

These high tariffs threaten to undermine Chinese carmakers' growth in the EU by increasing pricing pressure and reducing competitiveness. SAIC, Geely, and BYD accounted for most Chinese-branded BEVs exported to the EU, representing 7.9% of the EU BEV market in 2023.

The total market share of China-made BEVs, including those from global brands like Tesla, Dacia, and BMW, reached 19.5% last year, according to the European Federation for Transport and Environment.

Fitch suggests that carmakers with diversified export destinations are better positioned to withstand escalating trade barriers. For example, BYDs top export markets include Brazil, Thailand, Israel, Australia, and Malaysia.

Additionally, automakers are likely to diversify production facilities globally, investing in markets with lower trade barriers and forming JVs with local partners to navigate regulatory uncertainties. This strategic shift could increase capex or equity investments in JVs, adding to cash outflows.

The European Commission's decision mirrors the US government's proposed tariff hikes under Section 301, announced in May 2024, which could increase tariffs on Chinese EVs to 100% and affect key EV supply chain inputs.

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However, the direct impact of US tariffs is currently limited, as Geelys Polestar is the only Chinese OEM exporting EVs directly to the US. Most Chinese companies have limited their direct exposure to the US market due to rising geopolitical tensions.

Despite these challenges, Chinese car exports have continued to grow, with a 34.7% rise in the number of cars exported in the first four months of 2024 compared to the previous year. Traditional ICEVs still constitute over 70% of exports, with Russia being the largest market.

The surge in plug-in hybrid vehicle exports this year could help mitigate pressure on BEV exports as trade barriers increase. Fitch also anticipates a shift towards emerging markets, with an increasing portion of sales in these markets being served by local production plants.

As trade barriers rise, the strategic responses of Chinese carmakers will be crucial in maintaining their foothold in the global EV market and navigating the complex landscape of international trade.

EU slaps import duties on Chinese EVs amid growing competition concerns

"Chinese carmakers brace for rising trade barriers in EV sector" 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.
Four years after the United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement (USMCA) was adopted, Mexico and the US face a common concern: the prospect of cheap Chinese electric vehicles dominating a fast-growing market and undermining regional carmakers like GM (GM), Ford (F), and Tesla (TSLA) in the process.

Chinese imports have already begun south of the US border. EV and plug-in hybrid imports jumped 443.9%, by value, in the first quarter compared to the same period the previous year, according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Overall, 1 in 10 cars sold in Mexico today comes from a Chinese automaker, according to Reuters, with seven new brands entering the market last year alone.

Almost overnight, we started seeing Chinese cars driving in Mexico, said Juan Carlos Baker, Mexico's former vice minister for foreign trade. In terms of how often you see them and how aggressive their marketing and sales campaigns have been on the part of Chinese cars, that is really pretty evident.

Electric taxis are being charged at a charging station in downtown Mexico City, Mexico, at night. (Getty Images) (benedek via Getty Images)

However, calls to curb Chinese EV makers in the US and Mexico have intensified recently in response to increased imports and investment. According to Baker, who played a critical role in crafting the USMCA, the threat of cheap Chinese EVs flooding the market never emerged as a concern in the two years the trade pact was being negotiated.

"I was present in every single meeting, and I don't remember once Ambassador Lighthizer or anyone at [the US Trade Representative office] saying, 'We need to make these rules of origin or other elements very strict because the Chinese are coming,'" he said.

Although Baker noted that no Chinese carmaker has started manufacturing vehicles in Mexico yet, the country's proximity to the US has raised particular alarm in Washington. Lawmakers fear auto companies will use the country as a backdoor to skirt US tariffs on Chinese car imports, which President Joe Biden raised to 100% last month.

BYD has publicly expressed its intention to set up a factory in Mexico; however, its top executive has insisted the company has no plans to enter the US market.

Mexico is 'the perfect match'

Foreign markets have taken on increased importance for Chinese firms as the domestic market matures and sales in China slow.

The early success of Chinese auto brands in Latin America offers a glimpse into their expansion strategy to build a presence in countries with a large number of free trade agreements, easy access to resources, and a labor force that offers high-quality production at a lower cost.

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You have the perfect match, said Felipe Munoz, an analyst at automotive intelligence firm Jato. 'Were talking about [a market with sales projected at] 1.2 million units per year.  This still has growth potential. And so [Mexico] is attractive for any carmaker.

Mexico is following in the path of Latin Americas largest car market, Brazil, where Chinese firms like BYD (BYDDY) and Great Wall Motor (GWLLF) have already set up manufacturing operations.

Brazil  already the fourth-largest importer of Chinese vehicles  saw new electric vehicle sales jump 91%, according to data from the Brazilian Association of Electric Vehicles. Chinese automakers BYD, Chery, and Great Wall were three of the top five car brands.

In Latin America broadly, Chinese EV makers already have 86% market share, according to Jato, in large part due to aggressive price competition.

They are applying more or less the same formula in these developing economies in the way that they are becoming the only choice to drive electric because the other ones are very expensive, said Munoz. The regulation and safety standards are not as difficult or complex in those economies.

Chinese EV manufacturer BYD, shown here at the Paris Car Show on Oct. 17, 2022, has made its plans to expand in Mexico and Latin America clear. (AP Photo/Michel Euler, File) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Revisiting trade rules

Still, Chinese car manufacturers' push to export and expand abroad has faced resistance, particularly in developed markets where lawmakers are revisiting existing trade rules in order to prevent a flood of cheap vehicle imports.

Concerns in Europe, where Chinese EVs now have roughly 7% market share, according to Jato, prompted an anti-subsidy investigation earlier this year. And on Wednesday, the EU imposed tariffs of up to 38% on Chinese EV imports.

That came weeks after Biden raised the tariff rate on imports of Chinese EVs from 25% to 100%. The tariff rate on lithium-ion batteries and battery parts also increased from 7.5% to 25%.

Duo Fu, vice president of battery markets for Rystad Energy, said that the tariff announcements have already started to shift carmakers' investment decisions away from the most developed markets.

We just dont think the US is a critical market for the Chinese at the moment, Fu said.

A man walks past a mural depicting Tesla CEO Elon Musk in Santa Catarina, Nuevo Leon state, Mexico on April 29, 2024. (ALFREDO ESTRELLA/AFP via Getty Images) (ALFREDO ESTRELLA via Getty Images)

The changing dynamics are also prompting a rethink of the USMCA two years ahead of its scheduled review. Though, new leadership in Mexico and a potential return of the Trump administration could complicate the approach to tackling Chinese EVs.

In the meantime, Baker said Chinese firms are unlikely to find a workaround to be in compliance with stringent automotive rules of origin in the existing trade agreement. The USMCA specifies that automakers have to meet three rules of origin to qualify for preferential treatment under the act: a regional value content requirement for the overall vehicle, a labor value content rule, and thresholds for automobile parts.

The Rule of Origin on cars on the USMCA is one of the most difficult things to do industry-wise, Baker said. There is no way that you can import a car from China, even if it's just knocked down and they just put it together and add a couple of things here and there and then send it to us and ... try to pass it as a Mexican car. That's just not possible.

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The most talked about and market moving research calls around Wall Street are now in one place. Here are today's research calls that investors need to know, as compiled by The Fly.



Top 5 Upgrades:



Bradesco BBI upgraded PagBank (PAGS) to Outperform from Neutral with a $16 price target. The firm cites the company's higher profitability and "attractive" valuation for the upgrade.

Janney Montgomery Scott upgraded MAA (MAA) to Buy from Neutral with a $150 fair value estimate. After meeting with management, the firm is more confident in apartment real estate investment trust's near-term operating trends, and less concerned about the new supply still pervasive in MAA's core markets.

BofA double upgraded Kimberly-Clark (KMB) to Buy from Underperform with a price target of $160, up from $115. After Kimberly-Clark's volume inflection in Q1 following two years of volume declines, the firm sees the start of a longer-term improvement taking hold.

Stephens upgraded Par Technology (PAR) to Overweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $60, up from $46. As a category leader in restaurant technology, Par is well positioned to capitalize on demand for loyalty, cloud-native POS and data-analytics solutions, the firm says, adding that it believes the sale of government subsidiaries simplifies the story and adds valuable capital flexibility.

Wolfe Research upgraded 3M (MMM) to Outperform from Peer Perform with a $125 price target. The company's new CEO Bill Brown "brings The Right Stuff to 3M," providing more confidence in the medium-term earnings outlook, the firm tells investors in a research note.

Top 5 Downgrades:



Wolfe Research downgraded Roper Technologies (ROP) to Peer Perform from Outperform without a price target. The firm finds the stock's valuation more balanced, and sees a less clear path for future estimate revisions.

Canaccord downgraded Cara Therapeutics (CARA) to Hold from Buy with a price target of $1, down from $10. The company announced that oral difelikefalin did not demonstrate meaningful clinical benefit versus placebo at any dose as part of the dose-finding Part A of its KOURAGE Phase 3 study in notalgia paresthetica. H.C. Wainwright and Needham also downgraded Cara Therapeutics to Neutral-equivalent ratings.

Barclays downgraded NextEra Energy Partners (NEP) to Underweight from Equal Weight with a price target of $25, down from $32. With limited debt capacity should the company want to stay within its credit ratings, and an "extremely high" payout ratio of 95%, NextEra has limited potential options outside a distribution cut, with a reduction of at least 45% necessary, to pay off its remaining convertible equity portfolio financings, the firm tells investors in a research note.

Janney Montgomery Scott downgraded Generac (GNRC) to Neutral from Buy with a fair value estimate of $154, up from $126, after having recently hosted a Fireside Chat with CFO York Ragen and Director of IR Kris Roseman. Following the management talks and a review of the firm's model, the firm thinks additional multiple expansion is unlikely and would like to receive additional clarity regarding the 2025-plus rollout of updated energy technology products before ratcheting up estimates.
Key Insights

Using the 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity, Coca-Cola fair value estimate is US$80.98

Current share price of US$62.88 suggests Coca-Cola is potentially 22% undervalued

Analyst price target for KO is US$67.17 which is 17% below our fair value estimate

Does the June share price for The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) reflect what it's really worth? Today, we will estimate the stock's intrinsic value by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to their present value. We will use the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model on this occasion. Models like these may appear beyond the comprehension of a lay person, but they're fairly easy to follow.

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. For those who are keen learners of equity analysis, the Simply Wall St analysis model here may be something of interest to you.

See our latest analysis for Coca-Cola

Step By Step Through The Calculation

We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. To begin with, we have to get estimates of the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

Generally we assume that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar in the future, so we need to discount the sum of these future cash flows to arrive at a present value estimate:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) forecast

2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 Levered FCF ($, Millions) US$11.1b US$12.4b US$12.2b US$13.0b US$13.9b US$14.4b US$14.8b US$15.3b US$15.7b US$16.1b Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x4 Analyst x5 Analyst x2 Analyst x2 Analyst x2 Est @ 3.59% Est @ 3.23% Est @ 2.97% Est @ 2.80% Est @ 2.67% Present Value ($, Millions) Discounted @ 6.1% US$10.5k US$11.0k US$10.2k US$10.3k US$10.3k US$10.1k US$9.8k US$9.5k US$9.2k US$8.9k

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = US$100b

After calculating the present value of future cash flows in the initial 10-year period, we need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all future cash flows beyond the first stage. 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 (2.4%) 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 6.1%.

Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2033  (1 + g)  (r  g) = US$16b (1 + 2.4%)  (6.1% 2.4%) = US$448b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= US$448b ( 1 + 6.1%)10= US$249b

The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is US$349b. To get the intrinsic value per share, we divide this by the total number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of US$62.9, the company appears a touch undervalued at a 22% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Remember though, that this is just an approximate valuation, and like any complex formula - garbage in, garbage out.

dcf

Important Assumptions

The calculation above is very dependent on two assumptions. The first is the discount rate and the other is the cash flows. If you don't agree with these result, have a go at the calculation yourself and play with the assumptions. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Coca-Cola 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 6.1%, 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 Coca-Cola

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 Beverage industry.

Dividend is low compared to the top 25% of dividend payers in the Beverage 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 American market.

Next Steps:

Although the valuation of a company is important, it shouldn't be the only metric you look at when researching a company. DCF models are not the be-all and end-all of investment valuation. Preferably you'd apply different cases and assumptions and see how they would impact the company's valuation. If a company grows at a different rate, or if its cost of equity or risk free rate changes sharply, the output can look very different. What is the reason for the share price sitting below the intrinsic value? For Coca-Cola, we've put together three essential items you should further research:

Risks: For example, we've discovered 2 warning signs for Coca-Cola that you should be aware of before investing here. Future Earnings: How does KO's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other High Quality Alternatives: Do you like a good all-rounder? Explore our interactive list of high quality stocks to get an idea of what else is out there you may be missing!

PS. The Simply Wall St app conducts a discounted cash flow valuation for every stock on the NYSE every day. If you want to find the calculation for other stocks just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
Real estate development company Diyar Al Muharraq has revealed the completion of construction on the second phase of its waterfront development, Al Naseem, in Bahrain.

In 2022, the company announced the commencement of construction on this second phase.

Ahmed Omer Trading & Contracting has supported the development of the latest phase, which includes 114 villas overlooking an inner canal.

These villas feature five types, with three to four bedrooms and a private pool, and the possibility of adding an elevator upon request.

These properties also offer residents a range of basic amenities and facilities.

Diyar Al Muharraq CEO Ahmed Ali Alammadi said: We are pleased to have completed all construction works on Phase 2 of Al Naseem. We would also like to thank Ahmed Omer Trading & Contracting for carrying out all construction works on the project.

This phase of development exemplifies the usual quality and consistency we showcase across all our residential projects. Known for its distinct concept, Al Naseem has become one of our most prominent projects, offering all the necessary requirements and facilities needed for residents to experience a comfortable and modern lifestyle.

Located in the Middle North of the Southern Island, Al Naseem covers roughly 328,000m and offers seafront views, spanning 3km along both the inner and outer canal.

Last year, the company announced the start of construction on the al-Naseem community centre in the country.

Construction is being managed by Hisham Abdelrahman Jaafar Construction while Mohamed Salahuddin Consulting Engineering Bureau will serve as the main consultant.

"Construction completes on Al Naseem developments second phase" was originally created and published by World Construction 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.
Counterpart, a US-based insurtech company specialising in management and professional liability, has collaborated with Westfield Specialty to launch an admitted management liability insurance product.

This new offering targets small businesses and, for the first time, non-profit organisations through Counterpart's broker network.

Westfield Specialty is the third A-rated insurance carrier to support Counterpart's expansion, alongside Aspen Insurance and Markel in the surplus lines.

The admitted management liability product is designed to cater to for-profit entities with less than $350m in revenue or 500 employees, covering 99% of US businesses, as well as more than one million 501(c) organisations.

It broadens Counterpart's reach, allowing it to support customer growth and providing brokers with advanced tools such as application programming interfaces and risk mitigation services.

Counterpart's decision to include non-profits in its offering comes in response to strong demand from broker partners.

Non-profits encounter similar legal issues as for-profit entities, such as wrongful termination and discrimination, along with unique risks such as funds mismanagement and regulatory compliance.

Counterpart merges insurance expertise with technology to reduce risks for small businesses.

Its insurance products are backed by risk-reduction tools, and insureds are also said to benefit from Counterpart's claims handling expertise and technology aimed at minimising business disruptions.

Small business owners can access Counterpart's coverage through a network of more than 2,000 trusted wholesale brokers across the nation.

The Counterpart and Westfield Specialty admitted product is currently available in 35 states.

Counterpart CEO Tanner Hackett said: Westfield is one of the most recognised brands in insurance and has been an A-rated carrier for almost 90 years, making it an ideal partner to support us on our mission to help reduce risk for all businesses operating in all industries.

This partnership combines Westfield's renowned history and expertise with Counterparts leading software and services to set a new standard of excellence in commercial insurance.

Westfield Specialty president Jack Kuhn said: We are excited to join forces with Counterpart in the small business market. They have built an impressive underwriting platform and programme capabilities in a short period of time.

We think insurance brokers will greatly appreciate the new product offerings as well as the innovation and efficiency Counterpart is bringing to the private company D&O [directors and officers] insurance marketplace.

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In March 2022, Counterpart secured $30m in Series B funding to grow its small business management liability insurance platform.

"Counterpart partners Westfield on admitted management liability offering" was originally created and published by Life Insurance 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.
Editors note: This story is available as a result of a content partnership between WFTV and the Orlando Business Journal.

The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District board in a June 12 vote unanimously approved a big-ticket development agreement with The Walt Disney Co. (NYSE: DIS). The $17 billion number was floated in April 3, 2023, and now that the plan is signed and sealed, the full scope of the plan can unfurl.

That scope will be shared incrementally, as the agreement leaves some areas gray.

Podcaster Lou Mongello, a local Disney expert and host of WDW Radio, said any hints given by Chairperson Josh DAmaro of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts at the last D23 Expo may have been to gauge the reaction of fans before an official announcement and project construction began.

Read: Prosecutors release documents detailing last hours of Madeline Sotos life

Click here to read the full story on the Orlando Business Journals website.

Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.




The feud between Disney (DIS) and Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has reached its conclusion, with a $17 billion development plan set for Orlando's Walt Disney World Resort following a years-long battle over the company's special tax district.

The district, previously known as the Reedy Creek Improvement District (RCID), allowed Disney to operate as a self-governing entity since its inception; however, DeSantis seized control of the district last year following Disney's opposition to the state's so-called Don't Say Gay law. The law forbids instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity from kindergarten through third grade.

At the time of his board takeover, DeSantis removed Disney's hand-picked RCID board members and Florida lawmakers retroactively invalidated the agreement between Walt Disney World and the district. DeSantis then appointed five new people to call the shots and rebranded the district as the Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD).

But Disney got what it wanted in the end: the ability to invest in its theme parks without interference from state or government politicians.

In a vote completed Wednesday night, the CFTOD unanimously approved a 15-year plan to expand Walt Disney World. The plan includes the flexibility for Disney to build a fifth theme park and other minor parks, like water parks, over time. The company can also expand retail and office space and add hotel rooms, among other properties and attractions.

In March, the entertainment giant and the state of Florida reached a settlement to end ongoing litigation over the special tax district. But a separate federal case between Disney and DeSantis still loomed in the background.

In February, Disney filed a notice of appeal after a federal judge dismissed its free speech case against the governor, determining the company's position ultimately "lacked standing," or the right to sue DeSantis and a separate government official.

But Wednesday's development agreement officially ended all litigation between the two sides.

Jeff Vahle, president of Walt Disney World, said the plan will deliver even more memorable and extraordinary experiences for our guests.

On with the show: the Magic Kingdom theme park at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Fla. (REUTERS/Octavio Jones) (Reuters / Reuters)

Meanwhile, Bryan Griffin, a spokesman for DeSantiss office, said in a statement to Yahoo Finance, "Disney and the state of Florida continue working well together under CFTODs new governance structure, and we are pleased to see CFTOD and Disney reach a new development agreement that secures up to $17 billion in future investment in the state of Florida."

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"This agreement is a big win for central Florida and will lead to numerous jobs and improved guest experiences."

Disney has previously said its investments will create 13,000 new jobs and "thousands of other indirect jobs that will attract more people to the state and generate more taxes."

At Wednesday night's board meeting, CFTOD member Brian Aungst added, "Walt Disney World is inextricably intertwined in the fabric of the state of Florida, and the success of Walt Disney World is the success of Central Florida and vice versa."

The high-profile Florida showdown has served as an overhang for Disney as it grappled with challenges that included a declining linear TV business, slower growth in its parks business, and losses in its streaming division. The company recently won its proxy battle against activist investor Nelson Peltz.

Alexandra Canal is a Senior Reporter at Yahoo Finance. Follow her on X @allie_canal, LinkedIn, and email her at alexandra.canal@yahoofinance.com.

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
RyanJLane / Getty Images

One of the factors many people should consider when choosing where to relocate is the traffic theyll face in the new city.

Check Out: 3 Places To Travel That Are Like Hawaii but Way Cheaper

Read Next: How To Get $340 Per Year in Cash Back on Gas and Other Things You Already Buy

Heres a look at five cities where you may face a double whammy of getting around  places with growing traffic and some of the worst public transportation in the United States.

Sean Pavone / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Boston

According to U.S. News & World, Boston is among the cities with the worst commutes. The news gets worse  Insider Monkey lists Boston as among the cities with the worst public transportation. Get this  the average commuter spent nearly 100 hours struck in traffic in 2022. Public transit users faced safety issues and staffing shortages, which led to delays in commuting times.

Learn More: Barbara Corcoran: Heres Why I Never Fly First Class

Read This: 7 Vacation Destinations To Avoid on a Retirement Budget

Wealthy people know the best money secrets. Learn how to copy them.

sborisov / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Baltimore

The news is pretty bad if youre looking to move to Baltimore and want to avoid traffic hassles. First, the city is known for having one of the worst overall commutes in the U.S. In fact, the average commute time is more than 30 minutes, and the average public transit commute time is about an hour.

However, if youre thinking about using public transportation, you should know there have been major concerns about safety.

Incidents, such as punctured conduits and cable-related problems, have raised concerns about the systems reliability and safety, reported Insider Monkey.

Trending Now: 10 Best US Vacation Destinations for Retirees on a Budget

Wirestock / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Chicago

If youve ever driven through Chicago, you probably know the traffic leaves much to be desired.

As for public transportation, many living here have said there are not enough options to get around. Moreover, the CTA system has seen lots of challenges since the beginning of the pandemic. They include unreliable wait times and buses not even showing up.

According to Insider Monkey, Passengers have also raised concerns about safety and cleanliness, prompting the CTA to increase security measures, but reports suggest that issues persist despite these efforts.

Nate Hovee / Getty Images/iStockphoto

Atlanta

If you ask someone which U.S. city has the worst traffic, chances are pretty good theyll say Atlanta. The growing city has long been known for having lots of traffic delays and backups.

In Atlanta, youll also find a situation where many residents are concerned about public transportation options.

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Historically, public distrust and apprehension toward public transportation, notably MARTA, have hindered support and funding for transit improvements in Atlanta, according to Insider Monkey.

Art Wager / Getty Images

Houston

Youlll find most people in Houston commute by car. Thats why its listed among the places with the worst commutes by U.S. News & World Report.

If youre looking at public transportation, there are light-rail and bus options. Some residents have complained about not enough bus stops.

According to Insider Monkey, Enhancing the transfer process between routes and creating shaded, safe, and clean stop locations were also identified as important factors for improving the overall transit experience.

Learn This: Dave Ramsey: 7 Vacation Splurges That Are a Waste of Money

This article originally appeared on GOBankingRates.com: Dont Buy a House in These 5 US Cities With Growing Traffic and Not Enough Public Transportation
Investment firm Edmond de Rothschild has established a unique infrastructure debt strategy in Saudi Arabia and the signing of a contract with top Saudi asset manager SNB Capital.

A move in line with the Saudi Vision 2030 plan

Additionally, Edmond de Rothschild will be partnering with Watar Partners, an independent financial services company, to create a presence in Saudi Arabia.

Edmond de Rothschild's infrastructure loan division, which manages over 5bn, is a prominent participant in Europe, while Watar Partners provides local advisory services to Saudi clients.

The firm intends to launch a new infrastructure debt fund platform in Saudi Arabia to provide funding for projects related to the Vision 2030 initiative of the nation.

This investment platform will be structured in conjunction with SNB Capital and provide supplementary liquidity to current equity and senior debt instruments.

SNB Capital provides extensive understanding of the region's multi-trillion-dollar infrastructure effort as well as its funding requirements.

A joint venture with Watar Partners aims to increase local presence

The joint venture, which is scheduled to launch in the second half of 2024, will concentrate on giving Saudi family offices and institutional investors infrastructure debt consulting services as well as infrastructure financing solutions.

In the second half of 2024, a local office is scheduled to open in Riyadh, and local personnel will be employed.

The acquisition of the necessary licenses and regulatory approvals is essential for the joint venture's formation and the strategy's implementation.

Ariane de Rothschild, CEO of Edmond de Rothschild, commented: I am extremely pleased to establish a presence for Edmond de Rothschild in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia through this partnership with SNB Capital and Watar Partners. This is a logical next step for our group, building on the longstanding business relationships we have with the country. Edmond de Rothschild brings an excellent track record in infrastructure debt in Europe. I am confident that this expertise will benefit the realisation of the Vision 2030 programme, which aligns perfectly with our mission to foster sustainable growth and development built around strong roots and heritage. We look forward to contributing to the countrys future infrastructure development and growing a long-term presence to serve this important market.

Rashed Sharif, CEO of SNB Capital, commented: We are delighted to collaborate with Edmond de Rothschild as the investment house deepens its relationship with Saudi Arabia. As the largest asset manager in the Kingdom and the Middle East, SNB Capital is poised to unlock growth opportunities in the infrastructure space spanning from transportation to renewable energy, and we are confident that we will drive sustainable impact and create a local growth engine supporting Vision 2030s ambitious goals. Strategic international relationships that enable us to further play our role in fostering financial innovation and solutions are core to our strategic objectives and we value partners who share our vision to achieve enduring market development.

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Abdulwahab A. Al Betairi, managing partner at Watar Partners, added: ''We are extremely pleased to be partnering up with one of Europes most famous financial franchises. Edmond de Rothschild is a name that comes with a lot of reputation and heritage, as well as sophisticated investment expertise. I am firmly convinced that Edmond de Rothschild will provide the expertise and experience we need to meet the plans of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabias Vision 2030 goals.

"Edmond de Rothschild embarks on debt strategy in Saudi Arabia" was originally created and published by Private 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.
Elon Musk tweeted that his pay deal was passing by a wide margin - Britta Pedersen-Pool/Getty Images

Tesla boss Elon Musk won a major victory on Thursday night in his long-running battle to secure a historic $56bn (44bn) pay deal.

In results announced at Teslas annual general meeting, shareholders voted in favour of the pay package, although Mr Musk could still face legal battles over it.

Earlier in the day, the billionaire had tweeted that shareholders were set to approve his huge pay packet by wide margins.

This pushed the shares in Tesla up by as much as 7pc to hit a two-month high.

Both Tesla shareholder resolutions are currently passing by wide margins!



 Thanks for your support!!  pic.twitter.com/udf56VGQdo  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 13, 2024

Approval for the huge pay deal  the largest in history for a US chief executive  is a significant win for both the billionaire and the company, which has seen its share price fall 60pc from its 2021 peak amid slowing EV sales.

Dan Ives, analyst at investment firm Wedbush, described the outcome as a pop the champagne moment for Musk and Tesla shareholders.

He added: In a nutshell, if this proposal went south, a lot of bad things and scenarios could have happened - including Mr Musk beginning a path to not being chief executive of Tesla.

The incentive package was originally approved by shareholders in 2018 but was struck down in January by a judge in Delaware, who said investors were not fully informed of key details.

Court judge Kathaleen McCormick said the package did not meet the standard of a fair price, branding its size unfathomable.

Influential advisory firms Investor Shareholder Services (ISS) and Glass Lewis both came out against the windfall, with the former dismissing the proposal as excessive.

Major investors, including Norways sovereign wealth fund, also said they would vote against the pay deal.

But Mr Musk and Teslas board intensely lobbied shareholders  especially retail investors  to back the proposal. The Tesla chief also threatened to quit if investors did not approve his pay.

Supporters of the deal included Scottish investment giant Baille Gifford and Ron Baron, a long-time Tesla investor, who said in an open letter that there would be no Tesla without Mr Musk.

Under the plan, Mr Musk was eligible for as much as $55.8bn in stock options if Tesla hits certain milestones, which the company has reached.

Investors also approved other proposals, including the move of its legal headquarters from Delaware to Texas, as well as the re-election of Mr Musks brother Kimbal and James Murdoch, son of media mogul Rupert Murdoch, as board members.

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Shareholder approval is seen as a crucial step in challenging the Delaware ruling.

Alexander Potter, an analyst with Piper Sandler, said: This doesnt fully settle the matter; the compensation package can still be deemed illegal.

But a Delaware judge previously struck down the package citing limited shareholder disclosure, and given enhanced disclosures preceding this vote, its unclear why anyone would take issue with this newly-ratified deal.

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Today Tesla shareholders will finally answer a $56 billion question hanging over the company: Can CEO Elon Musk keep his record-breaking pay?

While Musk posted late Wednesday night that the votes were trending for passage of his pay package, official word won't come down until later today  though Tesla stock was up nearly 7% in early trading.

Securing Musk's compensation, if truly passed by investors, did not come without a battle.

Both Tesla shareholder resolutions are currently passing by wide margins!



 Thanks for your support!!  pic.twitter.com/udf56VGQdo  Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 13, 2024

To review: Musks all-stock pay package, awarded in 2018, has been embroiled in controversy and was struck down by a Delaware court earlier this year, with the judge finding that Teslas board didnt act in the best interests of Tesla shareholders by approving the $56 billion award.

Since then, Musk and Teslas board, led by chair Robyn Denholm, have been advocating rather forcefully for Tesla shareholders to approve a newly submitted pay package, which is very similar to the original 2018 award invalidated by the judge.

On the eve of those results, Musk and Tesla are getting assailed from a number of fronts.

Late Tuesday the Employees' Retirement System of Rhode Island (ERSRI) filed another lawsuit in Delaware accusing Musk and his brother Kimbal Musk of selling a combined $30 billion of stock using inside information  that being the two knew the proceeds would be used to fund Elon's purchase of Twitter (now X) and that two brothers were also aware that Tesla's vehicle deliveries had fallen below projections.

Will he get a raise? Tesla CEO Elon Musk is pictured at the Breakthrough Prize Ceremony at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on April 13, 2024, in Los Angeles. (Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic) (Axelle/Bauer-Griffin via Getty Images)

Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal reported Elon Musk has joined recent meetings with proxy adviser Glass Lewis and investors, including "Vanguard, State Street and BlackRock, alongside Tesla Chair Robyn Denholm and others," to drum up support for Musk's pay package.

If that wasn't enough, the Journal also published an expose late Tuesday night alleging Musk had numerous inappropriate relationships with employees at SpaceX, the rocket and spaceship company Musk founded and where he still serves as CEO.

Then separately on Wednesday eight former SpaceX employees filed a lawsuit against Musk for sexual harassment and retaliation in California state court, alleging that Musk created an "unwelcome hostile work environment" based on his behavior, among other allegations.

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'Motivating' Musk

The ongoing drama around the vote has been building for weeks now. The battle to get Musk's pay package passed picked up steam last week when Denholm submitted an open letter urging shareholder approval of Musks compensation package.

"Fairness and respect require that we honor the collective commitment we made to Elon  a commitment that was, and fundamentally still is, about retaining Elons attention and motivating him to focus on achieving astonishing growth for our company," Denholm wrote in her letter.

Denholms choice of words  "retaining Elons attention and motivating him"  raised eyebrows, as most independent board chairs generally do not pen open letters urging shareholder approval of management pay packages, let alone claiming the compensation is needed to keep the CEO motivated.

Even before the 2018 pay package was invalidated by the Delaware court, Musk threatened shareholders about his divided attention, as he is in charge or spends significant amounts of time at SpaceX, X.com (formerly Twitter), and the Boring Co., among other ventures.

"I am uncomfortable growing Tesla to be a leader in AI & robotics without having 25% voting control. Enough to be influential, but not so much that I cant be overturned," Musk said from his X account in January. "Unless that is the case, I would prefer to build products outside of Tesla."

Case in point: Tesla recently had to deal with reports that Musk ordered Nvidia (NVDA) AI chips meant for Tesla to be diverted to X.com. Musk defended the move after the report's release, claiming Tesla lacked space to use the chips, and they would have sat in a warehouse otherwise.

Musk also just withdrew his lawsuit against ChatGPT-maker OpenAI ahead of a hearing on Wednesday, giving no explanation for it. Musk's venture, xAI, is directly competing with OpenAI, among others.

Musks AI and robotics threat, odd strategic moves and backtracks, and his own advocacy for his pay package have shareholders concerned that he won't care as much about Tesla if he doesnt get what he wants. Denholm even acknowledged as much, claiming there are other places Musk could take his time and energy.

What we recognized in 2018 and continue to recognize today is that one thing Elon most certainly does not have is unlimited time. Nor does he face any shortage of ideas and other places he can make an incredible difference in the world, she wrote.

Musk supporters have doubled down on the argument that his presence is necessary for the future of Tesla.

Longtime Tesla shareholder Baillie Gifford said it will vote in favor of Musk's package, according to Bloomberg sources, with the reasoning being the package was aligned with shareholder returns.

Elon is the ultimate key man of key man risk, billionaire Tesla investor Ron Baron wrote last week in an open letter. Without his relentless drive and uncompromising standards, there would be no Tesla.

Id argue that no other executive is as aligned with shareholders as @elonmusk who committed to no salary, no bonus, no stock comp FOR 10 YEARS, unless he created tremendous value for @Tesla shareholders, ARK Invest founder and CEO Cathie Wood posted on X late last week.

Musk fan: Cathie Wood, chief executive officer and chief investment officer at Ark Invest, speaks during the Milken Institute Global Conference in May in Beverly Hills. (PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images) (PATRICK T. FALLON via Getty Images)

Conversely, proxy adviser firm Glass Lewis urged shareholders to vote against Musks compensation, arguing that the excessive size of the award and the dilutive effect of it on existing shareholders were major concerns. ISS, the other major proxy adviser firm, recommended that shareholders vote down the package as well.

While a few smaller shareholder groups came out against Musk's pay package, one big one weighed in against Musk over the weekend  Norway's $1.7 trillion sovereign wealth fund.

"We remain concerned about the total size of the award, the structure given performance triggers, dilution, and lack of mitigation of key person risk," Norges Bank Investment Management (NBIM), the operator of the fund, said.

The fund, which also opposed Musk's pay package in 2018, holds a $5.6 billion stake encompassing 31.57 million shares, or 0.99% of all shares outstanding, making it Tesla's seventh-largest shareholder, per Capital IQ.

And earlier this week, the California State Teachers' Retirement System (CalSTRS) also said it will vote against Musk's pay package, with the pension fund's chief investment officer telling CNBC the stock awards were "ridiculous." CalSTRS owns around 4.7 million shares of Tesla.

Other large funds that own the largest Tesla stakes  Vanguard, BlackRock (BLK), and State Street, among others  have not commented on Musk's pay package.

The drama could be much ado about nothing when the votes are counted, however, with shareholders expected to give Musk what wants.

"[Musks pay package] has been an area of hot button contention among some investors but we would expect the 2018 package will be overwhelming [sic] reapproved," Wedbush analyst Dan Ives predicted in a note to investors late last week.

While approval of the pay package will remove one "overhang" on Tesla stock, Ives believes Tesla needs Musk more than ever to navigate the company through a crucial time.

"Musk needs to commit all AI initiatives will be under the Tesla hood and will be not be separated," Ives said, reiterating his Outperform rating and $275 price target.

CFRA's Garrett Nelson believes the vote will be closer than expected.

"Clearly, the Board is concerned about the vote given its shareholder outreach efforts," Nelson said in a statement to Yahoo Finance, writing that the vote will likely come in below the 73% approval the plan received in 2018.

Nelson added: "We have long argued that one of the primary reasons the stock trades at such a massive premium to the rest of the industry is the innovation of Musk. If the pay package were to be voted down, it could increase uncertainty regarding the future direction and leadership of the company.

Pras Subramanian is a reporter for Yahoo Finance. You can follow him on Twitter and on Instagram.

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
There's a new kid in town, although he skips out twice a week and can take you along.

Avelo Airlines announced Thursday morning it launched "Lakeland's first commercial airline in over a decade" with flights between Lakeland and New Haven.

"This is just the start of Avelos partnership with LAL and Central Florida," said Andrew Levy, Avelo Airlines founder and CEO.

One-way fares start at $81.

Floridas Lakeland International Airport, LAL, will fly to Connecticut's Tweed-New Haven Airport, HVN, on Thursdays and Sundays.

More options are opening up for Florida travelers. JetBlue announced Tuesday new nonstop flights will be coming in October for flights between Long Island New York and three Florida cities.

And on Wednesday, a new nonstop flight by Allegiant took off from Sarasota Bradenton International Airport for Plattsburgh International Airport in New York.

Fly from Lakeland, Florida, to New Haven, Connecticut, as low as $81

The one-way fares between LAL and HVN start at $81 for travel between July 4 and Aug. 1. Fares must be booked by June 20. Fares are available on a limited number of flights and seats, Avelo said.

The low, one-way fars do include government taxes and fees but additional fees for carry-on and checked bags, assigned seats and other optional services may apply.

A $25 charge per seated traveler applies to all bookings or changes made through Avelos Customer Support Center.

'Mark of new era': Mayor excited about Avelo in Lakeland, Florida

Avelo Airline flights to and from Lakeland Linder International Airport mark the dawn of a new era in passenger air service for visitors and our residents," said Lakeland Mayor Bill Mutz.

"We eagerly anticipate travelers discovering the incredible amenities that our community has to offer. Moreover, we are filled with optimism about our airport and the travel possibilities that Avelo Airlines will bring to our residents. This is only the beginning of a promising partnership journey!

Where is LAL, Lakeland International Airport in Florida?

This embedded content is not available in your region.

Lake International Airport is located about 50 miles southwest of Orlando or 25 miles east of Tampa.

Avelo flies out of 10 Florida airports

Daytona Beach (DAB)

Destin/Fort Walton Beach (VPS)

Fort Lauderdale/Miami (FLL)

Fort Myers (RSW)

Miami (MIA)

Orlando/Lakeland (LAL)

Orlando (MCO)

Sarasota/Bradenton (SRQ)

Tampa (TPA)

West Palm Beach (PBI)

 See a complete list of all Avelo airports

Where does Avelo fly?

Since taking flight on April 28, 2021, Avelo has flown more than 4.7 million customers on over 37,000 flights. Today, Avelo serves 53 destinations in 24 states and Puerto Rico," the company said in a news release.

Story continues

So far in 2024, has initiated 16 new routes and 11 new destinations.

What types of planes does Avelo Airlines have in its fleet?

Avelo Airlines has a fleet of 16 Boeing Next-Generation 737 aircraft.

The Boeing 737-700 has 149 seats, with 44 "extra leg room seats."

The 737-800 has 189 seats, with 57 "extra leg room seats."

Avelo Airlines fees, traveling with children

Interior of Avelo Airlines plane.

Bags:

Personal item: One free personal item permitted.

Carry-on bag: One carry-on bag permitted for fee. Bag checker for LAL to HVN showed $50-$65, depending on when the reservation is made.

Checked bags: Must weigh 50 pounds or less. Bag checker for LAL to HVN showed $45-$65. Bag prices are based on reservation date for your flight.

Oversized, overweight bags: Fees are $100 if overweight and an additional $100 if oversized.

Extra fees:

Select the seat you want: $11 and up

Priority boarding: $15

Pet in cabin: $125

Customer support processing charge: $25

Any customer who is an active-duty military member on official or personal travel and presents a current active-duty military identification card may bring one carry-on bag and check two checked bags for free, and not be subject to excess, oversize, or overweight baggage charges, the airline said on its website.

Children 13 and under will be automatically seated with an accompanying adult at no additional cost, according to Avelo.

How do you pronounce Avelo?

Pronounce Avelo as UH-VELL-O, like yellow or Jell-O.

JetBlue announces new nonstop flights between Long Island, New York, and 3 Florida cities

Starting in October, Floridians will have a new way to get to New York with three new nonstop JetBlue routes to Orlando, Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach, the company announced Tuesday.

To kick things off, one-way trips (from New York to Florida) will be $49 for a limited time.

Tickets are on sale now.

The New-York-based airline will begin daily nonstop service from Long Island MacArthur Airport (ISP) to Orlando and four-time weekly service to Fort Lauderdale and Palm Beach.

Allegiant begins non-stop flight from Sarasota Bradenton to Plattsburgh, New York

Las Vegas-based Allegiant will offer two flights a week from Sarasota to Plattsburgh International Airport in New York, about 70 miles south of Montreal. In June and July, the flights will leave on Wednesday's and Saturdays, but later months show some fluctuation, according to Allegiant's website.

Allegiant recently announced two other nonstop flights, which connected SRQ to airports in Austin, Texas, and Des Moines, Iowa.

Contributors: C.A. Bridges, USA TODAY Network-Florida; Derek Gilliam, Sarastoa Herald-Tribune

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Avelo Airlines offers deal for flights between Lakeland, New Haven
An expert committee of EU member states has voted to ban certain bisphenols, including bisphenol A, in food contact materials (FCMs).

This decision aims to protect consumers from endocrine-disrupting chemicals that are classified as toxic for reproduction.

Bisphenol A and other bisphenols have been linked to a range of health issues, including breast cancer, infertility, and neurological disorders in children.

These chemicals are widely used in the production of polymers and resins for plastic in coatings for cans and cardboard packaging, among other applications.

In February this year, the European Commission (EC) released a draft regulation proposing the ban.

The proposed restriction by the EC is set to effectively prohibit the use of BPA and other harmful bisphenols in the manufacture and market access of most FCMs containing them.

Welcoming the vote, Health and Environment Alliance health and chemicals programme lead Sandra Jen said: The decision by EU member states experts to support the restriction of bisphenol A (BPA) and other bisphenols in most food packaging is a long-awaited step to reduce peoples exposure to these harmful chemicals.

We now also need a group restriction on the use of bisphenols for all consumer products beyond food contact material to ensure these harmful chemicals will no longer negatively impact peoples health and the environment.

The latest proposal will now be reviewed by the European Parliament and the European Council.

It could be implemented by the end of this year if it remains unopposed during the review.

The implementation in the EU market will include transition periods of up to three years, allowing industries to adjust to the new regulations.

"EU expert committee votes to ban bisphenols in food packaging " was originally created and published by Packaging Gateway, 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 Casey Hall, Lucy Craymer and Mei Mei Chu

SHANGHAI/WELLINGTON (Reuters) - Global food companies from dairy producers to pork exporters are on high alert for potential retaliatory tariffs from China after the European Union's decision on Wednesday to impose anti-subsidy duties on Chinese-made electric vehicles (EVs).

China's state media have reported that domestic companies are preparing to request investigations into some EU dairy and pork imports over anti-subsidy or anti-dumping concerns, moves that could result in lengthy trade suspensions.

Chinese firms reserve the right to submit applications to prompt anti-subsidy and anti-dumping inquiries into European dairy and pork imports, its commerce ministry said on Thursday when asked whether Chinese industry groups were lobbying it to do so.

"Chinese domestic industries have the right to file applications for investigations to safeguard the order of normal market competition and their legitimate rights and interests," ministry spokesperson He Yadong said.

"If you have additional trade barriers it could cause ... reshuffling of global markets," said Kimberly Crewther, executive director of representative body Dairy Companies Association of New Zealand.

New Zealand is the world's largest exporter of dairy products and also a production base for foreign companies including French dairy producer Danone.

"We always prefer to see situations where trade is stable and certain ... Markets dont like uncertainty," Crewther added.

The EU was China's second-largest source of dairy products with at least 36% of the total value of imports in 2023, only behind New Zealand, according to Chinese customs data. Australia was the No. 3 exporter.

While it remains unclear which products China could target for retaliation, whey powder, cream and fresh milk were the top items in the EU's 1.7 billion euros ($1.8 billion) worth of dairy exports to China last year, according to data from the European Commission's Directorate-General for Agriculture and Rural Development, which cited Eurostat.

Countries including the Netherlands, France, Germany, Ireland and Denmark have the largest dairy industry exposure to the Chinese market.

The Netherlands, Denmark and France are also major suppliers of pork, though Spain was China's top supplier last year, making up nearly 23% of its total pork imports, followed by Brazil and the United States.

"We are worried," Arnaud Rousseau, president of the FNSEA, France's largest farmers' union, told reporters when asked about possible Chinese action against pork imports from the EU.

"There are certain parts of the pig that are not eaten in Europe and that need to find markets, and China is an important market...We can quickly have problems if we don't have trade with certain countries."

China imported $6 billion worth of pig, including offal, last year, according to Chinese customs data.

Cristina Alvarado, data and insights commercial manager at New Zealand's Exchange, said Chinese tariffs or trade barriers against EU dairy could help New Zealand grow its market share even further.

Major New Zealand producers Fonterra and A2 are already doing a roaring trade with China, and both Australia and New Zealand have free trade agreements with China that remove import duties.

China imported $848 million worth of dairy products from Australia last year, according to Chinese customs data. Its dairy imports from New Zealand reached $5.52 billion in 2023, nearly half the total value of its dairy imports.

OPEN TRADE

As trade tensions between the EU and China intensify, some European officials have warned against imposing import duties on food products.

EU Agriculture Commissioner Janusz Wojciechowski told Reuters during his visit to China in late April that it was his intention to "avoid as much as possible that agriculture pays the cost of the problems in other sectors".

"The European Union position is that the open trade of food is a very important instrument to ensure food security at the global level," he said.

China has historically held a different position, with food products often the target of retaliatory tariffs levied as part of previous trade spats.

In January, brandy was targeted in an inquiry instigated by Beijing, a move perceived as retaliation for France's support of the EU investigation into Chinese-made EVs.

China also passed a law in April to strengthen its ability to hit back should the United States or EU impose tariffs on exports from the world's No. 2 economy.

Australian wine and barley were targeted in an anti-dumping investigation Beijing launched after calls from Australia for an independent inquiry into the origins of the COVID-19 virus in 2020. China only recently lifted those prohibitive tariffs.

Beijing also targeted Australian beef and lobsters following separate investigations.

($1 = 1.6292 New Zealand dollars)

(Reporting by Casey Hall in Shanghai, Mei Mei Chu in Beijing and Lucy Craymer in Wellington; additional reporting by Joe Cash and Gus Trompiz ; editing by Miyoung Kim and Mark Heinrich)
Arrival, the electric vehicle startup that made significant commitments in the Charlotte region , is bankrupt after years of financial struggles.

PREVIOUS: Electric delivery van microfactory to bring more than 250 jobs to Charlotte

The company announced this week that it filed for bankruptcy on May 16 in Luxembourg, where Arrival is based.

Arrival was declared bankrupt by a Luxembourg court on May 22. The disclosure came after Arrival sold its manufacturing assets in the U.K. and U.S. to Torrance, California-based Canoo Inc.

Read more on CBJs website here.

(WATCH BELOW: Summer jobs keep teens away from crime. This program is helping Charlottes youth get them.)
By Florence Tan, Jonathan Saul and Yantoultra Ngui

SINGAPORE/LONDON (Reuters) -Singapore's Temasek Holdings is finalising the sale of some assets from liquefied natural gas (LNG) trading firm Pavilion Energy to Shell with a deal set to be completed in the coming days, two sources with knowledge of the matter said.

The deal will provide Shell, already the world's top LNG trader, with access to gas markets in Europe and Singapore as it aggressively expands its LNG footprint after raking in billions of profits last year.

The deal's value will be in the hundreds of millions of U.S. dollars, one of the sources said. That would be below what Temasek had originally sought from the sale.

Reuters reported in April that Shell and Saudi Aramco had been in advanced talks to buy the assets from Temasek which had sought to fetch more than $2 billion from the deal.

The sources declined to be identified as they were not authorised to speak with media.

Temasek, Pavilion Energy and Shell declined to comment.

The deal comes months after Temasek put the Singapore-based trader up for sale after Pavilion Energy turned in a profit in the year to March 2023 on robust LNG prices in the wake of the Ukraine war.

Shell has been supplying a quarter of Singapore's natural gas needs and the deal will make it the biggest supplier to the city state.

However, the Pavilion Energy asset sale will exclude Gas Supply Pte Ltd, which has a licence to import natural gas by pipeline from Indonesia, the sources said, due to energy security concerns.

Temasek set up Pavilion Energy a decade ago to focus on LNG-related investments.

Pavilion Energy invested about $1.3 billion in three gas blocks in Tanzania in 2013 and gained access to Europe with its 2019 purchase of Iberdrola's LNG assets, including regasification capacity in the UK and Spain.

In Europe, Pavilion Energy imports about a tenth of LNG volumes in Spain, which has become a significant gas supplier in Europe by re-exporting LNG to countries such as Italy, as Russia's invasion of Ukraine prompted countries to reduce their reliance on Russian gas.

In Singapore, Pavilion Energy is one of four firms appointed by Energy Market Authority to import LNG. It supplies one-third of the city state's power and industrial gas demand with LNG and piped natural gas, according to its website.

It also supplies LNG to ships in Singapore, the world's top bunkering port.

"Pavilion's positions in both the Atlantic and Pacific, alongside LNG bunkering, fit nicely within Shell's existing portfolio and LNG market growth ambitions," said Saul Kavonic, an energy analyst at MST Marquee.

Story continues

The unlisted company posted profit after tax of $438 million for the year to March 2023, reversing a year earlier loss of $666 million, while revenue rose 38% to $9.09 billion, according to Temasek's website.

It carried shareholder equity value of $3.63 billion as of March 2023, Temasek's website showed.

(Reporting by Florence Tan and Yantoultra Ngui in Singapore, Jonathan Saul and Marwa Rashad in LondonEditing by Shri Navaratnam)
Amidst a backdrop of economic normalization and shifting central bank policies, the Canadian market has shown resilience, with signs of stabilization and potential recovery as commodity prices influence movements. In such an environment, identifying undervalued small-cap stocks with insider action can offer interesting opportunities for investors looking to potentially benefit from market adjustments and economic transitions.

Top 10 Undervalued Small Caps With Insider Buying In Canada

Name PE PS Discount to Fair Value Value Rating Martinrea International 6.0x 0.2x 46.92%  Dundee Precious Metals 8.0x 2.8x 47.22%  Calfrac Well Services 2.2x 0.2x 4.12%  Primaris Real Estate Investment Trust 11.5x 3.0x 34.44%  Guardian Capital Group 10.5x 4.1x 31.50%  Nexus Industrial REIT 2.4x 3.0x 17.05%  Sagicor Financial 1.2x 0.4x -95.11%  Gear Energy 19.8x 1.4x 28.90%  Freehold Royalties 15.4x 6.7x 47.01%  AutoCanada 12.0x 0.1x -131.37% 

Click here to see the full list of 32 stocks from our Undervalued TSX Small Caps With Insider Buying screener.

Below we spotlight a couple of our favorites from our exclusive screener.

Simply Wall St Value Rating: 

Overview: Freehold Royalties is a company engaged in oil and gas exploration and production, with a market capitalization of approximately CA$1.53 billion.

Operations: In the exploration and production sector, Oil & Gas generated CA$312.28 million in revenue, with a net income margin of 43.19% and a gross profit margin of 96.74%. Operating expenses amounted to CA$115.67 million for the period ending June 11, 2024.

PE: 15.4x

Recently, Freehold Royalties has shown signs that may interest those looking for underpriced assets in the market. With the recent insider confidence demonstrated through a significant share purchase by David Spyker on May 8, 2024, amounting to CA$276,000, it's clear there is belief in the companys potential from within. This aligns with their stable production output as reported in Q1 2024 and consistent dividend payments, reaffirming their operational stability. Additionally, leadership changes and confirmed production guidance suggest strategic positioning for sustained performance. These elements collectively hint at a promising horizon for Freehold Royalties amidst its sector peers.

TSX:FRU Share price vs Value as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Value Rating: 

Story continues

Overview: 5N Plus is a company specializing in performance materials and specialty semiconductors, with a market capitalization of approximately CA$184.10 million.

Operations: Performance Materials and Specialty Semiconductors generated revenues of $83.21 million and $168.89 million respectively, highlighting the company's diverse operational focus within these sectors. The gross profit margin observed a notable increase from 7.76% to 24.30% over the examined periods, reflecting significant changes in operational efficiency or market conditions affecting profitability.

PE: 23.5x

Recently, Jean-Marie Bourassa demonstrated insider confidence in 5N Plus by acquiring 60,100 shares, signaling a robust belief in the company's prospects. This move aligns with the firm's positive momentum, highlighted by a significant contract renewal with First Solar to increase supply of semiconductor materialsa key component in cutting-edge photovoltaic modules. Financially, 5N Plus is on an upward trajectory with first-quarter sales rising to US$65 million from US$55 million year-over-year and net income improving to US$2.51 million. These developments suggest that 5N Plus is strategically positioned within high-growth sectors like renewable energy and advanced electronics, marking it as a potentially underestimated entity in its market.

TSX:VNP Share price vs Value as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Value Rating: 

Overview: Wajax operates as a distributor of industrial machinery and equipment, with a market capitalization of approximately CA$2120.95 million.

Operations: The company generates a substantial portion of its revenue from the wholesale of machinery and industrial equipment, amounting to CA$2.12 billion. It has observed a gross profit margin increase from 20.17% in June 2013 to 21.27% by June 2024, reflecting an enhanced efficiency in managing the cost of goods sold relative to sales over this period.

PE: 7.4x

Recently, Wajax has shown signs of being an appealing pick for those looking at lesser-known Canadian companies with potential. Despite a slight dip in quarterly sales and net income, the firm maintains a steady dividend, signaling financial stability. Noteworthy is Edward Barrett's substantial share purchase, investing nearly CA$294k recentlya robust indicator of insider confidence. With new leadership on board and a solid financial base despite high-risk funding sources, Wajax positions itself as a company to watch for growth opportunities.

TSX:WJX Share price vs Value as at Jun 2024

Seize The Opportunity

Get an in-depth perspective on all 32 Undervalued TSX Small Caps With Insider Buying by using our screener here.

Invested in any of these stocks? Simplify your portfolio management with Simply Wall St and stay ahead with our alerts for any critical updates on your stocks.

Unlock the power of informed investing with Simply Wall St, your free guide to navigating stock markets worldwide.

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.

Companies discussed in this article include TSX:FRU TSX:VNP and TSX:WJX.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
Amidst a backdrop of mixed global economic signals, the Hong Kong market has shown resilience with the Hang Seng Index experiencing a notable rise. This dynamic environment presents an intriguing opportunity for investors to explore potentially undervalued small-cap stocks, such as iDreamSky Technology Holdings, which may benefit from current market conditions and insider buying trends.

Top 10 Undervalued Small Caps With Insider Buying In Hong Kong

Name PE PS Discount to Fair Value Value Rating Far East Consortium International NA 0.3x 37.58%  Xtep International Holdings 11.4x 0.8x 39.79%  Nissin Foods 14.7x 1.3x 37.51%  Tian Lun Gas Holdings 7.4x 0.5x 19.82%  China Lesso Group Holdings 4.3x 0.3x 3.02%  Abbisko Cayman NA 93.1x 37.24%  China Jinmao Holdings Group NA 0.1x 5.76%  Giordano International 8.8x 0.8x 34.13%  China Overseas Grand Oceans Group 3.3x 0.1x -17.87%  Xiabuxiabu Catering Management (China) Holdings NA 0.3x -446.67% 

Click here to see the full list of 14 stocks from our Undervalued Small Caps With Insider Buying screener.

Let's take a closer look at a couple of our picks from the screened companies.

Simply Wall St Value Rating: 

Overview: iDreamSky Technology Holdings is a company that operates in the gaming and information services sectors, including SaaS and related services.

Operations: Game and Information Services, including SaaS and related services, generated CN1.92 billion in revenue. The gross profit margin stood at 35.14%, reflecting the cost of goods sold which amounted to CN1.24 billion.

PE: -9.4x

iDreamSky Technology Holdings, reflecting a strategic pivot in Hong Kong's market, recently showcased insider confidence with a significant purchase by Xiangyu Chen, who acquired 1.08 million shares for HK$29.7 million. This move underscores a robust belief in the company's prospects amidst its financial recovery phase, as evidenced by a substantial reduction in net loss from HK$2.49 billion to HK$556.35 million year-over-year. With earnings expected to grow significantly and no share dilution over the past year, iDreamSky stands out for potential growth within the undervalued sector of Hong Kong's market landscape.

SEHK:1119 Share price vs Value as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Value Rating: 

Overview: China Overseas Grand Oceans Group operates primarily in property investment and development, with additional interests in property leasing and other segments, boasting a market cap of approximately CN7.96 billion.

Operations: The company generates the majority of its revenue from property investment and development, contributing CN56.08 billion, supplemented by property leasing at CN242.46 million. Over recent periods, it has observed a gross profit margin trend ranging from 13.8% to 33.9%, reflecting varying profitability across different fiscal quarters.

PE: 3.3x

Recently, China Overseas Grand Oceans Group Limited demonstrated insider confidence as Hancheng Zhou acquired 350,000 shares, signaling a robust belief in the company's prospects. Despite a challenging environment with declining sales and earnings forecasts suggesting a 2.3% drop annually over the next three years, strategic insider purchases suggest potential unrecognized strengths within the firm. This action aligns with broader financial assessments indicating high debt levels yet significant one-off impacts on recent financial results. With ongoing adjustments in executive leadership and operational strategies evident from recent board changes and monthly performance reports, this entity embodies a dynamic yet cautiously optimistic investment landscape within Hong Kong's lesser-known equities.

SEHK:81 Ownership Breakdown as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Value Rating: 

Overview: Ferretti specializes in the design, construction, and marketing of yachts and recreational boats.

Operations: The business primarily generates its revenue from the design, construction, and marketing of yachts and recreational boats, achieving 1.23 billion in its latest reporting period. It has observed a gross profit margin increase from 23.23% in 2016 to 37.08% in the most recent fiscal year, reflecting enhanced operational efficiency over time.

PE: 12.5x

Ferretti's recent financial trajectory, marked by a robust increase in net income from 60.27 million to 83.05 million, underscores its potential amidst undervalued entities in Hong Kongs market landscape. With earnings anticipated to climb by 12.46% annually, the firm's reliance on external borrowing reflects a bold but calculated approach to fueling growth. Insider confidence shone through recently as they bolstered their stakes, affirming belief in the companys strategy and future prospects. This move coupled with an approved dividend hike further signals Ferretti's strengthening financial health and commitment to shareholder value.

SEHK:9638 Share price vs Value as at Jun 2024

Key Takeaways

Take a closer look at our Undervalued Small Caps With Insider Buying list of 14 companies by clicking here.

Shareholder in one or more of these companies? Ensure you're never caught off-guard by adding your portfolio in Simply Wall St for timely alerts on significant stock developments.

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Want To Explore Some Alternatives?

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.

Companies discussed in this article include SEHK:1119 SEHK:81 and SEHK:9638.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
Amidst a backdrop of fluctuating global markets, France's CAC 40 Index has shown modest gains, reflecting a cautious optimism in the European economic landscape. This environment underscores the appeal of growth companies with high insider ownership, as these firms often demonstrate alignment between managements interests and those of shareholders, potentially enhancing stability and confidence among investors.

Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In France

Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth VusionGroup (ENXTPA:VU) 13.5% 25.2% Groupe OKwind Societe anonyme (ENXTPA:ALOKW) 24.8% 30.6% WALLIX GROUP (ENXTPA:ALLIX) 19.8% 101.4% La Francaise de l'Energie (ENXTPA:FDE) 20.1% 37.7% Adocia (ENXTPA:ADOC) 12.1% 104.5% OSE Immunotherapeutics (ENXTPA:OSE) 25.6% 79.3% Icape Holding (ENXTPA:ALICA) 30.2% 26.1% Arcure (ENXTPA:ALCUR) 21.4% 41.7% Munic (ENXTPA:ALMUN) 29.4% 150% MedinCell (ENXTPA:MEDCL) 16.4% 67.9%

Click here to see the full list of 21 stocks from our Fast Growing Euronext Paris Companies With High Insider Ownership screener.

Let's dive into some prime choices out of from the screener.

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Lectra SA offers industrial intelligence solutions tailored for the fashion, automotive, and furniture industries, with a market capitalization of approximately 1.09 billion.

Operations: The company generates revenue from the Americas and Asia-Pacific regions, totaling approximately 170.33 million and 110.28 million respectively.

Insider Ownership: 19.6%

Revenue Growth Forecast: 11.3% p.a.

Lectra, a French company, exhibits strong growth potential with its earnings forecast to expand by 28.6% annually, outpacing the French market's 11.1%. Despite a slight dip in net income and EPS as reported in its recent Q1 earnings, sales have increased from EUR 123.65 million to EUR 129.56 million year-over-year. The firm is trading at 33.1% below estimated fair value, suggesting an undervalued status despite lower-than-expected returns on equity forecasted at 13.3% in three years.

ENXTPA:LSS Ownership Breakdown as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: MedinCell S.A. is a French pharmaceutical company that specializes in developing long-acting injectable medications across multiple therapeutic areas, with a market capitalization of approximately 428.93 million.

Operations: The company generates revenue primarily from its pharmaceuticals segment, amounting to 14.13 million.

Story continues

Insider Ownership: 16.4%

Revenue Growth Forecast: 40.6% p.a.

MedinCell, a French pharmaceutical company, has recently demonstrated a mixed performance in its clinical trials. While the Phase 3 trial for F14 did not meet its primary endpoint, significant improvements were noted in secondary endpoints such as knee range of motion and swelling reduction. Additionally, MedinCell's collaboration with AbbVie could potentially bring substantial financial benefits with up to 1.9 billion in milestones plus royalties. Despite these developments, the company's share price remains highly volatile. MedinCell is expected to see revenue growth significantly above the market average at 40.6% annually and become profitable within three years.

ENXTPA:MEDCL Ownership Breakdown as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: OVH Groupe S.A. operates globally, offering public and private cloud services, shared hosting, and dedicated server solutions with a market capitalization of approximately 0.98 billion.

Operations: The company generates revenue through three primary segments: Public Cloud (140.71 million), Private Cloud (514.59 million), and Web cloud (179.45 million).

Insider Ownership: 10.5%

Revenue Growth Forecast: 10.9% p.a.

OVH Groupe, a French cloud services provider, is navigating a complex growth trajectory. With earnings projected to rise significantly and the company expected to turn profitable within three years, OVH's financial outlook appears robust despite its currently low return on equity forecast of 3.8%. Recent strategic hires like Celine Choussy and Benjamin Revcolevschi underscore a strengthening leadership aimed at driving product innovation and market expansion. However, its revenue growth rate of 10.9% per year lags behind more aggressive market averages, reflecting potential challenges in scaling at pace with competitors.

ENXTPA:OVH Earnings and Revenue Growth as at Jun 2024

Seize The Opportunity

Delve into our full catalog of 21 Fast Growing Euronext Paris Companies With High Insider Ownership here.

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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:OVH.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
By Helen Reid

LONDON (Reuters) -Fast fashion retailer Shein, known for its China-made $5 tops and $10 dresses, has hiked prices by over a third on some core products, in a move likely to boost revenues ahead of its planned IPO, according to an analysis of its pricing strategy.

Shein's average price hikes exceeded those of its rivals H&M and Zara, according to data from London-based research firm EDITED, which compared prices on June 1 with a year earlier.

Shein declined to comment.

The company operates an online marketplace selling an array of merchandise, though its main business is making and selling Shein's own brands, primarily women's clothing.

Shein taps a network of largely China-based suppliers, which buck traditional manufacturing processes by taking small initial orders and scaling up based on demand. Most of the clothing Shein sells is made in Guangzhou, China, by its roughly 5,400 suppliers.

Though Shein doesn't disclose financial data publicly, Coresight Research estimates that Shein's revenue will reach $50 billion this year, a 55% jump over last year's figure.

Making its core women's clothing lines more expensive and getting more outside brands to sell on its site can help Shein to hit that sales figure and boost profits.

"Shein has seen very strong momentum recently, which could play favorably into its IPO plans," said Erik Lautier, ecommerce expert at consultancy AlixPartners.

As Shein prepares for its initial public offering (IPO), it faces the higher costs of being a publicly listed company. It must also comply with new EU regulations on online platforms that could add to its expenses, pressuring profit margins.

In the United States, Shein's biggest market by sales, the company hiked the average price for women's dresses by 28% in the year to June 1, to $28.51, the EDITED data showed.

While still well below the average for an H&M dress ($40.97) or a Zara dress ($79.69) in the U.S., Shein upped prices by a bigger percentage than its rivals over the same period, according to the data.

On Shein's UK site, a dress cost 24.12 pounds ($30.97) on average, 15% more than a year ago, while the average dress across France, Germany, Italy, and Spain was 36% more expensive.

Shein wants to show that it can sustain its recent growth and sell more higher-priced products ahead of its stock market listing, retail experts say.

"If they can demonstrate that these prices stick then the valuation increases significantly," said Alex Romanenko, head of retail at pricing consultancy Pearson Ham Group.

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Shein is seeking a valuation of around 50 billion pounds in a London listing, Sky News has reported. The company declined to comment on its IPO plans or valuation.

Having gained market share with rock-bottom prices, Shein's price increases are also aimed at boosting profit margins prior to listing, Romanenko said.

In the U.S., Shein's biggest market, the biggest price increase was in footwear, with the average pair of shoes on its site selling for $40.7, up from $25.3 a year ago.

That partly reflects Shein bringing other brands onto the platform, like sneaker brand Skechers, which sells shoes ranging from $32 to $174 on shein.com. Skechers declined to comment on how its sales on Shein have been performing.

Overall, Shein's growth is bound to slow in its more established markets such as the U.S. and the UK, said Louise Deglise-Favre, apparel market analyst at GlobalData.

"On a global level Shein may be able to sustain similar levels of growth as it continues to enter and develop into new markets, strategically increase some of its prices or through acquisitions," she added.

The U.S. accounted for 28% of Shein's sales in 2023, GlobalData estimates, with Germany and the UK the second and third biggest markets. Shein also makes significant revenues in Brazil and Mexico, and is growing rapidly in other emerging markets.

However, price hikes can only go so far to boost Shein's revenues, AlixPartners' Lautier said, as higher prices typically impact the share of visits to the site that turn into purchases. To drive sales growth further Shein will have to bring more people to its platform, and get them to visit more frequently.

($1 = 0.7789 pounds)

(Reporting by Helen Reid; Editing by Matt Scuffham and Mark Potter)
EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill.  The City of East St. Louis is heading towards a financial crisis due to its ongoing battle with the police department.

The Police Pension Board met Tuesday and voted to send paperwork to the state comptroller to take millions of city dollars.

There are millions of dollars owed to the police pension fund. Now, officers are using a state law that allows the request of the state comptroller to seize $3.7 million in city funds to reduce the balance.

The intercept consists of moneys that were earmarked from the state, for the municipality, that will now be intercepted at the comptroller level and redirected straight into the police pension fund, Police Pension Board Attorney Dennis Orsey said. In fiscal year 2016, fiscal year 2019, and fiscal year 2021, the City of East St. Louis underfunded the police pension fund to the tune of about $3.7 million. Thats what were seeking to recover at this time.

Alleged drug pipeline from Mexico to St. Louis uncovered in federal case

If the intercept is successful, it could bring major troubles for the city, that already has a tight budget.

The city has been working with the police union, with the fire unions to try to come to some agreement. I do know that were very close. The fire department has pretty much accepted an offer that weve been able to work out and I think the police department is very close, City Manager Robert Betts said. So, were continuing to be very optimistic that we can work together and do whats in the best interest of our citizens.

According to Orsey, the board had to turn to intercepts years ago and recouped $1.8 million.

The city owed the fire department more than $4 million but made a deal to avoid intercepting state funds. As for the police pension, the comptroller will have 60 days to decide on whether to authorize the intercept that could harm the citys financial status.

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 2.
Grant Cardone Claims California Lost $1 Billion After His 2012 Exodus To Florida

Real estate magnate Grant Cardone said California lost $1 billion in revenue when he fled California for Florida in 2012.

He moved in 2012 when California raised state income taxes from 10% to 13.3%.

"After living there 25 years, we sold our home and real estate holdings and looked for a friendlier business environment," Cardone wrote in a June 12 post on X.

At the time, Cardone's companies employed a dozen people and were making about $3 million per year, with most of the income coming from outside the Golden State. Cardone said he never objected to paying his share, but California continued to raise taxes and misuse the revenue.

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"That was 2012, and it's only gotten worse," he posted. "I would still be in California today, and they would have benefited from the rest of the story."

Cardone and his wife, Elena, relocated to Miami in 2012, investing all of the tax savings they realized in their consulting business. The couple sold their California real estate  keeping one small property in Malibu  and invested in Florida to grow their fledgling real estate company.

Since then, the consulting business has grown from six employees to 1,000, revenue increased from $10 million to $650 million, and the company now has 15,000 rental units and about 500,000 square feet of office space valued at $5 billion that generates $75 million in property taxes every year.

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"My story demonstrates how lower state taxes and favorable economic policies can stimulate business growth, boost employment and contribute significantly to the local and national economy," Cardone posted. "Advocating for more competitive tax policies and tax intelligence can lead to similar success stories, benefiting businesses, communities and the national economy alike."

By Cardone's calculations, California has lost  and Florida has gained  $75 million in property taxes, $10 million in employee taxes, $5 million in company sales taxes, $2.7 million in employee sales taxes for an annual loss/gain of $92.7 million, which works out to $1.1 billion over 12 years.

Story continues

It's not just California that's driving people to more business-friendly states. Investors from New York, New Jersey and Illinois are relocating to states like Florida, Texas, Tennessee and Arizona "where businesses are rewarded for taking a risk, laws are enforced and property rights are respected," Cardon said.

"States that continue to raise taxes and mismanage revenues will continue to see the most productive in society move to states where taxes are lower and friendlier to business and investments," Cardone wrote.

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This article Grant Cardone Claims California Lost $1 Billion After His 2012 Exodus To Florida originally appeared on Benzinga.com

 2024 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
Greg Wesley has been named Greater Milwaukee Foundation's new president and chief executive officer.

Greater Milwaukee Foundation, which spends tens of millions of dollars annually to help lower-income people and others, has named its new president and chief executive officer: Medical College of Wisconsin executive Greg Wesley.

Wesley succeeds Ellen Gilligan, who since 2010 has led the community foundation  with assets totaling nearly $900 million and issued $75 million in grants in 2022, according to its most recent annual report to the Internal Revenue Service. Gilligan announced in 2023 her plans to retire this summer.

Greg is a proven leader in our community and uniquely positioned to lead the organization as it builds and expands on this commitment to community impact," said Paul Jones, foundation board chair.

Wesley, an attorney, has been the medical college's senior vice president for strategic alliances and business development since 2016.

His duties included developing the ThriveOn Collaboration, a partnership between the college and the foundation.

It resulted from the foundation's increased focus on racial equity issues and the medical college's emphasis on the social determinants of health. The collaboration includes work on housing, food, transportation, education and family-supporting jobs.

The college's community engagement programs and the foundation's headquarters recently moved into ThriveOn King, a mixed-use development at the renovated Schuster's department store, 2153 N. King Drive. ThriveOn King also features other community groups, with apartments under construction.

ThriveOn tied to conversations within the community

The ThriveOn Collaboration was developed through several conversations with community members, and was not the idea of just one person.

Wesley will continue that approach, known as community development philanthropy, as Greater Milwaukee Foundation president.

"A lot of deep listening has to take place," he said.

Wesley said the foundation also will continue its focus on impact investing.

Impact investing encompasses small business opportunities and connecting entrepreneurs with "patient capital," Wesley said.

The idea, he said, is to "connect those dots" to help the Milwaukee area continue to grow.

Wesley, 54, grew up in Gary, Indiana, and moved in 1997 to Milwaukee after earning his law degree at University of Wisconsin-Madison. This is where he started his career at Gonzalez Saggio & Harlan LLP, met his spouse, and raised a family.

During that period he's seen big investments in downtown and its surrounding neighborhoods. Those developments "kept us as a big league city," Wesley said.

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But challenges remain, including those tied to education, he said.

Focus on early childhood education will continue

Wesley said the foundation will continue its focus on early childhood education  something Gilligan has emphasized.

"That's critically important," Wesley said, "and is rooted in racial equity and inclusion."

Wesley said he was honored and excited to accept the foundation's leadership position.

"I approach it with a sober lens but also an optimistic lens," he said.

Wesley's selection drew praise from such community leaders as County Executive David Crowley, Mayor Cavalier Johnson and Dale Kooyenga, Metropolitan Milwaukee Association of Commerce president.

Greg is a leader in every sense of the word," Kooyenga said. "He will bring new insights, impact and influence tothe foundation. I look forward to working with him in his new role.

Gilligan came to the foundation after 12 years at the Greater Cincinnati Foundation.

Ellens vision for the Foundation has transformed the organization, benefiting the community in remarkable ways, Jones said.

Tom Daykin can be emailed at tdaykin@jrn.com and followed on Instagram, X and Facebook.

Subscribe to get the BusinessWatch email newsletter.

This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Greater Milwaukee Foundation names Greg Wesley as president and CEO
HAMPTON  The former home to Rons Landing restaurant could be turned into condominiums if a proposed project gets its required variances from the towns Zoning Board.

The restaurant property and its adjacent parking lot are currently under contract with a buyer, according to Realtor Alex Loiseau. Plans to develop the properties that make up that land  379 and 387 Ocean Boulevard  have been filed with the town building department. The project would combine those lots to build two buildings, one of which would be five stories and need variances. The other building would be three stories and can be built without variances.

The former home to Rons Landing restaurant could be turned into condominiums if a proposed project gets its required variances from the Hampton Zoning Board.

The project would bring 13 new residential units to the location  10 three-bedroom units in the taller structure and three, three- to four-bedroom units in the other. The taller structure would require variances in height, unit square footage, and casting a shadow on the beach. The project will go before the Hampton Zoning Board June 20.

Loiseau said he could not disclose who the buyer was because the sale is still in its "due diligence" period and has not closed. The properties have been owned by Bob Boucher, who ran Rons Landing for decades until it closed in 2022.

The petition before the Zoning Board lists the owner of the properties as Kevin Donovan of K and S Realty Trust, who said he serves as trustee on the property for Boucher. The petitioner in the filing is listed as 387 Ocean Blvd, LLC, with Louis Minicucci the only name listed as a member, according to the New Hampshire Secretary of States records. Minicucci did not return a call seeking comment.

Attorneys R. Timothy Phoenix and Monica F. Kieser argued in the petition that the project would not impact property values, citing a report from an appraiser. They also wrote the sale of the properties may depend on the variances being approved by the board.

Denial of the variances will be of great harm to the owner, who will likely be unable to sell the property for the price the applicant is willing to pay, the attorneys wrote.

North Beach development: Restaurant, retail, condos to replace charred remains in Hampton

Variances needed for height, density and shadow

Both the restaurant and parking lot are currently listed as under agreement on sites like Redfin.com, the property at 379 Ocean Boulevard for $1,250,000, the other at $1,100,000.

The parking lot property came under agreement earlier this year, according to the Zoning Board petition. A project to develop that lot was brought before the board this year but withdrawn because the pending buyer decided to buy the other lot as well. A new project was filed in June, this time merging both lots for the current project.

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The project seeks a variance for the limit on square footage per unit. Units in the zone must be at least 2,500, and the proposed project would have units as small as 1,723 square feet.

The petition shows that the original project filed with the Zoning Board requested units as small as 1,622.9 square feet and that the new proposal is an improved square footage. Phoenix and Kieser wrote that the variance to allow smaller units was critical to the project.

Compliance with the districts 2,500 square feet per dwelling unit requirement will render the project economically unviable, the attorneys wrote.

Shadow on the beach is prohibited in that zone before 6 p.m. between May 15 and Sept. 1. The petition states that some shadow will be visible on May 15 and between Aug. 15 and Sept. 1. It argues a variance should be granted because the shadow will only fall in the narrow rocky northern end of the beach, which the attorneys argued was a non-factor during most of the summer.

The projects taller five-story building would be 61.5 feet, higher than the 50-foot limit in that zone. The petitioners' attorneys argued other tall buildings have been approved as well, including 377 Ocean Blvd. next door, and that tall construction is trending in that part of the beach.

Those lots that now hold smaller buildings will at some point likely be removed in favor of the taller buildings, the attorneys wrote in the filing. The taller buildings permit more units, thus assisting with the economics of development/redevelopment, increasing taxes and patronage of Hampton businesses.

Hampton Beach Sand Sculpting Classic: What you need to know

Rons Landing a fixture for years at Hampton Beach

Rons Landing started as Rons Beach House at a different location on the beach, opened by Bouchers brother Ron in 1986. Boucher worked as a financial advisor when his brother asked him to work for him in 1992.

In 1996, the lease ran out at the building where the Beach House was, and the brothers opened Rons Landing at 379 Ocean Blvd. Boucher became a partner and took on managerial and hosting duties. He became the sole owner in 2005, when his brother left to run the now-closed cooking school, Chez Boucher, in Depot Square in Hampton.

Locals have said they hoped Rons Landing could have remained a restaurant. A rise in condo development at Hampton Beach has led several buildings to be sold and turned into residential units, like the nearby Little Jacks Seafood torn down in 2019.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Hampton Beach landmark: Buyer plans condos for Ron's Landing site
Key Insights

Duopharma Biotech Berhad's estimated fair value is RM1.60 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity

Current share price of RM1.25 suggests Duopharma Biotech Berhad is potentially 22% undervalued

The RM1.46 analyst price target for DPHARMA is 9.3% less than our estimate of fair value

In this article we are going to estimate the intrinsic value of Duopharma Biotech Berhad (KLSE:DPHARMA) by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to today's value. The Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model is the tool we will apply to do this. It may sound complicated, but actually it is quite simple!

Remember though, that there are many ways to estimate a company's value, and a DCF is just one method. If you still have some burning questions about this type of valuation, take a look at the Simply Wall St analysis model.

Check out our latest analysis for Duopharma Biotech Berhad

The Model

We use what is known as a 2-stage model, which simply means we have two different periods of growth rates for the company's cash flows. Generally the first stage is higher growth, and the second stage is a lower growth phase. In the first stage we need to estimate the cash flows to the business over the next ten years. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren't available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.

Generally we assume that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar in the future, and so the sum of these future cash flows is then discounted to today's value:

10-year free cash flow (FCF) estimate

2024 2025 2026 2027 2028 2029 2030 2031 2032 2033 Levered FCF (MYR, Millions) RM100.0m RM72.0m RM93.0m RM81.0m RM88.0m RM91.6m RM95.2m RM98.8m RM102.5m RM106.3m Growth Rate Estimate Source Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Analyst x1 Est @ 4.08% Est @ 3.92% Est @ 3.81% Est @ 3.73% Est @ 3.68% Present Value (MYR, Millions) Discounted @ 8.6% RM92.1 RM61.0 RM72.5 RM58.2 RM58.2 RM55.7 RM53.3 RM51.0 RM48.7 RM46.4

("Est" = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)

Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = RM597m

We now need to calculate the Terminal Value, which accounts for all the future cash flows after this ten year period. The Gordon Growth formula is used to calculate Terminal Value at a future annual growth rate equal to the 5-year average of the 10-year government bond yield of 3.6%. We discount the terminal cash flows to today's value at a cost of equity of 8.6%.

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Terminal Value (TV)= FCF 2033  (1 + g)  (r  g) = RM106m (1 + 3.6%)  (8.6% 3.6%) = RM2.2b

Present Value of Terminal Value (PVTV)= TV / (1 + r)10= RM2.2b ( 1 + 8.6%)10= RM947m

The total value, or equity value, is then the sum of the present value of the future cash flows, which in this case is RM1.5b. The last step is to then divide the equity value by the number of shares outstanding. Relative to the current share price of RM1.3, the company appears a touch undervalued at a 22% discount to where the stock price trades currently. Remember though, that this is just an approximate valuation, and like any complex formula - garbage in, garbage out.

dcf

The Assumptions

We would point out that the most important inputs to a discounted cash flow are the discount rate and of course the actual cash flows. You don't have to agree with these inputs, I recommend redoing the calculations yourself and playing with them. The DCF also does not consider the possible cyclicality of an industry, or a company's future capital requirements, so it does not give a full picture of a company's potential performance. Given that we are looking at Duopharma Biotech 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 Duopharma Biotech Berhad

Strength

Debt is well covered by earnings.

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 Pharmaceuticals market.

Opportunity

Annual earnings are forecast to grow faster than the Malaysian market.

Trading below our estimate of fair value by more than 20%.

Threat

Debt is not well covered by operating cash flow.

Revenue is forecast to grow slower than 20% per year.

Moving On:

Although the valuation of a company is important, it 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. Rather it should be seen as a guide to "what assumptions need to be true for this stock to be under/overvalued?" 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 Duopharma Biotech Berhad, we've put together three fundamental items you should explore:

Risks: Be aware that Duopharma Biotech Berhad is showing 3 warning signs in our investment analysis , and 1 of those is concerning... Future Earnings: How does DPHARMA's growth rate compare to its peers and the wider market? Dig deeper into the analyst consensus number for the upcoming years by interacting with our free analyst growth expectation chart. Other Solid Businesses: Low debt, high returns on equity and good past performance are fundamental to a strong business. Why not explore our interactive list of stocks with solid business fundamentals to see if there are other companies you may not have considered!

PS. Simply Wall St updates its DCF calculation for every Malaysian stock every day, so if you want to find the intrinsic value of any other stock just search here.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team (at) simplywallst.com.



This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.
(Bloomberg) -- Companies that use artificial intelligence to transform their business could be the next crop of firms to benefit from investors enthusiasm for the technology, according to a top JPMorgan Chase & Co. executive.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Investors solely focusing on chipmakers or cloud computing providers that are facilitating the creation of new AI models is not the right approach going forward, said Caroline Potsch-Hennig, who leads JPMorgans private bank in Germany. Instead, they should also look out for the adopters of the new technology, Potsch-Hennig said at a Bloomberg New Voices event in Frankfurt.

Some of the companies behind the AI boom have seen massive share price increases in recent months, with Nvidia Corp. recently notching a $3 trillion market capitalization as investors excitement for the technology has grown. The server maker Super Micro Computer Inc. is the S&P 500 Indexs best performer so far this year.

Now, though, a growing number of investors are looking for other ways to bet on AIs potential. For instance, JPMorgan has previously said that some trading clients are piling into commodities, anticipating that the infrastructure needed for the technology will bolster demand for energy and equipment.

Apple Inc. shares rose to a record earlier this week after it unveiled some long-awaited new artificial intelligence features. JPMorgans own Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon recently said AI has unbelievable potential for the banking industry as the technology gets deployed across functions like risk, fraud, marketing, and customer relations.

You need to look at the companies that have the balance sheet and have the cash to fund the technological innovation, said Mirjam Staub-Bisang, who leads BlackRock Inc.s business in Switzerland. To do that investment today, you can reap the benefits for years from now.

(Updates with previous comments from JPMorgan CEO in fifth paragraph)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
Amidst a backdrop of mixed global economic signals, the Hong Kong market has shown resilience with the Hang Seng Index experiencing a notable rise. This environment sets an intriguing stage for examining growth companies in Hong Kong, particularly those with high insider ownership, which can be indicative of confidence in long-term prospects by those closest to the company.

Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In Hong Kong

Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth iDreamSky Technology Holdings (SEHK:1119) 20.1% 104.1% Fenbi (SEHK:2469) 32.2% 43% DPC Dash (SEHK:1405) 38.2% 89.7% Zylox-Tonbridge Medical Technology (SEHK:2190) 18.5% 79.3% Adicon Holdings (SEHK:9860) 22.3% 29.6% Tian Tu Capital (SEHK:1973) 34% 70.5% RemeGen (SEHK:9995) 12.2% 54.9% Biocytogen Pharmaceuticals (Beijing) (SEHK:2315) 13.9% 100.1% Zhejiang Leapmotor Technology (SEHK:9863) 15% 75.4% Beijing Airdoc Technology (SEHK:2251) 27.7% 83.9%

Click here to see the full list of 51 stocks from our Fast Growing SEHK 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: Fenbi Ltd. is an investment holding company specializing in non-formal vocational education and training services in the People's Republic of China, with a market capitalization of approximately HK$9.73 billion.

Operations: The company generates revenue primarily through tutoring services and book sales, totaling CN2.51 billion and CN0.66 billion respectively.

Insider Ownership: 32.2%

Earnings Growth Forecast: 43% p.a.

Fenbi Ltd., a growth company in Hong Kong, recently announced a share repurchase program valued at HK$300 million, signaling confidence from its board and aligning with insider interests. The company turned profitable this year with reported annual sales of CNY 3.02 billion and net income of CNY 188.57 million, reversing previous losses. Analysts predict robust future growth for Fenbi, expecting earnings to increase by 43% annually over the next three years, significantly outpacing the local market's forecasted growth.

SEHK:2469 Ownership Breakdown as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Bairong Inc. is a provider of cloud-based AI turnkey services in China, with a market capitalization of approximately HK$4.31 billion.

Operations: The company's revenue is primarily generated from data processing services, amounting to CN2.68 billion.

Insider Ownership: 19.1%

Story continues

Earnings Growth Forecast: 21.1% p.a.

Bairong Inc., a Hong Kong-based growth company, has demonstrated strong financial performance with a significant increase in sales and net income in the latest fiscal year. Despite high insider ownership, recent executive changes and amendments to company bylaws reflect ongoing adjustments to corporate governance. Analysts are optimistic, projecting substantial stock price increases and earnings growth exceeding local market trends. However, Bairong's Return on Equity is expected to remain modest compared to benchmarks.

SEHK:6608 Earnings and Revenue Growth as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: China Youran Dairy Group Limited operates in the upstream dairy industry in China, with a market capitalization of approximately HK$4.44 billion.

Operations: The company generates revenue primarily from two segments: the Raw Milk Business, which brought in CN12.90 billion, and Comprehensive Ruminant Farming Solutions, contributing CN8.09 billion.

Insider Ownership: 14.9%

Earnings Growth Forecast: 73.8% p.a.

China Youran Dairy Group, despite a challenging year with no final dividend and a shift from profit to a net loss of CNY 1.05 billion, is positioned for recovery. Analysts forecast an impressive revenue growth rate of 8.4% annually, outpacing the Hong Kong market's 7.8%. However, financial strains are evident as interest payments are poorly covered by earnings. The company's insider ownership remains high, suggesting confidence among stakeholders in its long-term prospects amidst current volatility.

SEHK:9858 Earnings and Revenue Growth as at Jun 2024

Seize The Opportunity

Dive into all 51 of the Fast Growing SEHK Companies With High Insider Ownership we have identified here.

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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:2469 SEHK:6608 and SEHK:9858.

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ROME  A major Italian acquisition of Leopard tanks is on the brink of collapsing after a cooperation deal between tank manufacturer KNDS and Italys Leonardo was scrapped on Tuesday due to a row over technology transfer.

Announced in December 2023, the partnership between Leonardo and the German-French alliance was due to lead to an industrial role for the Italian defense giant in a large planned Italian purchase of Leopard tanks, including 130 combat versions.

Leonardo aimed to add its own components and electronics to the tank, which was to be assembled at its facility in La Spezia, Italy, but the surprise announcement by KNDS on Tuesday indicated Leonardo wanted more input that KNDS was prepared to offer.

With 18 European user countries, Leopard 2 is the battle tank standard of our continent and of NATO. It is more important than ever to safeguard this standard, which makes a significant contribution to the interoperability and joint combat power of the European and NATO armies. The parties did not manage to agree on configuration, Frank Haun, KNDS CEO, said in the statement.

KNDS, the statement added, is no longer in talks with Leonardo regarding a potential partnership with the Italian company.

Cash in hand for armored vehicles, Italy weighs its clout in Europe

Hours after KNDS issued its statement, Leonardo put out its own press release. Leonardo announces, despite the efforts undertaken, the interruption of the negotiations with KNDS to define a common configuration for the Main Battle Tank program of the Italian Army and to develop a broader cooperation, it stated.

Leonardo confirms its commitment to provide the Italian Army with a performant, interoperable and up-to-date solution, satisfying the present requirements and remaining well positioned for future developments toward Main Ground Combat System, also through cooperation with other qualified international partners, it added.

The breakdown in talks could yet have further fallout for Italian plans for a new tracked fighting vehicle and a possible entry by Leonardo into KNDS as a stake holder  a move which would have boosted the much vaunted and long delayed consolidation of the European land defense industry.

Talks about Leonardos strategic participation in KNDS have also fallen short, said Haun.

KNDS is a consortium of Germanys Krauss-Maffei Wegmann and Frances Nexter.

Instead, the divorce shows that national interests in the industry are still paramount, despite the pressure from politicians to create synergies and bulk up in the face of Russian aggression and global competition.

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While KNDS was keen to suggest in its statement that Leonardo was at fault for wanting to disrupt the uniformity of the Leopard model, one industry insider also pointed the finger at KNDS. During talks, Italy was offered zero technology transfer, but you cant offer an off-the-shelf tank when Leonardo has its own systems it can integrate, said the source, who spoke on condition of not being identified.

A Leonardo official told Defense News earlier this year that the Italian firm was mulling supplying an electro-optical sensor, software defined radio, the command and control system and possibly the gun barrel to the tank.

A second industry source said Italy would now almost certainly cancel its purchase of Leopard tanks even though the process will be complicated by the fact the Italian parliament has voted for it.

Italy may now consider buying the Rheinmetall Panther KF51 tank, even though it is just a prototype, unless the Italian army steps in and says it still wants the Leopard, said the source, who also spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not permitted to speak on the record.

Last years Leonardo-KNDS cooperation deal also mentioned possible teaming on a separate Italian 5 billion ($5.4 billion) program to build 1,050 tracked fighting vehicles.

Leonardo and Italys Iveco Defence Vehicles are currently in the process of selecting a European partner to work with on the so-called A2CS program, with candidates including KNDS, which would propose its tracked Boxer vehicle as a baseline, while Rheinmetall has offered its Lynx.

After this announcement today it is more difficult to imagine Italy working with KNDS on the A2CS program, said the second source.

The rupture between KNDS and Leonardo could also have ramifications for Italys hoped-for entry into the European battle tank program known as the Main Ground Combat System (MGCS), which KNDS is running.
Sir Keir Starmer has pledged to rebuild Britain - Anthony Devlin/Getty Images Europe

Labours raid on private schools, non-doms and energy giants is poised to push Britains tax burden to a new record high, leaving households paying the equivalent of 1,100 in extra taxes by the end of the decade.

During the launch of its manifesto in Manchester on Thursday, Sir Keir Starmer pledged to grow the economy and rebuild Britain.

The Labour leader sought to reassure the middle classes by declaring he was pro-business and pro-worker, describing his Opposition as the party of wealth creation.

However, his commitment to more than 8.5bn of tax rises will cement a post-pandemic increase in the overall tax burden.

Responding to Labours manifesto launch, Jeremy Hunt branded Sir Keirs plans a tax trap manifesto containing only tax rises and no tax cuts.

The Chancellor said: Under Labours published plans, taxes will rise to levels never before seen in this country.

Heres how the Conservative and Labour manifestos compare on tax, spending and growth.

Tax

Labour has pledged to raise more than 8.5bn in extra taxes by the end of the decade by ending the VAT and business rates exemption for private schools and closing tax breaks enjoyed by non-doms.

An additional tax raid on oil and gas companies, private equity firms and foreign home buyers will also help bolster coffers as Sir Keir pursues an expansion of the state.

By contrast, the Tories have pledged 17bn of tax cuts, including another 2p off national insurance at a cost of 10bn. They have also pledged to abolish the tax altogether for self-employed workers.

Handing back child benefits to around 700,000 middle-class parents with one high earner and cutting stamp duty for first-time buyers are among the other Tory manifesto pledges.

Britains tax take was already on course to rise to its highest share since 1948 thanks to Mr Hunts stealth tax raid, which will see the point at which people start paying income tax frozen until 2028-29.

Threshold freezes across the income spectrum, including a reduction for top earners, means there will be 3 million more people paying the 40p or 45p rate of tax by the end of the decade.

The Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) already expects the tax burden to rise to 37.1pc of GDP by the end of the decade. This is four percentage points higher than pre-pandemic levels of 33pc.

The Tories tax-cutting plan would get this down to 36.7pc of GDP, according to the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). Under Labour, it would hit a new record.

The Resolution Foundation said: Labours plans to raise taxes by 8.5bn a year over the next parliament, coupled with 23.5bn post-election tax rises announced by Jeremy Hunt in the last parliament, would leave the UKs tax-to-GDP ratio rising from 36.5 per cent in 2024-25 to 37.4pc in 2028-29  equivalent to a tax rise of 1,100 a year per household (in 2028-29 prices)  with the UKs tax take reaching its highest on record.

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Mike Brewer, interim chief executive of the think tank, said Labours spending plan sets the scene for a parliament of tax rises.

Spending

Both parties have pledged to spend more money. For the Tories, the biggest increase is in defence spending, which will rise from 2pc of GDP to 2.5pc by the end of the decade.

Labours big spending pledges include a plan to borrow billions of pounds to fund net zero, as well as plans to reduce NHS waiting lists, fund breakfast clubs and hire thousands of new teachers. Its green energy proposal includes extra borrowing of 3.5bn a year.

The Tories are funding most of their tax cuts with a 12bn squeeze on benefits. Both parties also want to crack down on tax avoidance and evasion, while the Tories have said they will cut the number of civil servants.

Paul Johnson, the director of the IFS, said: Those are definite giveaways paid for by uncertain, unspecific and apparently victimless savings. Forgive a degree of scepticism.

In order to keep the reins on expenditure, Rachel Reeves has pledged to balance the books on day-to-day spending, a rule that allows her to borrow for net zero.

Both parties have committed to getting debt down within five years.

Goldman Sachs has suggested that the shadow chancellor could  with the stroke of a pen  give herself almost 15bn of extra headroom by changing the way debt is measured.

It said that would leave her with 25bn of headroom as opposed to 8.9bn, while still remaining within the letter of her rules.

Mr Johnson added that Labours big promises in areas such as health would require big spending too.

He added: All that will leave Labour with a problem. On current forecasts, and especially with an extra 17.5bn borrowing over five years to fund the green prosperity plan, this leaves literally no room  within the fiscal rule that Labour has signed up to  for any more spending than planned by the current government.

And those plans do involve cuts both to investment spending and to spending on unprotected public services. Yet Sir Keir effectively ruled out such cuts. How they will square the circle in government we do not know.

Growth

The cure-all for strains on taxes and spending is economic growth.

Any Government which presides over higher GDP will benefit from higher tax receipts and lower spending on benefits.

At the top of Labours list of five missions to rebuild Britain is a promise to kickstart economic growth to secure the highest sustained growth in the G7  with good jobs and productivity growth in every part of the country making everyone, not just a few, better off.

Forecasts for the coming years indicate the UK is currently on track to record the third-fastest growth in the G7.

Predictions from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) indicate that between now and 2028, Britains GDP will grow by 1.6pc per year on average.

That is behind the US and Canada, and fractionally ahead of France.

Topping the leaderboard means getting growth to 2pc on a sustainable basis.

The Conservative manifesto does not set out a precise growth target, aspiring instead to create a secure, dynamic and growing economy.

However, it does note that Britain has the third-highest growth rate in the G7 since 2010.

If the goal is to carry on as such, then those IMF forecasts suggest the country is already on track to achieve this in the years to come.

But Jeremy Hunt has also stressed that the lower-taxed economies of North America and Asia generally grow faster than the higher-taxed economies of Europe.

If emulating the economies of the US and Canada is the goal, then that is similar to Labours target. However, the challenges are clear and the consequences significant.

Goldman has already warned that even slightly slower growth will leave Britains debt on an ever-rising path.

This is particularly acute as each party promises to take on the countrys ills.

The Tories want to tackle worklessness with lower national insurance and tighter rules on benefits to encourage more people into jobs.

While Labour is promising 1.5 million more homes over the next Parliament, restoring mandatory housing targets and changing the rules to build more on the green belt.

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) -- Elon Musk and his companies are embroiled in dozens of lawsuits, ranging from fatal crashes blamed on Tesla Inc.s Autopilot system to civil rights complaints over the treatment of employees.

Most Read from Bloomberg

Teslas board and Musk were hit June 6 with another suit over his $56 billion pay package that a judge voided in January  ahead of a June 13 shareholder proxy vote on whether the company should resurrect it.

Musk, who has a history of sparring with regulators, also faces government investigations into his companies that could result in more lawsuits or even criminal prosecutions.

Bloomberg News has identified more than half a dozen ongoing legal fights in which Musk is a defendant or a plaintiff, as well as about a dozen others involving his companies. Heres a breakdown of the major legal battles faced by the worlds third-richest person and his companies:

TESLA INC.

Autopilot Crashes, California and Florida state and federal courts

The electric-car maker faces at least half a dozen wrongful death claims over fatal crashes blamed on its Autopilot driver-assistance system.

At stake: A finding that Tesla is culpable for deaths would imperil Musks quest to lead the way for fully self-driving cars to cruise down busy city streets and freeways.

Race Discrimination, California state and federal courts

Tesla faces multiple suits over allegations of racism on its production floor filed by workers, Californias civil rights department and the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.

At stake: The automaker could have to pay damages and foster a more inclusive environment.

Pay Package, Delaware Chancery Court

Musk is poised to appeal a judges decision voiding his Tesla pay package as excessive, while Tesla plans to ask shareholders at the companys June 13 annual meeting to ratify the same compensation plan approved six years ago. A new suit alleges Musk is trying to strong-arm shareholders into resurrecting the record-setting pay package through a proxy vote.

At stake: Musk has suggested the largest-ever executive pay package is necessary for him to have the right amount of voting influence at Tesla, so he can grow it to be a leader in artificial intelligence and robotics.

Anti-Union Tweet, federal appeals court in New Orleans

A 17-judge panel is reviewing a finding by the National Labor Relations Board that Musk illegally threatened workers with the loss of benefits if they unionized.

Story continues

At stake: A ruling condemning the CEOs commentary on social media would be a comeuppance for Musk and a morale boost for labor activists who are trying to organize Tesla workers.

Drug Use, Delaware Chancery Court

A shareholder suit alleges that Musks use of illicit recreational drugs threatens Teslas business, including by apparently influencing his sometimes erratic behavior online.

At stake: The lawsuit seeks closer supervision of Musks social media posts about Tesla, which are already supposed to be vetted under an agreement he reached in 2018 with the Securities and Exchange Commission and unsuccessfully challenged all the way to the US Supreme Court.

False Advertising, California federal courts

Tesla faces numerous lawsuits claiming misrepresentations to consumers, including that the company inflated how far its electric vehicles drive on a charge and over-hyped their driving-assistance capabilities.

At stake: The lawsuits take aim at features Tesla promotes to distinguish itself from competitors and are core to the companys market value.

JPMorgan Stock Warrants, New York federal court

JPMorgan sued Tesla seeking a $162 million payment related to a series of stock warrant transactions dating back to 2014, and Tesla later countersued the bank.

At stake: If the case goes to trial, Musks infamous 2018 tweet about taking Tesla private that is central to the dispute will once again haunt the company.

Insider Sale of $7.5 Billion in Stock, Delaware Chancery Court

A Tesla shareholder alleges Musk had inside knowledge of a miss on production and delivery numbers that the company was facing when he sold more than $7.5 billion in stock in 2022 to help pay for his acquisition of Twitter Inc.

At stake: The investor wants Musk to be ordered return the profit from his allegedly improper trading to the company.

X CORP.

Employee Pay, California state and federal courts

X Corp., formerly Twitter, has been accused in multiple suits of labor and workplace violations in the wake of mass layoffs after Musks 2022 acquisition, including reneging on promises to pay severance to executives and thousands of workers.

At stake: Collectively, the lawsuits seek hundreds of millions of dollars in back pay.

Unpaid Bills, California state courts

X has been accused in multiple suits of failing to pay vendors and landlords after Musk took over the company and set about cutting operating costs.

At stake: Collectively, the complaints cite millions of dollars of unpaid expenses.

Twitter Takeover, California federal court

Musk faces an investor lawsuit claiming he fueled uncertainty about his proposed buyout in an effort to drive down the platforms stock price.

At stake: The investors seek unspecified damages over stock value losses.

Content Moderation, California federal court

X has sued non-profits that have issued reports criticizing toxic posts on the platform and faulting the company for lax content moderation.

At stake: X already lost one suit, but if it can prove its claim in the other case that a series of published articles are false and malicious attacks aimed at driving advertisers away, Musks company could win monetary damages.

SPACEX CORP.

Retaliatory Firings, California

SpaceX was accused by the NLRB of illegally firing eight employees over an internal letter sharply critical of Musk.

At stake: The company could be forced to reinstate the workers or provide back pay, but the US labor board generally cant hold executives personally liable for alleged wrongdoing or issue any punitive damages.

Sexual Harassment, California state court

The eight fired SpaceX employees who complained to the NLRB have also sued Musk over the alleged retaliation as well as sexual harassment. They claim Musk brought into the workplace vile sexual photographs, memes, and commentary that demeaned women and/or the LGBTQ+ community.

At stake: Unlike the NLRB complaint, the lawsuit could hold Musk personally liable for alleged wrongdoing and result in punitive damages.

US Labor Board, California federal court

SpaceX sued the NLRB to have the agencys structure for in-house administrative proceedings declared unconstitutional after the board filed its complaint over fired SpaceX employees.

At stake: A victory for SpaceX could hobble the authority of the federal labor rights watchdog.

Gender Discrimination, California state court

SpaceX faces multiple gender-discrimination suits, including allegations that female employees are underpaid relative to men and subject to sexual harassment.

At stake: A loss for the company would hurt its reputation and might discourage talented female engineers and managers from seeking employment.

Wildlife Area Launchpad, DC federal court

SpaceXs use of a rocket launchpad neighboring a Texas wildlife refuge drew a lawsuit from environmental groups over how the site won approval from the Federal Aviation Administration.

At stake: The environmental scrutiny could delay future licensing for the company.

Trespassing, Texas state court

The maker of the popular game Cards Against Humanity claimed SpaceX trespassed on and damaged land it owns on the border of Texas and Mexico. The property was purchased in 2017 as part of the game developers campaign against then-President Donald Trumps plan for building a border wall.

At stake: Cards Against Humanity is seeking $15 million. The company said it will also accept Twitter.com as compensation.

MISCELLANEOUS

Musk v. OpenAI, California state court

Musk sued OpenAI and its Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman for allegedly putting profit ahead of humanity in violation of the startups founding mission. But Musk dropped the litigation on June 11.

At stake: Musk voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit, which lawyers said was a long-shot, one day before OpenAI was scheduled to argue for its dismissal before a judge. Musk, who tends to see court fights through to the bitter end rather than conceding, reserved the right to revive his claims.

Fired Disney Actor, California federal court

Musk is funding a lawsuit against Walt Disney Co. by The Mandalorian actor Gina Carano over controversial statements she posted on X.

At stake: As a free-speech absolutist, Musk has promised to pay legal fees for people fired from jobs for statements they made on the platform.

False Flag Defamation, Texas state court

Musk faces a defamation suit for allegedly promoting a conspiracy theory that falsely identified a California Jewish man as involved in a scheme to discredit right-wing groups by posing as a neo-Nazi street brawler.

At stake: Ben Brody, who filed the lawsuit, is seeking at least $1 million in damages.

GOVERNMENT INVESTIGATIONS

Tesla Self-Driving

The Justice Department and Securities and Exchange Commission launched investigations in 2021 and 2022 about whether Tesla made misleading claims about its vehicles purported self-driving capabilities.

At stake: The probes could result in a regulatory enforcement action or criminal charges against Tesla.

Glass House

The SEC and Justice Department last year started investigating whether Tesla improperly used company funds to build a glass house in Texas and whether Musk was involved, the Wall Street Journal reported.

At stake: The probes could result in a regulatory enforcement action over securities law violations or criminal charges against Tesla.

Twitter Stock Purchases

The SEC is seeking information about Musks 2022 purchases of Twitter stock and statements he made about his investments ahead of his $44 billion purchase of the social media platform.

At stake: The probe could lead to an enforcement action over securities law violations and possible fines for Musk.

X Privacy

The US Federal Trade Commission is monitoring X over its compliance with a May 2022 settlement over data privacy practices reached prior to Musks takeover.

At stake: Violations of the settlement could lead to millions of dollars in fines or even criminal charges against individuals.

(Updates with new SpaceX lawsuit.)

Most Read from Bloomberg Businessweek

2024 Bloomberg L.P.
A growing number of maritime companies and navies are using autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) to map the ocean seabed for environmental, commercial and research purposes, Norwegian firm Kongsberg has said.

AUVs are increasingly deployed to monitor shipwrecks, marine ecosystems and chemical degradation  key use cases in the Oslo Fjord, which looks like somebody has gone over the sea floor with a rake, according to Kjetil Jensen, Kongsberg Discoverys Vice-President of Seabed Mapping.

Several species of fish are disappearing from the fjord, while important areas of kelp forest and eelgrass have declined in recent years.

Jensen demonstrated Kongsbergs HUGIN AUV acoustic sonar technology to reporters aboard the Simrad Echo on Monday (10 June), in Horten, Oslo. He claimed it is probably the best equipped research vessel in the world, pointing to its 50 sensors, measurement accuracy of 0.00001 degrees and seabed mapping capable of reaching the ocean's deepest point: 10,984 meters in the Mariana Trench.

Jensen also said the HUGIN is able to collect data of high enough resolution to "estimate biomass and perform species discrimination with such accuracy that the system can detect if its a herring or a mackerel".

A prototype of the HUGIN at Kongsbergs site in Horten, Oslo. Credit: Alex Blair.

Most HUGIN models can spend up to 15 days at sea, travelling distances up to 2,200km and diving to depths of 6,000 metres. Each AUV carries a wide array of sensors, including synthetic aperture sonars, multi-beam echo sounders, cameras, lasers, sub-bottom profilers and environmental sensors.

While the HUGIN has predominantly piqued the interest of maritime companies, a Kongsberg official told Ship Technology that 12 naval forces also use it, with the US Navy currently negotiating a contract.

Kongsberg, a giant in the maritime, aerospace and offshore industries, is majority-owned by Norways government.

Environmental conservation or deep-sea mining damage?

Such AUV technology will bolster the prospects of Seabed 2030  a global initiative to create a complete map of the ocean floor by 2030.

Created under the Deep Ocean Stewardship Initiative (DOSI), Seabed 2030 aims to map the seabed to advance understanding of deep-sea ecosystems and support sustainable management.

Amid rising sea levels, the ramifications are potentially seismic for communities in low-lying coastal communities.

https://twitter.com/seabed2030/status/1800182915890061779

Jensen, however, remained cautious about the projects targets. Only around 25% of the worlds seabed is mapped to a useful degree, he told Ship Technology.

However, only 6% of the ocean floor was mapped to an adequate resolution when the initiative first started in 2017.

Story continues

There is vast commercial potential for Kongsbergs HUGIN in the field of deep-sea mining, where instantaneous seabed mapping is a useful asset.

While Jensen spoke guardedly about any involvement with deep-sea mining companies, he said Kongsberg Discovery would not rule out potential contracts.

At the start of this year, the Norwegian government greenlit a proposal in parliament to allow deep-sea mining companies to scour an area as large as Italy in Norwegian waters. The decision was criticised strongly amid reports that deep-sea mining could cause damage of up to $500bn.

This embedded content is not available in your region.

More than 20 countries have called for a temporary suspension of deep-sea mining contracts, calling for more ecological studies to be carried out first.

Finland, Germany, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Portugal and Costa Rica are among the countries calling for a pause on the practice, while China, the UK, Mexico and Nauru joined Norway in support of fast-tracking licenses for deep-sea mining.

While the environmental benefits of seabed mapping technologies remain a cause for optimism, such innovative maritime research will do well to extricate itself from the significant damage deep-sea mining is poised to inflict on the ocean floor.

"Maritime companies race to map the worlds seabed" was originally created and published by Ship 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.
Nest egg necessities: This is how to find the ideal way to invest when your retirement is just 1 year away

Retirement is something most people prepare for throughout their careers. When youre just a year away, youre near the finish line and the end of your working life is in sight. This also means the day your paychecks end is imminent as well so its crucial to be prepared for that reality.

Since youll need to start drawing on your savings soon to support yourself, making smart investment choices is more important than ever.

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Heres a few approaches to think about implementing to ensure youre ready for the day when you start withdrawing from your retirement savings rather than adding to it.

How to invest when retirement is imminent

When you're just 12 months from the time your paychecks end, you can no longer afford to have most of your money exposed to the volatility of the stock market. After all, if a market crash happens the first month youll need income from savings, youd be in dire straits as you look at big losses and cant afford to leave your money invested to wait for a recovery.

As you begin shifting some of your portfolio away from stocks, theres two big questions to answer: how much should you leave invested and what should you do with the rest?

TIAA-CREF Life Insurance Company advises having three different income sources, with one-third of your funds coming from annuity payments, a third from Social Security and pension funds, and the rest from retirement investments.

Withdrawing some of your invested funds to buy an annuity provides a buffer against market fluctuations, as annuities can provide a guaranteed fixed income for life. However, annuities aren't right for everyone, as they sometimes come with high fees and expenses and they limit your liquidity. You'll need to compare options carefully and understand terms and conditions before jumping in.

Another common alternative involves keeping a percentage of your money invested in the stock market while shifting the rest to bonds and cash. Subtracting your age from 100 or 110  depending on your risk tolerance  gives you an idea of the percentage of equities to have in your portfolio.

You can use the remainder of your funds to build a bond or CD ladder. This involves buying either bonds or CDs with staggered maturity dates to provide a steady flow of income over time while limiting market risk.

Story continues

Read more: You didnt want to risk it: 80-year-old woman from South Carolina is looking for the safest place for her familys $250,000 savings. Dave Ramsey responds

Keep the big picture in mind

As you decide how to invest when retirement is coming up quickly, it's important to keep the big picture in mind. This means considering both how much income your investments will offer and what Social Security can do for you.

Retiring doesn't mean you must claim retirement benefits  and each year you delay their start results in higher monthly checks until age 70.

The impact of waiting is more substantial than you might think. Putting off your claim from age 62 until a full retirement age of 67 allows you to avoid a 30% cut to your standard benefit, while delaying from 67 to 70 raises that standard payment by 24%. Since Social Security is guaranteed for life, boosting these benefits has a big payoff.

Of course, unless you're waiting until 70 to retire, a delayed claim would mean relying on savings to provide more of your support in your early retirement years. Selecting the right investment mix  and making sure you aren't invested either too conservatively or too aggressively  makes that possible.

Whether you consider the annuity approach or simply take a careful look at your asset allocation and begin shifting some of your funds into building a bond or CD ladder, the time to act is now. The year will end and retirement will arrive before you know it.

What to read next

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.
Olivia Alexander, founder and chief executive of Kush Queen, sits in front of racks of bath bombs made with pure CBD at her Anaheim headquarters in 2019. (Dania Maxwell/Los Angeles Times)

For a long time, Olivia Alexander defended MedMen.

Despite the pushback she got for partnering with the cannabis chain that some worried would box out smaller brands, Alexander  who founded Kush Queen, which sells cannabis-infused bath bombs and personal lubricant  valued the retailer's dedication to stocking shelves with products from small, women-owned lines.

Even though theyre a big company, they support small brands, she recalled telling people. Theyre good for our industry.

Now she thinks the opposite.

In March, the retailer that had been valued at more than $1.5 billion when it went public on the Canadian stock exchange six years ago was deep into a cataclysmic downfall . A few weeks later, the company filed for bankruptcy protection in Canada, disclosing it had more than $400 million in liabilities. In Los Angeles County, meanwhile, a Superior Court judge has appointed an attorney to oversee the liquidation of the company's California subsidiary.

MedMen owes money to not only big legal, accounting and real estate firms, but also vendors such as Alexander who supplied the retailer with products that filled its shelves.

Fed up with what she said had become an open secret in the industry, Alexander fired off a LinkedIn post at the end of last year accusing MedMen of failing to pay a $1,560 invoice for merchandise she'd delivered to them. More than a 100 people commented, including several other entrepreneurs, who said the retail chain owed them money too  often thousands of dollars.

Read more: MedMens fall shows the difficulties of the legal weed business

MedMen's fall has highlighted larger systemic struggles producers such as Alexander face as they try to operate in California's legal cannabis marketplace. The Times spoke with Alexander about MedMen and the cannabis industry at large. The interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

Tell me a bit about your company. And how did you start working with MedMen?

I started Kush Queen in 2015. We make a little bit of everything, and we have been working with MedMen almost since the beginning. I really believed, along the way, that we were all part of what I wanted the industry to be, which is diverse and equitable and vibrant.

When did things start to go sour?

I moved to a new distribution company and they were like, "We can't sell to MedMen. Everyone says they're going under any minute now." This was the summer of 2023. But I really thought what everyone else thought, which was that they were too big to fail. So I fought with my distribution partner to deliver these orders and then, of course, they stopped paying.

Story continues

I went on LinkedIn and wrote the post. And I was inundated  and this is the part that breaks my heart  with messages from tons of brands saying, "Oh yeah, they owe me money." My LinkedIn DMs are a graveyard of people owed money by MedMen.

MedMen was so afraid of me and the pettiness and my vitriol that they overnighted us a check. They did close out their measly $1,500 invoice with us and I truly believe I was the last person to get paid by them.

How long after your post did they send you a check?

Within two weeks. I posted a follow-up that said, "Look, I've been paid, but all these people haven't."

What can unpaid invoices mean, especially for smaller companies?

It means they go under or they have to lay people off. If people think it's bad now, it's just going to get worse. Everyone is surviving on debt. MedMen was paying a ton of freelance writers to turn out blogs and articles. These are the people that are the most tragic collateral damage of what's happening.

Can you speak more broadly about the challenges of running a legal cannabis company in California right now?

Like, "How do I do it without crying?" Yeah, it's tragic. It's impossible for anyone to make enough money on legal cannabis right now. If I was operating only in the California market, I wouldnt have enough money to pay my own bills. It's a loser's game. The taxes are insane, which is then causing everyone to go to the underground market. The state of California has failed us.

How would you sum up the current state of the industry in one word?

Apocalyptic.

Last month, the Department of Justice formally moved to reclassify marijuana into a category of less regulated substances, a step many in the industry hope could eventually make it easier for cannabis retailers.

Will rescheduling positively affect our industry? Maybe, we dont know yet. But cannabis and California  there are no two things that go together better. This is our thing and we should be leaps and bounds ahead of every other market. But its just been decimated.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Since 2019, NSG BioLabs has been a leader in co-working lab spaces in Singapore, and has nurtured over 40 biotech companies, of which the startups have achieved nearly US$400 million funding in total alongside significant business milestones

The Eppendorf Group has signed a partnership agreement with NSG BioLabs to support biotech startups in their R&D efforts in Singapore

SINGAPORE, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- NSG BioLabs, Singapore's largest provider of biotech co-working laboratory and office space, announces a new partnership with Eppendorf, a leading international life science company that develops, manufactures, and distributes instruments, consumables, and services for use in laboratories around the world, to support biotech startups by providing needed resources such as product and applications expertise and its networks to advance startup research and development (R&D).

Eppendorf and NSG BioLabs have entered a strategic partnership to foster an environment where NSG BioLabs' residents can thrive. This collaboration grants residents exclusive access to Eppendorf's advanced equipment, consumables, and services. These resources empower them to speed up their research and expand their innovations. Together, Eppendorf and NSG BioLabs are shaping the future of life sciences and driving significant discoveries.

Since 2019, NSG BioLabs has been assisting innovators in creating impactful solutions in the health, biomedical, agrifood, and industrial biotechnology sectors, working in areas such as precision medicine, nucleic acids, AI-enabled drug discovery, synthetic biology, and other impactful areas. With the largest co-working biotech laboratory and office footprint in Singapore, coupled with extensive networks with local and international partners, suppliers, and industry experts, NSG BioLabs has helped over 40 companies as residents. The company's residents include several multi-billion-dollar multinationals as well as many promising startups that have achieved key milestones. The startup residents alone have successfully raised nearly US$400 million in funding and supported hundreds of jobs.

"We are thrilled to announce our strategic partnership with Eppendorf, a leader in life sciences equipment and services. At NSG BioLabs, fostering an environment where our residents can thrive is our top priority. This collaboration will provide our residents with exclusive access to Eppendorf's cutting-edge equipment, consumables, and services, empowering them to accelerate their research and scale their innovations. Together, we are shaping the future of life sciences and driving impactful discoveries," said Daphne Teo, CEO and Founder of NSG BioLabs

"Empowering innovative biotech startups is of strategic importance to the Eppendorf Group, as they drive the future of medical innovation and the development of new treatments. Eppendorf's purpose is to help improve human living conditions and we have been clearly committed for almost 80 years in supporting scientists around the world. Eppendorf is proud to engage in a partnership with NSG Biolabs, affirming its shared vision for supporting innovators in creating impactful biotech solutions. Being part of this scientific community is crucial and this collaboration will be the catalyst for transformative breakthroughs in Singapore and beyond," said Surendran Krishnamurthi, Managing Director Eppendorf Southeast Asia.

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Since its inception, NSG BioLabs has been supporting biotech startups and multinational companies by providing BSL-2 certified private and shared laboratory spaces and offices, equipment, as well as privileged access with service providers and suppliers, and community engagement. After its first site opening in November 2019, NSG BioLabs expanded with its second site in August 2021, and recently in 2023 with its third site. Now, with three sites totaling 35,000 square feet located in the heart of Singapore's R&D ecosystem, NSG BioLabs cements its space as a key hub for biotech innovation. As one of the largest private biotech incubators in the region, coupled with its strong partnerships and strategic investors, such as Celadon Partners and ClavystBio, a life sciences investor set up by Temasek, NSG BioLabs is poised to enhance its value-add offerings of infrastructure, services, and networks for its growing community.

About the Eppendorf Group

Eppendorf is a leading international life science company that develops, manufactures, and distributes instruments, consumables, and services for use in laboratories around the world.

The product portfolio of the business units Liquid Handling & Consumables, Separation & Instrumentation and Bioprocess includes, for example, pipettes, pipette tips, centrifuges, mixers, ultra-freezers and bioreactors for cell and gene research. In addition, Eppendorf offers a wide range of high-quality consumables. In fiscal year 2023, the Eppendorf Group generated 1.08 billion in sales and invested 69 million in research and development (R&D).

Eppendorf products are used in academic or industrial research laboratories, such as pharmaceutical, biotech, chemical, and food industries, as well as clinical, environmental, forensic, and industrial laboratories for process analysis, production, and quality assurance.

Since 1945, the Eppendorf Group has been headquartered in Hamburg, Germany, and today operates production and R&D sites in Europe, Asia and North America and has subsidiaries in 33 countries. Today, the Group employs more than 5,000 people worldwide. They all act in accordance with the purpose of the company's founders: to improve human living conditions.

About NSG BioLabs

Founded with a focus on supporting biotech innovation, NSG BioLabs offers state-of-the-art equipment, efficient operations, capital efficiency, the expertise of world-class teams and global networks to assist life sciences companies. The conducive R&D environment contains fully-equipped, certified BSL-2 laboratory and office infrastructure across 35,000 sq ft in the prime location of Biopolis in Singapore.

By providing access to high-quality infrastructure, its extensive partner network, community, and value-add benefits, NSG BioLabs ensures that companies, ranging from emerging biotech startups to multinational companies, can rapidly and efficiently execute on their cutting-edge research and development ecosystem in Singapore, leading to the innovation of revolutionary technologies and products that translate into breakthrough biotech ventures and impact for patients.

For more information, visit www.nsgbio.com

NSG BioLabs (PRNewsfoto/NSG BioLabs)

Cision

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SOURCE NSG BioLabs
Parts of the area rank among the Top 10 Ohio counties in unclaimed funds.

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There is $4 billion in unclaimed funds in possession by the Ohio Department of Commerces Division of Unclaimed Funds, according to a spokesperson.

Unclaimed funds are lost or forgotten money that banks and businesses report to the Division of Unclaimed Funds after accounts become inactive.

Eight area counties rank in the Top 10 in Southwest Ohio while two are in the Top 10 in Ohio.

The full list from each county is here.

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The eight area counties include:

Montgomery County- $131.4 million

Butler County- $60.8 million

Clark County- $39 million

Warren County- $30.1 million

Greene County- $28.2 million

Miami County- $14.3 million

Logan County- $6.7 million

Clinton County- $5.7 million

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Montgomery County is ranked second in the area and fourth in Ohio.

Butler County has the third highest in the area and is eighth overall in Ohio.

Cuyahoga County has the most unclaimed funds in the state at $477 million.

Hamilton County is No. 1 in Southwest Ohio and third overall in Ohio at $267.3 million.

Visit this website for more information.
BAYAMON, Puerto Rico (AP)  A power company in Puerto Rico announced Thursday that it has restored electricity to most areas affected by a massive outage that hit the U.S. territory the previous day.

The outage left over 340,000 customers in the capital, San Juan, and neighboring municipalities without power during a heat wave. On Thursday morning, Luma Energy said in a statement that it had restored power to most of its customers in the metropolitan and northeastern regions of the island. The company also confirmed that the outage stemmed from failures in two transmission lines between San Juan and Aguas Buenas.

Several lawmakers in Puerto Rico are urging the governor to declare a state of emergency to the federal government. Persistent outages have interrupted water service and imperiled the lives of elderly and ill residents who rely on electrical equipment for respirators and to refrigerate insulin, for example.

Electricity supply problems occurred for over a week in the island's southern region, and culminated in the massive outage on Wednesday night.

This is really dangerous, said Jenniffer Gonzalez, Puerto Ricos representative in the U.S. Congress. At the federal level, what Im suggesting is that Puerto Rico declare itself in an energy emergency situation so that any procedure with federal agencies can be expedited.

Gonzalez said that would also enable personnel from the U.S. Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide assistance. Several mayors echoed her request.

Nearly 5,000 customers across the island were still without power on Thursday afternoon, while several municipalities on the eastern side of Puerto Rico lacked water. The University of Puerto Rico in San Juan canceled its summer session classes on Thursday.

The situation we have experienced for weeks on the island is unsustainable, said Gabriel Hernandez Rodriguez, President of the Puerto Rico Mayors Federation. The impact on the economy and the daily lives of citizens and business owners due to the lack of electrical power generation and transmission is terrible, causing losses and complications.

Several unions are denouncing Luma Energy and Genera PR, the two main companies in charge of transmission and generation on the island, and are calling for the government to cancel its contract with Luma Energy.

Due to constant power outages, thousands of citizens have lost electrical appliances in their homes, thrown away groceries, patients have stopped receiving their treatments, our schools have become ovens in the heatwave, our classroom equipment is getting damaged, and our students and teachers arrive sleepless to the classroom, negatively impacting teaching and learning conditions, the Teachers Federation of Puerto Rico said in a statement.

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Gov. Pedro Pierluisi announced on Thursday afternoon that he will deploy the National Guard to assist in restoring the power grid and launch an investigation to determine if there was any negligence on the part of either Luma Energy or Genera PR.

Theyre going to have to pay for this from their own money, from their own funds, if we confirm that there was negligence here, Pierluisi said at a news conference.
(Reuters) -Tesla shareholders approved CEO Elon Musk's $56 billion pay package, the electric vehicle-maker said on Thursday, a big thumbs-up to his leadership and an enticement for keeping his focus on his biggest source of wealth.

The approval of the largest CEO package in U.S. corporate history underscores the sport Musk has from the company's shareholders and passed despite opposition from some large institutional investors and proxy advisory firms.

Here are what some people are saying about it:

MATHIEU SHAPIRO, MANAGING PARTNER AT OBERMAYER:

"I think voting on the package after it was overruled by the court is a fairly unprecedented move. I don't think this automatically invalidates what the judge did the first time around January. This will try to be used on either appeal or further proceedings with the judge. But again, that's fairly new territory and nobody knows how that's going to go.

"Now moving to Texas is a really interesting thing. The vast majority of large American companies are in Delaware and they're in Delaware because Delaware is generally viewed as a favorable jurisdiction for companies. So, it's kind of funny that they've taken this approach of 'Delaware stopped us from doing what we want. We're going to move to Texas.' Texas law on corporate governance is not anywhere near as developed as Delaware's. Nobody's is, and most states as a kind of first instinct look to Delaware law to figure out how to handle corporate governance issues."

DOUGLAS CHIA, PRESIDENT, SOUNDBOARD GOVERNANCE:

The vote would imply that the large institutional investors voted for the Texas reincorporation and ratification of pay, which indicates that investors dont really care about either or dont see a real downside to either one. Its well-known that institutional investors dont generally object to pay packages and now weve seen that the skys the limit. With the except of CalPERS and whoever else.

You need to look at the (exact) votes that the directors got. If people really think there needs to be a check and the board isnt doing its job, thats where theyll vote."

NATELA SHENON, PARTNER, GRANT SHENON:

"The vote by Tesla shareholders to reinstate Elon Musk's compensation package should give Tesla the legal ammunition it needs to have the court officially reinstate it. The whole premise of the judge's ruling was that she felt the Tesla board was under Elon Musk's control and was not representing the best interests of the shareholders. This implies that the judge believed Tesla shareholders wouldnt agree to the package but now that shareholders have voted for it a second time with all of the facts out in the open, the entire crux of the judge's argument becomes invalid. This is clear evidence that the shareholders are in support of the pay package."

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BRIAN QUINN, PROFESSOR, BOSTON COLLEGE LAW SCHOOL:

He doubted the move out of Delaware would damage the state. "If the people who leave (Delaware) are controlling stockholders who abused the governnance system, my guess is a Delaware court judge would be happy to see them go. If Texas wants to hang out a shingle that says, 'Bring your worst corporate governance practices to Texas, we compete with Nevada,' I mean, okay, that's a brand."

GRACE HAMMON, ANALYST, EMARKETER:

"Elon Musk remains a controversial figure at Tesla, but the approval of his mammoth pay package isnt a big surprise.

"Although some shareholders are accusing him of "brazen disloyalty and pointedly criticized his pay-or-leave ultimatum before the vote, Musk has established that enough stockholders value his presence and arent yet willing to risk a future at Tesla without him."

GARRETT NELSON, VICE PRESIDENT AND SENIOR EQUITY ANALYST AT CFRA RESEARCH:

"The news lifts a major overhang on the shares, although we wouldnt be surprised by a sell the news reaction on Friday following big gains over the past two trading sessions as the likely outcome became clearer.

"By the vote, shareholders once again endorsed the terms of the contract, sending a strong signal that a deal is a deal and Musk deserves to be rewarded for meeting the lofty thresholds of an entirely incentive-based contract. The legal battle over the compensation plan is far from over, but we think the vote greatly strengthens Teslas case.

"We think the news takes a potentially disastrous scenario off the table, in which Musk could have potentially left Tesla and opted to dedicate more time to his other (non-public) companies, which could have triggered a brain drain of top talent and had massive implications for the future of the company (and TSLAs stock price)."

LARRY HAMERMESH, A RETIRED PROFESSOR OF CORPORATE LAW FROM DELAWARE LAW SCHOOL:

"There will be challenges to the vote contending it was coerced or that Tesla was not entirely forthcoming on details about the pay package, but there a respectable argument the vote should validate the pay.

"In simple terms, it's their money, and they should have some agency in determining, with the benefit of six years of hindsight, whether the grant should be approved, in light of Musk's past contributions to the value of their stock and the importance (or not) of retaining his services ... I do believe that those whose money is at stake are best positioned to decide to put thumbs up or down."

LINDSEY STEWART, DIRECTOR OF STEWARDSHIP RESEARCH AND POLICY, MORNINGSTAR SUSTAINALYTICS:

This is, firstly, a message that Teslas retail shareholders do approve of whats going on. It will be interesting to see what the exact percentages of the votes are. So weve still got to dig underneath the numbers.

The below quotes were prior to the vote but after Musk on Wednesday posted on his social media platform X that the resolution had strong support:

IVAN FRISHBERG, CHIEF SUSTAINABILITY OFFICER, AMALGAMATED BANK

"Elon Musk and Chair (Robyn) Denholm have made this about CEO loyalty and presented the votes as a decision about whether the company can keep Musk. That is a lot of pressure but it doesn't change the fact that good governance is good for the bottom line of a company, and the Tesla board is consistently and clearly deficient on that front."

MARCIE FROST, CALPERS CEO, VOTED AGAINST PAY PACKAGE

Frost said some people appeared to vote for the pay package to remain consistent with their 2018 vote. "I think people would be concerned about hindsight bias. You get an outcome, you don't like the outcome so you vote against it."

CHRISTOPHER TSAI, PRESIDENT AND CHIEF INVESTMENT OFFICER OF TSAI CAPITAL, A NEW YORK-BASED INVESTMENT MANAGER

"People are invested in Tesla because they believe in Elon and they believe in the company, and nothing has changed since the previous vote. Pay the guy and let's move on, that's what the shareholders have concluded."

DAN COATSWORTH, INVESTMENT ANALYST AT AJ BELL

"The prospect of Tesla investors approving a gargantuan pay deal for Elon Musk is in itself perplexing given the $56 billion amount, but for it to drive up the share price might also leave some people scratching their heads. The logical explanation is that it means Musk is no longer a flight risk, should the deal be approved. Pay him well and he'll stay to oversee Tesla's ongoing efforts to be crowned king of the electric vehicle sector."

NEW YORK CITY COMPTROLLER BRAD LANDER, WHO OVERSEES CITY WORKERS' RETIREMENT ASSETS

"Elon's tweet is more evidence of the failure of corporate governance at Tesla - this is not how or when shareholder votes are supposed to be made public."

"As long-term investors in Tesla, we expect genuine board oversight and a CEO who is deeply committed to the company's growth rather than other business ventures. We would like the board to ensure that its approval is required for any attempts to leverage Tesla's intellectual property or resources for his other ventures so shareholders can trust that their interests are aligned with the company's goals."

"Additionally, instead of continuing to try to defend it in court, the board should hire a compensation consultant, and renegotiate Musk's incentive plan so that it is appropriate and not dilutive to shareholders."

JASON SCHLOETZER, A BUSINESS PROFESSOR AT GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY WITH EXPERTISE IN CORPORATE GOVERNANCE

The approval suggests shareholders "think he's the only person with the best strategy to implement going forward. They are brushing aside essentially key man risks, where Tesla has become even more dependent on Musk going forward."

DAN IVES, ANALYST, WEDBUSH SECURITIES

"Based on all of our discussions over the past month large shareholders at the end of the day knew that voting no would risk Musk potentially eventually leaving as CEO and the risk far overweighed the reward in voting no on this proposal despite some obvious frustration with Musk."

ALEXANDER POTTER, SENIOR RESEARCH ANALYST, PIPER SANDLER & CO

"This doesn't fully settle the matter; the compensation package can still be deemed illegal. But a Delaware judge previously struck down the package citing limited shareholder disclosure, and given enhanced disclosures preceding this vote, it's unclear why anyone would take issue with this newly-ratified deal. We expect the stock to respond favorably to this news, though the upside is perhaps unlikely to be as violent as the downside would have been, had shareholders rejected the deal."

SANDEEP RAO, SENIOR RESEARCHER AT LEVERAGE SHARES WHICH OWNS TESLA SHARES

"This vindicates Musk and allays some investor concerns around his waning interest in Tesla, but major institutional shareholders who are opposing the pay package might seek value elsewhere due to their concerns around the size of package, especially given Tesla's recent disappointing performance and rising competition."

(Reporting by Juby Babu, Abhirup Roy, Hyun Joo Jin, Ross Kerber, Akash Sriram and Abinaya Vijayaraghavan; Editing by Miral Fahmy, Anil D'Silva, Shounak Dasgupta and David Gaffen)
Saudi Aramco has signed a non-binding heads of agreement (HOA) with NextDecade for a 20-year supply of LNG.

This deal will involve NextDecade supplying LNG from its proposed train 4 at the Rio Grande LNG Facility, located at the Port of Brownsville in the US state of Texas.

Under the terms of the agreement, Saudi Aramco will purchase 1.2 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) of LNG on a free-on-board basis.

The pricing will be indexed to the Henry Hub, a benchmark for natural gas prices in North America.

Both companies are actively negotiating a binding agreement, which will be contingent upon a positive final investment decision on train 4 of the Rio Grande facility.

Aramco upstream president Nasir Al-Naimi said: "We look forward to finalising the terms of a long-term LNG offtake agreement with NextDecade, as we explore opportunities to expand our presence in international energy markets. We expect LNG to play an important role in meeting the rising demand for secure and efficient energy.

NextDecade chairman and CEO Matt Schatzman said: We are pleased to have reached a heads of agreement with Aramco for LNG from train 4, as Aramco seeks to expand its LNG portfolio.

We look forward to finalising the LNG SPA [sale and purchase agreement] with Aramco and to pursuing other opportunities together.

The announcement of this potential deal follows reports of discussions between Aramco and US-based Tellurian.

As per the reports, Aramco was considering acquiring a stake in Tellurian's Driftwood LNG plant, which boasts a capacity of 27.6mtpa and is situated near Lake Charles, Louisiana.

Tellurian has made substantial investments to finance and construct the Driftwood plant.

Despite these efforts, Tellurian has encountered financial difficulties, issuing warnings to investors about the risk of insolvency before mid-2025.

"Saudi Aramco signs 20-year LNG supply deal with NextDecade " was originally created and published by Offshore 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.
Some commercial banks in Kyrgyzstan have partially suspended transfers with Russia, the Russian state-controlled news agency Interfax reported on June 13.

The news comes after the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) announced a new round of sanctions on June 12, targeting Russian financial institutions that serve as intermediaries in dollar trading on the Russian foreign exchange market.

The Moscow Exchange, the National Clearing Center, and the National Settlement Depository were added to the sanctions list. Within the next hour, the Moscow Exchange released a statement suspending the trade of dollars and euros beginning June 13.

Mbank, Kompanion Bank, RKS Bank, Kyrgyz-Swiss Bank (KSB), Kyrgyzcommerzbank, and Keremet Bank have reportedly imposed various restrictions on transfers using Russian payment systems.

Most of the banks called the restrictions "temporary," according to the outlet.

In turn, Capital Bank, Khalyk Bank, and Bank of Asia told Interfax that they have no restrictions on transactions with rubles and transfers to and from Russia.

Western countries have imposed extensive economic restrictions against Moscow over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, seeking to curb its state revenue and prevent it from obtaining key technologies needed for the war effort.

Russia has sought to dodge these sanctions via various third-party entities in China, Central Asia, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates.

Read also: US issues new sweeping sanctions against Russia  will they make a difference this time?

Weve been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
Swiss Food & Nutrition Valley (SFNV) joined forces with industry giants Nestle and Tetra Pak to convene more than 60 Swiss and European partners for a nationwide event focused on sustainable packaging solutions earlier this week.

The initiative aimed to showcase promising advancements in sustainable packaging materials and foster new collaborations to accelerate innovation in this critical area.

"This event showcased the incredible potential of collaborative innovation. The challenges around sustainable packaging cannot be solved in silos, remarked Christina Senn-Jakobsen, CEO of SFNV.

Collaboration between startups, established multinationals, research institutions and governmental bodies is crucial."

For major food corporations such as Nestle, achieving ambitious sustainability goals hinges on continuous innovation.

"Innovation is key to delivering our ambition of getting to 100% recyclable or reusable packaging, said Rob Hoitink, Nestle's R&D Global Packaging lead.

Todays event highlights the vital importance of R&D collaboration across the ecosystem to accelerate the development and implementation of new solutions.

Tetra Pak, another key partner, echoed this sentiment.

Collaboration with our customers, suppliers and industry stakeholders has been central to our sustainability journey. Our dedication to sustainability constantly drives us to explore new materials and technologies, said Gustavo Barros, director of R&D Partnerships at Tetra Pak.

Today, weve connected with several innovators whose research can help us take another step forward. We look forward to continuing these conversations."

The SFNV team is compiling a report summarising the event's key takeaways and insights, which will be made publicly available in the near future.

SFNV is a non-profit association founded in 2020 that strengthens and promotes food system innovation, both domestically and globally.

"SFNV convenes industry leaders for sustainable packaging push" was originally created and published by Packaging Gateway, 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.
(KRON)  A San Jose restauranteur has been sentenced to 30 months in prison after fraudulently obtaining over $5.6 million in COVID-19 relief funds, U.S. District Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey announced on Thursday.

PG&E introduces new energy-tracking feature for Apple users

According to the plea agreement, 58-year-old Sacramento native David Tai-Leung co-owned and controlled the finances of a San Jose restaurant. In May 2021, Tai-Leung applied for $5 million in COVID-19 relief funds that he certified he would use for expenses like payroll, business rent, or mortgage costs, and business maintenance expenses and utilities.

A month later, Tai-Leung received approximately $5.6 million in relief funds and later admitted to transferring $3,359,701 to a personal investment account to pay fees associated with the refinancing of the mortgage on his personal residence in Sacramento, prosecutors said.

Tai-Leung also admitted to previously applying for two other loans he has used to enrich himself one for $257,000 in April 2020 and a second for $360,000 that was funded in March 2021. With the funds, Tai-Leung admitted to making payments to a Lexus dealership and spending money at a casino in northern California, prosecutors said.

Leung pleaded guilty in February 2024 to three counts of wire fraud in connection with fraudulently obtained loans he received from the Restaurant Revitalization Fund (RRF) and the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). He was originally indicted on those charges in August 2022.

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 KRON4.
Here are five stocks added to the Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy) List today:

RadNet RDNT: This company which is a national market leader providing high-quality, cost-effective diagnostic imaging services through a network of fully-owned and operated outpatient imaging centers, has seen the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current year earnings increasing 68.6% over the last 60 days.

RadNet, Inc. Price and Consensus

RadNet, Inc. Price and Consensus

RadNet, Inc. price-consensus-chart | RadNet, Inc. Quote

Elbit Systems ESLT: This company which is a worldwide leader in Night Vision Goggles Head-Up Displays, has seen the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current year earnings increasing 17.7% over the last 60 days.

Elbit Systems Ltd. Price and Consensus

Elbit Systems Ltd. Price and Consensus

Elbit Systems Ltd. price-consensus-chart | Elbit Systems Ltd. Quote

Celestica CLS: This company which is one of the largest electronics manufacturing services companies in the world, serving the computer, and communications sectors, has seen the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current year earnings increasing 14.1% over the last 60 days.

Celestica, Inc. Price and Consensus

Celestica, Inc. Price and Consensus

Celestica, Inc. price-consensus-chart | Celestica, Inc. Quote

Lantheus LNTH: This radiopharmaceutical-focused company which is committed to enabling clinicians to Find, Fight and Follow disease to deliver better patient outcomes, has seen the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current year earnings increasing 8.2% over the last 60 day.

Lantheus Holdings, Inc. Price and Consensus

Lantheus Holdings, Inc. Price and Consensus

Lantheus Holdings, Inc. price-consensus-chart | Lantheus Holdings, Inc. Quote

Associated British Foods ASBFY: This diversified international food, ingredients and retail group which is one of Europe's largest food companies with a wide range of successful brands and products in the food sector, and an increasingly strong presence in advanced research and technology, has seen the Zacks Consensus Estimate for its current year earnings increasing 7.6% over the last 60 days.

Associated British Foods PLC Price and Consensus

Associated British Foods PLC Price and Consensus

Associated British Foods PLC price-consensus-chart | Associated British Foods PLC Quote

You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report

Celestica, Inc. (CLS) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Elbit Systems Ltd. (ESLT) : Free Stock Analysis Report

RadNet, Inc. (RDNT) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Associated British Foods PLC (ASBFY) : Free Stock Analysis Report

Lantheus Holdings, Inc. (LNTH) : Free Stock Analysis Report

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A wine bottle with the new label (R) and one with the old label is shown between vines at the Viktoriapark on Kreuzberg. Exports of German wines rose 9% on the year in the first quarter to 92 million ($99 million) partly on the back of strong demand from China, the German Wine Institute reported on Thursday. Bernd von Jutrczenka/dpa

Exports of German wines rose 9% on the year in the first quarter to 92 million ($99 million) partly on the back of strong demand from China, the German Wine Institute reported on Thursday.

The increase measured by quantity also came in at 9%, with 283,000 hectolitres of German wine being sold abroad.

Exports to China rose 47% by value to 5.4 million and 49% by quantity to 10,000 hectolitres. Double-digit increases were also recorded for Denmark, Japan, the Netherlands and Poland.

Turnover over the whole of 2023 rose by 4% to 384 million compared with the previous year, largely as a result of price increases.

Between April 2023 and March 2024, winemakers were receiving 3.35 per litre, up 13 cents on the previous 12-month period.
Amidst a backdrop of global economic fluctuations and mixed market signals, the Swedish stock exchange presents unique opportunities for investors interested in growth companies with significant insider ownership. Such stocks often indicate a strong alignment between company management and shareholder interests, which can be particularly appealing in uncertain times.

Top 10 Growth Companies With High Insider Ownership In Sweden

Name Insider Ownership Earnings Growth CTT Systems (OM:CTT) 16.9% 21.6% BioArctic (OM:BIOA B) 35.1% 50.9% Sileon (OM:SILEON) 33.3% 109.3% KebNi (OM:KEBNI B) 37.8% 90.4% InCoax Networks (OM:INCOAX) 17.9% 104.9% Calliditas Therapeutics (OM:CALTX) 11.6% 52.9% edyoutec (NGM:EDYOU) 14.6% 63.1% Egetis Therapeutics (OM:EGTX) 17.6% 98.2% Yubico (OM:YUBICO) 37.5% 43.4% SaveLend Group (OM:YIELD) 24.9% 103.4%

Click here to see the full list of 81 stocks from our Fast Growing Swedish 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: Bilia AB (publ) is a full-service supplier for car ownership, operating in Sweden, Norway, Luxembourg, and Belgium with a market capitalization of SEK 13.36 billion.

Operations: Bilia generates revenue through various segments, including car sales in Norway (SEK 7.16 billion), Sweden (SEK 19.28 billion), and Western Europe (SEK 3.61 billion), along with service revenues in Norway (SEK 2.16 billion), Sweden (SEK 6.16 billion), and Western Europe (SEK 0.65 billion).

Insider Ownership: 31.6%

Earnings Growth Forecast: 15.2% p.a.

Bilia, a Swedish company with significant insider ownership, is trading at 59.2% below its estimated fair value, indicating potential undervaluation relative to peers. While its earnings are expected to grow by 15.2% annually, outpacing the Swedish market forecast of 14.2%, revenue growth projections remain modest at 3.9% per year. Recent strategic moves include a partnership with Volvo Car Sweden and expansion into electric vehicle sales through new facilities and taking over XPENG operations in Scandinavia, enhancing its market presence despite facing challenges like high debt levels and undercovered dividends.

OM:BILI A Ownership Breakdown as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Lime Technologies AB specializes in providing SaaS-based customer relationship management (CRM) solutions primarily in the Nordic region, with a market capitalization of approximately SEK 4.68 billion.

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Operations: The company generates revenue primarily through the sale and implementation of CRM systems, totaling SEK 601.83 million.

Insider Ownership: 10.7%

Earnings Growth Forecast: 21.5% p.a.

Lime Technologies, a Swedish growth company with high insider ownership, reported a robust first quarter in 2024 with revenues and net income showing significant increases from the previous year. While Lime's revenue growth forecast of 14.7% per year is slightly below the high-growth threshold, its earnings are expected to surge at an impressive rate of 21.5% per year, outpacing the broader Swedish market's forecast. However, concerns about its high debt levels may temper optimism about its financial health and future performance.

OM:LIME Earnings and Revenue Growth as at Jun 2024

Simply Wall St Growth Rating: 

Overview: Sectra AB (publ) operates in the medical IT and cybersecurity sectors across Sweden, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, and other parts of Europe, with a market capitalization of approximately SEK 48.24 billion.

Operations: The company generates revenue primarily through its Imaging IT Solutions segment, which brought in SEK 2.55 billion, followed by Secure Communications at SEK 367.40 million and Business Innovation contributing SEK 89.90 million.

Insider Ownership: 30.3%

Earnings Growth Forecast: 19.3% p.a.

Sectra, a Swedish company with substantial insider ownership, demonstrated solid financial performance in its recent earnings report. For Q4 FY2024, revenue increased to SEK 915.7 million from SEK 745.72 million year-over-year. Annual figures also showed growth with revenue reaching SEK 3.04 billion, up from SEK 2.41 billion the previous year. While Sectra's annual profit growth forecast of 19.3% is robust and above the market average, it does not reach the high-growth benchmark of over 20%. Additionally, Sectra is enhancing its product offerings in precision medicine and digital pathologysectors poised for rapid expansionfurther solidifying its competitive position within healthcare technology markets.

OM:SECT B Earnings and Revenue Growth as at Jun 2024

Summing It All Up

Unlock more gems! Our Fast Growing Swedish Companies With High Insider Ownership screener has unearthed 78 more companies for you to explore.Click here to unveil our expertly curated list of 81 Fast Growing Swedish Companies With High Insider Ownership.

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Interested In Other Possibilities?

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 OM:BILI A OM:LIME and OM:SECT B.

Have feedback on this article? Concerned about the content? Get in touch with us directly. Alternatively, email editorial-team@simplywallst.com
SAN FRANCISCO, June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Building on the success of recent events in Seattle and Los Angeles, the Taiwan Tourism Administration (TTA) hosted its third Taiwan Tourism workshop in San Francisco. This dynamic gathering highlighted Taiwan's abundant travel resources, cultural vibrancy, and outstanding travel services, serving as a platform for enriching partnerships and fostering business opportunities among industry professionals. The event attracted over 100 participants from the San Francisco travel industry.

Taiwan Tourism Administration hosts dynamic workshop in San Francisco, showcasing diverse travel offerings and attracting over 100 travel advisors.

In 2023, Taiwan welcomed 529,532 visitors from the United States, with over half of them traveling for leisure. Beginning in June 2024, approximately 160 direct flights per week will connect North America to Taiwan, significantly enhancing accessibility. This increased connectivity will offer American travelers' greater convenience in discovering Taiwan's treasures and effortlessly connecting them to other East Asian destinations.

Attendees enjoyed a diverse array of immersive activities, including interactive traditional fan painting, tea ceremony tastings, Taiwan wildlife origami, and Kumiko coaster crafting. These hands-on experiences in Taiwanese folk arts, coupled with informative presentations, deepened travel advisors' understanding of Taiwan's rich cultural tapestry and unique attractions.

American travel advisors were excited about the opportunity to interact with the Taiwanese delegation and gain firsthand insights into Taiwan's offerings. With the expansion of direct flights from the U.S. West Coast, they eagerly anticipate a rise in American travelers venturing to Taiwan to explore its wonders.

About the Taiwan Tourism Administration

The Taiwan Tourism Administration is the official government agency responsible for domestic and international tourism policy development and execution. There are three North American tourism offices located in New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco.

Cision

View original content to download multimedia:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/taiwan-tourism-administration-hosts-dynamic-workshop-in-san-francisco-showcasing-diverse-travel-offerings-302172458.html

SOURCE Taiwan Tourism Administration
U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen speaks during an event by the American Chamber of Commerce in China in Guangzhou, Guangdong province, China April 5, 2024. Tingshu Wang/Reuters

The US Treasury's power to unleash secondary sanctions has been expanded.

Now, more foreign institutions are at risk of sanctions if they're engaged with Russia's economy.

The Kremlin is '"desperate for access to the outside world," Janet Yellen said.

Foreign financial institutions engaged in Russia's wartime economy are now at greater risk of secondary sanctions, as the Treasury Department's ability to blacklist institutions just got a boost.

The update, announced Wednesday, also unveiled fresh sanctions against 300 individuals and entities accused of fueling Moscow's war in Ukraine and helping it circumvent sanctions.

"Russia's war economy is deeply isolated from the international financial system, leaving the Kremlin's military desperate for access to the outside world," said Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said, quoted in the report. "Today's actions strike at their remaining avenues for international materials and equipment, including their reliance on critical supplies from third countries."

After the department was first granted sanctioning power in December, foreign lenders have come into compliance with US rules, fearing that they would lose dollar access. That included banks in Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and Austria.

Meanwhile, financial trades between Russia and China  a key wartime partner  have been disrupted by the Treasury's actions, as Chinese entities hope to avoid US restrictions. In some cases, firms in China have halted yuan transactions with Russia altogether.

The new announcement comes as Russia's wartime activity has kept its economy afloat while its partnership with China has only grown. Under the Treasury's expanded power, secondary sanctions can now be applied to many more institutions.

Previously, the only at-risk lenders were those dealing with any of the 1,200 entities tied to Russia's defense sector, The Financial Times reported. With this week's change, that number has climbed to 4,500, encompassing virtually any sanctioned Russian firm.

A handful of Chinese companies were also singled out.

A handful of stock exchanges in Moscow are also restricted, meant to prevent investors from profiting from Russia's war through defense firms and other corporations.

The announcement comes ahead of a Group of Seven meeting, during which the US and its allies will discuss how best to financially support Ukraine.

In recent weeks, that's included discussions about unlocking the interest and profits earned on Russia's frozen reserves, which could give Kyiv over $3 billion a year. Moscow has promised to retaliate if its assets are used by the West.

Read the original article on Business Insider
Key Insights

Given the large stake in the stock by institutions, Johnson Matthey's stock price might be vulnerable to their trading decisions

The top 13 shareholders own 51% of the company

Using data from analyst forecasts alongside ownership research, one can better assess the future performance of a company

If you want to know who really controls Johnson Matthey Plc (LON:JMAT), then you'll have to look at the makeup of its share registry. And the group that holds the biggest piece of the pie are institutions with 84% ownership. That is, the group stands to benefit the most if the stock rises (or lose the most if there is a downturn).

And institutional investors saw their holdings value drop by 5.2% last week. This set of investors may especially be concerned about the current loss, which adds to a one-year loss of 3.2% for shareholders. Also referred to as "smart money", institutions have a lot of sway over how a stock's price moves. As a result, if the downtrend continues, institutions may face pressures to sell Johnson Matthey, which might have negative implications on individual investors.

Let's take a closer look to see what the different types of shareholders can tell us about Johnson Matthey.

Check out our latest analysis for Johnson Matthey

What Does The Institutional Ownership Tell Us About Johnson Matthey?

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.

We can see that Johnson Matthey 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. 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 Johnson Matthey, (below). Of course, keep in mind that there are other factors to consider, too.

Investors should note that institutions actually own more than half the company, so they can collectively wield significant power. We note that hedge funds don't have a meaningful investment in Johnson Matthey. Schroder Investment Management Limited is currently the company's largest shareholder with 10% of shares outstanding. For context, the second largest shareholder holds about 6.7% of the shares outstanding, followed by an ownership of 4.9% by the third-largest shareholder.

A closer look at our ownership figures suggests that the top 13 shareholders have a combined ownership of 51% implying that no single shareholder has a majority.

Researching institutional ownership is a good way to gauge and filter a stock's expected performance. The same can be achieved by studying analyst sentiments. Quite a few analysts cover the stock, so you could look into forecast growth quite easily.

Insider Ownership Of Johnson Matthey

The definition of an insider can differ slightly between different countries, but members of the board of directors always count. Company management run the business, but the CEO will answer to the board, even if he or she is a member of it.

I generally consider insider ownership to be a good thing. However, on some occasions it makes it more difficult for other shareholders to hold the board accountable for decisions.

Our most recent data indicates that insiders own less than 1% of Johnson Matthey Plc. It is a pretty big company, so it would be possible for board members to own a meaningful interest in the company, without owning much of a proportional interest. In this case, they own around UK2.2m worth of shares (at current prices). It is good to see board members owning shares, but it might be worth checking if those insiders have been buying.

General Public Ownership

The general public-- including retail investors -- own 13% 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.

Next Steps:

I find it very interesting to look at who exactly owns a company. But to truly gain insight, we need to consider other information, too. Consider for instance, the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 3 warning signs with Johnson Matthey , and understanding them should be part of your investment process.

Ultimately the future is most important. You can access this free report on analyst forecasts for the company.

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.
Time has shown that the one certainty in the stock market is uncertainty. Regardless of how experienced you are or how many advanced investing tools you have at your disposal, nobody can reliably predict how stock prices will move.

That's the beauty of dividends: They offer investors a chance to earn returns regardless of how a company's stock price performs, and they can be a good income source, too, if you hold enough shares.

For investors looking to add ultra-high-yield dividend stocks to their portfolio, the following two tobacco companies can be good choices.

1. Altria Group

Altria Group (NYSE: MO) is the global leader in tobacco, with a portfolio that includes brands like Marlboro, Copenhagen oral pouches, and NJOY electronic cigarettes.

Altria's stock has struggled quite a bit over the past few years, but 2024 has been a nice (and much-needed) turnaround, partly due to the success of non-tobacco products like NJOY.

Many investors are hesitant to invest in tobacco companies because of the harm that smoking does to people's health, so Altria has traditionally offered an ultra-high-yielding dividend to attract and retain investors. It has stayed true to that strategy, too. Its trailing-12-month (TTM) yield of around 8.3% is more than 6 times the S&P 500's yield.

The biggest concern regarding Altria's business is the decline in smoking among U.S. adults. In 2005, nearly 21 out of every 100 U.S. adults smoked. As of 2021, that share had declined to around 12 out of every 100. That's great news for public health, but it's not the best news for Altria's core business.

For better or worse, increases in cigarette prices alone aren't enough to deter most people from buying them, and Altria has leaned on its pricing power to offset dropping sales volume. That has helped keep the company's finances strong and ensure it can remain shareholder friendly.

MO Payout Ratio Chart

Altria's current payout ratio of around 80% might seem high, but that's in line with where the company has historically kept it (aside from the abnormal levels early in the pandemic). The company is a Dividend King, so this statistic shouldn't cost investors any peace of mind wondering if it will sustain its dividend.

2. British American Tobacco

British American Tobacco (NYSE: BTI) isn't quite as large as Altria, but it has a diversified portfolio of brands that have performed well for it over the years, including Newport and its vaping brand, Vuse.

As with Altria, declining smoking rates have affected British American Tobacco's business, but the company has done well with its brands in nonsmoking categories like vaping and heated tobacco (where it has a 16.8% volume market share) and oral nicotine pouches (27% volume market share). In the U.S. market, Vuse holds a 51.5% value share (how much money it makes selling its products compared to what others make), and its new single-use Vuse Go 2.0 should help bolster its position.

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British American Tobacco continues to be a huge cash generator, converting over 90% of its operating profits into cash flow. This has allowed it to remain very shareholder friendly and generous with its dividends. Its TTM yield is over 9.5%, one of the highest yields for a stock that isn't a real estate investment trust, and well above its five-year average.

BTI Dividend Yield Chart

British American Tobacco also plans to increase shareholder value via stock buybacks. It plans to spend 700 million pounds ($890 million) on stock buybacks this year and another $1.15 billion in 2025.

With a lucrative dividend and a low valuation (its price-to-earnings ratio is close to the lowest it has been in about five years), British American Tobacco offers long-term investors more upside than downside.

Should you invest $1,000 in Altria Group right now?

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Want Safe Dividend Income in 2024 and Beyond? Invest in These 2 Ultra-High-Yield Stocks. was originally published by The Motley Fool
Waymo has issued another recall of its software following an incident in Phoenix in May when a Waymo vehicle operated autonomously collided with a telephone pole at a low speed.

The news was first published by the Verge, and involves Waymo recalling software across its entire fleet of 672 vehicles.

A driverless Waymo vehicle parked in the Garfield neighborhood in Phoenix.

Following an event on May 21 in Phoenix, we have chosen to file a voluntary software recall with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to address a mapping and software issue, a Waymo spokesperson said in an email. We have already deployed mapping and software updates across our entire fleet, and this does not impact our current operations. As we serve more riders in more cities, we will continue our safety-first approach, working to earn trust with our riders, community members, regulators and policymakers.

The recall is the second software recall Waymo has issued this year. The company completed another voluntary software recall in February.

Waymo recently expanded its coverage area in the Phoenix metro and now operates autonomous vehicles across a 315-square-mile stretch of the Valley.

In May, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administrations Office of Defects Investigation sent Waymo a letter announcing it had opened a preliminary investigation into some occurrences of unexpected driving behaviors from Waymo vehicles. The office originally identified 22 incidents, but later added nine more to the list.

Of the 31 incidents listed in the letter, 14 were in Arizona. No injuries were reported in any, and the May 21 incident with the pole was included in those added to the letter.

At the time, Waymo officials said they will continue to work with federal authorities and were proud of the companys safety record.

Reach the reporter at cvanek@arizonarepublic.com. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter @CorinaVanek.

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Waymo issues 2nd software recall after Phoenix telephone pole crash
Waymo is recalling more than 600 self-driving vehicles after one of them struck a telephone pole in Arizona.

The recall includes 672 vehicles, which is the entire fleet.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said in its report that last month a driverless Waymo vehicle hit a wooden utility pole in Phoenix, Arizona while it was in an alleyway and trying to perform a low-speed pullover maneuver.

There were no passengers, other road users, or injuries associated with the event, the report said. There was some damage to the Waymo vehicle.

Waymo has completed a software update that improves the automated driving system's response to poles or pole-like permanent objects. It also provided a map update to include a hard road edge between the pole or pole-like object and the driveable surface.
It was just before lunchtime in Brussels, but the working day was creeping towards its end in Beijing, when phones pinged and screens flashed with the numbers that have threatened to upend China's ties with Europe.

Car companies, lawyers, business groups and journalists all received the news at once. After seven months of speculation: 17.4 on BYD, 20 on Geely, 38.1 on SAIC and 21 on nearly all others - the tariff percentages the EU would slap on electric vehicle imports from China landed with a bang.

In the Belgian capital, officials set about briefing reporters on what had been uncovered in an investigation that saw two dozen case handlers spend 250 mission days on the ground in China, conducting 100-plus company visits, piecing together thousands of pages of evidence, which cumulatively tore a new rift in an already fraught relationship.

Do you have questions about the biggest topics and trends from around the world? Get the answers with SCMP Knowledge, our new platform of curated content with explainers, FAQs, analyses and infographics brought to you by our award-winning team.

"The whole supply chain is subsidised," said a senior official, who read through the charge sheet on a case that many predict could launch a trade war.

"This means that the Chinese government provides subsidies to all operators," he continued. "Starting from the refining of lithium used in the batteries, to production of cells and batteries, to the production of BEVs [battery electric vehicles], and even transport of BEVs to EU markets."

Chinese business representatives were shocked. After a quick scan of the numbers, an executive at one affected EV company vowed to start shipping hybrid cars to Europe instead, since they would not be subjected to such high duties.

"The EU has disregarded facts and WTO rules, ignored China's repeated strong opposition, and ignored the appeals and dissuasions of many EU member governments and industries, and has acted unilaterally," fumed a statement from China's Ministry of Commerce, which landed minutes after the notification had been received.

Since day one, the EV probe - as it has become known across Europe, where it has dominated the debate on China - was steeped in controversy.

"Global markets are now flooded with cheaper Chinese electric cars. And their price is kept artificially low by huge state subsidies. This is distorting our market," said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during her annual State of the Union address last September.

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Her announcement took many of her officials off guard. It was also news to the Chinese government, whose diplomats were instantly aggrieved at not being consulted before the public announcement, as is commonplace in the relationship.

Electric cars waiting to be loaded on to the BYD Explorer No 1 at Yantai port, in eastern China's Shandong province. Photo: AFP alt=Electric cars waiting to be loaded on to the BYD Explorer No 1 at Yantai port, in eastern China's Shandong province. Photo: AFP>

The work kicked off immediately: out of 21 Chinese groups exporting EVs to Europe, they shrunk the sample size to be investigated to three.

These were BYD, the hotshot upstart that would soon become the world's biggest EV seller, Geely, which spent the 2000s hoovering up blue-chip European brands like Volvo, and SAIC Motor, the 70-year-old state-run giant, owner of the iconic MG and joint venture partner to Volkswagen.

The eventual duty applied to most Chinese EV exports to Europe would be a weighted average calculated based on subsidies found on the books of those three companies. When experts noted the presence of behemoth SAIC on the list, they predicted countervailing duties could far outstrip the bloc's average rate of 19 per cent.

Questionnaires were sent to the companies, each running to 60-odd pages and over 18,000 words. They demanded access to financial information and forensic levels of details on the handouts each had received from the Chinese state.

"It is in your own interest to reply as accurately and completely as possible and to attach supporting documents. You may supplement your response with additional data," read the dry legalese that translated into a veiled warning that would become reality: comply with this, or you will be tariffed out of the European market.

As it was, only SAIC chose not to comply and found itself on Wednesday facing the highest import duty for all EU EV shipments, and the third highest countervailing duty the bloc has ever levied, Rhodium Group research showed. This will be applied on top of the pre-existing 10 per cent rate, meaning the cars will be almost 50 per cent more expensive.

The others - including BYD and Geely - played ball and will therefore be taxed at a lower rate than standard EU-owned models, which will face the weighted average of 21 per cent.

"SAIC is highly reliant on the European market and doesn't have plans yet to localise production, so it's going to be very affected by this," said Ilaria Mazzocco, an expert on China's EV trade at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies.

"BYD looks like it's going to be in a great position with an EU factory, low tariff, and a geographically diversified market."

The Chinese government was also sent a batch of questionnaires, which it declined to forward to selected lithium providers and local banks on the EU's behalf.

"The Chinese government has been very active, looking for justification of different steps," said the senior EU official. "There has been a lot of interaction, but less positive activity on their side when they were supposed to provide us with information requested."

Instead, Beijing tried to kill the investigation with a series of threats that multiplied as Brussels' probe raced towards its conclusion.

In January, it launched an anti-dumping process into EU brandy shipments, broadly seen as comeuppance for France, which was - along with Spain - among the strongest backers of the EV action. France shipped US$1.8 billion in cognac to China last year, customs records show.

In the past month, state media have carried threats of tariffs on EU pork, automotive, aviation, and dairy sectors.

"China will closely follow the EU's subsequent progress and will resolutely take all necessary measures to firmly defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese companies," the commerce ministry statement said.

Brussels is confident that it has a watertight case for the tariffs, and would welcome a WTO challenge, where it would point to the fact that some Chinese companies will pay lower duties than European rivals.

Their investigators turned up subsidies everywhere they looked. Lithium processers and battery makers were told by the state to sell to EV companies below market rates, they said, while the car companies were exempt from battery consumption taxes.

The firms issued green bonds that government-run financial institutions were ordered to buy, and were granted concessional land, income tax breaks and cheap refinancing options mandated by the People's Bank of China, the central bank.

An intersection of a Geely Zeekr electric vehicle, the high-end electric car brand under Zhejiang Geely Holding Group. Photo: Bloomberg alt=An intersection of a Geely Zeekr electric vehicle, the high-end electric car brand under Zhejiang Geely Holding Group. Photo: Bloomberg>

The EU believes its companies suffered as a result. Between January 2020 and September 2023, Chinese companies increased their EU market share from 4 per cent to 25 per cent, while local rivals' share dropped from 69 per cent to almost 60 per cent, officials said.

Chinese subsidies "jeopardised" Europe's green transition, they added, by suppressing the price at which European companies could sell EVs, meaning in some cases, they were incurring losses on each vehicle sold.

To environmentalists, who hold little truck with German car companies slow to wean themselves off combustion engines, it will sound like sour grapes.

"We want no tariffs that would not help us achieve our decarbonisation targets," Malta's energy minister, Miriam Dalli, told the Post last month. "Having products that are more pricey will not help us arrive at the ambitious targets."

But in Brussels, getting the probe over the line was seen as a test of its credibility, with officials saying they had to show China they not only bark, but bite too.

The three Chinese car companies now have four days to point out any flaws in the calculations, after which time member states have until July 15 to voice their own concerns.

The saga has pitted capitals against each other, with Paris cheering von der Leyen on, even as Berlin worked behind the scenes to kill it. At meetings, one senior official said, the Germans had even used the term "so-called overcapacity", in a sign of how aligned they were with Beijing.

Duties that will hold for five years must be set in early November, with some speculating that the next four months will be a mixture of retaliatory measures and frantic diplomacy.

"The focus now must be on keeping negative effects on international supply chains and European companies as low as possible," said Wolfgang Niedermark, a board member at the Federation of German Industries.

"European companies have no interest in a trade conflict with China escalating."

This article originally appeared in the South China Morning Post (SCMP), the most authoritative voice reporting on China and Asia for more than a century. For more SCMP stories, please explore the SCMP app or visit the SCMP's Facebook and Twitter pages. Copyright  2024 South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.

Copyright (c) 2024. South China Morning Post Publishers Ltd. All rights reserved.
After 34 felony convictions in New York on May 31, Donald Trump is getting back to business as usual, including an off-the-record chat with dozens of CEOs in Washington, D.C., on June 13.

Whether they support his antics or not, CEOs have to take Trump seriously as a presidential candidate, given that hes the only realistic alternative to incumbent President Joe Biden  and he could win. Trump remains committed to low taxes and light regulation, making him a natural choice for businesspeople, at least based on those policies.

But theres also considerable trepidation about a second Trump presidency among business leaders. In its latest quarterly survey of businesses, research firm Oxford Economics asked if a second Trump presidency would represent a geopolitical risk. Thirty-four percent said Trump would pose a very significant political risk if he won the White House again, while 42% said it would pose significant risk. Thats 76% of businesses that see Trump as some sort of threat to their operations.

Oxford asked about other types of geopolitical risks, such as hostilities in the Middle East, a clash between Russia and the NATO military alliance, and conflict between China and Taiwan. All scored lower than Trump in terms of representing a very significant risk. Some business leaders literally worry more about Trump than they worry about major wars.

The biggest risk Trump 2.0 would pose to business interests is his call for additional tariffs on imports from China and everywhere else. Trump would impose an additional 60% tariff on Chinese imports, with a 10% tariff on all other imports. In general, Trump wants to unwind a system of global trade established over decades and make the US economy far more self-sufficient.

Trump has even suggested getting rid of the income tax and replacing the lost federal revenue with new revenue from higher tariffs. Heres the math on that: Income taxes brought in $2.2 trillion during the latest fiscal year, and annual imports are around $3.8 trillion. So youd have to start by imposing a 58% tax on imports to raise the missing $2.2 billion. And that doesnt account for inevitable retaliation by trading partners or the massive distortions that such a dramatic move would cause.

The president can raise or lower tariffs, but only Congress can change tax laws  and theres basically no chance Congress would ever act on Trumps plan. Among other things, it would benefit rich people the most while forcing massive price hikes onto consumers. But Trump famously looks for unorthodox ways to accomplish pet ideas and doesnt usually worry about collateral damage.

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Some CEOs may also worry about Trumps fondness for Russian President Vladimir Putin and the likelihood Trump would abandon Ukraine in its battle to survive the Russian onslaught that began in 2022. A Russian takeover of Ukraine might not affect Western markets immediately, but it would give Russia a huge new launchpad for menacing Europe and possibly invading or trying to destabilize NATO member nations such as Latvia, Estonia, and Lithuania. As long as Ukraine remains independent, it serves as a crucial buffer zone between the territorial Putin and potential targets, once in the Russian orbit, that Putin would like to possess once more.

Drop Rick Newman a note, follow him on Twitter, or sign up for his newsletter.

Trumps signature stance is his near-zero tolerance for immigration, which has economic implications as well. Though migration across the southwest border has reached unsustainably high levels under Biden, those migrants have mostly gone to work in the United States, which has helped keep spending going and filled many worker shortages. From a CEOs perspective, migrants help keep labor costs down, and Trump could interfere with that.

Can corporate leaders like Apple CEO Tim Cook do business with former President Donald Trump? (AP Photo/Jeff Chiu) (ASSOCIATED PRESS)

Trump was a kind of corporate frenemy during his first term. Businesses loved the tax cuts he signed into law and his regulatory hatchet. But they hated the tariffs he imposed, and a number of companies became targets of Trump himself for their woke social policies or some perceived slight the touchy Trump blamed them for.

Most CEOs try not to pick sides in political battles and maintain good relations with prominent members of both parties. That seems to be how most business leaders are hoping to deal with Trump in 2024  at least until November, when they know whether he won or lost the election.

During his first presidential term, Trump didnt go far on some issues as he said he would while campaigning. He originally called for 45% tariffs on Chinese imports, for example, but the final tariffs only covered about half of all Chinese shipments to the United States, and they ranged from 7.5% to 25%.

Business honchos seem to hope they can get the best of Trump, without the worst, if he wins a second term. Were not looking at it as a package deal, Joshua Bolten, CEO of the Business Roundtable lobbying group, told reporters recently before hosting Trump at the CEO event on June 13. We think taxes ought to be low and tariffs ought not to be put into place. That means managing Trump, if he wins, which is a job even the best CEOs may find challenging.

Rick Newman is a senior columnist for Yahoo Finance. Follow him on Twitter at @rickjnewman.

Click here for political news related to business and money policies that will shape tomorrow's stock prices.

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If you own property in Mecklenburg County, your taxes are going up in about two weeks. But how much more youll pay depends on which city or town you live in.

County commissioners approved a 1-cent increase in property taxes as part of their budget for the new fiscal year that starts July 1. County Manager Dena Diorio initially proposed a 1.5 cent increase, but commissioners decided to tap into the countys rainy day fund to cut the increase over her objections.

Two Mecklenburg municipalities  Charlotte and Huntersville  also increased their tax rates.

Other towns in the county kept property tax rates at their current levels this budget cycle.

What do you pay property taxes on?

Property taxes apply to items that include:

Land and buildings

Business personal property, which includes office equipment, machinery and computer equipment

Vehicles registered with the North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles





Individual personal property, which includes boats, unregistered vehicles and campers

People who dont own a house or business still pay property taxes if they own cars, boats or other taxed items, and the cost of higher taxes on landlords may be passed on to renters.

Tax bills are calculated by dividing property values by $100 and multiplying that by the tax rates in the county and city or town.

For example, the owner of a $400,000 house in Charlotte starting July 1 could pay $3,028.80 in property taxes under the new rates  $1,096.40 to the city of Charlotte and $1,932.40 to Mecklenburg County.

Mecklenburg County property taxes

Mecklenburg Countys 1-cent tax increase will raise the countys property tax rate to 48.31 cents per $100 of assessed valuation. That comes out to about a $38 increase per year for the median home in the county.

The first cent of the initially proposed 1.5-cent increase will pay for debt associated with the $2.5 billion school bond measure voters approved last year. Diorio told commissioners the additional half-cent was needed to help make up a revenue shortfall of $20.3 million.

Commissioners voted to enact only the 1-cent increase scheduled under the school bond and spend an additional $14.7 million from the countys fund balance to address the shortfall.

Diorio recommended against that strategy, saying it would only create the need for another property tax increase in the future and is not a responsible way to budget.

Commissioner Susan Rodriguez-McDowell, who proposed the idea, said delaying the half-cent increase to 2026, when there isnt already a scheduled increase, would help homeowners manage the cost.

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Charlotte, Huntersville property taxes

Huntersville passed the biggest tax increase in the county this year. Efforts to shrink Charlottes increase sparked public outcry and tension among city leaders.

The Charlotte City Council approved a budget with a 1.37-cent property tax increase Monday to pay for arts and culture grants, public safety and capital investments. That brought the citys rate up to 27.41 cents per $100 of assessed valuation.

The city estimates the increase will cost the median household an additional $4.09 per month, which is based on a home value of $358,600. Its officially the citys first rate increase in six years, but many property owners still paid more last year due to revaluation.

Charlotte City Manager Marcus Jones initially proposed a 1.5-cent increase, but the majority of council members voted to trim it. The $65 million in cuts included sidewalks, transportation in uptown and two initiatives focused on mobility and underserved communities. After community opposition, the council decided to instead cut funding for street paving.

The town of Huntersville posted the largest rate increase in Mecklenburg this budget cycle: a 5.15-cent jump, putting the towns property tax rate at 22.75 cents per $100 of assessed value. The tax increase will pay for the communitys new town hall, $58 million in bonds for transportation and parks and new positions in the towns police and fire departments, the town said.

Huntersville estimates the increase will cost a property owner whose home is valued at $460,000 less than $20 a month. The average home value in Huntersville is $541,431, according to the real estate website Zillow.

Who didnt increase property taxes in Mecklenburg County?

Other Mecklenburg towns didnt increase their property tax rates, including:

Cornelius, which will maintain a rate of 17.31 cents per $100 of assessed valuation

Davidson, which will maintain a rate of 26.6 cents per $100

Matthews, which will maintain a rate of 26.65 cents per $100

Pineville, which will maintain a rate of 28.5 cents per $100

Mint Hill leaders arent scheduled to vote on the towns budget until Thursday, but the proposed budget doesnt include a property tax increase. If approved, the plan would keep the towns rate at 22.5 cents per $100 of assessed valuation for fiscal year 2025.

In our CLT Politics newsletter, we offer exclusive insight into Charlotte-region politics sent to your inbox on Thursdays. Subscribe for free. Story idea? mramsey@charlotteobserver.com.
By Michael S. Derby and David Lawder

NEW YORK/WASHINGTON (Reuters) -U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said on Thursday that U.S. public investments that attract private capital are crucial to promote sustainable and inclusive growth over the long term, but warned that China's model of massive state industrial subsidies were unacceptable to the world.

Yellen said in prepared remarks to the Economic Club of New York that the traditional Republican model of "supply-side economics" relies too heavily on tax cuts to spur investment and has failed to benefit enough workers.

Yellen's speech to top business executives and Wall Street leaders marked a rebuttal of sorts to a presentation that Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump delivered on his economic vision to top U.S. CEOs in Washington, including Apple CEO Tim Cook and JP Morgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon.

The Business Roundtable event in Washington also was expected to feature a presentation by White House Chief of Staff Jeff Zients, representing President Joe Biden, who is attending a summit of G7 leaders in Italy.

Trump's campaign has been light on specifics about his economic plans, but his message to CEOs emphasized tax cuts for businesses and reduced business regulation, according to Trump economic adviser Stephen Moore.

Trump has pledged to continue tax cuts that he signed into law in 2017 and has said he wants to offer tax relief to the middle class, reduce regulations and expand fossil-fuel energy production while reversing Biden's clean energy initiatives. In Nevada on Sunday, he floated a plan to stop taxing service workers' tip income.

"We have learned through experience that heavy-handed central planning through government dictates is not a sustainable economic strategy," Yellen said in prepared remarks. "But neither is traditional supply-side economics, which ignores the importance of public infrastructure, education and workforce training and government-supported basic research."

Tax cuts for the wealthy and deregulation have not fueled "growth and prosperity for the nation at large," she added.

Yellen highlighted the Biden administration's major legislative initiatives to invest in the U.S. economy with a 2021 infrastructure law and semiconductor investments and clean energy tax credits passed in 2022.

These included provisions to train workers and have resulted in $850 billion worth of new private-sector manufacturing investments in the U.S. since Biden took office in 2021, she said.

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"It's been clear to President Biden and me that our economic strategy cannot be driven by either the public or private sector alone," she said. The doctrine she calls "modern supply-side economics" requires public interventions to "create a supportive environment for business and fuel private sector investments."

She said that a strong U.S. economy was helping to drive global growth, with falling inflation and high investment returns, and was optimistic that these trends would continue.

CHINESE SUBSIDIES

Yellen also sought to contrast the Biden approach with that of China, saying that excessive government subsidies for strategic industries have fueled excess manufacturing capacity far above weak domestic demand. A flood of exports resulting from this overinvestment now threatens jobs around the world and is leading to new trade barriers in the U.S. and elsewhere.

"China cannot assume that the rest of the world will rapidly absorb huge quantities of excess production to the detriment of domestic industries in other countries," Yellen said.

"If China continues on this path, I fear that its policies may interfere significantly with our efforts to build a healthy economic relationship," Yellen said. But she repeated her view that decoupling the world's two largest economies would be detrimental to U.S. interests.

Asked by reporters later about the possibility the Treasury could impose secondary sanctions on a Chinese bank for violating U.S. sanctions on Russia through processing transactions that aid Moscow's war production, Yellen said she believed the largest Chinese banks were wary of such deals.

"Im certainly not going to say that we would not be willing to designate a large bank if we saw systematic violations, Yellen said, adding: "The largest banks in China really, really value their correspondent banking relations."

(Reporting by Michael Derby in New York and David Lawder in Washington; Writing by David Lawder; Editing by Andrea Ricci)
The City of Valley has a new chief of police after the city council approved the appointment of former Wymore, Nebraska police chief Bobby Martinez at this week's council meeting.

Martinez takes the reins from Brett Smith, who had been serving as interim police chief since March. Smith had retired from the position in August 2022 after serving in that role for 15 years.

Smith came out of retirement after his successor, the now suspended James Deemer, was charged in February with two counts of official misconduct and one count of driving without a valid operator's license after he initiated a traffic stop more than 20 miles outside of his jurisdiction.

Deemer pleaded not guilty to those charges at a hearing in March.

Martinez only became the Wymore police chief in August 2023. Prior to that, he worked for the Cheyenne County Sheriff's Office in western Nebraska.

Martinez also served 20 years in the U.S. Navy before retiring in 2014.

"The City of Valley received an overwhelming response to the police chief position," Valley Mayor Cindy Grove said in an email. "We interviewed several qualified candidates and believe Chief Martinez will be a good fit for the City of Valley based on his law enforcement, leadership and IT experience."

In moving to Valley, Martinez will be in charge of a department with six full-time officers and five part-time officers in a community of almost 3,500 people west of Omaha.
Libertarian Chase Oliver takes part in an Oct. 16, 2022, debate in Atlanta when he was the party's nominee for Georgia's U.S. Senate seat. The Libertarian Party on May 26, 2024, nominated Oliver for president, rejecting former President Donald Trump and Robert F. Kennedy Jr. after they each spoke at the party's convention.
One of the largest booksellers in the world wants to buy Denvers independent Tattered Cover.

The owners of Tattered Cover are deliberating on a bid from the U.S. bookstore chain Barnes & Noble  which could mark the end of Tattered Covers legacy of being an independently-owned bookstore  a source familiar with the process told the Denver Gazette.

The retailers bid is the highest and could help cover Tattered Covers debts and put an end to its bankruptcy chapter, the source added.

Yet, nothing is set in stone.

Barnes & Noble could still withdraw and the bid would need to be approved by the board of Tattered Cover's parent company Bended Page LLC. and the U.S. bankruptcy court.

A spokesperson for Barnes & Noble did not deny the company placed a bid, but declined to comment, as did Tattered Cover.

Tattered Cover filed for bankruptcy last year, citing mounting debt from navigating the pandemics evolving marketplace and increased competition from online sellers. The bankruptcy also follows the exit of Tattered Cover's former CEO, Kwame Spearman, who shifted focus on his political career. Spearman ran for Denver mayor and a school board position, losing in both races.

After filing for bankruptcy, the company closed three stores in Westminster, McGregor Square and Colorado Springs, all which expanded during Bended Page's leadership, and laid off 25 employees.

Bended Page replaced Tattered Covers CEO with bankruptcy consultant Brad Dempsey to help lead the company out of its struggles.

As the bookstore was climbing out of bankruptcy, Bended Page pivoted in March to look for another owner to run the four stores it had left.

There were at least eight interested bidders aiming to buy Tattered Cover, according to court filings. Some were local, out-of-state or in the publishing industry, which could not be disclosed because of confidentiality agreements.

The company originally planned to have an auction Wednesday but canceled it the day before to have more time for discussions with potential buyers. Tattered Covers spokesperson said at the time that an auction may not have been needed to secure a new owner.

Tattered Cover may secure new owners this summer, documents show

How Barnes & Noble has been mimicking indie bookstores for its growth

After a decade of booksellers shrinking since the Great Recession in 2008, Barnes & Noble survived and is even growing coming out of the pandemic. And the chains CEO is crediting the conglomerate's recent successes and expansions to following the example of independent bookstores.

Barnes & Noble CEO James Daunt  and potentially Tattered Covers new leader  took over the global book retailer in 2019 and has run his own independent store Daunt Books based in London since 1990 with nine locations across the U.K.

Daunt is largely credited with saving another London-based book chain called Waterstones, helping it return to profitability, which led to investment firm Elliott Advisors to acquire the chain in 2018.

When Elliot Advisors bought Barnes & Noble in 2019, it tapped Daunt to run the U.S. book retailer right before the pandemic hit.

Oddly and sort of slightly counterintuitively, it was bringing all of the principles of independent bookselling into a chain bookseller, Daunt told the Wall Street Journals Future of Everything podcast. And that is much more appropriate in a post-Amazon world.

One of the main changes he made to get Barnes & Noble competing against the e-commerce giant was by renovating the stores and rearranging the layout to encourage book browsing.

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Many people no longer go to a physical store for a specific book when they have the convenience of Amazon, so theres less need to shelve books alphabetically. But placing books by subject matter encourages shoppers to find other books within their interest.

The company also shifted power within the chain toward store managers, Daunt said, who have more influence in deciding which books are ordered and displayed to cater to local tastes, much like how indie bookstores operate.

You leave the decision-making to the store teams themselves, he said, because each store is responding to its own physical space and to its customer base.

Waterstones, with the help of the parent company it shares with Barnes & Noble, bought two other indie stores in the U.K. known as Blackwells and Foyles. Both indie stores kept their original names and Foyles website said it aims to stay independent in spirit.

If Barnes & Noble does buy Tattered Cover, the sale would mean the U.S. bookseller is following in the steps of its U.K. counterpart.

The end of an indie era?

While Barnes & Noble is modeling after indie bookstores, its still a big-box retailer.

The sale would not only mark the end of Tattered Cover being an independent bookstore, but locally-owned as well.

Tattered Cover was founded in 1971 as a basement shop.

It was the late Joyce Meskis who took it over in 1974 and expanded the brand into an acclaimed bookstore chain.

Meskis won two landmark cases implicating free speech rights. The first case she won was against a 1984 Colorado law criminalizing sales of sexually oriented material, which the states Supreme Court ruled was unconstitutional. The second law she challenged in 2002 would have prohibited a persons right to anonymously purchase books.

Meskis sold a stake of Tattered Cover in 2015 to Len Vlahos and Kristen Gilligan before retiring in 2017. Meskis died in 2022 at 80 years old.

It was Meskis who built the Tattered Cover into one of the most successful independent bookstores in the country, according to her obituary in the New York Times.

Meskis successors sold Tattered Cover to a Colorado-based investment group Bended Page in 2020 during the midst of the pandemic, when many retailers struggled to survive.

Bended Page was originally run by local investors Kwame Spearman and David Back, who said at the onset of its ownership that the chain needed an infusion of capital. Spearman resigned as CEO to run for Denver's mayor in 2023.

Back worked at the now-closed Tattered Cover store in Cherry Creek as a cashier when he was 15. The chain nearly doubled its footprint, including its first location outside the Denver metro area in Colorado Springs.

But the leadership shook up after Spearman began dabbling in politics.

Tattered Cover looked to Dempsey, the bankruptcy attorney and former Republican congressional candidate, to lead the company when it went under bankruptcy.

Instead of consulting fees, according to court filings, Dempsey was paid $10,000 a month plus expenses to take on the role of CEO.

If Barnes & Noble, indeed, bought Tattered Cover, it's not immediately clear if the Colorado bookstore would retain its name or merge it with the box retailer.
Detectives with the Fountain Police Department arrested 41-year-old Brian Junglen early Wednesday morning following an internet child exploitation investigation.

Junglen was booked into the El Paso County Criminal Justice Center on suspicion of the following charges:

Sexual Exploitation of Children-Distribution of Material (Class 3 Felony)

Sexual Exploitation of Children- Video, Moving Visual Images, Motion Picture (Class 4 Felony).

According to the media release sent Wednesday afternoon, Junglen is being held without bond.

FPD Detectives are asking for the publics assistance in locating any additional witnesses or victims who may have information related to the case. Public records indicate Junglen has been a Fountain resident for the last 12 years, but previously lived in Oregon, Wyoming and Colorado Springs.

Those with any further information are encouraged to call Detective Tori Slater at 719-382-4288, or email at tslater@fountainpd.com.

For those who wish to remain anonymous, call the Crime Stoppers Tip Line at (719) 634-STOP (7867) or 1-800-222-8477, or the Fountain Police Department anonymous tip line at (719) 382-4200.
One person was hospitalized after a shooting Thursday on South Academy Boulevard near Interstate 25, according to the El Paso County Sheriff's Office.

Around 11:20 a.m. someone in a vehicle reported being shot by a motorcyclist, described as an adult male, the Sheriff's Office said. The person drove about three miles to a residence on Dairy Lane in Security-Widefield before calling law enforcement.

Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Cassandra Sebastian said the person was hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries. No arrests have been made.

Smith said the shooting allegedly took place inside a designated construction zone east of I-25.

Investigators are asking any witnesses or those with information about the shooting to contact the Sheriff's Office tip line at 719-520-7777.
The Woodland Park School District's Board of Education voted to pass their budget for the 2024-25 fiscal year during its regular meeting Wednesday evening.

Among the major differences in the budget included decreased expenses in instructional staff, support staff, school administration, operations and maintenance because of the merging of the district's middle school and high school starting next year.

During a breakdown of the budget, Superintendent Ken Witt, acting as the district interim chief financial officer, presented the board with a pie-chart breaking down the district's use of $3,234,463 in tax dollars into six categories for both its public schools and charter schools for next year.

The categories were educator salaries and benefits, certificate of participation (COP) lease payments, facilities and maintenance, safety and security, technology and innovative programming. The salaries and benefits and COP payments would take up the bulk of these funds at 70.1% and 22.3%, respectively.

Given recent criticisms by Woodland Park's City Council in May, some community members at the meeting echoed their concerns about the district's transparency with the tax dollars and how exactly they were being spent in the district.

With these recent concerns in mind, board secretary David Rusterholtz asked superintendent Witt about the feasibility and additional cost of specifying these allocations going forward.

I would like to see, because its so important right now, that we provide or have a breakdown of the sales tax money.

Witt answered that "It would be expensive, but it can be done."

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The board would pass the appropriation of next year's school budget with a 4-1 vote.

Other board actions Later during the meeting, the board voted to add the U.S. Citizenship test to the district's requirements for high school seniors starting in the 2024-25 school year.

The district's chief academic officer Ginger Slocum explained to the board that the test was suggested for its schools to align closer with the district's purpose statement and to prepare the students to be good American citizens.

She said that it would not be a new class, but a new unit taught to juniors and seniors in existing classes and that the test would require students to answer six out of 10 questions correctly to pass.

She added that one history teacher ran a preliminary course with his class this past year where 96% of the students passed the test and that much of what is asked in the test is already covered in current curriculum.

This is a pretty common graduation requirement across the country, Slocum said. "Several states require this as an entire state."

Toward the end of the meeting, the board entered executive session to review superintendent Witt's contract.

Throughout Witt's tenure starting Jan. 2023, the administration decided to merge Woodland Parks middle school and high school, impose a so-called employee gag order against the district's teacher's union and pass reapplying for $1.5 million in grants toward mental health services.

Another controversial decision was the adoption of the social studies curriculum standard known as the American Birthright.
Wondering where to celebrate dad this Sunday?

From cars to comedy to curry, there is something for every dad this Father's Day around Colorado Springs.

Check out these 9 options for spending time with dad around the city:

Batch Slapped Benefit Car Show

When: June 15, 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.

Head to a benefit car show to celebrate dad presented by Batch Slapped Brewery/Cidery and Monster Motors Hot Rod Garage, a veteran operated non-profit. The proceeds of this event will benefit veterans and first responders. Pre-register for the event here.

Happy Hour Donuts Special Menu

When: June 16, 8:30 a.m. - 1 p.m. or sellout

Happy Hour Donuts is serving up 6 brand new flavors to celebrate Father's Day. Customers will only be able to get these flavors on Sunday. The 3 alcoholic flavors are Bourbon Butterscotch Cinnamon Roll, Chocolate Peanut Butter Stout and Caramel Macchiato. The 3 non-alcoholic flavors are Peanut Butter Jelly, Brownie Batter and Smores. Visit here for more information.

Father's Day Market at Soda Springs Park

When: June 16, 10 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Manitou Maker's Market is partnering with Manitou Farmer's Market for a Father's Day event at Soda Springs Park. The market will feature over 20 local artists and live music. Admission is free and the event is located at 42 Park Avenue in Manitou Springs.

U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Museum

When: June 16, 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.

The Olympic and Paralympic Museum is offering all dads 50% off admission on Father's Day. Visitors can use this link to purchase tickets for a time slot between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on Sunday.

Curry Culture Special Buffet

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When: June 16, 12 - 3 p.m.

Treat dad to an Indian buffet dining experience at Curry Culture, a recent addition to Colorado Springs area eateries. The buffet costs a flat rate of $14.99. Visit the Facebook event page for more information.

Longboard Tacos Pig Roast

When: June 16, 12 - 4 p.m.

Longboard Tacos is offering a Hawaiian style pig roast on Father's Day with $3 beer and $5 margaritas. The roast will take place outside of the restaurant located at 1895 Democracy Point. Visit Longboard's website for more information on the event.

Palmer Lake Ice Cream Social

When: June 16, 2 - 4 p.m.

The Father's Day Ice Cream Social at Palmer Lake has become an annual tradition. Fathers and families can enjoy ice cream, pie and music while enjoying the Village Green. Visitors are advised to bring their own lawn chairs. This event is free and open to the public.

Painting with a Twist

When: June 16, various times

Enjoy Father's Day with special painting classes for dad. Painting with a Twist has 4 locations around Colorado Springs, and each location is offering different projects and deals. Some deals include a free drink for dad and buy one get one free painting so dad can paint for free. Visit their main website to view locations and reserve seats.

Father's Day Special Comedy Night (18+)

When: June 16, 6:30 - 9 p.m.

Head to the Manhattan Room in northern Colorado Springs for a Father's Day Comedy Night. Dan Bublitz, a nationally touring comedian, will headline the night. Doors open at 4 p.m. for tapas and cocktails. Make sure to purchase tickets ahead of the event. Tickets are now $12.

Looking for restaurant options for Father's Day in Colorado Springs? Check out this related article:
A crash along northbound Interstate 25 near Colorado Springs prompted an hours-long closure Thursday morning, according to the Colorado Department of Transportation.

The crash was reported just after 5 a.m. near milemarker 135 (the South Academy Boulevard exit).

A semi-truck crashed into a construction zone barrier along the highway, according to Colorado State Patrol. No injuries were reported.

Officials said fuel began to leak from the cab of the truck, prompting a HAZMAT response.

I-25 reopened hours after the crash. Click or tap here for local traffic updates on The Gazette's interactive map.
The cause of the wildfire burning south of Twin Lakes, Colorado sparked on Tuesday was from an abandoned campfire, fire officials said Wednesday evening.

The wildfire has now burned 443 acres and is zero percent contained.

Those who are in the area of the fire have been asked to evacuate, in particular near Interlaken and County Road 25, the Lake County Sheriff's Office said.

"It was determined that the fire originated from an abandoned campfire located about 60 yards from the Interlaken trail and 1.5 miles from the trailhead," the sheriff's office said on a Facebook post. "This campfire was not properly extinguished and continued to burn. It is believed that the campfire was abandoned several days prior to its report on June 11."

Currently officials have no leads on who left the fire unattended and the sheriffs office and US Forest Service will be utilizing a tip line and other information platforms to identify potential suspects.

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The sheriff's office is asking if anybody has information regarding campers that had a fire near the Interlaken resort between June 7-11 to please call the Tip Line at 303-275-5266.

Approximately 135 personnel are fighting the fire, supported by four helicopters and a fixed-wing air tanker, dropping water and fire retardant around the fire.

Crews on the ground are working to protect not only private property, but Interlaken Historic District buildings, Canada lynx habitat and utility infrastructure as well.

The sheriff's office said Interlaken Historic District buildings are not currently threatened.
State Rep. Rose Pugliese, a Republican, is Minority Leader of the Colorado House of Representatives and a Colorado Springs resident. Commissioner Steve ODorisio, a Democrat, is an Adams County Commissioner and Welby resident.
A large group of members of First Congregational United Church of Christ marched in Sundays Pride Parade proclaiming, God Loves Pride, to counter the attack by GOP chair Dave Williams.
"One must try to forget what one has already learned, and open up fully to new (artistic) influences and techniques, in order to come up with works that appeal to the cultural sensibilities of his new audience," wrote French Jesuit painter and missionary Jean Denis Attiret (1702-1768) in his diary during his stay in Beijing, which lasted from 1739 until his death in 1768 at the age of 66.

There, in the capital of the Qing Dynasty, Attiret painted inside the Forbidden City, the vast imperial palace that today houses most of his works under the name of the Palace Museum. And the words Attiret, whose Chinese name Wang Zhicheng denotes sincerity and earnestness, had put down were probably meant as much for himself as for his fellow Western artists who had willingly entered the service of the Qing emperors.

"For one thing, their royal Chinese patrons  like all other Chinese at the time  found shadows on the face highly disagreeable. So that had to go, or at least had to be greatly adjusted, " says Yang Zewen, curator of an ongoing exhibition at the Suzhou Museum that focuses on portraiture from China's Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties.

Yang is standing right in front of a portrait of Emperor Yongzheng (1678-1735), whose father Emperor Kangxi, considered the greatest Qing ruler, harbored a passionate interest toward Western painting, which directly facilitated the arrival in China of many missionary artists.

Flanked by two portraits of his royal consorts  one of them the mother of his successor Emperor Qianlong, Yongzheng appears in the painting, done with traditional Chinese colored ink on silk, as a rather benign-looking character with a sense of aplomb. His facial features are delicately rendered, with light shading on the nasal wings and toward the back of his face.

"One gets the feeling that whoever had painted this was fully aware of the element of light, and by extension, shadow, in portraiture," Yang says. "Yet the same person must be equally aware of the Chinese aesthetics as not to upset it.

"While many Western paintings indicated strongly at a single light source through the dramatic interplay between light and shadow, the missionary artists, in their attempt to reconcile two artistic traditions, had made their works appear as if they had been painted in open light, which readily deleted all darkness."

Interestingly, one Western ruler who also insisted that no shadow came across her face is Elizabeth I, the powerful, long-reigning Queen of England from the 16th century. Elizabeth oversaw the creation of many of her likenesses by artist Nicholas Hilliard that look a bit flat, a deliberate decision for the monarch who probably thought naturalistic representation was not entirely helpful in the projection of power and symbolism.

The aforementioned Emperor Yongzheng portrait has been tentatively attributed to Giuseppe Castiglione (1688-1766), an Italian Jesuit missionary painter who served three Qing emperors  Kangxi, Yongzheng and Qianlong. A friend of Attiret and a master of fusion when it came to mixing artistic influences, Castiglione, whose Chinese name Lang Shining implied serenity and harmony, saw his fame reach its height during the reign of Emperor Qianlong, who declared him as "standing head and shoulder above all other portraitists (in my court)".

Under the auspices of Qianlong, Castiglione and other Western artists gave lessons to young Chinese trainees deemed talented. They also helped raise the status of studio-trained portraitists, long considered lesser mortals to literati painters who, as their collective name suggests, were usually highly educated, well-versed in poetry, and dominated Chinese landscape painting since around the 10th century.

In 1729, Shi Xue, or The Science of Perspectives, a richly illustrated book and the first Chinese one to have dealt with the topic, was published. The author, Nian Xiyao, elder brother of Nian Gengyao, the right-hand man of Emperor Yongzheng before his deadly fall from grace, had studied perspective with Castiglione.

A notion central to the illusion of depth in Western painting, perspective was brought into traditional Chinese painting  the depiction of architectural landscape in particular  by missionary artists around the same time, and was quickly taken up by their Chinese counterparts, especially those working at the imperial court.

In 1689, Emperor Kangxi made a grand tour to consolidate his authority over southern China. The renowned landscapist Wang Hui (1632-1717), assisted by his team of painters, recorded the journey in a series of twelve oversize handscrolls ranging from 14 to 26 meters long.

While the format of a handscroll is decidedly Chinese, the spatial representation in each painting pointed to an acute sense of depth and perspective not typically seen in traditional Chinese paintings.

On view at the Suzhou Museum exhibition are two images of Wang Hui. One is the rubbing of an original work done by celebrated Qing-dynasty portraitist Yu Zhiding. Yu meant it as a parting gift for Wang Hui who, having spent eight whole years on his royal commission, had decided to leave Beijing for good.

In the painting, Wang Hui, wearing a loose-fitting robe and no hat, was making his way home on the back of a cow, followed by his luggage-bearing attendant. For those familiar with the iconography of Chinese portraiture, Wang Hui, once trusted by the emperor, had chosen to be seen as someone whose only ambition was to be with nature.

A few steps away from the rubbing is a portrait of him living the life he had always wanted, amid nature's untended wilderness. Visibly older than he had appeared in Yu's work, the man, slightly frail and in white, seems to be receding slowly into the background. This deeply spiritual portrait was from Wang Hui's two other painter friends, Xie Bin and Wu Li, the latter believed to have befriended many Western artists who lived in China at the time.

"It's a two-way street whereby the Chinese and Western artists came under the influences of each other," says Yang. "While some of the influences had led to conscious decisions  like the one to keep shadows off the face, others were felt more subtly, sometimes without one's knowledge."

In 1711, Italian Jesuit priest Matteo Ripa was appointed court painter by Emperor Kangxi. According to his own memoir, to get that position, Ripa was asked to prove his own worth, with painting tools drawn from both Chinese and Western traditions.

"These included a Chinese brush, some paint and an oil painting canvass," he wrote.
DIXON  Three sheriff's deputies were shot Wednesday while responding to a northern Illinois home, and the suspect was also wounded, authorities said.

Ogle County Sheriff Brian VanVickle said the deputies were responding to a report that someone inside the home in the Lost Lake community near Dixon was threatening to kill themself or others. He said the suspect also was shot. He did not provide any information about the suspect, including name, age or where the person lives.

VanVickle said a family member called police shortly after 8:30 a.m. to report the threats from someone at the home. He said negotiators tried to reach the person by phone and decided to go inside shortly before noon.

"Immediately upon entering the house, our deputies received fire from inside the house," he said.

VanVickle initially tried to walk away from reporters after giving a statement without more detail but responded to shouted questions by saying everyone injured "is in good condition."

A spokesperson at Katherine Shaw Bethea Hospital in Dixon said three people were taken to the hospital's emergency department, two of whom were treated and released. The spokesperson did not release the condition of the third person.

The Illinois State Police will handle the investigation of the shooting, VanVickle said. The agency did not immediately respond to an email from The Associated Press seeking comment.

Aerial video by local media Wednesday afternoon showed law enforcement and personal cars parked on the side of unpaved roads throughout the neighborhood and officials occasionally gathering in small groups but little ongoing activity. Yellow police tape blocked at least one driveway and an Ogle County sheriff's mobile command center was parked at the end of the drive.

Lost Lake's property owner's association describes the area as a "country style community" with about 700 owners in an unincorporated area close to the cities of Dixon, Franklin Grove and Oregon, about 100 miles west of Chicago.

___

Associated Press reporters Kathleen Foody in Chicago and Corey Williams in Detroit contributed to this report.
For more than 20 years, I have held one position constant when it comes to immigration policy: We should have one.

I'd be fine with 1 million or 2 million immigrants a year. I'd also be fine with a temporary freeze on most immigration. I think preferences for skilled immigrants are entirely defensible. I also think a generous asylum policy is morally preferable to a narrow one.

But the priority shouldn't be the number or kind of immigrants we take in. The priority should be making a decision about the number and kind and sticking to it.

If the number is too high or low, policymakers can change it. If they don't change it, voters can elect a politician or party who will. But if Congress says the number is 1 million per year, that should be the actual number.

The late Democratic Congresswoman Barbara Jordan of Texas, who chaired the U.S. Commission on Immigration Reform in the 1990s, put it succinctly: "The credibility of immigration policy can be measured by a simple yardstick: People who should get in, do get in; people who should not get in are kept out; and people who are judged deportable are required to leave."

Credibility is important for any government endeavor, but it's especially so for immigration because few issues share its capacity to sow public discontent. The sense that immigration is "out of control" breeds distrust, incites nativism and fuels panic and conspiracy theories.

It was ever thus. In colonial America, Benjamin Franklin repeatedly warned of the danger posed by unchecked German immigration, worrying that "they will soon so outnumber us, that ... we ... will not in my opinion be able to preserve our language, and even our government will become precarious." In 1798, Congress passed the Alien and Sedition Acts, which are remembered for their assault on free speech but were driven by the fear that French and other immigrants (i.e., Aliens) were an enemy within. The Naturalization Act -- part of the Alien and Sedition Acts -- made it harder for immigrants to become citizens and vote.

Later chapters in this old story include the Know-Nothings, all manner of panic over the Irish, the Yellow Peril and of course "replacement theory." The same sentiments are now driving the surging prospects of far-right parties in Europe and the domestic success of Donald Trump despite -- or because of -- all his ugly rhetoric about "vermin" and blood "poisoning."

That's why President Joe Biden's ham-fisted mishandling of the border crisis is arguably his greatest liability after his age. Indeed, the former informs attitudes about the latter, in that the impression of lawlessness at the border fuels the sense that he is weak and overwhelmed.

As Europe's travails demonstrate, this is not just an American problem. Large-scale immigration roils politics and society everywhere it occurs.

Moreover, despite America's struggles with immigration past and present, this country is not anti-immigrant. As of 2022, the United States had roughly 46 million foreign-born residents, more than half of them citizens, accounting for about 14% of the population. (China's immigrants, by contrast, amount to about 0.04% of its population.) No country in the world is better at absorbing and assimilating people, and we should take deep patriotic pride in that.

That's important to bear in mind because the rhetoric on both sides of the debate makes restoring credibility to our immigration system harder. Contrary to Pat Buchanan's dire prophecies, Mexican Americans have not shown much interest in a "Reconquista" of the American Southwest. And notwithstanding the constant shrieks about America's nativism and xenophobia, the melting pot continues to burble along.

As a rule, normal Americans are far more sensible and decent on this issue than our leaders. Increasing numbers of Latinos want stronger enforcement of the border and immigration laws, which is a sign that the loudest voices on both sides are detached from reality. Indeed, if Trump wins this year's election, it will be partly because working-class Latinos have assimilated into the culture and politics of the rest of the American working class.

If responsible politicians don't deal with immigration responsibly, irresponsible ones will exploit the issue to get elected. If the 2016 election wasn't enough to prove that, 2024 might be.
The value of any beef animal lies in how much meat they can put on and what qualities that meat has. This remains true for dairy-beef cattle that develop meat characteristics a bit differently than native beef cattle.

Blake Foraker is an assistant professor of meat science at Washington State University, and he reminded cattle producers that meat from dairy-beef crossbreds is an improvement over that from straight Holstein steers. It also comes from a carcass that is a little different from what beef processors are used to with native cattle.

During an Oklahoma State University Extension beef-on-dairy webinar, Foraker discussed that the largest difference in carcass value between native beef cattle and dairy cattle is the ratio of muscle to bone. Dairy carcasses have a higher bone weight because of their frame size. Obviously, there is no meat value in bone. This frame difference is improved when beef genetics are introduced.



There are also significant variations in the values of the subprimals, which are the further divisions butchers make from the eight main, or primal, cuts of beef. Subprimals make up about 80% of the total cutout value of a carcass, he added, and the difference in that value between a native beef animal and a dairy animal can be nearly $11 per hundredweight of beef. That is also the gap between the value of a dairy animal and a dairy-beef animal. High-yielding dairy-beef animals have the highest percentage of subprimals, which helps offset having more bone weight, Foraker said.

A carcass value further depends on how much of the meat is unusable. Liver abscesses often contribute to meat being condemned, and they are a concern in native beef cattle as well as dairy-beef animals, which see significantly higher rates of liver abscesses.

Abscesses are an issue not so much because of the loss of the liver, Foraker said, but because of the loss of the nearby muscle. He illustrated that in animals without a liver abscess, one study found that about 4% had damage to the neighboring skirt meat. On the other hand, 29% of more than 600 animals they observed with a liver abscess had damaged skirt meat. Foraker said the skirt meat is the second most valuable part of the carcass, and when some of that has to be discarded, it can make a significant financial difference to the packer.



No phenotype relationship

When crossbreeding dairy and beef animals, some animals retain more phenotypically dairy characteristics while others take on more beef-like features. It may seem logical to assume that these different phenotypes affect how the animals meat performs or the characteristics it takes on. For example, would more dairy-like animals produce meat with more of dairys signature tenderness?

Foraker said that doesnt appear to be the case. They studied a group of dairy-beef animals that were characterized phenotypically as fully beef, partially beef, partially dairy, or fully dairy and then examined their meat. There were no differences between the four groups in terms of meat quality, nor were there effects on the size of steaks from the animals. We can be confident that we can get high-quality meat from any phenotype of animal, Foraker said.

Naturally, there is a relationship between physical muscling appearance and round muscling in the meat, he added. Along with addressing liver abscesses, this is an area where dairy-beef production can improve to become more consistent and valuable to beef processors, Foraker stated.

To comment, email your remarks to intel@hoards.com.

(c) Hoard's Dairyman Intel 2024

June 10, 2024
Almost every dairy farmer is also an employer. That means in addition to all the work that surrounds owning and caring for cattle, dairy producers must be proficient in human resources.

At the recent Kansas Dairy Conference, business immigration attorney Leyla McMullen advised farmers to ensure their paperwork is thorough but fair.

You should not hire unauthorized workers knowingly, and you should not engage in discrimination, the attorney at MDIVANI Corporate Immigration Law Firm explained. That means you should do just enough to fulfill the I-9 requirement, but you cannot go overboard.



The I-9 is a key documentation, whether you are employing individuals born in this country or another. When walking through the governments best practices for document management, McMullen outlined these 10 common I-9 mistakes.

Failing to fill out an I-9 for an employee. This includes owners themselves who should also have an I-9 on file.

Incomplete forms. Two people complete the I-9. Section 1 is completed by the worker. You, as the employer, complete section 2, McMullen detailed. She said under no circumstances should employers complete section 1 for employees.

Incorrect information on the form.

Unacceptable documents. Make sure that all the documents that are listed on the I-9 are actually on the list of acceptable documents, she explained.

Overdocumentation. You have to be really careful about which documents you take, McMullen shared. If someone is a permanent resident and gives you a permanent resident card, dont put their social security card with the I-9. Thats an overdocumentation.

Inconsistent photocopying.

Names and birth dates of an employee dont match. McMullen explained this is a common version of mistake Number 3. If an employee is not properly documented, this type of mistake shows an employer should have noticed the discrepancy.

Improper form corrections. If a mistake is made, a single line should be drawn through the mistake and the correction written above.

I-9s stored in personnel files. McMullen recommends storing I-9s together in a file where they can be managed and destroyed after the appropriate amount of time expires once the employee leaves.

Lacking plans and procedures for proper I-9 completion and storage. McMullen said these should be based on Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) best practices.



While this type of paperwork can be intimidating for employers, but it is critical for healthy business practice. Being aware of and up-to-date on employment requirements can save a farm both time and money.

To comment, email your remarks to intel@hoards.com.

(c) Hoard's Dairyman Intel 2024

June 10, 2024
Icelandic pianist Vikingur Olafsson captivated a sold-out audience at the Shanghai Symphony Hall on May 31 with a mesmerizing 75-minute performance of Johann Sebastian Bach's "Goldberg Variations." The concert, a testament to Olafsson's growing popularity in China, saw tickets snapped up within a mere 7 minutes of release, with the audience erupting in applause and cheers following the virtuoso's stunning display.

Icelandic pianist Vikingur Olafsson performs at the Shanghai Symphony Hall in Shanghai, May 31, 2024. [Photo courtesy of Universal Music Group]

"For me, playing Bach is like breathing, like writing a personal diary," Olafsson said at a sharing event held in Beijing on June 3. "Bach is my mirror. I play Bach on the piano to understand myself and to understand the world."

Olafsson's love for Bach began in his childhood, but it was a recording by master pianist Edwin Fischer that he heard as a teenager that truly ignited his passion.

"It was so beautiful. It was the first time in my life that I realized Bach is not just a brilliant composer of musical structures, he is an incredible poet," Olafsson said. "And the structure translates into human experience in a very special way and in a different way for everyone. For everyone who listens, we all have our own Bach, and that's why I love him."

The Icelandic pianist is currently dedicating his entire 2023-24 season to touring the monumental "Goldberg Variations" globally across six continents, with an album released on Deutsche Grammophon in October 2023.

This follows his highly acclaimed 2018 recording, "Johann Sebastian Bach," which won numerous awards, including BBC Music Magazine's Album of the Year and Opus Klassik's Solo Recital award. Now, he continues to bring his unique musical vision and an affecting, meticulously recorded sound to Bach's music.

Olafsson believes Bach's "The Goldberg Variations" to be one of the most technically challenging and profound pieces of keyboard music ever composed, with brilliant uses of counterpoint and instances of exalted poetry, abstract contemplation, and deep pathos  all within immaculately shaped structures of formal perfection. In 30 variations, built on the humble harmonic framework of a simple, graceful aria, Bach transforms limited material into boundless variety like no one before or since.

"When you play Bach, you cannot hide anything, neither technically nor, more importantly, musically. I think that's because he wrote the pieces with such incredibly maximal structure and minimal instruction on how to play them," Olafsson said. "With Bach, you have to be very creative. You have to make many more decisions than with any other composer in history. You almost become a co-creator. But this is why I love Bach, and why I have changed with Bach."

Bach's influence and relevance persist in the internet era, as he remains one of the most popular artists on streaming platforms. Olafsson pointed out that people love the musician because he brings balance to sometimes unbalanced society, and "he brings great things to you, whether you're happy or sad."

Despite decades of practice and performance, the Icelandic pianist explained why he had not recorded the "Goldberg Variations" until now. Olafsson stated that recording the piece at the age of 40 allowed him to offer a more nuanced interpretation, enlightened and influenced by figures such as Edwin Fischer's romantic Bach, Glenn Gould's modern Bach, Murray Perahia's noble Bach, Grigory Sokolov's Russian Bach, and Dinu Lipatti's angelic, heavenly Bach. Now, he appreciates the diverse aspects of Bach, aiming to deliver an authentic interpretation that avoids mere imitation.

"I think it takes time to find your own Bach," he said. "So when you play Bach with all the variations, you become the variations and the variations become you. And that is the beauty of music. And that's the beauty of Bach."

Icelandic pianist Vikingur Olafsson shares his passion for and understanding of Johann Sebastian Bach and his music at a sharing session held at Steinway Hall Beijing in Beijing on June 3, 2024. [Photo courtesy of Cai Leilei and Universal Music Group]

To date, Olafsson has performed the "Goldberg Variations" at 96 concerts worldwide, including landmark venues such as New York's Carnegie Hall, Sydney Opera House, Tokyo's Suntory Hall, and Vienna's Golden Hall. After the sharing session in Beijing, he performed Bach's beautiful "Organ Sonata No. 4, BWV 528: II. Andante," along with the "Aria" and "Var. 1" of "The Goldberg Variations," once again mesmerizing the on-site audience.

"I have played it more than 90 times around the world, and those are over 90 different 'Goldberg Variations.' Even if you're playing the same notes, the notes take on new meaning and new life every night. With different tempos and dynamics, it becomes a new piece," he said, noting that releasing just one record of the "Goldberg Variations" is not enough, and he could do 30 versions of it.

The pianist's "Goldberg Variations" world tour will continue in China in June, with the next stops in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hong Kong and Taiwan. Afterward, he will continue his performances in Europe and conclude the tour in Germany.

He nostalgically recalled the days when he studied music in New York, where he also met many Chinese friends. "I used Bach a lot to help myself become a stronger musician, to stop waiting for the teacher to tell me how to do things and to become my own teacher in art. I think Bach helped me with that; he has been my mirror and my yardstick ever since."
The nation's largest single investment in Catholic K-12 schools was announced in Northwest Indiana on Wednesday. The Dean and Barbara White Family Foundation says it's giving $150 million over the next 10 years to the Big Shoulders Fund, a nonprofit that supports Catholic schools in the Chicago area and Northwest Indiana.

That money will impact all 20 schools of the Diocese of Gary, according to Big Shoulders Fund CEO Josh Hale. "This transformational donation will open many doors, allowing the creation and enhancement of curriculum, providing advancement in professional development and growth opportunities for teachers and school leadership, assisting with enrollment and tuition management, providing infrastructure improvements where needed and, perhaps most importantly, creating valuable support services to meet the learning needs of all these children," Hale said.

Big Shoulders Fund Northwest Indiana Dan Kozlowski speaks during Wednesday's announcement in Cedar Lake.

(Michael Gallenberger / Lakeshore Public Media)

Big Shoulders plans to target that money toward communities with the greatest economic and educational need. Gary Bishop Robert McClory said the diocese is still working with Big Shoulders on what, specifically, that will look like.

"So it means to make sure that our schools are accessible to seek them out, to make sure that the quality is there providing the support, and the sustainability," McClory explained. "And that includes a wide range of things to make sure that we're able to not just have a nice boost but to sustain this over time."

The bishop also announced that the diocese plans to establish a separate endowment fund  which it hopes to grow up to $50 million  to boost compensation for its teachers, principals and other school staff.

This comes as Indiana has made funding more available to private schools through its voucher program. A 2023 law significantly eased the income requirements for its Choice Scholarship, and the state paid $439 million in tuition grants to private schools this past school year.

McClory said the Diocese of Gary has seen enrollment increase at its schools, but he stressed that they'll maintain their Catholic identities, even as they become more accessible to all. "Right now, if you look overall, about 22 percent of our enrollment is non-Catholic, and so we always open the doors to make sure that those who want a Catholic education have that opportunity," McClory said.

State-level officials were also part of Wednesday's announcement, including Secretary of Education Dr. Katie Jenner and Governor Eric Holcomb.

Governor Eric Holcomb speaks at Wednesday's announcement in Cedar Lake.

(Michael Gallenberger / Lakeshore Public Media)

Holcomb said investments in education play a big role in Hoosiers' pursuit of happiness. "Indiana has never been more devoted as a state to making sure that Indiana's a place for all to get on the path, to have that pathway lit up," Holcomb said.

Indiana House Speaker Todd Huston (R-Fishers) also made the trip, saying Wednesday's event was his favorite of those he's attended as speaker. "This event changes generations," Huston said. "This event changes outcomes."

Still, Holcomb said the state remains committed to funding traditional public schools. "The bottom line is always to make sure families can identify the best scenario for their student to grow and flourish in the classroom, as well," Holcomb said.

Dean and Barbara White Family Foundation trustee Beth White said the $150 million donation will serve as a beacon for the Region's youth. "That will provide values-based education and performance-based education for decades to come," White said.
Once it was unthinkable to use a credit card online. Today, online commerce is booming, and there's a small army working to ensure this trust is not misplaced. However, recent technological advancements mean digital trust must evolve to keep us protected. And the time to act is now.

"Sometimes people ask me what digital trust is," said DigiCert CEO Amit Sinha. "I say it's the fundamental infrastructure to make sure all these things are trustworthy and secure."

If you've built a website you know DigiCert provides the SSL certificate that shows your website encrypts traffic and can be trusted to enter confidential information into. Of course, digital trust is more than websites; it's the authentication throughout each layer of your applications, the network, devices, and more. Digital trust ensures you are running authentic software on authentic devices.

In life, integrity is paramount. You want to be known as someone who does what they say. You want people to be confident if a task is in your hands it'll be done. And, in the world of technology, computers are no different. You want to know you're connecting to your bank's website, not a fake one. You want to know your software update came from Apple, say, and not a malicious third-party. You want certainty the document you signed cannot be tampered with and altered. This is digital trust - integrity for digital things.

And when it comes to digital trust, DigiCert has been in business for more than two decades, has over 100,000 customers around the globe, and is used by over 80% of Fortune 500 organisations. Locally, about 70% of the ASX use DigiCert. There are 6,000 ANZ customers, with 100 employees across Melbourne and Sydney. In fact, ANZ has been the fastest growing DigiCert region last year, with growth driven mostly among financial services companies, as well as healthcare, tech and government agencies.

However, it is also a time of tectonic shifts with quantum computing threatening to obliterate once-uncrackable encryption algorithms, with an explosion of IoT devices, and with Generative AI making it harder for people to understand what's fake or not.

Quantum computing is not science-fiction; iTWire previously spoke with DigiCert SVP of product Brian Trzupek who informed quantum computing is only a few years from being mainstream, and that you can rent space on an IBM quantum computer right now. Even the Australian Government has invested $1B in quantum computing.

In late 2019, Google claimed it solved a problem that would take 10,000 years for the world's fastest supercomputer within just 200 seconds using a quantum computer. These kinds of problems that quantum computing is really, really good at are things like the very mathematics that current encryption technology is based upon.

However, DigiCert has been preparing for this. Behind the scenes it's been working with standards bodies, and is part of the Internet Engineering Taskforce devising the next series of TLS standards. Additionally, "The US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has been working on post-quantum cryptography algorithms for several years," Sinha explained. "These algorithms are based on new mathematical problems that quantum computers cannot solve."

It's not talk; NIST is set to release four new algorithms later this year. "These will protect key encapsulation mechanisms and signing processes," Sinha said, also noting that companies such as WhatsApp and Apple are already adopting these technologies. CloudFlare, he said, has already switched 25% of its infrastructure to post-quantum key encapsulation.

This is all well and good, but it's not simply a matter of these big tech companies and bodies to solve the problems. Sinha emphasised there's a real urgency and importance for people like you and I to modernising cryptographic infrastructure in the face of the upcoming shift to quantum computing.

DigiCert has made it a mission to help organisations of all sizes recognise they must upgrade their platforms for quantum-cryptopgraphy readiness. Recently, the company announced its first-ever World Quantum Readiness Day, to take place on 26 September 2024.

While many organisations understand they need to upgrade their SSL certificates, the trickiness comes in that digital trust is so much more; it's all the kinds of things we listed above - the signing of documents, of software, of machines, and on and on. Any given business may not truly grasp just how much digital trust, how many cryptographic keys, are spread throughout all their technology assets and resources. In fact, Sinha says, a DigiCert survey of 1,400 companies worldwide found large organisations had around 54,000 crypto assets scattered across their servers and workloads.

"This is an extinction level-event for modern crypto. It's like the Y2K timestamp problem but without a date," Sinha said.

Fortunately, you don't have to wait "for magic Q day where only then does it become real," he said.

"All companies need to take stock of their inventory," Sinha said. If you don't know where to start, a good place is DigiCert's own Trust Lifecycle Manager which can scan the network, interface with eVaults, work with ITC and MDM tools, and ultimately produce an inventory for you. Prioritise your key applications, and begin chipping away. Leverage automation for faster gains.

It's a big job, it's a potentially daunting job, but it's a necessary job. It's not the time for wait-and-see. It's not the time for following suit after the US. Once malicious actors are using quantum computing all global markets are at threat.

"Quantum computing gives malicious actors the opportunity to break algorithms and exploit the inherent trust users place on legitimate applications and websites," Sinha said. "Only post-quantum cryptography can defeat the threat and preserve the sanctity of digital communications."
Vodafone announced it has landed subsea cable system 2Africa in Bude, Cornwell, in the UK to bring connections to billions of people.

2Africa claims it is the worlds largest fibre-optic cable system. It will connect Africa, Europe, and parts of the Middle East and South Asia once it is operational.

The cable spans more than 45,000 kilometres in length. As per a Capacity Media report, the cable, launched in May 2020, is owned by Vodafone alongside consortium partners Bayobab, China Mobile, Meta, Orange, Saudi Telecom, Telecom Egypt, and WIOCC.

It will be manufactured and installed by Alcatel Submarine Networks (ASN).

Vodafone said the latest landing in Cornwall will facilitate faster and more reliable connectivity for UK businesses wanting to deliver digital services to Africa and vice versa.

The latest landing in Cornwall will facilitate faster and more reliable connectivity for UK businesses wanting to deliver digital services to Africa, and vice versa. Total capacity on the cable is up to 180 terabits per second (Tbps).

As the lead partner for the UK landing, Vodafone will be responsible for the following:

- Managing the physical cable coming ashore

- Burial on the beach

- Installation into a new, purpose-built beach manhole where 2Africa will connect to terrestrial cable routing back to the existing Vodafone Cable Landing Station

Vodafone will also provide 2Africa with onward connectivity via two diverse terrestrial infrastructure and fibre routes linking to the London area.

Vodafone stated it started carrying customer traffic on its part of the cable, which consists of dual-fibre cables that have a lifespan of 25 years.

It named the twin-fibred after Vodafone head of subsea partnerships Rick Perry.

Commenting on the subsea cable, Perry said: 2Africa is the worlds most ambitious cable system and will help to narrow the digital divide in Africa. Having landed in the UK, its great that the SHARP system is now online and serving customers.

Vodafone has been the partner for 11 landings of the 2Africa cable to date, with its experience in subsea cables tracing back to the landing of the first-ever transoceanic cable in Porthcurno, Cornwall, in 1870.

This first appeared in the subscription newsletter CommsWire on 12 June 2024.
COMPANY NEWS: Aveva, a global leader in industrial software, launches Avevas 2023 Sustainability Progress Report and the first edition of the Aveva Industrial Intelligence Index at London Tech Week 2024 where the company advocates for ethical and impact-driven AI aimed at increasing creativity and efficiency for a more sustainable world.

Aveva 2023 Sustainability Progress Report: key learnings

In 2023, Aveva continued to make progress on its core ESG framework objectives, including enabling the sustainable transformation of industry through its software, modelling environmental stewardship and ethical best practices, and fostering an inclusive workplace culture where every employee feels engaged and empowered to learn and grow.

This fourth edition of the report is Avevas first publication of ESG data and workstream advancements aligned to a calendar year reporting period. It details progress made in 2023 against Avevas three key pillars: Technology handprint, Operational footprint, and Inclusive culture.

Technology handprint

Beyond our efforts to reduce our own carbon footprint, we recognise that our biggest opportunity to make a positive impact and accelerate our journey towards Net Zero is through our core products, digital solutions that can help industries improve efficiency, circularity, traceability, and resilience shared Aveva global head of sustainability Lisa Wee.

In this regard, the company has developed a green new logo program that has supported in the first six months the deployment of clean tech activities for 25 customers. In addition, with 13 new case studies quantifying the reduction of emissions Aveva software enables for customers, the company demonstrates how it walks the talk through tangible achievements contributing to sustainability. Last but not least, hackathons run in 2023 generated 80 sustainability-led technology ideas for future innovations.

Last year also saw the launch of Avevas Sustainability Accelerator program to help advance sustainability use cases and capabilities across the companys portfolio and partner ecosystem, including via Avevas industrial intelligence platform, Connect.

Avevas Sustainability Accelerator program aims to enable faster uptake of existing sustainability solutions across the industrial landscape, while we continue to invest in product capabilities and partnerships that will push out the frontiers of sustainability innovation for industry, said director of sustainability Joana Mainguy.

Operational footprint

In 2023, Aveva met 4 out of 15 2025 ESG targets including achieving a 93% reduction in scope 1 and scope 2 emissions through a combination of measures: the company procured 100% of renewable electricity in all global markets as per RE100 criteria, reduced its overall fleet by 21% over the year, with25% of the remaining fleet being hybrid or electric. Notable achievements related to upstream emissions include a 36% decrease in purchased goods and services and a 49% decrease in business travel emissions. The latter goes beyond Avevas 2025 ESG goal of a 20% reduction and the company has launched an internal carbon budget to maintain this level of reduction where possible.

Also regarding scope 3, Aveva has integrated e-waste data in the companys emissions inventory under the waste category and R&D teams completed power bench testing for the most energy-intensive Aveva products, allowing for more accurate emissions calculations. Aveva also made strides in advancing circularity across the business. Our initial target of diverting 5 tons of e-waste from landfill in 2025 was surpassed by 22.75 tons in 2023. We are evaluating how best to build on this achievement to drive greater awareness and alignment with circular economy principles100% of e-waste sent to our disposal partner is now diverted from landfill, explained Wee.

Inclusive culture

Avevas commitment to developing a workplace environment where all employees feel included and are treated with dignity and respect is also highlighted in the report.

Globally, with 39.9% of new hires, 29% of managers and 26.5% of leaders being women, Aveva has significantly increased gender representation in 2023 and will continue initiatives to raise these numbers to 50% of new hires, 40% of managers and 30% of leaders by 2030. We have also reached our goal of reducing the gender pay parity gap to less than 1% and are working enterprise-wide to maintain this progress, commented Lisa Wee. In addition, Aveva demonstrated its commitment to society donating  310,000 to causes supported by Aveva employee communities around the world.

Aveva also launched diversity initiatives in key regions: In the US, the company has developed a partnership with two Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) for an Aveva Scholars Program. Spanning three years, the program includes scholarships and immersive onsite experiences, ultimately paving the way for talented Black scholars in Engineering and Computer Science to join the Aveva team upon graduation. The pilot will kick-off mid-June 2024 with 12 students.

Aveva Industrial Intelligence Index Report: A 2-in-1 publication to report on industrial needs and to give guidance on existing solutions through inspiring examples of successful and sustainable digital transformation:

At London Tech Week 2024, Aveva launched its first annual Aveva Industrial Intelligence Index:

Aveva has been supporting the industrial world for more than half a century. Listening to our customers needs and understanding their challenges is how we innovate and develop tailored solutions that will help them cope with current and future challenges. With more than 25 000 customers across all industries, we have built a unique expertise. Today Im delighted to introduce our first Aveva Industrial Intelligence Index Report. Our ambition is to issue this report every year to help C-suite executives, business unit leaders, and strategic decision-makers leverage industrial intelligence and succeed in the digital age, with inspiring insights about how industries transform towards a more sustainable future, declared Aveva CEO Caspar Herzberg.

Drawing on research conducted with 500 global industry executives across Europe, North America and Asia Pacific, this first edition gives valuable and actionable insights into the power, manufacturing, infrastructure, and chemicals industries. Including comments from Avevas experts and leaders, the report unveils macro trends and describes the forces that drive change and innovation. It also presents case studies showcasing successful digitalisation initiatives, and strategies for driving innovation and efficiency to chart a course towards a more sustainable and profitable future.

About Aveva

Aveva is a global leader in industrial software, sparking ingenuity to drive responsible use of the worlds resources. The companys secure industrial cloud platform and applications enable businesses to harness the power of their information and improve collaboration with customers, suppliers, and partners.

Over 20,000 enterprises in over 100 countries rely on Aveva to help them deliver lifes essentials: safe and reliable energy, food, medicines, infrastructure and more. By connecting people with trusted information and AI-enriched insights, Aveva enables teams to engineer efficiently and optimise operations, driving growth and sustainability.

Named as one of the worlds most innovative companies, Aveva supports customers with open solutions and the expertise of more than 6,400 employees, 5,000 partners and 5,700 certified developers. The company, which has operations around the globe, is headquartered in Cambridge, UK. Learn more at www.aveva.com.
COMPANY NEWS: Pax8, the leading cloud commerce marketplace, today announced it has recognised several partners and vendors with the second annual Pax8 Beyond Awards during Beyond 2024. The awards program honours partners and vendors that are driving cloud adoption and providing advanced solutions that empower businesses worldwide.

The guiding light of Pax8 is addressing the needs of our partners and vendors as we fuel their businesses through our Marketplace, said Pax8 corporate vice president of community and ecosystems Rob Rae. "It is a privilege to celebrate the growth, innovation and success of our community through the 2024 Beyond Awards, and we thank the recipients for their continued partnership.

Held in Denver, CO, from 9 June  11 June, the sold-out Beyond 2024 provided Pax8 partners with three days of education, innovation, and community collaboration through breakout sessions, keynote addresses, and a large vendor exhibit hall. The event also unveiled the groundbreaking new Pax8 Marketplace, a transformative modern commerce experience, during a keynote from chief product officer Libby McIlhany.

Twenty-eight partner and vendor awards were presented during the final day of Beyond 2024, showcasing the incredible transformation, impact, and success these companies are having on the channel ecosystem through their partnership with Pax8. These awards also signify the global ecosystem Pax8 supports, with winners in the North America, EMEA and APAC regions recognised for their success. For the complete list of award winners, please visit https://www.pax8.com/blog/beyond-2024-day-two-new-marketplace-innovation/.

About Pax8

Pax8 is the technology marketplace of the future, linking partners, vendors, and small to midsized businesses (SMBs) through AI-powered insights and comprehensive product support. With a global partner ecosystem of over 30,000 managed service providers, Pax8 empowers SMBs worldwide by providing software and services that unlock their growth potential and enhance their security. Committed to innovating cloud commerce at scale, Pax8 drives customer acquisition and solution consumption across its entire ecosystem.
The key to work-life happiness has been revealed, and according to new data from Deputy, its working in a cafe. The data - recorded using Deputys Shift Pulse feature on which workers are able to rate how theyre feeling at the end of their shift on a sliding scale - is featured in Deputys second annual Shift Pulse Report, which includes findings from 1,536,000 shift workers globally, including 500,791 in Australia.

The data revealed that Hospitality is the happiest sector overall, beating out Healthcare, Retail and Services, with more than half (58%) of workers feeling amazing at the end of their shifts. Conversely, government, call centre and construction workers make up some of the unhappiest workers with stress and frustration remaining across these industries.

Local cafes have best working environments in Australia

The social and dynamic atmosphere of cafes and coffee shops may be why these workplaces have the highest positivity across all shift work industries, with 63% of workers feeling amazing after their shifts.

Australia is known for its world class coffee and love of cafe culture so its not surprising that the sector has topped the list of happiest workers in Deputys latest Shift Pulse Report. The sociable nature of cafe work, along with opportunities for creativity and working in a vibrant atmosphere, have contributed to these workers feeling the most satisfied at the end of their shifts, said Katrina Holt, Chief Customer Officer at Deputy.

Fast Food and Sit Down Restaurants also showed high levels of satisfaction among workers, pointing to a larger trend observed in Deputys data that indicates Hospitality is the happiest sector across all shift work industries in Australia, she added.

When asked why hes so happy to manage a cafe, Lucas Sullivan, Head of Retail at Single O said:

Working in a cafe is a job like no other because we serve as a community hub  not only to local customers but also for tourists and travellers from around the world. The simple pleasure of grabbing a daily coffee is something that so many people look forward to. Being directly involved in that and brightening their days is what really makes us tick.

At Single O, we understand our team has lives outside of work, so we always strive to tailor our rosters to their needs. We pride ourselves on offering flexible working hours so that our staff, whether they are students, working parents or anything in between, feel supported to manage their various commitments. Doing what we can to serve our peoples needs has created a culture of trust, where team members are excited to come to work. Having a good mix of people who care about their team and what they do is something were very lucky and proud to have.

Closely behind cafes are gym and fast food restaurant workers with over half (58% and 57%), respectively, feeling amazing after their shifts. For gym workers, this underscores the personal fulfilment that often comes from health and wellness-oriented roles; especially if these align with a persons values and goals.

Despite the fast-paced and demanding environment of fast food restaurants, worker happiness could be influenced by team dynamics, support systems and effective management practices.

Positive sentiment drops for Services

Alarmingly, positive sentiment in the Services industry has plummeted 10% from 2023 to 2024, indicating a potential increase in workplace stress. Sectors within the Services industry that are feeling the stress include Government, Call Centres and Construction.

Government workers have the highest level of unhappiness in the sector with 16% of workers stressed and frustrated.

Call centres are known for their challenging working conditions, and the demands of handling frequent customer grievances can be particularly taxing. These challenges are reflected in their growing dissatisfaction, with workers who feel stressed and frustrated sitting at 11%  up 4% from 2023.

Construction workers also make the list of most stressed workers in the Services industry with 7% feeling stressed and frustrated at work. The physical demands and deadline pressures faced by construction workers, as well as long working hours, may contribute to their lower job satisfaction.

Healthcare workers gaining positivity after difficult years

Notable was improvement in sentiment across the Healthcare sector with 83% of workers feeling good or amazing in 2024. This may be due to easing pressures off the back of the Covid pandemic, as well as increased funding for Healthcare industries that have been introduced as part of the 2024 Federal Budget. The government has announced $8.5bn in funding to be allocated to the Healthcare sector which includes $2.8bn to strengthen Medicare, $4.3bn to deliver cheaper medicines, $1.3bn for a fit and healthy Australia, as well as funding support for student nurses.

Working holiday visa holders contributing to State happiness?

The Northern Territory leads state happiness with 87% of workers feeling amazing, suggesting an exceptionally positive work environment. This high positive sentiment also comes off the back of a worker shortage in the Northern Territory and changes to working holiday visa rules allowing travellers to take up hospitality jobs in order to complete their required regional work.

Topping the list of unhappiest states is Tasmania with stress and frustration doubling since 2023, which may reflect the economic challenges or the nature of employment sectors prevalent here.
At the signing ceremony - From left: Yuzhou Zhang, Director and President, Kubota China Holdings Co., Ltd. Haruhisa Tsunoda, Director, General Manager, ICT Promotion Department III, Kubota Corporation, Chairperson and President of Kubota Systems & Information (CHINA) Co., Ltd. Kokkei Nakayama, Chairman of transcosmos Information Creative (China) Co., Ltd. and Suzhou transcosmos Information Creative Co., Ltd. & Corporate Executive Officer of transcosmos inc. Mingliang Zhang, Director of transcosmos Information Creative (China) Co., Ltd. & General Manager of Suzhou transcosmos Information Creative Co., Ltd

Transcosmos has announced that it has acquired Kubota Systems' IT system subsidiary in China which is says expands and enhances its system development business targeting Japan and China markets.

Transcosmos says it has entered into an agreement - effective as of June 11 - to acquire 100% shares in Kubota Systems & Information China, a Chinese subsidiary of KUBOTA Corporation specialising in information systems.

Transcomos notes that since its establishment in February 2012, Kubota Systems has been offering system development, operations and maintenance services and SAP update and maintenance services for KUBOTA Corporation and its Chinese group companies as well as operating data centers in China.

In 1995, transcosmos established a system development subsidiary in Tianjin, China. The company manages the entire system development project management from design, development to testing for the Japan and China local markets. The company has expanded its footprint not only in China but also in Japan. Today, the company operates in Suzhou and Jinan in China as well as in Japan with a total of 1,600 engineers and a specialized quality control team, offering high-quality system development services that meet Japanese quality standards.

Along with this acquisition, transcosmos will take over KUBOTA Groups IT business in China, which is currently run by Kubota Systems. transcosmos will expand its business domain by succeeding the SAP upgrade and maintenance business, entering a new domain for transcosmos.

The agreed acquisition of Kubota Systems was a perfect opportunity for both KUBOTA Corporation and transcosmos to achieve our respective vision, Kokkei Nakayama, Chairman of Suzhou transcosmos Information Creative Co., Ltd. said.

For KUBOTA Corporation, the deal will bring higher operational efficiency through promoting structural reform, and transcosmos can expand its systems business in China. Building on this acquisition, we will further expand the coverage of our cost-effective system service to include Kubota Group. At the same time, we will provide all Japanese businesses operating in China with greater services to help them grow their businesses.

About transcosmos inc.

transcosmos launched its operations in 1966. Since then, we have combined superior people with up-to-date technology to enhance the competitive strength of our clients by providing them with superior and valuable services. transcosmos currently offers services that support clients business processes focusing on both sales expansion and cost optimization through our 181 bases across 35 countries/regions with a focus on Asia, while continuously pursuing Operational Excellence. Furthermore, following the expansion of e-commerce market on the global scale, transcosmos provides a comprehensive One-Stop Global E-Commerce Services to deliver our clients' excellent products and services to consumers in 46 countries/regions around the globe. transcosmos

aims to be the Global Digital Transformation Partner of our clients, supporting the clients transformation by leveraging digital technology, responding to the ever-changing business environment.

Visit us here https://www.trans-cosmos.co.jp/english
GUEST RESEARCH: IT infrastructure services provider Kyndryl in collaboration with Microsoft today released the Australian findings of the Global Sustainability Barometer study.

This report assesses the gap between sustainability commitments and organisational action, and how sustainability initiatives can serve as catalysts for innovation, growth, and enhanced competitiveness.

As the world faces an increase in climate-related events and challenges, there is an urgency among businesses to act with 88% of organisations placing a highly strategic level of importance on achieving their sustainability goals, Kyndryl and Microsoft observe.

While 72% of organisations see great significance in technologys role to reach their goals, only 32% believe they are making full use of it in their organisation. This subset of mature sustainability organisations is going beyond setting goals and driving education to implement solutions for change.

Despite an overwhelming majority of Australian businesses making climate pledges, our research highlights that many lack robust sustainability frameworks and assessment tools to accurately track their progress towards set targets, said Faith Taylor, Chief Sustainability and ESG Officer at Kyndryl. The companies that are making progress are those with strong governance frameworks that support their objectives, capitalising on the ability technology gives them to establish actionable and measurable sustainability strategies. By leveraging data insights and AI, forward-looking businesses can reduce environmental risks, bolster operational resilience, empower employees to drive change, and create greater value for their customers.

As climate regulation becomes a top priority for Australian government organisations and consequently, the business community, the study, conducted by research firm Ecosystm, outlines the three core elements organisations need to implement a successful sustainability program: strategy, people and technology. Among these, technology, and specifically artificial intelligence (AI), stands out as a game changer. By embracing predictive AI to support sustainability strategies, businesses can make enhanced data-driven decisions, reduce risks, increase resource efficiency, and bolster their overall sustainability efforts.

Key Australian highlights of the survey include:

78% of Australian organisations use AI to monitor energy use and emissions and 54% use AI to highlight opportunities for lowering the carbon footprint.

Among stakeholders, employees (59%) are the most vocal in advocating for sustainability policies and practices, followed by customers (57%), investors (56%) and government regulators (33%).

Organisations acknowledge that employee awareness is a highly impactful sustainability measure, but only 17% of organisations indicate that their employees are aware of the organisations sustainability goals and have established sustainability-related employee KPIs that drive measurable impact.

Drivers to Building a More Sustainable Organisation

According to the survey, only 13% of organisations have prioritised incorporating data-driven sustainability goals in their corporate and transformation strategies. Below are some of their sustainability best practices for driving growth and improving business outcomes:



Sustainability is becoming a CEO and Boardroom priority. With over 60% of Sustainability Officers reporting to the CEO and the CEO defining the vision of sustainability programs in 90% of organisations, it is clear that sustainability has become a priority for top leadership across Australian companies. However, organisations need to also ensure they align sustainability initiatives with Finance and Technology stakeholders for greater synergy with financial goals, and for seamless sustainable operations and reporting.

Align sustainability with technology modernisation. Technology primarily serves to automate sustainability reporting processes today. However, it can also be applied to assess the carbon footprint of IT estates  from cloud computing to data centre operations  to enable more sustainable platform choices and lower energy consumption.

Build a Strong Data Foundation. Build a trusted data foundation and architecture for accurate data acquisition and analysis, from the point of creation to the time of consumption, enabling higher quality data and improved reliability in reporting.

Unleash AI for Predictive Sustainability. Expand the use of AI beyond reporting and embrace predictive analytics to assess Scope 3 risks, forecast energy consumption and develop strategies to anticipate potential risks such as natural disasters, to enhance organisational agility and resilience.

Empower Employees. Go beyond education and awareness-raising efforts to empower employees to actively contribute to sustainability objectives, and quantify the positive impact driven by their workforce.

As extreme weather events become more frequent across Australia, the influence of climate change on every aspect of society, including business continuity, is undeniable, said Ullrich Loeffler, CEO, Ecosystm. While debates on mandatory climate disclosure continue, proactive organisations are preparing for the future, embracing change for a greener future. This research, in partnership with Kyndryl and Microsoft, aims to provide organisations with an actionable strategy to accelerate their sustainability impact.

The Global Sustainability Barometer study, conducted by Ecosystm in collaboration with Kyndryl and Microsoft, was conducted among 1,523 technology and sustainability business leaders across 16 countries in Asia, EMEA and the Americas. The survey took place between September  October 2023. The survey was conducted across nine industries and included small to medium as well as global companies. Learn more about the study, From Vision to Impact: The Global Sustainability Barometer.

About Kyndryl

Kyndryl (NYSE: KD) is the worlds largest IT infrastructure services provider, serving thousands of enterprise customers in more than 60 countries. The company designs, builds, manages and modernises the complex, mission-critical information systems that the world depends on every day. For more information, please visit www.kyndryl.com
Bunmeido (Luis Samayoa)

Living in Japan, you dont need a car to travel around to get out the barracks. Riding a bike can make traveling and exploring fun here.

Recently during Japans Golden Week holidays, I took a bike ride to grab a coffee near Yokota Air Base. On my way, I stumbled across Bunmeido Ichibankai, a neat pastry shop, and I just couldnt resist a quick pitstop for some baked goods.

From the line of customers outside, I could tell I was in for a treat and luckily the queue was moving quickly. Once inside, I was greeted with a French, Western interior. Multiple tables had rows of Japanese snacks and gift boxes and a patisserie full of cakes in the back corner.

Shopping during Golden Week can be like a friendlier Black Friday. The crowds inside made it a bit difficult to use Google Translate and figure out what the snacks were, so I took a risk and grabbed what looked delicious to me.

For a dorayaki Japanese pancake, senbei savory cracker and a Doraemon cartoon character design dorayaki gift for my coworker, I spent 1,589 yen (about $10.50).

Dorayaki is a traditional Japanese sweet which consists of two small pancakes with red bean paste filling sandwiched in between. The combination of pancakes and red bean paste is delicious. Dorayaki is very popular and can be found at any convenience store or even at some street food vendors, so make sure to give it a try!

The senbei I picked up at Bunmeido Ichibankai had a sweet vanilla flavor. Usually, senbei rice crackers tend to be salty and savory, but the sweet varieties are also popular snacks. The vanilla cracker was sweet and went down easy without any milk.

I really liked this pastry shop. Its very close to Yokotas East Gate, so its very convenient to grab a quick snack or pastry to pair with your morning coffee or for gifts to your friends or coworkers.

Bunmeido little cakes (Luis Samayoa) Bunmeido Eiffel Tower display (Luis Samayoa)

Address: 2-19-1 Tokyo, Musashimurayama, Inadaira 208-0023

Parking: There is parking available if you drive and a place to set your bike down.

Hours: Mon. Sun. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Payment: Credit card and yen.

WEBSITE (Japanese only)
(Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi)

The Mt. Fuji World Heritage Center Shizuoka in Fujinomiya City is within a 2.5-hour drive from most military bases in the Kanto Plain and is a great place to learn about the majestic symbol of Japan. This stunning building features a comprehensive overview of Mt. Fujis geological makeup and other interactive exhibits.

The exterior of the building features a unique modern, inverted cone shape with a lattice design made with locally-source cypress wood. Although it was a bit cloudy when I visited, I saw the V-shaped building clearly reflected on surrounding artificial pond, which reminded me of the famous view of Sakasa Fuji, or inverted Fuji reflected on a lake.

(Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi)

Inside the impressive building, the design and exhibits were even more striking than I imagined.

The museum exhibit path follows a 193-meter spiral slope up five stories where every section features time-lapse videos from each of Mt. Fujis stations. So, by walking up the slope and watching the videos, you would feel as if you were climbing Mt. Fuji without the physical toll.

Silhouettes of mountain climbers are projected onto the screens and sounds of the wind and footsteps played over speakers to increase the illusion of climbing. As the silhouette climbers often stop for breaks and meals, visitors can rest enjoy various exhibits on the third, fourth and fifth floors to take a break, too.

(Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi) (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi)

Some of the exhibits feature touch-screen monitors that provide facts about Fuji in Japanese, English and other languages. There are exhibits on the animals that live on Mt. Fuji, the aspects of the mountain as an active volcano, and the effect it has had on the arts and religion in Japan. On the second floor, a theater plays a 15-minute video about the birth of Mt. Fuji.

When you reach the summit of the museum, not only have you gained physical achievement, but youve also attained plenty of knowledge about the majestic mountain.

At the top of the building, there is an observation deck for a view of the real Mt. Fuji and the surrounding Fujinomiya City. The clouds didnt allow me to enjoy the view during my visit, but hopefully you will during yours!

(Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi)

When I got out of the museum to see the inverted-cone-shaped museum once again, I felt the 3,776-meter-high symbol of Japan even closer to me.

Mt. Fuji World Heritage Center, Shizuoka

Note: The museum is close to the Fujisan Hongu Sengen Jinja Shinto Shrine and so there is also a large vermillion torii gate at the entrance of the center.

Location: 5-12 Miyamachi, Fujinomiya City, Shizuoka Prefecture

Hours: Sept.  June, 9 a.m.  5 p.m.; July and Aug., - 6 p.m. (closed: third Tuesday of the month)

URL

Tel: 0544-21-3776
This file photo taken on June 3, 2024 shows a lock on chains backdropped by the European Commission building in Brussels, Belgium. [Photo/Xinhua]

China is strongly dissatisfied with the European Union's plan to impose provisional duties on imports of Chinese electric vehicles (EVs), the commerce ministry said Wednesday, noting the move has ignored facts and World Trade Organization (WTO) rules.

The EU side has ignored China's repeated strong objections, as well as the appeals and dissuasions from the governments and industry in EU member states, said a spokesperson with the Ministry of Commerce (MOC).

"China is deeply concerned and strongly dissatisfied with this development. China's related industries are profoundly disappointed and firmly oppose this," said the spokesperson.

The findings by the European side in the pre-disclosure lacks both factual and legal basis, the spokesperson said, adding that the European Commission has ignored the fact that the Chinese EV industry's advantages stem from openness and competition. The European Commission also disregarded WTO rules, and failed to acknowledge the full cooperation of relevant Chinese enterprises during the investigation, said the spokesperson.

The European Commission, by arbitrarily creating and exaggerating China's "subsidy items" as well as abusing the "facts available," ruled that China offered subsidies at excessively high levels, according to the spokesperson.

Such an action is "blatant protectionism" that will create and escalate trade frictions, said the spokesperson, adding that the move not only undermines the legitimate rights and interests of China's EV industry, but also disrupts and distorts the global automotive industrial and supply chains, including those in the EU.

While holding high the banner of green development in one hand, the European Commission wields the stick of trade protectionism in the other, politicizing economic and trade issues and using them as tools, said the spokesperson. "This violates the consensuses reached by the leaders of China and the EU countries to strengthen cooperation, and will affect the atmosphere of bilateral economic and trade cooperation between China and the EU. It does no good to the interests of EU consumers, and will eventually undermine the overall progress of the EU's green transformation and global cooperation on climate change."

China urges the EU to rectify its wrong-doing immediately, implement the important consensuses reached during the recent China-France-EU trilateral meeting, and address economic and trade frictions through dialogue.

The spokesperson said that China will take all necessary measures to defend the legitimate rights and interests of Chinese enterprises.
Seaside Line (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi)

The Kanazawa district of Yokohama City, 10 miles north of Yokosuka Naval Base, was once known as a popular sightseeing area made up of scenic shorelines and mountains, along with majestic Buddhist temples and the library of a samurai lord.

The scenic landscapes of the district were called Kanazawa Hakkei (Eight Views of Kanazawa district) and drew inspiration for great ukiyo-e (traditional wood print) artists, such as Utagawa Hiroshige.

Although today many of the beautiful inlets and coastlines have unfortunately been obscured with modern construction, you can still appreciate the skyline and pieces of the coast in the area. A stroll in the district is nice, but a ride on the Kanazawa Seaside Line, an unmanned monorail which runs between Shin Sugita and Kanazawa Hakkei stations, will give you a good view of Hirakata Gulf and more.

Seaside Line (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi) Seaside Line (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi) Seaside Line (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi)

Along the monorail line, there are stops along the way with impressive parks like the Umi no Koen (Marine Park) and Hakkeijima Sea Paradise. These parks preserve a taste of old Kanazawa Hakkei and allow you to spend some time enjoying some quality outdoors time.

At Umino-Koen-Shibaguchi Station, head to Marine Park, one of the largest public parks in Yokohama City. The park is often filled with runners and sunbathers in the warmer months.

Umi no Koen (Marine Park) (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi) Umi no Koen (Marine Park) (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi) Umi no Koen (Marine Park) (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi)

Hakkeijima Sea Paradise is one stop away from Marine Park at Hakkeijima Station. The seaside park sits on a man-made island and has plenty of activities for a family or group of friends. There is an amusement park with an aquarium that houses over 100,000 sea creatures, various shops, a BBQ field, a hotel and a port for yachts and boats. Admission to the park is free, and you can enjoy walking on the island while enjoying views of the Tokyo Gulf, even if you dont buy a ticket for an attraction or ride.

Hakkeijima Sea Paradise (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi) Hakkeijima Sea Paradise (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi) Hakkeijima Sea Paradise (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi) Hakkeijima Sea Paradise (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi) Hakkeijima Sea Paradise (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi) Hakkeijima Sea Paradise (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi) Hakkeijima Sea Paradise (Photo by Takahiro Takiguchi)

Hop a ride on the Kanazawa Seaside Line this summer to appreciate and explore the beauty worthy of classic masterpieces.

Seaside Line

Umi no Koen (Marine Park)

Hakkeijima Sea Paradise
Movies in Lytle Park

MATTOON  This week's free movie at Lytle Park on Friday, June 14, presented by the Mattoon Public Library, is "Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie." (PG).

This is a free family-friendly event. Bring your lawn chairs and/or blanket; movies are scheduled to begin at dusk.

Marshall City Band performance set

MARSHALL  The Marshall City Band at 8 p.m. Friday, June 14, on the Clark County Courthouse lawn.

Come early to shop at the Marshall Farmers Market, hosted by Marshall Area Chamber of Commerce, running each Friday from 6-8 p.m. around the courthouse square before each concert. The Lions Club antique popcorn wagon will also be open each Friday.

Corn Belt Shrine Club Truck and Tractor Pull set

CHARLESTON  The 18th annual Corn Belt Shrine Club Truck and Tractor Pull will be held at 6 p.m. Saturday, June 15, at the Coles County Fairgrounds in Charleston.

The cost is $10 for pit and grandstand. Those age 6 and younger are free.

Registration starts at 4:30 p.m.

Proceeds from this activity are for the benefit of the Corn Belt Shrine Club. For more information contact Dave Bumpus at 217-232-3506 or Jack Childress at 217-276-1994.

Fox Ridge work day set

CHARLESTON  The Embarras Volunteer Stewards will hold its final work day of the spring season at 9 a.m. Saturday, June 15, at Fox Ridge State Park.

All are welcome and no prior experience is necessary. Sturdy footwear and gloves are recommended. Tools are provided.

Visit embarrasstewards.org for more information.

Picnic event to be held at Gaslight Art Colony

MARSHALL  Tickets are now available for Picnic in the Art at Gaslight Art Colony, 516 Archer Ave. in Marshall, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday, June 19.

Attendees will received a picnic box of chicken salad, croissant, cheese, salad, fruit, drink and dessert for $15.

There is limited seating in the gallery for attendees to enjoy their basket while viewing the Side-By-Side Photo and Painting exhibit, or you can take your box with you.

To guarantee your lunch, purchase your ticket before noon on Monday, June 17, at the Gaslight Art Colony or online at gaslightartcolony.com.

Photos: A look back at 50 years of the Special Olympics Vintage: Special Olympics turn 50 Special Olympics turn 50 Special Olympics turn 50 Special Olympics turn 50 Special Olympics turn 50 Special Olympics turn 50 Special Olympics turn 50 Special Olympics turn 50 John Glenn Special Olympics 1970 Special Olympics 1973 SULROTH, VANTONGEREN, CAMPBELL ASHLEY KILL PRUITT ZABALA PECOR Yao Ming Kennedy Special Olympics 1976 Special Olympics Bush Reeve 1981 MURRILLS GREECE SPECIAL OLYMPICS PA Special Olympics Special Olympics Opening Ceremony 1995 SPECIAL OLYMPICS HAYNES Arnold Schwarzenegger
CHICAGO  Mayor Brandon Johnson and Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle stood among Northwest Side elected officials Tuesday night hailing the opening of a shelter for newly-arrived migrants in the Portage Park neighborhood as the city approaches the second anniversary of receiving buses of migrants from the southern border.

About 43,330 asylum-seekers have arrived in Chicago since Texas Gov. Greg Abbott began sending them from the southern border in August 2022, according to a city census conducted daily. The city has at times struggled to house and keep up with the needs of the arriving people, but on Tuesday, officials had an unequivocal welcoming message.

You are our neighbors now, Johnson said to a crowd of volunteers, migrants and elected officials. I know that your journey here has been long and difficult, but today we welcome you.

Originally scheduled to open in April, the shelter faced delays and pushback from community members. On Tuesday, leaders officially opened the facility to about 300 people yet to arrive from the city landing zone.

Unlike the other 17 city and state-run shelters currently housing hundreds of asylum-seekers, the nonprofit Zakat Foundation of America is assuming the costs  partnering with the city, county and Archdiocese of Chicago. Zakat President Halil Demir said about 50 people were staying in the former convent on the campus of St. Bartholomew Catholic Church while renovations on the shelter building itself wrapped up.

He enthusiastically welcomed migrants gathered in the sanctuary Tuesday night, urging them to join in on the city life. Chicago is a hardworking city, Chicago is a great place to be, he said. Chicago needs you.

St. Bartholomew pastor, the Rev. Michael OConnell said shelter plans had been developing since late 2023. Zakat Foundation will administer the shelters staffing, social services and other logistics and work with Chicago Public Schools to enroll children in school, according to a news release from the organization.

The shelter will only house migrants, officials said. City and state officials announced in April that the city would consolidate its shelters for newly-arrived migrants and American-born homeless people into one system.

State Rep. Lindsey LaPointe, D-Chicago, applauded the opening of the shelter in a statement before calling on local and state leaders to funnel further aid to U.S.-born homeless people. Anti-homelessness advocates have praised the idea of a unified shelter system as a way to curb competition for limited affordable housing resources among the migrant and homeless populations.

At a reception for families and officials, LaPointe said she eventually hoped to see a strong shelter and service system for anyone experiencing homelessness but said the facility about to open was a step in the right direction.

The area has needed shelter services for some time, she said: Its a marker of the progress we have made and and need to continue to make.

Deacon Jaime Rios said hed been working with arriving migrants through the Our Lady of the Rosary Parish, which covers St. Bartholomew and another nearby church, since last year. Some of the earlier migrants to arrive have apartments and jobs now, he said.

Daniela Diaz and Franger Bermudes, with Rios translating, said theyd arrived in Chicago from Texas last month with their 6-year-old son.

In Texas we were nervous, said Diaz, 28, adding that they felt much safer in Chicago. We are OK now, but we want to be better.

Rios said he urged the families hes worked with to keep their faith in the American Dream.

The dream is true, he said. But you have to be patient.

Chicago Tribunes Nell Salzman contributed.
In the midst of a county budgeting process dominated by debates about increased funding for the school district and greater budget restraints from fading COVID-19 relief money, Forsyth County Sheriff Bobby Kimbrough negotiated with county commissioners for additional funding to keep the sheriffs JIT (Juvenile Intervention Team) unit.

Originally, Kimbrough requested money to hire 25 additional deputies for the sheriffs office, who would man the county courthouse and add two more positions for the JIT unit. But by the end of Wednesdays budget workshop, Kimbrough ended up having to negotiate with commissioners for a potential deal in which the sheriffs office would keep a 9-member JIT unit and receive money for a Rural Hall Mini-COP program.

These increases will be added to the additional $4.6 million in funding the sheriffs office is set to receive over last years budget, which is driven mainly by raises in hourly pay for detention officers and deputies.

The JIT unit, created by the sheriffs office two years ago, responds to criminal calls and investigations that involve juveniles while also providing mentorship to youth who have been referred to the sheriffs office. In exchange for funding to keep the unit, Kimbrough agreed to relinquish budget money for 10 of the county jails 38 vacant detention officer positions.

Its one of the most valuable units in law enforcement, Kimbrough said of the JIT unit. It took 168 guns off the street this year and over 5 ounces of fentanyl. I had to do everything I could to negotiate keeping that unit.

Kimbrough, who turned to Facebook last year to drum up support for money to increase hiring and retention of officers at the jail, showed up to both budget workshops and sat through hours of other discussion about funding for the school district among other issues.

In a phone interview after Wednesdays workshop, Kimbrough told the Journal that Forsyth Countys growing population meant that the sheriffs office will continue to need more deputies and jobs funded by the county.

A community of this size without a JIT unit is outdated, Kimbrough said. At the end of the day, in order for any vibrant community to thrive, it must have security. Public safety has to be at the forefront of every conversation.

When addressing commissioners during Tuesdays budget workshop, Kimbrough also referenced several altercations that have occurred at the courthouse and stressed the growing amount of people at the building caused by the N.C. General Assemblys decision to add another superior courtroom in January. That bumped the number of functioning courts in Forsyths courthouse to 17.

Right now were  as my mother would say  robbing Peter to pay Paul, Kimbrough said of courthouse security. Im bringing people from other divisions to cover courtrooms.

Currently, the county contracts with Allied Security to provide security guards who work the metal detectors and entrances, but sheriffs deputies are positioned in courtrooms and monitor the halls of the building.

There are currently 30 deputies assigned to the courthouse, which means there are one and a half deputies for each courtroom, according to the sheriffs office. A staff member for the sheriffs office told commissioners that they need up to four in each of the courtrooms to do things efficiently and safely.

A county-funded study on courthouse security, conducted by the Atlanta-based CGL Companies and released in September 2023, recommended a staffing model with 37 full-time deputies to staff the courthouse. In the interview portion of the study, courthouse staff shared concern over occasions when the court security officer needs to leave the room during a court hearing to retrieve an in-custody defendant or respond to another situation.

Others shared that during some hearings only one court security officer is not enough to manage the courtroom. Although most staff interviewed in the study expressed that Allied security guards were a plus, some questioned the purpose of the guards as they rarely managed conflict or situations without the intervention of the deputies.

Kimbroughs request for more courthouse deputies was met with resistance from Forsyth County Board Chairman Don Martin.

I hate to say it, but I cant even fathom nearly doubling the amount of deputies in the courthouse from what we have today, Don Martin said. And why we need four deputies in a courtroom thats not in session every day all day anyway. Its going to end up with a lot of people being assigned different places or doing different things.

Kimbrough disagreed and said that currently security at the courthouse is average at best.

Once you start cutting corners on security, youre going down a slippery slope, Kimbrough said. In the time in which were living in, I would not want to change that.

He also added an example that the sheriffs office had to pull other deputies from different assignments to make sure there were five in the courtroom for a recent capital murder trial.

Youre not going to convince me and Im not going to convince you, Martin replied.

JIT Unit

Martin also questioned the sheriffs office request for money for the JIT unit, which is running out of its original ARPA (American Rescue Plan Act) funding on June 30. The sheriffs office originally requested funding for 11 full-time deputies, which would add two more positions, but ended up negotiating to keep 9 JIT unit deputies.

Kimbrough opened his address to commissioners on Tuesday with a story about how deputies in the JIT unit stopped a juvenile from entering a school with a firearm and also described how he would spend Saturday mornings with the same deputies mentoring young men at the sheriffs office.

Kimbrough compared the importance of the JIT unit to the invention of a cell-phone and said that it was something that they couldnt live without.

In response to Kimbroughs request, Martin said that he wanted more data to back up Kimbroughs anecdotal confidence about the unit.

The research sometimes doesnt capture what they do on Saturday mornings, or in churches, or in funerals, Kimbrough said, referencing the units emphasis on relationship building. Every Saturday morning, theyre there with me mentoring young men. I dont know how you measure that.

You measure it that they stay out of trouble, Martin said. If youre only working with 25 [juveniles], youve got a lot of youth in this community. Youd like to show reductions in X.

Commissioner Tonya McDaniel expressed confidence in the JIT unit but said that data would be needed for the countys staff.

I dont have to see the data because Im in the community with you and your JIT team and I see it every day, McDaniel said. I dont have to be told that. But for our staff we need the data to make informed decisions.

County commissioners are set to decide on the final budget on Thursday at 2 p.m. at the Forsyth County Government Center at 201 N. Chestnut Street in Winston-Salem.
Overlooking waves at Omaha Beach in Normandy, France, Jacki Alles thought of their great-grandfather.

Decades ago, he was there, too  seeing the same cliff sides, the same slice of ocean, the same tan sands.

His Army boots dropped onto the French beaches in 1944 a short time after the initial invasion known today as D-Day  80 years before Alles, who uses they/them pronouns, would walk along the same shoreline.

He survived to tell the tale of his time in Normandy, earning a Purple Heart along the way after a piece of shrapnel struck him during combat, leaving him with extensive damage to his spleen, liver and ribs.

His story of survival was sharp in Alles mind that day as the salty air blew across their face. To know his story and to see it with their own eyes felt unreal. Words to describe the moment were hard to find, said Alles, who uses the pronoun they.

I could be standing directly on top of where my great-grandfather walked, where all these other people who served walked, Alles said. I'm not sure what the word would be to describe that feeling, just really overwhelmed."

But Alles great-grandfather wasnt the only Lincoln connection on the trip.

Alles, who will be a senior at Lincoln High, was one of around 50 students and several parents on a trip to honor the 80th anniversary of D-Day on June 6, 1944, when hundreds of thousands of U.S. troops and other Allied forces stormed the shores of Normandy to liberate France from German control during World War II. Nearly 5,000 men died in the battle that eventually led to Frances freedom.

Among those who lost their lives in Normandy in 1944 were five Lincoln High School students who once walked the same hallways as students do today. They were buried overseas in France, but Brian Goodbrake, a social studies teacher at Lincoln High who led the trip, wanted to bring a small piece of home to the fallen soldiers.

Its tradition at Normandy American Cemetery along the coast of France to rub sand from the nearby beaches and historical battlefields on the headstones of those who lost their lives. The people of France often do this as a tribute to the ultimate sacrifice made to free their nation of Nazi occupation during the war.

Instead of taking sand from the beach, though, Goodbrake brought it all the way from America  from Lincoln High itself.

He took sand from the Lincoln High School jumping pits at the track and mixed it with soil from the school grounds. Then, he flew it across the world to let the fallen Lincoln soldiers have a piece of Nebraska back.

As the students rubbed the mixture on the stark white headstones, the names began to pop. Photos of the soldiers were placed beside small American and French flags stuck in the ground next to the stone.

It was a once-in-a-lifetime moment, Alles said.

It felt really special and heartwarming. It felt like we were reaching out to his soul, and saying we're from Lincoln High, too, and we're honoring you for the service that you did 80 years ago, Alles said. Now we're bringing some home to you.

This is the second time Goodbrake has led a group of students to Europe to learn about D-Day, the first was in 2019 for the 75th anniversary. At the time, he had the idea to travel with sand and soil from Lincoln to use on the headstones, but in the chaos of preparing for the trip, he forgot it.

This time, he said, there was no way he was going to forget. And it was completely worth it.

It made the whole thing that much more meaningful, he said.

Goodbrake has taken students on various trips every year since 2016 through the educational travel company Education First, guiding them through historical sites across the world in countries such as Greece, Spain, Poland and Germany. Next year, hes taking his largest group yet of 68 people to Japan for a nine-day excursion across the country.

As it says in the company name, each trip is always primarily focused on education. Goodbrake works to bring what he teaches in the classroom to life by showing his students the places he talks about, immersing them in the rich culture of the communities they visit and allowing them to explore history in such an interactive way.

It really is just an extension of what I hope they get in the classroom, he said. I want them to make a deep connection to these events, and understand their place in history so it's not just something you read about or a fact you look up, but it's a process that you're involved in. It's something that you do, it's not something that you learn. And there is no better way to do that than to take them to the places.

On the trip this year, the group started in England, where they toured multiple museums, did some sightseeing and enjoyed a little down time in London. From there, they took a ferry from Portsmouth across the English Channel to Caen, France.

On the anniversary, they attended the 80th D-Day Commemorative Ceremony at the cemetery and saw both the French President, Emmanuel Macron, and U.S. President Joe Biden, who waved at the group as he exited the cemetery with his motorcade.

While in France, they also toured Gold Beach, Omaha Beach, Arromanches-les-Bains and Pointe du Hoc, all of which are historical D-Day sites.

As the group walked along the shore of Omaha Beach, they wore headphones playing what would have been the sounds heard on the beach that fateful day 80 years ago: Gunshots, bombs, screams.

The experience was both shocking and eye-opening, Lincoln High junior Eliana Genis-Frank said.

"You don't realize how bad everything was, but there wasn't a single moment of peace. There were just screams and noises constantly," she said. "You're looking around and you can just imagine all the people that were there."

To finish the trip, they traveled to Paris to do more sightseeing, a guided tour of Montmartre and a cruise of the Seine River before heading home.

It was another successful trip for Goodbrake, and one he hopes the students will always remember.

(The trip) exceeded my expectations. It was everything I hoped it would be for these kids and more, Goodbrake said. I think it's going to be life-changing for them. It usually is.

Top Journal Star photos for June 2024
Former President Donald Trump called Milwaukee "a horrible city" in a meeting with House Republicans Thursday, just one month before the city is to host the Republican National Convention, according to a Washington political news site.

"Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city," Trump said, according to Punchbowl News' Jake Sherman.

TRUMP TO HOUSE REPUBLICANS:



"Milwaukee, where we are having our convention, is a horrible city."  Jake Sherman (@JakeSherman) June 13, 2024

Trump made the comment on Capitol Hill during a meeting to discuss campaign strategy and other issues ahead of the November election.

The former president, who's slated to be in Racine next week, is the party's presumptive nominee, a title that will be bestowed at the convention next month.

Democratic U.S. Rep. Gwen Moore, of Milwaukee, in a post on X, ripped Trump while trolling him over his recent felony convictions.

"Once he's settled in with his parole officer, I am certain he will discover that Milwaukee is a wonderful, vibrant and welcoming city full of diverse neighborhoods and a thriving business community," she posted.

Once he's settled in with his parole officer, I am certain he will discover that Milwaukee is a wonderful, vibrant and welcoming city full of diverse neighborhoods and a thriving business community. https://t.co/KBQY3GL9Te  Rep. Gwen Moore (@RepGwenMoore) June 13, 2024

U.S. Rep. Mark Pocan, D-town of Vermont, in a text to the Wisconsin State Journal said Trump is showing his true colors.

"Well, at least we know what he thinks about us," he wrote. "It's hard to support a guy who hates our state."

Republican Wisconsin representatives sought to downplay the remarks or said Trump was misquoted.

"I was in the room," U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil, R-Racine, wrote in a post on X. "President Trump did not say this. There is no better place than Wisconsin in July."

I was in the room. President Trump did not say this. There is no better place than Wisconsin in July. https://t.co/MJUpqyAt4G  Bryan Steil (@RepBryanSteil) June 13, 2024

Also posting on X, U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Prairie du Chien, said some of what Trump said was omitted.

"@realDonaldTrump was specifically referring to the crime the CRIME RATE in Milwaukee," he posted.

Another classic example of shitty reporting by a Democratic Party shill pretending to be a journalist.



Lies busy omission. @realDonaldTrump was specifically referring to the crime the CRIME RATE in Milwaukee. https://t.co/lOB06vBD5e pic.twitter.com/UpL3HYMyJy  Derrick Van Orden (@derrickvanorden) June 13, 2024

U.S. Reps. Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, and Glenn Grothman, R-Glenbeulah, told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that Trump's comments were specifically about "election integrity" issues in Wisconsin's most populous city.

Trump lost the 2020 presidential vote in Wisconsin to Joe Biden but continues to make baseless claims that he actually won the state. In attempting to overturn the results, he and his lawyers argued in lawsuits that more than 200,000 votes should not have been counted, more than 170,000 of which were from Milwaukee and Dane counties. The Wisconsin Supreme Court rejected the claim, upholding Bidens win.
The China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan railway project, on which an intergovernmental agreement was signed last week, will bring enormous and tangible benefits to all participants and peoples in the region, experts have said.

In an interview with Xinhua, Kubanychbek Taabaldiev, a Kyrgyz political scientist and professor of international relations at Bishkek-located Ala-Too International University, said that signing of the agreement on the construction of the railway is a historical event for the participants of this project.

"The implementation of the project will bring enormous benefits to all project participants and all of Central and South Asia, since a new transit route will be open from East to West," Taabaldiev said. "The transit of goods from China to the south and further to the west will be carried out via a shorter route."

The railway starts from Kashgar in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, and enters the territory of Uzbekistan through Kyrgyzstan. In the future, it can extend to West Asia and South Asia.

"The appropriate infrastructure will be created, new jobs are open, and new opportunities will appear for the development of the entire Central Asian region," he said.

President of the Association of Markets of Kyrgyzstan, Sergei Ponomarev, told Xinhua that the historical parallel of this project is that the railway will run along the route of the Great Silk Road.

"The point is that the project comes from the Belt and Road Initiative. Kyrgyzstan was one of the first to appreciate this initiative, as it is very promising and interesting," Ponomarev noted.

Speaking about the benefits that Kyrgyzstan receives from this project, the expert noted that the republic, with the help of the railway, will receive a large increase in the passage of goods. In addition, thanks to the railway, Kyrgyzstan, which is located in a geographical dead end, will have access to the sea.

"Therefore, it is an interesting opportunity for Kyrgyzstan to use this chance. This is not only the creation of jobs and infrastructure development, but also the improvement of economic indicators and an increase in the budget. But in general, the main goal of the project is to improve the lives of citizens of Kyrgyzstan, China and Uzbekistan," Ponomarev said.

The implementation of this railway project will have a beneficial impact on all spheres of public life in Central Asia, including Uzbekistan, as it will generate a corresponding economic effect, said Azamat Seitov, Doctor of Sociology, Professor, Head of the Laboratory of Anthropology and Conflictology at the Institute for Advanced International Studies of the University of World Economy and Diplomacy of Uzbekistan.

"Moreover, the new railway will allow Uzbekistan to expand its export capabilities and strengthen its role as a transit hub. New enterprises and tens of thousands of jobs will be created, mutual trade volumes and industrial cooperation scales will increase, and investment attractiveness will improve, all of which will contribute to economic development, better living conditions, and quality of life for residents of the country and the region," said Seitov.

He noted that the annual volume of freight traffic on this route will increase, and delivery time for goods to end consumers will be reduced. Additionally, a modern transit-logistics infrastructure, warehouses, and terminals will be established.

As a result, this project will open new transportation opportunities in Central Asia and provide a completely new transport corridor for the implementation of the Belt and Road Initiative, Seitov said.

He voiced confidence that the signing of the agreement on the implementation of the railway construction will send an important signal to the international community about the firm intention of China and Central Asian countries to further deepen cooperation, strengthen security, and ensure stability in the region, which is in the fundamental interests of the parties.

His remarks were echoed by Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov in a congratulatory video message to participants of the agreement signing ceremony held in Beijing.

"This project will become a symbol of cooperation within the framework of a comprehensive strategic partnership in a new era between Kyrgyzstan, China and Uzbekistan. The creation of this key continental bridge in the Eurasian space will bring significant benefits to our peoples," Japarov said.
A new report published Wednesday by an environmental watchdog said biofuel manufacturing facilities, including ethanol plants, are responsible for as much hazardous air pollutants in the United States as oil refineries.

The Environmental Integrity Project found biofuel plants routinely release high levels of hazardous chemicals including formaldehyde  a known carcinogen  as well as other pollutants like acetaldehyde, acrolein and hexane, often in violation of state and federal permits.

Farm to Fumes: Hazardous Air Pollution from Biofuel Production, as the report is titled, said the rapid expansion of the biofuel industry and a lack of adequate regulation have led to millions of pounds of pollutants being belched into the air each year.

Despite its green image, the biofuels industry releases a surprising amount of hazardous air pollution that puts local communities at risk, said Courtney Bernhardt, director of research for the Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit. And this problem is exacerbated by EPAs lack of regulation.

Two of the 24 plants based in Nebraska were listed among the biggest emitters of several toxic pollutants highlighted in the report, which is drawn from the EPAs Toxic Release Inventory and enforcement reports.

Blair, Columbus plants highlighted

The Cargill plant in Blair was the largest emitter of formaldehyde among biofuel facilities in the U.S. in 2022, according to the report, releasing some 30,587 pounds of the chemical deemed a highly toxic systemic poison by the Centers for Disease Control.

The Blair facility was also highlighted as the single largest emitter of acrolein  a chemical that can cause nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and respiratory and eye irritation  in the U.S. regardless of industry, releasing nearly 35,000 pounds in 2022.

Cargill in 2022 also released some 76,215 pounds of acetaldehyde, a chemical produced during the ethanol fermentation process that can cause irritation to eyes, skin and the respiratory tract.

That makes Cargill the sixth highest emitter of acetaldehyde among biofuel plants in the country, the EIP reported, as well as the 26th highest of all industrial plants in the U.S. regardless of industry.

Meanwhile, the Archer Daniels Midland Dry and Wet Mill in Columbus ranked eighth in 2022 with 58,781 pounds of acetaldehyde, which is released during the ethanol fermentation process and has been found to cause irritation to the eyes, skin and respiratory tract.

The EIP also said that while the biofuel industry paints itself as climate-friendly, facilities routinely release large quantities of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere. The report notes that some facilities release carbon dioxide at a level equal to some coal-fired power plants.

Archer Daniels Midland in Columbus, for example, ranked fourth among biofuel refineries in the amount of greenhouse gases it pumped into the atmosphere in 2022, according to data from the EPA. The plant released 1.1 million pounds of CO2 in the most recent year for which data is available.

On Wednesday, the nonprofit started in 2002 by former EPA lawyers said the report reflects the favorable regulatory environment for the biofuel industry, marked by generous subsidies and mandates that have allowed capacity to quadruple, as well as a lack of enforcement.

Between July 2021 and May 2024, for example, more than 41% of biofuel plants violated their air pollution permits at least once, the EIP report found, including several plants in Nebraska that routinely ran afoul of environmental regulations.

According to the EIPs findings, ADM in Columbus had a high-priority violation in each of the 12 quarters over the three-year period, while E-Energy Adams had 11 violations and Green Plains in Wood River received 10 violations. Other facilities had fewer violations, according to the EIP.

The report notes that the violation status "is not necessarily indicative of where" a facility currently stands, as plants could have addressed the violation without the information being updated in the EPA's system.

The Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy said the six facilities listed as accruing high-priority violations within the report are all currently in compliance, however.

Amanda Woita, a public information officer with NDEE, said the agency submits information to an EPA data exchange, noting the portal "does not accept codes for when a facility returns to compliance."

Five of the six biofuel plants flagged for being out of compliance have since returned to compliance for more than a year. ADM in Columbus was issued a letter of noncompliance in February 2023 and returned to compliance in April 2024, according to NDEE.

Report shines light on 'vile failure'

In a virtual press conference on Wednesday, Buffalo Bruce, the conservation chair of the Nebraska Chapter of the Sierra Club, applauded the report, saying it shone a light on what he called the vile failure of the corn-to-fuel industry.

"This report adds to the mounting evidence that biofuel production is only being kept alive by a massive set of federal and state subsidies and regulations that serve as industrial welfare," Bruce said.

Dawn Caldwell, executive director for Renewable Fuels Nebraska, declined to comment, calling the Environmental Integrity Project an extremist group.

The study from EIP also outlined several recommendations it said would help curb "the environmental problems caused by the biofuel boom."

First, the watchdog group said EPA should reverse a 2007 decision that allowed ethanol producers to emit more than twice the level of air pollution before needing to mitigate the emissions.

The EIP also said state and federal regulators should require better monitoring and control of hazardous air pollutants along the perimeter of their plants to detect the levels of chemicals drifting toward neighboring communities.

The report also recommends EPA and state regulators like the Nebraska Department of Environment and Energy more vigorously enforce biofuel plants, and require facilities to expand emissions testing to improve accuracy of their reporting.

"EPA needs to end its permitting loopholes for large ethanol plants and start requiring the kind of fenceline air pollution monitoring and cleanup actions the agency already requires for oil refineries," Bernhardt said.

Another recommendation calls on federal and state governments to end subsidies and mandates  such as one passed by the Nebraska Legislature in 2023 requiring gas stations to offer fuel blended with up to 15% ethanol  and the focus be shifted instead to solar and wind energy production.

Top Journal Star photos for June 2024
For five years, after the tribe found manganese in its water supply, the Santee Sioux Nation has been under an Environmental Protection Agency no-drink order, preventing the 800 residents of the northeast Nebraska reservation from drinking or cooking with the water that flows from their taps.

The order was implemented after the amount of manganese, a naturally occurring metal, in the tribes water supply was measured as much as 50 times higher than the level the government says is safe to drink, according to a recent story in the Journal Star by the Flatwater Free Press.

That amount of manganese in the water potentially endangers adults, especially the elderly, who can develop a Parkinsons disease-like disorder with prolonged exposure, and infants and children, who could see manganese cause lower IQs, speech and memory difficulties and a lack of coordination and movement control.

To comply with the order and get some water to the residents, the tribe is spending about $14,000 a month to have bottled water delivered to the reservation, which is 45 minutes from the nearest Walmart or Hy-Vee.

The tribe normally orders about 20 pallets every two weeks to meet the daily needs of its roughly 270 households.

For someone using it all the time, for cooking and drinking, its gone within the two weeks, said tribal vice chairman Kameron Runnels. We're supposed to be the richest country, greatest country in the history of the world. But you got people right in the middle of your state, right in the middle of the country, that can't even drink their own faucet water.

A U.S Bureau of Indian Affairs grant that offset the cost of bottled water has ended, and the U.S. Department of Interior has not responded to a tribal request for emergency support, leaving the Santee, who have spent more than $100,000 in tribal funds for the water, in an unsustainable financial position as it tries to supply water to the reservation.

The long-term solution, a $53 million project that would cross the Missouri River, connect to South Dakotas Randall Community Water District and pipe water from its treatment plant to the reservation, hasnt yet gained traction.

A 2022 bill in the Nebraska Legislature meant to deliver millions in funding to the reservation died on the floor. Lawmakers earmarked some state water funds for the tribe this spring. But much more is needed.

It is now time for Nebraskas congressional delegation, particularly 3rd District Rep. Adrian Smith, to work to attain funding for the tribe.

First, the congressman and Sens. Deb Fischer and Pete Ricketts should pressure the Interior Department to approve the emergency request and continue that outlay for bottled water until the project is completed.

Then, they should seek federal appropriations to cover the largest share of the $53 million project costs, money which should be augmented by state funds.

The Santee Sioux Nation deserves that money, as no American, no Nebraskan, should be left without drinking water.
CALEDONIA  The village board voted to award a contract to A.W. Oakes & Son for the Sundance Heights Water Main improvements project Tuesday.

The board voted unanimously at its meeting at Caledonia Village Hall, 5043 Chester Lane.

A.W. Oakes & Son submitted its bid May 23 for more than $1.4 million, according to village documents.

The project will replace the existing water main on Navajo Trail, Colorado Court, Santa Fe Trail, Western Way, Wyoming Way and Cheyenne Court, according to village documents.

The water main is aging and has had multiple breaks every winter for the past few years; the streets it covers are also on the villages paving list for 2025, according to the village.

In other business, the board:

Authorized the village to accept improvements at The Glen At Waters Edge subdivision, including the sanitary sewer, water main, storm sewer, storm water facilities and the road.
'Gun control' activists hate gun ownership. "More guns means more violence!," they shout. They'll swear up and down that guns cause crime, not deranged and violent people. They push an unending agenda to limit the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding Americans to lawfully purchase and possess firearms.

'Gun control' activists are in for some bad news: Americans have rejected their anti-gun dogma in a Florida-sized way.

Firearm industry data has revealed something astounding. In a major shift since 2020, a population the size of Florida has become first-time, brand-new gun owners. That's right  more than 22.3 million people who previously had decided firearm ownership wasn't for them looked around, decided they didn't like what they were seeing, jumped off the fence and lawfully purchased a gun at retail.

One thing's for sure. Those Americans can make a difference on Election Day. .....
This file photo taken on June 6, 2024 shows an electric car at a charging station near the European Commission building in Brussels, Belgium. [Photo/Xinhua]

The European Commission on Wednesday revealed a list of protectionist duties it would levy on imports of battery electric vehicles (EVs) from China, sparking opposition and concerns from governments and businesses across Europe.



The provisional duties envisaged by the Commission on the imports of EVs from China would range from 17.4 percent to 38.1 percent.

Hungarian Minister for National Economy Marton Nagy condemned the move as overly protectionist. He said in a statement that "protectionism is not the solution," and the Commission's decision would unfairly discriminate against Chinese manufacturers and disrupt market competition, which had been vital for the European Union (EU).

Nagy pointed out the focus of the EU should be on enhancing the global competitiveness of the European EV industry, instead of imposing punitive tariffs, since such a move would stifle competition and hinder the growth of the EU market.

Volker Wissing, Germany's federal minister for Digital and Transport, said tariffs would affect German companies and their exports. "Vehicles must become cheaper through more competition, open markets and significantly better location conditions in the EU, not through trade wars and market isolation," he said on the social media platform X.

The EU's high additional tariffs would further deviate from the goals of global cooperation and could quickly have a negative impact in the event of a trade conflict. The potential fallout originating from these measures may be greater than their potential benefits for the European -- as well as the German -- automotive industry, Hildegard Mueller, president of the German Association of the Automotive Industry, told Xinhua in a written interview.

"The fact is that we need China to solve global problems, which applies, in particular, to successfully tackling the climate crises," Mueller said, stressing China's role in the transition towards electromobility and the digitalization of the global automotive industry.

BMW CEO Oliver Zipse criticized the Commission's plan as "the wrong way to go," stating that it would damage European companies and interests. "Protectionism risks starting a spiral: Tariffs lead to new tariffs, to isolation rather than cooperation," he said.

Other major German carmakers including Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen also voiced their support for fair competition and free world trade, reported German media Handelsblatt. Europe's largest vehicle manufacturer Volkswagen rejected the planned tariffs, saying that "the negative effects of this decision outweigh any benefits for the European and especially the German automotive industry."

The Swedish government wants to know whether the European Commission has exhausted other options besides tariffs, Sweden's Minister for International Development Cooperation and Foreign Trade Johan Forssell said. "We are generally skeptical of tariffs. Someone has to pay them, and in this case, it will sooner or later be the consumers," the Swedish TT news agency cited Forssell as saying.

The multinational carmaker Stellantis, in response to the EU announcement, also expressed its position by advocating free and fair competition in a global business environment and opposing measures that lead to "the fragmentation of the world." The company said through its affordable EVs and cooperation with Chinese electric carmaker Leapmotor, it has confidence in competing with Chinese products that have price advantages.

Hrvoje Prpic, president of the Croatian Electric Vehicle Drivers Association, said the high tariffs would fail to help European industry keep up the pace of Chinese car manufacturers, and moreover, the end users in Europe would front the increased cost.

"Businesses must be open, and tariffs are not beneficial for business exchanges," said Pavol Antalic, chairman of the Slovak-Chinese Joint Business Council. Recognizing the level of cooperation with Chinese companies in developing green energy, the Slovak business leader praised China's technological advancements in developing electric cars with excellent batteries and said "local customers are very interested in Chinese EVs."

As a non-EU member state, Norway said it will not follow the EU to increase tariffs on Chinese electric cars. The country's Finance Minister Trygve Slagsvold Vedum announced the decision on Wednesday. "Introducing tariffs on Chinese cars is neither relevant nor desirable for this government," Norwegian national broadcaster NRK cited Vedum as saying.
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
Visitors learn about traditional Uygur instruments at the seventh China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Sept. 20, 2022. [Photo/Xinhua]

The 8th China-Eurasia Expo is scheduled to be held from June 26 to 30 in northwest China's Xinjiang, according to China's Ministry of Commerce (MOC).



The MOC said that the expo will cover an area of 140,000 square meters with four major exhibition zones covering investment cooperation, international exhibition, special industries, and equipment manufacturing.

The special industries exhibition zone will feature sectors such as energy, digital technology, cultural tourism, green organic fruits and vegetables, high-quality livestock products, as well as cotton and textiles. The international exhibition zone, meanwhile, focuses on the socio-economic development, investment opportunities and cooperation projects in different countries, among others, according to the MOC.

Since 2011, the China-Eurasia Expo has successfully held seven sessions yielding fruitful results. During the past expos, more than 12,200 domestic and foreign exhibitors from more than 70 countries and regions exhibited, and it attracted a total of 2.16 million visitors. The expos led to a number of exemplary cooperation achievements, promoted China-Eurasia economic and trade cooperation, and enhanced people-to-people exchanges.
Green Tea Field (Photo by Hyemin Lee)

Boseong Green Tea Farm, nestled in Jellonam-do Provinces lush hills, stands as a peaceful oasis that offers visitors a chance to escape the hustle and bustle of daily life.

The picturesque green tea field, also known as the Daehan Dawon Tea Plantation, has been listed on 31 Beautiful Sights on This Incredible Planet by CNN. Boseong County, along with Jeju Island, is South Koreas largest producer of green tea, contributing approximately 40% of the countrys green tea supply.

The therapeutic experience begins with a leisurely stroll, allowing visitors to inhale the refreshing scent of the surrounding greenery. After trekking through the tea fields and cedar forests, they can savor the flavors of sweet and refreshing green tea ice cream.

The trekking trail, which can take over an hour to explore, offers a wealth of photogenic moments. Comfortable shoes are recommended to fully enjoy the experience.

Although the best season to enjoy the greenest views and cool weather is during the month of May, the tea fields maintain their green hue throughout the year.

After green tea field adventure, visitors can stop at the Daehan Dawon Rest Area to purchase a variety of green tea-related snacks, including ice cream, jelly and cookies, as well as high-quality green tea bags. The area also offers the opportunity to participate in brewing and tea-tasting experiences.

Green Tea Field (Photo by Hyemin Lee) Tea drinking experience (Photo by Hyemin Lee) Tea drinking experience (Photo by Hyemin Lee)

-Address: 763-43 Boseong-eup Boseong-gun Jeollanam-do (Daehan Dawon Tea Plantation-Boseong Green Tea Farm)

-Hours: 9 a.m.  6 p.m. (Mar.  Oct.) / 9 a.m.  5 p.m. (Nov.  Feb.)

-Phone: 061-852-4540

-Tickets: Adults 4,000 won / Teens 3,000 won / Free for children under 6 years old
Two people are being held in the La Crosse County Jail after allegedly tossing methamphetamine from their vehicle during a May 30 high-speed chase south of Bangor.

Treagir J. Sander, 24, Monona, was charged in La Crosse County Circuit Court with felony counts of eluding an officer, possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver and possession of marijuana (second offense) and misdemeanor counts of obstructing an officer, possession of drug paraphernalia and operating after revocation.

Ashley L. Russell, 30, La Crosse, was charged with felony counts of possession of methamphetamine with intent to deliver and possession of marijuana (second offense) and misdemeanor counts of obstructing an officer and possession of drug paraphernalia.

According to the criminal complaint, police were alerted that Russell, who had multiple felony warrants, was a passenger in eastbound vehicle on Interstate 90.

Police followed the vehicle, operated by Sander, southbound onto Highway 162, where an officer activated his squad cars lights and siren. The complaint says Sander accelerated and reached a speed of nearly 100 mph while a passenger was tossing methamphetamine from the window. Police reportedly recovered some of the methamphetamine from the roadway.

Police discontinued the pursuit after 11 miles due to the hilly terrain. The complaint says Sander drove through a cornfield before he, Russell and another passenger fled the vehicle. They were apprehended a short time later at a Highway G address.

The complaint says police recovered nearly 50 grams of methamphetamine from the road and inside the vehicle. Police also reportedly found 3.8 grams of marijuana, a box of marijuana pipes and about $4,500 in cash.

Russell and Sander are both being held on $5,000 cash bonds and have calendar calls set for June 14.
You are here: China

China's Ministry of Water Resources on Wednesday activated a Level-IV emergency response to drought in eight provincial-level regions.

Since the beginning of May, low precipitation and high temperatures have led to drought across vast parts of the country, including Hebei, Shanxi, Jiangsu, Anhui, Shandong, Henan, Shaanxi and Gansu, according to the ministry.

It projects the drought is likely to linger or deteriorate over the next 10 days, urging local governments to leverage water transfer and irrigation facilities to ensure an adequate supply of water.

Also on Wednesday, the State Flood Control and Drought Relief Headquarters dispatched two working teams to Shandong and Henan -- two provinces that have been severely affected -- to provide disaster relief instruction.

The Ministry of Emergency Management has called on relevant government departments to monitor drought conditions, formulate emergency contingency plans, and strengthen guidance on agricultural techniques.
The International Forum on the History and Future of Xinjiang, China was held on Wednesday in Kashgar, northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, aiming to promote research on Xinjiang's cultural unity in diversity, and to deepen cross-cultural exchange and learning between China and the world.

Pan Yue, director of the National Ethnic Affairs Commission, delivered remarks at the forum's opening ceremony. He urged efforts to study Xinjiang based on the history of the community of the Chinese nation, and based on the pluralistic and integrated pattern of the Chinese nation, so that research can fully grasp how Xinjiang's various ethnic cultures are rooted in the Chinese civilization.

Addressing the event, Erkin Tuniyaz, chairman of the regional government of Xinjiang, noted Xinjiang's past progress in the preservation and passing down of its cultural heritage. He pledged comprehensive efforts in the future to tap into the cultural values and intellectual connotations of the region's historical and cultural heritage, engage actively in international exchange and cooperation, and break new ground on that front.

Diplomatic envoys of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan also delivered remarks at the opening ceremony, praising Xinjiang's role in their countries' cooperation with China.

During a roundtable discussion of the forum, more than 100 experts and scholars from China, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Australia, Egypt, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Mongolia, Russia, the United States and other countries exchanged views on such topics as Xinjiang's archaeology, history and development.

The forum was co-hosted by Minzu University of China, Peking University and Kashi University.
The summer has yet to arrive, but temperatures have reached record-high levels in some places, leading to school closings, wildfires and deaths.

In China, high temperatures were recorded in the north and central parts of the country. The National Meteorological Center reported temperatures as high as 42 degrees Celsius in Hebei province on Wednesday. The Chinese weather agency noted that the average temperatures from March to May were at their highest since records began in 1961.

In Mengyin County in Shandong province, local media reported that officials created artificial rain to combat an unusually severe drought this year.

India

India, the worlds most populous country, is in the middle of a long heat wave. Temperatures exceeded 50 degrees Celsius in some places in late May. The National Center for Disease Control said on June 1 that the country has recorded nearly 25,000 heat stroke cases and 56 deaths since March.

High heat was also reported through large parts of Southeast Asia in April. The heat is blamed for hundreds of deaths, damage to crops and school closures. Scientists said human-caused climate change has made heat waves hotter or more likely to happen.

Canada

Last year, Canada reported its most intense fire season. More than 6,600 fires burned 15 million hectares. That is an area about seven times larger than the yearly average.

Canadian officials said they expect summer temperatures to be higher than usual after an abnormally warm winter this year. In April, the dry conditions led forest officials to warn of another catastrophic year for fires.

Greece

In Greece, the first heatwave led officials to close the ancient Acropolis, home to the Parthenon Temple, during afternoon hours. Officials also closed schools and nurseries across the country for two days.

Temperatures were expected to reach 43 degrees Celsius, on Wednesday and Thursday. The high heat is driven by southerly winds bringing hot air and dust from North Africa.

Greece is one of the most climate-affected countries in Europe. Rising temperatures caused deadly wildfires last year. Greek scientists expect more fires this year after they reported limited rainfall and the hottest winter on record. This week, firefighters and police were watching forests from the air and land ahead of what is expected to be a windy weekend, increasing the risk of fires spreading.

Similar conditions were reported last year across much of southern Europe, including Portugal, France, Spain, and Italy where fires caused several deaths.

Im Anna Matteo.

Hai Do adapted this report for VOA Learning English from Reuters sources.

____________________________________________________

Words in This Story

artificial adj. made by people using technology or skill and not from natural causes

drought n. a severe lack of rain for an extended period

heat stroke n. when the bodys temperature is too high and organs or normal body functions begin to fail

catastrophic adj. having an extremely bad effect; disastrous

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A research group says artificial intelligence companies (AI) could run out of publicly available data for their systems in less than eight years.

Training data includes writing and information publicly available on the Internet. AI companies use the internet to train AI systems to create human-sounding writing. This training is what developers use to create large language models. Currently, many technology companies are developing large language models this way.

The nonprofit research group Epoch AI examines issues relating to AI. It has been following the development of large language models for a few years. In a recent paper, the group said technology companies will exhaust the supply of publicly available training data for AI language models between 2026 and 2032.

The teams latest paper has been reviewed by experts, or peer reviewed. It is to be presented at the International Conference on Machine Learning in Vienna, Austria, this summer. Epoch AI is linked to the research group Rethink Priorities based in San Francisco, California.

A gold rush

Researcher Tamay Besiroglu is one of the papers writers. He compared the current situation to a gold rush in which limited resources are depleted. He said the field of AI might face problems as the current speed of development uses up the current supply of human writing.

As a result, technology companies like the maker of ChatGPT, OpenAI and Google are seeking to pay for high quality data. Their goal is to ensure a flow of good material to train their systems. OpenAI has made deals with social media service Reddit and news provider News Corp. to use their material. The researchers consider this a short-term answer.

Over the long term, the group said, there will not be enough new blogs, news stories or social media writing to support the speed of AI development. That could lead companies to seek online data considered private, such as email and phone communications. They also might increasingly use AI-created data, such as chatbot content.

A bottleneck in development?

Besiroglu described the issue as a bottleneck that can prevent companies from making improvements to their AI models, a process called scaling up.

Scaling up models has been probably the most important way of expanding their capabilities and improving the quality of their output.

The Epoch AI group first made their predictions two years ago. That was weeks before the release of ChatGPT. At the time, the group said high-quality language data would be exhausted by 2026. Since then, AI researchers have developed new methods that make better use of data and that overtrain models on the same data many times. But there are limits to such methods.

While the amount of written information that is fed into AI systems has been growing, so has computing power, Epoch AI said. The parent company of Facebook, Meta Platforms, recently said the latest version of its Llama 3 model was trained on up to 15 trillion word pieces called tokens.

But whether a bottleneck in development is a concern remains the subject of debate.

Nicolas Papernot teaches computer engineering at the University of Toronto. He was not involved in the Epoch study. He said building more skilled AI systems can come from training them for specialized tasks. Papernot said he is concerned that training AI systems on AI-produced writing could lead to a situation known as model collapse.

Permission and quality

Also, internet-based services such as Reddit and the information service Wikipedia are considering how they are being used by AI models. Wikipedia has placed few restrictions on how AI companies use its articles, which are written by volunteers.

But professional writers are worried about their protected materials. Last fall, 17 writers brought a legal action against Open AI for what they called systematic theft on a mass scale. They said ChatGPT was using their materials, which are protected by copyright laws, without permission.

AI developers are concerned about the quality of what they train their systems on. Epoch AIs study noted that paying millions of humans to write for AI models is unlikely to be an economical way to improve performance.

The chief of OpenAI, Sam Altman, told a group at a United Nations event last month that his company has experimented with generating lots of synthetic data for training. He said both humans and machines produce high- and low-quality data.

Altman expressed concerns, however, about depending too heavily on synthetic data over other technical methods to improve AI models.

Thered be something very strange if the best way to train a model was to just generatesynthetic data and feed that back in, Altman said. Somehow that seems inefficient.

Im Caty Weaver.

And I'm Mario Ritter, Jr.

Matt OBrien reported this story for the Associated Press. Mario Ritter, Jr. adapted it for VOA Learning English.

Quiz - Will AI Systems Run Out of Publicly Available Data on the Internet? Start the Quiz to find out Start Quiz

_______________________________________________________

Words in This Story

exhaust v. to completely use up a resource

depleted adj. when a resource is almost used up

trajectory n. the direction that something is taking or is predicted to take

synthetic adj. created by a process that is not natural

scale n. the level of size of a thing

generate v. to create something through a process

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The apple pie called "Invisible" is a traditional French pastry. Its peculiarity is that the pie contains a lot of apple filling, but a minimal amount of dough. This makes the dessert extremely tender and melts in your mouth.

ADVERTISIMENT

Food blogger Iryna Burdiuh (irina_burdyug) shared a recipe for a French apple pie called "Invisible" on her Instagram page.

Ingredients:

apples  1 kg

eggs  2 pcs

milk  100 ml

sugar  50 g

flour  70-80 g

butter  20 g

baking powder  1 tsp

salt  a pinch

vanilla sugar

Method of preparation:

1. First, prepare the dough. To do this, beat the eggs with sugar, salt, and vanilla sugar. The mass should be light and fluffy.

2. Then add the milk and melted butter to the mixture. Mix well.

ADVERTISIMENT

3. Mix flour and baking powder. Add to the mass and mix until smooth.

4. Next, wash the apples, core them, and cut them into thin slices.

5. At this stage, mix the apples with the liquid dough.

6. Form the pie. First, you need to put the apples evenly in rows in the mold, and then pour the dough over them.

7. Bake the pie in the oven until done.
The United Nations Security Council has rejected Soviet demands for an immediate vote on a resolution condemning Israels aggression in the six-day war.

Moscow  which has close ties with Egypt  is also demanding the withdrawal of Israeli troops from Arab territories. It follows six days of fighting in which Israel has made advances on three fronts doubling the area of land it controls.

Israel says the attacks were launched to counter huge Arab troop movements along its borders

It has seized Gaza and the Sinai Peninsula from Egypt in the south and the Golan Heights from Syria in the north.

It has also pushed Jordanian forces out of the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

The advances ended with ceasefires signed as Israeli troops were poised within striking distance of each of the respective capitals, Cairo in Egypt, Damascus in Syria and Amman in Jordan.

It is not clear what action Moscow will take in the face of the UNs hesitation. The council has postponed making a decision on how to respond to the war until tomorrow at the earliest.

Israel has already declared its intention to remain in control of its newly occupied territories until permanent peace with its Arab neighbours can be established.

Israels casualties after six days of fighting are calculated at 759 dead and about 3,000 wounded, Arab casualties are far higher, about 15,000. []

The United Nations Relief and Works Agency is appealing for help to buy tents, blankets and vehicles and has also asked for medical supplies.

It says many of the refugees in Jordan are homeless for a second time  having been forced to flee the camps outside Jericho which had been their homes since the 1948 Arab-Israeli war.

The British Government is contributing towards the cost of the emergency relief, as are many Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia which is donating half a months salary per soldier in its armed forces.

Courtesy BBC News

In context

The General Assembly met again on 19 June but lengthy discussions on what action to take continued for a month until the session adjourned on 21 July and referred the matter back to the Security Council.

The Council, after long discussions, on 22 November unanimously adopted Resolution 242, which became the basis for future United Nations policymaking on the Middle East conflict.

It stated the inadmissibility of the acquisition of territory by war and called for withdrawal of Israeli armed forces from territories occupied in the recent conflict.

It also called for the acknowledgement of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of every national state in the area and their right to live in peace within secure borders.

In the meantime, the Arab nations resolved to ignore Israels call for peace. With Soviet help, they began rebuilding their armies and adopted a policy of three nays, no to peace, no to recognition of Israel and no to negotiations.

The occupied territories became the basis of the land-for-peace diplomatic concept at the heart of the 1978 Camp David accords and 1993 Oslo accords.

Israeli forces evicted Jewish settlers from the Gaza strip in August 2005 and began to demolish some settlements on the West Bank as well.

Egypt and Jordan are the only Arab nations to have made peace with Israel since 1967.
Chief Executive Ho Iat Seng has met Rita Alarcao Judice, the Minister of Justice of Portugal, to discuss promoting cooperation between the SAR and the nation in judicial, economic, and trade matters.

During the meeting at the Macau Government Headquarters, Ho noted the deep ties and friendship between Macau and Portugal, with the Portuguese language and culture being an important part of Macaus unique advantages. He expressed gratitude for Portugals support in Macaus recruitment of Portuguese judges and prosecutors.

Minister Judice, who was honored to visit Macau on the Day of Portugal and the 500th anniversary of the birth of Luis de Camoes, said the visit would further strengthen the exchange and connection between Portugal, Macau, and other Asian regions in the field of judicial affairs.

She acknowledged the wide-ranging cooperation between Portugal and Macau, including in tertiary education and the Big Health industry, and looked forward to deepening the friendly relations between Portugal and China through the Macau platform. HT
The Filipino community pulsated with pride and unity during the commemoration of the 126th Independence Day of the Philippines yesterday, which gathered compatriots from different sectors.

June 12, 1898 was the pivotal moment when the island nation made its bold move for autonomy.

Hosted by the Philippine Consulate General in Macau, led by Porfirio M. Mayo Jr, yesterday was celebration of the shared spirit of the Filipino community and their adopted home, Macau.

The Consul Generals words echoed with hope and reassurance: We want the world to see the Philippines standing proudly as a free nation. And this is the occasion where Filipinos can display and show their cultural identity.

Speaking at the reception that featured cultural performances, Mayo recalled that over the years, amidst the challenges of building a new life in a foreign land, the Filipino community had found solace and strength in their shared cultural traditions.

Tens of thousands of Filipinos have made Macau their second home, contributing significantly to the citys economy across various sectors.

For the official, the city has been a home to Filipino entrepreneurs who had built successful businesses, artists who had found new platforms to showcase their talents, and families who chose to create a chapter in their lives in the SAR.

Filipino community groups and artists are also frequently invited and called on to perform in various cultural celebrations of Macau, further adding to the vibrancy and luster of the city they have chosen as their second home.

Our growing number is indeed a testament to Macaus openness and amity towards Filipinos and other migrant workers. Many of our Filipino entrepreneurs, business owners, and professionals, some of whom are present here today, have already established roots in Macau, said Mayo.

Each one of them has their own story [] Each one is a testament to the strength and spirit of the Filipino people, he added.

Filipinos comprise the largest migrant community in Macau. Data from the government shows that by year end 2023, Macau was home to 28,800 Filipinos, a number that has far increased during these six months.

The Philippines is also a significant source of tourist arrivals for Macau, with 314,161 visitors from the Philippines recorded in 2023.

Allow me to express my profound gratitude to the government of Macau for being benevolent and gracious hosts to Filipinos living and working in this beautiful city. The consulate is able to fulfill its mandate and serve our nationals freely through the local governments steadfast support, said Mayo in his remarks.

Currently, Macau is also home to a number of different Filipino organizations in Macau amid the growing community, which the Consul General described as strong and reliable allies of the consulate general in community building and cultural promotion.

Meanwhile, at the reception, Wong Sio Chak, Secretary for Security, and representative of the Chief Executive, remarked that since the resumption of social and economic activities last year, and with the joint efforts of all walks of life, the local economy has recovered significantly and achieved good results and progress in different areas.

This includes the valuable contributions of the local Filipino community [] in different fields. We express our sincere appreciation for it, said Wong.

The official said the SAR hopes to continue the exchanges with the Philippines through the Consulate General of the Philippines in Macau and thus facilitating the sustainable development of China-Philippines relations with more and more constructive cooperation outcomes.

Apprehensions, job scams are isolated matters

The Consul General acknowledged the isolated incidents of Filipinos being apprehended but emphasized that such occurrences were exceptions. This statement comes after the recent arrest of two Filipino nationals announced by the Judiciary Police over drug-related issues.

In general, the Filipino community is peaceful and well-integrated, he asserted.

Meanwhile, rumors of unscrupulous employment agencies and job scams targeting vulnerable jobseekers had cast a shadow over the communitys well-being.

But, for Mayo, such abuses cannot be controlled by the Consulate noting that any complaints about fake employment are isolated matters, not systemic issues.

This is not something that is peculiar only to Filipinos. So weve seen it happening to all the migrant visitors here in Macau, he adds.

The Consul General urged victims of such abuses to file complaints, acknowledging that this was primarily a matter for law enforcement.

The communitys growth in recent years brought both opportunities and responsibilities.

Were regaining the numbers we lost during the pandemic, the Consul General said with pride. Were almost back to the 33,000 Filipinos we had pre-pandemic.

To cope with the demand, the Consulate has improved facilities at its office and particularly the migrant workers office from the Department of Migrant Workers. Mayo said they will be increasing their personnel to cope with the demand for consular and labor services. LV


Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell yesterday predicted the final obstacle for exports to China, Beijings ban on live lobster imports, will be lifted soon after Chinese Premier Li Qiang visits the country.

The return of lobsters to the Chinese market would be a milestone in the Australian governments ambition to stabilize bilateral relations since coming to power in 2022.

China banned minister-to-minister communications with Australia and imposed a series of official and unofficial trade barriers in 2020 on Australian products including beef, barley, coal, wood and wine costing exporters 20 billion Australian dollars ($13 billion) a year.

Bilateral relations plumbed new lows after a previous Australian government demanded an independent investigation into the causes of and Chinas responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Farrell said Li becoming the first Chinese premier to visit Australia in seven years on Saturday would remove the final trade barrier on lobsters.

I think theres both the willingness on our part and the part of the Chinese government to remove all of the impediments in our relationship, Farrell told reporters.

Lobster is the one remaining banned product, said Farrell, China lifted tariffs on Australian wine in March and restrictions on Australian beef in December 2023.

Id be very confident that the visit this week will result in a very successful outcome for lobster producers, Farrell added.

Li will be accompanied by Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao when he visits the Australian cities of Adelaide, Canberra and Perth from Saturday until Tuesday next week.

Farrell said every meeting he had held with Wang since the center-left Labor Party replaced the conservative government in 2022 had progressed the trade relationship.

Im very confident that not only will we remove all of the remaining trade impediments, but that we can actually continue to build on our trading relationship with China, Farrell said.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese, who in November became the first Australian government leader to visit Beijing in seven years, said Lis visit was symbolic of the normalization of relations since the current government was elected.

That has been important for Australia to renew that trade, because one in four of Australian jobs relies upon trade, and one in four of Australian export dollars is from trade to China, Albanese said.

Farrell was speaking at Wirra Wirra Vineyard in South Australia state which celebrated its 130th anniversary as a winery yesterday.

Since China removed the tariffs in April, AU$86 million ($57 million) of wine had been exported to what was once the largest export market for Australian vineries, Farrell said. MDT/AP
The European Unions High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Harvey Rouse, will replace Thomas Gnocchi as Head of the Office of the European Union to Hong Kong and Macao. Before his current position, Rouse was Head of the Trade & Economic Section at the EU Delegation to Indonesia/Brunei Darussalam, as well as the EU Delegation to ASEAN. Thomas Gnocchi, who has served as Head of the EU Office to Hong Kong and Macau since September 2020, has been appointed Deputy Head of the EU Delegation to Japan. Gnocchi will now be heading to Tokyo to take up his new diplomatic post.

Related
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un hailed the countrys expanding relationship with Russia yesterday, as reports suggest that Russian President Vladimir Putin will soon visit the country for his third meeting with Kim.

Military, economic and other cooperation between North Korea and Russia have sharply increased since Kim visited Russia last September for a meeting with Putin. The U.S., South Korea and their partners believe North Korea has supplied artillery, missiles and other conventional weapons to Russia to support its war in Ukraine in return for advanced military technologies and economic aid.

Kim has been pushing to boost partnerships with Russia and China in a bid to strength his regional footing and launch a united front against the United States.

During their September meeting at Russias main space launch site, Kim invited the Russian president to visit North Korea at a convenient time, and Putin accepted.

Kim sent Putin a message congratulating Russia on its National Day, according to the Norths official Korean Central News Agency.

Thanks to the significant meeting between us at the Vostochney Spaceport in September last year, (North Korea)-Russia friendly and cooperative relations developed into an unbreakable relationship of comrades-in-arms, Kim said in the message.

Kims comments came as media reports said Putin is expected to visit North Korea as early as next week. If realized, it would their third summit meeting. Their first summit happened in Vladivostok in April 2019.

Japanese public broadcaster NHK, citing unidentified diplomatic sources including high-ranking Russian officials, reported yesterday that Putin is preparing to visit North Korea and Vietnam next week.

NHK said Putin is expected to seek stronger military ties with North Korea as Russia faces a shortage of weapons in its war with Ukraine, while North Korea is believed to want help with space technology in the wake of its recent failure to put a second spy satellite in orbit in late May.

Russian business daily Vedomosti, citing an unidentified diplomatic source, said Monday that Putin will visit North Korea and Vietnam in the coming weeks. The report quoted Russias ambassador in North Korea, Alexander Matsegora, as saying that preparations for Putins visit to North Korea were underway.

Neither Russia nor North Korea have confirmed reports of a planned trip. Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told a briefing in late May that the visit is in the pipeline, and we will make an announcement in due time, according to Russian news agency Tass.

Russia and North Korea are locked in separate confrontations with the United States  Russia over its invasion of Ukraine and North Korea over its advancing nuclear program. Both North Korea and Russia have denied allegations of arms transfers, which would be a violation of multiple U.N. Security Council resolutions.

In March, South Korean Defense Minister Shin Wonsik said North Korea had already shipped about 7,000 containers filled with munitions and other military equipment to Russia. In return, Shin said that North Korea had received more than 9,000 Russian containers likely filled with aid.

Recently, tensions on the Korean Peninsula have risen again as North Korea launched trash-carrying balloons toward South Korea, prompting the South to resume propaganda broadcasts at border areas. HYUNG-JIN KIM, SEOUL, MDT/AP
Chinese Premier Li Qiang has signed a State Council decree, introducing regulations for fair competition reviews.

From Aug. 1, administrative agencies and organizations legally authorized to manage public affairs must conduct fair competition reviews when formulating laws, rules and policies related to business activities, according to the regulations.

While allocating duties to both central and local government departments, the regulations outline specific standards for fair competition reviews. For instance, relevant contents that could restrict market entry or exit, the free flow of goods and business operations should not be contained in new policy measures.

The regulations also stress that stakeholders and public opinions should be taken into account during reviews to safeguard their interests.

In its new development paradigm, China prioritizes the establishment of a unified national market characterized by high efficiency, standardization, openness, and fair competition.

The Chinese government has pledged to eliminate regulations and practices that impede a unified market, ensure that all types of enterprises can participate in fair competition, and better protect the legitimate rights and interests of all business entities.
Government support for companies in the metaverse industry was not a direct investment but support paid through the Science and Technology Development Fund (FDCT), the Secretary for Economy and Finance, Lei Wai Nong, said in response to lawmaker Jose Pereira Coutinho.

It also supported the establishment of new companies and assisted the research of companies with headquarters in the cooperation zone in Hengqin.

Lei was participating in a Q&A session with lawmakers at the Legislative Assembly (AL), discussing economy-related matters.

He further explained, [the development of] metaverse is our direction, but we need to pass through different chapters. We have been making efforts to create companies and participating in the creation of joint labs. We have been supporting companies mostly on investigation and research and now we are opening another lane for the research of new technologies.

The government did not invest millions or billions in the metaverse but, instead, and through the FDCT, we paid support to companies to base themselves in Macau and to create jobs. This is the support the FDCT is providing, it is not a direct investment [in the companies], he said.

Lei also said that, for the time being, At least four Macau companies have already managed to get funding and they count on the FDCTs support for their continued market.

Pereira Coutinho had earlier accused the government of spending millions of patacas in the metaverse industry without any guarantees of a return or any benefits.
The Chinese government said yesterday that a Chinese man who sailed a small boat into a strategic river mouth in Taiwan was acting on his own and would be punished after his return to China.

Taiwanese authorities have detained the man, who has been identified as a 60-year-old former Chinese naval officer surnamed Ruan, according to Taiwans official Central News Agency. His reported military background raised suspicion that the voyage might have been an attempt by China to test Taiwans detection and defense capabilities.

This is purely his personal behavior, said Chen Binhua, the spokesperson for Chinas Taiwan Affairs Office.

The authorities from Taiwans ruling Democratic Progressive Party do not need to be paranoid, make a fuss and engage in political manipulation, Chen said in response to a question at a news conference.

The small boat was detected off Taiwans coast on Sunday but apparently was not interdicted until it began interfering with ferry traffic across the Tamsui River, which leads to the capital, Taipei, and flows into the 160-kilometer-wide strait that separates Taiwan and the Mainland.

The Taiwan Strait is a key transit point for global commerce but is also known for its winds and tides, raising speculation over whether the small boat made it on its own from the Chinese coast or was launched from a larger vessel.

Transport links have been restored between the sides over the past two decades, but Chinas ruling Communist Party keeps tight restrictions on where serving and retired officials can travel. MDT/AP
Muslim pilgrims have been streaming into Saudi Arabias holy city of Mecca ahead of the start of the Hajj later this week, as the annual pilgrimage returns to its monumental scale.

Saudi officials say more than 1.5 million foreign pilgrims have arrived in the country yesterday [Macau time] y, the vast majority by air, from across the world. More are expected, and hundreds of thousands of Saudis and others living in Saudi Arabia will also join them when the pilgrimage officially begins on Friday.

Saudi officials have said they expect the number of pilgrims this year to exceed 2023, when more than 1.8 million people performed Hajj, approaching pre-pandemic levels. In 2019, more than 2.4 million Muslims made the pilgrimage. Saudi authorities control the flow of pilgrims through quotas, allowing each country one pilgrim for every thousand Muslim citizens.

The pilgrims included 4,200 Palestinians from the occupied West Bank who arrived in Mecca earlier this month, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs. Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were not able to travel to Saudi Arabia for Hajj this year, because of the 8-month war between Israel and Hamas.

We are praying for Palestine to be free and (for Palestinians) to liberate their land and to be like other nations, to live in peace and not always to have war, said Ibrahim al-Hadhari, an Algerian pilgrim, as he was standing in the Grand Mosque court waiting for evening prayers.

Yesterday, pilgrims thronged the Grand Mosque in Mecca, performing a ritual circuit walking seven times around the Kaaba, the cube-shaped structure inside the mosque that is considered Islams holiest site. They wore ihrams, two unstitched sheets of white cloth that resemble a shroud.

Many were seen carrying umbrellas against the sun, in temperatures reaching 42 degrees Celsius (107 Fahrenheit) during the day on Tuesday.

I was relieved when I arrived at the Al-Masjid Al-Haram and saw the Kaaba, said Rabeia al-Raghi, a Moroccan woman who came to Mecca for Hajj along with her husband and their daughter. I am very happy.

Mohammad Abdel-Baset, an Iraqi pilgrim, said he was overjoyed to perform Hajj.

We congratulate the great crowd and thank God for gathering us from all regions, globally and not from the Arab world only, from all the global Muslim regions (who) came to the Grand Mosque, said Abdel-Baset, a lawyer from Baghdad.

At night, the vast marble court around the Kaaba was packed with the faithful, walking nearly shoulder to shoulder and often jostling with barricades set up by security forces to direct the giant flows of people in and around the Grand Mosque.

Pilgrims do the circumambulation, known as Tawaf in Arabic, upon arriving in Mecca. The large crowds circling the Kaaba will last into the Hajjs first day.

On Friday, pilgrims will move to the Mountain of Arafat for a daylong vigil, then to Muzdalifah, a rocky plain area a few miles away. In Muzdalifa, pilgrims collect pebbles to be used in the symbolic stoning of pillars representing the devil back in Mina.

One of the worlds largest religious gatherings, the Hajj is one of the Five Pillars of Islam. All Muslims are required to undertake it at least once in their lives if they are physically and financially able to do so.

Those in the Hajj view the pilgrimage as an opportunity to strengthen their faith, wipe out old sins and start new. SAMY MAGDY, MECCA, MDT/AP
Portugals Minister of Education, Science, and Innovation has notified the management of the Portuguese School of Macau (EPM) he will not provide additional teachers to replace those who may be laid off in the future. Responding to Hoje Macau, the minister, Fernando Alexandre, also said there was a new request for information about the wave of layoffs. Recently, the director of the Portuguese School of Macau was asked for clarifications amid the controversial layoffs that made waves in the SAR. Furthermore, due to the shortage of teachers in Portugal, the Ministry has already stated that teachers will not be made available to replace any teachers that the school management may dismiss, it was added, according to the same report.

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A powerful Japanese business lobby is calling on the government to allow married couples to keep dual surnames, saying the lack of freedom to do so hinders womens advancement and has even become a business risk.

In Japan, each wedded pair has to legally adopt one family name. While either surname can be used, 95% of women still traditionally adopt their husbands, according to a 2022 government survey. Experts say such law only exists in Japan and have even accused it of putting women off marriage in a country already suffering dwindling nuptials.

Keidanren, or The Japan Business Federation, said Monday the law has to be revised to fit a more diverse, equal and inclusive Japanese society.

This came months after about a dozen plaintiffs filed a lawsuit asking for the system to be changed.

As women play more active roles and the number of female executives is on the rise, the surname issue has become a business risk that companies can no longer dismiss as a problem of certain individuals, said Masakazu Tokura, head of Keidanren.

Tokura said many Japanese career women are already using their maiden names at work and on their business cards, including 90% of Keidanren female members. However, they still have to use their unified surnames on all legal documents, causing them issues when  for example  opening bank accounts, issuing credit cards, and traveling overseas as the names dont match, he said.

Keidanren internally surveyed its members and 88% of female executives expressed dissatisfaction with the status quo.

The proposal by the organization  which boasts over 1,500 Japanese companies and has regularly made economic policy recommendations  is seen as unusual for it has customarily supported Prime Minister Fumio Kishidas conservative governing Liberal Democratic Party that has shelved the dual surname idea for over three decades.

Tokura says the proposal will be submitted to the government next week following approval by the lobbys board meeting. They also called on the parliament to swiftly support a change in the 1898 civil code which governs the adoption of surnames.

However, several surveys show the vast majority support a dual-surname household, and the ruling LDP, which also opposes same-sex marriage, is already facing growing calls to allow more diversity in family values and marriage. Many in the party support traditional gender roles and a paternalistic family system, arguing that allowing the dual-surname option would destroy family unity.

In 2015 and 2021, the Supreme Court found said the one-surname-only policy wasnt unconstitutional but urged parliament to discuss the issue. But deliberations have stalled due to opposition by the governing party conservatives.

Akari Takahashi, a 22-year-old wedding planner, said she never questioned adopting her fathers surname until she traveled to Australia and her host mother expressed discontent with the idea of a unified family name.

Thats when I realized something was wrong with it, Takahashi said, adding she couldnt imagine having to make such a choice.

The rights gap between men and women in Japan is among the worlds largest with Japan ranking 125th in a 146-nation survey by the World Economic Forum for 2023. MARI YAMAGUCHI, TOKYO, MDT/AP
Tally! two poll workers called out in the Twin Falls County elections office on Tuesday.

Two Republican candidates for precinct committeeman, Lisa Gauger of Kimberly precinct 2 and Dan Lewin of Twin Falls precinct 3, requested a recount after official election results showed they lost by a small margin  three votes and one vote, respectively.

Their opponents, Stephanie Snarr and Linda Gooden, were also in attendance as poll workers hand counted 100 votes, marking every fifth ballot with a sheet of green paper.

Gooding prosecuting attorney Trevor Misseldine stepped in for Grant Loebs to oversee the counts and answer questions. Kristina Glascock, county clerk, ensured that everyone followed instructions, and Guillermo Velasco, elections director for the Secretary of States office, also oversaw the recount.

Once the first 100 votes were counted, both results reflected a 54-46 result. In Kimberly, the voting majority went to Gauger, and in Twin Falls, the votes went to Lewin.

Valarie Varadi, Twin Falls County elections director, and IT technician Brian Stephenson fed the votes into the machine and checked the poll workers results. When the first 100 were verified, the machine counted the remainder of the votes to assess any counting errors.

The recounts of both races reported the same results as election night. Stephanie Snarr won the precinct committeeman position in Kimberly with 167 votes to Gaugers 164, and Linda Gooden won in Twin Falls with 65 votes to Lewins 64.

Snarr told the Times-News that the recount can encourage voters confidence. She says that the voters who were able to watch the recounting process saw the lengths the county goes to ensure ballot security.

This process shows that from the top to the bottom, (the county) is doing everything right, she said.

We test the machines thoroughly and we make sure that what we run through the machines match our hand samples. Thats being done throughout the entire state, Velasco said when asked about ballot security.

The counties are working tirelessly to ensure that people have trust in these machines, and we saw that today.

Both Gauger and Lewin felt good about the results, and thanked the county for their dedication for taking the time to verify the results.

I feel great, they did a great job, and it was very educational learning about all of this, Gauger said.

As their candidacy begins, Snarr and Gooden plan to activate the precinct and educate their constituents.

A lot of people in my precinct dont know anything about what a precinct is or what a precinct committeeman does, Gooden said, and I want to change that.

Snarr hopes to ensure that the precinct committeeman collaborate with each other to support the GOP. Additionally, she hopes to increase the engagement of younger community members through community outreach and events.

These are our neighbors, she said. We have to communicate and work together.

PHOTOS: Kimberly 2 and Twin Falls 3 hold recount for committeemen Close Candidate Dan Lewin watches the ballot count on Tuesday during a recount for committeemen races at the County West Election Counting room in Twin Falls. Lewin lost the Twin Falls 3 position with 64 votes to Linda Gooden's 65. The results were the same as Election Day. Kimberly 2 check-in clerk Sarha Berry tallies votes Tuesday, June 11, 2024, during a recount for committeemen races at the County West Election Counting room in Twin Falls. The contested races were for Kimberly Precinct 2 and Twin Falls Precinct 3. Chief Deputy Clerk Jame Archibald organizes ballots Tuesday, June 11, 2024, during a recount for committeemen races at the County West Election Counting room in Twin Falls. The contested races were for Kimberly Precinct 2 and Twin Falls Precinct 3. Test ballots run through a counting machine Tuesday, June 11, 2024, during a recount for committeemen races at the County West Election Counting room in Twin Falls. The contested races were for Kimberly Precinct 2 and Twin Falls Precinct 3. Precinct Committeeman Stephanie Snarr speaks with candidate Lisa Gauger on Tuesday, June 11, 2024, during a recount for committeemen races at the County West Election Counting room in Twin Falls. Snarr won the Kimberly 2 position with 167 votes, over Gauger's 164. The results were the same as Election Day. Clerk of the District Court Kristina Glascock organizes ballots Tuesday, June 11, 2024, during a recount for committeemen races at the County West Election Counting room in Twin Falls. The contested races were for Kimberly Precinct 2 and Twin Falls Precinct 3. A cream for finger moisture is seen Tuesday, June 11, 2024, during a recount for committeemen races at the County West Election Counting room in Twin Falls. The contested races were for Kimberly Precinct 2 and Twin Falls Precinct 3. IT worker Brian Stephenson, left, and Elections Director Valerie Varadi run a test count Tuesday, June 11, 2024, during a recount for committeemen races at the County West Election Counting room in Twin Falls. The contested races were for Kimberly Precinct 2 and Twin Falls Precinct 3. Precinct Committeeman Stephanie Snarr watches the ballot count Tuesday, June 11, 2024, during a recount for committeemen races at the County West Election Counting room in Twin Falls. Snarr won the Kimberly 2 position with 167 votes, over Lisa Gauger's 164. The results were the same as Election Day. +8 +8 +8 +8 +8 +8 +8 +8 +8 +8

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At least 11 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) were affected in a fire that broke out in a residential building in Mangaf, a coastal city south of the Kuwait capital, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) announced on Thursday.

In a report sent to DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac, the Migrant Workers Office (MWO) in Kuwait said three of the 11 OFWs are safe and accounted for; three were in the hospital recovering from injuriestwo of whom were under intensive care. The status of the other five OFWs is still being verified.

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Cacdac instructed MWO-Kuwait to stay in touch with hospital authorities until they can fully ascertain the status of the five unaccounted OFWs.

He also directed the same unit as well as the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Welfare Office in Kuwait to attend to the immediate needs of the six OFWs.

The fire was reported at 4:30 a.m. on Wednesday, June 12, 2024. As of late last night, Kuwaits Interior Ministry announced that at least 49 people died from the fire with scores injured.

The building reportedly housed nearly 200 foreign workers, according to a report by Agence France Presse (AFP).

The official Kuwait News Agency quoted Health Minister Ahmed al-Awadhi as saying hospitals had received 56 people injured in the fire in the Mangaf area, which is heavily populated with migrant laborers.

Oil-rich Kuwait has large numbers of foreign workers, many of them from South and Southeast Asia, and mostly working in construction or service industries.

A source in the fire department said the victims suffocated from rising smoke after the fire started at the buildings base.

The DMW said its MWO, in coordination with the Philippine Embassy in Kuwait, will continue monitoring the situation and give updates to the head office as necessary.